"If you're going to leave...then at least say goodbye to everyone. So then, at least you know what you're leaving behind!"
"Shut up...!"
"That's why you're leaving now, aren't you..."
"I said, shut up!"
"You idiot! You're not searching for your light, you're purposely running into darkness!"
They stare at each other, refusing to stand down.
Their heavy breathing fills the night air.
"Well..." Cloud breathes out. "…Are you done?"
Clang...!
The sound of metal against metal echo through the quiet town square. Their blades entwine with each other, each pushing in a battle of wills.
"Of course…not. I'm going….to keep fighiting. I won't…let you make…the same mistake I did." Roxas promises, staring directly into Cloud's eyes.
If I hadn't left...I could have been there...I could have been there helping Axel, fighting alongside him...
That one opening, that one thought…
It was all Cloud needed.
Shiiing.
Roxas suddenly finds his grip reluctantly opening, his hand suddenly seeming to grasp at empty air.
His keyblades slip to the ground, ratting as they de-materialize into little sparkles.
A sword at his throat.
This was all too familiar.
"Damn, I lost." He mutters. Yet somehow, he's smiling a bitter little smile. He wonders if it will rain…
He opens his eyes to see Cloud staring at him, not moving.
"What are you doing? Go on, you won. You should be running away while you have the chance." Roxas says, searching Cloud's eyes.
Cloud narrows his eyes...wait...was that...in his eyes….
...guilt?
"The reason I seek Sephiroth…is because…"
He's falling.
A knock on his door.
Then, a weak:
"Roxas...?"
Olette's voice.
He goes to the door, and opens it.
"Hey, Ole—Olette!"
She's crying, hurriedly wiping her tears as she sniffs loudly.
"I'm s-sorry...I don't know why I'm crying (hic)...I mean..."
Roxas brings her into his room, and closes the door.
(Panicpanicpanicpanicpanicwhattodowhattodoohwhythehellwashesuchasocialreject)
"Whoa…What happened, Olette?" He asks her, guiding her to his bed. "Are you…okay?"
She looks down and tries to breath deeply. The words seem to come spilling out of her, boiling to the point that it seemed to overflow everywhere.
"It's just that...Mom and Dad are fighting again and Pence locked himself in his room and I don't know what to do because I feel guilty because I feel like I should be helping out and that I should be doing something and...I'm sorry." She hangs her head low. "I'm not bothering you, am I? I mean...I just suddenly found myself coming here..."
Roxas wishes he could do something to make her stop crying, to make her feel better. Yet all he can do is wrap an awkward around her shoulder, unable to think of anything better.
"Hey there...It'll be alright..." Roxas tries to soothe her, his mind racing to think up comforting things to say. "You'll always have me...I mean, us. You know, Hayner, Pence, the Landlady...Hell, even Seifer will always be there if you want some jerk to slap at...you know..."
Olette gives a small giggle.
"You're such a social loser, Roxas...You really suck at cheering people up, you know?" She remarks dryly.
"Thanks." He says, deadpan. "...You want a hug?"
He rubs his eyes, blinking them a few times as he wakes up.
"Roxas...Roxas, are you awake?"
Such a familiar voice...
Through his narrowed eyes, he sees green eyes and two large strands of brown hair.
...Olette?
"...What? Is everything okay?" He says weakly, barely awake.
A sharp inhale and suddenly—
"Oh Roxas...I'm just so glad...Thank you...so much..."
—He finds himself in a hug.
As he wakes up, he'll find himself later realizing that's it's a crying Aerith who's embracing him.
Cloud carries an unconscious Roxas in his arms back to the house, his face closed down and dark.
"You know, it was impossible to not wake up from all that noise you two made..."
Tifa. Beside her stands everyone else...a stone-faced Leon, a wide-eyed Yuffie, a sighing Cid, a sad-faced Merlin, a crying Aerith...
But he merely ignores them, refusing to look at him.
"You'll take care of him, right?" He asks.
Tifa sighs.
"...You sad bastard. You sad, cowardly bastard." She mutters under her breath. Then, out loud, she calls to him. "Leave him here. He'll be fine. Go."
Cloud smiles, unbeknown to everyone. Gently, he leans Roxas onto a stray bench.
"Thanks..."
And with that, he disappears off into the night.
"Hmm? What's this…Oh hell! It's Cloud! How have you been, bro?"
Cloud's eye twitches, but keeps his face stone. He dealt with this person several times before…he can do it again.
"Don't call me that."
As if getting fun out of Cloud's annoyance, the man continues on with the same familiar attitude.
"That's right, you used to give me that look all the time! Some things never change, eh?"
"My past with you is something I'd prefer not to remember."
He waves away Cloud's comment.
"Tch…You're still the same old brood aren't you…Well, what is it this time? Information on Sephiroth again? Dude, isn't that old?"
Once again, Cloud reminds himself of his vow. Keep calm, keep calm.
"…My dealings with Sephiroth are of no business to you. I come this time with a different intent this time."
The man across from him claps his hands amusedly.
"Don't tell me you actually want to join now? Well, it's too bad that we're all practically dead anyway."
Cloud stops in surprise. The man picks up on this, and let's out a little chuckle.
"Oh don't tell me you're feeling bad now…" He goads.
"No." Cloud immediately cuts in. "I'm just surprised that for a group so strong, you fell so quickly."
The man shrugs.
"It was bound to happen. I knew something was up, but someone beat me to the punch. Pity." The man then leans forward, resting his head upon his gloved hands. "So what did you come to me for, Cloudy?"
Cloud narrows his eyes, but ignores the jab, continuing on as if nothing happened.
"Information on the Nobodies."
It's silent for a moment, the man saying nothing. Then, he takes off his hood and raises his glass in a celebratory pose.
"So you're finally accepting who you are? Let us toast then." The man says, an almost taunting smile upon his face.
"The reason I seek Sephiroth…"
His quiet voice fills up the void of air between them.
"…Is because…"
His eyes are distant, not seeing. Roxas suddenly feels like a mirror.
Such a quiet whisper, a hushed mutter.
He barely hears it.
"…I am his Nobody."
The world has stopped.
It's only the two of them, staring at each other.
Echo…
Echo…
Echo…
I am his Nobody.
And before Roxas knows it…
He's falling.
"…You presume too much, Xigbar."
Xigbar tilts his head nonchalantly.
"I suppose. So tell me…what are you going to give me for this information?"
Cloud is silent. Inwardly, he curses at himself for being so naïve. Xigbar's smile widens at his reaction.
"What? You honestly thought that because I help you with Sephiroth for free that this would be the same?" Xigbar lets out a laugh. "Dude, the only reason I did that was just for entertainment. Seriously, it was funny watching that chase of yours. When did you finally realize that you would never defeat Sephiroth?"
Xigbar pauses.
"Or…are you now hoping that he'll defeat you?" He leers.
Cloud feels his hands twitching to reach for his sword and slice off Xigbar's head. (He wants to kill him. He wants to kill him.)
Instead, he opts for curling his hands into tight fist as he fights to keep in control.
"…I see no point in this. Tell me what you want." He stiffly gets out.
Xigbar puts on a condescending smirk.
"My my, you're getting better with controlling your emotions. I'm impressed." He leans back against his chair, lazy opening his arms. "Alright…I'll play your game."
He pauses for a moment to drink some of his wine slowly, as if purposely stalling to annoy Cloud. After gulping down a sip, he lets out a sigh.
"So…Cloud…" His dark brown eyes glitter in the lighting. "How's Roxas?"
"I only wish…to overcome the darkness."
"...You wish to overcome the darkness? You...You're human! Isn't that enough...Doesn't that prove already that you can defeat the darkness!"
"The fact that you have a heart...Doesn't that show you have light in you? The fact that you exist, that you aren't a Nobody...Why do you insist on rejecting what's inside of you? Why are you so afraid?"
"Look at me. I'm a Nobody...I'm not supposed to exist...I can'texist. I'm completely made up of darkness, an imbalanced being. The only way to be whole for me is to deny my existence, to fade back into darkness, or to merge with my Somebody, where all I'll be is a memory, at most."
"You really think it's me who doesn't understand?"
"Well…"
"…Are you done?"
"What happenend? Where's Cloud?" Roxas asks, as soon as he knows what's going on.
Aerith breathes in deeply, looking away as she wipes away her tears under the cover of her hair. Tifa answers for her.
"He's gone."
Her words fall like a stone to the ground.
Was he dreaming?
Was the past few days just an illusion?
Why did everything seem so surreal?
So vibrant?
So…alive?
He wishes for his bed back in Twilight Town, where everything seemed so…comfortable.
Calm.
Level.
What happened to everyone?
Why did they all seem to be disappearing in front of his eyes?
Why was he being left behind?
(…And why was he doing nothing to stop it?)
"He'll be back." He finds himself saying.
Why does he sound so confident? Why does he sound so sure of himself, even though, deep down, he can feel himself screaming, "Liar! Fake!"
…Traitor.
Roxas, you traitor.
He honestly doesn't care anymore.
Author's rants (Cause that's what they are): End of Arc One.
...Okay, not really (cause I don't plan the stories out enough for there to be an arcs) but I just wanted to say that. Doesn't it sound like a cool thing to say?
I didn't the 10 reviews I was aiming for but the seven I got were so sweet that I decided to work to try to finish this chapter. (According to [my statistics, only five out of every 45 people read author's note. Shame. :D) Yeah, despite the shorter than usual length of this, this chapter was really hard to write. You see, I actually had this chapter done yesterday, but then...KPING! Sudden Plot Idea That I Must Write! (aka The Cloud Nobody thing)...And so, I had to totally scrap my old work. Yeah, so Luxord will have to wait until I want to use him again... But at least I think I've finally found the reason why I named the story, "Lucidity".
If you're only willing to review once or something, please review this chapter. It's one of those chapters where there's so many flaws that you're scared to post, but at the same time, it's the one that you feel is one of the best because of all of the risks taken. I really really want to hear your reactions. And thank you for reading this far. I appreciate it. :D