Author's Note: First Kingdom Hearts fic. I completed the game quite a while ago and therefore may not remember every detail, so please, bear with me. Also I do not own Kingdom Hearts or any of the other Final Fantasy Characters mentioned here. It would also be greatly appreciated if people would review. I've never tried this type of story before and therefore would like to hear other people's opinions about it...

The Forgotten
Chapter One :: A Touch of Darkness
by Virgo Shadow

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Riku Hojo, aged fifteen, was certainly not like the others his age. He had talents, hidden talents, abilities that he and only he knew of -- for now. And those talents would have an impact on him; he could feel it even now. But how, that was what he didn't know...

"Darkness cannot run out darkness, only light can do that; Hate cannot run out hate, only love can do that."
(Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.)

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The punch came out of nowhere and knocked Riku in the temple. School had just ended, and it had been three days since the incident with Seifer Almasy. Riku had been heading to Kairi's class to pick her up, but as the force of a eighteen-year-old's punch met the side of his head, it seemed he'd been assigned a new schedule.

"Riku Hojo," said the boy who'd thrown the punch - Vincent Valentine, "I know you did that to Seifer, I just know it."

Vincent was a tall, very pale and muscular boy; one of the populars of Riku's school. He grinned at Riku, bearing his perfectly white, sharp, pointed teeth. His blood red eyes glowing from underneath his unruly ebony hair. He punched one hand into his other fist, lowered his head and snarled.

Riku regarded Vincent. "There's no need for you to tell me that again." Riku replied coldly. He didn't stop to show any hinting of pain in the head -- power perceived is power achieved, he thought. "You've told me you think I did it before."

A thin smile protruded from Riku's lips, but his general appearance, as well as those haunting eyes, made it very difficult for him to appear kind or loving. It was something that best friend, Sora and his girlfriend, Kairi, had come to get used to.

Among the group that had now surrounded Riku, Vincent seemed to be the dominating member. Riku looked around him, regarding each member with a disturbing intensity from behind his haunting mako-green eyes.

Vincent Valentine - the vampire-like child, ruthless, egotistical, cold and completely bloodthirsty. Seymour Guado - the half-Guado who's father happened to be a 'Lord'. This thought disgusted Riku and it wouldn't have surprised him if his mother had been a whore. About as egotistical as Vincent. Seifer's personal body-guard. He never went anywhere without either these two ready to take blows for him. Seymour was also eighteen, highly popular and a highly formidable advisory. He had tied his long blue hair back for this occasion, his face looking even more sinister with those birthmarks on his forehead and his piercing blue eyes. He stood back straight, standing a few feet away from Riku, his arms folded and his mouth unsmiling.

People like them never understood anything; their tiny inferior minds could not even begin to comprehend Riku's abilities.

"It's because you're afraid." Riku whispered, chuckling lightly to himself, his eyes transfixed on the ground below him. The corner of his mouth sneered upwards into the most repulsive smile that Riku had to offer.

Seymour was angered further by Riku's attitude. He made sounds of aggravation, and a small crowd began to form, mostly of Riku's tormentors, ready to watch the spectacle they knew was coming; Freak-boy was about to get the beating of his life for what he mysteriously did to Seifer. None of them knew how the weird kid had done it, but to their young logic it made perfect sense: Seifer tries to hit on the freak's girlfriend, but his arm gets mysteriously dislodged and shattered. The injury was as freaky as their favourite victim. To them, there was no further need for proof. "Listen up, freak-boy, 'cause I'm about to teach you something." Vincent muttered.

Vincent did an amusing rendition of someone trying to look tough. Riku thought. I see a scared, stupid, inferiority-complexed child beneath all of this... Who was apparently about to teach me something?

Riku's thin lips formed a dark, dispassionate smile. Looked like the class that Vincent was going to be teaching was physical education. "And you better learn it: We don't like you, Hojo."

"Yeah!"

"You tell that freak, Vincent!"

"Give it to him! Beat him to a pulp!"

"Yeah! Yeah! Let's see you spill some of his weird blood! I bet it's silver, just like his hair!"

"Let him try to show his face after you've smashed it in!"

The individual voices didn't matter. These peers all thought with the same dumb, violent, eager mind.

Seymour cracked his knuckles, or attempted to. He sneered at Riku. "I'm gonna kill you, retard." With that, he brought his hand around and landed another punch, this one catching Riku just below the ribcage. A kick to the shin. A few more punches.

Riku didn't strike back. "What's the matter?! You can't talk and now you can't even hit?! Too wussy?" Another punch.

"Come on, you think you're big for whatever it was you did to Seifer the other day -- Fight me!" It was Vincent now. "Come on! Freak-boy!" Vincent swung his leg forward to execute a kick to Riku's groin -- but the kick didn't land. When what had happened registered in his mind, he realised he was being held by the ankle by freak-boy.

Riku sighed and spoke softly. "Who's the wuss now?" He flicked his hand up, tossing the leg with it, and Vincent fell to the ground. He just watched the younger boy on the ground, looking up in shock. Power perceived... What did this boy fear? Riku was in control now. He saw the opportunity to get the upper hand, and walked up to the boy, still floored. "You're afraid," Riku repeated in his softest voice. "You're afraid that I'll do to you what you think I did to your friend Seifer... You're even afraid I'll kill you." Vincent was trembling. Power perceived... "Do you want me to kill you?"

"N... no! D... don't kill me... Riku... Don't...!" Vincent Valentine's words were frenzied and came out terrified. He flinched in fear as he saw Riku's hand reach down to him... Then he realised the intent behind it and grabbed the hand. Riku pulled to boy up, but didn't let go then.

Riku kept his hold on the older boy's hand. Then, all of a sudden, he twisted Vincent's arm behind him. He could feel the scream welling in the throat of his assailant -- then released it just as suddenly. The appropriate amount of fear was instilled. Power achieved. Rushing to restore his foundation, Vincent turned back on Riku.

"Don't think you've won, Hojo!" He had to hold up his reputation; the crowd was growing fast. "I'm still gonna kill you! Freak! Bring it on! Freak! Freak!" Soon enough, the whole crowd was shouting that word in unison... That word...

The darkness Riku felt on so many nights crept up now, for the first time in the daylight. For the first time ever, he could feel the hate he harboured for these antagonists. He didn't want to just pretend they weren't there, to shut them out, anymore. He backed up to face Vincent. If it was a fight that he wanted...

"Riku!" Kairi came running up, pushing through the group to get to Riku. "Riku, let's go... I don't think you should be here now, and --" She was cut off by a hard blow from Seymour. She hit the dusty ground hard, face down.

"Get outta here, kid!" Seymour Guado shouted at the fourteen-year-old girl. "Don't interrupt a fight!" Riku's eyes froze upon the body of Kairi, whimpering on the ground in pain. Angered, he looked up again, straight through Seymour Guado's head. There was nothing human about his fixed, dispassionate glare. This was the angriest Riku had ever been. He felt more hate than he had ever known towards these people.

He would be teaching the lesson today. He focused on all of his hate... and gave it a scapegoat. Seymour Guado, you'll know something new today.

Seymour's eyes widened. He doubled over. "Wh... What's going on... what's wrong with me... AAAUGH!" He screamed and coughed. "Ho... Hojo... you..." A cracking sound, and Seymour fell to the ground, blacked out. An onlooker bent down to see if Seymour was all right. He set two fingers by the neck...

"No pulse." The boy said, trembling. "S... Seymour's dead..."

Riku snapped to full realisation. Before him was the body of Seymour Guado, mangled and twisted, dead. Riku had done it. He felt the darkness well in him, and it touched him. The Jenova blood that had remained dormant in his veins for so long had been reawakened... He felt a smile tug at his lips.

Riku bent down to help Kairi up. He held her with his left arm around her shoulder as Ansem, the headmaster, Cid Highwind, a few other teachers and the local Seed candidates arrived on the scene, dispersing the crowd.