The gun was pointed with an easy precision, a trained single golden staring wide eyed at him as he stood before him, making no effort to raise his weapon. That goliath of an axe pointed uselessly to the floor as his heavy boots thumped softly on the stones of the infirmary. It was almost impossible how quietly the huge man could move, particularly when his actions were cushioned by the darkness of night, his shadow cast upon the resting form of Even, behind him. Dilan was before him, his sheets rumpled, his face hidden in the splay of thickly braided hair which covered most of his face, hiding the lingering pained expression, the lines of troubled murmurs which had tumbled from him through clenched teeth, despite his unconscious best efforts to lock them in.
Aeleus was looking up into the shadow which was cast over him from the window above Dilan's bed, past the barrel of a gun and into the narrowed eye of the sharpshooter. The single molten gold eye glared back at him, an easy sneer on his face as he held himself steady on the window sill. Aeleus paused, and sighed perhaps a touch impatiently.
"You make a terrible Xehanort."
A delicate brow quirked on the cloaked sharpshooter as his lopsided grin widened. "Is that so, big guy? Is that your attempt at humor? You were never really good at that." He barked a laugh, yet his eyes never left his target. "Shouldn't you be off to warn all of your new friends about how the bad guys are about to storm the castle?" He continued easily, the snarl in his words swallowed easily by the darkness. Aeleus seemed unperturbed.
"No." He answered bluntly. "You're no threat." Xigbar frowned, his grip on his gun tightening at the jab, but Aeleus continued onward. "Just as you were not a threat yesterday night, or the night before that." The guardian trailed meaningfully, his unblinking royal blue eyes fixed on to his potential attacker. He deep voice resounded with a note of understanding and truth.
Aeleus had his attention now. His grip had already tightened on his gun, but oddly enough, it didn't seem to hold nearly enough power to give him comfort.
"You're confused as to why he isn't awake." The guard continued, as if prompting his companion. Xigbar was uncharacteristically silent, his easy grin settling into a thin frown of confusion. "But you already know." Aeleus continued.
The pause between them was deafening. The darkness seemed frozen in silence, but all the while that gun refused to be lowered. Either way, it's target seemed to entirely miss the significance of the danger that he was currently standing directly in front of. "Is that so, Lex?" The usually laid back tones of the second in command seemed to have a caustic edge, as though his authority was being threatened. "If that's the case, why am I supposedly confused? You're not making any sense, but that's not exactly a stretch. You were never exactly the brains of any operation." With a note of deep satisfaction, he watched as Aeleus seemed to physically wince at the comment. He knew exactly where to twist the dagger with his former brother in arms.
But Aeleus's frown softened, and something akin to concern graced his stern features. "He won't reawaken because you won't reawaken. You're connected." He pointed out easily, softly. A single golden eye widened in disbelief.
"Take it back, idiot. You don't know what you're talking about." He growled, but for all his seething anger, his controlled rage, he still held his weapon steady, solidly still in his grasp. "It's nothing-"
"And you're doing a really bad job of convincing me you're some sort of villain," Aeleus continued calmly, a touch slower perhaps, as though trying to tread carefully on a subject which all parties had been hoping they would never have to come to terms over. There was certainly a note of self-assured confidence within the soft, deep tones. "Or that you're not worth saving." Aeleus continued on. Xigbar's hand quivered, his mouth opened to try to interrupt, but found that he had no words.
"When he does reawaken, we're going to find you, and we're going to drag you out of the darkness." Xigbar flinched. The threat was so gentle, it could have been a hopeful promise. "Because you deserve that. You're family." The silence which followed seemed to swallow them both. Years of nights spent in conversation, or even in celebration came vividly to mind, flooding his thoughts with a cloying nostalgia which could not be denied. Aeleus stood stock still. Xigbar was trembling as he fought for control of his arm, tightening his grip, one single metallic colored eye looking mad with something that might have been desperation and fear.
He pulled the trigger.