Author's note: The reviews were lovely. Many thanks! Ah, and more importantly: I noticed that very many of you said this story is "cute" or "adorable", which is fine for now, really. But I want you to know that there will be drama and possibly tragedy in later chapters, so don't expect fluff the whole way through.

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The greatest pleasure of a dog is that you may make a fool of yourself with him, and not only will he not scold you, but he will make a fool of himself, too.

- Samuel Butler

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Definitely Maybe

Being human was difficult, Sora had to admit, especially this kind of alter ego he had created, but not once had he thought that other dogs would become human along with himself. Perhaps it was luck that made this so; or maybe, everything wasn't as good as it seemed.

At least I'm not alone, he thought as he exited the house, quietly closing the door behind him. Roxas changed, too. I hope he has an answer for all of this.

He highly doubted this, regardless of he and the other's relationship. They had always been close, for Riku and Axel had been friends years before either of them were conceived, and since puppy hood they could remember one another's face and scent. It was a close bond, Sora knew, but he was also aware of Roxas's tendency to "exaggerate the truth".

In other words, he would lie sometimes. But only sometimes, really.

This time was unlike others, though. This was far from being a dispute over who's bone was buried in the old lady next door's rose patches, or which dog chased Demyx into the police station. This was important- possibly the most important thing thus far in Sora's life.

Which depressed the boy a considerable amount. For two years he had been breathing, thriving off of tap water and pieces of dry kibble, but had he really been living? He didn't pause to think about it. There were more prominent things on his mind, and as he made his way to the park, one of his most familiar places, his mind buzzed with a million questions.

When he finally approached the lake, he almost didn't recognize Roxas.

He was standing there beside the water, gazing across the park with steady eyes. His hair was quite messy, Sora noted, chuckling as he put a hand on the boy's shoulder. "Thought you might look different," he said, slightly surprised.

Roxas turned and faced him, chuckling softly. "Thought you might be fatter," he said in a mock tone. He jabbed Sora in the stomach. "What with all the food you eat."

Sora puffed out his cheeks and folded his arms. "Are you saying I need to go on a diet?" he said, frowning.

"No, no," laughed Roxas. "I think we both got lucky with the bodies we ended up with, if you asked me." It was that kind of arrogance that both he and Sora shared.

"Yeah," Sora laughed. He cleared his throat. "Seriously, though. We're not here to joke around, right? You said you know what's going on…?"

"Oh yeah!" Roxas rubbed the back of his head, grinning. "I think I know what's going on. No promises- I heard from a trustworthy resource."

Sora raised an eyebrow. "Who?"

"Squall Leonhart."

"That Leon guy!" Sora exclaimed in disbelief. "What? But he's the one who laughs at us when our pets take us out, or when-"

"Ah, ah," Roxas interrupted, waving his hands in a panicky manner. "First of all, humans are not our pets, Sora. Squall told me that we're their pets, Sora. I don't know if he's right about any of this, but it's as close as I could come to a reasonable answer for this mess. I bet you haven't even tried to find out anything on your own," he scoffed. As expected, Sora gave a nervous laugh and averted his eyes. "Thought as much.

"Well, Leon says that this only happens every so often- once every leap year, or something."

"What's a leap year?" Sora asked.

Roxas shrugged. "'Dunno. That's what he said. He said that every leap year a full moon lasts for longer than any other time- for a week or so. It's been, what, two days since the transformation? Then we should have about five days left, according to what he said."

Five days? Sora groaned inwardly. How am I going to stay like this for five more days? Riku will throw me out- he'll think the real me is dead and get another dog! "Roxas, I can't stay like this for that long. I have to be a dog again! Riku- what if he replaces me?"

Roxas laughed and tweaked the end of Sora's nose. "Silly, I don't think Riku would do that. Do you? Not after the time you guys have spent together. I think it's all out of your hands, anyway. Nothing you can do to stop it, as far as we know."

"Okay," said Sora, "so we know the 'what.' So what about the 'why?' Why did all of this even happen in the first place?"

"Well," Roxas said with a sigh, "that's something I don't know. Leon doesn't know either. It's some kind of supernatural force, obviously, he says. Lasts for a week- and in that time, we lose our canine senses; that is, except for our tongue. We can still communicate with other dogs, Sora! That means we can ask them for any possible info." He paused, then said hesitantly, "But Leon also said that all pets turn into humans. Pets, Sora. I think this doesn't happen to stray dogs or those at shelters."

Poor souls. Sora closed his eyes, shaking his head slowly. "So…how did you talk to Leon, huh?"

Roxas laughed softly. "I've been living with Axel," he explained. Sora was baffled by the slight blush he displayed.

"Could have figured that much," he said.

"And," said Roxas, "Axel talks to Squall occasionally. He said to me, 'This is my pal,' and slapped him roughly on the back." He laughed at this for a moment. "So him and Leon stay in contact, which is good for us, since that guys is obviously of some use."

"Well, did Leon say anything about how to reverse this? I mean, without waiting for five days. That seems like an awful long time to keep up this charade…and I'm afraid that Riku is already starting to become suspicious."

"Reverse? I have no clue." Roxas closed his eyes. "But, once this is all over, we can be thankful to be back to our old selves, right? It doesn't seem like that long of a wait."

"Yeah…maybe you're right."

The sky was black with only a few isolated stars glittering above. Sora took in a deep breath. "Why did Leon even tell you these things? How does he know? Is he a dog, too? Is he hiding something important from us?"

"Don't have a clue," Roxas said with a shrug. "But hey, at least he does, right? We should be thankful for that much. And besides," he laughed, "I don't really think Squall could be a dog. Our 'owners' seem to have known him for a pretty long time. It would be way too farfetched."

Sora sighed and scuffed his bare feet on the dirt. "I guess so." He gasped lightly, eyes widening. "Oh, and Roxas? Who did you ask for over the phone?"

Roxas grinned. "I just asked if a kid stopped by, and the next thing I know I hear your voice."

"Ah," Sora said with a nod. "Makes sense."

o-o-o

"Roxas is missing, you say?"

Soon after Sora left, Riku got a phone call. "Axel…Sora's gone, too."

A sigh on the other end. "Yeah, it's pretty bad. 'Dunno where Roxas could have gotten to, that mangy mutt." Axel laughed softly. "Maybe he and Sora ran away together, yeah?"

Riku chuckled. "Sure, Axel." The clock read 8:46. "But anyways- there's this weird kid staying with me, says his name is Daiki."

"The laundry detergent?"

"What?" Riku laughed. "Axel, this kid is seriously strange. He acts so…inhumane, y'know? I think he ran away from home, really. Maybe he has abusive parents."

"Or maybe he's just a typical teen? He is a teenager, right?"

"Yeah," Riku sighed. "I don't know. There's just something about him that I don't understand. And if you ask me," he added, "he reminds me a lot of someone I know."

"Who?"

Riku shook his head. He ran his fingers through his hair and exhaled deeply. "Nothing. You'd think I was crazy if I told you."

He heard Axel scoff on the other end. "Riku, I think you're crazy regardless."

"Okay…" Riku grinned. "This kid…he really reminds me a lot of Sora."

o-o-o

"Uh…I'm back?"

Sora uneasily cracked the door open and poked his head in. He looked around closely, stepping inside the house with caution. "Riku?" he questioned, closing the door behind him. There were no signs of the other man; in fact, Sora didn't think Riku was there at all. But then, why was the front door unlocked like that? Maybe he went out?

When he turned around the corner, he saw Riku sitting at the counter, twisting on a stool, deep in thought. He was tracing his finger along the edge of a picture frame, in it a lively photo of a man and his dog. The man was crouched over, arm around the dog- who was grinning widely, tongue hanging limply between pointed teeth.

"Oh, you're back," Riku said. "I was starting to wonder."

Sora rubbed the back of his head. "Yeah…sorry 'bout that. A friend of mine wanted to see me, and he didn't know where I was staying, so he just suggested we meet in the park downtown."

"Does he have a place to stay?" Riku asked.

"Yeah," said Sora, "he's staying with some guy. They know each other," he lied.

Riku nodded, still looking at the picture. His gaze was wistful.

"That your dog?" Sora pointed to the photo curiously. Of course it is. Inwardly, he smiled furiously. Because that dog was me. He wondered, how long would it be before Riku discovered his secret? He vaguely knew that things like that had a tendency to go wrong- but he was hoping that luck would be on his side this time.

He was a dog, after all.

Sighing, Riku said, "Yeah, that's my Sora all right." He laughed. "He was such a spoiled thing, that dog. It was almost like he was a person. Sometimes I thought he was, you know? Like, maybe if I thought hard enough, he would start talking to me."

"Was? Where's your dog now?" Playing stupid makes me secure, right? It seemed good enough, anyway.

"He ran away. I don't know why… Daiki, do you think I did something wrong? I mean, I just left to go to work for a while, and the guys called me unexpectedly. It was Sunday- which is the day Sora and I always go off together- and I guess he was angry at me for leaving. When I got home, he was gone. What did I do?"

"Well, uh," Sora began nervously, shuffling his feet, "I've never owned a dog." I am a dog "But, if I did, I'd have to say that Sora probably didn't feel any kind of resentment toward you. Hey, maybe he just got distracted and, say, jumped out the window?" Hah, I would know, right?

Riku shrugged. "Maybe. It's my fault for leaving that stupid window open. I just didn't think that Sora would ever…leave like that."

"Yeah…" Sora chewed on his bottom lip and stared at the ceiling.

"Daiki?"

Sora raised his eyebrows. "Hm?"

"Tell me…" Riku paused and shook his head, scoffing in spite of himself. "…tell me about your family."

"My-- family?" Sora's heart raced, rapidly feeling under pressure. It was, by now, becoming a regular feeling. The questions- they never end, do they? "Well, let's see… Um, my family is…" Lie, lie, lie. "My family's okay, I guess. I mean, they're not great; I'm like you: an only child, but I was never really spoiled or anything."

Riku nodded slowly, as though deep in thought. "Yeah…sounds a lot like me." He gave a weak smile. "We seem to have at least a few things in common. It's better than sharing a house with a complete stranger." He eyed Sora curiously. "Unless, of course…you're a serial killer in disguise."

Sora burst into a laughing fit. "Oh, man, you caught me!"

Rolling his eyes, Riku smiled.

"Anyway, about your dog…" Sora put an arm on Riku's shoulder. "I'm sure you'll find him. Hey, maybe he'll even come back to you on his own!"

"Maybe," Riku said. "Maybe."

o-o-o

"How long do you think I can stay? I mean, I don't want to be a burden or anything…"

Riku shook his head and lowered the television's volume. "Don't say that. I don't think you're a burden; not yet, anyway. Besides," he said, "I like the company. You're no Sora, but I guess you are an okay replacement- for the time being, I mean."

The irony-- it hurts.

"Ah, okay." Sora twiddled his thumbs. "So…does five days sound all right?"

Riku gave him an odd stare. "Five days? Why, do you have to be somewhere?"

"No, not really." Sora smiled. "I just think that number sounds good is all."

"If that's how long you wanna stay, then go ahead. Just don't break anything, okay? And don't touch anything valuable, though I doubt there's anything like that around here."

Sora bowed his head. "Yes, oh great one. I will humbly abide by your rules."

"Oh, shut up, you."

o-o-o

The next afternoon, Sora and Riku found themselves staring across blue waters. Four days. Sora closed his eyes and enjoyed the gentle breeze that stirred in the otherwise quiet air. The park was just as nice on Monday as it was Sunday; and, Sora discovered, it was just as nice on Tuesday as well. So calm, so serene…

"This park is pretty cool, huh?"

Riku's voice stirred Sora from his thoughts. "Hmm?" He opened his eyes. "Yeah, it is."

"It's where I go to think," said Riku. "And I take Sora here, like I said, every Sunday. The lakeside is our favorite place, but it doesn't really matter so long as we're together."

Sora's lips curved into a soft smile. I agree, friend.

"Say, have you ever met a girl named Naminé?"

"Naminé?" Sora repeated. He thought for a moment. "No…I can't say that I have. Why? Who is she?"

"No one, really," Riku replied, and tossed a stone across the lake. It skipped a few times, ripples of water disturbing the surface, before it slowly made it's way into the darkness. "She comes here every now and then. Sometimes I see her standing on the bridge, looking into the waters. It's just so weird…"

"Weird?"

"There's something about her. Something different that I've never noticed in anyone else."

Sora's eyes gleamed deviously. "Ah, so Riku's got a crush?"

"No, it isn't like that!" Riku scowled. "What I mean is… Daiki, do you ever wonder if everything you're looking at is normal? Like, is this all the way it's supposed to be…?"

"…You mean, do I think there's a possibility that the girl isn't like all other people?" Sora fell back into the soft grass. "Maybe. There's no telling for sure, right?"

"Guess not."

"Well, here: next time you see her, tell me, okay? Maybe I can find out why it is that she's so different from everyone else. Who knows, it could just be a hunch."

"My hunches are usually right," Riku said.

If you say so.

o-o-o

"Did you just say Naminé?" That girl- the one Riku told me about!

Roxas nodded. "Yup. That's what Squall told me, but boy, did I have to be persistent to get that much out of him." His voice was curt. "He says that the girl has 'special powers,' or something. Maybe she knows a way to turn us back? It's worth a shot, right? Maybe?"

"Definitely." Sora nodded. "Riku told me about her-- this can't be a coincidence. He said that she comes around the bridge at the park every so often. If we're lucky, we can catch up with her and ask about what's been happening." And I can get back to my old self again.

"Yeah. Sounds like a plan."

"But," Sora said hesitantly, "when do we go? I mean, when to find her? I had to sneak out just after Riku fell asleep to meet up with you, and I really don't want him getting any ideas."

Roxas tapped his foot against the ground. In the sky, a dim moonlight was shrouded by dark clouds. "We'll have to figure something out."

Almost disdainfully, Sora sighed. "Unless we want to wait and risk being discovered, this Naminé person seems like our last chance."

Author's note: Short chapter is short. Sorry about my absence; I was on restriction (and in the meantime, I went back and played both Kingdom Hearts games for what seems to be the millionth time). Expect a longer update next go around.