[177] "Which Way"
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kh_drabbleChallenge: [177] Pretty Lies
Title: Which Way
Wordcount: 562
Notes: During KHII, Sora looks for Riku in every world he visits.
The cat’s grin suggests that this is not the first time it’s been greeted with: “Oh. It’s you.”
“If I am ‘you’ (which I’m not) than you can’t be ‘you’. So. What are not-you, then?”
Sora wants to close his eyes, take a deep breath, but if he even blinks the cat may disappear. It likes to do that. “I don’t have time for this, I’m looking-”
“Of course not-you don’t. The white rabbit does. But he’s running late, I’m afraid, and I’m sorry to say his speed is better described as a stroll than a run, if not-you know what I mean.”
“I’m looking” Sora continues, ignoring the grin that would be splitting skin on anyone else’s face, “for my friend. I think. I saw him run this way... Tall, black coat. I know it’s Riku.”
“Ye-ees?”
“Well.” Hopeless shrug, sighing. He gestures to the fork in the road, where the one path suddenly becomes two. “Which way did he go?”
(Because there is never ever just one way to go in this world. And if there were, it wouldn’t be the way you meant to go anyway.)
“I know the last thing that went down each path. So not-your friend went either this way or this way,” the cat helpfully replies. Sora takes another large breath. He does not contemplate the logistics of knocking a feline from a tree with firaga. Honest.
“Which one was it?” Each word bitten out around the desperation that he was going to lose Riku. Again.
“Well, I’m not quite sure.”
“You said you knew!” As if stressing poor logic would make anyone in this world see reason.
“I said that I know the last thing that went down each path. Shall I tell not-you?” Jaw tight, Sora just nods, and the grin curls up, up, and up like a crescent moon. If the cat widened it any further the two ends might meet. It still manages to talk through the grin; “Down this path,” it points to the left, “ran a pretty lie, and down that path ran an ugly truth.”
“What?”
Grin, grin, grin, tail swishing in amusement.
The two paths look identical. He glares up at the cat. His eyes plead up at the cat. He almost hops from foot to foot in indecision and desperate frustration, but he’s nearly sixteen now so instead just lets a very unmanly whine escape his throat.
“Choose, choose, choose,” the cat chants, voice dipped disgusting in amusement. “Take not-your time, it’s all like a circle, like a sun, like a pie. Blueberry pie. If not-you choose the correct path, not-you will find him. He’s waiting. He wants to get caught. With his hand in the cookie jar. Tsk tsk.”
“He’s always running away. I need to hurry. Can’t you just-”
“If not-you choose the correct path, not-you will find him,” it repeats, but it’s quiet now. The cat’s bored. It’s fading. Sora doesn’t try to stop it, just watches until even the white teeth disappear.
He only despairs for a moment when he realises that, somehow, Kairi would have known whether Riku was a pretty lie or an ugly truth. But Kairi was safe back on the islands, waiting.
Sora takes one quick look between the two directions and then tears down the path on the left. He does not find Riku in Wonderland.
Title: Which Way
Wordcount: 562
Notes: During KHII, Sora looks for Riku in every world he visits.
The cat’s grin suggests that this is not the first time it’s been greeted with: “Oh. It’s you.”
“If I am ‘you’ (which I’m not) than you can’t be ‘you’. So. What are not-you, then?”
Sora wants to close his eyes, take a deep breath, but if he even blinks the cat may disappear. It likes to do that. “I don’t have time for this, I’m looking-”
“Of course not-you don’t. The white rabbit does. But he’s running late, I’m afraid, and I’m sorry to say his speed is better described as a stroll than a run, if not-you know what I mean.”
“I’m looking” Sora continues, ignoring the grin that would be splitting skin on anyone else’s face, “for my friend. I think. I saw him run this way... Tall, black coat. I know it’s Riku.”
“Ye-ees?”
“Well.” Hopeless shrug, sighing. He gestures to the fork in the road, where the one path suddenly becomes two. “Which way did he go?”
(Because there is never ever just one way to go in this world. And if there were, it wouldn’t be the way you meant to go anyway.)
“I know the last thing that went down each path. So not-your friend went either this way or this way,” the cat helpfully replies. Sora takes another large breath. He does not contemplate the logistics of knocking a feline from a tree with firaga. Honest.
“Which one was it?” Each word bitten out around the desperation that he was going to lose Riku. Again.
“Well, I’m not quite sure.”
“You said you knew!” As if stressing poor logic would make anyone in this world see reason.
“I said that I know the last thing that went down each path. Shall I tell not-you?” Jaw tight, Sora just nods, and the grin curls up, up, and up like a crescent moon. If the cat widened it any further the two ends might meet. It still manages to talk through the grin; “Down this path,” it points to the left, “ran a pretty lie, and down that path ran an ugly truth.”
“What?”
Grin, grin, grin, tail swishing in amusement.
The two paths look identical. He glares up at the cat. His eyes plead up at the cat. He almost hops from foot to foot in indecision and desperate frustration, but he’s nearly sixteen now so instead just lets a very unmanly whine escape his throat.
“Choose, choose, choose,” the cat chants, voice dipped disgusting in amusement. “Take not-your time, it’s all like a circle, like a sun, like a pie. Blueberry pie. If not-you choose the correct path, not-you will find him. He’s waiting. He wants to get caught. With his hand in the cookie jar. Tsk tsk.”
“He’s always running away. I need to hurry. Can’t you just-”
“If not-you choose the correct path, not-you will find him,” it repeats, but it’s quiet now. The cat’s bored. It’s fading. Sora doesn’t try to stop it, just watches until even the white teeth disappear.
He only despairs for a moment when he realises that, somehow, Kairi would have known whether Riku was a pretty lie or an ugly truth. But Kairi was safe back on the islands, waiting.
Sora takes one quick look between the two directions and then tears down the path on the left. He does not find Riku in Wonderland.
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Date: 2009-02-22 02:03 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-02-23 03:15 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-02-22 02:04 am (UTC)Very fun to read, I could feel Sora's frustration there. Made my skin itch.
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Date: 2009-02-23 03:16 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-02-22 05:24 am (UTC)The last line's a stinger. I just love this.
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Date: 2009-02-23 03:18 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-02-22 06:20 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-02-23 03:18 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-02-22 07:29 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-02-23 03:19 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-02-24 05:49 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-03-02 06:17 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-03-09 04:48 pm (UTC)The concept is brilliant and the execution is to die for. Pretty lies vs Ugly truth can refer to anything from Sora's perception of Riku, of what Sora WANTS Riku to be, the result of choosing right or wrong- it can mean anything.
Then, in all this confusion... everything ends with a perfect stab to the heart. Daw. Poor Sora.
God, Tabitha, i would have your babies were it not anatomically impossible.
no subject
Date: 2009-03-23 03:52 am (UTC)one. month. later...*squirm* I think I hoarded this comment in my inbox for so long cause it just made me that happy! Thanks for reading, hun. I'm not writing much lately, making it scary to post, so... good comments are love. I'm very pleased you liked it. <3<3<3