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!

"Kind of...hard to forget," Lightning gasped through laughter, taking her hand off Riku's chest and grabbing hold of the one that had been dancing over her side. She looked down at both hands in hers triumphantly, her laughter calming of its own accord now that the tickling was over.

Riku was leaning over Lightning slightly, since she squirmed a lot when she was being tickled. He looked down at her with an amused expression, smiling. Her laughter was beautiful to him, like music to his ears. He wished he could hear it more often, but unfortunately, that opportunity wasn't available with Xehanort around.

Lightning looked up at Riku after a few moments, realizing then just how close he was to her. A small smile remained on her lips from the forced laughter, but the smile was anything but forced. When was the last time that she laughed? It had been so long that she couldn't even recall it off the top of her head...

"Awake now?" Riku asked, squeezing one of Lightning's hands that held his. She had to have been now that the tickle torture was over. Riku hadn't ever tickled anyone but Kairi when they were younger, so it was different to do it to someone else. Lightning didn't seem to mind though.

"As if I'm going to say 'no'," Lightning retorted. She would have been an idiot to do that. The tickling may have brought a smile and some laughter from her, but enough was enough. She wouldn't willingly go through that again, not even to get this close to Riku. She'd find some other way to establish this close proximity again.

Riku chuckled a little, leaning forward and placing a light kiss on Lightning's forehead before he began to retreat. Now that she was awake, he wondered if she wanted to go see the others. His parents, Noel, Serah some more... Even Riku's friends. Everyone was worried about her, after all. They would want to see her doing well.

"Not yet, you don't," Lightning said more softly, leaning towards Riku when he pulled away. She rested the side of her head against his chest, her one hand moving Riku's hand to rest on her lower back in a gentle embrace. He could tickle her again in this position, but she was pretty sure he wouldn't. All that she wanted was to be in his arms a little longer.

Riku looked down at Lightning in silence, letting the hand she placed on her lower back stay there. The other arm wrapped around her as well, keeping her close. They had been within close proximity to each other a lot the past week or so, but neither of them got tired of it. Well, Riku didn't at least.

Lightning gazed across the room, one of her hands sitting on the other side of Riku's chest and easily resting within her line of sight. She wasn't in his arms because she felt afraid, though they both knew how much fear she experienced recently. She wasn't there to take in the safety of Riku's arms as if somebody were lurking nearby and ready to attack her otherwise. No, she was in his arms for another reason. It was because he was Riku and she was Lightning. They clung to each other for no other reason sometimes than to show that they cared for each other dearly. That was the reason for this embrace.

Riku rested in silence, eyes on the blankets. He was glad that he and Lightning had this moment; they didn't come often. Riku just wanted peace again, since he had enough at home to entertain him. Once this charade with Xehanort was over--and assuming that all of his friends and he lived--everything would go back to normal. Well, mostly. Things would be different than before, since everyone was affected by the Organization, but Riku hoped it didn't change anyone severely. Their lives could start again once this was over and done, or so he planned.

Like Riku had rubbed her earlier, Lightning began running her hand up and down his back. She wasn't really good at showing affection on her own accord--normally she just followed Riku's lead. He had plenty more experience in relationships than she did. But despite what she tried to convince the world of, she actually did know how to love others. In fact, she did it quite well.

Riku lifted one of his hands to play with Lightning's hair, lightly twirling it around his finger. It was soft, just like her heart. Lightning came off as distant and hard to read at first, but Riku somehow got through her wall. It was a while ago, so he couldn't recall exactly how it happened, but he was grateful it did. Riku believed he was falling in love with Lightning, and that for him, was scary. And big. Riku always believed he would never find love, which was why he dated girls frequently over the past few years; he was bored and they were there. But Lightning was different, just as she had always been.

Lightning allowed her hand to still after a while, feeling Riku twirling her hair with one of his fingers. While she was really comfortable with their positions, she had to break the serenity for at least a moment. "I'm cold," she said quietly to Riku. She wasn't scared and cold like before--just cold. If she could just let go of him for a moment and pull the blanket up around her...

Riku's finger stopped twirling Lightning's hair. "Oh," he said, loosening his hold around her. He would let her grab the blankets, if she wanted them. Riku didn't have a sweatshirt or anything she could wear, or else he would have offered. Unfortunately, those things were back home.

Lightning reached down for the blankets that were previously only up to her waist, pulling them up further so that they were wrapped around her shoulders, over her back. When she was all set, she leaned into Riku again and wrapped both arms around him without a word. Obviously he was warmer than the blankets that surrounded her, but that thought was in the back of her mind as she hugged him. Their embrace was much more than just a source of warmth to her.

Riku let his body relax against the headboard again, though his eyes stayed down on Lightning. He lifted a hand to brush back some of her hair. "Going to sleep again?" he asked softly. He doubted she would return to her coma now; it was probably safe enough for her to rest up. She would need it. This time of peace was only temporary.

"Only if it's okay," Lightning responded quietly. Before she lost consciousness in the other world, Riku had tried very hard to keep her awake. She didn't know the reason why, but that was the truth. Was it alright for her to sleep now? She was still tired and not feeling completely herself.

"Yeah, it's okay," Riku said, pulling Lightning a little closer. He didn't want her going comatose again, but he doubted it would happen. He had gone into a coma after he was possessed, and it lasted about the same time as Lightning's. After that, he was fine, so he assumed she would be too.

Light nodded softly, leaning her head against the side of Riku's face. "Wake me when you need to leave," she requested. He'd have a hard time leaving and not waking her--she was really against him as she remained in his arms. Nevertheless, she didn't want him to leave and then wake up to being alone.

"Okay," Riku said softly. He held Lightning close in silence after that, gazing out one of the windows. It was still daytime here in Disney Castle, but it would get dark soon. He would sit with Lightning for an hour and then head back to his friends. But he would periodically check on Lightning, and wake her for dinner. She hadn't eaten in over a day.

Lightning leaned up and gave Riku a small kiss on the cheek before returning to her previous position, snuggled up against him beneath her blankets. In less than five minutes, she was unconscious again and resting in the comfort of Riku's arms. New couple or not, they both seemed to understand the significance of being in the other's arms. It was never taken for granted, and it never would be.

While Riku and Lightning were bonding and enjoying each other's company, Namine was in a different bedroom in the Castle. But she wasn't the only one; Roxas was there too, as were Sora and Kairi. She was fulfilling her promise to Roxas by correcting her mistakes that deeply affected him. It was the least she could do; he rescued her after all, though she had a feeling that he did it for his own purposes. Roxas rested on the bed while Namine sat in a chair nearby, sketchpad in her arms as she drew. Her eyes were glazed over as she took apart the links in Roxas's heart and gave them new connections. It was the only way to fix him.

Sora looked down at the floor, silent because he didn't want to interrupt Namine and break her concentration. Besides, they had done plenty of talking before this all began. Kairi had still been furious at Roxas for how he left behind Namine, but Sora believed he made his wife soften up. Roxas had to discover a horrible truth and believed all his friends betrayed him. All of them would have had similar reactions if they had been in his shoes.

Kairi stood next to her husband in silence, her eyes on Namine and Roxas. With how little sleep Namine got the past few days, she didn't think that Namine needed to be helping Roxas right now. But Namine insisted on getting it done, since she promised Roxas she would do it. Kairi hadn't known what to say, so she did nothing. Now, she stood watching the two blondes in silence, one of them asleep for the process and the other too focused to notice anyone else was there.

Sora didn't look over at Kairi, though his thoughts revolved around her and Roxas. Both she and Roxas said Namine didn't have to do this today, but she was doing it anyway. Then Kairi yelled at Roxas for making Namine feel guilty, and he challenged her by pointing out he lived a lie the past few years and wanted out of that lie. He was so desperate when he said it, nearly in tears...Sora's heart ached for his Nobody. He hoped Roxas would be okay...