Moon Glow

Losing One's Trust

Summary: (multiple pairings) What would have happened if Kairi hadn't recognized Sora as a heartless? Would Riku have been able to break free from Ansem's grasp in time to save Sora's heart from being completely destroyed by The Darkness? Let's find out, shall we?

Disclaimer: man…haven't written one of these in a looooong time…. But yeah, as much as I love Kingdom Hearts and all the charries involved in the game, Alas, it's not mine. I wish I had enough money to change that though.

-A cigarette that bears a lipstick's traces
An airline ticket to romantic places
And still my heart has wings
These foolish things remind me of you

A tinkling piano in the next apartment
Those stumblin' words that told you what my heart meant
A fairground's painted swings
These foolish things remind me of you

You came, you saw, you conquered me
When you did that to me
I knew somehow this had to be

The winds of March that make my heart a dancer
A telephone that rings but who's to answer?
Oh, how the ghost of you clings
These foolish things remind me of you

The scent of smoldering leaves the wail of steamers
Two lovers on the street who walk like dreamers
Oh how the ghost of you clings
These foolish things
Remind me of you

How strange, how sweet, to find you still
These things are dear to me
They seem to bring you so near to me

The sigh of midnight trains in empty stations
Silk stockings thrown aside dance invitations
Oh how the ghost of you clings
These foolish things
Remind me of you
Remind me of you
Remind me of you-

-Rod Stewart "These Foolish Things"


Back and forth, he was tossed amongst the shadows, claws and teeth raked against his shadow flesh and their harsh hissing voices cut through his eardrums, aiming to pierce his brain with their cries. He tried to struggle, but his efforts were in vain, leaving him no other choice than to be taken away to wherever they were going. They had wanted him after all… And yet, he didn't mind being captured alone because it meant that Riku wasn't going to be killed by the Heartless.

Riku…

That boy remembered him. He helped him regain his memories by just by the act of calling out his name. What would've happened if Kairi had done the same? He wouldn't have even been into the Abyss of Shadows…He would've remembered all the things that were coming back to him now! He might've even returned to his normal form… But she didn't, leaving him to fend for himself…If it weren't for Riku, he's be dead…or worse, like those carrying him off to some unknown location.

He lost himself in his mind, delving deep for the flickers he had thought were gone forever. He saw Riku and the others playing on the beach. Him and Riku were, yet again competing over the girl but afterward; neither of them ever made a move for her. They were always just looking for excuses to play together, to test each other, to see who needed to be protected more and who could provide that protection. It was ironic that the constant loser would wind up the hero… That the one whom never needed rescuing was the one who looked up to him as his savior.

What could have happened to him to warp his perception like that? What could have changed Riku's strong character so much that he would actually submit to him without there even being a challenge? Sure, Sora had played the hero up until that point, but his friend had done so all the years prior…Why would Riku change now? Was it because of the shadows?

"It was because of me." Came the smug reply to all of his silent questions.

He opened his eyes quickly, cursing himself for not being aware of his change in surroundings. Amber eyes bore into his own, seeming to search his very soul. His mind searched for a name to go with the angular bronze face so close to his own…

"I don't have enough strength to keep going." He said breathlessly and pulled on Sora's hand, bringing him closer. "Look, I want to save you to make up for what I've done! They'll bring you to Ansem if I don't get you out of here!"

Ansem…

"Ansem…." He whispered, delving deeper for any memories attached to that name…. But none could be found.

"That's right…" Ansem's gloved hand reached out and touched his face. "Seems unlocking that girl's heart did more to you than I originally thought it had…No matter…You still possess the key I need."

"K-key?" Sora whispered, not completely sure whether or not to pull away from the man with the fierce eyes. "I-I don't have a key…"

"Ah…so you've lost all your memories? Hmm…" He mused aloud, pulling away and looking down at the boy.

"Not all of them…I remember Riku and Kairi and-"

"Save it…You remember what was etched into your heart and nothing else; you've forgotten all the important things you've learned on your way here…" His cold, calculating eyes searched the boy's open face while forming a plan to twist his partially blank mind to his advantage.

The Keyblade wielder stood up and lifted his chin a little, as he usually did before asking a question when he was slightly afraid. "C-can you help me…? To remember?" Something told him that he was making a huge mistake…but what other choice did he have? It's better to face the world with some knowledge than without any at all. Even if that knowledge may prove to be false, there will always be someone out there to enlighten you when you are wrong.

-This will be too easy- Ansem thought with a smirk. "Anything you wish, Sora…" Oh the things he was going to do to that boy's body, mind and soul….


Riku was jolted awake as he was lifted off the ground and placed against a firm, but warm surface. He could hear voices and decided to pretend he was still sleeping to figure out what was going on.

"Care to remind me why I'm carrying the boy again?" A slightly deep voice asked in annoyance.

"I'm too small and do you honestly want to entrust someone to that big klutz over there?" At least that's what Riku assumed he had heard coming from that warped voice.

Well…it seemed he made it to Hollow Bastion alive. He expected to wake up in a lot more pain but it didn't matter, his heart was hurting more than enough to make up for it. He had let Sora slip away into Ansem's clutches…It was all his fault! If only he had thought of the escape sooner…If only he had held tighter and pulled harder…

Maybe him and Sora were never meant to be happy together… Maybe that was why whenever they were together, even for the slightest moment, they were torn apart in the most vicious of ways by the hands of fate.

"Mind not trying to choke me there, kid?" Leon grumbled.

Riku's eyes snapped open. "S-sorry…I didn't realize-" He let the sentence die in his throat, looking around him to figure out where exactly they were. They were about to board the lift-stop to take them to the Rising Falls at the entrance of Hollow Bastion.

"Forget it…" Leon said, figuring that the kid wasn't going to add anything else to that oh so profound statement.

"Uh…Glad yer awake there, Riku! Donald had to use Curaga on ya like 5 times but 'least yer awake now! A-hyuck!" Goofy said happily, slapping Riku on the back, which almost caused Leon to topple over.

"Watch it there! I'm the one getting the brunt of the force!" The Gunblade wielder grumbled.

"You can put me down if you want…I should be able to stand." Riku said quietly, not entirely sure if he could, but was willing to try just to get away from the moody pretty boy carrying him.

"As you wish…" came Leon's sarcastic reply before he dropped Riku onto the lift-stop behind him, causing it to rock a little at the sudden impact but it quickly regained it's level surface as it oh so slowly made it's way towards the platform at the end.

"Gee thanks." Riku said stonily, folding his arms over his chest. "Who are you anyway? I know these guys but I don't recall ever seeing any scarred up, grumpy pretty-boys last time I dropped by Traverse town…"

"You really shouldn't talk, kid… The name's Leon… And you're Riku from what these guys tell me." He said, jerking a thumb over at Goofy and Donald. "The same that betrayed Sora"

"Shut up" Riku snapped, but Leon continued.

"And even tried to kill him a few times if the stories are correct…"

"I said shut up" He shouted, lashing out, attempting to strike the arrogant man across the jaw.

The Gunblade wielder easily caught the blow with the palm of his hand. "-Which would make you a threat to our cause…"

Donald and Goofy watched the exchange, glancing at each other, neither certain about what to do.

Riku looked at the smirking man with a mixture of hurt and anger. "If you had any idea how it felt to fight against someone you loved" Leon's hand closed tightly over the boy's fist, wrenching it to the side while crushing it. "Don't you ever assume I don't know how it feels…" He narrowed his steely blue eyes into an icy glare.

"I had to watch him be controlled like a puppet…I had to try to cut the strings without killing him…. Much like I assume Sora had to do for you…"

The silver-haired boy narrowed his eyes, his lips pressed together to keep in the flurry of insults he wanted to hurl at the man standing in front of him. Goofy scratched the top of his head.

"Uh…guys…we're at the end of the lift-stop…."

"Yeah! So get offa there so we can go back to Traverse Town" The duck squawked out in irritation. Leon let go of Riku's hand and stepped off the platform, the boy following behind them in dismal silence as they made their way toward the Gummi Ship. Once inside, Goofy clapped his hand on Riku's back again. "Cheer up there Riku! Kairi'll be happy to see ya when you get inta Traverse Town"

"Kairi…." He whispered, trying to place a face with the name…and then it all sunk in. His eyes went wide and his mouth went dry, "Kairi" Riku shouted, not sure whether to be filled with joy…. Or sick to his stomach.


"So…" Sora said quietly, tearing his eyes away from Ansem's as the story seemed to fall into place… "Riku did betray me…" He closed his eyes and fell to the ground, covering his ears as Ansem's web of lies entangled him in their seductive sway.

"Yes… he wanted that which all those who have fallen from the path want, a heart… But he couldn't settle for any heart…He had to have the most innocent he could find, the one that would be the sweetest one to break…Yours" Ansem kneeled down in front of the boy so they were eye-level again. "But he didn't get it…it still beats in your chest and so you have nothing to be upset over."

The heartless boy threw his arms around Ansem's shoulders, desperate for contact, to feel like he wasn't alone. "Why would he do that to me? He was never mean to me…not once!"

"Most lies are spoken through kindness…" Ansem said gently with a smirk on his face as he wrapped his arms around the boy in return. "If he were mean to you, he wouldn't have been able to break you in the way he was planning to… In order to have your heart, he must take it in its entirety…The only way to do that is to pluck it from the fullest bloom of love." Ansem bent his head in order to whisper into Sora's ear. "I also have a suspicion that it wasn't just your heart he wanted, but your body as well."

"M-my body?" Sora stuttered, pulling back from the older man. "W-why would he want that?"

Ansem pulled him back closer. "Do you really want me to tell you?" He paused, waiting for an answer but none came. "As I thought…You need nothing more than to trust me Sora…" He felt the boy's arms tighten around his shoulders. "Do you trust me?"

Sora bit down on his lip, his eyes squeezed shut. Wrong! Wrong! Wrong! His heart screamed at him. It was all wrong! Everything Ansem was saying was a LIE!

But his mind didn't have all the knowledge his heart had… His mind was able to piece everything that the man told him together… and it all fit…

Every time he had Sora pinned, the moments that passed before he moved…

All the times Riku let his eyes linger a second longer…

Every brush of the hand…

Every careless smile…

It was all to get at the thing he prized the most: his heart.

"Do you trust me Sora?" Ansem repeated.

"Yes… Ansem…" His grip on the man tightened for a moment and then went lax as he pulled back, looking into those predator's eyes with a grim expression. "I trust you…" He put his hands on either side of the man's face. "I want you to teach me…" He took in a deep breath, realizing his words just very well may be the final nails in his heart's coffin. "Teach me how to hide my heart…. Teach me never to trust anyone but you ever again…"

He couldn't suppress the smile that crossed his lips. "As you wish." Ansem said with a slight chuckle. "As you wish…."

TBC

A/N: Heee…heheheheehe I like this pairing (happy dazed look) …Oh right! Um… Yeah this chapter was a little longer than the other ones and I hoped you liked it! Ansem's a bad baaad man… Seriously, I think this is what Sora would do if he lost his memory…He's not exactly the brightest crayon in the box….but he sure is the cutest! (glomps him) I need to draw me some fanart for this fic and put it up on my deviantart account! So yeah…on to the reviewer's reply!

Oh before I forget! I BEAT CoM! WOOO! Now I'm playing as riku! YAY!

R/R TIME:

Yersi Fanel: Sorry but I don't think I'm gonna have LXC or SXC in this story (sweatdrop) It's not that I don't like those pairings (in fact I like em very much!) it's just that it would take away from the story line. Maybe I'll write another fic later on with those pairings. Keep reading!

Sai-ryo Aura Feana: lmao! DIE KAIRI! DIIIIIE! (cough) ANYWAY! Actually, this chick might play an important role later on in the fic and/ or she might be killed off. Who's to say? (evil grin)

Uzumaki901: yeah the main coupling will be riku x sora….although it may seem like Ansem x Sora will be prevalent, it's only because it'll add more deapth to the angst and more of an obstacle for riku to overcome.

Dragonflame327: thankies!

clueless97: lol it's alright : ) Yeah, Donald needs some serious stress relievers or he might die from a heartattack or something…. Can ducks even GET heartattacks? …meh (shrugs)

Kaleena55:thanks for reviewing!

Squirrelgurl: AIIIE! DON'T KILL ME! (because then I couldn't update anymore!) thankes for the threa- I mean review…yeah… (sideglance/ sweatdrop)

The Gifted Ten: Oy…YOU'RE the goob here! Fricken goofus! (god I love that word! Lmao!) yeah we discussed why there can't be any riku x leon (as disappointing as that is) keep reading! (not that I need to tell you because you love me!)

XxX Chains XxX: it didn't work because he went into the shadows to avoid being killed. Because he did that, the darkness stole his memories of himself so it was too late for Sora to revert when Riku found him. Maybe Ansem'll help him find a way back (more evil grinning)

Will's Girl : whee! Glad you like it! Keep reading!

Salena-Jagonashi: eh heh heh….that wouldn't count as really bad right?….damnit it does, doesn't it? Oh well! More obstacles! Yay! Glad you like my fic! Thanks for reviewing!

Skaddicted: Surprisingly, not many people have wondered about it. I wonder about stuff like that in all the videogames and what not. Guess I'm insane. (shrugs) oh well!

diamondprincess2006: yeah most of my deck were 9's and I still had a hard time beating some of those stupid bosses (kicks em) BUT I WON IN THE END! TAKE THAT! HA! Stupid bastards.

Xeora: I can assure you that I won't taste very good. (sweatdrop)

Duo Maxwell-Chang: playing as riku is so much easier! Less fighting, less pointless talk, more interesting (and less confusing) storyline. Plus, he has badass combos! Fricken sora (kicks him) anyway! Thanks for the review and I'm glad you like my fic!

Crysania Fay: I updated! Yay! REJOICE!

NOW FOR THOSE THAT REVIEWED ON MY KINGDOMHEARTS POEM: Light of the Sun!

Kaleena55: Lmao! Isn't it though?

Sai-ryo Aura Feana: I might do one for CoM once I've beaten it as riku. I cant wait for KH2! Comes out in september! YAY!

Well that's all! See ya guys around!

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

DB