Dreams
Everyone has those nightmares—the ones where you dream that your loved one dies in a horrid and tragic accident on their way home from a fight with you. Sometimes, the nightmare is more than the stuff of dreams. Sometimes the nightmare is reality.
It was a snowy, cold December night. But despite the weather, Riku's heart was warm. He was warm-blooded because of his childhood on the Islands and thus preferred the summer sun and ocean to the winter's snow and ice. The woman who stayed by his side the majority of the night was named Lightning. On her birth certificate, she was "Claire Farron," but to him, she was Lightning.
The two of them met under interesting circumstances. Though his wars with Xehanort ended when he was seventeen, Riku travelled across the worlds even now when he was twenty-two years of age to make sure that Heartless would never suffocate a world's light. It was on a world called Cocoon that he found a massive army of Heartless swarming the beach-side town called Bodhum. Of course he rushed in to help, but in the end, he was hardly needed: the town's soldiers, the Guardian Corps, swiftly swatted the Heartless away.
Most soldiers counted that as their victory. The Heartless were out of the city, so there was no need to defeat them. But one soldier refused to accept that. She ran out of that city and faced the Heartless, daring to fight alone. Naturally Riku joined up with her. Despite the odds, they came out victorious. He became intrigued with the woman who called herself Lightning and the rest was smooth sailing. They had "accidental" meetings in Bodhum where Riku would show up at the GC's headquarters and see her train newbies. He saw her beauty in battle—her complex and strategic mind that could work quickly enough for her to analyze her foe in a matter of seconds.
But behind that smart, fit beauty was a heart of gold. He caught her one time when she thought nobody was watching: she was comforting a soldier who was feeling discouraged by his lagging behind. Lightning told him those who lagged behind came out in front at the end, because the more adversity that had to overcome, the stronger they'd become.
Perhaps that was the moment where she completely swept him off his feet.
Since then, they were on several dates. Every date had been on Cocoon, and this one was no different. Most of the time, they participated in athletic dates with rock-climbing or other indoor sports. It wasn't often that Lightning had off from work, but when she freely gave that extra time to Riku, his heart soared.
Tonight was different: they were planning on going to an indoor skydiving place, but the sudden blizzard closed the place. He and Lightning managed to get out of the Guardian Corps office before the storm became too bad, but now they were trapped at Lightning's sister's home. Serah and her husband, Snow, were away on a tropical getaway in a place that wasn't a block of ice. The only reason Lightning and Riku went there was because the roads were getting too dangerous to drive on and Serah's house was the closest thing they could stop at.
"Riku, what are you doing?" Lightning muttered as she broke through his reminiscing.
"Nothing," he said quietly, withdrawing his hand away from her head. "You had something in your hair."
"Yeah?" she responded. "Unmelted snow?"
"Pinecone."
"Nice try—Those don't exist on this world."
That was something else Riku appreciated about Lightning: she had been to another world. Her training sent her to the world below called Gran Pulse. Maybe that helped her see that there were many worlds other than her own, but it certainly helped Riku's case when he told her that he came from another world that she never heard of.
"Oh really? Well look at this…" Riku reached for the side pocket on his jeans, prepared to pull something out.
"No way."
"Yes way." He smirked, pulling the nature item out as if it were nothing. "Alright, so it's not a real pinecone. I stole it from my friend Kairi's house when I went to her bathroom. I remembered how you said you missed natural things with how techy Cocoon is even in nature, so…" He held it out to her with a proud grin. "Here's your first pinecone."
"Gee, thanks," Lightning said, picking up the item between her thumb and forefinger. "I'm guessing normal pinecones don't smell so…"
"Smelly?" Riku filled in.
Lightning gave him a look that he immediately recognized. It was the, "Riku, you're being ridiculous" look. And he loved it. "But seriously," she said. "You stole potpourri from Kairi's bathroom just to bring me a pinecone that isn't even a pinecone."
"I think it might be a real pinecone though…"
"You can ask Kairi when you give it back to her," Lightning said as she tossed the item to Riku. His years of training prepared him for catching the item even if he wasn't expecting it. "I'm part of the military, remember? I uphold the law, and one of them is "Thou shalt not steal."
"'Thou?'"
"The Fal'Cie liked that type of language," she shrugged.
"Okay…" Riku tossed the pinecone back over to Lightning, who caught it as easily as he had. "But I didn't steal it from this world, so it's okay, right?"
"Stealing is stealing." Lightning threw the pinecone back.
Riku sighed, placing the pinecone on the couch beside him. He turned to face Lightning as he inspected her and her beauty. The room was dim due to the lighting. The air cool because Serah and Snow turned down their heat while they were away. The atmosphere: playful, for now. Riku never thought that he would be the more playful one in a relationship, but he supposed that Sora was rubbing off on him. He was okay with that, since Lightning seemed to approve of the silliness. She was too serious for her own good sometimes, so Riku enjoyed being ridiculous with her to get her to loosen up.
"Stealing is stealing," Riku repeated slowly, turning more serious suddenly. "But can you steal something that's invisible?"
"We don't have any invisibility cloaks at the Corps, if that's what you mean…"
"Not what I meant. I meant…can you steal something that's immaterial?"
"Such as…?"
"Well, I…" Riku trailed off. He wasn't good with girls. He never was in the past and he doubted he ever would be as suave as all the guys that girls looked up to. He was a Keyblade Master who travelled to dozens of worlds and learned so much, but he couldn't learn how to be smooth with girls. He hadn't had a real need to until he met Lightning. For her, he wanted to be perfect.
He sighed, deciding to come clean. "I want to…steal a kiss."
And then he leaned forward and connected his lips with hers. He was too focused on his own reactions to the kiss to notice that she was too stunned to respond. He had a hard time fighting off the harsh beating of his heart, the nervousness that flickered in his stomach, the nausea that came from fear of messing up…
After a few moments, Riku pulled back from the kiss. His eyes that had previously been closed slowly opened up to look at the girl before him. And Lightning…wasn't happy.
Lightning rose to her feet, startled at the sudden kiss. But she didn't wipe at her lips. Instead, she stared at him. "What was that?"
"What was what?" Riku asked. He couldn't find any words to say, too stunned at Lightning's negative reaction. He went into the kiss thinking that she'd be ready for it, since they were on numerous dates together…
"I didn't give you permission for that," Lightning hissed. "Just leaning in and…" She blushed, turning away.
Riku also rose to his feet, confused and frustrated. Permission? Most girls found it romantic when the guy leaned in and gave them a kiss unexpectedly! "What's with that reaction?" he asked tensely. "I thought that you'd be happy!"
"Happy?" she snarled. "Happy that you jumped over a line?"
"I took a step forward," he corrected her. "Because believe it or not, Lightning, most couples exchange kisses on the second date. I waited until the seventh."
"What a gentleman," she said sarcastically. "You had the courtesy to wait, but you didn't have the courtesy to ask if I wanted to be kissed."
"What is with you?" Riku snapped. "Most girls like the whole surprise kiss thing."
"What made you think for a second that I'm 'most girls'?"
There she had him—She most certainly wasn't most girls. She was so much better than them. Though that was what his heart undeniably felt, he was too wrapped up in the anger to admit that. "My mistake," he said lowly. "I won't do that again."
"No. You won't." Lightning started walking towards the door, and that was when Riku snapped out of his anger.
"Where are you going?" She couldn't seriously…
"I'm going home," she responded. "You can summon your portal and go home."
"You think I'm letting you go out in this storm?" There was no way he was going to let her put herself in that kind of danger just because she was upset.
"You think you can control me? That's cute." She shrugged on her peacoat, buttoning it up easily. Her brown boots were still on, so she was ready to leave in a matter of seconds. She did, however, stop by the door and look back to Riku. "I don't think this is working out. Sorry."
And then she was gone.
Riku slowly realized what happened. She just ended it. She broke up with me because I kissed her at the wrong time… Well good then. Who needed her? If she wasn't going to act like a rational human being and break up with him for some reason that was more logical, why'd he want to be with her anyway?
Those lying thoughts couldn't convince him. He wanted to chase after her. He wanted to summon his Keyblade glider and follow her home to make sure that she made it home okay. And then when she did, he'd try to win her back. Most girls would want that anyway: the breakup would be a test to see how dedicated the guy was. Would he risk going out in the middle of a blizzard to win her back?
But Lightning wasn't most girls, and he knew that this wasn't a test. She left and he wasn't meant to follow. If he did, there would surely be a slap on the face in his future.
He looked around, seeing an ordinary living room. Couches, lamps, television…Radio. He quickly walked over to it, relieved to find that it was already set to a news station. Lightning told him that as much as Serah loved music, she often listened to news stories because of her love of history. Modern ongoings were historical events that were just being recorded—those were her thoughts. Right now, Riku didn't care about Serah's philosophies. He cared about the traffic reports.
"We recommend that all citizens remain inside until the storm is over," the male anchor said. "Road conditions are slick at best. Lindzei Avenue is down to one lane due to earlier's spinout involving three cars. Fortunately no one was hurt, but it took three paramedic vehicles to even reach the accident since two of them got stuck in other locations. Total snowfall estimates are…"
"I don't care," Riku muttered over the anchor's voice. "I don't care…" Snowfall totals weren't as important as the roads. Which ones did Lightning take around here anyway? Riku knew that Lindzei Avenue was on the other side of the large town, so that one was out. He only knew his way around because of how often he came to this world to check on Heartless, and to check on Lightning.
The anchor continued talking about unimportant things. Snowfall predictions, times that the storm could end, Bodhum's state of emergency being set in motion. The minutes dragged on at an agonizingly slow pace. Maybe he worried for nothing though. It was fifteen minutes since Lightning left, so she should have been home by then anyway. Or at least, in the final stretch of it. She was surely fine…
"We have a new accident report," the radio said then. "A two-car collision has occurred on Etro's Drive. Initial reports suggest that the accident could result in fatalities…"
"No!" Etro's Drive was definitely by Lightning's house. And now would be the time when she would hit that road. Riku left the radio playing as he rushed to the door, grabbing his black jacket and shrugging it on before he opened the front door and ventured out in the blizzard. He should have followed her to make sure that she made it home safe. He had a Keyblade—He could have done something to save her.
With these tragic and heartbreaking thoughts in mind, Riku summoned his Keyblade glider: a motorcycle that could be driven both in air and on the ground. He elected to stay out of the air due to the wind before he sped off, praying for the best but expecting the worst.
*…*…*…*…*…*
"Keep her head elevated. We need something to stop the bleeding until the paramedics get here. You, do you have anything we can use as a tourniquet?"
The driver who caused the terrible car crash was shaking so badly that he had a hard time taking off his thick red scarf. "W-would this…?"
"It'll work." The passerby snatched the scarf out of his hand and began to tie it around the woman's arm, seeing the victim wince in pain. "I'm sorry. But it'll be alright. I've been trained to handle medical emergencies. You're going to make it."
"Who are you?" the male driver asked of his new friend.
"My name is Lightning," she said. "I'm a member of the Guardian Corps."
"You're a soldier," he said in disappointment.
"Trained to handle things like this until the paramedics come," she assured him. "I'm not making this up as I go. Do you have any blankets in your car?"
"N-no…"
"Then check this woman's car," she suggested. It was good that they managed to get her out of the mangled mess: it made it easier to treat the wounds and cuts she received from the crash. But at the same time, the falling snow and bitterly cold air was sure to hurt more than help. Lightning stepped over and took the man's place, kneeling down as she set the woman's head in her lap. As he ran off, she looked down at the victim. "You're going to be okay," she said to the faintly conscious woman. "I need you to stay awake for me. I know it's tempting to fall asleep right now, but if you go under, you may not come back up."
Those words definitely didn't comfort the victim.
"Sorry," Lightning said. "What I mean is…you have people waiting for you, right? You were driving somewhere, so you probably had people waiting for you at your destination. Just blink for me if I'm right."
She blinked.
"Good," Lightning nodded. "They're already going to be mad that you aren't going to make it there in time for bedtime, but you're better late than never. Stay with me now and you'll get to see them later."
"I found a blanket!" the man said as he reappeared.
"Good," Lightning said again. "I want you to wrap it around her torso—Keeping her chest warm is the most important thing right now." She focused her attention on the woman again. "I'm sorry: I know that your legs and arms are cold right now, but they'll recover from the cold more quickly than your heart will."
When a single headlight shined into the area and into Lightning's eyes, she lifted her arm to shield herself from being blinded. A single headlight? Where was that ambulance she called for? And what idiot would be riding a motorcycle in this storm?
The rider jumped off of his bike. "Lightning!"
Oh. That idiot.
"You," Lightning said to the man beside her. "Hold her head up again. I'm going to take care of something." As he finished wrapping the woman in her warm blanket, Lightning switched places with him. She rose to her feet and briskly walked to the young man who should have been home.
"Lightning," he breathed once she was before him. She didn't share whatever relief was present in his voice. Instead, she lifted a hand and slapped him across his cold cheek. The sound echoed throughout the area, amplified by the stillness of their surrounding area.
"You idiot!" she hissed. "First of all, you should have gone home. And then you were stupid enough to ride a motorcycle on icy roads? I thought you were smarter than that."
"Technically it was a glider," he said with a weak smile. Lightning fought the urge to slap him again. Fortunately for him, he stopped being a wise guy and took in the scene around him. "Are you okay?"
"Me?" she blinked. "I'm fine."
"What about the accident? I thought…"
"It wasn't me," she said. "I was here about a minute after it happened. My car's right over there, see?" She pointed to it, and sure enough, it was pulled off to the side of the road, away from the accident. "The man's fine except for some bruises, but the woman's less likely to survive. I stayed on sight to help her."
Just then, Lightning noticed something in Riku's eyes. It was liquid, and it most certainly wasn't melting snow. Finally, she recognized the worry that he felt—the worry that convinced him to act so stupidly. "…Okay," she said more gently. "I see you were worried. I'm…sorry. And fine: no part in the actual accident. I placed the 911 call and I plan to stay here until an ambulance arrives. Will you help me?"
"What do you need?" Riku asked as he became more focused on the matter at hand.
"A miracle."
*…*…*…*…*…*
When the pair reached Lightning's home, Riku summoned his Keyblade and unlocked the door. He didn't hurt Lightning's pride by telling her that she wasn't in any shape to open the door; they both knew it without saying. After staying at the accident site for a while, medics did come. They took care of the woman and the man. The former was only going to live because Lightning kept her alive long enough for Riku to heal her wounds. He really did grant her the miracle that she needed him to provide.
The medics wanted to take care of Lightning as well since she was exposed to the cold for so long, but she refused. Seeing how they did need to be other places on a night as treacherous as this one, they decided that she wasn't worth their extra effort. One of the more astute medics looked to Riku and told him to care for her, since they were obviously together.
"I'll heat up some water," Riku said after ushering Lightning into her own home. "Go put on some warmer clothes and get some blankets."
Despite her position in the military, Lightning hated receiving orders. In the setting of the Corps was one thing, but being ordered around in her own home was another. Nevertheless, even she realized that she put Riku through enough worry and stress for one night. She retreated to her bedroom and followed his request.
Lightning wasn't an emotional person. When confronted by a problem, she used logic to sort it out. That was how she was calm and composed at the accident site. Yes, it was terrible and scary to those unaccustomed to blood, but she dealt with it just fine by reminding herself of what needed to be done. But Riku came to the accident site when he was dominated by emotion. Thankfully he toned it down so that they could get to work and help out without emotions restricting them, but even so, Lightning couldn't forget the relief he expressed upon finding her unhurt, even after what she did.
"Lightning?" Riku called from outside the bedroom door. "Do you want tea or hot chocolate?"
"Hot chocolate is fine." She paused only briefly. "You have some too, alright?"
"Yeah, I'll do that." Riku's footsteps receded.
Lightning straightened out of simple outfit of jeans, a white shirt and a heavy brown sweater, sighing at the same time. Riku was still being practical, but now Lightning was the one who was letting her emotions slide. Was he just doing what needed to be done, or did he care about her even after the fight? There was only one way to find out. She stepped out of the bedroom and walked down the hall to the living room, where she saw Riku holding two mugs of steaming beverages.
"Have a seat," he encouraged. "I'll get a blanket."
"Right." She stepped forward and took one of the mugs. His other was temporarily placed on the end-table as he walked across the room to the rocking chair. The fuzzy blue blanket that he picked up was very warm and large: Serah liked curling up with it on cold winter days whenever she was over.
"Lean forward," Riku instructed as he stopped in front of her. Again, Lightning obeyed. She stared down at the mug in her lap as the warm blanket encased her in comfort. "How do you feel?"
"I'm fine," she automatically said.
"Okay," he responded simply. "Forgive me if I don't take your word for it though. I see you're still shivering."
"Only a little." She looked up at him, seeing his calculating eyes. "You should start drinking your hot chocolate."
"I wasn't out nearly as long as you were, and I let the medics check me out. I'm good."
Lightning lifted a hand and pinched the bridge of her nose. "You're as stubborn as I am."
"At least I'm not so hot-headed. Going out in the storm like that was crazy. That accident could have been you."
She refused to acknowledge that. It made more emotions rise up, and that was the last thing she needed. It was even worse because the woman who was in the accident had rose-colored hair and blue eyes.
"I get nightmares a lot," Riku confessed softly as he sat himself down on the couch. "I think everyone does have a certain kind of nightmare: the ones where you dream that your loved one dies in a horrid and tragic accident on their way home from a fight with you. Sometimes, the nightmare is more than the stuff of dreams. Sometimes the nightmare is reality. …But I'm glad it wasn't a reality today." With eyes less guarded and tactical, Riku looked over at Lightning. "I really do care about you, you know," he assured her. "I wouldn't have kissed you otherwise."
Lightning forced herself to look away from Riku's sincere eyes. Instead, she stared down at her steaming cup of hot chocolate. "I know you care," she admitted. "You've proven that time and time again. But I was so stupid, Riku. I'm not good at reading people's emotions. Or…maybe I am, but I chose to ignore it. The idea that someone would like me that much…or that I would grow attached to them in return terrifies me. I've never been able to rely on anyone in my life. This world has attacked me so many times. I feel like I'm always fighting against the whole entire world and nobody's by my side."
"Serah is."
"I know. But I don't let her fight for me: It's my job to fight for her. That's what the older sister is supposed to do."
"I always realized you were independent, but now I know why," Riku said after taking a sip of his drink. "You've never really told me about yourself or your past. I've been trying to unravel you myself, but I guess there are some things I can understand when they're spoken."
"I should have spoken sooner, then." Lightning dared to look over and meet Riku's eyes. "Because I haven't been honest with you and I haven't been honest with myself."
"Are you ready to be honest, then? To tell me what you feel?"
"I broke up with you."
"I'm willing to let that slide if you are," Riku said with a crooked smile. That smile always made her heart leap up into her throat, and now was no different.
"I'll be blunt, then."
"You always are," he piped.
"And you're a goof sometimes," she retorted. She smiled afterward as she refocused herself onto the hot chocolate. It was either the heat making her cheeks pink or a blush, she couldn't tell. She didn't care. For once, she was going to be honest. "The truth is that I admired you from the first time I met you. You're courageous and selfless and loyal. When you took an interest in me, I was shocked. Nobody ever was interested in me before because of my 'lone-wolf' persona. When you asked me on that first date, I said yes just because of the shock. If I was logical then, I would have said no. I don't like emotions."
"You don't like emotions," he echoed.
"I've experienced more negative emotions in my life than good ones. But being with you was totally different. I was never frustrated with you until tonight, and even then, it wasn't your fault. My reaction to the kiss was my fault. Riku…" She took in a breath, the bluntness surprising even her. "When you kissed me, I felt emotions I never felt before. My stomach twisted into multiple knots, I forgot to breathe and didn't have any urge to push you away. My emotions were that strong and it terrified me. So I ran away from you and I ran away from them, even if they were good emotions."
The pink-haired soldier finally risked a glance at Riku, though she lifted her head fully when he was staring at her. "You get it, don't you? I'm really not like other girls. My view of emotions is totally screwed up."
"I already knew you're not like other girls," Riku said simply. "And that's why I pursued you. Because you're Lightning and I care about you, flaws and all."
"Even something as big as emotions?" she asked in almost a timid way. After being so open with Riku, she'd hate for it all to be for nothing.
"Oh yeah," he said, waving his free hand through the air as he smirked. "Your emotions seem like nothing compared to my issues."
"I'll be the judge of that," Lightning declared.
"Oh will you?" he half-taunted and half-asked. "Does that mean you take back the break-up?"
"I take it back," she said. "And I'll make a pledge to you right now."
"Alright…?"
Lightning took in a deep breath. "I promise that I'll…work things out with my emotions. And that I'll let myself start feeling them again—the good and the bad. Because, Riku…"
"Yeah?" he asked patiently.
"…All the good emotions you make me feel overcome all the bad ones I felt in the past."
That smile that Riku had- the one where he turned up one side of his lip before the other—spread into a full smile. Again, Lightning's stomach twisted and turned. "I'll hold you to that promise," he said. He leaned over, placing his hot chocolate on the end-table once more. Whatever problems they had with warmth before was forgotten: Lightning's blushing made her feel warmer, and Riku was about to be warm for the same reason. "And now, I would like to ask for permission to make you feel something."
"I bet I can figure out what you want to do," Lightning said with a smirk. She too leaned over, though she leaned to the other side of the couch and placed her mug on a separate table. When she returned to her previous spot, Riku was already leaning in. He lifted a hand slowly and set it on Lightning's knee, glancing at her eyes for approval. She gave him that one easily.
"I'd like to kiss you," he said quietly. "Do I have permission to kiss you, Lightning?"
"No." Lightning smiled briefly at Riku's look of despair and confusion. She could be merciless, but this time, she was gracious to him. She lifted a hand and set it on his cheek, stroking away a strand of silver hair. "This time, I'm kissing you."
"You can't ever let me have my way, can you?" he murmured with a smirk.
"Now you're learning." She shut her eyes and kissed him on the lips, feeling so many emotions that she hadn't let blossom over the past few years. She locked her heart away, but the man with the universal Key unlocked it. Now she knew that she would never go back to how she was before.