Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts (although that would be pretty cool!).
"Why do I have to carry this trunk onto the ship?" Creeper whined to Zexion as they walked towards their ship.
Zexion sighed. "If you really want to be my henchman, then you have to do henchman duties. And henchmen carry things for their master. That's just how it goes."
"Why?"
"I…don't know. That's just how it is. Now come on."
"And why didn't you just bring a suitcase?" Creeper asked, mercifully changing the subject.
"The chances of us finding humans in the Deep Jungle are very slim, but there are indeed some present. On the off chance that we do run into some, it is crucial that we fit in. And these people are not as technologically advanced as our society. They're about one hundred years behind or so, hence why I have brought a trunk instead of a suitcase," explained The Cloaked Schemer.
"Do you always talk this much?"
Zexion facepalmed in disgust. Looking up, he saw that Larxene was coming towards the pair, armed with two suitcases. "Load these, Creeper," she said with an air of indifference.
"Larxene, didn't you get my message last night about the need for trunks?" Zexion asked.
"Yup. Didn't like the idea, so I ignored it." She then continued walking and boarded the ship.
"See, she brought s-" Creeper began.
"Silence. Just get these all loaded," Zexion interrupted. He walked on the ship shaking his head in disappointment.
The trip to the Deep Jungle passed without any problems, and soon the ship had landed on a large clearing. The lesser Nobodies had begun unloading their building materials, as there was no time to waste. A smaller crew was putting up a series of large tents that would serve as home for everyone. Zexion and Larxene got their own tents, of course.
When his was set up, Zexion went into his tent to change. The Deep Jungle was, as its name suggested, a jungle planet, so the climate was very warm and humid. Long black coats would definitely not be ideal for this planet. Zexion exited his tent wearing what can only be described as the stereotypical jungle explorer outfit, complete with pith helmet.
Larxene saw him and immediately started laughing at him. "What are you wearing? You look ridiculous!" she shrieked.
"Since we are in a jungle environment, I decided that my outfit should reflect the environment. If this is what people wear in the jungle, then that's what I'll wear."
"Yeah, but you look like a complete moron."
"What, then, do you plan on wearing? You'll die of heatstroke in that black coat," he pointed out.
"Then I guess I'll have to take it off." She smirked and took off her coat, much to Zexion's surprise. She was now dressed in a black sports bra and booty shorts, and retained her long Organization boots and gloves. "You shouldn't stare," she finally said and then chuckled at him. She threw her coat at Zexion and walked off into her tent.
Zexion stood gaping, staring at where Larxene was when Creeper came up to him. "Um, sir?" he asked. Upon getting no response, he called more forcefully, "Sir?" Frustrated at Zexion's lack of response, he hit Zexion in the stomach.
"What was that for?" he seethed, his trance now broken.
Creeper rolled his eyes. "I literally called for you twice. Lexaeus is calling, wanting a status report."
"Yes, of course." The pair headed to the spaceship, where they found Lexaeus on the big screen.
"Zexion, glad to see you made it. No problems?" The Taciturn Stalwart asked.
"Everything's been good so far. The trip was fine and our landing spot was cleared like you said, so no problems," Zexion told Lexaeus.
"Excellent. I won't hold you any longer; I have to check in on some of the others. Good luck with the mission and don't do anything stupid."
"Me? Do something stupid? Unlikely."
"Very well, Romeo. Lexaeus out." The screen then went blank, leaving Zexion unable to get in a comeback.
"Romeo? I thought your name was Zexion?" a confused Creeper remarked.
Zexion sighed. "It is. Go make sure that construction begins immediately, I want work in before the sun sets." Creeper nodded and ran off to "supervise" the construction to the best of his (limited) ability. Zexion strode off the ship and found Larxene waiting for him.
"Someone called?" she inquired.
"It was Lexaeus, wanting to make sure that we got in okay."
"Got ya. I'm bored, let's go exploring," she suggested while picking at a nail.
"Exploring? For what, exactly?" Zexion asked.
"I don't know, anything! If we're going to be on this hellhole for several weeks and have nothing to do, I'm going to go crazy!" she exclaimed while making exasperated hand gestures.
Not wanting to find out what self-described "crazy" Larxene was in contrast to regular Larxene, Zexion decided some exploring would be in order. "Very well. But I'm going with you."
"Gonna protect me from the big snakes and the scary jungle?" she cooed at him.
He smirked. "Quite the contrary. I'll be joining you to make sure you don't do anything that might jeopardize the mission."
"Hmph," she sneered at him, but seemed to be fine with him coming.
Zexion went to his tent and retrieved a machete. "This should help things out a bit."
"Oh yes, now I feel much safer," she leered at him.
They ventured from their cleared spot into the thick jungle, with Zexion arbitrarily slicing at assorted vines. They passed this way for several minutes in silence, until Zexion decided to initiate conversation. "So…uh…are you excited for the mission now that we're here?"
"Meh…it sounds like it's going to be boring, just sitting here waiting."
"I suppose so. Are you…going to miss Axel?" he probed.
"I'd say that's none of your business," she snapped.
Zexion mentally cursed himself, but quickly recovered. "Sorry! I thought that since we're going to spending the next several weeks together, we could try to get to know each and be slightly cordial," he added in exasperation.
That silenced Larxene. She realized she had no reason to snap at Zexion, whom she didn't know very well. Larxene didn't have many friends in the Organization, and was used to be antagonistic with many of them. However, she never really had any interactions with Zexion. Due to his closeness to Vexen, whom she despised, she assumed she wouldn't like Zexion, but he did have a point that they should try to get along. The pair continued on in silence for another few minutes until she began again. "I mean, kind of."
"Kind of what?" Zexion asked, confused.
"I'll kind of miss him."
Zexion smiled. "I suppose that's normal. Although…" He was interrupted by a loud growl. He grimaced. "I hope that's your stomach."
"Not mine. We're not alone." She drew her Foundre, scanning her eyes around her surroundings. Suddenly, a large cat leaped from its cover at Larxene. She expertly dove out of the way, avoiding the cat's attack.
Zexion, meanwhile, stood gaping at the cat. "It appears to be a black jaguar."
"No shit!" she yelled while dodging and chasing the cat. She and the jaguar circled each other, preparing to strike. She lunged at the cat, but he avoided her.
The cat then turned his attention to Zexion, who was now looking in his Book of Retribution. The jaguar sprinted at Zexion, who was too engaged in his book to see the cat coming.
"Zexion!" Larxene cried out. He turned his head far too late, when the cat was nearly upon. The cat lunged and pounced on Zexion ferociously. Larxene closed her eyes, not wanting to see the mauling of Zexion.
However, the great cat was stunned to find out that it had flown straight though Zexion, hitting the tree located directly behind him instead, while Zexion continued flipping through his book.
Larxene opened her eyes to see what had happened, and was shocked to the cat dazed, having hit the tree. The cat stumbled away, clearly unsure of what had happened either, but knew that it was time to flee. "Zexion?" she called out, looking for an explanation.
"Right here," the voice of Zexion called out. He then stepped out from behind the very tree the cat had hit, positioning him directly next to the reading Zexion. He snapped his fingers, making the fake disappear. "I do control illusions, Larxene. They can be put to good use on many occasions. Were you worried about my well-being?" he asked, a smug smile forming on his lips.
Larxene's face immediately scowled. "I hate you. You lucked out this time, that cat was dangerous."
"And will probably return. We best be careful as we move forward," he said as he rejoined her.
"Also, use your machete next time," she added.
"You're the one that's supposed to be sufficient with blades, not me." She punched him in the arm. "Aggh! What was that for?"
"For tricking me," was all she answered. She then continued on forwards.
Zexion stood there, rubbing his arm for a few seconds. With a grin on his face, he followed her. He almost ran into her, as she had suddenly stopped.
Now standing in front of the pair was a tan-skinned, muscular man with long brown hair worn in dreadlocks. And to top it off, he was wearing only a loincloth. This man had just dropped down in front of Larxene from the trees.
"Umm…hello?" she greeted the mysterious man.
"Sheeta here?" the strange fellow asked.
"Sheeta?" Larxene asked, looking confused.
"Sheeta big black cat."
"I think he means that panther that attacked us," Zexion explained to Larxene. Turning to the man, he continued, "Yes. Sheeta was here, but he fled."
The man nodded. "Tarzan," he announced, pointing to himself.
"Tarzan. Interesting name," Zexion noted. But before he could say anything else, Tarzan dashed off, leaving the two alone again.
"So much for not getting spotted," Larxene retorted.
"But this Tarzan fellow is fascinating. He doesn't appear to be fully civilized. I would most like to study his…"
"Literally, don't care, Zexion. Not in the slightest," Larxene interrupted. "Although, I wouldn't mind studying his anatomy. Perhaps we should study him," she replied, with a leer on her face.
Zexion was not amused. "Larxene, may I remind you that we're…"
"Relax, bookboy. I'm just messing with you. We should probably get a move on, so this 'Sheeta' doesn't come back," she added, waving her hand dismissively.
At that moment, a woman with long, dark brown hair and blue eyes stepped into view. She was clothed in a white (although heavily faded) tanktop and a long brown sarong and appeared to be looking for someone. "Tarzan? Oh Tarzan, where are you?" Her eyes soon set upon Zexion and Larxene. "Oh! Hello there," she greeted, a look of surprise on her face.
Larxene and Zexion looked at each other, unsure what to do. Zexion decided to take action and stepped towards the woman. "Hello there, miss. It appears that we have gotten lost in this jungle," he explained.
"I understand, as it can happen very easily. I'm Jane Porter, here with a gorilla exploration team. How about you? Are you here to study the gorillas?"
Zexion opened his mouth, but had nothing ready to say, as his brain scrambled for an answer. Fortunately, Larxene saved him by cutting in. "Our ship crashed here, and now we're standing on the planet," she answered.
"A ship? Like a spaceship made of those gummi blocks?"
Zexion quickly understood that the only way Jane would know of gummi ships was because she must have interacted with Sora. "That's correct," he replied, going with her reasoning.
"Wait a minute. A boy with spikey hair and a girl…do you know Sora?" Jane asked.
Zexion immediately answered before Larxene could reply. "Why yes, we do!"
"You must be the friends that he was looking for, Riku and Kairi?" she exclaimed.
Zexion feigned surprise. "That's right! You know Sora?"
"Oh yes, he's been here before looking for you guys. Oh, this is wonderful that you're here. He stops by every now and then, and now you can be reunited when he returns next. Since you have no place to live, you must come back to camp with me."
"That's quite alright, Miss Porter…" Zexion began.
Jane laughed. "Please, call me Jane. And I insist! Any friends of Sora's are friends of ours."
Just then, Tarzan returned. "Sheeta gone. We safe."
"There you are, Tarzan. These are Sora's friends, Riku and Kairi."
"We've met already," Zexion explained. "Right after Sheeta attacked us. Fortunately, we ended up fine."
"Oh dear! Well in that case, you must come back with us. It's not safe out here. Besides, the more, the merrier. Do make yourself at home."
"Very well. Your hospitality is very generous," Zexion answered, a false grin upon his face.
"Right this way then." Jane and Tarzan headed off towards the camp, with a reluctant Zexion and Larxene following.
"Nice going," Larxene whispered to Zexion.
"It's not my fault. You're the one that wanted to go exploring," he hissed at her.
"What are we going to do?"
"We'll just have to go with it for now. But remember, you're Kairi now and I'm Riku. Our cover isn't broken if they don't know our true identities."
"And if Sora shows up?"
"We'll deal with that later. Cheer up, Larxene. These folks are more civilized than the Nobodies. You'll be less bored."
"I guess that's true. And we can always portal back to our base at night or other times to check up on the progress."
"Precisely. And on top of that, I can study this primitive man and the gorillas that they're studying," he continued excitedly.
She shook her head and sighed. "You're bananas, you know that?"
Hey everyone! If you guys are having half as much fun reading this as I am writing it, then we're both in great shape! As always, feel free to review 'cause I'd love to hear from you!
See ya real soon,
The Mustachioed Academic
