SIDE STORY

HIS SUCCESSOR

Calm blue waters splashed against damp sand that lead up to the beach of two little boy's play place- Destiny Islands. A few puffy clouds floated around the sky lazily, soon disappearing into the heat. The hot sun beat down on the two little boys as they ran across the sand. One of them with short silver hair was in the lead, calling back to his friend. His friend was not far behind with short spikes of brown hair.

"Come on, Sora!" The first boy laughed. "I'm going to beat you!"

The other boy, Sora, panted after him, "I wanna win this time!"

"Wanting and doing are two different things!"

"Wahhh, your so mean sometimes Rikuuu!" Sora whined, falling in behind his friend as they got to the finish line. It wasn't exactly a line- they just ended up underneath the wooden bridge that lead to a smaller, more circular, island.

Riku glanced at the small island. His aquamarine gaze settled on the tree that grew there- It stuck out over the ocean and grew star shaped fruit called Paopu's.

Sora caught his friend staring and giggled a little. "What, you want a Paopu?"

The little boy turned his gaze back to his friend. "What? No! I was just-"

"Wouldn't that be nice?" Sora continued on, smiling at Riku. "You've heard the legend right? If two people share one they'll remain a part of each others lives foreeever!" He said, stretching out the word. "If we had one, then we could be best friends forever! Wouldn't that be great, Riku?"

Riku rolled his eyes, smiling a little at his friend. "Its just a legend Sora. We're too old for make-believe."

Sora's face fell, his shoulders drooping. "Aw... But Riku, we're only five!"

"So?"

The brunette stuck out his bottom lip, showing off his pout-face to Riku. Unfortunately for Riku, he never wanted to see Sora hurt or sad- or pouting over something, fruit or not- so Riku smiled a little at Sora and turned around. "Follow me Sora."

Sora blinked a few times, completely forgetting he was supposed to be upset, and followed his friend through the wooden shack that took them to the bridge to the Paopu island.

Riku and Sora walked side by side to the tree, Riku standing up on the trunk and reaching up for the yellow star shaped fruit. Sora watched in awe, adding a quiet, "Riku? What are you...?"

Riku sat down on the trunk then smiled at Sora. He held to Paopu out to Sora as he hopped up next to him on the trunk. Sora stared down at fruit as Riku spoke. "Friends forever right?"

Sora blinked a few times then smiled widely, taking the fruit and nodding. "Yeah! I'll be there for you, Riku! You'll be there for me, right?"

Riku nodded. "Of course I will, Sora. We'll never be separated."

The brunette looked down at the fruit the eagerly bit into one of the points. Riku rolled his eyes, gently closing his hand around Sora's tiny wrist and brought the Paopu over to himself and bit into a opposite point.

"Well?" Sora asked, staring at him expectantly.

Riku stared at the Paopu for a moment. "Hm... Tastes good I guess. What did you think?"

"I don't know. I was too giddy too care about its taste!" Sora laughed.

Riku laughed a little as well. "You can so dumb sometimes Sora."

"Heeey! I am not!"

"Yes you are!" Riku started poking Sora in the stomach, causing Sora to start laughing louder.

"Hahahaha! Riku, quit it!" He squealed as Riku tickled him.

"No way!"

"Ahahaha- Riku the P-Paopu!" Sora stammered out as the Paopu slipped from his hands.

Riku tried to grab it as it fell but sadly the Paopu fell down and landed right into the ocean. Sora stared down at it, his pouty face showing again. "Aw man... I wanted to see how it tasted again!"

"Wanna get another one?"

"I don't wanna waste Paopu's!"

"You won't be wasting them!"

"But still!" Sora whined, shaking his head. "Lets try to go get it!"

"Nah," Riku shook his head. "The ocean is all dirty. Probably with dead fish germs in it- and all other types of icky stuff. All that would be crawling over the Paopu."

Sora shuddered. "Ewww, Riku! Don't say that!"

Riku chuckled, shaking his head and staring out at the sky again. "Jeez Sora..."

Sora looked past him and stood up on the trunk. "Ahoy! We're over here!" Riku looked over as well and saw Sora's Dad's boat docked. He felt a little sad that it was time to go already. Sora however was ready. "Riku, race ya! First one to the boat gets to be the captain!" With that he took of running, calling back at Riku a few times. Riku decided to let his friend win today and walked back to the boat instead.

Suddenly Sora slowed down, his gaze traveling to the front of the beach. Then he glanced at Riku and continued walking back to the boat.

Riku paused, staring at what Sora had seen: A tall young man with dark brown hair sticking up in a few places was staring out towards the water. When he heard Riku walk by he turned around. Riku, with sudden interest in who this was, turned to face him. "Hey, did you come from the outside world?"

The man stared back at him, a little puzzled. "What makes you say that?"

"Well..." Riku began, stepping closer to water. "Nobody lives here, and I haven't seen you on the main island. So..."

The man nodded at this. "Smart kid. So why are you here?"

Riku didn't mind the man's questions. He felt like he could trust him for some reason. "Oh, Sora's dad took us out on the boat. We like to play here, but they won't let us row our by ourselves. Not until we're older."

"Must be hard. Stuck in one place."

Riku walked closer so that the water was almost touching is dark blue shoes. "I heard once, there was a kid who left for good." Riku turned to the man to see what he thought but to his surprise, the man;s eyes widened a little at him. He tried asking a different question. "So.. How'd you get here?"

The man looked down at the sand. "is there.. some reason your interested in the outside world?"

So that was it. Riku thought. Guess I just surprised him. "Yeah. I wanna be strong one day. Like that kid who left- I bet he's really strong now. I know there. The strength I need."

"Strength for what?" The man asked.

Riku glanced over at Sora with a smile and turned back to the man. "To protect the things that matter. Like Sora and all my friends!"

The man stared at him a moment, regarding him with deep blue eyes then nodded. "Outside this tiny world is a much bigger one." He took a few steps closer to Riku and stretched his hand out. In a flash of light an odd looking object appeared.

The man crouched down so that he was at Riku's height. He held the hilt of the object out to Riku, who stared at it with wonder. The man recited, "In your hand take this key. So long as you have the makings, then through this simple act of taking... It's wielder you hall one day be. And you will find me friend- no ocean will contain you then. No more borders around, below, or above so long as you champion the ones you love."

Riku switched his gaze to the man then back down at what he had called a key. He thought for a moment, reaching his hand out for the hilt. If I can wield.. something like this... Will I be able to protect Sora? Can I find what I need then? Riku grasped the hilt in his hands, feeling the warmth around his skin.

Nothing happened for a few moments. The man kept his gaze locked on Riku's hand, like he was waiting to see if anything changed. Riku stared at the key a little longer as well until-

"Rikuuu! Hurry it up!" Sora's voice rang through the air, waving at Riku.

Riku smiled, waving back when he heard the man speak lowly, "You gotta keep this a secret, okay? Otherwise all the magic will wear off." Riku nodded as the man gently ruffled his short hair. He let out a small laugh before running back over to Sora.

"Hey!" Sora panted as he ran over to Riku. "What was all that about?"

"Ah." Riku shrugged, looking around elsewhere. "You know."

"Know what? Why won't you tell me! Who was that guy? Do you know him?"

"Maaaaybe."

"Aw, there you go again!" Sora whined as the two started for the boat again. "Just tell me."

"I really can't. I gotta keep it a secret."

"But... I'm like, the best secret-keeper in the world!"

"Nice try, Sora." Riku started to get into the boat.

"Aww, Riku!" Sora sighed, following after his friend in defeat. Riku had thought that what happened would remain a secret kept only with himself. Sora was just clueless about what had happened.

But Sora wasn't clueless. He saw everything that happened. He just didn't want to be left out of what went on.

II

The next day the boys were at it again. Both were racing for the finish line under the wooden bridge. Riku, as usual, won the race. Sora panted out once they got there, "Y-You just got lucky! One more time!"

Riku wasn't looking at his friend though. He stared up at the bridge and Sora followed his gaze. Up on the bridge stood the next visitor the islands received- A young woman with short blue hair and clothing that looked similar to the young man from before. She stared down at the boys as they looked up at her. Then all the sudden she jumped down in front of Sora.

"Ah!" Sora backed up a little, not wanting to get hit. Then he realized she missed him by a long shot and rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. "Hehe..."

Riku rolled his eyes at his friend. "Nice one," he muttered before getting a good look at the young woman.

The young laughed a little to herself after studying the two boys. Sora and Riku glanced at each other in confusion. Sora heard the young woman say, "One of you might be special enough..." Before Sora could ask her about it she asked them, 'Hey, do you mind telling your names?"

Sora, always delighted to make new friends, raised his hand up and grinned, "I'm Sora!"

The young woman turned to Riku, smiling at him. "And you?"

Riku paused, studying her before answering simply, "Riku."

The young woman looked down then said, "Sora, do you like Riku?"

Sora blinked then smiled widely, "Of course I like him! Riku's my best friend! I'll do anything for him!"

The young woman smiled and continued, "Good. So then if something happens, and Riku is about to get lost- or say he starts wandering down a dark path alone- you make sure to stay with him and keep him safe. That your job, Sora."

Both boys turned to look at each other. Either one of them couldn't bear the thought of being separated. Or being alone.

The young woman added on, gently ruffling they're hair. "I'm counting on you to do it." Sora laughed, smiling again. She must've been kidding! Sora thought, listening to Riku let out a small laugh as well. Riku will be okay! I'll stand by his side no matter what!

III

Riku laid down lazily on the sand. The hot sun stained down on his pale skin but he wasn't worried He felt like he was about to fall asleep. Even with Sora chattering on and on about something. Something think about Riku's brothers.

"Kadaj was being reaaally mean to me, Riku!"

"Mm..." Riku murmured out his response. Kadaj was the second youngest of Riku's brothers. All three of them were odd in they're own way. "What did he do...?"

"Know how Mommy told me to tell your Mommy when I'm over your house so she can call my home? Well, all I did was ask him, 'Where's your mother?' and he started yelling these weird things at meee!" Sora whined, shaking his head.

"Why didn't you ask Loz or Yazoo?"

"They weren't home!"

"Ah... You probably would've gotten the same response from them too..." Riku trailed off, feeling sleep start to take him.

"Man, know I can see why your so weird, Riku!" Sora's voice drowned out as Riku surrendered to the tired feeling growing.

Sora didn't even notice. He making shapes and pictures in the sand, then every now and then the tide would splash over them. Leaving Sora to start over again unfortunately.

"What are you doing there, kid?" A voice said.

Sora looked up into a face that resembled his. He broke out into a grin, happy to talk to another person. "I'm making pictures! I was gonna make one for Riku but he's sleeping now." Sora looked down at his stick figures of the two, holding a Paopu between they're hands. He pouted a bit, adding, "We saw some weird people too, and since then he's been acting differently.. Keeping it a secret from me as well."

"...Different? How?"

"Like.." Sora closed his eyes, trying to think of the right word. "Like he's not here. This weird man had this thing that looked like a giant key and he offered it to Riku. Since then its just been so... different."

Sora glanced at the newcomer, blinking in confusion when he saw that he was biting his lip, scowling. "Whats wrong?"

"...Whats your name, kid?" He asked, his scowl hardening on Sora.

Sora didn't really notice, he gladly smiled and introduced him. "I'm Sora! What about you?"

Suddenly the newcomer smirked, his voice taking on a smooth tone. "Vanitas."

"Ooh, that's a cool name!" Sora breathed, trying to pronounce it. "V-Van... Vanu- tass... Vani..." Sora started giggling. "Hehe, Vani! Vani~ Vani~ Vani~!" He said in his singsong voice.

Vanitas tried to ignore it and changed the subject. "So... This weird man... He had a key?"

"Oh, yeah! Reaaaal big! Not like any key I've seen before! It was like.. tan, and blue, and gray..."

All the sudden, Vanitas stuck out his hand- darkness formed around it then quickly changed into something like the strange key-thing the man had. Only it was very different. "Something like this?"

Sora gaped at it, nodding. "So cool!" He reached his little hands out it as Vanitas pulled it out of his range.

"You want it?"

"Yes!"

Vanitas snickered. "Its called a Keyblade. And your friend is going to get one in the future. He didn't tell you this because he wanted to be the only one."

Sora's face fell. "What? But... but he's my best friend...!" He shook his head, little tears beginning to form in the corners of his eyes. "We never keep secrets like that.. Riku isn't that selfish. He's.. always wanted to protect me..."

"Then how about you protect him for a change? Wouldn't you like that, Sora?" Vanitas said, handing the hilt out to the small boy.

Sora blinked the few tears away, staring at him. "...?"

"I know who your talking about, Sora." Vanitas continued on. "That man was Terra. And that other person was Aqua. If Riku's always protecting you, if makes you look weak." A smirk tugged at his mouth. "Your not weak right?"

Sora shook his head quickly. "No! Of course not!"

"I didn't think so," Vanitas snickered, edging the hilt a little closer to Sora. "So take this key, and you will see. No one will have power over you, as long as you beat them with everything you do. Take it, Sora."

Sora started at the odd hilt of the keyblade, almost mesmerized by it and started to reach out for it. I can protect Riku this way... Sora thought, grasping it in his palm. The feeling it gave out was dark and cold, but some how so... welcoming for him.

Just like Riku, the keyblade stayed in his hand.

A/N: Huzzah! Flashbacks! Okay well, I'm kind of low on ideas for Heartless. Current ideas, but for future chapters I have a few. I don't wanna resort to fillers, so I'm kind of cheating with this. Its just a side story, explaining what happened with the whole successor thing Vanitas told Riku about in the pat chapters. I think it was chapter 5. Anyway, I included some cute SoRiku fluff. The paopu thing will definitely come in handy in later chapters.

Oh yeah. KADAJ, LOZ, AND YAZOO ARE RIKU'S BROTHERS! They look alike so, it makes sense, haha. Oh, I love Final Fantasy.

So keep watching for the next chapter. I'm trying to update