Hello, everyone! Lilith here.

And for this chapter, I'm properly introducing our unstable new character: Maladia! In this chapter, not only do I introduce her to you, but I've also allowed you guys to get a glimpse of how she and Roxas met for the first time. If anybody gets a vibe of something familiar, please don't be shy to tell me so. I'm sure we can get some laughs about it in that case. :D

And, just for giggles, why not give a little start on Nero improving his impressions on Xion while I'm at it? Besides, there's nothing wrong with having characters open up more slowly than other, amiright?

Anyway, for anyone who hasn't bene caught up about what's been going on, the Eclipsed Hearts series has its own TV tropes page if you want to check it out. But like I said, it's just recently been created and it's by no means perfect because I suck on hunting tropes to list. This was originally suggested by Mattman (thanks for the suggestion, btw).

Lastly, thank you so much to the reviewers who gave their sympathies for my plight after having put up the last chapter. I'm so thankful for your understanding throughout those difficult months.

So, without further ado, for the next chapter, we're going to be riding with the tides to stop an oceanic blight. Shiny, am I right?

Anyways, enjoy!

I own nothing of Kingdom Hearts except my OCs.

Read, leave me a review, but flames are unacceptable.

Chapter 6: Day 95 – Maladia

As she entered the streets of Twilight Town, Noir couldn't help but feel a little relief and nervousness about their upcoming move into the Old Mansion. Last she heard, everything is ready to go, which means they'll be able to move Sora and the boys into the mansion safely without the Organization knowing about it – well, at least, she hopes so. Plus, she heard about the missions Luna took on with Medea and then Nero, and that the investigations have been taken care of thanks to Riku keeping tabs on things. Perhaps she should ask her daughter what she's experienced so far. It would be interesting to explore other worlds with her, if only to have more opportunities to build her relationships a little more.

During her stroll through the sandlot, she stopped to hear a conversation nearby, prompting her to stop and look to her left to find Roxas passing through the same location. However, she noticed right away that Xion's not with him. Instead, she spotted a peculiar woman following closely behind him. She couldn't put her finger on what it is, but something about the woman's wardrobe and looks gave her an uneasy feeling. Not wanting to jump to conclusions about the matter, she decided the only way to find out what's going on is to talk to Roxas personally, hopefully to get answers as to what he's doing here with someone completely different. The most concern on her mind is what affiliation the stranger has.

"Roxas, how are you doing?" she greeted him.

He quickly turned to her and smiled. "Noir, hi! I'm doing alright. What're you doing?"

"I was about to meet with my daughter again, check up on her," she replied. "What about you, Roxas? Are you working?"

"No. I just finished," he answered.

As she greeted Roxas personally, Noir got a better look at the woman accompanying him. She stood inches taller than Roxas with long blue hair held in two uneven pigtails reaching toward her knees, light pale skin and orange eyes. She is wearing a short form-fitting dress modeled like a straitjacket with the sleeves bound to the back by belt straps and shackles around the arms and the back, long stiletto heeled boots held by buckles, torn dark leggings and a black collar with small spikes protruding around it.

The woman quickly took notice of Noir's presence as she looked at her with wariness, her lips pursed with distrust.

"Roxy…who is this?" she asked lowly. "She doesn't have…their…presence."

Roxas turned to her and assured her, "It's okay, Maladia. This is Noir. Xion and I met her here when she first visited. She's not with the Organization."

There's a moment's pause coming from the woman. "Oh… I guess that's good."

Noir turned to him, perplexed. "Do you…know this woman?"

"Yeah. This is Maladia," Roxas introduced his new companion. "I've known her for a while now. I'm sorry if she made you uneasy."

Well, at least she can now identify who this new stranger is. However, something about Roxas's companion, Maladia, felt off. While she does appear human on the surface, something about her just…didn't feel right. Noir couldn't sense the presence of the Heartless on her, nor did she have the behavior of the Organization members she's seen. What is it she's sensing?

"I don't like staring," Maladia suddenly spoke up, visibly irritated. "It makes me think of them."

Roxas held a hand in front of her with caution. "Easy, Maladia. Noir's harmless. She just doesn't know you too well."

Now Noir felt curious about the situation. Perhaps she can find out what the connection is between them.

"Roxas…is your friend here someone I should know about?" she inquired. "How did you come to meet Maladia, and what do you do with her?"

He scratched the back of his head nervously. "Well…it's a bit of a long story."

It made Noir even more curious. "Perhaps you could start at where you first knew of her?"

Roxas took a deep breath as he began explaining himself. "Okay…well, it all started sometime after I was brought into Organization 13 – somewhere between days 10 and 14, I think. While passing by one of the halls to the Grey Room, I heard screams and violent noises echoing somewhere down below. I didn't know what was going on, so I asked one of the crew – Demyx, to be specific – whether there's anything else in the castle besides us. I was told that I shouldn't look into it, but he wouldn't explain why other than it's too dangerous, so I let it go at that for a while. But then, a few days before Axel left along with half of the members, I heard the same screaming and noises. I asked Axel about it and told him what I'd heard the first time. That's when I finally got an answer…somewhat: there's a particularly dangerous creature currently contained in the dungeons further down the hall we were passing, and that prisoner is the source of the noises. The Superior kept it in there due to its unstable nature." He paused a moment. "I didn't hear more than that, other than being warned not to investigate the dungeons because what's down there is very hostile."

Noir had a feeling where this is going, but she asked anyway, "I take it you didn't listen to them anyways."

"Nope. After finding out what I wanted to know, I couldn't get it off my mind," he replied. "It wasn't until after my mission with Xion that I finally decided to find out what the prisoner is myself, and what I found…"

Flashback – Day 23

It was quiet in the castle and everyone has retired for the night, which gave Roxas the perfect opportunity to find the dungeon Axel told him about days before. If he heard correctly, it's further down the hall they use to reach the Grey Room. That means it had to be isolated away from anywhere the other members would be. Was it for safety reasons, or something else? He didn't know for sure.

He looked around the hall for anything that resembled a doorway or stairway until he found one that stuck out to him. The singular archway is set further apart from every door he passed, seemingly isolated from everything else with minimal light to clue in there's an opening to another section of the castle itself. Slowly, Roxas peeked inside to find a long staircase leading deep down below towards lighting so dim that he couldn't tell whether or not there is anything down there and if there's any proper light to counter the darkness at the bottom. He honestly had no idea how anybody would be willing to go down there without fearing what's waiting for them. Though, knowing the other members, they probably don't care.

Swallowing his fears as best he could, Roxas carefully made his way down the stairs, keeping his eyes focused on the lights at the bottom just to make sure he won't jump at his own shadow on his way down. However, the eerie silence alone provided more than enough unease for him as he inexplicably felt shivers running down his spine.

Halfway down, though, the sound of sharp steps forced him to stop in his tracks. He looked up to the entrance to see whether anyone has approached. He didn't see anyone he knew. Maybe he was being too jumpy?

Nervously, he squeaked out, "…Hello?"

No response came out, so he assumed it safe to proceed.

He continued his way down until he finally made his way to the bottom of the stairs, where he is greeted with a dimly lit chamber stretching nearly two miles away from his position. Along one side are a row of barred doors with thin cones of light protruding from the bars, the only handles available being holes that caved to one direction so that hands can slide in and push and pull as needed. On the other side are at least three oval-shaped lamps barely lighting the room to counteract the darkness of the dungeon. There wasn't anything else to make this stick out compared to other parts of the castle save for the colorations making the chamber much duller than the Grey Room and his bedroom combined.

'What a dull room,' he thought to himself, 'to hold something dangerous.'

After taking a few steps further in, he heard the footsteps again. But this time, he realized they came from inside this very room. But where exactly is it coming from?

Shakily, Roxas called out, "Hello? Is anyone down here?"

He didn't hear any response at first, but he caught the sound of something rattling from inside one of the cells. But then, he heard an angry hiss as he is suddenly greeted by chains lashing out from one cell room. Startled and not wanting to get caught in the crossfire, he dove down to the floor just as the chains smashed one of the lights, sending shards of glass scattered all around him and dimming the dungeon a little more.

When it seemed to have quieted down, Roxas looked up to see the chains still lingering above him, pointed at him and ready to launch at any moment. However, he couldn't hold his gaze there for long when he finally heard a raspy voice hissing within the cell the chains shot out from.

"You…! You're one of them, aren't you?"

Already spooked upon realizing there is something in the dungeon, Roxas could only back up into the wall to get a distance from the aggressor.

"Who's there?" he demanded. "Who are you?"

"What do you think?" the voice growled.

"I…I don't know. I've never been down here before," he stammered, "and I…I heard there's a prisoner held here."

He immediately regrets saying this when the chains lashed out again, this time grabbing him up and pulling him close to the bars where he could only see a thin ray of light in the center of the cell surrounded by darkness too thick to see through. It sent chills throughout his entire system, fearing what will happen to him if he says something wrong again. What's more, he didn't tell anyone what he was doing (though he had good reason not to do so), so he only had himself to blame if anything went wrong here and now.

"Did THEY tell you about me?!" the mystery prisoner snapped angrily. "Did they tell you that I'm an abomination unlike them? Are you here to call me a monster, abomination, or whatever you like, just like they've done to me for ten damn years? What makes you any different from them!?"

"No, I don't even know what you are!" Roxas blurted quickly without thinking. "I haven't been with them long, and I didn't know why anyone would be held in the dungeon only because they're dangerous!"

An eerie silence permeated the dungeon as Roxas almost expected another violent outburst or worse. However, that didn't happen. To his confusion, he instead was released from the chains' grasp and dropped back on the floor no worse for wear, the chains slowly dragging away back into the shadows. He didn't have a clue what's going on within the cell to stop the prisoner from doing anything more to him.

"…What?" the voice asked, confused. "You're saying…you're a newcomer?"

He nodded 'yes'. There was a moment of silence again.

"Huh…no wonder you said you don't know anything about me…" the voice continued, apparently dumbstruck at this experience.

With the tension momentarily calmed, Roxas felt a little braver approaching the cell as he crept closer to the bars. No matter what he tried, though, he couldn't see anything in the darkness surrounding the small cone of light inside. It only served to reignite his curiosity as he gathered the courage to question the subject face-to-face – at least, figuratively speaking, given he still knows next to nothing about who is held in this dungeon.

"So, what exactly are you?" he asked. "Are you a Heartless, a Nobody, or human?"

There was a pause before the prisoner answered haggardly, "Neither Heartless…nor Nobody. Not once have they called me human either."

"Then what are you?" he asked.

The prisoner laughed bitterly. "Why would you want to know, newcomer? Would you really want to know about me, who everyone else called an abomination?"

Though he couldn't put his finger as to why, Roxas felt his courage rise more and more as his desire to know more built up within him. Just this once, he didn't give a damn about the consequences for poking his nose into something he wasn't supposed to, so he decided to confront what was forbidden to him and find out for himself what it is Organization 13 has been hiding in this place before he was brought into their group in the first place.

He pointed toward the cell and requested firmly, "Come into the light."

Quick footsteps answered him before the hidden resident warned flatly, "You won't like what you see."

"I'll be the judge of that," Roxas replied, standing his ground. "Step into the light where I can see you."

A moment of silence filled the entire dungeon as Roxas watched keenly from outside the cell for any sign of movement. Then, he carefully listened as he heard the steps of the prisoner slowly make its way to his line of sight.

What greeted his vision steadily revealed the true appearance of the suspected prisoner bit by bit, but not the appearance he expected to behold. First, he caught sight of sharply pointed feet and jagged legs bearing no resemblance to anything human whatsoever. But then, he followed the trail of the legs to barely catch a glimpse of what appeared to be a white jacket covering the body from the feet up, the arms bound tightly to the protruding chest by straps and shackles of different materials to an uncomfortable degree. At last, he looked up and came face-to-face with a broken harlequin mask oozing a red liquid from both its eye holes, fully concealing the face sans the menacing glow of orange eyes and violently zig-zagged pairs of antennae protruding from both sides of the head.

Nothing escaped from Roxas's lips except for a choked gasp of shock and horror, his body giving up standing from under him and landing rear-first onto the hard floor. A part of him wanted to run away and try to forget what he had seen, but everything else of him couldn't look away or move like he wanted to.

A bitter, sardonic sigh left the creature as the same raspy voice said, "I warned you… I told you, you wouldn't like what you see." The masked face tilted in deep thought. "Ah…I frightened you, didn't I? What to do, what to do… Hmmmm…I wonder… If this scares you, then would something a little more…appealing…make you stay?"

He nodded in agreement without thinking the question over. Before his eyes, he watched as the frightening creature retreated into the darkness when – without warning – he heard pulsing energy followed by something twisting and snapping, every so often the constant hisses and groans of pain. A moment of silence followed before Roxas heard footsteps again, but this time it sounds more like the heels of shoes against the floor.

The prisoner reemerged from the shadows to reveal a form that – while still a bit uncanny with the restraints – gave a more human, and a slightly appealing, appearance. The drastic makeover presented to him a tall and lean humanoid woman with long, dark blue hair held in a pair of uneven pigtails reaching down to her knees, pale skin leaning on the brink of white from lack of exposure to natural light, and bright orange eyes. The straitjacket that was full body changed into that of a short dress with leather straps and chains wrapped around what he could discern to be proper human arms hidden by the overly long sleeves wrapped around her chest, torn dark leggings under calf-length, long heeled stiletto boots held by buckled straps, and a spiked collar clasped around her neck.

At this point, Roxas couldn't look away from the new sight – this time, not from horror, but nonetheless he couldn't put his finger on what to say about it. The woman gave an awkward, crooked smile as she stepped closer to the bars.

"…How's this? Is this better?" she asked, attempting to show off her new looks.

Finally, Roxas regained his voice and replied with a stutter, "Y-Yeah…a lot better."

The prisoner chuckled as she stepped closer to the bars, shimmying herself towards one side but just keeping enough of herself within view.

"You're a funny little boy…jumping at shadows," she crooned at him. "Are you a child? What is a little child doing here among those dispassionate drones?"

He pouted, not amused at the comment. "C'mon, I'm not a child. I just don't know anything about myself…except what I am."

She turned to him, raising a brow at him. "You mean…you know nothing? Nothing at all?"

He shook his head 'no' slowly. "Nothing. Nada."

There is a moment of silence before the prisoner finally spoke up, "…Huh. And no one gave you clues to who you were? Not even where you're from?"

"No," he replied simply.

She irritably sighed, turning away. "Figures. I'd bet the silver-tongued queen bee upstairs had a very fun time smooth-talking you into joining his damn cult. Unless…" She paused, glancing at him. "…you don't remember being strung along into that gang either."

"Not as well as I'd like," he replied.

She went silent, possibly pondering over what she heard from him. Not surprising, considering she never knew anything about him whatsoever until he decided to come down to the dungeon out of curiosity.

Now it's Roxas's turn to ask her a few questions. "What about you? You said you're neither Heartless nor Nobody. What are you?"

She made a dismayed face at him as she tilted back and rocked herself side to side. "This again…? But yes…I did say I'm neither Heartless nor Nobody. I am insanity…madness incarnate…a malady of the mind made manifest…"

That struck Roxas as odd. Is this prisoner a completely different creature of her own? For that matter, why she did call herself madness incarnate and a malady? It sounds to him like she came into existence under circumstances beyond her control that he doesn't know about, and she's been treated like a dangerous monster for no good reason. But wait a minute…are the members of Organization 13 cruel about handling her that they didn't bother to give her some kind of identification to go by, only seeing her as an animal?

"…You don't even have a name?" he inquired.

She shook her head. "…Not even close."

"Well, if someone's gonna talk to you properly, you oughta at least have a name," he pointed out. That's when he took a moment to ponder what to call her from here on in. "…Hmm…how about…Maladia?"

She raised a brow at him. "What…? Maladia?"

He shrugged his shoulders sadly. "Sorry, it's the best I can think of. But it'd be easier to address you like a person instead of something rude."

Maladia swayed side to side for a bit in contemplation. "…I guess you're right. It's not much of a name, but better than nothing." She frowned. "Not that it'll stop them, though, from talking ill of me behind my back…or in my face, for that matter."

"I can't do anything about the others," Roxas confessed sincerely, "but if you want a friend, I can be one for you if you want – or at least, someone you can talk to without getting angry."

She leaned in as close as she could to him, not caring that the long bars are preventing her from reaching him, eyeing him. While he couldn't tell what exactly she's thinking given her constant change of mood, Roxas wondered if, somewhere within her, she's trying to decide whether she can place her trust in him – a newbie in a group that he hardly knows a lot about and doesn't have a full grasp on knowledge of anything and everything around him. True, she knows now he's new and very clueless to many things, but he's not holding his breath on whether she'd just open herself up to him after having just met him, albeit with a rocky start. He just didn't want to have more trouble with her until he can figure out how he can work on befriending her while he's here.

"…Do you really want to be my friend?" Maladia asked, partly curious and partly confused. "I have…problems. I might lash out at anything I don't like. I would hear things nobody can…very irritating things, see things that nobody can. My emotions are a mess. Nobody is safe from me…not even you."

He couldn't put his finger on it, but he can't shake the feeling she's trying to warn him on how dangerous she could be. He had already seen how violent she could get, and he had heard her screams before that. Her moods constantly shifted, every little subject he brings up to her triggering one of her unstable emotions. Perhaps she thinks she's a threat to everything and everyone around her and is trying to convince him to mind what he's doing unless he wants to endanger himself as soon as he gets close to her.

At the same time, however, he felt he had already made his bed coming down here, and now he must sleep in it. Maybe he could do something with her the other members didn't do for her. The idea that she's been a prisoner for some mysterious reason and mistreated for no good reason made him want to get involved with her more and more, find out what hurt her in the first place, maybe give her a sliver of comfort. Perhaps it would do her good to find a way to help her get a little taste of the outside like he did – though, he would have to tread carefully in that case. It would be a fatal problem if anyone found out he offered sympathy for a deranged prisoner they've kept locked away for who knows how long.

"Well…it wouldn't hurt you to have at least one friend," Roxas replied. "If anything, it'd be good for you if you had someone who can keep your personal issues under control. Maybe, if I'm lucky and I have the opportunity, I can show you what you never got to see for yourself. It'd be a lot better than wasting away in here longer…right?"

Maladia swayed side to side, pursing her lips in deep thought. "Hm…I suppose so. I've had nothing but bullies for…I don't know how long. It'd be nice to have someone who can have a little compassion…"

"…So, ever since then, I'd visit her when I have the chance or I'd sneak her out and let her walk around town for a little while before I brought her back to the castle," Roxas finished up his story. "Either way, I'd talk to her about different things and she'd listen, and when she had issues, I'd try to help her through it. Though, it still took a lot of work because she's been dealing with the other members for quite a lot longer than I have, and she hasn't had any glimpse of the outside since her captivity."

After having Roxas's story, Noir took a moment to weigh the situation present. On one hand, she can understand why he took pity on Maladia as she despises prejudice against people who are different from everyone else, and it does sound like he is genuinely trying to do something nice for the unlucky soul who had been exposed to negativity for so long. On the flipside, though, she can't help feeling concerned for Roxas's well-being, considering he's hanging around with an unstable individual whose behavior gives her the impression that she's a ticking time bomb about to go off at any given moment. The motherly side of her wanted to discourage him from continuing his business with her out of fear for his safety, but since he appears to be able to keep her problematic nature under control, she thought it would be a little better to simply exercise caution to him while trying to support his decision.

"Roxas, I'm sure you mean well letting her hang around you," Noir gave her two cents on the matter, "but shouldn't you be worried about the possibility of your colleagues finding out what you've doing behind their back, or for that matter what Axel might think?"

He sighed sadly. "Actually, yeah…I'm scared of getting caught. I'm scared that Axel might do something to her if he finds out. But that's why I meet her after everyone's called a day on their missions. Only when everything in the castle has quiet down do I have the chance to join Maladia."

"You're sure you can keep her under control?" she asked, just to be sure.

Maladia glared at her angrily. "You doubt him? You really think he can't do anything to help me?"

Roxas carefully pat her shoulders repeatedly as he assured her quietly, "Easy, Maladia…easy. Noir's just worried, that's all. She has good reason to be worried, being a mom and all. It's okay." When she gave him a confused face, he clarified, "I found out she's a mother when Xion and I first met her." He turned back to Noir. "Sorry about that. I know you're scared about what she'd do, but I promise I'll be careful with her. I'm sure if she's given enough time, she might have her issues on a leash. If you can at least give her a chance, maybe she'll warm up to people from outside a little more. Please?"

For a moment, Noir felt frozen in her spot. How can she respond to this? How can Roxas be so certain he can keep his companion in check while she's with him? Sure, being a mother, she had every good reason to be concerned about his safety, especially since he didn't shy away from admitting she has mental instabilities.

But…how can she say no to him? He had been truly kind to her ever since she first arrived in Twilight Town in person along with Xion. He and his friends have even agreed to go out of their way to protect Luna and company from the Organization after speaking of their experience with their colleagues in Castle Oblivion prior. Would it be wrong for her to insist upon Roxas breaking away from Maladia after all that? Perhaps she could try her best to support his decision, but also try to keep an eye on things when she next sees Maladia – at least, if only to make sure nothing gets too dangerous for the town's inhabitants.

"…Honestly, I'm not too comfortable about this," Noir confessed with all sincerity, "and I am worried about your safety whether you're with the Organization or your other friend here. But if you're sure you can handle being around her for the most part, I'll give you the benefit of the doubt for the time being. Just please do me one favor: if anything goes wrong during your business with Maladia, please come to me as soon as possible. Do you promise?"

He gave her a reassuring smile. "Don't worry, Noir. I'll be careful, promise. I'm sure she'll be okay while I'm around."

Maladia leaned in to rest her head atop his with a small sigh. "Always so trusting of people…so sweet yet naïve. But at least he knows how to show compassion…unlike them. That's what I've come to like about Roxy."

"I'm sure you have," Noir agreed carefully.

Roxas reached to his companion's arm and tugged a bit as he said, "C'mon, Maladia, let's keep going. I promised to show you the clock tower, didn't I?"

"Yeah…yeah, you did. You said there's a clock tower," Maladia replied with a nod.

He turned back to Noir. "Better get going. I'll see you another day?"

"Of course, Roxas. We'll meet again another day," she replied courteously.

As she watched Roxas lead his unusual companion along, he turned back for a moment to wave good-bye to her with a confident smile, which she politely reciprocated. When they were far enough along, she continued her way through town to the tram common where a small group of people are going about their business. No Heartless can be seen so far, so that means there's no need to worry about them making an appearance at any time.

Along the way, she spotted Nero leaving one of the shops with a box of plumbing tools and extra cleaning supplies on hand. She guessed that means Luna and Medea are still at the Old Mansion taking care of things in the house – perhaps last-minute touches to prepare for Naminé and DiZ to arrive. Not seeing any harm in checking up since she's on her way there anyway, she shifted her focus and approached to greet him.

"Nero, is everything going alright?" she inquired, nearing him.

Nero turned around, surprised but happy to see her. "Oh, hi, Noir. Yeah, we're almost done fixing the mansion up. I just need to do some final check-ups on the plumbing, just to make sure we won't have hassle with the drainage, and then we should be good to go. Luna and Medea are adding some touches to the rooms we'll be using. Though, Luna's the one who insisted on trying to make it a little more inviting, especially for Naminé's sake."

"Really? That's good news," she said, fully approving. "I'm sure she would love the mansion if it's brought up to better conditions."

"Knowing DiZ, though, he'd probably be indifferent," Nero mumbled under his breath.

"Nero, I know you don't trust him," Noir firmly chastised him. "Believe me, even I don't trust him. The only reason I'm willing to play along with him is because I want to make sure Luna is safe from the Organization's hands."

"Yeah, I know we're just going along with this for now," he confessed. "But…something about him just rubs me the wrong way. I don't know what it is, though."

"Instinctive distrust, I suppose?" Noir guessed. "Someone's bound to think this way at –"

"Um…excuse me?"

The soft voice from behind him prompted Noir and Nero to stop in their tracks and turn around to see a familiar female in a black coat shyly peeking around a corner. Nero froze where he stopped as Noir approached her with a friendly smile, recognizing the dark hair.

"Hello, Xion. What are you doing here?" she asked sweetly.

"Well, I was just looking around the common when I saw Nero browsing the shops," Xion replied. "Actually, I've seen him doing the past several days whenever I've been on missions with Roxas. One day he has bags, and the next it's a box. The last time we spoke with you and Luna, I remember hearing something about cleaning a house, so I…" She brought her right arm out from behind her as she presented a bag of small cloths. "I thought they might need a few more cleaning cloths to help along."

Listening to this, Nero's face changed from wariness to utterly dumbfounded. He wasn't aware Noir had met Roxas and Xion previously, let alone spoke to them personally. He must've missed out on what went on between them while he was making the repairs at the mansion for the most part. Also, where did she even hear about them cleaning? There's no way she would've heard anything about it – unless Luna had something to do with it. Somehow, it wouldn't surprise him if she quickly opened up to Roxas and Xion upon first meeting them to the point where some updates are shared (some, not all, mind).

"That's very kind of you, Xion," Noir said, approving the generosity. "What motivated you to do this?"

"That's the funny thing: Roxas and I had a private talk one time where he had no idea what cleaning is about," she replied with a slight giggle fit. "Not even I understood it. When we had a chance to visit town again, we had to ask some people if that's a thing people do and – believe it or not – it's true."

Nero looked at her, his confusion getting worse. "You guys…seriously had a discussion…over something that trivial?"

Xion nodded like it's obvious. "Yeah."

Now he didn't know what to do. He didn't know whether to get involved or to just walk away, until he remembered what Luna asked him to do: give them a chance. He promised her he'd try getting to know Roxas and his friends before he judged them. Taking a deep breath, he slowly drew nearer as he joined in with the two women.

"Well…I guess it would be rude to refuse a kind gesture," he confessed as he gingerly accepted the bag of cleaning cloths.

"Well, you can't deny, Nero, that at least the two children are very sweet," Noir pointed out, "unlike the rest of their crew."

Yeah, there's no avoiding that truth, especially after his experience with the members who tried to use him to lure Luna to their Superior. If anything, he should have considered himself lucky he wasn't roped into their membership to begin with – or he would, if he hadn't been pressured into pretending to be her sibling since being transferred to Castle Oblivion.

"Can't deny that," he admitted guiltily.

Xion smiled innocently at him. "Luna mentioned you a few times when we spoke with her. Roxas and I have been wanting to talk with you since that encounter in the woods."

Nero was taken aback. "Really?"

"Yup. We were hoping we could be friends with you, too," she replied eagerly. "Maybe we can talk again sometime?"

"Well…I guess that's not a problem. I don't think I'll have more to do after some last-touch repairs," he agreed, nervously scratching the back of his head. "Plus, Luna scolded me for not saying hello properly and insisted I work on my social skills while I'm here."

Xion giggled at this, finding it funny. "I can't imagine why."

He had half a mind to spill the beans about the situation proper, but a little beeping alarm from his earpiece stopped him, shifting his attention to take the oncoming call and find out what the deal is.

"Nero? Could you come over, please?" Luna's voice is heard from the earpiece. "We've got company coming very shortly."

"Oh, yeah, sure, Luna. I'll be right over in a short with Noir," Nero replied. He turned to Xion with an apologetic face. "Sorry. Luna just called. We'd better get going. But…we'll meet up again when things calm down, 'kay?"

"Maybe at the clock tower, us and Axel?" she asked.

"Of course, we will, sweetie," Noir reassured her. "I'm sure he'd love to see us all again."

Like a child after getting the friendly meeting they've wanted for the first time, Xion ran off down the streets before she disappeared in the direction of the sandlot. When she's gone, the two of them continued their way down the street on their way to the Old Mansion with plenty of things to consider as soon as they get there.

"Something tells me Naminé and DiZ are on their way," Nero commented.

"Well, after having encountered new faces these past few days," Noir spoke, "I'm sure you're looking forward to seeing familiar faces again…even though you have your doubts on DiZ."

"At least that's something we can agree on," he said flatly.