Post KHII. "If two halves desire to be separate unto themselves, they must become one." A riddle posed to Roxas by a mysterious cloaked figure could prove the key to unlocking his heart, or could leave him stranded in darkness. Roxas x Namine. Prolog and Chapter I Chapter II Roxas raised his hand to tap lightly on the window to Riku's room, casting an anxious glance at the sky. Flickers of lightning were jumping from cloud to cloud high above, and he knew it was only a matter of time until it started to rain. Though earlier the night had been warm and humid, the older boy still had his window shut and tightly locked; his seeming paranoia knew no bounds. Sora would have been wise to follow his friend's example. Roxas hoped that Riku wasn't a deep sleeper. He wasn't. The Nobody had barely touched the glass when Riku tumbled out of bed, Way to the Dawn drawn and ready in his hand before he was even fully awake. He frowned upon seeing Roxas and Naminé, but leaned over his bed and popped the catch on his window, levering it open. His mouth open to ask a question, his cyan gaze flicked from Oblivion clutched in Roxas's hand to his grip on Naminé's with the other, to the dark clouds masking the sky above to the Black Dusks approaching steadily, and his mouth snapped shut. "Questions can wait," he stated, jumping out the one-story window to land with a grunt next to Roxas. "What's the plan?" "I need you to get her out of here. I'll hold them off." Riku started to nod, then paused. "That would be stupid. You're coming, too." A fat raindrop plopped in his outstretched hand, and he looked up. "This is no natural storm. Last time I saw a storm of this magnitude, darkness swallowed this world. You're coming with us." "Where are we going?" Naminé asked. "If these things are like normal Dusks, they can't swim. I have a boat, I'll take you to our island," he pointed to the smaller island visible farther out in the ocean. "We played there as kids; I know every hiding place on the entire island." "Right, then, let's go," Roxas said impatiently. "One question," Riku slapped the flat of his Keyblade against the Nobody's chest, halting his progress. "Where are Sora and Kairi?" "Asleep," Roxas answered uncomfortably. "The only way we can move about on our own is if they're asleep." "So you're leaving them completely defenseless against this unknown threat?" the boy's eyes narrowed. Roxas pointed toward the approaching hoard. "Does it look like they're targeting Sora and Kairi? They're coming after us, and we... need your help," he admitted grudgingly, swallowing his pride with difficulty. Riku nodded, thinking. His silver hair fell over his eyes; then he looked back at them. "I'll take you both to our island, then return to make sure that Sora and Kairi are okay." "Promise me you won't wake them up unless their lives are in danger," Roxas pleaded. "Please." The other Keyblade wielder frowned, but nodded. "I won’t." "Give me your word," the Nobody insisted. "Fine, I promise. Let's go." He dismissed Way to the Dawn and beckoned. "Follow me. You can explain everything on the boat." -xXx- The rain was falling in a blinding curtain as Riku and Roxas pushed the small wooden rowboat into the ocean. Naminé paused, unwilling to leap in on blind faith. "Are you sure this can hold three people?" she asked hesitantly. "Would you rather swim?" Riku asked bluntly, climbing in. She conceded the point and jumped in, squeezing in behind Riku and Roxas. "Riku, shouldn't you stay here, since you're just returning anyway?" "I want to know what's going on," the cyan-eyed boy replied, fixing Roxas with a steady gaze as he picked up his oar. The Nobody sighed and began to tell his story. With a glance at Naminé, he left out the part where the man said 'covet her'. He finished as the boat skidded up onto the sand of the smaller island. Riku paused and laid his oar down in the boat; Roxas followed his lead. "So this... glowing-eyed unknown. Who is he?" Roxas shook his head uncertainly. "He kept calling me 'Key of Destiny'... my codename when I was with the Organization. The only people who know me by that name are Sora, now both of you, and other members of Organization XIII, but they're all dead." "All of them?" Riku repeated. "You're sure of that?" Roxas paused, thinking. "Yes." "And you're sure that no one else could know you by that name?" "Yes... wait," he frowned. "There was one member of the Organization whose death was never really confirmed." "Who?" "Zexion," Roxas looked at Riku to see the silver-haired boy clench his fists. "You knew him?" "You could say that," he shook his head in wry amusement. "We fought several times. He kept trying to push me into using the darkness." "Yeah, that sounds like Zexion; the Cloaked Schemer, we called him." Naminé looked from Riku to Roxas with a faint expression of fear flicking across her face. "What do you mean, his death was unconfirmed?" "According to Axel, he was last seen with the Ri- uhh... your clone," Roxas trailed off, looking awkwardly at Riku, but the boy just nodded in response. "And you killed him." Riku nodded again. "We assumed that he was dead because his panel in the Proof of Existence had gone red, but no one saw him die. His element was illusion, after all." Roxas frowned uncertainly. "So for lack of any other possibility, let's assume the glowing-eyed unknown is Zexion," Riku supplied. "What does he want with you?" "When I asked what the Organization wanted with me, he replied "who said anything about the Organization?" Does that mean he's working with someone else, or is he here on his own?" Riku shook his head. "I don't know. Do you have any idea what those things are?" he pointed back at the main island they had left behind. "They're just standing there at the beach." "You can see that far?" Roxas asked in disbelief. "You were in darkness for longer than I was,” he raised one silver eyebrow. “Don't tell me that you can't." Not to be outdone, the Nobody squinted through the rain; he could indeed see the faint outline of the Black Dusks standing at the edge of the beach. They made no motion move into the water, seeming to be content just to wait for them to return. "I don't know what they are," he said finally. "I've been calling them Black Dusks. They aren't marked with the symbol of the Organization, nor do they have the symbol of the Heartless." Riku looked up at the sky as a lightning strike exploded overhead. "I'm going to go back to ensure that Sora and Kairi are safe. Should I see the glowing-eyed unknown, whether he's Zexion or not, I'm going to attack." Roxas nodded firmly. "I'd be worried if you gave him a big hug and a kiss," he said wryly. The boy snorted and started to laugh in spite of himself. "I'll return in the morning." "Don't bother; once the others wake in the morning, we'll probably disappear back into them. That's the fate of a Nobody," he shrugged helplessly. "Just go. We'll be fine here." Roxas jumped out of the boat into the water and helped Naminé out, lifting her easily and depositing her on the wet sand. Riku nodded in farewell as Roxas pushed the boat back into the ocean. "Watch out for Zexion. We still don't know what he wants." "We'll manage," Roxas offered a half-hearted salute, then waded through the water to the beach, Naminé following behind. "Let's get out of the rain," he suggested, pushing his blond hair away from his eyes. "Good idea," she agreed. A sudden grin crossed her face. “Race you!” They ran for the Secret Place; Naminé disappeared inside, while Roxas paused outside, looking into the cascading water spilling down into the small pool from the rocks. He almost swore that he could see the black-hooded man in the falling water. "If two halves desire to be separate unto themselves, they must become one." Roxas spun around. "Where are you, you *******?" he shouted. "Show yourself!" "Covet it. Protect it. Or should I say... her?" "Shut up!" Oblivion appeared in his hand and he flourished it angrily. "I don't have time for your sick riddle games!" "Covet... If two halves desire... covet... become one..." the man's voice echoed from the cliffs around him, melding his words together in a steady stream. "Shut up!" Roxas slashed his Keyblade through the image in the waterfall. "Shut up, shut up, shut up!" He screamed incoherently, and with a final slash the hooded face disappeared. His mocking laughter rang from the rocks. "Roxas!" He turned quickly, Oblivion ready to strike. Naminé stood on the other side of the waterfall, obvious concern in her eyes. "What is it? What's out there?" He shook his head and dismissed his Keyblade. "I don't know," he admitted. He reached her side and nodded for her to continue into the Secret Place. As she headed in, Roxas paused with his hand on the roof of the cave. "Covet her..." the voice whispered, an insidious drip in his ear. Roxas shook his head to dispel the whisper and followed her into the cave, head ducked to keep from cracking it against the rocky ceiling. It took a moment for his eyes to adjust to the dim light from the luminous mushrooms scattered about. The heavy rain was still falling through the hole in the roof, but it was all flowing out into the pool outside, leaving most of the cave dry and relatively warm. He found Naminé with her fingers pressed against one of the many drawing on the far side of the cave. Her fingers gently traced the rough etchings. "Look," she said softly as Roxas came up behind her. "It's Sora and Kairi." Her hand paused atop the star-shaped drawing. "What's this? It looks like the lucky charm." He shook his head and put his hand atop hers. "It's a Paopu fruit," he answered. "Covet her..." the voice breathed out of nowhere. He quickly removed his hand. "It's said if two people share one, their destinies become intertwined... or something like that." He frowned, suddenly unsure. "I can't always remember everything Sora knows." "Become one..." His fists clenched, and he looked around the cave, searching for the source of that voice. Naminé allowed her hand to fall. She stepped back, regarding the two faces carved into the stone. "It's beautiful," she whispered. Roxas glanced back at it, then resumed his search. "Your drawings are better," he stated matter-of-factly, pressing his ear against one of the walls, listening. She shook her head. "The artwork isn't the point." Naminé's fingers traced the outline of the two Paopu fruits. "It's the feelings that prompted the drawing." "Hn," Roxas glanced at her suspiciously, then turned back, eyes roving the carved walls. Not finding the hooded man visible anywhere in the cave, he moved back over to sit with next to her. Much his surprise, she huddled in against him, shivering. "If two halves desire to be separate unto themselves, they must become-" He leapt to his feet. "Would you shut up?" Roxas shouted, faithful Oblivion again responding to his distress. "If you're not going to tell me what that means, then shut the hell up!" Naminé looked around. "What are you talking about?" she asked, confused. "You can't hear the voice? He's mocking me, the *******, reciting his stupid riddle and not showing his face." Roxas slammed Oblivion point-first into the soft ground. "Maybe we should try to figure it out," Naminé suggested softly. "If you want to play his game, be my guest. If I see him, I'm going to-" "Going to what?" came the soft voice from a corner. Roxas wheeled around to see the figure, standing with his arms away from his body to show that he had no weapon. "I'm going to kill him," he finished darkly, raising Oblivion and charging forward. The man clapped his hands with an explosion of darkness and reappeared on the other side of the cave. "Have I really given you cause for such drastic action?" he questioned calmly. "I'm trying to help you, you know." "Doubt it," Roxas responded sharply, stopping where he was and turning to face him. "Draw your weapon and fight. You know that I have no problem slaying an unarmed opponent." "Honorable as always, Key of Destiny." "Maybe because I know what you can do without a weapon, Cloaked Schemer." The man laughed, and his voice changed to the soft tone that was Zexion's. "I see you aren't as dull as I thought. Well done." He raised his hands and pulled back his hood, shrinking a bit as he did so until he was barely taller than Roxas himself. "I see death has treated you well," Roxas noted. "Who said anything about death?" Zexion tucked his frosty-indigo hair behind his left ear, leaving the rest hanging over his right eye. "We don't exist, so can we truly die?" "What about the others? Are they like you?" "I'm not sure what you mean, like me," he answered easily. "Still here and annoying." The Cloaked Schemer laughed out loud. "I'm afraid I can't tell you that. You still haven't figured out the riddle. I even gave you a hint." "You did not." "I did." Zexion pointed at Naminé, and she gasped, pressing back against the wall. "I told you to protect her. I didn't have to do that." "I would have figured that part out on my own, thanks." "I told you to covet her." Naminé looked quickly at Roxas, a question clearly in her eyes. Zexion didn't miss that look. "Oh, so you didn't tell her?" Mild amusement again entered his voice. "I guess I can give you one more hint without giving it all away." "Why don't you just tell me the answer so I can bash your face in and be done with it?" Roxas retorted. He laughed out loud again. "My, my; you are amusing. If I just told you, that would defeat the point of this test." "Who's testing me? You?" He tightened his grip on Oblivion. "That would be telling, wouldn't it?" That faint trace of amusement never left his voice for a second as he regarded Naminé carefully. "Here's your final clue. If you are the Key, then there must be a corresponding lock. What you had dedicated your life to searching for will point the way. Commit it to memory." "Don't you mock him," Roxas growled dangerously. "Don't you dare mock him. He was a good friend. That's something you'll never understand." Zexion chuckled softly. "I love how you use the past tense; written him off already, have you?" "What are you talking about?" His eyes narrowed. "Axel died. I saw him die." "Oh yes, I heard; that amount of energy being expended all at once could be felt for miles around." Before their eyes, he changed shape, growing taller and thinner, with emerald green eyes. "But you weren't there," he continued in Axel's voice, running a hand through his fiery red spikes. "You just watched as I went kamikaze to try and bring you back," his face began to dissolve, releasing tiny bits of darkness into the air. "You didn't even show your face as I died for you. You might as well have lifted the Keyblade yourself." "You b*stard!" Roxas yelled, lifting Oblivion to attack. Back in his original form, Zexion held up a hand and Roxas froze, unable to move. "Remember, I'm supposedly dead as well." His one visible eyebrow rose unconcernedly. "Oh dear, there I go again; giving away information for free. I really need to stop doing that." He clapped his hands together with an explosion of darkness. Roxas refused to close his eyes, squinting through in an attempt to watch him disappear, but Zexion couldn't leave without a parting word. "If stare too long into the abyss, the abyss stares back. Got it memorized?" Roxas hurled Oblivion into the wall with an incoherent scream of frustration and anger; his Keyblade disintegrated with a small eruption of dark energy, and he pounded his fist against the rock helplessly. Naminé stood and walked over to him, gently grasping his wrist in both pale hands. His blows against the stone weakened at her touch; and he stopped and looked to her. She flinched at the hollow look in his eyes; it was as if the dark explosion had drained them of life itself. "I killed him," he whispered blankly. "I killed Axel." "There's nothing you could have done-" Naminé started. He pulled his wrist from her grasp and resumed his pounding against the unyielding wall, smearing his blood across the rock. "Stop that," she ordered, grabbing his hand. "You're bleeding." She tugged gently, and he followed her bleakly. "Sit down." He collapsed to the ground and stared at the wall, lips moving silently. "What did he do to you, Roxas?" Naminé whispered. It was as though his will to resist and live had been crushed into dust with his Keyblade as he stared into the darkness where Zexion had disappeared. She left him sitting there, staring blankly at the wall as she ripped the bottom inch of cloth from her dress and soaked it with the water coming in through the ceiling in an attempt to clean it. "It may not be perfect, but it's better than just leaving it exposed to all the dirt in here," she murmured to him, wrapping his bleeding fist with the soft cloth. Roxas didn't acknowledge her, and she sighed. "What did he do to you?" she repeated softly, tying the makeshift bandage tightly. She raised his fingers to her lips and kissed them gently, looking into his hollowed eyes. "What did he do to you?" A/N: In this chapter, I paraphrased a quote by the philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche: “He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you.” Chapter III Chapter IV
I stalked you to your FFnet account so I've already read this but since I havn't left you a comment there, I might as well tell you here as you continue. xD Yay Riku! :looks around: What? :hides in fangirl corner: Anywho, I love the fact that Riku is still paranoid. Such a smartie. It's so in character and yet one of those traits that everyone overlooks- Like Sora with a turtle. XD I'm still laughing over that by the way. I loved Zexion in this chapter. When he turned into Axel I'm pretty sure I gave a little squeak because I was that scared. xP Roxas' anger was lovely to read as you discribed it rather well. :nod: Anywho, I'm waiting for chapter III... again. :p
*pats head* You know it's only because I love you, right, Zexion? :p Wow. REVIEW! *hugs* Thank you, and I'm glad you've come back to read it again! :p Even though you're a... Riku fangirl *shudders* Those little things about RIku stick though because my beta-reader (and best friend) is an utter Riku fangirl. Thank you for taking the time to comment as you did! ~Jade
What? I have to protect Riku from you and your abiding dislike of him solely based on his smirkiness. :p
