The last chapter is here~! This chapter was so much fun to write! I hope you guys enjoy it and it hope it brings a big surprise!

Enjoy!

~Monday, October 31st, Mizu residence, Naminé's room, 1:26 a.m.~

Naminé couldn't sleep.

All weekend she'd been tossing and turning, waking up screaming from horrible nightmares of that day, and today was no different. After dragging herself home from school, bleary-eyed and trembling, and collapsing into bed right after dinner, she had woken up shrieking her lungs out, covered in sweat, her heart ramming into her chest, the terrible sound of the baseball bat beating her to death still ringing in her ears. Fitfully she tried to go back to sleep. It hadn't happened, and fact that Kairi was right across the hallway only served to scare her more.

Gripping her sheets and pulling them over her head, Naminé shivered and realized how alone she actually was. The students who'd seen Kairi go insane that day didn't seem to remember any of the incident – or were trying not to; her parents were oblivious; Roxas was hurt because of her, so he was out of the question as solace; and Sora didn't want to hear it. She only had Riku. And Aqua. Maybe not even her.

Aqua. She felt bad for her, the poor girl. Aqua wasn't trapped on Earth like Riku was; she was free to travel between Earth and whatever other place spirits went when they died. But still, she wondered how Aqua could stand the fact that her poor sister was still suffering even though she was dead. Naminé wondered how many times Aqua had sent notes to other twins like herself, struggling against Xion and her spiteful ways. Maybe Aqua would help her if and when she had to face Kairi. It'd make her feel a lot better that the blue-haired twin was on her side.

Naminé felt something on her sheet. She reached out of the shelter of her covers and grabbed the object, pulling it back under in seconds. It was another note. Why am I not surprised.

Xion and Kairi want to meet you at your school's basement tonight, it read. I suggest you not go, but you can't avoid them forever…You can do this, Naminé. Xion's hurting terribly and I want nothing more than for her to be free from her pain. That necklace of hers – it's what's she attached herself to to keep herself on Earth. Destroy that, and it'll be over. Don't get sidetracked. Don't let her get into your head. You can break the cycle. Believe in yourself. If not for anyone else, do this for Riku. You can keep your sister alive and still save him – and yourself. I'm counting on you.

~Aqua

Naminé threw off the covers, grabbed the phone by her bed, and dialed Riku's number. He picked up on the first ring.

"It's time."

"Let's go," she said, confidently.

"Meet you by the school basement door in ten."

She clicked off and nearly flew out of the room, glad she had gone to sleep wearing clothes. Down the stairs she ran, going out the unlocked front door and grabbing the knife she placed by the doormat – just in case. She paused for a moment to catch her breath and then took off down her driveway, her blonde hair flying behind her, going as fast as she could.

Let the dance begin.

~Monday, October 31st, Destiny Islands High School, Basement Hallway A, 1:38 a.m.~

The flashlight Naminé gripped pervaded the darkness with it light, casting eerie shadows across the walls and floor. Cold tremors wracked her body as she walked, her footsteps casting echoes on the concrete, and she was glad Riku was there to support her, to hold her hand as she tried to make her way through the inky blackness. She was scared. Scared out of her mind. There was no way she could do this. No way. If Kairi was any more mentally unstable than she was a few days ago, Naminé was sure she would have a heart attack before she even got a chance to make a move.

"Don't be so tense, Nami," Riku reassured, stepping over a pile of stray spiral notebooks in the hallway as he rolled his flashlight around in his hand. "We'll get through this. Don't be scared."

Something moved behind her. A sort of scratching sound filled the air. Naminé whimpered in fear. "What was… that?"

"Dunno… is it getting colder in here to you?" Riku whispered as they turned a corner, being so thrown into darkness that Naminé couldn't see two feet front of her. She could, however, feel that there was a dead end just in front of them. Maybe she'd luck out and Kairi wouldn't be down there. Then she could go home…

"Naminé?"

"Oh, uh. I guess," she replied, that dead end leering ominously in front of her as the two stopped merely feet from the door. It was bloodstained, the wood stripped away in places. Naminé winced when Riku put his hand on the tattered bark, closing his eyes and breathing deeply.

"Here."

Naminé nodded solemnly, glancing back and fort between Riku and the door. She didn't want to die. She was only fifteen, not even half her life was over yet! If she died, she just hoped she wasn't a horrid a ghost as Xion.

But… Kairi wouldn't kill her, would she?

She had started to ponder this fact when she noticed Riku had been silent for quite some time, his hand still pressed against the door. What was he even doing? "Riku?" Naminé whispered.

"I can't go in with you."

That moment was when Naminé started to really get scared. There was no way she was going in there alone. If she went in there alone, she just knew she wasn't going to come out in one piece… or not at all. "W-why not?"

"Xion won't let me." He took his hand off the door and glared into Naminé's eyes in his regular piercing way. "She says I can't die just yet. Whatever that means, since she's going to kill me anyway… Naminé, I'm sorry." To the girl's surprise, Riku pulled her into a hug, not a tight hug, but a sort of half hug that conveyed affection. "You're gonna have to go at this alone. But when you come out, with the both of you alive – which I know you will – meet me for some ice-cream before my crazy girlfriend dismembers me, alright?" He pulled back, a hint of a smile on his face.

Naminé stared slightly open-mouthed at him. "Okay, Riku. I'll… I'll do that." With visible effort, she smiled back. She hoped she could keep that promise.

Riku gazed down into her pure blue eyes at one last attempt at saying a 'goodbye, for now'. Then he turned on one heel and walked away, his footsteps echoing down the hallway until he turned the corner and could no longer be heard.

Naminé turned to the door, trembling visibly. At least she was ready for this. She had a knife. She had her flashlight. And she had her strong determination to get out alive – with Kairi too. Riku and Aqua were right; she could do this. Her hand reached for the dull door handle.

Slowly, the door creaked open by itself.

She froze. Out of the room before her came a little light, obviously coming from the corner of the room. The door was barely open so she couldn't see much more than that – her eyes landed on bloody whips. Probably the very same that had whipped Roxas to near death that night. She swallowed, hard, putting one small foot in the door. Then the other foot. Her hands. Her body, her head moving not far behind.

The door slammed.

Naminé gazed at the chamber laid out before her. There were the whips in the corner again; the few nearly empty bottles of rubbing alcohol lying next to them. In the other corner laid several knives and a tazer, a flickering light serving to highlight this area of the room. A shadow of a human-sized cross leaned crookedly against a stray table in the dark corner nearest to the door. Other than that, the room was entirely bare, save for the blood on the walls.

Naminé looked up, trying not to look. She could only wonder… where was Kairi?

"You came, my sister."

Her head snapped down. Kairi looked no worse than she had on Friday, her neck still a bloody mess, scars still marring her arms. Her outfit had not even changed, and the room now reeked with the smell of blood. In her hand she gripped a cleaver tightly, her eyes trained on Naminé's own.

Naminé squeaked, "Kairi… all I want to know is why."

"Why? Why?" Kairi's voice rose quickly to the point of shrieks. "You do all this to me, you make me go through so much pain, and all you can say is why?" She sneered maliciously.

"I haven't done anyt—"

"I'll tell you why, you demon," she kept on as if Naminé hadn't spoke. "Because you've always looked me over. You've always relegated me to such a lower position, just because you get higher grades, and you're such a goody two-shoes. You've always been the best of the best. And I'm sick of it!"

"Kai—"

"But, boy, am I glad I found Xion's necklace before you did." Kairi laughed crazily, beginning to pace the room. "You wouldn't be able to handle her offer. You see, Xion went through the exact same thing with her twin, Aqua. She said she'd help me. Help me get to the point where I can wipe you off the face of the planet and finally claim the rightful spot that I deserve!"

That's when it clicked with Naminé: Xion had twisted Kairi's mind so much that she believed things about their relationship that never even happened. Kairi was partially right – Naminé was better academically, socially, and with her talent of drawing, and yes, Kairi had gotten a bit upset at some points about that – but wasn't that part of growing up and learning how to deal with each other as twin sisters? Kairi was terribly jealous of Naminé, but for the wrong reasons. Just like Xion. And now Kairi wanted to settle the score.

"Look, Kai." Naminé took a deep breath and started talking. "You don't have to do this. You don't have to kill me. We can both make it out of here alive and settle our differences – without Xion making you believe our relationship is as bad as she's making it sound. Come on, Kairi." She held out a trembling hand, ready to end this peacefully. It probably wouldn't work, but hey, she figured it was worth a shot. "Let's get out of here. Just hand me that necklace and –"

Kairi's rage-filled scream pierced the air at that second as she pounced at her twin, that knife inching dangerously close to the blonde's neck. Naminé dodge-rolled, sheathing her own knife and looking up into the crazed eyes of her sister. She shouldn't have even tried mentioning taking the necklace. She could see it now, glowing as it hung from her sister's neck. If only she could get it—

"You will die! I swear it on my life!" Kairi grabbed Naminé's shoulders roughly and slammed her into the wall where the cross rested. The sane twin could feel the wood piercing into her bare arms and the blood running down to her hands in rivulets. She suddenly went dizzy, as Kairi had grabbed her neck and was slowly increasing the pressure, and she used the hand with the knife to stab her twin in the thigh. It served its purpose, as Kairi let go and screamed, allowing Naminé to catch her breath.

"K-Kai… Please… Stop…" Naminé choked out, gripping the bloody knife as the vertigo started to clear.

"Not until I can hold your cold, dead body in my hands."

And suddenly Naminé heard that unmistakable noise – the noise of electricity crackling like a fire. Kairi had gotten her tazer. Naminé gazed once at the killing object, gripped her knife tighter, and stood to her full height. If she was going to die, she wasn't going down without a fight. "You wanna dance, Kai? Let's dance."

And thusly began the waltz of death, as the two girls moved swiftly around the room in a graceful cat-and-mouse ballet. The tazer struck Naminé once, twice when she tried to dodge, but the electricity renewed her strength and let her shove her twin away, as she tried to chip away the crazed girl's energy piece by piece with little strikes of her knife. However, neither girl seemed to be getting the upper hand. Blood flew and spattered the walls, and Naminé thought she might break her own eardrums as she screamed when Kairi resorted back to her cleaver again. This dance was like her nightmares, the back-and-forth chase of the sisters. And it was seemingly ending just like them, as Naminé started to tire from the fight and Kairi began to wound her even more with larger and larger strikes.

At one point Kairi was advancing to Naminé who was against the door. The blonde cowered, holding her knife straight out, the tip aiming toward Kairi's stomach. If she could only manage to wound her sister enough to make her pass out, but not kill her… She closed her eyes and hoped for the best.

"I warned you," Kairi said, her breath hard and ragged. "I told you it would come to this. But your superior mind refused to listen. Now, you will pay for all those years, those years of pain I had to endure. Goodbye, my sister."

And when she ran toward Naminé, cleaver in hand, screaming, the sound cutting off when the knife tore through her flesh, Naminé was sure that's she'd hit her target. But the position felt wrong. Her arm was too high…

Naminé opened her eyes and saw the blade plunged into her sister's heart.

She couldn't breathe. Couldn't move. Couldn't speak. Ohmygoshohmygoshohmygosh. Her hand did as she told it to and let go of the knife, the already-dead Kairi falling backward so that those blank eyes stared right into Naminé's.

She had – really and truly – just killed her sister.

Naminé stood silently and gazed at the corpse, the necklace still glowing. She couldn't cry. Just couldn't. She was in too much shock. Slowly, she bent down and pulled the necklace from her sister's neck, tossing it back and forth between her hands. There wasn't really anything to destroy the necklace with around the torture chamber – Naminé knew that much. But how in the world was she going to live with herself, knowing that she killed her sister? She slipped the necklace on and tied the clasp on the back on her neck, looking up to gaze around the room, now that her hands were free.

But her eyes almost immediately moved back to the star-shaped pendant with the glowing jewel in the middle, hanging brightly from her neck. It really was pretty … her mind grew numb, and she wondered briefly why she had wanted to destroy it in the first place.

You wouldn't want to get rid of this beautiful piece of jewelry, right? It used to be mine, you know. I can help you decide what to do.

She listened to the sweet girl's voice in her head and realized the necklace wasn't all that bad. She kind of liked how it looked on her. Looking down at Kairi's face, she saw those once blank eyes had turned to catlike slits and a creepy smile loomed up at her.

Naminé near careened back into the door, her hands reaching to scratch at her suddenly itchy neck, her heart pounding dangerously hard into her chest. Kairi was dead… but she was trying to come back. To kill her for killing her. That was not Kairi anymore. No. That was some demon was gazing at her with its crazy eyes. She could feel the cleaver being raked across her skin and she screamed, so terrified. What had driven her to kill this girl? Maybe she was nothing more than a demon herself…

You think you deserve death?

"Yes…" Naminé whispered, standing and not looking at the face that she knew was out for her life. She'd killed Kairi. She was worthy of nothing less. But something, something more important tickled at the back of her mind…

Let me help you, Naminé...

Naminé froze. She suddenly knew that voice. That was the same voice, Xion's voice, which had nearly lured out of bed the first night in the rental house. Aqua had said not to listen to her, to not let Xion into her head… but why? Aqua had done so much to hurt her sister, and she died as well. And Xion was going to help her. She didn't have to die alone. But she had to atone for her murder.

She walked over to the wall opposite the cross, and took the knife and shoved the handle into the wall. She knew this was how it had to be. If only she had listened to her sister's pain, she wouldn't have to go through this now.

You really, truly believe suicide will make up for your sin?

Naminé nodded, her eyes downcast. She kind of wished she could say sorry to Riku for not coming out alive. But Riku had hurt Xion so much too, hadn't he? He would hate her anyway, for killing Kairi.

She gripped the short blade with a trembling hand. It's what has to be done.

Her body moved to shove the knife into that soft spot under her temple. She rammed the knife into her head repeatedly, coughing up blood and splattering the warm, sticky substance on the wall with each strike. So this was what death felt like. But she wasn't hurting. She was doing this because she wanted to… for the raven-haired girl who had helped her to reach that decision.

As she fell on the hardwood floor, that bloody knife still protruding from the wall, the blood pooled around her hair and spilled onto the ground, mingling with the wood and tainting it. And if you listened close enough, you could almost hear a high, maniacal girl's laugh that promised horror and fear in all who heard it.

And somewhere, somewhere high in the sky on that cursed day, the cicadas started to cry their mourning song.

Anticlimax for the win! XD You guys probably thought Namine was going to succeed, huh? Well, if she did, there wouldn't be a sequel... But this story isn't over yet! The epilogue will be here soon!

Merry Early Christmas! Reviews are appreciated!

~Lukia