Valentine of Destiny

Ladies and gentlemen, thank you very much for your patience. This update is, indeed, a long one, so it should make up for lost time. Without further ado, here’s the next chapter:

Sora and Riku charged at Elanore, keyblades in hand. Riku led the charge, and once he was in range, he jumped and swung his blade from over his head and into Elanore.

Elanore just simply grinned. She raised her deformed looking arm and caught the blade with ease. The blade sank into her palm slightly, but she showed no signs of pain from it. She did, however, show surprise at Riku’s next move: He swung his foot around and tried to kick her in the head. Elanore proved that her reflexes were just a bit faster than Riku’s, because her normal arm came up and caught the kick. She held Riku above her head, raising an eyebrow in amusement, “Well, that was a close one wasn’t it, darling?â€

Riku glared at her, “Not close enough. At least from me,â€

Sora came up under where Elanore was holding Riku in midair and thrust his keyblade into Elanore with all his strength. The keyblade sank in deep and propelled her back a good foot and a half.

“OOMPH!†She managed. Riku used his spare foot and, this time with succession, kicked her in the chest, forcing her to let go, as well as sending her back another foot. He used the force of the kick to propel himself backwards in the air, do a back flip, and land right beside Sora, who was standing there, watching Elanore stagger with his keyblade sticking out of her stomach.

“Ooog,†she said, “Well…this is unpleasant.â€

She regained her composure and just stood there, staring at the keyblade sticking out of her, a puzzled look on her face.

“I really don’t see what the big deal is,†she said, looking back up at Riku and Sora, “Let me ask you something: When you get hit by one of these toys, does it normally hurt, or does it feel like you got hit with a toy? This doesn’t even feel like a sword stab, in all honesty.â€

Sora gaped at her. What in the world is going on here?

“Just what are you? Are you a heartless or what?†Riku demanded, just as confused as Sora. Elanore poked the keyblade a little bit, not paying any attention. She looked like a child investigating whether this new toy had any special features.

“Hey!â€

Elanore looked up, “Oh, keep quiet, will you! I’m trying to figure this- oh, forget it!†She reached down, grabbed the handle of the blade, and gave a good yank. The keyblade came out of her body, and she assumed a sword stance, smiling.

“Let’s see how well this thi- wha?†The keyblade vanished and reappeared in Sora’s hand.

Sora grinned, “You’re new at this, aren’t you?†Riku shut his eyes. Sora never did know when to keep his trap shut.

Elanore glared at him, “You think you’ve got an edge on me just because I can’t hold your pathetic excuse for a sword? I got news for you, kid.â€

Elanore charged at the two keyblade wielders, full speed, covering whatever distance that was between in less than a second. She stopped just in front of them, in the small space between the two. She held up her hand as she came to a complete stop.

“That won’t make any difference if you can’t touch me.â€

In a flash, lightning erupted from all around her arm. The huge explosion of power sent Riku and Sora flying until the hit the barrier that Elanore put up. They both fell to the ground with a thud.

Sora staggered to get up, “Geez…†She wasn’t nearly that powerful when she took on Kairi. It seemed obvious that she was holding back, but still.

Riku groaned, “She’s a lot faster than before. How is she…! Sora! How are you on magic?â€

Sora stood up straight, “I’m good. Why?â€

Riku got up, “We need to use Session! Can you pull it off?†Sora grinned.

Sora and Riku both charged towards Elanore with all their strength. She just stood there, amused, “It won’t do you any good. I know full well what ‘Session’ is and what that attack can do, but if you think you can do some damage, well, who am I to refuse such an attempt?â€

As soon as the two warriors were within range, they began their most powerful Limit attack. Elanore can say that the attack didn’t hurt her all she wanted, but she couldn’t deny the fact that the force of the attack knocked her both out of breath and into the air. Sora and Riku each cut into Elanore with their combination of ‘Last Saber’ and ‘Dark Cannon’ techniques, each one a direct hit and showing some visible effect on her.

“Riku!†Sora shouted.

Riku nodded, “I’ll take care of it!â€

Elanore did a flip while in the air, trying to recover from being stunned by the last attacks. She turned, trying to find Sora and Riku. She found them, just in time to see them unleash the next stage of their Limit: A combination of the ‘Master Hearts’ and ‘XIII Blades’ techniques. The multiple blades, even though made of pure energy and were not solid, cut through her, each blade glowing and growing in power. After the blades were done doing their damage, Elanore fell to the ground, on her knees.

“Let’s finish this!†Riku said. He and Sora threw their keyblades into the air for the final attack: All’s End. Energy pulsed out from the two keyblades, emitting a bright and power light and force.

As the light began to fade, Sora, Riku and Elanore became visible. Sora and Riku were on their knees, out of breath. Elanore, however, was on her feet, clapping and laughing.

“Well done!†she exclaimed, “I didn’t think that technique would do any damage to me, but, once again, you surprise me!†She raised her deformed arm straight into the air. It began to crackle and spark from the lightning she was charging, “You know, it really pains me to do this, but I have orders not to eliminate you. Otherwise, I’d grant you an honorable, warrior’s end. Instead, you’ll have to settle for me just sending you to the very edge of oblivion.â€

Riku raised his head a little bit, “What would a witch like you know of honor?†Sora raised his keyblade, fully extended, pointing at Elanore, “There’s no way your going to win, whether you defeat us or not!â€

Elanore roared with laughter, “I was told you were naïve, but I didn’t know you were corny as well. Oh well, this should keep you in the hospital for a few years. Nighty-night, boys!†She lowered her arm, pointing at the two. The biggest bolt of lightning the two boys had ever seen erupted and began racing towards them. Even though it came at them with such speed, it all appeared to come in slow motion, coming closer and closer.

Sora closed his eyes. Well, he had a good haul. He had seen things most people would only dream of, and fought and defeated what most people feared. He made a difference in his life, as well as the people around him. He had no regrets…well, not quite. There was one thing he still wanted to do before he had to leave this world. Someone he still wanted to be with, one more time.

Kairi, he thought, I’m sorry.

“DARK SHIELD!â€

It all happened in a flash. The huge lightning bolt recoiled, turned, and was sent back at Elanore. She received the full impact of the blast, and in a huge explosion of electricity, she screamed. There was no denying this; she was in great pain.

Once the light show had died down, Riku and Sora uncovered their eyes and observed. Elanore was standing there, twitching from the static that was paralyzing her. Her face slightly twisted obscure, most likely from the pain, showed her eyes closed and her mouth slightly opened.

She tried to speak, “Wha…what…di…yuh…you…your…magic…gone…â€

Riku got up, apparently recovered, “Funny thing about ‘Session’: It’s Sora’s magic that gets used up from the Session Limit. Mine stays intact until the very end.†Riku tossed his keyblade up, and caught it after it flipped in the air, “I guess you didn’t know as much about it as you thought. That’s going to be your final mistake.†Riku charged, once again at full speed, at Elanore, “I told you what would happen if you did this again,†He finished by slicing his keyblade through Elanore, with a flash of black energy.

“Nobody messes with my friends.â€

Elanore fell to her knees, and then arched backwards, her chest pointing upward. Her abdomen began to dissolve. Two hearts eventually emerged and began slowly floating upward, one pink, the other blue. As that happened, the barrier that surrounded the three of them broke.

Zack and Squall ran towards Sora and Riku.

“Are you two okay?†Zack asked, concerned. Sora confused, nodded. As Squall helped Sora up, Sora asked, “Riku…what happened back there? I thought we were goners from that attack!â€

Riku turned, and began walking back to Sora, “It didn’t occur to me until during the fight: She was gaining extra power from the heart she took Seymour, and she was using lightning to generated to increase her speed. There wouldn’t be anyway for us to deal any damage to her from our normal attacks, so we had to trick her. Session, our most powerful technique, might or might not have dealt damage to her, but if nothing else, she would’ve been cocky enough to try and finish us off with a pretty decent and powerful attack. She seemed rather found of light shows.â€

“But wouldn’t she have been able to absorb the lightning?†Squall asked, “It was her power after all.†Zack shook his head, “No. The lightning Elanore shot was the same charge as the lightning she had in her. They would’ve repelled instead of attracting.â€

Sora blinked, “…I don’t get it. Are you saying you used her power against her?†Riku nodded, “Yeah, pretty much. If nothing else, it’s finally over with her.â€

“Oh, I wouldn’t say that, darlings.†Everyone turned towards Elanore’s body.

Black tentacles shot up in the air. They caught one of the two hearts that were floating up a good distance in the air, and shot back down to its source: Elanore’s body. The heart entered back into her body, sealing the darkness leaking out of her.

She got up and stretched a little bit, “Well, that was fun. I certainly gained a lot out of this little tussle, and lost a lot as well.†She raised her deformed arm in the air again, but this time no sparks came from it, “Since it appears that I can’t use my long distance attacks on you anymore, Riku dear, I’ll just have to do something else to get an edge.†She quickly turned around. Her arm shot out and stretched over to somewhere in the village, a good distance from where the group. Everyone heard the arm crash into something. It wasn’t until the arm had returned that this new strategy she had made her old one seem like genius.

She decided to take hostages.

Kairi and Aerith squirmed as the large arm they were trapped in returned to Elanore. Elanore smiled malevolently, “Now, what’s your next move, ladies? Do you surrender, or do I have to turn these two lovelies into pudding?†The guys turned their heads slightly and began to pull out their swords. They were going to surrender.

“NO!â€

Everyone recoiled in surprise and turned their heads at the source of the scream.

“I won’t let this happen!†Kairi managed to get her right arm free from Elanore’s grip, “I nearly lost my friends twice because I couldn’t defend myself! Not again! Not ever again!†She brought her arm from over her head, into Elanore’s arm. As she brought it down, the Pure Intentions keyblade materialized into her hand, spearing into Elanore’s arm in the process.

Elanore screamed in pain, and then glared furiously at Kairi. She tried to speak, but was cut off…in more ways than one.

“Nicely done, sis!â€

A red blur raced past where Elanore’s arm. Hiashi slid to a halt, past them, sword in hand, and then turned around to see her handiwork. Elanore’s arm propelled itself away from her body, the result of Hiashi slicing it off. As soon as it was a good foot away from her body, the arm instantly dissolved, resulting in Kairi and Aerith falling from a good twenty feet in the air.

Zack and Sora, driven by fear and adrenaline, caught the two just in time. Zack examined the unconscious Aerith, while Sora hugged Kairi.

“I’m so sorry, Kairi!†Sora started, “I’m sorry for everything! I-,†Kairi covered his mouth, seeing what she needed to see in Sora’s eyes. She smiled, “It’s okay. I understand now, why you’ve been acting the way you were. Everything’s going to be okay now, Sora.†The two hugged again. Or rather, they did, until they turned towards the source of the scream.

Elanore clutched her wound. She glared furiously at the group that had surrounded her. She wasn’t going to let them get away with this!

When everyone heard this, everything else went silent: A gun cocked, and footsteps heard, walking towards them. Everyone turned towards the source: A man in black with a red cloak, with a three-barrel gun pointed upward.

Elanore’s face turned pale white, “…you!â€

Vincent pointed his gun at Elanore, “You’re done here.†He fired his gun.

The result was instantaneous. Elanore exploded in a shower of darkness, with every bit of her dissolving away, and the heart she captured floating upward, this time with nothing holding it back.

“Nice shot, Pops!†Hiashi said, slyly. Vincent rolled his eyes, annoyed. He then turned towards the group, “We have a lot to talk about, and very little time. Gather your wounded and let’s go to the castle.â€


Cnc?

 

Not bad. Not bad at all.

This update was great. Elanore is finally out of the group's faces. I like how you included "Session" into the battle, which happens to be one of my favorite limits. :D Also, I love how you brought Kairi being captive and then having her summon her keyblade. Loved it.

Good job.

-Kairi

 

1) Finally! My transformation is now complete!

2) Here’s the next chapter:

“Aerith is going to be fine, Zack.”

Zack jumped up from his seat when he saw Merlin exit from the castle’s post-op. Merlin was cleaning his glasses from his cloak. “Are you sure?”

Merlin nodded, “Yes. Mother and child are doing nicely.” Zack sighed in relief, but then froze, and slowly turned around to Sora, Squall, and just about everyone else who was with him. Everyone was a little surprised by this recent turn of events.

“‘Mother and child’?” started Yuffie, “Exactly how long has Aerith been ‘Mother and child’, Zack?”

Zack scratched the back of his head and looked at a corner of the room, “Yeah, umm….she’s a few weeks along. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you guys sooner or anything, but we didn’t exactly have a good time to announce it or anything, what with Elanore attacking or anything like that.”

Squall raised an eyebrow, “So, her recent mood swings directed at you (and us) were because of her…?” Zack nodded, “Yeah, I’m afraid morning sickness has hit her pretty hard.” Cid shrugged, “Don’t worry about it, kid. I’m just glad that’s what was causing her anger and not us…Cripes, I thought she was going to kill me at one point. All because I forgot to get her some pizza…,” Cid looked up in surprise, “…now that I think about it, sardine, watermelon, and cream cheese combo toppings were pretty good hints.”

Sora looked at Merlin, “What about Kairi? How is she?”

Merlin nodded, “There’s nothing to worry about with her either, Sora. They’re both doing fine.”

Everyone sighed in relief. This just wasn’t a good week…and Reno wasn’t about to make it any better. He spoke up, in a joking tone, “‘They’? What, is Kairi pregnant too?” As much as everyone groaned at that statement, nothing could’ve prepared them for what Merlin said next:

“Yes, actually. She also requested that she speak with Sora. She said something about needing to tell him about what they’re plan is going to be for raising their child.”

Sora’s face turned tomato-red, while everyone stared at him, both in awe and fear. Hiashi, on the other hand, glared at him in anger. While standing behind Sora, Hiashi quickly drew her sword and raised it over his head.

“Grab her!” Squall yelled. Zack, Cid and Squall tackled her and fought to remove her sword and tried to restrain her. “What did you do to my sister?!” she yelled.

Sora was, to say the least, in shock. He tried to speak, but all he could manage was, “Uh…I…I…,”

Merlin was not any help either, “My dear, if you need an explanation as to where infants come from, I’m afraid that you are in sorry shape.”

Hiashi struggled to get free from everyone, while Merlin was shaking slightly and hiding his face. Yuffie stared at him. Why was he shaking so much? It wasn’t cold…

Sora finally managed to regain some of his senses, “I…I’m going to go talk to…Kairi…” He struggled to go past the door. Apparently feeling had not returned to his arms…or legs…just yet.

As soon as the door behind Sora shut, Hiashi stopped struggling. This wasn’t because her anger towards Sora had diminished, but because Merlin was doubled over from laughing so hard.

He wiped a tear from his eye, “Ah, I haven’t had that much fun in years!” Everyone stared at him, confused.

Yuffie asked, “Merlin…Is Kairi really…?”

Merlin hiccupped, “No, of course not! I made that little story up! And I must admit, I’m a little pleased with the results!” Everyone stared at Merlin a little, in disbelief.

Hiashi glared furiously at Merlin, “You thought it was funny to say that my fifteen-year old sister was pregnant from her boyfriend, whom she had only been seeing for a few months?! To say that they…they…!!” If looks could kill…well, Merlin wouldn’t have to worry about anything for long.

Merlin laughed a little again, “Calm down, Hiashi. I didn’t say that to make trouble…at least, not that kind. Aerith told me earlier, before this incident with her being hostage and all that Kairi and Sora were having trouble and she asked me if I had any ideas to get them to talk to each other. We both agreed that it would have to be something rather extreme, since Sora was being so distant.”

“Yeah, umm…,” Zack started, “…about that: I overheard Sora saying something about ‘telling Kairi everything’ while he was with Riku, and after she and Aerith were freed, Kairi and Sora sort of…made up, just before Vincent destroyed Elanore.”

Merlin looked surprised, “Oh…well, then…I might have just made things worse…whoops.”

Hiashi finally got free of her being restraint, “I’ll show you a ‘whoops’!” She grabbed her sword and tried to attack Merlin, who disappeared in a puff of smoke.

“I believe I’ve overstayed my welcome at the moment. I’ll return in a little while.” He said while vanishing. Hiashi yelled, “Get back here, old man! I’m not finished with you!”

While Hiashi was stomping around, Yuffie looked around a little bit. Yuffie spoke, “Hey, has anyone seen Riku or Vincent?”




Vincent ran and jumped from rooftop to rooftop, exploring his surroundings away from the castle under the night sky. It didn’t look like anything had changed since he was put to sleep, other than some things had been repaired. He came to a stop on top of a rooftop in the middle of the town square.

He jumped off the rooftop, and landed on the sidewalk across the street from the park. Vincent walked to the other side, the light from the street lamps illuminating him and leaving him as he passed under them and into shadows back and forth. Once he got to the park, he turned his head a little. Something caught his eye.

Vincent examined a small bench, with an angel carved into the back of it. Vincent stared at it…

“Vincent!” Grimoire yelled, “Vincent, hurry up! We’re going to be late if you don’t stop playing with that squirrel!” A small boy stood up and started running towards Gregory.

“Sorry, Dad!” The boy smiled at his father, “How much farther do we have to go? I thought the castle was only a short walk from our home!” Grimoire raised an eyebrow and smiled, “It is. The problem is you keep stopping to play with some of the smaller animals that it’s taking so long.”

The boy grinned from ear to ear, “Aw, come on, Dad! You know I don’t play with them all the time!”

“Uh-huh,” his father said, “well, anyway, we need to get going. Come on, Vincent.” The two of them started walking again.

“Hey, Dad…why am I coming anyway? You’re basically working, right?” Grimoire nodded, “Yes, Vincent. The King, Ansem the Wise, has asked me to work alongside him and his assistants. They’re one man short, and some of his scientists have nominated me for a position.” Gregory looked at his son, “As to why you’re coming, we can’t really afford to live in our home anymore, so we’re going to live in the castle now. Do you remember, now?” The boy nodded, not looking at his father.

Grimoire smiled, “Don’t worry, Vincent. You’ll have fun at the castle. Ansem has a daughter about the same age as you, so you’ll have a new friend to play with while I’m working. Just don’t get into any trouble while we’re there, okay?”

Vincent nodded, “Okay, Dad. I’ll do my best!”


“I’ll do my best.” Vincent whispered. He looked up from the bench. Stars were starting to become visible over the horizon. He walked over to a nearby house, jumped, and landed on the rooftop of the house. He looked behind him, staring at the castle. Vincent shook his head, and began jumping from rooftop to rooftop, proceeding towards the castle.

“Ah, Grimoire! I’m glad you came!

Grimoire and Ansem the Wise shook hands. “I’m sorry we’re late, Master Ansem. We were a little delayed.” Ansem shook his head, “Nonsense, my boy! You’re right on time!” He looked down at the boy, “And this must be Vincent! I’m glad to finally meet you, lad.” Vincent hid behind his father’s leg.

“It’s okay, Vincent. There’s nothing to be afraid of here. Everyone here is friend.” Grimoire looked up at Ansem, “I’m sorry about that, sir. Vincent’s a little shy.” Ansem shook his head, “Stepping into a new world and meeting a room full of strangers, I would be too. Daughter! Come here, please.” A girl with long brown hair, wearing a green dress, came from out of a hallway, smiling, “Hear I am, Daddy!” Ansem smiled.

“Vincent, I’d like you to meet my daughter, Lucrecia. Lucrecia, this is Vincent. He and his father are going to be staying with us from now on.” Lucrecia did a courtesy, “How do you do?”

Grimorie smiled, “Hello, Lucrecia,” He looked down at Vincent, who was still hiding behind his leg, and whispered, “Don’t be rude, Vincent. Say ‘hello’ to her.”

“He…Hello,” he managed.

Lucrecia, Vincent thought, as he landed right outside the palace gates. He opened the doors and went inside. He made his way through the corridors until he made it to Ansem’s study. This was starting to make Vincent sick: Nothing’s changed. Not one paper out of place, not a bit of dust, nothing! You’d think something would be out of place after all these years! It’s as if nothing happened at all here!!

He brought his armored arm down on the desk in the study. It broke in two almost instantly. Various objects rushed out of the crumpled piece of furniture.

Vincent lowered his head…how…how could nothing have changed after all this time?

He took a step back and was about to walk out the door until something caught his eye:

“Those without hearts…I think I’ll call them the ‘heartless’.”

He walked towards the papers, and picked their folders up. ‘Ansem’s Reports: 1-13’ read on folder, and ‘Secret Ansem Reports’ read the other folder. Vincent read through them…

“This isn’t right,” Vincent said, “Ansem never did these...” He then read through the Secret Reports, “…Okay, that clears a little up…but still.”

*knock knock*

Vincent quickly turned around. Yuffie was standing at the doorway, looking a little annoyed, “We’ve been looking everywhere for you! Where have you…what happened here?” She was looking past Vincent, at the wrecked desk. Vincent looked up at her, “I needed some air, so I left for a little bit. As for the desk…I happened,” He held up the Reports, “Do you know about these?”

Yuffie stared at them for a second, “…Oh! Yeah, we found those while fighting the heartless. We learned a lot through them and-,”

“I see,” Vincent interrupted, “So you all have been going solely on this information?” Yuffie, annoyed by being interrupted, nodded.

Vincent’s eyes narrowed a little, “I didn’t realize everyone was this much in the dark…Okay, gather everyone. It’s time Hiashi and I filled in a few gaps.”


Riku sat on a ledge along the castle wall, holding his keyblade in the air. He kept going through images in his mind of Hiashi, smiling. Occasionally, he’d imagine hearing her laugh.

What’s going on with me? He thought, Why am I thinking these things?

“Riku!”

Riku looked down. Squall was standing a few feet away from him. “Come on!” he called, “Vincent wants to talk to us about Elanore and her group!” Riku jumped down from the ledge and the two ran towards the castle interior.

Cnc?

 

I don't think you can imagine how wide my eyes got when you said Kairi was pregnant. Don't do that ever again!!

Good chapter overall. Finally, they get a break from all of that action.

I'm curious to know how that conversation between Sora and Kairi is going to go.

-Kairi

 

I got the chance to print out the last two chapters and read them on the bus ride on my way back home, I was so dragged into the story I almost forgot to get off on my stop. o.o You've been giving some real thoughts to the battle parts, I like them a lot! Sneaky Riku is sneaky.. :3

Now I'm really interested about Vincent and Hiashi's past - especially regarding this girl Lucrecia. Imagining them both as children was insanely cute.... aww.....

What they said - pownage. X3

 

Guys and girls, I'm sorry I haven't posted this fast enough. Things have been a little hectic. Here's the next chap:

Kairi stretched as she sat up in her bed, pouting while doing so. There were a few things she hated the most: Staying in bed for no good reason, being sick, and feeling helpless (or if there wasn’t anything for her to do, whichever the two). While in post-op, she got to do all three at once.

Lucky me, she thought. If there was any consolation at all about being trapped in the medical ward of the castle, it was that Aerith was there with her. Although she was in worse shape than Kairi, that didn’t stop the two of them from having some common conversation topics: Namely, they really didn’t want to be here.

Although the reasons for not wanting to be in a hospital ward were similar, Aerith was worse in comparison, in terms their containment, to Kairi because Aerith was a bad patient.

“There isn’t anything wrong with us!†Aerith voiced, loudly, “Honestly, if they’re going to keep us here, they should at least have a better reason than because we were just held hostage!†Since Aerith was a month along in her pregnancy, and that Kairi wasn’t sure if it was really Aerith or a mood swing talking, she agreed, albeit a bit reluctant.

*knock knock*

The two turned their heads toward the doorway. Tifa and Cloud, both smiling (Tifa more than Cloud), came into the room, both carrying flowers. Aerith and Kairi smiled.

“Hey!†said Tifa. She walked towards Aerith and Kairi, giving the both of them separate hugs, “We heard about what happened earlier!†She straightened up from the hugs and looked at Aerith and Kairi slyly, “Why didn’t you two call us? We weren’t that far away,†Tifa crossed her arms, “It wasn’t nice of you to hog all the action like that.â€

Aerith looked defensive, “We were dragged into the fight, okay? We didn’t even know what was going on until that arm came and caved the house in on us! The next thing I know, I wake up in this place,†Aerith waved her arms around, showing her surroundings, “With Merlin examining Kairi! I find out that, later before this, everyone’s been on edge towards me and asking my husband why!â€

Cloud, who had been leaning against a wall opposite of everyone, spoke up, “That reminds me, Aerith,†he sounded slightly amused, “What’s this we here about you expecting?†Aerith’s face turned red, “…Well…I…Who said I was?†Cloud, while smiling, raised an eyebrow, “Merlin did. He told us just as we came into the ward. He should be telling everyone else right about now.â€

Aerith’s head dropped, “Oh, great,†she raised her head again, “Look…we were waiting for the right time to-,â€

Cloud laughed, a little harder than he normally did, “Relax, Aerith. I’m not angry.†Tifa turned around to look at Cloud while he laughed. He seemed so happy in that moment.

In the short time that Tifa and Cloud had been together, the most Tifa got from him was a mild chuckle or a good blush…

Tifa closed her eyes and then opened them up, smiling and facing Kairi, “What about you, Kairi? Word on the street is you’re the next Keyblade weilder.†Aerith turned towards Kairi, a mixture of shock and awe on her face, “When did this happen? Nobody mentioned anything to me about you summoning a keyblade!â€

As the ‘Wheel of Blush’ spun, apparently it landed on Kairi being next to blush, because she gave a good shade, “Well…I don’t really know what happened. While holding us hostage, Elanore demanded everyone put down their weapons and surrender, and…I don’t know, I just…lost it,†Kairi closed her eyes for a second, taking a deep breath. It never did her any good, having this many eyes on her like this, “It was like everything I ever held in, my frustrations, my anger, fears…it all just…blew out all at once. The next thing I know, I just stuck a sword into Elanore’s arm, and I’m in Sora’s arms.†A deeper shade of blush appeared on Kairi’s face.

Tifa smiled, “Wow…that’s really impressive, Kairi.â€

Cloud nodded, “Definitely not a small feet. You’ve got some real potential.â€

“I’m sure the others are going to be surprised when they hear this.†smiled Aerith. Kairi lowered her head a little in embarrassment, “Thanks guys…I just want to talk to Sora and Riku little more about this. I’d like to know why I’m suddenly able to do this.â€

As if on cue, Sora burst through the door, looking like something from the Underworld had been chasing him.

“Kairi!†Sora ran past Cloud and Tifa and grabbed Kairi’s hand, “Wha…When…How…Who got you pregnant?!â€

Tifa and Aerith’s jaws just dropped. The two of them stared in amazement at Sora, then looked at Kairi. Kairi, however, looked as though someone had just slapped her in the face. If it was possible for her head to turn any more red, it happened right then. On top of all that, she was starting to shake slightly.

Cloud, on the other hand, looked mildly annoyed. He rubbed the temples of his head with one hand, “Sora, when I said you should ‘hold on to your light’, this isn’t exactly what I meant.â€

Tifa turned and looked at Cloud, a little appalled at the fact that he said that. Cloud looked up at her and shrugged with a slightly confused look on his face, as if to say ‘What?’. Aerith closed her mouth, opened it, closed it again, and then spoke, “Umm…Sora? Are you sure you don’t mean me? Because I am pregnant.â€

Sora, looking like he was about to fall to pieces, shook his head without taking his eyes off Kairi, “No. Merlin told us you were pregnant, Aerith, then said Kairi wanted to have a word with me ‘about the child we were going to raise’.â€

Aerith suddenly burst into laughter, then quickly tried to suppress it. Everyone turned to look at her, confused. Aerith looked up at Sora, “I’m sorry, but that’s partly my fault!†Aerith then turned to Kairi, who was still unresponsive, “Remember when you told me about your problems with Sora? Well, Merlin and I came up with something that would force you and Sora to talk to each other…Him saying you were pregnant was pretty much the only thing we could think of that would make Sora come running…It looks like it worked a little too well.â€

Sora was starting to calm down a little bit, “So…Kairi’s not pregnant…It was all a setup?†Aerith fidgeted a little bit, and nodded.

Cloud cupped his face, and Tifa just stared at Aerith, “…you and Merlin forced two teens to talk to each other by saying one of them was pregnant?†Aerith shrugged. Tifa then cupped her face and shook her head, “Remind me to never ask you for help if Cloud and I ever get in a fight,†she muttered.

“…baby?....â€

Everyone looked at Kairi. She was slowly starting to come out of it: Her eyes were slowly starting to blink. Sora held one of her hands in between both of his, “No. I’m sorry, Kairi, but you’re not pregnant.â€

Kairi recoiled like she was just slapped. She quickly made a fist and punched Sora’s arm as hard as she could. She was back.

“OW!†Sora gripped his arm and attempted to massage it, “That hurt!â€

“You idiot!†Kairi was red again, but this time from anger. Sora backed up a little bit in fear. “Of course I’m not pregnant! How could you possibly think that I was?! We never…†Her face turned very, very bright red.

Sora’s face was starting to turn the same shade, in realization of what Kairi was saying. He started, “Hey, I’m sorry, all right?! It’s just…Merlin came out, said that everyone was fine, we somehow got onto the subject of Aerith being pregnant, and then he brought it up that you wanted to talk to me about our unborn child!â€

Tifa grabbed a chair, sat down next to the standing Cloud, and sighed, “All we need now is for one of us to have amnesia, and we’ll have a soap opera on our hands.†Cloud chuckled at that.

Kairi turned at them, “You find something funny about all this?!â€

Cloud looked up at them, still smiling, “No, Miss. Nothing at all.â€

Before Kairi could retort, the door opened again. Everyone turned in surprise to see Vincent walk in.

“Are you all done yelling?†he asked, grinning slightly.

The majority of the room, except Sora and Kairi, sat there stunned.

Tifa got up and quickly hugged Vincent, “Vincent!†she let him go, “What happened to you? We all heard that-,†Vincent took Tifa’s arms off of him, “Believe me, I’ll explain about what happened with me and Hiashi in a few minutes. We’re getting everyone together for a meeting in the throne room, and you all need to come.†Vincent looked at Cloud and nodded, “Cloud.â€

Cloud, looking serious, nodded back, “Vincent.â€

“I’ll see you all in a few minutes,†Vincent turned and left the room. Everyone was silent.

Finally Cloud spoke up, “We better get going,†He was halfway out the door before he stopped, “Oh, Merlin also told me to tell you that you two can leave the ward whenever you’re ready.†Cloud then proceeded down the hallway.

Kairi, relieved, got out of the bed and tried to stand up, but buckled a little bit.

“Whoa!â€

Sora caught her, and put her arm over his shoulders, “I’ve got you…you mind if we talk a little along the way?â€

Kairi was a little surprised, “…okay…what about?â€

The two were out the door, “Well…a little bit more about my behavior…and what’s next for us.†The two left the room. Only Tifa and Aerith were left.

“So…,†Tifa started, just sitting there.

Aerith nodded, “So…Is there anything you want to talk about before we go to the throne room?â€

Tifa frowned a little, but nodded, “Yeah, actually…it’s about Cloud.â€

Aerith raised an eyebrow, “Oh no…please tell me you’re not having problems too?†Tifa, still frowning, shook her head, “No, not exactly. It’s just that I’m having a hard time getting Cloud to open up to me.â€

Aerith frowned in response, “Oh. I’m sorry, Tifa,†Aerith straightened up a little bit, “That’s kind of to be expected, though. Cloud’s always been a little…introverted, especially when Sephiroth was involved. I heard that you two were going out a few times, though, especially when Zack and I were on our honeymoon.â€

Tifa nodded, and looked down, “Yeah, we went out a few times, and earlier today we had a picnic, but…that’s not what I wanted to know.†Tifa looked back up at Aerith, “…What exactly happened between you and Cloud while he was hunting Sephiroth?â€

Aerith cocked her head a little, “Huh?â€

Tifa started to walk around, pacing a little, “While the whole ‘heartless’ thing was going on, Cloud was always on the move until he came back to Hollow Bastion, but even then he wasn’t really willing to talk to anybody. When I finally found him, he was still hiding from me, even though he knew I was looking for him.â€

Tifa stopped pacing, “You were the only one he was willing to talk to…to open up to, even if it was a bit reluctant. Why is that?â€

Aerith looked a little puzzled at Tifa, “I’m sorry, Tifa, I’m afraid I don’t know what to tell you. Cloud and I just sort of hit it off when we reunited. We were never involved romantically, so nothing really happened…I guess he just felt he could trust me, compared to what he felt from everyone else.â€

Tifa sat back down, a little frustrated, “But why didn’t he feel like he could trust me? That’s the part I don’t get!†She cupped her temples with her left hand, and lowered her head again, “He knew I cared about him since we were 14! He knew I would’ve helped him through any troubles he had! I mean, I would’ve given my life to save him, for crying out loud!â€

Aerith’s eyes widened a little, “Tifa…I think that’s why.†Tifa looked back up at Aerith.

“I heard a little bit about Cloud while Sora, Donald, and Goofy were traveling, back when we were in Traverse Town? From what they told us, Cloud wasn’t exactly on the side of the angels,†Tifa listened carefully to what Aerith was saying, “Remember what Cloud said to Sora earlier? ‘Hold on to your light?’†Tifa nodded.

“Sora said that Cloud was still searching for his,†Aerith stood up, â€is just a guess, but I think Cloud didn’t want you to find him, at least, not until he knew where he stood in life. At that time he wasn’t a hero, but he wasn’t a complete villain either.†Aerith walked towards the door, “Sephiroth wasn’t exactly a help. He kept torturing Cloud’s mind with…well, things I’m probably better off not knowing.†Tifa lowered her head. What Aerith said made sense…so why didn’t she figure this out before?

Aerith put her hand on Tifa’s shoulder, “But all that’s over now, Tifa. I’ve known Cloud for a while, and if there’s anything I can say for certain, it’s that he will open up. You said so yourself, he’s going out with you. That’s a pretty big step so far.â€

“Aerith,†Tifa looked back up, towards Aerith. Aerith smiled, “He just needs a little more time, that’s all.â€

Tifa smiled, then nodded, “Yeah, you’re right. Thanks…let’s go catch up with the others.â€

 

Kairi can be violent when she wants to.. X3

Niceness! Just one typo in this line: Cloud, who had been leaning against a wall opposite of everyone, spoke up, “That reminds me, Aerith,†he sounded slightly amused, “What’s this we here about you expecting?†Other than that, pownsome. :>

 

Kairi’s a redhead. Wha’d ya expect?

Anywhoo, I’ll try and make up for lost time. Next chap!

With Kairi fully recovered and walking side by side with Sora, the two simultaneously entered the throne room.

“Whoa,” Kairi breathed. The room was huge, about the size of a football field. A long, narrow, red carpet led from the main door to the throne. The room was stone gray, and several cathedral-like windows along the walls.

Sora smiled, “This place isn’t that different from King Mickey’s throne.”

“Actually, King Mickey helped design this room with Ansem the Wise.”

Kairi and Sora turned around to the source of the voice. Sora smiled, while Kairi squealed and gave the Princess of Radiant Garden a hug, “Namine!” she exclaimed.

Namine laughed, “Kairi! I’m so glad you came!” Sora shook his head, and turned around just in time to find Roxas, trying to sneak up on him.

“Look sha- oh, darn.” Roxas and Sora shook hands, both with good sized grins on their faces, “I guess it wasn’t that hard to predict, huh?” Sora rubbed his nose with the index finger of his free hand, “I’d say I know you pretty well, Roxas. How’ve you been?”

Roxas narrowed his eyes at Sora, particularly the tears on his clothes, “…better than you, apparently. I take it you ran into our recent ‘problem’?” Sora nodded, but before he could speak, a voice was heard from above.

“Would the four of you please wait until after you’re filled in to catch up? This is a little important.”

Sora and co. looked up. Vincent was suspended from the ceiling, upside-down with his armored arm holding him in place. He let go of the area he was holding on to, and in the short distance that he fell, did a few flips. By the time he landed on his feet, everyone else on the Restoration Committee had arrived.

Roxas shook his head, “Even though he’s done that three times now, I don’t think I’ll ever get used to it.” Namine nudged Roxas in the side and winked, “Oh, come on.” The two smiled and held each others arm as they walked towards the group. Sora smiled at the two from behind as they walked. “Those two look happy together,” Sora smirked.

Kairi rolled her eyes while smiling, “Yeah, they sure do, Sora.” It looked like Sora was back for sure, oblivious and all.


“We need to get a few things clear before we get into any great detail,” Vincent started. The Restoration Committee, Sora, Riku, Kairi, Roxas and Namine got comfortable from where they were.

“First, what all of you fought earlier, Elanore: She was a heartless, one of a very different and powerful variety.” Sora rolled his eyes, “I think we already know about the ‘powerful’ part, Vince.” Kairi cupped her face while Riku looked away.

Vincent looked at Sora, “From the way she mopped the floor with you, I imagined you knew,” Sora’s face turned red, “but that’s not important. What is important is that, unlike other heartless, she’s able to calculate and plan,”

Vincent started to pace a little, “I read the ‘Ansem Reports’ and the ‘Secret Ansem Reports’ that you, Sora, gathered during your travels. That’s the main reason why I called this meeting.”

Yuffie spoke up, “What’s there to know about the reports? I told you earlier that most of them were fake reports by Xehanort, and that the ‘secret’ ones were by Ansem the Wise.” Vincent nodded, “And I appreciate that, Yuffie, but even that doesn’t fill in the gaps.”

Squall cocked his head, while everyone else looked at each other in confusion.

“What ‘gaps’?” Zack asked. Vincent sighed, “Let me ask you all something: Why do you think Xehanort created the fake ‘Ansem Reports’?”

Aerith shrugged, “We thought it was to make us think that Ansem the Wise originally created the heartless. Are you saying that’s not the reason?” Vincent nodded, “It was one reason, yes, but it was also to keep Sora and Mickey’s colleagues from discovering Xehanort’s ‘back up’ plan,”

Vincent stopped pacing, “Xehanort was a very unusual form of heartless: One who was able to think and reason, while having complete control over the heartless. He was, also, the only one who succeeded to such a powerful transformation when he crossed over into the dark realm. His associates became just regular heartless.”

The small crowd was hanging on every word, albeit in confusion.

Cloud spoke up, above the chatter, “Okay, so how were Elanore and the others able to get to that same ‘level’?”

“Since Xehanort had absolute command over all heartless, finding his colleagues was simple. He also, however, knew about his nobody and what it was doing and decided to follow suit: He searched for the heartless of the, at the time, incomplete Organization XIII.” Namine looked at Roxas, while everyone else just stared at Vincent.

“Once he accomplished finding those specific heartless, he assembled specific energy chambers that would convert energy into a specific form, and transfer it into those heartless,” Vincent closed his eyes as he remembered seeing Xehanort’s heartless turning dials and monitoring pressure for the chambers, “As time went on, the heartless would mutilate and change, gaining new powers and abilities until their forms finally resembled what they once were.”

Once Vincent was done speaking, Riku spoke up, “This energy you’re talking about…What kind of energy source? Do you mean hearts?”

Vincent nodded, “Xehanort’s heartless knew that every emotion contained power, and that all emotions resided in the heart. However, for his colleagues, he needed hearts with large amounts of darkness in them as well to give to them as well.”

Squall nodded, “He gave them heartless for them to feed on.” Vincent nodded in response. Everyone sat there, stunned. Vincent spoke again, “The only thing we had on our side was time. The transformation itself took time, so Xehanort’s heartless decided to increase it’s forces and power by taking as many worlds as possible.” Vincent sat down on the floor, cross legged, and sighed, “Any other questions?”

Sora spoke up, “You said earlier when we were fighting Elanore that she had some kind of ability. What did you mean exactly?”

“Good question,” Vincent replied, “Every one of Xehanort’s partners had some unique talent or ability when they reached that transformation. For Xehanort, it was the ability to create and merge with any form of heartless. I believe you’ve seen that ability firsthand, Sora.”

Sora nodded. His mind flashed back to when he first battled for the safety of Kingdom Hearts, the huge form of Xehanort’s heartless looming over him. Sora shook his head, “And Elanore’s?”

“Manipulating emotions. It seems that anyone she has direct contact with falls under her control,” Vincent closed his eyes, “It seems she can only use this power on those with strong hearts, though.”

Tifa raised an eyebrow, “And the rest of them?” Vincent shook his head, “I don’t know yet.”

Yuffie raised her hand, “I’ve got a question! If these guys are supposed to be ‘all powerful’, why haven’t they tried to take over?”

Vincent raised an eyebrow at Yuffie, “Pure dumb luck on your part, Yuffie. I read the report on the excavation, as well as your part to end the training sessions early. Your bombing the street that one day caused a few of the capsules to open prematurely.” Everyone glared at a scarlet Yuffie. She grinned sheepishly while twiddling her fingers, “Heh…oops?”

Vincent shook his head, “It’s better that this happened. Because of that incident, several of the capsules are destroyed, along with the majority of the heartless inside them, and the powers of those that did come out are extremely limited. So much so, that they still need their supply of heartless to try and build up their power.” Yuffie breathed a sigh of relief.

Riku spoke up, “That reminds me. When I cut Elanore in two, her heart came out, but then she managed to regain it and was back in full fighting tempo. How did that happen?”

“Which brings me to another important topic,” Vincent stood up, “Xehanort knew that legend of the keyblade was true, and took several measures against them, most of them very potent. Because of this, you, Sora, and Kairi, will not be able to use your keyblades to liberate the hearts trapped inside of them. In short, you will not be able to destroy them.”



Sora and the others left the throne room, a little distressed.

“Well, this is great. We can’t destroy the rest of the apprentices with our keyblades, so we have to leave it up to Vincent and Hiashi to find a solution. Why did she choose now to go searching for clues, anyway?” complained Sora.

Kairi shrugged, “You know how she’s been acting, Sora. The most we probably would’ve gotten out of her was that she doesn’t trust you and Riku because you’re ‘keyblade wielders’,” Kairi stopped walking, her head hung a little low, “She’s probably going to hate me now.”

Sora stopped walking, turned, and hugged Kairi, “Hey, come on. She’s your sister, not your enemy. Besides, she seems to hate me and Riku because we’ve crossed over into darkness before. You haven’t done that…not exactly, anyway…so, she being your sister aside, you don’t need to worry about that.”

Kairi looked up at Sora. She smiled, a little weakly, “Thanks, Sora.”

Sora smiled, then frowned. He looked around, “Hey…has anyone seen Riku?”


Vincent went through the alternate exit of the throne room. He walked through the familiar yet dark hallway. He continued to walk until he found what he was looking for: A window, with a ledge big enough for an adult to sit in.

As he sat on the ledge, he looked out the window to see the clear night sky, the moon and stars illuminating the village below. More memories began to flood back…

Lucrecia…he thought, why did this happen?

“Vincent?”

Vincent turned his head towards the hallway. Riku was standing there, arms behind his back. Vincent raised an eyebrow, “Yes?”

“There’s something I need to know,” Riku started, then paused.

Vincent sighed, “Riku, if you have something to say...”

Riku took a deep breath, “Please…I need to know: What happened to Hiashi? Why is she so bitter towards everyone?”

 

Wow, I missed two chapters, luckily I turned myself in and take a grand walk inside this garden... ok, back to FairyTails.

*walks out*

 

More is yet to come. Next chapter:

Even walked, fast paced, to Braig’s quarters. He hated being the messenger, especially in situations like this…

He entered the ruined room. A skinny man with a long, black pony tail with white streaks, sat in an ancient, yet falling apart, chair. He was reading two or three scrolls at once, which were resting on his lap…at least it appeared he was reading. It seemed impossible to tell, what with the round, black sunglasses he had on his face. Braig looked up from his reading at Even.

The tall, blond Even shook a little bit. His long hair was starting to get some white streaks itself, but mainly because he was so much older than the rest of his teammates. With all the stress that he has been receiving, what with Sora and his friends besting their starting attempts, his performance record was starting to slip. This didn’t bode well for him.

Even gulped, “…Elanore’s been…eliminated…sire.â€

From behind his glasses, Braig rolled his eyes, “Little punk wiped the floor with her, eh?†Even nodded. Braig sighed, “Well, that’s what she gets for disobeyin’ orders. Can’t be helped, I guess.†He lowered his head to continue reading his scrolls, “Anything else?â€

Even, surprised at how well Braig was taking the news, spoke again, a bit more calmly, “Yes, actually…a small number of heartless that Elanore last summoned managed to…escape,†Braig glared at Even a little at the sound of that word, then lowered his head again, “and they reported something interesting. It seems two familiar faces have returned to join the fight, sir,â€

“The description matches that of the detective and bodyguard,†Even finished.

Braig looked up again, this time surprised, “Valentine and Hiashi are still alive?†He smiled, “Well now…looks like I get to have just a little bit more fun with that girl before we get our major plans underway…â€


Hiashi walked down the old, abandoned alley. She looked at the mold-covered walls fondly, as well as the rats fighting in one corner. She turned her head to see a few trash cans, battered and beaten, with trash seeping out of them. Dogs looked up at her as she walked by. A few growled, but then whimpered as soon as they caught her scent. Hard to believe this area exists just outside Radiant Garden.

Home, sweet home, she thought…

“Erwaaaah! Awaaaahhhh ah!â€

“Shhh! It’s going to be okay, little sister.â€

A ten-year old, crimson haired girl was sitting in a small chair in an old hut, rocking her two-week old sister to sleep. She couldn’t blame her for being crying so much…she hadn’t been fed in two days, so it was understandable for her to be so hungry.

This was a problem. The girl needed to go find food for her, as well as for her younger sister, but she couldn’t bring her along. She wouldn’t be able to steal anything with an alarm without an off-switch with her. On the other hand, she couldn’t leave her behind or find a hiding place to put her, either. They were in ‘Wolf’s’ territory, and if she left her baby sister behind, even for a moment…she’d never see her again.

She clutched her baby sister next to her. She had no idea how she was going to be a big sister, let alone keep her new baby alive. She hugged the baby’s blanket next to her, her tears starting to fall on it…everything starting to go dark…

She opened her eyes. She was tied to a chair, different from the one she was in originally, and surrounded by a group of kids, each one looking like they haven’t seen the light of day…or food… in ages.

She looked around, frantically, “Little sister! Little sister! What have you done to her?!â€

From behind her, a faint baby cry could be heard. The girl struggled like a maniac to get free, “Let me go!â€

“Not this time, girl.â€

A boy, a bit taller than the rest of group, stepped into view from the shadows. Like the others, he looked starved and pale, but stronger than everyone else. The look on Wolf’s face looked like he snagged his greatest prey yet.

“I told you before, girl: You were going to pay for stealing food from us. You shouldda believed me! No one steals from us!†He raised his hand like he was going to smack her, when he froze.

There was a click.

“Put your hand down, kid. Nice and easy.â€

Wolf slowly lowered his hand.

“Good, good. Now, all of you, on the ground. Don’t think I won’t use this, either.†The twelve boys all got down on the ground, with their hands on their heads.

“Good. All right, boys, cuff them and bring them- Wha?†The man paused in mid sentence. The baby started crying again, this time a little weaker.

The redhead remembered suddenly, “Little sister!†She started struggling through her ropes again, “Let me go! I’ve got to get her food before she starves!â€

The man quickly walked past the kids, and then past the ten year old. He was in his early twenties, wore a trench coat, and had black hair about mid-length. His red eyes shone like rubies. He quickly examined the baby and recoiled in surprise, “She’s practically skin and bone! How long has she-?â€

“LET ME OUT!!†she bellowed. The baby began to cry louder in response.

“Let me…out…†The man raced to the redhead as she passed out again.


“…alright?â€

The redhead slowly blinked and looked around. She was in a bed, and a…rather odd looking old woman was sitting in a chair next to her, holding a small bundle of clothes, rocking back and forth. If the baby hadn’t made a ‘goo’ noise, she probably would never have known the baby was in there.

Baby! “Little sister!†the girl tried to get up, but flinched as she did. It looked like Wolf did a number on her while she was out.

“Easy. You’ve been out of it for a few days. Try and rest a little bit.â€

The voice came from the other side of the bed. The redhead turned towards the source. It was the same guy who interrupted Wolf’s ‘lesson’. “You’re sister’s fine, too. We’ve given her some milk and some medicine, and she’s recovering nicely,†The man smiled, “You were pretty brave for taking care of your sister for so long, not to mention how you handled yourself against that kid. A lot of kids your age would’ve backed down.â€

The girl glared at him, “Those kids are nothing but thieves and cowards. They steal anything and everything because no one will stand up to them!â€

The man raised an eyebrow, “And you don’t steal? Nothing at all?†The girl lowered her head a little, ashamed, “…I steal, but only what I need to survive, and for my sister,†She raised her head back up at the man, “I’m not some common thief!â€

The man smiled again, “Okay, I believe you,†He leaned forward, this time serious, “Do you have any parents?†The girl shook her head. “Hmm…that’s a problem…What’s your name?†The girl shrugged, “…I don’t know. My parents never got around to giving me a name, and…they both died shortly after Little Sister was born…most kids call me ‘Runt’.â€

The man frowned, “Well, that won’t do. We’ll just have to give the both of you new names,†The man cupped his mouth with his hand, “You seem to have a lot of fire in you…I think we’ll call you ‘Hiashi’. What do you think?†The girl cocked her head. What kind of a name was that? “Umm…it’s okay, I think. It means ‘fire’, right?†The man nodded. The girl shrugged, “Okay…I think I can work with that name.â€

The baby started to laugh. Hiashi turned towards the baby, and sighed in relief. She sounded better already. The old lady laughed, “This one’s like running water. She never seems to stop…I think ‘Kairi’ would be a good name for this one.†The baby cheered at the mention of that name. “It looks like it’s settl: Hiashi and Kairi.â€

Hiashi turned back towards the man, “So, what do they call you, Pops?†The man frowned, “Don’t call me ‘Pops’. My name is Vincent…you can call her ‘Grandma’, though.â€

‘Grandma’ frowned, “I take it you don’t want any dinner later tonight, Vincent.†Vincent panicked and rapidly began to apologize to her, while Hiashi and Kairi laughed…


Hiashi stood in an old room, looking down at an old, moldy chair, holding an even older piece of rope. It all seemed so innocent back then. How did everything go downhill so fast afterward?

 

Wow, this is one of the best fanfics that I've read so far... Only one thing I found wrong, or so I think. I remember reading somewhere (wikipedia, maybe) that Leon swore not to change his name back to Squall until all the Heartless where defeated. And his last name is Leonhart, not Lionhart.

 

Yeah, I’ve heard about that, too. I read it was ‘Lionheart’ in a few websites, decided I like ‘Lionheart’ better…plus it sounds better than ‘Sir Leonheart’…

Anywhoo, next chap:

“She’s an orphan?â€

Riku was beside himself. He would never have guessed that Hiashi and Kairi were orphans, let alone had such terrible parents.

Vincent nodded, “Hiashi was lucky that she couldn’t remember anything else about her parents. Soon after ‘Granny’ and I adopted them, I did a little background check on them. It turns out their parents were wanted for…various things, things that no ten year-old and baby should ever know about their family.†Vincent’s face grew dark as he lowered it, “If anyone had a good reason to hate the world, it was those two…,â€

“But they didn’t…â€

“Come on, Hiashi! You can do a lot better than that!â€

Vincent laughed as Hiashi tried to hit Vincent with her wooden sword. Vincent was blindfolded, but was blocking all of her attacks with ease, and having the time of his life while doing so. Hiashi, on the other hand, wasn’t having so good a time.

“HYAH!â€

“Ha! Missed again!†Vincent jumped back a few feet, giving him and Hiashi some space. Hiashi paused, contemplating what to do next.

Vincent started doing a little tap dance, “If you’re going to take all day, I might as well do something to occupy my time!†That did it. Hiashi charged forward, at full speed and force, at Vincent.

At the last second, Vincent side-stepped out of the way, grinning. He tapped Hiashi on her back as she charged by, causing her to lose balance, and fall forward, crashing and sliding on the dirt a good couple of feet.

Hiashi spat out dirt, “You little ba- Eep!â€

She squeaked as the sword she was using was suddenly brought down to her cheek at an amazing speed. She looked upward with her eyes. Vincent, who looked like someone had stolen his cookie, was holding the other end of the sword, “We’ve been through this, Hiashi: No cursing. Ever.†He moved the sword and extended his hand.

“Sorry,†she muttered, accepting his help. Vincent helped her up, and the two started making their way out of their training ground in the forest to Radiant Garden’s gates.


The trip took no time at all, so it wasn’t long before the two were back inside the castle itself.

“Hey, Pops,†Hiashi said, feeling daring again, “When are you going to ask Dr. Lucrecia out?†She grinned, “Or have you two already set a date?â€

Vincent turned scarlet, “Where in the world did you get a mouth like that? If it’s not an attempted curse, it’s trying to embarrass everybody!†Hiashi raised an eyebrow, “That doesn’t answer my question, Pops! Are you ever going to give me a reason to call her ‘Mom’?â€

Before Vincent could retort, there was a laugh from behind them in the hallway that made Vincent’s heart race, and yet, freeze at the same time. The two of them turned around, hearing as they turned:

“Actually, I’m curious about that myself.â€

A tall woman with long, brown hair, down to her waist walked towards the two troublemakers. She had a rare kind of beauty, wearing a blue blouse with a white frill that extended from one end to the other, and a skirt that was longer on one side, all being covered with a white lab coat. Her high heels clicked elegantly as she proceeded…at least, to Vincent they did.

Lucrecia Crescent tried to hold back a laugh as she saw Vincent’s response to her, “So, Vincent, how did training go today? Has Hiashi improved any?†Vincent blinked, “Uhh…Yeah, a little bit,†He put his hand on top of Hiashi’s head, making her frown, “but it’s going to take a while if she keeps losing her temper like she did earlier. The palace’s elite guard doesn’t need that.†Hiashi glared back at Vincent, confirming the suspicion she had about him grinning. A bit of a cheap shot for her embarrassing him earlier…

“Well, I’m sure Hiashi will get past that soon. She’s very smart, after all.†Lucrecia smiled at Hiashi. Hiashi smiled in return, “Thanks, doc.â€

“So, you turn fifteen tomorrow, right?†asked Lucrecia, tilting her head as she did. Hiashi’s face broke into a big grin, “Yup! Are you going to be coming to the party tomorrow?â€

“Sure thing, kid. I wouldn’t miss this for the world,†Lucrecia straightened up a little, “I also have someone here I’d like to introduce: my new lab assistant,†She turned sideways, “Come on out.†A boy, about the same age as Hiashi, came out. Lucrecia put her arm around his shoulders.

“Vincent, Hiashi, I’d like you to meet Braig. He’s a very gifted boy, graduated just a few years ahead of his class.†Hiashi tilted her head a little. There was something familiar about this guy…Braig looked up slightly, at Hiashi, then quickly turned his head away.

Guess he’s a little shy…and a little cute, she thought. “Hey, Braig,†Hiashi said. Braig turned his eyes towards her, “Wanna come to my birthday party tomorrow? It’s going to be a lot of fun! Plus, there’ll be a few people you already know: us!â€

Braig raised an eyebrow in confusion. This girl seems…a little strange…but nice at the same time, “…okay.†Lucrecia smiled in response. It seemed as though Braig was making the right friends rather fast.


The moon hung high, it’s light reflecting off the nearby lake. Lucrecia sat with her back up against a tree, while sitting on a blanket. She loved being in the middle of the forest like this: cool night, light breeze, water gently swaying.

She smiled. It was her most favorite thing to do when she was a kid: sneaking out in the middle of the night to play in this open area. Only one thing missing could make it perfect…and here he came.

Vincent walked as quietly as he could to where Lucrecia was, holding a basket in one arm. He sat down right next to her, smiling, like she was. He leaned forward and lightly kissed her on the cheek.

“Hey,†he said, “Sorry if I kept you waiting.â€

She shook her head, still smiling, “Just enjoying the moment. I take it your day ran a little long?â€

Vincent’s smile faded as he nodded, “Yeah. Wolf escaped again. He’s becoming more and more dangerous each time we catch him. We’re already shorthanded, but Commissioner Elanore won’t do much. She keeps demanding that we not open fire at him just because he’s unarmed.â€

Lucrecia gently squeezed Vincent’s hand, “Vincent, I know he’s dangerous, but she’s right; It’s not right for you to shoot anyone who’s defenseless.â€

“No, he’s not defenseless, Lu,†Vincent lowered his head, “His nails are at least an inch long, and he’s sharpened them all like knives! I mean, he’s already seriously injured a few civilians already just by swinging his arm at them! She won’t even let us use tasers at him!†Vincent grabbed his head, frustrated.

Lucrecia hugged him from behind, “Do you want me to have a talk with Elanore?†He gently gripped one of her arms, “No, I’ll just have to find some other alternate method of dealing with Wolf, is all. Maybe I can find a way to trip him up somehow.†He kissed Lucrecia’s arm, and then turned around to face her. She was smiling again.

Vincent smiled in return, “What about you and Master Ansem? How’s the other new guy doing? Okay?†She nodded, “Yeah, but I think him being here is only temporary. Just until he gets his memory back, but he’s showing a lot of talent, especially for someone his age. He can’t be a few years older than you, but he seems to know as much as Dad.â€

Vincent nodded, but his smile faded. Lucrecia cocked her head, “What’s wrong?â€

He shook his head, “Something about him…and Braig…they just sort of seem off to me. Like they’re hiding something…I don’t know, maybe I’m being paranoid, or something.â€

There was a small pause. Vincent looked up at Lucrecia. She was smiling again…darn it, this wasn’t the time to get nervous.

She leaned forward and pressed her lips to his.

Lucrecia moved back from the kiss, and laughed at Vincent’s stunned face as a result, “You really need to try and breathe, Vincent. You’ve been like this ever since we were kids.â€

Vincent took a deep breath, “Yeah, well, if I remember correctly, it was me who had to convince you to start sneaking out like this. Look where that led us.†He raised an eyebrow.

Lucrecia smiled coyly in response. She leaned back, the tree supporting her, and she stretched out her folded legs, “We now have a ‘secret playground’ as a result,†she rolled her eyes, while still smiling, as she said it, “Honestly, Vince, that comeback only works so many times.â€

Vinecnt frowned, “Please, don’t call me ‘Vince’! I hate that name…that and ‘Pops’…,†Vincent shook his head, “That Hiashi…†Lucrecia laughed again, “Poor Vincent. Always being tortured.†She got up and dusted herself off, “I need to get going. I’ll see you at Hiashi’s party tomorrow, right?â€

Vincent smiled again, “…right.â€


“Hold on, so you knew Braig and Elanore before they became heartless?†Riku asked, after Vincent finished explaining.

Vincent shook his head. His mind wandered off again, “Not very well, but yeah. I don’t know about his power, though.†He said as he saw Riku open his mouth.

“It sounds like Hiashi is…completely the opposite now than what she was back then.†Riku shook his head. He clutched hirt. Why was his heart starting to hurt? “I don’t understand, though. What was it exactly that made her change like this?â€

“As you know, she was hurt bad, but it was the way she was tortured that changed her.†Vincent straightened up a little, “I’m not going to give you all the details, but…the reason behind it was to make sure she would never forget what happened, both then and now.â€

Riku stared, “…that…doesn’t make any sense. Wait, where are you going? You haven’t finished!†He said as Vincent got up and started walking away, “Yes, but that’s all I’m going to say, too.†Vincent went to the nearest door, opened and went through it, and closed it behind him, leaving Riku behind to wonder even more, in confusion.

 

Interesting.

This story gets more twisted every time I read it, which is a good thing of course. =)

Good job, though. Kairi and Hiashi's pasts are becoming more interesting.

Can't wait to read more!!

 

I think Lionhart was the name of the Key-chain you got from Leon... But I hafta admit, it does sound cooler... Nice update!

 

I am intriguied by how fast you can get Riku and Hiashi in the bed. Just kidding, nice chapter as usual.

 

Wow…I haven’t seen replies from some of you in awhile. Glad to hear your view of the story…but I know you didn’t come here to read my say that. So, without further ado, next chapter:




This was a rather rare night: The palace garden, a quiet, clear, moonlit and starry sky. In the garden, a small, white bench sitting on the only manmade path in the garden, which was surrounded completely by white tulips. Namine could always come up with her best ideas for her sketch pad out in this garden, if she was either undisturbed or with Roxas. If there were any perks to being the queen of Radiant Garden, this was surely it…well, that and having a guaranteed engagement to her boyfriend.

Speak of the…well, whatever they technically were now, Roxas came quietly from behind the bench and sat next to Namine, who was tapping her sketch pad with the eraser of her pencil.

Roxas watched her quietly as she was trying to focus, a smile slowly creeping across his face. She always looked different when she was trying to focus on drawing, like she was trying to…draw life, for lack of a better phrase. She always had this light in her eyes, especially when she realized what it was she wanted to draw.

Namine turned her eyes towards Roxas, smiled coyly, but at the same time raised an eyebrow.

“Comfy?†she asked, still smiling.

Before Roxas had realized it, his head was almost right next to hers, facing the same direction: The sketch pad.

Roxas blushed slightly, but didn’t move away, “Hmm…not quite.†He moved back slightly, turned his head, and gave Namine a gently kiss on the cheek that made her blush a little and smile just a little bigger, enough to show a little of her teeth.

“Now I’m comfortable.†Said Roxas, with a Sora-like grin on his face. Namine laughed at the sight.

“I don’t think you should attempt that again,†Namine laughed, “You look silly when you smile like that!â€

Roxas’ smile faded slightly, “Are you saying I should look more like Cloud or Squall? Just scowl more?†He did his best attempt at a ‘serious Squall’ look, narrowing his eyes and raising his eyebrow, while making his mouth frown slightly. Namine was starting to tear from laughing, “You look like you’ve been poisoned now!†They both were laughing now.

Eventually they calmed down, and then Namine spoke up, “So…why are you up this late? Normally you’d rather wait until morning to ‘sweet talk’ me like this.â€

Roxas frowned slightly, “I just had a talk with Sora. We talked about his fight with Elanore a little bit, but…it’s what he told me after that…â€


“I really don’t know why I thought it was a good idea, now,†said Sora, “but…I was just tired of fighting. I couldn’t take it anymore, especially after seeing the school’s reaction of my telling them about where I’ve been this past year.â€

“Wait…,†said Roxas, “you mean you just shut yourself out from Kairi?!â€

“I know, I’ve already gotten chewed out from Riku about this,†Sora shook his head while letting it hang, “but…it just felt so hard to talk to her about it! I mean, if I were to narrow it down as to why Kairi like me, I’d say my fighting for my friends would be the main thing. Just…how can you tell her that? How can you tell her that you can’t be the person that she loves anymore?â€


“Clearly, he was way off,†Roxas said as he rolled his eyes, “but the way he described his behavior worried me a little. It was like…,â€

Namine nodded, “…when you were behaving a little…off-kilter?â€

Roxas looked at Namine, “I thought Sora and Kairi could help me shake off these…impulses of my wanting to be away from you. After talking to Sora, it looks like he was going through a similar thing. It can’t be coincidence that we start acting like this, and then finish at the same time.â€

Namine frowned, “Kairi and I were talking about that earlier, too, after Hiashi and Riku had that fight-,â€

“Wait,†Roxas interrupted, “What happened?â€


Hiashi looked straight up from the base of the palace walls. A good twenty feet, straight up. She shook her head. All this time, and they still didn’t put any traps or anything on the top of the ledge. She bent her legs and jumped straight up.

She cleared the top of the ledge in gymnast fashion, flipping over the ledge with her head closes to the top, flipping a few times before she landed on the ground. She took a deep breath and sighed. She was tired, and didn’t need any kind of interruptions about her past, especially after that trip down memory lane she just took. She walked towards the closes tower. She reached for the doorknob, but then paused. She tilted her head slightly.

What was that noise?

She followed the sound of the noise until she reached the wall again. Again, she jumped over the wall.

The noises were coming from the woods...


“HA!â€

CLANG!

This match was long overdue, thought Kairi. It had been ages since Riku and Sora sparred. As fun as it was to watch the two spar in an open clearing in the woods, it looked like it was more fun for those two to actually fight again. They were grinning with every swing, every connection with their keyblades, even when one of them got knocked down from the sheer force, it looked like they were having the time of their lives.

Finally, the match ended. As usual, it was Riku who won.

Sora heaved, “Oh man…I’m out of shape!â€

Riku laughed, “Don’t be so hard on yourself, Sora. You did just as well as any sixty-year-old keyblade wielder in your position!†Everyone laughed at Sora’s wince to the comment.

Sora struggled to get up, “Aw, man…Seriously, I’m going to be sore for a week!â€

Kairi laughed, “Aw, poor baby,†She helped Sora get up, “C’mon, ‘hero’, I’ll help you get to that hut. There are some bandages we can use until you can use ‘cure’ on yourself.†The two hobbled off towards the cabin, leaving Riku to smile at them as they left.

He shook his head. It was good to see them getting along so well again. He almost forgot why he was so upset at them when they were on the islands…

Why was he upset at them? He never did figure that out…oh well, probably better if he didn’t. Riku walked towards a log, and picked up a small towel that he placed there, and wiped his forehead with it.

“So, you were the cause of the noise I heard.â€

Riku looked up. Hiashi was standing at the edge of the clearing. She had that now-familiar look she always had when she looked Riku: Cold and emotionless.

“Hey, Hiashi,†Riku said, smiling, “We found this place about an hour ago. Do you know what this place is, exactly?â€

Hiashi’s face didn’t change, “This used to be where Vincent and I trained. He taught me everything I knew about fighting, right in this little neck of the woods.â€

So this was where it all took place. Riku spoke up, “It’s a really cool place. We had something similar to this back at the Destiny Islands. This area’s a little bigger, though.â€

Enough was enough. This needed to be settled.

“Tell me something,â€

Riku stared at Hiashi, puzzled, as she talked. The tone was a little…suspicious.

“What does it take to wield a keyblade?†asked Hiashi.

Riku blinked, “Well…Exactly what, I’m not sure. The keyblade chooses its wielder, and it seems to like hearts that are strong.â€

“So, Sora and you are ‘strong’ because of your hearts?â€

“Sora is; I’m not. At least, I wasn’t at first. There was a time when I couldn’t summon a keyblade, so I stole Sora’s, thinking it was mine. Sora managed to take it back, and I was stuck with a weapon of darkness.â€

“But the keyblade doesn’t prefer light.â€

Riku shook his head, “Not that I’ve noticed, no. The keyblade isn’t too choosy about who wields it. It’s just if your heart’s strong.†Riku cocked his head a little, “You sound as if you know this already. Why do you want to know these things, Hiashi?â€

Hiashi started to walk towards Riku, “When you and Sora started running after Elanore, I thought for sure that you two were going to lose your lives. I knew about Elanore’s resistance to the keyblade, and that you wouldn’t be able to destroy her,â€

“But…you managed to separate the heart she took into her, the one from that Seymour kid…that shouldn’t have happened.†Hiashi’s pace started to quicken, until she stopped at the edge of the open area, where Sora and Riku had their match.

“‘The keyblade brings ruin in its wake’…that’s something I’ve had beaten into my head since my…since my story began.†Riku frowned slightly, and turned his head, away from Hiashi.

“Hiashi…look, Vincent…he told me…He told me about your past,â€

Hiashi’s eyes widened slightly, “How…What did he tell you?†She could barely breathe. Her heart started to race. He told him?! How could Pops have done that?!

“Well…he told me about how he met you…about how you met Braig…,â€

Hiashi’s eyes flashed with anger. “You had no right to ask about that.â€

“Look, Hiashi…believe it or not, I’ve got a pretty good idea of what you’re going through-,â€

Hiashi drew her sword, “You don’t know how I feel. How could you possibly?!†She charged at Riku, full speed, her sword ready to be thrusted, “You don’t know what it’s like to have your best friend stab you in the back!!â€

Riku barely had time to register her charging. He quickly brought up his keyblade to block the thrust. He managed, “Yes, I do!†He repelled Hiashi’s attack, forcing her back a few feet.

Riku tried to catch his breath, “When Sora, Kairi, and I lost our home, we were all separated. It took me some time, but I finally managed to track Sora to a world called Traverse Town, a home for refugees who escaped their worlds,†Riku lowered his head, and his keyblade slightly, “When we reunited, I found out he had made new friends, had the keyblade, and had already traveled to other worlds. We were supposed to do that together, he, me, and Kairi,†He looked up at Hiashi, “and he goes and shares our dreams with complete strangers! I had been searching with all my time and energy to find him and Kairi, and he’s off playing games! I felt crushed!â€

Riku lowered his head, “That was when I made one of the worst decisions of my life: I agreed to work with Maleficent. She showed me how to use the powers of darkness, and I nearly destroyed my two best friends with it.â€

Hiashi didn’t say a word while Riku was telling his story. She couldn’t help but feel a little pity towards him. All this over a misunderstanding…even if it wasn’t as bad as he thought.

“Like I said, you don’t know what its like,†she said. Riku looked at her confused.

“I’m not talking about a misunderstanding, or broken dreams, kid. I lost everything! My whole life was taken from me in less than an instant!†She drew her sword and charged at Riku again. Once again, Riku blocked her attack, but it was her eyes that had the bigger impact.

“You talk about losing everything, but you gained it all back! My friends, literally, attacked me from behind, just so they could save themselves! There wasn’t anyone I could count on! Vincent was trying to take on the first wave of heartless! Lucrecia was trying to find a cure for a disease! My boyfriend…,†She started losing strength. Her sword slowly slid from the keyblade’s edge.

Hiashi was on her knees, hands on the ground, crying, “My boyfriend…he said he would always be there…he would never hurt me…he laughed as I was being…,†Her voice trailed off as she fought to suppress her tears.

Riku was stunned. He hesitated, but slowly extended his arm until it almost touched her shoulder.

“Hiashi-,â€

“NO!â€

She swat his hand away with the back of her hand. “Don’t you dare offer your help!! Not to me! Not to my sister! Not to anybody!!!â€

“But-,â€

“I said ‘NO’!â€

SLAP!

Nothing else was heard after, for the next few seconds, except for Hiashi breathing hard. Riku blinked. He slowly turned his head to where he faced Hiashi. He put his hand on the sore spot of his face, took it off to look at his hand, then lowered it, and then lowered his head.

“I don’t need your help! I can make it through on my-,â€

“You’re right, Hiashi.â€

She stopped, stunned at what she saw. Riku raised his head back to eye level. He was smiling slightly.

“You’re right, Hiashi. I don’t know what it is you’ve gone through. I had no right to intrude on you like that. Please forgive me.†Riku picked up his dropped keyblade, walked past Hiashi, walked back to the castle.

“Wha?â€

SLAP!

This time Hiashi was the one who was stunned. She quickly turned her head, to receive another shock, as she saw the girl who had delivered the slap.

“You had no right to do that to him, Hiashi!†Kairi practically screamed at her sister, “Keyblade or not, he only wanted to help you!! And don’t start talking about how your troubles are worse than everyone else’s, either! You know nothing about what we’ve gone through!!†Kairi stormed off, trying to catch up to Riku, leaving Hiashi confused.

“Why is she so defensive towards that boy?†Hiashi wondered, frustrated.

“Riku’s lost a lot, Hiashi. More than any of us originally thought,†Hiashi turned to see Sora, surprisingly serious, walking past her.

“Maybe you’re right, Hiashi. Maybe you do have the right to be angry with us. But Riku…I can honestly say that the loss he’s gone through…It’s right up there with yours.â€

Sora proceeded back to the castle, leaving Hiashi, once again, alone.


“…Wow,†said Roxas.

Namine shook her head, “Kairi told me Riku’s been a little unresponsive ever since…this isn’t like him.â€

Roxas raised an eyebrow, “Any thoughts as to why?â€

Namine sighed, “From what Kairi described…I think Riku likes Hiashi. Or at least, he did, before this matter came up.â€

Roxas was surprised, “He whahat’s right, then he sure knows how to pick ‘em.â€

Namine looked at him curtly, “Don’t be mean, Roxas. If you read the reports on Hiashi, you know she’s not that bad,†she closed her sketch pad, “I agree, though, she is a piece of work.â€

“Sorry, but that can only go so far with me, Namine,†Roxas replied, “Yeah, I agree, her past was rough, but so were a lot of ours. I mean, several of us were on the wrong side of the tracks, and didn’t act near that badly.â€

“How many of us can claim that what they knew was a lie though, Roxas?†Roxas was about to say something, but Namine cut him off, “Besides you, I mean. Parts of Hiashi’s life turned out to be a lie, even to her! You know better than anyone how painful that is!â€

Roxas sighed, “Okay, you’ve got me there…so, what do we do about this?†He reached out and gently grabbed Namine’s free hand with his.

Namine closed her eyes, bit her lower lip, and squeezed his hand, grateful for the comfort he was trying to give.

“I wish I knew.â€

 

Not bad.

The slaps surprised me, especially the second one, delivered personally by Kairi. Now that was unexpected.

Good update, though. Can't wait for the next. :D

 

Okay, guys, I know the storyline has been a little slow, not counting the amount of time it's been taking to write the story, but it's going to pick up soon. Thanks for your patience.

Next chapter:

“Ienzo, do you see them?â€

“Yes…the majority of them are scattered…only a few are awake. Do we strike now?â€

“No. We wait until their numbers drop just a bit. The Restoration Committee’s just a few too many members. Once they’ve dropped a few, then we’ll send Even to strike.â€





“So…are you two sure about this?â€

Reno nodded, “Yeah. We appreciate you guys puttin’ up with us while we were tryin’ to find Seymour, an’ all, but at this point in the game, we’ll just be in your way.â€

“Besides, we’ll be able to give some news to some people back home. A lot of them must be worried right now,†said Rude.

Sora, Reno, and Rude were standing at the foot of Cid’s ship, with Cid at the helm. Reno and Rude had their belongings with them, getting ready to head for home. Sora shook his head while smiling slightly.

“Guys, we really appreciate the help you guys have given us-,â€

“Kid, don’t lie to us,†Reno said, annoyed, “We weren’t one bit of help out there, both on the field and off. You should be glad that we’re going!â€

“Reno,†said Rude, “Let him be, alright?â€

“It’s alright, Rude,†laughed Sora, “Believe it or not, that attitude was starting to grow on me. Whether he believes me or not, we actually did appreciate having you two around…it was an interesting change of pace. Even when you guys got banned from the Moogle shop, we had fun.â€

Reno rolled his eyes and muttered, “I’m gonna wait on the ship,†He walked up the ramp and called out to Sora, “Don’t lose to anybody while we’re gone, alright? Nobody’s gonna kick your butt before me!!â€

Sora shook his head again, “He really knows how to make a guy feel important, doesn’t he?†Rude rolled his eyes, “…yeah.â€

“Listen…,†Rude gulped, “…before we go…there’s something I’d like to know.â€

Sora cocked his head, “Yeah?†Rude adjusted the collar of his shirt, “…that girl, Tifa…is she seeing anyone?â€

Sora raised his eyebrows, “…what?†Rude sighed, annoyed, “You heard me.â€

Sora nodded, a little confused, “Uh, yeah. She’s seeing Cloud. You know, guy in black, blonde, spiky hair, scowls a lot?†Rude nodded, “Oh…I see…,â€

“Why do you ask?†Sora cocked his head. Rude narrowed his eyes from behind his glasses. Was he serious? “…no reason. Just curious. Anyway, I’ll see you back on the islands.†Rude picked up his belongings and headed up the ramp of the ship. Soon after, the ship took off, and flew up into the sky.

“Strange question,†said Sora, as he watched them fly out of sight. He shrugged, and walked back to the castle.



SPLIP, SPLIP, SPLIP, SPLOP!

Riku threw another stone into the pond, in the same forest he was in for the last few hours.

Kairi watched him a distance away, behind a tree. This was serious. The last time he acted like this was when Tidus, Wakka, and Selphie didn’t respond that well to his not coming home.

“How’s he doing?†said a voice from behind. Kairi jumped.

She almost slapped Roxas as he said that. She sighed in relief as she turned around, “Don’t sneak up on me like that!†She turned again, towards Riku, “Not good. He’s been like this ever since his fight with my sister,†she started to get angry, “I can’t believe she did that to him! All Riku wanted to do was help, and she treated him like a monster!â€

“She’s got a lot to answer for, I agree,†said Roxas, “but for now, let’s concentrate on Riku. You mind if I have a word with him a moment? Maybe I can get him to open up.â€

Kairi hesitated. She looked at Roxas, turned towards Riku, then back at Roxas, “Well…okay. I guess it wouldn’t hurt…you promise to tell us if you find anything?†Roxas held up three fingers, “Scout’s honor.†Kairi smiled and walked off, towards the castle.

Roxas smiled as she walked off, then turned and walked towards Riku. He stopped and sat down as soon as he was about the same distance as Riku was from the pond.

Riku threw another stone into the pond, and said, without looking at Roxas, “Kairi leave?â€

“Yup,†replied Roxas.

“Are you going to tell her everything that we talk about?†Riku asked, still not facing Roxas. Roxas shrugged, “Not if you don’t want me to.†Riku stopped throwing stones and faced Roxas, “I thought I heard you say you were a scout?â€

Roxas smiled at Riku while raising an eyebrow, “I’ve technically been alive for only a year. When have I ever been a scout?â€

Riku shook his head and threw stones again, “Not very nice, lying to her like that, Roxas.†Roxas sighed, “Look, as far as I can tell, you’re closer to her than me, so if you had anything you wanted to talk about, you would’ve told her first, if at all…and/or Sora. Who knows? I might be able to help, my being a ‘non-existent being’ first.â€

Riku sighed, “You’ve heard what happened with Hiashi and me. There isn’t that much to tell.†Roxas looked puzzled, “She practically spits in your face, and in response you just smile and walk away? If it were anybody else, you’d have retaliated with the sword than with a smile.â€

Roxas turned towards Riku a little, “Do you have feelings for her?â€

Riku threw a bunch of stones in the lake at once, and sighed, “…I don’t know. Even if she doesn’t think much of me, I feel like I have more in common with her than I do with Sora and Kairi.†Roxas cocked his head slightly, “What do you mean?â€

Roxas watched as Riku looked up at the clouds, “When I look into her eyes…it’s like I’m looking at a reflection of myself. I don’t see her eyes, I see mine…she hasn’t just seen darkness like everyone here has. She’s been there…she still is, I think.â€

Riku shook his head as he lowered it and laughed, “I don’t know what I’m doing here, Roxas…I’m probably better off if I just forget about it. She’s made it more than clear that she doesn’t like my existence; let alone what I think I’m feeling. It’s probably better this way.â€

“Look, Riku,†Roxas scratched his head, “She’s clearly got a bunch of stuff to resolve before she starts trusting people again, let alone ever getting involved with anyone. Don’t you think you’re rushing it a bit?†Riku nodded, “Yeah, maybe…but at the same time I’m a little…I don’t know.â€

“What?â€

Riku sighed, “I don’t know…lately I’ve been…I think angry, that Sora and Kairi have been getting closer and closer, even when Sora was going through his little ‘identity crisis’. I couldn’t help but feel…envious…of what they have, and…well, I’ve been a little petty in response to that envy.â€

“Well, you didn’t do any permanent damage to them. I’m sure they’ve forgiven you by now,†said Roxas.

Riku shook his head, “I’m not even sure they realize. Just after Kairi was injured with her fight with Elanore, the first time, Sora and Kairi were trying to comfort and open up to each other…I walked in, interrupted, and told them they needed to get down to a meeting. I made it look like it was on accident, but it was really on purpose.â€

Roxas was surprised. This wasn’t at all like Riku. “Wow,†was all Roxas could manage, “That’s just…wow.â€

The sun slowly rose as the conversation between Riku and Roxas deepened. Before either of them knew it, it was almost noon.


Kairi walked down the long, cold, stone hallway. This wasn’t turning out to be the getaway that she had planned originally for everyone. Just how was this vacation going to turn out? At the rate it was going, nobody would be able to get out of this mess unscathed.

She finally smiled as she saw a room she recognized: The library. She opened the door, and went inside, to find Cloud and Tifa, talking about something.

“Hey, guys,†said Kairi, “What’s up?â€

Tifa smiled in response, “Not much, kid. Cloud and I are just…planning a few things out.â€

“Princess Namine has an assignment for us: Apparently, there’s a lab some distance outside the kingdom that Xemnas used for research. I think Sora found it during one of his adventures here,†said Cloud, looking his usual ‘serious’ self, “…anyway, there’s supposed to be valuable information about the keyblade’s ‘history’, and we need to check it out.†The two of them simultaneously got up from their chairs and grabbed their gear.

“You be good now, okay?†winked Tifa as she and Cloud walked past Kairi. Kairi raised an eyebrow as she watched them go by. It looked like Tifa was treating this more as a date than an assignment…oh well, it was good to see them getting along.

Kairi walked towards one of the bookshelves, and began to skim through the spines of the books. She was surprised by how many books she recognized; most of them were stories that she had already heard in the islands, mainly fairy tales. She laughed when she found the last book on one row: ‘Fairy Tale Fruits, Vol. 1: Papou Fruit’.

She picked up the book, walked towards a nearby table, sat down, and looked through the table of contents. Another bout of laughter when she looked at the table of contents:

CH. 1: STRUCTURE AND SHAPE INTERPRETATION
CH. 2: SEASONS OF GROWTH
CH. 3: NUITRITIONAL VALUES
CH. 4: AREAS OF GROWTH
CH. 5: LEGENDS
CH. 6: DANGERS OF PAPOU FRUIT

The ‘Legends’ section looked promising, so she turned there first. She wasn’t surprised to see the familiar ‘destinies intertwined’ legend almost immediately first, but it was the details behind it that piqued her interest:

“As the story goes, when two lovers each consume a piece of the same papou fruit, they will, with certainty, remain together until the end of their days. However, there is a forgotten passage in this legend: It is not just the fruit itself that has the power, but the mentioning, or a specific reference to the fruit, if not the actual consumption, has a power to unite as well. Many charm casters and spell masters suggest a taboo is behind it, but evidence has yet to be provided.

“One of the passages regarding it suggests that the power comes from the shape. As mentioned in Ch. 1, the star-like shape is said to be because, ‘a papou fruit would appear as soon as a star was born’. Therefore, the fruit is like a miniature star, and is thought to have the powers of the star it was born from, in theory. This led to the nickname, the ‘Wishing fruit’, for many years.

“Regardless of where the power is from, consumption is not the only means of ‘uniting destiny’. Sending a piece to a loved one who is on a long and strenuous travel is said to create a bond, however, the bond is much weaker than the popular ‘consumption’ method.

“Another method is the ‘character drawing’ method. This legend is surprisingly effective, and the bond that’s created rivals that of the consumption method. If two people were to draw the one they love, giving the other a piece of papou fruit, a very unique and strong bond is created. Despite criticism from numerous researchers that the method is ‘preposterous’ and ‘ludicrous’, the results cannot be ignored. Almost every single reported case of people using the ‘character drawing’ method had created a very strong, almost telepathic, bond. There are even a few who have been able to channel this bond to sense danger to themselves over long distances.

“Still, one wonders why there are so many doubts to this power. Is it really the fruit? Or have people convinced themselves that it would work, that it was really their commitment that unlocked the capabilities that they now have.â€

Kairi had her mouth opened slightly as she read through the chapter. She always dreamed that the two of them would share a piece of papou fruit together, ever since Sora left to find Riku …but according to this it looks they already had!

She turned back to the table of contents, eager to find more…

“I never pictured you to be the ‘romantic’ of your group, Kairi.â€

She froze at the voice; like gravel, but in the middle of an ice-cold winter. She moved her eyes up, and sighed slightly to see Vincent walk into the room. She moved her head up, a little nervously, and with hesitation.

“Umm…Hi…Vincent, right? Have we met before? You seem a little familiar.â€

Vincent smiled slightly as he walked closer, but stopped a few feet from the table. “Yeah. We used to live together for awhile, you, your sister, and I.â€

Kairi frowned a little. She didn’t need to be reminded of Hiashi at the moment, not when she was starting to feel better. She looked back down at her book, specifically, the passage of ‘the dangers of forming a bond through ‘character drawing’’. Vincent noticed her disappointment, and tilted his head slightly.

“I take it word reached your ears about Hiashi and Riku’s fight?â€

She didn’t even look up, “I was there when it happened. Sora had to fight to restrain me.â€

Vincent nodded, “Yeah, Hiashi never did learn how to control her emotions, especially her…frustrations. For what it’s worth, I think your actions have left its effect.

“She’s not responding to anything I say. She’s standing up at the top of the tower, watching for heartless…at least that’s what she wants me to believe.â€

“I don’t care,†Kairi looked up from the book, “I know she’s had it rough, Vincent, but Riku didn’t deserve that. He knows better than anyone about…

Kairi took a deep breath, “Rikuen we arrived again on the Destiny Islands, after Xemnas was defeated, Riku was re-introduced to Wakka, Tidus, and Selphie, some of our closest friends. There was nothing we couldn’t tell them, nothing we thought they wouldn’t understand…well, we found something.

“When we told them about Riku’s dealings with Maleficent, they were appalled, but understood that it was to try and save me. But when it came to Roxas…well, they didn’t understand what ‘nobodies’ were very well, and treated him cruely. It wasn’t until Roxas appeared and gave the three a good explanation about what he did in the Organization that they forgave him and helped him move on.â€

Vincent pulled up a chair and sat down in it, “Sounds like he’s got a good group of friends.â€

“Maybe,†Kairi didn’t look too happy about the compliment, “but the timing was terrible.

“You see…Riku’s parents passed away while he was gone.â€



At the top of the main tower of the castle, Hiashi was sitting, cross-legged and eyes closed. She had been sitting that way for a good couple of hours…

Her eyes snapped open.

“They’re coming,†she breathed.

 

Yup. And it gets weirder. Here's the next chap:

Alrighty. Here’s the next update:



“The plan is working, Braig. The Restoration Committee is half there. The only ones to contend with are the key players.â€

“Excellent. Send Even in, and have him create as much destruction as possible.â€



BOOOM!

Riku and Roxas turned their heads towards the sound of the explosion, a tower of smoke rising up. The entire forest shook from the force of it, and the pond they were next to rippled vigorously.

“That came from the marketplace!†Riku started to get up, but froze as he turned towards Roxas.

Roxas was sitting there, stunned. His skin was turning ghost-white, and a look of horror was on his face, the likes of which Riku had never seen before.

“Roxas?†Riku asked.

“…

“…

“…Namine…Namine said she’d be in the marketplace today…To get some new pencils for her sketch pad.†Roxas started to shake.

Riku grabbed Roxas’ arm and forced up to his feet, “Get a hold of yourself!†He released his arm, “She needs you, so don’t go into shock on us now!â€

Roxas slowly nodded, “Yeah,†focus was starting to return to his eyes, “You’re right. Let’s go!â€

The two started running towards the castle, as fast as their legs could carry them.

I swear, if she’s hurt…if she’s anything but safe!



“I see. It’s a wonder Riku’s able to trust anyone, with a past like that.â€

Vincent stretched his back, after listening to Kairi’s story. He settled back down to his chair, and sighed.

“It must have taken a lot to earn his friendship, with troubles he’s had.â€

Kairi smiled as she avoided eye contact, “Sora has that effect on people. He may not be the smartest person in the world, but he seems to find a way to gain your trust almost instantly.â€

Vincent smiled slightly, “I know the feeling. I had a friend like that, once.â€

Kairi’s head snapped back up to Vincent’s eye level. She seemed confused as she said:

“…Lucrecia.â€

“You…remember her?†Vincent looked surprised. It was so long ago that Kairi had known her…

“Not really…the name just popped into my head. Is she the one you were talking-,â€

BOOOM!

The two of them turned their heads toward the window. A billow of smoke was rising up.

“That’s not far from here!†said Vincent, as he and Kairi got up to check the smoke, “We’ve got to get over there!â€

“How?†asked Kairi, “We’d never make it there in time on foot--oh, no. Not again!â€

Vincent quickly picked Kairi up, opened the window, and jumped out, with Kairi screaming all the way down.


BOOOM!

The force of the explosion sent Sora flying back a few feet, crashing into a nearby trash can. Sora sat up, dazed and confused. He shook his head vigorously, and then stood up. The explosion was just a few blocks away. He ran as fast as he could to the source.

He was surprised at the sight.

A tall man, with long blonde hair was standing in the middle of the inferno. He looked like he was well along in his years, but looked like he was trying to appear younger than he actually was, the way some of his hair was in front of his face. He was wearing some kind of black trench coat, and holding something in one of his hands, which was out of Sora’s sight.

“Hey!†Sora yelled, “Are you all right? Get out of there!â€

The man smiled, then turned towards Sora. Sora gasped as he saw what…or rather who, was in the man’s hand.

“Namine!â€

The man was holding Namine up in the air by one of her arms. She looked a little burned and unconscious, with some smoke coming from her. Her sketch pad was slowly slipping out of her other hand, until it fell to the ground.

Sora glared angrily at the man, “You little-,â€

“Sora!†He turned at the voice, and was surprised to see Kairi, Riku, and Roxas running towards him.

“What’s going on here?†asked Riku, but then stopped as he saw the man, “…You’re Vexen’s heartless, right?†The man nodded, an evil look on his face.

“My name is Even, and I must admit, I’m impressed. The data I collected said that you would arrive in 5 minutes, but you were faster than anticipated,†He lightly tossed Namine in the air a little bit and caught her, “I was afraid I’d have to use the witch to try and bring you all out, but you came so quickly-,â€

“A simple ‘yes’ would’ve worked,†Kairi scoffed. Even glared at her. How dare she interrupt him?!

“Since you seem so keen on getting her back, let me save you the trouble,†Even wound up, and hurled Namine towards them, “Catch!†He yelled, sneering.

“Namine!â€

Roxas made a mad dash in the direction that Namine was ‘flying’, and caught her, in mid air. The force, however, forced the two of them back a few feet. Even smiled, evilly.

He quickly drew his hand, and a large bolt of ice shot out. Before anyone knew what had happened, Roxas, holding the unconscious Namine, was frozen in ice. Everyone was surprised by how fast it happened.

Even drew his head back and laughed, long and loud. After about 30 seconds of the laughter, Kairi rolled her eyes,. Was this guy for real? She twisted her head slightly to see Riku and Sora.

Riku was poised, battle ready, but at the same time, looked confused…Was this the first time this guy had been in battle?

Sora, on the other hand, just stood there. He started blowing air upward, from his mouth, to move hair out of his eyes.

After about 1 minute of laughing, Even finally stopped and lowered his head, “If you don’t surrender now, I’ll freeze all of you, just the same!â€

“Umm…dude?â€

Even recoiled in shock at the source: Roxas twisted slightly, and over half of the ice that encased him and Namine. All of the ice fell to the ground and shattered.

“How…how did you get free?! The plan was foolproof! You should have been trapped for hours, not seconds!!â€

Roxas cocked his head at him. The look on his face basically said, ‘Are you brain damaged?’ Sora, while laughing, rolled his eyes. He decided he’d give ol’ Even a hand, “Hey, guys, does it feel warm out here to you?â€

Even was confused, but it only took a glance around that he realized what Sora meant: The fires. They were all over the place, especially around those two kids…

Roxas shook his head slightly, “It doesn’t help any when the ice you’re trapped in is about a centimeter thick, either.â€

Even shook in anger. He reached into his coat with both hands and pulled t 8 round-bottom flasks, each containing red liquid, “These are very explosive! This isn’t over, you punks! This has only begun! This-,â€

Riku, Kairi, and Sora all smiled. In a series of ‘shinks’, the three simultaneously summoned their keyblades. It was, when Kairi cut Even off (again), that Even shook slightly. She had a proud look in her eyes, along with a confident smile. With that, she said:

“This won’t take long.â€

 

..

I love Even now.

Ahem, I take it that the mangas helped as inspiration for this chapter, correct? :3 It's hillarious, my god. X3 And now that I get to read the other chapters as well I am highly interested in Riku and Hiashi's past and present. Don't stop now, dude!