Disclaimer: not mine

Chapter 23

Sora spun, letting out a blast of Thunder to mix with the Blizzard spell Kairi had used, amplifying the electrical current. The defence system was good, but it took more than one hit of it to take out anything beyond a Shadow. He was proud of the power behind the spells Kairi was casting, she was getting really good.

He grimaced as more Heartless formed, where were they all coming from? Sora dodged a blast of fire from a Red Nocturne, returning fire with a Blizzard spell. He spared a glance towards Kairi again and growled when he spotted two Large Bodies form behind her.

"Look out!" he yelled even as he twisted away from another one. He flipped over it and drove the Keyblade into its unprotected back along with a Thunder spell, destroying it.

Sora heard her scream and didn't even think, launching himself into the air, his wings spreading out to provide lift. He slammed into the one that had knocked her over, pushing it away from her even as he landed protectively in front of her. He snarled, baring his fangs, fighting the urge to dig claws in, to use the Keyblade instead.

,,,,,,,,,,,,

Kairi pushed herself up into a sitting position, her head and back pounding. She heard a snarl of rage and blinked, looking for any creature that could make it but there was nothing….just her, Sora in front of her, and the…she thought they were Large Bodies? Sora was half crouched, the Keyblade held low…he was defending her. She reached for her magic to caste a Cure spell on herself.

She looked up again and her eyes widened as she saw Sora block one of them, without being pushed back. She knew he'd gotten stronger but that was crazy strong! He actually tossed it back! He had to shift to the side to do it, and the second rushed at her. She moved, trying to scramble out of the way…and then Sora was there. She blinked, frowning, what? There was a wound on the Heartless…from Sora's bare hand? But it looked like something had clawed it? That didn't make any sense.

She rolled to the side, hissing in pain as a Shadow's sharp claws raked down her arm. She gasped as Sora was suddenly there, lips drawn back in a snarl as he raked his hand through the Shadow, destroying it.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Naminé was terrified, she was sneaking right into the stronghold of those who had used her to such horrible things. She had to be crazy and yet…she couldn't abandon him. Riku meant everything to Sora, and after so long piecing his memories back together he meant something to her too. Even if it destroyed her, she had to help him.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Sora heard Kairi make a noise of pain and his vision went red. He tore the Heartless apart mercilessly, his only thought to protect her.

,,,,,,,,,,,,

Kairi could only watch with wide eyes as Sora ripped through the Heartless with a viciousness she'd never seen from him before. She blinked, rubbing her eyes, was she…seeing things? For a second she could have sworn Sora had wings, but that was impossible! Wasn't it? The last Heartless vanished and he stood with his back to her, panting harshly.

"Sora?" she called, and he spun to face her, Kairi gasping, a hand going to her mouth. His eyes…

Sora stared at her, looking confused. "Kairi?" his voice sounded slightly different though she couldn't figure out why.

All she could do was stare into crimson eyes, fighting down panic. He went to reach for her and she stiffened, Sora snatching his hand back with wide eyes. He stumbled back a step and then turned and ran, leaping off the edge they'd been sitting on earlier and she screamed, reaching for him. By the time she reached the edge, she could see him hit the ground, rolling to absorb the impact, before running off. Right….Sora was really good with magic that had anything to do with the air and flying…

"Kairi?" a voice called, and she turned to see Leon approaching, Gunblade in hand as he scanned the area for danger.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Leon had been worried when Cid began cursing about the defence system activating at full in the market district, especially when he realised that was where the kids had been heading. He doubted Sora would have issues but Kairi? He pushed through a crowd of people who were evacuating, used to Heartless attacks. By the time he reached the market all was quiet…and there was no sign of Sora and Kairi….no, there she was. He leapt up the ledge and then took the stairs.

"Kairi?" he called, Gunblade still in hand as he kept an eye out for any more threats, wondering where Sora was. She looked at him and then pointed down, had Sora fallen? "What happened?"

"He…he jumped," she whispered shakily, and Leon reached out to rest a hand on her shoulder.

He knew he wasn't the most comforting of the group but he was better at it then Cloud at least. Sora jumping didn't worry him at all, between being a vampire and his control of any air based magic there was no way he would be harmed even from such a large jump. A glance down showed Sora nowhere within his visual range.

"Why did he jump, Kairi? Was he hurt?"

"He…" she swallowed, and he had the sinking feeling Sora's secret may have been revealed.

They had warned him that he needed to tell his friends before something happened. now it seemed, Sora had waited too long.

"Come on, let's get you back to Merlin's, then I'll look for Sora." He pulled her away from the ledge, if she fell that would be very bad.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Sora huddled into the crystalline walls of the canyon, hiding. He…he'd…he hugged his knees to his chest and buried his face. He'd never wanted anyone to look at him like that…but Kairi? He'd lost control and that was his own stupid fault.

"Well, well, what do we have here?"

"Leave me alone," he hissed.

"Come now, you are practically on my doorstep child," she chided, and Sora lifted his head to stare at her.

She stood in front of him, her hand wrapped around her staff, looking exactly as she always did. Sora leant his head back against the wall, knowing his cheeks were wet with tears, absently wondering if they would appear blood tinted or not, uncaring if the illusion was still in place or had fallen. He had the feeling she knew he wasn't human even if she didn't know what he was.

"They took Riku and now…Kairi's scared of me," he whispered.

"Ah yes, this Organisation. And why have they taken him?"

"They were aiming for Kairi, Riku shielded her and got knocked out so they took him…as leverage. They want me killing Heartless, they want Kingdom Hearts."

"Indeed… well, that cannot be allowed, can it?" she smirked down at him. "Your training with Merlin has served you well, but you need further tutelage in the Dark powers."

"And you're offering?" he pushed himself to his feet, feeling his wings stretch out briefly…and her eyes followed the motion.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Maleficent stared down at the teenager before her, taking in his true form. He was incredible and yet despite the Darkness of his kind, Darkness she could tell he could use, he was firmly settled in the Light. Still, she could teach him if he was willing. She had come to respect him and she knew Riku cared for him, deeply.

Seeing his wings brought back painful memories and she wondered if they were large enough to allow him true flight, or if he had to use magic to achieve it. She was unsure what exactly he was, she had never seen his kind before that she was aware of.

"Sora!" a voice called.

"Consider my offer," she bowed her head to him slightly out of respect and then vanished in green flames.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Leon was utterly relieved when he spotted the boy leaning against the crystalline walls of the ravine. Why hadn't he answered his calls? Then he realised he wasn't seeing a human form overlaying his true one. The illusion had fallen in the fight then, but why hadn't it re-activated yet?

"Sora?"

The young vampire looked over at him, revealing a tear streaked face, although he was no longer actively crying.

"Are you injured?" he asked in concern, but Sora shook his head.

"K…Kairi?" Sora asked, stammering slightly.

"I got her to Merlin's, she's fine," he promised, moving closer. He was relieved to see no sign of injury, Sora did hide those when he thought they weren't worth mentioning. "Come on, let's get you home. Do you need to feed?"

Sora shook his head. "She was scared of me."

"Sora the illusion is down. With no warning, no hint…can you blame her?"

Sora looked away in shame, and Leon sighed, he really wasn't good at this!

"We'll go back and talk, help her understand. She loves you Sora, although I doubt she'll be happy you've been hiding this, with time she'll understand." He hoped so anyway.

Without the love and support of Kairi and Riku…who knew what that would do to him.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Sora walked away with Leon, glancing at the Castle in the distance once, almost able to feel Maleficent watching them. It didn't worry him at all, he thought they'd come to a kind of understanding. He didn't know what to think about her offer of training, he didn't think there was a plot behind it…more the fact they both cared about Riku.

His feet dragged the closer they got to Merlin's, terrified of Kairi's reaction.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

He was Ansem…was he?...Was he Riku? The words meant nothing, but they were important…weren't they? There was something….someone?...he had to find…

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Yen Sid stared out of the window of his study, frowning in thought. They should have found Sora by now and returned, yet there had been nothing. The stars were worryingly quiet on events concerning the Keyblade wielder and his friends. Perhaps he should summon the gummi ship the next time it was between Worlds to receive an update.

At least he had heard from Mickey, it was good to know his old apprentice was safe and investigating the Organisation.

Maleficent's return, and in his own Tower!, was concerning, but for the moment he considered her the lesser threat.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Aerith made sure Kairi had a nice hot cup of chocolate, perfect for dealing with shock. Of all the ways to learn of Sora's vampirism, that was definitely in the top three. They had all warned him…now all they could do was try and calm things down, and pray Kairi could accept him. She knew how the other Princesses had reacted when they first saw him at the Castle, but Kairi had never seemed to notice. Would that change now? Although Sora had said that the Princesses he'd seen since had been kinder, apologetic, in the way they treated him.

"Is Sora…"

"I'm sure he's fine, Leon will find him," Aerith assured her gently.

"His eyes…" she whispered fearfully.

"It will be alright," at least Aerith hoped it would. It would be understandable if Kairi was mad at him for not telling her, they'd urged him to many times. But they also didn't blame him for his reluctance.

"You know something," Kairi glared at her, and Aerith sighed but nodded.

"We all know, because they came to us, well Merlin actually, but we all ended up involved. Sora has wanted to tell you from the start but…he's also been terrified to. Kairi, you know Sora would never hurt you? He loves you so much, you and Riku both. It was torture for him the whole time he couldn't find either of you and then when he thought he'd killed Riku even briefly. This last year when Riku was sleeping…those short trips to you were all that kept him going." She hoped she wasn't saying too much, but Kairi needed to understand just how much power she held over Sora, hopefully she would trust him and not hurt him, even accidentally.

The front door opened and Leon stepped inside, Aerith able to sense Sora too which meant he was using Leon's larger form to hide himself.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Kairi didn't know what to feel. Something had obviously happened to Sora, and it sounded like it whatever it was, it had happened a while ago. That everyone at Merlin's knew and had said nothing… how could Sora's eyes be red? Maybe…the wings hadn't been a trick of the light?

She felt her breath hitch as the door opened behind her, forcing herself to turn, seeing Leon…only Leon. No…she could feel Sora, dimmer than usual, but...behind him. Kairi took a deep breath and stood up even as Leon shifted aside to reveal Sora, looking like he always did, his eyes downcast even as he fidgeted.

"Sora?" She whispered, and he looked up hesitantly.

Leon reached out and pushed Sora closer to her, Sora looking ready to bolt. And that…made her feel a bit better, because that was a very Sora reaction to maybe being in trouble with her.

"Sora?" she called again.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Sora felt frozen, unable to move, even after Leon gave him a helping shove forward. How was he meant to tell her? He'd kissed her, held her, without giving her any warning that he wasn't human anymore…was nothing more than an animated corpse. She had every right to hate him for that.

He was shocked when she walked over and smacked his shoulder, not that it hurt.

"Don't you ever do that again!" She half yelled at him. "Don't you ever jump…"

He flinched, realising his jumping had terrified her. He'd just panicked and it wasn't like it'd kill him. "Sorry." He could feel that they'd been left alone and he wasn't sure if that made him feel better or worse.

"Sora…what…what did I see?" she whispered shakily.

"I…" he swallowed hard. "I'm sorry…I should have…" he forced himself to take a deep, unneeded, breath. "I should have told you in Traverse Town," he admitted softly. "I shouldn't have kissed you or anything without telling you…what you were kissing."

He glanced up, seeing her frown.

"What do you mean by 'what' I was kissing?" She moved closer but he backed away.

"I messed up in Halloween Town, Kairi… I'm sorry."

"For what?" she reached for his hand but he shook his head.

"Please…don't be scared," he pleaded, unable to tell her, but he could show her. He slipped his jacker off, reaching up his arm for the armband. He couldn't bear to meet her eyes as he pulled it off, feeling the magic fall, revealing fully what he looked like to her. He kept his head down, unable to look at her reaction.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

"Please…don't be scared," Sora pleaded with her before slipping his jacket off, lifting a hand to his upper arm, removing…an armband?

She froze as his appearance changed. Bat like wings stretched briefly from his back before settling mostly out of sight and his hands ended in claws, not finger nails. Even with his head bowed, she could see…fangs peeking out over his bottom lip. Was this really Sora? His skin was so pale…like he never saw the sun.

,,,,,,,,,,,,

He could hear her heart racing, could smell her shock and…fear? He didn't want her to be scared of him, it was one of his worst nightmares, for Kairi and Riku to be scared of him, to hate him for what he had become. He couldn't make himself look at her, not wanting to see her looking at him like…like he was a monster.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Kairi stared at him, trying to work out what was going on. How could this be Sora? He…he wasn't human. He said he messed up…had someone done this to him? Her heart was racing, she was scared, but she was also…drawn to him. There was something scary but also beautiful about him.

"Sora?" she called his name and he flinched, she heard…did he just whimper? "Sora look at me," she whispered.

Ever so slowly he lifted his head, revealing crimson eyes but…there were flecks of familiar blue in there still. He…he was scared, of her? Donald, Goofy, Merlin…they all believed he was Sora, they had been with him the whole time back then. She closed her eyes, reaching out with her heart.

"Sora," she whispered, taking a step towards him, holding her hand out to him.

He stared at her with wide eyes, remaining utterly still, and she was worried he'd bolt again.

She moved closer, reaching her hand out to him, and his gaze dropped to her extended hand. "Sora," she called his name again.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Sora stared at Kairi's hand, she wasn't running? He looked back up at her, his fingers curling into a fist before he very slowly lifted his hand towards her. Their fingers laced together, Sora being very, very, careful of his claws. "Kairi?" he was just grateful that after what added up to several years of practice meant he'd learnt to speak clearly with his fangs.

She offered a shaky smile and then she was moving even closer, right up against him. Her free hand moved to cup his cheek and he leant into her touch. He felt her shiver slightly at the coldness of his skin and went to pull back but she didn't let him, letting go of his hand to wrap around his waist. She shifted up, using him to balance, pressing her lips to his, and he sobbed, wrapping both arms around her, holding her close.

"Shh, it's okay Sora," Kairi whispered.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry," he choked out.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Sora was ice cold to the touch and she couldn't help the shiver but she wouldn't let him pull away. She pressed her lips to his, not trying to deepen it, not sure how with the fangs, her heart breaking when she heard him sob, his arms wrapping around her tightly, holding her close.

"Shh, it's okay Sora," she whispered, hating to hear him cry.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry," he choked out.

She wasn't sure what he was apologising for but she hushed him, stroking his cheek gently. Did this explain how quickly he'd grown or was it really just time spent in one of Merlin's time spell areas? He looked so different but his hair, the shape of his face, his expression…it was all Sora. She kissed him again and his hold on her shifted, supporting her fully so she wasn't having to balance. Her hand moved up from his cheek and into his hair, her other hand still resting around his waist. She could feel his hesitance, he was holding her like she was glass, trembling slightly, and she hated it. She didn't care what had happened to him, he was still her Sora…hopefully their Sora.

"I love you," she whispered.

"Kairi," he breathed softly. "I…I'm not," he stopped and took a deep breath. He then took her hand from his waist and pressed it to his wrist instead, confusing her, but then she frowned, pressing her fingers in….there was nothing. He had no pulse in his wrist, how was that possible?

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Yuffie paced the hall, worried. Thanks to Merlin they couldn't eavesdrop on what was happening between Kairi and Sora, she could only hope it was going okay. Leon was leaning against the wall, arms crossed over his chest, looking unconcerned, but she knew him better than that. He was as worried as she was. If Kairi rejected him… no, think positive!

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Naminé left the Corridor, looking around warily. She'd done it, she'd made it to the Organisation's base. Now all she had to do was find Riku, hoping she was in time to help him.

TBC….