As some of you may know, Peanut and I are crazy about Roleplaying, and it's clear, since this is the second one on this site that belongs to us. And we aren't even done with the first one! Regardless, that won't stop us from starting this new roleplay, Rude Awakening!

 

Kinda dark and mysterious title, eh?

 

As stated in the title, this RP is one on one, no exceptions. Please refrain from posting in the RP. Instead, follow us on this new journey!

 

Peanut, my amazing friend, let's begin!

Riku gazed up at the stars for a few more moments, silently vowing that he would try to save all of those worlds. But he couldn't do it without his friends. There was strength in numbers, after all, but they still needed to find all their Lights. Riku wanted to help, but he had to train Lightning still. Riku blinked at the realization. That was it... He would train Lightning from here on out. He needed her to get stronger, and he needed to get used to the look in her eyes when she fought. At this rate, he couldn't ignore it for much longer.

Lightning turned away from Riku, curling up on her side. When she had left training earlier, she had gone and looked in the mirror. The look in her eyes should have scared her, and deep down inside, it did. Her eyes looked dead. She expected that her eyes had that same expression now, and it made her sad. Maybe this wasn't such a good change to make.

Riku turned his head, looking over his shoulder at Lightning. She was facing away from him, but he could tell that she was upset too. Maybe the embrace just a minute ago was a sign he should have caught onto; she needed him. Maybe. It was better to find out than keep wondering. Riku started toward Lightning in silence, the room dim from the lack of light. But he could see her clearly. The year in Darkness did him well as far as sight went.

Lightning gazed at the wall with her dull eyes in silence, thinking over these thoughts of hers. Either she needed to be completely weak or completely strong. And it was obvious which one she was leaning towards. Being weak meant that others had to worry about her. Being strong meant nobody had to worry. And nobody would worry, because this strong side--this ruthless girl--would push everyone away.

Riku crawled onto the bed behind Lightning, staying on his hands and knees as he placed an arm over her. He tried to get a look at her face, and that was when he caught the lifeless look in her eyes again. He should have taken the hint a few minutes ago... Riku lowered his lips to Lightning's skin, kissing her cheek before he descended to her jaw. Cheer up, please...

Lightning realized one thing for sure--the type of strength her father and Master Yen Sid wanted from her would push Riku away. As he kissed her now, she thought upon how awful that would be. She meant what she said to her father the other day, how she believed she was destined to fall so Serah could rise, and there was no future for her. She genuinely believed that...until Riku. She didn't want to go back to how it was before him.

Riku placed a few more kisses along Lightning's face before he kissed the skin of her shoulder, then resting his chin there. "Light," he said softly. She looked upset, and she had every reason to be. She was dragged into this mess by her father, who was part of the Organization and after Riku and his friends. It was all connected, but it wasn't pleasant.

Light lifted a hand in response, gently setting it on the back of Riku's head. It was so obvious when he worried about her. He had done way too much of that lately. In fact, she doubted he ever stopped worrying about her since she was dragged into this mess. Finding out her father faked his death and killed her mother wasn't exactly easy to cope with.

"You okay, baby?" Riku asked, using the pet name for the first time. It just left his lips so naturally. He wasn't sure how to describe it other than that. He knew that Lightning was more than a friend to him now, especially after they kissed so much the past few days. It was obvious that they were together now, and because of that, Riku's protectiveness increased tenfold. He wanted to help her...

Light's eyes grew slightly at the pet name, one she thought would never be directed at her. Nevertheless, she kept her gaze on the wall and nodded faintly. She was okay in the sense that she was with Riku and surrounded by his warmth, but in every other sense of the word, she wasn't really okay. She was a mess inside.

Riku sighed, sitting back on his legs as he looked at Lightning. "You're lying," he told her lowly. He wasn't stupid, and he wasn't blind. He could see right through her sometimes, and right now was one of those moments.

Lightning kept her eyes on the wall rather than looking at Riku. "I'm not shutting you out," she said, knowing that was probably what he was thinking. "I'm just keeping it to myself." There was a difference. If she shut Riku out on purpose, it would have hurt him. Keeping it in, it would hurt herself. But she didn't care. A part of her believed she was destined to fall after all.

Riku moved over Lightning, laying down so he was in front of her and she had to look at him. "There may be a difference, but I don't see it," he said softly, eyebrows furrowing as he looked at the girl before him. "I'm here for you. If you want to talk, you know I'm here." He wouldn't leave her to suffer alone, ever. She knew that too.

Lightning's first instinct was to roll over to her other side to face away from Riku, but that would definitely be considered shutting him out. She bravely looked him head-on with her dull eyes. "Whether I want to talk or not, you'll probably force me to," she stated quietly. He wouldn't let this topic go easily.

"Only because I care, Light," Riku said in his defense. He didn't want Lightning to suffer, so he would be there to help carry whatever burden she had. Of course, that was if she let him. He couldn't really force her to do anything; it sometimes just felt like he was.

Lightning looked down towards his chest. "You might care too much," she said quietly. Maybe she was a hopeless case who wasn't worthy of Riku's investment. If she did fall into enemy hands, Riku would have been crushed. She didn't want him to fall apart because of her, even if she already knew she'd fall apart for him if he was in danger or hurt.

Riku shook his head, resting his head against the palm of his hand, his elbow propped up on the mattress. "Don't say that," he asked of Lightning quietly. He didn't like to hear things like that, especially when they weren't true. He cared for Lightning greatly, but it would never be too much. There was no such thing.

"He set me up for a specific purpose," Lightning said softly, looking back up at Riku's face. "What if I can't escape that?" The other day, she nearly got dragged into it when he threatened Riku. She was really surprised he wasn't angry at her early when he invaded this world. He should have been ticked that she escaped him and freed Riku. Or maybe he was proud of her for finally showing some backbone.

"You always have a choice," Riku replied softly, lifting one of his hands and grasping Lightning's. He intertwined their fingers, gazing at that. "He may have set you up to be one person, but you can prove him wrong. Use the strength he wanted you to have against him." It would be the best way to defy her father, and to prove to him that she was no one's slave. It was Lightning's choice with what she did for herself, not Cedric's. Not even Riku's or Master Yen Sid's. She decided her own path.

"It's either I follow his path or Master Yen Sid's," Lightning stated quietly, keeping her hand with Riku's as she gazed into his aqua eyes. "I just..." She glanced away. "I don't want you to get hurt." If it came down to torture again, and she had to give in to save him, she would. He wouldn't go through that pain for her again. But if she fought on his side in the war, she'd also get hurt. Probably die.

Riku lifted his eyes to Lightning instantly, eyebrows furrowing as he squeezed her hand. "Don't make this about me," he told her then. "Don't base your choices off of me. Do what you want and what's best for you, no one else." He was upset to hear that she was basing her decision off of whether he got hurt or not. There was no doubt in his mind that he would get hurt; it was impossible to escape a war without being injured. "If we have to find another Light, or Master Xehanort has to find another Darkness, so be it."

"It's not nearly that simple," Lightning said quietly. She wanted Riku safe because she cared about him. Deeply. There was no way that she would do what was best for herself physically and let him get hurt. What was best for her whole being was having Riku by her side. He had to have seen that...

"Easier said than done, I know," Riku said softly, agreeing to that. "But I don't want you to fight either. You know that." He wanted her home, where she was safe. At first, he thought that the Organization took Lightning because she was Riku's weakness, but she was more involved than he thought.

"I know," Lightning responded quietly. "...But I'm planning to anyway." She went to the training room earlier while he slept, not that he knew that. And she was much stronger than she had been previously. She would have killed Cedric if he had really been there. Seventeen year old Claire Farron would have been a murderer.

Riku frowned a little, not liking to hear her say such things. Lightning wasn't meant for this, at least in Riku's opinion. She was meant to be strong...at home, for Serah. Not for the worlds. He wasn't even sure she could handle that responsibility. The bigger question was, did she even want it?