Next chapter. Hope I actually made a decent cliffie last chapter.
Karrimo: Cliffie? Lame choice of words there.
Me: I thought you and Kosh were fighting. Your balls still intact?
Karrimo: Nothing ice couldn't cure. I'm not gonna be done in by something as simple as that anyhow.
Axel: So, did you find a scapegoat to tell Kosh about the Mary-Sue news or are we just not telling her?
Me: I'd like to keep my limbs intact, thank you very much.
Karrimo: Does anyone even give a damn about these little conversations?
Me: I don't know. Well, tell me if you guys care about this.
Koxra: So, how's the work on the next story coming?
Me: Finally finished chapter 1 and started chapter 2 just last night.
Koxra: Are you procrastinating?
Me: No, I'm just struggling through writer's block. Besides, my brother procrastinates, not me.
Axel: How many more of these intro stories are you doing anyhow?
Me: About 6 or 7, I think, depending on if I decide to do a pairing in one of my next 2 stories. With the one female that I'm bringing in, I don't know if she'll be paired up in that story yet or not. That story is the crossover that I have planned. But it's not the story following this. It's the one after the one following this.
Koxra: Yeah, if that last statement made sense.
Me: I know. If anyone is confused, ask. Now, I'd best get onto the story.
Disclaimer: I only own Oris, her Nobody, Koxra, Vilx, and Koxra and Demyx's cats (Nikki and Pocket).
"Hey, kid, you okay?" Oris opened her eyes. Kneeling beside her was a man dressed in a black coat. He had black hair with silver streaks in it. It was pulled into a ponytail. He had a scar on his face and his right eye was covered with an eye-patch. The visible eye was yellow.
"I think so," said Oris. "What happened?"
"Damned if I know," he said. "Just found you laying here. Name's Xigbar."
"I'm Oris," said Oris. "Hey, where'd those balloon-things go?"
"Balloon-things?" asked Xigbar.
"Yeah, they were chasing everyone, so I ran too," said Oris.
"They didn't have tentacles, did they?" asked Xigbar.
"Yeah, how'd you know?" asked Oris. "Are they creatures you guys kill too?" "I've seen people dressed like you going around and killing those creatures that keep appearing. When I told my friend how you all make weapons appear, she didn't believe me. But, I know what I saw."
"Jeez, slow down a minute, would you?" said Xigbar. "You always talk this much?"
"Pretty much," said Oris, grinning. "Talking's fun. Besides, you never know when someone would appreciate the fact that I talk to them."
"I guess," said Xigbar. "So, if you were running from them, why were you on the ground?"
"Oh, I tripped," said Oris.
"Knocked out on impact?" asked Xigbar.
"Not really," said Oris. "I rolled over and saw one of those things hovering over me. I think it did something to me, but I'm not sure."
"Did you check your pulse?" asked Xigbar.
"Uh, why?" asked Oris.
"I just need to know something," said Xigbar.
Oris felt her neck. "Well, either it's racing at a super-human speed so I can't feel it, or, I'm dead."
"Trust me, you're not dead," said Xigbar.
"Why can't I feel my pulse, then?" asked Oris.
"Cuz you don't have one anymore," said Xigbar. "Neither do I. Those creatures you saw are called Balloons. They're a type of Heartless. They steal hearts."
"So that's what ties you guys together," said Oris. "You all lost your hearts."
"Yep," said Xigbar. "There's sixteen of us so far trying to get our hearts back."
"Seventeen if I join, right?" said Oris.
"Don't need to spell it out, do I?" said Xigbar. "Interested?"
"Is that a trick question?" asked Oris. "I'd be glad to!"
"You always this enthusiastic?" asked Xigbar.
"Yep!" Oris chirped.
"Rapunzel's gonna have her hands full with this one," Xigbar thought. "Not that it bothers me, but some people might be bothered by it."
"I'm sure they'll get used to it," said Oris. "Are we going?"
"Yeah, but first, I've been wondering something," said Xigbar.
"What?" asked Oris.
"Is there a reason your pupils kinda look like keyholes?" asked Xigbar.
"Oh, that," said Oris. "It's Coloboma. Bilateral Coloboma, meaning it affects both eyes. I was born with it. I can see fine, but my eyes are a bit sensitive to bright lights."
"Sorry, I shouldn't have asked," said Xigbar.
"It's okay," said Oris. "I get it a lot. Was that all you wanted to know?"
"Yeah," said Xigbar, opening a portal. "Let's go."
"Can all the members do that?" asked Oris.
"Yep," said Xigbar. "It's how we travel, so you'll learn eventually."
Xigbar and Oris stepped into the Grey Area. Music was playing. Demyx was on a couch playing his sitar. He was so focused on it that he gave no indication that he had heard them enter. Xion was asleep on the other half of the couch. Roxas was sitting next to her, reading Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows.
On the other couch were Axel, Koxra, and Nikki. Axel was asleep, as was Koxra. His arms were wrapped around her. Nikki was curled up in a ball, sleeping at their feet. Xigbar smirked. "Wish I had a camera."
Roxas looked up. "Hey, I didn't hear you come in."
"How long have they been like that?" Xigbar asked, nodding toward the sleeping couple.
"'Bout an hour," said Roxas, marking his place in the book and closing it. "Soon as Demyx started playing. I guess music does soothe the savage beast."
"'Beasts' in this case, Kiddo," said Xigbar.
"Yeah," said Roxas. "And if those two aren't savage, I don't know what is."
"Can you wake them up?" asked Xigbar.
"Dunno," said Roxas. "I'm scared to. I'll try and bring Demyx back to reality."
"Good luck," said Xigbar. "I'll go wake these three up. Then, I can ask Princess what her cat's doing out here."
"Hey, Demyx, Axel said your haircut was stupid," said Roxas.
The sitar music stopped and Demyx fumed. "Alright, where is he?"
"Calm down, man, he didn't really say anything," said Roxas. "I just needed you to come out of your trance."
"Roxas, that's not funny," said Demyx. "If I was Larxene, Axel would be dead meat right now."
"Alright, I'm sorry," said Roxas. "Jeez. It's all I could think of. Could you wake Axel up?"
"No thanks," said Demyx, glancing at the redhead. "I choose life."
"I'll get him up," said Xigbar. "He'll be in major trouble if he attacks me. You guys see to Poppet." He went to Axel and started poking him. "Dude, get up."
"Go to Hell," Axel grumbled.
"You can't stay here all night," said Xigbar.
"Watch me," said Axel.
"Well, if you do, I'll just have to get a camera and take a picture of this," said Xigbar.
"What are you talk—?" Axel began, opening his eyes. Upon seeing Koxra asleep in his arms, his face turned beet red. "Like hell you are!"
"Mmm—what?" said Koxra, waking up. "How'd this happen?" She was turning as red as Axel.
"Got me," said Axel.
"Not that I mind, but I'd like to know," said Koxra. "What do you want, Xigbar?"
"First of all, what's your cat doing out here?" asked Xigbar.
Koxra glanced at Nikki. "Oh, maybe Vilx left her door open again. Nikki probably walked through the bathroom and out Vilx's door. I never have my door open."
"I'd watch her to make sure Saix doesn't eat her or something," said Xion.
"If he even breathes on her, I'll kill him," said Koxra.
"Oh, almost forgot," said Xigbar. "This is Oris, our Number Seventeen. Sorry about that."
"I don't mind," said Oris. "I was having fun watching you guys."
"Hi, Oris, I'm Xion," said Xion. "This is Roxas, Demyx, Axel, Koxra, and Koxra's cat, Nikki." She pointed to them each in turn.
"Hey, a lot of you have an 'x' in your names," said Oris.
"Yeah, except for Nikki, all of us in this room do," said Koxra. "Mine's spelled K-o-x-r-a, but I pronounce it 'Koshra'. Every member has an 'x' somewhere in their name, even if you can't hear it."
"Is there a reason for it?" asked Oris.
"Got me," said Koxra. "The first six members decided to do it, I guess. For the most part, when we lost our hearts, we changed our names to an anagram of our old names with an 'x' somewhere. My name was Kora."
"What about the rest of you?" asked Oris.
"Braig," said Xigbar.
"Sora," said Roxas.
"No. i, I think," said Xion. (A/N: I got this from Wikipedia)
"Lea," said Axel. "And that's L-e-a, got it memorized?"
"I've never heard that spelling before," said Oris.
"Yeah, well, my mom was a bit odd," said Axel. "What about you, Dem?"
"Dyme," said Demyx. (A/N: I've seen quite a few variations of the name for Demyx's Other, but this is the only one I saw that I really liked a lot because it sounds more interesting than the others I heard. I don't know how everyone else pronounces it, but I'm pronouncing it 'Dime'. I'm not the first one to use this name for Demyx's other. I have seen it before, so I can't claim originality here.)
"Why are you staring at me?" asked Oris.
"Vilx told me months ago that a girl with green hair just walked up to her in Hollow Bastion and started talking to her," said Demyx.
"Did her name used to be 'Liv'?" asked Oris.
"Yeah," said Demyx.
"That was me, then," said Oris.
"And Vilx was just wondering if she would see you again," said Demyx.
"Shouldn't you be taking her to Xemnas and Vexen right now?" asked Axel.
"Man, Xigbar, you're usually more focused than this," said Koxra.
"Why don't you just go back to sleep, Princess?" Xigbar suggested. "It was quieter then."
"Oh, you're so funny," said Koxra.
"Okay, so did your brain explode after seeing Zexion?" asked Koxra.
"Nope," said Risox (formerly Oris). "Strange though it may sound, I actually understood him."
"How?" asked Koxra.
"Oh, don't get excited," said Risox. "I got my smarts out of a cereal box."
Koxra laughed. "You know, Risox, normally I hate people who are upbeat and talkative, but, with you, I don't."
"I aim to please," said Risox. "So, what's Vilx like?"
"She's my polar opposite," said Koxra. "Nice, sweet, shy, sure she has issues, but she's much better than when she first joined."
"It's nice to hear that she's somewhere that she has friends," said Risox. "The town just hated her for no reason and that wasn't really fair."
"No, it wasn't," said Koxra.
"I know this is off-topic, but, do you mind if I call you 'Kosh'?" asked Risox.
"No," said Koxra. "Basically it's really only Roxas, Axel, and Demyx who call me that, but I don't mind it. I also get 'Koxra', 'Fifteen', or 'Princess', depending on who it is. Oh, hi, Vilx." Vilx stood there with her mouth hanging open, looking at Risox.
Risox smirked. "If you don't shut your mouth, your chin could hit the floor."
Vilx closed her mouth. "Oh, I'm sorry. That was rude of me."
"Hey, chill," said Risox. "I thought it was pretty funny. I'd imagine you're shocked to see me?"
"Well, yeah, but, if you're here, that must mean—," Vilx began.
"That I'm a Nobody now?" Risox offered. "Yep, I am."
"Oh, that reminds me," said Vilx. "I'm Vilx."
"It's Risox now," said Risox. "I was Oris. Oh, weren't you Liv?"
"Yeah," said Vilx, bowing her head. "That's a part of my past that I'd never want to relive. How'd you know that name anyhow? I don't think I ever saw you at school."
"Yeah, and you would've remembered someone with keyholes for pupils," said Risox. "I haven't been to school since I was seven. My parents died then and I became a homeless orphan."
"Oh, I'm sorry," said Vilx.
"It's okay, you didn't know," said Risox. "Dwelling on the past won't help anything."
"Oh, and, Vilx, you've been appointed her mentor," said Koxra.
"Me, a mentor?" asked Vilx in shock. "Shouldn't that position be for someone more experienced or more useful?"
"Has Larxene been making fun of you again?" asked Koxra, crossing her arms. "Cuz I might have to kick her ass."
"Koxra, please don't," said Vilx. "It was the same statement it always is. It's not a big deal."
"What's the problem, then?" asked Koxra.
"It's just that, I don't know if I can handle such a big responsibility," said Vilx.
"You'll be fine," said Koxra. "If I can mentor, anyone can. I don't think I'm what most people call 'responsible', but I did just fine."
"Hey, I won't give you a hard time," said Risox. "But, if you think I am, let me know."
"I'll let you give a quick run-down on the 'dos' and 'don'ts'," said Koxra, opening a portal. "I'll be in the kitchen if you need anything and I'd recommend coming to dinner when you're done. See ya." She vanished into the portal and closed it behind her.
"What did she mean by 'dos' and 'don'ts'?" asked Risox.
"She should just call it 'don'ts'," said Vilx. "It's basically certain things you should never do with certain members."
"Oh, well, what are they?" asked Risox.
"Disrespecting Xemnas isn't a good idea," said Vilx. "Koxra had some close calls with that one."
"Yeah, she struck me as being mouthy," said Risox.
"And, something about Xigbar is, NEVER call him 'Xiggy' unless you have a death wish," said Vilx. "Only Demyx gets away with it. I think it's cuz Demyx reminds him of his little brother."
"About, Xigbar, what's the deal with referring to Xion, Roxas, and Koxra as 'Poppet', 'Kiddo', and 'Princess'?" asked Risox.
"Xigbar loves giving people nicknames," said Vilx. "That's what he calls those three. He also gave nicknames to some of the others. Lexaeus is 'Lex', Zexion is 'Bookworm', Axel is 'Flamesilocks', Demyx is 'Tidal-wave', Marluxia's 'Marly', and I'm 'Rapunzel'. Give him time and I'm sure he'll have one for you too."
"That's kinda funny," said Risox. "Where'd he get 'Flamesilocks'?"
"No idea," said Vilx. "Not even he knows. Now, Xaldin is a total OCD victim when it comes to the kitchen, so don't mess anything up or he'll kill you."
"Sounds fun," said Risox.
"Risox, I'm dead serious," said Vilx.
"I know," said Risox. "I was just making a joke. Continue."
"Well, Vexen's the same way with his lab and he hates music, so don't hum, sing, whistle, or play an instrument in his presence," said Vilx. "He also has no sense of humor whatsoever."
"Man, why would anyone wanna be near him?" asked Risox.
"I know," said Vilx. "And Lexaeus, well just never call him 'Lexy' and never do anything bad to Zexion and you should be fine with him."
"Are they friends?" asked Risox.
"Yeah," said Vilx. "Lexaeus is one of the few people Zexion actually admits to liking. And Zexion, never call him anything other than 'Zexion' or 'Six'. He puts up with 'Bookworm' because Xigbar outranks him. And he tolerates 'Zex' from Axel because he gave up reasoning with Axel. Zexion's a bit…hard to figure out. It's hard to tell what he's thinking or feeling."
"Zexion seems pretty interesting," said Risox. "He just doesn't seem like he'd admit to caring about anyone."
"He doesn't show it a lot, but he does care," said Vilx. "He actually does like Axel, but you'd never catch him admitting it. Next is Saix. Koxra gets on his bad side on a daily basis, but I wouldn't recommend following her example. He's very intimidating."
"Alright," said Risox. "I'll try not to mess with him. Can't make any promises."
"Do more than try, please," said Vilx. "He's dangerous."
"Alright, jeez," said Risox. "What's life without a few risks?"
"You and Luxord will definitely get along," said Vilx. "There isn't a lot to watch around Axel, but, with Demyx, don't make fun of or ruin his hair or instruments. Luxord's crazy with gambling, but you probably won't mind that. With Marluxia, never ruin his garden in any way and it would be best just to avoid Larxene as much as possible."
"There's nothing about Roxas or Xion, is there?" asked Risox.
"Nope," said Vilx. "And Koxra, she's like the sister I never had."
"Sounds like you adjusted well," said Risox.
"Yeah, I had a few bumps along the way, but I'm fine now," said Vilx. "Well, let's get to dinner."
I hope this chapter was actually pretty long. My average seems to be 6 or 7 pages. This is 6. I'm pretty comfortable with the length. Sometimes I get 8 pages, but not too often.
Karrimo: Oh, yes, talk about your average of pages. And here I thought your brain might be recovering from being in your head all its life.
Me: Oh, that's real mature. If I want to talk about page numbers, you're not stopping me.
Koxra: This is mainly a ZexionXOC story, so when will some of that happen?
Me: It'll start next chapter. I don't do quick romances and with the way Zexion is, it'll take him longer to admit to it. You can't really fall in love with someone that you've only known for 5 minutes, now can you?
Koxra: I don't think you can.
Karrimo: Are you aware that your Zexion is probably OOC?
Me: Yeah, I was well aware of that even when I wrote "Enter Fifteen", but I didn't really want him to be an unfeeling intellectual and since when is it illegal for fanfiction not to be canon?
Koxra: Yeah, I don't think everyone should be in character. Just as long as you don't have a group of bumbling idiots.
Me: Yeah, that and nothing so far off that it's unbelievable. Oh, I keep forgetting. I know that in the game, everyone sees Xion differently, but that's not true in my fics. Everyone sees her the way Roxas does. As a Kairi look-alike. And sheisconnected to Kairi in a way, so it makes sense that she looks like that.
Well, you know the drill, 3 reviews for an update. Oh, and please let me know if I got any info about Coloboma wrong. I'll put a link to the website on my profile.
