Zack left late the following morning, as Aerith had shut off his alarm to make him get some much-needed rest. Once he arrived at the Reconstruction Committee Headquarters and saw that neither Riku nor Leon was there, he immediately panicked. "Where are Leon and Riku?"
Cid put out his cigarette and looked away from his computer. The Gummi mechanic looked as concerned as Zack had ever seen him. "They called in…Leon arranged for everyone else to be in charge of different duties. It sounds like he doesn't expect them to be out for very long, but he wouldn't say what they were doing."
The former SOLDIER turned and left the building without a word, but he knew he did not have to explain. Cid called "Keep me updated" as Zack left Headquarters. He ran all the way to Leon's house and entered using his spare key, not bothering to try knocking first.
The house was almost completely silent. Zack could hear the kitchen clock ticking and his own heart beat as he looked around the empty sitting room, kitchen, and hallway. No lights were on in the hall. The bathroom and study doors were open.
Violet eyes fell onto a familiar duffle bag sitting near the back door, and then he heard a faint agitated noise from the bedroom, which he was certain came from Leon. Wondering if the boy could have possibly given the man the slip, he quietly approached the door, which was barely ajar, and eased it opened.
Leon was indeed standing in the room, but he was not alone. He had one arm wrapped tightly around Riku's waist; the other hand was gripping the boy's jaw, and he had dipped his head down to capture Riku's mouth in a deep but tender kiss. The silvered adolescent had one hand resting against the man's chest and the other was holding the back of Leon's neck.
As Zack blinked and considered backing out of the room, the couple's mouths parted, Riku pressed his face into Leon's shoulder as the man shifted his hand from the boy's jaw to the back of his head, and then Leon rested his cheek against the teen's hair before speaking resolutely.
"I don't care what we find, I'm with you and I love you. You aren't him…you aren't any of them."
The former SOLDIER could barely make out Riku's muffled murmur, and could not discern what the boy was saying.
Despite the concern that the scarred man's statement had arisen in him, Zack felt oddly pleased by Leon's words. He briefly thought of the man's behaviour as of late. He was much less guarded with his thoughts and emotions. Leon usually let very little be known about his feelings…he did not want them used against him. Zack knew that the chief cause for that change in his friend was Riku.
He smiled faintly. At least one good thing had come from all of this. "It's good to have you back, Squall."
The Gunblade wielder glanced up at Zack as his arms instinctively tightened their hold on Riku, who looked up as well, although with less surprise and concern.
Leon nodded once in acknowledgment of the violet-eyed man's statement, before loosening his hold on Riku somewhat. "How long have you been here?"
The raven-haired man crossed his arms over his chest, "Long enough to realise that you're leaving and to know that you really intend to take care of him."
Riku looked bemused, but Leon arched an eyebrow. "Did you ever doubt that?"
"No but," the former SOLDIER ran a hand through his hair. "You know I think of him as my own. It's hard to know what the best thing to do for him is, you know?"
The steel-eyed man nodded his understanding. Meanwhile, Riku continued to look confused. "Back to what you said before…who's leaving?"
Both men glanced down at the cyan-eyed teen with perplexed expressions, and then Leon returned his gaze to Zack. "That's right…what were you talking about?"
The violet-eyed man looked from one to the other, trying to find any hint of deception, wondering why they would want to deceive him. "Okay…Sephiroth's old duffle bag, which is now Riku's, is sitting by the front door and is clearly filled. When I came in here, and after you were done kissing Riku into submission, I might add, you said that you were with him no matter what you find. This leads me to the conclusion that you're looking for something."
"Well, yeah." Leon grinned at Riku's response. Zack wondered why the boy's age chose to make itself known at the strangest moments.
"We don't have to go anywhere to find what we're looking for," the scarred man clarified, clearly noting his friend's confused expression.
Riku nodded vaguely, as though to himself. "We went to the castle ruins this morning and Ansem's old study. The bag contains all of his remaining research notes, theories, and findings on the darkness of the heart, Jenova, and me."
The former SOLDIER felt his body tense. "Riku…no; please, that's where everything went wrong for Genesis and your dad. They lost it after they learned everything. It's just too much to take in at once."
"In all fairness, it isn't the same situation for Riku," commented Leon as he stroked the boy's side absently. "He already knows what the last straw is, and he wasn't 'created' like they were…he wasn't just a test subject, he was their son."
"I think it's a lot like the darkness," added Riku softly. He wasn't meeting either man's eyes and Zack could not tell whether the boy was seeing what was in front of him or not. "DIZ said I was unique in the sense that I gain strength from my suffering instead of being beaten by it…and Naminé and Mickey said that the light in my heart will allow me to overcome the darkest darkness, just as the darkness in me will allow me to see through the brightest light. Once I truly accept both, neither power could take me. I can control both, so I shouldn't have to be afraid anymore…"
The silvered adolescent lowered his gaze further. "Only I was -am- afraid. I'm afraid of him…of his darkness, and the light is just as extreme. But…the darkness, the light, the Keyblade, Jenova's cells, my father…even the power I keep suppressed within my heart…they're all a part of me. I cannot be afraid of myself anymore. I'm going to need every scrap of power I posses to save my father…and I am going to save him."
The ex SOLDIER tried to catch the boy's eyes but the teen would not look up. While Zack was pleased to see that Riku had not lost hope, and had even gained some of his own hope back by the child's determination, he still could not be all right with the idea of Riku looking into his and his father's origins. He simply could not trust that the knowledge would not be detrimental to the boy, and he could not bear the thought of losing him. However, he knew that Riku was aware of his concerns, and was not sure what the reaction would be if he simply demanded that the adolescent not look in to the matter any further. That would not have stopped Zack or Sephiroth at the boy's age
"He respects you're wishes, Zack." Leon stated as though he could tell exactly what the violet-eyed man had been thinking. "He was upset about how he was supposed to go about all of this without hurting or worrying you last night…among other things, obviously. I had my own concerns as well. This is why I made a suggestion, which I think is a fair medium. While he was reluctant to accept because he didn't want to ask any more of us, he finally did."
"How can you be comfortable with any of this though?" questioned the violet-eyed man as he met his friend's gaze. "I know that Riku means as much to you as he does to me. I told you what happened with Sephiroth and the others. I told you most of what Hilargi's reports say about him. How can you not know what this could do to him?"
Steel-blue eyes narrowed slightly. "With all due respect, I think you're forgetting who we're talking about. Think of what Riku said just a moment ago. He has lived with the darkness, the light, the Keyblade, Jenova's cells, and his father's blood in him all his life. He doesn't need to know everything the records in that duffel bag, his mother's old files, or any of the portable drives that both of us have, to understand them. He just needs a few questions answers for his own sanity so can actually use his power instead of constantly trying to suppress it."
"I'm sorry; I didn't mean to attack you." Zack held up a hand to stop either of the others from interrupting him. "I know you wouldn't knowingly risk Riku. And Ku, I know that you're stronger than we tend to give you credit for…but you have to understand my concerns here."
The cyan-eyed adolescent finally looked up to meet Zack's eyes, and the former SOLDIER saw pain, concern, and understanding in the turquoise spheres. Riku nodded once and Zack sighed. He was not sure what was going on, but at least he knew the boy understood why he was opposed to the idea. Zack's attention returned to Leon when the man sighed and stroked Riku's side once again.
"He isn't going to research the darkness, I am. That was my suggestion. He told me his last remaining question about it, and I'm going to do my best to find the answer for him. I want you to do the same with Jenova. He only has a few practical questions about that…And he won't have as good an idea as you would about where to look." The former SeeD fixed Zack with a pointed look before he could respond to any of this. "Either you can answer those questions for him, or he can search through everything to try to find them himself...I'm not any more comfortable with that idea than you are."
"Zack, I won't fight my father." Cyan eyes begged the former SOLDIER to understand. "But we can't let him keep doing these terrible things. We need to fight the ties that Jenova and the darkness have on him. If we can do that then we might be able to help him save himself…he's the only one who truly can. No one could save me from Xehanort's Heartless or the darkness, and I think it's the same for him. But I only understand the darkness…I don't know Jenova. I've heard her speak to my father through nightmares, but she doesn't have that connection with me."
The raven-haired man was both relieved and concerned by the boy's words. "You…saw your dad in nightmares?" He glanced at Leon, who only nodded. "Does Seph know?"
Riku shrugged slightly. "He's never given any signs of knowing."
Zack was almost afraid to ask. "What did you see?" He regretted asking as soon as he saw the fear and pain fill the child's eyes. He inhaled sharply. "You saw Nibelheim…"
"I saw what she did to him…what she led him to do." The silver-haired teen spoke softly but evenly. "I won't allow either of them to do that to me…And I want to help him. Please, Zack…you have to understand that."
The ex-SOLDIER searched the boy's eyes for another moment before stepping forward and placing a hand on his shoulder. "Of course I understand. All right, I'll answer your questions, but depending on how you react to each, I might not answer them all at once. I also want you to stick close to either Leon or me while we're doing this; Deal?"
Riku nodded and smiled softly; "Deal. Thanks Zack. I don't think anything is going to change for a while though."
"I don't think so either," replied the violet-eyed man as he gently squeezed the boy's shoulder. "But no matter what happens afterwards, we'll get through it, alright?"
"Yeah;" Riku chuckled softly and shook his head. "Why do I always get the saps? Well, Squall's usually okay."
The Gunblade wielder pulled Riku back against him as he arched an eyebrow, "Usually?"
"Okay, that's enough," Zack said with a genuine smile. "So you guys are off for the rest of the day?"
Leon nodded with a small grin and then Riku twisted his neck to look at the steel-eyed man. "We should go see how Reno's doing. I want to make sure he's alright."
"Okay, I'll go get my boots." The sable-haired man glanced at Zack, "...You coming along? If I can pull off leaving everything for a day then I'm sure you can."
"Okay, I'd like to see how he is too." The raven-haired man pulled his cell phone out of his pocket. "Let me just let Cid and Aerith know that Riku's alright."
Leon smirked slightly and looked at Riku as they both pulled on their shoes. "I told you he likes you."
The turquoise-eyed teen looked up hopefully. "Do you think I can get him to stop calling me Jailbait then?"
Both Squall and Zack snorted. "No."
"I guess some things never change," the boy replied with a soft smile.