Remember Me

This story came to me completely randomly, hope you enjoy.

***

Sora opened his eyes, blinking sleepily, before leaping to his feet with a startled look.

He was in the Station of Awakening, or wherever his crazy dreams took him. He hadn't been here since he had had that dream about the Keyblade…

Seemed like an eternity ago. But, the fact remained, why was he here?

He looked down. The beautiful stained glass flooring no longer depicted the Princesses of Heart. It was golden, showing him, his eyes closed, the Keyblade, the Kingdom Key, in front of him. Beside him stood Kairi, her flowered Keyblade lowered to her side, so like her he couldn't help but reach out and touch her image, stunned. On her side was Riku, head lifted toward the dark blue sky, perhaps studying the scattering of stars and the single, heavy white moon that brightened that darkness. His Keyblade, The Way to the Dawn was slung over his shoulder.

In Sora's own shadow was Roxas. He was facing to the side, but very close to him, eyes open, staring forward. Oblivion was in his right hand, but Oathkeeper was nowhere in sight. There was an empty spot, like something should be there, a void of colorless space, in the mural.

"Someone's missing." Sora murmured, touching the dark gap. In return, his heart seemed to beat hollowly for a moment, and he gasped at the briefly empty feeling he had felt.

"Someone is." A voice agreed.

Sora stiffened, whirling around, the Keyblade flashing to his grip.

Facing him, Organization hood lowered, was Roxas. His face was expressionless, his dark blue eyes studying the mural, making no motion to summon his own Keyblades.

Sora hesitated, and then dismissed his weapon. "Roxas."

He nodded, turning his head to the side. "Don't you want to know whose missing?"

After a moment, the Keyblader nodded. This earned a smile from his Nobody.

"Let me tell you about her, because…you might remember, if I can." He began to walk toward Sora, footsteps echoing loudly in the silence, hands behind his back, eyes thoughtful.

"She was really quiet, at first. Afraid to open up." He laughed softly. "Nobodies shouldn't be afraid at all. The thing is, she wasn't one. She didn't know that herself, for a while. When Axel and I finally got her to talk, when she removed her hood, it was like seeing a whole new person." A pause. "Feel anything?" He asked quietly.

Sora shook his head, and Roxas stopped, standing beside him now.

"You see that picture?" He pointed, blue eyes serious, to the dark patch. "It won't be complete until your heart, our heart, remember her. Let me continue." He smiled, transforming his serious features, looking at the fathomless darkness that spread out around them, with nothing there but the stained glass platform.

"She was really nice, actually. It surprised me, because I didn't stop to think that a Nobody could be nice. She enjoyed things Axel and I did, ice cream on the tower, general discussions, arguing with the other members." He shook his head, smile still in place. "She liked wordplay, you know. She loved to create difficult, meaningless things for Axel and me to work out." He looked at Sora, his eyes sparkling with the memory.

"Still nothing." Sora admitted, though he heard a faint ringing in his ears that reverberated with his heart. "What kind of word playing?"

"A scattered dream that's like a far off memory. A far off memory that's like a scattered dream. I want to line the pieces up, yours…and mine."

"Hey, I said that once!" Sora objected, and then he laughed at himself. "Oh."

"She told me something, on one occasion. She asked me, 'Can you feel eternity eating away at you? It drains strength, however minimal, until there is nothing left to give. Then, you fade into that eternity, never to be seen again.' She…scared me a little, then. Her eyes were so sad, I wanted to help her, as a friend, but she was becoming more reclusive. Nightmares, you know. I reached out to help her, and she had backed away…"

"Why don't you tell me her name?"

Roxas looked at him, his smile fading, once again turning his young face serious.

"That's the problem, Sora. I can't remember her name, or her face, just her eyes. Because…she has our eyes. Blue, like the sky." He looked out at the darkness. "Until we remember, there will be an empty space in our hearts. I …feel like she's calling to me, but I can't help her. She wants me to remember, but I can't. We have to try, together, or…" Roxas placed his fist over his heart, slowly spreading his fingers out and closing his eyes. "Our heart will be missing a piece."

"You mean she's here with us? Two other people make me up?" Sora asked in surprise. Roxas nodded.

"Very strange, isn't it? But that's us. One other person, Sora. Ask Riku, and if you can, talk to Kairi."

He scratched his head. "No offense, but Kairi wasn't exactly around during this girl we're trying to remember, was she?"

Roxas looked faintly irritated. "No, but Naminé was. I just know, somehow."

"Why is it so important to remember her?"

"Because, Sora." He replied patiently. "She was my friend, this much I knew. I want to remember her. And who knows: remembering her may unlock another power of the Keyblade. She could use it too. I think." He added as an afterthought. He closed his eyes, sighing.

Sora looked at the mural of him and his friends, and Roxas.

Is Roxas my friend? He asked himself, puzzled. He shoved that thought away, suddenly remembering something.

"Where's Naminé?" He felt like something inside of him tugged at the mention of her name.

"I don't think you looked hard enough." The Nobody replied, amused.

Sora squinted, looking closer. There, not in Kairi's shadow, but standing close to her side, facing almost completely backwards, was Naminé. Her eyes stared off into the darkness, a delicate hand lifted, holding a white crayon, as if to draw the stars.

"I know her, don't I? Besides from Kairi." He murmured.

"I really can't say." Roxas replied. "You don't have complete access to all of my memories, and neither do I to yours." Dark tendrils suddenly spiraled around his boots, and a Portal opened.

"How do you always know so much?" Sora asked, exasperated but amused at the same time.

His eyes turned sad. "When one no longer has their own life to live, you can't do anything but listen. I listen to your heart, Sora, because deep inside it, you always know what you need to."

He stepped backward into his Portal, studying Sora with his dark eyes. "Try to remember, I feel like she was important."

When he was gone, Sora looked at the dark spot on the otherwise flawless mural. The soft light was the only thing illuminating the deep darkness all around him, like some humongous storm cloud that had swallowed him in his sleep.

"Was she your Kairi, Roxas?" Sora asked quietly, brushing the dark spot with his fingers. His hands tingled, and his heartbeat increased.

~***~

Roxas was always with Sora.

Usually in a dormant state, like when you're half asleep and are only faintly aware of anything going on.

Now, however, when he opened his eyes, he saw what he usually saw when he forced himself to remain active, instead of slipping into that almost comatose state.

Shimmering, silver pathways. They stretched out in all directions, some were fractured, and not as steady as the two in front of him directly. The stunning energy that Sora possessed but seemed almost unaware of swirled around Roxas as he made an effort to stay conscious. Lately, he was finding it harder and harder to force himself to remain active, let alone appear physically and talk to Sora, dream or not.

But he wouldn't give in. If he did, he would slip away and that would leave Naminé alone…

Easily the strongest of the heart pathways, also the brightest, was Kairi's. It was lighting up, the road solid and bright, and Roxas could just make out Kairi's heartbeat. Good, Sora must be near her.

He stepped across the pathway, a little nervous, scared of what might happen if it shattered while he stood on its surface. His reflection was visible in the white and silver stained glass, scared but determined.

There! Waiting for him, like she said she would, was Naminé. She had her hands behind her back, a soft smile gracing her angel's features, eyes lifting upward as she smiled at him.

"Hello, Roxas." She said her voice as steady and calm as ever. She had a way of talking, so gently and slow, that it was hard not to like it.

"Naminé." He breathed, somehow relieved to see her. He walked over to stand close to her, taking her delicate hand in his. She smiled.

"We're together again." She said happily. He couldn't believe how…drawn, he was to her, and he barely knew her.

But…maybe his heart did? And his soul…

"You have a question." She stated, looking amused.

"Yeah…Naminé, did you know…the girl from my memories?"

The witch frowned. "I know a lot of people." She said at last.

"Please, Naminé. I can't remember her, and I feel terrible about it. She had blue eyes, like me and you. But…" He shook his head. "We were friends, weren't we? I think. Because…I always keep thinking of her whenever I think of Axel, the pair of them was my…Riku and Kairi weren't they?"

She frowned, her eyes trailing down. "I'm not allowed to say."

"Who told you that?" Roxas asked. "DiZ?" He felt anger course through him at the mere mention of that man's name, but he closed his eyes, forcing himself to remember him for whom he really was, Ansem the Wise, a man who actually apologized to him…

He heard the strong, wise voice in his head, even though he remembered that Ansem thought he probably couldn't hear.

"And Roxas…I doubt you can hear me…but I am sorry."

He accepted that apology, and instead opened his eyes again. "Was it Ansem?" He said again, gentler this time.

"Partially, yes. Remembering the girl would only complicate things to an unnecessary degree, he said. So, I removed her, from everyone's memory. What do you know…?" She laughed gently, eyes downcast. "Look, Roxas. Your heart is calling those memories back, just like Sora with Kairi. She's a close friend, and impossible to keep away. You must have been very close to her."

"My best friends…Naminé, do you remember her, fully?"

"I do." She said at last. "I…had the pleasure of meeting her, once." She looked out at the whiteness around them, and the stained glass bridge they were on, and then looked back at Roxas, her eyes pensive. "Roxas, I think, if I just say her name, you will remember a lot. Not everything, but a lot."

Roxas blinked, his heart beating faster. He gently squeezed her hand. "Please, go ahead."

Naminé looked down. "Her name was Xion."

He gasped, placing his hand over his heart, which was slowing down to a steady rhythm. When he closed his eyes, he could just make out her face, like a younger Kairi's, but with black hair…

~***~

Sora scratched his head. He decided not to bring up the nameless girl with Kairi, who wouldn't remember, and instead just started a conversation while, supposedly, Roxas talked to Naminé.

Not very long into their conversation, Sora suddenly gasped, clenching his chest.

"Sora? Are you okay?" Kairi asked, startled. She put her hand out to touch Sora's shoulder, but then he straightened up, looking surprised.

"What?" She asked.

"I-I just remembered someone. Someone…she looked like you, when you were younger, and this whole thing started. She has black hair, though…"

When Kairi's expression of surprise didn't change, Sora just shook his head.

"Er-sorry to run, Kairi, but I have to go talk to Riku."

"I'll come with you." She offered.

Sora nodded, and they raced off to find Riku, who was practicing with Tidus on the beach.

"Okay, challenging Riku has officially become a death wish." Tidus complained, rubbing his arm and grumbling to himself.

"You just now noticed?" Riku scoffed before turning around to face his friends.

"Please don't tell me something's wrong." He said with a sigh, reading Sora's and Kairi's expressions.

"I just remembered a girl. She looked like Kairi, when she was younger, just a few years ago. But she had black hair."

"Oh really? What was her name?"

Sora hesitated, feeling the word somewhere between his heart and his mind. He had to remember the name of this girl that was part of his heart, his memories…

"X-Xi-Xion." He said at last.

Riku's eyes widened and he involuntarily clenched his fist over his heart. "Sounds familiar." He murmured.

"I know, but I've never met her."

"Maybe Roxas has." Kairi ventured. "And Naminé…"

"Speaking of which, do you know her, Riku?"

"Who, Xion?"

"No, Naminé."

Riku looked thoughtful, and then said, "I do, actually." He walked a ways over, looking thoughtful.

"She helped you get your memories back, that's why you were in the pod to begin with."

"How did I lose it?" Sora asked, confused.

"Long story, Sora. Don't you ever wonder where the other members of Organization XIII went?" He laughed weakly, shaking his head. "Naminé fixed something they did with your memories, though it was her fault to begin with."

"Naminé." Sora said to himself, looking down.

"She's a special Nobody." Kairi said thoughtfully.

Sora crossed his arms. "In Jiminy's journal, it said, 'Thank Naminé', we must have been thanking her for that. Thanks, Naminé. Sorry I forgot."

Kairi's eyes glinted for a moment, and he knew she had heard.

~***~

Sora opened his eyes, and saw he was standing once again on the stained glass platform in the middle of nowhere. He rubbed his eyes, brushing away strands of hair.

"Roxas?" He asked.

No reply.

He wandered around the mural, scrunching his face up as he tried unsuccessfully to remember more details on Xion.

"I'm not going to get anything, Roxas. You'll have to do it, you know her, after all."

Still, no reply from Roxas, if he was even in the "room".

Sora tapped his foot, annoyed, after five minutes of nothing.

"Why am I even here?" He asked.

"Because I need to show you something."

Sora turned around as Roxas appeared in a whirlwind of dark energy, lowering his hood.

"What took so long?" Sora joked, earning a wry smile from his Nobody.

"I need you to come with me; we're going to look for Xion in your heart."

Sora looked stunned. "We can just walk into my heart?"

"Figuratively speaking, yeah." Roxas replied, turning around and pointing to the Portal.

As Sora crossed the stained glass field, he asked, "Why can't I open Portals?"

His Nobody scoffed. "You're aligned with the Light, first off. Secondly, as a Nobody, I can… just do this."

The darkness completely enveloped Sora, covering his face and mouth, cold tendrils snaking along his skin, leaving behind a searing coldness that lasted only briefly. He had the sensation of moving incredibly fast, then coming to a halt.

As the darkness peeled away, Sora blinked his eyes several times to become used to the swirling of energy around him.

"This, Sora, is your heart."

A circular platform winded around a swirling maelstrom of golden energy. Strands floated in the storm, each piece laced with rainbow designs that sent scatterings of color out into the darkness around them. The platform was a shiny white color, gently transparent enough to see the black beneath their feet. Inside the swirling of color was a stained glass image of a bright pink heart, barely seen through the multihued colors. One shade was a deep, sea blue color and was easily the most prominent. The whole object was pulsing, and each pulse sent out a golden wave. Orbiting around his heart was every Keyblade Sora had ever possessed, each pointed outward, toward them, and rotated like Saturn's rings.

"W-what?"

Roxas smiled. "This, of course, is only a depiction." He raised his eyebrows, and then sighed. "Each of those colored strands represents a memory chain, and that blue one, the largest, is Kairi."

Sora blinked, awed. "Oh…Kairi."

His counterpart rolled his eyes. "You're very slow on the uptake, Sora."

Ignoring that, he asked, "Why are we here?"

"I think…I need to talk to Xion. Maybe she's in our heart."

"Well, go in, then."

"We have to open it."

Sora positioned himself beside Roxas, summoning his Kingdom Key, Roxas doing the same. They pointed it at the floating lock in front of them, shaped like angel feathers with a halo as the keyhole, and closed their eyes.

Sora didn't know how Roxas did it, but he summoned the energy from deep within himself, feeling the warmth of light surging through him, and out through the Keyblade's tip. When he opened his eyes again, the crown symbol still glowing brightly around him, the beam had pierced the lock at the same time as Roxas's, glowing brightly before disappearing.

"What does unlocking my heart do?" Sora asked.

Roxas blinked, looking thoughtful. "Hopefully now we can look deep inside your heart." He paused, and then added, "Our heart, I guess. I'm hoping to find info on Xion, since Naminé told me that if she was really important-"

"Your heart will never forget her." Sora murmured, the words sounding familiar for some reason.

"In which case, I probably don't need your help anymore." The Nobody said dismissively. "You were right; she's my friend, so you probably don't have any memories on her."

"Hey, wait! I want to know about Naminé, though."

"You can ask Riku." Roxas looked back for a moment before walking into the swirling tempest.

~***~

The first thing Roxas was aware of was a sort of blinding warmth. Light covered him completely, colored strands going by, each linked together by small pictures of some event that had happened previously to Sora. Each pulse from the heart sent another ripple of heat across Roxas's body, and he shut his eyes tight against the radiance.

Words from memories played in his head, voices echoed in his ears, scenes played in his mind.

These were Sora's memories. Where were his own?

"Where are my friends…?" Roxas asked aloud, his voice almost completely swallowed by the various voices. "Where are Axel, and Xion? Hayner…Pence…Olette…?"

As soon as the names of his friends left his lips, the light around him shifted.

It wasn't as bright, but it wasn't dark either. Everything was actually easier to see in. When he opened his eyes again, the Nobody saw less chains that were in Sora's heart, but these were more complex. They wove together tightly, each chain a darker color than the next, until it become black.

No more memories played, everything was silent, the heartbeat slower than Sora's, and the pulse that followed didn't release as much heat.

Roxas walked carefully over to the nexus of his spirit, and he looked up at the stained glass heart, trapped inside its protective covering of memories, glowing a gentle pink.

"I have a heart." He said, feeling delightfully surprised.

Roxas reached up, lightly brushing a beautiful white chain that promptly displayed all of his memories of Naminé.

He touched another, this one fiery red, and already knew it was Axel's, before the memories even played.

He turned around, touched another, and it revealed all of the memories he had with his Twilight Town friends, this chain was unique, composed of three colors woven together into one chain.

He circled around, but saw no chain that looked like it belonged to Xion.

Naminé had told him she hadn't destroyed the chain, but she hid it, deep in his heart. So…where was it? He closed his eyes, whispering Xion's name, trying to remember everything he knew on the black haired girl.

Something shimmered; he saw it even behind closed lids. He opened them, and gasped as a dark silver chain began to appear, so tightly interwoven between the strands he could barely see it. He reached out, and touched it.

He had his legs pulled up to his chest, chin resting on his knees. He wasn't going to find her…

She had come to sit beside him, offering him an ice cream. She had gone on to speak…

"You have poured everything you had into me, given me so much, that I feel like I'm about to overflow. Look at me, Roxas. Who do you see?"

He had seen Sora. They had fought, and she had died in his arms, letting herself be absorbed by him…

A tear went down his face, and he opened his eyes, removing his hand from the chain. All of his memories of her came back, and he turned around, ready to see if the mural was possibly complete now.

"I'm glad you remember, Roxas."

He froze, whirling around, and gasped.

Xion was standing behind him, smiling; her hood pulled back, blue eyes shining.

"X-Xion!" He gasped, walking toward her.

"I never thought you'd remember again. But now, I can talk to you, Roxas."

He paused, nodding. "Y-yeah…I mean, I'm so glad to see you! I-we have to go meet Sora."

Her eyes turned thoughtful. "Yes, I agree." She gestured to his heart. "I always thought you weren't a Nobody, Roxas. You're emotions were all too clear, it could not be faked, not ever. Axel, too…And, we already know I'm not a Nobody." She laughed weakly, and then nodded.

"Let's go see Sora."

Roxas opened a Portal without looking away from Xion, then suddenly rushed forward and hugged her. He laughed, happiness surging through him, and just smiled some more at Xion's startled expression.

"W-what?" She asked.

"Nothing, I'm just so glad I remembered you!"

"Me too, Roxas."

~***~

Sora turned around as a Portal opened, and two cloaked figures came out.

"Roxas?" He asked. Seeing the other figure, he summoned his Keyblade.

To his surprise, the figure did too.

"H-hey! What?"

Roxas rolled his eyes. "Stop being so dramatic, honestly, your poses and things are very irritating sometimes." He smiled to take the bite out of his words, and then flicked off the other figure's hood.

The girl Sora had had that flash of, that girl with black hair and blue eyes, like a younger Kairi…

"Xion?" He asked.

She nodded, smiling, her voice soft. "I'm so glad you both remember me…" For some reason she flinched faintly, looking at Sora, then smiled again. "And now, both of your hearts are complete."

Sora looked down at the mural, and two other pairs of identical blue eyes followed.

The dark blot slowly filled in, revealing Xion, Oathkeeper raised, blue eyes serious as she studied the sky.

The mural suddenly flashed, sending a blast of light into the darkness around them.

The darkness illuminated briefly, only very briefly, but during that single instant of pure light Sora saw what had to be thousands about millions of hearts, all glittering like gems, surrounded by stained glass pictures of a million different designs and colors, all…orbiting around…him. All of these hearts, some twisted with dark power, others almost as bright as his, shimmered and pulsed at different rhythms, rotating around his in clockwise, counter-clockwise, and many other different patterns.

Sora heard thoughts running through his mind, saw memories, felt feelings that weren't his own, and saw just the briefest flash of a heart shaped object, beautifully bright, hanging directly above his own heart.

Then, it was gone, the darkness rushed in and the lights vanished, hiding within its depths. Power surged through Sora briefly, and then it too was gone, leaving behind a strange, warm feeling inside of him.

Sora turned around, a question on his lips, but Roxas and Xion were gone.

~***~

When Sora awoke the next day, he was vaguely bothered by something. He tried to figure out what it was, and then he gasped.

The Keyblade was always subconsciously there, like a small knot in his mind that he could touch, and it would leap to his hand in an instant.

Except now…he had two.

His mind touched the little knots, and two Keyblades jumped to his grip.

One was black, twisted, had bat's wings and the tip shaped like an axe. The other was white, straight, had angel's wings and the tip was shaped like a star. Oathkeeper and Oblivion.

"But…no way, these are Roxas's Keyblades!"

He could use two Keyblades, true, but he had to usually get help from his friends, using their own power for his borrowed abilities, which the Keyblade only enhanced. However, if he abused it, that meant he would get cursed with dark energy and transformed into Anti Sora…

He dismissed them, and they vanished in their respective black and white flashes, briefly illuminating his dark room, which had the blinds pulled down still.

Sora leaned back on his hands. Roxas was right, remembering Xion had triggered some kind of extra power. A thought entered his mind, and Sora, as playful as ever, couldn't resist. He grinned to himself.

He went down to the shore, where he saw Tidus and Wakka practicing their fighting skills.

He waved them over. "Can I play?" He asked teasingly.

Tidus shrugged. "Sure, I guess. We get to go two on one though; you guys get all of these fancy magic abilities…" He trailed off, looking irritated.

"Fine." Sora summoned his twin Keyblades.

"Oh snap man!" Wakka moaned, stepping back.

"H-hey wait Sora, that's cheating!" Tidus turned around, scrambling in the sand, trying to escape.

Grinning, Sora went after them in pursuit.

~***~
Didn't like the ending, but I don't know how else to end it.

Also, I think Roxas can dual wield because of Xion, so that might get carried over to Sora.

Be sure to Review!