A/N: Warning-most of this chapter was written while listening to endless looping of the following songs:

"Passion" (Utada Hikaru, single version and the slower, "ending theme" version from KH2)

"A Little Pain" (Olivia, first NANA ending)

"Glamorous Sky (Black Stones, NANA live action movie)

If you haven't heard these yet, check them out, for they are fabulous! I normally don't write while listening to vocal songs (singing along is terribly distracting...), but these just seemed to fit the mood. ;) Oh, and I guess I should have mentioned earlier, but this story begins basically the same time the game does, just before they're supposed to leave on their raft. Didn't know if that was obvious or not…

October 2, 2006--Revision/expansion on the end of this chapter complete! Read it again, cause it's soooooo much better than the first version, it's not even funny...

Standard Disclaimer: Kingdom Heart+me does not equal ownage. (Although my good friend from school owned Xemnas something fierce in that last battle, muhuhahahaa….XD)

So without further ado…

Chapter 2: The Voice of Darkness

As often as Sora, Kairi, Tidus, Wakka, Selphie, and I hang out with the other children from our hometown, we never had as much fun as when it was just the six of us. That night was no different. Tidus and Sora sparred constantly, fights that were far more interesting due to the fact that the two of them were evenly matched. I would stand to one side calling out advice and criticism and occasionally offering to take Tidus' place when Sora got overconfident. Wakka used his ball and keen eye to knock down coconuts, a few paopu fruits, and more than a few disgruntled birds, at which point Kairi told him to stop. Selphie, having consumed four double-decker s'mores in as many minutes picked up where he left off by climbing said palm trees and pelting him with the remaining coconuts, as well as a few empty bird nests. Kairi laughed at that point and told him he had it coming.

We all return home later than usual that night, joking and splashing each other with the paddles on our little rowboats. Tidus and Wakka lived close to each other and landed first at the line of docks where the fishermen moored their boats. Kairi said she would take Selphie home-the poor girl had already tumbled down the inevitable pit that follows a massive sugar overdose and could barely hold onto her paddle. Sora and I bid them goodnight with more than a few chuckles on Selphie's behalf and continue on.

"Well, I'd say that was a pretty darn good pre-departure party, right?" Sora says brightly, grinning at me across the space of water between us. "We should have another one to celebrate when we get back!"

My mouth opens, but I shut it the next instant, catching myself before something unwanted slipped out.

"Ah…yeah, that's a good idea," I say after a moment, gazing out over the rippling water before me. He really hadn't felt anything back then…

Jealousy stabs at me unexpectedly-he had no concerns, no fears, no ominous visions of choking shadows. He is a child in every sense-innocent and ignorant. Sora rambles on about who we should invite to that next party, but I hardly hear him. I'm too busy trying to reconcile a sudden and strong surge of dislike that is boiling up inside. Cheerful and optimistic was just how Sora was. It was the main reason so many people liked him. Hell, it was the main reason I was friends with him-he was the little brother I never had.

But this just was too much. Something was coming, something that held the entire fate of Destiny Island in its clutches…nobody could stay a child forever. It would be stupid and self-defeating to-

"Riku? Hey-isn't this your house?"

I blink, coming out of my reverie with a jolt. He's right-we've almost passed my house, tall and gleaming under the newly-risen moon. I mutter a curse. My paddle cuts through the water and I start to slide in front of Sora, heading towards the shore.

"Hey!" Sora calls; I glance back. "Make sure you're ready bright and early tomorrow! We've got a world to explore!"

Again, I hesitate.

"What do you think we'll find in that world?" I ask, paddling back around so I can look at him straight on.

Typical Sora, he grins at me even wider than before. "We won't know until we look, right? As long as we're together, it'll be a heck of an adventure!"

As long as we're together…

We'll always be together…right?

Part of me still thinks that maybe he had felt that approaching shadow just like Kairi and I but it truly did not bother him. Maybe I want to believe that he really is that strong. Anger flares to life again in the pit of my stomach. What if he really that strong? To not let something like, oh, the end of life as we know it ruin his good mood-nobody could be that childish.

"Yeah," I say, short and cold. "I bet it will be."

I can't stand this anymore. I dig my paddle into the water, raising a small wave as I turn around and head for the shore. Sora calls "Good night!" after me. I ignore him.

Walking alone up the stone path that led to my house, I am surprised to see lights on downstairs. My parents are used to me getting home late, but they usually only leave the hall light on, and that can't be seen from the front window-

The white-painted door creaks as usual when I open it and step into the warm light of our kitchen. My mother is perched on one of the stools around an island table in the middle of the gleaming, blue- and white-tiled room. A half-empty coffee cup rests next to her elbow; her hands are folded and resting against her chin. She is staring straight at me, her lips pursed, not blinking.

I let the door creak shut behind me, my stomach sinking. I dart a glance at the clock to my left, above the wooden cabinets and wince. 12:47. Damn. I swallow and look back at my mother, whose green eyes have narrowed a bit.

"I was beginning to wonder if you'd rather have breakfast when you got home rather than dinner," she says flatly.

I cannot help but flush a little. "Um…sorry…"

She rolls her eyes and grins in a distinctly ironic fashion. "Oh, don't mind it, I was only sitting here for the last two hours worrying if you'd drowned or gotten carried off by some criminal," she says, standing and stretching her arms above her head. "Though given the amount of time you spend training with that toy sword, I'd feel more sorry for the criminal."

"And I can swim, you know," I reply, relaxing a little. My mother worries about me more than my father, but luckily she isn't quite as uptight as he was about discipline.

"All the same, if you're going to be out with your friends, please tell me when you're going to be this late, all right?"

"Well, we really didn't plan to…" I know it's a pathetic argument, but I have to give her something.

"Yeah, yeah, that's what they all say." My mother rolls her eyes again and shakes her head in a weary sort of way. The light from the overhead bulbs gleams brightly in her pale blonde hair.

"Off to bed with you then," she says and ruffles my hair as she walks past.

"G'night," I mutter after her, swiping my hair out of my eyes.

"Sweet dreams," she replies absently, vanishing around a corner. I hear her footsteps thumping up the stairs and an uneasy thought occurs to me: if this is my last night on this island…shouldn't I have said something to her? Tell her not to worry…say goodbye at the very least…?

I grit my teeth and shake my head in frustration. This is not something I want to worry about right now. My mother and father can take care of themselves; they trust me to take care of myself for the most part, I tell myself firmly. As if to prove that resolve, I switch off the kitchen light and walk quickly upstairs to my room.

The pair of doors leading out onto my small balcony were thrown wide open to let in the night breeze. The moon is on the other side of the house, so the room is gloomy. Outside the window, stars glitter brightly in the warm summer night; the waves, the trees, and the dark lumps of the other islands on the horizon are all frosted with silver light. I make my way across the room, letting memory and habit guide me to my bed. I flop down on it on my back, not even bothering to take my shoes off.

Staring sightlessly up at the ceiling, I wonder why I bothered coming up to my room at all. Left to myself after the laughter and childish games of the party, my thoughts finally have the chance to make themselves heard. Excitement mingles with something like dread, worry for my family and friends, lingering irritation at Sora…A thousand concerns pounce and claw at my mind like a cat with a bird, not quite overwhelming it, but never once letting it rest. A voice nags at me that I should get up and do something, but since it can neither tell me exactly what I should do nor convince my body to overcome its physical fatigue, I simply lay there.

I think I must have fallen into something like sleep, because the next thing I knew, my eyes flew open with a jolt. My heartbeat pulses loud in my ears as I try to remember what had awoken me. Through fragments of half-forgotten dreams comes a sound. A deep rumble, as thunder from an approaching storm, or the grating of ancient stone stirring after eons of stillness. My eyes narrow as I focus on that sound-it seems familiar somehow. Not, that's not quite the right word-it's more like I'm not surprised to heart it, like I knew it was coming-

I vault out of bed with a gasp and dash out onto the balcony. My gaze is fixed on the outline of Destiny Island rising above the dark water. For an instant I wonder at how long I slept because the island is rimmed from behind by a brilliant glow. Then I realize the light is not from the sun-nor is it even truly light. Destiny Island itself had been plunged into a shadow so black it made the night sky above brilliant by comparison.

"The door is opening…"

The words leave my mouth, formed from my own throat, but I am not even aware I speak them. As those words hang in the air before me, I feel, in the most deeply-buried corner of my being…a stirring. A flicker of anticipation-of joy. My eyes widen. Again, so familiar…

That nagging voice from earlier speaks up again and this time it yells. I don't stop to think before tearing out of my room and down the stairs. Heading for my rowboat.

I don't remember much of the passing from my home to Destiny Island. I know that I rowed with an almost frantic strength, water flying every direction, splashing over the side and soaking into my clothes. I don't notice. The wind blows harder around me, whipping the waves into an angry froth. Lightning flares above me sporadically, but the answering thunder is eerily absent. The only sounds I can hear are the rush of the waves, the palm leaves rasping against each other in the wind, and the crunch of sand on wood as my boat grounds itself. A little ways down the beach I notice another boat tied to the single small dock.

Is that Kairi's? What's she doing here? Dammit all, she had better not be in trouble-

Concern for Kairi brings a measure of focus to my racing mind and I jump out of the boat. But I barely take a dozen steps when a wave of dizziness slams into me with almost physical force. I stumble, reaching out and finding the rough trunk of a palm tree. I cling to it with both hands as the world tilts beneath me; my vision swims sickeningly. I close my eyes, but it doesn't help much.

"I've been waiting for this moment, Riku-waiting for you."

My eyes fly open in shock and I nearly lose my grip on the tree trunk. The same voice as before, only this time from within. I don't just hear the words, I feel them crawling into every corner of my mind. They melt into ever shadow on my soul-every dark thought, every memory of anger, resentment, jealousy, fear…

"The door is opening-don't you want to see what lies beyond?"

Cold water seems to rise in my chest with those words and my heart feels heavy as stone. It's hard to breathe, but I manage to gasp,

"Who are you?"

The response is laughter, low and derisive.

"I am what you have always wanted to be."

"What do you know about me?" I demand, anger beginning to bubble over the confusion.

The presence just laughs again and I feel the dark, cold water recede from my body and mind. I draw in a shaky breath and blink to clear my vision. My eyes focus on rippling white sand and I realize that I'm on my hands and knees. Still trying to just breathe steadily, I drag myself to my feet, leaning against the palm tree. My heart is pounding like it had the day before, my body just as weak and shaky.

But as I stand there, listening to the silence all around me, I realize that this time is different from before. Underneath the shakiness is exhilaration, like muscles strained to the point of exhaustion finding their new strength. I push away from the palm tree and look around. The island doesn't seem as dark as it was before, despite the fact that I can no longer see the stars. Above me the wind hisses through the palm leaves, tossing them about, yet not a single hair on my head stirs. I stand completely apart from this unnatural storm that is breaking across Destiny Island.

Or perhaps I am a part of it.

The presence in my mind whispers again. I cannot make out any words, but its voice nudges me onward. I break into a run down the beach, sand flying wildly as energy surges through me. On my left a rocky cliff covered in straggling and stubborn plant life rises from the beach. It curves away to my left and I follow it around. However, I barely turn the corner when I skid to a halt, nearly falling over. Standing outside the nearly-hidden entrance to our "Secret Place" is Kairi. Our eyes meet just as she glances backwards, almost as if she were waiting for someone. But there is no recognition in her eyes when she sees me-they seem to be gazing upon another world entirely.

Saying nothing, she turns and ducks under the hanging vines, disappearing into the darkness of the cave.

"Kairi!" I shout, finding the strength to dash forward again. "Kairi!"

My voice echoes mockingly off the rock in front of me. I reach the cave entrance, my hand outstretched to push the vines aside. What happened next I remember in a haze of slow motion. My hand disappears into darkness-disappears completely before my horrified gaze. I cannot control my momentum and it carries me forward into that darkness. I duck instinctively, for the ceiling is low. That's when the ground beneath my feet vanishes and I begin tumbling through utter blackness. I'm not even sure if I'm falling, all sense of direction has vanished. Even more disturbing is the breathless, oppressive silence. I had theought the island was quiet when I had landed on the beach; the roar of the wind-whipped surf had been muffled and distant. But here, even the sound of my own breath was swallowed up the moment it left my lungs.

Lights flash up past from below me, brilliant and quick as shooting stars. There are colors in those lights now, deep blue and purple melting into green and orange, every shade brightening into yellow and then white. I continue tumbling and light explodes all around me, painfully bright. I clench my eyes shut, throwing my arm up before my face.

When it fades, I realize I am standing on a solid surface again. I bring my arm down and open my eyes cautiously. And then they stare wide in wonder. Around and above me stretches a vast white emptiness, so blank and bright that I feel dizzy looking up into it. I am standing on a broad circular platform of solid black. The surface is dull and doesn't reflect even a spark of of the white brilliance above. The edges of the platform seem more insubstantial, bleeding misty shadows.

"Where...the hell is this?" I mutter, gazing all around; my voice echoes slightly. A thought strikes me-

"Kairi?" I call, turning in a circle-stupid, as if she was hiding behind me-"Kairi!"

You won't find her here.

The voice thrums softly through my mind. I tense, but it isn't the same voice as before. That one had been mocking, harsh; this one was softer, and deeper...older, somehow. Still, I'd had enough of voices in my head.

"Show yourself!" I yell, my hands clenching. "Who are you? If you want something, talk to me face to face, dammit!"

I want nothing from you, the voice replies. However, I can give you something you will need in the times ahead.

"What the hell would you know what I want?" I growl, anger burning through me. "You and that other bastard-"

He and I are not the same, the voice cuts in, an edge of reprimand in the soft tone. He seeks only to take and what he takes he will only destroy. He is a parasite that can only exist by leeching off of others.

"And what does that make you, Mr. Voice in my Head?"

I have slept within you from the moment of your birth, the voice answers, seemingly oblivious to my sarcasm. Even not knowing who I was, you still yearned for me, sought endlessly for the missing fragment of your heart that lay beyond your grasp. You know who I am, without question and without fear.

My anger fades as those words brush across my mind. Darkness rises like a shroud around the edge of the platform, far above me until all the whiteness is swept away. I feel again that stirring of joy, quivering freedom as if a heavy and long-borne weight has vanished from my heart. I close my eyes and feel the shadows, their texture like silk against my skin. A sigh escapes my lips and that voice, soft and ancient as the night sky thrums again through my mind.

The door is opening. Don't you want to see what lies beyond?

My eyes still closed, I lift my hand slowly and reach out. My fingers brush against smooth, cool wood, then slightly rougher metal-a curved handle. I open my eyes and see a door before me, gleaming with a fay light in the shifting darkness. Shadowy, snake-like tendrils crawl around the frame of the door. I tighten my grip on the metal handle. It turns silently and I push the door open with a smile.

October 2, 2006--Much better! Please banish that earlier hideousness from your mind-this is how the second chapter was supposed to end. :) I know I shouldn't have let guilt over missing a deadline get to me so much-I rushed the first version of this ending thinking I could get away with it...but no. It bugged me horribly over the weekend... . But all good now! Chapter 3 should be up soon-that one was easy to write, hehehe...I love writing with evil characters. Muhuhahahahaa... XD Thanks for reading, and more reviews means faster updates! No, seriously...