Author's Note: Welcome back, all you Kingdom Hearts fans! And thank you, those who have been so faithful to me and have kept up with my wishes and with the story! I totally appreciate it all! Anyway, disclaimer, well, the usually like always: I don't own anything of the Squaresoft or Disney production, and definitely not anything from the game Kigdom Hearts itself. I only own Roz, Aya, and... uh... well, who else knows what else that I've made up that isn't apart of some other company? Anyway, please remember to refer back to other chapters, because y'all know that I type a whole lot and it takes me a good darn while too.... And please, you must know that I am terribly sorry for my total lateness because school is hell and is trying its very best to take up ALLLLLL my time... See, mid-terms have come, and I'm in hell. I'm trying my best to get things done for you all, so please bare with me as much as you can before you take out your guns, your swords, daggers, pitchforks, spears and anything else you use to kill someone with. Thank you. Oh, and beward of chapter depressing-ness. Oh, and all those Riku-I-hate-you-cry people, I'll try to keep in mind not to make him pitiful, only sad. Also, I have not finished CC, so if I have some info wrong, notify me so I can fix it...
Warning! Total big warning!:sap, yaoi, angst(ish) in this chapt (oh, and wierd pairing...) O_o() oh, and uh... if no one's ready to hear cussing from a certain non-cursing-non-cussing person, *coughSoracough* then please skip this chapter... i guess... Oo() otherwise, clean your ears later... *cough and looks away innocently* ()_
Chapter Eleven
Riku had a nice conversation with Leena, Serge's old girlfriend. After a while, he fell a sleeep on the dock, right next to the old fisherman who was apparently fishing while he was sleeping. When Riku had woken from his light nap, he found that the fisherman was still in his usual spot, but Leena and the boys had gone after their swim. Riku didn't know where exactly they went, but decided to take a breather out of the village. He didn't stop by any house or inside Serge's home to notify him or the others where he was to go, but just left. Outside the village was an open area; there, he just let his legs take him where ever they wanted.
Soon enough, he came across a rocky area where a path led to a cliff where a stone was at the very end with writing engraved on it. Riku sat in front of the stone, reading its words and barely legible writing.
"A dedication to Leena and Serge..." Riku whispered, running his fingers over the rough surface of the rock. "But that's no more... It's obvious Kid and Serge are more close..." He ran his fingers on the moss and mold that developed on the rock over the years. "I wonder... If we are here... then there must be a reason, right? The key... the keyhole... Could there be one here too?" Riku looked around him, admiring the ocean below his perch and the pieceful non-living things around him. Small animals, harmless, were around him, but those that looked threatening when he entered this domain seemed to be absent from his vision.
"No... This place cannot have such evil in it... The war that happens in every world... This one has passed... There shouldn't be any more to fix or do here..." Riku whispered.
"Oh, but there is something to be fixed dear Riku..." came a low voice behind the silver-haired boy.
Riku looked over his shoulder to see Serge right as the entrance to this small opening. But Riku frowned, puzzled; something was not right with Serge. "Serge? What are you doing here?"
"Can I not come to my own grave?"
Riku's brows creased. "I don't understand. What are you talking about?"
Serge shook his head, his smile mocking. "You do not understand, of course not. This word is parallel to another. I had not understood it whence I first heard, but Lynx told me. He told me of the Chrono Trigger, of the Chronos... And the old man explained it more as well, but that man is not here in this world, no. He is in the other dimension, in the world parallel to this one, the same time, but... in that world, in that time, I am not alive..." Serge stepped forward, his smile widening slightly as Riku only stayed silent, only watching him and listening to his words. "A terrible accident happened a long time ago when I was very young... I do not remember what age I was, but around the years of five to seven, I am sure is when it happened. That rock..."
Serge gestured to the rock in front of Riku, watching as the other turned to stare at the rock in wonder. "Here lies Serge, blah blah blah... No one shall take away, blah blah blah... You should be able to guess what it said. Have you ever expreienced death, Riku?"
Riku turned back to Serge and could only stare at him for a long silent moment. Then, bowing his head, he spoke. "In fact, I have. Death myself, my friends' deaths, and innocent ones... I have seen all kinds of death... All kinds..."
Serge knelt down by Riku and tilted his head up with just a light lift of his fingers. "YOU have experienced death, Riku? How?"
Riku shook his head. "I had betrayed Sora... I had betrayed them all, going to the other side, letting Maleficent take control of me, letting Ansem possess my body and rid me of everything, have me watch my body do things wihtout my command... It was horrible. I hated it. The only thing I could do to help out was sacrifice myself after Ansem was weakened by Sora. I let myself get closed in the door of Kingdom Hearts, gave myself up to let him and Kairi and the others live."
"And what happened after that, Riku?" Serge's vioce was soft and carried a soothing tone. "What happened after you let your frineds live? What happened to you, your thoughts, what did YOU do after that?"
"I... Trapped in that door, trapped in the prison, I... I thought about my life, I let myself fall in a sea of darkness, I let myself drown in my own thoughts until I could finally see my path and escape through the door to the other side and meet up with Sora and Kairi again. I found out that Sora had not stayed with Kairi to search for the King, King Mickey, and possibly... myself."
Riku let his head fall, remembering the pain he felt when finding out he had lost Sora once again. Serge lifted Riku's head and brushed a stray lock out of his eyes, looking into those sad and tear-filled blue-green eyes. "You love him, don't you? Tell me, what happened to your dear Sora, what you did to bare the pain."
Riku shook his head and choked back some of the feelings that wanted to escape him through objects and actions. "Sora didn't come back until he found King Mickey. Then, when he came back, he couldn't belive that I was alive, that I was real, that I was me and right there."
"But...? I hear you voice faultering, Riku. You're hiding something... What's the matter?"
"Everyone was trying to get things back together between us three, between myself, Sora, and Kairi, but... It could never really be the same. The others didn't know what happened in the other worlds, only Kairi, Sora, and I knew what troubles, what happened on our adventure, only us three. Nothing was the same between us three. Kairi became distant toward me, never really saw me as the friend she knew before, and the same with Sora. He was cautious. He'd get edgy around me, unable to saw things right, more trouble then before. His easiness toward me before all that happened lessened as he became uneasy and nervous as if I'd kill him right on the spot. I know I would've before, if we were still on out journey, and before it, I would probably hit him playfully, but... He seemed like he never really trusted me after all that." Riku felt Serge's cool hand cup his cheek and lift his head to face him. Riku sighed heavily as he let Serge pull him forward and rest his head on his shoulder. "I hated those days. He tried to show his trust, but he was never really easy and forward toward me as he use to be. He seemed to grow agressive and more forceful, especially with me in sight, with me around."
Serge gave a quick pat to Riku's back. "Shh... Give yourself a moment until you continue. I hate it when others break down like this, especially those who are usually strong in heart, mine, and body. I barely know you Riku, but I know you are good at heart, maybe too vulnerable and easy to pick at, but you shouldn't let others, nor yourself, your feelings, your thoughts, no matter how wicked they are, you shouldn't let them get to you." Serge pushed Riku away and let the boy rock back on his his heels as he sat silently, staring at the ground. After a long silent moment, Serge let Riku continue his story.
"The only time he finally opened up to me was when we had shared our first kiss together. Really, I wouldn't consider it our first kiss because it was for the play, but still... it was our first as any kiss." Riku sighed and leaned back on the rock behind him, staring up at the pure blue sky. "When our lips met, it was like nothing I'd ever felt. It was as if all that I felt was missing wasn't suddenly filled. It was as if I could hear his thoughts, fell what he was feeling, be inside him, be him, be one with him as he with me. I don't know what he felt just exactly then, but I was pretty sure he finally trusted me, finally gave himself to me, let something deep inside him surface." Riku paused.
"Sure, I know that he was confused afterwards, and that the crowd was equally shocked as him, but... Oh hell, I don't know. I just-- I just... I just felt like I was finally accepted. And I still think so, still believe so because after that play, we were the closest of friends once again. I was pretty sure Kairi knew what was going on between us because she was closest to Sora for a time, but not before it was just us, only us two and not her. Whenever we competed over her, I thought then that I liked her, but during our journey I guess that's when I realized that I liked Sora more then her."
"Riku, you never really told what you felt during your journey, why you became possessed, why you were so vulnerable to the evil, why all this came to be."
Riku shook his head, all this information confusing even his own brain since it was coming out in the wrong order. "Maleficent used my heart, twisted me and manipulated me through my heart, through my love and friendship to get me. She cursed me, hurt me through and through, inside and out, deep within me and at the surface. She poked at the weakest part of me and penetrated through to twist my thoughts, manipulate my brain, make me think things that weren't supposed to be thought. She killed me slowly, killed my heart, turned it black, slowly, ever so slowly... I hated her, but yet, I saw reasoning in her wicked words. She showed me enough evidence to make me think what I thought, make me belive what I was doing was good. She plagued my mind, my heart, made me weak enough to easily be killed, but she also gave me power. that power was the only thing that kept me sane. That, and the thought of Sora, no matter how much I despised him for what he did, for what Maleficent told me about him, and so much more... I hated him then, I hated his very soul. I wanted to kill him, and the power Maleficent gave me was enough to fufill this task, but always, Sora would get through to me, defeat me every time, pierce through farther, deeper then Maleficent could ever do or go, he'd always be able to conquer all. When Maleficent failed in corrupting me, and was swallowed by the evil and darkness herself, I turned to Ansem, or rather, he used me as well."
"You have been through so much, haven't you, Riku?"
"I have... Ansem took over me body, he controlled my every move, and killed me after he was done with my body. My spirit was only enough to keep him from attacking my frineds, from attacking Sora for a while... But I was not able to help him after that. It was Kairi and her love for mhim and his returning love for her that brought him thorugh the darkness and pulled him into the light again. I could only watch as the two pulled through to the very end. I projected my voice in his head when I saw that he was letting them win, letting the evil take him as it had taken me, I used much of my strength to help him out. I could only watch him get hurt, watch him fight on his own after that. In the world of the dead, I could only stand on the other side of the wall, the other side of the door and let myself get closed in while he was on the other side, living and free, with those he loved. I considered that in the world of the dead, I could think things through, protect him from afar, but apparently not. His grew corrupt as well, he could only pull through the darkness, come back just enough to stay alive and sane enough to fufill his mission. But apparently, he wasn't the same carefree, light hearted, pure and innocent Sora I once knew. Again, as I said, he still had kept some of his hatred, fed off of his anger and thrist for revenge, to avenge, and to destroy to give him a boost of power to defeat that who harnest the most evil of all."
Riku sighed and lifted his head, looking at Serge. Serge returned the stare with a blank expression on his face. "Tell me Serge, have you ever had that happen to you? Ever had to see your friend squirm in the grasp of evil, see that he or she is no longer the pure white light, but not tainted with black, like a picture, black and white everywhere, but nothing one pure color?"
Serge nodded. "I was possessed by Lynx. I was controlled and decieved. I was weak and stupid. But yet, with this possession, I gained power and knowledge, knowledge I had not accquired before." Serge paused to give a light shake of his head, his bandana tight on his head. "I never talked then, but now I do, and sometimes, I say things that I don't mean to, and sometimes it comes out forced or harsh. But see, this development came through when Lynx and I became one. I am still possessed by him, even at this moment, for a part of him stayed with me after he died. I do not know how, but as times, I can become really harsh, evil, forceful and rude when naturally, I am not. Does this help you some, Riku?"
"I suppose... I've never talked about this to anyway, and had no need to. But now that I know that things are okay, that I have someone I can confide in, it makes me feel better." Riku sighed, shook his head, and stood up. He stretched as Serge came up on his feet as well. "I don't really say this, but thanks, Serge."
"Not a problem at all, Riku... Not at all..." Serge gave a light smile. "But you do know what I said about our world being parellel to another as true, right?"
"I suppose. How did I come?"
"I'm not sure, but in this world, I survived the accident, but in the other world, I'm dead and have no family. My mother is not there, and so on. Those alive here are alive there, all my comrades and those friends who fought with me in battle here are there. Make sense? Kid is important in this whole facade for her necklace can let me travel to and from each world. No one else can do it unless if I'm there or Kid with the necklace. It seems wierd, but it's entirely true. It was fate or destiny, or a prophecy that all that happened to happen between the worlds. I've grown since then, physically, mentally, I have become more balanced in life then I was before. But I had help. I had enough help from others, from those around me, and those dear to me to help pull me through, guide me and show me the way." Serge turned around and started down into the path to lead out of the place. "I have expericned death, pain, and rebirth. It's all crucial, I know. Death, like being born, yet, backwards; birth, death but not quite. Being reborn, somewhere in between the two... All of it is confusing and complicated, yet, it makes sense when it happens."
Riku nodded as he followed Serge out and off the cliff back to the path. "Oh, and I heard you talking to yourself about a keyhole," Serge said, looking over his shoulder at Riku. "What's that about?"
Riku blinked. "Oh, well, you know how we're strangers to your continent and village, right? But has Roz or anyone told you how exactly we've come to be here?" When Serge shook his head, Riku half smiled and walked in front of Serge, leading the way this time, telling the other of their reasons for being there. After so, Riku pointed. "There. That forest. Come, I suppose it's best if you know more... Later, we will gather the others from the village..."
Roz and Riku were standing in front of the bubble that Roz used to control the ship with in the Heart room. The others were there as well, Kid, Serge, and Leena as well as the pink pooch. Some time had passed since they had explained a loud of their information to Serge and the others. Riku was especially friendly toward Serge after their 'special' talk on the cliff not long ago.
"This is where Roz goes."
Roz punched Riku's arm. "Don't make me sound like some machine you fart head."
Riku rolled his eyes and simply used his hand to block Roz's next punch. "Anyway, I think that's all we need to show you. Besides, it's been... how long since we started? Well, long enough. So... since there's nothing else to really see unless you count the outside, you can go. We gave you a lot of information in one blow, so feel free to stay silent with your jaws hanging for as long as you feel you need to, okay?" Riku smirked at his only little joke before turning to Roz and whispering to her. Roz nodded hesitantly and gave Riku access to whatever he asked her for.
Riku thanked Roz briefly before jumping into the bubble, catching everyone off gaurd except for Roz who already was shocked and confused. Riku swam in the sea that is known as Feng's territory. There, he saw the image of Feng in her false form as a person, as a girl around his age, yet, younger.
/Feng..?\
[Yes?] Feng looked up and blinked, her face expression showing her surprise of his pressence. [Oh, you aren't Roz. I had a feeling something was off... What is it, Riku?]
Riku shook his head and approached Feng, stopping in front of her, crossing his legs in front of him and sitting in front of her in their space. /Well... I was wondering if you could...\
Feng smiled sweetly and nodded. [Say no more... I understand, just a moment...]
Soon, a hole appeared near the two. Riku looked and soon, he saw an image, a picture, of a strange and unfamiliar planet. /Wha- What's this? Where's this place?\
Feng shook her head. [I'm not sure exactly... Possibly quite a while from here. But again, I am not sure.]
/May I...?\
[Of course... But know this, the more you use this system, the more you are drained of your strength. You will feel the results of your work once you exit here.]
/I understand, Feng, thank you.\ Riku's brows cresed as he searched for this one thing, this one person that would be all that he needed. He wanted to find this person, and it was probably obvious to anyone who he was looking for. But the question now was, where WAS this place that he was looking at?
"I am falling... I am fading... I have lost it all..." were the words that he heard in his head, heard from the lips of that person he was searching for and had found in the image before him. "I am hurting... I am hating... Please... Go away... Leave..."
/Sora... Please... What's wrong? I... I don't know what to do... I don't know how to help you... You push me away... You run after hurting me... I don't know what to do... I really don't... I want to help you, but... How can I if you won't let me? Oh God... please... tell me what's wrong...\
Feng stayed silent even though she had things to say to the boy. She let her image fade away and leave him alone to himself as he watched Sora. Riku unfolded his legs and curled into a ball, letting himself float in the sea of colors with the image still in front of him.
/Sora...\
Sora was on the wall of Midgar, staring out into the black sky. His eyes held no sign that told Riku that he was really there, or confused or scared, or if Sora's exsistance was... No, Riku thought. /I won't think those thoughts... But Sora... You drift from me farther and farther every minute... It's like you're not even there, not noticed that around you, not... You aren't the Sora I knew and loved... What's wrong...? God... Please... Help him... I never really turned to any God at all, but please, if there is one out there, help him, help myself, help us all... I can't take it anymore.\ Riku sighed heavily, watching Sora silently with great concentration. /I've only gone with what Roz says because the sooner we do what she says, the sooner I can get to you... But the closer I get, the more distance you put between us. I don't understand. Don't you love me...? Don't you feel the same way about me? What is it that troubles you?\
Sora's image soon projected itself in the sea of colors where Riku was and out of the hole he was in. "Riku..."
/...Sora? Wha- How...?\
"No... Go away... I don't want to talk to you right now... Not for a long time..." Sora said evenly, his voice carrying no emotion. "You've plagued me for so long... You hurt me. I hurt... All that pain... it hurts... You just kept killing, Riku... I didn't understand, no then, not now even. You were always the strong one... But yet, you let them get to you... You let them have you... They used you, and you let them... You killed because you thought it was right, you killed because they told you to, you killed for your own enjoyment."
/No! That's not true! I didn't kill because I loved it! I hated it! It was true, they used me, but no! I didn't kill because I wanted to, because I loved the rush. No...\
"Is that so...? But you always liked fighting back on the island BEFORE we appeared in that world, did all those things, had our adventure... You enjoyed whacking me to and fro, beating the others as they ganged up on you. You had the thrill, you soaked up all the fun and enjoyed watching them struggle and meet their defeat. And you tell me now that you didn't like the killing as if it was a game just like at home on the island?"
Riku stared into the cold piercing eyes that were Sora's. /No... no... I couldn't've... I didn't... I never... No. I didn't love the fights, I didn't enjoy the killing, no, I couldn't've. Innocent were dying! I only obliged to it because I had thought it would help me find Kairi's heart! I thought it would bring me closer to finding it!\
Sora scoffed. "Is that true? Psh. Prove it to me. Go down memory lane, Riku, go down that fucking lane and tell what you felt. Those espressions on your face, the smirk you always kept, the laugh in my face when you sliced through my skin and watched in satisfaction as blood flowed. Don't tell me that you didn't once or twice love to see others in pain, especially me."
The hole that was once carrying the image of Sora on the wall changed and displayed the fights Riku fought as if like a tape in fast forward. Riku watched in horror, seeing his own face, the glint in his eyes, the love for the fight, the lust for blood shed, the whole entire him, all of him shining with an aura to kill and destroy.
/But... wait... no... this fight... no... There wasn't any... No...?\
"What's the matter, Riku? What's wrong...? The truth too much?"
Riku shook his head, his hands gripping at his hair at the sides of his head. /No... No! It's not... I didn't... I don't... I don't rmeember any of this happening, any of these feelings inside me. No, I look like I enjoy it, but, I don't remember feeling that way. All I wanted was to be better, have that little bit of power that was greater than yours... I... No. No! NO! NO NO NO! I didn't enjoy fighting as much as you said I did, I didn't enjoy it as you said I did.\
"But you DID enjoy it some what, right?"
Riku stopped shaking his head, his breath turned to pants, his eyes wide and body trembling. /No... Stop it. I wasn't like that!\
Sora's eyes flashed. "Yes you were! Don't try to deny it, Riku, you were like that! You'd always laugh at me when I fell, laugh AT me when I did something wrong. I hated that. I always wanted to prove better of myself because of you."
/No! No I wasn't, I didn't. I never laughed at you, I never wanted to harm you then. I-\
"But later you did, then?"
/No! I didn't mean that! I never meant real harm to you! Not while I still had control of my thoughts and was sane.\
Sora's eyes narrowed. "Riku, don't give me that bullshit. You know as well as I that you were in control of yourself most of our adventure, only toward the very end were you really not in control of yourself when you were possessed by Ansem. But the rest of the time, you were acting on your own."
/Not entirely... Maleficent had manipulated me.\
"And you admit this...? You never admitted you were wrong... not before, Riku. You always liked being the superior of us all. You were mainly the loner and that person who ruled the island, ruled all, judged all, ordered all, but stayed to himself. Admitting you were easy bait and was wrong at a time isn't like you..." Sora's eyes narrowed even more before widening to their normal state after a long stare.
/I know, but...\
"I didn't want to talk to you, Riku, but you make me have to... Just like all the other times... you made me do all these things I didn't want to do..."
Riku shook his head vigorously. /What--?! I never made you do anything! I never made you do anything all our time together! You lie!\
"No Riku, you lie. I didn't have to fight, but I was forced to keep from dying and to be able to move on and fufill what I had to do. I had to fight the Heartless, had to fight so many others, but mostly, I had to fight YOU."
/I didn't... I fought because Maleficent told me to. She said that if I was to find Kairi's heart, I had to get at you first.\
"And you let her twist your mind? You believed her?"
/She convinced me! She told me it wouldn't be hard to do since I shouldn't turst you anyway! She told me that you had no need for me! She said that you had enough new friends that I was no longer needed in this place, that I was useless and worthless to you! She showed me you, I saw from afar how you reacted with them, I saw how you were so easy with them, how it seemed that you spent more time with them then looking for Kairi and myself like you said you were doing! I believed! She showed me just enough evidence, at the right times and for so long, she showed me! And I believed her!\
"I know you did... That's why you came after me..."
/Because she had me believing you betrayed me, betrayed our frinedship... I believed her words... You seemed to have payed mroe attention to their wishes then this one of your own, looking for us... But then again, I should reword that. It was as if you were looking for Kairi only, not me... I believed, Sora, what else could I belive? I had no other evidence, and her words were convincing. I thought that she must've been right...\ Riku shook his head, choking back that tears that developed as he shouted at his love. /Oh God... I believed her because it seemed so true... What else would you've thought, Sora?\
"I'd known that you or Kairi wouldn't've forgotten about me."
/No! You possibly couldn't've! Look! Look at all that I saw, all that she said! From that evidence, you can't POSSIBLY belive otherwise!\ Riku gestured to the hole and the repeating images of his fighting soon changed to all those images, all those conversations he'd had with Maleficent, her words ringing throughout the space of colors. /See?!\
"True... But then... it seems the same way to me for you... YOu seem to be doing more of what Roz and the others suggest then what you truely want..."
/I'm doing because she said that as soon as she gets this one person, I can look for you. She told me that this person would help us find you!\
"But I'm right here..."
/No you aren't... I want to belive that, but... you're an image of Sora... not Sora in flesh and blood... Roz said that she'd help as much as she can to bring me to you, or you to me...\
"But do you even know who this person is that she's looking for?"
Riku shook his head. /No... of course not... I just thought... maybe, if ... the sooner we find them, the sooner I can get to you...\
"But you're running around in circles... This ship doesn't even know where to go...Do you truely know where you are going, Riku...? And do you know who she's trying to find...? She's finding someone who cannot possibly help you on your journey to find me... Not at all..."
/Who... who then...?\
"She's finding an old friend of hers, the one with the scarf... Remember him...? He is her old boyfriend... A childhood friend... Put he cannot possibly know where I am... He doesn't know... He's a useless person, a useless being she wants to find and keep with. She wants to stay with him, not just get him and bring him along with you to find me, no. No she doesn't. She doesn't care..."
/No, you have to be lying... It can't be true... She said that she'd help... She said she'd help! SHE SAID SO!\ Riku stood up, his fists shaking and face stained with tears. /No! I won't believe it! It can't be true! You're lying, Sora! You're lying!\
Sora's cold stare peirced through his heart. "You won't belive your love? You won't belive me when I speak the truth?"
Riku shook his head, roughly wiping away the tears. /No... You aren't my love... You can't possibly be... You are too wicked, too corrupt to be him... He's kind... He wouldn't do nor say such words...\
Sora's lips curved into a merciless smile. "Are you sure...? Are you sure about that Riku...? I could very well be him, this Sora you image as... I'm not as innocent as you think, Riku... After all that's happened between us, no... I cannot possibly stay the same..." Sora approached Riku and cupped Riku's face in his hands, directing the boy's head toward his.
/Of course you can't...\ Riku smiled sadly, letting the other boy control him with his icy, yet gentle touch. /I can't be sure... And you can't be the same as you ever were... Everyone grows... but...\
Sora silenced Riku is a kiss, letting his tongue slip inside the other boy's mouth. Riku made no move to wrap his arms around Sora's smaller frame, but instead, he placed his hands over Sora's smaller ones.
When Sora pulled away, his eyes were half hooded, but still carried the same icy stare in them. "But can never be the same... Am I right...? No one will ever stay the same as they once were... remember that, Riku... I am not the innocent and carefreee boy you once knew... No... not at all... Best remember what I've told you as you waste your time following Roz like a lost lap dog, got it? I will not wait for you, Riku... I certainly will not. Find me on your own... You'll do better that way... I don't wish you good luck, Riku, but..." Sora paused and retreated, pulling away from Riku's grasp entirely. "I do say goodbye... Just think... think about what I've told you... She is not as devoted as you think..."
Riku could only nod before Sora's image faded. /Sora... You certainly aren't the same... But I know this, there is still a part of you, the real you, inside... You're still there... If you weren't, then you wouldn't have just kissed me as you did... I'll find you Sora... I swear it... I'll find you and bring you back, even if I have to kill you or anyone else to get my way...\
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OOC: Whoa... kinda odd, and typed somewhat differ, but after hearing what someone said about it being hard to read my stuff, I've decided to fix things up a bit and make it easier fo y'all... now i'm terribly sorry for the lateness and the crappy chapter, but hell, mid-terms are hell... i think in my author's note i said it was finals, but really, it's mid-terms... i always get those two names mixed up.... anyway, hell... please review on this story so i know what y'all think and if anyone has suggestions, feel free to tell me whatever the hell they are, even if it's something like fixing how i type this... i'll be sure to fix the other chapters as well... oh, and for grammer or spelling, that's welcome too... i can't spell for beans... and hey, like i said, wierd pairing in the beginning... i was originally gonna make Serge push Riku off the cliff or something evil like that, buuuut... i thought better of it and try something wierd like whatever-the-hell i did... anywho, please review or i'll come after someone with a bat... only this one person doesn't have to review for me because i talk to her so much she lets me know personally... well, anyway, sorry, and i'll be sure to type more soon... for now, i have to burn the school.... *pulls out a box of matches, a lighter, lighter fuel, newspaper, and sunglasses* hee hee hee D *puts on the sunglasses and pulls hair back* alright! time to bring school to hell!!! MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAH! *runs off, laughing maniacally and carring the stuff in my arms* SCHOOL WILL PAY FOR ITS TORTUE ON US STUDENTS!!! (Call 1800-555-BURN-SCHOOL for request to burn down YOUR school...) BWAHAHAHAHHAAAAH! DD
Warning! Total big warning!:sap, yaoi, angst(ish) in this chapt (oh, and wierd pairing...) O_o() oh, and uh... if no one's ready to hear cussing from a certain non-cursing-non-cussing person, *coughSoracough* then please skip this chapter... i guess... Oo() otherwise, clean your ears later... *cough and looks away innocently* ()_
Chapter Eleven
Riku had a nice conversation with Leena, Serge's old girlfriend. After a while, he fell a sleeep on the dock, right next to the old fisherman who was apparently fishing while he was sleeping. When Riku had woken from his light nap, he found that the fisherman was still in his usual spot, but Leena and the boys had gone after their swim. Riku didn't know where exactly they went, but decided to take a breather out of the village. He didn't stop by any house or inside Serge's home to notify him or the others where he was to go, but just left. Outside the village was an open area; there, he just let his legs take him where ever they wanted.
Soon enough, he came across a rocky area where a path led to a cliff where a stone was at the very end with writing engraved on it. Riku sat in front of the stone, reading its words and barely legible writing.
"A dedication to Leena and Serge..." Riku whispered, running his fingers over the rough surface of the rock. "But that's no more... It's obvious Kid and Serge are more close..." He ran his fingers on the moss and mold that developed on the rock over the years. "I wonder... If we are here... then there must be a reason, right? The key... the keyhole... Could there be one here too?" Riku looked around him, admiring the ocean below his perch and the pieceful non-living things around him. Small animals, harmless, were around him, but those that looked threatening when he entered this domain seemed to be absent from his vision.
"No... This place cannot have such evil in it... The war that happens in every world... This one has passed... There shouldn't be any more to fix or do here..." Riku whispered.
"Oh, but there is something to be fixed dear Riku..." came a low voice behind the silver-haired boy.
Riku looked over his shoulder to see Serge right as the entrance to this small opening. But Riku frowned, puzzled; something was not right with Serge. "Serge? What are you doing here?"
"Can I not come to my own grave?"
Riku's brows creased. "I don't understand. What are you talking about?"
Serge shook his head, his smile mocking. "You do not understand, of course not. This word is parallel to another. I had not understood it whence I first heard, but Lynx told me. He told me of the Chrono Trigger, of the Chronos... And the old man explained it more as well, but that man is not here in this world, no. He is in the other dimension, in the world parallel to this one, the same time, but... in that world, in that time, I am not alive..." Serge stepped forward, his smile widening slightly as Riku only stayed silent, only watching him and listening to his words. "A terrible accident happened a long time ago when I was very young... I do not remember what age I was, but around the years of five to seven, I am sure is when it happened. That rock..."
Serge gestured to the rock in front of Riku, watching as the other turned to stare at the rock in wonder. "Here lies Serge, blah blah blah... No one shall take away, blah blah blah... You should be able to guess what it said. Have you ever expreienced death, Riku?"
Riku turned back to Serge and could only stare at him for a long silent moment. Then, bowing his head, he spoke. "In fact, I have. Death myself, my friends' deaths, and innocent ones... I have seen all kinds of death... All kinds..."
Serge knelt down by Riku and tilted his head up with just a light lift of his fingers. "YOU have experienced death, Riku? How?"
Riku shook his head. "I had betrayed Sora... I had betrayed them all, going to the other side, letting Maleficent take control of me, letting Ansem possess my body and rid me of everything, have me watch my body do things wihtout my command... It was horrible. I hated it. The only thing I could do to help out was sacrifice myself after Ansem was weakened by Sora. I let myself get closed in the door of Kingdom Hearts, gave myself up to let him and Kairi and the others live."
"And what happened after that, Riku?" Serge's vioce was soft and carried a soothing tone. "What happened after you let your frineds live? What happened to you, your thoughts, what did YOU do after that?"
"I... Trapped in that door, trapped in the prison, I... I thought about my life, I let myself fall in a sea of darkness, I let myself drown in my own thoughts until I could finally see my path and escape through the door to the other side and meet up with Sora and Kairi again. I found out that Sora had not stayed with Kairi to search for the King, King Mickey, and possibly... myself."
Riku let his head fall, remembering the pain he felt when finding out he had lost Sora once again. Serge lifted Riku's head and brushed a stray lock out of his eyes, looking into those sad and tear-filled blue-green eyes. "You love him, don't you? Tell me, what happened to your dear Sora, what you did to bare the pain."
Riku shook his head and choked back some of the feelings that wanted to escape him through objects and actions. "Sora didn't come back until he found King Mickey. Then, when he came back, he couldn't belive that I was alive, that I was real, that I was me and right there."
"But...? I hear you voice faultering, Riku. You're hiding something... What's the matter?"
"Everyone was trying to get things back together between us three, between myself, Sora, and Kairi, but... It could never really be the same. The others didn't know what happened in the other worlds, only Kairi, Sora, and I knew what troubles, what happened on our adventure, only us three. Nothing was the same between us three. Kairi became distant toward me, never really saw me as the friend she knew before, and the same with Sora. He was cautious. He'd get edgy around me, unable to saw things right, more trouble then before. His easiness toward me before all that happened lessened as he became uneasy and nervous as if I'd kill him right on the spot. I know I would've before, if we were still on out journey, and before it, I would probably hit him playfully, but... He seemed like he never really trusted me after all that." Riku felt Serge's cool hand cup his cheek and lift his head to face him. Riku sighed heavily as he let Serge pull him forward and rest his head on his shoulder. "I hated those days. He tried to show his trust, but he was never really easy and forward toward me as he use to be. He seemed to grow agressive and more forceful, especially with me in sight, with me around."
Serge gave a quick pat to Riku's back. "Shh... Give yourself a moment until you continue. I hate it when others break down like this, especially those who are usually strong in heart, mine, and body. I barely know you Riku, but I know you are good at heart, maybe too vulnerable and easy to pick at, but you shouldn't let others, nor yourself, your feelings, your thoughts, no matter how wicked they are, you shouldn't let them get to you." Serge pushed Riku away and let the boy rock back on his his heels as he sat silently, staring at the ground. After a long silent moment, Serge let Riku continue his story.
"The only time he finally opened up to me was when we had shared our first kiss together. Really, I wouldn't consider it our first kiss because it was for the play, but still... it was our first as any kiss." Riku sighed and leaned back on the rock behind him, staring up at the pure blue sky. "When our lips met, it was like nothing I'd ever felt. It was as if all that I felt was missing wasn't suddenly filled. It was as if I could hear his thoughts, fell what he was feeling, be inside him, be him, be one with him as he with me. I don't know what he felt just exactly then, but I was pretty sure he finally trusted me, finally gave himself to me, let something deep inside him surface." Riku paused.
"Sure, I know that he was confused afterwards, and that the crowd was equally shocked as him, but... Oh hell, I don't know. I just-- I just... I just felt like I was finally accepted. And I still think so, still believe so because after that play, we were the closest of friends once again. I was pretty sure Kairi knew what was going on between us because she was closest to Sora for a time, but not before it was just us, only us two and not her. Whenever we competed over her, I thought then that I liked her, but during our journey I guess that's when I realized that I liked Sora more then her."
"Riku, you never really told what you felt during your journey, why you became possessed, why you were so vulnerable to the evil, why all this came to be."
Riku shook his head, all this information confusing even his own brain since it was coming out in the wrong order. "Maleficent used my heart, twisted me and manipulated me through my heart, through my love and friendship to get me. She cursed me, hurt me through and through, inside and out, deep within me and at the surface. She poked at the weakest part of me and penetrated through to twist my thoughts, manipulate my brain, make me think things that weren't supposed to be thought. She killed me slowly, killed my heart, turned it black, slowly, ever so slowly... I hated her, but yet, I saw reasoning in her wicked words. She showed me enough evidence to make me think what I thought, make me belive what I was doing was good. She plagued my mind, my heart, made me weak enough to easily be killed, but she also gave me power. that power was the only thing that kept me sane. That, and the thought of Sora, no matter how much I despised him for what he did, for what Maleficent told me about him, and so much more... I hated him then, I hated his very soul. I wanted to kill him, and the power Maleficent gave me was enough to fufill this task, but always, Sora would get through to me, defeat me every time, pierce through farther, deeper then Maleficent could ever do or go, he'd always be able to conquer all. When Maleficent failed in corrupting me, and was swallowed by the evil and darkness herself, I turned to Ansem, or rather, he used me as well."
"You have been through so much, haven't you, Riku?"
"I have... Ansem took over me body, he controlled my every move, and killed me after he was done with my body. My spirit was only enough to keep him from attacking my frineds, from attacking Sora for a while... But I was not able to help him after that. It was Kairi and her love for mhim and his returning love for her that brought him thorugh the darkness and pulled him into the light again. I could only watch as the two pulled through to the very end. I projected my voice in his head when I saw that he was letting them win, letting the evil take him as it had taken me, I used much of my strength to help him out. I could only watch him get hurt, watch him fight on his own after that. In the world of the dead, I could only stand on the other side of the wall, the other side of the door and let myself get closed in while he was on the other side, living and free, with those he loved. I considered that in the world of the dead, I could think things through, protect him from afar, but apparently not. His grew corrupt as well, he could only pull through the darkness, come back just enough to stay alive and sane enough to fufill his mission. But apparently, he wasn't the same carefree, light hearted, pure and innocent Sora I once knew. Again, as I said, he still had kept some of his hatred, fed off of his anger and thrist for revenge, to avenge, and to destroy to give him a boost of power to defeat that who harnest the most evil of all."
Riku sighed and lifted his head, looking at Serge. Serge returned the stare with a blank expression on his face. "Tell me Serge, have you ever had that happen to you? Ever had to see your friend squirm in the grasp of evil, see that he or she is no longer the pure white light, but not tainted with black, like a picture, black and white everywhere, but nothing one pure color?"
Serge nodded. "I was possessed by Lynx. I was controlled and decieved. I was weak and stupid. But yet, with this possession, I gained power and knowledge, knowledge I had not accquired before." Serge paused to give a light shake of his head, his bandana tight on his head. "I never talked then, but now I do, and sometimes, I say things that I don't mean to, and sometimes it comes out forced or harsh. But see, this development came through when Lynx and I became one. I am still possessed by him, even at this moment, for a part of him stayed with me after he died. I do not know how, but as times, I can become really harsh, evil, forceful and rude when naturally, I am not. Does this help you some, Riku?"
"I suppose... I've never talked about this to anyway, and had no need to. But now that I know that things are okay, that I have someone I can confide in, it makes me feel better." Riku sighed, shook his head, and stood up. He stretched as Serge came up on his feet as well. "I don't really say this, but thanks, Serge."
"Not a problem at all, Riku... Not at all..." Serge gave a light smile. "But you do know what I said about our world being parellel to another as true, right?"
"I suppose. How did I come?"
"I'm not sure, but in this world, I survived the accident, but in the other world, I'm dead and have no family. My mother is not there, and so on. Those alive here are alive there, all my comrades and those friends who fought with me in battle here are there. Make sense? Kid is important in this whole facade for her necklace can let me travel to and from each world. No one else can do it unless if I'm there or Kid with the necklace. It seems wierd, but it's entirely true. It was fate or destiny, or a prophecy that all that happened to happen between the worlds. I've grown since then, physically, mentally, I have become more balanced in life then I was before. But I had help. I had enough help from others, from those around me, and those dear to me to help pull me through, guide me and show me the way." Serge turned around and started down into the path to lead out of the place. "I have expericned death, pain, and rebirth. It's all crucial, I know. Death, like being born, yet, backwards; birth, death but not quite. Being reborn, somewhere in between the two... All of it is confusing and complicated, yet, it makes sense when it happens."
Riku nodded as he followed Serge out and off the cliff back to the path. "Oh, and I heard you talking to yourself about a keyhole," Serge said, looking over his shoulder at Riku. "What's that about?"
Riku blinked. "Oh, well, you know how we're strangers to your continent and village, right? But has Roz or anyone told you how exactly we've come to be here?" When Serge shook his head, Riku half smiled and walked in front of Serge, leading the way this time, telling the other of their reasons for being there. After so, Riku pointed. "There. That forest. Come, I suppose it's best if you know more... Later, we will gather the others from the village..."
Roz and Riku were standing in front of the bubble that Roz used to control the ship with in the Heart room. The others were there as well, Kid, Serge, and Leena as well as the pink pooch. Some time had passed since they had explained a loud of their information to Serge and the others. Riku was especially friendly toward Serge after their 'special' talk on the cliff not long ago.
"This is where Roz goes."
Roz punched Riku's arm. "Don't make me sound like some machine you fart head."
Riku rolled his eyes and simply used his hand to block Roz's next punch. "Anyway, I think that's all we need to show you. Besides, it's been... how long since we started? Well, long enough. So... since there's nothing else to really see unless you count the outside, you can go. We gave you a lot of information in one blow, so feel free to stay silent with your jaws hanging for as long as you feel you need to, okay?" Riku smirked at his only little joke before turning to Roz and whispering to her. Roz nodded hesitantly and gave Riku access to whatever he asked her for.
Riku thanked Roz briefly before jumping into the bubble, catching everyone off gaurd except for Roz who already was shocked and confused. Riku swam in the sea that is known as Feng's territory. There, he saw the image of Feng in her false form as a person, as a girl around his age, yet, younger.
/Feng..?\
[Yes?] Feng looked up and blinked, her face expression showing her surprise of his pressence. [Oh, you aren't Roz. I had a feeling something was off... What is it, Riku?]
Riku shook his head and approached Feng, stopping in front of her, crossing his legs in front of him and sitting in front of her in their space. /Well... I was wondering if you could...\
Feng smiled sweetly and nodded. [Say no more... I understand, just a moment...]
Soon, a hole appeared near the two. Riku looked and soon, he saw an image, a picture, of a strange and unfamiliar planet. /Wha- What's this? Where's this place?\
Feng shook her head. [I'm not sure exactly... Possibly quite a while from here. But again, I am not sure.]
/May I...?\
[Of course... But know this, the more you use this system, the more you are drained of your strength. You will feel the results of your work once you exit here.]
/I understand, Feng, thank you.\ Riku's brows cresed as he searched for this one thing, this one person that would be all that he needed. He wanted to find this person, and it was probably obvious to anyone who he was looking for. But the question now was, where WAS this place that he was looking at?
"I am falling... I am fading... I have lost it all..." were the words that he heard in his head, heard from the lips of that person he was searching for and had found in the image before him. "I am hurting... I am hating... Please... Go away... Leave..."
/Sora... Please... What's wrong? I... I don't know what to do... I don't know how to help you... You push me away... You run after hurting me... I don't know what to do... I really don't... I want to help you, but... How can I if you won't let me? Oh God... please... tell me what's wrong...\
Feng stayed silent even though she had things to say to the boy. She let her image fade away and leave him alone to himself as he watched Sora. Riku unfolded his legs and curled into a ball, letting himself float in the sea of colors with the image still in front of him.
/Sora...\
Sora was on the wall of Midgar, staring out into the black sky. His eyes held no sign that told Riku that he was really there, or confused or scared, or if Sora's exsistance was... No, Riku thought. /I won't think those thoughts... But Sora... You drift from me farther and farther every minute... It's like you're not even there, not noticed that around you, not... You aren't the Sora I knew and loved... What's wrong...? God... Please... Help him... I never really turned to any God at all, but please, if there is one out there, help him, help myself, help us all... I can't take it anymore.\ Riku sighed heavily, watching Sora silently with great concentration. /I've only gone with what Roz says because the sooner we do what she says, the sooner I can get to you... But the closer I get, the more distance you put between us. I don't understand. Don't you love me...? Don't you feel the same way about me? What is it that troubles you?\
Sora's image soon projected itself in the sea of colors where Riku was and out of the hole he was in. "Riku..."
/...Sora? Wha- How...?\
"No... Go away... I don't want to talk to you right now... Not for a long time..." Sora said evenly, his voice carrying no emotion. "You've plagued me for so long... You hurt me. I hurt... All that pain... it hurts... You just kept killing, Riku... I didn't understand, no then, not now even. You were always the strong one... But yet, you let them get to you... You let them have you... They used you, and you let them... You killed because you thought it was right, you killed because they told you to, you killed for your own enjoyment."
/No! That's not true! I didn't kill because I loved it! I hated it! It was true, they used me, but no! I didn't kill because I wanted to, because I loved the rush. No...\
"Is that so...? But you always liked fighting back on the island BEFORE we appeared in that world, did all those things, had our adventure... You enjoyed whacking me to and fro, beating the others as they ganged up on you. You had the thrill, you soaked up all the fun and enjoyed watching them struggle and meet their defeat. And you tell me now that you didn't like the killing as if it was a game just like at home on the island?"
Riku stared into the cold piercing eyes that were Sora's. /No... no... I couldn't've... I didn't... I never... No. I didn't love the fights, I didn't enjoy the killing, no, I couldn't've. Innocent were dying! I only obliged to it because I had thought it would help me find Kairi's heart! I thought it would bring me closer to finding it!\
Sora scoffed. "Is that true? Psh. Prove it to me. Go down memory lane, Riku, go down that fucking lane and tell what you felt. Those espressions on your face, the smirk you always kept, the laugh in my face when you sliced through my skin and watched in satisfaction as blood flowed. Don't tell me that you didn't once or twice love to see others in pain, especially me."
The hole that was once carrying the image of Sora on the wall changed and displayed the fights Riku fought as if like a tape in fast forward. Riku watched in horror, seeing his own face, the glint in his eyes, the love for the fight, the lust for blood shed, the whole entire him, all of him shining with an aura to kill and destroy.
/But... wait... no... this fight... no... There wasn't any... No...?\
"What's the matter, Riku? What's wrong...? The truth too much?"
Riku shook his head, his hands gripping at his hair at the sides of his head. /No... No! It's not... I didn't... I don't... I don't rmeember any of this happening, any of these feelings inside me. No, I look like I enjoy it, but, I don't remember feeling that way. All I wanted was to be better, have that little bit of power that was greater than yours... I... No. No! NO! NO NO NO! I didn't enjoy fighting as much as you said I did, I didn't enjoy it as you said I did.\
"But you DID enjoy it some what, right?"
Riku stopped shaking his head, his breath turned to pants, his eyes wide and body trembling. /No... Stop it. I wasn't like that!\
Sora's eyes flashed. "Yes you were! Don't try to deny it, Riku, you were like that! You'd always laugh at me when I fell, laugh AT me when I did something wrong. I hated that. I always wanted to prove better of myself because of you."
/No! No I wasn't, I didn't. I never laughed at you, I never wanted to harm you then. I-\
"But later you did, then?"
/No! I didn't mean that! I never meant real harm to you! Not while I still had control of my thoughts and was sane.\
Sora's eyes narrowed. "Riku, don't give me that bullshit. You know as well as I that you were in control of yourself most of our adventure, only toward the very end were you really not in control of yourself when you were possessed by Ansem. But the rest of the time, you were acting on your own."
/Not entirely... Maleficent had manipulated me.\
"And you admit this...? You never admitted you were wrong... not before, Riku. You always liked being the superior of us all. You were mainly the loner and that person who ruled the island, ruled all, judged all, ordered all, but stayed to himself. Admitting you were easy bait and was wrong at a time isn't like you..." Sora's eyes narrowed even more before widening to their normal state after a long stare.
/I know, but...\
"I didn't want to talk to you, Riku, but you make me have to... Just like all the other times... you made me do all these things I didn't want to do..."
Riku shook his head vigorously. /What--?! I never made you do anything! I never made you do anything all our time together! You lie!\
"No Riku, you lie. I didn't have to fight, but I was forced to keep from dying and to be able to move on and fufill what I had to do. I had to fight the Heartless, had to fight so many others, but mostly, I had to fight YOU."
/I didn't... I fought because Maleficent told me to. She said that if I was to find Kairi's heart, I had to get at you first.\
"And you let her twist your mind? You believed her?"
/She convinced me! She told me it wouldn't be hard to do since I shouldn't turst you anyway! She told me that you had no need for me! She said that you had enough new friends that I was no longer needed in this place, that I was useless and worthless to you! She showed me you, I saw from afar how you reacted with them, I saw how you were so easy with them, how it seemed that you spent more time with them then looking for Kairi and myself like you said you were doing! I believed! She showed me just enough evidence, at the right times and for so long, she showed me! And I believed her!\
"I know you did... That's why you came after me..."
/Because she had me believing you betrayed me, betrayed our frinedship... I believed her words... You seemed to have payed mroe attention to their wishes then this one of your own, looking for us... But then again, I should reword that. It was as if you were looking for Kairi only, not me... I believed, Sora, what else could I belive? I had no other evidence, and her words were convincing. I thought that she must've been right...\ Riku shook his head, choking back that tears that developed as he shouted at his love. /Oh God... I believed her because it seemed so true... What else would you've thought, Sora?\
"I'd known that you or Kairi wouldn't've forgotten about me."
/No! You possibly couldn't've! Look! Look at all that I saw, all that she said! From that evidence, you can't POSSIBLY belive otherwise!\ Riku gestured to the hole and the repeating images of his fighting soon changed to all those images, all those conversations he'd had with Maleficent, her words ringing throughout the space of colors. /See?!\
"True... But then... it seems the same way to me for you... YOu seem to be doing more of what Roz and the others suggest then what you truely want..."
/I'm doing because she said that as soon as she gets this one person, I can look for you. She told me that this person would help us find you!\
"But I'm right here..."
/No you aren't... I want to belive that, but... you're an image of Sora... not Sora in flesh and blood... Roz said that she'd help as much as she can to bring me to you, or you to me...\
"But do you even know who this person is that she's looking for?"
Riku shook his head. /No... of course not... I just thought... maybe, if ... the sooner we find them, the sooner I can get to you...\
"But you're running around in circles... This ship doesn't even know where to go...Do you truely know where you are going, Riku...? And do you know who she's trying to find...? She's finding someone who cannot possibly help you on your journey to find me... Not at all..."
/Who... who then...?\
"She's finding an old friend of hers, the one with the scarf... Remember him...? He is her old boyfriend... A childhood friend... Put he cannot possibly know where I am... He doesn't know... He's a useless person, a useless being she wants to find and keep with. She wants to stay with him, not just get him and bring him along with you to find me, no. No she doesn't. She doesn't care..."
/No, you have to be lying... It can't be true... She said that she'd help... She said she'd help! SHE SAID SO!\ Riku stood up, his fists shaking and face stained with tears. /No! I won't believe it! It can't be true! You're lying, Sora! You're lying!\
Sora's cold stare peirced through his heart. "You won't belive your love? You won't belive me when I speak the truth?"
Riku shook his head, roughly wiping away the tears. /No... You aren't my love... You can't possibly be... You are too wicked, too corrupt to be him... He's kind... He wouldn't do nor say such words...\
Sora's lips curved into a merciless smile. "Are you sure...? Are you sure about that Riku...? I could very well be him, this Sora you image as... I'm not as innocent as you think, Riku... After all that's happened between us, no... I cannot possibly stay the same..." Sora approached Riku and cupped Riku's face in his hands, directing the boy's head toward his.
/Of course you can't...\ Riku smiled sadly, letting the other boy control him with his icy, yet gentle touch. /I can't be sure... And you can't be the same as you ever were... Everyone grows... but...\
Sora silenced Riku is a kiss, letting his tongue slip inside the other boy's mouth. Riku made no move to wrap his arms around Sora's smaller frame, but instead, he placed his hands over Sora's smaller ones.
When Sora pulled away, his eyes were half hooded, but still carried the same icy stare in them. "But can never be the same... Am I right...? No one will ever stay the same as they once were... remember that, Riku... I am not the innocent and carefreee boy you once knew... No... not at all... Best remember what I've told you as you waste your time following Roz like a lost lap dog, got it? I will not wait for you, Riku... I certainly will not. Find me on your own... You'll do better that way... I don't wish you good luck, Riku, but..." Sora paused and retreated, pulling away from Riku's grasp entirely. "I do say goodbye... Just think... think about what I've told you... She is not as devoted as you think..."
Riku could only nod before Sora's image faded. /Sora... You certainly aren't the same... But I know this, there is still a part of you, the real you, inside... You're still there... If you weren't, then you wouldn't have just kissed me as you did... I'll find you Sora... I swear it... I'll find you and bring you back, even if I have to kill you or anyone else to get my way...\
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OOC: Whoa... kinda odd, and typed somewhat differ, but after hearing what someone said about it being hard to read my stuff, I've decided to fix things up a bit and make it easier fo y'all... now i'm terribly sorry for the lateness and the crappy chapter, but hell, mid-terms are hell... i think in my author's note i said it was finals, but really, it's mid-terms... i always get those two names mixed up.... anyway, hell... please review on this story so i know what y'all think and if anyone has suggestions, feel free to tell me whatever the hell they are, even if it's something like fixing how i type this... i'll be sure to fix the other chapters as well... oh, and for grammer or spelling, that's welcome too... i can't spell for beans... and hey, like i said, wierd pairing in the beginning... i was originally gonna make Serge push Riku off the cliff or something evil like that, buuuut... i thought better of it and try something wierd like whatever-the-hell i did... anywho, please review or i'll come after someone with a bat... only this one person doesn't have to review for me because i talk to her so much she lets me know personally... well, anyway, sorry, and i'll be sure to type more soon... for now, i have to burn the school.... *pulls out a box of matches, a lighter, lighter fuel, newspaper, and sunglasses* hee hee hee D *puts on the sunglasses and pulls hair back* alright! time to bring school to hell!!! MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAH! *runs off, laughing maniacally and carring the stuff in my arms* SCHOOL WILL PAY FOR ITS TORTUE ON US STUDENTS!!! (Call 1800-555-BURN-SCHOOL for request to burn down YOUR school...) BWAHAHAHAHHAAAAH! DD