"She's awake! Oh, finally!"

"Who... who are you people? Where am I?"

"Easy, now. Don't want you to bust a gasket; you took quite a nasty spill. Mind telling us where you're from?"

"I... I don't know. I don't remember anything..."

"Amnesia. It's a good thing we found you when we did, or else, who knows what those horrible creatures would've done to you."

"Creatures? What creatures?"

"They were these weird, blue things. Never seen anything like them before until now. Dragged you out of that strange, churning portal. Luckily that kid with the key weapon took care of those things."

"Key weapon? What kid? Ow, my head..."

"Is there anything you can remember that you can tell us? What's your name?"

"My name... My name is Hallie..."

Ahllixe's eyes shot open, and she sucked in a deep breath. Her appearance had changed, and she looked to be twelve-years-old. She wore a red babydoll dress with capsleeves, black leggings underneath, and black tennis shoes. She looked around in the darkness, hugging her knees close to her chest.

What was that? Ahllixe thought. Were those my memories? Or... the memories of who I once was?

"Did you sleep well, Ahllixe?" Xehanort said as he approached the girl. She flinched, snapping out of her reverie. "You looked troubled. What's the matter?"

"Um... nothing... I had a strange dream." Ahllixe said. She looked off into the distance. "Hallie."

Xehanort raised his eyebrow. "Where did you hear that name?"

"I heard strange voices in my dream; one of them sounded so familiar, like it was my own voice. It said her name was Hallie." Ahllixe said. She looked up at Xehanort. "Was that her? Is Hallie the name of my Somebody?"

"Such an intelligent young lady. Yes, Ahllixe. You are the Nobody of a girl named Hallie, also known as my naive little granddaughter. You hold a remnant of her: her memories, her personality, and her characteristics." Xehanort turned around. "Despite this, let us hope you are more than a mere copy."

Xehanort walked away, his words cutting through Ahllixe's embryonic heart like a knife. Tears filled her eyes, and she buried her head into her knees. A pool of darkness opened beside Ahllixe, and Veni the Shadow scurried out and, when it saw Ahllixe's anguish, nuzzled its cheek against her arm.

I'm nothing like her. I am me... I am me...

"Ahllixe?" Ahllixe gasped quietly and lifted her head, worried that Xehanort had returned. But instead, she saw Vanitas.

"What do you want?" Ahllixe said, looking away. "I thought you said you never wanted to see me."

"Your sobs were interrupting my peace and quiet. Mind telling me what's wrong so you'll stop?"

Ahllixe huffed a deep breath of air, but took this opportunity as a chance to vent. She wiped her cheeks.

"I'll prove to Xehanort that I'm more than an empty shell of Hallie. I'm stronger than her and I'm smarter. I'll prove I'm better than her!"

Ahllixe's eyes flashed, and another pool of darkness opened. A pack of Invisibles emerged and circled around the two. Vanitas gasped quietly as he watched the Heartless, brimming with the anger Ahllixe felt.

"Calm down, Ahllixe. Your anger is showing. Literally." Vanitas said, keeping his eyes on the Heartless in case they decided to strike. "Just breathe."

Ahllixe obeyed and took a deep breath. The Invisibles floated away into the darkness. Ahllixe sniffled, running a hand underneath her nose. "I'm sorry." she whimpered. "I'm just... confused and scared."

Vanitas chuckled. "You and me both." he said, but his face fell and he stood straight up. "I already have to put up with you; I don't want to deal with your emotions running all over the place, so keep them in check. Besides, you never know when someone might use them against you."

Ahllixe looked at Vanitas thoughtfully as he walked away. She wondered if his advice had been from experience. His background intrigued her, and she wondered if she'd ever learn more about him and his story... and why he hated her so much.

"What do you make of Ahllixe?" Xehanort said as he stepped out of a corridor of darkness and into Vanitas's path.

"What is there to make of her? Half of the most powerful and annoying creature in existence. She's just an ignorant little bug I wish I could squash."

"Third."

Vanitas raised his eyebrow. "Excuse me?"

"Ahllixe is a third of who you speak of."

"What do you mean, a third? Do you mean, Hallie, her Heartless, and Ahllixe?"

Xehanort's mouth curled into a smile. "Perhaps, before you insist on ruling someone into the category of ignorance, take a look at yourself and see if you don't fall underneath it as well." Xehanort disappeared into another corridor of darkness.

Vanitas grumbled to himself. Great, he thought, more complicated nonsense from the lunatic himself. As if he wasn't already crazy enough.

But what Xehanort said still peaked the apprentice's interests. He glanced back down the path where he ran into Ahllixe. He wondered what other mysteries the young Nobody held that connected her even more to her Somebody.