#kh lea

Me: oh Axel

My father : no it's Lea

Is there anything strange you have noticed about X? If so what?

ienzo my beloved sunshine boy

Wip of ienzo below cut

might try to finish the sea salt trio today but for now will show off Axel and Roxas since these two already designed and even have lore

first up we have Axel, and uhhhh

you can see we're quite the maximalist kajshdkjashdkjashd

Axel's a Guardian, and if you're not familiar with FR lore one of the main thing about Guardians is that every single one has some kind of a charge. this could be any form of devout protection/service that they decide to dedicate their lives to, whether that's a general thing (like we used to have a Guardian whose charge was ensuring proper burial of dragons who didn't have anyone to take care of their body) or a more distinct person or thing

Axel here is broken, for he has no charge, and he is surely no Guardian without one. he struggles to spend time with other Guardians and has effectively given up on the idea of ever caring about anything, because if a Guardian isn't even looking for a charge then what's his claim to such a name?

it is absolutely not charge-related that he's devoted himself to protecting the two kids he's made friends with, and will do literally anything just to keep them safe. this is merely circumstantial and he does NOT have a charge, DON'T ask him about it, he's a BROKEN Guardian!

and then, of course, Roxas

moon fucking shine down upon whoever made the light and shadow swords work together SO PERFEFCTLY that we got to allude to oathkeeper and oblivion in this design!!!!

Roxas is a Pearlcatcher, who typically when they hatch they eat their entire shell and later regurgitate it into a shining pearl that is the physical embodiment of their soul, something to cherish and protect and stand as proof of the dragon that they are

Roxas doesn't get along well with other Pearlcatchers, because he doesn't have a physical pearl. instead he has a rotating cast of objects that feel like his pearl to him, which he will hold and cherish and protect because if a pearl is just an object, then why can't any object be a pearl?

other dragons rarely listen to him, they tell him he's hollow without his pearl, that he must be a terrible dragon to have lost or broken it, and they don't believe him when he says he's just never had one

at work they're Nobodies so everything is fake, sure, but they still have physical bodies they get tired and it'd be easier to let themselves relax once in a while. but people like Zexion because he's quiet and complacent, they like Axel because he's funny and gets shit done, they like Demyx because he's an idiot they get to make fun of

Zexion suffers from brain fog and sometimes has to lie through his teeth until he can recover and get actual work done. he's the kind of quiet and awkward that people treat him like a high schooler who hasn't grown old enough to earn respect, he gets so casually made fun of and belittled but there's nothing to be done because half the value in spending time around him is making fun of the autistic kid

Demyx likewise is the village idiot, entertainment in place of genuine value. he has no idea what his brain has going on but it's so hard to do, like… everything. but he gets written off as stupid rather than needing accomodations. he's scared to even think about leaving because he can't imagine anywhere else that'd actually keep him employed while struggling so much

Axel finally is a favourite of the higher ups beceuse he so ruthlessly sacrifices himself, and his coworkers because he wears a mask so snappy and hilarious. he gleefully shit-talks and keeps pace with anything that anyone has to offer, but the moment he falters he's suddenly a buzzkill because he isn't being fun. he isn't allowed to just do a good job, he should personify team morale the whole time

they're all stuck here for such different reasons, and while they've got each other for now the time on this trio is limited

because Zexion leaves for castle oblivion, then so does Axel, and Demyx is left to think neither of them will be coming back

eventually Axel shows up, and that might just be worse

if they were both gone, Demyx could just get used to the change. instead it's him and Axel and the aching reminder that they use to be three transmasc idiots sitting on the floor late at night unmasking around each other instead of sleeping

Demyx might be upset that they never really hang out anymore, if he had a heart, and if he had a single idea as to what he and Axel would even talk about

eventually Axel disappears too, and Demyx starts falling asleep before midnight

it isn't for a while until Axel and Ienzo are suddenly able at all to talk, and they really don't know what to do with themselves. Ienzo's been trying to unmask, he gets more downtime than he used to, but really he's just exchanged that placid somber mask for one with a smile

and even if he knows it's a mask, Axel is scared to kill the vibe. he's all grief and regret, trying to be here for Kairi but struggling with everything he's ever lost

let alone the last time they spoke, everything that Axel ever did under order and out of desperate attempt to appease everyone above him. Axel is so deeply familiar with regret but has no idea what to do with it, aside from letting it rot in the back of his mind

someday he'll talk to Zexion, and apologize, but he doesn't know when. someday

and Demyx, while the other two have been through hell, remains unchanged. eternal. stupid and moronic and worth more for entertainment than he is anything genuine. he wonders why they keep him around at all, when they've got intelligent powerhouses and everyone far more capable than him

he supposes he's mere bodycount, and he knows it must be true, but some corner of his mind begs for it to be deeper than that. to be more than a name on a contract

Two sides of the same coin