Chapter 9

Hell is as he remembers, dusky and full of creatures, but even more dangerous now because Sora calls to them like a beacon. Minutes after stepping through the portal, they were swarmed by some of the smaller, black lower ranking creatures attracted to Sora's seraphic energy. They were able to dispatch them easily, but it was a warning of just how careful they had to be. After that, Axel practically dragged them to Zexion's home, body tense and eyes alert for even the slightest obstacle.

Once they arrived, the red head handed them off and disappeared with barely a goodbye. Zexion showed them to a simple room and they were left there alone until Demyx came, the only bright spot in an otherwise depressing day of being shuffled from caretaker to caretaker. Because by now it's obvious their only concern regarding them is that he and Sora stay hidden away from anyone else. Other than that, neither Axel nor Zexion seem inclined to stick around or care what they do.

He's almost positive he might be able to pry information out of Roxas who looks annoyed every time he sees him, but Axel's keeping him far away and for all of Demyx's sunny personality, he's very tight lipped about anything regarding Zexion or Axel. They can't really trust anyone there. They're being protected, but it's not out of the goodness of the anyone's hearts. He used to trust Axel almost implicitly, but now there's something more going on and maybe there always has been and he's been too naive to see it.

Regardless, there's very little he can do when they're trapped inside Zexion's home the whole time, mainly relegated to the small, starkly furnished room. Gray walls, a full sized bed, a desk and a chair is all their world has consisted of for the past week. It's depressing, made even more so by the fact that the view from the only window in the room looks out upon bleak fields and some kind of swampy green river that Demyx affectionately calls the River of Lost Souls. Nothing to cheer their spirits or help them forget that they're in hiding here.

Sora stirs next to him and Riku immediately focuses his full attention on the younger teen. He's drained a lot faster here than he did on Earth. Four days in and it was almost the equivalent to his entire three month stay on Earth.

It'd be nice if someone other than him cared.

At this point, it seems like they might have to risk going back to his home despite the danger. They're running out of choices, stay here and Sora's guaranteed to die or return and take their chances.

"How are you doing?"

Sora blinks sleepy blue eyes up at him, "No matter how much I sleep I'm still exhausted. My body feels so heavy."

"Well, at least if you're asleep, you're conserving energy." Riku cards his fingers through brunette locks soothingly and smiles when Sora's eyes drift back closed. "Sleep as much as you want. It's not like you're missing anything."

A faint smile crosses his face, "Still haven't left this house, huh?"

"Nope. And no one has told me anything and I'm starting to think whatever is happening here is worse than I thought."

"I could go 'exorcise' some of them if you want," Sora jokes. "I doubt Axel's any stronger than three years ago.

Riku smirks in remembrance of how offended Axel was at that time, "That's okay, we wouldn't be very good guests if you killed our hosts."

"Hosts."

The door cracks open and Demyx pokes his head with a smile, "Lunch is ready if you're hungry."

"Do we get to eat outside?" Riku questions seriously.

"Haha. They would murder me if I let you two out of this house."

"Unsurprising."

"Hey," Demyx gives him an understanding look, "I know it sucks, but really you guys are much safer staying inside. It'd cause a lot of trouble if other people found out you're here. They might even try to trade you back!"

"They'd do that?" The blonde male gives him a reproachful look that says it all. "Ah. Right. Hell."

"Anyway, are you guys coming down for lunch?"

"Go without me, I'll eat later." Sora answers before Riku can even ask.

"You sure?"

"Mmhmm," he turns over and pulls the blanket up to his chin, "I'm just going to sleep a little more, then I'll eat."

Riku nods, but inside he knows they can't last like this much longer. "I'll bring it up for you." He follows Demyx down the stairs, lost in his own thoughts. It's depressing seeing Sora without his usual happy spark and really, he hates it here too. It might not drain him since he's part demon, but after living on Earth so long with sunlight and freedom, being trapped in the forever grayness is unbearable.

They get a few spoonfuls into the meal which is a deliciously thick, slightly spicy soup before he clears his throat to interrupt Demyx's rambling. "We're going back."

Demyx grimaces at the same time a sharp voice cuts in, "What?" Their red headed caretaker grabs a bowl, fills it, and drops it aggressively on the table before taking a seat. "What did you say?"

"Axel," he reasons. "We can't stay here, it's been a week and Sora's dying." Axel screws up his face to say something he's almost positive is unpleasant about Sora, but one look at his face and Axel opts to take a bite of food instead. "There's no choice, I'm not letting him die here."

"One of you is going to get hurt and it will not be my fault."

"Hurt is better than dead."

Axel shakes his head, "You're so young. Maybe I sheltered you a little too much after I found you. You forgot how the world works."

"It'll be fine. We'll make it work."

"When you and that seraph you care so much about end up dead, I don't want to hear a damn thing."

"Of course not," Riku smirks cheekily, "We'll be dead." He laughs at the sound of annoyance Axel makes before thanking Demyx for lunch and taking a bowl of food upstairs.

He shakes Sora awake and watches him swallow a few bites before telling him the decision. "Are you okay with that?"

"I'm not okay with you dying."

"I could probably hold out a little bit longer."

"No," Riku rejects the idea. "What would be the point? It wouldn't change anything, whether we go now or a little later, they'll still want us dead. At least on Earth, you're not slowly dying."

"Then let's go now," Sora smiles and puts the bowl aside. "I miss the sun and this place is boring."

Riku laughs and pulls him in tight, spreading his wings before wrapping them around both of their bodies. He lets himself fall backward into the darkness like a welcome embrace and when he opens his eyes, it's to the ceiling of his own home. "We're back," he sighs in relief, nudging Sora off him and his eyes widen in alarm with the younger boy falls lifelessly to the floor. "Sora? Sora, wake up!"

"I'm exhausted, Riku," he murmurs without moving or opening his eyes.

"But, we're back on Earth, you should be better!"

He cracks a small smile, "There's no seraphic energy on Earth, there's just less darkness than Hell. I can't heal here, I think the trip back was the breaking point. Even with your protection, it was a lot of darkness. I've gotta go back."

"They'll kill you!"

"I'll die here too." Sora finally opens his eyes and slowly faces him. "You knew there was no happy ending in this from the beginning and I realized it once I found out you were half demon. We can keep pretending or realize the truth." He flashes Riku a weak semblance of his trademark grin, "I love you, but whatever happens next, we won't be together for it."

"...When did you get so tough?"

"I always have been. You just like to protect me."

"You always came off as startlingly naive to me."

"Riku. I jumped in front of the seraphs for you, I came to Earth alone to explore, I didn't exorcise Axel, and I even followed you to Hell. I've always been tough."

He smiles a bit, "I think coming to Earth alone was debatable, but I get your point." Riku pulls him into a tight embrace, inhaling sharply, and letting his forehead drop against Sora's shoulder. "Try to stay safe."

"It'll be fine," Sora answers with a reassuring pat to his back. "I just have to make it to Cloud and Leon and I'm safe. They can hide me."

Sora's fingers pluck at his hair and he can feel what the younger boy is asking for. Riku turns his head slightly to meet Sora's lip and smiles into the chaste kiss when he feels the wave of positive emotion just barely tinged with sadness. He pushes himself away with a final kiss to his forehead before pulling the brunette to his feet and ushering him out the door. "Don't fall asleep flying," he smirks.

He drags up all his energy for one last grin of reassurance and lifts off, leaving Riku standing on his porch.

He lied.

There's no way this will be fine. He's going to be locked away for a long, long time if he's not killed on sight. Public defiance of Seymour? Dalliance with a half demon? He'll be crucified, there's no world where they let those missteps go unpunished, but this way it'll be that much harder for them to find Riku who's really the innocent party in all of this.

Sucking in a breath, he slips through the portal, eyes focused straight ahead and increasing his speed to avoid letting the guards catch clear sight of him. Already he can feel seraphic energy beginning to revitalize him at the very edges. It's like a warm bath after slogging through mud for days. He doesn't get to enjoy it for long when he's knocked out of the sky and into blackness.

~~~~~
The first thing he notices when he wakes is that he can't move and any trace of healing is gone, he's weaker than before. The second thing he notices is the shackles around his wrists and ankles suspending him in the air.

"Did you really think flying fast would save you?" Sora looks up as Seymour enters the room with a displeased smile. "You were so weak and you blacked out with one hit." His nose wrinkles slightly, "You smelled strongly of demon."

"Why aren't I dead?"

"Dead?" His eyes widen slightly. "What use would you be to us dead? We want the half demon dead."

"So, you're keeping me alive until he's dead?"

"We're keeping you alive to tell us where he is."

"Well, you may as well kill me," Sora chuckles lethargically. "Because I wouldn't ever give him up."

"Dead would be the easy way out for your sins." Seymour responds cooly, leveling him with a stoic gaze. "Notice you can't feel any energy? That's intentional. You've been cut off. Your weakness is your own doing and now you will suffer for it."

Sora meets his gaze defiantly, "I won't betray him."

"Your mind might soon change." Seymour gestures to someone out of his line of sight and nods in Sora's direction. "Remember we are all given free will."

Those are his parting words before he exits and Sora remembers them for hours. He remembers them when his throat is raw from screaming, he remembers them when his blood drips thickly down his back to pool on the floor under him, when his wrists and ankles are rubbed so raw they bleed too, when he passes out from pain and wakes to more pain. He remembers those words every second, when he hurts so much so that he almost considers giving in, but knows that this is what they'll do to Riku too if he does, he remembers. He remembers until he can't anymore.

~~~~~
Riku clenches a fist to his chest as he's overcome with a shocking wave of pain that leaves him reeling. It can only mean one thing, Sora didn't make it to Cloud and Leon.