~*An Omen of Blood*~
She shut her eyes and wished it all away.
~*X*~
There is no feeling like it.
There is no feeling like knowing nothing, just the crushing darkness where you drift and float in and out of the gloom, that terrible gloom where no light exists.
But no, with this girl life was different. She came from someone with no darkness, only pure love and joy, but in that light the girl found she could not see for long.
They always claimed darkness shrouds and leads others the wrong way, but to this girl, she was certain that the light was just as blinding and just as capable of claiming wrong to be right.
Now she realizes…That wasn't a terrible darkness she had been in.
It was light. So much light she couldn't see. She ached for darkness, just a small patch that everyone needs, to ease the pain. A patch to do what the light cannot, for sometimes brutality is needed to win the day.
It happened, when she moved to someone else. This person's darkness was miniscule, but the small blot was enough for the perfect balance. To this girl whose conscious mind seemed only active at points, just a few points when her host needed guidance, she was grateful for the black.
There is no feeling like it.
No feeling like suddenly coming into existence, that terrible but wonderful feeling of liberation that sent her down those dark tunnels that opened in a hissing, spitting funnel to expel the poor girl.
The girl who had no name, nothing to say. She just knew "I" and "me", but there was no title, no representative word that was unanimous with those two other words.
The girl's eyes opened slowly, and she was forced to close her eyes again as the unexpected light struck her. She slowly cracked them open once more, marveling at the feel of the wind caressing her skin, at the feel of the soft grass beneath her hands.
She smiled, the motion so natural she was unaware, and her mind automatically supplied her with words for everything, though the going was slow. She shivered, feeling a deep, inner ache that she couldn't touch. Her hand fisted over her chest, where the ache seemed to be coming from, and she sighed.
That's when she looked down, and noticed the blood. It stained the grass straight to the gates of an old mansion, and it, too, shone wetly with the terrible fluid.
She gave a small shriek of terror, retreating into a clear spot that the blood hadn't touched. The shadows were cooler than the stained grass outside, and the girl's eyes peered out into the appalling scene in front of her.
Slowly, time crept by, and that's when she realized something.
If that was blood, she should be stained. She looked down, but her pale, delicate hands were still clean and white. Her dress, also a soft ivory shade, was unblemished save for a tiny spot of dirt near the edges that was so faint it was almost unnoticeable.
The wind toyed with her hair, as if laughing at her good-naturedly, and she saw her own golden locks flowing like a curtain around her.
She stepped tentatively forward, brushing her fingers across the soft grass.
She sighed in relief. Just the sun. She turned to look at the setting sun, hanging heavy and low on the horizon, sinking farther now as it vanished behind a veil of black trees. The light drew away reluctantly as the night rushed to claim the sky, spreading black, ethereal wings across the heavens.
Feeling very silly, the young girl laughed to herself. She couldn't remove her gaze from the sight above her even as the clearing in front of the ancient gate and the mansion behind it became dark.
The stars.
They fascinated her, gleaming silver, gold, soft red, blue, and even a sort of green near the very edges. The moon appeared, rising slowly, shedding its cold light onto the girl. She blinked in wonder, both hands drawn to her chest, smiling in amazement.
She turned around, preparing to investigate the old gate, thinking if it was unlocked maybe the mansion behind it would provide shelter for the night. Her foot brushed against something, and she looked down.
There was a simple white pad, its cover a pale pink, lying in the grass. Beside it was a box of crayons. The girl bent down, puzzled, picking up the two objects, perfectly unmarked.
Maybe, perhaps, someone left them here? The nameless girl blinked. Or…Are they mine?
She clutched them to her chest, walking toward the black gate, and extended a hand to touch the large lock that secured the door shut.
It was unfortunate, she decided, but the night here wasn't so bad. Maybe it was summer; it was warm here, in any case. She didn't want to enter those woods at night anyway, no, definitely it be better to wait in the relative safety of the clearing.
She was about to sit down to look at the sky some more when she froze, looking very much like a startled rabbit as she stared into the forest.
Footsteps, relatively soft but loud enough for the sound to carry, reached her ears. The girl stepped back against the old gate, and was mortified when her mistake caused the elderly metal to creak.
The footsteps increased, and there was a sudden flash of green, accompanied by blackish light, and the poor girl screamed as a giant blade was suddenly pressed against her throat.
She found her breath coming in quick pants as her eyes traveled down to the pink scythe at her neck. A single rose petal drifted lazily down to land on the weapon, and she finally lifted her eyes as a voice spoke, sounding puzzled.
"Who are you?"
She searched the man's face, not sure what to think. He had thick, pink hair that fell just a little past his shoulders, with sharp features and gleaming light green eyes. His skin had a rosy tint to it that matched the dark pink of the rose petal, and his voice, though not unfriendly, had a sort of unpleasant lilt to it.
The girl swallowed nervously, her throat very dry. The aching pain in her chest seemed to ease up just a little, for a reason she didn't know.
"Answer me." The man slightly withdrew his weapon, allowing the girl to breathe easier.
"I-I-"She dipped her head. "Don't know." Was that her voice? So calm, slow, and precise?
The man dismissed his strange scythe in another flash of blackish light, more petals drifting downwards.
"You don't know?" Questioned the man.
When she nodded mutely, he smiled slightly.
"Ah. Lord Xemnas must be very busy if he didn't notice your arrival."
"L-Lord Xemnas?" She rolled the unfamiliar name off of her tongue, but she didn't miss the sneer on the word "Lord".
"Yes." The man crossed his arms, still studying her, and for the first time she noticed his dark, black cloak and matching accessories. "When…Nobodies are created, their body is made from Darkness." The man gestured around them. "This mansion, this very spot, is one of the centers the Tunnels of Darkness may drop off a Nobody at."
"Nobody?"
The man's eyes glittered in the moonlight. "Yes. I suppose I'll have to take you to Lord Xemnas now."
The girl's chest constricted. "T-Take me to him? But who is he, what-"
"Patience," snapped the man. He suddenly calmed down and smiled again. "Yes, Lord Xemnas will help you. You don't have a name, do you? Few memories?"
The truth was she had memories, memories of her host…the person she came from. They were cluttered now, but every few moments some more would remove themselves and drift apart, becoming coherent to the young girl.
Seeing her pensive expression, the man nodded. "Yes. You're a Nobody. All will be explained in time, but if you wish to see the truth…gain your name…gain what you lost, that which makes you incomplete, which causes you to hurt inside, you must come with us."
"Who are you?" The girl whispered fearfully.
The man tossed his head, looking strangely magnificent in the moonlight as his eyes focused on her with a furious determination.
"We are Organization XIII. We live, we exist, and we endure to gain back our hearts. Without them, we can never be whole, and without them…We cannot find the truth. Will you join us, or wander here…" He gestured to the forest surrounding them. "Lost, forever, incapable of gaining back your heart?"
The girl didn't see what else she could do. She hugged her supplies tighter to her chest, eyeing the man uneasily.
"Well?" He prompted, his gaze fixed on her. He leaned in closely, watching her expression.
"O-O-Okay." She whimpered, thinking she really had no choice.
The man smiled, but there was a new malevolent tint to it that the girl began to fear.
"Don't worry, when the truth is found all will be revealed."
Truth? Truth? Yes, truth accepted all and it didn't stop until the entire world soon knew about it. Secrets never stayed secrets for long…Truth was a cruel mistress, cruel indeed, like some terrible God bent on causing pain through the many things it revealed without considering some things…were better left unsaid.
To the girl, the truth was already in front of her.
This would be her last moments of freedom for a long time.
That terrible instant when she realized this made the girl look to the stars and the moon. Did she have someone to call on, a faith, a religion to cry out to for help?
She did not. But she wished from the deepest depths of her soul for someone to take pity on her and help her. Her unspoken prayer, the desperateness on her face, made the man's smile colder.
"My name is Marluxia."
The strange name fit the man, the girl thought, and she bowed her head in trepidation.
"…Did those," he pointed to her pad and crayon box. "Arrive here with you?"
"I think…"
He raised his eyebrows but said nothing. Flicking his wrist, Marluxia opened a Dark Portal that clawed into existence, screaming and whooshing as it drew in light. That Portal scared her even more, but the girl knew it was useless to resist.
Marluxia pointed to the Portal. "Come to your destiny."
Those foreboding words haunted the girl as she plunged inside the Darkness. As the black tendrils covered her vision, blocking out the cobalt of the night sky, the stars, and the moon…She couldn't help but think of one thing.
She couldn't help but believe that her original mistake of thinking the clearing was covered in blood wasn't a fault of her own. She was beginning to think that maybe…Just maybe…
It had been an omen.
She thought there would be many lost before her journey was over.
Author's Note: Part deux of Dani's B-day gift, since isn't Namine your favorite character? XD Review if you people want.