Here we are. The final days. Maybe you've already got a copy of the game. Maybe you'll get it on Tuesday. Maybe later. But no matter what, no matter how long you've waited, whether it's over a decade or just a few months, the wait is getting over. In five days, Kingdom Hearts 3 will be released in the West. In a few hours, it will be in Japan.

Let's all wait for these final days together. I won't be able to play before next Friday, so please don't discuss leaks/game content in the reviews, I would really appreciate. None of these fics are dealing with leaks. There will be some of the latest events in KHUX in some of them, though.

This will be a collection of 5 songfics, as a challenge with SaphirActar. We both chose 5 songs for ourselves, and the other gave themes, general directions, or characters for each song.

Enjoy.

Not all nights were the same. And yet, deep inside, they didn't feel that different. The nights he'd lay awake, staring at the ceiling. The nights he'd pace in his room. The nights he'd count all the steps in the Castle. 358. The nights he'd finally manage to fall asleep. No matter the night, morning would still come, and he wouldn't feel any better. Or any worse. He wouldn't feel anything at all. He was nothing, but a fancy puppet. A moving stone statue. He wasn't expected to be anything else.

Was there a time when he had been proud to stand next to that man? Probably. On the early days. He had looked up to him, his Leader, his King. He would have followed him anywhere, willingly. He still followed, but will had nothing to do with this. More than followed - he ordered. He knew all there was to know about the team, more than the Leader did. And yet, which of them knew him? They used to know who he had been, but not who he was now. They didn't care. It didn't matter. That's what he kept repeating to himself, but deep down, deep inside, some parts of him still felt lonely.

They looked at him and all they saw was the Superior. They didn't engage conversation with him. They looked away when he walked in, hoping he wouldn't notice them, hoping he wouldn't give them anything to do. He wasn't someone. He was a mission, he was a job they prayed someone else would have to do. He hadn't been himself for years now. The Leader had erased him completely. He had to admit, this was brilliant. Cleverly done. He had been a disruptive element, back in the days. He was now something feared and ignored. He didn't matter anymore.

There were still some nights, a few nights, that were a bit different. Nights when he'd remember truly who he used to be. Who he had dreamt to be. Who he wasn't. These nights, he somehow was a bit more in control. He'd wake up screaming, terrified, but he'd wake up as himself. And when morning came, it was different too, because the night had ended with something holding his hand, rocking him, telling him it was okay. It was never okay. This wasn't the life he had wanted.

He'd look into the mirror, and he, himself, couldn't recognize the face on the other side. These eyes, these ears. This scar. A sign of submission stronger than a leash. Reminding him the cost of disobeying. It hurt, but it wasn't a pain he could fix. It hurt and it was the only thing that reminded him he was still alive. He'd stand by the Superior, he'd be his puppet, he'd lose all of who he was. But he was alive, and he remembered. He was alive, and he wouldn't be forgotten. He was alive, and one day, he'd get his revenge.

Live the life he chose.

Song 1 : Homecoming King - Andy Black

Five days to go.

EDIT : song lyrics have been removed, which is why the fic actually looks so short ;)