ME again!! don't u love me?! Anyway... this chappie is just to tie up a few things before we go full throtle into what happens when Riku and Sora meet or something like that... and Sora has sort of been kidnapped, but you won't think so until the next chapter. Pay close attention to the way Sora's mind just blanks.

Make the Pain Go Away.

Sora looked down at the letter as though it were about to leap up and chew his face off, he stood between the door and the hallway, terrified to move. Any sudden movements and the moment would shatter, not that he wanted to stare at the threatening letter for eternity, but even, then in that moment, he could deny vehemently to himself that Riku was dead.

Memories swirled in his head: the first smile Riku ever gave him, their first sleepover, their first meal together, their first kiss, their first joke… them. Sora could only focus on how if it were true, he would cease to be Sora. He'd be a shell: without Riku he was nothing.

And he hated that.

He hated that he depended so much on another person, he hated that his life was governed by another's existence, he hated that a small letter contained his future but most of all he hated that he would never have Riku ever again. Something snapped inside of him. All deniability was gone; he had no hope, his face a blank canvas nonchalant indifference as he bent down and retrieved the letter. He shut the door softly and made his way into the living room. He sat down stiffly, his back straight and his eyes half-shut as though he were tired.

He opened the letter, the bottle he'd brought back discarded at his side. It rolled off the sofa and hit the floor. The glass didn't break, but it clinked as it rolled across the floor and into the leg of the coffee table. Sora paid it no attention and began to read:

To whom it may concern,

I regret to inform you that during the war to end Darkness once and for all, the keyblade master has died.

His death was brave and noble but we have not succeeded in our mission and the army is returning home. Riku will not be. His body has been buried and he has been given a warriors funeral.

Yours sincerely,

MM

Sora looked at the letter, his face still completely blank. He stared at it a moment, before he lowered his hands and the letter feel from his fingers, he slumped back into the chair and his eyes stared at the ceiling, or rather through it, as he lost himself in his thoughts.

He didn't notice the door open.

His mind was completely empty of thought, he tried to think but it was as if a fog had descended onto his mind, he could catch glimpses of thoughts as they brushed his consciousness but as he reached out they would scatter like ripples on a pond.

He didn't notice as a figure came through the door.

It had to be a trick… didn't it? Riku couldn't be dead. It seemed so unreal as he tried to imagine his lover, he tried to imagine his lover being dead. It wasn't possible. Nothing would fit, he couldn't even see it in his mind much less it happening for real.

He didn't even notice as the figure came to stand right before him.

"Does it hurt?" The figure asked softly.

Sora swallowed and took a deep breath before answering, "It's not real…"

"Do you not believe them?"

"No."

"Do you doubt they are telling the truth?"

"Yes."

"Does it hurt to think it's true?"

"Yes…" Sora gulped, "It does…"

"Do you want to hurt anymore?"

"No."

"You've done nothing but hurt since he left, haven't you?" The figure moved closer to Sora and through back his black hood. Sora caught a brief flash of blue hair but he didn't care enough to look closer.

"Yeah…"

"Do you want the pain to go away?" The man asked.

Sora closed his eyes, his thought. His mind was still empty and sluggish as he tried to think of why he could possibly want the pain to stay. He kept his eyes closed as he replied in a hoarse whisper, "Yes…"

"I can make the pain go away. You just have to come with me."

Sora opened his eyes halfway and looked down at the man know kneeling before him, one hand outstretched to him and the other elegantly touching the floor to keep his balance as he effectively bowed to the brunet. Sora looked at the hand for a few moments as a sliver of his mind returned to council him. You've got nothing left to lose…

Nothing at all.

Sora lifted his hand and reached out to other's hand, he placed it lightly in the leather gloved hand and was swiftly held in a tight grip. Sora looked at the man for the first time; he had amber eyes and long blue hair, he had pointed ears and an odd scar shaped like an 'X" over his face. Sora wanted to laugh at him… and there was a small part of him that began to panic; this wasn't like Sora at all. Sora pushed it aside and allowed the man to pull him to his feet.

"It'll all be over soon. I promise." The man leered.

Sora ignored him; he honestly didn't care as long as he didn't have to feel anymore.


"He should be here soon." The elder, eloquent voice mused as he watched another who was chained to the wall before him, "Are you happy?"

The male on the wall had his head hidden in the shadows, he didn't want to look at the other, "And why w-would… I be… happy…" He rasped out, his tone venomous but he was gasping for breath.

"Now, now, no need for that. You haven't seen him in a while; I would have thought you'd be excited about the prospect of a final meeting." The older man chided the other, sarcastically.

The younger said nothing. The older man let out a mockingly and left the dark room, the only sound being his echoing laughter until the door slammed and then the only companion of the young male left inside was his heavy breathing.


Roxas glared at Axel, "Why did you do that?! I woke up as if from a nightmare I felt his pain that bad! How could you be so harsh?!"

"Don't shout at me for doing what I felt was necessary! I am not pandering to his every whim when I am mourning for Riku too, he needs to grow up and stop believing everything is going to be okay!" Axel yelled back.

Roxas growled, "And what evidence do you have that he was lying?!"

"You believe him?!"

"I believe him over so fucking mouse that I've never even said two words to, yes!" Roxas turned on his heel and made for the door.

"Where are you going?!" Axel demanded.

"I'm going to make sure Sora's not dead or something! I care about him, unlike you." He slammed the door and was gone without anything else being allowed to be said.


Roxas came to Sora's street and turned to face the brunet's house, his mouth fell open in an instance. He knew something was wrong; the front door was open and swinging lightly on the breeze. He'd known something was wrong, he'd known the moment he'd exited the house.

He couldn't feel Sora anymore.

Roxas burst into a run and entered the house, his eyes wide with panic as he searched the house.

"Sora!"

He ran through the living room, the bedrooms, the kitchen, the dining room, the bathroom and the garden until his feet hurt and his throat was sore.

"Sora! Answer me, dammit!" He hollered.

He fell to his knees in the living room and spotted the letter on the sofa, the letter he had found awaiting him yesterday. He knew the contents without looking.

"Sora…" Roxas murmured pityingly, so he has read the letter…

As he made to move, his foot knocked something by the coffee table.

CLINK

Roxas froze. He looked down and cocked his head to the side in curiosity as he spied the glass bottle hiding behind the coffee table's leg. He gingerly lifted it up and opened it. Pulling the two pieces of paper out he recognized Sora's handwriting, he briefly read through it before turning it over.

The bottle fell from his hands and shattered on the floor by his feet as he gasped. It was Riku's handwriting… it was definitely Riku's wording too… Sora hadn't been lying!

Roxas held the letter and picture he'd discovered tightly in his hands and bolted from the house.