KH2, after the fact
Obviously, they couldn’t talk about their travels, their adventures, their newfound friends, the people, beings they’d killed, not any of it. When they did, when Riku’s mother dragged him to a psychiatrist for both his nightmares and his inexplicable depression, when Kairi had to explain her months-long absence, when their friends pestered them about it…they had to talk about it in tiring, vague, roundabout ways.
Riku was walking away from one such encounter, where the shrink had goaded him, tried to make him confrontational, get him to let his guard down—and he knew she was doing it on purpose, because everything they and their kind did, of course, was intentional. Riku had almost wanted to tell her that Saix had done much worse to get information from him, that her methods weren’t convincing, weren’t effective.
And maddeningly, she just couldn’t seem to understand that no matter how understanding she claimed she was, there were certain things that Riku could not talk about.
Not merely things he was forbidden to speak of, but things she wouldn’t believe. Things she would lock him up in a padded room for. And throw away the key.
A hand on his arm startled him from his brooding, and he looked sharply behind into Selphie’s face. He’d known she was there; had known from the moment she’d crossed the street and started to follow him, but the touch was unnecessary, and he shook her hand off as politely and as subtly as he knew how.
If Selphie noticed the brush-off, she didn’t show it, and asked instead, “Are you ok?”
Riku shrugged. “I just came from seeing a shrink. Should I be?” He saw Selphie’s frown out of the corner of his eye because he’d already turned to go.
This time, when Selphie’s hand landed on his shoulder again, he didn’t bother trying to be polite, and turned to her impatiently.
“Why are you so bitter?” Selphie asked before Riku could get a chance to speak. Probably a good thing, as whatever Riku was going to say, it was probably very rude and abusive.
“Bitter.” Riku repeated flatly. “You have no idea.”
Whatever answer Selphie was expecting, it wasn’t that, and stood staring into his sullen face for a few seconds, before it looked like he was going to go, where she blurted out, “Why can’t you be happy? Why can’t you let yourself be happy?”
Riku sighed and closed his eyes, as if he was tired of being asked his question. “But I can’t,” was all he would say, and it made Selphie angry, but before she could say any more, Riku put his hands on her shoulders, “I know what you’re thinking. But it’s better you don’t try to understand.”
His eyes held such anguish, and so many other things she couldn’t name and couldn’t identify, that she stood frozen, unable to say anything, even after he let her go and walked away.
plotbunnies/quotes/etc | Jac the Tripper | 28 January 2008 |
