Catching Up [Emi]

[Oathkeeper Emi]

"Sounds like a great idea. One problem though. I can't swim."

Emi didn't think he expected her to agree, and really, she wasn't. But she really needed to deal with the thought of water. Waiting to have the money for the inn or her own place, or waiting for it to rain, wasn't gonna cut it. Hopefully with Castle with her, she wouldn't be so afraid.

"Let's go. Maybe I can just splash some water on my hair or something."

She got up out of the surprisingly comfortable couch and headed to the door. Then, she decided to make an amendment.

"Oh. Please, for the love of god, keep yourself covered I have had enough traumatic experiences over the past few days."

[Fate]

Why did no one tell me about hangovers? Ugh.
--

Reading wasn't helping-- no, it was making things worse. Zexion sighed and closed the Lexicon, closing his eyes for a second as the book disappeared. Without the Lexicon, he had nothing even remotely productive to do. He could sleep more, but he wasn't going to get anything done that wa-- what was there to get done? Nothing. Though, perhaps he could venture back down to the laboratory; maybe there was some research he could do down there on getting his heart back...

Tomorrow. Definitely tomorrow. For now, getting outside of this castle and getting some fresh air. That would help, hopefully. He created a Corridor of Darkness in front of him and walked through it, appearing on the outskirts of town-- going through town wasn't something he was about to do. He was somewhat near Castle and Emi, but he had no intention of bothering them this time. When he was a bit more lucid, maybe. For now, walking around, then... something else.

This 'no plan' way of living was incredibly frustrating.

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[Castle]

Castle chuckled when she said she couldn't swim. "Neither can I," he admitted.

Surprisingly, though, she was willing to try a waterway anyway. Even if she hadn't agreed, he might have gone to one by himself. They didn't have many other options, if any at all. He got up from the couch, no doubt leaving a cleaner spot where the dust was now attached to his back, and followed Emi to the door.

He laughed at her amendment.
"Yeah, fine," he said, and then added with a sly grin, "I don't mind if you don't keep yourself covered, though."

It's night now, too. How romantic, he thought sarcastically.

In all truth, this was the most at ease he'd been in weeks. Maybe things were finally getting better for them. Once you hit rock bottom, the only way to go is up, right?

[Oathkeeper Emi]

Well, Castle seemed to be back to himself. It had been a while since he had made a comment like that, and she had to admit...she kind of missed it. It was refreshing after all that heavy talk before to just banter back and forth like they used to. She had to smile. Crossing her arms over her chest, she said "In your dreams, short stuff...actually, hopefully not in your dreams. That's weird."

They walked down the road a little. Emi felt talkative for once; she really just wanted a distraction. "Wow. You know, I forgot how much I loved this town at night. Especially during summer. Twilight Town sunsets are great and all but its so crowded there. You have to share it with too many people... I'm babbling. Sorry."

[Castle]

"Hey, don't worry about it. Babble all you want," Castle said.

He really meant it, too. He liked to hear Emi talk when she was happy. Heck, by now it seemed like a once in a lifetime opportunity. After all that had happened, he felt like any sort of peace could be shattered at any second. Damn, that's dark, he thought, but it wasn't like he had no reason to believe it. Ever since he left home, he'd come to realize that the World was a chaotic place.

He looked up at the starlit sky.
"I know what you mean about it being crowded. Over in Traverse Town, I could see the stars any time I wanted just by looking up. But you know, over there it didn't mean anything. Everyone could do that. Here, though, you have to wait for a certain time, and by then a lot of people are just sleeping..."

Castle chuckled. "Ha. Now I'm the one babbling."

[Fate]

I need to plan so I have a plan.
Black Milk
--

Zexion was beginning to wonder about his choice in staying in Radiant Garden. Why not just come back every couple days or so just to see if Xehanort was there and then leave? Or just not come at all and accept the fact that Xehanort wasn't even going to come back? No, he of course had to stay in this world and wait. It didn't help that the world was dreadfully boring. He knew this world's habits just as well as he knew himself. Since it was dusk, citizens would be turning in, bars would get the few that didn't, and by two or three, everyone was asleep.

He shoved his hands in his pockets, glancing around as he continued walking. Was there any way to make this more interesting? Not without getting into a fight he supposed, or going into a drunken stupor, the latter of which he wasn't about to do ever again. There weren't any interesting people he could try to manipulate either-- what would he even manipulate them to do? Nothing. He had no greater scheme. He had nothing he was trying to achieve. What was he going t--

And there were Castle and Emi again. Fortunately, he stopped himself from bumping into them physically, but here they were. His plan to not bump into them failed, this being what he got for not paying attention. He looked to both of them for a second before deciding it would probably be better not to stop and chat. "Good evening," he said to both of them, "Do not worry, I'm not stopping to bother you this time. Carry on." He decided to walk in the direction they came from-- this would work, right?

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[Oathkeeper Emi]

Emi's pleasant conversation with Castle had been interrupted and what a shame. He almost had her laughing, really laughing. Irritated, she looked around...and then down, and that is where she found the source of her irritability. "Oh,"she she said, wilting a little despite herself. Normally she would be happy to see him but today...she crossed her arms and frowned. "It's you." She paused for a moment and then smirked.

"Heh heh. You can't hide it from me, Zex. You're nursing a hangover, aren't you? You went drinking and didn't invite me? I'm disappointed," she teased. Her annoyance with him came and went as it pleased and for now, she was having too much fun patting him on the head and smirking patronizingly. "Poor Zoey...he's got a really bad headache, doesn't he?"

I love messing with short people, she thought as she turned to look at Castle over her shoulder.

[Castle]

It seemed as though their cheerful moment was destined to be cut short. Castle saw Zexion before Emi did and immediately slowed down, ending up partway behind her rather than beside her. His first thoughts were the memory of his last meeting with Zexion, the somewhat unpleasant one in Twilight Town. Needless to say, his happy expression was gone in a flash.

Zexion was ready to walk by them like nothing happened, but Emi just had to pick that moment to mess with someone. Castle watched without speaking, too busy keeping his growing hostility in check to even appreciate what she was saying. He had a sneaking suspicion that anything he said or did at the moment would only lead to regret.

Damn it, and he used to think Zexion was an okay guy.

When she looked over her shoulder at him, he didn't look back, his gaze intensely focused on a point in the air somewhere in front of the Nobody.

[Oathkeeper Emi]

Emi's obnoxious laugh got quieter, more awkward and finally faded altogether. She looked from Castle to Zexion, and then back to Castle. She frowned. "What the hell, man?" she asked as she let her hand slide from Zexion's hair. "Why do you look so pissed all of a sudden?"

She shifted her weight backwards and tucked one hand into the back pocket of her jeans. "Did something happen between you two while I was...gone? Look, I can't have two of my three friends fighting. You boys are going to have to settle this the old fashioned way and beat the shit out of each other."

Suddenly though, she yanked her hand out of her back pocket and held both hands up in a defensive kind of way. She had remembered their little tussle after Atlantica and knew Castle would probably take the chance. They were similar that way. "Castle, that was joke."

[Fate]

Why are you talking so loud?
--

Well that sure was welcoming-- neither wanted to see him. Then could he just keep-- no Emi had to pat his hair after she noticed he still had that wonderful thing called a hangover. She could stop patting his hair anytime now. Anytime. Yes, she could stop laughing at him and patting his hair right now because he did have a headache. Maybe if he told her that, she'd stop. No, she'd probably continue just to spite him. This was Emi he was dealing with.

Oh, never mind that she called him Zoey. That sounded like something Xigbar called him when they were still whole. This was just a good day wasn't it?

She backed off after a minute or so of tormenting him, saying something to Castle. He looked even less than pleased to see him. That just made Zexion grin for a second before going back to his blank face. "Yes, you could say that," he answered Emi nonchalantly. He wasn't going to bring up the happenings of Twilight Town. If Castle wanted to, he could. And if he was going to take Emi seriously, which Zexion was rather against at the moment... yes, he better not do that.

"I would rather not," he said, fixing his hair so it wasn't a complete mess. The temptation to add to that was there, but Zexion preferred his face intact at the moment. He said something else instead. "Glad to see that both of you made it back to this world. And I didn't have to assist you this time." His arms went back to being crossed, staying still; he was sort of curious if Castle would lunge at him or not.

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[Castle]

Emi had no idea how much her hand-shield-gesture was actually working. Castle caught sight of Zexion's brief grin, and it made his shoulders tense and his fists clench. Emi could very well be the only thing keeping him from "settling it the old fashioned way," or at least giving out one good punch to the face. Just one.

Geez, what was he doing? He had to cool it. Now.

Castle took a deep breath and rested a hand on his hip. He could deal with this. He let his expression relax into something more aloof.

"Yeah. We got back." They were a little singed, but they got back. "Glad to see you care somehow. So, you still going around blowing shit up now that Jericho's gone? Hope you have better logic behind it now."

He still didn't think that destroying worlds and making Heartless was good for anything, not even whatever "balance" it was somehow supposed to maintain.

[Oathkeeper Emi]

Emi bristled, feeling the tension in the air. She crossed her arms and looked back and forth between the two young men. "Yeah, no thanks to you," she mumbled after Castle confirmed they had indeed made it back to her homeworld in one slightly crispy piece. However, he mentioned Jericho and Emi shuddered, unfolded her arms and pointed a finger. "Zexion, god help me, he better not be implying you are on that bastard's side."

Oh hell. They couldn't just be done with this and go on to the waterfalls? She couldn't escape him, no matter what. Trembling and barely holding on to her self-control, she sucked a breath through her teeth and rolled her eyes. "At this rate, I'm going to need another cigarette AND a drink."

[Fate]

If you do that second one, don't bring me with you.
--

Yes, a lot of caring was happening on Zexion's part. Sarcasm of course, but if he had a heart, he probably would care at least a little. Emi was Ienzo's friend, one of the only ones he did have. Castle then mentioned Jericho, which made the conversation turn downhill-- as if it wasn't already there. The Nobody brought a hand to his face, keeping it there for a good minute. No, he couldn't be on his side if he wasn't around. That would just be counterproductive.

"No, I am not," he said, sighing and resisting the urge to cringe at the idea of drinking. He didn't want his face to become reacquainted with the toilet right now. Or ever again. "He is gone, so I am on no one's side but my own. And currently, that doesn't involve fixing the balance issue-- only researching of a way to retrieve my heart. Is that better?" He looked at Castle when he asked this, the remnant of bitterness dripping off those words. The Nobodies were simply trying to get back what was rightfully theirs and everyone claimed they were in the wrong for doing so.

Even though they were, but Zexion didn't believe that. "Now, unless you have the answers in regard to that, or if you need me to yet again assist you, I will be taking my leave." He turned around, not bothering with a proper goodbye, and started to walk again. Please let them not need his help-- please. They probably didn't. They were most likely merely strolling around Radiant Garden for no particular reason.

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[Oathkeeper Emi]

Emi didn't get why he was making such a huge deal about assisting them....yet again? When had she asked for his help...recently? As far as she could remember, all she had asked for was to be brought home and that wad months ago and only once. She squirmed uncomfortably, not really sure what else to do. He was in a weird mood, for sure, and she wasn't happy with him at all. Zexion claimed to be no one's side now but...the implication was there.

That line of thought ended up in an interesting place. Zexion could redeem himself in her eyes, and she could take a really huge, big step in her life. "That reminds me...you can find people, right?" she asked casually. It wouldn't be tonight because it was too late and she was too dirty but maybe they could meet up tomorrow. She shot Castle a meaningful glance. He would know where this was headed.

[Fate]

Why yes, I'm a human bloodhound. No collar or leash please.
Midna's Theme
--

He stopped in his tracks after Emi asked her question. Interesting... He turned around, nodding his head. "I can find anyone that has darkness in their heart." In other words, almost anyone that wasn't a Princess of Heart. Still, now he was unsure as he gave both Emi and Castle a suspicious look. Who could Emi possibly want to find? Somehow, he doubted it was Arc, so that was ruled out. And, even if Jericho could possibly be found, she had no intention of seeing him again.

He'd have to ask plain and simple then. "Who do you want me to find for you? And if I may ask, why?" This wasn't something he could say he minded doing, even though he had previously said he didn't want to assist anymore. It was something for him to do other than meander around Radiant Garden more. Not only that, it was not as if Emi and he were enemies. In fact, if he could get her to trust him again... no that wouldn't go anywhere. He had no scheme.

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