Okay guys, here's chapter seven! Hope everyone had a great Halloween!
Thank you reviewers!
BlackSakura13 – Yay for badminton! It's my favorite too. Don't worry about Axel and Kairi, as I said, it's suppose to be confusing, you aren't suppose to get it. I'm glad you liked all the badminton scenes, and I laughed when writing them! Thank you so much!
Kendra1221 – Yes, Sora and Riku will finally officially meet, and this chapter is extremely important. It seems like a lot of people liked crazy Sora with a racket XD. I sure know that I wouldn't want to be around him in that mode!
Maximum – ride – 23 – Roxas feels really accomplished to have finally broken the barrier and talk to Axel! And I sort of just made Sora have such a hard time with water do Axel and Kairi could talk, but it sort of was just coincidence too. I'm glad you like how story is going, and I hope this chapter catches your attention as well!
Brie92 – It's amazing how oddly popular badminton is! I personally can't wait till I do it in gym! Kairi and Axel have a really odd relationship that ties in with how Kairi is acting with the book. I'm glad you like my idea about Riku going into Sora's dreams, and I hope this chapter doesn't disappoint.
Acherona – I always love how long and thoughtful your reviews are! Thanks! Kairi and Axel definitely don't like each other, and have many disagreements on different things. Sora also really cares about his brother because, well, they only have each other. And I'm glad you're looking forward to this chapter, because Sora and Riku will meet! Hope to hear more feedback on chapter seven!
Soon – to – be – author – I'm glad that you like how I usually put two chapters on the same weekend! I don't know about a third, but I can try! I'll probably be able to post a lot over my thanksgiving break! Thanks for all the reviews!
Sora n Roxas lover – One thing to know about fan fiction, is that authors tend to make characters OOC a lot. I can see where you're coming from, and I think it's cool that you like Sora and Roxas' bravery in the games – but this story isn't like the game. I'm glad you like it over all, but I hope you'll keep reading, because both will soon get gradually braver! I promise!
AN – I've just recently seen the fourteenth member, Xion of organization 13, and I already like her a lot! So I just might add her later. I don't know though, because I don't want to totally get her personality wrong. But it's just an idea, so I'm not sure.
Disclaimer – Even if I had the money, even if I had the experience, I am sad to say that Square Enix will probably never give me Kingdom Hearts. There. I said it.
Warnings – Same as always – BoyXBoy, cursing.
This chapter is all about Sora and Riku! Finally! Namine will be in there too. And some questions will hopefully be answered as well!
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o7: Deja Blue
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"You see Riku," Namine explained. "You really have no choice – were the only two and I'm the one creating the portal."
Riku sighed heavily, lips creasing downwards, "I really have no choice . . . do I?" He stood from the chair, watching the blond ghost intently as she nodded. "Okay fine. What do I have to do?"
Namine shook her head slowly, "You'll see. Trust me."
Riku remained staid and silent. He wasn't so sure if he actually wanted to go through with this. He trusted Namine, he knew that they needed help, and he was positive that Sora was the only one that could help them. But that didn't mean he wanted to do it – though, he didn't want to make things hard for Namine, so he agreed to the arrangements.
"I'll see you later," He told her blankly, and disappeared. Namine walked over to the window, and opened the curtain a bit to over look the courtyard. She whispered out loud, "I hope your coming."
She then moved from the window, letting the curtain drop. Then back to her place at the drawing table she went, and began sketching in her sketchbook once again.
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Wow, nothing happened tonight. Sora was amazed at how smooth – and unbearably boring – the night had gone by, much unlike the night before. He pulled on a pair of blue pajamas, and brushed his teeth. It was nine – thirty and he figured he should go to sleep early so he wasn't at the risk of being late again. He flopped into the twin bed and pulled the covers over his body and curled up in a ball. In almost an instant, everything went black, and he fell into a peculiar deep sleep.
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"He's asleep," Namine stated as she and Riku appeared in Sora's bedroom, and stood at the end of the bed. "Are . . . you ready?"
"As I'll ever be," Riku sighed out. "So . . . how exactly do we do this?"
Namine smiled, "It's simple – very simple." Riku cocked a brow at her when she didn't do anything. Namine just kept smiling slightly as she looked down at Sora's sleeping figure. Riku could tell that she was up to something, and was thinking. She had that look on her face.
"How simple is it then?" Riku inquired, and she laughed lightly and brought her blue eyes to his.
"It's as simple as . . ." She snapped her white fingers together; it let off an echoing click. "A snap of your hand."
"Huh?" Riku peered at her confused, as he suddenly – actually – felt odd. Everything was growing darker and soon black – it was repeating history. Black. It was the last thing Riku had seen . . . Before it all ended. He also felt cold – so unbearably and wretchedly cold. It was a feeling he had always felt, and wished he would never have to feel again.
Riku, open your eyes.
It was Namine. Her voice was as clear as if she was still next to him, and it gave Riku the comfort he needed to snap out of his trance like feeling and open his eyes once again. He only knew one thing: He wasn't in Sora's bedroom anymore.
He could barely explain where he was. It was like a swirl of colors that surrounded him with no end or beginning. He was in awe and confusion as he stared at his surroundings, then heard Namine's voice again.
You made it Riku. The hard part is over.
"Namine? I thought you said you couldn't come in," Riku said irritably – he narrowed his eyes when he heard faint laughter.
I'm still outside. But we're connected in a way so I can talk to you through YOUR mind.
"Connected in like a 'ghost' way?" Riku asked.
Exactly, now go find Sora.
"Find him?" Riku furrowed his eyebrows and looked around his surroundings. "There's nowhere to look!"
Think again.
"What . . ." Riku blinked, and out of thin air, appeared pitch black, swirling portals all around. His eyes widened as he turned all the way around, seeing the portals surround him, "Which one do I go in?"
Which one do you think? Came the light – hearted reply. Riku bit his lip and put his focus on a certain portal that gave him an odd vibe. He felt drawn to it as he began to step forward – not bothering to ask Namine about it. He first, hesitantly, reached his hand to touch the churning mass – it felt like a vibration, or a shock. But it didn't hurt, and didn't give any sign that Riku might regret going through, so he pushed himself with a quick force through the portal. His eyes were forced shut and he felt that he was falling.
The falling feeling ceased and Riku opened his eyes to the sound of waves. Remembrance washed over him immediately.
It's Destiny Islands, He thought excitedly. Sora knows Destiny Islands!
"Namine –"He started to say, but put hand over his mouth, eyes wide. His voice didn't have that . . . echo to it. That haunting echo that held on to all his words was gone. It was as if . . . he was alive again. He embraced the feeling and grinned.
"Namine, I know this place," He said as he began to walk along the sidewalks, past all the little houses. His grin increased upon realizing that the place really hasn't changed. But the grin slowly ceased when he heard no answer.
"Namine?" He sighed when once again he heard no answer. Apparently, he was on his own now. So he continued to search for Sora. As he walked through the familiar place, he felt safe and happy – Destiny Islands had that effect on people. As he reached the shore, he stopped and stared. It was still there. After maybe a century, that little islet off into the ocean was still there. Riku remembered it very well. He remembered everything . . . considering, before living in Twilight Town, he had lived in Destiny Islands. Maybe he did have a lot in common with Sora . . . not that he'd admit it.
Riku grabbed a small, wooden boat from the dock, and rowed his way up to the islet. The boat collided into the sand, and then bumped to a sudden stop. Riku dropped the oars and stepped out of the boat. He looked around – There were all the wooden structures that had been built over time, the waterfall, the palm trees, and he could even see the little opening of the secret place still intact. Then he looked to the side, and smirked in a way when he saw the brunet sitting on the bent Paopu tree, overlooking the upcoming sunset. It was exactly what Riku would do.
He climbed up the ledge and crossed the wood bridge to the circular piece on land that rose from the ocean. He walked casually up to Sora, and once behind him, smirked and mockingly said, "Boo."
The brunet jolted a bit and turned around, eyes wide, "How did you get here of all places, you – you stalker ghost!"
Riku scoffed, offended, "I have a name you know."
"Well I think stalker ghost suits you rather well," Sora retorted. "Considering, well, your stalking me."
Riku just rolled his eyes. Well, at least he wasn't running away now. "I do not stalk you. I need to talk to you. That's the only reason I'm here, so can you just shut up and listen?"
Sora looked at him blankly for a moment, and then slowly nodded. Riku sighed and sat down next to Sora, "Okay, so you understand that the mansion . . . it isn't normal."
Sora merely nodded numbly – no sarcastic comments attached. Riku continued on with, "In the mansion, there are a lot of ghosts, and most of them . . . are bad. That's why we need your help – well, human help at least."
Sora furrowed his eyebrows, "But why me? You could've asked Leon, he could of help a lot more then I could."
"Leon doesn't have the key," Riku explained. "You do. You're the one that can help us."
"But . . . what key?" Sora asked, confused. "And to help you with what? Is this . . . really serious?"
Riku nodded sadly, "It is, the 'evil' ghosts in the house have sensed your presence and want to use you . . . and you'll become like . . . me."
Sora gaped, eyes wide, "They . . . can kill me?"
Riku winced at 'kill' and nodded hesitantly, "They can do so much, I should know, I was their very first victim."
Sora breathed out, "Wow, how old are you, er . . ." He trailed off, and smiled sheepishly. "I never got your name."
"I thought I was stalker-ghost," Riku scoffed. Sora held an apology in his grin, "Sorry. Can you tell me anyway?"
Riku smiled, "Riku."
Sora held his grin, "Okay Riku, how old are you?"
"Sixteen," Riku simply said. But when receiving a cocked eyebrow from the brunet, He smirked, "Okay, okay, technically . . . I'm one – hundred and four."
Though Sora expected something along those lines, he still heaved a breath, "Woah, how long has the mansion been empty?"
Riku leaned back against the tree, and sighed sadly, "People have been in and, well, never out. The only real company I've had is Namine."
"Who's that?"
"She's quite a wonder – probably just as strange before she was a ghost . . . she operates the white room." Upon seeing Sora shiver slightly, Riku smirked, "I suggest you don't go in there . . . or look through her stuff again."
"Well I didn't know!" Sora shot back. "Why don't you tell her not to draw creepy pictures of people?"
"I can't do that. It's her thing – she's quite the artist." Riku stood up, and watched as the sun started to lower into twilight – once again, just how he remembered. But what were really the odds? Getting the chance he thought he'd never get, to revisit Destiny Islands. He turned to Sora and casually said, "I used to live here once."
"Really?" Sora asked, smiling. "Has it changed?"
At that, Riku broke out a grin, "Not at all. C'mon, before we end this, I want to go somewhere."
Riku began walking down the bridge, and Sora followed without any hesitation. Riku leaded towards the secret place, and began to crawl through the tight passage, and then followed the path into the small rock space with doodles that covered the walls. He walked along the walls and finally bent down, smiling, "I can't believe it," He whispered. "It's still here."
Sora approached and knelt down beside him, eyes wide, and "You're the one who drew that?"
Riku nodded. It was just a simple and badly done picture that he made when he was eight, but it meant so much. It was a picture of a boy, who remarkably looked like Sora. His eyes drifted to the left, and leaned to see another picture facing his. Was this . . . him?
Widened aquamarine eyes met blue, and silence filled the air. But it wasn't awkward or uncomfortable as they stared at each other. They didn't need to say words to understand the circumstance. It was simply fate, that's all. They both smiled and laughed at each other's horrible pictures. Then they finally made their way out of the secret place as the sky was beginning to finally break into dusk, as the last of the sun was barely peeking over the horizon, sending its glow over the ocean.
"This is my favorite time," Sora said quietly, intently watching the sunset. Riku looked at the smaller as Sora watched the skies. One thing that stood out in the glowing twilight was the boy's eyes. They were so blue, truly, deeply, blue. It seemed like nothing of the sort could exist – but here he was, the boy who would change everything.
Then Riku wondered - how could he of disliked Sora so much? It seemed ridiculous, looking back on it. Namine was right, then again, she was always right. But now . . . was everything going to get better, now that he had contact with Sora? Things had been the same, lonely way for a century . . . could Sora really change all that?
Riku looked once again at the smiling boy, and smiled too, He's already changing things.
Then they sat on the sand and watched the sunset.
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"Hey . . . Riku . . . I feel kind of weird," Sora was blinking his eyes slowly, and stood up unsteady. Riku stood, confused, as he helped Sora regain balance. But then a horrifying realization came over him, He going to wake up.
Riku looked around rapidly, eyes wide and called out, "Namine! NAMINE!"
"R-Riku, what's wrong?" Sora asked, worry lacing his stuttering voice. Riku turned to face him, "You're going to wake up, and I need to get out of here!"
"Oh," Sora frowned at the realization, apparently saddened. He sat back down in the sand, body starting to slouch. Riku let out an understanding sigh, and kneeled beside the boy and put a hand on his shoulder, "Hey, we'll see each other in the real world all the time."
"Yeah but . . . here, it's so perfect. The real world has nothing but problems waiting for me."
"And I'll help you with them," Riku promised. "We'll get through this together."
Sora cocked his head up to stare at Riku with big blue eyes, "Riku . . . are we friends?"
The question surprised Riku, but none the less, he smiled softly and nodded, "Yeah, we're friends."
Sora grinned widely and Riku finally heard the voice he was listening for, there you go Riku. You did it.
"Namine-"But before he could say anything, there was a flash of blinding white light . . . and he was back in the white room. He blinked a couple times, getting use to being back in the real world, and once again being a ghost.
"See, it wasn't that hard after all."
Riku whipped around to glare at Namine, "Thanks for ditching me."
She rolled her eyes and sat down in her chair, "I never left. But I had to have you do this by yourself, and see how well it went?"
Riku sighed and suddenly cocked his head over to the wall which had another picture upon it. He swiftly glided over to it and stared at it endlessly. It was him and Sora, sitting on the sand and watching the sunset. He turned around to look at Namine, who smiled, "It represents your friendship. I think it's very important."
Riku smiled slightly and gave her a curt nod, then walked around the drawing table, towards the door, "I'm going to go check on Sora, to make sure he woke up alright."
He walked out of the room, not bothering to teleport. Namine smiled and put a finger to her chin thoughtfully, "Hmmm, I wonder what this will lead too."
She giggled lightly and shrugged her shoulders up. Then she reached for her orange sketchbook and a colored pencil and began drawing another picture.
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Sora slowly woke up by himself, without the alarm clock. He glanced at the clock and groaned – it was six o' clock. He debated on whether getting up or not, but finally took the decision to sit up in bed. He wiped the sleep out of his eyes, and just then, Riku came floating through the door. Though he wasn't scared, it caught him by surprise so he jolted and fell out of bed on to the floor.
"Where not back to this again, are we?" Riku questioned a smirk on his face.
Sora rolled his eyes, and stood up uneasily, "You just caught me by surprise. I'm still half asleep . . ." He stifled a yawn.
"Sure Sora," Riku smiled and crossed his arms. Sora stuck his tongue out, and walked over to his dresser and pulled out some clothes, then walked over to the bathroom. Sora turned around in front of the door and commanded, "Stay right here."
"I'm not a dog,"Riku scoffed and Sora gave him a look that could've killed. The brunet set down his clothes, and used exaggerated hand motions as he whined, "Can you please just stay!"
The sliver ghost couldn't help but chuckle a little as he held up a hand, "Don't worry, I'm not going anywhere."
Sora nodded and retreated to the bathroom. As he closed the door, he let out an unbelieving sigh. I was just talking to a ghost.It was so unreal, and so supernatural that it all seemed like it was simply a dream, and it never happened. But yet again, he knew very well that he was awake and that Riku was real – in a way – and he had a lot coming for him. But the question was . . . could he really pull this off?
He sighed and turned on the shower water, and held his hand in, getting the right temperature. Then he discarded his clothes and stepped in. The water woke him up a bit, but he still leaned against the wall. He took a five minute shower and did the usual routine afterwards – towel dry hair, brush teeth, get on clothes. Once he felt he was done, he opened the bathroom door, and was astonished at what he saw before him.
Riku was still in the room, and had somehow turned on the T.V and was looking intently at the flashing screen. Sora hesitantly walked up from behind and leaned over next to Riku, "What are you watching?"
"Television," The ghost answered simply, not taking his eyes off the screen. As Sora watched for a little longer, he realized it was the history channel. He scoffed and grabbed the remote, "If your gonna watch T.V., at least watch something good."
He changed the channel, and Riku finally looked at him irritated, "Hey! I was watching that!"
"Well, now you're going to watch something good," Sora answered simply, flicking through the channels, and finally stopping upon finding some sort of cartoon – he wasn't sure which one, but it was better than the History Channel.
Riku put his chin in his palm and sighed, but watched. After ten minutes of watching and listening to Sora's enthusiastic laughter, Riku bluntly commented, "This . . . . . 'Show', has absolutely no depth whatsoever."
Sora took his eyes off the screen for a split second, to roll them at Riku, "That's not the point. It's fun to watch – unlike the history channel."
Riku rolled his own eyes in return, "The history channel is rather interesting actually. At least you learn something useful – I don't see how 'Dodging a falling piano' has any use in future life."
Sora laughed at Riku's bluntness and teased, "Hey, you never know."
Riku cocked a brow, clearly not catching the sarcasm. Sora just kept laughing, "Hey, I was –"
"Sora, what are you doing?"
In an instant, Riku disappeared, Sora stopped laughing, and Leon stepped into the room. Sora turned around, with a sheepish grin on his face, "Er, hey Leon."
His brother was staring at him with a raised eyebrow, and suspicion filling his face, "What are you doing?" He asked again.
Sora bit his lip, and his gaze fell upon the T.V. He jumped up and gestured to it, "I'm watching television!"
Leon's expression didn't alter a bit and he inquired, "Who were you talking too?"
"Myself," Sora quickly answered, then with hands on hips said, "Don't you talk to yourself?"
"No," The taller replied unemotionally. Leon then sighed and said, "Its seven – twenty, C'mon downstairs and get some breakfast." Then he left.
Sora left out a huge breath, and Riku reappeared, smirking, "Nice cover."
The brunet pouted and turned off the T.V., and then he grabbed his back pack from the floor and pulled it over his shoulders, "It's not my fault. I panicked."
"You know," Riku told him. "You could've told him. He'll find out any way during the party."
Sora turned around slowly, and furrowed his eyebrows as he slowly asked, "What do you mean during the party?"
Riku suddenly looked very uncomfortable as he hesitated, almost unable to answer Sora's the question, "Well er . . ." He paused, glancing at the clock. "Oh, its seven – thirty, you better go!"
"Wait Riku-"But the ghost disappeared, and Sora reluctantly made his way out of his room, and toward the kitchen. He grabbed a fruit bar and said goodbye to Leon, and headed out. He slowly walked through the forest, actually hoping that Riku would appear – but nothing happened. He felt down hearted and confused as he walked to Twilight High, and had such an urge to know more. He actually had so many unanswered questions still looming in his mind, and they bothered him to no end. But what he was wondering about the most was what Riku was going to say.
He said something about the party . . . Sora thought. Am I going to regret this?
All he could do was wait and see.
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Okay, I think this chapter was pretty good! I was going to end it at Namine's part, but then it'd be way too short!
So Riku and Sora are officially friends now, but Riku still is hiding quite a bit, and Sora has a lot to learn. The Destiny Islands thing was simply fate, and it will be one of the factors that will bring them closer.
This story is going by pretty slow, day wise. It's Wednesday right now, and the party is on Friday. Once this week is over, the days will go by way less specific!
And one last thing: The beginning, with Namine saying that she hopes someone will come. It's someone we have already met, and I bet most of you can guess!
Thank you so much reviewers! I hope you liked this chapter!
See you =D