A/N: This is going to be the second to last chapter of this story. Oh, and there is few lines of a song "Onko vielä aikaa" ("Is there still time") by Katri Ylander. It's probably self-evident that I don't own it, nor the Kingdom Hearts characters.

-o-o-o-o-

Chapter 6. Farewell

Ansem the Wise came to the door, Riku following him. It was true, no one really visited them, so it was even more confusing that it took Saïx so long to drive the visitors away.

"Who is there?" Ansem asked, slightly curious, and pushed the blunette out of his way. He frowned confused when he saw almost half the village on their yard.

"There he is!" the townsfolk yelled, pointing at the inventor. "The crazy old Ansem!"

Kairi smiled sweetly. "Well, then. It's useless to say anything against", she told and her subordinates approached the door calmly. "Take them away."

"Kairi?" Riku stated as he stared at the girl behind Ansem and Saïx before stepping right in front of the girl. "What are you talking about? My father isn't crazy!"

"Prove it", the girl hummed to her long time childhood friend. "As I know, your father is proved to be insane by the townsfolk, and so is your brother, but I can give you a chance to prove otherwise. So, Riku, prove me they're not insane."

Riku didn't know what to say. Marluxia instead knew perfectly what to do. He had stood further away with Larxene and Xigbar. Now his time had come. He wrapped his hands around the Riku's shoulders and smiled.

"Riku", he whispered huskily. "I could do something to clear this little misunderstanding."

"What do you want, Marluxia?" the whitette asked trough his teeth, already knowing what Marluxia was about to say.

"It's easy", the pinkette replied. "Marry me, and the crazy old man and the scar-face can continue their lives just like before."

Saïx was annoyed by how Marluxia treated his brother. He was already going to interrupt their conversation, but Xigbar stopped him.

"U-huh, I don't think so", he laughed, pointing at the blunette with his lucky hunting gun. "I don't really have anything against any of you, but payback is a bitch."

Riku gritted his teeth, glaring at Marluxia. "Don't mock my family…!"

His words caused Marluxia to smile even wider. "You weren't here when your dear father came to the inn, raving about a nonexistent Beast!" the pinkette shouted. "Tell us about the Beast, old man!" The crowd laughed, Marluxia and Kairi included. Saïx growled but he remained silent for the moment. Ansem the Wise instead run next to Riku.

"There was a Beast!" he yelled. "It was huge! With sharp fangs and claws!"

"Well, that explains a lot", Kairi chuckled as her minions started to pull Ansem to the cart. "Come with us old man and-"

Riku run past Saïx back to the house just to run back out with a silver object. "My father isn't crazy!" he told again, this time yelling so that everyone could hear it. "And I can prove it!"

He whispered to the Magical Mirror and the image on its surface began to change. Riku turned it to the crowd as it showed Ansem, giving a loud, horrifying roar. The crowd had stopped laughing; now they were gasping in fear and shock. They whispered and Riku felt a sting of guilt in his heart. He turned the mirror away.

"Is it… dangerous?" Olette, the baker's wife, asked, sounding truly afraid. Pence wrapped his arms around the girl. Riku shook his head.

"No! He's kind and gentle", the whitette told, holding the mirror against his chest. "He's my friend."

Larxene had stepped forward and grabbed the mirror from Riku, tossing it to Marluxia. The pinkette sneered, glancing at Riku. "If I didn't know you better, I would think that you like that monster!" he shouted, turning then to the crowd. "The Beast will make off with your children! He'll come after them in the night!"

"No!" Riku yelled, trying to get the mirror back from Marluxia, but Larxene stepped in and kicked the whitette further from Marluxia.

"Marluxia's right! We're not safe till his head is mounted on the inn's wall!" the blonde girl yelled, encouraging the crowd even more. "I say we kill the Beast!"
The crowd cheered, raising their pitchforks and torches. "Kill him!"

Hayner thrashed out his fist. "We're not safe until he's dead."

"He'll come stalking us at night!" Seifer continued.

"Set to sacrifice our children to his monstrous appetite", Aerith whined, holding her grown stomach protectively.

Cloud took his hand from her shoulder, stepping forward. "He'll wreak havoc on our village if we let him wander free."

"So it's time to take some action, boys!" Marluxia clamored, receiving a scythe from Larxene. "It's time to follow me!"

The blonde walked through the crowd, singing a song to keep the townsfolk concentrated to their mission. "Through the mist, through the woods", she sung. "Through the darkness and the shadows, it's a nightmare but it's one exciting ride."

"Say a prayer, then we're there", Xigbar continued, still pointing at Saïx with his gun. "At the gates of a castle, and there's something truly terrible inside."

Marluxia paced around Riku. "I don't understand what you see in that monster", he snorted, showing the image of the Beast from the mirror. "It's a beast. He's got fangs, razor sharp ones. Massive paws, killer claws for the feast."

"Stop this, Marluxia!" the whitette demanded. "He's not a monster!"

The pinkette didn't listen to Riku, but continued encouraging the crowd. "Hear him roar! See him foam! But we're not coming home 'til he's dead! Good and dead!"

"We'll kill the Beast!"
Riku grabbed Marluxia's wrist. "No! I won't let you do this!"

The pinkette smirked at Riku. "If you're not with us, you're against us", Marluxia told, wrenching his arm free. "I'll handle the situation here later. Bring the old man!"

The townsfolk, along with Kairi's minions, pushed Ansem the Wise into the house's cellar. Being in front of the gun barrel precluded a chance to attack, so the only thing Saïx could do at the moment was to snarl and obey. "You don't get away with this", he growled at Xigbar as he joined Ansem the Wise and helped the old man up from the floor.

"Well, that's nice", the older man laughed. "I didn't know you tell jokes!"

Marluxia himself pushed Riku into the cellar, latching the door from outside and yelling to the crowd. "We're done here now and now we'll rid the village of this Beast. Who's with me?"

As he raised his scythe, the crowd let out cheers. "I am!" "I am!" "I am!"

Larxene pulled Marluxia on a horse's back and they took the road through the town to acquire more people to their mob before they would continue to the castle.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Saïx tried to break the door so many times his shoulder started to ache, but it was no use. They weren't sure how long they had been locked up. The blunette cursed Xigbar in his mind when he noticed that even the door from their kitchen to the cellar was locked. Riku hadn't time to wallow in self-pity any longer even though he had lost the mirror to Marluxia and now the whole castle was in danger.

"I have to go back and warn them!" the whitette shouted, walking around the cellar. "Isn't there any other way out?!"

Ansem the Wise shook his head, making Riku punch the wall. "But we'll think about something…"

Marluxia and his mob had already left the village and, with the mirror as their map, they approached little by little the castle.

"Through a mist, through a wood", the mob sung, marching behind Marluxia and Larxene."Where within a haunted castle something's lurking that you don't see every day…It's a beast! One as tall as a mountain, we won't rest 'til he's good and deceased! Sally forth, tally ho! Grab your sword, grab your bow, praise the Lord and here we go!"

Marluxia swung his scythe. "We'll lay siege to the castle and bring back his head!"

"We don't like what we don't understand, in fact it scares us and this monster is mysterious at least", the mob chanted, raising their weapons. "Bring your guns, bring your knives! Save your children and your wives, we'll save our village and our lives! We'll kill the Beast!"

In the castle, even Demyx had calmed down, but Axel was still frustrated. "I knew it!" he yelled and probably would have torn his hair from his head if he just had any. "I knew it was foolish to get our hopes up!"

"Maybe it would have been better if they had never come at all", Luxord added with almost a depressed sigh. A few moving objects gathered at a window. The water boy blinked.

"Could it be?" he asked, running to the window.

Luxord, albeit of what he had just said, followed Demyx's example. "What is it?"

Demyx shook his head frantically. "Invaders!" he cried out, pointing at the courtyard. "And they have the mirror!"

Now even Axel woke up. The fire man looked at Xaldin. "Warn the Masters!" he ordered, and the dreadlocked man left the hall immediately. Axel burned in anger. "If it's a fight they want, we'll be ready for them! Who's with me?!"

Demyx's eyes poured tears again and Luxord tried to console the younger, looking at Axel.

"What do you think we can do?"

-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Riku was already losing all the hope of getting back to the castle in time. A sudden clatter behind the door, however, made his hopes rise back up. The latch was opened and the door was pulled open to reveal the dark winter's sky. Zexion was there, looking a little out of breath. Riku looked at him. "Why are you here?" the whitette managed to ask after recognizing the other. Zexion didn't show up around Riku and Saïx as often as the rest of the servants, so it wasn't surprising that Riku didn't know him right away. Saïx instead recognized Zexion on the instant. He hadn't forgotten the scent of the boy who had locked him in their room even though he hadn't seen him.

"Because this wasn't what I wanted", Zexion told bluntly. Saïx wasn't satisfied with the answer.

"Answer the question", he snarled. "I know you hate us, so tell me, why are you here?"

Zexion shrugged. "I never said I hate any of you", he said, cleaning most of the snow from his clothes. "I just don't believe in love you human's are so devoted to. Now take your horses. We need to get back to the castle."

Riku nodded, rushing out from the cellar, Saïx and Ansem the Wise after him. Zero and Luna were at the stable where they had been left.

"We have only two horses", Saïx noted as Riku led Zero out of its stall. Ansem the Wise smiled, giving Luna's reins to the blunette.

"You three can take Zero and Luna with you", he said. "You have to hurry."

"What about you?" Riku asked and climbed onto Zero's back.

The old man waved his hand. "I'll catch up with you later. Now go."

Saïx hopped on Luna's back. But as a matter of fact, Zexion had never been an athletic type, nor was he going to ride a horse. Never again was his point on that one. "I'll walk, thank you very much", he snorted when Riku reached out to help Zexion to Zero's back. Saïx grimaced and pulled the mercury boy up to Luna's back.

"Don't get me wrong", he snarled. "The fact you don't hate me doesn't mean I do like you. You'll just cause us problems if you lag behind. You just sit down and don't fall."

Zexion made a wry face. "Fine."

"Remember to come after us!" Riku yelled to their father when Zero started to act impatient. "And then… we'll have time to talk!"

The old man nodded. "Just go now!"

And so the race back to castle began. At the beginning, Zero and Luna run side by side. Zexion looked more than annoyed in Riku's opinion, but the whitette decided not to ask about it. The mercury boy kept silent most of the ride.

"Why do you care so much?" he asked finally, but so quietly it was more like a whisper, trying to avoid touching Saïx's back. "I've read it's a sign of madn-"

"It's all because of love", Riku stated, sounding more asking than declaratory. "You're in love, right?"

Zexion flushed lightly, it would have been left unnoticed if Riku hadn't kept his eyes locked on him. The mercury boy looked away. "Monsters don't love, or be loved."

"You consider yourself a monster?" Riku tried. "How foolish you think that is?"

Zexion sneered. "We are monsters. We don't love", he repeated, mentally adding that that was the reason why the spells would never be broken.

Riku looked at the boy. "Lexaeus loves you."

"…What? No, he… I…" the mercury boy mumbled, flushing more.

Riku gave a slight smile at the memory of his short meeting with Lexaeus. He had met the tall, stalwart man a day after his escape at the yard. Riku had been surprised there actually were more servants than Axel, Demyx, Luxord, Xaldin, and Zexion. He had also heard of Vexen, but no-one had told him of Lexaeus. Their conversation had been quite one-sided until Lexaeus had asked one simple question: "Is Zexion still sad?" Riku had shrugged, telling he didn't really know Zexion that well and that Lexaeus should ask it from Zexion himself. The man had given Riku a sad smile and said that then it wasn't right time.

"He asked whether you were sad", Riku continued. "Does it have something to do with your denial of love?"

"No", Zexion mumbled annoyed. "I made a promise years ago to not talk to him."

"He misses you."

"Do you think I don't know that?!" the mercury boy cried out. "Don't push your luck!"

Saïx frowned at their conversation, and when he had had enough, he tossed the reins to Zexion.

"Hold these", he said, and before the shorter had even reacted to the command, Saïx hopped down from Luna's back while the mare was still running.

"Wha-what did you do?!" Zexion barked, trying to hang onto the reins.

"She runs faster now!" Saïx yelled back as the first raindrops fell. "And Riku, forge some common sense to the lover boy's head!"

Zexion gave an annoyed grin, and held tighter onto the reins as Riku smiled.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-

The mob was breaking through the door. Marluxia smirked. "Take whatever booty you can find. But remember, the Beast is mine!" he shouted.

"Raise the flag, sing the song!" the mob sung as they hit the door with a large tree. "Here we come, we're fifty strong and fifty fighters can't be wrong! Let's kill the Beast!"

Inside the castle, Xaldin stepped into the chamber in the West Wing. "Masters?" he called. Ansem growled dolefully, blankly staring at the rose, or actually what was left of the rose. Xemnas appeared from the shadows to talk. The spite which was typical in his voice was gone. There was clear sadness.

"I sense hostility", he stated calmly.

"Masters, the castle is under attack", Xaldin told. "What shall we do?"
Xemnas looked at Ansem, gaining a soft snarl from the older. "It doesn't matter anymore. Hide or escape. Just let them come."

The dreadlocked man gave a hesitant nod before hurrying to join the others.

"Are you sure about this?" Xemnas asked when the door was closed again.

Ansem gave a sigh. "It's already too late…"

When finally the door gave in, the mob rushed in just to find an empty hall. They walked into the castle, warily looking around. It looked just like any abandoned castle, except that the entrance hall was full of various objects and furniture. Xigbar sneered, his gun already loaded.

"What now, Mar?" he asked, annoyed. Marluxia shot him a look.

"Go that way", the pinkette barked, pointing at the stairs that lead to the East Wing. "And if you find the Beast, don't kill it. I want to do it myself. Larxene, you come with me. And Cloud, you get a promotion. Lead this gang."

The man with spiky blonde hair smirked behind his scarf. "Gladly."

As the main three had gone to different directions, Cloud was going to start giving orders when some oppressive music began to play. He and Leon both raised their swords.

"Weird", Leon said as the music stopped as suddenly as it started and he laid down his arms.

"We should continue", Cloud told, and right after his words, the music started again. The objects burst into life and started a massive attack. The townsfolk began to fight back after they had got over the first shock. They didn't know what to expect from the objects and some of them had already fled from the castle. Candleholders were burning people, teapots and cups attacked with boiling hot tea, and knives and forks were singing as they got to sink themselves into the flesh. Not to mention the other enchanted objects that fought as well. It didn't take long before Cloud shouted the order to retreat which the mob did more than willingly without even remembering Marluxia and his two companions. Luxord – who had been in charge of the spectacle in the entrance hall – hummed gladly. "I feel like taking a drink."

-o-o-o-o-o-

Instead of fighting, Axel and Demyx had gone hiding into a poky closet in the second floor before the riot had started. Axel frowned every time Demyx accidentally touched him. "You're extinguishing me", the flame man whined. "Keep your legs on your own side!"

"We should be protecting the castle and our Masters! I don't want to hide here with you!" the water boy stated with a pout. "And it's not my fault I'm leaking!"

"Leak elsewhere!"

"Axel!" Demyx shouted and slapped the fire man's arm.

"Okay, okay! You got the point here, Dem!" Axel admitted, holding his arm. Now he knew how Vexen felt every time when Axel touched him. The flame man opened the door, glanced at the both directions and then back at Demyx. "So the new plan is, we'll split up and help to drive off the invaders, okay?"

Demyx nodded. "Yeah!"

After a moment of walking pointlessly, Demyx began to regret leaving the closet. "Oh, why did we split up in a first place…?" he whimpered, walking around the servants' quarters. He hadn't seen a soul after he and Axel had went to opposite directions. A sudden clack behind the corner startled him. "What was that…?!"

Instead of going to look whether it was an enemy, little Demyx's inner self-preservation instinct guided him to run to the closest room and climb on top of a large locker. That was because the locker was locked and he couldn't hide inside of it. He heard steps coming closer and closer to the room's door. The door creaked open. Xigbar glared to the room.

"Is someone here?" was the question. Demyx glanced quickly at the talker from his hiding place. He let out a loud gasp. Oh fuck, he's got a gun…!

"I heard you. Come out from your hiding place and I may not hurt you", Xigbar called, looking around, his index finger on the trigger. The water boy bit his lower lip. He believed that the gunman perhaps wouldn't hurt him but if he found the Masters it would be far from the playground. He had to think fast. What would the others do? He remembered a night when Luxord had challenged Xaldin into the game of chess. "The one who makes the first move wins", the blonde had said with a laugh. Demyx looked down one more time. The man was with his back towards the locker. The water boy squeezed his hands to fists and jumped to attack with a loud cry. Xigbar startled as Demyx pushed him to the floor with his whole weight. He accidentally dropped his gun, giving to the water boy a chance to grab the weapon. And Demyx didn't waste time.

Xigbar shot a look over his shoulder. "Wha-?! Get off me you-!"

Demyx glared at the man as murderously as he could. "Don't move or…!" he cried out, retreating a bit. Yet he was pointing at Xigbar with the man's hunting gun. "Or I'll shoot you with no hesitation!"

At first Xigbar just glared at the boy. That wasn't the Beast he was looking for anyway, no matter how weird that kid looked like. The kid was kind of cute, actually. And not just kind of cute, but very cute. Xigbar laughed, noticing that Demyx was more afraid than he was. The boy trembled so much that the gun could hardly even stay still in his hands.

"Put that gun away", Xigbar told with a grin, raising his hands. "I'm a nice guy. I won't hurt you."

Demyx gave a little smile. "Promise?" Then he remembered that he shouldn't trust that guy. His smile fell and he moved his finger back to the trigger. "Ah, I mean, no! You came here to kill our Masters!"

Xigbar shook his head. "As if, kid! You've misunderstood me!" he declared. "We're here to kill the Beast! Wait, that's probably the same thing…!"

"Our Masters are not monsters…!" Demyx cried out, tears of anger pouring from his eyes. "For a second I thought you're a good guy but you're just an evil meanie!"

Xigbar stood up the floor. He snatched the gun back, looking at the boy. "This kind of things can be dangerous in incapable hands", he said, smiling. "And about that 'evil meanie' part…"

Xigbar lifted Demyx's chin to peck a kiss on the boy's lips. "Does that prove I'm not a bad guy?" Xigbar asked, making Demyx stare shocked at him before the water boy burst into tears. The older startled. "Hey, wha-?! Please, stop crying, kiddo!"

"I think I wet myself…!"

-o-o-o-o-o-o-

On the other side of the castle, Marluxia and Larxene were searching for the Beast. If there was something that Marluxia liked in his blonde friend, it would have been the girl's zeal. Larxene, her daggers ready, kicked doors open, one by one, with no hesitation. She did anything for Marluxia, and that was the honest truth. They had always more like best friends than lovebirds, and when Marluxia set his sight on Riku things didn't really change. Even though Larxene didn't like Riku, if someone dishonored her Marly, she was not responsible for the consequences. The blonde girl finally reached a large pair of wooden doors at the end of the West Wing.

"That's the last one this floor", she snorted. "And still no Beast."

Marluxia shrugged. "It will be somewhere in this castle", he said, looking at the girl. "If you're so worried about its existence, go and find Xigbar. I'll be fine."

Larxene frowned. "Fine, but I guess you'll need this." She handed a few of her knives to the man and obeyed the command to find Xigbar. Marluxia, now left alone, pushed the door open, his grip on the scythe tightening. The room was dark and messy and it took a moment for Marluxia to see better. When his eyes got used to the darkness, he was able to see a large figure in front of the windows. Ansem glanced at Marluxia, but turned his back at the intruder, giving a simple growl. The pinkette smirked. He took an aim and threw one of the knives deadly accurately in the direction of the Beast. It hit Ansem's shoulder, making the Beast let out a loud roar in pain. Marluxia's smirk widened as he ran towards Ansem and pushed the Beast through the window into the pouring rain. Ansem landed on a roof deck where Marluxia soon followed him to. The pinkette snorted when he noticed the Beast seemed to have already given up.

He kicked Ansem's side, gaining only a mournful growl. "What's wrong?!" he cried out, holding his scythe. "Too kind and gentle to even fight back?! I expected more from a Beast!"

Ansem turned his eyes away from Marluxia. It was already over. Riku wasn't there. Marluxia raised his scythe and swung it towards the Beast.

"Ansem!" The Beast's eyes widened after hearing the familiar voice. He grabbed the scythe's blade and turned to look to the yard. He smiled softly, seeing Riku and Zexion there. He had come back. Marluxia twisted the scythe, making the blade cut a deep wound on Ansem's paw. Ansem let go of the weapon, glaring at Marluxia.

"I think I have to end this now!" the pinkette yelled, after noticing how tenderly the Beast had looked at Riku. He swung the scythe once more, only to be surprised when Ansem let it hit him on the already damaged shoulder. Marluxia was physically weaker than Ansem, so he decided to ditch the scythe for a moment to trip the Beast. Unfortunately for him, they both lost balance, sliding down to the lower protrusion.

Marluxia cursed under his breath as he saw his scythe hanging from the upper deck. He needed a temporary weapon and a gargoyle neck would have to do the job. Marluxia broke the statue and grabbed the head, looking around. Ansem had hid amongst the statues.

"Were you in love?!" Marluxia yelled. "There's no chance that Riku would choose a monster like you over me! Stop hiding and fight like a man!"

The pinkette walked past the Beast, giving Ansem an opportunity to attack him. But Marluxia was ready and slammed the weapon against Ansem, causing the Beast to retreat few steps.

"You… You don't know Riku", the Beast grimaced, holding the hit spot. "If he… loved you… He would have returned to the village…"

Marluxia halted. "Stop manipulating me…!" he cried out, lifting up the weapon to attack again. "I love Riku…!"

Ansem grabbed onto the gargoyle's neck when Marluxia brought it down and gave a sad smile to the pinkette. "We were not so different", the Beast mumbled, snatching the stone weapon and tossing it out of reach. He grabbed the pinkette at his collar and held him over the edge, with a smirk on his face.

"What are you waiting for?!" Marluxia yelled. "Drop me if you're man enough!"

A few days back, Ansem would have dropped the pinkette without even regretting it later. Before Riku came to his life, he didn't trust or respect anyone. He didn't respect life. But things had changed. He really had a heart now. Marluxia grit his teeth as Ansem pulled him back to the protrusion. "But… I have changed… Now leave, and never come back to this castle."

Marluxia didn't answer or look at Ansem. He wasn't grateful at all that his life had been saved. Hearing Riku's voice made him even angrier. The boy yelled the Beast's name, and not his.

When Ansem saw Riku, standing on the main balcony and calling his name, he couldn't help but smile. Riku was really back. The Beast climbed up the slippery roofing tiles towards the balcony where Riku was holding out his hand.

"Riku", Ansem whispered, taking the boy's hand with his paw. "You really came back…"

"Why wouldn't I have come back?" Riku said, smiling tenderly at the Beast. "I never said I… Look out!"

It was too late. Ansem let out a loud roar of pain as Marluxia stabbed one of Larxene's daggers deep into his side. The pinkette smirked as he pulled the weapon out from the Beast's flesh and retreated a little just in case. Riku grabbed Ansem at his shoulders to prevent him from falling because of the sudden attack. Marluxia laughed, climbing closer to the balcony's railing while Riku helped the Beast to the balcony. The whitette glared at the pinkette and, blinded by deep anger, he snatched the key he had got from Ansem from the necklace.

"I hate you", Riku whispered coldly, and when Marluxia placed his hand on the railing he struck the key down onto Marluxia's hand. The pinkette, gasping because of sudden pain, looked quickly at Riku, shocked. He let go of the railing, losing his balance and fell from the roof.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Riku quickly turned to help Ansem. The Beast was lying on the balcony, pressing his paw on the wound. The bleeding hadn't stopped, and for Ansem, it was getting hard to breath evenly.

Riku moved the paw to bind the wound. "It will be okay", the whitette reassured the Beast, smiling gently. "I'll stop the bleeding and then… everything will be okay."

Ansem twitched as Riku touched the wound. He pushed the boy's hand away. "No, Riku", the Beast mumbled with a slight grimace. Even talking seemed to hurt a lot. "It will… be better this way…"

Riku looked sadly at the Beast. "Don't say that", the whitette whispered, softly stroking Ansem's silver mane. "I'm here with you now... Everything will be alright…"

There were a few tears tricking down Riku's cheeks. "I don't… want to see you cry", Ansem said quietly, swiping the tears away. "So please… smile…" The whitette forced himself to smile and the Beast smiled back at him. "At least this one last time, before… I…"

The morning sun gleamed slightly through the woods as Ansem's golden eyes slipped shut. The rain had stopped, but as Riku stared at the body, his eyes were pouring tears again. "Don't leave me…" Riku laid his head on the Beast's chest. "Please, don't… I… I love you…"

I give a wailed breath and see

Your smile as you look at me for the last time

I'd give everything from my heart

Is there still time?

The servants had gathered at the chamber of West Wing. Axel was the closest to the pedestal, looking sadly as the last petal of the enchanted rose descended and melted away. Luxord exchanged mourning looks with Xaldin as they looked away from the rose's remains, their hopes of returning to normal falling away. Zexion was there, too, holding Lexaeus' hand and hiding how much he wanted to cry. Demyx instead didn't hold back his tears. He cried, hugging Xigbar who actually didn't know what was going on, and yet, all the older wanted to do was comfort the crying boy.

At the broken castle doors, Xemnas watched as Saïx and the old man Ansem the Wise arrived.

"Xemnas", Saïx whispered, leaving his father behind as he hurried to the shadow man.

"You're late", the shadow said softly to Saïx, gaining a sorry look from the blunette.

Ansem the Wise, who still couldn't fully believe what he had heard about the monsters' kindness, looked at the castle. "Is Riku there…?"

"Yes. He… they're at the balcony", Xemnas told in a tone of calm sadness.

"Are they alright?" Saïx had to ask. He remembered clearly how much people there had been going to the castle. Xemnas didn't look at the blunette as he quietly told the truth.

"As I know… there isn't much to do."