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'Riku…It's Riku. Riku's here!'

               I don't think I'll ever be able to forget the tone in his voice when he cried my name like that. I don't think there will ever be a time that I won't see the tears in his eyes or hear the happiness in his voice. He's the only one I've ever really felt attached to…

          "Come on, Riku! Wakka's waiting!" Sora grinned and grabbed his solemn friend's hand, dragging him along the beach happily. It was so good to be back…so good to be in the sunlight again. He was living a normal life now, currently trying to help Riku piece together one of his own.

         "Sora, please…don't make me play another game of blitzball." Riku groaned quietly, letting a heavy breath escape his lips. Sora paused, still holding his hand lightly, his features rearranging themselves into deflation. Riku sighed and covered his own eyes with his free hand, "I'm sorry, Sora…I just don't feel like it." He mumbled, slowly dragging the gloved hand down his face, stretching and contorting it grotesquely before letting it back into its normal position. Sora looked at him with disheartened eyes.

        "Please, Riku…you need to mingle with everyone again. It'll help, I promise." He ran his thumb over the silver haired boy's knuckles, glancing down at their still locked hands. Riku paused for another moment, casting his eyes to the golden sand beneath his feet and the water lapping at the distant shore. He felt bad, he knew his friend was just trying to help him. Couldn't he do something for the boy? After all, he had crossed worlds to save him from the darkness. He gave another heavy sigh and nodded slowly.

         "Alright…But, can we do something other than blitzball? You made me play all day yesterday." He watched as Sora's bright blue eyes lit up once again, a smile taking over his whole face. He squeezed Riku's hand with the creak of leather, then gave a light bounce of excitement.

         "I know just the thing! C'mon!" With that he took off running down the beach, once more dragging the taller, more reluctant boy behind him.

          When they had crossed the docks to the other side of the beach, Riku halted to find himself somewhere he didn't want to be; even more than the blitzball field. Sora grinned and bounced at his side again, either not noticing his friend's tensing muscles or choosing to ignore it. "This'll really get you back into the feel of the old days! C'mon!" Sora started to pull Riku down the dock and into the sandy area they were looking at, but Riku stayed frozen to the spot, causing the younger boy to jerk backwards. Sora yelped in surprise and turned to look at the taller boy. "Riku…What is it?" He stepped closer and Riku shook his head, silver hair shivering in the moist air of the beach as he blinked to calm himself.

         "I can't do this, Sora. I'll play blitzball, I'll build sandcastles, construct rafts, run races, anything…" He turned and looked at his friend with a deadly calm to his face, terror raging in his eyes. "Just don't make me do this." Sora gave a gentle smile and squeezed Riku's hand again, pulling it into his chest as he took a reassuring step forward.

         "Riku…you have to give it a chance. There's no way anything's going to hurt you anymore…You're home now." He smiled again, brushing hair out of the boy's eyes. "Besides, this'll help you get some of that pent up energy and anger out. C'mon, just one round." After a moment, Riku nodded slowly, lingering in the warmth and comfort of the boy's touch. He allowed Sora to lead him along slowly this time, as though they were taking baby steps. It was a sight the others of the island had gotten use to by now. Sora beaming and laughing as he led the somber taller boy along by the hand. They understood Riku would do nothing with them on his own, Sora having to push him into it all, and they were generally understanding towards the boy.

         Selphie looked up and beamed as she saw the two of them walking over. "Hey boys! Great timing! Another match was about to start! Either of you in?" She waved them over, bouncing alongside of Yuna excitedly.

"Yeah! Riku's up for it!" Sora started to drag a little harder as they neared the dirt circle the other children were standing around. Riku was doing his best to dig his feet into the ground, attempting to halt his friend's progress; if anything slow him down a little. But, it was failing miserably.

"Perfect! I need a good match!" Riku looked up to see Tidus standing in the middle of the ring, grinning and holding onto one of the wooden swords they had played with since they were children. He guessed some games never got old to some people. Sora finally stopped, this time releasing his hand and moving behind him, giving him the final push he needed to get his feet over the boundary line of the ring.

        "You can DO this…Remember, nothing can hurt you here." As he murmured in Riku's ear Tidus tossed the spare, battered wooden sword at him. He caught it uncertainly, glancing around with nervousness and hesitation bleeding from his eyes as he anxiously shifted from one sneaker to another. The boundary ring was made of white sand they had gathered off another part of the beach; it already had footprints and drag marks in it for the day. He closed his eyes and ran a hand through his hair, gripping down on the well worn handle of the toy and taking in a long breath.

        "Are you ready to get beat, Riku?" Tidus laughed and shuffled a little in the sand, bouncing from side to side, trying to throw the taller boy off. Riku glanced him over, sizing him up for the first time since he had come back home. The blonde had gotten taller and thicker through the chest and legs; he supposed all that blitzball playing and sword fighting had paid off well. But, he still had that same goofy grin and boyish voice; just like Sora. He failed to pose a threat at all.

         Riku gave a nod of his head and readjusted his grip on his sword again, gritting his teeth as the others began to cheer and call out happily. Sora called out Riku's name, then cried out that Tidus had forgotten what a real fight was and would undoubtedly be going down. The blonde and the others laughed along side the comment. Then Selphie called for the match to start.

        Though the word registered in his mind, though he had heard the cry and was aware of the need to begin to move, he stayed frozen in place. He was suddenly unable to uproot himself from the spot he found himself in. Riku stared at the sand beneath his sneakers again, wincing as memories came flooding back to him. Memories he didn't want, memories he thought he had locked away for good. Things he had been trying desperately for the past couple of days to ignore and move past. Dark things.

'Why didn't you tell me you were okay?!' Sora's pained and angry voice called out to him, causing him to close his eyes with a small wince, running a tired hand over his furrowed brow.

'There's a darkness in your heart…you'll never be rid of the darkness…' THAT voice…That deep, ominous, brooding voice that had haunted his dreams for months now.

        Tidus jumped forward, grinning and playfully tapping Riku's bare shoulder with the sword. He jumped back, expecting a blow, but the boy barely flinched. The blonde frowned and stood up, laughing lightly and looking around at the others, wondering what was going on. "Well…can't very well have a fight if you don't fight back, Riku." He joked gently, hoping the taller boy heard him.

'I looked for you! Why didn't you tell me you were okay?!'

        Riku growled in the back of his throat, feeling something welling inside of him that he knew all too well. "I didn't want you to see me…not like this." He grumbled, beginning to quiver with the rage and pain that was building up inside of him. Tidus frowned, unable to make out what the boy had almost growled at him.

         "Wha's 'at?" He stepped forward, the rest of the children having fallen silent. Sora furrowed his brow too, reaching out slowly for his friend, wondering if he was seeing what he thought he was seeing. Tidus got to Riku first, reaching out and gently touching his shoulder, "Hey man, you okay?" He wondered gently, but Riku swatted him away with a powerful hand.

         "How can you pretend to fight such foolish battles?!" He barked, jerking his head up and glaring viciously at the shocked boy. "You have no idea the PAIN a true battle brings! You have no IDEA of what you joke about!" He raised the sword, striking Tidus hard against the face with the broad side of the wood, sending him flying backwards with a cry of pain. Yuna screeched and covered her mouth with her hands, moving to run over to the boy.

         "You're idiots! All of you!" Riku looked up and around, glowering over the suddenly silent crowd of teens, slowly grinding his foot into the ground as he rotated to point his sword at each kid present. "You have no IDEA of what's been SACRIFICED so you can play your stupid GAMES!" He looked back at Tidus, snarling before launching on the boy, grabbing him by the collar and throwing him to the other side of the ring this time.

          Yuna froze, delicate hands covering her open mouth in the same silent gape of horror as her boyfriend was tossed aside like old garbage. She looked up at the taller, silver haired teen, looking into the depth of his ominous scowl as he stalked over to the limp blonde. Sora shook his head, eyes widening as he watched his best friend grab Tidus by the back of his shirt, hefting him over onto his back and straddling him. A sick glint lit up the empty pools Riku's eyes had suddenly become, and then he fell forward on the boy, dropping the toy sword and connecting his fists to any flesh he could find.

        Sora cried out, running over to his lost friend as the others were swatted back mindlessly. He grabbed Riku from behind, wrapping his arms around him and pressing his cheek into his back as he fell to his knees. "STOP IT! Riku, stop! He's your FRIEND!" Riku froze, suddenly stock still. Somewhere, in the depth of his mind and the bottom of his heart, he could feel the younger boy's tears soaking through his shirt and into his flesh warmly. The agony in the brunette's voice, the heat of the piteous tears, some how managed to reach him. Like a pure white hand, they reached into the void of a  pit, and pulled him through the sickness that had swallowed him whole; again.

       He took a breath, blinking and looking around a bit frantically, trying to get his bearings again. Where was Sora? Where was HE? Hadn't he been playing with Tidus...sword fighting? Riku looked down, watching the boy groan and sob beneath him still, head lolling as Riku held him up by his bloodied shirt front. He hardly recognized the blonde's obliterated face. Hastily he dropped the boy to the ground, standing up too quickly, almost tripping over his limp form. He looked around with terrified eyes, seeing confusion and disgust reflected back at him on the faces of those who were once his peers.

      They backed up also, making room for him as he stumbled, brushing his bloody hands off on his shirt and pants deftly, smearing the clotting liquid all over himself. He couldn't breathe. All sound drowned out except for the rush of his own blood. The panic of his eyes finally landed on Sora, still crouched over Tidus' legs, watching him with tear stained cheeks and a quivering lower lip. Shaking his head again, Riku turned tail and ran. He always knew he was a danger to everyone.

'I didn't want you to find me…'

        He had done so well too. The night was the only time he ever felt terror or anger because of his past. Lying in bed was the only time he ever felt near to the darkness that still hid in the deeper recesses of his heart. He had only heard that voice in his nightmares since then…Now all of a sudden it had to come back? Just because he had been put in a situation that called for him to fight-not even REALLY fight. That was all it took to call it back? Was he still THAT susceptible to the dangers of himself? Was he really not fit to be around people anymore?

        Footsteps were clunking towards him. So was heavy and slightly panicked breathing. Even when he saw the white tips of the over sized black sneakers he failed to lift his head. It was too heavy to lift; and he certainly didn't want people seeing his face right now. A timid hand reached out, hesitating to touch his shoulder before finally, heavily, resting on it. That killed him. He had put that hesitation there again. He had put that fear back into him again.

        "Why did you run away?" The words were quite and simple. Even so, he took his time answering.
"I almost beat Tidus into the ground…do you honestly think I was going to stick around for that?" He ran his fingers through his hair another time, still resting his forehead against his palms and staring at the ground.

        "He's fine. Just bruised and a little bloodied…You did break his arm though." Riku closed his eyes, gritting his teeth once more. There was a dull throbbing in the back of his head, a sure sign he'd be up in pain all night tonight. The hand on his shoulder reached up to thread through his hair lightly, half gloved fingertips smoothing over the round of his ear in a comforting motion, allowing him to relax his shoulders ever so.

       "I don't know what happened…One minute I was wondering how I was going to fight him and the next minute I was on top of him." Sora pulled his hand away and sat down next to him, draping one leg over the other and leaning back against the bench casually.
"You just had a little moment of weakness…a little relapse…It's nothing to worry about." He shook his head, his voice calm and mindfully oblivious of what had just transpired.

        Riku sat up and turned to look at him, allowing him to see the few and scarce tear tracks down his cheeks. He shoved hair out of his eyes and glared at the innocent boy. "I could've KILLED him." Sora nodded and leaned forward, resting on his knees as he did, taking to looking at the ground like Riku had recently been doing. Continuing to nod lightly, he finally looked up, another, smaller, smile on his lips.

        "But, you didn't. I was there to stop you. And, I'll be there if you ever need me again." He sat up as Riku shook his head in annoyance and looked away, huffing.

        "I can't risk hurting you though…I've hurt you enough already…" Sora struck his thighs loudly as he sat up, a heavy sigh escaping through his nostrils as he pushed himself to his feet and calmly took the few steps it took to stand in front of him. Riku refused to look at him, instead continuing to look off at the glittering waves, frowning still. Sora knelt in front of him, leaning forward between his open legs, the movement forcing Riku's attention back on him in a confused scowl. The brunette smiled lightly though, reaching up with a calm, unwavering hand. Gently, the boy cupped his cheek, letting his calloused thumb caress over the soft flesh beneath it, their gazes meeting momentarily.

        "You CAN'T hurt me, Riku. I KNOW that. Just like I can't hurt you." He paused, watching Riku's lips open to argue once again. Instead of letting him do so though, he slid his hand forward and pressed his thumb over his mouth with a grin. "The only time you ever hurt me, is when you run away." His smile faded as he said this, eyes slowly tearing from Riku's own as he rose to his feet, now taking his turn to stare off into the distance. "Just don't run away again…I'm done being away from your side." He murmured, turning and watching the taller boy stand. Riku wrapped his arms around Sora's slender, tanned form, resting his head amidst his unruly brown spikes.

       "I could always hurt you again…" He insisted with a quiet mutter, making Sora laugh softly and look up at him. The boy leaned up, grabbing hold of Riku's face and pulling him down a few inches so that they were level with each other, pressing their foreheads together with another wide grin.
"You CAN'T hurt me, silly." He murmured, suddenly sliding his lips onto Riku's own.

         At first the older boy was surprised and flinched to pull away. Then he felt the warmth of the kiss and the passion that eased into his open mouth along with it. His eyes closed and he pulled the brown haired boy closer, flattening his hand against the small of his back, almost lifting him off the ground. He wanted to crush the boy against him, meld this warmth and safety into himself. His free hand slid along the side of Sora's neck and against the back of his head, threading his fingers through his soft hair and releasing a quite moan.

        Riku pulled back, tugging teasingly on the brunette's bottom lip, smiling when a breath of a laugh whisped over his features. He leaned back, keeping Sora's lower half pressed hard against his own, but holding his upper half at arm's length distance, examining him softly. Sora blushed, giving another quiet, but slightly nervous laugh this time. Riku's eyes made him feel self-conscious when they scanned into his very being like this. But, he saw the forgotten smile playing in the corners of the silver haired boy's lips, so he let him continue to do as he pleased. Sora understood one thing about Riku, if anything at all. He was a watcher.

      But, as quick as the small moment came, it abruptly ended. Riku suddenly released him, frowning and looking down as he did, continuously stepping backwards in retreat again. He held out a hand to the stunned brunette, touching his forehead with light fingertips again, scowling as he mentally chided himself. Looking up at Sora's pained face, he shook his head, setting his own to the empty mask it had grown use to wearing. "Don't touch me...Ever again."

       Sora whimpered, fearing he had done something wrong. "Riku, what's going on?!" He lurched forward a step, still reaching for his friend, but the boy had backed so far that he had fallen onto the bench. He held out a hand too, shaking his head solemnly.
"Don't. It's for your own good." Sora ignored the warning, instead grabbing hold of the boy's hand, gripping onto it for fear of letting go suddenly.
"What's wrong?! What did I do?!" He pleaded with him, eyes huge and begging, tears beginning to form in the corners of them. He knew those eyes.

       "Sora…you don't understand. I'm sick. Every time I touch you I make you sick too." Riku looked away and Sora frowned in confusion.
"But-" Riku shook his head again, lighter this time, gentler.
"When I pulled away from you I left that darkness on you…I marred that perfect light of yours…I'm not going to taint you any farther. I'm not going to make you as ugly as I am." He was straining not to cry again. Sora began to cry instead. But, a huge smile was plastered across his face, warring with the agony of his tears. Riku frowned again, unable to comprehend the boy at times, unable to understand the deep emotions that seem to rule him.

      "You idiot! I don't care what you think! I don't care how sick or dark you think you are!" He flew forwards, wrapping his arms around Riku's neck and burying his face in his shoulder with a sob. Riku tensed, shocked into stillness for a moment as he let the boy's words sink in, and the rest of them flow out; like they were bound to do.

       "I lost you once…I left you alone in the dark before…But, I'm not going to again. I told you…I'll BE here for you." He pulled back and beamed at him through his tears. "I'll be your sunshine and you can be my shadow…okay? You're my perfect shadow..." Riku gave a soft smile, relaxing his body finally, letting out a long and slow breath. Sora's gloved hands were warm on the bare muscles of his arms, as warm as the smile he was fixing him with at the moment.

       Riku reached out, letting the loving words linger in the silence between them for a moment, brushing messy bangs out of the boy's glimmering, sky colored eyes. Finally, he leaned forward and pulled the brunette into another embrace, crushing his form against his own. Sora laughed softly, nuzzling into the crook of his neck before hugging him back, sniffling as he continued to let the tears pour from his eyes. Riku felt tears languidly making their way down his own cheeks as well.
"Thank you, Sora…"

                Darkness always wants what it can't have. Darkness seeks light. It seeks the beauty it cannot obtain and the purity taken away from it so long ago. But, every light has a shadow. He guessed now, his perfect light had a shadow too.