It was amazing to be back in the light. Sora was more overwhelmed than before. Not wanting to really admit to Riku and Cloud his growing doubts wore on him more than the worry for Kairi and the worry for Ven. It hurt to believe they'd never see that light again and he would never catch his breath and he might just suffocate in the pressing darkness. But there she stood… the brightest light he'd ever seen, welcoming him home, bringing him back to Aqua and back to DiZ.

Before leaving Twilight Town, Sora requested a visit with DiZ. There, Aqua spoke to the man, apologizing for not telling him where Sora was sooner. There was a lot that happened all a once. Sora sat with Kairi and Riku on the couch DiZ had brought into the basement as Aqua caught DiZ up on the events that happened. Riku had fallen asleep on Kairi's shoulder, clutching one of her hands as she grasped Sora's with her other. Cloud stood beside Sora, leaning up against the wall with his arms crossed, waiting for them to get moving.

Aqua asked DiZ to look into the Roxas and Xion matter and see what he could dig up about them. Sora frowned.

"You can trust them," Sora insisted from his place on the couch.

"We can't be too careful," DiZ told him. "If they were looking for you three… and knew all of you, then we should see what they know. A boy claiming to be your Nobody… preposterous."

"Not… not really," Sora chewed his lip. "Riku and I… we've been having these… dreams. Naminé said something about digging up alternate memories. She doesn't know where they're from, but… those two do. They're part of them. He was there. And his pain… I've felt it. I've carried it for him. Not me, but that other me, and—"

"And you trust the word of a Nobody?" DiZ asked incredulously, laughter touching his tone.

Sora felt anger building up within. There was no reason for DiZ to act like these Nobodies weren't people! Like they were less than them! Sure, they didn't have hearts, but they could feel pain. They knew what it was like to be human and that was all they wanted. That's what Roxas believed—the one in those dreams. "She's Kairi's Nobody!" Sora almost shouted, jarring Riku out of his doze. "Just because she's different doesn't mean she's bad! And those two… they're proof of what she said!"

"Do you really believe that, Sora?" DiZ questioned, his expression unreadable.

"Yes," Sora replied stubbornly. As much as he loved DiZ, sometimes he drove Sora nuts. He was intelligent, but still so ignorant! He had his beliefs and he stuck by them, even if they were wrong. Well… two can play at that. Nothing DiZ could say would change his mind. He believed Naminé to be kind and that she wanted to help them. Why else would she bring them back from the Realm of Darkness?

"I don't… believe they mean us harm," Aqua interjected almost hesitantly. "Their presence is… unusual. But they have the mark."

"The mark?" Riku repeated drowsily, rubbing his eye with his free hand. He had missed his part of the cycle and been awake for much longer than he was used to. It might have been days. The three of them had to escape from an onslaught of Heartless they could have taken on if they hadn't already used up all of their energies.

"They're Keyblade Masters."

Not wielders, masters. Someone had deemed the two of them fit enough to carry the title, yet, neither of them carried themselves quite like Aqua did. It made things even stranger and created more questions. DiZ promised to keep an eye on them, bringing up data for Twilight Town as he did so. He told Sora, Riku, and Cloud to clean up before they left, pointing to a washroom.

When they were ready to leave to take Cloud to Hollow Bastion, Sora hugged DiZ tightly. He needed the man to understand that even though he was angry, even though Sora and him did not agree on many important things, he still cared about him and he was happy to see him again. DiZ held him firmly, conveying the same feeling.

On the ship, Riku went right to the bunk. Kairi helped Aqua pilot the ship, which she had been teaching her since they started going to Twilight Town to train. She was getting the hang of it, picking up on it with more speed. Next, Sora wanted to try.

The boy faced the blonde man, whose blue eyes watched the stars. He couldn't see his mouth, past the cloak, but Sora had a feeling he was smiling. He leaned back in his seat, watching him discreetly for a while, wondering what he must have been feeling now that he was back in the Realm of Light. He wondered if he was just as overwhelmed as Sora was. Cloud hadn't said much. Maybe it was because he just had about as much of a clue as to what was happening as Sora.

"Hey, you had your own Gummi, right?" Sora asked.

Cloud nodded, not quite looking in his direction.

"Is it still in the Olympus Coliseum?"

"Should be," Cloud mused. "Unless Hades destroyed it. I wouldn't put it past him."

"Are you going to leave Hollow Bastion again?" Sora leaned forward, curious. Now that Cloud had a taste of what it was like to explore the outer reaches of this universe, would he want to see more?

"The only reason I even left was to find Tifa." Cloud folded his arms. "If a friend is in trouble I want to help them."

"Me, too." Sora nodded.

He understood their situations were entirely different. He knew Cloud's desperate need drove him into darkness, while, for Sora, the more desperate he became, the stronger he got. Cloud hummed, a silent agreement to the understanding. "Sora… you know my story," Cloud started, slowly, hesitantly. "If you were in my place… what would you have done differently?"

Sora crossed his arms, thinking his hardest. He had never been in a position like Cloud. It was hard to imagine it. Then again… Sora's friend needed his help right now. He didn't know where Ven was or what happened to him. They had to search and bounce between worlds and try and find him before it was too late.

"Hm… I would have remembered… I'm not alone. I have friends." Sora nodded, deciding that was the course of action he would have taken. That he was taking. "There are people I know who would help me if I only asked. I… wouldn't have shouldered all of that on my own. I might have tried, but… if I felt like it was too much, I'd ask for help."

Cloud didn't respond besides a small hum. He turned away from the brunette, facing the stars. Sora got it. He didn't want to talk anymore. Sora rolled onto his feet to stand behind Aqua and watch her at the controls. She glanced up at him giving him that encouraging smile she gave him when he did the right thing. His heart bubbled with warmth, glad to be able to see that smile again. He was so scared of that world without Aqua, he wasn't sure how much longer he would have lasted without breaking down completely.

He couldn't help but hug her from behind. She laughed, warning him to be careful as she brought one hand up to squeeze his forearm. "I missed you, too."

Sora held her, watching out the glass at the passing worlds. This was so familiar, being in this place, seeing the lanes in-between just like this. It might have been the other Sora—the one that traveled with Donald and Goofy and lost his heart and fought Riku who was possessed by the darkness. He stood like that for a while—until his feet ached and his hunched back grew sore. He enjoyed seeing the sky like this. Sora gave his master one tight squeeze before returning to his seat.

When they finally arrived in Hollow Bastion, Sora was excited to finally see the world Kairi was from. He ran out of the Gummi ship, leaping onto the closest building to take a look. All around them, a wall was built, crumbling in some places. In the distance, Sora could see two castles. One that bore the Heartless symbol and the other, within the walls, was falling apart. He wondered if Kairi lived in any of those castles. Most likely not the one with the Heartless symbol. That must have been where Maleficent stayed and where the Keyhole was. The entire town was ravaged, not one building stood untouched by the dark forced that once invaded this place. At least this world had a sun. He couldn't see it, behind the gray clouds that loomed overhead, but the brightness of the world was enough to say so.

Someone called him from below. He hoped to the edge of the roof, grinning down at Kairi who stood with her hands on her hips, grinning playfully at him. She raised a finger, beckoning him to her. Sora laughed, jumping from the rooftop to land softly in front of her. He took her face to look into her eyes, making sure he hadn't forgotten anything while he was in the Realm of Darkness. Her eyes were just as he remembered them. Kind, blue—almost violet in the right lighting. There was an almost invisible splattering of freckles against her gently sun-kissed skin. Her small nose and pink lips, the bottom one still red from her chewing on it. Nothing changed. Not even that pink that splattered across those cheeks and nose was anything but unpleasant to look at.

"Wow," he smirked. "You're still really pretty."

She shoved him away, playfully punching his chest to push him further back as her whole face turned red. He didn't know why, but he loved to tease her. Anything to get her riled up.

"Okay," a fist came down upon Sora's skull heavily. Not enough to really cause any pain, but enough to elicit a noise of protest. Riku yawned as he spoke, "Enough flirting." He rubbed his eye, still exhausted from only having a few hours to sleep. "We gotta get Cloud where he belongs."

Sora rubbed his scalp, pouting as he turned to Cloud. He was pointedly not looking at them as Aqua covered up giggles behind a hand. The Keyblade Master beckoned them, urging them to follow her. Kairi got in one more punch before running towards Aqua, scowling at the other.

Sora rubbed his arm, snickering. "Why do you guys gotta hit me?"

"Because you need it sometimes, knucklehead."

Sora linked his fingers behind his head as the group walked through the town. There were people rebuilding everywhere. The place was bustling with life with everyone taking part in the effort to restore their lives before the darkness. Sora had so many questions about what people were doing and how they were doing it and what the giant hook was for, but really, only one question sort of nagged at him.

"Hey, what's 'flirting' anyway?" Sora asked.

It took Sora a moment to realize Riku had stopped walking. He turned back to the silver haired boy who was staring at him incredulously, his light blue eyes wide and much more visible through his mess of bangs than usual. He opened a closed his mouth, not quite sure how to answer Sora's question. Did Riku not know what it meant? Did Sora stump him?

Riku coughed, catching up to Sora to pat him on the back roughly. "Ask DiZ next time you see him." Riku said.

Oh. Riku didn't want to talk about it. Sora snorted. He'd ask Aqua or Kairi later. They should know what it meant, right? They usually were pretty good about answering Sora's questions when he asked them, no matter how annoying he knew he could get. He just wanted to know and they were always so patient with him. He was eternally grateful for them and didn't know how to thank them enough. He could ask DiZ, but that would take forever and he might forget about it the next time he saw him.

Kairi shot a look at the boys, still scowling and pouting, pink staining her cheeks. She pointed a critical finger at Riku. "You better not be talking about me!"

"Oh, never, Princess Kairi." Riku waved her accusations away. "I wouldn't dream of talking about you behind your back."

Kairi quickly turned to Cloud, her pout deepening. "Cloud… are you laughing?!" The blonde pulled his cloak closer around his mouth, stifled laughter escaping through his nose. "Cloud, stop laughing! It's not funny!"

"I'm sorry," he turned away. "I'm sorry."

Sora could only grin. Goodness, she was so cute when she got mad. He didn't understand why she was mad, but it was really funny, and if it got Cloud laughing, it couldn't have been a bad thing. He wanted to hug her in this moment and shower her with adoration. It might make her more angry (which he couldn't understand why she responded to his compliments with anger), but he could deal with that. He just wanted her to know how he felt.

They stopped in front of a house that seemed more put together than the rest. Sure, there were a few holes in the roof and a window that was smashed out was repairing itself (how?!), yet it stood firm and steady. It was a bit different than the rest of the buildings; something about it seemed… familiar. Magical.

Aqua opened the door, calling in. She strode in, Kairi dancing in behind her. Riku snorted, following. Sora stood with Cloud who shuffled at the threshold. Sora bit his lip, holding back a smirk as he shoved him forward. The man stumbled, protesting as Sora only pushing him further into the house. He shouldn't keep his friends waiting.

The room went silent. Sora leaned against Cloud, grinning at the four that stood, staring at the blonde. Yuffie, Leon, Cid, and Merlin glanced to one another, eyes wide. Kairi only smiled cheekily, folding her hands behind her back. "Surprise!"

Yuffie cried out with glee, leaping at Cloud who flinched as she swung around his shoulders onto his back to put him in a chokehold. "Why you little—! Cloud! You jerk! You had us so worried! I oughta kill you!" He struggled against her attack, trying to throw her off of his back. She only held on tighter. "You dumbass! You had to try and do things on your own. You selfish piece of—"

"Yuffie!" Sora bounced out of the way as two people came up behind them. Cloud stopped trying to throw Yuffie off, turning to the girls that stood in the doorway. Tifa folded her arms, raising an eyebrow. Aerith shook her head, covering her mouth as a small giggle escaped. Yuffie slid off of Cloud, punching him as hard as she could in the shoulder. Aerith stepped up to Cloud, taking his hands in hers. "It's good to see you again, Cloud. We missed you."

The man averted his gaze. Sora couldn't imagine why he wasn't happier about this.

Aerith stepped aside as Tifa approached him. Cloud hesitantly met her unwavering gaze. Tifa huffed, putting her fists on her hip as she leaned forward to keep his gaze. "You're in so much trouble." She smiled, rolling her eyes. "You hear me? You've got a lot to hear for pulling a stunt like that!"

He broke his gaze from her, trying to turn away. She grabbed his arm to stop him. "You have friends that want to help you. You keep trying to do everything all on your own. You always have. Cloud… I was trying to find you, too."

"I…" Cloud sighed. "I know. I'm sorry, Tifa," He glanced to her. "Aerith," his eyes darted to her quickly before sweeping the room, "Everyone. I… I messed up. I wasn't…" Cloud struggled with his apology, trying to find the right words. He couldn't meet the eyes of his friends. "…Strong enough. I wasn't strong enough to save anyone. I wasn't strong enough to… to ask for help."

Sora could see how hard this was for Cloud. He was a proud man who wasn't comfortable with talking about his feelings. And the one time he became desperate enough to ask for assistance, it was from the wrong person. Yes, Maleficent had helped him find Tifa. Yes, Ansem promised to help him release Tifa from her darkness. But they weren't the people to ask. The people he should have come to were standing before him right at this moment.

Tifa blew air through her lips quite loudly breaking the heavy mood Cloud's apology was creating. She rolled her eyes, folding her arms and eyeing him with a look she often gave Sora when he was acting silly. Like he was a child who didn't quite understand the situation he was in, whether it was good or bad. "Dilly dally shilly shally."

Cloud grunted, quickly lifting his head to meet her gaze. She repeated her baffling statement with more emphasis. "Dilly dally shilly shally."

Sora had no idea what she was talking about. He furrowed his brows turning to Kairi for an explanation. Unfortunately, she shared with him a similar expression. The clueless pair turned to Riku for answers who only gave them a what-are-you-looking-at-me-for-I-have-no-idea sort of shrug. The three glanced to Aerith hoping maybe she could explain. Aerith gave a forgiving smile, folding her fingertips thoughtfully.

"It means… there's not much use in talking about it." Aerith started slowly. "Stop waiting around and do something about it." She reached for Cloud's hand, grasping it tightly. "If you are so hung up on it, stop complaining and do something. No matter what you do or where you go, you know we'll be right here with you. You can always come to us if you need anything."

Cloud gripped her hand back tightly and nodded.

They hung around for lunch, Sora finding himself really craving substantial food. He hadn't eaten since that trail mix and who knows exactly how long ago that was. Yes, in the Realm of Darkness he didn't have the need to eat. He didn't feel hunger, but he missed the sensation and taste of food. He missed the warmth of a hearty meal and the coolness of a refreshing drink. Sora ravenously devoured the food he was given, grinning all the while.

"Hey," Riku started, equally as desperate for a good meal as Sora. "Where's Donald and Goofy? And the king?"

"Looking for Ven," Kairi replied through a heavy gulp. "When we told them what happened, they got a head start. I wanted to try to get my Keyblade back buuuuut this is better."

"You warned them about…?" Sora started uncertainly. Would they know it was Vanitas instead of Ven? Would they be safe?

"When we heard Ven attacked Kairi's father, we figured it wasn't exactly Ven," Aqua explained causing Riku to choke on his drink. "He wasn't hurt. Just shaken up. And… I've fought Ven when he was possessed. We made sure they knew exactly what they might be dealing with."

Riku's eyes watered as he turned to Kairi trying to catch his breath. His face glowed red with the struggle. "Your father?"

"You would know what happened if you hadn't been sleeping." Kairi laughed. "But, in any case, I got to go home." She practically sang. "We left Ven with my parents when we tried to secure Castle Oblivion—mission accomplished, by the way and Xaldin is officially out of the picture. We needed a safe place to leave Ven until you guys came back and clearly, someone had other plans for him."

Sora suddenly didn't feel so hungry. He listened as Kairi explained in better detail what they missed while they were out feeling a sense of dread slowly wash over him. Their home world was back intact. Kairi had been able to be with her family yet she chose to stick with them until the very end. This was, after all, a fight she helped start and had every intention to finish. Sora wanted to see their world and at the same time had no desire to return. He almost didn't want to see the family he had been taken from. The prospect was suddenly made real now that the worlds were restored and it created a bundle of nerves in his tummy, making his lunch churn.

That wasn't the only thing. Because he had been distracted, because he had lost sight of his hope, because for a moment he hadn't paid enough attention to notice the desperate attempt to escape, Vanitas had gotten free. Vanitas had dragged Ven with him—unwillingly and certainly far from ready to be on his own—and was followed by a girl, like that man. Not only that, but who was that man and why was he in Sora's heart?

So many questions and so much to do. Anxiety built up in him ready to burst at any moment. When they were finally ready to leave, Sora almost didn't want to. He wanted to stay in his seat until the nearly eternal feeling passed. It wouldn't happen that easily, he knew. But he felt a little bit better when Aqua's hands were confidently placed upon his shoulders and Kairi intertwined her fingers with his and Riku playfully punched his arm, a challenging smirk spreading across his lips.

His friends were by his side and that was all he needed to push forward.

Oh, god, I'm sorry this took so long to get out. I kind of wanted to write a chapter that was light and fun and I haven't written something like that in a while? So this took forever to get out and I'm so sorry. So, yeah. We needed to get Cloud back to his girls. I was hoping to develop him more, but... that didn't happen. Maybe in later chapters. Most certainly in later chapters. I'm trying to remember what he was like when I played FFVII like a million years ago, but I just remember him being depressed and stuff and I remember being in love with Vincent and Yuffie.

Anyway, there's some fun stuff coming up. Thanks for reading!