tending-the-hearth - Tumblr blog

tending-the-hearth · 4 days

Text

@paigedillustrates outdid herself yet again and drew this awesome scene of Zexion confronting his former friend, my Kingdom Hearts OC, Sol! I've also written a one-shot under the Read More to compliment the art, originally meant for Day 4 of @theocxcanonweek back in March, but I had lost motivation and didn't finish it in time. Thanks again for inspiring me with your wonderful art, Paige!

Fic Synopsis: While wandering the hallways of Castle Oblivion, Sol encounters someone from her past, a friend she thought she'd never see again. However, her "friend" isn't too happy to see her...

Zexion knew well the scent of Darkness.

Anger, sadness, fear, regret, hate...those negative emotions combined created a very distinct smell. He detected Darkness whenever one of his fellow Organization members were nearby, or if the hero of Darkness, Riku, was venturing further within the castle.

But this new scent...it wasn't like the others.

It was a scent Zexion despised more than anything.

"No...It can't be. It's impossible!"

Zexion scowled as he paced the floor of the castle basement, trying to burn the image of that person out of his mind. The image of a young keyblade wielder.

It wasn't the one the Lord of the Castle was after, the island boy accompanied by King Mickey's knight captain and magician.

It was a different wielder, a lone girl of 16 with long pink curls. Clutched in her hand was her keyblade, which resembled a large feather pen.

She was here, in the castle. More than her scent, the mere thought of her made Zexion's blood boil with rage. He gnashed his teeth as he quickened his pacing.

"Xemnas can't know of this. That girl needs to be dealt with before-"

"Woah, what's gotten you all riled up?" a new voice chuckled. A figure dressed in the same black coat as Zexion appeared from the shadows, dropping his hood to reveal a head of firey red hair.

"A-Axel!" Zexion exclaimed, but quickly regained his composure, putting on an air of cold disinterest. "I didn't expect you back so soon. What, tired of being Marluxia's lacky already?"

Though Zexion was smirking on the outside, inside he desperately hoped his condescending tone was convincing enough. It was unwise to show weakness in front of other Organization members, especially someone as unpredictable as Axel. He did just eliminate Vexen, the castle's scientist, and Zexion would be a fool if he didn't think he'd be next on Axel's chopping block.

"Nah, I was just stopping by," Axel said breezily, unphased by Zexion's comment. "Wanted to see what you were up to, considering we have an uninvited guest who seemed to slip right under your nose. Care to explain, Zexion?"

Zexion could feel Axel's eyes watching him like a hawk, waiting for the blue-haired man to slip up. But Zexion wouldn't give Axel the satisfaction.

"A minor mishap, I assure you," Zexion insisted, keeping his eyes forward and voice flat. "Vexen would have informed me about the girl sooner, had he not been..." here he gave Axel a pointed look "indisposed."

"Even so, we can't have her in the castle. She might interfere if she reunites with Sora and his friends." Axel sighed heavily, more annoyed with the sudden change of plans than the blatant murder accusation Zexion just threw at him. "I was gonna handle it myself, but I'm busy enough as it is." Axel glanced at the younger man next to him, a devious look in his emerald green eyes. "But, you two have a history together, don't you?"

"You know as well as I do that we have no memories from our old lives, just emotions," Zexion reminded his subordinate, allowing a bit of edge to creep into his voice.

"True. But emotions, just like memories, can be easily manipulated. And that's your specialty."

Axel then teasingly flicked Zexion on the forehead, which Zexion returned with a slap on the arm and a steely glare.

"Aw, no need pout, Zexion," chuckled Axel. "I know you don't like getting your hands dirty, so I did half the work for you."

Axel then produced a card from his coat pocket and tossed it to Zexion. Zexion stared intensely at the picture printed on it, his negative emotions growing stronger by the minute.

"Don't say I never did anything for you," Axel smirked as he began to walk out of the room. "And don't worry, I won't blab to the Boss about this. Just do your job, and no one else has to be eliminated. Got it memorized?" Axel tapped his temple, grinning smugly before he disappeared in a swirl of Darkness.

Normally, Zexion would have preferred sending someone else to do the job. But seeing as they were short staffed, and with Axel keeping tabs on him, Zexion was left with no other choice.

Besides, he had been waiting far too long to enact some revenge. This was the perfect opportunity.

Zexion clenched his fist, a shadow crossing over his face. "That girl will regret setting foot in Castle Oblivion."

"These hallways go on forever!"

Sol complained, practically dragging her keyblade behind her as she entered yet another empty, white room. She'd been wandering this place for hours, and it was slowly driving her mad.

Hadn't she been through this passage before? Every room looked the same, it was hard to tell where one pathway ended and another began.

That wasn't the only thing she couldn't remember. Little by little, her memories from before the castle were fading.

She knew she came here to look for someone...but who? And why? And weren't there others who came with her?

Every time she tried recalling another past memory, a painful ache pounded against her skull.

It was so hard to stay focused. And her legs were exhausted from walking. If only she could stop for a minute and close her eyes...

Sol immediately shook those thoughts out of her mind. "No! I gotta keep moving," she muttered, continuing her seemingly endless journey down the narrow hallway.

Sol gripped the handle of her keyblade, the flower keychain attached at the end dangling back and forth. It was the only source of color in the entire castle, and seeing its glimmer brought back her resolve.

The forget-me-not.

Sol always loved that flower. It reminded her of her friends, the ones she kept close to her heart. She couldn't recall their names, but the bond she shared with them hadn't gone away.

She clasped the keychain in her palm, and she could feel her heart strengthen. "Don't worry, I'll find you... "

"I'm wouldn't be so sure about that."

Suddenly, Sol found herself face to face with a hooded figure, his body appearing out of thin air and enveloped in black whisps.

Sol immediately jumped into her battle stance, keyblade at the ready. "You...You're one of those Organization guys!"

Though her memories were still hazy, Sol recalled encountering another one of these strange people in the castle before, but he was was taller with flaming red hair. This one was much shorter, sounded younger too. And with his hood still drawn up, Sol couldn't quite see his face.

"That's Zexion to you. And I'm impressed you still have the strength to even lift that keyblade of yours," the hooded figure scoffed. "This castle absorbs memories bit by bit, until you are nothing but an empty husk. Soon, you'll forget everything, even those friends of yours."

Zexion glared at the girl facing him, grinning arrogantly at how she flinched at his gaze. "I wonder...just how precious are those friends, and how quickly will you forget them? If you've already forgotten them, perhaps they never mattered to you in the first place."

Sol felt her keyblade tremble in her hands, but she refused to back down. She had a mission, and nothing was going to stand in her way.

"Look, I don't know what you're talking about," she retorted "but I'm in a hurry, so why don't you just crawl back to whatever dark corridor you came from and leave me alone?"

Zexion chuckled wickedly, the black whisps growing larger around him and spilling onto the steps like toxic sludge.

"Oh, I'm afraid you're not going anywhere."

He then unveiled a Lexicon, or spellbook, hidden in his coat, rapidly turning the pages. With a wave of his hand, identical copies of his spellbook materialized from puffs of smoke, their pages shooting out like arrows and aiming right for Sol's heart. Thinking quickly, Sol blocked each attack with her keyblade, slicing the sheets of paper to tiny, shredded pieces.

Zexion's attacks were relentless; as soon as Sol slashed one Lexicon, another reappeared its place. She bit back a scream whenever one of the pages cut through her skin, barely having any time to cast Cure on herself before more razor sharp pages flung themselves at her.

She wasn't the only one struggling. Zexion was taking just as much damage as he was dealing it, Sol finding an occasional opening and hitting him with her weapon. But no matter how many blows they landed, neither opponent surrendered.

As the fight wore on, Sol could feel her arms getting heavier, and her magic weakening. Soon she wouldn't have any strength left.

Zexion's body couldn't handle the strain much longer either. He was slumped over, breathing raggedly, and Sol could even see beads of sweat drip from his forehead. He looked as though he might collapse at any moment.

Sol did not understand why he was doing any of this if it caused him so much pain, and it frustrated her to no end.

"Why are you even attacking me anyway?!" she yelled angrily. "I don't even know you!"

"Why are you angry with me?" The robed man screamed back. "You broke my heart!"

Sol stepped backwards, blinking in confusion at the man's words. "What...What are you talking about?" she stammered.

She never saw him before, so how could she have possibly broken his heart? Sol clutched her head, trying to remember, but her mind kept drawing a blank.

"So, you really don't recognize me," Zexion sneered with contempt. He then drew a playing card from his pocket. "Well, since you are having trouble remembering, allow me to paint you a clearer picture."

He tossed the card to her, and the instant Sol grabbed it, the whole room suddenly changed. The white walls seemed to melt away, replaced with open, blue skies and the sweet scent of flowers. Little shops and cottage houses popped up, and the marble floor Sol stood on was replaced with cobblestone.

"I...I recognize this place," Sol whispered. "This is where I grew up! It was called-" She suddenly gasped, the splitting headache she'd felt before returning ten fold. She groaned in pain, struggling to get the words out. "D-Day...Break...Town?"

Zexion shook his head disappointedly. "Figures you've forgotten this place too. No, this world was once known as Radiant Garden. Though, it won't be so radiant for much longer." He pointed a finger towards the sky with a sardonic grin. "Look up."

As soon as Sol turned her eyes upwards, a foreboding cloud appeared in the sky, blocking out all light. A violent windstorm tore through the streets, ripping buildings off their foundations and obliterating everything in its path.

Sol heard the townspeople screaming in terror, begging for someone, anyone to help them.

A fleeing couple bumped into Sol, nearly knocking her off her feet. They barely even glanced at her as they continued to run, but for a split second, Sol could have sworn they looked familiar to her. They weren't dressed the same as the other residents, almost as if they came from a completely different time. And they were carrying a child in their arms, with hazel eyes just like hers...

Could this be...a memory within a memory?

Before Sol could even process what she saw, another scream caught her attention. Though the wind stung her eyes, Sol could make out a blonde boy with spikey hair, a girl in a pink dress and another girl with long dark hair all huddled together in an alley, clinging to each other for dear life as they watched the destruction of their home in pure horror.

Wait...Don't I know those kids? I think I remember them now...We grew up together...and they're in trouble!

"C-Cloud, Tifa, Aerith! Run, find someplace safe!" Sol cried out. But none of the kids looked at her, their eyes transfixed on the swirling vortex of Darkness looming over them.

"I'm afraid they can't hear you. None of these people can. This is all just an illusion of a past event; there's nothing you can do to save them now." Zexion said in a blasé tone, unmoved by the chaos happening around him.

The howling of the storm grew louder, as the sounds of screams and collapsing buildings assaulted Sol's hears.

All this fear and suffering...and Sol was powerless to do anything.

She fell to her knees, shutting her eyes and covering her ears, desperate to block it all out.

Zexion had just said this was all a illusion, so Sol knew it wasn't really happening.

So then why did Sol's heart ache so much? Why did it all feel like it had all happened before?

"No...no...I can't watch this!" she despaired, her voice breaking. "Please, make it stop!"

"But then you'll miss the most important part."

Sol dared to open her eyes, and when she did, she saw what appeared to be a child version of herself, not the same one carried off by the two mysterious adults she saw earlier.

A different memory?

Her six year old self was standing in the middle of the courtyard, eyes wide with fear as she watched her home fall apart. Across the courtyard was a seven year old boy in a white lab coat, his right eye hidden behind a layer of blue-tinted bangs.

"Sol, over here! We need to find shelter!" He shouted over the wind, waving frantically for her to follow him. But little Sol didn't move. She stared back at him, the fear in her eyes turning to hatred.

When she addressed him, her voice was as cold as ice. "Did you do this?"

"W-What?" the little boy stuttered.

"You said the scientists were doing bad things at the castle. Messing with the power of Darkness." She pointed an accusatory finger at him. "You all summoned the Dark Void, to destroy our home!"

"No, Sol, it wasn't us, I swear!" the boy cried as he reached out for her. "There has to be another expla-"

"Get away from me!" young Sol yelled, recoiling in disgust. "This is all your fault...I don't ever want to see you again, Ienzo!"

Then she ran away.

The older Sol watched in complete shock as her younger self fled, leaving young Ienzo all alone, a single tear dripping down his cheek.

I said all that? But wait...that boy's name....It couldn't be...

Zexion finally removed his hood, revealing his blue-tinted bangs that hid the right side of his face, now longer and more unkept. "Now at last you see the truth."

Sol gasped in shock as her keyblade clattered loudly on the floor.

Her memory might be jumbled, but there was no mistaking that face.

"I....Ienzo? Is that really you?" Sol whispered in disbelief, tears streaking down her face. "How is this even possible? I...I thought you died!"

"I told you, it's Zexion now," he hissed "and you can spare me your tears. I know never really cared about me. You've just heard it from your own mouth."

Sol shuddered at the hollowness in Ienzo's voice. The Ienzo she knew never acted like this, all bitter and spiteful.

"Ienzo, that's not true! This castle is messing with both of our memories, I'd never-!"

"Silence!" Zexion bellowed. "Don't try to deny the truth. You refused to hear me out, blamed me for the loss of our home. And then, you abandoned me without a second glance. Do you have any idea what that pain felt like?"

Zexion stalked towards the despondent girl, like a cat ready to pounce on its prey. "Ever since that day, those feelings of betrayal, anger and loneliness ate away at my heart, until I became the Nobody you see before you now. I'm nothing more than an empty husk, which is exactly what you're going to be once I'm done with you."

Sol could hear Zexion approaching her, but she didn't lift her head, trapped in her own thoughts.

I know what I heard and saw...but my heart is telling me a different story. There's something about that memory that's missing, but how can I get him to listen to me?

Zexion raised his hand ominously, preparing to cast a dark spell. His eyes flashed with malevolent glee. "Any final words, friend?"

Sol glanced to her side, her keyblade lying next to her. The weapon was scuffed in places, but her forget-me-not keychain hadn't lost its shine.

As she stared at it, a faint image, a memory, stirred within her heart. It was fleeting, but she still felt it all the same.

"Do you remember our promise?" she finally asked.

The dark spell in Zexion's hand vanished the moment the words left Sol's lips. "What did you say?"

Sol reached for her keyblade, but didn't strike Zexion with it, instead cradling it in her lap as she held the keychain in her palm for him to see.

"We...We made a promise to stay connected. I was training to be Merlin's apprentice, and you were studying at the castle in Radiant Garden. " Sol's words came out slow and uncertain at first, but gradually gained confidence the more she started to remember.

"You were worried that we'd go our separate ways and leave each other behind," she continued, smiling softly at the precious memory. "I gave you a forget-me-not like this one, as a symbol of our promise."

Zexion shook his head furiously. "N-No....No, you're just trying trick me! That didn't happen. We never made that promise!" Zexion turned his back and clamped his hands over his ears.

Undetered, Sol pressed on. "I may have forgotten about you, but that promise we made meant the world to me. It remained etched in my heart all this time, even if I didn't know it. And I'm sure it's the same for you, too." Sol gently laid a hand on Zexion's shoulder. "I'm sorry I couldn't help you before, but I'm here now. We can get out of this castle and restore our memories together!"

Zexion flinched as if her touch burned him, hugging his arms to keep himself from falling apart. "You don't care about me," he mumbled. "No one does..."

Sol grasped Zexion's gloved hand, squeezing it earnestly. "Whoever told you those things...They're the ones who've been lying to you! Please, you have to believe me, Ienzo!"

"I SAID, SHUT UUUP!!"

Zexion wretched his hand away, and, reopening his Lexicon, summoned copies of his spellbook again. This time, the books were accompanied by copies of Zexion. Each clone, book in hand, formed a circle around Sol, trapping her.

"You think you can manipulate me?!" he shrieked. "I'm Zexion, the Cloaked Schemer, and I am not to be trifled with!"

The clones laughed maniacally as pages shot out from their spellbooks and attacked Sol all at once.

The paper tore her her clothes and skin, forcing her to drop her keyblade.

Sol collapsed to the ground, her entire body twinging in pain.

"L-Let me go, Ienzo, please! This isn't you!" She begged, but her pleads fell on deaf ears as Zexion and his clones continued to taunt her.

"I was going to take your heart, but I've changed my mind." Zexion picked up Sol's discarded keyblade, and, using his illusion magic, transformed himself to look like her. "I'll keep you as my prisoner instead, and lure Sora and his companions here. The last thing they'll see will be their dear friend turning against them, right before I crush them!"

Even as Sol's vision began to blacken, that specific name seemed to awaken something deep in her heart.

Sora...

Yes, that's right. I came to this castle with Sora. Donald and Goofy too.

I can't let them get hurt. I have to protect them.

I won't fail again.

I won't lose...any more...of my friends!

Gathering what little strength she had left, Sol thrust her hands up, fingers still raw and red from the thousand paper cuts she received.

Sol expected her keyblade to fly back into her hand, similar to what she'd seen Sora's keyblade do for him in the past.

But instead of her keyblade responding to her, it was Zexion's Lexicons.

The books all shut themselves automatically at her gesture, lose leaf paper fluttering harmlessly to the ground. T

he clones, having lost their conduits, all suddenly disappeared in puffs of black smoke.

"W-What is this? How did you take control of my Lexicons?" Zexion balked. "Unless...there is Darkness within you as well?"

Sol certainly didn't like the sound of that, but she didn't have time to dwell on it. Whether she had Darkness inside her or not, she had the upper hand in this fight, and she wasn't going to waste it.

The Lexicons hovered next to Sol, opening a path for her. Slowly, Sol got back on her feet, narrowing her eyes at her visibly shaken adversary.

"It's over," she said, her voice as rigid as her gaze. "Now, give me back my keyblade, and tell me where Sora is!"

Zexion, having reverted back to his original form, gripped Sol's keyblade in his hands, his eyes burning with fury.

"No...not until you experience the same despair as I have!"

He lunged at her, preparing to plunge Sol's weapon straight into her heart.

Sol closed her eyes with a heavy sigh. If that is how it's going to be, then so be it.

Regretfully, Sol commanded the spellbooks to swarm Zexion. A tornado of paper spiraled around him, attacking him from every direction. Zexion tried to counter the blows with a blast of light from Sol's keyblade, but it would not obey him.

Without a weapon and without a plan, Zexion was quickly overwhelmed by the barrage. He screamed in anguish before he eventually crumpled to the floor.

The battle finally won, Sol approached the fallen Zexion and retrieved her keyblade. Her expression as unreadable as she watched him weakly push himself up by his elbows.

"All my illusions, all my schemes, ruined!" he moaned miserably. "I can't be humiliated like this! If the Master finds out I've failed, I'll be-!"

His rant was cut short when Sol aimed the tip of her keyblade at his face.

Zexion glared hatefully up at her. "What, intending to rub your victory in my face before finishing me off?"

To his bewilderment, Sol lowered her keyblade. "No, you've been through enough," she replied tiredly. "I'm letting you go, but just this once since we used to be friends. "

She then knelt down in front of him, a dangerous look in her gold-flecked eyes.

"But you'd better stay away from my friends," she warned "or our next encounter will be your last."

As she stood up and walked towards the exit, she could hear Zexion chuckle grimly behind her.

"Abandoning me again? You're such a hypocrite," he spat. "Despite everything, your heart still hasn't changed. You are just as cruel now as you were back then. Perhaps there really is Darkness in you after all."

Sol paused at the door, her head lowered. Before pushing it open, she turned to look at her former friend one final time, her eyes profoundly sad.

"Good-bye, Zexion. I'm sorry."

Zexion, speechless, watched her go.

He knew he should have pursued her, stopped her from reaching Sora or alerted the other Organization members.

But he was too numb and exhausted to care.

Dazedly, Zexion opened his Lexicon from inside his coat, its cover singed from the battle. Its contents hadn't faired much better, most of the pages bunt at the edges and disintegrating at Zexion's touch.

Everything inside the spellbook was scorched. Well, not everything.

Zexion flipped to the end of the book, a perfectly preserved flower tucked within the last page.

A forget-me-knot.

He delicately touched the flower's petals, lost in thought. He had the flower in his pocket when he awoke as a Nobody, and kept it hidden in his Lexicon ever since he joined the Organization. He knew it was just a flower and served no greater purpose, but for some strange reason, he could never bring himself to throw it away.

When Sol first showed Zexion her keychain of the exact same flower, he briefly wondered why it looked so familiar to him, but he forcibly tried to block it out.

"Sol had to be lying. Everyone who ever claimed to love me was a liar."

Or at least...That's what Xemnas told him. And Zexion, the most perceptive of the Nobodies, always had the suspicion their leader wasn't beinghonest with them.

Was it possible that Sol was telling the truth after all?

Suddenly, a sharp pain pierced Zexion's chest.

Then, a memory, once long forgotten, flashed in his mind.

With this flower, we'll always remember each other. No matter where we go or how old we get, our hearts will be connected forever! Right, Ienzo?

Zexion wasn't even aware he started crying until he saw his tear drops spill onto the pages.

All the anger and hate he carried inside him seemed to vanish in an instant, replaced with an emotion that he'd been suppressing ever since he became a Nobody:

Remorse.

He bent his head into his book and sobbed quietly, Sol's parting words echoing in his mind.

I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry.

Unbeknownst to him, Sol overheard his cries, her back slumped against the other side of the door.

She held her head in her hands as she, too, wept over what she'd just lost, and may never get back again.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry."

@tending-the-hearth @maddys-nerd-blog @storyweaverofgondor @talisman975 @lazy-brown @roxycake @tryingmybestbutiwannasleep

#beloveds

13 notes · View notes