Kingdom Hearts [LOCKED]

[beautybedamned]

She blinked back and pulled her knees closer towards herself. "King...?" What in the world was Riku talking about? She hesistated, quiet again for a momentbefore she stood and walked cautiously over to Riku as if with every step closer she might hurt him somehow.

He looked so... battered. And the way his fingers curled around the necklace hung about his neck made her heart hurt for him.

"Oh Riku..." she rushed over then, unable to stand seeing him the way he was, and gently, she helped him up, the backs of her eyes stinging. "What did they do to you...?" She murmured, keeping her hands light for fear that she might accidentally hit a bruise.  

[actoratheart]

Prison of the Worlds

Riku sighed, breathing shallowly to avoid pain from his bruised ribs. "I don't know how much you guys know on the outside," he began, wincing as she helped him stand, "but Kingdom Hearts has a king, named Vivax. He's the one most in power here, and I'm sure he had you brought here to do something for him. And personally, I think it might have something to do with your abilities."

As he spoke, he limped to the wall and gently settled himself on the ground, trying to smile at Namine's face to lessen the potential sting of his words. "I'm not sure yet precisely, but I don't think Vivax is up to much good.

"Certainly not for us, at any rate." He sighed. "I don't know what to do. And I don't know what Roxas will do either. I'm sure he's pissed as a caged lion though." He sighed. What to do next?

"But what I don't understand is how Xeryim could use his keyblade in this cell," he trailed off into silence, thinking hard. "Namine, do you think you could-" He stopped, listening intently for the faint tread of booted feet outside their cell.  

[SCDream]

Prison of the Worlds

"That is because the Prince has something you do not."

The answer echoed through the room flatly as Pride stepped within its bounds. His thin hand slipped into the confines of his pocket and pulled out a delicate, golden key. He held it carefully before the prisoners by the tip. A thin design of a heart weaved around the length of the key and at its very top with a bold crown.

"It is something I have borrowed for the time being as the Prince had more important matters to deal with..." The Heartless slipped the key into its home once again. The key was far too important to continue rambling on about in front of such low lives. "...so I am here in his stead."

Dark eyes flicked around the room, bypassing Greed entirely. The existence of a traitor deserved no thought or attention. But those who Vivax needed...

"Girl." Pride barked, pointing to Namine and then to the ground beside him. "Come now. You have an appointment you cannot miss."  

[beautybedamned]

Opened and unlocked doors didn't always mean freedom, and such was the case right now. Backing away from the angry looking man and the open space behind him, Namine drew her knees to her chest as she huddled up beside Riku. She wasn't going anywhere with anyone, and she repeated these thoughts over and over in her head even as her hands trembled with the slightest fear.

"I don't want to go anywhere with you," she whispered, her voice raspy as it caught in her throat. "I'm not afraid of you." She hoped she sounded convincing enough. "I'm not going with you."  

[actoratheart]

Prison of the Worlds

"That is because the Prince has something you do not. It is something I have borrowed for the time being as the Prince had more important matters to deal with, so I am here in his stead." A pause. "Girl. Come now. You have an appointment you cannot miss."

That voice was unmistakeable, and from the moment Riku first heard it, his head snapped up, almost of its own accord. Despite the blast of pain from his midsection and the stretch of broken skin, he leapt to his feet. He had to brace one hand against the wall for a moment as his sense of balance spun out of control, but his wavering stance did not detract from the anger and hurt in his dead eyes.

"Pride," Riku growled. "Get out. Now. You're not welcome here." He wanted to run at the Heartless and pound his arrogant, unhelping face in, but he dared not move away from Namine. His sore body and bleeding wound didn't help either. "That 'girl,' who happens to have a name, won't be treated like a dog by the likes of you."

He clenched his fists, holding them forcibly, shakily at his sides. The icy sensation of Sora's necklace against his neck encouraged him, forcing feeling into a body numbed by the pain of Xeryim's onslaught. "I don't want to look at your ugly face- get out."  

[SCDream]

Prison of the Worlds

What a pain. What a truly profound pain these two had turned out to be. Did they not get it? You simply did not defy the Emperor. Even the boy of all people should have realized that, given the wounds that the Prince had inflicted upon him. But this... this was the first time Pride had seen the boy ever since his heart was stolen from him and he was dragged to this very place by Sloth. And Sloth... he was yet another mystery in himself.

But this... it almost seemed amusing. Did they truly think they stood a chance against the Septsinian, even though it's numbers had been reduced by two? Those were the lowest of the low! Gluttony! Lust! Mere blemishes upon the race of Heartless. They were nothing. There was no victory gained.

"You two..." Pride drawled, one end of his lips twitched, itching to curl and revealing the most sinister of sneers. "... have no right to make objections, nor insults for that matter." The Heartless' gaze flicked over to Riku.

"Boy," Number Two shook his head. "You've lost all things without a heart. You've gained nothing, thus you are nothing. Now I suggest that your little girl comes here now before my patience wears thin."  

[beautybedamned]

Namine swallowed and clung to Riku for a moment and then gently let go, standing slowly, her eyes not leaving the man by the open door. "Promise me you won't hurt Riku anymore." She murmured softly. "I'll go with you, but don't hurt him anymore..."

Her fingers curled into her palms, the fists tight and cold. Roxas... where are you?  

[actoratheart]

Prison of the Worlds

Riku choked, his mind a blur with only one prevalent thought intact at Namine's bold, self-sacrificing words.

Roxas will kill me.

"You don't have to go with him, Namine!" He reached out after her, fingers locking around her wrist. "Don't be stupid. I'm fine."

Aside from blood pouring from his chest, but hey, who was counting?  

[beautybedamned]

She turned to him, her hand closing over his. "It's okay, Riku, you just get better okay?" She murmured softly. She didn't want him to get hurt any more than he already way. She squeezed his hand gently -- and she hoped, reassuringly. "I'll be careful. I promise."

Everyone was always looking out for her. It was high time she looked out for them too.  

[actoratheart]

Prison of the Worlds

Riku couldn't believe what she was saying. He shouldn't. He was already, hypothetically speaking, dead so there was no good reason to get himself killed all over again later. But.

He let go, swaying on his feet. "If you harm one hair on her, Pride," he said, as menacingly and as threateningly as he could, leaving the threat open-ended.  

[SCDream]

Prison of the Worlds

"Tch tch tch..." Number Two shook his head in disbelief. He did not realize how long it Nobodies to adjust to their loss of a heart. Heartless, on the other hand, were born without them and thus even stronger in the heart's absence. Of course the boy did prove to be different, just as the Prince was. They each seemed to still retain their emotions, oddly enough. After much thought, Pride came to the conclusion that it had to do with the location of the Prince's birth. A heart released within Kingdom Hearts would surely have different effects than in any other world.

"I think the young lady has surpassed your wisdom, boy." Pride growled, leering at Riku. "Not only does she know her limits but she knows how to handle the current situation.

"As for her wellbeing... that is not in my hands or my decision to make, now is it?"

The Heartless looked sharply at Namine before he waved, opening the entrance to the cell.

"Lead on." He demanded.  

[beautybedamned]

Namine hugged herself as she stepped out of the cell, not quite sure if she could call herself brave considering the way her knees felt beneath her. At least he'll leave Riku aone for the moment, she thought, casting one last glance to the injured boy. She offered him a shaky smile and then turned her gaze back to the man who stood outside the bars now behind her.

Looking forward she swallowed deep, her resolve and mind set and took the first step away.


[OOC: I am so so sorry for the delay. D:]  

[actoratheart]

Prison of the Worlds

He sighed, resignation filling him as he watched her leave the cell, walking beside and then past Pride. He slid to the floor again, not daring to look at Greed.

Not daring to acknowledge tears in his eyes. He'd failed, yet again. Yet again he'd been unable to stop the evil- unable to protect those he loved.

He shook his head. "Roxas will kill me."  

[SCDream]

Prison of the World -> ???

At long last, the girl finally stepped out of the cell leaving that wretched boy in silence. Pride roughly took her by the wrist and led her through an elaborate set of corridors. He had business to attend to and the young lady dare not miss her appointment. The Heartless would give her an occasional tug wen she slowed her pace or lingered behind and kept his silence during the journey. At long last the pair stood in front of a large pair of marble white doors framed by a gold-like material.

Pride stopped and released the girl, taking the two over-sized handles of the door. Before he opened it though, he paused. He turned to her, glancing over his shoulder.

"You will not speak unless spoken to and you will do to mind your actions. Is this understood?"