Heartless
We sat in silence, looking out at the harbour. My arm was gently draped around my sacrifice. The sunset was particularly beautiful tonight, an array of soft purples and light pink. We sat in that serene silence, each with our own private thoughts. We stayed like that until the darkness came. It felt nice just to sit with her, to feel her warm body against mine. We were destined to be together. We bore the same name "Heartless". I remember the day I first saw her. My family had just left me. They disappeared, and left me behind. I was abandoned. Alone. That was when Ritsu-sensai found me, and told me I was a fighter. He was expecting to find a blubbering mess. He found something completely different. I was sitting in the dark, and I heard him enter the room. "You're alone." He said. "Don't you care?" he was confused. "No." was my simple response, and it was the truth. I couldn't care. I was numb, void of feeling, not capable of showing compassion. I was cold and unfeeling. I was Heartless.
Ritsu told me he would teach me to fight. I was 15. He said that when I was 17, if I was good enough, he would give me my sacrifice. I don't know why Ritsu-sensai liked me so much, or why he cared enough to take me in. The others told me it was because I reminded him of someone named Soubi. Soubi was a legend. He was the perfect fighter. The Loveless unit was rumoured to be unbeatable. Ritsuka and Soubi's bond was stronger than any other unit. I wanted that. I wanted to feel that connection with someone, to be able to give myself completely to that one special person. My Sacrifice. That was what kept me going, and all the fighters, the thought that we would one day join our sacrifices and finally be complete. I had just turned 17. It was my birthday, but no one noticed, except Ritsu. He knew it was time. I was ready. "Today you will receive your sacrifice. Her name is Faythe Taylor. You two share the same name, Heartless." I was so scared. I knew I would disappoint her. I disappointed everyone. That was why I was alone. My thoughts were of everything. I was so nervous. What if she hates me? What if I'm a bad fighter? What if she abandons me? Will she like me? I'm not good enough for her. I'm not ready. I didn't know these answers. I only knew that I was meant to serve her. I was meant to belong to her. That is what a fighter does. It was my duty. "Her father is gone, and her mother isn't well. She just turned 15. She only found out that she's a sacrifice yesterday, so she may reject you, but I think she'll come around eventually." Ritsu's words sounded strange. "Oh." I replied. I couldn't think of anything better to say. Idiot. "I'll be back." Ritsu said grabbing his coat. "I'll bring her with me." I sat alone in his office, wondering what fate had in store for me, and then it happened.
This was the moment I had been waiting so long for. I looked up and beheld a beautiful young girl. She had soft pale skin, striking blue eyes, and an outrageous outfit. She was wearing a black t-shirt, with mesh armbands, a plaid skirt, rainbow stockings, neon bracelets, a lace necklace, and Mary Janes. She had a bow in her hair, right behind her black ears. Her black kitten tale twitched nervously. Her head was down. I watched her short black hair brushing her face. She was looking away from me, but I couldn't stop staring at her. I was drawn to her. She was so beautiful, dark, mysterious. I wanted her. Ritsu's eyes darted from me to her. He wanted to watch our reactions to each other. It gave him pleasure to watch people suffering. My emotions were going crazy. My heart told me to reach out to her, to say something, tell her everything. My head screamed "No, you must accept rejection, you are a failure, and she will never like you."
"This is your sacrifice, Kassia. She is the other Heartless. Faythe Taylor." Ritsu watched us. She looked up at me, and I looked into her deep blue eyes, they pulled me in. "Hello…" she said. I offered her a weak smile. "Hello." I replied. "I'm Kassia. I'm your fighter." "Yeah, I know." She said. Of course she knows that, you idiot, I thought. I felt stupid. I wish I could think of better things to say. It's been a while since we met. We practised spell battles at the Academy with Ritsu-sensai. We stayed there for a few months, but we worked so well together that they let us fight stronger units right away. She was so strong, the perfect Sacrifice. She even enjoyed the pain, and so did I. We were so different, but somehow so alike. Her demands of me were simple. She only needed me to be there for her, which wasn't that hard because I didn't feel like I belonged anywhere other than right beside her.
We sat on the bench in darkness. It felt good to have her close to me. She gasped suddenly, and doubled over, grasping the sides of her head, her face contorted in pain. I was confused. "What is it?" I exclaimed, trying my best to help her. "Another unit?" "Yeah." She said. "A really strong one." "Oh." My usual response when I didn't know what to say. So stupid. We sat in silence for a few moments. Faythe was still clutching her head, and rocking back and forth. She stopped. "They're here." She said slowly.
I looked up and saw a tall, lanky man with long blonde hair and a smaller boy with black hair and ears. "There they are, Soubi!" said the smaller one. He seemed almost annoyed. "Who are you?' I demanded. I was full of energy, and ready for anything. "We are the Loveless unit." The man said. "Loveless?!" Faythe said, excitedly. I knew who they were. They were legends at school. Faythe and I had heard stories of them. "Oh my god!! You must be Aoyagi Ritsuka!!" She ran towards him, and began to look him up and down. He looked mad. "STOP IT!" he whined. "You're making me nervous. You're so creepy! I think I know you from somewhere…" He was thinking now. "Reeeeeeeally?!" Faythe seemed excited that someone as cool as Ritsuka would know her. Her tail twitched happily from side to side. "Yes. Hmmm…Did you go to Ai-kon last year?" "Yeesss!! I WAS ROXAS!!" Faythe loved Ai-kon. "I remember you now! Soubi, do you remember her?" Soubi stared blankly for a moment. ". She was the Roxas we almost raped… She's more of an uke than you Ritsuka!" Soubi smiled slightly at his own joke. "WHAT'S THAT SUPPOSED TO MEAN!!GRRRRR!!!" Ritsuka was obviously offended. "Well at least I still have my ears!" Ritsuka was stepping over a line. Soubi turned away, noticeably hurt by Ritsuka's words. I watched as Faythe whispered something to Ritsuka. His face melted from anger into a goofy smile. They were holding hands and giggling to each other, exchanging secrets. They were so cute, so innocent… "Hey…Hey Soubi!" I poked him nervously. He turned slowly, and revealed the most serious facial expression I'd ever seen. It was unnerving. "What…" he said in a hostile voice. I was getting nervous. "Umm…Look at our Ukes!!" I said changing the subject. "They're so cute!!" Soubi's serious expression changed into a weak smile. Ritsuka and Faythe had grasped hands, and were now skipping away from us towards a nearby bush. Soubi and I looked at each other and chuckled. We smiled at the slightly awkward situation. Soubi and I watched the bush intently. It was getting suspicious. We heard laughter, and saw their jackets being thrown about. "Stop it! That tickles!" I heard Faythe's voice from behind the bush. She laughed. Her laugh was so cute. I was getting nervous, and so was Soubi, because he reached into his pocket and lit up a cigarette. He offered me one, but I politely refused, even thought the offer was tempting. We had been waiting nearly 15 minutes now. I was just about to suggest we do something when they finally emerged from the bush. They were both without jackets, and were covered in leaves; their black hair was in a state of disarray. They seemed completely normal except for one thing… Soubi and I both looked at each other and exchanged looks of panic. "THEY"RE EARLESS!!! OH MY GOD!!!" Soubi and I screamed in unison. We were fuming! "How could you!" I gasped. Soubi and I were in shock, we stood motionless for a few moments, and then the anger set in! "It's his entire fault!" I pointed at Ritsuka. "He corrupted my Faythe!" "I believe that YOUR Faythe corrupted MY Ritsuka!" Soubi was just as angry as I was. "Ritsuka is too much of an uke to ever corrupt anyone…" "SOUBIIIII!" Ritsuka squeaked "That's so not true!" Ritsuka blushed. Faythe was laughing hysterically at the whole situation. She couldn't control herself now, and she was almost rolling on the ground in fits of laughter. I stared at her, and then back at Soubi and Ritsuka. I couldn't believe that they would do such a thing! It was terrible. Faythe finally got herself under control enough to stand up. She grabbed Ritsuka, and revealed their greatest prank ever… Faythe and Ritsuka started to dig in each other's black hair, and found their pinned down ears, and tails. Soubi and I had blank expressions; our mouths dropped open in shock. Soubi and I only found it somewhat amusing. I was glad that they had enjoyed themselves at our expense, but it still scared us.
Soubi and I waited patiently, until Faythe and Ritsuka had stopped giggling. "Well I thought it was funny…" Faythe said trying to break the awkward silence. "I can't believe that you would let us think something like that…" I said, without thinking. "I'm sorry" Faythe was clearly upset. She sighed and turned her face away from me. "It's ok; it's not your fault." I said. "Huh? What do you mean?" She asked. "Uh…It's all Ritsuka's fault!" I shouted. "He shouldn't have gone back there with you! Any gentlemen would have refused to go behind a bush with such a beautiful young lady as you! Shame on you Ritsuka! How could you!" I was done hiding my emotions, if they wanted a fight, I would give them one. "How DARE you insult Ritsuka!" I had struck a chord with Soubi, I was playing with his heartstrings, he was furious! "You little brats with your little ears! There is only one way to settle this, and see who is truly above the other. I DECLARE A SPELL BATTLE!!" "WE ACCEPT" I screamed back. Faythe and Ritsuka seemed confused, but they had no choice but to follow. "We are the Heartless unit!" I shouted. "Isn't that from Kingdom Hearts…?" Ritsuka wondered out loud. "Oh my god, IT SO IS!!!" Faythe was so excited, she hadn't realised that our name was from one of her favourite games. "ENOUGH!!" I was getting annoyed now… "Heartless systems activate!" Faythe stretched out her hand to mine. "Heartless activated" I replied. Our hands found each other, and I felt our fingers weave together. "We are Heartless, we have no souls and feel nothing, and our hearts are empty and feel no pain…" "Let's begin…" Soubi said calmly. Why was he so calm? It was aggravating that he thought he was so superior. I was determined to show him that there might be a unit strong enough to give him a run for his money. We weren't losing without a fight. "All wind, gale force, overtake enemy!" This was my first spell to test Soubi's power. "We are protected, the wind cannot harm us, and it is weak." Soubi countered my first attack. The wind blew around him and Ritsuka. They were locked in an embrace against my wind. Soubi's body was protecting Ritsuka. The wind died. Soubi's turn. "Blizzard, freeze the enemy, make their blood run cold as ice." He was powerful, I barely had time to defend. The blizzard melted away around us. His attack had shaken me, and it took me a few moments to recover. I knew that normal spells wouldn't work; we needed to be more powerful. I needed to restrict them, or else they would surely overtake us. "Your flesh and soul shall be torn asunder. Your still-beating heart will be ripped from your chest, and you will become Heartless. You will belong to us." Soubi sheltered his face with his hand, and Ritsuka dropped to his knees. The endless blue chains that connected them were forming. They were restrained. I had succeeded. They would be less powerful now. Soubi bent down to Ritsuka, who was still on his knees in pain. "Ritsuka, are you all right?" Soubi's face was softer now. "My heart hurts…" Ritsuka was almost in tears. Soubi gently placed a hand on Ritsuka's cheek, and Ritsuka looked deeply into Soubi's eyes. They shared a passionate kiss. Soubi got up, and slowly turned around. His eyes flickered dangerously. He looked lethal, ready to kill. Perhaps I had been a little too powerful, but I couldn't change it now. It was Soubi's turn. "Our light shall overcome everything. Its blinding power will penetrate the darkness. Light shall encompass all and you will be rendered useless. You cannot control us." I was useless. I felt the restraints tightening around my neck. I could feel the suffocating collar tighten around me. The small silver chains that connected us started forming. I looked over to Faythe. She had her eyes closed. I heard her gasp as her collar tightened around her neck. She opened her eyes, and grabbed the chains at her wrists. "Are you ok?" I asked. "I'm fine." Her words seemed painful. I was worried now, we might be defeated. I could feel myself weakening; my limbs were getting heavy, as the restraints dug deeper in. I looked to Faythe, she was trying her best to bear the pain, she suffered silently, but I knew she was hurting. She was clutching her wrist, and biting her lip. I knew that there was only one way we could be powerful enough to take them. We needed to be connected. "There's no time." I said hurriedly. "This is our last chance Faythe!" She looked at me with a confused expression. She obviously didn't understand. "We have to connect now, or else they will win!" She stared blankly. "C-Connect?" There was only one way to make her understand. "Wha-…" She had started to ask, but she never got to finish. I grabbed her wrists and pulled her close to me. I felt her body press against mine; she fit nicely in my arms. I gently kissed Faythe, and then slid my tongue into her mouth. She bit down hard on my tongue, and I felt the pain shoot up and down my spine. It felt so nice. My body relaxed. Faythe knew how to control me. I sighed with pleasure. Our lips were still connected, as the hot blood flowed from my tongue and flooded both our mouths. It tasted so good. Faythe loved the taste of blood. She sucked on my tongue trying to get more blood to come. It was working. The blood was now overflowing and I felt it drip slowly out of the corner of my mouth. I loved the feel of the hot blood flowing over our tongues. It was so hot, so wet, and so pleasurable. After a few moments Faythe had finally tasted enough and broke the kiss. We both were panting slightly trying to catch our breath. I stared at her for a minute or two. She was so beautiful. My mind then suddenly jumped back to the reason why we "connected", and I turned back to face Loveless. Both Soubi and Ritsuka were wearing identical expressions of horror and shock at what had just happened. "Oh my god…" Soubi and Ritsuka turned and stared at each other, and then back at us. We had sufficiently scarred them for life, or at least a little while anyways. I was sure Soubi was jealous and would want to try it with Ritsuka sometime, but only if Ritsuka permitted of course. I took advantage of their state of shock to execute my last spell. "We are Heartless. We have no heart. You will be consumed by the blackness where our hearts should be. It will overtake you. Render you defenceless. You will be numb, cold, and unfeeling; you will become void of all your senses. May the blackness surround you and steal away your hearts." My darkness filled the air, and shot towards Loveless. Soubi countered my spell. "It is useless, the light from our hearts will always shine brighter than any darkness, and we can never be void, because the light fills us. The light will destroy your darkness; it will fill your hearts with light." A blinding light shot from Soubi, and shone straight towards us. I couldn't see anything. I shut my eyes against the light. It hurt so much. I felt it penetrate every fibre of my body. I felt like I would be ripped apart by the light that was worming its way inside of me. I couldn't do anything to protect us. I grasped Faythe and tried to shelter her from the light, it was useless. I held her limp body in my arms. She was unconscious. I held her, until I couldn't fight the light anymore. I slipped into darkness. When we awoke, Ritsuka and Soubi were standing over us. They looked scared and concerned. "I thought you died!" Ritsuka ran to Faythe and gave her a super tight hug. She laughed, and hugged him back. "Me too!" Faythe looked so happy with her new found friend. I put my hands beside me on the ground to hoist myself up, but Soubi extended his hand to me instead. "Here…Let me help you." I grabbed his delicate looking hand. "Thank you." I replied, surprised that he was such a gentleman. "Sorry about that. I guess I got carried away." Soubi looked a little sad. He didn't really like fighting two girls who still had their ears. "It's ok. I accepted didn't I?" "I suppose that is true…" Soubi mused. I looked over to Soubi, and watched his hair blow in the wind. He was so beautiful, so strong, and so delicate. I stared at the man that had defeated me. We watched Faythe and Ritsuka chatting and giggling while Soubi and I watched with looks of silent adoration. I glanced to a nearby telephone pole, and saw an ad for the fair. "Hey Soubi…" I said. "Yes." He turned and looked at me. "The fair is in town do you guys want to come?" "Is there a Ferris wheel?" he asked. "I think so…" I replied, not really understanding why it mattered. "Then yes…" he had decided. We walked over to our ukes. "Faythe do you want to go to the fair?" I asked. "Do you even need to ask?" She replied smiling at me. I smiled back. "Then that's a yes." I said. "Are Ritsuka and Soubi coming too?" she asked looking over at Ritsuka with her big blue eyes. "Yes." Soubi replied. "Ritsuka and I are going on the Ferris wheel!" Soubi smiled and grabbed Ritsuka's hand. "Let's go Ritsuka! It'll be fun" Soubi started dragging Ritsuka towards the fair. Ritsuka looked back at Faythe and me and desperately mouthed the words "SAVE ME" Faythe and I erupted into a fit of giggles. Faythe and I slipped our hands together and started walking behind Ritsuka and Soubi. I was secretly just as eager to get on the Ferris wheel, but Faythe didn't know that. I watched Ritsuka and Soubi as they made their way through the night. I wondered what Fate had in store for all of us. They were Loveless. We were Heartless. I knew that if we all worked together we would make a powerful team. This was the beginning of a great friendship. I could feel it.