Kingdom Hearts Fan Fiction ❯ “Angel of Twilight: Clockwork Breakdown” ❯ 'The Setup' ( Prologue )

Key:

“Talking aloud.”

`Thinking to one's self.'

::Denotes sound effects:: ::and actions.:: Only used during speech.

Major P.O.V./Scene Change: * * * *

A/N: My notes/comments/ramblings

{Beta's musings & Comments}

Chapter Start/End: ------

 

 

A/N: Welcome one and all to my first KH ficy! I, Happy Dragon, shall be your authoress for this train wreck. To my right is my Axel-muse, Alexiel!

 

Alexiel: ::Looks identical to Axel, save that he has a little downward pointing blue curved arrowhead tattoo under each eye (`cause I like that better than the black smears).:: Don't ask people. It's a long story that boils down to me being Axel's reincarnation--complete with all my memories and powers.

 

Happy Dragon: ::Thoughtful look:: Actually, more like I rezed (resurrected) you in a new body that eventually developed additional spiffy powers. You're still Axel, but you're more than a Nobody now.

 

Alexiel: ::Rolls eyes:: Whatever. I'm not even in this fic! Three fics inspired by you reading KH slash, and you start with the one--the o-n-e!--that I'm not in. ::Pouts, grumbles:: I want my Roxas-bunny.

 

HD: ^.^;; Err . . . anyway . . . I've come over--more like I'm visiting--from the Yu-Gi-Oh! fandom, so I might use mechanics that are inherent there that are odd here. Like the juxtaposition of light and dark, we have some weird rules about it--and if you're like me you think they work best as a pairing (mmmmm . . . Rikuuuuuu `n' Sora-nessss `n' Kaiiiiiiiiiiiiiirrriiiiiiiiiiiiiiii)--and how they interact/feed off of each other. With luck, I won't fair too badly, and I'd appreciate if people could give me pointers along the way. There really isn't enough KH fanfic out there. ~_~;;

 

Oh! I know that there's a fic here [AFF.net] called “Broken Chain” done by `Kage' that's the same basic plot. In all honesty, I was hit with the same idea after losing to Ansem at the end of CoM, but the full idea for this fic didn't form until after I read that. So go thank him/her if you like this!

 

Lastly, this starts a little after CoM, so Riku looks like he did during KH I and CoM to start. However, he and the King do move around the worlds dressed in the Org. XIII robes when they need to keep their identities hidden. By the end, everyone will look as they did in KH II.

 

Alexiel: Show time!

 

Rating: Probably pg-13/16 right off the bat, but moves to NC-17.

 

|Spoilers|: There are some light spoilers for all three games.

 

|Description|: At the end of CoM Riku lost to the Ansem in his heart, but the Heartless Lord still couldn't regain control over his former host/puppet. Riku and King Mickey are still in touch with Diz and his people--as per KH II--but Riku feels that he has to keep traveling, training and battling Heartless to become strong enough to finally banish Ansem. Ansem, however, is not above using degrading and humiliating tactics if he thinks that they have a halfway decent chance of giving him an upper-hand in the ongoing mental battle that the two are currently stalemated in.

 

Timeline is mostly during the year Sora is sleeping, but ends up running through KH II time with modifications.

 

|Warning|: This is supposed to be dark, slightly angsty, and otherwise not good for Riku, but with an uber-fluffy ending to make up for it. Also, this is my first KH fic, so run now.

 

Betaed by: `Dark Light' and `DragonLady'.

 

E-mails for contact go to:

 

HappyDragon411@yahoo.com [primary]

or

DMKittygirl411@yahoo.com [secondary]

 

Criticism: Constructive only. Non-Axel flamers need not respond.

-----------------------

 

“Angel of Twilight; Clockwork Breakdown” Part 0/?

`The Setup'

 

 

Riku stretched out on the plush hotel bed, cracking a score of aching joints in the process. Fighting Heartless could be exhausting, but then that only applied to the physical side of his fatigue. It had taken himself and the King five grueling hours to find and lock the Keyhole of this--thankfully modern--world, and the boy's mind was only slightly worse for the wear. Mickey had stepped out of the room they were sharing--yes fighting Heartless did lead to the mass accumulation of munny, but there was no need to waste it on extravagancies--to allow the silver-haired child some alone-time in which he might find some sleep.

 

`Might' being the operable word.

 

This world was safe from the Heartless. He was safe from the Heartless. The King had more or less ordered him--okay, more like very strongly suggested to the boy in that good natured semi-fatherly, semi-close friend kind of voice--to get some real sleep. And yet, for the life of him, sleep would not come. It was pushed away by the memories of his great failures, the most recent of which had transpired at Castle Oblivion.

 

Closing his eyes and humming dully to himself, Riku remembered how everything went horrifically wrong.

 

* * * * * * * *

 

This was it, the final floor of the Castle, where his pinnacle battle with Ansem would transpire. After defeating the shadow, he would at last begin to be free of his corrupted darkness. Even now he could smell the taint of it wafting over from the dark-skinned man's illusionary body. Ansem floated regally before him, arms raised, guardian Heartless howling in response to his last words:

 

“Then sink into the dark abyss!”

 

Yeah, he had successfully pissed the big, bad Heartless-boss off. He only had that one moment to prepare himself.

 

With lightning speed, the boy was advanced on, Ansem using his signature card--he abhorred how this Castle used cards to solve everything--to gain an early edge. Riku dodged right, into a sliding roll, and broke the man's card with the one he'd picked up from the Parasite Cage in an earlier battle, nullifying the first threat.

 

Ansem, undeterred, retaliated with a high-powered three-card combo, all nines from the feel of things. Riku swung out with a zero attack card and smiled at his perfect timing--the Heartless Lord and his guardian were stunned.

 

In his heart, the tempered darkness welled.

 

He advanced again, determined to make use of his lower powered cards. A few successive strikes later, and the boy was nimbly hopping backwards away from the deadly duo. But he wasn't so lucky as to completely avoid the next attack.

 

His heart trembled with the pain, the dark energies collecting there.

 

If he kept this up long enough, he would probably be able to achieve his dark form in no time. This, too, was another point that irked him about the Castle--that it seemed to interfere with his control over his own darkness. He knew he would need the benefits of the form soon, the armor would take the brunt of any attack from Ansem and allow him more battle options. But for now, Riku just needed to focus on continually breaking the tyrant's cards, limiting his choices until he was unable to attack or defend himself.

 

A strong blow to the shoulder reminded him that there was something else he'd have to keep his eyes open for: any cards from the King. During his first adventure, when the madman he was fighting had control over him, he saw Sora use both healing magicks, and items to keep himself going over the long treks. Riku had also noted how the weaker Heartless expelled energy in their death throws that the Keyblade could absorb, transferring to--and thus healing--said friend.

 

Sadly, Riku never learned any healing spells nor was he given any healing items--no matter how his deck of cards changed from world-floor to world-floor, he was never granted any healing cards! And with all the times he'd smacked Ansem with his Soul Eater sword, there should have fallen at least one `health orb'. But with the darkness churning inside him from the pain and not one hint of green orbs falling from his opponent, Riku knew the only way he was going to regain any of his lost stamina would be to collect any and all spell cards sent into this battle by the King.

 

The boy ducked between the elder's legs, coming up behind him to assault the guardian from below and off balanced the pair for a moment. During that maneuver, he saw the first glimmer of hope, a green card with three circles on it as Mickey's silhouette--the King's emblem.

 

Riku dodged twice--beautifully--and had swiped up the card before it faded into nonexistence. A six, moderately powerful, but at least it was something. Now if he could just get a few more . . .

 

Riku ducked under an uppercut from the demonic Heartless guardian, only to receive a kick to the ribs from Ansem. He rolled with the impact, but still felt the welling of darkness in his heart.

 

The next ten minutes passed by in a blurred fury of blows exchanged between the two. During that time, only three more spell cards from the King made it into his hands. Riku growled in frustration, the numbers on the healing spells were low, so even if he stacked them in a three-part combo spell, Ansem would still be able to dispel them with a single card of his own. He was none too pleased with the current state of his deck either, which he guessed had started out with about half the amount of cards as the dark one. And his opponents did have healing items.

 

Joy.

 

To make matters worse, Ansem was holding back on using his combos. The energy in Riku's heart was barely able to build any higher, save when he took one blow or another.

 

He really needed to heal.

 

Scratch that, he didn't really need to heal. Riku was just starting to feel worn down and wanted to heal because the paranoia was kicking in.

 

Another of the King's cards appeared to his far left, and the silver-haired teen lunged for it. A zero. Useful, but unstable. Activate it at the right time, and it was the strongest of cards, but at the wrong time, any card could dispel it.

 

Behind him, Ansem launched a combo at him. Smirking, Riku figured that now was as good a time as any to use the card.

 

“Your Majesty!,” the teen called out clearly.

 

The darkness in his heart swelled to the breaking point.

 

`No!' was the only thing that ran through Riku's mind before a defiant battle cry ripped from his throat. He was propelled into the air by his strong legs, back arching slightly into the summersault. At the peak of the ark, the boy flipped over, landing in his alter attire, his dark armor.

 

The boy was thoroughly annoyed; Ansem's last attack had indeed been stopped, but the transformation canceled out the spell card's effects.

 

No healing for him, yet. But at least the armor would deaden the blasts from his opponents.

 

Half gliding, half lunging, Riku made a beeline for the pair, unloading his lower numbered cards into them. Now the ex-human was looking worse for the wear himself.

 

Rolling to his right, Riku caught the edge of a boot-to-the-face on his chin. The silvery teen brought his sword up, attacking and successfully cutting the man's shin. If he couldn't heal, then he'd just have to wear down the Heartless Lord before his own stamina failed him.

 

Another series of exchanges later found Riku out of his armor again--he'd taken too many hits and thus depleted his energy--and with another two King cards--one five, and a one.

 

Something was terribly wrong here. The King had to have been casting more spells than this. In all of his other tough battles he'd been tripping over Mickey's cards. And why was it, this time around, they were mostly ones and twos, cards that were useless on their own and barely made a difference when stacked together? It smelled like something or someone was interfering with this battle.

 

His musings almost got him a dark orb to the stomach, but Riku countered it and managed to slash Ansem across his broad torso. At least the Heartless Lord hadn't suddenly become invulnerable to his attacks.

 

They both had to have been looking ragged around the edges around this time; Riku couldn't heal, and he made it a point to break every one of Ansem's recovery items, rendering them useless for the rest of this fight. It looked like it would all come down to who could card-break whom more often and stun their opponent longer.

 

Riku received a bolt to his back and found himself transformed again. Not the worse thing that could have happened, but he still sorely wished that he could get some more useful Mickey cards.

 

Another five moves, and the gods answered him . . . with another zero. Someone was being sadistic up there. Maybe he could gather up two more zeros, then he could launch a powerful combo that would leave his opponents reeling long enough for the cards to play out their full effect. Riku didn't want to take the chance of using the card on its own, as it was more likely that Ansem would recover from the stun quickly if he did. So gritting his teeth in frustration, the teen plunged himself back into the heat of battle.

 

Another ten exchanges, and they were both on the ropes, with Riku leading only slightly. The next blow would assuredly knock him back out of his armor, but at least he'd be awake. What had him infuriated, however, was the lack of any new cards from the King--railed enough that had this not been Ansem he was facing, the teen would have taken the time to scream.

 

He would have to use the card soon, which meant he'd have to wait to break another big combo from Ansem, and the man had burned through most of his stronger attacks.

 

The madman sent forth his guardian Heartless. Riku rolled under it, not even bothering to counter attack. He would not waste his cards now, he needed them to force an opening. Dodging two more attacks, he found himself almost dancing around Ansem, looking for an opportunity to strike.

 

He got it in a most unexpected way.

 

The demon rammed him from the side, its momentum carrying it towards the far wall of the room. Knocked to the floor, Riku was dropped out of his dark armor again, and Ansem raised his hand to deliver a combo attack. The elder brought his hand down . . .

 

Riku smirked and activated the King's card, stunning Ansem as he began to feel the warmth of healing magicks course through him.

 

He wasn't sure how what happened next was even possible, but he and the King came to the following conclusion later:

 

Ansem had been separated from his guardian, so that he could have an extra attack on the boy in exchange for some of his defense. Because they weren't fully synchronized, when Riku stunned one, he didn't stun the other. So while Ansem had in fact been frozen in place, the demonic Heartless had easily been able to pick up and hurl the unprepared child across the length of the room with a high-powered combo. Then before he could fully slide down the wall, the thing had sped over and clutched him by the shoulders, holding him aloft and squeezing the last bit of his stamina out.

 

Riku, now totally exhausted, could only wriggle around in the iron-like grasp of the Heartless. This was so many shades of bad that some of the colors had yet to be invented. Gods above, he'd lost this fight.

 

Ansem stalked over to him. No longer floating--perhaps he too was physically drained?--the Heartless Lord took his time in advancing. In his heart, Riku prayed that the King would be able to make good on his promise and come bursting into the room any minute to get him out of this.

 

“How the high and mighty have been brought low.” He was a mere foot from the boy.

 

“You won't have control over me Ansem. I won't allow it! My mind is my own!” Riku snapped back harshly.

 

The scholar scoffed, “What you do and do not allow has little consequence to me. You have lost this duel, your body is forfeit.” A wicked smile graced his lips. “I will have what is rightfully mine.”

 

That predatory gaze hovered over his breast, right above where his heart lay. Ansem reached out, pressing his right hand flat to the spot. Riku began struggling again, feeling the filthy darkness seeping out from his own heart to mingle with the shady energies in his body that naturally slipped through his veins.

 

Numbness started to spread from the tips of his extremities in towards the trunk of his body, stopping below his collarbone. So the fiend wanted him aware when he attempted to reclaim him? Big mistake, he would gain nothing as long as the teen had the will to resist him.

 

“Release him.”

 

The Heartless demon obliged its master, and Riku found that Ansem was levitating his body as he had earlier.

 

“Beautiful.” The tone was sickening in the child's ears.

 

Demon behind him again, Ansem stepped back from the wall, his hand remaining outstretched. Riku stayed against the flat surface, concentrating on keeping his mind locked to the man before him, in a small attempt to distract himself from the growing pain in his numbed body.

 

Ansem's hand then turned upward in a beckoning motion. Riku felt himself float forward, then pause in midair. The cruel one chuckled softly and made a `rotate' command motion with his index finger. Riku spun slowly in place, gritting his teeth against the inevitable. He was floated backwards until his shoulder blades made contact with larger pectoral muscles, and Riku knew that if he tilted his head back, the top of it would bump into the other's lips.

 

Ansem purred, dropping his arms to his sides, and shifting his stance so that it was a perfect match for the boy's--mimicked in all respects, save for the deep inclining of Riku's head. He knew that if the child could have moved now, the young one would have kicked his upper shins in.

 

The numb ache had become a dull throb, and the throb now turned into a crawling, prickling tingle. From deep within Riku's chest began to emanate a soft growl as he silently swore at the taller one's sadistic nature. He was growing steadily more uncomfortable as the villain continued to synchronize with him--or rather, attempt to.

 

A few moments spun by, and the only thought in the teen's head was, what had happened to Mickey? Had the King been locked out by a barrier spell?

 

That train of thought was derailed when Riku noticed that his fingers were flexing without him willing them to. Horror struck, he saw that they were moving in perfect time with Ansem's larger hands. The Heartless Lord raised his arms out to the sides with a triumphant laugh, and the child's body had no choice but to mimic the first action. The dark male then brought their arms before them, turning them up so that he could have a better view of the next phase.

 

Grimacing, Riku watched as his hands and arms--and most likely the rest of his painfully buzzing body--slowly sank into Ansem's phantasmal form, merging with it, in a sense. He could feel the larger one's body begin to solidify around his own.

 

At last, everything below Riku's collarbone had been absorbed, and the smaller male clenched his teeth, in a clear show of defiance. No matter what the dark one did, no matter how Ansem was about to bait him, Riku wouldn't bite--he'd give no response at all. Hopefully, the man's flaring temper would buy the King the time he needed to rescue his young friend.

 

However, as time ticked onward, the silvery boy began to feel that something was . . . off. Why hadn't Ansem finished absorbing him, unless . . .

 

Riku grinned to himself. Ansem couldn't get past his mental barriers. Ansem couldn't get into his mind, and as long as Ansem couldn't control his mind, he had hope.

 

A snarl sounded from behind his head. “Submit,” was breathed low and raggedly tumbled past the tyrant's lips. The mental strain showed, and the child's heart leapt.

 

Riku continued to concentrate on keeping the other out of his mind. It felt as if his fisted hands would have been shaking with the effort to--

 

Ansem's clenched hands vibrated.

 

“What?!” The dark one roared. For once, they were in agreement.

 

Pressing his luck, the young one decided to experiment and sent out a signal for his fingers to uncoil. Ansem's right hand opened halfway, followed by his left.

 

“No . . . You cannot undo my will!”

 

Riku bared his teeth in a vicious smile. “What you do and don't will doesn't affect me.”

 

Ansem growled and started to draw their hands towards his neck and collarbone. Riku got the distinct impression that the man was about to try pushing his head into the larger body. Not liking the idea, the teen tried to get them to stop and drop to their sides. The arms did stop, but remained aloft, and the man hissed in frustration.

 

If Riku had the time or energy to spare, he would have shivered at the Heartless' language.

 

The pair was now locked in a contest of wills to see who would break first. Somewhere by the back of his brain, the boy wondered again what was keeping the King.

 

As if on cue, a bright light flashed from where the entrance to the room once was. Riku's eyes were already screwed closed by that point, so he escaped being blinded. Ansem, however, wasn't as lucky and howled at the mouse's interference and the light. Even though the connection wasn't full, Riku could feel the body overheating, almost as if it was burning from the inside out.

 

The teen heard--rather than saw--the Heartless Lord cry out for his guardian to take action against the King.

 

`No!'

 

Ansem howled again. From what Mickey said later, the demonic guard began to advance, stopped, then brought its claws to the top of its bowed head as if trying to split it open. One thing Riku did know was that the creature had given a rather gut-wrenching howl in the Heartless tongue, which the teen didn't like knowing that he understood.

 

Suddenly and unceremoniously, the boy was dropped onto the ground, where he shook for a few moments before giving into the sweet call of unconsciousness.

 

* * * * * * * *

 

Riku blinked up at the cream-colored ceiling of the hotel room.

 

Mickey said that he'd passed out from fatiguing under the mental strain of holding off both Ansem and his guard. Shortly after he came to, they ran into DiZ and Naminé again. The girl re-offered to seal his memories and thus seal off Ansem, which Riku again turned down. Ansem was alive and well in his heart, and he needed to be on his toes. The boy was positive that had everything not been up to the cards, than he would have won. Besides, with Sora sleeping, someone needed to go around defending the worlds.

 

As for what had held back the King and interfered with the spells: somehow, Ansem had erected a shadow barrier just inside the room. It was flat to the walls, unable to be seen from the outside.

 

And here the boy had thought things had grown dark for dramatic flair.

 

This had all happened just shy of two months ago. Mickey and he were still in contact with DiZ, but the boy didn't feel right staying in the castle--or any one place, for that matter. He'd fought his way though the enemies there, they offered no more challenges, no possibility for him to grow stronger. But world-hopping promised him that and more, especially when they found worlds on the brink of being consumed by darkness--unlike this world, which had been blatantly quiet when they arrived and remained so during their search.

 

Riku swiped his gloved hands in annoyance over the floral pattern on the red background that colored his bed's comforter and sheets. The King had purposely picked a world where nothing was--or would--happen. And he'd done so for the young one's benefit.

 

Ever since he lost, Riku found that he no longer had dreams most nights. They were replaced by deadly fights between himself and the Heartless Lord--he in his dark armor and neither of them having to use those infernal cards. Most nights, they tied. Sometimes, he won. But what got him laughing was when Ansem won. It was always a repeat performance of Castle Oblivion; Ansem couldn't get into his mind, and thus couldn't take over his body in the waking world. And the silvery teen had been picking up more wins lately.

 

Riku had come to the conclusion that the dark man slept while he was awake so that he could be at his peak when they had their nightly brawls. The teen was able to get a physical recharge from sleeping, but only some of a mental one. It wasn't too bad, but the effect was cumulative, and now it appeared that Ansem's sleeping patterns had changed. He'd developed insomnia, which meant Riku had developed insomnia because as long as the other was awake at the back of his thoughts, his mind wouldn't shut down for maintenance.

 

And that was why Riku was spread eagle on his bed, fully clothed--shoes were by the door--on top of his bedspread, staring up into space.

 

`Idle hands . . .' came the smug comment from within his heart.

 

A sigh. “What do you want?” Riku breathed softly. He could respond silently, if he had wanted to, but preferred not to acknowledge any kind of telepathic link they might potentially share if he could help it. Though . . . sometimes it was easier to carry on their more bitter conversations in outward silence.

 

`I was drawn in by your . . . pleasant memories.' The dark thing shifted and then resettled inside the confines of his heart. The teen hated when Ansem did that, it always made him feel unnerved, and a little itchy. He squirmed slightly, making himself a tad more comfortable in his clothes.

 

`Go to sleep already.' A growl rose with the thought from the back of his throat.

 

In his mind, Riku could almost feel Ansem turn his hands upward as he shrugged. `Would that I could,' a wicked grin, `but we both know the impossibility of that.'

 

A pronounced sigh escaped him. “How can you possibly have insomnia?” How could he even be affected by said insomnia?

 

The Heartless Lord dropped his hands and his smile, turning on his heel to face away from the child's mental eyes. (The metaphysics behind why he was able to `see' Ansem in his mind's eye as he moved around his heart still confused him slightly.) `Insomnia is a purely mental affliction, and as I am purely mental energy at the moment, I can be influenced thus.'

 

A noncommittal answer. Fine, if he didn't want to give a reason, the teen wasn't going to indulge him.

 

Flicking his eyes to his left, the silver-haired child visually sought out the remote for the television set. Thankfully, he wasn't long in the searching, and the TV could be viewed from the bed.

 

Truth be told, the room wasn't cramped, but it wasn't overly large either. In the space there were the two single sized beds--he'd taken the one on the right, away from the window-wall. A table with a lamp and chair on the far wall was opposite Mickey's bed. The attached bathroom was off by the front door--a tub with full shower in said room. The TV itself sat in an alcove atop the dresser to the right of the table. The closet across from the bathroom contained a mini-bar--that was adamantly ignored by the occupants--tucked inside. Lastly there was a smallish fridge with an icemaker-thingy in the far corner by the window--to the left of the table from the teen's perspective. And the nightstand between the two beds that the remote rested on, along with another lamp, alarm clock, and phone.

 

Snatching up the black object in his left hand, the teen sat up slightly, setting his back against the headboard. Maybe if he numbed his mind the Heartless Lord would have no choice but to succumb to oblivion with him.

 

Upon bringing the electronics to life, his aquamarine eyes were met with commercials. Riku scanned the night stand for a channel guide of some sort, but found the fates mocked him by only listing the call letters without any description of the shows they hosted. `Over five hundred stations,' he calmly thought to himself, `odds are there has to be at least one blissfully distracting thing on.' With that, Riku left his viewing pleasure up to random chance and began to click away.

 

A wave of boredom and apathy circulated between the silver males. The teen sorely wished for a book, almost pined for one. He then had to suppress an involuntary shudder as he realized that the beast inside him longed for the same thing, reminding himself that he'd always preferred reading and running around to TV long before he was possessed by the tyrant. The thing inside him twitched with a mixture of annoyance and fascination.

 

`Did you not have television in your world?' Riku wondered to himself. Or so he thought.

 

`Yes. But I had little interest or love for it.' His eyes narrowed. `It breeds idiocy and inattentiveness. Though I do respect it for it's quasi-mind-controlling properties.'

 

“You and half the known worlds.” Oh gods, he didn't just . . . gods help him, he had to have been bored to even contemplate--however subconsciously--talking with Ansem. Propping his right elbow onto the matching knee, the pale teen brought up a gloved hand to rest his chin in, awaiting the dark man's response. If any. Maybe the fates--

 

`I've debated the plausibility of flooding world medias with programs and advertisements containing secretly encoded messages to, `accept darkness as the one true path.'

 

--Would continue torturing him. Oh, did he feel loved today.

 

`The math always came up with it being too costly. That, and the target audience would hardly pass my hips in height; and they all can't be exceptional warriors.' A slight dig, disguised as faint praise for his healthy physique. Riku's eye twitched at the light purr that reverberated through his being as the other made his comment.

 

“You want something--besides attention?” Had to be the only reason the older one was speaking to him in anything but hollow rhetoric and biting rancor. He wouldn't allow himself to think otherwise.

 

The dark one contemplated the question, finding it weightier than the boy intended. `There is the usual, but I suspect you're referring to my current behavior.' A fold of his arms. `Tell me, do you retain any of the information of the Heartless that passed between our minds when they were . . . joined?'

 

Not the word Riku would have used but, `No.' He continued his slow hunt for mindless diversion, albeit halfheartedly.

 

An exasperated sigh echoed between his ribs. `I gather you remember none of the sensations from when you were under my guidance? Particularly when you helped Maleficent realize her full potential?'

 

The young one blinked. “You mean when you unlocked her heart with the Dark Keyblade? Turning her into a Heartless? Vaguely.” Ansem had done a number on his mind by then, so his recollection was blurred.

 

A cold smile. `Fair enough. Then do you remember when . . . that boy used your blade to open his heart?'

 

Riku frowned, as that image of Sora was painfully clear in his mind. He'd been overjoyed at the time, but looking back now, it filled him with mild loathing for himself. “What of it?”

 

The words came like slow poison. `At the time, did it feel pleasurable? Like a need had been sated? A craving gratified?'

 

He did not like how this was going, and his thumb hovered over the channel up button. Anger flaring slightly, the human responded acidly. “Your point?” His face felt like it was lightly flushed.

 

Ember eyes rolled in disdain. `I'll be blunt, then. Why do you eat?'

 

Riku's brain hurt from having topics switched on him so randomly. “Wha . . .” After a minute of his mind un-knotting itself, the teen was able to find his tongue. “I eat because I get hungry. And I get hungry because my metabolism burns through what I eat to maintain my cells.” Basic biology. He brought his thumb down to resume his search. Maybe Ansem had forgotten after however long of being a Heartless and lacking the need to eat.

 

`Thus my point; you have a desire to sustain yourself, so you eat. You crave food, you ingest some. Heartless are drawn to hearts, they claim them. Same underlying principle. It staves off an urge, satisfies a hunger. Well,' his eyes cut to the side so that he could catch the fair one's reaction, `the closest thing we feel to hunger.'

 

Riku gapped, the maniac was not saying what he thought he was saying. “You can't sleep because you're hungry? For hearts?!”

 

`In a way . . .' He let the statement hang.

 

`I'm not feeding you,' he replied coolly. A defiant click on the remote.

 

Ansem hissed softly.

 

Another click answered.

 

`Then we shall see how you fair when my hunger becomes yours. We both know that there is a mental link between us, over which emotions and sensations slip.'

 

More clicking. “I have decent willpower.”

 

`Worlds like this call to my hunger. There are endless hearts here for the tempting.'

 

::Click.:: “True enough. But I can always tell King Mickey what's happening and have him pitch me back into Kingdom Hearts. Nothing but heartless there; no hearts around to eat; no one to hurt.”

 

A low growl. `Sadistic whelp!'

 

::Click.:: “Unholy cretin.” ::Click.::

 

Then Riku froze at what he saw on the TV.

 

“Oh GoooAAAAAAaawwd! Harder! HARDER! I want to feel you all inside me!”

 

“Fuck! I'm Cumming, I'm Cumming--I can't hold it back!”

 

“AAHHHHH! I feel like I'm gonna die! Like I'm gonna break!”

 

“Damn you guys are hot! Knew this shit would sell. Now talk dirty to each other--Tell him how you wanna suck him dry after this. Tell her how you're gonna try her `milkshake' after you finish. This is already wracking up more hits than Hilton!”

 

“Goddamnit, Jason! Shut up, or you'll kill the mood!”</i>

 

His eyes had gone large, very wide, and were shining bright-lime with blatant terror. Riku's mouth was open in a silent scream as the first images on the screen seared across his retinas. The words, `TURN-IT-OFF, TURN-IT-OFF,' bleared in his head like a mantra. After the initial shock wore off, he was able to click down on the button again.

 

“-cking dirty bitch like you just loves shit like this. Now take it, whore, take it!” Women should not be able to interact with that many men at once! He clicked again.

 

This time, one guy, lots of girls. ::Click.::

 

Women together. Not good.

 

Men together; even worse.

 

Underaged rape. Why, God?

 

Non-human Animals.

 

Solo acts by one gender.

 

Then the other.

 

Something that he couldn't tell if it was male or female and something that probably wasn't human.

 

Underaged girls with non-human animals.

 

Lots of women with lots of men, with each other.

 

Boys with men, as animals watched.

 

Cartoons--oh dear gods they had even desecrated the cartoons!

 

Okay, he stood corrected, that was desecration via defecation.

 

Underaged children being raped by animals?!?

 

Leather, waaaaaaay too much leather! And spikes.

 

Tentacles . . . . Oh dear gods, tentacles . . .

 

TV Guide channel. Warm, sweet, life saving guide channel.

 

Riku dropped the remote and drew in his left hand, curling his body into a tight ball, falling on his right side. No way in the worlds he was going to sleep now. That had been vile. He felt like he needed to pour acid into his eyes to get rid of the filth he'd witnessed. His body was flush with shame, revulsion, and fear. What kind of sick mind would put that kind of crap on the air?! His entire body quaked.

 

`Hmm, pornográphos. Interesting.'

 

`Interesting?! Interesting?!' His voice sounded high and panicked in his own mind.

 

A drawled laugh. `Riku . . . Am I to understand that you have no--or at best limited--knowledge on the workings of human sexu--'

 

`Don't talk about that!', the teen moaned into his own mind. `I know it well enough. But if someone hadn't tried to devour my world, then I'd currently be enrolled in health class learning about . . . it.' He would not use the proper terminology, not so soon after seeing . . . that perversion.

 

A cool grin split the Heartless Lord's face. `If someone wasn't so interested in exploring, then I might not have found your world to devour.' So the boy did know next to nothing and was probably shamed by his lack of knowledge.

 

Riku let the verbal barb hit him. Yes, goad him into fighting like this, anything to forget about the dreaded images that were threatening to give him nightmares.

 

`Everyone in my world wanted to explore. There was nothing else to do by my age.'

 

`Were there no books?'

 

`You can only read the stories so many times before you've got the words ingrained in your heart.'

 

Ansem's eyes narrowed at the insult--his version of a huff. `Then you had no imagination.' A deadly smirk. `Or, no significant other to pleasure your body on those long, lonely nights.' A short bark of laughter followed the comment.

 

His eye twitched. `I didn't have time for a girl. And I wouldn't do anything like that before marriage.'

 

Ah, he was familiar with this kind of propaganda. He could just see the teen's parents warning him about the evils of despoiling himself. Smiling cruelly, he continued his teasing of the child. `No time for a girl? Intriguing. But, from a biological perspective, one would conclude that you'd ministrated to yourself.'

 

`Self gratification,' Riku shuddered, `never. The thought never crossed my mind.'

 

`But that's just it, it is not a thought, but an urge. No, more a natural instinct that afflicts all males once they enter puberty.' The dark one purred, proceeding in a lower, slightly sensual voice. `Even if you never pleasured yourself, your body still should have sought natural release. I have it on good authority that when the buildup becomes too great, one suffers from . . . nocturnal emissions.' He was absolutely tickled with the idea that this boy had awoken to a sticky mess once or twice before, all because of his silly convictions and stubborn pride.

 

Wet dreams . . . thankfully he'd been spared them. `I hate you.' The madman made a kissing noise that caused bile to rise in the back of Riku's throat.

 

`Sticks and stones, dear.' His tone was overly sweet, in a deliberately baiting manor. He loved it, he'd found a new weak point to exploit!

 

Now it was the teen's turn to narrow his eyes. `Ice.' The single word was clear, sharp, and enunciated with such force that it caused the dark man to hiss. `You brought this on yourself.' With that, the young one pushed himself upright. His glazed eyes flitted over to the short fridge, and he swung his feet off his bed, padding over to it.

 

Ansem curled down into as tight a ball of blackness as he could, sinking into the deepest recesses of the boy's heart he could find. He gathered the darkened folds around him, nestling into the soothing warmth of the deep furrows. True, in this state he couldn't really communicate with the child, but that was insignificant next to escaping the damnable cold! That, and that alone, was his one regret of claiming the power of darkness for his own, that it chilled him to his core.

 

The cold had eaten him alive and finally numbed away his past body. The sad fact of relying too heavily on darkness, one's body couldn't handle the strain even if the heart could--as his had. That was why the darkness reforged all claimed hearts into superior forms. He purred, snuggling more into the rich heat. That was why, when he'd claimed this boy for his own, he'd been mindful of the condition of his heart. He couldn't--wouldn't--extinguish it unless he felt like hurting himself in the long run. It had been quite pleasant when the child's form had been trapped within him, the strong heart filling his body with succulent warmth. And yet, he borrowed deeper, Ansem found that being surrounded as he was by Riku's warmth was much more deeply satisfying. Mmm, there was something to say about being warmed from the outside in, versus it being done from the inside out.

 

Riku was sucking on a chilled crescent moon.[1] Ansem shivered; even deep within him, the cold still stung. This was cruel! The boy could deny it all he wanted to, but some of his thought processes had to be influencing him. Unless the child just naturally had an untapped sadistic side . . . Oh! He just had the loveliest idea for pay back.

 

* * * * * * * *

 

Several hours later had Riku still downing ice-crescents and flipped through the safer channels. Thankfully, he'd found a nice menu station to help him block out the frightening programs. Still, sleep hadn't paid either himself or the dark scholar a visit.

 

His ears perked on hearing the lock to the room being opened. Riku clicked the TV to mute as he waited. After a few moments, King Mickey stepped into the room, a bright smile on his face.

 

“Were you able to get any sleep, Riku?” His eyes caught sight of the ice in the silver one's mouth, and his smile sagged just slightly. He only did that when the shadow in his heart got particularly annoying, as it apparently feared cold. They had discovered this when the two were arguing while the teen was eating and drinking ice water. According to Riku, every time he took a sip, the Heartless Lord faltered in his speech, until he at last snapped out a demand that the child refrain from drinking while he was ranting.

 

It could have been worse; Riku could have taken to eating ice cream or other fattening cold foods to stall out the other. But it was still a worrisome habit to the King as it had a tendency towards suppressing the appetite.

 

Spitting the ice out into the clear disposable cup he was using to hold the rest, the teen grinned sheepishly. “No. Ansem made it a point to keep me awake.” Thinking better of it, he added, “And he's being a bigger pain than normal because he's `hungry for hearts'.” He shook his head. “He said taking hearts was the Heartless equivalent of eating. Even tried to convince me to `feed' for him, saying that if I didn't, eventually his hunger would overwhelm me, too.” Riku decidedly left out their adventure with the television. The King didn't need to know such things existed in this world.

 

Mickey rebounded. “Don't listen to him Riku; your inner light is too bright for that to happen. He's just trying to scare you.”

 

He nodded. “I know.”

 

“Well then, did you remember to eat?” Mickey chuckled good-naturedly as he saw his friend's face flush. “What would you like to do then? If you haven't eaten them yet, we still have some leftovers, or we could order up room service. And there's always the possibility of going out to eat.”

 

Riku pondered that question, switching off the TV set. Ordering would be expensive--affording it would be easy for a few nights, but if no Heartless were going to show up, there went their major (make that their only) source of income. Ah, he had been sitting around for some time, so getting up and going out wouldn't be so bad an idea. Exploration it was then.

 

“I'd like to see what this world has to offer.” He set down his cup and stood up from the bed. “Unless you happened to see someplace you wanted to try while you were out and about?”

 

“Not really. Come on, grab your keycard, and we'll go decide together!” Mickey smiled amicably, causing Riku to laugh as he gathered up his key.

 

And so, after placing his shoes onto his feet, the silvery teen headed out into the night with the Keyblade master.

-----------------

[1] Odd wording, I know, but some icemakers make them like a thin half moon shape instead of a cube shape. And it's easier--dirtier? . . nah--to have Riku suck on a crescent instead of a cube.

 

{Dragonlady: ::naughty thoughts::}

 

A/N: Wow, that was fun! But damn, Ansem's hard to write for. ~_~;; Bah, it's cause I hate him so much for what he did to Riku, and if I hate a character, I can't get into their head so easily.

 

Err, so how did I do?

 

Oh yeah, important note: There Will Be No Disney Slash In My Writings. Ever!

 

Do not ask for it, it just won't happen. All you'll get is a rant about the sanctity and wholesomeness that Disney is supposed to represent. So there will be a deep trusting bond between the King and Riku, but Mickey really is more like a caring father/friend than anything else. And he has Minnie as a wife.

 

All that's planned for this fic is Non-Con Ansem/Riku, implied AkuRoku [AxelXRoxas], and actual SoRiKai [SoraXRikuXKairi].

 

Ah, and now off to do school work . . . and eventually a new chapter. Yes, I'm being cruel, and posting this up before I write out the next chapter. I'd like to see if it's worth it to continue this. Ah, but fair warning, I'm in collage, and going through the end-of-the-term crush.

 

And remember, your questions, comments, and reviews make a difference!