author's Notes:
Sorry for the delay! I got hooked on World of Warcraft...But that is over now and I'm ready to write some more...Let's see if I can keep my promise for once and update regularly...I am looking for a Beta Reader since my old one seems to have no responded so...anyone?
Also I have always wanted to try out at webcomics but I have stickfigure talent and I'd need someone to do the art while I work on the story. I think it'd be a neat project to try out with someone whom I don't know. PM me if interested.
Sora had spent the remainder of the day with Riku, Kairi was with Selphie shopping; both trying to get their minds off of what had happened. It wasn't that much of a big deal since it barely affected any of them, directly, but a good friend of theirs was now inside a world that they always knew existed but they were too young to be a part of and somehow now know it's not a matter of age but of life. Tidus was going down a new road and they couldn't help but wonder if they'll still be close together; all of them.
After walking back home, having parted ways with Riku in the park, Sora took the letter from his pocket and read it over once more. After making sure he hadn't missed anything of significance he placed it in the sink and set it on fire with a match. He watched it shrivel and crisp before washing the ashes down the drain; it was best Riku never found out about the letter. It made him uneasy, seeing how he barely knew him but already he had a secret to keep from him and this secret was quite serious; Riku wouldn't be able to accept what Sora had done. He wondered: perhaps he wasn't supposed to of read it. Maybe it was part of the test somehow but if there was an answer it eluded him.
As he laid down in his bed, he thought back on Riku and smiled. It amazed him how much they had been able to connect and how obvious it is that they're going to be getting along as if they had been friends all their lives. He wondered why he had the sick feeling about him before. Maybe it was just stress from the test that made him uneasy. He closed his eyes and let thoughts of Riku, Kairi and Tidus lull him to sleep.
There was a knock on the door the following morning while Sora ate his toast and bacon, his hair still dripping wet from the shower. As he answered the door, sky blue eyes met sea green orbs.
"Hey, Sora. Ready for school?" Riku gave a wave and smile before letting himself in.
"Yeah, almost." Sora, slightly confused gave a quick look at his mother but she had her back turned towards them as she cooked more bacon for herself.
"Thought we'd walk together since I pass by here everyday." He shrugged and seated himself, stealing a bacon strip.
"You walk by here to go to school?" Sora looked at him, unable to recall where he lived nor ever seeing him walking by.
"Yeah, just two streets down." He answered, his legs shaking energetically.
"Oh...Well, I just gotta pack my bag and we'll be off." Sora answered and went to get his bag, leaving Riku alone for a minute. The boy was waiting by the door when Sora walked back inside the room and seemed to look him up and down.
"Well, let's go." He said and turned towards the door and held it open for the brunet.
The walk was quiet on Sora's side but Riku told him stories of him and friends Sora never heard of before. Some sounded quite improbable but he figured the boy was simply embellishing; making the story more interesting. However, Sora wasn't paying a great deal of attention to the words; he simply listened to the sound of Riku's voice while his mind wandered off and thought of all the other things there was to think of. It wasn't to be rude or on purpose but he had gotten used to walking alone, with the exception of Kairi who occasionally accompanied him, and used this walk to think and sort out his plans and thoughts for the day.
"Heh, nice." He said, not sure to what he pretended to be content about but Riku just laughed some more.
"You always walk alone?" Riku asked, tired of talking about himself for once.
"Nah, sometimes Kairi comes but not today. She usually catches me a dozen houses down." He replied, his mind torn between paying attention and wandering off.
"Ah, Kairi's pretty cool." He commented; trying to get Sora to say more.
"Yeah, she is." Sora nodded and left it at that but Riku wouldn't let it.
"Are you together? Just what I heard." He shrugged, dismissing it with his hand. He tried making it seem as if it was nothing but somehow Sora managed to figure out what he wanted.
"No, we're just friends." He said, slightly irritated. This question had been asked far too many times.
"Ah, that's good." He noticed Sora giving a questioning look and changed his answer. "I just meant it's cool. Was just curious if what people said was true." He shrugged again and Sora didn't reply, unwilling to let this conversation keep going.
"Hey, Riku?" He started.
"Yeah?" The boy replied lazily.
"Were you biking down by my house a few days ago?" He asked, wanting to make sure it had been him.
"Yeah, I bike by every now and then when I'm going to my friend's house." He answered, now curious why Sora asked. "Why?"
"No reason..."He figured quickly the answer wasn't good enough and smiled. "I was just wondering if it was a girl or a guy going by." He laughed and Riku punched him on the arm.
"Aw, you think I'm pretty?" He laughed and darted off after Sora as the brunet tried to run away from the punches.
As they arrived in the school, the whole gang greeted Sora but only Kairi seemed to have smiled and noticed Riku. The boy didn't seem to care but he obviously felt out of place.
"How was your weekend, Sora?" Tidus asked as they walked down to their homeroom.
"Not too bad, hung out with Riku a lot." He responded with a gesture of the head.
"Oh." Tidus replied, unsure of what to say to that. "I spent some time with Leon...He's brooding more then usual and he barely said anything all Saturday. According to Tifa, I was the only person he let near him that day. Apparently, Cloud went too far Friday or perhaps it was Rinoa. We know what happened but it's hard to understand what's going on with Leon barely making any physical appearances."
"What exactly happened between Cloud and Leon anyways? I remember them always being together before they graduated last year." Selphie asked, feeling better from her illness last Friday.
"Well, this is just what Tifa told me. I hung out with Zell before so I knew of this a little but it was just rumors and awkward moments really but apparently Cloud and Leon were more then just friends."
"Like boyfriends?" Kairi picked up the pace, closing herself to Tidus. Sora and Riku were just following in the back but Riku seemed uninterested but Sora was too busy listening to ask about it.
"Not exactly, they were more close then friends should ever be but they weren't romantically together...It's weird to explain." He took a breath and quieted down for a second as they passed into the class room and made their way to their usual spot in the back. "However, Cloud wanted to be actual boyfriends together and Leon didn't seem to have a problem with it for a while before he suddenly blew up. After that, he and Cloud got into a few fistfights, Cloud left the band and Rinoa started fighting with Leon more then usual and well...here we are. This is all what we are guessing from bits of information we gathered though, Cloud isn't saying much about it either. However, we all think Rinoa had something to do with it. We're all pretty sure Leon was about to admit he loved her." Tidus smiled at the thought, it wasn't like Leon to ever say something of the sorts.
"Wow...didn't know all of this was going on." Kairi commented before Selphie could ask the obvious question.
"So, Cloud is still trying to win Leon back?"
"Yeah, that was the whole fight the night of the battle of the bands." He replied. "It wasn't the first time they thought over it. Leon is better now and hosting a party at his place Wednesday. You're all invited." He regretted those words when he noticed Riku was there but he couldn't exclude him in front of everyone.
"Sounds great but Leon is having a party?" Kairi asked, emphasizing Leon's name.
"Yeah, most likely something Rinoa convinced him to do." Tidus gave a smile but it came off awkward more then funny.
The remainder of the school day went without any events of importance, just filled with jokes and laughter from the back of the classrooms as the group joked around instead of paying attention to the teacher, who tried their best to separate them but they always managed to land next to someone who would be just as bad.
As they all said their goodbyes for the day; Sora, Kairi, and Riku walked together back to their homes. Both felt that Riku was a bit in the way but they had become friends, no point in trying to conserve what they had before. As usual, Riku payed extra attention to Kairi as he talked about himself and told stories which they all laughed at even if they weren't that funny. It was his eyes and hands, they made everything seem better then it was.
"So, hey, Riku." Sora started as the laughter died away. "Are you gonna come to the party Wednesday?"
"Depends." He replied.
"Depends on what?" Sora asked as no further explanation came.
"Well, I might be spending time with Yuffie that day."
"Oh. Is she your girlfriend?" Kairi asked, curious at the little piece of gossip. No one in the group knew much about Riku as he mostly stayed by himself at school; she had never seen him with friends before he befriended her and Sora.
"Yeah, she loves me." He made a silly voice on the word love and gave a big smile, happy for himself but Sora knew better. There was something else going on but he couldn't simply ask Riku what the letter had meant, could he now?
"That's great." Kairi laughed back and waved goodbye before going in the other direction; towards her home.
"Hey, Sora." Riku glanced over at him before the brunet had a chance to walk up his driveway. "What are you up to this weekend?"
"Nothing yet." The boy turned back to Riku and simply gazed at him back.
"Well, wanna hang out somewhere then? I got no plans either." Riku's face was expressionless as if he was desperate for this but Sora just shrugged the odd idea off.
"Yeah, sure. We'll talk about it later, cya." He waved and turned but before he knew it he felt a weight rush unto him and squeeze.
"Hug." Riku's voice was like a pout and Sora couldn't help but hug back. Riku pushed himself away, laughing a silly laugh and waving goodbye with the back of his hand as he walked away; leaving Sora slightly confused.
Tuesday past by in a flash, everyone giving an odd look as Riku hugged Sora and Kairi every now and then for no apparent reason. Wakka managed to convince his dad to pick them all up after the party since none of them planned on being able to drive legally after and Riku has also decided to show up with Yuffie if at least for a while.
Wednesday night came and Sora and Kairi came out from Kairi's car and they looked at the Leonhart house. It didn't seem like the same house where the people were coming and going from the yelling and the fights. The house lights seemed dim while shadows moved back and forth from the window and music and voices filled the night air.
"Well, let's see if anyone else is inside. Tidus should be already there." Sora took Kairi's hand and they walked in together.
The house party didn't have as many guests as the word party would suggesty; only a few more then a dozen or so. Wakka and Tidus were already there, drinking on the couch and talking to some girls but what had caught their attention was Leon watching Tidus like a hawk from the wall. The only movement was his arm raising and descending the glass in his hands. Rinoa was talking to Seifer and Zell but they seemed more to be laughing at her then with her, her popularity obviously in the gutter with her usual crowd.
"Hey, Sora!" The brunet turned at the sound of Riku's voice and smiled at him as he approached with a girl holding his hand. "Sora, Kairi; this is Yuffie and vice-versa." He made the gesture with his hand and smiled even more.
"Hi, nice to meet you." Kairi gave her a small hug and Sora just waved at her. She was quite smaller then them and something about her didn't feel right, at least to Sora. He couldn't quite put his finger on it. As Yuffie grabbed and started kissing Riku, Kairi pulled on Sora's arm and started walking a bit away with him and whispered into his ear.
"How old do you think she is?" That's when it clicked inside of his head, Sora turned back and gave her a quick glance.
"Way too young. Fifteen maybe?" He replied back quickly as the couple made their way back to them.
"Hey, Yuffie. I don't mean to be rude but how old are you?" Kairi put on her best friend voice and tried to seem as less offensive as possible. "It's just that with your size and how young you look. You must have some secret to staying so young looking." Sora couldn't help but breathing out the word smooth.
"It's okay." Yuffie obviously caught on the ploy but didn't seem to mind it. "I'm fourteen."
"What?" Kairi couldn't help but let out a chocked snort from her throat in surprise. "She's fourteen, Riku?" She asked the boy, making sure it wasn't a joke.
"Yeah, why's that so surprising?" She asked as if it was normal for a fourteen year old to date an eighteen year old.
"No reason..."Kairi gave an odd smile. "I'm going to check on Tidus and Wakka..." She quickly left the couple and Sora alone. Sora glanced over where she was headed but noticed that Tidus had moved by Leon who was still leaning against the wall. However, they seemed to actually be in a conversation and Leon was actually keeping it up.
Rinoa suddenly came out from a small group next to them and introduced herself to Riku and Yuffie before turning to Sora.
"Hey, I remember you." She smiled sweetly but somehow Sora felt uneasily because of it. "You were there to pick up Tidus last Friday, weren't you? You and a bunch of friends." She added.
"Yeah, he called us to get him." Sora nodded a few times, trying to shake off the feeling.
"Well, it's good for him to have such nice friends. Sometimes I worry about Squall." She commented, making the conversation about her all of a sudden.
"Squall?" Sora asked, weirded out that someone dared to call him that. "He has a lot of friends no? You, Zell, Seifer, Tifa, Zack, Clo..." He stopped short, noticing those people were probably not on the best of terms with him.
"I heard my name?" Zell came up to them and offered his hand to be shaken and Sora took it. "Hey, you must be Sora. Tidus spoke of you."
"Did he now?" Sora smiled, feeling better now that Rinoa's attention was divided off of him. "We were just talking about Leon."
"The Lion? Yeah, he seems to be in a fairly good mood tonight." He glanced over at them. "He seems to like Tidus quite a bit, been hanging out with him all the time lately."
"It's the hair, maybe somehow it reminds him of Cloud." Rinoa commented and Zell gave her a dirty look.
"Leave them alone, alright? The Lion is happy finally and you've got no business breaking him again." He scowled at her but she seemed indifferent to it.
"Again? I never broke him, he chose to do that all by himself. I was just there to hold him." She gave a smile and excused herself and proceeded to entertain the other guests who seemed to welcome her and mean it.
"Be careful of her Sora, she isn't a very nice person." Zell gave him a queer smile
Sora found an open cooler with some brown bottles in it and a cap opener, he looked around himself and figured it was alright to take one. After opening it, he looked around for somewhere to sit down before taking a sip. He wasn't much of a drinker and never liked the taste of beer much but it was a party and at this point, he could really use some lightening up.
He found a nice isolated spot by the stairs to sit down next to and took a gulp of it. The taste was awful but the warmth sure felt good and he already felt a little better after that odd conversation. He noticed Leon walking by while analyzing him with his eyes. Sora figured he simply identified him, he had never spoken to Leon before but Leon must remember him from school and from Tidus stories.
The rose and the path of thorns. That's Squall isn't it? He's at the point where he pushes away the people who love him and whom he cares about back. Well, maybe pushing Rinoa is more of a logical choice. Sora smiled at the thought but he kept on thinking more and more with each sip. But I am both, the path of burdens and thorn. Even though they aren't compatible they make the most sense to me. I will always love my friends no matter what but I'm not stupid, I won't let them keep hurting me...Maybe Leon didn't choose the path of burdens and he's all alone, unable to understand what he's feeling...Sora snapped out of his trance, realizing Leon never took the tests and he's simply who he is. These tests, was he the only one?
"Hey, there." Riku slumped down next to Sora and observed him. "Drunk already?"
"No, just thinking about...nothing." Sora shook his head and proceeded to finishing the remainder of the bottle.
"Common, you can tell me anything." Riku replied, leaving Sora with a warm feeling but he couldn't share it even if he wanted to.
"No, it's nothing. Just looking at everyone here." He fumbled with the bottle in his hands, hoping Riku would stop asking questions but the boy was quite stubborn.
"What about them?" He seemed to lean closer then to Sora now but Sora was too busy hypnotizing himself with the bottle.
"Nothing, just glad I got friends." Even though it wasn't like himself Sora got up and walked away, leaving Riku alone. He didn't want to spend the rest of the evening replying nothing.
I suppose that was the path of thorns guiding me away from Riku. I just needed to get away...Maybe these choices make more sense they I thought. But if Riku also walks the path of thorns, doesn't that mean he's feeling horrible right now? Sora turned back but he simply saw Riku kissing Yuffie hard and a bottle in his hand. Nah, he probably doesn't care. But something told Sora that wasn't true; he quickly drowned it with more alcohol.
As he found himself sitting where Wakka and Tidus were previously, Kairi came up to him and sat next to him, a drunk giggle escaping her lips.
"Hey, Soooora. Having fun?" She rocked back and forth slightly, obviously she was more then just a little drunk.
"Yeah, this is fun." He said, forgetting already Rinoa and Riku.
"Well then you better start smiling." She said and Sora tried his best but he couldn't help but laughing along with her. "Aw, you need a little help." She leaned her face in and kissed him. The kiss was sweet but they kept their lips together longer then they should of for all of their friends seemed to have turned their heads and watched both of them, making them all see that they were teasing something that had really been there.
As their lips parted, Kairi gave him a giggle and ran back to Selphie who was looking at them in awe. Sora however felt different, he wasn't sure if he really felt that he liked it or that he didn't care. He cursed at his alcohol bottle before getting up and facing Riku and Wakka.
"Man, you said nothing was going on, ya?" His voice still sounded shocked. "That was definitely something."
"Nice man." Riku simply congratulated him but there seemed to be mirth lacking behind his eyes this time.
"She's just drunk." Sora said, his hands patting the air under him, an odd drunken attempt at calming then down. "We're not together or anything like that. She just had many alcohols." He realized he said alcohol instead of too many drinks but he didn't bother correcting himself.
"And you too man." Wakka laughed shortly before asking. "have you seen Tidus anywhere? I can't find him."
"Last saw him with Leon." Sora replied and so did Riku but Wakka simply ignored the boy.
"Thanks." Wakka gave a last chuckle and patted Sora before heading off. However, this time, Riku noticed the hostility towards him and gazed at Wakka as he walked away. Sora realized too, despite being slightly tipsy, and grabbed the boy by the arm and they both fell on the couch, making a few heads turn for a moment.
"What was that for?" Riku asked, still on top of Sora. The boy gave him a funny face and shrugged before laughing. Riku patted his head and got up, returning to his girlfriend. Sora watched him leave, not having planned him on going, and wondered how Riku took that. After a muddled train of thinking, he thought of why he had done it in the first place.
The next morning, Sora opened his eyes to realize he was back in his room and tucked under the sheets. He lifted himself and quickly realized he didn't have a hangover and smiled. He got up and walked to the bathroom to brush his teeth all the while trying to remember what he had done last night.
He remembered kissing Kairi, the conversation with Rinoa and Zell, Leon, falling with Riku and then dancing or some kind of movement. The rest was blank and he didn't care. He had fun even with all the oddities of the gangs.
As he walked back into his room he looked at the clock and realized it was only six in the morning. He glanced at his window and realized the sun had barely begun to rise and cursed softly. He wasn't tired at all and he didn't feel like just laying in bed.
He decided to get dressed and watch some television before getting himself some breakfast and he walked out his bedroom door but as he stepped into the hallway he noticed something was different. The hallway had turned into a large circle and the tiling was stained glass however he couldn't make out the image from where he stood. He wasn't as shocked as he would have believed he would be but ever since the dreams this was rather a mild shock.
He walked to the center after making sure there was nothing else in the circle and looking behind himself to find his bedroom door gone. As he moved, he observed the ground slowly realizing that the image was his face, Leon's, and Riku's. He didn't really understand it but he glanced around himself once more and this time noticed a chest laying on the other side.
"I guess..." Sora sighed and marched towards it, carefully observing the gold vines encircling the dark green chest. It was rather pretty and wondered if it was actually made of gold. He figured it contained something symbolic like the tests but then again, the girl had said he had done all three tests.
"Something is inside it, Sora." The voice rang out and he jumped a little.
"What is it?" He asked but didn't expect an actual answer.
"You gotta find out by yourself." She replied and Sora knew it was better to try and open it then to keep talking to her. However, he found the chest was locked and he didn't see any keys laying around.
"A chest is like the inside of a person. They'll never share what is inside of them with you until they give you the key." The voice explained.
"So, the key is inside of it?" Sora tried peeking through the keyhole and saw it, laying inside the velvety interior. "Yeap, it's in there. How do I get it?"
"People only let others inside of them when there is trust and love binding you together. This chest however is devoid of emotions and only wishes to protect itself."
"Protect itself from what?" At that, he noticed a shadow moving quickly behind him. He spun and took a step back; the same shadow was there just like it had been at the battle of the bands. "What is that?"
"That is a heartless. Protect yourself Sora." At those words, the shadow flung itself at Sora, it's small hands swiping the air, leaving a blur of blackness in their wake. Sora, unprepared, felt the hand pass through him and his blood and bone felt like they've been turned to ice. He clutched his arm and distanced itself from the heartless. After making sure the heartless wasn't right behind him, he checked his arm and noticed it was bruised but nothing bad happened to it.
"This is the weakest heartless. It can't kill you easily but I suppose you are even weaker then it." The voice said, without any trace of insult in her voice.
"Kill me? How do I defend myself?" These tests have turned into something else and Sora wasn't sure if he was ready for it. However, he played video games and day dreamed about being a hero and all that. Why did he feel so scared? Wasn't this just like virtual reality, the girl wouldn't let him die. Would she? Those words comforted him and he started off towards the shadow, his fist ready to make impact. However, as he got closer to the shadow, he realized his fist was actually holding a wooden sword. He didn't have time to question it as he was in range to take a swing at the heartless and took his first shot. The heartless tumbled clumsily, merely propelled backwards by the sword.
"The sword in your hand is the strength of your heart, Sora. The stronger your resolve, the stronger the weapon." The voice explained, letting Sora figure out how to destroy the heartless.
"My strength is no better then wood?" He smiled, losing himself in the battle rage pumping through him. Part of him was excited, he had always dreamed of battling monsters and he finally had a chance. "So, I just have to believe...in myself? My friends? My heart?" He asked but the girl gave him no reply and he simply decided to believe to believe. There was nothing to it. He was gonna strike down that heartless.
Both of them started for each other at the same time but with the swords extra reach, Sora managed to strike the heartless before it's tiny hands managed to get close to him. This time, the sword passed through the heartless and in a puff of black smoke the shadow dissipated into nothingness.
Sora heard the chest open behind him and he turned to face it. Oddly enough, the box was now only a foot behind him, as if it had moved itself towards him. He bent down and lifted the cover with ease and reached inside, grasping the key.
"That key will open any door or any one's heart to you. You will be able to access their thoughts, feelings, and memories as you please but once used, the key will break. Keep that key with you and use it when you must, it's the only one you'll get."
"Open a heart?" Sora didn't like the idea of it but slipped the key into his pocket for safe keeping. When he lifted his eyes back, he realized he was standing in the hallway once more. He reached into his pocket, assuring himself the key was still there. He looked back into his room and checked the clock: six o'five. "She didn't have to stop time for that..." Sora muttered before heading into the living room to watch some television.