“Shades of Blue” Preview
Hi, all! I’m stoked to announce that I submitted a written piece for Midnight Tides and Silver Shores (@rikushifanzine), a RikuShi fan zine.
Please enjoy this preview of my piece, “Shades of Blue,” which takes place post KHIII.
“Come back home, Xion. Roxas and Lea have been worrying for you.”
Her head tilts up towards him, her eyes intently staring into his. “What about you, Riku?” she questions.
He blinks. “Of course. Would I have been here otherwise?”
“I … I don’t know.” She slowly slumps to the ground, and Riku’s hands fall back to his sides. She hugs her knees to her chest and looks away. “But sometimes, I wonder if my presence bothers you.”
His mouth slightly falls open in surprise. Is that what Xion has been thinking this whole time? “Huh?! Why would you even think that?”
“I look just like Kairi,” Xion points out softly, as she clenches her eyes shut, almost in shame. “I remind you of her … and Sora, too. You miss them very much.”
At the mention of his friends, Riku nearly winces. He silently prays that Sora finds his way back to them soon. “I do miss them, but … ” he trails off, his eyes trained on her face to inspect her features closely: the shape of her lips, the curvature of her nose, and, finally, he crouches down to get a better look at her eyes. Yes, Kairi and Xion both have blue eyes, but Kairi’s are lighter and remind him of a cloudless, morning sky.
Xion’s eyes are like sapphires.
"Shades of Blue" was a piece I wrote back in 2019 as a submission for the Rikushi Fanzine, "Midnight Tides and Silver Shores," which unfortunately got indefinitely delayed due to the pandemic. I am so regretful that the fanzine was not able to come to fruition, but after years of waiting and trying to contact the organizer of the fanzine to no avail, I finally decided it was time to share my submission with you all here.