Chapter 8: The Parabola

They spent the night in their sanctuary-dorm despite having put almost all their belongings back in their original cabins. Sora pushed it to be that way, though luckily Riku didn't seem to notice. The dawn seemed, he felt, to bring inevitable change. No matter what the silverette said about it being just them, all these happily ever after scenarios where he'd be the Mario to his Luigi, the Shaggy to his Scooby-doo, the brunet wouldn't –no, couldn't- believe it completely. But his lack of hope only made him cling harder.

The way Sora saw it, their relationship could only be a parabola, a line-graph akin to the motion of a coin tossed into the air. It accelerates up, reaches a maximum height, and then falls exactly the same way it rose up. Riku and he had started off at the bottom, practically hating each other for no reason at all. But then their situation was exponentially altered by their exchanged apologies (never mind his brush with death), and they reached their apex right before Coach told them that they couldn't share the same dorms. It wasn't the fact that they wouldn't reside in the same quarters any longer; it was the dose of reality that life was still running it's ever changing course. It ruined the mood. Before, they had been on a high, getting along so well because neither one nor the other could go wrong. Their relationship before was constantly accelerating, bonding and attaching them to the other with confessions and constant contact. They made their own little world, just them two. There were no limitations, no end, no bounds except for themselves. And for Sora, who has been waiting all his life to feel alive again, he couldn't say no to the challenge. Having reflected, he almost regrets any hesitation he had at all. But would have that only increased their acceleration rate?

But he could not deny that this was no longer their world. Others would be coming, and even if neither of them desires to talk to anyone else, they would have to. Anything could happen in the next month, and with the first month as a very recent example, Sora couldn't rely on anything. Stability has been thrown to the wind. The situation and the truth of the matter picked at his heart like a crow to bread crumbs, scratching at his heart, dousing itself in his mind. No matter what logic he tied himself to, he couldn't wrap his mind around the situation to make the frustration go away. What's worse, he knew that Riku would be willing to listen to the problem, but the words simply wouldn't form. Part of him worried that he couldn't talk to the silverette after all, that he'd be nagging him. He didn't want to be clingy.

He didn't understand. He still doesn't understand. Why is it Riku, the silverette who easily could have been just another person who screwed Sora over for no reason at all, bothered him so much? Sora has encountered countless people, and none of them interested him like this. He was tongue-tied and anxious and happy and distraught. But he, being Sora, bottled all this inside. If the words couldn't form, he would let the confusion fester and infect everything, all the while feeling helpless to stop it and obsessed with understanding it in utter futility.

So, despite himself, the bed with Riku felt colder than before. They had run out of words to say. The silliness had worn off, but it was no longer in a comfortable way. The sheets were full of unspoken questions. The pillows' fluff represented the cloudy space between him and the silverette. Sora had come to know him so well, but the truth of the matter is two weeks hardly says anything about a person except how they talk about themselves. It says nothing about who they really are. Acquainting oneself with their true spirit takes time and effort. The brunet is more than willing to undertake this task, but unfortunately the clock is ever ticking.

All these things kept him up that night, feeling the cold sheets warm up agonizingly slow. The brunet knew without a doubt he was over-analyzing the situation. If he looked at it simply, nothing had changed between them, but the forecast unfortunately was cloudy, with a slight chance of rain. He didn't know how the silverette felt, but he dreaded the next day and he found himself uselessly worrying about the unknown. His wristwatch glowed two a.m. before he began yawning, though Riku had obviously already fallen asleep. The blue, curious eyes watched him in the little light given to him from the moon peeking through the blinds covering the window. His long, silver hair lay tangled in little glinting rivulets on the pillow and his face peacefully rested. His heavy breaths made his chest rise and fall, but towards Sora as he lay on his side. The brunet wanted to kiss him, to see if it felt the same as that unmentionable time from before. He didn't however; the disgruntled teen was too preoccupied with wondering why he would want to do such a thing, why he felt such bizarre urges.

Still, when the silverette started shifting, feeling Sora's body heat and general presence, the brunet didn't back away as he was pulled into the other male's embrace. Even if it was a subconscious instinct, it reassured Sora ever so slightly. The blue eyed brunet, with all honesty, will miss these nights more than anything. For a teen of many jumbled words, Sora cherishes the simple quiet moments like this, which is partially the reason why he had always let Riku sleep in; his selfish intentions to let himself be held. But that isn't all. He wished that they could share the same dorm, not only so that they could be closer constinuously, but because then the brunet wouldn't have felt the shift in mood. He day-dreamed (ironically at night) of how they would-have-been if they shared their temporary living quarters with the two other guys. Or what if there was a shortage of guys and the cabin ended up with only them? They'd probably fall asleep in each other's beds, claiming to have been playing a game and then just fell asleep there. This scenario was definitely possible, with or without other dorm mates. Sora knows that the other guys, if they saw or heard about it, would find this odd, maybe even disgusting. Not that Sora had ever received approval from the other members of the general male population anyway.

He truly does believe that they could have gone on like that forever, enraptured in the world they made by pure accident. But now they are on the down fall. If they are a penny, falling from the apex, Sora wonders which side they'll land on. Lucky heads, or doomed tails?


The silverette is surprised to wake up next to a slumbering Sora. Every day over the past two weeks, Riku has either woken up by himself or with Sora practically on top of him, begging to be entertained. The silverette would then normally scowl and complain, desperately trying to hide any morning wood he may have (he's a healthy, growing teenager, it happens!). Riku smiled whenever the thought came to mind, but at the current moment, he is shocked by the mere sight of Sora dreaming away. Riku had always figured Sora would look so heavenly asleep, his face finally peaceful and his stormy, beautiful eyes finally put to rest at least for a few hours. But alas, even his face in an unconscious state remains slightly troubled. Riku has only seen an expression as such once before when his best friend, Mikey, passed away. But, the term passed away was putting it disgustingly lightly. If he was taken away, it was by force. Mikey's own force. This memory is a detail Riku forgot to mention to Sora about his life timeline.

Riku looks away, swallowing the instinctually made lump in his throat. He can still see Mikey resting in the open casket, wearing a plaid button up with a random Hail Mary necklace on his chest. The morgue had done his make up all wrong; his skin looked rough, uneven, and dark. His friend's eyebrows were slightly knit together, bracing. And the bullet hole, a cliché cave facing Riku on the side of his head, was obviously stuffed with cloth. His hair was messed up too. Later, to cope with the loss, the silverette would joke that Mikey would have thrown an absolute fit over his hair being mused up as it was, but thinking about it now still puts an indescribable weight on his shoulders.

Seeing Sora's face in such a state, even without the repulsive make up, overwhelms Riku with an undeniable sense of loss. Right then, Riku fully realizes the depth of concern he holds for the very alive brunet. The silverette hasn't moved yet to let go of the slumbering young male in his arms. He grips a little tighter, as if holding Sora together though Riku feels more like humpty dumpty than he'll ever admit. The heartbeat, the breathing, the pale skin is such a blessing, but he knows the truth now. He knows that Sora doesn't relish in life. If life were given to him as an option, he'd opt out; not out of selfishness, but in the true belief that no one would miss him. Mikey knew his decision was a selfish one, a domino effect on the whole high school he was enrolled in at the time. Riku, most of all, barely held on after he "passed". Riku, forcing himself to be the better man, had chosen to drag himself onward in life, fully knowing now that the greatest burden in life is that death could be moments away, and that even though the reaper steals every day, to some degree, the choice still remains in the hands of the beholder. Riku grips tighter again. This is a lesson he hopes Sora never received from his parents' death, being so young.

Closing his eyes, Riku embraces the hurt and weight. This is the only way he knows. Yet, he feels uneasy loving someone so soon. And though he hates the word loving, he will not allow himself the denial of calling it anything else. He recollects about all the people he's hurt, all the people he has lost, and then accepts the wave of guilt and fear that accompanies it. Although his heart screams out, his mind makes the decision that now is the time to distance himself, even if just slightly, from the brunet, for self-preservation. He isn't a hero; he has never successfully saved anyone. With that fact, he knows that to save himself of all the hurt of watching yet another friend die that he must keep detract and nullify the bond before it's too late. If it isn't already.

Riku lessens his grip.


When the boys didn't come out of the dorm, Coach eventually made a ruckus at their door until they finally detangled and kicked themselves out of the room. Disheveled and groggy, the boys stumbled silently to the cafeteria for breakfast, hoping that despite the hype among the adults about the new arrivals coming in a mere hour, that at least one of them remembered the current kids' consistent and large appetite.

Fortunately for them, there was cereal bars left out, and so they devoured those in silence. They each wondered what weighed down on the other and felt offended when neither asked what was wrong. But yet, Sora nor Riku said a word.

Still, they sat together under a tree as teenage strangers trickled in an hour later. They did this to face their new situation openly, yet also to stay out of the way. For both of them, it was a statement that they were a team in each other their minds. But it was also waiting for the change that both of them felt would occur.


The change came twenty minutes in. Sora, surprised, elbows Riku and says, "Hey, don't you know him?"

The silverette looks up from his collection of torn apart acorns in his lap. Lo and Behold, two Roxas' stand side by side at the entrance, one looking very sour and forlorn, the other looking bright and excited. However, there is no way of telling the two apart by face; the same blue eyes, the same hair even in style, the same mouth, height, and neck. They both are wearing jeans, though their shirts don't match. The silverette blinks a few times. When Roxas, the forlorn one, sweeps his eye over him, Riku waves, severely curious to know what clone he brought with him, and why he has suddenly appeared for a second semester. Roxas' eyebrows shoot to the roof of his hairline when he catches sight of Riku's sparkly silver hair and completely black attire. He nudges his clone-twin immediately, and in synch they look back to Riku. His skin rises in goose-bumps. The happy one smiles and says something to Roxas; he only nods, looking annoyed. Finally, they make their way over to Riku and Sora's tree.

"Roxas, is that seriously you?" Riku says incredulously. He looks between the two, using the trunk of the old oak to help him to his feet. Sora follows suit, but much more lazily.

"Yes," Roxas says, still ever so scornful. It's such a shock after spending two weeks with Sora. "I don't expect you missed me. Oh, and this is my twin, Ventus."

"Hi! I've heard a lot about you… Riku, right?" Well, Roxas would never, ever, admit it, but Riku was obviously missed. The blonde glares at the other. Ventus however continues to look ahead, eyes brightly staring into Riku's. The silverette didn't make much eye contact, but replies, "Yup. Glad I was mentioned. What are you guys doing here?"

Roxas sighs, "Different parent. Just watch The Parent Trap and it'll give you an idea." It still doesn't make much sense to the silverette, but he nods anyway.

Then Riku, remembering Sora, looks to Ventus, "Oh, Roxas knows Sora but you don't. This-" he gestures behind him and glances- to find no one.

The bright and happy one interjects, "Oh, the other one that was here? He went over there by the red haired kid." Ventus points over yonder. Yet another surprise; the tall, freak-of-nature red-haired kid came back as well.


"Axel!?" Sora calls soon after Riku is drawn into conversation with Roxas. Sora had definitely resented Fate's little surprise, but seeing Axel again was a wonderful reconciliation. The spikey-haired brunet bounces over to the calm redhead.

When he crosses Axel's line of sight, his face completely changes to one of astonishment. "Sora? What the fuck?"

Sora, laughing slightly, replies, "I should be saying the same to you. I never actually left, but you came back. What's up with that?!"

Axel uncharacteristically looks confused. "You…stayed? Well shit then. My uncle and aunt just sent me back, the motherfuckers." Even though he keeps a cool expression, Sora can tell it was obviously a last minute decision, meaning Axel had done something to set them off.

"I'm…sorry," he says quietly, unsure what to say.

"Oh, don't worry, I was trying to get them to send me back. No worries."

"Oh… okay," Sora replies doubtfully, wondering why but too shy to ask.

"So what the hell did you do with no one else here to keep you entertained?" Axel asks, changing the subject craftily.

The brunet hesitates, "…Actually, I wasn't here alone. Riku, the silver haired one you pranked, stayed with me. We uh…"

"Ah, made friends, did we? I'm proud of you." The compliment is awkward. The whole meeting is awkward. It becomes clear both of them had changed already in such a short span of time.

"Oh, Riku's friend Roxas came back too." Somehow, this catches the pyromaniac's attention. "Oh?"

"Yeah, and he brought a twin. It's creepy."

"Pfft, you're creepy, Sora. But you know what I think?"

"I'm not entirely sure I want to know what you think," Sora says sarcastically, but still smiling as he knew Axel would explain anyway.

"We need to go make friends. Let's merge the opposing cliques and prove ourselves to be more than worthless piece of shits in humanity."

"Err…. Sure," the brunet agrees, mostly because he realizes he doesn't want to be too far away from Riku for too long after all. So, they walk over to the still-chatting group. The happy blonde one, Ventus, greets them first.

"Hi! I'm Ventus!" He says it to introduce himself to the tall one. The red-head smirks and nods, replying with, "Axel."

Sora puts himself next to Riku, looking for an opening to join the conversation. However, before he finds one, the administrators start rounding up the kids, urging the stragglers to check into their cabins. Both Riku and Sora are swept into the crowd, getting stuck in their already-unpacked cabins as they help the other boys settle in. They manage to communicate a look of "I'm sorry" from across a couple heads, but that is the extent of it.


Sora's cabin ends up completely full with him, Ventus, a boy named Xion who suspiciously looks like a girl (but being feminine himself, Sora decides not to point it out), and another kid named Chris. They are certainly a diverse bunch. Sora, being bubbly and silly quickly warms up to Ventus, who makes it known quickly that everything in life is something to be excited about. Sora is kindly to the quiet Xion, and although he doesn't get much out of the mute, the brunet receives no hateful vibe so he accepts the silence. Chris seems like a normal bloke, laughing and joking normally but extremely noncommittal to anything that would really define him with a distinct personality. If the brunet didn't know better, he'd call the boy a NPC.

And with a severe sense of déjà vu, Sora thinks, this is going to be a long summer.


Riku glares at his cabin companions. Like Sora's cabin, the place is filled to the brim. Both the brunet's friend Axel and Roxas ended up with him, along with a real weirdo named T.K.; extremely tall, dirty blonde hair held haphazardly in a red doo-rag/headband, loose sweatpants and a cotton, white, oversized wife-beater. The teen constantly dances, saying random little snippets of Japanese phrases. None of the boys understand him, so they awkwardly glance at him from time to time, hoping that he'll just sit down and chill the fuck out.

The silverette keeps consistent conversation with Roxas and Axel despite his agitated mood. Even though he is more comfortable with Roxas by previous affiliation, Axel is not the type to ever be left out and so the dialogue naturally flows. Roxas doesn't seem to mind the extremely red, cursing ruffian which is amazing within itself. There must be some good in him if Sora likes him so much anyway. Despite himself, Riku feels a slight twinge of jealousy. Hopefully, he thinks to himself, him and Sora have a better connection than the brunet and Axel. Surely they do, even if things were tense and awkward yesterday. The silverette senses a certain heaviness in the air between them, and although Riku is absolutely convinced he shall agonize over it later, he isn't sure why it hangs there so menacingly now and what purpose it will serve.

By the time Riku's cabin is settled in, the time has flown by unnaturally fast. The boys and girls are called to dinner, but they are seated according to cabin, each table being a boy cabin, then the next being a girl cabin, and so on. This is only the protocol for the first day, which is a logical arrangement so that the clique-making is delayed a day (giving the misfit kids more time to find each other), but it harasses Riku when he is only three giggly girls away from Sora. There is some interaction between his table and Sora's, but talking over the girls becomes difficult when they try to join in the conversation in vain. Thus, dinner goes by very disappointingly.

Coach gives a speech about conduct rules and the bullshit "legacy" of Hawkeye Camp after everyone has eaten. In reflection, the silverette laughs at his fear towards the camp's rules; at first he truly believed that the place would monitor any illegal or otherwise bothersome behavior, but the truth lies in the principle of hide and seek. If it is not seen, it does not exist. The silverette pities any of the newbies in the crowd, listening in slight alarm at all the high standards the Coach lays on them, whereas he completely disregards them now. Riku smirks thinking about the leftover tequila in one of his cabin drawers. Something tells him he'll have to hide it better unless he wants Axel to drink it.

Finally, they are released back to their now-appealing bunks. Riku had chosen his strategically; it was the only bunk that could see through the window at the back of the cabin. Most kids found it annoying due to the consistent light during daylight and nighttime hours, but tonight the silverette is comforted by the stars twinkling through the mosquito screen and glass. He wonders what Sora sees in the stars. Riku always looks up, and finds comfort in the sheer number. They each shine so bright, making him feel important, despite being just a number among the six billion human population. They also make his problems feel smaller, knowing that somewhere out there, there must be someone else who at the very least carries a similar pain. The stars allow him to be optimistic for a change… and he truly hopes Sora feels the same.


The brunet tumbles into his previously-made bunk once Ventus finally returns from the loo. Sora hadn't trusted him to lock the door behind him, so he stayed up a few more minutes to make sure the door would be secured. Once again, after last semester, he isn't going to take a single chance.

He chose the bunk that could see outside through the single window in the cabin. In Japanese, his name means 'sky' and the term is appropriate to his personality and to the things he cherishes. The sky has always given him comfort and the notion still applies. The moon shines into the room, but mostly onto his bed and onto his face. He searches for the face in the big, white balloon hanging in space and counts the stars around it. The stars whisper their hope to him; they know if they can shine, Sora can shine even brighter. He believes it. He continues to stare at the moon, whispering lyrics to a made-up lullaby that his true parents would sing to him before sleep:

"Tiny steps are what we take… Walkin' on the moon.

Oh, I hope my legs don't break, walkin' on the moon!

I said we walk forever, walkin' on the moon

I said we could be together… Walkin' on, walkin' on the moon."

Drowsiness falls like rain over his eyes as he hums quietly, and his head droops. Riku's smiling eyes form in his mind as he drifts off to sleep, the image swirling into a beautiful jungle of green grass and blue sky, like the field in Howl's Moving Castle. He can see Calcifer, burning turquoise like Riku, falling toward him and he catches it. Sora, even in dream state, admits to himself that he would not mind it if Riku took the place of his heart and became the source of his strength. As long as there were a place to put Sora's own heart, preferably right in Riku's own chest.

And then, the silly dream fades to black.


A/N: Hey there, hope you like this one! It's not super long, but not short either ^_^ Sorry the drama has to start up again, but this story isn't over, and for it to be a story there has to be some kind of plot! Wooo, I need sleep. Much more fun stuff coming up.

Some of you guys predicted there would be character returns :) I didn't say anything but pat yourselves on the back for guessing correctly XD I brought some new people in too, so this will be fun. I kind of think of this chapter as the start of season two. Anyway, thank you so much for favoriting and reviewing! It has made all this so much fun, and I will be sure to start the next chapter soon and update as soon as possible. Love you guys!

Oh and disclaimer. I don't own Kingdom Hearts or the song Walking on the Moon or Howls Moving Castle. Or T.K. from AngelBeats. Or the Parent Trap. Gees, why do I make so many references?!