Text Friends of Heart

[Namine` 28]

So this my first story on KH13, and i hope it goes well! It's kinda long though Enjoy!

Chapter 1: Fated Meeting

I pressed my face against the glass, peering into the display case, marveling at the assortment of jewels, precious stones and metals, and good luck charms. “And I can pick anyone of them?” I asked Mom. She smiled down at me. “Yes, darling. Happy 5th Birthday.” I smiled back, and turned my attention back to the case. So much to choose from, however would I decide? I pointed to a ring. “How about that one?” It was silver, and covered in hearts, stars, and tiny words I couldn’t read. The shopkeeper smiled, “Wonderful choice darling.” As she reached for the ring she whispered in my ear, “This was made in another world! It came down on a meteor shower one night, through the Door to Light!” “The Door to Light?” I whispered. “Yes, a realm of Light!” She placed the ring around my finger. “It fits perfectly!” I squealed with delight. Both my mother and the shopkeeper smiled, a little girl with her first ring, how could one not? “Honey, why don’t you wait outside while I pay for this?” “Okay!” I quickly agreed. Almost nothing could bring me down today. I stepped outside into the brisk air, but it was always chilly here. Were all the worlds cold? I looked up and down the empty streets. Well, almost empty. “No, no, no, no!” I groaned. “Hey, look what the Heartless dragged in!” the boy snickered. “Leave me alone!” I could feel the tears forming behind my eyes. Malive just snorted. “Hmph. I was wrong. You’re worse than those things!” “That’s a lie!” I screamed. I saw my mother look out the window, worried. “Leave me ALONE!” I screamed at Malive, and then I ran down the alley. I heard footsteps behind me, probably Malive and his group of five and six-year-old bullies. I turned down an abandoned alley, and leaped over some crates. I turned around and saw Malive and his gang stumbling over the crates. I grinned and jumped over some again, only this time my foot got caught on the edge of the crate, and I tumbled into a shadowy corner. Malive and his gang were gone, and I was glad for that. I looked up realized with a start; I had no idea where I was. I was just a little girl, who was lost in the maze of Traverse Town. I put my head into my knees, and began to sob.

 

 

 

“Ja-aaa-ccee! This is taking FOREVER!” I complained. Jace just ignored me. “Come on, you’ll like it!” I rolled my eyes, ”Yeah, right. How could I like it if the walk there is a billion hours long?” “Just come on! You’re such a baby sometimes!” “I’m only a year younger than you!” I protested. But I sighed and matched my pace with his. Jace stopped suddenly, and cocked his head to the side. “What is it Jace?” I asked. “I hear something, it’s really quiet.” His expression suddenly became sympathetic. “It sounds like crying.” “Where?!” He pointed to an alley. “I think over there.”

 

I heard two boy’s voices. I looked up and saw two kids about my age. One had red spiky hair, and the other had jet black hair that was ear-length. They both had dazzling blue eyes. One pointed to where I was hidden, and the one with red hair ran in my direction. He spotted me and sat down with me. “Are you alright?” he questioned. Up close, I could tell he was about my age. I shook my head miserably. “What happened?” the other one inquired. He looked a year older than me. I sniffed a little. “Malive’s gang has been tormenting me for months. Today I was at the jewelry shop with my mom, and I just ran. He followed me, but I lost him a little while back. I tripped over these boxes, and I’ve just been sitting here until you showed up. My foot hurts.” I surprised myself at how quickly the words tumbled out. It felt good to let it out, and I somehow felt close to the boys, like we’d been friends forever. The boy with red hair held out his hand and smiled a care-free grin. “I’m Kayro!” The other held out his, and smiled as well. “I’m Jace.” I smiled, in spite of my tears. I grasped their hands. “Call me Tiv.”

 

Chapter 2: Connecting Hearts

The little girl was about my age, she had auburn hair loose around her shoulders, her dress was torn a little at the edge, her face was covered with tear-stains, and she had golden eyes. Her name was Tiv. Jace helped her to her feet. “You’re lost aren’t you?” Jace guessed. She sighed. “Yes, my mom probably has half the district looking for me.” Suddenly an alarmed look crossed her face. “You guys live in the first district, right?” “Yes, why?” I was confused, why was she so worried. She blushed a little, and looked down at her slightly beat-up sneakers. “I just thought of how lonely I would be if you weren’t around, even though we just met.” I smiled. “It’s ok, I feel the same way. Like we were meant to meet. What about you Jace?” “I feel it too!” Jace suddenly looked at Tiv. “Hey, do you want to try something real quick?” She cocked her head, “What?” Jace reached into his pocket, and pulled out our good luck charm. “Jace, I don’t think we should…” I hissed. “Don’t worry, Kayro.” He whispered back. He held it out to Tiv. The charm was in the shape of a heart about the size of Jace’s palm. It was made of three circles, one dark purple, and if you looked close enough, you saw Jace, and a picture of me, and other weird patterns. The other was red, and I was on it. And on one of the little circles, was a picture of Jace and more weird patterns. “My grandma told me this is how our hearts look.” Jace explained. “She gave me this good luck charm, and told me whoever could separate the pieces, would my ‘key to light.’” She looked at the charm, and back at Jace, then me. Then at the charm. She grasped the string at the end closest to her, the blank circle, and tugged. The blank circle came off, and like blowing off a cover of dust, the circle was revealed. It was bright yellow, and sure enough, there was Tiv. Two of her little circles had a picture of me and Jace. I looked at my piece. There was Tiv, in my little circle. “Guess you’re stuck with us now.” I joked. She laughed, and smiled at us. We linked arms, and headed back to the first district, hand in hand. “So Jace, when are we going to get to this surprise you wanted to show me?” I pestered. He smiled, “Actually, it’s right here!” I looked up, and saw a building, glimmering with little lights. There were three stories, a balcony overlooking the alley where we found Tiv, and a rooftop. There was a soft thud as Tiv and I’s jaws hit the ground. “Jace, how did you get this?” I asked, stunned. “It’s abandoned, and my dad said no one owns it or wants it because it’s so old.” He said matter-of-factly. Tiv just stared, gaping. Then she walked to the door. “Well aren’t you coming?” She asked over her shoulder. I looked at Jace, and we shared a knowing look. “Wait for us!” we called.

 

 

 

“Jace, the view is beautiful!” I complimented. “You’re welcome, Tiv.” He replied, clearly pleased. I sat down, and sighed contently. We could see across three districts, and the lights at night made the stars seem like night lights. The flashes and bright colors of Traverse Town never ceased to amaze me. “Hey Jace, how come no one want’s to buy this?” Jace stared at the ground, “Um, because…” “HEARTLESS!” Kayro screamed, pointing to the other side of the roof. I screamed and ducked down. I began to hyperventilate. What will we do? What will we do? What will… was all brain could process. One Heartless spotted me, and I was rooted to where I kneeled, frozen in terror. I put my hands in front of my face. So this is the end I thought. I waited for the Heartless to devour my heart, but it was stopped. I peered from behind my hands, and saw Kayro and Jace fending off the Heartless. And they were beating them with pieces of pipe they found on the roof. They swung and parried the Heatless attacks like professional fencers. Soon, the Heartless just disappeared. “How did you…” I trailed off. I didn’t think they knew either. Kayro glared at Jace. “Geez Jace, you could have told us!” Jace scratched the back of his head, sheepish. “I guess I…forgot?” Kayro and I glared at him. Really? I sighed. “I guess I forgive you.” Kayro sighed and agreed. Suddenly, he visually brightened. “Hey Tiv, I didn’t tell you my hobby!” “What is it?” I was intrigued now. He smiled widely. “I like to build and fix stuff. Maybe we could make the first floor a garage!” He suggested. “And the second floor can be the kitchen, and the third floor will be the bedrooms!” I finished. “When we’re older, we can just live here!” We all agreed that we would start working on the building after school tomorrow. They walked me home, and I was overjoyed to find out they lived only a block away. I waved good-bye to my friends, and opened the door to my house. “Mom?” I called. She rushed in, and pulled me close. “Oh Tivi, I thought the Heartless had you! The boy outside the shop said he would try and catch you to bring you back, but he said that you thought you saw some Heartless and ran off. But you’re home now! I’m so sorry…” Etcetera, etcetera. I ground my teeth when she mentioned Malive. Of course, the adults would always believe him. But I had met Kayro and Jace, which was all that mattered now.

[Namine` 28]

9 years later,

Chapter 3: Disappearing Worlds

“Come on, Kayro, its only fun if you try!” I called over my shoulder. I could hear him panting behind me. “But you always beat me, Tivi!” “That’s not my name and you know it!” He threw his head back and laughed, and soon all three of us were laughing. Summer had finally shooed its way in, and we no longer had school keeping us apart. Jace groaned when we arrived at the garage. “What’s wrong?” Kayro asked when he finally caught up to us. He pointed to the garage, and we followed his gaze. We moaned, too. Heartless were here again. I turned to them, “Got your swords?” “Well, duh.” Kayro and Jace pulled two thin pieces of metal from their school bags. Kayro had fashioned himself a copper sword with pieces of red metal at the hilt, and Jace had made a black sword with small diamonds he had found lying around. I didn’t have anything to fight with, so I fumbled through my bag to find the key. While the boys distracted the Heartless, I burst inside the house and ran for the anti-Heartless concoction I had made with the help of Aerith. I picked it up and threw it at the doorframe. There was a burst of smoke, and then the Heartless were no more. “Tiv, you didn’t need to do that! We were having fun!” Kayro whined. “I couldn’t just stand here while those horrible creatures were out here!” I argued. Jace nodded. “She’s right Kayro.” I swear, I saw some sort of look pass between them. Kayro nodded, but I could tell he was fighting a smile. I rose and eyebrow, but I didn’t say anything. “I’ll get us some food, there should be some fruit in here.” As I walked to the fridge, out of the corner of my eye I saw Kayro and Jace having a whispered conversation. I headed upstairs to check our food supply. Apples, some grapes… That was the suckish thing about living in an apartment with your two best guy-friends. They ate EVERYTHING. I sighed and walked back downstairs. I chucked an apple at Jace’s head. He winced and turned to me. “What was that for?!” “Don’t eat everything.” I replied. He rolled his eyes, and turned back to the worktable. Being very quiet, I snuck over to the work table, and peered over his shoulder. I looked at what he was working on, and gasped. He turned in surprise, and smiled at me. “I guess we can’t hide it now.” He picked it up, and showed it to me. “What do you think?” I was speechless, I ran my fingers over the gold bow, perfectly smooth. There were small stars and hearts on it, just like the ring I had received the day we met. The string was new, and very strong by the look of it. “How did you….Where did you get this much gold?” I asked, awed by the craftsmanship. “Not all of it is pure gold, but we have been saving it for a long time.” He smiled again, and called Kayro in. He hurried in carrying an silver quiver full with arrows dipped with amber. I hugged them both tightly. “You are the best ever! I can’t even describe how grateful I am!” “You’re welcome!” Kayro beamed. I could tell Jace was blushing. I pulled back, not able to stop smiling. “Now you have something to fend the Heartless off with.” Kayro explained. “Thanks, both of you!” Jace looked up suddenly. “I just remembered! Aerith, Leon, and Yuffie wanted to see us after school today. Leon said it was important.” I nodded. “Let me get some stuff from the balcony.”



I gave Jace a sly look. “Told you she would like it.” Jace sighed and rolled his eyes. “I’m sorry I ever doubted you, o Kayro who knows everything.” I laughed. Jace ran upstairs to go get some things, and I waited in the garage while everyone gathered things. “Kayro! Jace!” Tiv suddenly burst into the room, her face full of panic. Jace rushed downstairs. “What happened?” he demanded. Tiv gulped. “Another world just disappeared, and…” Tiv took a few breathes. “What?” I asked, this wasn’t her usual behavior. Yeah, sometimes we saw a world or two blinked out, and we knew that it usually meant a new kid in town. But there have more and more newcomers. Maybe that’s why she was worried? “There’s, there’s a boy. In the alley that you found me in. I think…” More shallow breathes. “I think he has Keyblade.”

Chapter 4: The Keyblade Master

“What?!” Kayro and I shouted. We ran to the balcony to see for ourselves. Sure enough, there was a boy about our age, lying unconscious in the alley. “Why do you think he has a Keyblade?” I whispered. “I think I saw him holding it, but then it disappeared.” I nodded. “Everyone quiet, someone’s coming.” Kayro hissed. We ducked down, and watched as a yellow dog walked up to the boy. The dog licked his face trying to wake him up. The boy opened his eyes, stood up, and looked around. “Get down!” Tiv warned. “Where?” I whispered. Tiv glared at me, but we all still tried to hide into the floorboard. The boy bent down to the dog’s height, and looked like he was asking it something, but then the dog ran off. So the boy tried to follow it. “Come on!” Tiv insisted. She shouldered her bag, picked up her bow, slung her quiver on her back, jumped onto the railing, and on the roof in a single, swift motion. “What are you doing?!” Kayro asked, alarmed. Tiv shrugged. “I’m roof jumping. We have to follow him.” She reached out her hand. I sighed, grabbed my stuff and hoisted myself up. I stretched my hand down to Kayro. “Come on, looks like we haven’t got a choice.” I said, mocking defeat. He reached up and grabbed my hand, and I pulled him onto the roof. “Let’s go!” Tiv hurried. She pulled on her black shawl, and donned the hood. “Why are you wearing it now?” Kayro asked. “Because I don’t want him to see me. I’m like a firework at midnight.” She had a point, with her amber hair, gold eyes, yellow and amber clothing, and orange knee-length boots, she wasn’t hard to miss. “You should put yours on too, just in case.” Tiv advised. We pulled on our black hoods, and wandered through the shadows. The boy walked around the district looking very confused. Tiv leaped from one roof to another, always landing in the shadows. “How are you doing that?” I hissed. “You remember Ara?” “Yeah, she has gold hair, right?” “Yes, she’s been showing me how to roof-jump.”Duh, I should’ve known that. Tiv pointed ahead, “Hey look, there she is!” Kayro and I scrambled after Tiv as she rushed over to Ara. “Ara, this is an emergency!” Tiv whispered. Ara’s small face poked out slightly from her black hood. “What is it?” “You see that kid down there?” “Yes.” “He has a Keyblade.” “Don’t joke around.” “I’m not.” Tiv assured. Ara peered down. “Yup, he has a Keyblade alright, in fact, he’s holding it right now. And he’s walking into Cid’s shop right now.” I face-palmed myself again. “I forgot again! Leon, Yuffie, and Aerith are waiting for us!” “Do you think they know about the Keyblade wielder?” Kayro whispered cryptically. “Maybe that’s why they want to see us.” Ara concluded. I shrugged. “They can’t get mad at us for following him, right?” Everyone nodded in agreement. “Hey, here he comes!” Kayro alerted. “See ya Ara!” Ara waved, and disappeared into the shadows. Tiv sucked in a deep breath, suddenly. “What is it?” I asked. “I hope that kid knows how to use that thing.” “Why?” “He just got surrounded by Shadows.” I stared down at the kid. He seemed to be getting the hang of it. “I’m sure he’ll be fine.” Kayro reassured. He looked down again, this time with worry lines across his forehead. “Um…isn’t that Leon?” We peered from our spot on the roof. “He wouldn’t!” Tiv gasped. Leon strode toward the boy, hand outstretched for the Keyblade. The boy refused, and Leon grabbed his sword. “No, no, no, no!” Tiv cried. Kayro muffled the rest of her calls. “Shut up, Tivi!” From the pained looks on Kayro’s face, she was probably biting like a savage. When she had calmed down, Kayro pulled his hand away. “I hope he knows what he’s doing.” She sighed. “Hey look, he beat Leon!” I announced. They turned and saw Leon go on his knees, but the boy was swaying on his feet. A second later, he was down as well. Leon stood, and Yuffie appeared out of nowhere, talking to him. They picked him up, and headed off in the direction of their apartment. “Come on!” I urged. Yet again, we began following the Keyblade.

[Namine` 28]

Chapter 5: Hearts and Heartless

“Hey, slow down here.” Jace called back. When I caught up to him, I asked why there was a hold-up. He pointed to the large gap between where we stood, and the only way to get to Leon’s apartment. “Oh perfect.” Kayro groaned. I sat down, massaging my temples. “Think, think, think…” I commanded softly. “Uh, Tiv? What are you doing?” Kayro puzzled. I snapped my head up. “Do you have any rope?” I demanded, eyes fixed on the roof across the road. He reached into the duffel and tossed me a coil of thick rope. I smiled. “Perfect.” I reached into my quiver and pulled out an arrow. “Hey, Kayro, how strong are these?” Kayro scratched his head. “Um, I think they can hold a person’s weight.” I tied the rope to the arrow, and notched it. “Time to find out how good I am at this.” I announced. My fingers left the string, and the whistling flooded in my ears. Like a rocket, the arrow shot off with a brown tail of rope behind it. It hit the center of the roof. Bull’s-eye. I strung my bow through the rope, then tied it to this random post on the roof, and looked at the two pairs of shocked eyes and open mouths. “What?” I questioned. I put both hands on my bow, and zip-lined on the rope. I reached the other side, and hopped off nimbly. I checked the bow, which showed no signs of struggling to hold my weight, and the arrow still stuck to the roof, strong and true. I pushed the bow back to the guys. “Your turn!” I called back. They were still staring at me like I had just, well, zip-lined with a bow and arrow. I frowned. “You know, it hurts that you doubt me!” Awkwardly, Kayro slung his things onto his back, grabbed the bow, and pushed off. Again, the bow brought him swiftly. He was grinning madly when he joined me. “That. Was. Amazing. And idiotic.” I rolled my eyes. “Who are you? Jace?” We were still laughing when Jace joined us, puzzled why we laughed harder when he told me how stupid I was. I plucked the arrow out of the shingle, and pulled the rope back up. “Come on,” I instructed, back to business. “They’re still waiting for us.” They nodded and sped up. A look of horror suddenly crossed their face. “What?” I asked, scared. “Tiv! Look out!” I spun around, and had the wind knocked out of me. The world went pitch black for a minute, then came back, side-ways and spinning. There was a dull pain on the side of my head and in my chest, I heard panicked voices screaming, but they sounded so far away. Kayro rushed to me. He looked worried, so I smiled at him. “Hi, Kayro.” He smiled weakly. “Hey, Tivi.” “That’s not my name.” He gave a relived sigh. “At least you still have personality.” He picked me up and starting running. I furrowed my brow. “What do you mean?” He looked at me, baffled. “You’re not losing your heart?” “Excuse me?” “That Heartless, it just tried to steal your heart. You should’ve fallen into darkness, you should’ve lost your heart!” I frowned. “No, it just hurts. Kinda.” Jace caught up with us, tiny tears at the corner at his eyes. I smiled reassuringly. “Jace, are you crying?” His eyes widened with hope. “You’re conscious?” I sighed. “Yes, you idiot. Did you really think I would let some Heartless steal my heart? Yeah, right.” He cracked a smile. “Tell me what happened.” He demanded. “Well, that Heartless attacked me, and then I couldn’t breathe for a second, and it was black, then I was on the ground and everything was spinning and noises sounded far away.” He nodded seriously, and I felt myself being slipped into another set of arms. “I’ll carry her now; you looked like you were going to pass out.” Jace joked. Already, I felt myself traveling quicker, and saw Kayro smile thankfully. “Leon’s place is just a few blocks away. Hopefully Aerith is still there.” The pounding of rubber soles on the ground thumped louder, and the world was blending together in a rainbow of grays and blacks. I yawned. “Hey, Jace?” “Yes?” “I’m tired. I think I’m going to sleep now.” He smiled down at me. “All right, Tiv.” I buried my head into his arm, and felt myself starting to descent, gently. I didn’t mind. I was very tired. I opened my eyes, but there was nothing to see. Darkness? I wondered. But I knew that wasn’t the answer before the thought had even arrived. My falling slowed, and it was more of floating. I felt myself being angled up on feet again, and they reached solid ground. I looked around, confused. I was sure I had been with Jace and Kayro. I reached down to brush the ground that was holding me up, although it was invisible. At the touch of my finger-tips, a million birds flew off of the platform. The platform let off a blinding light, and I covered my eyes. Tenderly, I removed my hands from my face and gasped. I stared at the stain-glass circle. It can’t be. . . I pulled my good luck charm from its usual spot in my pocket, and held it out. They’re the same. This is. . . . my heart?

There was another blinding light, only this time I could make out the shape of a person. “Who’s there?” I asked the light. I awaited the reply.

This isn’t the last time you will see this place.

It’s time to wake up now.

Chapter 6: Sora

“Typical. Tiv gets attacked by Heartless, then what? She falls asleep. What a great way to kick off the summer.” Jace spat. I sighed. “Stop being so negative. You and I both know she isn’t dead. Or a Heartless.” “He’s right, Jace.” Aerith chimed in. “See?” Jace groaned angrily. I turned away from Jace and back to her. “Tiv,” I whispered. Her eyelids flickered. I leaned closer and held her hand. “It’s time to wake up now.” Slowly, she opened her eyes, revealing her two golden irises. For a second her eyes seemed swallowed by the gold, because her pupils had disappeared. But then she blinked and her eyes were back to normal. “Kayro?” She asked, confused. “Yea, that’s me.” I joked, “That was you there?” Now it was my turn to be confused, “Where?” I asked. “Tiv!” Jace exclaimed. He ran over to us. “Are you alright?” he asked, hopeful. “Jace, you are such a worry wart.” I looked and saw that Tiv’s hand had dropped from mine. “So you were following Sora?” Aerith asked. “Is that the Keyblade wielder’s name?” Tiv replied. She nodded. “Well then, yes. We were hoping he would go to your place. Speaking of which, why did Leon attack Sora?” Aerith laughed a little. “Oh, that. Well, you see, we needed to get the Keyblade away from him. That’s how the Heartless were tracking him. And we also found the King’s friends. But Sora and Leon burst out the window before they could meet. I hope they’re alright.” She sighed. “We’ll look after them!” Tiv vowed. She hopped up and grabbed her quiver and slung it over her shoulder. “Where’s my bow?” she demanded. I picked it up. “Think fast!” I challenged. She caught it mid-air, and had an arrow notched in a split second. “You’re right, Tiv. Something’s just telling me we need to do this.” Jace added. Aerith smiled. “That’s your heart.” His hand flew to his chest. “My heart’s telling me the same thing.” I mentioned quietly. Tiv smiled. “Then what are we waiting for?”

[Namine` 28]

Chapter 7: Departure and Arrival

I strode around the old apartment, for might be the last time. I walked around my room, all the things I written and drawn, those random things that popped in my head. I decided to bring them because they probably weren’t as ‘random’ as I thought. Memories began to come to life in my head, when I first met Kayro and Jace; this afternoon, was it only a few hours ago? It felt like lifetimes. When Kayro had scooped me up when my heart had been attempted to be stolen, how I heard his voice in my heart, and when I woke up, he was holding my hand. Jace, all those times he told me I was an idiot. I laughed slightly. My fingers brushed my face when I realized I was crying. I stared at the tear on my finger-tip. I remembered the small tears in Jace’s eyes, how he had been able to carry me much faster. I pulled out my good luck charm. Ever since I had been to my heart, it seemed much clearer. The small lines of each strand of hair, my fingers clutching something invisible. I held it close to my heart, listening intently to my heart-beat. “Jace! Tiv! Aerith’s here!” The sound of Kayro’s voice snapped me back to reality. I still couldn’t stop thinking of when I had heard him. There had been two voices, I was sure of it. One was Kayro’s, and the other… I knew it wasn’t Jace’s. This voice had seemed so wise, so cryptic, almost familiar. But I didn’t know it. This is too confusing. By the time I had reached the bottom of the stairs I had a migraine. “Hey Aerith.” I greeted. She looked worried. “Donald and Goofy, that’s the King’s friends, and Sora are going to different worlds. They have a ship, but do you guys have one?” she bit her lip. Kayro beamed. “As a matter of fact, we do!” Jace and I stared at him. “We do?” we asked simultaneously. We followed Kayro down to the basement, that we had no idea existed, and to a sleek, silver ship with pointed wings, royal purple furnishing, and looked like it could hold two pilots and four passengers. “How…what…..how?!” I spluttered. “This is the ‘school project’ I’m always working on.” Kayro smiled smugly. I shook his shoulders. “Why didn’t you freaking tell us?!” He laughed. “Surprise!” Jace face-palmed himself. I sighed. “You’re amazing.” He bowed gratefully. “Why, thank you!” I laughed. “Well, are you ready to use this?” “I’m pretty sure, but we’re missing one person…” I gave him a puzzled look. “Who?” “Well, I thought Ara would be a nice addition to the trip.” I nodded. “Okay, I’ll go find her.” I leaped out the door, and out into the chilly night. I was in a hurry, and didn’t notice the figure running toward me. We clashed and tumbled to the pavement. I sprang up and offered my hand. “Sorry. I was kinda in hurry…” I pulled him up, and forced every muscle in my entire being not to panic. It was him. He had spiky brown hair, unreal blue eyes, and he was holding the Keyblade. He smiled, just like Kayro would. “It’s ok, I’m in a hurry too.” He squinted at me. “Do I know you?” “Nope. Never seen you in my entire life.” I answered too quickly. He looked at me curiously. I forced a fake smile. “Bye!” Then I dashed off. “I’m Sora, by the way!” I heard him call behind me. If only I didn’t already know that. I turned back at him. “Call me Tiv!” Then I broke out into a sprint, never once looking back.



“Ara!” I turned and saw Tiv barreling toward me. When she finally stopped, she doubled over and started panting. “You ok? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.” She laughed humorlessly. “More like the other way around. The ghost was seen.” I raised an eyebrow. “I ran into Sora, and he recognized me!” My eyes bugged out. “How can that be?” She shook her head. “I have no idea, but we’ll have plenty of time to talk about it later.” She grabbed my hand and began tugging me. “Where are we going?” “You’ll see!” She replied. I huffed out an annoyed sigh. Why all the secrecy? We arrived at their garage, with this horribly loud noise being emitted from it. I pulled my hand away to cover my ears. “Come on guys!” I heard Kayro call. Tiv dragged me to the basement that apparently did exist, and shoved me inside something. She jumped in, and I felt us shoot out of the garage and into the atmosphere. The roaring had died down, and I lifted up my head. “Would anyone like to explain why the heck you are kidnapping me?!” I screeched. Jace’s deep rumble of a laugh could be heard from the cockpit. “We’re not kidnapping you. We’re going to other worlds.” He corrected matter-of-factly. I snorted. “Hah. Tiv, would you like to tell me what’s going on?” She looked at me solemnly. “He’s telling the truth. We’re following Sora, the Keyblade wielder, for Aerith, Leon, and Yuffie. Right now, we’re in space. Look out the window.” “Hmph.” I angled my head to the nearest window, and peered outside. There was absolutely nothing. There were auroras of purple and green floating in the black space. I turned back, my voice shaky. “Ok, we’re not in Traverse Town.” Tiv smiled, a friendly sight. She patted the seat next to her. “You might want to get off the floor.” The couch was plush and deep purple, and very comfortable. I rested my head on Tiv’s shoulder, and let the tons of lead fall on my eyelashes.

Ara laid her head, and soon I heard her soft, content snores. I began gently combing my fingers through her hair. “Tiv, can you come up here?” Kayro called. I sighed and laid Ara’s head on the chair. “What’s up?” I asked. Kayro spun around from the blinking and confusing panels. “We’re about to arrive at our first world.” I leaned down. “Is it ours?” I whispered. Jace turned away. “You know it was destroyed.” He said quietly. I looked down. “I can’t help but hope…” My voice cracked. I felt Kayro’s hand on my shoulder. “Hey, don’t cry about it! When Sora saves everyone from darkness, maybe ours will come back.” Jace patted my back, forcing my posture straight. “Come on, Tiv. Don’t worry ‘bout it.” I smiled. Jace turned to Kayro. “Hey Kayro, where did you get the theory of Sora saving us from darkness?” “Oh, that. Well, while Tiv was asleep, Aerith told me a little more about Sora and the Keyblade. Apparently he has to find these ‘keyholes’ and lock them in every world, so they aren’t overrun with Heartless. Then he’s supposed to close the ‘door to darkness’ or ‘Kingdom Hearts.’ I can’t remember. Then that is supposed to bring back all the worlds.” He finished happily. I stared out in the space. “It would be nice to go back.” Jace nodded. “Yeah, it would be. Hey, go wake Ara up, ok?” “Sure.” I opened the door back to the passenger’s cabin, and saw that Ara was sitting up, awake. “Hey, sleepyhead.” I teased. She giggled. “Hi. Are we almost there?” I nodded. She sighed, and her took on a dream-like appearance. “I wonder what it will be like…”She mused. The ship rumbled, and I swayed and fell into a couch. “Looks like we’re about to find out. You might want to hold onto something.” She grabbed the edge of her seat, her knuckles turning white. “This is safe, right?” I smiled weakly. “Yeah, Kayro’s never crashed before.” “Really?” “Yeah, this is his first time.” Ara made a choked sound between a scream and a groan. She put her head in between her knees, and squeezed her eyes shut. The floor trembled beneath me, and I felt us hurdling into the world. We passed through the atmosphere, and the force sent me sprawling. I was smacked against the opposite wall, and I fell limp. I pushed myself onto the nearest seat and felt the back of my head. No bumps or blood. I looked out the window and saw that we were plummeting at alarming speeds. Gulp. I’m no expert, but if Kayro didn’t slow down a little soon, we were going to crash. I heard shouts and commands from the cockpit, and I braced myself for the landing. The nose of the ship gently pushed itself slightly upward, and Kayro and Jace pulled the plane up, bringing it to a stop. I looked up. Nothing was broken, smashed, or on fire. We had made a perfect landing. Ara looked up with a surprised look on her face. “We’re alive?” “Apparently.” I answered. The cock-pit’s door opened, and Jace strode in, triumphant look on his face. “Everyone still alive?” We nodded. Kayro walked in and pumped his fist in the air. “I did not crash!” He announced. “You almost did.” I grumbled. Ara opened the door. “Ready to see this world?”

Chapter 8: First World

I stepped out into the world, and shaded my eyes from the hot sun. Kayro stuck his head out. “Wow, talk about sun!” And he crawled back into the ship. I laughed and grabbed his shirt collar and dragged him out. “Come on, Jace. Don’t you think that’s a little harsh?” Tiv giggled as she skipped outside. We stared after her, baffled. She looked back smiling. “The sun doesn’t bother you?” I asked, astounded. “Of course not. Why? Too bright for ya?” She joked. Kayro laughed. “A little.” Ara poked her head out, and donned her hood. She hopped out, and skipped ahead to Tiv. “If the sun’s bothering you, why don’t you wear your hoods?” Ara suggested. I pulled out the black jacket, and pulled the hood over my face. Tiv giggled. “I wonder why it doesn’t bother me?” she wondered aloud as pushed open two large double doors. “Maybe ‘cause you’re just as bright.” He replied, gesturing to her fiery hair. She stuck out her tongue. “Jealous!” I bent down and picked up a handful of sand, letting it slip through my fingers. The walls were all built of stone, and there was another large set of doors with two giant, gold statues of warriors, their swords pointed to the sky. There were windows in the large stone walls, keeping anyone inside the walls. I looked out the windows. “Guys, you might want to see this.” I motioned for them to come close. Kayro’s mouth formed a perfect ‘o’. “Are we floating?!” Clouds circled alarmingly near the windows, any land away from view. Ara shrugged. “Well, it’s a different world. What did you expect?” I turned to her. “You say it like you’ve done it before.” She faced me. “No, of course not. I’ve always lived in Traverse Town. Well, until…” We all went silent. Lost worlds were a touchy subject. Some people didn’t remember theirs. They were lucky. But I’m sure they didn’t see the look on Ara’s face, like a deer in the headlights. Caught. “Get down! Keyblade at 9 o’clock!” Tiv hissed, pulling us behind a platform. I snapped my head around behind me, and there was Sora. He was followed by a tall dog, Goofy I assumed, and a short duck, Donald. Sora strode in, and walked into the next set of doors. In the shadows there was a tall, blue man with fire for hair. Suspicious. . . . I made a mental note to steer clear of the man. Everything about him reeked darkness. He suddenly melted into shadows, replaced by Heartless. “Get ready to fight, guys.” Kayro stood up, and leaped toward the Heartless. He swung at one, and it dissolved. Kayro looked in confusion at his blade. I bounded out and tried mine, too. Same effect. Our blades were lethal, but never this powerful. I ran my hand up and down the metal, noticing it was covered in something powdery. Kayro began coming to the same conclusion. “It’s almost like it’s been. . .” “Covered in anti-Heartless.” I finished, glaring at Tiv and Ara, who were trying to blend into the rock. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.” Tiv’s words were slow and an octave higher. Ara was trying to hide behind Tiv. Kayro pinched the brink of his nose. “That was the last of the stuff, wasn’t it? The stuff on our swords?” “In my defense, half of it spilled on them in the landing, anyway!” Tiv insisted. I sighed in exasperation. Seriously, Tiv tried too hard. Suddenly, her face hardened. She notched an arrow, and let it fly, right toward my forehead. I was too shocked to move, just the feeling of betrayal boiling up inside me. Instead, the arrow went right above my head, getting the giant Heartless behind me in the odd heart branded on its chest. “Nice shot.” I said, pretending I just hadn’t felt like puncturing her neck a few seconds ago. She nodded, accepting my compliment. Kayro pushed open the large doors, and poked his head in. “All clear!” he called. We walked toward the doors, but I yanked Ara back and covered her mouth. “You’ve been to other worlds. I know you have so don’t deny it.” I pushed her up against a wall. She removed my hand from her face. “Yes, I have. But why do you care?” “I care because you obviously know something about him that we don’t. Something important.” She stared me straight in the eye. “I promised him I wouldn’t tell. But of course, he doesn’t know me yet.” I narrowed my eyes. “Whatever.” I grumbled, shoving her away. “Don’t give in to darkness.” She advised. I stopped, not meeting her gaze. "I would never do that to Tiv or Kayro."

[replika13 455]

interesting story. keep going ^^

[khoathkeeper13 429]

Just a little tip on formatting that would make it easier to read, try to separating the dialog into separate lines.

I only glanced at it, but the story looks really really good. Now to read 8 chapters!

[Namine` 28]

Chapter 9: Magic

“Ok, you can come in. They’ve gone into the arena.” I called. Jace marched in, a deep fire slowly diminishing in his eyes. Ara followed after him, eyes trained to the floor. I cocked an eyebrow at Kayro and he looked at me, clueless. He didn’t know either. “Ara, what are you going to do if you’re attacked by Heartless?” Kayro inquired suddenly. She shrugged. “It’s an arena. There’s got to be an armory.” “I’ll go with you.” Jace said, then grabbed her arm and pulled her off. “Uh Kayro, should we be worried?” “I don’t think so. I mean, they aren’t going to kill each other, right?” I shook my head. “Sadly, I think they just might.” Kayro laughed at this. “They’ll be fine. Let’s go check on Sora.” We snuck up onto the chairs surrounding the arena, ducking down in one of the first row. It looked like Sora was training for some sort of competition with the help of a short man with goat legs and horns. I didn’t see the tall blue man that had been hanging around the temple. Sora was smashing barrels against a time limit. The goat man nodded, praising him. Sora put his hands behind his head, and balanced his weight into his hands. I sucked in a sharp breath. It was the same thing Kayro did. The goat man said something to Sora, and he demanded why. The goat man explained, and gave him something. They were forced outside, and Kayro and I followed, scaling the wall, looking for thresholds, and reached the top. “Look, it’s that fire-man!” Kayro pointed to the entrance, and the blue man talked to Sora, handing him something that came from the air. He handed it to Sora, and he disappeared into nothing. Sora walked back into the coliseum, and handed the goat man whatever the fire-man gave him. The goat-man furrowed his brow, but let Sora back into the arena. “I wonder if they found an armory.” I mused. Kayro snickered. “If they haven’t already killed each other.”
“Shut up.”
“Ara! Over here!” Jace called. I ran over and he was standing by a room filled with swords, axes, and knives. I picked up a small black knife and put it my belt, and grabbed a knife with a comfortable brown leather grip. “That’s it?” “The other one is for Tiv.” Jace rolled his eyes. “Ara, you’re not telling us something. I’m asking you as a friend to tell me.” She took off her hood, and motioned for me to sit next to her. “It’s a long story, but I guess you do have a right to know. I’ll tell you on the ship, and show you something.” She held out her palm, and curved her finger-tips. She closed her eyes and concentrated. Electricity crackled to life in her hand, and volts moved between her fingers. “How did you. . . ” “Magic.” She replied. “You know thunder magic?” She shook her head sadly. “More than that.” Suddenly the electricity died, and a small flame appeared on her palm. She showed absolutely no pain, and her hand wasn’t burned. Then the flame was replaced by a frost that coated her whole hand, and then put her hand in front of my face, and a small breeze emitted from it. “So you know magic.” She laughed sadly. “And Tiv.” She added. “Really?” “Mm-hm. She just doesn’t know it. But now that I’ve showed you, well, let’s just hope she doesn’t shock Kayro.”

“Kayro? Do you feel weird?” He looked up at me as we climbed down the wall. “No, are feeling ok?” “Yes, just kinda odd. Like there’s this really big spark inside me.” I put my foot into the next foot-hold, and swung down. The strange spark inside me grew larger, and I pulled out my good-luck charm. I pulled it close to my chest and kept climbing down the wall. By the time we were back down I was quivering with electricity. “Tiv?” Kayro asked and put his hand in my shoulder. I went into a spasm of shaking and shouted something unintelligible, and felt a huge amount of energy being released from inside me. I went on my knees, sighing. “Ow.” Kayro murmured. I turned and saw Kayro lying on his back, smoke coming off of him. “Oh my gosh, Kayro, I’m so sorry!” I ran over to him, kneeling. I racked my head for ideas. “Um, heal!” To my amazement tiny green leaves floated around Kayro, and then the smoke went away. Kayro shot up. “What just happened?” I looked at my hand. “I think I just hit you with thunder, then healed you.” Kayro patted my back. “Congrats, you know magic now!” But how do I know magic?

[Namine` 28]

Chapter 10: Hades

I was still staring at my hands in horror and amazement when Ara and Jace came back. “Hey, Tiv!” I snapped my head back up just in time to catch the knife. My hand flashed out and in two seconds I had stuck the knife through the arm band on my upper arm. How did I do that? How have I been doing any of this? The only training I’ve ever had was on T.V., watching Jace and Kayro spar, roof-jumping, and beating up Malive’s gang. It’s like I’m an entirely new person or something. I caught a glimpse of Ara from the corner of my eye, she seemed worried. Like it was bad for me noticing these new skills. I cocked an eyebrow at her, and the worry was gone from her face. Stone-faced, I saw her whisper something from the corner of her mouth to Jace. I couldn’t be sure if she said anything at all because Jace showed no reaction. “So Ara, find what you were looking for?” Kayro asked, breaking my mental silence. She smiled and happily pulled out a knife as long as my forearm with a jet black grip and a smaller one from her boot. Jace’s eyes widened. “I thought you only took one.” “Yeah, well you thought wrong.” Ara replied, grinning wickedly. “Hey, did you see any Heartless while you were out there?” I asked, always checking their safety. They both shook their heads. But of course, I heard a crash from behind me to see yet more Heartless. “Speak of the devil, and the devil shall appear.” Jace muttered. I laughed and shot an arrow at them, striking it’s forehead. It crumpled and it’s heart floated, then shot away from view. One struck at me, and I dodge-rolled and kicked another right into Kayro’s blade tip. I jumped up and held out my palms. “Thunder!” I commanded and it was struck down. I grinned back victoriously at Jace and Ara. I swear, Ara smiled smugly at Jace, like some inside joke. What the heck were they up to? Kayro brought his sword down again, smashing the last Heartless to the floor. “You know, I could help you with your magic. My mom knew magic.” Ara suggested. At this, Jace was hardly able to keep a straight face, and had to cover his mouth to keep from bursting out in laughter. “What’s so funny?” I questioned. Jace pulled away his hand, stifling laughs. “Nothing.” He said. Wow. He sucks at lying.

Her mom knew magic. That was a good one. It made me wonder how many other lies she had told. “Kayro, come on. Let’s get on the wall.” But Kayro wouldn’t move. He stood stock still, watching the arena in a trance. “Kayro.” I said. I walked up to him and shook him roughly. “Kayro!” For a split second, his eyes seemed weird, possessed by some force. Then he blinked, as if he had been staring at the sun, and the oddness was gone from his eyes. “Kayro? What was that?” Tiv asked, extremely concerned. “I, I know that guy. That guy down there. His name is Cloud.” I peered down at the boy. He had spiky blond hair, a blood-red cape, and a single black wing. “He’s not from Traverse Town.” I told him. “Or our old world.” Tiv added quietly. Kayro clutched his forehead in confusion. “But I know him. Just now, like I met him or something.” I grabbed his shoulder. “Come on, let’s get on the wall. You’re just having post-motion-sickness or something.” But the ground began grumbling beneath us, shaking violently. “Hold on to something!” I commanded. Everyone grasped something, and the ground shook madly. I looked out into the arena and gapped. It was three-headed dog about twice the size of our house. A strong-looking man rushed up to the dog, holding him back. He called over to the goat-man, and Sora and his friends fled the arena. “He can’t hold off that thing by himself!” Tiv cried. She hastily pulled on her hood, and fired an arrow right into the dog’s mouth. It cried in pain, and squinted its beady eyes looking around the arena. “We still have our hoods on, he won’t recognize us.” Ara informed. She pulled out her long knife, and quick as a thunder bolt, jumped off the stands and zipped across the entire arena and back. The dog howled in agony as it inspected a long and deep cut across its back. Thinking it was the man who had done it, the dog began cornering him. The man looked panicked, for himself and Cloud, who was slung over his shoulder. But Sora burst into the arena, and the dog lost interest in the man. “Come on, guys.” Ara called. “Sora can handle this.” We imminently followed after her, pulling ourselves over the wall. Tiv held out an arrow with a long coil of rope attached to it. “I still have it.” She said, grinning wickedly. She burrowed the tip deep into a crack in the stone and tossed down the rope. “Who wants to go first?” Tiv offered. Ara leaped over the edge, and held onto the rope on the way down. I went next, and I was thankful that we were wearing gloves to protect us from rope-burn. Tiv and Kayro came down, and we ran in the direction of our ship. And ran straight into the fire-man. “Hades!” Kayro snarled. The man looked down on him with beady eyes. “I thought I took care of you with Cerberus.” Kayro pulled out his sword. “Think again!” I noticed that his voice sounded slightly different. Ara noticed it too, and cocked an eyebrow at me. I shrugged and turned to Tiv. She had gone pale. “Tiv?” She shook herself and color rushed back into her skin. “Nothing.” She replied to my silent question. Kayro also began attacking with an unfamiliar pattern. He was holding it out in front of him, leaving his sides open and vulnerable. “Kayro, watch your right!” I shouted as I too, joined the fight. Tiv notched an arrow, and Ara drew her knife. This seemed to snap him back to reality, and his fighting style returned. A look suddenly crossed Tiv’s face, as if she had come up with an idea. She began circling the man, waiting for an opening. I gave her one, and she lunged at the man’s head, knife outstretched. The man, of course, ducked, but Tiv was expecting this. She hopped on the air, and I saw her exhale sharply. When she landed, the man’s fire hair had gone out. I snorted at the sight. We made our escape just before Sora exited, and Hades slunk into the shadows, realizing Kayro wasn’t the one he had been trying to kill.

[Namine` 28]

Chapter 11: Pains from the Present and Past

We slammed the ginormous doors behind us, leaning against them and breathing heavily. “What came over you, man?” Jace demanded between breathes. Before he could reply, Tiv yelped as she pointed to the ship, where Heartless were dangerously nearing. We headed at it, full sprint. I slashed my knife into the nearest one, and kicked another in the chest. One was pierced by an arrow, and two more were destroyed at the mercy of Jace and Kayro’s blades. One suddenly leaped on my back and drilled it’s sharp point into my shoulder. I screamed in pain, and noticed Tiv suddenly flinching and clutching her shoulder. Everyone turned in the direction of my voice, and Jace was suddenly upon me, fighting the Heartless with his rage. The cut was deep, but hadn’t broken through the other side. I could hear them and feel them picking me up and taking me to the ship. But I didn’t see them, I saw someone else.

The girl suddenly snapped her head up in surprise. She was wearing all black, and a thin shawl, even though it was freezing. She was warm enough. But the cold wasn’t what had surprised her. She had felt the sensation of a blade burrowing into her shoulder, only without the pain. It was odd, as if the blade were invisible and just passing straight through her.
I don’t know how long I was out. I woke up sometime later in the ship on the couch, my wound dressed nicely. “Tiv, what time is it?” I moaned. Tiv giggled. “You were out for maybe five minutes.” I slapped my forehead with my good arm. “Now I feel like an idiot.” “Don’t worry; you were idiot before you passed out.” I turned to glare at her, but couldn’t stop the laughs that bubbled up inside me. I felt normal, just being with Tiv, like old times. But you aren’t normal. Remember, you and Tiv . . . I imminently shut off that nagging, negative voice inside my head. I sat up. “Well, I’m going to go switch out with Kayro and let him rest, ok?” Tiv nodded and stared out the window. I opened the door to the cockpit, and Jace shooed Kayro out. I plopped into the nearest seat, and there was an uncomfortable silence as we tried to figure out how to begin this conversation. I almost told him I knew how Tiv and Kayro would die, but then again I wasn’t too sure. Luckily, he began it for me. “So, you were going to tell me a little more about yourself?” I let out a sigh. “Well, alright. Yes, I have been to other worlds. I have been to countless worlds. My true home world, well, I don’t remember what it was called. After I left that world, I went to see others, never staying too long. There three people though, in particular, which I crossed paths with frequently. One was a tall woman with short blue hair, a man with dark brown hair and a serious aura about him, and a boy with blond spiky hair and blue eyes. He was probably no older than Kayro at the time. I think they were looking for each other. One time, when I was passing through Radiant Garden, I saw them carrying a man with silver hair and golden eyes to the castle. I never saw any of them after that.” I stopped to take a breath. “While I was traveling, I froze myself in time. I never got any older while I was traveling. I was 14 throughout my travels, until one day, I found a world I actually liked. Traverse Town. When I went there, I made myself 12, and I met you guys. Then I began aging again. I’m actually supposed to be around 37.” I stopped and waited for his reaction. I expected the usual, shock, horror, disgust, wonder. But instead he leaned back, processing this. Then he grinned wickedly. “You’re a bit old for this, aren’t you grandma?” I laughed and tackled him. I pinned him to the floor and smirked triumphantly. “Ok, ok, you win!” He gasped. I giggled and rolled off of him. “So, do you remember anything from your old world?” “Yes, I was very quiet, and trained at an advanced combat academy. I had wonderful hearing and could usually hear everything my teachers were saying.” His face implored me to tell him.

“She is very good, isn’t she?” “Yes, she has taken fancy to the bow, sword, and knife, the basics. She is very advanced, well advanced as you can be in an advanced school.” The two men found this funny. “Her attacks seem to come from a cold, buried, fury. You can see it in her eyes.” “Yes, and the scars on her hand; have you seen them? A teacher told me it was from digging her fingernails into her palms out of frustration. I thought it was some of the students’ rumors, so I just figured it was her grip. But it was perfect. Perhaps it is something at home.” “You can never tell with teenagers. Oh, I almost forgot. We’re getting a new shipment of unusual weapons tomorrow. Perhaps she’ll find her true weapon.” The other man sighed. “Although you mean well, that statement sounds sick.” She smiled wickedly to herself, and slit the throats of all the surrounding dummy’s.

[Namine` 28]

Chapter 12: Awakened

I felt the engines shift, and knew we were headed for another landing. Kayro grumbled something unintelligible, probably because he wasn’t landing this time. “Kayro, last time---“

“We didn’t die! Or crash!” he burst out. I sighed deeply. “Maybe Ara wants a turn.” I suggested. “Maybe Kayro does, too.” He muttered. I laughed, and threw a pillow at him. “Put on your seat-belt on.” Reluctantly, he put on his seat-belt as the plane rumbled to life. I swear I heard an ecstatic laugh from the cock-pit. Uh-oh. Perhaps we should be worried. The nose pointed down and the plane screeched and screamed into the atmosphere. I shut my eyes, and felt myself being jerked down, falling. Then it stopped. I peeked my eye open to see we had already landed. “Who wants to go out first?” Jace called from the cock-pit. At those words, Kayro and Ara sprang out the door. I followed after them, rolling my eyes at Jace. He shared my annoyance. The world outside was lush green, with a large jungle, and the sound of the surf could be heard when there was a rare silence. “Wow.” I mused. But then the peace was broken, and Heartless were here again. I pulled out an arrow, aiming it at the larger one, and let I fly, feeling it crackle with electricity. It hit the Heartless with a bolt of lightning, striking the others around it. Ara hopped from one to another slashing while barely moving, like a demonic pixie. Kayro seemed to have recovered from that weird outburst at the Olympus Coliseum. He slashed at them with his sword so quickly it appeared he was holding a tongue of fire. Jace, he held a drop of ink of the night. Soon, the Heartless disappeared as quickly as they came. “Come on, we have to go find Sora and the others.” Ara urged. “I think they crash-landed.” Jace informed. I turned to Kayro. “See? You’re not the only bad lander.” He laughed but punched my shoulder. I leaped into a tree, and the others followed my lead. Ara and I moved swiftly, practically mirroring each other’s movements. I feel so graceful. But I’m a klutz, how can this be happening? I wondered. Ever since I left, ever since I made contact with Sora, I felt like a new person. Like something had awakened inside me. I could feel the energy stirring inside me, hungry and wanting to be released. But I didn’t know how, and until I did, the energy kept pacing impatiently inside me, as if the answer were just that obvious.



I gasped. Tiv could move swiftly through the trees. Tentatively, I raised my hand, and swung from a branch using my left hand. She did the same thing, but with her right hand. It’s happening. I thought fearfully. It was terrifying, how this was working so quickly. This is my entire fault. I thought despairingly. I’ve ruined her life.