Chapter Two: Wager

Journal: Day one

I forgot my old journal back at my old room, and I can't go back unless something major happens during the assignment. Good thing Axel lent me one of his notebooks. I forgot what day I was on, so I guess I'll start over. I don't think it was too long anyway.

Anyway. Castle Oblivion is even more boring than our old castle. The only thing it's got is heartless. But there's someone else here, a girl. Naminé. Marluxia and Larxene are kind of...threatening her? They say she's dangerous and powerful, but I don't know why that's a reason to treat her like that. It just doesn't seem right to push around someone who couldn't fight back.

She smiled after I talked to her though. Even if we're both nobodies without feelings or hearts, I think it's good for her to smile sometimes. And if that's something I can make happen...

Anyway, that's why I want to see her again tomorrow.

His work in Castle Oblivion was the same as many of his other missions. Fight the heartless and report back. The only difference was that Marluxia was the one giving the orders. That and there wouldn't be any ice cream when the mission was over.

Axel seemed about as put off about the prospect as Roxas was. Namely, he had little incentive to hurry and finish.

Still, Roxas did have some reason not to just take the whole day to fight off the heartless. He had a promise to keep. So while Axel went back to check on the rest of the team, he made his way to the doors he knew from his tour. Slowly, he turned the ivory door handle, and looked inside. Hearing a gasp from the corner of the room, Roxas saw a surprised Naminé sitting up straight and looking at him with wide eyes. "Roxas?" After she saw her visitor however, she relaxed and shook her head, "I'm sorry, everyone else just uses the portals."

"Sorry, I don't really know how to use them. Didn't mean to scare you." She couldn't be happy if she was afraid, right?

"It's alright," Naminé answered with a slight smile.

His concern allayed, Roxas walked over to Naminé, and he began to ask, "You said you had some kind of power you didn't know was good or bad. What is it?"

She looked down at the drawing in the notebook of a boy in red with spiky brown hair, and began to explain,"I can control the memories of a certain person, as well as the memories of other people who have met him."

Roxas nodded, rubbing his chin as he processed the explanation, "Sounds powerful, but I guess it depends on the people he's met. What's his name?"

"His name is Sora."

…

A beach.

Xemnas' words

Still…

"Can't say I've heard of him," Roxas shook his head, "Do the other organization members know him?"

Naminé nodded, "They know of him. But they aren't really connected to him."

"What about you?"

Naminé looked down to the notepad in her hands with a frown, fingers tightening as she spoke, "I've never met him. But if the plan works. I might see him."

Roxas tilted his head curiously, "The plan?"

She looked up in surprise, "Nobody told you?"

He shrugged, "I just got here...yesterday, I think? Can't tell the time."

Naminé looked back down at her notepad and answered,"If I can change his memories, we could have him work for the Organization."

Roxas crossed his arms, "Why would we want that?"

"Because he can use this." She began to draw, first a blade of silver with teeth at the end, then a hilt of gold in Sora's hands. "He's used it to fight hordes of Heartless."

"The Keyblade?" Roxas held out his hand, and in a flash of light he held the weapon that Naminé had drawn. He shook his head, "I thought I was the only one who had it."

"You!?" Naminé stared at the weapon in his hands with wide eyes, then began to tremble, "No! You're—"

"All right, little witch! It's showtime!" Larxene spoke from the dark portal that had appeared. Rubbing her hands as she looked at Naminé, "Sora's just outside! You ready to get him under control?"

Naminé began to shake her head frantically, "Larxene...That's not a good idea!"

At the rebuttal, Larxene's eyes narrowed even though her smile did not waver, "I'm sorry, I'm sure you just said, 'Sure thing Larxene, I'll take the memories Sora has right away!' Would you mind repeating that?"

Roxas stepped forward, "Larxene, maybe you should—"

"You keep out of this," she growled at him, still grinning, "This has nothing to do with you."

"It has everything to do with him!" Naminé spoke up, "Sora's memories are connected!"

Larxene sighed and rolled her eyes, her smile giving way slightly, "Yes, we've been over this. Everyone else forgets so be a good witch and—"

"To everyone! Even his other half! If I were to remove them now Roxas would collapse!"

"Roxas?" The mention of Organization's keyblade wielder finally broke Larxene's false kindness. First with surprise as she began to make the connection, then finally anger. "Are you kidding!?"

Marluxia watched the trio who had defeated the dark seeker stare at him with weapons raised.

"Heartless?!"

Yet he had no concern for his life.

"I'll try some magic!"

For his plan had already been set in motion. Naminé had implanted the first thought. The faintest memory that their friends might be here. Now that they had taken the bait, her ministrations would remove their abilities.

"Thunder!"

And then Donald's magic worked too well, as a bolt of lightning coursed through his frame. "But...how!?"

Sora charged forward with his keyblade at near sonic speed, "Guess you don't know who you're dealing with!"

Marluxia barely had time to summon his weapon to parry the blow. The ring of metal against metal marked the impact.

Very well, he could deal with this quickly.

With a gesture, a gale of wind blasted past the castle entrance carrying petals that sliced. Acting quick, Goofy shielded the others from the Buffeting the trio."Hold on!"

Fortunately Marluxia only needed a moment to vanish into a dark portal and reappear behind them, calling out, "I see you have maintained your strength. That is rare." Sora, Donald, and Goofy spun to face him as he spoke. "As you climb the rest of Castle Oblivion in search of your friends however, that may not remain the case." A flourish of his hand, produced the memory card of Traverse Town, "For here, to lose is to find, and to find is to lose. As you ascend through these floors of memories, you may lose what is dear to you in mind and spirit."

Marluxia tossed the card over to Sora, who caught it while glaring back at him, "And why would we do that."

"Because it is the only way for you to save your friends." Or rather, the friend he would provide him. The one who would break him so that Sora hung off her every word. Speaking of which...

Roxas could barely make out half of the words Larxene had yelled at him and Naminé. The girl could only hug her notepad to her chest at the diatribe. She relaxed a bit when Roxas tried to calm Larxene down, but Marluxia's reappearance only caused Naminé to shrink into her chair smaller than before when he ground out two words.

"What. Happened."

Larxene grabbed Roxas by the scruff of his hood and shook him, "Well apparently, our little gamble has got us stuck with dead weight! We wipe Sora's memories, he goes into a coma!"

"H-hey! Let me—"

Marluxia shook his head after a moment, sighing, "Ah. I almost forgot their connection. Still, we might find some use for the boy."

Larxene dropped Roxas to the floor, and smirked. "Not exactly my plan to turn him into bait, but it'll work."

Roxas could only stare. They were just going to knock him out? Leave him to die?!

"True. Naminé, proceed."

No...

"Well? Get a move on witch!"

No!

"But…I…Don't..."

NO!

"Wait! Just...just wait!"

The three stared at Roxas after his outburst, but eventually Larxene spoke up, "Oh? You've got a better idea?"

Roxas tried to think about all the things he learned, and eventually ventured, "You want someone with a Keyblade as strong as Sora, right? Someone who can fight off loads and loads of heartless?"

Marluxia nodded before responding in the same terse voice, "In essence. Your point?"

Roxas placed a hand on his chest as he explained, "Give me a chance to become as strong as him. I could be stronger!" The two members of the organization looked at each other, while Naminé's eyes were on Roxas.

Larxene crossed her arms, "Double down on our gamble?" She tapped her cheek, then began to smile, "If you're smart enough to come up with that idea. It's not too much of a stretch."

Marluxia's eyes narrowed as he stepped towards Roxas, "How would you train? The heartless here are not as powerful with the door to darkness sealed."

"His memories," Naminé spoke up, causing everyone to look at her, "I can copy the same cards that will let Roxas fight what Sora did."

Marluxia folded his arms "Will you be able to make additions to Sora's memories that will insert yourself in?"

Naminé scrunched her eyes before finally nodding, "Yes. I should be able to do that without hurting Roxas."

Marluxia turned back to Roxas before answering, "Very Well. Show me you can surpass Sora before he arrives to this floor."

Larxene stepped forward and poked Roxas in the chest, "Just don't be too slow! He'll be moving pretty fast. So he'll probably get up here in a few weeks."

And with the ultimatum, Marluxia and Larxene vanished into dark portals. Roxas looked at Naminé, asking "Memories. What do you mean, make memories?"

In a flash of light Naminé held a blue card with a picture of a new world, "This card represents one of the worlds Sora visited. If you want to become as strong as he did, you probably want to follow in his footsteps."

Taking the card into his hands, Roxas nodded, "Do what Sora did to become as strong as he is. Yeah, I can do this. Thanks for helping me." For the moment, the sea of questions his mind had become was quelled. Who Sora was, why Roxas was connected to him, why Naminé had that power in the first place. All that could wait. Right now, he needed to know what kind of challenge he was facing.

Naminé reached out as he went to the door. "Just...try to come back. Okay?"

Roxas looked at her and nodded, "Okay." And after holding the card up to the door, he walked out towards whatever journey Sora's memories had taken him on.