Something to Fight For [Demyx]

Even though the sun was in the sky, something about it was much less bright than usual. It was disturbing in a strange sense, though the sixth didn't allow his mind to dwell on it too terribly much. Steel eyes grazed the area with caution. The two of them had descended in the alleyways of traverse town, as multiple citizens of the population had come out screaming, saying that there was some sort of monster down here. The "beady yellow eyes" description could only mean one thing, and it was something that they, as ex-Organization members, were quite used to. 

Heartless hadn't been much of a problem around here recently, but one couldn't expect them to just lay dormant forever. They fed off of the hatred of individual people, so eradicating them completely was virtually impossible. The thought of the statement caused the illusionist to think about that boy that had ascended the floors in Castle Oblivion; even though what he was fighting for was void and useless, he continued to struggle up each flight of stairs. How could someone fight so hard for nothing?

Maybe that was what separated him from an actual human. He wouldn't ever understand that. 

Zexion brushed the veil of hair out of his face, trying to peer through the dimly lit area. There was an array of torches, but a lick of flame only went so far when it came to visibility. This was a popular hang out spot, as well as training arena used by many people, simply because it was secluded from the rest of the town and didn't cause any disturbances. This time, the only potential disturbance was a rather dangerous one. 

"Keep your eyes peeled. It could be in any of these shadows." The weather had begun to warm up, so the little figure that was known as Zexion was clothed much more like a normal person, a pair of jeans and navy-blue shirt bought for him by his companion. Was... Was that the proper term to call Demyx at this point? He wasn't sure, simply because he wasn't well-versed upon these matters. 

The blond next to him, however, brought him a sense of comfort that he wouldn't have otherwise, so.. All of the rest was irrelevant. Zexion continued to step forward, making sure that he stayed on a main path, so they would not be lead astray. The last thing that they needed was to get lost down here, though he wasn't sure if that was even a possibility. The fire would help them out, correct? Maybe he was just feeling nervous... That was what that pit in his stomach was, wasn't it? He wasn't familiar with this sensation, as his missions in the Organization were very clean-cut and to the point. 

A noise caught his attention, causing him to whip around and peer behind him. He thought he saw a pair of yellow eyes staring at him, but.. They were gone before he could be sure it wasn't just his mind playing tricks on him. How funny it would be if the illusionist's own mind was failing him to that extent.

    Ah. Mission time. How... joyous was he to be able to participate in a bout of fighting? Not very much. If it had been a choice between licking a hundred rusty nails or fighting a few heartless, he would've looked up how detrimental ingesting rust was to his health. At least he had Zexion with him, if for nothing more than non-verbal support. Demyx hadn't actually seen very much of the Schemer in combat, had only heard things. A lot of it dealt with the giant book he could summon, and lots of mind trickery. He made another check mark by the "never make Zexion mad" bullet point on the checklist in is mind. He really didn't feel like finding out what all Zexion was capable of. 

    "Yeah yeah, I know Zex. Recon was my specialty, remember?" He snorted, making a move to ruffle Zexion's hair. It had been a couple weeks since their bedroom escapade. The subject of what they were to each other hadn't really come up in conversation but, while some sort of label would've been nice, Demyx wasn't overly concerned. The other Nobody didn't seem like too much of an emotional guy, and clearly liked him enough to do the horizontal tango with him. So. It was whatever. 

    Demyx startled when the Schemer whipped around, too wrapped up in his thoughts to hear the scuffling noise near them. He was about the ask what was up in an irritated tone when more scuffling was heard. Great! Awesome! Wow! Fighting! At this point, he hoped it was just a cat trapped in a bag or something that was making a ton of racket and really spooky sounds. Heartless were not on his list of things to take care of today. Nonetheless, he summoned Arpeggio, resting the butt of the instrument against his thigh as he gripped it with both hands. 

Yeah yeah, I know Zex. Recon was my specialty, remember?

Perhaps he should have put a little more thought into such a statement before bringing it out in the open. Demyx was specialized in "recon," though that was only because the higher ups in the Organization didn't see him fit to do anything more strenuous. To be fair, the blond male didn't exactly show his worth in the usefulness department, but that never really bothered Zexion too terribly much. He didn't mind the affairs of others, just as long as his own work got done and he was able to tend to his books at the end of the day.

The noises that were filling the chamber-like alleyway were much too loud and too close together for them to simply be considered the noise of the collected rainwater. The Nobody turned to his side to see a pair of yellow beads, staring directly at him not even five feet away. The sixth made a gasp of surprise, automatically summoning Lexicon to his right hand, but his efforts simply weren't fast enough.

The Heartless reared its heavy hand and swiped at the teen with unforgiving claws. Zexion was able to miss entirety of the blow by the skin of his teeth, but he did suffer a few scratches on his shoulder that tore directly through the shirt that Demyx had gotten for him. That was.. Horrible.

Zexion made a small noise of pain as the shock settled off, the harsh stinging of the darkness seeping into his skin from the gashes not exactly feeling too delightful. He grimaced and scowled towards the creature, who revealed itself to be a Dark Thorn. These things weren't to be messed with, and it seemed as though they had meandered directly into the belly of the beast.. Or rather the belly containing the beast. There was no way they could outrun the Heartless - the only way out of this would be to fight, and to win.

Lexicon began to float in his hand, the pages turning rapidly as the Nobody mentally flipped through a multitude of spells he had stashed away within the leather covers. Lexicon stopped its whirring as soon as the desired page was found, and a few words were muttered in a low voice in Zexion's voice. Balls of bright red flame appeared all around his person in the form of a semicircle before shooting towards the Heartless without remorse.

They were a direct hit, but it didn't phase the creature much, as it turned its anger, hatred and rage not toward the one who had attacked, but towards the other person in the room. Zexion saw it happen in slow motion: the Dark Thorn melted into the shadows and appeared behind the only person in this life that the sixth deemed important. His eyes widened and he reached out with his hurt arm, lips parting to try and say something, but the amount of time he had just.. Wasn't enough.

With a might roar, the Heartless used its claws in a furious swipe.

Oh come on. This was a joke, right? The complaints had been about Heartless, not this monstrosity. He'd seen it only once, when he'd ventured out to Beast's Castle to see what all the fuss was about concerning some talking furniture. Demyx hadn't really known why; they'd run into talking fish and merpeople. Talking furniture couldn't have possibly been the weirdest thing. He hadn't been back since, and seeing the creature only served to make his stomach drop.


They couldn't run, couldn't hide, were probably out manned, and unless Zexion had something up his sleeve they were out planned too. He didn't know if they could hold their own. All Demyx could think was how much he wished for a machine to go back in time so he could take training seriously. Or have done more partnered missions, because fighting alongside another person was a whole different ball game. Even if it was Zexion by his side. He watched, still frozen in place, as Zexion fired off a magic spell. It looked powerful, but it didn't seem to have much effect on the creature's health. Didn't these guys have a weakness? He couldn't remember anything. God, why couldn't he remember?


Demyx's eyes widened as the Heartless melted into the ground, and he looked at Zexion. Would he have to protect him? Could he protect him? It took longer than he expected for their enemy to pop up, and he was only aware of the position right before it struck out with its claws, Zexion's face giving it away. Behind him. Of course it had been behind him. That's how it always went down in action movies. A surge of pain swept through his body as he felt the claws dig into his right arm and back, causing him to bellow a curse. The arm that had been struck suddenly became useless, his shirt definitely becoming soaked with blood in a matter of seconds.


The blonde whipped around in a sudden burst of adrenaline,  let out an angered yell as he forced a large geyser to burst from the ground beneath the Heartless. It seemed to only be enough to knock the monster off its feet, and Demyx fell to his knees. Pain, pain. There was so much pain and hurt and stinging and it was overloading his mind. His breathing became shaky as he white knuckle gripped his instrument, groaning with every breath. All he wanted to do at that moment was curl around his instrument, do anything to make the pain go away. He couldn't think about Zexion, couldn't even think about the monster. Just the pain.

The spout of water from the ground was extraordinarily impressive, the element displaying only a fraction of what the blond's potential truly was, Zexion was sure of it, but it simply wasn't enough to knock the thing over for too long. It was lifted from its feet and toppled over on its side, but the Dark Thorn was back on his disfigured feet after a few seconds.

Blood was seeping through the ninth's shirt. The stench of iron filled the air, and the stinging that Zexion had previously felt upon his shoulder was ultimately gone for the time being. His stomach was clenched as the strange chemical of adrenaline rushed through his veins. His empty chest was filled with somewhat of a purpose, and he felt that purpose intensify the more he looked into the opposing pair of beady yellow orbs.

For a few moments, Lexicon remained still, the pages ceasing to turn anywhere to get any sort of spell ready. His expression was that of shock, horror, bewilderment, fear, and ultimately, rage. Demyx was the one thing in this life that he viewed housed importance. Demyx was the one thing that made him feel any shred of life, rather than simply being a simple shell. The Heartless gave another roar, the sound bouncing off of the stone walls and piercing the skulls of anyone who was in earshot.

Unfortunately, the creature was continuing to keep his attention on the injured Nocturne, who had taken his place on the floor. It had started to trudge toward the tall Nobody, leaving Zexion for the scent of blood. The sixth stared frozen for a few more seconds, his body only reacting when the Dark Thorn's arm was raised above Demyx's head, getting ready to strike yet again. If that attack landed, the life that was so important to the illusionist could have been...

Gone.

"Stopga."

The Dark Thorn was frozen. In an almost calm manner, the sixth walked over toward Demyx, looking down at him with a blank expression, though there wasn't anything in the form of anger directed to him. He was simply... glad. Glad that he was alive, and now completely aware of not only the appreciation he had for his musician, but the dependency he had attached to him. Leaning down, not paying any mind toward the Heartless put into an almost cryogenic state behind him, Zexion pressed his hand against the Nobody's back, feeling the wetness of the blood against the palm of his hand.

"Curaga." The word was gentle, quiet and calm. Green light surrounded them for a few moments, and the wound managed to seal itself, though Demyx still wouldn't be in any condition to fight. He needed a multitude of rest and couldn't stress himself with trivial matters such as this. Zexion rose up to his full height then, slowly turning to face the Heartless, who was now starting to fidget, showing that the spell wouldn't be in effect for too much longer. His sleek eyes narrowed, the pupil becoming almost like a pinprick, as though the sun were shining directly upon his face.

"Stay behind me."

As soon as the Stop magic ceased to exist, the heavy arm of the creature was met with an intense barrier, one that showed itself in the form of translucent diamonds the moment impact was made. It was true, when he was in the Organization, he viewed all of his opponents unworthy and didn't figure they could stand up to the magic he had within his body. His studies had given him a variety of magical options, and the manna he maintained was on an almost unbelievable level. To a keyblade, however, he would never stand a chance.

But to a Heartless...

The Lexicon's leather covers melted away, the pages scattering and levitating all around him. His eyes darted every which way, taking in all of their contents in a matter of milliseconds. With the Reflect spell in place, the two of them would be safe for the time being. Such things could only last for so long, though, and the Schemer was perfectly aware. This was a Heartless, so going into the thing's mind wouldn't do him much good. What he could do, however, was use that lack of intelligence to his advantage. The sixth muttered what sounded like gibberish under his breath, only to prove that the words were in a ritualistic order.

It resulted in five different clones of his being appearing all around the Dark Thorn, confusing the beast. It howled in rage, swiping at all of them, but such actions were all in vain. The clones would disperse, then simply appear in a different location. As the Heartless was distracted, Zexion held his hand out in front of him, gathering specific pages from the surrounding area and placing them next to one another, their words fitting together to make perfect sense within the scholar's mind.

This new drive was something he felt he needed to protect. The hurt in his chest that he felt when he heard the other's curse in pain.. The concern that hounded him and forced him to be the savior of the one that had made himself known as a slacker. What was this? That sting in his arm was intensifying, he could feel it, but he wasn't going to allow himself to succumb to any sort of physical or emotional pain that would have been possible.

He wouldn't yield. Not this time. Not ever again.

Zexion said the words that were in front of him, a strange energy making itself present above them. It was as if some portal to another world had opened up, but it was only a gateway. It was the most powerful attack he knew, and it was the one he would use to destroy this heathenish being. Glowing red rocks coated in a blanket of fire whirled in through the opening, targeted towards the Dark Thorn and striking it without any sort of mercy. He would not allow Demyx to get hurt like this, and he would destroy anything that threatened to do harm to the thing he cherished most. The Heartless made a noise rather inhuman as it perished under the magical attack, firing a barrage of spears made entirely out of darkness as a lost resort to destroy whatever had bested it.

One of those spears managed to break through the reflect spell, and it hit Zexion directly in the middle of his chest, and he grimaced audibly, but he didn't let it falter him quite yet. The pain wasn't as bad as he would have thought - he figured with some sleep next to Demyx, he would be alright. The pages disintegrated into nothingness, joining back with Lexicon as if nothing had happened. As the reflect died down, the small Nobody then fell to his knees, taking in deep breaths - he had ultimately drained himself.

But because of the person behind him..

It was worth it.

This was it. It had to be. He felt too awful for it to get better couldn't get enough breath, couldn't stop the world from spinning around him. Arpeggio disappeared in a flash of bubbles, and Demyx curled up on his side. Any other time he would've been melodramatic, but it was just bleak. He vaguely registered all the commotion coming to a stop, felt himself sharply suck in air as a hand touched his wounds. Soon enough, Demyx started gasping and wheezing at the sudden feeling of being okay. Not fantastic, not 'start the day with a smile and a balanced breakfast' good, just alright. He couldn't do much more than obey Zexion, stiffly crawling behind the other Nobody. 


The next few minutes were definitely an eye opener for Demyx in terms of seeing Zexion's capabilities. What the hell. As much as he wanted to lie down again, the display of power before him was too magnificent for him to not pay attention to. He'd figured that the Schemer was more of a magic user than a physical or defensive fighter, given his physique and mindset. But... This? If the question mark could be turned into an emotion, that's what Demyx was feeling. The other Nobody was so intense, so focused on destroying the Heartless it was kind of scary. It was a foreign thing to him.

He had to close his eyes at the end of it all, the sheer volume of fiery rocks bringing in too much light for them to handle properly. Demyx only opened his eyes again he heard a sound of pain, definitely human. There wasn't enough energy for him to spare reacting quickly, but he closed the distance between them nonetheless. "Zexion?" Demyx croaked, hissing a little as he moved to get on his knees. The Schemer looked exhausted, downright wiped, but was hopefully alright good enough to get home because Demyx was definitely not in any shape to carry him.

The separation that he felt between his mind and his body was unlike anything he had ever experienced before. Usually, Zexion was so in tune with everything around him and everything inside of him, but recently, so many different things had been happening that uprooted everything he thought he knew from what he now considered to be the truth. The differentiation between the two topics was.. Uncanny. Disturbing, in a sense, as well.

"Nn..." He made a small noise of acknowledgement whenever Demyx had spoken to him, saying nothing but his name. It was more than enough to bring him back from the nothingness that he was experiencing within his own chest. What was.. This? The warmness that was created between both of their bodies was comforting, and he felt as though he needed to stay close like this, or else his own safety would be jeopardized - he wasn't sure for the reasoning behind this assumption, however.

Zexion blinked his slate-colored eyes open only half way, knowing that there was one other thing he was now responsible for. He hadn't a clue that the thing that had been terrorizing the people of this world would take such a toll on the both of them; he was regretting coming down here, but at the same time, he was thankful that no one would have to handle it anymore. Was this what people called "empathy?" He didn't want anyone else to be in this situation, simply because of how awful it was for Demyx and himself. Strange.

The Nobody decided that the most efficient way of getting them back into their room was by using a portal, even though they didn't have the cloaks on to protect them. There was a way out of that, however - they simply had to move at a quick pace. There was a perfect way to do that, and he was aware of it. Zexion leaned down with a slow motion, panting heavily as he did so, the ache in his shoulder and chest worsening by the second. He.. He needed to get some sleep. The palms of his hand touched the ground causing a wince in the entirety of his body. With a groan, the sixth was able to summon up a dark portal all around them on the stone ground. The two of them were swallowed up whole, and they plummeted downward.

The fall was short, however, as they reached the other side in a matter of only a few seconds. The placement of the other side of the portal was a few inches above their bed, and they landed softly on the mattress without much backlash, though it still made the Schemer's back, shoulder and chest hurt quite badly. The lights were off already, the room was warm, and the covers were soft against he wounded skin. Zexion's eyes fluttered to a close while the portal did the same; he was out in a matter of seconds.

________

"Ienzo!"

Silence.

"Ienzo!"

What? Whose.. Whose voice was that? His chest ached so familiarly...

"It's time to wake up. We have a lot to get done today. Come on."

The scene opened up before him as though he had opened his eyes, but he was sure that he hadn't used his physical body to do so. Standing before him was.. Even. He was much taller than the Vexen that Zexion was used to. What was this? He moved into a standing position, once again feeling as though he wasn't in control of this whatsoever. Even had disappeared from the scene, but as soon as he looked around, he could tell.. That things were quite off.

All of the furniture that used to be in his room was gone. The walls were covered in a thick black substance that was certainly never there before. His stomach twisted uneasily, but he still continued to walk forward. As he did so, the background behind him began to fade away into nothingness, but it crumbled in a way that signified it was being eradicated. Zexion, or Ienzo in this case, stopped just as he was about to leave the room to look at himself in the mirror that hang to his left. He turned, only to be met with his young face - it was true. He really was... Whole again?

Just as that thought crossed his mind, his face began to contort in the reflection, disfiguring itself so the mouth was positioned in an inhuman, crooked smile that showed bleeding, jagged fangs. Deep red blood began to drip from the reflection's eyes, and a sick sound of echoed laughter surrounded his senses, deafening him to anything else. He began to scream for everything that he knew.. He wanted to get out of here. He wanted to be somewhere safe. He wanted Demyx.

"Get away!" Zexion screamed at a volume much higher than anything he had ever said before. He was staring into blackness, proving that it was much too late for it to be time to wake up. His chest was screaming, as well as his shoulder, in response to the sudden movement. They were better than before, but there was another sensation arising in his chest that was rather concerning. It wasn't pain, but instead, felt like it was filling up with something wholly wrong and unwanted. He was covered in sweat from his dream, and his lungs were burning with the need for oxygen.

That burning also matched something that was pouring from his eyes, dripping down his face, wetting the skin of his cheeks.

Being called Ienzo.. He felt like such a disgrace.

    It was a relief when Zexion responded to him, however small and minuscule the acknowledgement was. He still felt stiff and sore, cringing with every movement, but he tried the best he could checking the other Nobody over for anything life threatening. It was amazing that the gruesome looking Heartless had been taken care of by one person, and Demyx didn't know what else to do besides slump beside Zexion and touch his head gently to his shoulder. 


    As soon as he felt Zexion shift to open the portal beneath them, he moved away a few inches. It was probably best Demyx didn't bump into the other Nobody when they landed, even though he assumed it was back to their room. Once they hit the bed, a flood of relief and exhaustion hit him all at once like a ton of bricks. The air was a little cooler in their room, and it chilled his back once it hit the still damp blood on his shirt. It took all the energy he had to peel off the article of clothing and toss it to the floor and wiggle his way under the blankets. There was still some blood on his skin that would probably rub off onto the sheets, but they could always get new ones. Right now, he was alive. Alive, and tired, with the urge to sleep for days on end. 


-----


    Demyx jolted awake at the shout, peering around the dark room bleary eyed. He sat up slowly, wincing at the dull pain in his back and arm, turning to look at Zexion. His eyes were still adjusting to the darkness, but after hearing a sniffle he frowned and scooted closer to the teen. "Zex?" Demyx questioned in a groggy tone, placing a hand where he thought the Schemer's face would be. The blonde gasped softly, and wrapped his arms gently around him. "Zexion. What's wrong?"

Zexion had never cried before. Ienzo had, sure, but crying in this strange new form was unlike anything he had ever experienced before. He hadn't a clue how it had arisen from his own being, but the emotion was strong enough to bring about these burning drops that dribbled down his damp skin. His jaw clenched and his eyebrows furrowed, the physical pain of the wounds kicking in all over again. His knuckles were white as his hands gripped the sheets mercilessly; why was this happening?

Why? Why? Why?

Why did Ienzo's reflection resemble something so awful? Why were his dreams going back to times that were long past - they had never done that before. In fact, he hadn't recalled dreaming whatsoever as a Nobody. Gentle and kind arms wrapped about his body, dragging him out of the daze he had put himself in. Demyx was as comforting and offering as ever. The Nocturne brought him close, the warmth consoling him, but it would never be able to even touch what he had just seen. The vision was a fabrication of his own mind, but he would do anything and everything to eradicate from the chains of his memory.

Along with this, strange new sensations were flooding into his being that were new. Pages upon pages were being added to Lexicon, but it would be a miracle if they were legible. Even though he had gone through all of this without having a heart, lacking all kind of emotion..

It was all coming back. All of those feelings that Ienzo was numb to, or rather had numbed himself to. Ienzo was a child who had been through far too much, and Even had tried to do his best raising him, but the scientist would never be able to fare as a fit father for anyone. The child was young when he was turned, and he turned out to be one of the youngest members in the Organization because of it.

That was.. Right.. Ienzo - his parents had left him in this scary, unforgiving world all by himself. He was just a small child when it had happened, but he was now clearly able to remember; they...

They left him on purpose.

Even always said that he took care of him because Ienzo's parents "weren't around," but never went into too much detail upon the matter. The boy had much blocked out of his own memory, and probably for the better, however those blockades were amounted to absolutely nothing in this very instant. Darkness from that creature was eating him apart from the inside out, the substance writhing and festering inside of his broken chest, ravaging and bringing out things that were best left forgotten. Things were overwhelming, prominent, and too much for Zexion to handle.

His body shook, his soul wept, and his face clenched up in agony, both physical and mental. He was left in this universe because he wasn't wanted, and Ienzo's belief strengthened inside of him: he would never be wanted. Just do as you're told, do what they say, and perform with excellence - then, and only then, will you be acceptable enough to be wanted. Anything less is forbidden.

"Why-" He muttered the word with a broken voice, bringing a shaky hand up to his face, feeling the wetness of his own, foreign tears. "Why do you care?" What kind of question even was that?

Zexion turned his head to look at the other, the faint image of Demyx appearing through the darkness. His own expression was extraordinarily distraught, and searching for an answer that could resonate with him - something that would appeal to his logic, but..

It was more than obvious that his mind had thrown logic out the window at this point.

    What was going on? Was he in a lot of pain? Demyx cried if something hurt bad enough, but Zexion probably would have gotten up to remedy the situation; not sit here in his arms, shaking. He really wished he could remember what his Somebody's mom was like, how she'd comforted him when he was sad. Demyx had only seen this sort type of comforting from afar, and it had been with small children. Zexion was younger than him, sure, but he wasn't a kid. "Hey... Seriously. Are you okay?" 


"Why do you care?"

What the hell? That wasn't the reaction he'd been expecting. Maybe a 'just some pain,' or "I'm fine, Demyx. Don't worry." Not the angry and accusatory tone. It was... A bit baffling. Why wouldn't he care? Zexion was- well, he didn't quite know yet. But given everything that they'd gotten through so far,  it didn't really make sense. "Because you're... Important to me?" Demyx answered, mentally kicking himself for answering a question with another one. He gingerly tried to dry Zexion's face, still trying to work out what to do, what to say. "I-I care because you're one of the few people who's been genuinely interested in me? I mean, you're not too bad yourself..." Demyx let out a huff through his nose, brushing Zexion's hair from his face. He definitely felt like he was handling a porcelain doll right now. 

Those words struck a nerve with him, reaching deep down into the chasm of his abandoned chest, trying so hard to find something that it could hold on to. There was something in there, however, that.. That allowed it to find a home. The shaking suddenly stopped in an instant; Demyx.. Didn't think of him as a tool, or an item, or a work droid that was required to achieve flawlessness. If Zexion made a mistake, that would be alright, and it would be forgotten. These standards that he had put on himself, without his knowing, were eating him alive all at once.

A warm, gentle hand brushed the hair out of his face, exposing the other eye that mirrored the troubled look of is counterpart. Being a Nobody was a troubling thing, and when those emotions that were lost started to return, it could cause.. Whatever this was, with Zexion at least. He had never even dreamed that he would react this way to anything and thought that such things were absurd; feelings were useless and unnecessary. They brought about only ruin and destruction to a person and caused them to look away from science and logic, which were the things that ruled all life.

If that was the case, then why was he so comforted when he saw the true concern that was in those sea-foam depths looking directly into his eyes? Why did that trembling, confused voice make him feel as though everything else could melt away and he could get lost in it whenever it sang? How was that possible, if science was the absolute ruler of existence? There was nothing scientific about this, and there certainly wasn't a single logical thing that could explain how much Demyx made him feel validated.

"Of course I.. I'd be interested. You're you." He used his arm to wipe away some of the tears from his eyes, almost resembling that of a child as he did so. He sniffled softly, still not quite used to the sensation of letting feelings out in the form of tears. "But I'm me." Those words meant a lot for Zexion to relinquish from his grasp. He had just come to understand these strange feelings, and they had just arisen from that strange dream he had... Why was this happening so suddenly? It didn't make much sense - as if anything did these days.

"I don't.. Don't understand.." And he hated himself for that. His shoulders shook as those quiet sobs of his continued. "You're wonderful."

Oh. Was... Was Zexion having some sort of self-doubt marathon in the middle of the night? Not that Demyx could say much. He did the same thing during just about... Any activity. Of course, it could be something totally more complicated. Nothing seemed to be simple when it came to Nobodies. At least the shaking had stopped. He ran his fingers through the soft hair until Zexion rubbed at his eyes. Even though he still couldn't see much, it was easy to imagine it; and it was pretty cute. 


Demyx re positioned himself as Zexion spoke again, feeling a little more relieved that his voice didn't sound so hollow and angry anymore. But there still wasn't much confidence. He didn't have the degree to really fix any problems tonight. "Yeah okay... I am me, and I'm pretty great. But. You're you too. You're Zexion. I like Zexion. A lot." He scooted a little closer to Zexion, touching their foreheads together after some fumbling. "So, if I'm so wonderful and I like you, you should like yourself too."

Demyx had a way of speaking that could calm just about anyone if they were willing to put the time in and listen. It made Zexion smile, even through all of the negativity he was currently feeling. Demyx voice was smooth, just as sweet and kind as it ever was. He had the ability to always see the good in people, even if it meant having to look past a lot of not-so-good things beforehand. Zexion admired that quite a lot, but that wasn't the only thing that was admirable about the Nocturne. Though he didn't have the best work ethic in the world, there were a multitude of other things that the ninth did that none of the other members exhibited, aside from Roxas of course.

He showed signs of actually being able to feel - he could smile with feeling put behind it, and whenever he would laugh, the entire room would light up. The passion that he housed toward his music was more than enough to catch the Schemer's attention, and the sixth still found himself captivated by the beautiful coordination of notes.

So, if I'm so wonderful and I like you, you should like yourself too.

That.. That made sense, he supposed. Gulping visibly and trying to silence his quivering lip, he was forced to look directly into Demyx's eyes. He gave a few nodes in response, finding that.. He was beginning to smile. He could forget all of those bad things as long as he had this particular person in front of him. He was truly something extraordinary, that, Zexion was absolutely positive of. The older Nobody was the first thing that the illusionist had been introduced to that made him feel alive. He was positive that not even Ienzo had the opportunity to feel such a thing. He might have been a complete person, but nothing in his short life amounted to this.. Whatever it was.

That shaking hand moved up to the blond's cheek, pressing the palm up against the skin. Tears were still dripping from his eyes, but now.. It was for a completely different reason. He felt overcome with something much different than sadness. That darkness in his chest was cast aside for now, and he was able to accept all of the bad that he had remembered. If he could come home to this every day and simply lay next to Demyx, then everything else was insignificant.

"Okay." He whispered, being rather compliant with the Nocturne's words. It was strange how argumentative he wasn't regarding the subject, but hey, it probably made the job easier for the opposing side. He recalled something that Demyx had been the first to initiate, but he figured that maybe it was his turn to do so. He hoped that it wasn't out of his place, but he was sure that he would be told if such a thing were the case. Without much of a warning, Zexion closed the gap between the two of them, connecting their lips together in a gentle kiss. The warmth was nice, and it calmed him beyond anything else he could have asked for.

Once their lips parted, he proceeded to let his head fall against Demyx's shoulder. His sensitive nose was able to take in the lovely scent of Demyx, though he had to get around the irony smell of the blood that was still stuck to both of them. This.. This is what made everything worth it. Every meaningless day in the Organization, eve painful day that Ienzo had to go through, every minute that the poor boy felt hopeless, alone and afraid, and every single minute that Zexion felt as though the future was bleak and meaningless.

This.. is what made life worth living. He was sure of it.

A menagerie of things flooded his body and mind when Zexion kissed him, but the most prominent was warmth. He wanted to laugh in giddiness, jump around the room and throw a celebration. They'd gone much farther than a kiss not too long ago, but they hadn't talked much about it. But here they were. Kissing. Kissing a kiss Zexion initiated. Demyx brought a hand up to the Schemer's cheek, brushing a thumb across it before they parted.


Fondness and affection blossomed in his chest. Whatever was going on with Zexion, whatever things were creeping up so suddenly and making the Schemer irrational, right now things were good. They could cross that bridge when they got there, even if they seemed not too far from it. Demyx wrapped his arms around Zexion, kissing the top of his head and nuzzling it gently with his nose. "You gonna be okay, now?" He asked after a while, rubbing the Schemer's back before pulling away to look at him. "Coz my back is starting to hurt again and I doubt you're in the greatest shape after that whole fight. So. Y'know. Getting some more sleep might be good." 

It was crazy, just how much the other seemed to value him even though he hadn't done much of anything in regards to proving his worth. Of course, he wasn't taking what had just happened too much into account - Zexion, for the first time, was thinking so irrationally that his thought processes just weren't making sense. The younger Nobody gave that gentle smile of his, nodding a few times whenever he was offered the notion of getting some more rest. The physical pain that he was currently enduring wasn't making this any easier, and sleep was definitely what his body was craving above all else.

The Schemer carefully positioned his body onto his side, his head falling against his pillow. He waited for Demyx to do the same, and he was rather quick to scoot up close to the Nocturne; he pressed his face close to the other's chest, taking in a deep breath and trying to ignore the agony that arose in his shoulder as he did so. His eyes closed - he was able to concentrate on nothing but the person next to him.

"I don't know what I'd do without you." He muttered the words quietly, not quite understanding that something like that would probably be enough to break much more ice that separated them. Honestly, Zexion didn't want to be separated anymore. He wanted to be able to meld together with this individual and allow his dependence to turn into an unbreakable bond that would connect them forever instead of being something so unhealthy. The sixth sighed audibly when an arm reached around him to hold him close; true relaxation washed over him at this point.

It didn't take him long to fall asleep again, and when it happened, he was able to sleep peacefully throughout the rest of the night's hours.

____________

He awoke yet again whenever the sun was filtering in through the blinds. He squinted at first, his eyes becoming adjusted to the brightness - they hadn't moved at all from when they had fallen asleep in the middle of the night, and he could feel a breathing pattern from the other that symbolized he was not, in fact, sleeping. Zexion looked up, shifting his body upward slightly so they could actually look each other in the face. He felt that when he was looking into Demyx's eyes, he could find a better understanding of how his mind worked.

"Sorry.. About last night."