Hey everyone! I'm back again, and BF is just getting started. So, sit back, pull up a chair, and enjoy! It'll be a little while before the real action gets started, so hang on tight.
Disclaimer: Check Chapter 1
Chaos was the only way to describe it. People running this way and that, screaming orders at other people as they tried to heal each other and find loved ones. It had been going on like this for nearly an hour now, and I could tell Nii-san had a headache. Yuffie was trying to calm him down, but it wasn't working.
"Come on Leon, just pull yourself together and think. You're the leader here, people need you." Even Cloud stepped back at the look in Leon's eyes, and I winced. This really wasn't working. After a few moments of not bieng able to hear myself think, I'd had it. We were still outside in the Marketplace, so I climbed up onto one of the shop roofs. Taking a deep breath, I screamed at the people running around like Headless Chocobos.
"QUIET!!" It worked like a charm, everyone shut up to stare at me in confusion. Nii-san nodded his thanks, turning to the crowd.
"I know you've all been through a lot over the last few hours, losing a home is never easy. But you're still alive, you're still all here. I know this is all very confusing to you, you've already been uprooted at least once before. But, this place, this world, it can become your second home now." Leon took a deep breath, and I leapt off the roof to stand by his side. He nodded, and I stepped back.
"I can't guarantee you'll be safe here, this world isn't secure yet. But what I can promise you one thing. You can start new lives here, if you want. Hollow Bastion needs people to help with the repairs, to help get it's economy back into working order. My family and I, we can't do it alone. I know that this is a lot to ask of you, especially after what just happened at Traverse Town, so I'll understand if you say no. But for those of you who wish to help, and even those who don't, our doors are always open." Leon stepped back, away from the crowds view. After a moment of tense silence, Alicia stepped forward, turning to the people behind her.
"I honestly don't care what you idiots do. I almost lost my son to a monster back there, and had it not been for Christie, that man's baby sister, neither Logan nor I would be here. You owe Christie and Riku your lives, the least you can do is pitch in and make this world a better place. Help them help us." Alicia's speech raised the crowds spirits, and they all cheered in Leon's favor. Yuffie laughed, jumping into Leon's arms as Aerith and Cloud smiled. I chuckled, twining my hand with Riku's.
No matter what happened, we would see this through to the end.
We stayed at Hollow Bastion for a week, helping Nii-san get everyone settled in. The old Residential District had to be cleaned out of Heartless rather quickly, and I learned that despite being a White Mage, Aerith is NASTY with those Ultima Spells. The Heartless she targeted with that thing, well, there wasn't a thing left behind to clean. The first time Riku saw that happen, he leaned over to me.
"Remind me to never tick her off." I could only laugh at the seriousness in his voice. The remaining Heartless were cleared out with no problem, and the rest of the District was cleared for habitation within an hour. People flocked in, claiming apartments and housing in a rather orderly fashion, no scrambling over each other to get at the cream of the crop. Then again, what was there wasn't exactly the best to choose from in the world, but they were happy with it. Alicia opened a new Cafe on the second day she was there, finding the perfect building for it. It did lack the mirrored pillars that had been her pride and joy, but she was happy with it. It became quite the hangout for the new residents, a piece of home in a new world. Vincent spent a lot of time there, helping Alicia and Logan get settled. Besides helping out a family that had just been uprooted, I think there was another reason to him helping out.
I think he really missed Tifa. As a child, I'd seen those two hang onto each other for dear life after the death of Tifa's father. She needed comfort, and Vincent could give it well. But she hadn't been seen since the invasion, so I think Vincent was trying to move on, instead of moping around like he'd done when Lucrecia died. It was a good thing too, since a moping Vinny Valentine is a man no one wants to be around. The days flew by, repairs, sleeping, eating, training, more sleeping, that kinda stuff. On the sixth day, someone made a surprise visit and nearly sent both Riku and I jumping up to the ceiling. After spending nearly three days jumping a foot in the air at the sound of a Dark Portal opening, we're entitled to be jumping out of our skins. Instead of taking it peacefully, Nii-san and Vincent jumped to attention from thier places just across the Bailey, weapons in hand before DiZ had even stepped through the portal completely. The red-clad man blinked, before shaking his head.
"I come in peace, I only need to speak to Christina and Riku." Nii-san snarled, Revolver cocked and ready to fire.
"I don't think so. The last time I saw you, you were threatening to kill her if we didn't help you." I glared at DiZ, and he seemed to shrink back. Riku had Soul Eater in hand, and I could hear Vincent loading his gun.
"Start talking, but we aren't leaving you alone with either of them." I could have kissed Vincent then and there for being the voice of reason, but I nodded my thanks. DiZ turned to face both of us, and I knew where this was going.
"I need both of you to go to the Nobody stronghold and take Roxas. He is Sora's nobody, and we need him to reawaken Sora. Be there in two days." Leaving us on that note, he backed into his portal and faded away. The moment he was out of sight, Nii-san turned around and punched the wall behind him, hard.
"I'm going to skin that man alive if it's the last thing I do!" The other three of us jumped, he'd never seemed so angry before. Footsteps made us look towards the town, as an out of breath Yuffie came running into view.
"The towns under attack!" Vincent was the first to run from the Bailey, Riku, Leon and I hot on his heals as Yuffie led the way. When we reached the Burrough, it was all I could do not to drop to my knees in shock. Along with the run of the mill Heartless attacking, there were Dusks and Creepers swiping at people and buildings. Leon snarled, jumping straight into the fray with a battle cry. Cloud was at his back in a second flat, while Aerith and Yuffie were busy protecting the townsfolk. Riku and I leapt into the battle blades first, cutting through white and black as Vincent covered all of our backs from the distance. It was almost an hour before the last of the Nobodies faded back into the nothingness they'd come from. We all heaved a sigh of relief, heading for Merlin's House. Cid and the old Wizard let us in with open arms, and Aerith took to healing us. Leon shrugged off her concern, heading back outside. Yuffie made to go after him, but Clouds hand on her shoulder made her stop.
"Let him go. Leon needs time to think." I sighed, heading up the stairs after wishing everyone a good nights rest, I needed to think on my own. In order to find Roxas in time, we'd need to leave tomorrow morning, no later then lunch hour. That meant leaving at dawn, without saying goodbye. I hated doing that. But what needed to be done needed to be done, so I shook the thought from my mind and crawled into bed. I don't know how long I just lay there, thinking about how things would turn out. I feigned sleep when two pairs of footsteps passed my door, rolling over as Aerith and Nii-san spoke up from just past the door.
"Leon, you knew this would happen. There would be a time that she would have to leave."
"But she's my baby sister...I just can't let her go Aer.."
"I know. But she isn't a baby anymore Leon, she's almost 18 now. She's almost legal age. Eventually, you're going to have to let her go." Leon sighed, and a floorboard creaked as he shifted his weight.
"That's not making it any easier." A third pair of footsteps came up the stairs, Yuffie's sleepy voice sounding strangely serious.
"Squall, nothing worthwhile is ever easy. I know it's gonna hurt you pretty bad, but you have to let her go sometime. Every bird has to spread it's wings eventually, keeping Chrissy caged is only going to make her mad at you." Leon sighed, and the girls took that as an answer, heading back down the stairs. I sat up in bed as the door creaked open, Leon poking his head in. Despite the fact he's a very calm person most of the time, I've never seen him look so out of place as that night. Instead of just peeking in and then heading back out as he'd done when I was a little girl, he came in and shut the door behind him. A moment of silence stretched between us as he walked over to the bed, before he sat down hear my hip.
"You're leaving in the morning, aren't you?"
"Yeah. As much as I hate DiZ, he's right. Sora's family, blood related or not." Leon nodded, fiddling with a loose thread on my blanket. He took a deep breath after a moment, seemingly steeling himself for something he didn't want to do.
"You're, going to come back, right?" And it finally clicked. He was afraid I wasn't going to come back. He was afraid to lose the only family he had left. I shook my head.
"Of course I'm coming back. I'm not gonna leave you here alone you know, I'm not that crazy." He blinked, looking like a deer caught in the headlights in the yellow glow of the street lamps outside of my window. I smiled, and he ruffled my hair as he stood from the bed.
"I should have known better than to worry." Giggling, I laid back down to try and get some sleep.
"We'll see you off tomorrow, sleep well." Already half asleep, I just nodded as he shut my door with a quiet "click". The next thing I knew, dawns rays were streaming into my room and I was being shaken awake by Yuffie.
"Get up Chrissy, you'll be late." It took a moment to chase the sleep from my brain, but when it clicked as to what Yuffie meant, my eyes widened and I gently shoved her from my room. Before the door shut behind her, she yelled.
"Leon left some clothes for you, they're on the dresser!" I whirled around, and sure enough, their they were. I shook my head, fingers running over the cloth. Back denim shorts, knee length, another dark purple tanktop and a black sleeveless hoodie along with a new pair of sneakers. Nii-san must have know my taste in colors had changed. Giggling at that thought, I quickly got dressed before running out the door and down the stairs. Riku met me at the front door, and we ran off. A few steps into the Burrough, he skidded to a stop.
"Chris, your jacket..." I turned, bouncing from one foot to the other.
"What about it?"
"It's got your symbol on it." Blinking in shock, I shrugged out of the item of clothing and flipped it over. Sure enough, there was the silver Griever head that made up the Leonhart family crest. But instead of just that, it also had Leon's red Angel wings, one on each side of the roaring lion.
It was the symbol that Nii-san and I adopted after Dad left us. Smiling, I slipped back into the hoodie and took Riku's hand in mine. I think he knew my smile was answer enough, because he let me lead the way back to the Bailey. Just as he'd said, Nii-san and everyone else was there. Even grouchy old Cid who wouldn't wake up until half past noon on most days was there, even though he probably would have hit the floor a long time ago if Vincent was standing right next to him. Cloud and Aerith were looking out over the Great Maw as Yuffie sat on the window ledge. Leon was pacing a bit, and I laughed quietly. He must have heard me, because he spun on his heel to face us. For a moment, everything was peaceful. No Heartless, just our big family. But nothing peaceful ever lasts with us, for the moment that Leon made to walk closer to us, a Dark Portal opened up in the wall beside us. Axel's flame colored hair was a dead give away, and the look in his face told me that something was seriously wrong. Before he'd even opened his mouth, Riku was already halfway through the portal with me at his heels. I stopped though, feeling multiple pairs of eyes on my back. Leon looked like a kicked puppy, and Yuffie was a half-second away from falling over laughing. I smiled, hugging my brother around the neck.
"Be safe." Nodding into his shoulder, I ran into the portal.
"Always!"
The World that Never Was is a dreary place. Dreary, dark, cold, and always raining. Did I mention the Heartless? Didn't think so. Droves of dark Shadows, running up and down the streets like ants in a rainstorm. I clicked my tongue, that wasn't so far off the mark as most people would think. Standing here, draped in a shadow of my own, I wait. Axel had explained that Roxas had caught wind of DiZ's plan, and coupling that with his desire to know why the Keyblade had chosen him, had taken off in the middle of the night. The fire-haired man had delivered us to a hotel, than ran off to find his friend. That was almost three days ago, and we'd already encountered Roxas.
As you can probably guess, that didn't go so well. Roxas had been prepared for someone coming his way to stop him from running, and we'd thoroughly gotten our asses kicked. Riku had taken the whooping personally, and was now cutting his way through any heartless that dared to get near his blade. At the rate he was going, there would be no shadows left in this world. Sighing, I leaned back against the wall, only to stand ramrod straight a heartbeat later. There was a scent on the wind, and it was alarmingly familiar. Salt water, coconut, and cookies. Sora's smell, mixed with Darkness. Roxas had returned, and he didn't know we were here. Riku tensed, and I nodded. Ducking back into the shadows, I resumed my place as a watcher while Riku headed up to the top of Memory's Skyscraper. If things were playing out as the game progresses them, this was Deep Dive. Now, I'm not one for praying to any deity or something of the like, but at that moment, I was praying to any God that was listening to keep Riku safe. I should have known, they would never listen. Roxas came into view, hood up and sneakered feet clicking on wet tile. He walked into the middle of the plaza, the stood still as Neoshadows came crawling up from the ground. Instead of waiting for the Darkness to come to him, Roxas summoned his weapons, the Keyblades Oathkeeper and Oblivion. In a series of graceful movements and jumps, he cleared out the Heartless in a few fell swoops. Some remained however, as his attention was changed from the street he stood on to the rooftops above. Riku stood on the edge of the Skyscraper, and were it not for the blindfold that covered his now amber eyes, I knew he would have met Roxas in a death glare. Roxas took the challenge, backflipping onto the skyscraper. Now, most of the laws of physics got thrown out the window long before tonight, but any sane person will have their jaw dropping to the ground when they see a seventeen year old boy walking up a vertical wall while slashing away at Heartless.
Needless to say, I'm not very sane. But I'm still human, and that humanity had to be forced away when Riku jumped clear of the Skyscrapers ledge, catching Oblivion as Roxas threw it in something akin to a Strike Raid. From his place on the top of the tower, Roxas sneered down at Riku and I.
"Where is Sora?" Riku shrugged, smirking and moving his hand in a "come here" gesture. Roxas took the bait a second time, diving from the tower. Landing foot first directly in front of Riku, Roxas charged. Blades clashed and after a moment, Riku hit the ground.
"Why?! Why do you have the Keyblade?" Roxas examined Oathkeeper, before he snarled.
"Shut up!" I had to cover my mouth to stop from shouting out a warning to Riku, but there would have been no need anyway, as he leapt from the ground, rebounding Roxas' strike with one of his own, sending the blond to the ground and knocking his hood off. I stepped out of the shadows as Riku walked to stare down at Roxas, sighing as my boyfriend drove Oblivion into the asphalt almost on top of Roxas' brain. A silent moment passed by, before Riku jerked in surprise. Roxas was waking up, using Oblivion as a crutch to stand before swinging it at Riku. Riku had backed away as Roxas was standing, and the younger boy now had to run to clear the gap between them. Riku launched a Dark Aura blast to try and knock Roxas back a second time, but Oblivion cut through it, clearing the path. Roxas swung at Riku a few times, but the silver-haired eighteen year old simply jumped aside and away, staring down his best friends Nobody. Roxas snarled.
"Quit fooling around!" Riku smirked.
"What's wrong, Sora? Are you done already? Pretty pathetic." For just one moment, Sora's reaction to Riku's words shone through Roxas.
"What are you talking about? You're the one who's losing!" Blinking in shock, Roxas put one hand to his mouth. Riku smiled sadly, sighing as his shoulders slumped.
"You really are his Nobody... Look's like I have to trust DiZ this time." Roxas fumed, wildly gesturing around with one fisted hand.
"Why do you keep talking about him?! I'm myself, not Sora!" The blond snapped, summoning Oathkeeper back from the void. He charged at Riku, putting all his energy into one swing that broke through the last minute Dark Shield Riku had cast. Crying out in pain, Riku was tossed back onto the asphalt. I ran to his side, dagger in hand in case Roxas tried that tactic again. I didn't need to though, Riku managed to stay on his feet, however shaky he was now. Roxas glared at us.
"You can't beat me, no matter how hard you try! You want to repeat last time?!" Riku shook his head, one arm on his knee.
"I guess so..." He stood up straight, squeezing my hand before turning to face Roxas once more. I took my cue, backing up a few steps. I knew what was coming, and as I much as I hated this, I had no choice but to stand back.
"Looks like I'll have to do it." Roxas tensed, taking a step back.
"Do what?"
"The power is sitting in my heart." Removing his blindfold, Riku let the strip of black cloth fall to the ground, revealing his amber eyes.
"The powers suppressed by my heart. If I were to become someone else, then maybe..." I bit my lip, taking one more step back as Riku called upon the Darkness in his heart, shrouding himself in pillars of Dark energy. For those few moments, I couldn't feel him in my own heart, and I barely held my scream of fear back. Roxas readied to attack, but didn't get the chance. Less than a second after the transformation, Riku attacked, Heartless Guardian's hand choking Roxas and holding him above the ground. Survival became first priority, and Roxas dropped his keyblades to try and remove the large hands of Darkness choking him.
"The power of Darkness." When Roxas stopped struggling, Riku let him down, gently setting him onto the dry flooring. The Heartless on his back faded away, no longer needed. I sighed in relief, despite his change in appearance, Riku's heart hadn't changed at all. I could still feel him, still feel the connection we shared. Axel reappeared a moment later, and I knew it was taking all his self control not to attack us to get Roxas. He looked me in the eye.
"Promise you'll go through with the entire plan?" I nodded, shoving Riku's hand away as he poked my arm.
"Promise. They'll be fine Axel, I swear." The red-head nodded, sending a half hearted glare at Riku.
"You owe her, you owe her a damn lot kid. I suggest you don't tick me off." Riku blinked in surprise, but nodded to Axel as the older man headed back into the town proper. We must have been there for a little over five minutes before a second pair of footsteps came into hearing range. Riku stiffened, and I sagged. There was a lecture coming, I just knew it. King Mickey sighed, crossing his arms and tapping one foot.
"I finally manage to track you two down, and instead of finding you the way you should be, I find this mess! What's gotten into you both? Riku, you know better than to use Darkness so recklessly. And don't think you're off the hook either young lady, you know how to stop him when he gets like this, why didn't you?" Instead of vocally answering his question, I just pointed at Roxas, laying next to the tiny kings foot. Mickey jumped back at least a foot, relaxing as he noticed Roxas' chest raising and falling. With still unanswered questions in his eyes, Mickey looked between Riku and I. The boy-turned-man beside me sighed, looking his surrogate father in the eyes. Something passed between them, and Mickey nodded, ears drooping however slightly.
"Alright. You'll be safe, right?" I nodded, and Mickey turned to walk away. Riku spoke up before he left our sight though.
"Mickey, if you see Sora, please don't tell him about this. I'd rather he doesn't know." I almost punched Riku in the arm, but Mickey's turning footsteps made me stop. The King had never looked so old before that day, he had always seemed happy. But now, he seemed to be carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders.
"Riku, I can't make that promise. Sora, he sees you as a brother. I can't not tell him you're still alive." Riku shook his head.
"Then tell him I'm ok. Just don't tell him the last time you saw me was, like this." Mickey sighed, but nodded.
"I'm not happy about this, I hope you know that." At Riku's nod, Mickey drew his cloak back over his ears.
"Alright then. Riku, Christie, good luck." The King ran off, heading into the city as we watched him leave. Riku sighed, turning to me. At the look in his eyes, I bit the inside of my lip. I knew that look, he wasn't about to try that again, was he?
"Chris, I don't think it's a good idea if we keep being together anymore. With me looking like this and all, some people will get the wrong idea." I clenched my fists. I knew this would happen, I just knew it. Riku yelped as I punched him on the arm, hard.
"Screw people! So what if they're going to complain, I'm not a baby who can't care for herself anymore!" Riku took a step back, hands up to ward off another attack.
"I never said you were, I'm just saying that it might not be a good idea." I glared at him, stomping the few steps up to him until I was nose to breast bone with him.
"And have bad ideas stopped you before? No, they have not. This was a bad idea, and you still did it. Falling for me was a bad idea, and you still did it." I put one hand on his chest, pale skin standing out against the black cloth. I could feel his heartbeat, it continued the same rhythm it had always done. Riku covered my hand with his own, lifting my chin to make me look him in the eye. For a moment, instead of bright amber, there was bright aqua staring down at me, and Xehanort's form had been replaced with the boy he truly was. Riku smiled.
"Always the voice of reason. And for the record, falling in love with you wasn't a bad idea. It was the best one I ever had." I smiled brightly, standing on the tips of my toes to be able to kiss him full on the mouth. We didn't break apart until a Dark Portal came to life behind us. Riku pulled up his hood quickly, and I stepped back as DiZ stepped through the portal. The crimson clad man stared down at Roxas' unconscious form. After a moment of silence, I spoke up.
"He sensed Sora." DiZ looked to me.
"Did he say he hated Sora? What a joke." I glared at DiZ, but said nothing.
"A Nobody cannot feel emotion." Riku sighed, looking me in the eyes from underneath the hood of his cloak.
"If he were to meet Sora, that might be different." DiZ stared at Riku with surprise in his eye, but only scoffed.
"Be that as it may, he won't be meeting Sora. Come, bring him along." Riku nodded, picking Roxas up from the ground. As we followed DiZ through the portal, I could only hope that things would go according to plan. Within the next week, we'd have to wake Sora up and get Roxas and Nami away from DiZ and into safety with Axel. The sound of a computer brought me from my thoughts, and I stood near the staircase as Riku placed Roxas into the gate to the Digital Twilight Town. DiZ activated the fake town, and Roxas disappeared in a flash of Binary code. Riku and DiZ exchanged words, and I headed up the stairs with Riku on my heels. Nami greeted us with a smile, but I saw the tiredness in her eyes. The next week would be hard on us all, but I had a feeling it would go well enough.
Little did I know how wrong I would be.
A/N: That last scene was fun to write. Chrissy puts Xehanort!Riku in his place. (giggles) I would like to thank KH-Vids for posting the KH2FMPlus scenes with Subtitles, a key part of this chapter is only possible thanks to them. The action starts next chapter, with Roxas waking up in Twilight Town. Ooh boy, won't that be fun to mess up. See ya soon!
Kaiten: Yes, this is a sequel. It's the third part in a Trilogy actually, so I suggest you read the first two parts. The first is titled "Kingdom of Memories" and the second is "Chain of Hearts" Christie is my OC character, and she's got quite the story to tell.
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