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Kairi was fucking thrilled to wield the Keyblade.
She’d spent years doing nothing, being useless, a pawn, a tool. She’d been taken and hidden and used as bait, as bribe, as a weapon against her dearest friends, and she’d done nothing about it. Normal life had been replaced by a world of magic and adventure, and she mostly got to sit around waiting for someone else to do something. So when someone finally thought to hand her a weapon?
Yeah. She was into it.
The Keyblade felt good in her hands, solid but light. It moved with her naturally, an extension of herself. From the first time she summoned it, it came easily at a thought, appearing in a flash of light that never failed. Problem was, once she had it, she had very little idea what to do with it. Kairi hadn’t whiled away her youth on playfights like her friends, and she hadn’t been forced to learn by danger or necessity. All she had was instinct, and her instincts were mostly to just swing the damn thing like a club.
Sora was no help at all. She’d seen him fight, effortless and natural, but it didn’t seem like he had any idea what he was actually doing. Riku was better, more aware, but always seemed to be holding back to a frustrating degree. Neither of them wanted to teach her. She knew they thought she wouldn’t need to learn, that she was safe, the worst was over. Maybe, deeper, they didn’t trust her, didn’t want her to learn, so they could keep protecting her and being her big strong heroes, oh, save me, my heroes!
The last part was just bitterness. Probably.
So when Riku told her Yen Sid wanted to see her, when she stepped into the tower and was offered the chance to learn, she had to fight to keep her enthusiasm at a reasonable level. Yelling probably wasn’t a great start to her training.
It was explained to her that Sora and Riku would not be training her, which she was more than okay with, given the terrible job they’d done so far. Instead, she would be visiting someplace “temporally flexible” under the tutelage of Merlin and three fairies, none of whom she’d met but were apparently great friends of Sora. Because Sora got to go on the great adventure and make friends with wizards and fairies because he’d gotten the stupid Keyblade years ago and yes, she was ready, could she please get started already?
It was not explained to her that there would be another pupil.
So she arrived, at the temporally flexible place, at a time that apparently didn’t matter. It was, primarily, a house in the woods. A squat, shabby house, with one great room in the middle in a state of constant disarray. When Kairi stepped through the rough wooden door, she saw a mess of furniture and crockery, scattered pretty much everywhere. A teapot boiled over unattended in what looked like a kitchen, mostly. A stuffed crocodile hung from the rafters. In the back, she saw an old man in a blue robe, with a tall pointy blue hat, his back turned to her. She didn’t recognize him; that must be Merlin.
She did recognize the other man, draped over an overstuffed armchair, listening to Merlin with a bored expression. He spotted her and jerked upright, frowning. Merlin noticed the movement and turned to see what he was looking at.
“Ah!” he said, clapping his hands. “You must be Kairi! Welcome, welcome.”
“Uh… hi,” Kairi answered. Merlin crossed the room and grabbed her hand with both of his, shaking it fiercely, but she couldn’t take her eyes off the other man in the back.
“Pleasure to have you, my dear, welcome,” the wizard muttered. “I am, of course, Merlin. Welcome to my humble abode.” He gestured generally around him. “Here, we shall train you, in the arts of battle and,” he waggled his eyebrows, “magic. And I think you may have a talent for it, yes.” He released her hand and looked around. “Now where have those blasted fairies run off to…” he mumbled.
“Uh. Thanks.” Kairi finally tore her gaze away from the frozen man. “Fairies?”
“Yes, yes, they were supposed to be fixing up a room for you in the back. Excuse me.” He pushed past her and out the front door, leaving her in the silent room.
Kairi stood there for a moment. Then, without something better to do, she walked over to the kitchenette and removed the forgotten tea kettle from the fire. So at least that was sorted.
When she turned back around, the man had finally started to move. He sat back in the chair and waved one hand loosely.
“Hey.”
The last time Kairi had seen this guy, he’d gotten himself nearly killed trying to break her out of a cage he’d put her in. And according to Sora, shortly after, he’d finished the job dramatically. So there were a couple layers to her surprise.
“Hello.” It didn’t quite convey all her questions, but it was the best she could come up with.
The man unfolded himself from the chair and stood, keeping his distance. He still wore a long black coat, with silver details and black embroidery. His bright red hair still spiked up off his head. Something was different about his face, though Kairi couldn’t quite place it. “So…” He rubbed the back of his head. “Are you here to learn Keyblade stuff too?”
“Yeah.” Kairi nodded. Then she thought about the question. “Wait, you’re here to learn to use a Keyblade?” she asked, trying to keep a shriek out of her voice.
“You don’t have to sound that surprised,” the man said, shrugging. “I’m a good guy now.”
“Sorry, I just - they didn’t tell me there’d be someone else here,” Kairi answered, trying to recover.
“They didn’t tell me, either.” They stood there, looking at each other. It was awkward. Good time for Merlin to burst back into the room, accompanied by a woman in an enormous dress of red tulle.
“Here we are,” he declared, sweeping his arm toward the woman. “Kairi, this is Flora. One of the three fairies who will be training you.” He blinked, as if he’d just noticed the other man in the room. “Oh! And I suppose I should introduce you to your fellow pupil.”
“We’ve met,” Kairi said, but the man cleared his throat and stepped forward.
“We haven’t really,” he said, extending a hand. “I’m Lea.”
“Lea?” Kairi looked at the offered hand and took it slowly. “Not - “
“Not Axel, no,” he responded, cutting her off. “Not exactly.”
“Right.” Kairi thought back to explanations delivered by Sora (so their accuracy was questionable). “Axel was… the Nobody. Like Naminé and Roxas.”
“That’s the gist of it, yeah.” He grinned, exposing bright white teeth that she half-expected to have points. “Nice to meet you. And also see you again.”
“Likewise.” This was why she hated being left out. No one ever explained shit, so she was totally unprepared to be shaking hands with a dead man. How was he learning to use a Keyblade? How was he on their side? How was he even alive? And, the eternal question, why hadn’t anybody told her about it?
Merlin clapped his hands. “Wonderful! Glad to see you two are getting along so well already. You’ll be working together quite a lot, you know!” He grabbed Kairi by the shoulder. “Now, Flora here will show you to your room, and then why don’t we start by seeing what you know already, hmm?”
“Sure,” Kairi said, turning away from Lea. “Sounds good.”
The fairy smiled gently at her. “Come along, dear,” she said. “This way.”
With a backwards glance at Lea, who appeared to be shrugging again, Kairi followed the fairy outside. She was led around the cottage to the back, where two rooms very obviously protruded from the structure. “You’ll be in here,” Flora said, gesturing to one. A wreath of wildflowers hung on the door. Kairi pushed it open. Inside, the room was small, but cozy. A soft, roomy bed was pushed against one wall. A small desk and a bookshelf were lined up against another. A couple doors in the back were cracked open, revealing a closet and, thankfully, a proper bathroom. Two other women were in the room, wearing dresses that matched Flora’s but in shades of green and blue. The green one was depositing a small vase of yellow flowers on the bedside table. The blue one generated a soft rug out of nowhere that appeared on the floor.
“Fauna! Merryweather!” called Flora. “Kairi’s here!”
They both spun around and floated towards her. She hadn’t noticed before the tiny flittering wings on their backs.
“Oh, lovely!” cooed the green one. “How nice to meet you, dearie. Do let us know if you need anything.”
“Yes, of course,” said the blue one, frowning. “And if you have any problems with the old codger or that boy next door you come straight to me.”
“Now Merryweather, no need to frighten the poor girl.” Flora had entered the room, and between all three of them and their voluminous dresses it was getting crowded. “I’m sure she’s quite capable of taking care of herself. That’s what she’s here for, isn’t it?”
Merryweather grumbled. She caught Kairi’s eye, gestured with her thumb in the direction of the other room, and dragged a finger across her throat. Kairi giggled.
“Thanks,” she said, looking around. “This is my room? It’s very nice.”
“We know it’s not much,” said the green fairy, who by process of elimination must be Fauna, “but we hope it’s comfortable.”
“Couldn’t trust that old bat to house you suitably,” said Merryweather. “We tried to make the other one as nice, but that brat won’t let us in anymore.”
“Lea is entitled to his privacy,” said Flora calmly, “and Merlin is comfortable the way he is. If Kairi would like a slightly higher standard of living,” and she was probably too proper to roll her eyes, so Kairi surely didn’t see that, “we’re perfectly capable of providing it.”
“Thank you,” Kairi repeated. “I will let you know if I need anything else.”
“Of course, darling.” Flora patted Kairi on the head. “Now, are you ready to get started, or do you need some time to adjust?”
Kairi had been ready for years. “I’m good,” she said. “We can go.”
The fairies accompanied her around the front of the house again. Merlin and Lea were standing there, apparently continuing whatever exciting discussion they’d been having when she arrived, based on the expression on Lea’s face. He looked relieved when Merlin turned his attention to Kairi.
“Now then!” Merlin said. “Let’s get an idea of what we’re working with, hmm? Over here, please.”
In front of the house, the forest was cleared away to a distance, to allow a large grassy clearing. Kairi stood in the middle, waiting. Merlin produced a long, thin wooden wand and flicked it. After a moment, two wooden stools came crashing out the front door. One hovered in front of Kairi. The other landed behind Merlin. He sat on it.
“Well, have at it!” Merlin said.
Kairi stared. “You want me to… fight the stool?”
“It’s enchanted, of course.” Merlin chuckled. “Just take a few swings at it.”
Kairi bit back a comment. The Keyblade popped into her hand, and she wrapped the other hand around its hilt. All right… take a few swings. She reared back and brought the Keyblade down in a tall arc that crashed into the soft ground as the stool danced aside. She glared at it. With a deep breath, she stepped back and swung the blade sideways. The stool floated backwards out of her reach and she stumbled. Someone behind her was stifling a laugh, and she was pretty damn sure it wasn’t Merlin or one of the fairies. With a cry, she rushed at the stool, swinging wildly. It easily dodged every blow, twisting back and away until she tripped over a tree root and landed flat on her face.
Kairi groaned, picking herself up and brushing dirt off her clothes. She glanced back at her audience. Merlin looked thoughtful; the fairies looked concerned. Lea was doing a very bad job of hiding his laughter behind his hand.
“Hmm.” Merlin flicked his wand and the stool stopped moving. “Not much combat experience, I see. You’ve got the Keyblade handled, but you’ve got no technique with it.”
“No,” Kairi answered, brushing her hair out of her face. “That’s why I’m here, isn’t it?”
“True, true.” Merlin nodded. “Lea, why don’t you go spar with her?”
Lea snorted. “Aw, I don’t want to hurt her.”
“No, no, it’ll be good,” Merlin answered, pushing Lea forward. “She can get a look at some actual combat.”
Lea stood in front of Kairi, a few feet away. “I’ll go easy on you,” he said. Two spiked wheels appeared in his hands, accompanied by a spurt of flame.
“Ah ah ah,” Merlin interrupted. “Keyblade only, Lea.”
Lea frowned, but the wheels disappeared. Kairi waited as he stood there, staring at his hand. A minute passed.
“Feel free to start, Kairi,” called Merlin. “I’m sure Lea will be able to defend himself. Isn’t that right, Lea?”
Kairi and Lea both turned to look at Merlin. “Seriously?” asked Lea.
Merlin nodded.
Kairi took a second to remember Lea sniggering. She spent a brief moment thinking it over. Then she charged.
She swiped the Keyblade sideways at Lea, who barely dodged. “Shit! What the hell?” He stepped back but she pressed the attack, swinging wildly. Her Keyblade collided solidly with his bicep. He yelped and backed away further.
“Summon your Keyblade, Lea!” Merlin called. “Block her attacks with it!”
“Listen here you old bastard - “ Lea was interrupted by another charge from Kairi. She was swinging one-handed now, which gave her a little more speed at the cost of power. But speed was what she needed, as Lea darted away. “This isn’t fair!” he shouted, shaking his hand uselessly.
“Clear your mind,” Merlin said. A teacup had appeared in his hands at some point. “Just relax and let the Keyblade come to you.”
“How am I supposed to - oof!” Kairi caught him in the rib cage, knocking the air out of him. He stumbled back. “Cut it out,” he growled.
“You can stop going easy on me,” Kairi shot back. It really wasn’t fair, beating on an unarmed opponent. Even if that opponent was taller, older, more experienced, and had been laughing at her. She at least shouldn’t be enjoying it this much.
Lea stared at her. Then he dropped into a low stance. “Fine,” he said, a smile playing at the corners of his mouth. “You wanna go, let’s go.” Kairi charged again, but this time he caught the blade on his forearm and used his other arm to punch her in the gut. Kairi stumbled back, doubled over. Lea loomed over her. “How’s that feel?” he said.
Kairi took a moment to catch her breath. She’d been hit before, hit harder and more painfully, but she’d never really had the chance to hit back. She looked up at Lea, and realized she was grinning as she swung the Keyblade up at his face.
They traded blows. Lea definitely had the advantage, physically, and it was hard for Kairi to land a hit. But he failed to produce a Keyblade, and thus was unable to hit back anywhere near as hard or block her attacks. It wound up being a much closer match than it would have seemed, and a few minutes later when Merlin called a stop to it, neither seemed to be a clear winner.
Kairi flopped on the grass, breathing hard. Lea hunched over next to her. Both were covered in bruises and scrapes, and Lea had a sharp pain in his side that he suspected might need attention.
“You got some rage issues, kid,” he gasped. Kairi just laughed.
“Splendid!” declared Merlin, finally getting out of his seat. “Very good, both of you. Lea, I see we still need to work on summoning the Keyblade.”
“Bite me,” Lea muttered.
“Kairi, you have a lot of spirit. We’ll get you into shape yet.” He winked. “Now, let’s have a short break, and then we’ll set you up with some drills, hmm?”
Merlin guided his furniture back into the building as the fairies approached the two fighters. Fauna, concern obvious on her face, and Merryweather, much grumpier, descended upon the pair.
“He didn’t hurt you, did he?” said Fauna, waving her hands around Kairi. “Where does it hurt? Let me see.”
“I’m fine,” Kairi said, brushing her aside. “Just some bruises.”
“I’d say she’s in better shape than this one,” Merryweather said. She poked Lea in the side and he hissed with pain. “I think this is a cracked rib.”
“Well then don’t poke it,” Lea said. Merryweather frowned and prodded again.
“Oh, I must be sure.”
Lea winced and let his head hang back. “Better let them heal you,” he remarked. “The bruises can really add up, and that one fusses.”
Kairi nodded and relaxed as a gentle light swirled from Fauna’s hands. Some part of her was disappointed as the bruises started to fade, proof that she’d held her own. But Lea had a point, and Fauna did already look very worried.
After a few minutes, she felt good as new. Tired, but good. Fauna stepped back, looking her over. Merryweather gave Lea a totally-necessary jab in the ribs to make sure he was healed.
“Tea will be ready in a minute,” called Flora from the house. “Come on up when you’re ready.”
“They’ll be right there,” answered Merryweather. She placed a hand on Fauna’s back and hustled her away, leaving Kairi and Lea alone.
“All right,” said Lea, watching the fairies depart. “I probably deserved most of that.”
“Yeah,” Kairi answered. “You probably did.”
Lea punched her gently on the arm. “You did pretty good, kid. You’re scrappy.”
“I kicked your ass.” Kairi punched him back.
“Hey, once I get the dumb magic stick down, you’re toast.” He thrust out his hand dramatically. Nothing happened. He frowned. “Eventually.”
Kairi giggled. “That’s the easy part. You just sorta - “ She raised her hand and the Keyblade appeared. “See?”
“You just make it look easy,” Lea grumbled. “Enjoy it while you can. I’ll get you.”
“Just don’t go easy on me,” Kairi said. Her voice softened. “I’m tired of having people go easy on me.”
Lea looked at her sideways. “Okay,” he said. “I can do that.” He laid one hand on his chest. “I promise to put my full effort into thrashing you.”
Kairi smiled at him. She stood up, brushing grass off her butt, and reached down a hand to help Lea up. “It’s a deal.”
***
Time did pass. There was a day and a night, even in this temporally flexible place, and a routine quickly developed. Kairi was set to drills, attacking chairs and tables that floated around her. She was given lessons in magic as well and, as Merlin predicted, picked it up quickly. Soon she was able to summon flames and ice, and even heal her own bruises. Lea, training in parallel, had different problems. Once he had the Keyblade in his hands, he could fight smoothly; he had trouble getting it there, though. With magic, he was absolutely a master of fire and completely hopeless with anything else. “What problem am I gonna have,” he said, “that I can’t solve by lighting it on fire?”
They sparred daily, at least. Half the time Lea was able to summon the Keyblade and did, in fact, thrash Kairi pretty soundly. When he couldn’t manage it, though, Kairi took full advantage of her license to beat on him. Her ferocity was surprising to them both. She had a lifetime of docility and waiting around to overcome, and she was shattering it gleefully.
The fairies, in between teaching magic and healing, also did most of the housework, cooking for them. “Because,” as Merryweather politely put it, “if we left it up to him you’d be living on crackers and shoe leather.” Kairi helped when she could.
The evenings were unplanned, and they were left to their own devices. Kairi studied or chatted with the fairies and Merlin. Lea usually disappeared. The woods extended around the house in every direction, but after a distance faded into a white blur of nothingness. There wasn’t really anything else here. But he wasn’t leaving - there was a weird tug in time when someone entered or left, and everyone inside could feel it. So he had to be somewhere. There wasn’t much to do besides wander through the woods.
It was on one of these evenings when Kairi decided to take a walk herself. Merlin and Merryweather were bickering, with Flora standing aside and Fauna fretting about it. Kairi wanted to be somewhere else instead, so she took off.
The woods were pleasant, even at night, but unusually quiet. There were no animals here, no birds or little furry things scurrying about. Moss grew on the trees and ground, and colorful flowers could be found in patches. At night the plants produced a gentle bioluminescence, lending the whole place an unearthly air. It was safe, of course, but the silence made it eerie. So when Kairi heard a noise, her heart jumped before she realized it could only be one thing.
She peered around a tree and saw a clearing ahead, with a large tree stump and some mossy boulders. A figure in a black coat leaned against one of the boulders. The hood was up, but Kairi was still pretty certain about who it had to be.
His head was bowed over something in his hand. His shoulders sagged. All she had to go on was body language, but he looked tired.
Kairi hesitated just for a moment, wondering if she was intruding on something private. But a sound like a sob escaped the figure, and she couldn’t just walk away.
She stomped toward the clearing, deliberately rustling leaves and snapping twigs. The figure’s head shot up and his hand flew to his side, tucking away whatever he’d been holding.
“Hey,” said Kairi.
Lea didn’t lower his hood. “Hey.”
Kairi crossed the clearing and leaned against the stone next to him. “Nice night, isn’t it?” she said airily.
“Yeah.” Lea was normally a chatty guy. But not right now.
Kairi cast about for a topic of conversation. She decided on, “Kinda weird how quiet it is, right?”
“It was,” Lea muttered, almost too quiet for her to hear. Then, louder, “Did you want something?”
“Me? No. I was just going for a walk.” She whistled innocently.
“Lots of places to walk.”
Kairi gave up. “Are you okay?”
She expected maybe a bitter laugh, or a cutting remark. She got a resigned sigh. “I’m fine,” he said, in the tone of voice of someone who was not fine.
“Sure.” Kairi decided to press. “It’s just that you’re crying in the middle of the woods alone at night. That doesn’t seem fine.”
“I’m not - “ Lea turned away, his hood already covering his features. “Whatever.”
“Can I help?”
Lea scoffed. “Are you all like this? You and Sora and the rest of the Good Times Gang?” He shook his head. “Maybe I’m on the wrong side after all.”
“We like to help,” Kairi answered, “when we see our friends hurting.”
“Friends?” Now Lea did laugh. “Since when am I your friend?”
“Since I kicked your ass on day one.” Kairi punched him in the bicep. “C’mon. Talk.”
For a moment, it seemed like he actually might. Instead, he pushed off from the rock. “Have a nice night,” he said as he walked away into the dark.
Kairi puffed out her cheeks in frustration. She hadn’t spent years as Riku’s friend without learning to handle grumpy boys who didn’t want to show their feelings. It would take more than a brusque goodbye to shake her off.
***
One of the improvements that her training allowed was that once in a damn while, her best friends would check in with her. Not that they told her anything, of course. Sora was doing his own training, complaining about people she’d never met. Riku was doing something too dangerous to tell sweet little Kairi about, apparently. Even so, it was good to know they were alive and not brainwashed or in a coma or split into like four different people.
Occasionally, the boys would spar with her. She hated it, because she knew they were holding back. She knew they didn’t want to hurt her, but it still felt like they didn’t trust her. Lea hadn’t pulled a single punch since that first day, and she’d started to appreciate not being treated like she was made of porcelain. She could take a hit. The entire point of being here was to take hits, and learn from them. And while Riku might have had useful comments about her form, he had a tendency to stand back with a smug look on his face while Kairi recovered from an attack. Kairi was starting to understand why Sora had always been challenging him to one more fight.
Lea had a tendency to make himself scarce during visits, and she couldn’t blame him. Riku looked at him with thinly veiled suspicion. “Is he causing you any trouble, Kairi?” he’d ask. “Is he hurting you at all?”
Kairi thought back to their match that morning, when he’d cracked her across the head so hard her vision went blurry. “Nope,” she lied smoothly. (She’d snapped his wrist the day before. It seemed fair.)
Sora, though, looked a little disappointed when Lea vanished. At first, Kairi assumed he was just doing his normal make-friends-with-everyone routine. But some of the glances were… lingering. Some days he was properly mopey. And if Lea was in the same space as him for more than two minutes, he spent days distracted, unable to summon the Keyblade, and no fun at all to beat up. And of course, everyone insisted they were fine and nothing was wrong, because all Kairi’s best friends were idiots.
It was Riku, eventually, who clued Kairi in. They were sitting side by side watching Sora wail on a floating arm chair and a tea set. Sora had great instincts, but couldn’t have explained what he was doing. Riku, however, could point out to Kairi some of his unconcious techniques in a way that Kairi could actually use. Plus Riku got to stare at Sora, which distracted him enough for Kairi to get some actual information out of him.
“Have you ever had trouble with the Keyblade?” she asked. Sora had just pulled a maneuver that involved the Keyblade popping from one hand to the other. The tea set didn’t stand a chance.
Riku shrugged. “Not really. At least, not once I had my own.” He tilted his head towards Kairi. “Are you having trouble?”
“Not me,” Kairi answered, keeping her tone light. “Lea can’t get it sometimes.”
“Hmm.” Riku raised his head, scanning, but Lea was nowhere to be found. “Maybe he’s just overthinking it,” he mused. “I don’t know why it should be any harder for him than for any of us.”
“I wonder,” said Kairi, as if she was just coming up with this thought instead of thinking about it for days, “if it’s got something to do with his heart. Because he was a Nobody, right?”
Riku nodded. “He was. But that shouldn’t be a problem. He’s got his heart back, should be fine.”
“How did that happen, anyway?”
Now Riku looked at her, brow furrowed. “I’m not sure,” he said. “He said they just woke up. All the Organization members who’d been in Radiant Garden when their hearts were lost, at least.”
“All the Organization member. But not Roxas, right?”
Riku paused before answering. “No, not Roxas. He’s with Sora now.”
Kairi could understand that. She’d had a similar situation with Naminé, after all. Sometimes she could still feel her, somewhere in her chest, a faint tug or a flash of memory. Sora probably felt Roxas in a similar way. And if Lea knew that, Lea who had fought so hard to get Roxas back, Lea who probably caught glimpses of Roxas in Sora...
Ah.
At least it explained why they were so weird around each other. And now Kairi had an idea about why Lea struggled so much with the Keyblade. These guys still didn’t understand the heart at all.
***
That evening, Lea disappeared, as usual. Kairi helped with cleaning up after dinner, then breezily announced she was going for a walk and headed into the woods. It wasn’t quite dark yet, and the sun was still setting when she tracked him down. He wasn’t hard to find; the woods weren’t big, and Kairi was used to them by now.
He was seated on a fallen tree. The hood was once again pulled up, hiding his face, and his hands fidgeted with something. Kairi kicked at the leaves from behind him, giving him enough warning to shove it into a pocket before she arrived. She hopped up next to him on the log, her legs not quite reaching the ground.
“Hey,” she said.
“Hey,” he said back.
“I have an idea,” she said, “about the Keyblade, and why you’re having so much trouble with it.”
“Oh. Great.” Lea sighed. “Is it that I need to clear my mind and just let it flow? Because that’s about all the old fart can offer.”
“No, actually. I think it’s kind of the opposite.” Kairi took a deep breath. “You need to think about your heart.”
“My heart?” Kairi couldn’t see Lea’s face, but he sounded surprised. “Why would I want to do something like that?”
“Because it hurts. And you’re not doing anything about it.”
Lea’s fingers closed into a fist. “What, exactly, am I supposed to do? I can’t fix it. You can’t fix it. It’s just the way it is.”
Kairi reached out and rested a hand on Lea’s shoulder. “You can talk,” she said. “It helps. Talk to me about it.” There was no response, so she decided to push her luck. “It’s Roxas, isn’t it?”
She heard a sniffle and a weak laugh. “Yeah. Yeah, it is.”
“You miss him.” Kairi waited.
After a minute, Lea sighed deeply. “You’re not going to leave me alone, are you?”
“Nope. I’m very persistent.”
“Ugh.” Lea reached up and pushed the hood back from his face. Tears glinted on his cheeks. “Fine. Yes, I miss him. Happy?”
“Not really.” She paused. “I’m sorry.”
Lea waved a hand at her. “No, no, I get it. Had to get Sora back. It’s just the way it had to be.”
“I can still be sorry about it. And you can still be upset. It’s okay.”
Another silence stretched out between them. Lea reached into his pocket. “I missed him before,” he said, his fingers toying with something. “When I was still a Nobody. I fought so hard to get him back.” He glanced over at Kairi. “Sorry about the kidnapping, by the way.”
Kairi smiled. “I’ve beaten the shit out of you enough to forgive you, I think.” She craned her head to see what he was holding. It was a popsicle stick, stained light blue, with something written on it.
Lea smiled back, briefly, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “Now I’ve got a heart, and it hurts so much worse.” He shook his head. “I can’t stop thinking about him. I don’t know how I’m supposed to deal with it.”
“Like this,” Kairi answered. She wrapped an arm around Lea’s broad shoulders. “With friends.”
Lea turned his head toward her and snorted. “You’re obnoxious.”
“And you’re a dumbass,” Kairi replied, “but you’re my friend.”
“Pfft. Fine.” He rolled his eyes, but didn’t move away. “Whatever.”
They sat together in silence. Kairi ran through different things to say, what words of comfort she could offer. Before she could settle on something, Lea spoke again.
“Hey. Do you, uh.” He cleared his throat. “Is Namine in there?”
Kairi closed a fist over her heart. “She is. I feel her sometimes. Not always, but sometimes.”
“Is she…”
“I don’t know if she’s happy,” Kairi said, answering the question Lea didn’t quite ask. “But I think she’s at peace. She seems content.”
“Huh.” Lea tapped the popsicle stick on his chin. “That’s good.”
Kairi drummed her fingers on the log. “Did you know,” she said after a minute, “that I forgot about Sora?”
“You what?” Lea turned toward her, confused.
“I don’t know why, but I couldn’t remember him at all.” She tilted her head to the side. “I knew there’d been a boy I played with at the beach, but I didn’t know his name or his face or anything about him. I just completely forgot about one of the people who’s most important to me.” She looked upward. There were stars up there, but they didn’t move from night to night. “I wouldn’t give those memories up again for anything. No matter how much they hurt. Because as long as I remember them, my friends are always with me.”
Axel moaned, but a smile played at his lips. “So cheesy,” he said. “Our memories are the bonds of our hearts,” he declared in a high falsetto with sweeping gestures, “and hope is the light of our friendships. The real Kingdom Hearts is the friends we make along the way.” He posed, hands raised high, and looked at Kairi. “Did I get all of it?” he asked in his normal tone.
Kairi giggled. “Should be something about keys and doors, I think.”
“Right, right. The heart is a door and the key is, mm, dreams.” He shook his head. “Do you ever listen to yourselves?”
“It makes sense while you’re saying it. You just wait,” Kairi said. “One of these days you’ll catch yourself monologuing about keys and lights and stuff.”
“Never. I’m way too cool. And I like to keep things snappy.” He winked. “Part of my charm.”
“You have charm?”
Lea reached out with one of his long arms to swat at her. She leaned back to avoid him, giggling and kicking. He gave up and settled back down.
“Hey,” Kairi said after a minute. “Memories are what tie us together, and - “
Lea groaned and rolled his eyes. “Was the mocking not clear enough?”
“Shut up and listen.” Kairi took a deep breath. “Your memories of Roxas might make you sad, but they connect you to him. It’s okay to be sad. It’s okay to miss him. But cherish the memories, and anything that reminds you of him, because it’s way worse to forget. And someday, soon, those memories will bring you back together.”
Lea tapped his foot. He let out a long breath. “I’ve been hanging around with you too much,” he said, “because that actually made sense to me.” He smiled gently at Kairi. “Thanks, kid.”
“You’re welcome.” She slid down off the log. “Wanna head back?”
“You go ahead,” Lea said, waving her away. “I’m gonna hang back.”
Kairi nodded. “You know where I’ll be if you need me.” She left him there, alone in the woods like she’d found him. But the tears had disappeared.
***
The next day, Lea summoned the Keyblade first try. And the day after that. And after that.
It meant that Kairi ended up on the ground more often, one of the fairies hovering over her, but it didn’t really hurt. She always got back up. Lea, once he was able to focus on something other than summoning the Keyblade, improved rapidly. He took the flowing circular strikes he’d mastered with the chakrams and translated them into unpredictable patterns that could strike from any direction. He moved like flames.
Kairi couldn’t keep up, so she stopped trying. She learned to plant her feet, wait for him to come at her, and block his attacks. She would have rare chances to hit back, so she threw her full strength into those moments. He picked at her, flitting around and wearing her down, but she could shut him down completely with one good hit.
Every day they worked to the point of exhaustion, muscles aching despite the fairies’ ministrations. Kairi felt herself growing stronger; she could go longer without having to stop for breath, and if Lea’s complaints were anything to judge by, she was hitting harder too. She hadn’t been out of shape, exactly, but she was developing some muscle definition she’d never expected. Lea joked about not being able to fit her bicep between his forefinger and thumb anymore. “Tell you what, if you’d been like this when I tried to kidnap you,” he said, “it would’ve been much harder.”
“That’s the idea,” Kairi responded.
Finally, the day came when she convinced Sora to really spar with her. He and Riku were both visiting, and looked shocked by the lean muscles displayed by her sleeveless outfit.
“C’mon, Sora,” she said. “For practice. All I’ve got here is Lea. How am I supposed to learn?”
“What’s wrong, Sora?” Lea called, for once having stuck around. He wanted to see the show. “Not scared of little Kairi, are you?”
“You’ve been training too, right?” Kairi pressed. “Don’t you want to show Riku how much better you’ve gotten?”
“Jeez, if you can’t even beat her, how are you ever gonna beat me?”
The tag team of flattery and taunts achieved the desired effect. Kairi was standing across from Sora in the grassy clearing. Back towards to the house Merlin sat on his stool, drinking tea. Riku sat on the grass beside him, a look of amusement already on his face. The fairies, having seen Kairi in action, held themselves ready with Stop and Curagas at hand. Lea watched from the tree line, leaning against an oak with his arms crossed in front of him.
Sora grinned brightly at Kairi. “Don’t worry,” he said, dropping into a stance as the Keyblade appeared in his hand. “I’ll go easy on you.”
Kairi narrowed her eyes. Like hell he would. A whistle sounded to start the match. Before it had faded Kairi charged with a guttural scream, swinging her Keyblade with both hands. Sora jumped back too late to avoid her, and the blade crashed into his side and knocked him away.
Sora shouted in a mixture of pain and shock, pressing his hand to his side. “Kairi!”
The fairies tensed. Riku didn’t look so amused anymore. Lea, on the other hand, was enjoying this immensely.
Kairi held back, just for a moment. “What’s wrong, Sora?” she called, planting her feet. “Was that too hard?”
Sora gritted his teeth. A green glow appeared under his hand, and he straightened up. “You surprised me,” he said. “Won’t happen again.” He ran at her, Keyblade pulled back. He was nowhere near as fast as Lea; Kairi easily deflected him, smacking him in the back on his way past. He stumbled and spun around; the Keyblade vanished. “Kairi - “
“Oh, sorry.” Kairi hefted the Keyblade onto her shoulder. “Should I go easy on you?”
Sora frowned. “I - “
“I wanted a real fight, Sora,” she interrupted. “That’s what I’m here for. Are you going to take me seriously or not?”
Sora took a breath and glanced at Riku, who looked confused. “All right,” he said. “A real fight.” The Keyblade reappeared, and he set a solid grip on it. “Let’s go.”
They fought.
Kairi didn’t win, as satisfying as that would have been, but she came much closer than Sora ever would have dreamed. Sora stopped holding back and she finally faced someone who had nearly mastered the Keyblade. He was a lesson in motion, Keyblade passing from hand to hand or being thrown in an arcing circle, magic used to distract and restrain as much as to damage. Kairi held her ground, blocking with the Keyblade and swinging hard when Sora got too close. Twice, Merlin had to reach out and stop Riku from rushing in to save Kairi (and once, to save Sora).
She refused to yield until she at last found herself splayed on the ground, Sora’s foot on her chest, his Keyblade pointed at her face. “Give up,” he panted.
She reached into herself, but found not a speck of magic left to push him away. Her limbs refused to move, her muscles screaming in protest. “Fine,” she said, letting the Keyblade in a burst of light. “You win.”
Sora collapsed into the grass next to her. The fairies and Riku were there in seconds. Flora and Fauna began assessing the damage. Riku hovered, glancing between his two friends. “You okay?” he asked, not sure who to direct it at.
Sora grinned, missing several teeth, and gave a thumbs up.
Lea sauntered over to Kairi. “Good work, kid,” he said squatting next to her. “You gave the pipsqueak a real run for his money.” He extended a gloved hand for a hi-five. Kairi mustered her last bit of strength to slap his palm.
“Easy,” she mumbled, on the verge of passing out.
***
Kairi and Sora never beat each other quite as senseless again, and she didn’t have to repeat the lesson on Riku. Their visits now included a welcome change from endless training bouts with Lea. They fought two on one or free-for-all; sometimes Lea even joined in the fray. Kairi learned to track multiple opponents and to watch her teammate’s back. She could predict Riku’s methodical techniques, and adjust rapidly to Sora’s sporadic attacks.
She outpaced Lea again, and he responded by stepping up his game. Finally confident in the Keyblade itself, he started working the chakrams back into his strategies, throwing them before darting in to attack or swapping rapidly between the weapons to confuse his opponent. He figured out the strategic value of being able to pop a Cure during a fight when Kairi started outlasting him, so he paid more attention to Merlin’s lessons. Still wouldn’t touch Blizzard, though.
A day came when Merlin called the two of them outside. “You’ve both been doing wonderfully,” he announced, “and we’ve decided it’s time for you to go on a little training mission.”
“Finally,” Lea groaned, stretching his arms. “Time to pick on somebody my own size.”
“Where are we going?” Kairi asked.
“Some Heartless have been detected in a quiet little world,” Merlin said, examining a piece of parchment in his hand. “Just a couple, but they’ll spread if they’re not handled quickly. Should be simple enough!” He cleared his throat and flicked his wand; the parchment rolled up and disappeared. “Any questions?”
Lea dropped his arms to his side. “Go to place, beat up thing. Got it.”
“How are we going to get there?” Kairi asked.
Merlin nodded. “By Gummi ship,” he answered. “Sora will be here shortly to pick you up.”
“Oh.” Her shoulders sagged. “Sora’s coming?”
“Just in case, dear.” Merlin winked. “Wouldn’t want you getting in over your head, would we?”
“No. I guess not.” Her voice was flat, with an undertone that sent a shiver down Lea’s spine.
“Wonderful,” said Merlin, completely oblivious. “If that’s all, then, I think it’s about time for you to depart.” He clapped his hands. The world stuttered around them, just for a second, the feeling that came with someone passing through the barrier. A colorful blocky ship appeared in the sky above them. Sora could be seen waving wildly down at them.
Lea found himself crammed into the back of the ship. Sora and Kairi were in the front, with Sora rambling about something while Kairi just nodded along. The trip was mercifully short, and Kairi and Lea were deposited on a cobbled street, just before sundown.
“Don’t worry, Kairi!” Sora said before offloading them. “If you need me, I’ll be right here!”
To her credit, Kairi managed to get around the corner of a building and out of sight before groaning in frustration and bonking her head on a brick wall. “This is bullshit!” she shouted at the ground.
Lea looked around, evaluating their surroundings. “Tell us how you really feel,” he said sarcastically, leaning against the wall with arms crossed.
“I don’t need a babysitter!” she shouted. “They don’t think I can handle one stupid little thing? They’re sending us on baby’s first mission and they still don’t trust me with that?” Her fists clenched and she kicked the wall. “They sent Sora because I’m going to need to be saved, again, because that’s all I’m good for! Getting in trouble and getting saved!” She threw her hands into the air. “Like I can’t take care of myself! What the fuck do they think I’ve been doing all this time? Embroidery? They’re just humoring me, is that it? I’m never supposed to actually do anything, I’m just here because they’re tired of keeping an eye on me. Fuck!” She stood there, breathing heavily, her shoulders heaving.
After a moment, Lea put a hand on her shoulder. “You done?”
Kairi huffed. “Yeah. I’m done.” She brushed a strand of hair out of her face and finally looked around. “Where are we?”
They were in a space between two tall buildings made of brick. The ground beneath their feet was paved with cobblestones. Ahead, it opened out into a proper street. Kairi stepped forward and peered out. Rows of shops lined the street, with colorful displays in their windows. The whole scene was lit with gas lamps. Ironwork curled over doorways and up lamposts. People walked by, dressed in clothes in a style Kairi hadn’t seen before. A carriage rumbled by, pulled by a horse.
“Dunno,” Lea said from behind her. “Never been here before.”
“Me either,” Kairi said. She wrinkled her nose. “This is the first time I’ve been away from Destiny Islands without being kidnapped.”
Lea frowned. “Is it really? Yeesh. They really don’t let you do anything, huh.”
Kairi shook her head. “C’mon.” She stepped onto the sidewalk. Lea fell into pace just behind her. He drew a few strange looks, but most people ignored them.
“So how do we do this?” Kairi asked, her eye caught by a bright display in a shop window. “How do we track down the Heartless?”
Lea shrugged. “I usually just wander around until I hear screaming. Then I go that way.”
Kairi looked at him in disbelief. “That’s it? That’s the plan?”
“Yeah. You got a better idea?”
“No, I guess I just… assumed there was a spell or something.”
“Well, if there is, I don’t know about it.” He glanced down the street. “Might as well get moving, yeah? These things usually pop up pretty quickly.”
They wandered the cobbled streets guided by nothing but their whims. Kairi had never been in a city quite like this one before, and she soon forgot her earlier irritation. The buildings felt old, but sturdy; the architecture soared around them. Women passed by, wearing long elegant dresses and carrying lace parasols, traveling in pairs or accompanied by men in complicated suits. Every other building seemed to be a little cafe where people sat and sipped at cups of coffee or glasses of wine. Every shop window held a different display of glittering jewelry or magnificently overloaded hats, and Kairi wanted to stop to look closely at every one. At one point Lea disappeared and returned a few minutes later to hand her a cone of thin pastry, wrapped in paper and filled with cream and strawberries. She forgot the word pretty much immediately but would remember the taste for a long time. Rough, lively music drifted from somewhere unseen, making her nod her head in rhythm.
Kairi spotted something bright from the corner of her eye. Turning her head, she looked down an alleyway to see a white cat with long, luxurious fur. “Aw!” She started towards it and crouched a few feet away, hand outstretched. “Here, kitty kitty.”
“Better not be a talking cat,” Lea said, coming up behind her. “I hate talking animal worlds.”
“I think it’s just a normal cat,” Kairi said as the cat came up and sniffed her finger. She gasped. “She’s got kittens!”
Three kittens, orange, white, and black, came out from behind a board leaning against the wall. They gathered around her, meowing plaintively until she pet each of them in turn. They each had a little ribbon tied around their necks and rolled around under her hands, their mother sitting back and watching.
Lea shook his head as a fifth cat appeared, this one orange and cream with more ragged fur. “Bet they understand us,” he said. “That’s even worse, when you know they can understand you, but they act like they can’t. See, watch this.” He flicked his middle finger at the orange cat. “Fuck you.”
The cat didn’t respond but Kairi did, turning her head to glare at him. “It’s a cat, Lea.”
“He understood me.”
“Excuse me,” came a strange voice.
Kairi turned, half-expecting to be the orange cat. Instead, a man in a formal jacket appeared at the end of the alley. He teetered on thin legs, his round belly looking dangerously unbalanced. One hand was raised in front of him, the other tucked behind his back. “I see you’ve found the cats!” he said, stepping forward. “Madam will be so pleased.”
“Oh, are these yours?” Kairi asked, standing.
“Yes, they’ve been missing. Thank you so much for finding them. I’m simply overjoyed to see that they’re safe. Come along, kitty,” he said, beckoning with a finger.
The orange cat stepped in front of the others, back arched, eyes fixed on the man. The white one curled around her kittens. Kairi looked from the man to the cats and back again. “They don’t seem like they want to go with you,” she said.
The man smiled, not showing his teeth. “They’re just cats,” he said. “Don’t worry, I’ll take care of them.” He stepped forward and frowned when the orange cat hissed.
“They really don’t seem to like you,” Kairi repeated, positioning herself next to the orange cat. “You should probably leave them alone.”
The fake smile fell from the man’s face. “I’ll be taking those cats,” he declared. The hand behind his back appeared, clutching a burlap sack.
Lea stood up straight, towering behind Kairi. “You wanna reconsider that, buddy,” he said.
The man smirked. “Oh, I think not.” He snapped his fingers. Puddles of swirling darkness appeared on either side of him, and two creatures rose from them. Roughly speaking, they could have been dogs, quadrupeds with long drooping ears and sharp teeth. They looked like they’d been built from colorful geometry bound together with bits of shadow, and each had an emblem in the shape of a heart on their chests.
Lea rolled his eyes. “You’ve got Heartless under your control,” he said, “and you’re using them to hunt cats? Get a hobby.”
The man’s smirk faltered and turned into a scowl. “You’re right. It would be a waste to just use these creatures to dispose of those beasts.” He pointed at Kairi and Lea. “I’ll have them dispose of you as well!”
Lea nodded as the Keyblade appeared in his hand. “That’s not a bad line.”
Kairi braced herself, her Keyblade held in front of her. “Lea, get the cats!” she shouted.
“What?” Before Lea could say any more, Kairi had charged. She swung her Keyblade at one of the hounds, swatting it aside, and spun to block the other as it leapt at her. “Aw, man.” Lea bent down, scooping two of the kittens up. He deposited them on top of a crate, where the white cat jumped up to curl around them. The little orange one had slipped out of his grasp and was standing in the middle of the alley, legs spread and tail sticking straight up, spitting furiously. The first hound fixed its gaze on the kitten and launched itself down the alley. Lea barely made it in time to block the Heartless, which closed its jaws around his Keyblade and shook vigorously. Lea locked eyes with the orange alleycat. “Get your damn kitten!” he shouted, pushing against the hound. The orange cat, who could absolutely understand Lea, dammit, snatched the kitten by the nape of the neck and pulled it to safety.
Satisfied, Lea thrust the hound away and sent it tumbling. He glanced at Kairi and spotted her delivering a solid blow to the other Heartless’s spiked head. His attention was drawn back to the one he’d struck as it stalked toward him, teeth bared. If he went to Kairi’s side, there’d be nothing between the hound and the cats, so he stood his ground.
Kairi screamed as she brought the Keyblade down on the hound’s head, knocking it to the ground. She kept going, beating it into the ground until it roared with a shockwave that sent her stumbling backward. The beast got back to its feet and paced, watching her warily. Kairi held her blade up and waited. Her patience was rewarded when it lunged. She caught it on the shaft of the Keyblade, redirected its momentum into the wall, and threw all her strength into a follow-up attack. With a garbled cry, the Heartless dissolved into smoke beneath her Keyblade. A transparent heart, like a cut gemstone, drifted slowly upwards and disappeared from sight.
Kairi watched it rise, just for a moment, when a sound drew her attention. “Fuck!” She whipped around to see Lea with the other hound hanging off his arm. Its teeth had pierced through his black coat; blood was dripping from the wound. Kairi dashed forward as Lea released a burst of flame. Singed, the Heartless released its grip. Lea stumbled backward and Kairi brought her Keyblade down on the hound, catching it on what would have been its spine. It, too, vanished in a puff of smoke, releasing a delicate apparition of a heart.
“You okay?” she asked, breathing heavily.
“Peachy,” Lea answered, clutching his arm. They both turned their attention back to the man who still stood at the end of the alleyway. He’d gone very pale.
“So,” said Lea, gritting his teeth, “are you the kind of asshole who’s going to start glowing and floating and fight us himself? Because I’d definitely be into kicking your ass.”
The man frowned, stepping back. “I’ll get those cats,” he snarled, “if it’s the last thing I do!”
“I’d be happy to help with that,” Lea answered as the man took off at a run.
Kairi turned to Lea. “Here,” she said, laying her hands on his arm. A green glow appeared and the bleeding stopped. He flexed his arm experimentally. All better. It didn’t do anything about the holes in his coat, though.
“Thanks. Good work.”
“It was easy,” Kairi answered. “Do you think that was it?”
“Probably. These things start small, usually. One jerk with a bone to pick stumbles across some power he shouldn’t, and it escalates from there.” Lea shook his head. “Wonder what his problem with the cats was.”
“The cats!” Kairi pushed past Lea to where the cats were huddled. “Are they okay?”
“They’re fine,” answered Lea as Kairi reached for them. “And they can totally understand us,” he added. “They’re just assholes.”
The little white kitten licked Kairi’s finger. “They are not,” Kairi said, stroking its fur. “They are precious.”
“Suit yourself.” Lea felt something touch his ankle and looked down to see the orange kitten rubbing itself against him. He reached down and scratched it behind the ears.
“Can we help them get home or something?” Kairi ran a finger over the collar on the white cat. It looked expensive; these weren’t strays. “Maybe they’re lost.”
“Not really what we’re here for.” Lea locked eyes with the orange tomcat. “You good, cat?”
The orange cat meowed.
“See? They’re fine.”
Kairi scoffed. “Do you need help?” she asked, addressing the white cat. It meowed and nuzzled her hand. Then it jumped down from the crate, followed by her kittens, and walked up to the orange tomcat. The whole group headed out to the street and turned the corner. “Be careful,” Kairi called, waving. Once they’d disappeared from view, she said, “I guess we should head back.”
Lea nodded. “They absolutely understood us. I’m right about this.”
***
Sora threw his arms around Kairi when they returned to the place the Gummi ship had left them. “How’d it go?” he said, practically bouncing.
“It was fine,” Kairi said, gently detaching him. “We found some big dog things and killed them.” She frowned. “Killed? Are they technically alive?”
“You could be all vague and say we ‘defeated’ them,” Lea said.
Sora stared wide-eyed at Kairi. “Are you okay?” he asked, looking her up and down. “Did you get hurt?”
“Where’s my concern?” Lea said, gesturing at the ragged gap in his sleeve. “I’m the one who got mauled.”
“He’s being dramatic,” Kairi said. “He’s fine. I healed it.”
Sora flicked his gaze between them for a second until a wide smile erased his look of concern. “I’m really glad you’re okay,” he said. “I was really worried.”
“Didn’t need to be, kid,” Lea said, cutting off Kairi’s response. “She can take care of herself. You should remember that.”
To Kairi’s surprise, Sora looked chagrined. “Sorry,” he said, rubbing the back of his head. “I forget. I guess I’ve just felt like I had to protect you for so long. It’s hard to stop.” He smiled gently at her. “You’ve gotten really strong. I’m proud of you.”
Kairi sighed, feeling some tension in her chest loosen. “Thanks,” she said. Over Sora’s shoulder, she caught Lea’s eye; he gave her a wink. She held back the urge to roll her eyes at him.
***
That successful mission proved to be the end of their training. They piled back into the Gummi ship and were brought to Yen Sid’s tower, where they were declared to be ready to join the fight against darkness. Kairi glowed with pride as Yen Sid released them. Sora babbled excitedly as they descended the spiral stairs, going on about the world they were headed toward.
“ - and there’s a giant whale,” he was saying. “He’s so big he can just swallow you whole and there’s this whole space in there!”
“Sounds gross,” Kairi said.
“It’s pretty gross.” Sora beamed at her. “But it’s also really cool.” He pushed through the door to the tower. Outside, the Gummi ship waited for them, ready to take off.
“You ready?” Sora asked.
Kairi looked back at Lea, who nodded and gave a thumbs-up. She turned back to Sora. “I’ve been ready.”