By now, we should be clear on the fact that I don't own Kingdom Hearts or its characters, right?

Zexion ran off, not even paying attention to the fact that the others followed him, clearly worried about the siren. He made it to where Vexen was left to care for the young siren. The man was sitting with his back to everyone, feet in the water. His head was down and Zexion truly feared for the worst.

"Vexen?" Zexion asked. Vexen glanced back before looking back to the water. "No… no..." Zexion ran over and knelt by the water, looking for Sora. Roxas, Demyx, and Riku were all at his side, Saïx and Axel behind him. "Where is..."

Zexion was cut off by a splash followed by a melodious giggle. He then stared, realizing Sora had used his tail to splash as many of them as possible, doing a rather impressive job.

"Sora you son of a…" Roxas flung water droplets back at him.

"If I weren't so relieved, I'd be pissed that you did that." Axel said, hating the idea of being soaked.

"Sora!" Zexion jumped into the aqueduct, not minding the water one bit and hugging his close friend, his brother. "You're okay, I was so worried..."

"I told you he just needed to rest." Vexen said, wringing out his drenched hair.

"Everything went well?" Sora asked, wrapping his tail around Zexion's body.

"My father's been imprisoned; he'll no longer be able to hurt anyone." Riku stated.

"And Zexion made you king." Sora smiled. "I told him you'd be a good choice. You have a good heart after all."

Riku smiled. "Yeah." he said. He then looked around. "We've got a lot of work ahead of us… but this kingdom will be as great as it was when King Terra ruled."

"I do promise." Riku said as the new crown, the true crown of the king Zexion had seen in paintings of his father, was placed upon his head.

"Then, ladies and gentlemen of Radiant Garden, I present to you your king, King Riku!"

"Long live King Riku! Long live King Riku!" people shouted as they cheered for the new king, a week after the removal of Sephiroth from the throne. Riku smiled, glad he had the support of the people. He knew he had to work hard to truly earn their trust, but he was glad they supported a new king, one they hoped would make things better.

After the celebration, Riku went to the garden where he found Sora in the fountain, Zexion sitting on the edge of it.

"So, king, huh? Let me know when you find a queen, okay?" Sora teased.

"Sora, play nice." Zexion chuckled. "How's it feel?"

"Almost like this isn't even happening, like I'll wake up to realize it was only a dream." Riku admitted, going over and sitting down next to Zexion. "You guys are returning to the forest?"

"Mm-hmm, but we'll be sure to visit." Zexion assured. "We'll have many reasons to, actually." Riku looked to him curiously. "Roxas is staying in the kingdom; he plans on training with the guards to improve his skill. Saïx also plans on still living in the kingdom with Xemnas. Demyx is coming to live with us, so he'll want to visit his family, especially since Larxene's children will be born soon."

"Well, make time to visit my brothers and me." Riku said. "And I'll send word for when I come to have a queen at my side, and again whenever we have children." He smiled at Sora. He still loved the siren, but he did know he had to let go and find a love he could have and cherish. "Ah, King Riku… I never did get used to being Prince Riku, but now…" He chuckled a bit.

"You'll do fine." Zexion assured.

Zexion wrote in a book, putting his notes down. He could hear Demyx calling for him, telling him that they should go now so they could see his niece and nephew and meet the king's newborn son. They had missed attending the celebration when Riku announced his child's birth and it was clear Demyx was anxious.

"Give me a moment." Zexion said, closing up his supplies and standing up from the table he worked at. He stepped out of the cabin that was built by the shore for him and Demyx. He looked to see Demyx looking impatient. "Did Sora go ahead of us?" he asked.

"Yes!" Demyx whined. "Let's go! Let's go!"

"Goodness, you're a grown man and you whine like Aster and Daisy." Zexion chuckled, comparing his lover to Demyx's niece and nephew. He shook his head as they walked through the forest, heading to the town surrounding the palace. "We'll stop by to see Larxene and Saïx first, then go to visit Riku, okay?"

"Sounds good!" Demyx cheered.

It didn't take too long to leave the forest, entering the town. As they walked through the kingdom, Zexion listened when he heard some children talking to their parents.

"Yeah! I saw the siren! Do you think it's the one King Riku talks about?" a little girl asked.

"He's gotta be; he's all blue and shiny like King Riku described!" a boy exclaimed, looking so happy.

After becoming king, Riku had told stories of sirens, telling the people that they were peaceful and kind, especially if you were kind to them and showed no hostility. He would tell of a siren who could read the hearts of others and sing so beautifully. This gave positive outlooks on Sora, letting him swim through the aqueducts, even exposed ones and large streams, allowing people to see him. Some people even said it was good luck to see the siren, thinking he brought peace with him. Zexion didn't blame them for thinking that, for if it weren't for that siren, he wouldn't have been alive today… and Sephiroth may have still been king.

They went their way to a large home. While the Organization still had their discrete and mostly hidden base, they now had a home more visible and easier to access; it also was used as a place for Vexen, the healer, to work, taking in patients and treating them.

"Uncle Demyx!" two children, twins that were about five years old now, cheered, running and tackling the blonde. A little boy with pale pink hair and a young girl with fluffy, blonde hair, they were Aster and Daisy, Larxene and Marluxia's children.

"Demyx, welcome back." Larxene greeted, resting her hand on her swollen belly, clearly ready to have another child.

"Uncle Demyx, are you gonna take us to the castle to see the king and his baby?" Daisy asked.

"Are we gonna see Sora there, too?" Aster inquired.

"Aster, Daisy, let Demyx breathe for a moment so he can give me a hug. And let Zexion have a moment so he can greet Saïx." Larxene scolded her children. She then looked to Zexion. "Saïx is in the garden with Marluxia, collecting herbs for Vexen; you'll have to greet Vexen later since he went to treat a patient who couldn't come in."

"Well, if we're taking the twins with us, we'll see him when we drop them off then." Zexion said, going to the back where he found his uncle and Marluxia, picking herbs. He went to greet them and told them they would be going to the castle, but they'd return since apparently the twins were going with them.

Zexion and Demyx were welcome sights at the castle. As they passed the trainees, they saw Roxas who stopped to wave to them, only to get hit and knocked back by a rather amused Axel. They then went their way to the outer part of one of the gardens. There they saw a new fountain up and running, a statue of an embracing couple centered on it.

"I hope we have their likeness done well." Riku said, walking up to Zexion, Demyx, and the twins.

"I think so; it's like looking at Mom and Dad once again." Zexion said. He then looked when he saw that Riku was holding an infant in his arms. "Looks like he's got your silver hair." he said, going over. He carefully took the infant, holding him in his arms.

"Kairi was tired, so she's resting; it's not easy being new parents, especially since she's up all night feeding the little guy. She said we should still come to greet you and see Sora." Riku said, leading the way to the inner garden where the other fountain was. He smiled when he saw Sora there.

"Sora!" the twins cheered, running over to greet and hug the siren, not minding if they got wet.

"Hello, Daisy, Aster." Sora greeted the twins, embracing them and even flicking some water at them with his tail. He then looked up to see the adults, especially Riku. "Hello, Riku." he said. He then smiled seeing the baby, holding his arms out so he could hold him.

Zexion sat on the edge of the fountain and let Sora cradle the baby, the siren careful to not get him too wet or submerge him in the water. "So, what's the name of the little prince?" Zexion inquired.

"We called him Hope." Riku said, sitting next to Zexion, watching as his child looked around curiously before cooing at Sora, the siren humming a sweet melody for him.

"Zexion, will you tell us the story? Please?" Daisy asked.

"The one you're writing! We wanna hear it!" Aster added, looking as eager as his sister.

"Might as well." Demyx said, sitting on the ground.

"I was waiting until I finished writing it, but..." Zexion chuckled and allowed Sora to hand him the infant again so he wouldn't accidentally end up in the fountain. "Oh, okay." He smiled. "Once upon a time, there was a young prince who met a siren in the woods."

Heyo, lovelies!
Well, here it is! The end of the story! I truly hope you all liked it. And if not, well, I hope if I manage to finish another KH AU fic, it'll be to your liking.

As for calling Riku and Kairi's (yes, I had them paired together, not that I exactly ship them, but still) child Hope, yes, if you're thinking of one of the Final Fantasy characters when you hear a boy called that, then you are correct in thinking. And calling Larxene and Marluxia's children Aster and Daisy, they had to do with flowers, which a lot of us think of Marluxia with thanks to his roses.

Anyway, thank you for sticking with me to the end and reading this. I hope you liked it and I hope to be able to finish another fic to upload.

Until next time!

Ciao!

~ Chibi