10 – Playing with Fire
By Chronic Guardian
Written for Twelve Shots of Summer: Nine Tales, Week 10 – Five Shadows, Befriending the Beast
Axel knew it was a risky situation. Saïx wouldn't have bothered, otherwise. He probably would have just sent that lazy bones Demyx and at least gotten the kid off the regular mission rotation. No, the reason Axel was in Castle Oblivion was because something wasn't quite right and one or all of the five jokers sent with him weren't playing with a full deck.
Five half-persons with a half measure of morality as their reasoning played double duty to make up for the innate conscience they'd had when they had Hearts. Axel shook his head. Boy-oh-boy was he going to regret this one… It was the setup for a murder mystery where every member had equal potential as suspect and victim, and the Organization made it a point to have knives enough on hand for all backs present.
Speaking of present backs, their seventh guest wasn't wearing a coat to cover hers. Naminé was a special case in many regards, lack of protection included. She also knew how to keep her mouth shut in a powder keg full of heated conversations. What Axel wondered was why none of the rest of them made any attempt to stay on her good side.
Naminé was a special Nobody. While most of the Organization members came packed with a particular elemental parlor trick, Naminé had been born with power over memories. Considering most Nobodies held memories as the entirety of their identity, that made her a sleeping bull with a sledgehammer jammed in its horns snoozing in the world's most egomaniacal china shop.
Then again, maybe that was the whole idea. If they treated her like a senseless, tamed beast then maybe she would believe them. Maybe she would be grateful just to have value to someone. Maybe the same emotional void that plagued all Nobodies would be enough to convince her they were something she needed.
Maybe she wouldn't realize just how badly she could mangle their plans just by refusing to cooperate.
All the girl needed was a push, a fire under her behind, and maybe a little encouragement en lieu of the actual bravery offered by an actual Heart. Give her that, and Axel would hardly have to blow to demolish the house of cards forming up around them.
So while the others bullied Naminé, Axel played it straight with her. Maybe calling him "friend" was a stretch, but he certainly wasn't an enemy. And right when that traitorous weasel Marluxia thought he had her cornered, it was Axel who pulled the rug out from under all of them. Marluxia wanted her to manipulate the wayward hero of the Keyblade, come to storm the castle under the false assumption that she actually meant something to him. If that plan went through, Key Boy would end up just as much a puppet as she was now, jerked along on Marly's chains.
"You going to just sit by and watch that happen?"
He was supposed to be supervising her. He asked the question with his back turned. In a world of black-coated cages, the nicest thing he could do for her was pretend she didn't exist.
Which, again, being totally honest, some would call that an honest assessment of a Nobody. However, for a person who didn't exist, she was about to make a whole lot of trouble for a whole lot of traitors in Castle Oblivion.
Axel waited for the door to close behind her, then smirked to himself. For that, kid, you're real enough in my book.
-End-