Out by the Tides of the Shore. [Xion]

[Roxas]

The image before the young Nobody would be depressing to anybody. Black sand, black water, purple sky. Not to him, though, it was calming, and relieved him of the memories of the past that plauged his head. That was not to say his current location did not dig up memories, but these memories were tolerable. It was here that he met with Xemnas after he fought Sora for the first time, with Xemnas mentioning Roxas' striking resemblence to Sora. At least in those days, he didn't have anything to worry about, he was still fresh in the Organization and didn't know anything about his situation. It wasn't until much later that things became worse, and he lost one of his best friends, Xion.

He hated that memory from the bottom of that black, empty space in his chest. It was too much to take in, and was one of the deciding factors of his defection.

However, that was all in the past, and everything was over. Well, no it wasn't. All of the members were back now, and that just meant that history would inevitably repeat itself. A sigh escaped his lips as he hung his head, trying to forget those godforsaken memories. Curse Sora for being his somebody, for giving him the damned weapon that he weilded. It all started because of the Keyblade. Then again, maybe it wasn't right to blame Sora, after all, the Keyblade chose him. In that case, damn whatever created it. As long as this weapon existed, so would conflict. Actually, that would continue as long as two men existed.


"Why can't everything just be normal? Why can't I be a normal person and just have my friends?!" he began to shout, bringing forth Oblivion and not Oathkeeper, "GOD DAMN YOU, YOU STUPID KEY!"

He shouted as loud as he could, throwing the blade out into the sea before him. At first, he felt liberated, but that quickly diminished as the blade appeared back into his hand, like so many times before.

"All I want is my friends, can't I at least have that?! This stupid weapon won't allow me to live a normal life, why can't I just leave it behind?!" he shouted once more, stabbing the blade into the ground and sitting beside it with a sigh.

[xion]

She heard a scream, a familiar yell, and that’s what alerted her to her biggest joy. She had been wandering around from place to place just trying to find one of them. She didn’t care who, although she preferred it was one of her friends, but she didn’t care which member of Organization XIII she’d find. She just had to talk to one of them, to ask them. What was their plan now that they were all back? Would they continue where they left off, or would they start a plan anew. There were old hero’s arising, too. Were the members prepared to deal with these people? Why she cared so much, she didn’t understand. She thought she was neutral, now. Not with the Organization, yet not wanting them to die like they had before.

The same was with the hero’s. She didn’t want them to kill all the members, yet she didn’t want them to be killed, either. Riku, Kairi, and Sora were all on the hero side, yet Axel, Demyx, and, most importantly, Roxas were all with the Organization, weren’t they? She didn’t know, and she didn’t care. All she knew, and all she cared about, was that she had heard Roxas. That she had found him. She had thrown her Keyblade aside, as she was practicing with it, and ran toward the direction she heard the yell come from. It didn’t bother her that her Keyblade might be laying there, waiting for anyone to pick it up, because she knew it wouldn’t be. She knew that it would disappear, probably in a crystallized light, and appear in her arm whenever she called for it to come to her once more. She ran until she came upon a figure, a figure with a Keyblade into the ground.

The figure, of course, was sitting next to the Keyblade. She considered just running up to him and throwing her arms around him. She was so glad she had finally found him. Tears sprung up into her eyes, and she darted forward some more. “Roxas!” She called until she was standing right in front of him. Her coat swung behind her, hitting the back of her legs. The feeling stung a bit, but it didn’t hurt enough that she couldn’t ignore it in favor of putting her whole attention on her friend. She grinned, brightly, and brought her hands up to her chest, to the spot over where her heart was. How could it be that she was so happy, and, yet, at the same time, she didn’t have a heart, and, therefore, wasn’t allowed to feel? “If you didn’t have the Keyblade, then we would have never had met. Would you want that, Roxas? For us never to have met in order for you to be…normal?”

[/blockquote]

[Roxas]

He heard someone calling his name, and the voice was extremely familiar. It was her, Xion. Even tough he realized who it was, he didn't turn his head until she was right infront of him and asked him if he wanted it so that they never met.

At this he stood up and pulled her into a quick hug and spoke, "Xion, that's not what I meant. I meant for all of us to be normal. You, me, Axel, Sora, Kairi, Riku, and so on. This fighting, it just gets on my nerves, and nothing makes sense anymore. I don't even know why I'm here, I thought I was merged with Sora for good. And you... I... I thought you were gone for good."

He spoke with a frown on his face, looking at his friend whom he had missed dearly. If only Axel were here, then it'd be the best day yet. Even though all members of the Organization came back, he hadn't seen any, Xion was the first. Aside from Xion and Axel, he was glad. He didn't really care for any of them, least of all Saïx, Larxene and Vexen. Those three just stood out in his memory as the worst of the fourteen.

As he was getting lost in his thought, he remembered Xion was standing right infront of him and spoke again, "Hey, what're you doing here anyway? I didn't know you knew this place."

Or at least, that he can remember. Maybe he forgot, Roxas didn't have the best memory. Whatever, he was just happy Xion was here, finally someone he cared about was right here infront of him in the flesh. He hoped that that would never change again.

[xion]

She smiled, brightly, whenever she was given a hug. It was a quick one, but it felt nice to really grasp that he was here in front of her, and that he was not just an imagination of hers. She flushed slightly at her own thought. It wasn’t as if she imagined Roxas being in front of her or anything like that, but she missed him and she wasn’t sure she was ever going to have the chance to see him again. So, for him to be in front of her, and hugging her, she was very glad about that, but, he did bring up a good point, and she had to flinch slightly and look down, nodding her head. He was right, and there wasn’t really a way she could disagree with him seeing as what he said was the truth.

She knew that they were never going to be normal. Not the ones he had named, and not the people she had met. Some of them, though, some of them were lucky. They didn’t have to deal with matters like she did, but other people she had met, people like Aqua, and possibly Noctis, they were going to have problems being normal too, especially since Noctis was royalty, so, in a way, he had less of a chance being normal than the rest of them did. “I know, Roxas. I thought I was gone for good, too. But, for some reason, I’m not. You aren’t supposed to be here, and neither am I, yeah, I know this, but shouldn’t we make the best out of it?” A small frown found it’s way onto her lips, and she, nervously, grabbed onto her left arm with her right hand. “But, I do know what you mean. I’m not one for fighting, either.” She quickly let herself fall backwards and sit on the floor.

Xion could still hear the water hitting the sand behind them, and she felt very at ease. She was glad, now. So glad. She didn’t have to be so sad, so solem anymroe now that Roxas was here. She could be happy now, she had a reason to be happy. Her best friend was back, and so was she. Sora was awake, and they didn’t have to make any…any sacrifices anymore. They were safe, for the most part, now. She smiled, brightly, at him before giving him a wink. She had known about this place for a while now, but she didn’t visit it often. For some reason, when she came here, she felt very at ease and was able to practice for a while without anything happening to her. She still wasn’t very good with her Keyblade, but, for some reason, the skills that had once been Roxas’, then hers, then his again had stayed with her, and she was better than she was when she had first started, but she still felt as if she could improve. The rest of the Organization was back, anyway, and she was going to make sure she wasn’t going to be used as a puppet anymore.

“I haven’t known about this place long, actually. I stumbled upon it as a mistake. I opened a dark corridor, and I wasn’t really paying attention where it was going to so…I came up here, but then I kept coming back.” She extended her hands outwarts. “Doesn’t this place just calm you down, Roxie?” She asked lowering her hands and giving him another smile.

[Roxas]

That nickname, he hadn't heard it in so long. Hearing it again unwillingly made a smile creep up to his lips, which lately had been straight, or in a frown. Being here, now, it just made him so happy with Xion around. He had missed her so much, and was almost certain she'd never come back. But, as they say, strange things happen, and this was definitely one of those strange things. He didn't care how, or why, he just didn't want her taken from him again. In the musing of his thoughts, he almost forgot to answer her question.

"Oh, yeah. I come here a lot when I just want to relax, like today. But now that you're here, I'm happy for the first time in a long time. It's just so quiet, you can lose yourself in the peacefulness. I only wish life were like this," he spoke, sighing in the end.

He then sat beside her and just stared off into the horizion of black meeting purple. Dark colors were soothing to him, cool, calm, collected, nothing that just screams at you. In reality, he just wanted to rest his head on her shoulder and sigh, but he felt that could make things a little awkward if he did, so he just sat there staring off into space. He'd love for this moment to last forever, but that wouldn't be. He couldn't believe it as it was, she was here in the flesh after so long. Why couldn't they just be normal? Why does the Organization have to be so damn power hungry? He hated them all, aside from his two friends. At least they had some sense in them.

[xion]

She smiled and shook her head. Of course Roxas only wanted to relax. That’s kinda what he had wanted to do whenever they had gotten that day off, hadn’t he? She had wanted to practice, but that was only because she had failed at the Keyblade, and, at the time, she still hadn’t known. It made her think to that day off, and she couldn’t help but smiling. She was just so…so happy. She had her Roxas back, and that was all that mattered to her. Well, no. She wanted to find Axel, too, but as long as she had Roxas, she was sure Axel wasn’t too far behind. She couldn’t wait for the three of them to be together again. This time, she was going to make sure they weren’t going to be separated.

“Only you would, Roxie.” She said to his need to relax. “Remember? I’m pretty sure it was Axel, but, we have the gift for being able to zone out in ways no one else could do?” She giggled before looking up, peacefully. “You’re happy…because I’m here?” She gave him a wide-eyed look. It looked rather innocent on her confused face, not to mention the fact that the blue eyes kind of added affect to it. But, it made her stomach flutter when he had said that. It meant that he had missed her as much as she had missed him, and that made her want to leap with joy. She bit her lip, still very excited, before jumping forward and wrapping her arms around his neck.

She gave him a hug. She knew it was probably awkward for him, but she didn‘t care. She was just so happy. She got her best friend back! Who wouldn’t be excited about that? She wondered, briefly, if this was what Riku felt whenever he got to meet Sora once more. With that in mind, and the sense of happiness that was floating through her, she didn’t feel as angry with him as she was before because, now, she knew what he must have felt. She pulled back and clasped her hands together, and grinned at him. She glanced out at the sea before calming down. She was still smiling, but she made it to where she had a serious look on her face at the same time. “Roxas, I,” she paused and looked away. “I’m not with the Organization anymore, you still know that, right? I mean…they’re all back, and they’re more powerful than they were before, but…I’m not with them. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not exactly saying ‘Hurrah’ and joining the light side, either. I’m…neutral.” She paused before looking at him. “But, to tell you the truth, I’ll be whatever you are. I don’t want to separate us again, not like last time.” She reached forward and grabbed his hands. “I’m making sure we’re together this time.”

[/color]

[Roxas]

Her reaction to the happiness he felt with her return was priceless, cute even. Those eyes just sold it. In fact, he wish he could take a picture, possibly blackmail. Though, Roxas wasn't sure what he could blackmail her about, or that it was even blackmail worthy. That was a stupid idea, very stupid.

Before he realized what was going on at the time, he felt her arms wrap around his neck, and he prompty wrapped his arms around her waist into another quick hug, smiling as he did. Jeez, if she kept doing this, he was going to get addicted to her hugs, even if they're only friendly hugs. They were, in a sense, intoxicating. They made all of his thoughts on bad things, feelings of bad, just disappear. Even as she started explaining her situation, he didn't feel bad. Just knowing she was there finally, a tangible being, made him so incredibly happy. He was tired of being alone, and who could blame him? Stuck in the mind of a happy-go-lucky Sora could drive him mad if he was left unattended. He was glad to be out of it.

Yet, now he had to eventually fight again. Roxas was tired of it, tired of everything to do with Heartless, Nobodies, Organization XIII and the Keyblade. Why couldn't it all just go away? He didn't know, no one did. It was just one of those things that you can't explain, and just accept it. Quite frankly, he hated it all. Being dragged into a makeshift war you never even wanted to be a part of was incredibly annoying, even moreso when you're a wielder of the weapon that could end it.

After she finished, and she grabbed his hands, he relished once more in her touch. It felt good to feel the touch of another person, and be reminded that this is all real.

"Thanks Xion, I don't wanna lose you again. And about the Organization. I defected too, you know. I don't plan on going back either, they can shove my Keyblade up their self-righteous asses for all I care. There's nothing they can do to make me come back just so they can use me as a tool again," he said with a smirk on his face. His own words surprised him, because he usually never said anything like that, and he was sure it would surprise Xion.

[xion]

She didn’t understand why she could feel this much happiness, yet, at the same time, she knew exactly why. It was just inside of her. She was just so happy that she felt like jumping around. In fact, she got to her legs and started humming and walking around, circling Roxas as she did so. She was just so happy that she even felt like dancing around, even though she didn’t exactly know why. She stood in front of Roxas and offered her hand out, giggling slightly. “Come on, Roxie.”

When he hugged her, she felt a giddy feeling dwelling up inside of her. She just felt like staying with her arms around him, just making sure that he was real and that he wasn’t a part of her imagination. But, she knew she couldn’t do that, either. For some reason, deep inside her stomach, there was something nagging at her and telling her that what she was doing was wrong, and that she should stop. And, for some reason, an image of Riku popped inside of her mind, and she gasped and held her head. She looked away from Roxas, up at the sky, and tried to think of an excuse that would stop her from having to explain to him what had popped into her mind. She was pretty sure that, if she told him, something bad would end up happening, like their perfect moment would be ruined, and she didn’t want that to happen. Tears welled up in her eyes at the simple thought of it.

She turned back at him and wiped the tears from her eyes. “I don’t want to lose you again, either, Roxas. I felt so…so lost without you, and without Axel, when I was back. I felt like apart of me was missing, and I couldn’t bear to be apart of it.” She felt like giving him another hug. Frankly, though, when he continued, she couldn’t help but let her mouth fall in awe. He had said that words that were dancing at her heart, but he had said them, not her. She could only wish she had the courage to be able to say that, even if it was just to Roxas. A smile slowly formed on her lips, and she shook her head and laid her head on his shoulder, still shaking it.

“Oh, Roxie.” She started still shaking her head. “There’s no way your one Keyblade is going to fit up, at the very least, ten members. We’re going to need nine other’s for that. Well, I guess they could use my Keyblade, too, and Axel will probably donate his two Chakrams to the cause.” Xion paused to bite her lip. “Axel! We have to find him, too, although I suppose we deserve a break, and we can just enjoy each other’s company, for now.” She paused again to run her hand through her hair. “I just can’t stop smiling! I’m just so…so happy.” She expressed lifting her head up slightly to give him another smile. She lowered her head and closed her eyes, just taking in the moment. This was one of the moments she was going to make sure to remember.

[Roxas]

To the young Nobody's surprise, the girl rested her head on his shoulder. At least this way, it was much more innocent, and wouldn't be seen as attempting to make a move on the other. He chuckled as she commented on his previous statement. That was just the kind of thing she would do. But then she mentioned Axel, and she was right. They did need to find him, but unless he suffered amnesia, he'd be on their side and find them eventually. And then she went on once more about how happy she was, lifting her head to flash him yet another smile, before lowering her head once more and closing her eyes. This moment, it was just so incredibly peaceful. There hadn't been a moment like this in Roxas' life since the days when he, Xion and Axel would eat ice cream together on the clock tower. Those days seem so long ago, even though in reality they weren't very long ago.

"Xion, I'm happy too. And you're right, we do deserve a break, just to rest a little while. I'm sure Axel will eventually wander his way back into our lives, he's on our side too. For now we can just rest and enjoy each others company. Maybe coming back.... Maybe it was for the better. I mean at least we have each other's company and friendship, right? That's all I really want, to have friends. I was tired of being stuck with Sora, he's so boring sometimes. Not to mention that his happy-go-lucky attitude and agressive-lessness is totally not my style. Hm, I should stop complaining, shouldn't I? Sorry about that," he apologized for going off on a tangent. He couldn't help it sometimes, after so long, he just had to vent to someone.

It was then that he too closed his eyes, savoring the moment in his memory. Even if this was all just a major coincidence, he was glad it happened. He got one of his best friends back, after all.

[xion]

She felt herself calm down, greatly. She no longer felt like jumping off the walls and bouncing from place to place, but she was still happy that Roxas was here. She was more of a…calm mellow now. She also needed to restrain herself from calling him Roxie all the time, even if it was her pet name for him, kind of like how she was sometimes called Xixi. She was still going to be happier if Axel had just managed to show up, but she was happy enough with Roxas. After all, the two of them had been friend’s longer than she had been friend’s with Axel. If anything, it was because of Roxas that she and Axel had gotten along to well. When Axel had first come back, they didn’t talk a lot, and chose, instead, to ignore each other. Still, they couldn’t do that forever, and, instead, chose to get along rather than act civil around each other. They had become friend’s, then, and she was able to show him her true, or true in her mind, face. Xion shook her head before giggling softly. “They never gave us enough breaks in the Organization. Remember that one, and I mean to stress that word out, break?”

Her mouth dropped. This, she hadn’t known. Axel had betrayed the Organization, too? He probably did it because Roxas had. He probably didn’t care that she had faded away, she wasn’t the one he had wanted anyway, and she’d just have to accept that, but that didn’t mean that she didn’t want to find him. She did. “Enjoy each others company, Roxi-as? Really? You make it sound as if we were a couple or something instead of best friends.” She laughed raising her head and pushing him slightly. She was teasing him, of course. Like they had teased each other in the past. “But, you’re right. Friend’s are important. Very important.” She nodded her head. But, whenever he went back to complaining about Sora, she laughed and shook her head. “I can’t even remember what it was like to be inside of Sora, nor do I want to remember. I just like remembering the good times, and I’m not sure whether or not that was a good memory, but, no. You don’t have to stop complaining, Roxie.”

She shook her head and gave him a small smile. “You’re always too serious. It wouldn’t kill you to relax and have some fun every once in a while, would it?” She asked raising an eyebrow. “After all, we don’t have to worry about anything yet.”

[/color]

[Roxas]

Her accusation of him making it seem like they were a couple struck Roxas by surprise, and he felt heat rush up to his face. And then she pushed him teasingly, playing it off and doing her best to not catch him by surprise. Well, we see how that worked. That's not what he meant, honestly. He harbored no romantic feelings for Xion, at least, not anymore. Those feelings were long gone, and the mere idea that she would suggest such a thing really caught him off guard.

Even with the growing heat in his face, he stumbled his words, "Xi-Xion that's not what I....I meant. We're only b-best friends! I j-just want to spend time with y-you."

It took a moment for the heat to subside, but thankfully for poor Roxas, it did. He then had a moment to think about what else she said. Was he too serious? Perhaps, but it was just his nature. Then again, she's right, there's nothing to worry about. Not yet, at least. She was lucky, though, she didn't remember anything of what it was like being inside Sora. The boy's antics didn't really amuse Roxas. Even though he accepted him as his Other, that didn't mean he liked him. They were practically polar opposites in everything but looks. Even their fighting styles were different. Sora was a more balanced fighter, but Roxas was almost all offensive. Hell, he always thought he was the better fighter, and that Sora's victory over him was nothing more than a fluke.

He shook the current thoughts from his head, Xion was right. He was too serious, he needed to just relax and have some fun. Truth be told, Roxas hadn't had any fun since before Xion faded the first time. That just put such a damper on him, and sent him to depression. At least now that they were back, he could have some fun. The only question was where to start? He wasn't sure, and he figured Xion wasn't sure either. He'd be happy just staying there with her and talking. Actually, now it really did sound like he was making them out to be a couple. Oh well, they weren't. They're just best friends. The best of the best, even.

He finally got what his thoughts together and calmed himself down and spoke again, "You're right! I am too serious, but that's only because after everything happened, I didn't really have anything to be happy about. But that's different now! You and Axel are back. In the end, that's all I wanted, for all of us to be together again. Until he gets back, what do you want to do for fun?"

[xion]

She’d been joking around. As if to say, she’d been teasing him in a way that only she could do. Of course, she supposed Axel could have teased him too, but it wouldn’t have been as funny-it might have actually been even more funny because it was Axel. He was Roxas’ best friend, and he was a, well, a he-as if she had did it. But, Roxas was blushing now. She giggled, but that soon evolved into a laugh. She couldn’t believe it, was all. She had actually managed to make him blush. This was something she’d have to tell Axel the next time that she saw him. He probably wouldn’t believe her, but it’d still be a funny story to tell. She shook her head; this was just oo muc fun. To be able to tease him like this. It was funny to see the expressions that he made.

Xion smiled and ran her hands through his hair, trying to mess it up. She really wouldn’t have to try too hard to mess it up. “I know that, Roxie, but I just had to tease you about it. I mean, well, just look at your face. It’s priceless.” She started laughing again. Laughing so hard that she fell over sideways, into his lap. Even though she was pretty sure her face was just as red as his had been, she couldn’t stop laughing. It felt so nice to laugh. None of the awkward feeling she had gotten while she was with Sora and Riku came up in her stomach, but the natural feeling was there.

She stopped laughing long enough to calm herself down. That didn’t stop her, however, from leaning up and giving him another hug. “Wow. I can’t believe how much I needed that laugh. It seems like forever since I’ve laughed like that.” But, his words finally sank in. And, now, she was nervous. It all had to do with what he had said. He just wanted to spend time with her? Surely, he meant he wanted to spend time with both her AND Axel, right? She had to be overreacting. They were what he has said, right? Best friend’s and only best friend’s. For a while in the past, although it was fleeting, she thought that, maybe, she might have had some sort of crush on Roxas, but that had gone away the moment Riku had stepped into her life. Now, it was more like she was confused. Confused about Roxas, and about Riku. She liked them both, didn’t she? In different ways, and certainly not like THAT. Roxas was like…like her brother and her best friend, while Riku was more like a mentor, right?

Xion took a deep breath before smiling at him. She was still confused, but she thought better than to let him know that. After all, she didn’t want to pour all her troubles onto him. Roxas was great, but it would just be horrible for him to know that she was, in a way, comparing him to Riku. Riku who had stopped him, after she had asked him to, at Memory Skyscraper and captured him. If she thought about that deeply enough, she felt like it was her fault. It was weird. She didn’t remember being inside of Sora, but she remembered some of the things that had happened to him, and to Roxas, while she was, supposedly, dead. She remembered Roxas fighting Axel inside of the mansion, and she remembered him fighting Sora later on. The place, in her mind, was blurry.

At his sudden change of attitude, she stared at him, somewhat with wide eyes, and let her mouth drop. He was actually going to let her pick what they were going to do? Wasn’t that a little bit…risky? Probably not. She really had no clue what to do other than to head to Twilight Town and have some ice cream, his treat. “I guess I see your point .I can see how your life would become incredibly dull after I…left.” She winked at him and nudged him with her shoulder lightly. “Hmm. I guess we could sit here and talk a few more minutes, and then, maybe, some ice cream? I hadn’t really felt like eating any since I didn’t know whether or not you guys were back, but, now that you’re here…” She trailed off.

[Roxas]

Roxas frowned. He was glad she was having fun laughing at his expense, but it made him feel even more embarassed. To make matters worse for him, she fell over into his lap laughing. It didn't really help with his embarassment, only made it grow. It was a good while before the girl now below him ceased to laugh, but even then she was still having small fits of giggles here and there. She eventually sat back up and spoke of how she needed that laugh, and hugged him yet again. To him, this meeting of friends was turning into a hug fest.

"Thanks for laughing at my embarassment..." he said in a very quiet voice, trying to not sound too mean about it. He knew it was all in good fun, but every so often, you just needed to know when to stop laughing. Oh well, he'd get her back somehow.

Now there was silence, slightly awkward silence. It was at this time he began to wonder if his old feelings for her could possibly come back. Those could only complicate things in his mind. He was just happy being her friend, her best friend. Besides, he highly doubted she had any similar feelings. She was probably interested in someone completely different. If she was even interested in anyone at all. It seemed though that whenever he got close to someone, they disappeared. Xion faded, Naminé fused with Kairi. Perhaps it wouldn't be a good idea to let his apparent feelings-or was it hormones?-get in the way. Maybe they would return, maybe not. He couldn't be sure, it would just take time to see what would happen with them. Ugh, why couldn't it just be simple friendship? Damn being a teenager and getting crushes on girls. It was a total pain in the ass sometimes.

Finally, she spoke. She didn't seem to understand what he meant when he said he had nothing to be happy about after she faded. That, or she just wasn't sure what to make of it. It was that he just missed her compainionship. At least, that's what he thought. Maybe it was more, he didn't want to spend more time thinking on it, so he adressed her final statement.

"Okay, if you want, I'll go to Twilight Town and pick us up some sea-salt ice cream? And why did you just trail off like that, Xion?"

[xion]

She forced herself to stop laughing and stare at the ground, almost looking like a shamed puppy. She didn’t mean to laugh at Roxas that much, or even to fall over laughing. It was just that…well, she had missed him, and she had to make up for all the teasing she had missed. She brought her knees up closer and wrapped her arms around them. Afterwards, she laid her head in her knees. Maybe she needed to get much more serious as opposed to Roxas needing to lighten up. She decided that that’s what would be best. For her to calm down and for Roxas to get much more exited than he already was. But, why she was like this, she didn’t understand.

“I’m sorry, Roxas. I don’t know what came over me.” She said raising her head to looking at him sheepishly. She looked down nervously again. She didn’t know what to talk about, anymore. She didn’t want to carry the conversation, and, she also didn’t want him to have to carry it, either. They just needed to find something to talk about that would take both their minds off of this. “I don’t mean to put you into such an awkward position, but…What all happened…to everyone?”

But, she really didn’t care about what had happened to everyone else. She cared about what had happened to him, Axel, and to Naminé. Everyone else was just extra. To even speak the truth, she didn’t care much about what had happened to Naminé, either. Mostly, she was worried about what had happened to Roxas. If what he had said was true, she was deeply worried. If he had gotten all depressed and serious, she wanted to get him out of that. To cheer him up and to make him happy once more. She was beginning to hate herself all over again. It made her want to hate Vexen and the Superior. Why couldn’t they just not mess with their little Replica Project? Things would have gone so much better if she just hadn’t existed. This wouldn’t have happened, and Roxas probably would have been happy with Axel on the Clock Tower as best friend’s, like they were before she had stepped into the picture. She sighed and let her head hit her knees again. She was confused, again.

“Are you sure that won’t be too much trouble?” She asked, turning her head in order to stare at him. “Because, if you’re sure, then that’ll be great.” She smiled, softly, before looking out. She was going to be left to her thoughts, and she wasn’t sure whether or not that was a good thing. They seemed to be divided into fourths. Part of them were yelling at her for making Roxas feel bad, and getting him embarrassed. Another part of them seemed not even be thinking about him at all, but were, instead, training on thinking about Riku and where he was. There was a part that was telling her to, somehow, make it up to Roxas by doing something she really didn’t feel like, and, the very last part, was just confused. It was telling her to just remain neutral. To not do anything drastic, and to just stay friend’s with both of him. She wasn’t sure which part to listen to. But, somewhere inside of her, Xion didn’t feel like just remaining friend’s with either one of them, and that got her more confused. When she got right down to the point, which one did she like more. Roxas or Riku?

[Roxas]

"I'm sorry Xion, I didn't mean it like that. I was just embarassed, and I'm not used to it. I guess everything that happened just kind of hardened me and got rid of the fun in me, I just need time to readjust, that's all," he blurted out when she drew her knees back and rested her head. Now he felt bad for killing her mood, something only he could do.

Then she asked about the others, and Roxas answered her question with an explanation, "Well, after you faded, I defected. I went after the answer I wanted, and Riku tried to stop me. I defeated him the first time. The second time, he had surrendered to the Darkness just so he could beat me. He took me back to DiZ'a lab and they imprisoned me in a virtual Twilight Town. While I was there, Namine got to me and explained things to me, and so did Axel. Only, I didn't remember him at first. We fought twice, and I beat him the second time. After that, I merged with Sora so he could wake up. From him I learned that Axel sacrificed himself to help Sora get to Xemnas. He met up with Riku again, and Namine merged with Kairi. I fought Sora to find out if he was a good Other, and before the final fight with Xemnas, I talked to Namine again. Then I merged back into Sora as he and Riku fought Xemnas the last time. After that, Sora and Riku went back to Destiny Islands to be home and with their friends."

It was a long explanation, and he forgot just how much had happened. They hadn't been happy times, but not nessecarily bad ones. At least now things were peaceful, for a little bit.

When she asked him if he was sure he'd do that, he spoke up again, "Yeah sure! I'll be right back Xion!"

With that, he opened a corridor of darkness and stepped through to Twilight Town to get some sea-salt ice cream.