New Chapter in less than 24 hours!!! YAY!!!! AND ITS A LONG ONE TOO, FOLKS!! This did not turn out the way i planned it too... not at all. As much as i tried to totally fill in Xion's backstory, my fingers wouldn't let me. Before you kill me however, the next chapter will have a lot of stuff revealed in it. Including, hopefully, more of Xion's past!!! BTW, Kingdom Hearts is not mine. And sorry about the spacing for some of the lines. Don't know what happened there. You'll see what i mean. Well, enjoy!!!
Chapter 7: Chain of Memories
"So, Xion, tell us about yourself. Exactly how did you come into existence if you weren't born?" Luxord asked, curious as to the origin of this rather strange girl. Already he had yet another bet going, this time on Xion's origins. They were all sitting in the alcove now, gathered around to first find out the back story to Xion, then to read that research and find out exactly what in the name of Zeus they had to do.
"Well, you see, I was born about ten years ago in a laboratory. When Aqua and Ventus went to America while looking for Terra, they took a detour and went to Disney World. They got lost in the Pirates of the Caribbean ride, and stumbled upon a high tech lab thingy where they found a cryogenically frozen Walt Disney and a scientist guy named Yensid, who knew a lot of information about them, their destiny, etc. He told them that their child would have to fulfill a great destiny in ten years. They said they had no child, and that there was no way in hell that they were sending a nine year old out to complete whatever fate had in store. So, he offered to make me out of their dna and rush me through the first five years of life in half a year. They accepted, and I was born. When I was seven, they found out that when I get really emotional, I have weird powers like healing people or causing things to explode or freezing time."
"Wait… so that was you that healed Riku?" Donald asked, suddenly quite interested in Xion. Ever since he was three years old, when he first played a game called Final Fantasy VII, Donald had always wanted to use magic. He even had his own staff, which he had carved from a piece of drift wood he had found on the shore.
"Yep!! The first time I did something like that was when this guy named Ansem came to visit my parents. We lived in a flat above the fire station on Main Street in Magic Kingdom. Ansem, he tripped and began to fall down the stairs. I started laughing so hard that tears came running out of my eyes, and all of a sudden Ansem found his fall cushioned by a vortex of air surrounding him."
"Ansem… huh. Our thirteenth mayor had that name. I wonder if it was the same guy." Goofy pondered, rubbing his chin with a gloved hand. Despite his slow and laid back demeanor, Goofy was not easily fooled by tricks or deceit.
"Ditto. What did he look like?" Riku inquired, sitting next to Xion.
"He had blonde hair and a blonde goatee and he had blue eyes. Actually, he kind of looked like Luxord!" Xion gleefully responded.
"Yep, that's Ansem alright." Everybody except Sora and Kairi said, giggling. Rumor has it that Luxord was Ansem's illegitimate son, a fact which he vehemently denies.
Sora and Kairi were sitting in a corner, only half listening to what was going on. Their thoughts were on the appearances of Naminé and Roxas, Zexion having told them of Naminé's visitation and the appearance of the research. Their minds went back to Naminé's burial.
Flashback
It was a cold winter's day. The sky was a steely gray that hinted at snow, though the sun did shine through a small patch of pale blue that wasn't covered by the clouds. A crowd of black clothed people were gathered around a patch of freshly disturbed earth on a small outcropping near the sea, crowned by a stone marker that read:
Naminé Waveborn
Born September 19, 1995
Died December 23, 2008
A door to the light, a candle in the dark
A dear sister, a caring friend
Rest in Peace
Kairi stood a little distance away from the crowd, sobbing. Her parents had died a few days before her sister had, and now she had no one left in the world. Well, almost no one. Sora, her dear caring best friend, stood beside her, his arm wrapped around her shoulders. A glint of tears showed in his eyes, and a few ran down his cheek, but he kept strong, for Kairi's sake.
Zexion, too, stood apart from the group. He was silent, an expressionless mask on his face hiding the seething mass of sorrow that hid within him.
Then, there was Roxas. He stood right beside the grave, his broken heart making itself known with every drop of water that dripped in the deluge that came from his eyes.
After a couple of minutes of a silence that was only disturbed by the gentle sobs of the gathering, Demyx stepped forward. He had his sitar in his hand, and his blue eyes were filled with sorrow.
"Naminé was a great friend, and a good person. So, in memory of her, I thought I'd play one of her favorite songs" Demyx announced, then began to softly strum his sitar. First an F chord, then a G, then an A minor, then back to an F.
After about fifteen seconds, he started to sing, his voice pure emotion:
"Now I've heard there was a secret chord
That David played, and it pleased the Lord
But you don't really care for music, do you?
It goes like this, the fourth, the fifth
The minor fall, the major lift
The baffled king composing Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Your faith was strong but you needed proof
You saw her bathing on the roof
Her beauty and the moonlight overthrew you
She tied you to a kitchen chair
She broke your throne, and she cut your hair
And from your lips she drew the Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Baby I have been here before
I know this room, I've walked this floor
I used to live alone before I knew you.
I've seen your flag on the marble arch
Love is not a victory march
It's a cold and it's a broken Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah
There was a time you let me know
What's really going on below
But now you never show it to me, do you?
And remember when I moved in you
The holy dark was moving too
And every breath we drew was Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah
You say I took the name in vain
I don't even know the name
But if I did, well really, what's it to you?
There's a blaze of light in every word
It doesn't matter which you heard
The holy or the broken Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Maybe there's a God above,
And all I have ever learned from love
Was how to shoot somebody who outdrew ya'
It's not a cry you can hear at night
Its not somebody who's seen the light
It's a cold and it's a broken Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah Hallelujah, Hallelujah
I did my best, it wasn't much
I couldn't feel, so I tried to touch
I've told the truth, I didn't come to fool you
And even though it all went wrong
I'll stand before the Lord of Song
With nothing on my lips but Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah"
A scattering of applause filled the air, and Kairi collapsed to her knees, crying hysterically, her heart filled with the deep, aching pain of despair and loss. Sora dropped down beside her, his arm still wrapped around her and whispering in her ear that everything will be ok, that eventually the pain will pass, that her heart will heal.
Zexion was a bit further away now, leaning against a tree for support, hot tears streaming down his face. He felt so lonely, so grief ridden that he wanted to just run up to the cliff and jump off of it, just kill himself. But he knew that he wouldn't. He knew that Naminé would not want him to do that. She would want him to live. In fact, at her bedside in the hospital, she had made him promise to live. He slowly slid down the trunk of the tree, stuck between a broken heart and breaking an oath.
Roxas, too, was on his knees in front of the grave. He had never gotten the chance to tell Naminé exactly how he felt, and it was shredding his heart right now, the feeling of regret. Demyx's lament had forced into his mind every memory he had of her, her slight smile, the color of her hair, everything. It was almost too much for him to bear.
It was a cold winter's day, and for all they cared, it could last for an eternity. It would still be shorter lived then their sorrow.
End Flashback
The fact that Naminé and Roxas were still alive, if without hearts, shook them to the bone. The fact that they were together was not really that much of a shocker, however. They had always been a cute pair, and Naminé choosing Zexion had let to many an argument over her reasons.
After Naminé's death, Roxas became rather withdrawn and depressed. He didn't go out as much as he used too, and at times he would just sit somewhere, staring off into space, remembering her. Eventually, however, the wounds on his heart began to heal. Though he still hurt, the pain was more of an old friend to him. It infused his deepest being and understood him.
Then came that fateful night, a year and a half to the day after Naminé's death. Roxas got swept away by the storm, along with Sora's house and his parents. After a week of searching, the bodies could not be found, and they were declared dead.
Flashback
It was a warm summer's morning, a prelude to the harsh heat of the afternoon sun. A large gathering of people surrounded a grave, capped by a head stone which said:
Roxas Skye
Born April 13, 1995
Died June 22, 2009
A light enveloped in dark
A dark infused with light
A great brother, an excellent friend, a good man
Rest in Peace
This grave lay next to another grave, the grave of Naminé. Everyone had known that Roxas would have wanted to be buried there. Even Zexion had agreed to it, knowing that Roxas had loved her, and that Naminé had loved him back. Zexion had known all along that she loved him more as a friend than a lover, yet he still said yes when she had asked him out. He could never figure out why she had done so in the first place, cause he knew that in all reality, she loved Roxas.
Sora was kneeling at his brother's grave, tears streaming down his face like shooting stars in the light of the morning sky. Kairi was kneeling next to him, crying along with him. Zexion was standing near the grave, an air of thoughtful melancholy surrounding him. He was saddened at Roxas's death, but in a way he was also glad. Maybe now he was with Naminé. Maybe now he was at peace.
Axel was standing near the grave as well, sobbing. Roxas was one of Axel's closest friends, one of the few to look past the flame and into the warmth. Demyx was beside him, attempting to sooth his agony.
A few minutes passed, and then Axel suddenly stepped forward, a piece of paper clutched in his hand.
"I found this poem on the internet. Got it memorized? Roxas, little buddy, this one is for you."
Axel slowly began to read the poem.
"Feel no guilt in laughter, he knows how much you care
Feel no sorrow in a smile that he's not here to share
You cannot grieve forever, he would not want you to
he'd hope that you can carry on, the way you always do
So talk about the good times and the ways you showed you cared
The days you spent together, all the happiness you shared
Let memories surround you.
A word someone may say
Will suddenly recapture a time, an hour, a day
That brings him back as clearly as though he were still here
And fills you with the feelings that he is always near
For if you keep these moments, you will never be apart
And he will live forever locked safe within your heart"
Axel finished, his voice cracking with sadness. Sora just started to cry even harder, and Kairi grabbed him and hugged him to her tightly. Zexion smiled up into the sky and mouthed," Good bye, my friend". Then, he slowly walked away.
That summer's day may have been warm, but that heat could not touch the cold sorrow of their hearts,
End Flashback
"Earth to Sora and Kairi, are you guys alive?" Xigbar said, standing right in front of them. He had gotten a bit worried after they had not said anything for ten minutes, and had walked over to their little corner to see if they were still breathing.
"Huh… um…. Yeah. We're still alive. What did we miss?" Kairi responded, shaking her head to try and clear it from the fog that has wrapped around her brain.
"Nothing much. For the past ten minutes we have been arguing over whether Luxord is Ansem's illegitimate son or not. So far, Luxord has been losing." Xigbar said, readjusting his eyepatch.
"Wow… that is sad." Sora said.
"I know, right? Shall we go and change the subject?" Xigbar asked, smiling a smile that suggested significant embarrassment for those involved in the argument.
"Sure!" Sora and Kairi said, grinning. They got up from their corner and walked with Xigbar to the large table that they had dragged into the alcove in order to sit everybody. Everybody was arguing over Luxord's heredity, just as Xigbar had said.
"OK!!!! ENOUGH ALREADY!!! WE CAN DISCUSS THIS LATER!!!! NOW, XION. TELL US ABOUT WHY YOU ARE HERE!!!!" Xemnas screamed, snapping from the utter insanity of the conservation. Xigbar. Sora, and Kairi just glanced at each other and shrugged, their fun ruined.
"Sure!! My mom and dad sent me here to fulfill my destiny by helping you guys defeat some mysterious enemy that you will probably first here about in the research that Luxord's daddy left us!!" Xion said cheerfully, ignoring the death glare that Luxord shot her.
"FOR GOD'S SAKE, I AM NOT HIS SON!!! I HAVE A BLOODY BRITISH ACCENT FOR GOD SAKE!! I MOVED HERE WHEN I WAS EIGHT!!! FROM ENGLAND!!! ANSEM NEVER WENT TO ENGLAND, SO SOMEBODY TELL ME HOW THE FUCK I AM HIS SON!!!!!" Luxord ranted, his face filled with a sort of frustrated rage that people often get when dealing with Xion or with matters of their heredity.
"Nice going, poppet. Now you got Luxord mad." Xigbar smirked.
"LUXORD!!! SHUT THE FUCK UP!!! NOW!!!!!" Xaldin shouted, rubbing his dreadlock covered temples. Screaming gives him a headache.
"Zzzzzz." Xion snored. Everybody looked at her in utter amazement, wondering how she can go from a hyper sugar demon bent on causing chaos to a cute teenage girl sleeping the morning away with such speed.
"Finally. Looks like her caffeine high wore off. Riku, why don't you carry your girlfriend to that corner over there. Zexion, can you glance through that research and assign people certain files to read? Everybody else, clean this place up. It is a mess." Kairi took charge, giving out orders to people on what exactly to clean up.
Riku gently picked up the sleeping Xion and took her to the corner where Sora and Kairi had been recently reminiscing. He carefully placed her down, making sure not to disturb her. He smiled at her, then went to cleaning up the messy library. There was work to be done.
The song is called Hallelujah. It is by Leonard Cohen, and has been covered by a wide range of people, from Jeff Buckley to Bruce Springsteen to Rufus Wainwright and John Cale. It was also in the movie Shrek. The poem is Memories in the Heart, by an unknown author. Please review. And if you want to hear how the song sounds, Youtube it. For the best sound, either go to Rufus Wainwright's version or John Cale's. Til the next chapter, then.