A/N: I'm ba-ack! Yeah, I got another KH fic going on, this time it's completely AU…believe me

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts. If I did, then lots of stuff would happen, then it would no longer be rated E…don't sue me please!!

Kingdom to Come

Chapter one: The Wheel of Fortune

Nothing was all right.

No, not now, at least. Sora wasn't here with him, as he should be. And that made nothing all right.

Burying his hand into his pale locks of messy hair, he leaned on the arm of the throne and stared at the sickened gray pathway before him. Tendrils of blackness waved around the nonexistent area, as he lazily regarded them with nothing more than a bored glance. Only the clinking sounds of his small winged pendant accompanied him and his not-so-silent thoughts…

It upset him that Sora had to go, more than the stupid commoners, more than the royal court. It upset him even more than his closest friends and family. It was all the demon's fault for leaving him here alone, in this deep, dark, torturous place.

But never Sora's fault. No no no, not Sora's fault at all. He'd protect Sora with his whole, never-ending life for forever and ever and eternity. But the first obstacle he had to overcome…

"I'm coming, So-ra!" He chanted in a sing-song voice to the watery image before him, his icy blue eyes playfully accenting the obsessive grin on his lips.

Oh, nothing could come between him, Sora, and their beloved Kingdom…

Silently tip-toeing to his room, he crouched into position. Ah, there was his prey, working at his desk and completely oblivious of his fate, as expected. The bed obstructing his view was no problem by now, as he was guided by keen instinct. He knew exactly when, where, and how to move to acquire the desired results. Preparing himself to leap, he shook his head and smiled. Sometimes he had too much fun with this…

He watched Sora brush off some eraser particles off the desk and chose his time to attack. Quickly, he leapt across the bed and wrapped his arms around the figure's shoulders, effectively sounding a yelp from the other. Sora's chair tipped and fell with a resounding "thump!" causing his prey to collide partially onto the bed and pinning him against his arms.

"At it again, Sora?" He smirked as Sora's shocked eyes pierced his own with a brilliant blue. His resolve started to slip as his friend's eyes lit up with recognition. It was amazing how his eyes could suddenly tranquillize people so quickly…

"Riku!" The brunette chastised lightly with a smile. He felt like silly putty at the moment, but he couldn't possibly let Sora in on that little factor. So, he settled for brushing his silver locks out of the way while maintaining Sora half-pinned under him.

"So wat'cha working on now?" Riku leaned over as best he could to see the desk, breaking Sora's alluring gaze. He felt Sora squirm underneath him and gave a small whine.

"Well, if you let me up, I can show you!" He didn't even need to look at Sora to know he was pouting. A little disappointed (it's not every day you get Sora pinned, half hanging off the bed under you) he let his grip go. Sora slid off and rubbed his back a little, grimacing a little from the uncomfortable position. Of course he'd been through a lot worse things than a stiff back, but he couldn't help but feel almost a little guilty for it.

Riku extended his hand and Sora gratefully took it, pulling himself up from the floor. The brunette flashed him a quick smile before handing him the paper he was working on.

His right eyebrow rose up.

"It looks like a key." He remarked, raising his eyes from the sketch to look at the artist.

"It's a Keyblade, to be exact." Sora huffed in reply, but refused to meet his gaze. At this, Riku's interest suddenly flared. He always acted like this whenever something odd occurred. A small pause filled the air before he asked.

"Did it happen again?"

That caught Sora's attention from the invisible object he was so intent on studying. The blue-eyed boy jumped and whipped his head to stare right at Riku. He caught a glimpse of something between hesitation and guilt in his eyes before the boy closed them. Sora chuckled, running his hand through his messy spikes.

"Geez, I didn't think it was that important."

"How much sleep did you lose?"

"Umm…it was about 3:30 when I started drawing…"

"You were up at three in the morning?!" Riku repeated, firmly grabbing Sora's wrist. Instinctively Sora pulled back, though he knew Riku wouldn't hurt him.

"I'm okay, really."

"Sora, we didn't get back from Kairi's place until 11:00!"

"So?"

"So? It means that you're running on only three hours of sleep, that's what."

"I'm fine, Riku." Sora stressed. A small frown played on his lips and he unwillingly let go. This was also common in the morning as of late. It was the forth time this week that his friend had little to no sleep…

"Alright, but if you pass out on me while Kairi's drilling us around today, then don't expect me to drag you're sorry butt out."

Sora grinned and picked up the chair on the floor. He pushed himself on top of the desk and brushed his other drawings away, stuffing them in a random drawer. With the lighting from the window behind, Sora looked as if he were glowing.

"Do you want to hear…?"

Riku nodded. Of course he would…

"Might as well. We have time." He said, swinging his legs off the bed. Sora smiled faintly, and put his hands behind his head.

"I was with Donald and Goofy again…this time we were at a throne area some sorts. Who would put a throne outside?" The brunette shook his head and continued.

"Anyway, I had the Keyblade with me, and we were talking about going somewhere…It was important, because Goofy was frowning and mentioning something about risks…"

"Goofy's the dog, right?" He interrupted, as his friend broke from his reverie.

"Yeah," He affirmed, "Which is why I knew something was up. Usually Donald is the one with the cranky attitude."

This was what set Sora's adventures away from normal dreams, both he and Sora realized. Nothing that real could have been just a dream. Sora could remember almost everything. Both his recent companions' expressions and feelings from Goofy's lax personality down to Donald's large beak, along with some of his own actions were still defined when Sora awoke. And as much as that worried him, he could help but feel a bit left out. Here, Sora had an adventure of sorts, while he was stuck in the monotony of this cruddy island. It wasn't fair at all!

But it wasn't Sora's fault, either. He didn't choose to have anything like this happen to him, and it wasn't exactly benefiting him either. Sora's lack of sleep was starting to take a toll on him and Riku could see that, no matter how hard his friend tried to hide it. But even if he had mentioned anything, Sora was just too stubborn to listen.

"And…" Sora began only to hesitate, worry etched into his features, "You came up with another Keyblade, but you were pretty beat up. I asked you what happened, but you passed out before you got to tell me anything…so I decided to check it out myself. Then I woke up."

"Did you see anything?" He asked, mildly surprised that he appeared in his dreams too.

Sora knitted his eyebrows together in thought and finally spoke.

"No. It was near the end of the dream, and everything was hazy after I left."

Either Sora really couldn't remember or he was lying to him.

Noticing the lighter shade in the room, Riku decided to bump back to reality. He smirked, inspecting the cat-patterned pajamas his friend wore.

"Kairi's expecting us, so get dressed and let's go."

Sora pouted cutely and Riku melted a little.

"I can't when you're here!" The spiky brunette tilted his head and crossed his arms, staring at him.

Well, he could, but that would prove a little…odd? A mental flash of Sora undressing in front of him quickly passed by and he fought to control the blush that was creeping up. Maybe he should leave…

"Okay, okay, I'm leaving!" He threw his hands up in surrender and headed to the door, just in time to miss the blush that spread across Sora's face. Sora heard the door click and he hopped off the desk and turned away.

"Oh man…" He moaned, embarrassed. "That was close."

A few moments later, Sora was fully dressed, and the two headed off to their island. Kairi stood in her usual spot; leaning against the sail of the raft they were in the process of making. She held a bored look on her face as she fiddled around with some Thalassa shells.

"Kairi!" Sora called out and waved. She picked herself up immediately, smiling brightly at both of them before calling out.

"Sora! Riku! Get your lazy butts over here!"

Kairi pocketed the shells and put her hands on her hips as the boys stood in front of her. Giving them a playful glare she waggled her finger and tsked.

"You're late! At this rate, we'll never have the raft finished."

Riku ran a hand through his hair and sighed. He could see that Kairi's job was mostly over, with all the supplies bunched up on the raft's surface. If he and Sora did their jobs properly, tomorrow would be the last day on Destiny Islands.

Kairi dug through her bag, produced two lists and handed the small pieces of parchment to him and Sora. Riku scanned the short request. The regal handwriting stood out against the whiteness of the paper, full of loops and crosses. Kairi could practically make her own style of art just with her print.

Two logs, a cloth, and a rope,? That wasn't asking for much. Riku smirked and waved his hand dismissively.

"This is easy! I'll be done before you know it!"

"But you have to bring them to me right away," Kairi sternly ordered, "so you don't forget them when you end up sparring with Wakka, Tidus, and Selphie."

"Yes, princess." He retorted, mock bowing to the girl.

And so Riku started off, with Sora in the distance. Two logs, a rope, and a cloth later, Riku lazily gazed at the sky accompanied with none other than his blaring thoughts. The sand felt comforting against his skin, and the ocean sung her magical tune. Paopu island was his little place to relax, but it didn't calm the storm in his mind.

Gods, how did Selphie find out?

"Riku!" Selphie screamed in delight, glomping him in the process. The logs and cloth he collected so far scattered in the sand beside him.

"Hello to you too, Selphie." Riku groaned.

"You know," She grinned while sitting on top of him, "I've come to a final conclusion yesterday."

"And what would that be?" He knew that particular grin before, which meant that Selphie was in her super-creepy scheming mood. Half of him didn't even want to know.

"You and Sora would make a great couple, don'tcha think?"

"What?!" He sat up, knocking Selphie off in an instant. He didn't have enough time to cover up his shock before the crazy girl made her eyes like a cat that's found her prey.

"You like Sora, don't you?" She accused, and Riku had hard time trying to control his blush.

"You can't be serious…"He managed, though it came out a bit harsher than he intended.

But that didn't seem to perturb Selphie.

"I am serious, Riku." The crazed girl pulled the sentence off like she meant it. Riku felt himself a little less guarded, but he still refused to tell. Selphie was dependable no doubt, but still, if anything ever got back to Sora…

"Aha! You do!" She cheered. What did she have? Psychic sense?

"Never doubt the power of women's intuition!" And he mentally rolled his eyes.

"You can't tell anyone." He more or less demanded, while looking at the sand. What was he thinking? This very well could mark the end of his life.

It had been bugging his mind even after he found the rope and returned everything to Kairi. He knew he had feelings for Sora, but nothing was ever easy. The feelings he had weren't just a crush, or just a teenage thing. He loved Sora! His whole world depended on his best friend.

And if anything happened to Sora, Riku would be sure to find a way to be with him.

The platinum haired boy was so deep in his thoughts that he didn't notice his object of affections creeping up from behind. Sora grinned at the chance to get him back.

"Hey!"

Whirling around, Riku met a pair of sapphire eyes. He mentally cursed about thinking too loud and smiled.

"Hey."

"What are you thinking about?" He innocently asked with a grin plastered on his face. Riku turned to the ocean and masked his emotions the best he could.

"Nothing important. Just something Selphie went on about." That wasn't a complete lie, and Sora accepted it. Now if he could just switch the subject…

"Did you hand your stuff over to Kairi?" He asked the brunette. Sora shook his head.

"I still need to find a mushroom."

"Here, I'll help you. Maybe there's some at the secret place?"

Riku smirked inwardly as he stood up. Some competition could get his mind off of things.

"Race ya!" He shouted and took off, hearing Sora protest loudly.

"Hey!"

The secret place…something mysterious lived there. Not necessarily physical, but everyone could feel it. It gave him the creeps sometimes, but whatever hidden power kept itself among the drawn-on walls and plain, wooden, locked door called to him. He remembered the first time they found it, Sora thought a monster lived inside.

"What are you laughing at?" Sora questioned when they reached the small room.

"At how slow you are." And he received an adorable pout.

'Not fair." He whacked the silver-haired fiend and passed by him, putting a gloved hand on the sealed door. Riku searched the ground for any mushrooms.

"Remember when we first found this place?" Sora chuckled, looking at Riku then back to the door. He smiled in remembrance.

"Yeah. You cried like a baby when you thought some scary monster was gonna eat you up." He expected a reply to that, or maybe another pout, but Sora didn't move. He looked up from his search and stared. Sora's eyes were totally closed, but something was off with his expression.

"Sora?" What was wrong? By now, he would've done something.

His eyelids rose only half-way, revealing his glossed over orbs.

"Ri…" He muttered with a thick tongue and suddenly the boy started to fall. Riku rushed to his side and wrapped his arms around the collapsed boy's waist, pushing them to the ground.

"Sora!" He stressed, and sighed heavily. The lack of sleep would have gotten to him eventually, but at least he was somewhere safe. Lightly brushing the hair out of Sora's face, he picked the boy up and started carrying him out. He had a bit of trouble along the hall, but he managed to get out without and serious problems.

The brightness from out side temporarily blinded him, but that didn't matter. He continued his way towards the docks without delay, slightly shifting Sora. For someone who looked scrawny, he sure weighed a lot.

"Riku!" Selphie's cheerful voice rang out, "Oh-what happened?!" She stopped in mid-glomp and hovered over Sora.

"Hey! What's going on?" Tidus' voice rang out. The sandy blonde boy ran up, sword in hand. He looked a little bruised, which usually meant he was practicing with Wakka.

"He's okay. I'm taking him to his house now." He replied, thought a little uncomfortable. Whether Sora was really okay or not started to ebb at his mind, but he ignored it. Sora was just sleep deprived, that's all.

"Well don't let us stop you!" Selphie gave him an encouraging push and grabbed Tidus's arm. "I'll be sure to tell Kairi."

"Wait! What are you dragging me along for?"

"Because you don't want me to be defenseless against Kairi, do you?"

Riku shook his head and reached the docks, placing Sora in the boat. He tied the other boat up to his, mentally grumbling about the extra effort.

Eventually he reached Sora's house and up the stairs to Sora's room. He placed the sleeping boy on his bed. The sunlight completely lit the room by now, and he could clearly see everything. A few posters littered the walls, along with some drawings. A small dresser stashed itself in a corner, holding pictures of him, Sora, and Kairi. A larger picture on his wall held all of his friends from the island. He sat in the chair by the desk, watching Sora. Something slid under his foot, and he curiously glanced down to look at it.

It was a sketch of an elaborate crown.

He knew Sora didn't show him that picture before, but it looked so familiar. How could that be possible? He picked up the forgotten sketch and peered at the details.

It wasn't very big, but large enough to look too comical. A heart adorned the very middle, with two prongs protruding outward from the crevice. Small diamond-cut jewels lined the rest of the front.

A small crown ruefully fell to the ground, bouncing once off the cruel surface before circling its rim and coming to a stop. The gold seemed to dim and tarnish instantly and the jewels cracked, as if sensing the loss of its owner.

The flash of…whatever it was startled him enough to jump.

"What wrong?" The groggy voice surprised him once more, but at least it came with a sense of relief. Riku smiled and leaned against the back of the chair.

"Other than you passing out? Nothing." Sora scratched the back of his head and gave his friend a confused look.

"Oh…" He finally said, and started to sit up.

"No way, Sora. Go to sleep."

"No."

Riku stood from his seat and walked over to his friend. He leaned over so he was face-to-face with the stubborn boy.

"Yes you will."

"I won't go to sleep." Sora pouted and crossed his arms, and Riku was suddenly reminded of his five-year-old self. He gently pushed Sora back down on the bed.

"How about I stay with you?" The stubborn boy seemed to ponder about it a bit, and slowly nodded. He dug under the covers and slid over, giving his friend a stare.

"If I'm going to sleep, you're going with me." He didn't need to play the "revenge" tactic, but it was nice to give Riku a good excuse to be nearby. If only it could be easier to control himself.

Kicking off his shoes, he crawled onto the fluffy surface that held an even more enticing person. Riku placed himself under the covers with Sora, settling just right as to leave some space between them. But that proved futile, as his innocent partner hugged his arm.

"You're not getting away from me, even if you try."

Riku didn't even want to retort to that, but he managed a smile and closed his eyes. He remembered only sleeping like this when they were small, when it didn't matter. Would they get into trouble if anyone found out? Ah, but this was just so comfortable…he'd let it slip just this once.

And so, Riku contentedly fell into sleep, not once aware of the small, loving smile that adorned his face. Of course, this did not go unseen…

Kairi gently tapped on the door, peeking through the crack on the door. She stepped in further, glimpsing at the cute sight and smiling gently before tip-toeing her way to the open window. She slid the pane shut and glanced down at the messy desk, eyeing Sora's sketches.

"I hope…"Kairi started, but she only shook her head. The boys looked so peaceful, and she didn't want to finish that thought. She glided out of the room and shut the door behind her.

Countless sweet silences passed by, and only the ruthless sounds of thunder could disturb Riku out of his peaceful haven. The rumbling vibrated in his ears as his mind slowly came to reality. Sora managed to let go of his arm sometime during their nap, and draped it over his chest instead. He turned his head, eyeing the beautiful face even in the darkened room. Through the haze of his mind, only his name cut through and whispered his deepest secrets. Riku lied like that for a while, immune to the raging weather outside.

But the rain called out to Riku, beating on the window with a bland desperation. The aquatic drops jolted him from his calm state. The raft!

Riku hesitated, but he had already made up his mind. It was late anyway, and by the time he'd get back, his parents would kill him. Right now, the raft was more important.

Lifting the sleeping boy's arm slowly, he shifted out of the bed a bit a time. He placed Sora's arm back down, and after a few minutes, he retrieved his shoes. It looked about late evening.

Making his way towards the door as quietly as he could, Riku double-checked for anything he missed. Everything seemed in place, and he almost had the door opened just enough-

A small yawn emitted from the bed, and the unmistakable shuffle of fabric. Riku froze in his place.

"Where are you going?" Sora tiredly questioned, yawning soon afterwards. He turned to his friend with a neutral expression.

"I'm going to check on the raft."

"But it's raining outside…"

"And you think a little rain is gonna stop me?" He smirked, waving it off. Then he added in a quieter voice, "You should go back to sleep. We have a long day ahead tomorrow."

Before Sora could retort, Riku was out the door. If Sora had the chance, he could convince Riku to wait a while, but if anything, Riku had lousy patience. He waited so long to travel to different worlds with Sora and Kairi, and nothing was going to stop him from that. Not the rain, not the fading darkness, if anything was to stop him, it would either be his death, or something horrible happened to Sora.

By then, he hurried out the house and into the rain. He unlatched Sora's boat from his and took off.

Soaked from the pouring droplets, Riku eventually made it to the raft. Kairi had enough sense to cover the supplies, at least. He pushed the vessel farther away from the waves just for safe measure. The thunderstorm was dying down, as he could see patches of the starry sky. He leaned against the mast and stared at the ocean.

How many worlds would be out there for them to find? Did they have enough supplies? Maybe Kairi should've taken up fighting lessons, just in case…

…What if they didn't make it?

It would be his fault. He was the one to suggest this adventure in the first place. It would be on his shoulders if he caused the deaths of his two best friends. But when it all came down to it, how much was he honestly willing to sacrifice for this adventure?

The sound of footsteps scraping the sand brought him out of his reverie, as he coolly looked at the incoming figure.

Kairi hurried towards him, complete with a blanket probably for the raft, "I came as soon as the storm lightened up. "She unfolded the cloth and covered the bottom. Kairi looked a little odd to him for some reason. She seemed nervous, but that was understandable.

"Where's Sora?"

Riku rose an eyebrow.

"He should be home." He replied, a little suspicious. Kairi sighed a breath of…relief?

"Good. I just thought that since his boat was here, he might have came with you…"

But he brought Sora's boat with him! Pushing himself off the mast, he growled.

"You're kidding me! I told him to stay home!"

"I have a really bad feeling about this…we need to find him!" She urged and she didn't have to tell him twice. Riku started off, but Kairi halted him.

"Wait! I'll stick by the docks while you search for Sora." He nodded, and Kairi made her way towards the tunnel. He ran through the shack, entering the other part of the beach, calling Sora's name. Only the ocean breeze and the swaying of the palm trees answered his call. This wasn't entertaining, not that it was in the first place.

A sound of stone against nails penetrated the natural symphony near the secret place. His head jerked to the origin, and saw a shape move.

"Sora?" He called again, but Sora didn't acknowledge him. Mentally cursing, he followed after and into the tunnel, groping the rocky walls for support. The scratching became louder as he entered the room.

The moonlight brightly shone even through the small crack in the ceiling. The moonbeams illuminated the dim room around them, reflecting off the small puddles on the floor, and the permanent chalk lines scribbled on the walls.

There on the floor sat Sora, propped up against the locked door with a jagged rock in hand. He smiled innocently as they caught each other's eyes.

"Heh heh, hi Riku." He sheepishly said. Riku gave him a glare.

"Sora! What are you doing here?"

"I went after you 'cause I thought you might have needed some help with the raft…but, I dunno, this place called out to me…" Sora closed his eyes and yawned.

"Well, come on, we have to get home…hey, what's this?" Riku leaned towards the door, peering at the odd lock. This definitely wasn't there before! He reached towards the crafted metal, but something slapped his hand away. He let out a small gasp and watched as Sora guiltily lowered his hand. The boy lowered his head in shame.

"I'm sorry… but you can't touch it! Something bad will happen if this door opens."

He peered at the self-proclaimed protector of the door and something clicked in deepest depths of his mind. This whole scenario was familiar and completely foreign at the same time. Selphie always mentioned something about Sora being special, and Kairi had the dead-set impression that Sora was impossible to hate. What exactly was his best friend?

"Sora…"

Without warning, two arms phased through the door and grabbed Sora around the chest. His friend gasped in surprise and fear from the contact, and suddenly he was picked off the ground. A body started to phase through, pushing its way into the cave.

"Sora!" Riku cried out to the bewildered brunette. The pale abductor snapped his icy eyes open, glaring back.

"Sora's mine, you demon." He viciously snarled and held Sora closer. White lights appeared all around, and revealed pale creatures, adorned with a familiar mark on their backs. Sora continued struggling, but to no avail.

"Silly Sora, you think I don't know how to keep you still?" The attacker grinned fondly, his voice in a completely different tone. The remark froze his captive.

"Do I know you?" Sora asked quietly.

Riku stepped forward, but the pale haired boy only snapped backwards.

"Don't you dare!' He hissed, and the white creatures came closer. The blond boy took Sora with him as he back themselves to the door.

"Sora! Give Sora back right now!" Riku yelled, but the kid's pets blocked his path.

"Flailers!" He resounded, "Don't ever let him take Sora away from us again! Take him back to the darkness where he belongs!"

With that, Riku watched as the two faded into the door, which made a thunderous clicking sound. The creatures bombarded him in a flurry in white and black, but he didn't have time to react. Their claws tore at him mercilessly, but they had an odd numbing effect. His mind wasn't on the pain, or how to fight back.

He'd find Sora, no matter what they did to him!

In a burst of light, the flailers were thrown off of him. His chest felt like it was on fire, with liquid electricity running through his arms and legs. A heavy object was clasped in his right hand. The coursing feeling brought him to his knees, and all the sudden, he recognized what he tightly gripped.

Keyblade….Keyblade…

The shadows around him seem to reverberate the weapon's name in his head in a shallow voice. They feared it…awed it. The tingling feeling dissipated, and he stood.

Kairi stood in the entrance, mortified.

"Stay back!" Riku warned her, as the monsters stretched their bodies in a sick elastic manner, approaching the boy again. One swiped his claws, but Riku parried the attack and slashed horizontally. It was like he'd been using the Keyblade all along in his life…

Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Kairi reaching into her pockets. She crushed the objects in her fingers, and started mumbling something he couldn't understand.

"Blizzard!" She shouted, throwing the shattered fragments in the air. The temperature dropped around them and the creatures were incased in ice.

"Kairi, what did you-"

"Where's Sora?!" She interrupted fiercely, much to his surprise. She grabbed his arms and almost pulled him face to face. Pain, worry, fear, and anger, all reflected in her voice at once.

"Where is he, Riku?"

He couldn't bring himself to say anything, but it looked as if he didn't need to. She let him go and gazed at the door.

"I was wondering why he wasn't with us…" Kairi mumbled. He was losing his patience quick.

"Who?! What did he do with Sora? What's happening, Kairi?!"

She could only give him a look, before the crystalline statues began to shake. Kairi dug out another item from her pocket, revealing it to be a Thalassa shell. She crushed it in her palm.

"There's no time. Please, you need to find Sora for everyone. That door should take you to Traverse Town!"

The monsters broke free of their prison, and Riku stuck in his place. Kairi eyed him.

"Go!"

"But what about you?" He cried, positioning himself to attack. Kairi gave him an odd look, one with urgency and seriousness. She rose her arm and reached out to him.

Only to blast him back with her mysterious power. He braced himself to hit the door, but the impact never came. Instead, a deep, gutting feeling sprang from his stomach and instead of the liquid fire he felt from the Keyblade, it felt like a painful, biting cold.

And the next thing he knew, the darkness overtook him.

To be continued…