This is Real
They sat quietly in the White Room. One besides the other. Both staring at the blank pages Naminé was filling up with drawing after drawing of dreams- not memories this time. The Replica was glad of that. A small dagger twisted in his heart every time he thought about how his little angel had manipulated him so easily. Not that she had a choice, but…
To think, all of his memories were made up. Even his body was a fabrication of someone else's. And his heart too? The Replica sighed and dropped his head into his hands.
Not even my own hands, he thought numbly. When he next looked up Naminé had already put down her pencil and was watching him patiently. Worry clouded her eyes.
"Do you want to talk about it?" she asked, already knowing something was wrong. And why shouldn't she? She knew his whole life story. She wrote it.
"What's it like to be real?"
The question caught them both off guard. He had finally told her his innermost thought, and he wasn't sure how she would react. A small smile painted Naminé's face, though it didn't reach her eyes. Her next words broke his fake heart just a little bit more.
"I don't know, perhaps you should ask a Somebody. I don't think I count as real."
The two lapsed back into silence, consumed by their thoughts. It was the Replica who finally broke it with a small bitter laugh. He didn't even know why he was laughing. There was an emptiness inside of him. He looked at Naminé again.
"But you were real to Sora weren't you? Surely you must have felt something when he acknowledged you as your own person."
Naminé smiled, her eyes turning moist and dream-like, as she thought back to when Sora attempted to rescue her. The Replica's jaw tightened. He wished he hadn't mentioned Sora. The Keyblade Master was a good person, and he liked him for that… unfortunately, so did Naminé.
"It felt nice…" Naminé answered thoughtfully, "but no matter how special I felt my guilt ruined it all. I felt terrible I'd lied to him and I had to tell him the truth eventually. Even if it did mean he'd choose to forget me in the end." She quietened then, bowing her head.
"Hey," the Replica said, placing a hand over hers. "I'd never forget you."
"Thank you…"
The blonde girl lifted her head, smiling, blue eyes glittering like the ocean. The Replica's false heart skipped a beat. He took a piece of Naminé's silken locks and rubbed it between his fingers, as though making sure she was actually there. And when she blinked back at him quizzically, he felt warmth spread throughout his entire being. He smiled, finally finding the answer to his question.
This. This is what it feels like to be real.