Archive of Our Own

The massive swirl of heartless emerged from the ground like a scourge, growing and rising and swirling in the air with a sickening, high-pitched chatter. It rose higher and higher before crashing down and around — and whisked away Sora’s friends one by one.

And Sora just watched.

With each one helplessly swept up in the storm of dark bodies and yellow eyes, Sora froze deeper and deeper into abject horror. And then — Kairi reached out from the big, black mass, and Sora desperately tried to grab her hand — but he wasn’t quick enough.

It happened all at once, and not at all. Sora’s world came to an echoing, grinding halt. He could feel cracks forming in his heart like the shattering of glass. It was so overwhelming, and yet so empty, that Sora could barely even breathe. The weight was so heavy on his chest all he could do was scream, scream with every ounce of air his lungs could expel until he collapsed to his knees in the gritty, sandy gravel of the Keyblade Graveyard.

So, Sora was weak after all. All his friends’ strength wasn’t enough — no, he wasn’t enough. As punishment, his friends were gone.

Except Riku.

“Sora!” he called. In mere moments, Riku was by Sora’s side, kneeling.

Words just started spilling from Sora’s mouth, finally released after he’d kept so many in for too long. “They’re gone,” he said, voice shaking as tears overwhelmed his eyes, “Kairi, Donald… Goofy, the King… Gone forever.” Small, dark spots formed on the ground where his tears fell. “What do we do?” He barely held back the sob, and looked into his best friend’s eyes, searching. Despite himself, he couldn’t stop his heavy, sobbing breaths from sputtering pathetically past his lips. He couldn’t hold it back, in front of Riku. “Without them… I…” he continued, the ugly confession on the tips of his lips, “All my strength came from them.”

My friends are my power: it was his mantra, his hope and belief that he would conquer any evil, any Darkness, because his friends believed in him. But then it became something else. Sora couldn’t bear to look at Riku anymore, and he stared back at the ground. “They gave me all of it. Alone, I’m worthless.”

He couldn’t do anything without them. It was just a small whisper in his mind at first, but when had it settled, rooted so firmly that he believed it? It didn’t matter. “We’ve lost; it’s over.” I’m sorry, Donald… Goofy… I’m sorry, Kairi. I couldn’t be the hero I promise I’d be…

The promise — the memory from just yesterday surfaced to his mind. It made his feel weaker, like his elbows would give out at any moment, and yet it played vividly in his mind.

As the sun set on Destiny Islands, Sora was reminded distinctly of Twilight Town — the city that never slept. Just like the world that was forever stuck on the precipice of night, Sora too felt an anxious anticipation of the end. It was the last night before they all set out for what they all surmised would be their toughest, and maybe last, battle.

It made it even more difficult for Sora to appreciate being home. He had just come from more sand and more seas — even after a whole pirate war, Sora wished he could go back to sailing the high sees with nothing but heartless ships to cause him trouble and white crabs to collect. Maybe that was why he didn’t feel the nostalgia even as he stepped in the Island’s white sand, or felt the sea air flustering his hair.

Really, the only thing he wanted to do on these small, lonely islands, was be with his best friends.

He leapt up to the circular platform that held the tree that the birds liked to nest in and walked across the bridge to the platform surrounded by water. There, sitting in her usual spot on the low tree trunk of the paopu tree, was Kairi, her silhouette dark and still. He expected Riku to be there, too, but wasn ’t. Sora decided he’d look for him after saying hi to her.

He hopped onto the paopu tree in his regular spot. Kairi noticed him immediately. “Oh, hey, Sora,” she said with a smile.

“Hey!” he replied, grinning. That was when he spotted Riku over Kairi’s shoulder, sitting a few feet away from the shoreline as he looked over the glittering water. Sora frowned. “Why is Riku down there all alone?”

Kairi turned toward their friend and paused. Still staring out at him, she said, “He said he wanted alone time. We should… let him be.”

Sora didn ’t reply, just stared at his best friend. Wanted time alone, after everything? Sora knew that aside from his time with the King, Riku had been alone for most their journeys. Riku didn’t like to mention it, but Sora had pieced it together in their texts. And tonight was their last night together before their showdown with Xehanort; didn’t he want to be with him and Kairi? What was he doi-

“Here!” Kairi said, startling Sora out of his thoughts. When he looked back to her, she was holding something out to him.

It was a paopu fruit. Sora ’s eyes widened.

She waited — held it there, suspended. Sora looked back between the star-shaped fruit and Kairi in disbelief. She didn ’t want to—?

Her smile faltered by the smallest measure. “Tomorrow’s fight will be our toughest yet,” she said.

The statement barely registered. What did she mean by that? Was he missing something? Sora didn ’t move — in fact, he felt frozen in place. He hadn’t seen Kairi since they’d last been on the islands together, before his Mark of Mastery Exam with Riku. A lot had changed in that time — or no, it’s not that things had changed, it’s that Sora learned it’d been this way all along.

She continued, amending, “I just want to be a part of your life, no matter what.” She breathed in quick. “That’s all.”

Sora blinked, something twisting in his cheat and settling down in the pit of his stomach. Gazing at the paopu fruit, Riku’s voice echoed in his mind, “If two people share one, their destinies become intertwined. They’ll remain a part of each other’s live no matter what. C’mon, I know you want to try it.”

Riku was right, he did — but not like this. Not with—

But Kairi was right; tomorrow would be their toughest fight, and there was no way Sora could do it alone. He was just a half-pint without Kairi, Donald, Goofy … Riku. He wished Riku was here, wanted to call him over and they could all share it, but Kairi’s waiting gaze felt so expectant. Sora felt so small. He had to take it, because how could he deny one of his best friends a place in his life? She said that’s all she wanted. Didn’t he owe it to her, after everything?

“Kairi,” he said, words somehow careful but unplanned at the same time, “I will keep you safe.” It was the only promise he felt like he could keep. If he couldn’t he was nothing, not even a half-pint. A failure.

Kairi laughed softly, shaking her head. “Let me keep you safe.”

Sora smiled, but it felt strained. They exchanged the fruits, and Sora waited for Kairi to eat one, but she didn ’t. She seemed satisfied with just the exchange, and Sora felt a little … relieved. But it still wasn’t what he wanted. Kairi turned back to the setting sun, smiling. Sora’s mind raced like a broken record, incoherent fragments of words. He looked down to the paopu in his lap and felt as a wave of nausea settled in his gut.

He couldn ’t stay a moment longer. He slid off the trunk, and scrambled for something to say. “I actually… got something… I need to do. Err…”

“Oh,” Kairi said, surprised, but not opposed. “Ok.”

That was all the acceptance he needed, and he swirled in place, looking instinctively for silver hair—

But when he looked back to the shore, Riku was gone.

It didn’t matter in the end — the promise. They’d failed — no, Sora failed. Where had he gone wrong? He just wanted to protect his friends; didn’t want to let them down.

All was quiet as he sobbed at the ground, the hopelessness and grief settling so finally in his bones he felt he’d never stand again.

The gravel shifted next to him, but it barely caught Sora’s attention. “Sora, you don’t believe that,” Riku said, slowly. What…? Sora thought, so empty Riku’s words reverberated around his mind, his heart. Riku’s voice was hard, set. “I know you don’t.”

How could … he say that?

Sora could only watch as Riku rose, resolute, and walked away — forward — to the mounting, swirling heartless mob that was rearing up again. Sora could only blink, watching helplessly. It was just like the night the islands fell to darkness when Riku outstretched his hand, and he barely missed his warm fingers before Riku sank and disappeared into darkness. Sora wanted to scream at him to stop, don’t leave me like everyone else did, but he couldn’t control his voice at all. The massive creature surged up, and Riku yelled in defiance. It echoed in Sora’s ears. His heart felt still.

When the darkness and Riku’s blade met, it was like the sky itself shattered in space and time and left only blinking stars and deep purples — and Riku, the North Star, the brightest, most brilliant light the universe could create. But the darkness still consumed him, creeping up his shoes, his legs, around his torso, until he was gone, too.

And Sora’s world went black.

~*~

Sora woke to an endless sky.

“Riku!” he cried, sitting up with a start — but no one answered. In fact, he saw with utter amazement, there was nothing but the blue sky and fluffy clouds that stretched forever in all directions around him. He exhaled slowly, letting his surroundings sink in. Where… was he? Standing gingerly, he looked left and right for any sign of… anything. His head felt fuzzy — he tried to remember how he got here, but couldn’t. The only thing he knew was that something wasn’t right. Something was calling him.

Nothing ever got accomplished by standing around, he thought, so he walked. And he walked and walked and walked until a little light burst forth from the sky and fell like a shooting start to the crystal clear water floor. On contact, it made the smallest ripple, where in the center a small bear-like creature appeared. Calling itself Chirithy, the animal told him that he was broken into many pieces and that something was holding him here, but only by a small thread. If that thread snapped, he’d be gone for good — dead.

It was then that it all came back — the final battle, that hadn’t even truly begun, cut short by the monstrous heartless that stole his friends away. His very last memory was of Riku, standing before the darkness unafraid, protecting Sora until he was swept away.

Then, Sora had killed Riku, too.

Tears threatened to overwhelm Sora again. Why would he do that? Sora thought, the mere notion that Riku was gone for good too much to bear. But he remembered what Riku said right before defending him: “you don’t believe that.”

That’s right… Riku believed in him. Riku was waiting for him — that must be what was holding Sora here. He smiled weakly, using his palms to wipe his eyes. Riku was giving him a second chance, and Sora wouldn’t waste it.

Their friends were still in danger, waiting and in desperate need of rescue, too — but first, he had to collect himself, literally. When he turned, he found pieces of himself walking aimlessly in loops. He ran into one, and it merged with him — it was the strangest sensation. Grounding yet, exhilarating. It gave him memories back, feelings back, that he’d forgotten he’d had. It made him yearn for more.

But when he collected all the Sora’s in sight, he realized that wasn’t the only thing in this endless sky box. There were clear, glimmering stars hovering above the water’s surface. As he approached one, he looked around for Chirithy, but the small one was nowhere to be seen. He looked back to the star — it was beautiful, serenely floating in silence. He wasn’t sure what to do, but maybe he needed to touch it like he had with the Sora fragments? Tentatively, he reached out when—

“Sora?” the star spoke in a familiar voice. Sora jolted, recoiling his hand. “It’s me, Namine.”

“Namine!?”

“I’m so glad you managed to hold on to who you are,” she said, clearly relieved. Her star… no, her heart…? glimmered as she spoke.

“Why are you here?” he asked, tilting his head.

“I was in Kairi’s heart,” she explained, “but then we were struck by a powerful darkness… and I woke up here.”

“Oh…” he said, a small seed of defeat and shame curling in his chest. “A-And Kairi?”

“I… I can feel her heart,” she said, hesitantly. “But the connection is so weak. I think, like you, she’s holding on by a thread. You need to get to her and the others, to save them!”

Sora felt a chill run through him — the others were waiting on him. He needed to hurry. “I’m trying,” he said sincerely, “but what about you? I can’t just leave you stuck here.”

“It’s okay. Really,” she said, though there was a note of sadness. “Kairi is where I came from. So, when she is safe again, Kairi is where I’ll return.”

Sora thought about what she said; she was resigning herself to the prison that was another’s heart. It wasn’t fair. “Namine, I know that I’m supposed to thank you, but— the datascape doesn’t count. I need to say the words myself. But… not like this. You and Roxas can’t tell me you’re okay with this. I know how much you’re hurting. I felt that pain through Roxas,” he said, placing his hand over his heart. He could remember vividly the dull ache he felt that came from Roxas. Sora bore it, but no more.

She sighed. In his mind’s eye, Sora could see her holding her arm close to her, as if she were folding inward. “He’s the one they all miss. It’s… not me.”

“Wrong!” he said adamantly, shaking his head, “What about me, Kairi, Donald, Goofy? The King! Roxas too, he misses you! And Riku — you spent a whole year with him, right? While I was asleep? He’s your friend, too.”

Her star seemed to glimmer brighter. “Sora… Thank you.” She paused, her star glimmering slow and uncertainly. “I’ll hang on, then, so I can thank him, too.”

Sora nodded, smiling truly for the first time since he’d woken up here. Riku would like that — he deserved way more thanks than he got. Sora owed him a thanks, too… and an apology. His smile waned. He remembered how the darkness crept up Riku’s body, but he stayed, though he knew the result. “Hey… Namine?” he began tentatively.

“Yeah?”

He couldn’t bring himself to ask. Maybe… when he got Riku back… he could ask him directly. “Erm… what do you think I should do?” Sora asked, lamely. He rubbed the back of his head bashfully, but Namine didn’t notice his blunder.

“Um… keep… following your heart? The light? It’s what you do best,” she said, then giggled. “I think you’ll just stumble where you need to go.”

“Hrm…” he said, because that was what everyone told him. But, they were pressed for time.

He’d just have to take her answer for now. “Well, then I’m gonna go save Kairi, so at least you’ll be free of this place. Okay?” He began to turn, to the other stars around them.

“Oh, wait!”

“Huh?” He looked over his shoulder.

“While sifting through memories, I spoke to Terra, the Keyblade wielder you’ve been looking for. He has a strong will, and it keeps him tethered to the realm of light. I’ll try tracing that connection. Maybe that’ll be enough to tip the scales in the other direction.”

Sora gasped. “You found Terra? That’s great!” A strong will, huh… “I’ll leave him to you, then. Thanks Namine. Oh!” He grimaced, grinning sheepishly, “That’s not the official thank-you!”

She giggled. In his mind’s eye, he could see her shaking her head. “Uh-huh.”

He smiled, caught. “Well,” he replied, turning again, “see ya!”

“Be careful,” she said, her voice trailing away. Her star went silent, but many more glimmered. A portal appeared, clearly the way forward, but he was curious if the other stars were his friends, too.

He approached another star, and carefully touched it’s surface. This time, it didn’t have a voice — instead, it felt as though the star’s message spoke directly in his heart. They were welcoming — no, warm and familiar. Who did it remind him of?

“We were always together. Joined at the hip. We’d wear the same clothes, eat the same food, go the same places. We were an identical pair — like walking alongside a mirror. So why is it just me here now? There’s this… this feeling. Calling to me. Pulling at me. And now I share it. Feel it as my own. We are always together.”

Sora didn’t realize until the Star’s story was done that he was touching the crown of his necklace. Their words made him nostalgic — or was it the Star’s emotions, being felt by Sora — or both? — of simpler days, back before Kairi arrived on the island. Just like the Star and their friend, Sora and Riku did everything together. It felt eternal, playing with Riku on the Islands every day. Pirates, detectives, knights — it didn’t matter what they made-believe, every day was a new adventure. Sora … missed it. It was why every world, he texted Riku about the world he was in. He wished they were sharing the adventure. He gripped the crown tighter.

He wondered what Riku felt about that time, too. The Star may not have been Riku, but it felt like a kindred spirit. Maybe Riku missed it, too. And… he hoped that Riku felt the way the Star did — that they were always together, because their hearts were in tune, right?

Sora felt like somewhere down the line of their most recent adventures, he forgot that.

With a heavy heart, he moved on to another Star. It spoke of a pupil, and the master they left behind. Another spoke like a mother. It seemed like every star clung to some other person — that their love, and the love reciprocated, kept them here.

He approached another star. It was warm, like the first but… more fiery, but content.

“I was defeated. That was supposed to be it. I’d just… fade away. Yet a part of me remains. But why? I have no regrets No reason to cling to this life. I turn these questions over in my head again and again, and again and again and I remember.  Our clash. The feeling of exhilaration. Of pleasure. I can see his face clearly in my mind. He wore the same grin as mine. I would dearly love to cross blades with him again…”

Instantly, memories flooded his mind — the countless spars with Riku. They became more frequent after Kairi arrived, hadn’t they? For awhile, Sora felt like that was all they did, was spar or bicker. Sometimes, it felt like Riku was just trying to distract him, but from what, he never figured out. But the Star — it enjoyed their fights. Though Sora didn’t always understand why Riku wanted to fight so much, he looked back on their fair fights fondly. He thought of the time he fought a hooded man in the snow, the familiar way he held his blade. The way he barely bothered with the heartless. Sora had been so sure it was Riku. He still held that belief, and cherished that moment. If Riku had sought him out, just to play — to spar — again, maybe Riku thought of them the same way Sora did. The thought made him happy.

Sora’s hand itched for his Keyblade. Or rather, the blade he’d used to cut through the darkness in the Dark Margin with Riku. The times they fought on the same side — those were even better.

Though he listened to more stars, he heart was stuck on Riku. Though his glimmering companions weren’t Riku (they couldn’t be, right? That would be impossible… and besides, if it where Riku, he’d say something!), Sora couldn’t help but feel like their emotions were like his.

But they weren’t saying anything Sora didn’t at least kind of already know. The real puzzle that Sora couldn’t understand… It made his heart ache.

He moved on to another star.

“Whoever said love and hate are two sides of the same coin is a liar. The second our eyes would meet, we were at each others’ throats, every time. The idea of us as friends is laughable. I’m finally on my own here, and what a relief. Just… not as big a relief as I’d thought. It’s weird. Something is just… missing. Ugh, is that how this works? Did I keep going back for another fight just so we could spend the time together? Maybe its not as simple as “like” or “hate.” The heart’s a complex thing. Wonder if he feels this lonely, too… Takes two to have a fight, after all.”

Sora almost recoiled from the Star, emotions boiling at the story, at the connection they’d made. It wasn’t anger… it was passion. The inability to walk away no matter how many times they thought they should. It almost hurt, feeling such a desperation again. Riku and him weren’t fighting anymore… but they were always chasing after each other, weren’t they? Well, Sora conceded, more like Riku chasing after Sora, lately.

“Maybe it’s not as simple as “like” or “hate” … Sora thought to himself. No matter what kind of state their relationship was in, Sora knew Riku didn’t hate him, and vice versa. But if it wasn’t just one or the other… what was it?

Sora’s heart hurt. He couldn’t explain why, but he felt like he was on the verge of tears. He gripped the crown again, feeling the jagged points slipping past his still-watery palm. If he could do one thing before all this, he would have asked Riku where he got his strength. How he could give up everything just to save Sora, again and again.

There were only two stars left, but one shined the brightest. Drawn to it, and desperate to feel something, anything, else, he touched the Star.

“Hello?” He asked the star tentatively. He didn't expect a response, like the others, but to his surprise, a feminine voice replied, “Good day.”

“Oh cool! You can talk,” he said, excited.

“You look like a person,” she said, fascinated. “How is it that you retain your appearance? Are you special?”

“Umm… I’m a little hazy on the details.” Sora bashfully scratched his cheek.

“As are we all,” she said, with a hint of finality. That was the saddest thing about all these stars. They were resigned.

“So…” Sora started, changing the subject, “whose heart are you?”

“No one’s anymore. They took away my name— everything about me.” Her Star dimmed.

“No way. They couldn’t have taken away your heart,” Sora argued encouragingly.

“Only because it pines for another.”

Sora paused. So she, too, was held here by someone's love. “Yeah? Someone’s coming for you?”

“I cannot be certain. He’s been changed beyond recognition— his heart replaced with another’s,” she explained, sadly. “But, were he to regain his old self again, he would be distressed by my absence. So I choose to wait here, where he can find me.”

Sora smiled, reminded of something. “Good. You have to believe.”

“Believe? Oh, you mean know in my heart he will return? Without any proof?”

“Exactly, believe. I thought it was all over for me, but a… friend of mine looked me in the eye and sand, ‘You don’t believe that.’” The way Riku’s eyes sparkled like the strongest, but most beautiful crystal while he said that was permanently etched in Sora’s heart. Calling him a friend… seemed inadequate of a word, now.

It was kind of nice. Sora and the nameless star laughed together fondly, each thinking of those who believed and waited on them. Just hold on a little longer… Riku.

“So, uh…” Sora started again, bashful, “who did this to you? Heartless steal hearts, so… a Nobody?”

“A… somebody.”

“Really?” That meant… she was murdered. It send a shiver down Sora’s spine, but he couldn't think of a way to help her right now. “Hmm… well, I wish I could help… but my situation’s no better.”

“You must see to the tasks before you first,” she said, understanding.

“The tasks before me?” Sora sat down, but the water didn't dampen his clothes. Maybe because his bottom half was still water. He remembered what Chirithy said. He still had many pieces of himself to pick up. “Haha, there’s so many.”

“All the more reason for you to make an effort.”

“Yeah, you’re right. I just wish I knew what to do.” He tilted his head, considering.

“Here you are on the brink, and yet you hold on to who you are. You possess a strong sense of purpose. And in that purpose you will find direction.” Her encouragement was simple, but sincere. Sora felt a little stronger.

“Ha… thank you. I’m really glad we met. You cheer me up. I hope that friend of yours finds you soon.”

“Thank you,” she replied, “Me too.”

“Oh, hey. If I see him, I’ll tell him that you’re here. What’s his name?”

“Lauriam,” she whispered. Sora didn't know that name.

“Huh?”

“Our secret,” she said sweetly. Jokingly, Sora cautiously looked around to see that no one over heard, and then stood. “Well, see you,” Sora said, smiling. The Star didn't respond, but that was okay.

He looked around again. There was still one star left — he figured he might as well finish what he started, especially if this last star spoke like Namine and the other girl.

Though this star didn’t shimmer as brightly as the nameless girl, this one felt special. Gentle. Familiar, like some of the others. It made him both giddy and apprehensive, but he touched the star nonetheless.

“I kept telling everyone we were just friends, but he crept into my head. Into my heart. It started to feel weird being together. I stepped back, and he never stepped in to close the distance. I wonder how he saw it. Wonder how he feels. …What’s this emotion, filling me? It’s overpowering. It’s him. I have to respond. I have to tell him how I really feel.”  

The tears that Sora thought he had suppressed poured with renewed energy down his cheeks. He kept telling himself over and over that these weren't Riku so he couldn't assume and project but… no, it didn't matter they weren't them. In just the few number of Sora fragments he’d collected, he had recalled so many memories of Riku that had always confused him. But these stars explained them all.

There was only one reason why Riku always followed where Sora went, no matter if they were fighting. There was only one reason they fought in the first place. It was all the same.

Riku loved him. That was the feeling different from ‘like’ or ‘hate’.

Sora couldn't tell if he was crying in sadness or joy. Or in frustration, that the answer had been so simple and yet Sora hadn't known for so long. He looked back at the Star.

So, The distance between the Star and their beloved… never closed? They never told each other how they felt? The Star didn't respond, but an accepting melancholy settled where the Star’s presence had once been in Sora’s heart.

Did this mean, Riku would never tell him the truth, too? He’d hide these feelings till the end?

Well, he had already, hadn't he?

What Hercules told him echoed in his mind: “All I know was that she was in trouble. Suddenly, I wanted to save her with all my heart…”

So that was why… Riku sacrificed himself. It’d been there all along, and yet Sora had never noticed. Fury rose like lava under his skin. Riku would give up everything, his life, just like that? Riku thought Sora could live without him? No matter what else, they were best friends! Sora frowned, wiping his tears roughly from his face. He couldn't let things end like this. No, he wouldn’t.

He turned toward the spiky, magenta portal, his next destination. His heart felt fit to burst with so many things he wanted to say, so many things he felt. But one thing was clear: he still had to save everyone. He still had to defeat Xehanort. And he would, because Riku believed in him.

It wasn’t over until he could be with Riku again.

~*~

Beyond the portal were more Sora’s, though way more active than the ones before. After he collected them all, Chirithy appeared again to send him off. After some final words and Sora promising to visit, Sora left The Final World. He didn’t know how, but he knew he could and would save his friends, no matter what.

But he emerged from the Final World on the ground again, the tears he’d shed only hours ago not yet dried on the ground where he fell. Sora looked up — and there was Riku, again, Keyblade brandished in a brilliant flash of light.

It was happening again.

But it was too late for Sora to do anything before it was over, just the same as before. He couldn’t stand, couldn’t even scream to stop Riku from sacrificing himself again before the heartless mod zeroed in on Sora and swept him away.

But this time, he did not perish. Instead, he was sailing, flying, propelled forward by an unknown force. He opened his eyes slowly, and then saw that he was headed toward a beam of warm, familiar light.

“Riku!” Sora called out. The light was silent, but Sora knew who it was. It was the same light that broke the heartless horde and — Sora remembered as he stared ahead — the same light he dived into during the Mark of Mastery exam, where he saw them together when they were kids.

It only made him more desperate — he needed to reach Riku, to tell him the truth! “Riku! Answer me!” he cried out, reached out as far as his arm could go. For a blinding moment, nothing else mattered save Riku’s light, nothing else mattered but seeing Riku again.

The light wrapped him in a warmth that was like the summer sun on Destiny Islands. If he focused, he could smell the palm trees and the ocean.

But when he materialized past the light, he wasn’t on the Islands at all. Instead, he found himself standing in the Tram Common of Twilight Town. The same sunset, the same orange-brown brick, and even the same bistro stood silent, and waiting — but no one was here.

Sora walked around, steps soft and hesitant, wondering why he was here. That was when he spotted the Tram, lights off and stopped just past the bridge where the old entrance to the mansion used to be. On top of it was a floating figure, clear like the water in the final world. He approached it, and then gasped. “Kairi!” He sprinted to her instantly, a rush of panic sending his feet flying.

But as he approached, a huge, black creature appeared. “A heartless?” he exclaimed. It looked like a reaper — no, a lich — cloaked in black and wielding an ominous staff.

Something shuffled in his hood, but he barely felt it. It was then Jiminy hopped onto his shoulder, startling him. “J-Jiminy?!”

“Sora, what’s goin’ on?” he asked, his big eyes scouring their surroundings. “Golly, why are we in Twilight Town?”

“I- I don’t know! I’m trying to save everyone,” Sora explained. The sound of chains stole Sora’s attention back to the Lich — oh no, a heart appeared above Kairi’s floating form, and the Lich cast some spell. Chains wrapped around the heart, and with horror Sora watched as it got sucked into the Heartless’s gaping heart-shaped hole in it’s chest. “Hey!” Sora cried out, rushing forward, “Give that back!”

The Heartless backed away, and turned — fleeing. But Sora rushed after it, Keyblade in hand. Aside from the exploding doubles the Lich made, it was a rather weak enemy. In a rage, Sora chased and fought it until it finally released Kairi’s heart. It hovered in place as the Lich created and escaped through a dark portal. Sora watched in puzzlement as her heart floated toward the sky. He almost reached out to grab it, but didn’t, realizing that he wouldn’t want to accidentally trap her heart within his own again.

Jiminy leapt to his shoulder again. “I think that should do it! She probably went back to the place she was swept away.”

Sora nodded, though he didn’t understand the logistics. Eyebrows furrowed and teeth anxiously biting at his chapped lips, he stared at the spot her heart disappeared. “I… kept my promise,” he told her, then added, “I always will.”

That ’s all.

“Somethin’ the matter, Sora?” Jiminy asked, concerned.

He didn’t really want to explain it to the cricket, much less what he said end up in the journal. Besides, it was hard to articulate what he felt — it was more tangible. He felt the paopu in his hands again, but it was a weight.

He had a flash — a memory — that wasn't his own. A white room, a bloomed lotus with — with himself floating inside? A rush of emotion came with it; bitterness, anger, betrayal, but also acceptance.

Roxas…? Sora struggled to think. He had almost forgotten Roxas’s heart and another resided within him. They stuck with him even through death.

Roxas was trying to show him something, something important. It was the intense longing Sora felt when staring at the clock tower that Sora realized — Roxas had been forced to rejoin him. To wake him. But it wasn't… that he didn't want to join with Sora, it was that he had wanted the choice.

He wanted the choice.

Kairi hadn't given him that either, had she? Technically, Sora could have said “no” just as Roxas could, but they had felt the same trapping of obligation. It wasn't right, that way. That wasn’t what the paopu was for.

“I'm sorry,” Sora murmured to Roxas, hand over his heart. “I will save you, I promise.” It was faint, but Sora felt a wave of understanding and patience. Sora smiled, though tinged with sadness.

“Sora?” Jiminy asked again. “We better go get the others!”

“Oh, yeah,” Sora said, gazing back down to the waiting dark portal. He was surprised it stayed open — almost like it wanted him to follow it. He shook his head. “Let’s go,” he said, feeling the determination rise within him again. Right before he passed through, he looked back to the top of the clock tower. After all this was over… he should talk to Kairi, too. They were friends; she’d understand.

He turned back, resolved, and dove again. Stained glass towers emerged from the depths of the black abyss, their surface covered in a familiar translucent darkness. They were like the heart stations Sora had seen so many times — but these held pictures of worlds he’d seen, instead. “The others must be in there!” Jiminy yelled as they fell. Sora agreed, and drifted toward the tallest one. They fell until he crashed through the world station.

This time, they landed on a pirate ship. It had definitely seen better days, broken wooden planks scattered all over, the mast broken and the sails shredded. But then, he spotted Aqua’s watery floating form in the center. Just like with Kairi, the Lich materialized behind her form and drew her heart out, chaining it before consuming it.

With a war cry, he lunged toward the Heartless to take it back. But luckily, the fight was as easy as the last. He released Aqua’s heart and it floated up into the sky while the Lich ran away again. “Hey, stop!” he said, but the Lich paid him no heed. It slipped through, leaving only him and Jiminy on the sinking ship. “Well, that’s two down…” He counted on his fingers. “And six to go!”

“Oh boy,” Jiminy lamented, “we have our work cut out for us.”

Sora nodded, and they went through the next portal. The cycle repeated, but this time Sora knew the world even without the image on the stained glass entrance; he could feel the chill emanating from it.

Lo and behold, they arrived in the icy maze Larxene had created. Held captive this time was Goofy — the Lich already mid-thieving of his heart. “Will you just give it up already?” Sora complained to the monster, but of course, it paid him no heed. Sora summoned his Keyblade again and charged, smacking the creature until Goofy’s heart flew away free.

He tried to stop the Lich from escaping this time, but he was too fast. Sighing, Sora gazed around at the dark, icy walls surrounding them. They reminded him too much of Queen Elsa, and in turn, Riku.

“Sora, are you sure you’re okay?” the cricket asked, his cartoonish eyebrows furrowed. “I know Donald and Goofy are closer to ya, but you can count on me, too!”

Sora gave a small, guilty smile. Of course — Jiminy was his friend, too. “Sorry, Jiminy, you’re right. It’s just… I always thought that Riku pushed me away to protect me, but… now I’m wondering if it’s because he couldn’t tell me the truth.”

It hurt, knowing that Sora had chased and chased and chased Riku down, just wanting to know if he was okay — just trying to get through to him that all Sora wanted was to be around him, only to find out Riku had been there all along. There were so many times Sora could have given up, could have let Riku run off and do whatever he wanted, but Sora simply couldn’t stand the thought of it. It was just like Princess Ana. Maybe it was selfish of Ana to chase her sister down, to pester her to let her in but — sometimes love was selfish, too, wasn’t it? And yet, it was in both cases they were on the same side. Why couldn’t they have just, talked?

Jiminy looked around at the tall, icy walls too. “Aw, gee, Sora… couldn’t it be both?” he wondered aloud. “Queen Elsa pushed Ana away because she loved her, right? Maybe the Queen thought it was for the best.”

“Well, it definitely wasn’t,” Sora said stubbornly, though he couldn’t truly be mad. Jiminy was right — it probably was for both reasons. Always recklessly making decisions on his own — that was Riku’s brand. But maybe it was Sora’s fault; if Sora had just told him how he felt when he realized it, maybe things would be different now.

Jiminy chuckled, though it was in good spirit. “How about you ask him later?”

“Yeah— wait! You mean her?” Sora asked, suddenly caught.

“Sure,” he said, though he had the same tone he used with Pinocchio. Sora scowled, blushing.

“C-c’mon, we shouldn’t make the others wait.”

Donald was next, in Monster’s Inc. It went exactly as before, to Sora’s disappointment. Why did all his friends have to be in a different world? And where was Riku’s heart? But at least the Lich was an easy fight — he dove again and fell into Toy Box. This time, Ventus floated right in front of the huge gaccha machine. Long past trying to reason the with the heartless creature, he let the monster repeat its process before plunging into the fight.

As Ventus’s heart rose up, Sora began walking toward the portal, but Jiminy piped up, “You don’t wanna go look at Verum Rex, again?”

“Ha, what?” Sora said, looking at his little cricket companion.

“You just really seemed to like… Yozora, was it?” he said, teasing. “Might give you a pick-me-up to see him.”

Sora automatically rolled his eyes. He shouldn’t have told the journal keeper anything! “Gees, gimme a break, he’s really cool but I’m in the process of saving the real one, so—”

It was the twinkle in Jiminy’s eyes that made Sora pause. Then he realized what he said, and though he was plastic, he felt heat in the tips of his ears. He hopped toys couldn’t blush. “Whatever,” Sora said, bashfully. He shook his shoulder by raising it up and down, causing Jiminy to lose balance. “Hey!” he said, and Sora laughed in revenge.

“Don’t put that in the journal, ok?” he told the cricket.

“Fine, fine,” Jiminy said as he adjusted his hat, regaining his balance. “But only this once!”

 “It’s a deal,” Sora agreed, grinning. He looked back to the portal. “Ok, only three more to go!”

“Almost there!” Jiminy affirmed, grinning. Sora then stepped through the portal, ready for the next dive.

They found King Mickey in Corona’s dark forest. It was so dark and creepy after Mickey’s heart was released that Sora didn’t want to stay, and rushed after the Lich in the portal almost immediately. The next world they entered was San Fransokyo, where Lea laid in wait of rescue.

After Sora retrieved the ex-Nobody’s heart and he began walking to the final portal, another Dark Portal rose from the ground. Young Master Xehanort stepped through, smirking insufferably. Instantly, Sora went on alert, back in his fighting stance, Keyblade ready to summon. “You!” Sora said.

“All that gallivanting through the sleeping worlds, and yet you learned nothing,” he said, casually, like he was talking about the weather. He paced forward slowly.

“What?”

The teen looked like he wanted to roll his eyes. “Dream by dream, you nearly buried yourself in the dark of sleep,” he explained, “The Lich you’ve been fighting — it’s not like other Heartless. It exists to user hearts down to the depths of darkness. If you chase it, you will condemn your heart to that same abyss.” The smirk on Xehanort’s face never left — he acted like he won already, but Sora knew it had just begun.

Sora returned the sentiment with a smirk of his own. “You’re wrong,” he said, placing a hand over his heart. “My heart is strong.” Riku had helped show him that, and he’d never forget it again.

But Xehanort wasn’t fazed. “What do you think the power of waking is?” he said, a hint of exasperation in his tone. “It’s for traversing hearts to reach worlds. Not for traversing worlds to reach hearts.” He grinned maliciously again. “There’s a high price to pay for wielding such power foolishly.” He turned and walked back toward the portal he created, apparently on his way out already.

“So, what? You’re worried about me now?” Sora taunted.

The teen shook his head. “No,” he said, simply, “There’s no saving you.” He turned back to Sora right in front of the portal. He outstretched his arms before exclaiming, “You’ve paid the price. And it lies at the bottom of the abyss.” And then, he stepped through, closing the dark vortex as he left.

It left Sora feeling uneasy. What did he mean, he paid the price? What was at the abyss? It wasn’t Riku’s heart, was it? But there was one more portal to explore.

“C’mon, Sora, don’t let that guy get to you,” Jiminy said, glaring angrily where the young master was. “Let’s just hurry to the next portal. We’ve almost got everyone!”

“Yeah,” Sora said, nodding. He mentally shook off his worry — there was no way but forward. Riku was waiting.

As they fell toward the last world station covered in darkness, Jiminy cried, “That’s the last one! The Lich must be hiding in there!”

They fell into it, and arrived just past the entrance of Olympus. The columns, the clouds, the gold inlay in the floors were unmistakable — it truly was the Realm of the Gods. And then, in the center, there was the golden tripod, it’s legs swirling to the top that held a sun-shaped disk, suns and lightening symbols on the triangular rays around it.

And floating above it, was Riku.

“Riku!” he exclaimed, relief and joy surging through him all at once. But this time was no different than the others; as soon as he got close, the Lich appeared and stole Riku’s heart in chains.

Sora didn’t care what Xehanort said about this heartless — he’d never let him take Riku’s heart to the depths whether it was the creature’s job or not! Never had Sora summoned his Keyblade so quickly. Like before, he relentlessly attacked the Heartless, putting his all into every hit.

But this time, as the heart was released from the Lich’s chest, the creature began to evaporate. This time, it was truly slain. Sora hardly noticed, fixated on Riku’s heart that floated up toward the heavens.

Another thing Hercules said floated across his mind: “I finally know where I belong.” Sora knew, too — but Sora couldn’t follow. Now where would he go to follow Riku’s heart?

“Sora!” Jiminy alerted him. Oh, Sora’s phone was… ringing? He retrieved it from his pocket and answered the call; it was Chip. “Hurry, Sora!” the chipmunk said in a rush, “The way to the Keyblade Graveyard is open!” Dale pushed Chip out of the way, and said, “Chipper and I found a new path!”

Sora gasped in glee. “Of course! That’s where all their hearts would go, right Jiminy?”

“Yeah!”

“Ok,” Sora said, hanging up unceremoniously. He slipped the phone into his pocket, and brought out his Keyblade. As he had done countless times before, he unlocked the path that Chip and Dale found and dove through, not once looking back.

~*~

The dark tunnel and the light returned, incandescent rays beaming toward Sora as he sailed toward it again. Sora smiled, that light warming him from head to toe. He knew what it was — It was Riku’s light that enabled him to save his friends, and keep his promise to Kairi. This light was Riku’s unspoken promise that he’d never stop believing in him.

Though, they had a real one, didn’t they?

Sora grabbed the crown of his necklace, the one he’d had since they were children. The three spikes dug into his palm, but he didn’t lesson the hold even a fraction. It was warm, like the light, like a hand he’d held since he was little.

He remembered the night of the meteor shower, now. The Islands were so dark that night. He remembered the fear — what if the islands were hit? What if they got hurt? And he remembered Riku’s calm, steady gaze on the sky, the way the stars sparkled in his jade eyes. He remembered Riku’s warm hand, their swords held in their other, and his promise.

Sora wondered if maybe, Riku would want to make another promise, now that they were older and knew the weight of forever.

And then, the brilliant light Sora had been chasing in the dark burst into a million bright specks, just like the stars of that night. Sora stared in awe even as his sight was overtaken in white, and he held his arms out, ready to barrel in and never let go.

Then, the warmth was everywhere. Sora was holding something — no, someone — tight, squeezing as if he’d float away if he let go. He didn’t have to open his eyes to know where he was, or who he’d embraced — his heart was completely sure.

“Sora?” Riku’s voice asked, bewildered.

“Riku!” Sora cried, and felt tears again prickle at the sides of his eyes. Sora had been hugging him so tightly that he’d buried his face in Riku’s shoulder, but he pulled away just enough to see his face.

And there he was, silver hair and brilliant green eyes. “Riku!” he said again, smile growing on his face as the elation settled. “Riku, we did it!”

“We- we did what?” Riku asked again, smile fond even though his brow was furrowed in confusion.

Sora glanced past him, and there the others were — looking on in varying levels of confusion and awe. “Ha!” Sora laughed in victory, “we saved everyone, Riku!”

Riku stared back, processing what he’d said, before the confusion lifted and he smiled deeper. Sora felt Riku’s arms wrap around him, a firm, sincere hold that made his pulse skyrocket. Riku spoke, and Sora hung on every word. “No, Sora. You did it. It’s your strength that brought us back.”

Their eyes didn’t stray a moment from each other. He felt his eyes well up in tears, but he didn’t want to cry. He couldn't help it, his grin turned soft before he nodded, accepting. Lower, he added, “Yeah… I did. But Riku, I followed your light. It guided me the whole way.”

Riku looked to the side, and blushed. Bashfully, he muttered, “I… I don't know what to say.”

Sora laughed breathlessly, quietly, and squeezed him. “Thank you for believing in me, Riku.” He tried to sound less choked up then he was, but even Riku’s eyes were shining.

“Of course,” he said, resolute, “I always will. I had no doubts.”

Sora drank the words in and tucked them away in his heart to keep forever. Suddenly overwhelmed, Sora swallowed and looked down, nodding. He wished he could just stay here, like this, forever.

But he felt Riku tilt his head, looking around. With a quick intake of breath, Riku stiffened, and released Sora from his embrace. Sora pulled back. “What—?”

He avoided Sora’s gaze, staring at the ground. “We— we should go. We haven’t won, yet.” He said it, but they were empty words, an excuse for something.

Sora blinked twice in confusion, and looked around. Most the others were talking respectively amongst themselves, but Kairi stood by Lea, silent and staring away from them all. Sora frowned sadly.

He let Riku go, too, but trailed his hand down to Riku’s, squeezing for a brief moment. “You’re right,” he said, hoping it sounded reassuring. “U-um, sorry for being such a sap,” he finished, laughing.

Riku sighed, but at least he smiled. Whatever had just happened got tucked away for another time. “You’re always a sap,” Riku said, rolling his eyes. “You ready?”

Sora nodded vigorously. Lea, Mickey, Donald and Goofy approached, alive and well and excited. “C’mon, just point us at ‘em, Sora!” Lea said.

Sora met their eyes, and grinned. “Right!” He surged on ahead, taking the lead. They hadn’t won yet, but they would. “Let’s go!”

~*~

~ After the Battle ~

It felt wrong, letting his feet dangle over the edge of the sand-yellow bricked tower. It felt wrong, staring into a sunset that wasn’t framed with palms and an endless sea. It felt wrong, being alone here — no Sora, no Kairi, not even Namine or Lea. Or hell, even the King. He’d been close to all of them, at some point or another. But the point was, this wasn’t his tower, or his town. If it belonged to anyone, it’d be Hayner, Pence, Olette — who he hadn’t met but in passing — or Lea, Roxas, and Xion. He wondered if they’d be upset to find him here.

But, Riku didn’t have anywhere else to go.

Another tear dripped down his cheek, and he just let it fall. Maybe this was … karma, or something — Roxas must have felt this lost, after leaving the organization and having nowhere else to go. Now, it was Riku’s turn. Or maybe, he was exaggerating; he had like, ten messages from Sora asking where he was. A couple from Kairi. Several from Namine, of which he’d actually answered. It’s not that he wasn’t wanted but…

Everyone got what they’d wanted. Master Aqua, Ventus, and Terra were whole and together again, and went home together. Lea, Xion and Roxas were also whole — and supposedly somewhere around here, or Radiant Garden. Namine was saved, and now had a place to belong, too, with Roxas and Xion, especially. And Kairi and Sora were togeth—

He felt the lump in his throat grow and he suppressed the thought. He should be happy for them, like he was the others.

But he couldn’t go home, not now. He thought they’d all go together, him, Sora, and Kairi. But now it was basically their place — it was the place Riku left after all, the place he’d tossed into darkness, the place he hated for so long, the place that they, alone, shared the—

Damnit,” he sniffed, into his palms, as more tears fell. But then he flinched as he felt a soft touch on his shoulder.

“Hey,” Namine said gently, softly, “I— I thought I’d find you here.”

He knew as soon as she saw his face, she’d know. It was probably pretty obvious, anyway. So, he carefully looked up, back at the eternal sunset of Twilight Town. “Why… did you think you’d find me here?” he asked, voice thick and far more fragile than he liked.

She gingerly sat next to him, pulling her dress forward carefully. She was close, but not too close, as if asking permission if it was ok. Riku didn’t correct her. “I … was talking to Kairi, and she mentioned some stuff and that she hadn’t seen you, so.”

He wanted to ask what Kairi said, but he was also scared to know. It might hurt more than he was prepared to handle. So instead, he said nothing, and tried very hard to stop crying.

“Listen, I… I know it’s weird for me to say, since I was in Kairi’s heart for so long, but… I’m on your side, Riku,” Namine said. He could feel her stare on him, but he still wouldn’t be able to meet it without breaking down. She continued, “I know you’re hurt but… I think you need to stop running from them.”

So, Kairi had told Namine. It figured, since they were close. Well, at least then he didn’t have to explain why he was upset. “I can’t,” he told her, looking at his hands. “I’m… so tired of hoping. They shared the paopu fruit; that says enough. But every time I’m with Sora, he makes me feel like there’s still a chance and I—” God, when would the water works cease? He stopped, so the rising sob wouldn’t escape him.

But Namine saw through it and put her hand on his. She waited patiently until Riku could speak again, and he continued, “And even if I stuck around… Me and Kairi, I don’t even know if we are friends anymore. I’m not sure if we ever were.” He wanted to sound angry, maybe, but instead he just sounded hopeless. “I feel like I’d just… be in her way.”

She squeezed his hand. “Oh, Riku…” she said, sadly. He peered at her from the side, and watched as she clearly struggled to come up with the words. “This situation is… extremely unfair to you. Believe me when I say I don’t think either of them… intended it to happen this way.” Riku snorted; well, he was sure one of them didn’t intend to hurt him — the question was whether the other knew how he felt and just didn’t care enough to at least move somewhere where he couldn’t see it happening.

“You have a right to be angry,” Namine continued, “we both know what it’s like to be pushed out, alone… you’d think they’d know that,” she muttered. “But unless you talk to them, you’ll just stay feeling… like this. You won’t ever know the truth.”

The truth? The truth was right in front of him. They’d made their choice: to share the paopu with each other, and without him. He furrowed his brow. “I think… I just need more time,” Riku muttered, his chest still in knots. He couldn’t feel anything past the pain — all the memories that he had previously treasured were tainted with sadness. He thought about the way Sora had hugged him like he’d disappear if he let go, after they’d been miraculously saved by Sora. Thought about how Sora had said that Riku was the light.

He kind of wanted to cry again. Namine must have sensed that he wasn’t okay, because she said, “I’d hug you, but I’m kind of at an awkward angle.”

Riku blinked rapidly. “Would you… stay? For a few minutes?” he finally asked.

“Sure, however long you need,” she said, smile sincere and soothing.

So, he let himself lean on her shoulder, let himself be weak just a little longer. They watched the sunset together for an indefinite amount of time, and Namine didn’t say anything about the tears that dropped on her dress.

~*~

“And then, after the battle,” Sora mumbled to himself as he climbed up the stairs of the Mysterious Tower, “they went home.”

If only, Sora thought his reply. The tap of his shoes against the stairs and his laboured breaths were the only sound in the whole spiral staircase up to the living quarters, leaving Sora very much alone.

After defeating Xehanort, a night of rest, and a beach day on Destiny Islands, everyone came to their own decisions on where they’d go next. Kairi went to Radiant Garden, to learn more of her past there. Donald and Goofy went with the King to Disney Castle for some well-earned TLC. Master Aqua, Ventus, and Terra went home to the Land of Departure, though Master Yen Sid requested Aqua return soon. There was much to do in the way of rebuilding the apprenticeship system for training Keyblade masters. Almost everyone else — Isa, Lea, Xion, Roxas, and Namine — all piled into a Gummi Ship (don’t ask how) and settled into Twilight Town.

And Sora? Well, he decided he would go wherever Riku went. He expected that place would be a small cluster of islands. But it wasn’t.

In fact, Sora hadn’t seen much of Riku at all since the beach party.

Sora had been looking for the Keyblade master for a couple days now. He was desperate to spend time with him, just the two of them, now that the Heartless, Organization XIII, and Nightmares finally weren’t pulling them apart. There was also the fact he had a time limit. And yet… Riku was nowhere to be found. Even though the tower was small, and their rooms were next door to each other, catching a Riku sighting was becoming as rare as a cryptid. Sora had even tried searching other worlds to no avail.

Sora was starting to think Riku was avoiding him.

He scowled as he finally reached Riku’s door and knocked. Again, there was no response. He leaned against it, crossing his arms. “Hmm…” he wondered aloud, “where is he?” He frown shifted into a pout, and he gingerly looked at his hands. They were mostly solid — no one would suspect anything was amiss unless one knew what to look for. Sora was just grateful he still had time.

From another pocket, he slipped out his Gummiphone. Sora had texted and called Riku before with no success, but it was the only thing he could think of. He smiled at his background photo that he’d stolen from Riku’s Kingstagram; it displayed a rare, wide smile on Riku’s face, his hair windswept from racing. He’d won and posted a picture. Sora had saved it immediately after.

He pressed the call button and waited, listening patiently for the dial tone to pick up or go to the voice mail. But a louder sound overpowered the monotonous ringing; their shared ring-tone echoed from down the hall, loud and insistent. Sora swirled in the direction it, the end of the hall that lead to the training deck. It… had to be Riku, right? No one else was staying here. With baited breath, he stared at the corner, waiting for Riku to emerge. He heard his steps before he saw him, heard Riku pause and shuffle — now Sora held his breath, scared if he made any sound Riku would know and leave.

But he rounded the corner, Gummiphone in hand. Sora couldn’t see his expression because he was looking down at the screen, but he hadn’t answered the call yet. He watched as Riku sighed, and clicked the phone off. The tune ended, and he put the device back in his pocket.

Okay, so Riku was definitely avoiding him.

Their eyes met instantly when Riku looked up. His widened, and he froze mid-step. “Oh, Sora—”

Before Riku could give him some excuse, Sora said, “He-hey! Riku! I was, uh, just calling you.” Riku had the decency to look guilty. “Do you— Are you busy? I’ve been trying to hang out with you for like, days.” He laughed like it was just a funny coincidence, like there was no reason for it, and scratched his cheek.

Riku looked like he wanted to bolt, but Sora’s beseeching stare made him cave. He sighed again, and smiled like it couldn’t be helped. “Sure, uh— where do you want to go?”

Oh, crap. He hadn’t thought that far. “Haha,” Sora laughed, hands behind his head sheepishly, “um…?” Where was somewhere romantic? Or, no, wait, maybe he shouldn’t since Riku was avoiding him? What if Riku was mad at him? He had to at least resolve that before he disappeared.

“Let’s… just go outside,” Sora said, and grabbed Riku’s hands. He pulled Riku along until he was sure he would follow. They were quiet until Sora plopped down in the grass on the edge of the world, nothing but the orange-to-purple expanse of space outstretched before them. He patted the ground next to him. Riku stiffly joined, one knee dangling off the side and one propped up.

Sora had some of what he wanted to say planned, but with Riku gazing somberly out to the stars, all that seemed to fly out the window. He wasn’t sure where to start, but the panic to say something caused stupid things to fall out of his mouth. “I’ve been looking everywhere for you, you know,” he said, a hint of chastisement in the voice, but it melted into insecurity, and concern. “Why didn’t you text back?”

“I, um…” Riku grimaced, eyes staring off searchingly. Sora knew what that meant.

“And don’t lie,” Sora added, pouting.

Riku turned to Sora in surprise. When Sora didn’t say anything more, not budging, he sighed deeply and rubbed the back of his head. “Can’t fool you, huh?”

“Nope!” Sora said proudly, “Because I’m your best friend. I know all your tells.”

Apparently, that was the wrong thing to say, because Riku’s eyes darted away, an unreadable expression on his face.

“I was avoiding you,” Riku said to the ground bluntly, “So you could be with Kairi.” He practically froze as he said it eyes cloudy and expression stony.

“Be with… Kairi?” Sora said, confused. “Kairi went to Radiant Garden. Didn’t she… tell you?”

Riku tilted his head. “No, she didn’t. Unless you or the King tell me stuff, I typically don’t know what’s going on.” He sounded frustrated, bitter, by the fact.

He was also being strangely frank, for him. Normally, Sora felt like their conversations had extra words in between the ones he said, extra meanings he was saying by not saying them. “…Oh,” was all Sora could think to say. He cleared his throat, trying again, “Well, uh, I actually stayed here because you did.”

And then, Riku made that face. The inexplicably, but deeply, sad face. “Why do you keep saying stuff like that?” he demanded.

“What?” Sora had to lean closer to maintain eye contact, because Riku was practically recoiling.

“Like— like you stayed for me, or that I’m your light, or that Queen Elsa reminded you of me, or that you missed playing pirates with me, or—” He stopped himself, like he thought he’d said to much. He stared hard at his propped knee, mouth set in a pained frown.

Meanwhile, Sora could feel the heat in his ears. Oh god, he’d been a total idiot, hadn’t he? Even before the final battle, Sora had been saying super sappy stuff – he hadn’t been hiding his feelings at all.

“Uh-uhm…” Sora said, blushing, “because it’s true?” He turned away too, embarrassed. “Do you… not like it?” Had Sora misinterpreted Riku’s actions up till now? His replies? He was so sure before, but now he wasn’t, with Riku looking so tortured. He’d been dense and wrong before, but he really hoped he wasn’t wrong about this.

“Of course I do,” Riku said, like it was a curse, “But Sora, aren’t you—? Didn’t you—?”

Sora looked back, to see Riku staring at him in complete puzzlement. Sora stared back curiously and waited. Eventually, he spelled it out. “Sora, didn’t you and Kairi become ‘official’?”

Riku’s expression… hurt. It was angry, guarded — like at any minute Sora was going to be shut out. It was Sora’s turn to recoil, bewildered. “What? Wh-when?” Sora asked.

“You two shared the paopu fruit?” Riku said, voice sharp, irritated that he had to explain it all, “The day before we fought Xehanort? At the paopu tree?”

Oh. Oh. “I didn’t realize you saw that,” Sora admitted, deflating. “I had… kind of hoped you hadn’t, actually.”

Riku’s face was intentionally blank. “Why?” he supplied, stiffly.

In the two days where everyone was gone, Sora had had a lot of time to mull over stuff — and that was definitely on the list of things he thought about. Yet, it was still difficult to articulate, especially to Riku. “I… This is gonna sound, uh, weird but… I don’t know, she just offered it out of nowhere? I hadn’t talked to her at all beforehand.” Riku watched him blankly, but Sora continued anyway, “It felt like something… I had to do, because she really wanted to and we’re supposed to be best friends, so I thought I shouldn’t say no? I mean, we kinda shared one before, too, right? I thought maybe she just felt left out.”

To be honest, he felt a little ashamed of it — like he was making it a bigger deal than it was, by feeling upset about it. “We just promised to protect each other,” he added, but ended sadly, “which, I nearly failed.”

That was when Riku’s face betrayed his stoicism. His brows furrowed, and started, “Sora…”

Then he remembered the topic they’d started with. “But, we’re not like, together!” he exclaimed, then finished softer, “And we’re not going to be. I just want to be friends.”

Sora could practically see the gears turning in Riku’s head, but he was relieved that Riku didn’t look angry anymore. Sora waited patiently for whatever he would say next, hoping his words reached him.

Eventually, he started, looking out over the stars, “When I saw you and Kairi, and then you… said that you were worthless in the Graveyard, I was angry. Not at you, but that… you’d done so much, but didn’t take any credit for that strength yourself.” He paused, as if holding back something else. Instead he continued in determination, “You don’t owe anyone anything. Not even me. Whatever fate wants with you, whatever people expect of you, following your heart should come above it all. That is your strength. You showed me that.”

“Riku…” Sora said, heart beating fast.

Riku smiled at him, then jerked his head away bashfully. “Sorry that I … just assumed without asking.”

Sora shook his head, smiling back. “No, it’s okay. I don’t blame you. I’m sorry, too.”

They shifted into silence. Sora was still reeling at everything that’d been said, wondering where to go from here. But it was Riku who broke the quiet. “So… you really consider the time I threw the paopu at you as sharing it?” Riku asked. There was a hint of amusement in his voice.

Sora blushed again. “Well, uh, yeah. You gave it to me,” he reminded him.

“I guess that’s true. I don’t think that’s what the legend meant, though,” Riku said, grinning.

“Haha,” Sora said, leaning back on his hands, “yeah, you’re probably right.” Maybe that’s what Sora should have done, brought a paopu to share with Riku. “So… you’re not mad at me anymore?” Sora asked, checking one last time.

“I told you, I wasn’t mad at you in the first place, dork,” Riku said, shaking his head.

“Okay, good,” Sora said, relieved. Then, he smiled. “Then, I’m mad at you.”

Riku turned back, surprised. He waited for Sora to explain, eyebrows raised as if to say “what? Me?”

Sora didn’t keep him waiting, though had to stop himself from laughing. “You thought it was okay to sacrifice yourself for me?” Sora said, a strange mix of serious and playful. After days of thinking about it, the initial anger he felt about it had ebbed. “Riku, we talked about this.”

Sora could tell Riku was flustered, because the tips of his ears turned pink. “I…” he started, then chuckled at himself, “That, I… I don’t know. I just, stopped thinking. All I knew was that you were in trouble, and that you needed me.”

Sora’s eyes lit up, warmth in his chest bubbling up. It was exactly what Hercules had said. “Sounds like an excuse,” Sora replied. He turned to face Riku fully, legs crossed in front of him.

Riku turned, too, the lapse in confidence over. “I’m not sorry,” he said, crossing his arms. “I’d do it again in a heartbeat.”

Somehow, Sora knew he would say that. It really couldn’t be helped — people always do crazy things when they are in love, right, Meg? Then, he got a devilish idea and leaned in, elbows on his knees. He couldn’t stop himself. “Then, I’m kissing you. As punishment.”

“I— what?” Riku said, instinctively jolting back.

Ah, for all his bravery two seconds ago, it was already gone. Blushing, Sora scratched his cheek. “I mean, can… can I? Kiss you?”

Riku stared, mouth slightly agape as if he couldn’t believe his ears. Every second, Sora turned a shade pinker — but then Riku tilted upright again slowly, asking, “How is that… a punishment, exactly?”

Sora laughed, giddy and nervous at the same time. “It’s not,” he said, tilting his head bashfully, “I just wanted to.” He started picking blades of grass next to him, the nervousness mounting.

Riku exhaled, and when Sora glanced back he was smiling so sweetly, Sora’s tummy erupted in soft fluttering. “Okay then, just— making sure.”

“So, can I?”

Instead of responding, he leaned forward, hand outstretching toward Sora’s face. Sora didn’t flinch back, but watched in wonder as Riku slowly touched him. He cupped Sora’s cheek, fingers slipping past his hair line to his unruly locks. Sora pretended like it didn’t make him shiver.

“Um, I haven’t done this before,” Sora said, leaning in too, taking Riku’s hand with him.

“Me either,” Riku said, smile lopsided. It made Sora feel a little less nervous. Only a little.

Riku drew really close, so close that Sora could feel the heat coming off his skin. He was moving so slow — it would drive him crazy at this rate. And then he remembered that Sora did say that he would kiss Riku. Taking a quick, bracing breath, he squeezed his eyes shut, and closed the inch between them, crashing into Riku’s face — and lips — all at once.

The first second was just. Weird. Because he didn’t know what he was supposed to do or feel but then it caught up with him that he was kissing Riku, and then nothing else mattered. Sora relaxed, the muscles in his face easing into something more normal, his posture doing the same. Then he could actually feel Riku’s lips against his, which were way softer than his own. His heart was beating a mile a minute, but most of all he felt so happy. For so long, he didn’t even think this was a possibility — and now it was happening, and it was more than he even thought it could be. Riku’s hand stayed pressed against his jaw, but so tender, Sora couldn’t help but lean into it. His hand was calloused from years of fighting, but it was warming and comforting, grounding.

Riku pulled away first, but only a little. Sora’s eyes fluttered open, greeted by Riku’s amazingly bright, emerald eyes and the softest smile Sora had ever seen on his face. Even though the kiss had ended, the butterflies in Sora’s stomach wouldn’t stop their frantic flying. “I love you,” Sora breathed, because it was true, and he felt like he could drown in Riku’s stare.

Riku’s eyebrows couldn’t reach any higher, but Sora only saw it for the briefest moment before Riku closed their small distance, kissing him again. Sora barely got the chance to kiss back before it was over. “I love you, too. Always have,” Riku replied, thumb passing just under his cheek.

“Does this make us…” Sora said, smiling sweetly, “official?”

“Pfft— If you want, yeah,” Riku said, voice light and happy.

“Good,” Sora said, grinning. Sora was so happy, he felt light-headed, and was content to say there, inches away from Riku even though it wasn’t the most comfortable position to lean this far forward. He had one more thing to do. “Then, hey— about the paopu you gave me.”

“What about it?” he asked, tilting his head.

“You’re always promising me stuff, but I’ve never gotten the chance to promise back,” Sora said, hoping that what he said was matching what he meant. He gripped his crown necklace for strength. Riku glanced down to it, breath hitching. Sora took that as a good sign. “I just— the future is uncertain all the time, so I just wanted to tell you, no matter what I want to be by your side. No matter what happens, I’ll always get back to you.”

Riku’s expression softened again, considering. His gaze went back to Sora’s hand and then almost looked troubled. Sora remembered, and then put both his hands in his lap, hiding them. Sora didn’t want this to be sad yet, when he still had time. Sora laughed sheepishly, drawing attention away from them. “I guess… I guess I should have brought a paopu fruit, huh? So, we could do it right.”

Riku chuckled back, shaking his head. “It’s like you’re proposing without a ring.”

Sora felt his face flush again. Okay, that’s too much! “Hey, I am not!” Sora countered, wishing he could hide his face without bringing attention to his hands. He glanced between the ground and Riku, who was watching Sora contentedly. Ugh, he was totally enjoying watching Sora squirm. “You started it,” he mumbled.

Riku leaned in again, and kissed his cheek. “It’s fine this way. Doesn’t have to be all about fate and destiny all the time.”

“Y-yeah,” Sora agreed, relaxing. He sighed in relief — he’d at least gotten to say it.

They returned to silence; for Sora, because he still high on the adrenaline produced by the last ten minutes. They spent a coupe minutes just staring out into space, or at least, Sora was. For once, it was Riku who broke the silence. “Hey, do you… wanna get out of here?”

“Hmm?” Sora asked, watching the way Riku’s eyes flit to the side, then back to his.

“Well,” he started, bashful but then taunting, “you were always bragging about the worlds you saw. So, let’s go.”

Sora gasped, leaning so far forward, he had to put his hands on Riku’s knees in excitement. “Yeah, let’s go!” he said, then scrambled to stand. “Let’s go right now!” This was the perfect thing to do with the time he had left!

He grabbed Riku’s hands and tugged him up, too. “Hey, Sora—”

“Where do you want to go first?” Sora asked. Riku struggled to stand with Sora occupying both his hands, but he managed to rise to his feet, breathlessly laughing in disbelief.

“Sora, we need— to plan—” Sora kept tugging him back toward the tower, and he continued, “at least pack!”

“That’s what we’re doing!” He took two stairs at a time, laughing and gripping Riku’s hand tightly the whole way up.

It didn’t take too much more convincing and they packed, the Gummi ship waiting where they had sat before. Riku suggested they tell Master Yen Sid, but Sora insisted they didn’t. This was a trip for them — no ulterior mission, besides them finally going on an adventure together.

As Sora plopped himself behind the gummi ship steering wheel, he looked to Riku beside him, situating slower as he took in the new ship surroundings. He gripped the steering wheel, and noticed the first digits of his fingers were clear. He’d have to tell Riku eventually — but only after Sora showed him in person what it was like to sail on something other than a raft. Smiling gleefully, and fondly, he exclaimed, “Okay, first stop — the Caribbean!”