Sorrow's Promise

Chapter 28

Snatching up my coat off the back of the bedside chair, I quickly shrugged it on and opened another corridor. I didn't know where Riku had gone, so I couldn't picture a specific place. But maybe it would work with a person instead. It was certainly worth a try. Closing my eyes, I thought of Riku, imagining him standing there in front of me, trying to feel his energy. Then I stretched out my hand, and to my surprise, a doorway actually opened.

The world that I stepped out into was dark, with even darker storm clouds swirling overhead. Skyscrapers and neon signs reminded me of my own city back home, but there were no cars or sounds or any real signs of life except for the two figures standing before me. Riku and Roxas, who had his hood drawn over his face, were standing opposite one another, each with a Keyblade in their hand. I didn't have time to wonder where Riku had gotten his, I was just relieved to seem them both alive and well, and not currently fighting one another.

"Enough about Sora!" Roxas shouted as I came closer.

"Do you have some kind of plan?" Riku asked him.

"I'll set Kingdom Hearts free!" Roxas replied, anguish in his voice. "Then everything will be the way it was! She'll come back, and the three of us can be together again."

Riku had mentioned Kingdom Hearts to me before, but I still didn't really understand it. All I knew was that it had something to do with the pink hearts that came out of the Heartless when they were killed.

"You mean Xion," Riku commented after a moment's pause. "It's a struggle just to remember the name now."

My mind jolted at the mention of her name. I had completely forgotten about Xion's existence yet again. I felt terrible about it, especially considering how important she obviously had been to Roxas. Despite his waning memories of her, he was still trying his best to bring her back.

"Roxas," I called out, choosing this moment to walk forward and alert them to my presence. Both boys spun around to face me.

"Meli?" Surprise was evident in Roxas' voice.

"Meli, what are you doing here?" Riku demanded at the same time.

"Wait, do you know this guy?" Roxas queried, now even more surprised.

"Roxas, I'm so sorry about Xion," I said gently, ignoring both of their questions. "If there was any way to bring her back..."

"I'm going to bring her back," Roxas answered through gritted teeth. "I don't care what it takes."

"There's no way to get her back now," Riku disagreed, reaching out his hand to Roxas. "Either way, I can't let you go doing anything crazy."

"I'm freeing Kingdom Hearts and I'm going to find Sora!" Roxas insisted. "I want Xion back. I want my life back!"

"If you try and make contact with Kingdom Hearts, the last thing you'll get is your life back," Riku argued, shaking his head. "The Organization will destroy you!"

I had no idea what any of the consequences would actually be, but I trusted that Riku knew what he was talking about. The most important thing to me right now was that Roxas was quite obviously in a bad state of mind, and needed to be talked down quickly before he acted rashly. "Roxas, please listen to him," I pleaded.

"Enough!" Roxas screamed, swinging his Keyblade violently. He started running towards Riku, ready to attack.

"No!" I cried, but no one was listening. I watched helplessly as the two boys traded blows. One, the first friend I had made in a long time, and the other, my best friend, whom I was pretty sure by now I was falling in love with. I had never imagined how terrible it would be to watch two people that I cared about trying to harm one another like this.