Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts or anything Disney.
Chapter Nineteen
"Roxas! Kairi!" The scream came from Sora's throat and Riku whirled around from killing one Nobody to find that Kairi was nowhere in sight. Sora must have seen where they went by the way the boy had gone berserk and Riku fought furiously to get back to his side.
Before they knew it, the Nobodies that had attacked them were dead. Sora was panting hard, and his eyes were distant. Then he turned and began to stalk off. "They're this way."
Riku didn't need to ask how he knew. Roxas had been taken – and Riku would bet Sora could track Roxas across the universe, never mind just across part of the world. Even when a dark portal had taken him. He gritted his teeth and reminded himself that with the bracelet, Sora could do the same to him, and would. Just as he had done the same. He followed Sora swiftly, watching the brunet.
He had to admit he had been acting a little jealous, and he had said some things he shouldn't have – but Roxas got under his skin. He had never seen before exactly what was going on – but with Roxas out, he understood suddenly why the Nobody seemed jealous sometimes of his and Sora's relationship. It made him angry, and nervous. What if Roxas had never joined with Sora? They hadn't been worse off without each other then. There had been no side effects like this time, where they couldn't use magic as well as before and Sora couldn't transform.
Logically he knew Sora didn't see Roxas like that and even that Roxas wasn't trying to do anything to harm their relationship – but logic had no part in jealousy and he watched his boyfriend with dark, thoughtful eyes as his mind turned over the what-ifs. Sora loved him – but he loved Roxas too. Just not the same way – but if Roxas hadn't been a part of him, would it have been different?
Without warning Sora stopped, took a glance at his bracelet which was flashing a variety of colors, and turned around, staring at him. "Riku, I wouldn't betray you, ever."
Riku paused and stared at Sora and gave him a strained smile. "I know. We can't stop here, we have to rescue Kairi. And Roxas."
He quickly strode off, hoping Sora would drop it. No such luck. Instead he just matched paces with him. "Than why are you jealous of Roxas? I don't even like him like that! He's my friend, my Nobody, but I'm not in love with him."
He didn't really know how to answer. So he avoided Sora's eyes. "How do you know I'm jealous?"
Sora held up the bracelet. "I can see it... and feel it a little."
The bracelet glimmered yellow, green, and orange. Riku guessed it was somehow supposed to reflect his emotions for Sora, since he had used his own the same way. But for Sora to actually be feeling them a little – it was like finding Sora through the bracelet. Something new and different. He tried it himself, trying to see if there were emotions that didn't fit. He found nothing. "I can't feel you."
"That's not the point, Riku," Sora said, the exasperation clear in his voice. Riku shifted uneasily and avoided his boyfriend's eyes. He didn't really have a good reason to be jealous. He knew that, and under Sora's demanding eyes, he could only walk on and be silent. He just didn't know how to explain it.
The brunet let out a frustrated sigh and moved toward him, bumping their shoulders together. "Just try to trust me."
"I do!" Riku protested. Sora didn't look at him, walking forward, but his hands tightened into curled fists, and there was a flash of emotion across his face that Riku didn't understand. But the boy said nothing.
He was about to reach for him, get him to say what was in his head – even if it wasn't the time – but was interrupted as the ground began to rumble. The ground under his feet heaved upward and he felt himself falling – only to be grabbed by familiar arms. He felt Sora jump and the heaving earth beneath them fell away as they jumped up and hovered there, slowly falling back toward the quaking ground.
"Natural?" Sora asked, but he sounded doubtful. And as the earth began to reshape around them, making walls a hundred feet or more high and dirt showered down around them, Riku twisted around in his boyfriend's arms and raised an eyebrow. That question had now become obsolete.
They settled down to a changed land and his aqua eyes swept over the walls of dirt, stone, and plants. Experimentally, he raised a hand, calling a dark aura against then. The ball hit the dirt – and did nothing. They were walls now, but they weren't living, and dark aura didn't do so well against inanimate objects. The wall was to their left, and to their right – but where they stood was free for a few feet in either direction. Like a doorway. And as stones and dirt piled in over the top, vines being flung every which way to hold them up, he glanced at Sora. "I'm guessing they're straight through here."
"Yeah," Sora answered, staring at the walls – the maze – that had just popped out of nowhere. Riku had to admit, that was an interesting talent – to move things. What kind of sense or element was that? Then again, what kind of element had Zexion's been? Or Saïx's? And their more recent enemies had been based off the senses. Riku brushed his bangs away from his eyes and felt his worry grow. They wanted more time with their friends – they wanted more time to do who knew what with Kairi – and Roxas.
He glanced at Sora, and found his gaze met. They nodded at each other and stepped inside. What was one maze against two Keyblade Wielders?
It was nightfall, and Riku stared at Sora sleeping fitfully, injuries all light, but clear to Riku. He couldn't even see them well in the darkness. There was a little light here and there from strange plants and Wonderland bugs. But all in all the whole place was dark – but Riku knew it was night now. He could just tell sometimes, and Sora could too, he knew he could. That was why he had insisted on a rest. That, and because Sora had begun to get tired easily all of a sudden. And he wasn't healing.
"Too far... I'm trying... Sorry..." Sora murmured, and Riku frowned, lifting a hand toward him to calm his sleep. But he stopped, pausing. There was something familiar about the way Sora was talking. He was asleep – but there was one person, or at least one non-person that Sora could talk to anytime, usually. But if it was Roxas, what was Sora, apologizing for?
"... Kairi? ...you, promise..." Riku slipped closer at the low murmurs, trying to hear more – but he was mumbling the sleeping thoughts they were trading and he heard nothing more. He grumbled mentally, but simply shifted closer to his boyfriend, feeling him shiver. He frowned. It was cool, and Riku shivered a little too – but Sora seemed to be feeling the cold more. They had run into various battles – and now Sora was getting sick. That was the only thing Riku could call it. Cure and Potions didn't heal his injuries, and he was weakening. Riku knew what was behind this sickness, and it made his heart constrict to know there was nothing he could do about it right now.
He shifted until he was laying against Sora, sharing as much body heat as he could through clothes – and protecting him from the initial attacks if Heartless or Nobodies found them. There camping place for a few hours of rest wasn't that far from the larger paths of the maze, it was just a small dead end section that looked to have some plants a bit more comfortable than most. They couldn't even hope for a full night's sleep – Riku didn't dare allow them one. Not with Sora weakening from his distance between Roxas. Funny that he had been fuming about how close they were earlier. Now he would have gladly thrown Sora at him, if only so he stayed healthy. All of his musings had become moot. It shouldn't have bothered them anyway – Roxas was a part of Sora, in the end. An odd part that didn't fit, and was more like his own self... but still technically a part. There was nothing to be jealous over, and thinking about if Sora and Roxas weren't so connected was pointless.
He felt Sora stir and turn in his arms. "I had a dream..."
"About Roxas? Or with him?" Riku pushed when Sora trailed off. He drew his head back a little to catch Sora biting at his lower lip in clear worry. "What's wrong?"
"I can't think at him awake. They're blocking us or something. I can still feel him though. He's getting sick too. We stopped because someone was coming in – he thinks Kairi's waking up too. She was knocked unconscious." Sora briefly burrowed his head into his chest and that made Riku worry all the more. Things couldn't be good if Sora looked like he desperately needed all the comfort he could get – even though they didn't have the time.
"Hey," he said softly, and kissed Sora's bitten lips when the boy raised his head to look up. The kiss was supposed to be brief and comforting but Sora's desperate edge was there and Riku gave in, fisting hands in Sora's clothes and hair and not surprised when Sora shifted them to straddle his waist. But he jerked his head away. "Not here, not now. We don't have the time."
He saw Sora freeze and as a large bug half as big as them crawled by, glowing brightly, he could see the guilt the encompassed his eyes. "Sora, I don't mean – "
"No, I'm being irresponsible. Thank you." Sora's voice was oddly detached and as he got up Riku could only stare at him. Sora never sounded detached. And he couldn't think of a thing to make him sound like himself. One of his best friends and his Nobody had been trapped, kidnapped – and his own boyfriend had just torn away the comfort he needed. He knew he had needed to turn away – but it didn't have to hurt so damn much.
He slowly rose to his feet, seeing Sora walking off slowly, and followed along almost hesitantly. He didn't even know if he was welcome. Was Sora angry? He glanced at the bracelet on his wrist, but there was no red that usually meant anger. Some orange, and a lot of gray. And flickers of purple, which Riku had seen a few times – and the meaning made heat rise to his cheeks. He had figured out what purple meant, and that gray had to do with worrying - but orange was stranger. It was something he couldn't quite figure out.
"I'm not angry. You were right," Sora said quietly, stopping in his tracks. Riku had forgotten about that new aspect of the bracelets. Riku didn't hurry, not wanting to rush. Instead he just fell into step and they began to walk forward.
Before Riku could reply, another voice, feminine and silky, interrupted. "Yes, this isn't exactly the best place to mate. I do think the one with the long fur was correct. But I can see why you would want him. He is the prettiest male human I have ever seen."
Both boys stopped, and stared around. The voice came again. "Down here, you silly humans."
They both slowly looked down to see a long bodied cat with red fur and sparkling eyes. "I'm Dina."
He stared at the cat who was looking amused, eyes slitted and tail gently twitching. He realized both their mouths had come open and closed his, collecting himself, and preventing himself from making a stupid comment. This was Wonderland.
Sora, however, didn't seem as inclined to keep face. "You talk?"
"I do now. Since coming to Wonderland – it's nice. It means I can advise Alice. Or I could before those hooligans kidnapped me." She sniffed and lifted a paw up to lick at it disdainfully. "And they were only using me for bait of all things."
"Bait. For us," Riku replied, his stomach sinking. "Or at least for Sora."
"Yes, for Sora. They barely mentioned you or the girl. Just you." She turned to Sora. "You messed his eye up. He wants revenge."
"Alcexan?" Riku asked, surprised. He stared at Sora – but he didn't look surprised. He wondered if Sora had known from Roxas - or he just wasn't surprised that the Nobody had followed them here. Come to think of it, considering how crazy Alcexan seemed (and considering how insane a few of the Organization had been, that was quite insane) he really shouldn't have been surprised either.
His boyfriend nodded and looked at the cat. "Do you know the way through the maze?"
Dina stopped, and tilted her head. "No."
Riku rolled his eyes. "Why are you here then?"
She half closed her eyes, and he could tell by the tone of her voice she was laughing at him. "Because I'm sick of running from Heartless, you silly boy."
It made sense – in a selfish sort of way. But it wasn't like they could leave the defenseless cat there, despite the fact she was only using them for protection. Maybe once Riku would have – but Sora never would, and Riku picked the cat up and placed her on his shoulder. "Can you stay there without me holding you?"
"Of course. Cats have perfect balance, and your shoulders are broad, while I am small. This will do fine," Dina replied, and began to purr in his ear. It was oddly soothing and Riku couldn't help but relax a little. Sora snickered and he was reminded that Sora could feel him now. He glared straight ahead as Sora gave him a quick grin.
"Just remember to jump off when we get into fights. Riku can't look out for you then," Sora cautioned, and the cat stopped purring as they began to walk.
"Don't worry, Keyblade Master, I will not endanger you or your mate," She replied, and by the mischievous tone, she was definitely trying to embarrass them. By the blush rising on Sora's cheeks, it was working.
Riku swallowed and said the first thing he could think of. "We're not... mates. At least, mates indicates... um..."
Panicked as the cat extended her neck and body to look him in the eye, he looked over at Sora, whose eyes were wide and his face red. "Don't look at me! Let's just hurry and find Kairi and Roxas!"
With that, Sora sprinted away, and Riku would have felt outraged if it weren't for the fact he felt like doing the same thing. But the cat was staring at him in evident innocent curiosity and he felt like strangling the deceptive feline.
Hours later, Sora was gasping after a battle, and on one knee. Riku had no idea what to do, but the Nobodies and Heartless were coming in droves now. Sora groaned, "Roxas is getting weaker. We need to do something. Now."
"I would if I knew what to do," Riku ground out trying to be annoyed. But it was better than being panicked, the other reaction he wanted. Sora had scratches and wounds everywhere and they just weren't healing. He would have carried the boy if he knew where they were going – but he didn't, they had nowhere to go, and all he could do was look at Sora through shadowed aqua eyes. He helped his boyfriend to his feet, and kept himself steady when Sora leaned against him heavily. The younger boy panted and he shut his eyes against the world, wishing that it didn't feel like his boyfriend was dying in his arms.
Then Sora shoved away from him, eyes glittering strangely. "If we wait any longer I won't be able to help."
Not one to mince words, Riku said bluntly, "You can't help much now."
"Yeah? Maybe this will." It was only the warning he had before Sora took a stance facing the closest wall. Something in his mind tugged at his memories. This was familiar. This was very, insanely, familiar.
It was when Sora's feet left the ground, charging lightning fast at the wall that he remembered the World That Never Was and the buildings that had charged up in their way. He also remembered how Sora had dealt with them and he cursed as Sora went through the wall, leaving only rubble in his wake.
"Couldn't let me do that," he muttered to himself. "No, he has to do it himself."
He had forgotten the cat's presence, safely clinging to his shoulder. "I doubt he was thinking much at all. He wanted to go that way, and that way he went."
He scowled, but lightly jumped from rubble pile to rubble pile, barely taking the time to swing Slender Thorn at a few Heartless racing around. He grew worried as he saw more piles of rubble, but no Sora. If this wasn't a waste of the energy Sora desperately needed, he didn't know what was.
The piles turned in another direction suddenly and he followed those too, knowing Sora's imprint when he saw it. Parts of the wall missing – there wasn't much that could do that besides Sora. Then the rubble stopped – and there was no Sora.
He paused just for a second in fear, but it was an instant where he wasn't paying attention, and even Dina's sudden cry in his ear was warning too late. Wolves, more savage than real ones were jumped on him, their Nobody emblems practically glowing on their chests. But he was used to fighting these, and those he cried out in sudden pain when the first ones managed to dig into skin, they were quickly fended off – but when the new Nobodies came, those he wasn't used to.
It only took one to cage him in with wolf Nobodies, they able to get out and in, but he was only able to shift around. He was being attacked from above with the curved metal, and from all around by the wolves. Frustration, rather than panic, was growing. He needed to find Sora. "You think this is enough?"
It was almost a hiss and he felt them pause just slightly, as if listening and wondering curiously what he could mean. That frozen moment was all he needed, dark auras flying everywhere and he moving fluidly in the cage, striking and dashing to the next. It was a small space, but in this case it worked for him. The Keyblade practically shone in his hand as with all of them looking stunned, he spun the Keyblade in a circle, smirking smugly as it lit up with silver light. Instead of slamming it into the ground, he jumped straight up, and the Keyblade took him through the Nobody, and then back down to slam into a pack of wolf Nobodies with a burst of energy rippling away in a circle.
Sora wasn't the only one who could pull flashy but powerful moves out of nowhere. His grin was close to feral, a stretching of his lips to bare white teeth. The leftover Nobodies were all of the Spider Cage variety, and were scuttling away. That was fine with him – if they weren't using dark portals then their prey was nearby, and that meant Sora was nearby.
"That was... interesting," Dina said faintly as he ran after them, leaping over fallen pieces of the wall, his eyes only on the target. He grinned, feeling the blood rushing happily in his veins. He didn't respond, just glad to finally have an enemy in front of him that he could take his out frustrations on. Not that there hadn't been enemies before - but then he had been guarding Sora as well and Sora had ended up pounding on them more than he did.
He was worried, but he was also looking forward to destroying the things trying to hurt his boyfriend. The two Spider Cages paused and he took an opportunity to leap from the ground onto one's back, wrapping his legs around it as Slender Thorn cut through its neck. He dropped to the ground and rolled out of the way as the other tried to skewer him with one sharp pointy leg.
He wasn't as fast on his feet as Sora, and winced as a leg managed to catch him in his side as he ran toward the Nobody. He ignored the pain and the blood he could feel beginning to stream out of the wound. Focused on the Nobody, he barely felt it.
It lifted a leg up and he took the chance, sliding underneath the leg and directly below the body hanging in the air, suspended from the legs. While he had the chance, he gripped another leg and pulled roughly, smirking as it crashed down onto the ground. His feet pushed against the ground as he stretched into the last attack and jumped, Slender Thorn crushing the Nobody's throat as he landed. He watched with a faint smirk on his face as it faded away. This was what they got for messing with the people he loved.
There wasn't time to gloat though. He was still missing Sora, and he headed in the direction the Spider Cages had tried to shuffle in before he had killed them all. Some part of him – a part that if he thought about it, was connected to the bracelet – tugged him on a different way when they came to a corner. He turned it, and found a man standing there, with an unconscious Sora at his feet. His lips curled into a snarl, but the man held up a hand. "I simply stopped him from ruining the maze anymore. My brother was getting terribly angry, and was about to do something foolhardy. Alcexan wouldn't want the boy dead yet – he wants him in pain."
The man's eyes were silver when he looked up at Riku. "If it helps, your friend Kairi is in relatively good health."
"Relative to what? Sora and Roxas? That's not exactly the best comparison," Riku snapped, worry hidden beneath the rage boiling in his body, giving him new strength. He tightened his grip on Slender Thorn and wondered if it would endanger Sora if he attacked.
"Anyone would be in good health compared to those two. Even the dying – but I suppose that's what you're letting him do, isn't it? Die?" The words were mild, as if they were talking only of the weather. Riku lunged for him, somehow unsurprised when the man smoothly dodged. "I did not mean to offend – I simply wondered why you did not use the clues."
"There were no clues, not-man," Dina spoke from the ground where she was nuzzling Sora, trying to wake him.
The Nobody actually looked faintly puzzled. "You did not see them? I apologize. I thought they were obvious. I shall go then and leave you to your friend. I would suggest you hurry though – Alcexan won't keep forever."
Riku eyed the man as a dark portal opened up behind him, and the Nobody paused as he entered, saying thoughtfully, "Actually, he might. But Sora won't, will he?"
Despite the casual tone, Riku had no doubts if he attacked that the Nobody would expect it. He forced himself to watch and only watch as the Nobody disappeared into the darkness. Then he savagely grabbed one of the glowing bugs hanging on the wall and moved it closer to Sora. The boy was more injured than before, bleeding from more minor wounds and bruises seeming to cover every inch of him.
Cursing, he picked his boyfriend up, ignoring when even unconscious there was a shifting that said he was in pain. Better to be in pain than to be dead. Riku walked back towards the nearest cross section of the maze, Sora in his arms and Dina on his shoulders, and he began to look for clues.
He found the opening almost be chance, stumbling over a root in the darkness. Where there should have been a wall there was nothing and he went sprawling, both Dina and Sora flying away from him. The cat yowled in protest and he snarled, "Shut up! Do you want to get caught?"
What patience he usually had was almost gone by now and Dina seemed to sense it by the abrupt way she suddenly shut her mouth, only mewing to let him no where she was. Carefully he picked his way over to her, relieved when he reached down and felt Sora's too-warm skin as well. "Thanks, Dina."
"You're welcome," She purred. "It's much darker in here. I thought you could use the help finding him."
Carefully Riku picked Sora up again, feeling his way to the boy's midsection. While he had been carrying him in his arms before, this was a secret passageway – or so he hoped - and he might need to fight. Shrugging a little, he hefted Sora's lighter frame over his shoulder. Better to be practical than worry about anything else. Hopefully this wouldn't injure the boy more. He still seemed too warm to him, and he bet his boyfriend had a fever.
He kept on hand up and steadying Sora, and the other reaching carefully out to the wall. Dina pressed against his ankle briefly before whispering, "I'll go on ahead – my senses are much better than the ones you silly humans have."
He didn't have time to retort before the feeling was away and he was left in what seemed to be almost complete darkness the further he went in. Once the light from the bugs in the maze vanished, there was nothing except the cold feeling of the wall beside him. He just hoped Heartless didn't attack.
Despite his thoughts, none did. Usually something would have jinxed them by now, and he could only hope grimly that his luck continued. There was no warmth here, besides Sora, and no light.
Step after step brought no reprieve, and he had to doubt if there was an end to it all. An end that didn't include Sora simply wasting away, torn apart from the inside with his heart simply stopping. He could imagine it happening clearly, the too-warm feeling on his shoulder suddenly beginning to slowly cool as the heartbeat he could feel through the layers of cloth stopped and never started again.
And another part knew this was somehow his fault. If he had not been acting jealous, maybe Roxas would have stayed closer. Maybe there would have been no chance of Roxas getting kidnapped, and Sora would be healthy and battling his way with Roxas and Riku to get to Kairi. That set up was oddly familiar – Sora was always wanting to rescue Kairi. She hadn't needed it the last time, not once had had gotten Saïx away from her and Naminé and given her the Keyblade.
But now she needed rescuing – when she shouldn't. If he had made sure they all stayed close, and hadn't let his damned jealousy get in the way, maybe none of them would have been taken. This was all his fault.
There was no Sora to tell him he was being stupid, and that he couldn't blame himself for everything. So he did blame himself, and waited almost hopefully for that familiar voice to rise up and scoff at him before hitting him on the head. Or kiss him on the lips – he much preferred that method of cheering up, personally.
No voice came, and he wallowed in guilt right up until there was the faintest tug, and the spark of force that wasn't his to call came to his hand – and disappeared. It had come in a flash of light, all gold and flowery. Yet, somehow Radiant Spirit had been called away. He couldn't help but feel a smirk come onto his lips, his guilt being buried under the smug pride he felt for his friend. Maybe Kairi didn't need help after all.
But he didn't want to miss the fight either.
He ran, holding Sora as steady as he could, and was shocked when the tunnel around him began to lighten. It hurt his eyes, but he ran on, blindly running until he smacked into something that echoed when he stumbled away from it. He blinked his eyes furiously until he could see in the bright light, but it wasn't until a familiar female voice chimed in from around his ankles that he recognized it. "It's a door. It's locked."
He stared at Dina helplessly. Locked? How could they get in then? They were stuck outside while Kairi and a probably unconscious Roxas battled for their lives. All because a door was locked!
Dina stared at him expectantly, and it slowly grew to disbelief. "You don't think well under pressure, do you?" she asked slowly, as if to a small child.
"What?" he asked, staring at her, and trying to be angry but coming up slightly panicked.
"Key. Blade. Keyblade. Key. Something in this word means something," Dina uttered, lengthening the word "Key" each time it was said.
Riku felt foolish. It was that time Sora was sick in Land of the Dragons all over again. He stepped back and called Slender Thorn, refusing to look the cat in the eye as the door unlocked with a click. He briefly banished the Keyblade as he opened the door. Once he was inside, he called it again, and ran a few steps before staring at the three hallways around him and cursing.
Then a voice from below his shoulder muttered hoarsely, "Left."
He almost dropped Sora in shock, but went left immediately, trying to peer over his shoulder and make sure there were no enemies at the same time. "Sora?"
"Huh? Oh. 'M fine. Feelin' great. World's wrong way up," Sora muttered, only slightly understandable. Riku's lips quirked into a smile as he ran, skidding side ways when he felt Sora shift and mutter a direction.
"You're on my shoulder. That's why things look funny," Riku explained, not bothering to hide his amusement.
"Oh. Nice view of your ass," Sora responded mildly, and Riku didn't know whether to take that as a sign of improvement or delirium. He decided on the former – he had a great ass.
He didn't need Sora's directions to know what room they were going into. There was a familiar voice screaming – not in fear, but in unadulterated rage. He heard Sora whisper, "That's our girl!" and had to agree with the statement wholeheartedly.
This door was locked too, but it proved little problem. Dina somehow managed to squirm in first and there was a yowl of an angry cat as Riku burst in, and he had to rock back a moment as the dainty, lady-like Dina attacked Alcexan, her tiny teeth pricking into his arm, and startling the Nobody enough for him to yell and jerk his arm away – thereby dropping the blond boy in his arms.
Ignoring everything else, Riku bolted for the unmoving form of Roxas, feeling Sora stir and come to life on his shoulder as they got closer – and then there was a wolf Nobody under his feet and he tripped, sprawling onto the ground and his grip on Sora falling away. But he was close enough, and the boy sprang clumsily toward his Nobody, even as Alcexan reached down to try and take Roxas away, a dark portal coming to life near them. But life had returned to Roxas as well, and he lunged for Sora.
The two boys collided and Kairi's voice rang out clearly. "Cure!"
The green light settled over them all. It wasn't as powerful as Sora's, but it was enough to have both boys looking up, most of Sora's injuries healed and the unnatural sickness gone the instant they had touched each other. Both rose to face Alcexan – and the Nobody snarled and leapt toward the dark portal.
Swearing, Riku was on his feet, trying to catch him. They would only have to sit through another plan of his later, possibly more dangerous and maybe this time it would succeed. But the other two were closer, and Kairi was sending out magic – none of it reached Alcexan as the portal closed behind him.
In a rare show of true rage, Sora cursed and punched the wall where Alcexan had disappeared. "You bastard!"
Roxas said nothing, but he put a hand on Sora's shoulder and Riku watched, puzzled as Sora first stiffened and then relaxed. They were speaking to each other, but he didn't know about what.
"Riku. I'm glad you got here in time," Kairi said, relieved. He let Sora and Roxas have a little bit of privacy and turned toward his friend.
"Me too," he started grimly. "Where are the other Nobodies? We saw a silver-eyed one and he spoke of a brother."
Kairi blinked, as if she hadn't expected the question and then covered it quickly with a smile. "They're dead. Both of them."
He frowned, but didn't say anything more. He could have sworn there had been one fighting when he came in – fighting against the wolf Nobodies milling about. But he decided it must have been a trick of his mind.
He settled his attention on Sora and Roxas – but there was only Sora, healthy and smiling a little sadly. He eyed the dark haired boy a moment, but left it alone. He couldn't say he understood completely, but he thought he did a little.
Instead he turned and picked up Dina, who was unconscious but otherwise seemed unhurt. "Come on. Let's return this one to Queen Alice."
They were forced to stay for a meal. Riku almost thought they would have to dress up again, but Alice seemed to think it was perfectly normal to appear in their normal clothes – after they had washed out the bloodstains. Or had them magicked out like Sora. His clothes barely needed any washing to be clean. In as best condition as their clothes could be without a needle and thread, they went to dinner and pretended for a few hours that they were just three friends having fun, and making new friends with Alice and her strange entourage.
Sora and Kairi were both safe, and the one time he had started to think too much about it all, he had been hit – by Kairi. Sora had laughed at his stunned expression, but she was making the best of her ability to call Radiant Spirit, and he was quick to lighten up when she had raised it again.
They avoided mentioning Roxas or asking what they had talked about – or how, exactly, they had merged back together. The food was strange, but after a few warnings they learned how to pick out the safest of them. And it was good.
"Hey, we still haven't found the way to unlock this world," Kairi said as they made their way to the transport circle up to gummi ship. They had all agreed silently to sleep their tonight. It was safe, it was theirs – and best of all, their beds were all close enough they could at anytime see or touch one another if the other two didn't mind leaning over him. He certainly didn't mind if they did.
When they paused, she cocked her head and looked toward the Mad Hatter's clearing, and the table that stood there. "I think it's in there."
As if to conjured up, suddenly there were Dusks surrounding them, and even a few Samurai and two Sorcerers. He hadn't seen the last two in a long time and he found himself fighting viciously back-to-back with both of his friends. Kairi's style didn't fit smoothly into theirs yet, but it did fit much better than it had before.
Light Flares raced his Dark Auras to see which killed more, and he had to grin as Kairi smirked when one of he balls of light beat out his dark aura for a killing shot. It wasn't a difficult fight, they were used to fighting these types, their muscles remembering better than their minds. He had parried a Samurai's thrust before he even realized it was making the move, and he slipped between two swaying Dusks to take them both out from behind.
In the end, it was a short fight, and he was a little suspicious, but as Kairi used the last of her magic in a Cure spell, he cautiously followed Sora, who was much more confident as Ultima swung out to point at a little teapot sitting on the table. Once again, Riku was left to see a faint hint of dark clouds and a distant click. Still lighter than his darker summoning when he did it.
"That takes care of that," Sora said, with an air of finality.
"Yes. It does." The voice was familiar and Riku felt a cold dread though he couldn't have said why. Alcexan's wolves were on them, just a bare few – but it was enough because none attacked Sora as he turned to slow to meet the Nobody, who was as fast as his wolves. They had been worn down slightly by the earlier Nobodies, and the way they had dealt with them had given Sora confidence. Riku expected Ultima and Oblivion to come up and strike Alcexan, and they did – but the Nobody didn't care, hurling himself onto the smaller form, claws flashing and disappearing.
Riku didn't understand why Sora suddenly froze until his eyes found where the claws had gone. They were coming out of Sora's back.
Ultima and Oblivion dropped to the ground and disappeared, but Riku couldn't hear or see them. He was moving, going through the wolf Nobodies like they were nothing and he met crazed orange eyes as he returned the favor given to Sora by smoothly putting his Keyblade's blood red thorns through the space where their hearts used to be and slashed down, cutting into lung. He didn't stop there, he couldn't stop as he slashed and thrust and in the end somehow dropped Slender Thorn to pummel the Nobody until he was no more.
Only when his fist hit empty air and all trace of Alcexan was gone did he turn, scrambling toward Sora. He couldn't see the wound at first, Kairi was in the way and he had to crawl around, not bothering to stand. Even then, one hand was pressed near Sora's stomach, the other trying to pour Elixirs down his throat. There was already another empty Elixir and Hi-potion nearby. Riku thrust his hands into his pockets, finding his own store of Potions and emptied it into Sora's mouth once Kairi's Elixir was gone. He watched anxiously, and jerked his gaze away as he heard a strange sound.
He felt cold as he realized Kairi was crying. She looked up at him with tear filled blue eyes and then down where her hands were pressed against the wound. "It won't stop bleeding. I don't know if it's healing. My magic's gone and none of us have had a wound this bad before. Riku, what do we do?"
Riku couldn't answer. He didn't know.
End Chapter. Don't kill me?