Disclaimer : Kingdom Hearts and its characters do not belong to me.

xx—xx—xx

Chapter 07 : An unexpected turn of events

A Ghoul. Someone who can steal someone's ability. Somehow, it sounds really cool, but when you're faced with someone who has been victim of a Ghoul, it's down-right terrifying. Does it even really exist? Are there really no other way someone from a Specie can become a Human? I don't want to believe in what Sephiroth told me, but I might not have a choice, in the end.

Maybe I never had one.

x-x-x

"Sora, what's wrong with you? I can't help you if you don't tell me," Cloud asked for the fifth time since Sora had entered the infirmary.

"I would have told you if I could! But you won't believe me," the brunet thought, frowning. There was no way Cloud would listen to him. He didn't even believe him about Ansem's aura. The only one who would trust him was none other than Sephiroth himself, but seeing the man again wasn't an idea that the brunet liked all that much.

"I just… Felt dizzy, that's all," Sora lied, shaking his head slowly. It was only half a lie, when he thought about it.

"Sora, your whole body was shaking. You were not just feeling dizzy," the nurse dead-panned, clearly not buying it.

The teen sighed softly, wondering why he had come here of all places. It must have been a reflex or something like that. Anyone would have done the same.

A thought struck Sora all of a sudden. If he had reacted this way, how would Roxas? His twin would be furious if he found out about Ansem. Hayner was one of his friends, the blond was bound to smack Ansem's face into a wall if he discovered the truth.

Sora ran out of the infirmary and tried to spot his twin. He was supposed to have Algebra. The brunet quickly found the classroom he was searching for, but once he was in front of its door, he didn't know what to do. Should he let Roxas see him and make him get out of the room? But how? The teacher would spot him.

"What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be in class right now?"

Sora froze as he heard the cool voice speak a few meters away from him. The brunet turned his head towards Ansem, who was standing to his right, his arms folded across his chest and waiting for an answer. The man had that sickening smile on his lips, and he was studying Sora very cautiously, as if trying to memorize him from head to toes – a thought that didn't help to make the teen feel at ease.

"I – I thought third period was here, but I was wrong. I'm going now," the brunet said quickly, so that he could be away from the teacher fast.

"Wait a minute."

And here went Sora's hopes. He turned around slowly to face Ansem again, and nearly jumped when he realized how close the man had gotten. He hadn't even made a single sound.

"I do have class with you during last period, correct?" The man asked coolly, his smile not faltering. Sora nodded timidly, not liking whatever that question actually meant in Ansem's mind. "Good. You can go now."

Sora didn't need to be told twice. He spun around and ran towards his classroom, not throwing a single glance over his shoulder.

Ansem stayed where he was and looked inside the classroom, his smile widening.

x-x-x

Lunch period was more than welcome when it eventually came. Sora walked eagerly towards the table his friends usually sat at, and only found Axel, Demyx and Riku there. The brunet frowned, wondering where all the others were.

"Where is everyone?" The brunet asked, taking a seat across from Demyx.

"Marluxia's eating with a chick to try and woo her. Everyone else should be here shortly," Axel replied, popping a chip in his mouth.

"Okay," the teen replied uneasily, setting his lunch bag on the table.

"Something's wrong," Riku said. It was not a question but a statement, like he was sure of it, and Sora was upset that the Vampire seemed to understand him more than he should.

"It's okay, no big deal," Sora replied, taking a bite from his sandwich.

Soon after, Roxas, Zexion and Naminé joined them and Sora's problem was quickly forgotten – much to the brunet's relief. It seemed that Roxas hadn't felt anything peculiar when he saw Ansem, and Sora wondered if his gift wasn't the reason why he actually felt Hayner's aura. As much as Sora hated to admit it, he knew only Sephiroth could give him the answers to his questions.

When the end of the day came, the brunet asked Riku if he could see his father once more, which the silver-haired boy didn't refuse, of course. They soon parted from Roxas and Axel and walked on their own. They could talk freely now.

"Found something?" Riku asked, watching the younger from the corner of his eye. He had noticed something was off with his brunet friend ever since he set foot inside the cafeteria at lunch.

"Yeah, and quite frankly, I don't like it at all," Sora confided, looking at the ground. "I didn't want to see your father, but I guess I have no other choice."

"He's kind of the scary guy, isn't he?" The Vampire joked, smirking. "But don't worry, you'll get used to it. Eventually."

"What's really bothering me is that he's a Vampire."

That made Riku a bit angry. "Why are you still clinging to that stupid idea of yours? Can't you see we're not as evil as you think we are? For instance, when have I ever hurt you?"

Sora thought for a moment. "Well, there were all those times you said mean things, and that time when you looked like you really wanted to eat me or something."

Riku blinked several times. "And I take it you never thought that you hating my guts for no apparent reason would make me say those mean things?" The Vampire asked, genuinely confused. "As for that other part, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to. It was a tough week for me."

Sora said nothing and thought about it all. It was true that he never gave a chance to Riku. He had just disliked him as soon as he understood he was a Vampire, and never tried to know him better. Riku had never done anything to hurt him, except when Sora was being an ass. But even then, Riku wouldn't start the fights.

"Let's try this again, okay?" The Vampire offered, taking a few steps ahead so that he could stand in front of Sora. Riku then extended his hand towards the brunet.

The Healer watched it carefully for a short while, before he shook his head and grabbed Riku's hand and shook it.

"Sorry. It was stupid of me to act that way," Sora admitted, cautious not to meet the older boy's eyes.

"It's okay now," Riku told him with a sincere smile. "Alright, let's move it. If you asked to see my dad, it must be something serious."

Sora chose not to say anything to that, and instead followed the taller teen to his house. This time, Sephiroth wasn't in his office, but instead lying on the couch, a bag of chips in his hands as he watched the television. Sora wasn't sure, but it looked like he was watching a show with a girl getting a new look with the help of professionals.

Was Riku's dad seriously watching this?

"I'm home, and I brought a friend with me," Riku told the man.

Sephiroth sat up, bag of chips still in hand. "I know, I heard you." He then turned his gaze towards Sora and smiled knowingly. "Made up your mind yet?"

The brunet frowned. Next to him, Riku looked from his father to his friend, wondering what they could be talking about. "Not yet. I just wanted to talk to you about Ansem."

"Sure. Go ahead," the grown-up instructed, popping a chip in his mouth. He offered some to the brunet, but he refused politely.

"There's a high chance that what you told me is true. Ansem might be a Ghoul," Sora stated. That made Sephiroth sit straighter and pay closer attention immediately. "I saw him today, and I felt Hayner's aura mixed with his. It was subtle, but still there."

"Has he used your friend's ability?" Sephiroth asked, frowning. That made the matter more serious now that there was evidence.

"Not yet. He's really creepy, and it's almost as if he knows that I know, and tries to intimidate me. But that might only be my imagination."

"Wait a minute. What are you two talking about?" Riku eventually intervened, not wanting to be the only one not knowing what was going on.

"One of your teachers is probably a dangerous man I've been searching for a long time. You should be careful around him. Riku, can you do me a favour and not let Ansem be alone with Sora? There is a high change that he's after him or his brother, or both."

"Alright," the young Vampire replied, still not sure he understood everything.

"Why would you do this? Is it really for my grand-mother?" Sora asked slowly, almost suspiciously.

Sephiroth chuckled. "Not only that. You remind me of her a lot, and it would pain me if something happened to you. She wouldn't forgive me either."

Sora lowered his gaze and stared at his feet. "I still don't get why you killed her."

The older Vampire heaved a long sigh. "She was going to die sooner or later. Vampires are not immortal beings after all. Besides, even if she still had many years before her, she wasn't going to live that long. She was so hurt, so tired that she was letting herself die. I knew what she was going to ask me the second I stepped inside her room. We both knew it and accepted it."

"Dad…" Riku whispered, his face a mix a hurt and understanding.

"That doesn't mean I don't love your mother and you, Riku. Stop being such a baby," Sephiroth told his son, eating a few chips soon after.

"I'm not!" Riku protested.

"So, what do we do now?" Sora asked slowly.

"For now, we do nothing. I can't do anything as long as we don't know for sure that Ansem's a Ghoul," Sephiroth began. He quickly continued to talk when Sora opened his mouth. "Sure, you know he's the one who stole that boy's power, but no one else can confirm that information."

"It's really annoying," the Healer sighed, lifting a hand to scratch the back of his head. "Well, I think I'll just go home. I've said everything I had to say."

"Alright, be careful," Sephiroth advised.

Sora nodded in agreement and left the Vampires' house.

x-x-x

If anyone asked him, he'd say it was the weirdest thing he had ever seen. Sure, you could see it quite often, but it was always fake, unlike this one.

"Sora, would you please stop pulling at it?"

"But it's so strange. I can't help it."

"Well, I won't help it either if I hit you in, like, a few seconds."

"Roxas, don't threaten your brother. Sora, stop pulling at Roxas' tail," Tifa stated from the other side of the table.

They were all eating breakfast, but the task was kind of tricky, what with Sora constantly eyeing Roxas like he had grown another head. It was just a tail.

"How come I haven't seen it before?" Sora wondered out loud, his eyes staring curiously at his brother's lower back.

"Because it's the first full moon since you've come here, and now I wish I told you so that you would stop being such a prick about it," Roxas muttered darkly, stabbing his pancake viciously.

Sora frowned at the tone his twin used to talk to him. What was it with people and their strange mood swings? He'd always thought only girls had them, but his twin and Riku had proven his theory to be wrong.

"It's only for a few days, so it won't bug you for too long," Tifa stated as she stood up, and gathered their empty plates. She then put then in the sink to wash them.

The twins got up, picked up their stuff for school and exited the house.

"Hey, Roxas," Sora said while they were walking to school.

The blond shoved his hands inside the pockets of his coat. "Yeah?"

"Does it… hurt?"

The blond twin's eyes widened considerably, and he inhaled too quickly. He choked on his spit for a moment.

"What the heck are you talking about?!" Roxas exclaimed when his coughing subsided. He was red in the face, and at first, Sora thought it was only because of the boy's coughs.

"Is it so wrong that I ask about your tail?" The brunet asked, confused. To the brunet's utter confusion, his question seemed to only embarrass his twin more.

"How about we just forget about this?" The blond muttered.

Looking up, Roxas realized they were approaching their high school really fast, and he was more than glad when he spotted Hayner a few feet away from them.

"I'll go meet Hayner. Don't wait for me to go to class," the blond twin stated as he left his brother alone in front of the school gates.

Sora pouted. "Right, don't bother about me. I'll be fine by myself."

"Complaining so early in the morning?"

Sora turned around to meet the one who had just spoken, who end up being none other than Axel. Demyx and Marluxia were with him, and waved quickly as a greeting. Sora did the same.

"Roxas is being mean. And speaking about him – "

Sora didn't finish what he was saying, and turned around the Chocobos curiously.

"Err, what are you doing?" Demyx asked slowly, as if he were afraid that the brunet had suddenly gone mad.

"You guys are just like usual. Are Werewolves the only ones who have – " The teen began, stopping when Squall passed by them, his tail swinging from right to left as he walked. Sora could do nothing but stare at it. " –tails today?" The brunet eventually finished. Somehow, Squall was more entrancing than usual.

Alright, Sora thought, maybe a cold shower would do him good. And what was he thinking he was doing, staring like that? And at Squall of all people. Cloud would murder him if he ever knew. Or maybe just break something. Like his neck.

"Yup, 'cause they're the only ones who are physically influenced by the phases of the moon. I think they are the only ones changing. Oh, but don't worry. They'll be back to normal really soon," Demyx explained.

"They have one hell of a sex drive during full moons too," Axel added, a wicked smile plastered on his face.

Sora rose a curious eyebrow. "How would you know that?"

At that, Demyx and Marluxia exchanged confused looks, then thought it better to leave the two. The brunet didn't miss that, and he wasn't sure he liked their reaction.

"He didn't tell you yet?" Axel asked sheepishly, clearly uneasy.

"Who didn't tell me what?" The brunet asked, slowly growing impatient. For some reason, he knew he wouldn't like what he was about to hear.

At that point, Axel wanted to just run away and avoid the brunet for the rest of his life. Why did he have to say everything to Sora? And him alone at that. That was so unfair.

Sora began to tap the ground with his foot then, indicating that maybe the redhead should begin to talk.

"I… I mean we – No, let me correct that –" Axel stuttered. He winced, not liking how his voice sounded. It was not cool at all. The Chocobo breathed slowly, and took the plunge. "Roxas and I are dating."

To Axel's utter surprise, Sora didn't look upset or mad. He even looked quite calm. What bugged the taller boy, though, was the disappointment that Sora's eyes couldn't hide.

"Why didn't you guys tell me sooner? So, every time you told me you were just joking were all lies?" The Healer asked.

"We didn't know how you'd react to the news, so we thought it better to hide our relationship from you."

"I wouldn't have said a thing! C'mon, give me some credit."

"You weren't exactly that much of a nice guy when you arrived here. You were calling us Species monsters and all," Axel stated a bit too firmly. He realized it when Sora's expression went from disappointed to ashamed. "Look, we didn't mean to hurt you or anything. We were just afraid, ok? Well, Roxas was. He's taking that twin thing very seriously, you know."

"He is?" Sora asked, genuinely surprised.

Axel nodded in agreement. "He's heard a bit from you, but couldn't meet you until that day Tifa took you in. He was happy, but worried at the same time. He didn't know if you two would get along, if you would get along with his friends."

And when he met Roxas' friends for the first time, Sora didn't think twice before deciding Riku would be his enemy. That one was definitely one of his biggest, stupidest mistakes. Roxas must have felt so sad because of it, maybe upset at his twin even.

"I'm sorry," Sora whispered. "I'm always acting like I'm the only one having problems. I promise it'll stop."

"Err, I wasn't saying –" Axel began.

"Let's go to class. We shouldn't be late, right?" Sora cut him off, smiling brightly at the redhead. The latter returned the smile with less enthusiasm, but returned it nonetheless.

The first periods weren't exactly what they'd call exciting, but they still helped making the morning less long. Soon, everyone was exiting classes to go eat lunch. Sora found Riku walking out of a classroom a few doors away from his, and the brunet waved at his new friend.

"You hungry?" Riku asked when he joined Sora. "I could eat tons of food and not have enough of it today. I wonder what's wrong…"

"Maybe you didn't eat enough this morning," Sora offered, shrugging.

"Let's not think about it, and just go grab something before I-" Riku began, only to stop. He would have said "before I just eat whatever is the closest", but the closest to him being Sora, Riku wasn't sure the brunet would have appreciated the joke. "-before I faint," he eventually finished.

"Are you sure you're fine?" Sora insisted, even lifting a hand up to feel Riku's forehead. "You don't seem feverish to me."

The Vampire lifted a single eyebrow, and watched Sora as if he were the strangest thing on Earth.

"Are you feeling sick, kid?" Someone asked behind them.

Sora felt the small hair at the base of his neck stand up. Why, oh why was he always at the same place as him? Turning around, the teens faced Ansem, who was looking at them with a blank expression.

"Just hungry," Riku replied with a shrug. He was acting so casually Sora wondered if the Vampire had already forgotten about what his father had told them the day before.

"You don't have to act like a strong boy in front of me," Ansem insisted. Sora saw the man's right hand twitch lightly. "Maybe you should go see nurse Strife?"

"I really am fine, sir," Riku replied, frowning a little. He was getting annoyed by that man really fast.

"You might think you are now, but maybe in a few minutes, you won't feel so good," the teacher said, raising his right hand.

Sora followed the movement with his eyes, and they widened when he felt something was wrong. Energy was coursing through Ansem's hand, and said hand was about to land on Riku's shoulder. That couldn't happen. Sora did the first thing that came to is mind to stop the motion : he lifted his right arm to block Ansem. The teacher's hand wrapped around a small wrist instead of a firm shoulder, and the change displeased Ansem greatly. He wasn't showing it clearly, but that spark in his eyes was enough. As for Riku, he looked from Sora to their teacher with a confused expression.

"Looks like he didn't feel it," Sora thought.

"Alright, if you are so sure everything's okay. But don't complain if something happens later," Ansem told them, his neutral expression turning mischievous when his eyes met the brunet's. The man then turned around and left.

"What a creep," Riku spat, not hiding his dislike for the man. "Come on, let's go to the cafeteria before they think you lost your way or something."

"Why only me?" Sora protested.

"Because I'm too cool to get lost," Riku stated, pushing his hair above his right shoulder with a smug expression on his face.

x-x-x

Sora had forgotten he had to spend the entire afternoon with Cloud to assist him, and when the brunet entered a few minutes after his shift started, the man was pissed off. The blond complained for a while about immature teens who couldn't be on time for once, and how he was just mad at everything.

"What's wrong?" Sora eventually asked after a moment. It wasn't like Cloud to be so angry, so the brunet figured something had happened.

"Sorry, I'm taking it out on you," the blond apologized, sitting down at his desk. He massaged his temples, his eyes closed.

"I wasn't asking for apologies," Sora made known, sitting in front of the nurse. "Tell me what's going on that upsets you so much."

"A lot, actually," the nurse eventually admitted.

"Is it Squall again?" Sora tried.

"No, things are just perfect with him," the blond said, a small smile on his lips. It didn't stay long, though. "But his ex is giving us a hard time. I can't really blame her, though. And there's also that thing about the students at school. They're all so scared about what happened to Hayner. They all think it's going to happen to someone else, since there's also that kid who lost his powers. Things are crazy."

"I bet they are," the brunet agreed, understanding the nurse's problem all too well.

"Thankfully, Squall is here with me. I just wish he were less enthusiastic when we're alone," the nurse complained again, frowning. "I won't keep up with him for too long. I'm so tired, Sora."

The teen made a face. "Please, I do not wish to talk about your sex life. It's just…weird. And disgusting."

That made Cloud laugh. "You're such a prude. It's a wonder how you're still a virgin when everyone in this school has already had sex at least once."

"Well, sorry I'm not a whore," Sora spat, clearly angry at what Cloud had said. "There are some people with morals, in case you didn't know."

"Come on, don't take it like that. I was just teasing you," the blond man told the younger. "In fact, I don't know that many kids that are as corrupted as I am." Cloud added a smirk, just for good measure.

"I'm not sure it's a good thing for them," Sora said, raising an eyebrow.

"You bet," Cloud replied, not even commenting the not-so-hidden comment Sora had made about him. "While we're talking about lovers and all that jazz, how about you?"

"What about me?" Sora repeated, tilting his head to the side.

"Well, do you have a significant other?"

The brunet just blinked at the blond.

"I'll take it as a "no". So, is there anyone you're interested in, then?"

"What's with those questions? Is there something you're not telling me?" Sora asked defensively. What was it with Cloud asking him about his private life, all of a sudden?

"Not really. I was just curious," the nurse replied, shrugging his shoulders. He lifted his eyes up to look at the small clock on his desk. "Would you look at that. It's almost time for you to go home."

Sora didn't wait another second. He packed his stuff, and left the nurse office. That conversation had been really awkward. Sora had never thought about other people as potential lovers, nor was he even thinking about having a girlfriend. He was fine by himself. For now, at least.

Sora tensed up when he saw the Pack walk in his direction, but he heaved a sigh of relief when the Werewolves passed without looking at him, but the brunet did feel someone grabbing his ass. He spun around, red in the face, and ready to yell at the culprit, but he found himself looking from one back to the other without knowing who had done it. Growling in frustration, the brunet stomped towards his locker and opened it with more force than necessary.

"Had a bad day?" Riku asked as he joined him, leaning on the locker next to his friend's.

"A jerk touched my butt, and I don't even know who did it," Sora complained, throwing his books inside the metal box. "I feel so violated."

"Violated? God, Sora, you're lucky you're not in my place. I think someone tried to grab my crotch right after lunch. I kind of avoided it, though."

"Werewolves in heat are so infuriating. I hope it'll be over soon."

"So do I," the Vampire replied, eying his friend from head to toes. "You look tired."

"What?" Sora asked, blinking a few times. "I'm not."

Riku kept talking, but the brunet didn't even hear the silver-haired teen. There was a loud buzz in his ears, and his surroundings were darkening until all Sora could see was darkness. He tried to look down at his raised hand, but he couldn't even see it. He raised his hand higher, until it touched his face. And he still couldn't see it.

"Sora, you okay?" The brunet heard Riku ask him. The Vampire was a bit worried.

"I can't see," Sora started lowly, a wave of panic slowly rising inside him. "I can't see!" He shouted this time. "What happened to me? I'm blind now!"

"Sora, calm down!" Riku told the brunet, grabbing him by the shoulders. Sora started violently at the touch and tried to look at Riku, but ended up looking above the other's shoulder. The Vampire looked behind him but saw no one. "Alright, we'll go see nurse Strife, okay? He should know what to do."

"But we left the infirmary at the same time. He's already gone from school. Oh my God, what will I do? I don't want to stay like this!" Sora exclaimed, frightened.

Riku was also beginning to panic at that point. He didn't know what to do, and Sora wasn't calming down one bit. The last thing they both needed was Sora having a panic attack and collapsing right there. It looked like they were both in luck, though. Riku saw Olette walking towards them, a frown on her face.

"What's going on? I heard cries," the kind girl asked them.

"Olette? Is that you?" Sora asked, turning around and almost facing the brunette. "Please, I need your help," he added, taking a step forward, only to have Riku tugging him back to prevent him from hitting the lockers.

"Sora, that's some strong spell that was cast on you," Olette made known, frowning. "Who did it?"

The boys had an idea about who could have cast the spell, but they couldn't say it. Olette would never believe them, any way.

"I don't know," Sora lied easily.

The brunette wasn't convinced, but she didn't ask any more questions. Olette took Sora's hand in hers, and closed her eyes. Riku stood next to them, and waited patiently, watching Sora shift his weight from one foot to the other every so often, and Olette concentrate on using her powers. Time seemed to stretch while she did her best. After what felt like hours – that were just minutes – the teenage girl let go of Sora and took a step back.

"I'm sorry, I can't help you. That spell is too strong for me," she apologized, clearly sorry.

"Do you think it'll last long?" Riku asked timidly, voicing the question Sora was silently asking himself.

"I'm not sure. Curses usually last for a few hours at most, but some of them can take days to wear off. I haven't heard of curses lasting for longer than that," Olette explained.

"Asking dad would be better," Riku thought.

"Thank you for your help, Olette," the silver-haired teen said politely, giving the girl a small smile.

He led Sora outside the school building, and held onto him firmly when they had to walk down the front steps. The brunet didn't complain, and even took hold of his friend's arm.

"Now, we know one thing," Sora began, his eyes looking straight in front of him but seeing nothing. It was hard for Riku to look at him with the blank look Sora had. It was almost as if he wasn't feeling anything any more; but Riku knew it wasn't the case. Only his friend's sightless eyes gave that impression.

"And that's?" The Vampire asked, heaving a silent breath of relief when they made it to the last step without falling.

"Ansem's not after me," the brunet said.

Riku raised an eyebrow, confused. "Hello? He probably cast that spell on you."

"No, he wasn't targeting me. He tried to touch you, remember?"

"You mean that's when he..?"

Sora frowned. "I had a bad feeling then, that's why I stood before you, so that he couldn't touch you. That spell was meant for you."

The Vampire's eyes widened considerably. That explained why Sora thought Ansem was after him, but not the man's intentions. Or motives. Why would Ansem target Riku? Wasn't he supposed to be after Sora?

"Supposed" was the key word. They had no proof that it was true. They didn't even know why the Ghoul would want to hurt Sora. Sure, the man was probably related to the brunet's grandmother, but why would he want to hurt her grand-child?

"You know, Riku," Sora began slowly, letting his friend take his arm to lead him in the busy streets. "Right now, I feel like I could fall off a cliff, and think it's alright."

Riku rolled his eyes. "Feeling suicidal, now? Come on, you'll see again soon, I promise."

"No, that's not what I meant," the brunet replied, shaking his head quickly. "I mean that it's a hard blow, but I still think I can make it. Maybe… Maybe I'm stronger now. You know, when you fall, all you can do is stand up again, right?"

"But you'd die if you fell off a cliff."

Sora smacked Riku's arm. "Don't be such a jerk! I'm trying to cheer myself up here!"

The Vampire was about to laugh, but the happy feeling died down when he noticed how down Sora seemed to be. Riku figured he was still in shock after what had happened to him.

"I'll really see again, right?" The brunet asked, his voice trembling slightly.

Riku sighed softly, and let go of the other teen's arm. Sora panicked for a second, only to freeze when he felt strong arms wrapping around his shoulders.

"Of course. We'll find something," Riku whispered, leaning his chin on the top of the younger's head. "Don't be scared, okay? You're not alone here. You have friends."

Friends… That sounded so nice. In Twilight Town, Sora had a small family, and a circle of friends who cared about him. Even Riku, who he used to hate, had managed to befriend him. He was even hugging him right now.

Sora blushed profusely as realization hit him, stepping back to free himself from the embrace.

"Err, we should go, right? Our families will be worried if we get home late," Sora said quickly, fumbling with the straps of his backpack.

Riku could only smile at the cute display, and nodded in agreement, voicing it when he remembered Sora couldn't see him. The silver-haired teen walked the younger home, going as far as to open the door for him – but only after Sora told him he didn't have to knock. Roxas was the first to see them and realize something was wrong with his twin. Sora then understood he couldn't keep the truth from his brother for much longer. Roxas would eventually learn everything anyway.

Sora asked the two others to go in the living room so they could have some privacy – Tifa was in her bedroom – and talk more freely.

"Sora, you're walking really funny, you know," the brunet heard Axel say, jumping from surprise. "Whoa, easy here. It's only me."

"Sorry, I didn't hear you before," Sora apologized, sitting on the sofa with the help of Riku.

"Who did that to you?" Roxas asked, quickly understanding what had happened to his brother. He guessed the brunet couldn't see, and that only a spell could have caused it since Sora didn't have any visible injuries.

"Ansem," Sora replied, not beating around the bush. "You know, that new professor."

"Him? Come on, Sora, he's a Cursed. He can't possibly-"

"He is not a Cursed. Right, Roxas?" Sora cut the Chocobo off. The blond nodded in agreement. "Only Roxas and I can feel it, but his aura isn't one we know of. Riku's dad thinks Ansem's a Ghoul."

"A Ghoul?" The Werewolf repeated slowly.

"Someone who can steal others' powers. Their existence was considered to be nothing but a legend until Ansem showed up," Riku explained instead of Sora.

"Are you sure of this?" Axel asked, frowning.

"Yes. I can feel Hayner's aura mixed with his. That is how I understood how he could have lost his ability so suddenly," Sora said slowly, wary of his twin's reaction.

Roxas' eyes widened, and he clenched his fists to the point his knuckles turned white.

"Sora didn't want to tell you because he was afraid you might do something stupid," Riku said before the blond teen could ask any questions. "Please, do not be angry with him. Or at least, not just him. I knew but didn't tell you either."

No one talked for a long while, everyone waiting for the others' reactions. When it was painfully obvious no one wanted to talk, Roxas heaved a long sigh, and decided he couldn't bear the heavy atmosphere any longer.

"So, that guy's targeting you, and made you go blind, right?" The blond asked slowly.

"Actually, I believe he's after Riku," Sora replied. "Ansem tried something funny, but I kind of stood between them, and his spell was cast on me instead."

"No way," Axel whispered, raising his eyebrows. "You tried to protect a Vampire?"

"Cut it out," Riku intervened, surprising everyone in the room. "We'd better think of a way to get rid of the bastard, or he might keep stealing everyone's abilities."

"Especially yours it seems," Sora said. "But what powers do Vampires have that could interest him?"

"None, and that is what is really fishy," the silver-haired boy answered, thinking. "Being a Vampire is nothing but trouble, if you ask me."

It was true. Who would want to almost go insane at the sight of a neck during those weeks Vampires couldn't resist their instincts? And if it wasn't that, it was being bored during those long nights with no open stores, or nothing to watch on TV. It was no wonder Riku got such good grades at school. He was so bored he studied. How sad was that? And Ansem wanted to be a Vampire?

What a joke.

"I say we forget about that for now. We'll continue this talk when everyone has calmed down," Axel stated. "Sora looks like a good night's sleep would do him good."

"You bet," the brunet replied, scratching the back of his head as if he were ashamed to admit he was tired. Being so scared had drained him of all of his energy, and he was feeling it now. Part of Sora's shame also came from letting Riku down for now, but he didn't realize it.

"Alright. I'll be heading home, then. See you guys tomorrow," the Vampire said, turning around and walking towards the front door.

"Yeah. Be careful," Roxas told him, watching his friend leave with a confident expression on his face.

The blond heaved a long sigh. Things had taken such a wrong turn. How could something so crazy be happening so close to him? It just wasn't possible.

Little did he know things would get worse very quickly…

xx—xx—xx

Argh, writing this was so difficult! D: I'm still not satisfied with this chapter, but if I wait until I am, it might take months before you read it. Sorry if you thought it sucked. =x (and for the long wait) Err, well, that's it. I've got nothing to say this time…^__^;