In which the tour of Shibuya doesn't last quite as long as it should.
Chasing The Truth
By FlikFreak
Chapter Two: A Visit Cut Short
Neku's mother was a very kind woman. Sora gave her a polite bow when he entered her home and once introductions had passed the group all made their way up to the attic, which didn't look like an attic aside from the stereotypical pointed ceiling made of wood. Several sleeping bags had been laid out, and though Neku willingly gave his up for Sora, the key bearer (as well as both of his friends) was fine without one.
The night began when Neku dove behind a rather dusty-looking sofa (in truth, the fabric was just old) and pulled out a large box of what was apparently some form of snack food. Sora took a stick of it tentatively; it looked suspiciously like a breadstick covered in frosting with the very end of it left bare.
"You're supposed to hold it the other way, Sora," Neku said absently, handing a few sticks to everyone else and placing the box in the center of their little circle. Sora corrected himself and took a small nibble. This treat – pocky, as Shiki had called it – was rather tasty.
Meanwhile, Riku and Kairi had managed to wring the truth out of Beat, whom stared at the ground in embarrassment. "I've been drawin' for years, yo," he said quietly. "I only got into graffiti and other stuff recently."
"Are you going to go to art school?" Kairi asked.
Beat shrugged. "Maybe."
"I haven't been to school in ages," Sora grumbled. "I never thought I'd miss it."
"Why not?" Neku asked, his expression curious. "Why haven't you been in school, I mean."
Sora sighed. This'll be easy, he thought sarcastically. "Well, even after the islands were destroyed and put back together again, there were still people that needed my help, so I couldn't go home yet. Even after I finally did, the Restoration Committee asked for my help, since there are still leftovers running around…"
Neku sent a questioning look to Riku and Kairi. The silver haired boy nodded in response, answering his unspoken question. "Before, there was a heartless named Xehanort who was controlling the heartless. There were tons more then, and they went around stealing many people's hearts so that Xehanort could gain control of absolute darkness. After Sora defeated him, the heartless went down in number, but we had to deal with Nobodies, too. They were under the control of Organization XIII, which we all managed to take down somehow. There are fewer nobodies than before, too, but they're still running around at any rate, so we're basically cleaning up the aftermath right now until the number is low enough to where we don't have to run all over the universe."
"That sounds harsh," Shiki said.
"It's not too bad," Sora insisted. "I got to meet you, after all. Going home when nothing comes up is weird, though. I mean, I didn't have to use the formula for the area of a circle when me and Neku were fighting Xsoh."
"I still want to know what made you toss the keyblade at me," Neku said, staring at the ceiling for a moment.
Sora shrugged. "I knew that the Minamimoto we were fighting knew how you fought, and since he knew about the keyblade he would know how I fought, too." He paused, remembering the moment. "I kind of had a spur-of-the-moment idea that maybe if you were the one with the keyblade and I was the one with the psyches, then he'd get confused. Of course, I didn't really use psyches…just a bit of magic."
Neku chuckled. "It worked at any rate," he said. "But it was still weird, holding the keyblade like that."
On cue, the keyblade appeared in Sora's hand, resting in his lap like a snoozing kitten. All eyes turned to it; Rhyme's charm still dangled off of the end. Sora gave it a thoughtful look, and he felt Roxas grinning at it. "Odd," he muttered. "It doesn't show up on its own very often."
"Maybe it wants something," Riku suggested. Sora nodded in agreement, his eyes not leaving the blade
"The keyblade has a mind of its own?" Rhyme asked quietly, her eyes locked on the decorated end of the bronze shaft.
Kairi nodded. "The keyblade chooses its master," she said. "But other than that, we don't know very much about it. I think someone told me once that it was power given form, or light given form or something…they weren't very specific, but there's a connection between it and Kingdom Hearts."
"The heart of all worlds," Sora said, remembering what Xehanort's Heartless had called it. "Both Xehanort's Heartless and Xemnas were after it."
"Sounds like there's still a lot you don't know," Shiki stated. "But you've still saved the day time and again."
Sora shrugged. "I don't get it, either. You'd think that being the hero would make you know about all this, but I've got way more questions than answers. I've wondered about the keyblade more often than not."
"Like how it can change its appearance?" Neku suggested.
"Yeah."
Kairi crossed her arms. "Now that you mention it, don't you think something's off with the way it is now? I mean, it's beautiful, but something's missing."
"It does seem that way," Riku stated. "But I don't think it's got anything to do with the way it looks."
The statement was just about as puzzling as the riddle. The group pondered the mystery before someone finally spoke up on it.
"It doesn't have a name," Sora said suddenly. All eyes turned to him, and he shrugged. "Every keychain I've ever had always got a name. I haven't named this one yet."
Riku lifted an eyebrow. "So that's what it was. Now it makes sense."
"Why haven't you named it?" Neku asked.
"We tried," Kairi offered, "But not just any name will work. It has to be the right one. We went through tons of them, and couldn't come up with anything. I didn't know the name was that important until Sora pointed out that it didn't feel complete."
Beat lifted a finger in the air, his eyes brightening. "Yo! I've got an idea!"
Neku rolled his eyes. "We're not naming it after you, Beat."
"Not me, man," Beat replied, "I just thought…the keychain; it looks a lot like Rhyme's pendant, right? So, uh, maybe the name has to do with that, yo!"
The words struck a chord in Sora's heart. Beat, while not always the brightest of the four Shibuya teens, did tend to have his moments of brilliance, even if they were awkward. The mention of the name having something to do with Rhyme's pendant was quite on the mark. After several moments of thought, he knew what the boy had really meant.
Riku sat back, eyes lost in contemplation. "It's possible. It doesn't always work that way, but…"
Sora shook his head. "I think I know what Beat's saying." He held the keyblade in both hands, the charm ringing a little when it moved, and looked closely at it. "See, the only keychains that ever worked usually have a strong connection with someone. You can't just go to a store and take one and expect it to work. Usually, if it's got a really strong meaning to it, it'll work. I've gotten almost all of mine as gifts, like the one the moogles made me as thanks for keeping Radiant Garden safe. Rhyme's charm worked, too, because it's special in the same way."
"But what does that have to do with a name?" Shiki asked.
"I've always named a keychain after something relating to the person who gave it to me, or where it came from, if it didn't already have a name." Sora stared at the weapon intently, as though it would speak to him. "I think this one already has a name…we just don't know what it is yet."
Neku sighed. "Then how are we supposed to find out what it is?"
Sora shook his head. "We don't. Rhyme does."
Rhyme blinked. "…me?"
Without a word, Sora handed her the keyblade. "You're the one that gave it to me. You should name it."
To say the girl was startled was an understatement. Tentatively, she took the object in her hands, holding it with great reverence. Sora wasn't sure whether or not it was a trick of the light, but the keyblade seemed to brighten when she held it. She looked up at Sora questioningly, but he just smiled. She can do this.
After another few moments, Rhyme looked back down at the keyblade in her hand as though realizing something, and she spoke. "Remembered Dream," she said softly. The moment she did, the keyblade vanished in a flash of golden light and a whirl of ethereal wind, reappearing in Sora's hands. Rhyme blinked, startled. "What happened?"
Sora smiled. "I think we found its name," he said.
Deep in the farthest reaches of the Cavern of Remembrance, a figure dressed in red crossed her arms. Clawed fingers tapped patiently, and she kept her red, pointed hat low enough to cover most of her face. "This is the place," she muttered. "It's hard to believe I'm looking upon it with my own eyes…"
"Well, now we know where it is, don't we?" Said a blonde-haired young man. He tugged at his blue vest and winced, dusting off his baggy blue slacks and tapping the toe of one of his shoes on the ground. "I swear; that place was as bad as the castle itself, if not worse. The number of heartless alone made my tail twitch. I admit, though, we do have that ambassador woman to thank for finding this place for us."
"Keep your daggers ready, Zidane," the woman replied. "We may have company. After all, if this is what they were seeking and if they've already found it like the woman said…"
Zidane, as the young man was apparently named, nodded. "Yeah, yeah. Though, I wouldn't call her a woman, seeing how short she is." He leveled a hand close to the ground to make his point. "What's in here anyway, Freya?"
Freya clenched her fists, her own whip-like tail twitching nervously. "Something that should have been better off forgotten…which is why we're reporting this to the Committee right away."
Neku woke up to find himself staring at the back of Sora's head. For a brief moment, he expected the sounds of the street, the music of the UG to pour into his ears, and his phone to ring with the day's mission. When nothing happened, he almost felt sick before slapping himself on the head with the realization that he wasn't in the game anymore. He had sat up out of force of habit anyway, though, and noticed that Riku was also awake. When the silver-haired boy noticed him, he glanced back down at Sora. "I really wonder how he sleeps so well," he whispered.
"Why's that?" Neku asked. "He sleeps like a log."
"He's got a lot on his shoulders," Riku replied. "Between saving people, saving worlds, sealing keyholes and remembering to follow the rules of world order, he somehow manages to put on a cheerful face. For a while he even had to deal with the fact that he was being used for his enemy's purposes whether he liked it or not. It's almost inhuman how cheerful he can be."
Neku couldn't help but agree. Sora had been on edge during his entire time in Shibuya the first time. Maybe because… "Did he tell you all about what happened…in the game?"
Riku nodded. "Yeah, first thing when he came back. He was a bit dodgy about some of it, though. He absolutely refused to tell us what the entry fee business was about, or what it was. When he came back and saw us for the first time afterward, he nearly broke down in tears, he was so happy to see us. He doesn't do that often."
So he didn't tell them about the entry fee, Neku thought. Knowing him, he probably doesn't want to worry them…or embarrass himself.
The silver-haired boy turned to Neku, directing a stern and narrow gaze at him. "You know something about it."
It wasn't a question. The former proxy sighed and looked away. "What happens in the game stays in the game," he said sternly. "If Sora didn't tell you, then I have no place to."
Riku didn't seem convinced; Neku's words only seemed to annoy him. Even so, he dropped the subject and looked away with a hint of understanding in his eyes.
It wasn't long before everyone else woke up. Beat was apparently a late sleeper, and only Rhyme managed to rouse him from his slumber without getting an inaccurate (but rather powerful, as Sora found out the hard way) swat to the nose.
"Oh yeah!" the skater cried. "We was ganna give you guys the tour of Shibuya, yo!"
"We can start at Hachiko," Shiki suggested. "There's some really nice shops there, and Dogenzaka isn't very far away. We can head to Ramen Don's for lunch."
"I've never really had ramen before," Kairi said. "Is it good?"
"You bet it is!" Sora exclaimed. "I had some while I was here. Don't let the smell fool you; it tastes amazing!"
"Better than Sea Salt Ice Cream?" Riku asked, smirking.
Sora put on a pouting face that Neku was sure actually belonged to Roxas. "No way. Sea Salt Ice Cream is sacred."
Neku grinned. "Is this Roxas or Sora we're talking to?" he questioned.
"Both," Sora replied, his voice heavily monotone.
Breakfast was served the moment they all went downstairs. After eating and giving a polite farewell, they made their way to the bus stop, with Sora once again picking a place next to Neku. Rhyme sat next to Sora as well, with Beat staying protectively close to her as usual. Shiki, Kairi and Riku remained on the other side, with the said silver-haired boy still staring at Neku like he was a criminal. Sora must have noticed Neku's unease, and he just whispered to him, "Don't worry. He always looks like that around people he doesn't know well."
Roughly five minutes later, the group found themselves getting off at the scramble nearest to Shibuya's number one meet-up spot: The statue of Hachiko. Countless people walked about, some passing by and others waiting, and the burger shop nearby received its fill of customers.
"This is the meeting place of Shibuya?" Riku asked.
Neku nodded. "Yep. The River is past the station underpass down the street, but we're not going there."
Riku crossed his arms. "Why not?"
"We just aren't," Sora said before Neku could come up with an excuse. With a surprised expression, Riku dropped the subject.
The group proceeded to the scramble crossing, which was crowded with pedestrians on the sidewalk. Sora walked so casually down it that Neku had to pull on his hoodie and remind him to wait for the signal to cross. Once they did, Kairi was astounded by the sheer number of people that went across the street at once. Neku just shrugged and told her, "You get used to it." She didn't seem entirely too convinced.
By Shiki's insistence, the group stopped by the 104 tower. While they didn't really buy anything, Riku and Kairi's jaws dropped when they saw the stores inside. When Kairi asked why Sora never bought anything, he only shrugged and said he didn't have the time to, which was partially true.
After having their fun in 104, the group headed to Dogenzaka for some lunch. The moment they entered, Riku and Kairi instinctively winced from the smell, but Neku hastily ordered them some of Ken Doi's best ramen and their expressions changed rather quickly.
"You're Sora's friends, right?" He said. "Here ya go, then. On the house."
"Thanks, Mr. Doi," Sora said, grinning from ear to ear.
Riku was hesitant about the ramen, even though it tasted good, but Kairi was very quick to compliment it. By the time they were finished, however, Riku gave Sora an odd expression that only the brunette himself could possibly hope to understand.
After lunch, Neku led the way to AMX, stopping in to give several new albums a listen. Riku was surprisingly quite interested in music, namely soundtracks and other calming tunes rather than heavy rock, but the group got a surprise when they saw several fans purchasing the Player's first album, "The World Ends With You."
"Where'd you get a name like that?" Sora asked, trying to keep his voice low so that they wouldn't be overheard.
Neku just grinned, remembering his chat with Hanekoma several weeks before Sora had arrived. "I'll explain it later."
After purchasing a few new songs for Neku's MP3 player, the group made their way outside and paused near Tipsy Tose Hall. "We could head to Udagawa or to Cat Street from here," Neku offered. "Your choice."
"What's Udagawa like?" Kairi asked.
"Yeah!" Sora added. "We never got to go there when I was here."
Neku felt his heart swell with pride. "That's where CAT's latest graffiti always is. He's the best at it." Hanekoma always was…
Eagerly, the music-loving boy made his way past Shibu-Q Heads and into the back alley. As usual, Neku found himself drawn in by the art painted on the walls, and approached quickly, leaving the others to run and catch up. Sora's eyes practically bulged from his head. "This looks more like a painting than graffiti," he said.
"I thought you'd been all over Shibuya, Sora," Riku said.
Sora shook his head. "Like I said, I never came here. We never got a chance to."
"Well, now you know," Neku said, an enormous smile on his face. "Isn't it great?"
"Wonderful indeed, Neku Sakuraba."
The group whirled around instinctively at the voice, and though they saw no one, they felt another presence. Neku clenched his fists, his smile having changed to a death glare. "Who's there?" he demanded.
They were answered by a small crowd of what had to be twenty creatures in white. Neku grit his teeth and tightened his hands into fists; the humanoids reminded him much of the Neoshadows he had encountered when Minamimoto was running the show, though the main exception remained that these had no eyes, only twitching, unzipped mouths full of fangs, and no antennae.
"Dusks," Sora snarled, summoning the keyblade in a matter of seconds. "What're they doing here?"
"I thought we wiped out the Organization?!" Riku demanded.
"Ah, you did, didn't you? Both of you, with combined efforts, took down all but two."
"Two?" Kairi echoed. "Who…"
"The Key to Destiny, Roxas, remains alive and whole. Axel, however, did himself in to aid a pathetic excuse for a keybearer like you, Sora. You look like a child with a toy compared to Ventus."
Sora froze. "What…?"
"And how fortunate for us…we have you all gathered here in one place. The keybearers, the princess, and especially the proxy…just who we were looking for."
Neku grit his teeth. Oh, if only he was in the UG, he could use his psyches. He felt utterly helpless without them, as much as he loathed admitting it.
"Attack!"
The Dusks lunged. With expertise, Sora batted them away with Remembered Dream, the keyblade pulsing with each hit. Riku took his share of fighting into his hands, and Kairi even summoned her own weapon. Neku wasn't entirely sure he could protect his friends, but he took his battle stance anyway. Shiki clutched Mr. Mew close to her, and Beat pulled a somehow disoriented Rhyme close. "Hang on, Rhyme. We ganna be okay, yo!"
"Beat," the girl muttered. "I can't…it…"
"Rhyme…?"
"I can't focus…something's…"
Neku ground his teeth together nervously when he registered Rhyme's new and unexplained condition. He only became angrier when he noticed that for each dusk slain, two more seemed to appear. Anyone nearby that had been shopping had fled.
"Dusks! Leave the keybearers! Get me the proxy! Now! Chase him to the River and into the UG if you must! I want him alive!"
"Who're you calling a proxy?" Neku protested, but had little time to react when he saw five monsters headed his way. Sora batted them out of the way, and sent a barrage of thunder spells to finish off a few more.
Riku hovered in midair for a brief moment, sending a barrage of black fireballs at the rest of the horde, finally finishing off, only for more to appear. "They're not about to give in!" he shouted. "Neku, they're not after us, they're after you!"
"And there's no sign of them stopping!" Shiki cried. "We've gatta run!"
"Run where?!" Beat said. "They ganna chase us even if we end up in the UG, yo! We can't run, and Rhyme's not so good right now!"
Sora's eyes lit up, and he sent another three dusks into oblivion. "Everyone follow me! We're leaving!"
Riku's eyes widened. "Leaving? But Sora-"
"There's no choice," Sora said, his voice taking on a serious tone that shouldn't have belonged. "Neku, everyone! Hurry!"
Without question, everyone ran after Sora (Rhyme was still out of composure, so Beat picked her up and utilized his skateboard to its fullest) as he sliced his way through the monsters that occupied the streets. Even as they did, Neku still questioned the keybearer's motives. "Sora! Where are we going?"
"We have to leave Shibuya!" Sora replied. "It's our only chance! If we stay here, it'll be the Game all over again, only ten times worse!"
Neku agreed without a word, not wanting to repeat such an experience. But where else is there to go other than Shibuya?
Sora skidded near a corner, diving into a back alley near the station underpass. "In here!" he cried, motioning to a bright, glowing portal on the ground. It was only when Sora pointed it out that Neku even saw it. "Quick!"
Neku dove in without question. One moment, he was in a back alley, pursued by dusks, the next he was in what appeared to be some sort of futuristic hangar with a large, colorful aircraft situated in the center. There was no time to marvel at the sight when Sora motioned the group up the stairs. "This way! They can still follow us!"
They raced up the stairs, ducking through a doorway into what appeared to be a large control panel of sorts. Sora stood in front of one of the seats and jabbed furiously at several buttons. "Chip! Dale! Do you copy?"
"Yessir, Sora!" A high-pitched voice replied.
"Get us out of here," Sora replied. "NOW!" With that, he sat down and buckled himself into the seat. "Everyone, find a place to sit and hang on!"
Riku and Kairi took the other two remaining seats, and the rest of the group was left to secure themselves on the floor. Neku barely had an idea what was happening; the world was moving around him so quickly. Then, the world around him began to tremble, and he found an unseen force shoving him against the wall.
He wasn't sure how long he was pressed there, but eventually Neku felt the pressure lessen, and he heard Sora, Riku and Kairi gasping for breath. He was about to look up when he suddenly felt exhausted. The impromptu escape from Udagawa had taken more out of him than he had anticipated.
Several minutes passed, the silence only broken by everyone panting for breath. Neku wiped the sweat off of his forehead and temporarily removed his headphones to do the same for around his neck. "They won't follow us here," Sora said, panting, "But we can't just float around forever."
Riku, whom had just gained his composure back from the battle, was steaming. "Sora, are you nuts?! This is worse than meddling; you can't just...Ugh! You've got to be breaking like fifty rules, here!"
"The Dusks were after him specifically," Sora protested. "Plus, they would chase him without resting if they had to. What else could we do?"
"Well, we could have found the source of that voice!" Riku suggested angrily. "Defeat him and stop the Dusks! Do you ever think before you act?"
Kairi winced. "Riku, calm down. I think Sora's right; they would have done some serious harm to Shibuya if we stayed…"
"Someone care to explain what's going on?" Shiki asked loudly, hoping to get their attention. "What were those things, and why were they after us? And where are we now?"
Sora shook his head. "We can explain all that later when it's safe," he stated. "As for where we are, just take a look out the window next to you."
Shiki did. Whatever she saw made her eyes widen more than should have been physically possible. "Neku! Look!"
Scrambling to his feet and walking over, Neku peered out the window to see a sky filled with countless stars – more than he ever even saw (or ever would see) when he visited the countryside. Just fading from view was a small planet that he somehow recognized. The sight was, overall, beautiful, but startling at the same time when he realized exactly where he was. "We're in outer space?"
"Yep," Sora replied. "What did you think I meant by other worlds?"
"But why take us here?" Beat asked. "We can't just leave Shibuya, yo!"
Neku bit his lip. Beat was right; he couldn't just leave his home unannounced. But then there was the thought of those monsters chasing him. He had a strong feeling that they would stop at nothing to get to him, even if it meant hurting others. He narrowed his eyes; the decision was a difficult one. I hate playing hero.
"Sora, you should take them back," Riku said. "Now."
The brunette sighed. "Geez," he said casually, "I'm not planning on kidnapping them, Riku. We're just staying up here for a while until things calm down, then we'll head back and see what we can find about those Dusks that showed up."
"I don't think so," Kairi said, a hint of dread in her voice. "Sora, we're out of fuel."
Neku heard the sound of something slamming into the control panel and he spun to see Sora bashing his head against it. "Oh, for crying out loud! I thought we filled up at Radiant Garden before we came!"
"So now we're stranded," Riku deadpanned. "This is just great. How are we supposed to head back to Shibuya now?"
With a grim look on his face, Sora began reaching for several parts of the control panel in front of him. "I'll get Cid on the line. It shouldn't take too long."
A moment of uneasy silence fell on them while the brunette contacted help. Neku turned and noticed Rhyme shivering, and he made his way to her. "Rhyme, you okay?"
The girl shook her head, curling up into fetal position. "No…I don't feel so good…"
Beat narrowed his eyes, pulling his sister close. "You got anywhere for her to sleep on here, yo?"
"There's some sleeping quarters in the back," Riku suggested tiredly. "She can rest there."
"No," Rhyme protested. "Not sleep…something else…I feel…"
"Let me have a look," Kairi said, standing and leaving her chair to make her way over to Rhyme.
Beat was reluctant to let Kairi examine his sister, but he did so anyway while Kairi checked her pulse and forehead. Neku almost smiled; Kairi's antics reminded him of his mother. It was only when she did something unexpected that Neku knew just what she was doing.
Kairi closed her eyes and placed two fingers on Rhyme's heart. Rhyme flinched at first, but kept shivering like nothing had changed. After roughly a minute, Kairi pulled her hand away. "Medical attention," she decided quickly, her voice unusually serious. "And not just any."
Sora nodded, a grim look crossing his face. "Right."
"Change of plans then?" Riku asked, all anger from before having evaporated.
Neku bit his lip. This is turning out to be an eventful day, he thought bitterly. First, we run from monsters. Then we're out of fuel in the middle of space. To make matters even worse, Rhyme needs to see a doctor. Could today possibly get any worse?
Shiki froze at something she saw in the window. "Guys? What's that?"
The island trio spun in their seats to see what she meant, and horrified looks crossed their faces when they saw a large, colorful mass slowly headed their way. "Not good," Riku stuttered, eyes wide.
Right on cue, Neku grumbled inwardly.
"We're already in the gravitational field!" Riku continued, glancing at a screen to his left. "Sora, can't we pull up the emergency fuel reserves?"
"It's not responding!" The keybearer cried, fingers typing frantically at the keyboard in front of him. "We're going to have to make a landing!"
"You mean crash?!" Shiki exclaimed.
As though her words had jinxed them, the ship began falling toward what Neku could only discern was another planet. Shiki screamed as her sense of balance was thrown off, and Beat held Rhyme closely, his protective nature overriding his fear. Neku found nothing to grab onto, and simply tumbled, crying out in shock as he slammed into the wall. Riku unbuckled his seatbelt and dove away from the control panel. "Guys! Get to the escape pod!"
Kairi rushed over to the door and yanked on it. There was a clicking sound as she struggled, and she grit her teeth. "I can't open it! The door's jammed!"
Leaping out of his own seat, Sora said not a single word, and dragged everyone into one closer. As the planet got closer and closer, he shut his eyes tightly and spread his arms outward, a shield of hexagons appearing just as an explosion rang out in Neku's ears.
I don't like this chapter very much...but eh.
