July Catch All - OPEN

[carriedbylight]

characters: Kairi (carriedbylight) and YOU!
location: Different places around Beacon.
date/time: Various times throughout the month of July.
content: Various shenanigans (This will be a catch all for everything for July.)
warnings: None as of yet, but I'll update as they come!

Comments

[equinoctials]

[ The boathouse is drafty, there are splintered beams and boards that could use replacing, a little roofing work to be done, but it's shelter and one that feels a little more like what they were used to.

They eventually took an active role in their own destinies, one way or another. The three of them grew up making their own fun with their own two hands.

The hammer he uses taps down one of the nails he took from between his lips, he's taking the other to finish off patching up a warped floorboard when he hears Kairi drawing close. When he looks to her, as she speaks, he thoughtfully glances aside and then gives a puff of laughter. She's right - they've been at this a while, already the interior is improved. The floor is clean and in fairly good repair. ]

Sure, after this last one.

[ A few sharp raps of the hammer on that last nail and he's back on his feet, brushing his palm against the leg of his pants. In the reflective silence as he looks around, he adds: ]

It's really coming together.
Funny. I keep thinking about that raft. When we were kids. Do you remember?

[carriedbylight]

( It's unsurprising that Riku wants to finish what he's doing before taking a break. He's always been that way, hasn't he? So Kairi waits, watching him hammer the nail into place, then push himself back up to a stand. At the mention of things coming together, Kairi turns her gaze around them, admiring all of the hard work they've put into the little shack. It isn't perfect, by any means, but it feels more like a home than anything they've encountered there so far. A few more touches and it could be a home. Maybe some curtains and a rug and--

He mentions the raft and she's drawn from her train of thought, a warm smile tugging at the corners of her lips. Fondness is unmistakable in her expression as she looks up at him, her hands moving to rest on her hips. )

You make it sound like it was a really long time ago. You're not an old man yet, Riku.

( She can't help but tease him a little before continuing. )

You're right, though. I keep thinking about the same thing. About home, and how we fixed up the tree like a house, too. And, of course, the raft that you ended up doing most of the work on.

[equinoctials]

[ He presses his knuckles into the meat of the muscle along the side of his spine, near the small of his back as she speaks, and his breath leaves his lungs in a half laugh, embarrassed. Old? ]

Lucky me. I'll never get old at this rate.

[ It's one of those odd little things he says that he instantly regrets, a little too grim for the situation. Except that's what it's like to be around Kairi and Sora. He can be less guarded, less reserved. They forgive him his imperfections, especially the ones that have been with him since he was a little kid who said some pretty weird stuff on the regular.

He realizes that he might have had doubts about ever growing old, his adventures so often too risky, too focused on the present issue of Sora's disappearance to think about the repercussions that lurked beyond the horizon of today.

But the thought that Sora and Kairi won't grow old together feels like a thorn in his heart. ]

All of that feels like a different life sometimes. A lot happened.

[ Sitting on his heels, Riku retrieves two of the canteens and stands, offering one of them to her before he searches for something to sit on. It reminds him that he should avail himself of some of the extra furniture in the Invincible. ]

Working on this without the threat of Heartless? [ He jokes. ] I could get used to this.

[carriedbylight]

I guess none of us will. I'd make the joke about none of us growing old and grey, but...

( Kairi reaches out the brush a couple of fingers through Riku's silvery locks, a little grin tugging at her lips. It might have been something that others had teased him about when they were young, but his hair is something that Kairi has always admired. He's always had an ethereal sort of attractiveness, the stark contrast of his brilliant aquamarine eyes and the shade of his hair giving him a striking look. Then again, it's most certain that she's always been biased towards both he and Sora, something she would readily admit to anyone who has something to say on the matter.

Perhaps she should feel more bothered than what she currently is about their situation. Being in some unknown world that others assume to be the "afterlife" is more than enough cause for others to worry. But it's difficult to feel that way when she can feel the heat of their skin and the beating of their hearts. Maybe this afterlife is just another world and, for once, they've all ended up in the same place together.

But is fate really that kind? Kairi hopes so, even if it's just once. )

Yeah. I think we all feel a lot older after going through all of that. But...even so, I couldn't have asked for a better childhood.

( Kairi has precious memories of spending nights of the stars, building things together, sharing laughter and tears with one another. She's grateful that she ended up on that island and was found by two silly boys. She takes the canteen from him and nods her head in thanks before unscrewing the top and lifting it to her lips, taking a quick drink of water. The lid is returned to the top and screwed into place before she lowers herself to sit down beside Riku, stretching her legs out in front of her.

The sound of his voice has her turning her gaze back toward him, a smile forming on her lips. )

You and me both. It would almost be normal, if there was a sun.

[equinoctials]

[ Riku permits it with somewhat stone-faced neutrality, which in itself could be a tell. When they were younger, when he was still going to school instead of on some other world shirking classes to save his friends so they could together save the universe, apparently, he somewhat resented the attention his hair garnered him.

Standing out could be a double edged sword.

It's different when it's Sora and Kairi, they mark each other's differences and make them part of the similarities they share instead of making them a point of exclusion. They're a circle. Nothing, not even death, could ever shake him loose of their orbit. ]

The sun.

[ Riku exhales that in a sigh, half a laugh as he tips back his head. ]

We've seen the sunsets back home more times than I can count. This place really makes you miss it.

[ Once Kairi has settled down next to him, he leans - just slightly - until his shoulder bumps companionably against her, a gentle nudge that he makes without looking in her direction. ]

Ok, seriously. How are you holding up?

[carriedbylight]

( The soft sound of Riku's voice, the small laugh as he considers what she says, it's something that Kairi hadn't even realized she missed until that moment. When was the last time she had been able to sit down with Riku like this? It feels like a lifetime ago, when they were both smaller, talking of rafts and far off worlds. He's grown so much since then, leaving her with so much she wishes she could have told him earlier. That she likes his haircut. That she's proud of him for everything he's gone through and come out stronger on the other side. That she's missed him and has been wishing on stars for him to be happy and healthy. How she really wanted him to join both she and Sora in sharing the paopu.

Perhaps, now that they're all in this place, she'll have the chance.

She feels him bump against her arm in the form of a little nudge, and she leans toward him, her shoulder resting against his arm to allow a slight bit of her weight to rest against him. It's comfortable, even with the potential for troubling topics to come up, now that he's asking her how she is. )

I'm doing okay. Really.

( She looks over at him for a moment, then away, turning her gaze out of the open door toward the sky, the corners of her lips lifting in a serene smile. )

Being here isn't ideal. You're right about missing the sunsets. But...I don't really feel bad. That's weird, right?

( She laughs softly, shaking her head before continuing. )

But...I kind of feel like as long as you and Sora are here, things are alright. I can handle anything.

What about you? How are you holding up, really?

[equinoctials]

[ Consider how much Riku has missed the sound of her voice, her laughter, the easy way she knows how to reach through layers of self-defensive barriers and touch his heart the way he's otherwise only comes to expect from Sora. It's only natural to long for what the heart has grown fond of. Ironic that it took dying to bring all three of them back together again for so long a period as this, without the responsibilities of protecting an entire universe hanging over their heads.

That small point where her shoulder leans against his arm. His attention's split, drawn to the contact. He's always been peculiar and over the years has only grown more reserved and standoffish, Sora understands intuitively how he yearns for the contact he denies himself, how these little reassuring touches mean so much. Riku doesn't dare engage for more than what he's given.

He treasures it. ]

You're asking me?

[ Kairi, he was probably the weirdest one of their trio, she and Sora were the only ones who got to see the real him, his most genuine self. They accepted him when he didn't even accept himself. Her comment - about how things are alright in their company, that she feels like she can handle anything - makes him drop his gaze, his smile soft and subtle. ]

I'm with you two. Everything I could ask for is here. I won't say it'll be all right, but I know that, together, we'll see this through.