FicWad

He was sick. He had changed. He hated what he was and who he had become and it had gotten worse and worse everyday. His friends didn't even notice the difference. At least, that was the aura they gave off. He was himself and no one else. That's what they all said.

A year had passed and they had changed. A year had passed and he stayed the same. A year had passed and his parents suspected nothing. A year had passed and Kairi and Riku went off to school. A year had passed and he lost his friends that he had three years ago, Tidus, Wakka, and Selfie. A year had passed and his hunger became stronger. A year passed, and cats, dogs, rats, and other wildlife became near useless.

And yet, he met them every night beneath the moonlight. Riku and Kairi were still there for him.

He was still himself.

Riku and Kairi met on the beach at sundown, like every night. They set up six lanterns in a circle, where the three of them would be sitting. Kairi was complaining about the mountain of homework she received in school and had to get done tonight.

Riku gave up on homework a long time ago. He had immersed himself in research, trying to find a way to reverse Sora's vampirism. Riku schedule: Wake up for school, go to school, go to the library for research, met Kairi, go to the island, spend the night with Sora (Kairi went home around eleven), go home and sleep for a few hours before starting the cycle all over again.

Needless to say, in every fictional work he read, the only cure was by permanent death. Riku read many myths about vampires and a majority of them were wrong.

Vampires couldn't go out in the sunlight, or else they would burn or turn into dust. Sora had proved this false by going to the store multiple times for his mother, wearing a large pair of sunglasses and a hat. Riku had met him at the store a few times and questioned him. The sun hurt his eyes and gave him a headache.

Vampires were supposed to be allergic to garlic. Sora said that the smell was strong, but so was the smell of onions. Riku had watched Sora cutting up garlic when he helped his mother make dinner for his father, his mother, Riku, Kairi, and Sora himself (or so they thought). He even ate it and later vomited it. Sora never held down the food he ate, but he got better with when he expelled it. Far away from his parents was all he needed.

Vampires were supposed to sleep during the day and in coffins. Sora didn't sleep. Period.

Vampires were supposed to die if a a stake was driven through their heart. In a failed attempt at a surprise spar, Riku had managed to smash his wooden sword against Sora's diamond-hard skin, not even bruising him. Sora turned and laughed his loud, innocent laugh. Every spar that took place after that was done with Keyblades. This proved wood wouldn't even penetrate the epidermis, let alone past the chest cavity and heart.

Kairi chattered happily with Riku as he turned on the lanterns. Sora should be here any moment.

Riku envied the fact that Sora weaseled his way out of school. Taking the exams and passing them with a perfect score... Donald and Goofy had home schooled him on their travels and somehow, Sora gained the knowledge of a college student in two years. Four years in high school could not prepare enough for as much as Sora knew. He bartered with his mother and she didn't break her promise. If Sora could pass the high school entrance exam with a perfect score, Sora didn't have to go. Sora did and now, he wasn't in high school. Instead, he stayed at home all day, helping his mother around the house. The school was very sorry to see him go.

Now, Riku went to school with Kairi. No problem.

Lately, Riku had been getting questions about Sora from Tidus and Wakka. They wanted to know why he wasn't in school. Why he was never on the island. Why he was always at home, never outside. Why he never contacted him.

Riku didn't have any answer for them except, "He going through a hard time. He'll come out again, soon." That was over six months ago.

There was Sora now, Riku pointed out as he looked out into the ocean, lighting the last lantern. Tonight would be like every other night.