A/N: This chapter is dedicated to a special person in my life, and that person knows who they are. Also I think it's about time Amaterasu and Riku get something anyway, poor kids, life is tough on them already.
Thank you N.Neo well there aren't plot twist in this chapter, none that I could pick up anyway on here. Don't worry I'll send my greetings to him, and well I don't know about the nick name you can if you want too, I'll let you. And I like Gabriel he's a pretty nice guy, he just has a complex personality as I like to call it.
Thanks sorasheart281 here's your fluff, well sort of anyway cuz well… Just keep reading!
On with the story!
Chapter Twenty-Five: Timing
"What are you going to do?" Gabriel asked Yomigami. "Are you going to follow them?" Yomigami shook his head and sighed heavily for a moment. "Then what the hell are we doing out here in the snow?" Gabriel asked kicking some fresh snow into the air. "Are you trying to get me sick?"
"Follow her…" Yomigami said summoning a dark portal near him. "I remember you've got at least one promise you owe me."
"As you wish…" Gabriel said smiling slightly. "If she goes all dark, it's not my fault, that's our nature!" he said walking through the dark portal. Gekigami walked out of the little abode and noticed the black portal disappear. He eyed his brother cautiously and opened his mouth slightly.
"I sent him with Ammi…" Yomigami said noticing Gekigami roll his eyes. "Hey come on, you know he feels more comfortable around her…"
"He's trying to take her back. Haven't you noticed that?" Gekigami said in a rather annoyed tone. "That's all he's been doing since we've got him as our prisoner. Once he's got her, then they'll go after Riku, and with Riku they'll get to Sora…" he didn't really know what else to say. "You…" he paused for a moment. "Forget it…" he said angrily walking away from his brother.
Riku and Amaterasu
"You know what Chasers are?" Amaterasu asked Riku. He shook his head, he only knew that Gabriel was one of them, and that Amaterasu and her brother were considered ex-Chasers along with her family. "If you look it up in the dictionary it says one who chases, or one who crafts metal. We…" she paused for a moment. "We're both… We created Keyblades, with no key-chains, and we soon learned how to make key-chains using our hearts… and we seek something of great power."
Riku processed the information with ease, but he still didn't know why she was telling him in the first place.
"See, with the memory spheres, there's a secret that Xehanort placed within one memory that can bring back the Dark Keyblade Master… Or rather how he defeated the Dark Keyblade Master. What Gabriel wants with the group he's in, they want to bring him back. What our group…" she pointed to herself. "What we want to do is find a way to keep from repeating that history. But… That's why Sora has to master the darkness, just in case if Gabriel does succeed."
"Is that why you want me to teach him?" Riku asked leaning forward a bit. "Why… Why can't you just teach him?" he looked back at her for a moment and she looked down at the ground below. She shook her head and looked back at him.
"It's not that simple… I can't, given my current condition." Amaterasu sounded a bit ashamed at it, but it was true. "I'm too unstable for it right now, and you, Riku, you can teach him." She said, her voice full of hope. "See only Chasers know how to use that certain sphere, and I'm almost more than sure that Maleficent is planning to have Gabriel find a host for that specific memory…"
"Host?" Riku asked looking back at her for a moment. She nodded.
"How Xehanort used you for one…" she said rubbing the back of her head. "They'll try and do that with someone who can wield a Keyblade, anyone… Possibly even try and get Sora to do it. If they do that, he'll be pretty strong. But he'd be useless if he doesn't learn how to master the darkness… For now we're safe… but once he does know he'll be in danger. Any Keyblade wielder would be a good candidate, even you…" she said looking at him.
"What about you?" Riku asked. "Would you be involved in that?" Amaterasu opened her mouth slightly, but couldn't really answer the question. She shrugged her shoulders and looked away. "You can wield a Keyblade after all."
There were parts Amaterasu left out, but for her own safety and his safety. Once Sora started to show signs that he was in fact the true Keyblade Master he'd be in trouble once she or any other Chaser caught sight of it. In a way thought it seemed more likely that Riku would somehow be used a host rather than Sora, since he shared more traits with the Dark Master himself.
She thought for a moment about her ability to wield a Keyblade. It did seem likely, but not at all possible. Amaterasu would be to preoccupied fighting off the urge to chase the true Keyblade Master down, as would Yomigami.
" Matsu?!" a girl's voice said in a slightly whining tone. "Hey come on we should get going…"
Amaterasu looked down from her seat on Curly Hill. She eyed two teens walking away from the area. She blinked for a moment and laughed at the sight. 'How cute, those two were probably on a date or something,' Amaterasu thought for a moment and sighed heavily. Riku looked at the little scene under their gaze.
"Hey she looks sort of like you…" Riku said pointing to the darkly dressed mage. "She's got your skin color and all…"
"It's not polite to point…" Amaterasu said, but curiosity got the best of her. She watched the mage hold on to a young teens arm. The male teen had vampiric looking wings with claws and pointy shoes. "She looks younger than me though… Hey just because we've got the same skin color doesn't mean we're alike…"
"At least let's see the moon from Curly Hill, whatda ya say?" the male teen asked looking at the mage for a moment.
"Just really quick then…" the mage huffed. "You're mom is going to be SOOOOO mad at me though…"
"We've got twenty minutes before she calls the hotel I'm staying at…" the vampiric teen said laughing for a moment. "You worry WAY too much."
"I'm guessing we should leave…" Riku whispered to Amaterasu. He could hear their footsteps get louder. Amaterasu nodded, but it was too late.
"Heartless?" the female mage sounded alarmed.
"No…" Amaterasu said standing up carefully from the summit of Curly Hill. "Humans… We come in peace." She said waving to the two teens. "We're just getting ready to leave, so this spot is all yours." The female mage was embarrassed and laughed nervously.
"I'm sorry it's just that, that guy there looks like a Heartless…" she said referring to Riku's appearance. The only thing noticeable from Riku was the fact that he had teeth and eyes, since everything else was covered in darkness. The female mage apologized and looked back at the teen she was with. "I didn't think anyone would be here…" the girl said smiling slightly.
"We can come back some other time…" the male teen said, but the girl began to protest at the idea. The male teen thoughts about it for a moment and shook his head. "I mean…"
"No Matsu," the mage shook her head. "It's been ages since I've seen you and I wanted to spend a lot of time with you and…" her voice trailed into a gentle whisper, feeling embarrassed at the fact that the other two teens were present.
"You two live far away from one another?" Amaterasu couldn't help but ask. She let her curiosity take a hold of her judgment on the whole situation. The female mage looked back at her and nodded slightly. "How'd you two meet?" she asked. Riku couldn't help but look at Amaterasu in amazement for a moment, it was the first time he saw her so interested in someone else's personal life.
"Ah, wait…" the mage said sitting next to Amaterasu. "We haven't introduced ourselves. My name is Seruma." She said outstretching her hand, both Riku and Amaterasu shook the friendly hand. "And this guy here it Matsu." She said referring to the vampiric looking teen. He had slightly shaggy brown hair with matching brown eyes. He extended his hand and shook the other two teen's hands, the boy sat down next to the mage.
"My name's Riku," the Heartless like human said leaning forward a bit to get a better view of the two teens. He looked back at Amaterasu and she smiled slightly, and she turned her gaze to the other two newcomers.
"My name is Amaterasu." She said nodding to both Matsu and Seruma. To Amaterasu they seemed like very friendly people, someone you could get along with. "So then, you guys are here on a date then?" the two laughed nervously and the girl shrugged. "It's okay you don't have say anything."
"We met…" Seruma began fidgeting with the lace around her outfit. "Believe it or not, I use to write stories…" she stopped herself a moment fighting off the urge to laugh or giggle slightly. "Well we met as he calls it through predestination," she looked back at Matsu for a moment. "I believe it was that too. Anyway we kept in touch through e-mails and reviews and stuff like that. One day he surprised me and came to visit me after a couple of months of talking and stuff…"
"Aw, that's cute." Amaterasu said she couldn't help but smile. The younger male teen couldn't help but laugh a bit, but it seemed he was blushing too. "You two seem like a really cute couple, that's for sure."
"Well you and Riku look like a really good couple." Seruma said noticing Riku almost fall backwards. She laughed at the sudden movement and thought about something for a moment. "Are you guys together?" Riku and Amaterasu shook their heads, and Amaterasu laughed for a moment and Riku gave a small smile. "I jut thought you'd be together, because of the costumes you're wearing. They match in color, and since they're Heartless types I just thought… You know…"
"Hey," Matsu spoke up this time clearing his throat for a moment. "How old are you Amaterasu?" he asked because her appearance was slightly older looking compared to his date. Amaterasu smiled, her legs rocking back and forth over the ledge of the summit.
"I'm seventeen." She said with a bit smile on her lips. "How about you two?" she asked noticing Seruma laugh a bit at the question. Seruma said her age and Amaterasu smiled a bit. "So you're a come año too."
"You speak Spanish too?" Matsu and Seruma asked. "That's what my mom calls me." Seruma said rubbing the back of her head. "It's a good thing, but it'll suck when I want to go to a bar or something."
From their talk Matsu turned out to be younger than Seruma. It didn't make a difference to them at all, since the two were happy around one another. It got Amaterasu thinking about her own love life, and she wanted what Matsu and Seruma had. She wanted someone who would stay with her, and in turn she would stay with that person. Someone who could understand her pain, and in turn she could help them out with their problems, and understand their pain as well.
"Well we should get going." Matsu said helping Seruma stand up carefully. "It was really nice talking with the two of you." Amaterasu and Riku nodded and wished the two a safe journey and good luck. "You too!" the other two said, and soon the only thing you could see were silhouettes of what appeared to be people leaving the area.
Riku and Amaterasu stayed quiet after that, and they were thinking about the whole idea of the long distance relationship that the other two had. To Riku he thought back to how Matsu had said that the distance was what made their hearts strong. It seemed to be true, when he thought back to when he was separated from her for those first couple of months.
Amaterasu on the other hand thought back to an old phrase her mother once said 'amor de lejos es amor de pendejos'. Seruma had just disproved that within the moment she began to tell her tale. The female mage had said that was what kept her going, knowing that one day she would disprove that phrase. 'I'm glad they were able to meet, and still keep their relationship.' Amaterasu thought sighing happily for a moment.
"What are you think about, Amaterasu?" Riku couldn't help but ask her. He noticed the happy look on her facial expression, and she seemed to be lost in thought. She said something under hear breath, and laughed at it. "What?" he asked again, not really hearing her.
"Us." She said looking back at him. She pointed to herself and to Riku, "Me and you." Amaterasu was a bit embarrassed, but she decided to say it anyway. "It got me thinking, that's all. I'm just wondering if maybe one day we'll find someone who can make us as happy as those two." She said smiling at Riku. "You think we can?"
Riku would've loved to have said the words 'I already found someone who does' but of course he didn't. He nodded in answer to the question she asked and he looked back up at the moon that was in full view from Curly Hill. Each breath he took he felt as though he was on top of the world. His heart didn't ache, and he could feel his darkness slowly melt away, but when he would doubt it all, that's when he felt the stabbing pain traverse again.
"There's something I've wanted to tell you," Riku said feeling Amaterasu's gaze on him. She watched the Heartless looking human speak, white teeth clearly visible, indicating he had a mouth. His amber eyes lowered their gaze down to the ground beneath their feet, and he breathed in for a moment. "I've been wanting to tell you for a really long time now…" he said feeling a bit shy around the subject. "I just don't really know how to say it though."
Amaterasu felt a small prick in her chest, and it felt warm. The warmth traveled down to the pit of her stomach making her feel slightly uneasy at the whole talk now. 'Riku, you don't have to say it… It's just really uncomfortable now…' she thought hoping for something that would help break the ice of it all now.
There was a gentle wind and she noticed the loose bandages wrapped around his arms, they swayed at which ever direction the wind blew. Riku's own amber eyes locked with hers for a moment creating an awkward silence between the two. Amaterasu was the first one to laugh slightly and she shook her head. Riku smiled slightly looking at the girl before him, she meant everything to him, and he wanted her to know that.
"You don't really have to say it…" Amaterasu said looking back at Riku for a moment. She smiled at the Keyblade wielder who used 'Way to Dawn'. She looked back down again and placed a gentle hand on his. "It's okay if you can't say it. I'm not going to be upset or anything…" he squeezed her hand gently, she could feel his claws lightly tap her closed hand.
"It's just awkward…" Riku said looking back at her. "With everything's that happened, I mean I can't say it now." He felt happy just holding her hand like this. He didn't care if he could say what he wanted to say, or not. For now this feeling she gave him, was the best feeling in the world. She made him forget about his pain, and his strife with the darkness in his heart.
"I don't act upon my impulses…" Amaterasu said looking at Riku's amber eyes for a moment. She tried to figure out what she wanted to say. "If anything I'm scared with stuff like that. I'd just rather be in my hole, and watch time move over my head… but you…" she looked back at him this time giving him a big smile, her eyes were closed for a moment. "You got me out of that hole…" she said holding his hand tighter. "You took your time to talk to me when no one else did… You were the very first friend I made in ages!" she said laughing.
"I should be saying that to you!" Riku said laughing at the words coming from her mouth. "You were the one who helped me with my problems. I didn't do anything to help you like that!" he said shaking his head. "I was just minding my own business that day…"
"So then, it was fate!" Amaterasu said thinking back to what Seruma and Matsu had said a while back. "It seems likely, doesn't it?" she asked watching Riku nod happily.
"But still… I haven't done anything to help you…" Riku said feeling some regret thinking back to all the wonderful things she had done for him during their stay on the islands. "I want to help, Amaterasu…" he said sincerely and she looked down for a moment. "I want to see you smile more, I want to hear you laugh more. I miss that." He said honestly, noticing a small blush on her face. "I want you to tell me your pain…" she looked back at him slightly and sighed heavily. "It's okay to tell me, I won't tell anyone. I don't mind if you get angry or you cry, it's okay to do that sometimes, okay?" she nodded slightly. "But then why don't you do that?" she shrugged.
"I run away… I don't like getting angry so much, or anything like that…" she said sighing for a moment. "Anyway I don't think you can help me like that…" Riku protested and she shook her head at his advances. "It'll take ages for that pain in my heart to leave. I mean I still don't have my own light yet…" she said and Riku looked away at her for moment. "I'm still looking for one, and I'm sure you're still looking for one too."
"I already have…" Riku said a bit disheartened now. He held on tighter to her hand, feeling his heart ache a bit more. Amaterasu's own heart ached slightly, and she held on to his hand. "You, Amaterasu…" she looked up at him her eyes began to widen for a moment. "You're my light. You've always been my light."
Amaterasu closed her eyes tightly feeling the darkness advance a bit more, and she squeezed Riku's hand tightly. She felt a pair of arms wrap around her quickly and she fought off the urge to scream from the pain. She buried her head into his chest and felt the darkness stop for a moment. Amaterasu wrapped her arms about him and heaved a sort of shaky sigh. She shook her head, and Riku's gentle voice entered her mind, and again she shook her head.
"Darkness can't be someone's light…" she said in a soft whisper. "That's impossible." Riku let a small smile escape his lips and he didn't plan on letting her go anytime soon. "I can't be your light Riku. I don't have any in me." That was the only way she could think of getting the message across.
"Even in the deepest darkness," Riku said whispering it gently into her ear. "There's a light that never goes out. Remember that," he said kissing the top of her head gently. "There's always going to be someone there for you. I'm here for you, Amaterasu." He said closing his eyes for a moment.
"It hurts," she managed to whisper out. "My heart's been hurting for so long." She opened her eyes faintly and closed them again. "I didn't think that someone would call me their light. I never thought that, not once." Riku held her tighter and she held him tighter once she said that. "I thought after losing someone close to me I wouldn't find someone else who could make me that happy. Someone who could make me feel so alive. I was afraid to love someone like that again. I don't understand what my heart wants, but I know I want you here with me."
"It's a start," he said kissing the side of her cheek. "I'm not going to leave you anytime soon. I'll stay with you till the ends of time, I'll promise you that." He heard her laugh happily and she hugged him tighter. His breath tickled the back of her neck, and it made her laugh when he would talk softly. "You want to stay here a bit longer?" and she nodded resting her head on his chest.
"Just don't breathe on me…" she said looking up at him, and she gave a small chuckle as she felt his lips on the side of her cheek. "I'm glad to know you won't leave me." Her tone of voice was in a low whisper, she was almost afraid to say it.
Riku brought of his clawed hands to the side of her face, and she felt a claw slowly trace the side of her cheek. Amaterasu smiled and looked at Riku, she felt at peace. She felt like she was on top of the world, everything seemed perfect to her. She felt safe in his arms, and he no doubt felt safe in hers. He wanted to protect her, she was precious to him, and she in turn would do anything to protect him. He leaned in carefully smiling at her, and she leaned in.
The feeling they felt, so close to it being expressed with what people call a 'lover's vow'. It seemed to perfect for it to be real, but this was no dream, nothing could go wrong at all for this moment. The stars were dancing around in the night sky, and the moon was as majestic as ever, it was full and it had nothing to hide for this night. Riku leaned in feeling his breath against her lips and for a moment he hesitated.
"Yoo-hoo!" a voice shrieked into the whole grounds surrounding Curly Hill. "RIKU, WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?!" the voice asked sounding rather furious. "You idiot, he's going to kill you! You're trying to screw with Ammi's head aren't you?! It's a good thing I came Ammi, he probably would've gotten into your pants!"
Riku pulled away and looked at the zombie looking figure. "HI, GABRIEL!" Amaterasu said waving from the summit of Curly Hill. "You have BAD TIMING!" she said cupping her hands over her mouth to create a megaphone effect. Riku on the other hand would strangle Gabriel with his own chains. He finally had a good moment, and Gabriel dropped in at the wrong time.
"I saved you!" Gabriel said making his awkward way up to the hill. "He would've taken away a precious moment from you." He said laughing at the whole idea. "Two teens kissing up on the summit of a hill… That spells S-E…" The only thing Gabriel remembered was falling backwards on the hill with Riku trying to go for his neck. Amaterasu on the other hand covered her face shaking her head again. 'My friends…' she thought looking up at the night sky for a moment.
"I'm going to kill you!" Amaterasu heard Riku's voice loud and clear, and Gabriel was laughing away at the threat.
"How can you kill want you can't catch?" Gabriel said laughing a bit more as he stood up, in his own manner. "Besides ending a date with murder isn't very memorable, it might cause more emotional damage…"
"Can't I just have a nice day like everyone else?!" Amaterasu asked walking down Curly Hill. "Is that really all too much to ask for?"
"You're not like everyone else…" it was the first time Gabriel and Riku said something in unison. They each made a gagging sound as they finished the sentence.
A/N: You know what to do one review please!
come años means someone who appears younger than they really are.