Flying

- "Thank you for choosing Highwind's Charter Services."- A man says good-bye at the people descending the seaplane- "And have a nice stay at the Destiny Islands!"

- "Good-bye, Captain!"- replies a little girl waving back.

Once his last passenger is gone, the pilot gets ready for the journey back home. As he sits down inside the cockpit and starts the engine, he notices that the sun has almost set in the horizon, accompanied by the first few stars. A goofy grin illuminates his tired face.

At first glance, anyone could affirm that Sora is no longer a child. A couple of wrinkles have appeared around his eyes and some silver threads can be found among his still unruly brown spikes. He no longer frequents the smallest island in the chain nor he spends endless afternoons swimming and playing with his friends. He now has a family to support, bills to pay, a pilot license and a small transporting business that covers all his expenses.

But every night, just as the seaplane takes off, Sora turns back into a child as he finds himself floating close to the clouds. He might be too old to fly freely among the stars, as he used to do with the help of some fairy dust and a happy thought, but piloting his seaplane brings him back the same sensations of happiness, freedom and joy he once felt many years ago.

He grins as he remembers the shocked face of his instructor during his first lesson at the flight academy. You are just a kid! How did you learn to fly an airplane? - He had exclaimed after the twenty-year-old's smooth landing. Sora had just rubbed his neck and said that it was beginner's luck, not bothering to explain that he had had his real first lesson years before, full of sharp turns and sudden drops that had made poor Goofy's face turn into a nice shade of green. And let's not forget the several times he had crashed the gummy-ship in some distant world!

Sora closes his eyes for a moment and he can almost hear Donald's mumbling as he studies a map and Goofy's sweet voice as he tells him a story about the time he had set a ghost hunting agency with Donald and Mickey (before he had become King) - You know, Sora, our only clients were some ghost folks who were bored because no one had visited their place in years...

Night has already fallen as the aircraft begins its descent towards his home island. The sky is covered with stars that twinkle as if they were saying greeting the former Keyblade Master. Sora smiles and waves at the worlds he once visited, an old habit he has acquired with the years.

But no star is as bright as the smile of the small boy who's already waiting for him as the seaplane alights on the water.

- "Daddy, may I?"- He asks taking his father's hand.

Sora nods, and the child's eyes twinkle as they scan the sky- "I want that one!"- He exclaims, pointing to the horizon- "The second one to the right!"

- "Oh... that's Neverland! Have I told you the story about the time I was there?"

The boy shakes his head and the man grins- "Really? Well, let's see... It all started when Donald, Goofy and I landed on a pirate ship. Donald was worried because..."

And that way, just as every night, a young boy and a man with a child's heart walk back home.

THE END.