Okay...depressing doesn't give this chapter justice, but most of you will feel extrememly relieved after reading it. Trust me on that one...

On another note...because I was harked on for my typos and stuff (winks at Ku), I went back and edited chapters two through this one. Hopefully that took care of most of the mistakes. And, because the bot was effed up and I couldn't respond to reviews, here are my thank yous...

AbnormallyWeirdPerson: As always, I loved your review! I hope this chapter makes you happy w/ the whole Sora's mom thing...And I enjoyed writing the novelty shop thing. I've never been in the Horner Novelty store here, but I used my imagination. Dunno if Roxas would really kill anyone, though. I mean, you are right with the fact that he is the "dark one," but I dunno... I really loved writing Maho. Such a fun person to write...SO unlike Sora's mom!! She's probably the most hated character I've ever created! Well...aside from Rayne, but that's another story. Anyway...sorry that I can't make response as long as I usually do, but I'll make up for it next time, I promise!!! hugs Thank you sooooo much!!!!

kuriqa: I hope you're happy with the spelling and shiz in this chapter, ku-chan!! Hehe... And I did go back and fix the other chapters, just for you. I'm glad that you liked the new beginning, though. But, I already told you most of my thanks and stuff over the phone, so yeah... Much love!!!! hugs...

Black Juju: I KNOW!! The bot pissed me off, too, but I think it's fixed now 'cause I've gotten some alerts. Anyway...I've done sooo much research into Angelkin and Otherkin for this story that's it's about to drive me crazy. It's like reading through a psychology book and you start to diagnose yourself with a problem. Hehe... But I love learning new things about cool stuff like that! And I couldn't have Sora's actions be off everyone's radar. Even I wasn't that lucky, but yeah... I'm glad that you liked the chapter, but I hope that you like this one even more!! hugs Thank you bunches!!

Lirici: I know you didn't review this chapter, but I just wanted to say thanks. I love ya much!!

Alrighty...I think that's it...on with the chapter!!!!

WARNINGS:child abuse…SI…yaoi…

Disclaimer: The characters of Kingdom Hearts belong to Disney and Square Enix…

"Now come one come all to this tragic affair
Wipe off that makeup, what's in is despair
So throw on the black dress, mix in with the lot
You might wake up and notice you're someone you're not

If you look in the mirror and don't like what you see
You can find out firsthand what it's like to be me
So gather 'round piggies and kiss this goodbye
I'd encourage your smiles, I'll expect you won't cry…"

—"The End" My Chemical Romance…

Chapter Seven:
Tragic Affair…

I was actually having a good dream for once…a normal dream. The sun was high in the blue sky, with big puffy clouds scattered few and far between. I was sitting in the middle of a beautiful green meadow. Wildflowers bloomed as far as I could see with no trees to obstruct my sight.

I sighed and fell back into the grass, smiling at the familiar laugh beside me.

"You seem happy."

I looked to my side and my eyes connected with Riku's. I nodded. "Of course I'm happy. This is normal for once." I laughed. "I wish I could stay here forever."

Riku laughed quietly and shook his head. "You need to wake up, Sora."

I shrugged and closed my eyes, sighing in content. I didn't want to wake up. This dream was so much better than reality.

"Get your lazy ass out of bed, Sora! We have to go if you want to stop by your house!"

My eyes snapped open and I glanced at Riku. Only it wasn't Riku anymore. Roxas sat beside me with an annoyed frown on his face.

"Get up!"

I groaned and closed my eyes. Something soft yet painful connected with my face. I yelped and jumped up, blinking wildly. A pillow was lying in my lap.

"What the hell, Roxas?"

He chuckled. "It's about time! I didn't want think you were ever gonna wake up."

"I didn't want to wake up," I moaned.

He shrugged. "Too bad. We have school and we need to stop by your house so you can get your things. I'm not gonna let you skip again."

He grabbed onto my arm and I groaned, but I let him pull me out of bed. He threw clothes at me and I pulled them on without really looking at them. In "zombie mode" I grabbed my things from the floor, stuffing my dirty clothes into one of my shopping bags, and followed Roxas out into the living room.

Maho smiled at us cheerfully from behind a cup of coffee. "G'Morning, Sunshines!"

Roxas grunted something incoherent and I mustered up the best smile that I could so early in the morning. Maho pointed to two plates of scrambled eggs on the island in the kitchen.

"I just made them so they're still warm."

We nodded and took the plates. I don't think we even took the time to chew it. We had scarfed down the pizza like there was no end the night before, but we were ravenous again. Roxas took our plates when we were done inhaling the eggs and put them in the sink. Maho followed with her coffee cup and gave Roxas a quick hug on the way past.

"I'm off to work, Lovelies," she said with a cheerful smile and moved to me.

Her gentle embrace surprised me. It had been so long since I had been given a hug by my own mother that I had forgotten how it felt. I found myself returning the hug without even thinking about it.

She smiled at me when she turned away and ruffled my hair like she had the night before. "It was nice seeing you again, Sora. You need to stop being such a stranger! Come back soon, okay?"

"Of course!" I kept a smile on my face, even though I knew Mom wouldn't let it happen.

Maho laughed and slung her purse over her shoulder. "I'll be home early tonight, Roxas, so don't worry about making dinner, okay?"

He nodded. She smiled and headed for the door, giving a little wave on her way out.

Roxas turned to me with a smile. "Ready for school?"

I groaned loudly and buried my face in my hands. "Don't remind me."

"Well, we better head out so we have enough time to get your stuff at your house."

I sighed, but followed Roxas out of the apartment with my bag of clothes thrown over my shoulder. The walk to my house seemed shorter than it usually was. Maybe it was because I was paying more attention to the little things that surrounded us. The color of the changing leaves on the trees. The puffy clouds that drifted across the sky. The bird digging in the ground for a worm to eat. For some reason, everything felt surreal, like I was walking through a waking dream. Even the familiar feel of Roxas at my side seemed strange.

When we turned onto my street, my eyes immediately went to my house out of force of habit. I felt my blood run cold when I saw Mom's car sitting in the driveway.

"Fuck!"

Roxas jumped and looked at me with a frown on his face. I smiled and tried my hardest to keep my voice from shaking as we slowed to a stop at the end of my driveway.

"Mom's home," I explained. "You can just wait out here for me. I'll drop my stuff off and be right out."

He looked apprehensive, but he nodded and I went inside alone. It was eerily quite. The clock ticking on the wall was louder than usual. I jumped when the refrigerator kicked on in the kitchen. I could hear Bo playing happily out in the backyard. Other than the car in the driveway, there was no sign that anyone was home.

I sighed to let out the breath I hadn't realized I had been holding and quickly made my way up to my room. It may have looked like no one was there, but Mom's door was closed on the way past and I didn't want to take any risks. I dropped my bag of clothes in my room and quickly switched it for my backpack.

Sparing a couple of seconds, I checked myself out in the mirror. I cringed at what looked back at me. I didn't look any better than I had the day before. If anything, I looked worse. The bruise across my cheek was darker and my eye was almost swollen shut. The black and blue around my throat stood out like a sore thumb. There was no way I could go to school looking like I did. The counselor and principal and everyone else who thought they had a right to know would be on me in an instant. And no matter what I said CPS would probably be called in as well. That wouldn't be good at all.

I stared at my reflection for a couple more seconds before I decided that all I really needed to do was cover my throat. It was possible that I could get away with a good excuse with my face, but there was no way someone would believe that I'd gotten the bruises around my throat by falling down the stairs. It was impossible.

Sighing, I started to dig around in my closet for anything that would suffice as cover-up without looking too suspicious, mostly to Roxas. It was safe to say that he would ask me a few questions if I went outside wearing a big scarf or something like that. And I had no turtlenecks. Dammit! What was I going to do?

A quiet chuckle from somewhere behind me made me jump. My shoulders shaking slightly, I turned and faced the wreck that stood in my doorway.

But could she have really been considered a wreck? On the outside, I don't think so. She looked like any normal pretty, middle-aged women you pass walking down the street. Her hair was neat and pinned back from her face with barrettes, and she was dressed in a casual pair of blue jeans and a long-sleeved black shirt. She had even swiped some on some eye make-up and blush. She looked so freakin' normal that it was scary. But everything else was cancelled out when I looked into her eyes. They were hard as ice burgs and just as cold.

"Welcome home, Sora, honey," she cooed and took a step into my bedroom.

I took a step back and cursed under my breath when I ran into my closet doors. I was in a corner. Great…just great.

She laughed and took another step. "I got an interesting phone call from your school yesterday while I was at work," she said. "Your grades are slipping and you've been missing a lot of days lately, they said. The restaurant called as well, wondering why you haven't been into work lately. And now you're jobless." She took a step closer. "Would you mind explaining yourself?"

I was shaking so hard that I could almost hear my teeth rattling. I tried to answer her question—gods, how I tried—but my words couldn't make it over the lump in my throat. My eyes widened as she walked further into my room. She stopped when she was standing in the middle.

"You're not going to explain yourself?" She laughed coldly. "I thought you were smarter than this, Sora. Failing and skipping school…losing your job…going out almost every night without asking for permission first… And who's this boy that's been bringing you home late at night?" She scowled and a disgusted look crossed her face. "Don't tell me he's your boyfriend." Then she laughed again. "Though the gay boy persona would fit you well, wouldn't it? You're so weak…"

"Shut up!"

I clasped my hands over my mouth and stared at my mom with wide eyes. It had just slipped out! One second I had been thinking it, and the next it just came out. I didn't mean it! Well…yes, I did. But I hadn't meant to say it. I didn't want her to hit me. I wanted to go to school. Roxas was waiting for me outside.

I watched as Mom's face morphed in anger. Her nostrils flared and her cheeks grew red. Her eyes narrowed as she crossed the space in my room that separated us.

I was prepared for it when her palm made contact with the side of my face. What I wasn't prepared for was the intense pain that shot across my nerves like a lightning bolt. I cried out and clenched my eyes to stem the flow of tears that threatened to fall. I refused to cry in front of her. But my cry only seemed to feed her sadistic side. She laughed and grabbed my chin to force me to look at her.

"Listen to me, boy," she snarled. "You still have five months until you're an adult. Until then you will listen to every goddamned thing that I say. You got that? I am your mother, damn you! Treat me with some respect for once in your fucking life!"

I spat in her face. I don't know why or what had possessed me to do it. All I knew was that I did it, and it fed her anger. She growled and pushed me backwards with such force that I went through one of the glass mirrors of my closet doors. I landed painfully on one of the boxes of junk I kept in my closet so it was out of the way.

"Bitch! Lying, stealing, cheating bitch!" I couldn't control myself as the words poured from my mouth. I opened my eyes and glared at her as I cursed her. "You're a liar and a whore! You say that you loved Dad, but you were having an affair! I know you were! I saw him! I've seen the man you were sleeping with! Fucking bitch! Dad loved you and trusted you! How can you possibly say that you loved him?!"

"Shut up!" she held her hands over her ears and fell onto the floor. "I loved your father!"

"Fuck you!"

"Shut up!" She grabbed a handful of clothes and chucked them at me, but they landed a few feet away.

I laughed out loud and was about to commend her on her horrible throw when she gasped. She jumped away from where she had been sitting and stared at the floor with wide eyes. Slowly, she moved back and picked up more clothes. Her eyes grew wider with every piece she moved.

"What the hell is this?!" she gasped. "Is this blood?"

I laughed and nodded, pushing myself up from the mess of shattered glass. Small slivers cut into my palms, but I ignored it. Pain was good. I wanted pain. I wanted a blade. I wanted to cut myself. I wanted to show her how much she hurt me. I wanted to make her feel sorry for what she did.

"What's the problem, Mother? You never seemed to care about seeing my blood before." I fingered the scabbed over cut on my cheek. "What's so different about this?"

"I…I…I…"

I laughed again and looked down at the carpet. It looked worse than when I had seen it the morning before. The blood had dried completely and was now a deep, crusty brown color. I reached out to touch it, but Mom grabbed my arm before I was able to make contact.

"Take your jacket off!" she shouted.

I shook my head.

"Take it off, damn you!" She pulled at the fabric of the sleeve until she tore it. She stumbled backwards with the cloth in her hand and stared at my arm in disgust, surprise…and was that sadness and regret. "What the fuck, Sora? What is this?!"

I laughed. "You said that you knew, remember? No, wait. You don't, do you? Yeah, because you were drunk. You're always drunk!"

Tears were running freely down my face now, but I did nothing to stop them. They wouldn't have stopped even if I had tried.

"Don't blame this on me, you sick freak!" she shouted. "None of this is my fault." She grabbed my lamp from my desk and threw it on the ground. Shattered plastic and glass went everywhere.

I grabbed a sharp piece of the glass and stared her in the eyes and I pressed it against my arm. A small smile graced my lips as her eyes widened.

"What are you doing? Stop that!"

I shook my head and pulled it across my flesh. I didn't even hiss as it cut a deep gash into my upper arm. I returned it to my arm and continued to hack at it, never once taking my eyes from her.

"Stop that!"

Her words meant nothing to me. I was going to make her see what she did to me. I continued the process over and over again—press and pull…press and pull—until I felt myself starting to become dizzy. I dropped my gaze from my mom and looked at my arm. I couldn't see much of the damage I had done as my skin was covered in blood, but I could feel it. My arm was beginning to sting and throb painfully, but I wouldn't let it deter me from my mission.

"Sora…?"

I gasped quietly at the sound of my name, letting the piece of glass fall to the ground. Roxas. He was inside. He was downstairs. I turned my attention back to my mom just as she grabbed the snow globe I'd gotten from Dad from my shelf. I was instantly pulled from my stupor.

"No!" I shouted and jumped up from the floor.

But I was too late. She smiled at me coldly and threw it to the floor. Glass and miniature cherry blossoms covered the floor. The water soaked into the blood stained carpet and made it look even worse than it already did.

"Bitch! How could you?!" I slapped her hard across the face, not caring about what her reaction would be. "That was from Dad! How could you?!"

A hard fist landed in my stomach and sent me to my knees. She laughed coldly and kicked me in the side. I choked on a scream and fell sideways onto my floor. My face landed in the wet patch on the carpet. It smelled like copper and made me want to vomit, but I couldn't move.

"Sora!"

I groaned at the sound of Roxas' panicked voice. I heard his hurried footsteps across the carpet and sighed as he lifted me halfway into his arms.

"What did you do to him?!" he shouted.

The sound of my mom's laughter was the last thing I heard before exhaustion and pain sent me into unconsciousness.

o-o-o-o-o

He was surrounded by a wonderful scent. The water that moved against his skin was magnificent. It calmed his every aching muscle and sent him into a state of serene bliss. There was no one around to bother him, no one around to see him sitting half naked in the swimming hole.

The constant twilight that hung over Kurai during the day was starting to darken, announcing the arrival of night. If it was possible, Sora enjoyed the nights in Kurai more than he did the nights in Akari. And the beings of Kurai… He enjoyed them even more.

The people who wandered through the land of Kurai possessed a beauty of such Sora had never seen before. Even those who were hideous were beautiful. In a way, he envied the people of Kurai. Of the beings of Akari, he was one of the fairest, but there were others who were much more beautiful than he could ever dream to be.

The brunet boy let his thoughts wander away and his eyes drifted closed as he rested head against the bank of the swimming hole, carefully hidden behind a veil of vines and leaves that hung from a weeping willow. There was so much he had yet to see…so much he had yet to do. It was impossible for him to be able to complete it all in the short amount of time he had. He sighed and shook his head, a small smile gracing his lips. Maybe it would give Ansem reason to send he and Roxas back to Kurai sometime in the future. He sure as heck wouldn't refuse if he was given the chance. And Roxas seemed to have taken a liking to one of the residents in the palace, so Sora knew that his blonde twin wouldn't refuse if given the chance either.

"Didn't think I'd find you here of all places."

Sora jumped at the sudden voice and his eyes flew open, searching the area around him wildly in fear. He sighed when he saw who it was. Standing in a small gap he'd made by pushing aside the vines and leaves was Riku. His long silver hair was tied back in a messy ponytail and he was dressed in only his undergarments, as Sora was, revealing his flawless pale skin and muscular upper body.

He chuckled and walked into the veiled area, letting the curtain fall closed behind him. Sora gulped. This wasn't good. Not good at all. Whenever he was around Riku, especially when they were alone, he had the tendency to lose control. But he wouldn't do it this time. He would keep his composure, no matter how close the beautiful young man got to him.

Even as he said it, Sora could feel his composure slipping. His breathing quickened and a slight sheen of sweat broke out across his brow. He closed his eyes and looked away from Riku as he made his way closer to where the brunet sat.

"I didn't say that I wanted company," he said with a slightly strained voice.

Riku laughed and the sound was beautiful. With his eyes closed, Sora relied on the sound of the water as it moved around Riku as he moved. He successfully dodged one attempt at Riku trying to catch him, but he failed on the second. He groaned as he was pulled against the silver-haired boy's body. It didn't help him to catch his breath any easier.

"Last I checked," Riku whispered into his ear, "this was my bathing spot."

Riku licked up the side of Sora's neck, making the younger boy moan and wriggle in his grasp. Riku laughed and continued his ministrations upon Sora's neck. The brunet was soon a submissive mess in Riku's arms, and he didn't care. He'd tried to deny it, but he couldn't do it any longer. He wanted Riku more than anything he'd ever wanted in his life.

"I want you, Sora," the silver-haired demon whispered into the brunet's ear, nibbling gently on the lobe. "Are you afraid of me?"

Sora slowly opened his eyes and stared deep into Riku's. He shook his head. "No, I'm not. Should I be?"

"It would make things much easier if you were."

The demon laughed and Sora caught a small flash of his fangs in the moonlight, but then they were gone and Riku was touching him again. One hand ran gently across the flesh of Sora's chest, while the other slithered under the water and dared to explore his more secret regions.

Sora moaned and writhed against Riku's hold. The demon laughed and attacked Sora's mouth with his own. The kiss started out innocent enough but then Sora moaned and Riku gave himself entrance into the brunet's wet cavern. Hands roamed unashamed over exposed skin and, when they pulled apart to breathe, Riku returned his attention the flesh of Sora's neck.

The young brunet shivered and whined incoherencies into the night. Riku chuckled and licked a line from the center of Sora's collarbone to just below his right earlobe, making another violent shiver ripple through Sora's small form.

"You look like you'd taste like strawberries," Riku whispered huskily, "but I bet you taste like chocolate."

Sora shivered as Riku started pressing open mouthed kisses along his jaw and down the side of his throat. He licked and sucked at Sora's pulse, eliciting more moans and whimpers from the inexperienced angel. Riku chuckled, and Sora gasped as a sharp pain that morphed into pleasure erupted around where Riku was working on his throat.

Riku pulled away a few seconds later and licked his lips seductively, a slight trail of blood dribbling out the side of his mouth and down his chin.

"Yeah…chocolate…" he whispered and bent down again.

The pain and pleasure returned and left Sora moaning and begging for more. When Riku kissed him again, it was metallic but sweet. Like chocolate…

o-o-o-o-o

I awoke in a cold sweat to a strange sense of déjà vu and the annoying sound of a beeping machine. Beep. Beep. Beep. Over and over and over again. I groaned and tried to move but couldn't. It took me a minute to notice the warmth and comfort that surrounded me. I didn't know where I was, but it felt like I was lying in a bed. I let my eyes flutter open as I felt a warm breeze drift across my brow.

I smiled when I saw what it was.

Riku was asleep next to me in the bed. It was kind of cramped because the bed was small, but he had made due. He held me tight in his arms. I sighed and snuggled deeper into his embrace, trying to remember where I was and how I had managed to get there.

It didn't take long for the memories to come rushing back to me. Roxas and I had stopped at my house on the way to school and Mom had been there. She was angry because of a phone call from school or something. We had gotten in a really bad argument. Roxas came into the house and found us…

I opened my eyes again and let them survey the room I was in. I was most definitely in a hospital. I felt stupid for not having realized it from the beeping heart monitor. The room was plain, painted a pale cream color with a decorative seashell border along the center of the walls. I looked to the right and smiled softly at the sight. Roxas was curled up in Axel's lap, his face buried in the redhead's shoulder. Axel held Roxas tightly in his arms. They were both asleep.

There was a quiet groan beside me and I turned my attention back to Riku as his eyes fluttered open. They widened slightly, but he quickly recovered with a smile and planted a soft kiss on my lips.

"You're awake?"

I sighed and nodded. "How long have I been asleep?"

"Long enough," he sighed. "It's been almost a day."

I groaned. "I'm sorry."

"Don't apologize!" I jumped at the fierceness in his voice. He sighed and closed his eyes. "I'm sorry. But it's not your fault. It's your mother's. Sora, why didn't you tell me about her?"

He opened his eyes and sat up in the bed. He pulled me with him and helped to situate me between his legs. His back was against the pillows and I leaned against his chest. I sighed and twined our fingers together. He kissed my temple softly.

I noticed that my right arm was bandaged, hiding whatever damage I had done to it earlier. I wanted to pick at the bandages so I could see how bad it was, but thought better of it. I didn't want to know what Riku would do if he saw me picking at it.

Riku pulled his hands from mine and wrapped his arms around my torso, burying his face in the crook of my shoulder. He was shaking slightly. I frowned and turned so I could look at him. Tears were running down his face. He shook his head and pulled me to him in a crushing hug.

"I love you, Sora. So much. I was so scared… There was so much blood. We tried to stop it, but couldn't. I was so scared."

I sighed and pressed a soft kiss to his throat. "I'm sorry."

He shook his head. "No. It's not your fault. Your mom… She was gone by the time Axel and I got there. I was ready to kill her…"

I laughed quietly at his words, but knew that he was probably being serious. Rustling from our right pulled our attention to Axel and Roxas. Roxas groaned and his eyes slowly fluttered open, squinting briefly at the bright light of the hospital room. His eyes widened when he saw that I was awake.

"Sora!" He carefully crawled out of Axel's lap and sat on the side of my bed. "Are you alright?"

I nodded and snuggled back into Riku's arms. "Yeah. I'm okay. I would probably be dead if it wasn't for you, though."

Roxas shook his head. "I should have known! I mean, I knew about your cutting, but your mom… I should have fucking known!"

"No." I shook my head. "You shouldn't have, and I wish none of you knew about it now."

"Sora…" They said it together, their voices sounding like a warning.

"They are my problems, and I was dealing with them perfectly fine, okay? You all didn't need to have anything to do with either of them."

"You almost fucking killed yourself, Sora!" Roxas growled. "And your mom… How can you say that you were handling it? You can't handle that!"

I closed my eyes and looked away from him. "I was doing fine," I said through gritted teeth.

Roxas opened his mouth to argue but was distracted by Axel finally waking. The redhead blinked a couple of times before his eyes focused on the three of us on the bed. A large smile spread across his face.

"Sora! You're awake!"

I sighed. That was starting to get annoying. Instead of saying anything, I just nodded and reclined back in Riku's arms. A tense silence hung in the air between the four of us before Roxas spoke up.

"I called Leon…"

My eyes snapped open and I glared at you. "You what?!"

"He's your brother, Sora. He deserved to know that his mother was a psycho and that his brother was laying half-dead in a hospital bed."

I shook my head. "No… No! No! No! He's not supposed to know! He can't know! He loves Mom! He won't believe it!"

"I won't…?"

My shoulders tensed at the sound of my brother's voice. I opened my eyes and looked to the doorway. Leon was there, leaning against the doorframe with his arms crossed and a frown on his face. His eyes were soft with worry and looked bloodshot from crying, but I knew better. Leon never cried.

"Why wasn't I supposed to know, Sora?" His voice sounded hurt. "You let me believe that Mom was someone she wasn't. Why?"

"…because you loved her, and she was always happy when she saw you. I didn't want you to stop seeing her because then she would never be happy. She would always be angry and then she would beat me all the time…"

I started crying and buried my face in my hands. Riku held me close and ran a gentle hand through my hair to calm me down. I felt the bed jump slightly and saw that Leon had sat on the side opposite of Roxas when I opened my eyes. He reached out and held my bandaged hand in both of his own.

"I want you to come stay with me," he muttered. "I won't let you go back home."

I shook my head. "I can't. I can't leave Mom alone."

Leon laughed. "Don't worry about her. It's all under control. You're going to come stay with me and Cloud downtown. It's not far from Roxas' place."

I nodded. "When can I leave?"

"You should be able to leave as soon as we get a doctor in here to do a check-up and make sure everything' s going like it's supposed to."

I nodded and Riku pressed the call button on one of the bed's armrests. A nurse came rushing into the room a few minutes later, her black hair beginning to fall out of her bun and around her face.

"You're awake!" she exclaimed. "Just a second. Lemme call your doctor."

She dashed out of the room and came back a few minutes later, a tall woman with long, strawberry blonde hair at her side. The blonde woman smiled at me as she took a seat in the chair beside my bed, flipping open my chart when the nurse handed it to her from the end of the bed.

"Hello, Sora. I'm Doctor Tanaka, but you can call me Akiko, okay?"

I nodded and she smiled, jotting something down into my chart before turning back to me.

"Can you tell me what happened before you collapsed? Do you remember?"

I shook my head, but Riku gave me a tight squeeze and the other three gave me harsh glares. I sighed and nodded.

"Yes. What do you want to know?"

Akiko smiled warmly. "How long have you been abused by your mother?"

I sighed. "Off and on for about a year now. It didn't get bad until the past couple of months."

She nodded. "Do you know why it got worse?"

I shook my head, and she nodded, writing more stuff into the chart in her lap. She looked back up at me after a couple of minutes of writing and smiled.

"And can you tell me how long you've been cutting yourself?"

"Two years…" I muttered, closing my eyes as I felt Riku's arms tighten around me. Roxas, Leon, and Axel's collective gasp didn't help to make matters an easier.

Akiko nodded. "Can you tell me why you started hurting yourself?"

"You're not a therapist!" I spat.

"Just answer the damned question, Sora," Leon said tersely.

I looked at him and saw that his eyes were closed. He was probably pissed at himself because he had never noticed my addiction. It wouldn't surprise me.

I sighed. "I couldn't deal with my dad's death. I blamed it on myself because he died and I didn't. It just became an addiction. And then the stuff with Mom started. Cutting took away the pain she caused me and made it easier to live everyday."

"Understandable, but did you ever try to talk to anyone about it?"

"No…I didn't want anyone to know…about either of them. My life, my problems."

Akiko laughed quietly and drew my eyes back to her. "You didn't even think to tell your brother?"

"I was going to tell him about our mom, but things didn't work out that way. I had company when he got there and he had brought someone with him…"

She nodded and wrote something down in the chart.

"What about this last time? Were you trying to kill yourself?"

"No, no!" I shook my head vehemently. "Mom was…and I was only trying to prove a point to her. I wanted her to see how much she hurt me, but I guess I went overboard. And then she broke the snow globe I got from my dad…" I cursed at the tears that welled up in my eyes and shut up.

Akiko sighed. "Well, Sora…" She looked at me with a frown on her face. "I most definitely think that you need some kind of counseling, but I'm going to let it go for now. I want you to come back in a month or so and we'll see how you're doing, okay? We'll see if the cutting has gotten any better since you got away from your mom."

I nodded.

"If the cutting hasn't gotten any better, then I hate to say that I'll have to force you into therapy. Whether it's in-patient or out, you'll have to go to some kind of counseling for help with it, okay?"

I nodded again, but didn't really agree with her. I didn't need counseling. I was just fine. Sure, I had gone through some traumatic things, but I was getting along perfectly well. I was alive and healthy and had amazing people around me. As long as I had those things going for me, I would be okay.

Akiko smiled and flipped the chart closed. "Ookay," she said and pushed herself up from the chair. "You just have some paperwork to take care of and you'll be free to go. Because of the situation, your brother can sign as your guardian, alright?"

For what felt like the millionth time since waking up, I nodded and gave Akiko a small smile. She returned it happily.

"Miss Delia here will take care of the IV and things," Akiko gestured to the nurse. "When she's done, you can change into the clothes your friends brought for you. Leon, if you'll just follow me, I'll get the paperwork you need."

Leon nodded and squeezed my hand softly before following Akiko out of the room. I missed him the moment he was out of the room.

Delia began work on removing the IV and the other sensory pads that were attached to my body. When all the wires were removed and I was free to move as I wished, Riku helped me out of the bed and guided me to a chair with clothes draped over it. Though I needed one really bad, we decided that I would take a shower when I got back to Leon's, so Riku helped me change into the clean pair of pants and shirt before leading me out of the room.

I noticed something while Riku helped me. He was constantly touching me. Whether it was just the soft brush of his fingertips against my skin or the full on feel of his hands, there was always a connection. As he led me down the hallway, he kept an arm around my waist and was tense, as if prepared for me to fall or for something bad to happen. I wanted to tell him to calm down, but I knew that he would just look at me as if I were crazy.

Leon was waiting for us by the receptionists' desk, his car keys dangling carelessly from one hand. He and Riku exchanged a look that I didn't understand and Riku handed me over to Leon as my leverage, but he refused to let go of my hand. We awkwardly walked out to Leon's car and they awkwardly loaded me into the front passenger's seat, Riku giving me a soft kiss before pulling away.

I was exhausted. The walk from my room to the car had felt like the longest of my life. Before we were even out of the parking lot, I was asleep.

o-o-o-o-o

The move into Leon's was…awkward, to say the least. There was hardly any room in the apartment to begin with and Leon had to give up sleeping in his bed so I could have it. He said that he would sleep on couch instead. I tried to argue with him, but he just gave me "The Look" and I shut up. It was no use to argue.

At least I didn't have to worry about going to school for the rest of the week. The hospital had given me permission to wait out the last three days before I had to head back. That would be an interesting experience. I was sure that the school had heard about everything that had happened by now, and I would be watched like a hawk upon my return. It wasn't something I was looking forward to, especially since my every movement was already being watched at Leon's.

Cloud was quiet, but I could tell that he wasn't the kind of person I had pegged him as after his visit to the house with Leon. He was kindhearted and fun to be around. And something told me that there was more to his relationship with Leon than either of them wanted to point out. I made a promise with myself to find out before the end of the week. It wasn't like I had anything of much importance to do anyway.

And it didn't take long for me to find out that there most definitely was something more to their relationship. I had woken in the middle of the night and had to pee so, like any usual person, I got up to go to the bathroom. The sight that greeted me on the couch was all I needed to confirm my suspicions. Leon and Cloud were curled up together on the couch's sofa bed and both of them were shirtless. I couldn't help but smile. They looked so happy. I snuck off to the bathroom and back into the room as quietly as I could so I wouldn't wake them up.

Neither of them knew anything about it. I wanted to ask Leon, but we never really had any alone time together. I could have asked Cloud, but I didn't know him well enough to ask that sort of personal question. It was enough that Leon had ordered him to watch me whenever he was gone. I didn't want to dig into his personal life too.

I liked the days when Cloud was my "babysitter." The two of us would just sit on the couch and watch TV all day. Sometimes Cloud would do homework and grumble annoyances under his breath as I watched Spongebob Squarepants. Other times he joined in the fun with me. Once he even sang the "F.U.N. Song" with me. It was rather humorous and I think we scared Leon when he got home in the middle of it.

Riku and Axel came everyday after school. Roxas would join them whenever he wasn't working. I really enjoyed their company, though we didn't say much. I would just sit in Riku's arms and play Axel in a videogame or something like that.

All three of them came over on Friday after school and hung out until almost midnight. We watched cartoons, ate junk food, and played videogames. Leon and Cloud joined in on the fun a couple of times, but they were too wrapped up on their "studies" to do much of anything. Honestly, how stupid did they think we were? Even Axel knew that something was up.

I was walking with Riku out to his car when he pulled me into a dark corner and attacked my lips with his own. I gasped in surprise and he took the opportunity to dive in with his tongue. My hands twined in his long hair. One of his went into my hair while the other made its way under my shirt to stroke my back. I moaned loudly when one of his legs snuck between mine and he applied pressure to my groin. He laughed into my mouth, but pulled away, nipping playfully at my bottom lip as he did.

It had been too long since he'd kissed me like that. I wanted more, but I didn't want to be caught by Leon or Roxas. While I knew what was going on with Leon's relationship, I didn't know what he would say if he saw us. And Roxas… I didn't know the first thing about what was going on between him and Axel. They're relationship was the definition of confusing. They were touching each other one minute and glaring at each other the next. I wish that they would just give in already. It was starting to get annoying.

Riku laughed and brushed a hand back through my hair. "Are you still going to join me tomorrow night?"

I frowned and cocked my head to the side. "Tomorrow night? Oh yeah, the party! Yeah, I still wanna go. Will you still take me?"

He smiled and kissed my forehead. "Of course I will. I can't wait to ravish you in public."

I blushed and he laughed again, diving into yet another passionate kiss. And this time we were caught. Someone coughed and I broke our kiss to see Axel standing there with a wicked smile on his face. I sighed and let my forehead drop onto Riku's shoulder.

"Dammit, Axel! I thought it had been Leon or Roxas or something," I muttered.

The redhead chuckled. "Like they don't already know. You're so lovey-dovey that it makes me want to vomit. I can't see how someone could not know that you're getting it on."

I blushed and Riku sighed. "We're not 'getting it on,' Axel."

"Pretty damn close…" he muttered and walked past us, shaking his head.

I sighed loudly and Riku laughed.

"I guess that's my cue to go, since I did drive him over here and all," he muttered. "I'll be here tomorrow at eight, okay?"

I nodded and he kissed me gently between the eyes.

"I love you, Sora."

I sighed and then he was gone. I stood there for a moment, watching the tail lights on his car until I couldn't see them anymore, before I turned and headed back toward the eapartment. Roxas was waiting for me outside the door. He looked up at me and smiled.

"Ready for tomorrow?"

"Of course," I said with a smile. "What about you? You're still gonna come, right?"

He shrugged. "Why not? It's not like I don't have anything else to do."

I chuckled and patted him on the shoulder on my way past. "Thank you, Roxas. It means a lot to me."

He shrugged again. "No problem." He smiled and checked his watch. "I gotta go. Maho's expecting me home soon and I don't want her to freak on me again." He sighed. "Do you wanna go to the Pumpkin Festival? Just to get out?"

"Sure, why not? Riku said he's gonna be here by eight, though, so…"

He smiled. "No worries. I'll be over around noon and we can hang out there for a couple of hours before we come back here and change, okay?"

I nodded. "Sounds like a plan."

"Awesome." He patted me on the shoulder and headed off toward his house.

I watched his back until he turned the corner at the end of the road and disappeared. Sighing, I went back inside and changed into my pajamas. Leon was sitting on the couch when I came out of the room.

"Going to bed?"

I answered him with a loud yawn. He laughed and shook his head.

"I'll take that as a yes."

"I'm about to pass out," I sighed. I went to the kitchen and grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge. "I'll see you in the morning. Oh! And Roxas and I are going to go to the Pumpkin Festival tomorrow night. And Riku wants to go to a Halloween party, but Roxas is going to be with me so don't worry, okay?"

Leon sighed and closed his eyes. I don't know why, but he never took a liking to Riku. It was another thing that I wanted to ask about, but never got around to actually doing. I would find out why soon enough, though.

"Just be careful. Creepy people come out on Halloween."

I sighed. "Yes, Mommy." I giggled and gave Leon my customary hug before I headed off toward the bedroom. "G'Night," I muttered and closed the door behind me.

I set my bottle of water on the bedside table and crawled into the oversized bed. It was still weird sleeping in Leon's room. I guess it was because I was so used to my own bed, but Leon's bed was much more comfortable. There was so much more room to move around.

I sighed and snuggled into the blankets. I couldn't wait until tomorrow. It was going to be fun. I was going to make sure of it. For the first time in the past week, I was going to make sure that no one worried about me. We were gonna party our little hearts out and no one was gonna tell us otherwise.

TBC…
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A/N: I can only imagine all of your responses to this chatper...IT'S ABOUT FREAKIN' TIME!!!!!...right? Hehe...I know. And as depressing as this chapter was, I really enjoyed writing it, probably more than I should have. But now that his mom is out of the picture for the most part, it's time for the story to get happier, right? HAHAHA!! Sorry...couldn't resist...

The end of this story is very heavily influenced by Evanescence and Mae. I may not quote their songs every single chapter, but they influenced my ideas for the end sooo much that it's not even funny!...

To come...
Pumpkin Festival and Halloween party...Sora's "awakening"...lemon?...separation...NeoAkari and NeoKurai...

Yay! Anyway...thanks again to those of you who reviewed last chapter. You're awesome and I love you!!! hugs to you all... I hope the typos and stuff were better in this chapter. There probably are still some 'cause I was watching America's Next Top Model while going through it. Hehe... That show is so effin' addicting!!!!...

Ja ne!!!