So, I decided to start at the end and move forward. GEEZ I've missed a lot. D: But this isn't about my absence, this is about Burden of the Heart, which made my own kinda heavy. =/

The beginning is golden. It's clear as crystal and descriptive with a nostalgic touch. I was there with Roxas on that sandy beach in the dead of night. That crisp and refreshing air of ocean was just a little sour to accompany Roxas's moment. )=

The lines blurred a little after that. But in a good way. When those "green eyes" appeared I went, SQUEE! It's Axel come to save the day and cheer likkle Roxy up! =D I was holding onto the notion that maybe you'd penned this with the Happy Bunny idea that /perhaps/ Axel and Roxas found some way to exist together as people. And then this vision of mine was shifted a little. That green of his eyes was just a little wrong. And then Roxas had /brown/ spikes.
Wow.
That hit me hard.

It wasn't the concept that threw me. It was the build-up. IT'S NOT A BAD THING. So I hope you haven't taken it as that. ^^; Your ability to give us a scenario that we seemingly want and then bring us back to the reality of the moment is superb. I see it in many of your stories and it never fails to impress me and (obviously) your other readers. So good job! :)

During the start of the story, I was kind of passive about Riku. I really thought that he was only talking to Roxas for Sora, and then when Roxas began thinking about Riku's selfishness, I was tempted to just take this idea and run with it. What stopped me was Riku's simple understanding.
Despite the fact that Roxas was being a little cold, Riku was right there with him; coaching him and talking to him. It was sweet /and/ refreshing to see Riku and Roxas sharing a nonromantic moment.

On that note, you never really directly mentioned Axel in this. That in itself was just another way to tug at our hearts. At least mine. D: I didn't feel he was left out in the least. On the contrary. You made it quite clear that Roxas was lost in his longing for someone he could never love before but ended up loving once he was given a heart to love with. There was just this pang in my chest when the italics presented us with Roxas's memory of Axel.

//(...and you finally get your heart back. D’you think you’ll ever feel love? Towards me?”)// - )=

From that I would like to say that the italics added a lot of depth to the story. Each was really appropriate for their respectful member, even if Xemnas and Saix were not there. It was perfect the way it was and I wouldn't change a thing about it. :) This whole story just had me wanting to swoop down and give Roxy a hug to tell him it was okay. But I had to sit in my 'puter chair and let Riku kinda-sorta do it for me. :/

Now I'mma bring out phrases I liked so much I put them in a seperate box so I would remember to tell you how much I liked them. :D When I'm melting over a story of yours details can escape me. They're wily little buggers.

"His thoughts were scattered, even as he tried hard to focus on one single thing. Instead of everything." - This at the beginning of your story was a wonderful piece of introductory material. It really paints us a picture of what's going on in Roxas's head - chaos! The poor kiddo just couldn't seem to sort out this tangle of unfamiliar emotions. M, it makes me wonder if that "one thing" has anything to do with those green eyes he later sees.

"Roxas tasted copper in his mouth." - This sentence with its predecessor was sharp. The sentence itself is curt with a metaphorical meaning and it's just jazzy. I like it. :)

"And then he suddenly remembered a story being told to him about a little boy who cried a million rivers and drowned and died.
(And then Zexion had slammed the book shut, scoffed at the offending fairytale and said that crying was only for Somebodies. Not them.)" - This punctuated the fact that Roxas was a Nobody and now he was a Somebody who was fully capable of not only crying, but getting swept away in those big wide emotions.

In fact, by the end of the story, that kind of hit hard. You gave us all these little pieces but kept the last one from us until just before the end. That gave us time to puzzle and think, "What is Angie going to do? How is Roxas going to find his way?" The ending was perfect and beautiful. I felt snugglies knowing that Riku had helped to calm Roxas enough that he could sleep, even if he couldn't love Axel properly or get rid of that painful sadness. Aww, Roxas... Love is a lot of hurting. That heart certainly is a burden to him.

HERE IS MY REVIEW! Nothing to sugar coat, but you can have some sugar if you want. :]

Lov3 from l33

Freakin' sad.
Gah, I'm gonna cry dammit.

BAW. T_T Baby Roxy needs a hug. But RIKU WAS WONDERFUL. He's so understanding. And you make him seem so unimposing and gentle to Rox that it's almost sweet. And the last bit with Riku holding Sora's hand was just so ASHGSGGzdfdAHAHHSGffdeda. Nice~!

That was slightly painful to me =/ The ending was lovely. I'm so glad you're writing again :)

OH WOAH~! cool beginning~ poor Roxas~ i like the comment about Riku and Axel's eyes~ hahahah i give a shit hhahahha AWW~! what an awful sounding story~ the one with the crying boy aww poor Axel~ ♥♥ aw~ the end was cute~ por rOxas~♥♥

aww! this was so cute! i loved it. i really like how you had other members saying stuffs but axel was the only one to really care. i really liked it! cant wait to see more of your work

I really like this. I always wondered what it would be like for Roxas to live a semi-life in Sora's body. And to share a heart, and be able to feel. And how would losing Axel show in his emotions. Becoming *whole* isn't such an easy thing after all.

Nice job with the snippets from the Org. members. You placed them well.

Also, I like the way you write Riku. Intelligent, quiet and deep and confident.