NieA here! ^_~' Welcome to the first chapter of my first Kingdom Hearts fanfic! Just a few things I should mention before anyone takes a look at this. First of all, Square owns all. Viva. Second, by all means, feel free to review if you make it through this without falling asleep; feedback is definitely appreciated. And third, I've never written a KH fic or a yaoi fic before (too busy reading to be writing -_-*), so I might have screwed up on alot of things as far as the game itself is concerned. With that said, enjoy!

Chapter One // Awakening

The darkness had engulfed him, flayed his only sensation of reality, left him tormented in a world which had no meaning. He had been seduced so effortlessly, and was then left to watch, mortified, as his childhood friend was nearly slain by his own hands. He remembered very little after then, but he knew his body was in pain. Little flickers of lights and sounds would reach him sometimes, until finally everything came back to him in a rush, and he was suddenly conscious again.

The room reeked of flowers and salty ocean air. Her bright features scalded his eyes; had he truly fallen that far? Even the sight of her smile revolted him, and his limbs, though too injured to move, desired to hurt her so.

"Oh, thank goodness, the boy is awake!" The woman stood abruptly from her chair at his bedside and hurried out the door of the small bungalow, leaning slightly over the railing as she called out to someone on the beach below. "Quickly, get Sora! And Kairi! Riku's finally awake!"

... Sora? Kairi? Something within him stirred at the mention of their names, something between an intense eagerness and an intense anxiety. They were alive?? Sora and Kairi both? Well and unharmed, and untainted by the darkness? How had they managed to escape without being consumed as well?

Then the recollection hit him, the lost memories between then and the present revived. He had aided them in their escape, and instead gave himself with the promise of his return.

"Riku!!!"

In the moment that familiar voice sounded in his ears, everything was forgotten. The image of Sora's smiling face and vibrant, tear rimmed eyes filled his mind as he barreled through the door. He almost couldn't believe how different he looked from just a few months ago. Not only was Sora a little taller now, but his body seemed so much more mature from the little boy's figure he had remembered, much more solid and sculpted from his newly acquired strengths. His face, though, still glowed with his boyish innocence, and his voice still bared evidence to that optimistic disposition Sora was known and loved for.

"Riku, you--"

"Riku!!!!!" Cutting Sora off in mid-sentence, Kairi came bursting through the door and darted straight passed him, forcing a surprised little grunt out of Riku as she practically threw herself onto him. His throbbing arms barely caught her as she embraced him tightly. "Oh, Riku, I'm so glad you're awake!"

"Be careful, Kairi." The flower girl said gently as she re-entered the room. She looked vaguely familiar to Riku, though he couldn't quite put a name to her. "He's still in the process of recovering. His strength isn't fully restored quite yet."

"Oh, sorry!" Kairi apologized cheerfully.

They act as though I've come back from the dead... Riku thought as Kairi reluctantly let him go, coming to stand beside Sora. Her familiar smile out-shown her brilliant aquamarine eyes, which now shimmered with tears. However, he couldn't help but feel overcome with confusion as he watched his two childhood friends. He felt no hatred toward them, not as he had when Ansem had taken claim of his body. Now he actually felt... affectionate? It had been so long since such emotions had even occured to him, and now he seemed almost overwhelmed. So overwhelmed that he couldn't help but smile a little...

"How do you feel?" Sora asked, taking the seat that had once been occupied by the flower girl. Riku's weary eyes then met Sora's intent gaze, and he felt somehow relaxed.

"Been worse." Riku answered with a little grin. Sora let out a light-hearted laugh, his smile reflecting in his eyes. Riku couldn't help but notice, though, that

Sora's eyes were still glistening slightly with what could have been tears, as were Kairi's. "C'mon, you guys aren't crying for me now, are you?"

"You've been asleep for nearly a month now, Riku. They've missed you." The flower girl said with a compassionate smile.

"A month...?" Riku repeated quietly to himself. So was that why everyone was acting so strange? Either way, he was feeling fine now, and even a little inquisitive. He was pretty sure they were back on Destiny Island, but what was the flower girl doing here? Last time he checked, that was considered meddling. Was meddling somehow permitted now? Or had the fragmented worlds finally united as one? And if so, did the island still look the same? As far as he was concerned, there was only one way to find out, and that was to get up and check it out for himself.

"Hey, what are you doing?" Sora asked as Riku slowly came to a sitting position, swung his legs off the side of the bed, and came to stand.

"I think I've been in this bed long enough." Riku said with a faint, almost sarcastic grin. "Now I've gotta make sure I'm not still dreaming."

They watched as Riku took his first step, which was shaky and insecure. He paused for a moment, trying to find some stability in such a simple practice, but it had been a little too long. He faltered on his next step, and found himself falling into Sora's arms.

"You should really stay in bed a little bit longer." Kairi suggested worriedly, her expression painted in genuine concern. Riku tried again to stand, but found himself depending on Sora to keep his balance.

"I'm sorry." Riku murmured, and Sora gave him a reassuring smile.

"Hey, don't worry about it! C'mon, Kairi. Get his other arm." Kairi nodded, and with both of them supporting him on each side, they stepped out of the bungalow and assisted him to the railing.

He had forgotten just how beautiful this place was. Even though the island was still the same as when he had left it, he felt as though he were viewing it again for the first time. The wooden structures and towering palm trees stood out fondly in his memory as a cherished trademark of his childhood. The air was so fresh and clean, and the weather was as perfect as it had always been, warm with a revitalizing pacific breeze. A light wind brushed delicately against his skin and sifted through his mid-length sliver hair, leaving a gentle smile on his lips and a mesmerized, almost even childish glimmer in his turquoise eyes. The majestic blue of the ocean reached out beyond the horizon, though there was one intricate detail Riku couldn't recall existing before. Etched against the sky was a barely visible form, spanning for what seemed like miles until it faded into the sea.

"What is that?" Riku asked, gesturing towards the oddity with calm gaze.

"I dunno." Sora said with a little shrug. "They were there when we came back to the island. Tidus started calling them the Zanarkand mountains."

A fine silver brow perked inquisitively over Riku's eye. Zanarkand mountains? So if those were mountains out there, then that had to mean there was another world other than the island.

"Wouldn't you love to know what's over there, Sora?" Kairi asked sweetly. Riku couldn't help but notice that she had directed the question to Sora, clearly leaving Riku out again. She probably didn't intended to, but either way Riku couldn't help but feel slightly downhearted at the thought of Kairi getting closer to Sora in his absence.

"Oh, I know!" Kairi exclaimed with a giggle. "Let's go check it out one of these days! It could be an adventure! Don't you think that's a great idea??"

"Yeah!" Sora said, his optimistic grin bringing light to his features. "We could take the raft, if we fix it up a little. It got kinda thrashed in that storm."

"What do you think, Riku?" Kairi stared up at him, smiling, her large blue eyes wide and innocent. Riku just glanced down at her expressionlessly and removed his arms from around their shoulders, then turned and began to walk down the wooden ramp with the little amount of strength he had gained. Something frigid tantalized his heart when he had seen the look in Kairi's eyes, a feeling so familiar it almost scared him. The darkness certainly couldn't still be lingering in his heart. It couldn't be, not after Ansem's defeat, could it? But then why else would he suddenly recoil in disgust at the girl he had known over half his life?

"I've had enough adventures to last me a lifetime." He murmured almost subconsciously, his voice without emotion. Of course it was hardly true; Riku could never get enough of adventures. However, something inside him couldn't resist it, especially knowing that the response would hurt both Kairi and Sora.

"Riku...?" Kairi's sweet, innocent voice called after him uncertainly. He could hear the quick pace of Sora's big yellow shoes coming up behind him.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Sora asked kindly. A hand caught Riku gently by the upper arm, requesting silently that he stop and face them, but instead Riku shoved Sora away and continued to the ladder. Sora reached out one more time and caught onto his hand just as he was about descend. "Riku, wait."

Without a response, Riku's eyes shot up to confront Sora, filled with a sudden contempt. Who did the boy think he was, ordering him to wait?! And with such a pathetic look on his face; he actually looked sympathetic. Worried. Almost even scared. Sora never used to show such emotions so easily in front of him, not so fluently and over something so trivial. Kairi had done something to him. Something to make him weak, even after everything he had gone through. It was sickening.

Riku impulsively jerked his hand away, subconsciously cringing at the feel of Sora's small act of compassion. His feet then slipped and instantly all his suspended weight put strain on his weakened arm. His eyes still held Sora's as he began to fall, smirking despite himself as the boy leapt forward and grasped desperately to catch him. Sora's strong grip met Riku's wrist, but it was too late for him to keep balance for the both of them.

They both tumbled downward, Sora crashing down on top of Riku and forcing from him a stifled cry of pain as they smashed into the second ramp. Sora then quickly grabbed onto him and held him almost protectively as they fell off the second level. He somehow managed to twist Riku over him while in midair, so when they slammed into the ground Sora took all the impact.

"D... amn... are you trying to kill me?!" Riku snarled as he weakly rolled off of Sora's body.

"I'm sorry..." Sora murmured as he came to a sitting position, lightly rubbing an aching spot on his back. He looked worriedly over at Riku, who was knelt over with his hands bracing his weight against the sand. His head was declined, allowing his long platinum hair to conceal his expression. Riku's back heaved with his labored breathing, and his whole body trembled.

"Omigosh, Sora!" Kairi called over the railing. "Are you guys alright???"

"Get Aerith!" Sora yelled. Kairi nodded and took off running up the ramp toward the bungalow. Sora then returned all his attention to Riku, crawling over to his side. However, Sora didn't make an effort to comfort him, and no words were exchanged between the two. Riku could feel Sora's eyes on him, he knew the look that was on his face without even looking-- contemplating, his eyebrows drawn only a little with a slightly confused expression in his vibrant blue eyes, his soft lips barely curved in an almost childish pout. Sora wanted to say something, but knew not quite what. Riku's sudden change of behavior had thoroughly confused everyone, including himself, and now neither one of the boys had not the slightest idea as to what to do about it.

"Is everyone alright??" The flower girl came running up to the boys, followed by Kairi and... Tidus? She quickly dropped down to the other side of Riku, leaning in slightly to get a look at his face. Little beads of persperation were gathering at his temples, though his expression was now surprisingly calm.

"I'm fine." Riku insisted before Aerith could say another word. "Just give me a potion or something, and I'll be fine."

"You need more rest." Aerith said softly. "One more night should do it, then I'll give you a hi-potion, alright?"

"No, just give me something now." Riku demanded, his voice becoming increasingly forceful. "Just give me a potion and I'll be alright."

"I've gotta potion!" Tidus exclaimed enthusiastically, retrieving a small, blue-tinted bottle from the pouch around his waist. "Here ya go!"

"No, Tidus!" Kairi gasped, only to be ignored. The boy threw the small bottle into the air and it quickly deteriorated. Merely a second after a soft light enveloped Sora's body, and all his scrapes and bruises from the previous fall disappeared.

"Ummm... Thanks!" Sora smiled, though he was a little surprised. He had completely expected the potion to heal Riku, not him.

"Don't worry, I've got another one!" Tidus said cheerfully, digging through the pouch for another potion.

"No!" Kairi, Aerith, and Sora shouted in unison. Tidus stopped and stared at them blankly, the expression on his face unforgettable.

"I mean, that's quite alright!" Aerith murmured, her cheeks reddening a little. "Let's just let him rest a little, then we'll see about it, okay?"

Tidus, the extremely perplexed expression still lingering on his face, dropped the bottle of potion back into his bag and gave a little shrug. "Um... okay."

The three gave a synchronized sigh of relief.

"You guys are really weird."

.....

::[Owari~

a.n.]:: chapter one, finally completed! i can't believe how much trouble i'm having deciding on what to do with this story -_-* anyway, please don't forget to review! feedback and suggestions would be greatly appreciated. thanks!

NieA