Entwined Destinies
By Solange MacLeod
A/N: The sky is blue and the sun is shining, so BE HAPPY! (Sorry, random anti-emo moment. O.o; ) Right then, here's chapter six - hope you guys enjoy. ...For some reason, when I write this fic, I always taste peanut butter in my mouth and/or feel like there's a lump of it sticking in my throat.
Disclaimer: Riku, Kairi, and Sora DO NOT BELONG TO ME. Watage does not belong to me, she belongs to my beyond wonderful friend HP (known as Lady Lemonade on this website). Kyoki is copyright to my awesome wolfy friend Ayame Yaku Ikuyu, and Mokichi Imamura belongs to my friend Kewie. No stealing or I will come after you. Muahahahaha. The song that Solange and her friend are singing at the end of this chapter (in italics, yo),"Can't Letit Go,"belong to the Goo Goo Dolls.
Claimer: Ongereol, Ryushiimon, Yukimon, Kebekol, Adrian, Suzumi, Nanashi, Nameless, Zander, Selene, Lancer, Umeka, Solange, Sálvatien, Kanaye Segador, and Kasim are © to me, Solange MacLeod. You steal, you get sued. End of story.
Chapter Six
Return to Me Sálvatien
"Praise God!" Suzumi cried when they arrived home, throwing the umbrella in a random direction as she threw herself onto the ground, prostrating herself before… nothing, actually. "Praise You, for You have delivered me from the dumb blonde! Pinkie! Whatever the fuck she is!"
When Suzumi finally stopped praising the deity, she stood up, only to find Kairi staring white-faced at an equally white figure holding the discarded umbrella. Twirling it almost like a baton between her French-manicured nails, the Erinyes tilted her snake-haired head at Suzumi, giving a smile.
"I'm not God, but you can thank me anyway." Shrugging, she then beamed at Kairi, moving forward. The girl jumped aside for two reasons: one, this thing was creepy (she had five snakes in her hair and slit-pupilled eyes, for cripes sakes!), and two, the pointy end of the umbrella was aimed at her stomach. Tossing it aside, the white figure, who was of the Erinyes (or Fury) race, managed to snare Kairi in a hug, squeezing her tight.
"I'm so sorry I wasn't here to greet you when you arrived! Kairi, correct?" It wasn't certain whether the female's terrified nod registered in the Erinyes's mind or not, but she continued, "Kairi! Welcome, welcome."
Suzumi growled, "Sálvatien, get the hell away from her. Don't give me this shit now." Contrary to her bold words, the yami was standing a safe five meters away from the Fury, her eyes narrowed.
"But I'm not giving you shit. I'm not giving anyone shit."
"Leave her the fuck alone!" Dashing toward the two quickly, Suzumi grabbed the Destiny Islander and ran upstairs, not wanting to chance an encounter with Sálvatien. Cocky as the yellow/red-haired one was, she wasn't nearly stupid enough to provoke the Fury. Ignoring said creature's cheery 'See you two later!', Suzumi hauled Kairi inside her room, grabbing her by the shoulders and putting her face close to the other's.
"Whatever the hell you do here, don't ever get stuck alone with that bitch."
"N-nani…? You were with m—"
"STOP BEING A DUMB SHIT AND LISTEN TO ME! She won't hesitate to kill you for shits and giggles, trust me." Snorting caustically, the yami cast an anxious look at the locked door before resuming her warnings. "I don't know if you know what a Fury is—"
"I—"
"Didn't I just tell you to stop being a dumb shit!" Suzumi smacked Kairi forcefully across the face, earning a terrified yelp and the tearing-up of blue eyes. "LISTEN TO ME! They're punishers of sinners. She'll come after you if she gets interested in you. That's why you can't be left alone with her, you fuckin' understand me? If she's alone with you, that'll give her time to interrogate you, and get interested in you! Understand me, dammit!"
Tears running down her cheeks, Kairi nodded wordlessly, eyes downcast.
Suzumi pushed her away roughly and said, "Get out of my Goddamn room, bitch." The girl obeyed as if she'd been waiting all her life for the command, stumbling down the stairs as fast as she could. Hearing Sálvatien's voice again, she flattened herself against a wall, listening petrified.
"Umeka-chan, I'm going to find Watage, okay? Tell Sachiko where I went."
"Will do," was the mild reply, and the Destiny Islander thought she heard the sound of boots being put on a wooden surface, like a table.
"Bye, then!"
"Adieu."
Hearing a loud crack, as of a door being slammed, Kairi inched towards where she thought Umeka was, then froze.
"Sora!" she squeaked. "Oh my gosh… Riku…" She clapped her hands over her mouth, and Umeka cocked her head at her, brow furrowing.
"What about them?"
"Oh—They're—they're not here! They weren't—they never came in—Oh no!" Her hands moved to cover her face, and she started sobbing again.
Umeka shook her head, looking exasperated and amused. "They couldn't have gone far. We've got barriers all over the place. C'mon, let's go find them." She grabbed one of Kairi's hands and pulled her out the door; with her other hand, the older woman took her cell phone out of her pocket and started dialing Solange's number. One of us might as well know where everyone is, anyway...
Riku and Sora were, as it happened, not lost at all, thanks to the help of a leopard anthro and monkey demon. They had wandered off-course, but they were found, and now being led back. The rain had stopped falling, and a timid sun was sidling out from behind the rain clouds, making everything glisten.
"You're staying with Solange?" The leopard – Kasim's – voice, Sora thought, was what a canyon might sound like if one were ever granted the gift of speech: exceptionally deep, resonant, and detached in a mysterious, intriguing way. It was so deep it almost hurt the human's ears, in a way. It made him want to shake his head and rub his ears, that was for sure.
"Y…yes," the brunette replied haltingly as the monkey turned, leading them down the street that went to the falcon's home. Kyoki was the primate's name, and he wore tight flared pants held up by a rainbow belt, and an exotic, beaded shirt as a top.
"You poor things. That place is a nuthouse," Kyoki said, sighing with pity as he rolled his eyes. Kasim's mouth twitched into a small smile at this, although Riku viewed it as more of a smirk than anything else. The leopard anthro had dark, golden-brown skin with even darker spots, and long black hair that framed his face and arched over his shoulders. Standing at 6'1", he slightly intimidated the silver-haired one, even though he obviously meant the Islanders no harm. Sora laughed a little at the monkey's comment as he walked, looking up at Kyoki, obviously interested in him.
"Are you from around here?" the blue-eyed male asked, blinking.
"Nope. We're both from Ecittal," the older one told him, gesturing to Kasim as he spoke.
"Where's that?" Riku asked, his tone rather rude, but unintentionally so.
"It's a different dimension. On the Transdime – a train that goes through dimensions – it only takes five minutes to get there," Kyoki answered, looking at his leopard companion questioningly, and received a nod in confirmation. Sora glanced up at Riku at hearing the reply, and he saw they were thinking the same thing: could they use that Transdime thing to get home? Kyoki yawned, his tail twitching, and Kasim's eyes immediately flickered over to it, watching it intently as a housecat will a string. Riku's brow furrowed, misinterpreting where the feline was looking, and he glanced away, flustered. Sora, for his part, was confused why his best friend was blushing (although he found it cute).
"Soraaaaaaaaa!"
Riku's eye twitched at the voice, wanting to plug his ears, take said blue-eyed boy, and run far away. But he was no match for the speed of an impassioned woman, and he was forced to sit through the torture of Kairi clinging to his brunette and wailing about how she was so scared, was he all right, and when could they go home.
"Solange's been pretty nice to let you stay at our home," Umeka told the girl halfway through the tirade, eyebrows raised. Umeka was one of the more lenient people living with Solange, but ungrateful brats rubbed her the wrong way nonetheless.
"Huh? ...Oh..."
Ignoring the uncomfortable silence, Riku watched Kasim's head flick back and forth as he followed Kyoki's tail. The monkey was giving him a weird look, but it turned affectionate as he walked over and leaned into the cat's side, saying something in a loving voice. Kasim's eyes widened a bit at this, but he smiled, leaning down and kissing the primate's ear, earning himself a blush and a clinging hug. Sora'd probably do that if I kissed him. Riku didn't even noticed the thought, but his eyes grew somewhat sad as he watched the loving couple. But I probably never will.
Probably? Something inside him asked.
Distracting him from the inner voice calling his bluff, Umeka waved them all towards the house. After Sora (and Riku, with prodding) thanked their leopard and primate escorts, they went inside again, sighing with relief. That heat was relentless. Sora glanced at Riku, and noticing the sweat on his muscled upper arms, flushed as he asked, "Riku, do you need a drink?"
A short pause elapsed, and then a shake of a silver-haired head and a "No thanks" answered him. Giving a sigh, the brunette rolled his eyes and muttered under his breath as he went to get one for himself and Kairi. Umeka had sat down in her kitchen chair again, and was yawning as she stared up at the ceiling. When Sora came in to get the drinks, she glanced at him, asking, "Do you know what a movie is?"
He shook his head no, and she explained to him slowly what one was. When he halfway understood it (and given Kairi her drink before she started whining), she offered, "We can have a movie night if you guys want." Eager to see what a movie really looked like, Sora accepted, taking a swig of his water.
"Thank you... for the movies, but for letting us stay here, I mean."
Umeka smiled.
"That's nice of you, but I'm not the one to thank, even if I am technically a part of Sachiko. A small part, but a piece nonetheless." She patted his shoulder gently and headed upstairs. Sora walked back into the living room to join his friends, and two minutes later, the front door swung open to reveal Solange, Adrian, and two new people. Sora blinked at them, wondering who these visitors were. One was a 6'2", tanned, dark-haired and –eyed male with keys dangling from one hand. Holding his other hand was another guy, probably around 5'9", wearing very bright, but undoubtedly masculine, clothing. He too had dark skin – darker than the first one's – and near-black eyes that shone with curiosity, then widened to twice their normal size when he saw who was on the couch.
"Sora? Riku-san!"
"Long story short, they literally dropped in on us and they're staying with us until we can get them home," Solange said, shaking herself off and wiping some wet hair out of her face. "If anyone cares to know, the van got picked up by a tow truck and Adrian and I walked home, and we... er... found these two."
"Triangle button?" Umeka grinned, descending the stairs again. Mokichi looked confused, and the older woman said, "You've obviously never read Only Axel by Lady Lemonade on Fanfiction dot net."
Solange cleared her throat, trying to suppress the amused smile that was twisting her mouth. "So, here we are. I hear we're watching RENT?"
"Yep," Umeka verified, and popped the DVD in.
An hour later, Solange's attention had wandered to her headphones, which were hooked over her ears and attached to a portable CD player. Drool was slowly dripping from the corner of her crazily grinning mouth, and she giggled stupidly every few seconds, her eyes crossed. Riku slowly looked from her, to Sora, and decided it would be best to get out of here. He looked around from him. Umeka was wrapped up in the movie, and so, sadly, was the brunette. Riku sighed, stretching out his legs, which got Mokichi's attention. The dark-skinned teenager had situated himself in Kanaye's lap, and looked up from the comfortable spot to smile at the video game character.
"Have you seen the stars here yet?" he asked, and Riku raised a brow at him.
"...Huh?"
"Well, maybe they're different from the ones in your world. You should go check. Sora-kun, have you seen them?"
"Huh?" the blue-eyed boy asked, looking up from watching a strawberry-blonde man dance on a table in the middle of the Life Café.
Kanaye laughed, and Mokichi kicked his ankle, though his face showed that was trying not to snicker himself. The two were adorable.
"Hee. Go outside and look," the Egyptian said, winking. "They're pretty."
Solange's left (still crossed) eye twitched as she watched a very confused, but compliant Sora follow Riku outside into her backyard.
"Shonen-ai," she muttered under her breath, the pupils of her eyes shrinking when she dissolved into insane cackles. Riku hurriedly shut the door behind them, and seated themselves on a cushioned swing on the rough grass. The two were silent for a while, observing the night skies, finding differences and similarities between these and their home's heavens.
"Riku, those are the same," Sora told his friend, pointing at Orion, and then the two Dippers. The silver-haired boy nodded.
"I can't find any other ones that look similar," Riku admitted, shrugging, and watched the smaller one as he yawned. "Tired?" he asked, a smile playing around his lips. The brunette smiled in return, sheepishly.
"Yeah, I guess." Another twenty minutes passed, Riku crossing then untangling his legs every so often, but never looking away from Sora, who was looking sleepier by the minute. He'd yawn about once every two minutes (or so Riku calculated), but for the most part, it was friendly silence in which they rested. Another ten minutes of stargazing and small talk passed, and Riku noticed that his younger friend was literally nodding off, his head falling gradually forward and then jerking up in succession.
"Sora?" he asked quietly, leaning toward him. His green eyes shot open when the brunette took the opportunity to lay his head on the lighter-haired boy's shoulder. "...Sora?"
"Riku, have you ever held a star?"
The older one's jaw worked a few times, and a flush spread over his cheeks.
"I... U—"
"You should," Sora murmured as his eyes drooped fully shut. His next statement was a murmur, rendered almost incomprehensible by the sleep that thickened his voice. "They'd match your hair."
Riku stared at the now-asleep Sora, his mouth open, poised to say something, but in the end, he couldn't speak at all. His mouth closed, and his lips pressed together as he tried to relax. His muscles refused to relax, though, and he remained rigid for a few more moments. Sora... would you do this...
"Half the world is sleeping while the other half dreams. You close your eyes and then you're gone." Riku blinked, momentarily distracted by Solange and another male voice he couldn't identify, singing from inside the house. "And maybe my intentions have been misunderstood... I know you feel so beautifully wronged."
The Destiny Islander swallowed, and chanced a look at Sora. He was immediately glad he did, but at the same time he wished he didn't, because it made everything he'd tried to deny as wrong rise up inside and tear at his heart, telling him to do something. How could he not? Disbelieving, his hands shook by his sides as he took in Sora's sleeping face. How could a fifteen-year-old boy, hardly 5'3" and almost never fast enough to beat him in a simple race over a beach, make his heart throb twice its normal speed and his willpower so weak? It didn't make sense, but Riku prayed that there was a reason for it. He hoped that sometime Sora would lean on him when he was awake.
"And some days I can't believe; others I'm on my knees hoping I belong."
He clenched his jaw.
"I was your anger and you were my fear."
He put his arm cautiously around Sora's back and his hand on the brunette's waist, resting it there. His eyes winced, almost expecting the spiky-haired boy to wake up and demand to know what he was doing, but in a second they were normal again, if glistening.
"And now that it's over, of course it's so clear."
He put his head on Sora's, leaning on him gently. He thought he could feel his insides squirming with his joy, and he closed his eyes, trying to ignore everything and focus on Sora. That proved to be no problem at all, and his jaw relaxed into a small smile. After what could have either been an hour or a minute – Riku had no idea – he stood up wordlessly, Sora in his arms, his eyes neutral and body tense again. Somehow opening the door, he stepped inside.
"And can't we try to win this peace? 'Cause we're never gonna w—" Solange stopped singing, and a second after, so did the black-haired boy sitting beside her. "Hey, Riku," she greeted, her eyes flicking over his face and then to Sora. Afraid she'd pick up on something, he hurriedly nodded and said, "He fell asleep. Can I put him in someone's bed for now?"
Umeka nodded, waving her hand towards the ceiling. "You can stick him in mine. My room's the second door on the left when you get upstairs." Riku muttered a 'thank you,' then climbed the stairs, careful not to jar his human cargo. He put him just as tenderly down on Umeka's purple-covered queen bed, pulling the covers up to his neck. He sighed raggedly when he looked at the sleeping one's face, and sat down, leaning against the side of the bed.
'Sora... I lied. I have held a star. Tonight.'
Riku closed his eyes, not sleeping but not awake, and imagined he still held it, one hand on his waist and the other on Sora's knee.
A/N: Finished the chapter, at long last. Xx; Happy, Rin? xD I kid. Enjoy. The next chapter will probably be one of the final ones, so requests for occurrences/appearances in the fic are up now. If it's reasonable and within character, you might see it happen. :) I love you all!