Ok so this is a bit stupid [imo] but I didn't want to leave it rotting on my harddrive because I love this pairing and I like how a lot of this turned out. It follows on from All is Not Black and White, but it's a bit more adult in content (you've been warned).

Vanitas was too much of a giant egomaniac to actually hate the stupidly cheerful Keyblade wielder he'd 'borrowed' a face from. Mostly because Vanitas lived in the idiot's heart and knew fully well said stupidity was ninety-percent an elaborate ruse to hide just how much pain he'd been through, and deep down he was also a power-hungry egomaniac- he was just a nice power-hungry egomaniac.

If anything, the kid was far more suited for a life in theatre.

He did, however, get very, very angry with him for being dense. Often. Often enough it'd leak out into a form of pure dark rage and send the poor little Keyblade wielder scooting over the battlefield using dark powers and claws.

He deserved it, in a sense. Vanitas tended to be malicious even when on the 'best of terms' with someone (ha) and whenever his anger climaxed at the brunette, he was definitely not in that category.

The reason why, however, was the cause of so much confusion that it left large gaps between each instance of anger. Because Vanitas was a dark creature. He didn't feel the light feelings Sora got, like joy, or happiness, or admiration.

And yet that last one was all he could ever think about.

Initially he didn't pay Sora's life much mind because Sora was a dense little idiot and this prison was tortuous in itself without worrying about what his 'host' was up to. But something about that curtain of silver hair and those determined eyes made Vanitas curious, made him nudge Sora that little bit further to see Riku exert himself a little bit more to win.

But he was merely a curiosity, nothing more.

And then Riku fell.

And Vanitas fell with him in an entirely different, and very foreign way.

Vanitas's already lengthy days stretched into years, wondering where Riku had gone, always pushing, always nudging and encouraging Sora as intensely as he could, find him. Frustration would climax into an instance of Anti-Form, especially whenever Sora's thoughts went and drifted off to that Kairi.

Kairi had joined the extensive list of people Vanitas actually hated. He had a good deal of reasons- it was more than natural for him to hate her, with Kairi being a Princess of Heart, and Vanitas being spawned from darkness. But that girl- she was constantly, constantly throwing herself in front of Sora, like some kind of damsel in distress, and it was infuriating. Most importantly he hated how weak she was. Sora and Riku were able to fight, and had each other's backs no matter what- which was what Vanitas had come to see as what relationships were supposed to be like, with how Ventus had sacrificed himself- but Kairi was totally dependent on Sora, or someone else to save her. It made him feel like throwing up (the one time he nudged this into Sora's consciousness had made him giggle in a most undignified manner, but the look on her face was priceless).

Watching Riku fight against the darkness, struggle and overcome his demons, had Vanitas more obsessed than he'd ever felt, even when he'd been yearning for the X-Blade. Because Riku's heart had been overwhelmed, and he'd become like Vanitas, but he'd clawed his way out of that pit and won. Nothing seemed more incredible to him than that.

Vanitas longed for the silver-haired boy so deeply he could feel it in his (non-existent) bones. He'd never in his life wanted to hold someone, or be held by someone, or just sit and talk, and maybe eat ice-cream like everyone else seemed to in those situations. It was sappy and gross and confused him beyond measure, but Vanitas was a straightforward kind of person- something he didn't share with Sora (ok, like, the only thing, besides him being nice). What did he have to lose, from all this? Certain not his life (didn't have one!) or his dignity (didn't have that either). A broken heart? Did he have one of those?

A sharp, prodding voice told him that you can't really fall head over heels for someone if you don't have a heart, but he was content to ignore that, since the fact he could even feel something like this was an impossibility.

The simple facts were this:

Sora, as far as Vanitas was concerned, liked both of his friends in equally confusing ways, but given he was a guy, and Riku was a guy, it had never crossed his mind that it was the same kind of confusing.

Kairi, despite her little 'I'm so pure' get-up, was actually fairly deceptive and cunning (her 'Nobody' seemed to reflect this) and would most likely get Sora in the end.

Riku was head over heels obsessed and in love with his best friend, but out of respect for him and fear of rejection would most likely never say anything.

Vanitas was just as obsessed with the silver-haired boy and…sort of resembled Sora, so there was a (slim) chance. Problem was a) he was evil, and Sora's innocence was probably what made him attractive, and b) Riku didn't even know he existed.

Feelings suck. Emotions suck. If he were corporeal this would've spawned the biggest Unversed he'd ever seen.

But he couldn't do anything about these facts, since he was trapped in Sora's darkness, on the borderline between existing and not.

So when circumstances and situations blurred, and Vanitas found himself existent again, he both longed for and dreaded his encounter with the silver-haired male that he knew was coming. How could it not? He embodied what was most likely Riku's deepest nightmare. So the helmet stayed firmly in place, and he waited.

Their encounter happened in Radiant Garden, as it should have, as it always would. Somewhere in the depths of the castle, Vanitas doing who knows what (couldn't remember, didn't care) when he saw that silver hair and those aquamarine eyes.

There were no words. Perhaps Riku had heard of him. Perhaps he thought he was him? Vanitas didn't know. For once, the raven refrained from his usual taunts and quips, his form sloppy and a little distracted, his eyes entirely trained on the movement of Riku's muscles and the sway of his hair, the intensity that glowed in his eyes as he met him blow for blow.

This fight wasn't going to end unless one of them surrendered, and neither would simply do something like that. Riku was strong-willed, Vanitas was stubborn and hard-headed.

He wasn't squeamish, he'd hurt countless people before in the effort to obtain his goal. He'd seen every shade of red, from the bright glow of the freshly spilt to the near-black once it dried completely. But the idea of seeing that colour on Riku, whose only true encounter with the colour was when he was wearing a dark suit, made Vanitas's stomach twist up in a way he found highly unpleasant, enough that he did something unbelievable.

He jumped away from Riku and threw his Keyblade down in surrender.

The silver-haired teen stopped, staring wide-eyed and disbelieving, as though it was some kind of trick. "Do you think I'm stupid?" Riku asked, and Vanitas shook his head. The other wasn't wholly convinced, and though to prove the point Vanitas kicked the Void Gear a fair distance away from him. The ability to summon a weapon made these forms of surrender a little less poignant for Keyblade wielders, but the message was clear enough; Vanitas was conceding defeat, not from being beaten, but because he genuinely did not want to fight.

Riku was the only one who would ever get this sort of treatment. The only one who deserved it, the only one Vanitas didn't just tolerate, but liked. (Toleration: see file, Sora).

"Are you working for Xehanort?" Riku asked, and Vanitas snorted loudly, folding his arms and shaking his head again. He'd cut out his spleen with a butter knife before that happened again.

"Are you with us?"

Another shake of his head.

"Are you allied with…anyone?" Riku asked, a bit slower and a little more confused. Vanitas contemplated this answer, before shaking his head for the fourth time.

The silence was purposeful. Although most didn't notice (Mickey hadn't), Vanitas and Sora did share the same voicebox and with how well Riku knew the other and the fact Vanitas wasn't overwhelmingly hateful toward the other boy, he knew he'd recognize his voice very quickly, and he didn't want to get mistaken for Sora.

"Do I know you?" Riku said. Smart cookie. Vanitas very quickly suppressed the small, not malicious smile he was making underneath the helmet.

"No" Vanitas murmured, finally speaking, and Riku's eyebrow quirked upward.

"So why-?"

He shrugged. It was natural for him to fight. It was the only thing he knew how to do, really. He hadn't been taught much else.

"Why'd you surrender?"

Vanitas hesitated, for what felt like the first time in his existence. That was an open question, one that would be difficult to answer with gestures, which meant using his voice.

He sighed lengthily, figuring he'd have to speak sooner or later. "I don't want to fight you."

Riku blinked a few times, cocking his head to the side slightly. "You…"

"Sound familiar?" Vanitas murmured, chuckling quietly. "Yeah. I have the…form of someone you know."

Riku's arms folded, studying the other boy from afar with a wary gaze, as though he was trying to figure out exactly where he knew the voice from.

"If you want to see, I'll show you."

"No, I want to guess" Riku said casually, putting his hands in his pockets. Their keyblades had faded from existence at some point, Vanitas wasn't sure when.

The masked boy chuckled again, switching his weight from one foot to the other as he waited. Unfortunately, Vanitas had never been a patient person.

"C'mon, Riku. It's not that hard."

And there was the dawning of realization on his face. Vanitas had known fully well what had triggered it- his name. Hearing his name said with this voice, Riku knew exactly whose 'form' Vanitas bore, and the silver-haired teen's eyes were now doing a sweeping gaze up and down, seeming to be doing a mental comparison.

It took a few minutes, but eventually a small frown dawned on Riku's face.

"You're better built" he commented, and Vanitas cracked up laughing, doubling over with the force. Of all the things to say! Not 'why are you him' or 'how dare you', just a 'oh, you must work out, because the other guy's got twiggy arms and chicken legs'.

"I was seriously expecting a bit more of a…reaction, I suppose" Vanitas eventually said, straightening and regaining his composure.

"You don't strike me as the kind of guy who surrenders for no reason, and now I'm curious" Riku said, and Vanitas smirked from underneath his helmet. He loved Riku's curiosity.

"I don't want to fight you" Vanitas repeated.

"Just me?"

"Just you."

"Am I special somehow?"

"You're the only person who's special to me" Vanitas said frankly, and Riku blinked a few times, looking completely and utterly confused.

"I saw many of Sora's memories. And of all the people he meets…to me, you're the only one worth even a fragment of my time."

The silver-haired male swallowed, before stepping forward a few steps, then a few steps more, before coming to stand in front of the shorter boy. He raised his hands for a moment, hesitating, before realizing that Vanitas had made no move to stop him and reaching to the edge of Vanitas's helmet. With a sharp tug, he pulled it free, releasing the mass of black spikes hidden underneath.

"Hi, Riku" he said, giving him a very rare, genuine smile.

"Why am I special to you?" Riku asked, looking him dead in the eyes. Clearly, the other boy had needed eye contact to believe Vanitas's words, even if his tone was completely honest. It was very easy to mistrust someone wearing a mask.

"You fell. Into the darkness, and then climbed back up and back into the light. I was born from the darkness, so how do you think that looks to someone like me?"

"The fact I fell in the first place-"

"Has happened to hundreds of thousands of people too stupid or too weak to do something about their inner shadows. And yet you overcame it, and you're part of the light. And seeing you do that gave me something I hadn't had in a long time."

"What?"

"Hope."

"So you want to be part of the light?" he asked, very seriously.

"Yes." It's all he's ever wanted.

"Then why not Kairi, like Sora?" Riku asked sharply, his eyes full of challenge which Vanitas met with equal intensity.

"She doesn't know what the darkness is like, and all she does is get in the way" Vanitas said harshly.

"Even now, that she's trained with a Keyblade?"

"I. don't. like. Kairi" Vanitas sneered, punctuating each word with malice. "There are two people in this world I will tolerate, and one of those I like, which is you."

"The other?"

"Sora."

Riku raised an eyebrow, and Vanitas smirked.

"I can't hate this mug" he said, indicating at himself. "And I know Sora better than he knows himself, so I have my reasons."

"Have you met Sora?" Riku asked, and Vanitas shook his head.

Cough.

Technically, dreams don't count.

"Good, then don't tell him I did this" Riku said, and in an instant the helmet was clattering to the floor and their lips were crushed together, the raven not resisting in the slightest. Why would he? He'd been fawning over this guy for nearly three years. Which, ironically, was about how long Riku had known that his feelings toward Sora were not the ones you had toward a best friend.

It was Vanitas who pulled back, giving Riku a sharp, penetrating stare. "I'm some kind of replacement, aren't I?"

"Lemme ask you something" Riku said, grabbing hold of Vanitas's gloved hand and threading their fingers together. "What drove you to be so frank with me?"

"I'm not deceptive."

"Is that where the differences end?"

"I'm also much more handsome" Vanitas quipped, grinning, and Riku actually smiled slightly.

"I'm just a bit more open about my darker tendencies. Arrogant, sadistic, y'know."

"So I'm right, that's where the difference ends."

"I'm also not a cheerful idiot" Vanitas said sharply.

There was suddenly a playful, knowing, and slightly evil grin on Riku's face. "We'll see."

"Oi-"

And without warning the taller boy had suddenly hoisted him over his shoulder like some woman, carrying him out of the castle's depths.

"What the heck are you doing?!"

"Letting me grab you like that: idiot, check."

"Let me go, jerkface" Vanitas hissed, kicking a bit, but Riku didn't let up.

In fact, he chuckled. "If you stop, I'll steal some of that Leon guy's belts before I figure out how to get that suit off."

"Belts?" Vanitas said, immediately perking up. "Oh, you like it kinky?!"

"Annnd cheerful, check!"

"You bastard!"

Riku laughed heartily, and despite Vanitas's indignation he'd gone beyond the point of caring, and joined in, chuckling with him. His existence was a sham, anyway, so why not take what opportunities that presented themselves, even if he was just a replacement?

He refused to acknowledge that maybe, just maybe, this had been what Riku was looking for all along.

And, kinda, maybe, sorta, Vanitas realized this when he had Riku pinned underneath him, the silver-haired teen's skin slick with sweat and his wrists chaffing against red belts that were holding him to the metal bedframe, and the other was moaning his name loudly as the raven mauled his neck and pressed into him deeper, so he could watch him tremble and spasm and beg for more.

"Vanitas- oh god, nnngh" he moaned, his chest heaving as he tried to gulp in oxygen. "Please, fuck-"

"Oh, inappropriate" Vanitas murmured, nipping at the other's collarbone and twirling strands of hair between his fingers.

"Would you just-" Riku hissed, not finishing the sentence as he bucked his hips upward, trying to encourage his raven-haired partner to move. He wanted to make every sting, twinge, and ache worth it in the morning, dammit, and Vanitas's stops and starts were beginning to piss him off.

"So pushy" Vanitas taunted, nipping at the shell of Riku's ear before repositioning himself and restarting his rhythm, biting back his own noises. Despite his nature, and the temptation, they'd made sure to prep nice and properly, running off with more than just Leon's belts (he had quite the collection of flavoured lubricants and various kinds of condoms) and taking the time to figure out exactly how this was supposed to be done. Still, neither of them were experienced and Riku was tight, squeezing him almost painfully if it weren't for the waves of heat and pleasure each movement inside him brought. Ok, it probably was painful, but Vanitas's pain tolerance was probably higher than most women's.

"Harder" Riku gasped, throwing his head back and elicting a growl, the smaller teen thrusting forward in response. Riku groaned loudly, panting like an animal and squirming in the bonds, the noise closely followed by a small whimper.

The friction was getting unbearable, now, and Vanitas could feel himself getting close, the pleasure coiling up inside him like a spring, his mind blurring out.

"Fuck, Riku, I'm gonna-"

"Yes, oh god, please- just, nngh" Riku moaned, groaning loudly and the raven thrusted directly into his prostate, making the other see stars.

"V-Van-i-"

"C'mon, almost-" Vanitas panted. He was so close, so damn-

With one last, bone shaking thrust Riku's back arched up hard against the bed as he gasped his partner's name as loud as he could, coming hard and leaving strings of white across both of them. The sight was enough to bring Vanitas over the edge, too, his body spasming forward as his orgasm blinded him and left him senseless to all but the pleasure and the smell of Riku.

Vanitas shakily withdrew, collapsing almost on top of the other as he undid the belts with tired fingers, so he could pull the other close with one arm, rolling off the soiled condom with the other and chucking it off the side of the bed.

They said nothing for a time. Just laid there, still breathing heavy, in each other's arms, wandering between consciousness and sleep. Finally Vanitas's brain poked him enough to remind him of something he hadn't realized in the heat of fucking Riku, something he should've noticed earlier and something that was oh-so important.

"I never introduced myself" he suddenly said, and he felt Riku's heart flutter a bit.

"Sora told me about you" Riku admitted.

"So you did know who I was?"

"Kind of. You lied about not knowing Sora."

"Technically dreams don't count" said Vanitas, who was beginning to play with Riku's hair again. He was kind of annoyed that he cut it, but each to their own he supposed.

"So you didn't just fuck me because I look like your best friend?"

"Do I strike you as shallow?"

Vanitas snorted a bit. "You strike me as in love with Sora."

The silverette said nothing for a few seconds, before he wound his arms around Vanitas. "Maybe. But I don't think he needs me like that. He has Kairi."

"Should I stop hating Kairi now, or should I still feel like I'm a replacement?"

Riku pondered this. "I dunno."

"Y'know…I reckon I could bring Sora around."

"Huh? Why would you do that?" Riku suddenly asked, looking a bit confused.

"Oh, don't get me wrong" said Vanitas, nuzzling Riku's neck. "I'm never letting you go now. But just think…me pounding into your prostate while Sora sucks you off. Or me and Sora touching each other."

Riku froze, and Vanitas grinned, rubbing up against Riku's quickly growing arousal.

"Damn" Riku whispered, as Vanitas slipped his fingers around Riku's cock, thumbing the slit as he stroked it harshly, immediately beginning to elicit throaty moans.

"This is evil" he groaned, gripping Vanitas's shoulder blade with one hand, the other pinned beneath him.

"Evil? You haven't seen anything yet" Vanitas murmured, grinning widely, still enraptured by the aquamarine of his lover's eyes. It was a little cheesy, a little too Sora for his liking- but even if deep down Riku wanted Sora more than he wanted him, the fact that he was here, willingly, was enough to give something the raven-haired boy had been striving for his entire existence.

A light to follow and hold close.

(end note: vanitas/riku/sora threesome. Just think about that for while)