Riku could distinctly remember a time when he was younger, when he ruined Christmas for himself.

He was 10 years old, and it was the eve of Christmas day.

Young Riku would sit there and stare. Just sit there and stare at ALL those presents underneath the tree. Sure, Santa hadn't been yet, but his parents and relatives and friends had already put their presents for him under the tree. And he could hardly wait!

The shine of the multi-colored bulbs of the tree would illuminate the brightly colored packages that rested below. A few soft pine needles rested idly on the wrapped parcels, undisturbed and freshly fallen. Bows of soft pastels and ribbons of vibrant hues were perched proudly amongst the presents. The packages were all shapes and sizes and lengths and heights and oh! It was all too exciting! All too tempting! The smooth, waxy papers and thin coverings were just calling out to Riku:

"Open us, Riku! Open us up! Let us belong to you!"

It was simply too tempting for such a young boy.

And Riku couldn't resist.

Too tempting…

He scrambled over to the presents and ripped them open, one by one. Papers and ribbons and bows and cardboard went flying everywhere in a whirling maelstrom of colors.

Everything he had opened was amazing! A Skateboard, cool shirts, a CD player, games… They all looked so great! He looked at each one wildly and in turn, his mind thinking up all the fun and exciting things he'd get to do with them.

And once the excitement had died down, Riku realized…

The surprise was over. The fun was over. There was nothing more to look forward to.

He didn't want this anymore. Guilt tugged at the walls of his young Heart. A frown fell upon the boy's face, deepened further with his own remorse. He didn't want to know what was inside the wrappings anymore.

He wished he could take back those last few seconds. It only took him a few seconds to ruin it for him, to ruin everything for him.

And he promised to NEVER again make that mistake again.

But anyways, that was then and this was now. And now was 5 years later.

Riku glanced around him, eyes wide and wild with excitement and anticipation.

Maleficent promised him power, and Darkness. Sweet, sweet Darkness. And Riku was curious as to what it was like. He wanted to feel it, grasp it, to bask in it's divine power and seek out why there were those who desperately sought control of such substance.

He'd look around him and see the Heartless, dancing around in morbid merriness, to a Dark tune that only they could hear. Riku often wondered what it was like, why they craved deep Darkness, why they liked it so.

Maleficent promised him Darkness. But she told him to not delve too deeply, to not rush things. But Riku didn't care. Riku just wanted the Darkness. The Dark abyss that existed all around him, swirling and flowing freely within every Heart and soul and thought…

To be able to control such…such monstrosity…had to be amazing. Enticing. Exciting.

It was as if Riku could hear the Darkness calling out to him:

"Come to us, Riku! Come into Darkness! Let It belong to you!"

It was simply too tempting for such a young boy.

And Riku couldn't resist.

Too tempting…

Riku fell to his knees in front of the old witch.

Please…please give me Darkness. Grant me it. Let me have it. I can no longer wait. GIVE ME DARKNESS NOW!

And the witch complied.

All of the sudden, Riku was brimming with Darkness. The vile thing enraptured him, took him over, and cleaned him in and out. It pushed out his Light and replaced it with the Dark. Riku felt renewed. He felt powerful. He felt excited, at everything he could do now, thanks to his brand new powers.

And once the excitement had died down, Riku realized…

The surprise was over. The fun was over. There was nothing more to look forward to.

The Darkness began to burn within him, his thoughts being shadowed over with a new voice…

Destroy Sora…Forget Kairi…Open the door…Release supreme Darkness!

He no longer felt in control.

He didn't want this anymore. Guilt tugged at the walls of his now Dark Heart. A frown fell upon the boy's face, deepened further with his own regret. He didn't want to know what was inside the Dark abyss anymore.

He wished he could take back those last few seconds. It only took him a few seconds to ruin it for him, to ruin everything for him.

It only took a few seconds to destroy EVERYTHING…

And he promised to NEVER again make that mistake again

But anyways, that was then and this was now…

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Yeah, I know what you're thinking: 1) Why is she using this drabble again? (for those who already read it), and 2) Why is this DECEMBER drabble in MARCH?

Well, I recently deleted my December Drabbles story, since it was no longer December, and I had no intention of finishing it. But, I like some of the drabbles in it (and some of the drabbles I was gonna write for it), so I decided to add them to my big collection :3

So, yeah! I hope you enjoy a tad of Winter throughout Spring :D