Author's Notes will be at the bottom of the chapter!
With the roar of his Pontiac Sunfire mixing with the smoke of a freshly-lit cigarette, Sora came to the realization that he was finally free. He breathed in the crisp autumn air as he drove down the freeway and into the night, not knowing which direction he was going but sure that anywhere would be better than the hellhole he had until recently called "home." Screams of an angry father and the cold yet sharp sting of a mother's hand against his cheek were still vividly painted inside of Sora's mind yet he knew that those abusive days were finally part of the past. Under the starry sky, twinkling innocently against the shine of the crescent moon, the world looked a bit less bleak.
Things are going to go my way from now on. Sora was absolutely, positively, one-hundred percent confident of that.
The only problem, he decided, was that he had no idea where he would be staying from that moment on… or where he would be getting his next meal… or where he would find the money to buy a fresh pack of cigarettes now that his current pack was nearly empty. This was just fucking greaaat.
So, as all outstanding men of history did during times of tribulation, Sora lit a second cigarette. Because honestly, you can never have too many, he added with a self-satisfied grin.
But his attention was suddenly pulled from drawing on the soothing smoke of the cigarette when Sora noticed the bright, flashing lights ahead of him and a cacophony of voices growing louder as he sped down the road. What is that? he wondered. He pressed down on the gas pedal, craned his neck out of the car window and squinted at the glare of the approaching lights.
A carnival!
Set up on a stretch of grassy land, the carnival was a conglomeration of tents in various sizes and shapes; some were large, some were small; some had their curtain-like entrances hanging open to the night air while others were drawn tightly closed; some had large, messy lines of excited people waiting with their tickets in hand and others seemed to be completely deserted. The glow of lanterns and signs directed the crowds to a diverse array of sights; there were cotton candy and popcorn machines operated by clowns who—though they seemed flat-out creepy to Sora—appeared to excite and draw a laugh from their customers; groups of kids ran among the legs of the adults who couldn't help but smile at the excited energy surrounding them.
It's certainly lively, Sora said to himself. As he parked his car, stepped out and began approaching the site of the carnival, he noticed the shadows of seated crowds upon the red velvet curtains of the larger tents. They were cheering madly—some were standing up and waving their arms while others tossed flowers onto the stage below them. Must have some pretty good acts…
Sora stepped into the darkness which surrounded the outskirts of the carnival and drew on his cigarette again. A calming force ran down his back and into his legs—he closed his eyes for a moment and allowed his muscles to relax. The noises of the carnival died out in the background, quickly being swallowed up by the growing peacefulness as Sora threw back his head and took a deep breath. Everything began to adjust itself into his clear perspective when…
"Hasn't anyone told you that smoking kills?"
Sora's eyes snapped open. The silence was shattered, the veil of peacefulness was torn and his relaxed state was rudely interrupted. Who the fuck had the balls to walk up to him and act like they knew shit about his reasons to smoke? Somebody was definitely asking to get punched square in the jaw right now.
He turned slowly to face the source of the questioner but couldn't help being a bit… speechless… at what he saw: a magician, was it? The magician was dressed in a suit of violet colors and wore a black mask over his eyes, though his long, silky silver hair flowed down his back and caught the shine of the moon in a very dramatic way. A playful smirk was plastered onto his face.
"Who are you, again?" Sora growled.
The magician snorted. "The name's Riku. What's yours?"
For a second, Sora was almost too stunned to say anything. Then, his mind snapped back to reality and, realizing that he was right now being harassed by an annoyingly mysterious and random character, he hissed, "Why should I tell you?"
"Its common courtesy, isn't it? Or did your mommy forget to teach you manners too?"
"Oh, right, excuuuse me," said Sora, rolling his eyes. "I'm Sora. Although I can't exactly say that it's nice to meet you."
The magician called Riku laughed. It was a light, carefree laugh; something Sora hadn't heard in a long time. "Hey, I actually wasn't trying to be rude!"
"I don't really care about what your intentions were," said Sora, though he internally registered Riku's comment, tossed his cigarette to the ground and crushed it underfoot. "You don't know anything about me or my life. I have my reasons to smoke."
At Sora's retort, Riku's expression shifted from amusement to a look of irritation and his voice dripped with the taste of sarcasm. "I love it when people think their lives are so damn difficult that they can say things like that. My life hasn't been a walk in the park either but I'm smart enough to avoid that kind of crap."
"Well, I guess some of us just don't have your mentality," said Sora. Who the fuck does this guy think he is?
Riku sighed and shook his head, a sense of pity about him which infuriated Sora. "Fine, fine, I was just trying to do a stranger a good deed."
"Acting like a smartass doesn't count as doing a good deed," said Sora. He crossed his arms and eyed Riku critically. "Why are you dressed like that, anyway?"
"Why do you think?" said Riku, his expression lightening at the change of subject. "I'm the carnival's proudly-owned magician!"
"So… you do magic tricks? Like, pull rabbits out of a hat?"
Riku opened his mouth to say something but paused, obviously trying to think of a suitable reply. Finally, he said, "Correction: I perform fantastic magical feats!"
"Such as?" asked Sora.
"I can tame lions, summon ghosts to obey my every command and move my audiences through the air!" said Riku with almost too much pride for Sora to stand.
"Sounds exciting," said Sora, turning his attention to the cluster of tents which roared with applause from their individual audiences. "Anyway, not that this conversation was fun or anything because, to be honest, it really wasn't but I'm going to have a look around."
Riku didn't seem fazed. "Okay. You will definitely have fun, though, I know that much. Maybe you could forgive me for being such a 'smartass' and come to see my show before you continue running?"
Sora froze and turned to Riku as he slowly disappeared into the shadowy background. Tendrils of smoky darkness curled around his frame and, without any sort of resistance, drew him close.
"How do you know… about… that…?" Sora whispered, his question trailing off slowly.
Riku's pale face had vanished, leaving Sora staring at the ground where he had stood not so much as a minute or two earlier. Brushing it off as nothing more than 'smoke and mirrors,' Sora began walking towards the carnival, overwhelmed with awe as it shined like a star in the center of its nighttime surroundings. Like something out of a fantasy.
He must be a pretty good magician…
By the time that Sora reached the inner-ring of the carnival, it was late into the night and most of the tents were teeming with people. Guided by the glow of lanterns, Sora began to look around at the various performers. He saw a fire-breather named Axel shape flames into illustrations as he relayed stories, saw a guitarist named Demyx conjure and command water to dance along to the music of his guitar or—as it was properly called—sitar, and witnessed an intimidating young woman named Larxene summon a lightning storm over the audience of her tent.
But even though the other performances were certainly fantastic, Sora couldn't help gravitating towards a sullen, purple tent situated rather far from its siblings. A sign was dug into the ground before the tent, emblazoned with the words "FORTUNE-TELLER." Inside, the fortune-teller sat, encircled by a ring of burning incense. A glass orb levitated between his hands. He said that his name was Zexion.
"So you can read my palm and crap like that?" said Sora, who had never been much of a believer in superstitions before browsing through the carnival's entertainers.
"If you would like me to, I can," replied Zexion. "But I am far more proficient in visualizing the future. I have been able to prophesy since I was very young."
Sora, being skeptical, folded his arms and said, "What do you see in my future, then?"
Zexion, though one of his eyes was hidden behind jagged locks of hair, bowed his head and elevated the orb. For a split second, there was silence; then, much to Sora's shock and amazement, the orb burst into a flurry of white light. An eerie mist filled the tent and wrapped around Sora, reaching out like hands to grip his own and pulling him into a tight embrace. Strangely enough, Sora felt slightly comfortable as he was surrounded by the mist, as if the arms were strong and protective against his lithe body.
"I see love in your future," said Zexion, whose eyes stared unblinking into his crystal ball. "But also, many conflicting emotions: anger, fear, joy, excitement… your future is clouded by an unseen presence—one that is familiar but at the same time, unfamiliar to you."
Sora sighed impatiently. What the fuck is that supposed to mean? He hadn't asked for some crack-snorting psychic's impossible interpretation of whatever was supposed to be his future. "Can I just have a straight answer?" he snapped.
Zexion glanced up at him and grunted, obviously taken aback by Sora's request. "I am only telling you what I see," he said slowly as though fighting to retain his posture. "It is not my fault if your future is unclear." When Sora opened his mouth to bark at this snide remark, Zexion cut him off, saying, "my advice is to be open to these emotions. You will understand my prediction in due time."
"And how long is "due time" supposed to be?"
"Even I am unable to answer such a question."
Of course. Sora turned his back and was one step away from leaving the dim tent when his curiosity got the best of him. He's part of the carnival too. He should know something, right? Sora wheeled around and approached Zexion again, waving at the mist continuing to curl near him. He knelt before Zexion so that they were at eye-level with each other. "What do you know about this Riku guy?" he asked casually, trying his best to sound uninterested.
Zexion looked straight into Sora's eyes, seeming to read his thoughts effortlessly. He probably saw the attraction Sora felt for Riku, ranging from general inquisitiveness to some level of physical drawing. Sure, when Sora thought about it, he wouldn't deny that he was most definitely drawn to whatever might be hiding behind that black mask. The only problem was Sora's stubborn refusal to admit these feelings to Zexion of all people.
"RIku's been part of the carnival for some time," said Zexion after what seemed like an eternity. "He is quite the magician. If you would like to see his performance, I believe it starts in just a few minutes."
Sora gave Zexion a quick, thankful nod before darting out of the small tent. He sprinted from one tent to the other, catching glimpses of different performances but feeling more and more downcast as each one did not show any sign of Riku. Sora had become—much to his personal despair—quite desperate by the time he reached the outskirts of the cluster of tents which made up the carnival. Where in the hell was Riku's fucking tent? Had he decided to cast a spell and make it invisible all in an attempt to piss Sora off or something?—because, to be completely honest, if he had then it was certainly working.
"Looking for something?" came an amused but painfully familiar voice. It sent shivers running down Sora's spine.
He whipped around and, much to his annoyance and, on some level, a mixture of joy and relief, Sora's gaze full upon Riku's approaching figure. He walked with an air of confidence—almost too much confidence—but Sora couldn't help feelingattracted to it. Oh, fuck. Why was it that Riku seemed to pull off being undeniably and damnably attractive without so much as a hint of effort? And when did Sora start noticing this kind of crap in a guy?
"Yes, actually," said Sora, inwardly cursing the swirl of red he felt growing in his cheeks.
"I'm guessing your chat with Zexion left you with a lot of questions and too few answers?" said Riku.
Sora opened his mouth to answer, paused, thought better of it and only let out a low, irritated growl. This was all part of Riku's little game. He, being a talented magician, (although it pained Sora to address him in such a way) had blended himself in with the shadows of the small tent where Sora had exchanged conversation with Zexion and listened in on everything that had been said.
Oh my God. Fuck you, Riku!
Sora hissed angrily, marched straight up to Riku and sharply backhanded him across the face.
"Didn't your mother ever teach you that it's rude to eavesdrop, you little piece of shit?" said Sora through clenched teeth.
"WHAT WAS THE FUCK WAS THAT— "
But before Riku could scream another word, Sora had backhanded him a second time.
"And that's for thinking that you could get away with this whole charade," said Sora. He folded his arms, looking sufficiently pleased with the rosy mark that his hand had left on Riku's pale cheek.
Riku fixed a stare on Sora that was filled with confusion, anger, and—wait. Hold on one hot, fucking second. Was that lust which Sora had caught briefly flickering through Riku's eyes?
"I have absolutely no idea what that was for," said Riku calmly as he rubbed at his sore cheek. "The only reason I even showed up was to ask if you wanted to be part of my act tonight. However, I see that you're clearly too pissed off to even speak to me, let alone be near me without trying to bitch-slap the shit out of me, soooo I'll leave you to brood and I'll find some other willing and attractive young man to help me."
Riku's words left Sora utterly speechless. Yes, he was pissed off. Yes, he was seriously tempted to bitch-slap Riku again. Yes, he wanted some time to brood over feeling completely fooled by Riku's plot. Still, the phrase "attractive young man" stung like a bee.
Oh God, what Sora would do for a cigarette at that moment. And he wondered why it was so hard to quit smoking…
Riku was turning to leave, his eyes lingering only for a moment on Sora as though silently asking him to just say something before he was gone.
"I'm sorry," was all Sora could choke out before he realized that what he was saying didn't register inside of his mind. The rest fell out of his mouth in a jumbled mess. "I just—I mean—I thought—I didn't—oh, fuck—Riku, I'd love to be part of your act."
The words were stolen from his lips before Sora could even think of what they really meant. Riku's face lit up under the moonlight and he surged forward in a rush of black and white, pulling Sora's hand swiftly and dragging him around the back-end of the carnival to a large tent hidden by a circle of aged trees. The tent itself was made of scarlet fabric and upheld by thick, wooden columns. Dim lights from its recesses gave it a ghostly yellow shadow. Unlike the others in the carnival, Riku's tent was completely silent aside from the waving of its flaps in the wind.
"We're going to have to hurry," said Riku as he flourished a hand and the tent's flaps flew open. "I want you to look absolutely perfect for the audience—not to say that you don't already look great."
Sora's face flushed with red color and Riku appeared to take notice; his lips curled into an amused smirk. Still firmly gripped by the hand, Sora was led through the tent into its deeper corners where a small trailer stood. On the side of it, a door lettered with a faded bronze plaque reading "ASSISTANT" stood ajar.
"This is where you'll get dressed," said Riku. "Your outfit is hanging on the back of the door. Someone should stop by in a little while to help you with your makeup. When it's time for you to go onstage, the door will open."
Sora nodded vigorously. "Okay."
"Oh, and one more thing: you cannot under any circumstances be seen by anyone in the audience until it's time for the act," said Riku, his tone becoming unnervingly serious. Sora could have sworn he even saw a night-black aura radiate off of his frame for a split second before it winked out of existence.
"I-I understand completely," said Sora quickly. He hoped that he didn't appear to be at all frightened by the sudden change in Riku's voice. "I'll be extra careful when I leave the trailer, I promise."
"Great!" said Riku, his carefree attitude flowing back instantly. "I'm sure it'll be a great performance—I know I'll definitely enjoy it."
Sora gave him a confused glance, noting how mischievous Riku had sounded. Riku continued without notice. "I really appreciate your helping me out here," he said, lips parting to reveal a pearly-white smile. "Most of the time, I'm too picky to find myself a good-looking guy to help and even if I do, they're scared shitless by the idea of being on stage. I'm glad you're different. Thank you."
That being said, Riku turned, blowing a kiss to Sora over his shoulder and vanished into the shadowy outskirts of the tent.
Sora couldn't help but smile to himself at Riku's compliment. Good-looking? He blew me a kiss for fuck's sake!
"He's such a flirt," said a playful female voice from behind Sora. He whipped around, pulled from his thoughts as a young girl bounced over to him. Her hair was short—almost boyish—and tied into a thin ponytail at the back of her head. She was grinning like crazy. "You're blushing—that's so cute! It's true, though; Riku really doesn't find a whole lot of cute guys to help him out with his performances. It sucks but I guess that just comes with being gay, you know? He really likes you too, no matter how much he wants to deny it. I'm Yuffie, by the way. I'll be helping you with your makeup."
Sora had to blink a couple times before he realized that the girl had finally stopped talking. So I get stuck with a chatterbox? Greeeeat…
"What's with the long face?" said Yuffie, pulling Sora out of his thoughts yet again. "You should be excited! I'm sure it's not every day that you get asked to be part of a carnival's act—and one of the very best at that! If anyone knows how to get the crowd going, it's Riku."
Sora internally sighed but thought to himself that listening to Yuffie talk endlessly was probably the trial he had to endure in order to be rewarded with a part in Riku's act. Might as well get some answers from her…
Yuffie all but dragged Sora into his trailer while chatting with him excitedly, saying things like "You don't even know how much fun you're going to have!" and "Your life will never be the same once you get up on that stage!" She thrust him roughly into his seat before a large, dirty vanity and began throwing open its drawers, pulling out different cosmetics—from foundations to lipsticks, eyeliner and perfumes—and placing them before Sora who, through all of this, felt his patience growing very, very, very thin.
"So… what exactly is Riku going to be doing?" Sora inquired.
Yuffie paused in her one-sided conversation and tilted her head in thought. "Well, you probably won't be called onto stage until the end through the act… Riku does a couple tricks to the audience; makes them fly around the tent, casts a few freaky illusions, summons a ghost or two… but the really fun stuff comes when he calls you out to help."
"Such as?" said Sora.
"Well, it wouldn't be much of a surprise if I told you, would it?" Yuffie laughed. "Nah, you'll just have to wait and see. Now where is that outfit you're supposed to put on…?"
"Riku said it would be on the back of the door."
Yuffie checked behind the door and pulled the outfit from its hanger.
"There's no way in hell that I'm wearing that," said Sora when Yuffie passed it to him.
The outfit looked like something a Las Vegas showgirl would wear. It was an emerald-green color—probably to contrast with Riku's style—and was decked with countless strings of shimmery beads which shifted and clicked together annoyingly every time Sora turned the outfit over in his arms. Yuffie also handed Sora a choker of the same color; it, too, was decked with numerous strings of shimmery beads and held a small crimson gem in its center.
"Just try it on!" Yuffie protested. "Riku wouldn't have picked it out if he wasn't sure that you'd look good in it!"
Sora fixed a cold stare on her. "There is no way in hell that I am going to try this on. I'm not a drag queen."
Yuffie folded her arms and sighed, shaking her head.
"Tell him that I'll still be part of his act but he better pick out a different outfit for me to wear."
"He's not going to choose anything different," said Yuffie. She raised a clench fist and adjusted her small fingers. Between each finger, something with a silvery glint caught Sora's eye.
"What… is that…?"
One motion of her hand and Sora found himself pinned to the wall of the trailer. He had barely realized what exactly was happening before Yuffie forcefully removed his sweatshirt, undershirt, jeans, shoes and socks. She had stripped him down to his boxers in less than half a minute and with a mischevious expression. She stepped back and nodded to the dress with her head, hair brushing against her cheek.
"I really would have preferred if you said yes to the dress yourself but, seeing as you're such a stubborn kid, I had to resort to more physical measures. I hope you aren't too upset."
Sora was speechless.
Yuffie broke out into a bright smile. "Great! I take that as permission to put the dress on you. And before you ask, it's just a simple spell—what's got you tacked up there. I'll remove it after you've put on the dress."
Yuffie slipped the dress over Sora who, despite his shock, didn't put up any sort of a fight. The outfit felt light and airy, accentuating his thin frame, hips and shifting to reveal flashes of his leg. Yuffie stepped away from him, bouncing happily like a kid in a candy store.
"You look fucking adorable! Oh my god, Riku's going to have such a hard time keeping his hands off of you. I think everyone will, though, so you better get used to it fast. Besides, even if you're still feeling raw about wearing this, you'll be in and out of it pretty fast. When you're on stage, everything moves so much faster."
Yuffie waved a hand and Sora felt his feet land gracefully on the floor. He wobbled for a moment, caught his balance, and stepped in front of the vanity. Seeing his reflection was easier to process than Sora had originally expected; not to say that he really liked the dress but, admittedly, he did look pretty damn good. This is what happens when I get all of my genes from Mom…
"So how 'bout it?" said Yuffie, joining Sora before the vanity. "You know you look good. You know it and I can tell."
"God forbid I ever wear something like this again…" said Sora.
"Don't be ashamed! This carnival is a no-judging zone. Besides that, and this isn't meant to offend you, but the audience will be focusing a lot more of their attention on Riku than you. Trust me when I say that he could get more girls than Taylor Lautner."
"I thought you said he was gay…" mumbled Sora.
"That's beside the point!" said Yuffie, waving a hand. She rubbed the back of her neck, assuaging her energy, and her expression softened. "Before anything happens, I just want to tell you how much I—well, all of the carnival—really appreciate what you're doing. Riku might come off as a jackass and totally full of himself but that's just a façade. He's been through a lot and he never really had much a childhood. He thinks that by making himself look confident and strong that people will like him more… care about him more… want him more. He's never had that sort of feeling outside of the carnival's performers. We're probably like any other family... just much, much bigger and fucked-up."
Sora took a deep breath and nodded. "I know how that feels… My parents were never really… well, they were never really my parents. They were just a man and a woman who I was forced to live with until I turned eighteen. They're both in their forties but they act like they're still carefree teenagers. They don't give a fuck about anything—especially not me. They always told me that I could do whatever I wanted as long as I could accept the consequences if I ever got into a sticky situation. Shit really hit the fan when they caught me fooling around with another guy."
"What did they do?" said Yuffie, eyes wide, completely entranced by the story.
Sora raked his hair and leaned against the vanity. He closed his eyes for a second and took one deep breath… two… smiled to himself despite hating to tell his pitiful life story. Another deep breath. "Dad lost his fucking mind. Mom was hysterical. The guy… well, he wasn't exactly the best person in the world. He liked alcohol a little too much and caught me up in the whole "I love you more than anything" bullshit. He was smart, though; he knew I'd fall for it. I'd do anything to hear him say those three little words. I started having these nightmares, breakdowns, experimenting with drugs… decided to take a hit of something laced with God only knows what and, next thing I knew, I was in the hospital. Turns out I wasn't the only kid this guy had raped."
"The same guy who you had been fooling around with?" Yuffie whispered.
Sora nodded slowly. "The second I got out of the hospital, I ran. I bought myself a pack of cigarettes and booked it the fuck out of my pretty little suburban town. It was a disgusting place anyway; not to say that it was ugly but phony as hell. All the people were rich out their ass, conservative, with perfect children, big houses, whitewashed picket fences… the whole nine goddamn yards. I had been driving for a couple hours before I ended up here."
Yuffie took her time to absorb the story. She folded her hands, unfolded them and folded them again. She was uncomfortable. She was struggling to think of a suitable answer.
Sora chuckled and took her hand in one of his own. "Hey, don't worry about it. Everybody has their own shit to shovel."
"You think I don't know that?" said Yuffie, pulling away. Her eyes were hidden behind a somber, glassy wall. "Everyone in this carnival is here because they needed to get away from something—Axel, Demyx, Roxas, Larxene, Riku, myself, Aerith, Leon… we've all been hurt and we could only contain that for so long. Aerith once said that life has a way of testing us all. God wants to see who will bend under the pressure and who will really snap. Everyone here got to that point where they just couldn't deal anymore."
"Why are you here?" said Sora.
Yuffie smiled weakly. "I was… a princess. But the pressure got to me. I was a free spirit then and I'm a free spirit now. People think that the royal life is easy; they think being told how to act, what to wear, what to do and what not to do is easy. I never had much of a choice until I left."
"And you ended up here?"
"I ended up in Hollow Bastion," said Yuffie, nodding slowly to herself. She seemed pained in having to recall the memories. "If you've been there before, it's not the nicest neighborhood to make a living. The streets are practically run by scumbags and the authorities can't do shit about it. They tried one time, a while ago, and a full-fledged riot broke out. Half the city was destroyed after all the fighting had ended. The carnival wandered through—or really, the government brought them in thinking it might end some of the animosity lingering after the fights—and I joined them before they could even think of rejecting me."
Sora rubbed his arms sheepishly. Rosy color flooded his cheeks. That was happening a lot lately.
"You want to ask a question, right?" said Yuffie. She laughed. "Go on, ask me! I'm an open book."
"Why… why is Riku here?" said Sora.
Yuffie's entertained smile faded. She bit her lip as if trying to stop herself from blurting out the answer.
"It's complicated," she finally said. "Riku's a very powerful magician. Something inside of him gives him these powers… he can do some pretty incredible stuff. We've always wondered what the full extent of his magic is but I don't think he even knows the answer. It varies with his moods. When he's happy, he'll start pulling flowers out of nowhere and trying to flirt with anything that has a penis and a heartbeat. When he's mad… well, just don't piss him off even more. A lot of us have learned that the hard way."
"You didn't answer my question!" whined Sora.
Yuffie rolled her eyes and leaned against the trailer's metallic wall. "Like I said, it's complicated. He's only given me a few vague details and I'm one of his closest friends. The story's a pretty sad one if that makes you rethink asking me."
Sora shook his head.
"No?" said Yuffie, hopefulness wiping clean off her face. "Alright, okay… well, Riku was born to a family of scholars. A family of scientists. A family of… madmen. They didn't really see him for anything except a specimen. Something that they could experiment on with whatever their psychotic minds were curious about at the time. His father, Ansem, injected him with the blood of a monster."
Sora furrowed his brow. "What kind of a monster?"
"I have no idea. Not anything living today. Riku told me that Ansem killed it long before he was born. The blood mixed with his own. It changed him in a lot of ways… made his senses grow stronger, made his mind sharper, made his emotions much wilder. Riku had difficulty adjusting to it and that was all before he even started making things… happen."
"What do you mean?" said Sora.
"His talent for magic started out pretty small. He began moving things around without touching them and communicating with other parts of the earth—other than humans, I mean… that kind of stuff. Riku began to train his abilities and got to where he is now from there. He finally got the balls to leave his family and wandered for a little while before joining the carnival."
"That's all you know?" said Sora. "That's all there is to him?"
"Of course that's not it!" said Yuffie. "That's all I know and all I need to know. You've got to respect people's space around here if you don't want an ass whooping."
Somewhere outside the trailer, distant voices began to grow louder. Beyond the windows, Sora could see lights pouring from a grand chandelier which hung directly above a stage. The stage.
"Shit!" hissed Yuffie. She flung Sora into the chair before the vanity and rapidly began applying her cosmetics. "We wasted too much time talking! You go on stage in fifteen minutes!"
"What do I do when I am on stage?" said Sora, whose nerves became more agitated by the nearby sound of applause steadily intensifying. The show was well underway.
"Don't worry about that," said Yuffie, shuffling through a drawer of hairsprays. "When you get on stage, you'll know what to do. Riku talks most of the time and performs the tricks but you just need to stand there, smile and look pretty. Simple, right?"
"Sounds simple enough," said Sora, nodding slowly. Still, he knew that even the simplest plans could go terribly wrong. At least, that was the case with him most of the time. Riku's voice clearly resounded over the roaring of the crowd; he sounded as though he were brimming with excitement, energy, laughter—happiness.
Loud bangs shook the trailers and Sora caught flashes of different colors from the window. At times, the crowd fell silent for an instant before exploding into applause. They whistled and hooted like Riku was a god. Something about their fervor didn't seem quite right to Sora. Was it all part of the act or had Riku spellbound them?
"I know what you're thinking," said Yuffie, glancing up at Sora's reflection in the mirror. "It's partly the act and partly Riku. In all honesty, he doesn't mean to cast half of the spells they're afflicted with whenever they step into his tent. He just exudes magic the second he goes on stage—it comes with the excitement—and that magic only increases the attention of his audience."
Yuffie pulled a phone from her pocket, checked the time, glanced over her shoulder and through the window of the trailer and looked straight back at Sora. She broke out into a huge grin. "It's time for your entrance."
"Right now?" said Sora, his voice jumping an octave or two. He flushed with color. Again.
"Don't be nervous!" said Yuffie, hopping about the trailer and checking the window every once in a while. "It'll be over before you know it."
Sora nodded, rose to his feet and immediately sensed the jitters. He looked at Yuffie nervously.
"A word of advice: whatever happens, do not interrupt Riku, trust him and nothing horrible will befall you," said Yuffie. "He can pull off some freaky stuff but you won't be hurt at all. He likes you too much to let that happen."
The trailer door flew open and the deafening applause hit Sora like a truck. He swallowed down a lump of fear, trying to ignore its festering in his stomach. Yuffie gave him a shove into the doorway.
"Good luck!" she said, stepping back into a shadowy corner of the trailer and vanishing.
Sora shook himself out and descended the steps of the trailer. His feet touched the ground for the slightest fraction of a second before he was lifted and lightly dropped into the blinding glow of a spotlight. Riku stood some distance away from him, one arm raised, his body practically radiating with an incredible violet aura. His suit had become a deep crimson color. The roar of the crowd was deafening, overwhelming with the scent of countless bouquets strewn across the surface of the platform, and overhead, bright flames danced in all the colors of the rainbow.
"Please welcome my lovely assistant, Sora!" said Riku, motioning to Sora. "He will be assisting me in my final act for this performance! I can assure you, ladies and gentlemen, that you will leave this tent completely petrified with shock and amazement!"
Tendrils of sunset-colored yellow smoke curled off of Riku's figure as he took Sora's hand in his own. The gesture sent jolts down Sora's spine and his skin prickled as if, for the last eighteen years of his life, he had been trapped in a world of sleep and was only now being awakened by this simple touch. Riku's hand had a freezing burn to it and the aura surrounding him intensified immediately. The tent darkened as the burning chandeliers flickered weakly. The crowd hushed into whispers of anticipation.
"With one kiss, I shall draw the essence of my assistant's soul and display it before you, my most gracious audience," said Riku.
Sora opened his mouth to object but couldn't force the words from his lips. He felt his heart racing, pounding madly like a drum in his chest. The silence which ensued felt even more deafening than the roaring crowd and Sora suddenly wished that they would cheer. In the recesses of the tent, thousands of eyes watched expectantly. What would happen if Sora backed out now? Would Riku understand or would he be angry?
Trust him and nothing horrible will befall you.
Easier said than done.
Sora had only finished the thought when Riku surged forward and crushed their lips together in a single kiss. A rush of burning ice flowed through his veins and sent shockwaves along every bone in his body. Sora curled his arms around Riku's neck and leaned forward, feeling his frame being lifted ever so slightly above the floor. They parted for an instant before meeting again, drinking in the emotions of one another—sadness, fear, happiness, pain… it seemed as though years of bottled angst had been uncorked and now flooded the air. Despite his eyes tightly shut, Sora felt small crackles of magic bursting forth around him. The audience had fallen into total silence, caught in awe, as if they were trapped behind a net which snagged their outcries from reaching Sora's embrace with Riku.
Finally, Sora pulled away. He opened his eyes and peered into the darkness, feeling his hands clasped in Riku's but Riku's face was unseen. Above him, the chandeliers rattled and their fires flared with incredible life. Sora looked up to witness the flames suddenly begin to split, tear like paper and cascade onto the floor below in streams which darkened to become inky liquid. It pooled around Sora and slowly lifted some inches before him. Talons reached out from the flowing darkness and two globed, eerie yellow eyes swirled into existence.
The warm tent became chilly, cooling to a frigid temperature that sent shivers up and down Sora's spine. He backed away cautiously as the talons reached farther out from the wall of darkness and the ghoulish eyes cast light upon an elfin creature which twitched menacingly. The talons curled, dragging along the floor of the platform, cleaving into the surface with a painful screech. The creatures began to multiply, one after another into countless ranks.
"Riku?" Sora gasped, his breath stolen.
The creatures reacted to the name, flinching as though it had inflicted pain upon them, and then lashed out, talons extended, at Sora.
Suddenly, their onslaught was neatly sliced apart as if by a blade. Riku dropped from the darkness overhead before Sora, arms outstretched, one hand clenching a sword, as the creatures dissipated.
"Yuffie, get Sora out of here now!" said Riku firmly. He placed his free hand onto the handle of the sword as several more lines of creatures began to appear.
"What's going on?" said Sora.
"Come on, Sora!" Yuffie cried, dashing into sight.
The creatures formed a ring around her, closing in slowly. Sora thought, for a moment, that Yuffie was trapped within their shadowy embrace before she lifted into the air above them. A giant shuriken orbited her raised arms in a hooping motion and ripped through the surrounding creatures as it extended outwards. She dropped onto the floor and sprinted to Sora's side, grabbed his hand and dragged him into the shadowy outskirts of the tent away from the reach of the creatures.
"Yuffie, what is going on?" said Sora as he was painfully drawn into trailer.
"That kiss should never have happened, Sora," said Yuffie. She slammed the trailer's door tightly shut behind her. "When Riku kissed you… something happened. I'm not sure what… I have a clue but I don't know where it could lead. The point I'm going to make is that you must stay here, Sora. Do you understand that?"
"Yuffie…" said Sora, leaning against the trailer's wall in exhaustion. His head was swirling with thoughts and questions. "What… What were those things that attacked us?"
Yuffie's eyes flashed to the trailer's window. A flash of light illuminated her face—it was twisted with panic—as yells could be heard outside.
"Zexion foresaw this. He knew this was going to happen. He calls them the Heartless."
"What do they want with us?" Sora asked.
"I don't know. I really just… don't know."
"Yuffie, what should we do?"
"Stop asking me so many questions," snapped Yuffie. Her shuriken flashed dangerously in its strap around her waist. "You have to stay here. Stay out of sight. Someone will come to get you eventually."
"Where are you going?" said Sora, his voice trembling with fear. The trailer shook violently.
"To take care of some much-needed maintenance," said Yuffie, throwing open the door. "One more thing, Sora: No matter what you think and no matter what you see, just know that Riku never meant or expected you to get wrapped up in this situation. He'll make sure that you're protected now—even if it means giving up his life. With everything happening, it's pretty obvious that you're going to become important to all of us in the carnival."
That being said, Yuffie stepped out of the trailer and shut the door behind her. Sora heard a click and, for once in his life, felt safe in his lonesome.
Author's Notes: So how do you guys like it so far? This chapter took a while to write with school and everything but I've finally managed to finish it! The next chapter is going to be a lot more intense, filled with battles and answers to everything that's happening within the carnival, the stories of different characters to be introduced and the Riku's relationship with Sora. I appreciate any reviews you guys will give me!