Slight change in how this chapter is going to go. I was originally going to have Sora and Kairi meet up with a Coalition exploration team and have them find out that one Tethered world was still around, but it ultimately didn't make sense with the way I want the rest of the story to go, so I reworked the chapter to just be about Sora and Kairi discussing what the future holds for them.

Episode 23: Career Paths

Radiant Garden – Crystal Fissure

August 23, 2015

"I never realized changing forms was this painful without Donald's magic," Sora groaned when he and Kairi emerged from the Corridor of Darkness into the old fissure in the canyons outside the walls of Radiant Garden. They'd just come from the Pride Lands, and going from a quadrupedal form back to bipedal was a lot more physically exhausting than the other way around. Though Donald had usually been the one to handle changing everyone's forms when they went to a world that required them, some worlds caused visitors' forms to change without any magical assistance whatsoever. All Donald's magic really did was lock in what your appearance would be and make the transition painless.

As the young couple leaned back against the wall of the tunnel to catch their breath, Kairi thought back to how much fun they'd had in the Pride Lands. Walking on all fours had taken some getting used to, and the lack of clothing was a bit uncomfortable at first. But with a little help from Sora she quickly adapted and they'd spent the last few days racing around the savannah. Now that they were back in their natural forms, though, she had to admit that she was glad to be wearing clothes again.

When the pain of transforming back to human form finally passed, Sora helped her up and together they walked up the trail towards the city gates to see how things had been going while they were off exploring. Although not without her and Sora having one extra kiss before they left the cave. As they walked along, Sora felt satisfied with how far he'd come in the last few weeks. Through trial and error he'd managed to get a handle on his new dark powers. He'd have to ask Riku and Vantias to teach him some more complex uses for his powers, but he'd managed to master Dark Fire and a few other Darkness-based spells, as well as opening Dark Corridors.

While they walked, they reminisced over all the places they'd been on their little vacation. Besides Neverland and the Pride Lands, they'd been to Halloween Town, Atlantica (for the second time), The Jungle, Sherwood Forest, and Agrabah. After all the stress of fighting Xehanort, it was good to see the worlds without having to worry about anything except having a good time. But as they approached the gates of Radiant Garden, a saddened look appeared on Kairi's face.

"Kairi, what's wrong?" Sora asked, concerned for his girlfriend.

"Sorry," she replied. "It's just… seeing the castle again just reminds me that I'm going to be a queen someday. I know my uncle will make sure I'm prepared… but I don't want to just throw myself into princess training right after we graduate high school. There are so many worlds to explore and I'm sure I'm ready to settle down yet." Sora quickly pulled her in for a comforting hug.

"It's okay, Kairi," he reassured her. "I get it. I'm worried about the future too. I've been fighting the forces of evil for so long I don't even know what kind of job I want to have after we finish school. I want to settle down eventually, but not for a few years at least." This managed to put Kairi's mind at ease for a little while longer, and the conversation topic switched to what Sora could pursue as a career. Because of how much he loved seeing the universe Kairi suggested he could start up a travel agency for the worlds.

Sora laughed as they walked through the gates into the city's Central Square. What used to be the wreckage of the Bailey was now a hive of activity. While they wandered through town to visit Leon in the gang in the Borough, he admitted that when Kairi moved to Radiant Garden and start her training to prepare to become queen, he planned to enlist in the royal guard so that they could still be together. Kairi blushed when he said that.

"You'd certainly look handsome in that uniform," she commented slyly. This time Sora was the one blushing as they exited the tunnels running through the walls of the town. As they walked down the stairs towards Merlin's house, Sora couldn't help but marvel at how much things had changed, not just here in Radiant Garden, but in his relationship with Kairi as well. Three years ago, he was too shy to even admit he liked the Princess of Heart as more than a friend. And now here they were, spending the last month of their summer vacation traveling around the worlds on their own private dating cruise.

As they entered the main courtyard of the Borough where Merlin's house was located, they found Ienzo and Ansem walking into the open area from the end leading to the Marketplace, each holding a bar of Sea-Salt ice cream in his hand. After exchanging greetings, Ansem expressed his happiness that the two teens finally admitted their feelings for each other. Although the two scientists jokingly warned Sora that if he broke Kairi's heart they'd invent creatively horrific ways to punish him.

All four knew that Kairi's relatives were only kidding however. Everyone knew how much Sora cared about her, and word had spread after the battle at the Keyblade Graveyard of how far he was willing to go to protect her. As the laughter died down, Kairi told her uncle about her post-high school plans. Ansem completely understood her desire to wait before she started preparing for her ascension to the throne, and nodded in approval when Sora expressed his plan to join the royal guard when they were finally ready to settle down. Before they went their separate ways, Ansem reminded his niece that if she ever needed a place to stay or a shoulder to lean on, she still had a home here in Radiant Garden.

I hope you all enjoy this chapter. I had to rework it substantially as I went along due to the altered plot (changed because of plot holes and spoilers for Ripple Effects), but I felt it would be nice to have a short chapter where Sora and Kairi talk about their future plans a bit.

Coming up in the next chapter: Everyone meets up at Disney Town for the Million Dreams Festival.