"D-Destiny Islands? N-no… you can't mean…" Saiyoku shook her head in refusal.

"You can't keep denying it, Saiyoku. You're a Nobody and a Heartless, which is only possible for Kingdom Hearts. That heart we just talked about was part of Ven's heart and mine, as well as Kingdom Hearts. You can't remember what happened since before your fifth birthday because you had to start a life on your own at an age when you can fend for yourself as much as you could because you had no parents. They never existed, Saiyoku! You didn't dissipate when your body was taken over by the Darkness, and you were still conscious inside Riku's mind because you can't be returned just yet—" Saiyoku interrupted Terra.

"—Can't be returned? What do you mean?"

"Those voices you heard in one of your dreams? Those people pleading for mercy, for release? You could hear their cries because they are inside you: they are the hearts inside Kingdom Hearts! Do you get it now, Saiyoku?" Ventus continued, but Saiyoku shook her head harder, gripping the sides of her head tightly.

"I… I don't… ARRGGGHHH!" She screamed, falling to her knees. Her head was throbbing; she didn't want to hear anymore… she was too afraid.

Terra grabbed her arm and pulled her to her feet, putting his hands on both of her shoulders and looking her dead in the face, "Saiyoku. YOU ARE THE LIVING KINGDOM HEARTS."

"I'm not! I'm not! I'm me! I'm Saiyoku, a person who lived on Destiny Islands all her life! I can't be—!"

"But you are, Saiyoku! You are the living Kingdom Hearts and you will have to return to Kingdom Hearts in the end! But now is not the time: you will return when you are needed to complete it. Please, Saiyoku. Don't make this any harder for us. We have to tell you one more thing, and then we promise we'll leave you alone for today." Ventus pleaded with her; he knew he had to tell her eventually.

"Shut up! Shut up, I don't want to hear any more!"

"Saiyoku, snap out of it! What happened to the Saiyoku who was always so strong, who never broke down like this?" Terra shook her limp figure that was just on the edge of crying.

"Riku said that it's okay to be weak sometimes, and I figure, this is one of those times!"

"Well, don't break down just yet. This is only going to get worse." Ventus said sadly. He looked up at Terra and prodded him to be the one to tell her.

"Why must I always be the bearer of bad news?" He whispered, but Ventus just gave him his just-do-it look. Terra sighed and turned to Saiyoku, "Please, just one more thing. This is going to be the most painful truth we have to tell you."

"W-what?"

"Saiyoku… when you return to Kingdom Hearts… you're going to vanish, disappear, cease to exist… in other words, you will die. You're consciousness and human body will be destroyed, but your heart will live on as Kingdom Hearts."

"I'm… I'm going to die?" Saiyoku's voice cracked for the first time in her life. Her body shook and she crumpled to her knees again. Ventus knelt beside her and glared up at Terra, "Jeez, you didn't have to say it so coldly. We can't really comfort her anyway, so you could've at least said it a little… I don't know… nicely? If that's even possible…"

"Then you should've done it."

"Whatever."

Ventus turned back to Saiyoku, "We're sorry; we know we can't comfort you. There's only one person that can right now. But, keep this in mind: You don't have to return to Kingdom Hearts. It's your choice. But think about all the people who need freedom from that prison, and then make your decision. We'll leave you alone for now, okay?"

She didn't respond, so Ven and Terra took that as a sign to leave. The scene faded away, and she woke up to find Riku's arms wrapped around her tightly.

"What… what are you doing?" She asked, out of breath, her face pale and tear-soaked like the sleeves of his coat.

"Oh, you're awake. You were writhing so much in your sleep that I had to keep you from moving. You were making so much of a fit and screaming that I had to do something."

Were my tears the reason that his sleeves are soaked? She wondered. He released her, but she just turned and wrapped her arms around him instead, digging her face into his chest and breaking down like she did in her dream.

He was so startled by her sudden change in personality that he nearly grabbed her and pushed her away; but he regained his composure and held her close, letting her cry as much as she wanted. It wasn't usual for her to do this.

"Do you want to tell me what they said this time?"

Saiyoku thought about it for a long time: would it be a good idea to tell him, or would it just cause all sorts of problems? She decided not to, so she shook her head, her thoughts swimming. I'm the living Kingdom Hearts. I don't even see how that's possible. On another note, I'm going to die… no! I just won't return! They can't make me, I don't care about any of those people, and I don't see what the big deal is... what does Kingdom Hearts need me for, anyway?

Riku's hand ran through her hair, his typical way of calming her down; he saw it was no use. Something had broken her inside, completely shattered her. How was he supposed to help her if she wouldn't tell him anything? He didn't want to pry: they were her dreams after all, but he had to get more information.

"Who was it that talked to you today?" He whispered, not entirely sure whether to expect an answer or not. He got one anyway, "Ventus and Terra." Riku looked down at her and pressed his lips against the top of her head, but she didn't notice; she was too busy thinking about what they had told her today.

"What did they say?"

No answer.

"Alright then, was it something bad?"

She nodded into his coat.

"Bad enough you can't tell me?"

No answer again. He sighed, "Okay, you win. You don't have to say anything else if you don't want to."

Her voice was a whisper, "It involves you in a way, Riku."

"What?"

"I can't really go into detail… but, it does involve you some. I… I just can't tell you."

"Okay. It's alright, it's alright."

Saiyoku's mind shattered, the last bit of strong sanity vanished from within her.

"Stop saying that!" She screamed and pulled away from him, her eyes red and puffy from the tears "Stop it! Just shut up! It's not alright, so don't pretend like it is!"

"I just—"

"Just shut up, Riku! Don't you get it? Nothing's okay anymore! Nothing! So just shut up!"

"Saiyoku! Calm do—"

"I hate you!" She got up and kicked open the metal door, bursting out of the room and running up the stairs. She needed go somewhere. Anywhere. Just somewhere she could be alone.

"Saiyoku! SAIYOKU!" Riku yelled after her, chasing her up the stairs. She slammed the door in his face and jumped over the railing to the floor below, running out the door. Riku recovered and threw open the door, vaulting over the railing and tailing her.

She ran full speed through the forest, tripping over the roots and catching herself before bolting through the crack in the wall, high tailing it out of the Market Place, up through Station Heights, into the Station and up on the clock tower. She sat down on the edge and held her head in her hands, her nails digging into her skin from the sheer grip she had. Tears kept pouring over her face and falling to the ground below while she mentally screamed over and over again inside her head.

"Saiyoku, don't go hating Riku for this…"

"Yeah, he didn't do anything wrong. In all honesty, you should hate us more than anyone."

"SHUT UP! I DON'T NEED YOU GUYS HERE TOO!" She screamed at the top of her lungs at the mental images of Terra and Ventus standing before her, in midair. They shook their heads, "We can't just leave. Not when you're like this. Especially since it's our fault."

Ventus approached her and held out a hand, but she shied away, backing up against the wall… or what she thought was a wall. Before she knew it, a chakram was against her throat.

"Well, I came up here to ask myself what I was going to do next, and whaddya know: I find you. I have the best timing, don't you think?"

Saiyoku grabbed the chakram and flipped around to kick her would-be captor—Ventus and Terra vanishing—but he overtook her, sending her to the ground on her back, his chakrams pointing at her neck.

"Hello again… Saiyoku…" The way he said her name made her shudder.

"A-Axel…"