This was originally meant to be a whole lot longer, with more story behind it, but then I decided that if I waited to do that at a time like now, there's no way I 'd be able to get it done in time for 411. So, I changed it. Yup.
For naiyad, my sister who has been so kind and patient with me, and has forgiven me for every single deadline that I have missed for this. Since last year. I hope you like it, even if it may not be what you expected or wanted. To anyone else who might be reading, happy 411!
Ice-Breaker
Sometimes, all it takes is a meeting.
Vexen is a man who likes his solitude. He does nothing to encourage company and is more than happy to spend the majority of his time alone. He rarely ever walks in the castle, making full use of the pathways to get to places; he keeps irregular hours, waking up long before anyone else. He even refrains from visiting the library too often, preferring to do his work in his own laboratory, using whatever books and research notes at hand when he needs to make references.
This is mainly why he likes the privacy of his personal quarters. The others have better things to do than disturb him and they rarely come down seeking him, so he mostly gets the quiet peace he enjoys while conducting his experiments. If he's unlucky, he gets no visitors for a day or two. Otherwise, he could go without human company for nearly an entire week.
The others don't particularly enjoy being around him, and he's fine with it; he doesn't like them either.
When Xigbar appears in his labs one day to introduce a stranger standing behind him as XI of their group, Vexen reacts with only mild surprise. The older scientist hangs back only to offer a few useless words that explain absolutely nothing about the 'who' and 'where' and 'how,' before he is gone, leaving behind wisps of darkness in his wake. Silence reigns for a while as Vexen dissects the given information in search of something important, before he sighs the attempt away.
He turns to look at the newly-recruited Nobody, examining him in slight disapproval as he takes in what he's seeing: pink hair, smooth features and a thoroughly relaxed expression. Then, he flicks a hand at a nearby chair. "Sit down. We'll go through to the basic tests first."
The neophyte obeys wordlessly, settling himself into the seat as Vexen pulls out a few sheets of blank paper and a blue pen that he finds comfortable to use. He is silent all through the examination and continues to remain so when Vexen tells him to remove his torn shirt, stained a dark shade of red with dry blood. It's only after he finishes the physical examination that XI chooses to speak. "So, I take it this entire place is your stronghold?"
Vexen glances over his shoulder at the man, watching him pick up his shirt before looking away. He puts the notes on the table and places the navy pen on the papers. "Yes, it is."
"Hmm…" is the absent reply and the Nobody stares into space, appearing deep in thought. Then, "What is your goal here?"
He produces an unused folder and files the written notes away, keeping them in the same drawer as those of the other new members he had examined. Pushing the drawer close with one hand, it makes a soft sound as it slides shut. Finally, he says, "We're here to retrieve something we lost."
At that, XI blinks. He chews on the response for a while, mulling it over silently. For a moment, Vexen thinks he'll ask for a more elaborate explanation and he is already constructing his next sentence in his mind. Instead of asking that, however, the newcomer seems content to move on to a different question. "Who are you?"
His mouth is half open, ready to say his prepared sentence when he realizes that he doesn't have to. Adjusting himself, Vexen quickly comes up with something more appropriate. "We're Nobodies, creatures that exist as a result of our hearts being swallowed by darkness. When that happens, the body that gets left behind may begin to act with a will of its own, taking on a different shape but with the same memories. Most of the times, they become simple creatures capable of simple thoughts. However, there are occasions when the person's will is strong enough to retain human shape even after the transformation. They-" at the look of incomprehension on the other's face, he cuts off the rest of his sentence and says instead, "Never mind. Someone else will explain it to you, eventually. I have other matters to take care of. The door," he indicates towards it, "is on your left. Remember to close it after you leave."
The Nobody does not move immediately, regarding him with a thoughtful expression. Finally, he turns and leaves, the door clicking shut behind him.
Less than 24 hours after, Vexen receives an unexpected visit. He is in the middle of measuring the fruits of his experimentation, carefully noting down the differences between each reading when there's a sudden knock at the door. More than a little surprised, he looks up from his experiment to look in its direction. Whoever it is that's on the other side knocks twice more, two short, polite raps on the door before Vexen finally decides to say, "Come in."
The door opens and Vexen catches sight of a familiar-looking shade of light pink. Then, XI is standing there, blue eyes meeting his gaze. He leaves the door ajar behind him, not bothering to close it.
Vexen puts down the pen he is using and straightens, waiting expectantly with crossed arms. He is about to comment on the door when XI says, "Your name."
He pauses, not understanding, "What?"
The neophyte smiles at him. "I meant your name, Vexen." As if having said all he wanted to say, he leaves, pointedly ignoring the door and disappearing.
Several seconds pass as Vexen reorients himself. Then he is yelling after the vanished Nobody, "I said close the door!"
As if a moment happened, a few words exchanged, could change everything, things were never the same again.
Everywhere he goes, some semblance of the newest member seemed to lurk close by. If he comes down for breakfast, the coffee pot is already set out and filled; only recently prepared and waiting for him. When he comes back down to the lab sometime in the evening, having gone out to collect materials for his latest experiment, there is a yellow file on the table – a report from Zexion. Something else catches his eye as well and he moves closer towards it.
Sitting innocently next to the papers is a box of herbal tea packets.
Finally, when he comes back from a brief meeting with Xemnas only to discover Zexion's latest research notes on the table next to a cup of steaming hot tea and a plate of fresh, buttered toast on the table, Vexen decides that enough is enough.
"Why do you give him all the research folders?" he demands, hands on his hips and tone frosty after finally finding the guilty man in one of the castle's many living rooms.
Zexion, who is currently eating what seems to be his own set of toast, calmly raises his eyes to give him a composed stare, answering without even attempting to conceal his guilt. "Because he's the only who willing enough to send them to your room. Really, Vexen, did it never occur to you that having a room so secluded from the rest of us might prove to be troublesome?"
"I," he manages to get out through gritted teeth, "sought peace. That room is perfectly positioned for that, a good enough distance away from you and all other headache-inducing company."
"Then you can't blame me if I choose to pass the task off to someone else rather than do it myself," he responds, returning his attention to his meal.
Annoyed, Vexen says, "I believe there are other means of getting about, if you don't feel up to walking. Is it really that difficult for you to open a portal near the entrance of my room? Surely you have enough energy for something as simple as that – where did you get that toast anyway?"
Instead of Zexion replying, it is Xigbar – whose presence he had failed to notice until then – that volunteers an answer. "That new guy made it. Said he was having toast and offered to make us some too," he explains with a pearly white grin.
"And you said 'yes'?" Glaring in his direction, Vexen notices that the sniper has what also looks suspiciously like a plate on his lap – upon closer inspection, he realizes that he is right, and the man is cradling a plate of his own, though all that seems to be left on it is small crumbs, traces of what could have been a meal earlier.
Xigbar merely rolls his shoulders in a shrug. "It was free food. Anyone stupid enough to turn it down is…stupid."
Vexen feels his mouth lift into a sneer as he says his next sentence. "Well, that's certainly very nice of him. Perhaps, next you can get him to do our research for us."
Xigbar blinks in surprise at the haughty tone but Zexion immediately responds, not missing a beat as he scoffs lightly. "Of course not. That would be far too risky, seeing as how he's not trained in the scientific field the way we are. I wouldn't let him anywhere near my notes."
Vexen opens his mouth, ready with a retort but Zexion continues, "Though he certainly seems to have taken a liking to you."
That sentence stops him and it takes him a moment to regain his composure enough to reply, "What do you mean?"
"Don't tell me you haven't noticed," he says, scrutinizing the last of his bread before popping it into his mouth. "Hot refreshment waiting for you? Volunteering to venture all the way down to your laboratory which is still, by the way, a very troublesome distance away? Making you tea? Obviously something's going on."
Vexen crosses him arms angrily. "Something's going on? Of course something's going on! The neophyte is purposely doing all these things to make himself an annoyance!" he says, choosing to ignore the rather troubling fact that Zexion knew of the tidbits XI had left for him.
"But you see, Vexen," Zexion says, turning to look at him, "that's the interesting part. If he merely wants to be an annoyance, he'll do everything possible to get on our nerves. However, the only person he seems to be paying special attention to is you."
From his side of the living room, Xigbar speaks up. "You know, come to think of it, he's right. The guy does seem to be only doing things for you." He glanced down at his plate briefly before looking up to send an accusing yellow stare at him. "Did you get some toast too?"
"That's preposterous!" he sputters. "Why would he seek to annoy only me?"
This time, it is Zexion who shrugs his shoulders nonchalantly. "Perhaps it was something you said? You were the one who examined him that day; it could have been then. Or maybe," he says, and Vexen notices with an increasing fury that the younger man's lips have curled up into an amused smile, "he just doesn't like you."
"Doesn't like me?" He lashes out, unable to prevent the hot anger in the back of his throat from seeping into his words. "You just said he's doing all these things because of another reason! Are you even listening to yourself talk?"
"I'm right here, Vexen. There's no need to shout," the other Nobody tells him. "When I said 'taken a liking,' I didn't mean exactly that, though it's just like you to take everything people say literally," he adds, smirking.
"Then what did you mean?" he asks, more than a little exasperated.
"What I meant was that he has probably gathered a rather good idea of your character traits and I'm guessing that he's not overly fond of them." Zexion just barely elaborates, looking all too much like he's enjoying the entire process of explaining, going round and round his point in circles.
"That hardly explains anything!"
"Dude, it's real simple, actually."
He shifts his attention onto Xigbar, glaring at the sniper sitting on the other side of the room and silently daring him to make matters worse. "Then how would you explain it?"
Xigbar grins, completely unaffected by the gaze being leveled his way. "You made a bad first impression, that's all."
"I made a bad first impression?" he repeats, hardly believing then words he's saying. "What do I care about impressions? What he thinks hardly concerns me at all!"
"Well then, Vexen," Zexion says, looking as though he had just won a competition – features smoothly smug and satisfied, "why are you even here?"
Vexen trudges down the stairway, his shoes making sharp stomps against the floor. The sounds bounces off the walls in noisy echoes in the big space but still not loud enough to drown out the voices in his head; Zexion's smooth words and Xigbar's mocking sentences roll around like waves in his head, coming and then being momentarily swept away only to return persistently.
It is enough to drive a person insane.
He grits his teeth in annoyance at the two people in his head, verbally abusing them in dark mutters under his breath. All the way from the start of the first flight to the last set of stairs, he curses the Nobodies for not only failing to assist him with his dilemma, but had in turn only made it worse with their useless explanations.
When Vexen reaches his destination, he pushes the door to his private quarters open with such a violent force that it slams against the wall with a deafening bang. He closes it just as loudly, still seething with anger. Reaching above him, he yanks a cabinet door open, grabs randomly in the direction of the teabags he keeps in there and goes about making himself tea, all the while keeping up the frustrated rant under his breath.
He glares at his drink-to-be as he waits for it to finish. Then, he picks it up and turns around before stopping dead in his tracks.
Sitting at the table is non-other than Marluxia himself.
XI, the source of all his aggravation and multiple headaches for the past few days, has a calm expression on his face; his fingers are neatly interlaced in front of him, on the table, in his room. There are signs that might be the beginning of a smirk in his features, but his mouth is set in a straight line and other than that, the Nobody looks completely relax and at home. In. His. Room.
For a moment, neither of them says anything. Then, Vexen feels all the day's frustration and anger rise up into his throat, like a small spark erupting into hot white flame. "What are you doing here?" he snarls, letting every ounce of annoyance he feels coat his words, like milky cream.
"Waiting for you," he answers smoothly, and the cool, unperturbed tone does nothing to calm Vexen down.
"Why?" he snaps back, still not moving from where his feet seem rooted to the ground.
The other Nobody remains seemingly unbothered by what Vexen is sure is clear anger in his voice. "No reason."
The answer grates on his nerves more than ever – more than anything Zexion has ever said to him, and he has to swallow once to stop himself from resorting to downright screaming. "What," he starts, somewhat satisfied that the words comes out controlled enough, "gives you the right to march into my room" and then the last few words crack into a shout anyway, ringing against the walls, "whenever you please?"
"Actually, I have a question for you." Marluxia says.
"What?"
He leans forward slightly, wearing a grim look on his face. "Which do you prefer: coffee or tea?"
Suddenly, he feels his anger dissipate as he is suddenly overcome by weariness; completely exhausted from the constant agitation he's been experiencing from the start of the day till now, he drops into the chair directly opposite of the pink-haired intruder. "What kind of a question is that?" Vexen asks.
"A simple one," the other Nobody replies. "I even gave you a choice of answers. All you have to do is pick one."
Vexen listlessly lifts his mug to his lips, taking a small sip. "The answer is coffee. Why do you even care anyway?"
XI waves the question away with a dismissive gesture of his hand, answering, "Because I do. Is there anything that you favor? Any preference on, say, the type of beans?"
"No, I like my coffee as just plain coffee," he says, "Why?"
"I was just asking out of curiosity. So," Marluxia says, grinning slightly, "how have you been finding my little treats?"
Vexen looks up to face the other man. "How do you think I've been finding them?"
"…you like them?"
"I most certainly do not!" he replies hotly. "Your little favors are nothing short of a continuous annoyance!"
To his surprise, XI responds with a relieved sigh. "That's good. You waited so long to say anything; I was starting to think you enjoy them."
He throws a suspicious look in the man's direction. "What is that supposed to mean?"
"Nothing much." He places both palms on the table and pushes himself up, meeting Vexen's gaze with calm blue eyes. "I just didn't want you to misunderstand, that's all."
Feeling all the anger from the previous moment rapidly return in a rush, Vexen stands up too, directing his question to the retreating figure. "So you really are doing all of this simply to annoy me?"
Marluxia turns around and raises one eyebrow, one hand already on the doorknob, smirking openly now. "Why, of course. What are other reason could I possibly have for doing all these things?"
Vexen throws the mug just as the door shuts, only barely missing the Nobody he has decided he despises.
The next day, he wakes up with a painful throbbing in his head and an extremely sore throat. Already in a bad mood, he pushes away the covers and forces himself out of bed. After taking a brief shower, which did not help lessen neither the headache nor the aching, irritated condition of his throat, he closes his bedroom door behind him and switches on the light, blinking rapidly to adjust to the sudden brightness.
The first sight that greets him is the neatly arranged breakfast waiting for him on the table; a plate of hot eggs and bacon set side by side and a white cup of coffee sitting beside it.
Next to them, standing innocently in a white vase on the center of the table is a single, red rose.
End
How was it? In my opinion, Vexen is very anti-social but talks a lot when he opens his mouth. And he can be loud. Very vocal. And Marluxia is...something. Please let me know what you think. All comments, critical or not will be very much appreciated. Thank you for your time!