A single eye opened.
A body of a man, younger now by a decade, twitched on cold floor.
A gasping breath was taken in.
Hands moved inward, grasping at a grey-blue jacket with yellow buttons up and down the front. A tattered red scarf was felt for, traced over...
"W-what in the worlds is- could it be...? Braig...?"
A familiar, grating voice...
A name...familiar too...
That name...
His...name...?
Wasn't it...?
Yeah...Braig...
He was...
Braig raised his head. Or, tried to. He got a few inches off the cold floor before it dropped again. Hitting hard.
"F...Wh..." He tried to speak. couldn't manage it. "Where...am I...?"
Clicking boots, and then a figure looming over him. Long blonde hair...white lab coat...
Oh...
Braig breathed, bringing shuddering arms down and forcing himself onto his backside with all his might. He gazed up at a familiar face. Green eyes. "Even...?" He glanced around himself, realized where he was quickly. Thought was coming to him now - so was his strength. "The hell did you do to me? You use me in one of your experiments...? I'm going to make you...pay for it..."
Even paled. He stood up and stepped away. Whirled away, smacking his hands onto the lab's control console. "...No, but if he's here now again, then that must mean the other is..."
"H-hey...!" Braig groaned as he took another breath and slowly rose up to sit. He raised an arm, holding it, trembling, before himself. He clenched a fist in his glove. Then he let his fingers relax...and his weapon appeared in a flash of purple light. Good old arrowgun.
Even turned back around again, and froze. "Put that away," he said idly. "There's no need for it. Your current state wasn't my doing, I promise you that. You simply reappeared here, because this was where Xehanort-"
"Xehanort...?" Braig murmured. He brought his legs beneath him, and pushed up with his free hand. And he stood. He staggered back against the wall - that old contraption with its red core. "Who the hell is Xehanort?"
Who did he have to kill for this and bury the body somewhere nobody'd ever find? Whatever "this" even was...
Did he know the guy? He already felt like he wanted to shoot him in the face...
Yeah, it was familiar, somehow...
"Xehanort is the man who...well, it's a long story-" Even spoke on.
Braig straightened out his arm, aiming his weapon in a shaking hand. More than he liked. It was pathetic. "I've got time," he said roughly.
"And we'd all be delighted to fill you in on the past ten years worth of events - if you'd put that thing away already," Even said, biting, now. His eyes narrowed.
"Wha...Ten...What the fuck are you talking about?" Braig snapped.
"Oh, heavens..." Even muttered, glancing away. "Were you always this difficult to deal with, and I actually developed some form of nostalgia for you that clouded my memories?" he called out. "By all means, shoot me! Give Master Ansem a reason to lock you away and then throw away the key!" he jeered out.
Braig faltered. He growled, letting his arm fall to his side. But he kept a firm grip on his weapon. "Fill me in already."
"All right...Is the name Xehanort familiar to you at all...?"
"It makes my trigger finger a little itchy."
"Oh, wonderful. And...what if I were to say...Luxu?"
Braig frowned. He looked down at himself, finding his hands shaking again. Not with weakness. With anger. "Yeah. Something's there," he admitted.
"Good...Why don't you come with me, and we'll-"
Braig raised his gun up in a snap, pointing at the man. "I'm not going anywhere until I know what's going on here."
Even sighed, raising his hands slowly. "As you wish. I'll do my best to give you a condensed version of the story."
Braig simply looked at him.
Even brushed at his hair, shaking his head. He stepped back, leaning against the console. He set his hands down onto it, gripping the edge. "To the best of my knowledge, ten years ago now, a...very old, very powerful Keyblade wielding man came to our city looking for a- a host body, with which to carry out certain...plans. This man was Luxu, and he chose you. He transplanted his Heart from his body into yours, taking it over, assuming your identity and life. None of us learned who he was until recently - just over a month ago, now. But if you're here now, then that must mean he's...vacated your body finally. Though, why he would choose to do so now..."
"Sure. Let's say I believe you. Who's Xehanort, then?"
"Another old Keyblade wielder who...also infiltrated us, in another young man's body - a man named Terra. He had his own plans as well, and he used all of us for it. He separated our Hearts from our bodies, and made us his...servants. He lied to us and manipulated us all, still. Only recently were we all returned to our humanity, bodies and Hearts again."
"Sounds like we were a popular bunch..."
"I - suppose," Even agreed. "Nine years ago, our world was also attacked by a dark witch and her armies of dark creatures - Heartless - which ended up destroying everything. We've also only recently...gotten it back again, and begun restoration efforts. The city is in literal ruins, these days. As is the castle."
"Our world?"
"Ah - yes. As it turns out, this world is just one of many. Popular myths and legends are all...very true. Not only the tales of the Keyblade."
"Right." Braig scoffed. He pushed off from the wall, and was relieved to be able to take steps without falling. He began to pace the room, lowering his weapon again at last.
It had to all be bullshit, right?
No...a guy like Even - boring, factual, rational scientist - wouldn't come up with such a complex, elaborate hoax like that. One with multiple parts to it. Confusing parts. And Even had never had that sort of a sense of humor.
Or did a part of Braig already believe him?
Did it already feel...true?
Nah. Come on!
Still, true or not - as much as he would have liked to put a round in the guy - he couldn't actually do it. It wouldn't do to lose his freedom and his position here as an elite guard. Couldn't stupidly throw it all away, no matter what had happened...or not. He'd worked hard for it, years and years ago. Earning trust, working his way up the ladder... A prison cell wouldn't suit him. He just had to...relax a little.
Braig nodded to himself, deep in thought, and let his weapon vanish entirely now, relaxing somewhat.
Even relaxed as well.
Braig stopped and turned toward the man. "So, what happens now? If all of that's done and gone - and I'm back to being me - and this world's still gone to shit...what now? What does Lord Ansem need from me?"
"W-well...Aeleus has returned to his post, so I'm sure Master Ansem would also judge you fit for that as well," Even said slowly. "Your duties these days would likely include making sure people get along - in these trying times, with everything a mess, we can't afford to have any fights breaking out, or scrabbling over what limited resources we've managed to scavenge up again."
"Right, right. Totally," Braig agreed, nodding to the man. He walked back the other way, toward the lefthand door leading out to the transparent walkway (which in turn led back out into Master Ansem's study room). "Hey, you need more manpower, I'm your guy. I can keep people well-behaved, make sure they get along."
"Undoubtedly."
"Speaking of - any idea where Lord Ansem would be right now?" Braig asked. "He'll probably want to know I'm...back, as soon as possible?"
"Yes, certainly. I...he's probably out and about. He's taken a more hands on approach to running things than he used to - the necessity of the situation."
"Right." Braig strode for the doorway now, straight on and purposeful. On steady feet.
He stopped as the air in front of him flickered, and suddenly...there was a man standing there in a black coat.
A young man with a thin figure, with pale skin, and with messy, shoulder-length dark hair and dark green eyes. He looked about twenty. Some plain old, skinny dude - but...
The young man froze as he took in the sight of Braig.
Braig was frozen, too. A rushing heat went through his body, burning at his core. His body trembled as he met those eyes.
A hazy image flashed through his mind: himself, turning away in the alley, and coming face to face with a stranger in a dark coat - a split second before a strange sword was driven into his chest, and he felt like something was worming its way into his very-
Braig's arms came up in an instant, his weapons both appearing, their triggers being squeezed as hard as he could.
A spray of projectiles burst out into the world, point blank, aiming for the man.
The man vanished again in a flicker of air.
Braig gaped, stepping back and keeping his weapons poised.
A second later and something hard and metallic slammed into the back of his head, and he fell forward to his knees, stars bursting in his vision. His one-eyed vision!
"Damnit," the young man's voice issued from over Braig's head.
"So you've returned to your original form - how wonderful!" Even's caustic tones rang out. Speaking to the stranger... "But do you think this is going to endear you to him whatsoever? Or to any of the rest of us?"
"I wasn't planning on it," the stranger muttered. "I'm gone - all right? No one tells him where I live."
"I can see the sense in that request - though you must know you've certainly earned his ire...as well as any acts of retaliation," Even retorted.
"I have," the man agreed, easily. "But the kids haven't. If he wants to try and settle the score, fine - I'd be pissed too - but he's not coming to my front door for it. Or I will rip his Heart out with my bare hand and crush it. Understood?"
"P-perfectly..."
"Good."
Braig spun around, aiming his gun out - but he was too late.
He saw the man disappear again in a strange flickering.
What kind of teleportation magic was that?
Braig let his arm fall, then the rest of himself, taking in more deep breaths as the nausea returned in full.
And what in the hell was really going on around here?
Luxu reappeared in the middle of his home in Twilight Town - back again.
A glance at the clock told him it had only been a matter of hours (three, precisely) since his revival - and recompletion. He had gotten lucky, then, that it hadn't been days or weeks...
But even in those few hours...
"...Luxu?! Luxu, are you back, is that you?! It has to be you!" Namine's voice, accompanied by thundering footsteps down the stairs.
A voice full of more panic and distress than Luxu could ever remember hearing - and he was including that time when they had actually battled outside Twilight Town's mansion. It ripped at his Heart - all the more for him being the reason for it! Why hadn't he thought it through for a second more, why hadn't he considered...just more evidence of how terrible he was at this parenting business, right?! Goddamn, he hated himself more than he ever had in his life!
"Yeah - it's me," Luxu called out, before she'd even come flying down into view, slamming right up against the wall so hard he half thought she'd actually tripped on the way down. "I'm back, I'm- I'm sorry - I'm real sorry, I didn't think about- I just had to-"
Namine raced through the hall, burst into the living room and threw herself at him - clinging to him like she never had before.
"I- I'm s-sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" the girl immediately cried.
"W-what...what are you sorry for?" Luxu asked, awkwardly putting his arms around her.
"I thought you l-left, I thought you left us alone because of how t-terrible I was being before - at Sora's house - I thought you didn't want to be our p-parent anymore and that you l-left us- I'm sorry I told K-Kairi and the others about how m-mad I was with you and-"
Fuck...
"WHAT? NO!" Luxu said firmly, sinking to the floor and squeezing the kid in his arms tightly. "No! That's not- I was just- freeing Braig, all right? I was just- you were right, I had to put that right, I had to- but I didn't think about you, and that's not right, and I am so- so fucking sorry...Dammit, I'm so sorry..."
"You d-didn't abandon us...? You still- we can still stay here, you're still going to-"
"God, YES! I mean, no, I didn't- I'm not going anywhere, and neither are you. Okay? This- thing we've got here, this is forever. The rest of your life. I adopted you, remember? That means I'm legally stuck with you. And you're stuck with me - which is a hell of a lot more horrifying for you than it is for me, at this point... And, hey, look, you can talk shit about me with anyone you want, as much as you want, all right? That's what friends are for - I wouldn't- get mad or- abandon you over that!"
Mystery solved, though: Namine had told Kairi and the others on the beach, and then Kairi had told Sora's mother...
Was Luxu that much of a fuck-up that the Princess of Heart had thought she needed to go to an actual, qualified adult about how he was "raising" Namine and Roxas...?
Well, yeah. That was the whole point...
It still stung, though.
"Just...you've still got to not be all...disrespectful and- how you were back there. Okay?" Luxu attempted feebly. "We can- we can talk about things. You tell me, I'll listen. From now on, anything you want to say, or know, I'll...I'll tell you. I'll listen. All right? I'm here for you."
"Promise?"
"Yeah. I promise." Luxu released her, glancing around. With two eyes now, he realized suddenly. It was a hell of a difference. "Now where's Roxas?"
"Um...upstairs?" Namine tensed.
Luxu sighed. "What's he doing upstairs? Is he pissed with me, or-"
"Well, yes, but..."
"What?"
"You won't kick us out will you?"
God. Damnit. "No. Never. Just - tell me. Please," Luxu begged.
"We might have been secretly talking to one of those sword-wielding Nobodies the past few days...when you're not around..."
Luxu breathed in and out deeply. "Of course you were. Why wouldn't you be...?" he murmured, laughing to himself. "Whatever, okay? Keep talking with them. Just - do it out in the open. No sneaking things past me. No hiding things. Got it? That's just going to make this whole...family thing...a lot more difficult for all of us if we're keeping shit from each other like that."
"You started it."
Luxu leaned back, rubbing his face and staring at her. Her anxious, pale, shaking little face. "I know," he said freely. "But I meant it earlier - before we got all off-track. From now on, ask anything. Ask me to listen. I'll do it. New policy."
Namine sat back, falling flat on her butt on the floor. She gazed up at him, frowning deeply. "Will you tell me more about yourself, then? Like when you were a kid? Or- your family? Parents? Anything before your stupid Master? I want to know you, Luxu. You you, not what he made you be. Like Xemnas made Roxas and I be...what he wanted us to be."
Luxu nodded. He sat back, too, falling hard with a thud. He rested a hand on his knee, nodding to her. "Okay. Look, to be honest, I don't remember too much about my earliest days. Thousands of years worth of memories...things get hazy. I- I'm not really even sure if the things I think I remember are real or if they're just...things I made up a long time ago to- to have something. But, what I think I remember...I told you already that the Darknesses...they came to my village when I was really little, and they killed my parents."
Namine nodded, staring at him with fascination. With total attention.
Luxu took in a sharp breath, releasing it again. "Uh, I think I had two moms - Taira and Suko. Or maybe I made those names up - I don't know, at this point. It's been too long...way too long."
Namine hesitated. Then- "I...I could...help you? To remember them..." she whispered.
Luxu sat there a long moment, turning his head away. Looking off at the far wall. He drew a breath, looked back at her. "Thank you for offering - and for asking for my permission first. I...think I would like your help there. To remember. But just - just that. Nothing else. Just...childhood. Parents. My - home village. Find something there. Something real. And...something good, if there ever was anything..."
"Okay." Namine closed her eyes...and Luxu braced himself for whatever she was about to do.
To pull up from the depths of his Heart...
For several minutes, nothing at all happened.
And then, something did.
It came swimming to the surface, filling his vision, and his Heart...
He was very small, and he was walking down the streets with them. Just...walking. A normal day, maybe nothing special. But he held to both their hands, on either side, and he looked up and he saw them as they looked down at him, smiling at him...their eyes filled with the same...
"You're a happy boy today, aren't you, Luxu?" one spoke.
The other laughed. Nice, kind, sweet laughter...
And then it faded away.
Out of his reach, sinking into the haze again.
Luxu gasped, bowing his head and reaching up to press his hands to his face.
"I'm sorry..." Namine breathed.
"No!" Luxu said firmly, shaking his head. "No - that - thank you. That was real. That was...it was real, wasn't it?"
"It was a real memory," Namine confirmed.
"Thank you..." Luxu choked out again. "Shit, after all this time...I..." After all this time, he still had that in him? Somewhere even he couldn't reach? He wiped furiously at his eyes, smearing them with salty tears. He sucked in another gasping breath of air. He let his hands fall, gazing at Namine. Just looking at her. She shifted, looking down into her lap. "Namine..."
"Yes...?"
Luxu shuffled forward and awkwardly pulled her into his arms again. "I'm sorry..."
"Me too..."
"You can be sorry for the dinner fiasco, but - nothing else. Okay?"
"Okay..."
"Is there- anything else you want to ask? Or- anything you want to tell me...? If you want to vent, want to cuss me out, scream and yell at me - go for it. I probably deserve it today. Whatever you feel, or think, just...let it out."
"I just...wanted you to be more like this. That's all. Just...keep being like this, and I won't be- a pain."
"You're not a pain. You're just...terrible at knowing how to express your feelings. Because you are a little three month old thing. Buuuut...we are going to work on that. Together. Okay? That - and - a whole host of other stuff."
"Okay."
"Great. So...Now I need you to listen to me. I need to ask you a question."
"I'm listening!"
Luxu let her go again. He looked her in the face. "Have you thought about going to Radiant Garden at all lately? To help out, or to see friends there? Anything? Any reason?"
Namine frowned. "Braig's there now, isn't he? This is about him."
"Yeah...it is."
"Is he really that bad?"
Luxu considered the question as honestly as he could. "It's...complicated - people are complicated - but...yeah, he is."
"If he's that terrible, why don't we go kill him? Shouldn't he be - like Xehanort? Or Xemnas?"
Luxu paused. He sighed. "It's- complicated," he repeated. "First of all, most civilized societies don't just go executing people for their crimes like that. And in this case, anyway, we'd need witnesses and evidence, and even if we had that, any of it could probably be overturned by the fact that I took over his body. Nobody would have any proof of when exactly I did that. Anything terrible that that...body...did, could be pinned on me - easily. And I have done some terrible things the last ten years, in his name. And that's fair, and that's- it was wrong of me. Gross identity theft is a terrible thing. But...he still has his own crimes, and his own..." He trailed off, searching for how to further explain it. He couldn't think of a way. Couldn't even be sure Namine was following him now.
"Maybe he'll be different now. Like you. He could change - like you did."
"Yeah...let's hope so," Luxu said quietly. "That's good - good thinking. But...if he doesn't, if he hasn't...he's dangerous, okay?"
"But you're so powerful, you could probably just cut his head off in a second."
"Yeah, I probably could. But that wouldn't endear me to the population of that world," Luxu laughed hollowly. "It'd cause me a lot of problems, in fact. Unless he makes some kind of direct attack on- someone."
"You mean me?"
"Anyone," Luxu said firmly. "Right now it's all...hearsay and circumstance. No one's going to be willing to believe me about it - especially not over the guy himself. My...victim. So there's nothing we can do about it, besides just...keep an eye on the guy. Keep our ears open. Just - if you ever go there - be careful around him. Even if he has changed now, better safe than sorry."
"He's really that bad?" Namine said again. "I mean, Xemnas and Xehanort have probably killed all sorts of people, and they've destroyed worlds, and-"
"Some things are worse than death," Luxu cut across quietly. "Some things...it can be worse to have to live with it. Like...myself, and all this- guilt and shame and remorse over my own actions."
"So it's - like Kairi's scars? It's a- a kind of pain or- is it a feeling-?"
"It...can be like having scars, yeah. But not physical. They're on your Heart, princess. Scars on the Heart. And I don't want you...to have to carry any of those around. But I know that's impossible; everybody's got scars. But I can make sure that you only get a few little scratches in your lifetime," Luxu replied. He hesitated, then reached out and touched her head. He stroked at her hair. Felt like an idiot for it. But... "Anyway, maybe this is all overthinking it. Maybe there's nothing to worry about. But...it is my job to worry about you now."
"That could get really annoying," Namine said.
"Yeah," Luxu laughed. "Probably will. Sorry about that."
"It's okay. I think I kind of like it..." she whispered. "It's like in Kairi's memories, it's- like with her dad. You're actually...acting like a real dad right now."
"Am I? Well, I'll have to bow to your expertise," Luxu said lightly. "I don't have experience with normal, real families."
Namine smiled. "Neither do I, so I think we still fit together."
"Yeah..." Luxu agreed. "I guess we do." He sighed, getting to his feet at last. "Alright - I'm going to go upstairs, give Roxas the chance to yell at me if he wants to, as well."
"Okay!" Namine giggled. She jumped up, light as a feather, following him to the stairs.
Luxu stopped on the steps, turning back to look down at the girl. "Hey - your camera - would you want to take care of that tonight, or save it for tomorrow?"
"Can we do it tonight?"
"Sure."
Namine darted past him, bolting up the stairs on her own with excitement.
Luxu watched her, then followed after her, shaking his head.
Was that Nia woman right - could he turn this around?
Well, like she had said: it was only a month into things. He still had time. Time to try. Shore up, and keep going with it. And hope it worked out. If average old, normal people like her could do it every day...so could he.
How familiar...