Goodnight & Go
" Chapter 001; Skipping Beats "

1999.

Kairi pumped her hand into the air. Her usual determined, sure-of-herself look was resident on her face.

The teacher sighed. "Kairi—"

"—Sixty-four stripes. Since there were eight candy canes and each candy cane has eight stripes, that means you would multiply eight by eight and that would equal sixty-four."

Mrs. Traverse lifted an eyebrow, her finger pressing hard at the word problem on the chalkboard. Her finger's knuckle whitened. The woman was desperately trying to hide her exasperation, for Kairi had answered correctly for the sixth time in a row. It wasn't bad that the girl was correct, it was just the way she went about doing it, with her high-and-mighty attitude.

As if the attitude wasn't enough, Kairi's mouth and reflexes were so fast that the other students couldn't raise their hands quick enough to have a chance to answer.

"All right, then," the fourth grade teacher answered, her gaze wandering over the class. "Can anyone tell me why we didn't need the information abou—"

Kairi's hand shot up. She wasted no time waiting for her teacher to call on her. "—We didn't need the information about the colors of the candy canes because all we needed was the number of stripes on each one to find out the answer. Which was sixty-four, like I said before. And like I said before, eight stripes on eight candy canes would equal—"

"Kairi, I think you should try giving your classmates a chance to answer," Mrs. Traverse interjected sternly, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Why? You wanted the right answer, right? That's what I'm giving you, isn't it?" Kairi pouted.

Olette, who sat a row behind Kairi, looked up from her book and exchanged amused glances with Sora. Pence smiled, and Hayner chuckled lowly as he glanced toward the clock hanging high on the wall, counting the minutes of arithmetic time that Kairi was wasting for them.

Kairi always carried out their mischievous plan flawlessly, especially on Mondays.

Her teacher was growing extremely impatient with the girl, and it wasn't the first time. Her voice held a warning tone. "Kairi—"

"Okay! Sheesh! I am so sorry," Kairi flung her arms into the air, waving her hands frantically in mock irritation. Her classmates started to laugh. Enjoying the spotlight, Kairi continued, her bright eyes flickering at the clock. "I'm sorry that I'm right all the time, Mrs. Traverse. I'm sorry that I'm so cunning—see? I used one of our vocabulary words. I used it right, too. It means skillful. But if you look into it more, it also means sly and even cute. Wow-wee. Aren't I cunning, Mrs. Traverse?"

The entire class continued giggling, marveling at how the nine-year-old redhead could just go on and on firing such snappy yet innocent remarks. The teacher could not get a single word in.

"You know, Mrs. T., maybe we should move on to English and go over our vocab words because the math problems you're giving us are just too easy."

The bell rang.

"Oh, but that'd have to wait until after recess, I guess." Kairi smiled sweetly, sliding out of her seat and smoothing out her flower-patterned skirt. "Since we ran out of time."

A bead of sweat lined down Mrs. Traverse's temple as her mouth dropped open, unable to believe a child had outsmarted her yet again. She growled under her breath, drowned out by the cheers of the class, and watched wearily as the children raced out of the classroom.

On their way to the playground, Kairi and her friends exchanged high-fives.

Hayner took out a small notepad and a miniature pencil from his back pocket and made a mark on a T-chart, deviously saying, "Kairi, twelve. Mrs. Traverse, zee-row."

--

"Eek! Tidus! Hayner! You guys are turning purple!" Selphie wailed, looking up as the seven- and eight-year-old boys hung upside down by their legs on the monkey bars of the playground. She pulled at her hair as the boys simply laughed. Her eyes welled with tears and she cried out, "Y'know, I dunno what I'd do if one of you died!"

"They'll be fine, Selph," Olette assured calmly, closing her book and getting up from the swingset to stand next to the younger girl. "They'll land on the sand if they fall."

Sniffle. "Really?"

Olette put a finger to her lips in contemplation. "Then again, they could still… break their necks, or…" Olette gasped and smacked a hand over her mouth as Selphie began to bawl.

"I'ma beat Hayner this time," Tidus puffed out, sweat coating his face, his legs sore since the moment he'd started hanging. "No way am I gonna back down. Not today."

Suddenly, his light blue eyes connected with Selphie's gleaming green ones, glistening with tears. She was directly under him now, staring straight up, most likely in that spot because she thought Tidus was going to be the first to "die".

"You can fall on me," Selphie cried overdramatically, the back of her right hand pressed against her forehead. She squeezed her eyes closed. "I'll make it so that it doesn't hurt as much. Break my bones instead of yours!"

The rest of the children were waiting for a tragic tune to begin playing in the background of the melodrama.

Tidus' eyes widened as he paled. Sometimes, he couldn't help but let that girl's words get to him. Mentally, it threw him off a little, causing him to begin to slip from the monkey bar. An alarmed look washed over his face; he didn't want to hurt Selphie if he did happen to fall.

"Selph…!" Tidus choked out.

Riku, who had arrived to meet with his younger friends after being released from his fifth grade class, nudged Kairi. She sighed loudly, stepping forward to pull Selphie out of the way as Tidus dropped from the bar. Better one to get hurt than two.

Tidus grunted loudly as his back thumped against the sand, the air knocked out of him. He was left staring silently up past the row of monkey bars at the blue, blue sky. Selphie's face appeared, shielding the blue from his sight. She dropped to her knees next to him, grabbing a hold of him and constricting him in her arms.

"Tidus! Tidus! Are you all right, Tidus?" Selphie embraced him tighter. "Say something! Anything! Don't die on me, please, I'm begging you!"

"… C-Can't… b-breathe…"

Selphie gasped again, immediately letting go of him. Tidus fell back again and wheezed, heaving in oxygen. His friends surrounded him now, including Hayner, who had easily released himself from the monkey bar.

A minute later, when he regained his breaths, Tidus smiled goofily up at his friends, his cheeks flushed.

"Arrghh!" Selphie growled, grabbing a hold of Tidus' slim shoulders, pulling him up again and shaking him violently. She screamed in his face. "Don't you ever, ever worry me like that again! Ever! Do you hear me, you stupid fathead?"

"Y-Yes!" Tidus stammered dizzily.

"Good," Selphie's tone dropped to a mere whisper as she promptly halted her shaking of him. She was as exhausted as Tidus was. She removed her hands from his shoulders, brought her petite arms around his body, and hugged him again without another word.

Kairi and Riku rolled their eyes, Sora and Pence chuckled, and Olette smiled.

Hayner's goldenrod eyes narrowed in slight conniption, and he looked away.

--

'Cause I need to know now, what we've got—!

Britney Spears' latest hit blared from a small, shiny sticker-adorned radio and spread across Bastion Boulevard. Kairi began to strut across her porch, throwing her head back dramatically as she joined Britney in the chorus.

"My loneliness, is killin' me—and I!—I must confess, I still believe—I still believe!—when I'm not with you I lose mah mind, gimme a siiign…" She struck a pose as a sudden, big rhythmic beat sounded before belting out, "Hit me baby, one more time!"

"Gladly," came a voice at Kairi's pink sneakers. She halted her singing as Britney continued the song alone. She veered her gaze downward to stare at the silver-haired boy who sat on her front porch steps.

"Am I that bad, Riku?" she gasped, her hands flying to clutch the area near her heart, melodramatic as always. Her lower lip trembled dangerously.

"I'm not gonna say that your singing's bad, 'cause it's not. It's just, you're even louder than the radio, and don't be surprised if that causes a few headaches, Kairi." There was a small smirk on the boy's lips. He kept his turquoise eyes set on Kairi's spacious front lawn, where the rest of their friends played. "Quiet down, okay? It's gettin' late."

"I'm going to be a professor singer when I grow up!" Kairi flung her arms out, shrieking to her lawn, her voice louder than ever.

She obviously hadn't listened to a word Riku had said.

"Professional singer," Olette replied, too captivated by her book to look up.

"And when I become a professor singer—" She obviously hadn't listened to a word Olette had said, either, "—I'm going to get super stealthy—"

"Wealthy—"

"—And buy my own condomuseum—"

"Condominium!"

"And ponies," Kairi finished, sitting next to Riku on the porch steps.

Her friends sighed in exasperation, but the irritation was soon replaced by smiles.

No one but Kairi, they all thought fondly.

The six children on the lawn were the best of friends, a circle of close companions growing up together—a circle that Kairi and Riku were a part of as well. But, just like there normally would be in a category, there were subcategories. Their friendship seemed to be a chain consisting of eight links—Kairi, Riku, Selphie, Tidus, Hayner, Olette, Sora, and Pence—and, just like subcategories, they always seemed to be divided into tighter groups.

Selphie, Tidus, and Hayner.

Olette, Sora, and Pence.

One group was livelier and prone to getting into trouble, and the other was modest and usually better behaved. Kairi and Riku did not belong to a certain group. They would drift from one to the other as they pleased.

Kairi's eyes had glazed over in a reverie, until her slouched position jerked upright with a start as a squeal of horror easily hammered itself into her ears.

"Golly…!" she hissed, staring in Selphie's direction and growing nauseated when she saw that Tidus was downing a worm. Selphie was evidently cringing. Hayner kept his cool, his thumbs hanging at his pockets, a wide grin lighting up his tanned face.

It was merely another one of those stupid contests between Tidus and Hayner.

Kairi rolled her eyes. Most likely, Hayner had already eaten his worm, and with ease. She quickly averted her gaze after Tidus' steady fingers dropped the worm into his mouth. The tiny hairs on the back of her neck stood on end as she heard another shrill from Selphie and a gagging sound from Tidus.

The eccentric subcategory. The eccentric trio.

Kairi shifted her eyes over to where Olette sat. The swing attached to the oak tree in Kairi's front yard squeaked occasionally beneath the brunette's slight weight. Olette was still reading—Kairi nibbled thoughtfully at her bottom lip; it looked painful to read in the gradual dwindling of sunlight, but she knew that the brainy Olette would read anywhere.

It was how it always was, day by day. Olette would have her nose shoved hard into a book while Pence and Sora lingered somewhere near.

The peaceful subcategory. The peaceful trio.

The kindhearted Pence was trying to read over Olette's shoulder, his chubby face and chestnut eyes bright with fascination as Olette flipped through the pages at an amazingly rapid speed for a nine-year-old girl. The equally kindhearted Sora sat at the base of the tree, his sprightly blue eyes occasionally flickering in Kairi's direction and his small fingers tousling the yellow fur of his dog, Pluto.

Kairi's gaze dropped to Sora on the grass. Their blue eyes happened to lock, and Kairi gave a friendly smile at the spiky-haired boy, lifting a small hand and waving at him enthusiastically. Sora's eyes widened and his round face flushed a hot pink. He hastily waved back and ducked his head down sheepishly. Kairi continued to stare a moment longer, an amused giggle stuck in her throat, and she wondered, quite obliviously, as to why Sora was always so weird around her.

Riku, who had been watching the cheesy exchange between Kairi and Sora, rolled his eyes.

It was twilight.

"We all better go home, you guys." Riku finally broke the comfortable silence. He stood up and walked down the rest of the porch steps. He looked back at Kairi, smiling fully for once. "See you tomorrow for your party, Kai."

Kairi's heart fluttered at the thought of her party the following day. "Okay!" she chirped. "I promise you, it'll be strumpendous!"

"Stupendous."

The rest of her friends also started on their way to their nearby houses.

Pluto barked.

"Bye, Kai!"

"Bye-bye, almost-birthday-girl!"

"See ya, Kairi."

"Goodbye, Kairi!"

"See you soon!"

"… It's your birthday tomorrow? Naw, just kiddin'! I'll be here!"

I must confess—

"Ta-ta, everyone!"—That my loneliness—"I love you all so much!"

—Is killin' me now.

--

"I hate being a kid."

Kairi wasn't allowed to say that phrase anymore. But she still said it when she wasn't around any adults. I hate being a kid, I hate being a kid. Her grandmother had disapproved of it, and had always told her that that was naughty talk for a little girl like her. Thus, the words were forbidden. Grandmother's house, grandmother's rules.

'Life is too short for you to hate youth,' Kairi's grandmother had informed her.

'… But, Granny, I thought… I thought life was supposed to be the longest thing you ever did?' had been Kairi's inquisitive and indignant reply.

'My, you're much too philosophical for a nine-year-old…'

Kairi currently examined herself in her body-length mirror.

Short. Petite. Sky blue eyes. Bright, rosy cheeks. Bright, rosy hair. A frown of dissatisfaction.

"I hate being a kid," Kairi repeated, attempting to sound older and more mature. It didn't work. She still sounded like a little girl… a little girl with restrictions. "If only I was… older. A lot older. Like, sixteen. Or even seventeen."

She glanced at a magazine of teen models on her pink bed.

"I wouldn't be so flat, either."

Kairi was at her window now, pushing aside her cotton candy pink curtains. She unlatched her window and opened it. The tiny pinwheels taped to her windowsill began to twirl celestially in the eight o'clock breeze, filling the room with faint, glitzy rainbow flecks and twinkles. Kairi's handmade wind chimes—shards of colored glass strung together with old string—dangled from the ceiling and clunk daintily together, playing out gentle and lazy tinkles.

Night had fallen and taken its reign over the sky. Nights on Bastion Boulevard were equivalent to mystical spells for Kairi… when a heavy and dark curtain of gloom fell over the cul de sac, when the sounds of day were hushed, when the crickets came out to croon, when an endless sheet of glitter stretched across the sky and rendered anyone gazing out of the window speechless.

Tiny, tiny stars. Millions. Like sparkles. Like fairy dust.

"Like wishing dust."

Kairi's hand reached up toward the dark sky, toward the shimmering stars—and her fingers stretched and quickly balled into a fist, as if she was grabbing a handful of "wishing dust". She kept her fingers in a fist as she turned around and climbed into bed. Once she was under the covers, she stared at her hand before slowly opening it, palm flat out.

"I wish…"

Her pale lips neared the skin of her hand.

"I wish… that I was a hecks of a lot older!"

She shut her eyes and blew the imaginary magic sparkles from her palm. After a dramatic pause, she hacked out a cough, opening her eyes and waving her hand in the air as if something smelled.

"Jeebus! That magical wishing dust stuff is intense!" She coughed again, patting her chest before settling back on her pillows. She grinned. "Mrs. Traverse would be proud…" She yawned, her eyelids growing heavier. "I used a vocabulary word… how very… cunning… of me…"

Slumber.

--

Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday, dear Kairiii—

Kairi awoke with a start. The singing voices in her head were immediately cut off. She stretched her arms overhead, blinking the sleep out of her bleary eyes. Sunshine spilled into her room like a golden gift from the sky. Her bedroom window had been left halfway open, and the morning air traveled merrily inside, animating everything in her room.

"… Happy birthday to meee," Kairi sang out the last line as she yawned hugely, climbing out of bed.

She froze, her vision blurring over in confusion.

"Ahem…!" Kairi's facial expression contorted. She cleared her throat multiple times before hesitantly murmuring, "Happy… birthday…"

Kairi gasped. Even her gasp shocked her.

What happened to my voice?

Before anything else registered in her mind, she stumbled clumsily to her nightstand, grabbing a nearly empty glass of water and gulping it down. She took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and shouted—

"—Happy birthday!"

Kairi's eyes flashed open, widening so much that it hurt. She hurried over to the wall where her mirror was—where her mirror was supposed to be, at least. But instead of her flower-framed mirror, magazine cutouts of glamorous people she had never seen or heard of were plastered all over.

"Golly!" A chill ran down Kairi's spine, and she pressed a hand to her mouth. Her heart going wild and about to burst in her chest, she practically ran over to the bathroom connected to her bedroom and stared—or, rather, gawked—at her reflection.

"Who…"

Kairi's breathing grew unsteady.

"Who…" Her face neared the mirror. Her slender hand touched the glass. "Who am I?" Her free hand went to her throat as she leaned back from the sink mirror. "My v-voice… m-my body…" She trailed off, staring in disbelief at the large amount of perfumes and makeup on the sink's counter.

Still incredibly shaken, Kairi left the bathroom and returned to her room. For the first time, she noticed in shock how different it appeared. Less pink and pastel and innocent—more red and vivid and… mature.

Her pinwheels were missing.

Kairi walked along her walls and what was against it—posters, more magazine cutouts, pictures of her and pictures of people she didn't recognize. She came across a calendar filled with scribbles and streaks of red marker.

She didn't pay attention to the month as much as the year. It was the year that caused her stomach to drop and churn and execute cartwheels. It was the year that caused her heart to swell and throb and skip beats.

2007.

--

Disclaimer: Kingdom Hearts is not mine, unforunately. And Britney Spears is not mine either, fortunately.