#also people in these comments are mentioning how roxas going back to sora probably explains his temper like baby we just went thru com did y

[cinnabeat]

i mean also to be fair to sora he probably heavily ignored ANY form of humanity the nobodies showed bc they were pissing him off so much

[absinthemadness]

Fictober Day 9, Prompt 24: Are you kidding me?

This is also from an old, old prompt of “I didn’t know you were dating”

Post KH3 Akuroku where Roxas is learning just how he feels about Axel. Mentions of Soriku.

Something cute and silly after yesterday’s spicy post. :) The rest is under the cut for length reasons

---

‘Just live with Lea,’ they said. ‘You two are great friends,’ they said. ‘He needs a roommate and you would be perfect.’ 

What they didn't mention was that ‘Lea’ was a hot mess of emotion that Roxas couldn't even hope to decipher. 

The only emotion that Roxas had really wrapped his head around was anger, and he was only convinced of that because he'd snapped at the fiftieth person who suggested moving, which just so happened to be Isa. 

Roxas had heard the rumors. Some people had been swearing up and down to each other that there was something between the two, always going quiet when they noticed Roxas nearby. 

And he couldn't understand why, but it pissed him off every time someone spread the rumor. It was probably just because he hated gossip. 

So when Isa, of all people, had mentioned to him that Axel needed a roommate, Roxas hadn't even let him finish. "Well then, why don't you just move in with him then? I hear you're all buddy buddy with him."

"Excuse me?" 

Roxas didn't have to dignify that question with a response. He just crossed his arms and glared. Why? Why did Isa's face piss him off so much whenever mentioned with Axel’s name?

"Roxas, what do you mean by that?" 

He refused. He just kept glaring up at Isa. And Isa stared down at him. 

Stupid Isa and his stupid height. He'd look so perfect standing next to Axel. They could look each other in the eye. And without having to stoop down they could—

Roxas’s face flushed hot, and he snapped, "Why aren't you living with him, anyway? Aren't you together?" He wasn't sure what exactly together meant, other than kissing. And he only knew what that was because he stumbled across Sora and Riku smushing their faces together in a way that looked gross. 

Sora had told Roxas that kissing was something people did when they were together with someone special and Roxas hadn't pushed further, thoroughly grossed out and wanting to get away from the two. 

And the thought of Isa kissing Axel infuriated him, made him want to throw a fist into Isa’s stupid face.

Isa blinked at him for a long moment before bursting into laughter. 

"What is so funny?" 

"You're actually jealous of Lea and me." 

Jealous. Roxas wasn’t sure if he’d heard the word before. Was that the blood boiling anger he felt? 

"Am not." 

"Either way. We're not dating. We're just friends." 

"Dating?" 

Isa chuckled. "Maybe you should ask Lea about that one. But seriously, give moving in a thought. Lea really likes you." 

Well, yeah, Axel liked him. They were best friends. 

Isa pissed him off yet again when he reached down and ruffled Roxas’s hair before walking off. 

That evening, Roxas found himself in Axel’s apartment. As he lay across the couch, tucked up under Axel's arm, he wondered if there was any merit to moving in. He spent a lot of his time in the cozy apartment, often spending the night in the spare bedroom. The amount of clothes scattered around the extra room was not insignificant. 

"What are you thinking?" Axel asked, hand absentmindedly going through Roxas’s hair as he stared at the TV.

He almost asked about moving in, but decided against it for now. Maybe if Axel ever brought it up… "What's dating?" 

Axel’s attention whipped over to Roxas, eyes almost glazing over, before a wide grin spread. "You trying to ask me out or something?" 

"What's asking out?"

Axel’s face fell. "You really don't know anything about dating?"

"I know about kissing."

Axel got that strange look again before his face went almost blank.

"I haven't been kissed, if that's what you're going to ask. Sora told me about it."

"Caught them sucking face, did you?" 

“Looked more like they were trying to eat each other. Is kissing dating?”

"In a way." 

"Then is dating being together?" 

"I guess you could say that."

"Are we dating?" 

He could feel Axel's body stiffen, and the look on his face screamed panic. "W-why would you ask that?"

"Well. People always comment that we're always together. I think I spend more time over here than I do in the castle."

"Yes, but we're not together like that?”

"We’re best friends?" Roxas sank back into Axel’s warm side. 

"Yeah, Rox. Best friends."  

"Friends…" Roxas mumbled. He touted that to almost anyone who would listen sometimes. They were friends, always had been, always would be. So what was the weird feeling in his chest? It was almost like a vacuum had sucked something out, leaving him feeling hollow. 

They fell silent after that, leaving Roxas only more confused. 

He waited for Axel to ask him to move in. Only getting more and more annoyed with everyone who suggested it. Especially when Axel would talk about wanting a roommate to Roxas. 

Axel seemed to dance around him, now. And it was starting to piss him off. Axel had been the one to promise Roxas that he would help puzzle out their newfound emotions. 

He finally got fed up, and figured he'd may as well take matters into his own hands, so he packed his suitcase full of the last of his clothes and other things he wanted to keep, and then caught a ride to Axel's. 

"Roxas?" Axel answered the door, probably surprised that Roxas hadn’t just let him in. But his hands had been full, so he’d elbowed the doorbell and waited. 

"Who else?" Roxas paused. "Don't answer that."

"What are you doing here?" Axel stepped back to let Roxas pass. 

"I'm moving in." 

"Why?" 

"Are you kidding me?" Roxas dumped his things on the kitchen table. "You haven’t shut up about wanting a roommate. And everyone and their brother have told me I would be perfect for you. Whatever that's supposed to mean."

"Do I get a say in this?" 

"Do you not want me to?" 

"Of course I do. I've been meaning to ask for a while." 

"Why didn't you?" 

"I… don't know? I was intimidated?" 

"It's just living together. We practically do anyway." 

But as much as he'd stayed the night, he was not prepared for the emotional train wreck that would be living with Axel. 

And Axel was a disaster. He'd get upset over the smallest thing, blustering about whenever he'd misplace something. He was always misplacing something. 

Roxas quickly discovered he had the uncanny ability to know where Axel's lost things were.

 "Roxas, have you seen my belt?" 

"Check under your green hoodie that's halfway under your bed."

"Roxas, have you seen my necklace?" 

"Did you check the fruit bowl?" 

"Roxas, have you seen my…" 

"Check the floor of your closet, left side towards the back. If not there, then under the sink in the bathroom."

And nearly every time there was a long pause, then… 

"Found it!"

Axel would cry all the time watching movies. Romance movies? Kids movies? Horror movies? Hell, he'd cried at animated robots. He'd always wind up leaned against Roxas’s arm as he shook with silent tears. Roxas would silently pat his arm, trying to decipher what was happening on the screen that would merit tears.

Axel practically overflowed with emotion, but he would never get angry with Roxas. He was full of endless patience as he explained things. He never batted an eye when Roxas would get so frustrated and throw a tantrum, shouting at Axel until he was exhausted. 

Axel would just wait and then softly ask, "Are you done now?" 

Roxas would always nod, feeling like a child until Axel would reach out and stroke his cheek and tell him it was ok to be upset. 

It left him confused. 

Not the fact that whenever Axel would answer a question, it inevitably led to more questions. But he started questioning the strange feeling he'd get in his stomach when Axel would touch his cheek. 

But any time he'd ask about it, Axel would kind of bumble his way through a half-baked explanation and make an excuse to disappear into his room. 

He wasn't sure who else to ask. Sora was busy being with Riku. Xion was off somewhere discovering herself. 

So instead, he stormed to his room every time Axel would leave his question unanswered. He'd slam the door as hard as he could, throw headphones on, and drop face down on his bed to scream into his pillow. 

Eventually it got to where he gave up. He didn't give up on Axel completely, just stopped trying to ask him about emotions, about the strange way he'd feel sitting close while they watched a movie, or about the looks that he would sometimes catch Axel giving him. 

But he wanted to ask so badly when Axel would lean in close and ruffle his hair. He wanted to ask why his heart beat so loudly. Why it felt like his stomach would do somersaults.  

But he didn't. He shoved all of those feelings down. He kept his face straight, forced his hands not to shake. And smiled. 

It was fine. 

He was fine. 

He wasn't sure how long it went on. But one day he had been out doing odd jobs when he saw Axel, and then some girl talking to him. She kept leaning in and touching his arm and he would lean away, running his hand through his hair in a nervous gesture. To Roxas’s relief, he didn't look too comfortable. Isa stood with them, watching in amusement. 

Roxas felt his blood boil when she leaned against his arm. He left his skateboard on the sidewalk and stormed across the road, straight up to the trio. He could feel them all looking at him, but his eyes were on Axel as he stepped away from the girl. He nudged through, reached up and grabbed Axel's face before yanking him down and crushing their lips together. 

When he let go and took a step back, Axel was staring wide eyed. His hands hovering just over Roxas’s arms. 

Roxas turned and said hello to Isa, waved at the girl, excused himself, and walked off. 

"I didn’t know you two were dating," Isa said.

He heard Axel’s chuckle, "Neither did I."

He hopped back on his skateboard and took off before he could hear more of the conversation. 

Well... he hadn’t meant to kiss Axel. He’d just wanted to march over there and get some answers about who the girl was. To find out if Axel was interested in her.

He groaned, pressing his hands to his face, thankful he knew the streets at this point and thought of ways to explain his behavior if Axel was pissed when he got home. 

Axel was lying on the couch watching TV when he arrived that evening. Roxas kicked off his shoes and left them by the front door with his skateboard. 

"I’m home," he muttered, shrugging out of his jacket. 

"Welcome home."

He couldn’t tell if Axel was upset from the tone of his voice, so he figured an apology would be a safe bet. Axel pushed up from the couch as he started. 

"Look, I’m sorry about earlier. I don’t know what came over me. I just wanted to ask—" He was cut off when a pair of hands cupped his jaw and tipped his head up. He barely had time to take in green eyes before they were drifting closed, before a pair of lips pressed to his. 

He felt like an idiot, frozen there when Axel leaned back. "What?"  

Axel just leaned in and kissed his forehead. 

"Are we dating?" Roxas blurted, staring up as green eyes opened. 

"I figured you’d tell me after your little display this afternoon." Axel chuckled, thumb stroking Roxas’s cheek. 

"You never really told me what dating was, other than being together. Is it more kissing?" Roxas hoped it was.

"It can be as much kissing as you want."

Roxas grinned and pulled Axel back down.

[ends-of-the-wayward-storm]

KH OC Week 2020--Day 7: Summer’s End

Road Trip!

[Hoo boy this turned out long. But that’s how I write, apparently. 😂 This week was real fun as always! I’m hoping one day I’ll get to writing Erica’s story. Of course you can’t rush things like that so we’ll see. Maybe if there’s another OC Week next year I might have a new character idea to use. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this! This was real cute to write.] @khoc-week

————

“I don’t think that’s a good idea, Erica.”

“We’ll be really careful, I promise. And besides. I’ve been there before.”

“But it goes against the rules. You know that.”

Erica frowned. Summer was drawing to a close, and they had all had a great time so far. But she wanted to do something special before it was over. “But they’ve gone to a different world before.”

“. . .Well, you’re right about that. . . .”

“It’ll just be for a day. Then we’ll head home, I promise.”

The dream eater tilted their head in thought. They knew Erica was careful when it came to these kinds of things. But a lot of things could happen if people from different worlds were to meet. “If anything happens, you have to leave as quickly as you can.”

“I promise.”

Chirithy studied her for a bit before sighing. “All right. Just this once. But after today, no more ideas like this, okay?”

“Yes!” Erica picked up Chirithy and hugged them. “Thank you so much! This’ll be great, I know it will!”

Chirithy held back another sigh. I hope nothing goes wrong.

She set them down. “Now I just have to figure out which world to go to.”

————

Olette stifled a yawn as she waited in an alley in Sunset Terrace. “What do you think’s going on?”

“Beats me,” Hayner said, sitting cross-legged on the ground.

“Her message was pretty vague,” Pence mentioned.

“But why so early?”

Pence rubbed his chin. “Maybe she’s found another wonder here!”

“Maybe,” Olette said. “We’ll just have to wait until she gets here.”

A few minutes later, the others came around the corner. Yet Erica wasn’t with them.

“Any idea what comin’ here so early is about?” Lea asked before yawning.

“Pence here thinks Erica’s found another wonder,” Hayner said, reminding Roxas of the time he had to dodge balls flying out of the wall he had been trying to get to. “But I doubt that.”

“Perhaps this is something she wants to remain between us,” Isa guessed.

“Maybe,” Roxas said.

“Oh, here she comes!” Naminé said. Hayner, Pence, and Olette peeked out from behind the corner to see Erica jogging her way over to them. But her stealing a glance over her shoulder raised a yellow flag for everyone.

“Good. Everyone’s here,” Erica said.

“What’s going on?” Xion asked.

“I have a surprise for you guys.”

“Really?” Hayner said.

“And here I thought something was up,” Lea said.

Erica checked her surroundings again. “Okay, this way.”

Everyone followed her further into the alleyway, and she took one more glance behind everyone.

“So, what kind of surprise is this?” Hayner asked.

“Don’t worry, it’s a good one,” Erica replied. Starlight appeared in her hand, and she faced the wall before pointing her Keyblade at it.

“You’re not doing what I think you’re doing, are you?” Lea questioned. A corridor of light appeared, pulling surprised noises out of Hayner, Pence, and Olette. “Yeah. You are.”

“Hey wait. That’s that portal thing!” Pence realized.

“It’s a corridor of light,” Erica explained. “I want to take you guys to a new world before summer ends.”

“Are you sure this is a good idea?” Lea asked.

“We’ve all been to a different world before,” Roxas said.

“I know that, but . . . this is different.”

“Lea’s right,” Isa said. “This might not be the best idea.”

“I’ve been to this one before,” Erica said.

“That doesn’t matter. It could be dangerous.”

“Aw come on you two!” Pence said. “This could be fun!”

“It’s like Roxas said,” Olette pointed out. “We’ve all been to a different world.”

“And it was awesome!” Hayner added.

“I wouldn’t mind going,” Xion said. “It might be nice.”

“Yeah,” Roxas agreed.

“I’m sure Erica wouldn’t do this if it was dangerous,” Naminé pointed out, and Lea and Isa exchanged sideways glances.

“You guys have to make sure not to say a peep about Twilight Town,” Lea said. “Not everyone knows about other worlds.”

“Got it,” Pence said. “We have to become one with our surroundings.”

“And no wandering around,” Isa added.

“No problem,” Hayner said.

“Then let’s go!” Olette beamed. Erica smiled, and the group entered the corridor. They were met with silence for a few moments before waves brushing against the shore and the smell of the sea welcomed them.

“Woah! Where are we?” Pence asked.

“This is Atlantica,” Erica said. “Well, actually we’re closer to Prince Eric’s castle.”

“Prince Eric?” Roxas repeated, only to remember he had been inside Sora upon first hearing that name.

“You know a prince?” Olette asked.

“Yup, and he’s really nice,” Erica said. “Oh! I think there’s a town here we could go to.”

“Well, you’re our expert here,” Lea said.

As Erica led everyone down a path through a sort of archway of rock, Lea and Isa kept an eye on the group from the rear. Along the way, she told everyone as much as she could about the world (with the exception of what was under the sea. Some things were probably still lurking down there). She also mentioned knowing a seagull named Scuttle.

“He talks?” Xion asked.

“Mmhmm,” Erica said.

“This is like a whole other dimension!” Pence said.

“That’s one way to put it,” Lea commented.

“We should head back to the beach after this,” Olette suggested.

“I wonder what kind of shells are there,” Xion wondered.

“Maybe they’re different from Sora’s world,” Naminé said.

“Heeeeyyy!” someone shouted, making the group stop.

“Who’s shouting?” Pence asked.

“Heeeeyyy!” This time the voice was closer, and moments later wings flapping brought everyone’s attention above them. “Look out below!”

A seagull came in for a rough landing, pulling startled noises out of everyone.

“Boy I really gotta work on my landings,” the seagull commented as he dusted himself off.

“Did he just talk?” Pence whispered.

“Yeah,” Hayner replied. “I bet that’s—”

“Hi Scuttle,” Erica said.

“Hmm?” Scuttle looked up at her before squinting. “Y’know, you look very familiar.”

“It’s me Eri—”

“Wait don’t tell me. It’s right on the tip of my tongue. . . .” He rubbed his chin. “You’re a friend of Ariel’s right? The one with the reeeally curly hair?”

“Yup. That’s me.”

“Is he serious?” Hayner whispered.

“I got it!” Scuttle said. “Erica! Hey it’s been a while!”

The wielder in question laughed a bit. “It’s good to see you.”

Guess he didn’t get it memorized, Roxas thought.

Scuttle finally laid eyes on everyone else. “Woah. That is a lot of humans.”

“They’re friends of mine,” Erica said, and Naminé and Olette waved before the curly-haired girl introduced everyone.

“Nice to meetcha!”

“Nice to meet you too,” Olette said.

“So, what are you up to today?”

“We were going to head to the town to walk around for a bit,” Erica said.

“Y’know what, there’s a shortcut I found just a couple days ago that’ll get you there in minutes.”

“Really?” Xion asked.

“Yeah! C’mon I’ll show ya!” The bird took off in the opposite direction after a couple flaps, and the group exchanged looks.

“You sure we should be trusting him with directions?” Lea asked.

“He can be a bit . . . off sometimes, but we can count on him,” Erica said.

“All right. If you say so.”

The group then proceeded to follow Scuttle.

“I can’t believe birds talk here!” Pence said, trying to keep his voice down. “Are they the only animals that talk here?”

“I know a fish and a crab that talk, too,” Erica replied.

“No way!” Hayner said.

“Y’know, so far this hasn’t been a bad idea after all,” Lea commented to Isa.

“You could say that,” Isa replied. “And taking directions from a talking seagull is certainly something. But, every world is different.”

After a couple more minutes Scuttle stopped before a cave that made a few eyebrows rise.

“We have to go in there?” Hayner asked.

“Are you sure about this?” Erica questioned.

“Positive,” Scuttle replied. “Oh uh might wanna watch your step in here. Y’know since humans can’t fly and all.” He squinted at the cave. “I don’t think I remember it being this dark last time.”

Lea shot the bird a look that went unnoticed before sighing and stepping away. Grabbing two sticks, he checked to make sure Scuttle was still facing the cave before igniting the sticks with a brief fire spell. “Well I have our light. Lead the way.”

Scuttle looked to Lea. “Huh. Fire. You humans really know how to use that stuff.” The seagull went inside, and the group followed him in with Lea right behind him.

“How many times have you been through here?” Roxas asked, holding the other stick.

“Ahh a couple times, give or take. But don’t worry. I got this cave mapped out perfectly up here.” The seagull knocked on his head briefly, and Lea once again gave the bird a look that Isa caught.

The cave didn’t really have much to it other than the dozens of small rocks and pebbles tossed around here and there. Lea and Isa both had a couple inches of room above them, but that really didn’t seem to make them feel any better. But, after a short while Scuttle proved true to his word, and they could hear the sounds of bustling people ahead of them.

“And here we are!” He pulled back fabric that acted as a curtain before squeezing himself through a space between two of the several boards that were shoddily boarding up the hole.

Managing to find a loose board that could be pushed aside to form a way out, Olette made her way through, and she brushed the curtain aside. “Woah! Guys, over here!”

“Huh?” Roxas put his torch out before following after her, and the others followed suit. Lea was the last one out once he put his torch out, and he and Isa could already see how excited the others were.

“Thanks, Scuttle!” Erica said.

“Any time, Erica,” Scuttle said. “I’ll see ya later!”

Once he was off, Xion tugged Lea and Isa along, and the rest finally ventured out into the open. People were going to and fro all around them, some looking at those selling their wares while others simply enjoyed the atmosphere. There was a puppet show going on that was capturing their young audience very well, and a couple stands in the streets were situated at just the right angle to catch one’s eye.

“It’s very different from home,” Naminé said. “But it’s a good different.”

The scent of flowers caught Xion’s attention, and she noticed some very familiar ones.

“Forget-me-nots,” Isa said. “I haven’t seen those in a while.”

“They’re really pretty.”

“Hey can we check out what’s down that way?” Pence asked, pointing at an archway.

“They’re selling paint over there,” Naminé said. “I’ve always wanted to try painting.” Lea and Isa exchanged looks.

“All right, here’s the deal,” Lea said. “We’ll meet back at that fountain over there in two hours.”

“Stay in pairs or groups of three,” Isa said. “And don’t stray too far from one another. Understood?”

“Yes!” Pence said, and he nudged Hayner. “C’mon guys!”

“Wait up, you two!” Olette said before hurrying after them.

“Where’d you see that paint?” Lea asked.

“That way.” Naminé took him by the hand and led him to the stand.

“H-hey!” Roxas said. Isa watched him leave, and he looked to see Erica still with him and Xion, the two girls’ attention already captured by the flowers.

“There’s so many here,” Xion said. “It’s almost hard to pick.”

“Which one did you see first?” Erica asked.

“Those blue ones there.” Xion pointed to the forget-me-nots.

“I have some munny if you want them.”

“Are you sure?”

“Mmhmm.”

“. . . Then, I’ll get them. Please.”

Erica bought the flowers, and Xion’s eyes drifted to the rest of the stand.

“What about those?” She pointed to a few other ones, and Isa pulled out some extra munny.

“You have quite the eye,” he said. The seller gave her a basket for the flowers, and Xion thanked both him and her friends. After the trio moved aside, Xion carefully sifted through her basket before pulling out a forget-me-not and giving it to Isa.

“There’s enough for everyone else, so I thought I could share them.”

He glanced between her and the flower before gently taking it. As for Erica, Xion gave her one of the blue chrysanthemums. But there was another flower attached to it.

“A dandelion,” Erica said. Just the very word reminded her of Master Ava and her friends. It was strange how one word could bring up so many memories. . . .

“Some say you can wish on those.”

“I uh, I think I’ll try to keep it in one piece.” Erica tucked both flowers behind her ear, making sure they wouldn’t fall. “Thank you.”

Xion smiled. “Let’s try to find everyone else.”

It didn’t take too long for the trio to find Lea, Roxas, and Naminé. The blonde-haired girl couldn’t stop looking at the bottles of paint she had acquired, already thinking of what to paint once they got home.

“That’s a lot of flowers,” Roxas said as both groups met.

“They do look nice,” Naminé commented. Xion picked out a daisy for Naminé, an orange chrysanthemum for Lea, and a white one for Roxas.

“Looks just like your hair,” Isa commented as Lea stuck his flower in his hair with pride.

“I bet it brings out my eyes, doesn’t it?” Lea replied, earning laughs from the girls.

Naminé gently picked a forget-me-not from the basket and placed it in Xion’s hair. “You should have one too.” Xion gave her a smile.

Erica looked around the square, but she was unable to spot Hayner, Pence, and Olette. “Um, should we look for the others?”

“You might wanna look over there,” Lea said, gesturing with his head to the trio in question running toward them. Hayner had a sort of box in his hands, and Olette had some smaller things in her hand. As for Pence he wasn’t too far behind them.

“You got excited,” Isa said with a small smile.

“They have pretzels here!” Hayner said. “Oh, and we saw this girl with long red hair. She was pretty nice.”

“Was she with a guy with black hair?” Erica asked.

“Oh yeah. He was nice, too,” Pence answered.

“I think that was Ariel and Prince Eric.”

“That was them?”

“Yup.”

“They looked really sweet together,” Olette said. “Oh! I almost forgot.” She held out her hand, revealing beaded bracelets much like her own and some wristbands. “I got these for us.”

“You did?” Roxas asked.

“Mmhmm.” Olette passed her gifts out.

“You didn’t mention anything about where we’re from, did you?” Erica asked.

“Don’t worry. We kept quiet about that,” Hayner said.

Xion turned her wrist to admire her new silver bracelet. “Thanks, Olette.” Going through her basket, she picked out flowers for Hayner, Pence, and Olette.

Olette looked at her orange chrysanthemum. “These are for us?” Xion nodded, earning a smile from Olette. “Thanks, Xion.”

“So, we ready to head back to the beach?” Hayner said.

“Sure, if you want to,” Lea replied, leading the others to agree.

“All right, then let’s hit the road!”

Lea and Isa held onto the baskets of paint and flowers, letting the rest of the group chat away excitedly.

“Best. Day. Ever!” Pence beamed.

“Yeah this was awesome!” Hayner agreed.

“Heh heh. I’m glad you liked it here,” Erica said.

The redhead’s eyes drifted to the flowers. “Y’know, our home world had a lot flowers there.”

“I remember them,” Isa replied. “I wonder if they’re the same.”

“I figured they’d be, what with the people in that world restoring it and all.”

The blue-haired man glanced to the others, spotting Hayner playfully shoving Roxas, who shoved back. “Perhaps one day we’ll see it again. Properly.”

“And maybe once we find her, we should take her with us.”

“I think she’d like that.”

Eventually the group reached the beach, and the sun was beginning to set. A soft breeze passed through as they sat in the sand, making sure not to sit too close to the water. However, Isa noticed Erica had stayed behind, her distant gaze on the dandelion in her hands.

“Aren’t you coming?” he asked.

“Hmm?” She looked to him. “I’ll catch up in a bit.”

Her usual smile didn’t reach her eyes, but he decided to leave her be. Erica waited for him to keep walking before closing her eyes. She could just imagine herself back at that beach with those other wielders. She could just hear their laughter as they messed around with each other, the leader of the group trying her best not to laugh with them.

Of course, that was in the past. She had other friends that she could share memories with now. And . . . maybe one day they would all meet.

One day I’ll see them again.

Erica blew onto the dandelion, and she watched the wind carry its seeds far, far away. . . .

“Hey Erica! You coming?” Pence called.

“Be right there!” Pocketing what remained of the dandelion, she briskly headed toward everyone else. As she sat down, Roxas noticed she had only one flower in her hair.

“Your dandelion’s missing,” he said.

“I decided to make a wish on it.”

“What did you wish for?” Xion asked.

“Can’t say. I’m hoping it’ll come true.”

“Maybe it will,” Olette said. Once she opened the box of pretzels for everyone, their heavenly buttery scent filled the air.

Pence pulled a piece off of his to pop into his mouth. “Hey these are better than the ones back home.”

“I guess the baker here’s pretty good,” Lea commented.

“They taste the same to me,” Roxas said.

“I think so too,” Xion said.

Olette swallowed a bite. “Do you think we could do this again?” The former Organization members and Erica exchanged glances.

“Uh we’ll see about that,” Lea said.

Naminé looked to the horizon, feeling the breeze against her face. “At least we got to spend time together like this. That’s what matters the most.”

“Yeah,” Xion agreed.

“I guess we’re pretty lucky,” Roxas said. But thunder followed by sudden rain decided to say otherwise.

“Aw man!” Hayner complained, gathering his shoes.

“Q-quick, head for that cave!” Pence said, and everyone collected their things before darting off. Erica couldn’t help laughing a bit, which led to Naminé laughing as well. And luckily the group made it just before the rain got any heavier.

Erica puffed out a brief laugh. “That came out of nowhere.”

Hayner poured some water out of his shoes. “No kidding.”

Olette glanced to Roxas, and she couldn’t help snickering. “Roxas, your hair.”

“My hair?” He parted the hair from his eyes like a curtain.

“You look like a hippie,” Hayner teased.

“Axel’s hair got kind of long,” Xion pointed out with a laugh.

“And Pence’s hair looks like a wilted plant,” Lea quipped, and the group shared a laugh.

“I think our pretzels got soaked,” Pence said. “But at least the flowers got some water.” Naminé laughed a bit only to sneeze.

“I’ll see if I can get a fire going.” It wasn’t very long until a small fire was made, and the group huddled around it as they listened to the rain.

“I hope we don’t get sick tomorrow,” Hayner said. “That’d really be a bummer.”

“Same here.”

Olette readjusted her flower. “Thanks for taking us here, Erica. It was amazing.”

“You’re welcome,” Erica said. “But um, we should probably head home once we’re all dry.”

The group voiced their agreements. They’d get home eventually, but for now, they were going to remain just how they were—gathered around a fire and listening to the rain and the ocean.

Together.

————

[themelodicenigma]

So you really DON'T believe that Sora looks like Ven or Roxas??? Wtf lmao Bluerosesburnblue stuck to the facts there as usual, so why are you fighting the truth so hard? I dont want to sound rude but nothing you said made any sense. It's PERFECT for Sora to have been influenced by Ven and its basically implied in BBS.

I do like how the moment I allow anonymous asks again, the questions come flying in. Especially, when this is one of four that I’ve received talking about the same thing since those posts. I can’t tell if it’s even the same person, or if I just riled up some indignant feathers of her followers. I don’t know Blue personally, but I do feel pretty confident that she wouldn’t encourage one of the things you (probably) sent based on her comments about similar behavior during the SRT debunk. I know that the original inquirer, Mademoiseli, wouldn’t like it either. 

Well done.

In any case, you could’ve brought it to the table on the reblog/comment chain instead of in my ask box, but...

Okay.

I am pretty tired of this conversation and the impact it has had on my interaction with others, so this is probably going to be the last time I address this unless any actual new information comes about regarding this part of the story. There is something that needs to be realized though:

For one—the reason why I even commented in the first place and why the conversation took its turn is essentially linked. The reason I entered it was because I held a difference to these statements and phrases made by Blue’s first answer:

“I think it’s certainly possible that Sora’s connection to Ventus did effect his appearance in a number of ways, and out of every possibility that one seems the most likely to me.” 

along with:

“Ultimately, I can’t say for certain that Ventus had an impact on Sora’s appearance, but since there seems to be a good deal of evidence supporting that it would be possible, it’s one of the better explanations in my opinion.”

[via Blue post]

Admittedly, I was “triggered” to respond from this, which so happen to be the opening and closing statements of the posts. But, I understand that I shouldn’t have been prompted by it in the way that I was (not fully, anyway).

In that, she was primarily talking about the topic of Ven influencing Sora’s physical appearance as a probable explanation to the hypothetical question of, essentially, “Why do Sora and Ventus look alike?”. All the while, looking at how the ideal was congruent with existing concepts.

I, on the other hand, in addition to that, took it as an evaluation of, not only a hypothetical scenario, but extending to that of weighing the probability of the question and explanation becoming reality within the context.

In other words, while she was much more concerned with whether there existed congruent truths between the premise (Ven influencing Sora) and the context, I was primarily concerned with establishing whether it HAS happened and judging the likelihood of it happening at all. Between us speaking on theory and concepts or plausibility and probability—these certainly aren’t mutually exclusive, but the direction of the conversation was split between the two somehow. 

And I’ll take the blame for that, but in recognizing that our approaches weren’t completely separate, still, talking about the likelihood of the premise being true and/or introduced at a later time WAS still a relevant topic. It could’ve been its own conversation, but it was relevant, nonetheless.

Two—I am a person that, when encountered with a question, I am first immediately concerned with the facts. Always. Only after that do I inquire about uncertain material through a “possibility spectrum”, and what determines the strong end of this are the facts that suggest or support the proposition at hand. Through that, I’m never opposed to admitting my uncertainty about something or the existence of “breathing room” to probability. Not to mention, establishing the difference between plausibility and probability for its interaction in gauging truth—I could get more into that, but it won’t be necessary for the sake of this post.

Anyway, with that out of the way, I’m going to approach the rest of this post by centering it around this question [ID as premise]:

Premise: “Do you believe it’s possible for it to be explained that Ventus influenced Sora’s physical appearance when their hearts connected?”

Understanding the extensions and work around of the questions (Sora growing into the influence and not being instant), I would answer—yes, it is possible by the merit of its potential to be. However, after reviewing the explanations already established for this connection and the results created by said explanations for the topic the prompt addresses, I would say that it’s unlikely to happen.

Yeah. You read that right.

Possible, but unlikely to happen. [improbable] 

Remember to consider that there are two ways in which something can be explained for fictional media. This is typically split in what is taken from the concept of Diegesis, where in this scenario, we’re talking about explanations that function internally within and by the world, and explanations that function externally outside and by other means. Both approaches can even simultaneously exist for the same topic—there being an appropriate explanation for something in both ways.

The formation of my conclusion, actually, is based on the facts, which also don’t include any strict implication that Sora was influenced by Ven, as if to even create an equilibrium between their facial features. If anything, you could argue the opposite was done, specifically in the way of making a distinction between the two by their face.

So, let’s take a step back, and go to where all of this actually started in the game’s context. The first question revolving around this topic would essentially be this:

Q1: “Why do Roxas and Sora look alike?”

*we’ll refer to this as Q1

If not automatically generated by the events of the story itself, this question was made relevant even back in the release of the Ultimania Alpha (when Roxas was just “Mysterious Boy”). Here we could see Roxas’ face and model much more clearly than that of the picture at the end of the GBA version of CoM. The Ultimania Alpha features this as his profile header (and also on the correlation chart):

“Who does he (you) look like? The key person of “II””

- KH Ultimania Alpha—Roxas’ Profile, pg.12 

First, it’s good to establish that by design, the characters of Sora and Roxas do and were intended to [basically] have the same face, save for a few differences made. They also have other attributes that are considerate of each other, but we’ll highlight the face specifics. This is certainly non-debatable from an external application that they are to be correlated characters by design.

“The facial models of Roxas and Sora are basically the same, but the chin is slightly different. When I put on his hair, Roxas looked a little bit stout, so I made him thinner.”

- KH2 Ultimania—Tomohiro Kayano [3D Modeling Director], pg. 345

“Roxas: I traced Sora for this piece. My image of Roxas actually came first, before Sora, and I had already drawn him for the first project document. The concept of "between" was something I kept in mind: since Sora's outfit was to be black this time, I made Roxas' base color white, and I also added a black and white checked pattern. The cross on his chest isn't a necklace, it's part of his zipper, and it is the motif of the Nobodies. Also, his hair is supposed to be the exact same length as Sora's.”

- KH2 Ultimania, pg. 701 [via KHInsider]

“Roxas A lot of thought was put into this character. Based on the premise that he was 'an expression of the reverse, hidden inside Sora', I gave him pretty much the exact same face as Sora, just with slightly narrower eyes. And then, I made white the basis for his clothes, in contrast to KHII Sora. The black and white checkered pattern, 'neither darkness nor light', was to be a hint. My absolute favourite scene of his has to be the one at the end of the opening of KHII, when he says 'looks like my summer vacation is over'. I put a lot of feeling into creating that, as I intended it to feel, for a moment, like the end.”

- Nomura, KH Character’s Report Vol. 1 [via KHInsider]

The third one is the most interesting because it’s the only one to provide an explanation to the external application of the similarity—it being based on the connection that the characters shared and how they’re perceived against one another. Roxas being the “reverse” of Sora was utilized in more ways than the face, more so than what is understood by how that could apply to Riku’s design.

If considering the relevancy of correlating Sora and Roxas’ designs outside of representing their connection to one another (i.e. just by design alone in representing it—external), the answer can also be assumed from the game’s revelations. Meaning, after playing KH2, it would be reasonable that people would essentially believe that the answer to Q1 was answered as:

“Because Roxas is Sora’s Nobody”

Hah.

However, in the reality of the internal explanation that directly influences the characters, this didn’t quite turn out to be the answer that was presented. Not only that, but the question changed. BBS happened, and instead, we receive an answer that turns Q1 into a misleading question, and presents another in its place:

Q2: “Why do Roxas and Ventus look alike?”

No, seriously. It is the literal question posed in the BBS Ultimania:

“Why do Roxas and Ventus look alike? A: Because inside Sora, which is Roxas’ body, is Ventus’ heart.

As was shown in the opening to KH BbS and the ending to Last Episode, Sora and Ventus’ heart are linked (P.646). And so Roxas, who is a part of Sora, was affected by that and looks just like Ventus.”

- BBS Ultimania, pg. 616 [via KHInsider]

The answer here is pretty straight forward. The “why” is propositioned by two things: Sora and Ventus’ hearts being linked and Ventus’ heart residing in Sora when Roxas was created. Whether it was just one or both of these reasons is inconsequential—Roxas took his physical appearance from Ventus, NOT Sora. This is the internal explanation given on the topic of Roxas’ and Ventus’ appearance, not the external as previously given in KH2.

Since BBS, the idea of Roxas = Sora has essentially been replaced with the actuality of Roxas = Ventus multiple, if not every single, time appearance is mentioned or corresponding questions were answered.

"Ven has the same hairstyle, face, clothes, and voice of Roxas, but just who is he?”

“The face of the polygon model of Ventus that appears in this title is, strictly speaking, different to the one from KH BBS. The one in KH BBS was subtly altered from Roxas' face, but this time, in order to increase efficiency on motion work, we used the same model for Ventus and Roxas.”

“Yes, it is the same actor. Therefore the player will only look at Ven as Roxas from Kingdom Hearts 2.”

[blazed through because those quotes are too long]

* Keep in mind it’s usually about how VEN looks like Roxas, because Roxas was introduced as a character first. Internally for the story, it’s really the other way around.

And, in the mountains of paratextual material that has covered the two characters since BBS, it has opted to mention the similar notion of Roxas getting his appearance from Ven—this being mostly by the specification of the face. The idea that Roxas and Ventus share the same “physical entity” has been introduced and cemented by the explanations given by BBS.

So, instead of getting Q1 v.2:

“Okay? But uhh, still, why do Sora and Ventus [Roxas] look alike, then?”

We get this:

Q3: “Why do Sora and Vanitas look alike?”

The answer, of course, was explained in a similar fashion to Q2:

“How did you decide on the design for their faces?

Nomura: Well Terra’s look was already a decided thing, we just had to make him look a bit younger. I knew that Ventus should look either like Sora or Roxas, and I wasn’t sure which one to go with, but I thought Vanitas looking like Sora would have a bigger impact so I had Ventus look like Roxas instead. And there is a reason that Vanitas looks like Sora. As Sora filled in Ventus’ fractured heart, the fractured part (Vanitas) was effected by Sora and ended up with Sora’s face. So if it had been Riku who had filled in Ventus’ heart, Vanitas would have looked like Riku.” 

- BBS Ultimania, pg. 646 [via KHInsider]

Similar to the above, instead of Vanitas, who comes from Ventus, looking as such of his existential bond, instead it emphasizes that of Sora = Vanitas by the physical attributes. Interestingly enough, in the same quote is the proposition of whether Ventus would look like either Sora or Roxas in development, lending more to the idea of this separation of their appearance. Similarly, this is mentioned consistently in how Vanitas looks like Sora. This extends even beyond the Ultimania books, as even the KH3 Character Files book emphasizes that Vanitas has “Sora’s face” and resemblance. [pg.86]  

If you read my posts in the original chain, you’d understand that what I’m pointing out is that, instead of establishing an equilibrium between the four characters, it instead creates the separation of two different physical entities:

Sora [Vanitas] and Ventus [Roxas].

This would be different than what was cleanly set between Kairi, Namine, and Xion—this being accompanied by external and internal reasons that not only captured the connections between the characters, but also have literal, internal reasons applied that are part of the narrative.

“How did you go about designing Xion's outward appearance?

Nomura: It was decided from the start that she would have a deep connection to Kairi, so she was based on Kairi with her hair changed a little. We were actually thinking of changing nothing but the colour of her hair, but when designs were drawn up her hairstyle was made quite a bit different too. Even the 3D polygon model's face is the same as Kairi's, apart from the hair. So, if you look at the 3D models of Xion, Namine and Kairi, they have the same face and differ only in their hair, but unexpectedly have individual personalities.”

- Days Ultimania, pg. 485 [via KHInsider]

Actually, the quote itself is similar to the comment made by Tomohiro Kayano above about Sora and Roxas’ 3D facial models being “basically the same”, except the girls are without difference of detail to the face, with the note of being the same while the hair is specifically what differs. This turns out to be an interesting detail because, there’s never an attempt to create a distinction between the three characters outside of what has been spoken for—their hair. And, they have the internal explanation to boot for what makes it literal in and of itself.

This is different than that of the Sora [Vanitas] and Ventus [Roxas] entities, where for internal functionality, there is then a difference by the face in those two and what it means for the characters in the story. As far as I’m concerned, there isn’t even an attempt to establish that they all have “the same face, but different hair.”

Where’s the equilibrium?

The further we go into the explanations that take a different road than that of what Q1 proposes, the question itself starts to become irrelevant—the mystery of the question’s origin (that between Roxas and Sora) was instead supplied by other lore reasoning in the world. All the while, setting a distinction between the two physical entities by “the face” as opposed to just answering the original question.

At least, in an internal way.

Really, Q1 is already answered—this answer being more external, that Roxas has “pretty much the exact same face” as Sora as a way to represent their connection to one another, with the “pretty much” representing the differences that can be accounted for.

However, when it comes to an in-world, internal explanation, instead of providing a lore-based reasoning to express in the narrative, which would’ve been thought to be the same reasoning (because he’s Sora’s Nobody) as the external reasoning, instead we have an answer that makes the Q1, now, seem misleading.

To be fair, it doesn’t necessarily eliminate the Q1, just makes it seem less likely to be answered or if even to be something to be asked anymore. That’s because, in all the ways we understand what resulted from the connection made between Sora and Ventus, we haven’t exactly been given an explicit negative to the possibility of the original premise:

Premise: “Do you believe it’s possible for it to be explained that Ventus influenced Sora’s physical appearance when their hearts connected?”

or, to reintroduce it in a familiar angle:

Q1 v.2: “Why do Sora and Ventus [Roxas] look alike?”

It’s not explicitly negated, but in all the information I could find, this following quote is the closest to answering either question.

– So it’s not “Once Sora’s story is finished, another hero’s story will begin”, the hero is always Sora.

Nomura: Yes. One of the concepts behind the KH series is that the main character Sora isn’t special, he’s just a normal boy. Yes he does have connections with Ventus’ heart, among others, but he hasn’t inherited anything from them. He’s just a normal boy you could find anywhere. I wanted to make Sora a character that the player could take onto themselves and feel that you don’t have to be special. But connect to many people and you will realize your secret potential. With BbS I want to make fans excited to see Sora’s return. The secret event is a symbol of that, so I hope everyone will get to see it and wait for Sora’s next adventure.

- BBS Ultimania, pg. 650 [Via KHInsider]

Unlike the other quotes supplied for the topic of Sora and Ventus’ connection, this quote was on the conversation of Sora’s adventures post-KH3. However, the comment itself is still in retrospect of the internal attributes of Sora’s character, even specifically mentioning his connection to Ventus’ heart, putting it in perspective of that particular circumstance that happens in the game.

So, what do we have now?

That comment doesn’t completely negate the premise, technically, but it also doesn’t support it either. In tandem with everything else in what HAS been done with the connection between Sora and Ventus....

It doesn’t look likely.

There’s also the mention of Aqua pointing out how Sora is:

ENG: “the spitting image of Ven”

JPN: “ヴェンそのもの [Ven himself]”

Even though there isn’t anything conclusive to whether she, just like with Riku, was talking more about Sora and Ven’s disposition than their physical face, the BBS Ultimania does go with the former.

“Guided by a warm light, Aqua meets two boys on the island. Their atmosphere [presence] was similar to that of Terra and Ventus.”

- BBS Ultimania, pg.384

As it is, the fact remains that there hasn’t been any attempt in equalizing the appearance between Sora and Ventus outside of what could already be understood externally through Sora and Roxas. 

The understanding of it being unlikely to be addressed or to be a truth doesn’t rely on “it wasn’t talked about”. Because, IT WAS talked about—the topic surrounding this HAS been approached, it HAS been explained, and the premise at hand isn’t anything offered as actuality.

So, why should I assume then that the information we’ve received for years, that has been explained and told in so many ways, is incomplete?

It could change, sure, but it’s not incomplete as it is. As to this day, we can safely say that the literal equalization of similarity isn’t between Sora and Ventus, because it, as of right now, literally isn’t in accordance to the observable facts. It hasn’t happened, even if to predict it to happen. And if to weigh the possibility of this change occurring, after all the facts presented above and how the subject has been breached, that yes—it’s an unlikely change.

Not impossible, but improbable.

And that is VERY reasonable to say after 10+ years and an immense amount of supplemental paratext produced to say something about it.

This being by not what information is lacking, but by what has been provided. And even then, the frequency and different angles in which the information has been touched upon makes it hit much harder.

If in the attempt to play devil’s advocate on myself, I would proposition that the proposed premise would be setup by the concept behind the story of BBS:

"There is no coincidence in fate"

In which, along with the questions of “why Riku was chosen to wield the keyblade, or why Kairi met Sora and Riku”, the original question (Why do Sora and Roxas look alike?) could’ve been a part of that, and thus, explained similar to that of the Kairi, Namine, and Xion situation—that Sora AND Roxas were influenced by Ventus (and, logically, Vanitas would’ve been as well), and that being why they look alike.

But nope.

Instead, we got it all the other way around where Sora is the character influencing the other characters, and being connected to all three through that direction, not backwards. Creating, really, the impression that the visual similarity between Sora and Ventus IS fate, but through this, it is part of that scheme in which two people who just so happen to be similar are connected to one another.

Their resemblance and their connection is by the design of fate and the way it was meant to be—not necessarily due to a direct phenomenon, but that two people who have that similarity were fated to have the connection they have.

It certainly has been done in storytelling before, so it isn’t a crazy concept anyway.

Don’t know for certain, but from the information available, that actually seems more likely.

Sora has not been affected by Ventus, and the fact that this information isn’t presented as incomplete, this idea becomes less plausible to even be implemented, if not, irrelevant. This would be the same to Q1 as it is, where it was diverted by other information and questions.

All the while, in recognizing the distinction given between the two physical entities of Sora[Vanitas] and Ventus[Roxas], I much more prefer how they’ve handled it so far, where that bridge between Sora and Ventus isn’t closed by that type of phenomenon, but instead, through the efforts of capturing the connection that the characters have. This is directly through the acknowledgement of how the story has implemented understanding of the distinction between the two, particular the face, NOT just the hair. This is also in accordance to story things, in that in the connection between Sora and Ventus, this is primarily a one-sided affair in how Sora influences Ven, NOT the other way around, and I’m fine with that in how it is represented in the story.

This is especially for the sake of Sora and Roxas’ characters is very concerned with his identity in relation to his existential ties towards Sora, and Sora is the normal boy who has “secret potential” by his ability to connect with other people. I’ve of zero interest of Sora’s character being tainted with that type of effect, especially now and in everything that hasn’t [would’ve] acted in accordance to it.

Sigh.

Anyway, that’s just what it is. Don’t send me any more asks expecting me to post this, because I honestly don’t have anything else to say about it that would be that much different. My points would largely be the same. If you have concerns though (like some quotes I got myself since KHInsider didn’t have them), just message me, and I’ll send some screen shots and whatnot.

Anyway, overall, it still remains an interesting thing to thing about alongside the concepts that are implemented in KH. That, I can agree on.

[nadziejastar]

Theory on Subject X and Saïx’s Berserk State

“Rejoice, Naminé. Soon you’ll meet the hero you’ve been longing for.”

Naminé’s shoulders tensed when he said her name. She didn’t look up when she spoke, her voice tiny and faint. “I’m…glad.”

I think the real meaning of “358/2 Days” was supposed to refer to the fact that Axel was reliving his past for the entire year. I’ve written before about how I think Isa originally awakened his berserk state not because he was filled with darkness, but because he wanted to protect Lea. And I want to go into more detail about that. I found it interesting that in the manga, right after Axel disappeared, Saïx felt like tormenting Kairi in her cell. He used a line similar to Marluxia about Naminé waiting for her hero. 

“A heart? I have a heart? No one wants your nonsense!” Saïx raised his sword over Naminé—but Riku was there with Soul Eater to intercept the blow.

“Hmph. I don’t have time for these games.” Darkness welled from a rift behind Saïx. “Run along and help your dear hero.”

During the battle for Destiny Islands, Saïx said that Riku couldn’t protect anything using darkness. Then he said to go help your “dear hero”, referring to Axel.

“Why would caring about something be a weakness?” Xion asked, baffled.

Roxas lowered his head. “I don’t know. I didn’t get it, either.”

I’m not the only one surrounded by things I can’t understand, Xion thought. Axel would explain it, though…

“I hope Axel comes back soon,” said Roxas.

She nodded. They would have so many things to ask him.

I think Isa was used as bait before. And that’s why it was mentioned that Axel would know what it meant to have something you care about be a weakness.

Roxas dallied anyway, peering through the doors again. The rose, the thing he treasures, is his weakness?

Nope, I don’t get it.

I wonder if Axel will know what it all means…?

It’s mentioned more than once, too. On Day 119, and Day 150.

“What are you going to do with us?” she demanded.

Saïx narrowed his eyes. “You are the fire that feeds Sora’s anger.”

That was all he said. And then he vanished again.

“I have to do something…,” Kairi murmured. “Sora’s in danger because of me…”

Saïx seemed to have very personal contempt for Kairi. And here’s a good example of why I just cannot accept that Saïx gets to play on the beach and eat ice cream with everyone in the epilogue, instead of Isa. He tortured Kairi, lol. They really weren’t trying to pull any punches with his characterization. Sora was not even there to witness it, so there really was no reason for him to do this other than to vent his feelings and take his anger out on her.

The Beast had a ferociously strong heart—its strength of will alone had taken him to Hollow Bastion to save one of the princesses, Belle.

“Looks strong,” Axel remarked from behind them.

“Yeah. He is,” Riku said, sinking into thought.

His heart is even stronger than his body. It’s exactly the kind of heart the organization wants…

“But someone that strong won’t just do whatever the organization says,” Naminé murmured.

“Well, this is their chance to show how persuasive they can be,” Axel said with a bitter smirk.

Even in KH2, they implied that Axel knew how “persuasive” the organization could be at getting people to do things they didn’t want to do.

Day 171: The No. i Project

Author: Saïx

Xion failed to complete its mission. If this continues, destroying it and using the next Replica as the Duplicate would undoubtedly yield a higher-grade copy. No. i was among the initial lot, which naturally raises questions about its capabilities. At present, it is nothing short of broken. I cannot fathom why Xemnas would want to keep it.

I think there was a similar situation where Isa was trying to protect Lea who wanted to rescue him. Lea was in danger because of Isa, so Isa was full of conviction, like Kairi. He went berserk, and used up every bit of his strength. I think that the Beast was meant to parallel Isa’s backstory as well as Lea’s. You can see even more clearly in the manga that the Beast went berserk trying to protect Belle. But he felt like he failed.

Saïx sounded vaguely disgusted. “What do you care for a broken, defective failure?”

Isa probably collapsed like Xion and the Beast did. I definitely think that the ordeal caused Isa to be in a state where he lost his sense of self, and he became zombie-like, similar to Roxas during his first week. And that’s when he was Norted. Saïx would have no memory of this happening. Xemnas and Xigbar do, which is why they are amused by his obliviousness.

Day 174: Just a Replica

Author: Saïx

Xion continues to sleep. All analysis on its function suggests no marked change. The copying appears to be working, but a Replica is a Replica. My latest report to Xemnas on this net me no clear answers. He simply stood, smiling. At times I find his thinking impenetrable.

A few days later, Xion was asleep but still functioning and copying. Saïx still thought she was broken and didn’t know why Xemnas wanted to keep her. And Xemnas gave Saïx a creepy smile. Day 174 is called “Action, Reaction”. That is another name for Newton’s third law. “For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction”. Whenever one object exerts a force on a second object, the second object exerts a force back on the first object. The force exerted by the second object is equal in strength and in the opposite direction to the first force.

Roxas: Look, I'm just saying. All I saw in the hole they dug was a wooden chest full of junk.

Axel: And the Heartless were in the chest?

Roxas: I dunno. I think maybe something else is causing them to show up.

Axel: Like?

Roxas: Didn't something seem kind of off to you about the guy in red?

Axel: Off? Off how?

The mission on Day 174 was in Neverland. Roxas learned how to fly because he believed, and Hook was drawing the Heartless to himself due to his greed. The same concept is brought up when Axel came here with Roxas later, too. 

Saïx: So, you really do care for her. In that case...the answer is no.

Sora: You rotten...!

Saïx: Are you angry? Do you hate me? Then take that rage, and direct it at the Heartless.

It’s similar to the relationship between Roxas and Xion. And actually the experiments that Young Xehanort was conducting on Andy’s toys, too. He was “testing the strength of their bond”. I bet there was a similar situation between Lea and Isa’s hearts. In the manga, Axel knew that Hook was drawing the Heartless to him and convinced him to throw away the treasure (to save Peter Pan, surprisingly). And a comparison was made to Axel having something he was afraid to lose. I think the apprentices were using Isa to draw the darkness out of Lea or something. Instead of greed like Hook, it would be rage and hatred.

“Sora or Xion—it matters not. But we need one of them under our control. Bear that in mind.”

Saïx nodded, and a serene smile came to Xemnas’s face.

If that smile meant anything, it was beyond him.

Xemnas gave Saïx a creepy when he was asked about the memory devices. Saïx was wondering what Xemnas’s true agenda was for placing them.

“Sora has a pretty powerful effect on her,” said Xigbar, pensively stroking his chin.

“Both of them have connections to Sora, but we only need one of them under our thumb,” Xemnas replied. “Whether Xion takes from Roxas the rest of what he has to give…or whether he destroys her first and takes back what is his, there is no change to our plans. No matter how, Sora’s power will belong to us.”

“Understood.” Xemnas disappeared nearly before he heard his order acknowledged.

“Don’t let us down now, kiddo. Shouldn’t be too much trouble without a heart,” Xigbar told Saïx.

Same thing here. Xemnas asked if the devices were ready, he reminded Saïx that they only needed one of them, and Xigbar made a weird comment about Saïx being a kid without a heart. Xemnas and Xigbar seemed to take pleasure in reminding Saïx that they only needed one. Lea and Isa apparently had some kind of reciprocal effect on each other, like Roxas and Xion did.

A memory. My first memory. Saïx took me by the hand and brought me out of Castle Oblivion. “This is the last you’ll see of these walls… Xion.” Yes, I remember what he said to me. And I remember where I was. Castle Oblivion.

Day 224 is called “Anomaly”. Both Xion and Naminé are called anomalies. 

Subject's memories have not returned, and our conversations remain less than lucid.

Subject X was also a unique subject who didn’t collapse like all the others. On this day, Xion remembered that she was taken from Castle Oblivion by Saïx. 

Hayner: We can't be together forever... so we'd better make the time we do have something to remember.

Axel suggested going to the beach, which was a sign that he knew something bad was coming.

Secret Report 1: Recollections

Secret Report 1 is obtained after clearing Battlegate 1 at Olympus: Realm of the Gods / Courtyard.

Am I alive? I awoke in a cell, alone until the researchers came with their tests and their prodding to uncover my identity. I had no answer to offer them. Four friends, and a key…that is the sum total of my memory. I could not even recall my name. I was simply called “X” there. My only solace was the time I spent talking with the two boys who would visit from time to time. One day, a man came to take me from the prison. I could not see him for the darkness, save that he wore an eyepatch.

Subject X was taken somewhere by Braig/Xigbar, like Xion was by Saïx. This report is located at Olympus. Perhaps the Realm of the Gods was drawing an allusion to the Final World, which is where people exist between life and death. Isa was sent there after going berserk. 

Ansem's Report 2

The experiments caused the test subject's heart to collapse, including those of the most stalwart. How fragile our hearts are! My treatment produced no signs of recovery. I confined those who had completely lost their hearts beneath the castle. Some time later, I went below and was greeted by the strangest sight. Creatures that seemed born of darkness...What are they? Are they truly sentient beings? Could they be the shadows of those who lost their hearts in my experiments?

Ordinarily the subject’s heart would collapse and they’d become a Heartless. But Lea believed in Isa so he was the only subject whose heart didn’t. It’s “action, reaction” at work. Lea’s heart had an effect on Isa’s heart, and vice versa. Isa was an anomaly and then became a highly valued specimen by Xehanort.

Demyx: Hey, even us Nobodies need our rest, right? Exhaustion kills!

Saïx: I’m sending you with Demyx today. Try to inspire in him a little of your work ethic.  

Demyx: Heartless duty again today? I keep telling them I’m not cut out for this stuff…

The recurring theme at Olympus Coliseum was that Demyx wasn’t cut out for fighting, and that nobody expected much from him. Day 224 was no different. The mission took place at Olympus Coliseum and Saïx wanted Demyx to go with Roxas to make increase his work ethic. Phil said this was the “big day” where Roxas could finally compete in the Games and Demyx slacked off.

Demyx: Right!? And what a shocker to find out Xigbar was the other finalist! What’s up with that… I can’t imagine he was here on a mission. You never can tell what that guy is thinking…

Roxas: Maybe he just wanted an excuse to fight me… To test me.

Demyx: No way, man! I wouldn’t read into it too deep. Besides, the mission’s over, right? All’s well that ends well, man!

Roxas: I…guess so, but…

The most noteworthy part of the mission was that Xigbar was the finalist; he wanted to test Roxas. I think Xigbar was also tasked with testing Isa after he recovered from the initial incident. 

Roxas: So people work you harder when they have expectations? The Organization expects me to do hard missions all the time. Aren't expectations the same thing as orders?

After he went berserk, they probably thought he had much more fighting potential than they originally thought, and pushed him harder. Isa was left in a bad state afterwards. Not long after, Ansem the Wise discovered what was going on. He took Isa, hid him away, and released the remaining subjects.

Secret Report 3: Experiments of the Heart – Notes on Subject X, Excerpt 1

Subject was found in the central square shortly after dawn. Female, approximately fifteen years old. After seven days’ observation, she spoke her first words, but could not provide a name. Subject exhibits signs of profound amnesia, and displays concern for which world this is. Her words suggest that she departed her home world with others, though she cannot recall the names of her erstwhile companions. All efforts to explore those memories have met with a rejection response.

After his initial experiments on me, Ansem the Wise ceased his research into the heart, his hand stayed by some fear I cannot fathom. Yet this new subject is like me: devoid of memories. She is the perfect sample upon which to continue my master's work. She, too, could benefit from it; by traversing the heart, we have a direct path into memory. I myself have begun to reclaim my lost past thanks to these very experiments.Who is she? Whence has she come? These are questions no scientist could ignore.

In the manga, Saïx was in a bad mood after learning that Xion and Demyx had been using his computer. He went into his berserk state and tested Demyx when he was slacking. Roxas was upset that he’d use force on a comrade, but Saïx said anyone who obstructed their goal was expendable, even organization members. Roxas didn’t quite understand what he meant, but it seemed like he was speaking from personal experience. This is the only time Saïx’s berserk state gets featured like this in the Days manga, so I tend to think that it was related to his backstory.

“Get up.”

“Just five more minutes…,” Axel mumbled.

“No. Get up—now.” The voice was distinctly annoyed.

Axel relented and opened his eyes. “What are you even doing in here?”

Saïx was standing next to his bed, as irritated as one might have guessed from his voice. Axel hadn’t been so rudely awakened since before turning into a Nobody.

“Xion ran away.”

In the manga, this whole scene with Saïx at Olympus Coliseum was on Day 255 while Axel was looking for Xion. It was immediately prior to Axel arriving on the clock tower and telling Roxas why the sunset was red. Then lying to him about Xion’s disappearance. The novel seemed to be drawing a connection to Axel’s past on Day 255. He mentioned that he hasn’t been rudely awakened like that since becoming a Nobody. And it just so happens that Subject X was discovered shortly after dawn. 

Every time he tried to wake up, all Axel could think was how badly he wanted to go back to sleep—although he was getting enough rest.

He just wished he could have a day to himself and do nothing but sleep. It was probably some remnant of his human memories.

I’m sure that Lea had sleeping issues ever since he was kidnapped and experimented on, but they probably got even worse when Isa went missing. Axel was thinking this after he took Roxas to Castle Oblivion.

Day 276: Behind the Truth

Author: Axel

Xion is gone. Roxas still doesn’t know anything, but Xion found out. That’s why I need to find her. We don’t have hearts, so we accept the facts we’re given as the truth. But something far more important lies behind that truth. Saïx would laugh at people with no hearts calling one another friends, but that doesn’t make it not so. As the Nobody of the hero of the Keyblade and the Replica of that Nobody, these two are special. Unique in every sense of the word. But that doesn’t change the fact that we’re friends. Nothing will. Got it memorized, Xion?

Day 276 was a pretty important day. This is when Axel reluctantly suggests that they go looking for Xion.

Secret Report 4: Experiments of the Heart – Notes on Subject X, Excerpt 2

My pilot studies used a handful of subjects, but none possessed the fortitude to endure them. Ultimately, all suffered mental collapse. I knew it would be a heavy blow to lose a subject as unique as she. Upon discovering the tests I’ve been conducting, my master demanded that I cease my work immediately and destroy what research I have compiled. Worse still, he ordered the release of my remaining subjects. She is gone. Where is Subject X now? Has “wise” Master Ansem hidden her away?

There really are uncanny similarities between Subject X’s story and the story of 358/2 Days. Xion was gone, Subject X was gone. Roxas and Xion are unique, and Subject X was unique. I think Axel also went to look for Subject X. Because Subject X was Isa.

[els-writes]

Some unrequested, unoriginal, and possibly unpopular Kingdom Hearts 3 thoughts - putting them here because I need to vent, sorry if this isn’t the content you’re looking for from me! XD

After sitting on this game for nearly two months now, I think I’ve finally sorted my feelings into intelligible thoughts. So here we go.

Sorry again this is so long and not my usual post, but I needed to vent, and I’m kinda interested to see what other people think! I know the DLC is hinted to expand on the endgame, but that feels like a cheap way of fixing the criticism.

I love Kingdom Hearts. Like love it. I’ve been playing these games for years - I got a PSP purely so I could play Birth By Sleep. I gave UnionX a shot back when it was Unchained, and I even forced myself to watch through all of DDD, even though that game ignites a kind of hatred I didn’t even know I was capable of feeling.

Kingdom Hearts 3 was great. I enjoyed playing it. It was so much fun, and I’ve never wanted to complete a game more. But it wasn’t the game I hoped for. Perhaps I expected too much, or perhaps the game devs built too many plots and overestimated how easily they could put into a single game and tie it all together with a neat bow, but it wasn’t the game I waited years for.

To clear up my thoughts before I get to my main point: 

Gameplay: great. 

Combat: great, if a little easy, but it was fun as hell. 

Pixar levels: holy shit amazing. 

Graphics: so beautiful no game plays the same. 

Music: still got the OST on repeat.

Gummi ships: burn in hell. 

Tangled world: kind dull but pretty. 

Frozen world: why the fuck are they singing. 

Pirates world: I have no idea what’s happening, if I wanted to play Assassins Creed black flag I would have.

But even the negative aspects weren’t bad enough to make me dislike the game (even if I cried in anger at one point during Pirates and I had to leave the room during the songs...)

There were two key problems that kind of ruined the game for me, in a way. 

The pacing, and the treatment of the characters. 

And that’s not a new opinion on the internet from what I’ve seen, but if the pacing had been fixed, if they hadn’t tried to summarise ALL the tiny plots together, if they hadn’t tried to rush through bringing everyone back at once, I think it would have been everything I wanted. Hell, I would rather they had split it into more games! Yeah, I said it! Give me more, fleshed out, singular plot driven spectacular games like BBS and we would’ve been great. They didn’t need to set up the black box plot here. Maybe teased at it, but not had it so thrown in everywhere, only to go no where. Waste of time, and waste of our old villains. Most of the bad guys didn’t really serve a purpose in the Disney worlds - honestly, most of the Disney worlds felt like they only served to level grinding to me - they had no real impact on the overall plot. Disney worlds are always a little thrown in, granted, but no game has had them serve no real purpose whatsoever to the main plot. 

Hard core KH fans have followed these characters through a ridiculous number of titles for this series. These characters are amazing and loved and so incredible. All I wanted was for there to be some decent emotional pay off for them. And honestly? I think they did most of them a massive disservice. 

To start with: I didn’t necessarily want everyone to come back. Some characters (like Roxas, Xion, and Namine) had returned to their ‘whole selves’, and as much as I loved them, I could understand. I was happy that Sora’s story was focused on bringing Roxas back, it felt sweet, like a very in-character thing to do, and I was looking forward to seeing how they would do it. But most of the time, they didn’t have Sora do anything to move towards that goal? He just ran around Disney worlds, and sometimes mentioned Roxas in the cutscenes inbetween? 

The plot barely moved for 30+ hours of my gameplay through the Disney worlds as I tried to complete each one before moving on. As we reached the Keyblade Graveyard, I was excited that things were starting to move forward, thinking it was mid-game. Nope. It was the start of a 2 hour mad dash to the finish line. It was messy, it was rushed, it left me feeling completely unsatisfied and unable to savour the return of most of my favourite characters. 

The scene with Lea/Axel commenting on how confusing everything was was funny, but it felt like the devs making an excuse to not spend time making the most of Ventus and Aqua’s return. I could kind of forgive them for that, since they were in a rush to save the others, and they did try to give the pair a little bit of time. But Terra? Roxas? Xion? NAMINE? They appeared last minute - some of them, Xion and Roxas especially, not even making sense when you think about plot holes. When they did appear, we didn’t get the emotional payoff and reunion of our trios and old friends that I was waiting for, we got quick comments and ‘ironing out plot points’ off screen? Even Roxas and Ventus meeting was completely anticlimactic (yes, I know they were in the middle of a fight, and they probably didn’t have time, but they’re literally twins, a bit more than just a confused glance and then forgetting it was surely needed). 

So overall: 

Roxas: my favourite, appeared without real explanation, barely got time with Axel. And then we still played Sora to fight? When really, Roxas deserved that fight.

Xion: how did she come back? She was in Sora again? Like... explain?

Terra: had to rewatch a few times before I understood what it was all about, but his return was half decent once I understood it. Also Lingering Will? Hello? 

Namine: she doesn’t even speak (aside from in star form) and is just introduced in the ending? I might forgive this, as she wasn’t really needed, if they hadn’t rushed the reintroduction of EVERYONE. 

Seasalt Trio: a momentary hug, the only thing that made me cry in the game, that was cut short and then dealt with off screen. 

Wayfinder Trio: No where near enough emotional payoff. None. 

Kairi: Wow. Nomura must really hate her? 

So, yeah. That’s all I have for now. The more I type it, the more it annoys me to think about. I’m disappointed in how it all played out in the end. It was rushed, hurried through, gave no payoff, and didn’t make sense a lot of the time. 

The game was incredible. Truly. Wonderful game. But the story? As an end to the massive series that I’ve invested so much time into? It wasn’t enough. 

Also no to the ending. Just no. 

[white-bird-in-a-cage]

Since Roxas and Namine were both born from Sora's body and soul and are both blue-eyed blonds, they are as closely related as fraternal twins. Granted I'm not sure if this is a misconception because anime has some really messed up stuff in it.

Send me a misconception you think people have about my character & I’ll explain if it’s true or not.

It is a misconception, anon, you are correct. Buckle up because this is gonna be long! Under a read more because it got really really long.

Let’s get one thing clear: Roxas and Naminé are not related.

Canon has a lot of conflicting information about Naminé, and the information comes almost SOLELY from Ansem the Wise/DiZ (you could argue that Marluxia and Larxene give information as well, but it’s information that is like “she’s a witch” which doesn’t tell us anything about her origins). She tells us nothing about herself, with this one important exception: “Kairi is me. I am her.”

One argument for them not being related is IF, IF they were, Naminé should not have been able to return to Kairi. I’m sure the whole “Sora’s body and soul were used, but it doesn’t mean that she has a part of Sora in her!” thing is a possible counter-argument, but it still doesn’t really work, because EVERYONE ELSE who is a Nobody/Heartless creature follows the rules, even Roxas!! Roxas, whom Naminé includes in her “Nobodies like us” statement! To which I’m sure “she was born of Sora and Kairi!” is yet another rebuttal, but come on. That’s still weak. Nobodies retain a part of the people from whom they were born, and so Naminé would have had a part of Sora if she had been born from him too. Naminé is a very enigmatic being but one thing is very clear: she can return to Kairi, and therefore, is part of Kairi only. (the whole “no darkness” thing is important for Kairi to remain a Princess of Heart)

Let’s also look at time. Castle Oblivion takes place maybe three weeks to a month after Roxas is born, according to Days. Roxas is still running around, learning how to be coherent and gaining a personality. Castle Oblivion was discovered when? When was the mission planned? I’d say they found Naminé maybe a week or two before the mission began, giving them time to plan it and send members there (to die). That means Naminé, IF she had been born at the same time as Roxas, would’ve been equally blank, incoherent, and more importantly, not felt the extreme loneliness she described.But if she weren’t born at the same time, such as when Kairi’s heart leaves her body, which MAKES A LOT MORE SENSE, Naminé could have become coherent, gained a personality, felt that unbearable loneliness, and the Organization could have planned the Castle Oblivion mission much further in advance, which is something you might think they’d do instead of a mere week or two (or even if they magically found her at the same time, three weeks to a month, but that doesn’t really hold water either, because were they expecting another being to be born out of Sora’s noble sacrifice? I highly doubt that. And also, her powers wouldn’t have been obvious and why wouldn’t they have tried getting a keyblade out of her instead of going through the effort to make a replica do it?).

If Naminé had a part of Sora within her, she would also have disappeared into Sora when her work was done. Right? In order for Sora to be whole, he needed his Nobody (Roxas) and his stolen memories of Kairi, or copies of his memories of her, I never really understood how that worked anyway (Xion). But... what did he need from Naminé? Nothing.Kairi was fine, even broke through Naminé‘s memory-wipe of Sora, which to me indicates that Naminé‘s powers don’t work right on her own self. Right up until she confesses to being Kairi, and Kairi being her, Naminé’s powers work flawlessly on Sora. She said she can’t completely replace Kairi because she is Kairi. Why, then, do her powers work so well on Sora, if they don’t on Kairi?Naminé returned to Kairi because as I’ve mentioned before, Naminé believes that the safest place for “Nobodies like us,” meaning those whose original selves were still around, is to return to that original. Kairi can accept her back into herself. Of course, we don’t know what Naminé had of Kairi that Kairi was missing, but again, that’s because we don’t know hardly anything about her.

Why does Naminé look so different from Kairi? Nomura designed her to be ghostly and fragile. You could also say that the plot demanded she look like Kairi but also be different enough not to cause alarm. I only came into the series when KH2 was out, and after COM, but I really doubt anyone playing that game for the first time, WITHOUT prior knowledge of what would happen, would think anything of that. Maybe at best you’d think they were sisters. It’s a plot twist that Naminé and Kairi are the same person. Of course, people don’t think of that, and instead immediately jump to “Ventus is in Sora’s heart, and since she was born with Sora’s help, of course she takes after Ven!”

Also I want to point out that Roxas said, “We got to meet our original selves.” Of course one could say that Naminé met both Sora and Kairi (if one believed that she’s Roxas’s sister and therefore part of Sora), but the way Roxas is speaking, it’s clear that he means he met Sora and she met Kairi, whom the two of them had not met before.

A lot of the “Roxas and Naminé are siblings!” misconception comes from rewritten Ansem reports, oh right, and the novel’s “like twins” comment. But all that tells me is that Ansem contradicts himself a lot, and I’ll be honest, I’m surprised that anyone would take something not from the games as canon. It’s like how I can love that Hermione says, “I’ll go with you,” in DH2, but I know she didn’t actually say that in the books, and therefore, it isn’t canon. The novels and manga were not written at the same time as the games, unlike 2001: A Space Odyssey or Scott Pilgrim, where you can actually accept the books and movies simultaneously as canon.

Honestly, the most important thing? I think we would know that these two are brother and sister. It wouldn’t be ambiguous. Nomura would not have left that to chance. Also: would DISNEY have allowed for that? C’mon, would they? Didn’t they cancel a show because it was getting a little too close to incest? This would definitely be a case where Disney would override any attempts to make Roxas and Naminé siblings.

tldr; they’re not, you’re right that it’s a misconception. We’d probably know from the creator’s mouth that they were intended to be siblings, and Disney wouldn’t allow for it. Also, I’m not mad at you anon (in case you were worried I was). I’m just annoyed this became a thing within the last couple years. I hope you have a really nice day!

[nadziejastar]

“You’re next, Roxas. I have to make you part of me, too. Don’t you see? This is why I was created…!” Xion flung away her cloak.

And there stood…a puppet? Is that Xion’s true form? No—this can’t be—The puppet reached out and opened a dark portal that swallowed up everything—and Roxas with it.

Well, I really, really hate the fact that a core aspect of Xion was just swept under the rug in KH3. She wasn’t JUST a replica. And she was NOT just Kairi with black hair. She was created with a specific purpose. She was a weapon wearing Keyblade Armor. Just like “No Heart” and Xemnas’ armored form.

Saïx couldn’t fathom what Xemnas’s true objective might be.

“Sora or Xion—it matters not. But we need one of them under our control. Bear that in mind.” Saïx nodded, and a serene smile came to Xemnas’s face. If that smile meant anything, it was beyond him.

We never really learned the full truth about Xion or Saïx’s berserk state, so I don’t even really know how I feel about Xion’s ability to copy it. But she was actually very similar to Saïx in many ways. Which might have been why he hated her. What Xion was going to do to Roxas may have been done to Isa. He knew her true nature and purpose, unlike Roxas and Axel. He didn’t see Kairi when he looked at her, either. So, he was probably justified in his hatred of her. Xion’s true nature was meant to harm Roxas.

“Keep an eye on Roxas.” Without answering Xigbar, Xemnas made himself disappear.

“Yeah, do your best now.” Xigbar followed after.

Xigbar was constantly making fun of Saïx, especially for his inability to “see” Xion, and his lack of a heart.

“Both Roxas and Xion are by nature influenced by Sora. Everything will be fine if we have control over either one. Whether things continue as is and Xion absorbs Roxas, or whether Roxas defeats Xion and gets the power back, our plans don’t change. Either way, Sora’s power is ours.”

“Understood, sir,” Saïx replied, and Xemnas disappeared.

“…Well, do your best. The best a kid without a heart can do, anyway,” said Xigbar, and he too disappeared.

And one of the ways he did was by telling him to “do his best”. But he specified that might be difficult for a kid with no heart. And Xigbar made this comment when Xemnas was telling him they only needed one of the two---Roxas or Xion. Saïx replied obediently, and then Xigbar made fun of him.

The members of the Organization each had their weapons, but this… Was this the Keyblade? Roxas touched the key to the treasure chest, and it opened with a burst of light.

No question. That’s the Keyblade, all right, Axel thought. What did Xemnas call him the day I brought Roxas to him…

“The Keyblade’s chosen.”

Did that mean Roxas was a Nobody who could wield the Keyblade? But Axel had never heard of a wielder becoming a Heartless. Roxas took the potion from the treasure box, and the weapon in his hand disappeared.

Whenever the ability to wield the Keyblade was mentioned, the novel would always mention the organization’s weapons and how not just anyone could wield them, either. It was mentioned the first day Axel took Roxas out for icing on the cake after he did a good job.

All the members of the Organization had their own weapons. He had never heard of anyone using someone else’s. The Keyblade returned from Xion’s hand to Roxas’s.

“Xion, I didn’t know you could use the Keyblade,” said Roxas.

“Yeah… Neither did I.” She smiled, a little bit awkward.

He had never even entertained the thought that someone besides him might be able to wield it. In his hand, the Keyblade glowed and vanished, as it always did after the fighting was done. It gave him an odd feeling. This was new to him—ending a mission with the exciting sense of discovery.

It was mentioned again when Roxas took Xion out for the icing on the cake after she did a good job.

The members of the Organization each had their own distinctive weapons that didn’t exactly cooperate if someone else tried to use them, but Keyblades were even more particular. If someone else so much as tried to pick it up, a Keyblade would simply return to its wielder’s hand. Or so Xion had heard. But when she grasped it, Roxas’s Keyblade stayed in her hands. It didn’t disappear.

And it was mentioned before Xion used Roxas’ Keyblade and it felt like she was holding his hand.

Reaching the castle, Axel collapsed with Xion still in his arms. Xemnas, who had watched over it, picked Xion up.

If that means her power won’t cut it, then we’ll make her stronger. Right now, we need either of them in my hands. I’ll make Roxas and Xion merge together, it doesn’t matter which is left. And then, in the end, I should even get Kingdom Hearts.

Xemnas’ armored form resided inside the artificial Kingdom Hearts. It could use the fallen organization members’ weapons after they “returned to the void”. This is very similar to Xion’s final form which tried to absorb Roxas to be “complete”.

“We don’t need them both. Just one. And pretending won’t change it.”

We, who? Axel wanted to ask, but he held it in, along with a bitter laugh. He wasn’t sure if that “we” meant Organization XIII or just Saïx and himself.

“Think about that.”

Oh, I am. And I’m sick of it. I’m even desperate enough to ask you if there’s another way.

The words nearly escaped him, but Saïx was already walking toward the Grey Area. The set of his shoulders told him plainly what the answer would be. Axel realized how great the rift was between how he remembered their past and what he saw now.

Why am I even here? I don’t know anymore. What am I trying to do?

The Replicas function very similarly to Xemans’ armored form. It’s never explained what Replicas actually are or how they were created.

Given the right memories, the Replica could mimic the powers of the original. Which meant that if he were implanted with somebody else’s memories, he would, hypothetically, gain other powers. Somebody’s—or maybe even a Nobody’s.

He had one particular Nobody in mind. All the members of the Organization were still influenced by the memories of their human lives.

“Isn’t it about time he was getting back?” Axel wondered. The Replica had no response. “So do you have any idea how you absorb other people’s powers?”

“…I devour their strength by defeating them. That’s what Vexen said.”

Axel and Saïx knew about the Replica Program even though Xaldin didn’t. And Xaldin was a founding member. When Vexen was killed, everyone assumed it was Saïx who ordered Axel to do it. Roxas and Xion were supposed to destroy each other, and merge together. Axel tried so hard to prevent it from happening. He ruined his friendships with Roxas, Xion, AND Saïx by choosing this route. Saïx was extremely upset with him for trying to save Xion. But he never really acted that way about Roxas.

She answered plainly. “I’m going back to where I belong. That’s all.”

“You know, I always thought that’d be for the best. But it still bugs me. Something about this is just wrong.”

“It’s the best thing for everyone,” said Xion.

Everyone? Everyone, who? For us? Or…for someone else?

“How do you know that?” Axel demanded. “Everyone thinks they’re right…”

“This is right,” Xion said firmly. “It’s better this way.”

Axel hated that argument. Nothing was better any which way. All it came down to was what you wanted to do and what you didn’t. He’d learned that lesson back when he had a heart.

“So it’s better for you to disappear?” he protested.

Axel even admitted that he thought Xion going back to Sora was the best thing from the very beginning. He made the choice that Roxas’ well-being was more important than a dangerous Replica’s. But he still couldn’t bring himself to let Xion destroy herself. He knew that the organization was going to make them fight. And he knew that by bringing Xion back, she would be forced to destroy Roxas. Roxas was forced to kill Xion with his own hands because of Axel’s choice. That’s the very thing Axel was trying to prevent.

“Worse than that. They’ll skip right to destroying you.”

He said it like he didn’t care, and something in her chest ached. Xion looked at the cold white floor. “Because I’m useless?”

“I didn’t say that.” Axel shook his head again and took her arm, pulling her to her feet. “Just go home, Xion.”

He just couldn’t bear the idea of someone being sacrificed because they weren’t useful anymore. Especially when they willingly accepted it. Saïx couldn’t understand what Axel was trying to protect.

“Because they copied my powers, the Keyblade’s power, and then they didn’t need me anymore—is that it?” Roxas spat.

He couldn’t bring himself to confirm it.

“I guess you felt the same way, huh, Axel?”

At those words, something wrenched in his chest, and he could hardly breathe. No, not me. I wasn’t thinking like that. I would never. “That’s not true. You—you’re my best friend.” The words spilled out of him.

Axel was always embarrassed about being too open with his feelings. He seemed to tell Roxas and Xion they were his best friends mainly for their sake, and to emphasize that he cared abut them. The first time he said it was to emphasize that best friends worry about each other. The other time he told Roxas that he was his best friend, it was in response to Roxas thinking Axel wanted to get rid of him because he wasn’t useful to the organization anymore. Axel had an immediate gut reaction to this and the words just spilled out of him. Best friends would never think that.

“I guess…it does,” she murmured. After so long, the weight of it was somehow strange in her grip. She thought she could feel the warmth from his hand lingering in the metal.

The day Xion got her Keybalde back she treated Roxas and Axel to ice cream for helping her. She also felt like she could feel his hand when she wielded his Keyblade. This was important enough to mention in both the novel and the manga. She wasn’t just using Roxas’ Keyblade. She was connecting with his heart.

“I’ve become a part of their heart, just as they’ve become a part of mine. And if they think of me now and then, if they don’t forget me… then my heart can’t disappear.” Sora stood ready to fight with the wooden sword. “I don’t need a weapon. My friends are my power!”

When Xion lost to Riku, she had a memory of Riku throwing the wooden toy sword to Sora. When Sora got the Keyblade back, it was because his friends were his power. They apparently went with this same idea for Roxas and Xion. Sora and Riku had to fight over who got to wield that particular Keyblade. 

“But it all ends here. There can’t be two chosen ones.” Riku smiled faintly.

“What are you talking about?”

“Let the Keyblade choose its true master!”

Roxas and Xion could share Sora’s Keybalde as long as they remained in balance with each other. But they wouldn’t be “complete” unless they merged together.

“It’s not like they’re actually joined at the hip. What’s it mean?” Xion was staring at Axel, too, as if he had all the answers.

“Well, I think you can be inseparable, even if you’re apart,” said Axel. Roxas and Xion shared a look.

“Really?”

“It’s like, if you feel really close to each other. Like best friends.

Xion gained her Keyblade back when she felt Roxas fighting beside her. And that’s a lot like the concept of best friends, too. They are inseparable even when they’re apart. 

Axel had said his hand was forced when he attacked Xion that time. Roxas remembered the flat certainty of the reply when he protested that Axel didn’t have to do that to her. 

“Didn’t I?”

But still…he refused. He wouldn’t fight her.

He tried to get away, and Xion chased him down. What could he do? She’d said she would make him part of her. Was that true? What for? What would happen if she did? Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad. Maybe he would rather let that happen than fight his friend.

I think there was a similar theme going on between Lea and Isa, right down to being forced to fight each other. Saïx’s berserk state may have even played a role in why they had to fight.

Roxas and Xion were like a pair of mirrors, reflecting each other back and forth. But was that all? Xion was just a vessel, an empty disk to hold a copy of Roxas’s “powers.”

Nobodies derived their personalities and abilities from memories of their human lives. But what exactly were those abilities? What gave rise to them? The answer that came to mind was the presence of memory itself. They were chained by their memory, and in those bonds was power. So it was probably fair to say that Roxas and Xion were bound by the same memory.

I’ve heard a lot of people criticize Axel as a manipulative liar for not telling Roxas the truth about anything. And it’s true, he did lie a lot. Of course his lying doesn’t come across sympathetically unless you realize that he didn’t want to tell the truth because he had been through the exact same thing before. How could he tell an innocent kid like Roxas that he would have to kill his best friend or else she would have to kill him?

“…Such a pain in the ass,” Axel muttered, the face of the person he should be informing of all this floating before him. It was so much fun back then. Why did it end up like this?

The heart I remember sizzles with pain. Breaking a friendship was this painful, was it? I lost my heart, so I don’t really know.

“Don’t wanna get up…”

On Day 298 ~Fracture~, Axel was thinking about how Roxas and Xion were acting like mirrors. Once again, there’s a comparison made to the organization members’ weapons. Then Axel complained about the breakdown of a friendship being painful, and he was obviously talking about Isa.

“We’re supposed to be best friends.”

Axel brushed Roxas’s hands from his collar. “This isn’t about friendship.”

Roxas raised his head. The glare in his blue eyes was sharp as a knife. Axel had never seen that from him before. His chest twinged, just a bit. He let out another sigh. “Listen, if that’s all, I gotta go.”

Roxas wilted again, and something in his expression weakened Axel’s resolve slightly.

I just did what I thought was the best thing at the time. For Roxas, for Xion, for the Organization—and for Isa. But most of all for me.

He turned away from Roxas and made himself walk away.

When Axel fought him in the KH2 manga, Axel used a similar move on Saïx that he did on Xion. And after Roxas confronted him in anger for using force, he said he was doing it for everyone, and mentioned Isa by name for the first time.

“I’m going. You know, don’t you, that you won’t stop me except by force? And even if you tried, you would fail.” Saïx went on his way. Memories informed him that he hated this kind of thing.

Before Saïx fought Roxas, Axel tried to stop him. He said that he’d only stop him by force and his memories informed him that he hated that kind of thing. 

What’s happening? Roxas thought, but he could see that even in the brief moments of his confusion, Xion was gaining still more power. And her attacks were whittling away at his strength.

If he let this go on, he would be done for.

Do I really have to fight her…?

He had no idea what to do. But he couldn’t let himself fall here. He still wanted to find out who he was—it would tell him something about Xion, too. He took a few slow breaths, gathering his resolve.

So I have no choice.

Eventually Roxas realized he had no choice but to fight Xion.

“What are you saying…? Vile traitor!” The great Claymore took shape at Saïx’s back.

Axel didn’t waste a second grabbing his chakrams. But his body was reluctant somehow.

I don’t want to disappear… But still, it wouldn’t be so bad if I did. Not here.

Axel felt like Roxas did. He wanted to disappear when he faced Saïx. In the manga, Axel chose to knock him out rather than try to kill him. And he said he still had the same holes in his defenses.

Still, he refused to hesitate. He had to force this path open.

He wanted…to find hope—the hope that Sora and Riku had.

Saïx gave him a cruel grin. “You will lose everything!”

And then the Claymore pierced Axel’s chest.

I don’t want to disappear. I can’t disappear now. I shouldn’t have to disappear at all. Why am I doing all this? Who is it for? For Roxas… For Riku, for Naminé… And for myself. There are still things I should do. Things I have to do.

Although Axel thought Saïx was knocked out, he woke up quickly and stabbed Axel in the back.

Day 151: What Makes Us Different

I ran into Xion in Twilight Town. I guess she messed up a mission pretty bad the other day, and it's been bugging her. We went up to the clock tower afterwards. She said me and her are different—which is pretty obvious if you look at us, but I don't think that's what she meant. A lot seems to be on her mind, and it's not the same as what's on mine.

He said they were different after all. No mistaking it. Whatever that meant.

Why had she avoided him like that anyway? What was she afraid of? She stared down at her fingers.

“I…I messed up a mission really bad.” Her hands were cold. “Did you hear about that guy pretending to be one of us? But I lost a fight against him. And then Saïx called me a ‘failure.’”

After Xion failed the mission with Riku, she felt like a burden. When Roxas loaned her his Keyblade, she felt the warmth of his hand. This time her hands were cold. And she said she and Roxas were “different”.

“I’ve been having the strangest dreams,” Xion added.

“Really?”

“I can never remember what they’re about. I just…wake up scared.”

She had been having terrible nightmares that were scaring her. 

“We may both be special…” Xion stood up and gazed at the sky. “But, Roxas, I don’t think we’re the same.”

“Xion…”

He took her hand in his. And—she saw something.

Red…a sky at sunset… I remember. A path stretching on and on. A crossroads… A brilliant moon. A moonlit sky…?

“Let me go.” Xion wrenched her hand away. Roxas cried her name as she left, but she didn’t even look back.

She apparently saw a scene of the Keyblade Graveyard when Roxas grabbed her hand. Since Roxas had Ventus’ heart, it makes sense that she’d be able to absorb some of his memories, too. 

That wasn’t it—no. That wasn’t what he was trying to say. It doesn’t matter that I’m scared. This is something much worse.

“I may have to fight Vanitas after all. If I do, guys…”

He was afraid to voice the rest. What if it actually came to that? What exactly would happen next? Ven let out a big breath, his gaze still lowered.

I have to tell them. I have to make this request.

Ventus was also a weapon, and that might have something to do with why he and Xion were made to fight. Xion was a weapon that eventually looked like Sora, and so was Vanitas. Xemnas was obsessed with finding the Chamber of Waking with Ventus’ body in it. I’m sure all of this was supposed to be important to the plot of the Dark Seeker Saga. But now it’s nothing but a giant plot hole.

“I’m asking you, as a friend…Just…put an end to me.”

Aqua stood back up, visibly saddened, while Terra continued to stare at him. At that very moment, an unusually strong gust blew against the three of them. And within the resulting cloud of dust were none other than Master Xehanort and Vanitas.

Ventus also wanted his friends to destroy him if he became the X-Blade. He was terrified of this more than anything.

“I mean, when I think of losing you and Xion, or my memories of you…to forget what it’s like to be with my friends…It is scary.” It was like a cold breeze had found its way under his cloak. Roxas shivered. The mere idea made him so afraid. Afraid…? Scared? What does that mean anyway?

“Fear’s an emotion. It doesn’t exist for us.”

“But…I am feeling it. I’m scared right now.” Axel and Xion ceasing to exist—the thought was even more frightening to him than his own termination. Roxas didn’t want to dwell on it at all. 

Axel looked away into the distance. “Something in you probably does remember what it’s like to be scared. So you think you’re feeling it now.”

There was a cold breeze when Axel and Roxas discussed their fears on Day 150 ~Fear~. Axel looked away in the distance. He knew what that type of fear felt like.

“Axel…are you hurt?” Naminé jumped up, and the rest of the ice cream fell to the floor.

“Don’t worry—it’s no big deal. The bigger deal is that.” He gestured with his chin toward the dark rift. “If you go through there, it’ll take you straight to Kairi. Hurry.”

“Got it. Let’s go, Naminé.” Riku started toward the rift, looking back at her.

“But Axel is…” Naminé’s anxious gaze didn’t stray from him.

“Just gimme your ice cream and get out of here.” Axel took it out of her hand, grinning at her as she stood there. “Get going, will you? Don’t you want to meet Kairi?”

After Saïx dealt Axel a fatal blow, and said they were “different”, Axel escaped.

Naminé nodded weakly. A tear slid down her cheek. “What about you?”

“I’ve gotta make sure Sora and his sidekicks get there.”

She reached for Axel’s hand, the one that held the ice cream, and clasped it in her own. His hand was too cold.

“Thank you, Axel…” She smiled softly at him. “See you.”

He nodded. “See ya, Naminé.”

And when Axel returned to the hideout, Naminé was worried about him. She said his hand felt too cold. They also said “See ya”. Lea and Isa say this to each other in KH3. I think the scene with Naminé was similar to something that happened between Lea and Isa in the past. Axel also said “See ya” when he said goodbye to Roxas and cried for the first time. There was SO much more to their backstory than we ever will learn.

Vanitas burst out laughing. “The χ-Blade is made of your heart, too, idiot. If you destroy it, your heart will vanish forever.”

“Whatever it takes. Anything to save Terra and Aqua.” As long as his two best friends were safe, Ven wouldn’t mind being lost.

“Hmph. It’s always about your friends, isn’t it?” Vanitas spat with annoyance.

“At least I have some! I’ve become a part of their hearts, just as they’ve become a part of mine. My friends are my power…and I’m theirs!” Ven cried with conviction, then leaped. He felt them—Terra’s and Aqua’s hearts. And the hearts of the many friends he had made on other worlds, too.

I’ve become strong, but that strength isn’t mine alone. It belongs to everyone. That’s why he won’t beat me.

The entire time Xion was trying to kill Roxas, she was desperately hoping Roxas would destroy her. Nomura said that Xion was the reason the Roxas could wield two Keyblades, and also the reason Roxas felt compelled to toss Oblivion to Riku during their fight. 

When Kairi’s encouraging murmur reached Sora’s ears, he realized something and asked her, “Say, Kairi… Where’d you get that Keyblade?”

“Huh…?” She looked down at the weapon in her hand, then up at Riku.

But Riku gave a tiny shake of his head as if he didn’t quite know, either.

It was supposed to be a means of “passing away” memories. And Riku was the one who summoned Kairi’s Keyblade for her. Memories are tied to abilities. Kairi’s ability to wield the Keyblade was probably the result of her experiences as Xion in 358/2 Days. Her heart grew exponentially as a result.

“Xion is marching right into the arms of destiny but to destiny’s own time,” Xemnas told him. “All we must do is watch with caution and patience.”

And Kairi’s Keybalde was called “Destiny’s Embrace”. She ran right into its arms. Everything about Xion and her true nature was pretty much tossed in the trash for KH3. She was SOOO much more important to the plot than just being a black-haired Kairi.

Saïx: Do you know what happens to those who lose their true purpose Inevitably, they destroy themselves.

Deep down, Saïx probably felt the same way as Xion did. Isa wanted to be destroyed rather than be used as a weapon. I have no idea when Saïx got his weapon or what the backstory was behind it. It seemed to be important, though. Strangely enough, there are two Claymores that look just like Saïx’s right next to Xemnas’ throne. That Claymore governs his Berserk state.