DAY 394 ~ Names

(Chapter 10)

Two weeks passed without me remembering anything more. I tried every day, but it just never happened.

Until that day. Day 394. When I'd remember everything.

It started out normal. Mostly. Apparently an imposter, someone wearing our organization's coat, had shown up. Someone from before. Saïx sent Axel and I to go look for him.

There was no specified area. We were just expected to look everywhere we could.

Only…he wasn't that hard to find.

We found him in Twilight Town. He looked…familiar, in a way. Silver hair, and a black blindfold. But maybe it was one of the things I was forgetting.

"You're still alive??" he said. He was looking at me. "I though I'd already eliminated you."

"Wh-what are you talking about?" I didn't know him. How could I have fought him before?

"You know this guy?" Axel asked.

"No!"

"Hmph," the silver-haired guy took a step closer. "So when you forgot Xion, you forgot everyone around her, too?? How convenient."

"Xion…?" the name…it was her name! Suddenly, all the memories rushed back. I remembered everything. Her number, XIV, what she looked like, all the time we'd spent together…it all came back.

"That's…that's her.." Axel seemed to be in shock, or something, and simply stood there.

"Xion!" I became angry. "How do you know her!? What did you do to her back then?? It was all fine before you came in! Who ARE you??"

"Riku," he said, "is my name. But who I am…what I do…I don't have to tell you that."

"Why!?" I shouted. I summoned my keyblade, ready to attack at any time. "She…Xion was our friend! And she left for whoever this 'Sora' guy is…you told her about him! Didn't you!?"

"That's what she said, too," Riku came a bit closer. He was still out if striking distance, though. "She said she had friend who needed her. You guys don't even have hearts…how would you know what friendship is?"

"How would you??" I questioned. Some…tears started to come, but I didn't think anything of them. "You took her away from her friends.."

"I gave her a choice," Riku said. "If you don't like it, then fine. It makes no difference to me. But Sora needs his memories back, and if you have them…what choice do I have? I have to take them back by force."

He suddenly took out a weapon…a sword of some kind…and started coming towards me.

"Roxas, get back!!" Axel shouted. He threw his weapons between Riku and I, which stopped him.

"So your fake friendship is more important than a real person?" Riku asked. "How ridiculous."

"You know…you're really getting on my nerves," Axel said. "You're sounding a lot like Saïx…and that's bad enough without you threatening my friends!"

Suddenly, Axel attacked. Riku blocked his first strike, but they continued fighting. I couldn't do much, I just watched. I was kind of…frozen there. Finally, I wiped the tears off my face, and attacked.

Somehow, Riku was powerful enough to hold us both back…but only for a little bit. "I have no time for this!" he exclaimed. Riku jumped back, far from us, and opened a portal. "Think about it, Roxas. Sora's life could be saved!" and he disappeared.

"Let's go back to the castle, Roxas…" Axel was still staring at the spot where Riku had been just moments before.

"But what about--"

"We don't know where he went."

I could only nod at that. But I promised myself that I'd find Riku again some day. I would get more answers.