Awaken

Author's Notes: Welcome back to everyone's favorite mindfuck fanfiction! You may have noticed the rating jump. There is only one reason for this little jolt; "fuck" is now fair play. If a character says "fuck", then some little twelve-year old who likes tattling to Xiang will see it, and screech "OMFG SHE SED FUK OMGLOL REPORT!" and I'd probably get banned with only a PG-rating on the story. You don't want to see me banned, do you?

That's not the only reason I'm making this little announcement, however. I'm also thanking my reviewers for sticking with me. I would like to thank East Kaioshin, my dear friend Kagirinai Hana (Hi Charlotte!), clueless97, AnimeFan-Artemis, fuzzish, Smiley-chan, and BJ4. I love you all, and thank you for your support of my crap.

With this said, on with the show! (Disclaimer still applies!)

Chapter 7: Where Is The Line?

Let's talk and we'll fill the air

With imagery that lasts forever

So this is love, yeah, that's a lovely thought

You have to care for it to keep it together

And if you fall, we get up

You're stuck in a dream, we'll wake up

If you fall in love, will you hold onto it?

("If You Fall", Azure Rays)

Riku and Sora were carefully trying to redress. Sora couldn't quite find his overshirt, and Riku's shirt was going out with the raging tide. After managing to catch them, they sat on an island around where the waves rushed, back to back, staring out into different directions.

"How do we get out of here?" Riku sighed.

"I dunno, Riku. I don't think we have any hopes of escape." Sora mumbled, resting his head on his folded arms, looking down between his knees. Riku frowned, glaring out towards the mess of his home island. He could tell that it was nearly sunset. He thought carefully, and remembered that he'd arrived at about midnight, and it had been pitch black. He closed his eyes, bringing himself back to the moment. A fall down the rabbit hole. He'd been holding Sora's hands, and his body had been pulling up, resisting the fall. It seemed that the void had been trying to pull Sora up. And the Hope keychain had still been in Sora's pants pocket. Hope!

"Sora, I think that I know how you can get out of here."

"We can get out? How?"

"Not we, you." Riku whispered. "Just you. You don't belong here, this is meant to be my hell. The Hope is your way out, and I'll show you to it-"

"I'm not going without you, Riku." Sora growled.

"You have to. I asked for this, so I have to stay here." Riku glared at the ground. "At midnight- which is when we got here-, I'm going to get you out of here. You're the one the Keyblade chose, and it's important that you go out there... the world might need a Keyblade Master again."

"But Riku-"

"No buts." There were a few minutes of silence, until Riku finally asked, in a diminuitive voice, "Wanna go play in the cave?" Sora stared at Riku for a moment, shocked that he could think about their childhood right now, before responding.

"Yeah, sure." They both got up, and walked back towards the cave. Hope still hung over them, shining brightly. Sora watched it, letting it glimmer across his eyes. Riku looked over, watching his azure eyes fill with light. It was silence, but a moment of detached warmth.

The rocks always made perfect chalk, and now that Riku was looking for it, he noticed a long stone right where Sora had been laid down. Right above it was a drawing of Kairi and Sora exchanging Paopu fruit. Riku eyed Sora, who was sketching a cricket on the wall, deviously, then began to smear at the drawing of Kairi, trying to wipe it away frustratedly. Sora paused in his drawing to watch.

"The chalk's kinda permanent on this wall." He chuckled. "Good luck." Sora grabbed a larger piece of chalk, went to the wall where the Final Door had been, and began to draw. As Riku continued scraping at the drawing of Kairi, hissing like an angry cat, he noticed Sora humming to himself softly. He looked over at what Sora was drawing. It was a perfect image, much better than the drawing of Sora and Kairi done four years ago, and showed Riku hugging Sora around the neck, with the half-eaten Paopu fruit in his hands. Riku blinked, and stood next to Sora. Carefully, he drew the smile on his face slightly wider. Sora drew falling leaves around them. Together, they examined their work.

"I like this one better." Riku chuckled.

"I definitely agree, Riku." Sora sighed, laying back towards Riku. Riku caught him in his arms, and they positioned themselves the way they were in the drawing. "I wish you could hold me like this longer."

"I won't let you go..." Riku mumbled, holding him close, pressing his nose into Sora's soft, silky hair.

"I'll let you go." A voice cackled behind them. Both of them whirled around, to see Eiya's form behind them. It moved closer to them, its translucent form reaching for Sora and Riku.

"No." Riku growled, stepping between Eiya and Sora. There was a tense moment, as Riku eyed the path out. Eiya and Sora both watched him, waiting for his gambit. In a flash, Riku scooped Sora up and leapt through Eiya. "Sora, get over there!" Riku cried setting Sora down, as Eiya chased after them. "Hide!"

"I'm not scared!"

"I'm scared for your life. Go!" Riku urged Sora, pushing him into the corner. Sora stared at Riku as he cowered.

"R-Riku..." He whimpered, as he saw something new come from Riku; it was as though Ansem was back. Riku had his fists forward, absent of a sword to defend himself with, and this crazed, wild look flooded his electric blue eyes, making them nearly spark in the dead air of the cave.

"I can taste the bittersweet bond between your souls." Eiya hissed. "I can taste it in the air. I can smell it on your clothes. You idiot..." She cackled. "Do you really think that bond can keep me from tearing you apart?" A dark force pushed at them both, a great wind filling the air, tearing at them violently. Riku stepped in front of Sora, and crossed his arms to brace himself from the wind.

"You... can't... tear us!" Riku cried, pushing his arms out, breaking the wind. "Sora and I are a part of each other's hearts! As long as we have that much, we won't break!" He paused, then turned around to look at Sora. "Right?"

Sora blinked, chuckled, and smiled. "Yeah. Exactly right. Just like my heart and Kairi's are one, my heart and Riku's are one! As long as we protect each other, you can't touch us!"

"Wrong... since you two are connected, I can just use what I want from you without having to go between you!" Eiya cackled evilly, then reached towards Sora with what looked like a hand. Sora took the Hope keychain from his pocket and thwacked Eiya's hand back.

"Can't touch this!" Sora cackled eagerly, as the white light stung Eiya's hand. "Riku, let's go!" He dashed out of the cave, closely followed by Riku. Eiya burst after them. The ground around them erupted into Heartless, a tidal wave nearly sixty feet tall. Sora and Riku froze in place as it rose around them.

"Hold onto me!" Riku cried, clutching onto Sora, right as Sora wrapped his arms around Riku's shoulders. Swiftly, Riku bounced off the Heartless' heads, ascending to the top of the wave, almost literally surfing it onto the collapsed mountain top. Riku put Sora down, and surveyed the world around him-

Pure solid blackness. The entire island was a mass of Heartless, and they were starting to pour over the tip of the crest. Suddenly, Hope shone again, deflecting the Heartless back. Riku and Sora heard a rumbling behind them, and both whirled around to see a gigantic black form rising from within the broken, crumbled mountain.

"Eiya..." Sora whispered, as it rose higher. Riku was dumbfounded. "It's... huge..."

"Eiya..." Riku gasped suddenly. "It's going to suck us up..."

"Just like..." Sora choked on his words, turning back to Riku.

"Just like the last time we were here together." Riku finished, remembering how the great blackness had sucked him up and left Sora behind.

"SORA! COME TO ME!" Eiya shrieked maniacally.

This time, Riku would be left behind.

TO BE CONTINUED...