Riku felt awful.
He sat in his bedroom, like he had been all day. He could not tell how long he had been sitting on the edge of his bed with his head in his hands, but in all honesty he hardly cared. The curtains were drawn shut, the windows hadn't been opened. The air was stuffy and hot, but much preferable to the alternative. Opening the curtain meant letting the light in, and light created shadows. The last thing Riku wanted to see right now was shadows.
It was irrational and he knew it. He'd have to face the natural darkness of night eventually, just like he had last night, but to his great relief that darkness had had nothing wrong with it. It was just dark. It was nothing like the other darkness.
He just didn't seem to be able to forget that other darkness, the one that had opened up and swallowed him whole on Monday night. Of course it was Thursday afternoon now, but it hardly felt like time had passed at all. He had seen things in the darkness; seen himself betraying Sora, fighting against him with a body that was not his own, using the darkness itself as a weapon. Always with the darkness. The corrosive kind, the darkness that just felt evil. Worst of all, and the part that had him still shut in his room, was that he could still feel that darkness. It felt acidic inside him, bubbling just beneath his skin and threatening to corrode his heart. He knew it was the very same darkness that had stolen him away, but he dared not wonder why it was so easily resting inside him. How could it be real at all? Why was it happening to him of all people? Riku didn't think he deserved any of it.
But he could not face Sora, not like this. He felt... corrupted. As if he could destroy an entire field of livestock just by touching a blade of grass. How could he ever face Sora again, feeling like this?
Even as he dwelt on his thoughts he could feel the darkness inside him joining together. It surged and rose, clawing its way upwards and eventually forming a distinct figure in his mind. It looked like a man, a man with dark skin and yellow eyes, with white hair sweeping backwards across his head like waves before tumbling down to his waist. He wore strange clothing too; an odd plated black coat with white gloves, though the coat turned to white half way down and flared out around his heavy black boots.
There was something about the figure that completely terrified Riku. He seemed familiar, and he seemed evil. That was not a combination that Riku particularly liked at all. He wanted it out, he wanted it gone! In a panic he fought the figure in his mind, threw himself against it and tried to force it away. To his horror it didn't work. With each mental blow it seemed to grow bigger, stronger, becoming more defined and... laughing. Laughing at him, he was sure.
He didn't notice anything else at first, but he soon became aware of a slight swirling inside his room. 'Swirling' was the only word he could think of for it, as in truth it was purely beyond description. The air turned and twisted, taking shape and finally forming into the same man Riku had seen in his mind. Riku could feel the darkness growing inside him, he could feel it resonating with the man before him. He was standing quite clearly in his room now, flexing his hands and grinning at Riku like a demented madman. Riku was starting to panic. Whatever this was it could hardly be good. The other man folded his arms across his chest. He sneered at Riku.
Riku lashed out unthinkingly, striking the figure with his fist. The man vanished at his touch as if he had never been there at all, but Riku could still feel it inside him. He grunted and sank to the floor. It was too strong, but he had to keep fighting it. If he gave up it would consume him completely-
Don't fight it.
Riku was very still, trying to hear who had spoken. When nothing else came, he tried talking back to it. What?
Don't fight the darkness, Riku. The darkness is a part of you, you have to accept it to be who you are.
But how can I face my friends like this? he asked it furiously.
Like this.
Riku's mind was filled with the sudden mental image of Sora making a completely inappropriate silly face. Despite the sheer panic he was feeling he couldn't help but snort with laughter, just a little. It felt completely out of place in this situation, but he couldn't help it. It made him feel... warmer.
You don't have to face the darkness alone. Don't fight, but accept it, control it, and use it to help your friends. They are your friends for a reason.
Riku sat on the floor for a long moment, thinking that over. The voice... he couldn't tell if it was a real voice or just a memory of one- or if there had really been a voice at all- but it was right. This darkness ... he could feel it swelling, inside him. Fighting it could mean fighting himself forever, an unending battle against his very nature that he could hardly hope to win. But if he accepted it...
It hardly seemed the right thing to do. Emotions flooded over him at just the thought. Fear. Shame. Guilt. But why? The darkness certainly seemed evil, but he could not say why. Did using the darkness automatically make him a bad person? Riku wasn't so sure any more. There were those that might use it for evil, but Riku knew he didn't have the moral integrity of a villain. Perhaps he could use it for something else. He wouldn't be a bad person then, would he? Did using the darkness taint him just by association, or would it work in other ways?
He tried it. It was very slow at first. The darkness would creep closer to his heart, and Riku would panic and push it away, sweating profusely. It was terrifying. But he had no choice, not if he wanted to move away from this and actually leave his room again. The darkness never receded when he pushed it away, and he soon had it up next to his heart. He closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. This was it. He embraced the darkness, and it enveloped his heart.
Nothing happened. He had been expecting something climactic upon achieving that but his heart felt the same. The darkness flowed inside him, but he wasn't afraid of it anymore. It wasn't corrosive, it was just... there. But there was more to it than that. The darkness moved inside him, and even as it flowed he could feel parts where the darkness did not touch. Something else was inside him just as much as the darkness was. Was it... light?
Riku slowly got to his feet, staggering slightly. He looked to the mirror. He looked just the same as ever, that was certain. His nineteen year old self stared back at him. He looked haggard, and tired, but at the very least he still looked human. Maybe the darkness really hadn't changed anything after all. He pushed his platinum hair aside and inspected his eyes closely. They were still green. Riku didn't let himself sigh in relief, but he was very close to it. He got to his feet and pushed open his curtains.
It was darker outside than he had expected. The sun was gone and the moon was shining dimly in the sky. With surprise Riku realised that he actually felt quite good now. Now that his own personal dilemmas had subsided he very much felt like he could partake in his normal life again. A touch of normality would be very welcome after these last few days. It had certainly taken him long enough.
Riku left his room. He hesitated in the hallway, mulling over which of his friends he should try to find first. Sora came to mind immediately, the thought bringing with it a flash of guilt over its sheer immediacy. There had been that one thing he had been trying to tell Sora the other night, out in the backyard. That felt like so long ago now. With a shake of his head he banished his thoughts of that. He turned and walked towards the lounge, more as a compromise than anything else. Both Sora and Kairi had an equal chance of being in there, so he didn't feel as bad. Funny, how something so small could seem important after facing that darkness just moments ago. Life could never just be simple now could it?
As it turned out Sora was the only one in the lounge. In fact, Sora was currently splayed across the couch, clearly sleeping and just verging on the edge of snoring. He looked so peaceful Riku could hardly believe it. All his struggle with darkness hadn't touched the world around him, not in any way at all. It was a surprise to see that everything had been so normal, so unaffected, in the meantime. Sora himself looked like he could have simply slept through the last three days.
Of course, Riku knew that he hadn't. Sora hadn't exactly taken the silent treatment easily, but Riku just hadn't been able to face Sora, not with the darkness. It wasn't such a threat now, though, and it was past time for an apology.
Riku walked over to the couch and watched Sora sleep. He was still so peaceful. Maybe it could wait 'till later. He didn't really want to wake Sora when he looked that pleasant.
Yet, upon closer inspection, Sora wasn't really looking all that happy. His face seemed confused almost, or strained. He mumbled something in his sleep but Riku didn't catch what it was. Was he sleeping peacefully? Perhaps it was a nightmare. Were you supposed to wake people up from nightmares, or were you supposed to leave them alone? Riku couldn't remember.
For just a moment Riku considered the possibility that Sora was having bad dreams because he himself had entered the room. He pushed those thoughts away furiously. No, he wasn't going to doubt himself like that. He would do what he could for his friends, and Sora was most definitely his friend.
Riku knelt down next to the couch.
"Sora," he said, his voice quiet.
Sora promptly snorted and rolled over. Elegantly put, as always.
Riku cleared his throat. There was no response from Sora this time. Riku vaguely considered trying to shake Sora awake, but he hardly thought that would go down well. To wake up with someone's hands all over you was hardly a pleasant surprise, especially when you were mad at the person who had just woken you up. Yes, that was surely the reason. Surely. Riku simply rejected any thoughts that said there might be another reason for why he wanted to touch Sora. Still, he could compromise.
Riku poked Sora's shoulder gently. Sora still didn't respond. He poked him harder, but there was still nothing. Riku was not set to give up that easy though. Leaning closer, he put his face close to Sora's and spoke.
"Sora." Sora vaguely mumbled. Progress. Riku cleared his throat.
"SORA!"
Sora's eyes flew open. Then he screamed.
Very satisfied with himself, Riku drew himself back away from Sora and sat on the floor. As Sora's face slowly lost its bewilderment Riku had to resist the temptation to smile. It was just like when they were kids.
"Glad you could join us, lazy bum."
Sora held a hand to his forehead and dropped back onto the couch. Riku was instantly worried.
"Are you okay?"
"No," Sora replied. "This... this huge, black THING swallowed me up!" Sora waved his arms to emphasise. "I couldn't breathe, I couldn't..." He trailed off there, looking extremely confused. Riku was quite confused himself.
"You're okay now," Riku said, trying to reassure him without seeming too obvious. He very much resisted the temptation to finish that sentence with 'because I'm here.' He changed tactic."It was just a dream."
"It wasn't a dream!" Sora insisted. "Or was it? I don't know." Sora shook his head in thought. "What was that place...? So bizarre." All of a sudden Sora sat up looking incredibly surprised. "Wait, you're talking to me now?"
"Oh, very astute," Riku retorted, getting to his feet. After a moment he offered Sora his hand. Sora strangely grabbed his hand immediately, looking almost scared when he did so. Riku tried not to think too far into that and pulled him to his feet. Sora smiled out of embarrassment and rubbed the back of his head with his other hand, not quite meeting Riku's eyes. Then he remembered to let go of Riku's hand, blushing even harder.
Riku pretended to ignore Sora's embarrassment by looking casually out the window. In truth he was extremely intrigued. He'd have to watch for any other odd behaviour before making any assumptions though, and that aside, he still had to apologise. But as he opened his mouth to do so he caught sight of something from the corner of his eye. He looked further out the window, out into the night, but there was nothing out of the ordinary outside. What had it been? He'd only seen a white blur.
Riku looked at Sora to find him adjusting his spiky hair in the mirror on the wall. Sora being self-conscious? Well, that was new.
"Sora," Riku began, but he wasn't quite sure how to continue. Sora was looking at him now, though, eyes filled with curiosity. "I, uh... I want to apologise. For ignoring you." He pointedly didn't look at Sora after that.
But when Sora didn't say anything Riku was eventually forced to look back. Sora wasn't quite meeting his eyes. Perhaps he'd offended Sora more than he thought.
"Sora I-"
"Tell me what it was, Riku."
Riku was taken aback. Sora's eyes were fierce. He had his hands balled up into fists. He looked practically confrontational. Riku felt even guilty. Sora really had been worried.
Riku took a step back so he could lean against the wall, his arms folded against his chest. "It's hard to explain."
"Try me," Sora replied.
"I'm not sure you'll believe me. I might sound crazy."
"I told you about my dream, didn't I?"
Riku couldn't help but snort with laughter. "That wasn't exactly a detailed account, Sora."
"Heeey," Sora complained, pouting earnestly. "I was being very serious."
Riku stayed silent for a moment, but he finally relented. He did want to talk about it after all. It was just hard to find the words for it. It had haunted him and him alone, he'd never stopped to put words to what he was feeling. Sharing it with someone just made it seem that much more real. But then again, it was all over now, wasn't it? And he could trust Sora. Sora was... well, he was Sora.
So he told him. Riku described as much as he could, leaving out a few of the details that seemed too dark or too crazy, but the story was essentially the same. Sora was a good listener when he put his mind to it, really, or perhaps he just caught onto the mood of the whole ordeal. Riku had to admit, it wasn't exactly light stuff. Quite the opposite, by definition.
At the end of it Sora was leaning up against the wall next to Riku, silently nodding along with the last details of what had happened in the room. As the story ended Riku tried to force a laugh. The mood was a bit tense.
"Sounds crazy, huh?"
Sora shook his head. For a wonder, he seemed to understand the gravity of it all. Sora believed him, believed every word. Something inside Riku was beaming at that, he could feel it. It definitely wasn't the darkness.
"That day," Sora began to say. He trailed off for a moment before trying again. "The first day you were gone, you didn't mention that much." Sora had his hands up behind his head again, in that way he always did. "I saw you."
"You saw me what?" Riku asked.
"I saw you, up in town. You just... appeared, on the road. And then you were gone again." Riku frowned at that. "There was darkness too," Sora added. "I didn't know what it was, but it makes sense now."
"I don't remember much about that part," Riku admitted. "After I first disappeared..." Riku sought the words. "Well, it was very dark. For quite a while too. I don't remember how much of it there was until I finally came back."
Sora was quiet after that. Riku could hardly blame him. He didn't quite know what to say about it either. He glanced at Sora out of the corner of his eye and found Sora watching him right back. Sora looked away quickly, and blushed, but Riku had seen it. Sora wasn't... afraid of him, was he? It was possible. Was Riku afraid of himself?
It was then that Riku caught another glimpse of something out of the corner of his eye. He looked out the window in time to see a strange white shape wiggle its way across the road, towards their house, just before it disappeared from view. It shouldn't have been that visible, being night as it was, but the white had stuck out against the black of everything else. Just... what had it been?
He tried to put it out of his mind as he turned back to Sora, but Riku found Sora staring out the window too.
"Was that a dog?" Sora asked.
Riku blinked. Had it been a dog?
"I dunno," Riku replied. "I don't think so."
Sora nodded, looking surprisingly determined. He pushed himself away from the wall and walked over to the window. Riku followed him. They watched the night outside for a while but nothing seemed to be moving outside. It seemed to be gone.
"Maybe it's-" Riku had begun to say, but he was immediately cut off when another white thing came into view. Riku could see it clearly this time. It was ever so faintly human shaped, but warped and twisted with a zip for a mouth. It wriggled in a disturbing manner across the road, much faster than it looked like it should be able to, and soon disappeared out of sight as well. There was no mistake about it though. It had been heading towards their house.
"What was that?" Sora asked, sounding both scared and alarmed. Riku wanted to answer, he truly did, but he had no idea. After his brush with darkness he wasn't exactly excited to see something else strangely unnatural so close to their house. From the sound of it Sora wasn't too thrilled either.
"That wasn't a darkness thing, was it?" Sora asked quietly. Riku shook his head, making his platinum hair swing. Sora gulped.
"Don't worry, Sora." Riku clenched his fist, trying not to sound as shaky as he felt. He could feel the darkness pulse within him when he clenched his fist, though. Strangely, Riku thought he knew how to use it. "I'll protect you."
By the look on his face Sora seemed strangely affronted at the idea, but before either one of them could say anything more a voice shattered their thoughts.
"Get away from the window!"
Riku spun around to find a strange man in the doorway to the lounge. He was tall with brown hair, was wearing a vest and had far too many belts to be sane. Most notably, however, was the sword in his hand. Well, a gun. A gun sword hybrid... thing.
There was no time for specifics. The man looked serious.
"Get back!" Riku called to Sora, putting himself between Sora and the intruder. If the man thought he could just barge in here and attack them he had another thing coming. Riku flexed his hands.
"Leon?" Sora asked in surprise.
Riku was confounded. "You know this guy?"
The strange man in question responded to neither of them, hurrying to the window. He looked outside briefly before drawing the curtains, gesturing for them to back away from the wall. They had no choice but to oblige.
Riku shot Sora a questioning look. Sora smiled in embarrassment, rubbing the back of his head again. "Kairi didn't happen to mention the crazy people to you, did she?"
Riku blinked. "What?"
"We're not that crazy," a feminine voice objected. Riku spun around once more to find someone else in the doorway. She wasn't nearly as tall. She had short black hair held back by a black headband, a black outfit that was very lacking in the sleeves-and-pants department, and knee high laced boots. She also carried a giant shuriken.
Crazy people was an understatement.
Riku looked at Sora again. Sora wilted.
"Don't worry," the new girl cried encouragingly. "You're in the hands of the Great Ninja Yuffie! You're perfectly safe." She smiled as if she meant it. Perhaps she did. Riku wasn't sure.
"Is the house secure?" the man apparently called Leon asked. The girl nodded with far too much enthusiasm.
Riku had had enough. If people were going to barge into their house they could at the very least include them in the discussion. You know, as long as Riku didn't decide to throw them out on sheer principal.
"What is this about?" he demanded.
Leon gave him a hard look. It was even more effective when Riku noticed the scar cutting across his face. "We don't have time to explain," he said flatly.
"Sure we do," the girl objected. She gestured grandly, pronouncing everything with far too much excitement. "Sora asked us to come, and so we came! Just in time too. Any longer and those things might have attacked."
"Things?" Sora asked.
"Nobodies," Leon growled. He folded his arms with his eyes closed. For a moment Riku didn't think he was going to say anymore, but then he continued. "Short white creatures that slither. We saw some on our way here."
"Oh!" Sora added, almost as excited as the girl had been. "That must have been what we saw cross the road, right Riku?"
Everyone looked at Riku then, expecting him to answer. Riku felt quite bewildered. With the darkness inside himself under control he had half-expected things to go back to the way they had before. Apparently he had been dead wrong. These people that Sora had called, Riku didn't trust them, not one bit.
But... he trusted Sora. If Sora thought he knew what he was doing, Riku would trust it. For now. As long as the strangers didn't seem dangerous Riku would go along with this, but the moment they threatened Sora they would get a fist full of darkness right where it hurt. Which was pretty much anywhere, really.
Leon was looking Sora up and down now, making Riku slightly wary.
"Where is it?" Leon asked eventually.
Sora blinked. "Where is what?"
"The Keyblade."
"The say what now?"
Leon's palm collided with his face with an audible slap.
"Calm down, Leon. They're just new to this stuff," the girl chirped in happily. She turned to Sora and Riku. "It's about this big," she gestured with her hands, "and looks like... well, a key. It looks like a giant key."
"I have no idea what you're talking about," Sora said, sounding confused. "You asked me about that the other day."
"Let's go, Yuffie," Leon grunted. Riku's head swivelled to look at him. "Clearly I was wrong. This isn't them."
"Wait! You can't just leave, you promised to help me with Riku!" Sora practically pled. Then he straightened, looked at Riku, blushed, and looked away. Riku wasn't sure what to make of that. Was that... because of the darkness? Sora had seen it before. Perhaps it was.
"We have no business here if you're not the Keyblade master," Leon muttered angrily. "We're wasting time."
"Leon's just jealous because he didn't get it," the girl, Yuffie, said to no-one in particular. She was grinning wide. "Isn't that right Leon?"
Leon didn't say anything to that. If anything, he looked even angrier. Well, if a stone could be said to get any angrier. His face certainly gave off all the emotion of a stone.
"We're leaving-"
"Oh, come now. Are you saying you don't remember him? You knew his name didn't you?" Yuffie pranced out in front of Leon, prodding his chest with the full force of her finger.
"It doesn't matter. It could easily just be the Pull."
"Which," Yuffie added smarmily, "would mean that he is indeed part of it all. Keyblade master or not, we knew him before. There is no running away from that, by the very definition of Pull theory."
"Um," Sora said elegantly. Riku barely hid a smile.
Yuffie spun to give them a surprised look, as if she had forgotten they were there. "Oh," she said finally, "It's like this. People from before, in the past life, all get drawn together again because of-"
She cut off abruptly as someone's phone began to ring. It was a very... victorious sounding ringtone. Leon waited until the second ring before digging a cellphone out of his pocket and answering. He didn't say anything, he only listened. Then he closed his eyes, clearly annoyed. He turned to Yuffie.
"She wants to know if you've seen Cloud."
Before Riku could even object to how little sense these people were making, the tinkling of breaking glass sounded throughout the house. Immediately Leon had his gun/sword/thing in hand, looking determined. Yuffie did the same with her monstrous shuriken, no longer smiling.
A very long moment passed where no-one moved. Well, almost no-one. Sora took half a step closer to Riku. He had been pretty close already. Riku didn't object.
Then everything burst into motion. A swerving white shape slithered in through the lounge doorway. Its movements jarred in Riku's vision, seeming awkward and graceful at the same time. It made a very distinctive warping sound as it moved. It had just enough time to stand up on its two misshapen legs before a small ball of fire flew from Leon's hand and hit it directly in the chest. It promptly exploded into nothing, leaving not a trace. Nothing in the house had been damaged by the heat either. The thing was just gone.
Riku felt a chill spread down his spine. To say this was unnatural would be the grossest understatement he had ever heard. It was downright insane, and yet he felt very much in danger. Just how many of those things could these two hold off? How many had Riku seen outside? How many had he not seen?
He didn't have much more time to think. Another 'nobody' slithered into the room and was quickly blown apart by another ball of fire, only seconds before another white shape wriggled right into the room. It made it half way across the carpet before Yuffie's giant shuriken sliced it into oblivion, making it disappear just as sure as the fire did. Yuffie promptly herded Riku and Sora into the far corner, away from the fray. It wasn't an overly big lounge. When Yuffie moved to pick up her oversized weapon Riku felt Sora step right up next to him, clearly leaning against him. Riku promptly wrapped his arm around Sora's shoulders. Protectively, he thought, but Riku truly felt like he needed protection himself. He clenched his other fist.
Three more shapes slithered in, making it into the very centre of the room before anyone could react. All three got to their feet, walking strangely on the spot as their heads twitched around freakishly. One promptly burst into flames and disappeared, the other ripped apart from the giant shuriken, just like before. Leon dashed forward to attack the third with his sword, but it slid out and away from him as easy as a slinky smothered in butter.
Riku was ready though. It slithered up the wall and stood upside down on the ceiling, its arms waving about madly. Riku felt the darkness surge inside him, a wave of acidic blackness, as he threw his hand out toward it. The nobody was immediately engulfed in darkness, going very stiff for an instant before disappearing altogether. Before Riku could be amazed at himself another nobody slid around the doorway. Its paper-like arms darted out, grabbed a framed picture off the wall, and quickly slithered back out. Riku was quite taken aback. But then again, why should that of all things surprise him? That they were thieves as well as deformed evil creatures, on top of everything else that had just happened?
Sora was clearly just as flabbergasted. "They took the _?"
Leon darted out into the kitchen with sword/thing in hand while Yuffie checked the windows. Riku just blinked at Sora. Oddly enough, he looked just as confused as Riku felt at his choice of words.
"What?"
"The _! They took the _!"
Riku squeezed Sora's shoulder. Maybe he was in shock. "Do you mean the _?" Riku's eyes bulged when he realised the word hadn't come out. "_? Why can't I say _?"
Leon dashed back into the room then. "They're gone," he said simply.
"Did they get what they came for?" Yuffie said.
Leon shook his head. "I don't know." He looked to Riku and Sora then. "What did they take?"
"A _," Sora answered. When Leon gave him an exasperated look Riku tried to clarify.
"It was just a... an old thing, of Sora, me, and Kairi."
At that, Leon looked to Yuffie, who looked back at Leon. "Where is she?" Leon asked.
"She's out," Sora replied, but Riku quickly shook his head. He had definitely heard her get home earlier. Sora must have been asleep by then.
"In her room," Riku said.
Leon ran out the door again. Sora moved to follow but Yuffie held out her hand to stop him. They waited for all of twenty seconds before Leon came back in the room, frowning. It was a small house, after all.
"She's gone," he said simply.
At once, Riku and Sora ran past him, bumping into each other as they hurried down the hallway, but sure enough, Kairi's room was empty. The window was smashed open, with glass lying across the carpet, but there wasn't a single sign of blood. There were bits of a broken chair scattered amongst the glass, though. Did the nobodies do that, or had Kairi fought back? She was hardly a pushover.
"Kairi," Sora murmured dejectedly. Riku hung his head. First him, and now Kairi. Whatever the hell was going on, it wasn't going for well for their trio.
After a moment Sora stepped close up to Riku again, and Riku wrapped his arm around him once more. Riku could nearly feel the sadness emanating from the guy.
"We'll get her back," Riku whispered to him. He meant it too. No matter what was going on, he very much intended to rescue Kairi. No matter what it took.
It was then that he noticed that something hard was bumping his leg, something cold and metallic. He looked down to see a long shiny object in Sora's hand. When had he picked that up?
Something clicked in his mind.
"Is that-?"
"The Keyblade," Leon finished from the doorway. "Two of them."
As Leon spoke Riku noticed he himself was holding something too. It was nothing like Sora's but was just as long. It looked somewhat like a bat wing, black and red, but on the tip there was a smaller white wing sprouting off to the side.
"Looks like you were right after all, Leon," Yuffie said spryly, elbowing him in the side. Leon gave her a sharp look and she seemed to remember what had just happened. She looked very sad.
Riku wasn't going to waste any time.
"Tell me where they took Kairi."
...Dun dun duuun!
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to everyone! Updating this close to christmas will count as a present to all you fantastic people who follow this story so closely. You all never cease to amaze me with your kind words and enthusiasm. Thank you for all of it!
Extra big thanks and wondeful celebrations go to BlueAcidRain, who has once again spent her free time being a truly amazing Beta. She is epic, she truly is.
~Take Care all!