Whoops, grammar check. It's not a kimono, technically, it's a hanfu. (Thanks for the tip, Tuna ^^) Just thought I'd clear that up.

"So I was thinking, we're proably going to need to go to a different world tonight," Riku said, shoveling a giant chunk of chicken into his mouth.

"Why? Aren't Sora and his friends staying?"

"Not for much longer. But even if he was, I doubt we'd have a safe place to sleep tonight."

I arched an eyebrow at him. "But you make everything safe, Batman."

He smirked. "But don't you want to sleep on a real bed?"

"Yeah. Aren't there inns around here?"

"I don't know that any respectable places would give us a room."

Room. Singular. It suddenly hit me that he may have suggested we take our food to the roof and have a picnic by ourselves for more than one reason (that being, the convenience of not having to try and fit in with the obnoxious, smelly manager that was about to seat us). This realization hit me even harder when his face went red and he started to ramble.

"If any innkeeper around here gave us a room, quite frankly, I wouldn't trust them. Because we're so obviously foreign – and we're a man and woman – and if they let us sleep there, who else do they let in?"

"Crack whores, obviously," I stammered, trying to lighten the awkward mood – but he was talking over me, and I could've sworn his composure level was dropping from ninety percent, to twelve.

"I mean if you want to get a room. I don't want to pressure you into anything. I mean, obviously you want a room, but I meant one with me. If you want. Or if you don't, that's fine. You're fine. But not like that. I mean yes, you are, but I meant—Never mind. You'll want a bed, but you don't have to share."

Don't laugh… Don't laugh… He's trying to be cool about it… Don't… laugh…

My mental coaching had absolutely no effect. When I regained a bit of sanity, I breathed, "Don't worry. We'll figure something out."

He smiled faintly and stared at his food, taking another giant bite. We ate in silence a moment.

"So why did we even check in on Sora and his battle with the dragon, when you don't want to 'reveal your identity'?" I asked.

He took a long moment to swallow. "I'm indecisive," he finally said, dismissively.

"Indecisive? Tell that to the homes you destroyed, boy," the icy voice hissed, and I could tell by the slight frown on Riku's face that I wasn't the only one hearing this. "You certainly had no qualms deciding to throw away everything you ever had. Everyone that cared for you. Everyone that loved you."

"Hey," I snapped at Xehanort, though my eyes were trained on Riku's blindfold, and he now turned to me confusedly. " He talks too much," I said quickly. "It's not even relevant. He's just obsessed with people's pasts – not just yours, everyone's. It's like some kind of disease. He needs a life of his own – or better yet, a death. I'm thinking dynamite."

"I was thinking acid."

"Or maybe frying him in hot oil and serving him to the obnoxious manager."

"Exactly. It'll be a hit. Tastes like chicken, only crueller."

I hadn't finished my food yet, and the idea of cruellers was very appealing. "Whatever world we stop at, let's get donuts there."

He stared at me a minute. "…How are donuts relevant to this conversation?"

"Donuts are relevant to every conversation," I said with mock-reproach.

He smiled a little. "What was I thinking?"

"Your judgement's obviously impaired," I smirked. The thought of walking through the dark corridor to get to another world unsettled me – but having Riku there would hopefully make things easier. Hopefully. The ice-cold feeling I had in my hand when I opened a dark corridor resonated in my palm – I shuddered.

Maybe Xehanort's right. Maybe I am going to give into darkness. But… maybe that's not so bad. Maybe Riku would trust me to take care of myself, if… darkness spread. But what does that mean? 'Darkness spread'? Would it just be like a disease, whose ailments are insanity and power of instant teleportation? My head is spinning. I want to sort it out, but I don't want to worry Riku…

"Leftovers for your thoughts?" Riku said, shoving his bowl full of untouched vegetables towards me.

Think fast! "I'm going to look really weird walking around in a hanfu in pretty much any world besides this one," I said.

"We could go get your other clothes," he suggested.

"Yeah, right. The clothes that are bloody, dirty, smelly, and have several holes all over them. The clothes that I specifically threw in the trash. I think not."

"Oh, I see. You just want to go shopping again."

"You say that as if you don't like telling people I'm your sister and promising not to dress me," I said innocently.

He snorted. "Lying isn't so bad, as long as I have a good reason. You're a good enough reason. –And it's not dressing you that I'm interested in, so that's a promise I can keep."

I could feel my face burning, and I tried to fight the desperate urge to rip off that stupid blindfold. "Well, then, you're only half a liar."

"The other half is a murderer."

I laid my face in my hands. "Guess what's for dinner?"

"I'll fire up the grill," was Riku's response.

After finishing our food and sneaking the dirty plates back to the kitchen of the restaurant below (messing with normal people was too much fun), we stood on the roof, staring at each other for a moment. I crossed my arms, a bit nervous about being around the dark corridor.

"So what world are you whisking me away to, Batman?"

"It looks like the only other world Sora has access to with the gummi ship is Beast's Castle."

"A castle…?"

"There's a town nearby."

"Oh, so you're not trying to lock me in some dungeon? Good."

He smirked. "No, I'd be much smoother about it if it was a dungeon I wanted you in."

I snorted. "Whatever. I know your judgement's still impaired."

His smirk faded into a soft frown. "Are you sure you'll be okay in the corridor?"

I twisted my lips to one side. "Not at all."

He nodded slowly. "Do you want to wait?"

"Not at all. Bring it on."

He arched an eyebrow. "Are you sure?"

I glared at him. "Are you calling me a liar?"

"No, I'm calling you over-zealous."

"Well call me something nicer, like 'gorgeous', and let's find some new clothes. You shouldn't have even bought me these. If I'd have known we were leaving…"

"It's not my fault you shoved me into that dress shop!"

"So your judgement is impaired!" I said victoriously.

"Never said it wasn't," he smirked, taking my wrist in his left hand and opening a corridor with his right.

A sudden, freezing breeze swept over me, and I felt my entire body convulse in a sudden shiver. Riku's fingers twined around mine.

"You sure?" he asked, his voice distant. I nodded. It's not like procrastinating will help anything.

Side by side, we stepped into the darkness, my hand tensing around Riku's. The coldness seemed to sink through my skin, hitting my bones and shooting through me with a horrible shudder. My knees were starting to buckle, but I willed myself to keep walking on my own. I was able to handle this.

"Welcome back," I heard as we stepped onto the bright colors of the corridor.

"You okay?" Riku asked.

"Yep."

"Alright."

I felt a freezing hand wrap around my waist, tugging me away from Riku's side. I looked down, ready to pry whatever it was off of me, but I didn't see anything. It felt like it was against my bare skin, seering into me. I felt around my waist where a hand should've been, but felt nothing except pain in my side when I pressed down.

"Miyuki?" Riku said slowly.

"Finally… Your heart has surrendered."

My waist was released and now two hands slid towards my chest, one over each shoulder. I tried to step towards Riku, but my feet wouldn't move. I turned and tried to elbow Xehanort – this had to be him – but my arm just hit air.

"Damn it!" Riku growled, and the bat-wing sword appeared in his hand. He took three strides towards me, bringing the sword down behind my head. Nothing changed.

"No, it's like he's got ahold of my chest!" I snapped, scraping at my freezing skin, trying to pry his hands off. It wasn't working, and suddenly the icy voice was loud and clear in my ear.

"A weapon made of fire does nothing to cease flames – neither does a weapon of shadows destroy darkness."

"What do you want?" Riku shouted.

"The only weapon that will rid her of my grip is the keyblade."

My eyes widened. "You're just trying to unlock my heart!" I snapped at Xehanort.

"I can crush her heart—" His ice-cold fingers pressed against my chest until I couldn't draw breath. "—or you can unlock it for me."

Riku shook his head. "No."

"You prefer the former? Very well."

I felt his fingertips pierce my skin, a throbbing pain shooting through me. My mouth opened, my vocal cords straining to make some sort of noise, but unable to.

Riku threw his sword to the side, and a giant, black key appeared in his hand. He raised it over his head – there was a soft woosh, the sensation of being teleported – a thick, hot blade sliced through my shoulder and the base of my neck, down to the point where Xehanort had broken skin.

"What… did I do…?" Riku breathed.

The freezing hands had disappeared, but the ice lingered in my chest, clashing with the burning heat of the blade in me. I closed my eyes and finally drew a deep breath, holding it as long as I could. The paralyzing pain was all-consuming – I could barely hear the conversation around me past the throbbing and stinging.

"You think you're quick? I am the one that taught you what speed truly is."

"No… No!"

Somewhere between the torturous blade in my shoulder and the darkness freezing my heart, I realized that I wasn't consumed. I was freezing, I was on fire, I was certain that these were my last moments, but I was still alive, and I was still me.

If this is all darkness is – some coldness and depression – then I'm gonna be fine.

My hands are tied in front of me, the rope freezing and digging into my wrists.

"I'm not alone anymore." Riku's nose brushes against my cheek – although I want to feel comforted, I'm not. "I'll never be alone again." His hand slides around my neck and he presses his lips against my shoulder. "You're finally mine." He pulls back and smiles at me, golden eyes glinting in the darkness.

I drifted out of the nightmare and while my senses were still readjusting to consciousness, I felt myself waving around. What is darkness doing, getting me high? My eyes opened to see nothing but black. Shit. Still in the corridor. Slowly, I started to realize that I wasn't staring at the nothingness of darkness, I was staring at black fabric. My hands were folded up between my chest and this fabric, and warm water seemed to be dripping down my shoulder and back.

A hand was pressed against the back of my head, gently pressing me against the black fabric, and I suddenly realized Riku was holding me, rocking me back and forth.

"I'm sorry," he whispered.

I didn't know what he was talking about. I'd never felt this safe, and he was apologizing?

"I didn't mean to. Please, please come back."

I pressed my palm against his chest to feel his heartbeat. "If you insist," I muttered.

He froze. I felt his hand tense against my head and, clutching his coat for support, I leaned back a bit to prove how awake I was. I was shocked to see he wasn't wearing his blindfold, but even more shocked to see the skin around his bright teal eyes was reddened and wet.

"You were crying?" I muttered.

"You're alive," he replied, his voice cracking.

"When was I dead?"

"Five seconds ago! You had no pulse!"

"What? That's ridiculous, of course I did! I wouldn't be here if I didn't!"

"I know how to check for a pulse, and you did not have one!" He closed his eyes and shook his head. "Oh my god, if this is a dream…"

"Then here's hoping you don't wake up. Being trapped in your subconscious is not a pleasant prospect, if you know what I mean." He grit his teeth and shook his head slowly, staring at me with angry eyes that now pooled with tears. "It was just a joke," I said quietly.

"I am so sorry."

"For what?" I honestly had no clue what he was apologizing for.

His eyebrows knit. "For hurting you."

Then the memory rushed in, like a dream you'd almost forgotten. Oh, yeah. Corridor, pain, Xehanort, pain, Riku's keyblade, pain, dreaming, pain… I remember now. "What happened?" I asked.

"I went to cut Xehanort down, to get him off of you, but he teleported you… I cut into you instead of him…" He swallowed. "I'm so sorry."

There's no explanation for what I did next, except that I was really, really tired. I busted out laughing, practically collapsing in Riku's lap. I still clung to his jacket with my right hand, but my head now rested on his leg, and I was laughing so hard I was crying.

"Mi…yuki…?"

"I don't know," I giggled. I tugged on his jacket to pull myself upright again, although he still had to grab my shoulders and help me sit up. I hooked my arms around his neck, still giggling like the maniac I was now sure I was. "Don't let go of me, kay?" I snickered.

"Whatever you want," he whispered, wrapping his arms around me.

My laughter finally died away and I was now hit with the aftermath of a near-death experience. My eyes refused to stay open, and my neck refused to hold my head up. I buried my face in Riku's neck. "Where are we?" I mumbled.

"The town near Beef's Castle."

"What's that for?"

"…What?"

"Beef."

"…What?"

"I don't know. I'm sleepy."

"Obviously."

"It's bedtime."

"Alright. Hold this."

I felt his left arm slide from my back and wrap a soft black cloth around my neck. Then he hooked his arm beneath my knees and stood up, wobbbling a little under my weight. He sighed, nuzzling his face against my shoulder. Then I realized he was just trying to wipe his eyes.

"You're kind of vain," I mumbled.

"I know."

He started walking, and I could feel the pulse in his throat against my cheek. Eyes still shut, I used my nose to trail up his neck, find his jaw, and then locate his cheek, which I kissed.

"You're my favorite, Batman."

Somewhere in the back of my sleepy mind I cringed at how ridiculously childish I sounded, but at the moment, I was just glad he was holding me.


Wow. I can't believe it took me this long. I also can't believe you're actually reading this! You're AWESOME! I love you. ;u; Thank you for the reviews last time. If Kingdom Hearts is the fuel for this story, you are DEFINITELY something important, like, the oil or something. :D Aren't you glad you're oil?

I don't know, I'm making very little sense. You'd think I almost died or something.

THANK YOU FOR READING!