This is going to be a pretty mild chapter. It'll just give you a chance to see how all the characters are going to act completely. Yeah, it'll have some important story, but mostly just switching back and forth between characters. Enjoy! ((wink))
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Disclaimer: I do not own KH or any of the story. I merely find ways to ruin it's characters.
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KEY:
Italic- thought
Bold- flashback and other
Bold/Italic- dreams
( )- other
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CHAPTER SEVEN: STRAWBERRY'S AND CREAM
The next day was quiet and calm, while everyone was preparing for the mission to save Sora. Sephiroth and Cloud were finding ways to infiltrate the school again, Squall and Tidus were out gathering supplies, leaving Wakka and Riku to hang around on guard in case another girlie goon came back.
Everyone had their own reasons for helping save Sora. Sephiroth wanted to help Cloud save Aerith, Leon wanted to save Aerith and Yuffie, and the others wanted to save their friends. Was it really that hard to understand? They didn't think so. Riku was going to save Sora no matter what.
"Hey Wakka! We haven't really had a chance to hang out much have we?" asked Riku who was currently leaning against the wall looking at one of his flowers. The strange plants had begun to grow all around the small house, and wouldn't stop.
"Not really. Ever since Tidus became fond of..." Wakka stopped in the middle of his sentence and decided not to finish it. Naturally, Riku caught this but didn't plan on pressing the issue. "No, we haven't."
"Well, I guess we can now," Riku snickered. He pushed himself away from the wall and walked over to Wakka who was sitting on the floor surrounded by papers with written plans all over them. "So, how are you and Tidus doing?"
"He's a load. What about Sora?"
"I'll give you three guesses. Heheh.."
"Hahah...I guess I get the point."
"But," Riku let himself fall down on his butt beside Wakka and buried his head in his hands. "I don't understand what made me so mean to him. I don't know what's making me feel so negative towards all the people we're trying to save..."
"Riku?" Wakka was getting worried. He'd never really seen Riku upset and didn't really know how to handle the situation, but Sora would. "It's okay. The same thing is happening to Sora. We'll find out what's going on soon. Then you can find Sora and everything will be okay again.
Riku looked up at the red head before him and smiled weakly, holding back any and all tears that wanted to come out. He couldn't cry. As far as he was concerned, he didn't have the right.
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Sephiroth was sitting on the roof of their small cottage with Cloud as they tried to come up with a plan to save Sora. "Oh oh oh!" Sephiroth giggled randomly, breaking Clouds deep concentration.
"What?" Cloud asked sounding annoyed, he was on a role.
"I've got some CoOkIeS!" Sephy laughed evilly, making his statement sound like a threat.
Cloud sighed and shook his head in disappointment. "Seph, we're supposed to be creating a plan. Not getting fat on junk food," he stated boldly. Sephiroth only giggled more as he took a bite of his cookie, leaving Cloud with a suspicious thought. "Sephiroth. Why have you been acting strange...errr...normal?"
Sephiroth became silent and tossed the half eaten food article into a nearby tree. "Cloud," he started, his voice serious and deep. Until it cracked. "I'm just feeling so happy! You've been acting happier, we've made new friends, and now we're gonna kick some bad guy butt!"
Cloud smiled and leaned back. "I see," he said with a hint of cheer in his voice. Though not as much cheer as Seph of course. "All right. With that settled, what do you think our plan should be. I think we should consider rising our defenses. Basically, we go in unseen, grab Sora, and slip out unscratched."
Sephiroth wiggled his finger at his friend and fluffed his long silver hair. "That tactic would take to long. I say speed and power will win this battle. We run in, beat our way to Sora, save him, kick some more butt and get out with time to spare."
"To risky. Why not mix our ideas and attack from above?"
"To obvious."
"Below?"
"Also obvious."
Well!" Cloud exclaimed feeling irritated. "What do you think we should do?"
That question left Sephiroth pondering for a few minutes. "Remember when we had our own video game?"
"Uhhh...yeah," answered Cloud.
"You followed everyone else and won. I did everything on my own and it was great."
"Your point?"
"I'm gonna start thinking like I did then..."
Suddenly Sephiroth stood up and reached out for a star in the sky. "You can't reach that," Cloud muttered.
"I know! I was s-t-r-e-t-c-h-i-n-g!" the older man squealed, some times Cloud really did worry about his partners insanity. "All right! Here's the plan! You, me and Wakka hold of the people at the front, while Riku, Tidus and Leon run inside. Once they're in, we follow and then we go after the power switch in the basement, while Riku's team head up towards the "principals" office. They probably have Sora there along with a ton of guards. That's why we kill the power and while it's dark, they save Sora and we all get out of there."
Cloud stared at Sephiroth in awe. Amazed that his friend was so brilliant. "Sounds good. You tell Leon what we need and I'll go explain it all to Riku and Wakka," ordered Cloud before he jumped down and went inside.
Sephiroth giggled in triumph as he pulled out his ducky cell phone and dialed Leon's number.
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"What's up?" Tidus asked when Leon put his cell away inside his jacket.
"It was Sephiroth. He finally came up with a plan and told me what we need to get. I'll tell you the plan while we walk to the store," Leon told the blond boy standing beside him. It was light out and they both walked down the busy car filled street talking about their groups move.
(at the All purpose Everything You'd Ever Need For A Mission To Save Your Friend department store)
"Wow...Nice plan," Tidus said aloud as the two guys walked into the store that smelt of garlic. "Garlic?"
"I guess they're afraid of vampires," Leon answered in a funny voice while holding his nose.
By the time they finished shopping they had six night vision goggles, six specific weapons, and a bundle of black armor pieces. They two men struggled to carry their merchandise home without being obvious to the public around them. Unfortunately as luck would have it, a television station thought they looked funny and decided to show the entire world.
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Sora opened his eyes and saw nothing but darkness. He'd been tied to a chair and left in a small black room where he couldn't see at all. Not like last time. This time, his eyes refused to adjust to the dark. You know, if you were to submit. You'd be able to see fine. Sora thought to himself, unsure of where they were coming from. Where they really his? Was that really him thinking? Why so unsure? You know you want the darkness. Let him inside. You get everything you want. All you have to do is become his host. Sora couldn't make the thoughts disappear and was becoming frightened. "Who are you?" he asked aloud. I'm you. He thought back. "No you're not. If you're me, then I tell you to go away. Why can't I control you?" Because you're afraid. If you control me, then you've given in, and you don't seem to want that. It won't hurt, all you'll do is give him your body and you can fight along his side. "Who's side?" The masters. Sora shifted uneasily at the answer.
Here he was talking to himself and not even answering his own questions. How irritating. "Who is the master?" he asked. You already know. Suddenly the voice became silent as the door opened and a beam of light was shone in his eyes. "What are you doing?" he yelled.
"Sorry," a girl answered. It was Kairi. "I didn't mean for that to hurt you."
"Don't act all sweet to me!" Sora roared as he began to struggled. "You betrayed me! So why should you care if I'm hurt?"
Kairi frowned and slammed the door close, darkness surrounded the young teen once again. "Sora, I can't help you. I'm only following your orders," she whispered sadly.
"Stop making things up! Why don't you just knock me out so I don't run away?"
"You're my friend. I would never hurt you on purpose."
Sora snorted at her reply. "Nice, but you already have. We aren't friends, don't you dare refer to me as your friend," Sora growled, hoping he'd hit a soft spot.
"You're right," she chuckled sweetly as she took a few steps forward. Sora felt his face being scooped into the purple haired girls hands and soon saw two eyes staring at him. "We're much more."
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(somewhere inside the school)
Selphie sat on a desk and watched Aerith intently as she graded papers. "You know, I sure hope Kairi doesn't get herself hurt," she mumbled to herself.
Aerith set the papers down and looked up at her young student. "What do you mean?" she asked as he rested her chin in her hands.
Selphie leaned back and then forward before replying. "She's playing with the darkness. I just hope that Sora is real and doesn't hurt her. Who knows, maybe the real one will feel the same."
Aerith began to chuckle and began grading again. "You shouldn't worry about love. It's a fickle thing. Everything will change when he wakes up again. She'll smile once more."
Selphie looked out the window and let out a sigh as she watched the sunset. "I just hope the normal Sora won't change his mind. After all, it was his dark half that told her what he was afraid to say," she whispered to herself.
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Riku opened the door and helped Leon and Tidus carry in the equipment. "Are we ready for tomorrow?" asked Riku as he shut the newly fixed door. (I forgot to mention that Sephiroth fixed it!)
"Yeah, we should be good to go," answered Leon. Everyone except Tidus sat down in their small circle on the floor to talk.
"I'm gonna go for a walk," Tidus told them as he dashed out the door and ran through the forest, heading towards the city.
"Where do you think he's going?" Sephiroth asked the group. Everyone shook their heads and shrugged and went back to their discussion. A few minutes later Riku stood up and stumbled towards the door. "Where are you going?"
Riku smiled and looked back at the group. "I'm not feeling to well, I'm gonna go outside for a bit." Without another word, he exited through the door and leaned against the cottage and looked up at the star filled sky. "It's so beautiful. I wish you were here with me," he muttered to himself. Then his legs gave way, and he felt himself fall to the ground and suddenly black out, unaware of what had happened.
Everything around Riku became black, and he expected to find another being playing around in his head, but instead found himself in a field of flowers. "What's going on?" he asked but received no answer. He began walking and looking around in awe. This place felt to real to be a dream. The cool wind felt nice on his sweaty face and the sun's light was just right. He stopped when he found a figure sitting in the flowers in the distance, and began racing towards the person, hoping it was someone he knew.
He had gotten his wish. Before him stood the one and only Sora. He slowed his pace to a halt and stared nervously at the younger boy before him. Sora seemed different. Not just his black outfit, but his aura. It wasn't the normal Sora, it wasn't Sora at all.
"Who are you?" Riku asked, his voice echoed in the empty field. Sora smiled and got to his feet.
"Your dear friend," the brunette answered with a smug expression. "Who were you expecting?" Sora began to sway back and forth gently, as if mocking the older teen.
"Why are you...?"
"Strong? Because, I haven't completely awoken. At the moment, I'm feeling unsure. If you don't want me to wake up then don't come save me. It's that simple. Your face disgusts me."
Riku was shocked to hear such unkind words coming from the boy of sweetness. "What?"
Sora stuck his hands in his pockets and began pacing around. "Don't you see? It's our destiny to fight. Isn't it true that before I was kidnapped you hated me?"
Riku was silent. It was true, but he didn't know why. What made him feel so much anger? What made him so mean?
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Tidus was heading towards the school, the school where his enemies were, the school where Sora was being held. The blond boy dug his hand into his pocket and slowly pulled out a folded piece of paper and a frown appeared on his face. He had to do this. Riku would be furious and Wakka disappointed, but he could handle it. They would understand after awhile of thought, but would Sora? Would Sora still accept him? He stopped in front of the school and was about ready to barged in, when he heard a soft voice singing a familiar tune.
"Tidus?" a girl asked, her voice suddenly became threatening.
Tidus smiled and waved his hands in the air. "Hey listen, I'm only here to talk."
Selphie stepped into the light and silently walked towards the intruder. "You shouldn't be here," she told him harshly.
"True, but I needed to talk," he told her softly and slipped the letter back into his pocket. "Is that okay?"
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"Don't worry about it," Sora mocked. "I feel the same way."
Riku shook his head and clinched his fist. "No! It wasn't my thoughts! And those aren't yours."
"Silly Riku. We were supposed to switch sides. I to be light and you dark. I guess something happened to me."
Riku turned away in frustration and stomped on a flower. "Guess so," Riku replied seeming uninterested.
Sora grinned and crossed his arms. "I suppose it was when I told Kairi a month ago."
Sora's last sentence managed to catch Riku's attention in a flash. "What happened?"
"In a dream, I told her I'd refuse the light and become the dark. That way I could be with her. Our flowers Riku. They're more than our plants. I don't know what my girls have told you, but they are our symbols."
"I know, Selphie told us."
"Ah, but think about it. Our actions determine the flower. The Crimson Passion, a tainted love. The passion is for the light I refused for love. What's yours?"
Riku thought about it to himself. The Crimson Cross, a tainted justice? Maybe that's what it was, but what did it mean?
"If you're thinking tainted justice, you are oh so clever. You're doing what you think is right, not what you really want."
"No Sora," Riku interrupted. "This is what I want, it's tainted because this is my justice."
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"What do you want?" Selphie asked impatiently. She was tired of her friend's strange behavior and wanted him to leave.
Tidus smiled and her and brushed his hand through his hair. "Selphie, I just wanted to know if you'd like to break from this school. If you bring Sora with you, everyone will forgive you for betraying us," he told her happily.
"Are you kidding?" she laughed. "What could you guys give me that would really want me to leave this place?"
"Anything you want."
"I only want two things, and one is to stay with Kairi!"
"Bring her then, and we can give you the last thing."
Selphie began to laughed again. It wasn't joy, but irritation. "It's not that simple. She won't leave the new Sora, and you guys couldn't possibly give me what I want."
"Bet I could."
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"As we speak the flowers of your friends are changing as well. Though they won't ever grow any, they still have them," Sora laughed.
"Doesn't matter. I'll accept any flower they grow...you know...this sounds really corny," Riku muttered as he glared at the author.
"Quick! Say something to fix it!" Sora quickly demanded the older teen.
"Sora, this flower stuff isn't making any sense. I still don't see what they have to do with anything."
"The flowers are our friends. If you tried talking to them, you'd understand."
Riku raised his eye brow at Sora's statement. Sora was acting very weird. "So, what is Kairi to you?" he asked, trying to change the subject.
"Everything. I love her more than anything."
"But wouldn't you give her and everything else up if the parasite inside you told you so?"
Now it was Sora's turn to be silent as he pondered the thoughts in his head. "Why are you asking?"
Riku smiled sadly, he knew what Sora would do. "The parasite inside me already tried to get me to give up what I treasure most."
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"Tidus! Leave me alone! I'll never join your side!" Selphie yelled as she turned to leave, only to have her arm grabbed. "Let me go!"
"No! I won't let you leave us again!" Tidus yelled back.
"You don't care about me, only Sora. Well Sora is ours!" she shot back.
"This has nothing to do with Sora right now!"
"What's going on Selphie?" a voice interrupted.
"Aerith!" Selphie cried in a panic, knowing that she'd be rescued from the blond boy.
Aerith jumped down and kicked Tidus onto the ground and away from Selphie. "Go back to your friends. You have none here," she ordered.
Her words seemed to put a hole in the teens heart, but he wouldn't be defeated so easily. He stood up quickly and put up his fists. "I'll fight you for her. Then we can save Sora and Kairi and return home," he mumbled. His determination surprised both girls, but Aerith wasn't about to refuse the challenge, and just before she attacked Tidus, she was stopped by two strong arms.
"He's just a kid," the man whispered into her ear. Aerith's eyes grew large as she pulled around and came face to face with Cloud. "I don't know what's happened, but you've changed. You're no longer soft and sweet, but cold and bitter."
Aerith bit her lip and slowly backed away. "Cloud. You'll regret the day you failed me!" she screamed and turned to Selphie. "I can only heal. Use an attack spell."
Selphie smirked and turned to the two men in front of them and began chanting under her breath. Tidus tried to run to her, but was picked up by Cloud and violently tried to resist his comrades strength. He wanted to tell Selphie something. He had to do it now or never. "Selphie!" he managed to scream, though she ignored him. "The others can't give you what you want, but I can! I love you!"
His words seemed to hit her heart and she suddenly opened her eyes in shock only to find he and Cloud were gone. Her eyes filled with water as she fell to her knees and began crying tears of happiness. She'd always felt that way about him, and he felt the same about her. Now the question was...how much did he love her?
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"Sora," Riku mumbled sadly. "Why would you fight for something and give it up without a fight?"
Sora shook his head and chuckled to himself. "You understand nothing. It's the same thing. Why are you trying to save me, when you hate me?"
Riku looked into Sora's eyes which were black with darkness. "Because, I made a promise. I would and will give up everything to save you and honor my promise. You are what I treasure most, even if you don't feel the same. My promise will always keep me bound to you." Riku turned away from his friend and began walking away.
"I'm ready to leave. I'll see you tomorrow," he said softly and began to fade from his dream leaving Sora alone.
When he was completely gone, a tear fell down the brunettes cheek and he looked up at the sky. "Save me..." he whispered, before fading himself.
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Riku woke up and found Sephiroth leaning over him. "Are you all right?" he asked sounding concerned. When Riku nodded a yes, Sephiroth slipped a party hat over his short silver hair and ran off to greet Cloud and Tidus who had just arrived.
"Hey Tidus!" Riku greeted cheerfully, but was ignored. Tidus didn't even take note that he was being talked to and walked into the cottage quietly.
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What'd you think of that chapter? I actually liked it a lot! It was long too. Anyways, R&R! I love you all!