Tabula Rasa: Chapter Seven - The Calm Before
Title: Tabula Rasa
Fandom: Kingdom Hearts
Word Count: 5,882 words
Rating: PG-13
Summary: This is the story of a forgotten replica. This is the story of an awakening princess. This is a story of mercenaries and salvation and fairies. And this is a story of people and growing up. [it all started with a blank slate...]
Disclaimer: The author of this story is in NO way associated with Square Enix, Disney, or anyone else who might be pulling Kingdom Hearts' strings. No money is or will be made off of this story.
When Donald and Goofy finally arrived, it was almost a week after Kairi had finished packing. She, Sora, and Riku had started going to school again, more to see all their friends than to actually learn anything.
There was also the little matter of Riku trying, unsuccessfully, to find some silver dye. He resorted to other methods after the first day of snickering - hats, trying to layer his hair so the green didn’t show, pulling it up in an attempt to hide the stain - but really, nothing had worked. It was fading, slowly, and Kairi was pretty sure Riku was taking multiple showers a day just to get rid of it faster.
At least now everyone at the high school knew that paopu juice was a really strong hair dye. A few of the freshmen had recently been sporting green hair, and Kairi figured she knew where they had gotten the idea.
It was after school, long enough that all their homework had been done, when Tidus ran up to Selphie and Kairi. They were playing jump-rope in Kairi’s front yard, taking turns and trying to beat each other’s record. Selphie was a good twenty jumps ahead of Kairi, but the redhead was finally starting to close that gap when their fun was interrupted.
“Kairi! Kairi!” She paused, letting the rope hit the ground as both she and Selphie turned. Tidus came running up, hopping over the small wooden fence that separated the lawn from the road and skidding to a halt in front of them.
“Tidus? What’s going on?”
He panted for a few seconds, regaining his breath, and then he told her, “Wakka and I - just saw - a ship. A...gummiship, Sora said? Looks like he described it. It hit the water next to the play-island. He’s telling Sora and Riku, we’ll meet ‘em at the docks.”
Selphie and Kairi exchanged a look. “I’ll grab your stuff,” the brunette volunteered. Kairi nodded and the two rushed into the house.
Kairi said goodbye to her father. They’d been expecting this day, of course, but it was still hard. She hugged him as tightly as she could, fighting back tears. He rubbed her back and told her that he’d be here when she got back, that he was (still) proud of her, that she really should be going now, she didn’t want to keep Sora and Riku waiting, now did she?
Shaking her head, she gave him one last squeeze around his middle before breaking away. He patted her shoulder and kissed her forehead.
“I love you, Kairi. Be safe.”
“I will, Dad. I love you too.”
And then she left.
Saying goodbye was the hardest part of leaving. Before, she hadn’t had time; with Axel behind her and a dark portal as her only means of escape, she could hardly have gone and hugged Selphie and Tidus and Wakka and her father. This time, there was no rush. She had all the time in the world to say goodbye to all her friends, to exchange hugs and phone numbers and stories and good-lucks and thank-yous.
Leaving, Kairi realized, was the painful start of any journey. She wondered what Sora and Riku were thinking about all of it, but she couldn’t ask them in front of the others. So instead, as the six teens rowed up to the gummiship and paused for another round of hugs, I’ll-miss-yous, and smiles, she smiled and hugged them and told Tidus, Wakka, and especially Selphie that she’d miss them. She, Sora, and Riku climbed onto and into the gummiship, with Goofy saluting Selphie for some reason and Donald muttering about how long these things always took.
The inside of a gummiship was nothing like what Kairi had imagined.
It was a lot smaller than she had thought it would be, for starters. She could see how it would be comfortable for just Sora, Donald, and Goofy, but with her and Riku in the room, it felt like she couldn’t move without bumping into someone or something.
Kairi stepped to the side and looked around. The walls, floor, and ceiling were all “gummi” - she touched it, and it felt like metal. She wasn’t about to lick it to check, but as long as it wasn’t gushy and wobbly under her feet, she figured it didn’t matter what it was.
“Sora might have tasted it,” Naminé told her. Kairi giggled.
The others shot her odd looks, which she shrugged off. She turned to Donald and Goofy. “Where should we put our stuff?”
It was Sora who answered her. “There’re some rooms in the back. They’re right here.” He walked over and pressed a button on the wall. Beside it, a piece of gummi slid to one side, revealing a doorway. Sora stepped through first, Kairi following him and Riku following her.
“This room is Donald and Goofy’s,” he gestured to one door. “Donald doesn’t like it if we go in there. This one is mine - ours, now,” and he pointed to the second door, grinning over his shoulder at them. Kairi smiled back.
“Down the hall is the bathroom - try not to go when we’re about to land.” He made a face. “You don’t want to be on the toilet when we’re under attack. Or when we’re docking.”
Kairi bit her lip to avoid giggling. Inside her head, Naminé nodded.
“He has a point, you know.”
Yeah, but that doesn’t make it less funny. Poor Sora.
Riku leaned against the wall. “So, there’s only one bed, right?”
Sora nodded, and Kairi immediately saw the problem. “Dibs!” she called, grinning.
Sora gaped at her, while Riku just laughed.
“Come on, Kairi, that’s not fair,” he said.
She relented. “Fine, fine. How big is the bed, anyway?”
Sora shrugged, pushed a button, and a door opened up. “That big.”
Again, he went inside first. Kairi looked around the room.
It wasn’t very big - in fact, it was about half the size of her bedroom at home. Scattered across the floor were clothes, assorted magazines, some odd-looking trinkets. There was no closet or dresser, but instead an empty hamper seemingly nailed into the wall and a set of hooks that were visibly nailed into the wall.
The bed itself wasn’t that small, though - it took up half the room, anyway. Kairi made a face; with three of them, they’d be right next to each other, but it was better than someone sleeping on the floor.
Further inspection and introspection was cut off by a sudden jolt. Sora immediately braced himself against the wall; Kairi grabbed for both him and Riku, while Riku went down to a kneel, one hand against the wall and the other holding on tightly to Kairi’s.
“We’re taking off,” Sora explained as the ’ship shook around them. “You’ll get used to it.”
A few moments later, Kairi could feel that the ’ship was in the air. Building pressure told her that they were moving up through the atmosphere - truth be told, it gave her a horrible headache. She couldn’t press her fingers against her temples, or cover her ears, or do anything to help it, however, because her hands were currently busy holding onto Sora and Riku’s.
Sora looked fairly calm about the whole situation, sinking down until he was sitting with his back against the wall. Kairi was, in turn, pulled down as well. She glanced at Riku, secretly glad to find that he looked just as bad as she felt. His forehead was pressed against his knee, and he was squeezing her hand just as tightly as she squeezed his.
Finally, after she thought her head would explode from the pressure, it disappeared.
“We’re in gummispace now,” Sora told them.
Riku muttered something about Captain Obvious and an anvil in his skull, but Kairi didn’t catch all of it. She leaned over and hugged him sympathetically.
He looked up and offered her a slight grin, hugging back. She was sure his headache was still there; hers hadn’t gone away yet, after all. It was starting to fade, though, for which she was very thankful.
Naminé echoed the sentiment mentally. “That was not fun,” she told Kairi, her tone disappointed.
Well, I’m sure it will be once we get used to it. I mean, Sora didn’t look like it bothered him all that much.
“He’s also been doing this for over a year. I don’t think he got it over it immediately...” the blonde pointed out.
I was trying to forget that.
“Oh.” Naminé paused. “Did it help any?”
Not really, Kairi admitted sheepishly.
Sora was already walking around by the time Riku and Kairi stood up. He dumped his backpack to one side, then sat on the bed.
“So, how are we gonna divide this up?” he asked, looking from Riku to Kairi.
The other two exchanged a look. “I think we should share,” Kairi suggested, and Riku nodded.
Sora eyed the bed was on. “You sure it’s big enough?”
Kairi grinned at him. “Well, that depends on how much space you two take up.”
Riku shoved her lightly. “And how much you move around in your sleep.” She stuck her tongue out at him, but he just grinned back.
Sora shrugged. “We can work it out.” He glanced at their bags. “Uh, just drop your stuff anywhere.”
Kairi ended up putting her duffel bags next to Sora’s, hanging her backpack and book bag up on two of the hooks. Riku had a duffel bag and a backpack as well, and he followed Kairi’s lead.
Shortly after, Donald was squawking for Sora, and all three of them ran into the control room to find out why.
On the way, red lights started going off, and the ’ship veered sharply right, sending the three teens into the wall. Sora made it to the door first, Kairi and Riku struggling to follow him. Riku actually got into the room second, but he pulled Kairi through as well.
When she entered, she immediately saw what was going on. ’Ships, firing bright red lasers at their ’ship, could be seen through the front and right windows - the left was clear of enemies, for now.
Goofy was nowhere to be seen, but their ’ship was firing back, so Kairi figured he was doing the shooting. Donald squawked something at Sora, loudly but too shrilly for Kairi to completely understand. Sora didn’t seem to have that problem, as he nodded and turned to face the oncoming enemies. Donald ran into another room, and seconds later, their ’ship fired shots at the other ’ships from that direction as well.
“Guys, there should be some straps near the back,” Sora told them quickly. “Get yourselves in them, okay? And don’t pull them off until we’re clear.”
Kairi found them first, and helped Riku get his on when she was fully strapped in. She couldn’t help but feel a little useless, strapped to a wall while her friends defended her. There was really nothing she could do - she didn’t know how to fly a ’ship, or how to shoot those lasers. She still felt useless.
“Well, that’s because you are right now,” Naminé said. “But you’ll learn, I’m sure. Besides, you can do other things.”
Point, Kairi conceded.
“And look at Riku. I think he’s taking it worse than you are.”
Kairi turned her head, and found that Naminé was right. Riku was biting his lip, and his fingers twitched every so often. His eyes were focused on the front window, where most of the enemies were.
“Riku.”
He glanced over. “Yeah?”
Kairi smiled at him. “Relax. You’re making me nervous.”
He grinned back. “Sorry.”
Kairi noticed that he didn’t really relax, so much as show how tense he was in different ways. She didn’t say anything about that.
Watching Sora - and Donald and Goofy - maneuver the ’ship and blast the enemy ’ships was actually not as bad when Kairi was trying to focus on something other than how little she could help this situation. It was obvious that Sora had been doing this for a while; he didn’t dodge every hit, and some of the enemies got by, but the vast majority went down, and their own ’ship didn’t sustain any serious damage, it seemed. Even when shots were fired at the windows, the “glass” never shattered. Kairi wondered if it was truly glass, or if it was merely see-through gummiblocks.
After what felt like hours, the ship seemed to pick up speed, and the view from all around turned white. Sora struck a pose as a screen was lowered over the front window. Kairi and Riku undid the straps, walking over to where Sora was.
The screen showed a list of things, and after it scrolled down to the bottom, Sora struck a pose. Kairi and Riku exchanged confused looks as Donald and Goofy returned.
“Did we get anything?” Donald asked, looking up at the screen.
“We got a C class for kills and eighty percent of the ’blocks,” Sora said, grinning widely.
“A-hyuck, I told you we’d do it.” Goofy leaned down to pat Donald’s shoulder, which seemed to irritate the duck.
“What do you need for an A class?” Riku asked, cutting in before a fight started. Donald’s face was pretty red, but it went back to normal when Riku asked his question.
Sora turned around. “Uh, I’m not sure. Chip, Dale? You guys there?”
The screen went fuzzy, and then two chipmunks appeared on it.
“Hello, Sora!” they both squeaked.
“Long time no see,” one commented. Kairi wasn’t sure which was which.
Sora grinned. “Yeah, sorry about that. Hey, can you tell me what I need for an A class?”
“On which route?”
“The Destiny Islands one.”
The chipmunks looked at something off-screen before turning back.
“For B class, you need to clear 450 enemies. We can’t tell what A or S classes need yet,” one said.
“Sorry Sora.”
“Hey, don’t worry about it. I’ll just have to get rid of a bunch and skip right to S, right?” He grinned and gave them a thumbs-up, which they returned.
After that, Sora double-checked the coordinates for Radiant Garden and got an estimated travel time. It would take approximately two and a half days to get to Radiant Garden - that was really long as far as Kairi could tell. Sora certainly seemed to make a big deal about it.
“Is there anything else you need?” one of the chipmunks asked when Sora was done.
“Nope. I’ll call you guys if anything comes up.”
“Sure thing!”
“See ya later!”
The screen fizzed again before shutting up and going back up into a compartment in the ceiling. Kairi stared at it for a minute before shaking her head. Riku patted her shoulder and gave her a grin when she glanced at him.
“Well, that should be our only fight until we get to Radiant Garden,” Sora told them with a yawn. “Oh! Hey, Donald, Goofy, did you see if the route for Radiant Garden was still open?”
“It wasn’t,” Donald said, irritation obvious in his tone, expression, and folded arms. “It closed. Again!”
“Yup. Looks like something big is goin’ on.”
Sora nodded at Goofy. “That’s what the King said, basically.”
“He didn’t say what it is, though,” Riku pointed out with a frown.
Sora shrugged, turning to face him. “I’m sure he’ll tell us once we get there.”
“In two and a half days,” Kairi said. She yawned.
Kairi’s yawn triggered a second yawn from Sora. A few moments later, Kairi noticed that Riku’s jaw was locked, probably from holding back a yawn of his own.
“I think it’s time for bed,” she said.
Sora glanced at a clock - which listed no less than ten times, all of them radically different, and nodded. “It’s eight, Radiant Garden time. Bed sounds good.”
As they headed to the bedroom, Kairi elbowed Riku lightly. “What time is it in Destiny Islands?”
He checked his watch - Kairi hadn’t noticed it before, as it had been under his sleeve. “It’s only five thirty there.”
“So why are we so tired?”
He shrugged. “Time change, leaving Destiny Islands, the fight... It could be any of them.” He grinned. “It could be that you two are just lazy bums.”
Kairi smacked him playfully. “And you’re just as lazy as we are.”
“Of course. You guys must have rubbed off on me.”
“Uh-huh, yeah right.”
Sora poked his head out of the bedroom door. “Are you guys gonna stand there all night and argue?”
Kairi and Riku quickly shook their heads and went in.
When it came time to put on their pajamas, Sora and Riku offered to change in the bathroom. Kairi pointed out that they were both tall and long-limbed, and they’d have to take turns. They were still willing, though, so Kairi outright told them that she’d change in the bathroom. They didn’t protest, and so she grabbed her nightclothes and left as they started stripping out of their school clothes.
The bathroom was as small as Kairi had suspected, and no way would Sora and Riku have both fit in it at the same time, let alone fit in it and undress and dress. It was barely big enough for her to get out of her daywear and into pajamas without banging her elbows or hands or head on something.
She actually did bump her head on the shower door. It looked like glass, but felt like all the walls in the ’ship, pretty much confirming that that was why none of the windows had shattered earlier. She also noticed that this gummi-glass, unlike the gummi-windows, was distorted, most likely to maintain the privacy of whoever was showering. She grinned, pulled her nightshirt over her head, and left the bathroom.
When she got back to the bedroom, Sora and Riku were laying on the bed, talking. She knocked on the doorframe to get their attention before walking in.
“Hey Kairi. We were just talking about you.” Riku’s grin was almost sly.
Sora gaped at him. “We were not! Shut up, Riku!”
Riku laughed, rolling over when Sora attempted to smack him.
Kairi laughed as well, and laughed even more when it became a wrestling match. They settled down soon enough, and then Kairi figured it was safe to walk over and join them on the bed.
Sora leaned back against the wall, and Riku shifted to give her a little more room. She compromised by laying on Riku’s back instead. Sora laughed.
“You know, Kairi, the pillows are right here.” Riku threw one at her. “I’m not one of them.”
Kairi caught the pillow easily. “You are now.”
“Hey, I want a Riku-pillow!” Sora protested.
Kairi stuck her tongue out at him. “Too bad, I got him first.”
Riku snorted. “Got him? Yeah right.” He attempted to flip her off his back.
Kairi clung to his back, though. “Yeah, right!”
Sora laughed when Riku completely failed at getting Kairi off of him and had to finally call a truce so that the three of them could get to sleep. And that led to more problems. Specifically, all three of them wanted to be in the middle.
Riku suggested rotating it, but Kairi and Sora vetoed that, saying they’d probably forget. Kairi thought they could try sleeping in something like a circle, but that was vetoed due to the physical impossibility.
After another ten minutes or so of thinking about it, Sora voted with Riku for rotating. Riku promised to remember, and so got the middle for that night.
Kairi and Sora compromised by half-laying on top of him, so that they were all three touching each other when they fell asleep.
-/ /-
“Kairi, it’s time to wake up.”
Five more minutes, please... Kairi rolled over and squeezed her eyes shut.
“You said that fifteen minutes ago. Don’t you want to see gummispace?”
Not really, no. Kairi groaned ad sat up anyway. What time is it?
“I’m not sure. Are there any clocks in the room?”
Kairi glanced around. “No clocks,” she stated, mildly irritated. “...Wait. How’d you know it had been fifteen minutes without a clock?”
Naminé shrugged. “I estimated. There’s probably a clock in the control room. Sora and Riku should be there as well.”
Kairi sat up a little straighter at that. “Oh, yeah. Thanks Naminé!”
Naminé smiled. “You’re welcome.”
Kairi ran her fingers through her hair as she left the room, almost tripping when she got into the hall because her pajama bottoms were just a bit too long. Giggling to herself - and hiking the pants up - Kairi entered the control room.
Sure enough, both Riku and Sora were there. Sora was sitting in one of the swivel-chairs in front of the control panel, an energy bar in his hand as he talked to Donald. Riku was leaning against the control panel next to Sora, an energy bar hanging out of his mouth as he apparently listened to Donald and Sora.
Kairi noticed that there was a whole pile of the energy bars on one of the other swivel-chairs. She assumed that was breakfast.
Instead of joining the boys and grabbing one of the energy bars for herself, she walked over to Goofy, who was standing off to the side. He didn’t look particularly lonely, and he grinned at her when she approached.
“Good mornin’,” he greeted. “Didja sleep well?”
She nodded. “Apparently, it was so good that Naminé had to wake me up.”
Goofy chuckled. “Well, that was nice o’ her.” He leaned over to whisper, loudly, in her ear, “Sora told us not to wake you up.”
Kairi smiled. “Well, that was sweet and all, but next time, just go ahead and wake me up. Let Sora sleep in.”
“So when’s it my turn, then?”
Kairi turned, just in time for a wrapped energy bar to poke her forehead. She took it from Riku, both of them grinning.
“You don’t get a turn. You’re the oldest, you have to be responsible.” She stuck her tongue out at him.
Riku rolled his eyes. “Right. Just another excuse for you two to be lazy bums. It’s summer all over again.”
He yelped a moment later, though, when an energy bar collided with the back of his head.
“Hey! I’m not a lazy bum!” Sora protested, reaching for another bar.
Kairi laughed. “Not anymore, you mean. And that’s a lie.”
“Is not.”
“Is too.”
While Kairi and Sora went back and forth, Riku edged towards the pile of energy bar-ammo.
Both Kairi and Sora were nursing their “wounds” after Riku took it upon himself to end their argument.
“You’re mean,” Kairi stated, pouting at Riku. “You went away and got mean.”
Riku shrugged and grinned. “Blame Sora.”
Sora shot him a glare. “It’s not my fault you’re a jerk.”
“Yes it is.”
“No it’s not.”
“This time,” Kairi interrupted, “do I get to throw the stuff at you two? It is my turn, right?”
Both boys quickly shut up after that, to Donald and Goofy’s amusement.
The conversation devolved into anecdotes and random chitchat after that. The teenagers were eating their way through the energy bars while Donald controlled the ship and Goofy offered smart and often funny insights. Occasionally, he mixed his words up, which Kairi and Riku politely pretended not to notice. Sora just grinned at his friend when it happened, and they moved on.
“Does the ’ship keep going when we’re sleeping?” Kairi asked after finishing her last energy bar. The things weren’t particularly tasty, but they were healthy, according to the wrapper.
Sora nodded, although Donald was the one who explained it. “If it didn’t, the Heartless would get us!”
“It goes on autopilot,” Sora added, “and if it runs into anything, an alarm goes off.” He winced. “There’s no way anyone could sleep through that, so we’re safe.”
Kairi raised an eyebrow. “Sora, every time you give us a warning, you act like you’ve done it. Is there something Riku and I should know?”
Donald and Goofy laughed, but Sora turned red. Riku grinned at him.
“Kairi’s got a point. It’s like you’re talking from personal experience.”
Sora shifted in his seat and rubbed the back of his head as if it were a magic lamp that could save him from this situation. “Well, uh, that’s because I, um-”
“He is,” Donald cut in, tone almost gleeful.
Kairi poked Sora. “Aw, poor Sora. Made every mistake in the book.”
Sora made a face at her. “Hey, I thought we were picking on Riku!”
“We were. And now we’re picking on you.” Kairi smiled innocently.
Sora’s eyes narrowed. “And when is your turn?”
“Not right now,” Riku stated, “so stop trying to shift this. You really screwed up that much? And they still let you pilot?”
Donald snorted. “We don’t let him do anything.”
Kairi giggled. “Sora, did you take over Donald and Goofy’s gummiship?”
Sora laughed. “Yeah! I’m secretly a junior pirate, and this was my first mission!”
“Oh great. Now we’re going to have to take it back from you, you know,” Riku told him.
Sora hopped up, summoning a keyblade Kairi hadn’t seen before. It certainly looked pirate-y, she thought.
“Never! I’ll throw you off and let the sharks eat you! ...Arr!”
Riku laughed, summoning his own keyblade. “Then have at, scoundrel!”
Riku and Sora, Kairi was reminded, were the biggest dorks she had ever met.
They battled it out in the control room of the gummi ship, with frequent taunts and battle-cries, and taunts about the battle-cries. It was high good humor, and Kairi and the chipmunks took turns offering commentary on it. How the chipmunks came back on the screen, Kairi wasn’t sure, but she suspected Donald was the cause of it. He certainly looked smug after.
When the battle finally ended, Riku had managed to gain the upper hand. He landed a “fatal” blow, which Sora clutched at as the younger of the two fell to his knees. Riku made the mistake of pausing to gloat, however, and so Sora stabbed him in the gut.
Kairi wondered if most pirate battles also ended with both the pirate and the honest man dead. She was pretty sure that, even if they did, the combatants never got up and high-fived each other after their death throes. At least Sora and Riku looked like they’d had fun.
It’s almost like back before any of this, she reflected to Naminé. I mean, we would do stuff like this all the time.
“I know. I... I’m glad they can still have fun.”
Yeah, so am I. Let’s hope they can still do it when we’re done saving the worlds.
“Maybe it’ll be their rematch,” Naminé suggested.
Yeah. Maybe Sora’ll win that one.
“Maybe. But then a pirate would be in charge of the ship.”
Oh, good point. Well, I guess Donald and Goofy and I would have to overthrow Sora, then. To avenge Riku, of course.
Naminé giggled. “I can’t wait to see it.”
Kairi grinned back. Neither can I.
Most of the rest of the two days passed uneventfully. Gummispace was interesting to look at, but not for hours, and even watching Sora and Riku spar fell flat. It didn’t help that neither of them were putting their all into it - Sora looked excited most of the time, but Riku looked nervous, and they were both obviously thinking about other things than fighting.
It was on the second day that Kairi tapped Riku’s shoulder. When he turned around to look at her, his face was blank. She smiled hopefully at him.
“Will you teach me how to fight?”
He blinked. “Kairi, you know how to fight.”
“No I don’t. I know to swing my keyblade at Heartless. That’s not fighting.”
He chuckled. “Okay, point. Sure. You want to go right now?”
“Please?” She closed her eyes, hand brushing past Oathkeeper’s keychain in her pocket. A moment later, the white keyblade was in her hand. She grinned.
Riku raised an eyebrow. “Don’t you like the one I gave you?” She looked up at him quickly, mouth open at the hurt look on his face, but then he grinned.
“Just kidding.” Kairi shot him an irritated look. “Seriously though, you should talk to Sora about choosing keyblades. Apparently, different versions have different strengths.”
“Oathkeeper’s good for magic,” Sora offered. Kairi glanced over at him, and he turned to grin at her before turning his head back to the screen. It took Kairi a moment to realize that he was playing pinball.
“I don’t know what your other keyblade is best for,” Riku told her apologetically. Kairi turned back to him and shrugged.
“It’s all right. It’s my keyblade, I should be able to tell on my own, right?”
Riku nodded. “Yeah. Do you have a name for it yet?”
Kairi frowned. “Uh, not really?”
“You could call it Radiant Garden,” Sora told them. Both Kairi and Riku turned to look at him that time.
“Sora, are you paying attention to us or the game?” Kairi asked.
He shrugged. “You guys, mostly.” He turned and grinned. “Got a problem with that?”
Riku laughed. “Yeah, mind your own business.”
Sora stuck his tongue out at Riku, and Kairi giggled.
“I don’t know... Isn’t Radiant Garden a little cheesy?”
Riku snorted. “Kairi, I’m wielding Way to the Dawn, and I used to use Soul Eater. I’m the last person to talk to about cheesy names.”
She laughed again. “Well, I guess...”
“If it feels right, then call it that. Does it feel right?”
Kairi frowned and sent Oathkeeper away. She pocketed the keychain and wrapped her fingers around the other in her pocket.
Summoning the keyblade was easy. It came to her hand almost instantly. She looked over it - from the flowers that made up the “key” part to the hilt, with the wave design on the guard - and shook her head.
“It’s not Radiant Garden. It’s Destiny Islands.”
She looked up at Riku, and he nodded at her, a small smile on his face.
“That’s what I thought. It...reminded me of home, and you.”
Kairi nodded. “Yeah. It reminds me of that day, when we were looking out at the ocean and just talking about the worlds - I remember wondering what they would look like.” She laughed, reaching with her free hand to brush the flower-designs on her keyblade. “We all know, now.”
“Nah, you haven’t seen anything yet,” Sora said, right in her ear.
Kairi jumped, and both the boys laughed.
“Sora! Don’t do that. What if I’d hit you?” she scolded.
He shrugged, unrepentant and grinning. “I’d have a bruise, and you still wouldn’t’ve seen the worlds.”
“Well, I’m going to see them, soon. I need a name for this thing first, though.”
Sora poked it. “Name it something from home.”
Kairi poked him with it. “Like what?”
“Paopu, uh, Promise.”
Riku snorted and looked away, obviously trying to hold back laughter. Sora scowled.
“Well, you suggest something!”
Riku looked thoughtful for a minute. “Destiny’s Heart,” was what he finally came up with.
Kairi considered it. “That’s not bad...”
“And Paopu Promise was?” Sora asked suspiciously.
Riku nudged him with his foot. “She’s trying to spare your feelings, Sora. Don’t make it harder on her.”
“You could mix Destiny Islands and Radiant Garden, if Destiny’s Heart isn’t right.”
Well, I like Destiny’s Heart. Why Radiant Garden?
Naminé looked surprised. “The same reason Sora suggested it originally, I assume: because that’s where you’re from.”
Kairi blinked. I thought it was just because of the flowers...
Naminé laughed. “I don’t think that was the only consideration.”
Right. Well, there’s Destiny Garden and Radiant Islands. Which one sounds cheesier?
Naminé laughed again. “They’re both very cheesy. Why don’t you ask the boys?”
Good idea. Kairi cleared her throat, getting Riku and Sora’s attention.
“What do you guys think of Destiny Garden, or Radiant Islands?”
They exchanged a look and shrugged, almost in synch with each other.
“They’re okay,” Riku said.
“Maybe Destiny’s Garden? Like Destiny’s Heart...” Sora grinned and elbowed Riku.
“Destiny’s Garden...” Kairi said, testing it out.
“It’s better than some of my names,” Sora assured her. “I mean, I’ve got Rumbling Rose, and Follow the Wind, and Hidden Dragon...” As he said each, he summoned the keyblade he was talking about. In a short amount of time, Kairi was blinking spots out of her eyes from the light of summoning each one.
“I think I get the picture, Sora,” she told him, patting his shoulder.
He dismissed the latest one - Star Seeker, apparently - and grinned.
“So, you’re gonna spar Riku now?”
“Well, he’s going to show me how to fight, but yes.”
Sora leaned over and whispered in her ear, “Go for his legs, if you’re losing.”
Kairi didn’t want to know.
As it turned out, the little bit of sparring that they actually accomplished didn’t allow her to “go for his legs.” They’d start to fight, and then stop so that Riku could correct her grip, or her stance, or whatever she was doing wrong in that moment.
Kairi didn’t truly realize how little she knew about fighting until that moment.
They were cut off by Donald declaring it was time for dinner, and it was Kairi’s turn to fork over the food. They had chocolate bars, bags of chips, and some dried fruit for the meal. Sora informed them that they’d have to eat better at Radiant Garden, and stock some fresh fruit and meat, if they could get any.
At some point during the meal, Riku elbowed Kairi. She turned to look at him.
“We can practice some more tomorrow, all right?”
She nodded at him. “Sounds good to me.”
They went back to their food, and shortly after, they headed to bed.
Kairi wasn’t sure what her father would say if he could see her then. Both of the boys had actual pajama-shorts on, as well as tank-top shirts, despite the fact that she knew that Sora, at least, typically wore no more and no less than a pair of boxers to bed. Riku, she wasn’t so sure about, as she hadn’t recently snuck into his room to wake him up, but she’d bet he wasn’t wearing what he wore when the three of them slept together.
Still, when they slept, they were right on top of each other. Usually, they would end up with Sora spooning Riku and Kairi draped over the both of them. Once, she woke up with her nose buried in Riku’s hair; that was when she realized that he was stealing her shampoo, the jerk. It was also when she noticed that the green stain in his hair was still there, so she forgave him for using her shampoo.
On the third day, sometime between breakfast and lunch, Donald caught sight of Radiant Garden.
“You guys ready?” Sora asked, turning to grin at Kairi and Riku.
“Of course,” Riku replied, smirking readily, and Kairi nodded.
I’m ready, Radiant Garden. Let’s see if you’re a better home than Destiny Islands.
“Home isn’t where you were born, Kairi.”
Kairi grinned. I know. Home is where your heart - your friends, your parents, your memories - is.
“That’s right. And your home is Destiny Islands.”
Previous Chapter - Table of Contents - Next Chapter
Fandom: Kingdom Hearts
Word Count: 5,882 words
Rating: PG-13
Summary: This is the story of a forgotten replica. This is the story of an awakening princess. This is a story of mercenaries and salvation and fairies. And this is a story of people and growing up. [it all started with a blank slate...]
Disclaimer: The author of this story is in NO way associated with Square Enix, Disney, or anyone else who might be pulling Kingdom Hearts' strings. No money is or will be made off of this story.
When Donald and Goofy finally arrived, it was almost a week after Kairi had finished packing. She, Sora, and Riku had started going to school again, more to see all their friends than to actually learn anything.
There was also the little matter of Riku trying, unsuccessfully, to find some silver dye. He resorted to other methods after the first day of snickering - hats, trying to layer his hair so the green didn’t show, pulling it up in an attempt to hide the stain - but really, nothing had worked. It was fading, slowly, and Kairi was pretty sure Riku was taking multiple showers a day just to get rid of it faster.
At least now everyone at the high school knew that paopu juice was a really strong hair dye. A few of the freshmen had recently been sporting green hair, and Kairi figured she knew where they had gotten the idea.
It was after school, long enough that all their homework had been done, when Tidus ran up to Selphie and Kairi. They were playing jump-rope in Kairi’s front yard, taking turns and trying to beat each other’s record. Selphie was a good twenty jumps ahead of Kairi, but the redhead was finally starting to close that gap when their fun was interrupted.
“Kairi! Kairi!” She paused, letting the rope hit the ground as both she and Selphie turned. Tidus came running up, hopping over the small wooden fence that separated the lawn from the road and skidding to a halt in front of them.
“Tidus? What’s going on?”
He panted for a few seconds, regaining his breath, and then he told her, “Wakka and I - just saw - a ship. A...gummiship, Sora said? Looks like he described it. It hit the water next to the play-island. He’s telling Sora and Riku, we’ll meet ‘em at the docks.”
Selphie and Kairi exchanged a look. “I’ll grab your stuff,” the brunette volunteered. Kairi nodded and the two rushed into the house.
Kairi said goodbye to her father. They’d been expecting this day, of course, but it was still hard. She hugged him as tightly as she could, fighting back tears. He rubbed her back and told her that he’d be here when she got back, that he was (still) proud of her, that she really should be going now, she didn’t want to keep Sora and Riku waiting, now did she?
Shaking her head, she gave him one last squeeze around his middle before breaking away. He patted her shoulder and kissed her forehead.
“I love you, Kairi. Be safe.”
“I will, Dad. I love you too.”
And then she left.
Saying goodbye was the hardest part of leaving. Before, she hadn’t had time; with Axel behind her and a dark portal as her only means of escape, she could hardly have gone and hugged Selphie and Tidus and Wakka and her father. This time, there was no rush. She had all the time in the world to say goodbye to all her friends, to exchange hugs and phone numbers and stories and good-lucks and thank-yous.
Leaving, Kairi realized, was the painful start of any journey. She wondered what Sora and Riku were thinking about all of it, but she couldn’t ask them in front of the others. So instead, as the six teens rowed up to the gummiship and paused for another round of hugs, I’ll-miss-yous, and smiles, she smiled and hugged them and told Tidus, Wakka, and especially Selphie that she’d miss them. She, Sora, and Riku climbed onto and into the gummiship, with Goofy saluting Selphie for some reason and Donald muttering about how long these things always took.
The inside of a gummiship was nothing like what Kairi had imagined.
It was a lot smaller than she had thought it would be, for starters. She could see how it would be comfortable for just Sora, Donald, and Goofy, but with her and Riku in the room, it felt like she couldn’t move without bumping into someone or something.
Kairi stepped to the side and looked around. The walls, floor, and ceiling were all “gummi” - she touched it, and it felt like metal. She wasn’t about to lick it to check, but as long as it wasn’t gushy and wobbly under her feet, she figured it didn’t matter what it was.
“Sora might have tasted it,” Naminé told her. Kairi giggled.
The others shot her odd looks, which she shrugged off. She turned to Donald and Goofy. “Where should we put our stuff?”
It was Sora who answered her. “There’re some rooms in the back. They’re right here.” He walked over and pressed a button on the wall. Beside it, a piece of gummi slid to one side, revealing a doorway. Sora stepped through first, Kairi following him and Riku following her.
“This room is Donald and Goofy’s,” he gestured to one door. “Donald doesn’t like it if we go in there. This one is mine - ours, now,” and he pointed to the second door, grinning over his shoulder at them. Kairi smiled back.
“Down the hall is the bathroom - try not to go when we’re about to land.” He made a face. “You don’t want to be on the toilet when we’re under attack. Or when we’re docking.”
Kairi bit her lip to avoid giggling. Inside her head, Naminé nodded.
“He has a point, you know.”
Yeah, but that doesn’t make it less funny. Poor Sora.
Riku leaned against the wall. “So, there’s only one bed, right?”
Sora nodded, and Kairi immediately saw the problem. “Dibs!” she called, grinning.
Sora gaped at her, while Riku just laughed.
“Come on, Kairi, that’s not fair,” he said.
She relented. “Fine, fine. How big is the bed, anyway?”
Sora shrugged, pushed a button, and a door opened up. “That big.”
Again, he went inside first. Kairi looked around the room.
It wasn’t very big - in fact, it was about half the size of her bedroom at home. Scattered across the floor were clothes, assorted magazines, some odd-looking trinkets. There was no closet or dresser, but instead an empty hamper seemingly nailed into the wall and a set of hooks that were visibly nailed into the wall.
The bed itself wasn’t that small, though - it took up half the room, anyway. Kairi made a face; with three of them, they’d be right next to each other, but it was better than someone sleeping on the floor.
Further inspection and introspection was cut off by a sudden jolt. Sora immediately braced himself against the wall; Kairi grabbed for both him and Riku, while Riku went down to a kneel, one hand against the wall and the other holding on tightly to Kairi’s.
“We’re taking off,” Sora explained as the ’ship shook around them. “You’ll get used to it.”
A few moments later, Kairi could feel that the ’ship was in the air. Building pressure told her that they were moving up through the atmosphere - truth be told, it gave her a horrible headache. She couldn’t press her fingers against her temples, or cover her ears, or do anything to help it, however, because her hands were currently busy holding onto Sora and Riku’s.
Sora looked fairly calm about the whole situation, sinking down until he was sitting with his back against the wall. Kairi was, in turn, pulled down as well. She glanced at Riku, secretly glad to find that he looked just as bad as she felt. His forehead was pressed against his knee, and he was squeezing her hand just as tightly as she squeezed his.
Finally, after she thought her head would explode from the pressure, it disappeared.
“We’re in gummispace now,” Sora told them.
Riku muttered something about Captain Obvious and an anvil in his skull, but Kairi didn’t catch all of it. She leaned over and hugged him sympathetically.
He looked up and offered her a slight grin, hugging back. She was sure his headache was still there; hers hadn’t gone away yet, after all. It was starting to fade, though, for which she was very thankful.
Naminé echoed the sentiment mentally. “That was not fun,” she told Kairi, her tone disappointed.
Well, I’m sure it will be once we get used to it. I mean, Sora didn’t look like it bothered him all that much.
“He’s also been doing this for over a year. I don’t think he got it over it immediately...” the blonde pointed out.
I was trying to forget that.
“Oh.” Naminé paused. “Did it help any?”
Not really, Kairi admitted sheepishly.
Sora was already walking around by the time Riku and Kairi stood up. He dumped his backpack to one side, then sat on the bed.
“So, how are we gonna divide this up?” he asked, looking from Riku to Kairi.
The other two exchanged a look. “I think we should share,” Kairi suggested, and Riku nodded.
Sora eyed the bed was on. “You sure it’s big enough?”
Kairi grinned at him. “Well, that depends on how much space you two take up.”
Riku shoved her lightly. “And how much you move around in your sleep.” She stuck her tongue out at him, but he just grinned back.
Sora shrugged. “We can work it out.” He glanced at their bags. “Uh, just drop your stuff anywhere.”
Kairi ended up putting her duffel bags next to Sora’s, hanging her backpack and book bag up on two of the hooks. Riku had a duffel bag and a backpack as well, and he followed Kairi’s lead.
Shortly after, Donald was squawking for Sora, and all three of them ran into the control room to find out why.
On the way, red lights started going off, and the ’ship veered sharply right, sending the three teens into the wall. Sora made it to the door first, Kairi and Riku struggling to follow him. Riku actually got into the room second, but he pulled Kairi through as well.
When she entered, she immediately saw what was going on. ’Ships, firing bright red lasers at their ’ship, could be seen through the front and right windows - the left was clear of enemies, for now.
Goofy was nowhere to be seen, but their ’ship was firing back, so Kairi figured he was doing the shooting. Donald squawked something at Sora, loudly but too shrilly for Kairi to completely understand. Sora didn’t seem to have that problem, as he nodded and turned to face the oncoming enemies. Donald ran into another room, and seconds later, their ’ship fired shots at the other ’ships from that direction as well.
“Guys, there should be some straps near the back,” Sora told them quickly. “Get yourselves in them, okay? And don’t pull them off until we’re clear.”
Kairi found them first, and helped Riku get his on when she was fully strapped in. She couldn’t help but feel a little useless, strapped to a wall while her friends defended her. There was really nothing she could do - she didn’t know how to fly a ’ship, or how to shoot those lasers. She still felt useless.
“Well, that’s because you are right now,” Naminé said. “But you’ll learn, I’m sure. Besides, you can do other things.”
Point, Kairi conceded.
“And look at Riku. I think he’s taking it worse than you are.”
Kairi turned her head, and found that Naminé was right. Riku was biting his lip, and his fingers twitched every so often. His eyes were focused on the front window, where most of the enemies were.
“Riku.”
He glanced over. “Yeah?”
Kairi smiled at him. “Relax. You’re making me nervous.”
He grinned back. “Sorry.”
Kairi noticed that he didn’t really relax, so much as show how tense he was in different ways. She didn’t say anything about that.
Watching Sora - and Donald and Goofy - maneuver the ’ship and blast the enemy ’ships was actually not as bad when Kairi was trying to focus on something other than how little she could help this situation. It was obvious that Sora had been doing this for a while; he didn’t dodge every hit, and some of the enemies got by, but the vast majority went down, and their own ’ship didn’t sustain any serious damage, it seemed. Even when shots were fired at the windows, the “glass” never shattered. Kairi wondered if it was truly glass, or if it was merely see-through gummiblocks.
After what felt like hours, the ship seemed to pick up speed, and the view from all around turned white. Sora struck a pose as a screen was lowered over the front window. Kairi and Riku undid the straps, walking over to where Sora was.
The screen showed a list of things, and after it scrolled down to the bottom, Sora struck a pose. Kairi and Riku exchanged confused looks as Donald and Goofy returned.
“Did we get anything?” Donald asked, looking up at the screen.
“We got a C class for kills and eighty percent of the ’blocks,” Sora said, grinning widely.
“A-hyuck, I told you we’d do it.” Goofy leaned down to pat Donald’s shoulder, which seemed to irritate the duck.
“What do you need for an A class?” Riku asked, cutting in before a fight started. Donald’s face was pretty red, but it went back to normal when Riku asked his question.
Sora turned around. “Uh, I’m not sure. Chip, Dale? You guys there?”
The screen went fuzzy, and then two chipmunks appeared on it.
“Hello, Sora!” they both squeaked.
“Long time no see,” one commented. Kairi wasn’t sure which was which.
Sora grinned. “Yeah, sorry about that. Hey, can you tell me what I need for an A class?”
“On which route?”
“The Destiny Islands one.”
The chipmunks looked at something off-screen before turning back.
“For B class, you need to clear 450 enemies. We can’t tell what A or S classes need yet,” one said.
“Sorry Sora.”
“Hey, don’t worry about it. I’ll just have to get rid of a bunch and skip right to S, right?” He grinned and gave them a thumbs-up, which they returned.
After that, Sora double-checked the coordinates for Radiant Garden and got an estimated travel time. It would take approximately two and a half days to get to Radiant Garden - that was really long as far as Kairi could tell. Sora certainly seemed to make a big deal about it.
“Is there anything else you need?” one of the chipmunks asked when Sora was done.
“Nope. I’ll call you guys if anything comes up.”
“Sure thing!”
“See ya later!”
The screen fizzed again before shutting up and going back up into a compartment in the ceiling. Kairi stared at it for a minute before shaking her head. Riku patted her shoulder and gave her a grin when she glanced at him.
“Well, that should be our only fight until we get to Radiant Garden,” Sora told them with a yawn. “Oh! Hey, Donald, Goofy, did you see if the route for Radiant Garden was still open?”
“It wasn’t,” Donald said, irritation obvious in his tone, expression, and folded arms. “It closed. Again!”
“Yup. Looks like something big is goin’ on.”
Sora nodded at Goofy. “That’s what the King said, basically.”
“He didn’t say what it is, though,” Riku pointed out with a frown.
Sora shrugged, turning to face him. “I’m sure he’ll tell us once we get there.”
“In two and a half days,” Kairi said. She yawned.
Kairi’s yawn triggered a second yawn from Sora. A few moments later, Kairi noticed that Riku’s jaw was locked, probably from holding back a yawn of his own.
“I think it’s time for bed,” she said.
Sora glanced at a clock - which listed no less than ten times, all of them radically different, and nodded. “It’s eight, Radiant Garden time. Bed sounds good.”
As they headed to the bedroom, Kairi elbowed Riku lightly. “What time is it in Destiny Islands?”
He checked his watch - Kairi hadn’t noticed it before, as it had been under his sleeve. “It’s only five thirty there.”
“So why are we so tired?”
He shrugged. “Time change, leaving Destiny Islands, the fight... It could be any of them.” He grinned. “It could be that you two are just lazy bums.”
Kairi smacked him playfully. “And you’re just as lazy as we are.”
“Of course. You guys must have rubbed off on me.”
“Uh-huh, yeah right.”
Sora poked his head out of the bedroom door. “Are you guys gonna stand there all night and argue?”
Kairi and Riku quickly shook their heads and went in.
When it came time to put on their pajamas, Sora and Riku offered to change in the bathroom. Kairi pointed out that they were both tall and long-limbed, and they’d have to take turns. They were still willing, though, so Kairi outright told them that she’d change in the bathroom. They didn’t protest, and so she grabbed her nightclothes and left as they started stripping out of their school clothes.
The bathroom was as small as Kairi had suspected, and no way would Sora and Riku have both fit in it at the same time, let alone fit in it and undress and dress. It was barely big enough for her to get out of her daywear and into pajamas without banging her elbows or hands or head on something.
She actually did bump her head on the shower door. It looked like glass, but felt like all the walls in the ’ship, pretty much confirming that that was why none of the windows had shattered earlier. She also noticed that this gummi-glass, unlike the gummi-windows, was distorted, most likely to maintain the privacy of whoever was showering. She grinned, pulled her nightshirt over her head, and left the bathroom.
When she got back to the bedroom, Sora and Riku were laying on the bed, talking. She knocked on the doorframe to get their attention before walking in.
“Hey Kairi. We were just talking about you.” Riku’s grin was almost sly.
Sora gaped at him. “We were not! Shut up, Riku!”
Riku laughed, rolling over when Sora attempted to smack him.
Kairi laughed as well, and laughed even more when it became a wrestling match. They settled down soon enough, and then Kairi figured it was safe to walk over and join them on the bed.
Sora leaned back against the wall, and Riku shifted to give her a little more room. She compromised by laying on Riku’s back instead. Sora laughed.
“You know, Kairi, the pillows are right here.” Riku threw one at her. “I’m not one of them.”
Kairi caught the pillow easily. “You are now.”
“Hey, I want a Riku-pillow!” Sora protested.
Kairi stuck her tongue out at him. “Too bad, I got him first.”
Riku snorted. “Got him? Yeah right.” He attempted to flip her off his back.
Kairi clung to his back, though. “Yeah, right!”
Sora laughed when Riku completely failed at getting Kairi off of him and had to finally call a truce so that the three of them could get to sleep. And that led to more problems. Specifically, all three of them wanted to be in the middle.
Riku suggested rotating it, but Kairi and Sora vetoed that, saying they’d probably forget. Kairi thought they could try sleeping in something like a circle, but that was vetoed due to the physical impossibility.
After another ten minutes or so of thinking about it, Sora voted with Riku for rotating. Riku promised to remember, and so got the middle for that night.
Kairi and Sora compromised by half-laying on top of him, so that they were all three touching each other when they fell asleep.
-/ /-
“Kairi, it’s time to wake up.”
Five more minutes, please... Kairi rolled over and squeezed her eyes shut.
“You said that fifteen minutes ago. Don’t you want to see gummispace?”
Not really, no. Kairi groaned ad sat up anyway. What time is it?
“I’m not sure. Are there any clocks in the room?”
Kairi glanced around. “No clocks,” she stated, mildly irritated. “...Wait. How’d you know it had been fifteen minutes without a clock?”
Naminé shrugged. “I estimated. There’s probably a clock in the control room. Sora and Riku should be there as well.”
Kairi sat up a little straighter at that. “Oh, yeah. Thanks Naminé!”
Naminé smiled. “You’re welcome.”
Kairi ran her fingers through her hair as she left the room, almost tripping when she got into the hall because her pajama bottoms were just a bit too long. Giggling to herself - and hiking the pants up - Kairi entered the control room.
Sure enough, both Riku and Sora were there. Sora was sitting in one of the swivel-chairs in front of the control panel, an energy bar in his hand as he talked to Donald. Riku was leaning against the control panel next to Sora, an energy bar hanging out of his mouth as he apparently listened to Donald and Sora.
Kairi noticed that there was a whole pile of the energy bars on one of the other swivel-chairs. She assumed that was breakfast.
Instead of joining the boys and grabbing one of the energy bars for herself, she walked over to Goofy, who was standing off to the side. He didn’t look particularly lonely, and he grinned at her when she approached.
“Good mornin’,” he greeted. “Didja sleep well?”
She nodded. “Apparently, it was so good that Naminé had to wake me up.”
Goofy chuckled. “Well, that was nice o’ her.” He leaned over to whisper, loudly, in her ear, “Sora told us not to wake you up.”
Kairi smiled. “Well, that was sweet and all, but next time, just go ahead and wake me up. Let Sora sleep in.”
“So when’s it my turn, then?”
Kairi turned, just in time for a wrapped energy bar to poke her forehead. She took it from Riku, both of them grinning.
“You don’t get a turn. You’re the oldest, you have to be responsible.” She stuck her tongue out at him.
Riku rolled his eyes. “Right. Just another excuse for you two to be lazy bums. It’s summer all over again.”
He yelped a moment later, though, when an energy bar collided with the back of his head.
“Hey! I’m not a lazy bum!” Sora protested, reaching for another bar.
Kairi laughed. “Not anymore, you mean. And that’s a lie.”
“Is not.”
“Is too.”
While Kairi and Sora went back and forth, Riku edged towards the pile of energy bar-ammo.
Both Kairi and Sora were nursing their “wounds” after Riku took it upon himself to end their argument.
“You’re mean,” Kairi stated, pouting at Riku. “You went away and got mean.”
Riku shrugged and grinned. “Blame Sora.”
Sora shot him a glare. “It’s not my fault you’re a jerk.”
“Yes it is.”
“No it’s not.”
“This time,” Kairi interrupted, “do I get to throw the stuff at you two? It is my turn, right?”
Both boys quickly shut up after that, to Donald and Goofy’s amusement.
The conversation devolved into anecdotes and random chitchat after that. The teenagers were eating their way through the energy bars while Donald controlled the ship and Goofy offered smart and often funny insights. Occasionally, he mixed his words up, which Kairi and Riku politely pretended not to notice. Sora just grinned at his friend when it happened, and they moved on.
“Does the ’ship keep going when we’re sleeping?” Kairi asked after finishing her last energy bar. The things weren’t particularly tasty, but they were healthy, according to the wrapper.
Sora nodded, although Donald was the one who explained it. “If it didn’t, the Heartless would get us!”
“It goes on autopilot,” Sora added, “and if it runs into anything, an alarm goes off.” He winced. “There’s no way anyone could sleep through that, so we’re safe.”
Kairi raised an eyebrow. “Sora, every time you give us a warning, you act like you’ve done it. Is there something Riku and I should know?”
Donald and Goofy laughed, but Sora turned red. Riku grinned at him.
“Kairi’s got a point. It’s like you’re talking from personal experience.”
Sora shifted in his seat and rubbed the back of his head as if it were a magic lamp that could save him from this situation. “Well, uh, that’s because I, um-”
“He is,” Donald cut in, tone almost gleeful.
Kairi poked Sora. “Aw, poor Sora. Made every mistake in the book.”
Sora made a face at her. “Hey, I thought we were picking on Riku!”
“We were. And now we’re picking on you.” Kairi smiled innocently.
Sora’s eyes narrowed. “And when is your turn?”
“Not right now,” Riku stated, “so stop trying to shift this. You really screwed up that much? And they still let you pilot?”
Donald snorted. “We don’t let him do anything.”
Kairi giggled. “Sora, did you take over Donald and Goofy’s gummiship?”
Sora laughed. “Yeah! I’m secretly a junior pirate, and this was my first mission!”
“Oh great. Now we’re going to have to take it back from you, you know,” Riku told him.
Sora hopped up, summoning a keyblade Kairi hadn’t seen before. It certainly looked pirate-y, she thought.
“Never! I’ll throw you off and let the sharks eat you! ...Arr!”
Riku laughed, summoning his own keyblade. “Then have at, scoundrel!”
Riku and Sora, Kairi was reminded, were the biggest dorks she had ever met.
They battled it out in the control room of the gummi ship, with frequent taunts and battle-cries, and taunts about the battle-cries. It was high good humor, and Kairi and the chipmunks took turns offering commentary on it. How the chipmunks came back on the screen, Kairi wasn’t sure, but she suspected Donald was the cause of it. He certainly looked smug after.
When the battle finally ended, Riku had managed to gain the upper hand. He landed a “fatal” blow, which Sora clutched at as the younger of the two fell to his knees. Riku made the mistake of pausing to gloat, however, and so Sora stabbed him in the gut.
Kairi wondered if most pirate battles also ended with both the pirate and the honest man dead. She was pretty sure that, even if they did, the combatants never got up and high-fived each other after their death throes. At least Sora and Riku looked like they’d had fun.
It’s almost like back before any of this, she reflected to Naminé. I mean, we would do stuff like this all the time.
“I know. I... I’m glad they can still have fun.”
Yeah, so am I. Let’s hope they can still do it when we’re done saving the worlds.
“Maybe it’ll be their rematch,” Naminé suggested.
Yeah. Maybe Sora’ll win that one.
“Maybe. But then a pirate would be in charge of the ship.”
Oh, good point. Well, I guess Donald and Goofy and I would have to overthrow Sora, then. To avenge Riku, of course.
Naminé giggled. “I can’t wait to see it.”
Kairi grinned back. Neither can I.
Most of the rest of the two days passed uneventfully. Gummispace was interesting to look at, but not for hours, and even watching Sora and Riku spar fell flat. It didn’t help that neither of them were putting their all into it - Sora looked excited most of the time, but Riku looked nervous, and they were both obviously thinking about other things than fighting.
It was on the second day that Kairi tapped Riku’s shoulder. When he turned around to look at her, his face was blank. She smiled hopefully at him.
“Will you teach me how to fight?”
He blinked. “Kairi, you know how to fight.”
“No I don’t. I know to swing my keyblade at Heartless. That’s not fighting.”
He chuckled. “Okay, point. Sure. You want to go right now?”
“Please?” She closed her eyes, hand brushing past Oathkeeper’s keychain in her pocket. A moment later, the white keyblade was in her hand. She grinned.
Riku raised an eyebrow. “Don’t you like the one I gave you?” She looked up at him quickly, mouth open at the hurt look on his face, but then he grinned.
“Just kidding.” Kairi shot him an irritated look. “Seriously though, you should talk to Sora about choosing keyblades. Apparently, different versions have different strengths.”
“Oathkeeper’s good for magic,” Sora offered. Kairi glanced over at him, and he turned to grin at her before turning his head back to the screen. It took Kairi a moment to realize that he was playing pinball.
“I don’t know what your other keyblade is best for,” Riku told her apologetically. Kairi turned back to him and shrugged.
“It’s all right. It’s my keyblade, I should be able to tell on my own, right?”
Riku nodded. “Yeah. Do you have a name for it yet?”
Kairi frowned. “Uh, not really?”
“You could call it Radiant Garden,” Sora told them. Both Kairi and Riku turned to look at him that time.
“Sora, are you paying attention to us or the game?” Kairi asked.
He shrugged. “You guys, mostly.” He turned and grinned. “Got a problem with that?”
Riku laughed. “Yeah, mind your own business.”
Sora stuck his tongue out at Riku, and Kairi giggled.
“I don’t know... Isn’t Radiant Garden a little cheesy?”
Riku snorted. “Kairi, I’m wielding Way to the Dawn, and I used to use Soul Eater. I’m the last person to talk to about cheesy names.”
She laughed again. “Well, I guess...”
“If it feels right, then call it that. Does it feel right?”
Kairi frowned and sent Oathkeeper away. She pocketed the keychain and wrapped her fingers around the other in her pocket.
Summoning the keyblade was easy. It came to her hand almost instantly. She looked over it - from the flowers that made up the “key” part to the hilt, with the wave design on the guard - and shook her head.
“It’s not Radiant Garden. It’s Destiny Islands.”
She looked up at Riku, and he nodded at her, a small smile on his face.
“That’s what I thought. It...reminded me of home, and you.”
Kairi nodded. “Yeah. It reminds me of that day, when we were looking out at the ocean and just talking about the worlds - I remember wondering what they would look like.” She laughed, reaching with her free hand to brush the flower-designs on her keyblade. “We all know, now.”
“Nah, you haven’t seen anything yet,” Sora said, right in her ear.
Kairi jumped, and both the boys laughed.
“Sora! Don’t do that. What if I’d hit you?” she scolded.
He shrugged, unrepentant and grinning. “I’d have a bruise, and you still wouldn’t’ve seen the worlds.”
“Well, I’m going to see them, soon. I need a name for this thing first, though.”
Sora poked it. “Name it something from home.”
Kairi poked him with it. “Like what?”
“Paopu, uh, Promise.”
Riku snorted and looked away, obviously trying to hold back laughter. Sora scowled.
“Well, you suggest something!”
Riku looked thoughtful for a minute. “Destiny’s Heart,” was what he finally came up with.
Kairi considered it. “That’s not bad...”
“And Paopu Promise was?” Sora asked suspiciously.
Riku nudged him with his foot. “She’s trying to spare your feelings, Sora. Don’t make it harder on her.”
“You could mix Destiny Islands and Radiant Garden, if Destiny’s Heart isn’t right.”
Well, I like Destiny’s Heart. Why Radiant Garden?
Naminé looked surprised. “The same reason Sora suggested it originally, I assume: because that’s where you’re from.”
Kairi blinked. I thought it was just because of the flowers...
Naminé laughed. “I don’t think that was the only consideration.”
Right. Well, there’s Destiny Garden and Radiant Islands. Which one sounds cheesier?
Naminé laughed again. “They’re both very cheesy. Why don’t you ask the boys?”
Good idea. Kairi cleared her throat, getting Riku and Sora’s attention.
“What do you guys think of Destiny Garden, or Radiant Islands?”
They exchanged a look and shrugged, almost in synch with each other.
“They’re okay,” Riku said.
“Maybe Destiny’s Garden? Like Destiny’s Heart...” Sora grinned and elbowed Riku.
“Destiny’s Garden...” Kairi said, testing it out.
“It’s better than some of my names,” Sora assured her. “I mean, I’ve got Rumbling Rose, and Follow the Wind, and Hidden Dragon...” As he said each, he summoned the keyblade he was talking about. In a short amount of time, Kairi was blinking spots out of her eyes from the light of summoning each one.
“I think I get the picture, Sora,” she told him, patting his shoulder.
He dismissed the latest one - Star Seeker, apparently - and grinned.
“So, you’re gonna spar Riku now?”
“Well, he’s going to show me how to fight, but yes.”
Sora leaned over and whispered in her ear, “Go for his legs, if you’re losing.”
Kairi didn’t want to know.
As it turned out, the little bit of sparring that they actually accomplished didn’t allow her to “go for his legs.” They’d start to fight, and then stop so that Riku could correct her grip, or her stance, or whatever she was doing wrong in that moment.
Kairi didn’t truly realize how little she knew about fighting until that moment.
They were cut off by Donald declaring it was time for dinner, and it was Kairi’s turn to fork over the food. They had chocolate bars, bags of chips, and some dried fruit for the meal. Sora informed them that they’d have to eat better at Radiant Garden, and stock some fresh fruit and meat, if they could get any.
At some point during the meal, Riku elbowed Kairi. She turned to look at him.
“We can practice some more tomorrow, all right?”
She nodded at him. “Sounds good to me.”
They went back to their food, and shortly after, they headed to bed.
Kairi wasn’t sure what her father would say if he could see her then. Both of the boys had actual pajama-shorts on, as well as tank-top shirts, despite the fact that she knew that Sora, at least, typically wore no more and no less than a pair of boxers to bed. Riku, she wasn’t so sure about, as she hadn’t recently snuck into his room to wake him up, but she’d bet he wasn’t wearing what he wore when the three of them slept together.
Still, when they slept, they were right on top of each other. Usually, they would end up with Sora spooning Riku and Kairi draped over the both of them. Once, she woke up with her nose buried in Riku’s hair; that was when she realized that he was stealing her shampoo, the jerk. It was also when she noticed that the green stain in his hair was still there, so she forgave him for using her shampoo.
On the third day, sometime between breakfast and lunch, Donald caught sight of Radiant Garden.
“You guys ready?” Sora asked, turning to grin at Kairi and Riku.
“Of course,” Riku replied, smirking readily, and Kairi nodded.
I’m ready, Radiant Garden. Let’s see if you’re a better home than Destiny Islands.
“Home isn’t where you were born, Kairi.”
Kairi grinned. I know. Home is where your heart - your friends, your parents, your memories - is.
“That’s right. And your home is Destiny Islands.”
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