Chapter Nine: Erring on the Edge of Reason
Riku had a perfectly normal Thursday, thank you very much.
…Ok, maybe not. Perfectly normal in the same sense that The Dursleys were 'perfectly normal', except Riku's black-haired companion was a gigantic nutcase.
…Alright, time to navigate away from Harry Potter allusions, before they started getting ridiculous and offensive.
Class was quiet, mostly. The students were in a sleepy lull of 'it's not quite Friday', cool sunlight streaming through the window, promising that there was only a little left of the year, and soon Riku would be free of these stifling (human-filled) classrooms and the (completely useless) homework and exams. Tifa seemed a bit down, and Vanitas somehow managed to still be the most interesting thing in the room despite the fact he was only chewing on his pen, occasionally removing it to scribble on the front page of his book for a moment before going back to chewing. About three-quarters through the lesson the pen cracked and a blot of black ink blossomed on his face, staining the side of his mouth in an ink-blot, Rorschach-esque patterns beginning to form as the black ran down his chin. He coughed and spluttered, spitting out the little that had gotten in his mouth.
"Aw shit" he muttered, making a disgusted face and trying to rub the ink off with his palm. "Tits McGee, can I be excused?"
Riku slapped his hand to his face, rubbing his eyelids with his thumb and index finger. He could almost feel Tifa bristling with indignation at the name, and Riku felt a surge of irritance pulsing underneath his skin, adding to his already fragile mood.
"You can rinse it off and go to the principal's office. I won't tolerate name calling."
Vanitas rolled his eyes and got up out of his chair, the metal feet screeching against the tiles and making Riku wince. "Yeah, yeah. Hope your lunch is nice and garlic-y."
He marched out of the room before she could say anything, Riku giving her an apologetic shrug. It didn't help and she still looked like she was about to blow a gasket, and Riku resolved to hit Vanitas in some way next time he saw him. Hard, if the crafty little shit didn't sneak out of his grip. Sometimes it was like that kid could teleport.
Thankfully the class was nearly over anyway, and despite the fact the bell made his head ring painfully he was just glad to get the hell out of the classroom.
He found his friend in the principal's office, as expected, and both of them seemed to be waiting for Riku's arrival. Vanitas had his legs folded, an annoyed, stubborn look on his face that only spelt trouble. The silverette couldn't contain a sigh- why couldn't he pick any other week for this kind of behaviour? Why the week he'd been turned into a vampire, dammit?
"Riku" said the principal, looking stern. "Could you please provide me with a number to call? Vanitas refuses to give his guardian's details."
"Is a call to his guardian really necessary?" Riku asked, and the principal sighed.
"Vanitas may be facing suspension at the very least. Such a comment was not necessary."
Riku sighed, rubbing his head. Aris was out of the question, he didn't want him to call Leon, and he didn't think Cloud would appreciate the midday interruption. And honestly, Riku was a little wary of Cloud. Although he hadn't seen much of it, Cloud's temperament seemed a bit…volatile. Not as bad as Vanitas's, but nobody's was as bad as Vanitas's.
"I basically serve as Vanitas's guardian" Riku said shortly, folding his arms and cocking his head to the side. "The person formally listed as his guardian isn't in a position to be taking phone calls at the present time."
The principal gave him a short look. "The only way that could work is if you were his de facto partner-"
"We've been living together for four years, does that count?" Riku said, beginning to look irritated. "The school's been told of Vanitas's abrasiveness repeatedly, sir. Sometimes it gets out of hand, but in no way are his comments ever intended for true harm. If Ms. Lockheart has taken true offense to a comment about her breast size, then I'll make him apologise."
"Make me apologise, huh?" Vanitas asked, cocking his head and smirking. "Mmm, I wanna see this."
"Riku…"
"We're having a bit of difficulty at home, sir, if Vanitas's name change and appearance isn't an indicator. We'll have it under control soon enough."
The principal exhaled. "Alright. Vanitas, detention, and apologise to Ms. Lockheart."
"Only today?"
"Detention until further notice" the principal said, peering over the rim of his glasses. "You may leave."
"Thanks, Principal Cid" said Riku, and the pair left, Vanitas putting his arms behind his head casually while Riku grumped. He was beginning to feel twitchy, and the smell of human wouldn't leave his nostrils, making him even further agitated. His friend peered at him for a few moments, before tutting.
"Canines are out, Ri" he said, and Riku covered his mouth, noticing that, yes, his canines had lengthened. He grumbled from behind his hand, rubbing his hair in annoyance.
"Why are you insisting on being infuriating today, anyway?" Riku asked, and Vanitas just shrugged as they reached their lockers.
Riku wasn't content with the answer, letting out a quiet growl as he unlocked his locker, yanking it open with more force than necessary. The hinges creaked, but thankfully didn't snap, as the silverette rifled through his bag until he found his 'juice box'.
Yes, he'd packed himself a 'snack'. He'd really hoped he would've been able to skip it until lunch, but…
Leon's words from the night before ran through Riku's head and he shuddered, exhaling, before downing the juice box in a few swallows and pulling out his regular food, cramming the container into the back of the locker.
"…Ri, was that-?"
"Yes" the silverette snapped, shutting the locker, and Vanitas flinched at the noise, as though Riku had actually struck him. He didn't say anything, however, pulling out his own food.
"I know a shady spot that's pretty quiet" he offered, and Riku sighed, swallowing. They seemed to keep yo-yoing back and forth between being on good terms and being pissed with each other. Riku hoped it was just a phase they were going through, and not something permanent that'd lead to the breakdown of their relationship. He didn't think he could cope if he didn't have his best friend by his side.
They headed toward the shady spot Vanitas had specified, sitting down on a bench. He pulled out his food, eating quietly, while Riku sat in silence. Honestly, he was desperate to say something, something to break the awkward tension between them. They'd fought a few times in the past, like when Riku had told him Santa wasn't real, but it'd always been over things like that. Trivial things. But right now, this was life changing…and it was, more or less, Riku's fault.
"Did I…make the right choice?" he murmured, and Vanitas looked up at him, raising an eyebrow.
"Not fighting back. Maybe I should've kept struggling…rather than succumbing to the darkness."
Vanitas sighed, looking away from him, a pensive look on his face. "You're using some colourful language."
"I'm a monster of the dark. I wouldn't call it colourful" Riku murmured quietly, looking at his hands. "I keep thinking…that maybe the world would've been better off without another monster. That maybe I should've…"
"Maybe" Vanitas whispered, looking down. "But I'm glad you didn't. I don't know what I'd do without you, Riku."
"Me either, to be honest."
He smiled slightly. "Do you see why I didn't think it'd be a big deal about the paopu fruit?"
Riku shook his head, sighing. "It's still…I would've said yes, if you'd asked."
His friend's eyebrows shot upward, blinking a few times at him. Man, his eyes. That was one change in himself Riku was beginning to like. They glistened so intensely in the shadows, watching him carefully.
"Riku" Vanitas whispered, wringing his hands. "I…"
He exhaled, looking nervous as he rubbed his hand through his spikes, making them look even wilder than usual. He drew in a deep breath, placing a hand over his chest.
"In your heart…do you feel like you made the right decision?" he murmured.
Riku's mind conjured up those thoughts, the image of Vanitas mourning over his grave, and he blew out a breath through his nose.
"Yeah."
"Then you did."
The rest of Riku's school day passed without any more real incidents, although in some ways Riku was finding it hard to stand too close to Vanitas. He was finding that his heart began fluttering painfully whenever Vanitas stood too close, or he looked into those eyes of his. He couldn't say the feeling was completely unpleasant, but today of all days his friend seemed particularly determined to be a little closer than normal- or perhaps Riku just felt claustrophobic, he couldn't be sure.
Aris was drinking again that night, so they split off into pairs. Leon whisked Vanitas off before Riku had a chance to protest, leaving the silverette feeling anxious.
This feeling gave way to awkward tension the moment he realized he was dealing with a literal storm-Cloud (Riku restrained a snort at the pun in fear of the blonde punching him). He didn't know what had managed to annoy the blonde so much, but he seemed frustrated and tense, ready to snap violently at whatever even considered crossing his path.
Riku had two things on his mind that night. One, that maybe Leon calling Cloud bipolar wasn't entirely off the mark, and two, he'd actually rather be in Leon's company right now. If and when Leon came clean, Riku was going to outright tell the blonde about this incident, since he sure as hell didn't like feeling like he was walking on rusty nails, and Cloud needed to know he was scarier than Leon. They ran into one group of monsters- which, unlike the supernatural kind, were universally considered bad news- and Cloud obliterated them with such ferocity that Riku almost felt like spinning on his heel and power-walking very fast in the other direction. He did not want that blade anywhere near him, thank you very much.
The tension impacted heavily on him, and he slept terribly, his dreams consisting mostly of Vanitas getting ripped apart in some form or another.
Said raven was the one who roused him, although he did so by poking him with a broom and shouting "Riku! Oi! Wake up!"
"Are you...poking me with the broom?" he said, blinking at the ceiling in disbelief. He hoped it was the broom. This would get extremely awkward if it wasn't.
Vanitas cleared his throat. "Claws" he coughed, and Riku sat bolt right up, glancing at his hands as black claws receded back into fingernails. The raven pulled back the broom, standing it beside him.
He swallowed thickly, before placing his head in his hands, running them up and through his sleep-tangled hair.
"Sorry" he whispered, and the raven shook his head.
"Are you alright? You were shouting my name."
Riku let out a long breath. "Just nightmares" he murmured, also shaking his head. "Don't worry about it."
Vanitas continued to look at him with a worried expression, but he eventually sighed reluctantly. He knew, better than anyone, that unless he was forced, it was better to just leave this sort of thing. Eventually, the silverette would come around. It just took patience, and that was where Vanitas fell short, always.
"Alright. There's coffee downstairs."
Riku nodded and he left, shutting the door behind him quietly.
The silverette waited a few more minutes before clambering out of bed and pulling his covers up roughly. He rifled through his cupboard for some clothing, getting fully dressed before heading downstairs.
The smell of coffee hung thickly in the air. The house was bright, indicating it was a 'nice' day outside (his instincts seethed at the idea of that much sunlight) and rendering the house as a mostly black-and-white blur to the unfortunate teen.
"Shit" he muttered, closing his eyes. It was bright enough that the skin of his eyelids was a wall of red, and he wasn't sure if that was preferable. Blind or only able to see the one colour he didn't want to? Well, at least having them shut didn't physically hurt.
He followed his other senses, slowly creeping down the stairs and following his knowledge of the house's layout to make his way to the kitchen.
Finding he hadn't bumped into anything, he was a little more confident walking over to the coffee pot.
"Why are your eyes closed?" Vanitas asked, and Riku could almost feel him peering at him curiously.
"It's too bright in here" he murmured. "Everything's blurry and in black-and-white."
"Ohh. Well, if it helps the world's blurry pretty often to me."
"If you remembered your damn contacts-"
"I'm trying to give you advice, jerk" he hissed in retort. "Anyway, closing your eyes does help. It means your brain focuses on using your other senses to navigate instead."
"Really?" Riku asked, raising his eyebrows, as Vanitas carefully placed a coffee cup into his hands.
"Yeah, it's scientifically proven. Is it the light that makes things bad?"
"Yeah."
"Ok, wait here."
He listened to Vanitas leave, his footsteps echoing up the stairs. Riku sighed, sniffing his coffee, which was made just the way he liked it. He sipped, patiently waiting for his friend. He had a small smile on his face. Sometimes, waking up to the fact your best friend knows how you like your coffee just felt like a great start to the day.
He heard him thump down the stairs in a couple of jumps and burst back into the kitchen.
"Alright, stay still for a moment" he said, and Riku felt something against his eyelids, the red fading into a matte black. He listened to Vanitas shuffle for a second, before the other drew his hands back.
"Ok, done."
Riku opened his eyes only to find the black persisted.
"You've blinded me" Riku said in disbelief.
"It's a blindfold, numbnuts."
Oh.
"Do you think this'll help?"
"Yeah. It's hard at first, but since you've got above-average senses it'll become easy fairly quickly. It's all about being aware of your environment and being willing to accept the loss of a sense."
"This is nuts."
Vanitas patted his shoulder, but didn't remove the blindfold, as he sat down at the table and seemed to continue eating his breakfast.
As a result, Riku's morning routine took a little longer than usual, but not as much as he thought it would. The trip to school was awkward, but Vanitas's lead and confidence (along with being particularly loud) made him easy to follow.
It was a little easier walking into school than it had been the day before. Though the smell of human was still particularly strong, he was a bit more used to it.
Something odd caught his nose and Riku stopped, following it. He recognized it, but surely not?
Well, speaking up was the only way he was going to get to the bottom of this.
"Terra?"
"Why the heck are you wearing a blindfold?"
"I dunno, why are you at my school?" Riku retorted, folding his arms. "And who else is with you?"
There was a scent close to Terra's, probably standing next to him. It was a...clean, sort of smell, making him think of ice water or a stream of some kind. It was also familiar, but...different.
"Aqua" said a familiar voice, and Riku's stomach clenched, a bad feeling he'd forgotten about returning. He'd suspected something was up when Kairi mentioned she was sick, but...
"Is she-?"
"She was...attacked by monsters. If we hadn't she would've died" said Terra quietly.
"They gave me the choice" Aqua murmured. "I agreed, but I then asked to be allowed to complete school."
"I guess that makes sense" Riku muttered, but he didn't like the idea.
"Master said since I didn't complete school either, he'd get me up to speed so I could finish, plus I get to keep an eye on you two...and make sure Vanilla doesn't cause anything."
"Vanitas" he snapped. "Or if that's too difficult for you, log-head, Sora works just fine so long as we aren't around your blonde pal."
"So you're Sora?" Terra asked, sounding confused.
"I'm not the Sora Ventus is looking for" he replied coolly. "Don't get caught up on it."
"I knew him as Sora up until a few days ago" Riku said. "But when changed his eye and hair colour he asked for me to start using Vanitas instead."
Terra made a small 'hm' sound. He heard the shuffle of small footsteps, and assumed Aqua had taken a couple of steps forward.
"I think I've seen you before. You're that masked boy, right? The one with a Void Gear motorbike."
"Yeah, and I go to school here" said Vanitas, sounding a little peeved. "We saw each other earlier in the week, too."
"Oh. I didn't notice then. I'd always wondered who rode that motorbike, but that helmet hides your face."
"If you're going to be screaming through red lights-"
Riku smacked his hand in the general direction of Vanitas's blabbering mouth, and found he'd aimed it right.
"Shut up before you get yourself in trouble" Riku said sternly, before removing his hand.
"That hurt" he whined petulantly, and Riku let out an exhausted, deliberate sigh.
The bell rang, making Riku's head spin and ache and sending blue light flashing before his eyes. Except this time, without the aid of sight, the blue light seemed to form shapes. Indistinct forms created in his mind's eye as the sound vibrated off them.
"Huh" he breathed, thinking about it. Bats weren't known for excellent eyesight, after all; they were known for their ability to detect the environment via sonar.
He refrained from telling Vanitas of this development for fear of him automatically going 'Like in that Daredevil movie?'
Sure. Like in that movie that Riku swore didn't exist. Yeah.
"Guess we'd better head to class" said Vanitas, who left them and headed toward the building.
"He sure moves confidently for someone wearing a blindfold" said Aqua, and Riku's mouth dropped open.
"He's wearing one too?!"
"You didn't know?" Terra asked, and Riku shook his head.
He heard a shuffle of clothing which he assumed was a shrug, and he decided to head in the direction his friend had followed, tracing his scent.
He stopped when his instincts told him to, reaching out to find he'd almost hit the door. He wedged it open and stepped inside.
He was slowly realizing that the blue light was more of a mental map than an actual visual thing, since even with his eyes actually closed he could still see it. The hallway was bustling and loud, and thus the echoes in the room were many, giving him a fairly accurate measurement of how to navigate his way through.
He headed to his locker, opening it up and finding his books, whistling a bit and finding the sound reverberated nicely against the metal walls, giving him an idea of which books he was grabbing.
"Are you ok, Riku?" a voice pipped in close-by, which Riku recognized to be Kairi's.
"Ahh... Just an eye injury. Nothing too major."
"Oh man" she whispered, before petting him on the arm. "Do you need any help?"
Riku shook his head.
He heard Kairi exhale, and felt a little bad about rejecting her help. However, the memory of her giggling over his best friend quickly dismissed those lingering feelings of guilt.
Riku was a lot of things- curious, to the point of self-harm, perhaps a bit naive and blind at times. But right now, the most important factor was that he was very dangerous and very overprotective. Now was not the type to feel guilt over someone like Kairi's feelings. If you're only going to view Riku's best friend for his looks, expect to end up in Riku's bad books.
He hoisted his books up, heading toward his class, using the sound of other people's movement to navigate his way around. He delicately stepped inside class, to be met with a hushed silence.
"So both yourself and Vanitas have the same injury?" He heard Tifa ask.
"Mhm."
"Fine then" she said haughtily. Obviously, she was still annoyed about Vanitas's quip yesterday. Although Riku could understand the embarrassment of being talked to like that in front of the student body, surely she wasn't annoyed about the content, right? She did have…large endowments, even if that wasn't entirely what Riku was into.
Wait, when had he figured out he didn't like large breasts? That was new.
"Riikuuu, over here!" his friend called, guiding him over to their usual spot.
"Why didn't you say you were wearing one too?" Riku whispered, and Vanitas chuckled quietly.
"I wanted to have something to prove that it just takes getting used to. If I can do it, so can you."
Well, technically Riku was kind of cheating, since he could kind of see. He wondered how Vanitas had managed to master being blindfolded so well, and tried to think of a time where he'd practiced, only to come up empty-handed. He didn't move like he was blind; even Riku was still cautious as to not bump into anything.
"How'd you learn to move so confidently with a blindfold?" Riku whispered, and Vanitas shrugged.
"You may ask one question per salted butter caramel" he replied, and Riku rolled his eyes, rifling through his things for the caramels and finding the correct packet, passing one over.
"Before I moved in with you…I learnt a technique to move around easier. You were the one who took me to the optometrist, remember? I was half-blind before that, so I had to adjust somehow."
Riku nodded, passing over another caramel. "Technique?"
Vanitas let out a low breath. "I can't tell you in class."
"Not even for the rest of the packet?" Riku asked, waving the nearly-fresh packet around. His best friend was quiet for a few minutes.
He listened to him let out a short sigh. "Ok, during break. On the condition that you're not allowed to hit me for it."
"Is it something I should hit you for?"
"Maybe?" the other said hesitantly.
"…No" said Riku, putting the caramels away, and he could almost hear his best friend pout. At least, he knew that was the exact expression he'd have on his face.
He heard him fidget for a few moments, before muttering something under his breath. "Fine. I'll tell you during the break if you give me the caramels."
Riku grinned, miming Vanitas's evil smirks he did oh-so well. "Good boy" he mimicked, handing over the caramels.
His friend muttered something else, but Riku had decided to turn his attention to the class, listening to lesson and wondering how much of this would ever actually matter to him. Though, maybe, he'd end up with a job for some time, Riku's life wouldn't stay it was now. He was scared of the idea, but he knew deep down being Marked was a temporary thing. It didn't feel right. It felt like he was stuck on a meridian, a divide between two paths, one he couldn't follow any longer. He honestly felt incomplete and trapped as he was. None of it felt right, especially not the sunlight. It felt wrong and clammy against his skin, as though the light itself was rejecting him and reminding him he was no longer wanted. That he didn't belong here.
Like a nasty whisper, just out of hearing range. Murmuring, muttering, reminding him. You are a monster. You belong in the darkness. And the beings around you? They're food.
Riku had never been more thankful to get out of a classroom than he was when that bell rang.
He made his way to his locker, opening it up and shoving his books in, drawing in sharp breaths. He didn't like that thought one bit. Because he knew, somewhere deep inside himself, Vanitas wasn't excluded from that category, and the idea made him feel sick.
"Ready for a distraction, Mr. Moody?" quipped a voice from beside him, and Riku exhaled.
"Sounds good" he murmured, tugging out his morning snack and other food, drawing in a breath through his nose to get an idea of who was around him.
Vanitas, obviously. Riku could pick out his scent anywhere. But Terra and Aqua's scents were close by, and Kairi was walking towards them from the opposite direction.
"Oh, hey Kairi!" said Vanitas cheerfully.
"G'morning, Sora!" she said, reciprocating the tone. Riku fought off the urge to hiss, though his fist did clench tightly. He could feel the prickle of sharp points against the inside of his hand. He was overreacting and he knew it, but he couldn't help it. A part of him just wanted to wrap his arms around the other and hiss 'mine' at everyone else.
Fuck, this was childish. And stupid.
"What's gotten into your pants?" asked a deep voice from Riku's left, and he sighed, locking his padlock and turning around.
"Nothing" he murmured. "Kairi, this is Terra. He's a…work friend."
He heard her bounce over, some kind of chain swishing. Wallet chain, maybe?
"You're looking tons better, Aqua! I was getting kind of worried."
"I'm fine" the girl said reassuringly. "The doctor said I'm still contagious, though, so don't hug me just yet."
Don't hug me, I might get tempted and rip your jugular out.
"Why don't we all hang out for lunch?" Vanitas suggested, probably assuming one of his broad grins. "Me 'n Ri are able to take the blindfold off only for short periods of time, and away from bright light…I know a nice place we can go."
"That sounds like a brilliant idea, Sora."
Riku said nothing, simply following Vanitas's path through the school and back to the shady spot he'd found the other day. He heard the raven walk up behind him, carefully unlooping the blindfold and revealing the others, though it did take a few minutes for his eyes to readjust.
Because of the nice day (ordinary people would say 'despite', but…), Aqua and Terra were bundled up. Aqua was clad in a blue skirt and black tights, coupled with a lightweight white blouse and a broad-brimmed hat. Terra had forgone a hat, but he was wearing a long sleeved black collared shirt and tan slacks, along with a pair of sunglasses. They were probably warm, as Riku was, but instinct was a powerful thing, and the sunlight was scary.
Kairi was wearing a pair of shorts and a figure-hugging singlet that clung to her petite frame, her red hair tied up in a loose ponytail that was slung over her shoulder. Vanitas, who'd already tugged off his own blindfold, was wearing a singlet, too, black, along with the same black shorts he'd been wearing the day they'd met Cloud, and his wallet chain with the crowns that ran along it. Riku had bought him that one for Christmas when Vanitas had only just turned fourteen; Riku could remember him getting giddy and excited about it, running around like a headless chicken.
That'd been their first Christmas together, without anyone else.
Riku sat down on the ground, pulling out his 'snack'. If Vanitas was going to force him to do this in public, so be it. He was not going without it.
He slurped it down, relishing the slight ease in tension it gave, before picking up his apple and playing with it a bit.
"Medicine?" Kairi inquired, tilting her head, and Riku nodded.
"I'm not entirely over my flu, either" he muttered, taking a bite out of the fruit. It was dull and flavourless compared to what he'd just eaten, but he didn't have a choice. Until he properly joined their ranks, he'd still have to eat human food to keep his body operating.
"So, Terra. Are you from close by?" Kairi asked, and the brunette shook his head. He and Aqua had taken a seat on the soft grass, while Vanitas was lying down on the bench, arms behind his head. Kairi was sitting directly across from the bench, while Riku was seated opposite to the other two.
"My family travels a lot" he said. "My dad said I should still stay in school as much as possible, so he enrolled me here. My brother would be here, too, but he's albino and gets really ill if he's outside for too long, so it's not an option."
"You'd think Riku was an albino, looking at him from afar" Kairi giggled. "But his eyes are…green?"
"Aquamarine" Vanitas corrected, waving a hand in the air. "But I agree…he burns pretty badly, too."
Riku shrugged nonchalantly. "My dad's hair is like this, too. I think it's a defect in our Y chromosome or something."
"Like mine!" Vanitas said cheerfully, pointing at his hair. "The girls don't have hair like this, but my dad's is almost exactly the same…well, 'cept his is still mostly brown. I haven't seen many pictures of my uncle, but his is spiky, too, just not the same way Cloud's is."
"I feel sorry for your brother" Kairi said. "Does he get to go out at all?"
"It's ok for him to be out at night time…but he can't do much because of his age."
Well, the age he's permanently stuck at.
"Don't they make coats that block out the sunlight?" Vanitas suddenly asked, rolling over, and Terra blinked up at him.
"They do?"
Kairi rubbed her chin. "Yeah, I think I've heard of those. A coat so black it absorbs all of the light directed to it."
"Doesn't Lea have one?" Riku asked, raising an eyebrow, and Vanitas nodded, sitting up.
He played with his hair a bit, thinking. "Lea's wouldn't fit Ventus, though. The guy's a stick…Lea, I mean. I think he had a run-in with a corset at some point…"
He pouted, still thinking, chewing on a caramel for a bit before snapping his fingers. "Aha! My uncle has one, though! I think that'd fit!"
Riku raised his eyebrows at him. "Are you sure? I thought Lea got one from that group of his."
"Yeah, my uncle's in that group. The first few or so highest ranked get coats. I think it's up to number thirteen? But yeah, my dad mentioned it once, I'm ninety-nine percent sure Uncle Socrates has one."
"What number is your uncle, then?" Kairi asked, looking curious, and Vanitas rubbed his chin again, trying to remember.
"…Erm, pretty sure he's got a higher number than Lea...hm. I think he's actually the Thirteenth member. Wonder if Cloud knows?"
Riku shrugged. "Cloud doesn't really talk about him much, does he?"
Vanitas shook his head, folding his arms. "Nor does my dad. I've never actually met him, just seen photo albums…and this was before I got contacts, so he's more or less a blonde-haired blob in my mind."
Riku sighed, massaging his head, as Vanitas stood up, stretching and ruffling his hair some more. "So uh…Riku. You wanted to know about my 'technique' earlier?"
"Technique?" Terra spluttered, and the girls giggled. Riku's brow furrowed in confusion as Vanitas began silently laughing behind his hand.
"Not that kind of technique" he said dismissively, though there was a faint hint of pink on his cheeks, which was what it took for Riku to get the implication, his own cheeks flushing bright pink as an indignant expression appeared on his face.
"If it was going to be that kind of technique, why would it be in front of you people?!" Riku snapped, folding his arms, and Aqua giggled quietly.
"Well, voyeurism is a kink for some."
Riku slapped a hand to his face as Kairi and Vanitas giggled a bit more, while Terra just looked terrified.
Once the giggling had died down, Vanitas grinned. "I actually meant how I get around blindfolded. Since Riku's already upheld his end of the bargain, I'll just get it over with. Usually I can forego the light show, but to demonstrate what I'm doing it's necessary."
Light show?
He closed his eyes, tilting his head downward, before murmuring "Video vidi visum."
A soft green light washed over their surroundings, originating from Vanitas and pulsing two or three times before it faded off.
Riku's eyes narrowed in his direction, suddenly realizing exactly why he'd suspected that Riku would hit him.
That was magick.
Vanitas was capable of using magick. How long had that been the case? This lack of knowledge in regards to his friend's life was riling Riku up more than it should have. Everyone had their secrets, yes, but until recently Riku had believed the two of them had none between each other. At least, there was nothing Riku every really withheld from Vanitas. He hadn't even been given the opportunity to hold his turning a secret from the other, and yet he had this mysterious Ventus circumstance and the ability to use magick?
The urge to hit him was growing at a steadily increasing rate.
"It's erm…a scanning spell. Gives me an idea of the surroundings so I can move freely" he explained. "But I don't use my magick often enough for me to think it worth mentioning, really. That's basically all I know…it's not commonly taught."
Riku still had his arms folded, and the other looked painfully sheepish, his eyes mostly on Riku and gauging his reaction. So far: not good. In fact, Riku was pretty pissed. Just a mention would've been enough. Or didn't he trust him enough for that?
The silverette would've stood and left, if not for the itching fear of going out into the sunlight. As it was, he just silently ate his food, only giving the other an acknowledging, yet annoyed nod, and proceeding to not talk to him.
He suspected the other would've preferred he just hit him and be done with it, but this was playing on Riku's final nerves. How much was he hiding? For someone who did their best to avoid lying, it felt like he'd done a whole heap around Riku, and they were supposed to be best friends. Was the sentiment not reciprocated on the other's end? He'd been the one to initiate the paopu fruit fiasco, and yet Riku was the one who felt betrayed and hurt.
Of course he couldn't express that. Riku wasn't good with this, he was the confident one, the face for them both, he'd always had to keep a strong, cool front. It came easier to him than expressing it, and maybe that standpoint was one of the reasons he'd been picked out for vamp-hood. He couldn't just turn around to his friend and say 'you're hurting me by doing this,' because he'd feel like a fucking idiot for doing so. The thought didn't make the pain ease, of course. It just made the twisting pain in his stomach worse. The pain from emotions, not the pain from the stupidly named organ that sat in his chest and stuck him firmly in the non-human category.
However, said instinctual and non-human side didn't like the emotional pain one bit, and unlike the human Riku, who would've buried it, the same way he'd borrowed the feelings of abandonment from his parents, non-human Riku wanted a god damn resolution.
He didn't talk to Vanitas for the rest of the school day, relying totally on the sonar-type ability to get around. They walked home together, but the walk was made in silence; Vanitas radiated guilt, and Riku was on-edge, his mind ticking over on exactly what he was going to do once they got home.
Vanitas unlocked the door, gingerly stepping inside, as though he knew what was to follow. Riku, however, first went around the house and covered/closed as many windows as he could, darkening the house considerably. With an angry flourish, the silverette undid his blindfold, before roughly grabbing his friend by the collar and shoving him into a nearby wall.
"Ok, I see you're pissed" he said hesitantly, and Riku let out a low, angry growl, baring lengthening canines.
"Look, I'm sorry I didn't tell you about the magick thing-"
"You think that's all this is about, Soritas?" Riku hissed, and the other's eyes narrowed. This was the second time in three days he'd used the name, and he didn't look pleased about it.
"Then what?" he snapped, seeming to be completely unfazed by the fact he was pinned to the wall by an angry partial-vampire who looked about ready to bite into him.
"How much else are you hiding from me?" Riku snarled. "Lately, that's all you've been doing. You went behind my back to get your hair and eye colour changed, and there's this fucking thing with Ventus-"
"I told you not to ask about that" he said coldly, and Riku growled again, moving his face closer to the other, so that their noses were almost touching.
"Why?"
"Because it's fucking confusing and dangerous, alright?" Vanitas hissed, looking agitated and a little uncomfortable. "I don't want you involved until I know the facts, and maybe not even then, either!"
"Do I or do I not have more of a chance of making it out alive of any situation than you do?" Riku hissed in a low voice. "I'm a monster, remember?"
"Could you not call yourself that?" Vanitas growled in retort. "You haven't hurt anyone."
"I'm two inches away from your pretty little neck, moron" Riku hissed, his eyes flashing red for a few seconds. "And you're looking fucking tempting this fine, fine day."
"Do it then."
"I would, but you'd turn" Riku stated flatly. "I don't trust myself to be non-infectious."
Vanitas's eyes narrowed a bit at this. "So you want to bite me, huh?"
Honestly? Yes. Yes he did. Vanitas smelt fucking delicious, even with the choking scent of cigarette smoke that clung to his clothing.
"Yeah, I do, but we're not ending the previous conversation, you crafty little shit" Riku snapped, shoving the other again so his head bounced off the wall with a satisfying thud, "you think withholding information like you're doing is protecting me? All you're doing is making me pissed off. And as you can see, I'm not pleasant when I'm pissed off."
"Oh yeah, I can see" Vanitas drawled. "I don't know much more than you do. I don't want to tell you, get you all riled up and then it turns out I'm wrong."
"Then tell me what you do know for sure" he hissed. "Or I will fucking bite you, consequences be damned."
"Then fucking do it!" he retorted, grabbing a fistful of Riku's clothing in each hand. "Because this is my battle! There are things in my family's past. We're not called 'Strife' for no fucking reason, Riku, and this is the crux of the issue, I know it. I can feel it. But I don't know enough. The darkness of the unknown is a terrifying thing, and my family's darkness is of the deepest, darkest black. We're a hunter family, Ri. If that doesn't say enough, I don't know what will."
Riku growled, glaring at him furiously, his brain ticking the explanation over. He hated the way he did this. He'd always done it. Sora, the cheerful, outgoing teen with shadows and torment that reared its ugly head in the most devastating of ways. And it wasn't like he hadn't hidden it from Riku, back then. He'd pretended, for a long time, that everything with his father was fine. That Sora didn't cower in the corner of his room and sing himself to sleep. That he wouldn't wear long sleeved shirts on warm days to cover up the bruises formed by a crushing grip. His dark moods were the reprieve. The violence and the swearing, the drugs- what he could get a hold of, mainly painkillers- and sometimes, the alcohol. Riku had seen some of it but once he realized the extent he'd kicked himself, for not being there, and made him promise to not let it happen again.
Was he really letting this happen again? Burying away his problems from Riku, trying to hide him from the pain his family brought? God he was sick of it. He just want to yell and scream and possibly bite an answer from him, but he refrained. Last time he'd been calm, come to Riku when he couldn't bear it, and let him help him fix it. If that was what it was going to take, the silverette would just stand by him for as long as it did.
Finally, he let out a sigh slowly releasing his grip on Vanitas and reigning his temper in, feeling guilt and shame wash over him. He looked away, swallowing a lump in his throat.
"Fine. I'll drop it."
"…Thank you, Riku" Vanitas whispered, before coughing a bit. Riku gave him a wary look.
"You know why you're coughing like that, right?" he muttered, and Vanitas folded his arms, but the look on his face said it all.
"I am going to quit, Ri. Just…give me some time. I know they don't actually help anything, but at least while I'm smoking I feel a little in control over the things around me."
Riku sighed, also folding his arms, before shaking his head gently. "Sorry…just…anything that can shorten your lifespan doesn't sit well in my books."
Vanitas froze for a second, before rubbing his hair awkwardly. "Oh…" he murmured, going very quiet. This silence sat between them for a few minutes, before the raven slowly shook his head, stepping down the hallway.
"It's Friday. Maybe we should get some take out delivered and take the night off?"
"The night off?" Riku asked, raising his eyebrows. "How do you think that'd sit with Aris?"
"What does he care?" Vanitas said with a shrug, flipping through delivery pamphlets that sat in the front drawer. "The ban's probably because he's busy getting so shit-faced he can't hunt. Haven't you noticed, Ri? He's drinking himself into oblivion."
"So should we really be taking the night off, then?"
"Ri, we're not even really hunting vamps right now. Why don't you call up that log-head guy and ask him? Hell, they're the ones supposed to be awake at night."
"Terra's Marked, Vanitas" Riku retorted.
"Ok, sorry. You guys are the ones who are supposed to be up at night. You can go out if you like. I want a full night's sleep, for once. And seafood. And video games."
Riku narrowed his eyes at him, before exhaling, dragging his fingers through his hair. "Found the fish n' chips pamphlet yet?" Riku asked, and Vanitas gave him a big, cheesy grin.
"Knew you couldn't resist."
Vanitas and Riku spent the rest of their night doing exactly that. They order a crapton of seafood, pulled out their games and spent their evening trying to best each other at video games.
Around nine 'o' clock or so, Vanitas got a phone call. A phone call from Cloud. Riku heard every word, and was on his feet before he could think. The first and only thought in the silverette's mind was the fact that Leon and Cloud had been spending a lot of time together, and Leon was getting dangerous.
"Let's go" said Riku, and Vanitas nodded, leaping out of his chair. Riku hastily grabbed his keys and they burst out of the front door, shaking fingers locking the door tight before they jumped into the SUV and drove in the direction of Gold Saucer.
"What do you think's going on?" Vanitas asked, his eyes a little wide. Riku's jaw clenched down, and he said nothing, but Vanitas could see his tension, especially with how white his knuckles were against the steering wheel. They lapsed into an uncomfortable silence, both boy's minds buzzing with ideas.
When they arrived, the entrance was beginning to buzz with police vehicles, and Riku's stomach sank into his bowels, his mind freezing up. Had Leon actually done something?
He hated the idea. He knew from his own experiences that just thinking about doing anything to people made ferocious waves of guilt nearly choke him to death; he couldn't imagine how Leon would feel if he'd acted on those instinctive impulses.
"Over there!" Vanitas called, pointing into the car park, well away from the police vehicles. Riku drove over, peering out the window.
Leon was leaning on Cloud, looking pale and sick, but clean of any sort of violent-outburst indicators. His nose was pressed into Cloud's neck, clinging onto him for dear life.
Vanitas wound down the window to ask what was going on, only to be smacked in the face with his own motorbike keys. Rather than letting his friend investigate, Riku drove off in search for the Void Gear.
The raven rubbed his face, pouting a bit. "Riku, seriously. Are you and Leon not talking or something? He really didn't look well."
No, he didn't. And that was exactly why Riku wanted Vanitas as far away from him as possible.
"I just don't like the situation, alright?" he said, as they found the bike, parked contently a few metres down from where the blue Coupe DeVille had been, which had already been swallowed by the night. Vanitas grumbled under his breath, grabbing his keys and helmet and shoving open the SUV's door.
"You can be such a fucking hypocrite sometimes, you know that?" he snapped, before slamming the door shut and leaving Riku alone in the vehicle.
The silverette let out a long, exhausted sigh. He was right, of course. He'd demanded answers, but he was keeping things from Vanitas in his own way.
Without the presence of Vanitas in the car, the trip home was almost physically painful. Riku felt really bad about just running off on Leon and Cloud, and really hoped they were both ok; Leon in not doing anything he'd regret, and Cloud...not being the recipient of it.
He exhaled, pulling into the driveway, Vanitas having already put his bike away and headed inside. Stepping out of the car, Riku drew in a deep breath of night air, stoically reminding himself that the neighbour's cat was not free game, no matter how intensely his instincts insisted it was.
He wasn't sure he could forgive himself for killing a domesticated cat.
He headed inside, had a snack and decided that these issues were better dealt with after a good rest.
Riku's brain, however, had other plans.
Rather than letting him get the refreshing sleep he needed, his weird thoughts over the past week decided to culminate into some very intense, very awkward dreams about Vanitas. It was broken and fragmented like most dreams, of course, but he got the basic idea of what said dreams were conveying. As did his body, since he woke up the next morning feeling uncomfortably hot and bothered under his covers with a raging hard on, still able to kind of feel the pressure of leather straps against his skin.
Fuck.
He proceeded to slam his head repeatedly into his pillow, thinking of the most unsavory things he could in an attempt to calm himself down. A cold shower would be on the cards if not for the fear of a run in with the raven; the dreams were still circulating through his head.
What the hell was he supposed to do here? He'd slowly become aware that he felt more for his best friend than just friendship, but he just wasn't in a position to act or tackle those feelings. And now they were leaking into his dreams as a result.
A low, annoyed groan escaped his throat, and he slowly pulled himself out of bed, rubbing his fingers through knotty hair. He didn't have to be up- thank fuck for Saturdays- but he didn't want to risk drifting off again and encountering more dreams of the same vein.
He stumbled out of bed, his erection having finally gone down, and pulled on some casual, It's-Saturday-and-I'm-doing-fuck-all clothes.
The house was still darkened thanks to the shut blinds, so he walked downstairs, just as Terra slipped through the kitchen window. Vanitas was eating breakfast, a newspaper on the table. The raven smirked, his hair falling across his eyes.
"Ya know, you could use the door" he commented, eating a spoonful of wheat-o's.
"Even he can do the creepy greeting thing" Terra muttered, and Vanitas chuckled.
"Who else would come through the fucking window, Terra?" he asked, and Terra made an inquiring face.
"He has a point" he eventually murmured, dropping inside properly and putting his delivery away, before looking at the two of them.
"Did you hear about Gold Saucer?" he asked, and Riku raised his eyebrows. Vanitas, however, glanced up from his paper.
"Some guy named Sephiroth killed fourteen or fifteen people in the Battle Square" he said, leaning on his chair. "He's got a long list of...offenses."
Riku folded his arms. "Anything of interest to us?"
"Not to us personally, no. But he burnt down half of Cloud's home town- Nibelheim. I'd remembered hearing the name when my dad talks about my uncle. The fire killed his mother- there's this big report in here."
"Yeah, well... Depending on Sephiroth's next move, this area could become ground zero for supernatural creatures" said Terra. "Or at least, the supernaturally involved. Shinra's already here, and if this continues the Organization will get involved. My Master says that if that happens, there's no doubt Xehanort will show up."
"...Xehanort?" Vanitas inquired, raising an eyebrow.
"A Pureblood. He was the one who bit Ven, but that's about all we know" he said, sighing.
"What's so attractive about having two hunting groups in town?" Vanitas asked, and Terra folded his arms.
"Master suspects he has something to settle with hunters, but I'm not entirely sure on the details. Sorry I can't tell you more, really."
Riku sighed, massaging his bird-nest hair. His thoughts were interrupted by the home phone ringing loudly.
"Who the hell calls at this time on Saturday?!" Vanitas snapped. His gold eyes were blazing with annoyance as Riku went over and picked up the phone.
"Is Cloud with you?!"
Riku blinked at the phone, his brain taking a few moments to catch up. The sentence had almost been screeched into the phone, making the silverette jump.
"Uh...no?"
"Fuck!"
Riku's face became extremely confused, before he drew in a deep breath.
"Ok, Leon, you're going to have to explain what's going on."
The silverette was met with an audible, frustrated (and very inhuman) growl, which he met with a growl of his own. He hasn't eaten yet this morning, and just the fact Leon was on the phone was pissing him off. The fact that Riku had growled back seemed to jar Leon back to his senses, since the next sound was a panicked breath of air.
"Cloud flipped his shit. I don't know what the hell happened. He ran out of my apartment after a nightmare, screaming his lungs out and I can't find him."
"He's just...disappeared?" Riku asked slowly.
"Yep. No hide or hair to be found. I can't even pick up his scent, for fuck's sake. And with that Sephiroth guy in town, and him being crazy...I'm going out of my fucking mind."
Riku swallowed, as Vanitas walked over, taking the phone from him.
"We're gonna help you find Cloud" he said firmly, and Riku's eyes widened.
"Van-"
"He's my family, y'know. And with crazy running so deep, we have to look out for each other. Me and Ri will meet up with you first, scope out a search area, and we'll fan out from your place."
"Sounds like a plan" Leon murmured from the phone. "Alright. Thank you, Vanitas."
"No problem. You helped me search for Riku, after all" he said cheerfully, before they exchanged good-byes and he hung up.
"We didn't take him, for the record" said Terra. "We have our hands full enough with Riku and Aqua."
"That's really not reassuring, 'cause Cloud's involved with Sephiroth" said Vanitas, tapping the paper. "It might be a coincidence, but Cloud was at Gold Saucer last night- the two seemed pretty tied up. And it's not like the daylight's of any consequence, since Sephiroth's reported as faeborn."
Riku folded his arms. He didn't like this situation at all, especially not with how Leon had been acting recently. And the idea of Vanitas being around him had him bristling anxiously.
"I dunno what problem you've sudden developed with Leon lately" said Vanitas, seeming to read his mind. Or his emotions? He'd almost forgotten about that 'ability' of his. "But I owe him a favour, he's my friend, and Cloud's my family. Even if we don't know each other all that well just yet. So…if you're gonna continue acting like a peeved hedgehog, fine. Stay here. But I'm gonna help out this time."
Riku rubbed his eye with the palm of his hand. "Give me fifteen minutes to eat and change, ok?"
"Alright. I need to get dressed too" Vanitas said with a shrug, leaving the room. Terra glanced over to Riku, his arms still folded.
"So you haven't told him about Leon?"
"Haven't had a chance" Riku muttered, putting a hand on his hip. "I might...before we leave. Just so he knows what I'm so riled up about."
"Mm. Well, I need to go check up on Aqua. See you later, Riku" said the brunette, who, for once, decided to leave via the front door.
Riku headed upstairs and hastily got changed, most of his time consumed by combing his silver locks. Sometimes he seriously considered cutting it, but it'd taken him a while to grow it out after a particularly...fiery...incident, thanks to Lea-"I swear to god, that's not my lighter"-also-known-as-Axel-got-it-memorized.
Riku snorted inwardly at the thoughts. They probably weren't all that amusing to other people, but Vanitas always said Riku had a weird sense of humour.
He headed down the stairs, his raven-haired friend waiting at the bottom of the stairwell for him, helmet tucked under his arm and an impatient look on his face.
"Five more minutes" Riku said, skidding into the kitchen to have something to eat. His inner vampire had been getting increasingly pissed off with him for leaving it so long after Terra had already come and gone, but Riku was taking it as a challenge to improve his self-restraint.
He tugged out one of the blood bags, his jaw giving him a sharp, painful stab of pain as his teeth elongated, and he ripped the corner from the blood bag, drinking deeply from it.
It only took him a minute to polish off the bag (less than the time it'd take to drink two cups of water, at least) and he wiped his mouth carefully before going back out into the foyer.
"Done now?" his friend asked, tapping his foot.
"Yes, yes, let's go" said Riku, before stopping. "Wait."
"Oh my fucking god." Didn't even censor the fucking. Yep, he'd had enough.
"This is important" Riku protested, and Vanitas scoffed at him, spinning on his heel and striding toward the door.
"If this is about Leon, I honestly do not care at this point. I want to find Cloud, that's all there is to it" he said, before walking out the front door.
Riku groaned under his breath, rubbing his eye with his palm. His delay in saying something had just made the situation worse, and Vanitas wasn't aware and didn't want to hear it. Anxiety was swelling painfully in Riku's chest, making him tense and fidgety. As much as finding the blonde swordsman was a priority, he just wished Vanitas wasn't so set on it like he was.
He sighed. He was being petty and he knew it. Hypocritical, too. He'd lost the right to judge Leon before he'd actually found out about the brunette's condition, so this kind of behaviour toward him was nigh-cruel. But he couldn't help it- the fear he'd felt when he realized Leon wasn't just a dhampir persisted, and it'd been steadily growing since Wednesday.
This week had gone forever, or at least that's what it felt like. He hoped this sensation didn't persist too often, or else he was going to be experiencing one slow-ass eternity.
He dismissed the thoughts, stepping outside and locking the door, before starting the trip to Leon's.
Leon and Vanitas were already talking by the time Riku showed up, which made his chest clench up with anxiety that he struggled to push back. He parked the SUV, pulling out his weapons and walking over to them.
Leon was standing in a shadow, he noted, and he looked drawn and pale, the worst Riku had seen him. Worry marred his usually stoic features, his blue eyes bright and full of anxious energy.
"Are you alright?" Riku asked, and the brunette scowled at him.
"I'll be alright once we find Cloud" he snapped. "Then nobody has to be out here while there's a psychopath on the loose."
"Sephiroth and Cloud do have a connection, too" said Vanitas, folding his arms. "At least, Sephiroth keeps targeting him for some reason."
Leon's brow twitched, as the man shifted his weight from one foot to the other.
"Let's get this started" he said, and Riku folded his arms.
"...Maybe you should head home."
The glare Leon gave Riku actually made him flinch. He was genuinely looking at him like he was ready to reach out and tear his oesophagus clean out. And even an ordinary, very angry human could do that. Actually, it'd probably hurt less from Leon, since the sharper the cut, the less it hurt.
"I'm not going anywhere until we find Cloud" he stated, trying to keep the anger out of his voice but failing. His emotional façade had slipped, and it wasn't going back up without an effort he seemed too tired to exert.
"We may just end up in more trouble if you don't go home, Leon!" Riku growled in reply. "Or are you going to turn around and tell me this kind of trepidation is misplaced?"
"It's fucking hypocritical, though" said Vanitas, folding his arms and making the leather of his bike garb creak, and the two of them looked at him with surprise on their faces.
"Oh come on, no one attacks someone because they're a hunter and a dhampir!" he said with a dramatic eye roll. "It's like their most common occupation!"
"How'd you know Riku did this to me?" Leon asked curiously.
"Cloud told me" he said with a shrug. "I already knew something had happened, and that was the lie he gave me. I dunno if he was trying to cover yours or Riku's asses, but it's the dumbest thing I've ever heard, and I lived with my dad for thirteen years."
"It's kind of surprising that the person reacting the worst to this situation is Riku" Leon muttered.
"I seem to be the only one acknowledging you're dangerous!" he retorted.
"Cloud knows exactly what I am and still slept on my couch."
"Didn't he run screaming out of your house this morning?" Riku sneered, and instantly regretted it. Leon snarled at him, his eyes flaring bright red as he bared sharpening teeth.
"Don't you fucking dare act as though you know why he's doing this!" he hissed. "It's my fault, but that-"
He swallowed, the red fading out of his eyes and guilt flickering onto his face, his entire body slumping a bit. "I should've told him..."
"Let's go find him" said Vanitas firmly. "Is anyone else looking?"
"Aerith and a few others are" he murmured. "But I don't like that either. I just...I need to find him."
His eyes turned downward, and Riku could swear that he'd never seen the gunblade-wielding man looking so lost and fragile. The look was quickly covered again with his stoic determination, but it'd instantly tied Riku's stomach into a painful knot.
Or perhaps the heavy sense of foreboding that's now settled between them was the cause of it. He felt...numb. Like his mind was semi-disconnecting from his body. Something bad was about to happen, he knew it. It was that feeling you got, when your foot slightly missteps on a staircase and you feel yourself slipping, and there's that brief instance. Of terror, of fear, of knowing this could end so badly. And rather than ending after that split second, like it would upon a true staircase, that feeling persisted in Riku's gut. Vanitas gave Riku a knowing look, clearly knowing what he felt, before putting a hand on Leon's arm, a reassuring, completely friendly gesture. A 'I'm here for you'.
The brunette sighed. "Alright" he said, swallowing. "Let's plan our sweep, and find Cloud."
[a/n: hoo. Things are starting to come together. I think I'm looking at maybe three, four more chapters? Possibly more, but I may, closer to the end, start splitting a chapter in half between Riku and Cloud, since at the end the plot branches off toward one of them more than the other.
I'd love to hear any theories or ideas you guys have on the overall outcome- even I feel as though I've laid a lot of loose threads around. Don't fret- I know where everything goes- it's just an author's curiosity at play. This is probably the most cohesive story I've ever written, to be honest, since I honest to god could answer any question you have for me. That's insane - .
I am looking into doing a...spin-off, but I can't discuss it properly yet because of spoilers. It involves a pairing very popular in the fandom, let's just put it that way. I am not entirely sure yet, since I am not entirely sure on that one's plot, and I don't want to leave people hanging.
Like I am with Tornado.
I'll finish it someday.
Maybe.]
