Jazzerman here, I do not own any of these characters, they are owned by their respected companies, as many as there are. You've heard this crap before. I DO own the OCs. If you'd like to use them in a fic, just tell me.

Am I Heartless?

Part 2

Sora and Riku stared at the young man as Kairi and the others ran up to congratulate them on a job well done.

"Riku, Sora, man that was awesome! I bet those things won't be back any...time...soon..." Wakka stuttered to a halt when he saw what the young man they had saved looked like.

"Okay buddy, what are you? A Heartless?" Riku said, pointing the 'Way to the dawn' Keyblade at their visitor.

The young man stared in absolute terror of Riku's weapon. All Heartless have a natural fear of the Keyblade, and this young man was no exception.

"Riku put it down! You're scaring him!" Kairi exclaimed. She may have saved this young man's life and she didn't want to just see him have to be destroyed like the Nobodies or like the Heartless that Sora and Riku had just slain.

"Kairi if he IS a Heartless then he may just attack us later on." Riku said turning his attention to the teenager in front of him. The young man's antennae were now perfectly still and staring straight at the 'Way to the dawn' in utter dread. "Now out with it. Who are you and what are you?" Riku finished by gently poking the young man in the chest with the end of his Keyblade.

Much to everyone's surprise when the 'Way to the Dawn' touched his shirt it made a sound faintly reminiscent of bacon sizzling in a frying pan. The young man gave a half human cry of pain and fell backwards onto the sand, clenching is chest as if he had been burned.

"Riku!" Sora shot a glare at his friend and dropped his Keyblade to help Kairi help the young man up.

'That's never happened before...' Riku thought as he brought his Keyblade closer to him to inspect it. It didn't look any different than when they fought with Xemnas, was this some new power or just how it reacted to this young man.

Kairi and Sora meanwhile had helped the young man up and had his arms over their shoulders helping him stand.

"Hey, are you okay?" Kairi asked, as always caring more for others than herself.

The young man seemed very uncomfortable being touched by either Sora or Kairi, but that was just a guess since the two antennae that draped down the front of his face were now wiggling erratically.

"No... I'm not alright." The young man said, his voice was filled with a mixture of fear and sadness.

"Well, we'll get you to a doctor and he'll get a look at you." Kairi said, patting him gently on the cheek.

That touch to the face wasn't appreciated however. The teen's eyes glazed over for a second and he shoved both Sora and Kairi away and took off.

"Kairi, Sora!" Riku called out as he and the gang ran up to check on his life long friends. "Did he hurt either of you?"

"No, he just pushed me away." Kairi said. "What about you Sora?"

While Kairi had managed to keep her balance, Sora had fallen face first into the sand and was now spitting out a mouthful of the grainy stuff. "I just ate some sand, nothing too bad."

"He took off towards the Cove dudes. Should we follow him?" Tidus asked, hefting his old wooden sword. He had kept it here on the island all these years.

Riku nodded. "Yeah, but if he really is a Heartless then we should go find him."

"We'll all go. But I'M going to be the one who talks to him." Kairi said sternly. "He seemed like he was scared of the Keyblade and from what it did to him in just a quick touch it's not hard to wonder why."

"Yeah. But you really think he's a Heartless?" Sora asked. "I mean he could just be wearing a shirt with the Heartless symbol on it."

"Then what about those antennas on his head?" Riku said, raising an eyebrow at the spiky haired kid next to him.

Sora put his arms behind his head and rolled his eyes. "I've met mermaids, skeletons, computer programs, and more monsters than I can count. I'd be willing to believe there are people out there with antennae."

"You have a point but he looks like a Heartless to me. And unless I'm proven otherwise I am going to see him as a possible threat." Riku didn't mean to sound cruel, he was just thinking logically. Better to be prepared against a possible enemy than be hurt trying to make friends. Trusting and acting naive was Sora's department.

Sora picked up the headphones and was surprised to hear that they were still working even after being singed by a fire spell and being soaked in seawater. He mentally shrugged and put them on.

"What was he listening to Sora?" Selphie asked.

"I dunno. I've never heard this song before but it sounds very sad." Sora said, taking off the headphones and putting them in the item pack that hung off his belt.

"Come on, he went towards the Cove, if we hurry we could catch him."

The gang ran along together towards the Cove until they came to the first grove of palm trees. There sitting on the sand leaning up against one of the palm trees with his hands on his knees was the teen. Before they could even take a step he hastily backed away until he hit the sheer cliff wall. Staring terrified at the group of teenagers.

Kairi stepped forward. "You guys stay here. I'll talk to him."

"Kairi, you sure about this?" Sora asked.

The red headed girl frowned turned to face Sora. "I'm not the little girl who needs protecting anymore Sora. That goes for you too Riku."

"He could be dangerous." Riku stated flatly. Ignoring what Kairi had just said.

Kairi shook her head. "I don't think so. If he was why didn't he just attack me or Sora when we helped him up? And if he IS a heartless why would the Heartless attack him? This just doesn't add up."

Sora nodded. "Just be careful Kairi, if something goes wrong we're right behind you."

Kairi smiled at Sora and slowly walked over to tiny grove of palm trees the young man was hiding in. The look in the young man's eyes was that of a cornered animal. Deciding on the safe approach she walked only to the edge of the grove, giving the young man a decent sized berth so he wouldn't feel threatened.

"Please... Just leave me alone..." The teen said, cowering in the shadows like a traumatized child hiding from a school yard bully.

"Hey... Don't worry. I'm not going to hurt you..." Kairi said softly. She cautiously took steps toward him until she stood just beyond the palm tree that stood as a midway point.

"I'm sorry I pushed you, but I didn't want to hurt you... Everyone around me gets hurt eventually..." He turned his face to look her in the eye. Kairi could see his face was stained with tears and more were coming from his yellow eyes. The sight of them along with those long antennae reminded her of the Heartless alright. But he didn't seem scary, in fact at the time being his whole person seemed to scream 'I'm scared of you'. Kairi couldn't help but feel a little sorry for him.

Kairi hid the pity and sympathy she felt and put on a cheerful face for him. "My name's Kairi, What's your name?"

"My name?" He asked, seemingly surprised that she really cared to know it.

"You know... What people call you?" Sora added. Trying to mimic Kairi's cheerful tone.

"... My name is Orin..." The young man hung his head. Why was he telling her this? More importantly why did she care? Normally people just screamed and ran from him or attacked him.

"Orin? That's a nice name." Kairi grinned. Glad that she was getting somewhere with him. "Look, I promise we won't hurt you. Please come out..."

Orin looked like he wanted to believe her but he was still hesitating. Kairi decided a new plan was needed and began to take steps towards Orin who backed up against the sheer rock wall.

"Why are you so scared?" Kairi asked, now standing right in front of him.

"I... I can hear your heart..." Orin's antennas were dancing on his forehead, excited by Kairi's presence.

Kairi blinked. "Why would that bother you? Are you a Heartless?"

"I don't know what I am." Orin muttered, looking at his hands. They looked like a normal human hands, but the long rubbery antennas that hung in front of him were a constant reminder that he wasn't normal.

"Were those Heartless after you?" Kairi asked.

Orin was touched by how concerned she sounded for him. For that at least she deserved a few answers. "Yeah. But I don't know why they were chasing me..."

'Hmm... Stranger and stranger...' Kairi thought, giving Orin a look over again. Could it be because he really is a Heartless? "We'd like to help you but you have to let us. You have to trust us."

Orin looked past Kairi and over at Riku. "Well... Can you promise to keep the white haired one away from me?"

"Who Riku?" Kairi said as she glanced back at Riku for a second to show she was still irked at him for making Orin freak out. "Don't mind him. He was trapped in the realm of darkness and he has a very low opinion of anything that reminds him of that place. But I promise not to let him do anything."

Orin wiped his eyes and stood up. Slowly he shambled towards Kairi until he was within about five feet of her. In Kairi's opinion it was a more comfortable distance for a conversation. He still looked sad in Kairi's eyes, but he also looked like he would give her, her friends, and her word a chance.

"Kairi?" Orin asked, his yellow eyes locked on to her blue ones.

"Yes?" Kairi responded, not sure what he wanted from her.

For the first time since they met Orin smiled. It was small but it was visible none the less. "Thanks... And I hope can trust the rest of your friends."

Orin began to make his way over to the rest of the gang. Riku, Tidus, Wakka, and Selphie could feel their muscles tense up as he approached them. The three who had stayed on the island had been enraptured with stories of their adventures and of the vicious Heartless and the dangerous Nobodies.

"Hi..." Orin said nervously, giving Riku cautious looks. Silently praying that he'd keep his weapon away from him. "I'm Orin."

"Hi. I'm Sora." Sora blurted out, super pleased that they didn't have to fight and he made a new friend. "These are my friends Riku, Wakka, Selphie, and Tidus."

Orin nodded and looked at each of them. They looked like nice people. Except for that white haired Keyblade wielder. Something about him gave Orin the creeps. Something about the way he looked at him. It was like his eyes were trying to pierce right through him like a drill.

"I like your antennas." Selphie said, desperately trying to pick up a conversation. "Do they always um... 'wiggle' like that?"

Orin looked a little hurt by Selphie's reference to his least favorite facial features and grabbed them in an attempt to keep them from moving. However the tips that were sticking out of the bottom of his closed fists wiggled like a worm on a hook. "They never stop..." He whined.

Selphie giggled. Whether it was meant as a joke or not she still found it to be comical. Selphie didn't think he looked dangerous, sure he had the Heartless symbol on his shirt but in a way he reminded her of Sora just now.

Tidus and Wakka reminded silent but smiled and nodded their introductions. Riku however just stared narrow eyed at Orin.

Kairi meanwhile, despite all her memories of her encounters with the Heartless smiled at Orin as he introduced himself to the gang. This young man just couldn't be a Heartless. He was gentle, and no Heartless was gentle.

To be continued...