Luxord

Luxord studied the child before him. It was difficult to ascertain their gender given how their hair hid most of their facial features. They also wore the Organization's black cloak which gave nothing away of their true identity. He was not informed of a new recruit. Luxord was certain they already completed their thirteen; with the remaining two still being replicated to serve as perfect vessels.

The child occasionally glanced up to him but was too intimidated to keep their focus on him for too long. Luxord tilted his head and their eyes briefly met. The child jumped and hid behind Demyx who had his hands clasped over his head, begging. "Please do me this solid just this once, Lux!"

"Do not refer to me like that," he sighed. "We are not friends. And whatever reason you have I refuse to handle your problems. Unlike you, I have no time to carouse. I am occupied with more pressing matters."

"Well you're back here," Demyx argued, "which means Sora kicked your ass in the Carribean."

Luxord glared at the younger male who flinched. "W –What I meant was, you deserve a break! We all know what defeat tastes like and we shouldn't let it fester. We only live once right?" He placed a hand on the child's shoulder who shoved it off. "So what's the best way to relax? To spend it with company! Have good ol uncle Luxord teach you something fun, right? Uh…" He huffed. "We haven't really agreed on a name yet. I'm running out of sweet ideas."

"A name?"

"Ansem found them in the Realm of Darkness, and Vexen's been studying them since. I'm on babysitting duty because the kid keeps running off. They're crafty, this one," he added in a soft whisper. "They also kinda have no idea who they are, so we agreed to help them get their memories back if they are good."

The child punched Demyx's arm and the latter chuckled. "I know, I know. Work to do. Please Luxord! Just this once, I won't take long. I promise! Its Ansem orders, and you know how that goes."

Luxord's brows furrowed. "What does Ansem need a "benched" member like you to do this late in the game? We all received our orders."

Demyx crossed his arms behind his head and grinned. "You know the protocol, Lux, my lips are sealed. You shouldn't be asking questions either, so laters!" He threw his arms out with his hands gesturing out double peace signs and disappeared inside a dark corridor that led to who knows where.

Luxord sighed with the shake of his head then glanced at the child who stood at least three feet away from him, watching the last wisps of darkness disappear from the room. "And what say you about this unwanted predicament?" The child shrugged as though to say their opinion on it wouldn't matter anyway.

"A person of few words are you?" The child nodded which made the former smile a little. Perhaps their company wouldn't be as rough as he made it seem. "I was quite worn out from my assignment, may I persuade you to try a little game?" He flipped his hand to pull three gray cards with a white border and five Nobody symbols on its back.

The child shrugged again, not really having an opinion of their own. Nonetheless they silently followed him to a room where they could settle themselves in comfortably. Heeding Demyx's warning, Luxord made sure the child was always ahead of him in case they decided to run away behind his back. He had no inkling as to why the child was of importance to Ansem and Vexen but thought it unimportant. Looking after this child was a far easier task than scouring dozens of worlds for a box they did not even know existed.

The child watched him minutely shuffle his deck of card with large fascinated eyes. Luxord was unsure whether to be bothered by the attention placed on him, or if he should be flattered by it. Nevertheless he thought it best to grant the child a spectacle if they were that interested in his act and impressed by his dexterity.

He divided the stack into two halves and held them both horizontally on each palm. He placed his thumb and smaller finger at the bottom edge, and divided the two stacks further into two with his remaining three fingers. He rotated the new piles next to each other and applied pressure on the deck closest to his thumb. The edges of both piles shuffled together, and he flipped his hands down to shuffle them together in a neat pile.

The smallest of noises came from the child's mouth, clearly amazed by his act.

Feeling emboldened by their reaction, Luxord did the one hand shuffle trick again; only this time he had the entire pile cut into two with his right, then divided the pile nearest his pinky into another half with his left forefinger. He divided the new half on his left hand again, flipping the upper half between his fingers while the remaining half stuck close to his thumb. He shuffled the cards on his right together, pressed them on his left and stacked the remaining cards over it.

All of this happened in a second.

The child blinked, as though applauding him then stared. Luxord chuckled. "Would you like to see more? Perhaps one only I could do" They nodded.

Luxord pulled his hands apart, letting the cards levitate on its own space as though by magic and rotating them around him. The child gaped as a few cards flew towards them and circled around their head. They tried to grab onto one but Luxord pulled it back and shimmied the cards to form a cohesive S shaped wave between his grasp, slammed them all back together then raised his hands, nary a trace of playing cards on hands.

The child jumped and searched around for the cards, failing, until Luxord revealed them again with a flick of his wrist. "Shall we play?"

The child smiled, the first clear expression on their face since they met and nodded. Luxord dealt all the cards between them, deciding on something easy to start their time with. It was a simple yet classic game he'd learned from childhood. When the Organization first assembled, Luxord also used this game as a means to socialize with the rest. It proved too elementary for everyone (except Demyx) and thus were compelled to raise the stakes by adding a betting pool and including a punishment for the defeated. It was a genuinely good past time among them. Poker was yet another favorite, however, no one could win against him in that and so Old Maid it was.

The child quickly understood the rules then developed a winning streak. Luxord was courtier of luck himself, but this was by far the luckiest he's seen another have at it in this game. The game followed a rule of chance, and with only two players, that percentage was divided evenly between them. However, the child seemed to have sucked his luck out of the draw.

The only way Luxord thought it possible to win Old Maid 100% of the time was through cheating. Luxord was a man of principle and as a gambler, his pride did not allow him to cheat. He found the act abhorrent to even consider. He did however engage in acts that gently nudged the tides into his direction. It wasn't cheating, it was a calculated move to ensure victory. That being said, while he enjoyed the child's silent leaps and noises of joy and triumph, Luxord had his pride as a gambler to protect.

Luxord laid out all the cards on the table after he shuffled them twice, then collected them with a wave of his hand. He grabbed a piece from within the deck, certain of its suit and number then placed it to the side to serve as their unlucky card. They proceeded to toss out pairs in their hand until they were left with a good amount of cards each on their hand. He let the child pick from his hand first until they were down three each left.

Luxord studied his cards and falsely mixed it around to fool the child. They had a habit of choosing the leftmost card, then the second card front the right, and then the middle card. If he read them right, then the child was most likely to take the on in the middle.

The child pulled the King of spades and clicked their tongue. Luxord chuckled as he pulled the penultimate pair he needed to end this match, "What luck, you have dear friend. The dice has been cast to favor me next."

They pouted and hid their last two cards behind their back, shuffling it away from Luxord's prying eyes. Luxord however knew this was a futile endeavor. When the child finally showed their cards, their eyes very briefly shifted to the card on their right. Luxord fought back a grin. It was a valiant effort to retain their winning streak.

He hovered his hand to the left card, and at the last minute pulled the card on their right. The child gasped as their loss dawned on them, and Luxord dropped his winning pair unto the table. "And the undefeated finally bows to my genius."

They threw their remaining card on the table and huffed, clearly annoyed with their loss. Luxord found their exaggerated expressions rather amusing. With how little they spoke aloud, it was the most he could gather from what they thought. "I'll allow you a chance to redeem yourself, but this time what do you think of putting up a little wager?"

They tilted their head, curious. "If you win, you may ask me for anything you wish from the outside -" their eyes grew in surprise. "You are a subject of Vexen's ridiculous research, I know how heartless he could be to children. I cannot grant you freedom, but I may provide you a bit of consolation for your cooperation. How about it?"

The child pursed their lips, disappointed at the offer but nonetheless nodded. They then pointed at Luxord with a frown on their face. "If I win," he continued. "We shall pick a name for you."

The child immediately shook their head. As lucky as they were stubborn, they seemed. "Then you should do your best to not lose." Luxord shuffled the cards again, chose his Old Maid, and methodically guided the maid around so that the child fell into a false sense of confidence. The child had managed to learn from their previous loss and got rid of their glancing tell, making it harder for Luxord to guess where the maid had gone after they shuffled their cards almost every two turns.

Despite this, Luxord was confident he knew he was going to win this. He only had six cards left while the child held seven. He pulled his lucky draw and shaved two more cards on his hand from six to four. The child then dropped another pair, leaving Luxord with four cards to choose from and one forbidden card to avoid.

Just as he pulled out a card, Vexen waltzed into the room with a clipboard on hand. "I see you've stumbled with yet another face you shouldn't have." The child narrowed their eyes at Vexen, obviously weary of them. Luxord slotted his unknown fifth card into his hand and regarded the scientists with a curt nod.

"Demyx left them in my care."

"And you taught them to gamble?"

"It helps to relax the mind."

"That's… nice," Vexen sighed in disbelief. "However, that's enough games. We still have much to do. Come, Subject UE."

Luxord raised a brow at him, unimpressed by the horrible name. Vexen sighed. "They refuse to be called anything specific, thus, I will continue to refer to them as such."

Luxord tapped his chin in thought. "I'm certain I can come up with something more acceptable."

"We don't have time for tha -"

"Yue?"

The child shook their head, and Vexen palmed his face. "The musical buffoon had the same idea and they refused it all the same. It's best to refer to them by their subject name. It keeps us from being attached like the last time."

"The last time you slotted one of your subject's in our ranks, we didn't even know she was one."

"Would informing you have made such a difference?"

Luxord shrugged. The child frowned at their exchange, unaware of this other subject they casually mentioned just now. Vexen fixed his lab coat and beckoned for Yue to rise. "I have no trouble trapping you in ice again if you do not leave with me right now."

The child glanced at him one last time, hoping to get Luxord to their side and allow them to stay. He smiled apologetically and leaned back. Their game was fun while it lasted, however the child was still a pawn in a much bigger game. He may not know what that is, but that remains to be true. He mustn't interfere with their special role, whatever that may be. "Run along, Yue. If you finish early we could play another game together."

That seemed to bring the child's spirits up because they stood immediately and said, "Sea salt ice cream." Vexen blinked, flabbergasted, while Luxord's eyes grew, surprised that the child actually had a voice. They then ran out of the room and found their way towards the lab on their own, leaving both Nobodies at a loss at what they just heard.

Vexen turned to Luxord, his mouth opening and closing, unsure of what to ask or say. In the end he chose not divulge anything and left. Luxord glanced down at his cards, and chuckled.

Seven of hearts.

Luxord admitted his defeat. It's been a while since he visited Twilight Town after all.

The next time Luxord crossed paths with the child, he found them sprawled out on the floor, breathing heavily and looked a little pale all over. Luxord supposed Vexen tired the kid out with his experiments beyond the usual and had been kind enough to give them the time off. Lucky for them, Luxord had just picked up their prize from off-world.

"Hard day at the lab I see."

The child groaned as they rolled their eyes to look at them. They lazily raised their hand for their prize from last time's bet. Luxord pulled the frozen treat from his coat and kept it out of the child's reach, who pouted at his antics. "Ask properly. You boldly requested it with your words before. I think we've moved past conversing through gestures now."

They frowned, silently refusing the plea and lunged for their prize. Luxord dodged, keeping his arm high above his head, and the child stumblingly followed after him. They tripped on their own two legs and Luxord caught them before they hit their head. The child pushed him away, clearly annoyed by his playfulness.

Luxord dangled the ice cream over the child's head who tried to ignore it. "Use your words," he asked again.

The child grumbled, their arms crossed over their chest and swiped the ice cream from his hand. They ripped it off the plastic and shoved the frozen dessert inside their mouth. After a while the child mumbled something Luxord missed.

"What was that? I couldn't quite hear."

The child chewed on the stick, annoyed, and mumbled a soft thank you.

Luxord nodded. "Now that wasn't so hard was it?" They threw the crumpled plastic wrapper towards him in response. Luxord tilted his head to avoid being hit on the face and the wrapper bounced then rolled on the ground. "Yue. Don't litter."

Yue growled and stuck their tongue out. Luxord kept his blank stare at them which quickly made the younger uncomfortable. "Pick it up, or no more ice cream for you." Yue pushed themselves up from their supine position and stomped over to the wrapper to throw it in the garbage. They returned to glare at Luxord who gave them another stick. "For your effort."

Almost instantly the kids eyes sparkled and all their anger towards him dissipated. Luxord sat back on the couch, while the child finished yet another ice cream in record time. He never did quite understand why children liked that piece of frozen flavored water. While the child compared the words engraved on the two Popsicle sticks on their hand, Luxord pulled out a small piece of candy with brown packaging for himself. It's still rather sweet but it also has that right hint of caffeine that keeps him alert during missions.

Luxord caught the child staring at his candy rather curiously and offered a piece. The child naively took it into their mouth, and quickly spat it out. They wiped their tongue disgustedly with their sleeve and made a horrified face at Luxord.

"You'll get used to caffeine when you're older, kid." The kid vehemently shook their head, silently vowing never to do so. They reached their hand out to him again as though to ask for another piece of ice cream. Luxord frowned. He didn't expect them to be so ravenous.

"These are dessert items, not supper. Has Vexen not properly given you anything to eat?"

They shook their head, not the least bit bothered by it, then insisted on getting another Popsicle.

Luxord sighed. Nobodies had no need for food nor water because they were empty bodies that only persist to exist due to their strong will. They are still able to partake in the act should they choose to, but Luxord found it counterproductive. There was no point in pretending to be something he no longer was. That being said, the child was not like him, or at least… that's what Luxord wanted to believe.

It was quite odd to suddenly adopt a new Nobody for study considering their tight schedule for the upcoming battle between their forces and the seven warriors or light. Then again, Vexen wasn't the type to share as well.

"How about another game? Should you beat me, I will buy you more sea salt ice cream. If I win, you will eat whatever food I give you next, deal?"

The child shook Luxord's hand and sat across him, waiting.

Luxord laid out his cards and laid out sets of five cards between them. The rules of this game may be a bit complicated but he was certain the astute thinking would enable them to understand it fairly quickly. "I will teach you any gamblers favored game. With your luck in our first duel, I feel that you are ready to take me on in a serious match."

The child listened to Luxord intently, and as he expected, they quickly understood the rules. They ran trial matches, wherein Luxord would show the kid his hand, and the child would then try to craft a set with higher value compared to his. Once the child was able to make their own decisions and play without his help, Luxord shuffled the deck on his hand. They were ready.

However, before he could give out their respective hands the child grabbed the stack of cards from his hand and shuffled them again. They stared at Luxord with a distrustful frown, which made the former chuckle. He raised his hand in defeat. "Poker is not a game you simply cheat at. It's a game of the mind and self. I wouldn't dare tarnish its respectable name with lowly tricks."

The child dealt five cards between them and closely held their up to their nose. They watched Luxord with narrowed eyes while the latter laid back to study his hand. This was going to be fun.

A/N: KH:Melody of Memory got announced, then Dark Road got released, my interest in KH and this fic has risen from the ashes. I also rewrote some contents of the first two chapters to account for things/canon info I didn't know or include when I first wrote them. They're not massive changes tho dw.

Luxord has always been the next person I had in mind for Player to meet. He seemed like a really cool guy in KH2, and an even cooler guy in KH3. If he wasn't an Org member I bet he'd be good with kids. I just hate his speech pattern, so eloquent and talking in game/luck metaphors, I'm no good with those huhu. I practically slept with a thesaurus just to get a semblance of his vocabulary right.

No suffering Player this chapter, only fun times no alcohol required. The Player is still unnamed but will occasionally be referred to as Subject UE by Vexen and Yue by Luxord. Demyx is the only one who respects the Players decision to remain unnamed.

P.S I don't actually know how to play Poker, so the scene fade out it is.