Chapter Text
There was a system he and Sora fell into so easily, it really did feel like they were adventuring together, side by side, instead of hundreds and hundreds of miles in dreams apart. Joshua had told him Sora could be next to him, so close their hands would meld into each other like a longing touch that said all the words Riku never could, or Sora could be thousands of miles away, light-years upon light-years, dancing on the light of expired stars, long-gone, millenniums ago.
Back then, even before he knew what they could do, he had scoffed, elbowed the teen lightly, and said, “You just missed Neku.”
Of course, Joshua had to reply, “Like the way you miss Sora, I figure?”
And that was when Riku figured things out.
Even so far apart, he knew he and Sora shared everything—items, magic commands, munny, and even Spirits—each one coming with a tiny little tag on its body somewhere in Sora’s messy handwriting with its name on it.
Of course, the Meow Wow quickly became Sora’s favourite, and he’d named it Nachos. Riku got his hands on some paper in La Cite Des Cloches, and decided to try something out.
When Sora came to, he realised Nachos had been licking his face to wake him. He giggled, rolling off one of the roofs in the Court of Miracles, and realised the Spirit had Riku’s unnamed Komory Bat on its head, a note held between its perpetually grinning fangs.
‘Please make sure to link with Peach Pie a few more times. There’s a command I’ve been eyeing.’ It said, and Sora’s smile widened as his Majik Lapin appeared next to him, expectantly rubbing its head on his palm.
Riku, in the end, was never far away from him. He could never really stay away—and not even the realm of dreams could keep them apart.
“You got it, Riku.” He nodded, holding the small paper to his heart comfortingly. “But you better pick up the slack for me, too.”
When Riku woke up, he was jolted awake by crooning Spirits, Nachos practically crushing him with its weight, and on top of its head, Sora’s Me Me Bunny Peppermint held out a paper for him to read.
‘I’ve unlocked the node for you! Your turn with Peppermint for me.’
Riku smiled softly, and held the paper to his lips.
God, he’d missed Sora. He was so glad they had this.
Soon, Sora and Riku settled into the rhythm of sending each other letters through their Dream Eaters, Nachos almost always trying to eat the colourful paper they used out of sheer curiosity.
‘Why doesn’t your Komory Bat have a name?’
‘That’s a secret. Figured out how to use Mega Flare when we dive?’
‘Can you rack up some Munny for some potions? I’m having a hard time in the Grid right now.’
It felt comforting, to see messages sent to each other even across time and space. Riku knew, that somehow, even while he was awake, Sora was, too, despite what all the sleeping told him otherwise. That time in Traverse Town where they were together—despite being phantoms they couldn’t touch—told Riku Sora was on the same path as he was, awake, and just as tireless as he was. He knew they were going through the exact same worlds, the same sights and fighting the same enemies, and he found himself smiling as he imagined Sora’s phantom running around with him, fighting alongside him like they both had hoped at the start of the exam.
‘God, Monstro’s still as disgusting as ever.’
‘That’s weird, I’m in a theme park right now.’
‘Not fair. By the way, did you make anything new?’
‘A Juggle Pup. I named it Marshmallow. Isn’t it cute? I coloured it white, too!’
‘So that’s where the Munny went.’
Well—they weren’t in the exact same world all the time, but Riku knew there was some sort of cause and effect between his and Sora’s sides of the worlds. A fact made especially obvious as Riku turned the cog he got in the Country of the Musketeers, when he heard Pete exclaim in displeasure outside.
He was bleeding in the side, with some cuts and bruises here and there, but he’d made it. Right in the nick of time, too, and he could feel drowsiness settling in. Soon, he would fall asleep and he’d receive a new letter from Sora.
“Oh, thank you, Riku!” Minnie—still a princess, in this world, and it made Riku smile. “You’ve truly saved the day!”
“No problem,” he nodded, wiping his mouth with the back of his wrist, and tasted blood. He frowned, and he shook his head. “I’ve got a friend right on the other side, to take care of things, so don’t you worry.”
He heaved a sigh of relief when Minnie waved her hand over him, and a Cure spell washed over his fatigued body. He smiled at her, and leaned heavily on Nachos, who quickly came up to let him rest, meow-barking softly.
“Th-thanks.” He nodded, and suddenly something flashed in his eyes.
“Beagle Boys! Get over here!” he heard Pete’s voice echo like he was hearing it underwater, and he groaned softly, grasping his temple.
“Wh-what?”
“That’s right!” Sora’s voice, this time, louder, more firmly, and he could see Sora’s hand resting on his head.
No, not on his head—on Nachos’s head. He could see the things Nachos could over on Sora’s side of the world.
“You’re gonna need the help!” Sora boasted, and Riku couldn’t help but smile. Sora was so much stronger now, he thought. It left a warm, tingling sensation in his heart thinking about how far Sora had come. Sora ruffled Nachos’s head and Riku realised he had also reached up to scratch their Tyranto Rex—Spaghetti’s chin, and while Riku couldn’t feel it, it made him chuckle.
“C’mon, you two. We can’t waste the chance Riku gave us!”
Riku smiled warmly, and the vision cut when Sora let go of their Spirits. Slowly he stood up straight, and smiled down at Minnie.
“A-are you alright?” She asked, and Riku nodded.
“Never better,” he thought, and began formulating an idea in his head.
The Symphony of Sorcery was a beautiful place, and it made Sora miss his friends. Standing by himself amongst the clouds with a rainbow passing over his head, he took a moment to smile, and take it all in. Music danced along the soft breeze that caressed his skin, and the clouds around him looked soft as cotton candy.
“It’s so pretty here.” He breathed, smiling softly as Nachos approached him, a note in its mouth. Over time, it had learned not to eat the letters—not since an unfortunate incident where it almost ate one of Riku’s notes and choked on it—and obediently handed it to Sora with a proud meow-bark and a wag of its tail. “Thanks, Nachos.” He said softly, and read it.
‘The Symphony of Sorcery is beautiful, isn’t it?’
Sora huffed fondly. There really was something about sending each other messages like this, but really, there was something else with having someone there actually with you. Sora knew he wasn’t alone, far from it, what with his and Riku’s new, colourful friends, but he still felt lonely. The company was lovely, their friends sweet and cuddly, but there really was something else about hugging a body, or holding a warm, kind hand.
“You know,” Sora said softly, petting Nachos’s fluffy head, and he laughed in alarm when Riku’s unnamed Aura Lion nudged him gently with its nose. Nodding, Sora pet it too, and he chuckled when it purred contentedly at his touch. “I miss Riku.”
Nachos cocked its head, pawing at Riku’s letter in Sora’s hand, but Sora shook his head.
“It’s… not the same, you know?” He looked down at the letter, thumbing at it fondly. “I just… I just wish we were adventuring together, side by side, and not… like this.”
Nachos whimpered, and the Aura Lion licked his cheek. Sora laughed, and pet the two again.
“Thanks, guys.” He nodded. “We’d better keep moving.”
Nachos pawed at Riku’s letter again, and Sora jolted slightly.
“Oh, right. My reply.” He hesitated for a moment, and grinned. Quickly, he wrote something down, handed it to Meow Wow to hold, and walked onwards through the clouds.
“It’s… dark.” Riku said flatly, walking through a small crevice in the mountains. When the portal transported him elsewhere, he hadn’t expected almost total darkness. Frowning slightly, he made his way towards a clearing, and his frown deepened when he realised there was no improving the darkness around him.
Still, there was music playing, soft and gentle, swaying like the leaves that rustled under his feet, and Riku found himself smiling as his steps went in time with the music.
“It’s… definitely romantic.” he muttered, Komory Bat and their Keeba Tiger Macaroon following his footsteps, and he came to a stop in front of a glowing artefact on top of a hill. “Reality shift, huh.” He hummed, “Alright then.”
Sora slowly opened his eyes when he felt something thrumming in his heart. Slowly, he sat up in the bed of flowers he fell asleep in, and he smiled when within the sound of the music playing in the world around him, he could hear something else.
Something warm, and… romantic. A soft, swaying song playing in a darkened forest of luminescent, blooming flowers. Like a waltz of flowers, feather-light footsteps of fairies daintily dancing atop delicate white petals.
“Is that Riku?” He muttered, cuddling close with Nachos when the Spirit whined pitifully, squeezing itself into Sora’s arms. “I think… that’s Riku.”
He shut his eyes, but nothing happened. He couldn’t see anything, he couldn’t see Riku. He could only hear, and feel.
“Sora,” he heard Riku’s voice say, and Sora realised he could feel warm arms wrapping around him. “Sora, did you see that?” He sounded breathless, and Sora smiled. It’d been a while since he heard Riku sound like that.
“No, I didn’t.” He said quietly. In the wispy, windy waves of his mind, Sora could hear Riku take a shuddering, overwhelmed breath. “I’m sorry.”
“No, it’s—I should’ve seen it coming.”
Sora’s smile dimmed slightly. There he went again, blaming himself for everything.
“Riku, can you hear me?”
Riku held Komory Bat close, hugging it warmly, and nodded.
“Yeah. I… I’ve missed talking to you like this.”
“Me, too.” Sora hesitated, “But I can’t… I can’t see you.”
Riku took a deep breath, and shut his eyes. Behind his eyelids blossomed a beautiful, colourful world—one dotted with flowers and swirling whirlwinds of petals. Right in front of him, Sora looked at him—at Nachos—with a crestfallen look on his face.
“I can see you just fine.” He said, and dared to reach forward.
This time, without Joshua or Shiki or Beat to see him, he cupped Sora’s cheek in his hand. Across the hazy barrier between worlds, Sora shivered.
“Was that you?” He asked gingerly, and squeezed Nachos’s paws—Riku’s hands—gently. “Riku, I felt it. Was that you?”
“Yeah, it’s me.” Riku smiled, stroking Sora’s hair, and the brunet let out a contented sigh. “But I… I can’t feel you.”
“One sensation for another, huh.” Sora smiled sadly. “Guess that’s just how it is.”
Riku huffed fondly. “Tell me what you see. What’s your side of this world like?”
“You can see it, can’t you?” Sora huffed.
“Yeah, but I wanna hear it coming from you.” Riku took a deep breath, and concentrated. Just barely, mixing gently like wispy clouds, Riku could hear the music playing in Sora’s side. “It sounds nice.”
“Springtime, right in the middle of the day.” Sora said, “Bright green grass and vibrant flowers. It’s really pretty here. Reminds me of home.”
He paused, and flushed prettily.
“It reminds me of you.”
Riku smiled warmly. “Spring. You think way too highly of me.”
“Oh, c’mon, Riku!” Sora pouted. “Have you read my letter yet?”
“Oh, not yet.” Riku opened his eyes to see Komory Bat had a small letter between its teeth. He picked it up and read it—
“Not as beautiful as you.” He read flatly, but he was smiling. “Wink, wink. Smiley face, hearts.”
“That’s so flat!” Sora huffed, “I’m gonna keep moving on if you’re gonna keep doing that!”
“I won’t promise I won’t keep doing that.” Riku hummed, and Sora huffed.
“See you in the next area!” He said, and just like that, their connection cut. Riku laughed fondly, and shook his head. Komory Bat looked up at him worriedly, but he patted its head.
“It’s fine, Sora.” He said. “Let’s move on, too. We can try again in the next area.”
The Komory Bat crooned in delight, and Riku laughed softly.
Oh, what would Sora say, if he found out he’d named all the Spirits he made Sora.
It was raining in the beautiful, beautiful countryside, and Sora knew he was soaked through. Still, he pushed on, flying around with his Spirits until he found a Reality Shift to get rid of the rain. The skies cleared above him, and he heaved a sigh of relief when warm summer light spread over him again. With a small huff, he dried himself off with a small Fire spell, and he shook out any excess water still left in his hair.
He jumped slightly when he felt Nachos nudge his hand lightly with its horn, and he looked down to see it whimpering, holding a letter in its mouth. Miraculously, it seemed dry despite all the rain, and Sora rolled his eyes. He took the letter from the Spirit, ruffling its head as he looked at it.
‘Dance with me? Just grab on to Nachos and it’s like we’ll see each other, clear as day.’
Sora couldn’t help the smile that crossed his face, covering his silly grin with one hand as he tried not to smile goofily. He wasn’t sure if Riku could see him right then and there, but he held his hands out for Nachos to jump up onto him, settling its paws on his palms.
“Riku?” He ventured, and he felt phantom hands squeezing his own. He smiled warmly, and looked up at where Riku’s face should be. “Hey.”
“Hey, Sora.” Riku’s voice was warm, and just barely, Sora could still hear the flowers’ waltz playing behind him like the lilt of fairies singing his praises. “You’re somewhere beautiful again.”
Sora laughed softly, squeezing Nachos’s paws gingerly. “And I can’t see where you are, again.” He paused, and hugged Nachos close to himself, melting in the feeling of Riku’s arms wrapping around him, hugging him back. He realised, then, he didn’t get to see what Riku saw.
“What can you see?” Sora asked, his voice barely a whisper.
“Autumn. Leaves turning red and orange.” Riku replied soothingly, “The wind’s cold.” He paused for a moment, and Sora could feel him stroking his hair calmly. “What about you?”
“Again?” Sora smiled, pulling away from Riku, and he heard the other boy laugh. “Fine. It’s… summer now, I think. I chased all the rain away, and I’m left with… this place. Soft, rolling hills with pastel flowers. The sun’s in the distance, too.”
“Beautiful world, huh?” Riku asked, gently pulling on Sora’s hands, and Sora complied, getting up onto his feet. Nachos whimpered slightly at how high up its paws were going, but fell quiet when Sora kissed its forehead. He jumped slightly when he felt Riku let go of one of his hands, but laughed fondly when he felt a phantom kiss on the back of his hand.
“Wanna dance?” Sora grinned, and squeezed Riku’s hand back, though he knew Riku wouldn’t feel it.
“I thought I asked first.” Riku replied, and Sora jumped slightly when he felt a hand on his waist. “Guess where my shoulder is.”
Riku tried not to laugh at the sight of Sora’s phantom pouting at the spot above his shoulder. “C’mon, Sora. Just give it a try. I’ll tell you if you’re getting warm.”
“You know, this is turning out to be way less romantic than it’s supposed to be.” Sora huffed, but reached up to grasp Riku’s face. “Flat. Is this… your nose?” He stuffed his pinky up Riku’s nostril, and the other teen spluttered, pulling away from him.
He couldn’t even bring himself to get mad—not when Sora was laughing so brightly like that. He’d missed that, the way Sora’s eyes lit up in sheer delight. Riku found himself simply watching as Sora laughed, almost letting go of Nachos with how hard he was laughing, but Riku was quick to keep him from letting go, and gently guided Sora’s hand up to his shoulder.
“I’m… holding Nachos’s ear.” Sora deadpanned, and the Meow Wow whimpered.
Riku couldn’t stop the laughter now. He started off with abortive giggles, but soon, he melted into laughter when Sora wiggled his fingers around Nachos’s ear—his shoulder—and Sora smiled warmly back at him.
“You know,” he said, “It’s been so long since I heard you laugh like that.”
That immediately got Riku to sober up, and Sora squeezed his shoulder, even if he couldn’t feel it.
“I wish I could see it.” Sora continued, his voice quivering slightly. “I… I miss you.”
“Miss you too.” Riku replied warmly, and pressed their foreheads together. Sora shivered again, and his hand in Riku’s twitched.
“Forehead touch?” Sora asked.
“Yep.” Riku stepped closer to Sora’s phantom, and held their hands out together, Sora’s phantom hand following suit. “You ready?”
“We’re not exactly listening to the same song.” Sora laughed, and Riku smiled down at him.
“Like that matters.” He said, and stepped to the side. Sora followed after him, and soon, somehow, the both of them were dancing, a slow, awkward waltz to the fusion of a tune that seemed to linger in the backs of their minds.
Eventually Sora’s head rested on Riku’s other shoulder, and they were closer than ever before, more of swaying to the beat of a soft song that seemed to intensify in the hazy space between them.
“You know, if we really were with each other right now, I’d have already stepped on your feet a hundred times.” Sora said, and Riku laughed softly.
“And I’d have the worst timing ever.” He said, “Reality Shifts are hard.”
“You just suck at timing.” Sora stuck his tongue out at him, and Riku shook his head fondly.
“You’re just bad at dancing.” He shot back, but he quickly sobered up, and sighed.
Sora jumped when he felt lips on his, and he shut his eyes, kissing Riku back as he hugged the unseen phantom close to himself.
“Let’s do this again when this is all over,” Sora murmured when they parted, and he could feel Riku’s smile at the corner of his mouth. “I wanna see where you’ve gone. How beautiful your side of this world is.”
“I wanna see it with you.” Riku replied. “Promise, Sora. When we’re Masters, we’ll be back.”
Sora’s smile was beautiful, and god did Riku wish he could feel it against his skin.
“Yeah.” his voice seemed to quiver, a haze in his eyes like the shimmering heat of a hot summer afternoon, rippling light over scorching earth. The moment was delicate—stretched thin over a dread slowly looming over the horizon, and the feeling of unease that Riku carried with him since the sleeping Destiny Islands seemed to only grow.
And he had Sora so close, and so far from him. How he wished he could feel Sora in his arms, Sora against his skin, Sora’s lips brushing his own.
“Promise.”
And somehow, though he loathed to admit it, he thought Sora could feel it too.