Banshee: Oh my God, finally! It feels like this took forever... That's only because I was trying to work on several things at once; from this, to other fanfictions, and of course my novel, which totally wore my brain out. So don't worry, I'm not dead. I hope you enjoy this chapter, and I'll get the next one out as soon as I can.
Disclaimer: I only own my OCs and the plot.
Chapter Five: The Beginning of Crazy
Recap:
"Did you find anything yet?"
That was the first thing Raymond Hale heard when he stepped through his front door. It was what he heard every day for weeks. And the person who repeatedly asked him this question was standing right in front of him, with an anxious look on her face and eyes red from crying, said eyes pleading, begging him for some good news. He sighed heavily and looked down, away from his wife, as he shook his head slowly, and she began crying again. He followed her as she walked into the living room and sat back down on the couch, where she buried her face in her hands as she sobbed. Raymond put his hand on his wife's shoulder, but it did nothing to console her.
"I'm sorry Catherine, but there is no sign of her anywhere. We've searched everywhere, even Destiny Island, and there is no trace of her. She's just... gone."
"She can't be gone... She can't..."
"I'm not going to give up, Catherine. We'll keep looking until we find her." He said, determined despite how tired he was. "It'll be all right."
...
"Do you think it was them?" A feminine voice asked.
"Of course it was. Those guys aren't above kidnapping." Said the boy to her right. "You of all people should know that, Kairi."
"She must have gone after Roxas and got herself kidnapped." Said the tallest boy. "I told her to stay away from him, but she was too stubborn to listen, and now she's involved in this whole mess."
"It's not Nikki's fault, Riku." Kairi said testily. "This is Organization XIII we're talking about. Like Sora said, they aren't above kidnapping. They're probably holding her hostage to get to Sora, just like they did with me."
"I don't think Roxas had anything to do with it, though." Sora chimed in. "He's my Nobody. We're connected to each other. Heck, I bet they're friends by now. He wouldn't hurt her."
"It's not him I'm worried about." Riku said. "It's the rest of them."
"I dunno... I can't help but think this is our fault too.." Sora said guiltily, scratching the back of his neck. "We kept a lot of secrets from her." There was a brief pause as Riku and Kairi stared at him. He continued, "I mean, we were missing for a year; maybe two, and she must have been worried about us. But we never told her the full story of what happened. I can't help but think that maybe she wouldn't have gone looking for Roxas if we just told her everything..."
"I don't think that matters anymore. What's done is done." Riku said with finality. "Nikki is missing, and we know for a fact that Organization XIII has her locked up in their castle. What we need to do is figure out how we're going to rescue her."
"We could just rush in and kick their butts. You guys did the same thing when they kidnapped me." Kairi suggested.
"Yeah!" Sora agreed eagerly, his Keyblade appearing in his hand. "I say we go in guns blazing and hope for the best. Always works for me."
"That won't work a second time." Riku shot his plan down, making the brunette sulk a little. "For one, we don't have Ansem the Wise or King Mickey helping us this time, and for two, they'd be expecting us. We need to have a plan."
"So what's the plan, then?" Sora asked eagerly.
...
...
...
"I don't know yet."
Nikki woke up that morning feeling miserable. Absolutely miserable.
She was sure that she was gone for at least a month by now, and in that time she has already met all of the members of Organization XIII. Some meetings were pleasant, like with Roxas, Demyx and Zexion, while others were irritating, like Xigbar (who started calling her 'Kiddo' right out of the gate) and Axel (for obvious reasons), and the rest were either unsettling or scary (like with Xemnas and Saïx, respectively). Most of these encounters were left unwritten because the writer is lazy (/shot). But meeting all the members and knowing who they were wasn't enough for her to trust them. She didn't trust any of them. At all. With the exception of Roxas, they were all fake, drawing from the memories of their former lives as humans to fake their emotions when responding to anything.
Roxas was the only person in that whole castle that felt real to her... or as real as a Nobody could be. From the get go, Roxas was friendly and helpful, and was willing to do anything to help her feel more at home in the castle. Of course, what did she expect from Sora's Nobody? They had their differences, but in some areas, they seemed like the same person.
Axel was Roxas' best friend, but that didn't make him trustworthy in Nikki's eyes. The fact that he was the organization's assassin, as well as a double agent, didn't make him look any better. To her, he was a sneaky, green-eyed snake in the grass that was just waiting to sink his fangs into her while her back was turned. He was difficult to read, always calm and calculating, and it both irritated and unnverved her. Plus, he was annoying, always addressing her with cute little pet names, like "sweetheart" and "kitten," knowing full well how much it embarrassed and angered her, and calling her "cute." At least Roxas seems to affect him in a positive way.
Then there was Demyx. Sure, he was nice to her, but he is a lazy coward at the end of the day.
Zexion seems nice enough, always polite and explaining things in detail no matter what questions he was asked. But, in the end, he was a scientist, and it seemed as though he only hung around her because she was something for him to study.
But, despite this, these four Nobodies were the closest things she had to friends in the castle; even Axel, whom Nikki couldn't stand because of his attitude, but she put up with him because of Roxas. Nonetheless, she missed her family and friends, the people she had known for practically her entire life, and would have given anything to see them again.
Only Roxas seemed to notice how unhappy she was, and decided to address it one day.
"What's wrong, Nikki?" Roxas asked her, after taking in her miserable appearance.
"I miss my family.." Nikki mumbled. "They must all be worried sick about me. Maybe they wouldn't be so worried if I could call them and let them know I'm okay. But my phone's gone..."
"What if I could get your phone back for you?"
Nikki immediately perked up at this, and said excitedly, "You can?"
"I can try." He said. "Last I heard, Axel had it."
The brunette's eyes widened. "Axel? He's the one that took my phone? Can't say I'm surprised.."
"That's great, Roxas!" Nikki exclaimed. "How soon can you get it?"
Roxas crossed his arms thoughtfully. "Well, Axel had it last, so I can ask him where it is." He said. "He might still have it, so I might be able to get it back to you by tonight. The battery has to be dead by now, though.."
"Who cares if it's dead?" Nikki said. "As long as I get it back in one piece, that's good enough."
"Are you sure this will work?"
Roxas simply nodded at Nikki's question as he untangled the mess of wire that was his phone charger, plugging it into the outlet by his bed once he was finished. Yes, he has a phone. According to him, while he and Axel were hanging out in Twilight Town, he saw some kids his age texting on their phones and commented to the redhead on how he thought it would be cool if they could do the same thing; when they were too far apart to speak directly to each other, of course. Axel apparently thought it was a good idea, for he got them both a cell phone, which they used to send each ther text messages every so often.
"Okay, here goes." Roxas said, plugging the cord into Nikki's phone. The screen was dark for a moment before an hourglass appeared on the screen, displaying a one percent battery signal. "It worked!"
The brunette gasped excitedly, hugging Roxas. "Roxas, you brilliant boy, you did it! I could kiss you right now!"
So she did. The Nobody's face turned bright red as she planted a big kiss on his cheek.
"Ugh!" He groaned, squirming out of her grip. "What is it with girls and hugging and kissing?"
Nikki chuckled. Boys...
With the phone still plugged in, Nikki took the device and opened it. Immediately she found it flooded with voicemails and messages from her loved ones, all frantically wondering where she was. The sheer amount of these messages made Nikki wince. "Oh boy..." She said.
"What're you gonna do?" Roxas asked.
"Well I have to call them." She replied. "If I can't go back home, I can at least let them know I'm okay."
Roxas raised an eyebrow. "And what are you gonna tell them, exactly? That you're being held prisoner in a castle by an evil organization, but you're totally fine and they shouldn't worry? I doubt that'll make them feel better."
"I have to tell them something, Roxas."
Nikki looked through her contacts, deciding who she should call. It didn't take much thought, however. When it came to bad news, it was always easier to tell her mother because her softer, more patient nature allowed her to take such news relatively well; in contrast to her father, who always reacted with utter shock and/or outrage every time she or her sister ever gave him particulatrly bad news. Every blood vessel in his brain would pop if she told him now and her mother wasn't around to calm him down. Finding her mother's number, Nikki dialed it and waited for the inevitable.
Her mother answered after one ring.
"Honey?" She asked tentavely. "Is that you?"
Nikki hesitated for a moment, before she answered. "Yeah, Mom. It's me."
...
...
...
"Mom?"
"NICOLE JENNIFER HALE!" Came her mother's outraged reply. Nikki had to hold the phone away from her ear.
So much for her taking it well...
"Where have you been?" She demanded. "You've been gone for weeks! We've been worried sick about you!"
"Mom, I-"
"Dinnae interrupt me! Your father's been running himself ragged looking for you! He barely eats, he barely sleeps, he's an absolute mess! We were afraid something horrible happened to you! You'd better explain yourself right now, lassie!"
Nikki gulped. This wasn't going to be easy.
"Well, Mom... It's kind of... complicated."
"Oh really?" Her mother said. "How so?"
Taking a deep breath, Nikki explained everything. It took a good ten minutes for her to get out every little detail, at least every one she could remember, and when she finished she waited for her mother's response. Not only did she tell her how she ended up there in the first place, but she had to explain everything that Roxas said to her or else nothing would make sense. At first there was a silence on the other end of the line, but then her mother spoke.
"I dinnae care how 'scary' or 'powerful' this 'Organization XIII' is." She said at last. "You're coming home right now, lassie. If they dinnae like it, that's just too bad. You're my daughter."
"Yeah, good luck telling them that, Mom." Nikki mutttered.
"I will if I have to." Catherine said with a defiance that mirrored her daughter's. "I'll walk right up to that 'Superior' of theirs and tell him myself."
The brunette sighed. "They're not gonna let me go, Mom. They think they can use me against Sora."
"Oh, they won't, eh?" Her mother challenged. "We'll see about that."
"What are you gonna do?" Nikki asked, though she had a feeling she already knew the answer.
"I think I'll call your friends, Sora and Riku. According to you, they are 'Keyblade' wielders and have fought these people before-and beat them, too. They'll just have to beat them again."
Uh-oh, Nikki thought. If Sora and Riku got involved, then things would get a lot messier. She knew how those two were. Sora was the type of person to risk his own life for anybody, even people he had never met before, and his strong sense of justice wouldn't allow this situation to escape his attention. He would likely be the one to barge into the castle, Keyblade in hand, ready to throw down with the entire organization if necessary. As for Riku, he was always protective of his friends, and Nikki was no exception, often acting like her-very protective-younger brother.
Long story short, those two would wreak havoc on the castle. The idea made Nikki think of the members that she had grown to like. Sure, they drove her nuts sometimes, especially Axel, but she didn't want them to get hurt. According to Roxas, they were people once, and they just wanted their hearts back. Some of the members were evil, but the ones she knew weren't. She was actually glad that an intellectual, a lazy coward, a kid and a smartass was all she had to deal with right now.
She wanted to go home. She didn't want a war.
"Uh, Mom, some of these guys are kind of my friends..." She stated, making her mother gasp in disbelief.
"What? Friends? Oh dear Lord, she has Stockholm Syndrome..."
"I don't have Stockholm Syndrome, Mom!"
Catherine made a noise. "Oh, I think calling your captors your 'friends' qualifies as Stockholm Syndrome, Honey." She said.
Nikki rolled her eyes. "Trust me, nobody wants to beat these guys up more than me. It's just that I can't. Not without getting killed, anyway. These guys have superpowers, remember?"
Her mother wasn't convinced. With finality, she stated, "I'm calling them."
"Can't we resolve this without having Sora and Riku fight them?" Nikki proposed.
"I dinnae think so."
"Can we at least try?" She pressed. "Maybe we can work something out. If it doesn't work, then we'll kick their butts. Sound fair?"
There was a pause, then her mother replied, reluctantly, "... All right. I may not trust these people worth a damn, but I trust you. We'll do this your way, Honey. But dinnae expect your father to be happy about it."
Right. Her father. The man with a bad track record with handling bad news. This was going to be fun. Not.
"I just hope he doesn't give himself a heart attack..." Nikki said as she imagined her father's beet red face, his mustache bristling.
Catherine sighed. "Trust me, he will. You know how he takes these things. Cannae say I would blame him in this case."
"I know."
"I think we should meet their leader." Her mother suggested. "Perhaps we can reason with him."
The idea made Nikki scoff. "I doubt that," she thought. Xemnas was so out of touch with actual emotion that nothing he said would be believable. That, and he's manipulative and melodramatic, so reasoning with that man was impossible. He would just twist things around like he always does. She doubted he would even acknowledge her parents' request to meet in person anyway.
"Can you come by tomorrow?" Catherine asked hopefully.
"I'll work something out." Nikki said.
She heard her mother sigh. "Good. Be safe, sweetie. I love you."
"Love you too, Mom."
After hanging up, Nikki sighed and rested her head on her palm. The thought of what was about to happen was starting to give her a headache.
"So?" Roxas piped up after respectfully staying silent for the entire conversation. "What'd your mom say?"
Nikki told the young Nobody about her mother's request to speak to the Superior in person, which made the blonde's eyes widen.
"Your parents want to meet the Superior?" He asked.
"Yup."
"Bad idea."
"I know."
"What are we gonna do?" Roxas asked.
"I don't know." Nikki said. "But somebody has to go with me tomorrow, or else she'll call Sora and Riku, and they'll be beating down your door."
"You know I have to report this to Saïx, right?" The young Nobody said after a moment of silence.
Nikki sighed. "Yeah, I know." She said. "What do you think he'll say?"
"Nothing good." Roxas replied. "But he might agree to something if it'll keep Sora and Riku from coming. They already beat the Organization once. I doubt the others would want that to happen again."
"Good point." Nikki agreed.
Sighing, Roxas got up from his spot on Nikki's bed. "I have to report to the Grey Area for missions anyway. I'll ask him about it while I'm there." He said.
"Okay." The brunette responded.
Once Roxas disappeared through a portal, Nikki leaned forward and put her face in her hands. This whole situation was getting more and more messy and complicated as the days went by, and she was starting to think that there wasn't going to be an easy way to resolve it; not without a friend getting hurt, anyway.
She sighed heavily.
"What have I gotten myself into?"
When Roxas returned a few hours later, he found Nikki had fallen asleep, curled up in a ball with the covers pulled over her body. Despite her situation, she looked rather relaxed, her deep breathing indicating that she had been asleep fo a while. Normally, upon finding her like this, the young Nobody would turn around and leave, but the others had followed him back and just had to catch a glimpse of the sleeping girl. Even Zexion would admit that she looked cute like this.
"Somebody's comfortable." Axel mused, chuckling.
"Should we wake her up?" Demyx asked.
Zexion shook his head. "No. Let her sleep. We can give her the news when she wakes up."
"Yeah, we should do that." Roxas agreed, nodding. "I don't think she's been sleeping well lately. Sometimes I can hear her crying at night..."
The others fell silent at this, a couple of them shifting on their feet as they looked down guiltily.
"Is it weird that I feel bad?" Demyx piped up. When the others looked at him, he clarified. "I mean, I was the one that caught her in the first place... She just wanted help finding her way out of the castle, and all I did was get her stuck here..."
"No, it's my fault." Roxas said remorsefully. "I'm the reason she ended up here. She wouldn't have followed me here if I had just talked to her instead of running away."
"It's no use blaming yourselves." Zexion said. "What's done is done. The best thing we can do is try to make this work. Now let's go before we wake her up."
"Too late.."
The Nobodies turned just in time to see Nikki slowly sit up, rubbing her eyes as she turned to look at them. She sat with her shoulders slumped and eyes only half-open, and she looked as tired as she sounded.
"What's going on?" She asked groggily, rubbing her eyes again.
"We just have something to tell you." Roxas said. "But it can wait if you're too tired..."
"I'm fine." Nikki said forcefully. She then turned so that her legs were hanging off the bed. "What do you want to tell me?"
Roxas scratched the back of his head awkwardly. "Well, you see..."
Earlier That Day
"Your mission today is simple." Saïx stated as he stood before the youngest member, his hands folded behind his back in a professional and intimidating manner. "The number of Heartless in Wonderland has increased, and it is becoming a nuisance. Put that Keyblade of yours to good use and eliminate as many of them as possible. You are dismissed, XIII."
When Roxas didn't move, he raised an eyebrow and his eyes narrowed into a glare. "What are you standing around for? Get going."
"I just have something to ask you first, Sir." Roxas said as politely as possible. "It's about Nikki."
"You mean the girl? What about her?" The berserker asked with complete disinterest.
Roxas couldn't help but feel a small spike of anger at Saïx's response. The blue-haired man had made it very clear that he couldn't stand Nikki, and saw fit to insult her at every opportunity. He didn't even have the courtesy to use her name when he talked to or about her, always referring to her as "the girl." It always made the young Nobody's blood boil. Nonetheless, he had to ask him about the meeting; for Nikki's sake.
Taking a deep breath, Roxas did his best to explain Nikki's parents' request to speak to the Superior in person, even stressing the fact that they will call the Keyblade wielders, Sora and Riku, to come fight the organization if they are unable to come to an agreement. Saïx didn't even bother to question how they knew, likely because he already knew the answer, being the shrewd man that he is.
"No." Saïx said immediately after Roxas finished. "The Superior isn't going to waste his time on something so ridiculous."
"But somebody has to talk to her parents, or else Sora and Riku will beat the whole organization... again!"
The berserker sighed in exasperation at Roxas' insistence.
"Fine. If this nonsense is so important to you, then you can go with her. But make sure she understands that she is still our prisoner. If she tries to escape, or if you allow her to, there will be consequences. Understood?"
"Understood, Sir."
"Good. Now go complete your mission, or you'll be put on mop duty for a month."
Roxas didn't need to be told twice. Mop duty sucked, almost as much as cleaning the toilets. He conjured a portal and walked through it without a second thought.
Present
"So that's what he said, huh?" Nikki said after Roxas finished his retelling of the event, not at all surprised by Saïx's response. She then added, bitterly, "Can't say I'm surprised. Scarface never did like me. He makes a point of telling me all the time."
"Maybe he'd hate you less if you didn't call him 'Scarface' all the time." Axel pointed out, smirking. "Me personally, I think it's brilliant."
"I'd hardly call insulting someone with the ability to enter a berserk state and pound you into a bloody pulp 'brilliant.'" Zexion chided them. "Unless you're planning on getting yourself killed brutally, that is."
Axel just rolled his eyes.
"At any rate," The schemer continued, bringing the subject back on track. "According to Roxas, Saïx did say that he could go with you. He couldn't do it alone of course, being our youngest member and all, so the rest of us have decided to offer our help as well."
"Really?" Nikki asked. "All of you?"
"Of course, Nikki." Roxas said, smiling. "We're your friends."
At first, Nikki didn't know how to react. She just sat there in mild shock for almost a minute, eyes a little wider than normal and mouth agape, as her brain was trying to process the young Nobody's words. They really considered themselves her friends? She had only been there for about a month, and hadn't known the Nobodies for as long as everyone else. However, they were nice to her and were the closest things to friends that she had in this castle. After a while, she smiled.
"Thank you."
The Next Day
Nikki stood in front of the door to her house, the Nobodies standing right behind her, her hand raised as she prepared to knock and announce their presence. However, her hand froze just before her fist made contact with the door, nervously shaking. She jumped a little when she felt Roxas' hand on her shoulder.
"Go ahead." He encouraged. "Don't worry, it'll be okay."
Feeling slightly braver, Nikki took a deep breath and knocked on the door. Almost immediately afterward, the lock was undone and the door was flung open, and she found herself being smushed against her mother's chest.
"Oh, thank goodness! My wee girl! I've been so worried about you..."
"Mom..." Nikki choked out. "I... can't... breathe..."
"Oh!" Her mother gasped, then released her. "Sorry, sweetie.."
She gently grasped her daughter's face in her hands and turned her head from side to side, inspecting her.
"Are you okay?" She asked worriedly. "You're not hurt, are you? I swear, if they hurt one hair on your beautiful little head, I'll-"
"Mom." Nikki said forcefully. "I'm fine."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes."
Nikki's mother sighed and released her face, looking noticeably more relieved than she was before. There was still that hint of unease and fear in her body language, but she seemed to be better now that she could look her daughter in the eye again. She then turned and looked directly at the Nobodies beside Nikki, finally acknowledging their presence.
"Hello," She greeted with the most sincere smile she could muster. "I'm Catherine; Nikki's mother. Please, come in. I'll get some tea started."
Catherine then turned sharply on her heel and walked back inside. At first the Nobodies were reluctant to go into the house, for obvious reasons, but after some encouragement from Nikki, who assured them that her parents "won't bite," they slowly made their way inside.
As soon as they walked through the door, they immediately felt the tension inside the house. It got even worse when they reached the kitchen, where Nikki's parents were waiting for them. While Catherine was getting the tea ready, her father, Raymond, sat at the table. As soon as he saw them enter, he sat up straight and took his gun out of his pocket, placing it on the table without a word; all while maintaining eye contact and looking as intimidating as possible.
"Hi Dad." Nikki said cautiously.
"Hello Love." He greeted her in a gentle, fatherly fashion. His tone was different when addressing the Nobodies; harsh and commanding, with a hint of forced politeness. "Lieutenant Raymond Hale. A pleasure. Please, have a seat."
He gestured to the empty seats at the table, and they all sat down. Shortly after, Catherine began passing around the finished tea, which they accepted.
"So," He began, leaning forward a bit. "Which one of you is the leader of this little organization of yours?"
"None of us, Sir." Roxas spoke up. "The Superior is... well... He's..."
"He's not coming." Zexion interjected. "Negotiating with humans would be a waste of his time. He has, however, given us permission to speak with you and resolve this issue before it can escalate any further."
"Is that so?"
"You must understand, Mr. Hale. We are Nobodies. Without our hearts, we cannot feel emotion in the true sense. We only have our memories to remind us what it felt like to have them. Our Superior is currently working on a way to help us retrieve our lost hearts. Anything that doesn't have to do with his plan is considered insignificant, or a 'waste of time.'"
"And what does my daughter have to do with this 'plan' of his?" Raymond inquired.
"Nothing." Zexion said simply.
"Then what is the point in keeping her, then?" Raymond demanded, raising his voice. "Let her go if she's of no use to you!"
"I'm not sure why she's being kept at the castle. All we were told was that she would be our 'permanent guest.' It could be because of her connection to the Keyblade wielder, Sora. Perhaps the Organization is planning to use her against him in some way."
"That's not happening."
Everyone turned at the new, yet familiar, voice, and saw Sora and Riku enter the kitchen. The white-haired young male had his arms crossed as he gave the Nobodies a harsh glare, while the spiky-haired brunette beside him, while sporting a glare of his own, looked more relieved upon seeing Nikki unharmed. Riku was relieved too, though he was too busy glaring to show it.
Nikki stared at them, shocked. "Sora? Riku? What are you guys doing here?" She asked.
"Your dad called us. He wanted us to make sure that when they-" Riku nodded towards the Nobodies, "-left, that they wouldn't be able to take you with them."
Nikki immediately turned on her father, her eyes blazing. "Dad? You called them? What the hell? I thought we were doing this my way! Right, Mom?"
"I'm so sorry, Honey..." Her mother apologized. "I tried to talk him out of it, but he wouldn't listen. I told you he wasn't going to be happy about this.."
"You're damn right I'm not happy!" Her father barked angrily. "You expect me to just stand by while the only daughter I have left is kept prisoner in some castle? No sir! Not going to happen!"
"I'm handling it, Dad!"
"Oh, are you now?" The mustached man inquired in a disbelieving tone. "And how exactly do you 'handle' being kept prisoner, hm?"
"All I'm trying to do is work things out without any fighting! The last thing I want is for my friends to get hurt!"
Raymond scoffed. "Friends? These people are keeping you prisoner, and you call them your friends?"
"Well, more or less." Nikki said, shrugging.
"They're not your friends, Nikki." Riku interjected. "They're only pretending to be. Except for Roxas, they're all liars who fake their emotions. You can't trust anything they say."
"That's not fair." Demyx said dejectedly. "Just because we don't have hearts doesn't mean we can't care about Nikki. She's our friend too!"
"And yet you're keeping her prisoner in your castle. Yeah, I can tell you're such good friends." Riku remarked sarcastically.
"That's not our fault!" Roxas yelled. "The Superior made that decision, not us! If it was up to us, we'd have let her go a long time ago!"
"Everyone, please, calm down." Catherine implored. "Arguing isn't going to help."
"She's right." Sora spoke up. "Let's all just chill out, okay?"
While the conversation continued, Axel, who had remained silent through this whole exchange so far, took the time to take in everything around him. To say the situation was tense was a serious understatement. Both Nikki and her father were getting steadily more irritated as time went by, though for different reasons; Raymond was getting angry at the fact that no matter what he said, Organization XIII wasn't going to let his daughter go, which was understandable, while Nikki was angry that things weren't going the way she planned. Riku, while trying to be level-headed, was being mildly antagonistic, though he understood why; the Organization has screwed with him and Sora in the past, so of course he didn't trust any of them worth a pile of crap. Sora and Catherine were trying to keep the peace, with limited success. The whole time this was happening, the Hales' dog, Butch, sat at Nikki's feet, growling at the Nobodies as the brunette absentmindedly scratched him behind the ears. At least they weren't trying to destroy each other... yet.
"Enough of this!" Raymond exclaimed heatedly. "Nicole belongs here, with her family, and that's final. She's already missed an entire month of school, which is unacceptable because I'll have you know that before she disappeared, she had a perfect attendance record. Even during her rougher years, she still never missed one single, solitary day of school, I tell you what-"
"Dad!" Nikki cut him off, her tone a mix of angry and embarrassed. "You're rambling again!"
"Oh, am I? Sorry, Love. I just get so proud of you, that I-"
"I know." She drawled with a sigh of exasperation. "Can we get back on track, please?"
"Oh. Right, right, right..." Raymond cleared his throat politely. "As I was saying before, our daughter is staying here, with her family. If you think for one second that I'll let her go back with you, then you're out of your bloody minds!"
Zexion shook his head and said, "I'm afraid that's not up to you; or us, for that matter. Like Roxas said, the Superior made the decision to keep her in the castle, and unless we wish to be turned into Dusks, we obey his orders. She stays with us until the Superior sees fit to release her."
"No way!" Riku objected, his Keyblade materializing in his hand. "We're not going to let you clowns use her like you did Kairi. She's not a pawn in your 'master plan.'"
"That's right." Sora agreed fervently, summoning his Keyblade as well. "We don't want to fight you again; the first time was absolutely exhausting, but we will if we have to!"
"Nobody is fighting anybody." Nikki interjected, feeling both tired and aggravated. "What part of 'I want to resolve this without fighting' don't you understand? It doesn't matter if we like it or not. Either way, I'm going to be staying at the castle... probably forever. I don't want my friends getting hurt fighting a pointless battle just for my sake. We're doing this my way, understand? Now put your damn Keyblades away before I beat you over the head with them!"
"But-"
"Away. NOW."
Riku opened his mouth to protest, but a harsh glare from Nikki silenced him. He glanced at Sora with a look that clearly said "Come on, back me up," but the brunette just shrugged. The taller male let out an annoyed groan and looked to Nikki's parents, hoping they would say something, but Catherine stopped her husband before he could speak by tugging on his mustache. He was shocked when he saw Sora's Keyblade disappear.
"You've got to be kidding me." He grumbled. "Sora, come on. You know how these people are. You know what they've done. They used that Naminé girl to try to brainwash you into being their puppet by messing with your memories. Mr. Illusions over there-" He nodded towards Zexion, who scowled, "-tried to manipulate me into thinking you would turn against me. And let's not forget that Axel's the one that kidnapped Kairi, and they imprisoned her in their castle so they could use the fact that they had her to manipulate you into gathering hearts for them! We can't trust them. We have to end this now!"
Sora sighed. "I know what they've done, Riku. But Nikki seems really serious about this... and I really don't want her to beat me with my own Keyblade... I trust her. I think we should do this her way."
"You can't be serious..."
"You trust her, don't you?"
"Yes, I do, but-"
"Then drop it."
"But-"
"Drop it."
"Sora-"
"Drop it."
"Sora, just let me-"
"Drop it."
"All right!" Riku yelled. He then took a deep breath, letting it out slowly as his Keyblade disappeared. "All right. Fine."
Then he turned to face the Nobodies, his expression deadly serious, and spoke in a tone that matched his face. "But I want to make one thing clear: If you do anything, anything at all to hurt Nikki, I swear I will strike down each and every one of you. Got it?"
Sora nodded in agreement, his eyes blazing. "That does double for me."
"Got it." Demyx squeaked from his hiding place behind Roxas, who rolled his eyes at his superior's cowardice.
Zexion just nodded. "Understood."
"I swear I will not harm one hair on her pretty little head." Axel promised. He then drew an 'X' on his chest where his heart should have been, and added cheekily, "Cross my heart."
Roxas smacked him. "Be serious!"
"I am. See? Crossed my heart and everything."
"You'll protect her, won't you Roxas?" Sora asked, his expression and voice softening as he addressed his Nobody.
Roxas gave him a strange look. "Why wouldn't I protect her?" He inquired. "She's my friend."
"I know you will. I just wanted to hear you say it."
"This is madness!" Nikki's father exclaimed, flabbergasted. "Absolute madness! My daughter is being kept prisoner, and I'm expected to be okay with it?"
"It doesn't matter if any of us is okay with it, Dad." Nikki said. "It's happening, and we're all just going to have to deal with it for now."
"But-"
Nikki hugged her father, effectively cutting him off.
"It's okay, Dad." She said softly, tightening her hold on him briefly. "I'll be fine. Please, trust me."
Raymond was silent for a moment, his words of anger and disapproval dying on his tongue the second his daughter hugged him. Slowly he wrapped his arms around her, returning her affectionate gesture, his hold on her a little too tight; as if he was afraid she would be ripped away from him at any moment. Catherine, who was standing beside them, had tears in her eyes. Unable to hold herself back any longer, she joined in on their hug, her arms winding around both her husband and daughter. Sora and Riku, as well as the Nobodies, remained respectfully silent, letting them have their moment.
"Of course I trust you, Love." He said at last, a little choked up. "Just... be sure to call, yeah?"
"I will." She replied.
The moment was interrupted when a portal materialized in the middle of the room. A Dusk appeared and stepped out of the darkness, making Nikki's parents tense up and jump back in alarm. Raymond reached for his gun and pointed it at the creature, but Nikki grasped it and forced him to put it down. The zipper on its mouth opened and the Dusk spoke to the Nobodies, disappearing once it was finished.
"What the devil was that?" Raymond exclaimed, referring to the strange creature.
"It was a Dusk. It's the lowest type of Nobody. They're basically the Organization's grunts." Nikki explained to him. She then turned to the Nobodies and asked, "What did it say?"
"We've been ordered to return to the castle at once. I'm sure Saïx has some missions for us. Either that, or he's getting suspicious about our long absence." Zexion said, getting up out of his chair. "We should get going now. It's been a pleasure meeting you, Mr. and Mrs. Hale."
Each Nobody politely said their goodbyes and filed out of the room, but Roxas stayed behind with Nikki, her parents and Sora and Riku.
"We're so sorry you got mixed up in all this, Nikki." Sora apologized. "Maybe this wouldn't have happened if we just told you everything from the start instead of keeping so much from you."
"And you probably wouldn't have ended up in the castle if I just talked to you instead of running away..." Roxas said regretfully.
"It's okay. I forgive you." Nikki said, hugging them both. Riku escaped the hug by sidestepping out of the way. He wasn't much of a hugger.
"Just be careful, Nikki." Riku said. "I don't know if you realized this by now, but most of the members of Organization XIII are crazy."
"Oh, I know." Nikki replied, cringing at the memory of meeting some of the crazier members. "The way I see it, the members I brought here with me are the only sane ones out of the whole bunch."
"She's got a point." Sora agreed.
"Yeah, definitely." Roxas also agreed. He added, shuddering, "One time, I saw Larxene nearly tear Xigbar's arm off just for eating the piece of cake she left in the fridge.."
Nikki and the boys shuddered at the thought.
"If I may ask," Raymond interjected. "Will Nicole be returning to school now?"
"I'm sure the Superior wouldn't have a problem with it." Roxas assured him.
"And if he does, we'll just have a word with him, won't we dear?" Catherine said bravely, looking to her husband for support. He nodded in response.
"Are you guys coming, or what?" They heard Axel's voice from the foyer. "If we don't hurry up, Berserker Boy will come get us himself and trust me, you do not want that!"
Roxas' eyes widened. "Yeah, we'd better go."
"Good idea." Nikki agreed.
The two of them said a quick goodbye to her parents, then to Sora and Riku, giving them quick hugs (Nikki managed to catch Riku as he tried to inch himself away), and then rushed out the door.
When they returned to the castle, they found Saïx waiting for them, hands folded behind his back.
"That took you long enough." He said with slight irritation. "What happened?"
"Aw, were you worried about us? I didn't know you cared so much, Saïx." Axel remarked cheekily. He went to pinch the berserker's cheek, but the other man caught his wrist before he could do so, his glare murderous.
"I don't." Saïx growled. "Honestly, I could care less if the girl's parents are okay with this arrangement or not. All I want to know is if we have to worry about the Keyblade wielders getting involved."
Roxas scowled. He had done it again; not using Nikki's name and talking about her like she wasn't there. Just as he was going to give the older man a piece of his mind, Nikki put a hand on his shoulder, stopping him. She shook her head, silently telling him not to bother yelling at him. It wouldn't do any good anyway. Luckily, Axel knew just what to say.
"Don't worry, we took care of it. As long as Nikki remains safe and unharmed, they won't get involved." He said casually as the diviner released his wrist.
"Good." Saïx simply said. "You're dismissed for now, but I expect all of you to report to the Grey Area for your missions first thing tomorrow morning."
And with that, the diviner left, disappearing into a portal.
"Now what do we do?" Demyx asked.
"I don't know about you guys, but I'm going to bed." Nikki declared, yawning. "Scarface can get as pissy as he wants. I'm going to school tomorrow."
Yawning again, Nikki said good night to the Nobodies and went to her room.
Changing into one of her new pairs of pajamas, she got into bed, pulling the covers up to her chin. Today had been absolutely exhausting, and even though it wasn't her bed, she still felt comfortable enough in it to be able to fall asleep quickly. Little did she know, that as exhausting and irritating as today had been, it was only the beginning...
To be continued...