Light of Hope
Roxas sat atop the balcony railing just outside his room. The snow was falling lightly. It was December in the World That Never Was and even the Organization, a group of cold, miserable, estranged and, quite literally, heartless people were in the Christmastime mood.
But not Roxas. Not entirely.
The newest and youngest member of Organization XIII was still getting use to his non-life and he mostly spent the days contemplating his fate, his existence and other philosphical questions, as Nobodies are wont to do. He was doing that now. Looking out into the dark grey sky before him; past the slowly drifting flakes of ice and snow that descended every gracefully; beyond the dim, neon darkness of the Dark City that lay at the feet of the Castle That Never Was and into the expansive void that meant the end of this world and the beginining of the others all around him.
It was stuff like this that made a technically non-existence being feel even more insignificant than he already was. If all that surrounded his new home was darkness, then what did that say of him, living on said world surrounded by said darkness. The Key of Destiny hated this. Without true feelings, Roxas was prone to fall into bouts of melancholy as he tried to think of ways out of his seemingly abyssmal fate or hoplessly tried to decipher the scrambled memories he held in his soul.
Luckily for him, you really could never think too much being part of a group of so many eccentric characters. Some found this a curse, others a blessing. Roxas was of the latter.
A long arm clasped around Roxas's shoulders. "Roxas!" Axel said in jubilation. Even after only a short time in the Organization, Roxas and Axel had a bond closer than most brothers.
Roxas turned to meet Axel, seeing that he was wearing a red Santa cap with a single candy cane in his mouth. Half-melted snowflakes were scattered about his cloak, cap and hair.
"Hey Axel," Roxas said with a weak, half smile on his face. Axel scrunched his face together, as if that alone would be enough to see through Roxas's facade. Surprisingly, it was.
"Okay man, spill it." Axel said. When Roxas didn't respond, Axel shook his head and clicked his tongue in a disapproving manner. "Roxas, Roxas, Roxas, have you not learned you can't hide things from me?" Once again, Roxas deigned response. "Come on man, what's on your mind now?"
Roxas got off the balcony and pace away from Axel, running a hand against a smooth white pillar. "I'm just...thinking."
"What a shock." Axel deadpanned. He had been hearing this answer for the past little while and was actually expecting those words to come out of Roxas's mouth every time the two spoke. "What we're you thinking about this time?"
Roxas sighed and decided to relent. He had learned that Axel would be a constant pest until he got what he wanted so it was a good idea to just give in immediately. "Everything happens for a reason, right?" Roxas began. Axel nodded, his peridot eyes showing deep thought. "I'm mean it is a very old philosphical statement. Thousands of years old. There are no coincidences in fate. All things are on purpose. Am I right?"
Axel shrugged sideways. "I guess. So, what's your point?"
"If everything does happen for a reason...why do I exist? Hell, why do we exist? What purpose could a couple of beings with no feelings have in this universe? What is out there for us? Are we doomed to just disappear into the darkness or is there something more...something...just something else than death and despair?" When Axel didn't respond, Roxas continued, the floodgates opening. "There has to be a reason. For us. For why we gathered. For why we have no feelings but for why we still have memories. Everyone of us have memories of our past life, of our Somebodies. We remember what it was like to have emotions and so we can pretend, we can act like we have them. Everyone but me."
Roxas hung his head in despair and began to lean against the marble pillar, hands in his pocket. Axel began to chuckle darkly, shaking his head and leaning likewise on the opposite pillar.
Roxas looked up with an offended glare. "What's so funny?"
"You, got it memorized?" Axel shot back. "You're being all emo and mopey. 'Oh, I have no memories. We're gonna fade into darkness. Blah, blah, wa, wa, wa!' Please!" Axel threw his hands up in exaggeration. Do you think you're the first Nobody to feel this way about his existence?"
"But...I'm different." Roxas tried to counter. "I have no-"
"Memories?" Axel finished. "Sure you do."
"Yeah, but they're all... fuzzy and...incomplete."
"There still memories. Let's here 'em."
Roxas closed his eyes in deep thought and went through his earliest memories and the ones from his past life. His mind instantly jumped to his naming ceremony in front of the mansion in Twilight Town. "I remember...my name...it was Sora. And there was some islands...and a guy and a girl that I cared about. And...the Keyblade." Roxas opened his eyes and clenched his hands; Oathkeeper and Oblivion appeared to him in a cascade of light. The dark light of winter reflected off the legendary weapons, making Oblivion shimmer with silvery light and Oathkeeper seemed to glow in the twilit light.
Axel's own emerald eyes fell on the two weapons of myth. "Ah yes, the Keyblade. The Key to our salvation. The Key to our hope. The Key to the plan." Axel then went into full thespian mode, gesticulating wildly and pacing about. "Let me tell you a story Roxas, every single Nobody began like you, depressed about our existence and afraid of the unknown; even yours truly was like that at one point. But it all changed when Xemnas told us about our goal. About Kingdom Hearts. One day we will become complete beings once again. Y'know why, because Xemnas is the man with the plan. And you know what your are Roxas? You are the man who holds the key to the plan designed by the man, ya dig? Those Keyblades of yours are our salvation and you're our hope. The light inside the darkness. So, don't lose your light Roxas, 'cause when the plan goes down, all twelve of us schmucks are gonna owe you big time for what you did, got it memorized?"
A thin smile appeared on Roxas's face. What Axel had said actually made sense! (It's a Christmas miracle!) Without him, the Organization was hopeless and so he couldn't be a hopeless little layabout, depressed about being given a second life. He had to be the hope for all the Nobodies out there.
Roxas pushed himself from the pillar and began to walk into his room. "Thanks for the pep talk, Axe." The blonde said in gratitude. Before he had completely entered the room, though, Roxas turned around to ask a question that had been nagging him for a short while. "Could you answer me one thing though?"
"Shoot."
"Why are you covered in snow?" Roxas asked.
The snowflakes covering Axel had nearly completely melted. "Oh, me, Xigbar, Luxord and Demyx were havin' a snowball fight. Then Vexen came out and started yellin' at us so the four of us began to pelt him with snow until he was as white as Xemnas's hair. Then the Chemist Nobodies came after us..."
"But...I thought you were afraid of snow."
"No, I'm afraid of water."
"But...snow is partially frozen water."
"Your point?"
Roxas sighed at the futility of his argument. "I forgot who I was talking to. The man who is totally immune to logic."
Fires of Love
"You know this won't end well."
"Just shut up and hang that mistletoe, Roxas."
"Demyx, hold the ladder still!"
"I'm trying! You're moving around too much."
"Why did I hire you two to help me?"
"Um...we're the only ones that'll humour your hairbrain schemes?" Demyx responded meekly.
"Shut up, Demyx." Growled Axel.
The sound of compressed air driving a staple into drywall was heard. "Okay, that's the last one." Roxas slid down the ladder and tossed the staple gun to Axel, who caught it deftly.
Demyx, Axel and Roxas had just spent the last three hours hanging up mistletoe at every archway in the entire castle. Considering how big, grandoise and lofty Xemnas liked his castles, the fact that they completed the job without someone dying was enough to merit applause.
"I still say this isn't gonna work." Roxas said to Axel; this had been the blonde's mantra for the past three hours.
"Yeah, I'm mean, what do you mean to accomplish by doing this?" Demyx asked. The Melodious Nocturne had been dragged out of his bedroom by Roxas and Axel without so much as a word of what they were going to do.
"I plan on kissing Larxene under the mistletoe." Axel said unabashed and shamelessly. "And the only way I'm guaranteed on doing that is if I set up mistletoe under every arch in the castle." For those of you keeping score at home, there are 361 arches within the Castle That Never Was. And that is not including the arches that lead to bedrooms or bathrooms.
"You're more like to have your lips singed than kissed by Larxene." Roxas commented bitterly.
"Well I gotta do something to get her away from that frickin' fairy." By "frickin' fairy", Axel meant Marluxia. "I gotta do some sort of grandoise, epic gesture of love so that-"
"Hey guys, what's going on?"
The three Nobodies froze up bristled at the sound of Larxene voice sounding behind them. They turned around, Axel hiding the staple gun and Demyx hiding the box of mistletoe. Axel was glad to see Larxene was at such an angle that she couldn't see the ladder that was quarter hidden behind Roxas.
"Oh, nothing," Axel said innocently, "Y'know, just talking about guy stuff like..."
"Blitzball." Roxas brought up.
"Yeah, Blitzball and..."
"Kissing girls?" Demyx offered cluelessly.
Roxas wordlessly smacked Demyx across the back of his head.
"Ow..." Demyx whined.
Larxene gave the trio a weirded out look. "Okay..." Her eyes then fell on the mistletoe hanging above Axel. "Is that...mistletoe?" A vein appeared in her head, under one of her antennae bangs.
"Why? You hate mistletoe or something?" Roxas asked with a cheeky expression.
"No, it's just that some asshole has set up mistletoe at every archway in this castle." Larxene vented out. "Normally I wouldn't mind it but Xigbar and all those old farts have gotten into the egg nog and when they get a little boozed up they get...gropey." Her eyes then rose to the mistletoe once more. Electricity bristled around her body before a single lightning bolt struck the parasitic plant and turned it to ash. In self-preservation, Axel and Demyx threw away the staple gun and box they were holding and Roxas kicked the ladder down and away.
"What was that?" Larxene asked as the objects landed with a clatter.
"Nothing!" The three responded quickly.
"You guys are weird," Larxene said, stating the obvious. "Anyways, if you find out which asshole pulled this mistletoe crap, give me a holler. I'd like to rip them a new abdominable cavity." Axel gulped nervously and Demyx and Roxas snickered to themselves. Larxene began to leave, but soon stopped and spun around on her heel. "Oh, and could you do me a favour and tear down as much of this mistletoe as you can?"
"Uh...sure." Axel replied weekly. Larxene smiled and walked off.
"Well, so much for your grand, epic gesture of love," Roxas taunted. Axel rolled his eyes before marching off in the opposite way Larxene left. "Where are you going? Are you actually gonna undo all the work we just did."
"You bet. And so are you two."
"Why are we doing that?" Demyx asked.
"'Cause if you don't, I'm telling Larxene it was you two who set up all the mistletoe." Demyx and Roxas blinked twice. "Good, now come on. Leave the ladder." Axel told Demyx, who was folding it up again."
"But then how are we gonna get the mistletoe down?"
The three managed to get it down by using their elemental powers. At the first hanging plant they encountered, Axel burnt it to a crisp with a single blast of fire. Soon, Demyx and Roxas were following suite, knocking off the parasites with nails of compressed water and blasts of light. When they got to the last plant, Roxas took aim with Oathkeeper but Axel swatted the Keyblade away.
"Hold it there, Rox!" Axel said quickly. "You don't think I went through all that trouble of hanging mistletoe just to not get a kiss from Larxene." Roxas hung his head in despair and cursed under his breath.
"Then how are we gonna get it?" Roxas asked. "We don't have the ladder."
"Elementary, my dear Roxas." Axel replied with a grin. "Demyx, get Roxas onto your shoulders."
"We still won't be tall enough to reach the mistletoe." Demyx stated meekly.
Axel face-palmed himself with both hands. "I know," he replied impatiently, "but if you get on my shoulders while Roxas is on your shoulders, we should be able to get it." When neither Roxas nor Demyx moved, Axel snapped. "Well? Are you two gonna do something or not?
Roxas sighed again. "Might as well. I have always wondered what Axel'd look like if all his hair was fried off." Roxas assumed horserider stance and motioned for Demyx to hoist him up onto his shoulders. When Roxas was atop Demyx, Axel picked Demyx up as well to form a swaying tower of black-cloaked goons.
Axel grunted. "Damn it, you guys are heavy!"
"I'm not heavy!" Demyx complained.
Roxas ignored him. "It's that we're heavy Axe, your just too skinny."
"Oy! Kiss my ass!"
"I would, but you don't have one – 'cause your so skinny!"
"I'm not fat!"
"SHUT UP DEMYX!!!"
"Hold it! Right there! I think I...Yes! Got it! AAH!"
At the moment that Roxas unhitched the mistletoe, Axel gaveway to the two other Nobodies and they all tumbled downwards onto the ground. What's worse is that they all landed atop each in other in similiar, compromising, non-flattering, non-heterosexual positions. What's worse than that is at the moment they were all dazed from the fall, Xigbar walked in.
The Freeshooter took one look at the pile and then began to laugh himself silly. "Jesus!" He barked in between guffaws. "I always knew two of you guys were gay, I just never pegged all three of you to be!"
Axel grunted, sliding his way out from Demyx and Roxas and grabbed the mistletoe. "Piss off, ya drunken pirate!" He then sprinted down the halls to find Larxene.
Roxas and Demyx sat up to see Axel run away. "He's gonna die, isn't he Rox?" Demyx asked as Xigbar continued to laugh at the situation.
"Yeah." Roxas replied, ignoring Xigbar. "Yeah, he is, Dem." Roxas then summoned Oblivion and proceeded to smack the crap out of Xigbar.
Axel finally caught up with the Savage Nymph, still clutching the mistletoe like lifeline. "Hey! Larx!" Axel called to her.
The blonde turned around. "Hey, Axel! Thanks for tearing down all that mistletoe, not a single sprig of that weed in..." her eyes then descended to the mistletoe in Axel's hand. "What are you doing with that?"
"Oh, uh..." Axel backed away nervously but his pacing was cut off when Larxene used her super-speed to appear behind him. Axel turned around and jumped back. "Ya see, and you're gonna get a kick outta this, um...I decided that the only way I could get a kiss from you was if I put mistletoe up at every archway in the castle. Funny, ain't it?" Larxene frowned at the plant in Axel's hand. "Demyx and Roxas helped too!" Axel shouted in defence. "In fact, it was their idea!" Axel held the piece of mistletoe up like a shield.
Larxene grasped Axel's skinny arm with ironshod strength. "So, all that time I was being hit on by a bunch of drunky, horny bastards was because you couldn't keep your libido in check?" Axel smiled thinly and then closed his eyes, expecting a face full of kunai but instead he got a kiss. It was brief and quick but it was still a kiss. Axel opened his eyes and backed away nervously, blinking rapidly.
Larxene laughed at Axel and his reaction. "You know, you could have just asked in the first place." Larxene then walked by Axel, but not before throwing him a playful wink.
Axel stood there, stupefied until Roxas and Demyx came running down the hall.
"Well, I don't smell charred flesh," Axel heard Roxas tell Demyx, "so it must mean that Larxene just used her knives on – hey, speak of the devil! Axel, how did it go!" Roxas looked up and down at his buddy. There were no wounds. "What? Not even a puncture wound?"
"Nope." Axel responded, plopping the mistletoe into Roxas's hand. "All I know is that girls are weird."
"Even Nobody girls?" Demyx asked.
"Especially Nobody girls." Axel confirmed. "Rox, use that mistletoe on Namine, it'll be put to better use."
Bonus: 12 Days of Kingdom Christmas
On the first day of Christmas, my lady gave to me
A Keyblade in a papou tree
On the second day of Christmas, my lady gave to me
Two chocobos
And a Keyblade in a papou tree
On the third day of Christmas, my lady gave to me
Three Vierran archers
Two Chocobos
And a Keyblade in a papou tree
On the fourth day of Christmas, my lady gave to me
Four gliding Sylphs
Three Vierran archers
Two Chocobos
And a Keyblade in a papou tree
On the fifth day of Christmas, my lady gave to me
Five Firaga Rings
Four gliding Sylphs
Three Vierran archers
Two Chocobos
And a Keyblade in a papou tree
On the sixth day of Christmas, my lady gave to me
Six Gummi Ships
Five Firaga Rings
Four gliding Sylphs
Three Vierran archers
Two Chocobos
And a Keyblade in a papou tree
On the seventh day of Christmas, my lady gave to me
Seven Buster Blades
Six Gummi Ships
Five Firaga Rings!
Four gliding Sylphs
Three Vierran archers
Two Chocobos
And a Keyblade in a papou tree
On the eight day of Christmas, my lady gave to me
Eight Materia crystals
Seven Buster Blades
Six Gummi Ships
Five Firaga Rings
Four gliding Sylphs
Three Vierran archers
Two Chocobos
And a Keyblade in a papou tree
On the ninth day of Christmas, my lady gave to me
Nine Summoners summoning
Eight Materia crystals
Seven Buster Blades
Six Gummi Ships
Five Firaga Rings
Four gliding Sylphs
Three Vierran archers
Two Chocobos
And a Keyblade in a papou tree
On the tenth day of Christmas, my lady gave to me
Ten SOLDIERS marching
Nine Summoners summoning
Eight Materia crystals
Seven Buster Blades
Six Gummi Ships
Five Firaga Rings
Four gliding Sylphs
Three Vierran archers
Two Chocobos
And a Keyblade in a papou tree
On the eleventh day of Christmas, my lady gave to me
Eleven Moogles dancing
Ten SOLDIERS marching
Nine Summoners summoning
Eight Materia crystals
Seven Buster Blades
Six Gummi Ships
Five Firaga Rings
Four gliding Sylphs
Three Vierran archers
Two Chocobos
And a Keyblade in a papou tree
On the twelfth day of Christmas, my lady gave to me
Twelve Limits-a-Breaking
Eleven Moogles dancing
Ten SOLDIERS marching
Nine Summoners summoning
Eight Materia crystals
Seven Buster Blades
Six Gummi Ships
Five Firaga Rings
Four gliding Sylphs
Three Vierran archers
Two Chocobos
And a Keyblade in a papou tree
So, right...no GOD...well I've been suffeirng a tiny bit of writers block and I find the best way to break through writers block is to stop writing the project your on and focus on something new. So, expect a few oneshots here and there and wait until the new year for everyone's favourite, underrated, poorly writting fanfiction (god...look at how much credit I give myself).
Anyways, this is my holiday gift to you, a short pair of stories involving some of my favourite Organization members. It felt good to write this kind of stuff as I never really wrote much for the Organization members and it feels satisfying giving them my own little spin.
So, Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukah, Have a Good Kwanza, and an excellent New Years to you all. Be safe, have fun and enjoy. I will.