After Triskix informed both Nyx and me that we'd passed the physical portion of the exam, I quickly retreated to the solitude of my room. With the arrival of new members and rekindling of old relationships, I could see I really had no place there at the moment.
Once in my room, I dug through my bag, searching for the medical items I always kept on hand. Those burns Nyx had given me were pretty serious. They made me wonder why she had held back, why she hadn't fought me with all she had.
Quickly dressing the wounds and finding that I had nothing else to do, my mind wandered to all of the new members. RaXi and Nyx seemed to have deep relationships with Triskix and Lexian, a friendship that went back even to the original Organization members.
I tried to remember how old I'd been when the Organization first formed. That had been about...ten years after I'd been created. I curled up onto my window seat, remembering. They had tried to recruit me, once.
I clear away the last of the Heartless surrounding me with a careless flick of my wrist. The chains squeeze the tiny Shadows into non-existence, their stolen gleaming hearts floating softly into the air. I watch them impassively. The urge to snatch at them desperately has long since disappeared.
Unfortunately, the Heartless aren't the only ones stalking me tonight. I let out a barely audible sigh as my nose picks up the now familiar scent, one of ferocious viciousness hidden beneath a cool exterior. Dropping my chains to the ground, I point at them and whisper, "Stalk. Bind."
The chains quietly scatter along the ground, shining dully in the moonlight. I hear a soft gasp from behind me, and know I've done my job right. Turning around, I follow the chains a few feet away, where a blue-haired man...no, Nobody stands wrapped tightly in my weapon.
He doesn't struggle; instead he fixes me with a cold gaze and a smirk. "I've misjudged you," he says.
I stare at him for a full minute before releasing the chains. If he wasn't going to even struggle in my bonds, then either he wanted to die, or else he was extremely confident in his ability and purpose to see me. "I can't see how you could have possibly done that," I remark, "as you've been following me for the past two weeks."
"Oh, you knew? Very well done. Tell me," he says, brushing the sleeve of his long black cloak, "how does the hunter like being hunted?"
"I'll tell you what the hunter likes," I say, "when pretty-boys like you quit playing games and tell me exactly what's going on."
He brushes his hair over his shoulder with a laugh. "Very well. Such is your nature, I suppose. Always in the moment, living for the hunt. My name is Saïx, and I am VII of an organization of powerful Nobodies called Organization XIII. We have been watching you for a while, Rexikat," he says, "and have determined that you are a perfect candidate to join."
I think this over for a second. "So...you want me to join this Organization, is that it?"
Saïx nods.
"What exactly is it that you guys do? Taxes, contract killing...you can't just ask me to join without telling me what I'm doing," I say sarcastically.
"Yes, of course. The main goal of Organization XIII is the completion of...Kingdom Hearts," he says reverently.
I raise an eyebrow. "Kingdom...Hearts, huh?" Somehow, this doesn't seem like my thing. Anything with the word 'hearts,' and I tend to stay away.
"Yes, Kingdom Hearts," he says, eyes glowing with pride and joy.
"And...you do realize we don't have hearts?" I'm beginning to wonder if this is all just some charade.
"True, we don't have hearts. But we remember what it was like, and that's what makes us special. That's why we deserve hearts. And Kingdom Hearts will give us what we desire the most--"
"No." I stare him dead center in his face, noting the X-shaped scar criss-crossing between his eyes.
He snaps out of his trance and glances at me sharply. "No? What do you mean? It is the desire of all Nobodies to regain a heart, the very thing lost that created us. How could you--"
"Listen, Saïx, I appreciate all the time and effort you and your Organization put into tracking me down and stalking me, but a heart isn't what I'm after." I turn and start to walk away. I hear his soft footfalls behind me.
"That's the biggest difference between you and me," I continue, since he seems to want an explanation. "You want a heart. I don't. Why would I want a heart...when everyone I would love is already dead? I have been avenged, I have no one to avenge...life as a Nobody is all that is left for me."
I stop where I stand, looking up into the cold sky. Saïx stands beside me, staring at the full moon. With a soft breath, I say, "Sorry," and walk away.
Before I get even two feet away, I hear him pull out a weapon, and turn around. "Fine," he says. "But you need not apologize. A heart...if I had a heart...I could feel regret. But you and I both know, hearts--"
"--are for Somebodies," I finish. "Not us."
"Kingdom Hearts," I hear him mutter as I grow farther away, "where is my heart?" I sigh, and walk away. Again.
"Wait!" Saïx calls out to me. Again. He portals into darkness and reappears a few paces in front of me. "Allow me the honor of a battle, Tigress. At least...allow me to try to feel."
We fight, not as Nobodies, but as feral beasts, each trying to grasp a hold of the ever-elusive emotions that we lost along with our hearts.
