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     1.4 +Prism Hearts 
     1.5 +Chapter 15 Primal Eyes
     1.6 +by Amazoness Duo
     1.7 +amazonessduo@hotmail.com
     1.8 +
     1.9 +'And if I don't make it, Know that I've loved you all along...'
    1.10 +
    1.11 +Dear diary,I know it's been a while since I've written, but we've
    1.12 +been so busy with the island festival and the weird stuff going on.
    1.13 +But we can't let that stuff keep us down. I'm sure Kairi, Sora, Riku,
    1.14 +and Tidus will all show up just fine like Kairi did the last time. We
    1.15 +just have to keep waiting. 
    1.16 +
    1.17 +On the good side of things, the festival went really well! Booyaka!
    1.18 +Yuna's dancing lessons paid off. It was great to dance with Quisty
    1.19 +like that all night long. She looked sooooo pretty! She was wearing
    1.20 +this beautiful pink dress and with her cute glasses perched on her
    1.21 +nose and the moonlight and... I feel faint just thinking about it. It
    1.22 +was the perfect remedy for all the freaky stuff happening. I could
    1.23 +tell Quisty was still preoccupied for a bit, but by the end of the
    1.24 +night I got her mind off of it. Everyone else seemed to be enjoying
    1.25 +themselves. Irvine kept trying to get me to dance with him all night,
    1.26 +but I didn't want to let go of Quisty for an instant. I didn't want
    1.27 +someone else snatching her for a dance while I was off. I guess Lulu
    1.28 +finally did ask Wakka because I saw them dancing a little later on.
    1.29 +Seifer was on the dock, staring off at the stars, so I guess he
    1.30 +didn't feel like dancing. Poor Seifer. It's fun! Maybe he could use
    1.31 +some lessons from Yuna, too. Speaking of Yuna, even she was dancing
    1.32 +later on. She was with that catgirl I almost accidentally drowned
    1.33 +when she first showed up. I'm sorry, Rikku! I thought you were a
    1.34 +fiend. My mistake! But she's made Yuna smile a whole lot, so I'm
    1.35 +really glad she came. Even if she's a kitty, I think Yuna likes her.
    1.36 +Maybe I should give her a paopu fruit for a present. They could eat
    1.37 +it together at the sunset or something. I bet that would make Yuna
    1.38 +happy! I know it made me happy to do that with Quisty. Now we'll be
    1.39 +able to be together forever. Poor Kairi. I hope she can eventually
    1.40 +share it with the one she loves. If she can ever decide. Well,
    1.41 +there's no rule against sharing it with two people. At least, I don't
    1.42 +think so. Maybe I'll ask Quisty later. She knows all sorts of things. 
    1.43 +
    1.44 +Yuna's on the beach now. I guess she decided to come out and watch
    1.45 +the ocean, too. It's a kind of blue gray instead of the pretty blue
    1.46 +green it usually is. And the storm clouds make it all look a little
    1.47 +menacing. I'm almost a little afraid of it. The ocean's always been
    1.48 +our friend, but now it seems so cold and distant. But Yuna doesn't
    1.49 +seem to mind. She walked right into the water. I had my feet in
    1.50 +earlier, but it was too cold to keep them there. I wonder if she's
    1.51 +tired or something. I called to her a few times, but she doesn't seem
    1.52 +to hear me. Maybe she just doesn't feel like talking right now.
    1.53 +Ohhhh... She must be practicing her dancing. She's twirling around in
    1.54 +the water now. I couldn't do that in cold water like that. But she
    1.55 +doesn't seem to mind. It's almost like the water's responding to her,
    1.56 +swishing around her. Actually, it looks like the water's getting
    1.57 +darker near her. Not right around her. But kinda further off. It's
    1.58 +like a shadow is moving across the water. Or in the
    1.59 +water...~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    1.60 +Breaking off her diary entry, Selphie stood up on the dock. Her
    1.61 +heart pounded in her stomach. It wasn't a shadow on the water. It was
    1.62 +under the water. And it was heading towards the Destiny Islands.
    1.63 +“Yuna!! Get out of the water!” But Yuna didn't hear her. She kept
    1.64 +dancing, the water now whirling about her as if by magic. Green eyes
    1.65 +went from the girl in the water to the approaching shape. The shape
    1.66 +broke off. Selphie breathed a momentary sigh of relief. Her respite
    1.67 +was shortlived. The shape was heading towards the main island where
    1.68 +the village was, where the elders were. Her parents... Her heart
    1.69 +dropped into her stomach, covered in ice. 
    1.70 +
    1.71 +Selphie didn't have the strength to do anything but stare for a long
    1.72 +moment as she saw the huge tidal wave ripping towards the island she
    1.73 +was on. Blurs of blackish gray things tore out of the water, flying
    1.74 +in an erratic path towards the different islands. They missiles
    1.75 +looked like the scales of some ancient and hideous beast. Several
    1.76 +slammed into the beach around her, sending up plumes of sand. Another
    1.77 +zipped past overhead, and for a moment Selphie thought it was going
    1.78 +to hit her. It missed by a head or two and crashed into the dock
    1.79 +behind her. Wood splintered and cracked and she was thrown to the
    1.80 +wooden planks beneath her.Dizzy and still in shock from the
    1.81 +suddenness of her world plunging into madness, Selphie wiped at the
    1.82 +water that dripped down her forehead. Wincing at the pain that shot
    1.83 +through her head, she pulled her hand away, momentarily puzzled by
    1.84 +the blood on her fingers. She had hit the planks harder than she
    1.85 +thought. A chittering behind her quickly drew her attention from the
    1.86 +blood dribbling down her face. Turning about, the brunette almost
    1.87 +fell again. She couldn't focus and the sudden motion made her feel
    1.88 +sick. What she saw made her freeze where she stood, bare feet pressed
    1.89 +against water soaked wood. The missile/scale thing she saw earlier
    1.90 +had been some sort of beast. It crawled out of the wrecked portion of
    1.91 +the pier where it had landed, chittering crazily as it watched her.
    1.92 +It had a strange not quite heart symbol on it, black with a red X
    1.93 +through it. Like the Heartless that had already destroyed their
    1.94 +island once before. But this wasn't a tiny shadow creature. It was an
    1.95 +angry monster. Selphie was only dimly aware of the nunchuks at her
    1.96 +side. She was too weak to fight it. She was going to die. The Destiny
    1.97 +Islands were being torn asunder. In those seconds before it could
    1.98 +strike, her mind clung to the things that were important to her. Her
    1.99 +friends, the islands, her parents, Quistis. For one brief moment, she
   1.100 +wasn't there. She was back on the beach the night before, dancing
   1.101 +with the girl she loved. 'Quisty, we'll be together forever, won't
   1.102 +we?' 'I never want to grow up,' she had told Sora. And it was true.
   1.103 +She wanted to stay here, playing, loving, forever. Now the dream was
   1.104 +cruelly falling apart. The creature rushed forward, claw raised to
   1.105 +cut her in half. Before Selphie could precede the Destiny Islands to
   1.106 +the Graveyard of Dreams, the tidal wave finally crashed into her. The
   1.107 +world spun end over end and darkness claimed her. Somewhere in the
   1.108 +darkness, she could hear Yuna singing. 
   1.109 +
   1.110 +~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
   1.111 +
   1.112 + The beach was totalled. Trees were ripped up from the ground and
   1.113 +lay scattered across the island. The houses and huts they had built
   1.114 +were shattered like an angry child's playthings. The pier was broken
   1.115 +and lay like so much debris thrown about the beach. The tranquil
   1.116 +serenity of the Destiny Islands had been replaced with a malevolent
   1.117 +chaos, a hateful, destructive force. It was as if a jealous angel
   1.118 +banished to hell had come back to make paradise bleed. This was the
   1.119 +scene Rikku found herself looking at, staring out across the
   1.120 +devestated island. And in the midst of it all, Yuna danced. The waves
   1.121 +broke before hitting her, passing harmlessly around the blue and
   1.122 +green eyed brunette. Despite the horror that lay around her, Yuna
   1.123 +didn't seem to notice at all, dancing early in the waves. Shadows
   1.124 +pulsed and coalesced around her. “Yuna!” she called, but she got no
   1.125 +answer. The girl continued dancing, singing softly. Had she cracked?
   1.126 +Was she welcoming the madness that had already claimed Tidus and some
   1.127 +of her other friends? The only sound outside of the crashing of the
   1.128 +waves was the sound of Rikku's paws crunching against the sand as she
   1.129 +ran to Yuna. She had been taking a catnap and had awakened to
   1.130 +something crashing into the island. In the confusion, she had tried
   1.131 +to find Yuna. She had to make sure she was okay. Now she'd found the
   1.132 +other girl, and her heart thundered, forcing her to go faster than
   1.133 +she ever had as a human. Reaching Yuna, the thief nearly pounced on
   1.134 +her. “Yuna!!” But Yuna continued to ignore her, dancing and singing
   1.135 +as the waves and ground shook around them. 
   1.136 +
   1.137 +The shockwave almost threw Rikku back into the crashing waves. Her
   1.138 +ears perked at the sound. Something big had just happened. Her spiral
   1.139 +green eyes searched for the source of something that huge. Missiles?
   1.140 +Some type of giant cannon? There. Her eyes stopped on the onrushing
   1.141 +tidal wave. It was coming from the main island where the village was
   1.142 +located. It was gone. Where there had been an island, there was now
   1.143 +nothing more than jagged rocks and a swelling wave. And the barest
   1.144 +hint of an ugly, giant creature that disappeared beneath the water
   1.145 +just as quickly as she had seen it. Gone. It was completely gone. And
   1.146 +with the way the water surged, it was heading straight towards them. 
   1.147 +
   1.148 +“Yuna!!” But the girl continued to ignore Rikku. The former Radical
   1.149 +Dreamer clutched Yuna's dress, yanking her forward. If they didn't
   1.150 +get moving, the huge wave heading towards the beach would slam into
   1.151 +them. And after that, the creature would be there. Rikku didn't know
   1.152 +if they could escape the beast a second time, but she had to try.
   1.153 +First things first. They had to get away from that wave. Rikku
   1.154 +slapped Yuna as hard as she could. Guilt blossomed in her gut as she
   1.155 +did, but she had to get through to her somehow. Dragging Yuna away
   1.156 +wouldn't get them far enough from the wave. Yuna slumped in her grasp
   1.157 +after the slap. She would have fallen into the water if Rikku hadn't
   1.158 +been holding onto her. 
   1.159 +
   1.160 +Slowly, green and blue eyes blinked, looking up at the catgirl.
   1.161 +“Rikku?” the quiet girl asked dreamily. Her vision slowly focussed on
   1.162 +Rikku. She looked scared and tense. Yuna smiled her, trying to calm
   1.163 +her. She reached forward, stroking the thief's furry cheek. “Don't be
   1.164 +afraid, Rikku. It's almost over.”Rikku stared in shock for a second,
   1.165 +but shook it off. If she froze, they were both dead. She bodily
   1.166 +dragged Yuna towards the shore. “We need to move, Yunie. Something
   1.167 +very bad is coming this way. We need to run. Fast.” Turning from the
   1.168 +other girl, ignoring the wet fur that stuck to her legs, Rikku began
   1.169 +to run towards the beach. Yuna's sudden halt nearly yanked her back.
   1.170 +The thief whirled around, her heart pounding like an alarm. They were
   1.171 +running out of time. They needed to get away. The fact that there was
   1.172 +no place to run to didn't matter so much as moving. Now. “Rikku, it's
   1.173 +okay. No one will ever hurt anymore. No one will ever leave us again.
   1.174 +We'll all be together. Forever.” Yuna smiled brighter this time,
   1.175 +opening her arms to show what she meant. “Your sister won't leave you
   1.176 +again. We won't have to mourn our parents. We'll never have to leave
   1.177 +each other.” The human girl wrapped her arms around Rikku. “I don't
   1.178 +want you to leave, Rikku. We can always be together now. Always.”
   1.179 +Leaning forward, she kissed the stunned Rikku softly, holding onto
   1.180 +her. 'Move. If you don't move, you'll die. She'll die. It will be
   1.181 +over. Move. Move now!!' Rikku's mind screamed at her. The direness of
   1.182 +the situation helped push off the hipnotic spell that Yuna's lips
   1.183 +cast on her. Clutching Yuna hard enough that her claws dug into her
   1.184 +shoulders, spiral green eyes stared deep into Yuna's blue and green
   1.185 +eyes. “Yuna, I promised I'd protect you no matter what. And I'm going
   1.186 +to do that. We have to run. I'm not going to leave you. Just please,
   1.187 +run. Run!!” Rikku pleaded, fear and frustration mixing inside of her.
   1.188 +Slowly, achingly slowly, Yuna nodded. She seemed a little surprised,
   1.189 +almost afraid of the mix of emotions inside of Rikku. She meekly
   1.190 +followed along as Rikku ran, her heart thundering as she knew they
   1.191 +probably wouldn't make it. 
   1.192 +
   1.193 +~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
   1.194 +
   1.195 +“Selphie! You're alive!” Quistis pulled the half-conscious brunette
   1.196 +tightly against herself. She knew she should let her rest, but she
   1.197 +was too relieved to see that her green eyed girl was alive. Her
   1.198 +glasses slipped down her nose as she clung to Selphie. How close had
   1.199 +she been to losing her? The girl had nearly been buried under planks
   1.200 +from the destroyed pier and had almost drowned from being pinned
   1.201 +under while the tidal wave had swept over her. “Oh, Selphie...” 
   1.202 +
   1.203 +Using all of her strength to push herself back to consciousness,
   1.204 +Selphie hung limply in Quistis's arms. Burying her head weakly
   1.205 +against the blonde's shoulder, Selphie closed her eyes. She was
   1.206 +alive. With Quistis. Maybe... Maybe things would be okay. No. No
   1.207 +maybes. She had to believe it. There could be no other option other
   1.208 +than things being okay. “Quisty,” she whispered. Blinking tear
   1.209 +streaked eyes, Quistis held Selphie close. Her eyes narrowed as she
   1.210 +tried to focus on the blurry figure moving towards them. It looked
   1.211 +like the figure was moving on top of the water, walking as if on
   1.212 +land. Pushing her glasses up, she saw that she was right. A boy in a
   1.213 +black raincoat was walking on the water, right up to the beach.
   1.214 +Standing up with Selphie, she gripped her whip, keeping a weary eye
   1.215 +on him. After all that had happened, she wasn't about to trust
   1.216 +anything. “Who are you?” she called out. Selphie steadied herself
   1.217 +against the blonde, turning to see who Quistis was talking to.The
   1.218 +hooded boy didn't deign her question worth an answer. Instead, he
   1.219 +turned to look out to see. “She'll be here soon. It's almost done. I
   1.220 +wonder what she'll choose.” Turning to the two girls, he addressed
   1.221 +them. “Sin is coming. You can't stop it. Get away from the
   1.222 +beach.”Shaking her head as much as her weak body would allow, Selphie
   1.223 +refused. “Those scale creatures are on the island.”The boy nodded.
   1.224 +“But you can fight them. And you can try to live until she gets here.
   1.225 +She's the only one who can stop this.” He turned to face the oncoming
   1.226 +waves. “Hurry.”Without another word, Quistis and Selphie tried to get
   1.227 +as far from the beach as they could.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
   1.228 +
   1.229 +Running. Running and running. Selphie's bare feet hurt from all the
   1.230 +running. She nearly slipped on a slippery rock as they ran near a
   1.231 +small waterfall. But even after all the running, she knew that they
   1.232 +were on a relatively small island. There was only so much room to
   1.233 +run. Only so much room to hide before it found them, caught up with
   1.234 +them. They couldn't run forever. What would they do when it finally
   1.235 +did catch them? How could they stop this nightmare? She just wanted
   1.236 +to wake up, safe and sound in Quistis's arms, the blonde asleep with
   1.237 +a book slumped on her chest. “My diary!” Selphie's green eyes
   1.238 +widened. It had been on the pier. Now it was probably lost forever.
   1.239 +Her shoulders slumped. She had the sinking feeling that she could
   1.240 +very easily lose everything. “If...” Quistis cut herself off, biting
   1.241 +her lip before continuing. “When we get out of this, I'll get you a
   1.242 +new diary. And we'll make plenty of happy memories for you to write
   1.243 +in it,” she promised. Selphie new that Quistis was trying to make her
   1.244 +feel better, that she was just as scared as she was, but that made it
   1.245 +even sweeter. She smiled faintly, gazing at the blonde girl. “Thanks,
   1.246 +Quisty. I'll make sure...” Before Selphie could continue, one of the
   1.247 +Heartless Sinscales crashed down in front of them. It chittered its
   1.248 +bloodthirsty cry, looking between the two girls. As it got ready to
   1.249 +pounce forward, Quistis took a step forward, her whip lashing out at
   1.250 +it. The creature shrieked as the whip hit it again and again. It was
   1.251 +soon joined by Selphie's nunchuks, cracking against the creature.
   1.252 +Lunging forward, it's claws tried to tear into Selphie. The brunette
   1.253 +hopped back, just missing getting slashed by the razor sharp claws.
   1.254 +The beast got ready to lunge again, but Quistis's whip wrapped around
   1.255 +it's leg, yanking it back. Selphie took the opportunity to hit it as
   1.256 +hard as she could. Finally, the Heartless fell at their feet. 
   1.257 +
   1.258 +Turning to Quistis, Selphie opened her mouth, but Quistis's eyes
   1.259 +widened. Selphie could swear she saw the reflection of the beast in
   1.260 +Quistis's eyes, but she couldn't move. It was too fast. But so was
   1.261 +Quistis. The blonde shoved herself in front of Selphie at the same
   1.262 +time as the creature came swiping forward. It's claw crashed into
   1.263 +Quistis's side, sending her rolling into the water. Selphie was dimly
   1.264 +aware that she had screamed. Her green eyes followed Quistis's
   1.265 +crumpled form slumped on the ground. In her panic, Selphie couldn't
   1.266 +even tell if the other girl was breathing. The beast. She had to
   1.267 +protect Quistis. She couldn't let it hurt the girl she loved. But
   1.268 +wasn't she already too late for that? Quashing the thought, panic and
   1.269 +fear and loathing and sadness welled in her heart, flooding it. The
   1.270 +brunette ran to the crumpled girl ready to fight off the creature as
   1.271 +best she could. The Heartless chittered madly, turning to the two of
   1.272 +them again. It almost seemed to be laughing. It wanted their hearts.
   1.273 +It would feast upon them, devour them whole. How delicious. It
   1.274 +advanced on the stupid girl standing her ground and the injured girl
   1.275 +who wouldn't even fight back. “Selphie...” Quistis said weakly. It
   1.276 +took an extreme effort to focus through the pain. It enveloped her
   1.277 +side like a hot iron, burning deeply into her mind. She clutched her
   1.278 +side tightly, feeling the blood pool and drip around her fingertips.
   1.279 +'Get up!' her mind screamed at her. She had to draw the creature away
   1.280 +so Selphie could run. “Run, Selphie. Go... Get out of here.”
   1.281 +
   1.282 +“No! I'm not leaving you, Quisty.” Tears streamed down Selphie's
   1.283 +cheeks, but she never took her eyes away from the Heartless that had
   1.284 +tried to kill her girlfriend. “We ate a paopu fruit together. We'll
   1.285 +stay together forever. We promised. I'm not leaving you. Ever.”
   1.286 +Selphie jumped forward, her nunchuk cracking against the amorpheous
   1.287 +face of the creature. It chittered in pain or anger and got ready to
   1.288 +pounce upon the girl and tear her apart. The girl continued to hit it
   1.289 +in a rage. The girl was already hurt and her anger was blinding her.
   1.290 +In just a moment, it would be able to...But Selphie wasn't the only
   1.291 +one blinded by the situation. Selphie watched as the Heartless fell
   1.292 +in two halves. So focussed had it been on its prey that it hadn't
   1.293 +seen the trenchcoated boy behind it. “Seifer!” Selphie cried out,
   1.294 +shocked to see the blond boy. She quickly turned her attention back
   1.295 +to Quistis, running to the other girl. Her heart pounded in a frenzy
   1.296 +as she saw the blood dripping down her side. The cut seemed to be
   1.297 +pretty deep in the girl's side. She needed some healing magic quick.
   1.298 +“We need to get you to Yuna. She can help.” If they hurried. But she
   1.299 +couldn't bring herself to say that part. Quistis couldn't die. She
   1.300 +wouldn't let her. Selphie swallowed the burning pain in her throat.
   1.301 +If Seifer was alive, Yuna could be alive, too. She'd been right on
   1.302 +the beach. Maybe she was somewhere on the island. If they could find
   1.303 +her, they could save Quistis. “You don't really expect your loyal
   1.304 +fans to desert you, do you, Miss Trepe?” Seifer asked, grinning. Even
   1.305 +if the situation were dire, he still liked teasing Quistis. He saw it
   1.306 +as bad form to give that up, even in the heat of battle. You had to
   1.307 +stay true to the bitter end, after all. 
   1.308 +
   1.309 +Quistis laughed softly as Selphie helped her up. She tried to stand
   1.310 +on her own, not wanting to worry Selphie too much, but she found that
   1.311 +she couldn't stand on her own. That bothered her greatly. She tried
   1.312 +not to let it show. “I never knew you were a loyal fan, Seifer.”
   1.313 +
   1.314 +“Surely you jest, Miss Trepe. Who isn't?” Winking, Seifer walked
   1.315 +over to the two girls. He could see how bad the injury was, but the
   1.316 +look Quistis gave him let him know not to say anything about it.
   1.317 +Giving a nearly imperceptible nod, her turned to look around the
   1.318 +clearing. Quistis was a strong girl. Probably the strongest he knew,
   1.319 +despite all the worries and self-doubts she carried. Selphie was a
   1.320 +lucky girl. And he'd be damned if he'd let Quistis die now. “The main
   1.321 +island is gone. Whatever hit it seems to be headed here. But for some
   1.322 +reason, it hasn't destroyed this island yet. It's like those fiends
   1.323 +are searching for something.” He let that sink in for a minute. He
   1.324 +knew what it meant. Their parents were all dead. Their homes were
   1.325 +destroyed. And the only reason they were alive was because of
   1.326 +something hidden on the island they were on. Quistis went numb at
   1.327 +Seifer's words. Destroyed? It was all gone. Even if they could stop
   1.328 +all this, how much could they salvage? Would their islands survive
   1.329 +the strain? They had already lost so much. “Mom... Dad...?” Selphie
   1.330 +felt her knees go weak. Only the knowledge that she couldn't drop
   1.331 +Quistis kept her standing up straight. It felt like yet another blade
   1.332 +had punctured her heart. Quistis was hurt, maybe dying her family was
   1.333 +dead her home was being crushed. Everything she held dear was a tiny
   1.334 +piece of sand, falling through her fingers no matter how hard she
   1.335 +tried to hold on. She swallowed painfully, fighting back tears. She
   1.336 +swallowed again and again, trying to keep the tears at bay. 
   1.337 +
   1.338 +“We need to regroup. We have a better chance together than alone.
   1.339 +Quistis, you always were a good leader. You can help them figure out
   1.340 +what to do. Remember, we don't have much time. When they find what
   1.341 +they're looking for, they'll destory this island, too.” Seifer turned
   1.342 +his back to them, hefting up his blade. “'Them'? Seifer, you're
   1.343 +coming, too, right?” Quistis asked. She already knew the answer, but
   1.344 +she prayed that she was wrong. Hadn't enough people been hurt
   1.345 +already? Hadn't they already lost enough? Why did there need to be
   1.346 +anymore sacrifices? She watched him hopefully, clinging to the tiny
   1.347 +shred of hope that he'd merely said it wrong. His stature never
   1.348 +wavered. He looked just as cocky and sure of himself as ever, despite
   1.349 +the fact that they may never see him again.“I never was the group
   1.350 +type. You know that, Quistis. I just manage to cause problems.
   1.351 +Besides, there are three of those creatures lurking in the bushes
   1.352 +behind us. I figured I'd try to hone my skills on them. If I'm ever
   1.353 +going to be a Sorceress's Knight, I have to be the best.” Shooting a
   1.354 +look over his shoulder the blond boy grinned. Turning back, he pulled
   1.355 +up the blade and got ready.“.... Thank you, Seifer,” Quistis said at
   1.356 +last, watching the boy wave them off nonchalantly. He was buying them
   1.357 +time. She doubted even he could fight three of those things. But she
   1.358 +and Selphie were both injured. He was sacrificing himself for them.
   1.359 +She didn't want to leave. She wanted to stay and fight, but there was
   1.360 +nothing they could do. “Anytime, Quistis. Now get going. You need to
   1.361 +get that scratch patched up. You keep her safe, Selphie,” Seifer
   1.362 +said, not turning to face them, still watching the movement in the
   1.363 +shadows.Selphie nodded. “I will. Be careful Seifer. Come back as soon
   1.364 +as you can.” Could he really take on all three of them? Did he have a
   1.365 +plan? He had to. Right? Now wasn't the time to think about it.
   1.366 +Quistis was bleeding badly. They had to find Yuna. Her white magic
   1.367 +could fix Quistis. Selphie held onto the blonde girl and hurried as
   1.368 +quickly as she could. The bushes rustled behind her. Seifer's blade
   1.369 +slashed through the air behind them. Quistis winced in pain. Selphie
   1.370 +pushed herself to go faster, praying she wouldn't be too late.
   1.371 +
   1.372 +~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 
   1.373 +
   1.374 +Rikku shivered, her fur still wet, as she and Yuna crawled into a
   1.375 +hidden cave. There were drawings on the walls, making the cave look
   1.376 +like a hiding place for children. At the end of the cave was a
   1.377 +strange door. Rikku tried the knob, but it was locked. Why would
   1.378 +there be a door in a cave? Where did it lead to?Yuna recognized the
   1.379 +drawings. They were of Sora, Kairi, and Riku. This must be the
   1.380 +'Special Place' that Sora and Riku had spoken of. How strange that
   1.381 +she'd end up in the place that was so important to her three lost
   1.382 +friends. But it had felt like she had been called there. When Rikku
   1.383 +had asked where they could go to get away, she had immediately
   1.384 +answered here. Now that she was closer, it felt like the strange door
   1.385 +at the end of the cave was calling directly to her, reverberating off
   1.386 +the walls. 'Open the door and let everything end...' she could almost
   1.387 +hear. “Yunie!” Rikku called for the third time. Her other three calls
   1.388 +had illicited no response. Yuna seemed to be deep in thought. The
   1.389 +normally quiet, shy girl seemed even more introspective. But now was
   1.390 +definitely not the time. “Yuna!” Walking over, Rikku placed her hands
   1.391 +on Yuna's shoulders, finally getting her attention. What was wrong
   1.392 +with the brunette? It was like Yuna wasn't seeing the same horrible
   1.393 +things that she was. They had barely escaped the tidal wave and that
   1.394 +thing... Sin had risen out of the water just moments later. At least
   1.395 +they had a momentary respite from the chaos outside. 
   1.396 +
   1.397 +Turning to face the catgirl, Yuna giggled softly, her hand going to
   1.398 +her mouth. The thief was a bedraggled mess. Her fur clung to her and
   1.399 +her ears kept twitching to try and get dry. “You're so cute, Rikku.”
   1.400 +She said softly, wrapping her arms around the catgirl's shoulders.
   1.401 +She gazed deeply into those spiral green eyes, feeling as if she were
   1.402 +falling into them. “I don't know if I'd have the strength to go
   1.403 +through all of this without you, Rikku. I'd be too scared. But with
   1.404 +you by my side, it's all right. I'm not afraid to die if I'm with
   1.405 +you.” Leaning forward to kiss Rikku, she was perplexed when Rikku
   1.406 +moved her head to the side. She kissed the wet, furry cheek anyway.
   1.407 +“Yunie, what are you talking about? What's going on?” Rikku was
   1.408 +starting to get seriously worried about the girl holding onto her.
   1.409 +Yuna had an almost manic gleam in her blue and green eyes. “We aren't
   1.410 +going to die. I'll protect you, Yunie. Always. I swear.” She looked
   1.411 +back into those slightly frightening eyes, trying to make Yuna see
   1.412 +the truth in her words.“Rikku...” Yuna stroked the thief's cheek,
   1.413 +resting against her. Rikku's heart was thundering against her. The
   1.414 +poor kitty. “There's nothing to be scared of. I know that now. There
   1.415 +will never be anything to be afraid of again. I finally understand. I
   1.416 +wasn't afraid of death. I was afraid of life. Of being left behind.
   1.417 +Of watching those I loved die. Of being left alone. Of being hurt and
   1.418 +broken. Of watching people suffer. I always wanted to give people
   1.419 +hope, but what good can hope do if you can't stave off death? As long
   1.420 +as there is life, there will be suffering and torment. Our only peace
   1.421 +is in death. My father died. But I'm the one who suffered. The living
   1.422 +suffer. Not the dead.” Reality came crashing down around Rikku's
   1.423 +head. The world around her was falling apart. The girl she loved was
   1.424 +verging on suicidal. And she had no idea how to save any of it. Her
   1.425 +strength drained as powerlessness bled her dry. “I would have been
   1.426 +too afraid to do this on my own. Without you, I would have been too
   1.427 +afraid of death. But if I can be with you, I'll have no fear.” Yuna
   1.428 +took Rikku's paw, kissing it softly. “I love you. We'll always be
   1.429 +together. Life won't be able to keep us apart.”“No...” Rikku argued
   1.430 +softly, shaking her head. “No!” She held Yuna's shoulders as tightly
   1.431 +as she could, scratching deep into the brunette, but Yuna didn't even
   1.432 +seem to notice. Tiny splotches of red grew under Rikku's claws.
   1.433 +“Yunie, we can still get out of here. There has to be a way. I'll
   1.434 +save you. Somehow.” Yuna smiled again, her lips brushing against
   1.435 +Rikku's. “You don't understand. Sin is coming. All I have to do is
   1.436 +open the doorway. Then Sin will destroy all life. All suffering. All
   1.437 +pain. We'll all be together.” Tears spilt down her cheeks as she
   1.438 +gazed at Rikku. “It's finally over.”~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 
   1.439 +
   1.440 +“Fire!” Flames licked at one of Sin's many Heartless creatures as a
   1.441 +girl in black raised her hand. A blitzball slammed into it, knocking
   1.442 +it over. “Thunder!” the girl cried out again. Lightening struck the
   1.443 +beast. It jerked spasmodically until it finally stopped, fading back
   1.444 +into harmless shadows. “They just keep coming, Lu,” the boy said,
   1.445 +breathing hard. Her looked around worriedly, waiting for more of the
   1.446 +strange beasts to jump out at them.“Then we must keep fighting them,”
   1.447 +Lulu responded calmly. Turning towards the path leading up to them,
   1.448 +her braids swishing behind her, she spotted Selphie supporting a very
   1.449 +pale Quistis. Blood soaked the side of the blonde's dress. Whatever
   1.450 +hope she had held onto dwindled rapidly. How could they possibly
   1.451 +survive this? How many were already dead?“Lulu! Wakka!” Selphie
   1.452 +called excitedly. There were people still out there. That relief
   1.453 +spread through her quickly. Good. Now if they could only find a place
   1.454 +to get to that they could protect. And of course, get Quistis healed
   1.455 +as swiftly as possible. Her eyes scanned about for Yuna, but she
   1.456 +couldn't find the other girl. “Where's Yuna? Where's everyone
   1.457 +else?”“Just me an' Lu as far as I know. Haven't seen anybody else
   1.458 +till you showed up. Good thing ya did. We couldn't hold out much
   1.459 +longer on our... Owww!” He looked over at Lulu. The black haired girl
   1.460 +scowled at him. She'd pinched him very sharply. What was that all
   1.461 +about? Didn't they have enough to deal with without her doing things
   1.462 +like that? Her eyes were moving around oddly. He raised an eyebrow.
   1.463 +Lulu sighed deliberately and leaned closer. “They're injured, Wakka.
   1.464 +Quistis is probably dying. We're going to have to protect them. So
   1.465 +don't say stupid things like that.”Wakka nodded, understanding. That
   1.466 +meant that they'd have to keep an eye on the two injured girls. Which
   1.467 +meant... They were worse off than they were before. His hopes
   1.468 +thoroughly shattered, he felt his shoulders slump. It didn't seem
   1.469 +like any of them were getting out of this. “No Yuna?” Selphie asked
   1.470 +again, her green eyes wide in disbelief. She had come all this way to
   1.471 +find a healer to save Quistis. But Yuna wasn't here. Lulu was a mage,
   1.472 +but she only knew black magic, nothing that could save Quistis. They
   1.473 +had travelled all that way for nothing? Quistis had become very quiet
   1.474 +just a few minutes ago. The blonde was breathing irregularly, slumped
   1.475 +heavily against Selphie's side. She needed help. And there was
   1.476 +nothing Selphie could do. Tears threatened to wash away whatever
   1.477 +grasp she still held on her sanity. She was going to lose Quistis...
   1.478 +“So you children are still fighting?” a voice asked from the trail
   1.479 +above them. They all turned to the voice. It was impossible for
   1.480 +anyone to have gotten ahead of them, though. Someone would need to
   1.481 +fly to be able to get to the path above them without going right
   1.482 +through them. Elder Seymour smiled as he approached them. “Elder
   1.483 +Seymour!” Wakka said excitedly.“Elder Seymour, we're very glad to see
   1.484 +you,” Lulu confessed. The elder simply smiled, looking about at them
   1.485 +all. He walked to Selphie, watching her green eyes light up at his
   1.486 +presence. There was hope again.“Seymour! You're alive!” If Seymour
   1.487 +was alive, then Quistis was saved. Seymour was a powerful mage, the
   1.488 +most powerful on the Destiny Islands. He could heal Quistis. Selphie
   1.489 +dragged the semi-conscious girl over to the elder, the thought that
   1.490 +the girl she loved wouldn't die after all soothing her body and soul.
   1.491 +“Quisty is hurt. You have to heal her.” She laid the blonde out on
   1.492 +the ground, being very careful not to hurt her anymore than she had
   1.493 +been. Reaching out, she gently stroked the other girl's cheek. 
   1.494 +
   1.495 +Quistis smiled weakly, looking up at Selphie with unfocussed eyes.
   1.496 +It took all of her strength to keep from passing out. But she knew
   1.497 +that if she did, she'd never wake up.
   1.498 +
   1.499 +“Hmm...” Seymour surveyed the injured girl, kneeling down and
   1.500 +checking her wounds. Quistis hissed in pain as he touched the wound.
   1.501 +He got up, looking down at the girl. “It's a very serious wound.
   1.502 +She's lost a lot of blood.” Selphie nodded, holding onto Quistis's
   1.503 +hand. “So you can heal her, right, Elder Seymour?”The man nodded.
   1.504 +“Yes, I could. But I'm not going to.” He paused for a moment, letting
   1.505 +that sink in. Selphie looked up slowly, looking lost and confused. He
   1.506 +smiled down at her. “Why?” Selphie asked quietly, obviously in shock
   1.507 +over his answer.“Because very shortly, you'll all be dead anyway.
   1.508 +Healing her would only prolong it. Sin will destroy this island. And
   1.509 +after that, Sin will destory all life. Healing her would be cruel. It
   1.510 +would only keep her alive in order that she may die,” Seymour
   1.511 +explained. “No...” Selphie shook her head. “It... No, it isn't like
   1.512 +that. We can still try. We can stop it. We have to. You have to save
   1.513 +Quisty! Please!” Tears burst down her cheeks, spilling down her chin.
   1.514 +“You have to!” Clutching the blonde's hand, Selphie held it tightly
   1.515 +to her heart. “I'm afraid I have to do no such thing. But I will help
   1.516 +you. I am the last surviving elder of the Destiny Islands, so you are
   1.517 +all my children. I will send you along with her on her journey. Then
   1.518 +you won't have to part for even the short time it takes for you to
   1.519 +join her after she dies.” He smiled at the girls, raising his hand as
   1.520 +he summoned his magic. Wakka and Lulu got in front of Selphie, both
   1.521 +ready to fight him. He simply laughed. “You sweet, innocent children.
   1.522 +Soon you will never know the pain of life. Goodbye.” Summoning all of
   1.523 +the magic at his disposal, he got ready to hurry along the four of
   1.524 +them to death's sweet embrace. 
   1.525 +
   1.526 +A gunshot fired out. Pain erupted in Seymour's side. He stumbled
   1.527 +forward. Yes, life was pain. All life. Which is why it had to be...
   1.528 +Another shot. And another. The world swayed around him as he turned
   1.529 +to face his attackers. Four men and one woman in black suits were all
   1.530 +holding guns, pointing at him. Several other people were with them as
   1.531 +well. He could see one of the island children with them, Kairi, the
   1.532 +girl who had washed up on the Destiny Islands shore years ago. But
   1.533 +this couldn't be happening. This.. This was not how it was supposed
   1.534 +to work out. He tried to summon his magic, but it was weak in the
   1.535 +pain-wracked state he found himself. Kairi ran up to him, shoving the
   1.536 +Keyblade into his chest. She turned it swiftly, unlocking his heart.
   1.537 +He stumbled back, clutching his heart. Inside, he could feel the
   1.538 +darkness moving about. The darkness he had allowed Sephiroth to place
   1.539 +inside of him. Because it would give him power. The power to realize
   1.540 +his dream. To bring an end to life. He grinned as he realized that
   1.541 +would happen soon enough.“Something's wrong...” Kairi took several
   1.542 +steps back. “If he's the one who called Sin here, then he has to be
   1.543 +the Keyhole. But this isn't like any other Keyhole I've unlocked.
   1.544 +There's supposed to be light.” The princess had the feeling that
   1.545 +something had gone terribly wrong. “That's because I'm not the
   1.546 +Keyhole, Kairi.” Seymour laughed softly, his body changing,
   1.547 +transformed by the darkness that had grown in his heart. “But
   1.548 +Sephiroth did give me the power to find out who was. And it turns out
   1.549 +we had the same goals all along. It all ends here. We will bring this
   1.550 +world to an end. We will destroy the vicious cycle of life and death.
   1.551 +We will give peace to all.” By now he looked only vaguely human,
   1.552 +floating in the air like some strange ancient being. “Princess! Get
   1.553 +back!” The Turks immediately surrounded the Princess, protecting her
   1.554 +from the being that had once been Seymour. They began firing at him
   1.555 +as he summoned his magic. Elena led Kairi back to the others before
   1.556 +returning to face Seymour. Cloud looked at Squall. The two nodded at
   1.557 +each other before running after the Turks, swords brandished. Aerith
   1.558 +and Rinoa herded Selphie, Quistis, Lulu, and Wakka away from the
   1.559 +battle.
   1.560 +
   1.561 +Kairi turned to her friends, feeling bittersweet about their
   1.562 +reunion. Because of her, they were hurting, dying. Because she had
   1.563 +left the door open for the Heartless to come upon this world. Her
   1.564 +beautiful Destiny Islands were crumbling. She had to unlock the
   1.565 +Keyhole before it was too late. 
   1.566 +
   1.567 +“Please! You have to help Quisty!” Selphie pleaded, tears streaming
   1.568 +down her cheeks. “She's dying...” 
   1.569 +
   1.570 +'Dear God, what have I done?' Kairi watched in horror as Selphie
   1.571 +held tightly onto a limp Quistis. He inability to entirely give up
   1.572 +her past life had caused so much pain. Riku was dead. Sora was lost.
   1.573 +The Destiny Islands were being torn apart. Her friends were
   1.574 +suffering. All because of her. Her fingers tightened around the
   1.575 +Keyblade. This had to end. “It will be okay,” Aerith said soothingly
   1.576 +to Selphie. Smiling, the flower girl brushed some of Selphie's tears
   1.577 +away before placing her hands over Quistis. White blue light flashed
   1.578 +around the blonde girl, spreading through her. Quistis blinked
   1.579 +weakly, gazing up. 
   1.580 +
   1.581 +Selphie broke down, holding onto Quistis as tightly as she could.
   1.582 +“Quisty!!” She cried against the blonde girl, her trembling fingers
   1.583 +clenching onto the torn fabric of Quistis's dress. 
   1.584 +
   1.585 +Quistis held her as well as she could. Her entire body felt so weak.
   1.586 +But the pain was gone. She was alive. Somehow. She closed her eyes,
   1.587 +feeling Selphie's arms around her. “That isn't like you, Kairi,” a
   1.588 +voice said behind her. Kairi turned to see Riku leaning against a
   1.589 +tree, his arms crossed. His head was lowered and his eyes were
   1.590 +closed. “You can't keep blaming yourself. You have to follow your
   1.591 +heart. Wherever that leads you. Sometimes that doesn't turn out the
   1.592 +way you want it to. But what matters is that you try. That you follow
   1.593 +it through to the end.” He looked up, opening his eyes. “Yes, bad
   1.594 +things happened. Yes, people are getting hurt. But you're trying to
   1.595 +stop that. There's no blame there, Kairi. Yes, this starts with you.
   1.596 +But you aren't at fault for that.”
   1.597 +
   1.598 +Kairi nodded slightly, feeling a little better. “Yeah... You're
   1.599 +right. Thanks, Riku.” She smiled up at him, blinking her tear filled
   1.600 +eyes. She knew he was far away. But he was still right there with
   1.601 +her. “Just like I couldn't blame you for anything that happened when
   1.602 +you were working with the Heartless. Because you were just following
   1.603 +your heart. Trying to save me.”Riku smiled, walking up to Kairi. He
   1.604 +brushed her cheek with the back of his gloved hand. “Just follow your
   1.605 +heart, Kairi. Always follow your heart.” Closing her eyes, Kairi
   1.606 +could almost feel his gloved fingers on his cheek. Slowly, the
   1.607 +feeling faded away. Opening her eyes took a long time. She knew he
   1.608 +wouldn't be there when she looked again. Sure enough, he was gone.
   1.609 +But that was all right. She placed her hand on her cheek where his
   1.610 +hand had rested. He was right. She couldn't keep blaming herself. She
   1.611 +had to go and stop it. 
   1.612 +
   1.613 +“If you're looking for the Keyhole, I know where she is,” a voice
   1.614 +said near the trees.Kairi spotted the cloaked, blindfolded boy
   1.615 +seemingly watching her. Nodding, she gripped her Keyblade and
   1.616 +followed him. Fighting against Seymour wouldn't stop Sin from
   1.617 +destroying everything. And she couldn't help those fighting him as it
   1.618 +is. But she could stop Sin before it was too late. A hand grabbed
   1.619 +Kairi's shoulder before she could fade away from the group and follow
   1.620 +the boy. “I'm going with you. You might need help. If anything
   1.621 +happens, I can handle it.” Yuffie winked at her. 
   1.622 +
   1.623 +“I'm going, too, then,” Relm added, stepping up behind
   1.624 +Yuffie.Smiling, Kairi nodded. “Thanks, you two. I appreciate it.”
   1.625 +Looking back at the boy, she began to follow him. There wasn't much
   1.626 +time left.
   1.627 +
   1.628 +~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
   1.629 +
   1.630 +The cloaked boy led the way to Riku and Sora's secret place. Even
   1.631 +amidst the chaos, it had escaped unscathed. Memories flooded back to
   1.632 +Kairi as she looked around the cave. She smiled faintly at the
   1.633 +pictures Sora and Riku had drawn on the walls, some of them of her.
   1.634 +There. Near the strange doorway at the end of the cave that shouldn't
   1.635 +be there. Yuna stood there along with Rikku.
   1.636 +
   1.637 +“Rikku!” Surprise took Yuffie off guard as she saw her younger
   1.638 +sister at the back of the cave. So she was alive after all. Yuffie
   1.639 +had thought she'd run off when Rikku had been changed into a kitten.
   1.640 +And then when they'd found out she was the kitten on Opassa beach,
   1.641 +they'd been scattered to different worlds. “You're okay!” Yuffie
   1.642 +hadn't realized just how worried she'd been about her sister's fate
   1.643 +until now. She ran to the catgirl, trying to make sure she was okay.
   1.644 +She'd always been there to protect the younger girl before. Now she
   1.645 +was worried about what might have happened while she'd been away.
   1.646 +“Yuffie!” Rikku clutched onto the ninja girl, her heart lifting. Her
   1.647 +big sister was here. Everything would be fine now. They'd fix
   1.648 +whatever was going on. Yuna would be just fine and they'd be able to
   1.649 +go see all the many worlds out there together. Relm stayed back at
   1.650 +the sisterly reunion. It was nice to see Yuffie as obviously happy as
   1.651 +she was right now. The ninja usually hid behind her sarcasm and
   1.652 +bravado. Seeing this was beautiful to the artist.Kairi looked at Yuna
   1.653 +and then back at the hooded boy. The boy nodded. Kairi shook her
   1.654 +head, her heart slipping. “No. I can't.” Up till now, she hadn't
   1.655 +known any of the Keyholes. Kuja and Kefka had tried to hurt her.
   1.656 +Ultimecia had tried to trap her in a dreamworld. This was her friend.
   1.657 +How could she unlock the Keyhole in her heart if it meant she would
   1.658 +die? Yuna was one of the sweetest girls she knew, always trying to
   1.659 +help the other islanders. Could such a quiet, helpful girl really be
   1.660 +the Keyhole? The reason that Sin was here? Taking a step forward,
   1.661 +Kairi's mind spun as it tried to find an answer. She had to unlock
   1.662 +the Keyhole. But she couldn't hurt Yuna. “Yuna, you have to stop
   1.663 +this. You can't destory the Destiny Islands.”Shaking her head, Yuna
   1.664 +watched Kairi approach. “I have to. I can't stop now. Kairi, don't
   1.665 +you miss them? Riku and Sora? You've gone through so much pain and
   1.666 +hardship. Don't you understand? I can end that. Right now. I can save
   1.667 +everyone.” Her eyes lit up beautifully. “I can stop all of the
   1.668 +suffering. Once and for all. We can all be together with the ones we
   1.669 +love.”
   1.670 +
   1.671 +“Even if we're far apart, we're always together. They're still with
   1.672 +me even now.” Kairi shook her head. “I know everyone suffers. But I
   1.673 +think there's more than that. It isn't all pain. It isn't all
   1.674 +suffering. There are beautiful moments, too. No matter how bad things
   1.675 +are, there are still shining lights here and there if you know where
   1.676 +to find them.” 'Like my mother. Even if I was lonely in my other
   1.677 +life, I still had my mother.' 
   1.678 +
   1.679 +Swallowing, Yuna fought back the tears that glistened in her eyes.
   1.680 +“I know that. But everything you hold dear is eventually taken from
   1.681 +you. Everyone you love will one day die. Everything that matters will
   1.682 +wither.” “But that's life. Life is pain. But life is love. Life is
   1.683 +fleeting. But it's darness and light. Together. And if it hurts,
   1.684 +we'll appreciate the things we love even more when we can be with
   1.685 +them again when it's over,” Kairi pleaded. 'Don't make me face you,
   1.686 +Yuna. I don't want to hurt anyone else. Please.'Yuna shook her head,
   1.687 +closing her eyes tightly. “You of all people should understand,
   1.688 +Kairi. You understood about giving up your life so that you could be
   1.689 +free. You escaped. I'm just trying to give everyone that
   1.690 +freedom.”“But that's the problem! I couldn't completely give up on my
   1.691 +life, no matter how much I tried. That's why the Heartless are here.
   1.692 +That's why I'm still stuck between worlds. Some people aren't ready
   1.693 +to give up their lives yet. Some people have more they want to do
   1.694 +before they move on,” Kairi explained, almost to Yuna. Rikku stood
   1.695 +with Yuffie, watching the two of them. The hooded boy was behind her
   1.696 +while Relm waited near the entrance to the cave. “What about the
   1.697 +people who weren't asked if they were ready?! What about the people
   1.698 +who had so much more to do but never got to? What about those of us
   1.699 +forced to live who never wanted to face that pain and suffering in
   1.700 +everyone's heart?” Shaking, Yuna's tears fell down to her feet. Pain
   1.701 +and loss and confusion cut at her heart like a rabid beast. “Yunie,
   1.702 +please. We can work this out. I'll be with you. No matter what. I'll
   1.703 +be there with you. We can handle whatever pain there is. I promise.”
   1.704 +Rikku pulled away from Yuffie, stepping towards Yuna. “I love you.
   1.705 +I'll always be with you.” Yuffie watched, her surprise growing. Her
   1.706 +little sister had fallen in love while she was gone? With this girl
   1.707 +who was trying to end everything? Now what was she supposed to
   1.708 +do?“I'm sorry, Rikku. I have to. I was the one who called Sin all
   1.709 +along. I just didn't understand. But Sin came to end all of this pain
   1.710 +and suffering. I have to save everyone. I don't want anyone to ever
   1.711 +hurt again. If we keep living, I might lose you. One of us might die.
   1.712 +Any number of things could happen. But it won't get the chance. I
   1.713 +love you, too. I won't let anything take you away from me. I won't
   1.714 +let this world hurt either of us. Any of us. Ever again.” The cave
   1.715 +shook as Sin crashed along the island, its inhuman howl reaching them
   1.716 +even in the depths of the cave. “Life will end. We'll finally be
   1.717 +free.” She smiled as she reached the door behind her, pulling it
   1.718 +open. Darkness spilled out from beyond the doorway. “With the doorway
   1.719 +open, Sin can read all the worlds. It can break the chains of life.”
   1.720 +The caves shook harder, sending most of them sprawling. Sin was
   1.721 +coming.“No!!” Kairi cried out. They were running out of time. Sin now
   1.722 +had what it wanted. A way out. A way to get to everything. A way to
   1.723 +kill all existence. Kairi lunged forward right as Yuna turned. The
   1.724 +Keyblade plunged deep into her chest. For the time being, Kairi had
   1.725 +to force her doubts away. But that was made nearly impossible by the
   1.726 +way Yuna looked back at her, serene. The blue and green eyed girl was
   1.727 +happy, unafraid of what was to come. 'You of all people should
   1.728 +understand, Kairi,' her voice whispered in the princess's head. Kairi
   1.729 +hesitated. There wasn't time. “I'm so sorry...” she got out before
   1.730 +turning the Keyblade. The shaking stopped immediately. Light flooded
   1.731 +the cave as the Keyhole was unlocked.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 
   1.732 +
   1.733 +She was everywhere and she was nowhere. Who was she? Kairi. Or was
   1.734 +it Hikari? A princess. Or was she an island girl? Or maybe a lonely
   1.735 +student living with her mother? She was all of these things. And she
   1.736 +was none of these things. There was brilliant light. And there was
   1.737 +endless darkness. They swirled and mixed and carressed in an endless
   1.738 +dance. 
   1.739 +
   1.740 +“You have unlocked the light in the heart of Suffering,” the
   1.741 +everpresent voice said. It sounded so very familiar. She couldn't
   1.742 +quite place it or where it was coming from. 
   1.743 +“Life is filled with so much pain. The one's you love are taken from
   1.744 +you so very quickly. In death, there is freedom. There is an end to
   1.745 +pain. I only wanted to end everyone's suffering. I wanted to save
   1.746 +everyone. I wanted that pain that always lives in your heart to
   1.747 +finally disappear forever. I wanted to be with my father again.
   1.748 +And... I fell in love with Rikku. But I was so scared that I would
   1.749 +lose her just like I lost my father. But now, I guess I'll finally
   1.750 +escape the pain of life. Now I'm finally free. I'll wait for Rikku as
   1.751 +long as it takes. I'll finally see my father again. Thank you, Kairi.
   1.752 +I hope you find what you're looking for.”Kairi would have closed her
   1.753 +eyes if she had eyes to close in this world of light and darkness.
   1.754 +She would have swallowed back the pain in her heart if she could only
   1.755 +swallow. But the emotions, the pain and the sorrow, were acutely
   1.756 +real. “I hope so, too. I'm sorry, Yuna. I'm so sorry.” 
   1.757 +As Yuna's heart departed to join the Lifestream, the Farplane, Kairi
   1.758 +was left behind by the light, like an unwanted child. It disappeared,
   1.759 +leaving her feeling cold and out of place in the small, dark cave. 
   1.760 +“Where's Yunie?” Rikku asked, horrified to see only Kairi return
   1.761 +from the light. “What happened to Yunie?” She glanced at the other
   1.762 +faces, finally stopping on her sister's. Yuffie couldn't meet her
   1.763 +gaze. Cold realization crept through her, nearly stopping her heart.
   1.764 +“So... Yunie... Yunie is...” She couldn't get herself to say it.
   1.765 +Tears splashed down her cheeks, her body going cold. Yuna was gone.
   1.766 +She had failed to protect her. All her promises had been for naught.
   1.767 +“Why!? Why did she have to die? I met her, I promised I'd keep her
   1.768 +safe always, and she had to die for that?” Her body shook, her vision
   1.769 +blurring as tears fell faster than she could blink them away. Her
   1.770 +eyes locked on Kairi. “You killed her! She wanted to save everyone
   1.771 +and you killed her! She only wanted to make everyone happy!” 
   1.772 +
   1.773 +Kairi looked away from Rikku, ashamed. Yuffie said nothing. What
   1.774 +could she possibly say to help her sister? The girl she loved was
   1.775 +dead now. And there was nothing she could do. Rikku's heart
   1.776 +shattered. She didn't even have a body to hold. It was as if Yuna had
   1.777 +never been. She would never get to see that smile again. She would
   1.778 +never be able to hear her giggle, to feel her lips. It was all gone,
   1.779 +as quickly as the wind. And that girl, the girl who had helped her as
   1.780 +a kitten, she was the cause of it. If it weren't for her, she'd be
   1.781 +with Yuna now. By a cruel twist of fate, Rikku had shown up first on
   1.782 +the island and had fallen in love with the beautiful brunette. But
   1.783 +almost as if she were a harbinger of fate, the girl she had travelled
   1.784 +with, the Keyblade Mistress had followed her. Kairi had shown up and
   1.785 +taked away Rikku's most precious treasure. She had taken away
   1.786 +everything. Firey rage and ice cold sorrow tore at her mangled heart,
   1.787 +shredding it into bloody pieces. 'I'll protect you, Yunie. I'll
   1.788 +always be with you,' she had promised. And she had failed. All
   1.789 +because of her. 
   1.790 +
   1.791 +Rikku ran forward, moving with tremendous speed. Her fist raised
   1.792 +into the air, the razor sharp blades on her glove glinting in the dim
   1.793 +light. Kairi stared in shock, her lavender eyes wide as she realized
   1.794 +she was going to die. Yuffie could only watch, too stunned by the
   1.795 +suddenness of it all to leap to anyone's aid. Kairi would die. Rikku
   1.796 +may have failed to save Yuna, but she would take revenge for her
   1.797 +death. 
   1.798 +
   1.799 +And with a flash of steel, it was done. Kairi shook, her heart
   1.800 +pounding in her chest. Her vision still burned with images of bared
   1.801 +fangs, a glint of blades, and hatefilled eyes. She had broken Rikku,
   1.802 +stolen the one thing most important to her. And in return, she was to
   1.803 +forfeit her life. But that hadn't happened. At least, she didn't
   1.804 +think so. So what had happened. She looked around, finally spotting
   1.805 +Rikku on the floor in front of her. Blood lay in a pool around her.
   1.806 +The catgirl was dead. The cloaked boy had jumped in the way, stabbing
   1.807 +Rikku before she could reach Kairi. And now she was dead. Kairi's
   1.808 +knees gave out and she stumbled back, away from the body. “Rikku!!”
   1.809 +Yuffie screamed, running to Rikku's side. But it was too late.
   1.810 +Turning the catgirl over, Rikku looked blankly up at the roof with
   1.811 +dim green eyes. The light in them was gone. She didn't move an inch.
   1.812 +“Rikku...” It hardly seemed fair. How could her little sister die
   1.813 +like that? How could she have let this happen? How could her sister
   1.814 +die in her quest for Kingdom Hearts? But she was. The girl she had
   1.815 +practically raised since they were both little. The girl who had
   1.816 +always looked up to her. And now she was gone. Yuffie cradled her
   1.817 +body, crying against the blood soaked fur. Darkness and light
   1.818 +continued their dance, as another casualty lay senselessly on the
   1.819 +floor. In a way, Kairi had been responsible for both deaths. And yet,
   1.820 +was there another way? You didn't get second chances. You couldn't go
   1.821 +back and redo things until you did them right. Things merely fell as
   1.822 +they may in front of you. And because of her, both girls were now
   1.823 +dead. Yuffie held onto Rikku, torn and crying. Relm could only try to
   1.824 +offer what support she could. A hand rested on her shoulder. She
   1.825 +turned to see Sora looking at her sympathetically. 
   1.826 +
   1.827 +“It'll be okay, Kairi. Somehow,” he said, squeezing her shoulder. He
   1.828 +faded as she got to her feet. 
   1.829 +“You're running out of time. You have to hurry,” the cloaked boy
   1.830 +said, pointing towards the doorway leading into darkness. 
   1.831 +
   1.832 +Kairi nodded. She had come this far. She couldn't give up now. She
   1.833 +owed it to the people who had died, to those who still wanted to
   1.834 +live. Taking one last look at Yuffie and Relm, she started for the
   1.835 +door. She had hurt enough people. She didn't want anyone else to get
   1.836 +hurt because of her. This was her fight. She would finish it on her
   1.837 +own.
   1.838 +