'I'm not paying attention to this crap. I never do. All I know is that Xemnas better give me something worth my time or I'm going to go along with that idiot Marluxia's plan.' Larxene thought to herself as she sat on her chair at the Organization XIII meeting.
It was just another run of the mill meeting. Petty squabbling, underappreciated jobs and assignments no one wanted. It was Larxene's turn on the short end of the stick today though. Her assignment was to go visit a town called Twilight Town. Larxene swore as she left her chair and the meeting altogether. She had had enough of Xemnas' shit. She swore she would talk to Marluxia about his plan the instant she got back. She spoke to no one as she made a portal through the darkness to leave.
"You know. Xemnas is handing out the crappiest assignments to our best people. Don't lose yourself on this one Larxene." Axel said in a cocky tone from the wall he was leaning against.
Larxene stared at Axel and sharply said, "I don't recall asking you to wish me a farewell Axel. You can take that advice and shove it."
"Yeah well I just like handing out free advice Larxene. You really should be careful though." Axel said with a wave of his hand as he walked off.
Larxene stared at his back and muttered to herself, "When did you ever give a shit Axel? Never, that's when. I've stopped caring what happens to me. I've got nothing worth living for anyway."
She stepped through the portal she had made and walked out into the golden red light of Twilight Town. The town seemed so quiet, just like it was the lazy late afternoon it looked to be. Larxene turned to walk down the walkway she had appeared on and just get on with her mission when she noticed a lone girl sitting in the courtyard below. Larxene felt the wash of memories of her former self as she looked at the girl. The memories were just the ghost feelings of her other self having fallen in love with a girl but never having the courage to tell her. Larxene didn't realize it immediately but she had been watching the girl for over an hour without moving. The girl was just sitting there watching the sunset idly. The light of the sunset accented her silver hair and streaked it with gold light. Larxene could swear she had never seen anyone so pretty before. It took sheer force of will to look away from her. Larxene tried her hardest not to look back as she tried to forget the girl and focus on her mission.
The girl in the courtyard had gotten up and turned around to walk away just in time to see Larxene watching her and then walking away. The girl's name was Fuujin, more commonly called Fuu by her friends. She was wondering to herself who the stranger watching her had been. A flutter of something Fuu had never felt before went across her heart as she recalled how pretty the other girl had looked. Her blonde hair had almost looked like it was on fire and was sharply contrasted by the black cloak she had been wearing.
Fuu had gotten up because she had heard her friends Seifer and Rai calling for her. She stared at them as they rounded the corner. This was the one time in the day where Fuu just wanted to be left alone so she could watch the never ending sunset. She knew she could watch it at anytime but for some reason it just felt better to be watching it in the afternoon. It somehow made it more real to her. Like that girl who had been watching her. She was real but it seemed like only for just a moment. Fuu's head spun with wild thoughts as she got up and walked over to her friends. Seifer had a smile on his face as he said, "We've been looking for you Fuu. We're gonna totally go own those lamers down in the Tram Commons. That idiot, what's his face."
Fuu stared blankly at Seifer as she said, "Hayner." She hated some of Seifer's plans and sighed to herself as she knew she was going to be dragged into another one.
"Yeah that's it. Anyways, that moron thinks he can beat me. I say we go down there and show him and his gang who is boss in town." Seifer said animatedly.
Rai merely nodded and smiled as well. Fuu however was letting her mind wander back to the courtyard and the blonde haired girl who had been watching her.
Seifer stared at Fuu and poked her on the forehead as he said, "Hello? Anyone home there? What do you say to my idea Fuu?"
Fuu slapped at his hand and quietly said, "Dumb."
Seifer's face fell into a frown as he said, "Aw c'mon Fuu. It'll be fun. You can beat up that girl Olette."
Fuu shot Seifer a look that said all she didn't. "No."
"What do you mean 'No'?"
Fuu felt frustrated with Seifer. He knew she couldn't explain herself past that. Not for lack of wanting to. Her mind was screaming at Seifer calling him a moron for even thinking she'd hurt another girl. Even though the groups were opposed Fuu had always found herself admiring how Olette looked. Now Seifer had gone and suggested this stupid little plan. Fuu stared at Seifer and punched him in the face as hard as she could. She figured that would have to do in place of an explanation.
Seifer was taken aback by Fuu hitting him. He just shrugged it off and said, "Fine. I get it. Come on Rai. Fuu can be off by herself today."
Fuu watched her friends walk off and then headed for home. She really didn't have anywhere else to go that day as it was. Her thoughts kept returning back to earlier that day as she ate dinner and got ready to turn in early. She swore to herself as she fell asleep, that if she ever got the chance to meet her admirer face to face she would take a bold step and ask her out so she could get to know her better.
"You're home late." Said Axel as Larxene returned back home after a long day.
Larxene simply ignored Axel and headed off for her room. She wasn't about to admit that she had tried to figure out where the blue haired girl she had watched lived or that she had tried to find her. Her mission had been done for over seven hours and it was unheard of for her to stay where she was assigned once her mission was done. She opened the door to her room and just about punched who was behind it.
Axel was standing there having warped here form where she had entered the castle. "Don't ignore your superiors when they tell you you're late."
"The hell do you care if I'm late Axel? You got the hots for me or something? Because I can tell you upfront that you're the wrong gender for me not to mention the wrong personality." Larxene said sharply.
Axel smirked and said, "Aww is our little Larxy faking like she has a heart?"
"Shut up asshole." Larxene said as she shoved past Axel.
Axel smiled to himself as he walked out of Larxene's room. "You should know better than this Larxene. Nobodies can't ever love. We don't have heart to give back to those that fall in love with us."
Larxene held herself back from pummeling Axel. She knew he was right. What right did she have to love when she had nothing to give? But she wanted to. Wanted to love someone and be loved in return. She wanted to know what it was like to feel emotions for real instead of just faking them. As her door shut she flopped down on her bed and quietly said to herself, "I don't care what Axel says. Let my nonexistent heart be broken over a love that can never exist. I just want to see that girl one more time to remind myself of just why it is I feel like I'm feeling something real."
She unzipped her cloak and let it fall to the floor. The black outfit underneath had always felt more comfortable than that hot leather cloak. It was a simple tee shirt and knee length skirt and it had been the first time in days that Larxene had been out of her cloak. She could smell herself and knew she could use a shower. She sighed as she got up and made her way over to her personal bathroom. She undressed and threw the outfit into her hamper, mentally reminding herself that she needed to wash her cloak later on. She turned her shower and on stepped into the warm water. It felt good to relax like this. Despite her affinity for electricity, and all the magic that went with it, the sensation of warm water on her skin was something Larxene secretly enjoyed. She just stood there letting the drops of water bounce of her skin as she let herself drift off with the sound. Her mind wandered back to earlier in the day but this time she had jumped down into the courtyard and had talked to the girl. She had introduced herself and everything. The dream was made perfect with a kiss but as the kiss started Larxene woke up with a start. She had passed out in the shower. She was on her butt being soaked through by the water and she had no memory of ever falling or hitting the ceramic walls that lined the shower.
She picked herself up slowly and shut the shower off. It had scared her that she had passed out like that. It certainly wasn't because she was tired or anything. 'Had it been the dream then?' She wondered to herself as she dried off.
Larxene stretched out on her bed, not even taking the time to throw on her pajamas. The cool air in her room felt good against her warm, flushed skin. Passing out in the shower had the nasty side effect of her being burned from the heat of the water. It wasn't anything bad but it hurt to move. She sighed to herself as she grabbed the covers on her bed and curled up and tried to sleep. As she did Larxene knew the beautiful blue haired girl she had seen in the courtyard would fill her dreams.
In Twilight Town the very girl Larxene is dreaming about can't sleep. Fuu sighed to herself as she sat up and tried to think of a way to sleep. She just couldn't. All of her dreams had been about that woman and most of them had been ones where Fuu could really express herself with more than just body language and one or two words. The kisses in the dreams had almost seemed real, in fact the dreams themselves seemed real up until Fuu heard herself speaking more than just one or even two words. She always woke up when this happened and would sigh because the dreams hadn't been real. It was like part of her wanted the dreams to be real and she guessed that she really did but the chances of that were slim to none. Fuu just focused instead of trying to sleep without dreaming about the blonde haired girl. She knew it wasn't going to work but she had a long day tomorrow and she needed the sleep. The dreams won't go away but sleep finally does find Fuu and she drifts off with a small smile on her face.
Morning was not friendly for Larxene. Her whole body felt sore from last night. She groaned as she got up and got dressed. One look in the mirror showed her that her hair was in complete disarray. It took her all of twenty minutes just to get it sitting right with her trademark antennae like strands sitting the way they always did. Xemnas had apparently come in at some point the night before and had left Larxene her assignment. It was another trip back to Twilight Town but this time she was to go in normal clothing. The note continued on to say that if this trip went well she would be put there on a more permanent basis for over three months. She sighed as she figured it had something to do with Xemnas' weird obsession with the town. She smiled to herself though as this assignment meant she would have a chance to see that girl again.
Larxene quickly prepared for the trip back to Twilight Town. The note had said to meet with Xemnas before heading out to make sure she was appropriately set up for the mission. Her other more 'civilian' clothes were a black skirt that came to about her knee and a white top that accented her shape nicely without being too revealing. She idly added a small gold bracelet to complete the outfit. She smiled to herself in her mirror and headed up to see Xemnas.
Meanwhile, in Twilight Town, Fuu is just waking up from her restless night's sleep. All the dreams come back to her in swirling waves as she gets ready for the day. It's her typical outfit, one that is of the same style but a different color that she put on this morning. She doesn't know why but she takes her time getting ready this morning. Fuu smiled to herself in the mirror and tried to think out something to say to herself and could only say, "Cute" aloud.
She had been meaning to say 'You look cute this morning Fuu.' The sentence had been conveyed though but with Fuu's body language more than her actual words. She sighed as she left her house and out into the perpetual twilight that hung over the town. Today she could just be off by herself. Rai and Seifer were going to grab their other friend Vivi and go out to the beach. Fuu had simply said she didn't want to go by saying 'Not going.' She wanted to stay in town for a little while longer. After all, her admirer just might return and she wouldn't know if she would ever get another chance if she missed her.
The walk up to Xemnas' room was always an awkward one. Typically because it meant that whoever was walking up the long winding staircase was in trouble, or worse, fulfilling some of Xemnas' darker wishes. Larxene was glad she had made her stand on things very clear the first time she had been summoned up to Xemnas. She finally reached his door and knocked. A low chime summoned her in and she walked into a brightly lit and completely white room. Her dark outfit stood out with such contrast that you could see every last imperfection in how the fabric hugged Larxene's shape. Xemnas smiled from behind a low desk that could barely be distinguished from its surroundings. The room was perfectly quiet, bringing to Larxene's attention for the first time a low ringing sound in her ears. Then she felt the air shift and an eerily familiar tune began to play softly. It was a rather light sounding piano piece that was occasionally heard throughout the castle and Larxene had always assumed she had just been hearing things.
Xemnas smiled but for some reason he had the hood of his black cloak up, obscuring most of his face. He was enjoying seeing Larxene dressed like this. The assignment and the dress code for it had been purposeful. Ever since she had bluntly told him she would nothing to do with him, Xemnas had resorted to little games like this. But there was something he needed done in Twilight Town. His voice has a quality to it that most would describe as evil and menacing in tone. He described it himself as being akin to the voices of the thousands of hearts that were supposed to be burning brightly within Kingdom Hearts. The purest sound of calm and reason.
"I see you got my message Larxene. Before you say anything I must warn you about this mission. Unlike all of the other ones that I have been handing out this one is of the greatest importance. You are going to stay in Twilight Town for one week and see if there are any heartless from which you can begin to collect hearts to send to Kingdom Hearts. If you find anything I will extend your mission for however long you request. In fact I will do you the honor of coming to collect you myself at the end of the week." Xemnas said, his voice ringing out clear and crisp.
Larxene had to hide the fact that she wanted to snap a sharp reply back to him. She simply nodded and said, "I have one question of you before I leave Superior. Why in the world did you wish for me to dress like this?"
Xemnas smiled slightly again and replied, "Because you are going to have to blend in with the locals are you not? Our cloaks make us just a little bit too conspicuous for a mission like this. Xaldin has made arrangements for you concerning where you will live and he has also taken the liberty of procuring you a suitable wardrobe."
"You gave that assignment to that pervert?!" Larxene said before she could stop herself. "I mean I'm sure he did a fine job but I would have been able to do that on my own. Especially the wardrobe part."
Xemnas let out a low chuckle. He knew just how far to push Larxene to get outbursts like this from her. He dismissed her with a wave as he said, "I know he did just fine Larxene. Now go. I'll expect to hear good things in a week."
As Larxene turned to walk out she smiled slightly to herself. That meant that she could use a good part of the first two days looking for that girl she had seen. Something in the back of her mind just couldn't get her completely out of her mind and she just had to see her again. She walked down to where she normally left the castle and wasn't at all surprised or enthused to see Axel standing there.
"Fuck off Axel. I don't need your cryptic warnings or poor attempts at flirting by wishing me a safe mission. I thought we had made it crystal clear how it was between us. I hate you, you must like me or you wouldn't pester me and I will say this for one last time. I. Don't. Go after. Men." Larxene said as she stared directly into Axel's emerald green eyes.
Axel smiled and laughed. "I wasn't going to do any of that. I was just gonna ask why you're wearing normal clothes."
Larxene kept her expression cold as she fought the blush from the embarrassment she felt for having called Axel out on something he wasn't going to do. "I'm wearing normal clothes because I'm going out on an extended mission. Honestly Axel, you of all people should have known that."
Axel's smile wiped off his face. "You are going to do your mission and you are not going to do anything else. You are not to talk to anyone about anything. Do you understand me?"
"The hell is this Axel? My orders came down from Xemnas, not you. I know damn well how to handle myself. I'm not a rookie anymore." Larxene said as she opened a portal through the darkness to Twilight Town.
She stepped through it without a second look back. All she was focused on now was accomplishing her mission and finding that girl again.
(Author's note: Well this would have gone up a lot earlier but I encountered technical issues. My laptop's power cord died and had to be replace so I spent a good few days without writing or internet. Now for the stuff you really care about. The story. This pairing just came to me out of the blue and I thought, 'Hmmm, this might be really interesting to see.' Hopefully to you it is interesting as well. As always, read and enjoy.)
Shinobi of the Onyx Sands