Kingdom Hearts Fan Fiction ❯ A Fragmented Tale ❯ Return to Destiny Islands ( Chapter 2 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

A/N: I made changes, changing the main character's name to Aleron and changed the names of Riku's weapons. Thanks to Swordstuff!

A Fragmented Tale by cursed_l0ve

Chapter Two: Return to Destiny Islands

"Yes! School's finally over!" a girl jumped up on her bed. "Oh my god! I can't believe I'm a senior already!" She plopped down cross-legged. She sighed happily as she jumped off of her bed and ran downstairs. She went outside to the backyard and sat down near the small makeshift pond.

"Will anything interesting happen this summer?" she mumbled, watching the wind make ripples on the surface of the water. She shook her head, "Nah!"

'Unless...' she jumped up when something triggered her memory. 'If I could just go back there again...' she sighed sadly.

When she was seven, she had been playing on her swing set at her old duplex house in the backyard. The sky got dark all of a sudden, and she paused to look up from swinging. A dark, hooded figure stood in front of her. It had grabbed her and darkness swallowed them both.

When she woke, she found herself lying on a beach. Her legs were still in the salty water. Voices were above her, trying to see if she was all right. A hand was thrust in her face, and she took it. She looked at the people who had made the voices. They were five kids, around her age.

"Hi, I'm Sora! That's Riku, Wakka, Tidus, and Selphie!" a little boy with brown, spiky hair and big bright blue eyes told her. "What's your name?"

She looked at them shyly, "Aleron."

"Nice to meet you, Aleron! Wanna play with us?" Tidus said cheerfully.

For weeks, they played together, ate together, lived together. Until one day, a voice appeared inside her head.

'It's time for you to go home. You have no business being here!'

It wasn't a nice voice. Suddenly, the black hooded figure from weeks ago appeared in front of her and grabbed her. Riku was the last person she saw. He was calling out for her and tried to grab her. When she woke again, she was home, in her bed. As she grew, she decided that the islands and the friends she made were just a dream. She shook the memory from her mind.

"But why did that person bring me there in the first place if I wasn't supposed to be there?" she mumbled.

Later that night, Aleron lay on her side, facing the wall. She thought for a minute, trying to figure out what was going on. She felt really bizarre after being outside earlier. It was like something was watching her. She turned her head to look around her room behind her. Nothing.

She rolled her eyes and returned to her position. She closed her eyes and sighed. 'Aleron, stop it. You're just being paranoid.' And soon, she fell asleep wondering whether or not that past memory was real or just a dream.

The morning sun was shining on his face. He groaned and tried to block it out by squeezing his eyes shut tighter. He shifted to roll on his other side, but then froze.

'What is that?' he thought to himself. He didn't want to move. Something was right next to him. He opened his eyes. He was nose to nose with someone else.

"Huh?" he whispered, leaning back to see well. 'A girl? What the hell?' Riku blinked his eyes and looked again. She was still there. 'Wasn't a dream then... But what do I do? I'll wake her if I move. Who IS she?'

How she got in his house, let alone in his bed, he didn't know. Something was familiar about her though. He assumed he saw her around the island village.

'But why is she here?' he turned puzzled. He sighed and stood up on his bed slowly, and then stepped off at the edge of it as quiet as he could. He scratched his head. What was he going to do?

He decided to leave her until she woke up. He pulled a clean white t-shirt over his head and pulled on a tan khaki cargo shorts. Riku looked at her before exiting his room to the bathroom. When he got back, she was still asleep, but she had rolled to her other side. He looked at his clock. It was 11am.

'Wow, she sleeps that long...' he thought incredulously. 'What am I going to do with her? I might as well wake her up.'

Riku went over to the bed and crouched down. He studied her for a moment. She was pretty, he decided. The girl had a medium length dirty blonde hair, a bit longer than Kairi's, with her front bangs dyed very blonde. There was a blue nose stud on the right side of her nose. Her skin was fair, with a bit tan. Her nails were bitten. A bad habit, he thought. Her neon-lime green nail polish was messed up too. She wore a rose pink spaghetti top and what seemed to be a boy's black shorts with a red line going down the sides.

"She can't be from around here... Her clothes are different," he mumbled. She wasn't wearing shoes either.

Riku reached out his hand towards her shoulder. He tapped her, and she squinted her eyes. She turned around to block out the sun from her face.

He raised his eyebrows and went to tap her again. He heard a soft, but annoyed voice.

"Mom, it's summer vacation! Let me sleep!" she hissed, her arm fumbling around, trying to find a blanket. Her voice was very familiar.

"Hi?" Riku asked, leaning a little closer.

Suddenly, her eyes shot open at his voice and she got up, twisting around so fast. Riku's eyes widened. It was her. He would never forget those blue eyes.

Her eyes widened when his did. They both stayed there, staring at each other until Sora barged right in the room.

"Hey Riku! Come on! Let's go find that guy!" Sora shouted, and then paused once he saw the scene in front of him. "Huh?"

Riku and Aleron shot at the direction Sora came in. Sora looked from Riku to Aleron. His stare stayed the longest at her. "Hey... Aren't you...?"

"Sora?" she asked, starting to smile. Sora blinked in disbelief.

"How did you get here?" he asked her, scratching his head.

Riku's jaw fell. She didn't even mention his name. Did she forget him? He shut his mouth before she noticed. Aleron looked around the room, and then her glance fell on the silver haired boy. She shrugged.

"I don't know... I was in my bed, then I woke up and I was here," she said innocently as she looked at Sora again. She stole a glance at Riku and looked away quick as she started to blush lightly.

Riku saw that and blushed. 'Does that mean she knows me?' he wondered. "Hey Sora, let's go get your girlfriend and we'll go find that guy if you want," he said, standing up to stretch.

Aleron's stare followed him as he stood up. He was so tall. The last time she saw him, they were about the same height. Sora seemed a couple inches taller than her as well, but he was still shorter than Riku. Her jaw was hanging from her mouth.

"Sure! Of course I wouldn't leave her out! What do you think?" Sora yelled, rolling his eyes.

Riku nodded at him, and then looked down at Aleron like she looked funny. She shook herself out of it and closed her mouth. He let his arms drop before crossing it across his chest. She realized he was waiting for her to say something.

"Um... what?" she asked, looking up at him while starting to play with her hair. Riku sighed and left the room. She looked at Sora with a bemused look. Sora shrugged, and then grinned at her.

"Come on! Let's go get ourselves an adventure!" Sora yelled, beckoning her to follow him. Aleron smiled and nodded, getting off the bed.

She stretched and fixed her clothes before following Sora out of the room. Riku was waiting for them on the front porch. Sora patted his back and went onto the street up to Kairi's next door. Aleron stopped beside Riku.

"Hey Riku, what's wrong?" she asked, looking up at him.

He looked at her surprised, "Eh? Oh nothing... I thought you didn't remember me or something," he answered. He started smiling. "But you do, so it's nothing." He started walking. She ran to catch up with him.

"Oh, of course not! How can I forget you?" she indicated.

Riku looked at her again. At first she thought he was going to say something, but then he kept walking.

'How can I forget him? I've had a crush on him since I remember...' she thought to herself. 'He's really the same Riku I knew. I wonder if he's changed a bit at all...'

"You said Sora has a girlfriend... Who?" Aleron asked.

Riku stared at her unbelievably. 'She should know! It's too obvious!' She looked at him nervously like she did something wrong. He softened his face when he realized she was here before Kairi was. 'Of course... Kairi didn't come until a year later!'

"Kairi, you'll meet her in a minute," Riku finally answered.

"Kairi... That's a pretty name. Did she come after I left?" she asked. Riku nodded.

"Hey Riku!" a voice greeted from the front porch. Aleron and Riku both looked up.

"Hey Kairi, ready to go?" he greeted back, smiling.

Aleron stared at the girl. 'So, that's Kairi.' She watched as the girl approached them, with Sora following behind. She had her burgundy-red hair up in a ponytail. She was wearing a white spaghetti top and a pink short skirt. Her pink flip-flops plopped on the ground as she walked. Kairi beamed at Riku and then looked at her.

"And who is this?" she asked Riku. Riku was about to introduce Aleron to Kairi, when she cut right in.

"I'm Aleron," she smiled. Kairi grinned. Riku closed his mouth.

"Yup! Come on, let's go find that guy!" Sora reached for his girlfriend's hand, and they went back on the street towards the forest. Aleron and Riku followed behind in silence.

They only reached the end of the street, when she remembered something.

"Wait! I need shoes!" Aleron yelled, causing the three to stop and turn around to look at her.

The boys crossed their arms and stared at her. Kairi thought for a minute and then thought of something.

"You two wait here. I'll lend her something! We'll be right back!" Kairi yelled as she grabbed Aleron and ran back to her house. The boys groaned.

'Great...' Riku mentally hissed. He sat on a rock near the entrance of the forest. Sora flopped down beside him in the grass, sitting cross-legged.

"Do you want clothes, too?" Kairi asked.

Aleron looked at her, "Really? You don't mind?"

Kairi shook her head, "I don't mind! Besides those are your pajamas, right? So, I'm sure you'd want regular clothes."

"Sure, if you really don't mind."

Kairi smiled and went through her drawers. She had an outfit for Aleron and handed them over to her, along with a pair or shoes.

"You can change in here. I'll be outside waiting," Kairi said, closing the door behind her.

"Finally!" Riku yelled at the girls running towards them. He crossed his arms. Sora stood up from his spot and waited to greet Kairi.

Riku's jaw almost fell at the change. Aleron was wearing Kairi's clothes. He stared at her as she was approaching.

Aleron was wearing a bright, but bold green tank top with blue jean shorts that hung low on her waist. She wore Kairi's dark green sneakers with neon-green laces. Her hair was up in a messy bun, which left the blonde framing her face. The sun made her eyes even bluer. Riku had to mentally slap himself before she noticed he was staring at her.

"Hey guys!" she yelled as she arrived.

"Hi..." Riku said in awe. Aleron giggled.

"Okay, Riku," Sora patted his back before turning to the girls. "So, are we on?"

"Yep!" Aleron and Kairi both said, nodding their heads and stood up straight. They saluted at Sora. "We're ready, Sir!"

Sora laughed, "That reminded me when I used to do that with Donald and Goofy!"

"D-Donald... and Goofy?" Aleron said incredulously.

Sora looked at her, "Yes... do you know them or something?"

"No… It's just that, in my world, they are cartoons. I didn't know they were real! Oh my god! That is so cool!" she grinned after explaining.

Sora sweat-dropped, "Cartoons?"

Aleron nodded, "Well, if for some reason the three of you were able to come to my world, I'd love to show you!"

"Alright, we'd love that!" Kairi agreed, smiling.

"Are we gonna stand here and chat all day or go and find that guy?" Riku frowned.

"Sorry, Riku," Sora apologized, taking Kairi's hand and walked in the forest.

"What does the guy look like?" Aleron asked, directing the question at the silver-haired boy.

"Just a black hooded figure," was his reply.

Aleron stopped walking, "WHAT?" Everyone looked at her again. "A black hooded figure? No way! If I go near him again, he'll probably make me go home! I'm not going!" She crossed her arms and stuck her nose up in the air.

"That guy's the one that brought you here and then sent you home?" Sora asked, surprised.

"Yeah! He probably was the one that brought me back here, as well."

"Sora, why do you think I dragged you to this forest a couple nights ago? I KNEW, you idiot!" Riku hissed, smacking Sora in the head.

"WHAT? You knew?" Sora yelled, rubbing his head.

"Yeah, I saw him that day. He was prowling around the village, so I followed him. He was up to something. Probably checking to see if we were still here. Then that night, I had you with me, and we went to find him. I wanted to get at him. I knew it was him that took her back. I wanted to get back at him. You ruined it. He came after us then left. I guess he left to plot. And why else would she be here right now? It was probably him! And he has some plan in his sleeve!" Riku explained, avoiding himself from looking at Aleron as he mentioned her.

"You... wanted to get back at him, because of me... Why?" Aleron said, surprised at the statement.

"I don't know," he said, shrugging it off. He went in the forest, leaving the others staring at him from behind.

Aleron watched as Sora and Kairi ran to catch up with him. 'But...'

"Ugh, if I'm going with you, you better promise not to let him take me away again!" she yelled after them.

"We promise," Sora nodded.

"Thank you, Sora," Aleron smiled, following behind them all alone. She gave out an exasperated sigh.

'Why do I feel like this?' Riku mentally said. He continued to walk ahead of the others. 'Do I really like her?' he wondered. 'If I didn't, it wouldn't have been that hard being around her... I liked her the first time I saw her... And that was years ago. Did she even like me? Does she still? Should I tell her?' he continued to battle with his feelings. "Maybe I will..."

"Riku?" Sora asked from behind him.

He turned around, "Yeah, Sora?"

"Are you talking to yourself?"

Riku started to panic. Did he really say everything out loud? He kept a wall over his face.

"Eh? I was thinking, but what part did you hear?"

"Just 'Maybe I will...' Sora said honestly. "But Riku, you will what?" A thin brown eyebrow arched up.

The leader let out a huge sigh of relief. He smiled at Sora. "Nothing. Like I said, I was thinking."

"Okay. Whatever you say," the brunette said. Riku continued his way, closing his eyes for a second and then opened them again to explore the scene. 'That was close...' Kairi giggled. Aleron moved to walk beside her.

They walked for nearly two hours, covering most of the trail. The sun was halfway down the sky. It was probably around 2pm. Riku halted them, putting a palm up in the air. Everyone froze, looking around each other. Riku looked behind his back, and then looked ahead out of the corner of his eyes.

"Sora, get your keyblade," he said in a low tone as he called out his Way to Dawn.

Aleron watched in amazement as the boy in front of her drew out a long silver key, with the end shaped as a crown. Its handle was gold, with a chain hanging from it, bearing a Mickey-shaped head.

"What's it?" Sora answered in the same tone.

Riku crouched in his usual battle position, holding his blade in the air with his right hand, and keeping his left arm bent slightly in front of him. He moved a couple paces down the pathway and stopped again.

"Protect the girls. I hear something," he directed, flickering a quick gaze at his best friend. Sora nodded and crouched in his own position.

"Stay with me," Sora told the girls as he let his blue orbs sweep around the forest.

Riku jumped in undergrowth and then ran ahead. Something darted from the trees, and he saw it. It was shadowy and black.

He chased after it, gripping his weapon. Once they got to a bigger clearing than the one from the other night, the thing disappeared. It hid in the trees.

"Come on, show yourself!" Riku yelled up at the canopy of trees above him.

He waited patiently for a couple minutes, keeping his eye out for the shadow. Then it charged down at him from the tree behind. Riku spun around at hearing a 'whoosh' and swung his Way to Dawn at the thing. He felt it hit, and saw the shadow flex around him. Riku jumped into the air as it made to charge at his legs. It disappeared again in the trees.

Riku was getting frustrated. This continued for a while, until he decided he wasn't going to wait around for it to fully show itself instead of playing games with him. He left the circle and made his way back to the others. He had a plan.

Soon enough, he could hear the shadow following him. Riku kept going. As he approached the group, he motioned them to be still. Sora gave a nod and stood guard.

The shadow flew around the trees, and then charged at him. Riku jumped high in the air and threw his blade down at the right moment, pinning it to the ground.

He heard a "Wow..." coming from Aleron, and hid his smirk. He amazed her, huh? Well, she'll see more of that.

He cowered over the shadow, "Show yourself."

At first, it didn't seem like the shadow would reveal itself. After a moment, it shifted.

It grew to form the person they were anticipating to find; the black hooded figure.

"Congratulations on catching me. However, I came to check on you. Especially her," he spoke, sounding as if he was above the others. He eyed the new girl, which caused Riku to growl dangerously.

"What is it about you and her?" he asked, displeased.

"You will find out soon enough. Now, I must go. And please, do not look for me again. I will make myself known when it is time," it announced before disappearing, causing Riku to curse.

"Hey! Come back here! Damn you!" he yelled to the forest. No answer came back to him. He kicked his blade, which was supposed to pin it to place. "Foolish weapon!"

Sora sighed and put his Kingdom Key away, dissolving its existence with magic. He approached Riku. The girls kept close to Sora, not wanting any surprises to befall them.

Riku glared at them, and then retrieved his weapon and put it away. He growled low and went back the way they came. Sora tried to say something, but failed. Kairi held on to his arm. He looked at her and gave her a smile. He put a hand to hers and then followed after Riku. Aleron was left alone.

She sighed and followed behind them. It seemed like she was the one left behind. She wrapped her arms around herself as a cold gust of wind blew. It was getting bizarrely cold.

Aleron ran to catch up with them. After a while, the air, indeed, got colder. The sky got darker. Kairi was shivering. Sora wrapped an arm around her, trying to keep her warm. He was getting cold himself. Aleron looked up at Riku, 'He must be cold, too.' She shivered and he looked at her direction.

She caught his gaze and looked down, blushing. At least her face was warm. She hugged herself and kept walking. She jumped when she felt an arm around her and looked up beside her. It was Riku.

"Don't want you to freeze out here," he said, somewhat bored. "We'll be back soon." Aleron nodded.

After an hour, they were all freezing. The sky was white, full of clouds. Snow began to fall. They all moved slower than usual, fighting against the winds. The trees in the forest helped some.

Aleron was getting tired. She tried to keep walking, but her knees buckled and she almost fell to the ground, but Riku caught her. She looked up at him and tried to stand up, but she couldn't. Riku stared down at her, he sighed and crouched. She looked at him, wondering what he wanted her to do.

"Get on, I'll carry you," he said, looking up at her from the corner of his eye.

"Okay," she said softly, heaving herself on his back. She wrapped her arms around his neck and felt him hold her under her thighs. She blushed.

This seemed to be a good idea. Riku told Sora to do the same for Kairi. Once Kairi was on Sora's back, they were moving faster. And they were warmer, too.

Aleron rested her head on Riku's shoulder. She yawned. 'At least I get to lean on him,' she thought happily. 'This is the closest I've been to him today!' She soon fell asleep with that thought.

He felt her arms loosen a little. 'She must have fallen asleep,' he mentally noted. He hid a smile from the others.

They finally arrived to the village. It was snowing more. It was very odd because it never snowed on the islands. It puzzled the boys.

Sora looked over his shoulder to check on Kairi. She was asleep, too. He smirked. They made their way to Sora's.

Once they got inside, Riku carefully placed Aleron on the couch. Sora did the same for Kairi. And they brushed off all the snow. They found a blanket and covered the girls with it. Then they went to make hot chocolate.

"I have a question, and tell me honestly," Sora said to Riku. He opened the cupboard and began taking out four mugs.

Riku sat down on a chair at the table. He looked at Sora. "What?"

"Do you like her?" he asked, smirking. He was filling the teapot with water and placing it on the stove to heat up.

The silver haired boy stared at Sora unbelievably, "Who? Aleron? What makes you think that?" He looked at his hands at the table.

"I can tell. So, do you?" Sora said, pouring hot cocoa mix in all of their cups. Riku looked away, not wanting to answer. "Kairi and I think so. And I knew you liked her the first time she was here. So, do you still or no?"

"It's that obvious?" Riku asked, looking at Sora with a desperate look.

Sora nodded, "Yep! Don't worry. I can see the way she looks at you. I think she likes you, too."

"Really?" Riku's eyes went wide and a huge grin spread on his face.

"So, use the advice you gave me! Do it!" Sora said, smirking.

The teakettle whistled. Sora went to pour the hot water in each of the mugs.

"Now?" Riku said, shocked. Sora shook his head. "Good, because I would rather take the time."

"That's a good idea. Now come on. Bring Aleron her mug."

Sora handed Riku his mug along with Aleron's. He grabbed his own and Kairi's.