Chapter 7: Reflections
It had been a nice trip, something that Mikage thought about for weeks afterward. Through a combination of the stress of losing her heart and the ESP which came unbidden, she was going a bit insane. As Xaldin had previously mentioned, they all had different ways of dealing with it; most of them used it as an excuse to become cruel and uncaring, or something else they hadn't the nerve to be when they were whole. Isa and Relena had changed in this regard. "Relena-senpai used to be nice," Mikage remembered after Larxene kicked over her mop bucket out of spite. They weren't all like that, though, at least not all the time. Demyx used his power over water to put the water back in the bucket for her. She was glad he hadn't changed.
Larxene and Demyx often argued; one time she told him his music was too loud and stormed off, muttering that she wouldn't have to hear it much longer. "She's the one who's noisy," Demyx complained. "What a pain!"
"One of the main points of the opposite sex," Luxord commented.
"Um, sorry," Mikage muttered, about to plug in a vacuum just a few feet away.
"Oh! I didn't see you there, my dear," Luxord exclaimed. "No, I didn't mean you."
"Yeah, you've always been one of the guys," Demyx said brightly.
Gee thanks, Myde, she thought sourly.
Lexaeus and Zexion appeared in the room just then. "Hey, are they bothering you?" Lexaeus asked protectively, seeing that she looked anxious.
"Not really," Mikage muttered.
Zexion grabbed her hand. "Let's go, Kage-san."
"But, where?"
"Anywhere."
Roxas looked at Axel quizzically. "What...?"
"You'll understand when you're older," Luxord snickered, missing the point.
Axel shook his head. "Never mind, Roxas. That's not for you to worry about."
When they were far enough away, Zexion took Mikage aside. "Kage-san, may I ask you something?"
"Sure. What?"
Zexion looked uneasy. "Can you detect scents?"
"You mean like you can?"
"Y-yeah. For instance, can you smell the darkness and people's scents and know where they are?"
"Yes, I can sense these things a little..."
Zexion looked disappointed. "That's what I thought. Everyone can do it. I'm not special at all."
"But you're really good at it," Mikage said supportively.
Zexion shook his head, clearly bothered by this. "It doesn't matter if I'm better at it if everyone can do it to some degree. That and projecting illusions are my only abilities, and it turns out that they're not so unique after all." He summoned his lexicon, a sort of spellbook. "This is my only weapon too. Everyone else has real weapons and abilities." He wasn't about to explain to her about the data cards for Castle Oblivion that further stole his thunder. What did they even need him for?
Mikage's shoulders sagged. She didn't know what else to say to him. Saix walked up to them and ended the conversation. "Shouldn't you be cleaning something?" he asked her.
"Yes, sorry." She didn't really know why she had to apologize to him.
"It was my fault," Zexion spoke up. "I engaged her in conversation to get her away from those in the lobby."
Saix looked at him, his senior in number but his junior in years; it was a source of friction between them, mostly on Saix's part. He addressed Mikage again. "You're lucky to have the higher-ups vouch for you. Otherwise you'd be cleaning the castle as a Dusk instead of your current form." The lesser Nobodies did most of the chores, including laundry and keeping everyone's rooms tidy. Mikage didn't have her own room, only the jail cell.
Mikage nodded. Saix brushed past them and continued to the lobby. "Was he always this way?" Zexion asked.
"No. The Isa I remember was nicer than this," Mikage answered.
"Sorry to have bothered you with my insecurities." He decided to leave her alone so he wouldn't get her in trouble.
"No, not at all. I think you're really-" But Zexion had already opened a portal and disappeared before she could finish her sentence. Special.
Continuing down the hallway, she ran into another Organization member, Marluxia, who had pink hair and carried a scythe. Then she remembered something. "I thought it would be fun to cut through the hedge maze on my way over...but I got lost," Miku replied sheepishly. "The pink-haired guy tending it found me and walked me out, but by the time I got to the outer gardens, you had already left." Marluxia caught her staring at him. "What is it? Do you need something?"
"I'm sorry for staring. Did you tend a hedge maze back in Radiant Garden?"
"So what if I did?"
"My friend Miku got lost in there one time and said you helped her out. Thank you." She bowed, but Marluxia didn't seem to have a reaction.
"I don't recall," he said dully as he walked away.
No comments:
Post a Comment