|
Title: Land of Dragons Drabbles
Fandom: Kingdom Hearts
Pairing: N/A
Rating: G
Word Count: 438 words
Her small hand corrects his clumsy hold on the brush, nudging his fingers up and arranging them into an uncomfortable position. Her grip is strong and sure as she guides him through the sweeping strokes of the character, and it's like learning how to write and draw all over again at the same time. When she pulls his hand back, he stares down at the thick black lines that make up the symbol--his symbol--and smiles. Without thinking, he gently traces a finger down one of those marks. The ink smudges, and Mulan begins to laugh. Seeing his distraught look, she smiles kindly. "Here. We'll just write it again, okay?"
The candle burns all night long, and they're both covered in ink by the time she finishes teaching him his name.
*
"It doesn't have to be that convincing," Mulan told him hurriedly as she sorted through the box the frightened concubines had donated. They had seemed more upset about the short-haired girl demanding the use of their wardrobe than the Huns attacking the palace. She triumphantly pulled out several bottles and boxes, and proceeded to smear his face with something cold and white. "Just enough for them to let their guard down."
Sora fidgeted uncomfortably, adjusting the tight piece of cloth around his waist for what felt like the millionth time. "Um... this really isn't my style." At her amused look, he flushed brightly under the makeup. "The plan, I mean. I'm better at just rushing in, you know?"
Mulan shook her head. "Not going to work. Even if you do get in, there are too many of them. Just trust me, okay?" He opened his mouth to protest that he did, but she shushed him with a finger over his mouth. "No talking. I have to do your lips now, and I don't want you smudging them."
With a sigh, Sora did as he was told.
*
The blizzard whipped up by innumerable buzzing wings obscures his view of anything except his opponent's black coat, and all he can think is that he doesn't have time for this. But he knows that sword and that stance almost as well as he knows his own. He tries to yell, tries to call out to him but the howling of the wind drowns him out, even when he nearly screams in frustration. The other shrugs at long last, helplessly, like maybe he regrets this too, and disappears like something black in a sea of white shouldn’t be able to do.
When the others catch up, Sora tells them the tears in his eyes are from the wind.
Title: Beast's Castle Drabbles
Fandom: Kingdom Hearts
Pairing: N/A
Rating: G
Word Count: 408 words
Sora couldn't imagine Beast as a human. It wasn't that he hadn't tried--it was all his mind had been on the entire time they were exploring the echoing halls of the castle. Lumiere had even helpfully provided a detailed description of his prince, but Sora just couldn't wrap his mind around it. To him, Beast would always be a creature of teeth and claws, of soft fur and shy smiles when he thought no one was looking. The inhuman appearance just highlighted the strength of his heart. Somehow, Sora thought, if Beast was human, that strength would go away. And, sneaking a glance at Belle laughingly braiding Beast's mane, he wondered if she didn't feel the same way.
*
"My papa's an inventor."
"Really?" Sora asks, eyes wide and thinking back to afternoons spent building everything he and Riku could think of and sometimes actually getting them to work. Imagines doing that full time. "That's... really cool."
Belle smiles, smoothing her apron. "Well, sometimes. Not when I have to clean up after him, though."
"Oh."
She looks out the window, her long-fingered hands tracing whorls of frost over the panes. "The whole time I spent in Hollow Bastion, I kept thinking of him. How he'd love to see the machines and take them apart to see how they worked." A fond smile crosses her face. "But..."
Sora sighs. "But you're not supposed to share that kind of thing between worlds." There's a pause. "But, you know, it's not like Donald and Goofy and I have been very good at that, so you probably could--"
"That's not it," she says softly. "The man whose castle that used to be. Ansem. He was an inventor too, wasn't he?"
"Yeah," he says slowly, and beginning to understand. "He got too caught up in his experiments and forgot about his people."
"Exactly." Belle turns away from the window, and shakes her head. "So I'm not going to tell Papa about that man's work."
Outside, the snow begins to fall.
*
The rose glowed. That was the only word for it. Sora wanted to run a finger down one of the petals to see if it was as velvety and delicate as it looked, but one look at the way Beast cradled the glass told him that would be a bad idea. So instead he rested a hand on Beast's arm, letting his fingers trail through the soft fur. And smiled.