A/N: Hey, guys. So, I'm gonna make this short. You clicked on this because you thought it might be interesting. Hopefully, I don't disappoint. I really don't wanna have to put notes at the beginning of each chapter, so I'll only do it when I think it's necessary (Ex. like at the beginning of the story). Hope you enjoy "The Da Vinci Code". Just kidding. Seriously though, the title's a work in progress. If you guys have a suggestion for me to consider, leave it in a review. Enjoy!

I do not own any of the characters being represented in this work of fiction. They are characters popularized by the Kingdom Hearts and Final Fantasy Franchises and are owned by Square Enix.

The pub was dead. And I mean like in a coffin that's six feet under dead. There were only a few patrons here and there. Regulars, Drunks and the occasional businessman who must have stumbled in by accident after a long day. Kairi looked across the room to the bartender. He was cleaning a glass, but when he noticed her staring, he smiled a bit and gave a look of encouragement. Kairi smiled back. 'Okay,' she thought, 'Here we go.'

She stepped onto the makeshift stage set at the edge of the dining area. A couple of heads looked up and she wondered if their drunken states could even process what was happening. She approached the mic and cleared her throat, signaling for the pianist to begin playing. She did and soon enough everyone in the bar was looking at Kairi expectantly. Her cheeks flushed just slightly at all the sudden attention, but she took a deep breath and began to sing,

"L is for the way you look at me.

O is for the only one I see.

V is very, very extraordinary.

E is even more than anyone that you adore can."

It was a classic. The people in the bar began to smile at her as she lost herself in the music. She'd always loved the old crooners like Nat King Cole and Frank Sinatra, and being able to sing their music was amazing.

"Love is all that I can give to you.

Love is more than just a game for two.

Two in love can make it

Take my heart and please don't break it.

Love was made for me and you.

Love was made for me and you.

Love was made for me and you."

The song finished and she was surprised at the applause that she received. People she wasn't even sure could stand because of the state they were in were on their feet clapping. She began to blush again. She heard someone trying to get her attention to her right. It was her mother, who was still sitting at the piano, "Take a bow." Kairi nodded and did as she said.

"Kairi Leonhart, everyone!" The bartender yelled with a large smile on his face. It's funny. The smile almost made the scar on his face less scary. Almost. She took one last bow before stepping off the stage. People were still applauding her and complimenting her as she made her way to the back where her father was.

"Dad, that was amazing!" Kairi said excitedly.

"Kairi, you were amazing," he said with that same smile on his face. Her dad never smiles so this was a huge deal. She giggled a little to herself as she went backstage to go change back into her waitress uniform. She'd thrown on something nice to sing in, but it was hardly suitable for waiting tables and dealing with inebriated people. After slipping on a pair of worn blue jeans and a white tank top, she stepped back out and started taking orders.

The night quickly died down again after her performance and passed by pretty uneventfully. She did, however, get the feeling that someone was watching her. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a man at the bar looking at her from time to time. Eventually, she just decided to ignore him. But it was kind of hard to ignore the piercing blue eyes and the gravity-defying, spiky, brown hair. He was making her nervous, so eventually she just made up some excuse for her father so that he would let her go home early. After slipping on a light jacket, she stepped out into the night.

The walk home from the bar wasn't a long one. In fact, they'd bought the bar because of how close it was to home. Just two blocks. But at night, anything could happen in just two blocks. She was walking past a side street when the hands grabbed her. They were strong, probing hands that ran up and down her body. She tried to scream, but suddenly there was a hand over her mouth. She looked around frantically and she saw one man in front of her and she could feel another behind her. This was bad.

The man in front had a cruel smirk on his face as he stepped towards her. "That was a beautiful song, Miss Leonhart. I only wonder if we can make you sing again." His hands were moving to take off her pants and she tried to kick him. She managed to get him in the chin and suddenly his face didn't have a smile anymore. "You bitch... Neo, restrain her." She felt the man behind her move and suddenly he was in front of her. He shoved her against the brick wall and pinned her there.

"Shadow. Can I kiss her, huh? She's so pretty..." The one called Neo asked playfully as he started leaning towards her. She was about scream when suddenly she felt the grip on her arms slacken.

"What's the big id- Oof!" Shadow grunted and Neo turned to see what was happening. Kairi looked as well and was surprised to see a man was fighting Shadow and winning. The man delivered a swift knee to his gut causing him double over. He followed with a strong uppercut to the jaw and Shadow fell flat on his back. Neo began to approach from behind.

"Watch out!" she screamed helplessly. The man thrust his elbow back into Neo's chest before turning around and delivering a hard right hook right to the face. Neo stumbled back a few steps and the man took this as an opportunity to hit him with a roundhouse kick that sent him flying into the brick wall where he collapsed. Kairi was shocked. This man had taken down both guys and they hadn't even landed a single hit on him.

"Are you okay?" the man asked concerned. He was staring at her through the darkness with piercing blue eyes. They looked familiar to her.

"I- I'm fine. Thank you," Kairi was at a loss for words, but she managed, "Who are you?"

He stepped into the light. He was a good few inches taller than her. He wore a white button down, a black tie and black dress pants. What really surprised Kairi was his hair. It was the same gravity-defying, spiky, brown hair from the bar. "My name is Sora. Sora Fair. It's a pleasure, Miss Kairi Leonhart."

Sora had escorted her back to her house even though Kairi insisted that she was okay on her own. He was worried about her. He had seen those guys eyeing her up from the bar. They even followed her out, but she seemed too distracted to notice. After the three of them left, Sora paid his tab and left as well. He didn't like the look of the situation at all. By the time he'd gotten outside he couldn't see any of them. Figuring they must have disappeared down a side street or something he started looking down alleyways and around corners.

He finally found them when the big one pinned her to the wall. He made quick work of them, but he couldn't shake the feeling of what could have happened had he been too late. She was young. She didn't need something like that in her life. Sora thought about all this on the way to Kairi's house. In fact, he was so lost in thought he didn't even notice her trying to catch his attention.

"Uh... Sora? Hello?" Kairi waved her hands frantically trying to snap Sora out of his thoughts. "Sora!"

"Huh? What?" he said confusedly.

"What's on your mind?" she asked with a raised eyebrow.

"What? Oh. Nothing." He looked at her and smiled, "I'm just glad your okay."

Kairi felt her cheeks flush slightly. "Oh, well... Uh... That was thanks to you, so uhm..." She quickly threw her arms around him, "Thank you!" She pulled away and walked inside before he could even respond.

He stood there for a few moments with a slight blush on his own face. "You're welcome."

"So, after you took out those thugs and walked her home, she only gave you a hug? That's weak, man," Sora's silver haired best friend finished. They laughed. Riku Masamune stood a few inches taller than him and had long, silver hair that reached his upper back. He had cobalt blue eyes and a very cool demeanor. They'd been best friends since they were kids.

"I'm glad it was only a hug. I don't know what I would have done otherwise," Sora reasoned.

"Uh... Enjoyed the hell out of it?" Riku laughed.

"You know how I feel about relationships. It just wouldn't work out."

"Who said anything about a relationship? You just gotta hit it and-"

"And what?" interjected a familiar voice. Riku's face seemed to freeze in place as a single bead of sweat worked its way down the side of his face. The voice belonged to none other than Riku's long time girlfriend, Xion Kisaragi. She was a few inches shorter than Sora making for a pretty comedic height difference between the couple. She had short, black hair that barely reached the base of her neck and stormy blue eyes.

"And... uh... Apologize right after because hitting is wrong!" Riku said confidently.

Xion simply shook her head as if to say, "Not buying it..."

Sora just laughed, "Don't worry, Xion. I'm keeping him in line.

Xion smiled, "I'm sure you are. I just came over to say goodbye since I'm leaving for my mission today."

Sora raised an eyebrow, "Mission? What mission?"

"I'm going undercover and posing as a member of the Nobodies. They already have one guy there from the TTPD, but they thought having someone else could help them get the intel that they need." The three of them all worked for the Destiny Islands Police Department, or the DIPD. Sora and Riku were not only best friends, but they were also partners in the force. The Nobodies was a gang of criminals that caused problems all over the place. They were starting to rise in power lately, too, so many departments were trying to gather information on the mysterious group.

Riku grunted, "I just don't know why they need to send you. There's plenty of people around here that I'd be much more comfortable sending off into a giant criminal organization."

Xion rolled her eyes, "Yes, but none of them have the same undercover, spy training that I do. This is what I do, Riku. I'll be fine. I promise." She stood on her tip toes and gave him a peck on the cheek earning a smile from the silver haired man.

"Fine. Just please check in as often as possible so that I know that you're okay?"

She smiled, "Of course." At that she gave Riku one more peck on the lips before excusing herself.

Sora had pretended to be very interested in his coffee while all this was playing out, but he had been eavesdropping the entire time. Once Xion cleared the room, Sora looked Riku dead in the eyes and said, "That's why I can't have a girlfriend. This job is dangerous. I'd feel awful knowing that she would be worried about me all the time. My mom already worries enough as it is."

Riku just rolled his eyes, "Whatever, dude. I just think that you're missing out on one of the more refined pleasures of life. At the very least, be friends with her. She seems like a nice chick." And he also excused himself from the break room.

Sora looked out the window at the streets of the small island. Cars were lazily drifting from place to place. It was a very quiet town for the most part. Especially after Sora and Riku had stopped the Heartless the year before. The Heartless was another gang of criminals that had gotten really dangerous in the past. They'd had complete control of entire cities and their presence forced plenty of people, Sora and Riku included, out of their homes for a time. Luckily, they had both recently completed their training and were up to the task of stopping them. It was close and there were a few casualties, but they'd brought down the leader and disbanded the group. There were still a few thugs milling around, but they weren't much of a threat anymore.

Sora was pretty sure that the thugs from the previous night had been ex-members of the organization. They certainly fit the bill: Dark Clothes, living in the shadows and the uncontrollable desire to corrupt the defenseless. He shook the thoughts from his mind. He didn't have time to worry about those guys. They weren't a threat anymore. But it didn't stop him from worrying about Kairi. Those guys could come back. Or worse they could already have her. He hadn't stayed long to make sure that Kairi was safe at home. They could have snuck in later that night.

That was it. Sora would have to go back to the bar. He just needed to make sure that she was safe. There was nothing else to it. Was there?