I just realized I forgot to thank all who reviewed for ch. 3! I really didn't mean to! I was in such a rush with updating that I completely forgot about it! I do read each and every one of my reviews, and I enjoy all of them, even if they have criticism. If you have a problem with the story, I want to know. If you think I could do something better, tell me. I will listen to your suggestions and do my best to fix it. You will not be ignored. Once again, I apologize for not thanking you all properly! Sorry!
Also, this chapter will have a bit more character development and less plot, because there needs to be more characterization. Plus, the girl Riku's thinking about isn't really important, and she's not like a Mary Sue. The only thing about her is that Riku was in love with her, and she died. She's not coming back to life or anything, and Riku does not love her anymore, he just feels guilty. And, has anybody read any good Riku/Sora fics lately? I haven't found many new ones… Oh! And if you like angst, read my finished work, Painful Salvation! I'm really proud of that one, and I like it a lot more than this one.
Jenni Sunshine: Jenni Moonlight: Thanx for your review! Love your Fallen Angel fic! I can't get it out of my head! Thanx for the support, and I hope you continue reading!
DancingMistress: Gracias! I'm so glad you like my fics. It means a load to me! I promise I'll update as fast as I can!
Kmsweetness: I love Selph though! She's impossible to hate, plus, I kind of feel for her. My 2 bestest friends are in love w/each other, so I often feel left out… I rally hate that feeling, of seeing your friends have everything they want, but not having anyone yourself. I'm not boy crazy, but I wish I could meet someone and connect with them.
Teizonriku: I love your reviews! They're so insightful! You always pick up at what I'm hinting at! Thanx so much for the compliments, though personally, I thought I made Kairi a bit OOC. I don't really like Sci-fi that much either, but I just had this Idea and I couldn't let it go! I'm really trying to make it different from PS, and I'm starting on the sequel soon! And the evil people, that's part of the mystery…
TheAnimeFreak14: Gracias, mi amigo! Looking forward to IMing you later, so don't feel hesitant to talk… anyway, thanks again!
Kuramasgirl13: Yeah, there aren't many. The one pairing I don't like is Riku/Yuffie… I just don't get it. They never even met in the show. Also, one of the reasons I don't like SoKairi pairing is because when I first saw them I seriously thought they were brother and sister!
Shiri Matakami: Gracias! To be honest, I've never played any of the FFs before, so I'm really nervous about getting them in character! I really want to get FFVII, but I can't find it anywhere! I want Cloudy-chan! And yes, Riku is awesome, he's my fav character! Thanx again, and I can help wondering, why do you call yourself the Lord of Fish?
Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts!
Caged By Hate
Sora
I tense up behind Riku, and draw my sword. The sound of metal being pulled from its sheath echoes through the silent scenery, and it's the only sound I hear. Beside me, Selphie readies her odd weapon, and Riku already has Soul Eater out. .. I wonder why he uses that weapon. He's much better with the other two twin Swords, though I suppose they must hold sentimental value for him.
A rustle in the bushes catches our attention, and my eyes dart towards a man with a heavy black cloak on, hiding his face and hair. "Hello," he drawls. His voice is cold but not deep and very evil sounding.
"Who are you?" Riku asks, and I almost shiver. He sounds scary when he's mad. Somehow I'd rather face this man than a pissed Riku.
"You should know me Riku. Can you remember me? I know age has rotted your memory, but I'm sure you can remember me if you really try. Well, I have to go now! Maybe we'll meet again later, if you survive my little friends here." With a swish of his cloak he disappears, but right now that's not our main concern. Right now our main concern is the large number of shadowy black creatures surrounding us.
Riku mutters a few words under his breath, and charges, Selphie and I not far behind. One of the creatures lunges at me and I jump to the side before I slice it in half. With a sigh pitched squeal it dissipates. I turn and block a strike from the next one before it can hit me with those sharp claws. Between Heartless, I lok over to Selphie to see how she's doing. She's holding her own, striking any shadow that comes near her with her odd weapon. Riku's doing exceptionally well, slicing and dicing the shadows as if they're nothing. The fighting goes on for what seems like ours, and pretty soon Riku, Selphie, and I are in a close knit circle, fighting the heartless. It's gone on for too long, and even Riku's panting. Then the heartless disappear. Selphie collapses on the ground melodramatically, and I lean against Riku, trying to catch my breath.
"Do you think that was all of them?" I ask Riku once I catch my breath. He doesn't answer, examining the forest.
"What were those things anyway?" Selphie asks, a rare frown on her usually happy go lucky face.
Suddenly a huge shadow appears before us. It's golden eyes glare at us and it stands higher than the trees. "Holy shit!" I exclaim. Usually I never use foul language, but this thing is huge. Riku drops Soul Eater and unsheathes his double blades.
"The bigger they are, the harder they fall!" He smirks and races toward the heartless, dodging its sloppy strikes. Grinning, I run after him and Selphie follows me.
I whack at his arm furiously, while Riku and Selphie attack it form different points. The huge shadow raises its large fists and a huge ball of darkness appears in its hands. It slams them into the ground, causing a tremor, and I almost fall, but a strong hand latches onto my arm and pulls me to my feet. Riku. The giant ball of darkness creates new, smaller monsters exactly like the ones we fought before. While Selphie and I destroy these creatures, Riku slashes at the large monster.
Finally, the monster collapses, but it breaks away into hundreds of new shadows. They attack us, and this time I can't lock everything. One of them slashes me across my arm and then my chest, and I scream in pain. Riku grabs me and tosses me under some brush.
"Wait here and don't make a single sound," he orders. I want to protest, but everything spinning, and soon I fall into a deep pit of darkness.
Riku
They're going to pay. Selphie and I stand back to back, and I can feel her heavy panting. She has various cuts spread over her arms and legs, but none of them are deep enough to be life threatening. Those things hurt Sora! I don't know why, but this makes me want to torture each and every one of them slowly and painfully until they die. Then again, when it comes to Sora, I don't know why I do anything. Why did I teach him to read? Why do I care what he thinks of me? Why did I kiss him?
I can feel Selphie go limp against my back, unconscious. Now that they're both unconscious I can fight fully. Summoning the raw power in my hands, I call upon one of my most powerful attacks, Dark Firaga. I can't use this when they're awake because magic is seen as witchcraft nowadays. Aiming my attack at the largest group of Heartless I fire, watching with a sadistic pleasure as they burn to death, black wisps of smoke rising into the air. I'm sending them all to hell. Pulling out Soul Eater again, I stand over Selphie, watching the rest of the shadows.
Two of them lunge at me, and I cut through them quickly, and then they all attack. Readying another Dark Firaga blast, I catch the last of the stupid creature in a fiery hell. I sheathe my mother's swords and Soul Eater, and lean down next to Selphie, checking her pulse. It's fairly strong, and even without treatment, she'll be fine.
Next I run over to Sora. I can still hear his scream echoing in y ears. He was so frightened, do hurt. His scream sent me to the end of my wits, more scared than I've ever been, since her. Am I really, falling in love again?
His pulse is weak, and he's so pale. I can see claw marks over his chest, and blood pouring from his arm. No, he can't die1 not when I only just found him! I old his fragile body in my arms, gathering him to me, trying to keep him warm.
"Wake up Sora. Come on, wake up." His unconscious body doesn't move. No!
"Ohh, isn't that so sad?" That man, that evil man, is back again.
"You bastard, what do you want?" Then my mouth goes dry. He's holding Selphie, small, innocent, cheery, Selphie in his arms. He chuckles, a horrible sound that even freaks me out.
"Now, now Riku. You shouldn't leave your friends all alone like you did to her. I could just slit her throat right now, and it'd all be over with, and then you'd lose both of your companions. But, I'm so nice that I'm not going to do that. You see, I want to make you suffer, and then kill you. I want to be the one to send you to Hell, Riku. But right now I can't do that, so instead, I'm going to heal your companions and let you live for another day. But remember, I'll come back, and when I do, you'll be sorry Riku. I'll make you sorry for what you did to me!" He points a finger at me, and I laugh.
"Kill, me? Don't you know, that's impossible!" He tosses Selphie over to me, along with a potion. I didn't even know these things existed anymore.
"There's always away, Riku. There's always a way." And with a swish of his cloak he's gone. I unscrew the potion and pour the majority of it into Sora's mouth, and the rest goes to Selphie. She awakens almost instantly, and I crush the glass bottle in my hands so that she doesn't see it. Most of Sora's wounds heal, but he remains unconscious. I gently lift him from the ground, and Selphie glances around curiously.
"Where did all of those shadows go?" She asks curiously. Choosing not to answer her question, I gently lift Sora, cradling him in my arms. There's this strong emotion pounding through me, starting from my chest whenever I look down at him. What is this feeling? It's the same one I had before, with her. Do I love him?
She was so beautiful…
"Riku! Where are we going today?" I smile at her innocence. She always sees the best in everything, no matter how horrible the world truly is. Her green eyes shimmer with happiness, and her dark brown, almost black, hair is pulled back into a ponytail. Her clothes aren't rich, nor do they accent her beauty, not that many people actually think she's beautiful. She's skinny, almost scrawny from starvation, and she's cursed with tan skin instead of pale skin. Everything about her defies society, and maybe that's why she's so beautiful.
Once again, I pretend to be careless, shrugging. She'll never now how much I care for her, how much I love her. She giggles, and leaps towards me, wrapping her arms around my neck. "How can you be so gloomy when the weather's so nice? Everything's so beautiful!"
Leaning up, she places a chaste kiss on my cheek before she pulls away, blushing. I stand there in shock, my cheek tingling. "Come on now, or you'll miss all of the fun!" She pulls on my arm, and for onse, a bright red blush is spread across my cheeks.
The only person since than to ever dared to mess with me was her, and when she was murdered, I think I snapped. At fourteen I couldn't handle my first crush being taken away from me, and yet I didn't do anything to stop myself from becoming a monster she would've hated.
I don't love her anymore, I don't think we were meant to be. Orilla, she was my first love, but my love faded. I glance down at the sleeping Sora. Will my feelings for Sora fade as well? I hope not, because he's one person I can see myself with, even if it's only a casual relationship, even if it's not romantic. I just want to be a part of his life…Because, I think I might love him.
We walk forward, me carrying Sora and two bags, and Selphie only lugging around one. "So, who was that guy?" Selph asks, looking slightly tired. I glance over at her.
"I don't know," I answer truthfully. Silence follows this, blissfully rare silence. Don't get me wrong, Selphie's an OK kid, she just tends to be a little annoying…
That night we rest at a small clearing in the forest. We're getting closer, I know it, somehow. Why does it really matter tough. Kairi and Namine, they'll die anyway, won't they? My brain tells me that, but I think my heart's speaking differently.
I'll save them, because somehow I know it will make Sora happy. To be with them will give him more happiness than anything else I can ever do.
Selphie curls up in her blanket like a cat, and I wrap Sora in mine. When she's asleep, I let down the cold walls that surround me, looking at him tenderly. I brush away a strand of his messy, spiky brown hair, reveling in its softness. Even though the spikes look like daggers, they're soft as silk. His skin is so smooth, like the finest satin, and pearl pink, pouty lips are begging to be kissed again. It can't be natural for anyone to look that perfect. He must be from above.
"You guys are so cute!" A sudden squeal disturbs my reverie, and I turn just in time to be tackled by a now recharged and hyper-active Selphie.
"Oooh! I should've never stopped you two from making out, you're so adorable together!" This girl confuses me… She snuggles me and messes up my hair.
"Welcome to the family, Mr. Riku! Sorry about the slut comment!" I look at her like she's possessed, and she just grins. Welcome to the family…? Sora doesn't like me that much, does he?
"Duh! It's so obvious he loves you! You guys would so make the perfect couple! Too bad you can't have children, they'd be too cute! With your hair and Sora's eyes, or maybe your eyes and Sora's hair, but they definitely have to get your killer body, Riku…" After that, she rambles on so fast I can barely follow her, and I stare at Sora, a small blush forming on my cheeks. Could it be? Does he really love me? Maybe, just maybe I'll be free of this life sooner than I thought.
Heaven
"Damn it!" Leon shouts, pounding his fist into the table. All of the gods look angry, frown lines marring each one of their faces.
"At least he survived," Yuffie, ever the optimist, voices.
"Yeah, but that psychopath could kill them while they sleep, or the heartless could finish the job…" Leon, the eternal pessimist argues. With a serious look on his face, Cloud speaks.
"We'll just have to see how this plays out." The other gods stare at him before Yuffie pokes his spiky hair.
"Shut it Chocobo head! You don't know anything more than we do!" Cloud glares at her.
"Well, at least I'm not the hyper stupid one!" He shouts, temper high from the strain of their current mission.
"Who are you calling stupid, at least I'm not a blonde!" Yuffie's standing now, as well as Cloud, glaring daggers at each other. Slowly, the other two, slightly more sane members back away from the brawling towards safety.
"I bet twenty on Yuffie," Leon says. Sephiroth smirks.
"Why?" He asks, obviously thinking Yuffie's going down.
"Never mess with a PMSing goddess." Sephiroth looks at him for a second, seeming to calculate his options, before he pulls out a fifty.
"I bet fifty on Cloud. Never mess with a blonde's hair."
Twenty minutes later, Sephiroth counts his money, placing his earnings back into his pocket as Leon glares at him. Meanwhile, Yuffie's sulking in the other corner while Cloud checks to make sure every spike is in place. Then suddenly, Yuffie laughs, the golden sound echoing though the empty white halls of heaven. Cloud soon joins her, and Sephiroth smirks. Leon even manages to crack a smile. Down on Earth, two boys and a girl are finally at peace, and up in heaven, there's laughter for the first time in a long time. Maybe it's a sign of things to come?
Sora
Warmth. So much warmth surrounding me. I crack my eyes open to see Riku, sleeping beside me, beautiful eyes closed and body relaxed. He's so vulnerable in his sleep. I snuggle beck into his chest, tucking my head under his chin, enjoying his unique smell, and fall back into a light sleep.
"Hello Sora." It's that voice! The hooded man is back! I desperately search around for a weapon, but wherever I am, there's nothing to protect me. He lands in front of me in his long black cape.
"What do you want?" I ask, hoping that Riku will suddenly appear to protect me.
"Riku can't reach you here, but it doesn't matter. I'm not here to hurt you." His voice is so smooth, yet It reeks of deceit.
"Where is here?" I ask. My patience for this man has run out.
"This is your dream Sora, so why don't you tell me." I look around, seeing that we're nowhere, really. The entire place is gray, and it seems like we're floating on air instead of walking on any type of ground."Besides, we have mush more important matters to attend to, like your sisters. Wouldn't you like to see them?" Before I can answer him, Kairi and Namine are before me, gagged and bound, but it's definitely them, and they're definitely alive. I run towards them, but I hit a force field and fly backwards, landing flat on my rear.
"Kairi, Namine!" I yell to my sisters. Kairi's crying, fighting against her gags, but Namine looks calm. Frightened yet calm, and that's what scares me.
"Please, let them go!" I beg. "What did we ever do to you?" I've never even met this man before today! He laughs.
"I'll give them back under one condition. The boy Riku," my heart freezes as he continues, "he's the one I'm after, it's a matter of revenge." Revenge, what did Riku do?
"However, as long as that damn spell protects him he won't die. However, there is a loophole Sora. Someone he loves can kill him. Riku doesn't love you yet, buthe will eventually. Flirt with him, lead him on, and when he's so in love with you he doesn't even suspect you, kill him and bring me his dead body. Then I'll give you your sisters back."
Kill Riku? I think of Riku with his cold eyes and hidden pain. Him writhing underneath mw as I tickled him. Him teaching me to read, his eyes before our kiss. He's grown on me, but then I think of my sisters. I'll do anything for them. After all, I've only known Riku a few weeks, but I've known Kairi and Namine for a lifetime. My heart is in turmoil, but my mind knows what to do.
"How will I ring his body to you?" I ask, my voice strangely emotionless. The hooded man laughs.
"I'll contact you when that happens." He and my sisters start to fade away, but I can see Namine's eyes. They're asking for something, but I don't know what. She seems to know something the rest of us don't. And then they're gone, and I wake up.
Riku's large aqua eyes stare down at me with masked concern and caring… I never saw that beforewhen I looked into his eyes. He seems so sincere, and I almost regret doing this, almost. I smile seductively, wrapping my arms around him and pulling him closer. I can see the small blush tinting his pale cheeks. He looks so sweet, but I have to go through with this.
"So, why don't we continue what we were doing before Selphie interrupted?" I ask, leaning up and kissing him on the lips. He kisses me back, passionately, and I hold back my tears. This is the only way to save them, the only way.
