Songs of the chapter: Sad Story-Loveholic, Better Than Me- Hinder
A/N: WOW over 15,000 VIEWS! OMGHHKP...Yeah...I'm not worthy, seriously. You guys are the bomb dot com. Anyways, I can't decide what to do with Namine, any suggestions? Please, I want some ideas! Also, I don't know, but are some of you fans of the show Big Brother? Well, if you are, BB15 just ended this evening, and I must say, I was NOT happy with the results at all...Poor Spencer...and I wanted Judd to win the whole thing...and now I'm rambling...SORRY!
BoxAuthor88: Sorry to make you freak out ;-; I won't give up on this story as long as you're enjoying it! Well, I'm HOPING it was you who made this request, otherwise I'll look like an idiot...I'm also glad I was able to fill your day with SoKai happiness! Hahaha I know what you mean, and THANK YOU! I took some time in writing that reaction, so I'm super happy you liked it and found it believable! :3 xo
Angelic Warrior: Well, read and find out! :)
chocolate-lover: I'm sure in the near future they might be seen, you'll just have to wait and see! ;)
Legionary Prime: Thank you! Keep writing! Find some inspiration! xx
Shadow Shoveler Productions: Thanks for all the opinions and thoughts, I appreciate it! But yeah, I feel like, if the series was finally going to frow up a bit, and the darkness were to become bigger, there would need to be a harsher language used. If I'm not mistaken, only two 'bad words' have been used over the course of the entire series; Hell in BBS, and Damn in DDD.
Enjoy, my lovelies!
Sleep seemed to be very short lived for Sora. As The sun danced through the blue drapes hanging from the window, Sora peered his left eye open slightly. At the sight of the bright light, he groaned and rolled over. It had felt like forever that he'd been able to sleep peacefully, and he didn't want it to end. Although the teen was still in a sleeping state, everyone else was wide awake. No sooner than he drifted back off, did Riku knock at his door.
"Hey, Sora? Time to get up, bud," He hollered- no response.
At the sound of Riku's voice, Sora rolled over again, and pushed a pillow over his head, trying to drown out the noise.
"Sora. Up. Now."
"Maybe he's really tired…" Sora recognized the voice as Yuffie.
"Are you kidding me?" Donald sighed, "Sora's always tired."
"It's true, A'hyuck!" Goofy agreed.
"Sora's the only person I know that is just as hyper as he is lazy. If we left him alone, he'd sleep in till tonight," Riku smirked.
"You know I can hear you just fine, right?" Sora sighed, quiet enough that he didn't think anyone could hear him, "I'm not lazy…"
"Alright, bud, you asked for it," Riku sighed, pushing his shoulder into the door, forcing it open, "Rise and shine, lazy bum."
"Go away," Sora breathed with his head still under his pillow.
"Up," Riku nudged Sora's side, kneeling as he got to Sora's bedside.
"Down," Sora teased, still not moving.
"C'mon, Sora," Donald pestered.
Sora then muffled something illegible into his pillow, his right hand now moved and dangling over the bed.
"Okay, you've left me no choice," Riku sighed, standing and heading into Sora's bathroom.
"Riku, what are you doing?" Goofy hollered curiously; there were a few muffled sounds before Riku returned with a cup of water.
"What is that?" Donald inquired.
Riku simply moved to Sora, his head completely drowned in pillows, and his hips down covered in blankets. In one swift motion, Riku lifted Sora's sleep shirt and poured the water down Sora's back.
"Ahhh!" Sora kicked around quickly, body flailing until he hit the ground- legs and feet still on the bed, "That was freaking cold!"
"You wouldn't get up," Riku smirked, "You left me no choice."
"Umm, how about leaving me alone?!" Sora scrambled to his feet, untangling himself from the mess of sheets and blankets.
"And what fun would that have been?"
"C'mon, get dressed. We'll be downstairs," Goofy said.
"Right," Sora yawned.
"I'm giving you ten minutes. If you fall back asleep, next it'll be a bucket of ice, and your pants," Riku warned.
"Got it!" Sora ran to his drawers, grabbing his clothes as his friends left his room.
"Seriously, you've got to teach me how to control him like that,' Yuffie teased.
"He came with a manual," Riku chuckled.
"A'hyuck, me and Donald need a copy!" Goofy shook his head.
"Hurry, let's get downstairs! I'm starved," Donald grinned.
As the four friends made their way to the dining room, Mickey, Lea, Aqua, and Ventus were already seated at the table, Aqua asking occasionally if Aerith needed assistance in the kitchen.
"Good morning," Aerith smiled, setting plates and cutlery down on the large table in the dining room, "Breakfast will be ready in a few minutes. Did you all sleep well?"
"Yes, we did," Goofy beamed.
"Where's Leon and Cid?" Yuffie asked, looking around.
"They left early this morning with Merlin to scan the town for Heartless. They'll be back soon, I'm sure," Aerith assured, heading back to the kitchen.
"Good morning, Your Majesty," Donald smiled, sitting down.
"Good morning, everyone," Mickey greeted.
"Morning," Isa entered the dining room, stretching his arms.
"Hey, Isa," Lea yawned.
"Where's Sora?" Mickey wondered.
Riku was about to answer the King, when there was a sudden crash that could be heard through the entire house, startling the occupants. Everyone turned their heads to the entrance of the dining hall, where the crash came from.
"Ow!" Sora yelled.
"Sora, are you okay? What was that?" Aerith hollered from the dining room.
"I'm okay! That was just every bone in my body shattering, along with my dignity…" He groaned, entering the dining room.
"Congrats, you were only eight minutes," Riku smirked, crossing his arms.
"Yippee for me…And maybe if I'm lucky I only broke five ribs," Sora slowly sat at the table, before his eyelids began to fall.
"You're not a morning person, are you?" Ven chuckled.
"He never has been. I won't dare to check how many times Sora was late to school cause he slept in," Riku sighed.
"Hey…" Sora whined, brows furrowed and eyes still closed.
"Well, then Roxas should be awake soon, seeing as he does have a tendency to take after you," Lea grinned.
"Wow, no one ever sleeps later than Sora," Riku teased.
"Well, this actually is kinda not like him," Lea thought, "Maybe I should check up on him and-"
"Morning…" Roxas sighed, trudging towards a free chair.
"Yeesh, what the hell happened to you?" Lea cringed.
Roxas' hair was even spikier than normal, tasselled in every direction. His eyes looked tired and puffy, as well as he had dark circles rimming.
"Are you feeling okay, Roxas?" Isa wondered.
"Not really…" Roxas whispered in response, "My head is pounding…I didn't sleep…"
"Do you want me to get you some Advil?" Yuffie asked.
"Ad-what?"
"Advil. Like ibuprofen," Yuffie repeated herself.
"Roxas is still kind of in the dark on a lot of basic things. He wants the Advil," Lea assured to Yuffie, who then left the table to grab two pills.
"Are you feeling hungry at all, Roxas?" Aerith asked, kneeling to his sitting level.
"A little, I guess…"
"Okay, just try and relax. Maybe you'll feel better if you eat," Aerith suggested, standing.
The group ate breakfast rather quickly. They needed to make a plan, and fast. No one knew how fast Xehanort was planning, or what his next move was going to be, so they needed to stay on their toes. Cid, Leon, and Merlin had returned shortly after the group had finished eating. However, Roxas' food was primarily untouched.
"Okay, so Sora, you and Riku can see Kairi when we've finished up scoping the world for any signs of Xehanort," Leon instructed, "In the meantime, we'll all stick together as a group, and start out past the Bailey. That's where Heartless activity seems to be the strongest."
"Right," Sora and the others nodded.
"When will we be going?" Aqua inquired.
"Well, if everyone's ready, there's no time like the present," Cid said, standing and heading for the door.
"Wait!" Sora stopped the group from exiting the building, "What's our plan if we do find something on Xehanort? What then?"
"Fight," Cid merely stated.
"Great plan," Sora sighed as he, and everyone else existed the HBRC headquarters.
"Roxas, are you sure you'll be okay?" Lea asked, concerned for his friend's well- being, "You can stay behind, you know."
"I know, I'm fine," Roxas trudged forward.
"So what exactly is your plan, you old coot?" Xigbar sighed, not able to comprehend the plans of his Master.
"Simple," Xehanort sighed, "I am using this new member to unleash memories deep within the darkest part of the heart. If there is as much darkness as I am assuming, taking back my XIII will be an easy task."
"But you just said Sora wasn't your target."
"No, I said he wasn't the target for the time being. The newest vessel is going to unleash the memories hidden away in the broken Nobody."
"Broken Nobody…? Can you please stop speaking in metaphors and crap?"
Xehanort sighed, becoming increasingly frustrated at the simple mind that Xigbar seemingly possessed.
"A past member of the original Organization XIII is now working with his other half; my thirteen. If I unleash an emotion strong enough, one that he is not able to handle, it will show the darkness within my number XIII in reflection. They mirror one another."
"Well…according to you, Axel and Saix are original members working on the other side…And the other half to Sora is…" Realization hit Xigbar, "So, if Roxas is an acting force alone, then who the hell is the mysterious member?"
"No. XIV, Xion."
"Poppet?! How the hell did you swing that one? Come to think of it, I kind of forgot about her until recently."
"Xion was created a puppet. A vessel that harboured memories that Sora had. Xion was a mirror to reflect how Sora remembered the princess."
"Kairi?"
"Correct. When her body was destroyed, the memories were returned to Sora. In turn, the memory of her was destroyed all together. This is why you were not aware of her until this point. However, using the power of darkness, I have restored her. If my theory proves true, Roxas will have no recollection of her until they are face to face, due to their strong connection. Also, she will not be able to fully function until she is in contact with Roxas. When that happens, her life will resume where it ended."
"So basically we're just giving them another body to fight against us?" Xigbar raised his left eyebrow.
Xehanort grinned before turning his back to Xigbar, hands clasped behind his back.
"This Organization will always be XIII. They are one guardian short, soon to be two. Xion is the final key to unleash Sora's darkness, and the lost memories. This final key will affect everyone related to Sora in some way. The effects may not be instant, but I will not lose my vessel again."
"So, can you move any faster?" Vanitas asked, as he walked alongside the newcomer slowly through the in-between.
Xion simply kept walking, as if completely dead inside.
"Okay…Not speedy, not chatty…Listen. We're about the enter Radiant Garden. When you see a guy who looks like me," Vanitas took his helmet off for a split second, "Don't move. Don't do anything else, got it?" When Vanitas received a subtle nod of the head, he sighed, and the two entered the Bailey of Radiant Garden, "Am I going soft?" Vanitas groaned as he whispered to himself.
The group of friends carefully and slowly scoped the residential area of Radiant Garden, trying to find any evidence of Xehanort's presence. While passing the last corner of houses, Sora noticed Riku slowly falling behind.
"Hey, Riku, are you okay?" Sora walked back to his friend, gaining the rest of the group's attention.
"Yeah…my head's just…" Riku leaned his palms on his knees and crouching slightly; holding his head in discomfort.
"Riku? Are you alright?" Mickey asked, approaching the older teen.
"Yeah, I'll be fine, Mickey," Riku straightened out and continued onward walking passed Sora.
"Are you sure you're okay, Riku? You look kinda pale," Ventus observed.
"Are you okay, Riku?" Yuffie placed a hand to Riku's arm.
"I'm fine..." Riku looked into Yuffie's eyes briefly.
"Ugh," Lea groaned, a piercing noise ringing in his ears.
"Lea, are you okay?" Isa asked, kneeling at his side.
"What's…happening?" Roxas asked, still holding his head.
"Whatever you have must be contagious," Aerith sighed, "Maybe you should go home and-"
"You can't be…three men down. We'll stay, you guys just…go on ahead," Riku suggested, breathing fairly slow and deeply.
"No…just stay with us. If you are contagious, we've already been exposed anyways," Aerith sighed, "Just, don't be afraid to tell me when enough is enough."
"Well the Bailey is just up the set of stairs, so be on your guard," Leon instructed, summoning his gun blade.
"Are we sure anything will be there?" Yuffie asked.
"No. But like I said, if you see an enemy, attack," Cid said, loading his canon.
As the group entered the Bailey, not knowing what to expect, they were greeted by Vanitas, and another figure.
"You!" Sora summoned his Keyblade, glaring angrily.
"What, are you still pissy about the princess?" Vanitas tested.
"Are you the one that hurt her?!" Sora demanded.
"Am I?" Vanitas smirked, once again testing Sora's patience.
"Why are you here, Vanitas?" Aqua summoned her key.
"Why? Why indeed…"
"Ugh, enough already!" Sora yelled, rolling his eyes.
"Attack him!" Leon yelled.
"Ah," Vanitas nonchalantly raised his hand to halt, "Don't you want to know why I'm here, first?" Sora simply stared at the reflection on Vanitas' helmet, "I have a new member of the Organization here," Vanitas gestured to the hooded figure.
Suddenly, Riku, Isa, Lea and Roxas collapsed to the ground, Roxas the only one remaining semi- conscious.
"Ahhhh!" Roxas was now clutching his head, pulling his blonde locks with both hands; his knees were pressed up to his head, and his body twitched.
"Roxas! Riku!" Sora kneeled and shook his friends.
"Lea, Isa!" Donald and Goofy kneeled to the unconscious men.
Vanitas grinned under his mask, and summoned his Keyblade. He pointed it at Roxas, and his body began to glow. Shortly after, an image appeared above him, almost like a crystal ball. The setting was that of the familiar Destiny Islands.
"Surely, you must have know that this was going to happen," Zexion accused, pointing passed Roxas.
"Why would I know?"
A young version of Riku asked, approaching Zexion.
The two figures then began to circle Roxas.
"Because, in your memory, you've been to a number of worlds before you came to this one. And, of course, in those worlds the only beings you met were the dark kind. That's all that's left in your heart: the darkest of memories. Your memories of home are gone- every one," Zexion explained; the image began to flicker, similar to that of a TV.
"That's a lie! I remember everyone from the islands…They're my…my…closest friends…" Young Riku huffed.
As the Roxas in the image kneeled to the ground, he turned into a girl, who's memory was returning. She then turned into Riku.
"And who threw away those friends? Maybe it's your own actions you've forgotten? It was you who destroyed your home!" Then Riku turned into Sora, before the image went completely blank.
Roxas, Lea, Isa and Riku all jolted awake not a second later, memories of the young puppet now engraved once again in their minds.
"Are you okay?!" Sora exclaimed, holding Riku's arm as they both stood; Riku just stared at the figure, knowing who it was underneath the hood, "Riku…?" Sora turned his gaze to what Riku was staring at.
Lea and Isa slowly stood, Goofy helping them stand. Roxas soon followed suit, standing slowly, holding his head lightly with his left hand.
"Hmph," Vanitas stealthily opened a corridor of darkness behind him, running through and leaving the hooded figure behind.
"Hey, wait!" Sora demanded, but just as quick as the corridor appeared, it vanished; Sora's eyes fell on the figure.
It didn't move, it didn't attack. Sora wasn't even sure it was breathing. He made one step forward, but was quickly stopped by Roxas.
"No, wait," Roxas walked passed Sora, approaching the figure.
"Roxas," Lea sighed.
Roxas stopped when he stood close to the figure. It still didn't move. Roxas focused on where he always remembered her eyes to be, and he stared for a moment. The rest of the group stood their in confusion, and silence. Lea slowly approached Roxas, keeping a respectful distance. After a moment or two, the figure motioned it's hands up to the hood, pulling the black fabric back. Roxas' eyes went wide as his suspicions came to be the truth. There, standing in front of him, was his best friend. The girl he'd forgotten about in the midst of her sacrifice. In the flesh, clear as day, in front of his face, was Xion.
"Roxas…" Xion stared into his blue eyes.
"X-Xion…I don't-"
"Axel…"
"Hi…" Lea sighed with a smile while wearing a disbelieving expression that plastered on his face.
"I can't…"
"What?" Roxas asked.
"I'm not supposed to be here. This isn't right…"
"I…" Roxas didn't know what to say, obviously still in shock.
"Riku," Xion took a few steps toward the older teen, Sora glancing back and forth between Riku and the familiar girl, "What do I do?"
"Wh-I…I don't know…"
"You don't know? …Cause you seemed to know exactly what to do with me before," Xion suddenly went from stone faced to red hot angry, "And what did that make me? Just the dead girl?! The lost girl?! I didn't know any better! But you did!"
"Xion!" Roxas grabbed Xion's wrist.
"You forgot me!" Xion screamed to Roxas, "I knew it would happen, but I didn't think you actually would have!" Xion jerked her wrist out of Roxas' clutch.
"Hey! Stop this! It's not his fault!"
"Shut up, Axel! You've always sided with Roxas! I wasn't even a Nobody, I wasn't even meant to be nothing! So why am I here?!"
"Stop!" Riku grabbed a hold of both Xion's wrists, and the two gained eye contact.
"So, do you hate me for taking your friend away from you?" Xion repeated from the year before.
"Nah. I guess…I'm just sad," Riku smirked at the memory, "But your sacrifice wasn't for nothing. You are a part of what saved Sora. Maybe that's why you've been given a second chance," Riku released his grip on Xion.
Xion and Sora locked eyes in that moment. No one moved, no one spoke. Everyone looked a bit startled when Sora shed a tear.
"It's you…from the sleeping world…Why…do you look like her?" Sora breathed heavily as he asked, never losing eye contact.
All of the events of Sora's dreams in the sleeping world were becoming more vivid in his memories. He could now clearly piece together the connection between the change from Namine to this girl, and the memories Roxas shared with him, found in the darkest part of his heart.
"I don't-"
"Riku, if I'm a part of him," Xion kept her eyes glued on Sora, "Why am I staring at him? Why is he an acting force?"
"A part of me?" Sora asked, almost sounding as though he wanted the question to be redundant.
"Okay, can someone please explain what's going on here?" Donald asked, staring at the scene in from of him in confusion.
"I will," Riku sighed, crossing his arms- all eyes fell on him, "Xion was the fourteenth member of the Organization. She was never a Nobody, but a puppet created by the memory and perception that Sora has of Kairi. What's why Xion looks like Kairi- she harboured the memories that Sora had of Kairi. In order for Sora to wake up with his memory complete, Xion needed to sacrifice her being to give back Sora's memories. But is she did so, there would be no 'her' left, so therefore everyone would forget about her in the end. The question now, is why and how you're able to exist here again…"
"You sacrificed yourself for me…?" Sora whispered, staring at the ground with a subtle frown and guilty look on his face.
"No, I simply gave back what was rightfully yours," Xion explained.
"Still…thank you. Why would you do that for me?" Sora sighed.
"Because you needed your memories of her, right?"
Sora averted eye contact, squirmed slightly, and went noticeably red, making Donald, Goofy and the others snicker.
Xion smiled before turning back to Roxas and Lea. She stared at them for a second, before collapsing, Roxas catching her right before she hit the ground.
"Whoa, Xion?" Roxas shook her lightly.
"Let's get her back to the headquarters," Aerith suggested.
"I got her," Roxas assured when he noticed Lea was going to take her from him, "Hey, Axel?"
"Yeah?"
"Did I hit the wrong buttons?"`
"What?
"Remember that one time when Xion was acting weird? You told me that girls have certain buttons you can't press, or their mood shifts. Did I press one?"
Aerith simply smiled at the young boys' innocence.
"You know, Terra used to tell me the same thing about Aqua," Ven smiled.
"He what?" Aqua asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Umm…I think you just pushed one," Roxas said.
"Yep…I think you're right."
As the group quickly retreated back to home base, Riku pulled Mickey aside and the two walked a fair distance behind.
"Xehanort's gotta be planning something, Mickey. He wanted Xion gone from the start…"
"What do ya mean, Riku?"
"I mean, I'm not sure we can trust Xion. She could have been brought back for his own strategy. Think about it, Vanitas didn't even get close to us."
"I think we should talk to Yen Sid about this, Riku," Mickey suggested.
"Yeah. I'm curious as to if she has a heart or not…Until then, I don't want her anywhere near Sora or Kairi, okay?"
"Sure, but why?"
"I just…I know Xehanort is always telling us that Sora isn't the true Keyblade wielder…but again, I can't help but feel that he's lying…Why would he?"
Yay! Xion's back!...So...Namine...What should I do with her?