Author's Notes: See chapter one for disclaimer and explanation.
Sorry about this chapter being so late. I got really busy over the holidays—that's what I get for working in a toy store during the Christmas season—and I just now got my Muse back. I hope this chapter is worth the wait. I just want to let you guys know one thing: I appreciate the gestures and that you feel this fic is worth following, but if you're going to give me feedback, at least tell me how you like the fic, instead of just demanding (sometimes like I'm deliberately not posting) the next update. It's nice to know that you guys are eager to read more, but if you're already harried and overworked and stressing that you're not writing as much as you'd like, getting feedback that merely reminds you how little you're updating can really piss you off.
Separate Destinies By Annie-chan Chapter Thirteen: InvasionsThe first thing he felt was no pain.
No pain… his fogged brain thought slowly. The last thing he remembered was a world of pain, coursing through his veins and concentrating at his hip. He had seriously wanted to die then, the only plausible escape from such agony.
Then, he remembered something else. The memories were faint and hazy, as if he had experienced them through a light doze. He could remember a woman's voice mingling with his father's, their words too distant and blurred to make out. A sudden flood of pain relief immediately followed, and blackness had overtaken him almost before he could recognize the abrupt change.
Someone healed me, he concluded, waking further. Opening his eyes, he found himself staring up at the ceiling of his bedroom.
"Welcome back," a voice said from his bedside. "Since you've finally calmed down, I've never seen you sleep so soundly before."
"Father," Riku acknowledged, looking toward the voice. Sephiroth had pulled Riku's desk chair over to sit on, and he had apparently been watching over his son as he rested.
Sephiroth nodded.
"What do you mean, 'Since I've finally calmed down'?" Riku asked.
"Well, you lost consciousness right from the start," Sephiroth explained, "and you seemed completely dead to the world for a few minutes. After a while, though, you started to scream and struggle, like you were being hurt all over again. Your eyes were open for most of it, but I doubt you were ever truly awake."
"But…why?" Riku asked, pushing himself up slowly. "Healing isn't supposed to hurt."
"When as far gone as you were," Sephiroth said, "the body can often confuse sensory signals, mixing up the pain of the injury and the relief of the healing. And, the contrast between the two is often drastic enough to shock the system, making it worse. As far as I know, that's what happened to you."
Riku placed a hand over a spot on his lower ribcage, the place the second arrow had pierced him. His shirt was open, so when he looked down, he expected to see a scar. There was none, only smooth skin.
"This is a good healing job," Riku observed. "Did you do it?"
"No," Sephiroth replied, shaking his head. "I was too worn out to give you much help at the time."
"Who did, then?" Riku asked.
Sephiroth pointed past him. "She did."
Riku's eyes widened in surprise as his head whipped around. Unnoticed until now, another person was in the bed, as well. Fast asleep beside him, a woman lay there on her side, facing him.
"She put all she had into helping you, she did," Sephiroth said. "Wore herself out. I doubt she's ever taken on a healing job as drastic as you were."
"Oh…" Riku replied, still surprised. Why hadn't he sensed another person so close to him? He should have realized she was there before now! Then again, he was still felt a little disoriented, which would explain why he missed sensing her. "Why is she here in my bed?" he asked, looking back at his father. "Isn't there a guestroom she could use?"
"Oh, she fell asleep barely a minute after finishing with you, and I hadn't the heart to move her," Sephiroth said with a strange smile. Riku blinked. It seemed an almost knowing smile, but what would that mean? Did he know something about her that Riku had yet to realize?
Riku looked back at her.
"Well, my work is done here," Sephiroth said, standing up. "I best leave you two alone. When she wakes up, you treat her nicely, Riku." Without waiting for a reply, Sephiroth turned and exited the room, closing the door quietly behind him. Turning toward his own bedroom, he walked silently for several minutes, deep in thought. He had felt something briefly between his son and that girl. With a healing job that extensive, he was sure that their minds had touched at least once. The resulting tension had to have been—
A searing pain erupted in his chest, making him cry out hoarsely and clutch at his heart. It felt as if a cold, bitter hook had been driven deeply into the beating organ, and was now attempting to tear it out, pulling relentlessly at the mass of muscle and blood vessels. The pain increased relentlessly, and he choked on his own scream, falling to his knees hard.
"No…" he whimpered, shaking his head. "No! No, no, no! Not now! Please!"
He thought he heard a cry of protest echoing through his mind, and the assault worsened. His throat was blocked off, making a scream impossible, and he completely collapsed to the floor. He writhed as if possessed, clawing at his chest, beating uselessly against the force that had suddenly seized him, intent on dragging him away.
Mine! that same elusive voice howled within his head. Miiiiiiiiiine!
He was losing his grip. The hallway around him began to fade, and something was grasping him all over, as if dozens of groping hands had descended upon him, grabbing and pawing at him in an attempt to take him away. Somehow, through the anguish that enveloped his heart, he felt a tear begin to open up…
Desperate beyond reason, he gathered every bit of his power that he still had control of through the smothering invasion, and threw all of it full-force against the intruder. The hold on him slipped and released. A scream of stunned shock reverberated through his skull, and the intruder suddenly vanished. He was free.
He lay there for several minutes, curled in upon himself. The pain was mostly gone, but a lingering ache still surrounded his heart. Sweat dripped down his skin, and he shivered.
Finally, emotion came back to him as he stumbled to his feet, and tears surged from his glittering eyes. "F-forgive m-me…!" he sobbed, hating himself for his actions. Overcome with self-loathing and shame, he retreated to his inner sanctum at the end of the hallway. No one saw him again for several days.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Riku half-lay in bed, propped up on his elbows, all his attention on the tallish woman who was his unexpected bedmate. She was sleeping peacefully, lying on her side with her hands up near her face. A serene expression was on her face, suggesting no dreams.
Why was he so attracted to her? Wait—was it attraction he was feeling or something else? Curiosity? He wasn't quite sure. He just knew that something about her, or perhaps something in him, compelled him to study her closely.
So focused was he on her that he failed to notice the conflict his father was involved with just down the hallway.
He reached out tentatively to touch her wavy hair. It was a light strawberry-blonde, and he guessed that it fell to about the same length as his when she was standing upright.
"Who are you?" he whispered to her, looking back at her relaxed face. She had a fresh, pinkish complexion, which made his exceedingly pale skin look even lighter. Living on the sunny Destiny Islands as a boy, he had always had a tan—as tan as his skin tone would allow—but after living as long as he had in this canyon community, he had lightened considerably, until his skin seemed hardly darker than his hair.
With only half of his brain registering what he was doing, he moved forward and lay down very close to her, close enough to hear her quiet breathing. Something in him began to tremble, becoming excited. He could smell the faint scent of soap on her skin, could feel her warmth as he pressed lightly against her. One arm went around her, and his fingers encountered feathers. Looking over her, he saw a red-feathered wing folded against her back.
Lying back down, he realized that his eyes were glued to her face. Part of him wishing that she would wake up, the other part praying that she remained asleep, he closed the few inches between them and kissed her.
He jerked back suddenly, feeling both shocked and confused. He had adopted well the ylfe lifestyle of sexual casualness, and had had his fair share of partners—had even experimented with a few men—and one-night stands. His striking, almost aching beauty coupled with the exoticness of being a half-blood made him an object of desire among the other ylfen. However, he had never before gone so far as to kiss someone he didn't know for at least a little while first. He didn't just jump into it with any pretty face. He didn't even know this woman's name! He had never seen her before in his life! She was a complete stranger to him! She was—
She was awake.
He gasped, his eyes going wide. Glittering green met soft brown, and he felt himself falling. He was sucked irresistibly into her gaze, plunging endlessly downward, a cacophony of emotions and thoughts suddenly swarming and nearly overwhelming him. He realized that they were clutching at each other, staring intently into each other's eyes. She was just as shaky and short-of-breath as he was.
"Leiya," he finally breathed, saying her name as if he had known it all his life. "Leiya…you—"
"Soulmates!" she laughed, finally breaking their gaze and pressing closer, her head against his chest. "I knew it! I knew it!"
"What?" he asked, confused, though he tightened his hold on her.
"As I healed you," she explained, "our minds touched several times. I felt something within you, within me, but it can never be fully realized by either soulmate without eye contact." She inhaled deeply, as if breathing in his scent. "Riku…"
They lay together for several minutes, content just to be close to one another, but Riku felt a need growing steadily inside him. Part of it was undoubtedly sexual, but a deeper, stronger need was swirling around within him, urging him on.
To do what? he wondered briefly, but when he looked down at her, it was obvious. A joining of souls…
He was suddenly nervous, intimidated, perhaps even frightened. He was a telepath, and though he knew how to block his mind off so he wasn't constantly hearing others' thoughts, he knew what it was like for part of his mind to be exposed, laid bare for anyone with the know-how to discern his surface emotions and thoughts. The privacy of the inner part of his mind, the part inaccessible to anyone he didn't personally allow in, was cherished, a blessed retreat when life seemed overwhelming. His core, the very center of his inner mind, was completely inaccessible to outsiders. He didn't want anyone in there, and no one could force their way in without completely shredding his soul—and no being had ever had that kind of power, in any world or dimension.
A joining would penetrate those barriers. Soulmates' souls and minds were entwined and blended completely. Though there would still be individuality and independence, they would essentially be sharing the same "space", the same core. They would be sensitive to each other's emotions and thoughts, their feelings and desires forever connected and harmonized, bound together by a permanent love and passion. Though their love would not dominate or control every aspect of their lives, it would surround and embrace them. They would be two and one at the same time.
Even as he tried to reassure himself that love between soulmates celebrated and preserved their differences as well as their similarities, he could feel himself wanting to recoil. His core would be opened to her, the deepest and most private part of him laid bare for her to see, all his secret thoughts and wishes and desires. He had heard over and over and over again that it was the best feeling in the world to be joined, but the primitive part of his mind was still terrified of feeling invaded, violated, raped. The thought of being two and one at the same time was too much of a paradox to be logically accepted.
Every part of her will be exposed to you, too, a small voice said. She will be just as vulnerable and open as you will be.
It won't take long, another voice said. The hardest part will be over with before you know it, and then you'll know paradise.
He felt himself relax, his fears dying away. Finding her was the best thing to ever happen to him. He should be rejoicing, not fearful.
"Let me do it," Leiya suddenly said, looking up at him.
"Hm?" he blinked.
"Let me lead, Riku," she said. "You're nervous, so just follow what I do."
Riku nodded, grateful she had offered. Though they would both be participating, both pushing into the other's mind while receiving the other's awareness, one partner took a slight lead, initiating every action and allowing the other to follow. It was just as common for the woman to be the aggressor as it was for the man to be.
She settled down in his arms as he made himself comfortable. He couldn't keep his heart from hammering in his chest as their minds opened to one another.
He felt something like a spike cautiously enter his surface thoughts, testing the waters before taking the plunge. At the same time, he felt his own awareness submerge shallowly in thoughts and feelings not his own, yet would be infinitely familiar to him before long. He drew her in, receiving her easily, gently pushing a little deeper into her. It was starting out simple. Everything always did. The first of four barriers, the one surrounding the entire mind, had been successfully breached.
They encountered the second barrier, which separated the outer mind from the inner mind, at the same time. Riku hesitated, breathing slowly and deliberately, but he felt her open up to him readily, allowing him in. He followed suit, lowering his own defenses while diving down deeper into her. They both shivered. Their minds were swirling around each other, but they would not begin to blend yet. None of this was permanent until their cores had been combined, everything happening at once at that one moment.
The third barrier, which separated the inner-inner mind from the outer-inner mind, proved more of an obstacle. Their instincts did not allow them to merely fling open their doors to each other. But, with gentle prodding and coaxing, they had both managed to slip through. Riku was now breathing slightly harder than normal, and noticed that he was trembling softly. She was shaking just as much as he. Only his father had come so deep before, and only once had he done that. An extensive healing job had required penetration of this depth, but Riku had been neither willing nor happy about it. Sephiroth had pulled out as quickly and gently as possible, afraid of causing lasting damage.
Riku moaned lightly as Leiya encountered his deepest barrier, and felt her tighten her grip on him as he did the same. Fear began to wake up in him again. This wasn't going to be comfortable. This was going to hurt…
He stiffened up and cried out as she suddenly pushed hard against that barrier, vaguely hearing her do the same in response to his own attempt to break through. He was instinctively pulling away, yet struggling to lower his defenses to allow her in at the same time. No one but the soul's owner and their soulmate was allowed in here, and the armor around it was incredibly thick and tough. If either of them had been unwilling, there would have been no way that the other would be able to get in.
Come on, he thought, panting and clutching at her tightly. Just a little more…just a little further… He was speaking to both his core and hers, urging them to relent and soften. Fear was out of the question now. He couldn't go back even if he had desperately wanted to. To stop now would be completely against his ylfe nature, rejecting her as a soulmate. It was unheard of.
It happened.
They pierced through simultaneously. Riku froze, no longer aware of what she was doing. His core blended instantly and completely with hers. Everything they had ever known and felt the other could now know and feel. Their deepest and darkest secrets were dragged forcibly into the open, lying naked and shivering under the other's scrutiny. It went on endlessly, an unstoppable storm of minds, until…
…finally, their bodies relaxed. They lay there limply, gasping, mentally exhausted. Riku thought hazily whether this is what it was like to be joined, if his mind was to forevermore be a confused ball of interconnected thoughts, when he felt it begin to settle. His thoughts began to sift out from hers, organizing and falling into place again. Slowly, little by little, order was restored to both of them, and though neither of them was sure how long they lay there in each other's arms, they did know finally what it was like to be joined. They were two different and individual people, yet they grew from the same base, like a tree whose trunk split partway up. They were two and one at the same time, their own identity unaltered, yet able to feel each other in the back of their minds at all times.
"Leiya…" he purred, holding her gently, kissing her again. I love you, he thought, knowing it would reach her as clearly as if he had spoken it. I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you…
Their kiss intensified, and he felt his fingers swiftly and easily undoing the fastenings to her clothes. There was one more thing to make the joining complete, and he would take the lead this time. She submitted eagerly, pulling him on top of her, moaning excitedly as her slender legs wound around him.
Yes…
*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Later, sated and drowsy, she lay on top of him in his bed. He was on his back, his arms loosely around her, while she rested upon him, her head pillowed on his chest. She wasn't sure if he was awake or not, but if he was, he was dozing. He was stroking her hair rhythmically, very slow and soft. Aside from that and his breathing, he was very still.
Her own hand was gently brushing up and down his side, sliding down from his ribcage over his waist and hip, then back up again. She had never seen a man so stunningly gorgeous, so achingly sexy.
You're a lucky girl, Leiya, she told herself. You would have been just as happy if he wasn't so good-looking, but it is a nice bonus. He was lying on his hair, and she noticed a bit of it peeking out from under his waist. It was stick-straight and hung to his hips when he stood, and she couldn't help but compare it to moonlight on a waterfall, white light flickering and glittering magically off the surface of the water.
Taking that bit of hair in her fingers, she examined it more closely. It was very fine and soft, and the dim light from the lamps around the walls made it shine faintly. No split ends. What a lucky-ducky he was. She, with her wavy hair, knew how it was to battle frizziness and split ends.
Oh, well, she sighed internally. Make the best with what you get.
She looked up at his face. He was inches away from sleep, his eyes merely cracks of sparkling green. How rare it was to have green eyes, even more so than it was to have silver hair. She had never in her wildest dreams thought of meeting someone with both such exotic features, much less recognize him as her soulmate. Not only that, but his father was exactly the same. She wondered what the odds were that two consecutive generations would have such rare coloration in both their eyes and hair.
Leiya leaned up and kissed Riku softly, and was half surprised when he tightened his grip on her and returned the kiss with startling force for someone she thought on the brink of sleep.
"I love you," he whispered when they finally parted.
"Mmm…" she purred, tucking her head into the crook of his neck, feeling his warmth lulling her to sleep.
They both felt vulnerable from the joining, mentally stretched and sore. They would feel this way for perhaps a few days, Leiya guessed sleepily. The joining of souls was the spiritual equivalent to losing one's virginity, so it wouldn't be surprising that they feel much like they had after their first time sleeping with someone. Just as sex was something the body had to get used to before it felt truly pleasurable, being joined was something the soul had to get used to before it could feel truly content.
Within moments, they had both dropped off to sleep. Neither awoke for quite a long time, and it was at least a day before anyone saw them emerge from the room.
Halfway across the house, the lone occupant of the red rooms stirred in his sleep, his hands unconsciously going to his chest. It wouldn't be long now…
To be continued…Author's Notes: Ugh. Sorry that this chapter took so long to write. The second and third scenes were written several days after the first scene, and I have since experienced many mood swings, some good and some bad. I am happy to say that my PlayStation2 is finally coming home from being repaired at Sony Service Center, and should be here in a few days. Hopefully, that will dramatically cheer me up when it does arrive. Anyway, I'd like to know how you like this chapter. Let me know in a review or an email to mangareader@hotmail.com, onegai shimasu!
Oh, and one of my anonymous reviewers has repeatedly asked me not to have Riku meet his soulmate (for what reason I have yet to discern). Sorry to disappoint you, but I had already planned from the start to have him meet her, and the pleadings of one reader isn't enough to make me change my mind. Just take comfort that she's not a Mary Sue. She's neither perfect nor a self-portrait, and you'll notice that any ravings over beauty focused on him instead of her. I'm sure I'll still have readers who automatically assume that any OC hooking up with the main character is a Mary Sue, but please refrain from bitching to me about it. I already know you're out there, so waste neither my time nor yours and just go find something more to your taste to read. Thank you.
