Fragmented Sorrow [Kairi, Riku, Sora]

[Castle]

July 21, 2010

The three of them were together again. Too bad it was under such sad circumstances. On the other hand, it was probably best that they be with each other during this time, now that one of their close friends was gone forever. Grief was easier if it was shared.

The Crystal Fissure was quiet, as it usually was. They were by one of the many steep ledges that overlooked the Maw. Thus far, no Heartless had appeared, and everything was still, save for the wind. Sora didn't mind the liveliness in town, but right now, it felt better to be out here with Riku and Kairi. It seemed like they had a lot to talk about. Naturally, the Champion was high on the list. That much was obvious, but it was hard to know where to start. Any mention of him felt like it would open a can of worms.

Well, sometimes cans had to be opened. They couldn't just sit around and do nothing.

"Riku, do you know anything about the Champion?" he asked finally.

They hadn't had much time to talk since yesterday, so Sora still didn't know what Riku could have seen or done since he left the Islands. Maybe he had more of a clue as to what was going on in the World.

[Aerith]

Time to Talk and Think
--------

While having the support of the RGRC was nice in a way, Kairi was glad Sora and Riku had decided to come out here, away from the oppressive atmosphere. They were the only ones out here, so the air was considerably more breathable. The silence was still heavy, but not nearly as much as it was in the town itself.

Having had about a day to process Mickey's death, Kairi was beginning to think a little more clearly now. They needed to figure out what to do. Not just about the Champion but about this imbalance, too. Were the two issues not as separate as they might think, though? The Champion had asked for her help. If he truly sought the restoration of balance, then she might have helped him.

If he had not taken away their friend, then she might have helped him, too.

Now... she didn't know what to do. She supposed she would do whatever Sora wanted to do at this point. Right now, it looked like he just wanted to talk, so she waited to hear Riku's answer.

[Administrator]

Don't you forget about me... Don't don't don't don't...

Riku had come with Sora and Kairi to the Crystal Fissure because he thought they might need him with them; plus, he was not about to leave when they could be in danger at any point from the Champion of Darkness. Especially Sora; as a wielder of the keyblade, he could be targeted by this man at any time.

Riku felt the pain well up again, but he repressed it. He had to be strong now, for Sora and Kairi. After all, if he wasn't strong out of the three, then Sora wouldn't pick up the slack. And Kairi? Well, she could be stubborn, but she was a softie, just like Sora. The internal comedy helped him to block out the pain, and so he was able to listen to Sora's question.

The Champion? What exactly did he know? I remember what Mickey said, before he... It was still too painful to think of directly, so instead, Riku just didn't think about it. "Before...this," Riku said, his voice low and void of emotion, "Mickey said that he attacked the marketplace here, destroying it; I guess he was able to overpower all of the RGRC. The King also said that the darkness in their hearts was strengthened by the attack, and he wanted me to help them to deal with the darkness."

Not thinking about it helped some, but Riku still stood there, staring off into the Maw with his arms crossed, because some things never changed.

[Castle]

Sora sighed, his shoulders drooping.

"The RGRC told me all about that, too," he said, disappointed that they didn't have any more information.

He glanced at Riku again. That emotionless face couldn't fool him. He was still upset about Mickey, and Sora couldn't blame him. He felt the same way, but he wasn't one to keep his emotions locked up. He just hoped that Riku wasn't secretly blaming himself or anything. If he said or did anything to even imply that, he was in for a big lecture from Sora.

"Well, it doesn't matter. He has to be stopped, and we'll do it," he continued with more confidence.

The uncertainty that he felt before at the Castle of Dreams was almost entirely gone. If the Champion still expected any cooperation from them after what he'd done, he was only kidding himself. Sora unthinkingly looked at Kairi. She had met the Champion face to face, so out of the three of them, she had the best idea of what he was like. Well, on the surface anyway.

[Aerith]

Comfort
--------

Riku told them what they already knew, which didn't amount to much. Too many things were so unclear, and none of them really knew what they were doing. They were, almost literally, stumbling around in the dark.

More importantly, Kairi could pick up on how upset Riku was, which was understandable. She had suspected, even with what little contact she had had with King Mickey that he thought very favorably of Riku. The two had seemed very close, so this was probably hitting him the hardest out of the three of them.

She moved closer to him and touched a hand to his arm. "Riku... you don't have to be brave all the time. I know how much you're hurting, probably more than Sora and I are. Don't think you have to keep it all inside."

[Administrator]

And though you're dead and gone, believe me, your memory will carry on.

Riku looked at his friends and sighed. They were right. He didn't need to keep it all inside. But...still, he needed to be strong for them. He was the only one who could be the strong one, besides Kairi. But Sora's conviction helped. He was always believing so strongly that everything would be right, and everything would be good. The optimism was almost inspiring, though it wasn't.

Looking between his two friends, Riku nodded. "Yeah. We'll beat him. I mean, we haven't lost yet, right?" He laughed, a real laugh, which surprised him, because he still felt the pain of loss keenly. Maybe, just maybe, he could move around the pain. It would still be there, and probably always would be, but he could work as though it wasn't there at all.

Looking over at Kairi, Riku said, "Yeah, I'm hurting. But...I can deal with it later. Right now," he said, looking up at the sky, "we have to deal with this Champion. Once he's gone, then I can have time to deal with the pain." His eyes returned to his two best friends and he smiled, briefly. "I'll be all right, though, Kairi. I'm stronger than Sora; that's for sure." Riku's face took a serious look, but he avoided looking directly at Sora. He knew that the other would just have to smile at that point. And he'd probably deny it fiercely.

But that was just how they were.

[Castle]

It was good to hear Riku laugh. It was a genuine laugh, too, in spite of it all. Sora smiled. Maybe some of his worry was misplaced. Riku wasn't like he used to be. All three of them had changed over the years, and they had all become stronger. Riku was no different. And, if the hurt ever did become too much to handle, Sora would be there for him. Kairi, too.

Of course, he couldn't just let that last comment slide.
"That's strike two for a comment like that," he warned, remembering the time Riku called him a sap in the World That Never Was. But, as Riku predicted, he had to smile. It was stuff like this that he'd really begun to miss while he was traveling alone.

He wondered how Donald and Goofy were doing now.

Sora turned toward the Maw again and crossed his arms.
"You're right about the Champion, though. We'll definitely beat him, but we're not going to do that by just sitting around here. We've got to start somewhere." He thought about it for a moment, and then turned back to Riku and Kairi. "...Any ideas?"

[Aerith]

Out of Ideas
--------

Sora's question was a loaded one. None of them had any real clue as to how to answer it. What information they had was so limited. Did they truly know what they were doing?

"I told you that the Champion wants me to help open the Door to Darkness. Maybe if we tried to find the Door, he would show up? We wouldn't have to look for him, then."

She was out of ideas as to how to go about defeating this Champion. And she felt like she didn't have too much to contribute to any discussion involving the Champion.

[Administrator]

Since when have you been practical, Sora?

Sora, of course, was mock-offended by his comment. Riku knew that the other boy didn't mind it so much because they had been friends since nearly the day of Sora's birth. Of course, Sora was asking around for ideas on how or where to start with beating the Champion. Then came the unexpected part. Kairi had talked to the Champion, and the Champion, for one, hadn't harmed her; for two, he seemed to be interested in opening the Door to Darkness.

What was it Mickey had said? "We need to do something about this imbalance. I saw the attacker of Radiant Garden in Deep Jungle, and he mentioned the Doors to Light and Darkness. We closed the Door to Darkness, but the Door to Light is still open. I don't think re-opening the Door to Darkness would be the best idea, even if it might help restore the balance. But... I'm thinkin' we need to close the Door to Light, too." Closing the Door to Light wasn't a good idea...but, it seemed that the Champion of Darkness wanted to re-open the Door to the Dark.

This wasn't really surprising, as he was a bad guy, but...Riku couldn't help but think there was more to it. Shaking himself out of it, the boy's face grew a smile again. "Since when have you been the practical one? That was always me, since we built the raft, remember?" He laughed, leaning back and putting his weight on his palms. Turning his head to look at Kairi, Riku said, "I don't think that'd be such a good idea. Looking for the Door to Darkness didn't work out well last time. Unless...

"What if we all went together this time? No more splitting up, just the three of us staying together." Riku looked from Sora to Kairi and back and forth again. "We could keep each other safe from the Champion. None of us would worry about the others." It was a foolproof plan, to an extent. This way, the trio wouldn't be separated...again.

[Castle]

Sora smirked a little at Riku's remark about him being practical. "Yeah, I sort of remember that," he admitted, uncrossing his arms to run a hand over the back of his spiky hair. He hadn't thought of it that way. He just said what he thought they needed to do. Though, his question at the end was a reminder that he was still sort of clueless about what exact action they should take. For some reason, his usual gut instincts felt insufficient this time. For now.

What Riku said last made him grin broadly.

"That's what I like to hear. No more leaving each other behind. From now on, we stay a team."

He wondered how they would reach the Door again. Last time, they found it at the End of the World, when most of the worlds were still in darkness. But now...

"But... how are we going to find the Door again? I thought it disappeared after we closed it last time," he said as he remembered.

[Aerith]

Working Together
--------

Kairi already knew the answer to Sora's question. The Champion had made it expressly clear that more than just her was necessary to find the Door.

"We have to gather the other Princesses of Heart. I think that's the only way to make the Door appear again. That's what the Champion said, anyway..."

It was good to hear Riku say they should stay together from now on. Perhaps the death of Mickey had made him realize that it wasn't good for him to be charging off on his own all the time. They were stronger together, and as long as they remained that way, nothing could beat them.

[Administrator]

The beginning of a journey.

Smiling with the both of them, Riku couldn't help but laugh. "You sure we're a team, Sora? Last time, you seemed to want to run off by yourself a lot." Riku neglected to mention that he, too, had run off by himself just two years back, causing the events that led to the Door to Darkness being sealed. And then they were trying to find it again.

Sora brought that up with a good point; they had no idea where to start. Luckily, Kairi had an answer. Gathering the Princesses of Heart would lead to the Door. And, likely, to the Champion. Thus, they had their heading, so to speak.

"What are we waiting for, then? Let's go find the other princesses." With that, he turned to Sora. "Bet I'd still win if we raced." Anticipating his response, the boy held up three fingers, slowly counting down at regular intervals. As he dropped the hand, he sprinted, knowing the other boy would follow close behind, and Kairi would as well. This time, though, they wouldn't be split up. This time...they were a team.