I have nothing to say except I regret everything
SO when we left off however many months ago (DON'T ASK ME ABOUT COLLEGE), Kairi's in the realm of darkness with Aqua, Sora just fought off Mixa in Wonderland and is effectively escaping the organization, Namine and Hotaru are both in Twilight Town together trying to fix Sora which has sort of been working (aside from Kairi memories stuck inside Xion), Riku's in Neverland currently doing nothing plot relevant (we'll get to that later) after having a fight with Sora in the World that Never Was trying to out Xion (who has amnesia of course) and save Sora...wooh. Is that all? Oh yeah, basically the whole Organization has amnesia thanks to Sailors Lethe and Mnemosyne, but a few members, including Zexion and Saix who have formed an alliance, are breaking out of it. And Ansem and Xemnas are running around. More on that later. WOOH I SUCK
Axel groaned. He head a splitting headache, and had no idea what was going on. "Where…what happened to me? " Last thing he remembered…wasn't he fighting the dusks with Sora…? "Roxas?" he blurted out without thinking. He was just dreaming about him too…that was odd.
He pushed himself up off the ground, and looked around a bit. He was starting to recognize the place at least as he saw the familiar equipment, but that didn't explain…
His thoughts came to a halt as he saw his own reflection in the window in front of him. "That's me…" he thought out loud. Wait a minute…
Axel turned behind him and recognized four figures on the ground of Ansem the Wise's lab. "Dilan…Aeleus…Even…Ienzo…" Aeleus was slowly getting up, and Ienzo looked like he was coming to as well. Even and Dalin still seemed knocked out, and all four of them were wearing the same clothes they had worn before they...
Axel turned his head back towards his reflection again, getting closer to the glass. He touched under his eyes, just to be sure he wasn't seeing things; the marks that were there before were…gone…"Huh. We're people again…" He shifted his gaze and saw Aeleus' reflection steadying himself as he got up. "But only the ones who joined the organization here…I guess Xehanort wouldn't count. But where are Braig, and…Isa?"
Lea heard Ienzo scream from behind him, and quickly turned around. He found himself staring into…darkness…?
"Hey Axel. You haven't forgotten?"
"Hm? What?" Roxas and Axel were sitting together at the tower as they always did, eating sea salt ice-cream and watching the sun set. Roxas sounded happy, but there was some sort of underlying weight to what he said…
"You made us a promise."
"I did?" What was he going on about now?
"That you'd always be there to bring us back."
Axel smiled and looked forward. "Yeah." Of course he'd promise such a thing. They were friends, after all.
He felt Roxas gazing at him. "Got it memorized?"
Lea chuckled. "Best friends forever," he said as Roxas began to disappear.
Best friends forever…I'm trying buddy, I am.
Lea was now alone at the top of the tower, neglecting his ice-cream as his thoughts turned towards that promise. Roxas…and Xion. And Sora too…how am I supposed to help them all? Sora's probably going to have to figure that one out, he though, finally taking a bite of his ice-cream. He couldn't remember exactly what happened after he'd awakened whole, but he knew that soon after, he woke up again in his room at the Organization's castle, along with everyone else. From then on, everyone had gone about their business as if nothing had changed. On the plus side, he'd found Braig and Isa…or, "Xigbar and Saïx." But Xehanort still seemed to be missing…
And Lea always felt as if he was being watched—he wasn't sure what by, or how, but he knew how the organization worked. You didn't just leave or do what you wanted. Well, maybe he'd bent the rules a bit before, but that was when Saïx was mostly in charge of things, and he'd never actually broken any. Not until the end, anyway…no one seemed to remember that part, luckily. No one except whoever was watching him. Since he was a traitor before, it only made sense that he was kept such a close eye on. For the moment, there wasn't really anything that he could do…
And yet that…dream or vision or whatever…it kept going through his head. That was the problem with having a heart now; he couldn't just rationalize these things away. He had barely been able to before. He knew he had do something, but…he was stuck for now.
"Ugh…why do I always get stuck with the icky jobs?"
"You're always complaining!"
"And you're always criticizing someone," smiled Axel as he looked up and saw Xire. She smiled back and sat down next to him. "Well, you're always saying the same things over and over. It gets annoying."
"What, getting bored with my catchphrases? Ouch. And all this time I thought I was so clever. Guess I'll just keep mouth shut."
"That'd be a first," laughed Xire, taking a lick of her ice-cream. Axel frowned. "Uh, what is that?"
Rather than the normal sea-salt ice-cream, Xire had a vanilla ice-cream cone. "This is real ice-cream," she said, sticking her tongue out. "Not that horrible salty-sweet monstrosity on a stick."
On the opposite side of the tower, Xion stepped out from the staircase, prepared to join Xire, Sora, and Axel as she always did. But as she crossed the first corner, she noticed a bunch of figures standing pressed against the wall, whispering excitedly.
"Um, what are you guys…" she instant felt a hand cover her mouth.
"Sh! You're ruining the moment!"
Toxkoma? thought Xion, surprised. Toxkoma rarely ever spoke or did anything out of the norm. She was a lot like Lexaeus in that way…what was she doing here?
"Those adorable sweethearts are fighting over ice-cream!" said Mixanko excitedly. She had bandages around her head, and her arm seemed to be in a cast. "Little do they know that the best place to get ice-cream is from Huey, Dewey and Louie at Disney Castle!"
"I thought they were at Radiant Garden?"
"Nah, they switched back locations."
"Why do you know this…?"
"It's the organization's goal to be informed about these things!" exclaimed Mixa in a loud whisper.
"Wait…" asked Xion, pulling her mouth free. "Are you guys…spying on Xire and Axel?"
"Spying is such a mean word…" said Mixa, smiling evilly. "We're practicing our reconnaissance skills against Xire's clairvoyance," responded Toxkoma too quickly.
"Why would you be…Xima too!?"
Xima had on her glasses to hide her eyes, but she blushed slightly and coughed. "I'm doing research," she responded, also too quickly.
"But why are you guys…" "SH! They're talking again!" whispered Mixa, and they all peered around the corner. Xion frowned and did the same.
"Did…did you just disrespect the sea-salt ice-cream?" asked Axel in disbelief. Xire rolled her eyes. "Oh no. Have I upset the ice-cream gods?"
"You just might have!" shouted Axel. "You don't like sea-salt ice-cream? Haven't you been eating it all this time?"
"I never liked it," said Xire, crossing her arms. "I only ate it because…well…you seemed to like it so much. I tried to like it, but…it's awful. Who decided to mix salty and sweet?"
Axel shook his head. "That's the whole point! How can you just not like sea-salt ice-cream? I don't think that's even possible! There has to be some sort of law about that!"
"Oh, calm down, it's just ice-cream…"
"Just ice-cream!? This is a tradition! It's a lifestyle!"
"I meant to say something about that…how can you stand to eat the same flavor every single day? Have you ever even tried any of their other flavors?"
"Blasphemy!" responded Axel, waving his ice-cream in her face.
"Oh, come on!" teased Xire. "Just try one lick of this! I dare you!" She misjudged as she raised her cone and splashed Axel's face with the ice-cream. "Oops…"
"Look what you've done to my beautiful face!"
"Oh, just lick it off…"
"No! I refuse to let my tongue touch such an impurity! Especially since it's been in your mouth!"
"Come on Xire, offer to lick it off for him!" pleaded Mixa from her hiding place. Xion made a face of disgust. "Why would she do that?"
"Because they have something, those too…" replied Mixa without taking her eyes off of them.
"Something?"
"Haven't you noticed the way they always look at each other?" asked Toxkoma wistfully, her eyes growing hearts in them. "And the way they always act together…it's definitely something!"
"Something like what?" asked Xion. "Oh, aren't you a girl?" snapped Mixa angrily.
"You know, Vexen and I had an interesting debate about that…" began Xima before she quickly blushed and went back to looking as disinterested as she could. "Anyway, it's something."
"See? Even Xima, the emotionless scientists understands!" "Hey!"
"It's something," agreed Toxkoma.
"Something!" "Something!" "Something!"
"…So what is it?" asked Xion, still confused.
Meanwhile, Axel and Xire were still bickering. Before long, both of their ice-creams were thrown down below them. "Well, there's a big waste of munny," said Axel, throwing his hands in the air. He finally wiped off the ice-cream that was around his mouth with his sleeve.
"You pay for your ice-cream?" asked Xire.
"Of course, it's only right…" "We're an evil organization, why would we pay for our ice-cream?"
"Evil?" the mood was instantly darkened. "Is that what you think of us?"
"No!" said Mixa. "Get back to the cuteness! The romance!"
"Well, it's true, isn't it?" she said shrugging. Axel found it impossible to read what her face was saying; usually he could read people no problem. But whenever he looked into her eyes, he could only see flames dancing behind them. Maybe having his own emotions made it harder. He did find it hard to really concentrate on her for long; he kept getting caught into little details, like the way her raven hair seemed to catch the sunlight, and the way her face, even when she scowled, looked so flawless…
"Why are you staring at me like that?" asked Xire, cocking an eyebrow as she knew exactly what Axel was thinking. Axel face quickly turned the same shade as his hair. "No reason…"
"No! KISS ALREADY!" shouted out Mixa. She quickly put her hands over her mouth, but too late. Xire whipped her head around. "Did you hear that?" she asked, already getting up to investigate.
"Abort! Abort!" said Mixa, pushing past Xion, Toxkoma and Xima in front of her. They had all just gotten around the corner as Xire poked her head out.
"Mixa, if that's you I swear…" she said, still charging forward. Mixa yelped and broke into a run, turning another corner and then the next.
"Mixa…?" said Axel as she passed right in front of him. "Hey Axel. Hope you and Xire actually get somewhere!" she said excitedly.
"Were you…she's going to kill you, you know that right?"
"Ha! I have special leg training!" she boasted.
"Good. You're going to need it." Mixa turned behind her. "AH! Xire…how nice to see you…what brings you here?"
Xire crossed her arms. "We weren't spying on you, I swear! Right guys…" she turned and realized she was alone. "Oh, those traitors! W-wait! D-don't look at me like that!"
"Ugh, being back in school sucks…I can't wait for vacation…" complained Hayner.
"It can't be summer all the time," replied Pence.
"Hey, guys…" interrupted Olette. "What's that there on the clock tower? It looks like it's on fire!"
Xion, Toxkoma and Xima all stepped out onto the lobby from a corridor of darkness. Neither of them said anything and simply brushed past Xion. Xion frowned. "What exactly was that all about?" she asked them. Toxkoma paused for a moment, then blushed. "That's a talk for someone else to give I think…"
"Xire and Axel are pretending at some sort of relationship," interrupted Xima coolly. "It's laughable really. She's a Nobody after all."
Toxkoma sighed, then began speaking in the same emotionless tone as Xima. "There was something familiar about it…spying on the two of them. It's a game we used to play with a friend of ours. We were trying to remember, that was all."
Xion swallowed and nodded nervously. It was always jarring the way these girls would switch their entire demeanors so easily from blushing teenage girls to…well, beings without hearts.
"You should probably hurry to your room, Xion," said Xima. She curtsied a bit, then walked out. Toxkoma tried to give a smile, but it lacked the usual warmth she was able to feign. "The two of them are supposed to be in love."
"Love?" asked Xion. "Yeah, you know," said Toxkoma. "Well, maybe not…you have even less memories than us, don't you? It's almost like you're starting from scratch."
Xion closed her eyes for a moment, and she felt something move through her. Almost as if she had remembered something important…or remembered an important feeling.
"I think I know what you mean. That's how you feel for your friends, right?"
"Uh…well, yeah, but…there's a different kind of love. Between just a guy and a girl…" said Toxkoma, becoming increasingly uncomfortable. Xion frowned. "So…what, there are different levels of love?"
"Um, something like that…look, next time we go on a mission together, I'll show you. Just drop it for now," said Toxkoma, quickly sprinting off before any more questions could be asked. Xion frowned. "A boy…and a girl?"
Rox—
Xion snapped to attention. Then she quickly shook her head. Love wasn't something she could feel anyway, right? She was a Nobody.
She then thought of that girl, Kairi, that looked so much like her, and what she had accused her of. I may be even less than that, she thought to herself. But it was no use dwelling on that. There was something too familiar about that pain. She should just focus on her mission for now. Once Kingdom Hearts was complete, it wouldn't matter. Xion would be a person. And then…
Well, there'd be plenty of time to figure out to do then.
Sora finally came to a stop and stood panting against a tree. It seemed like he had finally outrun the dusks…
He smiled to himself for a moment. He did it. He was free of the organization! Sora went into his pocket and took out his good luck charm. "All right…I have a promise to keep!" he said cheerfully. He had to find…who would he find? Donald and Goofy…Riku…Yen Sid! Perfect, he'd go to Yen Sid's tower, and…
What about her!?
"Ah!" Sora clutched his forehead, and everything around him started to darken.
What about Xion!?
"Ugh…why do I suddenly feel…so sleepy…" Sora collapsed to the ground.
"How could you just leave her there!?"
"Huh…?" Sora groaned and stood up. "Where…" he looked around. "Roxas!"
Roxas was standing in front of Sora, the Oblivion keyblade pointed out towards him, and his other hand tightly gripping the Oathkeeper.
"I made a promise too…" said Roxas sadly. Sora frowned. "A promise? To who?" He looked down at the Oathkeeper keyblade. "Wait a minute…you mean Xion, don't you?"
Roxas gripped his keyblade tighter.
"So that's why…it felt so nostalgic when I was with her. With Axel, too. They were both your friends, weren't they?"
Roxas didn't respond for a moment, then nodded slowly. "Not that I bothered to remember in the end…I managed to forget about both of them. But not this time," he said, shaking his head. "We have to go back for Xion!"
"To the Organization? Roxas, that's crazy!" protested Sora. "I care about Xion too, but—"
"You don't care about Xion. Not like I do." Roxas lifted up both keyblades and assumed a fighting stance. "You have no idea what they'll do to her. We have to go back!"
"Roxas…" Sora trailed off as he summoned his own keyblade. "I'm sorry, but we can't go back just yet. We can't just—"
"No! I'm not waiting around! Not this time!" Roxas dove forward towards Sora.
"This again?" Sora dodged out of the way as Roxas swung Oblivion forward. "Roxas, wait! Please!" Sora raised his own keyblade, blocking another strike from Roxas.
"I can't just let that happen again! I can't just let her disappear!"
Their keyblades struck against each other again. Sora somehow managed to gain the upper hand, leaving Roxas wide open for a blow. Sora started to swing his keyblade forward, but hesitated. There was so much pain and anguish hidden behind his eyes…
"Roxas…what happened to you?"
Roxas took the opportunity to jump forward and slash through Sora. His keyblade fell and disappeared as Sora dropped to the ground.
"What happened…?" Roxas' voice held an inexplicable sadness. "See for yourself."
Roxas raised his two keyblades, Oathkeeper and Oblivion, and crossed them together over his head. They both began glowing, darkness and light, and the two melded into one.
"I'm sorry, Sora. I have to. For her. I hope I can make you see…"
Roxas walked away, disappearing. Sora stood up and chased after him. "Wait! Roxas!" Sora looked around at his surroundings. How did he get out of here? How did he…
His thoughts trailed off as he screamed and collapsed. A flood of memories came rushing at him, this time none of them his own.
"You'll be…better off now…Roxas…"
Naminé stopped her drawing. "Roxas...? No, not now!"
"Come in."
The door to Xire's room opened by itself, revealing Toxkoma in the doorway with her hand outstretched as if to knock. Xire was sitting cross-legged on her bed, staring intently at Toxkoma, who then giggled a bit nervously. "Hey, Xire...I just wanted to ask you...um...well, Mixa mentioned something about..."
"I know you were there with her, Mako-chan." Xire's hard expression quickly melted away, replaced by a strangely warm smile. "It reminds you of when we used to interrupt her and Mamoru-san, doesn't it?"
Toxkoma had barely recovered from being called "Mako-chan" when the name Mamoru was thrown at her. "Mamoru-san...?" she stepped forward into the room. "You remember that much?"
"I've been remembering a lot lately," sighed Xire, laying down onto the bed. "And I've been thinking."
Makoto frowned. "What exactly have you been thinking about?"
"What did you stop in here for?"
Makoto stammered for a second. "Xire...what you said earlier about the Organization...did you mean it?"
Rei nodded. "What? Isn't it true?" Makoto didn't answer. "Makoto...what are we doing here? With the Organization?"
"We have nowhere else to go," said Makoto. "And they're going to help us get our hearts back. Don't you want to be able to feel again? To have all your memories back?"
"I'm not so sure," replied Rei. "Are you? About getting our past memories?"
"Well, to be honest with you Rei..." Makoto sat on the edge of the bed, blushing a bit. None of the girls had really talked to each other intimately like this since coming to the castle. Even though they were friends, this felt like a whole new experience. "My gut tells me that we don't really want to know our pasts. Part of me is afraid to remember. Especially whatever happened...to make us like we are now. But that doesn't change anything!" Makoto's voice rose passionately. "I still have to figure out who I am, and get my heart back. And it's only with Organization XIII that we'll be able to do that!"
"But at what price?" argued back Rei with equal passion. "Mako-chan, I haven't exactly been getting memories, but I've been getting...feelings of things, and...whoever we were before would not agree with the things we do now."
Toxkoma gritted her teeth. "Maybe that kind of thinking is how we got this way in the first place!"
Rei stumbled a bit, unprepared for the harshness that had come out of her mouth. "Why did you come here to ask me about it then, unless you had doubts too? I know you've always had a big need to belong, but even more than that you've always hated a bully. You're really comfortable with the methods we've been using? What we don't feel now, we'll feel then, and then what, huh?"
Makoto clenched her fist. "I don't know!" she shouted. "What's your plan then? What are we supposed to do!?" It was a genuine plea, Rei could read it all over her eyes. "I'm not sure yet, but..."
"Oh, sure you're not," said Makoto, throwing her hands in the air and turning around. "This is all because of that Sora kid, isn't it?" Makoto's voice softened as she stood in the doorway, hand squeezing at the wall. "He really is a lot like her, huh?"
There was a wound in there that neither of them wanted to explore. Whoever this "her" was, it was probably better to discuss it later. Makoto was about to leave when she stopped herself again. "Rei...when you're with Axel...do you feel anything?"
"Almost," she said. "Same with Sora. It's the closest thing to an emotion I've felt since...well, I assume before the four of us all woke up together in Twilight Town."
"But it's not enough, is it? Still feels empty inside?" whispered Makoto, a misplaced smile on her face as if to highlight that she was faking it. Rei nodded. "Think we'll ever be able to get it back on our own...? Never mind, that doesn't really matter, does it?"
Neither of them said anything, and Makoto finally took her leave.
She's right...I never could tolerate a bully. And when we get down to it, that's all we are. A bunch of heartless bullies. She angrily punched the wall at her side while simultaneously trying to hold it back, still making a nice sized dent in it regardless. "Damn it..."
"Woah there! Temper, temper!"
Makoto nearly jumped. "Xigbar! Why do you always have to sneak up on people like that?" She had a smile on her face to show there weren't any hard feelings. "Oh, it's fun," he said shrugging. "Yeah...well, goodnight then," she said, quickly walking past him. Xigbar narrowed his eyes as she walked down the hall.