The Ambivalence of the Heart
A Kingdom Hearts fanfic by morality of sin
Sora x Riku
Disclaimer: I do not own any part of Kingdom Hearts or Disney what so ever, as, if I did...there would difinatly, definatly, be some kind of romp scene between lots and losts of people...
Oh, I don't own any of the Final Fantasy characters, either.
Chapter 1 - Into the blackness
Sora and Riku had to be the two closest friends a person could ever meet. They complimented eachother perfectly. Riku's calm, inquisitive, collectiveness contrasted Sora's enegertic, naieve, and mildly rash behavior. Riku was the best at everything he did, while Sora was only average. One was developing beyond his years in physical apperence, and the other still looked twelve in his.
They did match in some things...making them rivals like no other, too. Sora was always a good match in a friendly duel, ( a real one as well ) and in a race or two. And though his body may have been skinny and average, he had something much stronger and pure than anything Riku had.
And that was his heart.
The one thing wich seemed to matter most in their current world, was the one thing Riku faultered in. Sora's heart was rare; strong, open, couragous, and pure in every since of the word. Something that matched his out of control spiky cinnamon brown hair even, and that was saying something.
But Riku's..his was much weaker, and more frail. His had been tainted with jelous and envious thoughts and he'd allowed it to be consumed with darkness only two years ago. He had tried to steal Kairi's heart and helped in trying to immerse the worlds into oblivion by opening the door to the so called 'Kingdom Hearts'. He had hoped it would be filled with blackness and dispair. He wanted the worlds to be destroyed so that maybe everything could start over...with just Sora and he.
He had done all of that, even faught with his friend numerous times...and yet...
Here he was, standing next to him, arms folded and looking out into the vast and limitless ocean that bordered their little island. Sora lay next to him, streached out on the branch of the tree they always sat by and yawning. Kairi next to him on the far end, smiling at his lazyness.
Things were just like they were before anything had happened. Sure they had lost a coupple years together, and now held even more close quater memories from the final fight with Xemnas, but those wern't really bad things. Not at all.
This scared Riku. Had the two of them really forgiven him? Would they truly be able to put all of that behind them, or were they only pretending? Sora, he felt had probably forgotten all about it, but it was Kairi he was now worried about. He and she were close, but not half as much as he and Sora. In fact, they were in a way almost caught in a silent and unspoken competition between the boy. She was always found near him when Riku wasn't already beside him, and it was very obvious she held feelings for him.
But what did this matter to Riku? Well nothing, really. He was only friends with Sora, after all. But still...it got annoying to have to constantly share his attention with her. Every single day she was there. Asking him to help her with this and go with her hear and sit with her there. She could have easily asked Riku to do the exact same things, but he supposed his attention didn't mean as much to her as Sora's.
And of corse, Riku pulled his own little requests. 'Guys night out' being his favorite and most often used. Challenging him to duels, and even staying up long into the night after Kairi went to sleep.
It seemed that two years of not seeing eachother only made matters worse. Now it was almost impossible to seperate Kairi from Sora, but it was just as impossible on Riku's end. Though, Sora never seemed to notice this constand battle for his attention. So it would always end as it has this day, the three of them together, ( somewhat unwillingly ) and enjoying the sunset.
About a week had gone by since they re-united and they spent the whole time catching up. Sora told about his adventures to all of the worlds via Kairi's request and Riku carefully spoke of his strifes in the darkness, and how he tried to help Sora out with Orginazation XIII. Kairi didn't have a whole lot to speak of, only when an orginazation member named 'Axel' came and abducted her, allowing her to see a coupple new worlds before their journey led her back to Destiny Islands.
"So Sora, would you like to come with me to get some snacks? I picked some juicey fruits yesterday. I think you'd like them."
She was at it again. Trying to steal him away, and Riku was trying very hard not to snap. In the beginning, it had been fun. A kind of mental challenge. But now, after he'd risked life and limb for the boy and worried constantly for his safety, all he wanted was a little privecy with him. And she kept getting in the way of that.
Sora rose to sit on his rear, and turned to face Kairi.
"Sure, sounds good. I am getting kinda hungrey." He said with a smile. Riku stood streight and cleared his throat roughly.
"Actually Sora, I'd like to talk with you about something. Could you stay behind?" At this Kairi's expression turned a bit dark but the rest of her face was netural as she gazed at Riku from her end.
"Huh? Okay, if it's important. Sorry Kairi, I'll make it up to you another time, kay?" He said apoligetically. Kairi's smile returned as she nodded lightly.
"Yeah, I'll hold you to it, though." She said, standing and walking out of the area.
Sora bent foward slightly, trying to get a better view of Riku's expression.
"What's up?" He asked. ( "He's trying to read me..." ) Came Riku's thought as he stood silently.
"...I can't remember. Guess it slipped my mind." He said, a bit on the blunt side. Sora jumped down from the tree's long and curvy branch to stand in front of his friend.
( "He's hiding something again..." ) Sora thought, even though his face was impassive. "Riku, c'mon tell me! We're buddies right? You know you can trust me with anything!" His tone became slightly jolly but it still held a little concern. Riku couldn't help but give a small smirk. He loved it when Sora's eyes were so focused on him. So filled with wonder and worry. It re-assured him that he was still as close to him as before.
"Really, it was nothing. Obviously, if I can't even remember it." He ruffeled Sora's hair, causing him to laugh. "Don't worry so much." Sora batted his hand away befrore extracting revenge and messing Riku's hair up. Internally, however, this carefreeness didn't seem to hold against his concerns.
( "You just don't understand, Riku. I already lost you once to the darkness, I already had to fight you and cause you pain. All because of something I didn't know. So, please..." )
"..Don't do it again..." He whispered, unconsciously. He haden't realized he'd stopped laughing and was just standing there, watching the handsome boy before him. His voice was horse and low, and his head was downcast, covering his eyes.
Riku stood, somewhat taken off guard, and his brow was furrowed in confusion.
"I'm sorry...I didn't know ruffling your hair made you so...dark." He said, attempting to poke at the subject. Sora's head shot up, with widened eyes as a grin slowly spread across his lips.
"Heh heh! It's not that, Riku. But you know..." He turned to start walking away slowly before spinning around and tackling Riku to the ground.
"I have grown a bit stronger over the years. You might want to re-consider bullying me so much!" He said playfully. Riku laughed and tackled the boy on his back, now sitting over him and tickling him, mercilesslly.
"Oh, really? Well, I'll just have to test that theory now won't I?" He said mischeviousally, captivated by Sora's laughter.
"Okay! Okay! Test it later!! S-stop!! Riikkkuuuu!!!" His face was turning red and he was scrambeling beneath the taller boy feircely, trying to break free. Finally, Riku ceased, bending lower so that the tip of his nose touched Sora's.
"Heh, you've grown even cuter over time, too." He said lowly, looking directly into Sora's sapphire eyes.
"Riku..." He whispered, a pink tinge to his cheeks. Somehow, the distance between them seemed to
get smaller and smaller, until they could feel eachother's breath on the other one's slightly ajar lips.
"Riku..." He said again, a small moan added to his voice as he closed his eyes.
"I'm back!" Came Kairi's ringing voice. The two jumped so badly, Riku tumbled to his back and Sora shot up and nearly fell foward onto his stomach. Kairi tilted her head in confusion as she walked towards them holding a white and red checkered cloth, seemingly with the fruits inside.
"Heh, heh! What are you two up to? Some kind of new game?" She asked, sitting beside Sora on the ground. The two exchanged glances with eachother before Riku turned to look elsewhere and Sora smiled and nodded.
"Y-yeah, sort of. But hey! The fruits look yummy! Let's eat!" He said frantically, grabbing one of the tropical melons and biting into it. He made a terrible cringed face and spit the fruit right back out.
"Um, Sora? It has a peel." Kairi said, peeling her own as an example. Sora flushed and scratched the back of his head.
"Ah, right! Guess that helps to know.." He said, now peeling his own. He noticed Riku haden't gotten one and that he hadn't stopped staring off, either.
"Hey, Riku? Is something wrong?" He asked. Riku glanced back at him before standing and dusting himself off.
"I'm not really all that hungrey right now, sorry. I'm going to to for a walk, see you two." He said before barely waving as he took quick paced steps towards the exit.
Kairi was unsurpassably pleased, but Sora stood and ran after him; leaving her angered.
"Riku! Riku, wait! C'mon we can - -" Slam. The wodden door was forcefully shut behind him, leaving Sora with a very hurt expression.
"What's wrong with him? It's like he's bi-polar or something." Kairi said, leaning against the tree limb. Sora didn't respond. He coulden't. He was highly aware that the two had just come mili-seconds away from kissing, but he didn't think Riku would be so upset by it. After all, he was getting closer at the same rate he was. So it coulden't have been he didn't want it. Then, something clicked in his mind. Maybe it was something he wanted too badly, he was angry that it didn't happen? It made sence, dispite the fact that it made Sora feel consided to consider someone would want to kiss him just that badly.
"Errr, I'm gonna go check up on him. Be back in a sec, Kairi." He said before dissapeering behind the wodden door. Kairi could hardly contain her scream.
Riku was walking aimlessly along the beach, hands in his pocket and looking downward. What had almost just happened? A friendly wrestle almost led his relationship with Sora to an entirely new level. Given, Sora had always been attractive to him, he never really considered him to be any kind of lustful conductant for him. Then again, he'd never really been attracted to anyone, so he couldn't exactly compare. Love wasn't a subject he much thought about.
( "Still...what would have happened? When we were like that...I felt so...inticed. I just wanted to do things to him, and I don't even know what those 'things' were anymore. I don't think I knew them then. And then she had to come, as usual, and ruin everything! And he brushes it off like some kind of joke..." )
"Riku!" He heard Sora's voice and turned around instantly, out of instenct more than desire. Sora stopped in front of him, panting.
"W-what's wrong? Did I do something?" He asked, looking up at the blue haired boy. Riku stayed silent, and instead seated himself on the beach's sandy ground. Sora did the same, and looked over to him; waiting for an answer.
The two stayed silent for a long while, and it wasn't until sometime after sunset did Riku speak up. The skies had turned a nasty grey and it almost felt like a storm was about to set in.
"Sora, I think you know as well as I do what we almost did back there. Not even you could be so obvlious to that. So I guess there's no point in suger coating anything.." Riku pulled Sora's face gently by the chin so that they were eye to eye. Sora shifted so that he was on his knees and held Riku's wrist lightly.
"Heh, even at times like this you still pick on me..." He said, his infamous smile returning gradually.
Before Riku could say any more, a sharp streek of lightning shot through the sky, accompnied with a lound boom of thunder. The two turned instantly at the sound of Kairi's screaming voice and darted back towards the area they were previously in.
The pair came booming through the door, only to find that Kairi had already been knocked unconcious and was being held in a tall, short haired stranger's arms.
"Who are you?! What did you do to Kairi?!" Sora demanded, drawing his keyblade. The male only smirked. He didn't look like one of the orginazation members, but something still felt off about him.
"Chosen of the keyblade, this is an invatation. You are to come to the door of Kingdom Hearts, wether or not you bring any of your friends...is completly up to you. Should you fail to appear, this girl will be innaialhated without hesitation; along with the other there, beside you." He pointed to Riku as he started to fade into invisability.
"You have two weeks to find the door. No more, no less. I suggest you hurry." With the exit of the male came another boom of thunder along with harsh and heavy winds.
"Damn it! Why did this have to happen now?! It's just like before..." Sora said, stopping when he felt Riku tap his shoulder.
"Sora? I don't think now is the time to fret...we have company."
Sora turned to see swarms of what looked like heartless, but their eyes were red, and they were attacking everything in sight.
"W-wha? They look berserk!" He said, jumping off of the platform and onto the beach, where they were spawning. Riku had already started slashing away, and Sora followed quickly behind.
The two fought on and on, but it seemed useless. The shadows just kept comming. One after another, there was no stopping them. Riku and Sora were backed into eachother, surrounded. They were both out of breath and tired, but they knew they couldn't just stop.
They prepared for another round, but the shadows had now formed into a massive black pool below their feet, and was slowly sucking them downward.
"Uggg, R-Riku!!" Sora yelled, outstreaching his hand. Riku couldn't speak, he was already neck deep in the darkness, but still he tried to reach for Sora.
Their fingertips touched just barely, before they were greeting by blackness.
Chapter 1 - End
Artist's Comments: Phew! Okay, so this is my first ever Sora/Riku fic...I tried to keep the whole 'Kingdom Hearts' feel to it but naturally I've added my own enemies and such. I hope from here you guys enjoy it. crosses fingers
The journey will consist of Sora and Riku in the party, along with a coupple of my own original characters. Figured adding Donald and Goofy didn't leave much room for romantic situations so...yeah! They'll be mentioned though!
Thank you for reading, and I hope to see ya in the next chapter! R&R please!!
- Morality