Kingdom Hearts Fan Fiction ❯ Kingdom Hearts: Soul Crossed ❯ Search And Rescue ( Chapter 3 )

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

The crisp night air made the forest that much more peaceful. Sora stretched, watching the fireflies dance as he listened to the group of outlaws play a lively tune to keep up the spirits of the townsfolk in hiding. From his place against the tree he watched them dance and sing, a perfect distraction from the darkness that threatened to drown out the village’s hopes. For one night, they didn’t need to worry about the strange beings that were called Heartless. Sora wished he could do the same sometimes. He was the Keyblade wielder, however, and it was his duty to protect these people. As much as he enjoyed having fun and kidding around with his friends, he was perfectly capable of turning serious in a fight.

This Robin Hood that led the ragged group against Prince John was the same way. Right now, he was joking around with a group of small children, one of whom seemed intent on imitating Robin in every way. “Acting like his idol.” He wondered if he’d ever touch someone in that way.

He yawned, staring up at the night sky. It was nice to relax after a night full of danger. The peace of the forest soothed Sora’s soul and he smiled. The flight from the castle had been harrowing. Not only had the Heartless been all over, but they had also had to avoid the rhino guards. Sora had been particularly impressed with how well Kairi had fought. All the training she’d had with Riku and himself had paid off. There was a confidence there, and a determination.

The thought of Riku and Kairi finally stirred Sora out of his reverie and he got up to go in search of his friend. Even though he would have liked to have all of his friends here, it was nice that he at least had Kairi this time.

His eager search lead him into the forest and he stumbled into a small glade, the moonlight filtering through the leaves and illuminating Kairi as she knelt before a sparkling spring that hurried its way through the shaded wood. Sora's eyes were mesmerized as he watched her run a hand through the wet grass. She now wore something he never thought he would see on someone of her stature; the pale light green woolen fabric clung to her in just the right way as the modest neck line dipped only to that of a lady, its mid-length sleeves hung loosely at her elbows, and at her waist the skirt flowed down gently to tease around her knees.
This outfit allowed for more movement, unlike the longer and billowier one that she arrived in which would tangle and mangle with even the slightest movement. The dress's freedom had caused an uproar however with Robin as he huffed about it not befitting a princess, especially after she had asked to borrow a small knife, and cut a slit in one side of the skirt, from hip to hem, to be sure that she could move as needed in a fight. That seemed to delight Kairi even more. At this time, she even wore the hat that resembled the one the boys wore. Simple yet distinguished, it lay slightly to one side as she pondered the water beneath her. Her hand glided through the water as she sat there, a portrait of perfection.

Sora padded toward her, hoping to get a chance to talk. He thought she was unaware of his presence, but as he got closer, he saw her Keyblade flash out, and he had to call out to her to keep from being attacked.

“Sora? I wasn’t expecting you,” she said, going back to the ground. She sounded sad, and Sora wasn’t sure why.

“Kairi? Are you okay?”

“I’m fine. I was just thinking, that’s all.” Kairi did not look at him, instead staring up at the stars. “It’s so beautiful tonight.”

“Yeah,” Sora said, sitting down beside her. He put a paw on her shoulder, smiling.

“Do you think Riku and the King are out there looking for us?”

“Yeah. They’ll find us. Everything will be okay.”

“I can feel her,” Kairi said. She looked up at Sora, answering his confused look. “Namine. I don’t know how, but she’s out there right now. She’s worried.” Sora wasn’t sure what to say to that. Kairi leaned back into him, and Sora held her close. Somehow, words weren’t needed right then.

A soft cough interrupted them moments later and Kairi started out of his grasp. Sora flushed in embarrassment as Robin stepped out of the bushes. “I’m sorry to interrupt, but I was hoping to have your help. Maid Marian is still being held in the castle and I must free her.”

“Of course you can have our help,” Kairi said.

“Oh no, your Highness. I couldn’t put you in danger again,” Robin said, “but if your guard and I...”

“Robin, I’m not helpless, nor am I taking the danger lightly. I know the risks, and I want to help.” Kairi practically bristled as she spoke. “And Sora is not my guard. He is my friend.”

Robin chuckled, though Sora thought he heard a little hurt in his voice. “As you wish, your Majesty. We will come get you when we are ready to plan our next move.” He bowed again and slipped back toward the sound of the music.

“What was that about, Kairi?” Sora asked, as Kairi walked further up the shore.

“I’m not helpless, Sora!” she cried, kicking at the ground.

“He knows you aren’t, Kairi. He saw you fight before. He’s just concerned about...”

“He’s treating me like something I’m not!” She whirled around, anger and frustration mixing on her face. She looked like she was trying not to cry. She slumped down to the ground, not looking in his direction as she ran her paw along the lake’s surface. Sora was very unsure of what he should do, but he knelt in front of her, reaching out one paw and gripping her shoulder reassuringly. “They all think I’m some kind of royalty...”

“Well, you are a princess,” Sora pointed out.

“But I’m not, Sora. I don’t know anything about what a princess is supposed to be like, and I don’t know that I really belong with them anyway.”

Sora grinned. “You should have talked more with Jasmine. I should also introduce you to Ariel. She’s a princess of Atlantica, but you’d never believe it if you met here. They are both more adventurers than princesses.” He reached out, lifting her chin. “You are a princess of Heart, Kairi, but that doesn’t define you. You define its meaning with how you act every day.”

Kairi smiled and threw herself into Sora’s arms, gripping him like she expected him to vanish on her. He was momentarily startled, but then he held her close to his body. “Thank you,” she whispered. She sat back up, brushing tears from her eyes. “I suppose I should start by apologizing to Robin. He didn’t deserve my shouting at him.”

Sora agreed and helped Kairi to her feet. “Let’s rejoin the party then.” He wondered if that was why she’d thrown herself into learning how to fight. *Maybe she wanted to run from that responsibility. * He didn’t know for sure, but he hoped now she’d learn to accept that part of herself.

As they neared the clearing, Kairi took his arm, leaning into him. “Sora, I want to protect this world so that there can be more nights like this. I never want anyone to go through what I did when our world was destroyed.”

“I know what you mean Kairi. Maybe one day, we can stop the Heartless for good.”

It felt good with Kairi so close to him, and he almost missed the lack of music as they neared. Kairi stiffened and Sora was worried. Panicked voices were floating around as they both rushed into the clearing. “What’s going on?” Sora asked the nearest person.

“Prince John is going to hang Maid Marian!”


******


Kairi felt sick to her stomach as she listened to a fat badger in brown robes with tufts of white hair around his ears and bushy white eyebrows explain what he’d heard. Apparently, Prince John was going to use this execution to show the people he did not fear the absent King and to show the people he would execute any traitor, regardless of blood, to keep the people down and cowering in fear. Kairi couldn’t believe someone would be that cruel, but apparently this Prince John was. She kept having a bad feeling about this and the more she listened to Friar Tuck’s story, the worse she felt.

Robin looked pale through the whole story. Little John was alternately shocked and angry and Sora was looking determined. Kairi wasn’t sure what to feel. Disgusted was probably a leading emotion, but there were too many to count. She had seen some villains since this had started, but there was a level of cowardice mixed with evil that she had never seen in this act. The man was going to hang an innocent woman for no other reason than to dig at his foe. She was trembling as the friar finished telling what he’d heard.

“I have to stop this,” Robin said, standing up quickly.

Little John cut off his exit. “Now hold up there Rob. You know this is a trap, right?”

“You can’t expect me just to let her die, John!”

“I know, Robin, but we can’t just go rushing in either. We get caught and it doesn’t do anyone any good,” Sora said.

“The boy is right,” Friar Tuck said, “getting caught up is exactly what he wants.”

Robin scowled, but he backed off. “Alright, but we can’t lounge around. We don’t have much time and the longer we wait, the closer it comes to Marion’s death.”

The boys started going over what needed to be done, but Kairi wasn’t able to follow the conversation despite her best efforts. A sea of red clouded her vision and a darkness fell over her mood. She was starting to feel overwhelmed. All she could think about was what she would do if it were Sora or Riku or any of the others from the Islands. She couldn’t stand it. She started to sympathize with Robin. He cared for this Marion and Kairi was certain he loved her. How could he possibly wait to save her, knowing every delay might lose his love forever?

“...Can you do that, Kairi?” Sora’s voice cut through her reverie like a knife.

“Uhm...yeah, I can do that,” she said, though she had no idea what she’d just agreed to.

“Good, then we wait until the execution’s time.”

Kairi frowned. This seemed all wrong. She stood up, needing to clear her head. “Can you guys excuse me? I need to have some time alone.” She didn’t wait for acknowledgment. She just turned and hurried into the woods.

Kairi wasn’t sure how long she ran, but she finally stopped, clutching her side in pain. She dropped to her knees, but her arms went around her chest. It almost felt as though her heart was going to burst. A well of fear and hurt built up in her and she cried out. She collapsed to the ground, her body laying against the cool ground and she tried to fight the emotions away one at a time as she stared up into the night sky. Stars twinkled back to her through the canopy of leaves, looking down at her as if watching her to see if she’d do the right thing. The pressure she felt was enormous and the weight of her fear tried to press her into inaction.

“No.” she said, anger washing it all away. “I won’t allow this...” She pushed herself to a sitting position, her head tilted back as she stared at those disapproving white eyes against the blackened sky. “Do you hear me? I won’t allow this!” Her shout carried through the forest and she felt almost embarrassed afterward.

The words continued to spill from her throat anyway. It was almost as if she’d needed to prove to something out there that she was going to live up to their expectations. “I will not allow the tyrannical to oppress the weak. I will not stand on the sidelines anymore. I am strong enough now and I will prove that to anyone who dares get in my way!” She had meant to lower her voice to a whisper and it had started out that way, but her voice rose with each word and in the end she’d been shouting again.

“You should be careful, M’lady. The forest has ears, and drawing the attention of the wrong ones would be a most foolish idea indeed.” Robin hopped over a tree root and Kairi felt shame fill her again. “I felt the need to come after you. You seemed very distraught.”

Kairi stared at the ground. She ran a claw in the dirt, trying to think of how best to say what was on her mind. This was someone that didn’t know her and she didn’t want him to think her a coward. “I needed to get away.”

“That much was obvious,” the fox said with a smile, “but what you needed to get away from is another matter.”

“I’d rather not talk about it,” Kairi said shortly.

“That’s not an option unfortunately. We need you for this, your Majesty, and if this is going to interfere with the plan, we need to know now.” He walked over and put an arm around her shoulder. “What’s the matter, now? You can tell me.”

Kairi flushed a little at his touch, the comfort feeling so good, and she leaned against him. “I can’t stand the thought of anything going wrong. If we fail...”

“We won’t.” Robin said, interrupting her.

“You can’t know that, Robin.” She pushed away from him gently and turned to face him. “And should we fail with this plan, there’ll be no time to make another.” She looked into his eyes, unsure of how to truly express what she felt inside. “We can’t fail. I can’t…”

Robin looked at her and gently held her, reassuring her in a way words could not. “What do you suggest then?”

“I don’t know. I just feel...this plan is wrong.” She turned to Robin. “Could we go in early? Make our way to the castle and free her before he tries to kill her?”

“I don’t know if that will be possible. John and I thought she’d be in the dungeons, and no one has seen any sign of her in the castle since he took her. We just have no way of knowing where she is right now.” A crafty looked spread across Robin’s face. “However, we could try something else from the crowd.”

Kairi leaned in, a smile widening on her face as she listened to Robin’s idea. It was brilliant, yet dangerous. However, if all went well, they might be able to save Marian and get away before Prince John knew what had happened.

********

Robin led Kairi through the throng of people, their cloaks pulled low to disguise their identities. Kairi could feel the fear dripping off the people gathered at the edge. Prince John was either stupid or cocky to let this many people near the execution, but Robin had told her that John was trying to show everyone who was really in command, even should King Richard return.

Kairi assumed that was why John wanted to work with the Heartless. He was worried about losing his troops. The more of an army he had, the harder it would be to remove him from power. It was a very dangerous deal though, and from what Robin told her about Prince John, he likely knew nothing about the price he might have to pay.

The rhino guards were creating an intimidating wall in their armor as they stared down the commoners, some swinging their axes back and forth to show they might use them if necessary. Many quailed back, though they did not leave. Kairi felt Robin shift on her left and she brushed her sweaty paws on the cloak, anticipating the arrival of Marian. She hoped everybody did his or her part, or it would be up to Sora’s plan alone.

A gasp ran through the crowd, reaching the duo on the end. Kairi craned her neck to get a glimpse as two hounds led a cloaked figure down the path. It had to be Marian. Shackles and chains restricted her movement along the path toward the gallows. That would make things a bit tricky. Robin hadn’t planned on those. He thought John would be confident enough that a woman could not escape so easily.

Kairi gripped Robin’s paw as he tensed up, hoping the fox would not do anything rash. Timing was crucial in this and it wouldn’t do for him to rush things. He glanced her way and gave her a curt nod, but she could tell this was affecting him, seeing her in chains. *Just keep it together. *

The hounds neared Kairi and Sora’s group and suddenly the crowd of peasants surged toward the rhinos. The rhino guards had trouble trying to keep the crowd back, and that’s the distraction Robin and Kairi were waiting for. The two tossed their cloaks behind them, drawing sword and Keyblade. They ran by the rhinos, attacking the hounds quickly.

Steel clashed and rang in Kairi’s ear, but surprise was an advantage as they knocked both of the jailors back. “C’mon,” she cried, grabbing a hold of one of Marian’s arms, Robin taking the other. She got about a step when pain laced through her beyond anything she’d ever felt. The hairs on her body were standing on end and she lost her grip on Marian’s arm, sinking to her knees. As she gasped for air and fought to stay conscious, she looked up. She saw the fox remove her hood, only to see the illusion ripple away. A panther stood where the maid had been and his smile was the last thing she saw.