Chapter 8: Imaginary Numbers

When Xion woke up that next morning, her parents weren't home—and, given the rather terrifying revelation she had on the train the day before, Xion wasn't sure if they had truly ever been home. She couldn't actually picture them at all, and the implications of that were... Well, she didn't want to think about it. So after feeding Dodger Xion had left the apartment without a word and without taking her phone; she didn't want to talk to anyone, just to be alone. Some Christmas Eve this was turning out to be.

Her aimless wanderings through the snowy Twilight Town lasted a few hours until she found herself at the Tram Common. Most businesses were down for the holidays, but one little restaurant near the Sandlot was open. Kronk welcomed Xion with open arms, though he was surprised that she came alone. Xion had just ordered a glass of water and sat down at a table in the corner. Now she rested her head in her crossed arms which in turn lay on the table.

Xion chuckled weakly. "Where did I think I could go? What a joke…" She turned her head to look out the window at the white and orange city, her hand traveling to the thalassa shell as she did so. It wasn't like she could just open a door to another world and escape all of her problems.

"You okay there Xion?" A booming yet caring voice came from the kitchen. Kronk poked his head out the door leading to the back of the restaurant. It was the first time he had spoken since bringing her the water, though she had caught him watching her with concern a few times before.

"Mm," Xion grunted. It wasn't a real answer, but Xion didn't have it in her to lie anymore. How many times in the last week had she answered that question? Whatever the number was, it was too much. For any of her friends they would have pressed the question immediately, but Kronk he didn't know just how odd things concerning Xion had been lately. She wasn't sure whether to be grateful or disappointed that he didn't continue to ask, but she kept quiet regardless.

With her fingers around her thalassa shell, Xion continued to stare out the window. There were only a handful of people outside, nothing like the usual crowds that flooded the Tram Common. Of course, there was no question about where everyone was: at home with friends and family. Xion clutched the shell tighter and took in a deep breath. She knew that her friends would be looking fro her, especially Roxas since he'd be the first to go to her apartment. She wasn't sure if she wanted to see them or not. If her memories before four months ago were lies, what else was? Were they even really friends? Did Roxas even really care about her?

Footsteps approaching her pulled Xion out of her moping for the moment. Kronk put a large bowl of ice cream on the table in front of her—vanilla, sea-salt, and chocolate with all types of toppings. Xion looked up at Kronk with confusion, and the man was smiling gently.

"No one needs to be sad on the holidays, right?" he asked while sticking a spoon into the ice cream. "I know you didn't ask for it, but I also know you kids love ice cream."

Xion's hand moved to her pocket, but it was empty. "Kronk, I don't have my wallet. I can't afford-" He held a hand up, cutting her off.

"Consider it a Christmas present, Xion. From one friend to another."

"…Thank you." Friends, huh… Kronk's actions had calmed her nerves more than he probably realized. Surely if he was genuine, then Roxas and the others were too. But that still didn't answer the problem of what exactly it was that happened four months ago to mess up her memories.

Four months ago was also the time she was in that three-week-long coma and missed all of summer vacation. The day after she had woken up they had all gone to the beach together, and the picture from that day still hung in hers and Roxas's rooms. Was that it? Was it simply that coma that had messed with her head? Maybe, but Xion wasn't sure…

She poked at the ice cream but never ate more than a few small bites. Compared to yesterday, she felt a lot better today. There was still a bit of a nauseous dizziness in her head, but her hands weren't shaking beyond her control and she wasn't as freezing cold—though she did still wear her coat indoors, but that was mostly because she hadn't bothered to take it off.

A ringing bell near the front of the building signaled that someone had opened the door. From her position Xion couldn't see who it was that had entered, but the short conversation with Kronk was enough to tell her it wasn't one of her friends.

"What'll it be, kid?"

"Actually, I'm looking for- Aha."

Xion once again heard footsteps approaching her, but this time they were too light to be Kronk's. The newcomer was here to see her? He slid into the seat facing her and Xion looked up to meet him. One elbow sat on the table, propping his chin up with his hand.

"Your ice cream's melting."

"Sora…?"

"Hey." Sora lowered both arms onto the table. "How are you feeling?"

Xion raised a hand to her face and pinched the bridge of her nose, sighing. "Confused, mostly. Dizzy. There's a dull ache in my chest. But…"

"But?" Sora's brown spikes swayed as he tilted his head.

"But it's lightening up now, just in the last minute or so. It's a noticeable difference." She set the spoon down in the bowl and pushed the sundae aside. "Sora, I need you to tell me everything. Please."

He nodded. "I can. No secrets, no lies."

"Then please tell me what's wrong with me." She rested her hands on the table and stared down at them. "I imagine part of it is the stress starting to eat at my body, but that can't be all of it. I have a feeling you know." Xion looked up at him with pleading eyes.

Sora was silent for a while. He stared out the window, or down at the table, or at the ceiling. Every now and then he opened his mouth like he was going to say something, only for it to snap shut and for him to shake his head. Finally, after a dramatic sigh, the boy spoke.

"You and I are connected. We can't live without each other."

Xion narrowed her eyes and frowned. "Don't flirt with me. I'm serious."

Sora wildly waved his hands in front of him, trying to dismiss Xion's claim. "No, I'm not flirting! I mean we literally can't live without each other. Look…when you're active you get exhausted really quickly, don't you?" Xion stared at Sora. How could he possibly know that? When he looked up at her evidently waiting for an answer, Xion nodded slowly. "I'm the same. And the reason for that is because of things we can't control, half of my power is inside you. So we have to learn to live with it."

Her life force was split in half? But that's… Well, it explained why she didn't feel so weak suddenly once Sora arrived, but it sounded like something right out of a fantasy novel. It was ridiculous. And yet she almost believed it. "So, how did that happen?"

"It's…a long story and I don't even know all of it myself." Sora leaned back in his seat and shook his head. "But I got split into two people once. And then the power of the second person went into you."

That was even more unbelievable, but still Xion replied. "So have you come to take it back?" Maybe she came across more cold than she intended with that question, because Sora flinched back and rubbed his neck sheepishly.

"No. I never blamed you for it, Xion. Neither of us could control what happened; it is what it is." He picked up the spoon in the half-melted bowl of ice cream and twirled it around, mixing vanilla with sea-salt. "But it means we need to stay close together or else we get weak."

"I think I understand that much, but…" Xion looked out the window. It had started snowing again, and she watched as snowflakes landed on the glass only to melt immediately. Life was really fleeting, wasn't it? She still had so many questions for Sora, too. "…Sora, what's happening to me? I remember places and people that aren't here, and I have memories of things that never happened while things that did happen are so blurry." She turned back to him. His face was solemn. "Am I going crazy?"

Sora looked like he didn't know what to say; or rather, he had the answers he was looking for but didn't want to say them. Still messing with the ice cream, Sora cut the scoop of chocolate in half and sighed deeply. "…This town was never meant to exist, Xion."

A chill ran down Xion's spine. It wasn't the way Sora had said that that so much that bothered her – he said it with regret and sadness, like even saying it made him depressed – but the very fact that those words left Sora's lips made Xion's fears suddenly boil up to the surface. Now she was questioning even more if her friendships were real. Roxas…

"How can you say that, even if it were true…?" Her voice was so soft that she could barely even hear herself.

"Some things may be better left unsaid… But I promised you answers and no lies. I'm sorry." Sora leaned forward with his elbows on the table and his hands on his forehead. "It was made by someone named Ansem the Wise, then hijacked by another guy named Braig. Four months ago, you were kidnapped and trapped in here."

"Those names…" Images flashed in Xion's mind: an older man dressed in red and brown, clutching tightly to a machine as it cracked and sparked. Another man in a black coat, with scars on his face and silver streaks in his hair, stood in midair as he fired on her with his twin guns.

Sora saw her reaction and leaned in closer. "Hey, do you recognize the names Donald or Goofy?" No. Yes? Maybe… "Or Kairi? Mickey?"

"I'm sorry," Xion said softly. "But…I feel like I should." She ran a hand through her hair and stared at the boy who knew so much more about her than she did. "What should I do, Sora?"

Sora shook his head and took Xion's hand. "Even if this world isn't real, the friendships you have here are. I can't decide for you, Xion. But all of us outside, we miss you."

Well wasn't that calming? No pressure. "Ugh…" Xion returned to resting her head in her crossed arms. Sora continued to sit without a word, apparently trying to think of something more to say. Then Kronk came by to pick up the bowl of ice cream and raised an inquisitive eyebrow at the two of them, but left without a word.

And so they sat in silence.

x-x-x

"Hey Jessie, are you in here?"

Roxas walked into the dark back room of the jewelry shop at the Tram Common. He wasn't used to coming here, not just into this room but into the shop itself. He had been here once, maybe twice? His father had sent him once to get something for Mother's Day a few years ago. That was it. And honestly if Hayner found him now he'd never hear the end of it.

"I'm here," a voice called from around the corner. Jessie was the granddaughter of the shop owner, a girl Roxas's age in a blue shirt and pink skirt. She stood on a stepladder trying to reach a small white box wrapped in a glossy yellow ribbon, her blonde hair matted with dust from the usually-empty back room. As she stretched to reach the box on the top shelf her foot slipped and she fell back. Eyes wide, Roxas sprinted forward and held his hands out to catch her. The two crashed into the tile floor, coughing from the dust that had been kicked up.

"You okay?" Roxas asked.

"Could be better." Jessie stood up and patted some of the dust off of her pink skirt. "Hey, you're taller than I am. Could you get that?"

"Sure thing." He climbed up onto the stepladder and reached for the top shelf, which despite their height difference was still out of his reach. With a bit of a strain, though, Roxas was able to grab the little white box with the tips of his fingers. As he stepped down onto the stable floor he investigated the box, for unlike the rest of the room it wasn't dusty. It was new.

"Grandma would kill me if she found out I made that for you on a discount. I had to hide it from her."

Roxas looked up and followed Jessie out into the main part of the store. "You mean this is what I asked for?"

Jessie spun on her heel and put her hands on her hips. "It is, but I had to really rush to get it done by today, Roxas. You could have told me sooner than yesterday!"

Roxas rubbed the back of his head and chuckled sheepishly. "I kind of didn't know what to do before yesterday."

Jessie sighed and walked over to the cash register. Roxas reached for his wallet and pulled out the munny, then Jessie shook her head and only took half of what he handed her. "I owe you from setting me up with Wedge, remember?"

"Uh, I guess?" The truth was he didn't. But he wasn't about to turn down a fifty percent discount, especially for something as expensive as jewelry.

Jessie handed him the box and receipt and smiled as she propped her elbows up on the counter. "So who are you getting this for, stud? The girl in the picture sure is cute."

Roxas was sure his face was bright red. "Y-You looked?"

"I kind of had to look to put the picture in place."

Oh… That made sense. "…Her name is Xion."

"Pretty name."

"Y-Yeah, I guess so." This was so awkward. "We're – all of us, all my friends – we're going up to the clock tower tonight for the fireworks. I was planning on giving Xion this then, maybe."

"How romantic. I wish Wedge was as thoughtful as you are, Roxas."

"U-Um…" The heat was rushing to his cheeks again. Jessie laughed.

"I'm just teasing you. Go on, I'll see you at school in a few days. Merry Christmas!"

"Merry Christmas to you too." Roxas zipped up his coat and put the box in his pocket, glossy yellow ribbon included. He stepped out into the snow-covered Tram Common, head lowered in thought as he walked among the empty buildings.

"Xion…" He hadn't seen her at all today. The only person to greet him when he had gone to see her this morning was Dodger, who was lounging around with his front paws crossed under his chin like always. A quick investigation of her room had shown that she had left her phone and wallet behind. There wasn't a lot she could do without the latter.

Was she okay?

Ugh, that was a stupid question. No, of course she wasn't okay. That had been evident for days now. Roxas grimaced as he continued through the snow, making his way to the Sandlot. Hayner had wanted to see them, to set up just how and when they were going to go to the clock tower. They weren't aware that Xion was missing just yet. Roxas would have to break the news to them, and he wasn't sure how he was going to do that.

Maybe she'd show up of her own accord. Hopefully.

Outside Kronk's, Roxas stopped. His hands fell limp at his side and he felt his jaw drop. Xion was inside there, sitting at the table—and she looked depressed. Roxas didn't have to guess twice to figure out why. As his fingers wrapped around the box in his pocket he glared at the boy sitting across from Xion. That was the brown-haired boy – the one Xion called Sora - who he had seen up in the mountains. He took a step toward the front door and pulled out the box. Xion hadn't noticed him yet.

"Where do you think you're going?"

The voice was dark and cruel, and completely unfamiliar. Roxas turned around to find himself facing a masked figure in black and white, and his breath caught in his throat. This was the one from the rumors, wasn't it? It had to be.

"Xion- She's my friend-" A leather-clad fist slammed hard into Roxas's face and he fell to the ground. Stunned into silence he brought his hand up to his nose and then looked down at his palm. Blood. It was covered in his blood.

"Stop with the blabbering." The masked boy stepped forward and kicked Roxas in the side. "Just looking at you pisses me off. I don't want to hear your cowardly voice."

x-x-x

Sora froze. Xion stared at him with a raised eyebrow. "What's wrong?"

"He's here." The boy's voice was quiet, barely above a whisper.

"Who is?" She turned to face the glass, but Sora grabbed her hands and she turned back to him.

"Xion, listen to me. Whatever you do, don't look out the window."

"What?" Well that just made her more curious. Against Sora's wishes she looked back out the window, and then and there everything crawled to a stop for her. She felt the blood drain out of her face and she stood up so quickly that she knocked over the glass of water in front of her. "Roxas?!"

"Xion, wait!" Sora ran after her as she bolted for the door faster than she had ever run. She didn't even notice the attacker, too focused on her best friend lying in the snow like that. His face was a mess and bruises were forming on what little of his skin was exposed to the winter air. Two halves of little white box lay ruined in next to him, its contents swallowed up by the snow save for a silver chain.

"X-Xion…" A white boot slammed hard into Roxas's gut and kicked him hard, sending him flying into the wall of the building next to Kronk's. Xion followed him, still at top speed, and dropped down to her knees by his beaten body.

"Roxas! Oh my God, Roxas, wake up!" She didn't bother to fight the tears stinging her eyes, blurring her vision. They streamed down her face and dripped onto Roxas and the cold ground as she shook her friend – her best friend – over and over. He was breathing, but damn it all why didn't he wake up?!

"Why do you care?" Xion bristled at Sora's cruel voice. What kind of question was that?! She whirled around to give him a piece of her mind – what, did he decide to drop the caring act all of a sudden?! – but it wasn't Sora who spoke. The brunet still stood in the doorway, glaring at the actual speaker. Xion's eyes widened when she finally recognized the masked boy. He walked over and Xion stood up, spreading her arms to her side to protect Roxas. He responded by simply shoving her aside and kicking Roxas in the side. The blond let out a pitiful pained groan. "He's not even a convincing double. Just a copy of a copy."

"Shut up, Vanitas!" Sora demanded. A light flashed in his hands and he was holding what appeared to be a giant key. "Just…shut up!" Sora jumped at the boy called Vanitas, but he only laughed and called on a weapon of his own. Black and white met silver and gold, and then a pulse of darkness rushed out from Vanitas's weapon and sent Sora flying halfway down the street.

"All of you are just pathetic imitations." Vanitas stomped down on Roxas's wrist, digging his heel into the earth and crushing the blond's hand. From her position in the snow Xion could hear a horrible cracking sound followed by the unconscious Roxas screaming. She hoped to everything holy that wasn't the sound of his bones snapping. "Seeing as how I don't really have a use for him, I'll just end it here." He pointed his strange sword downward and lowered it toward Roxas's chest.

"S…Stop…" Xion whispered, groaning as she sat up. Vanitas held a hand out to his side and Xion felt something invisible knock into her, sending her back down to the ground.

"Don't interrupt me. I've been waiting to ruin this precious little face for years." His voice almost sounded gleeful. Black lightning danced on the tip of his weapon as it drew closer to Roxas's chest.

Tears still stinging her eyes, Xion stood up once again. "I said…" Vanitas didn't hear her and she gulped, wetting her mouth which was beginning to feel like it was stuffed with cotton. "I said to stop!" Xion roared, leaping at Vanitas and knocking him to the ground. The masked boy kicked her off of him but Xion ran right back over, pinning his arms to the snow-covered stone. "You leave Roxas alone!"

"Why are you fighting back?" Vanitas hissed. He broke one of his arms free and slashed his weapon across Xion's chest, then vanished into the shadows and reappeared standing a few feet away. He spread his legs apart and held his sword with one hand while the other was in front of him. "He's a fake, and you're nothing but a puppet!"

"Even if my memories are fake…" Xion felt a sudden rush of energy surge through her body and light danced at her fingertips. "…they still belong to me!" In brilliant bursts of blue and purple, twin swords appeared in her hands. Keyblades. Oathkeeper and Oblivion. Xion knew them.

She charged at Vanitas with the two Keyblades and screamed loudly. Although he blocked Oblivion's swing from above, Oathkeeper struck from below and the razor edges at the tip dug into his arm. Darkness leaked from the torn leather instead of blood, which caught Xion off guard for a split second. That was just long enough for Vanitas, who suddenly vanished into the shadows beneath him.

"Show me anguish!" Vanitas flew out of the ground and hit Xion with an uppercut, cutting dangerously close to her throat. While he was in midair Xion tossed Oblivion at him and pierced his body…only for a second Vanitas to appear above her and swing downward while the afterimage she had attacked vanished. "What's yours is mine!" The black and white Keyblade struck Xion in the back and she staggered forward. Recalling Oblivion to her hand, she spun around quickly and parried Vanitas's next blow. Light surrounded her two Keyblades and she jumped backwards, firing a burst of holy magic at the masked boy.

Vanitas dodged most of the blast with a one-handed cartwheel, but he did get scraped by the edge. As his body burned from contact with the light Xion ran at him and struck her swords across his chest with upward swings. After knocking Vanitas into the air she proceeded to unleash a combo attack on him, swinging wildly at his body. After the fourteenth strike Vanitas vanished again, reappearing behind her and holding his Keyblade forward with both hands.

Orange light flared to life on the weapon's tip and he sent a fireball flying toward Xion. Flames consumed her body as it arrived too quickly for her to react, and through the pain she nearly dropped her two Keyblades. Vanitas dropped into the shadows again and flew out of the ground beneath her, but Xion backflipped away from his attack. Wind surrounded her body and blew away the last of the flames as well as knocking Vanitas away.

Gripping the hilts of both Oathkeeper and Oblivion tightly, Xion ran at Vanitas again. Blue energy surged around his body and he flew at her with his Keyblade pointed forward. Though she dodged the first charge, he continued to strike at her from different directions, repeating the attack over and over. After the last one he jumped high into the air and came down hair, causing an explosion at the point of impact.

Panting, Xion backed away from Vanitas until she hit something solid. But she was in the middle of the street, so what could it possibly be? She spared a glance behind her to find nothing but empty space, but her back was definitely pressed up against a wall of some sort. Turning her attention back to the fight, Xion ducked just in time to avoid another fireball from Vanitas. It exploded above her and the supposedly empty space flashed with interlocking hexagon patterns. A barrier? That must be why Sora hadn't come back to help her yet.

…She could use this.

Xion ran at the barrier, and then ran up the barrier. She jumped off of it and threw both of her Keyblades downward, where they pierced Vanitas's torso and exploded in flashes of light. As she fell toward the earth she called on the winds around her – not quite sure how she knew how to do so – and picked up the snow coating the ground. A makeshift blizzard rose around them, blocking her from Vanitas's view.

"Pathetic!" Vanitas roared and send out a wave of darkness that coated the area around them. An instant before it hit her Xion called Oathkeeper and Oblivion back into her hands and called up a wall of light to protect her from the blast. Judging from the direction the darkness had come she knew where he stood, but he still couldn't be certain where she was. Xion coated her Keyblades in light and ran at the masked boy.

Metal clashed with metal as Vanitas brought his Keyblade to block Xion's attack despite the low visibility. The teeth of his weapon slid into the gap in Oathkeeper's blade and pointed it down toward the ground, but Xion pulled Oblivion back and then swung it at his head. There was a satisfying crack as metal met glass and Vanitas jumped back. Through the snow she couldn't make out what his face looked like, but she did clearly see two golden lights glaring at her. Vanitas let out an animalistic growl and darkness swirled around his body, pushing down the silhouette of his spiked hair and forming a new mask.

While he was distracted doing that, Xion ran at him again. Both Keyblades pierces his chest only for Vanitas to vanish soon after. Another afterimage. When the real Vanitas appeared in the sky above her a wave of darkness blew away the blizzard and he pointed his Keyblade toward her while hovering in midair.

"Playtime's over." Darkness coated his Keyblade until it appeared to be made of an undulating purple and black mass. Three blue crystals formed in the air in front of him and fired beams of light toward the center of their triangle, causing a purple-blue orb to form at the tip of Vanitas's Keyblade. As Vanitas charged his attack Xion held her own Keyblades out in front of her.

"Darkness waits!" Vanitas fired his attack, a cannon of darkness that flew at Xion. However, thirteen blue-white pillars of light formed in a circle around her and the cannon vanished upon contact with them. "What?!" Xion rose into the air and pointed her Keyblades skyward, sending thirteen beams of light into the sky that rained down on Vanitas. The light knocked him around, burning his dark body, but he eventually broke out of the chain and ran at Xion with his Keyblade still coated in darkness.

Xion backflipped in midair and held her Keyblades out to her sides. The pillars of light around her grew and spun inwards, coalescing into a single great pillar that enveloped her body and then expanded outwards, illuminating all of the Tram Common in blinding whiteness.

Vanitas screamed blood murder until the light cleared.

"I won't lose…to a cheap imitation!" Vanitas was on his knees, black wisps of smoke rising up from his body. His Keyblade had vanished and it seemed to be all he could do not to just collapse then and there. "You are strong…but it's not your own heart that gives you that strength." He looked up at her. She could feel the golden eyes behind his mask narrowing in anger and hate. "Ventus." Darkness wrapped around Vanitas and he vanished, but Xion knew he wasn't gone for good. He had just fled to wherever it was he went when he wasn't threatening her.

Vanitas dismissed her own Keyblades and walked over to Roxas. Somehow, miraculously, his body hadn't been injured in that fight. She dropped to her knees and held his hand in hers, once again feeling the tears coming. What purpose did Vanitas possibly have for attacking him? "I've been waiting to ruin this precious little face for years." He seemed to do it just because of Roxas's appearance.

Footsteps approached Xion from behind. She ran a hand through Roxas's hair before speaking up. "…I think I've been running away from the question I really want to ask." Green light enveloped Roxas and his lips turned up into a soft smile as the blood cleared from his face. Xion couldn't help but smile with him, and choked back a sob as the tears started stinging her eyes. "What's going to happen to me now? Just tell me that. Nothing else really matters anymore."

"I guess…that depends on you," Sora said as the last hints of the healing spell he had cast vanished. "You're your own person, Xion—it's your life to do whatever you choose."

Xion climbed up to her feet and rubbed her eyes. Casting one last look at Roxas, she pulled the black hood over her face and turned away. Sora didn't follow her, and she didn't want him to.

Even if I'm not ready, I have to make this choice…

I debated quoting lines from the very first chapter of Remember the Tides near the end, to mirror the scene with Xion over Roxas's body, but decided against it. I'm not sure if that was the better choice or not. Is Roxas dead? He still has to give Xion her present, so we'd better hope not!

By the way, you all should check out a few stories: Antipode: The Year Between by MegaFlameHedge, Missing Chains by Amicus Mortis, and Dark Side of the Moon by Yutylity. All good reads.