Disclaimer: …do you think Nomura would accept 32 cents and some belly button lint in exchange for the KH franchise? No? Me neither.

A/N: Merry Christmas/Happy Holidays! I was considering doing something separate for the holidays, but I promised to get everybody through this silly concert debacle first, so this shall be my gift to you all. :D I don't really have anything else to say—except that I'm typing this with fresh guitar calluses and it HURTS. See the pain I put myself through for this? X.x

Bon à lire!

-Slay

A Day of Mercy

Chapter 11

Strange Things, Best Friends

-o-o-o-

"I'm not seein' him, Roxas."

"Neither am I. I don't think he's here."

The Pit was almost completely empty, and there was still no sign of Axel; Roxas felt he could safely assume the redhead had escaped. He would get into scraps with Kadaj from dawn till dusk, but he would never go and get himself kidnapped.

"Okay. Let's go then."

Shortly after getting swallowed up by the barely-lit crowds, Roxas had run into Demyx and Zexion—literally. After picking themselves up, the two sympathized with Roxas' distress and agreed to help him out. Or at least keep him company. "This is scary enough without being alone," Demyx had declared, already holding determinedly to Zexion's hand in order to prevent separation. They then spent several minutes braving the rush of people and the violent destruction raining down on the stage in search of their friend.

Convinced that Axel wasn't dying in a pool of his own blood, Roxas rallied the other two and started marching for the nearest exit, which was still a little cluttered by people.

"Why would anyone wanna destroy this place?" Demyx pondered aloud, alarmed by a burst of light that bloomed behind them.

"I don't know," Zexion murmured, turning at the sound of something crashing down to the concrete floor. "—but we should get outside as soon as possible."

"Agreed."

The exits were starting to clear up as the last few droves of people evacuated the Pit, but Roxas and his friends didn't make it that far; something huge and heavy came hurtling down in front of them, stopping them in their tracks. At first, Roxas thought it was a large support from the ceiling, but the thing in front of them was nothing like any architecture he had ever seen; nearly six feet tall and endless from side to side, made of broad, scabrous texture and glinting silver in the dusty backup lighting. It looked almost…reptilian?

"Shit."

A terrible, inhuman cry shattered the air—the trio covered their ears and backed away from the bizarre obstruction, which proceeded to lift sluggishly into the air before smashing back to the ground, shaking the venue with disturbing force.

"RUN!" Roxas hastily shoved the other two forward. "Head for the next exit—hurry!"

They tried to make a break for it, but the massive tail came swinging around, nearly bowling them over as it cut off their escape. Roxas cursed and spun around, coming face to face with the absolute last thing he wanted to see right now.

A colossal creature stood before them, its sizable, winding body patched together by scant patches of light as it loomed over them, nearly three stories high. A square head with rigid angles pointed down at them, fierce eyes tracing their every move, serrated mouth ajar.

"…Is that a dragon?"

Zexion was displaying a commendable lack of shock at the sight of a mythical monster attacking the venue.

"Yep," Demyx squeaked, gaping up at the thing with comically wide eyes. "Don't move! They see motion."

"Demyx, that notion was disproved years ago," Zexion returned casually, as if they weren't all about to die.

Roxas noticed with a lurch of his stomach that the dragon's tail was encircling them. If they were quick, they might be able to jump over the tapered end before they got trapped. "Follow me," he breathed, darting madly for escape with the others close behind.

The dragon let out another nasty roar, head diving down to smite them, tail whipping up defensively and winding all three of them in the stomach. The next few seconds were a black blur of howling and snapping teeth, rolling and flailing bodies and startled cries as the boys scrambled around, dodging death in the form of bloodthirsty teeth with last-minute reflexes and painful bursts of adrenaline.

Roxas couldn't keep track of the others—it was all he could do to keep flinching back and forth, tumbling with mere inches separating him from a gruesome demise. Whenever the opportunity arose he would hurl himself forward, trying desperately to push as much ground between him and the dragon as possible. He caught the flash of an exit sign and moved toward it, but was flattened under one of the creature's aggressive claws at the last second. He watched the sign pull away, sick and dismayed as he was dragged backward, fingernails grinding against the concrete in a hopeless attempt at resistance.

"They won't pull anything in a crowd like the one at the concert. So don't worry your pretty little head about it."

He frowned angrily into the concrete. He'd known this was a bad idea. He'd just known. "Goddammit, Axel…"

-o-o-o-

"I gotta hand it to you," Axel sneered bitterly, propping himself limply against the wall of the corridor. "You guys sure know how to crash a party."

Kadaj had gotten to his feet and was glowering through the low light. "He wasn't supposed to transform," he hissed, sorely missing his stolen sword as he grabbed at the air surrounding his sheath. "This whole operation would have gone smoothly if you had minded your own business."

"Yeah, but then you and your little band of misfits would have won again, and we can't have that, now can we?"

"Hn." Kadaj spared a neutral look down the track-lit corridor, where Sora and Riku had sped out of sight moments before. He turned back to Axel with that same unreadable gaze, his right hand flexing as if it would bring his sword back. "So what now, Lea? You're in no condition to fight, and I can't finish you because little brother seems to have taken my sword."

The charcoal burn in the back of Axel's throat was officially outweighing the pain in his stomach. Being around Kadaj and his gang brought out the absolute worst in him, and he hated it—the craving was incinerating him from the inside out. God, he could use a smoke right now.

"Well, for starters," he rasped, clenching his stomach and swallowing dryly. "You can quit calling me Lea. It's not my name anymore."

"Oh, alright then," Kadaj agreed edgily. "Why don't I start calling you traitor instead?"

"Try Axel."

"Betrayer?"

"Axel."

"Backstabber."

"A-X-E-L. Get it memorized."

"Scum."

"I think you're missing the point."

Kadaj rushed up and pinned Axel to the wall by his neck.

"Ack! Sheesh, don't take it personally," he choked out.

"Well, one thing is for sure," Kadaj said slowly. "Your bark is still much worse than your bite."

"Puh, says the guy whose ass I thoroughly kicked on a regular basis."

"I don't think you're in any position to be mouthing off."

Axel wriggled uncomfortably in the silverette's grip. He was right. Between the blinding pain in his stomach and the unbearable burn in his throat, Axel really wasn't in any kind of fighting shape, and he probably shouldn't have been talking so big. Kadaj may be weaponless, but at least he had his health. He didn't need a sword to wreck Axel six ways from Sunday, and they both knew that.

"You know it really is a shame, Axel." Kadaj released his throat and took a step back. "The Flurry would never have stood for such abuse. …To this day I don't understand why you left. Everything was going so well; we were finally rising to power—"

"There's more to life than power, Kadaj," Axel cut in. "The sooner you realize that, the better off you'll be."

"Look at you," Kadaj sneered. "Bleeding out from your own stupidity and pretending that it's the right thing to do. Can you really say you're better off? Can you really convince yourself that you're happier without us? Living among people who could never truly understand you? Can you really lie and say you're glad you abandoned your own kind to be with the people who openly scorn us?"

A hint of laughter rippled in Axel's voice. "Our kind?"

"Yes," Kadaj continued, unfazed. "Our kind. The Lunumbra didn't come into existence by mere chance. It's a refuge for creatures like us. It's acceptance."

"Embracing the curse and using it to terrorize the innocent isn't acceptance, Kadaj. It's tyranny."

"Call it what you will." Kadaj started sauntering away, heading in the direction of another monstrous roar that bellowed from inside the venue. "Once Riku knows the truth, he'll be just as eager to join us as you once were."

Axel wanted to act; to do something, but he was completely drained. He settled for glaring daggers at Kadaj's retreating form instead. "Once Riku knows the truth," he iterated waspishly, "he'll be disgusted."

-o-o-o-

"…What're you planning to do with that?"

Satisfied that Kadaj wasn't following them, and none too eager about confronting the chaos inside the venue, Sora and Riku were walking through the low-lit corridor slowly winding its way up through the building. The crowds had cleared out from the lower levels, which was just as well, because Riku was still carrying the dual-bladed sword he'd swiped from Kadaj, and that probably would have alarmed a few people. Especially since the blades bore drying streaks of Axel's blood.

"I dunno," he shrugged. "I just didn't want him to have it."

"That's probably for the best."

"Hey, Sora?"

"Hm?"

Riku parried the sword around at his side, being careful not to nick himself in the leg. It was surprisingly light. "That thing you did back there, with the mop? That was…impressive. How'd you do it?"

There was no way of seeing whether Sora was blushing in the sparing light, but his bashful half-smile worked just as well. He rubbed the back of his neck self-consciously. "I…actually don't know, to be honest. I've never done anything like that before."

"Not even in…uh…" Crap. What did he call them? "Suffer matches?"

Sora chuckled. "You mean Struggle matches?"

"…Yeah. What you said."

More chuckling. "I've never been in a Struggle before. That's Roxas' thing. …I have always wanted to give it a try, though."

"It looks like you'd be pretty decent at it."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah."

They walked in silence for a few moments, during which Riku presented the sword for Sora to inspect. The brunette took it hesitantly, dutifully minding the lethal edges of the blades, and weighed it curiously in his grip, face focused in thought. After a while he said, "You wanna hear something weird, Riku?"

"Shoot."

"What I did back there…it wasn't my idea. I mean, I didn't even think about it. It just happened. And what's even weirder is that…" The blades clinked when Sora tightened his grip on the handle, and Riku couldn't help but notice how…at home the sword seemed in his hand; like he really had held one before, even if he did claim otherwise.

"I know I grabbed a mop—I guess 'cause it was the closest thing to me—but…in that moment I felt like…like it should have been something else. Like something was supposed to happen…but didn't."

"What, you mean like a real sword just…magically appearing in your hands?"

Sora grinned and gave Riku's shoulder a shy nudge. "Shut up. I know it's dumb."

Riku nudged him back with a smile. "Stranger things have happened in this world."

Believe me.

"Oh yeah? And I assume you're speaking from personal experience?"

He knew Sora was only joking, but that didn't stop the sliver of ice from cutting through his chest. If anyone could attest to the existence of 'strange things' in the world, it was Riku; and after Sora's little confession about mops and magical swords, he was seriously wondering if maybe he could open up to Sora. Every moment spent with the brunette made the idea seem less and less ludicrous, and the longer he was around Sora, the more he found he wanted to spill. He wanted to tell Sora the truth—not because Sora was prying or curious, but because he...well, he trusted Sora.

Riku trusted Sora.

They'd barely known each other a week and already Riku felt he could confide in Sora about anything—even his curse. It was the strangest thing. But then, Riku wasn't one to question strange things.

"...Sora, I—"

A sudden, beastly roar startled them both, and after sharing a frightened glance, they bolted for the next entrance to the venue to see what caused it.

Their travels had placed them somewhere in the first ten rows of seats, railed off from the Pit several feet below, where a great commotion was churning in the darkness.

"What...What is that thing?" Sora pointed at a series of white shapes that were thrashing through the shadows. Chunks of the high ceiling had started crumbling loose, letting in falling beams of daylight that played across the amphitheater, better revealing the massive thing rumbling in its depths. "It looks like a…"

A dragon.

Like…me? Was it really possible that that man…Kadaj, could be…his…

"Ah! Riku, look down there!"

Riku peered into the Pit and saw three people being actively tormented by the creature, and quickly recognized them as their friends—one of whom was Sora's brother.

They watched in horror as Roxas was snagged by a monstrous claw and drawn back across the concrete, kicking and writhing to no avail. The creature pinned him like common prey, its head angled to strike, teeth flashing under a stray beam of light.

"Roxas!"

Thunderstruck by the sight of another dragon, Riku didn't even see Sora move until it was too late. Still carrying the sword, Sora jumped the railing into the Pit and charged into the unraveling scene. Terrified of what would happen, Riku took off after him, all the while calling for him to stop.

Sora didn't hear a single plea—he ran right up to his claw-trapped brother, standing right in the line of attack with Kadaj's sword at the ready. Just as the monster's massive, teeth-bearing head came rushing for them, Sora gave the sword an expert flourish and drove it into the silvery flesh of the dragon's claw, slashing out again with a dramatic spray of blood. This earned an ear-splitting shriek as the dragon reared up in pain, giving Roxas a chance to escape. Sora hauled him off the ground and shoved him into a run; he joined up with the others and darted for the nearest exit. Sora turned to retreat, but was stopped by the dragon's injured claw swinging and smashing him against the wall of the Pit.

"SORA!"

It wasn't even a thought in his mind—Riku bolted to Sora's side, too stricken with panic to mind the dragon's enraged thrashing. Heart hammering, he dropped to his knees beside Sora, who had crumpled lifelessly to the ground after hitting the wall so violently.

"Sora? Sora!" He rolled the brunette onto his back and shook him frantically. "C'mon, Sora, don't do this to me." To his indescribable relief, Sora shifted responsively and groaned, reaching vaguely for his head before passing out again. After flitting a hand around Sora's head and finding no blood, Riku relaxed and remembered how to breathe again. Sora was going to be alright. Everything was going to be alright. Riku told this to himself with confidence, but something inside of him was boiling regardless.

Seeing his only real friend so dangerously close to dying, the pain and the worry, the thought that anyone, anyone would dare hurt Sora—it suddenly had him seeing red. He gathered Sora up in his arms protectively and glowered murderously at the dragon. He didn't know how he was connected to these people—these monsters like him—and he didn't care. First Axel, now Sora…it was unforgiveable and he wasn't going to stand for it.

The dragon glowered right back at him and lunged for them with a vicious cry—but the strike never landed.

Riku couldn't control it anymore, the anger roaring in his blood. It flowed akin to the overwhelming misery he'd suffered the night his amulet glowed, but this time it was different; so different. Where misery had seethed wildly the anger was focused like a crosshair. All of that pain that once threatened to destroy him was suddenly an entity to command, a twisted force dwelling inside and waiting to launch. It rose and churned and hummed in his chest, his head, his arms, everywhere, a great swath of energy that surrounded him, consumed him, that came bursting from his skin and bones, from his very tortured heart in a flurry of black mist that hovered from him like an aura and exploded—thundering out in dynamic tremors that shook the room. He felt it rumbling through the air, shredding against the dragon's flesh and tearing into it like raw ice. The dragon let out an agonized scream and went reeling backward, smashing up through the rows of seating and disappearing in a thick shadow at the top of the amphitheater.

Watching the overgrown lizard flee, a warm feeling washed over Riku. He felt appeased. He felt triumphant. He didn't even know why. He supposed he was just satisfied that the bastard had gotten a taste of his own medicine. That'll teach 'em to hurt his Sora!

Er…Sora in general.

Not his.

Just Sora.

Dammit.

The black mist faded like clouds of smoke, snapping apart wherever light was shed, and Riku looked down to find Sora stirring sorely in his arms. His blue eyes pried open and winced at the sunlight dropping from the ceiling. "Ri? Ugh….What happened?" Riku's heart fluttered at his new nickname, and he held out his hands to guard Sora while he sat up slowly, convinced that he was still too weak to support himself. Sora groaned again and doubled over with his face in his hands. "I feel like I got hit by a truck," he croaked, moving to rub the back of his head.

He might have been better off with a truck.

Riku was about to respond, but Sora spoke again, "...What the…?" He ran a hand over his cheek and held out his palm, yelping when he saw it covered in viscous red blood. He looked himself over in growing terror, taking in the extensive sprays of blood staining his skin and clothes.

"It's not your blood," Riku said quickly, patting Sora gently on the shoulder. "You used your secret sword-wielding powers to save Roxas—"

"—and then got pimp-slapped by a giant white dragon," a cocky voice supplied. They turned around to see Axel hobbling toward them with the help of Roxas, whose face was caught in some painful combination of shock and relief. "You okay there, Sunshine?"

"I think so…"

Riku helped Sora to his feet, and the brunette immediately wobbled and pitched dizzily to one side, whimpering something about his back killing him.

"Here, hop on." Riku turned around and pulled Sora onto his back. After a couple of pained grunts, Sora situated himself and curled his arms around Riku's neck, burying his face in the silverette's hair with an exhausted sigh.

"We'll have an EMT look at him," Axel nodded consolingly, swiveling around with Roxas to leave. "Y'know, just to make sure his spinal cord doesn't look like a trashed slinky."

"You're seeing them, too," Roxas muttered, giving Axel's belt a staunch tug.

"I don't need no stinkin' doctor," the redhead drawled, mussing Roxas' hair and earning an angry frown.

"Axel, there's a hole in your stomach," he snipped, shaking his head persistently. "You've already ignored my advice once today; and we all saw how well that turned out."

"Feh."

"You're going to the hospital, Axel. Even if I have to drag you there myself." To prove his point, Roxas reached up and knotted his fingers in Axel's rambunctious hair, then proceeded to yank the taller man along, pointedly ignoring his cries. "Ow-ow-ow-ow. Rox—ow! Ack! I said OW! WOMAN! You're making it—AH—worse! C'mon, Roxy Baby, I was just kid—GAH!"

Even in his enfeebled state, Sora managed a small, breathy laugh that trickled past Riku's ear and gave him an agreeable chill. A faint smile stretched his lips for a moment, but fell away when he noticed the other two guys—whose names escaped him, though he recognized their faces and distinctively unusual hairstyles—and the unreadable expressions they were wearing. Shouldn't they have been freaking out? A giant dragon had just attacked the venue! …He wondered if they weren't in on the same secret as Axel—if the sight of fantastical creatures wasn't all that strange to them. And then there was that whole thing with the "darkness explosion" that Riku himself didn't even understand, and they didn't seem ruffled by that either.

Riku had lived with the curse almost all his life, yet being around these people had him feeling like he was standing on the tip of a monumental iceberg, the girth of which was hidden in dark, frozen waters below him. The only one who didn't make him feel like an outsider looking in was Sora, who may have had a few odd secrets to share, but at least he wasn't cryptic and creepy about it.

Riku decided to lay it down for the time being—he'd harass Axel about it after the man had a chance to recuperate. He wasn't really in any hurry, and now that he knew who had sent that enigmatic note, it wasn't as worrisome to him. His primary focus for the next few days would be to try and take Sora's mind off of the concert incident, because after getting completely abused by one vicious white dragon, he highly doubted Sora would be eager to see another.

As the six of them trudged up through the Fantasy Dome's levels, Riku assumed Sora was asleep until he mumbled something unintelligible in Riku's ear.

"What was that?"

"I said, I'm glad you came with us. And…I'm glad you were there for me, 'cause…" Sora fisted his hands in Riku's jacket and nuzzled into the side of his neck. "…I was scared," he confessed quietly. "I know I went charging in like it was nothing, but… I mean, I had to do something to help Roxas… On the inside, I was terrified…and I was really happy to see you back there, so…y'know."

"Sora…" Riku could feel his heart thumping in his ears, an unfamiliar heat riding up the back of his neck. He turned his head slightly, instantly embarrassed—and a little allured—by how close their faces were. He could see the silhouette of Sora's lashes dusting his cheek, soft tendrils of warm breath tumbling from his lips and ghosting mere inches away from Riku's. "I'd never let anything bad happen to you," he murmured honestly. "Well, I kinda did today, but…you know what I mean."

"Yeah," he felt Sora's chuckle more than he heard it, "I know what you mean. …Hey, Riku?"

"Huh?"

"This is gonna sound kinda weird, but…do you…" he cleared his throat, sending a quick vibration through Riku's shoulder.

"Do you wanna be best friends with me, Riku?"

…Best friends?

…With Sora?

Was it possible for the heart to plummet into someone's gut and then sprout wings?

"Are you…do you mean it?"

Another weak chuckle. Sora rubbed Riku's shoulder hearteningly. "Of course I mean it, silly."

Riku was completely floored. No one had ever asked him that before. No one had been able to mind their damn business long enough to get to know him…let alone come to like him. Sora truly never ceased to amaze him, and leave him totally speechless, and he couldn't help but love it. Before he knew it, Riku was smiling like an idiot (for the umpteenth time that day) and holding a little tighter to Sora's legs. "I…Yeah. I'd like that. …I'd like that a lot."

"Then it's official!" Sora squeezed him in a hug of sorts, resting his chin on Riku's shoulder and grinning happily. "You're my best friend, Riku."

All Riku could do in response was knock his head lightly against the brunette's, but they both knew that it meant the same thing. Riku could tell; the stupid smile on his stupid face wasn't going away anytime soon—and he didn't want it to.

You're my best friend, Sora.

A/N: Insulin shots, anyone? Got 'em for free right over hurr. :D I figured since this was a Christmas present of sorts, I would give it a happy fluff-tastic ending. ^-^ Also, things have been kinda scary/depressing/stab-happy these past couple of chapters, and I think I owe it to you guys to lighten it up.

SO. Lots o' crap went down in this chapter, and you know what that means… A PLOT HAS BEGUN TO DEVELOP! And I managed to post this by the 25th like I promised.

It's a Christmas miracle! (oOo)_(oOo)

Anywho, the usual author's note blabber:

Chapter 12 is on the way so stay tuned!

Review for a chakram cookie~

Flame for a chakram to the face!

Happy Holidays, guys!

-Slay