Where You Feel at Ease (Kairi/Sora/Riku) Kingdom Hearts 2, G

[lazzchan.livejournal.com]

Title: Where You Feel at Ease
Author/Artist: lazzchan
Rating: G
Warnings: post-game
Word count: 1,138
Summary: I'm sorry this and my other prompts are late— I got caught up with life and such. ^^; This thing was started and stopped so many times, it's kind of painful. *laughs* I hope you still enjoy it, even if it's filled with fluff instead of anything more.
Prompt: - Kingdom Hearts, Kairi/Sora/Riku: reunion - the road home is always long, but joy waits at the end




It had taken them awhile to meet up again; Riku's parents kept their child close to home—he had been gone for so long that the idea of even letting him go out to the play island was a struggle for them. They could tell themselves that 'nothing would happen', but yet—something did happen. Even if they couldn't remember all of it; it still happened and the fear sat deep inside.

Riku's parents hadn't lost any time or memories while their son was gone.

"You're … you're grounded," his father tried to sound stern, while his mother held him tight to her; her tears making a wet spot on Riku's clothing. "I can't have you… you've worried us .. and…" he swallowed hard and even his eyes were slightly damp as they met Riku's.

"We don't want to lose you again."

Riku nodded slowly, letting his parents envelop him in their arms. "I don't want to leave again."

He knew, though—if Sora left—if they had to leave home again—he would leave with Sora this time. He wasn't going to go alone. They would all go together. Him, Sora—and Kairi.

~

Sora's mother seemed to understand—eyes that mirrored Sora's own watched her son, she listened and held onto him tightly. "It's been difficult for you, hasn't it?" she whispered. "My brave kiddo." She tousled his hair and touched the armor he wore, expression wondering.

"Yeah—it's… it's been…" he trembled slightly, struggling to stay upbeat and cheerful, to keep the rule of the happy faces that Donald had imposed upon him so long ago. But his mother was hugging him and he hadn't felt that for so long—he broke down in her arms and sobbed. He didn't care that he was almost sixteen; that he was a boy and the hero—he was still just a kid.

"I don't know if… if I have to leave again or not," he whispered into her clothing. It scared him, that uncertainty—that he might get called away again without being able to warn his mother. He had worried about his friends while traveling, but they eventually all met up and knew the others were relatively safe.

He had worried that his mother had been turned into a Heartless while he had been gone, that he had killed the Heartless form of his mother when the islands were initially taken. He didn't want to live with that fear again or fill her with fear that her son was gone without any notes or calls or signs that he would be returning.

"I know," she murmured. "You've got to do what you've got to do—" She released him gently. "I trust you."

~

When they met up again, it was at school—Sora and Riku had to catch up from the year they missed and even their meetings at school were rushed and infrequent. They were all in different classes, different levels—Sora wished they had more time to spend together, but it was almost impossible at the beginning. There was too much to do and to catch up on.

"Keeping up with the new load?"Red hair filled his vision as Kairi leaned over, smile bright. "I heard that you got some sort of teaching while you were going from place to place." Stories of Donald teaching Sora had reached her through Aerith and the others when she had been in Radiant Garden.

"Not that we had much time," Sora murmured, patting the ground next to him. They were using the excuse of a study group to all meet up; it was the only way. Riku was on his way. "Too busy jumping from place to place. Even the gummi ship started moving faster so we didn't spend as much time on it for Donald to give me lessons."

"Heh—would you have even listened, Sora?" Riku flopped down next to them, grinning teasingly.

"Hey!" Sora protested. "I did so listen. It's why I'm not that far behind." He poked Riku. "Mister-I'm-a-year-older-but-in-the-same-grade."

"How else would I keep an eye on you?" Riku's voice was lightly teasing, but there was an undercurrent of seriousness, too.

"Riku—it's not like anything's going to happen now," Sora's smile was confident, cheerful—it promised that the world was spinning right again and the monsters were in the past. "We're home now."

"Yeah—" Riku sighed, laying on his back, eyes trained on the strands of clouds drifting between the branches of a tree. He didn't say that it was when they were home that it all started, that even when you're home, bad things could still happen. His eyes eventually closed, body relaxing as it hadn't in so long.

Kairi smiled softly at the two of them, reaching out to twine her fingers in their hands, relaxing between the two that meant the most to her. Home wasn't the same without the two of them—home wasn't home without hearing their voices teasing her or each other.

She didn't tell them of all the times she stopped by their homes, trying to assure their parents that yes, they were fine—both of them were alive and well … but just … gone. She didn't tell Sora that even when she forgot about him, her feet stilled by his house, watching the broken shutter over his bedroom flap in the wind; not knowing why she stopped, but how she was drawn to it anyway.

She had often stared up at the stars, wondering which world they were on now; who they were meeting and what battles were going on. She wished that she would be able to meet up with them again, to become strong enough to help them. She never expected her wishes would be answered by the enemy—

--how he took her away from home and at the time, she had wondered who would stop by Sora and Riku's homes now; who would be the reassuring voice in the dark.

Now they were all home, though—they were home and safe and she didn't want to be the one to bring up the bottle she had found on the beach. Her back felt the curves of it as it lay inside her bag; a silent reminder that she would have to say something soon; have to speak up and scatter them away from their island again.

They were home and she wanted it to stay that way—it had taken too long to get to this point.

Still—she knew that while it was a long trip, they could always make it again. The reunion then would be that much sweeter—because this time, they would all be together. She let her eyes drift closed as well, lulled into sleep by the sound of their intertwined heartbeats.