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[A day or two after Riku got warped into his past self, he's back to normal… and unfortunately the memories of that particular time and one particular encounter remain. The memory leaves him groaning faintly into his hands – of course Roxas had to run into himself from the one time that Riku would really like to… well, not pretend that didn't happen, because it had to happen, and he is better off for it, he knows that, but.
But, well, he's still embarrassed as hell by his younger self.
Anyway, drawing out the inevitable is never helpful, so here, have a call, Roxas.
Ring, ring?]
But, well, he's still embarrassed as hell by his younger self.
Anyway, drawing out the inevitable is never helpful, so here, have a call, Roxas.
Ring, ring?]
Edited 2018-09-23 18:10 (UTC)
[He's pretty sure he knows the person behind this username, and while it's not exactly a pleasure to see it, it's also not surprising. Roxas takes a moment to settle himself (on a rooftop in Olympia, because where else would he want to just hang out and chill by himself?) before answering.]</small?
Hi?
Hey, it's me. Riku.
[Well, isn't that a fantastically awkward start, Riku thinks to himself and almost wants to burry his face in his hands again. 10/10 for good intention, 1/10 for execution.]
I just wanted to apologize for the other day. I was an idiot at that age.
[Well, isn't that a fantastically awkward start, Riku thinks to himself and almost wants to burry his face in his hands again. 10/10 for good intention, 1/10 for execution.]
I just wanted to apologize for the other day. I was an idiot at that age.
[Well, yeah. He noticed that. Maybe Riku thinks Roxas would be petty enough to not pick up if he knew it was him.]
Why are you apologizing? You lost.
[And Roxas can't even feel smug about it, because with Riku that age, the fight didn't mean anything. Maybe Riku should apologize for that.]
Why are you apologizing? You lost.
[And Roxas can't even feel smug about it, because with Riku that age, the fight didn't mean anything. Maybe Riku should apologize for that.]
[Riku has honestly no idea what to think, and figures he'll just go with the flow or something like that. He'll figure out how to talk to Roxas and not make an fool of himself at some point. Maybe.]
Doesn't mean I shouldn't apologize for starting that fight in first place.
[Because fighting Roxas is. A complicated thing, given how their last face-off had ended, and Riku really would have preferred doing it under very different circumstances himself. So yea, maybe he should be apologizing for that indeed.]
Doesn't mean I shouldn't apologize for starting that fight in first place.
[Because fighting Roxas is. A complicated thing, given how their last face-off had ended, and Riku really would have preferred doing it under very different circumstances himself. So yea, maybe he should be apologizing for that indeed.]
[Roxas pauses for a moment, then shrugs, remembering half a second later that Riku can't actually see him.]
Sure. I'm not going to hold that against you.
[Not when there are other, better options, ones he doesn't actually know how much he's going to hold against Riku in the end.]
Why did you start it? What was going on when you thought you were from?
Sure. I'm not going to hold that against you.
[Not when there are other, better options, ones he doesn't actually know how much he's going to hold against Riku in the end.]
Why did you start it? What was going on when you thought you were from?
[Well, good to know that in this at least, he's getting a pass from Roxas. As for what was going on…]
Well, I was about a minute away from selling my soul to Xehanort's Heartless.
[One can probably hear the grimace on Riku's face just from his voice – knowing what he knows now about how Xehanort operates, what he'd intended for Riku's body… oh yes, he's very glad that he's developed an immunity to this particular brand of Darkness.]
As for why I started it… that's a longer story, I guess. You got time for that?
[It's not that Riku isn't willing to share… but if Roxas has somewhere better to be, he isn't going to hold him here for it either.]
Well, I was about a minute away from selling my soul to Xehanort's Heartless.
[One can probably hear the grimace on Riku's face just from his voice – knowing what he knows now about how Xehanort operates, what he'd intended for Riku's body… oh yes, he's very glad that he's developed an immunity to this particular brand of Darkness.]
As for why I started it… that's a longer story, I guess. You got time for that?
[It's not that Riku isn't willing to share… but if Roxas has somewhere better to be, he isn't going to hold him here for it either.]
[Hearing it phrased like that is...sobering. Not that Roxas has ever been anything but sober, and not that he didn't know it happened. But learning more of the story from Sora much later on is very different from listening to Riku.]
I'm not doing anything right now.
[If he's willing to tell the story...Roxas would like to hear it. Maybe it'll help him understand him better. Or maybe it's because in a way, it's part of his story too. Or maybe he's just curious.]
I'm not doing anything right now.
[If he's willing to tell the story...Roxas would like to hear it. Maybe it'll help him understand him better. Or maybe it's because in a way, it's part of his story too. Or maybe he's just curious.]
All right, then…
[Riku settles back, lips pressed together… he's promised to tell this story and he will, without leaving anything (or well almost anything out. He isn't sure how much Roxas remembers from Sora's memories, how much of that stuck with the other… So he might as well start at the very beginning, the root of the issue.]
What you have to understand to start with is… before we left the Islands, I was used to being the first in everything. That's not supposed to be an excuse – I worked hard to be ahead in every challenge the Islands threw at us, but being ahead… being more or less unchallenged aside from the odd time that Sora managed to pull one over me… it made me arrogant.
[Made him dismiss Sora's victories as flunks, made him oh so certain that he was ready to face the Outside World… like a fool, really. He hadn't learned much better until Castle Oblivion.]
Then, when we left the Islands… it didn't go like we had planned to.
[For one, the destruction of the Islands certainly had been an unplanned side-effect and for another.]
When I woke up in Hollow Bastion, all I could think about was finding Sora and Kairi, making sure that they were all right. [Especially when he had gotten attacked by Heartless not even five minutes after waking up.] I was the strongest of us, after all, so I thought they'd certainly need my help agains the Heartless.
Then, when I found Sora later on in Traverse Town… with the Keyblade and new comrades in tow… it kind of stung. To me, it felt as though I had been replaced, like I wasn't needed anymore.
[He still remembers it keenly… the shock of seeing Sora hold the weapon that was promised to him… but that particular bit he isn't going to get into, not with Roxas. Even though he's sure at this point that 'the magic' won't go away anymore, it's still a secret he promised to keep.]
With Maleficent whispering the same thing into my ear, it was easy to deceive myself into believing that Sora had abandoned us, Kairi and me, for other people; rather than to swallow my pride and see the truth of things. I was so wrapped up in that thought, so angry… especially after I ran into him in Monstro…
[After he had all but spelled out Kairi's fate and offered to work together – even now Riku can taste that old bitterness at the back of his tongue, even though he knows that he had been wrong in his whole approach… fact is that between the two, Sora did draw his weapon first… but he isn't going to tell that to Roxas either.]
And after Neverland, I was thoroughly convinced that I couldn't trust him anymore, that Maleficent was more likely to help me with getting Kairi's heart back…
[There had been a moment then, after all… one moment when he had been free from Maleficent, from all her flunkies… one moment when he had been at crossroads because he had held Kairi's body to his own and been so desperate to find a way to help her.
Only to forget his heart's desire, in the one moment it might have truly mattered…]
When things got to head in Hollow Bastion, I couldn't see past my anger and my hurt pride. Not before fighting Sora… and certainly not after that either. So, when you told me that I was the one that left Sora behind… it was a challenge that I couldn't let go.
[So… there's why he started a stupid fight over basically nothing. Feel free to laugh at him, Roxas.]
[Riku settles back, lips pressed together… he's promised to tell this story and he will, without leaving anything (or well almost anything out. He isn't sure how much Roxas remembers from Sora's memories, how much of that stuck with the other… So he might as well start at the very beginning, the root of the issue.]
What you have to understand to start with is… before we left the Islands, I was used to being the first in everything. That's not supposed to be an excuse – I worked hard to be ahead in every challenge the Islands threw at us, but being ahead… being more or less unchallenged aside from the odd time that Sora managed to pull one over me… it made me arrogant.
[Made him dismiss Sora's victories as flunks, made him oh so certain that he was ready to face the Outside World… like a fool, really. He hadn't learned much better until Castle Oblivion.]
Then, when we left the Islands… it didn't go like we had planned to.
[For one, the destruction of the Islands certainly had been an unplanned side-effect and for another.]
When I woke up in Hollow Bastion, all I could think about was finding Sora and Kairi, making sure that they were all right. [Especially when he had gotten attacked by Heartless not even five minutes after waking up.] I was the strongest of us, after all, so I thought they'd certainly need my help agains the Heartless.
Then, when I found Sora later on in Traverse Town… with the Keyblade and new comrades in tow… it kind of stung. To me, it felt as though I had been replaced, like I wasn't needed anymore.
[He still remembers it keenly… the shock of seeing Sora hold the weapon that was promised to him… but that particular bit he isn't going to get into, not with Roxas. Even though he's sure at this point that 'the magic' won't go away anymore, it's still a secret he promised to keep.]
With Maleficent whispering the same thing into my ear, it was easy to deceive myself into believing that Sora had abandoned us, Kairi and me, for other people; rather than to swallow my pride and see the truth of things. I was so wrapped up in that thought, so angry… especially after I ran into him in Monstro…
[After he had all but spelled out Kairi's fate and offered to work together – even now Riku can taste that old bitterness at the back of his tongue, even though he knows that he had been wrong in his whole approach… fact is that between the two, Sora did draw his weapon first… but he isn't going to tell that to Roxas either.]
And after Neverland, I was thoroughly convinced that I couldn't trust him anymore, that Maleficent was more likely to help me with getting Kairi's heart back…
[There had been a moment then, after all… one moment when he had been free from Maleficent, from all her flunkies… one moment when he had been at crossroads because he had held Kairi's body to his own and been so desperate to find a way to help her.
Only to forget his heart's desire, in the one moment it might have truly mattered…]
When things got to head in Hollow Bastion, I couldn't see past my anger and my hurt pride. Not before fighting Sora… and certainly not after that either. So, when you told me that I was the one that left Sora behind… it was a challenge that I couldn't let go.
[So… there's why he started a stupid fight over basically nothing. Feel free to laugh at him, Roxas.]
[Shortly after this happens:]
Hey.
[Does Sora sound slightly crestfallen on the other end of the line? Yes. Yes he does.]
I found her.
Hey.
[Does Sora sound slightly crestfallen on the other end of the line? Yes. Yes he does.]
I found her.
You did? That's great!
[He knew how worried Sora was before he'd gone looking. He's got to be relieved to have found her...except, he doesn't sound all that happy about it.]
Is it not great?
[He knew how worried Sora was before he'd gone looking. He's got to be relieved to have found her...except, he doesn't sound all that happy about it.]
Is it not great?
Not really...
[Except no, that doesn't sound right. It is great. She's okay. She's not hurt or anything.]
Something's not right, she doesn't remember anything. And she's got bunny ears!
[Except no, that doesn't sound right. It is great. She's okay. She's not hurt or anything.]
Something's not right, she doesn't remember anything. And she's got bunny ears!
[Roxas barely even hears that last part. His blood's turned to ice.]
What do you mean, she doesn't remember anything? What did she forget?
What do you mean, she doesn't remember anything? What did she forget?
Everything! She doesn't remember the islands or how she got there, or anything that happened with the Darkness-
[He's trying not to sound panicky about this, he's not. There has to be an explanation for this.
Except there's not, and it's driving him nuts.]
She knows that she's Kairi. She thinks she's always been here, she doesn't remember anything else.
[Or anyone else.]
[He's trying not to sound panicky about this, he's not. There has to be an explanation for this.
Except there's not, and it's driving him nuts.]
She knows that she's Kairi. She thinks she's always been here, she doesn't remember anything else.
[Or anyone else.]
[Roxas swallows hard. This is all too familiar, horribly so, except it's flipped around from what he remembers. For a moment he thinks, this must be how Axel felt.
Except it's not the same, he's not as close to Kairi as Axel had been to him. But Sora is.]
Someone must have made her forget. Messed with her memories.
[There's a faint edge to his voice, a hint of anger. This is wrong.]
Except it's not the same, he's not as close to Kairi as Axel had been to him. But Sora is.]
Someone must have made her forget. Messed with her memories.
[There's a faint edge to his voice, a hint of anger. This is wrong.]
[There's an empty, hollow pit where Sora's stomach used to be as he thinks about it. Roxas is right, someone had to have made her forget, it's the only way... but if that's the case, then he failed. Someone was able to do that to her after he promised he'd look after her.]
Yeah, but who? And why? She just arrived here, why would anyone want to mess with Kairi's memories?
Yeah, but who? And why? She just arrived here, why would anyone want to mess with Kairi's memories?
Some people don't need a reason to be rotten.
[His palms are practically itching to call his Keyblades into them, but who would he even fight?]
Allura was acting weird too. It might not just be Kairi who was targeted.
[His palms are practically itching to call his Keyblades into them, but who would he even fight?]
Allura was acting weird too. It might not just be Kairi who was targeted.
Rotten's right. It downright stinks.
[Roxas isn't the only one with itchy palms, Sora could do with wailing on someone or something until Kairi's memories come back to her. Those memories are hers, they're special, they're what make her her and-
Oh.]
Hey, are you okay?
[Roxas isn't the only one with itchy palms, Sora could do with wailing on someone or something until Kairi's memories come back to her. Those memories are hers, they're special, they're what make her her and-
Oh.]
Hey, are you okay?
[As much as Sora must be worried about Kairi, it's not surprising that his concern turned to Roxas. He's had his memories messed with before, after all.]
Yeah. I didn't forget anything this time.
Yeah. I didn't forget anything this time.
[As does Sora. Not that he remembers.There's irony in here somewhere...]
Okay, that's good! And even if you did, I'm right here to help remind you, okay? After I get done finding the jerks that did this and giving them a piece of my mind...
[Or Keyblade. Probably Keyblade, who's he kidding.
Oh wait, hang on. Sora just realises what he's said.]
Not that they need anyone else's minds if they're taking them from other people already.
Okay, that's good! And even if you did, I'm right here to help remind you, okay? After I get done finding the jerks that did this and giving them a piece of my mind...
[Or Keyblade. Probably Keyblade, who's he kidding.
Oh wait, hang on. Sora just realises what he's said.]
Not that they need anyone else's minds if they're taking them from other people already.
[Someone please stop people from sticking their fingers into Keykids' memories.]
Thanks. [He smiles faintly.] Do you think that would work with Kairi, if we tried hard enough? We could go back, but...what if being out there is what changes your memories after a while?
Thanks. [He smiles faintly.] Do you think that would work with Kairi, if we tried hard enough? We could go back, but...what if being out there is what changes your memories after a while?
[It's like sticking your fingers in an electrical socket, only instead of electrocution you get existential crises, partial-to-complete amnesia and a whole heap of angst.
Sora makes a small, unhappy groan from his end of the line.]
I tried everything I could think of, I even showed her she could summon her Keyblade and it didn't do any good. I think it just made her more confused, and I don't want to hurt her by pushing to hard... or push her too hard make her think I'm some kinda weird bully with a creepy agenda.
[But he can't help but add:]
I don't want to risk losing any more of her.
Sora makes a small, unhappy groan from his end of the line.]
I tried everything I could think of, I even showed her she could summon her Keyblade and it didn't do any good. I think it just made her more confused, and I don't want to hurt her by pushing to hard... or push her too hard make her think I'm some kinda weird bully with a creepy agenda.
[But he can't help but add:]
I don't want to risk losing any more of her.
Edited 2018-11-28 23:13 (UTC)
No. Of course you don't.
[Every piece of a precious friend who's lost...is too much to lose.]
What if...what if she just needs to hear from more of us? I may not have known her as long as you, but maybe that would make a difference.
[Every piece of a precious friend who's lost...is too much to lose.]
What if...what if she just needs to hear from more of us? I may not have known her as long as you, but maybe that would make a difference.
Maybe... I mean, it can’t hurt, right?
[At least that’s what he hopes. He doesn’t have even the slightest idea what will help or hurt and it’s definitely frustrating.]
Hey, Roxas?
[At least that’s what he hopes. He doesn’t have even the slightest idea what will help or hurt and it’s definitely frustrating.]
Hey, Roxas?
I hope not.
[He really, really does. Kairi might be a new friend, but he doesn't want to lose any more friends. And he doesn't want to see Sora hurting.]
Yeah, what?
[He really, really does. Kairi might be a new friend, but he doesn't want to lose any more friends. And he doesn't want to see Sora hurting.]
Yeah, what?
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