#marluxia x vexen

[heartlessfujoshi]

petals on the wind - a kingdom hearts one shot

Title: Petals on the Wind Fandom: Kingdom Hearts Pairing: Marluxia x Vexen Rating: Mature (Mild NSFW) Word Count: ~1,730

Summary: Marluxia brings Vexen into his plan for taking over the Organization. 

A/N: Written for a dear friend - @lavendartwine who helped me out during a very rough time for me recently. :) Please enjoy!

---

The halls of Castle Oblivion were quiet. Marluxia walked along each floor, checking to make sure things were in place, knowing that the Keyblade wielder would be joining them soon enough. He was on the path heading directly towards the castle, and would be arriving within the next few days. Returning to the top of the castle, he saw the one that was going to put the Keyblade wielder through his trials, the sound of her colored pencils etching away on the piece of paper the only audible noise in the room. 

“I trust you will be well enough if I leave for a few hours.” He drawled, crossing his arms across his chest, standing with purpose as his eyes landed on her petite form. “You won’t do anything reckless, will you?”

“What would I do?” Naminé, the Nobody of the girl the Keyblade wielder cared about, didn’t bother to look up from her drawing. “If you’re so worried I might do something, why not stay?” 

Marluxia sighed. “Little girl, it doesn’t work that way.” He snapped his fingers. “Ah.” He used a portal to return to The World That Never Was, and found who he was looking for in the Grey Area. “You.” He pointed to the Organization member that he knew he could trust. 

“Me?” Axel, the Organization’s wonder boy, looked behind him, and then back to where Marluxia was standing. Marluxia didn’t notice that Saïx was now interested in their conversation, turning towards them to see what was going on. “What’d I do??” 

“I need you to come with me. Now.” Marluxia didn’t state why, only opened another portal that would take them back to Castle Oblivion. 

“Why me?” The redhead grumbled, but got up off the couch he was sitting on, and made his way towards the obsidian oval. Marluxia didn’t see the look he exchanged with Saïx, who returned to looking out the window as soon as Axel was out of sight. “Wait, what am I doing here?” Axel asked, as they both exited the portal together, returning to the room where Naminé was still seated. 

Marluxia pointed towards the Nobody sitting at the table. “I don’t trust her to be alone. You are to watch her for a few hours.” 

“What if I don’t want to?” Axel glared at him. “I’m not a babysitter, Marluxia.” 

“I never said you were.” 

“I’m not a baby.” Naminé spoke to the both of them, as her pencil continued to scratch against the paper. 

Axel looked at Marluxia, then sighed. “Fine. When will you be back?” The redhead went over to the other side of the room and sat down. 

“When I return.” He said nothing else, producing a portal with the flick of his wrist, and stepped back into it. 

He was back in the Castle That Never Was, far from the Grey Area. He looked around, as if the walls had eyes, and began to make the trek down to the part of the castle that most of the Organization didn’t bother to visit. No, there was no need to visit down here, as there were only remnants of experiments - ghosts. Failed trials that never made it to the final stage. Marluxia hated coming down here, except for one reason, and one reason alone. 

The light was on in the lab, Marluxia pushing the swinging door in to join the person seated at the table. It was much different from the table that Naminé had been working on. This table was sterile. Bitter. Acrid. There was a Heartless locked in a cage off to the side, and the person he was looking for was standing next to it, taking notes. 

“You’re late.” The person remarked, as Marluxia approached them. “You know I don’t tolerate tardiness.” 

“I know.” He dropped his chin down onto the firm shoulder, one arm slipping around their waist as he looked down at the clipboard. “More experiments?” 

“Too many.” An annoyed sigh left their mouth, the pen moving swiftly across the clipboard. Marluxia could barely read their writing, but it was fine. This wasn’t his domain. 

It was Vexen’s. 

Vexen pushed the pen into the clipboard, and set it down before leaning back against Marluxia’s chest. “What took you so long?” 

“You know that the Superior wants this ambush to go off flawlessly.” Marluxia’s lips gently grazed against Vexen’s chin, enjoying how the usually stoic man was slowly becoming putty in his arms. He smirked, securing his arm a little more tightly around Vexen’s torso, pressing his body up against his in a way that he knew the Nobody would be able to feel him. “I was busy making sure that the Castle was in order.” 

“Sounds positively boring.” Vexen moaned softly as Marluxia’s lips found his sensitive spot, leaving a playful bite beneath his ear. “I thought you would be here hours ago.” 

“As did I.” 

He hugged him close, letting his presence take away any sort of stress the academic could release. Marluxia still marveled at how Vexen became a different person around him. It was like night and day. The Chilly Academic to the rest of the Organization, but to him, he was a burning hot entity that only cared about one thing. Reaching up, he turned Vexen’s head towards his, and pressed a promising kiss to his lips, enjoying the soft moan that was pushed into his mouth by the blond. He hugged him close, portaling the two of them back to his own room within the Castle That Never Was. 

The room was dark, all lights turned off, as they laid beneath the covers on his bed, Vexen’s naked body pressed against his side, as they both recovered from their romantic tryst. The first time they’d had sex together, Vexen had gone on and on about how it was because they wished to be whole still, and while it was more of an experiment than an actual physical need, it soon quickly became a physical need as Marluxia showed him how good sex could be. And now, they were pros at it, and rightly so. 

Marluxia turned his head and looked at Vexen, who had a peaceful smile on his face, his eyes closed as he rested against Marluxia’s body. “You’re coming to Castle Oblivion, aren’t you?”

“I am.” Vexen nodded, rubbing his cheek against his shoulder, Marluxia smiling as his hand found its way into Vexen’s long blond hair. “The Superior wants me to analyze the keyblade wielder. I’m to compare his movements to that of our own Number XIII.” 

“Roxas.” Marluxia muttered. “The zombie.” 

“Yes, well, we’re working on that.” Vexen rolled over, now laying directly on top of him. Marluxia smiled, as he felt him slide down to be closer to where his hips were, and wasn’t at all surprised when he began to slowly grind himself against the lower half of his body. “It should be a fun experiment, to say the least.” 

“What if we did away with the Superior?” He held onto Vexen’s hips, slowly sinking himself back into the scientist’s body, smiling as Vexen’s mouth dropped down with the hit of pleasure now penetrating his body. “We could do it.” 

“W-We could.” Vexen moaned, his head now dropped forward as he rode Marluxia’s girth. “He would never know.” 

“He wouldn’t.” Marluxia agreed, his hands now slipping down to Vexen’s ass, spreading his cheeks so that he could push himself deeper into his body. “We could be the ones in charge.” 

Nails bit down onto his chest as Vexen began to rock himself faster. He dropped one hand, and brought it to Vexen’s cock, stroking him with slow, meaningful strokes as he felt his cock drip onto his stomach. “We should be the ones in charge.” Vexen groaned, thrusting himself against Marluxia’s hand. “We’ll do it.” 

“We will.” He reached up with his other hand, and pulled Vexen down to him, crushing his lips hard against his as he proceeded to pound hard into his ass. It was over within minutes, the warmth of Vexen’s release spilling over both his hand and onto his stomach, while his own release shot deep inside of the blond’s body, savoring the rich moans that Vexen made as he brought him to the top of the world. 

It took a few minutes for them to regain their senses. Vexen sat up, holding the sheet to his chest as he looked down at him. “You’re serious, aren’t you?” 

“I am.” Marluxia nodded. “Larxene is in agreement, as is Zexion.” 

“Everyone who is going to Castle Oblivion.” Vexen commented. “Am I the last to know?” 

“Only because I thought you wouldn’t agree.” 

“You would make the play without me by your side?” The pained expression that crossed Vexen’s face made Marluxia regret his neglect to bring him in sooner. “That hurts, Marluxia.” 

He sat up, and brought his lips to Vexen’s, trying his best to kiss away the pain. “I was a fool. Forgive me?” 

“I suppose I must.” Vexen pretended to pout, which Marluxia took as a good sign as he wrapped his arms around him, and pulled him back down to the bed, the scientist now laughing. “Stop!” 

“I refuse.” Marluxia kissed his neck, then hugged him close. “Things are going to change, Vexen. We’ll fix this mess.” 

“We will.” Vexen said. 

The scientist left his room by way of a portal a few hours later, and Marluxia returned to Castle Oblivion after getting himself cleaned up. Axel was still sitting in his chair, and Naminé was asleep at the table. He approached the redhead, and tapped his shoulder.  “It wasn’t me!” Axel mumbled, rubbing his eyes as a yawn left his mouth. “Marluxia?” 

“Yes.” He rolled his eyes. “You fell asleep, you idiot.” 

“She’s asleep too!” He pointed at Naminé. “What the hell was I supposed to do?” 

“Your job.” Marluxia opened a portal, and helped Axel get into it. “See you.” 

“Bye, asshole.” Axel flipped him off, disappearing into the Corridor of Darkness. 

Marluxia watched Naminé sleep, and began to plot. The Superior’s time was going to come to an end, and he was going to be the one to make it happen. Knowing that Vexen was in made the job seem easier. He would handle the approaching keyblade wielder, and then would return to the Castle That Never Was, and overthrow Xemnas. 

---

Cross-posted to AO3

[warriors-hearts]

Marvex time‼️🗣

Yeah I know its not 11/04 but idc, too impatient to wait a week to post theses two lovebirds

[mythicalartistx]

Who's your favorite Organization member?

With the whole KH Twitter meme let's see who's everyone's favorite 😁

I Xemnas

II Xigbar

III Xaldin

IV Vexen

V Lexaeus

VI Zexion

VII Saïx

VIII Axel

IX Demyx

X Luxord

XI Marluxia

XII Larxene

XIII Roxas

XIV Xion

[wolfaartmation]

Little icon animation I did of my oc! (With the old version from june 2023)

He's my Kingdom Hearts oc for my Warrior Cats AU, his name is Aisu/Snowberry he's a fanchild of Marluxia and Vexen (yes I ship them fight me)

He's a silly medecine cat apprentice that is living a forbidden romance, not because he's a med apprentice, but because he's in love with a heartless.

More on his Toyhouse page:

[firestorm09890]

rambling about the org xiii orchestra art

as someone in an orchestra for real

(from here)

I can’t tell what instrument Larxene has. I thought it was castanets and someone else suggested egg shakers but both are not traditional orchestra instruments so it’s really just weird

neat that both Xaldin and Lexaeus are playing the BIG percussion instruments, and both Axel and Saix are playing woodwinds (harp is a stringed instrument too so i make no comment on the strings)

There’s no [x]ylophone pun unfortunately because those huge tubes indicate that’s actually a marimba both Xion and Roxas are playing. There is however a pun in the fact that it’s a KEYboard instrument. also they’re just adorable

actually I just remembered that instrument names aren’t common knowledge, here they are:

Xemnas is the conductor/orchestra director; Xigbar on saxophone, Luxord on trumpet, and Marluxia on trombone (that’s our brass); Axel on flute and Saix on.... it’s hard to see but I think that’s an oboe (woodwinds); Xaldin on timpani, Lexaeus on bass drum, Larxene on... something??, and Roxas & Xion on marimba (percussion); and then Vexen on harp, Zexion on violin, and Demyx on double bass (strings)

Marluxia why are you holding a flower I know you have an aesthetic but you need both hands to play a trombone

There are 3 main instrument sections (kinda) that are the “obnoxious know-it-all” instruments, stereotyped as generally having a superiority complex over the other sections because they’re soooo important look at meeee carrying the melody: the trumpet for band, the 1st violin for orchestra, and the soprano for voice (and the secret 4th, the flute for woodwinds). With that said, of course Zexion would play violin

And following both that and his Mystery Gear in 358/2 Days, it would have made more sense thematically for Xigbar to be playing the trumpet. however the saxophone is the funny meme instrument so it still works

There is NO WAY Demyx is a double bass player. It’s the only instrument besides percussion that you have to stand up for (though some orchestras do have the bassists sit on stools), and it’s much more work to actually PLAY than the other string instruments, by virtue of being much bigger. they tend to play less than most other stringed instruments, sure, but if you want to be sitting around not doing much you’re best off picking a different instrument entirely, especially since string sections tend to require more unanimity in playing than the brass/woodwinds/percussion since there’s more people playing each part

harps are rare to include in compositions. they’re very nice and melodious though. idk what this says about Vexen

generally there’s not enough percussion players to cover every single instrument which means that Larxene is definitely running around to cover all the small parts (whatever she’s holding, it’s definitely percussion)... actually with Xaldin Lexaeus Roxas and Xion in percussion as well she might not have to but she is the speedy one so

--

I hope what Saix is holding is an oboe and not a clarinet because if it’s an oboe we get some more symbolism, as well as some very nice... dynamic between his instrument and Zexion’s :)

you see, the oboe is the instrument that tunes the entire rest of the orchestra. whatever the oboe’s A sounds like will be the A the ensemble matches. one could say it’s the most important instrument

HOWEVER, the first chair of 1st violin is nominally the most important instrument- that’s the “concertmaster”, and they get to walk on-stage after everyone else (but before the conductor, obviously). they’re also important for real- based on the repertoire they’re basically guaranteed to have at least one solo. they sit at the very front, right next to the conductor. in my orchestra the concertmaster has a little biography in the program along with the conductor’s

there’s actually multiple rounds of tuning- the first couple it’s the oboe doing their thing and the other non-string instruments matching, and then the last round the concermaster matches the oboe, and then the string instruments match the concertmaster.

and that’s all so very interesting, isn’t it

and finally

Xemnas is 100% a garbage conductor. To the audience he looks very cool, doing all his sweeping motions, but it’s impossible to follow as an orchestra member, so you’re really on your own because the conductor is not conducting properly and not giving helpful cues

[ultraericthered]

Rating KH Character Vocal Performances (English Dub)

(This list only uses KH original characters, Final Fantasy guest stars, and the Disney characters who are main characters involved in the KH original storyline)

GOD TIER: Billy Zane as Ansem/Terra-Xehanort (KH1)

Derek Stephen Prince as Vexen/Even (All Appearances)

Christopher Lee as DiZ/Ansem the Wise (KH2 and Days)

Paul St. Peter as Xemnas (All Appearances)

Mark Hamill as Master Eraqus (BBS and KH3)

Leonard Nimoy as Master Xehanort (BBS and 3D)

Christopher Lloyd as Master Xehanort (KH3 DLC & MoM)

Kathryn Beaumont as Kairi’s Grandmother (BBS)

Susanne Blakeslee as Maleficent (All Appearances)

Jim Cummings as Pete (All Appearances)

Wayne Alwine as King Mickey (KH1 and KH2)

TOP TIER: Hayley Joel Osment as Sora (KH1, Re:CoM, KH2 and KH3)

Hayden Panettiere as Kairi (KH1, KH2, and BBS)

David Gallaghar as Riku (KH1, Re:CoM, KH2, BBS, 3D, and MoM)

Richard Epcar as Ansem/Terra-Xehanort (3D, 0.2 BBS, and KH3)

Tony Anselmo as Donald Duck (All Appearances)

Bill Farmer as Goofy (All Appearances)

Bret Iwan as King Mickey (BBS)

Eddie Caroll as Jiminy Cricket (KH1, Re:CoM, and KH2)

Joe Ochman as Jiminy Cricket (Re:Coded and KH3)

Jesse McCartney as Roxas (All Appearances)

Meaghan Martin as Namine (Re:CoM and Days)

Brittany Snow as Namine (KH2)

David Boreanaz as Leon (KH1)

Doug Erholtz as Leon (KH3 DLC)

Christy Carlson Romano as Yuffie (KH1)

Mae Whitman as Yuffie (KH2)

Chris Edgerly as Cid (KH3 DLC)

Steve Burton as Cloud (KH1 and Re:Coded)

Quinton Flynn as Axel (Re:CoM, KH2, and Days)

Shanelle Grey as Larxene (Re:CoM and KH3)

Dave Boat as Lexaeus/Aeleus (Re:CoM and BBS)

Corey Burton as DiZ/Ansem the Wise (Re:CoM)

Alyson Stoner as Xion (Days and KH3)

Kirk Thornton as Saix (All Appearances)

James Patrick Stuart as Braig/Xigbar/Luxu (All Appearances)

Ryan O’Donohue as Demyx (All Appearances)

Robin Atkin-Downes as Luxord (All Appearances)

Will Friedle as Seifer (KH2)

Justin Crowden as Hayner (KH2)

Sean Marquette as Pence (KH2)

Jessica DiCicco as Olette (KH2)

Corey Burton as Yen Sid (KH2, BBS, and KH3)

Jeff Bennett as Merlin (All Appearances)

Rachel Leigh Cook as Tifa (KH2)

Matt McKenzie as Auron (KH2)

Hedy Burress as Yuna (KH2)

Tara Strong as Rikku (KH2)

Gwendoline Yeo as Paine (KH2)

Luke Marinquez as Little Sora (BBS)

Ariel Winter as Little Kairi (BBS)

Kirk Thornton as Isa (BBS)

Quinton Flynn as Lea (BBS)

Jason Dohring as Terra (0.2 BBS and KH3)

Jesse McCartney as Ventus (BBS and KH3)

Hayley Joel Osment as Vanitas (BBS and KH3)

Ben Diskin as Young Xehanort (Re:Coded, 3D, and KH3)

Lara Jill Miller as Chirithy (X Backcover, KH3, and MoM)

Ray Chase as the Master of Masters (X Backcover)

MID TIER:

Alyson Stoner as Kairi (Re:CoM)

Richard Epcar as Ansem/Terra-Xehanort (Re:CoM and BBS)

Shaun Flemming as Tidus (KH1)

Molly Keck as Selphie (KH1 and KH2)

Doug Erholtz as Leon (KH2)

Mae Whitman as Yuffie (KH3 DLC)

Andrea Bowen as Aerith (KH3 DLC)

Keith Ferguson as Marluxia (Re:CoM and KH3)

David Dayan Fisher as Xaldin/Dilan (KH2/FM and BBS)

Meaghan Martin as Namine (BBS, Re:Coded, KH2 FM, and KH3)

Hayden Panettiere as Xion (3D)

Brandon Adams as Rai (KH2)

Jillian Bowen as Fuu (KH2)

Melissa Disney as Vivi (KH2)

Crispin Freeman as Setzer (KH2)

Corey Burton as Yen Sid (Re:Coded, 3D, 0.2 BBS, and MoM)

Willa Holland as Aqua (BBS, 3D, and 0.2 BBS)

Rick Gomez as Zack (BBS)

Ty Panitz as Little Riku (BBS)

David Gallaghar as Young Xehanort (BBS)

Matthew Mercer as Ira (X Backcover and KH3)

Travis Willingham as Aced (X Backcover and KH3)

Kevin Quinn as Gula (X Backcover and KH3)

Karissa Lee Staples as Invi (X Backcover and KH3)

Isabela Moner as Ava (X Backcover)

Matthew Mittleman as Luxu (X Backcover)

Michael Johnson as Ephemer (X Backcover and KH3)

Madison Davenport as Nameless Star (KH3 and MoM)

Vince Corazza as Ienzo (3D, KH3, and MoM)

Zachary Gordon as Hayner (KH3)

Tristan Chase as Pence (KH3)

Ashley Boettcher as Olette (KH3)

Drake Bell as Young Eraqus (KH3)

Dylan Sprouse as Yozora (KH3 DLC)

LOW TIER: Hayley Joel Osment as Sora (Re:Coded, 3D, and 0.2 BBS)

Alyson Stoner as Kairi (Days, 0.2 BBS, KH3, and MoM)

David Gallaghar as Riku (Days, Re:Coded, and KH3)

Richard Epcar as Ansem/Terra-Xehanort (KH2)

Wayne Alwine as King Mickey (Re:CoM)

Phil Snyder as Jiminy Cricket (Re:Coded and 3D)

Dee Bradley Baker as Wakka (KH1)

Mandy Moore as Aerith (KH1)

Steve Burton as Cloud (KH2)

George Newbern as Sephiroth (KH2)

Chris Edgerly as Cid (KH2)

Vince Corrazza as Zexion (Re:CoM, KH2 FM, and Days)

Corey Burton as Ansem the Wise (3D and KH3)

Quinton Flynn as Axel/Lea (Days Movie, 3D, and KH3)

Jason Dohring as Terra (BBS)

Willa Holland as Anti-Aqua (KH3)

Rutger Hauer as Master Xehanort (KH3)

Bret Iwan as King Mickey (all post-BBS appearances)

SHIT TIER: Lance Bass as Sephiroth (KH1)

Mena Suvari as Aerith (KH2)

Willa Holland as Aqua (KH3)

Corey Burton as DiZ/Ansem the Wise (BBS, Days Movie, and MoM)

[themattress]

The story of Xehanort in the Kingdom Hearts series.

Convoluted and stupidly written, but honestly not that terrible when taken on its own.

....But it's not on its own, is it?

Let's go red line by red line, shall we?

1 - From Xehanort's Report in BBS: Upon reflection, my life underwent the most considerable sea-change when I arrived at that place. Yes, it began when I found a Master, and another I would later call my brother—when I found a new home. And then later, to dispel any notion that he is talking about Scala ad Caelum, this is what he writes when mentioning bringing Ventus to the Land of Departure: I had not visited this second home of mine for some time, and discovered Eraqus had already found two pupils of his own. BBS established that the Land of Departure, not Scala ad Caelum, is where he received his training and met Eraqus.

2 - Let's look at Xehanort's Report again: I believe a balance of light and darkness is what sustains our World, but too much of the darkness has been stamped out, disrupting that balance. Someone must tear down this tyranny of light and reorganize the World around the darkness which then creeps back in. That's literally the opposite of saying an endless pollution of darkness is a problem. It's saying that an endless flow of darkness is good!

3 - First off, it's never explained how in blazes Young Xehanort can extract hearts when he's just a disembodied heart himself. More importantly, note that Xemnas, Xigbar, Saix, Luxord, Marluxia and Larxene are on that list, plus as we later learn Vexen and Demyx were brought in as reserves. If Nomura hadn't decided to pander and bring Xion back, Xaldin would have been there too! And yet in DDD, Xemnas says "most of the original members we had chosen for the Organization were inadequate" for the "true" Organization XIII!

4 - Why is Master Xehanort the one recompleted when it was Terra-Xehanort who actually split into a Heartless and a Nobody? Master Xehanort's original body was not in any way a part of Xemnas, so why does he get it back after Xemnas' death?

5 - How and why is the Master of Masters even here? Why does he need to give Xehanort his black coat when he should have already gotten it for his time traveling venture earlier? Why does Xehanort need to tour the worlds and come to this conclusion when he basically already did in Dark Road? How many excuses to become evil does this asshole need?

6 - See Point 1 again.

7 - What Xehanort spoke and wrote about, and was even shown attempting to do in BBS, was to forge the X-Blade to destroy the worlds' barriers and start another Keyblade War among the masses of the universe so that the darkness in their hearts engulfs the universe and then from there he can create a new one. So why, by KH3, is his plan suddenly to have a small-scale Keyblade War to forge the X-Blade and then just use the X-Blade's power to engulf the universe in darkness all by himself?

8 - Except that it's later said that Vanitas did NOT actually come from the darkness of Ven's heart and was a dark entity hiding inside his heart. Dark Road then shows that Xehanort became aware of this fact! So why even still call him Vanitas, and why do Xehanort and Vanitas himself still act as though he's a part of Ven?

9 - Calling himself Ansem might have made sense had he never recovered his original memories and went back to pursuing his original goal. But as this then goes on to say, he did! So why even pretend to be Ansem at all? What does he gain by that?

10 - So then why did he specifically write in a report that he was discarding his body in order to communicate with the Heartless and fully utilize the powers of darkness? Why did he say he'd "come to see the door" to Destiny Islands' heart if he was actually just on Destiny Islands the whole time? Why did he have such a dismissive attitude toward Sora as though he were insignificant if he knew he was important enough to mark with a Recusant's Sigil? And if his goal was the Seven Princesses themselves, why did he tell Kairi "The Keyhole is now complete. You have served your purpose, but now it's over"? And yeah, why enter the Final Keyhole at all? Again, whatever he did as Ansem's apprentice shouldn't really matter anymore if he fully remembers that he's Master Xehanort!

11 - For that matter, how did he not know that Kingdom Hearts was light!? It being light is a fundamental part of both the Keyblade War legend and Master Xehanort's grand objective!

12 - All right, let's go back to Xehanort's report in BBS: It is only forged when two hearts of equal power intersect—one heart of pure darkness, one heart of pure light. Why write this as an absolute fact if it's not, in fact, the proper way to forge the X-Blade and you're supposed to have 7 hearts of light and 13 hearts of darkness?

13 - Xemnas himself writes in a secret report in Days: We embarked upon the Replica Program to ensure our new power stays ours. So the Replica Program was only started after Roxas was found as a means to copy the power of the Keyblade, not to have extra vessels for Xehanort. There is no reason for Xemnas to lie about that in his own private writing.

14 - See Point 10 again.

15 - See Point 4 again.

16 - See Point 7 again.

17 - So after all of this, depicting a villain so omnipotent that he transcended space and time, built flawless contingencies for failure, predicted his enemies' every move, amassed a veritable army of dark pawns and followers including multiple versions of himself, and was perceptive enough to notice things like Vanitas not being what he presented himself to be....you're really saying someone like that never noticed that Xigbar was playing an angle far beyond just obtaining his Keyblade? Or that the weird guy he met that one time as a teenager might be more than he let on and manipulating him for something that differed from his own objectives? Or, heck, that such a person who went through such lengths would just easily give up because the best friend he murdered and thought nothing of it told him to!?

Worst-written video game villain EVER. It's hilarious that this series' blind stans will say "oh, the story isn't really that confusing, you just need to really pay attention to all the games" when this one character proves that paying attention to all the games is part of what makes the story so confusing due to all the damn contradictions, inconsistencies and retcons!

[thebestworstidea]

Advent art 7 of 24

@gnomeicecream

Art prompt: Impasto, visible light, pairing of your choice

Pairing Vexen X Marluxia Kingdom Hearts

I never realised how hard it would be to purposely leave texture. It probably would have worked better if I had bigger tubes of acrylic. But I like how it turned out mostly

Why did I complicate it by riffing on The Kiss ? Answer: the robes always looked like texture and I figured I could add some there.

[sailforvalinor]

Val! I've been playing KHD and just finished up the manga connected to it, and goodness I have thoughts. Conflicting thoughts, mostly about Roxas. So, it got me wondering what your thoughts are on Roxas, nobodies in general, and KH3. The whole storyline feels messy to me, but that probably makes it all the more compelling to me. Why do I do this to myself? Anyway, as you know I love hearing your thoughts on stuff, so I thought I'd ask. I know you're either have already started school or about to, so no pressure with answering. Take your time. I hope you're adjusting okay to your new surroundings and that you're having a lot of fun too. :)

Waugh that's so exciting! I've read the Chain of Memories novelization, but otherwise I've not actually had the chance to read any of the mangas--I'll have to keep an eye out.

As for thoughts on Nobodies, yeah, I agree the storyline does feel messy at times, yet still so so compelling! I think the guiltiest party for me in that respect is how it's revealed in KH3 that Nobodies are capable of regrowing hearts. Because that seems to contradict everything we know about Nobodies from previous games, but if you actually go back and look at those games, there are actually a lot of hints about this--Axel caring about Roxas and Xion at all, "Roxas, are you sure you don't have a heart?", Saix being capable of feeling betrayed by Axel, Vexen displaying panic and annoyance, Namine's entire character arc, Xigbar/Luxu even being capable of playing his long game at all. Some members are more emotionless than others (Xaldin and Marluxia, I'm looking at you), but why would you even want a heart if you didn't feel any emotions? Desires are driven by emotions--one can't really exist without the other.

The terrifying thing about this is that the Organization members seem to rationalize this away (Axel especially) by saying that they are remembering what it used to be like to feel emotions and trying to project that onto their present moment, an idea so specific and bizarre that I can only think it was perpetuated by Xemnas to keep them from figuring out the truth. But of course it's not true--Namine has no memories, how could she feel loneliness?

As for ideas about Roxas, by the end of 358/2 Days he is so attached to Xion, so so angry, so human, that I almost wonder if he hadn't completely grown his own heart by then. He still had to go back to Sora so he could be recompleted, but that explains why he haunts both Sora and the narrative so much, especially in DDD.

I think the same goes for Xion, but perhaps even more so, when you consider that she was never actually a Nobody--just a replica using Sora's memories of Kairi as a blueprint. I suppose that since we know she was created without a heart, she is essentially a Nobody, but I have to imagine that having Sora's memories pouring into her head all the time gave her a bit of a boost. (Wait, does this mean Replica Riku didn't have a heart either? Somehow I've never thought about that.)

I think Axel was also pretty dang close, he was just in severe denial about it, especially now that we know he was burying his grief and despair over being unable to find Subject X after sacrificing his humanity to find her. Roxas and Xion left him just like she did, and burying those emotions and having that ready and waiting excuse that you're not actually feeling them is a lot less painful than having to confront them.

358/2 Days is such a fascinating tragedy, and watching it bleed its way into DDD and KH3 because it's begging to be resolved is just absolutely beautiful. I'll admit the resolution in KH3 seemed a little quick (perhaps because the BBS storyline was also resolving in a similar fashion), but it was great all the same (especially when Sora confronts Xion, my gosh, the fact that he knows her when no one else does). And Hearts as One playing in the next battle, mixing both Roxas and Xion's theme into a joyful and glorious battle theme, makes me absolutely insane.

I know Nomura wants to move on to other things in the next game, but I really hope he doesn't drop these characters. But on the other hand, maybe he should leave them alone? They need to be happy for once.

(Also I think about the scene where Axel looks at Kairi and sees Xion for a split second daily. It *might* be my favorite scene in the entire game.)

[imagine-organization-xiii]

What "coffee table books" would they have/ what would they read at a doctor's office?

Xemnas - Bob Willoughby: A Cinematic Life - This comprehensive large-format monograph on renowned photographer Bob Willoughby's extraordinary, cinematic life is a tribute to his remarkable career. From the 1950s through the 1970s, Willoughby photographed many of the most significant stars of the era in film and jazz. 

Xigbar - Terry O'Neill: The A-Z of Rock 'N' Roll - A chronicle of rock 'n' roll history as seen through the lens of master photographer Terry O'Neill.

Xaldin - VHS: Absurd, Odd, and Ridiculous Relics from the Videotape Era - Comedy writers Joe Pickett and Nick Prueher have spent the last 20 years collecting the best odd and unintentionally hilarious videotapes ever produced. Since 2004, they've resurrected them for sold-out audiences across the country as part of their touring show, the Found Footage Festival. Now, for the very first time, they've collected the greatest VHS covers into one handsome compendium -- along with their priceless snarky commentary throughout.

Vexen - Evolution: A Visual Record - Stunning images to reawaken us to the scientific process that drives the amazing diversity of life on earth.

Lexaeus - The Art of the Cheese Plate: Pairings, Recipes, Style, Attitude - A perfect gift for any host or cheese lover, The Art of the Cheese Plate offers clear directions and expert tips for perfect cheese plates and creative condiments.

Zexion - The Word Made Flesh: Literary Tattoos From Bookworms World Wide - A beautifully packaged full-color collection of literary tattoos and short personal essays, The Word Made Flesh is an intimate but anonymous confessional book, in the vein of thought-provoking anthologies like PostSecret and Not Quite What I Was Planning.

Saix - United States Coinage: A Study By Type - A definitive work on American history as illustrated by United States coinage.

Axel - Stuck Up!: 100 Objects Inserted and Ingested in Places They Shouldn’t Be - A very funny collection of 100 X-ray images showing foreign objects ingested or inserted into human bodies, accidentally or on purpose.

Demyx - Underwater Dogs - The exuberant, exhilarating photographs of dogs underwater that have become a sensation.

Luxord - Milk Eggs Vodka: Grocery Lists Lost and Found - Milk, Eggs, Vodka is a celebration of the humble grocery list. Almost anyone will find themselves engrossed in this voyeuristic look into everyday life—less than healthy lists, lists for parties, lists with personal and often odd annotations on them...and the list of lists goes on. Besides over 150 found lists, the book also includes short essays on collecting, shopping, eating, and list making. 

Marluxia - Queer Maximalism - Machine Dazzle is the much-in-demand designer and artist behind popular cabaret, drag, and performance stars such as Taylor Mac and transgender icon Mx. Justin Vivian Bond. For the first time, his over-the-top stage creations, made for himself and others, are collected here alongside stage environments, ephemera, and photos from his career.

Larxene - Women Before 10 AM - Following up on her highly praised bestseller Men Before 10 a.m., celebrity photographer Veronique Vial completes her wonderfully intimate and revealing portrait of the sexes with Women Before 10 a.m., a captivating collection of your favorite fashion, cinematic, and pop culture beauties, starlets, and models before ten o'clock in the morning.

Roxas - The Great American Cereal Book: How Breakfast Got Its Crunch - The Great American Cereal Book is the definitive compendium of breakfast cereal history and lore, celebrating the most recognizable brands and packaging, such as Cheerios, Cocoa Puffs, Frosted Flakes, Grape-Nuts, and Trix.

Xion - Wild Things Are Happening: The Art of Maurice Sendak - The most comprehensive survey of the work of Maurice Sendak, the most celebrated picture book artist of all time―with previously unpublished archival materials.

[magpiejay1234]

Okay, so Day 9 with Marluxia is where significant lore inaccuracies start.

First of all, we start with Purebloods not releasing Hearts, and Emblem Heartless releasing Hearts, which in DDD becomes the inaccurate retcon of Purebloods not having Hearts, when in fact, they are literally Hearts. Just like how Nobodies are actually Bodies, Dream Eaters are actually Dream Constructs, Unversed are actually aware of their existences, and are based on emotions that are expressed, or "versed".

In the original canon, the reason Purebloods did not release hearts was because they were too corrupted by darkness, as they were fully submerged into the Darkness hivemind, whereas Emblem Heartless, being artificial creations, retained some sense of individuality. Once a Pureblood was defeated, it was assumed given their darkness level they would re-manifest until purification, or purify over a longer time, that we as the player character do not see.

Second is the idea they actually need a Keyblade to collect hearts to create Hearts of All Men, when in actuality, they have been collecting Hearts artificially, as we see in the Heartless Generator, and KH2's script implies Altar of Naught was designed specifically to retrieve purified Hearts away from the real Kingdom Hearts. It is possible that Vexen studied Kingdom Key to achieve this, as he talks before the mission (implying the Keyblades/Keychains obtained in this game are mostly his creations), but even then they were still indeed collecting Hearts, so the statement is just incorrect.

Unfortunately, the plot of the game is built on this incorrect idea.

Third issue is not that big of a deal. Since Marluxia gives you the tutorial of defeating Heartless, this becomes in Union X the idea Lauriam was somehow better than other Dandelions at defeating Heartless, and his quick bond with Roxas was actually a continuation of his bond with Ventus (who is still inside Roxas, not Sora).

This is a weird, though not necessarily bad case of Flanderization (again, tropes are not inherently bad), since the actual reason Marluxia does this is because as the second strongest member of the Org. 13 at the time, and one that desires to have a tool with a Keyblade, he would be most efficient in dealing with Heartless, and would seek Sora's Nobody as he will seek Sora himself in CoM.

(Of course, this event in Days will also be somewhat unimportant, as Union X will imply the main reason he sought after Sora was because he was carrying his original Keyblade, Divine Rose, which like most of the KH1 Keyblades was originally meant to be manifestation of the heart of Beast's Castle's world before the retcon.)

This additional context does not ruin the progression of the story, but weakens characters' actions, which in Marluxia's case is kinda bad, considering he is the brother of our "new" main character Strelitzia, and will almost certainly become a major recurring character both because of this, and his sheer power level.

****

I suppose we should also talk about Marluxia's element, flowers.

While there are many powerful plant monsters in FF, there is no plant-based elemental affinity in any of the FF games, except ironically in Kingdom Hearts. This is different than most JRPGs, where there is a plant element, as wood is one of classical Chinese elements.

There is sort of a Death element, which is characterized by Summons such as Odin, and Yojimbo, but I guess the main reason they didn't want Marluxia's element to be Death is because of the identity of Specter Nobody, aka Strelitzia. However, we cannot repeat plant element of Strelitzia, so we might end up her default to Death instead. More likely though, she will be non-elemental Holy to make her more special.

[sirquestingbeast]

In Honor of this Sacred Day, here are some KH Costumes

These are from my discord post. Edited to provide alternatives to the meme-y answers

KH Halloween costumes. Debate me.

Sora: Glamrock Freddy from Five Nights at Freddy's (you can't tell me he isn't a FNAF kid) Riku: Rogue the Bat from Sonic / Zuko from Avatar Kairi: Ice Spice (1/3 of the holy Trinity) / Usagi from Sailor Moon Roxas: Cloud from Final Fantasy 7(Crazy how it's the same story sometimes) / David from Lost Boys Xion: Ariana Grande (2/3 of the holy Trinity) / Samara from The Ring Namine: Billie Eilish (Holy Trinity complete) / Princess Peach from Super Mario Brothers Axel/Lea: Team Fortress 2 Scout (no this isn't a joke answer, its the only answer) Isa: Team Fortress 2 Spy (yes they coordinated) Ventus: Naruto from Naruto Terra: Leon Kennedy from Resident Evil 4 Aqua: Samus from Metroid Vanitas: Spawn from Spawn Xigbar/"Luxu": The Joker from the hit movie The Joker played by esteemed actor Joaquin Phoenix Marluxia/Laurium: Zagreus from Hades Larxene/Elrena: Harley Quinn from Batman Demyx: Goblin King Jareth from Labyrinth Luxord: Gambit from X-Men Vexen/Even: Wouldn't dress up (Night King from Game of Thrones) Xaldin/Dillan: An actual classic Dracula Lexaeus/Aeleus: Frankenstein's Monster but from the book Ienzo: Persona 3 Fuuka (try not to put Ienzo in a skirt/dress challenge failed)

Xemnas: Darth Vader from Star Wars (and he WOULD dress up) Ansem: Maleficent (a sexy one just to piss her off) / Vecna from dungeons and dragons Xehanort: Various variations of William Afton/ Springtrap from Five Nights at Freddy's just to fuck with Sora / various Docs from Doctor Who DiZ: Luxord (now that I said it you can't unsee it)/ Capt. Kirk from Star Trek Eraqus: Doc Holiday (I just want him to be a cowboy) / Indiana Jones from Indiana Jones Baldr: Patrick Bateman from American Psycho Hermod: Elminster from Dungeons and Dragons Vor: Frodo from Lord of the Rings Urd: Shiva summon from Final Fantasy / Ellen Ripley from Aliens Hoder: Madoka Kaname from Madoka Magica Strelitzia: Gwen Stacy from Spiderman no elaboration Brain: Neo from the Matrix Ephemer: Hatsune Miku (fight me on this)/ James Bond from James Bond Skuld: Zelda from Zelda Ira: R.J MacReady from The Thing Invi: Sidney Prescott from Scream Acced: Ash Williams from Evil Dead Gula: Charley from Fright Night Ava: Laurie Strode from Halloween MoM: Sans Undertale from Undertale

[empyreasheart]

having interests with numbers leads me to places i wouldnt go with a gun

aka organization 13 x LOONA

xemnas - heejin - vivid

xigbar - hyunjin - around you

xaldin - haseul - let me in

vexen - yeojin - kiss later (cursed..)

lexaeus - vivi - everyday i love you

zexion - kim lip - eclipse

saïx - jin soul - singing in the rain

axel - choerry - love cherry motion

demyx - yves - new

luxord - chuu - heart attack

marluxia - gowon - one & only

larxene - hyeju - egoist

which leaves the subunits as

1/3 - xemnas, xigbar, xaldin, vexen, lexaeus

odd eye circle - zexion, saïx, axel

yyxy - demyx, luxord, marluxia, larxene (this one coincides with canon a little too well. woah)

ARTMS - xemnas, xaldin, zexion, saïx, axel

loossemble - xigbar, vexen, lexaeus, marluxia, larxene

which leaves luxord & demyx and their solo careers....

[synergysilhouette]

Changes I'd make to Kingdom Hearts

Kingdom Hearts 1

Allow Sora chances to unlock flashbacks in the game that show BBS and KHUX. Not everything, but enough to know a bit about the keyblade war, the Wayfinder Trio's failure, and his ties to Vanitas (secretly his shadow).

Put more weight on the Princesses of Heart, and explain that there are several pure hearts of light, but that the PoH were the first ones found.

Replace Alice with Ariel as a princess of heart. Just makes more sense to me.

Allow Kairi's keyblade to manifest when Sora becomes a heartless.

Touch more on SoRiKai's childhood together; the island they live on is never visited or seen much.

Have Ansem manipulate Riku more than Maleficent; if the series still moves on from Disney in favor of original stories and characters, it makes more sense.

Erase CoM and Days

Kingdom Hearts 2 1. Allow time for Roxas to gain some memories of "Days," showing a more sympathetic side to the Organization. 2. Let Sora retain his memories at Castle Oblivion, except for Namine. It's mentioned that he was searching for Riku and defeated Organization members, but doesn't recall much else. 3. Have Kairi fight off O13 members, scouring the Place that Never Was instead of being a prisoner. We'd also get hints at Xion when Kairi and Namine meet. 4. Give more credit to Namine's "witch" powers of memory. She'd be able to inform Roxas of his lost memories, as well as inform the Destiny Islands Trio of the organization's origins. 5. Alter the "Riku looks like Ansem" subplot. Maybe make it so Ansem, now tied to Riku, shares a body with him, their hearts intertwined, and Riku fears the loss of control. It's better than "I avoided everyone because using darkness makes me look like our enemy" since it doesn't really move the story along. 6. Have Kairi battle with Sora and Riku against Xemnas. 7. Before Xemnas' defeat, he reveals the destruction of his own body has made them one step closer to Xehanort being revived. Xemnas lies and says that to prevent Xehanort's revival, Sora would have to defeat Ansem--and kill Riku in the process. Riku forces Sora to fight him, but Kairi realizes at the last minute that the defeat will only help Xehanort reunify. Using her powers of light, Kairi manages to separate their hearts so Ansem is defeated without killing Riku.

Kingdom Hearts: 3D 1. Essentially the same, but Kairi joins the exams. Riku is still the only one who passes, though. 2. Mention that the new 7 hearts have passed along their powers, except for Kairi. 3. Remove young Xehanort, Xemnas, and Ansem as the members of the new O13, replacing them with corrupted Aqua, Demyx, and Vexen--though the latter two defect. Plus corrupted Aqua reveals Ventus' location, allowing Vanitas access to his body, but finds out his heart is missing.

Kingdom Hearts 3 1. Give more KHUX flashbacks for Larxene and Marluxia, as well as giving us moments to look into O13's psyche as a whole. 2. Give us more worlds and the other hearts of light. I'm thinking Tiana, Pocahontas, and Moana are PoH, joining Anna, Elsa, Rapunzel, and Kairi. And their purpose isn't to fill in for the fighters, but to form the x-blade passively, similar to the original PoH being kidnapped in KH1 to form Kingdom Hearts. 3. Have the villains defeated at different points of the game. Riku would beat Xigbar, Dark Riku, Terra-Xehanort, and Aqua. Sora would defeat Venitas (who is created when Sora gives Ventus his heart back), Larxene, Marluxia, and Xehanort. Kairi would beat Xion and Luxord, and Lea would beat Isa. Aqua and Venitas' defeat would allow them to become guardians of light. 4. Have the villains make minimal appearances to the heroes outside of boss fights. The game kind of gave me "racing to the end" vibes and less appearances by the villains would make the war kind of a surprise attack without it feeling rushed. We as the audience would still get to see the organization members interact with each other, though.

[blood-darkened-moon]

Kingdom Hearts

Sora | Anti Form Sora | Riku | Kairi | Namine

Organization XIII Xemnas | Xigbar/Braig | Xaldin/Dilan | Vexen/Even | Lexaeus/Aeleus | Zexion/Ienzo | Saix/Isa | Axel/Lea | Demyx | Luxord | Marluxia/Lauriam | Larxene/Elrena | Roxas | Xion

Union X & Dark Road Strelitzia | Ephemer | Skuld | Brain | The Keyblade Wielder | Chirithy | Nightmare Chirithy | Luxu | Bragi | Urd | Vor | Baldr | Hoder | Invi | Aced | Gula | Ava | Ira | Master of Masters

Birth by Sleep Ventus | Vanitas | Aqua | Terra | Eraqus | Xehanort

Disney Goofy | Donald | Mickey | Minnie | Pluto | Elsa | Beast | Belle | Jasmine | Cinderella | Aurora | Snow White | Alice | Maleficent | Maleficent's Raven | Jack Skellington | Peter Pan | Queen Grimhilde | Magic Mirror

Others Ansem/Ansem Seeker of Darkness | Ansem the Wise | Pence | Hayner | Olette | Moogle

Heartless | Unversed | Nobody | World of Chaos

Ships Larxene x Marluxia | Xemnas x Saix | Xigbar x Demyx

KH Meta | KH Trivia

[goth-automaton]

fanfic asks! 🌝📚🧠👀 ⏰

🌝 Who is one character you haven’t yet written for that you would like to?

Uuuh, a lot of them... After switching fandoms, I have so many new characters to write! 💜 While answering this question earlier, I mentioned Vexen, so maybe I'll talk about Saïx now! I have a really nice subplot planned for him in the mortuary AU (aka one of my newer fic ideas that I got legit rabid about) and can't wait to get to it! Poor boy is in for a rough ride~

Also, I'm really excited for Echidna's proper appearance in my current WIP. If I don't change any plans, she'll have one hell of an entrance. 🤭

📚 Do you read your own fic?

A lot. New fics, old fics, current WIPs... You have no idea how many times I've read my 3 page Xigbar x Marluxia smut. It's part of a bigger plot, that I have no idea how to tackle rn... But this single thing is so good to read to me, I'm borderline obsessed with it. ^^"

🧠 What’s an idea you have that you can’t quite call a WIP yet?

Most of my ideas, that haven't been started yet. XD Like that mortuary AU I've mentioned... Or the j-horror inspired fic... Or the DMC fic I want to name after a Celldweller song... Or "Whore of Spikemuth"... Or the crime mystery in art world fic (that I don't even have a coherent plotline for yet XP)... Aaaaaah, it's so much, too much! >,<"

👀 Do you have any WIPs that you would never let see the light of day? If yes, what are they about?

I don't think so... Maybe ideas, but not WIPs. The XigMar thing hasn't been published, but again, it's part of a bigger story, so I'd have to write it first (and edit the already existing text to fit). The whole story can be summed up as: Zexion gets pregnant (and needs a hug), Marluxia needs therapy (and a hug too), Vexen becomes a team mom (and, to his horror, actually likes it), Axel is Done With This Shit™, Saïx is jealous, Larxene is a bitch [I generally like her, but not here, here she's too mean, I'm sorry ;_;] and Roxas and Xion are just vibing.

⏰ Do you spend more time reading fic, writing fic, or do you do both equally?

Sometimes reading, sometimes writing, it depends on my mood, time and energy. Lately I've been reading more fics, than earlier... But mainly one shots. I don't feel like getting into anything longer right now...

Thank you! 💜

Fanfic Ask Game (the movie, the sequel)