A/N: I WILL END THIS A SOKAI. HOLD YER HORSES, PEOPLE. Italics, when in paragraphs, are flashbacks. Rated T for language, suggestive themes, and violence. Cripes, I sound like a video game.
Disclaimer: No. I don't.
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XXI: Blood Spilled
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Cough cough cough.
Professor Vandalise muttered, and coughed, and blinked; all at the same time. He usually did that when he was forced to sit down for long periods. Too bad he was the Academy Registrar. His eyes had already started to itch; sorting files yellowed with age was not fun.
The door to his office swung open, and one of the newly hired professors walked in--well, actually, two of them. Pfft. It had been rather...suspicious, their hiring.
Tossing his mahogany braid back over his shoulder, Vandalise pushed his glasses up his nose and motioned for Zexion to come closer, Larxene clinging to his hand. Hm. For the months they had been teaching here, the pair had been almost inseparable; Larxene was lucky to have a man such as that. And the pair were hell good at what they did--Never had the course had so many passing students. There was a rumor going around, though, that Professor Zexion was using darkness as his weapon of choice. Pfft. He dismissed it as utter poppycock--it seemed as true as Organization XIII. Ha.
"Yes?"
"We..." the blue-haired scientist glanced uneasily at the blonde mage. "We have word from Sora Hikari--"
As much as Vandalise didn't like to widen his eyes, he was forced to do so, because of the sheer impact of the words "Sora" and "Hikari". Probably one of the most famous students in Destiny Academy. "What?"
Zexion frowned. "He requests his enrollment be cancelled."
He froze. "W-what...? I mean, Hikari's not been attending for --"
"Exactly my point."
Vandalise stared at him suspiciously. "And how do I know this is true? Why can't the boy himself do this?"
This time, it was Larxene who spoke up. "He's in no condition to...do that, by himself."
"I don't believe you."
The two exchanged glances, and sighed resignedly. Zexion spoke up.
"Fine, Professor Vandalise. We do this the hard way."
"What do you mean--"
Strands of darkness suddenly rose from the ground, and the room suddenly had more than the obnoxious smell of paperwork. Ugh...it was straight out of that Hikari boy's tales; darkness enclosing the heart and--
Oh.
"What the bloody hell! Zexion!" he yelled, scrambling to his feet and drawing out his own weapon; a three-foot long single-edged sword. Were they trying to kill him or something?
"Believe us when we say the Wielder can't do this on his own," Larxene said quietly. She raised her hand and three kunais coalesced into her fingers. From thin air. Okay. Vandalise, breathe. These are just two bloody teenagers with raging hormones; you, on the other hand, has had twenty years of battle experience.
He forced a smile. "If you wanted a duel, you should've just asked."
Zexion ran a hand through his hair tiredly. "All Sora wanted was to cancel his enrolment."
The strands of darkness continued to rise.
"Professor Vandalise," the blonde tilted her head thoughtfully. "This time, you can trust Organization XIII's word."
Vandalise burst into laughter -- they really thought that stupid group of kids existed? Obviously, Zexion was just beginning to dabble in the arts of black magic, and this priestess-girl was in for the ride. Poor, delusional teenagers. "Good lord, do you really believe those nincompoops exist?"
The two exchanged glances again, a look that plainly said 'The old geezer doesn't believe us. Should we kill him now?', but he took it as 'Oh God, we're screwed, Vandalise doesn't believe us'.
"We are part of those...nincompoops, Vandalise," Zexion said coldly, walking backwards until he disappeared into the shadows.
"Never insult the Thirteenth Order," this time, it was Larxene who spoke up. "Especially not number Twelve!" she hissed, and she threw her three kunais at him. However, he deflected it easily with his sword.
"You may think you're good, number Twelve," he said mockingly, "But children like you don't stand a chance against me!"
He blocked four more kunais. The girl seemed to be on endless supply of them. No matter. After this little incident, he'd never see their faces again. He'll make sure they got fired -- they deserved it.
"Vandalise."
His blood froze. That was Zexion whispering in his ear in a very dangerous voice. "Don't insult my Larxene."
He once again, forced a smile. "What are you going to do about it?"
"I can kill you."
Vandalise jabbed his elbow backwards, but all he met was empty air. When he looked up, he saw Zexion staring at him calmly, and Larxene still had at least five kunais ready to throw.
"I told him to do this himself," the girl huffed, and spun on her feet. "I'll call him..."
"He's probably in Fragment Crossing."
He raised an eyebrow. What were they talking about? Fragment Crossing? Call him? Was this supposed to scare him or something?
"After this, I'll make sure you two never step foot in this school again," he said coolly.
"Vandalise," Larxene paused, back turned to him. "I never really wanted to teach in this academy in the first place."
"Give up this stupid charade of Organization XIII. I may overlook the fact that you tried to kill --" the words died in his throat, as Larxene summoned what looked very much like a portal, and stepped inside with a whispered 'Keep it open' to Zexion.
A legendary portal to the Corridors of darkness. Something he himself had studied, but never had the resources to see. The only beings, according to the textbooks, that could open the corridors were of the realm of darkness.
Oh. And Sora had told them that this Organization XIII was of the realm of darkness.
Could it be? Were these people telling the truth?
"What! You could've just let me portal here! I could've practiced, you know!"
A boyish voice snapped him out of his thoughts. He shivered involuntarily as he stared at the portal, because that voice sounded awfully familiar.
"You could've done it on your own, Wielder," Larxene huffed, hands firmly on Sora's shoulders, marching him out of the portal.
Sora...?
Vandalise screamed, and fainted.
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He sped (not actually sped, for quick-running was prohibited in the halls. Let's just say he's power-walking) down the pristine white corridors of Destiny Academy, the crowd parting for the legendary Riku to walk through. The boy was a legend; varsity blitzball goalie (Tidus had taken over the captain post), brilliant student, student body chair, and of course, Knight of Disney Castle.
However, one legend overshadowed his: the enigma that was Sora Hikari.
Well, he couldn't do anything about that.
No matter how he interrogated Roxas and Naminé, he couldn't get answers to his questions. And he had tried asking them for months now. All the two Nobodies said was that they were all good and fine (like being a Nobody could actually be considered good).
...and it was actually nice to watch how Roxas coped without his Keyblades. The blonde confided to them that Xemnas had forbidden him to wield the huge Keys, in fear of being discovered as Sora's Nobody. Not that anyone here believed in Nobodies and such. Speaking of Nobodies. Zexion was doing a pretty good job as Lifestream Physics professor. Well, screw 'pretty good', Number Six (as Roxas had told him) was superb in his own element -- in every departamental exam that his class had taken, they had a 98 passing rate. Even year II had coped with year III Physics, and some of them were even better than students older than them. Riku himself had been, in the very least, stunned to see that he had recieved full marks on one particularly grueling long exam (Never mind that the almost the whole class had gotten almost perfect marks).
Roxas and Naminé had told him that there were another two Organization members teaching in the Academy...Riku's blonde Healing Arts teacher was actually number Twelve, the Savage Nymph (too bad she didn't add it to her credentials...then she'd probably be a legend herself). And that Professor Kisaragi was actually Zexion's girlfriend.
- - - - -
"And yeah...Larx's Zexion's...uhh," Roxas trailed off, grimacing.
"Girlfriend. Yeah," Naminé finished for him, before spearing a leaf of lettuce and chewing on it. She spat out the onion and went on ,"it's pretty complicated...Axel likes Larx too. Don't look at me like that, Rox."
Riku stared at her. "No offense, but I thought Nobodies couldn't exactly love."
Roxas choked on a crouton.
The blonde girl stifled a laugh.
"We remember how to feel, Riku," number Thirteen said flatly.
Naminé stifled a laugh once more.
- - - - -
The other professor was number Eight, Flurry of Dancing Flames, Axel Fujiwara. Riku had caught rumors of the temperamental pyromaniac -- he had, reportedly, burned down Pavilion III of the Spellcasting building, much to the delight of the students. Axel was known as the most approachable professor -- they said, most of the time, he acted not as a teacher, but one of the students.
That was seriously cool. Riku wished he had Spellcasting instead of World's History.
Panting, he skidded to a stop in front of room 305. He sighed in relief when he saw the professor hadn't dismissed their class yet. He sneaked a peek inside, and found the redwine-haired girl studiously taking down notes. Materia Handling was her favorite subject, after all.
Kairi. He grinned at nothing in particular, making some girls shoot suggestive looks his way. He didn't notice them, however.
Kairi Dalmasca. His girlfriend.
- - - - -
Today was the day. Wooh. Riku should be jumping with joy now, but instead, he's feeling like someone emptied a ton of psychedelically-colored butterflies in his stomach.
He'd watched her cry.
He'd watched her get mad.
He'd watched her swear that someday he'd pay.
He'd watched her break down and cry once again.
All Kairi needed was someone...and Riku had a hunch that someone was him. Ah. He had had a crush on her ever since they were ten. Him and Sora had fought over her, yet the girl had fallen in love with his brunette comrade.
He tried to understand and keep silent, yes he did. But when Sora left...the old feelings came back.
Oh cripes, Kairi looked so helpless. He HAD to do something.
So WHY was he still standing here, at the edge of the school grounds, watching the red-haired girl sleep under a huge, leafy, and very fiery fire tree? It was straight out of a postcard -- an angel asleep under a blizzard of fiery orange petals. Beside her, Selphie yawned, and stretched her arms. The brunette nudged Kairi a little bit, but she only shifted slightly. Shrugging, Selphie got up, and left a Post-it stuck to Kairi's binder.
Okay, Riku. You've fought Roxas, you've fought Ansem's Heartless, you've fought Maleficent, and you've fought the darkness of your heart, and you've won all of those. This should be a piece of cake.
Now that he thought about it, he'd rather fight Maleficent once again.
Steeling himself, he cut across the grass and walked to Kairi, who was still asleep. Pssh. It was after school, anyway. He could take the whole afternoon if he wanted.
It would be much, much easier if the grounds were empty. Unfortunately, it was packed with the usual student crowd after dismissal -- people training, casting spells, gossiping, or staring around...like what they were doing right now.
Trying to smile casually, Riku sat down, cross-legged, in front of the slumbering Princess of Heart. Staring at her seemed to calm him. Yeah. He could stare at her the whole day (not that he hadn't done that before). He watched as Kairi shifted her position, and as a result, toppled off-balance onto the soft grass. He couldn't help but chuckle.
"Riku! Stop laughing!" she pouted indignantly, standing up and dusting herself off. Hmm. If Riku looked close enough, he might be able to see under her skirt. He smirked, and Kairi hit him on the head. "You pervert!"
"Can't help myself--" he tried to explain, but he was laughing too hard at the amount of red now suffusing Kairi's face.
The girl knelt and punched him playfully in the chest. "Oh, shut it."
"Like that actually hurt."
"Just because you're a knight now..." she trailed off, apparently unable to think of a witty comeback. "Uh."
Riku fought the urge to pounce and just pin Kairi to the tree and kiss the living daylights out of her. Gah. Hormonal imbalance right here. He blushed involuntarily.
"What?" Kairi asked, peering up at him. "Why're you all red, Riku-poo?" she giggled at the use of her (proudly made-up; Riku swears something had gotten into Kairi, that morning after the Knighting) nickname for him. It sent shivers down his spine everytime she used it, because it sounded dangerously close to a term of endearment normally reserved for couples.
"U-uh," he spluttered.
NOW OR NEVER.
Wooh.
"What! Spill it!" she hollered, crawling nearer to him.
"I...Gah! Kairi! I..." he gulped, willing himself not to pass out. "I like you, okay!"
Her eyebrows furrowed. "Like yeah. I like you too."
His eyes widened, and he slapped himself mentally. Not that, Kai!he wanted to scream.
"What! Riku Alcaia!" she exclaimed in a very dangerous voice, her eyes narrowing. "Wooh. You did something that's going to make me mad, didn't you? What the heck did you do?"
"I fell in love with you," the words slipped out of his lips quietly.
Oops.
He didn't really mean to say that. He was supposed to declare his undying love for her in a much more manlier way...sweep her off her feet if you will. Not like that! So...melodramatic!
Kairi had sat back down on the grass inaudibly. She had her eyes closed, and she was taking deep, calming breaths. Riku knew that she knew that he had a crush on her for the longest time, but was wise enough to stay out of her and Sora's way. But now that the other Keyblade Master was gone...
"You do know, Riku," she said to no one in particular, staring up into the branches of the fire tree, "that Sora has a place reserved in my heart."
He cringed, and fought the urge to throw up. Oh cripes, he should have known, however Kairi acted, she still loved--
"...but I'm willing to open my heart once again."
Riku glanced up, and aquamarine met blue-violet.
"Don't worry," she blinked, as if still surprised from what she had said. "You're not in Sora's shadow. I love you as Riku, and as Riku only."
"You...you love me?" he was unable to stop himself. "Kairi? I've only asked you now, and--"
Her bottom lip trembled, and she bowed her head. "You're here with me. You're with me. It's all that matters. You didn't leave me alone..."
He cringed once again. Great. A declaration of love, and he made her cry. Yeah. Way to go, Mr. Smooth. Riku set his messenger bag aside and reached out a hand to pat her on the back--
--and ended up with an armful of sobbing Princess.
"Kairi..." he said softly, stroking her hair. The grin he had been suppressing finally managed to worm its way out...nevermind that his heart was galloping. Kairi loved him. That was all that mattered.
"Thank you, thank you," she was whispering over and over, her tears staining the white of his uniform. "Riku, thank you..."
- - - - -
That was seven months ago.
He grinned again. So far, so good. The bell rung, and students burst out of the classroom and spilled out into the hall into small groups. Riku picked up her scent, and she immediately appeared out of the sea of faces.
"Kairi!"
"Riku," she grinned, and he swept her up in a tight embrace. He never, ever got tired of her scent...she always smelt of strawberries. Probably because her entire bathroom amenities was of the fruit. He should know; he gave her the set. It gladdened him to know that the redhead used his gift.
"C'mon," she said, unwrapping herself and motioning to him. "Let's get some ice cream, I'm starving!"
She bounced down the hall, giggling all the way. Riku watched her bemusedly...it was much better to see this; her happy instead of brooding over Sora. It was nice to know that he, Riku, made her happy.
"Riku!" she called, looking over her shoulder. "What are you waiting for?"
"Yeah, Kai," he sped up, and fell into step beside her.
He smiled, and blushed, lowering his head, as he felt Kairi's small and warm hand intertwine with his.
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"Seriously. You didn't actually have to kill him."
Sora rolled one normal eye, knowing that there was no way in hell he could visibly roll his other Heartless eye. He then stuck out his tongue at Zexion for good measure. "What? He attacked me first."
"But not to kill," Larxene pointed out, straightening herself and letting Vandalise's wrist fall limp on the floor.
"He thought I was a Heartless, Larx," he defended, wiping off the Dark Keyblade on the professor's white uniform. Hell yeah he did! As soon as he revived his former Academy registrar, professor Vandalise had slashed his sword into Sora's stomach. Now that he thought about it, Sora glanced down at his vest disdainfully. Cripes...another night with needle and thread.
"Sora, you are half-Heartless," Zexion reminded him, helping Larxene step over the body and off the pool of blood.
"That's not what I meant," he growled, shaking off the blood from his fingers. He pulled out a tetra pack of paopu-flavored blood from a belt pocket, and took a long sip. "So...what do we do with this?"
"It's your mess," number Six said flatly, before casually wiping his shoes clean with a scrunched-up exam paper. Larxene did the same, and they chucked the used balls of pulp into the Corridors. "You fix it."
"Awww," he said resignedly, scratching his head and taking another sip. The blood seemed to invigorate him; and he had already gotten used to drinking the stuff...he had been drinking it for months now. "Where're you two going?" he smirked. "Getting a room or something...?"
Larxene blushed brightly, but she grinned. "Maybe..."
"Larxene!" Zexion said hotly, blushing furiously himself. "...you're a priestess!"
"Not anymore. Besides, I'm with a guy whose nickname is Zex--"
"Gah! Food! We're going to eat out!"
"See you, Wielder!" she laughed, and pushed the door open.
"...Sora, if you're my partner in training tonight, you're dead," Zexion said in a murderous voice, which was kind of ruined by the fact that he was blushing spectacularly.
"I'm already dead, Zexy!" he said cheerily, "Have fun with Larxene!"
Number Six stiffened slightly, before stomping out the door.
Sora sipped some more, and stared forlornly at Professor Vandalise's body, not a single thought of remorse or guilt entering his train of thought. None had, in the past months. He had completely forgone guilt and remorse.
Pssh. Sighing, Sora decided to let him be...maybe the staff would blame it on a Heartless ambush. Well, Heartless attcks normally left no bodies, but still...and it was partly true. Sora was a half-Heartless. He walked over to the computer terminal and searched through the records, and cancelled his enrollment himself. Pssh. If he had done this in the middle of the night or something, he wouldn't be in this bloody mess.
He spun around on his heels, and wiping his feet on the white (now maroon) doormat, he walked out, into the Academy he once studied in...
...maybe he could see what had happened to his...
...friends...
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"...and so, Tidus just stands up and laughs for no reason at all," Kairi laughed. "Yuna was mad. She refused to talk to him for today."
"Knowing Yuna, she won't stand it," Riku said beside her, the beginnings of a devious grin curling up the edges of his lips. "Wanna bet?"
She narrowed her eyes. "What do you wager?"
He visibly fought to keep a deadpan face, and he stared straight forward. "A kiss," he said slyly.
Kairi raised an eyebrow. "Oh yeah?"
"You're getting kissing lessons from me."
She spluttered, and she squeezed his fingers as hard as she could. "Are you saying I can't kiss good!"
"Hey, you said it yourself," he chuckled, releasing her hand and putting an arm around her shoulders instead, pulling her closer as they walked across the school grounds to the cafeteria. Her last class before dismissal was in the building opposite the school canteen; it made for very long walks and very irritating stares.
She pursed her lips, raising a hand to grasp Riku's. They were still getting stared at.
Don't mind them, KaiKai.
There was that voice once again...but Kairi had learned to listen to it, even rely on it in proper situations. It seemed to be her conscience. She really appreciated it, yes she did, because it was that voice that pushed her to forget him.
"Waaiit, Kai," Riku asked, turning his head to look at her. "What are you wagering?"
She thought for a while, stroking his fingers as she did. She smiled, a smile very similar to Riku's. "Me too. Kissing lessons, Riku."
She could almost hear him smirk.
Giggling, she leant further into him, picking up the faint scent of his cologne; a mixture of the smell of rain and the freshness of green apples...wooh. He smelled good.
"Prepare to lose," he said softly, kissing the top of her head.
"You wish, Riku."
"--and yeah, Pavilion Three'd be good as new...as soon as I burn down Pav Four!" Laughter.
Kairi stopped dead in her tracks, heart pounding in her throat. Riku might've thrown a concerned and bewildered look at her, but she didn't notice.
"Hey, you must be Alcaia! And...oh no."
"You!" she yelled. The fiery red hair, the skinny arms, the two green tattoos, the vividly teal eyes...her kidnapper.
"AXEL!"
-----------------------
Sora raised an arm, and shielded his eyes. There was a good side, and a bad side, to being here in the late afternoon.
Good? The shadows were longer, giving him plenty of opportunities to disappear into darkness (one of Zexion's more useful teachings). Bad? The sun. There was the sun, in all its bright and sunset-y glory. Now, when you've been spending almost all of your days in a place where the sun had no place in...seeing sunlight actually stung.
Pssh. He sighed, and took another sip.
He gazed across the covered walkway--so far, when the cloaking he had woven had slipped, the students though him only as a hallucination-- and his eyes fell on the wide, sun-covered expanse that was the school quadrangle.
Arrgh. It wasn't too long ago that he walked the concrete, carefree and happy. Now...there was no way in hell he'd cross it. Too...sunny.
His carton was almost empty, and he had no other blood-pack on him. Pssh. He could just as easily portal out and get a new one. He decided to carry on his tour elsewhere, when he heard a shrill scream that made him freeze.
It wasn't the scream, but the voice.
Smiling, Sora took the chance, and strolled across the grounds, to the source of the commotion.
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"What are YOU doing here!" Kairi yelled, before pulling herself free of Riku's grasp in a very rough manner. Cripes, Kairi was strong when she was angry.
Axel looked like a deer caught in the headlights... a deer that had just realized that the headlights belonged to a steamroller. The pyromaniac caught his eye. "Well, Alcaia, I think your...girlfriend...is going a bit berserk here..."
He looked like he was in control of the situation, but if Nobodies could feel fear, Axel was most definitely feeling it now. Riku could see that from the way he stood straight, and from the way he stood on alert.
"You bastard! You were the one who kid--"
"Now, now, Dalmasca," Axel said, waving a dismissive hand. "Keep it down..."
A crowd had started to form around them, and some were cheering on Axel. Riku put his hands firmly on Kairi's shoulders, but she broke free of his grip. She looked livid. "Riku! He was the guy who took me to the Castle That Never Was! God, he was the reason me and Naminé almost got killed!"
"Kairi--" he clamped his mouth shut.
Never make a Princess of Heart angry, that he knew.
The redwine-haired girl brought down her hands, palm facing the ground. Almost immediately, a circle of light flared to life underneath her feet, three feet around her in every direction; in which the outline of Kingdom Hearts glowed. Students around her hurriedly backed away; some even screamed, as pillars of light flared up from the ground.
His eyes widened; was this the power a Princess of Heart held?
Axel had already summoned his own chakrams of fire, and held them in a defensive position. Sighing, Riku called to his own Keyblade--
"RELEASE!"
...That was Naminé's voice.
The blonde girl had shouldered him out of the way, and put both pale hands on Kairi's trembling shoulders. His girlfriend swayed slightly on her feet, and the circle faded away.
"Professor Fujiwara!" she said loudly, stomping on Riku's foot as she did. "What a demonstration!"
"Yeah!" Riku said, cottoning on. "Great magic there, prof!"
"Huh?" For a second, Axel looked lost, before brightening up. "Yes, yes, Miss Dalmasca...your cousin shows great reflexes! Uh, well, guys, if you want another demonstration, follow me!" He spun on his heels and hurriedly walked inside another building, most of the crowd trailing behind him and chatting excitedly. Some people stayed behind, with praise for Kairi and her magical abilities.
If you only knew, Riku thought, as he stared at their faces.
Naminé hissed at him. "Take care of your girlfriend," she pouted, motioning for him to come support the girl, for Kairi was still weak on her feet.
"You chained this memory down?" he asked, voice lowered so that Kairi wouldn't hear.
"Didn't have a choice," she whispered back, heaving her shoulder bag up her arm.
"How long are we going to keep this up?"
She paused, eyes scanning the crowd herself. "As long as the King says so," she said slowly. "Uh...Riku, I gotta run, I have, uh, a book to return! Yeah! Uhm...see you!"
Naminé literally sprinted across the quad...into the wrong building.
"What the hell was that?" he asked aloud.
"What...?" Kairi swayed on her feet, and Riku had to bend down slightly and put his arms around her waist to steady her. He gave in to the urge to rest his chin on her shoulder, and he could feel the girl shudder slightly. "What...tell me, what was I doing..?"
"What do you mean, what you were doing?" he whispered in his best surprised voice. "You and Professor Fujiwara put on one hell of a demonstration!"
"We did?" she asked softly, placing her clammy hands on top of his own.
He kissed her ear. "Yeah..."
"OI! Riku, Kai! Stop the PDA!" a voice that sounded very much like Roxas' hollered, and sure enough, the boy slid past them on a skateboard and skidded to a stop. Riku straightened up and glared at him. His cerulean blue eyes were sparkling in amusement. "Some of us would like not to lose our appetites."
"Way to go, Rox! Yeah!" Tidus yelled, jogging up to them from behind.
"Dude, you're just saying that 'cos Yuna's not talking to you," Roxas stared at him, eyebrow raised.
"Thanks for reminding me," he replied sarcastically. Riku laughed, and Kairi laughed soon after.
A chill ran down the platinum-haired Wielder's spine. Perplexed, he looked around the afternoon crowd...someone was watching them. Of course, they were watching him, but the feeling he got was different, somehow.
"Riku?" Kairi asked up at him, eyes concerned, her fingers slipping into his once more.
"It's nothing, just thought of something...so Rox, where're you two going?"
"To the cafeteria," the blonde shrugged, and jerked a thumb at Tidus. "He's gonna see if Yuna's there."
"I was not!"
"Admit it!"
Roxas and Tidus were bickering all the way to the school's cafeteria, and Kairi was giggling at their supposed serious 'argument'. Riku looked back once more, and tried to laugh along with them...but he couldn't.
For as he looked back, into the face of the student crowd, he thought he saw the face of his best friend...
...a shadowed Sora.
Shaking his head vehemently, he dismissed it as a trick of the light...Sora was somewhere out there on other worlds, sealing Keyholes or something.
Most definitely not here.
Putting a possessive arm around Kairi's waist, he, and the others, walked into the cool of the cafeteria.
-------------------------
He crushed the cardboard box easily, and threw it into the nearest wastebasket.
Naminé had seen him, and the girl had enough sense to scramble away--graceful exit though. Way not to seem obvious. It was good that he had cloaked his own scent, that way, Riku hadn't noticed him...
...except when his 'best friend' looked back.
That one was deliberate. He wanted to strike fear in Riku...because...Kairi...was his girlfriend. He grimaced at the memory; Riku acting all so affectionate and everything, and Kairi actually returning the affection.
It hurt. Much more so than Vandalise's sword in his stomach (which was not saying something, because Sora didn't feel any phiysical pain at all). But still...it hurt. Unspeakable, excruciating, emotional and mental pain.
She was his princess...
Sora frowned, and dropped down onto his knees onto the concrete. He gently eased out a black (what else color?)looseleaf notebook out of his red belt pouch. Concentrating, he broke the lock he had placed on it: a lock that could only be opened by a Keyblade Master. He rifled through the white pages, and stopped at the first empty page he came across--the last page, incidentally. He fished around the other belt pouch for a pen, and he tore off the cap with his teeth.
A record. Sora had kept a record...a journal, if you would call it. From the time he recieved the letter. He supposed it'd help him retain his sanity. He'd make sure he destroyed it, once he found a way to restore control of Antiform.
If he found a way.
Pssh...like anyone would read the stupid things he wrote.
He put pen to paper, and feelings into words. It was like therapy; ever since King Mickey had sent him that letter (which was, incidentally, inserted into his journal--stapled, even).
Ahh...he felt this bloodthirst again...maybe he should've brought extra blood tetra paks.
Ink ran, and tears ran, spilling on the white ruled paper. Sora bit his lip, and struggled to continue writing down his thoughts, ignoring the trembling of his hand as he fought the urge of bloodlust. Stupid Heartless cravings.
He then realized he'd been addressing his last sentence to the redwine-locked Princess of Heart.
cripes, she won't even read this
need blood NOW
Sora wasn't the one who wrote that. Antiform was mad. Yes, he was. Gritting his teeth, he put his pen to the paper, trying to continue writing. However, his pen slipped, and together with it, the looseleaf notebook and journal of his.
Cursing, he reached over...and he saw the familiar folded bloodstained square of paper.
King Mickey's note.
The one who started all of this freakin' madness he called his life and death.
The one who actually betrayed him.
The one who told his Riku and Kairi that he had left them, when actually, he was one of Disney Castle's courtyards, bleeding his guts out.
...the one who'd pay.
Rage sparked in the ruins of Sora's soul, cowering the small sliver of light that remained into submission. This time, Sora wholeheartedly (pardon the term, but that was what Sora did) embraced the darkness himself, determined to get one thing.
Revenge.
Sora relinquished control, and Antiform jumped to his feet, grinning. He looked around -- into the stunned and horrified faces of these young and innocent students. With Sora's control gone (his alter ego was actually humming in the background), the cloaking he had woven had fallen also.
With pitch-black fingers, he picked up Sora's journal and pen, and scribbled in it a few words. Antiform then threw the notebook unceremoniously into the bushes nearby, and Sora was too preoccupied with humming to notice. No matter. It seems that the Wielder had finally understood what it meant to be Heartless.
Grinning toothily, Antiform snapped his fingers and summoned a horde of Neoshadows, enough to turn the whole school into Heartless.
"Have fun, kids," he rasped to nobody in particular, lacing his fingers behind his head as he watched the students fend off the Heartless with their assorted weapons. He raised an eyebrow as he watched one of them finish off two Neoshadows in one blow...maybe they weren't so young anymore. Whoa. And that one girl --
That's Ashe, Sora giggled. A paladin. C'mon Antiform, we've got bigger fish to fry.
"Or, Sora," he laughed as he opened a portal amidst the screams, "a bigger mouse to kill."
Let's go.
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"What the hell?"
"Sir Riku, s-sir!" the terrified freshman stammered, his own mage's rod clamped tightly in his hands. "H-heartless attack!"
Uh. Here they were, talking about tomorrow's Twilight Town field trip, when the cafeteria doors suddenly burst open and a white-faced boy screaming 'Sir Riku!' rushed inside, weapon in hand. Kairi stared at the freshman. Heartless? It had got to be a joke...Paladins made sure no Heartless got into the school's perimeter.
Unless...the Heartless came from inside. Impossible, though. Nobody had the ability to summon Heartless in the Academy, as far as she knew.
"Kai, stay here," Riku ordered, getting up from his seat, followed by Roxas and Tidus. He already had his Way to the Dawn in his hand, and the two blondes behind him had already had their own weapons drawn--Roxas with his twin shortswords, and Tidus with his Caladbolg.
"I'm on it!" a female voice called, and Kairi caught a blur of blonde running out the cafeteria's double doors she supposed was Naminé.
"What can she do...?" Tidus asked in disbelief.
"More than we can if we just freakin' stand here!" Roxas shouldered his way past the surprised blonde. Twirling his swords, he sprinted out behind Naminé.
"I am not staying here, Riku!" Kairi yelled, jumping to her feet and running behind Roxas. She grinned as she heard Riku curse under his breath.
-----------------------
"...King Mickey, there's someone here who asks for an audience."
He waved his hand dismissively without even looking up -- he was too preoccupied with poring over the records of Radiant Garden, trying to find a way to reverse the effect of the Knighting. "I'm busy, Adviser Eldric."
"B-but, Your Majesty," Terror laced his adviser's normally emotionless nasal voice. Mickey sighed. This visitor had probably threatened Eldric with decapitation or something out of desperation. It had happened a good few times before.
"No, Eldric, I'm busy," he repeated, turning the page.
The sounds of rapidly shuffling feet on the carpet sounded, but King Mickey paid no heed. He was a busy King.
"Y'know, King Mick, you should start listening to your Advisers."
A chill ran down King Mickey's spine. He knew exactly who that voice belonged to--
"'cause that's why they're there; to advise you on doing stupid things."
--a very pissed off Sora.
He looked up, and resisted the urge to empty the remains of his lunch on the carpeted marble. There, silhouetted against the archway to his study, was a slumped Eldric, neck broken. Over whom crouched a...monster.
"Oh God. Eldric!" He bellowed, "Sora! What have you done?"
"Antiform," the figure corrected him, straightening up. "But Sora's pissed. And so am I."
"You bastard!" King Mickey yelled, pushing back his chair and flipping onto the paper-littered table, Reverse Keyblade coalescing into his hand. "You killed Sora!"
"Nuh-uh...this is your fault, King Mick-o," Antiform tilted his head, and Mickey shivered. Two large, blank and pale yellow Heartless eyes stared back at him. "This is all your fault, yep, take the credit...but that," he motioned to the Keyblade clutched in his gloved hand, "is rightfully mine."
"Sora has his own Kingdom Key," Mickey said quietly, breathing hard.
"Ah...but that one is of the realm of light," Antiform grinned toothily (which made for a lot of fangs). "Yours is from the realm of darkness--it's ours, King Mick, since me and buddyboy are now...of the dark," he laughed. "That sounds so freakin' cheesy."
Mickey panted even harder, his throat constricting with nervousness. A Keyblade Master can choose to relinquish a particular Keyblade -- or he can be forced to. However, King Mickey has never met an opponent he couldn't defeat--he was a Keyblade Master.
"You can't take away my Keyblade," he seethed, his Keyblade drawing deeply on the power of Kingdom Hearts.
Antiform laughed once more, and Mickey had never heard a more chilling sound.
"Ah, King Mickey...never underestimate the strength of a fallen Keyblade Master. Everything to win, and nothing to lose," the Heartless spread his palms open, "You might be surprised at what Sora can do for..."
Mickey charged, taking advantage of Antiform's seemingly helpless stance. He stumbled--Antiform's eyes had flashed sky blue. A split second later, he was thrown across the room, and he slammed into the bookshelf behind his desk.
"...revenge."
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It might be too much...violent, ne? Violence is good -nods-, but in stories only, kiddies! Some Kairiku fluffiness in there, but if you're not a fan...well, you'd be glad to know this is a Sokai.
The fire tree...It does exist! It's that huge tree whose flowers are really, really bright orange and red (thusly named fire tree...TT).
About the last names...Larxene picked Kisaragi 'cause she's quite a fast one too, like Yuffie. Axel made up his own name--he's a lazy kid nn. And Zexion? 'cause him and Riku are alike, in more ways than one. That I leave it up to you to figure out.
I'm not doing replies anymore, 'cause I might really get kicked out if I go on doing the story reply thing.
Review. Please? 'cause it sucks if you spend two hours on a chapter and only a few people tell you whether it's okay or not. Flames are accepted.