A Disorganization Of Introductions - OTA

[nobodys_puppet]

Now that Xion and Lea have found each other, Xion isn’t letting him out of her sight if she can avoid it, afraid to find out that this wasn’t actually real. And that seemed to be mutual, so the two can be spotted the next day constantly with each other, as Xion shows him around from what she’s discovered. Which… mostly means good places to hide.

Xion’s hood would seem to be up to everyone but Lea until she actually pulls it down in the individual threads.

(Feel free to poke here to get a two for one reply!)

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Locked To Webby

[nobodys_puppet]

They had been walking along, when Xion spotted Webby and paused, not sure if she should approach, or run, or what. Webby hadn’t tried to hurt her or anything, and now that she knew she didn’t have to be forgotten, Webby’s memory was no longer terrifying. But Webby had offered to help with the research on the spell and she should let the girl know that it was no longer needed. But approaching people was still a bit nervous making. She was used to hanging back and letting Roxas or Axel interact with people.

Also… Webby was a bit intense.

But… she really should let her know that they didn’t need to do the research anymore… right? She looked up to Lea, unsure.

Locked to Eleven

[nobodys_puppet]

One of the places on the ‘places to hide’ tour was the temple Eleven had brought her to when the crowd had been chasing her. Somehow she had not thought through the fact that he knew the place well enough to hide her there because he frequented it. So she hadn’t expected to actually see him there. But once she saw him… she took a deep breath and then actually spoke to him, unprompted.

“When I said I had a friend who needed help getting his heart back….This is the friend I meant. Can… can you really help?”

Maybe Lea should have told her the whole being a Somebody now thing? Whoops.

Locked to Fluttershy

[nobodys_puppet]

Spotting the other girl she hesitated, then looked up at Lea and then, forgetting that she could be heard, “She…. said she wants to be my friend….” He would know what she should do… right? He always knew what she and Roxas should be doing.

Hero Worship has clearly not taken any noticeable hits. And common sense is at its usual low. Have fun with that.

Locked to Atem

[nobodys_puppet]

There was no hesitation when she saw him. All short foot nothing of Xion moved to get ahead of Lea and she took a defensive pose between Atem and her friend. She thrust her hand out for her Keyblade, but when it didn’t come she didn’t budge, her eyes narrowed under her hood.

“I won’t let you attack him,” she snapped at Atem. “And you don’t own either of us!”

Locked to Peridot

[nobodys_puppet]

Once again, Xion needs to learn that people can hear her when she talks. And also that maybe talking about someone like they aren’t there is not a behaviour she should have learned from Saix….

Because she looked up at Lea. “She… She says she isn’t a Nobody or a Heartless, but she doesn’t have a heart….” How… was that even possible? Even after Peridot had explained, it still made no sense to Xion….

[king_of_egypt]

Ever since that first day, Atem hadn't caught sight of the diminutive girl who had been so determined to end her life. It was troubling, to say the least so when he finally did cross her path he felt this odd sense of relief. The mistrust was still there, evident from her swift reaction to his presence but she was still alive.

"Attack?!" He repeated a note of surprise in his voice as he glanced between the two of them. The boy she was trying to protect towered over both Xion and Atem. Did this stranger really need her to look out for him? He looked formidable on his own.

Oh, Ra. This was already off to an awkward start. With a nervous chuckle Atem raised his hands defensively to show that he wasn't carrying anything resembling a weapon. "I wouldn't dream of it... and I seem to recall telling you before that one person could never truly own another." Not so long as those individuals possessed free will.

[bearshermark]

Eleven turned from his prayer, eyes widening to find the two of them standing there, then settled into an uneasy smile.

He nodded.

"My power comes from Light and Life. Once I regain it, I believe I will be able to. There is a Heart I need to restore in my own world, too."

[nobodys_puppet]

This is what Xion looks like when she has someone to protect.

"You said that while using your magic to take me away from where I had chosen to be to force me to do what you wanted," she snapped, unconvinced by the raised hands, especially given it had been his familiar who had spelled her.

"I won't let you to that to him."

[hotheadwarmheart]

'Well, that escalated quickly,' was Lea's second thought. His first thought had been mild surprise and amusement at meeting someone with even wilder hair than his own, but then Xion had jumped between the two of them like the other young man was a Heartless and... yeah.

"Hey, wait, hold up!", he said, stepping around Xion to get between them and hoping to prevent it going any further. "What the heck is going on here?" He looked from one to the other expectantly, hoping they would shed some light on the situation.

[nobodys_puppet]

She tried to stay between them, while also trying to not get closer to Atem. Neat trick, or would be if she was any good at it.

"He used his floating spell thing to steal me and drag me where he wanted to be. I won't let him do that to you!"

[hotheadwarmheart]

Lea had been about to greet the other young man, when somewhat to his surprise, Xion did so for him. Apparently she and the other boy had met before. But the request she made of him had him returning the other boy's rather uneasy smile with one of his own. He suddenly very much regretted not giving Xion his planned explanation before they'd set off on this little tour.

"Er, yeah, about that...", he said awkwardly. "That whole Nobody thing... not really an issue any more. At least not for me."

[nobodys_puppet]

Xion looked back at Lea, so confused. "Axel...?"

She wanted to hear more about what Eleven had to say, now that she no longer thought she had to be forgotten and die. If nothing else, maybe it could help Roxas. But... what did Axel mean about.... it not being an issue for him any more?

[hotheadwarmheart]

Lea put a hand on Xion's shoulder, a less subtle signal for her to stay put. "I appreciate you trying to protect me, but after sparring with Xigbar a few times, I think I can handle a little floating," he said.

He then turned his gaze to the wild-haired teen. "Is that true?", he asked. He really didn't want to cause any more of a scene than they probably already were, but if this guy had done something to Xion...

[bearshermark]

"Oh," his smile fell to relief, briefly assured he wouldn't need to be performing any miracles just then. "Is that so? I'm glad to hear it. ...Could I ask how it happened?"

[hotheadwarmheart]

"I was gonna tell you after the... tour thing," Lea said to Xion. "It was supposed to be part of the big explanation. See, I did get my heart back. And so did most all the others who originally became Nobodies in Radiant Garden. That guy I mentioned, Ienzo? He's Zexion's Somebody. And I'm Lea again. You can still call me Axel, though."

He turned to the other young man, expression still sheepish. "Well, first someone with a Keyblade must have defeated my Heartless," he said. "Did Xion tell you what those are? And then my Nobody was destroyed too. At the time, I thought that was it, but then suddenly, I'm waking up in the castle at Radiant Garden's basement lab, whole again."

[nobodys_puppet]

Okay, Xion was super confused now. And a little staggered. Axel... had his heart back. And so did Zexion.... and he was helping them?

Yeah, she was out of the discussion for a moment, trying to process that.

[woo_oo]

Cheerful as always, Webby spotted the two and immediately began heading over.

"Hey you two found each other! That's great! Are you best friends now? Or enemies turned to friends? Did you help her find the spell? ... Oh, well, I guess not, since I still remember her."

[bearshermark]

Graced with only a half-remembered conversation as reference, Eleven only partially understood the explanation itself. He chanced a glance at Xion, briefly concerned for her, then turned back to Axel- ..or Lea?

He fidgeted. "I don't believe so. Xion said she'd lost her heart and that was why she is a Nobody, but then.. what is a Heartless?"

[valkyriefoodie]

Hmm? A pair of suspicious looking people ducking in an out of hiding places? And one of them was wearing a cloak to hide their face!!? Suspicious activity like this needed to be investigated!

Skuld fell into step behind the pair, following them to see what sort of trouble they might be trying to stir up, but always ducking behind the nearest pillar or desk if they happened to look back her way. It was a good plan as Valkyrie's could be very fast and light on their feet except she had a massive pair of wings that might have occasionally stuck out from her concealed locations... oopsy.

[nobodys_puppet]

She hesitated, then took a breath. "This is Axel. He and Roxas are my best friends. And apparently the spell worked the first time, when Naminé cast it. I... I did what I had to do."

[nobodys_puppet]

She winced a bit, but did not clarify. Technically she had said that was how Nobodies were made, and that she was a Nobody and never corrected the very strong implication there. But Axel was one of the few people who knew the truth.

Knew that she never had a heart to begin with. That she was an experiment, not even a true Nobody.

But... But... if Axel had a heart now.. if he was a Somebody... why did he still want to be best friends with a Nobody like her? HAd... Fluttershy been right? That it didn't matter if she had a heart, so long as the other person did?

[nobodys_puppet]

Given all their recon missions with the Organization, Xion was pretty good at spotting things by this point, and the hood really didn't seem to hinder her ability to see. Another thing one has to learn quickly in the Organization.

She presumed Axel had caught on to the fact that they were being followed as well, and she tried to summon her Keyblade, to have it ready.

But of course nothing happened. She glanced up at Axel to see what he was planning to do about their shadow.

[hotheadwarmheart]

Lea nodded. "Yeah," he said to Webby. "Turns out I did know 'XIV', here; I just couldn't remember. Crazy, right?"

Glancing over at Xion, he explained. "I ran into your friend here yesterday," he said. "I got a little lost, so she showed my how to get to the dorm."

[nobodys_puppet]

The word friend stunned her a moment. Was... Webby a friend? If Axel said she was then she was....?

[hotheadwarmheart]

"A Heartless," Lea explained, "is what becomes of someone's heart when it's stolen. It's consumed by darkness and turns into a monster that can't itself feel anything, or even think, really. All a Heartless has is the instinct to attack people and steal their hearts in order to make more Heartless. Only a Keyblade can defeat a Heartless for good; other weapons work temporarily, but since they don't purify the heart and get rid of the darkness like a Keyblade does, the Heartless will just reform someplace else a bit later."

Lea noticed how quiet Xion had gotten during his explanation and frowned slightly in concern. This was partly why he'd wanted to get the whole explanation out of the way at once, and in private if possible. "Hey," he said, resting a hand on Xion's shoulder, "it's OK. I'll explain everything later, but for right now, don't overthink it. There might be a little more to me now, but it's still just me. And even if other things change, it's not gonna change the fact that we're friends. Got it memorized?"