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Ties that Bind and Tear Apart	By : wickedorin Category: Final Fantasy VIII > Yaoi - Male/Male Views: 619 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy VIII, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 5
- 6
- 7
Ties that Bind and Tear Apart and the general overall concept of
Ties
that Bind and Tear Apart are completely copyright Orin Drake 2005,
as are the characters Kyrie Almasy Leonhart Kinneas (maybe Loire is in
there somewhere..?), Rodger Kinneas and John Sparda. The name/idea
of Sparda and the weapons Ebony and Ivory are copyright Capcom. The
names of Griever, Vincent Valentine, Cloud Strife, Squall Leonhart, Seifer
Almasy, Rinoa Heartily, Quistis Trepe, Laguna Loire and probably a million
other things I'm forgetting are copyright Squaresoft. Riku, Sora,
Traverse Town, Leon, the Heartless, Ansem, the Unknowns and a million others
are copyright Square and probably Disney... and whatever else I've forgotten.
I'm not making money from this, so what the hell are you worried about?

        Background: Same Kyrie and
same universe as, in order, *deep breath* The Sins of Two Fathers,
Retribution
Nor Redemption, Descendants of the Mundane, and
Fool's Journey.
I suppose this story specifically came from Fool's Journey (and
Make
'em Smile, and This Mess... but nevermind), in one sense...
but really, it was spawned by a theoretical conversation by a friend one
late, late night. (And I still hate you. *grin*) It's set a
few months after Fool's Journey, by the way.

        Possible WARNINGS:
You better believe this will likely contain a lot of foul language, "possible"
weird sexual situations, relationships that are generally considered not
part of the mainstream, plenty of violence, and a hell of a lot of screwing
with the heads of readers and characters alike. If you've read anything
of mine before, you probably know what to expect. It's gonna get
dirty in here. Also keep in mind that this was thought up and written
well before Kingdom Hearts 2 came out, so... yeah.

Ties that Bind and Tear Apart

Chapter 6

By Orin Drake
        "What happened?" she found
herself whispering, unsure if she really cared to hear the answer.

        All she could see of Riku's
face was the shadow of his mouth and a few strands of silver hair... but
the tone of his voice expressed his concern. Exhaustion... and fear.
"A... lot... has fallen apart..."

        The words made her blood
run cold, fear clasping her chest as she attempted to breathe normally.
"Sora..." she whispered, trying to make her voice steady. "What happened
to Sora..?"

        "His heart... it's been
destroyed. All worlds are lost without his heart in tact."
He simplified, clearly having issue with the content behind the simple
language. "You hold the last known piece of it... and his memories."
His tone was a quiet, desperate plea. "You're our chance."

        Her? It was on...
her..? Voice held steady by sheer force of will, she didn't bother
to pull punches. "What about... you?"

        He knew what she was asking...
and even though his face was hidden, it was too painful. He turned
away to compose himself, away from the eyes that may have shimmered red
but held the memory's ghost of blue inside. "I... it was... taken
from me."

        That time his voice didn't
even sound... human. It was torn and scratchy; weighted with things
she couldn't understand, but... knew, regardless. Heavy with pain...
guilt... sin, perhaps... but there were other matters to attend to.
To be settled, to know for absolute certain with nothing left unspoken.
"What, exactly, did you come for?"

        "You." He answered
honestly, turning just slightly back toward her; not enough to show his
face. It had become obvious that she was looking for his point, his
true objective--bluntness seemed his best option. "It's Sora's only
chance."

        She tried to swallow her
heart back into her chest, finding her throat dry. It wasn't that
she hadn't expected something that... drastic, that specific... but...
"What happened to him?" she tried again.

        Breathing. Forced
calm... calculating silence... What could he tell her without risking...
emotion? "He... he lost... everything..."

        No, she felt no lies in
his words... but his obvious over-simplification was not helping her increasing
pulse rate or the rising bile in her stomach. "Riku." She demanded,
quietly.

        Taking a deeper breath to
respond was almost too much. His chest clenched, knowing she was
looking for more... but there was only so much he could explain.
"His heart... his soul... he fell..."

        There was a shadow to his
voice, a darkness the likes of which she never thought possible.
Weight beyond weights. She'd never known a guilt to run so deep.
Even her own parents hadn't known... that kind of pain...

        "I wasn't there... to help..."
he gasped, trying to regain his composure as his fists balled up tightly,
the squeaking leather of his gloves reminding him that it was not the time
to let memory overwhelm him. After a moment of forced, steady breathing,
he recovered enough to continue. "I have to make it right.
Whatever it takes."

        She understood that much...
even if she didn't want to at just that moment. She didn't want
the two worlds to run into one another again... but, now that they had...
the realization had finally, truly settled upon her. She accepted
it with all the cold calmness she felt it deserved. "So... you'll
want to take me back with you."

        He nodded, still avoiding
eye contact. "I didn't realize it was night here. It can...
wait. Until morning."

        He meant to take her regardless
of what she said or agreed to. She knew that without question...
and she understood that part, too. Specifically, that was what made
it so hard, perhaps; she'd do the same thing for someone she loved so much.
Hyne help the poor bastard that tried to get hold of anyone she cared that
deeply for...

        So. Time to... get
things moving, she supposed... with a heavy heart. "Won't you...
sit for a while. Make yourself comfortable. I need to... I
have to... tell them."

        "Them?" he questioned, softly.

        Maybe Sora left out that
little portion... or maybe it was just that Riku needed more information
than she could give at that moment. She nodded, leaving most of his
question unanswered. "I'll be back in a few minutes. And we'll...
talk some more." She hardly waited for him to nod agreement before
she was walking up the stairs... feeling as if it were toward certain doom.

        Step by step, it seemed
a long way up. On one hand, she was sure the whole thing was utterly
ridiculous. Anyone outside would say she never knew Sora, had barely
even met him... but they didn't understand how encompassing that sharing
of memories had been. Maybe, in a sense... it really was the sharing
of hearts, as well. She couldn't deny the intense feeling that she
should know him... that she was meant to...

        It was sickening.
It was just another... thing. Another burden she'd taken on quite
easily... but had brought onto others, as well. To be without heart
seemed an easier thing, all of a sudden.

        John's hearing never betrayed
him. His impossibly bright blue eyes met her from the instant she
walked into the dark room. Only concern fell over his gaze... he
said nothing. Indicated nothing. He'd heard everything...
and the still-sleeping boy beside him just made it all the more terrifying.
Would she tell Rodger... or would she try to protect him again...

        "I promised." She
mouthed in the darkness, knowing he could pick it up easily. That's
what he'd requested... to know. To be part of this... She saw
John move aside a little, letting her have room... and ready to support
her if she needed it. She felt very much like she would.

        As for Rodger... he knew.
He just... knew, as he felt her hand on his shoulder to wake him.
It wasn't as if he was having a particularly dark dream... or a particularly
dazzling one. It was simply the essence in the air that he woke to...
and he was quite sure, as the sleepiness disappeared all too quickly, that
he might start to regret his request.

        She knew his eyes were clear
as he sat up... so she tried to get it all over with in a swift manner.
"That dream... of the other world..."

        "Let me guess." Even
with the worry, even through the roughness of his freshly woken voice...
he found it in him to joke, just a little. He had to... if he wanted
to live another day, he had to. "It wasn't a dream."

        Well... that made it all
a little bit easier. She coughed, trying to sum up her thoughts...
trying to come up with some explanation that would sound at all logical
to anyone but herself... not that hers sounded logical at all. To
anyone.

        "So... what happens now?"
he inquired for her. Down to the meat of things... cut through the
bone, even.

        "Now I see what kind of
information I can get out of him... then I guess I have until morning."
Simple. So it sounded, anyway.

        Silence. Maybe a little
unexpected... but, in hindsight, not really. "We have until
morning." Rodger corrected, taking a deep breath and wondering how
many more hours of sleep he should be getting... but wouldn't.
"No fucking way you're getting out of here without me."

        Still a humor about him,
yes... but a tired one. Worn... tattered... Glad as she was
to have him beside her...

        "Well I'm not staying here."
John added, quietly. "Alone. Lonely. Cold."

        She was immeasurably glad
to have another partner in crime along with her, but... "Haven't
you been through enough, devil-boy?"

        "I could say the same for
both of you." John had meant to have humor in his voice...
but somehow it hadn't come through.

        ...Well. Suddenly
they all seemed pretty much agreeable.

        She really hadn't
wanted to go back down those stairs... but she knew she had to. Details
would be important... but more than that, ground rules. Or something
slightly resembling them, anyway.

        She spotted the lights on
in the kitchen, somewhat amused that her uninvited guest had already made
himself that comfortable... but when she arrived at the doorway,
she couldn't help but notice that he hadn't touched anything but the light
switch. That, and the chair he was sitting in, leaning toward the
table so his face was still obscured by hood and shadow.

        It was... weird. Almost
wrong, really. He just didn't... belong there. And not at all
in a way that suggested he wasn't welcome (in some sense, anyway)--it
was simply clear that he wasn't quite a part of the world he stood within.
Almost a painful quality to look at. "Would you like anything?"

        He smiled, a little. It
was a bittersweet expression... but he appreciated how civil she still
was to him. "No, thank you."

        Something... tugged at her.
"Anything to eat?"

        He gave her a polite shake
of his head, unwilling to explain. It was just... too much to express.

        Though he should have known;
with her, it was never that easy. Sora wasn't one to let things rest
so quietly, either. "You're sure you're not hungry? I have
a little bit of everything..."

        It was probably just his
imagination... his over-active desire to see Sora in her eyes, but...
He had to respond. "It's... hard to eat."

        She went over those words
in her mind, making sure her gaze was aimed at a spot beyond his robe...
There was an immense instinct welling inside of her--one in need of a satisfying
answer. "Humor me, Riku."

        His eyes widened a little
as let his head rise just slightly, her words unexpected. "How so?"

        Quiet. Simple.
Direct. "Just... pull up your sleeve for me."

        He knew what she was after.
It angered him, terrified him, and there was no way he was going to--

        "Riku." Soft as her
voice was, its tone was harsh. Ready for a fight. Maybe even
provoking one intentionally.

        He got the distinctly dangerous
impression that she got what she was after--and she never picked
a fight she couldn't win. He swallowed, trying to come up with a
decent excuse... then dropped his head. He needed her to trust him...
and if that's what it took... He sighed, closing his eyes as he rolled
up his sleeve.

        Her surprise was silent,
but obvious. The boy was skin and bones punctuated by things that
might
resemble muscles. The idea that he would be able to do anything
by himself was clearly faltering. That couldn't be the only reason
he needed her... but that seemed a subject to be worked out at a better
time. "Eat something."

        He swallowed, a familiar
bile in the back of his throat as he rolled his sleeve back over his arm.
It was so hard... so hard to choke anything down...

        "Anything." Her insistence
wasn't... harsh, really. But it wasn't to be ignored, either.
Certainly not completely refused...

        His look was actually a
little pleading. "I'm not... I don't think I should... try.
It's... it doesn't..."

        She sat across from him,
slowly. There was no threatening intention, there... but the idea
that there very well could be, and with little effort, was not far
underneath the surface. She didn't want to intimidate him...
but there were many flashes of Sora's memory that kept poking teasingly
at her consciousness, never quite forming but there all the same.
He would want Riku to eat. And he would be just as insistent.
"I am not going to go to bed until you eat. And keep it down."

        Unreal. Did she really
expect this to work..? "I'm sure you've got someone upstairs waiting
for you." He tried, desperate and attempting not to let it show.

        "They'll understand."
She responded without a flinch.

        --'They', again..?
It wasn't a word to get caught up in, however. Alright, well... next
plan, then. "You need your sleep."

        She was a master at these
games. "Tough for me."

        "I do, too." He insisted.

        "Tough for you." He
watched her expression soften just enough to show him she was joking...
somewhat.

        "I take my power from the
Darkness." He decided to switch tactics. It wasn't as if he
was lying to her, after all.

        "Might help to get some
from food, too." She shot back. "Before your body can't handle
Darkness, either." Suddenly she could almost clearly remember slivers
of Sora's memories of the boy... and if Riku deserved even one speck of
the devotion he had been granted, then she would have to take care of him.
A bit of herself remembered what she knew of Sora's heart... and while
not "pure" in the exact ways a deeply and slightly insane religious man
might think of as such, it was innocent. For all the darkness, Sora's
heart had still been light... in more than one way.

        Riku's shoulders dropped
just slightly. It wasn't that he didn't want to eat... he
just
couldn't. Too much had happened... too much to think
about...

        It didn't stop her, though.
She'd already stood up, wandering the refrigerator for something that a
tender stomach might not refuse. Well, she still had some mashed
potatoes by some wonder (John must have forgotten about them)... but perhaps
the left-over chicken breast was a better option. More protein, after
all... it would be more helpful to eat that. Hey, they couldn't have
pizza for every meal.

        What was placed in front
of him was a very simple plate of a few small pieces of cold chicken and
a spoonful of mashed potatoes. "I can heat them up if you want,"
she invited softly, "But this might be easier."

        He wanted to argue again,
to tell her it wasn't necessary... but she'd already placed the fork in
his hand. Lightly... carefully... and in a very familiar way.

        He sighed... his hand shook
a little. It'd been so long since he'd tried to eat... The
only thing that kept his hand in motion toward the food was the watchful
gaze over him. Not demanding... but not letting him back away, either.

        He tried. Hyne bless
him, she felt the effort in the motions... but he just couldn't
swallow more than a little. She heard his stomach react to it in
a loud, sick-sounding grumble... and so she wouldn't push him on.
"Alright." She stopped him quietly. "You better get some rest."

        He swallowed several times
to make sure nothing would find its way back up... then seemed a little
less frightened of the possibility. "I... I'll try."

        She gave him a nod, taking
his plate. "You can have the guest bedroom across the hall from ours.
It's always made up and relatively clean."

        Such... invitation.
He wasn't used to that... and certainly not when he'd brought such terrifying
information. Did she realize what was being asked of her? How
could she treat him so civilly? There was no familiar hatred in her
eyes, however. Maybe it wasn't all pleased to see him... but there
wasn't the immediate danger of being stabbed in the night. Or something
far worse.

        He could accept that.
"Kyrie... I... appreciate the effort."

        "Heh. Me, too."
She found in in her to smile a bit. She still couldn't grasp specific
memories... but she knew Sora would have done an awful lot just to be in
the position she was in. She couldn't waste that. She nodded,
letting the boy be for as long as he pleased. "G'night, Riku."

        About halfway through the
conversation downstairs, John was momentarily distracted by the clearing
of Rodger's throat. Hm. "I notice you're not sleeping."

        The brunette snickered a
little without turning over. "Neither are you."

        "I don't need that much."
The half-devil dismissed.

        "Neither do I." Rodger
stated easily.

        Hm. A little awkward.
Time to change subjects. "So. How was the weather since I've
been gone?"

        Then the brunette
turned over with a slightly joking roll of his eyes. The other boy
picked the worst subjects to change to when conversation wasn't as open
as he liked. "I'm a little... frustrated."

        Well, that was better.
"I can imagine."

        Rodger sighed, closing his
eyes. "What do you think of him?"

        "I think he's dangerous."
John answered honestly. "But no more than she is."

        He took a moment to consider
that. He supposed he could see what the other boy meant, yes...
"Nothing out of the ordinary then, I guess."

        "Probably not." John
agreed. "But... a little unique. Right?"

        The brunette made a dull
sound of acknowledgment. Yes, there was one distinct new difference.
"The memories..."

        "Mm." The half-devil
confirmed.

        "I don't... know about that.
Exactly." Rodger admitted. Kyrie hadn't spoken much of it...
of course, she had thought it was a dream. Why elaborate quite so
much on a slightly unpleasant dream, she must have thought...

        The sudden silence got the
other to thinking. "You don't think she's keeping anything from you..?"

        "No, no." The brunette
assured. "But I'm pretty sure there's more to say than just... mentioning
the fact she shared memories with someone."

        John thought for a long
time, staring up through the dark with his half-devil vision, seeing much
more than even a cat would. Hearing little bits of the conversation
downstairs even if he didn't really mean to. "I don't know how you
manage."

        There was a laugh... but
it was too shallow. "I tell you... I wish I knew."

        Kyrie made her way up the
stairs, somewhat stumbled into bed, then awkwardly but successfully crawled
over John to reach her center position... to which Rodger's slight chuckle
revealed him to be awake. Her indication that the other was still
awake was quite a bit more rude... but nonetheless appreciated. Even
as she swatted his hand away from her ass.

        As the soft giggles died,
the breathing slowed... but they were waiting for her. To say something,
to do something... To give orders, perhaps. "Just... be here.
Now."

        Okay, so... not much happens
here. But next up comes the real start of the adventure... and lots
of weird/awful things. Yes, violence and sickness is coming at last!

        If you'd like to be e-mailed
when I update, drop me a line (orin(at)sephain.com) with whatever story/stories/website
you'd like me to inform you of.
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Ties that Bind and Tear Apart