Slanted and Enchanted (Open)

[dandy]

Mac had found enough time in his lunch break to practice yoga. Fifteen minutes later, this prevented him from screaming once he found himself starting into an ominous swirling black vortex of What in Blue Blazes a toilet bowl... again. He actually screamed when he realized that in the shock, he spilled some of his energy drink on the floor, cleaning that taking top priority. With his profession, swirling black vortexes weren’t uncommon, all which were at least ominous for the sap given the plunger. In this case, however, when they have weirdo black and slivery decorative flamey things (not blue blazes but close enough) coming out of the toilet, you got a problem.

He began to pace back and forth. He stared at one of the sink mirrors, then back at the haunted toilet. He stared at one of the sink mirrors, then back at haunted toilet. Seeing his reflection, he reminded that he was about the last person one would expect to be a custodian. To be blunt, he looked more like a club queen; Bahamunt knows he was at least addicted to at least one kind of stimulant. You know, like he should have either been dancing to some really bad techno music at the time or buying a drink for some other twink at that time. He was being to consider these options when recalled the one thing on his face that ruin the image: a lipstick stain.

One of the teachers managed to plant one on him, she was sixtyfive. She had also been the one one who’d set him up the job he had, so he wouldn’t have to mooch money off little old ladies like her so he could have a place to stay every night and a latté every morning. Why he kept the job was evident by a quarter of the bathroom already having some squeakysparkley action going on. If he felt the right pressure, he would try his darnedest to make the place as immaculately clean as he dressed.

He stopped pacing.

He gulped, downed whatever remnants of his energy drink there were, and then starred T the mop in his other had. “Super peachy keen magic mop, you can get rid of the creepy, haunted, toilet monster, righ’?” He asked his partner in grime. It hadn’t objected, so he put on a big toothy grin while he began to hold the Mega Magi Mop in a bastardized spear stance. Jog in place. Jog in place. Jog in place. CHARGE!!!

His staff was designed to suck up moisture, so the flames should have been enough of a clue that lunging it into the haunted toilet was a bad idea. It went right through, as did his hands. The vortex suddenly grew, and things
went black. Then there was a thud. He gripped his mop tightly, pulling it towards him. He had no clue what he hit- because since he already felt like he had subbed for the ball in a pinball game, his mind was focused elsewhere. However, what he did notice was that he didn’t smell the reeking juices of the school restroom, which was a little soothing. “Five more minutes… or coffee,” he mumbled. Finally, he opened his eyes, making a face that would have been appropriate if he had spelled the toilets.

[Fate]

Cut to the Chase

Another day, another mission. Naturally, this was how the Organization operated, though it was the first actual mission Zexion had received besides searching for the Champion. Unfortunately, this one he was not particularly looking forward to; he never was that fond of Twilight Town in the first place. This was also a recruiting mission and, so far, the Organization had bad luck in that area recently: Zexion's last recruited member had an alliance with Marluxia and Xigbar's was outright irritating. Though, the two of these members would be trying their luck to see if they could get a better Nobody today.

A Corridor of Darkness went off in a somewhat suspicious looking alleyway near the center of town, Zexion walking out of it first. As always, the world was trapped in an eternal sunset that bored the Schemer rather than impressed him. He waited until Xigbar was through before closing it, his arms crossed. Neither of them truly wanted to be here and the best thing they could say about this mission currently was that it was with someone they could tolerate; well, unless Xigbar attempted to make him do the victory pose again.

"I suppose we should begin," he said, his tone unenthusiastic, "Hopefully, this will yield a better member than either of the ones we've recruited." He stood completely still for a moment, sifting through the scents until he found a match to a Nobody's scent a minute or so later. It was a short distance away at the very least, which meant they could make this mission short and painless. "Not too far from here either. This should be a bit easier than I originally thought then." He poked his head out from the alleyway to make sure no one was near and then started to walk out toward the Nobody's scent.

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[Lagunamov]

If we are done early, can we go buy take-out?

Setting foot into this all too familiar place, Xigbar sighed at the prospect of this ‘mission’. Newest recruits hadn’t been nearly as promising as they should have as of late, what with traitors and people who even managed to annoy Xigbar of all people. Of course, some sort of medal should be given to anyone capable of achieving such a difficult feat. A medal, or a swift kick his rear end right after gagging him, tying him up and throwing him in a lake.

Watching as Zexion inspected his surroundings slowly, he felt like kicking him out of hiding from the corner. Twilight Town citizens were probably already getting used to seeing The Organization cloak anyway, so why they even still bothered to move around so damn stealthily there baffled his mind. “If by easier you mean that we could just shove him into a Corridor back to the Castle, then I hope you are right,” he smirked as he followed Zexion through alleys, staying a meter or so behind him while looking around himself for anything remotely interesting. He’d have to follow Zexion’s nose anyway.

“Though, just to make sure…” he wondered aloud, not particularly interested in whatever Zexion would respond to what he was about to say, but it never hurt to leave stuff down on the record. “If whoever this possible new recruit proves too annoying, stupid, or ticks us the wrong way, can we kill it?” he tried to contain a chuckle as he said so, since he was relatively sure the bookworm in front of him would disapprove of such a… selection filter.

[Axel]

Memorized Past

There was no escaping the draw of this world. Not for Axel. He suspected he would continue to return to it as long as it remained in existence.

It was so empty now, compared to then.

People still milled in the streets, of course. He could see that easily enough from his familiar seat on the clock tower. The seconds ticked by behind him. Was he wasting time trying to turn back those seconds, minutes, hours that moved so inexorably forward? He knew such a feat was beyond him. But moving forward was getting him nothing. He wasn't even sure anything significant awaited him in the not-yet-reached seconds of time.

Blinking himself out of his distant stare at the horizon, he took a bite of the equally-familiar sea-salt ice cream he held in his hand. It tasted the same as ever, the added salt aiding the sweetness of the ice cream. He remembered a time before, when two boys named Lea and Isa had often eaten this ice cream together. That had been yet another thing Saïx had lost interest in upon becoming a Nobody and joining the Organization.

Axel took another bite of his ice cream and looked to his left, examining the empty space next to him which Roxas should have occupied were he here. But he soon looked away again. No point in thinking about it.

He finished his ice cream just in time to notice the distinct sight of two Organization cloaks moving through the streets. His curiosity piqued, he summoned up a Corridor of Darkness to take him down to the town so he could get a better look. Upon emerging far enough away from the two to avoid immediate detection, he leaned nonchalantly against a wall, arms crossed over his chest, and waited for them to get closer. Judging from the size of the two silhouettes, however, one of them had to be Zexion. This was good news, as the Flame wished to avoid unnecessary violent confrontation.

"I wonder what two Organization members find interesting enough to make them come here." He didn't move from his spot on the wall. Instead, he raised his voice enough for them to hear from where they were.

[Fate]

Take-Out Sounds Good

"We can only hope it's that simple, though it almost always never is," Zexion replied, leading the way through the alleys. Xigbar's next comment got him to smirk; it figured he would say something such as that since the Nobody had recruited their newest member. "I will even give you the honor of disposing of it yourself." Typically, he would disapprove of members killing other members, though he couldn't say the same for Nobodies that had yet to join or were newly recruited. It wasn't unlike him to jest about the death of other Nobodies either; him and Axel almost enjoyed that before Marluxia was disposed of.

Speaking of the Flame...

Zexion's eyes darted as he heard Axel speak, the Nobody making himself obvious. He found Axel leaning against a wall with his arms crossed. The Schemer stopped walking in the direction the scent was coming from, pausing to see the Flame. He had just seen him yesterday in the visit with Marluxia and Nyxar, something Zexion still needed to figure out how to deal with. He would end up reporting his failure to dispose of Marluxia, but there was at least a decent reason behind it; the Schemer wasn't stupid enough to get into a fight he knew he couldn't win and he needed to learn what Marluxia was up to.

That wasn't the point behind this though; Twilight Town was most likely just a sentimental visit for Axel. "It seems we have company," he said, sounding a bit amused, "Though, I doubt Superior would send us to recruit a former traitor." He turned his gaze fully on Axel now. "Taken to following me around? I thought you'd be bored with that by now." Aside from having a mission to complete, which Zexion always put before everything, Xigbar would get to observe what the Schemer had been up to as of late that wasn't exactly going along with what Xemnas wanted. Sure, the illusionist had been busy and he was rarely seen in the Castle anymore, but not all of that had to do with missions.

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[Axel]

Who's Stalking Whom Now?

Now that Axel could see that it was Xigbar who was accompanying Zexion, he tensed ever so slightly. It was never clear just how much of a loyalist Number Two was, but Axel wasn't willing to risk the chance that Xigbar would turn the barrels of his guns on him. Even though the Schemer was here, there was no guarantee that he would put the Flame's safety over his current position in the Organization.

And then, there was the question of how much, if anything, Xigbar knew about the partnership between Axel and Zexion. Did he need to go the same route as he had in the encounter with Marluxia and Nyxar? Just in case, he decided vagueness was best for the time being.

He acknowledged Zexion's comment about recruiting traitors with a smirk and a glance up at the sky. "Don't think I'd accept that offer, even if you did want me back." Unlike Saïx, he wasn't remotely interested in proving himself to the likes of Xemnas. "And I think you have your facts wrong, Schemer. I believe it has been you who has been doing the stalking. Am I really that interesting to you? I'm flattered, but that's got to stop."

Then he looked to Number Two. "And hey, long time, no see, Xiggy." His tone was light, but his eyes were serious. "Keen on taking out traitors?" He wasn't really in the mood to fight, but if it came down to that, Axel wouldn't hesitate. He knew he couldn't always count on the Schemer to intervene. Even if Zexion had promised him protection.

[Lagunamov]

Do you need some time alone?

Well, that was a surprising permission Zexion had given him. So Xigbar could actually kill the new recruit if worst came to happen. A.k.a. it got on their nerves. Of course, Zexion smirked as he said so, so he couldn’t be sure exactly how serious that was. Thought the smirk itself was something so unusual for The Schemer to do that Xigbar himself was starting to wonder if he pulled a muscle or something. Eh, he’d know the moment the side of his mouth started twitching or something.

Of course, now they had something far more interesting than the prospect of recruiting right in front of them. Wide out in the open. And he spotted them coming for quite some time now… Yeah, that made absolutely no sense for a traitor to do unless he was purposely trying to pick up a fight. The Freeshooter decided to bid his time and let the two closer numbered Nobodies talk among themselves for a minute or so. He had to contain a chuckle at the prospect of the bookworm stalking Flamesilocks. Of course, their line of joking meant that they had met before. So that’s where the youngster went off to lately.

“Hah. As if,” Xigbar shrugged at the idea of fighting Axel. Sure, he could do it, erase the newly resurrected traitor and come back to a boring praise from Bored McDull back at the Castle. But, if he did that, he would never find out exactly what had happened, and information that could be used to manipulate people was always nice to have. “I’m not exactly in the mood of killing Zexion’s new boyfriend, even if you are a traitor,” he mocked the kid, knowing that any retort could spill some beans. He was more particularly interested in why he didn’t bother trying to hide the fact that they had met before. Zexion did say Axel should be bored of following him around by now; that clearly meant they had met at least once or twice before.

“I’m surprised in your taste though. Weren’t you going out with that daughter of a whore from Radiant Garden? Or am I remembering something that never happened?”

[Miko]

Gabe had been wondering, casually walking around Twilght Town, hands raised behind his head as he whistled a small little tune. It was quiet in Twilight Town, where it always seemed to be. Calm and serene. Gabriel was getting to liking it here, though it was getting a little boring. And, when it was quiet and he was alone he tended to do a lot of thinking which wasn't a good thing. It had been awhile since he had gone back to his homeworld, Destiny Islands, and discovered that no one had known him there. This was the world he had ended up on of which he now sort of called home, but what was a home really? Some place where friends and family were? A place where you lived? Well, nonetheless this didn't feel like home neither did the islands.

He turned a corner and spotted two guys in black cloaks, he stopped in mid stride and hid quickly behind a building. He peeked around the corner and looked at the two. He then saw another guy, a red head wearing a similar cloak but without the hood on. They seemed mysterious and like they didn't fit in here. Perhaps they were passing by, but why so mysterious? He watched them for a moment and overheard some of what they were saying. It seemed the two cloaked figures knew the other red head guy. Which would explain why they were wearing the same cloaks. But, what were their plans? Did they plan to cause chaos in this world? He quickly hid behind the building again as he thought he saw one of them look in his direction.

[Slash]

Surprise Attack

Saix was also in Twilight Town, albeit not for the reasons the others were. No, he was brooding alone, not bothering others with his issues...unlike Xemnas, who felt the need to monolgue his situation to whatever was available, including walls, young Keybearers, and if he was lucky, Saix. If he had to listen to one more speech about how nothing was eternal and also nothingness was eternal and the folly of hearts and whatever else crossed Xemnas's head at the time, he was going to kill...someone. Probably Vexen. Or Zexion. He wasn't really angry about it, but at some point it just became a matter of principle.

No, Saix was brooding about his current situation, and as always he was doing it alone, without bothering anybody. This quasi-existence bothered him greatly, more than anything else. He was hyper-aware of the situation of the Nobody, too much so. Whenever another Organization member felt as if an emotion was appropriate for the situation, he simply feigned it and that was that. Saix attempted to do so, recalled the correct emotion from memory, but then instinctually picked it apart, dissecting it and revealing its hollowness. He could not even feign emotion. But under the moon...

He looked up at the sky. He should have chosen a place where the moon had risen. He took some sort of odd solace in the light of the moon. He would not admit it to anybody, but his berserker form was almost a relief for the few moments in which he could maintain it. It was a release from reason and deeper thought, and was that so terrible? Those were what kept the wounds open. Other Nobodies could sometimes forget that they did not feel, if only for short periods of time. He could not, and the horrible realization of that had never left him.

It was strange, and he would not try to explain to anyone. Not even the Nobody who he had once considered his friend.

Speaking of which, he felt the presence of other Organization members nearby. In what would be a bad mood if he could feel bad moods (there he went again, damn it), he quickly located them. Axel, Xigbar, Zexion. Interesting.

He had an idea. It was stupid. Completely idiotic and random. Just like the new Number Twelve. But he was going to carry through it anyway. If it succeeded, he would be distracted from his issues for days. Weeks.

Time to take out everything on a scapegoat. A scapegoat with incredibly retarded hair.

He walked purposefully towards the group. Looking at his former friend and Number Two, he said calmly, "Don't mind me. I'm not going to be here for long." He then turned to Zexion. His eyes couldn't blaze fearsomely with emotions he did not possess, so he went the opposite way. His emotionless nature became even moreso, which was an impossibility but still somehow occured. His very emotionlessness became more emotionless, and the effect was so awe-inspiring and terrible that the sun might have even darkened a little. It was like being faced with a huge city-destroying tornado. With lightning inside it. And the lightning was on fire. And there was also a flood.

It was horrifying, in case you haven't guessed.

"You," he said, "are the cause of most of my current problems. As such, you will have to forgive me if I project things that aren't your doing on you as well, and react accordingly."

With that, he shoved Zexion into a wall and planted his fist right into that stupid face. Right. Into. His face.

"If I could hate," he said, and punched him again, "which I can't, of course," he added while lifting Zexion up into the air by the front of his collar, "I would certainly hate you with the intensity of a thousand supernovae." His eyes glowed dangerously for a second, as if he was about to go berserk.

Then he simply dropped Zexion. "But, of course, I can't, so it doesn't really matter anyway. I've just wanted to do that for a while."

That was quite possibly the best moment of Saix's life as a Nobody, and he was the closest he had ever been to feeling happiness in the history of ever.

"That's all," he said, and there was almost (gasp) some semblance of emotion in his voice, considering if he could feel he would be positively overjoyed.

"We'll all meet later, I suppose," he said almost airily to the others, and left through a Corridor.

The almost-emotion faded quickly, but it was incredibly worth it. Saix made a mental note that if obtaining his heart seemed impossible, he could find a temporary alternative in beating Zexion within an inch of his worthless half-life.

[Axel]

Best. Five Minutes. Ever.

When Xigbar said he wasn't in the mood to kill someone, that usually meant he was fishing for information. The Freeshooter was well-known for being trigger-happy, but he was even more well-known for eavesdropping. In this case, avoiding a fight was not a sign of re-acceptance on Xigbar's part. But Axel would take whatever he could get. Not getting shot was always nice.

After having conversed mostly with Zexion to this point, entering into a verbal exchange with Xigbar was a completely different experience. The Schemer, of course, was capable of holding an intelligent and interesting conversation, but he lacked the quick wit that the Freeshooter possessed. Talking with Xigbar was like dancing on a bed of hot coals while drunken birds attacked you from random directions. Unless you were alert and nimble, you were going to get stabbed in the eye. Or fall and get your face burned off. Luckily, Axel was more than capable of rising to the challenge. And he was going to have some fun at the same time.

"Zexion!" He shot the Schemer a look of pretended offense. "Is that why you've been stalking me? I thought it was just because you were keeping tabs on a known traitor, but now the truth comes out." He pointed a finger at Zexion's one visible eye. "Well, you can forget it. I don't care how much you beg. Not interested."

He would have gone on—he was on quite the roll, as it were—but from out of nowhere, Saïx, of all people, showed up. Axel met his former friend's look with an instinctively surprised one of his own, but that passed quickly. It seemed the Diviner was less interested in the Flame or Xigbar and more interested in Zexion. Far more interested.

Woah! What the hell?!

Not sure whether to laugh or... well, laugh really hard, Axel chose to do the latter. There was no genuine feeling behind it, but he remembered enough what he was supposed to be feeling in this situation. And it was side-splitting. Putting a hand on the wall to make sure he didn't accidentally fall over, the Flame put his other hand on his hip while trying to regain some semblance of composure that had never really left in the first place. Oh, if only he had had his heart right now. The amusement he would have experienced from watching the violent meeting between Zexion's face and Saïx's fist would have been a hundredfold. As things were, it was still funny if a little hollow.

He barely registered the Diviner leaving as abruptly as he had come. Seconds later, Axel had quieted, but a grin remained to show his continued amusement at the Schemer's pain. The similarity between the way Saïx had held him against the wall and the way the Riku Replica had killed him in Castle Oblivion was not lost on Axel. Of course, Saïx wouldn't know the details about that.

"I think Saïx was trying to tell you something. Probably that he doesn't like the way you style your hair." He indicated himself and then Xigbar. "I mean, neither of us got decked. Obviously, he prefers being able to see both sides of a face."

[Miko]

Gabe watched the trio converse, which wasn't all that interesting and he could hardly tell what they were talking about as well as hardly able to hear it. Surely they didn't seem to be aware of his presence. He leaned quietly against the wall of the building, getting a little anxious and a little snoop. He shouldn't be spying on people; but these er, four, seemed really suspicious with their matching cloaks. Looking around the corner of the building he saw a new comer (wearing the same cloak mind you) slam his fist into one of the guy's face. He winced thinking about it. He hadn't gotten into that many fights during school but he had a few fights, but he preferred to stay away from them. He almost went to intervene since none of the others seemed to and one guy, the red head, was laughing. Did they not like each other? This was odd to say the least. A group of people, maybe like a underground society or something and they were fighting each other?

For a moment he felt like a peeping tom in affairs that didn't belong to him. As soon as the new guy had come..he, uh vanished into a dark doorway. That was strange. But he remained where he was, this was getting a little interesting. No matter how bad he felt about peeking in on affairs that weren't his, which wasn't much at the moment.

[Fate]

I Can't Take You Two Anywhere Can I?

Xigbar and Axel seemed to be getting along well and the former wasn't going to kill the latter. Even though the fun was at his expense, it certainly was helpful when members weren't killing each other. Zexion was about to respond to, though his senses kicked in and startled him for a moment; another person was watching them. This was not too much of an issue since the person was not attacking. Though, the other issue presented itself quickly and made their mission null-in-void: the Nobody that he had been tracking had vanished.

Before he could tell Xigbar this and interrupt the wonderful conversation he was having with Axel, a Corridor of Darkness went off nearby. Zexion raised an eyebrow to this as Saïx showed himself, not bothering much with Axel or Xigbar. He would have thought that Number Seven would be more interested in Axel than himself, but obviously not. He wasn't sure he liked the look that Saïx was giving him either, the look emptier than his normal ones. Zexion simply stared back at him in the same empty manner. Oh, so he figured out that the Schemer was the cause behind the Organization's current distrust for Saïx? And just what was he--

... Peachy.

Zexion never would have guessed that Saïx would resort to something like this; after all, he was, aside from Xemnas, the main Nobody who truly stuck to his Nobody roots. He was shoved into the wall and had a look of pure surprise before he was punched in the face. And then again. He had gone a month without this happening and now Saïx of all beings was doing this. Before he could fully grasp what was going on, the Nobody had him by the collar and in the air. Well, wasn't this familiar? Last time this happened, he died; that wasn't going to happen this time.

Though, Saïx didn't kill him. He simply dropped him after mentioning that if he could hate, he would hate Zexion. Then he left, saying that they would meet again. Axel of course thought this was hilarious and was laughing hysterically at the moment while the Schemer made sure his nose, or any other part of his face, wasn't broken. Fortunately, Nobodies didn't bleed, which he was fortunate for; nothing seemed broken at this point, though his composure was gone. He stood up, not looking either Nobody in the eye for a moment; Axel seemed to have stopped laughing for now.

"I somehow don't think that was his intent Axel," he said, now looking at the other, "Perhaps he figured out my true intents for stalking you and was claiming what was rightfully his. I did always question that..." He went into a thoughtful pose now. "Our mission seems to have disappeared, we have an eavesdropper currently watching our conversation, and Saïx figured out that I was working on establishing him as a traitor in the Organization; rather eventful."

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[Lagunamov]

So I can have my cake AND eat it!?

Slamming his fist against his left palm, the one eyed Nobody moved as if he had just remembered something. “Oh, right, I forgot. You are still holding a torch for Roxas, aren’t ya Axel?” he smirked as he taunted the fiery red hair in front. He probably wouldn’t find that even remotely funny, but it wasn’t like Roxas couldn’t come back. They just lacked the… raw materials. But, even then, bringing back yet another traitor to The Organization wasn’t in Xigbar’s agenda, no matter how funny a reunion that would make.

And speaking of reunions… wasn’t this some interesting turn of events. It wasn’t long after Xigbar’s little remark after Axel’s previous retort – both in the spirit of messing with those present, even if The Schemer was the main target – that the trio found themselves interrupted by an unexpected presence. Approaching them and addressing their previous object of verbal attacks, he started to ramble on and on about, revealing quite a lot of information in his process of explaining to Zexion why he was now receiving the beating of his life. Or, to be more accurate, of his non existence. It didn’t matter. He was getting punched, hard. And Xigbar could barely contain his laughter at that.

Now that the moon freak had left, Xigbar leaned against the wall to his left – or more like, lost his balance and fell on it – his shoulder hitting as he grabbed his ribs in laughter. “Oh God, that was rich!” he chuckled, stopping after a couple of seconds of more laughter and regaining his composure. Of course, the target having started talking again and divulging so much information that he wasn’t aware of until then certainly helped stop the laughter.

“Wait wait wait…” he stumbled on his words, a tad surprised of this little last piece of information. Or, exposition. “I don’t care about the eavesdropper; we can kill him/her later. We should celebrate about this new prospect disappearing from the face of the earth!” he mimicked enthusiasm, raising his arms in the air and all. Then, is eye blinked as something hit him. “Wait, were was my train of thought again…” he scratched his scar, thinking. Or, pretending to. “You were trying to have Saïx branded a traitor? Sorry to ask this, but, you do realize I am Number Two and high enough in rank to have you turned into a Dusk for such a thing, right?” he gave the little bookworm a harsh look with his remaining eye. Eye to eye as a matter of fact. “Good thing I don’t tell Xemnas everything then, wouldn’t ya say?”

[Axel]

To Tell the Truth

It certainly was strange, laughing like this with Xigbar. Of course, since they were making fun of Zexion, it made a bit more sense. He hadn't missed the Freeshooter's comment about Roxas, but the suddenness of Saïx's appearance and the hilarity that had ensued had prevented him from making a rebuttal. Now that Zexion had attempted to exact some sort of verbal revenge with a hint that the Flame and the Diviner had been involved somehow, he had the perfect opportunity to kill two birds with one stone.

"Well, Saïx was the jealous type, I suppose. But I think he was more upset that you've been playing the cheater. How is Demyx lately?" He grinned, then glanced at Xigbar. "And if anybody here should be concerned about his masculinity, I'd say it would be you, Xiggy. I saw the way Saïx looked at you just now."

His grin faded, the time for seriousness setting in. Xigbar may not tell Xemnas everything, but he did need to know the facts before he came to the wrong conclusions. "And Zexion isn't trying to do anything that doesn't have truth to back it up." Leaning back against the wall, he crossed his arms. "Saïx is a traitor, plain and simple. He was just better at hiding it. If you're going to turn anyone into a Dusk, make it him." An unexpected pang of regret pricked him, and he chose to alter his statement. "Well, actually, if anyone should get turned into a Dusk, it should be Marluxia."

[Fate]

Buried Secrets

Zexion had to keep an eyebrow raised at Axel for the Demyx comment, not exactly sure what he was talking about; it was probably better that he did not know and was kept unaware on that front. Either way, they were moving into a more important conversation that, even if it was overheard by a stranger, needed to be had. Xigbar made it clear what sort of danger Zexion just planted himself in by saying that, though he also said he wasn't the type to go running to Xemnas; one could always trust the Freeshooter with any sort of information.

Axel spoke first about Saïx and backed the Schemer up about his traitor status. That left more to elaborate on, which of course was his job. "Exactly. I was not speaking an untruth in saying he was a traitor. Saïx, before the events of Castle Oblivion, was attempting to gain the trust of Xemnas in order to stage a coup d'état that would effectively remove the Superior from power. He managed to do so after all but one were eliminated in Castle Oblivion." He paused for a second, thinking. He had to figure out exactly how he wanted to say this next bit, his somewhat proven theories for why Saïx did this; to him, they were more than proven, but convincing others of that was not particularly easy.

"I believe I have found his motivation as well. Saïx was loyal to the Organization, or at least its goal of gaining our hearts back. However, he believed that Xemnas was not set on this goal and therefore sought to dispose of him." Another short pause. "While I cannot say that I know if that is his true line of thinking, I can say that he is correct. Axel spoke with one of the Keyblade Masters present at Xemnas's death while I spoke with another who was present, King Mickey. Both confirmed that Xemnas sought the power of Kingdom Hearts instead of becoming whole."

He stopped speaking at this point, not wanting to drone on much more than he needed to. He got the facts out and said what needed to be said. Xigbar could choose to take it or leave it. Out of the original six members of the Organization, the Freeshooter knew the Superior's tendencies the best. He was the one that had warned Zexion about the alternative track that Xemnas had for Castle Oblivion and the supposed Chambers. Though, the Schemer now had to wonder if those Chambers had anything to do with his plans for Kingdom Hearts or not; it seemed unlikely since they seemed drastically different from each other, but one could never know what Xemnas was truly thinking.

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