It was a beautiful day out today, perfect weather for hanging out on the beach and swimming in the ocean. Though it seemed like the perfect time to go on a vacation, for one sixteen-year-old boy, he couldn't afford to take a break. That boy's name was Sora, a goofy, laid back teen, but when push comes to shove, he will do anything to help those in need, especially when his friends are in danger. He had spiky brown hair, wearing his black traveling attire upgraded by the three good fairies to not only make his older clothes fit him, but give him more power to stop the Heartless and Nobodies. He has saved the entire universe several times from the Heartless, a group of Nobodies known as Organization XIII, and a few versions of the man who began seeking Kingdom Hearts several years ago, named Xehanort.

Unfortunately, just a couple months ago, he and his childhood friends, Riku and Kairi, took their mark of mastery exams to become full fledged Keyblade Masters, and he failed. While traveling through the dream realms, Sora was captured by Xehanort and was almost killed, his body to be used in order to create the X-blade the old man wanted in order to take full control of Kingdom Hearts, and all the worlds. Even after all of his feats saving the worlds from Xehanort's Heartless, Ansem, and his Nobody, Xemnas, none of it seemed to matter to immediately make him a Keyblade Master. He did understand, though, and resumed his training, honing his skills as a Keyblade wielder even further, promising to pass the next chance he gets.

Now, Sora spent every day on the island he and his friends played on training, swinging his Keyblade with powerful force on the sandy shore. Since he was by himself most of the time, he was able to go all out and exert himself to exhaustion, casting every spell he knew and every skill he could pull off. After spending hours practicing under the hot sun, the teen took a break, wiping away the sweat on his brow. As he sat down on the beach to rest, he heard footsteps come from behind him.

"Giving up on training so soon, Sora?" The teen lifted his head back until he saw the person from an upside down perspective. That person was his best friend and rival since they were kids; Riku. He wore a pair of blue jeans and a white and yellow t-shirt, his hair a light silver, cut short though slightly messy. His friend had two blue popsicles in his hand, giving his friend a smirk at the frown Sora gave him. "I thought you were supposed to be stronger than that."

"Ha ha, Riku. That's not going to affect me anymore." Riku sat down next to Sora, offering him one of the ice creams, a popular and favorite flavor with a weird name; sea-salt ice cream. He took a bite of his treat, tasting the salty, yet sweet, flavor as it hit his taste buds. "On a little vacation?"

"Sort of. Being a Keyblade Master's pretty hard, but that means we're going to need to find more wielders in order to protect the worlds." Riku took a bite of his ice cream as he looked out to the calm sea. "At least Kairi and I are keeping the worlds safe."

"I've been doing that before it was popular," Sora joked as he scarfed down the sea-salt ice cream, letting the brain freeze cool him down. "...Is Kairi doing ok?"

"You know, you can just tell her you love her, Sora. You two were made for each other." Sora blushed as he looked away. Riku chuckled at his reaction after constantly teasing him about his crush on Kairi. "Come on, Sora, it's obvious. You wanting to share the paopu fruit with her, her heart shared with yours, the charm she made for you...All those love letters you made yet you threw away out of fear."

"W-What!? Who told you about those!?" Riku laughed harder, nearly falling on his back as Sora's blush intensified. The embarrassed teen groaned as he was led into revealing that, hating how easily Riku could get under his skin when joking around. "I hate you."

"I know, but it's your fault for opening your big mouth." Riku finished up his ice cream, holding the stick in his teeth. "But I didn't come around to poke fun at you, as enjoyable as that is. I came to tell you personally that Master Yen Sid wanted to speak to you."

"Huh? Why?" Sora asked, curious as to what the wizard wanted with him. "Is it a retake on my mark of mastery exam?"

"He didn't say. He just told me to come and get you." Riku stood back up, twiddling around with his popsicle stick. "Better get going. I've got to go back to patrolling the north-eastern sector of the galaxy soon."

"Then that means I'm in more trouble..." Sora sighed as he stood up. "I really hope I didn't screw anything up."

"I know you feel disappointed for what happened back there, Sora...In fact, I think you should have been a Keyblade Master more than me." Riku looked down at his hand, clenching it into a fist as he knew the power he wielded inside him. "I have a worse track record than you...Letting Ansem take control of me, using the power of darkness...But, Master Yen Sid knows what's best."

"I guess...So, I'll be seeing you later then?" Sora scratched the back of his head as he asked.

"Yeah. Maybe not for a while." Riku headed back, taking the stick out of his mouth. He stopped and turned his head to his friend. "Also, man up and tell Kairi your true feelings before I do."

"Y-You don't even like her like that!" Sora shouted in jealousy as Riku laughed. The teen slapped himself in the face, always falling for Riku's teasing. "Stop messing with me!"

"That's never gonna happen." Riku waved his arm, saying goodbye as he approached the docks, stepping on a swirling light that transported him to his gummi ship.

Sora sighed, rummaging through his pockets and fishing out a charm in the shape of a star made out of seashells. "I can take on Heartless, faced a three-headed dog on my own, took down a Heartless and Nobody battleship without batting an eye...yet I can't tell a girl I love her." He continued looking at the charm in his gloved hand, Kairi letting him keep it for good luck, even though it was hers. Without Kairi, he wouldn't have gotten to where he was as a Keyblade wielder. And without her light, he would have been lost in a sea of darkness while he was a Heartless. "Guess I better get going and see what Master Yen Sid wants...and if Kairi's at the tower."