AN: I have given up on trying to keep the landscape of Arendelle canon. I'm just doing whatever with directions and locations.
So, I started making a day-by-day outline for this, since I've been writing each chapter as a day so far. I only have part of the next day planned out so far. Oh no! You want to know why? Because I realized that I haven't figured out an ending to this fic yet, so I don't know how to time the M-rated scene that is coming or its paired scenes. I also am not sure how long to keep them in Arendelle which means I don't know when to have them find the keyhole. Gaw!
Anyway, I'm working on it. I have planned more of this in the last few days then since I started. I think that's a good sign.
Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts, Frozen, or their characters.
They awoke to the sound of knocking coming from the door. Roxas stood, groggily searching for clothing before glancing at the mirror and remembering that he hadn't bothered to change last night.
"Morning," Anna said waving when he opened the door.
"Don't you have servants for this type of thing?" he asked raising an eyebrow.
"Yes, well, yes we do, but I've been bored for so much of my life that I like doing stuff like this. Is it weird? Am I weird?"
"No!" he exclaimed reassuringly. "I am kind of similar. See, before sharing this body with Sora, I wasn't really real. Uh, I'll wait to explain that. So, now that I have the opportunity to really experience things I want to do even the most mundane things."
"Hmm…well I'm glad that you can experience things."
"You are taking this surprisingly well."
"I grew up with Elsa. I'm used to the abnormal."
They began walking toward the stairwell. "What is the deal with her, if you don't mind me asking?"
"She was born with it. No one really knows how, but she was."
"I see."
They descended the stairs, made a left and entered into a grand dining room. Seated at the head was Elsa, to her right a blond man with a largish nose but friendly face, and to his right sat Olaf.
"Good morning," Anna announced walking straight to the seat to Elsa's left.
"Hi," Roxas said a bit hesitantly as he followed Anna's lead, taking the seat to her left.
"You stayed. Well, that is good," Olaf said smiling before digging back into his pancakes.
"Elsa mentioned you. I'm Kristoff-"
"Anna's fiancé," Elsa cut in.
"Yeah, Anna's fiancé." He extended his hand which Roxas accepted.
"Did you sleep well?" Elsa asked courteously.
"Uh, yes. You?"
"I slept fine. Would you like to tell us about your situation?"
"As Sora explained last night, there are creatures called Heartless. They search for hearts. If you lose yours you become a Nobody. I am Sora's Nobody."
"You lost your heart?" Anna asked in disbelief.
"For only a short time. Sora is…different in a lot of ways."
The table settled into a silence as they ate which remained unbroken until Anna tried coxing her sister into using more syrup. Elsa paid her little mind instead asking Kristoff about their wedding arrangements. Even though the conversation was centered on her, Anna seemed disinterested, instead trying to steer it in other directions. Kristoff talked about invitations, guest lists, and food options, but Anna's attention remained on Elsa the entire time.
Sora noted the oddity of the scene, but Roxas wondered if there wasn't some larger meaning to it. The sisters appeared to get along well, but there was a tension about them as well. And this tension had to do with the wedding.
"Thank you for the food. It was lovely. We should probably set out on searching for the keyhole. Do you have any idea where we might begin a search?"
Kristoff's face light up. "My family are experts in various things. They might know, or at least who else might."
"Does your family live here in the city?"
"No. They live about a day's walk from here. I'd take you, but there are wedding arrangements to be made."
"I understand. Do you have a map?"
"Yes, I do." He fished into a bag that had been hanging on the back of his chair. "Here, just follow that mountain, and you should be fine."
They thanked Kristoff and took their leave. Roxas marched back to their room in order to gather some supplies, namely food. Once the pack had been arranged, Sora spoke for the first time that day. Let me take over.
"Why?"
We might get attacked, and I am supposed to be training, you know. Besides, you don't like fighting, right?
"I don't." The words held resentment.
Sora could understand its cause. The only fighting Roxas had participated in had either been for Darkness or had hurt himself and those he cared about. Sora wondered what he'd be like if he had gone through the same things Roxas had. Perhaps the probability that that life could easily have been his own was what drove him to comfort Roxas. He didn't know what to say that would comfort him, so instead he just replied, I see. It's okay. You don't need to fight. I'm the future you invested in. I'm not planning on letting you down.
"You won't. You're a hero."
You are too.
"No, I'm not! All I do is fail. I failed Axel. I failed Xion. I failed those kids."
Why did you want to fight yesterday?
Roxas started at the pitiful expression reflected in the mirror. "I wanted to be the hero for once."
Roxas. The thought was soothing, comforting. You already are.
"How? What have I ever done worth mentioning?" Roxas was almost shouting, and Sora could feel tears of helplessness nudging at the seams.
You gave up your life for Light. For me. The nudging sensation died away, leaving only a silent Roxas staring at his reflection.
Roxas' heart skipped a beat. It had been doing this more and more lately. He wasn't sure if it was happening because he finally had one or if it was because of Sora. Before Twilight Town he'd only focused on Axel and Xion. He had looked up to Axel, thought he knew everything. When he'd asked about love, he hadn't understood his explanation. At the time he'd been sure that what he had felt for him was love. Now, Roxas wasn't sure. He'd cared about Xion. She had seemed so helpless, so naive, just like him. He had also wondered if that was love, that sense of similarity. Now, he knew it wasn't. In Twilight Town he learned to understand love, but he still didn't know it. Love is one of those strange, intangible concepts you can learn about but possibly never know. In the daydream, he'd always thought, "it will happen one day, and when it does, I'll just know." After Twilight Town, he'd expected nothing. He'd expected to fade into the nothingness. Now, now his mind wanted to wander to the concept of love. Did he love Axel? Had he loved Axel? Did he love Sora?
Sora either didn't notice the break in heartbeat or chose not to comment on it. So, can we switch?
Roxas nodded, and Sora felt their change begin before he even expelled his own willpower. They both watched transfixed as the mirror showed hair darkening, clothes shifting and reforming, even muscle structures altering. It was an odd sight, but also strangely beautiful. They were one person, yet distinctly different.
Sora exited the castle following the map North out of the city. There were plans of grasses, a forest ahead, and then the mountain. The walk through the grasses was pleasant, but Sora wasn't excited to begin the trek through the forest. The scenery was pleasing, but there were too many blind spots. They could easily be attacked in here. The overabundant plant life would also make fighting difficult. Keep your eyes peeled, he cautioned taking the first step inside.
They walked for quite a time without incident. Birds flew overhead, rabbits and deer gathered, and foxes ran by chasing the slower prey. Roxas knew that he should stay vigilant, but the animals were remarkable. Movement caught their eyes, and Sora was the first to realize that it wasn't another animal.
In the time it took Roxas to register the Heartless, Sora had already summoned Olympia. The Blue Rhapsodies came in a drove of five. Not too much to manage, but with the trees and their fast flying, it might take a while. Normally, Sora would just blast the nuisances with Thundaga, but he didn't want to harm the trees. That meant he was limited to aerial jumps and slashes.
It seemed fitting that the Heartless here would be Blizzard types. Their snow and icicles painted the fauna in a silvery glow. Skirting each blast until it had settled, he jumped, using a tree as a push point, propelling himself at the drove. Three of the five flew away, but two didn't. They stayed put, one shooting a blast of ice that slowed Sora's movement. He reached regardless, slashing horizontally across them both. Gravity pulled him downward, but he kept slashing, hitting at least three more times. One fell pitifully to the ground where is evaporated into puffs of black while the other flew away to the safety of the waiting three.
One down.
They attacked from a distance, but Sora wouldn't have it. He repeated the same jump move, propelling toward them. Again two didn't move fast enough. Sora slashed. One fell.
I could do this, Roxas boasted.
Want to?
No, he scoffed. I was just saying.
Sora laughed. Unknowingly the Blue Rhapsodies had backed into a small clearing. A clearing large enough for magic. Grinning, Sora raised Olympia high, calling upon the power of thunder. The Keyblade crackled with electricity before Thundaga came shooting from its tip. The remaining three Heartless were hooded together, and the blast singed all of them as if they were a single entity. Whiffs of black smoke wafted from their shot bodies as they fell unceremoniously.
"That could have been worse. Hopefully that's all the types we'll meet here."
They continued on, taking delight in the sights of the animals once again. They exited the forest and began climbing the mountain without any problems. The mountain was quite steep, but Sora was used to climbing and such by now. His shoes had good traction, and he ground them into the rock. It was slow going, but he couldn't afford to stumble. Descending was easier, but he still had to be careful of his footing or else he'd tumble downward. Roxas observed intently, taking in his calculated movements for future reference.
On flat ground again, Sora trekked the remaining distance forward until they came upon the Valley of the Living Rock, or so the map called it. "Hello," Sora called noticing nothing but dozens of medium-sized rocks. "Hello? Kristoff sent me." Immediately the rocks stirred, twitching before rolling into a circle that surrounded him. Then they opened reveling bluish grey trolls colored by darker grey specks. Their heads were haired with plant mops.
"Did you say Kristoff?" the group asked eying him expectantly.
"Kristoff didn't come. He said he was busy."
Their excited energy died down. "Why have you come?" asked a troll.
"We are looking for this world's keyhole. It looks like a keyhole and should emit strong energy. Kristoff said you were experts, so I thought you might know where it is."
"Yes, yes we are experts," bragged a female troll.
"What are you experts of?" Her sparkling eyes were beginning to bother him.
"Why love of course! As well as fashion and decor." She mentioned the latter as if they were mere trifles.
That's helpful, Roxas thought sarcastically.
"So, boy, is there someone you love?"
"I, uh…" Roxas could feel Sora's blush. Was he thinking about Riku?
"You do. I can tell you like to keep your feelings to yourself, huh."
"I kind of have more important things to think about. Like finding this keyhole."
"With an attitude like that no wonder you are single."
"Hey! How do you know I'm single?" Sora was defensive, and Roxas was finding it adorable.
An older, almost regal looking troll made his way to the front of the group. Instead of the plant mop the others had, his hair was long straw that fell all along his back. "I can sense that there are two of you," he spoke boring into their eyes.
"Y-yes," Sora confirmed taken aback.
"This one is fine, Bulda. The other, he is the one with love problems."
You do? Sora inquired, but Roxas didn't feel like answering.
"Let me see him," Bulda ordered, so they changed. "Yes, yes I see. You would like to keep this a secret, no?"
"Yes please."
"Alright. Dear, I can see that you have let life pass you by. Why not try taking the reins for once?"
"Thank you." The words were sincere. "Elder?" he asked. "If you could tell that I was here, can you sense the keyhole? It really is important."
The elder troll closed his eyes. "Yes. I think that it is on a southern mountain."
"Thank you so much. We should be leaving now." He bowed politely.
"Good luck, dears!" Bulda called as he turned back the way they'd come.
What was that about?
Nothing.
You don't want to tell me?
Maybe later.
Okay…I'm kind of tired. Do you think I could trying sleeping some while you walk back?
It might work. Might as well try.
Thanks. Wake me if anything happens, or if you just want to switch.
Okay.
Roxas was glad that Sora's idea worked. He was feeling frazzled, and keeping his thoughts behind a mental barrier had been tricky. He also didn't want Sora to realize that he was obsessing over him and his memories. He had gained Sora's memories and previous thoughts when he awoke, but they weren't like normal memories. He didn't just know them. It was more like they were in a filing cabinet ready for his viewing when the time came that he decided to look at them. Now he decided.
Did Sora love Riku? The thought upset him. He knew it shouldn't. Riku was Sora's best friend, his own equivalent of Axel. He had known Riku longer than anyone else (family excluded). He had the right to love him given that he'd just met Roxas. It wasn't like Roxas expected his feelings of years to shift toward him in such a short time span. And besides they were sort of the same person. Wasn't he the weird one?
Logically Roxas understood, but it still bothered him. He had learned that love wasn't a logical thing. It didn't happen out of conveniences or who was better for you. Love just happened, even when you didn't expect it. He had liked Axel because he taught him about the world. Sora gave him the world. Without Sora he would never have existed in the first place. Not only that, he was sharing this body and giving him life lessons freely. He treated him like an equal. He had liked Xion because of their similarities, because of her kind nature. Sora was kind to a fault, and as similar as it could get. He was also selfless in a way he'd never known. It may be illogical, it may be fruitless, but he did. He loved Sora, no one else.
He wanted to know more about Sora, about his feelings, so he opened the cabinet, turning to the tab marked Riku, and watched as the images and sounds flooded him. Riku acting haughtingly better than Sora. Sora chuckling at it. Riku disappearing. Sora's worry. Sora's disappointment when Riku said the paupu was for Kairi. Sora's rush of adrenaline when he raced past Riku. Riku's flexing back muscles as he swam. The taste of salt water knowingly mingled with Riku's sweat. The rush of achievement it brought Sora. Words of confinement, hopes and dreams, adventures to come. Endless thoughts, that only broke when the world did too, when responsibility took the forefront of his thoughts.
A strangled moan of pleasure whispered into darkness. The context was lost on Roxas, and he didn't want to know. Without warning, he slammed the cabinet closed so hard it jolted Sora awake.
Are you okay?
Switch with me.
Okay…
Roxas remained silent but barely slept. Sora was worried. What had bothered him? He was also still curious as to what Bulda had been talking about. Didn't Roxas love Axel? Why would he try to keep that a secret? It would have been easy for Sora to find out, but he wasn't the sort to pry, especially when that prying could easily turn into outright spying. So, confused and worried, he trekked on, silent as well.