Wake Up

[onoesimemo]

Characters: Sakuraba Neku and anyone that wants to find him
Content: Neku wakes up in the middle of a typically busy intersection, which... isn't all that unfamiliar.
Location: Times Square
Time of Day: Early Evening

Comments

[optimistickey]

Sora had been a ball of nervous energy the past couple of days. Especially since finding out that Dahlia Hawthorne had tried to kill Mia Fey! He was itching to do something, anything about this, but it was tough to just move in on her without completely knowing all the details...and Mia was being secretive again. But it was no use just sitting around the hotel (nice as it was) just waiting for something to happen on that front. So, as was often the case for him, he took to the streets. He almost half-hoped that he'd run into Marluxia, just to give that Nobody a piece of his mind and show him what happened when someone DARED mess with his friends. But, well...he wasn't in the best position for a solo fight right now. At least he knew Namine and Kairi were well-protected, and that was ultimately what was most important: his friends' safety.

His wanderings had taken him quite a bit further north than usual...but then again, he was also hoping to find some clues. That note to himself from when they all disappeared had to mean something.

[onoesimemo]

Neku jumped when he heard someone call to him, and turned to face the voice. He saw a kid about his age, waving. He gave a tentative wave back, and approached the other boy. After he was about halfway across Times Square, he seemed to realize something important, and quickened his pace to a run.

Once Neku had reached Sora, he waved his arms and demanded breathlessly, "Hurry! Make a pact with me before the Noise show up! Or... whatever they have in America..."

[optimistickey]

Sora was expecting all kinds of frantic questions and demands as was typical of newcomers. Usually they consisted of Who are you / Where am I / How did I get here / What are these monsters, or some variation thereof. He was not expecting...whatever this guy was talking about.

"Pact? Noise?" he questioned, shifting the Keyblade slung over his shoulder. "Um...you're in a world called Manhattan."

[onoesimemo]

"I know that, genius!" Neku snapped. "But if I'm waking up in the middle of a city with no idea how I got there, then I'm obviously dead and obviously in the middle of another Reaper's Game. So make a pact with me before something nasty pops out and starts chewing on us!"

His actions reminded him somewhat of his first meeting with Shiki, if he thought about it, but now really wasn't the time to worry about that.

[optimistickey]

The attitude didn't help any with Sora's confusion, and he furrowed his eyebrows with a bit of a frown. Hadn't he heard this 'Reaper's Game' thing being mentioned on some journals before? "You're not dead! You got pulled into this world the same way most people have here. Even if you think you died, here you're still alive." Not that it made sense, but it was just the way things were.

He couldn't resist a bit of a cocky grin. "If anything nasty shows up, I'll take care of 'em! I've gotten used to fighting the crab parasites."

[onoesimemo]

"Crabs?" So there WERE noise here. This kid wasn't instilling much confidence in Neku. And even if he WAS right about not being dead...

"If this isn't the game, then what the hell am I doing in New York?"

[optimistickey]

Aha, here came the usual questions. If only he could provide better answers to them. "We don't know! This world keeps pulling in people from all sorts of different worlds, and even from different times. We're still trying to figure out how to get home, 'cause it's not possible to leave the island." Sora's voice sombered a bit at that reminder. He had been here for almost months now, and it seemed they were still not much closer to solving the mystery.

"But if you want, I can help you find a place to stay."

[Didn't realize Sora was here when I decided I wanted to play. XD]

[halfdarkened]

The black hooded cloak would be perfect. Riku had learned long ago that black clothing would help him blend into the shadows when his power had been exhausted. Being Halloween, if anyone caught him with it, he had a good excuse. Otherwise, it would be perfect for the task ahead. He would just have to watch Dahlia closely.

He'd stuffed it into a satchel he'd just picked up and rounded the corner. Riku needed to get back to the basement labs to stash it. He could hide in the crowd easily until he got where he was going.

That is, until he saw Sora's face.

He ducked back into the crowd quickly. Sora couldn't know what he was up to. It would put him at risk. But if he saw that... Riku knew he couldn't act suspicious, either. He frowned and turned back, deciding to go ahead and face him. There's nothing to hide.

"Hey! Sora! What's up?" As Riku approached, he noticed another boy with him. "Found someone to exchange hair styling tips with?" His tone was casual, and with only a hint of a friendly tease.

[onoesimemo]

Neku gave both of them a rather sour scowl, especially when his hairdo came into the conversation. This newcomer, in particular, seemed really suspicious, and as such, Neku immediately didn't trust him at all. He folded his arms, and frowned at them both.

"If there's people here from other worlds," he asked Sora, turning his glare towards the other spiky-haired boy, "Or something weird like that, then is anyone else here from Shibuya?"

[optimistickey]

Sora actually jumped when Riku practically appeared out of nowhere...he hadn't been expecting to see him in this part of town. Riku had been going out and about quite a bit in the past few days, and while Sora more than trusted him to take care of himself, it did seem a little strange sometimes. Still, he offered up a smile and waved back. "Hey! My hair is naturally this way!" he shot back.

The scowling didn't exactly help endear this kid to Sora any...but at least he wasn't coming off as downright hostile. He sighed, and stopped to think about the question for a moment. "Hmmmm...someone might've mentioned it on the computer network. You never know! Several people here have found their friends on this world." At this, he gave Riku a look that said 'case in point!'

[halfdarkened]

"Sure, rub it in," Riku smirked. "Other people actually have to comb their hair in the morning." He thumbed to himself and the other boy. When he caught his scowl, Riku paused a little. What's his problem? "So, who's your new friend?"

Riku smiled and gave an acknowledging nod to Sora's look. "The network's how Sora found me when I got here. You can check at the internet cafes. They're all over the city."