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Docks

Xeryim laughed all the harder at the emotions in Kairi's eyes. It was so simple to yank these puppets' strings! He ignored the Keybearer's weak command, turning to the furious pirate instead.

"You dare to command me?" He stepped forward a pace and placed his hand over the tip of the bared sword, twisting it to the side slightly to inspect the straight line of the blade. "At least you do a good job at what you do," he said, plucking the sword from Will's grip easily and examining the hilt and crossguard. "Good balance. Does it float?" He smirked and turned slightly as he threw the blade like a boomerang, watching interestedly as it spun through the air before dropping with a dull plop into the water. Once it had, he turned back to Will. "Don't threaten me again, pirate. I don't much like it."

He turned back to Kairi, disregarding the young blacksmith completely. "You seem to have ignored my question, Princess. Do you really expect these people to keep you safe? I actually did want an answer."

Docks

Xeryim looked away from Kairi and directly into the blue eyes of the Keyblade Master when he cut in front. He was interested by the fury there, but he wondered if he had the strength to strike him, after the will-breaking events of the day.

“Who are you?”

His smile and mirth, the remainder of his cruel laugh, vanished, replaced by a cold straight line. He nearly radiated anger, but his eyes held a pensive stare. He crossed his arms over his chest carefully, regarding the boy before him with care. He took a step forward, staying scant paces away from him for the moment.

“It wounds me that you don’t recognize me right off, Sora. I would have expected better.”

Docks

Xeryim narrowed his eyes, furious. No idea at all, hm? Time to jog your memory, Keybearer...

He took another step forward, perhaps a pace away. “You lost someone very dear to you recently, didn’t you? Someone you cared about– a lot. And you don’t know where he is, do you. He seems forever lost to you, perhaps swallowed by Pride’s trap. Right?”

Docks

Xeryim would have laughed at Sora’s panic, revelled in the pure unadulterated reaction he was seeing. He lived for reactions like this. But at the moment, he was too focused on his fury. He didn’t take a step this time, instead throwing his left hand up and forward, looping the chain that ran from his collar to his wrist around the back of Sora’s neck and yanking the boy toward him. He dragged Sora forward and held him up just over the ground with the chain and his left hand, locked around the jangling links just under his chin.

He leaned forward slightly, right hand cupping Sora’s jaw as he stared into those brilliant blue eyes with his own teal ones. He snarled, breath hot against Sora’s face.

“I am Riku, you over-hyped goldenboy. I am Riku.”

He smiled cruelly as he ran the fingers of his right hand through Sora’s hair. “Just as soft as always,” he whispered, before tracing Sora’s lips with one finger.

“Don’t believe me?” He pulled his hand away, reaching down to unravel a strip of cloth wrapped around his belt. “Does this look familiar?” He held the black blindfold before Sora’s eyes, smirking as he shook the fabric so it lay open in his hand and dangled below his fingers.

Docks

Xeryim glared, a feeling raging up within him, demanding he do something completely opposite of what he wanted to do. It confused him, and he let a fraction of the feeling surface in his eyes for Sora to see. He knew it was Riku’s emotions roaring up within him, coaxing him to do the things Riku himself wanted to do. He knew this time that it helped his case, rather than hurt it, so he gave in to Riku’s pushing.

He bowed his head as he looped his hand around to the back of Sora’s head to still his frantic movements of denial. He pressed his lips gently against Sora’s for a long moment, letting Riku’s push change to a subtle contentment for the time being. Good, he’d appeased that strange sensation. He hoped it didn’t come back any time soon.

He broke the kiss, whispering brokenly against Sora’s cheek, “Believe me now?” He dropped Sora to the ground, releasing the chain and shaking it out so it lay straight against his side. He tossed the blindfold onto Sora’s chest.

“Here, keep it to remember me by,” he said through clenched teeth, before he turned on his heel. “I am Riku, whether you accept that now or later. You may call me Xeryim, Prince of the Heartless.” He raised his hand, ignoring the others gathered about them, and opened a portal of darkness, which he stepped into. He turned his head to cast one final glance at Sora, then walked away, the door closing behind him, only wisps of darkness marking its brief presence.

Will watched helplessly as the man tore his sword from his hand and threw it out to see. The blacksmith glared at his new adversary. Still the man was calling him a pirate. His father might have been, but as far as Will was concerned. He was not!

Fighting this man would get him no where though, he clenched his teeth in an attempt to release some steam. After a minute or two of standing very tense and trying to channel his anger out, common sense finally returned. Will looked at his fiancée "Elizabeth...are you alright?" Will knew when to back down from a fight, and unfortunately.

This was one of those times.

Kairi watched wide-eyed as the scene unfolded around her. Ignoring Xeryim's question once again, Sora had interrupted before she could gather the courage to utter a word.

Riku....

It’s Riku.

Something did happen....

They lied......

Then, Xeryim kissed Sora, and Sora's reaction was more then she could take. It was true…what Saix and Roxas had said about them. Sora loved Riku.

Not her.

She felt a horrible sinking feeling in her stomach, like the whole world was spinning upside down, everything. So many lies, and cover ups....just so she could be given a false sense of security. Happiness obtained through lies and deceit, it made her muse briefly. What was the truth anymore? It appeared all she had been told were lies…

Riku wasn't alright.

Sora wasn't ok either.

No one was!

Reality hit the princess like a brick, hard, and square in the head. Kairi's eyes welt up with tears, until they poured over the edges of her eyes. This time, it was too much, far too much for her to handle. She was beginning to doubt if anyone could handle it….

Kairi lost the will to continue the battle. Her keyblade would remain tucked away inside her pouch, in it’s shrunken form. She had wanted to help Sora and Riku....but what good was it now?

What good was anything now?

They had lost. The heartless had hit the 7th princess where it hurt the most.

Her friends.

Kairi’s heart ached; she clutched the cloth around it and sobbed heavily. Pulling her knees close to her body and rocking back and forth, trying desperately to calm herself, it wasn't working.

Roxas has told her once, that she was optimistic.

Well, the optimism was gone now. Completely and utterly.

Being a Turk Commander had its benefits; namely, it came with the natural ability to ignore cutting words from opponents - words that were specially designed to damage the psyche. Psychological warfare, the game was getting old, although he had to applaud the Prince of the Heartless for knowing where, exactly, to hit.

Quite unfortunately, it only seemed like Tseng was the only one with this ability, and he was simply watching the entire series of events unfold before him like a soap opera.

The boy Sora, the girl Kairi...it seemed like all the Heartless had cared for were the two of them. He would be lying if he said that he wasn't shocked by what had happened. A simple kiss, a few words, were all that was needed to completely destroy the boy and the girl, and despite everything, he felt a pang of sympathy for them.

Not that he would admit it, but still.

And then Rufus was giving out directions, trying in his own way to keep everything from falling apart. Despite their short stay here, Tseng knew that Sora and Kairi had formed as their nucleus - the reason being that they knew this world better that any of them did, or so it seemed.

"Tseng.... I need to speak with you."

Acknowledging his boss's comment with a brief nod, he simply said, "Yes?"