A/N: Sorry that this took so long. If you wanna take your blind, ferocious fury out on something, then by all means, please take it out on exams. Blegh. I'm just glad that they're finally over. And thanks to all who have reviewed and faved! Especially NinjaSheik! Those make meh so happeh! So without further ado, I give you ze next chapter!

Disclaimer: Kingdom Hearts does not belong to me in any way, shape, or form. Period. Yeah.


Walking briskly about Ansem's study, Runa resisted the urge to take her frustration out on the desk in the center of the room. The blue-haired man's words continued to echo through her head, no matter how she attempted to block them out. Everything about him made her want to hit something. The way that he constantly exuded arrogance, the way those haughty golden eyes continually viewed her, as well as that condescending tone constantly hurling barbs. Muttering incoherent words underneath her breath, Runa exited the study to return to the main computer chamber.

She had arrived earlier to make sure that the chamber remained in good condition only to meet that strange man once again. Sighing, she knew that Cid would never forgive her if she let that machine fall into disrepair. Having made it himself, he had treated it almost like a foster child. According to Merlin, it had been made for the very ruler of Hollow Bastion years ago. However, after his apprentices had betrayed him, the room had been left in a state of disarray. Now Runa was here on a favor for Cid to see how his creation had taken on the years. And considering the trouble she had caused him and the rest of his friends a year ago, she viewed it as the least she could do. They, being complete strangers, had protected her brother when she could not. And of course, Cid took advantage of that debt every chance he got. In other words, she was the one who ran the errands. That is… until that day when they had all suddenly disappeared. Soon after that, the Heartless population had begun to increase dramatically as well. Occasional sightings of a tall, horned woman didn't exactly put Runa's mind at ease either.

Frowning at these thoughts, Runa proceeded to open the necessary files from the computer. However the frown slowly began to grow as the files failed to appear.'Not good, not good, not good,' she thought, gritting her teeth. 'The creep must've been messing around with this.' Suddenly, a bright, red light began to flash across the screen. "Attention current user. This is a warning. Further attempts of hacking will result in immediate defensive action," a mechanical voice boomed.

"Shit," Runa muttered underneath her breath. Whatever that blue-haired freak had done, the effects were certainly going to be long lasting. In all her time spent with him, Cid had never mentioned the possibility of the computer, of all things, threatening her. A frustrated growl escaping her as she realized that there was nothing she could do (unless she wanted to find out what this "defensive action" was precisely), Runa refrained from slamming her fists on the keyboard. 'That guy better hope that I don't catch him around here again,' she thought darkly.


Turns out it was possible for Nobodies to suffer headaches after all. He had always assumed that it was due to the lack of blood flow from his nonexistent heart. But after being forced to listen to VIII and IX's excuses for the better part of an hour, the Berserker was rubbing his temples furiously nonetheless. The way his thoughts kept returning to that loud-mouthed girl from Hollow Bastion didn't exactly help either. Clenching his gloved hand into a fist, it was all he could do to keep himself from punching a hole in the wall. That idiotic woman and her incessant prattle annoyed him to no end, despite the fact that it had been days since their last encounter. He should've simply slain her with Lunatic on the spot. But of course, the Superior had wanted her alive, which put a definite damper on that particular plan.

Now, after he had finally dismissed VIII and IX, Xemnas had summoned Saix to the Alter of Naught. As he finished climbing the smooth, marble stairs leading to the Superior, Saix saw to his surprise, that Xemnas was not alone. A short, blonde boy stood beside the silver-haired man; his large blue eyes glinting dully. 'Ah, a new member then,' Saix thought, giving the boy a cursory glance.

Watching Saix from the corner of his eye, Xemnas turned his gaze back to the emptiness before him. The emptiness that would soon hold Kingdom Hearts itself in its grasp. "He has already been named?" he heard Saix ask indifferently.

"He has," he replied. "His name is Roxas, the Key of Destiny." Turning to face his second-in-command, Xemnas said, "He is also a keyblade wielder. Or to be precise… the Nobody of a keyblade wielder."

Eyes widening a fraction, Saix looked disbelievingly at the boy. This was the Organization had been waiting for? This child had the power to summon the keyblade itself? The boy was hardly worth the honor of restoring the Organization's hearts. Scoffing slightly underneath his breath, he inquired, "I assume that this is the same wielder you sent me to find in Hollow Bastion?"

"No. I found this one in Twilight Town. However, I expect you to continue searching in that location." Mentally flinching at the prospect of possibly running into that wretched woman yet again, Saix suppressed the growl rising in his throat.

Giving a small bow, Saix murmured, "As you wish sir." But as he began to descend the stairs, he heard his Superior call his name. "And Saix… do not fail me in this." Orange eyes narrowed at the Nobody's retreating form. "If we wish to achieve our goal, we must use every mean available to us."

"And we shall my lord." Shooting one last withering look towards the boy, Saix took this opportunity to leave Xemnas with his new toy. Slowly making his way toward the Addled Impasse, his own thoughts turned to where the keyblade bearer could possibly be hiding in a place like Hollow Bastion. The world was full of nooks and crannies to hide in, but he had searched all of them at least twice. For the first time, Saix was beginning to doubt Xemnas's assumptions. After all, wouldn't Xemnas know more about the wielder that came from Xemnas's original world? Arriving at his destination, Saix gazed at the perpetual night through the great windows that surrounded the area. Summoning Lunatic, he then proceeded with his daily training, imagining that it was that woman Runa he was sparring.


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