Laura stared down at the persimmon-colored dress Kairi had insisted she'd wear. It was a lot similar to hers minus the difference in color from pink to the orange-pink and two white bows at each side. It was a tad more to her style despite it being a short dress, so it would just have to do. She wasn't one to complain over donated clothing. In an attempt to seem like she was at ease, she looked out to the water surrounding the boat she sat in. The sun slowly climbed the sky in such a way that it caused its reflection in the crystal clear water to glisten like the finest diamonds. Sora, sitting across from her, noticed the delight in her eyes and looked out to the sun's reflection as well.
"It's breathtaking, isn't it? You won't find a better view of the ocean in any other world." Laura turned to him and blinked.
"So I really am in another world... What does that mean to us, anyway? That we're in another world apart from mine?"
"Well, let's see... the best way to explain it would be..." Sora began to think, and made it very apparent to all three accompanying teens that he was by the expression on his face. Riku's interest perked as Sora came to the easiest way to explain.
"A long, long time ago, every world was physically connected as one giant world with many different nations." Laura nodded with this first bit of information as Sora continued. "Everyone was filled with a positive energy, or what we call Light. It's like the power of all things pure and positive, and it's found in your heart."
Laura placed her hand over her heart. "Energy inside my heart?" Both Kairi and Sora nodded towards her while Riku kept his gaze in the direction which he needed to direct the motorboat in.
"That's right, Laura. Some people have a lot of light within them, like myself and Sora. I can feel that you have a lot of light within you, as well." Kairi smiled as she motioned to both hers and Sora's hearts. Their lesson seemed a tad bit elementary to Laura, but a lesson at an elementary level was just what she needed at this point. Any more complication and she my have began to panic once again.
"You forgot something, though. Every living thing has a heart, or a center of energy. Even this world, as well as yours." Laura exhaled, taking the information in at risk of her mind overflowing. If someone in her own world were to tell her this before everything that had happened, she would have called them crazy.
Riku cut in. "But with a light there is always its partner: its shadow, the darkness." Laura became curious as to why Riku had to explain that as opposed to Sora, but brushed it off as she needed to keep her attention.
Sora nodded. "Yeah. And so the darkness eventually took over peoples' hearts and corrupted them, since it's a hard power to control. That caused the world's heart to corrupt as well, so it separated in attempt to save everything that it could. Unfortunately-"
"My world couldn't handle the darkness within it, so it perished, didn't it..." Kairi frowned at Laura's guess.
"Yes, in a way. Our home, Destiny Islands, fell into the darkness a few years ago. The light in peoples' hearts brought it back to life. We'll be able to find your world eventually. The same thing may happen!"
Laura turned away towards the ocean surrounding them, straddling the plank seat and then leaned on the side.
"I wouldn't be so sure. If darkness is the likely cause, my world was doomed from the start. It's not as peaceful, orderly or as clean as Destiny Islands. It's... unclean."
Sora placed his hand on her shoulder, making her turn towards them. She looked down to the bottom of the boat, an emotionless expression on her face. "You're still in shock from everything. Worlds can change. Trust us, please." Sora's serious but caring tone surprised Laura, and she shrugged.
"I'll find it again someday. I'll see for myself if it's changed." Their conversation was halted by the boat reaching dry land.
"Okay, we're here. Let's go." Kairi seemed concerned that Riku's sudden interest back on the boat ride had suddenly vanished. He placed his hands in his pockets and swiftly jumped out of the boat and onto the sandy beach. Laura smiled towards the island on which they arrived. It seemed a lot brighter than when she had first awakened on its soothing beaches.
"If I had this kind of a place to play when I was a kid, then..." she thought of her shady-but-large apartment building, her shady pavement neighborhood overrun by garbage, shady people and small shady little stores that lined each street. She thought of her friends living in lower-than-average income families who she'd always played with in her younger years.
It never occurred to her back then that there had been an invisible barrier between income levels, like the other inhabitants of her apartment had always spoken of. Her kid neighbors had criticised her of her choice of friends in the apartments below them. There had been countless times where she had to defend Shelagh and Lionel from the richer kids' comments and judgements. Why was it that the greatest of people were the ones to suffer the most? The rustle of palm tree leaves above her jogged her memories and caused her heart to sink.
'Shelagh and Lionel...'
Other than her early childhood friends, Shelagh and Lionel stuck with her her whole life after Adam had taken her in. Leo had introduced her to their block since his father was a close friend of Adam's. Always laid back with a killer sense of style and of when Laura was not feeling at her highest, he gave her the right amount of comfort and support through her grieving. Blinking up at the light shining between the palm leaves, she thought of the many times her, Leo and Shelagh had spent watching senseless comedies on her widescreen TV. Laura smiled sadly.
'They always had the best taste in tasteless movies.'
Shelagh had the perfect humor to Laura. It was unpredictable, silly and a tiny bit sarcastic at some times but it made Laura feel supported, just like Lionel's caring disposition. Shelagh was the 'go-to-girl', as she had named herself, for any kind of feminine-gossipy wishy washy problem any girl would undergo during school years. Either friends would ever let her feelings close up around them, which is something she was truly thankful for. If she hadn't had people like them, she -
Sora gave her a toothy grin and took a hold of her hand, snapping her out of her memories.
"Come on, now! We have to hurry. He hates being late." Sora gestured to Riku, who was already halfway between the forested area and them. Swallowing her inside lamentation from her memories, she gave a fake eager nod.
"Sure! Right." Both teens walked quickly to Kairi's side. All three joined Riku to delve into the forest of dense, green tropical vegetation. Laura began to wonder exactly why they had ventured to this deserted island and kicked herself for never truly asking. Kairi brushed several low branches and plant leaves out of their way while she lead the way for Sora, Riku and Laura. She turned slightly towards Laura.
"I can imagine that you're pretty spooked about the reason we're taking you so deep into the forest," she began, "but you'll know soon enough!" She quickened her pace and was followed by Sora.
"Yeah, it's a surprise that's better left uncovered 'till you see it!" Laura gulped as she remembered several of the lessons Adam had drilled into her head concerning strangers leading girls like her off to somewhere remote. She mentally added in how they had been talking about some power of light as if it was common knowledge. If they had been in Manhattan while they had explained all the information about Hearts, Light and Darkness to her, the three teens may have been locked up inside the nearest loony bin.
She came to an abrupt stop once they reached a small clearing in the forest. In front of her swirled what seemed to be a portal covering the ground, much like the upright portal she had discovered once she opened her apartment door.
"Woah, what is-" Sora grabbed her hand and lead her almost instantly towards the swirl and into it. The two others followed and it expanded to fit them all. In a moment she felt a wash of what she deemed to be a mixture of relief, comfort and peace. Mixed with her newfound excitement and anticipation, her face shone the reflection of light coming from underneath their feet.
"Just look up, and stand up tall." Riku gave a small smirk towards her excitement as if he had been observing a small child's. She quickly did as he told along with Sora and Kairi. He looked up afterward with a small eager smile.
'Here we go again.'
Laura felt a breeze-like white energy gently swirl up her body and through her newly straight blonde hair. It seemed like magic. Her thoughts were halted as they all seemed to begin to float slowly upward. She gasped during the second of magical levitation before their bodies were quickly thrusted upward into the sky. She yelped, suprised, while Kairi smiled towards her. She was astounded that the sudden movement hadn't fazed any of them. The light surrounding the four teens engulfed them and disappeared, carrying them to a destination unknown.
"What? Woah..."
Laura's eyes cleared up from the light that had abducted and blinded her to see what she assumed to be a cockpit. She jumped at the fact that she had somehow been seated in a rather strange metallic chair. Her finger traced the glowing mechanical veins on the armrests that matched the rest of her seat.
"Cool, huh?" Laura jerked her head upward to find both Sora and Riku seated in front of her to the left and right, respectively. Kairi sat beside her to Laura's right and gave her an approving look toward her curious expression. Laura smiled a mile-wide open smile.
"Check out these killer seats! What is this?" Sora turned around quickly, reminding Laura of an over-excited small child despite his age.
"It's called a gummiship. Our friends in another world helped us to make this model."
"Gummiship..." Riku stood up from his seat and shuffled in front of Sora's. Sora's cheerful disposition was quickly replaced by a mock glare up towards his best friend.
"You're in my seat."
"Not a chance! I'm driving."
"I don't feel like dying today, so I'd rather you not."
"Honestly! This is truly my spot. Yours is right there and that's beside mine." Kairi rolled her eyes while turned towards Laura.
"This'll take a while."
"I'm not letting you drive the ship. Last time that I made that mistake, it took me an hour to explain to Cid why the windshield had a huge crack the size of your pride in it. Not to mention the steering had damage any normal pilot would've been unable to enflict after like, 20 years of space travel."
"Hey, man! Low blow. Now sit down or go home."
"You should go home."
"GO HOME!"
"I would already be THERE if you'd move your ass-"
Sora gasped mockingly towards his friends' profanity. "Now, Riku, there are ladies present. Sit down."
"Sit-"
"You!"
"Sit dow-"
"Sit."
"Si-"
"Sit-"
"THAT is IT!" Kairi jumped up from her spot, let out an angry sigh and picked Sora up by the hood. She threw him into his seat and he tensed up, whimpering for his life, curled up into a ball on the side of the chair. Kairi jolted a turn toward Riku, ignoring the clown of a boy beside them. Laura stifled a laugh but held her hands across her mouth so that none of the teens could hear her. Kairi pointed towards the captain's chair and glared into Riku's eyes.
"Sit down and drive."
Riku's eyes were wide as he turned toward the windshield, took a step backward and stiffly sat down into the driver's chair in front of Laura's. His eyes still wide, Riku gulped and extended his hands out in front of him as if he was gripping an invisible steering wheel. The ground below where his hands hovered shone for a moment before a steering wheel mechanism appeared from the light. Laura laughed in total satisfaction at both the scene that had just played out and the magical appearing act by the steering wheel.
"Now this is what I call a great ship!"
Kairi laughed along with Laura while both Sora and Riku gave each other wary, afraid looks with small nervous chuckles. Kairi sat down beside Laura once more, her laughing becoming more genuine. The boys' laughs gradually escalated to match Laura's and Kairi's until Kairi stopped suddenly, stomping her foot onto the floor.
"I mean it, now DRIVE!" Sora yelped and Riku tensed, immediately pressing a button underneath the wheel, causing the chairs to slide closer to what Laura thought to be the dashboard. Kairi chimed excitedly.
"Positions!"
Her chair moved to the left of Riku's, while Sora moved to his right. Kairi's chair moved to Sora's right. Sora grumbled to himself dur to the fact that he was now second to the pilot, but moved his hands towards the dashboard and hovered them above it. The space underneath his hands shone for a brief moment, revealing many different neon-coloured buttons. Laura could only imagine to what purpose they served.
He gave Kairi a look, which caused her to smile and nod with a "right". Soon after, she too hovered her hands above the dashboard, except instead of buttons appearing beneath her hands two analog-stick-like fixtures protruded from the dash with a flash. Laura blinked in amazement.
"Whoa..." Riku caught a glimpse of Laura's amazement as well as her lack of experience in a gummiship. Unlike himself and his two friends, she hadn't been travelling across worlds for around 3 years.
"Here, do the same thing that the two of them did." he pressed a small neon green button on the dash to his left, and gave her an urging look to obey. She returned his order with a smile.
"Okay, here goes..." Laura closed her eyes and hovered her hands above the dash comically. Her brow tightened as she concentrated, earning a chuckle from Sora. Once the dash began to glow and become replaced by the same type of analog apparatus as Kairi's, she opened her eyes and laughed trimphantly.
"Well take a look at her! She's getting the hang of things." Kairi giggled lightly, congratulating Laura, who gave her a thanking look. Sora grew a mischevious grin towards Riku.
"You better watch out, hotshot, she might take your place!" Riku simply exhaled and pressed multiple buttons that caused the ship's engines and inside workings to whirr. This excited Laura. she grabbed the two analog sticks, raring to go.
What she didn't prepare for, however, was the rollercoaster ride of a feeling she felt in her stomach as the ship seemed to launch itself upward almost instantly after Riku turned the ignition.