Finally!! Chap 2 is now up and ready for your viewing! Sorry it took so insanely long, I bet any one who had read this before gave up ;; Well here it is!

Sora stepped from the ferryboat onto the sturdy dock in the business district. After a brief parting conversation with the boat-master the brunette began his trek to the hospital. The all too familiar building was becoming an eye sore. Each time Sora gazed upon its crystalline doors he remembered the opacity of Riku's eyes; clear yet distorted beyond all recognition. Sora walked in an checked the sign-in.

"Good, Kairi's still here. I hope Riku's in a good mood today," Sora thought absently as he wrote his name.

The teen walked his usual route to Riku's room. He knocked softly to alert Kairi, knowing Riku had either already felt or heard his foot steps.

"Kairi?" Sora pushed open the door.

Kairi sat on the edge of the bed with Riku scrunched in the opposite corner. Sora stepped in and let the door softly click into place. Sea-green eyes scrutinized the intruder. Sora swiftly sat a few feet away from the corner and waited.

"So how is he?" Sora whispered over his shoulder.

Riku's hand shot out and pounded the tiles just in front of Sora. A low growl followed.

"Oops," Sora shut his mouth.

Riku shifted back and forth much like am excited animal, albeit a scowling excited animal.

"You do not usually come on these days."

Sora's eyes bulged and his jaw went slack, "He… You… Oh my God, Riku you talked!"

Sora moved forward but Riku held up his hands.

"Do not come near me."

Riku's voice had deepened much since the last time Sora had heard him when the gates of Kingdom Hearts had closed. In fact he sounded eerily like Sephiroth; same intonation and everything.

"So Sora, why are you here today?" Kairi fidgeted with her purse.

"I needed to talk to you but, I think that can wait now," Sora could barely contain his smile.

"Why do you bare your teeth so?" Riku arched an eyebrow.

"Huh?" a puzzled look crossed Sora's face. "Oh you mean why am I smiling? You're getting better that's why."

"It surprised me so much I tried to hug him and he leapt off the bed," Kairi laughed nervously.

Riku kneaded the hard ground with his fingers.

Sora looked at the two of them, "Is everything alright?"

"Oh fine. What ever gave you the idea it wasn't?" Kairi asked. "Well I have to be off to work now. I'll see, and talk, to you both later."

Kairi waved and walked out.

"Thanks the gods she's gone," sighed Riku.

"Huh?" Sora hefted himself onto the bed.

"She annoys me, grates on my every nerve she does," Riku vaulted onto the mattress next to Sora.

"Why? I thought you liked Kairi," he then thought, "Maybe now I'll get some answers."

"She seemed pleasant company at first but then she changed," Riku bowed his head. "She started visiting at odd hours, like while I was still sleeping; not very appreciated on my part."

"Why would she come?"

"Not quite sure. Once she had this long yellow tape with numbers on it, and another time she took my blood."

"You didn't stop her?" Sora asked. "Ok now I'm confused."

"Every time I found my self," Riku shifted slightly, "unable to move and blind."

"Well if you couldn't see how did you know it was Kairi?"

"She has a very distinctive smell… like meatloaf."

Sora laughed.

"I've made no joke, why do you ask so jovial?" Riku inquired.

"I'm sorry," Sora calmed down.

"Will the meatloaf girl be coming back?"

Sora suppressed a smile and scooted back against the wall, "She may, but I'll talk to her about all this."

"I thank you," Riku bowed his head slightly.

"Ya know, you're like the polar opposite if yesterday. What happened last night that calmed you down so much and gave you your voice back?" Sora asked. "And the weird vocabulary for that matter?"

"In truth I'm not entirely sure. My most accurate assumption would be however, that small white tablet they put on my food plate last night."

"So a medication?"

"So I assume, yes," confirmed Riku.

"Do you feel up to going back to Play Island with me?" Sora asked hopefully.

"Play Island? Where is that?"

"It's the place we used to hang out before you went missing along time ago," answered Sora.

"You mean to say that we were acquaintances before my arrival in this non-descript room?"

"Acquaintances? Riku you were my best friend!" Sora burst.

"You have my apologies for I remember you not," Riku shook his head. "Though you seem to have an air of familiarity that I can't quite place."

"That's good enough for me at this point," Sora breathed heavily.

"You realize you have yet to tell me about what your small friends have been up to today," Riku pointed out.

"You mean Tidus and Selphie?"

"The one who likes shiny things and the dress up queen?" Riku asked.

Sora laughed, "Yes, the same ones."

Sora gave a lengthy re-countenance of the day's Play Island mishaps. Riku laughed when he was told about Tidus's hand being bitten by a giant clam when he tried to take its pearl. Sora had to pause in his story for the deific sound. He too had to ponder how such unstained mirth was coming from someone who had been through the horrors Riku had been.

"You stare at me oddly, why?" Riku asked when he calmed down.

"It's just nice to hear you laugh again that's all," Sora smiled.

"If I had but know it would bring you joy I would have tried to do so sooner," Riku smiled.

They both looked up when the door opened.

"Oh I'm sorry to disturb you two but I'm afraid visiting hours are over and I need Sora to leave," the nurse said and re-closed the door.

"You will come back tomorrow?" Riku said as more of a command than a question.

"Of course! I want to talk more with you," Sora leaned over near Riku's ear. "And sneak you out of this prison."

"I look forward to our escapade. Till tomorrow then, good bye," Riku said.

"Yeah, see you tomorrow," Sora stood and left.

"Oh my God I can't believe I was just talking with Riku! I've gotta go celebrate or something," Sora walked out of the institute like he was walking on air. "Maybe I could have all the guys over so we can conspire a way to get Riku out tomorrow. I'm sure Kairi could…Oh that's right, Kairi."

Sora walked off toward the park near Kairi's work place. The girl was a cashier at a meat packing shop, conveniently owned by her uncle. When he got to the small business the doors were shut tight and Kairi's uncle, Bob, was sitting on a bench.

"Hey there kid. You lookin' for Kai?" Bob asked knowingly. "Well she never showed up for work today and since today's been relatively slow I decided to close up early. You might want to check her house. You know how her parents are about her curfew."

"Oh… Well did you see her at all today?" Sora asked.

"Nope, she didn't even stop by this mornin' on the way to the pastry shop for breakfast like she normally does," Bob scratched his head.

"Ok, thank you sir."

Sora turned and walked back for the docks. He had to wait a few minutes for the ferry to come in but he didn't mind waiting. He kept mulling over how Riku had changed so suddenly and yet, was subconsciously depressed that Riku had no real recollection of him. He landed back on Play Island but all the other kids had already gone home for dinner and wouldn't be out again for a few hours. Sora found his boat by the dock on the shallow beach and rowed to Kairi's.

"Oh hello Sora. What brings you to our house?" Kairi's mother asked.

"I was looking for Kairi. I need to talk to her about something," Sora responded.

"Oh, well Kairi just left to run a few quick errands for me. To pick up a few groceries ya know? I'm sure you'd find her on the other island."

"Ok, thanks."

The woman closed the door and Sora dragged his feet back to his boat.

"This is getting really annoying," Sora shook his head and started rowing again back to Play Island. "Can't the girl just stay put so I can talk to her for five minutes?"

Sora sat on the other side of the island and waited yet again for the ferry. He switched on the dock light so the ferry-man would know he had a passenger over here.

Sora hopped off the boat and waved so long to the driver for the third time. He trod around the district in search of Kairi. The food stores were all vacant of girls with auburn hair as were the pharmacies and convenience stores.

"Where is she?" Sora said to no one in particular and pulled his light jacket tightly around him. "I hope I find her soon. It's getting awfully cold."

Sora checked back by the meat shop just incase Bob had reopened when Kairi came back but the store was black. He decided, on a whim, that she had gone to check on Riku for some reason; just hopefully not one of the weird ones Riku had mentioned. He walked up to the dimly illuminated doors and tried the handles. Securely locked as usual.

A loud thud off to his left alerted Sora to someone else's presence.

"Hello? Who's there?" Sora called.

Sora stepped around the side of the building just in time to see a group of black clad figures scatter. Sora ran after one of them and tripped over a fleshy object in a bush.

"Owe…"

Sora looked back at the hooded person.

"Kairi?"

A/N Ok all, this is not turning out as what I think I had originally planned. You see I started this eons ago and decided to pick it back up even though I had lost the plot of the story. Well like any normal person I just gave it a new plot and chugged on ahead. Well hopefully now that I'm back in a KH state of mind I'll be able to update this more often along with the other KH fics I haven't completed. Oh, and just as an insentive, the more reviews I get the faster I'll post chapters so review, even if you didn't like it tell me why! I like criticism, just remember, I'm human too….

Hell's Shadow Walker