A/N: I am aware that Sora doesn't travel everywhere by Keyhole, but think about poor Dante, crowded in the Gummi Ship as Sora crash-lands it continuously. Besides, what could possibly be a more stylish KH travel method for him than a golden flash of light?
"So…" Dante began, peering openly at the still settlement around them. "This place is inhabited?" Sora nodded in response, pausing to listen. "Yeah, it is. There hasn't been much activity since the Heartless infestation, though." A silver head bobbed in acknowledgement of the information. "Is there a pizza joint or anything like that around here? I could go for a small bite." The brunette watched him skeptically, tilting his head and staring in confusion. "Pete-tsa?" Dante gaped at the boy's reaction, frowning in agitation. "So you're telling me, that in all the worlds in this universe, there is not a single place where someone can sit and eat pizza?!" Sora flinched at his tone, shaking his head vigorously, before stopping and beaming up at him. "Maybe not, but we have ice-cream! I mean, that's even better, right?" Grey eyes locked onto his blue ones before chuckling deeply, licking his lips. "Ice-cream doesn't sound like a bad idea. Do you think they have strawberry sundaes?" The boy gave another confused look, causing Dante to sigh in frustration. "Fine. Ice-cream is fine, whatever the flavour may be." Sora perked up again immediately, giving another one of his infamous grins, Dante cracking a small smile in response. "Then let's go!" Grabbing his wrist, Sora dragged him through the city streets, letting him look around at the sunbathed walls as a group of children passed them, but saw no one else until the shop was in sight.
"Two, please," Sora called, holding his free hand up in a "V", grinning widely with both eyes closed. The owner nodded, quickly scanning over Dante's build before getting to his work, producing two pale blue ice blocks from the stall and handing them to the silverette to hold in each hand while Sora fished around in his pocket for the Munny. Dante was about to take a hesitant lick of one when the brunette grabbed his arm, squeezing tightly. "No! …Not yet…" Confused, the white-haired demon nodded once, moving to follow as Sora grabbed one of the ice blocks and walked off.
"So….? What do you think?" Blue eyes peered curiously at the half-demon, the owner grinning and clutching the side of the building, kicking his legs absentmindedly as he watched his companion sitting precariously in a similar position, eyes closed and nostrils flaring as he inhaled its scent. "Ice cream that smells like the sea? You sure are a strange bunch." With a smirk, he bit into the ice block, tearing half of it off with a swift movement of his head, throwing it back and gulping the half in his mouth down. Sora watched in amazement, stunned. "That's the fastest I've ever seen anyone eat one!" Dante grinned and took it as a compliment, licking the rest of it off the stick and his fingers before patting him on the back. "You'll find I'm the fastest at a lotta things, kid!" Turning his attention to the scenery before them, he mumbled "Some view! How'dya find a place like this?" Blinking slightly, Sora kicked his feet to a gentle rhythm, staring at his hands clasped before him. "Just… a friend. A long time ago… or at least, it feels like a long time." Sora frowned, looking away as Dante turned to observe him, his stare curious and face unreadable. "What happened, Sora?" A heavy silence.
"Tell me. What happened?" The tone of voice was unmistakable: through measured calm, the threat of disobeying his command was painfully obvious. Wincing, the brunet turned to meet his gaze, dull eyes full of pain and a strange emptiness. "Well… I… I mean, Roxas…" Grey eyes softened with slight confusion, but Dante nodded for him to continue. "We met a guy named Axel. Redhead, really tall, purple tattoos under his eyes; unique, hard to miss! Well, anyway, he has a sweet tooth – a really strong one – and he introduced me, I mean Roxas, to this place, and to our treat." Waving his ice cream in the half demon's general direction, he murmured to the wind and golden sunset. "Sea salt ice cream…" Nodding, the silverette licked his lips again, re-tasting the concoction in a new light upon knowing its name. "Sea salt ice cream…" he mumbled back, leaning forward a little and unwittingly mimicking the brunette's pose, leaning towards the sunset with his hands clasped between his knees, elbows gingerly resting on his thighs.
By this stage, the sun had nearly set, bathing the surrounding city of gold blood red, the few straggling clouds on the horizon stained purple with the dying light. "Red is a good colour," Dante mused, flicking his coat and leaning backwards a little, stretching his impatient muscles from their 'cramped' position, instead tilting until his back was pressed smoothly against the wide pathway of their hangout. Turning his head to stare at the man, now resting the back of his head on his tucked arms, Sora gasped and looked away quickly, tears in his eyes. "You… you look just like him in that position. Axel… Red was his favourite colour, too." Frowning, the demon man stood up, strolling backwards and forwards along the thin rim of where the brunette was still sitting, as easily as if his body weighed nothing. "Dante, stop it! What if you fall?" Laughing suddenly, he jerked to a halt, one leg raised partially, deliberately hanging over the empty air to his left; Sora cringed. Intense laughter gradually subsiding to a now-sinister chuckle, the demon pulled his leg back and put it directly in front of the other one, heel to toe. "A demon knows when he's gonna die just before he does, kid! It ain't my time to die." Taking another step forward, Dante swayed towards the edge deliberately, causing the boy to gasp. "Damn it, Dante, I mean it!" Righting himself and sitting down into the 'crowded' position again, the white-haired man sighed softly, staring absently at the shadows forming on the buildings. "Now it's your turn to tell me what's wrong," Sora commented, sensing the tension in the older male. Dante only sighed again and brought his arms up to rest his head in his hands.
"You remind me of someone close too, kid. That's all." Frowning, the brunette boy searched what he could see of the other's face behind his long hair and gloved hands. "Go on." Now it was Dante's turn to frown, tipping his head even further against his palms. Silence surrounded them for what felt like a long time, before the demon finally agreed to speak. "He was – is – a lot like you; young, naïve, full of life and inner strength, usually willing to help others. I worry about him; even before I got here, we haven't spoken for three months. It's not like we had a fight or anything, just a slight disagreement after which he upped and left. Didn't pack anything, but didn't need to… Damn him, he could have called, though!" Sora flinched; it was all too clear that the demon wasn't used to yelling, his voice heavy and cracked, tearing from his throat like sticks scraping against stone. Unsure of what else to do, the boy smiled gently, patting his arm for support. "It's ok. You'll find him. Who knows? Maybe he ended up like you somehow, somewhere amongst these worlds? If that's the case, he'd probably be on one or another, and we'll find him if he stays put!" Dante chuckled grimly, but sat up with lighter spirits. "That idiot doesn't have the common sense to 'stay put'." Grinning at each other, they stood up and began descending the stairs behind the tower, Sora bubbling over in his excitement to boast about his achievements, met with Dante's joyful chuckling and absent gestures.