Cross Worlds

Chapter 21: "Teacher and Student"

A/N: From this point forward, the story will strictly be following Riku Fantasy until the end of the arc, unless stated otherwise.

After Riku Reality leaves, Riku Fantasy stays in The Cross for a few extra minutes to collect his thoughts, calm himself down, and evaluate his situation. Riki watches him for the duration he stays, but she does not say anything, not wishing to disturb him while he is deep in thought. Once he is finished, he takes a deep breath and turns to Riki. "Thank you, for intervening. I let my emotions run amok because of everything that was happening in Reality's world. However, I think I am okay now, thanks to you and Riku Reality."

Riki looks at him with a sad gaze. "But you still cannot bring yourself to trust others, especially people in another world that you don't even know. Is that right, Riku?" Riku doesn't say anything; he just looks off to the side. His silence is enough to tell Riki that she is correct, and she closes her eyes, taking a deep breath. "I have no place to butt into your lives, the worlds you live in, or the choices you make. Even so, I know that if you spend all your time worrying about whether or not someone might turn around and stab you while your back is turned, then you will never truly live a peaceful life; a happy life."

Riku continues to remain silent, not saying anything in response to Riki's judgment. "I'm going to return now. Goodbye, Riki."

Without another word, Riku returns to his own world as Riki watches with a sad look on her face. "Riku..." She closes her eyes once more. "You will only bring yourself more pain down the path you're heading... I hope that the people around you; the people in that world, can help you to be who you truly are. I truly believe that you will finally be able to achieve peace of mind...but there's much hardship to come...even still."

Riku Fantasy appears in the alleyway of Artemis, sighing and leaning on the wall. "There you are. What are you doing out here all by yourself, Riku?"

The voice Riku hears does startle him a bit, but it is a familiar one. Riku glances over to see Yoshitabi standing at the end of the alleyway. "A second later and she might've caught me in the middle of reappearing in this world... Due to what just happened, I definitely can't trust her with such important information." Riku only meets her eyes for a brief moment before looking forward; looking back at the wall in front of him. "I'm relaxing, dark and cool areas make me feel calm. I don't like bright light and loud noise."

"Isn't it dangerous to be in a place like this all by yourself?" Yoshitabi frowns at the thought of Riku putting himself in harm's way just to "relax", as he puts it.

"I've gotten much more physically active, learned a lot of hand to hand combat, and I possess something so grand that it would be quite hard for any normal person to be dangerous toward me. Did you forget that, Yoshitabi?" Riku turns to her, his eyes glowing briefly.

"I did not, but you could still encounter someone with magic like Remi and Jira, no?" She crosses her arms, staring him down without the slightest hint of fear.

"You can trust I won't be letting my guard down that easily ever again." Riku begins walking towards her, finishing his statement as he walks past. "Including with the people I know."

Yoshitabi still doesn't falter however. In fact, she grabs Riku's arm and stops him from going any further. "I understand that you are upset with me. You must feel as if I've betrayed you, yes?" Riku neither looks at nor answers her. "...Will you listen to what I have to say? About my story and why I hold Emica in such high regard?" The fact that she said Emica's name instead of "President Nishida" grabs Riku's attention, making him turn his head to meet her intense gaze. "Please Riku. I...want you to know before you continue down the path you are currently on."