Chapter 18: A promise to each other
A/N: We've finally got to the part you've been waiting for! Riku and Hikari are reunited! But they're not out of the woods yet. They still have to save Sora and escape the Organization. Think they can manage that when one of them is without their Keyblade?
Just gotta read to find out!
Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts; I just own my characters.
Enjoy!
/
Riku didn't waste any time and ran towards his girlfriend. Very carefully, he picked her up from Lulu's back. Kneeling on the ground, he propped her body up next to hers and looked her over. He saw a nasty bruise forming around her neck. Whatever happened, it looked like she barely escaped with her life.
Gently, he cupped her face and ran his thumb across her cheek. Whoever did this to her was going to be skinned alive.
"Hikari...Hikari, open your eyes"
He didn't notice how his voice shook as he spoke to her.
Hikari groaned a little, feeling the pain that coursed through her body. Slowly, she willed herself to open her eyes. As she grew more awake, she panicked, thinking that she was still near young Xehanort. She pushed herself away from Riku and tried to get away, but Riku had a firm hold on her.
"It's okay, Hikari! You're safe"
Hikari stilled when she heard Riku's voice. Looking she saw that her boyfriend was really kneeling next to her.
"Riku?"
She slowly touched his face, thinking it was just another projection of him from his version of the dream worlds. When she felt warm skin instead of thin air, her heart jumped. Riku really was here!
"Riku!"
She flung her arms around his neck and buried her face into his shirt. She could still smell the ocean on him. Riku wrapped his arms around her and held her tight. Both had tears in the corner of their eyes as they held one another.
After facing all the obstacles, the exam threw at them, they finally made their way back to each other.
Nothing could tear them apart.
Hikari pulled back a little so she could see him. While she knew they were still in danger, she felt safe in this moment.
"H-how are you here? I thought we couldn't see each other when we were in the exam?"
Riku gave her a weak smile and cupped her face.
"I sensed you were in trouble and went to find you. I wasn't going to finish this exam if that meant you were in danger"
At the mention of danger, Hikari remembered that they weren't out of the woods yet and that Sora still needed help.
"Sora!"
She jumped to her feet.
"We have to hurry! The Organization is going to do something to him and we have to save him!"
She started running off, but Riku bolted to his feet and went after her.
"Wait, wait, wait!"
He got in front of her and made her stop.
"You are in no condition to be fighting the Organization. What even happened to you? What's that bruise on your neck?"
Hikari winced when she felt her neck. She could still feel Xehanort's hands as if he was still trying to strangle her.
"A little gift from Xehanort" she said darkly.
"What?"
Hikari told him everything that had happened on her end of the exam. How she kept bumping into Xehanort and Xemnas. How she figured out they were in the Organization's trap. That they were planning on turning Sora into a Xehanort vessel.
"When Xehanort realized, I wasn't going to back down and stop him...he decided I needed to be silenced for good" she said as she pointed towards her neck.
Riku felt his blood boil the more he heard his girlfriend's tale.
"I'm gonna kill him" he growled.
"That's not all he did" Hikari said sadly.
Riku panicked. What else could he have done to her?!
Hikari summoned her broken Keyblade.
"I don't know what Xehanort's final plan is, but if he's this desperate to stop us, then it's not good at all" Hikari said.
Riku looked at her broken Keyblade in shock. He knew the Organization liked to play dirty but not this dirty.
"How is this even possible?"
Hikari dismissed her Keyblade and shook her head.
"I have no idea. But what I do know is that I don't need the Keyblade to save my friends. I'll help them without it"
She scratched the back of her head nervously as she thought of something.
"But since I don't have a Keyblade anymore that means I failed the Mark of Mastery Exam"
Riku frowned at that. Hikari risked her life trying to get here to save Sora and she was worried about failing the exam? Well, if she failed then so did, he.
"Screw the exam. We don't need it" he said.
"If you can't become a Master then neither will I"
Hikari looked at her boyfriend in shock.
"But what about seeing if you're worthy to have the Keyblade? What about what you said at Yen Sid's tower?!"
Riku shrugged and smirked.
"I don't need a title to prove my worth" he said.
"I've realized as long as the people I love have faith in me, that's all I need. I don't need a title to prove it when it's been in front of me this whole time"
He stepped towards her and cupped her face gently.
"What do you say? Let's flunk together"
Hikari smiled and placed her hand over his.
"Riku"
"Eh hem"
The moment was ruined when Lulu cleared her throat. The couple looked at the Dream Eater as she ruffled her wings in irritation.
"I'm sorry to interrupt such a tender moment but may I remind you that we're right in the heart of enemy territory and that Sora needs to be rescued?"
The couple blushed when they realized Lulu was right. Here they were acting all lovey dovey when Sora was about to be turned into a Xehanort clone.
They stepped away and quickly composed themselves. Lulu was right. They needed to save Sora first and then they could go back acting like a couple.
Lulu trotted over to the pair and lowered her wings.
"We're close to the castle. I won't be able to fly us there since they might see us but I can get you to the foot of it and you can sneak in"
Hikari and Riku looked at each other. They really didn't have a choice. If it would get them closer to Sora then they had to trust Lulu. They went over to her and jumped on her back. The Dream Eater took off and flew towards the castle.
/
Lulu was able to get to the base of the castle undetected. Riku scanned the area to see if the Organization left any traps for them. When he didn't see any he motioned for his two companions to follow him.
"They have to have Sora in the heart of the castle so no one can get to him easily" he said.
"And knowing the Organization, they probably rigged all of the rooms so we'll get lost" Hikari added.
Lulu walked past them and made it to the front.
"I can still sense him since he's asleep. It's starting to get faint since we're in the Realm of Light now but I can still sense it" she said.
"Just follow me and I'll lead you to him"
Riku summoned his keyblade and looked at Hikari.
"Will you be able to fight without a weapon?" he asked.
Hikari nodded.
"I can still use magic. I won't be able to do offensive attacks but I can use defensive and healing magic"
"That should be enough. I'll take the brunt of the attacks and you just watch our backs" Riku said.
The trio carefully made their way further into the castle. Every step they took felt like they were walking on pins and needles. They didn't know where the Organization was and they didn't know if they could attack at any second.
It was silent as they walked. Riku decided it was too quiet.
"So... your Dream Eater can talk?"
Hikari smiled sheepishly.
"Yeah, she started to when we arrived on this world. I take it yours didn't?"
"No, but at the same time I understood what they were trying to say. It was like you and your mom were with me this whole time" he said.
Hikari laughed at the thought of Riku talking to his Dream Eaters.
"I had a little bat that reminded me of you. He would hover near me and cheer me up when I was feeling down or scared. I sometimes thought you really were there with me"
Riku smiled as he thought of Sunny and Hika. Sunny disappeared as soon as he arrived to this world. It made him sad knowing he couldn't have her towards the end of this exam but she must have sensed that he wouldn't need her help in the Realm of Light.
"I never realized how much I relied on you guys during my travels. I get why Sora said his friends are his source of power"
"Well of course. We motivate each other to push forward. That's why I don't need the Keyblade to get stronger. As long as I have you, I don't need anything else" Hikari said.
Riku stopped for a moment as he thought of something. He felt the same way as Hikari. He didn't need to be a Master or prove anything to anyone as long as he had her. She was his source of power.
And now his future.
Digging into his pocket, he pulled out the scraps of her hair ribbon.
"Hikari"
Hikari stopped walking and looked at her boyfriend. She gasped when she saw her destroyed ribbon.
"My ribbon!"
She picked up a piece of it and looked at it sadly. This was her most prized possession and Xehanort ruined it.
"My red thread of fate is ruined" she whispered.
Riku put his hand over hers and smiled gently.
"Not ruined. It's just made for two people now"
He picked up the piece she was holding.
"Give me your hand"
Hikari raised an eyebrow but offered him her hand. Riku gently took her hand and ran his thumb over her ring finger. He tied the ribbon piece around her finger and made a tiny bow.
"This is a promise that we'll get through this and save everyone" he said.
"A promise that no matter where we are, we're always connected"
Hikari smiled and grabbed the other piece and tied a bow on his ring finger.
"A promise that we have each other's back and will pick each other up when we fall" she added.
"A promise that if we ever get lost, we'll guide each other to the right path again"
Riku lovingly looked at his girlfriend. She was the one who filled his heart with light. The one who gave him a goal. The one who gave him a reason to live.
"And this is my promise to you"
He leaned forward and whispered something in her ear. What he said made her gasp. When he pulled back, he had the gentlest smile on his face.
"Really?" Hikari asked.
Riku nodded and pressed his forehead against hers.
"I promise" he said.
Hikari closed her eyes and let a tear fall down her face. Even in the heart of danger, she felt at piece.
Lulu looked at the two lovers with a sad yet happy expression. Even though they were in danger, she would let these two have this moment.
"You picked a noble successor, Terra" she said quietly.
/
The further they got into the castle the more tense it became. While they didn't run into any Nightmares or the Organization, it still put them on edge.
"I wonder how we're gonna get Sora out of here without the Organization attacking us" Hikari said.
"I don't know but we can't leave him here" Riku said.
"You must really care about your friend if you're both risking your lives for him" Lulu said.
"He's our best friend. If the roles were reversed, I know he would do the same for us" Hikari said.
"And we can't let Xehanort hurt anyone else"
Lulu faltered at that.
"Please don't break that promise, Hikari"
Hikari smiled at her Dream Eater.
"I won't. You've seen how strong I've become in this exam. I was able to save Tron from being corrupted by CLU. I helped Mickey, Donald and Goofy become Musketeers. I made sure Pinocchio returned to his father...even though it was in a whale. And I even killed a corrupted judge and saved the city from his wicked ways"
Riku stopped in his tracks and whipped his head around when he heard that.
"You did what?!"
Hikari ignored him and continued talking to Lulu.
"I'm going to save Lumen and the others no matter what"
"What do you mean you killed someone?" Riku said.
"You have nothing to worry about Lulu. I've got this"
"How are you able to kill someone in a dream? That shouldn't be possible! Why are you not freaked out by that?!" Riku continued.
Hikari turned to Riku and gave him a bright smile, clearly showing she wasn't listening to him.
"Don't worry about it, Riku"
She walked past him and went up the ramp that led to the upper parts of the castle. Riku looked at Lulu mortified.
"What exactly happened on her end of the exam?" he asked shakily.
Lulu ruffled her wings as a shrugging gesture.
"It's a long story"
Riku looked at where Hikari walked off. He didn't know what she did in her exam but he was starting to get a little freaked out.
"Taiyouko's gonna kill me" he groaned.
Lulu chuckled as they followed after Hikari.
The trio continued walking until they reached one of the opened areas of the castle. It should have been empty like the rest of the castle but instead someone was waiting for them.
Hikari and Riku were horrified as they saw Sora's sleeping body floating in a glass sphere.
"Sora!"
They rushed over to him. It seemed the Organization kept him here until they were ready to turn him into a Xehanort clone.
Riku summoned his Keyblade.
"Get back!"
Hikari jumped out of the way as Riku went to slam his blade into the glass. Lulu hurried over to them and sensed something very off about Sora.
"Riku! That's not-"
It was too late. Riku shattered the glass that kept Sora trapped. The moment he did that, Sora's body shifted and transformed into a shadow version of himself.
It was a trap!
The shadow slinked into the ground and opened a large dark portal underneath their feet. Hikari and Riku started getting dragged into the darkness as the shadow's hands grabbed at their ankles. They tried to crawl away but the darkness kept pulling them further in.
Hikari pulled at the dark tendrils that wrapped around her. The more she fought, the more the darkness pulled her in. She dug her fingers into the ground to pull herself away but it was starting to become too much. She was still recovering from her fight with Young Xehanort and she didn't have all her strength.
She had to keep fighting though. She wouldn't let the darkness swallow her up. There still those that needed to be saved.
"I won't break my promise" she whispered.
The darkness pulled on her and Riku one more time before they were completely dragged into the portal. Just as the portal was about to close a hand shot out and grabbed them. Light glowed from the hand as it pulled Hikari and Riku out of the portal and back on the ground.
Hikari panted as she laid on the ground, still holding the hand that rescued her.
"Honestly. Even while I'm sleeping, you're giving me a heart attack with your antics" a voice said.
Hikari felt her heart stop when she heard that voice. She only heard it once a long time ago but she knew it so well.
Slowly looking up, she saw the owner of that hand.
Lumen looked at her successor and smiled gentle.
"Hello, Hikari"
/
A/N: LUMEN IS BACK! Bet you guys didn't expect that! I've been planning this surprise for a while. Hope you guys enjoyed it!
Aww Riku and Hikari were acting so cute and romantic together. They were willing to fail the exam so the other didn't feel left out.
I'm sure you can guess what he whispered to her. Least he found a good use for her ribbon now.
Please review and tell me what you think!
Take care!
