Fast Food Madness: The Epic Return V2

Roxas followed Sora inside, glancing behind him one last time at the now dark city. He didn't sense any danger or Darkness, so he knew that they were safe for now.

Kairi continued to sleep, her arm bent and cradling her head as she slept on the couch. She was oblivious to the fact that the boys were home, though she didn't feel afraid. She didn't realize it in her sleep, but it was because her best friend was watching over her.

 

Sora heard Roxas come in beside him, so he just kept moving forward, walking through the foyer and into the living room. His eyes wandered from the girls to Riku, who he saw was still awake. He was glad for that, even if it didn't seem like the girls were in danger right now.

 

Roxas stepped inside the house and shut the door behind him, being sure to lock it. There three Keyblade wielders here, but they couldn't take any chances. Once he locked the door he turned and started for the living room, where he knew everybody else was.

Riku lifted the hand at his mouth up slightly, giving Sora a slight wave before it rested near his chin again. From what he could see, his best friend looked exhausted. Obviously the many hours of searching hadn't given them anything.

 

Sora uncurled one of his fists, giving Riku a slight wave from where he stood. He lowered the hand after a second, though, balling it into a fist again. "Nothing," he said softly, referring to what he and Roxas found concerning Smith. Absolutely nothing.

 

Roxas walked through the doorway and into the living room, stopping next to Sora just as he heard what he said. He nodded slightly in agreement, his eyes falling on Riku before moving to the girls. Both were asleep on the couches, which didn't really surprise him; they had been gone for a while.

Riku looked at both Sora and Roxas, his hand dropping to rest on the arm of the couch at the news. He didn't like the sound of that, knowing that it meant Smith was already working on something.

 

"We'll have to start searching again tomorrow," Sora said quietly, unaware that technically, the next day had started. It was past midnight now, the boys having been out over seven hours searching. And for what? To come up empty handed? Sora was frustrated with that, though he didn't let it show on the surface.

 

Roxas stepped past Sora, rubbing a hand over his spikes at the thought of searching again later. He approached the loveseat that Namine was sleeping on, sitting himself down on the floor in front of it, even if there was room for him; he didn't want to disturb her sleep. "Where else can we look?" he asked quietly. If Smith wasn't in that warehouse, he could possibly be anywhere.

Riku looked over at Roxas at the question, though he wasn't sure considering he didn't know the city. "You're just going to have to trust your senses," he said, remembering what he said earlier. "Go wherever they lead you." He knew that they were able to tell when Darkness was present, and if they just followed it, that feeling would get stronger until they were face to face with their target. That's the way it had always been.

 

Sora shook his head, looking down at the ground. "That's just it," he said, glancing up at Riku again as he spoke. "There's no Darkness, at least none that I can sense. Either he's not here, or he's covered his tracks in a way that we can't find him." It was amazing, just how normal everything felt when he and Roxas were searching. If he didn't know any better, he would say that Smith wasn't in this realm. Or at least not this world.

Namine exhaled a breath in her sleep, having thought she heard a few soft voices in the room. She couldn't make out what they were saying though, and she was too tired to fully wake herself up so that she coulc eavesdrop on the conversation.

 

Riku arched an eyebrow, at Sora's words but didn't question them. By what little he had seen of Smith, he somehow knew that the man was clever enough to pull that off. The teen lowered his eyes to the ground in front of him, wondering what this could possibly mean.

 

Sora exhaled a breath, looking down at the ground again. "We'll just have to try again tomorrow," he said again, a tired sigh following the sentence. He was exhausted, and he was sure that Roxas was feeling the same way. Maybe if they got enough rest tonight, they would have more ideas on where they could search tomorrow.

 

"You'll think clearer after some sleep," Riku stated, looking up at his best friend and nodding slightly. Clearly they were both exhausted; it was written on their faces.

Roxas had his legs stretched out in front of him, his hands at his sides as he leaned his head back against the cushions of the couch. He nodded slightly to what Riku and Sora both said, agreeing that they'd have to search later and could hopefully figure things out after getting rest.

 

Sora nodded slightly, lowering his gaze to the girl on the couch he was standing near. "How long have they been asleep?" he asked softly, his eyes staying on Kairi as he waited for Riku's answer. He was hoping that he said they were sleeping for a while; he at least wanted the girls well rested through this whole thing.

 

Riku glanced at the girls. "Namine fell asleep a couple hours ago, but Kairi didn't nod off until a half hour ago," he said, lifting his eyes to Sora since he was the one who asked the question.

Roxas tilted his head back slightly to look up at Namine on the couch. Good, so she had been sleeping for a while now. That was a relief; he didn't want her waiting up for him.

 

Sora nodded slightly, glancing up at Riku before his eyes went back to Kairi. He wished she had been asleep longer than that, but at least she was asleep now, and she looked like it was a good rest. He silently wondered how Namine was feeling as well, since Smith had been making her feel ill lately.

 

Roxas lowered his head to look at Riku, seeing Namine triggering his concerns. "How was she?" he asked, remembering how he thought about her constantly while he was gone, especially on the way home since they hadn't found anything.

Riku turned his gaze to Roxas, frowning slightly at the thought. "...She felt worse. She ended up getting sick," he admitted regretfully, having hated to see her in such a state. It was Smith who had actually been doing that, much to everyone's awareness.

Roxas's eyes widened slightly in surprise, the boy automatically looking behind him again at Namine. She...got sick? That was terrible!

 

Sora glanced at Namine when Riku spoke before he looked down at the ground, frowning. Smith was far too powerful, and Sora didn't like that the man was messing with one of his friends. Just let us find you, Smith, he thought, furrowing his eyebrows. And we'll settle it, without involving innocent bystanders.

 

Roxas felt the surprise begin to wear off, seeing how vulnerable Namine appeared as she slept. The realization only made him sad and angry. Smith was making her feel even worse. He couldn't stand the thought, the boy's eyes lingering on Namine before he turned around and stared down at his legs, eyebrows furrowing.

 

Sora lifted his gaze to a chair across the room, seeing a pillow it. He headed over towards the chair and reached for the pillow before dropping it onto the ground. He knew that he needed to rest, and he was going to lay out on the floor instead of falling asleep upright in a chair.

 

Riku's eyes lingered on Roxas, seeing how upset the Nobody appeared. He couldn't imagine how he felt, since he was already upset because Namine was his friend and this was happening to her. Roxas loved her, though, so Riku found it hard to understand what exactly he might be thinking. By Roxas's expression, it obviously wasn't good.

Roxas lifted a hand to his head and closed his eyes, sighing. He was exhausted, in pain, sad, and angry. He wasn't sure if he would get any sleep at this rate.

 

Sora sat down on the floor, his eyes wandering to Roxas by the loveseat. "We should get some rest," he said softly. "Maybe she'll be feeling better in the morning." Obviously Roxas was distressed over Namine's condition, and Sora was too, though not at the level that Roxas was.