Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts or any material related to Square Enix in any way or form.

Note: Character deaths are inconsistent with the series, and purposely made to be so. Author is currently trying to play through a remainder of Sora's part of KH: CoM.

When I awake, I see nothing, only a midnight violet flecked with dew stretching across my vision. I realize it's night, like so many other nights I've lived to see. My sight is the first of my senses to return, before smell and touch, hearing and taste. All five point to the one thing I can consciously sense all around me: the sea.

This time though, I am stronger, and can finally sit up to survey my surroundings. A bright, round moon bathes me in silver light, so ironic for what I know I really am. The soft sound of calm wavelets rush across the sand, while waves over six feet high threaten to engulf their smaller brethren in a crushing throe further out. Instantly, I feel at peace, or what I would imagine peace and serenity to feel like. Almost absentmindedly, my hand finds its way to my chest; alas, no, there is nothing there.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" My body jolts at a deep, sensual voice, unaccustomed to someone sneaking up on me. I attempt to leap up, my feet finding purchase in the soft, shifting sand, but my legs fail damnably, collapsing beneath my weight, and I feel myself falling. Strong arms check my fall, wrapping gently around my waist and shoulders, bringing me to a shaky, but supported stand. I curse myself for being weak, and I try to lift my gaze to see my rescuer of sorts. The familiar bright emerald I thought I would see is veiled, a ribbon of black cloth tied across the part of the face where eyes would surely be. Disarrayed silver hair blows gently in the breeze, and my gaze travels lower. My eyes rest on black leather with silver trinkets adorning the neck of a cloak that I know is exactly like mine.

I try to throw myself out of the embrace, the shortest moment of panic slicing through the knowledge that I have no emotions. But the grip stays, and even intensifies. A black-gloved hand forces me to look up, back to the raven-colored ribbon hiding a pair of eyes I cannot see. A small, falsely endearing smile plays across their lips, and I am left to remember an unexpected flight of animalistic terror. The pressure from the person's fingers feels harsh enough to leave bruises, and the gaze I imagine I feel is piercing, burning, and I know without knowing how that the stare is full of the desire to both save and kill me…

--

"NO!" Caxebrec awoke, tangled in a mess of bedsheets that wrapped around her entire body, constricting her movement and filling her with a slight intense terror that quickly faded. But it didn't erase the cold sweat that had enveloped her body, her black nightclothes sticking to her uncomfortably. Her silver hair fell over her shoulders in tangles, breath coming out in barely controlled pants. Jade eyes lifted to gaze around her chamber, and Caxebrec exhaled sharply, 'relief' flooding through her system when she saw only the comforting glow of her computers sleeping just a few feet away. Shading her sensitive eyes from the light of Kingdom Hearts, she untangled the sheets from her waist, before stepping lightly across the marble floor to the portal that would take her to the Proof of Existence room, waving her hands to change her clothes along the way. She paused before her chamber portal, a wry smile twisting her features.

"Ironic that of all the portals in this damned castle, the ones to our rooms are the only ones that feel warm…" Caxebrec drew a hand through her hair, untangling it by will alone, as she stepped through the thick, liquid-like mist of the portal. She alighted quietly on grey marble, the only noise in the room coming from the slight draft from the open door to Xemnas' chamber at the very top of the castle. Azure eyes gazed around the room, at the eerily bubbling lifelines for Kingdom Hearts, to the remaining eight swirling portals belonging to the surviving members of what was once Organization XIV. Axel had told her how Vexen, Xigbar, Xaldin, Larxene, and even Luxord had fallen beneath the mystical keyblade, and how a young man named Riku had ended Lexaeus' 'existence', nearly destroying Zexion in the process. Caxebrec thought it interesting that it had been the Flurry who had been willing to tell her rather than one of the other more senior members who had witnessed the events at Castle Oblivion.

An unexpectedly lost expression crossed the young woman's face as she gazed around the room; she remembered when she had first been brought to the castle, as what she imagined would be a 'frightened' girl of unknown age. Her gloved fingers traced nonsense patterns on the platform at her waist, her own chamber portal playing the lone soldier on the lowest platform in the Proof of Existence room. She sat down on the platform that supported Axel's, Demyx's, and Luxord's chamber portals, nearly allowing a wearied sigh to escape her parted lips.

She was tired, physically exhausted. For nearly a year, as could be approximated by outside information from other worlds, Caxebrec had been in the Organization, working her way up into the favor, or at the very least, notice, of the other members. She had followed Xemnas' every command, every order to scout for new information for Kingdom Hearts, destroy a worthless enemy, or even lead platoons of Heartless to steal the hearts of Somebodies. Finally, she had tired of it. She wondered how any of her superiors could stand it, being ordered around constantly, when the orders were so useless—

"No," she told herself firmly. "We are all trying to reach our goal. All trying… to find our hearts…"

"Caxebrec, are you okay?" The woman looked up, dulled cerulean meeting two pairs of lively azure. Her eyes faded to a faint green as she gazed at Roxas and Demyx before her, barely making out their facial features under the shadow of their hoods.

"Back from the mission?" The two young men nodded, still looking at her with 'concern'.

"Couldn't sleep?" came Demyx's uncharacteristically soft inquiry. Caxebrec's gaze fell to the floor and she shook her head, absentmindedly tapping her fingers on the grey marble platform.

"We won't be able to either," Roxas said, pulling off his hood and cracking his neck. Demyx loosened his hood & yanked it back as well, popping his wrists as he did so.

"Xemnas lined up another one for us in half an hour. Wanna come with us?" he asked cheekily, grinning like an idiot. Caxebrec favored the Nocturne with a small smile at his playful tone, but shook her head.

"Maybe some other time, Dem." The sitarist made a small noise of protest, but the Key of Destiny hushed him; after all, there were other people sleeping nearby.

"We've got to report, Caxebrec," Roxas murmured, already heading past her up the slope to Xemnas' chamber. He offered the young woman a small smile, one which she returned with warm 'affection'.

"Have fun you two," she replied, the slightest hint of sarcasm laced through her voice. Just as they began to ascend the stairs, Caxebrec saw Demyx whirl around, place a hand next to his ear with his thumb pointed up and his index down, and mouth "Call me." This caused the Technician's eyebrows to rise, and a small upturn of one corner of her mouth. Leave it to the Melodious Nocturne to pick up something cheeky on a mission to use as a flirtation device. Caxebrec watched the pair disappear up the stairs, before returning to her thoughts.

Almost unconsciously, she found herself lying back on the cool, grey marble, her hands laced behind her head, one leg dangling off the platform, the other propped up against the flat plane, her mind wandering. She began to wonder, as she did most nights before she slept, what did it feel like to have a heart? Did she ever truly exist? She must have, in order to become a Nobody. Her thoughts whorled around in her head for a while, until her body physically ached from her unconscious tensing.

"Do you always scowl when you're thinking, Caxebrec?" The woman shot up, her eyes an intense crimson, before she stared up into familiar electrifying emerald.

"Axel…" she breathed; just the person she wanted to see. The Flurry shrugged, stifling a yawn behind his long, slender, gloved fingers.

"You're getting to be just as bad as Zexion," he said, spitting out the Schemer's name as though it were acid. Caxebrec masked her displeasure and confusion at his reaction; the Cloaked Schemer had served to be one of her better teachers in the delicate art of illusion and misdirection, as well as manipulation and puppetry. She had spent so much time with the young man that she considered him to be an extremely good friend, albeit one with hermit tendencies.

"Why do you hate him so much?" she asked quietly, turning her gaze to Axel's. The redhead matched her gaze, his emerald eyes piercing and hard.

"You don't need to know." Caxebrec's eyes narrowed dangerously, but remained silent. She didn't need to know too many things in the castle, and it was beginning to 'vex' her.

"Fine, fine." She waved her hand dismissively. Axel felt the tension between them lift, and he sat beside her, leaning back, his head tilted behind him, exposing his long, pale neck. He felt Caxebrec's gaze on him, and he smirked slightly.

"Like what you see, Caxebrec?" The woman's eyebrow raised and she scoffed.

"Axel, please." The redhead's face drew itself into a frown as he watched Caxebrec cross her legs and lean back on her hands, her eyes apparently trained on a bubbling lifeline directly over her head.

"… I know something's wrong, Caxebrec." The woman closed her eyes at Axel's words. He took it as a sign to continue. "… How about we talk about it over ice cream?" Caxebrec's eyes snapped open, lighting up instantly as she looked at him, a small smile playing upon her lips.

"I don't want to talk about it yet… But ice cream sounds pretty good right about now," she said, winking at the redhead. Axel smiled, before standing up and extending his hand to her. Caxebrec took it, feeling the body warmth from the Flurry as he grasped her hand, waving the other to summon a portal. The pair stepped into the swirling mass, disappearing into the darkness.

Just as they vanished, one of the translucent blue chamber portals flashed brightly, and a bluish-silver-haired man stepped through, the look on his face one of intense 'displeasure'. Zexion stared intently at the point where the pair had disappeared.

"So the Flurry of Dancing Flames has taken to Caxebrec…"

--

No less than an hour later, Caxebrec sat atop a ledge on Twilight Town's bell tower, her legs dangling over the edge as she waited for Axel to get their ice cream. She hoped he was buying sea-salt bars, since the flavor had become her favorite after the redhead and Roxas had introduced it to her. Shading her eyes against the intense glare of the burning globe forever hovering over the horizon, she gazed out over the scenery.

Twilight Town was a quaint little town, nestled in a cozy green valley between two protective rows of hills, stretching as far as the eye could see. Houses were nestled together like birds sheltering each other, comforting swirls of fireplace smoke curling into the sky. For a reason she couldn't explain, Caxebrec felt at peace in the town, and it wasn't because one of her best friends had been born in it; no, the connection she felt was deeper, settling in the pit of her stomach and making her relax so much it was almost painful. She pushed a stray lock of hair out of her face as she gazed at the people going about their daily business in the square below, oblivious to their observer.

"It's a nice place, isn't it?" Caxebrec lifted her gaze to Axel, who had reappeared beside her, holding out a pale blue bar impaled with a wooden stick, a single drop of ice cream dribbling down the side. If she didn't know better, she could have sworn it was begging with the cutest of expressions,

Eat me… eat me…

"It is a nice place, Axel," came the woman's soft reply, bringing the icy concoction to her lips. Her eyes softened as the salty-sweet taste flooded her mouth, floating delicately over her tongue in such a way it immediately made her mouth water for more. So caught up was she in the taste of the ice cream bar that she didn't notice her redheaded friend gazing at her, his own bar already half eaten.

"I can't feel. I know that already," Axel thought, his gaze returning to the melting ice cream in his hand. "But I want- no, I need to know… If she would feel the same way if we haaaa… haaa..."

"Aaaah!!" Caxebrec looked at her partner, eyes widening as the fire wielder held his head between his hands, pressing his thumbs harshly to his temples. She looked at the half eaten bar still clutched between three fingers, and she laughed, nearly choking on some ice cream that had melted when she realized Axel had gotten a brainfreeze.

"Idiot! You're not supposed to gulp down half the bar in five seconds!" The Flurry squinted at her painfully out of one eye, before realizing she was laughing. Axel had so rarely heard her laugh, and it was better than Demyx' sweetest music to his ears. The redhead found himself entranced by her shaking form, laughter-tremors making her double over. By then, Caxebrec was nearly gasping, the absurdity of her laughter quelling it somewhat, before dying completely when she realized her 'amusement' had faded into nothingness. She nearly jumped off the balcony when she felt Axel's fingers brush the tears from her eyes.

"What are you doing?" she asked, her voice halfway between dangerous and confused when she saw him leaning toward her. The redhead didn't reply, his emerald eyes staring into her azure ones, the intensity of his gaze making her freeze, which was not what she wanted to do.

"Move, damn body, move!" Caxebrec's breathing hitched when she felt Axel's fingers gently grasp her jaw, turning her head to the side. The sea-salt ice cream bars lay melting and forgotten beside the two, the faint blue liquid glistening in the sunlight. Caxebrec could feel Axel's hot breath against her neck, making her shudder. The Flurry of Dancing Flames seemed to hesitate, his lips mere centimeters from the side of her neck, just below her right ear.

"… If we had hearts, would you be able to love me?" he whispered against her skin, lips barely brushing over her nonexistent pulse. Caxebrec swallowed, damning her body for unlocking — muscle by muscle — so slowly…

"I don't know." The words had escaped her lips before she knew what she was thinking. She felt the slight tension shoot through the redhead's system, before his fingers loosened and he leaned away, his gaze full of 'sadness' and 'dejection' as he watched the people below.

"Okay," he said softly. Caxebrec released the breath she had been holding, shoulders slumping in 'relief' as she threw her legs back onto the balcony, heaving herself up into a standing position.

"I'm sorry Axel," she said, drawing her hood up, tugging nervously at the silver drawstring accents. "But we don't have hearts." With that, she waved her hand, opening a portal that would take her back to the Castle that Never Was, back to her own chamber, where she would sit at her computers and stare incredulously, 'numb' to everyone and everything.

Axel chanced a last glance at the woman he wished he could truly love, but she was gone. Emerald eyes fell to a small pool beside him, Caxebrec's barely-eaten sea-salt ice cream melted enough to drip down and off the Twilight Town bell tower.

"Great. Now what?"

A/N: This turned out to be a full six pages on Word. I am happy that I could even type that much with work looming over my head like a guillotine. As always, constructive criticism is greatly appreciated.