Dear Nomura, 

yeeeeah this is looking considerably more cleaner than my last render test lol

sora had always followed in riku’s footsteps.   the sight of familiar chestnut spikes catching up to his periphery had been an exhilarating one. how long had they spent kicking up granules from the sandy shore   ?   when had those mocking jeers transformed from   “ give up ”   to   “ catch me. ”   he had always been the guiding mark, the goal, the apex to be surpassed. always, always   “ follow me. ”   where once riku’s arrogance would consider following sora’s lead to be shameful, embarrassing, a concede to defeat, he would now willingly follow sora to the ends fo the earth. they had found the ends of the universe in the form of the keyblade graveyard, and all the spaces in between that should never have existed. the truth had always been that from that fateful night the islands were plunged into darkness, sora didn’t need his guidance. it had been riku that needed his.

riku had loved being the one who had all the answers. he adored being the one who was looked up to, the one who sora and kairi trailed after like loyal little puppies. he was always the one being followed, the one to aid them when they were hurt, the one who guided them back when they were lost or scared. and then he’d used that charisma to lead them into the darkness with him. he wasn’t deserving of sora’s faith or trust, but riku knew he had it. he would spend the rest of his life atoning, attempting to deserve what sora gave him freely. this is why he was willing to risk absolutely everything to keep him safe, to keep him alive. riku saw the utter despondency in sora’s eyes, and it hurt him. any anxiousness riku felt slipped away in the wake of his best friend’s greatest fears. all his life, from the moment he’d placed small childish hands on terra’s keyblade to this very second had been to gather power   —   the strength to protect what matters.

“   all my strength came from them.   they gave me all of it.   alone,   i’m worthless.   ”   for a moment, the sea green in riku’s steely countenance softened, hand reaching out to offer a momentary comfort, in situation more hopeless than that of the dark shores, but faltering, gloved fingers curling into fists. dark - touched rose from where he stood, expression unflappable even amongst gusts of blackening dread.   “   sora,   you don’t believe that.   ”   he felt no fear in the face of certain death, only adrenaline to succeed, to give sora enough time. time for what   ?   he had no idea, but he had faith light - wrought boy would find a way. he always did.   ‘   i’ve seen your strength,   armed with nothing but a wooden sword.   ’   it was hard to hear over the roar of the demon tide, but was he saying it more for sora’s benefit, or his own   ?   dust strewn wind made his eyes water, but he had felt the prickle of tears even before that. some part of him was sad. some part of him knew this was a goodbye.   ‘   i wanted that kind of power   —   ’   he inhaled deeply, braveheart raised.

‘   —   to protect the one i love the most.   ’

riku was not fully aware of what was happening until sora crashed into him like a canon ball, his boots kicked up dust trying to keep steady against boy wonder’s weight. something felt   …   off.   like the insides of him were rearranged wrong, like he’d been torn apart and put back together. he knew not of how his body had eventually succumbed, how the heartless had torn him asunder, how sora had seen riku die in an alternate timeline, throwing down his loyalties like a knight for his king. all he could do right this second was return sora’s grip in kind, the sudden rush of fatigue an onslaught that nearly sent him crashing down, collapsing onto sora’s form.   ‘   sora   ?   ’   confusion and worry graced gravely timbre, uncaring for the concern of their comrades as riku’s hand came up to cradle the back of sora’s scalp, running hands comfortingly through familiar chestnut spikes. was he that fearful of what was to come   ?   chest ached for the pain of his dearly beloved.

starlit strands tilted down, pressing temple to sora’s in gentle reassurance. he knew not of the first timeline, what sora had seen, but his heart could feel the grievances of the other’s. it had always been that way. where riku found empathy hazy and difficult, his best friend’s had always been the exception.   ‘   what’s wrong   ?   ’   in the fatigue of his blurring eyesight, sora’s form radiated with godly light pouring off him in waves. it was like that of olympus, blinding clarity near all consuming, like the sun. riku would understand if he knew. he was a boy who’d died for love, even if he couldn’t remember his own sacrifice. no one else seemed to remember their apparent deaths. the knowledge that riku was willing to sacrifice everything for the boy in his arms was another burden sora now had to bear, and for that, riku would be sorry too. just as he was everything else.

‘   of course i’m here.   i’m never leaving you.   ’

even in the midst of the confusion and sora’s hysteric despair, his voice was nothing if not gentle, steady, grounding. the land to sora’s sky.

‘   i promise.   ’

Tol: is that my shirt