17 DAYS OF HELL
A Kingdom Hearts fanfiction
Kingdom Hearts is property of Square Enix and Disney
This fanfiction is purely for entertainment – please do not get offended
Enjoy…
-- DAY ONE –-
- AM -
0-6 months
The Graceful Assassin was stunned. For once he could not find the words he was looking for that would give him the satisfaction of knowing that he had an answer for this. This was one situation that he had not planned for. One situation where he did not believe he could avoid. He placed his hand to his mouth and stared hard at the child in front of him. It was clearly obvious that … somehow … this child was, indeed, Zexion. How this had happened, Marluxia did not know. Possibly something to do with that potion that Vexen had spoken of.
Marluxia's brows knitted together and he thought about what needed to be done now. Having a child – a baby – inside the organisation would do them no good. At the last thought that ran through his head, the mauve-haired male allowed a shrewd smirk to cross his face.
"Whatever will the Superior do without the resident schemer's intellect?" he sneered.
He carefully extended his hand and softly caressed the child's head. "It really is such a shame that you are so loyal to Xemnas, Zexion. You and your enigmatic power would benefit me greatly – you'd make a valuable ally … or a formidable enemy."
He pushed himself from the floor and stared at Zexion. "However, this situation is not my concern," he said, before creating a black portal and steeping through it, leaving the child alone.
-
Marluxia stepped through the portal as the cloud of darkness disintegrated behind him. He briefly stared around before making his way towards the large window, delicately fingering the organza curtains that billowed in the breeze. The room he was in was no different to any of the other rooms located inside Castle Oblivion: the white walls adorned with a motif of roses and various vines that entwined together, the grooved pillars that reached up to the high ceiling like thin towers, the vast white flooring that seemed to forever glisten brightly. This was the basis of every room inside the castle – the starting point. It was true that other rooms were individual and contains furniture that is essential, however, when the furniture was removed, the castle remained bland. As it would for as long as time continues to pass.
The mauve-haired man directed his eyes from the walls to the outside world. The sky, too, remained the same. Neither lightness nor darkness. To most people who were unfamiliar with such a sight, the words beautiful, magnificent and wonderful would be used to describe the way the light and the darkness merged. However, to those who resided inside the castle, the words dull, repetitive and ugly were used to describe the sky. The sky was just one more reminder of what they were: nobodies. Beings that had lost their hearts and were now left alone - abandoned by the world. Not belonging to the light and not belonging the darkness. They were nothing.
"Why is it so quiet?" Marluxia said aloud, wanting to put an end to the silence. Despite the fact that the castle was enormous, there was always some form of sound that would linger. Whether this is footsteps or the odd muffled voice. It was as if he was the only resident inside the castle, which he knew to be fault. Both Vexen and Zexion had been seen today.
He wondered briefly why Xigbar was not spotted cleaning the floors and why Demyx had not been seen cleaning the walls. The Superior had made the huge mistake of sending both nobodies on a mission together. Needless to say, the results that Xemnas received were less than satisfactory. He sometimes wondered what went through the head of their Superior. Even a Dusk could have made the connection that Xigbar and Demyx would not take the mission seriously. What had Xemnas expected?
Marluxia was thrown from his reverie by the shrill cry of a baby. He was slightly amazed at being able to hear the cry considering he had left Zexion three floors below him.
He shook his head, turning his attention back to the sky and its array of morbid colours. He didn't know why he stared at the sky constantly. Perhaps he used it as a constant reminder of his goals and his longing to accomplish them…
The strident cry, once again, penetrated his thoughts and caused him to turn swiftly, glaring at the floor. Why is that child still crying? he wondered. Surely if the sound bothered him, the others must be bothered too. Maybe curious as to the sound and where it originated from?
"How can one child make so much noise?" he questioned.
The nobody heaved a sighed and lightly rubbed his temples. The piercing sound was beginning to cause his head to hurt. Maybe this was due to the fact that he was unaccustomed to such sounds? Whatever it was, it mattered little to Marluxia. The sound was agonising and nobody inside the castle was doing a damn thing about it! He was suddenly reminded of the old saying he had heard once: why have a dog when you have to bark yourself? Or something very similar … he had not ventured to the other worlds in a while.
"Why have a dog indeed," he grumbled. He created a dark portal in front of him. "Why be Lord of the Castle when all the servants are incompetent idiots?"
He steeped into the portal, muttering, "Useless," as it closed behind him.
-
Marluxia stormed towards the baby, who was sitting up, pulling at the black material, and crying his eyes out. The older nobody narrowed his cobalt eyes and stared at the child, noticing that Zexion had felt another presence, however, this made no difference in the baby's disposition.
"Be quiet," Marluxia ordered in a deep voice. He wasn't too sure whether or not ordering a baby to stop crying would actually work, however, he knew nothing about babies. He couldn't even recall being within close proximity of a child, let alone a baby. Maybe there was a slim possibility that he may have had some contact with a baby when he was a somebody and the experience was lodged somewhere deep within his subconscious? He highly doubted it. If there was a chance that statement was true, then Zexion would be quiet right now, which he was not.
No. He would have to handle this situation the only way he knew…
Within the blink of an eye, a light cerise blade, attached to green snath, was pointed directly at the young child.
"I said quiet!" Marluxia snarled.
The assassin had expected the look of sheer terror to cross the baby's eyes and for it to stop crying immediately. He wanted the baby to be scared of the fact that he had a sharp instrument directed at him. He wanted to walk away and forget this had ever happened.
He had not expected Zexion to look at him with such excitement in his eyes and to start laughing and clapping.
The scythe disappeared in a haze of sakura blossoms, which caused Zexion to laugh again. Marluxia knelt in front of Zexion and smiled slightly.
"Well, I can see that, even as a baby, you are braver than some of the other organisation members, including that incompetent oaf, Vexen," he laughed.
He watched as Zexion smiled and looked at him, tilting his head, as if he was contemplating something vitally life changing. He wondered what was going through Zexion's head. Was he still the same manipulative schemer that he once was?
Marluxia moved his face closer, trying to understand the inner workings of Zexion. Maybe his eyes would reveal something? He watched the child blink several times before he slowly raised his hand.
The older man watched, confused, as Zexion moved his hands closer to his face. What is he doing? he wondered. The child moved his tiny hands even closer to Marluxia and grabbed a handful of mauve-coloured hair, pulling slightly.
Marluxia arched as brow as Zexion softly pulled his hair. This behaviour was almost laughable. He had never seen anything like it, especially coming from the Cloaked Schemer. He had to admit, though never aloud, Zexion was incredibly cute as a child and this display of behaviour brought a little humour into his usually boring day.
"I hope you realise, Zexion, that if, and when, you grow up, I am going to be using this against you," he smirked.
Now thoroughly over the shock of Zexion being a child, Marluxia had one more question that needed to be answered.
"What do I do now then?" he wondered.
Marluxia watched Zexion's reactions carefully, seeing whether it would give him any hint on what he was supposed to do. The child merely babbled happily and pulled the assassin's hair again.
Despite the fact that Marluxia felt no pain through this action, he made a sound, eager to see and assess Zexion's reaction. It was his way of assessing the situation and finding a way to overcome this 'slight' problem. He watched with awareness as a look crossed the baby's cerulean eyes and felt the small hand leave his hair.
Marluxia smiled. "I don't usually give out compliments, but I can safely see that you are certainly advanced for your age. I would assume that most babies would not be able to assess the feelings of others, even if they are false."
Was this what Zexion was like prior to becoming a nobody? He wondered whether the baby knew that he was unable to express emotions and feelings, and whether the ones expressed so far had been harboured deep with the subconscious mind. There had to be some form of explanation as to why the emotions were expressed. Then again, nobodies were able to imitate emotions to the point where they were astonishingly realistic. Perhaps that's what had occurred here? One large charade of their non-existence? Perhaps emotions had nothing to do with the heart at all. After all, the heart was just an organ that pumped blood around body. Nothing more - nothing less. It was the brain that was the central system of the body. The brain that controlled the body…
Marluxia slowly, almost nervously (if possible), picked Zexion up and held him close to his chest. Zexion's coat was too bulky to carry around with him, so he used his sleeves to act as some manner of protection to hide the child's naked form. Where am I going to find clothes for a baby? he wondered.
He pushed himself up and looked down at Zexion, who was staring up at him intently. A low laugh escaped his lips as he walked through the black mist behind him.
-
"Vexen!" Marluxia bellowed as he stepped through the portal into the dark room. His attention was drawn to a large sea-like creature that swam around inside a gigantic tank behind him. No doubts that began life as a small molecule that was slowly warped into something unheard of. It's probably a failed replica of himself, he sneered. Shaking his head, Marluxia looked around the room, seeing a large selection of science equipment cluttering a enormous white wooden desk, papers scattered around haphazardly, and a computer with a screen that looked far too big for the small keyboard.
He risked walking further into the 'lab', which, in his own opinion, could easily rival that of Dr Frankenstein's. He noticed that Zexion was no longer staring at him, but gazing around the dark room, until his gaze lingered on the swimming creature. Marluxia looked at Zexion and then back at the creature. The kid has probably never seen a swimming experiment before – hell, neither have I! he thought to himself.
He took a quick step towards the creature in the tank and moved his head closer, so both he and Zexion could gain a better look. The beast, which Marluxia had decided was similar to a large eel with a oversized head and a mouth full of razor sharp teeth, had stopped swimming and now remained still, staring directly at them.
"I think I actually see the family resemblance between that thing and Vexen now," he laughed.
The noise that Zexion was making caused the mauve-haired man to look down, seeing the baby holding out his hand and lightly touching the glass.
"I think we should see whether this thing can breathe out of water," Marluxia smirked darkly. He shook his head and turned quickly, ignoring the displeasing babbles from Zexion. "Vexen!" he shouted, hearing the sound echoing around the lab. "Where are you, you old coot?"
He knew that if he shouted his insults, then the Academic would appear instantly before him, eyes narrowed and his face contorting into a grimace. He waited for a moment longer before deciding that IV must not be here.
"Considering it's his fault that you're this way – he should be the one to put up with you," Marluxia said, sighing loudly.
He quickly paced up and down the lab, resisting the urge to overthrow the white desk and watch everything shatter. His brows knitted together as several strands of hair fell into his eyes. Now what? he sighed.
Not being able to see any sight of the blond-haired man, Marluxia stormed towards the direction of the door. He could have easily teleported out of the room but he needed a way to vent his current anger at Vexen. Why did small things infuriate him so?
A deep breath escaped his lips as he closed his eyes, unconsciously tightening his hold on Zexion when he felt the child wriggle. Perhaps he could find another member of the organisation to help in the situation. Possibly one of the more gullible ones who would quiver to his every whim? Then again, he thought, the others would be so shocked by this revelation that they won't notice if I leave him with them.
He felt a slight tug on his hair again and looked down to see Zexion, hands wrapped around the light bangs, gazing up at him. He arched a brow, watching as Zexion tugged on the hair. "I'm taking it this is your way of getting attention?" he asked the child, which resulted in his hair being tugged, yet again. He laughed heartily. "At this rate you'll be worse than Larxene – she's a secret hair puller."
He conjured up a portal and walked through it.
-
He stepped out of the portal that led to the kitchen. He looked around, expecting to see at least one other person. The kitchen was the one place that was constantly occupied, no matter what.
"What are the chances of the kitchen being empty when I need somebody (or nobody would be a better choice of words)?" he said, looking around.
The kitchen, like every other room in the castle, was white. Work surfaces coursed to the end of the room, the sink was large enough for two people to use at the same time and have room to spare, and the floor shone, with its white and lustrous marble tiles. Overall, the kitchen was clean and crisp, and the white finish was wonderfully shiny and smooth to the touch.
Marluxia moved his head from left to right. This really did seem all too coincidental. It was like some cruel, twisted parody. Maybe the others were playing some strange joke on him for all the times he had treated them less then grand? There had to be some reason why everyone was not where he wanted them to be.
The Graceful Assassin scrunched his nose as an appalling smell tickled his nostrils. He recognised the smell; however, he just could not place it. What was it? He looked at Zexion, who was smiling and laughing. The smell grew stronger though.
Marluxia's eyes widened. "Please tell me you didn't," he pleaded, holding the baby away from his chest. It was as he dreaded. The baby was wet and, despite his coat being black, the stain was still very noticeable. "I hate you right now," Marluxia grumbled in a low voice.
There was nothing he could do to change the situation, so he would just have to grit his teeth and deal with it. Maybe it would be all over soon. Maybe the key bearer would break into the castle and start stabbing him with the blunt end of the keyblade. Whatever he decided to do, it needed to be done quickly.
He grumbled and cursed Zexion as he walked to the sink and began filling it with water, adding at least one quarter bottle of washing-up liquid. He reluctantly held the baby close to himself again as he took off his glove, using his teeth. He tested the water and once it was a sufficient temperature, Marluxia placed Zexion, rather roughly, into the water.
"Knock yourself out," he said. "If I'm lucky – you might just drown."
As soon as Zexion was inside the water he began to play with the bubbles and splash, water over spilling, creating a largely growing puddle on the floor. Marluxia smirked as he took his long coat off and placed it straight on the work surface. He reached for the clothe that was next to the sink and dropped it in the water before taking it out and began to harshly scrub at the stain. He was uncertain whether or not the stain had vanished; however, the smell had disappeared, which was a start.
Marluxia stopped what he was doing for a moment to stretch and quickly check on Zexion. The baby was still entertaining himself with the bubbles. He would scoop them in his hands, laugh and throw them on the floor. Marluxia had to laugh at the expression on Zexion's face as he discovered that the taste of bubbles wasn't nice.
Shaking his head, the mauve-haired male crossed his arms and leant on the surface. He decided that he would just throw his coat in the washing machine and wait for someone to wash it. He had spares in his room. He cast his cobalt eyes down; the water was beginning to reach his boots. He wondered about who was the unfortunate nobody who had the duty of cleaning the kitchen. It wasn't him, he was certain.
Marluxia reached over a scooped a handful of suds and dumped them on Zexion's head. "Payback for peeing on me," he smirked. He was about to grab another handful when he heard footsteps outside the door. His eyes shot in the direction of the noise. "Finally," he muttered, pushing himself from the surface to greet who it was at the door.
-
Just as Roxas was about to turn the handle, the door opened. Okay, he thought. He shook his head, looking to see who had opened the door. He did not expect to see Marluxia, number XI, The Graceful Assassin, Lord of Castle Oblivion, leaning in the doorway and smiling, top-less. "W-why?" he began, pointing slightly.
"Were you never taught that it is rude to point?" he stated. "However, that is beside the point. I need a favour of you, XIII" the assassin asked in an overly polite tone.
Roxas arched a brow, his expression changing from majorly bored majorly to suspicious. Axel had told him many times that you could not trust Marluxia as far as you could throw him. Would this be one of those times? he wondered.
"What is it?" he asked, caution clearly evident in his voice.
Roxas saw Marluxia look back into the kitchen for some reason before turning his attention back to him.
"I need you to watch Zexion for me," he said, the eerier smile still on his face.
Roxas decided that he did not, for one moment, like that smile. It was too un-Marluxia-like for it to be real. Something was wrong here. Marluxia does not ask for favours…
"W-wait a second," Roxas stuttered, confused. "Watch … Zexion?"
"Yes," Marluxia replied quickly. "He's currently playing in the sink with the bubbles."
The confused expression on Roxas' face grew even more as Marluxia said this. He was speechless. Even if he could find words to speak with, what could he say? What is going on here? he asked himself. He looked up, about to demand some form of explanation from Marluxia, only to see a cloud of darkness disappearing.
"Okay then," Roxas said, confused … again. He took a breath and slowly pushed the door open, uncertain of what it was he was going to be facing.
-
TO BE CONTINUED
NEXT CHAPTER: DAY ONE: PM
-
AN: Okay then ... just a few things to mention here. Thank you all for the reviews - I didn't expect any to be honest :) As for the question about the Saiyuki fic: I can't find it ... I don't think it is here on anymore. I thought that it was from the same author (Greylily) who had written the fic where Sanzo turns into a dog (A Dog's Life I think) ... but it wasn't that one. Sorry.
Right ... I'm aware that the chapter wasn't as funny as I originally thought it would be. I usually do that - turn a humour fic into a serious one. I'll try not to do that this time :)
Last thing to mention is about how I decided to portray Marluxia. Despite the fact that he has pink hair, petals follow him everywhere and his weapon is pink ... I think he's a complete badass. All you have to do is look at his expressions in the COM remake. Plus his seiyuu is brilliant … and Zexion's too (Akira Ishida is god in my eyes J). Now, I just want to quickly explain why I went from him pointing his weapon at Zexion to smiling at him: I personally believe that Marluxia is one of these people who take an interest in first impressions and that they are vital to him ... so I tried to make baby Zexion make a good one by not being afraid of him. That is just my opinion though... it may be wrong. Just in case any of you were wondering. I'm trying to keep them in character…
Right ... that's long enough. Some of the chapters, like this one, may be split into AM/PM depending on how long they will turn out.
Thanks again
-Bexii
