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Futile FRIVOLITY
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When he closed his eyes, his mind only appeared focusing on a thing, which he had seen for too many times lately, which he had never thought more than two seconds before the same determined intent of killing obviously caused him to swing his keyblade, but then… the thing dispersed only to be replaced by the similar thing. It was always happening, over and over, like an unbreakable circle of a pair of yellow eyes that showed no emotion in it. He was somehow tired of his own grimaced look, when he looked down at his reflection on the surface of the puddle that left behind after the rain that poured the rest of another victory he and his mates had got finally stopped and the clouds went away from their sight.

It was before the reflection of him was suddenly messed up and the water on the puddle formed into waves and waves until the puddle itself was gone. He looked up and startled a bit for the sudden vigorous shout from the goddamn duck in front of him, who jumped on his position for their success on clearing another area. Meanwhile, Goofy scratched at the back of his head, calmly saying that he was relieved that everyone was safe and the heartless was finally defeated. It was just the way they were. And then that thought brought his finger to rub at his nose while his lips formed a smirk, feeling glad and also aware that the whole battle is not finished yet at the same time.

The sky was so clear. That was what in Sora's thought when he stared up at the sky.

And there were so many stars.

- - - - -

He was staring at the sky in the same way, apparently wondering in his mind if the stars above him were the same with ones he saw at his last battle. While he wondered, the stars twinkled like asking for a help from someone to keep their light up, to provide them from fading away. He shook his head desperately.

It's when he heard a giggle behind him, as if it was trying to surprise him that way, which he hadn't expected. His eyes first looked down at her feet on the stony floor of Traverse Town, before he caught her teeth while she grinned, on the right time before there was only a simple usual smile left on her face when she tilted her head.

"You shouldn't be blank in a place like this." She warned him in teasing tone.

"Why, Kairi," He exhaled. It was startling yet also amazing, finding there's still something left from his desperate effort on keeping his memories of the island. After all, he was fighting for them; the memories. But being pulled into fights everyday, he eventually doubted memories. If only he didn't have sights of Riku or Kairi everywhere he went, momentarily, maybe he would only remember how to fight and forget how to play. But he did have sights; therefore he kept seeking for the true form of the sights themselves.

So here's one. After the long trip, rushed through heartless and once became a heartless, she finally stood in front of him.

"You shouldn't get out by yourself, though." He finished his reply, staring back at the sky.

"The sky is so clear." Kairi said randomly, following the direction where his eyes were staring at.

"And there are so many stars." He continued her words.

"Of course, you silly." She burst to chuckles, before adding. "You know what? Once, in a clear night, a scientist stood on a hill and stared up at the sky like you did, and he tried to count the stars. He came up into conclusion that there were more than seven thousands of stars at the sky that night. But then, the next day when he stared at the sky again, the stars' positions had changed. So he had to count them from the beginning. And on the day after that… the same thing happened."

Sora frowned. He couldn't imagine there's a person who had such a patience to count such things like stars. Finding out that it seemed interesting, he asked. "After that..?"

"After that," She repeated. "He concluded that their positions changed everyday because of the rotation and revolution of our world. So yah… he thought, if you count the stars one day and count the stars again the next year, the result might be the same."

"Wait up." Sora scratched at the back of his ear for such confusing information. "Where did you get this kind of… thing, by the way?"

Kairi shrugged. "Books? I don't remember."

Yes, no doubt she was clever and all. At first he was amazed of the fact she could hold so many things in her brain and keep them memorized. He was never one who interested in books.

But the stars thing had gotten into his mind. "Okay Kairi, tell me more about stars."

"How could you get interested in this, huh?" She grinned suspiciously, only to be replied by a nervous smirk from the guy in front of her before she continued. "Okay. Stars… What do you want to know, anyway?"

"Hmm…" He crossed his arms while thinking. "…more about the numbers of stars." Actually, he wanted to know about it in a purpose.

She didn't ask again yet didn't talk too. He only waited, because for him it was her turn to give a response since he had asked her to explain. They were only staring at each other for a while.

"Sora," She began. "What do you think if I count the stars?"

He snorted. "It seems impossible."

"That's it. It's impossible. Stars will die when they get old. At the same time other stars might be born, and in its weak light, there's no guarantee we will be able to see them in such a distance. More importantly, aside of distance, other lights from our world also avoid us to see more stars. That's why it's better to see the stars in late midnight when the lights in towns were mostly turned off," She took a breath. "You got what I mean?"

"Yes… I think." Sora ran a hand to his hair in embarrassment and confused mind. "Are you saying that it's still a stupid thing to count stars, no matter what?"

Kairi stared at him meaningfully. "What had bothered you?"

She saw deep messed up thoughts mixed in his eyes, around worries, anxiety of somewhat she didn't know, unspoken questions, and reminiscence of past. Both knew their past now seemed so far away, though it hadn't even been long since they left the island for the first time. Now that she thought of it again, maybe in her eyes she also had the same look. Maybe in Riku's also the same.

"There are so many heartless…" He muttered slowly. "But there's only one me."

She raised a brow. "What?"

He raised a hand and his keyblade appeared with a shaft of light. "There are so many heartless," He repeated what he had said. "But there's only one me." He swung his keyblade once and the keyblade disappeared. "Even though the keyblade chose me," Sora bowed down his head in wonder. "While I was wiping out heartless from a world, they were spreading fast into more worlds. How many worlds are outside there, Kairi? Are they as many as the stars above there?" He glanced at her who stayed silent. "And sometimes I wondered… In a crisis like now, are the heartless just as much as the darkness before the stars themselves? When will I stop fighting? What is this keyblade for, if I have to fight all alone? And those worlds which are freed for now… there's still possibility that the heartless will rule them again."

She couldn't answer that.

"Kairi, am I fighting alone?" He asked desperately.

Kairi exhaled. It's not usual for someone like him to think this much. But in that circumstance…

"You are not fighting alone." She finally said. "And you forgot that there's a sun, Sora."

"What?"

"Well," She placed her hands on her hips. "Do you know what the sun really is?" For a moment she enjoyed the silence before she gave him a smirk. "The sun, is actually a star."

He blinked. "What?"

"Yes, the sun is a star, Sora. They are the same thing. It only seems big because it's the nearest star around." After that she grinned. "The sun also can't stay with us all the time. There'll always be night in a day. But hey, sun always cheers us up in the day. That's why our heart is calm in the night and we can pass it without a worry, because on the next day the sun will be above us again." She gave a sign to Sora. He raised his hand and the keyblade appeared again. While she held the weapon together with him, she grinned. "This keyblade is just the same with the sun," Kairi said. "But without people's hope on it, it might not help us through these days. Now, Sora… Do you know why there is only one sun?"

Once again, the keyblade was gone, and her hand now held his tightly. Their attention was locked on their hands.

"…Because," She continued. "If our hopes are scattered, this keyblade won't shine brightly." He instantly lifted up his face. Kairi wasn't finished talking yet. "Just the same like the sun! You are not fighting alone."

He smiled a bit.

"And…" Kairi released his hand. "There are uncountable days in our live and in each of them there are nights, no matter how much we hate them. We won't stop fighting until the end of our life. We won't stop trying to get what we want to get. Because our purpose just deserves every breath we take in our life."

Sora only blinked.

"Why do you choose to fight? No matter whose it is, but you are seeking for happiness, right?"

The silence forced him to answer. "…Right."

"Okay." Kairi immediately stood up.

He followed and ran a hand to his hair. "Um…"

She pouted. "Don't say you don't understand what I said."

"Eh, never mind." He took a step back.

- - - - -

Kairi forgot one detail, though.

Stars could die. And so could the sun, since they were the similar thing.

But this time, he only could swing his keyblade like usual.

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a / n :

sora also forgot another detail…
that when a star dies, a new star will replace it.
but gah ! this is complicated…
- , -
the sky things were the way i described about
war, keyblade, heartless, worlds, and hopes.

for xsynthetic-smile's challenge;
. once upon a time .

i hope this will do.

c a r a m e r u