Hello all! Hope you've been well. This story was inspired by the most recent KH3 trailer, featured at the Tokyo Game Show in 2018. Keyword: inspired. I have no reason to believe any of the following will be true.

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts. If I did, certain retcons would not have happened.

Roxas idly fiddled with Oblivion, tapping it against his thigh. "All hearts return to darkness in the end. I know what she said… I know she said we wouldn't disappear…" Suddenly his now-golden eyes became inflamed, his face twisted into a fearsome snarl, and he slammed Oathkeeper into the ground. "WHERE IS SHE?!" His voice rang out in the still atmosphere, shattering any possibility of a peaceful conversation.

Kairi trembled slightly, her toes digging into the stained glass beneath her. She could feel Naminé crying at the back of her mind, or perhaps inside her heart. Her other self had wept when Xehanort had attacked, back when Kairi fought to protect her fellow Princesses of Heart. At that point, Naminé was distant and couldn't come out; eventually the pair of them realized Xehanort had done something to her, such that Naminé was unable to materialize herself. Not even here, in the Dive to the Heart, where her other self should have been able to make herself known.

That was when Roxas was torn from Sora again, but this time he was turned to the darkness. He didn't seem to realize that Naminé was still in Kairi; he thought she was lost to the darkness too, and that he had to find her. Perhaps he had subconsciously taken his confrontation here, where it was more possible to see her again than almost anywhere else.

Neither Kairi nor Sora could convince him that Naminé was safe, just stuck somewhere.

Kairi sensed Naminé trying to speak, trying to call out, but her voice was distant. She couldn't make out any words, but she could tell the blonde was upset and desperate. Her heart thudded another rhythm; she pressed a hand to her chest, wondering if she was about to die from a heart attack or something, when she realized it wasn't her heart. Naminé was beating against the walls that caged her in, and—

"ROXAS!" her voice projected, at last able to make herself heard. The scream tore through Kairi, making the redhead cringe and curl in against herself.

"Naminé!" he shouted in return, and raced toward her.

Kairi barely had enough time to bring Destiny's Embrace up to defend herself. Oathkeeper's edge tangled into the flowers on her keyblade, and when he pulled back, he nearly ripped it from her grip. She clung on somehow, though, and swung her keyblade while trying to remember all the lessons and techniques she had learned through her journey. "Don't leave me behind!" she had insisted to her friends. "I don't want to be left behind anymore. I can fight this time!" Now she had to prove it, to them and to herself, even though she didn't have much choice. Screwing her eyes up in concentration, she let out a flash of light, causing Roxas to cry out and step back, a hand brought up to his face. It was something she had been working on, using her status as a Princess of Heart for something more than somehow staying alive without a heart. "Being a Princess of Heart has to be good for something! I'll find a way to make it useful, just watch me!"

The distraction didn't work for long. Roxas was enraged even further, and became unrelenting in his attacks. No matter how Kairi dodged, or tried to put distance between them, he always swooped back in and hit her. It was like he felt no pain; he brushed off the magic attacks she sent his way, although she could tell he took damage. The hits she got in with her keyblade were brushed off in a similar manner; just what was it keeping him going? Was it the darkness he now possessed, or was it truly his desire to see Naminé again? In any case, she couldn't think too hard on that idea; she had to keep herself—and Naminé by extension—alive. There would be time to consider everything later, when she was safe with Sora and Riku again.

Thinking of her friends helped her push through, allowing her to shove Roxas far enough away that she could prepare herself. If she could just incapacitate him, she could escape and regroup with the others. Kairi knew she couldn't hold on much longer; she let out a final cry and jumped at him, channeling glowing light through Destiny's Embrace, and aimed at his chest.

Roxas twirled, avoiding her attack, and with Oblivion, knocked her keyblade out of her reach. Kairi tumbled to the floor, her momentum thrown off by the loss of her weapon, but she had no time to scramble away from him or get back to her feet. He had her pinned, both keyblades pointed straight at her. The juxtaposition of her body and her stained glass face underneath her might have been an image worth pondering over, had they been in an art gallery and not in a fight for her life. "Give her to me," he growled, his eyes locked onto her chest where her heart lay.

"Roxas, don't do this," Kairi pleaded, breathing hard. "Naminé is fine, I swear—"

"Shut up!" he snapped, and lowered Oathkeeper to rest directly on her heart.

A voice cried out, "ROXAS DON'T!"

Suddenly Naminé lunged forward, bursting forth from Kairi. Her eyes were wide and tears clung to her eyelashes. Roxas's keyblade was forced aside. Naminé's arms were around his shoulders in an instant, wrapping him in an embrace. "Roxas… come back to me…"

Oathkeeper and Oblivion clattered to the ground. "Na… Naminé?" he whispered in disbelief.

The light that came from Naminé pulsed, thrumming with power as it grew brighter and brighter. Kairi lifted a hand to avoid being blinded by the star Naminé became, but then it dimmed again. She felt a warmth in her heart she couldn't explain; she wondered if they felt it too, but she couldn't bring herself to speak.

Naminé's voice trembled as she spoke, "Roxas, I'm here."

Roxas's arms moved with such speed and ferocity, Kairi briefly thought he was going to hurt her other half, and subconsciously shifted to her knees to get ready to spring to Naminé's defense. But she needn't have worried. He pulled Naminé closer to himself, cradling her in his arms. "Naminé," he repeated, crying now. His head dropped to her shoulder, and his body shook from the sobs he was trying to hold in. "You remembered who I was."

"Always, Roxas," Naminé promised quietly. Her fingers stroked his hair, tears in her eyes. "I could never forget you."

He leaned back and Kairi gasped. The pair of them paid no attention to her, but she couldn't stop staring at the blue in his eyes. Naminé had saved him from the darkness just by her touch. It wasn't like she, herself, hadn't done it before—saving Sora—but she hadn't expected this. All that time, worrying about him and wondering how they could save him, and all they had needed to do was save Naminé first.

Tears trickled from his eyes, pain and sorrow mixed with naked longing. His fingers tangled with hers. "Naminé," he said again, as if to himself, assuring himself that she was in his arms.

Naminé placed her other hand on his cheek, her thumb trying to wipe away his tears. "I'm here, Roxas," she promised him again, her voice brittle.

This broke down the last of his strength, and he crumbled with her in his arms. The pair of them sank to the floor, still tightly embraced. Kairi couldn't remain stoic in the face of their pain—she, too, began to cry, although she tried not to let them see or hear her. She remembered watching the two sometime before, that time long ago, when Naminé asked, "So, we can be together again?" and Roxas answered, "Yes… every day that Sora and Kairi are together, we'll be together." She remembered promising every day, right Sora? and it broke her heart to know that she and Sora had not kept that promise.

"I don't want to lose you again," Roxas whispered now. He sounded tired, and he finally began showing signs of pain from his fight with Kairi.

Naminé simply looked him in the eye. Kairi supposed she couldn't make any kind of promise, and he wouldn't believe something like, "I was always with you." If he had, he wouldn't have gone after Kairi like he had. It made her wonder what Naminé could say to reassure him.

"I lost you too, Roxas," Naminé said. "You… you were lost, and I couldn't do anything…"

"I'm sorry, Naminé—" he tried to say, but was cut off.

"I know," she said simply. "I know, Roxas." She settled against him, and Kairi was struck by how happy her other half was, even after what just happened. It reminded her how she felt around Sora. Maybe being with Roxas made Naminé feel at ease.

Thinking of Sora, and Riku too, made her chest ache. She missed her best friends. And right now, she could use a comforting hug from Sora. The longing in heart made the Dive to the Heart underneath them begin to ripple, and caused the pair to look over to her.

"It's time to go, Roxas."

Kairi felt guilty when she saw the naked panic on his face, but said nothing to explain what was happening to them. "No!" he shouted. "Naminé, no!"

"Don't worry, Roxas," Naminé said gently, laying her head on his shoulder. "We'll meet again, someday soon. I promise."

It clearly meant something to the two of them, because while Roxas didn't look any less upset that they were to be separated so soon, his shoulders relaxed enough so that he could rest his head against hers. "You've always kept your promises."

Naminé nodded. "I have. Trust me, Roxas. Trust in our promise."

The rippling became much worse, and Kairi could sense they only had seconds left here. She almost didn't catch Roxas's parting words, "I trust you, Naminé."

Bright light enveloped them, and then they were brought back to the clock tower of Twilight Town. "Kairi!"

"Sora!" she cried, and despite her exhaustion, jumped to her feet and into his arms. I'm safe, she thought, and sobbed into his chest.

He said nothing, only held her close. They could talk later.

Thanks for reading. Some notes: this is meant to be like two cut scenes and a battle sequence in the game itself. The battle scene was actually supposed to be shorter for that reason! Kairi was always meant to lose, but I tried to give her a fighting chance. I imagine that if this were in the game, once you got to a certain HP percentage, the final attack is powered up and Kairi aims for him, thus ending the battle. Fail to power it up in time, and Roxas overwhelms Kairi so completely, she's knocked down to 0 HP no matter how much she had before.
This story came to me in texts between a friend and myself. I saw it so clearly that I knew I needed to take those texts and expand it.
What did you think of Kairi's POV? It was a surprise it came out that way, but I like the end result.
I have no idea what Kairi's Dive to the Heart would be like. Tell me how you envision it!

Again, I'd just like to say that I have no reason to believe that any of this will happen. I will not predict what is going to happen in KH3. But hey... if by some miracle, I'm close to being right, I'll come back and leave another author's note. ;)