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 would call Kairi about it later, but until then, he would stick with Lightning. He scratched the top of his head as he made his way over to her, taking a seat beside her and leaning his elbows against his knees. "So what now?" he asked. What direction did she want to take this?

Again, Lightning shrugged. "Pray that I don't lose my sanity before this is over," she suggested dryly. Everything was happening in such a short time. First there was the court, then being taken away from Serah, then being taken away from Zane's family and being dropped here with reporters and a lawyer harassing her. Any other person would have been crying their eyes out by now.

Riku moved a hand to rest on Lightning's knee, lightly squeezing it at her words. He wished she didn't talk like that, but sometimes a person couldn't help it. He was like that a lot of the time, so he couldn't really say anything. But she had to know that he was in this with her, willingly. He wouldn't let someone suffer through this alone.

Even without Riku speaking, she could tell that he may have been frustrated with her negativity. She furrowed her eyebrows and only remained seating because of Riku's hand on her knee. If you're that frustrated with me, send me away, she thought silently. She didn't come to his house to be a burden.

Riku absently let his thumb travel over the skin of Lightning's knee, not really thinking about it as he stared off ahead of him. He remembered when he and Sora had been bombarded with reporters when they were revealed to be the ones who saved the Islands, and it had been shocking at first, how many people followed them around and asked them questions. He wouldn't let Lightning go through this on her own, because he at least had Sora there with him. Besides, if he needed to, Riku would protect her. He had been good at that so far, even if he couldn't block the emotional pain a lot of the time.

Lightning's eyes widened after a few seconds, not because of Riku's thumb running over her knee, but because of a stray thought. Serah. What if Cecil sent his reporters after her? If he did that, then it was all over. Lightning would do whatever she needed to in order to keep Serah from being pestered. What about Riku though? He was already in that position and she wasn't giving in...yet. "Maybe I should just testify," she said after a while of silence.

Riku's thumb stopped, the young man turning his head to look at the person next to him. "What?" he asked, confused. Why was Lightning suddenly deciding to testify when she was so against it seconds ago? Ultimately it was her choice, of course, but he was curious as to what changed her mind.

Lightning only stared down at her lap. "It's going to get bad," she said quietly. "I'd rather face them than the court again, but...This isn't about me. You're already dragged into this and I won't let them rip you to shreds because of me." If it was just her, she'd bear it the best she could. But Riku was kind to her; he didn't deserve this.

"I can handle myself," Riku said in his defense. Lightning should have known by now that he'd dealt with this before; he could take care of it. All she needed to worry about was herself. The reporters were going to try and rip her to shreds, and he wasn't exactly okay with that. A victim being tortured again? That wasn't okay.

"I know you can," Light said. "But you shouldn't have to. I'm bringing trouble on you again, just like I have as long as we've been friends." She was frustrated with herself for all of her bad luck. Why did she have to get into these situations and drag Riku into them as well? It wasn't fair for him.

Riku removed his hand from Lightning's knee, turning his head to look forward again. "It's bad timing," he said. "It's not your fault." She couldn't help what happened to her. It just happened, and he was willing to accept that...and look past it to be close to her.

Lightning sighed, leaning her head back against the couch and shutting her eyes. She knew that nothing she could say would sway Riku, so there wasn't much point in speaking any more. Not on that line of logic, anyway. "...I really don't want to testify," she said quietly. "But he may force me to." If he got close to Serah...

Riku rolled his eyes, but not at Lightning; he was unhappy with the person they were speaking of. "He seems like the type," he acknowledged bitterly. Some lawyer, pushing his "client" to testify when it wasn't in her agenda. The guy was just looking for money and some fame. But at Lightning's expense, and even Riku's? That wasn't okay.

"If I do have to give in, I'll punch him," Lightning said with a bitter smile. "He won't be able to threaten to sue me if I'm already under his control." Of course, the words came out bitter as well. This Cecil guy was a real jerk, tormenting a seventeen year old girl for his own glory. Hopefully the man wasn't a father, because he'd be a terrible one.

Riku smirked slightly at the comment, amused. "Right," he said with the smallest of nods. He hoped he could see that. A grown man being slugged by a teenage girl? That would be a sight, and he hoped he was around to witness it.

Light's smirk faded after a few seconds as she stared ahead of her. She and Riku would just have to cope with the press as they came. If today was any sign of what to expect, it was going to be a lot of personal stuff. Cecil would probably even tell them to kick it up a notch. Oh well. No turning back now.

A day later

 

Riku let his friends into the house, pointing to his laptop for Kairi to go ahead and log on. She knew what fanfiction was, and she described it as something he had to see to believe. And since Lightning was here, he figured it was best just to get it over with. Besides, the reporters would probably trail them wherever they went, and that wasn't something they were looking forward to experiencing.

 

Kairi sat down on Riku's couch, pulling the computer onto her lap as she logged onto the master profile. She knew that Riku and Lightning wouldn't like what they were going to see, but they deserved to know just what people were saying about them now.

Sora stood behind Kairi, putting his hand lightly atop her head and fingering a shorter strand. He looked over at Riku and smirked faintly. "Kairi told me about this a few years ago," he said. "There's some pretty weird stuff on this site." Kairi had gotten a kick out of Sora's face when he saw how people wrote stories about him that were completely unlike him. In one, he was a ninja assassin. Kind of cool, but weird all the same.

Kairi smiled a little as she typed in the website. "And of course, since I married him," she said of Sora, "they included me in their stories." She didn't mind it, though. Some of it was quite unique. But still, there were some people that didn't like her and talked down about her. It hurt her feelings some, but she couldn't please everyone, she supposed.

Sora kept running his thumb over Kairi's red hair, glancing down at her and then to Riku. "But some of it included you," he said with a shiver. "People seemed to think we were...more than best friends." Riku deserved to know, he supposed. He kept it from him a while ago because Sora had just wanted to forget the fanfiction world ever existed. But now that Riku and Lightning were caught in the mix, it couldn't be helped.

Riku's eyes widened as he blinked, shocked. "...What?" he asked. They thought he and Sora...? He looked to Kairi, and she smiled weakly at him.

 

"Sorry, Riku, but he's right." She shrugged. "You guys must have some kind of bromance going on behind my back," Kairi joked softly. Upon seeing Riku's expression, she giggled.

 

Riku looked away, running a hand through his hair. This was...awkward. He and Sora were best friends, and only that. "No offense, Sora, but...you're not my type," he said, trying to get the air to thin out. It was too thick for his tastes.

"Diddo," Sora said with a small smirk. "Besides, I think we all know what your type is now." As his Nobody stood closer to the door, Roxas blinked in surprise and looked from Sora to Riku, unbelieving that Sora would dare to make that comment. The brunet snickered at Riku but didn't look over at Lightning, knowing that he had already gotten his point across. Riku was obviously into Lightning, whether he was going to admit it or not.

Edited July 21, 201213 yr by Peanut

Riku lifted an eyebrow, but upon catching his hint, he sent a glare his way. Watch it, he silently warned. This was not the time to get into that. Especially when Lightning was in the room. Everyone was here, since Namine just walked in. He figured it was time they got this over with.

Lightning looked at the laptop, having heard the exchange between Riku and Sora but ignoring it. She wasn't dense; she had a feeling that Sora was hinting that Riku liked her. But he had been doing that for a long time, so there wasn't much merit to whether he actually saw Riku had feelings or not. She heard Roxas give a "hello" to Namine, but her focus was on the computer. What exactly was Kairi going to show them?

Namine nodded to Roxas, shutting the door to the apartment quietly behind her. "There's so many photographers outside," she commented in confusion. What had she missed out on, exactly? Were they here for Riku or Lightning, considering all that was happening with her case?

 

Riku looked over at Namine at the news, but he only kept his hard expression. He didn't give a comment, already aware of the people downstairs. The apartment complex wouldn't let them in the building, so they were stuck waiting on the outside.