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“Okay, okay!” Sora makes a frustrated growl. “Just! Close your eyes.”
Riku shifts from kneeling to cross-legged on his bed, brow furrowed in confusion. “Why? I know you’re a monster already.”
“I know that! I just-“ The sound of carpet fibers being pulled is heard. “Monsters aren’t really… supposed to be seen… told us all the time in school…”
Riku wonders what monster school is like briefly before shaking the thought loose. His friend didn’t want to be seen after all? What was the point of doing this then?
Sora’s stopped talking now, waiting on Riku’s response. But, why wait for Riku’s permission if-
Oh! Ohhhhh.
Riku gets it now.
“Okay.”
A beat; the carpet is let go. “Okay?” Sora echoes.
“Yeah. Just tell me when you’re ready.”
“…okay. Okay. Okay!” Sora repeats, tone getting more giddy and confident.
A loud inhale, exhale. “Close your eyes.”
Riku takes a last look at the pictures he’s drawn of him and Sora tacked to the opposite wall. Sora looks different in all of them: sometimes he has four eyes, others have him with tentacles for hair, one has Sora as the size of an ant (Sora thought that one was funniest. “I’m not that small!” He had giggled from the darkness under Riku’s bed).
Inhale, exhale. Riku’s eyes slip close. “Ready.”
Sora makes a muffled happy squeak, followed by rapid shuffling shifting from the center to Riku’s left.
Another beat. Something in Riku’s chest jitters as he waits. And waits.
Riku then feels the blanket being pulled as something roughly his weight (About his size! He and Sora could go play on the playground together! And Sora ever needs some clothes he could probably wear some of Riku’s old stuff; Sora’s mentioned before that he thinks Riku’s clothes are comfy to sleep on. Do monsters wear clothes? Riku makes a mental note to ask later) tries, fails, then succeeds. Sora grumbles while Riku’s lips quirk up.
“You shush,” Sora whispers with no heat. And Riku stills.
Sora’s so loud now, and it makes Riku’s heart pause. Sora’s in front of Riku. Sora’s so close.
The jitters climb up Riku’s throat into short laugh that’s too loud in the sleepy hours of the evening. Riku’s going to meet the monster under his bed for real. Riku’s monster. Riku’s friend.
(Take that, Tidus!)
It’s so very hard to keep his eyes squeezed shut now.
Riku can feel Sora just staring. Hear Sora’s small breaths just as shakey as Riku feels. His nose scrunches up at the smell of dust and… dirty socks?
“You need a bath.” Riku cringes internally as soon as the words leave his lips. Why did he say that? Now Sora’s gonna think he’s rude and weird and won’t be his friend anymore. Stupid, stupid stupid—!
A hand — it’s fuzzy and smaller than his but it’s definitely a hand. Sora’s hand. The realization pulls Riku out of his head — gently grasps Riku’s trembling clenched fists, though it flits away at Riku’s flinch.
Sora laughs a little. “Yeah, under your bed’s not the cleanest.”
Riku gasps in mock offense, “Hey!” Before he too falls into quiet giggles.
When the room fades to silence again, Riku’s chest feels much lighter than before. Now he’s just happy, excited, giddy.
“Can I open them now?”
Sora exhales loudly. “…y-yeah.”
One eye at first, Riku peeks…Then startles them fully open after Riku’s eyes adjust to the faint glow of his nightlight.
Sora — Sora!! That’s Sora!!! His heart pounds — is gray, fuzzy, and stripey, just like his arm. His bright blue eyes glow under the weird red fins that is Sora’s hair, shifting from looking away and at Riku. But despite that, Sora’s very… human looking. Two arms, two legs (though they’re more like paws), two eyes.
Dark claws tap nervously together.
Ah. Sora wants him to say something.
“Where’s your nose?”
Why, Riku’s brain, why?!
But Sora just laughs, ears perking up and sharp teeth fully visible. “Maybe you’re the weird one for having a nose!”
Riku opens his mouth, before closing it again. Sora had him there.
Suddenly, Sora’s shuffled himself into Riku’s face. “Your hair. Can I touch it?” Before Riku can process Sora’s question, claws begin to gently scratch against his scalp. “Woah… it is soft!”
That, suggested Sora’s thought about touching Riku’s hair before. Riku doesn’t know how to feel about that.
He resorts to a more comfortable response. “Hey!” He bats Sora’s hands away, grabbing for Sora’s face. “You’re not much better! You look like a cat.”
Sora grins, cheeks smushed by Riku’s touch. “What’s a cat?”
“It’s what you look like, dummy.” As Riku pulls away, he shakes his hands. “Also you absolutely need a bath. You’re so dusty.” Sora is wearing a white tee and red cargo shorts. They’re not any clothes Riku recognizes. They’re smudged, torn, and Riku has the horrible realization that Sora’s probably been wearing the same clothes since he got stuck here. “And a new shirt.”
Sora’s gleeful expression shutters at that, ears flicking downward. “Sorry, don’t really have anything else…”
“You can always wear my stuff.”
“…really?” Sora’s tone is so so fragile.
“Yeah? I don’t wear most of it, and mom refuses to let go of my old stuff.” Riku puts on his thinking face. “I didn’t realize monsters even wore clothes—“ The rest of Riku’s words are lost at the sound of Sora’s sniffles.
Big fat tears pool in the monster’s eyes, darkening his cheeks where they fall. Riku’s hands hover worriedly. “Sora—!”
“Sorry, sorry…” Sora’s voice warbles as he desperately tries to wipe them away. “I just… I thought you’d… “ He hiccups. “Make me leave… not wanna be my friend anymore after… seeing me.”
Riku blinks, eyes stinging. Whether from understanding they had the same fear or just seeing his friend cry, Riku doesn’t know.
Without a second thought, Riku gathers his friend into his arms, rubbing Sora’s back like Riku’s mom does to him. Sora freezes briefly, taken off-guard, before relaxing into Riku’s hold.
Sora, Riku realizes, easily fits in his lap. And that Sora has a tail with dinosaur bumps on it; it wags gently.
“You’re a good friend, Riku,” Sora sobs into Riku’s shirt. The words squeeze Riku’s chest.
Sora is very very small. And Riku’s a good friend to his very very small monster.
Riku hugs his friend a little tighter.