Kingdom Hearts Fan Fiction ❯ Title Pending ❯ Chapter 1 ( Chapter 1 )

Summary: After saving the universe twice, there isn't much left to be scared of. But the hardest thing might just be getting back into the life you used to live...

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that has to do with Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy, or anything like that.
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Well, after saving the universe twice, there isn't much left that I'm scared of. Not that I'm trying to brag or anything, but it's pretty much true.

His hand slipped into his pocket and pulled out the folded up piece of paper that he kept there. He unfolded it and laid it on top of his desk, knowing that the teacher, who stood at the very front of the classroom, would take no break from his monotonous speech to walk to the very back of the classroom just pick up a note. The creases in the paper were prominent from where he had folded and unfolded the paper so many times.
'Dear Sora, Riku, and Kairi,
How've you been? Good, I hope. Not causing too much trouble for your parents, are you?
Now, I have an offer for you, as in Sora and Riku. I know that may seem a little straight to the bone, but this is quite important. Kairi, I can imagine how uncaring you may think I will sound after you three finish reading this letter.
Riku, Sora, if you want, you can come live with me, here, at Disney Castle, or perhaps in Radiant Garden with Leon and the others. Kairi, I believe that you can resume the life that you once lived. But, for Riku and Sora, that may be a different story.
You might ask how I'm even able to offer this, because we told you that the worlds were now forever closed to one another. I'm sorry to have lied, but, I've kept open a pathway from my world to Radiant Garden and to your world.
I can only imagine some of the things you feel at having to return to the life you haven't lived for almost two years. And that is why I'm offering you this.
If you wish to accept my offer, write back to me and send the letter out into the ocean in the same bottle you received this letter in. I assure you, I will get it.

Mickey'

Blue eyes looked back over the letter again and then folded it up once more, tucking it back into his pocket. This was the letter that had been in the bottle Kairi had found almost four weeks ago. After reading it, Kairi had looked at Sora and Riku's faces, her eyes asking a question that she didn't want to, for fear of the answer. Riku merely took the letter from Sora's hand and read it over again and Sora looked to the ground, to the Paopu fruit tree nearby, those things were growing well this year, and then to the horizon where the sun hung high, hours away from setting. He wanted to look anywhere, everywhere, but into Kairi's eyes. Then she asked it:
"You're not gonna go...are you?"

And neither of them hand given her an answer. They hadn't even given each other an answer.
"Sora, I presume you understand everything I just said?"
His blue eyes went wide as he realized the teacher was talking to him, and as he looked up, everyone was looking at him, and he could hear Tidus snickering from a couple of seats over.
"..." Sora tried his best to glare back at the teacher, but it just never worked, he ended up looking away.
"No. You do not. And that is because you choose not to listen to my lectures during class. Next time, I suggest reading your little notes outside of class. Unless you want to read them to the rest of us?"
"...no Sir."

And that was pretty much how it was. Day in, day out. Teacher lectures, classes, studies, homework, then hanging out for a while with Kairi and Riku, and occasionally Selphie, Tidus, or Wakka.

At first it had seemed weird that his parents, and no one else's, as a matter of fact, had even seemed to notice that Riku and Sora had been gone for the past two years. Kairi had explained that after she'd come back to the islands, after they'd been restored, she'd realized that it was like not even a day had passed since the night the Heartless had first appeared. And after she'd gotten a couple of weird looks after having asked her parents and a few of the other islanders about the "weird shadow things" she'd stopped asking about then. And as for why no one seemed to realize that Kairi had gone missing for those few days and that Sora and Riku had been gone for a whole year longer, she couldn't explain that at all.

And now it was lunch. Sora sat his tray down with a slight thud and proceeded to loosen the suffocating tie that came with the school uniform. He looked up as he saw two other trays be sat down on the table across from his own tray. Riku and Wakka.

Riku, as usual, just did a small wave and took his tie completely off and cast it onto the table, while Wakka just left his tie alone and sat down.
"So Sora, you heard about what happened during third period lunch?" The red head asked.
"No, what?"
"Heh, this kid got completely whipped by Selphie."
"What?! Selphie got in a fight?" Sora couldn't hide his amusement at that.
"Ya! And you'll never guess with who!" Wakka himself was smiling now.
"Who?"
"This black haired girl named Rinoa."
"Hm, I think I know her..."
"Probably. She's had the cutest little crush on Riku since the third grade."

Wakka glanced at Riku. The silver haired boy didn't even look up, acting as if he hadn't even heard him.
"You hear me? I said, she had the cutest little-"
"I heard you! Sheesh!" Riku said, pushing his tray away from him and laying his head down.
"What's the matter Riku?" Sora asked. He'd seen Riku moody before, but even this was a little weird.
"Nothing." Came a muffled reply.
"Aw, go ahead and tell him what's the matter...tell him what Selph and Rinoa were arguin' about."
"That's got something to do with Riku?" Sora asked, his interest definitely caught.

Riku lifted his head and glared at Wakka.
"I'm gonna kill you."
"Riku?"
"What?"
"What happened?"
Riku sighed and pulled his tray back to him, pushing the 'fresh-from-the-can' peas around with his fork.
"Well, they were talking about something that was related to me in a very far off manner and then they got mad at each other and Rinoa threw the first punch."
"What were they talking about?"
"That's none of your-"
"About what color underwear Riku likes best!" Wakka burst out.

Sora laughed and nearly fell off the bench set beside the table.
"What! That's so-"
"Stupid. Retarded. And idiotic."
"Aw, come on, Riku! You know this is funny!" Sora said, wiping his eyes.
"Yeah, but it's more of a pathetic kind of funny," Riku replied, a small smile on his face nonetheless.

And now school was over with for the day. Sora had already went home, changed clothes, hadn't even bothered with homework (the teachers rarely ever gave any), and had paddled out to the small connected island where he and the others spent so much time. He sat on the bent trunk of the Paopu fruit tree, looking out at where the sun was setting. And he just sat there, his mind blank and empty. It was a trick he'd learned at some time or another. Maybe this was kind of like what a bunch of people called 'meditating'.

He turned as he heard footsteps crossing the creaky boards of the bridge. Yellow sleeveless vest, blue pants. Riku. He walked up beside the tree and hopped up beside Sora. And then there was silence. Until...
"Sora...have you...have you thought about what the King said?"
"How could I have not thought about it?" Sora said, not looking away from the sunset. "I've been thinking about it since the minute I first read the letter."
"So have I. And, the more I think about it, the better it sounds."
"What?" Sora asked, almost unbelieving that Riku, who had been so eager to go back home, now wanted to leave. And yet, there was relief in the newfound knowledge.
"What I mean is, well, I'm bored."

Sora stared for a moment longer and then laughed. Riku laughed too, but it was a laugh that seemed almost unsure of itself, the kind that made you wonder if you should really be laughing. After he'd quieted down, smile still on his face, Sora slid off the trunk and stood beside the tree.
"Ya know, I was wondering if you were ever gonna ask that."

Riku smiled down at him and then took a piece of paper out of his pocket and a bottle out of his other one. He uncorked the bottle and rolled the paper up, poked it through the mouth of the bottle, and put the cork back in place. He hopped off the trunk and walked to the edge of the island. He pulled the arm that held the bottle back, above his head, and, with all his strength, hurled the bottle as far as he could.

All they saw was the small splash and Sora imagined he heard the sound of the splash. The bottle quickly melted into the rolling waves and disappeared from sight.
"How long do you think it'll take him to get it?" Riku asked.
"I dunno."

A/N: So that’s it for the first chapter. This could turn into a one shot or it could keep going. Depends on the reviews I get.
Later,
Tak