INDOMITABLE

Warmth

Naminé's soft footsteps echoed throughout the empty hallways the laboratory. Her legs ached, a full day of running around exploring Destiny Islands draining everything she had.

Not that she could complain. The scientific breakthrough of the Replica Program had given her another chance in life. Without it, she would have spent eternity in the Final World. Without it, she would have never been able to see. To hear. To touch. To feel.

To be given life by those who wanted to take it away. A twist of fate, she concluded.

A screen flickered in the distance. Her eyebrows furrowed in curiosity, slowly making her way to the source.

She found Ienzo sprawled on his desk in a peaceful slumber. Peeking around his shoulder, she let out a small laugh. Pages and pages of equations were scattered over his desk, pen still in his hands.

"Welcome back, Naminé," a deep voice called behind her.

"Good evening Ansem," she greeted the man at the entrance.

"Tea?" He asked, making his way to the back of the room.

She nodded in response, walking towards him. Marred as their relationship was, the man in front of her was no longer the same person from back then. She could tell from his eyes, softening whenever he looks at her.

"Now, Miss Naminé," he started, placing a cup of tea in front of her, "how is the Replica?"

She stared at her hand, slowly closing her fist, feeling every tendon contract and release. "I felt sand for the first time in my life. I only knew what it was like from Kairi's memories but to hold it…"

"You have little Ienzo to thank for that," Ansem replied. His eyes drifted to the young researcher passed out at the desk. "He took liberty in furthering the research in your Replica's somatosensory system. Simply unbelievable work, I tell you."

"Soma-to-sensory?"

Ansem's fingertips grazed upon the smooth table. "The sense of touch, embedded within our skin. Please, place your hands on your drink."

She raised an eyebrow at his request, placing her hands on the cup of tea. The warmth felt comforting to her cold hands. "I didn't know my hands were this cold."

"That may be due to a lower blood pressure. In which case, we will test it first thing tomorrow," he commented. "But do you feel the warmth?"

Naminé nodded, taking a sip of the tea.

"That is also due to the somatosensory system. The incomplete Replicas before had a prototype system, only feeling rough estimates of what a real person could feel. But Ienzo was not satisfied," Ansem explained.

He stood up and walked over to the sleeping man. Naminé noticed his eyes softening, a fatherly look on his face. She couldn't help but smile.

He picked up a piece of paper lying on the floor and placed it beside Ienzo's head. "Even now, he works til the dead of night, finding the right geometry for neurons, researching the appropriate materials, and so much more."

"Why would he do all this?" she blurted out. Her hands reached up to her lips, unsure if what she asked was appropriate.

Instead, Ansem lightly chuckled.

"Do you know why Even started the Replica Program?" he asked.

She placed a finger on her chin, recalling the events that had transpired. "I thought it was to create Xion in case Roxas failed?"

Ansem shook his head. "Vexen was responsible for that, but not Even. Although it only bore fruit when Xion came to be, the foundations had been laid years prior," he corrected her. Sitting down, he took a sip of his tea before continuing.

"Ienzo lost his parents at a young age."

Naminé's eyes cast downward. She never really knew anything about him other than his time as a Nobody during Castle Oblivion.

"When he came under our care, he was a shell of a child. Empty eyes, innocence robbed too early."

Naminé looked towards the young researcher still asleep. He certainly was not like that anymore thankfully.

"We would soon find out that he was a brilliant child, finding solace and comfort in front of books. His stacks of books were piled higher than I was, I tell you! Everyone in our little family came to love him, but we knew it was not the case in his side. I still remember the days where Dilan and Aeleus would create such elaborate plans to bring out a smile in him but the only thing that would make him smile was to hold onto my hand for hours on end." Ansem laughed quietly, nostalgia flowing through him as he recalled the past.

"What happened next?" she asked, curiosity building up.

"As we learned more about the nature of hearts, it was then Even who had a suggestion. We hypothesized that the hearts of those who had left us still lingered, still capable of occupying another appropriate physical body. We would create a new body for hearts, his parent's hearts. The proposed idea was incredibly far-fetched, if I was to be honest, but every person in the team was fully on board. Ienzo grew excited at our new venture, throwing himself to every opportunity possible to further our research. Preliminary experiments were done but… "

"Xehanort," Naminé finished, a bitter feeling in her stomach.

Ansem let out a tired sigh. "Correct. Inhumane experiments were conducted without my consent at the same time. A noble goal became an obsession."

Ienzo's soft snoring filled the room as the two finished their cup of tea in comfortable silence. Taking both his and Naminé's cup, he walked towards the same counter had made the tea and started pouring another cup.

"Now, why, you ask?" Putting down the new cup of tea in front of Naminé, he beckoned at it. "This warmth that you feel. Comforting, isn't it?"

She took a sip, feeling her shoulders relax. She hold onto the cup for a while longer, keeping it close to her chest. "It's very comforting."

Ansem beamed in delight at her words. "Then our little Ienzo's wishes have been fulfilled!" he exclaimed.

Ienzo suddenly stirred in his sleep at Ansem's loud voice. The two shared a small laugh as they quieted down to let the researcher sleep some more.

"His exact words were 'I want them to feel what I lost when I was younger. The warmth, the comfort, the love that you all showed me.' With your words, I believe he had done what he had set out to do."

"I owe you all my life," Naminé spoke, her eyes locked onto Ansem's.

Instead, he shook his head and laid his hands onto hers. "Nay, dear Naminé. It is us who owe all of you. We were calloused and driven by sheer madness to find new discoveries. Everyone in this laboratory, even I, seeks atonement for what had happened. Selfish it may be, but you are the living proof of our atonement. Live your life, experience everything you ever wanted to do, let emotions course through your veins. Live."

Ansem's eyes teared up, dripping onto the table. Naminé stood up and wrapped her arms around him, tears of her own starting to form.

"Naminé…?" Ienzo groggily awoke from his sleep, yawning and rubbing his eyes in confusion. He cursed inwardly to himself, having falling asleep calculating again.

"Ienzo!" he heard her yell as a blur of white and blonde crashed onto him, sending him sprawling onto the floor.

Ansem looked on with a satisfied look, clearing away the tears. Suddenly, the door behind him opened and a yawning Even walked in.

"Ah, Even. You're awake," he greeted him, already getting up to brew more tea.

"I am now after all that commotion," the cranky researcher replied, rolling his eyes at Ienzo and Naminé. But the smile on his lips said otherwise. "Master, have I ever told you that these two look like siblings?"

Ansem let out a laugh, waking up the entire laboratory.

"I was just thinking the same thing."

Although this chapter is about Ienzo, it really is more about the entire Radiant Garden Research Team. After the cutscene in Kingdom Hearts III where Naminé wakes up, I always imagined the researchers collapsing in exhaustion with a smile on their faces. Enjoy!