Asterism

AU. Quiet Xion Kanemaki just moved into the infamous Aster Boarding House and meets a variety of different people with unique personalities, thus expanding her little world. But what happens when she becomes interested in the mysterious Roxas Akatsuki?

Roxas & Xion.

AUTHOR NOTES: Okay, my first Roxas/Xion Fanfic. While I like Roxas/Naminé, I've started to adore Roxas/Xion. I think it's only fair since they both met before Roxas met Naminé but I digress. I also noticed there are not many fanfics involving these two, or rather chaptered stories—they're usually OneShots and the likes. I hope this turns out okay. So be nice to me please!

Roxas had been one of my favourite Kingdom Hearts characters since he first appeared in Kingdom Hearts II. His story reminds me of my own story . . . in an odd sort of way. And no I'm not a Nobody like him but I understood him very well. I still play the first part of Kingdom Hearts II before the summer ends. His last words always gets me . . . still. /SOBS

As for Xion, I love her character so much. Actually quite refreshing to get to know her throughout Kingdom Hearts: 358/2 Days. At first I thought she was like a Kairi rip-off (I mean, hullo the face!) but then she grew on me. |D And if you read my other fanfic that was Xion-centric, you'll know that I was reminded a lot of myself through learning her story. I hope we get to meet again. /SOBS

Sorry, Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days hit me just as hard as Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core did.

NUUUOOOO MY POOR ZACKKY~ /SHOT

Anyway . . . getting back to the story . . .

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Kingdom Hearts, only this story's plot sadly.

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Chapter One : Xion Kanemaki

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So Miss Forget-Me-Not,

I guess your father was wrong about you.

I thought you were a good girl, but what a troublesome girl you are.

My girls are twice the angels you would ever be.

If anyone forgetting anything—

it's you.

You are so plain and quiet,

no one will ever want to remember you.

You don't belong here, all you do is cause trouble for me and my daughters.

How terrible of you.

You don't even know your manners.

Obviously because your real mother was never around.

She had to dump you on me.

And that's great and all, but know this kid,

there is no home, no family, no friends here for you.

Unbelievable.

There's really just no place where you belong anywhere in this world . . .

. . . Is there?

-xxx-

The terrible words echoed in her mind as the fourteen-year-old raven-haired girl jerked awake with tears in her ocean blue-coloured eyes. Wiping the tears away, she just stared up at the ceiling for a long while thinking about the dream. The haunting words of that woman. Groaning softly, she emptied her mind of the negativity and filled them up with positive thoughts. That was what her grandmother told her was the trick to rid a bad dream.

She sat up, still entangled in her sheets. They were soaked with sweat but she didn't care. Gazing out towards the window wall, she saw the city alive with the sun's rays of the new day.

Time for me to get up, she decided.

The room she lived in was empty except for a few empty cardboard boxes scattered about. She got to her feet and walked to the wall of glass and slide it to the side to let the crisp cool early summer breeze. The breeze ruffled her hair and she basked in its embrace. The bamboo flooring felt nice under her feet. A boat trudged along the ocean nearby. She waved to the people on the boat and they waved back. Destiny Islands wouldn't be the same without her grandmother.

Today is the day, she thought as she gathered her belongings. She came across a photograph of the seven-year-old version of herself smiling with a kind grandmotherly woman beaming at her. Tears welled up in her eyes as she quickly blinked them away when she remembered that day the photo was taken.

Grandma, you are happy with me aren't you? Those were the words she first asked when her Grandmother took her in and she was afraid of what the answer would be. She didn't want to be a burden or anything.

Happy? Her grandmother had answer with a funny face. Why child, I'm bursting with high spirits!

So . . . I'm not a burden? She asked hopeful.

What? Who ever told you that? Ridiculous! She had received a warm hug from the older woman. Xion, don't ever think like that again because I'm so glad you are here.

She had cried a lot that day. Both of them did and to celebrate they took a photo showing their joy, and to remember that they were happy. Xion packed it while wiping away a few stray tears. She couldn't help but ask that question almost every year one the same day after that. And her grandmother would tell her the same thing every single time.

Today I can no longer stay here. Xion knew. It had only been about two months since her grandmother passed away. She was now fourteen. And she now had to leave the very house that she had spend a wonderful seven years in with her grandmother. She had made sure she had taken lots of pictures of the place, in case she ever got the money to buy it again. And she would buy it again.

It was one of her dreams now.

Even without the furniture there, she could still see ghostly remnants of her memories shared with her grandmother. Everything was precious to her because they were her memories and hers alone. She sighed and looked out the window again, watching everything go by.

Finally she was finished packing and she strolled towards the front entrance after closing the window. Everything was stripped bare but she could still remember everything as if the house had not been put up for sale. She turned back to look at the empty place and whispered, "I'm going now Grandma. See you soon."

Xion, her grandmother's words echoed in her mind, come back home safely.

She turned back with tears in her eyes, expecting her grandmother there with her famous grins and waving her off, but no one was there.

You have no one anymore, Xion. She reminded herself. And she shut the door behind her one last time.

-xxx-

If you were to describe my life's story like a fairy tale—I would have to say Cinderella would be the closest to my story. It would be without the prince charming and the happy ending because in real life, there are no happy endings.

My mother passed away when I was only about two years old. My father took care of me for a while until I was three. Everything was perfect. Then that woman appeared.

Yuko Katayama.

A two-faced she-hag she was and would always be. She was nice in my father's presence and rotten to me. She also had two daughters. At first I was happy to have sisters but then I soon learned as long as their mother was around, it would never be possible. She accused me and criticised me in every little thing I did such as manners, speaking, folding my clothes, putting on my clothes—I could go on since it's a very long list.

Then my father passed away shortly before my seventh birthday. A terrible car accident, people would whisper to each other. The hag sure put on a glorious performance. In fact, she should have gotten an award for it. As soon as the funeral was over, Yuko would attack me with words. Her daughters would silently peek out from behind the hag's legs with pitying expressions for me.

Then suddenly I felt a hand on my shoulder—it was Grandma. She fought back for me, causing Yuko to retreat. The final blow was when Grandma announced she would take me in as her own. She was laughed at but she stood firm. Yuko left laughing, her two daughters glancing back at me concerned.

Then Grandma dragged me to her car. I remember asking her if she was really kidding about letting me live with her. I'll never forget the face she gave me. It was a mixture of shock horror and surprise that I didn't seem to believe her. A broad grin soon appeared as she told me she never kids about serious stuff like that.

That's how I ended up with Grandma on my seventh birthday.

Every day I lived in bliss. Grandma would often tell me stories, fairy tales especially. If anyone in my story was a fairy godmother—it was Grandma. I would often recall my experiences with the she-hag, causing my grandmother to be horrified at the right cue or wonder about the hag's sanity. She encouraged me to sing while the hag always told me it was horrid and forbade me too. Grandma, however, told me it was a gift as well as my acting. She always said she could totally imagine the scene happening. Nevertheless, she made my experience with her memorable beyond words.

Until I came home one day and found her passed out on the floor. The doctors said her heart had been weak for a while now. And she soon passed away in her sleep after speaking to me one last time.

Never forget, Xion, you are well-loved and a good girl. She told me. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise.

We talked long into the night. Grandma was surprisingly strong-willed, she always had been. Then before I was told to leave, Grandma told them she couldn't sleep without her little songbird—without me. They allowed me and I sung her to sleep that night.

I haven't sung since.

The funeral was nerve wrecking. I didn't really know anyone. And whispers resounded around me like they did when my father died.

Is that the child Risako was taking care of?

How pitiful.

She has no one anymore does she?

Well I can't do it, my place is far too small.

I can't take her since I have three of my own to look after.

The conversations were generally like that. It had always amazed my grandmother how people thought children wouldn't understand. It had been like that at my father's funeral. But I wasn't a child anymore, and yet the words still stung my heart.

I remember straying away from the scene to get myself to stop crying when I heard someone's footsteps. I looked up when I heard them stop to see a young man standing across from me. The bars of the graveyard separated us. He was an outsider, yet he didn't feel like one. He had spiky blond-hair and bright blue eyes. His clothes were that of a white shirt with a gray star design on its right shoulder and black shorts. But the first thing that caught me off guard was his words.

"I'm sorry for your loss."

Tears started up again as his concerned expression turned to a worried one.

"Ack, sorry! I didn't mean to—"

I just smiled at him. "Thank-you. That was probably the nicest thing anyone has said to me today."

His concern returned. "How can that be?"

"Well, I have no one anymore," I didn't know why I was telling a mere stranger this but it calmed me somehow. "Grandma was the only one who took me in when I had no one."

"So, you don't have anywhere to go now?"

"Yeah."

He seemed bothered by this. Then he pulled out a piece of paper, wrote on it, and gave it to me. "If you ever need a place to stay, go there. I can guarantee there's room for you. Any lost stars will have a home there, even you."

"Huh?"

By the time I looked up he had vanished. Vanished into the far reaches of my mind. It almost felt like a dream and yet, I had the paper. My little miracle. I just didn't know how much of a miracle it would be. And I didn't see him again after that day.

-xxx-

And that was the exact place Xion was heading for on that piece of paper.

She took the train to the city. Leaving behind the sea was hard but it would have been more painful to stay there. The memories of her grandmother would ingrained in everything. The sea and their old house reminded Xion of her grandmother the most. It was too painful to stay. Thus the city seemed to be the only solution. Soon the train arrived at Twilight Town and she got off. Following the map and asking helpful individuals for guidance, she finally came across the place.

She glanced down at the paper, looked at the street signs and then back to the building in front of her. This was the place. A sign beside it read: ASTER BOARDING HOUSE – A place for any lost stars to call home.

"A place for any lost stars to call home, huh?" Xion couldn't help but smile. "I wonder how lost I am." She pushed the black rimmed gates forward and went inside.

At that time I didn't know that the real story was just beginning . . .

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Chapter One – Xion Kanemaki [ END ]

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Author Notes: GAH, sorry it's so dang long! /FLAILS

But this serves as the teaser until I finish Midnight Calls starring Sora. I should be able to return to this in the Fall once university starts up again. But other side notes to note—Xion's surname, Kanemaki, is the name of the novelist that coined her name and black hair appearance. So Xion's surname is in homage to the author Tomoko Kanemaki. Thank-you Kanemaki-Sensei for creating Xion! Much love to you~!

Other names can be seen as references to other characters, namely voice actors/actresses. See if you can find them! I'll give you imaginary hugs if you can! And they may give you an idea what might come. You'll see why I choose them in later chapters.

Preview: "Do I really deserve to be here? Can I really stay here after all?"

Please Review, and let me know what you think~! C8