They would avoid talking about it for years.

Sora and Kairi managed to find each other first. She said his name, his eyes widened; he said hers, in disbelief. What trace of a little preteen girl who wanted to escape could be here? She was tall, leggy, thin from travels; her hair sprawled halfway down her back, and her figure had taken on a mature curve he'd never thought to see in her.

For some reason, he'd imagined she'd be unchanged.

In some ways, she was.

His name confirmed in recognition, she ran to him, flung her arms out, and he reached out, reeled her close. She pressed against him and they fit together strangely. It was a shock to realize that as changed as she was, he was taller than her still, and broader.

"I knew you would," Kairi whispered, and he squeezed and tried not to cry.

It took them longer again to find Riku, but that was no surprise. Kairi's location had, for once, been placed; he'd watched Destiny Islands spring up around her as their worlds separated. Riku's location was unnamed - just whatever lay beyond the door of darkness. He'd caught a glimpse as he, Goofy, and Donald pushed, as Riku pulled from the inside. He couldn't identify it - there were too many Heartless. It might have been a city. It might not have been.

It was all about stepping beyond what was known and into what scared you.

When they met him, Riku had changed as well. He was harder, angrier, leaner. Much taller as well, still capping Sora's height by a good half a foot. He'd let his hair grow, and it tumbled down his back in a silver sheen. Again, Sora couldn't bite back shock; he'd left Riku a big-footed, awkward teen, and while Riku was taller than him, Sora's shoulders were broader; Riku's muscles were well-defined but his shoulders were narrow inside his leather shirt.

And tense.

They stared at each other and so many emotions expanded around them - anger, grief, love, with tension underlying them all.

Kairi broke the tension, sent it flying as she ran to Riku and threw her arms around him.

Sora watched Riku hold her close, watched his eyes shut, watched him press his nose into Kairi's hair and inhale, watched the tension escape.

When he looked up and met Sora's eyes over Kairi's head, there was a deep, wry relief in his eyes, and amusement, and pain.

Sora smiled back and mouthed, I know.