3.

Demyx was getting used to being prodded by Even. He checked on him at least once a day. The more time passed, the more often Demyx looked forward to it, because at least he was someone to talk to. As long as he was tethered, he couldn't really go anywhere by himself.

"Admittedly I know little about ophthalmology," Even said, staring deep into his eyes with the same penlight. "These should help. I had Ansem print them for me." He handed Demyx a pair of glasses.

"...Ansem?"

"Oh-right. I don't believe you've had the pleasure of meeting." His lip curled. "The former king of Radiant Garden. This is his castle." His tone was bitter.

Demyx only knew a little about the story of the apprentices from his time in the Organization, and that he suspected was embellished. "So is he, like, your boss?"

"No," Even said shortly. "He was our mentor-in the past, anyway. Now we work together."

"With Kairi."

"Yes. Try those, will you? I have to get back down there soon."

Demyx put them on. After days of blurriness, to have clarity back was odd. "Whoa. HD."

"I had to hazard a guess at the strength."

"No, they're fine." He blinked.

"Well, that just means the poor vision has nothing to do with what you went through." He shook his head. "One less thing to worry about."

"You must be busy."

"Idle hands make the devil's work," Even said absently. Then, "well… I suppose busy hands do too."

"What do you guys do down there?" He swung his legs back and forth a little.

"You know of the princesses of heart, yes? Kairi's one of them. We're hoping given her connection to Sora, and the special properties of a heart of light, we might be able to find answers as to where that boy is. If he is." A pause, then, "I don't know why I'm telling you this, it's not like you understand."

Demyx shrugged, trying to hide how he was stung.

"Regardless, it is a concrete goal to work towards… and for that I'm thankful."

He turned away. With his newly sharpened vision, Demyx could see more acutely the lines around his eyes, the gray mixed into his blond hair. He looked exhausted. "Thanks, Ev," he said. "Do you know how much longer I'm gonna need this?" Gesturing to the port in his hand.

"Even," he corrected, then sighed. "I suppose you have a point… your last labs were the best yet. If you're up and about you can take care of yourself."

"Yeah. Plus I'm kind of going insane sitting here for so long." He offered a hesitant smile.

Even considered. He went over to the sink, washed his hands, put on gloves, and grabbed some gauze. "I'm afraid this may hurt," he said.

Demyx had thought it was just a needle, but it was more of a thin tube inside of his vein due to how long they'd thought he'd have it. Removing it did hurt a lot, and he swore out loud. But once it was gone… despite his throbbing hand… he felt so much lighter. "Can I walk around?" he asked. "Can I do stuff?"

"So long as you are careful. "

"Thank you!" He leapt to his feet and pulled Even into a hug; he jerked as though he'd been shocked.

"Please do not touch me," he hissed in a completely different tone. There was something dark and closed off in his eyes, more than his typical sharpness.

"I'm sorry-I'm just so glad."

"Yes. Quite. Well." He left without so much of a backwards glance.

Demyx bit his lip. He hadn't meant anything by it. It was just a hug, right? He'd apologize again later when Even checked on him.

It was time to get out of this room. Apparently this place served as a sort of infirmary for the castle, though nobody else had had to come down here. It had its own bathroom, so Demyx hadn't even needed to cross its threshold. Leaving felt odd, but it wasn't like he was in prison.

The hallways down here were dark, without windows, sconces providing the only light. The carpeting was thick, heavy, and needed a good clean; it squished uncomfortably under his slippers. He wandered for a while, mentally taking stock every now and again so he would be able to find his way back. The layout was weird, putting it lightly, and he could see places where the castle had been renovated, or added on-to, architecture and design clashing oddly. Apparently the apprentices had all lived here in the heyday-they must live here now. It wasn't like Demyx was a stranger to living in castles, but this one felt so much more real and old than the one in the World that Never Was. He ran his fingers along the crown moulding, touched the lamps when he saw them. This place must've once been nice, but it was dirty, and in a state of relative disrepair.

Would this be his home now?

The thought was jarring, and he stopped in his tracks. Pushed the glasses up his nose. The better he physically got, the more apparent it was that he had nowhere to go and nobody. No friends, no family. Hadn't Lea and Isa just extended that invitation to be nice? Did they really mean what they said?

A weepiness came over him, and he bit it back. He felt like he'd been buffering for so long, going here nor there in his life? What did he want? Who was he really? The more he thought about it, the less Demyx felt like the self he'd been as little as two weeks ago. Was he changing? Becoming "different"?

All these thoughts were giving him anxiety.

He wandered for a little while longer, coming across a section that seemed a bit cleaner than the others. There was wood flooring here, not carpeting, and Demyx could see some old windows in the walls. A few swatches of paint were here and there. He saw a few doors here and there and tried one on impulse; it was open. He could just barely see bedroom furniture, a small rose bush in a pot by a window-

"What are you doing snooping around?"

The voice startled him; he yelped and clutched at his chest, the new glasses falling to the floor. Demyx scrambled to pick them up. Slowly, he turned and saw Dilan, Xaldin's Somebody, in a blue uniform. Frowning. "I'm sorry," he stuttered. "I didn't know… I'm guessing this is your room, then?"

"...Quite," he said gruffly. "And I'd appreciate it if you didn't go barging into spaces you haven't been invited to."

"Of course. Yeah."

There was a pause. His hair was neater than Xaldin's, Demyx realized, and was his skin a bit darker.

"I didn't know you guys lived here," Demyx continued. "I was just… taking a look around."

"You're up on your feet, then?"

"Well. Obviously." He cleared his throat a little. "I haven't been able to leave that room for like a week." A wry laugh.

"Ienzo told me what happened." Dilan shook his head. "What a cruel thing to do."

Demyx shrugged. He and Xaldin hadn't had the best rapport in the Organization days, and he didn't know what to say.

"You're well, though?" he asked.

"...Getting there. I think." He rubbed at his sore arm.

"Do you… know what you're to do next?"

"No," he admitted slowly. "It's been… hard."

"Of that I am well aware." He touched his chest.

"So… I'm gonna go," Demyx said. "I won't, uh, mess with your stuff."

"Much appreciated."

Demyx set off in the opposite direction. He was getting hungry now, his appetite only growing in the passing days. Usually someone brought along a meal to him, so he headed back. He found a sandwich and an apple on a plate on his bedside, and once this lunch was done with, he just… sat. Waiting. After a few minutes of this, he decided to take out Arpeggio to try and get his mind off of things. His fingers were a bit shaky, but within about fifteen minutes he was able to play with the same fluidity as before.

But it was… harder. Not physically. But as he picked through old compositions he felt the emptiness composed by his Nobody self, the sadness, the loneliness. At the same time, they felt like they'd been created by a stranger, despite the fact that he remembered writing them. A strange dissonance. Wasn't this what he'd wanted, a heart to truly feel music with?

What did Demyx feel?

He tried to parse it out. Empty, again? Tired, sad? Overwhelmed?

Having a heart was supposed to be easy.

He let Arpeggio fade and curled up. A cool breeze came in through the cracked window. He stared out at the little bit of town he could see, feeling on the verge, the breath of remembering-

"I thought I heard you playing. How do you feel?"

Demyx's head snapped up. He saw not Even, but Ienzo, in that white-coat getup. He was carrying a small bundle. "Um, alright," he said, blinking yet more tears out of his eyes. "Where's Even?"

"He and Ansem are trying to solve a problem with one of our simulations." He cocked his head a little. "I do know enough about medicine."

"I know, I just…" He swallowed, and considered telling Ienzo. "Nothing. Never mind."

"I brought you some more clothes, too. And this." He held up a gummiphone. "You might find a use for it-if you don't break this one."

Demyx took it from him. "Thanks," he said. "You didn't have to-"

"The castle is large. It makes it easier to keep in touch if we all have one-heaven forbid something happen to you." His tone was dismissive.

Ienzo came over to him, went through the familiar motions of taking his vitals. He listened to Demyx's heart. It was strange to be so close to him, and a little uncomfortable in a way Demyx couldn't define. His eyes were a bit greener than Demyx remembered, and his eyebrows furrowed together just slightly. Demyx could hear him breathe. "Your heart rate's a little high," he said. "Are you nervous?"

He cleared his throat. "No. Ah. Just a little anxious, I guess." He felt the blood rush to his face, trying to place that feeling.

"Why?"

"I just don't know what to do now," Demyx admitted.

Ienzo took the stethoscope out of his ears. "That is the question, isn't it," he said slowly. "After so long of having little to no choice, suddenly the world is open in front of us. Like having the rug yanked from under you."

"Yeah," he said. "It really is. But don't you… have your work, and stuff?"

Ienzo set the object aside. "I do," he said. His eyes flicked up in thought. "But at the same time… I was with the Organization for considerably longer than you. Work… well, it's something concrete to work towards."

"Even said the same thing."

His expression darkened a little. "We all seek to be better people. To… make up for the hell we've wrought. Working with the guardians of light… providing them with whatever they need to the best of our abilities... is the least we can do."

Demyx picked at the lint on his pants. "I… thought about it, in the desert," he admitted. In his newly-sharpened peripheral he saw Ienzo's head snap up, his eyes widening. "If this wasn't karma."

Slowly, he nodded.

"But… you know…" He forced a laugh. "I'm here , right? If whatever forces exist in this world wanted me gone… I would be toast. Same for you. And Even and them. We literally came back from the dead."

"A second chance," Ienzo murmured. "Quite."

He pressed a hand to his chest. "But that doesn't help tell me what to do. Or how to feel about any of it." The blood rushed to his face. "And I'm sure you're too busy to listen to this."

"No," Ienzo said. He sat down next to Demyx on the bed. He was shorter than Demyx remembered. More weird reformation? "This is the first bearable conversation I've had in a while."

He snorted. "Really?"

Ienzo sighed heavily. "A lot happened that I don't particularly care to get into at the moment. But things between us are… a bit tense."

"...Oh." Ienzo's smile was small and sad. Demyx couldn't actually remember if he'd ever seen him do it, and before he could stop himself he said, "you have a nice smile. I've never seen it."

The blood rushed to Ienzo's face.

"I'm sorry, was that weird to say?"

"No, ah." He pulled at his collar a little. "No." He knotted his hands in his lap. "I know in the past our rapport has been… rocky."

Demyx bit his lip and thought back. For a long while, he and Zexion had both been part of the reconnaissance team, but whenever they'd been paired together, it hadn't exactly ended well. Their personalities clashed like oil and water; Demyx's carefree attitude and low ambition combined with Zexion's perfectionism always ended in fights. "You could say that again."

He chuckled a little; strangely, it had no sound. "Perhaps it would do to start over," he said. He offered his hand. "I'm Ienzo."

"Demyx. Nice to meet you."

He pretended not to notice the tingle he felt when they shook.