A friend and I have been doing a RP for a while now, and it has been scattered across several threads on two different sites. It started as a group story (about fast food of all things ) but then it transformed into something else entirely.

 

We request that nobody join in this RP or post anything on this thread; if you wanna say how awesome we are, message us some other way.

 

Um...You're free to read this for fun if you want to, but this thread has major Birth By Sleep spoilers. And since we've been doing this for a while, we will probably refer to things we've done in the past and you will have no idea what we're talking about. So if you want to save yourself from confusion, then you probably wanna stay away. If not, hey, whatever.

 

The plot was discussed and posted on another website, but here's a quick summary of the whole thing: It's the return of Xehanort.

 

Characters:

Peanut: Sora, Namine, Leon, Aerith, King Mickey, Terra, Ventus, Xehanort, etc.

Forever Love: Riku, Kairi, Roxas, Yuffie, Aqua, Vanitus, Tron, etc.

 

I believe I've said everything that needs to be said...Forever Love, let's get this show on the road, eh?

Riku hummed slightly, his smile remaining as he closed his eyes again. If that was the case, he would rest for a little while longer. He doubted he would go back to sleep, but relaxing was nice, for once. It was hard to find peace in Valhalla.

Light's small smile lingered at Riku's hum, which was obviously a drowsy one. "And good morning," she added to her previous statement. She probably should have said that first, but she'd blame it on both her grogginess and her lack of social skills lately. Whether she was Lightning or Rose, her social skills were still a bit...awkward.

"'Morning," Riku murmured, continuing to run his thumb over Lightning's soft hair. He just wanted to relax for a little while, but he knew he and Lightning didn't have long. Whether she returned to being Rose or Serah and Noel woke up, reality would hit them soon enough. They had work to do today.

Lightning kept her eyes shut as her smile began to fade away. Riku could rest up some more; she'd start brainstorming. She didn't get much done last night, but she at least reached the conclusion that Noel and Serah were meant to do something together. She had wanted Serah out of the fight, but...it seemed like she was sucked into it. The least Lightning could do now was make sure that she was protected. Maybe they could stop Caius somewhere in the timeline. It was worth a shot, right? He would start going for innocent people if Lightning didn't give him what he wanted soon...

Riku let himself rest in silence for the next few minutes, his mind wandering away from peace when he remembered all of the stuff that needed to be done soon. Figuring out what to do now that Noel was here, thinking of how to get rid of Caius, and then there was training Riku had to worry about. How was he even going to do that? Xehanort was inside Terra's heart; learning to extract the heart was impossible now, not that Riku would ever go to Master Xehanort for help in the first place. Would Master Yen Sid know?

A few minutes later, Serah entered the living room and saw the two on the couch. She smiled softly at the sight of it, unaware that Lightning was awake since she had her eyes shut. But seeing Riku stroking her hair alerted Serah to the fact that he was awake. "Good morning," she called quietly to at least Riku.

Riku turned his head, looking over his shoulder a little. His smile returned, faint as he gazed at Serah. "'Morning," he called lowly, even if Lightning was awake. He wasn't surprised to see Serah up so early, but he guessed Noel was still out. Or he was slowly coming to. Whichever.

Serah blinked in surprise, seeing Lightning open her eyes and look over at her. The reason she was surprised was that Lightning was herself right now, and appeared to have been that way when she and Riku fell asleep last night. That was a really good sign that she was still in Riku's arms, and holding him back. "I shouldn't be surprised that you two are awake," she stated, though her voice was still soft. In a place like Valhalla, sometimes it just felt natural to speak softly.

"We rise at dawn," Riku said with a faint nod, his hand moving from Lightning's hair to her back. He was always up at dawn, which was one of the many ways it was symbolic in his life. He didn't want to face the day, but it couldn't be helped. He knew it was time to get up when he saw Noel approach from the hall, who stopped next to Serah.

 

Noel lifted a hand to the back of his head upon seeing the two on the couch, the young man lifting an eyebrow. "Are we interrupting?" he asked. Lightning and Riku were looking quite comfortable, and cozy.

Lightning moved a hand to Riku's chest rather than having it rest on his back as she slowly began to sit up. Not that she had much room to move. "No," she said to Noel and Serah. "You're just in time. I think I have a game plan." She herself wasn't a huge fan of it, but oh well. It was their only hope.

Riku lifted an eyebrow at that, and once Lightning was sitting up, he moved as well. He changed their positions so he was on the couch as well, next to her. He waited for Lightning to explain, sitting silently in patience. What did she have in mind?

Lightning lowered her feet to the ground, though her side was against Riku's while they were sitting up. She wanted him to know that she was still herself, even while being a tactition. "Noel," she started, looking at the brunet. "I trust you're capable in battle." If he wasn't, then her whole plan basically failed. Serah was good, but she was still a rookie.

Noel nodded, expression showing his concentration. He knew Lightning was a strategist; that much he could tell by just looking at her and seeing the way she fought. So what did she have in mind for him? He was a hunter, after all; of course he was capable in battle. He wouldn't have survived to today if he wasn't.

"Today we're going to look for a gate," Lightning declared to everyone in the room. "Noel and Serah, I want the two of you to use gates scattered across the timeline to go to periods where Caius is there. Try to find the time period where he gains the heart of Etro and prevent it from happening. Or try to stop him in other ways. I'll trust your judgment." She really had no choice in the matter. She had to stay here and keep fighting him.

Noel knew that specific time, when Caius got the heart of Etro. It was after he killed Yeul's former Guardian and become one himself. "Got it," he said with a small nod. He wasn't attached to these people, not yet anyway, so he had no problem taking off. As for Serah, he wasn't really sure.

"I don't know if you two would be able to beat him," Lightning said bluntly to Serah and Noel. "So Riku's still going to go train. When he's ready, he'll return here and try to extract Caius's heart. It looks like that's the best bet we have right now, but feel free to prove me wrong." If they had a chance to stop him, then they needed to take it. End of discussion. Serah understood that and nodded softly in agreement.

"We haven't even figured out who I can get help from," Riku said, his side still against Lightning's as he looked to her. He wasn't going to wander the worlds looking while she was here fighting. It didn't work like that anymore; he wasn't leaving her. Surely she knew that.

"No, but there has to be somebody," Lightning said as she returned Riku's gaze. They talked about this before, didn't they? "With all the Keyblade wielders that exist in your time, at least one of them should be able to help you." It was a dark art, removing hearts from people. But it was their only choice in the matter. Their only hope of saving Etro from Caius.

Riku shrugged a little. "Point taken, but I don't know how long that could take. We don't exactly have all the time in the world," he pointed out. Caius would do anything to kill the Goddess, and one of the easiest solutions was Lightning. If she was ambushed and alone, Riku wasn't sure what would happen. He was scared, even if he knew how strong Lightning was--his Claire. He didn't want to lose her after just getting her back.

"All we can do is hope that time flows in our favor this time," Lightning thought aloud. "That you may be gone a month and only a day would have passed for me." It was possible, but unlikely. Caius had a hand in how time flowed. That was probably why Lightning was alone for an entire year when Riku and Serah weren't even away for a day.

"Or you could just come with me," Riku said, lifting his arm and setting it behind Lightning on the couch. He wasn't joking when he spoke, completely focused. Caius was after Lightning because she carried Etro's essence within her, so didn't that mean she was free to leave? She was protecting the Goddess with her body, like it was a vessel. If she left, it would take Caius a while to find her. It could buy them some time.

As much as Lightning wished that she could..."There'd be nobody here to fight Caius if I left," she reminded him quietly. Somebody had to stay and battle him. She just spent a year of her life doing that; she couldn't just up and leave. Could she? It seemed insane to consider the option now. If it had been possible for her to leave for a long time...

"I've been thinking about it," Riku declared, his eyes leaving Lightning as he focused on the conversation, the young man staring at a table in the room instead. "Caius is after you because Etro's essence rests within you, right? That means you're protecting her through your body, a lot like a vessel. If that's the case, you're free to go." Nothing was restricting Lightning here. She was serving the Goddess by protecting her with her body. She could do that a lot easier from someplace else.

Lightning blinked, recognition setting in. Before, she hadn't been free to leave because Etro's essence lingered in her throne. She had been protecting a physical object. Now she was just protecting herself, and she wasn't trapped in one place like the throne. "You're right..." she said, eyes changing at the realization that she didn't have to spend another day here alone. She could leave!

Riku smiled crookedly, nodding. "Which means you can leave," he announced. Lightning had been stuck here all along, without realizing she could leave Valhalla. But now that she knew, he assumed she would take the chance and take off.