A/N: To clear up any confusion this may cause before it causes any, I forgot to mention the fact this takes place during CoM, but slightly before Sora and Riku arrive... So...yeah. XD Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I own nothing but Amber, Anya, Rayna(the one Anya calls little sister/the little redhead), and Hanabi. :)


"Ienzo?" He was dreaming, that was the only way he could be hearing that voice again. However, he couldn't be sleeping because he was still in Castle Oblivion, and he always dreamed of his life as Ienzo before, in Radiant Garden. "Ienzo!" No, there was no way he could be hearing Amber Lyone's voice, yet… Something propelled him around in time to see whatever it was heading towards him sink in a wild spray of wine red. Reacting on instinct, he reached out and snatched the object from gravity's cruel grasp. What he found in his hands was not what he expected—his hands gripped slender arms near the shoulders, down which poured stranded red wine that framed deathly pale skin and pale blue eyes that had a childlike quality to them. Those blue that flickered to his face before lighting up appeared to have faded since he had last seen her.

Something was wrong, not just her faded eye color. She was too thin, too pale, easily breakable and unmistakably frail compared to the last time he had seen her. "Amber?" Zexion was hit with the memory of a tone referred to often as 'sounding too scared to ask' if only because he could no longer really feel the emotion to be scared. His chest grave a painful throb at the thought of how he would have been worried beyond belief and scared for her life if he could have been. How had this happened?

"Sorry, but thank you for catching me, Ienzo. I just… I got all excited to see you, but I haven't walked in awhile and I—" Amber's explanation was cut off by an explosive cough that wracked her entire, all too fragile body. It was a cough that he was eerily familiar with, one he knew had been long gone when he had seen her that final time. He was struck rather sharply by a memory of dread, this was not happening. No, it could not be back to claim her! The coughing stretched on and Zexion finally reached out to gently wrap and arm around her tiny waist to better support her and leave her arms free. "…and I just had to touch you and make sure you were real since I haven't seen you in so long… But my legs didn't want to cooperate, I guess." She gave a little laugh that sounded oddly raspy and disused. Zexion frowned at the harsh sound but looked up at the sound of approaching feet. His gaze fell upon Vexen as he entered, wearing an expectant face.

"Amber dear, are you okay?" The expectant look was replaced by one full of elaborately constructed false concern. Still leaning on Zexion for support, Amber looked up and smiled radiantly.

"I'm fine Even, Ienzo's here!" She spoke of him as though he were a cure-all. It was confusing and yet so very Amber-like that it was refreshing, but his made his chest throb. Her attention did not remain on Vexen for very long, she twisted in Zexion's grasp so that she could look at him. I missed you all so much, especially you and Xehanort, Ienzo! …It's too bad I won't get to see him…" She hugged him and clung like tape. "I could swear you got bigger—you're as tall as me now. I don't ever you remember you being that tall…" She observed softly, but Zexion was caught off guard by the remark about not being able to see Xehanort.

"What…?" He glanced back to see Vexen looking smug and a ghost of anger and suspicion blazed up. Somehow his protectiveness for Amber seemed to still be intact, as though he had subconsciously known he would need it. His arm tightened slightly around her tiny waist and turned a glare on Vexen. "Even," He forced the name out through his teeth. "Would you kindly tell me what Amber means? Just why is she here after so many years?" He growled darkly. Amber frowned, her eyebrows knitting together to form a 'V' shape and her washed-out blue eyes flashing with long-forgotten emotions that Zexion's memory claimed to be surprise, sadness and fear.

"What do you mean?" She asked softly, sounding so frail that Zexion wondered (as he could no longer worry) if the slightest movement would break her.

"Amber, I am looking for answers from Even. He knows exactly what I mean and that is all you need to worry about. It's not anything you should worry about." He was extremely conscious of her facial expressions, particularly her eyes, which remained expressive as ever. She didn't appear happy about his response, but as her lips parted to speak, Vexen answered him.

"She is here to volunteer to participate as a subject in our most recent project discussion. You remember what I'm talking about, right?" Zexion froze, he knew all too well. There was a boy in Ienzo's memories that had saved him from creatures that were much like Heartless, yet they were not. Vexen said the boy's name was Ventus and that he knew for a fact (somehow) that this boy had been separated into pure light and pure darkness, and Vexen wanted to do the same. Particularly he wanted to see if the being of pure light could be used to replace the light of another or be used to bring back the light of another so that they might become complete again. In this case he had his sights set on some keyblade bearer that was long gone, but the subject of the split had been a matter of discussion. At least, it had been.

As he realized exactly what Amber was there for, Zexion's eyes widened and he shook his head while pulling the girl closer to him. "No, Ve—Even. Not Amber, no. Not for that." He growled, she deserved better than that. Amber was not a tool, she was Amber Lyone, the innocent girl who had never done anything wrong. Her hands were clean, she didn't belong in this mess. He couldn't get away from it—he had been too far-gone—but Amber… She should have never have had to start running. It occurred to him very briefly to wonder just how he could still 'care' this much for her, he figured it was because he had cared do much about her before and he wanted her to be happy in place of everyone else's screw-ups that made them like this. Now Vexen wanted to ruin her life, too?

"She said she wanted to." Vexen's smile was malicious, Zexion shook his head slightly again.

"What did you tell her she was signing up for?" He snapped and then he was distracted by something suddenly tugging on his coat.

"I want to." Amber glanced down as he looked at her. "I… If Xehanort needs help and this is the only thing I can do, then I want to do this." Zexion grimaced as his chest gave another odd throb at the soft words. He wanted to shake her like a rag doll to make her see sense but he did not want to hurt her.

"Amber, please don't do this. We can find someone else, but not you. Do you not understand that this… It. Will. Kill. You!" He sank to trying to plead with her not to go through with the experiment she probably didn't understand the results would do. Her gaze stayed down as though she was speaking to the floor.

"Ienzo, if I don't do this I'll die soon anyway and my life won't have made any use of the time it had." The words made him remember the morbid discussions she would have with him when they were kids. She often joked she had too much time to think, she often found herself creating her own epitaphs, and one in particular stuck in his memory rather strongly—"Her life was like a book with the pages ripped out—incomplete." His thoughts were interrupted by Amber speaking up again. "When you all disappeared, I got really sick again and with no one there at the castle, my parents refused to let me leave the house. I've been under house arrest for years, Ienzo. Seemingly endless years where I've watched the destruction of Radiant Garden from my window just as much as I've stared at the ever-present stars of Traverse Town, and I'm so tired of just watching. I want to give my life meaning, a reason to be remembered beyond being that sick little girl who could do nothing but wait for her own destruction!" She stopped for a moment to cough again, so violently that Zexion thought it a miracle she did not shatter into pieces in his grasp. "If I can use my already fading life to help someone, then I want to do just that." The resoluteness in her voice spoke much louder than she did, and some part of him wanted to trap her in his Lexicon to protect her from danger and Vexen's insane plan just as much as herself. But…if he did that, could you call her living? Would she ever forgive him for that moment of complete selfishness? Probably not.

"Amber," He sighed slowly, defeat heavy in his voice. "Why must you be so stubborn?" Her soft, ringing laugh followed by that familiar cough answered.

"Because that's how I've made it this long, of course! And since it's kept me alive this long, it might as well factor into how I die." He cringed at her bluntness and the humor mixed into it all. It was another familiar part of Amber, but one he never had really liked.

"I'll leave you two for a moment, there are preparations to be made and she wanted to see you most, Ienzo, so there should be no problems." Vexen said coldly before walking off. For a brief moment he was tempted to take her and run or tell her the truth behind it all, but he could not bring himself to tell the things that would consequently follow. Particularly the fact that he was no longer her Ienzo and he could no longer truly feel. He could not hurt her like that, not when she was so happy to see him again and was content with the situation as it was—it was unlikely Vexen would let his precious subject go now that he had her anyway.

The situation annoyed him. Here Zexion was, a master schemer and yet he was unable to hatch a scheme to get Amber away from Vexen and keep her complete. Yes, Vexen feared Xemnas greatly, but if Amber caught sight of him then it was likely that she would find out anyway and he would end up hurting her. No Xemnas, then. Lexaeus was gone at the moment, so the big, often silent Nobody could not offer backup and Axel hadn't known her that well. None of the others in Castle Oblivion knew her at all, and calling in the great emotionless Xaldin or Xigbar would not only annoy the two but would also probably not offer any solution. There was literally nothing he could think of to save her.

"Why did you want to see me so badly if you are going to give up your life soon?" He asked, almost sounding sad. Amber's gaze turned back to him to meet his eyes and she reached up to play with the hair that fell wildly in his eyes.

"I missed you so much… you don't know how much I wished you were there for company over the years, how much I wished I could get out of bed and run to the castle to find you there waiting for me at the doors while talking to Aeleus and Dilan like nothing ever happened…but that never happened when I did run there, and then I couldn't leave then soon enough I could barely leave my bed. I never got to know if you ever came back…" She looked so sad, all Zexion wanted to do was make her happy again, yet he didn't know how.

"I'm sorry, Amber. I missed you too, but I couldn't go back. There was no way for me to. There still isn't." He responded, sounding more and more like he meant it. The more convincing he sounded, however, the more Zexion was becoming acutely aware that he could not mean it no matter how much he wanted to. He was just falling victim to a confusing swirl of the ghosts of long-dead and forgotten emotions. Oddly enough, it was true, at least the wanting to go back part, anyway. Amber's hand dropped from his hair slowly and then both arms wrapped around his waist in a gentle hug. The long-unfamiliar action took him off guard for a moment before he uncertainly hugged her back.

"Maybe, if things had been a little different, we wouldn't be here." She murmured, closing her eyes. "Maybe we'd still be happy friends, living a relatively carefree life in Traverse Town. Maybe I wouldn't be dying and opting to give up my life to help a friend, maybe I'd still be sick, but we wouldn't be here." She sighed, Zexion nodded, although he knew she wouldn't see it.

"Maybe. I wish they had been." He replied, suddenly realizing how little she had really changed in the years he had been gone. Though she was now twenty-something (Twenty-six? The years had melted together…) she was no longer so much taller than him, in fact she was fractionally shorter and there were other small physical changes, but her personality had been untouched, it seemed. She was still warm, loving, morbid Amber. He glanced at her almost worriedly as she shivered.

"Ienzo, I'm cold." She said softly, washed out blue eyes open once more and staring back into his own. His gaze softened as he remembered where those lines had been used before.

"Stop eating the ice cream, then." He murmured as he disentangled himself from her grasp momentarily to remove his Organization coat. Amber smiled knowingly and quoted off long unspoken lines once more.

"Why waste good ice cream? 'Sides, makes my throat feel better." She replied with a nostalgia and humor-filled smile. Zexion wrapped her in his coat and returned that same smile that spoke of a yearning for older times when things had been so much simpler.

"That better?" He asked her as Amber huddled up inside the big black coat.

"Much, thank you. It's so warm…" She looked like she was in pure bliss among the folds of black while Zexion felt practically naked without it on, the plain black t-shirt he wore under it did very little to hide his skin from the air.

"I hardly ever take it off. Should be nice and warm for you." He told her as Amber snuggled the coat while looking quite content. It was a bit big on her due to her unnatural thinness, but it looked kind of cute in an odd way.

At the sound of footsteps approaching them once more Zexion turned around to see a waiting Vexen. "Time to go, Amber." He sounded slightly sad, but the sick glee in his eyes was rather evident. Zexion's chest gave another sharp throb as Amber stepped in for another quick hug.

"Are you sure about this?" He asked her one last time and Amber's smile turned sad as she gazed up at him.

"I'm sure, Ienzo. Ah, would you mind giving this to Xehanort?" She produced an envelope like one would mail a letter in, labeled "Xehanort" in large, elegantly written letters on the front.

"When did you…?"

"During the day, after Even first approached me with the question about whether or not I would participate. I wrote one for mom and dad, then one to Xehanort because Even had to sneak me out at night. I couldn't say goodbye to them in person, so I wrote out my goodbyes for them, unlike you. I get to hug you and talk to make everything alright for a little while before I go." She leaned into him and hugged him as tightly as she could while Zexion hugged her back as tightly as he dared to as though it might stop her from walking away from Vexen. "I'm really glad I got to see you again, Ienzo. I'm happy we got to talk, you don't know how happy you made me…but I have to go now. Try not to forget me?" Zexion wanted to cry, wanted to do something that would make her stay, he didn't want to let her go. He was suddenly hit with more of the first time he'd ever seen fireworks and he wished he could reclaim that moment forever. He wanted to wake up and suddenly realize this was all just a bad dream and Amber would be waiting for him outside with flowers in her hair and a green sundress on. He wanted to be Ienzo again, young and innocent, so he could start over again, keep himself out of the mess he had fallen into. So he could be sinless. If he could have made things different he would have, just so he didn't have to watch her walk away from him. He wanted it so bad he could almost feel it…he wanted to be able to feel again so he could tell her just how much it would hurt him to lose her, so he could tell her just how sorry he was for leaving her in the first place, so he could tell her everything he thought of her, everything he was beginning to remember he felt towards her.

It was impossible, he knew, but he couldn't stop thinking about it and wishing it weren't true. There was no cleaning his stained hands, no way to reclaim what he had so carelessly lost. Not even if he would never want anything else again should that wish be granted.

"Hanabi won't let me." He whispered back, Amber's eyes widened.

"But I saw him on your bed at the castle when I…" She sounded quite surprised and he couldn't repress a satisfied smile.

"I came back for him. He still sits on my bed, just in a different bedroom. I won't ever forget the first time I saw fireworks and Hanabi is a part of that so I couldn't just leave him behind." The words sounded completely sincere and warm.

Amber gave him a gentle smile. "That's good…" She whispered in reply as she pulled away from the hug, looking to Vexen as she did. "I have to…" She spoke as though it was only a minor distraction separating them rather than what would basically be death, gesturing to Vexen.

"Go. I get it." It killed him to say it, but he couldn't change her mind. Why make her feel bad before she was no longer herself anymore? He spoke softly and Amber gave him a look of thankfulness. "Bye, I'll miss you. Won't forget you, I promise." His voice came out carrying that same soft, almost hurt tone. She took his hand gently as she moved away from him so she could squeeze it lightly before letting it slide out of her grasp and breaking her contact with him.

"Bye, Ienzo…" She breathed before turning her back to him and walking towards Vexen before turning abruptly. "Oh, your—"

"Keep it for now." He didn't even let the whole question out before answering. Amber frowned before Vexen tugged on her arm, bringing her attention forward and finally away from him.

It was the worst thing he would ever experience, watching Amber walk away with Vexen, down the path to her own ruin. When he could no longer see her, he turned away and moved to his room.

It stared with accusing eyes, the stuffed Moogle did, even though Hanabi was less alive than he was. The Moogle had somehow survived the years without earning itself much attention—as far as Zexion knew, anyway. He was just…."glad" it hadn't earned enough attention to warrant it taken away from him. Now he wondered if that was a blessing or a curse. "Don't look at me like that." He muttered at it as though in response to some unheard question. "I tried to save her, you should know that. I can't help she's so stubborn that it impedes good judgment, I really tried, Hanabi… I just couldn't save her. Trust me when I say I wish I could have…" He sounded crazy and desperate where he should not have. Just as he expected, the Moogle did not answer, but he kept talking anyway. "It was horrible, I just didn't want to let her go; not when she's the only one of us who is left complete. She's really sick again and I know she would have died because of it sooner rather than later—I could smell it on her—but at least she would be at final peace…now it will be marred by manipulation and pain. Hanabi, why did this have to happen to her of all people?" At this point, he had seated himself on the bed and taken hold of the Moogle.

"Her?" The simple, toneless question had Zexion jumping and spinning around, trying to hide the Moogle plush as he did. He eased as he recognized the massive form in the doorway.

"Amber Lyone." He replied and Lexaeus' eyes just barely show recognition.

"What about Amber? That was the girl who was always at the castle all the time?" Lexaeus put it bluntly, seemingly as emotionless as ever, yet Zexion heard the slight uncertain undertone that said something nagged at him.

"She's Vexen's newest toy now, he's going to kill her 'for the sake of science' so he can play with what's left of her! I tried to get her to back out, but she's sick again and she didn't want her life to have been meaningless or whatever idiotic human excuse she's come up with to justify it, and Vexen has her thinking it's all for Xemnas—her Xehanort—so there is no talking her out of it and now she's gone with him… Lexaeus, he's killing her for no good reason!" Zexion seemed to explode, on the verge of childlike breakdown and nearly emotional. Lexaeus' eyebrows raised fractionally, a barely hinted at expression of surprise on his face.

"Let it go." Lexaeus muttered, shaking his head. "She made her decision just like we did years ago. Zexion, we're all doomed with the consequences for actions done all those years past us. There is nothing more to be done for this situation."

"And yet here I sit, trying to come up with an idea as to how to stop her and all of the perks and consequences." Zexion muttered, Lexaeus shook his head again.

"You may want to rethink your position on this matter, Zexion. Matters of the heart are no longer matters that concern us, nor are the matters that will concern us again so soon to cause you worry. Forget the whole orde—"

"Excuse me? Ienzo?" A gentle feminine voice called from behind Lexaeus, but it's not Amber's. This voice was stronger, more confident, louder than Amber's, and as her scent hit him, Zexion flinched. She was negative, dark, and yet a certain sweetness tainted it all. Lexaeus stepped aside and turned to look at the unfamiliar girl who had spoken. Zexion's mind brought to the surface the memory of an emotion called shock.

She was taller and more healthy looking than Amber, body simply lean rather than ridiculously thin and the healthy glow was faint, but more there than it had been for Amber. She gazed at Zexion with deep gray eyes like metal or stone and though her hair was long, it wasn't as long and was more messily styled…however the most jarring feature was the fact that where it had been that familiar shade of wine red, her hair was now so darkly colored that it could have been described as being darker than black. Her body was covered in a pair of close-fitting jeans, a black tank top, what appeared to be hiking boots, and she practically clung to the long, black coat in her arms—Zexion's coat.

It was those dark yet beautiful eyes that turned to Lexaeus in surprise. "Hi, Aeleus, I didn't know you were here." She greeted him with a slight smile and received a very confused, badly faked one in return. "Anyway," She sighs and steps just into the room, hugging the coat like it held her to the world. It was odd; she was Amber and yet she was also not Amber. "I… I'm not sure what happened, but I ended up with your coat, well, at least Even said it was yours… I don't…"

"Thanks." His voice is cold and her face adopted a hurt expression as he snatched the coat away from her.

"I was unaware I angered you earlier…sorry… I do not remember what I did wrong, but I am sorry." She murmured, glancing away shyly. Much to Zexion's surprise, he almost fell to pieces.

"Oh, no, you didn't… I didn't mean to… It's nothing you did!" I'm just in a bad, ah, mood. Sorry." The empty look of surprise on Lexaeus' face kept getting more and more interesting as their conversation went on. Mood, that was a word he had not used in years, and it felt odd to be speaking it again. Zexion's did not understand why he was acting this way, nothing should have mattered now that Amber was gone and yet one of her doomed fragments held the same effect over him.

"Oh! I'm Anya, by the way." She offered abruptly, then looked perplexed for a moment. "But we know each other, why…? Whatever. Ienzo, sister is not well—she sleeps and sleeps but won't wake up, I tried shaking her shoulder, calling to her, almost everything. Would you like to visit her?" Zexion had been taking everything in stride pretty well up to that point, but '"sister" had been like a pot shot to the gut when he hadn't been expecting it. Of course there was another one; that had been part of the biggest point of the experiment, but…

He drew out the letter that Amber had given it him for Xehanort and flicked it expertly, sending it spinning through the air like some kind of crazy shuriken until it wedged itself between two books on the less than packed book case opposite from him against the other wall. He wasn't sure what he would do with it, but Zexion was quite sure it would not make it to the one it was intended to, or maybe it just might—he would decide later. "Sure, let's do that, Anya." He said, to which Anya responded with a nod and took his hand gently. For a moment his hand nearly tore itself free of her pale, long-fingered grasp before he pushed the urge back.

She lead him to Vexen's lab without hesitation, to table upon which rested the tiny, pale body of a girl in clothes too big for her—the green shirt and jeans Amber had been wearing. Her hair was chin length, but that shade of wine red he'd grown so familiar with. He supposed her eyes were the same gray as Anya's and she smelled…the best way he could put it was clean and fresh, like pure light and innocence. This was the essence of the girl he suddenly realized he had loved since their first conversation, maybe even before that… The realization was as new as the two girls before him; he'd never even realized it when he was younger, before he had lost the ability to feel. This, the little, pale, redheaded girl who lay motionless on the table who smelled like she'd never known a thing of sadness and pain, or even darkness at all, that was Amber. Of course, she also wouldn't wake up… "She recovering, for now she will remain asleep." Vexen's voice suddenly popped the quiet, peaceful little bubble that had enveloped him for a moment. As the scientist stepped forward, Anya skittered around Zexion and grabbed his arm like she was using him as a shield.

"Is that so?" Zexion asked flatly, glancing to Anya and then the girl she had called sister.

"It is," Vexen replied coldly, Zexion glared back while Anya continued to cling to his arm.

"What are you afraid of, Anya? It's just Even." He murmured, Anya shook her head.

"I don't like him. He's far more pushy than I remember." She whispered back sharply, and Zexion shifted his arm out of her grasp to put it around her almost protectively.

"It's okay, I won't let him hurt wither of you, I promise." He wouldn't let either of them walk away like Amber had, no, he would protect them until he could no longer. Zexion would hold onto what pieces of her that he had left, even if they were no longer completely her. "Even, would you mind leaving us for awhile?" He could no longer stand to have Vexen hanging over him or the girls, particularly the girls. Vexen glared at him, yet turned back to the door and started walking away.

"Of course not," floated back to them and Anya slowly eased her grip on Zexion's arm. When Vexen finally disappeared from sight, she let go with a huge sigh of relief.

"It's okay, sister, Ienzo will protect us! Even won't hurt you, Ienzo promised." Anya murmured, leaning down close to the little body sleeping on the table. Gently, ever so gently, as though she thought she might break the little girl, one of her pale hands reached out and stroked the girl's arm. "You can wake up now, you know? You can recover here with us." She breathed, sounding almost pleading while Zexion stood back and gazed intently at the girl's angelic face. Suddenly Anya turned around to meet his eyes. "You can touch her too, Ienzo. Come on." There was more than the gentle offering there; her voice was projecting a plea to him now. It was as though she thought he could fix it all, and he knew he couldn't. In fact, he probably should never have laid eyes on her, should have run away from them then, yet he found himself stepping towards her. Anya moved aside with a soft "go on, tell her it's okay."

It's not okay, though… Zexion thought as he came to stand beside the girl's body. Slowly, uncertainly, Zexion reached out to run his fingers through her hair. You don't need to wake up. I can't always stop Vexen, and he wants to hurt you, little one. "I won't let Even hurt you. It's okay, you can wake if you wish…" I don't want you or Anya to get hurt. You're both the remnants of the girl I loved, and I couldn't protect her, but I will protect you. So just keep on sleeping for now. Don't worry about it, though, because I'll just be "happy" you're okay, you don't need to be caught in this mess anyway…

Zexion was startled when she moved. He had moved his hand to rest lightly on her cheek, Anya gasped as the girl tilted her cheek into his palm, mumbling and reaching out a hand towards him. "Ienzo, sorry…" She mumbled before settling down again. Her tiny hand fell short of him and did not move again, though both he and Anya waited.

"What's she sorry for? Anya finally asked, eyes never moving from that little body. To Zexion, it was the final, ultimate punch in a series of them. For a moment he couldn't think past the possibility that it was Amber speaking to him for one last time, but before he can get enough sense together to lie to Anya about it, he is frozen by a familiar voice filling his head.

I had to fight to tell you this, keeping myself in her was difficult because she is no longer me, but I couldn't say what I really wanted to before. I love you, Ienzo, will love you forever…but I knew I couldn't be with you forever, not like this. I'm so sorry I had to make a choice like this, and I know it's unfair, but I couldn't let you watch me die like before and Even said he needed me, so I gave my rapidly fading life to save the life of the friend that saved mine once before… I'll love you forever, but I owed him my life. But don't you worry; we'll see each other again! I'll be waiting for you at the end with a big hug and a smile—I'll be the girl with the long red hair, so don't you miss me!

That voice was Amber's and what she had to say had floored him. "…Ienzo?" He jumped at the sound of Anya's voice.

"I have no idea what she was talking about. Come on, let's let her rest." Zexion's words sounded shaky as he turned away from the girl who seemed to be the essence of Amber, the girl whom he doubted had any conceivable idea of the cold world that awaited her if she woke. Without looking back to see if Anya was following, he began to walk away. You are not her, but neither is Anya. He thought back to the sleeping girl, eyes closing for a moment. But that doesn't matter anymore. You are what is left of her, and I will do all in my power to keep you safe; but I cannot promise anything… Vexen doesn't want to hurt Anya as much as you, so stay asleep. I'll stay with you from time to time, little one, but don't worry. You don't need to become acquainted with this painful, harsh world, it would hurt your innocence, ruin your lovely light. Don't open your eyes, stay in the world of dreams, stay clean, stay innocent,

Zexion paused for a moment to make and ironic thought and chuckled to himself as he opened his eyes.

Stay sinless.

It never occurred to him to think she might never have a choice until Anya figured out what was going on. He never said a word to her, but Vexen gave it away bit by bit. To Zexion, it felt as though once day she was there, sleeping as always while he and Anya stood beside her, and the next both she and Anya were gone. It only took one look at Vexen to figure out what happened—they weren't coming back, he had failed to protect them just like he had failed to protect Amber. Something in him almost wanted to feel hate towards Vexen, but the scientist didn't live much longer beyond that. Lexaeus followed not too long after, and then he went in their footsteps as well. Part of him didn't want to go, but that was instinct, at the same time he didn't feel too upset about it.

He'd get to see Amber again, after all.