A/N: TWO WORDS- COMPUTER CRASH! Ugh! I had this chapter MOSTLY DONE around Christmas time and then I lost it all! (sobs) So, I took all this time to try and rewrite it the way I remembered it. SO SO SO SORRY ONCE AGAIN (I'm horrible aren't I?...for making you all wait long) Anyways, with writing this fanfic chapter and also just recently graduating from college and getting job applications in, it took longer than I thought. Please enjoy my new chapter and look forward to more! Not sure when I'll do the next part, but I'm not giving up on this story! I want to finish it all to the end xD Thanks for all the comments on the last chapter because it means so much that a lot of you enjoyed it! Please have fun reading this next chapter, where Sora, Kairi, and Riku finally figure out what is going on.
Feedback from fourth chapter comments:
xxXKairixSoraXxx- I'm happy you enjoyed reading and hope you like the rest!
SoraxLight- Sorry for making you wait! Please enjoy this next part!
Kauru's girl 64- Here you go! Happy reading!
SoraLover1994- Yaya! SoraxKairi foreva! Thanks much!
Demongirl56- I hope you continue to like the next chapters, too!
Death Rebirth Senshi- Cha! I adore the pairing so much! I hope you end up liking where the plot is going, too, as you continue to read. Also, thanks for still reviewing after the long wait!
kingdommad- Lol no Riku wasn't awake XD But, that would've been quite funny. I'm glad you liked it.
Shazi-Chan- OMG yeah! lol I think what I wrote is the farthest they'll get. I hope there is no disappointment for you in that, kk? I'm happy you are interested in Jazel. She will be in this chapter again for a little bit.
NinjaSheik- Thanks very much for reading and reviewing!
Noami.G- You did? Thank you! Here is more for your reading pleasure.
The Key of Hope- Yeah, I'm glad you think my description is good. I've been practicing. I always love lots of dialogue in my fanfics, too. Yays! I'm glad you like the SoraxKairi moment! I also hope you like reading more about Jazel later on, since you seem interested in her character. Thanks for alerting and faving the story, too!
Blue Jae- Thank you for the alert! I'm glad you like the "sweet" moments. There will be more to come.
Kisdota-The Freak Gamer- That is probably as far as they will go, though LOL. But, as I'm thinking about it, depending on future chapters, this fic might be more inclined to become M rated for violence instead...but, I'm not sure yet. Thanks so much for still reading after the long wait, too!
NOBODIES BECOME SOMEBODIES
Chapter Five: The Escape
Sora's eyelids lazily opened, with him expecting a blinding ray of light from the sun to come into view. However, the dark night sky filled the space above him.
I guess I didn't sleep as long as I had thought...
He then heard a faint snore and glanced over to his right. Kairi was slumbering peacefully next to him.
Wow...did all of that...really happen between us?
The brunette couldn't believe that he had been brave enough to ask the girl he loved if he could KISS
her...
...and she had obliged...and willingly.
Sora felt his cheeks heat up as a goofy grin came upon his face. He sighed contently and gently stroked his fingers across Kairi's forehead, tucking a few strands of hair behind her ear.
"I love you...my princess..." he spoke softly, "I just wish I had the wits to tell you that when you're actually awake," he chuckled slightly, "But, one day...one day I can-"
BAMMMM!
The raft shook violently, sending Sora toppling over Kairi and waking her up.
"Hey, what was...?" Kairi looked around.
Riku stomped over to his friends after what had happened, "What's all that racket? I need to sleep more than this!"
"It wasn't us!" Sora protested.
"Then who made th-"
"Uh, guys..." Kairi spoke firmly, yet quietly, pointing her finger upwards, "I think that is what our raft ran into."
The boys noticed a slight look of fear in the girl's eyes and quickly glanced up to what she was referring to...
...a heartless...a giant, ominous looking Darkside to be exact.
"What!" Riku stared at the beast, his mouth agape.
"I had a feeling this was going to happen," Sora stated.
His companions faced him with a curious expression.
"But...how, Sora?" Kairi questioned, "I never saw anything out of the ordinary."
"Neither did I," Riku agreed, "What's going on?"
Sora explained,"I noticed something...strange...when we were leaving the island yesterday. It looked like the way it was when it was first attacked a few years ago."
"You mean, the night everything started, right?" Riku asked.
"Yeah, but..." Sora shook his head, "...it was just a blur and then it looked like the island was normal again."
The wind blew furiously and water from the ocean began to swoop into the air and encircle the Darkside.
"Pardon me, boys...but, can we get back to the problem here?" Kairi wondered.
The boys continued to discuss the issue of Sora's mysterious sighting without even looking at her.
"HELLO!" Kairi waved her arms to finally get their attention, both of them giving her a sheepish grin.
Kairi continued, "We aren't just going to stand here and do nothing now, are we?" her keyblade appeared in her hand. She was not about to be helpless to them anymore.
"Kairi..." Sora admired her sudden bravery and grinned, "She's right! Let's go, Riku!"
Riku simply nodded with an apparent smirk on his face, both he and Sora's weapon now in their grasp.
Sora lunged forward at the creature first, aiming for its arm using Firaga. Meanwhile, from up behind them, more large heartless were surrounding the trio's raft without their knowledge.
The waves began crashing against the raft. Kairi and Riku, while trying to keep their balance, got spun around and saw the other Darksides. They now took their chance to join in the fight and began attacking.
This whole time Sora was trying every move he knew, but the heartless wouldn't even budge or sway back from any of the blows.
What the heck! Sora was beginning to become frustrated, Normally that would've been enough attacks to defeat it. What type of enemy IS this?
"Sora! You having any luck?" Riku exclaimed, realizing his hits against their foes were useless as well.
"No! Nothing's working!" the keyblade master replied in an irksome tone.
Suddenly, all three Darksides slammed a hand down, shattering the floating vessel into splintered pieces of lumber.
Sora, Riku, and Kairi were sent flying in the air and crashed down into the icy cold water. The three comrades came to the surface, gasping for air and coughing.
Sora immediately swam over to Kairi and held her close.
"Are you alright?" he asked, worried.
Kairi nodded frantically, "Yes...Is Riku okay?"
"Over here, you two!" Riku called over to them from the log of wood he was grabbing a hold of.
Moments later, they all now clung on to the remains of their raft, slowly drifting away from the heartless that had appeared before them.
"Well...now what?" Riku frowned.
"They aren't going to attack our home again, are they?" Kairi pondered.
"Whenever we find out who did this...I'm gonna-" Riku pounded his fist onto the wood, "Why are they back again?"
Sora exhaled deeply, not sure what to think of the current situation, "I don't know...but those weren't just ordinary heartless. We didn't even phase them when we attacked."
Not even mere seconds later, the sky surrounding them swirled in a million flashing colors before fading back to a surreal, light blue, the sun starting to come out from behind the clouds. The heartless that had been in the distance were now nowhere to be seen.
The friends were in complete shock, but were so dizzy and tired all of a sudden that they didn't even realize they had started to wearily close their eyes, passing out cold.
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"I see that they are already experiencing the effects of my magic," Jazel had a vision of what had happened and laughed to herself.
Evrer looked up at her, "What did you see?" his fingers fiddled together as he grew anxious, "Oh, do tell me, for I desire to know what difficulties our enemies are faci-"
"Quiet, worm!" Jazel sneered at him, "You need to get my ship ready!"
Her henchman used his arms to cover his head in shame, "S-so sorry, m-m-milady! But, w-what do you need your s-ship f-f-for?"
"Isn't it obvious? This scheme is going to go much deeper...and much farther...than I had originally planned."
Evrer smiled slyly, "Oh, really?"
The lady grabbed her cloak and wrapped it around her frame, "Yes, and you will come with me..."
She looked out her window one more time.
"...to Hollow Bastion."
xxxxXXXXxxxxXXXXxxxxXXXXxxxx
Riku floated in midair. He couldn't see anything around him, but it felt to him like he was slowly falling downwards.
"What...is this feeling?" he murmured weakly, "I can't...feel the light anymore..."
"Come back...Riku."
"That voice..."
"Why have you strayed for so long?"
"Who is that?"
Riku's head began to throb in pain, and he couldn't move or even make a sound.
Leave me...alone...I don't...want this...
His eyes were clenched shut. His body ached, and he could feel darkness seeping into him.
No...I can't...
He gasped for air, suddenly screaming out an ear-splitting cry.
"ANSEEEEEEM!"
xxxx
Riku's eyes shot open, and his vision instantly focused.
He sat up slowly and brushed away the wet hair that had clung to his forehead. He noticed that a dry towel had been draped over him to keep him warm.
"Hey, Sora? Kairi?" he looked around the room, "Where are you guys?"
Riku stood up, dropped the towel on the floor, and found a door to his right. A blinking, red button was on the wall next to it.
He pressed it and the door sped open with a Swooooosh! revealing none other than King Mickey himself.
The royal mouse was sitting at a desk piled up with books. He was intently staring at one of them while flipping some pages. It was easy to tell he had been researching something for a while now.
"Your Majesty?" Riku walked over to him.
Mickey's head suddenly popped up, "Oh, Riku! You're awake..." he had been so lost in concentration that he didn't notice Riku had even come through the door.
The boy sat down in an empty chair, "So, what all...happened?" he looked around once more, "Where are we?"
Mickey laughed a little, "One of our gummi ships. Surprised?"
"Yeah, it's just...how did you know about..."
"Well, it all started when some strange things happened at the castle. Lots of heartless appeared, but we couldn't fend them off. There was something different about them."
Riku nodded, "That happened to us, too."
"Yup! As I had figured. So, Donald, Goofy, and I suspected we could possibly travel between worlds again. When that was found out to be a fact, we headed over to your world and your island."
"Wow..." Riku was in awe, "...and you definitely had great timing. We were goners."
"Welp, I'm just glad you're alright and that we found you in time...You three were asleep for a full day, and now that you're awake, maybe you can help us figure out what's going on."
Riku smiled, "Of course."
"Alright!" the king sat up, "Let's go to where the others are."
He began to walk toward the room's exit toward the cockpit, but Riku stopped him.
"Hey, um...Could I ask you something?"
Mickey turned back around, "Sure, Riku. What's on your mind?"
"Do you think...what has been happening is...our fault?"
The king was taken aback, "What? Why would you think that?"
"Well...not too many days ago, Sora and I were talking about how we missed all the adventures...and how we wished we could go on one again. But...for it to happen like this..." he looked down at his feet, "...we didn't mean to-"
"Riku..." Mickey frowned slightly, "I understand what you're thinking, but...that doesn't mean this is your fault. It's all in your head."
"But...But, I-"
"Now, don't start that," the mouse now grinned from ear to ear, "Let's go greet Sora and Kairi with a happy face, okay?"
Riku glanced back at his friend, and a small, yet genuine smile came upon his expression, "Alright...sounds good."
As the two walked out of the room, Riku still couldn't help but think about the dream he had.
What exactly...was that all about?
xxxxXXXXxxxxXXXXxxxxXXXXxxxx
While in the cockpit altogether, everyone discussed and agreed that they should look around for more clues at various worlds.
"Before we do that, though, we need to head back to the castle," said Donald.
"Yeah!" Goofy concurred, "Queen Minnie and Daisy are still there."
"No need to worry about them," Mickey reassured, "If my suspicions are correct, we should have no problem reaching them once we land."
"Suspicions?" Sora questioned, "Is there something you know about that we don't, Your Majesty?"
"No, no, nothing like that. You'll see what I mean when we get there. In the meantime," he looked over to Riku and Kairi as well, "...you all should probably take it easy, and maybe even get some more sleep."
Kairi yawned a bit, "Sounds fine to me."
Riku headed back to the room he had awoken at and bid his friends goodnight. Not far down from outside his door, Sora and Kairi remained in the hallway.
"Hey...Sora?"
Sora smiled at her, "Yes, Kairi?"
Kairi tightly grasped one of Sora's hands in her own.
"K-Kairi? What is it?"
"I...I just..." she looked up at him with a smile, but a small trickle of a tear rolled down her cheek, "Everything...will turn out okay again...right?"
Kairi didn't care if Sora saw she was upset. She knew she didn't have to hide her true emotions around him any longer.
"Hey..." Sora took his free hand and cupped her cheek, "Of course it will. It always does, right? We just need to believe in ourselves."
Kairi smiled a little wider, "Yeah, you're right. I'm...sorry for the waterworks," she laughed a little.
"No worries," Sora nodded, "Everyone needs a good cry now and then."
He now removed his hand from her face and took her other hand.
"Now..." he asked, bowing slightly, "May I walk you to your quarters?"
Kairi giggled loudly, "You don't need to be so formal, Sora."
Sora then surprised her when he bent down on the ground with one knee and brought her hand up to his lips, kissing it lightly, "And why ever not?" he grinned up at her.
Kairi's face became a light red, and she looked down at the hand he had kissed, "Sora, I..." then she looked into his eyes, "I would be honored."
"As you wish, Kairi," Sora stood back up and they began walking together, ready for a good night's sleep.
xxxxXXXXxxxxXXXXxxxxXXXXxxxx
In the town of Hollow Bastion, now with it's renamed former title, Radiant Garden, Yuffie strolled along the street with Aerith. They had been shopping in the town square and were carrying bags of supplies over to Merlin's house.
"I can't believe everything is almost complete," Aerith smiled joyfully.
"I know! We've all been working so hard and we'll finally have the town completely constructed back to the way it was!" Yuffie exclaimed excitedly.
"So," Aerith questioned, "Have you decided what area you would like to live in? Knowing Merlin, once all the houses are completed he'll probably want his place for himself."
"Hmmmm..." the black-haired ninja pondered before responding, "I'm not quite sure. I suppose, if it was possible...I would try to-"
"Aerith! Yuffie! Quick!" a voice hollered.
The girls immediately turned around and saw Merlin appear before them in a puff of colored smoke.
"What is it?" Aerith wondered.
"It-it-it's Leon! He's in trouble!" the magician shouted.
"Leon?" Yuffie asked, "Where is he?"
Merlin turned into a blue bird and began to fly away, "We haven't a moment to waste! Follow me!"
A/N: Yeah, I figured, after watching Sword in the Stone again, that I should have Merlin turn into an animal of some sort lol but, there you go! Review as always! XD Thanks!