A/n Okay, I know many of you will kill me for not updating on my other stories (aka YEWYD, CoM, etc.) and I honestly apologize. The others have been put on hold because of my sudden inspiration for this story.ducks incase of flying objects I'm sorry, I have had a strange obsession with Kingdom Hearts fics lately, but that does not mean that I will forget about YEWYD...it's my baby!
Anyway, cough, cough I hope that not too many fans will be disappointed with me, although I shouldn't make excuses, so I will punish myself with deranged movies that will make me cry due to a romantic fluff overload.
Also, even though there is a Sora/ Kairi relationship, along with Namine/ Roxas (you'll find out later why) in this fic, the main one has to do with Riku, but with who, I won't tell...Horacio, get that malevolent look off your face! Anyway, please be nice with this one; also, this story takes place right after the ending of KH2 with the letter...right at that point. Now we'll find out what's in that bottle...that wretched little glass bottle that left me with the biggest cliffhanger of my Kingdom Hearts obsession in my life. I had cried. A lot.
Disclaimer: I'm only going to do this once: I do not own Kingdom Hearts or any of the Final Fantasy characters that appear in the game, but I do own the OC that appears in this chapter. Miho is my child.
Now, without further ado, Kingdom Hearts: The Farther Journey.
NOTE: I had deleted this because I thought there was something wrong with it, but I hope it will be okay now. I tend to do that sometimes when I believe I haven't done something to the best of my abilities.
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Chapter 1: The Awakening.
Sora stared dumbly at the rolled-up scrap, repeating the cursive-printed words over and over again in his head. The setting swirls of orange and red set the words on dappled gold paper, making them seem an even bolder ebony.
We need you back.
Four simple words, so many questions. Was Xemnas back? Was Kingdom Hearts once again in jeopardy? Were the worlds once again in mortal peril? What the Hell was going on?
Sora never felt so dizzy as he ran a tired hand through his spiky brown locks. Kairi's dimming sapphire blue orbs questioned him, nagging Sora to his very core.
"So much for going back to a normal life." Riku glimpsed the paper in disdain, rolling his minty green eyes.
"As if we ever were normal." Sora retorted, though smiling slightly at his friend's never-failing sarcasm. A light wind cut through the awkward silence, screaming thoughts echoing through the teenagers' heads, taunting them to no end.
"Well, I hope you guys aren't expecting me to stay behind this time." Both boys turned to Kairi, who had a demanding look that dared to grace her delicate features.
"Oh no Kairi, don't even think about—" Sora was interrupted as Kairi assumed a defensive stance, and a bright, blinding light formed in her hands.
"...Yeah, I forgot I gave her that thing..." Riku grinned sheepishly as they eyed her Keyblade that closely resembled a ribbon-embroidered, over-flowered basket.
"You were saying?" Kairi said triumphantly as she twirled it around like a baton.
"But still, that doesn't mean that you can really fight, and you might get hurt." Sora looked at her pleadingly, while Riku scooted away from him, getting out of the ever-threatening line of fire. Sora was definitely going to get an earfull from the pink-clad young woman now.
"Sora! I'll prove to you that I can fight; watch, I'll spar with you!" Kairi lifted the weapon in front of her in an offensive stance, determination striking her face, while Sora gave Riku a look that said: Help me.
"No way man, you got yourself into this mess; I'm not saving your butt if she kills you." Riku folded his arms and smirked as he leaned back against the papou tree, amused.
"Fine." Sora felt the Kingdom Key form in his hands as he prepared to battle Kairi.
"Okay, don't hold back..." Kairi stepped back, ready. "I mean it Sora."
"Right."
Both teens dashed at each other, continuous clanks and clashes of metal resounding across the sand.
Kairi fell back, staggering slightly from the impact of their blades but recovered. Sora ran forward, about to hit her and end the battle but she dodged his blow at the last second. Thank goodness it didn't hit her; the impact would have crushed her, as it left a crackling crater in the sandy ground. She stared at slight shock, trembling as she took in Sora's calm but smirking face as he pulled up his blade and pointed it at her menacingly. Her eyes widened; he was actaully taking her request to heart.
She would have been moved beyond words if she weren't so busy trying to dodge his blows.
"C'mon Kairi! You wanted to fight, but you're just running away!" Riku yelled, purposely ticking her off so that she put in more effort.
"Quit it Riku!" Sora yelled as he tried to block Kairi. She took advantage of his momentary distraction and threw her blade at him in a last attempt effort to hit him. Sora yelled out in pain as it grazed his arm, leaving a long, bloody gash.
"Oh my gosh! Sora, I'm so sorry!" The red-haired girl ran to Sora in concern, kneeling beside him. Sora grinned mischeiviously, while the red-headed girl looked at him in mild confusion, about to reprimand him for having an injury and then smiling like it was nothing. How dare he--
"Heal." He said simply, and his wound closed up in an emerald light, good as new.
"Huh?" Kairi examined his arm in wonder.
"Gotcha!"
Kairi barely had time to react as Sora knocked her back. She stumbled and tried to regain her footing, only to have Sora pin her down with his blade in less than a nanosecond. She blinked in momentary surprise, just before blushing at the distance between her face and the brunette-haired boy. He chuckled slightly, his laugh a low rumbling that sent vibrations up her spine before her face turned sour and pouted.
"Hey, no fair! You cheated Sora!" Kairi struggled against the weight of the key, as Sora kept trying to hold back his laughter.
"Not my fault you were so gullible!" Sora grinned stupidly as he stood up, his Keyblade disappearing. She pouted and stood up as well, her arms crossed and glaring at him.
"You have to admit Sora, she ain't half-bad. Kairi's quick to learn, and she has plenty of raw talent. Someday, she just might beat you." Riku stated as he made his way towards his friends. Kairi smiled as she rubbed the back of her head, being the modest girl she was.
"But..." Sora started, but Riku hushed him, leaning close to his ear.
"Besides, I don't think you'll wanna leave your girlfriend behind...she was kidnapped last time, remember?"
"I heard that Riku." Kairi said, though slightly pink from the 'girlfriend' comment. "Which is precisely the reason why I'm going with you guys, whether you like it or not!"
"Fine, but don't blame come running to me when Heartless or Nobodies or a deranged, rabid pineapple in a cocktail dress comes and attacks you!" Sora said aggravated as he walked back towards the boats. Kairi's face flashed in determination, though Riku caught a bit of dissapointment in her eyes.
"Don't worry." Riku said, putting a comforting hand on her shoulder. "He'll come around...he's completely powerless without you."
Kairi smiled in response, a silent thank-you to the silver-haired youth before she turned to the direction of the boats, new vigor shining in the glow of her genki attitude.
"Hey, you'll be running to me when your mom finds out you're leaving again on some life-threatening adventure!" Kairi yelled after him, following him to the docks.
Riku rolled his eyes at their extremely obvious, though shameless flirting. He ran a hand through his silver hair and stared at his two friends in the distance, who were now unwaringly holding hands. Riku sighed and look out towards the horizon, a sliver of gold now dipping behind the crystal water against a swirling backdrop of blue and orange hue.
The soft ocean breeze teased his hair as his eyes danced with hints of emotion. Despite his cool, calm, and collected nature, Riku wasn't completely cold and neutral...but right now, his weakness was apparent if anyone were to look deep into the cool, green depths of his eyes:
They echoed loneliness.
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Later that night, Sora laid back in his bed, thinking over the day's events. He leaned back into the pillows, closing his exhausted eyes. Under his eyelids, Kairi's face blithely smiled at him...the same smile she had given him when he returned to their island...
He sat up suddenly, an uncomfortable warmth rising in his face. Sora looked back in his rough, callused hand, the same one Kairi had laced her delicate fingers in.
"Jeez, I can't stop thinking about her...Duh, obviously." He rubbed his face in his hands in a vain attempt to soothe his inflamed cheeks. He sighed, then glanced outside his window towards the island...
"Huh?"
Sora saw a bright multi-coloured light float towards the island on the southern side. Blinking in surprise, sudden realization hit him. Hard.
Tossing off his sheets in a flash, he rushed around his room, tossing various items into a worn black backpack by his dresser. When he was done, he stood up to leave, backpack in hand, until he realized that he was still in his pajamas, which by the way looked like they were two sizes too small for him, and were blue patterned with clouds, though that's not completely relevant.
Sora groaned, got dressed in five minutes, wrote a quick note for his mom (who would probably tear the house down in rage for not cleaning his room again before he left, but he was going to go save the worlds...again...so it didn't really matter), and ran out the door to get to Riku and Kairi.
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"So Sora, not that I don't like sneaking out of my house at one in the morning due to you throwing pebbles at my window to go to the island, but what made you think that Kairi was going to take it well?" Riku asked his friend who was rowing the boat while trying to soothe the bump Kairi had given Sora when they snuck to her house.
Apparently, waking up Kairi in the A.M. to go on yet another quest, is not at all pleasant thing, especially when she has a beauty mask on and that the pebbles thrown at her window accidentally hit her head. She came down, saying nothing, until she pulled a hairbrush out of her backpack and hit Sora across his forehead.
"He put a crack in my window, and probably my skull too." Kairi had retorted in her defense, holding an ice pack against her head.
"Yeah, but it was an accident. You are so abusive Kairi." Sora pouted as he continued rowing. Kairi smirked, a rare thing on her usually cheery face, but continued to look malevolent as she poked Sora on the sore spot, causing him to howl in pain.
"You two act like an old married couple." Riku smirked, until Kairi hit him with her brush, while Sora was trying to hold back his giggles. Both teens were blushing though, and once again Riku rolled his eyes at their obvious attraction for each other.
Once they reached the docks, they ran across the beach towards the southern end. Sora's face broke out into a smile when he saw a familiar fowl reprimanding a dog-like man for doing something...goofy (A/n me no good with puns).
"Donald! Goofy!" Sora yelled as he ran towards his two comrades, tackling them with a hug.
"Sora! Good to see ya!" Goofy said as he stood up.
"Sora! No time for that! Save that for when we get to the Radiant Garden!" Donald said authoritively, even though he tried to hide his glee to see Sora.
"What are you talking about Donald? What's going on?" Sora exclaimed.
"No time! Get on the gummi! The King has to see you immediately!" Donald said as he pulled the three teenagers, one by one, into the ship, despite their complaining for rest and food.
"Wow!" Sora yelled as he entered into the cockpit. Even though it had been a period of only a few days, weeks maybe; he sorta lost count of how long it's been, Donald and Goofy made some upgrades for the Gummi, making the rocket seem even cooler than ever..
"Ya like Sora?" Goofy said as he stepped in front of the amazed teens who threw their things down and explored the cockpit, like little children in a candy shop.
"This is awesome! It's bigger than last time!" Sora said as he sat in the captain's seat, ready for lift-off.
"Yeah, and you should see the cabins and kitchen!" Kairi emerged from a door towards the back, holding up a bowl of strawberries that she began eating, the sweet, tart flavor flowing down her throat.
"Hey! Those are mine!" Donald yelled as he stomped towards Kairi. She stuck her tongue out at him, and dodged Donald towards Riku and Sora, whose stomaches rumbled loudly.
"Want one?" She asked the two boys who neglected to eat before they left. They nodded eagerly, and popped a couple of strawberries in their mouths, chewing noisily.
"Thanks, that should hold for a while—" Sora's stomach growled loudly, a sound equivalent to an explosive bark of Cereberus in the Underworld, and he blushed heavily, as everyone stared at him, wide-eyed. Even Riku looked terrified, of his friend's hunger, and he isn't easy to shake up. "Hehehe...sorry."
"You can eat when we lift off!" Donald replied sternly, tapping his foot.
"But Donald..." Sora whined.
"Now sit down in your seats lady and gentlemen! Cause we're lifting off!" Donald said as he hopped into his seat and fastened his seat belt. Sora sighed and sat down grudgingly, while Kairi and Riku sat in theirs.
"Now, can you inform us of the situation? It's kinda annoying and is making me anxious..." Riku inquired as he leaned his head against his fist, seemingly bored, but also interested in what was so urgent that he also needed to be dragged along.
"Now, Donald told ya, we'll tell ya at the Radiant Garden." Goofy said as he pressed some buttons on the control panel. The door slammed shut, and the entire ship rumbled.
Everyone felt the ship lift into the air, sand stirring outside on the beach. Sora looked outside the window, his island floating on the horizon. He pressed his hand against the glass, a small wave of sadness washing over him.
Riku glanced at his friend, sensing his grief. He shook Kairi who was nodding off, and motioned towards Sora. Kairi looked at the spiky-haired youth, and reached over to grab his hand. Sora looked at her in surprise, but then visibly relaxed as she smiled at him.
"Blast off!" Yelled Donald, and the ship propelled into the sky, a blinking sparkle on the navy blanket.
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King Mickey tapped his foot in anxious impatience in the large hall of the building that was once called the Hollow Bastion. Since the first adventure, the building had been covered in a thick layer of dust, with the bright blinding colours muted in grey, untouched as though tainted by the previous year's events. The Hollow Bastion restoration commitee left it that way, as though afraid of touching it, even when the Door to Darkness became inactive. The large portal to the sacred keyhole, however, was a multi-coloured spectrum of light; a light that should have gone out when Sora sealed the Heart of the world.
"Your Highness! Your Highness!" King Mickey turned to see Donald and Goofy running towards him, with three cranky, tired teenagers following them. They saluted before him, while Sora half-heartedly gave a feeble salute then yawned.
"Waz-z up?" Sora rubbed his head, then stretched out all the kinks in his muscles from the trip. King Mickey chuckled to himself, but then his face turned serious.
"Welp, I know y'all are tired, but right now, I need ya to come with me towards the portal to the keyhole!" King Mickey ran up the stairs to the balcony, and the others followed in pursuit.
The Door had changed from it's multi-coloured light to a bright-blue light, slowly forming into an orb as it pulled itself from the wall. The portal turned to stone, but the blue orb floated high above their heads, much to the confusion from down below.
"Why is it doing that?" Kairi asked as she continued to watch the light.
"We don't know, but we figured it be best to have all the Keyblade Masters here incase something were to happen." King Mickey said, summoning his golden Keyblade and his gloved hands, standing ready.
Sora shot a worried glance towards Kairi, who thankfully didn't see him as her own Keyblade made an appearance in her shaking hand.
Suddenly, the orb made a humming sound, as though a thousand heavenly voices were within it. The orb floated towards the ground, increasingly vibrating, shaking the whole building like an earthquake, dust and huge chunks of plater and stone falling from the vaulted ceiling.
"Maybe we should leave!" Donald yelled over the rumbling.
"No, wait!" Riku yelled, as the orb began to disintegrate. The light fell like water to the ground, and the rumbling came to a stop. In the dim light, Riku could see a shivering figure on the ground. "There's someone on the ground..."
"Hey Donald, can you give us some light?" Sora asked the wizard, who responded in making the tip of his staff burn bright with magical flame. The whole room filled with light, illuminating the figure.
On the broken tiles of the floor, lay a girl, probably around their age, with messy, spiky reddish-brown hair. Slowly, she stood up, her white dress wrinkled and soiled with dust. She stared at them with bright, blue eyes, as bright and beautiful as a crest of an ocean wave.
"Someone approach her..." Whispered the King. Sora nodded, and cautiously walked forward.
"Hey, are you okay?" Sora reached out to her with a hand. She glanced at his hand, then looking at him, unsure of what to do.
"It's okay...it's alright...don't be scared." The girl timidly stepped forward, her expression blank. She gently touched his hand, then grabbed it.
"Okay...and, um...oh yeah, my name's Sora..." Sora said as he carefully pulled the girl towards the group, but she held back. Sora looked back at her, his face blank as she stared at him, as if remembering something.
"Hey are you—" Sora didn't get the chance to finish, because he was thrown against the wall, much to the surprise of everyone. The girl continued to look at him blankly, holding out her hand as a bright light formed in it...
"No way..." Kairi said as she saw a Keyblade form in the girl's hands, but was none like she had seen Sora ever have. It had a huge heart on the end, and was in a swirled pattern, with a encircled heart as a keychain. She felt something tug at her heart as the girl held an offensive stance that seemed familiar...
Sora muttered under his breath, something about, 'Things can never be easy...', and held his Keyblade in his hands. He pulled a keychain out of his pocket, and clamped it to the end, turning the blade into the Oathkeeper. Both teens flew at each other, with Sora dashing towards the girl, whose expression was blank and emotionless through the whole time, flickered with slight determination.
Right, left, right, jump up, dodge...Sora was able to dodge with ease, and knocked the girl back, who stumbled but regained her balance. On instinct, Sora ran forward, about to hit her, but she dodged the impact before it crushed her.
The girl stopped for a split second, as if hearing someone, then glared at Sora. Sora stared at her, confused, but then she threw her blade at him. Sora's eyes widened in realization, and dodged in the last second. The girl's eyes widened as Sora ran to the girl and pinned her down to the ground.
Kairi watched the whole skirmish in concentration. Realization hit her as she realized the girl's moves were the same ones she had used against Sora when they fought. As Sora pinned the girl down, his face set in determination, she couldn't help but feel jealous that he fought harder with this mysterious girl than with wtih herself.
Suddenly, the girl pushed her feet under Sora and kicked him off, landing on his feet a yard away. Sora held his Keyblade in front of him defensively, when the girl's Keyblade disappeared in her hand and just stood there, her face back in her expressionless state.
"Sora!" Sora turned to see Kairi running towards him, concern in her eyes. He sheepishly grinned at her, then turned to the spiky red-head, who continued to stare at them.
"Who does this girl think she is? Challenging the Keyblade Master?" Donald said menacingly as he held his staff before him. Goofy held out his shield, also looking at the girl with a peculiar expression on his face. The girl stepped back, shaking as tears fell from her crystalline eyes.
"Well, now what do we do?" Kairi said, watching the girl with pity. "Look, she's crying..."
"Who cares? She tried to kill Sora!" Donald said angrily.
"I get the feeling she didn't mean it..." Kairi said with new confidence in her voice as she stepped away from the group and towards the girl, who was sitting on the ground, her face in her hands. She lightly touched the spiky strands of the strange females' hair, motherly in a sort of way that quieted the girl's sobs.
"It's okay..." The girl looked up at Kairi, who smiled down at the girl. "It's alright; no one's going to hurt you..."
The girl nodded slightly, and stood up to meet Kairi's gaze.
Bright blue met deep sapphire as the two girls stared at each other in equal height. Tears continued to flow from the girl's eyes, though they were slow and decreasing. Suddenly Kairi grabbed the girl's hand, and gently pulled her towards the group, who watched her movements with wary eyes.
"It's okay, she won't hurt anyone." Kairi said understandingly as the girl hid behind her. The guys slowly relaxed, and the girl looked curiously at them. After she emerged from Kairi's back, she fainted. Kairi bent down beside the girl, worried.
"It's okay, she's just fainted." King Mickey said when he saw Kairi's worried look. She sighed in relief, and looked at the guys. The guys looked back at her in confusion, and her face turned furious at their ability to be so clueless and ignorant.
"Help me with her!" She shrieked angrily when they continued to stare at her. The guys jumped at her sudden anger, then bent down to them.
"Who is she?" Donald asked Kairi.
"She didn't give her name—" Sora started but Kairi interrupted him.
"Her name is Miho." She said suddenly, still looking at the girl.
"How can ya tell?" Goofy asked as he stood beside the king.
"I don't know. The name just popped into my head, and I get the feeling that's her name anyway." Kairi responded as she brushed a few sweaty spiky strands from the girl's forehead.
"Well, we better get going. I had Leon and the gang set up some extra rooms in Merlin's house for us to stay for a while, but we'll bring Miho with us." King Mickey said as he looked at the girl on the floor, a peculiar expression on his face. Everyone nodded in agreement.
"Hey Riku," The silver-haired boy turned to Kairi, who was still beside the girl. "Can you carry her? I don't think I can drag her all the way to Leon's place..."
"Sure Kairi." Riku said as he knelt beside the girl, slipping his arms under her knees and her shoulders, carrying her bridal style. Miho whimpered slightly in her unconsciousness, and leaned into Riku. His green orbs widened, and Kairi saw this, and giggled.
"What?" Riku asked, turning to Kairi's slight smirk.
"Nothing Riku." Kairi smiled, and turned to catch up with Sora who was waiting at the staircase. Riku rolled his eyes, annoyed by Kairi's behavior, readjusted his grip on Miho, then followed Sora and Kairi down the staircase.
A/n Okay! This is the first chapter of The Farther Journey. Like I said, this story does not mean I'm quitting on YEWYD or CoM. That would be a sin on my part. So I hope you'll treat this story right. Also, please review, because that makes me a very happy writer and all constructive critism will be taken to heart. Flames will be used to roast marshmellows. I hope that deleting this story once will bring more reviews, and I'm determined to update my other stories as well. Don't think I won't take your reviews seriously; just ask ShadowSeer, who is the most loyal reviewer I can ever ask for...'sniffs' and he's cool.
Remember what I said about reviewing!