Hey! I've finally gotten around to uploading this here. Its been on my deviantart account for a few weeks now, so yeah. Enjoy~!
He shifted uncomfortably, groaning, and rolled over. Marluxia reached up and brushed his bangs out of his face before cracking his azure hues open. A vast, open cerulean sky met his gaze; amidst the endless blue, a lone cloud drifted peacefully along.
"What…?" The single word barely left the Assassin's mouth before he shot up, scrambling ungracefully to his feet, with his eyes wide. In panic, he stumbled forward but caught himself before he fell over the edge of the roof he was on. Marluxia looked around wildly at the unknown town he'd woken up in—where was he? An unsual thudding was heard, but he ignored it.
He stepped away from the edge, sitting back on the shingled rooftop, his thoughts scrambled and incoherent. The pink-haired man shook his head, bringing his hand up to rub his temple, in hopes to avoid a migraine.
That's when the memories rushed into his mind: The Organization, Castle Oblivion, Naminé's meddling, Axel's betrayal, Larxene's end, his own death by Sora's hand… Nothing hit him as hard as remember his own orders to the flaming idiot—Eliminate Vexen. He was suddenly back on his feet, looking for the easiest way off the rooftop.
Ultimately, he was only on the second floor and found a fire escape—he wasn't in the mood to jump. Marluxia brushed himself off as his feet touched the alleyway's cement floor. He frowned at his tattered cloak—Sora had really done a number on it. He removed his leather gloves and unzipped the torn burden of a past life. Careless, the Assassin tossed the cloak away—toward a couple a trash cans near a dumpster. No use wearing it anymore, it would only bring more attention to him if he left it on.
Toward the mouth of the alley, Marluxia noticed, was a puddle leftover from a previous rain. It was a good improvised mirror as he checked his appearance: A tight black beater covered his chest, exposing his built arm muscles—from his scythe use—and his black pants and his boots. Semi-satisfied, he headed for the street.
The town he was in reminded him of the tranquil streets of Twilight Town. Without hesitating, Marluxia turned left, carrying himself with dignity as he headed down the street. He paid no mind to the passersby, to their idle stares or their whispered words, as he tried to place what happened. He ihad/i died, didn't he?
Theories, both possible and improbable, raced through his mind. Marluxia shook his head, his rosy hair bouncing as he did so. A familiar high-pitched laugh brought him out of his thoughts to reality.
"Well, well," A blonde dropped down in front of Marluxia, aqua gaze piercing as ever. "What's it like to be among the dead, ileader/i?" Larxene placed her hands on her hips, her bug-like hair bouncing at the movement. She, too, was not in her cloak—the electric user opted for a black, pleated skirt, and corset top.
"Larxene—!" The pink-haired man had never been so relieved to see his partner-in-crime. "Where… Among the dead?"
The female brought her hand up to her mouth and released another laugh. "Of course. I don't kid about those things." She approached him, and brought her finger up under his chin, smiling flirtatiously. "I had a feeling it was you who was joining us next. The whole damn sky lights up when a Nobody dies."
Number Eleven knocked her hand away. "Us?" He echoed, dark blue eyes staring at the Nymph.
"Thus far it is me, Vexen, and Lexaeus," The blonde replied, shooting him a sour look when he moved her hand. "No doubt Zexion will be joining us soon enough, then Axel…"
"Not Axel, no doubt soon he'll be back in Xemnas's lap," Marluxia retorted, crossing his arms.
"So it was true that he betrayed us…" Larxene sighed, dramatically, "I should have known, with how fickle he is. Come on," She grabbed his arm and pulled.
"Where are we going?" Marluxia walked with her, knowing she wouldn't give up on dragging him along.
The Savage Nymph pointed to a castle with her free hand and was on, what looked like, the edge of town. "There. The castle!" She dropped his arm now, satisfied he was walking along.
The Assassin looked up, his sapphire eyes looking interestingly at the castle. "Another castle… Of course," He muttered.
"Did you notice your pulse yet?" Larxene asked, pausing on the steps up to the castle entrance, and turning back to him, eyes alight.
"Somewhere along the line," Marluxia replied, "I believe when I nearly fell off that damn roof."
Upon hearing this, the blonde broke out into a fit of laughter. "You… the graceful assassin… almost fell off a iroof/i! That's priceless!"
The Assassin shot her a glare. "Watch it," He growled, stalking passed her. "I'm really not in the mood."
The blonde stopped laughing, crossing her arms across her chest. "Stop being a bore, Marly. Spending the rest of eternity won't be iany/i fun with you and the stoic Originals!"
Marluxia paused and spared her a glance over his shoulder. "This is going to be a long eternity." He said, simply, and entered the castle, the Nymph following behind him, brooding.
The entrance hall was large and open—even more so than that of Castle Oblivion. Their footfalls echoed off the tall walls and ceiling as they crossed the threshold toward the split staircase, one side went up to the left, and the other went up to the right. Typical castle interior design. It was a bit too cliché for Marluxia's tastes.
"So this is it… Our new home?"
"Yeah. At least its not pure white. Xemnas always had terrible designs," Larxene rolled her eyes, and strutted over to the left side of the stairs. "The Castle That Never Was's design was unbearable. So glad Xemnas can't name this one, either! He would name is something like 'Castle of Impossible Demise' or something stupid like that!"
Marluxia only halfway listened to the Nymph speak. His mind was on one thing, and only one thing. Vexen. Where was the scientist in this huge castle? Were there as many basements here as in Oblivion for him to be lurking in?
"Are you gonna come, you fag?" Larxene called from the top of the stairs, tilting her head as she gazed down at her superior. "I know you're down there fantasizing over Vexen, so don't ieven/i lie to me!"
Marluxia grumbled obscenities under his breath and he ascended the stairs, following the lightning bug as she led him down the corridor. "You certainly know your way around…"
"I haven't had much time to explore. I found Vexen and Lexaeus and that was about it," The Nymph explained, waving her hand dismissively in the air. "They both glared at me when I walked in, and that's when I saw the sky light up and I went looking for your sorry ass. Here we are." She paused at a door and placed her hand on the doorknob, glancing at Marluxia out of the corner of her eye before twisting and pulling the door open.
"Guess who else died?" Larxene called playfully into the door, stepping inside with a silent Marluxia in tow.
"Well," Vexen huffed, emerald eyes narrowed dangerously at the assassin. "I hope you got your ass handed to you." He hissed.
Lexaeus barely glanced up, saying nothing. He must have been deeply thinking about something. He turned his gaze toward the large window that showed the sparkling ocean a few hundred feet from the back of the castle.
"iAnd/i he almost fell off a roof," Larxene twittered, with a flurry of giggles. No one else found it funny.
Even if he tried, Marluxia knew, he couldn't look at Vexen. Not yet, anyway. Not after his power-induced decision that brought about the end of Vexen's non existence.
A heavy silence clung to the room, uncomfortable for all four Nobodies whom were present. Luckily, the sky lit up—a dark, rich blue—Zexion's signature color.
Lexaeus was on his feet at once. "Zexion," He rumbled and stalked out. He was definitely a man of few words, even in death. The Assassin watched him go, anything to avoid Vexen's angry, betrayed glare.
The following silence caused the Nymph to shift uneasily, Marluxia noticed, before she shook her head, muttering something about exploring, and left him alone with the enraged scientist.
"You're lucky you're already dead," The blonde spat, his emerald glare giving him a dark air of danger. "or I would give you a piece of my mind for what you did, you cocky, self-absorbed, power-hungry bastard!" He stood from the table, slamming his hands down on it. His jaw was clenched tightly, but he didn't tear his gaze from the Assassin.
Marluxia closed his eyes, to escape the glare, but he could still feel it piercing his very being, down to his traitorous soul—if dead Nobodies had souls, that is. His mouth was dry and he couldn't think of a suitable response for his actions—there was none. "There is nothing… I can say to excuse my actions," the pink-haired man said, quietly, knowing arguing was futile. "I will merely offer my Assassin's word: I will keep my distance for the rest of this eternity." Could Vexen hear the sorrow in his tone?
Without waiting for an enraged retort, the Assassin turned from the Academic, opened his cerulean eyes, and walked out of the room, in silence.
Marluxia didn't see the look of pure shock that crossed the blonde's features.
Surely enough, Zexion had joined the ranks of the dead. He and Lexaeus were as inseparable that ever, Marluxia decided, after seeing them constantly together for more than two weeks straight since the Schemer arrived in 'Nobody Heaven.' It was rather sickening at times… scratch that, all the time.
He had kept his word to Vexen: Number Eleven went no where near the Academic of his own free will, avoided him, even. Not that it really mattered anyway. At least Larxene was semi-good company.
The blonde female was lying out in the sun on the stretch of beach behind their new home. She had taken to having the sun around greatly—it was better than the constant night and constant rain of the Never Was. She had even gone out shopping and returned with swimsuits for her fellow dead members. She, of course, wore a yellow bikini, covered in blue skulls and crossbones. It was scarily accurate for her.
Marluxia loved the sun nearly as much as the lightning bug. Even though rain was vital for life, he had never taken to it much in his previous life. The Assassin didn't mind being able to work on his tan, either. "Larxene…"
"Yes, love?" The Nymph purred, turning toward him, with a smile.
"I'm going to head inside for drinks. You want anything?"
"Water would be fabulous," Larxene winked at him, stretching, "Don't be too long now, Marly dear." She giggled.
Ignoring the Nymph's obvious advances, Marluxia headed inside the castle. He had looked around most of the castle, and was able to easily find whatever room needed to be found. The kitchen was the easiest to find, despite the sheer size of the place they were staying.
The pink-haired man crossed the kitchen and dug through the contents of the refrigerator, grabbing a bottle of spring water for the Savage Nymph and the pitcher of lemonade for himself—it was strange, that even in death, they still needed sustenance. He wasn't aware of the second presence in the room until he turned his back to the fridge.
The Assassin almost dropped the lemonade when he saw Vexen sitting at the kitchen table, utterly silent. Two weeks of leisure dulled his senses. Marluxia diverted his gaze when his cerulean eyes met the scientists' emerald hues; he felt a tear in his heart at seeing the prideful Number Four sitting there alone.
Despite the obvious danger of having his back to Vexen, Marluxia moved to the counter, where he set the pitcher and Larxene's water, and opened one of the cabinets for a glass. Even though he could clearly feel Vexen's eyes burning onto him, he tried to ignore it as best as he could.
"You're not even going to itry/i to make this up to me?" The blonde said, standing behind the Assassin. Marluxia hadn't even heard him stand up from his chair, and stiffened as he poured his lemonade, missing a glass slightly.
"There is no possible way I would be able to," Number Eleven replied, regaining his stature. He threw his fear to the wind, not like it matter much. The pink-haired ex-Nobody slowed his pouring and set the pitcher down on the counter.
"Why, you despicable cretin? iWhy/i on earth would you do that to me?" Pain was evident in the blonde's tone, and Marluxia turned around to face him. "Do you honestly believe everything we went through together meant nothing? Perhaps to iyou/i it meant nothing, you—"
The Assassin cut him off, hoping not to anger him further. "I won't deny I was power-hungry, and I would do anything to get my way," he admitted, avoiding eye contact. "You were an obstacle, thus, you needed to be dealt with. You probably won't believe me, but I did feel bad about it, Vexen—"
"Bullshit!" Vexen snapped, eyes narrowing down to near slits. "You cared for no one but yourself! How I could let someone like you manipulate me into considering you might have actually given a damn is beyond me!" His fists were balled, to the point where his knuckles shown white. Marluxia could see him shaking with pent up aggression. The blonde sucked in a breath between clenched teeth.
"I love you," Those three, simple words knocked the breath right out of the scientist, and his eyes shot wide. Vexen stumbled back, staring at Marluxia.
"W-Wha—You—"
"For the longest time," He bowed his head, his bangs falling over his eyes, blocking them from view. Number Eleven felt his emotions spilling into his every word, even when he tried to force them out, revealing a pent up passion flare up in his speech, and felt the cliché-to-sappy-love-stories lump in his throat. "I've known that I loved you. Even before I died. I idreaded/i following Larxene here, knowing you were angry with me! I didn't want to deal with you hating me! Dammit, Vexen, I'm isorry/i and that's all I can say!" His voice broke and he bowed his head, his shoulders shaking. A stray tear rolled down his cheek, dripping to the floor.
Barely a second of silence followed before Marluxia felt Vexen brushed his bangs out of his eyes. Another tear tore free of its eyelash prison, sliding down his cheek; he could feel Vexen shaking as his arms came to rest on the Assassin's shoulders.
Their eyes met—watery blue and surprisingly tearful green—before Vexen pulled Marluxia into a kiss, entwining his hands into his silky hair. Stunned at first, the Graceful Assassin soon reacted in a way that was familiar to him: kissing back.
"I love you, too," The Chilly Academic murmured through the kiss. Marluxia felt his heart soar for the first time as he wrapped his arms around his lover's waist.
Larxene never did get her water that day.
Sorry for the OOCness toward the end, but it seemed necessary in my mind. Please review kindly!