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organizationhimself · 1 year

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just kinda having some thinky thoughts about how dark road totally rewired eraqus's character and what a phenomenal job they did.

like here's your problem you have. you need to take this cloistered old man who raised his students in the jedi way, somehow put up with Old Man Villainy being That Way presumably on the regular, lost every last iota of his shit and turned on the Apocalypse Child he adopted as well as his surrogate son who was infested with The Evil (which the series has long established as not necessarily being good or bad without context) to say nothing of the headtrip he gave his direct heir, and you need to reduce him to a version of himself as a child that is. like. fun. someone who has a genuine friendship with xehanort and is regarded by xehanort as someone who is a "sly fox," i.e. not the sort of buffoon who tests for mastery of the keyblade by child-proofing some orbs of light.

where do you even begin?

YOU TRAUMATIZE THE UNGODLY HELL OUT OF HI--okay i'm getting ahead of myself, let's start with principles.

because eraqus is principled. he believes really firmly in the light in a way that's nearly sora-adjacent in its intensity, but the thing is that sora has this flexibility that eraqus was simply not raised to appreciate. yes, nomura, we understand you like the bright sunshine one and the wry brooding one, you did it with sora and riku, god knows what you did to axel's spine to fit him into the sunshine kid's mold next to isa as brooding anti-crybaby, and now we're doing the same thing to eraqus. ok. i love it when you're optimistic, let's do it.

so first we need confidence. easy; he's a smug little rich kid. worked for riku didn't it? (source: kh1 manga, and the fact that you cannot convince me anyone can maintain a kid with that build on a budget) but we also need to see how dark road changed him as a person. let's contrast his uptight stick-up-his-ass future with a present day class clown who doesn't take things seriously; a headstrong fighter who jokes that he'll just run away. and hey speaking of emotional damage, let's start easing into the inevitable terrible, horrific, unspeakable traumas we're going to visit on this defenseless creature with a little one as a treat:

HIT HIM RIGHT IN THE GRANDPA.

and there you go! we now have a source for eraqus's rejection of the darkness that is not simply a function of his career as a jedi keyblade master, but has an actual personal experience he can point back to in order to say "hey, darkness is the pits!! here is why." it sets the stage early for him to be already butting heads with xehanort, who takes a much more flexible look at the worlds and the way they work and is more willing to view things from the perspective that he is not an authority on the moral peculiarities of whatever world he is currently inhabiting.

xehanort is also a child of destiny [citation needed]. an isolated visitant who was born for finer things but never slept a day in his life without waking up with sand in his mouth until he reached out and took his fate in his bare hands and let it drag him all the way to scala.

where he met the blueblooded child of a keybearing legacy thousands of years in the making, just like his.

and suddenly what you have are unwitting equals. we're ready to set them both up at the chess board; eraqus's legacy is plain, he moves first and he makes no apologies for it because it's his birthright. but xehanort's half of the board is still buried in shadow, implied but never stated, never surrendered to eraqus's probing questions or revealed by his moves, but already aimed at a clash with destiny, fated, inevitable.

shall we say, already written.

and this is brilliant!! now we have a source for our "sly fox," a reason for xehanort to be extremely familiar with the way eraqus thinks (and not to star wars on main but the obi-wan kenobi series did something really similar to this narratively by using anakin and obi-wan's familiarity with each others' fighting styles to predict the actions they would take in a situation, and i will actually never be over it in my life, absolutely stealing it for a xehaqus fic sometime, just shamelessly mugging ewan mcgregor in the street for that solid gold good shit). not only that, but we also have an explanation for xehanort's motivations as described by kh3. he is not looking at the fight from the perspective of one of the pawns; he is looking at the fight as a player, deciding which pawn gets taken. selecting which rook to sacrifice in exchange for the queen.

and eraqus is opposite him, doing the exact same thing (sort of, kh3 was a little cerebral with that), but there's an important difference here that we'll come back to later on.

so, okay. we have a vague outline in the shape of a sunshine kid now. he has confidence tied to his role in society, his legacy gives him perspective, his trauma ensures that he will one day calcify against the darkness with such emphasis that he will unwittingly pad the therapy bills of an entire generation. so far so good.

but uh, yeah, his kids? he fights them? like okay, axel has his differences with his kids too but he's not trying to kill them (mostly). eraqus really definitely for real is, and ven is defenseless. so that'ssss...hard to square with the sunshine kid we're building, nomura, how do we explain that? we really can't handwave it as amnesia this time, we're not working with ansem the wise here.

(BALDR. BALDR IS HOW--

ok but wait wait wait, before we even get to baldr, there's something we can do:

make eraqus impulsive.

and i mean impulsive. make eraqus spoil for a fight with so much unmitigated howler monkey energy that he will fight his friends just to vent. (this isn't even a unique thing, riku and xion and even sora do it all the time, and we're not here to talk about ven's crimes against miners but it's clear that violence is a spoken language in kh.) eraqus is fluent, so we're making it so that all of eraqus's intensity and passion can be focused on a single point if xehanort pushes exactly the right switches in his head.

and then, y'know, yeah. make baldr slaughter all of his classmates, several of them right in front of him, because of unchecked darkness and baldr's own inability to see past his own grief and resentment for long enough to understand that all he's really doing is inflicting his own suffering on other people in a murderstorm of nihilism and bitterness. unrelenting trauma conga line, check.

and now we have almost all the elements. eraqus's principles can't allow him to accept darkness, both because his grandfather was lost to it and because it left him (by all accounts a bourgeois slacker at the bottom of his class, someone vidar doesn't even consider as a candidate for one of the lights despite what baldr has to say about eraqus as a light source) one of the only survivors of an event that completely resculpted his life and community. time to pack him off to the jedi temple land of departure to be least okayest teacher of the year, right?

well...no. we need eraqus to wait.

because he doesn't take on students. and doesn't, and doesn't, for decades. first he fights xehanort, and as we have established he is spoiling for that fight (white moves first!). and then when xehanort finally visits him to drop off that half-dead kid he found (ven was like that already shhh), he's kind of like politely like "oh, you have apprentices. they seem...bright," like he's congratulating eraqus on finally reaching a life stage that eraqus should have hit approximately 50 years ago, and eraqus is like "yeah yeah whatever shut up anyway YOU'VE got one too now right." (yen sid talks about the role of "seeker" like it's a different thing from "keyblade master" so that's where i'm extrapolating this distinction from, but regardless i don't think anyone ever seriously expected xehanort to take on students.)

my point here is that eraqus waited until the last possible opportunity to take on students. to carry on the legacy that was so important to him as a child, and to re-experience the closest thing to the camaraderie he had as a keybearer-in-training that he could ever have back. that is how impactful baldr's actions were for eraqus.

i'm veering completely into speculation now but i think eraqus was terrified. how could he not be? his class wasn't even taking the mark of mastery and still got decimated by it. how could he risk going through that again, but from odin's perspective this time? what guarantee would he ever have to avoid the same tragedy his master had failed to prevent?

so, NOW we know why eraqus's mark of mastery was a handful of light pinatas and a duel. (i like to think xehanort felt a certain level of professional embarrassment for him and wanted to make it just a little more like a real challenge.)

(this is a sidebar and i'm going to talk about my other blorbo for a second but terra has a beautiful dream of being a sly manipulator. that's why he doesn't worry about investing himself in villain schemes, because he assumes he'll see the snare coming before he gets his head caught in it, but it's never coming from directly in front of him like he expects. so this is a dream that will never come true, but he has it, and i think given what we knew about eraqus as early as blank points, its only possible source is a master who was strict and exacting, but--very occasionally--also a sly fox who secretly delighted in his students' nascent abilities to surprise and outwit him.)

back to the trauma, we also have, obviously, the explanation for eraqus's attitude towards terra, and later ven. terra is a tragedy in slow motion that eraqus has seen happen before. baldr was unable to control his darkness; it overwhelmed him, and eraqus does not have the context that xehanort does, that baldr was in some ways a product of his own darkness-shunning society. even if eraqus does have that context, i can't really see him agreeing with it--and even if he at one point agreed with it, he would have gotten that context from the same guy who last showed up at his house talking about kicking off the apocalypse for the vine.

so like. eraqus has never seen any damn thing in his whole life that doesn't confirm his bias against the darkness. does that make him innocent of parenting Incorrectly? no, he is a Bad Dad. does it explain his hopelessly unsuccessful parenting strategies? yes, it does.

what it reinforces is also that eraqus didn't want to have to fight terra and ven. the original bbs is honestly not very good about establishing this: he cries one Sad Tear. yawn. still child abuse, asshole! the stakes in bbs are also not very well established, because there's approximately six people in it and some of them are just the same guy over again, so we don't really have a sense that terra being taken over by the darkness is like...gonna mean something to eraqus that is sincerely worth the personal cost of killing him. since we're clearly no longer worried about ven, there aren't other students to protect (besides aqua, but she's a really hard sell on the "needs to be protected from terra with so much urgency he must not live another moment" front). there is no immediacy to ven's status as Apocalypse Child; if anything vanitas seems like the obviously more important threat, and maybe eraqus should be less concerned about weeding out students and more focused on vetting friends like Old Man So Clearly The Villain My Guy. bbs eraqus is just genuinely hard to like as a character.

but now we have dark road context.

and white moves first.

eraqus is not seeing terra or ven in that moment, he's seeing baldr. he's seeing the summoning of kingdom hearts that almost was, and he is gripped by meticulously prearranged, bone-deep, irrational, traumatized, unbridled impulse. the emotion must vent. the thing he was powerless to stop has returned to haunt him and he must resist it. he knows what will happen if terra strikes him down here and heads back out into the worlds in search of other hearts, other lights. he knows.

but terra resists, using the full spectrum of his strength without remorse, and it is only when eraqus's keyblade is ready to fall from his hand that he realizes the truth:

My own heart is darkness.

and when this happened in the original birth by sleep all i could think was yeah star wars dad!! nailed it your heart IS darkness you fuckin dillweed, about time!! what took you so long!!

but after dark road, this context is completely changed. eraqus is not just realizing that he fucked up.

he is realizing that he fucked up the exact same way baldr fucked up.

that he let his own grief and suffering cloud his judgment and guide his blade to strike out at his loved ones. that instead of finding a way to live with what's already happened to ven, what was long ago fated for terra, he turned his resentment outward and gave that darkness leave to consume them both whole.

but unlike baldr, eraqus regrets it.

it is that moment that xehanort cuts him down anyway, not because eraqus can't be saved the way baldr couldn't but because xehanort is cleaving away the last of his own attachments to the world so he can follow through with the rest of his plans, and i am SO NORMAL ABOUT THI

but okay anyway. eraqus has exactly one move left.

he can't see the board. unlike xehanort, he has no extra pieces of himself he can just bandy about; the warriors of light must assemble without any of his direct input, chasing the echoes of eraqus's students and pushing and pulling in reaction to xehanort's steady advance through the center. he has only one chance. he can't afford to waste it.

the kings are meeting in the middle of the board. the stalemate will come any moment, when they're both out of moves and out of time, leaving the fate of the worlds undecided.

and it is at this moment that eraqus pulls the same penultimate move that xehanort himself used on baldr, confronting him with the first victim his darkness ever struck down. eraqus almost doesn't have to say anything, at all, because xehanort has to know what it means. has to know what it says.

xehanort resists. the world is too far gone. too many horrible things can happen in it; it must be reset. not purged and filled with darkness, like baldr wanted, but returned to a state that can never mutate into the conditions that made baldr exist in the first place. that doomed all their classmates to die. it's too late.

For us, perhaps...but not for them.

and now we go back to the distinction.

the thing that makes xehanort's chess game different from eraqus's is that, for xehanort, it's only chess. the pieces he's moving have ceased to exist in his mind as individuals. they are pawns on a line of white and black squares, and they may weave away from his will here or there but they cannot be swayed from their march.

eraqus never forgets.

and it's actually eraqus's capacity for forgiveness that i haven't even touched on yet. this isn't a word i ever expected to associate with him, but eraqus spends dark road forgiving. five minutes after any altercation he's already forgotten about it. name-calling. arguments. rejection. opposition. full-on fighting.

murders.

when xehanort kills baldr, eraqus is still calling out for him to stop. when xehanort later strikes out at him with darkness (the thing eraqus is scared of the most!!), permanently disfiguring him, eraqus has already forgiven him before seeing him the next time in person.

he does not forget that baldr is a person in spite of his darkness, and eraqus doesn't want him to be killed for it. that terra is a person in spite of his darkness, and eraqus doesn't want to see it consume him. that ven is a person in spite of the darkness that was cleaved from him, and eraqus doesn't want to see it return.

(if you think about it the real tragedy is that we were robbed of him looking aqua in the eye and telling her that she isn't tainted forever, that it did not take her, and even if it had, that will always, always matter less than her finding her way back. i refuse to believe terra was not already made aware of these facts.)

but he also does not forget that xehanort is not a faceless player in the skies, impossible to convince of the significance of a pawn; he remembers that xehanort, too, is still a person.

this point is important because eraqus's last move is not a checkmate (I KNOW HE SAYS CHECKMATE but it is not checkmate), but it is calculated to produce something else: a concession. he doesn't need the board to support his win or xehanort's loss; he needs the player on the other side to put down the pieces and follow his beacon out of the dark.

and that is how nomura shows us our sunshine kid at last, fully formed, as he takes xehanort's burdens from him and spirits them both well beyond the reach of the board.

anyway yeah microwaving him in my brain along with axel (and also roxas and terra because if i don't collect all my blorbos AND their hot mess dads i'll never fill out my pokedex).

#eraqus #xehanort #kingdom hearts dark road #khdr #xehaqus #i would apologize for the length if i were sorry

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goldensunset · 10 months

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Hey. Pspsps.

I don't 100% know who your favorite characters are.

If I asked you to pick one and go ham telling me about them, would you?

*grabs you* ok today i’m gonna change it up and talk about a pair of characters i don’t usually talk about

loooong story short (i'll dm you the story if you want or something) roxas and xion were the reason i got into the kh franchise. their story and their unique indescribable connection to our wonderful protagonist singlehandedly took me from the mindset of 'haha kh is a dumb wacky disney fanfiction' to 'this is genuinely a stunning and heartwrenching piece of media full of so much honest and serious emotion and love and i'm insane now'

here's a boy who was never meant to exist, a mistake, someone who doesn't even possess the full capability to experience emotions, someone who's just the inferior resentful shadow of another who needs to die so that the precious original can come back. but he wasn't gonna take that lying down he fought tooth and nail until the bitter end against his fate and defiantly proclaimed that he was human and he was himself and yet it was all in vain. but it still mattered. it mattered to us and it mattered to those who knew him. the love was there even if it couldn't save him it still mattered.

meanwhile, here's a girl who's just a patchwork mess of pieces of other people. a clone of both sora and roxas, meant as a backup vessel for xehanort, wielding what used to be riku's key, having accidentally absorbed select memories of kairi from the magic naminé wove. it's a miracle she exists at all. does she exist at all? she was an 'it', an empty thing designed to mimic the fighting capabilities of another, who gradually started absorbing that other's memories of some girl until it subconsciously tricked itself into thinking it was that girl. suddenly 'it' became 'she.' but she had her own life experiences and therefore was not that girl but someone new entirely. what exactly did her mind look like? what did it feel like to be her? her mind was just a fragment of sora's mind and she didn't even know who he was. the insane headaches and crises that came free with her very existence drove her to seek answers and eventually made her realize she shouldn't even be alive.

but she was so brave. she was so so brave and resolute and made the firm decision to sacrifice herself for the greater good even though she should've never had to. it was the only agency she had and she took hold of it. she knew there was never any hope for her but she at least wanted something good to come out of her demise. roxas didn't really have that same agency even though he seems more proactive as a character at first glance. roxas fought and fought but was constantly being dragged here and there by the narrative up until the end. he fought his fate and xion accepted hers and they both met the same tragic end.

in kh2fm we saw what was left of roxas, angrily fighting back inside of sora. he was full of hate and anger and who can blame him? he should've won. he was stronger. almost. but victory eluded him once more. it was all for nothing and roxas faded again and sora was so confused and full of sadness he didn't even understand.

then in ddd we again saw roxas within sora's mindscape, but that time he was so so different. that time he was calm and smiling and gentle. roxas had surrendered. but sora told him what we'd all been wanting to tell him- he was his own person and deserved to be treated as such. to which roxas said like the best line in the series: 'sora, see? that's why it has to be you.'

roxas wanted things his way, he wanted his own life, he was bitter and sick of people telling him he had to make sacrifices for others. roxas would've gotten rid of others for his own sake. meanwhile sora had always been intensely loving and selfless. sora was always reaching out to people, seeing the light and humanity in them, caring about them. i'm not saying roxas was bad for wanting to live or that sora's insane constant self-sacrificial behavior isn't deeply worrying but the point here is: sora was the hero roxas wasn't.

roxas recognized this. that's why it had to be sora. if it was the other way around, roxas wouldn't have had the strength to be the person sora was. he would've never surrendered on his own. he had to be forced to surrender and then spend time within sora's heart to begin to understand him and to begin to love him.

roxas resented sora because roxas had to be sacrificed in his name. he didn't want to die to save someone he didn't even know who was apparently his real self and the only person who mattered. roxas was sick of hearing about him. but then once roxas met him he couldn't help but love him too. both because sora is just that easy to love, and because something in roxas resonated with- well, his other. that was him and that wasn't him and that was who he used to be and that was who he would be and they each held a piece of each other within them and even though they were their own people they would obviously be forever linked.

the bond that was created between sora and roxas transcends anything i really even have the language to say. or anyone who speaks this language to say. or possibly anyone in existence. that's self love and love of another in one. they're part of each other. i'm really normal about it

#*lies down*#roxas #sora #xion #kingdom hearts #mine: kh #hough. posts written while looping various versions of xion's theme #asks #stresslitzia

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braveheartstoryteller · 16 days

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It all begins and ends, with Neku Sakuraba. Or at least that is my theory.

"Who needs friends! They just laugh and talk like idiots, and pretend to agree with you... So you end up caring about them... exposing yourself... getting HURT... Screw it! We're better off without them! You want people getting in your way? Dragging you down? I don't. And I never said we were friends. You did!""

Neku's story arc in the original game is one full of hurt, as KH often calls it. As the above dialog shows (said to Shiki) Neku has been hurt in the past, and resists any form of connection to someone else. However, upon finding himself in the Reaper's Game, Neku is forced to connect and open up to Shiki. All because if he doesn't he won't "win" the Reaper's Game. Neku's whole story arc, is learning how to connect with and rely on others again, after closing himself off. Awhile back I talked about some of the connections between the scene where Sora wakes up in a version of Scramble Crossing, and how it mirror's Neku's in TWEWY (link here). This makes me ask a question. Is Sora being set up for the same arc? In the very beginning of DDD Sora encounters Neku. You get bits and pieces of Neku's original story, in KH. Such as Neku's clear resistance to Sora's desire to be friends with him.

"Now we're friends? It's not that easy." "Not saying it is, but... you could make it easier."

Heh, the simple mind of a kid. Seriously, Sora looks at Neku and wants to help, for him it really is that simple. Earlier in the same conversation Neku calls Sora out on this:

"What? Time out. Do you trust every total stranger you meet?"

In fact, this trust is actually betrayed by Neku, by leading Sora to Young Xehanort. Sora, of course, brushes it off later, by saying that at the last minute Neku changed his mind and defended him. Sora never once thinks of Neku any less than a friend. But Sora's story doesn't end there. It is only the beginning. The beginning of Traverse Town seems there to serve as a reminder of Sora's simple child-like heart, to further highlight how he changes over the course of the story, especially the end. I've talked about how that in meeting Roxas, Sora's childhood ends (link). And I've talked about Sora's arc in KH3 in various places. (I could lay it out some time, and I might one day.) But in the end where does everything lead? To Scramble Crossing. On the surface, it seems like just a veneer. Sora just ends up in the same place (of a sort) is all. But if you look closer at Sora's arc, it seems to paint a different picture. This is where my theory comes in. The ending of KH3 seems to be both right and wrong to me all at once. It has given me loads of grief for that reason. There is plenty of dialog and framing to support both sides strongly, so which one is right? Or if it is that clear on both sides, are both true? I think it is the latter. Sora saves Kairi, a very special thing. But seemingly, Sora also choses a darker path in the process. And the fact that he wakes up in Scramble Crossing, seems to point to that. If we look at the story in KH3, it all seems to be put together to apply pressure on Sora, and to make him, well, flee. Now that the others (especially Kairi) is safe, he can now run away from the hurt in his heart and go off and have new adventures. This is my theory. That the whole story is designed to set Sora up on a path like Neku's. I do think that if this is the case, we need more framing to make it stronger. Sora has to continue to further cut himself off from others, to further align himself with Neku's choices. Still, even if Sora doesn't quite go there, I think one fact remains; Sora's heart is hurting. And because of that, Sora is overwhelmed, and needs space to figure it out. Sometimes we got to do that. It is like what Esmeralda says in DDD to Riku:

"We all do that sometimes. There are just some things we need to keep separate from the world at large, at least until we have time to figure them out."

Perhaps that is why Riku lets Sora go. If anyone would know how sometimes you need to walk a lonely path, it would be him.

#kingdom hearts #kh #kh sora #character meta #fan theory #kh3 #nyssa’s favorite key #neku sakuraba #twewy neku #kh4 speculation

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curryfury13 · 3 months

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Hello!

Welcome to my first retrospective post. This one should be fun, huh? We're going to go through the first chapter of my very first fan-fiction. Not word for word, mind you, but as commentary. I'll provide the link if you're interested in reading the chapter itself, but otherwise I'll be talking about where I was at as a creator when I wrote it.

Think of this as the special features! Ever wonder what the heck that creator was thinking when they made that dumb decision? Well now's your chance to find out! Or something like that.

Storytelling in general was a new concept for me.

Something I've only recently opened up about publicly is that growing up, I struggled with reading books. I'd reread the same paragraph over and over again, never really absorbing anything I actually read. I could do some audio-books occasionally—which helped immensely when it came to schooling—but proper grammar, pacing, actual writing, I hadn't a clue. Turns out it was due to a fun load of disassociation. Well, I mean as much fun as swallowing a tortilla chip the wrong way at a party, which really isn't much fun at all.

This is all to say, I went into writing this story not knowing how to write a story. And you might be asking yourself, then why, oh why, did I write this story? The answer to that is because I wanted to. Go swallow a tortilla chip!

All I really knew was that I loved Kingdom Hearts and it brought me a lot of comfort when I wasn't feeling great. Those were roughly my words when my husband asked me what I wanted to write about and it's still true to this day. He also asked me what I would want to add to the story, because while I could simply novelize the games, that's already been done. What did I want to add?

That's when Hinata was born.

And I mean born. She was genuinely, just barely made up when I started True Friends. I believe I decided her name as I was in the process of writing. No pre-planning, no outline, just opened the laptop and typed away. For better or worse.

Seeing the person she is now compared to how she started is mind boggling to me. She isn't the same girl Riku pulled out of the water.

I kid, I kid. This was the humble beginning. I can still feel my giddy excitement when I reread this chapter.

I also like to refer to this chapter as, Not Interesting At All Really

There was so much I wanted to get to, so many rampant ideas that I needed to thread together without the slightest idea of how I'd do it. My first goal was, let's make sure everyone knows the characters. Mention Riku's yearning for the outside world, Kairi being from another world, and Sora's general, Sora-ness. It was quick, vague, and all a bit awkward, especially since a majority of my readers would be Kingdom Hearts fans in the first place. They didn't need those needless explanations!

Reading it now, you can still feel that awkward tension. The feeling of, I just need to get this out of the way and get to the good stuff.

One detail I tried to get into on Destiny Islands was diving into Kairi's emotions about her fall and loss of memories. It's never really explored in the games, spare for Memory of Melodies, I suppose, and it was something I wanted to try and explore more.

While I do think it's an interesting concept, if I ever try and rewrite this story, I don't think this thread will carry over. It doesn't really go anywhere in the end, and I feel like it drives Kairi to act out of character in True Friends. It may be something that does eat at her, but it's not something she would act out about. She's content with her life on Destiny Islands.

Overall, it's not a horrible start! It's something that still makes me smile when I read it. A lot of heart and love went into it. And I still have to give myself a small pat on the back that Hinata did show up rather quickly. Something happened right off the bat and the story didn't drag its feet.

In the first chapter anyway... Later on. That's a different story.

#Kingdom Hearts #True Friends

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kingarmorking · 7 months

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"(simba voice) moooom! mom you're messing up my mane!"

i dont know where this takes place in that au but the image Would Not leave my mind so here we are @tharkflark1

There were many things that Yozora expected when he woke up that morning. Training with his dads, maybe going off world with either of them or Aegis and Magia or maybe it would’ve been a quiet day! Just a day for himself to wander around Quadratum. That was thrown out the window when he saw a news broadcast of a monster, looking eerily similar to the heartless his dads talked about fighting, and then the headline stated, “Young man with a giant key fights off the monster that appears in downtown Quadratum!”

So… yeah he was with a younger version of his dad now. Sora was staying with Strelitzia and they were working on a way to get him back to his own world. That he could do. Sure a wrench or two were consistently being thrown into that plan when the younger version of Riku then showed up followed by his actual dads coming back from where they were off world! But that he could handle! Kind of! He was handling it just fine. What he could not handle… was the younger version of Riku in his spirit form.

Now… his pa (Sora) had told him that dad (Riku) had some trouble controlling the form when they were younger. He wasn’t sure when his dad had gotten a better grasp on it so the few times he’d seen the form growing up, he was in control of his actions for the most part, there were few things that he’d do that pa would embarrass him about later (though he would still find a way to without a doubt)

He’d woken up like normal, after that mess had been settled, terrible bedhead and all that caused it to spike up in random directions. Noise from outside had caught his attention and upon exiting he saw the younger Riku in his spirit form. Again not a big deal but the second Riku’s star-shaped eyes locked with him, Yozora felt the deep rooted instinct of fight-or-flight flare up and he turned to run back inside because where was Sora, why was Riku in his spirit form- he was bowled over none too gently by the giant komory bat dream eater.

He felt the rumbling in Riku’s throat as he nuzzled his back and let out a pained huff, “Okay, Riku I get it, you’re happy to see me, which… better than the alternative… but can you please get off me you’re so much heavier than Meow Mori!” he groaned.

Riku, to absolutely no one’s surprise, did not listen to him. Because why would he like this, Sora was the only one who he’d listen to and Sora was still no where to be seen! A chuff of air further mussed his hair and he rolled his eyes, twisting his body to say something else when a tongue dragged across his forehead up to his hair. Wha… oh hell no, don’t tell him…!

“Riku! I don’t need a bath!” his petulant protests went unnoticed as Riku continued grooming his future child.

The only saving grace was that Aegis and Magia weren’t present because they’d never hear the end of it and then he’d be minus two friends. He continued trying to get out of Riku’s grip, only freezing when he heard muffled giggles from behind him. He craned his head backwards and was greeted with the sight of the older Sora, pa, trying and failing to contain the snickers escaping from his mouth.

“Not… a word.”

“But Zozo!”

“But nothing pa!”

Pa covered his mouth, more muffled giggles coming out at the sight of the predicament Yozora was in as Riku’s tongue made his hair, arguably worse honestly, “Riku! You’re messing up my hair!” he groaned. Pa’s laughs were finally too much and he doubled over, holding his stomach. His dad laughing was fine, this was still better than-

“Aww baby dream eater’s bath time by daddy dream eater~!”

Two sets of laughter joined pa’s and Magia’s voice rang out clear, Yozora briefly wondering if he could suffocate himself in Riku’s mane. Finally he got one arm free and he frantically pat at Riku’s arm, “Okay, okay I’m clean! I’m clean!” he wriggled the rest of his body free and made to smooth his hair out. Once that was done he took a quick calming breath, spun on his heels and materialized his sword and crossbow, aiming them at his two, soon to be, ex-friends. Aegis and Magia both froze, wide grins still on their faces.

“Run.” all three said simultaneously, Aegis and Magia to each other and Yozora’s only warning before he ran after them. Pa could handle Riku’s spirit form for the time being, he had two friends to kill.

#kingdom hearts #uhhh #stork baby au?#sure #stork baby au #king writes #i wrote this in like less than an hour #riku at a later point #“i did WHAT”

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bearsanpancakes · 11 months

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Mitsuki Izumi White Special Day! Rabbit Chat - Part 5: White Special Day!

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5

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Tsumugi: Thank you for your hard work regarding “White Special Day!”’s joint performance, Mitsuki-san!

Tsumugi: Please wait in your hotel room for now, we’ll celebrate in a restaurant we have booked later!

Mitsuki: Thanks for your hard work–! I’m already in the room with Nagi!

Tsumugi: You’re in the same room as Nagi, right?

Mitsuki: Yup! Yamato-san wants a single room, so Nagi enthusiastically said that he’ll visit after the celebrations lol

Mitsuki: I’m watching anime with him now.

Tsumugi: I see! I hope you can finish the anime before the celebrations begin… (lol)

Mitsuki: I’ll make sure he gets to the restaurant if the celebrations start in the middle of the anime’s runtime, even if it means I have to drag him! Plus, I only let him watch it because he promised he’d attend the celebration lol

Tsumugi: I-I’ll leave it to you >< (lol)

Mitsuki: This guy doesn’t move in the slightest once he starts watching anime… He doesn’t even notice me making weird poses right now.

Tsumugi: You’re even making weird poses, huh! (lol)

Mitsuki: Ah he noticed lol

Mitsuki: He’s even imitating my poses lolol

Mitsuki:

Tsumugi: Your interactions with Nagi-san really make me want to know more about what’s going on! (lol)

Mitsuki: We’re just doing dumb stuff lol

Mitsuki: Ah, sorry sorry! You’re here to tell me about the celebration, right?

Tsumugi: Yes! Also, thank you for your hard work during the performance!

Mitsuki: The performance was lively, I had a fun time!

Tsumugi: There was especially a lot of fan service today, so it’s been the talk of the internet!

Mitsuki: That’s great! I’ve thought about it a lot, and came up with an idea before the start of the performance; a way to make the fans enjoy the moment, even if there are fewer songs!

Mitsuki: To thank all of our fan’s continuous support, we decided to increase the amount of fan service during White Day!

Tsumugi: Iori-san mentioned this to me! Mitsuki-san, thank you for your suggestion!

Mitsuki: It’s all thanks to everyone else, who agreed with my suggestion!

Mitsuki: Everyone worked harder than usual, and we got a positive response from the audience!

Tsumugi: Yes! It was all very memorable!

ㅤ

Choices:

Option 1 - Especially Yamato-san’s fanservice!

Mitsuki: You mean the guy who picked me up suddenly!? At first, I actually thought it was Nagi again, but Yamato-san was laughing afterward so I panicked because I didn’t know who did it (lol)

Mitsuki: Even Yamato-san is working harder than usual!

ㅤ

Option 2 - Especially Riku-san’s fanservice!

Mitsuki: I remember he did the dance moves for “Fly Away” with Iori, right? That seems pretty awesome–! I want to do dance moves with a team as well!

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Option 3 - Especially Sogo-san’s fanservice!

Mitsuki: He did a lot of moves alongside Tamaki! The cheers were super loud whenever MEZZO” gave fanservice…!

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Tsumugi: Of course, Mitsuki-san was also impressive! You constantly ran around the stage making eye contact with the fans, and kept giving out fanservice…!

Mitsuki: That’s because I told myself to work hard and give out tons of fanservice! I think I managed to respond to most of the fans that had a hand fan. Of course, I think I managed to respond to everyone overall!

Mitsuki: All in all, everyone worked extra hard, and the performance was fun! The audience’s smiles are the best reward we could ever ask for!

Mitsuki:

Tsumugi: All the fans were able to have so much fun thanks to you! So, thank you!

Mitsuki: I’m the one who should be saying thank you!

Mitsuki: Doing what we usually do is safe and puts us at ease, but I think it’s still nicer to be able to make the fans happier like this! That’s what I think.

Mitsuki: Just like the roller coaster rides, it’s nice to be able to challenge different things.

Mitsuki: It’s also all thanks to Manager being by our side throughout the challenges that I was able to do it. Thank you for always giving us the freedom to be creative!

Tsumugi: You’re flattering me… As your manager, I feel touched to see everyone try their hardest!

Tsumugi: Whenever I see everyone being lively, I feel glad to be able to have this job!

Mitsuki: Me too. Every time I see you smile, I feel glad that I gave it my all.

Mitsuki: Just like how a fan’s smile could cheer me up, your smile cheers me up too.

Tsumugi: Mitsuki-san…

Mitsuki: Other than the fans, I seriously have to thank you as well since today is White Day.

Mitsuki: Thank you for everything so far. I truly am the happiest idol ever to have such an amazing manager.

Mitsuki: I hope that you’ll continue to watch over us with a smile on your face!

Tsumugi: Yes! Thank you all for giving me the greatest White Day as well!

Mitsuki:

Mitsuki: It’s a bit embarrassing when we speak so formally like this.

Tsumugi: Yeah… but I’m very happy.

Mitsuki: Me too!

Mitsuki: Let’s continue to try our best from today onwards!

Tsumugi: Alright, let’s try our best together!

Mitsuki: But first, let’s enjoy the celebration with all we have! See you later!

Tsumugi: Alright! See you later! Mitsuki-san, thank you for your hard work regarding the White Day performance!

Mitsuki:

ㅤ

Part 5 end

#idolish7 #idolish 7 #ainanatl #mitsuki izumi #white special day!

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snowflake-of-destruction · 14 days

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For the 1 Like=1 Fic I Want to Write Game (the post is pinned if you want to join) and @13-5-18-3-25

Let's bring back another ancient idea. Canon divergence because when is it not with me?

Post KH3 when young Xehanort goes back to “fulfill his destiny” after seeing the future, he refuses. He was supposed to forget most of what he experienced and just remember impressions and flashes of what he’s supposed to do, and that's exactly what happens, but, in this universe, when those flashes come, he isn’t lost in the thought of "look what I accomplish in the future!“ but rather "look at the ruin and destruction it ends in” and, more importantly, he remembers learning Eraqus is dead…and Xehanort is definitely not about losing the person he cares most about. His selfishness in that regard is greater than his ambition or conviction that the only way to improve the universe is to give it a fresh start.

So instead of going further down the path of darkness, Xehanort returns to Scala to Eraqus that night and asks Era to run away with him. Eraqus says no at first, even when Xehanort starts talking about his troubling visions. First, Eraqus thinks he’s crazy, and then, when he indulges Xehanort’s madness, he reasons that Xehanort should just come back to the fold of the keybearers and stay with him and fulfill the path of a Guardian of Light. Xehanort insists that in the future he glimpsed Eraqus died teaching students (technically true) and that they are doing this “properly” and running out on it all.

They settle back on Destiny Islands and Xehanort becomes a fisherman while Eraqus whittles wooden crafts and swords. It should feel small and suffocating to Xehanort, it should feel like he's disappointed his former caretaker and the universe at large by rejecting being the "child of destiny," but all he was missing was Eraqus to be happy it turns out. His universe improves all on its own, this the only fresh start that was needed. They live a long and happy life together and “make up” tall tales for island kids, and repel any attempt there is to drag them back to the lives they once knew.

Meanwhile, Ventus lands fresh from the time of fairytales. No Xehanort apprenticeship and separation into Ventus and Vanitas that causes his heart to be bonded with Sora’s at the island boy’s birth this time, which you would think would be a good thing, but that means that whatever darkness is in him, whether you believe it’s his own sometimes manipulated by greater forces or is fully some otherworldly dark passenger Darkness with a capital D is still there and ready to strike. He’d adopted by Ansem the Wise and Even, an older brother for Ienzo, and recovers very little of his past life, falling into the role of prince, fond of his new family, especially little Kairi. He doesn’t have very many friends outside his family, but the few he makes, Lea and Isa, he becomes extremely close to.

A few years later, Aqua and Terra’s (now Yensid students in this universe) Mark of Mastery task is finding the “old, lost keybearers and convincing them to return” and thus Riku and possibly Sora too are bequeathed anyway, Riku by Terra when he visits the island and Sora by Aqua on her visit, without Xehanort and Eraqus’s knowledge. Aqua presses too hard, demanding and ordering with Xehanort and Eraqus when she finds them, fails her task, and returns to Yensid’s tower to tell him of her new plan of how to force Xehanort and Eraqus to comply. Terra agrees to let them be and travels elsewhere, guided by his heart and finding a time displaced amnesiac Skuld that he brings back with him, thus passing his Mark of Mastery by creative technicality while Aqua fails.

Ventus fulfills the role of amnesiac apprentice to Ansem the Wise that turns on him. His intentions are good. As he regains his memories, he needs experiments to continue so he can eliminate and/or control the Darkness in his heart so another Strelizia murder doesn’t happen, and instead he falls down a path that takes him far worse places. Ventus betrays Ansem like Ienzo does and feels guilty about it…for about five seconds before he loses his heart. Radiant Garden falls as it always was meant to. Ventus planned to “free” Kairi like the apprentices, but she gets caught up in the Heartless attack and ends up in Traverse Town with the Final Fantasy characters.

Ventus is technically Superior in the Org but keeps Xigbar as a close advisor. Braig befriended Ventus early because he recognizes him and Luxu needs to see how things play out. Outwardly he complains about how Ansem’s eldest charge is a handful and always underfoot but indulges him when he wants combat training and pretends to be all confused and concerned when that triggers memories. He listens to Ventus tell his “wild tales” and encourages him certain ways and looks the other way when Ventus is a little older and sneaking out to meet Lea because he’s the cool guard. Second in command of the Organization Xigbar is the payoff, though Axel and Saix have their claws pretty deep in Ventus as well, considering their relationship (Axel/Venitas/Saix evil power throuple may bump up our rating, but we’ll see)

This brings us to a modified KH1 timeline with Riku opening the door and the island falling, but Xehanort and Eraqus fighting for their home and when that fails, hopping a portal to Traverse Town with Sora because “Now we need to take the long way and save the whole damn universe in order to save the islands.” Sora has the kingdom key but Era and Xeha have the knowledge. The Duck and the Dog are allowed to come me along too, but there should be no mistake of who is in charge (Duck and Grumpy Old Bald Man both say “me”).

Donald tries to pull his “gummi ship only holds so many” nonsense and is told that it’s so sad he has to stay behind but thanks for volunteering. A second gummi ship is commissioned from Cid. The KH1 timeline goes further off the rails the first time they see Riku and Soriku's Two Cool Grandpas neither let Donald chase him away, nor let him run away. Big happy family closes keyholes and saves princesses and then tangles with the Org, never got much further planning.

#fanfic ideas #kingdom hearts au #one like one fic

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princess-of-the-corner · 6 months

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Kingdom Hearts II: Final Mix Recap: Hollow Bastion (The Showdown)

“Did it work?” Donald asks as Sora looks at the computer with crossed arms.

“Hey! These things take time, okay?” Sora snaps.

He pokes the keyboard a few times, and a window pops up.

“Woah…” a wowed Sora remarks, “It’s doing something!”

“I think it wants to know what we wanna know!”

Sora pokes a few keys and tries to ask the computer about Riku and Kairi, very clearly STILL not getting how this works.

He gets an error message.

“Even Ansem’s computer doesn’t know…” Sora laments, sulking away from the computer.

Goofy decides to give it a try, and tries to ask the computer for information about the Nobodies.

A report featuring the Nobody Emblem appears in a window on screen, followed swiftly by an error message.

“The data is corrupt,” a computerized voice (not the MCP, Sark, or Tron) announces.

Goofy tries to ask about the Organization.

“The data is corrupt.”

“Stupid computer!” Sora snaps, before mashing the Keyboard.

The others try to calm him down as multiple windows open at odd angles, until suddenly, a picture of a light skinned, blond, bearded man with amber eyes appears on screen.

“Who’s this guy?” Sora questions.

“Welp, I see ya got things workin’!” King Mickey remarks.

“Oh! Your Majesty!” Sora and Donald reply.

The King hushes them again.

“Good goin’,” he praises, “The computer should tell us the things we need to know.”

“But it keeps sayin’ the data inside’s all ker-skuffled,” Goofy replies.

“All we got is a picture of some guy we don’t know,” Sora explains.

The King, however, does know that guy, and leaps for joy.

“Ansem the Wise!” he declares, much to SDG’s confusion.

“Come on, are you teasing us again?” Sora replies.

“Did you forget what Ansem looked like, Your Majesty?” Donald asks.

“Of course I do!” the King replies, “And this is him! I’m positive!”

“Excuse me?” Sora remarks as he takes the King’s hand and drags him out of the computer room, “Could you come this way, please?”

Donald and Goofy follow after him as Hollow Bastion’s music fades out, along with the camera.

When we fade back in, they’re standing in front of the portrait of “Ansem”.

“Look, THIS is ‘Ansem’,” Sora explains, “You know, the guy we all worked reeeally hard to defeat?”

“Oh, that’s right–” the King remarks, “I never finished explaining.”

Fade to black, fade back in to a montage of “Ansem’s” scenes form the final boss and ending of KH1

“Well, the man in the picture is definitely the one who tried to take over Kingdom Hearts – the one you fellas defeated,” King Mickey explains, “But, what you guys actually fought was his Heartless.

“Ya see, he wasn’t really Ansem. He just went around telling everybody that he was.”

Fade back to Ansem’s Study.

“You mean…” Sora’s voice trails off as he shares a glance with Donald and Goofy, before all three say the exact same thing:

“Whaaaat?”

“We went through all that trouble to defeat an impostor?” Sora exclaims.

“Yep. A fake,” King Mickey responds, “But he still had to be stopped.”

“Aw, I can’t believe it…” Donald groans.

“Uh, I’m kinda confused,” Goofy admits, “If he’s a fake, then what happened to the real Ansem?”

“Welp, that’s just what I’m trying to figure out,” King Mickey explains, “Ansem the Wise should know all about Organization XII’s plans, and what’s happening to the worlds.

“I’m pretty sure he’ll give us some help.”

Goofy scratches the side of his head.

“Don’t tell me there’s more!” Sora begs, “I’m lost enough as it is!”

“Well, let’s see,” Goofy opens, “Some feller named Ansem, who wasn’t really Ansem, became a Heartless.

“Does that mean a Nobody got created when that happened, too?”

“Yup!” King Mickey answers, “And that Nobody is the leader of the Organization!”

“Whaaaat?!?” SDG shouts.

“I know I’ve met this fake Ansem before,” the King explains, “and I’ve seen the leader of Organization XIII, too.

“Hmm, kinda felt like being around the same fella.”

“So, where did you meet this guy?” Sora asks.

King Mickey crosses his arms and closes his eyes.

“Gosh…” he comments, “I can’t remember.”

Sora, Donald, and Goofy slouch in disappointment.

“Ansem the Wise – the real Ansem – must know the imposter’s true identity,” King Mickey continues, “That’s why I’ve got to find him and ask him about it.”

Sora, meanwhile, is glaring at the portrait.

“You…!” he growls, “You started all of this! Because of you, Riku and Kairi…” Sora suddenly remembers something. “Your Majesty, do you know where Riku is?”

The King flinches.

“He’s…” he sighs, “I’m sorry… I can’t help.”

Sora looks at Mickey for a second, before pressing.

“Really, Your Majesty?” Sora asks as he walks up to the King and steps around his back and into his peripheral vision, “Are you sure?”

“I’m sorry, Sora,” the King replies as he turns his back to Sora, despondent.

“What about Kairi?” Sora asks, “Organization XIII might’ve kidnapped her.”

“Oh no!” King Mickey whirls around to face Sora, and then turns to the portrait of “Ansem”.

“Sora, Donald, Goofy,” he opens, before turning to face SDG, “I was plannin’ to go get help from Ansem the Wise. But – now I know I forgot the most important thing.

“Helping others should always come before asking others for help.

“We’re safe and sound – and free to choose! So there’s no reason we shouldn’t choose to help our friends!”

SDG nod.

“Let’s look for Riku and Kairi together,” King Mickey proposes.

BOOM!

The entire castle shakes, causing the King to briefly lose his footing until the shaking stops.

“Outside!” Sora shouts.

“Sounds like we gotta start by helpin’ out here!” King Mickey declares as Sherzo di Notte starts playing.

He dashes out into the maze-like corridors to provide his aid, and the cutscene ends.

The Battle of Hollow Bastion has begun.

The battle theme continues playing as you regain control of Sora, and Donald and Goofy are both currently NPC’s you can talk to.

There’s still that Save Point by Ansem’s Computer, and it ISN’T too late to go and finish your business in Agrabah, Halloween Town, the Pride Lands, and/or Twilight Town. You can in fact replay the summer job minigames (even if Sora won’t get paid), or play Struggle by talking to the tournament announcer. (Defeating Hayner 20 times unlocks Setzer, defeating Setzer 20 times unlocks Seifer, and Seifer is by far the easiest opponent in the entire game, even more pathetic than his simulated counterpart was during Roxas’ combat tutorial).

Regardless, exiting Ansem’s Study and going into the Corridors kickstarts the next cutscene.

Survey Robots and Armored Knights spill through a hole in the wall and flood into the Restoration Site, marching into the town and castle.

Exiting into the Corridors progresses the story.

Just outside Ansem’s Study, Maleficent and Pete are leading the Heartless in battle against the Organization’s Nobodies, with the Nobodies gradually thinning the Heartless’ numbers.

“Hear me, my Heartless!” Maleficent orders, “Attack the white husks! Sweep them away!”

“What are you nuts? We’re never gonna win!” Pete declares, “I don’t know about you, but I’m outta here, sister!”

Pete dashes down the corridor, leaving Maleficent to direct the Heartless against the Nobodies.

“You pathetic coward,” Maleficent groans.

In the manga, Pete stuck around throughout the entire battle and risked his life to save Maleficent from a crumbling tower, at which point she berated him for not doing a good enough job in SPITE of her coming out unscathed.

In the novel, she instead stumbles upon Riku’s old room from when he worked for her and starts getting nostalgic, with the implication being that she wasn’t lying when she said Riku was like a son to her. Which, honestly feels like it kinda undermines the moment where Riku stands up to his memory of her in Castle Oblivion.

She then looks back towards the battle, where most of her Heartless have fallen, and the no-longer preoccupied Nobodies have turned their attention towards her.

She also notices Sora, Donald, and Goofy dashing into the room.

She and Sora glare at each other.

With a scoff, Maleficent teleports away, then orders the Heartless to ignore the Nobodies to focus on Sora and his friends.

The Nobodies, who were only fighting off the Heartless to protect themselves, also turn their attention to Sora now that they have the freedom to.

You need to defeat all of the waves of enemies that spawn.

Another new Nobody is introduced in this battle: Dancers. They’re feminine-looking Nobodies in pink, and their swaying and pulsating is a lot more dance-like than with the other Nobodies.

Avoid them at all costs when their hands light up, as that’s an unblockable attack wherein they grab Sora, dance with him for a bit, and then throw him in the air to deal massive damage.

When fighting multiple Dancers, this can easily end in Sora getting stun-locked and killed in a matter of SECONDS.

It is IMPOSSIBLE to escape a Dancers’ grasp once it grabs Sora and starts dancing with him, meaning you are powerless to do anything but WATCH in most circumstances.

They primarily attack through kicking, however, and are weak to Magnet.

The Nobodies in the battle also ALL have more HP than the Heartless, so be aware of that.

The battle ends when there are no more Heartless or Nobodies to fight.

The Gullwings fly into the room.

“Where’s Maleficent?” Yuna asks.

“Looks like she ran away,” Sora answers.

“Well that was PRET-ty lame of her,” Rikku remarks.

“I guess we picked the wrong side,” Payne deadpans.

The Gullwings turn and whisper amongst themselves, and I have no idea what any of them say because they’re all talking simultaneously and it isn’t subtitled.

“Um, hey…” Sora cuts in, “if you’re looking to pick sides, why don’t you pick Leon’s? They can always use help.”

The Gullwings turn to face Sora.

“Does this Leon have any treasure?” Yuna asks.

“Yeah, lots of stuff!” Donald claims. (Note: I read a particularly humorous fanfic, YEARS AGO, where this claim lead to the Gullwings digging through Leon’s or Cid’s sock drawer to try and find the treasure. I sadly can’t remember the name, but it was on FFN.)

“Perfect!” Rikku declares.

“Come on,” Payne states.

“Who ARE you?” Sora asks.

“Oh, we’re nothing worth mentioning,” Yuna claims.

“Just three treasure fanatics,” Payne remarks.

“Later, taters!” Rikku shouts.

The three sparkle away.

“Did Leon… really have any treasure?” Sora asks.

Donald chuckles evilly and runs off, prompting Sora and Goofy to run after him.

In the manga, what prompts the Gullwings to ditch Maleficent is her berating Pete after he risked his life to save hers from a crumbling tower, deciding they had no interest in serving an ingrate.

The game skips straight ahead to the Postern, where SDG are met by three Dusks.

“We don’t have time for you!” Sora declares, before our Junior Heroes proceed to finish off all three in one hit each.

They dash up the ramp to the platform where they spoke with Aerith earlier, only for a beam of light to strike the ground in their path.

When the light clears, Sephiroth emerges from the spot it struck, unfurling his three wings as he rises to his feet and turns to face our Junior Heroes.

“Sora, it’s Sephiroth!” Donald shouts.

“Ain’t Sephiroth the one who’s supposed to be the dark part of Cloud’s heart?” Goofy asks.

“Did Cloud tell you that?” Sephiroth asks, “Then he must understand now.”

“Just what are you gonna do to him?” Sora asks.

“Nothing,” Sephiroth answers, “Cloud is the one who hungers for darkness.”

“He said he’s got a score to settle with you,” Sora remarks.

“I see…” Sephiroth replies, “He wants to meet me again.” He turns and walks away from SDG. “Then I should give him what he wants.” He stops walking. “That last bit of light is always the hardest to snuff out.” He rises into the air and vanishes into a dark portal of some kind before Sora can catch up to him.

Following this is a Final Mix-exclusive textbox cutscene, where the Gullwings fly overhead.

“Huh?” Sora remarks.

“They came from that hole over there,” Goofy points out.

Low and behold, there’s now a gaping hole in one of the castle’s walls, leading to a cavern that was NOT present in vanilla KH2.

“I don’t remember that being there before,” Sora admits, “I wonder where it leads.”

“We don’t have time for that now!” Donald shouts, “We have to go after the King!”

The Postern still has a Save Point, and Donald and Goofy are now NPC’s you can talk to, so no enemy spawns here.

Additionally, that hole leads to the Cavern of Remembrance, a special Bonus Dungeon created for Kingdom Hearts II: Final Mix.

Even if you can survive the super powerful Heartless that call the cave home, you CANNOT reach the end until you’ve maxed out all of your Growth Abilities, so don’t even BOTHER going in now.

Instead, progress to the Restoration Site for the next cutscene, where Sora, Donald, and Goofy find Leon, Yuffie, and Aerith battling the Heartless.

“We’ll help!” Sora calls to them.

Aerith turns around.

“Sora! Behind you!” she warns, sounding genuinely worried.

Our heroes turn around to find a bunch of Dancers creeping up behind them.

Welcome to one of the WORST fights in the whole game!

These gals will JUGGLE YOU TO DEATH if you slip up even ONCE!

I struggled HARD on this battle back when I played KH2, and it’s the ENTIRE reason I DESPISE fighting Dancers!

They REALLY needed a Reaction Command or SOMETHING to turn that devastating attack back on them!

After the last Dancer FINALLY falls, Aerith and Yuffie run ahead while Leon tells Sora that the King is in the bailey.

Sora, Donald, and Goofy run straight there during the cutscene.

Upon arrival, our Junior Heroes spot a massive hole in the wall that leads beyond the borders of the town, explaining what the explosion they heard earlier was.

Sora looks out over the battlefield.

An army of Armored Knights and Sentry Robots is advancing through the Great Maw, the LARGEST Heartless army depicted yet in the series.

More Heartless approach from the outcroppings above the valley and jump down to join the assault.

There are enough Heartless that the ground shakes as they advance.

Yuffie catches her shuriken and falls over from exhaustion as the army rushes past her, until Aerith gets her back on her feet with a Curaga, and the two rejoin the fray.

Stitch leaps into action, dual wielding his blasters as he guns down Heartless after Heartless.

Payne lures an Armored Knight to a cliff, allowing Yuna and Riku to kick it over the edge, at which point reinforcements force them to retreat.

Cloud and Leon stand back-to-back on a cliffside path, Heartless advancing from all directions.

“Think you can handle this many?” Leon asks.

“Well…” Cloud replies, “Might be tough if one more shows up.”

Leon chuckles.

“Then that’ll have to be the one I take care of,” he snarks.

“What, you’re fighting too?” Cloud jokes.

Leon chuckles again, and the two leap towards the armies advancing on them, cutting down Heartless after Heartless.

Fade to black.

When it fades back in, Cloud is surrounded by armored knights, when Sephiroth cuts down a dozen in one swing of his sword, Villain’s Vale just barely visible on the horizon as the music fades out.

The camera zooms up to Sephiroth’s face, making Villain’s Vale and the entire crevasse outside of Hollow Bastion look downright miniscule compared to him.

“Sephiroth!” Cloud shouts as he brandishes his weapon, and the Heartless scatter.

Sephiroth takes a handful of steps towards Cloud and points his sword at him.

“I understand that you’ve been looking for me,” the SOLDIER states as he raises his sword.

“Yeah,” Cloud replies, “Once I get rid of you, the darkness will go away.”

“Can you do it?” Sephiroth asks, “That darkness comes from your own dark memories. Do you think you can erase your past?”

“Shut up!” Cloud snaps.

“Face it – you turn your back on the present and live in the past,” Sephiroth states, “Because the light of the present is too much!”

“You don’t know me!” Cloud insists.

“Cloud!” Tifa calls.

A bright flash covers the screen as Cloud shields his eyes.

Sephiroth grins.

“I know. Because… I am you.”

He teleports away, leaving black feathers to flutter away on the wind.

Cloud glances around, then runs off.

“Cloud! Wait!” Tifa calls as she runs after him.

Some Armored Knights make the mistake of blocking her way and surrounding her, prompting her to punch and kick them all to death.

Fade to black as she glares at the nearest Heartless.

We return to Sora’s POV.

“Leon, everybody – hang in there!”

The battle theme restarts. Proceed through the hole in the wall to the warzone outside of town to continue the story.

However, before they can advance to the battlefield, the King spins/rolls through the air and lands on the ground in front of them, albeit facing towards the battlefield instead of towards our Junior Heroes.

“Okay, fellas,” he starts as he spreads his arms out, “you’ve gotta go find Riku and Kairi!”

“But Leon and the others are friends too!” Sora protests.

“Don’t worry,” the King replies, “There’s already lotsa help here.” He briefly glances over his shoulder back at them. “We’ll take care of this fight.”

“But… I promised Leon!”

Donald and Goofy give Sora a sympathetic look.

“Donald! Goofy!” the King orders, prompting both to stand at attention, “Take Sora and get goin’!”

The music fades out as the camera focuses on Sora.

“Riku, Kairi…” he opens, “give me a little time, okay?”

Donald and Goofy share a glance, and nod.

“Your Majesty!” Donald calls as he looks up in the air AWAY from his King and moves rather stiffly.

“We understand,” Goofy continues, doing the same, “We’ll go search for Riku and Kairi!”

“Right. Watch for danger!” the King directs, not even turning to face them.

“You be careful too!” Donald replies, not taking a step to take Sora anywhere.

“Wait, you guys!” Sora protests.

The King continues surveying the battlefield.

“Sora, do as you’re told!” Donald replies.

“You’re comin’ with us whether you want to or not!” Goofy adds.

“C’mon Sora! You gotta be good!” Donald adds, before winking at Sora.

Sora catches on to what they’re doing.

“Gotcha,” he says with a smile.

“Well then, skedaddle!” Goofy orders.

Sora mouths a thank you.

“Let’s go!” Donald declares, and the trio rushes right past King Mickey, jumping over the edge onto the lower outcropping, catching the King off guard.

“I’m sorry, Your Majesty!” Sora calls, before leaping down into the battle.

Donald and Goofy salute.

“Hope you can forgive us!” Goofy calls as Donald jumps after Sora, before jumping after them himself.

The King watches them go, sighs, but still smiles sadly.

Cue a Final Mix exclusive cutscene where a security camera scans Ansem’s computer room and spots the Unknown

It zooms in on him, fails to identify him (even calling him “Unknown”), and is swiftly destroyed by one of the Unknown’s signature energy attacks.

The Unknown slides a disk into the computer, which prompts it to load a password window.

The Unknown types in “ANOTHER” and the computer brings up six more password prompts.

The Unknown types in six passwords, and while all six are shown as asterisks, we can infer what they are from later Secret Ansem Reports.

The computer starts the system and ejects the disk, at which point the Unknown walks out the other end of the computer room and goes down to the room that’s visible from Ansem’s study but you have yet to visit.

Upon reaching the floor, it opens up, and a ramp materializes. He walks down the ramp, which dematerializes as the door closes behind him.

This leads to a spiraling ramp that leads even DEEPER below the castle, as the Unknown has an audio-only flashback about a moment that we’ll see in a couple of cutscenes, ruining the impact of said scenes by dropping the big reveal NOW instead of then.

Once he reaches the bottom, he steps into an eerily pristine and well-lit hallway, full of empty cells where his original self had experimented on Hollow Bastion’s residents. For maximum eeriness, the camera follows him from INSIDE the cells, giving the perspective the false Ansem’s victims would’ve seen all those years ago as he walks past the unlit cells, until he reaches the doorway at the other end of the hall.

He steps through, to a small room with a throne at the center, it’s back to the door.

He sits down in the throne, and the chain-patterns on the floors and walls light up, revealing a battered, blue armor on the floor.

“It has been far too long,” he comments, “’friend.’”

The camera cuts to a view of the armor and zooms out, revealing a thin, blue Keyblade leaning against the wall near the helmet.

Flashback to the Organization’s headquarters, to a few years ago, as Zexion walks across a glass platform in a large, empty room.

“Zexion! Zexion!” Vexen calls

“Right here,” a clearly annoyed Zexion replies as Vexen dashes down the stairs towards him, “What is it?”

“Where is Lord Xemnas?” Vexen questions.

“His usual spot,” Zexion answers.

Vexen scowls.

“The Chamber of Repose?” he questions.

“Yes,” Zexion answered, “Go and see for yourself.”

“That isn’t funny,” Vexen snaps back, “I suppose I have no choice but to wait. But the clock is ticking. Time is running out. What to do?” Vexen stomps off down the stairs past Zexion. “Why is he never around when I need him? It’s almost as if he knows I’m looking for him.”

Zexion tries to make his way up the stairs.

“You know, I don’t like that place either,“ II replies from offscreen.

Zexion looks up to the pipes where his colleague is sitting.

“What about you, Zexion?” II asks from his perch, “What do you think?”

“I think eavesdropping is intrusive,” Zexion replies, “Why are you even here? You and Xaldin were tasked to recruit new members.” II jumps down as Zexion continues. “Have you forgotten, or were you procrastinating?”

“As if! I’m doing my job,” II answers, “I’ll have you know, I found one just yesterday. ‘Mar’ something. That puts the Organization’s count at 11.

“And since I’ve been working so hard, I had Lexaeus take my place for today.

“I want to rest up for tomorrow, so I can wake up feeling nice and refreshed.”

“Is that so?” Zexion questions, “Well, then, I’ll leave you to it. I have work to catch up on. Good day.”

Zexion tries to walk off, only for II to run after him.

“Oh, don’t be like that,” II remarks as he throws an arm around Zexion’s shoulders, “Come on. Stay and talk.

“Isn’t it time you told me about Xemnas’s secret?”

II releases Zexion’s shoulder and walks ahead a bit.

“How long ago was it?” II asks, “When a bunch of warriors wielding key-shaped swords appeared and unleashed a spectacular battle. And when it was all over, all that was left was a man lying unconscious without his memories. Xemnas… er,” II says the imposter’s real name, “was found by Ansem right around then, wasn’t he?”

“Your point?” Zexion asks.

“The Chamber of Repose,” Xigbar answers, “If you recall, that’s where we spent our time researching the darkness that resides within people’s hearts. It’s a graveyard that was sealed by order of Ansem the Wise.

“The first thing Xemnas did once he got rid of him was to undo the seal and build a room in the back. Ever since then, he holes himself in that room when he can, and he talks to someone.

“But who? For all I know, he’s the only one in that room.”

“Need I repeat myself about eavesdropping?” Zexion asks as II approaches him.

“Not eavesdropping,” II insists, “Couldn’t hear what they were saying. Dying to find out what it was though.

“You wouldn’t know anything about it, would you?”

“I know I would very much like to focus on my own duties,” Zexion replies, before continuing past II and up the stairs, “As you should with yours. For we need to prepare the new facility immediately, but there are only 11 of us in the organization. We’re going to need a few more hands on deck.” Zexion continues walking.

“What new facility?” II asks, “Oh! You mean Castle Oblivion?

“What does Xemnas plan on doing with that place, anyway?”

“He already shared his intentions with us,” Zexion remarks as he keeps walking.

“But did you know there’s something he DIDN’T share?” II asks, prompting Zexion to pause once more.

Silence falls over the room.

“The Chamber of Repose is part of a pair,” II explains, “The Chamber of Waking is the other.

“Another graveyard, if you want to call it that.

“It was constructed by someone other than Xemnas himself. And that’s’ where he’ll find it.

“That’s where he’ll find his other ‘friend.’”

Zexion stares at II as the cutscene fades to black.

Hollow Bastion’s battle theme starts playing again as we return to scenes from the base game.

Sora, Donald, and Goofy arrive at the Castle Gates, where Demyx emerges from a Corridor of Darkness as the music fades out once more, an awkard bit of editing brought on by the point the new scenes were added in.

“Hey, you guys are looking lively,” Demyx greets.

“Scram!” Donald shouts.

“Didn’t we catch you messing around in the Underworld?” Sora asks, “How’d a wimp like you get into Organization XIII?”

Demyx flinches and recoils.

“I bet you can’t even fight,” Sora taunts.

“Yeah, but we can!” Donald adds.

“You shouldn’t judge anyone by appearance,” Demyx scolds.

Our Junior Heroes summon their weapons.

Demyx flinches and turns away.

“I told them they were sending the wrong guy,” he grumbles.

“Who is this kook?” Sora questions.

“Remember, the Organization’s made up of Nobodies,” Goofy reminds him.

“Right – no hearts!” Sora remarks.

“Oh, we do to have hearts!” Demyx claims, “Don’t be mad…”

“You can’t trick us!” Donald snaps.

“Silence, traitor,” Demyx coldly replies as he points at Sora.

All of the required Organization XIII battles so far have used either The 13th Struggle or Tension Rising.

For the first time ever, The 13th Dilema starts playing as Demyx forms a dome of water over himself, and summons his sitar to his hand, forming it out of the water.

Cue Demyx’s ACTUAL boss battle.

Demyx opens the battle by shouting “Dance Water, Dance!” and summoning a bunch of clones.

Destroy them all within the time limit, or you’ll get the “minigame/mission failed” game over screen, with Sora looking disappointed.

No in-universe explanation is provided for why failing to destroy all the water clones in time does this, but whatever.

When the water clones are turned into music notes, Sora can use “Wild Dance” to take a lot of them out at once. Be warned that the Water Clone you initiate “Wild Dance” with will not count as defeated until the end of the Wild Dance, meaning that time can run out while the only water clone left is one that you’re spinning around as a flail, and it’ll still count as a failure.

Fire and Limit Form are also good to use, thanks to Demyx and his Water Clones counting as Blizzard enemies.

As soon as the last water clone falls, the fight with Demyx begins proper.

He attacks by summoning jets and waves of water to strike you with, leaping around the arena and calling up geysers behind him as he goes.

He can do this even when knocked into the air by aerial combos.

He’ll even summon blobs of water from above to dump on Sora. He’ll also summon several water spheres around himself and detonate them.

Occasionally, you’ll get the “Show Stealer” Reaction Command. Hitting it will cause Sora to interrupt Demyx’s sitar strumming to stun him.

Failing to hit it will result in a cutscene where Demyx slams his sitar into Sora’s face.

He’ll occasionally repeat his “Dance Water, Dance!” attack, such as when his health drops below half, so try to be quick.

And as you’re outside the town’s limits, the defense system can’t help you.

Wisdom Form, Fire Magic, and Thunder are the best strategies here.

Many people consider this to be one of the most frustrating bosses in the series.

Kinda appropriate when you realize that the Dancers work for him.

Defeating Demyx awards Sora with an Armor Slot and Blizzard Element (boosting Blizzard to Blizzara), Donald with Blizzard Boost, and Goofy with +4 Max HP.

In the post-fight cutscene, Demyx’s sitar dissipates back into water, and Demyx himself wails in despair as he fades from existence, vanishing into a pillar of water.

“Anyone from the Organization who’d like to be next?” Sora asks.

“Hey Sora!” Donald shouts, “Don’t antagonize them!”

“Yeah, we gotta go help our friends out first,” Goofy adds.

“Oh. Sorry,” Sora sheepishly replies.

“Then lets go!” Donald shouts.

He and Goofy take a step forward.

“Aha! There you are!” the King shouts.

He stomps up to the trio and crosses his arms.

The trio have the decency to look guilty, but the King drops the act pretty quickly.

“You sure have lotsa friends to help,” he remarks, “So, I guess we better all pull together and finish this battle for good!”

“Yes, Your Majesty!” SDG chorus.

King Mickey walks towards the trio, unaware of the battle between a Survey Robot and a Dusk on the cliff above his head.

BOOM!

Goofy notices that some of the debris is heading straight for the King.

“Look out!” he shouts, shoving the King out of the way.

The boulder hits Goofy square in the head, sending him sliding across the ground and hitting a rock wall.

“Goofy!” Sora shouts as he, Donald, and the King rush over to him.

“No…” Mickey mutters as he realizes Goofy isn’t getting up.

Sora and Donald run right up to his side.

“Hey! You’re the King’s captain! You gotta get up!” Donald shouts.

“C’mon, wake up!” Sora begs.

“I’m sorry about the ice cream!” Donald adds.

“Goofy…?” Mickey begs.

No response.

“Goofy…” Donald weeps into his friend’s chest.

“This is not happening…” Sora tells himself, “It can’t be happening… It can’t…”

The King’s fingers curl into a fist as his eyes harden into a glare.

“They’ll pay for this.”

He tears off his black coat to reveal his Kingdom Hearts II outfit, summons the Kingdom Key D, and rushes towards the battle.

Donald’s grief turns to rage as he brandishes his staff and charges into battle.

Sora spares Goofy one last look before rushing after him.

The camera lingers on Goofy’s unmoving body for a few seconds, before cutting to Sora running further into the battlefield as the cutscene fades to black.

GOD this is tragic and epic and lore-filled and Goofy fuckign DIES but also I’m laughing because the Final Fantasy Characters /REALLY/ seem to just be doing their own thing with no fucking context why are they here lmao

#submission

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bloodbondcd · 9 months

Text

@muses-morii asked:

“I’ll kill that bastard. I’ll kill him for what he did to you.”

Riku sighs, a hand coming to pinch the bridge of his nose for a moment. It would almost be endearing, Vanitas's urge to protect him, if he didn't believe that the other teen would actually follow through with it. "No," he says simply, hand dropping to his side as his head shakes. "You won't." His voice is firm, the words sounding more akin to an order than a dismissal of Vanitas's words.

"He was doing what he thought was right to protect Xion and Roxas. I forgive him, and you won't touch him." Riku doesn't even know how all of this happened, the past few hours seeming like a blur. Ansem the Wise scarcely made his presence known at the Tower. Perhaps it had been fate, that every other time he had, a certain Nobody had not been present. This time, however, they were not so lucky. Roxas had been caught off guard, and the way he'd frozen in place, locked up with fear, had left everyone to stare between the two in confusion.

Riku and Namine were the only other ones privy to what would cause that reaction, and guilt still burned deeply in Riku's stomach. He wishes he could say that he would do things differently, in hindsight, but he doesn't believe that that is entirely the truth.

Sure, Ansem the Wise had told Riku that Nobodies were nothing. They were just shells that were playing humans based on memories that told them how they should feel, and how they should react. They didn't actually feel anything. It was all just an act. He'd even felt proud, when he'd caused Roxas to slip, to blurt out something that showed just how much of a shell he truly was.

Yet, the anger and shame that had formed on his expression after - that had seemed real. He had been told otherwise, though, and he'd chosen to believe it.

Riku had urged Ansem to come upstairs, to meet with him and Yen Sid. They had the idea that perhaps Roxas and Xion, being so intimately connected with Sora, could be used to track him down in some way. They wanted Ansem to help them renovate the laboratory in Twilight Town to suit their needs. He agreed, and it was decided.

He hadn't even been surprised when Lea had stormed in hours later, face red with rage. "You can't be serious!" He'd demanded, and Riku insisted he was. They would use every opportunity they could think of to try and find Sora. The punch was justified - a small price to pay, truthfully. The shouting had carried on, Lea calling Riku some unsavory things until Namine had appeared. Her gentle hands took hold of Lea's arms, blue eyes wide. He'd faltered, and then he'd shot Riku one last scathing look before he'd allowed himself to be dragged away.

It had almost been surprising when Vanitas had shown up. Riku's isolation had given him the impression that everyone had agreed with Lea's actions. Even Riku knew that to a degree, this was cruel - to force both Roxas and Xion back into the hands of a man who had toyed with their existence like it had meant nothing. He'd already downed a potion, but he hadn't yet gotten to wiping the blood from his skin when Vanitas appeared.

Riku took a deep breath, closing his eyes for a moment before he fixed Vanitas with a look that could almost be considered fond. "I appreciate you wanting to stick up for me, but I can handle myself. Did you still want to do your lessons tonight?"

#muses morii #answered : riku .#verse 10 : riku .

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nobodies-png · 2 years

Note

How about "the thing is, suddenly when i picture my future, all i can see is you." With Sora? Or maybe Ventus? You can choose either.

Theres a shitload of Ventus requests, so i’ll go with Sora for this one ! here’s to hoping tumblr doesnt fuck up the format like it always does when i put shit under the cut

for context, reader is native to the destiny islands and a childhood friend of the destiny island trio! they receive a little letter from sora and meet up with him at the island hehehoho

Dear, Y/N …

…I know we all have gummiphones now and I could’ve given you a call or something, but a letter felt more appropiate, you know? It also would’ve been super embarrassing to say all of this in person…

You get out of the boat and onto the pier, the letter clutched tightly in your hands. It has been a long time since you came here by yourself, especially this late at night, but the waters are calm and the sky is clear - moonlight guides your steps as you discard your shoes and make your way to the beach, feeling the sand under your feet.

The waves crash against your legs, you pause for a moment, taking it all in.

…But don’t worry! It’s nothing bad, I promise! The worlds are still safe, I’m not going anywhere and everyone is finally home, safe and sound. I’ve just been thinking. A lot. About you and me and stuff, I guess…?

In this light, or a lack thereof, you notice that the island isn’t as scary or massive as you remember it to be. The trees aren’t as tall, the waters aren’t as deep, the darkness isn’t as threatening. Travelling around the many worlds, those sparkling stars above, has certainly helped you and your friends grow, it has given you perspective.

Still, the magic and nostalgia remain, this place holds so many cherished memories of your childhood, all the years you spent playing around with all your friends. It was a sanctuary for all the children of Destiny Islands, a paradise where nothing could ever go wrong. Home, it was home.

You wonder if that’s why Sora asked to meet you here tonight.

Just thinking about the letter makes your face feel warm again, it’s so like Sora to pour his heart out without stopping to think about it and render you speechless with just clumsy yet heartfelt words.

…Riku and Kairi have always told me that I need to think about what I want to do, the things that make me happy - unrelated to saving the universe, Kairi insisted on that. “You can’t be a hero forever, Sora. Trying to make everyone happy isn’t stable job!”. Blah, blah, blah! Just being with them, with you, with all the people I cherish seemed more than enough for me, but…

You’re all alone for now, but you’ve seen the other boat anchored by the pier - Sora will come to you when he’s ready.

A smile crosses your face when you remember the day he broke one of Kairi’s good luck charms - the one she gave to you. It took him a day to build up the courage, but he eventually confessed and apologized through tears, showing you all of his failed attempts at fixing your poor charm. Back when you all were children and the worst thing that could ever happen was missing dessert or being scolded by your parents.

Then, once you two were older, it took Sora a couple months to realize his crush was reciprocated, along with some help and guidance from your other two best friends. And even so, it took him an extra few days to properly confess and ask you out.

But he always came through for you, didn’t he? Your reliable, impulsive and still super predictable idiot.

The rustle of shoes dragging across sand pulls you out of your reverie and when you turn around, you immediately get lost in the depth of his eyes. Sora’s gaze when he looks at you is something you never dared to describe, fearing it’ll ruin the magic - it’s overwhelming in the most beautiful of ways.

And now, he looks at you with unwavering determination, the same expression he wore when he promised to bring everyone back home. It’s in moments like this you fully understand why he was chosen to bear the weight of the world. Only Sora could do it, carry the entire world so lovingly on his back and expect nothing in return.

He smiles, and you swear he could outshine the fucking sun if he wanted to. Hell, Sora could ask you to follow him to the end of the world and you wouldn’t even hesitate.

…The thing is, suddenly when I picture my future, all I can see is you…

“You made it!” Sora shifts his weight from one foot to the other, suddenly nervous. “Guess you read my letter, huh.”

“Your handwriting is still pretty hard to decypher, so it took me awhile. Especially that bit at the end. But yeah, I miraculously made it home!” You make a show out folding said letter and putting it somewhere safe in one of your many pockets.

“Yeah, well. At least it’s a little better than Riku’s…” Sora pouts and huffs, pretending to be offended, but in the end, he’s laughing along with you.

A comfortable silence settles down, both of you content with smiling at each other like absolute fools in love. You could simply just leap at him and smother him with kisses, knowing very well that he’d catch you. But when you take a step towards him, Sora steps back, glancing back and forth between you and somewhere behind him. That’s when you realize he’s hiding something.

Of course, you step forward again, hoping to take a quick peek. And, again, Sora moves to keep you out of reach and the mysterious object out of view.There is a tense pause and then, almost in perfect synchronicity, you two make a run for it.

“Y/N, STOP. REALLY, I HAVE NOTHING TO HIDE.”

“I NEVER SAID YOU DID.”

“THEN WHY DOES IT FEEL LIKE YOU’RE TRYING TO HUNT ME FOR SPORT!?”

“COME ON SORA, ALL COUPLES CHASE EACH OTHER AT THE BEACH AT SOME POINT!”

The gift - you assume that’s what it must be - is now pressed tightly against Sora’s chest, preventing you from seeing anything. But he’s so close, almost within your reach, so you do the sensible thing and tackle Sora to the ground, pinning him down. Sure, some sand might’ve gotten into your mouth during the process, but it’s a small price you were willing to pay.

“Fineeeeeeeeee…Y/N 1, Sora 0… But just so you know, I had this very awesome and romantic speech prepared and everything!” Sora whines, not even bothering to struggle and the gift is revealed when he raises his hands, using them to cover his face.

A Paopu fruit.

…Is that weird? I keep dreaming about waking up next to you, sleeping in together, making breakfast and chores together, getting groceries, hanging out with all of our friends, never worrying about darkness this, darkness that…

It shouldn’t even surprise you in the slightest - of course Sora would do something like this in such an earnest way. Of course he would take a silly myth and turn it into a grand gesture of love. When you look down at your mess of a boyfriend, he’s turned impossibly red, peeking at you from between his fingers in silence, waiting for a reaction. So you grab the fruit and straighten up.

“It’s a Paopu fruit.” you point out very eloquently, cringing at the way your voice breaks at the last part.

Sora has the audacity to snort and giggle at this, sitting up with you secured on his lap. You reach out and brush the sand off his hair, playfully rolling your eyes when Sora manages to sneak a kiss to your wrist, sending a pleasant shiver up your spine. His face is still red, but at least he’s not hiding anymore.

“It’s not as fancy as a ring, but… I really meant all those things I wrote. I want a future with you,” this time, Sora doesn’t shy away from your eyes. But this confidence doesn’t last long, he stammers and trips over his words immediately, “Not that I’m asking you to marry me, pfft. It’s like, waaaay too soon, right? B-but I’d love to! Marry you, that is. In the…near…future? If you… Uh, want to…Maybe? I just thought a Paopu would be nice to share, and uh yeah…! So we can be part of each other’s lives forever!”

“Is that your ‘super awesome and romantic speech’?” You joke, mostly to distract yourself from the butterflies and all sorts of fuzzy, warm feelings blooming and fluttering about, all over your body. Is he doing this on purpose? He has to be, your heart feels like it’s about to burst out of your chest.

With an exaggerated sigh, Sora slumps forward, nuzzling your neck and wrapping his arms around your waist, swaying with you from side to side. He’s warm, so very warm.

“I thought I had it…! Can I get a do-over, pretty please?”

“Nuh-uh, I like it better this way. It was good, really, stop giving me that look!”

By now, you’re immune to his puppy eyes - at least you like to think you are - so you begin to split the Paopu fruit in two, watching Sora’s eyes light up like stars, following your every move. His hand lingers on yours when he wordlessly accepts one of the halves.

There’s so much you want to say to him and, judging by Sora’s lovestruck expression, there’s so much he wants to say to you. But neither of you are in a rush, there’ll be plenty of time to talk about what the future holds.

For now, you both take a bite.

…Maybe it’s a bit selfish, or even childish. But I want that future for us andCRAP. I’MRUNNINGOUTOFSPACE.MEETMEATTHEISLAND.I’LLTELLYOUTEVERYTHINGTHERE.LOVEYOU!!!! -SORA

#kh scenarios #reader insert #valentines prompt #sora #Anonymous #ITS TAGGED AS THE VALENTINES PROMPT BC IM 2 YEARS LATE #but its my blog and i say its allowed <3 happy valentines in august guys #writing cutesy stuff for sora is fun bc hes a funny silly guy #i had to cut a scene where he blows a raspberry in the readers neck bc they wont stop teasing him bc this was getting too long #but hes like such a funny fella. 10/10

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oathofpromises · 2 years

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What are Kairi’s thoughts about her childhood on the Islands? Did she always feel out of place growing up if at all?

𝕶𝖆𝖎𝖗𝖎 𝖑𝖊𝖆𝖓𝖊𝖉 𝖆𝖌𝖆𝖎𝖓𝖘𝖙 𝖙𝖍𝖊 𝖕𝖆𝖕𝖔𝖚 𝖙𝖗𝖊𝖊, 𝖍𝖔𝖑𝖉𝖎𝖓𝖌 𝖆 𝖈𝖍𝖆𝖗𝖒 𝖎𝖓 𝖍𝖊𝖗 𝖍𝖆𝖓𝖉. 𝕿𝖍𝖊 𝖜𝖆𝖛𝖊𝖘 𝖈𝖗𝖆𝖘𝖍𝖊𝖉 𝖆𝖌𝖆𝖎𝖓𝖘𝖙 𝖙𝖍𝖊 𝖘𝖍𝖔𝖗𝖊, 𝖆𝖘 𝖙𝖍𝖊 𝖇𝖎𝖗𝖉𝖘 𝖋𝖑𝖔𝖆𝖙𝖊𝖉 𝖎𝖓 𝖙𝖍𝖊 𝖘𝖐𝖞 𝖆𝖇𝖔𝖛𝖊.It was difficult to talk about her childhood because so much of it was hazy before the islands. The first memory she even has here is washing on the shore and waking up to see Sora and Riku standing over her. It was strange to see a girl just lying in the water. Even now, Kairi can hardly remember the events prior; all of that has been slowly resurfacing lately. It was hard to try and recall how she was treated by so many people here at first, but the young girl would try her best to explain.

“I wouldn’t say I was an outcast, but at first a lot of the villagers treated me differently. It’s not exactly every day that a child washes on shore during a meteor shower. I didn’t know why some were distrustful of me. Maybe it was because I was someone, they had no idea who I was or why I ended up on the islands. It felt like a lot of the kids also kept their distance, most likely due to influence from their parents, but Sora and Riku didn’t.” Kairi paused, a soft smile on her face. It was hard not to when she remembered the two most important people in her life.

Reaching up, Kairi plucked a papou fruit off the tree, closing her eyes. It was a lot to explain, and some might even understand it fully after. There was a lot of emotions around that time and some were so blurry. The princess hated how often memories seemed to elude her or were so jumbled. It would take a lifetime to try and explain some parts of her life. At least Sora and Riku were always there for her from the start. They had no idea who she was or where she came from, but they were still so kind. Which made the girl feel worse for feeling like she had dragged the two of them down. They were normal kids just living a peaceful life, and one day she shows up and that changes everything. The two boys craved to escape from the islands, to see other worlds. Kairi landing there just proved it was entirely possible to traverse to different places.

“They both welcomed me…let me hang out with them on the islands. Growing up around those two, you can imagine how quickly my personality opened. I was more talkative. They both allowed me to just be Kairi. Never looking at me like some science project. When I first noticed people giving me strange looks, it didn't take long for the younger me to realize they were attempting to judge who I was. Which to be fair, I was so little..I had no idea the type of person I was or would become. Even less after being sent away from Radiant Gardens. Yes, I learned that was my birthplace. I don’t remember much still, but my grandmother.. And the stories she used to tell me every day. I can’t lie and say that for a time I didn’t feel out of place, even around Sora and Riku there was a part of me that longed to see the world I was originally from. I might’ve acted like I didn’t mind back then, but it was a huge thing I struggled with internally. Despite calling Destiny Islands home..some people will never fully welcome me as one of the villagers. I would be seen as an outcast. The girl who fell from the stars. That was something that some people used to make fun of at first. The only way they knew how to explain such a rare thing.

It didn’t take long for me to warm up to Sora and Riku, to trust them. They both asked about where I came from, and at the time I couldn’t give them a solid answer. I simply couldn’t remember, at least that is what my heart was telling me. The memories of what happened the day I was sent away from Radiant Garden were too painful. After that, things seemed to work out better. I didn’t feel like an outsider. Even got to meet other kids like Wakka, TIdus and Selphie. Those three were some of the only kids that really reached out to me, too. I think they got more comfortable after seeing me hang out with Sora and RIku so much.The mayor took me in as their own daughter, but I still felt that distance. How I could tell they were distrustful of me, like most of the other islanders. They tried to be a good parent, but there were times I felt trapped.”

Kairi sat the fruit down, jumping off the tree as she walked towards the secret place. Fingers tracing every drawing the three of them etched into the walls. This was their place, somewhere they felt happy and safe. It seemed so silly to some, but it was still a memory she clung to. The red head stopped in front of the familiar cave drawing. Bending down as her hand reached out to trace Sora’s face. Tears slowly fall down the sides of her face, as she fell to her knees. It was hard staying behind. Riku and Sora were both trapped in a world they had no idea what awaited them.

They had given her so much, and yet again she was told it was best to stay behind. Kairi knew it was the right choice. There were things she needed to learn before the time was right, but didn’t mean it made it any easier.

“They are my home..they made me happy to be here. I was lost and confused, not sure who to turn to. These two are my brightest lights.”

#The brightest light in the darkness(Kairi)#one sky one destiny(Main Verse)#Echo of the Ocean(Answered Asks)#ooc: I went a little longer than intended with this but yeah here are some thoughts on her childhood on the islands

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valorxdrive · 2 years

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❝ if you keep doing everything everyone asks of you without question, you’re gonna get conned eventually. ❞ - Riku >:3c

♕ - “If that’s part of the risk, then, I consider it well worth it.” Sora counters in kind. The suggested idea was by no means bad, simply pragmatic, a style he always witnessed Riku tailoring himself too when it comes to dealing with the unknown. It comes with the territory of dealing with opposition that hides themselves well, either in the folds of the human heart or in some deeper recesses of abyss.

Or maybe, simply casting a plain sight cloak over how they act.

That wasn’t to say he was going to entirely ignore what Riku brings to the table. Crossing his arms, a clear trail of thought was being dug and dragged, experience being the very tools that made them as refined as they are. “There are some times where you can’t really get an angle of a situation unless you get involved.” He mentions, a slight pause taking place as he gathers the words on his tongue. “And I always favored taking that kind of chance if it doesn’t look like harm is going to befall people that look innocent.”

“Even when there’s a seemingly bigger mission at hand. The idea of just staying wholly committed when I know I have the means to take on a bit of extra, it bothers me. I just picture that I’d wish someone would give me a hand if I ever found myself in a tough spot.” And many, many times that wound up being the case. It’s how he met some of his best friends, newest friends, and even made amends on the larger than life situations that overblown ‘schoolyard problems’ to keep it elegantly put.

“So! I am proud of being the change I’d like to see. If it turns out more dangerous or that I’m getting the wool pulled over? Then I’m not a fighter for nothing, right?”

@praeteritus-memories

#praeteritus-memories #| Bottle Mail #| Meme

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knightfeared · 2 years

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✦ @worldly-diversity | VANITAS →

❝ "We want him back, same as you, but if you keep being so reckless you'll end up dead well before then—" Not to mention that he can't keep watching the person he cares about fall to pieces like this, it's tearing him up inside but he doesn't know how to express it. "Please, Riku… Let me help you." || Vanitas to Riku ❞

Was it really... becoming that much of an issue?

Peering into bold amber hues, ones that shimmered & shone with so much emotion - raw, more than he was used to typically seeing on the other key-bearers face - before he swallows slowly. Tension continues to thread along his veins like ice, stiff, on edge, not helping much with that cornered feeling that left him feeling all too wild. Ready to snap - to lash out.

But he reigns it in, another slow inhale through his nose, held a few beats, before it's released in a stream far less steady than he'd have liked.

Honestly paints Vanitas' tone, something so full of genuine want, with concern, Riku knows damn well he couldn't brush him off had he wanted to. He'd grown to be a much bigger part of his life lately, too big a part, someone he found comfort in, rare moments, tiny pockets of easy air he felt he could breathe in with no stress. Vanitas was... different. Special to him. Had this come from anyone else, anyone - Riku wouldn't have faltered in his decision to brush them off & away, close up behind his drawn walls.

Holding fast to his silence, he presses his lips together every few moments, pressing, pressing - easing back, before he gnaws along the torn skin in confliction. Eyes the colour of the sea flit back to meet Vanitas', holding their stare, before he caves & eventually buckles.

Shoulders come to sag lightly, head hanging as he reaches up to card a hand tiredly through his disheveled locks. He drags it down, the heel of his palm coming to rest along the curve just above his eye, pressing before scrubbing.

❝ — I... didn't think it affected anyone else. Sorry. ❞

Not like him to not have the right words to say, even he fumbles with a wince as they leave him. He makes a noise, low in his throat, before he removes his hand entirely, crossing his arms over his chest in a last ditch effort to seem like he's somewhat put together. Even if it's a façade, it grants him some temporary courage & strength as he wets at his lips & tries again.

❝ — What can I do...? I don't want to worry you guys - you especially. I'm just... I'm tired Van. I don't know what to do. ❞

#Muse: [ Riku ]#◆ ━━ Answered IC #◆ ━━ Interactions #worldlydiversity #「 ❝ Like an imprint touch of glitter gold . Leaving traces everywhere you go ❞ 」 . 「 Worldly Diversity | Lumi 」#*VANITAS.

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starlight-time-machine · 4 months

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Week in Review

02/18/2024 – 02/24/2024

Sunday

Week 2 of missing Cipher Academy. Yes I’m going to do this for at least a year.

Girl Meets Rock is fine.

Undead Unluck is pretty good, it’ll be interesting to see how the group gets out of this one. Loved the parallel between the Gods searching for the Greatest Life while Fuuko and Andy search for the Greatest Death.

Oshi no Ko is fairly intense, but I appreciate the creators still including comedic moments; I guess they don’t want the story to get too harrowing. But Hikaru and his relationship with Ai is really fascinating, as the two of them bond over being perpetual actors/liars in order to hide their pain.

Dandadan fine. At least Momo and Zuma have a fun dynamic.

I guess Chainsaw Man’s been demoted to Manga Sundays rather than Tuesdays when it comes out, as I don’t really get spoilers for it anymore. It does feel a bit hard to see where Part 2 is going after Part 1 was just strength after strength, but I’ll still keep the faith.

One Piece good. As always, I feel like I don’t know enough to be able to say much about it.

Finally watched the second Kizumonogatari movie, Nekketsu. I loved the distinct Monogatari atmosphere, the action scenes were beautiful and fluid and odd, and lowkey this movie series has me kind of shipping Araragi and Hanekawa… I know Senjougahara’s his true love and all, but the vibe of two people sharing a unique experience is unmatched. Also that wheat field where they talked was absolutely gorgeous and extremely up my alley.

A new chapter of Yuria-sensei! It’s fun that she and Riku once shared a hobby, and it hammers home just how much Goro had a type lol

I’ve fallen off of reading non-Shounen Jump manga extremely hard, and I can’t pretend that some part of that isn’t because of this Week in Review thing lol It’s just a bit boring when I read a single chapter and have no thoughts on it but I have to log it here anyway, so I’ve been putting off reading a lot of series I follow. But also, it’s true that I feel like when I binge-read a manga, get caught up, and then have to survive off infrequent releases, everything I read just gets deleted from my memory and I spend the next few months confused with every new chapter – I want to strive to wait until a manga’s finished before reading it now, unless it’s something I know I would really like.

With that out of the way, Shiroyama to Mita-san ended recently, so it’s time for me to catch back up with this endearingly strange couple. As a whole, it’s fairly one-note, with the same dry sense of humor throughout all of its gags, but the premise itself is engaging enough on its own and there’s moments of sincerity scattered throughout that keep it a fun read.

Monday

Tuesday

Oh no

Wednesday

Okay I had some errands to run today and then I just passed out

Thursday

Okay!!! This week was a bit of a crapshoot but I’ll never miss DunMesh Thursdays. Today’s meal was (instant) ramen, and I wish I had some shrimp or fish tofu to put in it, but we used all of those for the fried rice the other day (and I don’t like eggs in ramen…I don’t like how it makes the broth all gloopy). We get a cute flashback scene to the origin of Falin and Marcille’s friendship, and a further examination of the themes of the show – that being the delicate balance that all ecosystems must maintain in order to thrive, and the folly of humans who try to enact their own visions on it without understanding its structure or how they themselves fit into it. The fight afterwards was also fun and dynamic, with a cute gag to end off the episode.

Also read the latest chapter of Takatora-kun, but there’s not much for me to say about it. I’m interested in this new adult character who looks just like Takatora but with glasses, but I’m more curious about the pharmaceutical advancements that he seems to hint at.

Friday

Busy again today…couldn’t even watch Drag Race before passing out in bed lol

Saturday

Alright, it’s Drag Race time, but I’ve been kind of dreading it since I heard that Nymphia doesn’t do well and Snatch Game is such an all-or-nothing sort of challenge to watch anyway (in the sense that on the rare occasions where there’s a genuinely stand-out performance, it’s a blast to watch, but usually it’s middling at best and absolutely agonizing). The reading challenge at the top of the episode didn’t bolster my confidence too much, and I had to skip the Snatch Game entirely because the second-hand embarrassment made me want to die. Once again, I don’t give a shit about Plane Jane’s storyline this season, but they’re definitely pushing her as a frontrunner and finalist so we’re going to have to contend with her for a while yet. (Currently, my prediction is that the final four will be Nymphia, Sapphira, Plasma, and Plane Jane.) The runway was super cute, though – I loved how everyone had a different approach, and the theme lent itself to interesting runway walks and a lot of fun interactions with the judges. Sapphira and Nymphia were the highlights for me, but it was fun seeing Plasma weaponize her BFA again. I’ve never been happier to see the judges’ favouritism allowing Nymphia to be safe, and I think it lent itself to a bittersweet and meaningful lip sync. Xunami and Morphine dancing together and singing to each other really embodied the song and heightened the emotions.

Undead Unluck…I’ve been nervously anticipating this arc because I love Anno Un, and I’m happy to report that his voice actor does not disappoint. Yumi Uchiyama really handily plays off both his cuteness and his coolness, and sets him apart as the enigmatic character that he is. The cold open had some great animation, with Sean’s bloodied silhouette and eye being a particular highlight. I hope this is a sign of better animation to come when the Autumn fight actually starts in earnest, and that this will be the last episode where they have to cut corners as the cour reaches its end. But before that, CANADA MENTION!!!!!!!!! This absolutely blew my mind when I first read it, and it’s so special to see it in animation – I love that they got the seawall and the weird seahorse head looking shape of the peninsula, and the poutine was so cute. I love how Anno unsettles Andy and Fuuko, and his G-Liner ability is cool to see animated…but of course, the elephant in the room is the CG again. And once again, I can’t really fault them, and they did hand draw the spiders when they got executed by the guillotine, but I wish they could’ve done something more to integrate the models into the look of the show better. But again, I have my fingers crossed that the finale run will be more stable. The main Autumn UMA is done well so far, with that light bit of body horror with the poor guy’s head and the mechanical movements of Autumn’s eyes. And then Anno and Juiz’s conversation had a fun terseness to it, as two characters who know more about the world than most other characters but with opposing philosophies and approaches. I wish they didn’t have that long flashback scene in the middle of the episode, because the episode could’ve ended with Fuuko diving into Andy’s past and been stronger for it, I think. But regardless, I’m once again nervously anticipating the next Undead Unluck episode.

#week in review #2024

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