IMAGINARY / ןɐǝɹ

The sun was setting.

Xion sat by herself on the edge of the clocktower -- no lingering memories swirling around her, at least perhaps not yet -- kicking her feet lightly and humming to herself. It was nice just to be here again; that was all she really needed, right now.

Lea, Isa, and Roxas were all in Spirale. Any relaxation she’d need was just home again. And so as she’d drifted off into her slumber, she’d woken up here, enjoying some ice cream and the view.

It was peaceful.

She was okay with that. She was okay with being here again.

And if anyone were to join her--

“Huh?”

--it seemed like someone was, actually. Turning to glance over her shoulder, Xion’s lips soon parted in slight surprise.

The last thing Roxas remembers is being back on Destiny Islands with everyone. Everything was right, as it should be. Everyone was reunited together, able to live they’ve all longed for. They were able to relax, enjoy themselves without any fights or anything of importance. Often, the most important thing on everyone’s mind was what was happening for dinner and who was going to cook it. There was no need for a keyblade beyond playfully sparring. There was no Ansem or Xehanort or anyone along those lines to defeat.

They were all home. Together. Finally.

Things were perfect until waking up in a foreign place, far away from home. Now, he was there and didn’t know what to think or do.

Until he hears his name. Roxas. In such a familiar voice, too. Xion…? No, ha. She’s not here. It’s merely his mind playing tricks on him to make up for his lack of company. He needs to keep walking forward, not bothering to look back. Maybe this clocktower has some magic or something to play with the minds of the weak. Probably something along the lines of “making them hear from someone they desperately wish they could see” or something. He’s used to that.

Even so, Roxas couldn’t shake this feeling. He couldn’t shake his heart’s desire to look back and see if Xion was really there.

Turning on the balls of his feet, he walks back to the face of the clocktower to see her. Xion.

Running wasn’t the wisest decision, but he did it thoughtlessly, without any real concern for himself. He stops right in front of her, unsure what to do, what to say. He simply stares and blinks, rubbing his eyes furiously.

“Xion…? Is that… really you? What are you doing here…?” If it was a phantom, she couldn’t respond but does she look so real. So… actually before him. He wants to hug her but if he does, he’s certain this illusion would go away. He simply must… stare and hold his ground. This was beyond cruel.

Even with him stopping and looking at her -- at her, not through her, seeing her -- Xion still believes for a moment that’s she’s making this all up. Even though she knows Isa and Lea are both here, it seems too unreal, too magical somehow, that Roxas might be able to be here too. It’s been so long since she was brought here. Too long. Why, only now, would whatever powers that be decide it was time for him to join them?

It can’t be real.

But--but--

His voice sounds so real. It really sounds like he’s there in front of her, talking to her. Xion’s lips part slightly, but no further sound escapes her. Not yet. She’s still scared the illusion might shatter.

“I’ve...” She slowly finds her voice, because the worst that can happen is he isn’t really here and she has to go back to living without him. But she’s already done that, for months. Best case scenario is he really is here, and if her hands weren’t full she has half a mind to pull out her phone and check the contacts to see if Roxas would be staring back at her. “... I’ve been here. For so long.”

It’s been months. Closer to half a year than not. Months that she was convinced he wasn’t going to show up -- still is convinced, really.

But he still hasn’t faded away, and it doesn’t take long for Xion’s lower lip to start trembling, for her face to crumple.

                    “  i wouldn’t quite call it lost,  per say,  maybe just unintentional exploration!  we can find our way back no sweat if we keep to the right side,  right?   ” 

               ://     @imaginaxion    ❤ ‘d     for a starter!

That didn’t logically sound like it would work. To anyone else, maybe. But to Xion, it had her clapping her hands together with excitement, giving a quick nod.

his body realized it had suddenly jumped slightly by the arms that were wrapped around his torso, well, barely as it was only just his shoulders but still– it wasn’t hard to imagine who it could be as he could just sense how small she was. he had only been traveling around for a few hours, trying to get a good grasp of where he was, completely different from the last world entirely. 

his head turns towards his back side and realizing he was right to assume it was her. of course he couldn’t help but smile upon seeing a familiar face. 

“xion…! it’s glad to see ya.” he greets her immediately while he never thought to try and shake her off of him but his body turns to her instead. the first thing he had to take notice of was xion’s change of appearance with widen eyes. “hey at least i’m not the only one looking like this, huh…?” lucky him. he wouldn’t say that he was impressed with his own appearance but he had to adapt to it hoping it wouldn’t be permanent. xion however, looked cute like that. not to say he preferred it. “cool cape, by the way.”

Xion gives a proud laugh, pulling back out of the hug sporting a proud grin that probably looks a lot more terrifying with her fangs than it does happy. “Yeah! I think we all sort of ended up looking this way, at least that I’ve seen.” She hadn’t found anyone else that she recognized, though, so she really only had herself, Lea, and Isa to base her observations off.

“Oh! Thanks! It’s pretty neat, isn’t it?” To show it off even further, she gives a little twirl. The cape spirals out around her. Even if getting used to the rest of her form change was more difficult than she’d like to admit, she had quickly gotten used to her cape. Might invest in one if they all ever returned to Spirale. “Your look suits you, too. And you look really soft...” Not that she's going to pet him unprompted.

But it’s tempting.

“Isa, Isa, look--!”

She gives the newly acquired sword of hers a little (perhaps too reckless) wave in the air.

✘ ━ @imaginaxion

Once he heard about the clocktower, Roxas knew it was somewhere he needed to go. Even if he couldn’t have ice cream or be with his friends, sitting at the top of a high place would be the best place to clear his mind.  No matter how much Roxas thought and internally repeated the same statement, those simple words didn’t convey his emotions well enough. He didn’t need to suppress his feelings any longer or fill his head with how he doesn’t have any emotions. He was free. He was open to feeling what he felt without interference or doubts, without his head being filled with lies or memories and emotions flooding him that didn’t belong to him. He was still connected to Sora and the others, but he could separate himself from them and be his own person. They were all their own person.

He was Roxas. No one else. Everyone was themselves, and they were able to exist and live out their lives as they chose to now with their own bodies yet again. That was until he was thrown into yet another predicament. Was whatever pulling strings for him too cruel to allow him a few more moments of rest before throwing him into another catastrophe. Was an ordinary life never an option to begin with? He knows he’s not supposed to exist but come on. Maybe he’s throwing off the universal balance. Who knows. All Roxas knew is that it was a gigantic pain in the neck.

To ground himself, Roxas’ nails bite into the concrete for a jolt of pain to surge through him, as he sits there with his emotions flowing through him, unmoving until he hears approaching steps. It snaps him out of his internal battle as he collects himself to leave for somewhere more private.

It’s nice to have things back to normal -- or at least as normal as they can get in this city. Whatever had happened weeks prior to drag them into that fantasy world they’d been in had been reverted, and she was back in Spirale, back with her own body. Back with the things she’d started getting so familiar with.

Xion likes having things to be able to ground herself with -- things that she can call home. And even if there had been similar places in Fantasia, there’s nothing quite like the clocktower in Spirale proper. Other than -- well. As far as things went, here, there's nothing like it.

So it makes sense that she was heading back to it, today.

She’d found Lea there, once upon a time, and she’d learned quickly that it for certain isn’t just her that enjoyed visiting it and taking in the view. It’s a change to how things were back in Twilight Town, where outside of her little -- well, less little, before she’d been grabbed away -- group, she never... saw anyone there.

Here, Xion’s seen all sorts of people. She’s taken to buying two ice creams on her visits, just in case, because even if anyone else up there didn’t want company, she knows the view’s always better with ice cream. And sometimes no one was up there at all, so she could treat herself to two!

Not that... it’s the same. She’d rather share.

She isn’t expecting anyone today, regardless; she expects everyone else to still be settling in from their return to Spirale, and with the eclipse a couple of days prior she knows there will be new friends being made and people reuniting with the old. That’s how it always went.

She reaches the top, lost in thought, and doesn’t process that there’s anyone else even up there at first until she spots movement out of the corners of her eyes. Xion raises her head properly, and stares.

She nearly drops both of the ice creams.

“Rox--”

“--Roxas?”

She’s hesitant to say his name, as if saying it out loud will prove that it isn’t really him, that it’s just someone else or some phantom that she’s conjured up lost in thought as she’d been. When he doesn’t vanish, she says it again with more conviction but still just as nervous.

There was only so much she could do. But she... she would do it.

  Did she feel it too? The slight dread of the kingdoms change. Her posture seemed almost heavy; hesitant. She was usually more spriteful… wasn’t she? Brows had come to knit themselves together before he fully realized it, paw coming to rest against his chin in thought. Surely he should know this – know enough about how Xion acted. So, then, why was it hard to…

    “Hm?”

  He watched the gesture she gave, studying it for a brief moment before his head began to tilt. Again, it felt as if he should know something more to this, and yet, everything remained blank. “… what, exactly, should I have memorized?”

  What a silly question.

    “Perhaps you can fill me in on the way home.”

He didn’t know.

That realization hit her hard -- too hard -- and she paused in her steps as a horrible, horrible realization crept over her.

She’d been forgotten.

“... Isa?”

Her mouth felt dry; she found herself staring up at Isa, unable to pry her gaze away. He’d been fine just last night, hadn’t he? He’d been fine at the start of the... night... and then--and then she hadn’t seen him until--

--had... had his Reaper... in that time... had it gotten to him?

What was she... supposed to do?

Another night over. Another sigh of relief that she could heave for having made it through. It meant that she could finally relax; make sure that everyone had been alright throughout the night and then finally catch up on the sleep she’d been missing too much of with all her worry and need to be safe.

As she trudged through the city streets -- mostly empty, given the state of how things were now, at night, with people avoiding coming outside until well into the morning -- Xion felt like her feet were too heavy. Too tired. Maybe she could... stop for a nap soon. That should be fine, right? Isa and Lea should be fine. Right?

But--wait, there. Someone else, another Beastkin by the looks of it, out on the road at this otherwise-dead hour. Knowing how tough the nights could be, Xion postponed her thoughts of naps, half sprinting (more speed-walking, really) up to the woman.

“Hey--!”

A small wave.

“Did you... make it through the night alright?”

    “ – Xion.”

  A simple calling of the name, wishing to grab the childs’ attention. Strange, though, how her name seemed to so easily roll off his tongue yet failed to carry much weight to it. As if there should be more that followed with it. They were housed together, here. One would think there would be more significance to knowing the identity.

  However, instead of further dwelling on it he merely blamed the hour of the day. The sun slowly sinking over the horizon, and their source of light beginning to dim. Minor panic for what arose at night must have clogged his mind.

    “The sun is starting to set; it’s getting late. We should be heading home.”   /   @imaginaxion

It didn’t sound... right.

Maybe it was just the way everything that had been going on in the past few days had left her feeling, but something about Isa’s tone of voice didn’t sit right with her. There was a tightness in her chest and a lump in her throat as she turned around, hesitantly raising her gaze to meet his own.

... they were Isa’s eyes, but they were the eyes of a stranger.

“... I... yeah, I guess we should.”

Despite her obvious hesitation she let herself give a quick sprint to catch up to where he stood, her tail held low.