Demyx, he'd learned, was not nearly as ditsy or slow-minded as people liked to think. The boy was quite bright, and was in-fact, quick to catch on. He simply did not enjoy fighting. So of course it would make sense that his powers would take a span to manifest. And once they did...oh, was it a surprise.
But with the subject of their abilities...Luxord couldn't help but give a quiet chuckle. On a skewed plane, they were sky and sea. It was almost cute. Almost.
But it seemed the only 'flighty' part left of Luxord wanted nothing to do with him--avoided him outright, in word and in presence.
"Demy..."
The musician in his arms nuzzled against Luxord's chest, wearing a sleepy, lop-sided grin. He gave soft yawn and a noncommittal 'hm?'.
Demyx was nothing short of adorable. He didn't have Luxord's wit, Axel's cunning or Xigbar's fighting skill--but he was more than competent in what he did, and during such, he was adorable--more than enough to drop a Heartless thrice his size, from sugar-shock.
"Dem--" Luxord rubbed the other's back, fingertips gently tickling down his spine, until Demyx finally cracked an eye open, giving Luxord guarantee that he was listening...more or less. "--do you remember how I told you that I was from Port Royal?"
"Mm hmm..." Demyx yawned and stretched, curling himself back up again at Luxord's side. "You were in the Navy or something...fighting pirates, right?"
"Well yes, about that--"
"Mm?" Demyx grinned sleepily, strands of soft blond hair falling down over his face.
"I lied."
- - -
He'd stared the Captain down, both frozen in their steps, trying to figure out what to make of the other. And when the Captain spoke up again, the threat hanging over Luxord remained. "I said; git offa my property."
Luxord remembered that he'd once owned that determined glare--the look of a man defending that which was his.
"Three..."
It simply couldn't be over something so simple as being caught on the man's land.
"Two..."
The man was obviously hiding something--he had no other reason to act so protectively. But what was it?
"Breakfast!"
Now...that definitely was not the voice of Cid Highwind.
"Come on back in boys!" It was Shera--thank the gods. "Luxord! Come on now!" She shouted to the impostor Highwind, leaning out the kitchen window, trying to wave the two back inside. "Stand out there barefoot, and you'll catch cold!"
Cid threw the Nobody the nastiest glare he had--a venomous promise that told Luxord he'd only yet seen the tip of the iceberg. But as breakfast was breakfast, and Shera was Shera--neither being smart things to ignore, Cid shouldered his spear, heading back to the house, leaving Luxord in his wake.
And breakfast, while not awkward...was, to say the least, strained.
With dishes out and food stuffs distributed, Cid sat flanked by Shera and a newcomer--one Luxord only vaguely remembered. This man, with his pale skin and long sleeves, ate quietly, only speaking up to reply to Shera--usually voicing an opinion that only further served to demean Cid in some way. It was playful the way they treated their captain--like the manner a parent would tease their child in front of friends. But despite this, both men were still on edge, even if the pale one didn't openly show it, as Cid did.
"You never told me you had family about." Shera noted offhandedly, sipping her orange juice.
"Of course not." the pale one replied, tucking a strand of jet black hair behind an ear. "Cid scared them all off."
Cid responded with an angry grunt, jabbing his fork into his pile of pancakes (--the pile very much resembling Luxord's, both sharing nearly identical amounts of butter and syrup atop them).
Luxord, never one to play around with his food, made quick work of his scrambled eggs. The other three conversed well enough on their own, which gave Luxord more than enough time to give the pale one a look-over. The man's voice echoed in his memories--but also did much more recently. Luxord recalled it from the night previous--from waking in the middle of the night, hearing Cid stumble in with him.
Vinnie...had he called the other? Vinnie...short for...?
Of course.
The man with the red cloak, the silver gun glinting in the light, and blood red eyes narrowed with the focus of a man trained to kill.
Vincent Valentine; Ex-Turk, dead man walking, Chaos' human vessel, and the lover of Cid Highwind. Of course...
With what all had struck Luxord so suddenly earlier in the yard, it had misted back over quite quickly... But this man sitting next to him... if Luxord truly used to be a part of Captain Highwind...did that mean that once upon a time...Vincent Valentine was his?
He would have scoffed, were his mouth not so full of pancakes.
So instead, he coughed, tapping his chest with a closed fist. As Shera voiced her concern, passing Luxord's cup of tea closer to him, and as Cid thoroughly ignored him, Vincent glanced over, tapping finger idly against the table. Luxord found the moment for feeling rather puzzled after he'd downed his tea, washing down the pancakes. The tapping--he'd noted, he'd seen the action, but had heard nothing. He caught the answer as some pepper as passed to Vincent, who received it with his left hand.
Ah...no claw this morning, only black gloves. (As the aforementioned 'claw' was not allowed at the breakfast table, a rule set by both Captain and live-in.)
"Yeah--" Luxord obviously hadn't been listening, as Cid had already pushed in his chair, taking his dishes to the sink. "--well Vinnie and I gotta get outta here, a'right? Got important business to take care of."
Shera gave him an imploring look, standing as well, with her chair bumping back behind her. "Cid--but your brother--"
"--can wait, Shera. It's important business." He stressed 'important', and she sunk back into her chair, holding back her arguments. "How many should I cook for tonight, then?" Cid couldn't cook to save his life, and Vincent wasn't far behind.
"Two." Cid replied, tugging a pair of gloves from his back pants pocket, Vincent up from the table as well, heading out of the kitchen (and presumably towards the bedroom, as Luxord remembered the sounds of the man's retreating footsteps from the night past).
"One." Luxord corrected, pushing his plate in. "As fate would have it, I've places to be as well. A few days at most--I'd never leave such a darling woman behind."
Cid rolled his eyes and gave a snort, pulling out a jacket from the hall closet, tying it around his waist by the sleeves. Luxord pressed on.
"But it has been a lovely time, Miss Shera--and I do hope my brother will be in better spirits next I drop in."
After that, nothing was left of Cid and Vincent, but a wisp or red coat and the sound of the screen door slamming behind them.
- - -
"Are you going to tell Xemnas?" Demyx asked, head-tilted ever-so-slightly, curled up in he warm blankets, watching Luxord intently for an answer. "--about, you know...the guy?"
"You really think I want to become a part of some twisted science experiment?" he said, giving a harsh chuckle. "If the Superior knew about Captain Highwind, he and I would be toted back to Vexen's lab, faster than you could say 'Heartless'."
Demyx gave a slight pout, nuzzling back into his pillows. "That's no good. Guess you'd better not then."
It almost sounded sentimental.
"Demyx..."
"Mm?"
Turned on his side, propped up by an elbow, Luxord gave the younger a good hard stare--the sort reserved for the kinds of deep, meaningful conversations that none of the Nobodies ever had--simply for lack of emotional depth. "Were I to...let's say, find myself in a do-or-die situation, and obviously could not perform to standard...where you there with me, would you stay at my side against odds, or leave?"
Demyx shifted, looking slightly uncomfortable. "I'd leave I guess."
Luxord nodded, having received the answer he expected. "No trouble, love--just asking." He kissed Demyx's forehead, welcoming the incoming snuggle from the other blond.
Since leaving, something had been grating at Luxord, and grating rather roughly at that.
Cid Highwind had everything. The man had his life, his love, his travels, his -tea-...the bastard had all he could ever hope for.
He had all that Luxord -didn't-.
And while Nobodies were not supposed to feel emotion, Luxord swore up and down he felt jealousy licking at him, like a fire set under him.
He wanted it all... he wanted to be whole.
And then he reasoned, why stay on for Xemnas' play-project, when his own heart sat so close? Luxord's other half was alive and well--something that none of the others could boast!
Why, he could leave, and before another would think odd of it, he'd be whole again! Why--? Why couldn't he?
Curled up in his arms, Demyx let a content sigh, nuzzling against Luxord's chest. "You can stay until morning, right, Luxord? You're not going to leave?"
Luxord chuckled softly, mussing Demyx's already messy hair. "Not tonight, love. Not tonight."
After all, he'd promised the lovely live-in a few days... He'd leave this place all right, but not yet. And before them...he had...a little bit of researching to attend to.