Chapter 16 – You're Gonna Be In My Dreams Tonight

Another day, another dollar, another world saved, all thanks to Sora and the gang. As formulas went, it wasn't a terribly bad one. The only issues remaining were the trip back to the Gummi Ship and what to do with Mira.

Mira had ideas on the latter topic.

"Have I told you how great you guys were back there?"

Donald answered, "A few times. Yes."

"Well," said Mira, "I want to tell you again. That was magnificent. I can hardly believe I got to see such brave heroes overcoming such incredible odds to save the beautiful princess. Can you believe it?"

Sora rubbed his hands on the back of his neck. "We're a little bit used to it by now. You know, dashing in to the middle of a hopeless situation, easily disposing of the bad guys, and saving the day. We're professional heroes."

"Junior her—" Goofy said before Donald smacked him.

Mira practically swooned. "And I get to see you do it. I must be the luckiest girl in the world."

The group walked in silence for a bit after that. Sora didn't feel like talking. Thoughts of Dakota Castle, the Heartless, and the excruciating musical torture he'd witnessed had already departed his mind. After all, they weren't so much more unusual than the flying pirate ships, planet-sized whales, Greek warrior tournaments, talking flowers, and dancing pumpkin kings he'd seen elsewhere. The world's events just weren't significant in the long run.

No, the only things on his mind on the way back to the ship were memories of Kairi. Kairi, teasing him by making him gather up materials for their raft. Kairi, tantalizing him with thoughts of running off alone and leaving Riku in the proverbial dark. Kairi, drawn in chalk on the wall of the secret little cave by the beach. Kairi, looking just like Mira.

Uncanny resemblance or not, Mira just wasn't Kairi, and because of that, Sora just couldn't give his heart to her. If he did, Jiminy would never let him hear the end of it, and he had enough ammunition already with the girls Sora flirted with whenever he visited the other worlds. Alice of Wonderland, in particular, caused him a lot of grief.

But Mira wouldn't let go of his arm, the whole way. She gripped him tightly enough that he thought she wanted to pull him down to the planet, to be hers forever. As much as he relished that though, there were still other worlds to save, and if he didn't go save them, this world, too, would disappear.

So would Kairi and Riku.

Of course, when they finally reached the freshly repaired Gummi Ship, Chip and Dale greeted them out front, and the inevitable sweet sorrow happened: Mira leaned in to kiss Sora.

Though an eternity passed in the meantime, Sora pulled his head away.

"But I wanted to go with you, Sora," she said to him.

"I know," said Sora.

XXX

Outside Mira's window, far outside, completely out of range of the naked eye, a speck of a spaceship carrying a disgruntled wizard, a clueless knight, a pedantic conscience, and a milquetoast hero sped through the cosmos in search of a new world to save. Inside Mira's living room, a lonely girl ignored her pack of noisy brothers while attempting to save worlds of her own. Mira knew it was the wrong thing to do. She knew she had to move on. Still, she found herself unable to turn off her Sony Playstation 2.

On the monitor in front of her couch, a spiky-haired boy in baggy pants and a tacky shirt pointed a giant key toward the sky and sealed away another victory, while the locals cheered him on. Mira was the only one watching who just had to cry.

fin