AN: Another Xemsai! And others :3. And in case people don't know, Århus is in Denmark. Well I really think I did well for the storyline of this one, so please try to review to tell me how I'm doing! Oh, and the story is in Saïx's POV unless I say otherwise.
Mum and Dad were talking about the war again. That's all Dad's seemed to want to talk about since he came home, although I thought he'd want to get away from it. It was one of his few leaves he got from fighting, so I thought that he would want to discuss happier subjects, but all we hear about is how things are going for us and everything else that goes along with that. As I jogged slightly downstairs, I considered how amazingly lucky I was: my house was relatively large and still untouched by warfare, I still had both my parents and I was not at risk or persecution. I had friends who were, but the Jewish persecution was yet to hit our suburban town. Savouring the estranged smell of fresh bacon and eggs, I embraced my father because taking my place at the table. At fifteen, I was considered too young to fight and Mum seemed to get so upset every time anyone mentioned my coming of age and signing up to fight for King and country. She gleefully waltzed in, carrying a tray with three plates of traditional English breakfasts (which had cost a ridiculous amount of ration tickets, but we had agreed to make an effort for Dad. It was also an odd saying, considering that we were in Århus). Once we had all settled down to eat, they continued their previous discussion.
"They
think we're in the lead, but the Germans are catching up…"
"Oh
please, Can't we just drop it while Saïx is here?" I sighed. Mum
still treated my as a baby; an excuse to get away from anything she
did not like.
"For God's sake Larxene! The boy's going to be a man in three years! He has to know how to face the world!" My eyes darted between the arguing couple as if I were watching tennis. Mum says this, Dad retaliates with that…on and on. In the end, I just got so tired of hearing them argue over me as if I had not even been there.
"Mum! Dad! We're supposed to be happy that we're together again! Have you actually considered that this might be the last time the three of us get to be a family!? Something might happen and all you do is fight!" The silence as I left the room just showed me that I had reached them. I had not meant to scream about us being separated; I loathed the thought. And yet, it was always there, lingering at the back of my mind. Just reminding me what could happen. Throwing myself on the silky grass of our garden, I admired the scenery. It was such an open space, lined with flowers and a small forest which I had never fully explored. I was tempted to, but the familiar sound of my closest friend's sitar brought me to decide against it. Maybe later, I thought. By then, I was an expert at climbing over the fence between our houses and just sitting in the garden with him. It was the first place Mum would look if I was not in the house, and Xaldin never seemed to mind my being there. The sound of my landing brought Demyx back to Earth with a startle. I laughed at the stunned rabbit expression which he wore and sat down next to him.
"Jesus, Saïx! You have to start warning me whenever you're going to just jump over the fence!" My smile faded at the seriousness of his tone; Demyx had never sounded so scared in all the years I had known him.
"Why?
You know I always come over this way."
"You could be…you
know…one of them." The blond's voice faded as he finished the
sentence. Demyx may have been my best friend and he may also have
been one of the friendliest and most liked person in the area, but
that had no affect on the Nazis. To them, he was just another Jew,
more 'scum' for them to rid the world of. The thought of it
disgusted me. But I put on happy face; I had to comfort him enough
for him to understand that everything was okay.
"Dem! You idiot! Do you really think I'd let them storm through my garden and climb over the fence without doing something? Honestly, you've been hanging around with Zexion too much!" He giggled slightly, which made me feel a small sense of accomplishment.
I sat down next to him. When they first moved in, the one thing I noticed was how Demyx seemed fascinated by the pond. He would watch the way the water rippled in the wind, and how it transported leaves and various other objects light enough to float from one end to another. It was not what was in the pond that he admired; it was the water that filled it. Sitting down next to him, I saw that he was once more admiring the clear surface of the circular pool of water.
"Look at the way it ripples, Saïx. Isn't it amazing how each one seems to be perfect every time?" I smiled and nodded. I would never understand Demyx's thing about water, but I could at least try to. Sitting back and shutting my eyes, I enjoyed what Mother Nature had to offer. Demyx continued to play his sitar with the birds singing in time, the sun shone brilliantly across the garden and everything finally seemed at peace with itself. For those few minutes, I forgot everything; that Demyx and Xaldin were at a constant risk of being killed, that I may never see my father again and that the world was against itself. That was until Demyx stopped playing. I opened my eyes to find him wandering over to Xaldin, who looked far more serious than usual. I decided that it might time for me to go back. Waving goodbye, I climbed back into my garden with as little grace as possible. It was then that I decided to see what lay beyond the comfort zone of my house.
The small forest was, as the name suggested, small. But it was dark and disorientating, making it easy to get lost in. That was why I had never ventured farther than the light. But that day I felt slightly more adventurous. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I remembered that I had not left the property of my mother and father, but it seemed like another world to me. Then it struck me, for the past ten minutes I had been hearing the calming sound of running water. Following it, I eventually came across a patch of light where the sound was at its loudest. I pulled back the branches to reveal a sight I had only ever seen painted in fairytales. A waterfall, at least seven foot tall and running for as long as I could see stood proudly in the trees. The water was perfectly clear, with nothing to disrupt its flow or the perfect white aura that surrounded it. My first thoughts were how I would have to show this to Demyx. Walking closer, I reached out to touch the water. It fell gently onto my hand, distorting its reflection. I was being invited further, as if this work of art had something to show me. Once more forgetting everything, I stepped further into the water, enjoying its warmth and serenity.
Opening my eyes, I discovered that I was totally dry, and definitely in another world. The place I had walked into seemed exactly like Earth, except with a clear blue sky, only decorated with the Sun which shone brilliantly. There were paths dotted around the area, but the rest of the land was lush greenery. I did not have to walk far to spot a small village (which looked as if it had been perfectly preserved since the 1800s) crowded with people happily going about their business. Not far from the village was the most majestic palace I had ever laid eyes on. King Rex would certainly have been impressed by it. My expression must have portrayed my feelings greatly, because I was asked time and time again if I needed help or if I was okay. Claiming to be okay, I continued around this picturesque scene, taking it in, wondering how somewhere as amazing as there could exist in such a dark time. I was in such a daze that I did not notice the young man in front of me until I had walked into him. My head hurt from the collision, but I apologised first. I was new to this place, and I did not want my first impression to have been that I was clumsy and rude. It took a lot for me not to gasp at the man I had just knocked into (much to my embarrassment). He was a wonder; for never had I seen anything so beautiful. He seemed to be roughly the same age as me, and his hair was long and silver, reflecting the Sun's light. It flowed gracefully past his shoulders, with many layers and bangs at the front. His tanned skin caused him to seem Hispanic, and his amber/syrup eyes appeared to hold the mysteries of a thousand unsolved crimes, but gave a warm sense of kindness to me. He seemed to have stepped out of a play, for his clothes were so regal and flamboyant. It was obvious that he was of a high social status. If ever a picture-perfect person had been tossed into the harshness of an imperfect world, he was certainly them.
"Oh...I-I'm so sorry... I wasn't focusing and…" the man stared oddly at me, causing me to lose my trail of though. I had no idea what he was thinking, but I clearly had confused him.
"I don't think I've ever met you before. And I know for a fact that I know this place inside out…"
"I'm not from here. I'm not too sure how I got here, but this isn't where I come from." Gasping slightly at my comment, it was blatant that this man knew nothing outside this place. How lucky he was, to not have to worry about his best friend and others close to him.
"So…there is a place outside of here? Come! Walk with me, tell me everything about it!" Suddenly filled with the excitement of a foreigner, I wondered how he could possibly understand the war. Still, there was no harm in trying.
"There's a lot to say. My name is Saïx, by the way."
"Xemnas." The man extended his hand and smiled. Shaking it, I was reminded of how similar my world and Xemnas' world actually were.
We walked for what seemed like an eternity. I started off with the geographical side, explaining about the countries and such. That itself amazed Xemnas. I then got to the good things, such as the cultures and all the places there were and all the good people over the years. But I finally reached the world's current state, explaining the war and how it broke out. Xemnas' excitement faded, and he seemed to be purely horrified.
"So
wait…this Hitler man…why is he killing people!?"
"Because…he
thinks they're not right. He had something against people called
Jews, because of their religion. If someone doesn't agree with him
or fit his description of a 'perfect person', he kills them."
Xemnas gasped, much louder that the way he did when he first realised
where I came from. He questioned about how Hitler got away with it
and did no one see that it was just grotesque?
"Yes, that's what we're doing. And the British and all the allies. We're fighting him so that everyone can live." Xemnas smiled and relaxed slightly.
"At least you're one of the good people."
When I finally left, it was very late. My parents did not question my whereabouts, and we just ate dinner, listened in about the British efforts before I finally went to bed. I made a mental note to visit Xemnas the next day. As I has promised.