[Thread] Searching for a Smile

[embracedestiny]

Characters: OU!Sora, Open Thread
Where: The Plaza
When: Evening
Summary: With things looking brighter and brighter for the future and his relationship with Kairi, he's taken this time to ponder over how to go about throwing a massive party for everyone in his group celebrating their 16th birthday. That and just enjoying a stroll.
Warnings: It's

Comments

[prodigyprincess]

"Someday, what?" Kairi asked quietly, walking over stiffly.

She'd gotten stir crazy staying in the clinic for so long (just a week more!) and had decided to try wandering around again. It didn't hurt quite so much to move now, but it was still stiff and she still had bandages wound tightly about her to help keep her burns from being irritated by the loose white shirt she wore or the long loose pants.

The past few days had been spent trying to keep her mind blank. Ever since her conversation with Sora about the party being held in the clinic, she'd been . . . well, excited. Giggly at times, even. Sora was going to dance with her. Sora! With her! Not her counterpart, her! And while she didn't want to get between the two of them, she did like getting some kind of attention from him every once in a while. It'd been a while since they'd just talked together, ever since she came . . .

Kairi pushed those thoughts out of her mind. It wasn't fair to be jealous of . . . herself. Her brother's sanity wasn't a proper price to pay just for that sort of life.

Besides . . . there was likely a version of Sora in her World . . . waiting for her.

Kairi ran a hand through now-short hair and sat on the edge of the fountain beside him, needing to be off her feet for a few moments since her back was beginning to ache once more.

"Well?"

[embracedestiny]

"Someday, what?"

Looking up from his hypnotic gaze upon the water's surface, he was surprised that there was someone else around. When he first heard the voice, he thought that it may have belonged to the Kairi of his world. But at times, it was very hard to tell And in the end there was only one way to find out. Turning around to see a short haired redhead approach him, he was able to identify who she was immediately. It wasn't the Kairi that he had known for so long. Was he disappointed? Not in the slightest bit! She was still a very dear friend to him, counterpart or no. And someone that he held in high regard. If she had found herself in his world, he'd be content with her just like he was with Riku and his own Kairi.

Had he felt there was something wrong he would have felt bad having not spent a lot of time with Kairi's counterpart. But even then, it was nice to see her again. Even if she was...more or less, in a rather aching state. One that brought concern to the brunette as he tried dodging what she had asked of him. Not because it was a touchy subject or anything, but his mind was now focused on the Princess before him. Sitting up on the fountain edge from where he was once kneeling, he tilted his head and expressed concern.

"Shouldn't you be getting your rest?"

[prodigyprincess]

She gave him a look.

"I have been stuck in that clinic for over a month," she told him succinctly, "You would be bouncing off the walls by now if the situation was reversed."

Even if she did tend to keep to herself, she was used to being able to move without restriction. Radiant Garden had been fairly peaceful and the only rule Lord Ansem had ever set for her brother and herself when going into Town was to never go alone. And then after spending so long in Econtra without constantly being watched by her brother, a guard of some sort, her Grandmother, or the Royal Court itself, she didn't like being restricted.

Hence sneaking out of the clinic for a walk.

Though it was nice to run into Sora here and she smiled down at him, grateful for his company. Even though her brother came to see her nearly every day she had been lonely.

[embracedestiny]

She had been in that clinic for over a month for a reason. She was being taken care of. And if she was off somewhere lost, it'd bring nothing but a freakout session from a certain Keyblade wielder as he would fret over her safety. Regardless, as soon as she made mention of what he would have been like in her shoes, he had to stop, think for a moment, and then finally give in.

A faint shade of red glowed upon his cheeks as he knew that he was caught red handed. "Yeah... You got me there."

"You sneak out of the clinic often?"

[prodigyprincess]

"Just one other time," she told him with a shrug and then winced a little as she pulled on the healing tissue the wrong way, "Though I imagine you would be making a nightly event out of this."

She leaned back a little, resting her hands on the edge of the fountain to support her and gave him an empathetic smile.

"And don't worry. I keep the clinic within sight just in case," she promised.

"How have you and my counterpart been, anyway?"

As much as it ached to talk about them together, she wanted to know. Kairi cared for the both of them and didn't want any kind of harm wished on them. Besides, she was their friend. Friends didn't try to break one another up. She wouldn't want to try and do that.

[embracedestiny]

As she made mention of one other time she had snuck out, his worry for Kairi only increased when she winced. This was the reason why he fretted for his friends to be out in such conditions. Even if he would be driven to the brink of insanity himself if he stayed in one place for too long. He raised a hand up as if to reach for her but stopped as she continued. Sora simply hesitated before lowering his hand again. She was resiliant after all. Just like he was. Just like Riku was. They were all strong in their own way.

"Sometimes..." The boy leaned forward, his hands resting beneath his chin as his elbows were propped on his thighs. When Kairi asked how he and his own, well, to be put bluntly, his love, were doing, he raised his head and eyes up to meet her own. And he was more than happy to answer. Deep down inside though he couldn't help but feel a sense of awkward tension if he was mentioning something about his life with Kairi when...well, she was right in front of him to an extent. But he didn't dwell on that often or for long anyhow.

"It's so good to see her smiling again... We've both been learning a lot from this whole thing. She's not as afraid as she used to be," he began with a gentle smile. To be frank, he loved talking about her, about what he shared with her. Granted he tended to share many things with many people. "I think I'll take her out here with me sometime... So that she can see the stars like I do. Y'know?" Looking over to Kairi, he shifted his position to closely immitate how she was resting. Eventually his gaze wandered back to the stars above.

It really was nice out. Not too cold...but not strangely warm at the same time. A soothing breeze brushed by as his spikey hair danced in the wind.

[prodigyprincess]

"I'm sure she'd like it - you should try it tomorrow before the weather changes," she suggested, keeping her eyes on the stars. She knew if she looked at Sora, she'd feel a little jealous.

The situation was odd enough, but the way he talked about her counterpart! It was endlessly sweet and if she hadn't spent time learning to school her features as part of etiquette lessons, she knew she would be blushing right now.

But it was good to hear her counterpart was doing well. She'd been afraid to talk to her since . . . well, all Kairi seemed to do was get the other girl hurt. It was best to stay away, if only for a little while.

"In fact, I know she'll like i - look! A shooting star!" she called, pointing up at it. In a childish flight of fancy she turned to Sora and grinned, even though she knew the various realistic things shooting stars could mean.

"Make a wish!"

[embracedestiny]

"The weather's supposed to change?" He looked over to Kairi and blinked some. Maybe he was out of the loop, and maybe they had some kind of radio here. But he didn't know. But it was probably for the best anyway. He'd take that suggestion! In a...funny way though, he was already sharing that moment. To half an extent with the Kairi he was with right now.

"--look! A shooting star!" Almost as if they had been on an extremely happy topic from the beginning, he was quick to respond, beaming with excitement and anticipation as he followed her finger. To be honest, ever since he had first arrived here, he had not had the opportunity to gaze upon a shooting star. They were a rare and marvelous sight indeed. He also knew exactly what it meant. What he knew was what Kairi made vocal as he quickly closed his eyes and concentrated, thinking hard yet quickly about what to wish for.

"Okay...!" Did he wish for something personal? Like a mountain of candy? That was the childish boy's dream... Sora could think harder than that. Wishing for the party to go well? When it happened... Regardless, he had enough confidence in the light of the situation. And then...there was that longing for more strength, for the ability to bring an end to this world so that everyone could go home. So that he could protect everyone that he cared for.

And that was when he remembered the broken state that he had returned to witness in his Kairi... And just a few moments ago, the Kairi before him wincing from her own injuries. It only took him a second to realize that he didn't need to wish for the strength to save the world. He didn't need to wish for candy, or for a great party.

He wanted to make a wish, in Kairi's sake. For both of their sake. And with that, Sora opened his sky-hued eyes, a smile gracing his lips as he just looked up to the moon shining down upon them so beautifully.

"I haven't seen a shooting star in a long time."

[prodigyprincess]

"Me neither. I think that's the first one I've seen since arriving here," she answered with a broad grin. She herself had been unable to think of something to wish for. Her counterpart was getting well and her brother and Sora were safe.

Besides, it wasn't like a wishing star could make her problems go away.

"I think . . . " she said, tilting her head back a bit to think, "The last time I saw a shooting star was when Miss Yuffie was visiting. She decided I was being 'too stuffy' and made me show her around Town since she only got to see it once or twice a year. She somehow managed to get me onto the rooftops with some of Lord Ansem's ice cream and . . . well, there was a meteor shower that night. It was gorgeous."

She grinned over at him, feeling light enough after that childish display to not feel petty.

"When was the last time you saw one?"

[embracedestiny]

If Sora could make many wishes, he would. All for the sake of what he wanted to make right in the world. In this world. For every world... But one important one was enough for him. And he wouldn't have wanted it any other way. And for that, he was happy and in high spirits.

Lifting his legs up onto the edge of the Fountain, he twisted his body so that he was sitting cross-legged and giving Kairi his undivided attention, her story intriguing him. It was always interesting to hear the other side of the story. A different outlook of the adventures of Kairi. A Princess just like his own. When she made mention of a meteor shower, he couldn't help but beam in delight. In all honesty he may have been witness to shooting stars and the whatnot, but a full blown meteor shower had yet to be added to his list of sights to behold Sephiroth's assault by unleashing Meteorain did not count.

"Wow... Lucky you!" When Kairi asked him about the last time he saw his own shooting star, it brought back memories. It was...two or so years ago, as a matter of fact. When he was still fourteen. With Donald and Goofy by his side, he travelled a neverending path, his quest not complete. The promise he made to Kairi having to wait until he had found Riku and the King. Thinking back on it...he had been through a lot.

"After sealing off Kingdom Hearts...in my own timeline, I went with Donald and Goofy to find King Mickey and Riku again..." His feet bopped to a silent beat as he let the water from the fountain serenade him and leave him content as he continued. "One night, when travelling down the path with my friends, I couldn't sleep so... I watched the stars until I fell asleep." His eyes came to a close as he pictured that evening in his mind...

---

Sora's restless gaze shifted over to where Donald and Goofy were sound asleep. Donald's quacking snores always bringing a smile to Sora's face. Jiminy was resting on top of Goofy's hat; still as a rock. They looked so content but knew the obstacles ahead of them. Just like he knew of the adventures that awaited him; and yet he had left so much behind. His home, one of his most dearest friends...

Rolling over a couple more times before grunting, realizing that he couldn't sleep at the time, Sora silently snuck off from the group to wander the grassy plains. Seemingly vast and endless, just like the path set out before him. Riku and the King were out there somewhere, on the other side. If he had to brave the darkness and find them, he would. With the threat of the Heartless finished as Ansem was destroyed, Kingdom Hearts sealed, it really felt like a simple task of finding the two...

And then everything would be right again.

The young boy gazed up to the sky in wonder, hoping, thinking, praying that maybe somebody was looking up to the same sky as he was...

That was when Sora saw it, a marvel that he hadn't the opportunity to set his eyes upon very often. A shooting star blazed across the sky, almost crying out in amazement and excitement until he realized that he would have woken up the others. Immediately, he had closed his eyes... Make a wish.

As Kairi and Riku flashed through his mind, he smiled, his heart aflutter as he opened his eyes once more, his gaze leaving the sky as he silently returned to the group. To be reunited with his loved ones again. In that time, on that night, under the stars travelling an endless path in the pursuit of happiness...

---

"...that was my wish." Sora opened his eyes to meet Kairi's gaze after telling her his story.

[prodigyprincess]

She smiled warmly at that, looking down at her feet as they started to tap a little, too.

"That's a sweet wish," she told him. Sora never failed to impress her with how kind he was. How . . . how kind he was. How sincere.

Kairi wished she could truly be that sincere to someone besides her brother.

"Don't worry. Either they'll bring Riku here again, or you both will be sent back and you three will see each other once more," she told him with a firm nod.

[embracedestiny]

Sora pondered on that thought, of what would happen if Riku had shown up again. But by the same token...something felt wrong with leaving too. If it was only the both of them. No matter how reassuring it seemed that he'd be where he wanted to be, his heart couldn't help but linger with the friends that he had made here.

Hesitantly, he shook his head. "No... If you or the others don't go... Then I don't go. I wouldn't leave unless I knew that everything was going to be okay! Or that everybody returned home, and found happiness again... If Riku comes here, we'll all be together again, to stop this war," he returned his own thoughts with a firm nod of his own, backed up by a brilliant smile.

"Then we can all go home together."

[prodigyprincess]

Kairi smiled at that and . . . at that moment, she wanted to tell him the situation in her World. She wanted to tell him what was going on. She wanted to tell him a hundred things that ended in asking him to come to her World with her, but she couldn't do that. She didn't want him to worry and she couldn't take his chance at being home so he could rest away from him.

"But you don't get a choice in coming or going, Sora," she explained, "You could blink and you'll be gone in the next second. That's how it is in this place."

She was glad she was sitting, her knees felt weak at the sight of that smile.

"But . . . I appreciate the thought."

[embracedestiny]

It was truly sad that Sora was none the wiser to the fate and perdicament that Kairi had back in her own World. He would have worried, but if the redhead knew any better, she would have very well been set on the idea of accompanying her to her World as well... If it meant that he could change something, anything to protect her.

Until then...he'd be given the harsh and troublesome truth about how this World worked. Again. But it didn't matter to him, not with his shining heart and overconfidence. With a little wink and a tilt of his head, he couldn't help but add in his own thought on the matter. In true Sora style.

"Well I'm feeling lucky."