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[punjab-banks.livejournal.com]

challenge: [236] memento
title: maybes
wordcount: 373
notes: riku and a picture…


There hadn’t been time to pack when the door opened. There was just enough time to grab some things from the bedstead – some munny, a pack of candy, a potion, and a picture of the three of them.

The munny was spent, the candy was eaten, the potion had been used ages ago, but he still had the picture.

It had been folded, crumbled, and smoothed out again. It had gotten wet, it had been singed, and at some point, he had ripped the brown-haired kid’s image off, leaving only Riku and Kairi to play. He had clumsily taped the boy back on, though, somewhere between closing the door and forgetting his playmate’s name.

Naminé had smiled when she’d seen it. He thought she was about to ask for it, but all she had said was, “Keep it. You need them.”

Need what? Riku wanted to ask, a year later. To obsess over who he’d lost? He still couldn’t face Kairi. And he didn’t even know the other boy. Just knew that their faded, smiling faces were burned into his brain, and that they were in near all of his dreams.

DiZ had said that it would be easier to be done with reminders, if he was really going to let go, and lose himself to Darkness – he wouldn’t be Riku any more, so why carry Riku’s photo? “Throw it away,” he said, and Riku wasn’t sure if it was a suggestion or a command.

He had meant it when he said he understood, but still, he put it back into his pocket automatically. He blamed it on the stupid half-hope that maybe someday, he would remember the brown-hair kid, and figure out why he missed the guy. Or maybe Kairi would – would find him, somewhere. And, maybe she’d recognize him! Sure, he’d just show her the photo, and everything would be –

The same? Yeah, okay. And DiZ would lay off the ice cream. The old guy was right. Riku – Ansem – could move on if he got rid of the picture-turned-talisman, but if he kept it? The maybes it inspired would haunt him forever.

But maybe Naminé had been right, too. Maybe it was better to be haunted, then to be alone again.