Upside-Down

Demyx plucked lazily at his Sitar strings. He was trying to think of a new song, but nothing was coming to him but the sounds of silence. He stared at the blank page of his notebook, which should have been filled with music notes by now. In a sad attempt to amuse himself, he began to doodle. He wrote the names of all of the Organization members in order first.

Xemnas, Xigbar, Xaldin,

Vexen, Lexaeus… Zexion…

Saix, Axel, Demyx,

Luxord, Marluxia, Larxene,

Roxas…

Hm.. Still bored… Imagine that.

I - II - III

IV - V - …VI…

VII - VIII - IX

X - XI - XII

XIII

Wow… Roman numerals… Fascinating. One last try, then, shall we?

1 - 2 - 3

4 - 5 - 6

7 - 8 - 9...

He stared at the number six for a moment. That was Zexion's number. The Melodious Nocturne's eyes drifted down to the number below it. His own number. A grin wide on his face as he tore out that page of his notebook, a clever thought entered his head.

After crumpling the scrap paper and tossing it in the trashcan (three points!) Demyx turned around and looked at himself in the mirror. A serious look crossed his features as he crouched down, touched the floor, and put his body's weight on his hands, forcing his feet into the air. This stance only held so long, however, as the Melodious Nocturne had about as much balance as a drunk dog on stilts. A loud crash resounded through the hall outside of his room as he fell on the trashcan, causing the waste basket to fall over, its contents scattering all over the floor.

A silver-haired boy, just younger than Demyx, his slate locks covering his right eye, walked into the clumsy boy's bedroom. Upon seeing the water elemental sprawled on the floor, he closed the book that was in his hand.

"Number Nine… What on earth are you doing?" He asked, his eyes narrowing. The blonde before him smiled and sat up, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Hey, Zexy-"

"Don't call me that…"

"…Kay, Zexion." He smiled and silence filled the room that the two were in. With the Cloaked Schemer's expectant eyes on Demyx, Number IX blushed.

"…Well?" The intellectual boy insisted, irritation clear in his voice.

"Oh, right!" Demyx laughed and stood up to retrieve his notebook. Zexion watched as the blonde scribbled something quickly on the paper. The water elemental turned the notebook around for the Cloaked Schemer to see. It was the numeral six. The illusion elemental raised his eyebrow in confusion. Demyx turned the piece of paper upside-down and grinned as if he had just thought of something cunning.

"Do you see?" He asked, his pride gleaming through his teeth. Zexion sighed. Nothing that Number Nine ever did made any sense whatsoever.

"I don't see anything." He said, waving it off as he opened his book and made his way back down the hallway. Demyx started after him, grabbing a fistful of the leather sleeve to stop him.

"Wait, Zexy-"

"Didn't I tell you not to call me that?"

"…Yeah, but, I want you to get it, okay?" He frowned, trying to get the Cloaked Schemer to stay.

Zexion sighed. All he honestly wanted was for peace and quiet to finish his book. He was about to refuse the blonde, but upon seeing his expression… What was that look? He had seen it in his dictionary once… Ah, it was a slang term. "Puppy-dog-eyes." …He nodded in submission.

"But you have to be clear, this time." The silver-haired boy stated. The excitable teen in front of him smiled.

"Okay, I will. You know how we're all assigned numbers?" Demyx asked.

"Yes, Number Nine." Zexion replied, his voice tainted with a hint of exasperation. The Melodious Nocturne continued.

"Well, you're Number Six. You know what Six looks like when you turn it upside down?" The boy grinned. He had that proud look on his face again.

Zexion raised his eyebrow for less than a second before realization washed over him like a cool breeze.

"It becomes a nine. Six is my number… Nine is your number… Demyx, what relevance does this have?"

The Melodious Nocturne chuckled at his own cleverness.

"I wanted to be like you, so I turned myself upside-down, like an upside-down nine becomes a six." His teeth glinted in the white light of the Castle that Never Was. The boy in front of him was, albeit flattered, showing signs of annoyance.

"Number Nine, that is by far the most outlandish idea I have ever heard." He said simply, turning his head from the boy and opening his book in his hands once more before, once again, starting down the hallway.

Behind him, the excitable blonde blushed as he replayed the conversation in his mind.

Most of the time, the Cloaked Schemer just called people by their numbers, but just now…

…He said Demyx.