He woke up, blinking hazily at the cold walls around him. Why was it always white?
Roxas sat up slowly in his bed, shaking the usual weariness of the morning as he looked around. The room was cool, even the comforter and sheets that enveloped him seemed cold and boring. The colors of the bed, floor, walls, everything was some shade of white or grey; even for his clothes, he wore simple white pajamas, just like everyone else who lived there. Roxas gazed briefly and blankly around the room, and finding no one there, he shut his eyes and let out a small sigh.
Is a little brightness or color too much to ask? That wouldn't hurt anyone...
His thoughts were interrupted by a knock at the door, from which a brown-haired woman in a white nurse uniform entered quickly. Her hair was pulled loosely in a bun behind her head, and she wore a bright smile that looked utterly plastered on. Like everything else in his world, she seemed fake, cold and blank as the stone floor. And, as per usual, dull and white...
"Good morning, Roxas. It's time for your daily check up, if you'll please follow me."
Roxas answered blankly. "Yes, Ms. Kurokami." He didn't feel the need to be overly pleasant; it wasn't a part of his day he particularly liked, and the nurse seemed to have enough fake enthusiasm for the both of them. But he'd go with it just the same, as long as he got it over with quicker. Shots were something he'd like to be done with as quickly as possible.
He followed his attendant out and down the hall, walking at a brisk pace through the cold, grey halls of the Shiromiya Institute of Genetic Experimentation, or S.I.G.E. as the official acronym. Roxas walked with his eyes lowered, paying little attention to the bland, familiar surroundings as Ms. Kurokami led him to the far right door down the hall. The sign above the door was old and worn, but the print was still dark and legible: Room 34. The bane of his existence.
Roxas sighed again, stepping through the door as his attendant held it open. Inside, the room was relatively clean and empty, the only exceptions being a small desk and cabinet in the corner next to a medium-sized covered operating table. There was some surgical equipment as well; pointy needles and knives that made the boy cringe every time he saw them. A silvery-blond haired man in a white lab coat sat at the desk with his back to them, scribbling furiously on a clipboard. When the door creaked closed the scratching pencil stopped and the the man turned around, a blank and unreassuring look on his face.
"Ah, Patient 13, right on schedule. Thank you, Ms. Kurokami, that will be all." The woman's fake smile widened, if that was even possible, and she bowed low before stepping out the door to wait in the hall.
The man turned to Roxas, glancing at his clipboard as he flipped over a few pages. "For your check up today, Roxas, I'll run a few scans, take a bit of blood, and then you'll be on your way. It's fair to assume I have your complete cooperation, am I right" Roxas nodded, sighing again. It's not like he had a choice in the matter anyway. No one did. The last time he'd witnessed someone refuse, he then had to watch them be forcibly held and even drugged before they went ahead with the procedures anyway. He shuddered faintly at the memory.
"Good, then if you'll please take a seat on the table, we can begin."
It was about an hour later when Vexen had finished with his examination, and once he was done, Roxas got up and went to the door, gently rubbing the sore spot on his arm from where he had had blood taken. He winced as he walked, glaring down at the developing bruise as if his stare alone could cause it to melt away. This procedure was always anything but pleasant, but today it felt like the doctor was really trying to hurt him or something. He was never particularly gentle, but Roxas had put up with it fine, like always. It was just something you had to learn in here. Let it blow past you...
The older man called his attention as he opened the door, his voice an almost perfect monotone. "A new S.I.G.E. employee will be working here as my assistant starting tomorrow. I want you on time and on your best behavior, is that clear, Roxas?"
Roxas looked back at him blankly, raising his eyebrows in a mixture of boredom and disbelief. He dared a sarcastic response.
"I didn't realize I was such a handful, doctor."
Vexen rolled his eyes at the sarcasm before returning them to his clipboard, once again scribbling madly. Roxas let out another soft sigh, before pulling the door shut behind him with a creak.
Ms. Kurokami led Roxas next to a large, white room in the R wing of the main building. The room looked like a mix between a small park and a cafeteria area, with a carpet that looked like grass covering every inch of what would be white stone tile. The walls were still white and tiled, but several trees were scattered about the room, their roots growing from small clay pots somewhat buried in the ground. A few people sat under the trees, admiring them, while other people walked to and fro, getting small trays of food from the station at the corner and sitting down on the artificial, rubbery "grass."
The door closed behind Roxas, leaving him to stand and stare for several minutes before he was approached by a cheerful blond girl in a white dress. She was one of the few people there who was his age; most other people seemed to be between thirties and forties.
Roxas smiled slightly. "Morning, Namine."
The girl smiled back at him brightly. "Hello, Roxas. I hope you're doing well today." She watched as he rubbed his arm absently, giggling. "I take it they went rough on you this morning. That's the way it goes sometimes, I guess."
Roxas rolled his eyes. "Tell me about it."
The two of them walked across the room to where a small sketchbook lay beneath a beautiful tree with shimmering, golden leaves. Roxas stopped, gazing at it silently for a while, lost in thought. To him, all the trees there were fake, even this one. It wasn't planted in the ground because there was no where to plant it here. It was just trying to take everyone's minds off the fact that they were here...
Namine continued walking, and sat down beneath the tree by her sketchbook.
"Isn't it pretty?" she asked. "I love this tree in particular. It's called an Aspen tree. It apparently symbolizes determination and over coming fear and doubt. It's also said that as long as the roots survive, even fire can't completely destroy it."
Roxas slowly smiled, reaching up to touch a leaf and roll it between his fingers. It had an almost leathery texture to it, but he could see and smell that it was real. "That's pretty cool, I guess." He then walked over and sat down beside her.
"So, draw anything interesting lately?" She blushed a bit, hiding her book behind her back. Roxas sighed. "Come on, Namine. Let me see."
Reluctantly she handed it over, and he flipped through the sketches, amazed at the realistic trees, fields, and flowers she had drawn. He smiled when he found one drawing that was obviously meant to be the two of them, but it was done in colorful globs and stick-figures. Namine smiled sheepishly. "I'm not too good at drawing people. You know that..."
Roxas laughed at that, and continued to flip through her sketches.
"These are fantastic, Namine. Best I've ever seen." It was a little white lie, but it made her happy. Because she was his only real friend here, Roxas felt it was his job to keep her spirits as high as possible. She always did the same for him, it seemed.
"I just wish they'd let you have better supplies than those cheap-ass crayons."
Namine smiled, still a bit embarrassed. "I'm glad you like them. And yeah, it would be nice if they gave me better pencils. But hey, you know the rules."
Roxas frowned, not looking up from the sketchbook. "Why is it that everything has to be so heavily sterilized? And we can only get certain things from the outside? Colored pencils and paint aren't going to hurt us."
Namine looked down sadly. "S.I.G.E. doesn't care about what we want. They're not here to entertain us; they're just trying to protect their investments."
Roxas's frown deepened. All he'd ever really know was this place; he'd been born and raised here, that's what they'd told him. He, Namine, everyone here were all just experiments, endorsed by some rich assholes who had too much time and money on their hands. Most of the time he could accept this as a fact of life, going about his daily business without really caring what happened, because there was nothing he could do about it. But there were some times when it all just made him so angry! What made them so different from people on the outside?
A soft hand settled itself upon his own, which he then realized he had curled into a fist. He was shaking lightly. Namine looked at him, the same sad expression as before, but a soft smile spread across her lips that cooled his anger. Of all the people he met, she was the one who he could talk to, the one who cared about him and treated him like a human being. Her smiles were never fake.
He couldn't help but smile back, even if it pained him.
"It's alright, Roxas. I have you as my best friend, and that's all I need to be happy." Her face genuinely lit up then. It warmed his heart.
"You're the one person here who's keeping me from going crazy, Namine."
Just then a light bell rang throughout the room, and both teens stood up and followed the crowd as the patients of S.I.G.E. walked back to their attendants and were led back to their rooms.
Shit!
Axel raced down the halls of the institute, hoping against hope he wouldn't be late for his first day of briefing. It was a real stroke of luck that he landed this job, and he really didn't want to get in trouble before his first real day.
Axel currently attended O13, one of the many small, generic universities in the district of Himura. He was a chemistry major, always having been interested in what sort of things made up people and the world around him. Not to mention he liked messing with bunsen burners. Fire in general was interesting to him; he loved to watch flames crackle and dance. Call him weird if you will...
Afraid that there wasn't much else to do with his major, he applied to the institute for a year internship, while he worked part-time at a local restaurant on the side for extra cash. He didn't really know what sort of experiments they tested at S.I.G.E., but when some good friends of his mentioned a possible career for him, he'd jumped at the chance to see what it was all about. Good old Demyx and Xigbar...
Why does this place have to be so boring? he thought to himself, his eyes glancing around a bit as he ran. Everything was either tiled in some way or just plain white. Not really the most welcoming atmosphere...
Axel turned the corner, grumbling to himself, when he almost collided with a young woman in a nurse's uniform. He stumbled back in time to avoid a collision, though he fell back onto the hard, cold stone floor with a thud.
"Ow..." Grumbling and cursing under his breath, he finally looked up. The woman looked flustered to say the least; her face just screamed high-strung and indignant, turning slightly red as she spoke.
"Young man, please watch where you are going." Her voice cracked a bit each time she used a higher pitch. When he stared at her blankly for a few minutes more, she threw in an extremely irritable, "Can I help you with something, sir?"
You can help me by digging that bug outta your ass.
"No, that's alright. I'm fine, thanks, " he lied. The woman still looked annoyed, but a giggle from behind her quickly caught his attention.
Behind the woman was a young boy with spiky blond hair and shockingly blue eyes. He looked about 17, only a few years younger than Axel, although he was much, much shorter. The boy tried to stifle his laughter, noticing the two pairs of cold eyes that settled on him, but he wasn't doing a very good job. Axel raised an eyebrow slightly, debating whether or not he should as the squirt what was so funny...
The woman rounded on him suddenly, grabbing his wrist and pulling him with her. She'd apparently forgotten about Axel, not looking at him at all as she passed.
"Come along now, Roxas."
The boy walked with her, although he was a few paces behind, more reluctant. He looked over his shoulder at Axel as he answered, "Yes, ma'am." He gave the redhead a small, sheepish smile, mouthing "nice one" as he was pulled around the corner and disappeared from sight.
Axel just stared at the place where they had disappeared.
What the hell was all that about?
He scratched his head slightly for a moment, but quickly dismissed the thought when he realized he was still running late. Even later now because of that bitch.
"Crap!"
With that motivation, he was soon up and running again.
After stopping a few S.I.G.E. employees for directions, all of whom came across as distracted or annoyed by his questions, he finally found the room marked #34. As he turned the handle, the door creaked open to reveal a small, almost empty room. A cold voice called from the corner.
"So, you're finally here are you, Mr. Kurami? Well, now that you've joined us here, I can get started. My name is Vexen Akuma, and you'll be working with me from now on."
Axel put on the best smile he could fake as he approached the older man.
Great...