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maddrmatt · 3 years

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A Beautiful Future: A Premonition or a Punishment?

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Greetings, readers and fellow SoKai fans!

Time for a certain Princess of Heart to take the spotlight in this story!

Fair bit of warning though, I sort of used this chapter to showcase a few headcanons and speculations regarding the future of the series.

Also, there’s a little challenge within this chapter that you can take on if you wish.

Enjoy!

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Chapter 3: Writings of a Princess

Land of Departure

Dear Sora,

I know it’s been a while since I last wrote to you. I haven’t really had anything really important to tell you since I came here.

Now something incredible has just happened and I had to tell you first before anyone else. But before that, here’s a few updates on what’s been happening on this side of reality.

I’m still training hard. No offense to Merlin, but I think I’m getting way better with my Keyblade training under Master Aqua than him.

My days here at the Land of Departure are filled with learning various fighting techniques or improving my magic skills. And to test them, I often spar with Aqua, Terra or Ven. One day, I might even get a perfect score against one of them in our matches.

All of three of them and Chirithy have been very good to me. They’ve really made me feel like part of their family.

But as great as it’s been with them, they’re no true replacement for everyone back home. I miss everyone: Mom, Dad, Selphie, Wakka, Tidus, Riku, and you. Especially you.

Sorry, Sora. It’s just so hard every day knowing that you’re trapped in that fictional world. I really wish I could’ve gone there with Riku to save you. But after being out of action for a year and the fact that I couldn’t even land a single blow on that memory of Xehanort, I knew it was the better choice to stay behind and train even if I didn’t like it.

I really hope Riku finds you soon. We’re all so worried about both of you. Since nobody really knows anything about this Quadratum place, we’ve all thought Riku was a little hasty in just taking off there alone.

We still haven’t heard anything from Mickey yet either. Hopefully, he’ll come back soon from Scala Ad Caelum, and he’ll have found something we can use to help you and Riku. Until that happens, all the rest of us can do is wait.

Anyway, time to tell you the real reason for this latest letter, Sora. And you are not going to believe what it is. I can hardly believe it myself.

Last night, I had a dream. It was actually the first dream I’ve had since I came to the Land of Departure.

Not that I’ve minded not having dreams just in case they ended up being recreations of my worst memories. I’ve already watched you vanish twice. I don’t think I could bear to watch it happen again in my dreams.

But the dream I had was nothing like that at all. It was of a wedding, Sora. Our wedding.

It was an amazing sight. It was in this gigantic chapel that looked like it was in Radiant Garden, and it was filled with all your friends from around the worlds.

Many of our fellow Guardians of Light and closest friends made up our wedding party. It was hardly a surprise to see Selphie as my maid of honor or Riku as your best man.

You looked so handsome in the suit you were wearing. And judging from the stunned look on your face when you saw me coming down the aisle, I must’ve looked pretty beautiful to you.

It was truly incredible, Sora. It felt so real and so wonderful. I wished it never ended.

But, unfortunately, as it is with dreams, we all have to wake up eventually. And when I did, the happiness I felt ended up giving way to other emotions as I reflected on the dream.

First of all, I felt a little confused. As good as that dream was, I couldn’t help but wonder why I had it at all. I mean, wouldn’t you find a little strange to have a dream about a wedding especially since we haven’t even had our first kiss yet? It’s kind of rushing things a little.

But don’t get me wrong, Sora. I know, deep down in my heart, how we truly feel about each other. I wouldn’t have shared that paopu fruit with you otherwise. And when the time is right for it, the idea of getting married to you is something I will embrace wholeheartedly.

So, I thought more about the dream and believe it or not, I started to think that it was not merely just a dream. I wonder if what I saw was our future. It definitely did feel like that since there were so many unfamiliar parts in it.

For example, I had no idea there was a tradition in Radiant Garden weddings for the bride and groom to crown each other with symbolic flowers. Then again, I could have known that if the knowledge came from a memory from when I lived there. Maybe I attended a wedding there when I was young.

But what really stood out to me and made me believe that this could be our future was the many unfamiliar guests. I knew that because I’ve been studying the details of your last two journeys from Jiminy’s Journal and the Gummi Phone. And even though the Journal of your first journey was erased (Naminè’s still really sorry about that), I still remember everything about it from being in your heart through it all.

So, I was able to recognize who you had met and who were strangers. They were far too numerous to mention. But here are some examples that really stood out to me.

A tall woman with long black hair wearing a tan colored dress and a beautiful turquoise necklace with a raccoon, a dog and I think I saw a hummingbird flittering around her.

A pair of robots, one yellow and box-shaped, the other white and cylindrical, who were holding hands.

A couple that consisted of a redhaired woman and blonde-haired man who appeared to have some kind of hairless rodent on his shoulder.

A teenage boy and girl along with a younger boy and a company of animals such as a bear with gray fur, a panther, an elephant with a tuft of brown hair and a quartet of vultures.

A large family that appeared to be a mix of humans and skeletons along with a very colorful winged dog and a giant winged cat.

A boy with red hair (whose head looked triangular) along with another boy with green hair and a bunch of other teenagers as well as some kind of strange teal animal that looked like a cross between a duck and a beaver and a man with brown hair, poor posture and wearing a lab coat (who wears that to a wedding?).

A princess dressed in a beautiful green gown accompanied by a prince in a green suit with a blonde woman dressed in pink, a short old woman dressed in white and wearing sunglasses and a snake around her shoulders as well as an alligator who was carrying a trumpet.

A very unusual group consisting of two men and a woman with blue skin and pointy ears along with a dog-sized dragon, a centaur, and a winged lionlike creature with horns and a scorpion’s tail.

A girl with bushy brown hair among what appeared to be a family of giant frogs.

A woman dressed like she was some kind of islander with a burly man with numerous tattoos (I think I saw one of them move) over his body along with a pig and a chicken that didn’t look very smart.

A family who seemed to be some kind of royalty consisting of a princess in a simple green dress with long curly red hair along with three identical boys with the same kind of hair, their big, strong father with a peg leg and their very elegant mother.

A boy and a girl who looked like they were twin siblings who were accompanied by a pair of old men who looked like twins as well.

A redhaired boy in the company of a group of what looked like various human-sized bugs.

There were so many more, but I think I’ll stop here. With the large number of guests at this wedding, I could go on listing them for a long time. But it does seem there’s a lot more friends for you in the future.

Unfortunately, while I was mulling over the dream further, a horrible thought came to me. I started to wonder if the dream, as beautiful as it was, wasn’t meant to bring me happiness at all because it was actually showing the future that we could have had but now would never have. And the true reason of it was to punish me for my failures in the fight against Xehanort.

I know you wouldn’t like to hear this, Sora. But there are still days where I can’t help but feel responsible for your disappearance and think that if I had made some different choices, you’d still be here.

I know it was my choice to fight alongside you because I wanted to keep you safe the same way you’ve always done for me. But looking back, I now see it was foolish to assume that my training alongside Axel would turn me into a Keyblade wielder on yours or Riku’s level. And it was probably an even worse idea for a wielder with very little actual battle experience to go from basic training to a high stakes battle with nothing in between.

We may have been desperate to stop Xehanort before he went after the New Seven Hearts especially since he had already assembled all his darknesses. But we probably could’ve and should’ve explored some other options instead of going to fight the Organization right away after you woke Ven.

Since Ienzo told us that they had a replica body ready before we even left for the Keyblade Graveyard, we could’ve gotten Roxas or maybe even Xion out of your heart before the fight. In Axel’s words, they were the old hands when it came to Keyblades.

We also could have made a bigger effort to find and save Terra first even if our chances were pretty low. That would not only have gotten us a more experienced wielder, but it would’ve also lowered Xehanort’s ranks by one.

Maybe if we had done things that way, we would’ve had more experienced Keyblade wielders to fill out the Seven Guardians of Light. And even if it would be disappointing to be put in the reserves, it would’ve been worth it if it led to you being safe.

So, those are the reasons I believed that dream was a punishment. But you’ll be glad to know, Sora, that I only entertained those beliefs briefly.

After thinking it over some more, I decided that it didn’t matter what that dream’s purpose was. Comfort or punishment, I’m going to actually use it to serve my own purposes instead.

I’m going to let it remind me of what my ultimate goal is and drive me to be the best Keyblade wielder I can be. One that’s going to make the forces of darkness think twice before causing trouble and one that you and Riku will be proud to have fighting alongside you. And hopefully, that will lead us to a future like the one in the dream or at least one that’s pretty close.

In fact, after seeing that dream, I think I may end up actually proposing a couple of ideas to Aqua and Master Yen Sid. I’ve been thinking about them a lot and maybe now is the time to try to put them into action.

Since I need to get some real battle experience to become a stronger Keyblade wielder, I’d like to go on a journey throughout the worlds to gain some. Hopefully, Aqua will think it’s a good idea. And even though there’s been little sign of the Heartless and Nobodies since Xehanort’s defeat, there is one thing I really wish to do.

I’d like to try to find and identify the remaining three of the New Seven Hearts. After all, who’d better to find them than someone who’s part of the same group? And if we knew who they were and what their home worlds were, we’d be in a better position to protect them if someone tried what Maleficent and Xehanort did.

Who knows? Maybe all those unfamiliar faces at the wedding were not only friends you’ll make on future adventures, but ones I’ll make on my own adventures. Maybe even the remaining New Seven Hearts were among them.

I also have an idea that may be able to help in the quest to bring you home. If Fairy Godmother could bring me back to the Final World, I could talk to that girl from Quadratum again. She may not be able to remember certain things. But she might be able to tell us something about that world that could help.

Naminè might even be able to help with this plan. Even if you only met that girl briefly, that may be enough for her to be considered connected to you and therefore, Naminè’s memory powers can work on her.

Hopefully, the Masters will think that these are good plans. I really want to do any part I can to not only help bring you and Riku home, but also to protect the worlds as both a Keyblade wielder and a Princess of Heart. After all, with you two gone, someone’s got to pick up the slack.

Well, I think that’s enough for now. It’s nearly time for breakfast and then it’s training until lunch. But before I go, there’s just one final thing I’d like to say.

Whether that beautiful dream shows a wonderful future that is meant to be or not, it doesn’t matter. Because the only kind of future I’ll ever wish for is one in which we’re safe, we’re happy, and we’re together. That’s all I really need.

See you soon,

Kairi

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Much later, the training hall in the Land of Departure was filled with the sounds of clashing Keyblades and various shouts of magical invocation. While those sounds were nothing uncommon in that location, there was an unusual intensity that day.

As Aqua, Ven and Chirithy watched, a heated sparring match was taking place between Kairi and Terra. But much to their surprise, the more experienced Keyblade wielder was actually struggling as the young rookie was keeping him mostly on the defensive.

“Wow! Kairi’s on fire today!” exclaimed Ven.

“She is, indeed,” concurred Chirithy.

“Well, she has improved a lot in her skills since she came here. But you two are right. I don’t think I’ve ever seen her this driven before,” said Aqua.

“You’ve got that right, Aqua. If she lands one more hit on Terra, this’ll be the first time she’s won by a perfect score,” said Ven.

As the match went on, Terra blocked blow after blow from Kairi. Then, strangely, she ceased her attack.

Terra saw his opportunity and charged toward her with a downward slash. The Princess dodged to the right narrowly avoiding the hit.

“Light!” she cried out as she fired a small but powerful Light spell at Terra’s side. He grunted as the magic struck him and knocked him off his feet.

“Point to Kairi,” declared Aqua.

“That’s three to nothing! Kairi wins!” exclaimed Ven as Chirithy clapped its paws together.

“Well done, Kairi,” said Aqua.

“Thank you, Master Aqua,” Kairi said as she walked over to Terra and helped him up.

After exchanging bows with each other, the Princess of Heart said, “I hope that didn’t hurt you too badly, Terra.”

Terra chuckled. “Not at all. It helps that you’ve learned how to restrain your magic during training. But I’ve got to say, Kairi that I am impressed. That’s the first time since you’ve come here that I’ve been unable to land a single hit on you.”

“You’ve certainly come a long way, Kairi. Today, you showed some truly exceptional skill and strength. You should be very proud of yourself,” said Aqua as she, Ven and Chirithy approached.

“Well, I’ve had a good teacher and some great sparring partners. But I think it really helped that when I woke up today, I just felt a little extra drive,” said Kairi.

“Yes. We noticed,” said Aqua.

“Why is that exactly?” asked Chirithy.

A certain smile came to Kairi’s face which caused her four friends to exchange knowing looks. They had spent plenty of time with her by now to know what exactly brought out that special smile of hers: thoughts of a certain someone close to her heart.

“I had the most amazing dream.”

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Notes from the Mad Doctor:

I thought the best way for Kairi’s spotlight chapter would be to do in the style of one of her letters to Sora. I’ve used it before as readers of my big fic Kairi’s Epic Journey would know.

So, in case it wasn’t obvious, the challenge I mentioned at the start is that list of unknown guests. It was quite a challenge to write all those characters by description alone. I hope you all will take a shot at identifying them. Some are pretty obvious, but some may be a little more difficult.

I hope I did a good job in trying not to make this chapter’s narrative too similar to the previous chapters. I actually tried having Kairi leap to the punishment notion before the premonition notion. But unfortunately, the flow didn’t work right.

Fortunately, the views on the punishment notion are a little different. Sora has absolutely no regrets for what he did and believes that he’s being unfairly punished for breaking rules he had no idea existed. Kairi, however, believes her punishment is deserved since she blames herself for what happened to Sora. Fortunately, both are able to use that dream to keep on fighting.

I hope you all aren’t put off that this is more like a series of one-shots centered around a certain plot device (the wedding dream) instead of a congruent storyline. That was what this project ended up being.

I give my thanks to whoever reads this chapter.

I also give my special thanks to @fandomchanger, @flynn-science, and @ladylucky for their likes on the previous chapters as well as @sokaiweek, @phoenix-downer, and @the-secret-place for reblogging the previous chapter.

Comments, likes and reblogs are much appreciated! Stay tuned for what comes next because it’s going to be a real feel-good chapter!

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Onto the next chapter!

#kingdom hearts #kh fanfiction #sokai #sokaiweek #sokaiweek2021 #kairi #aqua #ventus #chirithy #terra #maddrmatt

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turnupswritessometimes · 3 years

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Yours, Always - SoRiku

Title: Yours, Always

Chapters: 1 + 2

Word Count: 9381

Summary: The letter seemed to fall from the sky. It was rolled up, into a scroll, and landed right in front of Sora’s shoes. He stopped short, staring at it. Donald turned back, as soon as he realised Sora had fallen behind. He frowned. “What are you waiting for?” “There’s a –” Sora pointed to the letter, then up. There wasn’t even a cloud in the sky. Only paper, apparently. “It came from up there.” *** King Mickey suggests that Riku writes letters to his tie to light. He chooses Sora. As they write back and forth, they start to untangle friendship from something deeper.

A03 Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29115582

Yours, Always

The letter seemed to fall from the sky. It was rolled up, into a scroll, and landed right in front of Sora’s shoes. He stopped short, staring at it.

Donald turned back, as soon as he realised Sora had fallen behind. He frowned. “What are you waiting for?”

“There’s a –” Sora pointed to the letter, then up. There wasn’t even a cloud in the sky. Only paper, apparently. “It came from up there.”

“That’s nonsense.”

“It did.” Sora nudged it with his shoe. When it didn’t turn into a heartless, or a monster, he knelt down, and picked it up. It was cold, as though it had been in a fridge.

“But why couldn’t it?” Goofy asked. “There’s plenty of weird things going on.”

Donald turned on him. “Letters don’t just come from nowhere.”

They continued bickering, as Sora turned it over in his hand. There was the King’s seal, on the ribbon, glinting silver in the bright sun. He tried to cover it with his thumb, but Jiminy saw from his shoulder, before he could hide it.

“It’s from the King!”

Donald and Goofy turned to him, a predatory glint in their eyes. They were ready to jump.

“I found it.” Sora held the letter to his chest, protectively.

“You tripped over it,” Donald squawked.

“It’s still mine.” He couldn’t hesitate – he slipped his finger under the seal, and freed it, unfurling the letter and –

He stared, heart thumping. Because it wasn’t from the King.

“Hands off!” He held it high – higher than Donald could reach, and walked backwards. “It’s not from the King – it’s from Riku!”

“Gwarsh, is that the boy that took the keyblade from you?” Goofy asked.

Sora’s stomach clenched. For a moment, it had felt like it had been before. When he and Riku were best friends, and never argued. (Not about anything that mattered, just petty squabbles.) For a moment, he had forgotten Hook’s ship, and Hollow Bastion.

“He closed the door to darkness,” Sora said. “From the other side.” And, at Donald and Goofy’s exchanged, confused glance. “He’s my friend. We’re going to find him. And the King.”

Another exchanged glance. This one with missed pity and understanding. But at least Sora was left alone to read. It was a slightly blocky, awkward script. One that was as familiar as his own –

Sora,

Mickey said I should write this. I suppose you’d call him King Mickey. I try to call him Your Majesty. It feels weird. We’re both – alive. In the Realm of Darkness. It’s not as cold as it sounds, but there are heartless everywhere. Mickey’s good with a keyblade. It looks like yours.

Mine is different.

But, anyway, Mickey said to write to someone who would anchor me to the world of light. That it would help keep the darkness at bay. It looks like that’s going to be a never-ending battle. He said Kairi, since we worked so hard to get her heart back. So she must be important to me. But I couldn’t stop thinking about you, instead. It used to be just us, on the island. Do you remember that? I think it’s because of that, that I can’t write to her. She doesn’t understand, not everything. And I – wouldn’t know what to say to her – after –

You showed her our secret place, didn’t you?

I can’t be angry about something like that. Not after what I did. That’s also why I wanted to write to you, and couldn’t write to her. Because I’m sorry for – all of that. When the island fell into darkness, I woke up at Hollow Bastion, where we met again. Of course I wanted to find the both of you. Maleficent said she could help – but that you’d already moved on. I didn’t believe that, not at first – but, I thought – that I would be clever and double cross her. Pretend to go along with her, just to find you, find out what she was doing, and then stop it from the outside.

Then I found you in Traverse Town. With – Donald and Goofy (? Is that his real name?) – and it felt like what she said could be true. I know you, but that was when she had her hold on me.

Honestly, I wanted to be better than you. Controlling the heartless, and the darkness – I wanted to do it, because I knew you wouldn’t be able to. I thought that I was stronger. I guess I was just like Maleficent, in the end. We didn’t used to be rivals, did we? I don’t want to be, anymore.

I was not manipulated. I chose to take every step.

I don’t know if this will reach you, but I’m glad you and Kairi are safe. Be there for each other, and I’ll be back soon.

Riku

They were all still staring at him. Waiting to see what it said.

Sora thought that his cheeks were hot. He forced himself to smile – it came easily now – and said, “he’s okay! And so’s the King!”

Goofy beamed, and Donald did his best impression to seem unbothered, but it was clear he was excited. He called for them to keep walking, fighting a smile, though none of them knew where they were headed. There was nothing in the distance. Nothing put that same narrow, winding path.

They started again. Sora unfurled the letter and read it again. Someone to tie Riku to the light – his heart jumped and juddered at the thought. Okay. Riku was alive. And okay. In the realm of darkness, but he was strong. Strong enough to get out.

Sora would be there when he did. He wanted to be.

He read the letter half a dozen times before they stopped for the night. So that Riku’s words all but floated in front of him. Every loop of his letters, and haphazard slash across the ‘t’s memorized.

Donald almost burnt their eyebrows off by lighting the campfire. It was enough of a distraction for Sora to find paper and a pencil in their packs.

They ate; fruits they found on the road, and a chicken who’d gotten too close to them. (Too close to a duck for Sora’s liking, but Donald didn’t seem to care.) It was only when Donald and Goofy lay down for the night, that Sora began writing.

“I’m sure Donald and Goofy would have words to add,” a small voice said by his ear. Jiminy. Saying exactly what had been niggling at Sora’s stomach.

“I know,” Sora replied. Looked at the name he had put at the top of the page, and felt his chest ache. “If I get a reply, I’ll tell them and they can add on. It’s just –” That he wanted to be selfish. Just this once. Because it was – “It’s just that it’s Riku. I have so much I need to say. So much that – is just between us.”

His face felt warm, as he glanced over at his sleeping friends. Because they were friends, but what he had with Riku was different. He felt almost – shy – about it. So just this once, he would be selfish.

He wrote, in the soft light of the dying fire:

Riku,

I’m so happy you’re alright! I’ve been thinking about you too – a lot. The Realm of Darkness…if anyone can make it out, you and the King can. Donald and Goofy (yes, that’s his real name) are so excited that he’s okay too. I can’t wait to see your keyblade. I never made it back to the Islands. But Kairi’s there. She’ll be safe, now that the keyholes are sealed.

Of course I remember when it was just us. It felt like the whole island was ours. I thought about that, at Hollow Bastion, after I’d taken… The Beast’s roars reminded me of when we were in our secret place, and you told me the wind was a monster. You said we could beat anything, if we were together.

I still believe that.

Kairi found our secret place, rather than me showing it to her. But you’re right, I let her in. It must have been so hard for her – to be somewhere that wasn’t her home, with strange children, that I thought giving her just a small piece of ours would help. I should have checked with you though – you’re the Captain of the Raft, right?

You never let me finish, in Traverse Town. I was going to invite you with us. Donald and Goofy (yes, his real name), are great – but they’re not you, Riku. I could never think of exploring anywhere without you. I don’t know when we became rivals, but I don’t want to be, either. I prefer being friends.

You did the right thing in the end. And if Maleficent ever comes back, we’ll kick her butt together.

See you soon,

Sora

He slept with the letter under his bedroll. The crinkle of the paper, as he turned his head, seemed to help him sleep.

And when he woke up in the morning, it was gone.

The letter looked like it was shining, in the blackness all around it.

Riku caught it, as it fell. For a moment, he couldn’t believe he was seeing colour. Everything here was dark. It was shadows upon shadows, and even the King was hard to separate from it all, sometimes.

Now here was a letter. And he knew, the moment he caught it, who it was from. No envelope, of course.

King Mickey was ahead of him. Now he stopped and turned back. Smiled. “I told you your letter would make it to him.”

“That wasn’t what I doubted,” Riku replied. He smiled, thumb drawing across the chicken scratch writing. Sora barely wrote, back home. “I didn’t think I’d get a reply.”

Partly because of what he’d done. He would understand if Sora didn’t want to talk to him. But mostly because he’d figured Sora would be busy. Or forget. At least take a day to write back. Unless it had been a day. It was so hard to tell here.

“Well,” Mickey continued. “You must have chosen the right person to write to.”

Riku’s stomach felt strange. Because it should have been Kairi. He’d wanted to save her heart. She was the one he and Sora both – in all of their games, she was the princess in the castle. But he had written to Sora. And it had been Sora’s letter that had made him feel, just for a moment, like he was back in the world of light.

Besides, Mickey said Sora was the right person to write to.

Mickey was watching him. Still smiling encouragingly. He had to do that a lot. Riku’s confidence wasn’t what it used to be.

He smiled back, and went to slip the letter into his pocket –

“I think here’s a good place to rest, for a bit.” Mickey stepped back towards him, and took a seat. He was not subtle.

But then, Riku thought, as he lowered himself to the ground, neither was Sora.

He took a look at the letter – and his heart stopped. “He didn’t make it back.”

“What?”

“He never made it back to the island. But he’s with Donald. And Goofy.”

“If he’s with those two –”

“Then I know he’ll be alright.” They’d done pretty well together so far, anyway.

Mickey nodded at him. Looking almost – proud? It was a strange thought. He nodded back, then turned his attention onto the letter. His heart pounded, slightly painfully, as he read. Which was silly, because it was only Sora. It must have been because he was beyond this, Riku reasoned. To hear from anyone, after being in here, was exciting.

There was not quite an ‘I forgive you,’ but Riku hadn’t hoped for that. The last sentence was more than he deserved. Spoke of moving on, rather than dwelling in what happened. And that was so very him. Kairi would have said that she forgave him, even if she did not mean it, because she’d think it would be what Riku wanted to hear. But maybe that wasn’t what he needed.

Captain of the Raft. That sounded so childish now. They had been stupid to think they could get anywhere on that thing. A pang of homesickness went through him. For the Destiny Islands they both remembered. For being small. For their secret place.

The only way to lessen that ache, was to write back.

Sora,

Where are you? Do you know? If we were still rivals, I’d say race you back home. But we’re best friends, instead, so I’ll say be careful, instead. We’re doing alright. Mickey says we’ll find our way back to the light soon. I hope so. It’s cold here.

I remember that too. You always believed anything I said to you. But that second part, that was probably true. I don’t think anything could win against the two of us. Not now that we both have keyblades, anyway.

I also remember that you were scared of a lot. Like shooting stars hitting the island. And the Kraken. I said I’d protect you. Guess I haven’t been doing a very good job lately.

And I guessed that you would invite me along, when we met in Traverse Town. I suppose that I didn’t like seeing you do so well on your own. We never did anything alone, and it was always you pestering me to go with you somewhere. I didn’t like the thought that you might not need me.

The duck didn’t seem to like me very much, either.

Don’t worry about Maleficent. She’s not going to want to take on the great hero again. (Which pales in comparison to Raft Captain, by the way.) I wonder how things would have turned out, if I came with you. Things would have been easier, I guess. Would I be able to fly, like you did? It looked fun. That puppet would have had an easier time too. How did he have a heart?

Guess I’ve still got a lot to learn, about that stuff. Maybe you could teach

Kairi will be fine. On the island. We taught her how to take care of herself, on there. Though, she will shout at us both if we keep her waiting too long. (You more than me. She’ll worry about you more.)

I’ll see you soon. And we’ll go home together.

Riku

The second letter came in the same way. At least it landed on Sora’s head, as he was just waking up. That was good. It meant that he didn’t have to keep it away from Donald and Goofy – who were collecting berries for breakfast, and having a lay in, respectively.

He read it quickly, and his heart ached. So much that he had to breathe shallowly, to ease the pain. Riku was in the Realm of Darkness. It was cold. And he was full of regret. Must have been thinking of all the adventures they’d missed out on together. Real adventures this time, not just two children running down the beach, and pretending it was a snowy mountain, or the inside of a volcano.

Sora should have told him that he forgave him for it. That he had never stopped believing that Riku would be good, in the end. But he hadn’t been able to write that. Because he still remembered when Riku looked like Riku, but had been cruel. Had set heartless on him, and tossed a wooden sword at his feet.

It was worse, because he had recognised those looks. The narrowing of his eyes and his smirk. For the last year or so, he’d looked at Sora like that more and more. Rivals. He’d been able to see the road Riku was walking, as if it was inevitable that he would turn on him. That he would hate Sora.

The fact that he didn’t. That he still remembered the island, and had still wanted to travel with him, was why his chest hurt so much. Riku was still there. His best friend.

Jiminy had climbed up onto his knee. Watching him.

“I missed him so much,” Sora whispered. And realised that his eyes were damp. “I miss him, now.”

A tiny, green hand, patted him. “I’m sure he feels the same. Otherwise he wouldn’t have replied so quickly.”

Sora nodded. Wiped his eyes and took a breath to dislodge the heavy feeling. He read the letter again. Riku was alive – and worried about him. The thought made him smile.

“Are you going to tell the other two, this time?” Jiminy asked.

Sora paused. It was all so – private. Stuff between him and Riku, from a long ago time. They didn’t need to know. Definitely not about him being scared of shooting stars.

“Sort of,” he managed. “They can write back to the King, but they – they don’t need to know everything.”

Jiminy smiled at him. As though he could guess what he was thinking. Almost, in a similar way, to when Kairi was mentioned. They’d all look at him then. Tease him about his sweetheart.

Sora didn’t know how to say that he had barely thought about her since they’d set out again. It felt mean. But he knew where she was. She was safe.

He wrote back, as they ate breakfast, and managed to smear juice on the page, in several splatters.

Riku,

I’d send you a blanket if I could. Or a jacket. That would be more practical, wouldn’t it? It never used to get cold at home. It’s cold at night, here, and I don’t like it. We don’t know where ‘here’ is. There’s just – a path. It’s very green all around, but there aren’t any trees. There’s just hills for miles. Its not the strangest world we’ve been to. There’s a castle in the distance, we’re headed to. You head there too, okay?

It was definitely you scared of the shooting stars, and definitely me saying I would protect you. But I haven’t done a great job of that, either. (Oh, and the kraken is real, by the way.) Do these letters help? I’ll keep writing to you, if they do.

Of course I need you. I thought of you – everywhere we went, I wondered what you would think of every world we went to. Everyone we met. When we find each other again, I’ll take you everywhere, and introduce you to everyone. You’d like Leon, in Traverse Town. Don’t worry about Donald, he’s a grump, but he’s a big softy once you get to know him.

I guess we won’t be able to, now. We’ll have to go back to the islands.

Raft Captain is not better than Great Hero (which I’m not) – I would say they’re equal. And that Raft Captains can fly. All it takes is faith, trust and pixie dust. And I have faith for you, so that’s one part taken care of. (It is fun! It’s amazing!)

Pinocchio had a heart, because his father gave him one. When he was created, he treated Pinocchio like he had one, so of course he did. What I can’t understand is how the skeleton we met in Halloween Town had a heart? Where would he keep it?

Kairi might be more worried about me, but I’m more worried than her about you, I’m sure. Hurry and come back so that we can beat all the monsters together.

See you really soon, Riku!

Sora

(P.S That’s just berry juice.)

(P.P.S Donald and Goofy have attached a letter to the King.)

Maybe the letter writing wasn’t a good idea, Riku thought. Because now he was constantly on edge, waiting for the next one. A glimmer of white against the nothingness. It wasn’t so much what the response said, as long as it came. That meant that Sora was alright. Alive. It meant that he was as well.

It was so hard to tell how long it had been. They fought, several skirmishes, until there had been enough light from King Mickey’s keyblade to keep the heartless wary of them. At least, for a bit.

Riku’s keyblade didn’t give off light.

They kept walking. As though there was a path in front of them, they simply couldn’t see. Every so often, they would stop, as though they’d come to a fork in the road, and wait for a moment. Often, they would decide on the same way. A slight bit to the left, or right. (Never backwards.) Sometimes, Riku felt differently to the King.

But he’d trust Riku. And follow him.

“The light in your heart is strong,” Mickey said. “It has to be, to have faced Ansem and won.”

It certainly didn’t feel like winning.

When the reply finally did come – he snatched it up eagerly. And his stomach lurched as he saw the stains on it, eyes frantically taking in the letters until he saw, at the bottom, that Sora was just as messy as he’d always been.

“Is Sora alright?” Mickey asked. He must have seen Riku’s expression.

He nodded. Separated the sleeves of paper from each other, and handed one over.

“This is for you.”

The King looked surprised. Then pleased, as he took it.

It was decided that they were in a good place to rest. It was not as though there was anywhere better. Or that they had any kind of camp to put up. So, he sat next to King Mickey, and read the letter. Slowly, and properly.

His heart raced. So fast, that it hurt. That Sora was lost, and not admitting it. That he needed Riku. Thought about him often – whenever he met someone new. Wanted to protect him right back. More than he wanted to protect Kairi. And he wished, more than ever, that he would have stayed where he was at Traverse Town. Said yes to the offer. Kept quiet about Maleficent, or at least said that he knew something about her plan. That would have been enough.

He said as much to Mickey, when they were both done. Still riding on the wave of longing that came from words from a friend, before they could reply.

“I don’t think you’d be with him now, even if you did that,” Mickey said. He held his letter close to his own chest. “In the end, I think you’d always close the door from this side.”

That was something he hadn’t considered before. But now that he did, he knew it was true. Riku would always close the door to darkness from the other side. He’d never have let Sora do it.

But the rest still mattered, didn’t it? It must do, because Sora wouldn’t talk about it. Only what had happened at the end.

At least he didn’t hate him.

That gave him the courage to write back.

Sora,

The letters help. A lot. It’s easy to lose track of things here, when everything’s so similar to everything else. A jacket would be great. I wish we’d thought to pack those before we left home. But the letters are enough. Where you are sounds nice. I’m sure you can use magic to keep yourself warm. You’ve picked up all sorts of tricks.

I think I’d like to meet everyone you met, even if I do have a lot of apologising still to do. Not everyone’s like you. No one is. Even if we go back to the islands, I have a feeling we won’t stay there for long. The keyblade is always needed, even if the keyholes are sealed. And we’ll fly, together, one day. (I trust you, so that’s another part covered.)

Not sure that I get the heart thing, still. How can a puppet be alive? He was made with wood, by a man. I hope none of the carvings we did as kids would ever grow a heart. But a skeleton would still have a ribcage for his heart to be in, dummy. I’m surprised you didn’t need me there for that, too.

Don’t worry about me. I’m doing fine. Take care of yourself first.

I’ll aim for the castle, and meet you there. If we were still rivals, I would say that I’d race you there. But instead, I’ll be there as soon as I can. I can’t promise on anything, that it will be very soon, because I have nothing to give you.

I hope its not too long now,

Riku

Sora rolled his eyes, when he reached the bottom of the letter.

As if holding the promise they’d see each other again in their hearts wasn’t strong enough.

It was over. Another adventure. It mirrored the first, in a way. The adventure was done.

And Riku had been too late. At least, and it was a meagre silver lining, he hadn’t guaranteed he would. He’d missed Sora, completely. Now he was asleep – and who knew if he even remembered Riku?

So it had been better not to promise, after all.

Diz couldn’t tell Riku how long it would be before Sora woke up again. He just couldn’t make a guess. That meant a while. He didn’t want to tell Riku it would be a while.

He sat on the lowest floor of Castle Oblivion – that stupid castle that Sora was so desperate to get to – facing the pods. He could see Sora inside, his lashes casting dark, spidery shadows over his cheeks. He looked paler than usual, in there. His skin almost white, mouth almost colourless. Even his hair didn’t look as dark.

But then, what would he think of Riku? Sat in a blindfold that made everything dark, and difficult to see clearly.

At least he could see well enough to write. It would be messy, but Sora had to know all that happened. Why Riku hadn’t been able to meet him after all, and what the plan was, when he woke up.

And, perhaps it would help. Just like when he was stuck in the realm of darkness, it could help Riku fight the darkness off. Sora had always been his beacon of light.

So Riku started to write to him. And he continued to write. Not everyday. But often.

Sora found the letters when he opened up his pack, to get lunch out. Immediately, he panicked, because it was actually Hayner’s backpack, on loan, and he didn’t want to even accidentally snoop into his stuff.

But then he saw his name. Saw his name, and realised he’d recognise that handwriting anywhere.

Riku. It was Riku. He must have been writing from wherever he was now. Just like before.

Donald and Goofy were busy with their own lunches. Pulling out cheese rolls, apples and oranges, and wrapped ice cream bars.

“They would want to know,” a little voice said on his shoulder. Jiminy. Guessing exactly what Sora was thinking.

“Only if he mentions the King,” Sora whispered, thumbing through the pages. There were a lot. He must have been writing all the time whilst he’d been asleep.

“You don’t really think that.” Jiminy was quiet. But he didn’t shout for their attention, and he didn’t stop Sora pulling the sheaf of letters out. Maybe he also understood that Sora wasn’t ready to share it with them quite yet. There was something about the letters – the fact that they were from Riku – that was very special. Private. They were only intended for him. From his best friend.

So he would tell them later. They had a very long train journey, ahead of them, after all.

Sora,

I have to apologize to you. Again. I made it to the castle. It was where we came out of the Realm of Darkness from. The King and I were at the top and you three were at the bottom. I didn’t get to you in time.

You probably won’t remember what happened there. A girl called Naminé has had to send you to sleep, to put your memories back together. She was forced to alter them in the first place. I think you understood why. She told me as much as she could, about what you did at Castle Oblivion, so I’ve written it here.

It went on for a page and a half, Riku account. A strange, sickening feeling sat in Sora’s stomach as he read, as though he missed a step on the stairs, and was falling down. The feeling didn’t stop, as though his fall wasn’t stopping. He had done those things – the things Riku had written. But he had no memory of them, just like he said. Thinking about them made his mind feel fuzzy. It wasn’t even as though they were out of reach, or he felt a sense of déjà vu. It was just – nothing.

But it had happened. It must have, for him to wake up where he did. His memory had been – changed. By someone he didn’t even remember. Someone he must have trusted. Yet – now – now – now –

“I’ll write it down in the journal,” Jiminy murmured.

Sora kept reading. His heart started and juddered uncomfortably, like a racehorse. He fought to ignore it.

There’s nothing we can do, except wait for Naminé to finish her work. I’ve been travelling to other worlds. Still trying to find a way to conquer the darkness in me. Its harder, without you.

Its not so weird to see you always sleeping. That was how it was on the island, right? Whenever we’d work on the raft, you’d take a nap on the beach. Now, I just keep expecting you to wake up and laugh and apologize.

I want to be there, when you wake up.

Riku

He kept flipping through the letters, in succession, because it was easier to keep reading, keep filling his mind with Riku’s words, than dwell on how he was feeling.

Sora,

I’m still trying to understand the heart thing, like you do. I’ve been travelling to worlds with less humans. More – animals. The kind that talk, like Donald and Goofy. Although I try not to be spotted – Diz says its better that way, to preserve the world order – I’ve met a lot of people creatures friends, you’d call them. I don’t have your knack for making everyone adore you in five minutes, but I think I’m doing alright.

You’re the same. Naminé says there’s a small complication in restoring your memories. We don’t know what that could be yet. It could be to do with when you lost your heart.

Whatever it is, I’ll sort it. Keep slacking off, and I’ll see you soon,

Riku

Sora,

I met a man who’d turned into a bear. He chose to stay that way. Because he met a bear cub. They became brothers. And he knew he had to stay a bear to look after him, instead of transform back. He went back on everything he was taught – everything he believed – because his heart connected with that little bear’s.

I’ve been thinking on transformations a lot. I’m not completely free of the darkness yet. If I’m not careful –

Naminé thinks she knows the problem with your memories. You released your heart from your body, so it stands to reason that you have a nobody. That’s the shell that’s left behind, when heartless are created. We don’t know if you have one for sure. But we’re looking. If there is – and that’s the reason you can’t –

The King is here. He’s a big help. He misses Donald and Goofy terribly. We talk about our memories with you to each other. It is meant to help, but it makes my chest ache.

I also went to a forest. There were hunters there. For the deer. They were scared of me too. They must have thought I had a gun. I didn't chase them. I hid for a while, in the undergrowth, until they came back. And I just - watched. A deer and a rabbit and a skunk all came by. Together. Like they were friends. They played around for a bit, until the stag came. He was - incredible. Silent and graceful and - he looked so powerful. Like the was the King of the whole forest.

You wouldn't have been able to stay still long enough, I bet.

It's weird seeing you so still now. You usually stretch and wiggle and kick out in your sleep. You used to kick me straight out of the bed if we shared as kids. Do you remember that?

I miss you,

Riku

Sora,

You've faced some of Organisation 13 before. I don't know if they'll be there when you wake up. But we think they're the reason you're still asleep. They're up to something. We I'm going to find out what.

If you do have a nobody, and he does get your memories, then I won't have a choice. I'll have to -

I'm still travelling. I try not to go to worlds you've been too. You said we'd go back together, so I'll wait. It's been a while now. Maybe a month. I don't want to count the days.

But I have seen some familiar faces. The Beast (did he ever have a name?) from Hollow Bastion. He has a castle. Its tall and gothic. The kind of place that should have lightning behind it. There are rose bushes around the back. He’s not the strangest one there. The servants – they’re all furniture. It must be hard for them. And him. And the girl who lives there. Belle. She was one of the Princesses of Heart.

I went to other worlds the Princesses of Heart lived in. More forests. The animals seemed afraid of me, in one, at first, but I told them not to be. Apologised, because I look –

They came right up then. Tried to lead me into a little cottage, and I mean a little cottage. I’d have to stoop to get in the door. (I suppose that means you’d get in alright.) I told them I couldn’t. We’re not meant to interfere with the worlds, but I’m not really up to speaking to anyone right now. But I did look in the window. The house was little because dwarves lived there.

There was another forest. In the world Maleficent came from. It seems a lot darker, even though there are just as many animals there, and they’re much friendlier. Maybe it was just my imagination. Knowing that she came from there.

These worlds are okay. But it just feels like I’m killing time. Waiting for you. I wish you were here, so we could go to new worlds. Like we always talked about. Together.

We were supposed to meet at Castle Oblivion. But I was late, that time.

Sleep well,

Riku

Sora,

The Organisation is snooping around Agrabah. Wonderland too. It’s like some strange game. They’re trying not to be seen by anyone, and I’m trying not to be seen by them. Half of them keep their hoods up, so I can’t tell which is which.

You’ve been to both of those places, right? I bet you liked Wonderland, huh? And I bet you loved getting sand in your shoes again in Agrabah. It would have reminded you of home.

I thought about going back. Telling Kairi. But Naminé says her memories got confused too, and it might confuse her. I’m sorry.

Diz – he’s the guy tracking the organisation with me. He knows the King. They’re friends. He can be trusted – he sent me back to the forest that Maleficent came from. There are fairies there. (They know Yen Sid, too. He trains keyblade wielders. And holds the Mark of Mastery Exam for them. Don’t worry, I’ll wait for you.) Anyway, they told me about what happened in their world. Maleficent wanted to destroy it there too. She controlled the Unverse at the time. (They don’t exist anymore.) She put a curse on the Princess – you must have met her too – when she was born, that she would prick her finger and die. One of the fairies changed it, so that she would only be sleeping. And it did happen. But there was a Prince. He kissed her. She woke up.

They were very excited to tell me all of this. And how happy the Princess was now. Because it was all so romantic. I suppose it is.

It made me – not angry – just –

Naminé’s making progress with your memories. She’s working hard. I’m keeping her company, whenever I can, but she likes to work alone. I guess we’re similar that way.

Missing you,

Riku

Sora,

I went back to the forest, with the dwarves. There was a girl with them, this time. Very pretty, like Kairi. They were talking, and I didn’t mean to listen in, but the bluebirds were tugging at my hair, trying to get me to knock, and I just – heard it.

She’d been asleep too. A poison apple, from a witch. A Prince found her, apparently they’d met before, and he kissed her. She woke up.

All these Princesses are falling asleep, and there just always happens to be a Prince who can save them.

Then there’s you. And I know its different, that you’re not under a curse, and you’re not a Princess, but I still wonder –

I mean – does it have to be a Prince? It’s not normally the boys asleep, so if it is him asleep, would the Princess work instead? Or does it still have to be -? I’m not much of a Prince, anyhow. It’s a silly idea, when we know how to make it right. With ‘witchcraft,’ not true love.

Kissing used to seem like a really gross idea, didn’t it? But they aren’t much older than us, and I wonder –

Wake up soon, sleepyhead.

Riku

Kissing. The thought of kissing – Riku was right, it had seemed like a gross, silly thing to do for years. He remembered when they were all small, when Selphie and Tidus pressed their mouths against each others, behind the big tree on the island, just for a second. Comically puckered. He and Riku had pulled faces.

Riku had teased him about kissing Kairi one day. But he knew that Riku didn’t want to. His nose wrinkled, just slightly, when he said it, and it gave him away. Sora hadn’t known what to think. It still seemed bizarre. He supposed he’d thought – when the moment was right – that it would all just click into place. He’d understand.

Maybe he would prefer to be asleep. So that he didn’t need to think or worry about it.

He’d pulled the letters closer to him, so that Jiminy slipped off of his shoulder and couldn’t see. It made him feel bad, especially as Jiminy tapped him with his umbrella, and told him it was important he recorded it all. For posterity.

But Riku was writing – well, Sora’s face felt hot. Because he’d always thought that Riku looked like a Prince from a fairy tale. With his snowy-white hair and green-blue eyes, he just – fit. Especially when those eyes were gleaming, and he was smirking at Sora, offering him a hand up.

If Riku was like a Prince – his face burned – with the thought of kissing –

No. Waking up. Waking up to Riku bent over him, silver hair like a curtain to hide the both of them. Eyes like the sea at home, glinting at him. Laughing, because Sora had been slacking off again.

That wouldn’t be – awful.

It wouldn’t be the same as Kairi.

But he’d feel less embarrassed if it was Riku. He’d known him for so long. With Kairi, he always felt slightly awkward, slightly unsure. As if he had to include her, to make up for lost time, so that she didn’t feel bad.

If it was Riku, they'd probably laugh about it. Joke about how they had always been so close.

But they might not.

They might - have a moment- where they just - looked at each other - and - there would be an - oh - that was how it went. In these other worlds. He tried to imagine that, how that “oh, it’s you,” moment felt. Racing hearts, surely, and happy laughter. The feeling that everything that was missing just falling into place.

His chest did something strange. And he had been thinking of Riku. Not Kairi.

“Gwarsh, should we open a window?” Goofy asked.

They were all looking at him. He blinked back.

“I know who you’re thinking about.” Donald smiled, and they exchanged knowing looks.

But they didn’t. They thought Sora was thinking about Kairi. And he wasn’t. He forced himself to give a meek smile, to let them keep thinking that. He looked out of the window, trying to think of ice cubes and snow, to help him cool down. Trying not to think of Riku.

Yet, he wasn’t finished with the letters. And he had to read them all. They might hold a clue as to where Riku was now. They might be able to find him.

What if he was asleep this time? Would Sora have to –

He turned back to the letters before he could finish the thought.

The next letter was strange. There were gaps. Just plain parchment instead of Riku’s neat handwriting. It wasn’t crossed out, like the other ones. It was simply as though he hadn’t written anything there at all.

He showed parts of this to Jiminy, explaining that the letters wouldn't be helpful towards the journal after all. That got Donald and Goofy's attention. They noticed the letters for the first time.

But they didn't try to snatch them away. They left him to it, after giving him a curious glance, playing I Spy, because good friends knew when others needed space.

Sora still tried to read what he could. His heart had crept steadily, all the way up to his mouth. It stayed there, heavy, as he took in what Riku had written.

Sora,

Naminé has found a problem. There’s a – with your memories. And whilst – has your memories, you can’t wake up. Obviously, we don’t want to hurt –

But Sora, if it comes to you or – then I’ll do whatever I have to. Every time. You’re my best friend. And I can’t leave you like this.

They’re Nobodies. Diz says they don’t have emotions. That they can’t feel. So – hopefully it won’t come to that.

I will save you. I promise.

Riku

The following letters were similar. Missing words. Some whole sentences. But Sora could still get the gist. Riku had done whatever he’d had to in order to wake Sora up. That included hurting others. It gave him that strange, wobbly feeling as reading through what had happened at Castle Oblivion did. A feeling of unbalance. Because that wasn’t like Riku.

Or was it? He’d always been determined. Ready to do whatever he needed to get something done. It was different when it was tricking Wakka into loaning them tools for the raft. But when it was hurting someone – really hurting someone – it was different.

But he’d done it for Sora. To save Sora. Because it was the only way he could see to do that. And he couldn’t hate Riku for caring about him. He needed to tell him that.

He had to find Riku.

There were a couple of pages that had been crumpled up. Scribbled over, so that they were hard to read. They were probably not meant to have been included, much less read. But if they held any clues, then – it was worth a try. There were a lot of 'miss yous.' Sora smoothed out one, bringing it close to his face to read it better.

I know your name means sky but I've always thought you had eyes like the sea. Full of other worlds and possibilities. I keep - thinking about your eyes. I guess because they're always closed. I remember them being big and bright and - so ready for whatever you would find. We lost our home before Traverse Town. Our whole lives were turned upside down. Kairi was missing. But you still looked like you were full of wonder.

Maybe I told a lie before. Maybe I was so angry with you because I was a little jealous. Or maybe -

I liked looking at you. And I knew I shouldn't.

I don't think I can ask Mickey about this.

But I don't know what to do with all these feelings in my chest. They seem to grow and tangle up and get confused the longer you're asleep.

Come back soon.

Riku

Sora's cheeks felt warm. Boiling. So - this was what Riku thought. Of him.

I think I understand how those Princes feel. Only – you’re not a Princess, of course.

But I don’t think I could kiss Kairi. She’s a friend, but –

We’re friends now. Not rivals. And I like being your friend a lot, but I also –

I feel different, when I look at you.

Maybe it’s because you’ve gotten taller. Less of a half-pint, but still not a full one. Your face has changed too. It’s less – roundish – in a good way. Less puppy fat. So you look – cool. Like a keyblade weilder.

Almost. You still have awful fashion sense. And your clothes look a bit small now.

Sora tugged at his shorts, self-conscious. Very self-conscious. Had he really changed that much? He hadn’t even done anything. Just slept.

I miss your laugh too. You always used to laugh like there was nothing wrong, and nothing could ever be wrong. You used to laugh so much, too. And it was so hard not to laugh with you, when you filled the air with your brightness. Your smile was bright too. As bright as the sun. There you are. Sea, sky, sun.

Sounds a lot like home.

We’ll go back there. You and me. I don’t want to make it a promise, in case I can’t keep it.

Yours,

Riku

There was a warmth in Sora. Not the same hot, embarrassed feeling on his face. This was a good warmth, in his chest. In his heart. Maybe that was just how it felt to have good friends. Ones you wanted to see again.

Maybe it was something more. But he didn’t know enough about that to say for certain.

Well, whatever. He could figure it out when he was with Riku. He could ask about these letters, and what, exactly, they all meant.

He was smiling, he realised. Yeah, he’d have a few things to say to Riku.

The end of the letters was abrupt.

Sora,

There's still a lot to fix. I won't be there, when you wake up. But you will. Wake up, I mean. I've made sure of it.

Yours, always,

Riku

That warm feeling grew into an ache. Riku hadn’t told him where he was. He’d gone off, without him. After all of those letters – he was just going to leave.

Fine, then. Sora would just have to find him. He’d keep the letters. Track Riku back down. And tell him –

He would figure out what to say later. When his cheeks weren’t burning, and his chest was not about to burst open.

But he would see Riku again. He would make sure of that.

So much happened so quickly. All in one day, he found out Riku’s appearance, which then went back to normal anyway, then they were all fighting, more fighting – and then the realm of darkness. It was a moment of peace, after a huge storm.

It could have been the right time to ask. But every part of Sora had been throbbing with a dull pain. That last fight with Xemnas had left him feeling exhausted, all the way through. So they’d sat – laid – on the beach, and tried to get their strength back. If it could ever come back in the Realm of Darkness.

And he’d just been about to ask – really – he’d been about to bring it up – when the bottled letter came through. Letters, again. This one had brought them both back to Destiny Islands.

Riku had said it was for him. He wasn’t sure. Maybe he was right. But Kairi had forgotten him once – it hadn’t been her fault, and still –

It could have been for either of them. Or both of them.

In the end, it was a few days after it all, when they were both sat on the beach. Kairi was with Selphie. They spent a lot of time together, now. That was good.

Riku had found a stick. He drew in the sand with it. Keys, crowns, the heartless symbol.

Before – before everything – Sora would take a nap. Now, he’d been asleep too long. He felt like racing, or sword fighting, but that all seemed odd now. Something that children did. Once you’d been fighting for your life, it felt strange to do it on the safety of a beach, where the worst that could happen was a splinter.

So, he sat up in the sand, nudged Riku’s foot with his own, and forced the words out before he could think twice about it.

“I got your letters.”

There it was. He’d started. And he would have to finish.

“My – letters?” Riku looked up. There was a line between his eyes, as he frowned. “You mean from before Castle Oblivion?”

It was understandable, why he was finding it hard to remember. Castle Oblivion felt like a lifetime ago. Sora remembered that part clearly, then there was a muddled gap of half-memories. Things that he knew happened, and if he thought enough, could imagine, but couldn’t be sure were real.

He tried not to dwell on that.

“And after.”

Riku kept looking at him. Unmoving. But the twig snapped in the stand.

“You weren't supposed to,” he said, and Sora could hear just a flash of panic in his voice. “I didn't send those.”

The fact that Riku was flustered too made it easier for him to smile. “You shouldn't have put my name on them, then.”

Riku hid his face behind his hair – and it was so long now that it veiled most of his pink cheeks from view.

“They were just - just a way to talk to you,” he muttered. “Whilst you were...”

Sora shuffled closer. Just slightly. The sand slipped under his fingers like silk.

“Sleeping,” he finished. It was because his own heart was racing, that the rest slipped out. Because it was so easy to tease Riku. “Like a princess.”

Riku stiffened. All of him. When he spoke, his voice was a hoarse whisper. “How much - how much did you-?”

He felt slightly guilty then. There had been a lot on those letters. A lot of feeling that Riku was trying to figure out. But he wasn’t sorry that he’d read them. He knew. And it wasn’t like Riku was ever going to let it slip.

“Once I started, I couldn’t stop,” he said. “So I read –“

“All of them?” Riku sounded mortified.

His own cheeks felt warm, now. “As much as I could of the scribbled-on ones.”

“Sora!”

Riku stared at him from behind his silver hair, eyes wide, cheeks red.

Sora tried his best to look sheepish. “They had my name on.”

“They were private!” Riku pushed his shoulder.

“I had to. I had to find out where you’d gone.” Sora pushed him back. “You say they were your way of talking to me. It's only the same as telling me.”

“I could never say those things!”

Exactly. Riku would never have told Sora how he felt.

“You wrote them.”

“You’re –“ Riku pounced on him, then. Grabbed a shoulder in either hand and threw his weight on top of him, so that Sora went sprawling in the sand. Stuck on his back. So that he was looking up into blue-green eyes. “You’re awful!”

“But you like my eyes.” Sora was smiling. He couldn’t help it. And he’d meant to be completely teasing, but it fizzled out the longer the more he spoke. Became earnest. “And my laugh. And my smile.”

“Shut up.” Riku’s grip tightened on his shoulders. Then he seemed to realise how soft Sora’s voice had gotten. How his hands were only on Riku’s wrists slightly; little finger just tracing the line of his gloves.

He stared down at him, the sun filtering through his hair so that half his face was in shadow, half in light. Beautiful, really. Riku was beautiful, and of course it didn’t matter if he looked like him or Ansem, but he was glad that it was this Riku he was broaching this subject with.

“I wanted to write back,” he murmured. Their legs were tangled together, but neither of them moved. “But I couldn't think what to say.”

It had taken him so long to figure out what that warm feeling was. That it wasn’t the same as how he felt about Kairi. That it was more than friendship. That there were things about Riku he couldn’t stop thinking about. His smirk. The way his eyes glittered. How he was so strong.

“You didn't have to say anything,” Riku said, hastily. He went to climb off of him, but Sora tightened his grip on Riku’s wrists.

Now that he was here, now that he knew how he felt, it seemed to easy. As though he couldn’t just say it.

“Maybe not.” Sora smiled, again. “Maybe all I should do I fall asleep on the beach.”

It took Riku a second. A long second. He blinked, then seemed to get the meaning, and his eyes went to Sora’s mouth. He bit his own lip. “Would you – well, will you –“

Sora couldn’t help a small laugh then. Only because Riku looked so unbelievably stunned at the possibility of his feelings being reciprocated, when surely it was obvious. He’d always thought the world of Riku.

“I think –“ His fingers skimmed past Riku’s hair – almost on his cheek. “I would like to be awake.”

It was Riku’s turn to smirk. Finally. “For once.”

And Sora’s turn to be flustered. “Hey.”

Riku was still chuckling as he leant closer. His hair really was like a veil. Sora’s heart thundered in his chest, seeming to sit on the end of his tongue. This was it. The thing he’d seen on so many worlds now.

Yet, Riku paused. So close that his breath was warm on Sora’s cheeks.

It was up to him then. He leant up, tilting his head just slightly to get the right angle.

They kissed.

It was a warm and bright thing. Like fireworks in the Summer. Or shooting stars. And when they fell away from each other, Sora’s lips tingled.

Riku kept staring at him. This time, like he was something amazing.

Well, he knew that feeling. Sora’s fingers tangled in Riku’s hair, watching the sun turn it into starlight.

Riku kissed him. They kissed each other. Still trying to figure out what to do when their mouths were together, but enjoying every moment.

Sora managed to sit back up. So they were side by side on the beach, the ocean coming in just enough to send a cold spray onto their toes. Just like the realm of darkness. Though know they faced each other, fingers touching in the sand.

Riku brushed Sora’s hair from his eyes. Brushed sand off his neck.

“I missed you,” Sora whispered. Didn’t really realise he’d said it. “So much.”

Riku raised an eyebrow. A smirk tugged at the corner of his mouth, and Sora couldn’t look away. “Now you know a little bit of how I felt without you.”

“It’s not a competition.” But if it was, Sora was sure he’d missed Riku more.

Riku only laughed. He nudged him with his shoulder, and Sora meant to nudge him back – but he found his head resting there, instead. He clutched Riku’s hand, staring out at the horizon line.

Their little world. After their big adventure. Everything had changed, but that wasn’t necessarily a bad thing.

“I’m glad you brought me back.”

Riku rested his head on top of Sora’s. Sighed.

“Always. I’ll always bring you back.”

“Forever yours.”

And Sora only knew he’d actually whispered it out loud, because Riku’s fingers tightened on his own.

#soriku #kh #kingdom hearts #fanfic #fanfiction #kingdom hearts fanfic #turnupswrites #soriku fanfic #soriku fanfiction #sora #riku

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oneshotprincess · 4 years

Text

a taste of destiny

suuuuperr late with responding to my prompts but this one is for @icebones who asked for soriku eating the paopu and it being the worst thing they’ve ever tasted :P you can also read it on ao3 here

The funniest thing is that Riku can’t even really remember who it was that told him about the paopu fruit story in the first place. It’s a local legend, of course, but he thinks it might have been Selphie who really put it in the forefront of his mind, teasing and sighing and fantasizing about forever, until all Riku could really think about was having that certainty with Sora, always.

Right now, looking at the ripe, yellow fruit in his hands, it all seems a bit silly.

“You good?” Riku’s broken out of his thoughts by Sora cheerfully settling down beside him on the bent tree, having seen Kairi off to the docks. They will be leaving tomorrow for the Land of Departure and, at Sora’s suggestion, they spent their last day on the play island. They always seem to come back here, in the end.

“Yeah,” Riku swallows. “Yeah, just...are you sure you want to do this?”

Sora blinks at him, blue eyes glowing in the reflection of the sunset. “What’s not to be sure about?”

“No, no, not like that!” Riku is quick to clarify. “I just don’t think it matters to me anymore, you know? I don’t need a paopu fruit to know that our destinies are intertwined.”

Riku has so much more than that, now. He knows the melody of their hearts, always playing in the background of their lives, barely audible unless Riku actively listens for it, but it’s there nonetheless. He has their Dream Eater link, proof that Riku kept his promise to protect Sora. Riku has Sora’s words and Sora’s affections, freely expressed at all times of the day; ‘I love yous’ both softly-spoken and exuberantly-declared and so many kisses that Riku’s lost count, even though he promised himself that he wouldn’t.

There are doubts, there will always be doubts when it comes to himself, Riku thinks ruefully, but after everything the two of them have been through, a paopu fruit can’t possibly bind them tighter together than they’re already bound.

Riku sees Sora’s shoulders slump a little in relief before Sora starts cooing, “Aw, Riku! Look at you, trying to act all cool and mature.”

Riku flushes. “Shut up,” he grumbles. “I was just saying…”

Sora favors him with a soft, fond look. “I know, doofus,” Sora says. “But I just thought, we’re not gonna be coming back here for a long time, you know? We’ve said all our goodbyes and everything. It’d feel weird, to leave without sharing one. Like unfinished business.”

Settling in the Land of Departure isn’t something any of them planned on but it just seems like the logical next step in their life. Destiny Islands will always be their first home, the place some part of their hearts will always long to return to, but none of them fit here anymore. To care about mundane everyday things like school and homework and getting a job seems impossible for them now. Trying to go back to Destiny Islands’ version of normal is like forcing puzzle pieces into places where they don’t belong. Even their parents seem to accept this, letting them leave for the Land of Departure with a lot of tears, but very few protests. It feels like...he can’t quite describe it. Like the end of a chapter but also the beginning of a newer, bigger one. Starting it off with a tradition seems fitting.

(And, okay, in the privacy of his own mind, Riku can admit that he likes it. He likes that Sora asked him, especially since he knows Sora’s already shared one with Kairi. Riku’s not proud of it but it is what it is.)

“Alright,” Riku agrees. He digs into the divots of the fruits and presses until the flesh gives way. It breaks apart easily in his hands, spilling juice across his fingers. “Here,” Riku hands half the fruit to Sora who takes it with a grin.

“One the count of three?” Sora asks and Riku shrugs his acquiescence.

“One..two...three.”

The taste hits Riku like a full-strength Thundaga, straightening his spine and puckering his lips with just the first bite. Saliva fills his mouth, his body valiantly trying to rally its defenses against the offensive taste while Riku tries valiantly to not spit everything out. That is, until he sees Sora’s expression.

With great difficulty, he swallows the piece of paopu in his mouth and gapes at Sora, who’s laughing his head off.

“You—” There are no words for the strength of the betrayal he feels but Riku figures he has to make an effort anyway, lest Sora think he’s going to get away with it. “You knew! That it tastes like—like—”

“Like shit?” Sora laughs. “Oh, yeah. Man, you should have seen your face! Worse than Kairi’s, I think.”

“I can’t believe you!”

“Hey, I had to suffer through it! So did Kairi! Why should you be exempt from the awful taste of destiny?”

“Oh, I’ll show you awful, alright!” The very best part about dating Sora is that Riku’s learning every day how to stop thinking and simply follow his heart. And right now, his heart’s telling him to take the paopu fruit and smash it right against Sora’s stupid, lovely, playful grin.

“Riku!” The smug grin is wiped right off Sora’s face, who sputters indignantly as pieces of fruit and juice dribble down his chin. Riku watches as Sora catches a taste of the sour and scrunches up his face.

Awful, Riku thinks, that Sora should still look so adorable while being the little gremlin he is.

“You’re such a sore loser, Riku,” Sora’s voice is muffled as he attempts to wipe away the excess juice.

“No, I’m not. You promised to share the fruit,” Riku reminds him smugly. “And now we’ve shared it.”

Sora gives him a look sour enough to rival the paopu, as if this whole thing wasn’t his idea to start with.

“Well,” Riku sighs. His hands are tacky with paopu fruit juice. He lets the rest of the fruit fall to the sand below them. “At least now we know why the legend came about.”

“Huh?”

“If you love someone enough to make it through eating this thing, you’ll make it through anything. Forever’s going to be a piece of cake,” Riku declares, giving Sora a smile.

Riku can see the exact moment Sora’s expression changes from surprise to fond to mischievous. It’s an expression so familiar to Riku that he wonders how he was roped into this fruit thing in the first place. Man, Selphie really must have done a number on Riku.

“Hey Riku,” Sora grins and Riku knows exactly what’s coming. He plays along anyway.

“Yeah?”

“I love you.” Sora leans in and Riku really should stop it before it happens but it’s their last day on Destiny Islands, the sun is almost gone and even when Sora’s being a brat, Riku is so, so weak for him.

Riku meets him halfway. It’s the sourest kiss Riku’s ever had in his life. And, somehow, It’s also the sweetest.

#kingdom hearts #soriku #soriku au #sora #riku #paopu fruit #my fics

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yzafre · 3 years

Text

when we stood on the skyline (there was no turning back)

AO3

Sora is born into a world where your heart has wings.

Unique to the person, tuned to their soul, the wing-shaped embodiment of your being sprouts from your back in a shimmer of lights.

Sora loved his Mom’s wings, a pale brown with white undersides that appear in a spiral of green. They were super soft, and she’d use them to shield him from the rain or even the sun on particularly hot days. Sometimes, she’d give him her dropped feathers to play with. He’d carry them around in his pockets to pull out while waiting in line at the store, carefully separating and smoothing out the barbs.

He couldn’t wait for his wings to come in. One evening he spent hours focused, trying to replicate the bright flash he’d seen others use to pull out their wings. For all his efforts he got nothing, not even the barest burst of sparks like Riku sometimes showed when he got excited.

“A person’s wings aren’t quite strong enough to spread on their own,” Sora’s mother consoled him later as she tucked him into bed, “We all need a little bit of help, the wind beneath our wings to hold us up. That’s what your Flight is for.”

“Like you, and Uncle Dylas, and Auntie Emi?” Sora asked.

“That’s right. And once we bonded, that's when I manifested my wings.”

Uncle Dylas lived three houses down in a house that was smaller, but had a giant tree and a truly spectacular tree-house out back that he and Riku played in after Uncle picked them up from school. He made perfect cookies, taught them all the card games there were, and sometimes snuck them dessert before dinner.

Auntie Emi didn’t really have a home, at least that Sora had seen, or maybe her home was their home, or maybe Uncle Dylas’s, whichever she preferred on any given day. He couldn’t figure anything else out since that’s the only place he’d ever seen her sleep.

She also left a lot, though she’d always make it home in time for the big holidays and Mom and Uncle Dylas’s birthday every year. Mom said she had a big job that took her all over the world, and Auntie did bring home really cool gifts whenever she came back every few months. Once she even got him a pocketknife with a big, bold pattern – which was so cool because not even Riku had gotten a knife yet – but Mom took it away and said he could have it back in a couple years.

All of that to say that Mom and Uncle and Auntie were pretty much the coolest people ever, and always seemed to know what each other was thinking, and got to be around each other basically whenever they wanted. If that’s what being part of a Flight was like, then that seemed pretty cool. He’d certainly like to see Riku whenever he wanted.

More than anything, though, Sora just really wanted his wings.

“When will I get my Flight?” he whined.

“Give it time,” his mother laughed, “You’ll meet plenty of people, and when you’re older you’ll find the right ones.”

“Of course we’ll be in a Flight together,” Riku said when Sora brought it up, “Who else is going to make sure you’re okay?”

“Hey! Who says I won’t be looking after you?”

“Anyways,” Riku continued over his protests, louder than before, “We’ll just have to find our third, and then we’ll bond.”

“Yeah! But, Mom says it can take a long time to find your people. She didn’t meet Uncle and Auntie until she was twenty.”

The two grimaced at each other, because that was forever to wait.

“You’ve got a point,” Riku said, “And we already know pretty much everyone on the island. It’s not like we can take just anyone. We’ll have to wait until we can go over to the big island ourselves, at least.”

“Yeah. What do you think they’ll be like?” Sora mused, and their conversation turned to guessing at all the qualities of their future partner.

Their answer came in the dark of the night, in the form of a falling star.

Kairi entered their life between one day and the next, blown in with the tides.

It’s Tidus that introduced her to them, helping her off the boat and onto the beaches of their play-island. She was quiet, watching everyone with foggy eyes and hovering on the edge of their games. She answered Selphie’s questions and smiled faintly at the boys’ competitions and flinched if you approached too fast.

Sora thought she was nice. Riku, he could tell, pretty much wrote her off by the time the second week was over.

It was during the third week, as they were arguing over how to retrieve the ball Sora and Selpie had gotten wedged up between a hut and a particularly large branch, that things changed.

Riku was insisting he could retrieve it himself. He had recently managed to pull out his ghost-wings, glowing spectral shadows of the wings he’d someday have. Like all ghost wings, they could only be pulled out for a few seconds at a time, but he decreed they could give him enough of a boost to help out. He was explaining how he could shimmy up the corner, one side on the hut and one on the cliff, when Kairi cut in.

“Don’t be silly, all you’re going to do is break your neck.”

They all turned to her in surprise to find her frowning up at Riku with her hands propped on her hips. She seemed to waver for a second and then –

Sora watched as a light seemed to flicker on behind her eyes, like a new lightbulb slipping into place, chasing away all the fog keeping her trapped. Rather than giving in, she tilted her chin up and firmed her stance.

“Alright then,” Riku scoffed, “How would you do it?”

Ten minutes later Kairi stood smugly over her spoils as Riku eyed her with grudging respect. From that day on, everything was different.

Kairi fit between Riku and Sora in a way Tidus and Wakka and Selphie never quite managed.

Riku liked that she could keep up when they ran races and got Sora to stop napping. He said she’s cooler than Sora ever was, and smarter too. Sora figured she must be, because Riku listened to her when she told him his plans to supply food for their raft by building in a mini mushroom shed were stupid.

(Later, Sora thanked her profusely for this, because no matter what Riku said mushrooms were slimy and gross, and if he had to live off them he’d die. Kairi giggled and told him he’s also very silly, but she still supported him on the mushroom front, so that’s okay.)

Sora liked being around Kairi because she was warm. She was bright, too, not quite like the sun, but in a way that said everything’s going to be alright, and you never had to be scared of the dark because the light would still be there, even then.

“Like if the sun was a nightlight,” Sora explained to Riku.

“What,” said Riku, from where he’d been drawing raft plans in the sand. After a moment he rolled his eyes, dismissing the remark as more of Sora’s nonsense, and went back to his sketch.

“She is pretty cool, though,” Riku agreed later, “Maybe - maybe she could be our third.”

It didn’t take long for the three of them to agree that they definitely wanted to be a Flight together. When Sora got home, he immediately asked him Mom how they could make it happen.

“Ceremony?” his Mom questioned, turning away from the papers in front of her.

“Like, if you get married there’s a ceremony, right?” Sora asked, “So what about when you become a Flight?”

“Oh! Oh, well, no, there’s nothing like that. A reception later, sometimes, but no ceremony. Why do you ask?”

“We’ve decided we’re gonna be a Flight together – me, and Riku, and Kairi. Now we’ve just gotta make it happen!”

“Oh,” she blinked down at him, spinning in her chair to face him, “Well, like I said, there’s no ceremony. It’s just something that… happens, when you’re ready. Besides, no one bonds at your age. You need time to grow up and find the right people.”

“But why wouldn’t it be Riku and Kairi?” Sora pouted up at her, “They’re my best friends! I’ll never find anyone better than them.”

“It’s not quite that simple, I’m afraid. I met a lot of people I thought were the right ones before I met your Aunt and Uncle.”

“Well, how did you know they were right, then?”

“I suppose it’s like how I knew I was going to marry your father,” his Mom mused, “Only… more. You turn and look one day and realize this is it for you.”

“But I know I want them now, so we should be bonding, right?”

“Perhaps ‘know’ isn’t quite the right word,” she corrected thoughtfully, “It’s more like ‘understanding’. You understand how they’re already a part of you, and the act of understanding makes it real, and suddenly they can’t not be a part of you anymore.”

“What? They become a part of you, but they’re already a part of you? I don’t get it,” Sora grumbles, pouting down at his plate.

“You’ll understand when you’re older.”

#kh #kingdom hearts #sora #riku #kairi #fanfiction #wingfic #wrap your wings AU #Yza writes a thing #I've been working on this for months #so excited to finally begin posting

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i-believe-in-soriku · 4 years

Text

Arabian Nights

It was a very hot night in Agrabah. Riku and Sora were there on a mission. They had been staying at the Sultan's Palace, Jasmine's father and Aladdin's father-in-law since he had married the Princess. Riku couldn't sleep. He was used to hot temperatures, but that was something else. He was looking at the city skyline out of his bedroom window when he heard a knock at his door. He had no doubt about the identity of his visitor: only Sora would have the idea of coming to see him at such an hour. So he told him to come in. Sora approached him with a bit of shame on his face.

"I can't sleep."

“Looks like this town has this effect over people”, joked Riku.

“I don't think that's the reason.”

Riku raised an eyebrow.

“You had a nightmare? Or have you got a problem?”

“No, it's just that I'm thinking too much”, said Sora evasively.

He sprawled on Riku's bed without hesitation. Riku decided to put himself on the edge of his window to make room for Sora. He understood that Sora needed to speak, so he might as well put him at ease. But Sora didn't seem to be able to find the words to express his torment. So Riku tried to help him.

“So, what do you think of that prevents you from sleeping?” he asked him nicely.

“I... don't really know. I just... can't sort things out. I just thought you could help me. I... I'm lost.”

Riku smiled when he heard that. Sora always seemed to think that he gived the best advice. He knew that the fact that he was a year older gave him a little more experience, but he didn't understand what he had done to deserve such an honor. Anyway, he had to do his best to deserve this faith.

“I see what it feels like to be lost. It has happened to me... often.”

He added inside his mind, I didn't think it could happen to you. Sora wasn’t the kind of person whom makes things complicated. But he knew very well that sometimes things could get confused without you realizing it.

“Don't complicate things to much, Sora. You’ll see things clearly if you allow yourself to take some time.”

It couldn't be truer. Riku had experienced it: it had taken him years to put the right words on the feelings that boiled in him.

“How do you do?” articulated Sora. “I mean, to have so much confidence in you?”

Confidence in me? thought Riku. Sora really though he was confident? He pondered about it, a little surprised. He had indeed managed to achieve a certain balance. He had gradually opened up to others, even if it was still far from perfect, especially when it came to Sora. He had learned his limits, and thanks to Sora and his friends, he understood that he was loved and that he mattered to those around him. This observation made him grin.

“Well… It was difficult”, he finally replied. “I had to admit to myself things that were... hard to swallow. I had to face the darkest part of me. And having someone who counts on me and who cares for me helped me, too”, he finished, looking Sora in the eyes.

Sora smiled and put his hands behind his head, like when he was showing off. Riku still saw that his compliment had touched him.

“But you know, Sora, sometimes I doubt. Everybody does. It’s normal, especially when things change, or when we grow up… Stuff like that.”

“Really? You doubt? inquired Sora, curious. “Say, you don’t continue to depreciate yourself, do you?”

Riku looked up at the ceiling, amused by the vehemence with whiich Sora had said that.

“Not now. I’m not saying it won’t ever happen again, but that’s not it.”

“Then what?”

Riku found Sora a little prying, but since he was his best friend, he was probably expecting an answer. Actually, Riku didn't care too much about revealing these things to Sora, who would never use it against him.

“About my abilities, my judgment, my feelings ... I doubt about lots of things.”

Sora sat up to listen to him, obviously very interested in his answers. However, the older of the two didn’t feel like saying something fascinating. He hoped that Sora’s problems weren't too big.

No... if he was honest with himself, he hoped that Sora doubted something in particular, which would explain why it was towards him that he had turned rather than towards someone else.

“And…when you doubt, let’s say, your feelings, what do you do?” muttured Sora.

Riku could no longer ignore the fact that his heart was racing. Sora was talking to him about feelings. Should he have hope or was he wrong? He no longer knew what to think. He did his best to keep a cool head to assist his friend, but it was hard not to let the feverishness that took hold of him show through.

“Listen, Sora. It depends what kind of feelings you talk about. Either way, the best thing is to put it simply, as it comes to you. Whether to yourself or...”

He couldn't finish his sentence, but Sora slowly nodded.

“I know I'm not the type to think a lot, but there, I don't know how to do it. Because ... it's not easy to sort, so to ... to make it simple ... I don't know how to do it.”

Riku raised his hand to interrupt the flow of confused words that sprang from Sora's mouth. He got up and slid onto the bed to sit next to him. He had to make sure of his suspicions. But he also had to stay calm, for Sora. He turned to face Sora while standing next to him and Sora followed suit.

“Maybe I can help, if you trust me.”

"Of course I trust you! But how-”

Sora was silent when Riku, his heart pounding, plunged his eyes into his. Riku had always been fascinated by the blue of Sora's eyes, although he knew lots of blue-eyed people. Those of Sora were big, gentle, playful. He had long eyelashes that made him look innocent. Right now, he could read confusion and embarrassment inside. Still, Sora returned his gaze. He let the moment last, and finally asked him:

“Tell me what you feel. Simply.”

Sora remained silent. He looked… shaken.

“Does it embarrass you?” helped Riku.

“Y-Yeah, but...”

Riku couldn't help but smirk. He leaned over so that his shoulder hit Sora's to tease him.

“I know. You wanna hide.”

"Y-Yeah, but...”

"You want it to last”, asserted Riku.

Sora opened his eyes wide and stared at him while flushing slightly.

“How-”

“I know that because it’s the same for me.”

He added very quickly, so as not to lose self-confidence:

"It’s the kind of things I feel when I see your stupid grin.”

Sora opened his mouth but nothing came out. Riku had to turn his head briefly so as not to get carried away in his turn by the embarrassment. Then he looked back at his friend, who finally dared to smile at him.

“Yes, that one!”

Sora pricked a blush - frankly, this time - and Riku felt he himself must be that red. However, now that he was launched... it was easier. Probably because it was Sora, and being with Sora always ended up relaxing him, even when that guy was uncomfortable.

“See, I said things simply. Your turn.”

Sora reflected. Riku noticed that his shoulders had relaxed, as if released from a weight.

“Well... I like being by your side. And I really admire you.”

He had insisted on this last point, he wasn’t dreaming. Without realizing it, he leaned over to hear him better.

“Same goes for me. I feel special when I’m with you”, confided Riku.

"You are!” exclaimed Sora.

Riku could have collapsed just by hearing these words, they were so soft in his ears. His doubts were gone and he no longer cared about being careful, not when Sora was so outspoken and adorable with him.

“I just want to be with you”, he whispered.

He realized the ambiguity of his sentence after saying it. Maybe he was being too direct, because his friend looked confused. But Sora went back to staring. His eyes stooped slightly for a fraction of a second - had Sora just looked at his lips? The young boy began to speak, his voice trembling:

"I... I want...”

“I know”, Riku interrupted in a breath. “I want the same.”

Sora looked dubious, as if he thought Riku misinterpreted his thoughts. Riku then decided that he should make it clear, not in words. He had to act.

He turned a little closer to Sora, and tenderly put his right hand on his cheek. It was hot under his fingers, and soft. He allowed himself to look at Sora with all the love he felt for him - why pretend now?

He didn’t expect Sora to mimic his movements, placing his own hand on his left cheek. The contact was so light, so tender, that Riku huffed. He put his free hand on Sora's and gently squeezed it without removing it. He kept his eyes closed for a few seconds to fully feel this touch. They stayed that way until Riku finally lowered his head. He wasn't embarrassed, but it was ... a lot to deal with at once. He kept his hand in Sora's.

He took a deep breath and faced Sora again. Then he simply said, a big smile on his lips:

"I love you.”

He had to tell him. He was the one who told him to say things as they came to him.

"Me too”, he sighed. “I... love you too.”

Riku's smile widened when he repeated for the third time that night:

"I know.”

And it was wonderful to be able to associate these words with the fact that Sora loved him. An hour before that was not the case, but now everything was clear. Sora laughed - this warmed Riku's heart - and he pulled Riku to him to take him in his arms.They stayed like that all night, Sora huddled on Riku, exchanging anecdotes as if nothing had happened.

Riku had never been that happy to have insomnia in his life.

___________________♡♡♡___________________

I post it sooner than expected for all the people that told me nice things eheh~

This one looks like Passion but not exactly. Like I said I like to imagine several ways for them to confess their love. And I just can't fix myself about one way or the other 😂 so I just keep on inventing a thousands ways with which they do so. Hope it's not too repetitive!

For this one I had just the picture of Riku with his hand on Sora's cheek and same for Sora and them just staring at each other's eyes and it was so sweet I had to write about it. So I added the others ideas, Riku giving advice to Sora, Riku guessing everything, etc.

I also recalled the French lyrics of Aladdin's Arabian Nights: it refers to both insomnia and love. It doesn't work the same in English, but it still give a context!

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yo-namine · 3 years

Text

Some scattered thoughts about Melody of Memory. Spoilers galore under the cut.

So I want to start by saying that I did read the spoilers ahead of time, and that the reddit leaks made everything sound a bit worse than it actually was. But even after having watched everything in-context... It’s still kind of a mixed bag, lol. And I haven't finished the actual game yet, so this post is mostly just about the twenty or so minutes of story development that I spoiled myself for.

Anyway:

The look on Kairi's face when she realizes she's about to be told to stay behind again 💔💔💔💔 And I'm sorry, but I have to rant about Riku for a sec: Remember when he laughed at Sora for wanting to help save Aqua in KH3, putting him down in front of not only their friends but also the master Sora was still trying to prove himself to? And then Sora had to save him from Anti-Aqua anyway? And then he spent the rest of the game bailing Riku (and everyone else) out of trouble? Did Riku not, I dunno, learn something about underestimating his friends there? And now he's totally fine with Kairi getting left behind yet again because apparently she just isn't good enough to help him? He really thinks it’s better to go into this other world all by his lonesome with 0 backup? Also, what do you want to bet that Riku's gonna get another level reset in the next game and have to relearn everything, meaning he and Kairi would've essentially been at the same skill level anyway? And the irony won't even occur to him? Oi. I’m just really not interested in the next game being Dream Drop Distance 2: No Dialogue for Women Boogaloo. Base KH3 left me feeling like that’s what we’d get next, but I went and let Re:Mind get my hopes up for something better. Bloop. 🤡

And how much more training does Kairi need at this point? Sure, she’s not a master, but I think KH3 showed (intentionally or not) that that title really isn’t worth much. And I know that whole thing was just an excuse for Nomura to spare himself the ordeal of having to write anything substantial for an icky girl, but Kairi was apparently good enough for memory!Xehanort to remark on her skill, and she did solidly kick the real Xehanort's ass in Re:Mind. The only pre-keyblade training Sora and Riku got was smacking other island kids around with sticks, and then miraculously they were both totally capable of fighting full-fledged monsters. Uh???? Anyway, Kairi's essentially right back where she started in KH3. I do like that she specifically asked for Aqua, and I guess it's something that she's at least studying under a real master now, but I'm not going to get my hopes up for anything major coming out of this just because I know this series too well.

One thing I did really like, though, was that scene between Kairi and the memory!Xehanort. The two of them actually getting some dialogue together was exactly what I wanted from Re:Mind to make their battle feel more personal. And during their fight in MoM, Kairi's actually pretty inventive with some of her moves. Like there are two instances where Xehanort grabs her keyblade, and she escapes by dismissing her weapon and resummoning it to attack. She also makes to strike Xehanort right in the back the same way he did her in KH3, which I thought was a nice detail. But part of their conversation sort of seems to contradict what we learned in Re:Mind, doesn’t it? Xehanort here states point-blank that he "destroyed” her because he knew what Sora would do to save her. So... Which is it? Did he "crystallize” Kairi because she was a PoH that he could use should his main plan fail, or did he really just straight-up kill her to get to Sora? Or maybe Kairi never learned what he actually did to her in the Graveyard, so this memory!Xehanort is just speaking based on what she knows? Hm.

Anyway, Sora then shows up to take Kairi's place in battle after Xehanort knocks her down. And I get that they wanted some big surprise to throw in this game, and I won't lie, it is kind of sweet to see that Sora's still looking out for Kairi despite not physically being with her anymore, but considering the fact that Kairi doesn't get any boss fights in this game? lmfao come on. Why not just have Kairi fight the battle with Kingdom Key instead? That way, the whole point of the scene can stay in-tact without robbing her of a battle that should be hers to fight. As much as I liked seeing Sora and hearing his theme kick in for a second there, none of that should have been at Kairi’s expense. Let the girl have her moment, ffs.

At first, I thought Xehanort’s “Now I’m certain of where your heart is” line was saying that Sora’s heart was within Kairi’s, but I think he’s really talking about Quadratum here. I guess since Sora and Kairi’s hearts are connected, he can show up like that to save her (if she’s in the Final World, anyway) from wherever he is? Or something? But if that’s the case, could her connection to Sora have potentially served as a bridge to Quadratum in the same way Nameless Star did? I dunno, I feel like Sora appearing was a really big deal, but no one even talks about it afterward. It’s weird. Anyway, if it actually turns out that Kairi’s connection to Sora can be used to track him down, that’s going to be hilarious. Imagine Riku getting to Quadratum and then realizing he ditched the one person who was already in touch with Sora.

I do have to say that I really like Christopher Lloyd as Xehanort, though it can be a little jarring at times just because I keep thinking I'm listening to King Graham. And while Hayden Panettiere will probably always be my favorite Kairi VA, I liked Alyson Stoner's voice in this game. Her narrations were nice to listen to.

Other positives things: Uh......... I still love The Final World’s title card. And music.

Oh, and I thought it was really cute how excited Riku and Kairi were to see each other in the lab. The way they hurried toward one another made me think they were gonna hug, but alas. 😞

So, uh. Yeah. I’m still looking forward to playing through the rest of the game, but knowing that it all ends with Kairi getting put on a bus yet again is a pretty lame pay-off. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

#my posts #kh spoilers #mom spoilers #melody of memory

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aliceslantern · 3 years

Text

Give/Take, a Kingdom Hearts fanfic, chapter 5

Ienzo has been too busy since the war to be overwhelmed by the past. But with little progress to be made in his work with Kairi, old nightmares start to invade.

Riku is a glorified housesitter. Lonely and faced with no choice but to wait for a way to find his friends, he eagerly accepts when Ienzo asks him to help do repairs around the castle. Before long, the two strike up an unlikely friendship, united by their dark pasts and their attempts to be better people.

But just as they begin to consider something more... Kairi wakes up.

Ienzoku (Ienzo/Riku), post-Melody of Memory, slow burn. Updates Thursdays until it's done.

Chapter summary: Ienzo and Riku's friendship begins to deepen, raising questions about what they might feel about what another. Time passes.

Read it on FF.net/on AO3

---

Ienzo was exhausted.

The walk back from town felt longer than it ever had. Cid had tried his best to offer advice, but as it were, he couldn’t do much. Ienzo’s limbs felt heavy, the soles of his shoes worn thin from so many hours on his feet. I really should get new boots, he thought.

At least he was able to identify this feeling now, unlike the first time it had happened. He needed to try and sleep, if so for an hour or two. He didn’t want to collapse again. It was not a very flattering look. The first time it had happened, Aeleus had panicked and contacted Even, and the lecture Ienzo had received afterwards was not pleasant.

He knew better now. Rest first; at least a little. He forced himself to lay down and was so burnt out he slept dreamlessly, almost breathlessly, waking up just after dawn with an unpleasant crick in his neck. The notion of waking up for once not in a nightmare-induced panic was a bit disorienting; he blinked.

Ahead of Ienzo was another long day of no progress being made. He knew in his bones that was what would happen, but couldn’t justify doing much else. He took a shower, put on some clean clothes, and went to the communal kitchen to go get a cup of coffee, hoping that someone had filled the pot already.

Someone had, but not the someone he’d thought.

“Oh… sorry,” Riku said. “I figured I’d just… make some for all of us.”

Ienzo shook his head a little. “So you got in.”

“Yesterday. I helped Aeleus with some painting.” There was something jittery, almost nervous in Riku’s expression. Ienzo thought back to their last encounter and bit his lip.

“Oh. That’s good. Oatmeal? I was going to make some for myself.”

“If it’s not too much trouble.”

It was still a bit uncomfortable, admittedly, to have his back towards him. Ienzo’s face was burning, and his heart was beating hard again, but not quite with the same panic as before. “I know Aeleus isn’t exactly the chattiest if one doesn’t know him well.”

“...Actually… he and I kinda had a good conversation. About…”

“Castle Oblivion.”

“What else?” he chuckled.

Ienzo dumped in the oats and turned to look at him.

“It’s just hard for me to pretend that never happened. Not since I’m here.”

“And since you quite literally live there now,” Ienzo added.

He shrugged. “Well. Staying there, anyway.”

He stirred their breakfast. “Is it very strange?”

“It’s eerie,” Riku admitted. “I’m the only one there.”

“...No wonder you’re looking for any reason not to be there.”

After a moment, Riku added, “it wouldn’t be so bad if I actually had things to do.”

Ienzo added some honey and sugar. “You don’t like being bored, do you?”

“I already think too much,” Riku said. “With nothing to work towards… I feel useless.”

“I know that feeling well.” He smiled a little despite himself. At least these were instant oats, so there wasn’t much awkward faffing around while he waited and waited for it to cook. He spooned some out for each of them and sat.

It felt a little odd, sharing a meal. Something too mundane and too human. “Thanks for cooking,” Riku said.

“Thank you for the coffee,” Ienzo said back. “Really. You don’t need to be so stiff or so polite around me.”

“Sometimes I’m not sure what else to say.”

“You don’t always have to say anything.”

“What if I want to sound smart like you guys?”

He laughed. “We’re not smart. We’re educated. There’s a difference.”

“I don’t know about that. Hearing you guys talk about--data, and principles, and heartlines, and all this other stuff… sometimes it just sounds like gibberish to me.” He chuckled. His grin was a bit lopsided, Ienzo noted. He liked the character it brought to Riku’s face, different than the obvious mask he’d been wearing. And I’m probably doing the same.

“Sometimes it is gibberish,” Ienzo said. “I swear Even likes hearing himself talk.”

“...I think you do too.”

His eyebrows shot up; it took a moment to realize he was teasing him, and even longer to come up with a response. “...Perhaps theatricality is part of my nature,” he said lamely. He wished he could stop blushing. “What of it?”

“But yet I also so don’t get you.”

He blinked. “How so?”

Riku cocked his head. “I dunno. There’s just something… I can’t put my finger on. Some people are just such open books. Like Sora. But you… I thought I understood Zexion. And when we met, I thought I got Ienzo . But now I’m not so sure.”

“May have something to do with the fact that I don’t get myself ,” Ienzo said dryly. Then, “Do you like that sort of intrigue?”

It was a rather bold statement, and it slipped out mostly by accident. He wasn’t sure why he said it, just that it felt natural in the moment. He realized this was less bantering, more… something else.

“Jury’s still out on that one, I’m afraid,” Riku replied equally.

“Then maybe I should try harder.” It was like a game, different than their earlier enmity. He almost wanted to know how far he could go, how hard he could push it. If Riku would snap at him for his impertinence. Or maybe Riku was so bored he wanted that impertinence.

Maybe Ienzo did too.

Riku flicked his eyebrows once. “Maybe you should,” he said. He stood to put his dishes in the sink. “As much fun as I’m having… I should do what I’m actually here for. Apparently I’m helping Dilan today.”

“Good luck to you.”

“Though--” He looked back. “Do you happen to have… any bobby pins I could borrow?”

---

It was odd, and confounding, to have him around more often. Running into him during or after meals. Seeing him around Dilan or Aeleus or even working on his own, his brows furrowed in concentration. Dilan reported--with something like confusion--that he was very good with his hands after all.

“I think it’s nice he’s being so helpful,” Ienzo said. “I was hoping I’d get to stop hearing you complain about having to do this work.”

“There’s so much to make habitable that it’s going to take far more than adding one to a staff of two,” Dilan said. “Perhaps if you got off your butt and did some work too.”

Ienzo rolled his eyes. “I am working. Quite hard.” On a mostly fruitless project, true. Every morning he walked into that lab and Kairi was still asleep, he felt a stab of guilt. They were wasting days of her life. But everything was coming out so-- ordinarily. Ansem insisted they had to trust that she was working with the process. But it had been nearly four months. And seeing Riku’s concern and disappointment whenever he found out no major strides had been made didn’t help.

Ienzo felt… useless. He found himself thinking more often of his days as a Nobody, when he felt like he was doing something, getting somewhere. Making discoveries.

Committing atrocities. Causing worlds to fall. Et cetera.

But this didn’t feel much like atonement either. He pulled his eyes away from the computer and looked at his hands, which to this day still looked rather naked without those black gloves. All I’ve done and I’m still here. Is there a reason for that? Or is this another of the universe’s jokes? Much like Xehanort had ascended rather than simply dying. Maybe he wanted karma, he wanted consequence, and vilification--

He looked back at the sleeping girl. He wanted to do good so badly . But he didn’t seem very “good” at that. “Excuse me,” he said to Ansem. “I need to walk for a minute. Clear my head.”

“By all means,” Ansem said, with a smile.

Ansem’s kindness made him feel guilty, too. Maybe Ienzo hadn’t been the one to usurp him, but after all, he had been the one to persuade Ansem into building that lab. Everything that happened after that was his fault. Staying busy… helped him keep on top of the memory. If he didn’t try to make up for what he did, why even have this life at all? It didn’t make sense.

But he couldn’t try to work like this.

Ienzo started walking. His eyes were hurting from all the time spent in front of screens. There had to be something he could do, something major all of them were missing--maybe he should go to the library, pull a few texts, something older than their research, a bit more mythic--

His head was starting to ache. He pinched the bridge of his nose.

“You--ah--okay?”

Riku startled him; he felt that jolt of accompanying panic and had to take a breath to settle himself. “Riku. I thought you were away.”

“...I just came back a few minutes ago. It turns out a self-cleaning castle doesn’t need a whole lot of babysitting.”

“I-I’m glad you’re motivated.”

“Idle hands make the devil’s work,” he said, with a trace of sarcasm. “Really, you okay?”

“I’m a bit frustrated,” he admitted. “When it comes to our work.”

“With Kairi,” he said, his face falling.

“Yes. It’s been… months, and we have… very little to show.”

“Ansem said this would be a long shot,” Riku reminded him.

“But I’d hoped for more than quite literally nothing. It makes me feel…” Why was he telling him all this?

“Let me guess. Useless?” he offered.

“Wholly and completely. I left to try and clear my head. If you’d like to talk to Even--”

“That’s alright.”

Ienzo smiled a little. “I think I just need to get out of here for a few minutes. Get coffee… or something. That is, if the weather isn’t awful.”

“It kinda always is lately, isn’t it?” Riku said, with a sigh.

“You must miss the warmth.”

He seemed to go far away for a moment. “I guess so.”

“Do you want to come with me?”

He jerked. “What?”

“On my walk? For coffee? Or…” Checking his watch. “I should probably eat…” He scowled.

Riku chuckled. “What’s that mean?”

“Right… you wouldn’t know, would you?” He shook his head. “Nobodies don’t have to eat. Or sleep, for that matter. That is to say… I’m not quite used to it. Which I’m sure sounds very strange.”

“Huh,” he said. “You know, I think I sort of get it. When I was… possessed by the seeker of darkness, I kinda felt the same.”

“Isn’t it bizarre?” Ienzo asked. He hadn’t realized how much he wanted to talk about this.

“...I guess darkness is hungry in other ways,” he said. “Though… I never fully lost my heart the way you did.”

He hummed. “Well. I’ll get my coat and boots, and then we’ll go?”

“Alright.”

---

True to form, it was snowing, fat white flakes falling from the sky. At least it wasn't so painfully cold, and Ienzo's wool coat kept him warm enough. "I guess there aren't seasons on Destiny Islands," he began, feeling the need to chat.

"I thought you'd been," Riku began cautiously.

"...No," Ienzo said.

"But your… illusion of it was so spot-on."

His heart was beating hard and fast. "That's partially due to your and Sora's memories, and partially due to the nature of Castle Oblivion," he said. "Usually I can't-- couldn't, " he corrected, "make something so intense without experience. I think that's the only reason Xemnas let me onto the field, in the end." He cleared his throat. "No, I've never been. How do noodles sound?"

"Um, fine."

They got some from a stand and sat at a table under a covered courtyard. Despite outdoor space heaters, it was still rather cold. They ate in silence for a moment.

"It does have seasons," Riku said, in a low voice. "Not like here, not the four. But… yeah. The dry season, the wet rainy season, hot, and… slightly less hot."

Ienzo chuckled. "Do you miss it?"

Riku didn't speak for a moment, and he wondered if he'd hit a nerve. "More than I thought I would," he said. "I guess… part of it is the simplicity of life, that I had. I hated it, though. The thought that I would spend my whole life confined to a handful of islands."

"...It must've felt suffocating."

"It did," he admitted. "Though now I want to go back to the way things were. ...At least until I get sick of it again."

"You have options now," Ienzo said.

"I guess so."

He picked at his food with his chopsticks. "Did you have a happy childhood there?" He asked

Riku smirked. "Why do you ask? I thought we didn't always have to say anything."

Ienzo's heart stuttered again. This game was getting deliberate, he realized. "How dare I seek to get to know you better."

"I'm just honestly surprised you're asking me that. "

"Why? Considering I spend my waking days examining old memory… I think I deserve a conversation about it."

He leaned back in his chair. His jacket pulled a bit tighter across his chest, revealing a bit of definition Ienzo definitely noticed, and he found his mouth dry and his head a bit empty. It took a moment to recover. He realized, coldly, he was ogling him with interest , and his breathing picked up a bit.

Oh no.

Riky raised an eyebrow. "Ienzo? You okay?"

He'd never felt this way. Was this supposed to be how it felt? He didn't deserve this sort of thing, he wasn't even sure he deserved friends--

He leaned back over the table. "You're breathing kind of hard. Why are you anxious?"

Ienzo felt so beautifully and so awfully seen. He wasn't used to feeling and he wasn't used to anyone recognizing what he was feeling--how could he ever be good enough--

"Ienzo. Look at me. It's okay."

He shook his head, keeping his eyes on the table.

"Was it a memory? Did you remember something?"

He shook his head again.

"Look at me," he repeated. "Look up. You're alright. It's only anxiety."

"Only," he spat. His chest was tight and he was nauseous.

"I know. Believe me, I know. It sucks. It's the worst. But it's not forever."

"This is humiliating."

"Why? It's just me. No one else is around. The weather is too shitty." He offered a smile.

"I don't want to--I'm not used to--" He couldn't think clearly.

"Breathe. Nice and deep."

He tried; it hurt. His eyes were watering. "You… you feel like this?"

"...A lot, actually."

"So many things I don't understand." He'd studied mental illness for years and he couldn't even recognize an anxiety attack that wasn't triggered by memory.

"It's okay. It doesn't usually make sense." He felt pressure and realized Riku had taken his hand and, moreover, he was squeezing it hard. Ienzo jerked his own back.

"What were you thinking about? Can you tell me?" He asked.

Ienzo swallowed. "Do you ever feel…" He shouldn't say this, he should say it was too personal, and Riku wouldn't pry. "Undeserving?"

"Of?"

"Everything, the people around you, your friends, just--having a body--"

Unflinchingly, he said, "yes. Always. But you know… I'm starting to learn that just because I did bad stuff in the past doesn't mean I have to make myself pay for it forever."

"How?"

"How what?"

"How do you realize that?" He needed the answer.

"Look, you want to be better, right? And you're working hard on that? Why punish yourself? I…" He exhaled. "That's hard for me to grasp most of the time too. But for whatever reason we're here. That has to mean something. We were given second chances. Chances to make choices."

"What kind of choice?"

"Who we'll be."

It felt like a weight was leaving him, though how or why he wasn't sure.

"No Organization. No… Ansem, or Xemnas. Just us."

"I guess so," he said wearily. “How did you do it?”

“Do what?”

“Just… forgive yourself. Move on.”

Riku laughed a little. “Well I’m not done, exactly. Not even close. I just… I don’t know. At some point suffering gets… pointless. It doesn’t help anyone. It just… wastes time.”

Ienzo blinked back the tears. “That actually makes sense.”

“I’m not going to pretend to understand everything that happened with you. But I think…” He exhaled. “Dunno. If you ever feel like you need to talk about it, you can start with me. Cause I know how much it sucks to try and do this all alone.”

Ienzo looked him in the eye at long last. He seemed to mean it, really and genuinely. “Right,” he said softly. “Right. Okay.”

“Why don’t we walk for a little while? That might help.”

“Alright.” Ienzo cleared his throat. They went to give back their empty bowls. Finally he made himself say it. “Thank you, Riku.’

He shook his head. “It’s the least I can do.”

---

Riku found himself looking forward to his time in Radiant Garden, even though the winters there were wet, cold, and generally miserable. The castle didn’t have adequate heating; this was part of his repair job, actually. They’d been using mostly fireplaces and space heaters, but it would be more effective--especially seeing the literal ice rain down from the sky--to have the central heating up and running.

Riku was used to working with Aeleus now, his quiet calm demeanor. They didn’t talk much, but this suited Riku. Sometimes, depending on how hands-on the work was, his left wrist would ache for hours. Dilan wasn’t as pleasant of a partner. And sometimes, Riku worked totally alone.

But at least if he were working here he was close to Kairi, and it was something constructive to do . It made him feel just the slightest bit less lonely, even though the ache of missing them never went away.

He dreamt of Sora often, usually nightmares of Sora lost, injured, or worse. At least with Kairi here he knew she was physically okay. (Though there were, admittedly, dreams of her turning up braindead from being asleep so long.) Sora must feel so alone, wherever he was. He was so dependent on his friends. Riku just wanted him back home, safe and sound.

Though at least he had someone to talk to, now.

Over the days and weeks that followed, through the worst of winter, he and Ienzo actually spent a good amount of time together, even if they just sat down for a cup of coffee or went for a walk. Riku guessed they were both lonely, but as their conversations evolved, he realized… he and Ienzo were actually a lot alike. Their relationships to darkness and their pasts. Their general reservedness. The dark humor.

Riku… liked spending time with Ienzo.

Every now and again he saw the other boy staring at him, his head slightly cocked, his eyes running so lightly against Riku’s arms, or his jaw. He’d first noticed the day Ienzo had that anxiety attack. And on some level, Riku knew he himself was attractive, if the behavior of the girls and some of the guys at his high school had meant anything. Even if that “attractiveness” came from unusually colored hair and symmetrical features and simply taking care of himself. At first, the notion that Ienzo might find him attractive too was terrifying.

But ever since he’d felt that first jump in his pulse, he… started to feel it, too. Ienzo’s delicate face, the gracefulness of his hands. The glint in his eye. Would it be so harmful to flirt with him? They already had several times.

Yes, said the voice in his head that sounded like Kairi. For one, it’s a huge conflict of interest. You need him to do his best work to help me , right? Which he can’t do if he’s distracted by you.

Riku felt a stab of guilt. But they weren’t getting much done anyway, he thought. Ienzo had explained the process to him a few times (it had sort of become white noise every time, even though he had tried to listen and understand, instead watching the way his lips moved and trying to keep his expression neutral), and the data they were receiving wasn’t conclusive. She might still be digging through her deeper memory. Considering she had sixteen years’ of it, this might take… a long time.

And the three of them worked more or less around the clock, too. There had been a few times when Riku went down in the middle of the night, unable to sleep, hoping to sit with Kairi for a little while, alone. Someone was usually down there--usually, in fact, it was Ienzo, or a bit more rarely Even. He saw the bags under their eyes, their pale skin, the yawns and the endless cups of coffee. It wasn’t for lack of trying.

Winter coasted to an end, and spring seemed to pass quickly, too. His hair was finally long enough to pull back without the use of pins, and he was grateful because they always fell out or slid around. As the tepid heat that passed for Radiant Garden’s summer began to bleed in, Riku realized it had been nearly nine months since Kairi was asleep.

And it hurt. Here he was, awake, alive , alone , and almost a full year had passed. Sora’s birthday in March had been agony to get through, almost like he was dead and not missing. Now he was faced with the prospect of Kairi’s.

“...Are you alright?” Ienzo asked him during their customary walk. Even though it was summer, he still wore a button-up, done all the way up to the top. At least this one had short sleeves, the muscles in his arms more pronounced than Riku might’ve thought. Books were heavy, he decided.

“I…” He trailed off.

Ienzo smiled. “Riku, we’ve talked about this,” he said in a slightly scolding tone (Riku tried to ignore the way his heart beat faster). “Lying and saying we’re fine gets us nowhere.”

“Pot calling the kettle black,” he said instantly. “Look, I’m just thinking… it’s August, right? It’s… almost Kairi’s birthday.”

“Oh,” Ienzo said softly. “I didn’t know.”

“It just… makes me realize how much time has passed.” He looked away from Ienzo, back out at the cobble roads in front of them. “And I know you guys are working as hard as you can--”

“It’s been endlessly frustrating and disheartening for me to have to tell you time and again there’s no progress.”

“I know. I know. I just…” He swallowed the unexpected lump in his throat.

“You miss them.”

“They’re my best friends. And working around here helps , but I’m just so… I don’t know how much more waiting around I can do.”

Ienzo frowned. “I think of it this way, and this may help you,” he said. “Naminé was able to restore Sora’s memories in a year. He was only fifteen, and she was only one person. But there are the three of us, and Kairi, working hard on this memory dive to see if we can find any connection to Sora. I think… I just have a feeling that something might happen around that year mark. Try not to lose hope just yet.” He gave Riku’s hand one small squeeze, enough to make him nearly stumble over his words.

“I’m trying. It’s just… not easy. It feels like… it’s been so long since I was able to just be friends with them, like there hasn’t ever not been a time we were all separated looking for each other. Sometimes I wonder if it’s ever going to end.”

“I’m sure it must feel that way,” he said, a bit more gently. “But… knowing what I know about the three of you, the bonds are too strong for that separation to be final.”

“You really believe that,” Riku said dryly.

“I really do.” He lifted his chin a bit defiantly. “And seeing as I’m your source for all things scientific… you have no choice but to believe me.”

Riku chuckled.

“...Besides, if enough time passes, we can attempt to release her from her sleep,” Ienzo said. “Actually talk to her. That might be helpful.”

They’d brought this up before, briefly. “But it’s her heart that’s asleep, right? We can’t just wake it up until it’s ready.”

“A good friend of mine has a power that has something to do with that,” Ienzo said, raising an eyebrow.

He pressed a hand to his forehead.

“Did you forget?” Ienzo asked.

“I didn’t… forget . I just didn’t think it would work.”

“Well, to be fair I’m not completely sure it will,” he said. “But it’s worth trying, I think.”

Riku nodded. “Some expert you are,” he said, in an attempt to lighten the mood.

Ienzo rolled his eyes.

#give/take #ienzo #riku #ienzo/riku #ienzoku

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iamoncewas · 5 years

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KH3 ending interpretation

KH3 ENDING SPOILERS derp lol

Thought I'd put this here, since like many others, the ending made me extremely angry at first. Now I know better. Or, I think I do anyways. But the man who thinks he knows something, knows nothing... lmao.

Sora says he knows what to do to find Kairi. Mickey objects, and warns him that using the power of waking improperly again might cause him to be lost forever.

Everything Sora says here seems to imply he's chosen Kairi over Riku, even after experiencing Riku's act of self sacrifice (twice). Even Riku seems to think so, his expression seems quite sad.

But despite whatever Riku is feeling, he convinces Mickey to let Sora go. He is demonstrating another quality of true love here: trust.

Then Sora opens and enters a keyhole, and he does find Kairi's heart. Where exactly, I'm not sure. My going theory is that her heart took refuge within Riku as a result of Aqua's enchantment on her necklace, like it took refuge within Sora in KH1. Her powers as a princess of heart are largely unexplored so this is a tough one. Anyways...

The 2 Destiny Islands scenes are clearly seperate, as you can tell by the position of the sun.

However, it's not technically 2 different times but 2 different places, even though both scenes seem to take place on the island.

Wherever Sora found Kairi's heart, he brought it to the same datascape of Destiny Islands that Riku went to in DDD. The one that Ansem the Wise hid inside Sora's heart, where Riku saw Xion, Ventus, and Roxas. Kairi's heart is inside Sora's heart, and she's safe. When he said they would both be back, he was telling the truth. Her body seems to have been destroyed, but the gang has access to replicas now so... no big deal I guess.

I think Kairi would be perfectly content to just stay in Sora's heart though. All she ever wanted was to be close to him. He can protect her that way, and she can protect him. She is always close and she would never be alone again. Basically everything Sora was talking about before he left.

A tear rolls down Kairi's face, but she is smiling, showing that she's crying from happiness. Then Sora starts disappearing, and again, neither of them are particularly upset by this. They hold hands and calmly look into each others eyes as Sora vanishes. This is because Sora disappearing is merely him leaving to go home, exiting the dive into his heart.

I have a feeling that right before this they had a very heartfelt conversion about their dear friend Riku.

This also means Sora can still dual-wield.

Now this is something I wasn't sure about since Oathkeeper wasn't in KH3, but now they're adding it in the DLC so it ties in well.

Kairi seems to look at her hand for a split second before the credits start to roll, and she appears to be holding something.

I think it's her Wayfinder.

We last saw it in Blank Points, she gave it to Sora before he and Riku went to do their Mark of Mastery exam. And it looks like Sora gave it back to her here. Since it symbolizes Sora's promise to Kairi to always come back to her, this is significant.

No more promises. Those are for making other people happy.

So then when everyone on the beach stops what they're doing and look out over the ocean, they're seeing Sora coming home. This is why Donald runs toward the water excitedly, and why Naminé smiles. Riku and Sora said they would thank her together.

It's also why the last person shown, from that scene, is Riku. His expression is hard to read, as usual, but he seems mildly surprised perhaps? A small lift of the eyebrows.

He is seeing Sora coming home, alone (physically anyways), and realizes Sora is coming back to be by his side. Because that's his destiny.

Right after this is when something happens that brings Sora and Riku to the secret ending scenario.

This will go similarly to the Verum Rex commercial from Toy Box. Watch the commercial, replace Yozora with Riku, his two party members with Donald and Goofy, and the female character with Sora. Yozora even rides through a tunnel of ice, just like how you can ride Blizzard spells with Flowmotion. Instead of Gigas, they will most likely be attacked by Liches.

I might just be obsessed, but I find this unnamed female character looks more like Sora than Kairi. There is also a shot I find interesting, of her crossing her arms across her chest, as if her heart were in pain.

Sora looks at his hand in the secret ending to show us that, even though he's in Shibuya, there's no timer there. But that's not the only reason...

#soriku #kh3 ending #kh3 spoilers #verum rex #yozora #riku is the light #destiny islands #destiny island trio #kairi #kingdom hearts #true king #long reads

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blowingoffsteam2 · 5 years

Note

Part 1: I would like to apologize ahead of time, this might be a bit long. I can't help but feel a bit confused by Square Enix/Nomura as well. For me, it is pretty clear that Sora's feelings for Kairi were not much more than a crush, and it did not really become much more than that. As of Kingdom Hearts III, it seems that Sora's feelings are starting to change, that he possibly does not feel that way for Kairi anymore/he is getting over (or has gotten over) that crush.

Part 2: Or, at least, Sora is not sure of his feelings yet (for Riku or Kairi), and he is starting to figure it out. I hope that this may not mean anything, but I heard that at one of the Kingdom Hearts Orchestra shows recently, there was an encore performance of Don’t Think Twice. During the encore, they showed footage of Sora and Kairi from KH1 to 3, ending it with Sora fading away. I honestly do not know what Square/Nomura is trying to get at when it comes to Sora’s “relationships.”

Part 3: There has been major development and build up involving Sora and Riku’s relationship throughout the series as whole. Sora and Kairi’s “relationship,” not so much. Riku’s character grew more (in KH3) by expressing and accepting his feeling for Sora for what they (taisetsu na hito), Sora’s heart lead him to the worlds he was visiting in KH3/he went to these world to learn things about himself and his true feelings.

Part 4: Then there are Riku’s actions he has done for Sora prior to and during Kingdom Hearts III. (His sacrifice for Sora cannot be downplayed as not an act of true love, especially with that focus in KH3 itself). Sora is now close to to realizing the things (for the most part) that Riku has done for him, how Riku feels about him, that Riku is Sora’s light, and how Sora might feel for Riku. I refuse to believe that all this was for nothing.

Part 5: I understand that KH3 was for wrapping up the Xehanort Saga, but, before Sora went to face Xehanort, he went on this journey of self-discovery for a reason. I do not want Square to pull the rug out from under our feet and say Riku recognizing his true feelings for Sora and Sora’s journey was pointless in the end.

Part 6: Besides Xehanort’s story arc coming to a close, if Sora’s adventures and soul searching leading up to that moment is (possibly) not going to amount to anything, then why would Square even have Sora go on this journey to realize these things about himself? To have us, the audience, pick up on non-verbal cues and a deeper meaning to what is presented to us, for it to mean nothing? Don’t get me wrong, I love the Kingdom Hearts series.

Part 7: I loved and enjoyed KH3 and discovering these things involving Sora and Riku on my own, through you, databoy-reekoo, and the Sleeping Realm Theory, etc., but if it possibly amounts to nothing in the end, then is KH3 only good for wrapping up Xehanort’s story and not Sora’s “self discovery” journey in between? I know you don’t have a full answer yourself (since we can’t look into Nomura’s mind), so I guess I am just wondering what you think?

Part 8: I also cannot help but be a bit concerned over how SENA will handle Sora and Riku’s possible relationship from here on out. For Riku’s true feelings getting extremely downplayed and with the romantic angle between Sora and Kairi that is still being pushed in the English version, in which these aspects were going relatively untouched in the Japanese version. Things are not quite as “romantic” for Sora and Kairi and Riku was free to express his true feelings.

——————————————————–

I understand it can be confusing when we can’t know exactly what Nomura is planning, and for so long we’ve all been under the impression that while Sora and Riku’s relationship was developing beautifully, we all expected it would never lead anywhere more explicit, while the main games continued with a mediocre,undeveloped straight romance. After all, we have seen this pattern many times in media, haven’t we? As I’ve said before, the bar for straight romance is so low it’s in the ground, and I honestly thought this was what we’d have to deal with in KH in the end. But then KH3 came, and boy was I wrong. Almost everything Nomura had been setting up thematically, primarily since the end of KH2 (but some things even from the very beginning), culminated in KH3. The question of “what is true love”, what is light, what is the power that comes with being able to protect someone precious to you (the power of waking). These were things Sora himself was learning in KH3, and will continue to learn. But for Riku, KH3 was the result of having learned those things- he reached the break of dawn when he realized the strength to protect his most precious person came from love. And the climax of this was his sacrifice.

So, Nomura knows very well how to set up themes and follow through with them even across multiple games (even through the mobile game!). We have no reason to think that he would all of a sudden do a 180 on everything he’s been building slowly and deliberately between Sora and Riku. If Nomura really was as bad at writing romance as people like to say he is, there’s no doubt in my mind that he would have confirmed a romance between Sora and Kairi in this game. It was what everyone was expecting anyway, and being so bad at romance, would he really care that he hadn’t properly developed their relationship, that Kairi had been virtually absent from all the games since KH2?

Yet instead what we got was very transparently uncomfortable and hesitant looks from Sora in the paopu scene, where he didn’t move to take the paopu until she essentially downplayed it as “just a lucky charm” (in jpn), and very big parallels on the themes of separation and fading connections. Which, again I have to remind everyone that Nomura explicitly stated it was his intent to show how childhood friendship change and don’t stay the same as we grow older (And specifically with Kairi, the theme of friends growing apart has been on his mind since KH1, as shown in the KH2 Ultimania). So we can at the very least know without a shadow of a doubt that changing connections (or rather, fading connections, taking into account the Pooh parallel) was a theme of the game and 100% intentional.

My point here being that I would be very shocked at this point if all of this was thrown down the drain in the future, as long as KH is under the direction of Nomura. Could it happen? Sure. But I would say it’s not a 50/50 chance if we are taking an honest look at everything. Not even close. But hey, that’s just my onion :) All we can do is wait and see to be sure.

As for the orchestra encore, I’ve said this elsewhere but having watched the montage myself, it really does come across as a heartfelt farewell montage. It starts off with the ending scene, up to Sora and Kairi on the tree, then cuts to scenes of them together through KH1, KH2, and KH3, and ends with Sora fading away. Certainly doesn’t end on a happy note. And important to know: the tunnel scene is not included. What an odd choice this would be, if that scene were really meant to be Sora’s grand realization that she is his light and if those flashbacks to “true love” were really about her. (and don’t forget that Sora and Riku got their own montage during the “Always on my Mind” section of the KH1 medley- which was actually just the Dearly Beloved part). In any case, the orchestra is nothing to be concerned about.

And as far as the English translations go in the future, all we can do is hope that Nomura and team have a sit down with them and make it clear what their intent is. And hopefully not have such a haphazard process with translating as we know they did with KH3. Besides…if things keep progressing, there will only be so much they could do to obscure the truth.

So yeah, I guess those are my thoughts. So much is continuing to be uncovered about kh3 and Sora and Riku’s relationship, I can’t wait to see what comes next.

#soriku asks

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maddrmatt · 3 years

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A Beautiful Future: A Premonition or a Punishment? (SoKai Week 2021)

New to this fanfic? Click here to properly begin!

Greetings, readers and fellow SoKai fans!

Let’s continue on with the show as our favorite MIA Keyblade wielder reflects on what was seen in the last chapter! Enjoy!

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Chapter 2: Ponderings of the Lost Hero

Quadratum

After opening his eyes, Sora suddenly leapt to his feet. He summoned his Keyblade and surveyed his surroundings.

Fortunately for him, he wasn’t currently in any danger. But much to his dismay, he was not in a chapel in Radiant Garden about to kiss the love of his life. Instead, he was standing next to a large dumpster in an alleyway between two tall buildings.

‘I must’ve been so tired from running that I fell asleep when I stopped to rest,’ he thought as he dismissed his Keyblade.

Sora’s current location was hardly an ideal place to take a nap. But the Gigas and the various adversaries that inhabited this world had kept him on the run since his arrival. Also, even though he had yet to encounter him again, he feared that Yozora would find him and try to ‘save’ him again. So, he couldn’t be picky about where or when he could sleep.

It still mystified him that he was now in a world that he had originally thought only existed in a video game. When that girl in the Final World had mentioned she was waiting for a Yozora to find her, he had assumed that she had been talking about someone with the same name. But his encounter with Yozora and the very real existence of this world had certainly raised a few questions.

‘I may have been here for a long time now, but I still can’t believe it. How can this world be real and also be a video game in a world back in my Realm? And why is ending up here the penalty for misusing the Power of Waking?’

But the biggest question was the one that had bothered him the most. ‘And will I ever be able to leave?’

Sora’s thoughts now turned what he just had witnessed in his sleep. ‘That was some dream. The first dream I’ve been able to have since I got here. But I wonder if it wasn’t just a dream. What if it was a premonition? A vision of the future? Dreams can do that, right?’

Sora began to pace around the alley. ‘It certainly looked and felt like one. I mean, we all did look a little older. Not to mention I saw that Pinocchio wasn’t a puppet and the Beast wasn’t, well, the Beast anymore. And there were so many guests at the wedding that I didn’t know.’

He thought back to the part of the dream where he walked down the aisle toward the altar. Now that he was awake, he realized that there were indeed quite a lot of unrecognized faces among those he knew.

‘Let’s see. When I saw the group from Atlantica in the crowd, Ariel was human again even though the last time I saw her, she was a mermaid. Also, it seems that some magic was needed for Flounder and King Triton to attend since they were hovering in the air as if they were still underwater. And then there was that girl who resembled Ariel but with black hair. Did Ariel and Prince Eric get married and have a daughter?’

‘It also looked like there had been some big changes in Arendelle too. Anna had been wearing an outfit similar to what Elsa had been wearing when Donald, Goofy and I had first met her. And speaking of Elsa, she was not only wearing a different snow gown and had let her hair go, but she also looked more at peace with herself then I last remembered. Plus, she also had a small blue lizard on her shoulder. I wonder if she’s taken on Rapunzel’s taste in animal sidekicks.’

‘Woody, Buzz and the rest of the toys we met were there and they had all been enlarged to human size. And there were some other toys with them, probably their friends they’d been separated from when the Organization split their world. Like that redhaired cowgirl and that woman with the pink bow in her blonde hair and dressed in blue. Strangely, she looked like she was made of porcelain which is an unusual material for a toy. They both seemed to be pretty close to Buzz and Woody respectively. Also, there was that unusual toy that looked more like a child’s art project.’

‘Little Chef was definitely in some unfamiliar company. He was with that redheaded man with that woman with brown hair as well as that older man with glasses. And there were also two other rats: one with gray fur and that pudgier one with brown fur. Maybe they were Little Chef’s relatives.’

‘I’m glad that Cloud finally made it home because he was among Leon, Yuffie and the rest of the committee and it seemed that he and Tifa had hooked up. And they weren’t the only ones. Leon had his arm around a woman with black hair and Aerith was with a man who looked a little like Cloud only with black hair. Even Cid apparently had a date: that woman with auburn hair and glasses. And then there were the new faces: that big, muscular guy whose hand appeared to be made of metal and the little girl in pink on his shoulder as well as that strange catlike creature with red fur.

‘It also looks like I ended up in meeting them in Shibuya after all since I also saw Neku and his friends there as well. But there were some missing from that group. Rhyme and that boy she called Beat was there. But Joshua wasn’t. And neither was Shiki. Instead, there was only that girl with brown hair and glasses. I hope nothing bad happened to them.’

‘There were even some unfamiliar faces among Queen Minnie, Daisy, and the rest I remember from Disney Castle. There was that unusual pair who looked like a rabbit and a cat with a whole bunch of little rabbits with them. And then there was that female duck who looked like she could be Donald’s twin sitting near his nephews. There was also someone who looked like a younger version of Goofy accompanied by a female dog with red hair and apparently, some who looked like a younger version of Pete.’

Then Sora realized it was not just the unfamiliar guests that stood out in the dream. His own thoughts during the dream contained information that he had not known before.

‘How could I have known why Xion looks the way she does? And though Master Yen Sid mentioned that Aqua saved Kairi long ago, my thoughts implied that she played a big role in our meeting. I’m sure I would’ve learned it all if I hadn’t disappeared. But is it possible for your dream self to know something that you don’t?’

Sora leaned against the wall of the building and gazed out into the empty street. There was still no sign of incoming trouble. He was glad that nothing had shown up during his pondering on account that he still had more to do.

‘All in all, it certainly was quite a show. But still, I can’t help but wonder why a dream like that would come to me now? And if it really was a vision of the future, does it mean that I’m going to make it back home? And Kairi and I really are destined to live happily ever after?’ Sora thought as a feeling of hope came to him.

Unfortunately, the hope faded as a troubling thought took over. ‘Or maybe it’s a future that isn’t going to happen. Maybe it’s nothing more than extra punishment for breaking rules I never knew existed.’

Sora thought back to when he returned to the Final World after Xehanort’s defeat. He recalled how Chirithy had told him about what he was risking using the Power of Waking to restore Kairi. As he remembered that conversation, a feeling of anger at the unfairness of it all came to him.

“I never meant to break any nature taboos. I didn’t even know they existed. I thought I was just rescuing my friends from that Lich Heartless. I didn’t know it would end up rewriting time and giving us another chance to fight. And I especially didn’t know that it was the wrong thing to do,” he said out loud not caring if anybody heard him.

That’s when Sora realized something. “If I’m being punished for doing that, does that mean that we were supposed to lose no matter what we did? Well, to whoever or whatever decided that, I’m sorry but if following your rules meant letting Xehanort win after everything he did, then I was happy to break them.”

His thoughts then turned to Kairi. “And I definitely was not going to leave the girl I love more than anything in the worlds as she was: shattered, split and scattered. If there was any chance to save her, I would have taken it no matter what the consequences. Because a world without Kairi is one I never want to live in.”

That’s when Sora realized the sad irony. ‘And yet, a world without her or any of my friends is exactly where I ended up anyway. I guess the punishment really did fit the crime in the end. And as if that wasn’t enough, it seems I’m now being tormented with visions of a future that may never be.’

Then a feeling of determination came over Sora. ‘No. I can’t think like that. I won’t ever think like that. If whatever forces sent me here sent that dream to punish me further, then I’m not going to give them the satisfaction.’

Sora gazed up at the dark sky and cried out, “It’s not going to work! You hear me? It won’t work! Instead, I’m going to use what I saw in that dream to further fuel my desire to get back to my home! Back to my friends! Back to her so we can have a future like that in the dream!”

The young hero then reached into the pocket of his jacket nearest his heart. He pulled out a folded piece of paper which he then unfolded revealing the lucky charm that Kairi had given to him before he and Riku left for the Mark of Mastery Exam.

Taking the charm into his hand, he clutched it to his heart. ‘We may be worlds apart, Kairi. But our hearts are still connected. I realized that when I was suddenly able to fight for you. Even though I didn’t know exactly what was going on, especially how somehow Xehanort was still around, I knew you needed me. And I know that connection will bring us back together someday.’

“They can take your world. They can take your heart. Cut you loose from all you know. But if it’s your fate, then every step forward will always be a step closer to home. And it will be my fate. And whatever that dream’s true purpose was, I will do all that I can to make it our fate, Kairi. That’s a promise and I always keep my promises to you. It’s my oath to return,” Sora said out loud.

After gazing once more around for any sign of trouble and seeing that there was none in spite of his earlier outbursts, he figured that he had time to do one more thing before moving on to a new location in the city. Leaning against the wall with the lucky charm in one hand, he then looked at the paper that it had been wrapped in.

He began to read the words written on the paper. Words that no matter how many times he read had always managed to touch his heart because they came from the one who his heart belonged to.

“Thinking of you, wherever you are.”

________________________________________________________________

On the edge of one of Quadratum’s tall buildings, a man in a black coat gazed downward into the alley. He watched the spiky-haired brunette boy read from his letter. Under his hood, he smirked and let out an amused chuckle.

“You might wish to keep it down, Sora. You never know who or what may be listening here in Quadratum. But it sounds like that was a pretty good dream you had with the way you were going on about making it a reality. Your determination to get back to your home and your devotion to your girl are pretty admirable. They will serve you well when the time comes for you to play your role,” said the Master of Masters.

The very first Keyblade master gazed up to the sky. As he had done before, he brought his hands together into a heart shape and held them up so he could view the full moon through them.

“Soon, all the pieces will fall into place, Sora. My apprentices. The Union leaders and Dandelions who still exist. The Darknesses. Yozora. Your friend Riku and the rest of your Guardians of Light over on the other side including your little girlfriend. All of them have their roles to play in my grand plan and once they are fulfilled, we will finally see the absolute end of the true Keyblade War,” he declared.

Then his voice took on an ominous tone. “But after all is said and done, will all your devotion pay off? Will the dreams of a ‘happily ever after’ with your beloved Kairi come true? Or will the fates conspire to pull you apart once again? And if that should happen, will it be the ultimate separation, one that is impossible to undo?”

The Master then parted his hands and shrugged his shoulders. “Who knows? I may be the author of a very large compendium of future events. But the Book of Prophecies never accounted for everything. So, in the end, who can really say?”

The Master then returned his gaze back to the young Keyblade wielder in the alley. Sora had finished reading his letter and was now staring to leave. The Master’s gaze followed the boy as he headed out into the city.

“Things may have taken a… slight turn from my original plans. But the more I think about it, it actually makes things more interesting. After ages of watching events unfold the way I had foreseen; I’ve almost forgotten what it’s like to actually be surprised. And I have a feeling, Sora, that you are going to be full of surprises.”

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Notes from the Mad Doctor:

Went rather heavy on the internal monologuing in this chapter, huh?

Sharp Disney and Square Enix fans will likely know the unfamiliar guests Sora was talking about. Feel free to let me know if you did recognize all of them or some of them.

I think we can understand the anger Sora’s expressing here. After everything he did to protect the worlds from Xehanort, this is his ultimate reward? I know he doesn’t regret doing what he did to save everyone especially Kairi. But I wouldn’t blame him for being upset.

Although I have mentioned him in my other stories, this is the first time the Master of Masters has actually shown up. I really hope I wrote his mysterious yet eccentric demeanor well. And I have a feeling, given the Master’s presence in Quadratum, that Sora’s arrival in this world was no coincidence. Then again, is anything a coincidence in Kingdom Hearts?

I give my thanks to whoever reads this chapter.

I also give my special thanks to @fandomchanger, @dreaming-in-seams, and @sakuranekogirl for their likes on the previous chapter as well as @sokaiweek, @phoenix-downer, and @the-secret-place for reblogging the previous chapter.

The next chapter still needs work so it should be posted on Thursday if all goes well.

Comments, likes and reblogs are much appreciated! Stay tuned for we’ll be dropping in on the other half of our favorite couple next chapter!

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Onto the next chapter!

#kingdom hearts #kh fanfiction #sokai #sokaiweek #sokaiweek2021 #sora #master of masters #maddrmatt

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kyosohmastan · 5 years

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Fruits Basket Another Vol 1 Review

I thought I’d share my thoughts on the first volume of Fruits Basket Another since I FINALLY got to it. I’m in love!

First of all, the MC. I think I’m going to relate to Sawa more than I ever did with Tohru. We share very similar traits and anxieties. She has a fear of forming relationships due to trauma she experienced when her friends suddenly abandoned her because she was too “annoying”. I don’t remember the majority of my childhood (due to the fact that I had epilepsy, but that’s a whole other story) but one thing that stood out to me because it left me so heartbroken was when I was in first grade and my friends decided they didn’t want to hang out with me anymore because I was too weird for wanting to play in the grass and dirt when they thought that’s not something a girl should do. Which is dumb, but kids will be kids. So I really connected with Sawa over that. Based on how much Takaya has a talent for developing characters seamlessly, I can see her opening up more and becoming more comfortable around the Sohmas and others throughout the series.

As for other characters, let’s move onto Mutsuki who is seriously drop dead gorgeous. Of course, Yuki’s son would also look like a girl (although tbh Yuki is more feminine.) He has a lot of optimism and clear signs of kindness, but he’s very mischievous as well. He reminds me a lot of Kakeru in a way which that is his uncle so I’m sure he influenced him. I find it hilarious that he’s naturally messy and his excuse is “My parents are messy too”. And they are haha! Then he follows it up with a sweet comment saying “I’m happy to be like them.” He’s like “Yeah, it’s a bad trait. But I wouldn’t have it any other way because I can connect with my parents over it.” The family vibes has me all smiles.

I’m most excited to follow Hajime since I adore Kyo and Tohru so of course, I’m super pumped to get to know their son. He’s like a toned down version of Kyo. He has a temper, but it never gets too out of control. But then again, he’s kind of like Tohru having a considerate side to him as well as the fact that the family refers to him as “papa” because he addresses Sawa as a father would. And Tohru had always been the motherly type. I love how both of their traits are mixed into him. It makes for a very balanced personality! His first meeting with Sawa was hilarious. Obviously he’d be like Kyo and sleep on the floor haha. Or is the cat part of his blood coming out?

I’ll discuss Sora and Riku together. First of all, HARU AND RIN HAD TWINS?! I can only imagine Rin was terrified of that lol. I think Sora will be the Momiji of this series. That bubbly personality is adorable. I don’t know enough about Riku yet, but he seems very caring albeit stoic. I loved the part when Sawa finally asked him if she offended him and he told her he was concerned that she didn’t know a girl wanted to have lunch with her. So he worried over her which was sweet.

Michi I don’t have much of an opinion on yet. I was never a huge fan of Kakeru in the first place so....We’ll see if she grows on me.

The most BEAUTIFUL woman so far is Kinu, holy smokes. I’m guessing she’s the parental figure in this series since she seems to be the oldest. I’m very excited to get to know her. And I’m thrilled that Hatori and Mayu ended up staying together and had a daughter awwww.

Shiki made a brief appearance and since he’s the head of the family, that’s gotta be Akito and Shigure’s son. He’ll be in volume 2 a lot more, I assume.

And then this chick shows up and I’m like oh, hell, naw. Motoko is the most annoying character of FB and her daughter is no different. Grrrr. It is interesting that Motoko was only a fan of Yuki, but Ruriko’s club is a fan club for all the Sohmas. Their popularity has grown that much dang.

Two other characters that showed up from the OG series are Megumi and Takei. Megumi looks soooo good. And he still has his habit of doing curses!

Takei hasn’t changed. Still obsessed with Yuki.

Now going over specific scenes I liked. I suppose starting from the beginning.

I like how Mutsuki and Hajime are trying to help Sawa get over her fear of being a burden to people. I saw a tumblr post mentioning how Tohru was the one who saved the Sohmas from their trauma and the Sohmas are the ones saving Sawa from hers and so far that is so true. It think it goes to show how differently the previous generation raised their children in comparison to how they were raised from hate and spite. This generation is so much more carefree and considerate as their parents probably shared with them their own previous trauma so they’re able to understand what that’s like. I think overtime, they’re really going to help Sawa get over her fears and she’ll find a place where she belongs with this family. I’m so excited to see that unravel.

And so Sawa is forced onto the student council with Mutsuki and Hajime lol. I like how it gives her that push to interact with others because she will have to now. I expected Mutsuki to be the president since his dad was, but Hajime is? He was forced into it tho. xD

Possibly one of the best things is that Hajime is (or used to be) a mama’s boy which comes as no surprise since Tohru would be an amazing mother. How could her children not love her? This was too cute.

Based on what Mutsuki said, Hajime has siblings????? I heard Kyo and Tohru had three kids ouhuobuefbhjqbeh. I need deets!

It seems that Mutsuki and Hajime have a pretty close relationships whereas their fathers were rivals. They do bicker, but it’s clear there’s no animosity between them. That also indicates that Kyo and Yuki must have really patched up their relationship over the years if their kids have always hung out together. That’s a happy thought. I love the dynamic of their relationship so far.

Glad to see Aya is so involved in Mutsuki’s life hahahhahha.

Mutsuki and Hajime don’t even live with their parents? For some reason, Hajime moved to be closer to school, but why did he specifically have to go to Kaibara? Maybe he wanted to go to school with the family. I do know Kyo and Tohru moved out of town. Or did they move back so Kyo could take over Kazuma’s dojo? Idk anyway... I think Yuki and Machi did too which is probably why Mutsuki moved out. And Kinu is watching over them. It’s like Shigure, Yuki, and Kyo all over again.

IS HAJIME WEARING THE BEADS?????!! I saw somewhere that it was a gift. Or is it Kyo’s actual beads?!

The entire last chapter is my favorite in the volume. Seeing Sawa get so comfortable with the Sohmas was heartwarming. It’s sad how she says this is the happiest she’s felt in a long time, but also sweet. I’m interested to see what her home life is like. It doesn’t sound good.

As I suspected, the kids know about the curse. But I guess they weren’t told about it until they were a little older. It’s so sad how Kyo was nervous when everyone was saying how Hajime looked like him. Goes to show that Kyo still has his demons and he doesn’t want his son to go through any of that.Therefore, he doesn’t want Hajime to be like him at all. They had to be worried that the curse would come back. Thank goodness it didn’t.

I suppose what pushed Kyo and Tohru to tell him was when he was told that “I hope you’re not a monster.” (Is that Ren? It kind of looks like it.) Indicating that she thought he might be the cat since his dad was. That had to be so confusing. But after knowing the curse, everything makes sense. And I hope by knowing about it, they don’t face any hardships that the curse brought upon the family. But they seem to be doing fine.

To conclude, I’m really liking this. I’m sure I’ll love it since I’m biased in my love for Fruits Basket, but I think this series has the potential to stand on its own as something fantastic.

I have noticed that the kids mention their parents A LOT, but that’s to be expected since the readers know of the original characters. I’m anticipating some great family moments and I’m looking forward to that. I REALLY HOPE THE OG CHARACTERS SHOW UP SOMETIME!!!

Thanks for reading~ I’m on to volume 2.

#fruits basket another #furubana #manga #furuba #tohru honda #yuki sohma #kyo sohma #mutsuki sohma #hajime sohma #anime #review #manga review #natsuki takaya #fruits basket

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phoenix-downer · 5 years

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Scarred

Kairi didn’t really wear anything that showed her back anymore.

Sora first noticed it happening at the beach. Before she’d worn two-piece swimsuits all the time, but now she just wore one-piece swimsuits instead. Still looked as good as ever, but he couldn’t help but notice the change.

And any time they dressed up for a nice occasion or she wore something cute for one of their dates, her dresses covered her back completely. The way she dressed in general was a lot more reserved than it used to be. Muted colors and lots of whites and blacks and... pastels, was it called? Something like that. All he knew was that she didn’t wear the bright colors she’d worn when they were younger.

Still, he didn’t think about it all that much. Kairi looked great no matter what she wore. It didn’t really come up again until the day they went shopping together for clothes to wear to Terra and Aqua’s wedding.

“This one would look great on you,” Sora said as he pulled a blue dress off the rack to show her. It was sleeveless with one of those skirts that was shorter in the front and longer in the back, and he really wanted to see her try it on.

She examined the dress carefully. “It is really cute, but the back’s a little low cut for my taste,” she said at last.

“Awwww, c’mon, you could pull it off easily.” She could pull off anything, really, but this dress in particular would look great on her, Sora just knew it would.

“I don’t think so. That kind of style just doesn’t really suit me.”

Sora frowned and returned the dress to the rack. “If you say so. I don’t know, it almost feels like you don’t want to wear anything that shows your back.”

“And? I’m not a child anymore. I want to look the part.”

“What’s childish about this dress?” he said, giving it a quizzical look. If anything, the dress was classy. Sexy.

“Well, it’s Aqua’s big day. I don’t want to wear anything that might take away from that.”

“Look, this dress is hardly going to take away from Aqua’s special moment. It’s not even white. That’s a rule, right? You’re not supposed to wear white to a wedding.”

She found his hand and gave it a quick squeeze. “You’re learning.”

Sora grinned at that, their earlier disagreement already fading away.

The wedding was awesome, Aqua looked beautiful, and Terra got really emotional which made Sora get emotional. These two had been through a lot to reach this point, and Sora was glad they were finally getting their happily ever after.

It was late when they got back to Destiny Islands. They said goodnight to Riku, and then Sora walked Kairi home as he often did.

But unlike most times, when he said goodnight with a quick kiss, Kairi didn’t stop kissing him. She kept kissing him, in fact. For a long time. Maybe it was something about seeing Terra and Aqua tie the knot, but she was a lot bolder than she usually was.

When he finally broke away for air, her face was flushed and her lips were pink, and her chest heaved as she gazed up into his eyes.

“My parents – aren’t home tonight,” she said, her fingers fiddling with his tie as they both tried to catch their breath.

Um. Um. Did she mean what he thought she meant?

Yes, yes she did. A few minutes later, and they were in her room and on her bed, right where they had left off. His jacket soon ended up on the ground, followed by his vest, and then his shirt. She paused to kiss the scar resting over his heart, the scar from where he’d stabbed himself with the Keyblade of Heart to save her. The scar that was a sign of how much she meant to him, of the lengths he would go to save her.

“Thank you,” she said softly, and he knew she wasn’t just thanking him for this scar but for the other, deeper scar that left no visible mark but had taken his life. Stolen him away from her and their friends until he’d fought his way back to her side.

“Anything for you, Kairi.”

He kissed her again, hoping to show her what words alone couldn’t really say. Her soft hands ran up and down his back, and he found the zipper on her dress and started to unzip it. She stiffened, and he stopped what he was doing and leaned back to look at her.

“What’s wrong?” he asked, bringing his hand to her face and stroking her cheek. “If I’m going too fast, we can slow down, or stop—”

Her eyes flickered downwards. “Sora, before we continue… there’s something I should show you,” she said at last. “You deserve to know. I don’t want it to come as a surprise.”

She turned away from him and lifted her hair out of the way. “Go ahead,” she said softly.

His hands found their way to her zipper again, and he continued where he had left off. As the dress revealed more and more of her body, a lump built in his throat.

Running down almost her entire back was a painful looking scar. It started a few inches below the nape of her neck and went all the way to the small of her back, and he knew exactly what it was from.

The blow that had killed her. The blow that had torn her heart apart as well as his. The reason he’d had to die in the first place. A mocking reminder of all the pain of her death and his, of how she’d been torn from him and then he’d been cut off from her.

The more he stared at it, the more it just seemed like one giant blur. It was carved into her skin, one final screw you from Xehanort, one last act of cruelty to haunt them from beyond the grave.

“It looks awful, I know,” came her voice. “It’s why I never wear anything that shows my back anymore. I don’t want… I don’t want people to see me as a victim.”

Sora’s heart broke a little further at that, and the pieces of it welled up and spilled out of his eyes and got choked up in his throat.

She turned her head to glance back at him. “Sora?”

“I’m sorry,” he said as he wiped his eyes, and he meant it with all his heart.

She zipped the dress back up and turned around to face him again. “Don’t be,” she said, her hair brushing against her cheeks as she shook her head. “It’s not your fault. I just wish it wasn’t there. It’s not beautiful like your scar. All it is is a sign of how weak I was. I saved you the first time, but I was too powerless to keep myself from dying.”

It was his turn to shake his head. “You’re wrong about that. You’re a survivor, Kairi, not a victim. Dead people don’t form scars. Only the living can. This scar… the reason you have it may hurt us both, but it’s also a reminder that you’re alive. Xehanort didn’t win. Death didn’t even win. In the end, something a lot stronger did.”

“When you put it that way, I can’t help but think… maybe it’s not so bad.”

“No, it is bad. But it doesn’t have to stay that way. We can make it good.”

He moved behind her and unzipped her dress one last time. As it slid down her body and gathered around her hips, the lump in his throat just got bigger and bigger. All the memories from that day were coming back in an awful rush, and he had to do something about it.

So he did. He leaned forward and kissed the scar like she’d kissed his scar all those years ago. The skin of it was raised and bumpy, like the scar over his chest, not at all smooth like the rest of her skin was. His tears slid down his cheeks and smeared onto her back as he kissed his way down, his fingers joining in to caress the scar as he committed every inch of it to memory. Because if she was going to live the rest of her life scarred like this, scarred because of his failure, then he was going to kiss that scar every day they were together from here on out.

His tears washed over it, and he willed them to wash the pain away. Both his and hers. He couldn’t be there for her as she’d died. Not the way she’d been there for him, anyway. He couldn’t change the past, either. Several years later, and his own grief was the only comfort he could offer. But maybe it would be enough. Maybe he would be enough.

When he was done, he just wrapped his arms around her and held her. The scar on his chest touched part of her scar, and with each beat of his heart he willed life and healing from his wounded heart into her body and soul.

“See?” he said, his voice shaking as he caressed her skin. “We can make it good.”

She tilted her head so she could kiss his cheek. “Yes. Even this.”

“Especially this.”

A soft smiled danced across her lips at that. “Thank you, Sora.”

“Anything for you, Kairi.”

And he meant it. He really, truly meant it. They might both be scarred now, but they weren’t alone. And that was what made all the difference.

Together, they’d find healing. Together, they’d find hope. And together, they would make even the bad things good. The scars would remain, but so would the reminders of their hard-earned victories. Of everything they’d been through so they could be together now.

And because of that, holding her in his arms was that much better than it would have been otherwise. That much better because of what it had cost him. That much better because of what he had sacrificed.

And knowing she felt the same way? Knowing she could see past the scars and the heartbreak and find a way to make things good again?

It was worth it. It was worth every tear and heartbreak, if it meant they could finally be together.

And it was absolutely worth every scar.

@kingdommad300 first suggested this idea to me a few weeks ago and wrote a fic of it themselves called Reminders. Then @gotmilk5101520 brought it up in a headcanon post, and I knew I had to write the thing. Especially since @mzelle-lazuli and @angel-with-a-pipette were both like... please write some fluff now. But joke’s on them, even my fluff is angsty nowadays! The lasting legacy of KH3, everyone.

Anyway, this is a followup of sorts to my fic called Scar that I wrote... almost a year ago now. My how time flies. Probably gonna post it over on AO3 and FFN here soon as well, if that’s your preferred way of reading.

As always, thank you for reading!

#kingdom hearts #sokai #sora #kairi #kh3 #kingdom hearts 3 #kh3 spoilers #post kh3 fic #post kh3 #post canon #phoenix writes #phoenix downer #fluff #angst #hurt/comfort #romance #scars #slightly risqué #lotsa kissing and making out but nothing really beyond that

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khdiscussions · 5 years

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Huge Breakdown: Sleeping Realms Theory

Tl:dr, I still don’t like the theory, and my rebuttal had almost zero points proven otherwise and you can read the whole thing below of my liveblogging.

The fact that they call Riku’s act an “Act of true love” first of all makes me believe this is meant to sell canon SoRiku and I’m already unimpressed. It shows biased phrasing and takes away from any credibility this theory could ever have with anybody who isn’t a SoRiku shipper because it is ultimately pushing that Sora and Riku are going to be romantically involved and as somebody who really needs to edit her ship list and remove SoRiku...no.

...Okay so the Ultimania already proved this wrong I don’t even have to go through the rest.

Before I go into it, I can see how from just reading their summary, you can fall into the trap, however, the Realm of Sleep and Dreaming Worlds are ultimately the same thing. You cannot enter the Realm of Sleep without Dreaming Worlds unless you are coming to the brink between it and death. As such, it would still require every world Sora visits to be a Dreaming World, and thus have fallen into darkness. Since we know this isn’t the case, my “Alpha Timeline” and “Beta Timeline” labels are fully and 100% accurate. Even the way they describe it “World Line” implies and Alpha and Beta Timeline. If we ignore that KHUx is confirmed to be taking place in data still, the world lines cannot be in the same timeline, as they’d be two separate universes. Meaning the events of Alpha Timeline and Beta Timeline are two separate entities and cannot be condensed into the same Realm.

Meaning even if this is Beta Timeline, Alpha Timeline and anything that happened in it are factually irrelevant, because when Sora and co. slip into the alternate Worldline, because essentially the events of it don’t come to pass or matter. If this was real parallel worlds split, then even if Sora is now inhabiting the mind of his Beta Timeline counterpart (which for the record, he should have his memories if he’s the one who brought them all back) there still needs to be a Beta Riku, a Beta Kairi, etc, otherwise there wouldn’t be Xehanort attacking and even then.

If this is a separate worldline then that still wouldn’t be counted as the same timeline, however. Which the Ultimania directly argues against in its pages when things occur in a single timeline, but I digress.

Other things I find directly wrong as conflicting with power is Sora directly states in KH3 that it was Kairi’s faith in him and her light (her powers alone) that helped him hold his form. Not the PoH’s.

“Riku’s strength comes from his love for Sora”

Actually, in that scene they’re talking about how Riku wants to rescue Aqua, and that’s his desire to “protect what matters.” This is a line that has been paralleled in several games from Riku (most notably in which is Kingdom Hearts 3D) and given the line makes him flashback to Terra, it’s likely that his strength is actually being explained as coming from protecting the people he cared about. Aqua, who gave him the chance to escape the RoD (who he’s trying to protect), Terra, who gave him the Keyblade in the first place, and Sora and Kairi, his two best friends.

When facing the same way, there are also several difference in KH3D’s and KH3′s hair that stand out. They aren’t the same and they point that out in the theory. In this case I don’t think it’s similar enough to be of note.

Second, this does not explain how and why Riku dropped and since he is still dropping a) In the Realm of Darkness into a different realm and different World Line and b) Into a completely separate World Line when he should still be alive in the first. At this point, Riku is alive in the Alpha Timeline and would have no idea of his impending death. A drop should not be necessary. So my Riku point questioning why is still valid.

Xigbar cutting out is also a direct easter egg to us, the viewers to keep us from understanding what’s happening, and not what actually occurs in the game.

...I want to quit at the logo having bad graphics gradient being used as evidence but I’ll keep going but this kind of shady business practice would likely cause such an amount in distrust that sales after KH3 would plummet and anybody who buys what is the biggest release of the series to be told it’s only that in technicality has no standards. I’m sorry. If this is actually technically KHII.9 my trust in Square and Disney (especially Disney is important, because you should know I am Disney stan 69 and see them as good) is gone. Just poof, gone. No more. And I wouldn’t want to invest in the next big entry because what if it’s just another lie.

(Nitpick: Nomura said an early world in KH3 would be Twilight Town, not that it would be the very first world. Even then, had 0.2 been packaged with KH3 like initially planned, it’s highly likely it and Olympus would’ve been 2.9 anyways.)

(More nitpicks, the TWEWY explanation does not account for the fact that Joshua actually has power to bring people back to life so long as a shred of their soul exists. It sounds like Shibuya got destroyed and Josh saved what little was left of his friends to take to somewhere they could be safe, not necessarily that the Sleeping Realm in specific called out to him. This is again Nitpicking.)

Ansem Reports foreshadow an old plot twist that’s not even valid. Aqua’s magic is now the source that rescued Kairi, not Xehanort’s experiments sending her away. Kairi being flung out the door is also representative of the events of the Island falling and them losing their safety and shelter. It’s not Kairi herself, but Ansem’s arrival on the islands that Xehanort is talking about.

Everything about this seems like it’s trying to invalidate SoKai with the Paopu fruit scene. She eats the fruit. Maybe if you hadn’t opened with “Riku loves Sora and this is Riku’s act of true love” I’d buy that this is real but as it stands the authors come off as salty that SoKai got a Paopu sharing scene.

Kairi’s death is the release of her heart as Nomura called it directly in the Ultimania. I know this was written before the Ultimania’s release but moving on it’s not a death sequence. Even then her death resembles Xion’s so it’d be more inline with the Replica theory floating around, so not a Dream Eater.

“Kairi is the Darkside in the Dive” No.

Even if Kairi did die, her heart has no darkness, all that would happen is she’d fade into darkness. She cannot physically form any dark entity, let alone one that has always been connected to the darkness in Sora’s heart. And yes I read how they point out that it’s made of water but that’s because it’s literally made from the Final World itself. As for where Kairi’s heart is, canon answers this. It’s waiting for Sora, because the Heartless cannot kill or steal her heart through the Lich. Remember back to KH1? Kairi had lost her heart, but rather than form a Heartless, all we got is a body.

More Ultimania tidbits disproving this, but the Dive to the Heart is meant to take place after the entirety of KH3. This means it’s after Sora leaves to rescue Kairi and has beaten Xehanort.

Kairi being a Chirithy theory my points are still valid on because it doesn’t work. Kairi cannot be a Chirithy because we see her after the drop point in her KH2 outfit. Therefore meaning the cat ears have nothing to do with her after the drop point.

Point on the Dream Portals is accurate and inaccurate. It says they’re ways to travel to other worlds, but everytime they’re used it’s in exactly that way in game. The two pink locations bring Sora closer to the Realm of Light after the Final World, and the second portal takes him into Scala ad Caelum, another world. It ain’t that deep.

More points, Dream Eaters don’t just exist in the Realm of Sleep. Summoning Meow Wow and friends does not matter if they can exist outside of the Realm of Sleep. Scala ad Caelum is implied to be a special world to begin with and I’ll be honest, the Caribbean is probably for ease of gameplay. If anything, I would be more curious in how water in the Realm of Sleep (and memories re:CoM) allows people to walk.

“Gayblade” Your SoRiku bias is showing. (Also Nomura violated a lot of things for rule of cool. You think a gameplay mechanic showing up means something?)

Comparing what happened to Sora and Aqua is very different. Aqua had darkness shoved into her (Nort lite) while Sora actively fell into the deep darkness he was surrounded by. Aqua could’ve emerged from the water, but did not. Sora chased darkness, and fell right in. As for how they saved Aqua in the Alpha Timeline, this wouldn’t have changed? It was Sora using his light to reach Aqua as she fell in the darkness similar to Mickey doing so for her in 0.2, now that she was free of the extra darkness Ansem shoved in her for some fun. It had nothing to do with darkness or sleep.

So we’re talking Toy Story here and his “Not this time” doesn’t add up because if Alpha Timeline is dead and Beta Timeline are a second chance then Xehanort should not have any recollection of the initial timeline/worldline because you still don’t explain why he bothered with following Sora down instead of leaving him to just stay trapped in the Realm of Darkness. There’s no strategic reason to it and Xehanort is a chess master.

“Hey let’s explain shit” Okay first of all the Goofy reference was a way to include the new arc words but without that, the others are all ways to catch up new players so they’d have an idea of what’s going on. There is no in universe reason for it. All of this was excuses for filling in new players. (As for the Unversed: Just because we only see Donald and Goofy at Yen Sid’s Tower does not mean we see what happened to them before they arrived there, jsing. Mickey may have also shown them things. Just because we don’t see it doesn’t mean it doesn’t happen.) Most of the other memory shenanigans are either just springboards for banter or, in Riku’s case, save your energy for the battle against Xehanort ahead.

The Station of Awakening line is pointless since Sora has visited his dive multiple times in the series. As Roxas and as himself in KH2 and KH1 respectively and a final time in 3D when his heart was taken in by Ven’s armor. The Station of Awakening after all, is essentially the stained glass hearts.

Heffalumps stopped only appearing in dreams when they showed up in Winnie the Pooh. Also the promotional material quotes Nomura admitted using because they sounded cool.

Yellow Kingdom Hearts is on KH1′s cover as well. It’s had more appearances. Stands to reason it’s the more official color. Could also be be based on who, what, and how it’s summoned.

Keyholes: Both Scala Ad Caelum (born from Xehanort’s heart and Kingdom Hearts) and the final Keyhole are forged to deal with sleeping. It makes sense they’d be the same.

YMX’s warnings are referencing exactly what KH3D Sora did. No more complicated theory necessary.

Skipping the Disney world synopsis because I know these worlds far too well at this point for my own Disney sanity.

Pulling symbolism from KH1 when KH2 wasn’t even planned by this point is wrong and also Riku being true love and light reeks very much of that SoRiku bias I mentioned. Okay skipping all this it’s literally just SoRiku and I’m not here for that. I’m here for the theory, not “Why Riku is Sora’s true love.”

“Riku and Kairi both helped Sora hang around” Except Riku dies at this point in the timeline. You can’t make an argument he’s alive because his heart is guided over by the Lich. What’s helping Sora hold on has nothing to do with what it is, otherwise he would just be another shapeless star, like Namine, the Nameless Stars, or the rest. It’s Kairi’s life that gives him the form to come back to life. Saving his heart has nothing to do with it and it just reeks of that same ship bias that was why I skipped the whole section on sacrifice. These 70 pages are irrelevant because all they do is take importance away from Kairi completely in the story, meaning she’s fundamentally useless besides a dark force. Which means Kairi literally doesn’t matter and can be written out of the story.

Kairi’s heart being lost is a full stop. Her heart was released at the end of the game. Saying it’s lost in the Lich sequence makes no sense, especially when she’s the one who guides him back in what is, as noted by PhoenixDowner’s translations, one of the more romantically weighted scenes of the game.

Summary of the more recent pages “SoKai is noncanon and you’re just being mislead it’s actually SoRiku that’s canon” and I’m starting to see where that anon came from...you could’ve saved this theory a hundred pages if you ignored the shipper stuff.

Everything in this ending is literally saying “Kairi doesn’t matter” and “Sora doesn’t care about bringing Kairi back” what the actual fuck?

Okay so I see a lot of talk about Sora and Riku being in the Sleeping Realms (which for the record that secret ending does not tease that but okay) but it still doesn’t explain how the events actually happened. The events of the Sleeping Realms are not the true reality. They’re Beta Timeline but if they never leave the Beta Timeline then the Alpha Timeline is still lost and legitimately none of this matters because at some point they have to leave the Sleeping Worlds, because at the end of the day the Realm of Sleep is still a dream. It still doesn’t happen?

Rage Form is Sora harnessing his darkness.

Rikunort is KH1′s Riku’s heart after he fell to darkness traveling to the awaiting vessel in the future. He’s not Data Riku, and the scene cited from Re:coded is actually a Riku memory held within the Journal’s data, not something happening to Data Riku at all.

In conclusion: I don’t think it’s all a garbage SoRiku fanfiction.

But I think way too much effort went into proving SoRiku was canon.

And also most of the holes I poked in the theory are still pretty valid.

And now I also know it’s contradicted by several Ultimania interviews whether the original writers acknowledge it or not.

But whatever, it’s not my cup of tea, you guys can still like it.

#Kingdom Hearts #KH3 #Kingdom Hearts III #KH3 Spoilers

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