#13nth

The ocean was a song, a whisper of a memory, feint at the periphery of Xion's mind. Rolling waves of sapphire, golden sand beaches, and the waxy, emerald leaves of the plants that rooted in the silty soil. No sooner did the sight flash before her eyes, was it gone. Fleeting and feint, her focus returned to Roxas.

"You're right, we've," she hesitated. Even with all his bravado, Xion could see the cracks in Roxas' uneven balance and strained voice. These attacks, brief flashes of weakness, were becoming more common. What was causing them? "We've gotten stronger. And working together definitely helps."

She smiled but she didn't feel like it reached her eyes. Didn't feel like Roxas would be convinced by it. Something was wrong. Something was wrong with him, with her, the organization. Everything. And everything had to do with who and what they were, or weren't.

Xemnas promised that everything would get better once they had hearts.

If Xion was honest with herself, she no longer believed that.

◖ oh . . ◗ belated realization exhale . A brace soft comfort reflect on dim shade of cerulean . He has been the one whom give her answers . One that somehow even for short-while manage to dissipate the storm within . Yet he would be part of it sometimes . It was fated to be complicated . Their existence .

A firm denial comes from him . Maybe if she heard this response way before she would have speak & share the weigh. But she had no time to elaborate not anymore . regret swell within . how would she leave him in the confusion she herself suffered from .

◖ yes this might be wrong , but it is not misunderstanding Roxas ◗

it was not . Not when the evidence of his existence being threatened . This is wrong for her. even so , right for him . When did she become to this ? To give his existence the better ground . To be selfish enough & let him carry the burden of cutting the strings of a puppet .

Has an actual heart manifest together with sora’s memories ? What is this immense ache that is disperse through her chest . She was not given chance to voice this inquiry . As cold slip into her hollow frame a kin to how a human death would be .

ㅤㅤ ↪     ･     𝙵𝙸𝙻𝙻𝙾𝚁𝚈 & 𝙵𝚄𝚁𝚃𝙷𝙴𝚁.  :    ... accepting!

@13nth:   ‘‘ i'm obviously coming with you. ’’  

ㅤㅤ 𝐈𝐓'𝐒 𝐓𝐑𝐀𝐆𝐈𝐂 𝐀𝐒 𝐌𝐔𝐂𝐇 𝐀𝐒 𝐈𝐓 𝐈𝐒 𝐌𝐄𝐀𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐅𝐔𝐋 ㅤㅤthat xion has gotten everything from roxas. to her creators, they would say she was supposed to: ㅤㅤa replica made to steal his every facet; ㅤㅤhis keyblade, his fighting-style, his memories.ㅤㅤ they didn't expect he'd see her as a person. ㅤㅤthey didn't expect she'd see herself as a person through him.ㅤㅤ sun-ray smiles and the crack of splitting two popsicles apart; sunrise, when she caught him waiting when she turned the corner; sunset, when she placed sea-shells by his pillow, the ocean captured by his sleeping ear.

ㅤㅤhe is her best friend who made way for two. but if she were to attribute everything to roxas, she'd have to attribute everything to sora, as well: that boy in her his memories, the origin of where her and roxas began.

ㅤㅤand also where'd they end. roxas always worries: he can't help it. his brows are already furrowed, and there's a stubborn line to his lips he can't shake. maybe best friends to them means something like: together. ㅤㅤthrough everything, together.ㅤㅤ we'll figure it out, together.

ㅤㅤ‘‘ not this time, roxas, ’’  xion says. she is the sea and he is the sun and only the moon has a say in it all. ㅤㅤor: she knows he will try to stop her. she also knows he can't. ㅤㅤshe's more his eclipse anyway ㅤㅤ ━ㅤㅤ letting none of his light seep through. if she had a heart it must be like a chasm, for nothing is as hard as saying no to him. for leaving him alone.

ㅤㅤ everything could be false, manufactured or forged, her connection to roxas just a copy of something real. ㅤㅤ but copy or not, it'd still be real to her. ㅤㅤ ‘‘ you'll be okay, ’’ㅤㅤ  she tells him, her smile shallow waters, ㅤㅤ ‘‘ i promise. ’’

ㅤㅤ maybe because she stole all the important pieces of sora from him, he was able to be his own person.ㅤㅤ  to her, roxas is fierce, and headstrong, and willing to forsake everything to continue their sun-dyed forevers. ㅤㅤ he is the strongest boy she knows, harsher-edged and focused.ㅤㅤ  so: he'll have to forgive her for being selfish just this once.

ㅤㅤ hands clasped behind her back, xion's smile fades from view.ㅤㅤ  ‘‘ i'll be protecting you this time, ’’ ㅤ  she asserts. it's not a kind thing to do. but it's better than losing him.

for the botanical hc meme - bay tree, lilac, poppy! ♡ ⸻ @13nth

bay tree : does your muse seek glory & accolades , or do they favour a simpler , more personal life ?

he absolutely favors a simpler and more personal life . he loves the people around him and yearns for nothing more than to experience an average life full of love and peace . from a young age he's had this title thrust upon him that he did not want , and all of these rules , regulations , training regimens , titles , events , etc . , etc . and all he's ever wanted was to be a kid who got to play outside and sleep in on the weekends . that's a lot of the reason he presses to go to a public school . despite the barrier between him and the other students , he got to experience what they experience . he got to feel closer to feeling human . it's a lot of the reason he moved into his own apartment in his late teens ; the life in the citadel ? he never felt like that was his own , or that he truly belonged there . in a life born into extravagance , he cannot help but yearn for the simplicities of life . the struggle of a day - to - day working citizen . how can he love people in the way that he wishes if he can never understand them ?

lilac : what was your muse’s childhood like ? how has their upbringing affected them as they’ve aged ?

tw : parental death !!

so this definitely ties in with my last answer ! he was brought up being told he was special , some chosen king who will purge this star of its scourge , that he is a prophesied existence , which made him feel like this life was never his to live . like destiny would have its way with him and he'd not have a say in its unfolding . when he's really young , he doesn't understand . in actuality , i don't think he fully grasps it until he's forced to during the game's canon , but as a kid , it always felt like a heavy weight . his mother , aulea , passed away when he was eight years old , and his father , the king , regis , had little time to spend with him most days . he spent a lot of time training , studying , learning , reading . . . but it always felt a bit hollow . people loved him , but he never saw it in a way that they loved him for him . he saw their love as a respect for his title as prince and nothing more , leading him to a rather lonely and isolated feeling childhood . i do think the days he spent with aulea were warm , as well as regis , but after the traumatic daemon attack , things were never quite the same . his teenage years were spent dutifully studying and attending class , making great marks and exceeding academically as well as in the eyes of society . though , he didn't have many people he'd consider his friends . this is kind of when he starts forming stronger bonds with prompto , ignis , and gladio , though , so he starts to really spend more time with them , as with them , he begins to feel that sense of belonging he's always wished for . though , he still rejects his princely duties and easily cops an attitude when forced to accept them . again , he doesn't really accept he will one day be king until we see him struggling with it in game . it really is something he adamantly fights against thinking about despite the stress it causes as he pushes it away . of all of the things his kingship would include , a prominent one is the death of his father , and he had been forced to think of that each and every time one wished to prepare him for the throne . he rejected it and rejected it , feared it , until the day did finally come , and even still , he could not bring himself to call himself king . it's an internal battle he's fought all his life .

poppy : what comforts your muse ?

i think this one has two distinct answers ! it depends on how he's feeling and how/why he's seeking comfort . usually , no matter what , he will find comfort by lakeside or seaside , casting his line and watching the water as he awaits a fish's next bite . a particular breeze is often favored , and it helps to refresh his mind and clear his thoughts . for him , it's almost like a meditation . the quietness , the familiarity of the water , and the vastness of existence . he likes those moments of solitude where he can unwind and recharge , letting go of every day stressors and allowing him a chance to reconnect with himself .

Leon got a message from his dad, it'd been a few years almost a decade, but that was due to a lack of keyblade users, aside from himself. he'd heard about the strange kid with checkered colored clothes and two keyblades. Sounded like someone sora mentioned a few times probably, that kid talked so quickly it was oft hard to keep track. he stepped onto the arena ground, the sound of metal echoed throughout what once was a bustling meeting ground was quiet.

Haha it's meta || @13nth

He can never be completely certain. Doubt creeps in the back of his mind like a lingering shadow. Reminds him of the few failures amid his successes, the sting of watching his loved ones get ripped away from him.

But he can't let that get the better of him. The fact is, Sora has more friends by his side now than he's ever had before. Their strength is his strength.

❝ Yeah. ❞ Sora smiles, meeting Roxas's eyes. They're so familiar, and yet so distinctly Roxas's. They may resemble his own, but there's something about them that belongs to him, and only him. And getting to see them face-to-face -- physically, not just within his own heart -- reminds Sora of just what he needs to be strong for. Why he's lucky that the Keyblade chose him at all.

⌜☬⌟ ➡ "I figured you guys wouldn't come here again." Darkling sighed not even sure what to say. He was tired from training body covered in nothing but a sleeveless top that showed small healed scars riddling arms. Even by now he was use to them and didn't care if people saw them but he still pulled on a jacket to cover them. "So what's going on for those of Light to come seek out me." Vanitas took a seat on the rock and looked at his visitor in curious fashion.