Fabricated Affections {RepliRikuXVanitas/KH FanFiction}

Chapter 21: The Castle

Riku ran. He ran and ran. His Original and Sora were not back at the castle, nor were they in Hollow Bastion. Those were the only two worlds he saw them before and they weren't there. With the endless amount of worlds and places they could preside Riku urged himself into a panic. He drove the Gummi Ship almost aimlessly as he found it hard to breath and hard to focus. He couldn't just explore world from world without direction, it would be a waste of time. But Riku also knew in his hysterical state that he would get nowhere and accomplish nothing. Vanitas's life was at stake, Riku didn't have time to seek help for much longer.

With a frustrated groan Riku grasped fistfuls of his hair and slouched forward, his head resting on the console before him. He was helpless without anyone, he realized. His anger guided him down the wrong path before when he attempted to exterminate his original out of that jealousy. He was pathetic, weak, and useless without Vanitas by his side. The desperation to simply barge into Xehanort's castle without help was extreme but he knew deep down if he did that he would die; and Vanitas would be trapped forever, doomed to become a vessel without free will. However, he didn't know who else he could turn to for assistance. Riku was alone.

With a deep breath Riku straightened his back, placing a hesitant grip on the guiding sticks of the ship. He knew retrieving Vanitas alone would be risky but he didn't have much of a choice. Either he strayed for much longer and Vanitas perished, or he can attempt to sneak into the castle on his own and have a chance to save Vanitas. Riku slightly pushed the sticks forward to guide the ship onwards despite his arms shaking.

"Anything... Anything for him." Riku began to mutter to himself. 

He wasn't sure exactly when he fell in love with the boy of darkness. He was originally his prisoner and they were enemies, how did such a thing turn into affection? Riku pondered his thoughts, aware that they only knew each other for a short while. However, thinking back on their adventures made his replicated heart leap with joy, a heart in which Vanitas made feel real. Vanitas took him in as prisoner but softened up as their journey continued.  He remembered his protectiveness, his softened facial features when engaging with Riku, his pleasant laughter and affectionate gaze when they connected eyes. Riku reminisced at their time together as those thoughts brought him happiness and brought him more determination than ever.

"I can do this. I can save him by myself."

Riku let out a quivering breath. He may just be a Replica but his feelings were true. No matter what, he would save Vanitas.

Riku guided the ship towards the Keyblade Graveyard, the world in which Xehanorts castle presided. With the ships technology it was able to assist him in finding the place, though under some restricted files he ventured anyway. The galaxy became more and more somber the closer he got, as if all the stars and worlds around him were slimming one by one. It was dark and ominous, a very fitting setting for what was about to come. Riku bit his bottom lip as the graveyard came into sight, and the closer he ventured the more he realized just how easy it was to spot the castle. Though it resided towards the bottom of the world it was large; larger than Riku anticipated, and more prominent than a normal castle. Riku didn't hesitate to beam himself down right in front of the castle doors, finding them terrifying all the while.

It was as if the castle came straight from a fantasy book where the villain would preside. A sinister building made up of pure black paint, paint so dark Riku felt it could swallow the light around it. It was grand in scale, such a large castle for only a handful of people living inside. Riku tilted his head all the way back just to be able to see the top. The windows were stained glass but the stain was gray and mundane to emphasize just how haunting the castle was meant to be, and Riku found himself swallowing a lump in his throat. It seemed so easy to simply enter those grand doors, but he knew better. He wished he could use corridors just like the others, but he couldn't. He had to complete his task the old fashioned way and simply... Walk.