The world spins around me, undulating and distoring like a broken fun house mirror. Everything's in seventeen different colors, my chest is on fire, and I'm breathing harder than a marathon runner ever has. I've been panicking, but why? Why am I exhausted? Have I been fighting for my life? Nothing makes any sense.
The sound of glass fracturing reaches my ears. Disorientation inhibits my reaction time, and suddenly I'm plummeting towards the ground at a ridiculous speed. This is it, I think. I'm a goner...but somehow, for some impossible reason, I'm not killed upon impact. I manage to land on my feet, bones not entirely shattered, but with my head about to go nuclear.
There's a girl kneeling in front of me, head downcast. She's kinda cute, I guess, with her short bob of black hair, but she looks to be in an enormous amount of pain. Her black coat is exactly like mine, although I've never met her until now. Maybe I can ask her why I'm hurting so much. "Who are you...again?" I stumble forward, clutching my head in an attempt to alleviate the agony. "It's weird. I feel like I'm forgetting something really important."
The girl makes no attempt to run away. Her next words pour slowly from her lips, and I can tell they're sad without even trying. "You'll be...better off now...Roxas..."
...Better off now? What's that supposed to mean? I ponder this sentence for a moment, but then she slumps to the side and I quickly reach out and grab her. No matter how bad I feel, she must feel a lot worse, and I don't want her to be in pain any more.
A terrible thought strikes me, knocking the air from my chest. I've been fighting with someone for quite a while, and this girl appears to have been defeated in battle. "Am I...the one who did this to you?" I ask. I wouldn't be able to face myself again if that was true.
She shakes her head sadly, choking back a sob. "No...it was my choice...to go away now..." I can sense that she's not telling me everything, but I don't press her. Cold is radiating from her lithe form, and I know that's not a good sign. She closes her eyes for a moment, and when she speaks again, her voice is laden with innumerable tears. "Better that, than to do nothing...and let Xemnas have his way..."
"I belong with Sora..." Her eyes have gone cloudy, like she's trapped in a far-off memory that no one ever returns from. "...and now...I am going back...to be with him." It kills me to see her in such pain, almost like my insides are being slowly ripped out. My hand moves up to her shoulder. She needs a warm bed, hot broth and medicine, but I can offer none of these, so I do the next best thing.
Her hand finds mine. "Roxas..." she stutters, staring deep into my soul. "I need you...to do me a favor. All those hearts that I've captured...Kingdom Hearts..." She pauses for breath. "Set them free..."
My eyes narrow. "Kingdom Hearts? Free them?" How could she have been have collecting hearts? Only I can wield the Keyblade...right?
There's a crackle like that of someone munching on an ice cube, and the girl's legs become enclosed within a frozen glacier. My heart is ripped further out of my chest, and I reach out my hand to help...but there's nothing I can possibly do. "It's too late...for me to undo my mistakes," says the raven-haired youth. "But you can't let Xemnas...have Kingdom Hearts. You can't."
I feel terrible. Absolutely terrible. Somehow, deep down inside me, I know I'm the cause of all this. Nothing can convince me otherwise. "Good-bye, Roxas..." This utterance is too ominous for me, so I turn back to face her, but she's smiling like nothing's wrong. "See you again. I'm glad...I got to meet you...Oh...and of course, Axel too..."
Stop, I shout mentally. Please, stop. Quit talking like that. Y-you're gonna be fine.
"You're both my best friends." She's slipping away, slowly but surely, and I'm dying with her. I can't take it. I can't take it. She reaches up and cradles my cheek. "Never forget. That's the truth."
And suddenly, recognition hits me.
Xion.
Every single second of the past 357 days rushes through my head. The time I spent with Xion is only a fraction of it, and we can't part ways when I'm still getting to know her. What have I done what have I done what have I done?! I scream to myself. This can't be happening!
Things happen in slow motion. I appear to be removed from my body. I watch Xion's hand fall from a blond boy's cheek, who quickly grabs it out of the air. "No!" I can feel the anguish emanating from the Nobody; it's apparent in his depressed tone of voice more than anything. "Xion...Who else will I have ice cream with?"
The ice surrounding her legs slowly cocoons her body. With a short flash of glimmering brilliance, Xion disappears into orbs of pure light. She's not as bright as the nooday sun, more akin to that of the sunset, but regardless, it's killing the blond boy. All that's left in her place is a single seashell, an object that the Nobody will treasure for eternity. "Xion..."
And the blond boy starts to cry.