Chapter 1 Avatars Of Gray

Riku held his breath in as he tried not to pace around the small apartment he had somehow managed to get in The World That Never Was. It had been so hard to convince Kairi and Sora to let him leave Destiny Islands, and Riku was personally very happy to be away from all that anxiety of their light. But now... he was here, waiting on someone else, already unpacked and ready to go. (The unpacking hadn't been done completely by him, for Sora had insisted on helping his old friend move out, even though Riku was now a bit over nineteen and could obviously take perfect care of himself.)

"Where is he?" Riku asked himself as he fell back onto his bed clearly frustrated. Riku had somehow managed to get Sora to leave and had sent out the signal, but now he was still waiting. After all these years that Riku had kept that signal a secret, so many years after Castle Oblivion. Still, Sora never seemed to manage to recover his memories of there, and Riku preferred to keep everything that had happened to himself. After all, Namine had done her job so well it seemed pointless to ruin her almost flawless work.

Riku heard a knock on the door and jumped up almost immediately. The familiar, nostalgic sent of darkness hit his nose, Riku automatically knew who it was. Without regards to the fact that the two-room apartment wasn't exactly fit for guests Riku rushed to the door and opened it. There, in the doorway, was a face familiar to Riku, his final guide in Castle Oblivion. "You came," Riku said trying to hide his frustration as Zexion came in. Zexion almost smirked as he walked in and closed the door, dead bolting it.

"Can't take any risks in this place," Zexion said as he looked around the twilit apartment. "I was almost unsure it was you when the signal was sent, I think the others have been snooping around again." Zexion seemed almost anxious as he brushed some of the shaggy hair out of his face. A hopeless cause that was, other strands immediately fell in to replace the ones Zexion had just moved.

"Sit down, I need to talk to you," Riku said as he gestured to the small card table that had two chairs adjacent to each other. Zexion sat down as Riku walked over to cabinets. "Do you want anything to drink? I know you technically don't need it, but you're pretty fidgety and I think if you'll have something in your hands it'll be easier to deal with." Zexion tried to give Riku a shaky smile, but his lie did not work, Riku knew he was shaken up.

"Water would be fine," Zexion said as strongly as he could. A few silent moments passed between the two as Riku got two glasses of water, handed one to Zexion, and then sat down across from him. Under the table their legs and feet hit together, but neither bothered to move. "So what is so important to talk about that you not only moved here, but sent that signal as well?"

"The worlds are choosing sides, everything is choosing sides, Sora and Kairi have both totally immersed themselves in light, forcing Roxas and Namine out of them," Riku said solemnly. "Roxas and Namine, they both agreed that they would fight for the darkness until both sides returned to the gray. The heartless are still the scavengers of shadow, those new dis-souls the scions of light. The nobodies have been scattered amongst them, as has the organization unbeknownst to you. It will reach the two of us soon, the only two who have truly fought for the gray." Zexion's hands were shaking even more as he listened to Riku, the ice in the glass clinking against the sides.

"So the final battle is coming upon us quicker than we anticipated, I'd almost appreciate the irony of this if the circumstances would let me," Zexion said. Riku reached across the table and set a hand on Zexion's forearm and the shaking in that arm automatically seized. Zexion looked up and met Riku's eyes. "There is more though, is there not?"

"Zexion, we are the only two avatars of the gray," Riku said as he avoided Zexion's gaze. "We will not be able to fight together until this war is over, we must choose different sides to keep the balance. And, even should we both survive it, we will never be the same." Zexion sighed as his gaze fell to look at his slender hands. So this was it. "Zexion, we still have time though, not everything has chosen, we are to be the last to choose."

"And what will happen when we do choose?" Zexion asked as he looked again at Riku. "Will we not be forced away from each other, meeting only as enemies?" Riku had no verbal response for this. Instead, he rose and pulled Zexion to his feet. Tipping Zexion's face back lightly Riku kissed him on the cheek, their two fingers intertwined. Zexion moved his face down some, almost kissing Riku on the lips, but then...

"Riku, open this damn door!" the two heard someone yell as he banged against the door. Riku immediately pulled away.

"Hide," Riku said as he pointed to a closet with a bar in it. Riku knew it was Sora at the door, and there was denying Sora, he'd break through the door with his keyblade. At the same time, Zexion could not use a path of darkness to get away because Sora would hear it, if not feel it. No one was supposed to know of Zexion and Riku, they couldn't take any chances!

Zexion ran into the closet, pulling the door shut as best as he could behind him, and then pulled himself up onto the bar used to hang hangers. Just as he settled he heard Riku unlock the deadbolt, and an enthusiastic Sora rush in.

"Riku, I almost forgot this!" Sora exclaimed as he ran in with a box of what seemed to be fighting tactic books. "As soon as I got back, Kairi found it and got all mad that I had your stuff, so she forced me to come back and give it to you. So here I am!" Sora looked at Riku, realized a slight blush on Riku's face, and then tilted his head some. "Riku, are you listening to me?"

"Yeah, sure," Riku said as he pulled the box away from Sora with a bit too much enthusiasm. Sora fell forward onto the ground as Riku shoved the box into a corner. Sora sighed as he surveyed the room, his eyes falling on the closet. A bit of an organization cloak stuck out of the door.

"Hey Riku, didn't you get rid of your cloak?" Sora asked with an almost condescending tone. Riku froze, Sora couldn't know... could he?