Stars twinkled overhead as Vanitas dragged the trash bag into the alley. After being cooped up in the kitchen all night, the cold air felt great, even if the dumpster stunk it up.

He didn't really mind. This was the last thing he had to do before heading home for the night. He had the rest of the weekend ahead of him to spend with Aqua.

She should be home by now. Hopefully. They were supposed to go hiking out past Sunset Terrace tomorrow morning, so he wanted to make sure she got a decent amount of sleep, for once.

He tossed the garbage into the dumpster and checked his phone. No messages from Aqua since she'd responded to his question of what she wanted for dinner. He already had their food packed up to take home—pumpkin velouté for her and crêpes for him.

His phone buzzed, startling him so badly he almost dropped it. He still needed to ask Isa or Kairi how to keep it from doing that. (Aqua and Ven were just as hopeless with the technology as he was.)

Ven did know how to send a text, though. His contact name flashed across the top of the screen—"Venty-Wenty." That was how Vanitas had put him in when Kairi had taught them both how to save phone numbers. Apparently it was one of her traditions to give all of her friends stupid nicknames. Ventus had given Vanitas permission to call him Ven—it was weird hearing Vanitas call him "Roxas," apparently—so the bad joke was fair game.

Aqua didn't seem to have that same permission, yet. Maybe she would if she'd ever just talk to Ven, instead of searching for increasingly convoluted ways to "redeem" herself. But her family drama wasn't any of his business.

Venty-Wenty: Do you wanna play rock band with me axel and kairi when you get home

Vanitas's brow furrowed. He knew the game they were talking about; Kairi had borrowed it from Olette last weekend. (Apparently it was too loud to play at Olette's apartment, but since Scrooge's building was still mostly empty, that wasn't an issue here.)

Me: is aqua invited?

Venty-Wenty: shes still at CO. its only 4 players anyway

Vanitas groaned, pressing the phone screen to his forehead. He didn't particularly care if he accidentally texted Ven a string of nonsense letters.

Was it too much to ask for just one night where everyone was home and not trying to kill each other? He'd never thought that he'd be the one to play the pacifist, but all this drama was getting old.

Maybe he should say something to Aqua after all. It didn't feel right for Vanitas to be better friends with Ven than she was.

He was about to text Ven back (something other than the "keysmash" his face had sent) when something glinted in the corner of his vision.

"Remy?" he asked. Had the rat decided to tag along instead of going… wherever he went when he wasn't cooking?

No, the glint was a knife stuck in the brick wall's crumbling mortar.

"Cool." He grinned, crouching to tug the yellow-and-turquoise dagger from the wall.

"Wow. You really ARE an idiot."

Vanitas jolted up at the voice—and the knife jolted him with a shot of Thundaga.

"Nngh—?"

It wasn't just the one knife. Lightning arced into him from in front, from behind, from a circle of points hidden in the alleyway. His muscles locked up, his jaw frozen in a pained shout. He fell to the grimy ground with a thud.

Great. Now he was going to be the one home late.

"What was so special about you?" The voice moved in front of him, before a pointed boot kicked him in the ribs. The hem of a white lab coat swayed in his vision.

This lady had to be Organization XIII. Of course. Of course they'd find him eventually. So much for Sora and Riku and the mouse king handling the Norts.

He tried to reach for his phone, which had skidded across the cobblestone when he'd fallen. His arms wouldn't respond. His heartbeat felt sluggish, despite the panic rising in him.

"Hmph… not even one little Unversed popping out of you… then we'll just have to twist the knife a little harder, won't we?"

She bent down, her grin sickly sweet. He couldn't even blink to hide from the expression. His eyes were already starting to dry out.

Stupid, stupid Thunder magic.

"Don't worry, Vani. We'll have SO much fun together before I break you."

Vani!? He tried to claw free of the paralysis, but nothing happened. Even breathing was a struggle.

She scooped him under her arm, like a sack of potatoes. This was bad. This was very, very bad. Why did this lady want him?

There was only one answer he could think of. But he wouldn't let them make him a Nort. He'd rather die than be a vessel for his old master.

With a flick of the lady's wrist, a dark corridor opened. The knives flashed from walls, reappearing between her knuckles. She pressed their tips to his neck.

"Has all this playing house made you soft? I thought you'd put up at least a little fight. If you're a boring toy, I'm going to be EXTREMELY pissed off."

I'll show you boring!

He tried to channel his anger and panic into an Unversed—but the magic was just as sluggish as his stunned heart. How long would this take to wear off?

"Ugh, whatever."

She carried him through the portal, leaving his phone behind. No way to call for help. No one would know he was gone.

Hopefully he could find a way out of this before Aqua's soup got cold.

XXX

"I don't get it." Aqua finally dropped the sheaf of papers she'd been combing through onto Vexen's old workbench.

A few loose pages fluttered to the ground, blending in with the white marble floor. The tiny print on them looked like lines of marching ants. You would think that that much writing would say something useful, but all she could make out were rows and rows of vital signs, taken over the course of months. It showed that yes, Vexen had created a person, but nothing that would help identify who that person was.

Nothing that would help them find her.

"Vexen's reports say that Number ι was his most promising experiment," she went on, half to herself and half to Isa, who sat in an office chair at the lab's computer. "So why isn't there anything else here?"

Isa took off his glasses—which were enchanted to protect his eyes from a type of magic called "blue light"—and massaged the bridge of his nose.

"I was afraid of this," he mumbled.

"What? Was Vexen known for keeping his projects so secretive that there aren't even records? Or do you think that Xehanort took—"

"Vexen was killed," Isa interrupted in a dull voice, "far earlier on than most of our number."

Oh. Right. She could hardly forget Lea and Even's verbal fight about their past while she'd been trying to get back to the Realm of Darkness.

"He was always meticulous about his records. If we can't find anything more, he must not have lived long enough past Xion's creation to document her fate."

Aqua slumped against the wall. Isa could have mentioned that earlier, before they'd spent months searching for any shred of information. Not that it would have made much of a difference. If there was even a sliver of hope, she would've kept looking.

She still would. Even if the Castle should've answered her call for help by now… it probably just couldn't remember Xion, either. That was what made the search even more difficult; she and Isa both got headaches if they read anything about Number ι for too long. Isa, especially. It was as if the universe itself was fighting to make them forget her.

"I can't…" she yawned, "Give up. Roxas is counting on me."

It had been horrible enough to feel his rage during the Struggle Tournament. If she'd had any results to show for her research, she was sure he wouldn't have been so upset.

If she could just do something right, he'd forgive her. Wouldn't he?

"So is Lea." Isa sighed. "I understand, Aqua. I have far more to make up to them than you do. I would not suggest that we cease our efforts without—"

His phone rang. The lyrics of "Burn Baby Burn" exploded through the lab like a bomb in the second before he hit the answer button.

"Lea, if you're looking for dinner, I left it in the—"

Isa's expression morphed from tired to panicked in an instant.

"You're certain?" he asked.

Aqua edged closer, straining to hear what Lea was saying on the other end. Something about a rat?

"We'll be there immediately."

Isa hung up, shoving the phone into the pocket of his khakis, and threw on his black coat.

"What's going on?" Aqua asked, heart pounding.

Twilight Town had been safe so far. Even the Organization wouldn't dare attack so many keyblade wielders in their own home, would they?

But why else would Isa look so terrified?

"There's no time to waste."

He stretched out his hand, and to her shock, he opened a dark corridor.

"The Organization has Vanitas."