no•bod•y

-pronoun

no person; not anyone; no one: Nobody answered, so I hung up.

-noun

a person of no importance, influence, or power.

"-me go! Let me go!"

Saïx turned his golden eyes to the disturbance that had invaded the silence of his room. Xigbar was there, holding a struggling Naminé by the arm. Her efforts to free herself were utterly useless; like a butterfly frantically beating its wings against a human's grip.

"Be quiet, witch!" Xigbar snarled, jerking her arm.

"Whatever it is that you want from me, I won't do it!" Naminé cried. "You can't make me-"

Saïx walked over and gave Naminé a hard smack. The girl stilled instantly, her face turned to the side. An angry red welt slowly started to rise on her fair skin. Xigbar let her go, and her arm dropped limply to the side.

"S-Saïx!" she choked out. She had been so determined to free herself from Xigbar's clutches that she hadn't even noticed where he was taking her. Out of all the members of the Organization, Saïx had always frightened her the most. His cold exterior only barely concealed the psychotic side underneath. He was merciless, as well as wholly dedicated to the Organization- a combination that made him very dangerous.

"I'm glad to see that you remember me, Naminé." Saïx said smoothly. Naminé stared at the floor and trembled.

"Now then," he idly stroked a lock of her flaxen hair. "Did I just hear you say that you weren't going to help us out?"

"What do you want?" her voice was quivering.

"Come, Naminé. I would think it's obvious. Why do you think we would go out of our way to bring you here? The Superior wants Sora to be on our side."

This surprised Naminé enough that she looked up, her eyes wide.

"That will never work! Do you really think I'm going to- AH!" she winced as Saïx grabbed a handful of her hair.

"I don't know what gave you the impression that you had a choice." He said coldly. "Whatever it was, I'm sure we can remedy it."

Naminé had tears of pain in her eyes.

"I- won't- hurt Sora." She said. "You can kill me if you want to. I won't do it." She cried out again as Saïx pulled harder.

Xigbar crossed his arms. "Your life isn't the only one at stake, witch." he said. "We thought that you might be reluctant to help us. That is why we took him, too. Your precious Sora is here."

Naminé stopped struggling. "He's here? But-!"

"Yes," Saïx said, pushing her at Xigbar. "And you'll be kept with him. You see, we are not unreasonable. No harm will come to you or to Sora as long as you cooperate." His eyes flashed with malicious amusement as Naminé stumbled and nearly fell from his push. He was satisfied with the fear in her gaze- soon, he was sure, she would be under their thumb. "If you have any other concerns, you can take them up with the Superior whenever he decides to meet with you. In the meantime, you will be provided with a cell to stay in."

Xigbar took that as a cue and summoned a dark portal. He tugged Naminé along with him and the pair vanished.

Saïx stood still for a moment before turning back to his contemplation as if nothing had interrupted him. So far, things were going according to plan. He was confident in Xemnas' ability to make this work- still, he wondered. How they could possibly hinge all their hopes on Naminé, when she was prone to these foolish outbursts of stubbornness? Bringing Sora into their very stronghold, as well, was a dangerous risk, and his heart had already proved stronger than any attempt to bend him against his will. To make the organization appear 'good in his eyes' as Xemnas had said would surely require heavy reliance upon Naminé's powers. Perhaps all they would have to do was find a way to wash away all the confidence that Naminé had managed to build up this past year. Sora's will was strong, but Naminé's was weak. Break her, and they could break him.

Saïx looked out of the window to the heart-shaped moon hanging in the sky.

"Soon." He said softly.

Roxas was aware of a soft, constant hum. He opened his eyes to stare at a brightly-colored and slightly springy floor. Cautiously he sat up, a rushing feeling invading his brain and clouding his vision with points of light before fading into a vague throb. He stood shakily, swaying slightly as the floor underneath threatened to pitch him forward. This place was unfamiliar, and he had a hard time grasping just what was going on.

"Are you okay?" that same strangely high-pitched voice from before…

Roxas looked down to see an oversized mouse looking up at him in concern. His hood was now thrown back.

"I…I think so…" Roxas said, puzzled. "What…happened?" suspicion sharpened his features as he realized that the mouse was wearing the same coat as the Organization. "Who are you?"

The mouse's face sank into a frown. "Golly, I woulda thought you'd have remembered by now."

Roxas looked momentarily pained as a flurry of images flashed through his mind. Undoubtedly, the voice was familiar…

Now, Sora! Let's close this door for good!

"King…Mickey?" confused, Roxas put a hand on the soft wall. His mind was working through the tangled mess of memories. He was pretty sure that Mickey wasn't with the Organization…but then, why was he wearing that coat? Wasn't he one of the good guys? But wait! Didn't that mean he was here to help out Sora?

Roxas' eyes lit up with realization. He turned around, only to find his way blocked by the cloaked man from before.

"Where do you think you're going?" he intoned in his deep voice, uncrossing his arms as if to prepare for a struggle. "We're on a Gummi ship. There's nowhere to run."

Roxas glanced around and saw that the man was right. Space whizzed by on a large viewscreen. Though Roxas did not think that he'd ever been on a Gummi ship before, there was no mistaking it.

"You've been helping that bandaged man." Roxas said uncertainly. The man snorted and walked past Roxas with a dismissive air, sitting down at the Gummi's controls without answering.

"Roxas." Mickey said. Roxas removed his glare from the hooded man to look (only slightly less fiercely) at the mouse king. "I know you don't really know what's going on, but you're just gonna have to trust us for right now if you don't want Organization XIII to find you again."

"You only want to save me from them so that you can rejoin me with Sora." Roxas said coldly.

Mickey frowned. "I dunno." He said carefully. "But I do know that I want what's best for both Sora and the worlds. And as long as the Organization has Sora prisoner, I know that the best thing is to keep the two of you far, far apart."

"So... they do have Sora?" Roxas said. "Tell me what's going on. I know he had to be one of the ones keeping me locked up in that computer program." he gestured at the guy in the hood. "Don't pretend. I know everything."

Mickey looked very worried. "I'm sorry we helped keep you there, but DiZ thought it would probably be the most humane way-"

"You don't know anywhere close to everything." the hooded man interrupted darkly from his post.

"Roxas, we didn't rescue you just because of our own interests. Since it is because of us that you were in that place, it's our responsibility if anything happens to you. I just know the Organization would have killed you." Mickey pleaded.

Roxas' stance became a little less tense. He seemed to think for a moment, before speaking in a guarded tone, "Where are we going?"

"To my world." Mickey said. "The Organization isn't familiar with it as far as I know, and we have powerful protection at my castle. We should be safe there while we regroup. Please rest for now. I promise- we won't let them find you. It'll be awhile, so make yourself comfortable. There are a few rooms that you can rest in."

Roxas doubted that he'd ever feel completely comfortable in this situation, especially if that mysterious hooded man kept hanging around. But he did want to be alone to think for awhile. Maybe he could figure a way out of this mess. Roxas nodded and left without another word.

Mickey watched him leave before going to sit at the controls beside Riku.

"Was it really a good idea to tell him that?" Riku asked.

"Hrm?"

"Knowing that he's safe from Sora as long as he's in the Organization's clutches may make Roxas even less motivated to help us find him."

"It just doesn't feel right, Riku." Mickey crossed his arms and sighed. "It's such an awful choice to hafta make. We don't know what could happen to Sora if they stay separate for too long. But basically taking Roxas' life away... hrm. This is why I've stayed out of it until now." He shook his head regretfully. "I've no doubt that he could be the biggest help to us if he could be persuaded to. The connection he has with Sora, and his past with the Organization…but that won't happen." He broke off suddenly, staring out into space.

"What?"

"You know…" Mickey said sadly, "Nobodies depend on their memories to guide them because they don't have a heart to follow. And everything that Roxas remembers is being used by someone or another. That's all his life ever was. Maybe... by showing him we're not like that... he could trust us."

"That's kind of a weak hope if you ask me, but whatever." Riku said. He was silent for a moment. "You know, I watched him a lot. Sometimes I really think he cared about those friends of his."

"Yep…" Mickey said quietly.

Roxas wandered around his room, poking around every bit of it with a mixture of restlessness and boredom. The entire room was decked out with black and white in perfect contrast. The walls, the floor, and the ceiling were white and polished like Naminé's room back at the mansion. There was a furry black rug on the floor, a modern-looking black dresser, and a black beanbag chair in the corner. Here and there were a few red touches as well, like red pillows on the black-and-white checkered bed, or the little red fish swimming in a fish bowl on his desk. His favorite shape- the star- was employed everywhere from the handles on the dresser to the pattern on the lampshade.

The moment he'd seen this room, he had no doubt that it was meant to be his. The question was why, and how.

Roxas opened his closet and frowned when all he found there were black shirts, pants, heavy boots, and ominous black Organization coats. He lifted the sleeve of one and ran his thumb over it absently, and something seemed to flicker in his memory. He shook his head to dispel the feeling. Best to focus on wrapping his mind around everything that had happened, and was still happening here.

Who was that man? Why was he working for DiZ? So far it didn't look as if they were taking him back to DiZ… but he was sketchy. Who's to say he couldn't be working separately from Mickey?

Well, no matter what happened, one thing was for sure. He was finally free- at least the most free he'd ever been since the day he was born.

And he wasn't completely convinced the Organization was after him just to kill him. He had a feeling what they really wanted was to use the side of Light's plan right back at it. To that end... it was probably for the best that he hide for awhile until he figured out what to do.

Roxas quietly closed the closet door. So many things to think about. The question was, what was the right action to take- and which was the right side to trust?

Naminé hugged her knees tightly, looking hopelessly around at the cell she'd been placed in. from her vantage point, curled up in the corner, she couldn't see any way to escape from here. The cell was pure white, solid on three sides, and a wall of slender white bars on the other. The bars were permanently attached to the ceiling and floor- undoubtedly, the only way in and out was by way of a dark portal. Naminé berated herself for never learning how to summon them while she was working for DiZ…the Organization had always prevented her from trying. She had been looking forward to finishing Sora's restoration so she could be free to pursue things for herself…traveling to the worlds. Maybe even find out something that could help Sora's mission…not to mention she'd always wanted to meet Kairi. But now, it seemed that all of that had come to a crashing halt.

Naminé raised her eyes to the surprisingly cushy-looking bed in the opposite corner. Just as Saïx had promised, Sora was here with her. He slept peacefully on the immaculate white sheets. Even his clothes had been changed to match the room- he wore a plain white T-shirt with baggy white shorts. She knew that whatever reason the Organization had for keeping them together, it could not be anything good.

"It may have started with a lie, but I'm really glad I met you, Sora."

Naminé sighed. She could only imagine what sort of things Xemnas wanted to do with her powers at his disposal. How could she escape this? She could refuse…but Sora wouldn't want her to do that if it meant the Organization would hurt her.

Naminé shook her head. What was she thinking? Sora didn't even know her anymore.

But all the same, after a year's worth of work, it just wasn't fair for her to have to mess everything up again. And aside from that admittedly selfish view, it wasn't only Naminé and Sora's safety at stake- lots of other people needed the Keybearer too. If there was anything she could do to stop it, anything…

"Yo."

Naminé jumped and turned her head to see Xigbar smirking at her through the bars.

"Sorry to interrupt your ogling of the Keybearer, memory witch," He said, his one visible eye twinkling maliciously. "But you've been given orders from the Superior." He reached through the bars and laid a brand new sketchbook on the desk that set on the opposite side of the cell from where she was sitting.

"Orders?" Naminé asked nervously.

"Yeah. The first thing he wants is for you to wipe out the boy's memory."

This was exactly what she'd feared. Naminé jumped to her feet. "I told you before that I won't do it! And besides, I can't just erase everything at once! It would crush his heart."

"Quit being so dramatic." Xigbar said lazily. "You keep acting like we haven't got the faintest idea how your powers work. Of course you can't eliminate everything at once- or even fully eliminate at all. But while he is in that deep slumber, the manipulation of his memories is a less dangerous thing. He went to sleep not remembering, and if he wakes up not remembering, the separate knowledge of his heart and his conscious mind won't come into conflict at all. You have a week to do it. That should be enough time."

Naminé was silent for a moment. Undoubtedly, Xemnas was proving to be much smarter than Marluxia.

"Still, it isn't good to mess around with his memories so much," Naminé protested feebly. "If I take away his real memories again and replace them with something formulated by the Organization, it could permanently damage his memory. It could even drive him insane. Fake memories are much harder for the heart to accept. Not to mention that it would take a long time to rewrite a new history for him- as long as it took to put his real memories back in the first place. Maybe even longer!"

Xigbar shrugged. "Like Number VII said, you'll just have to take that up with the Superior when he meets with you. I don't know his exact plans. But I can say," he gave a thin smile, "that you should give up any hopes that you'll be able to find a way out of it. When he found out that a plot to take over the Organization had happened right under his nose, he made sure that he understood everything behind it, and that includes the things you're capable of most of all. He has always been a scientist first, you know." Xigbar glanced over to where Sora was sleeping, blissfully unaware of where he was or what the people around him were discussing. He gave Naminé a smirk and walked off, his footsteps echoing down the long white hallway.

Naminé listened to his steps for a moment, taking deep breaths in an attempt to calm herself. She clenched and unclenched her shaking fists. Naminé went over to the desk and picked the sketchbook up, flipping the blank pages. It was different from the one she was used to; it was thicker, bound by a vertical spiral, like a notebook. The cover was oddly cute- blue with a cheery-looking yellow flower on the front. She couldn't think of a single member of the Organization who would get her such a thing- except perhaps Marluxia, but he was dead. She pulled open a few drawers on the desk, and, as she had expected, she found numerous boxes of crayons and pencils in there. She slowly closed the drawers and looked at Sora. She was sure, now, the reason why they'd decided to lock them up together. How could she possibly do this?

How could she possibly not?

"No! Not goodbye! I'll find you after I wake up. And we'll be friends for real. Promise me, Naminé."

"You'll only forget."

"I won't. Even if you take apart the chain of memories in my heart, the links will stay there. This memory will always be inside me somewhere."

"…I guess you're right. Let's promise, then."

Naminé closed her eyes, trying, and failing, to keep the memory at arms-length. If she went through with what the Organization wanted, that particular memory would haunt her forever.

"I'll see you again, Naminé."

"Sora…the loose links will sink into the darkness in your heart. You won't be able to just reach in and pick the one you want. But there's another promise you made- a promise to someone you can't replace. She's your light. The light within the darkness. If you can remember her…all the memories lost in the shadows of your heart will come into light."

Naminé's deep blue eyes widened suddenly. Then an excited grin came to her face. Why hadn't she seen it before? There was a perfect way to ensure that Sora could never become twisted around by Organization XIII, and, if she was right, it would be virtually undetectable by them. Some of Naminé's fear abated. The light within the darkness…she had a plan.

For those who are wondering, yes, Sora will eventually be in the fanfiction. There's just not a lot I can do with him right now since he's asleep. But you can bet that I've got a few things planned for when he wakes up^^.