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!

Lightning let the silence fall, but then she reminded herself of something important: Riku wasn't going to understand unless she told him. "...It's in my head, okay?" she said quietly as she kept kicking. "My legs are fine." They were healed but her stupid head still registered the pain of the bullets. 

So it's all mental, Riku figured in silence. That made sense, but then it didn't. Regardless... "Why don't we go to the gym?" he asked, looking to the girl beside him. Maybe some physical therapy, or in this case mental therapy, was all she needed. Riku could help with that, at least.

Lightning thrust her leg a little further in one of the kicks, forcing her to wince. Even so, she spoke immediately afterward to cover up the pain. "I wouldn't be able to make it there," she pointed out. There was no point sugarcoating it; Riku already knew that she couldn't even stand, let alone walk. 

"That would be where I come in," Riku said, rising to his feet. He would help Lightning get to the gym, and he had the keys, so she couldn't very well get in without him. She didn't know what he had in mind, but he figured that could wait until they got there.

Lightning stopped kicking, finally lifting her gaze to Riku. There were so many problems with this idea. Whether he was planning on walking or riding his motorcycle (and who knew if it would run after being left alone for so long), he couldn't be out in public much on the way there. He was famous and he hadn't been around for months. They'd be swarmed by paparazzi. And she would have been humiliated if she was seen in public when she couldn't even walk. But she didn't verbalize any of that, since she still wasn't in a mood for talking.

"Trust me?" Riku asked, holding out a hand to the girl before him. He wouldn't worry about using his bike this time around; it was too loud and too noticeable. He would resort to his glider. Nobody would bother looking up at this time of day, considering it was the busiest time on the Islands. It would be discreet and silent, which would work in their favor.

I did trust you, Lightning thought of saying. She trusted him to stay with her last night and be there when she woke up, but he wasn't. It seemed petty to hold a grudge for something like that, but she honestly didn't know what to do. What other choice do I have? she thought, a bit bitter. She frowned and lowered her gaze to Riku's hand, putting hers in his. This was her only option; he was the only person even offering to take care of her, so she couldn't push him away.

Riku's fingers gently gripped Lightning's, though his hold was also secure. He would be sure to take good care of her, now and later. His friends didn't need him anymore; the fight with Xehanort wasn't happening anymore. He and Lightning could take their time with this.

A little while later, they were at the gym. As Riku walked back to lock the front door, Lightning sat where he placed her on a weight-lifting bench. She didn't know what he was thinking, bringing her here when she was capable of so little. But she was hoping that if she was quiet for long enough, he'd just tell her. 

Riku set his keys on the nearest counter, starting back to Lightning. The gym obviously hadn't been running while he was gone; counters and weights were dusty. He shouldn't have abandoned it so suddenly. Despite his thoughts, Riku stopped in front of Lightning and offered his hands. He was going to help her walk.

It's not going to work, Lightning wanted to tell him. He could hold her hands all he wanted, but that wasn't going to take away the pain. But there was still some security left in those hands--some comfort to be found. She slipped both of her hands into his despite knowing the hopelessness of this exercise. 

"...Just take it easy," Riku said softly, gripping Lightning's hands securely. "I've got you." I'll keep that promise this time. Riku couldn't keep a single promise; maybe that was why he left the vow keeping to Sora. He was good at it, while Riku suffered. But not this time. Riku was going to support Lightning, like he promised he would.

I want to believe you. Lightning truly did want to believe in Riku and his words. But for now, she'd focus on just giving him what he wanted. She gripped his hands tightly, slowly rising up off the bench. Even as she did so, she refused to meet Riku's eyes, but this time, it was for a different reason. The pain was so bad that she wanted to cry. 

"...I've never had an injury like this, so I don't completely understand what you're going through," Riku explained gently, his eyes on Lightning even if she didn't return his gaze. "But...I've had wounds that hurt for days. The best advice I can give you is to breathe through it and take your time...okay?" He suffered a lot of injuries in his short life, but he never helped someone else through one. This was a first for him, and he hoped that was okay.

Lightning shut her eyes and locked her jaw, the pain getting worse every second that she was on her feet. Even so, she nodded faintly to Riku's soft-spoken words. She could at least try the breathing part; she needed to remind herself to do that because the pain was enough to make her forget it.

"...If it gets to be too much for you, just let me know," Riku said, taking a step back. He was prompting Lightning to take a step. They would get through this together. She didn't know this, but her pain was his pain too. He wasn't sure when that happened, but whenever she was hurt, he was as well. Seeing her like this... It tore Riku up inside.

Even with her eyes closed, Light knew what Riku wanted from her just because of him distancing himself from her. She lifted one of her feet so that she could take a step forward, but then her leg that kept her standing exploded in pain. She bit down on her lip to keep herself silent as she felt that leg give out on her, the girl falling down to her knees without accomplishing even one step.

That would be it then, Riku thought. That was his cue that this was too much for Lightning, and that this was a bad idea. Maybe Riku needed to leave this kind of thing to the professionals. He was no pro when it came to helping people; lately he had been more of a curse than anything. He knelt down in front of Lightning and lifted a hand to her shoulder, the question in his posture: Are you alright?

Lightning curled her hands on her thighs, opening her gaze only to look down at them. Even so, she saw Riku in front of her and felt the concern coming off his body. "I won't be able to walk today," she said quietly. She didn't know about the next day or even the day after that. Even if it was just in her head and she knew it, that didn't stop her legs from hurting.

Riku tilted his head slightly, his eyes falling to Lightning's hands. "...I'll get you to a doctor tomorrow," he told her gently. He would help fix this, even if it was just making an appointment for her. This was his fault. He didn't protect her, and he let her go. He should have found some way to turn the odds in their favor, but it never worked that way.

Edited February 22, 201411 yr by Forever Love

As the child shook  her head, Jihl appeared in the corner of the gym several yards away from the duo. "You're a disappointment to your father, Claire Farron," she said lowly, seeing the girl perk up in startledness and look over at her. "You could walk with bullets in your legs and now that you're healed, you can't walk at all. You're pathetic." Why did this girl have the right to be the daughter of Cedric? 

Riku rose to his feet upon seeing Jihl, stepping over to be in front of Lightning. He didn't say anything, the look in his eyes enough to speak for him: What do you want? What was the point in Jihl being here? Cedric was dead...so did she want revenge?

Jihl could see Lightning past Riku, but she focused her attention on the Keyblade Master. He was the one that she was truly infuriated with here. "Did you hear me, Riku," she said, meeting her eyes with her angered ones. "He put bullets in her legs. He tortured her."

Riku's hands balled into tight fists at the reminder, but he still didn't speak. His eyes hardened as he glared at the woman across from him, standing his ground. He knew that Cedric tortured Lightning. He hadn't seen it firsthand, but all of the blood... Riku didn't like thinking about it.

"But it seems like you don't have a clear idea of how much she suffered," Jihl continued. "I have something here..." She reached into her cloak, pulling out a DVD. "Cedric recorded the entire session. Would you like to see it? Shouldn't you know what your beloved Claire went through for the sake of her sister?" Of course, the whole "sister" thing was a lie but she still suffered for Serah's sake for several hours.