If we were Together: A year has passed since their separation, and Riku and Sora have grown both in size and in mentality. Sora slept in her chamber regaining her memories while Riku watched over her clouded in the gray spaces between light and darkness.
A/N: I've decided to take a different approach to this particular chapter. The joys of fiction is that it doesn't have to match the criteria, and it's better for me to make this story my own rather than rely on what's already happened in KH2. Hope you like!
Chapter 8: Past Present & Future
It was annoying. Downright freaking annoying and disturbing! What the hell was the organization planning that involved psyching her out with odd comments and weird approaches. First that guy in Hollow Bastion, then Axel at Beast's Castle, and now that weird water dude in the underworld.
~Flashback~
Sora and the others tailed the thief closely. The gloomy surroundings were bad enough to send a trickle of fear around each and every corner, and the heartless that loomed the area just seemed to pop up like ghosts in a bad horror film. Still they were only heartless, and even though her drive was locked and her power halved by the strain of the Underworld's pull they continued on in pursuit.
Finally they cornered him, the man in the black cloak turning around and matching gazes full for the first time. He seemed to stare endlessly, then suddenly he rushed forward quick and eager before Sora could even put up a defense. The hood slid off and the young rockstar boy was revealed underneath as his arms came around her and lifted her up off the ground. "It IS you! Roxas! I've missed you! I can't believe it! You look great, so this is your true form, I like it! It's so cu-"
"PUT ME DOWN!" Sora wriggled and both donald and goofy tugged at the arms of the man who held her.
"Hey, come on, don't you recognize me? It's Demyx… you know… Demy? We used to go on missions together when Axel-" he cut himself off seeing the confused and angered look on his face. "Oh man, Axel was right, you really don't remember."
Disappointment came over his face as he reached into his pocket and took out his notes. "Let's see… if subject fails to respond, use aggression to liberate her true disposition." He gave a heaving sigh. "Right… did they ever choose the wrong guy for this one."
"Man you've a screw loose," Sora mumbled shaking off the jitters and odd sense of Deja Vu inside her from the contact. He wasn't much of a fighter she found out quickly enough. He was more of a wizard, using his water tricks to summon forth images and duplicates to do the fighting for him.
He backed off tending his wounds from the bout and he gave a laugh. "You're in there somewhere… Axel said that too. Roxas, come back to us." He waved and vanished off into the darkness.
~End~
"Roxas, Roxas, Roxas! Ugh!" Sora rubbed her head grumbling. "Who the hell is ROXAS?!"
"I think you're thinking too much about those lies the organization is feeding you." Donald suggested wholeheartedly. "They want to get you worked up so you'll lose focus."
"That may be, but something tells me they weren't lying… I don't think even they can act that well." She remembered just how tightly Demyx had held onto her… as if they'd been good friends meeting up after so long. It was… odd.
And Axel… there'd been so many emotions swimming inside those eyes. Emotions, she recalled, Riku having when he battled the war inside himself. Hunger, concern, anger, and hope. Hope was the strongest, a sort of inner plea to her to give him this "Roxas" person he so deeply missed.
Still it didn't do well to dwell on it. She was better concentrating at the task at hand. She sat up straight in her chair peering through the window at the upcoming world. "Is that a castle?"
"Hey! I recognized that world! We're home!" Goofy chuckled happily.
"I think you're right! This is great, now we can check on Queen Minnie."
Queen Minnie… King Mickey's home, was this perhaps the place she would finally run into Riku? It would be too easy to believe so, but Sora couldn't help but hope just a little he was somewhere down there tucked safely inside, perhaps acting as knight and protector to the queen.
As they landed and exited the gummi ship sora took a look around the workings of the launch pad. At the top was the launch crew engineers, Chip and Dale, and they took no time at all to come down from their perches to run up and greet them.
"Welcome back!" Chip shouted greeting them first. "It's so good to finally see you!"
"Yeah! You've been gone for ages!" Dale agreed.
"Please alert the Queen that we've returned then." Donald said puffing out his chest.
"Wait a minute, Donald." Goofy said. "First thing's first, is everything okay here?"
There was a brief silence before Chip and Dale nodded eagerly. "Everything's fine, no heartless, no intruders."
"That's good, come on then Sora, I want you to meet the queen." Donald took her hand yanking her up the stairs like an excited little kid. It was obvious by their actions that they were glad to be home, and she didn't blame them. The courtyard was grand, with all manner of green bushes trimmed in uniquely captured statues and shapes. The little hull they came out of was a miniature castle and she couldn't help but let out a girlish "squeal" of delight over it.
The main castle itself was huge! Big white and sparkling like a diamond. The roofs were blue, the flags blew proudly in the wind, and all around there seemed to be smiles on every face they passed by.
The hallways glittered, everything clean and pristine, animated brooms and mops swept and cleansed around them, Sora did a little circle giggling as the broom danced around her then continued down the hallway. "Cool, which I had one of those at home."
She turned her attention back to Donald and Goofy who were further down the hallway. She jogged to catch up, stopped briefly to glance up at a massive pair of doors that lead to the throne room, then continued her run. The room at the end of the hall was a library, walls of books and a grand desk were just the centerpieces of this room. Intricate coloring, the same glittering clean floors and dustless shelves seemed to be a common link in all the rooms of the room.
Queen Minnie was sweet as apple pie, greeting them with bright smiles and graceful curtsey. "Welcome back, Donald, Goofy, It's good to see that you're both safe."
"Thank you, your majesty!" Donald and Goofy both saluted to her standing tall and proud in respect to royalty. Sora was too busy looking around to take notice of their change of demeanor. "Ah, excuse her," Donald spoke again quicklyforcing Sora into a quick bow. "This is our friend Sora."
Minnie's eyes went wide with delight her hands clapping together in front of her chest. "Oh, Sora! The king has told me all about you in his letters to me. He says you're a very brave young woman."
Sora flushed from the compliment and wriggled a little from Donald's grasp. "You've talked to him? Do you happen to know where he is?"
Queen Minnie's face saddened and she took a deep side. "Unfortunately no, he's been very secretive about the places he's been to. He speaks only of his mission and how important it is."
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to upset you, your majesty."
"That's alright, my dear. I'm just finally glad I get the chance to meet you. He's asked that if you ever happen across me and Disney Castle to be sure to welcome you."
"I consider myself welcomed then," she giggled. "Ah, did the king happen to mention a boy named Riku in his letters?"
"He has… briefly, but I'm afraid his location too is a mystery."
"Is he safe?" Sora's eyes looked hopefully into the queen's her hands clutched over her chest in a soft prayer. Her heart churned inside when Minnie's head lowered.
"I'm afraid I don't know. You're free to look at the letters if you like Sora… perhaps you can spot something in them that would give you a clue to their whereabouts." Minnie went behind the desk and took out several letters with the King's seal on them and set them on her desk.
"No heartless, no danger… I think this is a good time to take a break and decide our next move, you guys." Sora suggested.
"It couldn't hurt," Goofy agreed.
"Yeah! This was the only path opened anyway. It must mean we're here for a reason." Donald added.
"So then it's decided, we stay here until we figure out what to do next." Sora eagerly went behind the desk, and after a nod of approval from the queen she took a seat at the desk, and began the first of many letters.
The first few were of his travels before she'd even begun her journey as keyblade master. Talk of an overwhelming darkness and shadows of the past. Sora found herself caught up in them, as if reading a good book from cover to cover anxious to see how the book will end.
The King spoke of her, it made her a little embarrassed and yet pleased to see the King held her in such high regard, especially considering they hadn't even formally met. He spoke of the door to darkness, and how his own training with the keyblade had progressed… and he spoke of Riku.
He described the events vividly, so much that it stung. Riku's inner battle with the darkness… the pain it caused, and the determination to overcome it made her so fearful and so proud. Her heart clenched and she swallowed some tears. She was glad Donald and Goofy had gone off on some royal duties the queen had assigned them, leaving her alone in the library to silently grieve and sympathize alone.
She put the letter down rubbing the droplets from her face and she pulled her legs up setting her chin on her knees. She sighed deeply. "Oh Riku, sometimes I wish I could just go back… back to when things were so much simpler."
The sudden glimmer of light had her jolting and her head shot off to the side. She saw the door, a glimmering silver mirror surface that reached tall, and above was a sort of Crest made of four images… A crown, a star, a heart, and the letter S
"What the…" Sora unfolded her legs and stood up. She walked to the door touching the side and walking around it. There was no back, only a front, and from the way the crevice and hinges were put she assumed the door pulled out instead of pushed in.
"Huh… I wonder…" Sora reached the handle… and pushed in.
Light filled around her, nearly blinding her. even before the light faded she could smell the sea and hear the gulls. She was home.
~Destiny Islands?~
The sandy beach was the same, the view was the same, the bridge and treehouses were all the same. She stood upon the dock unable to stop the tears from welling up. "I'm home!" She ran, over the dock and onto the beach, feeling the waves crash, and the mist rise up and damp her face. She jumped into the water feeling its cool comfort, and she splashed it on her face sighing.
"Oh! Kairi!" Her attention suddenly shifted and she ran up the beach again to the cobblestone path that lead to the secret place. She pushed back the vines and walked in… but as she reached the grand opening… she froze in place. Where were her drawings?
The rock walls of the cave were bare, not even a small scratch upon them. The place where she had carved the faces of herself and her friends was smooth, not even an indent to show they had once been there… it was as if they'd never been there… never been drawn.
"What…" Shock rippled inside her as well as confusion. She heard voices outside.. .young voices of children. Hoping to find some familiar faces she ran out the cave… but halted once again just at it's entrance… the voice was familiar alright. The voice was her own.
"Wait! Come on, Riku slow down I can't run anymore!" Though it was young, and heavy in breath, Sora knew it was her own voice. The memory of running across the beaches with her best friend were vivid… but seeing it take place right in front of her eyes, like a ghost in time, was a sensation that was both liberating, and frightening.
She'd found a door to the past, she realized. Her past to be precise. She wondered what sort of magic or force had allowed her to see this moment? Or what purpose it served.
Young Sora was still an imp of a girl, barely six, and still dressed like a little boy in sandals and shorts. The mop of brown hair that went all over the place in spikes and tufts was a reminder of her laziness back then… She could remember fighting with her mother over brushing her hair everyday… having that torturous instrument yanked through the knots and tangles every day til it had grown out a little more evenly.
Still Riku liked her the way she was. Even back then they were close… like siblings. They'd spent everyday together, going on adventures, battling in various contests and games they'd come up with on the spur of the moment.
Sora found herself following, not too close, keeping to shade, and ducking behind objects just out of sight. She remembered this day… though it had been dug deep in her memories Sora recalled seeing the stranger on the beach…
She'd paid little attention to him at first, being a kid all she really cared about at the time was playing and enjoying herself. Besides the man seemed content with admiring the scenery and his own business. Still Riku had a piqued interest in him, and while she raced back to the boats to wait for her father, Riku stayed on the sandy beach, talking to the man… a secret shared between them.
A jolt ran across her as she recognized him pulling a keyblade out. She made a strangled gasp and held a hand over her mouth tucking herself back behind the hut to stay hidden. So… this is where Riku had learned of the keyblade and had gained its power.
Sora risked another peek. The man who held the blade was tall and strong… long spry arms muscled from training, and eyes deep as the sea, serious in thought and yet light and comforting when smiling. Who was he?
She felt a hand on her shoulder and it jolted her. Thankfully another hand came over her mouth to silence the scream, Donald pressed a finger to his beak motioning her to be quiet as Goofy held her back from sight and kept his other hand firmly over her mouth til he was sure she wouldn't scream.
"MMMMPH!... mmmm Donald…" She whispered once her mouth was freed. "Goofy? What are you guys doing here?"
"We came to get you, Sora." Donald tucked her back to the cave where they could be alone and out of sight. "Merlin sent us in after you, he said that this door is dangerous and you should go back."
"Merlin did?" Sora backed up a little looking at the two. "I don't know about dangerous… but the door led to my past… it brought me back to my childhood."
"Merlin was right then… he said that the door could have disastrous effects on the world if anything were to tamper it. He says you should seal it right away so no one else can use it."
"Right… seal it." Sora's eyes looked past them back out to the sounds of the ocean. "Okay… I understand. How do we… GAH!" She jolted when the door suddenly appeared behind her again. "Oookay never mind. Let's go back."
Donald and Goofy entered the door first… Sora stepped forward, glanced back nostalgically at the rocky cave… then slid begrudgingly into the light. As the inside of the castle came back into view the faces of the Queen and Merlin greeted her.
"Ah, Sora, thank goodness you're alright." Merlin stepped forward and put a hand on her shoulder. "When the queen told me of your disappearance and the appearance of this strange door I feared you might have done something troubling."
"I'm okay, Merlin… and so is that." She pointed behind her. "When I realized where I was I made sure not to be seen or talk to anyone."
"As you should have. Time traveling is a dangerous and haphazard type of magic, and this door should be permanently locked away." Merlin patted the silvery surface. "So do us all a favor and lock it up tight would you?"
"Yes… but first I have a question. I get that it's a door to the past, my past specifically… but what I don't understand is how and why it appeared."
Merlin cleared his throat… a sign he was about to make a long and more than likely complicated explanation. "What you see before you, Sora, is a very special type of door. When one such as yourself becomes lost in nostalgia, the natural magic inside them uses it to produce a door to the past, catered to only the one person. They are called "Timeless Rivers" for they were made from the weaving river of time itself."
"So there isn't just one door that leads to one specific time… there are many doors like this that can lead to any point in time?"
"Precisely," merlin rubs his beard between his fingers. "Which is why yours must be locked tight. We can't afford the dangers that could arise if someone were to wander into your past… you're too important to the worlds."
That made sense. If someone could have interfered in her past… more could have affected Riku from ever having contact with the keyblade, it could have halted their entire adventure.. .and as such dipped their world, and all the worlds into darkness. "I get it."
Painfully, she got it. No matter how much she wished she could go back to the days where her and Riku knew nothing of darkness, the heartless, and the nobodies, back to where the only adventures they'd go on were exploring their tiny island, and to the time when Riku was always by her side, It couldn't be done.
This was her life now, she had to accept it. She was the keyblade master. She had a responsibility to the worlds, and to her friends to protect them and use the gifts she'd been given. Riku was struggling, but he was doing his best to push past it, and if she wanted to help him, she first had to find him.
"Sora?" Goofy waved a hand in front of her face.
"Huh? Oh Sorry guys I didn't mean to space out on you." She patted her arms smiling sadly. "You know… lately I couldn't help but wonder what would have happened if Riku and I had never left the island… wonder what would happen if I had never become the keyblade master."
There was a shared look of dread coming over the faces of the others. She didn't blame them, the thoughts had frightened her too. "The fairies weren't kidding when they said this journey would be twice as difficult as the last. I'm feeling the weight of it more than I ever had. It's been putting doubts in my mind… who am I exactly? why did this happen to me? did the keyblade make the right choice? Am I really capable?"
"Of course you're capable, Sora!" Donald assured her in a worried voice.
"Donald's right, you've been getting stronger and stronger no matter the forces you went against." Goofy agreed
"Sure I've gained skills, and defeated Ansem, but I didn't do it alone. It's cuz of Riku that I even have the blade in the first place… it's because of him I've always pushed myself to try harder, to meet his level, to be..." someone of worthy of him, she realized with a sigh.
"You're never alone," Minnie assured stepping forward and touching her hand with a smile. "Sora, you've friends all around you… some may not be present they're always with us in our hearts. Even Riku, who was lost in the darkness, managed to reach through it to you."
"Thanks, your majesty… and I know that now. Just like I know how many people and worlds we made a difference in." Sora tugged her braid forward and looked at the clinking stones of her hair tie. Her smile was quick and happy. "This is my destiny." Our destiny, she corrected herself silently. "I might be separated from Riku, and from Kairi… but I know I'll see them again, and this journey… this fight against the heartless and the organization is too important to ignore. Riku and I were chosen for this, whether by design or mistake the keyblade has chosen to stay with me, and so long as I wield it I can't let anyone down by thinking selfishly"
She stretched her arm out letting the blade come to her, then in a smooth motion she turned and locked the silver door, in a brilliant display of glittering crystals it receded from view. Sora's blade continued to light… the letters on the desk sparkling and becoming the key, and as she had done with the worlds before she spread out her legs and let her blade release the light from them, and open the path she and her friends would continue on.
"Thanks again for your hospitality, your majesty, but looks like we have to press on." She bows politely and looks to Merlin. "Be sure to let us know if any of you hear from Riku or the King, or if heartless of the organization start acting up okay?"
"Of course, all of you be careful, we wish you all luck." Minnie bid to them, receiving goodbyes from all three before they headed back off to the gummi ship. She waited a few minutes when they were gone before returning to the desk and the letters. She set them back in the drawer… pulling out the one she had neglected to show to Sora. She opened it, rereading the contents over and over with a heavy heart.
Minnie,
I hope this letter reaches you safely. I'm afraid I won't be able to reach out to you anymore through letters. The Organization is too close and it's become too dangerous for me to even walk amongst the light anymore. Riku and I have discovered that the Organization has distributed members to many worlds, their numbers may be split but their powers are not to be taken lightly. Now I've been keeping an eye on Sora, and it seems that she's becoming more and more aware of Roxas, and it's causing her grief and confusion. Do me a favor, if you see her do your best to put her mind at ease, and welcome her.
I miss you, Minnie, and I hope that the Cornerstone of Light continues to protect you and our world.
Love, Mickey.
"Oh Mickey… please come home soon."
I know I know, "What about Vincent?" well that shall be explained in the next chapter. I wanted to change things up a bit rather than stick straight and narrow. I've a few more ideas up ahead so I hope you're all looking forward to them.
Next Chapter: Patty and the Pirates