.:Author's Note:.
Alrighty then. The rest of the author's notes will be written like this from now on okay? If you don't like it well that's just too bad. Well, I'm kind of nervous about how the last chapter went. That was pretty much my first time writing a fight scene and I would've like some input on how it was. There was lots o' drama in the last one, and there'll definitely be some in this chappie too. Alright? Okay, on with the story!
Dislcaimer: don't own KH, nor will I ever own it. Unless of course I somehow find a way to get past all the legal issues...(very doubtful)
dishishmybreakishthingydonotmakefunofthebreakishthingyoriwillsendmypackofrabidsquirellsonyou...
Just What I Needed
It was a nice quiet evening. Leon was leaning on the wall looking cool as always, Yuffie was watching her favorite TV program and singing along to the theme song, and Aerith was sitting on a couch reading her favorite book. She was just getting to the good part when Riku burst through the doorway looking pissed and distressed at the same time. Sora, Kairi, and Takuto, who was carrying Zera, came in after him.
"Aerith get your ass over here now. We need help!" he yelled. She looked up to see a very bloody and battered Yoko in Riku's arms and Zera staring off into nothingness being carried by Takuto. She dropped her book and ran to them immediately.
"Oh my. Leon, Yuffie go get some supplies. You know what I'll need. You two come here with me," Aerith commanded. Leon and Yuffie went to go get what Aerith asked for while Riku and Takuto followed the brunette woman to a room down the hall.
"Lay Yoko down there Riku. Takuto, go put Zera over there on the couch while I work on Yoko," she said. The boys nodded and did as they were told. Kairi and Sora came in right after that, followed by Leon and Yuffie. Aerith tried her best with healing magic, but it wasn't enough. She had lost a lot of blood. The two adults left the room after giving Aerith their things.
The room they were in was like a mini hospital room in a house. It had the heart monitor which she would hook up to Yoko when she was certain she would be stable. There was a machine that had one of those breathing masks set up. Yuffie had brought in an IV pack, which Aerith had asked Kairi to set up while she attended the wounds. She cleaned the ones that were still open and then wrapped bandages around them. She set Yoko's dislocated arm back into place with a sickening crack that everyone cringed at hearing, and put a cast around it. When she was done, she went over to Zera and knelt down before her to observe the damage. There were many, many scratch marks on her body along with bruises that were beginning to form. She saw that she had no broken bones, but if the force had been only a little bit stronger, she may have had some. She used some more curing magic with Kairi helping her, and then cleaned and wrapped the remaining wounds.
Aerith sighed as she finished. Zera had let her do anything and moved when she had asked without saying one thing. She looked up into her eyes and face and saw them both blank and expressionless except for a hint of sadness in her eyes. The poor girl looked broken at what had happened. The older woman felt like crying right then without even having heard the story. She got up and gathered herself before moving to the door. She faced them.
"Alright. Let's go back to the living room so we can discuss what happened. I want to know how they got those wounds, and I'm sure Leon and Yuffie are just as curious," she told them. Everyone got up except for Yoko, who was unconscious, and Zera, who looked as though she wasn't going to move anytime soon. She was staring at Yoko who was lying in the bed unconscious. Just as Aerith was about out of the room, a voice made her jump.
"Will...she be alright?" they heard Zera asked quietly. Aerith just sighed and smiled.
"Yes. She should be fine. Her body is in a comatose state at the moment because it's trying to heal itself, so she may not wake up for a couple of days. Are you alright?" she asked. Zera didn't answer, she just sat there and stared at the heart monitor's line indicating the pulses of Yoko's heart. Aerith sighed again and left the room, leading the others into the other room. 'What happened to make someone who was so hyper and cheerful so broken and sad?' she thought.
Yuffie and Leon were there waiting for them. They all took a seat in silence. Kairi and Sora seat in the middle of a long couch with Takuto on one end and Riku on the other. They waited for someone to say something in an uncomfortable silence. Yuffie coughed, breaking the tension.
"So what happened?" she asked. The four teens all looked in different directions looking saddened. They all seemed reluctant to tell them, but they knew they had to. Kairi took a shuffering breath, trying not to cry as she recalled the events.
"We...were on the clock tower at Neverland. Not really doing anything, but enjoying each other's company," she said. "Then these people in black cloaks come from out of nowhere, and the short one grabbed me. Next thing I know, I'm hanging in the air, being held by the midgit. Then Takuto and Zera come over and they say they know him. He...worked for them, and he was supposed to...take Yoko and Zera to them or something."
"Yeah. He was working for the enemy, and betrayed us all," Riku said accusingly. Takuto stood up.
"I told you, I'm not working for them anymore. I know now that I don't want to hurt Zera or any of you," he said. Riku stood too and glared at him.
"Well it's too late for that you lying bastard!" he yelled. He then pulled back his fist to punch the other, but Sora and Kairi stopped him.
"Riku stop! He may have been working for them before, but he's on our side now!" Sora said as Riku struggled. Kairi began to cry again.
"Riku please!" she cried. "No more fighting. No more fighting..." She trailed off as her grip on him loosened. He stopped his struggles and just stood there with his head down. Sora released him as Kairi sat down on the couch again, cradling her head in her hands. Riku clenched his fists, threw Takuto one more glare, and then stormed out of the room. Takuto sat down again, and looked away from everyone. Sora put a comforting arm around Kairi as he decided to continue the story since he knew Takuto wouldn't.
"...They took Yoko, Zera, and Takuto with them, so we followed them to Hallow Bastion. We got ambushed by an army of heartless, and were dragged down into some tunnels beneath the castle. We were tied to chairs in the same room Takuto was, and then we could see Zera and Yoko through this glass in front of us. Apparently they made us have front row seats for it," he said bitterly.
"For what?" Aerith asked, not liking where this was going.
"We had to watch as Yoko and Zera tried to kill each other. In the end, Yoko let Zera have her way, and she ended up almost killing her best friend because Marla had control over her mind then," Takuto finished quietly.
"B-but they wouldn't...they would never..." Yuffie said, not able to think of the right words.
"According to Takuto, they filled their heads with lies about the other. Plus they managed to pull off the necklaces that keep them from going into their true forms," Sora explained. There was an uncomfortable silence as they waited for someone to continue. The three adults had no idea about the two girls having true forms, or how powerful they were since they hadn't been here since they had first arrived.
"True forms?" Leon asked.
"It's hard to explain, really..." Sora said, trailing off. "All I know is that the true forms have to do something with their past lives. Anyway, now we're here...hoping for the best because that is all we can do now." Kairi wiped the tears away from her eyes and sniffled a little. Sora looked down at her with a frown. He tried to smile to help Kairi cheer up, but couldn't.
"...I'll go make some tea," Aerith said, getting up out of her seat and walking into the kitchen like place. Leon and Yuffie looked at each other and frowned. They remembered when Yoko and Zera first came to Traverse Town and remembered how they acted towards each other. They had never seen two people with a friendship as strong as their, but hearing about their battle made them upset. A few lies had them almost kill each other. It was hard to believe.
dishishmybreakishthingydonotmakefunofthebreakishthingyoriwillsendmypackofrabidsquirellsonyou...
Marla sat up and Kurishi was looking down at her. She rubbed her head and looked at him.
"Ugh...what happened?" she asked him.
"You passed out after Zera sent that surge of power through your mind," Kurishi said.
"What was the outcome of the battle?" she asked. Kurishi smiled evilly.
"I highly doubt Yoko will survive the next day or so," Kurishi said, his smile still in place. Marla smiled and got up. They started to prance around the room, while Amida stood in the corner of the room, watching the two.
"We killed her, we killed her, we killed her!" they sang.
'You better not die, Yoko...Wait a moment...I have an idea,' Amida thought. "I'll be back in a while."
"Where're you going?" Kurishi asked.
"I'm going to go see where they went," Amida said.
"Okay, have fun! Love ya!" Kuishi said, waving to his friend and counterpart. Marla looked up at Kurishi. "Not that way...I'm not gay..."
dishishmybreakishthingydonotmakefunofthebreakishthingyoriwillsendmypackofrabidsquirellsonyou...
Aerith placed the tea on the table and everyone took a cup. All the cups were off the table except for one of them which was Riku's. They didn't know when he would be back, but they knew it would be soon. Kairi just started at the tea for a moment before finally taking a sip. It remained quiet for a while.
"So...is anyone else hurt or is it just those two?" Yuffie asked, trying to start conversation.
"Physically; no. Emotionally; yes," Sora said. Yuffie nodded and didn't speak up again for she had nothing else to say. They all turned their attention to Riku as he entered the room and sat down next to Kairi at the end of the couch. Kairi handed him his tea and he took it.
"Are you okay now?" Leon asked.
"No," Riku said, not looking at Leon. Time passed by and the room remained silent for that time. Riku giving Takuto glares every once in a while, tears filling Kairi's eyes, and Sora filled with concern. Aerith got up from her seat as did Yuffie, they walked down the hallway, and opened the door to the room where Yoko and Zera was.
"Zera?" Yuffie said. The girl looked at Yuffie, still no expression in her face and eyes. "We have a room set up for you so you can get some rest. Can you get up?" Zera turned her head and didn't look at Yuffie, who then frowned. She picked the sad girl up and carried her into the next room, placing her on the bed. Yuffie walked over to the door and was about to close it when she looked back at Zera.
"Don't worry, everything will be okay," she said. "Promise." Zera just lay there. She frowned again and closed the door, hoping Zera would get some rest.
"How is she?" Leon asked as Yuffie closed the door. She sighed.
"I don't know. She won't say anything, and isn't really responding to anything right now. Hopefully she'll be at least somewhat better tomorrow," she told him. He nodded grimly, and they both walked to their rooms. Aerith showed everyone else to their rooms, and they all went to sleep uneasily.
The next day passed with nothing really happening. Zera only got up to go sit by a window, and just stare into space. She wouldn't eat too much when they brought her food. Riku spent most of the day in Yoko's room, and got into a few more fights with Takuto. Sora and Kairi would always hear the two yelling, and were able to stop it before it got too out of hand. Over all, there was a depressing air around the house that brought down everyone's spirits. They were all concerned about the two girls, and wondered when the would recover.
The next day arrived and Sora, Kairi, and Takuto were all sitting in the kitchen eating breakfast. Zera walked in, and they stared at her as she got herself a glass of water. She looked at them as she took a sip.
"I'm thirsty," she said quietly, and went back to drinking the liquid.
"Good to see you're doing better," Sora said, forcing a smile. She looked down.
"Don't worry about me. Worry about Yoko," she said, and then walked out of the room. He and Kairi looked at each other with worry in their eyes, but didn't follow her. Takuto got up and went after her without a word.
"Zera? Zera wait up," he said as he went after her. She stopped and waited for him to catch up. She didn't look at him.
"Yes?" she asked.
"Are you alright? Well...no, I know you aren't alright, but...how are you?" he asked, not sure what to say. He didn't even know if she still liked him.
"I don't know. I know this is all my fault, so if you guy want to blame me then go ahead. Do what you want because I know it is my fault and no one elses," she told him. He looked at her with sad eyes. He pulled her into a hug, and she let him. She didn't push him away, but didn't return it either.
"Zera, I'm so sorry. I never meant for any of this to happen. True, I had when we first met, but then I got to know you and everyone else. And I don't want to hurt you or any of our friends any more than I have. And...I really hope you don't hate me. Because I still love you so much," he said. He released the hug and looked into her eyes. "And if you don't return it any more, then I understand."
He gave her a small smile. Zera looked up into his eyes and tears began to form again. She jumped at him, attacking him with hug, and began crying her eyes out while burying her head in his chest. He looked a little surprised at her sudden outburst, but smiled and hugged her back. He whispered soothing things into her ear while he rubbed her back in small circles.
"I'm...so...sorry. I di..dn't...mean t..o...hurt..her. I..didn't...want..to, " she sobbed, apologizing over and over again.
"It's okay. I don't blame you. I know you didn't do it intentionally. It;s okay Zera. I'm here," he said. Aerith walked in and looked like she was about to say something, but didn't when she saw the two. Takuto gave her a small smile, telling her that he was handling it. Aerith nodded. There was a knock on the door.
"I'll get it," she said. Takuto nodded, and moved Zera and himself to the couch to sit down. They were still hugging and she was still crying, but not as much. Finally she stopped completely except for her shaking shoulders, but she continued to hold onto Takuto.
"Feel better?" he asked. She hugged him tighter and nodded. She held on for a few more minutes, and the let go. She lied down with her head on his lap, knowing e wouldn't mind, and looked up at him. He brushed her hair away from her eyes on her forehead. For the first time since they had gotten to Traverse Town, she smiled. She lifted her hand up and touched his cheek.
"Thank you," she whispered. He put his hand on top of hers and smiled back.
"Well isn't that cute? Nice to see you smiling again Zera," a female voice said. They looked to the doorway to see Yuffie there. Takuto smiled and looked down at Zera again.
"Yeah. It is."
"Well, I've got something for you Takuto," Yuffie said as she walked over to them. She handed him a piece of paper. "Someone knocked on the door and left. There was a potion on the doorstep along with this note. I think you should read it."
"It will help your friend heal faster. P.S. Takuto, you owe me," he read aloud. His mind registered who it was and he nodded, but knew he couldn't tell them who it was.
"Do you know who it is?" Yuffie asked.
"Nope. Not a clue," he lied. He felt bad for lying to them again, but he had a reason for it.
"Where's...the potion?" Zera asked. She hadn't moved from her spot on Takuto's lap.
"Aerith's giving it to Yoko now," Yuffie told her.
"Actually, I already did," Aerith said as she walked in. "It was a surprisingly strong potion. It should help her heal a lot faster than she would without it. I think her elbow, the dislocated one, is pretty much done healing, thanks to that." Zera smiled.
"That's good to hear," she said. Aerith smiled, happy that her friend wasn't as depressed any more, and finally smiling again. Zera got up from the couch.
"I'm going to check on her if Riku's not in there already," she said. She leaned down and gave Takuto another hug, and whispered another 'thank you' as she got up, and then walked away.
"I'm so glad she's smiled again. What did you do?" Aerith said when Zera was out of ear shot. He smiled and looked at the place he saw Zera last.
"She needed a shoulder to cry to, and I gave it to her. I told her what her heart needed to hear," he told them. 'Just like I needed someone to help pull me from the darkness,' he thought.
"Well that's nice to hear! Good job Takuto," Yuffie said with a smile.
"I'll go see if she wants some tea," Aerith said, and then left through the doorway Zera had gone through. Suddenly the door slammed open and she saw Zera with wide, frightened eyes. The shaken girl spotted her and pulled her into Yoko's room where the heart monitor was beeping like crazy. Yoko's face gave way to a small expression of pain. Aerith rushed to the unconscious girl's side as her legs gave out some spasms.
"Zera! Hold her legs down. I don't want her to get her to hurt herself again," she said as she took the breathing mask off and stuck two fingers in Yoko's mouth to keep the girl from biting her tongue. She used her other arm to hold down her upper body, while Zera did what she was told and held down her legs. Eventually the spasms stopped and Aerith sighed in relief as she stood up, took out her fingers, and replaced the breathing mask. Her two fingers were bleeding a little from bite marks. Zera sat down slowly, not taking her eyes off of her friend.
"Wh-what just…happened?" she asked, her voice trembling. She had though Yoko would be okay, not have random spasms. Aerith looked up at her from wrapping her fingers.
"Her body might be rejecting the potion," she replied. Zera looked at her with wide eyes. "But don't worry. That wasn't really supposed to happen, but the potion will work. I don't think it will happen again. Thank you for your help." Zera relaxed a bit, and shook her head.
"Mm-mm. Thank you. I didn't know what to do, so I'm glad I found you so soon. I really hope she'll be okay and wake up soon," she said, looking back at Yoko. Aerith walked up to her and put a hand on the girl's shoulder.
"We all do. And she will, don't worry. I'll bring you some tea to calm your nerves okay?" she said. Zera simply nodded, and then the older woman left.
She woke up the next morning feeling more anxious than she should. Then again she had been anxious for the last three days, so it seemed kind of normal. But today it was worse than the other days. She got out of her bed, and didn't bother changing out of her pajamas, which were light blue pants and a dark blue cami.
She walked down the hall, intending to get breakfast. Everyone was probably already up. Her room was the only one in the same hall as the one that held Yoko's. There was a strange absence of something as she stopped a bit before the door to Yoko's room. Her mind finally registered that it wasn't an absence, but that it was now just one sound. A hallow sound she wished she would never hear.
Zera sprinted into her friend's room and stared at the monitor in disbelief. 'No…she can't be…' she thought as she ran out of the room and into the dining room where everyone else was eating. They stared at her sobbing form.
"Sh-she…she's dead!" she said finally.
dishishmybreakishthingydonotmakefunofthebreakishthingyoriwillsendmypackofrabidsquirellsonyou...
.:Author's Note:.
Hey yo! Ooh, look at my pathetic attempt at a cliffhanger. Joyous. I'm not very happy with the length, or the title, but it'll just have to do. Please tell me what you think! Reviews are nice and make me smile, constructive criticism helps me, and flames…well, flames let me make s'mores. Review people. It's good for your health!