Sassy's Note: Dum de dum… trudging right along here, aren't we? Welcome home, Kairi:D

The World's Heart

Riku had to be carried out of the ruins. It took more resolve than he had ever had before to turn away from that tomb once he knew what was in there. Still, just knowing made him physically ill, and once or twice on the way out, Leon had to stop in order for the teen to heave. The man was gentle and patient with him, and had Riku been more aware of his surroundings, he may have been surprised at Leon's demeanor.

They had to fight their way out again. Past the ruins gate, the Heartless waited for them. Leon didn't try to put Riku down; instead, he held the boy closer to his chest and ran through the Heartless while the others gave them just enough time to reach the doorway again. There, Leon went through first with Riku, then Mickey, Cloud, Goofy, and Donald shoved it closed behind them. They were out of breath and a bit scratched up, but they were all relatively unharmed. So to speak…

Riku knew it must have been hard for Leon to go through that small tunnel carrying the teen, but he never put Riku down. Riku didn't think he could stand, anyway. They were all silent as they emerged from the overgrown tunnel and emerged out onto the island. It was then that it began to rain. The chilling drops were accompanied by winds that churned the ocean and made it choppier than ever. The boat ride back would be a bit of a tough one.

They managed, though. Cloud and Leon rowed in the front and back while the others huddled together in the middle. Riku just stared at the wooden bottom of the boat. Try as he might to think of something else, he couldn't get that horrible, horrible image of what lay in the tomb out of his mind. He gasped for breath and fought not to start dry heaving again.

King Mickey rubbed his back comfortingly. His brows were drawn together, and Riku knew that wasn't a good sign. If the King couldn't do anything, then they had no hope getting Sora back. Riku didn't know if they could even find out what had happened to Sora.

Sure, he'd been acting odd a few days before he went missing – quieter and more reserved. He stared off in the distance and zoned out a lot. Riku had wondered if he felt sick or was just missing Kairi, or even if he was still worried about that door…

Riku had to think… what if Sora, in a determined state of mind, had set out for the island to investigate the door by himself? If he actually had managed to move the door by himself and gotten captured by those Heartless…

It still didn't make any sense. For one, Sora wouldn't go investigate on his own. Sora did not function that way. He knew the value of working together, and he always used it to his advantage. For another, Sora could have handled those Heartless. Sure, they were tough, but Sora was tougher. So how did this happen?

Riku wished someone had the answers because he certainly didn't have them.

"Look harder."

He really wished that goddamned voice would go away too.

---

As they approached the mainland, Riku noticed the people standing by the dock waiting. Yuffie and Aerith, huddled together from the cold rain, were closest. To their right were Cid, Reno, and Rude. Not too far away were Tidus, Wakka, and Selphie; and just behind them was Ileana. Oh god… how were they going to tell her…?

The boat hit the dock, and Leon immediately sprung out to tie it to the posts. Silently, they all clambered out. Cloud offered Riku support, but by now his legs were working enough again that he managed fairly well on his own. Still, the blond kept close to him.

The others stared at them, waiting for one of them to offer explanation first. It seemed to occur to them all at once that Sora was not with them.

"I think I speak for everyone when I ask what tha' fuck is goin' on?" Reno asked, angrily chewing on the end of a doused cigarette. The redhead was twitchy; he was like that when he was upset. He always had been fond of Sora.

"You found something, didn't you?" Aerith asked quietly. "You're all too upset not to have seen something."

Leon shook his head. "Not out here…" His grey eyes fell on Ileana, who was shivering in the cold, but her eyes were trained on the island. Riku wanted to start crying again.

She knew.

It was actually Riku who started walking first. He approached Ileana and drew her into a hug. He felt her shudder, then heard her sob as she buried her head into his shoulder. He shuddered too, but held himself upright and steady. He'd let his grief out. Now it was her turn. He had to be strong for her.

Riku would look back at those few following hours and be slightly surprised at himself. He took charge of things completely. He rallied everyone back to the house, supported Ileana along the way, and managed to keep his calm all the while. It was as if the first shock was over.

And when they were all sat down, everyone looked at Riku, who cast his eyes downward. He couldn't even think of what to say first or how to even say it. It was Ileana who spoke up first.

"What was behind the door, Riku?" she asked, wiping at her eyes.

"Heartless," he said at last. "A lot of… Heartless."

"And not your usual Heartless, either," said King Mickey. "I've never seen a type like them before."

"Ya think maybe they done evolved or somethin'? Cid asked, nervously gnawing on the toothpick in the side of his mouth.

"Possibly, but… continue, Riku," said the King, settling back down.

Riku brushed his hair out of his eyes. "There were Heartless, and there were all these ruins, and most of them I'd never seen before. It was like a mixture of different characters and symbols for different languages. The ones that I could read were strange, like 'prince' and 'key' and 'sleep.'" He paused for a moment to let the others digest that information. Maybe they were on the same train of thought he was.

"The ruins opened when I used my Keyblade. Inside… it was all overgrown, and then there was… a tomb." He bit his lip, stomach churning again.

Aerith gasped, and as soon as she did, it clicked in everyone's minds. Riku could see it in their eyes.

"Sora…" Ileana said, voice shuddering and horrified. "Sora's… dead?"

And in an irony Riku would never forgive, the front door burst open at that moment.

"Sora! Riku! Ileana! I'm back!"

Kairi had come home.

---

"Hey, Riku! Guess what! Kairi'll be home in a week!"

"Yes, Sora, I'm quite aware." The brunette grinned at him. He flopped down on the floor beside his friend's chair.

"It'll be great to have her back. God, I miss her."

"I think the whole island does," said Riku, with a small smile himself. "Destiny Islands isn't quite as bright."

"Well, it's not so bright right now," Sora laughed, looking out the window. It was raining. Again. Riku wasn't very fond of this time of year.

"Doesn't the rain just make you wanna run outside and play in it?" the younger teen asked idly.

"Actually, the rain makes me want to stay inside where it's dry."

"You live on an island! You should be used to being wet."

"I am," said Riku patiently. "But when I am walking down the street – away from the ocean – I like to be dry."

Sora grinned mischievously. "I bet you'd like snow."

"Snow?"

"Yeah. Ever seen any in person?"

"Well… uhm… no."

Sora sprung to his feet and leaned over Riku. "Great! I'll have to take you somewhere to see it! It's so cool! Like water, but all solid and fluffy and stuff!"

"And what makes you think I'd like fluffy water better than liquid water?"

"Cause everyone loves snow!"

"… Sora?"

"Yes?"

"Personal space, please."

"Oh… heh, sorry." He fell back on his heels and rubbed the back of his neck. "I got excited."

"I noticed." Riku shook his head with a wry grin. Sora never changed.

"I mean it, though," said Sora. "I'll take you to see real snow someday."

"Sure you will."

"I will! We'll take a trip… soon."

"I'll be looking forward to it," Riku said in monotone.

"…me too…" Sora's voice had gone quiet. Riku glanced at him. His eyes were closed.

"Sora? You feel alright?"

"Yeah." His blue eyes fluttered open. "Hey, I'm thirsty. Let's make smoothies!" He ran off into the kitchen.

"Oh god… Sora, don't touch the blender until I get in there!"

---

Riku's mouth went dry. What was he going to tell Kairi? Her footsteps echoed across the wooden floor of the foyer.

"Sora? Ileana?"

Sora's mother hid her face with her hands, another sob wracking her body. Everyone else looked at Riku, as if he could do anything about the situation. He grimaced and with a pained voice called, "Kairi."

"Riku! I didn't think you were here!" Kairi appeared in the doorway. She stopped, though, when she saw everyone. "Oh, hey guys. What u-" Then her eyes fell on Ileana, and she turned, horrified, to Riku. "Oh god, what happened?"

"Kairi, sit down," said Riku, forcing himself to stay calm.

"No! Tell me what's wrong!"

"Kairi, please, you need to sit-"

"And where's Sora!?"

King Mickey raised his voice. "Kairi!" She looked at him, trembling. "Please. Do as Riku says." With a nervous nod, she slid down into the seat beside Riku. She clutched at his hand, tears welling in her own eyes.

"Please, Riku, what's going on?"

He took a deep breath, heart pounding against his chest and in his own ears.

"Something… happened with Sora. He's… gone."

"Gone? Like, missing?" She clutched his hand tighter.

"Kairi… he's dead."

---

Sora lay back on the couch, eyes half closed. Riku was sure he was two seconds from falling asleep. He glanced at the clock; it was pretty late, and Sora was one of those early-to-bed-early-to-rise kind of people. He didn't know how the brunette lived with himself.

"He will sleep."

Riku jumped in alarm and sent the remote control to the TV flying across the room. It skipped across the wooden floor until it hit the wall with a loud bang, causing Sora to jump as well and ultimately end up on the floor.

"ACK! What the hell, Riku?"Sora demanded, fumbling around at the edge of the couch.

"Sorry! Sorry!" The silver-haired teen darted across the room to retrieve the remote.

"What? Did you see a spider you just didn't want to get up to kill?" The other rubbed his butt as he got to his feet.

"No. I heard something and it… startled me."

"No kidding." Sora looked at the clock. "I'm going to bed. See you in the morning."

"Yeah. See you." Riku watched Sora disappear up the stairs, discontented. He had to be losing his mind.

"Watch closely now."

Riku stood up angrily. That was it. He was going to bed.

---

Kairi stared at him blankly for a long beat, then said simply, "No."

Riku winced. He'd been expecting that. "I'm sorry, Kai, but it's true…" His voice was shaking, and he felt slightly sick again.

"No, he's not. He's fine. He's Sora. Sora's always okay." Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Reno look away from the girl, eyes downcast.

"Kai, please listen. Something's been going on, and it's not normal."

"But he's not dead!" Kairi flung herself away from Riku. She stumbled backward. "Sora's not dead!"

"Kairi!" Riku rose as well. She looked wild, eyes wide and face wet.

"HE'S NOT DEAD! HE'S NOT!!"

Leon made as to move forward, but Cloud caught him. Riku just stepped in front of them.

"Kairi! You need to listen to-"

"SORA'S FINE!!"

"Something's wrong, Kairi! This wasn't a normal death!"

"HE'S NOT DEAD!!"

"Something did it to him! Something evil!"

"SORA!!"

"His body's in a tomb on the play island! There's something up with that door!"

"SORA!!"

"Kairi! Calm down!"

"HOW DO YOU KNOW SOMETHING GOT HIM!?"

"Because what was in that tomb was not normal!" Riku bellowed.

The room went silent. Kairi stared at him, tear-stained face stunned.

"W-what?" she asked softly. Riku took in a deep breath.

"What was in the tomb… was not the result of three days decomposition," he said slowly. "It was more like thirty years."

"What do you mean?" Rude asked, bringing Riku back to the realization that others were with them.

"It… It wasn't even really his… his body." He glanced around the room. "It was more of… a mummified skeleton."

"Oh my god…"

To becontinued…

Sassy: Wow, I'm a morbid and disturbing person. This chapter was supposed to be a lot longer, but this looked like a fine place to cut it off.

So tell me what you think so far.