Not quite the hero I was looking for...

[starlithysteria]

Who: starlithysteria and wtf_keyblade
When: December 7th. Sometime after the Sirens. [Backdated.]
Where: Baseball Diamond / Starting Point.
Summary: A rude awakening awaits Rinoa when she arrives, but Kairi comes to save the day (?).
Warnings: Fighting, monsters and information overload.

Comments

[starlithysteria]

Rinoa began to think over her options as she stood alone in the darkness, but as it turned out, she wasn't having any luck coming up with anything better to do than just standing around like an idiot. She felt exhausted and the more she tried to figure out what was going on, the more confused she got.

It didn't even take a minute for her to clench her head with both of her hands and crouch down low to the ground. "Augh. Think, Rinoa. Please..." She spoke to herself in a whisper, then closed her eyes and tried to clear her head. As worried as she was at her current situation, she was equally frustrated that she couldn't decide on what to do.

Should I stay in one spot and wait to be found? Or should I look for help? Where did Ultimecia go? Where is everyone else? Are they alright? Stop thinking about where you are and how you got here... worry about that later.Then, a voice cut through the darkness and pulled Rinoa out of her own thoughts. "..." She raised her head and strained to hear. "Yes! Hello!" She stood so fast that she

[starlithysteria]

...not being in your own world anymore.

Rinoa gasped, then went still for a while before she finally took Kairi's advice and took in a large breath. She closed her eyes and tried to will herself to wake up, but once she held the air in her lungs long enough to feel the pain that let her know she needed to exhale... she gave up. With a sigh, she breathed out then lifted a hand to rub her fingers against her forehead.

She felt like crying, and she even thought that crying might have helped, but for some reason... the tears never came. "Rinoa." Her eyes opened and she tilted her head to look at Kairi before she asked what usually came after introducing herself. "What's your name?"

[wtf_keyblade]

As much as Kairi wanted to make the explanation easy, there was really no gentle way to say that she'd been taken out of her world and the people she knew ... probably weren't here. Almost definitely weren't.

"I didn't mean --" Not to breathe at all. Just a quick calming breath - but it seemed Rinoa took it really literally. She was glad that she let that breath out. "That's a nice name," Kairi smiled reassuringly. "I'm Kairi." She was sure Rinoa would be able to cry once the adrenaline and the craziness wore off, when she had some time to herself.

She leaned back in her chair a little, "When it gets light in the morning, and the sirens go off, the monsters will go away. It'll be safe to leave this area then. If you want, you can stay with me at the apartment until you get on your feet - I'll explain everything then."

[starlithysteria]

There was a faint smile after her name was complimented, and Rinoa set the bottle down next to her so that her hands were free. "Thanks, Kairi." She reached out to touch Kairi's hand as she spoke. Right now just not being alone and having someone around that was so willing to help was enough of a comfort for her. Sure, she was still hoping that at any moment someone she knew would show up, particularly one certain someone, but Kairi was providing to be a very good substitute

[wtf_keyblade]

"Anytime." Kairi smiled reassuringly. She knew she couldn't replace Rinoa's friends any more than Roxas could replace Sora as her best buddy, but it was nice to have something to keep you stable and sane until you saw them again, right

[starlithysteria]

Rinoa nodded and sat taller, trying to brace herself for whatever was going to be thrown her way. And... as she listened, her expression seemed stuck with a mystified expression. She didn't ask any questions, well, aside from Really?, and when it was nearly morning there were several times that she asked Kairi to repeat something.

By the time the Sirens went off, Rinoa was clearly in shock and just followed along after Kairi. She had wanted to hear all of that stuff, and she would have encouraged Kairi to continue if it looked like she thought about holding something back... but... wow. She would have gotten into bed to rest as soon as she could, but sleep would not have come for several hours. Not until after the shock had worn off hours later and she had finally gotten the good cry that she needed.