Act III: Awaken

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Akio walked into the dark cave; he looked around at the drawings that covered the walls, stories of children long ago grown. He sighed softly as he crossed the cave, leaning down when he reached the image he was looking for. "Why can't I trust you?" he asked the picture versions of his mother and father. "Why can't you trust me? Why can't you just… why can't you just love me?" Akio knew that he probably was just being self-conscious; he knew that he was letting his anxiety get to him… but that didn't make it any easier.

"You say you do… but I just don't see it. You ask so many questions. How can I believe it when you haven't even hugged me since I recovered from that wound?" he crouched down, sitting cross-legged in front of the drawing. "I know I'm not what you expected; I know I'm a disappointment; I know I'm just not good enough." He shook his head. "Please… Just tell me what I'm doing wrong. I'll fix it." He felt silly telling drawings these feelings and he knew full well that those words would never reach the people they represented if he didn't approach them. But it wasn't that easy; nothing ever was.

On a normal day, before they had returned, he would have lay on the ground on the cave, sleeping until he felt relaxed and human once more. He would let his mind wander and come to a clear and relaxed conclusion… but this time, he knew that they would have some idea of where he had gone. As amazing as it was to have people who cared, it made it tricky to escape when he panicked. He knew it wouldn't be long until they caught up, and he knew that he wasn't yet ready to be found.

Standing up, he looked around the empty cave, so full of memories of so many people. He knew that Origin was like this cave; as long as someone remembered him, he would never go away. Akio knew the worlds were still in danger, and his wandering spirit inclined him to go out and try to fix things… But right now, he was alone, and he didn't know if he really wanted to run off on his own again like before. He knew he would not have survived the previous journey if it weren't for Haru. He knew that he wouldn't have survived that wound without Haru by his side. The pieces of his heart had been knitted back together recently, his life growing into much more than it ever had been in the first place.

"Go home, Akio," Yami told him. The darkness in his heart, strangely enough, seemed to have the best in mind these days. "They're waiting for you; they aren't afraid of you. They don't hate you."

"But I'm not good enough," he muttered, staring at the drawings covering the walls. "What if… what if I'm afraid of myself?"

Darkness and light in perfect balance; powerful and dangerous. Those were the words that Origin had spoken, and while Akio was aware that Origin was manipulative, he also knew those facts were true.

"I mean, you aren't the only weird darkness in my head anymore, right Yami? I can tell something's up."

"Well… you're right. But we've got things under control, you and me," Yami told him. "We're a team, and you've got a team out there too. You just have to let them help you…"

"How did I know all of those things, Yami?" Akio asked the darkness within. "How did I know what Heartless and Nobodies were; how did I know how to get around Radiant Garden?" He paused. "And what about those nightmares you're keeping me away form; you say they aren't memories from Xehanort, but I'm sure they are."

He fell silent as he left the cave into the now burning sunlight. He headed towards his boat. He wasn't ready to go home yes, but he would anyway. Somehow, he was convinced that maybe they didn't think he was evil after all.

"Don't worry about that, Akio. Those are just remnants, just slivers that remain. I promise you that you don't hold that kind of anger in you."

But I do, Akio thought, his mind wandering to his earlier confrontation with his parents.

"That's not the same," Yami argued.

But Akio was busy trying to locate a sound to pay attention. He whipped around only to find himself face to face with the foe he had known he had not truly defeated. "Origin," Akio acknowledged as he drew his Keyblade.

He was momentarily distracted by his own weapon; it wasn't the same. This Keyblade was mostly blue and far less delicate… this Keyblade was his own. But he didn't ponder it for long.

"Ah, Akio…" Origin stated calmly as he drew closer. "The one I underestimated." He held no weapon. "Who would have thought that someone like you could trick someone like me?"

Akio stood firmly in place, unwilling to back down or show any fear at all. "What do you want, Origin?" It was ironic, really; he wasn't afraid of this bozo, but he was afraid of his own parents.

The white haired man smirked. "I want what you hold imprisoned." He stepped forward. "I want Xehanort."

"Well, I don't even know what you're talking about," Akio replied honestly. "But just a reminder; I handled you on my own before, and this time I'm sure backup is on the way."

"Since when do you need backup?" Origin sneered. Akio could feel him trying to manipulate his mind, trying to draw out painful memories as he had tried before. But Akio fought it, concentrating on the positive and recent memories. He was not afraid. "I thought you were a loner; I thought that you didn't need anyone… I thought you could take care of yourself."

"Don't get me wrong, I can take care of myself," Akio stated. "But extra eyes and ears never hurt."

"Ah, I see that your pride is still there. Good. Hold onto that darkness." Origin smiled sinisterly. "I suppose you will know what to expect then?" He vanished, appearing behind Akio with his weapon swinging towards him.

But Akio had indeed been expecting the action and blocked the attack. "You don't even have any new moves? How pathetic," he taunted.

"Oh, but you're wrong on that one." Origin teleported behind once more, but yet again, Akio was able to block him. "Don't you recall the Dusks?" Three of the mentioned creatures rose from the ground and joined the fray.

Akio jumped out of the circle before he attacked, glad that he wasn't off balance for once. "I do. I figured they were from you."

Origin furrowed his brow. "How are you faster? How do you have better techniques?"

"Because unlike you, I'm not just a memory?" Akio offered, dodging another assault from multiple sides before defeating the small Nobodies. "I'm capable of evolving and changing." He continued to move, enticing Origin to attack and keeping the man's eyes on him rather than on the ocean where boats were quickly approaching. He wasn't worried about causing any damage this time; he was only trying to keep Origin's focus on him… Because if he saw them, he could hurt them.

"I'm capable of learning and creating new experiences…" Akio continued, looking over Origin shoulder. He breathed a sigh of relief. "And I'm sure there are a lot of other impressive things I could come up with, but we're out of time." He saw Haru rush onto the dock yelling his name, their parents immediately behind.

Origin whipped around, but seeing another drawn Keyblade and more reinforcements, he couldn't help but back up, and he nearly ran into Akio before turning and fleeing into a portal. Akio held back the desire to follow him through, knowing that it would be wiser to accept help for once rather than trying to handle things on his own. He knew he hadn't been trained, he knew he wasn't a good fighter… and he knew that might lead to failure. Even though he had been watching his parents spar, even with taking note of each movement, it wasn't the same as training… But those observations were what allowed him to keep Origin's attention.

"Was that Origin?" Haru asked frantically when he reached Akio, who stood staring at where the portal had been.

"Yep," was all Akio replied; he was too busy processing what Origin had said after ignoring it during the fight. 'I want Xehanort…'

"Are you okay?" Haru continued to worry.

"I'm fine," Akio insisted.

The Keyblade Masters quickly caught up; they had landed their boats only moments after Haru. "What happened?" Kairi asked, her eyes darting over Akio in search of injuries.

Akio shrugged, having to pull his sweater back into place. He didn't want to tell the whole story and he didn't really know for sure anyway. A half-truth would have to do. "He showed up, I held him off, he ran away." The Keyblade in his hand caught his eye; it was different. It was new. He lifted it to get a better look. More blue, less white. Entirely his, never Xehanort's. He tilted his head at the observation… but everyone was watching him, so he quickly sent the weapon away, cringing internally at the attention he had brought to himself.

"Did he say anything?" Haru asked.

"Not really," Akio replied, the lie flowing more comfortably in his voice than the truth ever would; lies had once been his language. Because of this, not even Haru seemed to notice it. "He just started jabbering some stuff about having brought those Dusks here. I wasn't paying much attention."

He noticed Riku was studying him carefully with knowing eyes… the man could recognize a lie, because his life had once been made of them as well. It was unsettling.

"Anyway…" At that moment, Akio realized that he had a 'tell'; a way to differentiate his lies from the truth. Confidence. But for him, it was the opposite of most people. He lost confidence in the truth rather than lies. "Um, anyway, I guess we should just keep our eyes open in case he shows up again?"

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Kairi, Sora, and Riku were all a bit frustrated that Akio insisted on acting like nothing had happened; that his reason for running to the islet was not because of what they did… That everything was normal. It was hard to understand, and besides, there were other worries.

"Why does Origin seem to be following Akio specifically?" Sora voiced the question on all of their minds.

"Well, Origin is sort of Xehanort," Kairi proposed. "Maybe he obsesses over people that he can't find a way to defeat as well?"

"I think Akio knows," Riku said, making them look at him. "But he doesn't want to tell us. He was lying earlier, back on the beach; Origin said something."

"What makes you think he was lying?" Sora asked in honest confusion.

"He seemed so… confident… when he said Origin hadn't said anything. The words came easily." He paused. "But the moment the subject changed, he went right back to how he usually is around us… he's uncomfortable telling the truth."

"But how can we get him to tell us?" Kairi mused. "He doesn't trust us."

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Everything was hazy; Akio didn't know where his feet were taking him. All he knew was that he was afraid… and that the laughter in the back of his mind was not his own nor Yami's.

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