I crossed my arms, laying in bed and staring blankly at the ceiling, wondering if Riku was still in the virtual town.

No… No, he's probably in bed by now… Probably tired, too…

I sighed.

Did I have to say those things to him? Did I really have to shove his mistakes in his face? …It's only fair, right? I mean, his mistakes are being shoved in my face… But "two wrongs don't make a right"… And no matter what he's done, I know who he's grown up to be. …Don't I?

I closed my eyes, trying to fall asleep – they just snapped right back open.

And poor Orlando… I bit his head off, too. I've just been a bitch today. I can't really blame myself… But I don't want to be like this. This isn't who I want to be.

There was a soft rap coming from my door – I sat up.

"Come in," I said, just loud enough for it to reach the other side of the door.

It creaked open and in the darkness I could make out Riku's figure in the doorway, arms crossed, leaning against the doorway. "DiZ said you asked about me," he said coldly, his face hidden beneath his hood.

I slid my legs out from beneath the covers, hanging them over the side of the bed. I stared at the shadows hiding his face, searching for some definition, some contour. Nothing but black. "It's been a rough day," I said quietly, chewing on my lower lip.

"Yes, it has." His tone was still indifferent.

I swallowed. "Um… Do you want to sit down?"

"Not particularly."

"Then I'll stand." I got to my feet and took a step towards him.

"Why?" he said coldly.

I stared at him, surprised for a brief moment. "Because I like mimicking your movements," I said sarcastically.

"If you just wanted to rail on me some more, I'm leaving."

I took another step towards him. "Riku," I said solemnly. "I shouldn't have said those things to you."

"Shouldn't you?" he replied. "I'm the one who took everything from you – you hate me – we avoid each other. Isn't that how things work?"

"Do… Do you want it to work that way?" I mumbled, staring at my hands as they tugged the sleeves of my hoodie down over one another.

"I'd much prefer it didn't. But knowing the truth…" "The truth has set you free," Xehanort said. "…I can't make you stay with me."

I picked my head up, staring beneath the hood for a long moment. "You think you're making me stay here?" I arched an eyebrow at him. "You think you can tell me what to do?" I scoffed.

"Stop it with the west-side, tough-bitch act," he said. "Joking isn't going to change the fact that I've done the unforgivable."

I crossed my arms. "I'm staying here because I want to," I said. "Because I want to stay where I feel at home."

His shoulders slumped and he shook his head. "…Miyuki…" he breathed. "You just don't get it, do you?"

"Give me some credit."

"Are you stupid? I've done nothing but hurt you."

"I haven't made it clear, have I?" I cocked my head to one side. "Riku, I'm not going anywhere. Unless you truthfully tell me that you personally wish I would get the hell away from you, I want to be where you are."

"You're slowly killing yourself by staying with me."

"Oh, please!" I rolled my eyes. "I don't need you in order to die. I had a nice conflict with Xehanort today while in town."

"What?" He took a step towards me. "Are you alright? What'd he do?"

"He didn't do anything but get handsy," I shrugged. "I kicked him in the eye and woke up."

"'Handsy'? You're kidding," he said.

I snorted. "You think I would joke about this? …Actually," I rubbed the back of my neck. "I probably would…"

He grabbed his head. "Shit, Miyuki!"

"What?" I said, making a confused face at him.

"Not only have I wrecked your life, but I'm inviting Xehanort into your heart and he's— Shit! I'm such a jackass!"

"Would you calm down? I'm a big girl, Riku, I know how to take care of myself. Did I mention I planted my foot in his face?"

"I hate everything I'm doing to you!" he said. "I hate everything about my heart. It doesn't do anyone any good – not even me."

"You're so full of it," I said, shaking my head and crossing my arms.

"Excuse me?" He crossed his arms back.

I took a step towards him and stabbed him in the chest with my index finger. "Do you know how much it hurt to be alone? I imagine you do. You took everything from me – and you can't replace anything. But you gave a lonely kid hope. You gave her someone to hang onto. You brought her back to life."

He was silent, his arms hanging at his side now. "But is it really worth—"

"Yes," I said quietly. "If it wasn't worth it, I wouldn't be here."

His head hung slightly. "I don't understand how you can think that."

"Has anyone ever told you that some things don't need to be logical?"

Beneath the hood, I saw gold irises shimmer and shift, so that now he was looking back at me. "I'm sorry," he whispered.

"It's okay," I replied, smiling a little. I took another step and wrapped my arms around his torso. "I'm sorry, too."

He snorted. "For what?" he asked, bewildered.

"For yelling at you… For digging the knife in deeper."

He exhaled slowly, his breath hitting my neck, and wrapped his arms around me, holding me against him. "You don't have anything to apologize for."

I reached up with one hand and pressed the hood back, smiling up at him.

"I wish you wouldn't," he whispered. "I want you to see me when I really look like myself. Not this."

"I'm not being held by someone whose face I can't see," I retorted. There's no more confusion… Now I know he doesn't mind me being so close.

"But it's not my face you're seeing." He flashed an eerily familiar grin, but it disappeared so quickly I thought my eyes must be playing tricks on me.

"The boy you knew is gone." Those words ran through my mind so clearly I almost thought I could hear it. "If only you'd taken me up on my offer… You might've found him in the darkness."

I clutched myself against him, my shoulders tensing. "I can hear him," I breathed.

"What?" Riku said quietly.

"It's like…" I sound so insane… "It's like he's hissing in my ear."

"There's no one here but you and me…" he said.

"You think the man you're clutching yourself against is Riku? Stupid child."

I swallowed hard. "But I can hear him," I said helplessly. "I'm not joking."

Chills ran through me and I shuddered. "What can I do?" he asked, half to himself.

"I'm cold," I mumbled. I couldn't get much closer to him than I already was.

"You think you're safe? I've got control over this fool of a boy."

His hand slid up my back, to my neck, and wrapped around my throat. I inhaled sharply as his thumb dug into my throat.

"N-No," I hissed.

All at once my throat was free, and his hand was resting on the back of my head.

"Why? What's wrong?"

My heart sank. "I don't know. Your hand was around my throat."

"No it wasn't," he said, shocked.

"I don't know!" I hissed.

"Of course you do. The closer you get to this boy, the closer you'll get to me. You can't have one without the other."

"Talk to me," I said.

"What?"

"Talk to me. About anything. Just keep making noise."

"Ah – I used to chase Sora around the island, trying to stuff crabs down his shirt." He paused, and Xehanort's voice broke through. "What do you think he meant by 'I have accepted it'?"

"I don't know," I mumbled as Riku prattled about crabs, shutting my eyes tight.

"The only way you're getting rid of me is by getting rid of him. You'd better follow his lead and just accept me."

"He hasn't given in," I growled incredulously, my body tensing.

"—What do you mean?" Riku's eyebrows knit at me.

"I'll have you in my grip one way or another."

"Arrogant jacka—"

"What's he saying to you, Miyuki?"

Riku leaned away slightly, looking down at me confusedly. His eyes shimmered – shifted – seemed to blur, like a watercolor being splattered with water…

Like that dream…

"Give in, child. Whenever you look at this boy, you'll see me. Unless you give into darkness, his face will never be the same again."

"You're wrong," I shook my head.

His face changed – it shifted in place, his skin growing paler, his hair changing – as though he looked like the teenager he was, and Xehanort was just a see-through hologram hovering in front of him.

"What… the… hell?" I stammered, backing away, our arms untangling from one another. The further away I stepped, the further the real Riku seemed – Xehanort, however, kept the same distance from me.

"What's happening?" Riku's voice called. Riku's voice – not Xehanort's, though he wasn't silent.

"You think you can get rid of me so easily?"

"I never said you'd be easy to get rid of."

"You think your heart's that strong? You can always just gaze past the darkness? Ridiculous child! You need me, in order to see reality!"

"I don't need you!" I scoffed, now foot or two from the wall. His eyes were at the same level as Riku's – I shifted my focus to look at the bewildered teenager behind Xehanort. "He's… Inches from my face," I stammered. "Can't you see him?"

"Miyuki… Did you drink the rotten lemonade?"

"What? I'm fine!" I protested, glaring at him.

"Alright, alright, I just…" His voice disappeared beneath the volume of Xehanort's.

"You think you can ignore me?"

Xehanort's hand reached towards my throat, slamming my head against the wall.

"Oh, shit," I gasped.

"Wait, can you breathe?"

"He's— gagging—" I spat.

"Goodnight, Miyuki." The impish grin flashed on Xehanort's face – I stretched my arm out.

"N-No—" I gasped.

"Release the darkness in your heart! Release the power you hold back!"

I tried to stare past the yellow eyes glaring into mine, and thought I saw a flash of recognition cross Riku's face.

"I'm here," he said, walking forward, arms strecthed out as if approaching a wild animal. "Miyuki, can you see me? I'm not going to hurt you."

I felt my head spin – my lungs were going to explode, if my heart didn't explode first… I'm not giving into you, Xehanort.

"Miyuki, I'm right here."

The teal eyes approaching me came towards the yellow ones between us – soon, the dark, sneering face was broken, vanished. And who stood there, but Riku, silver hair hanging in his pale face, bright aquamarine eyes staring at mine with a sort of concentration I'd never seen before. When Xehanort's face had vanished, so had the grip on my throat, and air rushed into my lungs.

"Can you see me?" he said.

I nodded, trying to steady my breathing. I shut my eyes and bent over a little, grabbing my chest with one hand. "I don't understand," I panted.

"All I saw was your eyes turning a lighter shade of brown – almost gold, like his…"

"You're you," I breathed, looking up at him.

"What do you mean?"

"Your eyes…" I stood upright. "They're blue-green." I snorted, my expression twisting in a sort of bewildered smile. "You sound like yourself – before you fought Roxas."

"…I can hear my voice, Miyuki. I sound the same."

We stared at each other a long moment, and our voices were monotone when we spoke again.

"This doesn't make sense," I whispered.

"No, it doesn't," he whispered back.

"We should go ask DiZ who he sees…"

"Last time I saw him, he was asleep."

"…And he needs his sleep." I swallowed hard, brushing my hair out of my face nervously. I don't know what's going on. What the hell's happening to me?

"Your hands are shaking," he said, catching my right hand in his left.

"Well, hold me steady," I grumbled, and stepped into him, burying my face in his shoulder. He wrapped one arm around me, clutching my hand in his as they hung at our sides.

"C'mere, sit down," he said quietly, and we sat on the edge of the bed, his arm hooked around me.

I was so incredibly happy that he look like himself again – and incredibly concerned that it was just because I was losing my mind, that he looked this way. And of course, there were the dreadful thoughts as to what exactly happened to Xehanort…

I love how everyone always puts a heart in their reviews even though the review board doesn't show the "less than" sign. It just makes me happy to know that we're dedicated to our emoticons. ^-^