Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction / Kingdom Hearts Fan Fiction ❯ Jenova's Children ❯ Avian ( Chapter 12 )

Jenova's Children

By Kawaii and Junsui

 

Chapter 12

Avian

 

If somebody had told you that the sweaty young man dressed in a pair of oversized, faded jeans and a dirty black tee-shirt laying belly-up in a field had once been a threat to the earth itself, you never would have believed them. Kadaj took a deep breath and squeezed his eyes shut, attempting to force out the sun that so ruthlessly beat down upon his body before he drew his arm across his forehead and sighed, his brow furrowing sadly.

So this was what it all came down to? Twelve-hour days of shoveling shit in the blazing sun on a chocobo ranch just for three meals and a barely decent bed. The young man silently wondered if that was going to be the rest of his life. Chances were, he'd probably end up marrying the farmer's young daughter, have a large family, and breed those God-awful birds until doomsday. And he'd forget all about Riku and his family.

Maybe this was what he got for being such a failure at life- this hell on Earth. It wasn't as if he didn't deserve it. All those people he killed… all the damage he caused… letting his brother down…

Suddenly, the sun beating down upon Kadaj's face was gone, relieving the pounding red beyond his closed eyes and soothing it to a dull pink. Either a chocobo was about to crap on him or he'd be caught slacking by the farmer.

“Kadaj?”

The silver-tressed young man's eyes snapped open, pupils sliding into small slits from the sudden change of light. Above him was Riku, the teenager's cat-like eyes glowing softly with shock; his head surrounded in a corona of aerate light. Kadaj heaved and angry sigh and shut his eyes.

“Go away Riku, you're dead.” He demanded, pointing an accusing finger towards his younger brother, brows furrowed in anger.

“Nii-san… I thought YOU were dead.” Riku said, dropping beside his elder brother. He propped Kadaj up as his cat-like orbs slid in and out of focus, “Kadaj? Are you okay?”

“No. I'm obviously hallucinating from the sun.” Grumbled Kadaj as beads of sweat rolled down his face. Maybe Riku really was there… but… but Riku was dead… if he was with Riku, then that meant…

“K-Kadaj? Kadaj?!”

Kadaj released a heavy breath and slid into cool darkness.

 

 

“I'm sorry if he's caused any trouble.” A smooth, dark voice said.

“No, not at all.” Another said, “He's been perfectly helpful… bit of a depressing boy, though…”

“If he's anything like him-“ Growled a third, gruff voice, “I wouldn't be thinking that he's been too helpful. Any chocobo get slaughtered out of the blue lately?”

“Cid! Quit comparing him to Sephiroth! He's different!” A younger voice snapped as a female one directly above Kadaj gasped in shock. This fourth, younger voice was familiar…

“Ri…ku?” Kadaj's lips moved slowly, the word weak and small.

“Oh! He's wakin' up!” The female voice said in slight shock, he felt the area below his head shift and supposed his head was lying on the girl's lap.

“Well don't just sit there!” The gruff voice snapped and there was a scraping noise from above.

“M-mister… what are you…?” The girl inquired slowly before she shrieked and Kadaj's head fell on hard wood as the girl leapt up. A kaleidoscope of blue and azure snapped open just in time to see a blonde man with goggles secured around his head turn a metal bucket upside down, and seconds later, Kadaj's head was immersed in icy water.

“HOLY FUCK!” The silver-tressed youth leapt up from the wooden bench he'd been resting on, shaking said silver tresses in a feral way, as if to rid of the water. He growled angrily, peering out at the blonde man from behind silver bangs plastered to his forehead with cold water before his arm shot out, grabbing Cid by the collar of his navy blue tee shirt, “Watch it, Jii-Jii.” The young man growled, using the Japanese slang for `Old Fart'.

“Well, you bounced back quick.” Riku sniggered softly; Kadaj let go of Cid's shirt and wheeled around to face his younger brother, his eyes still wide.

“Otouto…” He grumbled softly, his brow furrowed slightly, “So… I wasn't…”

“Why did you leave?” Riku interrupted. Kadaj's cat-like eyes met his brothers and he bit his lip, turning away.

“I… I thought you were dead.” Kadaj muttered in response, staring at the floor.

“Idiot.” Riku growled, pressing his palm to his temple as he looked up at the ceiling, rubbing his hand as if to relieve the tension in his head. He let his hand drop, glaring at his older brother, “So you just ASSUMED I was dead?! You didn't even think to check!”

Kadaj stared at Riku in dull shock before nodding slowly and averting his gaze to the hay-covered floor once more.

“Just don't do it again.” Kadaj's eyes snapped back up to Riku, whom was staring at him with soft, cat-like orbs. Kadaj grinned softly and reached out to embrace his little brother.

“Wait, Kadaj… you're all wet-“ It was too late, and the elder boy embraced his brother, smirking sadistically.

“Don't call me an idiot, douji” Kadaj grinned as Riku squirmed in his wet embrace.

 

 

“So, what've you been doing out here for the past three days?” Riku inquired as he followed Kadaj through the muggy farmhouse that smelt faintly of musty dung. The elder boy shrugged as he kicked a small pile of hay out of his path and walked over to a pen that housed a green chocobo. The bird cried out softly to Kadaj, whom reached out to pet its beak, staring into its beetle black orbs. Riku chuckled and Kadaj shot a glare over his shoulder at his sibling.

“What?” He snapped.

“I never knew you liked animals so much.” Riku said, a grin curling onto his lips.

“Keh!” Kadaj spat loudly, looking away from his brother quickly, but not so quick as to stop Riku from seeing the rosy hue that dusted his cheeks, “So what if I do?” He snapped, turning away from the chocobo and grabbing a small bucket off of the wall, he reached in and extracted a handful of orange berries, putting his palm out to the large, green bird, “Good boy, Day.” Kadaj gave the animal an extra pat on the head before falling into a pile of hay at the foot of the pen, “Animals don't judge you. That's why I like them so much.”

A warm smile appeared on Riku's face before he sat down next to his brother, golden sunlight streaming in from a high, open window onto his face. Riku studied the specks of dust from the hay that floated in the light and snatched one out of the air.

“Make a wish.” He whispered, pocketing the dust as the chocobo stuck its head down next to Kadaj and cooed lightly. Kadaj narrowed his eyes in concentration, petting the soft, green feathers on the bird.

“I wished. Let it go.”

Riku opened his fingers, and moments later, the dust floated out of them. The brothers followed the tiny speck as it floated through the aerate sunshine and eventually became lost with all the others.

“What did you wish?” Riku inquired softly as they sat in the warm sunlight. Kadaj closed his eyes.

“Hmph.” He said lightly, brushing a stray lock of silver hair from his face, “I can't tell you, or it won't come true.”

“Oh?” The younger brother turned to his sibling, his eyes half-lidded so that spheres of golden light rested on his silver lashes and danced in his eyes.

Kadaj was silent. Riku shrugged and reached up to scratch Day the chocobo on the head.

“I wished we could see our mother again.” Kadaj finally spoke up. Riku looked to him, his slight cheer melting.

“I see.” Said the silver-tressed youth softly, looking down at his feet. There was a slight pause in their conversation. The only thing that could be heard was the soft cooing on the chocobos and the chirp of crickets as they came alive in the twilight, “Tell me about Okaa-san.”

Kadaj flopped over to his side, twisting so that he could lye on his back. Silver tresses that he yearned to be raven once again fell over his once-hazel eyes, now a kaleidoscope of green and blue, “Haha-ue was very kind and she loved us so much.” He began softly, blinking his eyes slowly, “After you disappeared and Tou-san died, she showed me a different side. She was a very, very strong woman. She didn't hide the fact she was grieving from me, but we grieved together, but never in sadness- in hope. That's what made Haha-ue special. She told me not to be sad because you were both in a better place where you never had to feel pain again and that you wouldn't want us to be sad. Not only that, but she started her own business from scratch to support us. She would stay up as late as she could selling fruit on the streets… once I saw her take down a guy trying to mug her with her own bare hands.”

Riku chuckled to himself as the image of a young woman throwing a giant man over her head popped up in his mind's eye.

“She had fire, Haha-ue.” Kadaj flicked his green and blue orbs to Riku, “Fire that still burns on in you.”

Riku closed his eyes, trying to call up an image of the woman in his mind… that dream he'd had not long ago… a woman with raven hair and hazel-

The teen's blue and green orbs shot open, his pupils shrinking to slits as his hand shot to his pocket and he unearthed the picture of the young girl in combat boots.

“What's that?” Kadaj inquired, sitting up from the ground. A piece of straw stuck out awkwardly from his hair and Riku quickly brushed it away, holding the picture out for his elder brother to see.

“Reeve- a friend of Vincent- he found this picture under our family name. I don't know who this girl is, but-“ Riku began to explain, but Kadaj snatched the picture in a heartbeat, his own eyes wide.

“This is her.” He said breathlessly, “I remember. We had this picture on Dad's old desk! This is her!”

“It is?” Riku gasped, his eyes darting to the picture. He reached out to touch the young woman's face on the glossy paper. He noticed that her features were similar to his: a round face, messy hair that fell over her eyes, a ski-slope nose. Kadaj sniggered and Riku glanced to him.

“What?” He asked. His elder brother held the picture out next to Riku's face and smirked sadistically.

“If your hair was still black,” Kadaj began, “You'd look like a male version of her.” He quickly placed the photo on Riku's lap, “Not that there's much difference.”

“WHAT?” Riku growled, his eyes wide with anger, “What's that supposed to mean?!”

“It means, dear brother, that if you were a bit more curvy-“ Kadaj began with that cruel smirk of his. Riku's eyes flashed with malice as a grin spread on his face as well.

“Same goes for you Ka-Da-Chuu!” Riku taunted, feminizing his bother's name.

“NONI?!” Kadaj yelled loudly, his eyes growing in shock, “That's it!” He promptly pounced on his younger brother, pulling him into a half nelson on the hay-covered ground. All around them, the chocobos squawked loudly from the commotion and the last traces of the rich, golden sun died from the barn.

 

 

“Thank you for your hospitality.” Vincent bowed politely to the small family that owned the chocobo farm. Riku and Kadaj stood nearby, each leaning against the fence of a pen that held a bushel of bright-colored birds.

“Its no trouble at all, sir.” The farmer assured the red-clothed man with a smile. Riku rolled his eyes, knowing that Vincent had paid extra for the chocobos they were taking as well for the stay, “You take your time picking out your chocobos; you can have any of `em. I'm sure my daughter can help you pick out the best of `em, Emi?”

The young, tawny-tressed teenager poked her head out from behind her father and nodded, a pink hue tinting her cheeks before she stepped towards Vincent, stammering and blushing.

Riku and Kadaj exchanged looks before she lead them into the barn. “Um,” Emi began nervously, her eyes darting around the barn, “All of `em in here are pretty good. Take your pick. Onii-san,” Her eyes landed on Kadaj, “You know which ones are good, too… um…” Her eyes darted to Vincent and she blushed deeper, “I-I'll `jus letcha pick.” Vincent promptly stalked off and Emi seemed to relax a little; however, she did fidget a bit when Riku smiled warmly at her.

“Keh.” Kadaj grinned sadistically and sauntered over to the young teen. Emi squeaked and backed up into a wall, Kadaj put one hand above her head on said wall and leaned towards her, “What's the matter, douji?” He inquired huskily, “Never been surrounded by older men before?”

“Nii-san.” Riku snapped irritably as he led a blue chocobo with white tips out of its pen, “Lay off of her.”

Emi gave Riku a look that screamed, `THANK YOU' before she slipped under Kadaj's arm and scrambled away.

“Hmph. I'd lay to lay on her, if you want my opinion.” Kadaj smirking licking the upper corner of his mouth before Riku punched him in the arm.

“You letch.” He grumbled, tugging on the reigns of the chocobo. Kadaj made a face.

“First off, I was joking. Second off, I was gonna take October!” The elder boy growled, pointing towards the chocobo Riku had.

“Too bad, so sad.” Riku smirked triumphantly.

“Fine then, I'll just take-“ Kadaj began, and then his face showed sheer defeat, “Sabbath.”

Obviously, Vincent was leading the chocobo named Sabbath from its pen. It was an elegant creature with glossy black feathers and red eyes, its pale beak sharp and dangerous looking. Riku had been thinking about how ridiculous Vincent would look on a brightly colored chocobo, but this raven-like bird seemed to suit him perfectly.

“Are you ready to go?” He inquired the silver-tressed siblings. Riku glanced over his shoulder at Kadaj, sticking his tongue out at him.

“Shit!” Kadaj swore, stomping his foot like a child, “What other chocobo can I take?!”

“Well,” The three of them looked to Emi as she rounded a corner, smiling innocently, “You can always take Floyd.”

Kadaj's eyes grew wide, his pupils tiny slits, “No… No, no, no… No, no, no, no, no, no, no!”

“He's the last one left, unless you want a slow, fat one or an untrained one.” Emi beamed, leading the bright pink chocobo out from its pen. Kadaj made a noise as if to say something, but merely growled angrily in defeat. Riku suppressed laughter as Emi glanced up and winked at him, he had a feeling that there were a lot of other trained chocobos there.

Payback was, indeed, a bitch.

“Hey ya three! We ain't got all day!” Cid growled in his gruff voice as he stood in the doorway of the barn, resting up against the doorframe.

“Yeah, yeah, Jii-Jii, we're coming.” Kadaj growled, seizing Floyd's reigns before he stormed out of the barn.

“Goodbye, and thank you.” Vincent bowed his head politely towards Emi, whom beamed and bowed in reply, a bright red blush covering her face.

“See ya.” Riku grinned, pecking the girl on the cheek. Emi giggled, clapping her hands over her cheeks before Riku walked out of the barn.

The silver-tressed youth followed Kadaj (whom was still loudly muttering darkly about Floyd) across the large field towards a giant airship nestled within a small valley. It was larger than any Gummi ship Riku had seen, at least three times as long and twice as wide. There was little doubt that it was a custom built model of airship; a shining silver body with elegant red cursive lettering on the side which read “Helena”. The helm was entirely glass, with glass pieces running lengthways along the body, edged with a copper colored metal. There appeared to be at least two levels to the craft, with a whole other area for cargo and the engines. A temporary staircase had been set up as a docking station to the belly of the automobile, and a smaller ramp led to the dock into the back of the plane.

Once inside, Cid pulled a large lever, closing the hatch that lead to the storage area where the chocobo eggs were kept along with October, Sabbath, and Floyd. Dusting his hands off, the blonde gestured towards the trio and they began to follow him. Riku walked a few paces and stopped, glancing over his shoulder. Vincent stood behind him, still as a statue, staring with unblinking garnet orbs at the recently closed hatch.

“Everything okay?” The teen inquired. Vincent turned his head towards him.

“I just thought I saw something.” The man said in his dark voice and the two started towards the staircase that had recently descended from the cockpit of the airship.

 

 

The flight took about twelve hours and was relatively uneventful. Kadaj and Riku attempted to start conversations with Cid, but the man refused to talk about anything other than the mechanics of airships. Vincent hardly said anything, and took to reading his Marquis de Sade book instead. Riku explained to his elder brother what was in the book, and Kadaj instantly set out to steal it. After several failed attempts and receiving a large lump on the head, Kadaj eventually retired to playing card games with Riku.

“I. De. Clare. WAR!” The fourth card on either side of the playing field was flipped over. Kadaj swore vehemently and grumpily gathered the cards as Riku smirked in triumph.

“You bastard. You cheated, didn't you?” Kadaj growled at his brother, sending optic death rays at him from behind the sheet of silver tresses that fell over his eyes.

“You can't cheat at War, Kadaj. Its just a game of… luck!” Riku plucked a card out from the pile that had formed at Kadaj's hand and flipped it over towards his brother. The ace of hearts.

“Lying little shit!” Kadaj growled, and pounced on his little brother, yanking at his silver tresses mirthlessly.

“OW! Fuck, Kadaj!” Riku struggled against his elder brother, but Kadaj didn't let go of the clump of silver tresses he had in his hand.

“Admit it! You cheated!” The elder boy sneered, yanking Riku's hair. The younger brother howled in agony and glared at Kadaj.

“FINE! I cheated! Happy?” Riku admitted. Kadaj let go of his hair and Riku rubbed the sore spot on his head, but not before Kadaj seized a handful of his hair once more and yanked it harder than ever.

“You cheating little asshole!” The elder boy growled as Riku struggled and argued loudly.

“This is why I'm glad I don't have any siblings.” Vincent said as he glanced over the cover of Marquis de Sade at the two boys fighting on the floor.

“Damn straight.” Cid agreed with a small nod as he hit a few controls, “Quit `yer roughhousin' and get ready ya damn kids- we're landing.” The blonde called over his shoulder at the two boys.

“Fuckin' little cheat…” Kadaj grumbled darkly, finally releasing Riku's hair as they walked over to strap into their seats.

“Preparing for landing!” A heavily accented voice cried, and Cait Sith sprang forth from the back, the cat bounding up to Riku and landing on his lap. Kadaj eyed the cat from his seat and reached out to briefly scratch it behind the ear.

“Were the chocobos well behaved?” Riku inquired to the small droid, whom nodded proudly.

“Very much so!” Cait Sith replied as the ship lurched and began its descent.

The large aircraft landed in a vacant field full of dry brush, which flew out in a circle below the airship before it settled onto the ground, nestling into the tawny grass like an oversized bird. People from the small houses on the outskirts of the town flocked to watch in awe as the gargantuan machine settled and expelled one last, soft roar before it silenced. The crowd tensed as they waited in anticipation for the passengers to exit the airship. The hatch that lead from storage hissed and the every person hushed, wondering who would come out of such an extravagant machine. Would it be a band of rogue heroes attempting to stop the destruction of the world? A trio of young women whom would burst into song upon exiting the ship? A band of royals from another planet here to make them all rich?

Slowly, the hatch began to rise and the townsfolk stared wide-eyed at a silver-tressed teen seated upon a bright pink chocobo.

Kadaj's eyebrow ticked and he squeezed Floyd's reigns before sending an optic death ray towards the entire crowd, “Who did you expect?! The pope!?” The pink chocobo he was riding squawked loudly and flapped its wings before the people in the crowd began to drift back towards their homes.

Something black tipped with red jumped from the storage sector of the airship and Sabbath, the raven chocobo, landed gracefully on the ground, its beetle black orbs sparking lightly as it clicked softly.

Riku starred in awe at Vincent as he rode his own chocobo off of the loading ramp. He had expected any person to look ridiculous on a chocobo; but somehow, Vincent had managed to make it look awesome.

“We should get going, it's only a five minute ride into North Coral, but we're supposed to meet Barret for dinner in ten, and we should hurry if we want to be there on time.” Vincent explained to the two silver-tressed teens. Riku nodded earnestly, while Kadaj spat into the brush beside him. Vincent lightly kicked the sides of the black chocobo with his heels and the creature was off. Kadaj followed suit almost instantly, whilst Riku called thanks back to Cid as Cait Sith latched onto the silver-haired teen's shoulder.

“'Les get goin', Laddie! We don' wanna be left behind!” The small cat urged Riku, and within seconds, he was off.

Riku was surprised by the chocobo's speed and agility. It seemed to travel considerably faster than a car, with the added fact that traffic was no obstacle. The creature leapt over small rocks embedded in the brush and hunched over close to the ground to gain speed. Riku buried his face in the light blue feathers of the chocobo October, which were considerably soft and fluffy, and caused him to sneeze several times.

Several minutes later, Vincent (whom was at the head of the group and leading the way) pulled on the reigns of Sabbath and slowed the black chocobo to a halt, Kadaj quickly slowed Floyd, while Riku and Cait Sith on October paused behind them.

“We'll walk from here.” Vincent instructed in his dark voice, leaping from the large bird and beginning to lead it by the reigns. Riku slowly climbed off of October, sniggering under his breath as Kadaj struggled to dismount his own chocobo, whom was bucking and squawking hysterically. After swearing a blue streak, the elder teen peeled himself from the ground, brushing dirt from his black t-shirt.

“You say one word and I will fuck you over.” He snarled towards his younger brother, snatching Floyd's reigns and tugging on them violently. The pink bird gave an angry cry and pecked Kadaj on the back of the head. Kadaj swore loudly and spun around to flip the bird- literally. Floyd snapped its beak at Kadaj's middle finger before they continued into North Coral.

“Where are we meeting this Barret guy?” Riku inquired as he pulled October along the narrow streets.

“Don't worry, we'll find him.” Vincent explained calmly, “He said he's meet us somewhere around here and he's not exactly the type of person you'd mi-“

“VINNIE!!!”

Unfortunately, Vincent was never able to finish his statement, as he was cut off by a screaming ninja that dropped from the heavens and into a flying embrace. Vincent caught Yuffie and spun her around- not to be romantic, but to simply continue the momentum of her jump and not be crushed to the ground. Though he intended to set her down, the female ninja clung to him as if her life depended on it, nuzzling into his chest affectionately.

“Vinnie!” Yuffie cooed, batting her chocolate brown orbs affectionately, “I missed you so much!”

“Yuffie…” Vincent said, his voice that was usually so hard to track emotions through had a slight edge of frustration to it, “What are you doing here?”

“I've been following you since you were in Kalm, silly!” The girl grinned, finally dropping to the ground, “I thought you'd notice, especially when Cait Sith caught me in the storage of the airship.”

Vincent's garnet orbs shot to the small android. Any human being would have withered under his hellish optic death ray, but seeing as the cat was not even organic, it merely shrugged.

“You tol' me too look after the birds, not the Lassies!” The tuxedo cat said nonchalantly. Vincent's glare turned from optic death ray into a `you-are-so-fucked-the-second-I-get-you-alone-you-motherfucking-cat' glare.

“Woo…” Yuffie suddenly grasped Vincent shoulder as she teetered in place, “I shouldn't have jumped from so high right after I got off an airship… those things always make me si-“

Too late. Yuffie heaved up her guts all over the ground, Riku and Kadaj watching in silent horror. Vincent expelled an exasperated sigh and rubbed Yuffie's back as tremors racked her body and she finally ceased vomiting, gasping for air before wiping bile off of her mouth with her lower arm.

“You know, you could've found a trashcan or something…” Kadaj muttered, his eyes still wide with shock. Yuffie feebly flipped him off before Vincent scooped her up into his arms and she threw her arms around his neck.

“You are just like a child, you know that?” Vincent inquired. You are so dead. Read his eyes.

“I love you.” Yuffie cooed in her sweetest tone of voice, pecking him on the cheek.

“Well, if it isn't old Vincent Valentine and little Yuffie?” A loud voice boomed.

“Hi Barret!” Yuffie chirped as Kadaj and Riku slowly turned. If they had been in shock before, it was a surprise that the two of them didn't just turn into stone right then and there. A tall, dark man with a thick beard and hair pulled back into cornrows. He took a massive, metallic hand and clapped it onto Vincent's shoulder.

“I had a feeling you'd be taking her to bed one of these days. Good for you!” Barret grinned before removing his hand and playfully nudging Vincent in the side with his elbow. Yuffie giggled and blushed, while Vincent cleared his throat; however, Riku was sure he saw just the slightest bit of scarlet cross the man's face.

“'An these must be the kid you were tellin' me about!” Barret beamed, turning to Riku and Kadaj. His grin quickly faded as soon as he caught Kadaj's sulky expression and he wheeled around to face Vincent, “What the fuck kinda joke is this?!” He boomed so loudly that Riku almost had to cover his ears, “Why the hell should we help this little motherf-“

“Riku's the one seeking our assistance. He's the younger one.” Vincent explained calmly, “Kadaj is his brother.”

“Bullshit!” Barret cried, pointing an accusing finger towards Kadaj, whom scowled darkly, “All this little fuck wants is revenge for that rat bastard Sephiroth.” The tall, dark man spat the name with such distain that Riku could feel the hatred radiating off of it, and he shrunk backwards, fearing the wrath Barret, whom could easily snap him in two if he found out whom he was, “I ain't helping fuckin' no one even remotely associated with that dried up piece of sh-“

“Barret.” Vincent's voice was still as calm as ever, his eyes serene pools of garnet, “Do you honestly think I'd bring them here if I wasn't sure we were on the same side?”

Barret bit his lip and squeezed his hands so tightly into fists that Riku could hear the knuckles on his human hand pop loudly.

“Fuck it, fine.” The man growled, “But only `coz I'm in a good mood today.” He stared down at Kadaj menacingly with stormy eyes. The silver-tressed teen remained calm.

Riku almost fainted.

“So tell me how Marlene's doin'.” Riku stared out of the window of the small house built on the oil field property, watching the still silhouettes of the oil pumps in the silvery moonlight.

“She's really good.” Yuffie said as she cut herself a seventh slice of bread and stuffed it in her mouth. Vincent promptly removed it and set it down on the other side of the plate, scooting the bread away from her as she feebly reached for more. The ninja huffed and continued, “From what I heard from Tifa, she's doing wonderful in school and is making a lot of new friends-“
Riku tuned out Yuffie's chattering, pressing his shoulder up against the window from the plush window seat where he was perched. He yearned for the ivory moon's reflection in the lucid water surrounding Destiny Islands and the constant playfully bickering of Sora and Kairi to lull him into complete calm. He missed Selphie droning on about how he'd find true love one day and not to be jealous of his friends, he missed Wakka jabbering about blizball, and hell, he even missed whiny Tidus.

But… for some reason, this was all oddly comforting to him as well. Kadaj and Barrett darkly demanding to pass some sort of food to one another, Yuffie whining to Vincent about giving her bread, and the bizarre whirrs and humming that came from Cait Sith as he attempted to hook up to the internet. If he was back at the bar, he'd be soothed by the clinking of glasses and Tifa shouting out orders and such to Yazoo, Kadaj complaining about life in general, Loz and Marlene talking about the latest television show, and Denzel bragging about Cloud to… Cloud.

These were all things he was now accustomed to. Things that made him feel warm and at home. But… where did his heart lye? If he found his birthmother, would he stay here with her, in Gaia, or would he return to his own world, where Destiny Islands resided, to his old life and his old friends? To his lie?

There it was again, the dull pounding at the base of his eyes. Riku wiped away the small bit of moisture that mad began to accumulate in his eyes with the sleeve of his coat and let his head fall again the window, the cool glass soothing his frustrated thoughts.

Suddenly, something was shoved into his hand. Riku blinked and looked at the whine glass he now held, “Amaretto.” Vincent answered in one word, “Mixed with milk. It doesn't sound too appetizing, but trust me, it pays off.” He then stalked back to the table, leaving Riku to swirl the milky drink around in the glass and take a sip. The milk gave it a sweet edge, but the first thing to hit his mouth was the bitter alcohol and then the tang of the almonds. Riku drew his tongue across his lips and took a larger sip of the drink, blinking at it with curious blue-green eyes.

An hour later, Riku didn't have a care in the world.

Everything was a spinning mess and it seemed that the two worlds dancing around each other weren't going to stop and settle into one image any time soon.

“Hey… h-ey, Kadasch…” Riku staggered up to his elder brother and grasped his shoulder, “What-what did the elephant say to the tooth fairy in the bar?”

Kadaj blinked and helped to steady Riku as he swayed in place, leaning up against his elder brother.

“Riku, you're drunk.” Kadaj sighed grumpily.

“No…! No…! Lishen, Kadasch! They- the elephant said- you forgot your pantsch!” Riku doubled over in laughter, forcing Kadaj to grab him around the middle and prop him up.

“Let's get you some medicine so you don't get a hangover…” Kadaj muttered, beginning to drag his younger sibling towards the bedroom, however, Riku pushed all his weight on Kadaj, nearly causing the both of them to go tumbling down. The elder boy sighed with frustration and got down on his knees, his face dusted in a rosy hue, “Hop on, I'll carry you up.”

“YAY!” Riku cried, and nearly smashed Kadaj to the ground as he hopped onto his brother's back. Kadaj grunted with effort and began the long trek towards the bedroom, “Wooooah… Nii-shan… you can shee the whoooole world from up here… heheh… ishn't that neaaaaaat?”

“Wonderful, Riku.” Kadaj snorted sarcastically, his breath heaving, “Just fuckin' peachy…” Suddenly, the younger teen began to slip, laughing loudly.

“Kadasch-nii-shan! I'm falling! Like in… in… that one movie!” Kadaj re-adjusted his brother and continued to carry him towards the room.

“Jesus Jenova…” The silver-tressed teen growled, said silver tresses spilling over narrowed blue-green orbs, “You're freaking heavy… what have you been eating?”

“Bananash and… uhh… chicken an'- an' I had a looooooot of amaretto.” The teen numbered off drunkenly as Kadaj kicked open the door.

“Apparently.” Kadaj grumbled darkly, a vein throbbing at his temple as he deposited his brother on the bed, however, Riku held onto him and took Kadaj down with him, the elder boy expelling an angry cry.

“Riku! Come on, let go! This isn't-“ Kadaj protested as Riku held onto him tightly.

“Hey, Nii-shan… guess what?” Riku inquired softly. Kadaj ceased struggling and finally submitted.

“What?” He grumbled darkly. Riku grinned contently.

“I love you.” He whispered, and drifted off to sleep. Kadaj expelled a final sigh and reached up to pat his drunken, sleeping brother on the head.