#none of what i want for kairi is about her fighting. its about seeing more of the compassionate brave girl i aspired to be when i was young | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

beastenraged · 2 years

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the other side of the mirror pt1

@hallowed-nebulae

I stare into the eyes of another me. Another Ruse.

...how? This shouldn’t be possible, should it? I’m certainly no canon character, not canon enough besides the body I’ve possessed for myself. Not enough to fracture out into different versions of myself.

Yet. Somehow. There’s another Ruse. If her name is even Ruse, or if she’s even a ‘she.’ But if she’s me, we would share that much. Wouldn’t we?

There’s other people to see, what looks like another Riku with wings. A Dream Eater Riku, most likely. Maybe one that screwed up with handling Sora’s dreams in DDD, why else would he be here? Also, just crowds of people around us. Some familiar, some not. Most I could probably name, if you gave a moment. And maybe a few reminders. Just one or two.

But none of that is nearly so mind boggling as another Ruse.

"Riku! Why is there another me!"

And it seems this ‘other me’ agrees.

That Riku yawns. Looking pretty tired, his tail lashes at the ground. His wings flutter as he blinks open red eyes. Nightmare eyes.

"Every world has similar worlds to it. Every worldline has another worldline similar to it. There's many Rikus, so it makes sense that there would be more than one Ruse, right?"

But wouldn’t that be really rare? Especially if I don’t exist in a wider canon?

“But Riiikuuu,” she draws out. "Wasn't the whole thing about my worldline the fact that me existing is one of those really rare events?"

Same thoughts that I just had, pretty much. I trace along my face scars, careful not to dig in too deep. It’s kind of scary? Creepy? I don’t know the right words for seeing someone else do exactly what I would do with the Riku I know but being someone else at the same time.

We’re not the same, even if we were the same person once. It’s like with Harper, the bones that I came from. Our paths have clearly diverged if she’s hanging out in the Mirage Arena still where I am not.

(Is...Naminé still with her? Is Rook? Has some version of me not ruined everything?)

"What, like Ven being Ven and not some other Ventus?" Vanitas speaks up. He seems very comfortable with other Ruse, sliding up to her. Like a friend.

“Hey idiot,” she greets him. Her hands are on her hips as she looks him up and down. Focusing more specifically on his leg. "Have you decided if you wanna get Rinoa to heal your leg yet?"

Vanitas hums and smirks. All snarky. "Nah. I'll pass. Scars mean I lived, right?"

Well. He’s not wrong. I fight the temptation to touch my own scars again.

She scoffs. Almost laughs as she shakes her head at him. “You didn't live, you just got your leg ripped off 'cause I had you trapped and you didn't want to admit you were going to lose."

I know Kairi and Xion are busy being horrified by this. I know this. I turn my head, swallow the bile itching at my throat. They’re horrified by this, and they would be horrified by me because I would do the same. I would laugh too, have laughed about something just like this.

At least...Xehanort gets it. His hand is on my shoulder. Warm. Comforting. More than it should be, from someone like him.

Wait...she said something about ripping off Vanitas’ leg. Vanitas...said something about a friend I would like? Like this person who ripped off his leg? Which must mean-

Those jerks! They were totally messing with me! ...I have to admit, that is kind of funny. Thinking about it. Just a little.

But I’m more interested in staring at my doppelganger, as she stares back.

She flexes her hands by her side. I want to do the same. I don’t. One of us has to keep to reason here, seem unaffected by this...this...whatever.

The movement in her hands transforms into a loud clap. I almost flinch. I don’t.

"So! Why are all of you here, anyways? Didn't come for a fight, right?"

Not that I’m aware of. Pretty sure Vanitas wouldn’t mind, it seems raring to go even after the revelation of its near loss of its leg. Kind of makes sense? Vanitas isn’t one to calm down about a fight, whether this version or the version that showed up in the games. Not in real life, not like this.

The Chirthy of the other Xehanort quickly steps in with a head shake and words of their own. "No fights! Not immediately, at least."

She nods, taking that in. The entire group kind of shifts back and forth, instead of saying anything. C’mon, aren’t we here for a reason? I’m about to say something, when my alternate speaks first. Just as impatient as myself.

(Some things never change, huh?)

“So...?” She asks, leaving the words dangling. Waiting for us to fill it in, to give up the facts. A familiar tactic. But not one that lasts long, the other Ruse growing impatient enough to ask more as she bounces up and down on her feet.

"What are you looking for? I'm not in a fight any time soon because Rinoa says I'm not allowed--"

"-- Because you tripped out of the layer last time you were in a fight, I am not putting you and Will in the regular arenas ever again,” the Riku-looking Nightmare inserts dryly.

Will? I pull my attention to focusing on the other Ruse again, putting whatever that is away for later. Because it couldn’t be the Lingering Will, could it?

"-- so I have the free time to help!" She announces with hands on her hips and a soft smile. A Naminé kind of smile, the one she would always use on me to convince me to talk.

My fingers do dig into my face at that. Can’t help it.

Only the flash of another person moving towards us stops me before I burrow in any deeper with sharp nails.

That’s...that’s another Riku Replica. Some part of me just knows, the rest of me recognizes him from the brief encounters I had with myself before...before I lost him.

Rook. Rook, Rook, Rook. Oh Rook.

"Rook! Hey Rook! I'm over here!" She waves frantically to him, calling him over in excitement.

He hurries over in response and I...I...

As the other Ruse explains to him everything about what she knows right now, what’s going with us visitors, I...I look away. I have to. Because if I don’t move away now, I’ll never take my eyes off Rook. Not my Rook, never my Rook,

“Ruse...” Xion whispers. She tugs at my wrist. “Are you okay?”

I force a smile on my face. The same soft smile that went on a mirror of my face. “I’m fine. Don’t worry about me, we just need to get home. Right?”

She eyes me critically but slowly nods. “If you say so.”

Man, Xion is totally going to talk with me later. Capital T-Talk kind of talk. Annoying, who’s the big sister here? I help her, not the other way around.

I move closer to Xehanort, out of Xion’s reach. The Xehanort that I know, watching everything in his distracted observer fashion. Completely ignoring how uncomfortable he seems to be making everyone in the process, especially the other Xehanort.

Everyone but me and the other Ruse, who is really focused on whatever she’s talking about. Guess all Ruses don’t get bothered by Xehanorts, huh? Weird thought.

"That one's disaster parents." Vanitas says, jabbing a thumb in the direction of his Xehanort.

Wait, they’re talking about something else? What did I miss? And hey, my Xehanort’s looking a little surprised by the revelation that his alternate has parents, peering carefully at the individual in question. Since he’s looking a tiny bit surprised, he must be really surprised. Honestly!

Crazy to think, such a huge difference.

The other Xehanort glares at Vanitas as he speaks up to clarify to the interested party.

"We're looking for Sephiroth. We were doing a medical checkup for Ven and Vanitas, but then we realized we don't really know how mako works, so we're hoping Sephiroth can help us, since he's. . . y'know. . ."

Huh, that makes sense. If this Sephiroth has a background with Hojo (fuck that dude), of course he would know mako science stuff. Enough to function, at least.

But Sephiroth? Most likely not actually related, though I’ll keep the possibility in mind that somewhere, somewhen, a Sephiroth helped give birth to a Xehanort. Weird as that may be...

I lean over to whisper in Xeha’s ear. “Probably adopted.”

His shoulders relax, though I’m the only one who could and would notice such a response. He gives me the shortest nod possible. To avoid notice, of course. He hates anyone catching onto possible weakness.

"I can probably find him," the other Riku says. The Nightmare one. Judging by how nearly everyone else kind of jumps, they forgot he was there. I didn’t. I can’t forget a Nightmare so close, the feel of that heavy Darkness and the gleam of red eyes.

(My mouth waters. I’m so hungry.)

Shake my head. Ignore. Don’t eat people, don’t eat people...honestly, if I was a proper Replica or person or whatever, I wouldn’t be thinking about eating people in the first place.

It’s the worst, isn’t it?

Turning my attention to my surroundings always serves as the best distraction, so I decide to do that. Careful to keep close to everyone else, careful to keep an eye out.

So very different from the Arena I wandered. But that only makes sense, right? Dreams of different universes would be different from what I know, making this Dream-built place different too. Also, I have a strong feeling that a Nightmare that isn’t Ultimecia runs this Arena. No version of me would linger with a Nightmare like that around, threatening to feed me to people. The other Ruse seems to know where she’s going, yet she relies on the other Xehanort for most of her directions. As bad as I am, then. What a weird thought. Again, more similarities than differences between us.

Would this be more comfortable, if there were more differences? Like between the Xehanort I know and the Xehanort of here that apparently isn’t an orphan?

(I...don’t know. What can I say?)

She rushes up after a...Cloud? From FF7? I think so, at least. Probably. After a lot of time in the crowd. The other Xehanort sighs but doesn’t bother holding her back. Because no one can hold a Ruse back. Ever.

Well. We’ll see where this takes us. Because I don’t have a plan.

(I never do.)

#storm whispers au #my kh writing #tell me verse #tempests crossover #oc ruse #DOUBLE RUSE #knowing yourself too well and not well enough #2nd part to come with RN!

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divinitysheart · 2 years

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ACHIVEMENT UNLOCKED ;; Heartfelt Talks

The wind gently blows Namine’s hair as she watches the waves crash against the shore line. The sound of the waves has always just been something calming for Namine, because the waves simply gave her an escape to stop thinking and to just relax for once without the constant worries at the back of her mind on whether or not that HE was okay.

The place felt more quiet and tranquil then it typically did, normally she’ll hear the island kids playfully fighting each other with wooden swords, but today there was none of that. And it was kind of nice, even though she appreciated the background noise at times while she drew.

Although the quietness was gently interrupted by a voice she hadn’t quite expected,

“ Hey Nami, Mind if I take a seat next to you? “

It’d been Kairi, and of course, Namine didn’t have any reason to say no, so she pats the space next to her, as if saying that she’s fine with Kairi taking a seat next to her. Her eyes meet Kairi’s without hesitation as a small smile makes its way onto Namine’s face, it was always pleasant to be around Kairi for her, for she knew that Kairi understands her a lot better than most. Afterall, being so similar to each other made it a lot easier to pick up on one another's emotions.

“ ..Hi Kai, what brings you here? You don’t typically come out here unless you have something on your mind. “ Namine spoke with genuine curiosity.

When asked the question, Kairi seems to hesitate on speaking at first, but shortly after she lets out a sigh as she tells Namine what’s been on her mind, “ I.. I miss Sora. A lot. And I don’t know what to do because we still haven’t found him. And don’t get me wrong, I have faith in him to be okay but it's hard to remain brave sometimes, because what if he just… what if we can’t find him? What if I never see him again? “

Namine knew and understood what Kairi felt too well, from what she was gathering, Kairi’s fear of never being able to find Sora seemed to be eating her alive. It was the same fear she felt when HE left, the same fear that still ate at her to this day.

“ I.. understand how you feel Kai. It hurts not knowing if a person you care for is going to be okay. And it’s okay to worry about them, it doesn’t mean you’re lacking faith them, not to mention you’re only human and there is only so much you can do to try to not worry yourself. So I, um, basically what I’m trying to say is, it’s okay to miss them and worry about them, it doesn’t make you selfish to be so worried. “

The words had rushed out of her mouth without a second thought, and at this point it was only to let Kairi know that she’s not the only person who feels like this. And that it’s okay to feel such a way. For she knew all too well that her dear somebody has the habit of feeling as if it’s not okay for her to feel in certain ways. And it’s just Namine’s job as Kairi’s friend that it's okay to feel.

Silence hung heavy in the air for a bit, and Namine suddenly started to feel anxious, had she said too much? Maybe advice wasn’t what Kairi wanted, maybe Kairi wanted someone just to listen, and just as she was about to apologize Kairi finally broke the silence with a sad smile at Namine,

“ I.. thank you Namine. I needed that. But I also think you need to take your own advice as well. “

Her eyes widened at the statement, because while Kairi wasn’t wrong, she hadn’t expected to be called out on it. “ Pfft. Yeah I suppose I do need to take my own advice. “

Kairi’s hand gently placed itself on Namine’s shoulder, almost as if to assure her that it’s okay to talk about something. She didn’t know what Kairi was going to say or ask but, it’d be fine whatever it was, because their conversations stayed between them. “ I know this topic isn’t exactly my place to poke but, when you said you understood how I felt not knowing if someone I care about was okay or not. The person you’re worried about is Noctis isn’t it? “

If it’d been anyone else asking about this, they most likely would have gotten a curt response saying that it was none of their business. But this was Kairi, the same person whom she made promise to tell Noctis that she’s sorry for breaking the promise to stay safe. And although Kairi didn’t have to tell Noctis anything now, the least Namine owes is an explanation.

“ Yeah. I.. It is. “

There’s a pause for a moment before Kairi asks another question, “ Do you regret.. not going with him when you had the chance to? “

“ That’s.. not a fair question Kairi..! I.. urgh. Sometimes I do, but then I remember it was for the better of both of us. It would have been selfish of me to go with him at the time. “

Kairi finds herself at a loss for words, she can feel the pain within Namine’s words. And it makes her heart ache for Namine, it truly begins to sink in how much her friend has truly has suffered because she only wanted to do what she thought was right.

“ ..Hey Nami? “ It came out as a whisper from Kairi’s mouth but Namine still heard it.

“ ..Yeah Kai? “ She replies in a similar tone to Kairi’s.

“ We’re going to get through this together, I’ll be here for you and you’ll be here for me. And we’ll see them again. “ At Kairi’s words, Namine finds herself growing more at home.

“ Is that a promise? “ A fond smile tugs onto Kairi’s features at the question, because Namine knew the answer.

“ Of course, I promise and swear it on my keyblade. “ A hum of approval leaves Namine’s mouth, the answer was exactly as she expected.

“ And I promise and swear it on my honor as your friend. “ To a few people swearing on your honor as a friend probably wasn’t nearly as important as swearing it on your keyblade, but Kairi isn’t one of those people.

The conversation dies down as they turn their heads over to the setting sun that shone onto the sea water, for no more needed to be said at the moment.

For the sun setting spoke for itself. It was a reminder that even as the sun settles into dusk, a new dawn shall always rise. And with a new dawn comes new hopes.

#✴ remnants of memory ✴ namine #❂ heartfelt talks ❂ namine & kairi #⊰ painting but with words ⊱ drabbles #( this is probably going to be re-edited but heres what I've been working on today )

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minijenn · 3 years

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KH Comm # 3

Another writing comm! This one's for @rosie-drawss, who wanted a continuation of the Keys comm I did for them last time around (in which, tldr, Riku finds Sora and convinces him to come home early). You can read that right here if you're interested in getting a bit of background before diving into this one. Anyway enjoy this big ol bundle of hurt/comfort!

***

The Gummi Ship isn’t parked that far away. Yet despite keeping up a steady pace so far, as soon as he sees its familiar red and yellow hull, Sora slows to a stop, something that Riku notices almost immediately. He stops, turning back to check on him, only for Sora to surprisingly tell him what’s wrong, this time completely unprompted.

“I-I… I don’t think I’m ready for this,” he quietly admits, wrapping his arms around himself. “I lied to them and ran from them for so long, Riku, I don’t even know what I’m supposed to say to any of them now, much less to Donald, or Goofy, or Kairi-”

“You don’t have to say anything, if you don’t want to,” Riku reassures him. He steps back over to him, gently taking one of his hands in his. After so many weeks on his own, Sora’s gotten used to living without much physical contact from others; but that doesn’t mean he hasn’t missed it, that he doesn’t selfishly cherish every second of it he’s getting now. “They all know, and they understand. And trust me when I tell you the only thing any of them wants, especially Kairi, is to see you come home safe and sound.”

“T-they’re not mad?” Sora asks, still uncertain.

“At you? No,” Riku shakes his head. His expression darkens a bit as he brushes a few of Sora’s now-white bangs out of his newly golden eyes. “At the one who’s doing all this to you? Well, let’s just say that if it's a war Xehanort wants, it's a war he’s going to get if that’s what it takes to set you free.”

Sora wants to argue at this, wants to insist that no one else should have to fight this battle for him, that he’s not even worth such a battle to begin with. But he’s far too tired to put up that kind of fight now, not when he knows it’ll do nothing to change Riku’s mind or anyone else��s for that matter.

So instead, he lets Riku take his hand, lets him lead him onward, lets him guide him to one of the vacant chairs in the ship’s cockpit. Surprisingly, they don’t lift off right away; instead, Riku briefly heads below deck before returning with a blanket and a small meal composed of a sandwich, an apple, and a water bottle.

“It’s gonna be a long ride back to the tower,” Riku says as he hands all those items over to Sora. “Might as well get comfortable.” He pauses, his face suddenly warm with embarrassment when he sees Sora staring at the meager portion of food sitting in his lap with a look of sheer disbelief. “Uh… sorry, it’s not much,” he clears his throat, glancing away. “It’s been a few days since I last stocked up on supplies and I, um, heard that if you’ve gone without food for awhile, it’s best not to go overboard with your first meal, so-”

“You’re kidding, right?” Sora cuts in, looking up at him with a grateful, incredulous smile. “This is more food than I’ve had in weeks, I-” He stops short when he notices Riku’s immediate alarm upon hearing something like this and as a result, he immediately backpedals on it. “I, uh… t-thank you,” his tone turns soft again, small, but he’s still smiling as he takes his first bite out of the sandwich.

“...Why haven’t you been eating?” Riku asks him, kneeling down beside his chair.

“Couldn’t afford to,” Sora admits somewhat sheepishly. “I don’t have any money, and… well, I found out pretty quickly that most people aren’t willing to give things out for free…”

Riku sighs, wishing that he’d found Sora so much sooner, wishing that he hadn’t had to struggle to simply survive for so long. “You haven’t been sleeping much either, have you?” he asks, noting the dark bags under his eyes.

Sora hesitantly shakes his head as he finishes the sandwich up just shy of starting on the apple. “I can’t…” he mutters tiredly.

“Why not?”

“Nightmares…” is all Sora says, and Riku immediately understands.

He stands, grabbing the blanket and lightly draping it over Sora as soon as he finishes off his small meal. “Get some sleep,” he instructs patiently. “You won’t have any more nightmares, not as long as you’re with me. I promise.”

Sora wants to question that promise, but he’s overtaken by an exhausted yawn instead. With even just a little food finally in his stomach, his eyes soon start to grow heavy, and before the ship is even off the ground, he’s fallen into a stupor. As he prepares for takeoff, Riku can sense the nightmares starting to assail him, can hear his soft, nervous whimpers piercing through the peace of the cockpit. But he’s having none of it. He closes his eyes, takes in a steady breath, and focuses his power into chasing those nightmares away before they can cause him any harm. The terrors Xehanort is trying to force upon him are unspeakable, vile visions of everything Sora’s come to fear and hate. Even the brief glimpses he gets before he destroys them from existence are enough to shake Riku to his very core, to get even just a small taste of the torture Sora’s been forced to go through, torture he’s done not a single thing to deserve in the slightest. And yet, for as much as it all horrifies him, it does something else too; it makes Riku want to put the twisted man responsible for it all through every bit of suffering he’s been shoving onto Sora. He won’t rest until he does.

Riku feels some measure of relief when he finally feels Sora fully fall asleep just as the ship’s engines quietly roar to life. He pulls the vessel into motion, gentle enough as to not wake him, and slowly guides it up into the atmosphere, out of a world in which, up until a few hours prior, Sora had been all but hopelessly lost within. As soon as the ship is steadily adrift between the stars, Riku briefly checks on him, unable to suppress a smile when he sees him curled up him his seat, his blanket tightly wrapped around him as he sleeps soundly, likely for the first time in a very long time.

That smile soon fades, however, when he pulls his Gummiphone out. He hasn’t spoken to any of the other lights in quite awhile, not since his search for Sora began. As their leader, he knows he’ll have a lot to answer for the impulsive haste of that search, and he’ll have much to say he’s sorry for, to Kairi above all the others. But now, he’s finally ready to face them, finally ready to return to them. Finally ready to bring the only one still missing among their number back to where he belongs.

He decides to message Kairi, knowing there’s too much to explain and that none of it should be done over the phone. Besides, he doesn’t want to risk waking Sora up with what would likely be a very emotional, very noisy call. So he sends something short off to her, a simple request without much elaboration at all. Mostly because he has a feeling she’ll understand exactly what he means.

“I’m sorry about what happened before, but I need a favor. Go to the islands and bring Himari back to the tower, please. And tell the others to get a room ready. I have him. We’re coming home.”

***

Sora’s still sleeping when they arrive at the tower. Riku doesn’t have the heart to rouse him, not when sleep is something he so sorely, visibly needs. So he decides to carry him, carefully lifting him from his seat with his blanket still draped over him. His heart flutters in his chest, his face warm as he secures Sora comfortably in his arms. He’s light, far lighter than he should be, likely because of his longstanding starvation, and as a result, he feels fragile, like he could break at any moment if not treated with the utmost care and caution. But even then, Riku isn’t so sure he hasn’t already been broken by fear, by pain, by loneliness, by so many other things he can’t even bring himself to think about.

He isn’t surprised to see Kairi pacing around right outside the tower, her expression torn between deep worry and rising hope. She’s the only one out there, and he’s glad for it; the last thing Sora needs is to be overwhelmed by too many people at once upon arrival.

“Riku!” she cries, running over to him the second she spots him. He’s quick to shush her as Sora lightly stirs in his arms, and she complies, her eyes wide when she sees him, a soft gasp escaping her when she takes in just how much he’s managed to change. “S-Sora…” she swallows hard, trying to fight back tears and failing miserably. “I-is… is he-”

“He’s just sleeping,” Riku assures her. “He… hasn’t been doing too well out on his own…”

“I can tell…” Kairi shudders, wiping a few of her stray tears away. She places a feather-light hand against the side of his face, whispering softly to him as he sleeps. “I can’t imagine what you’ve been going through… But it’s all gonna be ok now. You’re here, and so is everyone else. And we’re all gonna do whatever we can to stop this… to save you…”

While most of this goes largely unheard, Sora does ease his way back into some small semblance of waking after Kairi leans in to lightly kiss his forehead. His golden gaze is initially unfocused, his mind bleary and disoriented as unused to uninterrupted slumber as he’s come to be. Even so, he eventually manages to focus his sights on the pair hovering over him, all but unaware that he’s resting in the arms of one of them. “Mmm… Riku?” he says with a small, comforted smile. That comfort quickly shifts into startled alarm when he notices who else is standing alongside him. “K-Kairi! I-”

“Shh, it’s ok,” she places a soft finger against his lips, her own smile warm but bittersweet. “I’m so glad to see you, you lazy bum. To see both of you…” She turns her sights back to Riku, who returns her apologetic gaze every bit as intently. Whatever they might have said or done weeks before doesn’t matter now, not when they finally have the one who matters most to them both back. Not when he still needs both of them to be there for him so very much.

“Wait a second…” Sora starts, his cheeks flooding red when he tries to sit up, only to realize where he’s lying. Or rather, who’s arms he’s lying in. “R-Riku! Are you--why are you carrying me?!”

“W-well, you were sleeping,” Riku quickly explains, his own face turning a crimson shade to match Sora’s. “And I didn’t want to wake you, so I-”

He’s cut off as Kairi suddenly breaks down into a helpless bout of laughter, one that only serves to fluster both boys even more. “Good to know you’re both just as adorable as ever,” she chuckles, fixing them with a flirtatious smirk.

“Are not!” Sora argues, pouting as Riku carefully sets him down and helps him properly stand.

“I-I don’t know what you mean,” Riku refutes, clearing his throat as he looks away.

“Suuuure you don’t,” Kairi teases, though her tone takes a more serious turn as she begins leading the way toward the tower. “Well, come on you two. Everyone’s waiting.”

“E-everyone?” Sora tenses, at least until Riku’s steadying hand lands on his shoulder.

“It’s ok,” he says solemnly, sincerely. “We’re with you, no matter what happens.”

The most Sora can do is anxiously nod, knowing that there’s no going back now, not when he’s already come all this way. They approach the doors together, though they aren’t the ones to open them. Donald and Goofy are, and needless to say that as soon as they see Sora, they’re unable to contain the torrential tide of emotions that rushes to the surface. And neither can Sora himself, for that matter.

The pair pounces upon him, knocking him to the ground as they engulf him in a noisy, tearful hug. Sora struggles to work up the courage to hug them back, terrified of even touching them after how he’d hurt both of them before. That maddening moment seems to be the furthest thing from either of their minds now though, as they fret and fawn over him, as Donald scolds him for worrying them so much, as Goofy tells him how much they both missed him. It all comes out so rapidly that Sora is barely able to get a word in edgewise, not that he can think of much else to say other than sorry. Which he does, over and over and over again.

Roxas, Ventus, and Xion descend upon him next, each of them greeting him in more or less the exact ways he expected them to. Roxas is a mess of relieved anger, hot tears streaming down his cheeks as he yells at Sora for his recklessness, for his foolishness, for being so surprisingly hard to find. Sora doesn’t protest any of it, knowing he deserves far worse for what he’s done. But in the end, Roxas finally relents, finally embracing him as Ven and Xion do the same. As all three of the hearts once inside his own vow to do whatever they can to protect him even still, even now that they no longer have to call his heart home.

The others all soon follow, Aqua and Terra and Axel and Mickey and Naminé all warmly welcoming his long-awaited return. He does his best to face each of them in stride, to not fall apart in front of them all. He leans against Riku and Kairi for support, his head spinning as they all ask him an abundance of curious, concerned questions, many of which he has no real answers for. The pair can tell he’s starting to get overwhelmed by it all, and they’re more than ready to pull him aside for some of the solitude he’s likely much more used to now. But before they can, one voice among the group rises over all the others; a voice that sparks tears in Sora’s eyes the very second he hears her.

“S-Sora…?”

He turns, his heart aching to find her hurrying down the stairs into the foyer. Her eyes are already red from crying, tears already starting in them anew when he steps forward to meet her. He doesn’t know what to say, didn’t know she’d be here, never thought she even could be here. But he supposes it only makes sense that they’d bring her all this way to see him; after all, the world order can afford to be broken just a little if it means reuniting a worried mother with the son she’s so close to losing.

“Mom…” he returns as the entire room falls into solemn silence around them. “I… I’m-”

He doesn’t get a chance to finish when Himari throws her arms around him, pulling him close and tight toward her. “I-I… t-they just finished telling me what’s happening to you,” she whispers, running a hand through his whitened hair. “I didn’t think this--I… I should have never let you…” she breaks off into a mournful sob, holding him even tighter, terrified of what might happen if she lets him go. “I’m so sorry, Sora…”

“No,” he returns just as quietly, just as sadly as he pulls just a tiny bit away. “Don’t be. You have nothing to be sorry for. This isn’t your fault.” “It’s mine,” he nearly adds, but narrowly refrains. Even though he knows it's nothing less than the truth.

The round of reunions doesn’t continue very long after that. It’s already quite late, and everyone’s already very tired, so they decide to take tomorrow to form a more concrete plan of action. For now, everyone turns into their rooms for the night, with even Himari doing the same after spending a bit more time with her son, vowing to stay by his side through the duration of this situation, no matter how uncertain it might be.

Sora finds himself stunned when Riku and Kairi lead him into one of the tower’s spare rooms. He hasn’t slept in general for so long, much less in an actual bed. And the mere thought of getting to lie in one now almost seems like a luxury he shouldn’t be able to afford, yet here it is, offered freely just like the food he’d gotten earlier, just like the secure shelter now hanging over his head, just like the kind company he still can’t believe he’s keeping. Company that he’d been such a stubborn fool for depriving himself of for so very long.

As he climbs under the soft plush covers, he’s just as surprised to find Riku and Kairi climbing under them alongside him. The bed is plenty big enough for all three of them, with still more room to spare, but they pull themselves close along either side of him, each of them loosely draping their arms over him.

“Are you comfortable like this?” Kairi asks him as she reaches over to turn out the light.

“Yeah…” he sighs, content as Riku pulls the blanket over him just a bit more. “You know, I’ve been alone for such a long time now, I-I guess… I almost forgot what this felt like…”

“What do you mean?” Riku inquires softly, drowsily.

“I… I forgot what it felt like… to be safe,” Sora admits, though that’s not really what he wants to say. Because in truth, what he really forgot, what he’s still trying his hardest to remember is what it feels like to be loved.

Even so, both Riku and Kairi seem to understand what he means without him even needing to say it. A talent both of them have always had, one that he’s always marveled at around every turn. “And you’ll stay safe, no matter what happens next,” Kairi smiles sweetly, slowly brushing a few stray locks of hair out of his eyes. “That’s something we won’t let you forget again. We promise.”

“You saved both of us so many times before, Sora, in so many different ways,” Riku adds, his voice a light, loving whisper leading him back toward slumber. “This time, let us be the ones to save you, ok?”

Sora has no idea what will happen next, and part of him doesn’t want to know either. But what he does know is this: he’s back, he’s here, surrounded by friends and family who are all striving to help him, set his captive heart free. He’s here, lying in the arms of two people he loves more than anything, more than himself even. He’s here, and the only thing they want is to save him, to stay with him, to hold onto him and never let him walk alone again. And, after so long of wandering without anyone by his side, without any love or light to guide him out of the dark deceptions he’d fallen into… Sora can’t help but finally find himself wanting the exact same thing. “Ok,” he says softly, a smile on his face as he falls asleep in the same way he fell in love with them so many years ago.

Slowly, and then all at once.

(Commissions are still open! PM if interested!)

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phoenix-downer · 4 years

Text

See You Soon

~2500 words. Post-Melody of Memory. Contains spoilers. Riku POV, Kairi POV. Introspection and reflection. Implied SoKai. Mostly canon compliant.

As the wind whistled past Riku’s ears and his Station of Awakening came into view, one thought tumbled over and over through his mind:

Am I doing the right thing?

He wasn’t sure where that had come from. Saving Sora was the right thing to do, no doubt about it. They’d searched an entire year and finally had a clue. Of course jumping through the portal was the right thing to do. He had to bring Sora back; he owed it to everyone. To Sora himself, of course, but to all their friends as well. Especially Kairi—

Kairi. Try as he might, he couldn’t get her face out of his head. The disappointment in her eyes when he’d told her she should stay behind.

He touched down on the platform that had his likeness etched in stained glass. Not as he was now, but as he was when he began his journey. The moment his heart awakened to the true nature of reality and of the Keyblade. Purple glass surrounded him, and next to him were the faces of friends and important people he’d met on his journeys.

Had Kairi gotten to have her awakening yet? Or was she—

“I did the right thing,” he said as he paused to get a feel for his surroundings. “This is what Sora would want. Kairi, safe and sound in the Realm of Light. What would he say if I let anything happen to her, after everything he’s sacrificed for her?” He balled his hand into a fist. “He trusted me to look out for her, after all. And he’d want me to bring him back to her. Right?”

No one answered him; it was dark and silent here in his heart. Not even Ansem Seeker of Darkness lurked around anymore. His image had melted away from the Station after that final battle in the Keyblade Graveyard.

And yet, a small, nagging voice at the back of his mind wouldn’t leave him alone. It pointed out that missing from his reasoning was Kairi herself. What did Kairi want?

“She’s fine with this,” he said as he paced back and forth. “She needs more training, she doesn’t want to be a burden—”

He stopped. His feet were near the image of Mickey’s head, and he sighed deeply.

“I know, I know,” he said, speaking as if his friend was actually here. “It wasn’t my call to make.”

Kairi had quickly masked her true feelings with her usual cheerfulness, but she wasn’t fooling anyone. Being left behind again was hardly what she’d wanted. And yet he’d agreed to leaving her behind because he was in such a rush to save Sora.

He rubbed the back of his neck. “It’s a little too late to go back now, huh?”

The Power of Waking was not something he could use lightly. Sora’s disappearance had really driven that lesson home. Doubling back halfway through a dive could be risky. Best to continue on to his destination.

He summoned his Keyblade. It appeared with its usual burst of light, and its steady weight in his grip helped him focus.

“Kairi, I’m sorry for leaving you behind again. I promise it won’t happen next time.” He glanced up at the endless sea of black above him. “Besides, something tells me your heart might be the key. You brought Sora and I back from the Realm of Darkness. Depending on how this goes, we might need another miracle.”

While Riku hadn’t hesitated to dive in after Sora, he knew there was no guarantee he’d make it back. This portal probably only went one way, knowing his luck. But if anyone could light the way home, it was Kairi.

He pointed his Keyblade at his Station of Awakening and unlocked it. As his surroundings faded away and a new path appeared before him, he had one last message for Kairi.

“See you soon. And the next time I do, I swear, Sora will be with me.”

Despite all the odds, he wanted to give her this reassurance at least. He wanted to make up for all the tears and pain, the year of her life she spent sleeping away in the hope she might find a clue about Sora. A clue they needed because he’d failed to keep her and Sora safe. This was all his fault. If he’d protected Kairi from Xehanort—if he’d offered to go after her instead of letting Sora go it alone—then maybe, just maybe, Sora would still be here.

This was his penance; his way of making it up to them both. The debt would only be repaid when the two of them were reunited. And this time, he’d make sure he was there too. No slinking off into the darkness alone. If his journeys had taught him anything, it was that there was nothing more important than being with his friends.

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Kairi rested her chin on her hand and gazed out the window of the Gummi Ship. She’d seen this view several times now, but she still found herself staring at the sea of stars twinkling like diamonds in the sky. Wherever Sora was, could he see these stars? Did unreality have stars the way reality did?

“Kairi? Whatcha thinkin’ about?”

“Mmmm?” She broke out of her reverie and turned to her companion. Goofy was craning his neck to look at her, a concerned expression on his face.

“Do you think there are stars where Sora is?” she asked him.

He scratched his chin. “Gawrsh, that’s a good question. I’d think so, but who knows what that fiction-place is like.” He turned to Donald, who was currently driving their vessel. “Donald? Whaddya think?”

Donald carefully guided them past a lumpy asteroid before responding. “Who knows. Maybe it has stars, maybe it doesn’t. Probably depends on if the unreality has multiple worlds.”

Kairi fiddled with her necklace. “I suppose it’s a silly question. I just… I wish I knew he was okay. I don’t want him to be somewhere strange and scary that doesn’t even have stars.”

She hadn’t imagined he’d come to her aid in that dream she’d had of Xehanort, right? One moment, she’d been sprawled on the ground, disarmed, as Xehanort prepared to strike her down again, and then the next—Sora’s Keyblade had appeared in her hand, and she’d felt his presence. He’d fought for her, too. But it was just like Xehanort said—he couldn’t speak. Not a single word to her or to anyone.

Why was he without a voice? Who had taken his voice away? And where was his heart? Why would a vanquished Xehanort who had moved on to the afterlife even care about where his heart was? Unless the person she’d met in her dream wasn’t actually Xehanort—

“Kairi?” Goofy said, breaking her out of her thoughts again.

“Sorry, I just… I dreamed about Sora, but he couldn’t speak to me. I wish I knew what he wanted to tell me—if there was anything he wanted to tell me, that is.”

It was a little presumptuous of her to assume so. He’d said what he’d needed to say before he’d disappeared. Wanting anything else—after everything he’d already done—when so many other people missed him and wanted to talk to him too—

Goofy clapped a hand on her shoulder. “Gawrsh, I’m sure he’s got lots he’d like to tell ya.”

“You really think so?”

Donald cackled as he dodged around a meteor. “Oh, we know so. And boy do we have the stories to back it up.”

She tilted her head. “Stories?” What did Donald mean? Stories about Sora, or—

“Gawrsh, Donald, maybe we shouldn’t tell Kairi everything, I think Sora would be kinda embarrassed—”

“You shoulda seen his face any time he saw a happy couple! He’d get all blushy and flustered and giggly because he was thinking of a certain special someone.”

Goofy clasped his hands over his mouth and giggled. His eyes were dancing, and Kairi put two and two together.

“Me? He kept thinking of me?”

Donald and Goofy both nodded, like they were two bobbleheads controlled by the same spring.

She leaned against the window and smiled. “If it’s not too much to ask… Could you tell me more? Stories about Sora, I mean. And your journeys as well. I got to talk to him about his journeys before he disappeared, but I’d like to hear your thoughts and experiences, too.”

Ever since Sora and Riku had come home from their first adventure, she’d gathered stories. Losing her memories once was awful, and she never wanted it to happen again. Chronicling her friend’s memories like this reassured her there was some record out there that didn’t rely solely on something as malleable as memory, and she now had pages and pages of notes.

“Sure thing,” Goofy said, so she dug around in her bag for her notebook and favorite gel pen. Once she was settled in, she took notes as Goofy spoke and Donald chimed in. Hearing stories about Sora helped her feel closer to him. Stories of his (mis)adventures and daring deeds, his moments of vulnerability and happiest memories, his corny jokes and hopeless romantic tendencies. And since she couldn’t go after him herself right now, this was the closest she could get to being close to him.

Later that evening, as she was poring over her notes and reliving Donald and Goofy’s memories in the privacy of her quarters, she chewed on the end of her pen. Was it wrong to be a little upset at Riku? Upset at herself, too, for caving so easily, for not even fighting for the chance to go with him? For giving up so easily on an opportunity to save Sora? Hearing stories about him just made her want to be with him that much more. Waiting wasn’t good enough. Training wasn’t good enough. How could she even stay behind, safe and sound, while Riku was risking his life to save Sora? And after Sora had sacrificed himself for her. It wasn’t fair. None of this was fair.

Sora, forgive me, she thought sadly. I wanted to go after you, but after facing off against Xehanort in my dream… Not even being able to handle a dream version of him without your help… I’m scared I’d just let you down again. Or worse, get you hurt or killed for real. And I can’t… I can’t bear to lose you again. So for now, I’ll train with Aqua, okay? That… feels like the right thing to do. I think.

She sighed deeply. No matter how much she tried to convince herself, she was still disappointed she wasn’t searching for Sora with Riku right now. She should be with him. Why did she have to train and train and train when Sora and Riku got to learn by experience? It wasn’t fair. It wasn’t fair, and she was sick of being shunted to the sidelines.

“It’s because you’re weak,” she said with a frown as she drew an angry face in the margins of her notes. “You hold everyone else back. And Sora had to pay the price for your weakness. It’s your fault he’s gone.”

No.

She gasped and dropped the pen. Scrawled on the page in purple ink next to her angry face was the message. N-o. Short, simple, to the point.

The handwriting was not her own.

“Sora?” she asked, resting a hand over her heart. But she heard nothing; felt nothing. “Oh, right. Xehanort, or whoever that really was, said you’re without a voice. I wonder what he meant by that.”

She fumbled around for her pen, then put it to the paper. “Sora? I don’t know how this is possible, but if there’s anything you really want to tell me, um, I don’t mind if you… take over for a little while?”

That was what had happened, right? He’d taken control of her body to fight for her, and his heart had manifested. Somehow. Was a part of his heart inside her? Or had the paopu fruit really bound them together like the stories said it would?

“Any time now, I promise I don’t mind,” she said, feeling a little silly for talking out loud like this. But if Sora really could hear her, maybe it wasn’t so silly after all.

She waited, and waited, and waited. The little cuckoo clock in the corner went off, the little cuckoo bird popping out to announce it was past her bedtime, past her bedtime, past her bedtime. She sighed and started doodling again. Little drawings of Sora’s smile because she missed seeing the real thing. But nothing else happened; if he really was the one who’d left her that message earlier, he was either gone or unavailable now. Or maybe… maybe the connection wasn’t strong enough right now. Maybe it went in and out like her Gummiphone’s reception did when Donald drove through a particularly thick asteroid field.

Was there a way to strengthen the connection so Sora could communicate with her more easily? She combed her brain for answers. He’d manifested the first time to protect her because she was in danger. Then that message had shown up on her notes when she’d been down on herself.

She tapped her pen on the paper. “The common connection… The common connection… The first time, I needed help, and the second time, I was being down on myself. Maybe it’s linked to my feelings somehow? My heart?”

She flipped to a new page and jotted her thoughts down. Maybe Aqua could help her sort all of this out. Sure, a part of her still wanted to search for Sora with Riku right now, but maybe Sora wasn’t as far away as they’d thought.

Maybe the key to finding him rested in her heart. Or at least one of the keys. That was what she and Riku and the star-girl they’d met in the Final World were, right? The girl’s key led to the unreality, Quadratum. Riku was following that clue because his key had been those dreams about Quadratum. But the other key…

She rested her hand over her heart and smiled. For the first time since suggesting she train with Aqua, she had a clear sense of what to do next. She would train with Aqua all right, but not just in fighting and wielding a Keyblade. Aqua was a skilled mage, and if anyone could help Kairi figure this all out, she could.

Closing the notebook, Kairi lay back on the bed and smiled. “Hang in there, Sora. Riku’s coming for you, and I’ll make my connection to you stronger, I swear.”

The Gummi Ship would be arriving on the Land of Departure tomorrow, and then her training would begin in earnest. Someday soon Sora would come home to them, of that she was certain. Then they could finally be together like they’d promised.

She rolled over and stared up at the stars. Whether the unreality had stars or not, she knew all worlds, all realities, shared the same sky.

“See you soon.”

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A/N: I finished Melody of Memory yesterday, and the plot bunnies soon took hold 😂I wanted to explore Riku and Kairi’s mental states after the events of the game, plus a few plot speculation/headcanon things that popped into my mind, and this was the result. I have some general thoughts on the game overall that I might put together in a separate post, but for now, this is my initial reaction. Thank you for reading!

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oveliagirlhaditright · 3 years

Text

After the Game, Fret somewhat didn't like when someone other than canon had red hair and wore purple. Canon compliant. Oneshot. Neo spoilers. KH DDD is canon to TWEWY in this fic. Though you shouldn’t at all have to really know KH to understand this fic.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/33469456

For the most part… Fret got on pretty well after Kanon’s death.

It was tough, it really was, but he soldiered on by becoming the more authentic version of himself she had wanted him to be… hoping that that would be enough. And that if her soul did somehow exist somewhere, she might see that and be able to find some happiness there.

And Fret had the Twisters, of course—and Neku’s old friends Shiki, Eri, and Rhyme (who was also Beat’s sister, of course), who had really integrated themselves into the group. There was also sometimes the aloof Joshua—who helped Fret keep his head where it belonged.

That, and all the school work he had to do now, as thoughts about college and careers were coming up, and he needed to try and focus on that, lest he be forgotten.

So, for the most part, while Fret still of course mourned Kanon, he had moved on and was in pretty good spirits, considering.

…The only thing that really got him down, oddly… was seeing redheads like she had been also wearing purple. And at first, meeting the legendary Neku right after Fret had lost the girl of his dreams had somewhat been a thorn in Fret’s side, because he’d just looked at Neku’s hair and the color he so clearly favored and thought “Kanon.”

But, thankfully, those feelings hadn’t lasted. They’d had Shibuya to save, after all. And Neku more than proved why he was great to have on a team and why he was the greatest friend, and why Fret should try and let his ghosts go.

But then, Fret had met Shiki’s best friend “Eri”… who was totally cool, by the way, and a co-creator of Gatto Nero with Shiki, and Fret couldn’t even begin to tell you how much he admired her. Especially since she was so pretty and on point… but not conceded at all, and down to earth.

As fate would have it, however, she’d been wearing purple the moment Fret had met her at Shiki’s birthday party. So, they hadn’t started out well, even though it had of course gotten better, and Fret had almost come undone (as ridiculous as it was for him to still be so hung-up on Kanon, he knew).

Thankfully, Shiki had right away seen his shaking form by the punch table and had come and given him a hug, as she’d whispered sweet nothings into his ear. She had guessed accurately what Fret’s problem was, and held him—not even seeming to feel like he was ruining her party at all—while she rubbed his back soothingly. “It’s okay not to get over a loved one quickly, you know? I was certainly that way about Neku. And you have it so much harder than I did. No one will judge you for your emotions, Fret. And if you need to talk, we’re all here for you. I’ll even go get Mr. Mew for you to hold, as he always cheers me right up.” Shiki had said that last part while winking at him, and Fret had had to laugh then.

He may have been afraid of Mr. Mew when Tsugumi had been controlling him and attacking them with the doll, but now that Fret had seen Shiki with her own one more often than not, Fret was thinking he was a sweet little guy again, and could definitely understand why Shiki would think he was good therapy.

“…And I may mention to Eri that it might be a good idea for her not to wear violet anymore.”

“What? You don’t have to do that? I got used to Neku, so I can with her, too!” Fret had wanted to tell her instantly, but Shiki had already been off to get Mr. Mew for him to cuddle.

And despite everything, Fret had watched Shiki walk across the dance hall with a smile on his face. It felt good to be appreciated. It did.

And after that, Eri did stop wearing that color, and everyone seemed to prefer it that way. Fret did, for his own reason, of course… Eri did, because she didn’t even like it that much, apparently, and Neku appreciated it, who jokingly thanked Eri for getting off his turf.

So, everything was more than good for Fret when it came to those colors for a while… but then some girl named Kairi came to Shibuya: a girl with darker red hair than Kanon, it was true, but wouldn’t you know that she was also wearing amethyst?

At first, Fret had been ready to write this stranger off—just another tourist in Shibuya, that he just happened to notice walking past him—but then she accidentally ran into Beat… and it seemed to startle the girl. And good Lord, then she summoned a magic key-shaped sword to her hands, without even seeming to think about it. And she wasn’t even in the UG! (Though when Fret saw this, his first concern was that they had landed back there.)

And the moment Neku and Beat (who were with Fret to go to Molco, to get him some Tin Pins, because that was becoming a thing again) saw the redhead summon the weapon, they had both exclaimed simultaneously, “You’re a Keyblade wielder!” “Yous a Key wielder!”

Fret had had no idea what they were talking about at that point. So, Neku had hastily explained that Shibuya had actually been destroyed before—a time that he, Shiki, Beat, and Rhyme had only recently gotten their memories back of—and when it had, Joshua had taken their dream fragments (the only thing that had been left of them) to another world, to try and bring them back. And there, they’d taken bodily form once again and met a “Keyblade wielder” named “Sora”, and another one named “Riku,”

Beat had then gone to explain that they’d both helped them out, and that they were probably even bigger deals than him and Neku, and Fret couldn’t believe it. Hell! He could hardly even fathom it. What would that even look like? But he didn’t have much time to try and guess, because Neku began talking to the stranger almost instantly.

“Are you Sora’s girlfriend?” Neku had asked her then, bold as you please, as he’d pulled the redhead back out of the way of pedestrians going to and fro from all the different shopping areas. “He told me that he was great friends with a redhead, who liked art like Shiki does… I think he was insinuating then that I liked Shiki back then, and I wanted to kill him for all the hints he dropped her, while maybe not realizing that he had feelings for you yet, but I think it was still there… If you are that girl he mentioned, I mean.”

And then the poor girl had had a single tear slide down her eye—and Fret almost wanted to kick himself for only being able to think “you’re not Kanon, you’re not Kanon, you’re not Kanon, you’re not Kanon. Why are you dressed like her?”, while he looked at her—and she explained to Beat, who was giving her a big old bear hug, but Neku too, that: “Yeah, I’m Sora’s girlfriend, Kairi… I’m looking for him, because he recently disappeared after he sacrificed himself to bring me back to life. I was thinking he might be here, or that there might be Heartless here that I needed to fight, but I don’t know.”

Neku had appeared to give much thought to all of that (crossing his arms over his chest and closing his eyes, Fret saw), before he finally met Kairi’s eyes with kind ones of his own. “Why don’t you come with me to meet Shiki? She’s another friend of Sora’s. And Keyblade wielders’ hearts can sometimes lead them to keys, right? Maybe there’s something there, if Sora used to tease me about us.”

And Kairi had gone with Neku and Beat to do that (while Fret had followed, aimlessly, feeling really curious, for sure, but also kind of despairing the whole way: he wasn’t going to lie). And then Kairi had found with Shiki’s help, the thing she needed that would help her lead to Sora, apparently.

It was a hockey puck, that Shiki said Neku had gotten her to help them remember old times together… And as soon as Kairi had come near it, her Keyblade had reacted—seeming almost to float over to the puck of its own free will, tugging Kairi along—and then an insanely crazy light show happened (where all of a sudden, the entire world around them had seemed to be nothing but darkness, with just a few pieces of light to speak of: coming from Kairi and the Keyhole that appeared in the sky, that she did acrobatics towards, in order to aim a laser from her Keyblade at it). Then, it was all over and the Buya returned to normal, but the girl was gone.

And Neku and Beat explained that that seemed to sometimes happen with Keyblade wielders—they’d both seen it with Sora and Riku—as they would sometimes get taken away to where they were meant to go next, before they really got to say goodbye. But they both assumed she was fine and gotten what she needed, and definitely seemed to be hoping it, too.

But Neku, Beat, and Shiki had definitely bonded with Kairi that day… and about a year later, she was back in Shibuya to visit them with Sora and Riku… and well, maybe a whole lot of other people. There was yet another girl with red hair, wearing amethyst…

And while Fret was kind of glad to see them—and was thrilled that Kairi had gotten her happy ending and she could just come her for funsies to see everyone now—he couldn’t help sitting in a park bench in Dogenzaka, sighing, as he watched the whole thing unfold.

“Hehehe. You’re in quite the mood. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you were turning into Neku…” Someone else had come to sit by Fret… and one quick look let him know that it was none other than the Composer of Shibuya himself… and that he had better get it together, before the guy threw him into another Game to improve himself, like he originally had with Neku.

“Oh, uhh… Hi there, Joshua. It’s good to see you,” Fret said, putting a hand under his chin and regarding the other boy—god—with mixed feelings. “Did you see that ice is really in this season? And diamonds almost match your light blue shirts, right? I feel like if you started wearing some diamond necklaces, you’d be even more stylish than you already ar-”

But Joshua halted Fret’s attempt to somewhat butter him up, with a hand held high and a small smile on his face. “There’s no need for all of that, I assure you,” Joshua promised, violet eyes locking onto Fret’s and that, too, making the youth think of Kanon some. “If you want her back, why don’t you just ask me?” Joshua asked rather smug now.

And it was too much. All too much. Fret wanted to believe that Joshua could actually bring her back for him… but what if this was a trap? And what if Joshua meant it now… but Fret somehow made him changed his mind, when he begged him to do so and thanked him for it. What if he didn’t do everything to code?

Tripping over his words now, as he ran a hand through his hair, Fret asked, “I mean… I would love it. If you want to, and don’t think it’ll hurt Kanon to be back, I’m all for it. But can you really do that? Wouldn’t you maybe get in trouble?”

At that Joshua “hmmed”, and Fret panicked—feeling like he’d ruined his chances for real here—and he was about to kiss the Composer’s feet to try and be on his good side again…

But it seemed like Fret had started fretting over nothing, as Joshua giggled and flipped his hair once. “I’ve brought Players who didn’t win back after a corrupt Game before, so it wouldn’t be the first time. Kanon’s Soul did seem quite promising to me for a few reasons there, so I’d be interested to see how she would shape Shibuya…

“And as of now… I would not get in trouble, dear Fret. But thank you for your concern. Heh. I am the senior of a lot of angels on the Higher Plane. And right now, the ones above me are actually very much interested me and my methods, for halting Shibuya’s purification twice, but having it turn out better both times for it. So, I imagine they’d let this one slide.”

Fret was near tears at that point; of course he was… And okay, maybe he was actually crying now. It was just that this was all he had ever dreamed of after they’d gotten out of the Game, of course… Because despite what he told himself… Fret did still love Kanon. And wouldn’t it be great, to actually get back one of the friends that Fret had lost?

But now Fret had to wonder, as he scratched his neck awkwardly, “All those gingers I saw in purple… was that a hint from you to me that I could get Kanon back?” Had Fret been looking a gift horse in the mouth all this time?

Joshua was laughing once more, as he urged Fret to get up and go make nice with the Keyblade wielders, who—if Fret was hearing it right—were telling all of Fret’s friends about urban legends they had heard of in a place called Twilight Town… and then Nagi chirped back about the ones they’d seen in the Game, and Rindo and Beat jumped in to help her out with that.

Huh… Perhaps Fret really was missing something over there. And was Joshua, too?

“Usually, I wouldn’t give an answer… I would say it’s above your pay grade, or that the world is whatever you want it to be… But, no. I was not prompting you to make this choice about Tachibana Kanon. Though things seemed to work out rather nicely for you, wouldn’t you say? So you’d find the strength to ask me about her?”

“I- I do,” Fret admitted, looking down at the pavement—and then all the buildings around him—and thinking that for a concrete jungle… Shibuya was actually a masterpiece, and might have actually been heaven, as far as he was concerned. “So, when will Kanon-"

But when Fret looked towards Joshua once more, the Composer was already gone.

And Fret… he didn’t see Kanon for a while after that. And he imagined it probably felt like what Rindo had gone through (and somewhat Fret himself; all the Twisters, really), when Josh had first brought Shokie to the RG.

About four months later, Fret was beginning to dread that Joshua had forgotten his promise, or that it was impossible to bring Kanon back, after all…

And he was at 104, checking out all the new selections there, when he heard a voice behind him, “So, Fret… do you mind telling me how you really feel? And no sugarcoating it! I was proud to see how you grew, after all. And you can’t disappoint a lady by covering it up some, if you went to all this trouble to bring her back, y’know?”

Fret dropped the black hat that he’d been about to purchase (that was maybe so light black, it was actually closer to purple), as he turned around to face that voice and ran towards her to embrace her.

“Kanon!"

Author’s Note: So, the other redhead who goes with Sora and the crew to Shibuya in this story is supposed to be Ariel—in a “The Worlds Are Starting to be Reconnected” idea—and it’s mainly because she wore purple seashells (though a shirt here, of course). Not even gonna lie. But if you don’t like that, you can imagine it’s an OC… that Sora and Kairi had a daughter… or just completely ignore that part. It’s up to you.

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maddrmatt · 3 years

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Kairi’s Epic Journey: The Quest for Sora

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Chapter 20: To the North Mountain

Arendelle

A short while later, after getting herself dressed, Kairi paced back and forth around the room, racking her brain for any possible explanation for last night’s unexpected show. Pluto watched from his spot on the bed.

“I just can’t understand it, Pluto. How was I able to see one of Sora’s memories? I mean, I’ve had many dreams about him since he was lost. But none of them were about things that actually happened. Why am I having them now?” she asked.

Pluto just gave a shrug of his shoulders and a whimper to indicate he had no idea either. Kairi sighed and sat down on the bed next to him.

“Do you think maybe I was supposed to learn something from that memory? But if so, then what was it? When I returned to the Islands, Chirithy filled all of us in about what happened in that world when Sora was trying to save me. So, if there was nothing in that memory that I didn’t already know, then what was the point of even showing it to me?” asked Kairi holding her head in her hands.

Pluto whimpered and pawed at her shoulder. Kairi gave a small smile while she put her arm around her canine companion and stroked his back.

“I know you can’t possibly have the answers, Pluto. But thanks for listening anyway. It’s just not easy having so many unanswered questions while we’re on this quest. Between the Wayfinder, the woman in my dreams who gave it to me, and the Memento Card from Never Land, I just don’t think I can handle any more mysteries.”

‘It’s times like these I wish I could go to someone wiser than me like Master Yen Sid, Merlin or Ansem the Wise. But, besides the fact that I can’t get to their worlds from here, they’d probably just tell Riku and the others and then I’d be dragged back home to the Islands. I really am on my own here.’

Just then, there was a knock on the door followed by an elderly female voice who said, “Miss Kairi? The queen and the princess were wondering if you’ve awoken yet. They’re awaiting you in the dining hall for breakfast.”

“I have, Gerda. Please tell them I’ll be there soon,” responded Kairi.

“Of course,” said Gerda’s voice as the sound of her footsteps walking away were heard outside the door.

Kairi let out a large sigh. “Actually Pluto, watching that memory did get me thinking about something regarding Anna and Elsa. In fact, it’s actually something that’s been on my mind ever since we were preparing to face Xehanort.”

Pluto looked at her in confusion. But he gestured for her to continue.

Kairi rose to her feet and faced the dog. “In the memory, Sora mentioned that we fought against Xehanort and the Organization even though it was what he wanted to happen in order to keep them from going after Anna, Elsa and the other new Princesses of Heart. But I’ve been wondering for the longest time if we could’ve done a little more than that. Like maybe warning them about the danger they could be in. Or even gathering them all together and bringing them to somewhere they might be safe.”

Pluto gave a yelp of surprise in response. Kairi gestured for him to be quiet.

“I know. I know. If the others were here, they’d probably give me a big lecture about how those ideas would be a major violation of the world order. And yes, I admit I did say differently to you last night after Elsa left. But I can’t help it. It just doesn’t seem right to keep the other Princesses in the dark like this. There could be others like Maleficent and Xehanort out there and I hate to think of what might happen to the Princesses and their worlds if they come after them especially since they would have no idea why. Personally, after everything I’ve been through, I’d certainly want to know of any potential threats that might come after me regardless of the rules,” stated Kairi.

Kairi let out another sigh before she continued, “I don’t know, Pluto. If it were truly up to me, I’d tell Anna, Elsa and the rest of the new Princesses of Heart everything. And I’m sure if Sora was here, he’d probably agree with me. Do you think I’m wrong for wanting to do this?”

Pluto considered Kairi’s words. Ever since his master had taken up the Keyblade, he too knew how important preserving the world order was. But, at the same time, he had to concede that Kairi was making some good points. Unable to give a definite answer to his friend, he simply gave an uncertain shrug.

Suddenly, a loud roar rang through the room causing Kairi and Pluto to jump. It sounded as if it was coming from outside. Kairi rushed to the window and parted the curtains. She gasped in shock.

Her window looked out into the courtyard. And currently squeezing through the gates was a giant monster that looked like it was made of snow. It had claws made of ice and protrusions of ice coming out from its knees. Its face was composed of two empty holes for eyes and a large wide mouth that was the source of the roars.

“Pluto! There’s some kind of monster outside! It might be a Heartless after Anna and Elsa! We’ve got to fight it off!”

Quickly, she opened the window and climbed onto the sill. She quickly leapt to the ground with Pluto landing shortly beside her.

The snow monster had just finished pushing through the gates. It was now lumbering across the courtyard towards the doors. So far, it hadn’t noticed Kairi and Pluto

‘I may have failed with Sora. But I will not fail to keep Anna and Elsa safe!’ Kairi thought as she summoned her Keyblade and pointed it at a spot on the ground between the snow monster and the doors.

“Fire!” shouted Kairi as she shot a fireball from her Keyblade. It struck the ground right in front of the snow monster. It roared in fright.

Taking advantage, Kairi and Pluto charged in and stood in front of the doors. They struck defensive poses before the snow monster.

“Back off, you beast! If you’re looking to hurt Anna and Elsa, then you’re going to have to go through us first!” she yelled with Pluto barking in accompaniment.

The snow monster let out an enraged roar as it raised it’s claw in preparation to swipe it at Kairi and Pluto. The girl raised her Keyblade to meet the oncoming attack.

But just as the snow monster was about to attack, it stopped. Its empty eyes gazed at Kairi’s Keyblade. A look of what seemed to be recognition crossed its face.

“Sora?” it bellowed.

Kairi’s eyes opened wide in surprise upon hearing what the snow monster had just said. She lowered her Keyblade as she and Pluto both glanced up to the snow monster in confusion.

“What did you say?” asked Kairi.

“Kairi, if you wanted to play with Marshmallow, you could’ve waited until after breakfast. That way, we could all play together.”

Kairi looked behind her right to see Olaf walking toward them. Oddly, he didn’t seem too concerned that there was a giant monster in their presence.

As he walked past her, the snowman’s eyes fell on Kairi’s Keyblade and he gasped in surprise. “Oh! Sora has one of those too! Only not as flowery.”

Olaf walked up to the snow monster and hugged its leg. Kairi’s and Pluto’s jaws dropped in surprise.

“So good to see you here, little brother!” Olaf said joyfully.

Kairi’s surprise increased. “Little brother?!” she exclaimed in disbelief.

“Oh, I guess you two must’ve started playing with each other so quickly, you didn’t properly introduce yourselves. Allow me,” said Olaf as he clutched onto one of the snow monster’s claws and led him up to Kairi. The snow monster hesitantly walked alongside him.

“Kairi, Pluto, I’d like you to meet my little brother, Marshmallow. Marshmallow, this is Kairi and her dog Pluto,” said Olaf.

Kairi unsummoned her Keyblade and hesitantly held out her hand to Marshmallow’s claw. “Uh, nice to meet you, Marshmallow,” she said unsurely.

Much to her surprise, Marshmallow regarded her with uncertainty. ‘I guess I can’t really blame him. I did almost attack him.’

“Now don’t be shy, Marshmallow. Kairi’s very nice. She’s actually a very close friend of Sora’s,” said the smaller snowman whispering the last sentence.

A small smile came to the giant’s face. He placed the tip of his claw into Kairi’s palm allowing her to shake it.

Kairi returned his smile before it was replaced by concern. “Olaf, doesn’t he feel a little moist?”

Olaf glanced at his stick hand and took note of the moisture now on it. “Not to worry, Kairi. All Elsa needs to do is give him a flurry of his own and he’ll be okay for his visit.”

Kairi gazed at the giant snowman. Now that he wasn’t creating an uproar, he looked like he was a pretty gentle giant.

Although, there was one feature of Marshmallow that disconcerted her. She noticed several holes scattered around his body. They almost looked like battle scars.

“Olaf! Kairi!” exclaimed Anna’s voice.

Kairi turned and saw Anna, Elsa, Kristoff and Sven approaching. Behind them was a crowd composed of the castle staff. All of them seemed to be concerned with Marshmallow’s presence.

“Anna! Elsa! Marshmallow came to visit us!” exclaimed Olaf.

Anna looked at all the holes over Marshmallow’s body and gasped. “What happened to him? Why does he look so roughed up?”

“You mean he doesn’t look like that normally?” asked Kairi causing Anna to shake her head in response.

Olaf finally noticed the holes himself and his eyes opened wide. “Oh! I’m sorry, little brother! I was so happy to see you; I didn’t notice you were hurt. Elsa, can you help him?” he asked worriedly.

“Don’t worry, Olaf. I’ll take care of this,” said Elsa as she waved her hands. Her ice magic travelled from her hands and flowed around Marshmallow. The holes filled up with new snow as he let out a sigh of relief.

“And just to make sure he doesn’t melt while he’s down here,” said Elsa as she conjured a larger version of Olaf’s snow flurry above the giant snowman.

“There! That’s better! Now you’ll be nice and cool for your visit down here,” said Olaf.

“Something tells me he didn’t come here for a visit, Olaf. Look how distressed he looks,” said Kairi.

“Kairi’s right. And even if he wanted to visit, Marshmallow knows that shouldn’t come down from the North Mountain when it’s not winter,” said Kristoff.

Before any of them could press the matter further, they heard from behind them say, “I heard the uproar and saw everyone running out. What ever is the matter?”

Everyone turned behind them to see the Duke of Weselton making his way through the crowd. Upon seeing Marshmallow, he gasped in surprise.

“Oh my! Erik and Francis told me of your larger snowman that guarded your ice palace, Queen Elsa. But to see it in person is quite a sight indeed. But why on earth has it come here?” inquired the Duke.

“Marshmallow is not an ‘it’, Your Grace. He is a he and I’m sure he would prefer that you referred to him as such,” snapped Anna causing the Duke to back off in surprise.

“Anna, don’t be rude,” chided Elsa before turning to the Duke. “You’ll have to forgive my sister, Your Grace. Marshmallow’s unexpected appearance is causing all of us a little concern.”

“Oh no. It was an error on my behalf. I meant no offense to er Marshmallow. Please accept my apology, Princess Anna,” said the Duke.

Anna looked as if she was ready to lash out again at the Duke. But a look of warning from both Elsa and Kristoff made her reconsider.

She took a deep breath and said, “It’s fine, Your Grace. Now if you’ll excuse us, we need to find out why Marshmallow is here. You may continue on your returning home.”

Elsa, in the meantime, addressed the rest of the crowd. “You can all return to your duties. My sister and I will attend to this matter,” she said as the crowd heeded her words and returned to the palace.

Anna turned her attention back to Marshmallow. “Marshmallow, not that we don’t like seeing you, but why are you here? You know Arendelle isn’t safe for you during the spring.”

Marshmallow gave an apologetic look. “Chased! From palace!” he cried causing everyone’s eyes to open up in surprise.

“Chased? What on earth would an immense creature such as him run away from?” asked the Duke’s voice.

Anna turned back to the Duke who had stopped shortly of entering the palace. She shot him a deadly glare causing him to cower slightly.

“Uh right. You were probably about to find that out. I’ll just return to my preparations to leave. Forgive my interruption,” said the Duke as he turned around and walked quickly back into the palace finally leaving the group alone in the courtyard.

‘Boy, if looks could kills, the Duke would be dead right where he stood. But as much as I hate to agree with him, he is right. Marshmallow looks like something others would run from, not the other way around,’ thought Kairi.

“Marshmallow, who chased you?” asked Elsa.

“People! With fire!” groaned Marshmallow who looked almost traumatized just mentioning it.

“Oh no. No wonder you ran,” said Olaf as he hugged his brother’s leg.

Kairi regarded the giant snowman with sympathy. ‘The poor thing! He must’ve been terrified! And I just had to shoot a Fire spell to get his attention,’ she thought with regret.

Kairi approached the giant snowman and grabbed onto one of his giant hands. She gave it a reassuring rub. “I’m really sorry, Marshmallow. If I knew who you were, I wouldn’t have tried to attack you.”

Marshmallow was surprised at the sudden gesture of comfort. But he gave a grunt of thanks.

“Why would anyone chase Marshmallow out of the ice palace?” asked Anna.

“I don’t know. Maybe they were seeking shelter in the mountain and found the ice palace. They may have assumed he was dangerous, and they ended up in a fight. A fight that they apparently won,” said Kristoff.

“That’s not very nice. Marshmallow would’ve probably let them stay with him if they had just asked nicely,” said Olaf.

“Yes. But unfortunately, Olaf, not everyone knows Marshmallow as well as we do,” said Kristoff.

“Well, whoever they are, we can’t let them get away with treating him like this. I say we march right up to the North Mountain and demand an explanation from them,” said Anna pounding a fist into her palm.

“Now, Anna, let’s not do anything too rash. We have to think this through,” said Elsa.

“What’s there to think about? There’s a group of people in your ice palace who attacked our friend. He was probably lucky to get out of there alive. We can’t just do nothing,” said Anna.

“I never said we were going to do nothing. I’ll travel up to the North Mountain and try to negotiate with them. It may just be a misunderstanding and we can resolve this peacefully,” said the queen.

“But what if it’s not a misunderstanding? What if these people are dangerous? I’m not letting you go up there alone if they are. Certainly not without me or the boys,” said Anna with Kristoff, Sven and Olaf nodding in agreement. Marshmallow nodded too although he looked a little hesitant.

“Anna, no. With my powers, I can protect myself from whatever might happen up there. Besides, if we all go, then no one’s going to be able to help Kairi search for Sora,” Elsa said.

Anna gasped in realization. She turned around to face Kairi. “Oh, Kairi! I’m so sorry! We’re supposed to be helping you today,” said the princess apologetically.

“You know what, Anna? It can wait,” said Kairi bluntly to everyone’s surprise.

“But Kairi, what about Sora? Don’t you want to start looking for him?” asked Olaf.

“More than anything. But who knows how long it will be before we actually find anything? We should deal with this right now,” said Kairi.

Anna’s surprise increased. “We? You mean…”

“Yes. If you’re going up to this ice palace, then you can count on me to help you out,” stated Kairi as Pluto barked to show his desire to help as well.

“I don’t know, Kairi. I don’t want to put you in danger,” said Elsa.

Kairi held out her hand and summoned Destiny’s Embrace. “I think I can handle any kind of danger.”

Everyone gasped in surprise. “You have one of those giant keys too! Just like Sora!” exclaimed Anna.

“Yes, she does. I saw it earlier before all of you came into the courtyard. You know, there must be some pretty big doors somewhere for these big keys,” said Olaf.

“I watched Sora use his to fight off the Heartless with Donald and Goofy. It was amazing what he could do with it,” said Elsa as she looked at the Keyblade.

“If you’ve seen what he can do with his, Elsa, then you know that like him, I’m not going to stay behind when there’s a wrong to be righted,” said Kairi.

“Kairi, are you sure?” asked Elsa.

Kairi smiled at the queen. “I am. The most important thing that we do right now is get Marshmallow his home back. Sora would do the same thing if he were here now.”

“I can see why you and Sora are such good friends. You’re both so helpful,” said Olaf.

“Indeed. Thank you, Kairi,” said Anna gratefully before turning to her sister. “Elsa, we know you just want to keep us all safe. It’s always been one of your best qualities. But that doesn’t mean you have to do everything by yourself. I believe that with all we have to offer, we can pull this off. And if Kairi’s willing to put her search for Sora on hold to help out, the least you can do is accept it.”

Elsa gazed at everyone around her hesitantly. Throughout most of her life, she dreaded any harm coming to the people she loved especially Anna. But she had to admit that her sister was right. With so many willing to help, including their newest friend, it would be wrong to decline.

Finally, the queen let out a sigh and smiled at her sister. “I guess I’m really outnumbered on this one. You win. Kristoff, can you get your sled ready to go?”

“Right away, Elsa. Let’s go, Sven,” said Kristoff as he and the reindeer dashed off to the stable.

“Come on, Kairi. If we’re going up to the North Mountain, you’re going to need some warmer clothes,” said Anna.

“Do you think you have anything that’ll fit me?” asked Kairi.

“I’m sure we can find something,” said Anna as she took Kairi by the hand and led her back into the palace with Pluto following behind leaving Elsa and Olaf alone with Marshmallow.

“Don’t worry, Marshmallow. We’ll get your home back. Right, Elsa?” asked Olaf as he petted his brother’s hand.

“We’ll see, Olaf. Hopefully, whoever chased him out can be reasoned with,” said Elsa worriedly.

________________________________________________________________

A short while later, everyone who was going up to the North Mountain was gathered around Kristoff’s sled to which Sven was hitched up. Anna was dressed in the winter clothes that she had got at Oaken’s during Elsa’s winter. Kristoff was in his ice harvesting outfit and Elsa remained in her snow gown.

“Are those clothes you found comfortable for you, Kairi?” Elsa asked the princess of heart who was now dressed in a brown winter outfit complete with boots and gloves.

“They are a little big, but it’ll do. I will admit, I’m not used to wearing something like this. Where I come from, the weather doesn’t usually require clothing this warm,” said Kairi.

“Well, at least you’re better dressed for cold weather than Sora was when he was here,” said Elsa.

“Yeah. I can imagine he probably was pretty vocal in his complaints about freezing. But Elsa, don’t you want to dress a little more warmly?” asked Kairi gesturing to the queen’s apparently flimsy gown that one probably wouldn’t normally wear in the cold.

“You don’t need to worry about me. The cold never bothered me anyway,” said Elsa.

“Yes. And you won’t believe how many times she’s made that point,” said Anna causing Elsa to chuckle.

Kairi smiled. It looked like Anna and Elsa were on their way to getting over their conflict.

“We’d better get going if we want to make it up to the North Mountain and back before dark,” said Kristoff.

“Can Sven make it in that time, Kristoff?” asked Kairi.

“Oh yes. I’m pretty strong and you will not believe how fast I can go,” said Kristoff in his Sven voice causing Kairi to laugh.

“At least you won’t have to carry Marshmallow with us in the sled. He’d definitely slow you down,” said the Princess of Heart gazing up at the giant snowman who had Olaf sitting on top of his head.

“Oh, he doesn’t mind walking. And I’ll be right up here so he won’t get lonely,” said Olaf giving his brother a pat on the head to which he let out a grunt.

“Let’s get going, everyone. We’ve got some bad guys to chase out of the ice palace so we can get Marshmallow his home back!” exclaimed Anna.

Everyone boarded the sled. Kristoff sat up front at the reins with Anna at his side. Kairi climbed into the back with Elsa and Pluto.

But just as Kristoff was about to command Sven to leave, a voice from the palace called out, “Queen Elsa! Princess Anna!”

Everyone turned toward the doors. To their surprise, the Duke of Weselton was running toward them with a pair of guards following close behind.

‘Now what does he want?’ thought Kairi.

Once the trio had reached the sled and stopped, one of the guards said, “I’m sorry, Your Majesties. We were about to escort him back to his ship. But he ran away from us.”

Elsa rose to her feet, walked to the edge of the sled and gazed at the Duke. “Your Grace, one of the terms of your visit was that you were to be escorted by the guards at all times and only go where you were supposed to,” she said sternly.

“I know and forgive my violation, Your Highness. But in light of the circumstances, there is something I feel I need to ask you,” pleaded the Duke.

Anna was about to say something until Kristoff gently grabbed her by the arm. “Let Elsa handle this,” he whispered.

“Very well. What is it?” asked the queen.

“I know this may be too much to ask of you and I know I have no right to ask in the first place. But I humbly request to accompany you on your journey to the North Mountain,” said the Duke causing everyone’s to shoot open with shock.

‘Why would he want to come with us?’ thought Kairi.

It seemed Elsa shared the same train of thought with Kairi. “Your Grace, why do you wish to come along?”

“Because if those ruffians that chased your giant are anything like I used to be, then perhaps I could be of assistance to you in persuading them of their error. You both could consider it part of my atonement for my offenses against you.”

“Your Grace, the best way you can atone to both of us for your offenses is to let the guards escort you to your ship and return to Weselton. We are all perfectly capable of dealing with whoever is in the ice palace without any need for your assistance. Right, Elsa?” asked Anna.

Much to Anna’s surprise, Elsa didn’t seem to agree. In fact, it almost looked like she was actually taking the Duke’s request into consideration.

Anna gasped in horror as she rose to her feet and faced her sister. “Elsa, no! Letting him come along is going way too far!” she exclaimed.

“Anna, please think about this. He’s abided by all our conditions during his visit here and up to now, he hasn’t asked anything of us. In light of that, I think maybe we should allow him to come with us,” said Elsa before leaning toward Anna and whispering to her sister, “This is still about keeping things civil between our homelands. It would be foolish to jeopardize that now.”

Anna looked like she wanted to scream. She looked over to Kristoff who held up his hands indicating he didn’t want to get involved in this.

Anna looked to Kairi. All the Princess of Heart could do was give a shrug showing she had no idea of what to do either.

“Errgh! Fine! You can come along, Your Grace,” said Anna begrudgingly before shooting her sister a glare. ‘But if you’re waiting for me to like it, you’ll be waiting for a very long time.’

“Oh, thank you so much, Princess. I promise you that you will not regret this, and I will do everything I can to assist you all in your endeavor. I also look forward to seeing this fabulous ice palace of yours,” said the Duke.

“Oh, you’re going to love seeing it. It’s quite a work of art, Mr. Weasel Town,” said Olaf.

The Duke’s eyes narrowed in annoyance. “It’s Wesel…,” he nearly shouted before catching himself and clearing his throat. “I mean, I’m sure it is.”

“Well, if you’re coming with us, then climb on in,” said Anna as she climbed off the sled.

“Anna, where are you going?” asked Elsa.

“To ride with Olaf,” she said curtly.

Kairi watched Anna walk up to the giant snowman. Marshmallow gently picked up Anna in his hand and raised her up to his shoulder allowing her to climb on top of him.

Kairi let out a sigh. ‘Just when it seemed that everything was about to be fixed between them, this had to happen.’

“Elsa, I’m going to ride with her and Olaf. Maybe I can calm her down,” said Kairi.

“Thank you, Kairi,” said Elsa as she climbed up front to sit next to Kristoff.

Kairi was about to climb out of the sled just as the Duke entered through the back. “Oh! I don’t believe we’ve had a proper introduction, young lady. The Duke of Weselton, at your service,” said the Duke with a bow causing the rear half of his wig to flop forward.

“Uh, nice to meet you, Your Grace. My name is Kairi, and this is my dog Pluto,” said Kairi as she bowed back while Pluto eyed the Duke with suspicion.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you both, Miss Kairi. Am I correct in assuming you are a newcomer to the queen’s circle of friends?” asked the Duke.

“You could say that. We all have a mutual friend who has gone missing. We were supposed to begin our search for him today before this problem came up,” said Kairi awkwardly.

“I’m very sorry to hear that. I do hope you find him,” said the Duke sympathetically.

“So do I,” said Kairi as she walked past the Duke and hopped off the end of the sled.

“Pluto!” she whispered as the dog came over to her. “I know the Duke seems like he’s not up to no good. But keep an eye on him just the same.”

Pluto gave a salute with one of his ears. He then turned around and kept his eyes on the Duke who was now seated behind Elsa.

‘Having the Duke come along is going to complicate things especially since I don’t know how he’s going to react if he sees me and my Keyblade in action. I guess I’ll just have to trust Elsa that he really is trying to turn over a new leaf.’

Kairi then walked over to Marshmallow. Knowing what she wanted, the giant snowman picked her up like he did with Anna and raised her high enough that she could climb up to where Anna and Olaf were.

“Nice of you to join us, Kairi,” said Olaf pleasantly.

“Glad to see you didn’t want to be around the Duke either,” said Anna bluntly.

Having overheard her sister, Elsa sighed and turned to Kristoff. “It’s time we got started. Go ahead, Kristoff.”

The ice harvester nodded and snapped the reins. Taking the signal, Sven began to pull the sled toward the gates of the castle. Marshmallow trudged close behind at a similar pace.

Their trip to the North Mountain and Elsa’s ice palace had begun.

________________________________________________________________

A few hours later, the party had travelled far away from the village. The signs of getting closer to the mountain were beginning to be seen as they entered an area of snow-covered ground.

As Kairi rode atop Marshmallow, she mulled over how the trip had gone so far. ‘According to what we learned when we stopped at Oaken’s trading post earlier, neither he nor any of his family heard anything come past them last night. So, whoever these people in the ice palace are, they must’ve come from outside Arendelle.’

Kairi then glanced over to Anna who was shooting a hostile look at the Duke in the sled. She had been doing it throughout the whole trip.

‘There’s got to be something I can do to help Anna end this hostility towards not only the Duke, but her sister as well.’

Suddenly, Marshmallow halted. Kairi, Anna and Olaf looked ahead and saw that the sled had stopped as well.

“Okay, everyone out,” said Kristoff.

“What on earth for?” asked the Duke.

“I need to take the wheels off and replace them with the runners. Otherwise, we can’t go any further, Your Grace,” said Kristoff.

“Oh. Well, carry on then,” said the Duke as he, Elsa and Pluto disembarked the sled.

But just as Kristoff was about to get to work, he saw something up ahead. He rushed toward it.

“Kristoff, what is it?” asked Anna from on top of Marshmallow.

“There’s a trail of tracks over there. They’re heading in the direction of the ice palace. I’m going to take a closer look,” he said as he pointed ahead.

Once the ice harvester reached the tracks, he kneeled down. He studied them closely.

“Does he know what he’s doing?” the Duke whispered to Elsa.

“Kristoff grew up in these wilds, Your Grace. So, if he thinks there’s anything that can be learned from those tracks, we have to trust him,” said Elsa as Sven grunted in agreement.

“If you say so. But I do hope we get to our destination very soon. The way this dog has been looking at me is making me rather uncomfortable,” said the Duke pointing over his shoulder at Pluto who was still keeping a close eye on him.

After a few minutes, Kristoff returned to the sled. “What did they look like, Kristoff?” asked Kairi.

“From what I saw, there’s footprints, hoofmarks and sled tracks which means there may be a lot of them. But I can’t tell how many exactly,” said Kristoff as he resumed work on swapping the wheels for the runners.

Elsa gazed up toward the mountains ‘What kind of people are we dealing with and what could they be doing up there?’

“Do you think it would be a good idea to turn back and resume this journey with reinforcements?” asked the Duke.

“No. We’ve come too far already to turn back now. Besides, we have everything and everybody who can handle this, Your Grace,” said Anna sourly.

Elsa glanced up at to Marshmallow. Her heart sank as she saw the persistent unpleasant look on her sister’s face.

Seeing the Duke was on the opposite side of the sled and out of earshot, she walked up to Kristoff and asked quietly, “Kristoff, do you think I made a mistake in bringing the Duke along?”

“I know you’re just trying to keep things good between you and him, Elsa. But I won’t deny that it is a bit of a setback to things getting back to normal around here,” said Kristoff as he worked.

Elsa’s frown deepened and Kristoff offered her a comforting smile. “Don’t worry. I have a feeling that the other feisty redhead up there can talk some sense into her.”

In spite of herself, Elsa managed to smile a little as she recalled her conversation with Kairi the evening before. ‘Kairi does seem like the type of person who could do that. It’s no wonder she and Sora are good friends.”

“I think there may even be a little more than friendship between them,” said Kristoff causing Elsa to give a look of surprise.

“He did grow up with love experts so he can recognize it when he sees it,” Kristoff said in his Sven voice to which Sven nodded.

Elsa thought about it some more. ‘Kristoff may be right. The way we’ve heard Kairi talk about Sora, even though it’s tainted by sadness, is very similar to how Anna talks about Kristoff.’

Then a small frown came to her face. ‘I can only hope after this, we can find some way to bring the two of them back together.’

________________________________________________________________

Much later, after the wheels had been swapped out for the runners, the trip had resumed. The party was now travelling even higher into the mountains.

Ever since the earlier stop, things had been pretty quiet between Elsa, Kristoff and the Duke. None of them was willing to start a conversation. They sat in silence in the sled.

On top of Marshmallow, however, Olaf was as vocal as usual. He was laying on his back and pointing out the shapes in the clouds.

“Look, Anna and Kairi! There’s a cloud that looks like a fluffy bunny! It’s so cute!” exclaimed the snowman pointing upward.

Kairi looked at the cloud in question and smiled. “You’re right, Olaf! It does look like a rabbit. Don’t you see it, Anna?”

Anna said nothing. She just continued to glare at the Duke in the sled.

‘Okay. Peacemaker time,’ thought Kairi. “Anna, I know you’re not too… enthused about having the Duke with us.”

“Now there’s the biggest understatement ever, Kairi. Any second now, I know he’s going to turn on us and hurt Elsa,” said Anna.

“Anna, I doubt he’s going to try anything especially since we outnumber him eight to one. If we’re going to deal with this problem, we’re all going to need to work together and this frosty attitude towards your sister isn’t helping things,” said Kairi.

“Anna?” Olaf asked causing her to turn to him. “Kairi’s right. I don’t like it that you’ve been making Elsa feel so badly,” he said sadly.

A flash of regret shot across Anna’s features. “I’m sorry, Olaf. I don’t like making Elsa feel bad either. It’s just so hard being around the Duke after everything he did.”

“I understand, Anna. I’ve actually been in a position similar to this one before,” said Kairi.

Anna turned to the other redheaded princess. “You have?”

“Yes. Very recently, I had to train and fight alongside someone that I wasn’t on very good terms with,” said Kairi.

“What exactly did this person do to you?” asked Anna.

“He tried to kidnap me in order to force Sora to do what he wanted,” said Kairi.

Anna’s eyes opened wide. “He did? And you had to work with him? How did you manage to even be in the same room with him?”

“Believe me, I was asking myself the same question. But after some time, I realized that though his methods were wrong, his reasons weren’t and just because he did bad things in the past didn’t mean that he was incapable of doing good. And what also helped was the fact that he ended up helping to save Sora from a very terrible fate.”

“Saving Sora does sound like a good reason to be friends with this person,” said Olaf.

“That was the biggest reason I decided to forgive him, Olaf,” said Kairi.

Anna seemed to consider Kairi’s story. But she still didn’t look one hundred percent convinced.

“You don’t have to become best friends with the Duke, Anna. But don’t rule out the possibility that he may have turned over a new leaf because I have seen it happen,” said Kairi.

Anna let out a sigh. “I get what you’re saying, Kairi. And I guess it is pretty admirable that Elsa is willing to give the Duke a chance. It’s just…”

“Just what, Anna?” asked Olaf.

“It’s just that every time I see the Duke, I’m reminded of all the danger Elsa was in after the coronation. Especially since it was all because of me,” Anna said remorsefully.

The last sentence of Anna’s struck Kairi and Olaf by surprise. “Anna, what do you mean?” asked Kairi.

“If I hadn’t been so desperate for love and accepted a marriage proposal from someone who never loved me, Elsa’s powers wouldn’t have been revealed in the worst possible way. Then the Duke would never have tried to kill her. I caused so much trouble for her and having him around is just a painful reminder of it,” said Anna who looked like she was about to cry.

‘So, a lot of the anger Anna’s been showing has actually been at herself. I certainly know how that feels. Sora ended up in so much danger because of me in the past that that all I ever wished more than anything was that it would never happen again,’ thought Kairi.

“I’m sorry, Anna,” said Olaf patting her hand.

“Me too,” said Kairi.

“It’s okay, Olaf and Kairi. You didn’t know. But you are right that I haven’t been very fair to Elsa during all this. The Duke has behaved himself during his visit so maybe if he does manage to help us out at the ice palace in some way, I guess I could consider letting bygones be bygones a little,” said Anna.

“That’s the spirit, Anna. If he can help get my little brother his home back, then I’m sure we can all be friends,” said Olaf.

“Well, I don’t think I’d go that far, Olaf,” said Anna with a small chuckle causing Kairi to smile. It was good to see Anna taking her words to heart.

“Anna, there’s been something I’ve been meaning to ask you: does Olaf know what the word ‘little’ actually means? Because that really isn’t the word I’d use to describe Marshmallow,” said Kairi.

Anna chuckled. “When Olaf calls Marshmallow his little brother, he’s not actually referring to his size, Kairi.”

“That’s right. Marshmallow is my little brother because Elsa made him after she made me with her powers,” said Olaf.

“Oh, so it’s matter of who was ‘born’ first. Now I get it,” said Kairi with a laugh.

“Glad we could clear that up for you, Kairi. Oh look! We’re nearly there! The ice palace is just up ahead,” exclaimed the little snowman pointing ahead to a bend in the path.

“Oh, you’re just going to love it when you see it, Kairi. Elsa’s ice palace is one of the most wonderful, amazing, beautiful…” Olaf stopped just as they rounded the bend.

Everyone’s eyes widened and their jaws dropped. But not in awe.

“Oh no,” said Anna in a tone of shock and despair.

________________________________________________________________

Onto the next chapter!

#kingdom hearts #kh fanfiction #sokai #kairi #pluto #marshmallow #olaf #anna #elsa #kristoff #sven #duke of weselton #maddrmatt

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snowflake-of-destruction · 4 years

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Grass is Greener // Sibling Shenanigans 1/3

“I might be getting a divorce!” The signs of truth were there. Kairi had a cat carrier in each hand, Astrophe, the princess too good for a carrier, laid across her chest with claws dug into her shoulder, and the long strap of a duffel bag crossing her chest at a slant with the bag itself balanced against a cocked hip. Kairi’s shadow and liner were smudged and eyes too bright. Her smile was forced. Her hair was coiled in a complicated knot, but with several strands fallen out and curling slightly with damp and stuck to her face and neck, and she was wearing a short black sequined dress with tennis shoes and no socks. She was a definite picture.

However, her lines were delivered with the air of someone announcing that they had won an all expenses paid trip to Port Royal, and not that the life they had built was crumbling around them, so Axel thought he could be excused when it was with an exasperated sigh and a, “What happened this time?” that he welcomed his little sister through his front door and not a sympathetic and concerned, “Tell me what happened.”

“You know how Vanitas was supposed to be gone this weekend?” The carriers were already on the floor and Kairi and Vanitas’s manx, Ali, had, by all evidence Axel could see, turned to smoke and reformed outside the wire barred door as soon as it was set on the ground before Kairi had even bent to unlatch it, Astrophe running after his sister. “Is Stuffing shut in the bedroom?” All of Kairi’s cats knew Turkey was monarch of the realm, and they were proud aunts and uncles to the litter (Pumpkin, Gravy, Cranberry, Potato, and Biscuit, all of whom were supposed to have gone on to new homes by now, but Kairi suspected were to become permanent fixtures since Axel had not been able to “find the time” to secure appropriate homes so far since “They can’t just go to anyone, Kairi, and I’m not sending them to your broken home either!”) but Kairi’s old wirehair cat, Tillac, who Axel assumed was in the other carrier, and Stuffing had a rivalry that stretched back years.

Axel didn’t even bother to nod, opting instead to ask, “Is Xion okay?” as he closed the door and then addressed his sister’s other question while bending to pick up the shoes she’d already kicked off so he could place them on the shoe rack by the door which she never remembered to do. “No, I don’t keep Stuffing shut up unless I’m expecting Tilly, which I wasn’t.” The last was said with a pointed look. “I see you had your hands full, but would it have killed you to call?”

Kairi gaped at him. “Axel, I just took the kids and left my husband, and you manage to take his side by implying the only reason we could have argued is if I had planned something untoward in his absence, insult one of my dearest friends, imply you care more about Xion than your own sister, and whine about how my showing up is going to impact the plans I know you don’t have all in the space of seconds? Axel, your baby sister is distraught!”

“Yeah, but is Xion okay?” Axel repeated without pause. “She’s sensitive.” He dropped the shoes in their proper place and let out a belated snort. “Untoward? Are you using a word of the day calendar so you can impress the hubby’s friends?”

Kairi released Tillac to go harass Stuffing until Turkey put her in her place, stood up, and tugged the hem of her dress down and readjusted the bodice to try and wrangle everything into a more presentable place. “Not all of us spend our days communicating only in grunts, brother dear.”

“Hey!” Axel gasped in mock offense. “I’m trying my best to teach Demyx human speech, but sometimes I have to meet him halfway.” He opened up his arms and gestured with his hands for Kairi to come hug him, an olive branch she immediately accepted, tripping over the cat carriers to throw herself in his arms. “Now tell me what happened and we can get drunk, or I’ll go threaten the bastard with a weed whacker or something.” He kissed the top of her head and rubbed her back. There wasn’t enough information yet to establish whether this was a you’ll work it out moment or a you really shouldn’t go back this time with a side of you could do so much better, so he left no follow up.

“It’s really not that bad,” were Kairi’s first words and Axel could have provided commentary, but led her over the couch instead. Presumably, that meant Xion was fine. “It’s my fault. I picked a fight.”

He waited a second for more details, and, when none came, he urged her along. “Atta girl. Knock some teeth out? He has too many.”

“Axel, please.”

“Didja, blacken one of those creepy gold eyes?” Axel forced an exaggerated shudder to go with his words. He didn’t have to do much to make it happen. He’d found Vanitas unnerving ever since Kairi introduced them (or, rather, failed to, since “Guess who got married in Vegas?” did not an introduction make).

“His eyes are hazel and they are gorgeous.” Kairi sighed, picking up a wandering kitten from the arm of the couch and sitting them on her lap to cuddle (Pumpkin or Cranberry, but with Kairi’s hand covering the the top of their head while she scritched their scalp, there was no way to check the marking).

“Sure, if you’re a hawk. I bet all the lady hawks go crazy.”

“That’s my husband,” Kairi warned.

“Yeah, but for how much longer?” Axel scoffed, brushing his sister’s fight with husband off again, something he still wasn’t sure he wouldn’t regret later, though Kairi’s glare was weak enough he was confident that he would be called to post bail because Kairi and Vanitas were picked up for indecent acts in the back seat of a convertible in the middle of a car show by next week. It wasn’t like this was the first time Kairi had shown up on his door, claiming things might be over. There was a bit of a girl who cried wolf situation at this stage. He picked up his half finished beer from the coffee table and took a swig. “And I’m just saying you have bad taste. Xion excluded. Do you want to put your duffel and the carriers in the guest room?”

“I don’t have bad taste. You have bad taste,” Kairi fired back and Axel couldn’t help but picture her at eight years old with a missing tooth and a haircut she’d given herself because he had dared her. “Your last boyfriend was literally a serial killer.”

“You have to kill three people before its serial and he was only convicted of manslaughter. Honestly, it’s like you never had a bad relationship before.” Axel’s easygoing reply of the standard line didn’t match the sudden flicker out and fade of amusement from his eyes.

“You do better with bored housewives.” Kairi patted his arm, and it was almost like an apology. “I’ll get the luggage in a minute.”

“I do fantastic with bored housewives,” Axel corrected, “but I’m usually only interested in their husbands.”

“Oh! Speaking of,” Kairi tucked her legs beneath her and sat up straighter, predatory look entering her eyes, “You started work for Xion’s brother-in-law today, right?”

Kairi smiled suddenly with too many teeth--maybe she was well suited to her husband after all--and Axel found it took all his focus to swallow his beer without choking. It occurred to him that the thermostat might have been broken, because the room was getting humid but the air hadn’t kicked on. “Weren’t you distraught?” He furrowed his brow like a good concerned big brother. “Didn’t you have a fight with your husband? You may be getting divorced. I know we don’t talk about things that bother us like a normal family, thanks Dad, but that’s upsetting news! I’m distraught! My ears are wide open.” He took one of Kairi’s hands in both of his and there was a meow of protest from Pumpkin. “I’m listening.”

Kairi pulled away and resumed important kitten petting duties. Unlike before, where her petulance was for Axel taking things too lightly, her frustration now seemed to be at internal sources. “Sora invited me away for the weekend. Most of that duffel was already packed.”

“What about Xion?” Axel whined his bias. “She was in…” Axel made an okay symbol with his thumb and index finger and whistled between his teeth for effect, “fine form when I saw her earlier. She was wearing this petal pink bodycon number so short I saw that starfish you’re always talking about, and I think she cut her hair again, or at least did some different product. She was wearing that perfume you got her too. I thought you guys had something planned tonight.”

“Maybe she was going out with Ventus.” Kairi was dismissive enough in tone, but her lips pursed when they were done with the words and Pumpkin made a complaining noise like he’d been squeezed.

“Who?” Axel oozed false innocence and confusion.

“Her husband...fiancé...boyfriend...whatever,” Kairi waved vaguely, more obviously disgruntled by the moment.

“Not whatever. Just because you skipped a few steps with ol’ Vani the Vain, doesn’t mean there is a distinct difference between those three things, typically one that matters to most people.”

“Just those in the relationship,” Kairi countered.

“And those with...what’s the word?” Axel pretended to think as Pumpkin abandoned Kairi in favor of him, and two more cats came bolting into the room as if summoned, sensing Dad was handing out love. “Morals? Boundaries? Restraint?”

“Van and I do have restraints…” Kairi hummed, trailing off once the joke was made and clicking her tongue to lure Potatoes to her.

Axel howled protest and screwed up his face, playing along, glad Kairi was distracted again before she could get sad. “ Too much information even for us!” When Kairi giggled--with grateful eyes that said she wasn’t really that amused, but was trying because she saw he was working hard to keep things light from the moment she’d walked in the door--Axel declared that part of his job done and reoriented back to allowing Kairi to tell her story. “So Vanitas was supposed to be gone so you made plans with Sora, and you were just going to leave the cats? “

“Xion was going to check in on the cats,” Kairi clarified the important part.

“You were going to have Xion catsit while you went traipsing off with the flavor of the month?” Axel stretched his mouth and widened his eyes, daring his face to stick in the clowning expression. “You’ll never get her to leave Airvent and marry you instead that way!”

“I’m already married...for now,” Kairi tokenly defended her marriage.

“Doesn’t count. He didn’t get my blessing...and he never will.” Axel was quick on both parts of the rejoinder.

Kairi ignored him as he expected her to and started to confess in a rush, “So Vanitas announces that he’s not going to the conference anymore; something about him finding out some of the last second substitutions in presenters and articles being presented when his was declined in the peer review stage...He was still published, but it’s a whole political thing with being featured in the conference. Anyway, he had to boycott on principle, so he’s home, and he told me to get ready because we were going out to dinner and we were going to order multiple bottles of wine and get kicked out of our favorite restaurant because he’s already a disgrace…his words. He gave me the opening, and I took it, because I’m panicked Sora is going to show up at the door.”

Axel raised his hand like an obedient child in a classroom to be called on, but just went ahead and interrupted even when he was ignored. “Isn’t Sora the yoga guy? Couldn’t he defeat Vani Vain with the power of friendship and love?” He hadn’t met Sora. Kairi was quite adamant that he wasn’t allowed to after he’d been a little more than politely amused at her stories. It was a fair ask since Kairi had, rightly, assumed that the only reasons Axel wanted to meet Sora were to see if he could make him cry for the fun of it, warn him off his sister, or, if he proved to be as attractive as Kairi said, sleep with him himself.

Kairi continued as if the interruption hadn’t happened. “I don’t take it right away. I get dressed, start to do my hair, and then I start throwing things from the vanity and yelling about how he can’t just order me to doll up like that’s all I am, his doll, waiting pretty on a shelf, ready to play with when he remembers I’m there. I point out he never asked me to come to the convention with him, and after we had such fun at last years’.” Axel snorted, knowing that story, and the pattern of being blocked out continued, “And I know how many spouses come along now. I think I accused him of having an affair. I really don’t know. I half blacked out. A spirit took over, and when I came to, I was packing a bag and insulting his paper because he still wasn’t getting angry enough fast enough to justify me leaving.”

“It sounds like you handled the situation brilliantly,” Axel complimented. “So did you call Sora and tell him to pick you up here, or is the weekend off? Am I on catsitting and husband deflection duty?” He wasn’t seeing a problem yet, not even something that warranted Kairi’s overdramatic divorce line, though a troubling thought did occur to him. “If he smacked you, shoved you, laid a hand on you in any way when you started yelling at him, I will do more than threaten him with the chainsaw. He’s dead. Demyx will help me hide the body. He knows a guy, and he owes me. They both owe me. Plus, I learned some tricks from my ex.” He softened his concern and threats he was prepared to follow through with in jokes.

“Stop thinking the worst of him at every opportunity,” Kairi snapped, and Potatoes rubbed his head against her stomach to calm her. “He just...took some low blows of his own and things escalated more quickly than I wanted them to.” She shifted uncomfortably.

“Like what?” Axel responded carefully, not wanting to supply guesses when it was a losing game, even if he came from the angle of listing reasons anything Vanitas could have said was untrue.

“It doesn’t matter,” Kairi insisted, which was a prime sign that it did. “I just might be here a few days for real after Sora and I get back. He’s coming to pick me up in an hour.”

Axel was silent a moment, assessing whether he should push Kairi to talk or hope the weekend healed the wounds, then nodded and gently lifted all cats away from his body. “An hour doesn’t give us much time. Go sit at the dining room table. Go!” He shooed her.

Kairi complied without asking for explanation and Axel went into the kitchen, grabbing two wine glasses down from the cabinet and an open half a red from the fridge. On impulse, he grabbed a few empty beer bottles from his recycling pile as well and stuck them under his arms. He continued their conversation as he rejoined his sister. “Do I get to meet Sora or is he supposed to stay outside and honk? Put your head down on the table and look listless.” He poured the barest hint of wine in the bottom of the glass he put in front of Kairi, and did the same for the one he put in his spot at the table. He arranged the empty beer bottles with the eye of an artist. “Let me go get my phone. Look sadder, but not so sad it’s unbelievable.”

“If you want to meet Sora, take one of his classes.”

Axel snapped a series of pictures to choose from, talking to himself, “She’s doing fine, Vanitas. We spent the evening talking. Of course. I’ll send you a picture.” Raising his voice a few decibels, he gestured back to the living room. “Go lie down on the couch, cover yourself with the fleece from the armchair, put a cat or two on your chest, and close your eyes. We’ll shoot, ‘don’t come over now, Van, she’s sleeping,’ next and then you can change into sweats and grab some board games from the closet. I’m assuming you’ll be too mad to answer phone calls from him anyway, but do you want to take your hair down and get it wet in the sink for some, ‘No, she just got out of the shower, why are you so creepy needing evidence?’ safety shots?”

“You’re seriously the best brother ever,” Kairi leaned up on tiptoes and pecked Axel’s cheek on her way into the living room.

“Tell me something I don’t know.”

“Roxas was watching you today from the upstairs window,” Kairi tossed out nonchalantly. “Xion texted me about it. He wants to smell your hair and cook you dinner.”

“He what?” Axel stuttered and nearly fumbled his phone. So much for a steady hand and unflappable cool. The Howe he hadn’t met yet, having spoken with Isa Howe during his initial looks around and estimates for the yard, had come outside after Xion had left, and all but admitted to watching him at least as long as to comment on Xion detouring to chat with him a minute before she went to her car, and, sure, Axel had purposefully peeled off his shirt and rolled down his overalls to his waist after Roxas had went inside, hoping he was still watching, but he hadn’t seen any proof, and their brief conversation had spent a moment on shock of shared acquaintances (“You know Xion? I knew you were Kairi’s brother--she recommended you--so it makes sense since they’re close, but that’s wild. Small world.”) and then stayed in the professional (apparently Roxas had been the one who had done the sketches Isa had shown Axel of what the garden in the backyard was supposed to look like when he was done). Maybe Axel had noticed that Roxas had eyes the exact color blue as the delphinium hybrid he had presented at his last flower show (had to keep up the street cred that he was more than just a lawn service guy and a tree and hedge trimmer somehow--even if that sort of thing was his bread and butter), and that he was pretty cut since he hadn’t bothered with a shirt when he ran outside. And perhaps, when the sun caught his hair he looked like an angel out of a renaissance painting. None of that meant anything though.

“He wants to cook you dinner,”Kairi repeated, cavalier. “Be gentle with him. I think it would be his first time out of the box in awhile.”

“I’m not…” Axel pinched the bridge of his nose, counting to keep from getting angry and only managing to count the problems he had with what Kairi was suggesting. “Is this why you recommended me to your friend? Are you my pimp now?”

“He needs a fling.” Kairi had the nerve to shrug. “You are an accomplished flinger. The only person you’re seeing right now is Demyx, and he’s just a friend sleeping in one of your spare rooms….He is still just a friend sleeping in one of your spare rooms, right?”

“Most nights.” Axel left it ambiguous whether Demyx spent the odd night elsewhere or whether the friend lines sometimes blurred. “And my best tree trimmer.”

“That’s what I heard from Ienzo.” Kairi proved the Emberson comedic timing lived well in her. “So what’s the problem with Xion and I wanting to give Roxas a hot gardener fantasy to brighten up his life? He’s a friend.”

“So many things are wrong with that, Thalassa Shell.” In times so serious, Axel had no choice but to bring out family pet names.

A beat passed. Kairi didn’t apologize for the idea like she was supposed to. Axel didn’t harp on it more. Another question fought its way out of his throat. “Incidentally though, did he say anything else about me?”

#grass is greener verse #fanfiction #axel #kairi #kingdom hearts #akuroku #not really akuroku but ya know gotta warn people #vanikai #kaixi #GIANT THANK YOUS TO EVERYONE WHO ENJOYS THIS #AND ESPECIALLY ONES THAT CREATED THINGS CELEBRATING THE NONSENSE #snippets

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violethowler · 4 years

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Mixed Signals

As we near the end of this series of essays, I’d like to take the time to talk about something that I’ve been wanting to discuss in relation to the Kingdom Hearts series for a while. I briefly mentioned it in my previous essays but never went into detail because I figured some corners of the fandom would be unreceptive to discussion if I brought it up. But given how many times I have seen Kingdom Hearts fans praise this series for its lack of negative male stereotypes, I think it worthwhile to explore how the series handles gender norms in relation to the Heroine’s Journey.

Maureen Murdock developed her template while working as a therapist with women in their 30s who had pursued careers in heavily male-dominated fields only to find themselves feeling burnt out and unfulfilled once they achieved their goals. A significant part of her inspiration for the Heroine’s Journey came from her patients describing how they had set out trying to achieve success in these environments by emulating the men in their life such as their fathers, while pushing away the influence of their mothers[1]. As such, deep down the themes of the Heroine’s Journey reflect on the struggles of someone who doesn’t meet the ideals of what society tells them a person of their gender is supposed to be and critique those gender norms.

On a meta level, Kingdom Hearts represents a fusion of cultures, made from a collaboration between an American and a Japanese company. While there are a few places where the two cultures overlap in terms of gender norms, it isn’t a 1:1 comparison. Therefore, the gender norms of both cultures should be taken into account when analyzing how the portrayal of the two leads in Kingdom Hearts aligns with the critique of gender roles presented by the Heroine’s Journey.

In terms of Japanese cultural norms, Sora’s emotional openness, compassion, optimism, and ability to easily form connections with others are fairly standard for male protagonists in Shonen stories[2]. However, following the first game in the series, the narrative begins to deconstruct this archetype over the course of Sora’s character arc. From KH2 onward we see him use his cheerfulness and optimism to hide his own insecurities and self-doubt. Our first introduction to his life on Destiny Islands depicts him competing with Riku in physical challenges, while the other kids talk about how much stronger than him Riku is, setting him up for a disproportionate focus on physical ability over emotional. This leads him to believe that he has no strength on his own and must rely on the power of his friends in order to be worthy of recognition and praise.

Related to Sora’s insecurities about his own strength, one archetype found in both Japanese and American culture is that of the masculine protector. The idea that a man must be ready and able to physically defend the people he cares about from harm, often to the point of self-sacrifice. In fiction, this trope is most frequently employed with a character’s friends, siblings, or romantic partner. The gender of the protectee can vary depending on the story and their relation to the protagonist, but male heroes protecting female love interests is one of the most common ways I’ve seen this trope be expressed.

Failure to uphold this ideal is commonly used as a source of angst for the male protagonist. Heroes who fit this mould are known to brood heavily if harm comes to their loved ones that they are unable to protect them from, and in some stories may be ridiculed or shamed by others around them. There are also variations where the hero’s inability to protect them is used as a source of angst for the protectee in addition to the main character. Common in stories where the one being protected is a friend, sibling, or love interest, some narratives will have the protectee react to the hero’s inability to protect them by deciding to “toughen up” so that they don’t need protection.

As mentioned in my first essay, the protagonist of a Heroine’s Journey and their Animus are frequently depicted as two sides of the same coin, with shared core character traits that manifest in contrasting ways because of their different circumstances. At the start of the Kingdom Hearts series, both Sora and Riku have built their sense of self-worth around their ability to live up to this idealized protector archetype. Their insecurities stem from their perceived failure to adhere to that role, with each of them coming at it from a different direction.

Being the older of the two, Riku is presented as physically stronger than Sora, something which the other kids on Destiny Islands make note of in the first game. Tidus talking about how, despite getting stronger, Sora is “still no match for Riku[3]” and that Kairi “can always count on him(Riku)[3]” frames Sora’s insecurity about wanting to be on equal footing with his Animus as being rooted in his perceived inability to fulfill social expectations.

When they meet again in Traverse Town, Riku’s first on-screen reaction to how Sora has changed since they last saw each other is surprise and confusion at Sora being able to defeat threats like the Heartless on his own, indicating that the root of Riku’s insecurities - which Maleficent of course exploits - is his belief that the value Sora places on their bond is conditional on Riku being needed as a protector. If Sora can fill that role himself, then what purpose does Riku have?

In keeping with how protagonists are usually depicted fulfilling this role to the point of self-sacrifice, Sora and Riku have both shown a tendency towards throwing themselves in front of an enemy attack to protect someone they care about, such as when Riku leaps in front of Xemnas’s aerial blade to defend Sora in the final boss fight of Kingdom Hearts II, or when Sora puts himself between Kairi and Terranort. Xigbar even comments on this tendency when he talks about how he doesn’t admire “one guy leaping into danger if it means someone else might have to jump in to save him.[4]”

From the western perspective, one of the things that many English-speaking fans have praised the series for is its avoidance of negative stereotypes in the writing of its male characters. A common cultural attitude in the United States holds that a man must always be stoic and aloof with everyone but his romantic partner. That a man who is open with his emotions, especially if it involves crying, is weak and unmanly. That engaging in activities that society associates with women and femininity makes one less of a man.

But Kingdom Hearts, from the point of view of western fans, rejects all of that. The writing of the series allows its male characters to express the full range and depth of their emotions and not once does the narrative ever frame them as weak or pathetic for it. None of the male leads are ever made fun of for crying or expressing vulnerability, and they never reject doing something simply for being “girly”. Not only that, but the arc being set up for Sora to learn to acknowledge and work through his insecurities and self doubts instead of hiding them as an allegory works as a direct rebuke of the idea that showing emotional vulnerability is somehow unmanly.

On another layer, Sora’s arc can also be seen as a critique of the Japanese concept of Honne and tatemae. Tatemae (literal meaning: “built in front” or “facade”) is the behavior and attitude one presents to the public that conforms to the expectations of society in addition to the individual’s station and circumstances, while Honne (literal meaning: “true sound”) represents a person’s true opinions, which are kept hidden except from close friends and may or may not match their tatemae[5]. This can sometimes be used on a more interpersonal level to evade confrontation and avoid hurting others’ feelings, such as when someone says “we should hang out sometime” with no intention of doing but not wanting to hurt the other person’s feelings by admitting that they aren’t interested.

The idea of keeping one’s true feelings separate from what one says in public fits with how characters in the Kingdom Hearts universe have been shown to hide their own inner darkness and in some cases deny that it’s there, which Xehanort took note of in his conversation with the Master of Masters in Re:Mind. We also have Donald and Goofy’s talk in the beginning about how the Gummi Ship “runs on happy faces[3]” instilling in Sora - despite their good intentions - the idea that his negative feelings about the destruction of his home are a burden to the trio’s ability to complete their mission. As a result, Sora continues to downplay his own sadness and other similar emotions across subsequent games. As a contrast to this, Esmeralda tells Riku in Dream Drop Distance that everyone keeps things locked inside sometimes and that it’s okay to keep some things separate from the world at large until they’ve had time to figure out their feelings for themselves. In this context, the version of tatemae that Donald and Goofy present ultimately causes more damage in the long run, while Esmeralda offers a healthier model of the concept.

So from a Japanese perspective, the Kingdom Hearts story is deconstructing two common archetypes found in coming of age narratives aimed at pre-teen and teenage boys and at the same time offering a critique of a common cultural attitude about individual expression. Meanwhile from a western perspective, the series defies conventional norms of masculinity and male characters in fiction while also critiquing elements of those views at the same time.

Both of these are perfectly in tune with how the Heroine’s Journey structure provides social commentary on gender and cultural norms.

The fact that the series challenges the audience's perception of gendered narrative archetypes and social norms from multiple perspectives is also reflected in how it mixes the symbolism associated with its two lead characters. For example, the series repeatedly presents canon Disney Princess romances as parallels to Sora and Riku, but which of the two corresponds to the Disney Prince and which one is the Princess varies from one game to the next:

Sora acknowledges in the first game that like Ariel, he wants to explore the outside world. The same game also presents Ursula tricking Ariel into helping her as a parallel to Maleficent’s manipulation of Riku.

Kingdom Hearts I presents the Beast as a parallel to Sora through their shared refusal to give up after being laid low by Riku upon their arrival at Hollow Bastion. Meanwhile in Kingdom Hearts II, the Beast is presented as a parallel to Riku, as mentioned in my previous essay.

The first game parallels Sora to Aladdin through similar shots of the two calling out for Riku and Jasmine respectively as they are forced to flee the location of a boss fight (the Cave of Wonders for Aladdin, Monstro’s stomach for Sora). Kingdom Hearts II uses Aladdin avoiding Jasmine at the start of Sora’s first visit to Agrabah to parallel Riku avoiding Sora throughout KH2 as a whole.

While not considered an *official* Disney Prince (he’s still unofficially marketed as one), Kingdom Hearts III connects Hercules diving into the River Styx to save Megara’s soul with Riku’s sacrifice for Sora at the Keyblade Graveyard. Meanwhile in KH2, Hercules’s attempts to hide how exhausted he is trying to meet everyone’s expectations greatly resembles Sora hiding his doubts and insecurities.

The fluidity of which one corresponds to the Disney Prince and which one is the Princess in these parallels also carries over to other narrative symbols. In visual mediums, the protagonist and Animus of a Heroine’s Journey are frequently depicted with a Yin and Yang motif - light and dark in balance with each other. In visual depictions of the concept of Yin and Yang, Yin is the black side - representing darkness and associated with femininity - while Yang is the white side - representing light and associated with masculinity[6]. Visual depictions of Yin and Yang use the Moon to symbolize Yin and the sun to represent Yang. Many visuals include an opposite color dot in the middle of each side, representing how the two forces balance each other out - there is darkness within light and light within darkness, so to speak.

The depiction of Yin as darkness with an inner light aligns with Riku’s character arc over the course of the series, but Sora is the one associated with moon imagery. Meanwhile, Yang being the light with a bit of darkness inside matches how Sora is on the path toward learning to acknowledge the darkness in his own heart, but Riku, who walks the “Road to Dawn[7].” is the one visually connected to the sun. Even in other pairs that have narrative parallels to Sora and Riku, the Yin-Yang motif differs from conventional depictions. Instead of the typical male Yang and female Yin, Yozora and Nameless star’s Yin-Yang motif has the gendered colors reversed. Nameless star is dressed all in white with dark hair, while Yozora wears dark clothes and has lighter hair.

This kind of fluidity in terms of symbolism and narrative parallels is perfect for a Heroine’s Journey. Many stories that follow the formula symbolically associate the male love interest with the archetypal damsel in distress, with the female protagonist being cast as the knight in shining armor heroically storming the castle in order to free them. But in the context of a Heroine’s Journey that is setting up a same-gender romance with two male leads, it adds an additional layer of meaning:

A well known stereotype involving same-sex couples is that their roles in the relationship will be exactly the same as the roles that society associates with an opposite-sex pair, with one always corresponding to the “female” role and the other to the “male” one. The Uke/Seme trope common in fanfiction from the early 2000s is a notable example of this. By presenting a romantic relationship between two male leads where the symbolism and narrative parallels are framed in a way that depicts the implied gender roles as constantly being in flux, the narrative sends a message that people are too complicated and flexible for every romantic relationship to fit into the same rigidly defined roles.

In conclusion, the depiction of Sora and Riku both as individuals and as a developing romantic relationship is consistent with how the Heroine’s Journey challenges gender and cultural norms from the perspective of two different cultures. By following this narrative framework, the Kingdom Hearts series deconstructs gendered narrative archetypes from both Japan and the United States, reflecting its origins as a crossover between franchises popular in each country.

Sources:

[1] The Heroine’s Journey; Maureen Murdock; 1990.

[2] TV Tropes; Stock Shonen Hero; https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/StockShonenHero

[3] Kingdom Hearts; Square Enix; 2002.

[4] Kingdom Hearts III; Square Enix; 2019.

[5] Wikipedia - Honne and tatemae https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honne_and_tatemae

[6] Wikipedia; Yin and Yang https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yin_and_yang

[7] Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories; Square Enix; 2004.

#kingdom hearts and the heroine's journey #kingdom hearts meta #kh analysis

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nadziejastar · 4 years

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Is there any evidence, or even hints, that Lea and Isa’s relationship is more than platonic?

Xaldin: Precisely. That is no ordinary rose. The room is in tatters save for one corner—because to him, at least, it is more precious than all the castle’s riches. Our work here is done, Roxas. The beast's weakness is clear.

Roxas: It is?

Xaldin: To hold something dear is to let it hold you. His heart is in thrall to it, don't you see? And that, Roxas, is ample weakness.

Roxas: I'm not sure I follow.

Xaldin: Nor should you. You have no heart to love with. Come. We return.

Yes, there was definitely a lot of hints and evidence that their relationship was more than platonic. Especially in the novels.

Roxas: Well, you were right. He does have something he wants to protect. Something he cares about.

Xion: Really?

Roxas: Yeah, but Xaldin says that's a weakness.

Xion: Why would caring about something be a weakness?

Roxas: I dunno. I didn't get it either.

Xion: I hope Axel comes home soon.

The best evidence, though, is in 358/2 Days. The whole subplot of the Beast’s Castle hinted at Axel having romantic feelings for Isa.

Day 150: Too Precious to Lose

Axel and I talked for a while about the things we can't bear to lose. Axel thinks that for Nobodies, it's our pasts, because that's all we have to remember the pain of losing something.

If Axel’s memories of his past are what’s most precious to him, then what was most precious to Lea as a human? Axel says that his memories are all he has to remember the pain of losing something.

Talking to Roxas and Xion always brings back memories of my human life, back when I was a kid. It's a weird sensation. I ought to be able to share all this with Saïx, but I just don't feel like it anymore. It's strange, but I'm content with just missing what's gone. I'm not the one who changed. You did.

And his memories of his past are all about Isa. And Axel has a lot of pain over missing what’s gone between him and Saïx. The story STRONGLY hints that Isa was so precious to Lea, he couldn’t bear to lose him. There was something very special between them that isn’t there anymore.

Roxas: Love is a power?

Xaldin: None you or I will ever grasp. Nor will they, for long. The love between them will wither and die. Love never lasts.

Roxas: But you don't have a heart. How would you know?

Xaldin: I have eyes, and a brain. We have no further business here. Try not to dawdle.

Roxas: That still doesn't explain what love is... Is love fighting to protect what's most important to you? Where does its power come from?

The main theme of Beast’s Castle is “love”. Having something you can’t bear to lose is what love is. And love is a weakness that the organization exploits. Axel has a tragic backstory that is hinted at constantly. The story hints that his fear of losing Isa was used against him at some point.

Roxas: I found out about love on today's mission--that it's something powerful.

Axel: That's true. It is. But I'll never get to experience it.

Roxas: Nobodies can't love?

Axel: You need a heart, man.

Roxas: Right...

Axel: Love is what happens if there's something really special between two people.

Roxas: You mean, like, if they're best friends? Inseparable?

Axel: Well, you can care about your friends, I guess, but that's not what I'm talking about.

Just look at the way Axel talks about love. He longs for love. Love is even compared to being best friends. But Axel is very specific that it’s a different feeling. He’s always speaking from experience, like when he talked about best friends, summer vacation, etc. He’s speaking from experience here, too. He’s been in love before. That is what is being hinted at. Now, this isn’t the same as Nomura coming out and saying “yes, they’re gay”. But there’s no way they wrote the story like this on accident.

Beast: It's no use. She's so beautiful, and I'm so...well, look at me!

Mrs. Potts: Oh, you must help her to see past all that.

All of this talk of love takes place in the world of Beauty and the Beast. That movie is all about the power of love allowing you to see past the exterior. That’s what the story of 358/2 Days is all about, too. Roxas can see Xion as Kairi because he has a heart. Axel can see her as Kairi after Castle Oblivion, and he grew a heart while he was there.

Riku: The process of putting his memory back together has gone nowhere... They have what's most precious to Sora...his memories of Kairi.

Xion is just a robot, though, and not really Kairi. She doesn’t even have a concrete appearance. It’s Sora’s memories that make it look like Kairi.

Xion’s memories were really Sora’s. But the form she had taken was reminiscent of Kairi. And that was because of Sora’s memories inside Roxas—the memories that knew Kairi as someone precious to him. Like Xion had become someone precious to Roxas.

She was created out of Sora’s most precious memories, which were of Kairi, who he LOVED. Xion is just a reflection of Sora’s LOVE for Kairi. Those most precious memories were the whole basis of the plot of CoM. They were the weakness used to manipulate Sora.

My precious existence is surrounded by memories that have been burned into my heart, as well as important memories that guide me. The more precious the memory is, the further it regresses into your heart, making it hard to remember, you know?

“Why do you always go around picking up stray puppies left and right?”

“I want to leave an impression with a lot of different people. I can live forever if I remain in their memories.”

Isa then laughed at me bitterly.

“Well, at the very least I’m sure you’ll always be in my memories, whether I want you to or not.”

During that time, we had no idea that memories could be erased. Memories are not always clear, and they can even be replaced with something else.

I haven’t seen Ventus since.

The sunset today is burning red again. We finished our training and watched the sunset from the top of the hill near the Secret Forest.

Axel’s journey in Castle Oblivion was all about HIS most precious memories, too. He said he and Sora had a lot in common, which is why he decided to help him. Axel’s memories of Isa were the equivalent of Sora’s memories of Kairi. It’s never explicitly stated, but Sora LOVES Kairi. Axel LOVED Isa. Once Axel started to remember his most precious memories, which were of Isa, he started to grow a heart.

“Do you know why the sunset is so red? Light is comprised of a variety of different colors, and within that spectrum, the red color permeates the furthest!”

“And how come you’re so versed in this all of a sudden?”

I remember speaking with Roxas about this on the 255th day when we sat on top of the clocktower. Although I know I should have had more precious memories of that time, I couldn’t remember them. I know there’s something that I was supposed to remember, but for some reason I just could not remember it.

You know how Day 255 is such an important day, it was even featured in the opening? It’s never explained why that day was so important. Axel tells Roxas about the red sunset. And just by the way he said it, you could tell that he was recalling a very precious memory from his past. Axel’s Character File story even confirmed it. The red sunset was not a random bit of trivia thrown in for no reason. It was a very precious memory from Axel’s past.

Someone had once told him why sunsets were red… Who was that?

The novel hints that Isa was the one who told Lea about the red sunset. But Axel had forgotten this by the time of 358/2 Days.

“Yeah. Have to hang on to something, right? It’s not like I have memories from before the Organization. Don’t you remember? I acted like a zombie.”

Axel stared at him as if trying to figure something out and then grinned.

Axel was trying to remember a specific precious memory from his past. It was bothering him. And it came back to him on Day 255 when he was talking to Roxas. It’s why he sounded so nostalgic. And it’s why that day was so significant.

Why did Axel remember that precious memory on Day 255? It was called “The Longest Day”. The longest day of the year is called “midsummer”. The entire story was most likely inspired by Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream”. The most famous quote from that play is about how love makes you blind to someone’s flaws. Roxas’s love for Xion blinded him to the fact that she was just a Replica being used to absorb his power and destroy him. Xion was his weakness.

Things base and vile, holding no quantity, Love can transpose to form and dignity. Love looks not with the eyes but with the mind. And therefore is winged Cupid painted blind.

― William Shakespeare, A Midsummer Night's Dream

Day 255 was the day Saix was revealed to be “blind”. He wasn’t seeing what everyone else saw when he looked at Xion. He was like the Beast. He had no love in his heart. He couldn’t see past appearances.

Axel: The Organization made her to duplicate your powers. She's a puppet.

Roxas: Have you gone nuts? Xion's a person, not a puppet.

Axel: She's smoke and mirrors, Roxas.

Xion was a reflection of Sora’s love for Kairi. Smoke and mirrors. An illusion made of precious memories.

Xemnas: About Axel? The poor fool. How long will he keep chasing the illusion of friendship, when he himself lacks emotion? Trying so hard to retrieve what he has lost, when it may never have existed in the first place. He deserves nothing more than our pity.

Saix was ALSO smoke and mirrors. Axel’s relationship with him wasn’t real and never existed in the first place. It was just a reflection of Lea’s most precious memories and his love for Isa. Axel desperately wanted to retrieve what he lost. His love for Isa made him “blind”. His burgeoning replacement heart gave him the power to look past the exterior of Saix to see the person he loved. It blinded him to the fact that Saix was a Nort and no longer the same person anymore. Saix was being used by Xemnas to manipulate Axel. Isa was Lea’s weakness.

Everyone is free to interpret the story as they wish. I know that Axel/Roxas is the more popular Axel ship. But I do believe Lea/Isa was what the writers intended and is the “correct” way to view the story. If you view the story with this idea in mind, Axel’s character arc makes SO much more sense.

#kh akusai #kh leaisa #leaisa #akusai #kh saix #kh axel

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aliceslantern · 3 years

Text

Give/Take, a Kingdom Hearts fanfic, chapter 1

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.

Read it on FF.net/on AO3

---

Ienzo thought he had gotten over the strangeness of being back here. But it was one thing to work on decrypting Even’s replica data, another to work on examining a girl’s heart.

With company.

The console was a sea of old papers and teacups. One of them had finally caved and dragged in chairs. While Ienzo’s knowledge of the heart had only grown over the years, he could scarcely remember how to actually examine one, especially without hurting its owner. Translating the untranslatable into data and then having to translate that into something conveyable… it was a headache.

A loud, pounding headache. Not helped at all by the fact that Even liked to talk to himself why he worked.

Yes. Ienzo was not used to company anymore.

He looked over his shoulder, if so just to stretch his eyes for a moment. Kairi was sound asleep. He got up and tucked the blanket a little more firmly around her shoulders. She would’ve been more comfortable in one of the pods, but to get to them one had to pass through the basement, and none of them were willing to bring that up. It was lucky most of the papers had been digitized all those years ago; nobody could actually manage to go down there.

He’d thought he’d been prepared. After all, he’d worked up here for weeks--longer. But actually putting in that code and walking down the long, long spiraling ramp, seeing the doors of cells--

Another pulse of pain echoed through his head, and he pressed a hand to his brow. “Alright, Ienzo?” Ansem asked.

He shook his head to clear away the headache. “My eyes are tired,” he said. “That’s all.”

“Why don’t you take a break? Get yourself some coffee? You’ve been in here since early this morning.”

“It’s alright.” When he went to sit back down, his knees were weak; he had to grip the back of the chair.

Ansem smiled sadly. “You cannot do your best work if you’re not rested. Go on, Ienzo.”

“And get some sleep,” Even snapped, not looking up. “You’re too young to look that exhausted.”

“Pot, kettle, black. Minus perhaps the youth.”

He scowled. Ienzo saw Ansem trying not to laugh.

The hallways were dark and cold, despite best efforts to repair the shattered lighting. He walked back in a haze, his headache throbbing worse. He used to never be prone to such things.

He saw Dilan in the distance. Neither he nor Aeleus wanted to join in the research, content enough to split their time on construction and guard duty; though it wasn’t like there was much to guard these days. Ienzo could not blame them. He actually envied them, their ability to just leave behind that chapter of their lives. But Ienzo had been the one to volunteer his knowledge, after all. If so many lives had to be lost for what they learned, best to use it for good.

“Stray’s at the door for you,” he said. Rather than the deep blue guard uniform, he was in paint-spattered overalls.

“I’ve told him he’s welcome to come right on up,” Ienzo said, shaking his head. “I don’t know why he always waits at the door.”

“It’s polite,” Dilan said, rolling his eyes. “Though I don’t recall that one being so polite in the past.”

Ienzo shrugged. He didn’t want to think of that time if he could avoid it. Easier to treat Riku like a blank canvas, a stranger. Ienzo suspected that he might do the same. He gathered himself, loosened his ascot just slightly, and went outside.

“Riku. Hello. I wasn’t expecting to see you so soon.”

He looked a bit sheepish. “I know you said you’d call if you found out anything major--”

“Yes. That is true.” He tried for a smile, found it too difficult. “There’s nothing new yet. Nothing that we didn’t already guess, anyway.”

“...Right.” He dropped his eyes. In the past several weeks since they’d been doing all this, his hair had started to grow out of the brisk spikes and hung, ungelled, around his eyes.

“I do hope you didn’t come all this way for this,” Ienzo said.

He shook his head. “The committee was helping me with something.”

“...Oh, Sora’s data?”

“Yes.”

“That actually sounds very interesting.”

He chuckled. “Honestly, it’s more like videogames than anything. It’s all just fight data. No memories.” He sighed.

“...Oh.”

An awkward pause. Ienzo had been trying not to look at Riku directly, focusing instead on his unkempt hair, which seemed more white than silver in this light. But actually seeing the young man’s face made him realize that Riku was exhausted too. “I shouldn’t keep you,” he said. “You seem like a busy person.”

“Will you go home, then?”

This seemed like the wrong thing to say; Riku tensed. “No, not home. Not yet.” He brushed at his bangs, but they just flopped back in his eyes. “I’ve been asked to keep an eye on the Land of Departure. Kind of like housesitting, to be honest.” A nervous smile. “I don’t mind it.”

“Land of Departure? You mean--”

Riku’s smile faded. “You know it as Castle Oblivion.”

A long, tremulous pause. Ienzo saw it without meaning to--the fight on the imaginary Destiny Islands, a brutal slash to the back, a basement corner, Axel, the puppet’s hands closing around his throat--

“...You okay?”

He jerked a little. This Riku was not that Riku. He was older, taller, his voice a bit deeper. But the color of his eyes was the same. “I’m sorry,” he stammered.

“...I know. Lotta bad memories wrapped up in that place. But it’s… it’s not the same.”

“Logically I knew one came from the other, but…” Ienzo shook his head.

Another pause, longer than the last.

“You, and me,” Riku said slowly. “If we’re going to be working closely with her, for her… we can’t… skirt around it much, can we.”

“...I guess not. It doesn’t seem like starting over has been much help, yes?”

“Right. Look, I don’t… hold it against you.”

This surprised him. “You don’t? But--”

A sigh. “Look, I’ve also done things I regret. A lot of things. Holding onto all that… being mad at others, or myself… doesn’t help, and doesn’t make sticking to the new path any easier.” Riku shrugged. “You guys are trying to be better. That’s what matters.”

Riku’s words were evoking something sharp and tight in him. He wasn’t sure what it was. “You don’t have to forgive me.”

“I want to,” he said, and he seemed to mean it. “You don’t have to forgive me, either.”

“You did nothing wrong in that scenario. It’s different--” He felt a flush rising in his face.

Riku shook his head. “Not really.”

Ienzo wasn’t sure what to say. The feeling threatened to strangle him--

“As much as I’d love to philosophize more on the meaning of darkness, I should get going,” he said, with a small smile. “Sorry for dropping by.”

“It’s… fine…” Ienzo said, dropping his eyes. “Safe travels.”

He watched Riku walk off, trying to swallow down the feeling. He didn’t want to think about it anymore. The memories here were bad enough, much less the ones there.

He went inside and decided to try and sleep. Ienzo had never been very good at sleep, not as Zexion, either. Nobodies did not require sleep; it was a much more voluntary process. As was eating and drinking water. The nothingness in their beings could sustain, if willed.

Humanity really felt so intense and so fragile, like he was a piece of glass being flung across the room, waiting for the fall.

Ienzo decided to take a bath, as though the hot water would finally will him into submission. He did miss how clean that castle was, how nothing was broken, how it didn’t take minutes for the water to warm. After the world’s fall, the majority of Radiant Garden--especially the castle--was in abject disrepair. When he was a child, it had taken a full staff to keep the place clean, well-kept, but it had been so--

Memories everywhere he turned. They just felt so--achingly sharp. He didn’t want to think at all.

Ienzo took a deep breath and slid under the water, rendering the off-white tile into ripples.

---

Riku was bored.

No; this was an understatement. The more time he spent here, alone, in the Land of Departure, the more he felt like his mind was turning to mush. The hallways were too wide and too empty, and everything was so quiet. His own footsteps and breath seemed deafening in comparison.

Riku was not used to quiet. If it weren’t for the whispering of Heartless, or the ambient sounds of busy and inhabited worlds, then there were other sounds, like the hush of waves in the distance. He could tell that he was the only person alive here. At first he’d tried to convince himself he liked the peace.

The peace just made him aware of how empty everything was, and how alone he was. At least if he’d been alone on his quests in the past, he had a goal, something to word towards, and in a way that goal hadn’t changed; bringing his friends home safe. Going back to normal. But normal hadn’t been so great either, had it? He’d been so eager to escape it, that so-called prison.

But right now… there wasn’t much for Riku to do to help achieve that goal. All he had to do was wait .

Riku had never been that good at waiting. For several days he roamed the grounds around the castle, looking for Heartless or Nobodies or Dream Eaters or Unversed or something to fight, some small evil to purge or free. But it was clear that there was nothing here, nothing to give him diversion from how utterly useless he felt.

So much for being a Keyblade master. His title felt silly, useless. He was literally just house sitting. For all his supposed power, he couldn’t help Kairi in her sleep or Sora… wherever he was.

If he was at all.

Riku forced the thought from his mind and got up from the bed in the room he’d been sleeping in. Terra had said to make himself comfortable, and there did seem to be a whole lot more unoccupied space for Keybearing students. But still, using someone else’s space made him… uneasy. He even wished he had something to clean , but in one of her many small notes left to him, Aqua had said there were spells that banished grime, and not to worry about it. (It had been kind of funny, though, the first time he spilled some tea; it disappeared into nothing.)

It was clear this place had been a home, some eleven years ago. Riku allowed himself to explore a few rooms a day, aware that, unlike in Castle Oblivion, the space here was finite. It would end. If he wasted it all in one big sweeping day of exploration, then what?

It’d be… just quiet. Just him.

He tried to structure his days. Wake up at a certain time, eat at a certain time, train for a certain amount of time. The spinning rings in the courtyard were useful (and made him question what, exactly, they were made out of), but even they were designed for students.

(Try to ignore the nightmares, of that strange city, of Sora, nightmares that faded into nothing as soon as he tried to understand them--)

He tried to read, to study magic with some of Aqua’s many, many spellbooks, but the theory was hopelessly complicated for his already-foggy mind. He kept thinking of Kairi, lying prone in that small white chair. It had been weeks , how come those scientists didn’t have anything new to say--

Patience. Breathe.

Riku got up and started walking.

If he squinted hard, he could see places where aspects of Castle Oblivion had come from. The moulding here. The planter there. The pattern of the wallpaper in some rooms.

Bringing it up had clearly made Ienzo uncomfortable. That had been a dumb, tactless thing to say. And truthfully… when Riku saw those pieces of that place here… his memories burned too. The darkness had crawled up inside of him, threatening to burrow deep and take over. That burning, aching feeling, its weight, its pressure. The inexorable rush of power when it broke through during those battles.

He looked at his palm. That burn didn’t feel the same anymore. He wasn’t sure it would ever go away , but the temptation had changed, become something he could utilize. Like turning on a faucet versus a crack in a dam.

He wondered if the former Organization members felt the same, or if they’d felt the same pull to darkness to begin with. He realized he could just ask , but then remembering how stricken Ienzo had looked, realized equally he couldn’t . But what about DiZ--Ansem the Wise? Had he felt the same? The old man seemed more approachable, despite the fact that Riku knew the dark side of him too.

Such complicated bedfellows. They did seem to… want to be better people.

He’d heard the stories from Leon about what happened in the basement labs. And he’d seen what they were capable of in Castle Oblivion, and the World that Never Was, and…

What of the things he could’ve done, if he hadn’t fought Ansem--the Heartless one? If it hadn’t been for Sora--

Sora. If not for Sora, and Kairi and Mickey, he could’ve ended up on that wrong path for longer, too.

Riku missed his friends.

#give/take #ienzo #riku #ienzoku #ienzo/riku #ienzo is trans #melody of memory spoilers

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dusky-dancing · 4 years

Text

The Prince and the Pirate - CH 2

For SoKai Week - Day 2

Story Summary: Sora finds himself far away from the walls of the Radiant Garden he's known his whole life, kidnapped by a rowdy group of pirates whose captain is as alluring as she is mysterious. What he thought was a simple hostage negotiation turns into an adventure that Sora couldn't have anticipated. He doesn't know which is worse, not knowing what's up ahead, or liking it that way.

Rating: T

Genre: Romance, Adventure, Pirate AU

Length: ~ 2k words

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Links for story navigation:

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"Kairi…"

He involuntarily breathed her name, and a playful smile grew across her face.

"That's my name," she nodded.

Despite the authority she obviously possessed, she remained kneeling at his eye-level. A show of acquaintance and equality. If she wasn't trying to intimidate him, then what could she possibly be after? Maybe she didn't want anything malicious from him, and this was nothing more than a hostage-for-money negotiation.

Or maybe it was all intentional. Nothing more than a trick, a warm and smiling cover to weaken his defenses.

"Who are you all?" he asked. "What do you want? Why me?"

"All questions I will answer in due time," she said. "What do you say we move this conversation somewhere more comfortable?"

"What, you have a cushier prison cell?"

She laughed, "Do you want to remain a prisoner?" Before he could respond, she turned to her two subordinates. "Take him to my quarters."

They both turned in surprise. "But captain-"

"It'll be fine," she nodded.

It wasn't until they hoisted him up, hands still tied behind his back, that she herself stood and led the march up the stairs. Her graceful steps didn't cause a stir from the worn wooden steps, but they creaked endlessly under every other boot.

"Don't try anything funny," Jessie mumbled in his ear.

Biggs laughed. "Where's he gonna go anyways? Swim all the way back?"

Clear blue skies soon greeted them, and the ocean air hit him in full force, not that the sensation was unwelcome.

Though Sora knew what a pirate ship was supposed to look like from stories, the true scale of a pirate ship surprised him. He craned his neck in order to see the sails, and even then he couldn't find the top of the mast from his position. The creaking and groaning of the ship were drowned out by the crew's work on the deck and the wind flapping the white sails.

All active work within Sora's eyesight, however, ceased once he emerged from his makeshift prison cell. He felt their eyes on him. Eyes of strangers, possibly more of his assailants. The bright sunlight kept him from taking in too many of their details, but he made out another woman and a few other men of varying sizes.

Sora must have been standing frozen for too long, because Biggs pushed him along. To the back of the ship they walked, where large wooden double doors stood decorated with plain glass. The Captain's quarters, where Kairi wanted to talk. Alone.

More questions clouded his mind as she pulled open both doors and disappeared into the room. It was comparatively dark inside, much easier on the eyes than the raw sunlight he'd just endured.

The room resembled less of a captain's living quarters than a decorative dining room. A single large table stood in the very center, enough to seat a dozen people. Various shelves, plants, and decorations filled the room comfortably, but Sora found himself too distracted to notice their details. The woman who'd ordered his kidnapping stood opposite of him, framed by a large glass window that put the entire ocean on display for him.

Again, she never held herself too high or with too much authority. Everything about her welcoming posture seemed intentional yet natural.

Biggs secured Sora in the chair across from her and left. Not a moment after her door closed did he begin unleashing his thoughts.

"What do you want? Why me? Is it money? Resources? Do you have any idea who you're messing with?"

Kairi held her hand up calmly. If his bombardment of questions annoyed her, she didn't show. Her dress pooled around her hips as she slowly took her seat opposite of him.

"Money is of no interest to me. I chose you, Sora, because you're the only one who can help me. Help us." She gestured around her whole ship.

"How?" he asked.

"I know who you are, Sora," she smiled. "You're the key to our success."

Her subtle emphasis on the word 'key' sent a shiver up his spine. It'd been years since he'd publicly called upon his abilities. His father had done well to keep them a secret from the outside world, but it was inevitable that someone, either the dark forces that plagued the seas or a hiring mercenary group, would find him eventually. The woman before him seemed to occupy the later group, though her methods were a bit more forceful than that of a simple business negotiation. On the off chance she belonged to the former motive, however, he instinctively scooted back. His hand twitched within his restraints.

"Don't be afraid." She said, and he was inclined to believe her despite his earlier instincts. "Our goal is for the good of everyone who lives on the ocean. You must understand that some missions don't allow the luxury of asking for help."

"What's this goal?" He thought back to rumors he'd heard within the kingdom. "Is this about the monsters in the ocean?"

She hummed, placing a finger over her lips. "I'll tell you more when we arrive at our destination, I promise."

Sora relaxed a bit in his chair, taking his eyes off of the woman before him to examine her quarters. Like the rest of the ship, the room had been carved entirely from wood, though its polish was much finer than his previous holding place. Naturally, the large window framed so intricately behind her drew his attention first. Scattered among the many shelves were various trinkets: a jewelry box, carved or sculpted animal figurines, atleast half-a-dozen plants he didn't recognize, nothing violent or overly extravagant. A small desk facing the window held an open ink well and dozens of papers secured under a large seashell weight. A discreet door off to the side likely led to her bed chamber.

The way natural light reflected off of the crystal chandelier above them made the chamber appear much brighter. It was...welcoming.

"So if I'm joining you on this secret mission, do I get a cool pirate code name? Or a pirate hat?"

He turned back to her, only to find her patience waning.

"This is serious, Sora," her eyes narrowed. "If you're to treat this like a fairytale, then it is clear you're not ready to know what we're after."

"I won't have to know," he said, "because the navy will find me first. They've got the fastest ships, you know."

Impatience gave way to a playful smirk as she leaned forward and rested her chin on her fingers. "Your naive overconfidence precedes you, Sora, but I wouldn't worry about them," she winked. "We've got a couple of tricks up our sleeves."

Sora sensed the pleasant tone leaving their conversation. "Don't hurt anyone," he pleaded. "We haven't done anything wrong to you."

"Relax, Sora. Our tricks are evasive, not confrontational. We won't hurt anyone who doesn't get in our way."

"And if I get in your way?" He smirked.

A soft playful smile pulled at her lips. "You are our way, Sora. None of this can be done without you."

Sora avoided her gaze. He was inclined to believe her again, though he didn't have much of a choice.

"What about after? When I've helped you with whatever this quest is."

"Well, we can return you safely to your castle be long gone before anyone notices. But I sense we won't be doing that, Sora."

"Why not?"

"Because I think you're not satisfied as being a trophy for your king, playing a hero prince but with nothing heroic to fight for." She leaned forward intently. "I understand, because I too have a gift."

Sora straightened, his heart stuttering. "You mean-" he looked to her hands, picturing her wielding a magical sword herself. It would explain why she hadn't carried one on her hip like the rest of her crew. "I thought I was the only one."

She shook her head and laughed, "You are one of a kind, Sora, that much is true. While your gift is more combative, mine is more…" she glanced to the side in thought, "elemental in nature."

Sora remained still, taking her and her words in. Even if their magic was the same, to meet another with an unnatural gift felt like the weight of the world had been lifted from his shoulders. Perhaps that was why he'd been drawn to her from the start, how she'd found him in the first place. Had she been like him, kept within the confines of some kingdom or government, or used as a show of power?

He relaxed in his seat before meeting her gaze again. She watched him, waiting for an answer or a reaction.

"Well," he said, "you can't just drop that bomb on me without atleast showing me."

Her smile brightened. "I was beginning to fear you'd never ask." She then rose from her seat, made her way to the door, and gestured outside. "You'll see soon enough."

At her command, Biggs stepped through the doorway and lifted Sora to his feet.

"Is this really still necessary?" Sora asked. He looked towards Kairi, sure that she'd order his hands freed, but she'd already made her way to the deck.

"For now, it is," the man said as he led him along.

On the upper layer of the deck where the helmsman was positioned, The full size of the ship revealed itself. About half-a-dozen crew members, both men and women, worked away all around the deck. Sora's eyes followed the central mast to the crow's nest, where another man focussed through a looking glass out to sea.

"Are we all set, helmsman Wedge?" Kairi asked, though it was more of an affirmation than a question.

"Aye, Captain," the man nodded.

Just on cue, the man in the crow's nest shouted, "Captain! Kingdom ships in sight!"

She quickly shot Sora a knowing glance. "I guess you weren't bluffing about your navy." Her playful smile and wonder-filled eyes held no hint of fear or worry. "What say you to a little demonstration?"

Every crew member around them jumped, and they soon filled the air with excited cheers. Biggs patted Sora's back and said, "This never gets old."

Kairi made her way to the railing that separated the two levels of the deck. Meanwhile, several crew members began loosening the lines to close the sails.

"Wait," Sora said. "I don't know anything about sailing, but aren't you supposed to, you know," he gestured wide with his hands, "expand the sails to move quickly."

Jessie joined his other side. "Aye," she said and held up a finger, "if you're using the wind to move."

Sora raised an eyebrow. "But what else would you-"

His voice caught in his throat when a sudden swell in the gentle waves rocked the ship with more force than usual. After catching his balance, his attention turned back to Kairi.

She stood tall with her hands outstretched to either side, palms facing up. Her eyes remained closed, but the rest of her face expressed pure bliss. The waves seemed to follow the direction of her hands, and Sora thought he'd begun to understand her gift.

Mine is more...elemental in nature,

When the ocean felt calm and steady, she slowly brought her palms forward. Sora was too mesmerized to notice the rest of the crew bracing against whatever they could hold onto.

In one fluid motion, not unlike the very waves she commanded, she thrust her arms behind her, and Sora went flying onto his back.

The sudden speed of the ship would've sent Sora back into the captain's quarters if it weren't for Biggs and Jessie stopping him. The embarrassment tempted him to stay hidden and red-faced, but his newfound fascination with the captain won out. He stood to look over the side, and sure enough the navy ship pursuing them was now a shrinking form on the horizon.

Kairi was focussed, though he swore she shot him a side-eye smirk. Jessie stepped in his way and broke the trance.

"Okay, newbie, enough staring. Let's put you to work?"

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A/N: Thank you for reading! We've reached day 2 of SoKai Week, and I hope you're enjoying it so far.

Kairi's design, abilities, and motivation were inspired from a number characters, including Avantika from Critical Role, Captain Amelia from Treasure Planet, and the historical Irish figure Gráinne Ní Mháille (Grace O'Malley), 'The Pirate Queen'.

#sokaiweek2020 #sokaiweek #kingdom hearts #kh fanfiction #sokai #sora #kairi #pirate au #adventure #romance #dusky writing #long post

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dangerouscommiesubversive · 4 years

Note

Kairi & Kei-chan - 25 for the kissing prompt ? Have a nice day ❤️❤️

Ok so 25 is “We need to leave immediately and go somewhere private” Kiss and is one of the ones I added to the original meme because...it just seemed like it needed to be a little hornier, I guess? and I’m glad people are seeing that prompt and appreciating it. You have a nice day too, sweetheart. <3

The nice thing about the Ganglar remnants still hanging around, if there could be said to be anything “nice” about Ganglars, is that none of them have Collection pieces anymore. They can’t suddenly whip out alarming and ridiculous powers that have nothing to do with whatever theme they’ve structured their lives around. So that’s good But, on the other hand, without Dogranio’s attention to compete for they’ve also apparently lost all sense of structure. Previously they’d at least had a common goal--now they’re all out for themselves, and nothing they want makes sense.

Case in point: lately women around the city have been losing designer shoes. Not their purses, not their jewelry, not their money, just their designer shoes. Understandably distressing, but not exactly life-threatening. It could be a ring of very focused thieves. It could be a lone pervert.

Or the GSPO could get a call about a possibly supernatural disturbance in the warehouse district and arrive on scene to Umika’s delighted cry of, “Got your...shoes?”

Sakuya groans. “Of course it was a Ganglar stealing them.”

“I mean, none of us were expecting anything else, right?” Tsukasa rolls her eyes. “Creeps. I almost want to say we should just let the Lupins take it out.”

“Come on, we have to at least put in an appearance.” Keiichiro pulls out his VS Changer. “Let’s go!”

They transform and round the corner. The Ganglar, a gaudy monstrosity covered in what Keiichiro vaguely recognizes as Louis Vuitton logos, is sprawled on its back, struggling to stand and apparently on its way out. Umika is staring at a pile of shoes on the ground, face concealed by her helmet but with a head tilt that says “mystified.” Tooma is attempting to rub at the bridge of his nose through his face plate. Kairi, back unwisely to both the GSPO and the Ganglar, is saying, “We came all this way for ugly shoes?”

“These are really nice shoes, actually--oh, hey, the cops are here.” Umika waves. “Hi, cops!”

“Did you just say, hi, cops?” Tooma shakes his head, and then nods gravely to the GSPO. “Evening.”

Keiichiro nods. Pauses. “I feel like we’ve gotten inappropriately casual about--Kairi!”

Kairi’s turning to say hello, but in Keiichiro’s admittedly-limited peripheral vision he sees the Ganglar struggle to its feet and then fire off some kind of blast that looks like nothing so much as an enormous spectral foot in an expensive shoe. It knocks Kairi back so hard that he falls out of transformation, landing on the warehouse floor in a tumble of red brocade, and that would be bad by itself but then it keeps going and slams into the stack of pallets just behind him. Which, of course, proceeds to fall on Kairi in a crash.

Keiichiro moves without thinking, much faster than he’s normally capable of even transformed. The pallets definitely hurt when they hit his back, but he’s coming into this fresh; he just steels himself and puts up with the weight as he’s noisily buried.

Beneath him, Kairi blinks in the dim, minimal light filtering down through the pallets, and says, sounding dazed, “Heya, Kei-chan. When did you get here?”

“You idiot, why would you ever turn your back on a live Ganglar?”

“I don’t know, I feel like it worked out ok.”

Keiichiro feels his eye twitch and says nothing.

Outside the pile of pallets, he can hear the others fighting, shouting to one another, the whoosh of the thieves’ zip-lines as they swing around, Sakuya cursing as he lines up a shot, the Ganglar roaring incoherently. More thumping and bumping, a close-range boom, and then several triumphant noises and the slap of two people high-fiving--Umika and Tsukasa, it sounds like from the talk.

“I’m gonna have dust in my hair,” Kairi says vaguely. “It’ll take ages to wash out.”

“It’d serve you right, turning your back on an enemy.” Kairi sticks his lower lip out, and Keiichiro scowls inside his helmet. “Don’t pout at me.”

After a moment they hear the scrape of wood on wood and then a clatter, and the weight on Keiichiro’s back lightens. It takes nearly ten minutes for the others to dig them out, and Kairi spends the entire time pouting. It’s maddening. He must know how maddening it is.

“You know I can’t focus when you make that face,” Keiichiro mutters, moments before the last two pallets are lifted off and he can stand up and pull Kairi up with him.

Once everyone’s satisfied that neither Kairi nor Keiichiro is dead, they break off into pairs for a moment. Umika and Sakuya stand to one side, heads together, murmuring, as they bandage a scrape on Umika’s knee. Tooma and Tsukasa start to gather up the bizarre collection of stolen shoes; Keiichiro catches a soft, “Aya wanted to know if you’d like to come over for dinner next week, she’s been practicing some new recipes...”

For his part, Keiichiro de-transforms, squints at Kairi, satisfies himself that the other man’s eyes are focusing and he doesn’t immediately seem concussed, and then backs him up to the nearest wall and says, “Don’t turn your back on live Ganglars, you scared the hell out of me.”

“Maybe I wanted to give you a chance to swoop in and save me.” Which is an obnoxious statement, but oddly enough isn’t accompanied by an equally obnoxious smile.

Keiichiro sputters, “Well...well...don’t. Wait, are you actually all right, you’re breathing very heavily, are you hurt,” and runs his hands down Kairi’s arms looking for some suppressed flinch or concealed wound, pats his chest sort of ineffectually, works his fingers into Kairi’s hair in a search for some head injury, and from there kissing him comes naturally.

Kairi...melts. And makes a little sighing noise into his mouth. Which should frankly be illegal. A distant, serious part of Keiichiro’s mind makes a note to cut Sakuya a little slack the next time he catches a glimpse of Umika’s ankles or something mid-fight and starts acting like an idiot, because he can’t imagine trying to focus on police work with all his blood rushing south like this.

The rest of his mind is fully intent on kissing Kairi again, and then from there saying, breathlessly, “Are you sure you’re all right?”

“I’m fine. Definitely fine.” Kairi sounds just as breathless.

“He’ll probably be better if you two get a room,” Tooma says from some vague distance behind them. “None of us want to know any more about your sex life than we already do.”

Sakuya makes a choking noise. Umika lets out a startled giggle. Tsukasa, slightly visible in the corner of Keiichiro’s eye, is covering her face in a clearly desperate attempt not to laugh.

Keiichiro registers approximately ten percent of this over the roaring in his ears. Kairi says, faintly, “If I use my zipline we can be back at your place in five minutes.”

“Please do that,” Tsukasa says through her hands.

Keiichiro hardly needs to be told twice--he’s already heading for the exit, carrying Kairi, who waves over his shoulder and says, cheerfully, “Au revoir.”

#asaka keiichiro #yano kairi #lupinranger vs patranger #fanfiction #aaaxile

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keijitranslates · 5 years

Text

[KH side story translation] TOTAL ECLIPSE

When I close my eyes to go to sleep, I start to hear the sound of waves. Then all I see is a deep blue, and I can eventually start to make out the blue sky and sea. I’m on the shore, looking at that sky and sea. I’m in one of my very precious memories, memories that I can only see in dreams now.

Riku.

Sora runs up like he always does, kicking up sand as he approaches.

You’re the one being lame and just laying on the ground when we came all the way out here, Sora complains, pouting.

…nah, nothing really.

Sora grabs his knees and sits down.

I mean, Riku, all you do lately is sit and look at the ocean.

Wakka and Selphie can be heard yelling as they play in the distance.

You know the ocean’s never going to change no matter how long you look at it, right?

Sora tilts his head.

What are you two doing?

A smile appears on Sora’s face.

It’s Kairi.

Ah, you’re doing nothing, are you?

Kairi sits next to Sora.

Nothing sure is boring, huh? Sora says to Kairi.

I think it’s nice to sit and look at the ocean every once in a while.

Sora pouts again.

Hey, Riku, wanna do the usual?

Sora turns around toward Riku.

A beach race! It’s been forever! I think the last time we did that was…

If I were to keep losing like Sora does, would I keep on trying until I win?

Hooray!

Sora does a little jump.

I’ll be the referee, Kairi says.

If I win, I’m captain! Sora proclaims.

We’re trying to build a raft right now.

In order to go somewhere that isn’t here – to go somewhere else, beyond the sea.

And if you win…

Sora tries to continue, but then he physically stops in his tracks.

Huh? Wha, wait a minute…

Sora gets flustered.

The two who have shared the fruit of that tree shall be tied together for eternity.

Ready? On your marks!

Kairi’s voice echoes over the beach.

3, 2, 1…go!

Sora had opted to run along the beach route.

He practically ran for his life.

That drawing in the cave.

Sora looks like he is running behind.

Someday I might lose to him.

Sora is still behind me.

He finally jumps up from the ground and touches the paopu tree.

Then Kairi is staring at Sora.

Sora runs in a daze.

That’s definitely why I can’t beat Sora.

Whoooo! I did it! Sora yells, falling down on the beach.

He then puffs his cheeks, sulking.

Uh, a-about that thing you said… Sora asked.

Kairi runs up to “the two”.

Congratulations, Sora!

Sora answers by raising a fist.

What were you two talking about? Where are you going?

Kairi tilts her head a little.

And you won’t beat me next time, either! Sora shouts.

On the cliff. The horizon.

There’s no way I can lose to Sora.

I’m jealous of him.

I can’t desperately push myself like he did back there, and I can’t smile like him either.

Why am I the only one who’s a year older?

If Sora weren’t here – or if Kairi weren’t here – I’d probably get along fine with whoever was here.

But this world is so cruel that I dream of both a world without Sora and a separate world without Kairi.

Is this wind coming from the sea?

Or is it coming from the sky?

The sea and the sky in front of me are the same as always – and this world will never change.

The blue of the sea and the sky is burning into my eyes.

I wanted to be pulled out of this unchanging world.

The door will soon open.

Suddenly, I hear a voice from somewhere, among the cries of the seagulls and the sound of the waves.

The door will soon open.

I have heard this voice before.

Yes – I know whose voice this is.

You understand the darkness within you, don’t you?

The voice I can hear from the darkness within my heart – Ansem’s voice.

Then why won’t you submit to it? Just go ahead and destroy Sora, or Kairi.

Darkness.

I can’t see the blue anymore. I can no longer see the sky and sea I remember fondly.

“Riku!”

Riku’s upper body jerks up in response.

“Are you OK? It looked like you were having a terrible nightmare.”

The King – Mickey – was looking over him with concern, draped in a black coat.

“Yeah, I’m fine. Sorry to make you worry, Mickey.”

Riku manages a stiff smile. He’d had a dream, a dream about the home world he missed.

“Ansem is still in your heart, isn’t he?”

“…seems like it.”

Riku hangs his head.

He could still detect Ansem’s smell. But he’d known that when he left the castle.

It was already three days since they’d left Castle Oblivion. Every night, he was struck with the same kind of nightmare. The beginning was different every time, but the ending was always the same. He hears Ansem’s voice, and he jerks awake.

Is the world of dreams a dark interval between light and darkness - an interval that allows an erratic existence like Ansem to appear with its own intent?

The dream itself was a message conveying the reality that Ansem – darkness – was still buried in his heart, and it was enough to make Riku want to wallow in despair.

But Mickey had once said - “even in the deepest darkness, you’ll always find a light”.

“Are you sleeping OK?”

Mickey peeks in at Riku’s face, which was covered by a hood, worried.

“Of course.”

“Are you sure?”

“Ouch. Guess you don’t even trust me.” Riku sneers.

Mickey shakes his head, responding to the sentiment, then smiles.

“Of course I believe you! But even I can’t go all the way into a dream to help you.”

“Sorry, Mickey.”

Riku looks down just a little bit.

“Why are you apologizing? You haven’t done anything wrong.”

Mickey’s words leave Riku even more dejected.

Haven’t done anything wrong? Really? But I’ve thought about a world without Sora, and a world without Kairi. I’ve actually hurt both of them. And you’re trying to tell me I haven’t done anything wrong?

“I called the darkness inside of you.”

Riku shudders in response to the sudden voice. He had to make sure Mickey wouldn’t notice.

“I am you. You are me. We are darkness.”

I want to shout “that’s not true!”. But I don’t. I know that I have darkness in my heart. That’s why I decided to live with the darkness. I won’t lose to the darkness in my heart.

After all, I may have dreamed up a world without Sora, and a world without Kairi, but in the end, I couldn’t get rid of either Sora or Kairi. That’s because they’re my precious friends.

“Riku?”

“It’s nothing, Mickey. Let’s sleep a little more,” Riku says, smiling at him.

“Good idea.”

Mickey lies down on his side.

“Submit to me, Riku.”

I mustn’t submit. And I can’t stay so close to Mickey anymore. It isn’t right to worry him so much. My heart feels like it would break if I was by somebody’s side any longer. I must fight the Ansem in my heart all by myself.

I’ll be OK. After all, I know that the light won’t ever give up on me. Even if I descend to the deepest darkness, light will reach me. I also have many friends I’m important to.

So, I won’t be defeated. Everything will turn out fine.

Riku fixes his eyes on Mickey, who was just falling asleep beside him.

“Sorry, Mickey,” he whispers, standing up.

Setting himself on the twilight path, the road toward dawn, Riku begins to walk alone.

(Because I feel a bit bad just posting something so long without this, you can find the novel at the following link! It has a lot of other short stories that aren’t quite as interesting but still fun to read if you know Japanese, and of course some Shiro Amano illustrations - though none for this story in particular: https://www.amazon.co.jp/gp/product/4757521529)

#kingdom hearts #read the other one first please

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ravenaveira · 4 years

Text

Ok, time for my review of Kh3 Re:Mind Dlc

This is gonna be long, so be prepared, and yes there will be many spoilers so if you dont want spoilers of the game then you probably shouldnt read this, but if you dont care then stick around.

I will start off with my unbiased and critical opinion.

From the title menu alone you already know what this game is gonna be about. Kairi is gonna be center focus, or should say specifically Sokai, and Riku will be virtually non existent.

Now I know what your thinking, well duh its all about saving Kairi of course Riku wont have that big a role and she’ll be the main focus, and to that I say no shit sherlock I already knew that. My issue isnt that it was Kairi focused because I already knew that and still pre-ordered the DLC, but my issue is what this title screen represents and my fears were proven correct.

Let me elaborate

Riku is just as much of a friend to Sora as Kairi is, from the beginning of the series its always been Sora, Riku, and Kairi, thats the way its ALWASY been. But from this title screen I could tell Riku’s bond with them wasnt gonna be present at all and I was right.

I’ll elaborate further

I know Im jumping way ahead here but bare with me, at the end of the game after Sora rescues Kairi they travel the worlds together, Sora notices he is fading away which is why he goes to the many different worlds he has visited but now with Kairi, spending his final moments with her before he finally disapears.

See the problem? Sora doesnt involve Riku at all in his final moments being alive, he is just completely absent during his entire remaining life. Sora only spends time with Kairi during his final moments, Riku wasnt shown with them once.

I know some people say well we dont know how long Sora was alive before vanishing and he was probably the one who organized the party, but did we see that though? did we see any signs that Sora was alive for more than a day or two? did we see Sora talking to anyone like he was setting anything up? NO, it was all about Kairi and Riku was completely forgotten.

I can understand if Sora wasnt dying then it wouldnt matter how much time he spends with Kairi alone, but Sora was fading away ANY SECOND and he didnt spend any of his remaining time with Riku at all, even at the beach party who is Sora sitting next to alone with before he finally vanishes? Kairi. That is inexcusable and a huge insult to Riku and his bond with Sora, hes just completely excluded, that is unforgivable.

These new added scenes to the ending actually made it worse than the original version of it, before we didnt even know Sora was around for more than a day and just assumed they all had a beach party afterwards to celebrate getting everyone back and saving the world, but now we know Sora was actually around for an extended period of time and made no effort to spend time with anyone other than Kairi, not even his best friend Riku did he spend time with for his final hours, that is despicable.

Another major issue is how Sora keeps saying his journey started with losing Kairi in this game, as if Riku wasnt ALSO lost that day, as if Riku wasnt the reason Sora kept on his journey even after saving Kairi and sending her back to Destiny Islands, as if he didnt fall to his knees and bawl his eyes out finally reuniting with him, as if he wasnt content with spending the rest of his life trapped in the Realm of Darkness with Riku, as if for the entirety of the base game of kh3 Sora wasnt constantly and only thinking about Riku and how many things he wished he could show him.

Apparently in Remind none of that happened, none of that mattered, it was Kairi that was his main motivation, it was Kairi that started his journey, Riku wasnt involved in it at all.

That is a huge issue with this DLC, it treats Riku like a side character and of little importance to Sora, in the base game they handled them fine minus that on instance in the Keyblade Graveyard where Sora says ‘Alone, Im worthless’ even though Riku’s right there but other than that their relationship and bond was handled very well but in Remind? practically non existent.

Now onto the story aspect, if your not into time travel and have trouble understanding the many variations of it then your gonna have a bad time because it gets VERY confusing to follow, which is why you should never introduce time travel because it becomes way too complicated to keep track of and not only that you also have to worry about things like paradoxes, ripples in time, alternate timelines etc. Its a complete clusterfuck to keep up with and manage so time travel really shouldnt have been introduced in this series.

Chirithy tells Sora that no matter what he cant change the past again, yet there are times where Sora does just that so exactly what cant he change? for example, when Roxas appears he asks Sora to do him a favor which is essentially getting the X back from Xemnas in their names. Sora does several things to make this happen and even Kairi gets a couple swings at Xemnas this time but then the two of them are basically caught and restrained inside shadow balls [pause]

See the prob? this is a huge change to that fight, Kairi never took a single swing at Xemnas, she just stood there and got snatched up, Roxas never asked Sora for help getting the X’s back from Xemnas, and Sora and Kairi never got restrained by Xemnas and knocked out.

Chirithy explicitly said Sora cant change what happened and no matter what he has to accept it for what it is, yet here he is, changing what happened. Maybe you could argue well this is an alternate timeline, even if it is that makes all of this irrelevant and means it never happened because the true ending is the one where it didnt happen, making this semi useful Kairi moment really pointless because at the end of the day its not canon, her being useless is the true outcome, none of this matters.

That is extremely disappointing, so even if you alter the past for the better it doesnt matter because its an alternate timeline and that timeline isnt the real one making this whole redo pointless and time consuming for a short DLC that was an extra 30$ to play.

So the time travel is very confusing and even if you follow it, it ends up being very disappointing when you realize none of it matters.

Moving on to some of the tied loose ends, Im glad they explained why Aqua froze up after saying ‘We stand together’ and I like how we get to see how Young Xehanort came to have the beliefs that lead to what he did and also MOMs subtle influence on him succumbing to darkness.

He told Xehanort that he would outgrow the robe and no longer need it because if he was truly powerful then he’d be the one controling the darkness, this leads to Xehanort later begining to travel without the robe and being corrupted. So we know now that MOM also influenced that as well and is very sketchy, even more now than he was before since this action greatly influenced what Xehanort eventually does and all the pain he caused, all of which would have probably never happened if it wasnt for him.

But thats just my theory and what I got from it.

I liked that we got to see Namine for a brief moment where Sora basically brushes her off and completely forgets about thanking her, this is a plotline Im pretty sure at this point is just never going to get resolved. He just tells her to go to the Final World and walks off, which makes no sense because Sora was surprised to see her in the original playthrough.

Another change was Lingering Will dying to protect Sora, again this never happened because Sora was busy fighting alongside everyone in the maze while Lingering Will and Terranort were fighting away from them. After Lingering Will died for him then Sora is pretty much squeezed to death by Terranorts Stand, or atleast knocked unconscious.

So much about these are just so confusing as to how they are happening when Chirithy said the events couldnt be changed I just stopped questioning it.

But atleast this time its made clear that Namine is the one who sent Lingering Will to help everyone and how she did it, so now people can stop saying Kairi is the reason everyone survived because it wasnt, without Lingering Will they would have all died a second time.

Basically the first half of the DLC is just recap with some minor changes and additions to the cutscenes, you get to play as other characters like Riku [optional] Aqua [not optional] and Roxas [optional] but other than that its basically the same thing all over again for the first 3-4 hours of the DLC, that is ridiculous.

The new content finally starts when Kairi is shattered, funny how the game gets good after Kairi dies xD I’ll stop.

Anyway once Kairi dies is when we finally get explorable Scala, but not without having to endure an insane fight with tons of heartless and nobodies and yes its more complicated than you think. It doesnt matter how many heartless or nobodies you kill, they will keep coming until you kill this one red heartless with way more health than your average heartless has.

After that you can pretty much wander around Scala as you wish and this is the only time where you can buy items or food so make sure to do that if your low on items. If your low on money there are minor enemies there that you can kill to get some so take advantage of this opportunity because your not getting another one.

Your goal in Scala is to basically run around, solve a couple puzzles, and get 5 of Kairi’s heart shards, revealed to having to be 7 later on. Sound fun? besides being able to see more of Scala’s layout, not really. But its a good place to take a breather before getting back into the big battles ahead.

Unfortunately your actually forced to fight the armored organization again but thankfully you dont have to do the ENTIRE final battle over, just that one section which I appreciate but wish we didnt have to do any of it at all.

So after we’re done Scala we get in MY opinion the two best parts of the entire DLC. We get to see what was going on with the rest of the keyblade wielders back home and it was INSANE and extremely well done, everybody had a chance to shine.

When everyone was swept away and Mickey was down and out, it was amazing seeing Mickey push himself back up and slowly with what little strength he had take on all the armor organization BY HIMSELF severely weakened, yet still powerful enough to hold them off and stand his ground. He really showed us WHY he is the King, so THAT I really enjoyed. It was extremely well done and one of the most memorable parts of the DLC.

The next part was even more insane and well done, which is us getting to fight as all the keyblade wielders against the armored organization and even get some cool dialog and team attacks in between, it was just amazingly well done seeing everyone work together and switching between characters was just so epic and enjoyable.

Honestly I could play those two parts over and over again and enjoy it everytime, their just that good and the most memorable in the entire DLC.

Coming back with Kairi and killing Xehanort together with all the keyblade wielders including Kairi this time was satisfying to see but it excludes Xehanorts and Eraquses final words, I mean yea seeing Xehanort have a semi happy ending put off alot of people but at the same time, seeing Xehanort come to the realization that he was wrong about everything and giving the Wayfinder trio closure by seeing their master one last time and hearing his apology to them just held more weight to me.

Im not saying I think Xehanort should be redeemed as easily as he was, but I feel like excluding Eraqus and their final words made the ending feel hollow, just ok we beat the bad guy, happily ever after now. Thats pretty lackluster and unsatisfying In my opinion.

Finally the ending....

Heres where Im gonna be biased and give my personal thoughts. Warning if your a fan of Kairi skip to the very end of the review where I give my overall rating

I hate the ending, for the reasons I listed in the beginning but also many others. I get the main focus was gonna be Kairi since the DLC was about saving her, Im not mad about the obvious, Im mad about the execution.

The Sokai agenda was so forced and apparent its not even funny, they shove it in your face so hard yet when Sora is talking with Chirithy he still refers to Kairi as a friend, really? your shoving this pairing down our throats just to have Sora still friendzone her? Im not mad because I dont want them together anyway but I hate the games being played here, you either want them together or you dont, pick a friggin side Nomura.

And while we’re on the subject, I hate, HATE, how this game is so heavily romance focused when Kingdom Hearts was NEVER about romance to begin with, it was always about friendship and bonds. Not in this DLC though, no now its all about Kairi and being with her forever, traveling the world together, holding hands, all this lovey dovey nonsense nobody invested in the plot could give a rats behind about.

Sure people who are into Kingdom Hearts for the romance of course they dont mind, but Im pretty sure MOST people invested in this series are in it for the story, not some stupid pairing, and I HATE how much they shove it down your throat because it is just so forced and obvious what they were doing.

This was all damage control for Kairi, who has been a useless damsel in distress and dues ex machina in every single game shes been a part of. I repeat, EVERY SINGLE GAME SHES A PART OF.

Kh1 - Kidnapped, unconscious, Sora needs to die to save her.

Kh2 - Kidnapped, held hostage, Sora needs to find and save her.

Kh3 - Kidnapped, unconscious, is killed twice, Sora needs to die to save her.

Do you see what I fricken mean? Every fuckin game its the same danm thing over and over and quite frankly Im sick of it. You might as well say this is a Mario game because Kairi is princess Peach always gettin snatched up and Sora is Mario always going through insanely deadly trials to get her back, and then it happens all over again.

This DLC was damage control for that, instead of immediately getting snatched up by Xemnas she actually gets a few good swipes at him to no avail of course, and then she fights together with Sora against armored Xehanort, all of which is just damage control for her not doing anything in the entire franchise and pandering to her fanbase that are constantly screeching for playable Kairi and for her to do something.

It was also damage control for how non existent their relationship was and what a joke its been since Kh1. They arent fooling anybody because thats exactly what this was, otherwise why you have to try so hard to CONVINCE us how important she was to Sora? why did Riku have to get sidelined so much just to boost Kairi up? why’d Sora completely disregard Riku as a part of his journey? why did Sora not spend ANY time with ANYONE for his final moments alive? its so obvious why. The only way to convince anyone shes actually important and relevant is to play down everyone else or exclude them entirely.

Congratulations, you got your wish, good for you fandom, but at what cost?

The time they spent forcing so much Sokai could have been used to tie up way more loose ends than there were but nope, gotta squeeze in that Sokai, thats what yall really here for right? fuck off.

The two best moments of the game was so short lived its not even funny, this DLC was full of so much padding in the first half, forced romance and pandering for damage control they forgot to actually make this a decent DLC.

Since I recorded my gameplay from start to finish I can actually tell you the amount of old content vs the new

3-4 hours of mostly what we already seen with a few changes, I only died twice

1-2 hours of new content, probably less because I got lost and died alot

That is unacceptable, 30$ for only 10% new content? that is a robbery.

Not only that but the worst part is the Limitcut episode, databattles have always been optional for competative players who like the challenge. Now you are FORCED to fight these INSANELY hard bosses, all 13 in order to get the final bits of the aftermath of the story.

WE PAID FOR THIS, this wasnt free we PAID for it and yet we’re basically told ‘Hey if your a casual player and want the rest of the story? well you gotta fight 13 of these insanely hard databattles that used to be optional but now their madatory for you to get the rest of your moneys worth. Too difficult? cant do it? well too danm bad, get good or go home we got your money already so screw you guess you’ll never know’

That is a fucking robbery and a huge slap in the face to people who are invested in the story, not proving their the best by fighting insanely difficult battles no matter what difficulty your on. It wouldnt be an issue if this was always the case, but these battles were always OPTIONAL for competetive players to do if they WANTED to, but now its mandatory and if you cant do it then oh well middle finger to you.

I couldnt even beat Vanitas, I fought him first and then Luxord and I couldnt beat either of them so I just said fuck it and went on youtube to see what I paid to see for free. 30$ wasted on a game I cant even finish, your out of your fucking mind if you think thats fair and excusable.

Thats why at the end of the day I give it a 5/10, its not good but its not bad either, its just decent. But if you asked me if it is worth the time and money? fuck no, my advice? watch other youtubers play it and keep your 30$

If you want it just to play as some of the characters, experience the new content for yourself, and play the databattles then by all means get it.

But if you think thats not enough for you to spend 30$ for then dont get it.

Overall Re:mind gets a 5/10, useless padding for majority of the first half of things we’ve already seen and cant skip because theres new scenes mixed in, forced romance that nobody but shippers care to see, severely lacking new content, and unfair extremely hard mandatory databattles just to see the final aftermath of the story which is kind of important setup for the next game.

Fuck this DLC, this was my fist time EVER buying a DLC for ANYTHING and thanks to this its probably my last. So thank you Re:Mind, for ReMinding me why I never bought DLCs in the first place.

Ps - Im so glad playable Kairi was optional, thats one of the only things this DLC did right.

#kh3 remind spoilers #kh3 #kingdom hearts 3 #anti-sokai #anti-kairi

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