Sketch-Braille
His blank gaze rested on the petite girl in the corner of the room. Pencils and discarded papers littered the white marble floor around her; blonde bangs hung over sapphire eyes. The tip of the pencil came to the paper many times, each touch leaving a gray streak or smudge. Charcoal blotches stained her short white dress where she wiped her hands on the silky fabric. She looked like an angel from a painting, even though she was invisible to the teenage boy across the room.
He was very different in appearance. Silver hair stuck out at odd angles, he wore an almost Matrix-like costume, and strangest of all… he was completely blind. Suddenly, his voice broke the silence. "Naminé?"
The small artist looked up. "Yes, Takeshi?"
The silver-haired clone blinked at the mention of his new name. "I wish I could see your drawings…"
Pausing for a moment, Naminé turned the paper over and pressed down harder on the pencil. Small 'skritch-scratch' noises filled the gap in the conversation. Trying not to step on anything, Takeshi walked over and stood behind Naminé. She put down the pencil and looked up, then wrapped her delicate fingers around her protector's hand. "What… What's this?"
Takeshi sat down to bridge the height difference, allowing Naminé to guide his hand to the page. She guided the tips of his fingers over the raised surface, traveling across the thin sheet of paper. An almost inaudible sigh escaped the replica. Images of a towering spiral staircase flooded his mind, hitting with a sudden realization of Naminé's plan. "This… is how you see…?"
"There's so much to explain… Colors, lights, shadows…"
"Then why do you live in a room of white?"
Naminé gasped. He couldn't know that, could he? "I see through memories. You gave me that memory, Naminé. Thank you."
Blushing, the young artist gently stroked her companion's silver hair. A rosy pink tint crossed Takeshi's cheeks; he reached up and placed his hand over Naminé's. With a loud slam, Vexen threw open the door. "Repliku! Back to the lab!"
Takeshi shuddered. "Why should I?"
"Larxene was right. You DO have an attitude… I'll have to break you of that!"
"No!" Naminé cried.
Takeshi cast his blank gaze at each person in the room. He could smell salt; Naminé was crying. The clone felt her slip a piece of paper into his hand, and he knew that whatever experiment Vexen had, he could make it through. As Vexen led him away, a flicker of motion caught his eye. Naminé waved goodbye.