Fast Food Madness: The Epic Return

Sora nodded once in response. "Sure." He was thankful the spell seemed to have an effect--since it didn't work on Earth, he had no reason to practice it and keep it strong. He was sure in the future he would be using it a lot, though. Hopefully not too much, though, since it was never a good thing for him or his friends to be wounded or tired in battle.

 

Roxas glanced at Riku's face, only to notice that he was giving them a certain look. He seemed to just be staring at them, absorbing their presence. By the expression he wore, Roxas wasn't sure if Riku was happy or upset about it.

Riku stuck Way to Dawn into the ground, leaning against it. "Now, how about you two tell me exactly what you're doing here?" he suggested, arching an eyebrow at both of them. He was surprised to see them, but he couldn't decide whether it was a good or bad surprise.

 

Sora's Keyblade disappeared once the question was spoken. He brought back that hand and ran it over the back of his head. "That's a bit...complicated...." he started slowly, eyebrows furrowed slightly. He knew Riku wasn't going to be happy to hear that the King had sent them, because the whole point of him traveling the worlds was doing the work so that Sora and Roxas could live normal lives. Obviously, though, things had changed.

 

Riku stared at Sora, his eyes narrowing slightly. "Complicated, huh?" He smirked slightly. "I know all about complicated, Sora. That shouldn't come as any surprise to you--either of you, actually." Riku casted Roxas a glance with his aquamarine eyes before they fell back on his best friend a few yards away.

Roxas furrowed his eyebrows somewhat, a little confused. But he let Riku's words go for the time being, mainly focusing on the question Riku had asked them both. Considering this was Sora's longtime best friend, the blond decided he would let him do the explaining; he might not freak out as much on Sora. Maybe.

 

Sora arched a brow in confusion. What in the world was Riku saying? "Care to elaborate on that?" he asked cautiously, his voice showing some of his uncertainty on the subject. He was sure Riku had gone through a lot while traveling on his own...was he referring to that?

 

Riku stared at Sora. "I guess you forgot about what happened to me last time," he started. "Darkness. That should sum it up enough for you." It was hard to forget anything along those lines; that was an experience he would probably never get rid of, even if he was on the path to dawn nowadays.

Roxas heard that Riku had gone through the struggle with darkness. Sora, Kairi, and Namine had explained it to him since he didn't remember much but Twilight Town and the time he fought with Sora in The World That Never Was.

 

"Er...Right." Sora ran his hand over the back of his spiky hair again, his eyes wandering down to the ground for a moment. He shouldn't have asked that question. "...We heard there were too many Heartless for one person to take care of alone, so...here we are." He chose his words carefully, aware that Riku sometimes had a temper.

 

Riku stared at Sora incredulously. "What?" he said. His eyebrows furrowed behind his silver bangs, the words catching him slightly off guard. "How did you hear that?" Riku was interested in hearing how exactly Sora and Roxas were even aware of what was going on and where he was.

Roxas scratched the side of his head. He didn't know Riku all that well, but he seemed like he was one who had a short fuse; it was kind of already showing, Roxas noticed. That was why he let Sora continue talking, already having a strange feeling when he was around Riku.

 

"Uh..." Here comes the truth, Sora thought, bracing himself for Riku's reaction. "...The King told us." He left it at that for now, waiting to see exactly how Riku would take the news. Something told him that this wouldn't go over too well with him.

 

"The King?" Riku repeated, his eyebrows still furrowed. King Mickey told them they needed to assist him? Didn't he believe Riku when he told him he could handle it on his own?

Roxas's hands were in light fists by his sides, the blond boy watching Riku. He seemed very still, as if frozen by the name. Roxas knew enough about Riku's relationship with the King to know that it was stronger than the King's relationship with Sora. That must have had an effect.

 

"...Yeah," Sora said, nodding slightly. It seemed like Riku didn't take that well, but at least he wasn't enraged. Not yet, anyway. Of course the King had only sent him and Roxas because he was concerned about Riku, not doubting his strength or willpower in any way.

 

Riku straightened up and summoned Way to Dawn away. "I told him I was fine," he said, his tone low as he stared across the sandy area at Sora. Apart from today, he had been fine so far. This was the second time he visited Agrabah and it was only this time that things had actually been that difficult for him.

Roxas glanced at Sora for a second, sensing that this hadn't been a good thing to tell Riku. Of course, they couldn't lie; they had to tell--well, Sora had to tell--Riku how they really found out. But it appeared that Riku wasn't very happy about it.

 

Sora furrowed his brows slightly at Riku's defensive tone. "He was concerned that the Heartless were growing stronger," he informed his friend. He didn't want you to get hurt, he added mentally. The King and Riku were good friends, so it was natural that he would send help for Riku before things got too bad.

 

Riku frowned slightly. "He told me that the last time I saw him," he said. "I told him that I also gained more strength from fighting them. That it would be a fair fight." He crossed his arms. "Guess he didn't trust my judgment..." Riku couldn't deny that he was mad about this. Not only did he feel doubted, but it was unfair to Sora and Roxas; they were fine back on Earth, away from all this trouble.

 

"Riku, it's nothing like that," Sora said, blinking at the tone of disappointment and anger Riku spoke with. "He just figured there was strength in numbers. That's what you always used to teach me when you trained me, right?" Back on the days on the beach when he and Riku fought battles, the silver-haired teen had acted as a mentor, always telling him important points for battle.

 

Riku didn't say anything, his eyes lowering to the sand beneath his feet. Yeah, he taught him that. But sometimes that backfired, especially when you wanted to prevent others from dealing with the burden, even when it did provide the best protection.

Roxas felt a little out of place in this conversation, but he stood where he was, knowing that soon he would have to contribute to the explanation. He had a feeling he would, anyway.

 

Sora nodded at Riku's silence, knowing that the teen had a better understanding of things now. "There you have it, then," he said quietly. He and Roxas would go along with him and help deal with this problem. In the long run, it would be what was best for the worlds and for Riku. There really was strength in numbers, after all.

 

Riku looked up, giving Sora a look. "You think I'm just going to accept that you two are here, just like that?" he asked, bewildered as he turned his head to gaze at Roxas too. There was a reason he took the job, and it was to avoid that these two would actually be where they were now.

 

Sora lifted his shoulders slightly in a shrug. "You don't have much of a choice," he stated simply. He and Roxas were going to help Riku, whether he liked it or not. With the three of them working together, maybe they could get rid of more Heartless in a much shorter time than if Riku went alone and he and Roxas did their own thing.

 

"I did, and the King went against it," Riku said sternly. He uncrossed his arms, his hands coming to his sides. "There's a reason I made that choice, and I'm sticking to it. If you think that I'm allowing this to happen, you're wrong. You know me better than that, Sora." He stared at him for a second and then at Roxas before he turned on his feet and started toward the archway that led out of the Palace Gates area. "Go home."

Roxas instanly took a few steps forward, his eyes widening when he saw that Riku was leaving. He was just going to walk away from them? Just like that?