Don't get me wrong, this is not a perverted or dirty fanfiction. This is a serious story. If you don't like Sora x Riku (for whatever reason) I hope you can look past that. I WORKED TOO HARD FOR YOU TO JUST SHRUG IT OFF! ... Yea... Its quite long also. I wrote it like a real book. And... I'm not spoiling ANYTHING, but... Get tissues...
So here is my fanfiction, I hope you enjoy it. I put a lot of thought and effort into this so please comment? Thankyou for your time!
Also, for those of you reading this the first time, I have made edits to it so that it keeps true more to the Kingdom Hearts 2 story (this fanfic takes place AFTER Kingdom Hearts 2, supposudly). Also, I only edited SOME chapters, so some of them are clean of any spoilers! There ARE some minor spoilers though. They are mostly to do with Riku, but they are there and they are minor. If you can't handle it then wait a few months for Kingdom hearts 2, but I assure you all spoilers are very minor indeed (have I said that enough yet?). Please find a way to enjoy it either way.
Chapter One
Showdown
The End of the World. Many people wouldn't think that a world would or could be called something like that, but the planet belonging to the Heartless could have no more fitting of a name than that. All worlds are gathered there when they meet their demise at the hands of the Heartless, and it is in this place that Sora journeyed to defeat Ansem, the controller of the Heartless, once and for all. After making his way through one grueling chamber after another, the end of Sora's quest finally drew near its end...
Sora had been ready for this moment the instant he set foot off of Destiny Island (though it seemed like that had been an eternity ago). Before him stood Ansem, seeker of darkness. The only obstacle left in his path between him and the safe return of his friends and the permanent restoration of all the lost worlds.
"You're going down Ansem!", Sora shouted, trying to sound like his usual confident self.
"I think not", Ansem chuckled," your little escapades as the great hero end here and now." There seemed to be an aura about Ansem that wasn't there before. As if he had some ace up his sleeve he wasn't talking about.
Sora trembled as he searched for the strength he had summoned to him a thousand times and in a burst of light and magic the Keyblade appeared in his hands. Despite his growth the Keyblade fit as snugly into his hands as it had the first time he wielded it.
"The Keyblade alone cannot save you this time. I'll make sure of that!", Ansem sneered. And with that Ansem lunged at Sora striking him with a barrage of darkness pushing him back.
Sora countered immediately through pure reflex and struck Ansem hard on his left shoulder. Darkness oozed out of his wound, but Ansem didn't even flinch.
"You can not defeat me! I am darkness!", Ansem yelled gathering energy around him. "Your victories in the past were nothing but a fleeting illusion. Your demise will be swift and easy!"
"You're wrong! As long as I have the strength in my heart from my friends nothing can stop me!" Sora replied.
"Strength from your friends eh?" Ansem said, almost to himself, as he thought for a moment turning over ideas in his mind. "Heh, well lets see what strength you can borrow from friends that are a million worlds away!"
Ansem darted toward Sora with inhuman speed, far quicker than Sora was capable of dodging. Sora braced himself for the impact, and an earth shattering boom was heard all around. But... Sora felt nothing, and remained in place...
He opened his eyes and looked around, trying to see through the thick layer of dust that had been thrown up by the blast. As it started to settle, Sora was able to make out a figure that was definitely not Ansem. At first it was more than Sora could believe when he saw this familiar figure. But the image became clearer and clearer until he finally shouted, "RIKU!"
His childhood friend and rival looked back at him from the corner of his eye, "Didn't think I would let you have all the fun now did you?", Riku chuckled.
"I have been looking for you for so long! Where have you been all this time?", Sora managed.
"That isn't important", Riku said with a confident tone to his soft voice, "All we need to concentrate on now is beating Ansem--together."
Riku's gentle smile swept over Sora and he suddenly felt warm all over.
"What is this strange feeling?", Sora thought to himself, "I haven't ever felt like this around Riku before... I guess its been so long since I last saw him..."
But Sora's thoughts of Riku would have to wait, from the rubble emerged a seemingly unscathed (though thoroughly annoyed) Ansem. "I see you have mastered your hold over your darkness Riku...", Ansem grumbled through gritted teeth.
"Yea, at least I'm better with it than you anyway.", Riku replied almost cheerfully.
"Indeed", grunted Ansem, "Now allow me to wipe that smug grin off your face and show you how to use it correctly." And with that Ansem resumed his assault, conjuring an orb of darkness he proceeded to hurl at Riku with incredible force. The orb hit Riku and the entire area vibrated with energy as Ansem's blast radiated outward.
"Riku no!", cried Sora. But his concern was unnecessary. Once again, the smoke cleared, and Riku was no worse for the wear. Only now Riku was different...
His body glowed with darkness. It seemed to be completely immersed in his every pore. He slowly looked up at Ansem and smiled. His grin faltered as he began to concentrate more intensely, and his aura of darkness flickered with awesome power. Riku held his right hand out now, palm down. In a burst of light his weapon of great destruction was summoned. The Way to Dawn, Riku's Keyblade of incredible power.
Inside Riku's body, the light and the dark melded together perfectly to form the power of twilight. From this newfound power, Riku was able to change his Soul Eater into a Keyblade of immense strength. He was easily as formidable an opponent as Sora, though he had suffered through much to gain his strength. Satisfied, Riku withdrew his aura into his body adn looked to Ansem for his reaction.
Despite the amazing display of control over his darkness, as Sora gazed into Riku's deep teal eyes he didn't see the slightest trace of evil. Sora's heart almost skipped a beat as he realized: Riku was free!
As if he had read Sora's mind, Ansem snickered and said, "Riku's freedom goes only as far as I allow it. I could at any time I wish crush him in the palm of my hand like an ant."
"No! I don't believe you!", Sora yelled. "Riku is different now. You can't control him anymore!" Sora's hatred for Ansem flared. All the things he had made them endure, for what? But no more. This all ended right then and there. Sora would make sure of that no matter what.
As a reply, Ansem threw another dark orb towards the duo, this one much bigger than the last. Riku's eyes widened and he braced himself for the impact--that never came. Sora flung himself straight at Ansem's orb and in a flash of brilliant red light cast it back at Ansem.
Riku looked at his friend and stood in awe. Lightning curled around Sora, and even his costume had changed color from its deep black to a bright red. He even held a second Keyblade in his left hand--the Oathkeeper no less! None of this seemed to phase Sora as his strength ebbed back into its normal form though.
"H-how did you do that!", Riku asked half to himself.
"Oh that?", asked Sora. "That's one of my drives. I fused with Goofy just now, but he was so far away... I couldn't hold onto it for more than a few seconds. That was enough though, look.", Sora pointed into the sky where Ansem was... At nothing.
Riku looked up, but he didn't seem happy that Ansem was gone like Sora was. He furrowed his brow and said, "Ansem isn't gone, I can still smell him..."
"Impossible!", gasped Sora. "How did he--"
The ground underneath the two boys crumbled and upturned itself as Ansem broke his way through it grabbing Riku in his right arm while he was thrown off balance. "Silly little boy, you think your tricks can defeat me? Why--I doubt you can even defeat Riku here now that he has mastered control of his darkness." Ansem said.
"Those days are over! I'm never listening to you again, now let me go!", demanded Riku.
"Fine, you may go. But we will just see about you listening to me...", Ansem said as he waved his free hand. The instant he did Riku's face went expressionless... His eyes glazed over... His muscles relaxed... It was happening again, Riku was turning dark.
Ansem released Riku and said, "Now... Why don't we see just who is really stronger?"
Riku quietly turned to Sora and nodded, "Yes master." And he ran at Sora with speed Sora had never seen in Riku. Sora deflected Riku's Keyblade with his own easily enough, but that didn't change the scars that were opening up again inside him. He was loosing his best friend again. And it was all Ansem's fault.
"Riku please stop!", Sora begged as he continued to evade Riku's attacks. "I don't want it to be this way, and I know you don't too!"
With every evaded attack Sora became more and more exhausted. He couldn't keep this up forever. But weather any of Riku's hits connected or not didn't matter anymore. The fact that his assault continued only proved how lost to Ansem Riku was. It only proved that there would be no convincing Riku to stop, it was beyond either of their control now. Feeling weak, Sora knelt down as he blocked one of Riku's downward slashes, and held Riku at bay there.
"Please...", Sora sobbed with tears streaming down his face, "Please Ansem... Stop... I don't want to fight my friends anymore..."
"That is your fate Sora", Ansem replied without the slightest hint of emotion in his cold voice. "You must fight back or he will destroy you. Don't think for an instant anything of your friend is left to suddenly come to its senses and save the day. You must destroy him. And regardless of whoever wins, I will be here to finish the other off. Don't you see how pointless your fight is? You both die today. Be happy that I am graciously allowing you two to die together."
"No... Riku... Riku wouldn't do that! I know he doesn't want this! I know it!", Sora managed to shout with his remaining strength.
"You stupid little FOOL!", Ansem said glaring at him. "Why do you always place hope where it is futile? Look into Riku's face if you wish. You won't see the remotest edge of emotion."
Without even realizing it, Sora obeyed out of sheer exhaustion. When he saw Riku's face he gasped. His eyes were glazed over with darkness, but behind that he saw the friend he had grown up with over the years. And tears found their way to both the boy's eyes as they looked at each other. Riku's grip on his blade eased a little, but only a little. Sora took it as a sign. "I understand", Sora said.
He got up, knocking back Riku and slashed at his chest with his Keyblade tearing away the darkness around him. Riku stumbled and fell to the ground. He ignored his minor wound and stared at Sora.
Ansem glared at Riku with fury in his eyes. "You stupid boy!", Ansem spat. "You are useless to me. Once I am done with Sora you will be next." He turned to Sora and fixed his gaze on him. "Don't think you have won just because you don't have to fight Riku, I am, after all, much more powerful."
Sora glared at Ansem. His gaze pierced Ansem's seemingly invincible ego and he said, "I've had it. You put me through all this; you make me run around looking for something you always keep just out of my reach. You sit there with that smug look on your face - taunting me all the while. Well, I've really had it now." As he spoke, small orbs of light began to form around Sora and spiraled up around him. "I tried to beat you with Donald and Goofy at my side, and I failed to completely destroy you." , he continued. "Riku tried to beat you with King Mickey at his side, and he failed to completely destroy you too... I wonder... I wonder if its really possible..."
Regaining his composure, Ansem said, "You should know, as long as there is darkness in people's hearts I cannot be destroyed. The true essence of--"
"SHUT UP! I'm sick of listening to you preach about darkness!", Sora shouted suddenly. "Maybe I can't destroy you, maybe that's impossible. But I refuse to continue to live in a world you also exist in!" The light around Sora pulsed and grew in intensity.
Ansem began to sweat as he looked at Sora uneasily, he had never witnessed such an impressive display of power over light before... Never before had he doubted that darkness was truly and ultimately more powerful than light... Until now...
"My Keyblade wasn't made to destroy... Maybe that's why I can't kill you... ... It just locks things up, and unlocks them... Anything... ..." , Sora said as he gazed at his Keyblade in his hands. "If that's true, then I know what I have to do." His grip on his Keyblade tightened. "This is the end of you Ansem!"
Sora rushed towards Ansem, blinding light flashing from him reaching outwards as far as anyone could see. Concentrating with all his might, he thrust the light to the tip of his Keyblade, and it swirled and emanated from it with enormous force. He thrust his Keyblade straight forward at Ansem, and as he did a look of pure terror went through the dark overlord's body. Sora reached forward with all his strength, and tore away at Ansem's body. His Keyblade pointed directly at Ansem's heart, he shone his light with all the strength he had. Ansem's shirt ripped away, his flesh disintegrated.
Where Sora's Keyblade was held, a Keyhole appeared.
"Ansem, I seal you!" , Sora shouted with rage gleaming in his blue eyes. And with that, Sora thrust his Keyblade deep into the Keyhole on Ansem's chest. Ansem screamed in pure agony. With one swift movement, Sora turned his Keyblade, and all the light he had summoned poured into Ansem through the Keyhole.
As the last glimmer of light trickled inside of Ansem, he began to heave deep breaths. He looked down at Sora with terror filled eyes, Sora's stare was unrelenting. Then, slowly, Ansem began to change. It consumed him from his feet upward, an otherworldly light. At the touch of this light, Ansem's body turned to stone. He looked around in desperation, but he could do nothing to stop what had begun, all his strength was sapped. The light reached around him, leaving the newly formed Keyhole for last, and engulfed his back and shoulders. He wanted more than anything to send this stupid boy into an endless black void of darkness, but he could do absolutely nothing at all as the light covered his head and continued to move down back towards the Keyhole.
As it finished covering it, the light continued on to Sora's Keyblade. Binding Ansem was permanent, and with it being done, there was no need for a hero of light anymore. Sora accepted this without any hesitation. Though the light did not bind him there too, his days as the Keyblade master were over.
Sora slowly let go of the stone Keyblade, the chain stuck in place by its new form. He looked around for Riku, but before he could find him the ground began to shake. He could hear loud explosions in the distance. The world was breaking apart, and it was going to do so with him on it or not.
He tried to move around, but his feet suddenly froze in place, as if stuck to the ground by some unseen force. He began to sink through the ground, but instead of him falling into darkness like before, it seemed like the floor was simply swallowing him up itself. He struggled to get free, but his attempts were useless. His entire body fell through, and then he fell. Down down down...
Sora closed his eyes, but the sensation of falling stayed with him. He stayed this way for several minutes, when all of the sudden the falling sensation stopped, and Sora felt warm. He immediately opened his eyes wide to see...
He was standing back on his home island once again. The light shone brightly in his eyes as the feeling of deja vu swept over him. Though he and his friends tried so desperately to get off of this island, his entire journey had been one gigantic struggle to get back here. And he was home at last. He was finally home.
So far his return to Destiny Island resembled the dream he had shortly before his grand adventure began, he looked forward into the ocean in hopes Riku was there as he was in his dream. Sure enough, the silver haired boy was standing out in the ocean as before, knee deep in the water.
Breaking the similarity to his dream, Sora desperately called out, "Riku!"
Riku slowly turned back to Sora, and the two boys stared at each other a moment. "You took long enough. Lazy bum", Riku called out gently. There was no trace of evil in Riku's eyes like in Sora's dream. And no ominous wave billowed up behind him threatening to split them apart again. Regardless nothing would ever keep them apart now. Riku was free, and they were both together again.
Sora ran to Riku and embraced him deeply. He didn't care his clothes were soaking wet. He didn't care if it looked odd. He didn't care what anyone thought. He wasn't even thinking about any inexplicable feelings he had. He just held his best friend tightly and sobbed, "I'm so sorry it took this long... I'm so sorry for everything that happened... I'm so, so sorry..."
Riku slid his strong arms around Sora as a thin stream of tears began to roll down his cheeks as well, and he said, "None of that matters anymore... Just hold me now... Because we have the rest of our lives to feel sorry for that stuff… And right now... I just want you to hold me."