Whoo! This took me to one in the morning last night. Augh, I was so tired, but I COULDN'T STOP WRITING.
So here it is! XIGBAR'S FLASHBACK! Enjoy, you people.
It was a stormy day in autumn when the Keybearers came to Brightvale; one of those grey, unpleasant day, when the chill just seeps into your skin, and the sky holds in it ominous promise of rain.
They'd come on horseback, a rare sight in the little hamlet on the corner of the world of Knightfall. The entire town had gathered by the time they exited the mayor's house. There were three. Two men, one young and one old, who seemed father and son and who carried themselves with a superiority and arrogance that, to my understanding, all Keybearers had at the time. With them was a young girl. She was small and thin, and the men had given her only an ill-fitting dress that kept out little of the season's chill. The old man had a hand tightly on her shoulder, and she shivered. Whether from the cold, or fear, was hard to tell.
The younger one stepped forwards. "Greetings, Brightvale. As you may have heard, we are Keybearers, from another world far away. We have been traveling the worlds, and cutting down the Darkness where we are needed. Now, we come to you, bearing with us a new weapon." At his words, the old man thrust the girl forwards, her fear now almost palpable. "It is a small piece of light that we have taken and given a magically-formed body. It is to be a great asset to us in our battle ag-"
"Bullshit!"
The younger man's head shot up, scanning the crowd. "Who said that?"
"I did." The crowd parted, half-reverently and half-cautiously, to reveal a lone man. He was young, possibly only in his second decade, but he looked much older. He was tall and bony, and his black hair already looked to have a strand or two of gray in it. His dark hunting clothes were untidy, and his cheeks had a slight flush to them, most likely owing to drink.
"The only thing you're saying is bullshit. We don't need you here. The Darkness has already been and gone. And what I want to know is- where the hell were you then? Where the hell were any of you high-and-mighty Keybearers?"
The younger Keybearer struggled to keep his voice and expression neutral, but anger was vivid in his eyes. "I apologize for our tardiness, sir. In our travels, we cannot account for every world that we miss, in every ten that we visit.
"Yeah, I'm sure you sell that line of shit to every world you miss, too."
The young man jumped down off the steps to the accuser's level. "Are you trying to start a fight with men, sir? Because I am more than happy to grant your request."
His accuser smiled, the slow, easy smile of one who enjoys causing pain . "Bring it on, pipsqueak."
The young man snarled, and with a swift movement, a dark Keyblade appeared in his hand. the accuser froze for a moment, his face filled with awe and longing. That was all the Keybearer needed.
Swiftly, the accuser was on the ground, bruised and bleeding. The young man raised his Keyblade once more, but the little girl jumped in front of him.
"No, Master, don't! Please!"
The young man glared, but dispelled the Keyblade. "Very well. I won't. Father, grab the weapon and let us leave."
The two men pushed their way through the silent, intimidated crowd, dragging the girl behind them. As they went past, the girl overheard a man speaking softly to his wife-
"That was a right foolish thing for Braig to do, wasn't it? And now look at him, whipped like a misbehaving pup. Serves him right for goading a Bearer."
The little girl looked at her feet.
"Braig…"
The three stopped halfway through the woods, the young man dragging the girl in front of him.
"How dare you defend that senseless fool! You are our weapon, and you will behave yourself and stay quiet!"
The girl spoke up, trembling. "But I didn't want you to hurt him…"
"He brought it upon himself, the imbecile!"
"But he was just…"
The young man growled in anger. "That's it! You're in trouble, you brat!" He raised his hand, about to strike, when another grabbed it roughly.
Three pairs of eyes turned to see a still-bruised Braig standing behind them, one hand tightly around the young Keybearer's wrist.
"Don't you even think about hitter her, pipsqueak. Or it'll be me who pounds you into the dirt this time."
"I can do whatever I want to it! It isn't even human, and it's my creation! You have no right to butt it, you crazy old man!"
"Creation?" Braig's eyes narrowed in anger. "That's just a little girl, you self-righteous bastard! Whatever the hell she is, she's still a child!"
The young man laughed. "You do it too much justice by calling it a she. It serves no purpose but to be a weapon against darkness. It doesn't deserve to be called a she, not even human."
His amused laughter was cut short by Braig punching him in the gut. He doubled over, letting go of the girl. Braig swiftly grabbed her by the hand, and pulled her towards him. Before he turned away, he spat on the ground in front of the young man in disgust. "If this is the caliber of people we're trusting to fight the darkness, we're all doomed."
With that said, he pulled the girl after him into the dark.
After what seemed like hours of running, Braig led the girl into a small clearing. In it stood a small, cozy little shack. Braig led her to the door.
"Stay here."
He pushed open the door, and stepped in. After a moment, he motioned for her to follow, and she entered the cabin.
It was just as small on the inside, with a single bed, a small table, and a chair. There was a small cupboard on one wall, and the others, save for the one by the bed, held racks of hunting rifles.
"Where are we?", the little girl asked.
"My hunting cabin. We should be safe here tonight. Tomorrow I'll take you back into town."
"Okay." She sat on the bed nervously. "Your name is…Braig, right? I heard someone in town say it."
"Yeah, that's me. Braig Tallow, hunter. Do you have a name, kiddo?"
"No, they…never gave me one." She looked at her bare, dirty feet. "It must be nice, having a name like normal people…"
Braig shrugged. "S'alright."
She didn't look up. "Normal people have so many things…I see them all the time, in cities and places, and I count the things I see that I wish I had. Like a name, or a birthday, and other things. I was too scared to ask Master what some of them really were, so I didn't…but can I ask you?"
He shrugged, sat down at the table. "Whatever."
"What…what's a family? I see them all the time, and don't know what it really means, and why they looks so happy. Do you have a family? What does it mean?"
Braig looked away. "Yeah, I…I have a family. A wife and kid…he's about your age. Eight."
"Oh! Really? So what does family mean?"
"A family…is someplace, anywhere you feel at home. It doesn't have to be people related to you, either. Just…anyone you feel at home with. Safe. It's a kind of feeling you don't know until you feel it. But when you do, you'll know. And you'll want to protect that feeling…at all costs."
"Oh…I see…it sounds wonderful." She smiled. "It must be."
He didn't look at her. "Yeah…it is." He stood up and waved at the bed. "Go to sleep, kid."
"But this is your bed…"
He shrugged. "I'm fine. I can sleep on the chair. Just go to bed."
She smiled, now slightly sleepy. "Okay, Mister Braig…"
She slipped under the covers, and bundled herself up against the cold. Braig got down a rifle from the wall, and placed it on the table, then sat back down. He was just dozing off, when a little voice came from the bad.
"Mister Braig?"
"Yeah, what?"
"There's something I don't get…" She sat up. "You…you're so much nicer than the two who made me. But…they're Keybearers, people of the light. And you…you have a lot of darkness in your heart. How come, then, they…" She trailed off, unable to come up with a way to continue.
Braig snorted in amusement. "You wouldn't understand. It's just…the world ain't just black and white, kiddo. It's in all shade of grey. And light doesn't automatically mean good. You'll learn."
"Okay…I guess…"
"Now go to sleep."
So now you know who 'she' is.
I hope the explanation of her makes sense. Message me if it doesn't, and i'll try to explain better.
Sorry for all the epithets. But Key-bastard doesn't have a name, so...