Author's notes: I just realised, this starts funny and ends seriously...
Rejected
Sora glanced over at Tara, who was flipping through music on her Ipod. Suddenly she stopped, and grinned evilly.
"Sarah,"
"Yes?"
"Don't strangle me; I've got to put this song on the speakers."
"What song?"
Sarah walked over and then promptly grinned evilly when she saw the song title.
"CHOTTO MATTE!" Tara darted down the ladder of a staircase, and came back up with an Ipal. She plugged the Ipod in and then pressed play.
Sora was sure he would never, EVER, see Roxas's face go redder.
"Wh-what song i-is this?" Roxas stumbled over the words.
"Beautiful Soul by Jesse McCartney." Sarah replied evilly. Kenji snorted.
"The Disney 'child prodigy'?"
"Yup."
"Disney chose him to be a certain someone's voice actor." Tara explained. "Thus giving Roxas his voice."
"LALALALALALALALALA." Roxas plugged his ears, trying to drain out the music.
"Okay, now I just need to find the Gate."
"And a portal through time." Kenji added.
"Why?" Tara tilted her head slightly.
"Because the FMA anime takes place in the 1930s, the movie around 1938."
"Aw damn it." Tara cursed.
Tara turned off the Ipod and put it away. "Soooooooooooooo… I'm-a gunna play on the computer." She said, then walked over to the laptop and turned it on.
"So surprising." Sarah rolled her eyes, her voice thick with sarcasm.
"You shouldn't hide yourself."
Kenji didn't answer the voice. It sounded like Rachael. Great. I should be back in the mental hospital if this is starting up again. He thought sourly.
"SHIT."
Kenji looked up. A loud crash had rang from the kitchen. Tara had gotten up from the computer while it was loading. "I'll deal with it." He got up and walked around the rectangular opening and took a step to the right. "You okay?"
"Fuck no." Tara replied, clutching her hand. Two shattered plates were half on the counter, half on the floor.
"Show me," Kenji extended a hand. His mind told him not to do this but he couldn't just let her bleed. Tara gingerly put her bloodied up, injured hand in his. He held his other hand over it. "Curaga." The word was barely audible, but the effects were all too visible. Tara's eyes widened.
"You… You're…"
"Sh." Kenji shook his head. "Don't tell Sora." He walked over to the shattered plates and began picking up the pieces. Tara helped him out.
"Why are you hiding?"
"I'm not ready to go home."
"Then why are you watching over him?"
"Because. Danger and Sora go hand-in-hand. I can't just walk away and hope that nothing happens, because something will happen."
"You sound so sure…"
"I am." Kenji replied, throwing out the remainder of the broken plates. He left the kitchen and retreated over to the PS2. Tara hesitated, before returning to the computer. It wasn't long before a loud knock sounded on the downstairs sliding glass door. Tara darted down to answer it. She came back up and stepped aside as a couple cops came upstairs. Kenji, Sora, Roxas and Sarah all looked at them questioningly.
"We're from Immigration. We're looking for a Kenji Asano."
"That's me…" Kenji spoke.
"You're under arrest."
"On what charges?" Kenji retorted.
"The hospital's legal documents didn't check out. We checked with the Japanese government and our own. Kenji Asano does not exist."
Kenji sat the Playstation controller on the floor and raised his hands above his head, getting down on his knees. The sleeves on his jacket slipped down to his elbows. Sora gasped, spotting the wristband.
"Riku!"
The Immigration Officers glanced over at Sora. "Who're you and what is your relation to this man?"
"He's my brother." Sora replied sourly. Roxas's hand met his face.
"I knew you were dumb, I mean, I am you so I kinda have to know that, but even I didn't realize you were that dumb." He sighed. Sora glared at him.
"You two, you're under arrest on the same charges as your brother."
"He's not my brother." Roxas retorted.
"On your knees with your hands in the air."
Roxas and Sora quickly complied, not wanting those firearms pointed at them.
"You idiots." Kenji muttered as his hands were cuffed behind his back. He was led down the stairs (which was not easy considering the steepness of the so-called stairs) and out the door, before into a van. Sora and Roxas were put in behind him, both sitting on the other side of the Immigration van.
"Why were you hiding from us?" Sora questioned, not looking up from the ground.
"I'm not ready to go home." Riku answered.
"We wouldn't have made you come home." Sora said quietly. Riku only hummed as the van started up and began moving.
No one was quite sure how long it took until the doors were opened up again. They were taken from the van and into an immigration building, before they were split up. Riku found himself in a low-lit interrogation room. His hands had been re-cuffed so they were in front of him, resting on the table.
"So, Kenji," the officer who entered the room began, "you want to tell me your real name."
"No." Riku answered smugly.
"And why not?"
"Because I no speak engrish." Riku smirked. The officer gave him a dull expression that read 'don't play dumb with me.' "Besides," Riku leaned back in the chair. "You wouldn't believe me if I told you." He tipped the chair back onto its back legs and balanced it there.
"Try me."
"Nah. Don't think I will."
"Listen-"
"Whatever happened to the 'right to remain silent'?" Riku shrugged. "And anything I say or do can be used against me in a court of law and blah blah blah."
"Tell me your real name."
"You want my real name? Okay, then," Riku rocked forwards to place all the chair legs on the ground, and mentally prepared a Dark Aura spell. "The name's Riku. Google image it." He used the spell on the hand cuffs, and then shot another one at the door. While the smoke cleared, he darted through and down the hallway.
"HALT!"
"Sorry, didn't know that cops ranked above me!" Sora shot back, jumping over a park bench. The broken chains from the handcuffs on his wrists tapped against his forearms as he ran as fast as he could across the grass. He only hoped Riku and Roxas were able to get out.
A gunshot rang out behind him, but he ignored it. As long as he wasn't hit majorly, it was fine. A shot nicked his arm as another gunshot sounded, causing blood to seep from the small gash, but he'd worry about it later. He jumped over someone crossing his path. Gods… he needed somewhere to hide. He needed to get away from the officers… which wasn't easy when you look like a cosplaying idiot. He glanced around. Was there somewhere he could get that they couldn't? Not likely… but there might be a place he could get to easier than them…
He spotted a school nearby. The closely placed buildings would be the perfect place to loose the cops. It was the weekend, so no one would be there, but that didn't worry him. Then maybe he could climb up to the roof of a building. A fence surrounded the school perimeter. That was no problem.
Without another thought, Sora changed directions. He easily jumped the fence and darted into a pathway between buildings. He darted around a corner, then behind a two-story building and gripped the windowsill and pulled himself onto it, before jumping up and grabbing the next, then springing onto the roof and crouching down, and sat somewhere in the middle of the roof, lying down so there was less of a chance of being spotted from the ground. Now he just had to wait for Roxas and Riku, and they could go home together…
"Roxas, time to go."
Roxas glanced down at his wristband, as did his interrogator. In a split second, the door was gone, destroyed by a Dark Aura spell. Roxas shot up from his chair and out the door, ignoring the handcuffs. A hand gripped onto the chain and yanked him through the dust from the door.
"Where's Sora?" Riku asked, somewhat desperately, pulling Roxas along as he darted down the hallways.
"Not here." Roxas answered. "If he was, we'd be able to sense the connection we have with him. He probably already escaped, but wasn't able to spring us loose."
The two darted out of the building and down the streets, cops hot on their trail. They ducked into a nearby park, so that cop cars couldn't follow them. Riku quickly used a Dark Aura spell on Roxas's handcuffs and released the chain as it shattered.
"Where would Sora go?" Roxas asked.
"Well, where would you go to hide?"
"Somewhere that would make it hard to follow me." Roxas answered. He looked over his shoulder as Riku tripped over a kid that had run out in front of them. The kid quickly ran off. Roxas hesitated.
"Get going!" Riku snapped at him. Roxas turned and continued on. Riku tried to run off, but a cop grabbed his arm. He responded by punching him in the face, causing the others to open fire. Riku called Soul Eater to his hand to block the bullets as they came at him. He lashed out with a kick at the nearest cop, but in the process let his guard down. He felt a pang of pain in his chest…
Then nothing.
Everything went black.
"Riku."
Riku groaned, and rubbed his forehead as he sat up. The area surrounding him was colored like the night sky, and swirled, trembled and rippled. He glanced beside him. Rachael knelt at his side. But something was off… she wasn't transparent as she had usually been.
"I'm dead." Riku sighed. The familiar feeling of no pain, no physical restriction had swept over him. Rachael nodded.
"Last time Sora saved you… but he doesn't know this time. If he is to save you, he must hurry."
"What about Roxas? Where is he?"
"You told him to run. He complied and didn't turn back."
"I'm such an idiot." Riku muttered.
"You haven't crossed over completely yet. There's still time. But soon you'll enter the spirit world, and then there is no return to life."
Riku looked at the swirling floor below him. "I don't want to die…"
"Neither did I, and do you think that Organization XIII wished to die?" She stood up again, took a few steps away and sighed. "Yes, even Nobodies get to come here. For Souls and Hearts are two different things completely. Souls become ghosts when we die, Hearts give us emotions, and life during our time as living. Souls give us life as the dead. Nobodies have Souls, but not Hearts."
"Great." The sarcasm was thick in his voice. "I really didn't want to meet them again."
"It's not like you can die here." Rachael replied with a shrug.
"Already dead."
"Exactly my point. The dead can't die again."
Neither spoke for awhile, until Riku asked a question.
"Rachael, how much time do you think has passed?"
"In the living world? Half an hour, I'd say…" She glanced back at Riku and smiled. "Time for me to go."
"Rachael, wait!" Riku shot to his feet.
Rachael turned away and faded away.
"Riku, return to us."
Riku turned around. Sora stood there, but he was transparent, his hand extended. Riku took his hand.
"We need you in our world."
Riku felt his hand slip.
"Riku!" Sora shot forwards and grabbed onto his wrist, but then Riku vanished. Sora fell to his knees. "Don't take him from me… please… give him back… I'll do anything…"
"Anything?"
Sora looked around. He couldn't find the source of the voice. It was a girl's voice, he noticed.
"Anything." Sora confirmed.
"Then we will arrange a series of challenges for you, Keyblade Master." A boy this time. "If you pass, we will return your brother to you."
"If you fail," the girl's voice continued, "you may die, you may live, but in the event of failure, Riku remains here with us."
"Are we understood?" The two questioned in unison. Sora nodded.
"Yes."
"Then while the trials are set you shall wander the spirit world. You will be dead to those in the world of the living for the duration of the trial." The girl finished, and the area changed. The colors remained the same, but the space increased, and others became visible.
Roxas glanced back at Sora. He'd fallen asleep a couple minutes before. Roxas made no move to wake him. Gunshots rang out below them.
"Crap." Roxas muttered, ducking down. He glanced over at Sora… wait a moment. Sora wasn't breathing. "Crap. His father's going to kill me, if Riku doesn't first." He lifted Sora into his arms and stood, before darting through a portal.
Sora and Riku's father was sitting on the couch, along with Sam, both watching something on the TV. They both looked up at Roxas, more specifically, the limp Keyblade Master in Roxas's arms. Sora's father was at his feet in a moment, checking his son for any signs of life. Finally, he stopped, sighed and took Sora from Roxas, then slumped down onto the couch.
"First Rachael dies, and then Riku storms out swearing his head off, and now this…" He muttered.
"We saw Riku." Roxas spoke up. Both Sam and her father looked at him hopefully.
"How is he?"
"Alive and well, last I saw him, kind of hard to tell now. We were on the run from immigration and split up."
"I should've thought about that." Sam shook her head. "Especially if Riku has been there for a decent amount of time."
"Riku doesn't know that Sora's dead, does he?" Sam's father questioned.
"No, he doesn't." Roxas answered. "Ah shit. He's going to be worse than Saix on fifty cups of coffee without his meds."
"Why are you doing this, Sora?" Riku looked his little brother in the eyes with a sense of desperation. Sora just grinned.
"How hard can a little trial be? Come on, soon we'll be back home, laughing about this all."
"Sora, I told you, I'm not ready to go back."
"I didn't say right away, did I?"
Riku only sighed. Sora was so persistent sometimes.
"Don't get killed." He put a hand on his younger brother's shoulder. Sora smiled.
"You forget who you're talking to here."
Riku chuckled and shook his head. "You're not invincible, Sora."
Sora just grinned and turned away to face a figure cloaked in darkness. "I'm ready."
"Then let the trials begin." It was the boy's voice from earlier, but it was apparent that it was the figure speaking. "Step this way, Keyblade Master."
Sora did so without hesitation, and a bright light engulfed him suddenly.
"Oh, and one more thing,'
" You will not be able to use your Keyblade, magic, drives or any other special abilities you have."