Traverse Town
The feel of this town was unlike anything he's ever felt before. The corridor of darkness had dropped the pair off into a secluded and dark alleyway and disappeared right after, with a patch of wooden fence with a rather large hole in it behind him. Kuro had placed down Dusk beside a nearby crate and some wooden barrels, moving over towards the mouth leading out to the street to get a better look at the world they found themselves at and to get an idea of the place.
The rough cobblestone gave way to a beautiful town square, where the twinkling lights of the midnight sky were shining bright above a bustling center. Where people could and did engage in commerce and conversation, where the children would laugh and play. Kuro felt uneasy as he walked along the edge of the alley. His ears are drawn to every noise, his eyes to every sharp movement. The women who chatted while they sipped their evening coffees. The men laugh jovially as the kids chase each other with sticks or play a pick up game of kickball. Kuro leaned against the nearby crate, peering out into the crowd with hesitant eyes.
"They will hurt me." Dusk uttered, with their paws covering their eyes as they hid deep in the shadows of the alley. Small onyx claws cover their glowing yellow orbs as if to try and make themselves disappear. Kuro shook his head at the worry, before turning back to the mouth of the alley. The panging sound of a ball meeting shin caught his attention as it sailed across the dark sky.
"They will not hurt you. They'll have to get through me first." Kuro clarified as he glanced around the area. His arms folded over one another as he thumbed his chin in ponderance. "We just need to hide you in plain 's all."
"How? I'm three and a half feet tall with glowing eyes." Dusk's voice barked as they looked at Kuro. Seeing the lights of the street paint his face in a warm glow, his strong stoic face basking in the lantern light. Dusk crooked their head to the side, curious about what Kuro would do.
"I didn't say it would be easy." Kuro sighed as he lifted his shoulder up for a shrug. He peered at Dusk out of the corner of his eye, a smirk draping across his face. "Maybe I could get you a hat?"
"I have a suspicion that won't be as simple as you think it might be." Dusk's voice lowered to a near whisper, their claws skating across the stone floor anxiously. The scratching of cobblestone soothing the Heartless. Their eyes darted up to Kuro as he chuckled gently, shaking his head at the Shadow. Dusk's eyes narrowed. "You were making a funny."
"I was making a funny." Kuro admitted freely, before rubbing his hands together and turning towards Dusk. Crouching down to get eye level with his tiny companion. "I will go out and see what I can get. Alright? Just… stay here and don't draw attention to yourself."
Dusk nodded, having no other options except to trust Kuro and believe he would come back. Kuro tapped Dusk's round head softly, reassuring the Heartless before he marched out into the town square.
Kuro walked steadily with a purpose, so much so after the first then second shoulder crash against the townies, he decided to weave through the crowd to save himself an earful from a frustrated passer by a and to navigate through the crowd with ease. His orange glare warding away some potential issues, and others shifting out of the way completely before he could look at them. Kuro saw the illuminated signs for a 'Jewelry' Shop as well as a sign for, 'Accessories'. Kuro pressed his hands against the doors and shoved them open with a stern push.
"Welcome in!" A voice hollered as the doors flew open and Kuro marched inside. His eyes darted to the roaring fireplace off to his right, the heat bellowing out of the red brick fireplace. Kuro's eyes turned then to the counter, his hands held to his sides as he approached the front desk. His knee narrowly missed the sharp edges of a display case table located in the center of the room. The man working behind the shop counter moved his hand against his auburn locks, combing that hand down along his sharp chin and flashed a warm smile towards Kuro. "Welcome to Cid's. Cid is currently out, so I'm manning the counter. How can I help you?"
"I was curious if there were some…" Kuro's hands motioned over one another in a rolling motion. "Clothing? That is what I require."
"Your world lost to the darkness as well?" The shopkeeper gestured to Kuro's clothing, which Kuro had just noticed had become tattered and torn. Torn sleeves and torso, scuffed from contact with rough surfaces, not to mention still damp from an attempted waterboarding from a lion statue. Kuro's shoulders slouched, a hand moving up to rub the back of his head.
"Something like that." Kuro shamefully lied, lips curled to a half frown as he averted his gaze. The shopkeeper nodded his head, resting his elbow up on the countertop before rubbing his chin. "Don't have a world to call home anymore."
"Yeah, I understand that. I lost my world to the darkness as well. Horrible thing to have happen." The shopkeeper waved Kuro over and walked to the other end of the shop. He reaches down and opens up a cabinet under the counter top with an empathetic look to his eye. Pulling out several armfuls of clothing and plopping them on the floor. Kuro eyes it suspiciously, his arms crossing over one another as he watches. Just piles of clothes, being pushed over towards him. The shopkeeper flashes a warm beaming expression, gesturing to the pile with a wide palm. "I came here with nothing, and I was thankful enough for a shirt to call my own. First night I had a warm meal and a bed to sleep in thanks to a few Moogles I met. Gotta pass it forward, you know?"
Kuro looks at the handfuls of clothes and hesitantly swipes them under his arm. Turning to look at the shopkeeper with a weary stare. He's giving a complete stranger a mountain of clothes for nothing?
"Are you sure? You don't know me…and I have no way of paying you back…" Kuro muttered as he took a few slow steps towards the front door. Ready to either drop the clothes and run or hightail it out with the clothes in tow. He hadn't decided yet. "Thank you… sir?"
"One good act leads to another." The shopkeeper nods. He gives a simple shrug. Watching Kuro slowly make his way out of the store. "Just bring back whatever doesn't fit. Happy trails!"
Kuro exited the Accessory shop with his back hitting the door and walked back out into the town square. The doors shut behind him with a heavy slam, Kuro's eyes glancing over his shoulder at the Accessory Shop, before returning his eyes to the people passing by. With a passerbys staring at him, others giving him an acknowledging nod and others avoiding him entirely.
Clothes balled up under his arm, he walked over back to the mouth of the alley. He walked over to the crate that Dusk was still hidden behind and threw the pile of clothes down atop of it. Kuro took hold of a red leather jacket, glancing over at Dusk with a sharp smirk.
"Maybe there's a hat in here." He muttered with a soft teasing voice, taking a handful of the clothes with the other hand and handing it off to Dusk. The pile of clothes landed atop of the Shadow, burying them in an avalanche of cotton and leather. Their squeak of surprise earned a genuine chuckle out of Kuro as he took hold of one of the pierced holes in the shirt he wore with both hands. Kuro, with a taut grip, pulled his tattered top off and tossed it aside in pieces.
Leaving his chest bare for a brief moment as he took hold of the simple black long sleeve top, pulling it over head and easing into it. The hood of said shirt resting along his shoulders in a bunch as he rubs his thumbs over the leather jacket. The smooth surface then gives way to rough threads holding the sleeve to the shoulders. Kuro flipped the jacket over, seeing this massive black inscription on the back. The shifting lines along the shoulder blades pulled into the shape of what appeared to be two glaring eyes. With the snubbed nose located in the dead center of the back and a jagged and vicious maw of teeth lining along the bottom rocker of the jacket.
Kuro glanced over at Dusk, who was finding their way into a small child's blue jacket. The sleeves were so long that it dragged along the stones that Dusk crouched along. Kuro let go of the jacket in his hands and got down onto his knees beside Dusk. With a few clean folds, he got the sleeves to rest along Dusk's slender wrists and leave their paws bare. Kuro nodded with satisfaction, looking up at the pile and grabbing a hold of a crumpled, wide brim cap. The top was pushed in, which a quick punch from Kuro fixed right away. He placed it atop of the Shadow's head, affixing the brim so it sat snug on the Shadow's head. Kuro stood up and grabbed hold of the red jacket, pulling it one in a single swift motion.
Adjusting the crimson leather jacket with a fixed tug on the lapel, the metal teeth along the outside of the forearms were unzipped, the zippers jingling with every twist of his arm. Kuro's hands move to pull the hood up from under the jacket and tug it over his head. Hiding his silver locks under the black. Kuro grabbed a pair of bottoms and worked on changing out of his own. As he unfurled the new pants, the waist was as wide as he was tall, and he was thankful the pile of clothes came with more than just a single belt.
Dusk had figured out how to tie a pair of wide faded white sneakers with their spindly claws, albeit with one shoe with eight or nine small ties and one with one huge pair of floppy rabbit ears. The jacket's hem extended down to rest just above the top of the boots, hiding Dusk's body underneath its insulated cover.
Kuro fastened the now third belt along the waist of no longer sagging faded dark jeans, the size a few more X's than what he needed, but they were the only pair of jeans that was in the clothes pile. The belts rested at different angles along his waist, each belt's buckle tucked underneath the one above them and the belt's colors going from leather brown, to weathered black, and one studded red.
Kuro turned to Dusk, extending out his arms and offering Dusk a full circle look as he spun on his heel. Giving his companion a full look of his attire.
"How do I look?" Kuro asked, clapping his hands against his broad chest with an impressed grin. Dusk shrugged.
"As fine as one can look." Dusk muttered as their small claws skimmed along the edges of their wide brim hat. Hiding their bulging glowing golden eyes out of sight. "Do I look like a denizen of this world?"
"Looks fine to me, friend." Kuro answered, grabbing the remains of the clothes and turning towards the alley's exit. "I'll be right back. I need to return these to the store."
Kuro disappeared out of sight, getting lost in the crowd once again. Dusk took a few hesitant steps towards the mouth of the alley, before hearing the sound of scurrying from behind them. Their eyes darted to the open hole in the fence behind them. Dusk walked over to it, letting their claws scratch against the destroyed wall. Wondering what could have done the damage they were investigating. Dusk peered into the hole, wondering where it led.
"Find something?" Kuro asked, walking over to the hole and crouching beside it, letting his hand run over the wood. Feeling every sharp edge and loose splinter with the tips of his fingers. He glanced over at Dusk. "Heartless you think?"
"Unlikely, being so close to so many people and not a lot of us are currently here. We tend to pick off stragglers with our ranks, much less of a fight." Dusk rumbled as they walked behind Kuro and rested a paw against their friend's back. Kuro squinted his eyes, peering off into the dark. "There would be more damage if it was a full assault. Maybe it was something else?"
"Maybe…" Kuro whispered back, before crouching under the remains of the fence and venturing off in the dark. Dusk trailing behind him.
Kuro happened upon two stacks of rather large crates, stacking much higher than he could reach on his feet. Kuro stuck his hand up, his fingertips barely gracing the edges of the top most crate. Kuro took a step back, rolled his shoulders once, and shoved his palms into the crate most in front of him. For his efforts, it toppled over with a large and heavy clang. Whatever was inside was most likely jostled, and possibly broken now.
Kuro hopped up onto the crate, extending his arm down behind as he landed to pull Dusk up beside him. Kuro found himself staring at small rows of open fountains, along the backside of what appeared to be a large inn. With different colored doors and a second story veranda overhead. Kuro's eyes trailed along the stringed signs that zigged and zagged along the walls of the street. His sights soon rested on the incandescent glow of the bulbs. The street lights besides the back doors glowing ever so brightly and the stained glass pieces along the walls of the establishment shimmering with reflected light. Kuro walked along the fountain's edge closest to him, glancing down at the water as he walked past. The reflection he saw made him stop.
He paused for a moment, staring deep in the water's surface. He hesitantly crouched down, pulled his hood back and took a second to recognize the face that was staring back at him. Fury filled orange eyes, dark complexion, long silver locks, and a rather vacant and intimidating glare. His fingers traced along his jaw and his cheeks.
"See something important?" Dusk inquired, walking over to the water's edge and peering into it. The golden eyes shining brightly against the water, nearly blinded Kuro. It gave his reflection a golden hue, and it made Kuro smile. Then his eyes lit up, seeing that same smile reflected the water.
"No, I don't see anything important. Just me." Kuro whispered, reaching out and disrupting the image in the water with his fingertips. Letting the waters unsteady surface settle once again, reflecting his stare for a steady view once more. Seeing exactly who he was and how other people saw him felt odd, the mental image of what he looked like never matching up to who exactly he was looking at. He imagined more sun kissed skin, and hazel hair, for some odd reason. The orange eyes he held gazing back at him.
"Even in the deepest darkness, there will always be a light to guide you."
The sentiment from some foreign voice echoes deep in Kuro's chest, his hand reaching up to lightly press against his left breast as he bellows out a low sigh. The unknown owner of the voice sending this sweet warmth into his chest and an easy breath out of his lungs.
He glanced further down the area, seeing the next fountain area ending with what were once metal grates. And now they were bent, destroyed metal bars leading to the dark cavern within. Kuro lets out an amused huff through his nose, before he steps away from the water surface he was staring into and he walks along the edge of the following fountain. Every few steps, he hears the splashing of water and the dripping of droplets. He glanced over at Dusk, their paw occasionally swiping into the water to startle up the surface playfully as they continued to follow behind.
"You sure a Heartless didn't do this?" Kuro asked, taking a steady step into the fountain and getting shin deep into the freezing waters. He grabs Dusk up by the hood of his jacket and pulls him to rest upon his back. Kuro walked past the broken steel
Bars and marched deeper into the depths of the dark cavern, his feet kicking up small waves of murky water as he did so. "Where do you think this leads to?"
"Have not a single clue. I would hope it leads to someplace we can rest. I am tired." Dusk's claws dug into Kuro's shoulder for support, their small heels pressed into his lower back as Kuro trudged forward. As Dusk spoke, their round head pressed against the back of Kuro's skull, their brimmed hat tapping the top of his head with every heavy step.
"Well, if nothing else, it's secluded. We can rest without the fear of someone coming across you." Kuro stated, as he glanced over his shoulder to see the diminishing light from the cavern opening slowly drift further and further away. "So we can just get our bearings and-"
Kuro didn't see where he was stepping, and slipped into the immediate drop off that let him crash into the pitch. Water shooting up his nose and his whole being once again soaked, he bobbed to the surface of the dark with his shoulders and head above water and his legs lightly kicking beneath him. Claws swiped and grabbed at his form in the dark, a pair of feet perched atop his shoulders and sharp nails gripping the silver locks of his hair as Dusk panted and hummed anxiously atop him. Kuro growled into the deep cavern, cursing under his breath as he slowly swam forward. His arms rowing ahead of him as he moved at a smooth enough pace for Dusk to ride along his shoulders and mid back. Arms leveled out to the side to maintain balance as they did so.
"Did you know you could swim?" Dusk inquired as Kuro bobbed along the surface, arms spread out as he made short strokes. His chin dipping into the bleak waters with every kick and pull.
"No-I did not-I just-started-floating." Kuro grumbled, speaking every time he could get his mouth above water before having to dip again to keep swimming forward. "You-can not-swim-eh?"
"It's not a pleasant experience. I sink like a stone." Dusk stated with their grip tightening around Kuro's now damp hair. Kuro let out a groan that bubbled the waters as he swam.
Kuro's persistent paddling eventually led to an underground cave, with the glow of torch light illuminating the area just around the bend. Kuro's swimming grew quicker, the end in sight. Kuro's eyes shut as he moved his arms faster, his forehead dipping into the disturbed depths as he dunked his head underwater to level out his kicking and his paddling. Moving as fast as he could whilst Dusk rode him. His circular rotations eventually had his hands slapping against slick wet stones and his torso dragging against a bed of small rocks. Kuro let out a few loose breaths, rolling off of his chest and onto his back. His shut eyes squinted shut as he let his breathing ease and his body began to relax. This experience was much more favorable than the blast of stream from that great hall. This has the benefit of a moment of reprieve, allowing the cool stone underneath his head to sooth him.
"I hate water. I've decided." Kuro spoke softly to Dusk, letting out a loose breath before he huffed. His hands dug against his shut eyes as he bemoaned. "You hear me? I hate it."
"If you hate water," Her voice spoke softly in the dark, Kuro's eyes shot open and his hands reached around to steady his stance. As he opened them, a pair of bright blue eyes gazed down upon him. Auburn hair circling around her bent shoulders and her lips pulled into a playful smile. "You definitely wouldn't like where I came from."
Kuro sat up and turned towards the girl, a hand steadying his torso dunked into the water and the other atop a once dry stone. He stared at the girl with great interest, his jaw clenching. His chest tightened as he felt this… memory.
She wore a white top above a black one, her purple skirt resting along her thighs. Her smiling face breaks as she lets out a soft giggle.
"Didn't mean to scare you." She said with a simple nod. "Name's Kairi."
His chest twinges with a soft ping that echoes deep into his body. His hand reaching out of the water and rubbing his sternum. His face cringing as he did so. He shrugged in response, mustering the strength to continue talking.
"Kuro." He responded through a grimace, before shifting his spot and sitting down against the stones. His elbows resting along his knees and his finger trips grazing over one another. Kairi stood beside Kuro, her arms folded behind her back as she leaned down towards him.
"You're new here, ain't cha?" She giggled, flashing him a soft smile. Kuro nodded, staring up at her with a bewitched expression. He felt this ease around her, all his worries having just disappeared.
"Yeah… I am." Kuro whispered as he rubbed his fingertips against the inside of his palms, feeling them dig against the raw burn and shifted his eyes to stare at the stinging pain of the bite he prevented. The imprint and the healed over wounds on the center of his hands stinging slightly from the water and the anxious picking. "Where are we?"
"They call it Traverse Town." She said, looking over and seeing Dusk walking over to Kuro with a low expression. The brim of their hat pulled down to cover their eyes, their claws pulled and resting in the opposing sleeve as they moved beside Kuro. Kairi saw the damage on his hands, taking his left hand into hers and inspecting it. Thumbs rubbing into the flesh of his palms.
"What are you-" Kuro began to voice a protest, only for Kairi to share with him a gentle grin and then return her eyes to the damage. Her thumb gently tracing along the other ridge of the wound, before shooting her eyes back to him.
"It's alright. You don't get to grow up with four boys who love sparring without seeing your share of scrapes and bruises." Kairi shared, as she took her right hand and reached down into her inner shoe lining. From out of her sneaker, she pulled out a small roll of a stark white bandage roll, unfurling it with a quick shake of her wrist and starting to apply it around the inside of Kuro's wrist before pulling it up into the space between his thumb and index finger. "So, you want to tell me what happened?"
"I… got into a fight." Kuro muttered, sounding more ashamed of it than he meant to. The gentleness of her voice and her grasp was off putting in the right kind of way, the aura of her kindness radiating off her like the heat of the torches just a few paces away from them. It was calming, and it was sincere. She was truly gentle, he could see behind her eyes and the way her hands held his. "I tried to wrestle a monster and they tried to bite me."
"There are a lot of monsters out there in the world right now. And it's a little scary." Kairi said with a lingering sense of dread, her face fallen sullen and her eyes dulling as she continued to wrap. Taking the time to intricately thread the cloth between his knuckles and securing it tightly. She let go, Kuro wordlessly offering her his other hand and she got right back to work. "But I have hope. Sora will set things right, and we all get to go home."
Kairi's hands begin to wrap the bandages around Kuro's right hand. Following the same pattern as before. Kuro's eyes settle on her patience and her intricate manner, nodding gently.
"How's he going to do that?" Kuro murmured, flexing his already bandaged hand and getting adjusted to the compression of the wrap.
"He's going somewhere very dangerous. Someplace he told me I couldn't follow. But it'll be ok. He'll win and everything will go back to normal." Kairi explained, sitting back on her heels as she stared at Kuro. Her eyes narrowed as her eyes bore into his own. She finishes her second wrap and makes sure it's nice and tight before she returns what is left of the wrap into a tight roll and tucks it into her shoe. "You kinda remind me of him."
"Who? Sora?" Kuro let out a huff, somewhere between a sigh and a chuckle. His own eyes narrow as they meet hers. "Why do you say that?"
"Can't say for sure." Kairi mumbled, fingers raising to point to Kuro's eyes. Their burning orange glow made them look even darker with the occasional dip of torch light in the corner. "Different eyes, for sure, but… just as kind. I can tell."
"Thank you." Kuro nodded, flexing his hands and staring at the bandages. He nods to her when he looks back at her, giving her a weak smile. She returns it, moving to sit down beside him as they stare at the still murky waters that bend out the way Kuro came. Kairi rests her hands against her side, her eyes staring out at the dark cave.
"You're welcome." She responded. Kuro sat alongside her, they sat in silence for a few moments, their eyes following the water until it rests on the mural at the end of the tunnel. It's a crescent moon image painted along the stone and white faded stars.
"What will happen if he wins?" Kuro inquires, his eyes resting on the moon as his finger moves up to trace it in the air in front of him.
"I think we will get to go home." Kairi expressed, her eyes closing with reverence, imagining the sun kissing her skin and the warm sand under her fingertips. She turns over to Kuro just as she opens her eyes. She sees his expression vacant and droll, his gaze shifting to the waters. She cocks her head to the side. "Wouldn't you like to go home?"
"I don't think I have a home" Kuro spoke gently, his hand reaching down to grab a loose stone and sending it skipping across the surface ahead of him. The stone skips twice before embedding itself into the wall. Earning a laugh out of him. Dusk waddles over towards the mural, their paws touching it tenderly before attempting to pull the rock out of the wall. "I just… am. And neither do they. They don't have a home either."
"Who's your friend?" Kairi asked, seeing Dusk's claws trying desperately to fix the mural Kuro had defaced. He shakes his head with a grin.
"They're called Dusk." Kuro nodded, pointing to them with a few loose fingers. "They're kind."
"They're very small." Kairi giggled, seeing them finally get the stone out and plop it into the still stream. The size of his companion reminded her of Sora, whose figure was the same size and shape just a few short hours ago.
"They are small. But very brave." Kuro noted, brushing this thumb over his fingertips in a smooth motion. The effort was relaxing him.
"So. When Sora wins, where will you go? You know, when it's time?" Kairi questioned, pulling her knees up to her chest and resting her chin along her knees.
"I am just… wandering aimlessly I guess. Until otherwise. So, I honestly don't know what will happen to me." Kuro answered, shrugging nonchalantly. His passive voice made Kairi smile in response. A look of recollection in her eyes. She nodded her head.
"I didn't think I had a home either for a time. I woke up one day. When I got to the islands. But then I met Riku, and Tidus, and Wakka and Selphie. And Sora, of course. They accepted me and… and now my home is with them. And I'm happy there." Kairi smiled warmly, her fingers reaching out and tracing over the water's undisturbed surface with her nails skimming across the top. "If you want, you could come back with us. I'm sure they would like you. You can meet the others!"
"I appreciate the offer." Kuro muttered, turning towards her with a simple kind expression. A soft smile and gentle eyes meeting hers. He nodded. "I just… I was told I needed to leave where I was. Then I did. But now I'm here and I'm… I'm not sure what to do next."
"And maybe that's ok?" Kairi shrugged, her eyes half lidded as turns her torso toward him. "Maybe the reason you're here now is to be safe enough to decide for yourself what you want to do. Where you want to go, what you want to do, it'll be your choice now."
Kuro takes a minute to contemplate the idea of deciding whether or not to be who he wanted to be, before he lets out a loose yawn, rubbing the back of his skull.
Between the draconic heartless that tried to bisect him, the Beast that tried to eat him, the endless hallways he trudged through and swimming he had just done, he started to feel the exhaustion catching up with him. The echoing of the noise carrying through the cavern. Kairi giggles at the sound, before she sees Kuro lay back ever so slowly against the rock bed behind him. His head attempting to get comfortable on the rock. A difficult task given how much he tossed and turned his head.
"I think I'll sleep on it. Just for a few if I may." Kuro muttered under his second yawn, before hearing the shuffling of rocks and pebbles, and then the disruption of the spot behind him. He opened his eyes and saw Kairi once again looking down at him, before she slowly raised his head up with her hands resting his cheeks before lowering the back of his head onto her lap. Keeping her eyes focused on him as she gently traced her fingers against his temples. The gentle touch nearly lulled him to sleep immediately.
"I think I know a place a little more comfortable to rest at if you don't want to lay on these rocks. If you're willing to follow me." She noted with a warm expression, making Kuro laugh and shut his eyes. He rose slowly up from his spot, his breathing slowing and his chest's slowing rising and falling.
"Thank you, Kairi. I'd like that." Kuro muttered. Kairi wordlessly gave him a 'you're welcome', followed with a nod and a wave for him to follow her. Which he did.
Traveling through the Third District, passing a fountain dedicated with two nose brushing dogs, and up a series of stairs led them to this humble cottage near the large gates leading to the Second District. This small, cozy looking home. With a key, she unlocked the front door and switched on a light. Escorting the pair of wanderers inside.
The right corner of the room was stacked with boxes, named after various people who Kuro assumed lived here. One named, 'Yuffie', another 'Aerith', and the last one had this huge blacked out marker strip, beneath that now read the name 'Leon.' Sitting on the opposite side and shoved in a corner was a bed, or at least was a stable enough bed frame and a worn mattress. No sheets and a single pillow top it. The wardrobe was off in the left corner, with a single dining room table in the center with an askew table cloth.
"It's not much. But it's home." Kairi noted with a warm shrug, as Kuro and Dusk invited themselves inside. Immediately, Dusk scurried over to the bare mattress and threw themselves atop it, bouncing against the springs for one small bounce before settling. Kairi laughed, walking over to the table and resting her house key atop of it. "Go sit down, I'll get us something to eat."
Kuro trudged inside behind, barely picking up his feet as he hesitatingly took a seat at the table by grabbing a nearby chair and pulling it towards the edge.
Kuro huffed in a low tone, his elbows resting against the table top as he kept his eyes focused on his host. She hummed a short tune, reaching into a nearby cupboard and taking out a few plates. Kuro watches her with great interest, seeing her now grab a bag of loose fruit and bring them over to the table top. Handing Kuro a plate and placing the bag in the middle of them
"We have some grapes and cherries, a few bananas and even a paopu fruit." Kairi smiles warmly as she takes a stem of grapes and a banana, popping a few into her mouth as she watches Kuro. Kuro grabs the fuzzy star shaped fruit, breaking off an edge and biting into it. The initial skin is thin and requires a little more force than Kuro had expected, only for the moment his tooth breaks the surface, he follows through quickly and chomps into it. The juices flowing down his chin in a sudden a squirt which startles him, the jolt and jump he made in his seat making Kairi laugh. The embarrassment makes him laugh as well as he wipes his chin and hides the grin behind his folded fingers. He places the fruit on his plate, bobbing his head gently to get a feel for the taste and texture.
"It's very sweet." Kuro murmured, chewing it slowly and feeling it turn into mush.
"It reminds me of a peach." Kairi noted, peeling the banana and taking a bite out of it. "So, you like it?"
"It's very good." Kuro grinned, nodding his head in satisfaction. "Would you like one?"
Kuro grabbed the other four points of the fruit to hand it off to Kairi, who reached out without thought and just before her fingers could graze it, she pulled her hand away immediately. Kuro, worried he offended her, dropped the fruit in response. She shook her head quickly, a rosy glow spreading across her cheeks.
"I can't." She shook her head, glancing down at her grapes and giving Kuro a flat smile. "It's-It's just there's this… legend about it."
"What kind of legend?" Kuro asked, taking another bite of his point of the star, the snapping of the fruit cracking hard in the near silent room.
"On the island, we believe that if two people were to share the fruit, their destinies become intertwined. That no matter where they go, and what they do, they will always come back to another. They are forever together, no matter what." Kairi explained, before she turned her attention to the partially eaten fruit and letting out a longing sigh. "I just… I don't want you to waste your 'share' on me."
"Oh…" Kuro grumbled, glancing over at Dusk who was currently laid spread out on the sleeveless pillow and was snoozing away. Their little paws twitch and scratch into the mattress at random intervals. Kuro wondered if Kairi could hear their snores as he heard them, how it ended in a rolling shuddering and started with a sharp intake. "Do you have someone you want to share it with?"
"I do-I do have someone I want to share it with." Kairi stuttered nervously before she nodded warmly, her mind now fluttered with images of brown hair and blue eyes. She bit her lip with a giggle. "I always hoped he would want to share it with me."
"Sora?" Kuro asked with a raise of his brow. Kairi felt her hands begin to shake and she anxiously popped a few more grapes into her mouth to distract herself. She seemed too embarrassed to give him a proper answer. Kuro decided not to press it, before he continued on working on his meal.
The two shared a comfortable silence briefly before Kuro decided to join Dusk on the bed and retire. Kuro walked over and laid on his back, his head on the foot end of the couch while leaving the pillow and top side for Dusk. His right leg tucked under his left knee as his heel dug into the floorboards. His arms resting over his abdomen and his eyes staring up into the ceiling. Slowly, he lowered himself down.
Kairi laughed as Kuro's head leaned off the edge, making sure to give Dusk an adequate amount of room for them to slumber. Kairi silently wiped her lap clean and walked over to the end of the bed. She sat down, her legs crossed before wordlessly lifting Kuro's head and allowing him to rest his head in her lap and begin to thoroughly relax. His once half lidded eyes now focused entirely on her, his breathing easing to become more erratic as he laid.
"Why are you doing this?" Kuro asked silently, his hands hesitatingly moving to his sides to lift his head up. That's when he felt it, her nails going from his hairline and down into his silver hair. The motion elicited a sweet sigh of relief from him as he felt his shoulders lose tension and his head roll in her lap. She giggled softly, continuing the motion.
"I used to do this for Riku and Sora. Just… let them rest in my lap and let me lull them to sleep. Just like this." Kairi spoke in a steady cadence, the kind that only made Kuro's eyelids feel heavier and his heartbeat slower.
"You're nice…To do that for them…" Kuro mumbled as he finally shut his eyes. "You're too kind…"
Her fingers moved to comb through the sides of his locks as she watched his eyes flutter finally shut before he mumbled a simple, 'Thank you, Kairi' and he soon after fell asleep. Even when Kuro eventually fell into slumber, she continued stroking his hair. The repetition and the way he snored reminded her of a certain lazy bum from an evening where she did the same thing for him, from what now felt like a lifetime ago. She imagined the stories Sora could tell her when he came back from his final venture. And how excited she is to see him finally.
A dozen or so hours might have passed before he was stirred awake by the sudden feeling of his head dipping off the side of the bed and a panicked yelp from Kairi. He could see the silhouette of her form in the blinding light, her hands patting herself over to make sure she was still whole. Kuro reached for her in his awakening haze, the light was disorientating and gave him poor depth perception and left him pawing at the air. The blinding light shone in the room enough to diminish the other source of light in the room, and then as quick as it appeared it too vanished. In such a quick instant Kuro had hoped this was some kind of sick nightmare.
It wasn't.
He awoke from a dreamless slumber in a worry whilst he was calling out her name. In that flash of light, she was gone. And he was alone with Dusk.