Scream or no scream, Demyx was too tired to deal with life. Axel, Roxas and Xion were chatting amongst themselves. What did that matter? Demyx let his eyes slip closed. They opened again no more than twenty-five minutes later to see Larxene storm into the room. He realized vaguely that his headache had diminished somewhat. His throat still ached (from inhaling sand? Was that a thing that had happened?) but he'd live.

Larxene's limp hair brushed her shoulders, not styled the way she usually wore it. Oddly enough, her whole head seemed to be soaking wet. "Demyx!" she shrieked. "You idiot!" Her scowl was enough to scare the ninth member of the Organization on a good day.

Dealing with Larxene took a lot of energy in general. But when sick…? Demyx sucked in a breath at the thought. The action triggered something deep in his chest. He coughed to the point that tears were streaming down his face. He gasped for breath and finally caught it, wheezing.

"Oh, don't give me that, you creep." Larzene rolled her eyes. "You can't distract me with a little cough. You know full well that Nobodies can't get sick. I want to know why you did it!"

Demyx gazed around, wide-eyed. He held up his hand in surrender. "I don't even know you're talking about. I haven't even left this room," he groaned.

"This is what I'm talking about, buffoon!" She snapped, holding up her hair straightener. "What in the worlds would possess you to soak my bathroom?!" At Demyx's blank gaze, she continued. "I was in my bathroom, getting ready for the night, when you sent a wave of water toward me. It soaked everything up to the ceiling and even broke my straightener!"

As she glowered at him, Demyx was positive he could hear the crackling of lightning. He bit his lip, thinking to himself, Now, I don't remember much about being a Somebody, but I'm pretty sure water and lightning don't mix. I have to find some way to calm her down before she electrocutes me! He opened his mouth to speak but was cut off before he could say a word.

"Hey, hey." Axel stood over him, head tilted just so. His voice was probably intended to be soothing, but he appeared to sense it was having the opposite effect on Larxene and switched tactics. "Why don't we clean up your mess, and Demyx can buy you a new hair thingy? I'm sure he didn't mean to."

Demyx's eyes grew wide. "But it wasn't m—"

Axel shot him a look that practically screamed, Play along with me!

Demyx huffed. Why was he always the one to get blamed for things? Either it was leaving the toaster on, or it was tracking muddy footprints into the Grey Area, or short-circuiting Larxene's hair appliances. Who did it? We don't know, but why don't we say it's Demyx? Sure, he seems like a likely candidate, he groaned inwardly. But at least taking the blame today would restore peace to the room. He sighed, "Fine. I'll buy you one. How much did it cost?"

Larxene gazed at him, nose lifted into the air. "…Five thousand munny," she simpered.

"Wha—? Five thousand munny?! But I—" Demyx withered under the heat of Larxene's glare. "Fine!" He reached into his pocket and brought out his wallet. He handed her the munny, soggy and sand-y though it was. When Larxene left the room moments later, he felt like he could finally breathe again.

Roxas looked up at Axel. "What do you think soaked Larxene's bathroom?"

"Beats me," Axel shrugged.

Demyx leaned his head back against the bed. "At least she's gone now, the witch." He rolled his eyes and said, "What's her problem, anyway?"

Axel stood and froze. He glanced around the room and then murmured, "I'll… I'll be right back." He turned to leave. The moment the door shut, he let out the loudest sneeze Demyx had ever heard.

Roxas and Xion looked at each other, confused. Demyx stuck a finger under his nose, trying to quell his own sneeze. See? Can a person without a heart sneeze? He was sure it was related somehow, even if he didn't quite understand all the finer points. Maybe that's a question for Zexion. How are hearts and sneezes related? Demyx resolved to ask the scientist next time.

~\*/~

Xaldin gazed down at the oven. A few moments more, and then his Linguine à la Anne would be complete!

Each Nobody was allowed one pastime, as long as it benefited the Organization or didn't detract from missions. Demyx had sitar music, Luxord had gambling (which was borderline on both rules, but Lord Xemnas hadn't disallowed it so far), Vexen had his laboratory, Zexion had his small library, and Marluxia had his "secret" garden. Not every Nobody had chosen some kind of hobby. In fact, the Keybearers probably weren't even aware of that rule. Regardless, most members had something in their lives that would have provided them amusement had they been in possession of hearts.

Ever since he was little, Xaldin had loved cooking. Even now, as a high-ranking Nobody in Organization XIII, he found himself keeping an eye out for ingredients or recipes to add to his collection. Sauté the sliced peppers in the butter… And they're soft! He had already set aside the croutons to line the edges of the dish. All that remained was for the casserole to come out of the oven. At last, a beeping sound rang through the air, signaling the wait was over! His eyes wide with what had to be the memory of excitement, Xaldin grabbed oven mitts and put them on. He reached for the door to the oven… and stopped in his tracks.

He watched in horror as what had been a small flame at the bottom of the oven turned into a raging fire. He threw open the door and used his lances to lift the pan of linguine from the flames but not soon enough. The pasta was burnt to a crisp.

Xaldin's vision faded for a moment. Blinded by his anger, he didn't even notice when the glass dish fell to the floor and shattered. When his vision returned, he took one look at the linguine splattered all over the floor and roared.

~\*/~

Zexion lifted his head to stare at the Dusks cleaning Vexen's laboratory. What had caused the leak? Where had the water come from?

It occurred to him that maybe the water had reacted to the weak state Demyx had been in when Zexion and Roxas had brought him back to the castle. After all, water was his element. But such a thing was impossible… Zexion promptly pushed that thought out of his mind… and then sneezed.

I'm baaaaaaack!~ I finally got the time to write today! In other news, my husband has begun playing Days, which thrills my soul! :3

Soli Deo gloria!

~LHDD