Me: another update!

Kaitsu: (waves flag) yay…

Me: anyway, no ranting for today! Read and Review!

Takari: Merielle does not own Kingdom Hearts. It's obvious by now, isn't it?


Destiny's Punishment

Chapter 8—Stormy Emotions

"…Me?" Kaitsu's voice rang throughout the silence. It seemed as though time had completely stopped. It had taken about a minute for the words to sink in. He was the person in the Legend? The fate of the worlds rested in his choice?

"I'm sorry, but…I think you have the wrong person," said Kaitsu. Yeah, that's it. They probably mistook him for someone else. His hopes fell as Mickey shook his head,

"I'm afraid not. You are the chosen one," he said. Kaitsu couldn't believe a word he was saying.

"I already have enough responsibilities to deal with…" he muttered.

"I'm sorry, but this is how it has to be," said Mickey. Confusion and anger swept over Kaitsu. Why did he have to be the chosen one? Why everything have to be his responsibility? Couldn't he just lead a normal life? Kaitsu stood up and walked past Mickey as he turned to him, and said sadly,

"Kaitsu, I--"

"Just leave me alone…" muttered Kaitsu as he slammed the door behind him and walked on. He blinked again, trying to stop the tears in his eyes from overflowing. Why did everything always happen to him…? His walking had now turned into a run as he left the castle. He just wanted to escape from it all.

He stopped after a while, and found himself in an open plain. He looked behind him, the castle a good distance away. He pulled out the orb in his pocket and looked at it, anger coursing throughout him. Why won't they just leave him alone? He let out a shout of frustration as he threw the orb to the ground and ran off. He didn't even notice the orb as its color slowly faded into a darker shade of grey…


"Poor kid…" murmured Seika as they watched Kaitsu run off into the fields.

"I can't believe that little brat threw away the orb!" shouted Takari.

"Should we go now?" asked Ryu. Ken nodded,

"It's about time we should. Remember, keep a close eye on him and protect Kaitsu from Him at all costs." And with that, the four of them disappeared through a portal.


"Hey, Mickey! Where's Kaitsu?" asked Sora, walking up to the mouse. Riku, Kairi, and Kotoro were following behind.

"We searched most of the castle, but we can't find him," said Kairi. Mickey sighed, looking up at them,

"I supposed you four will need to know too…" And so he began to explain to them what he had explained to Kaitsu and what had happened…


'I hate them…I hate them all…' Kaitsu sat under tree, hugging his knees to his chest as he leaned his back against the trunk of the tree. He stared out at the field of grass, his mind being drowned in resentment, anger, and confusion. He sighed, closing his eyes, as he tried to calm himself. 'I wish I could just forget everything and escape from all of this…'

"Hello there…"

Kaitsu jumped, looking up to see a hooded figure standing before him.

"R-Ronin?"

The figure shook his head,

"I do not know this Ronin you speak of. Now tell me, what's a kid like you doing all alone out here?"

"My brother told me to never talk to strangers…" muttered Kaitsu as he stood up, glaring at the hooded figure.

"I'm not a stranger. We've met before," said the figure, a light smile visible from underneath the hood.

"I've never seen you before in my life," said Kaitsu. The figure chuckled lightly,

"You don't remember… I guess I'll have to show you." The figure moved his hood slightly, so that his eyes were visible from underneath the shadow. Kaitsu's eyes widened as he saw two bright red eyes staring back at him, a long-forgotten memory playing back in his mind…


"Kaitsu, what's wrong?" An eight-year-old Kotoro looked towards the crying six-year-old. It was late at night, and Kaitsu had obviously had another nightmare.

"There were monsters in my room…" sobbed Kaitsu. Kotoro smiled lightly, leading Kaitsu back to his room.

"I don't see any monsters here," said Kotoro with a smirk. Kaitsu shook his head,

"No! There were monsters! They had big red and yellow eyes and they wanted my brains!" said Kaitsu, wiping the tears off his face.

"Don't worry Kaitsu. The monsters are gone. And if they come back, I'll make them go away," said Kotoro as Kaitsu climbed back into his bed.

"Promise?"

"Promise. Now go to sleep," said Kotoro, ruffling Kaitsu's hair as he walked out of the room. Kaitsu rolled on his side, looking at the darkness of his room, the moonlight from his window making it look sinister. Suddenly a small "thump" was heard. Kaitsu gasped, seeing something move,

"I-Is someone there…?"

Suddenly two red eyes were visible from the darkness as a whisper echoed throughout the room,

"Teratos rikoto, oprendo os mundi…"

The figure smiled at Kaitsu, its bright red eyes chilling Kaitsu to the bone, and disappeared as Kaitsu started screaming…


"…It's you…" murmured Kaitsu. "You were those red eyes I saw…"

The figure nodded, walking up to Kaitsu. Hetook Kaitsu's hand, placing a small object in it.

"It's my orb…" muttered Kaitsu, noticing its now darker color. "How'd you find this?"

"It's not wise to leave your items lying around," said the figure, turning to walk away.

"Those words you said before…what do they mean?" asked Kaitsu. The words he had said were the exact same words Kaitsu had heard before he passed out near the painting. The figure didn't look back, but muttered the same words as he disappeared,

"Teratos rikoto, oprendo os mundi…"

'Be prepared…It is beginning…' Kaitsu blinked. 'Did I…just translate the words?' He frowned in thought. What is beginning…? Be prepared for what…? He sighed, sitting down by the tree again. He closed his eyes in thought as small rain drops began to fall on the ground…


The figure walked along the field, a smirk visible from the shadow of the hood as a small drizzle began to fall. He stopped, sensing a presence with him.

"…"

"You're interfering…" came a voice. The hooded man turned around, seeing four unknowns standing behind him. The one who spoke had short black hair and purple eyes (Ken); the second one had shoulder-length black hair and violet eyes (Takari); the third had spiky green hair and blue eyes (Ryu); and the last one had bright red hair and pink eyes (Seika).

"Well, what do you know…? The entire circus group showed up…" taunted the figure as his red eyes glared at them. "Why are you four here? Probably want to be killed again, don't you?"

"Why you little--" Takari moved forward but Ken extended his arm out in front of him.

"Someone needs anger management," mocked the figure. Takari twitched, muttering a curse under his breath as he tried to stand still.

"You shouldn't be here, Yasuko," said Ken.

"What? Now I can't even stand outside?" Yasuko said mockingly.

"You know what I mean. You're not allowed to go near Kaitsu," hissed Ken.

"I didn't hurt him now, did I?" said Yasuko, smirking as Ken glared daggers at him.

"You better stay away from him, otherwise you'll be sorry!" said Seika.

"Ooh, I'm so scared," mocked Yasuko. That was the final straw for Takari. He summoned a sword in his hands. It would have looked like a normal samurai sword had it not been for the hanging chain that was tied around the hilt. He charged towards Yasuko with lightning speed. Yasuko just smirked, raising his hand in front of him as an unseen forced knocked Takari backwards before he could even hit him.

"Damn you…" muttered Takari as he stood back up.

"Now, now, Takari, you shouldn't curse like that," mocked Yasuko. He looked towards the others, the sinister smirk still visible under his hood. "It's been wonderful chatting with you, but I must take my leave." He turned around, disappearing in a whirl of dark colors.

"I really don't like that guy," murmured Ryu.

"We'll have to keep a close eye on him," said Ken. "Let's go." The others nodded as they disappeared once more.


"…I don't believe this," muttered Sora. It had taken about an hour for Mickey to explain everything to them. They were left in shock.

"He must've run away again," said Riku.

"We should go look for him," said Kairi. Mickey shook his head,

"No, let him be. He's already upset and confused as it is."

"My brother just ran off, probably lost by now, and all you can do is just stand around?!" shouted Kotoro. "We have to go find him!"

"But, Mickey said we should stay here. Besides, it's starting to rain outside," said Sora, pointing outside as it was raining lightly. Kotoro glared at them and said,

"Fine. I'll find him myself." And with that, he disappeared in a cloud of black smoke.

"We should go find them before anything happens," said Riku.

"Before you go, I have to tell you something," said Mickey. "Kaitsu might not have told you, but he has always carried a small orb with him. A man by the name of Ronin gave it to him. Ronin, like me, knew of the Legend as well. He gave Kaitsu the orb so he would be able to watch over his balance of light and darkness. The orbs color turns darker as it senses Kaitsu's negative energy, and becomes lighter with his positive energy. If the orb turns pure black, then he has chosen Darkness, and if it turns pure white, he has chosen Light. Be sure to keep an eye on this orb at all times."

The others nodded and ran out of the castle, their search now beginning.


'It's so cold…' thought Kaitsu as he hugged his knees to his chest, the rain now heavier than before. He looked towards the orb that lay next to him. It was a darker shade of grey than before. He sighed, putting it in his pocket as he looked up at the cloudy sky.

'Why…Why do they do this to me? What do they want…?' He groaned in frustration, burying his face in his knees as he felt the rain falling on him like icicles. 'I wish I could just sit here and die… It would be much better than this horrible life…'

"Kaitsu!"

Kaitsu's head shot up as he saw Kotoro running up to him. He was lucky he was wearing a trench coat; otherwise he would have been completely wet from the rain.

"I've been looking all over for you! Mickey told us everything--"

"Just leave me alone," muttered Kaitsu, burying his face in his knees again.

"Kaitsu, stopmoping around like this.You could handle the Keyblade and being Keeper of Kingdom Hearts. I'm sure you can take care of this too!"

"You don't know what it's like, Kotoro!" Kaitsu stood up, anger boiling inside him. "I'm sick and tired of it all!! All I want is a normal life with normal friends! No Keyblades, no Legends, nothing!! I just wish I could die and get away from all of it!"

"Kaitsu, listen to yourself! Stop talking like this; we have to go back to the castle--"

"WHY WON'T ALL OF YOU JUST LEAVE ME--"

Whack! A long, heavysilence filled the air. Kaitsu blinked, putting a hand on his cheek, feeling a tingling pain where Kotoro had just hit him. He looked up at Kotoro, who was glaring at him.

"You want me to leave you alone? Fine. I guess you don't need me anymore," said Kotoro, turning his back on Kaitsu.

"Kotoro, I--"

"Good-bye, Kaitsu," muttered Kotoro, looking back at Kaitsu one last time before disappearing in a cloud of black smoke. Kaitsu blinked, looking at the spot where Kotoro stood seconds ago. 'Was…Was he crying?' Kaitsu lowered his head, letting his tears flow freely. Stifling a sob, he turned around and walked off, the castle still looming in the distance behind him.


Me: hmm…this is a bit depressing…And it's the longest I've written! 8 pages!! ...okay, so that's not really long… (sweatdrop)

Seika: What dangers will happen to Kaitsu next? Will the KH gang ever find him? What happened to Kotoro? And what about those weird hooded people?

Me: All those questions will be answered in the next chapters. And as for the hooded people, I'm not going to name them Unknowns. They'll be…the Guardians!

Kaitsu: …Guardians?

Me: I couldn't think of a better name. Bear with me here. As for Yasuko…you'll learn more about him later.

Kaitsu: I really don't like where this story is heading…

Takari: And now for the review replies.

Ninja Mage- Breaks can be very annoying and boring when you don't have anything to do. Trust me, I've been there before..(sweatdrop) And I'm glad to see you knew it was Kaitsu. ..I think everybody knew. It was a bit obvious.

Me: That's all for now! I'll try to update as much as I can before break is over! Read and review!

Merielle