Rude Awakening (1x1 with Peanut)

[Peanut 26]

Lightning reached down and tugged at the plaid skirt, hating that she had to wear this stupid uniform. Her old school didn't make her wear uniforms. She would have still been going there if it was her choice, but she got expelled last year and had to transfer to this school. Everything about this situation sucked. She huffed a breath, putting an elbow on the desk and then bringing a hand to her face. This was going to be an extremely long year, especially if she was stuck in classes with these nitwits.

[Forever Love 82]

Riku wrote down on his piece of paper. Already today he filled in a few names, making a list of students he believed could be of use to the Corps. In this class alone he had two of the seven found this morning, and looking around again, he thought he recognized a third from the room. A girl, no older than seventeen it seemed, was clearly uninterested in the topic at hand. Because of that, and the vibe he got from her direction, he wrote her name down. Thankfully, he could spot it on one of her books; he had never seen her before today, which made him believe she was a transfer. Regardless, she might have had what he was looking for.

[Peanut 26]

Lightning was beyond relieved when the bell finally rang. But she wasn't free yet; there were still more classes to go to that day. She furrowed her eyebrows and collected her books, hearing the other students do the same. She was in the far back though, at the opposite side of the door, so she'd probably be the last one out. It didn't matter, but she was hoping to see her sister Serah before her next class, to make sure that she was alright here. Unfortunately, she was forced to transfer because Lightning did.

[Forever Love 82]

Riku folded his piece of paper and placed it into his back pocket. He wore his old school uniform in order to blend in with the other students, but anyone who paid enough attention would know that he wasn't a regular student. Lucky for him, no student like that existed; they were all too busy daydreaming to pay attention anyway. He noticed that the two boys he had chosen in this class were already out the door, so that left the girl. He looked in her direction as he pushed himself up from his desk, spotting her and starting in her direction. She wouldn't recognize him, of course, but that was alright. He was dodging the teachers enough as it was.

[Peanut 26]

Lightning had her schedule memorized, but she pulled out a copy of Serah's schedule to see what she was doing next. She was going to art class; she would definitely enjoy that. Any chance she had to draw cats was enough to make her day. The art room was at the other side of the building though...Well, hopefully she could catch up with Serah and help her find her class, even if it meant Lightning would be late for her next one. She really didn't care about her own academics, only Serah's.

[Forever Love 82]

Riku weaved through the desks, standing slightly behind the girl with the pink hair. "Excuse me," he called, his voice low as he remained serious. Protecting the Islands was especially important to him; he wasn't going to let chances like this slip away. The Corps needed members.

[Peanut 26]

Lightning stuffed the schedule away, glancing over her shoulder to see the tall guy with the short silver hair standing behind her. She certainly wasn't in his way; it was an empty classroom. What, did he actually want to talk to her or something? Her mother taught her not to be too rude, but she didn't have much patience these days. She forced herself to hum in question, but her eyebrows furrowed a little as she turned and looked at him. What did he want?

[Forever Love 82]

Riku tucked his hands into his front pockets, his eyes examining the ones looking back at him. The expression in them was hard, sharp. He knew this girl could definitely use some stress relief. "Looks to me like you're not too fond of the place," he said, speaking of the school. In fact, she looked like she wanted to be anywhere else at the moment, including with him. That was alright; he was only going to take a minute of her time.

[Peanut 26]

"No, not really," Lightning agreed. If he was here to have small talk with her, she wasn't going to just stick around. She had a better place to be. "Excuse me." She stepped past him, books in hand as she started out of the classroom. She needed to cross paths with Serah somehow and make sure that she made it to class okay. She was fourteen and capable of taking care of herself, but that wouldn't stop Lightning from being sure that Serah wasn't being bullied like Lightning was at their last school. Her sister wasn't going to suffer like that.

[Forever Love 82]

Riku blinked at the form of farewell, his eyes trailing the girl as she left the room. His eyebrows came together in confusion, and at how off guard she made him. Now he knew the truth: she was disturbed by something. Whatever it was, he was sure there were better ways for her to get relief than sitting in a classroom. She probably knew the same.

[Peanut 26]

Fortunately, Lightning did manage to find Serah and ask her how her day was going so far. It was good, she said. She already made a friend and everyone in her grade was really kind to her. While Lightning was comforted by this, she still took the time to walk her sister to art class before she ventured towards her own. She was a few minutes late, as she predicted, but she really didn't care. Serah was okay. That was what mattered.

[Forever Love 82]

Riku managed to convince an old teacher of his to let him speak in front of her class, and she caved. Of course, Riku did a fair amount of sucking up to her his senior year, and that probably made up for the times he didn't study. Regardless, he was granted his wish, and was in the middle of introducing himself when someone familiar walked in the room. He was cut off midsentence when the door opened, and he glanced Lightning's way. We meet again, he thought, eyeing her briefly before continuing. "I'm Riku," he stated. "I graduated from this school a few years ago, and I'm looking to help people relieve themselves of their problems through an organization called the Guardian Corps." Edited May 28, 2012 by Forever Love

[Peanut 26]

Lightning glanced over at Riku when he was at the front, surprised that he graduated already and came back. But when she heard about recruitment, she rolled her eyes. Oh, so that's what's going on, she thought as she made her way to the back corner. You're here to recruit people. Oh joy. Was that why he spoke to her last class? That wasn't likely; she didn't look physically strong even if she was. He wouldn't dare put a small little girl like her in danger.

[Forever Love 82]

"You're all aware of the Darkness by now," Riku said, his hands behind his back. But then, he lifted one hand out in front of him. "And this." He called to his Keyblade, the weapon appearing in his hand in a matter of seconds. There were various responses from the crowd, one of them yelling the weapon's name. He nodded in recognition. "That's right, the Keyblade. It helps fend off the Darkness, something that continuously threatens the worlds, ours included. The government has yet to decide whether to create an army to help defeat the Darkness alongside the Keyblade, so I'm taking initiative." Edited May 28, 2012 by Forever Love

[Peanut 26]

Lightning sat down in her desk during the speech, unimpressed and clearly showing this by sitting in the same position she had been in last class. Destiny Islands didn't need an army; this world along with whatever other worlds were out there were safe from Darkness. There hadn't been any attacks since Xemnas was defeated years ago. She knew about that because it was in the history books her last school used. You're paranoid, huh? That or bored because you have a weapon but nothing to do with it. You want to show off and be the hero, don't you?

[Forever Love 82]

"Of course, that's not the only goal I have," Riku said, setting the tip of his Keyblade against the floor and leaning against it on both hands. His eyes scanned the students. "Rumors have been spread about me, I'm sure, and some of them are probably true," he acknowledged lowly. "I had a rough past, and I can see that some of you are getting into trouble or going down a dark path. The Guardian Corps will give you an outlet for that pent up anger or aggression. It's a program that reduces stress, so to speak, if you don't want to defend the world against any Darkness that may come around." He shook his head, smirking slightly. "I'm not trying to encourage you to get into trouble in order to join the program. I just want to help." Edited May 28, 2012 by Forever Love

[Peanut 26]

Oh brother, Lightning thought, again rolling her eyes. Is this guy for real? He was recruiting trouble makers for his cause. "You must be desperate to go for kids who are trouble makers to fight in your army," Lightning said before she could stop herself. She was a blunt person naturally, so speaking up against something wasn't extremely unusual for her. But she heard a voice in the back of her head, telling her that she should have kept quiet. She had to stay in this school, for Serah's sake.

[Forever Love 82]

Riku's eyes found Lightning when she spoke, and his smirk grew slightly in amusement. Of course she would interrupt or object; he could tell that was her personality just by looking at her. "It's not an army," Riku said with a small shake of his head. "It's a resistance, I guess. And that's not all I'm looking for. I'm looking for people that need encouragement to keep going, something I nearly lost. Does that paint a better picture, Lightning?" He arched an eyebrow at her, waiting for a response. He wasn't going to argue with her all day; he was just trying to get his point across.

[Peanut 26]

Lightning felt a lot of people's eyes on her as they turned around and waited for her response. What was she going to do here? Keep up this tough girl act so nobody bugged her in the future, or let the topic drop so that she didn't accidentally get into trouble? It didn't seem like Riku was going to get her in trouble, so she didn't see the harm in speaking her mind again. "It paints a nice picture, except that there's no need for a resistance," she said, leaning back in her chair as she spoke with confidence. "The last enemy uprising took place three years ago with Xemnas. As soon as he was defeated, the number of Nobodies and Heartless drastically decreased. Worlds with a Light as pure as Destiny Island's haven't seen enemies since. And they won't again since the larger enemies are permanently defeated." Edited May 28, 2012 by Peanut

[Forever Love 82]

"You're right," Riku admitted with a nod, his smirk still present as he gazed at the girl. Clearly you have been reading up on your history. "But that's as far as we know. As long as a heart holds even the smallest bit of Darkness within it, the threat still exists. Unless someone has a suggestion for how to eliminate this, my offer still stands. Considering I fought against Xemnas myself, nearly died in the process, and wield the weapon created to defeat the Darkness, I think my hunch may be a little more important than yours." His smirk remained as he winked in Lightning's direction, dismissing his Keyblade in a brief twinkle of light. "Thanks for your time." He nodded in the teacher's direction before giving a faint wave to the class, walking toward the door. Edited May 28, 2012 by Forever Love

[Peanut 26]

Lightning furrowed her eyebrows more deeply in disgust at Riku's wink, and his comments. This guy had a serious ego, and some illogical conclusions. If he thought this was such a serious threat, why was he only starting this Guardian Corps thing now? Still, he looked like he was leaving instead of observing in this class, so she'd gladly let him leave. Hopefully she wouldn't have to see him again.

[Forever Love 82]

Riku shut the door behind him and started down the hallway, which was empty since classes were in session. He ran a hand through his short hair, sighing. He hadn't really expected anyone to argue with him like Lightning did, but he handled it the best he could. Maybe his ultimate goal was to create a resistance group, but he did want to help others. He wasn't enrolled in school, so what else did he have going for him?

[Peanut 26]

When lunch time eventually rolled around, Lightning was disappointed that Serah didn't have the same lunch as her. Of course she didn't; Serah was three years behind her in school. It made sense that she'd have a different lunch time. So, she sat at a table by herself without caring what other people thought. This was her last year of school. All she needed to do was survive this, and then she could work full time to support herself and Serah. There was no hope for Lightning's future at this point; it was all going towards Serah and making her successful and happy. It was Lightning's responsibility to ensure that, since both of their parents were dead.

[Forever Love 82]

Riku stood against a wall near the lunchroom doors, his arms crossed and one foot back against the wall for stability. His eyes darted around the students, observing who he could from where he stood. Lightning's arguments weren't going to keep him from reaching his goal. While there may not have been much of a threat on the Islands in the past couple years, he sensed something greater was coming, and it made him nervous. True, he was relying on kids, but...the adults already shut him down. And his friends had their own lives. He needed people who believed they could make a difference somehow.

[Peanut 26]

Lightning grunted, curling a hand into a fist as she glared at the table. It had been nearly two years since her mother died. Ten since she lost her dad. That was a reality that she had come to accept very quickly, especially since she became the adult of her family. It was only her and Serah. No other family members were around to support them. It's up to me, as always. I need to protect Serah from everything I can in life. I need to give her a good shot at being successful.