Xemnas and Xigbar waited outside Saïx's door, waiting for him to open it.

"Maybe he's asleep," Xigbar said after they knocked again.

"He's not. Saïx open up now!" Xemnas ordered. They heard muffled shouting and banging. Xemnas barged into the room and looked around. The room was empty.

"The closet!" Xigbar said and opened in up. He and Xemnas stared down at Saïx who was chained up and gagged. Xemnas ripped the gag off.

Saïx coughed and said, "She got away!"

"How?" Xigbar asked as he unchained Saïx.

Saïx rubbed the bump on his head. "She hit me with something metal. I had chained her wrist to the bed…Gah! Stupid!" he shouted, whacking his forehead. "She must have melted the metal!"

"Well, she didn't kill you," Xigbar said. Xemnas and Saïx glared at him. "Um…I'm gunna go now," he said and disappeared out the door. Saïx stood up and rubbed the bump again.

"I'm sorry Superior. It's my fault that she got away again," he said, looking down at the ground.

"It's alright. Get some ice to put on that," Xemnas said, putting his hand on Saïx's shoulder. Saïx nodded and portalled out. Xemnas sighed and walked into the moonlight. He stared at his beloved Kingdom Hearts. "What am I supposed to do? She got away again. Why did she leave? I'm going to hold a meeting tomorrow. Hopefully I'll get some information," he said, talking to himself. He sighed and portalled out.

---

Exylim awoke in a familiar room. She stared up at the blue ceiling. Her whole body hurt and the pain was overwhelming but she could feel someone gripping her hand. She looked down and stared at the familiar blonde. She smile then cringed in pain. She clutched her shoulder. Cloud was sitting in a chair but he had slumped over onto the bed. He was holding her hand tightly… a little too tight. Exylim cringed again and pulled her hand away from his. She sat up and clutched her stomach. Cloud woke up and sat up quickly. He stared at her and jumped up.

"You're awake! Thank god!" he said, hugging her. Exylim cringed and pulled away. "What's wrong…" he trailed off as he noticed that she was clutching her shoulder and stomach in pain. He put his hand on hers and pulled it off of her stomach. She looked into his eyes and he stared back, and then dropped his gaze to her stomach. He pulled her shirt up, revealing the bandages.

"What happened?" he asked concerned. Exylim pulled her shirt back down.

"I…was attacked…by a man…" she said, obviously in pain. Cloud laid her back down.

"That's all I need to know. Just rest. I'm going to tell the others that you're okay," he said. Exylim nodded a little and then closed her eyes.

--

"I'm sure most of you know that Exylim has disappeared again," Xemnas started.

"So? Who cares about the brat?" Larxene said, examining her nails.

"And I need to know why. If anyone knows why, speak up now," he finished.

Roxas glared at Zexion who only stared at his feet.

"I'm not sticking around for this. I have better things to do," Larxene stated and portalled out. Xaldin, Luxord, Vexen, Lexaeus, and Marluxia followed her suit. Xigbar portalled out after a few seconds too. Axel and Demyx looked at each other and left. Roxas left silently with one last glare at Zexion.

"Saïx, you may leave," Xemnas said, catching the look in Roxas's eyes. Saïx left with a questioning look.

"VI, do you know why?" Xemnas asked.

"…It's my fault…I shouldn't have…She hates me now…" Zexion, mumbled, still staring at his feet.

"Hmph. I see. It will be your responsibility to bring her back, unconscious or not," Xemnas ordered firmly.

"…Yes Superior…" Zexion replied.

"You may go," Xemnas said and portalled out. Zexion remained in his throne.

"She told me what happened," a voice said. Zexion jumped and looked around. Roxas came out of a portal, sitting on his throne. "So why did you hit her?" he asked. Zexion looked down again. He stared calmly at Zexion, waiting for a reply.

"Why should I tell you?" he said after a while.

"Because I care for her. Its not like you do," Roxas replied.

"Since when have you cared?" Zexion retorted.

"Since I found her in her room crying." Zexion looked up, startled.

"W-what?" he asked.

"You hit her! You pretty much told her you're ashamed of her! How could you?" Roxas shouted, standing up.

"She was talking trash about Firyx! I had to do something!" Zexion replied, also standing up.

"So you hit her?!"

"It's not like that! I…" Zexion trailed off.

"You hit her," Roxas stated. He glared at Zexion and portalled away. Zexion dropped to his knees.

"What have I done…" he muttered, bringing his hands up to his face.

--

Exylim awoke to the sun shining on her face and a searing pain running through her chest. She gasped for air and clutched her chest.

"Wah! Cloud! Someone!" she heard a voice shout. Leon appeared in her view. "Whoa! Easy! Calm down!" he said franticly.

"Move!" another voice shouted. Cloud shoved Leon out of the way and placed a wet rag on her forehead and then grabbed her bad shoulder. Exylim gasped and began breathing again. Leon sighed in relief.

"What? What's wrong? Aerith, get some potions!" There was a loud crashed. Yuffie sprung up and practically tackled Cloud. "WHAT? WHAT'S WRONG?!" she screamed.

"YUFFIE! CALM DOWN!" Leon shouted. Yuffie froze in place.

"SORRY!"

"STOP SCREAMING!" Cloud shouted.

"SORRY!" Leon and Yuffie shouted.

"What's wrong? I have…potions…" Aerith trailed off. "Yuffie…"

"SORRY!"

"YUFFIE!!" Leon and Cloud shouted.

"SORRY!" Yuffie shouted before covering her mouth with her hands. They all turned back to the bed. Exylim had turned over on her stomach and was covering her head with a pillow. Leon grinned and leaned over the bed near her head. He opened his mouth, only to receive a mouthful of pillow. Cloud snickered. Leon mumbled something from behind the pillow before yanking it off and throwing it back onto Exylim.

"Make the loud people do away!" she cried, grabbing another pillow.

"You heard the lady, OUT!" Cloud ordered. Everyone shuffled out. Cloud closed the door and sighed. "They're gone," he said.

"Good," Exylim sighed. She flopped back onto her back and sat up.

"Easy. You should rest for a while," Cloud said, placing his hand on her forehead.

"Cloud, what are you doing?" she asked.

"You have a fever," he said.

"No I don't. I feel fine…Well, other than the fact that I've been stabbed," she replied.

"Hm. Well you're hot. And don't take that wrong," he said.

"I'm always hot!"

"But you're…Gah! Enough with this. You're resting even if you don't want to," Cloud said, pushing her down so she was lying down again. Exylim pouted but remained down. She closed her eyes and Cloud left.

---

Exylim sat, staring at the ceiling. Cloud wasn't letting her out of the room, nor out of the bed. He would yell at her if she tried to get out of the bed. She sighed. Cloud had gone to use the bathroom. She sat up, and swung her feet out of the bed. She stood up, wobbling for a few seconds before gaining balance. She started making her way over to the door but fell to her knees halfway. She felt a hand grab her and pull her up. Cloud stared sternly down at her but she could see sympathy in his eyes. He picked her up and set her back onto the bed. Exylim looked away from him, waiting for him to say something about her being foolish.

Cloud sighed. "I'm not going to yell at you. You already know what I'll say," he said.

"Yeah… But I'm bored!" she said, throwing up her hands and falling back onto her back.

"I can get Yuffie to talk to you as a punishment," he said, smirking.

"No! Anything but that!" Exylim cried, covering her ears.

"Anything, you say?" he said, still smirking. He jumped on top of her and started tickling her. She squeaked and began giggling.

"No! Stop! Please!" she said in between giggles.

"Nope!"

"No-Cloud, it hurts!" she said. Cloud stopped and jumped off of her.

"Are you okay? I-" He was cut of by a pillow hitting his face. Exylim grinned at him.

"Haha! You fell for it!" she said, laughing. Cloud lunged for her.

"AH! Don't hurt me!" she cried, diving under the sheets. Cloud grinned.

"Ha. Now get some sleep," he said, becoming serious again.

"Aw, you're no fun," came a muffled reply.

"Yuffie is still up for grabs," he said evilly before walking out of the room.

"NO! Cloud! Don't!" Exylim shouted, trying to get out of the bed. She got tangled in the sheets and fell off the bed. "Cloud appeared in the doorway. Exylim grinned sheepishly at him. He sighed and picked her up and set her back on the bed again after he untangled her.

"Sleep," he ordered.

"Fine!" Exylim cried. She turned over onto her side and pouted.

---

Exylim stared blankly at the wall as Yuffie continued on and on. Leon was listening to his iPod on full blast. Exylim sighed and closed her eyes.

After a few minutes, she heard Leon say to Yuffie, "Nice going. You put her to sleep."

"No I didn't! I bet she's just tired," Yuffie replied.

"Pff, after doing what? Sitting in bed all day?" Leon retorted.

"…You can still get tired from that!"

"Whatever. We should leave her to rest." Exylim heard shuffling and the door closing. She opened her eyes and swung her feet out of bed. She stood up and began moving slowly towards the door. She stumbled a little and heard the door open. Cloud stared at her before making his way over to her.

"…Cloud, I want to walk," she said quietly. Cloud only nodded and grabbed her elbow to steady her. They made their way down the hall and out the door. They walked slowly to the bailey before sitting down to rest. They sat there for awhile watching the clouds pass by over them. They then got up and made their way to Crystal Fissure. Exylim tripped over one of the small crystals and started to fall. Cloud grabbed the back of her shirt and pulled her back on to her feet.

"Thanks," she gasped. Cloud didn't reply and picked her up instead. She squeaked and grabbed his shirt. "Stop with the picking me up when I least expect it!" she exclaimed. Cloud grinned a little then became serious again. He walked over to one of the crystals and set her down next to it. He sat next to her and sighed. They sat in silence for a few minutes.

"What is your world like?" Exylim asked, breaking the silence.

"Hm? Oh…well…it's called Gaia. I lived in the city Midgar…" Cloud went on, describing his home-world (which I'm too lazy to write) while Exylim listened. She watched the images that flashed through his mind. Every now and then she would ask a question.

"What about your world?" Cloud asked her. Exylim stayed silent. "Come on, it's only fair if you tell me," he said, a touch of hurt in his voice.

Exylim paused before saying quietly, "…It's dark…full of tall buildings…" she trailed off and stared at the ground.

"Is that all?!?" Cloud asked, growing impatient. Exylim stayed silent again. "I can't believe you. I tell you about my world and you won't even give me a sentence about yours!"

"Well sor-ree," she exclaimed, standing up.

"I give you a home, a family, and take care of you and you do nothing in return! You could at least show some love or appreciation!" he yelled, standing up as well.

"I can't!" she exclaimed and ran away as fast as she could.

Exylim kept running until tears blurred her vision and caused her to stumble. She paused to wipe away her tears then continued walking. She shoved her hands into her pockets and stared at the ground. After a few minutes, she ran into something hard…and warmish. Exylim lifted her head and stared at the leather coat and metal shoulder guards.

"...shit…" she said sheepishly then looked up. Sephiroth glared down at her.

"I don't suppose we have to go through the same thing as last time," he stated.

"…nah. I'm not in the mood to be stabbed…" she replied. Sephiroth grinned and grabbed her shoulder tightly. Exylim winced and tried to pull away. He slammed her into the stone wall and her vision went black as a pain shot up her back.

--

Exylim awoke, suspended above the ground from chains around her wrists. She looked around wearily. She seemed to be in some sort of dungeon. Exylim sighed and melted the chains trapping her wrists. As soon as she had melted both chains, she dropped and crumpled to her knees, weak from being slammed into stone. She curled into a ball and waited for the pain to reside.

--

After hours of sitting, Sephiroth came to retrieve her. He pulled her off of the ground and through a dark-portal. They came out on the path to the Organization's castle. Sephiroth dragged Exylim to the giant door and knocked.

--

A knock rang out through castle.

"I got it!" Demyx shouted, running to the door.

"Ha. Nice try Waterboy!" Xigbar shouted as he appeared in front of the door. Demyx pouted and retreated back to his sitar. Xigbar opened the door and was surprised to see Sephiroth, holding Exylim who was staring at the ground.

"Take me to Xemnas," Sephiroth commanded. Xigbar stepped aside as Sephiroth dragged Exylim in. Xigbar led the way to Xemnas's office and knocked.

"What?" came an angry reply.

"Uh, you have a visitor…Sephiroth is here…"

There was a pause before Sephiroth barged in with Exylim in tow. Xigbar shot her a look as he closed the door.

"I believe I have something of yours…" Sephiroth said, pushing Exylim forward. Xemnas stayed quiet. "I will trade her," Sephiroth continued, "for Firyx."

Exylim winced at Firyx's name. Xemnas let out a small humph.

"Fair enough."

"Tell Firyx she has 3 days to get her stuff," Sephiroth said before dragging Exylim off.

--

"You'll never believe it. Sephiroth caught Exylim," Xigbar said as she walked back into the living room where Demyx, Roxas, and Axel were sprawled on the couch.

"What?!" Roxas exclaimed, sitting up.

"He caught her?" Axel asked. Xigbar nodded. Roxas got up and walked out into the Hall of Empty Melodies just in time to see Sephiroth dragging Exylim through by her hair.

"Ow, ow, ow! I can walk on my own you know. I ran away, what makes you think I would try to escape?" Exylim said as she was painfully dragged.

"Hmph."

Exylim sighed as she was released and trailed behind the silver-haired man. She glanced up at Roxas and Demyx then immediately dropped her gaze to the ground as they stared at her with looks of betrayal. Roxas was giving her the most hurt look ever. Exylim pulled her hood up and followed Sephiroth through a portal.

---The Next Day---

Exylim sighed, watching Sephiroth do nothing but stare at the Villain's Vale. She was sitting on the ground leaning against the ravine wall. She sighed again and snapped. A small flame flickered to life over her thumb. The flame divided into two other parts, dancing around each other and her thumb. Exylim glanced up at Sephiroth and grinned. The flames left her fingers and headed toward Sephiroth.

--

Sephiroth's thoughts were interrupted when three small flames came into sight. He glanced at them as they spun around his head. His hand shot up and grabbed the flames. He opened his fist and the flames had disappeared.

---

Sephiroth turned to glare at Exylim and she pressed back up against the wall. He turned back to face the cliff edge. Exylim pouted and snapped again. This time, the flame engulfed her hand, then arm, until eventually, her whole body was engulfed in fire. She sat, grinning slightly, in the hot, crackling fire that wasn't burning her or her clothing.

Sephiroth turned around and stared at her. He raised an eyebrow and asked, "You lit yourself on fire?"

Exylim shrugged, still grinning, and replied, "Yeah, I guess I did."

Sephiroth rolled his eyes. Exylim pouted and let the flames die. "You are of no use to me. You may leave but, god help, if you don't return tonight, I will kill you," he said.

Exylim shot up like a bullet and saluted him. "Yes, sir!" she said grinning, before taking off. Sephiroth rolled his eyes again and turned back around.

--

Exylim raced through the Great Maw and into the Crystal Fissure before finally slowing down to a walk. She walked up the Ravine Trail before coming to a sudden halt. What if Cloud doesn't want me back? She thought to herself. After all, he's right. I don't show any thanks, nor emotion. Exylim sighed.

"Well, there's only one way to find out."

---

Exylim walked into the Bailey and stopped in her tracks. Cloud stared at her and she returned his gaze. He hesitated before slowly walking towards her. She broke into a run and hugged him tightly. He returned the hug and they both said, "I'm sorry."

"Wait, why are you sorry?" Cloud asked pulling away from her. "I'm the one who yelled at you."

Exylim stared at the ground. "I'm sorry…because I can't tell you," she said softly.

Cloud cupped her chin in his hand and forced her to look at him. He stared at her before releasing her chin. "I'm not going to ask why. Just understand that you can tell me anything. Like where you've been," he said, with an edge of worry on his voice.

Exylim grinned. "Well, I didn't get attacked this time," she said. Cloud rolled his eyes.

"Come on, the others have been worried too," he said. She nodded and they headed towards Merlin's House.

---

"EXYLIM!" Yuffie cried as she tackled her in a hug. They fell over backwards, giggling madly. "Where were you?! You missed the best prank EVER!" Yuffie shouted.

Exylim noticed Leon's face turn into a scowl. She laughed and replied, "Away. What did you do to him?"

Yuffie jumped up as Leon advanced towards her. He chased her around the room and out the door. Exylim laughed and got up. "Things haven't changed a bit."

Cloud gave a small humph and walked over to Cid.

"AHH! HE'S AFTER MY LUCKY CHARMS!" Yuffie cried as she ran in and locked the door.

"Yuffie!" they heard Leon shout from outside the door. Everyone laughed.