star_kingdom | Action/Audio || წ Lesson One || Traverse Town

Current Location: Traverse Town

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Action/Audio || წ Lesson One || Traverse Town

[ Maybe it's their mind playing tricks on them, maybe it's just a figment of their imagination. Or did they just see someone scamper past in a black trench coat? They just might have. Yet for some reason, someone- while it's hard to distinguish who with their hood up like that, comes briskly darting along not-so-subtly through the streets.

They look like they're just trying too hard, but it's habit and they just... need to feel that comfort zone as they do their best to get away from that moogle who seemed a little too curious about them. And its persistence only made them further push away, further remember what they have to do. A matter that assembles into words as they look down at the device it gave them at the corner of an alley, taking a breather. What did that moogle say about it? They turn it over curiously before that attention becomes mechanical, attention diverting elsewhere. [Accidental Audio] ]

How did I get here? [ The voice is that of a young girl, pausing uncertainly afterwards. Some people might even recognize that voice. It happens to be that of a familiar red head... ] ...I have to get back to the-

Hi there! Are you new here, kupo?

[ There's a surprised yelp followed by crackling as the communicator hits the ground. ]

( ooc: Meet Xion. She's a little bit on the skittish side at the moment due to just having woken up after, uh, fighting with one of her best friends. And now she's on the look-see about finishing what she was out to do, but then moogles happened. Feel free to catch her either while she's running around or respond to her whoops!audio or whatever floats your boat. )

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[ A part of her is saying that, no, she shouldn't be doing this. She should be going to the mansion. She has to. That if she doesn't, then... then Roxas will... but another part of her really wonders... just what this boy does know of Sora. And if he... if he knows Sora, then, what does that mean? This boy that looks so much like Roxas. Who knows of Roxas, too, for that matter!

Maybe it's a trick... Maybe she's walking right into something. Maybe she's also a fool for looking to this boy- Ven -looking to him and seeing that same careful, thoughtful look if not a bit unsure. Thoughts worn on his sleeve just like... ]

I... [ Can't. She should be saying that. She knows she should be. So, why hesitate? ]

[Thoughts on his sleeve, that's Ven. And if she keeps watching, she'll see him making up his mind, nodding once - it doesn't matter what she was going to say, because he's coming anyway. He needs to find out if she's a threat, or someone that needs help.]

I'll be there soon.

[And he shuts the comm device down. He never portals on-camera.]

-Wait. [ But he blinks out of view before she gets a chance to argue and she finds herself frozen. She should get moving. She needs to return to him- to Sora. But- but what if something had happened to Sora while she was knocked out? And Roxas... and Axel... What had happened to them?

It's complicated, he said... Ven, wasn't it? ]

[Complicated isn't the LEAST of it.]

[And Xion has very little time to think, because less than twenty seconds later a portal has opened up in Traverse Town, shining and white and basically the complete opposite of the Corridors of Darkness she's so familiar with. Ven steps through and it shrinks and disappears behind him, then he turns and starts looking for the new arrival, also opening up his senses to try to seek levels of Darkness and levels of Light. If she is a Nobody, she'll have a much higher Darkness than normal people... right?]

[ That was the shortest twenty seconds of her not!life. JEEZ. Wait- what is that light in the sky? She can't help but be distracted by it, scooting off out of the back alley to try and make out what's causing it... only to duck back around when she sees Ven appear from it. She leans there against the wall, something in her feeling like it's being gripped tight as she holds a balled hand to her chest.

To make a break for it or stay? She doesn't know. She can't make up her mind. She's bad at that game, okay?

Unknown to her, her presence isn't completely unnoticeable though. There's definitely a hint of darkness that here way. ]

[That Darkness is unmistakeable, even if he isn't nearly the best at sensing that sort of thing (that would be Aqua). And either it's her or it's Heartless, and either way Ven needs to check it out, so he starts jogging in that direction. You've got about five seconds to make up your mind before he spots you, Xion.]

[ Five seconds, eh? Well, make that two. Because as soon as she realizes those footsteps are coming her way, she's making a break for it. She's as light on her feet as possible, but it's hard to avoid any sound at all on the cobblestone roads of this town. But she has to move, has to get to the mansion. This could be Xemnas' work. Maybe.

All the same, she can't forget that look on his face and a push and pull persists. What to believe. What to do. She'd been so sure, but now her resolve is collapsing again under what if's. ]

[It's not so much the sounds she makes as he can feel that Darkness starting to move away, which means that it's probably not Heartless because they really like to try and snack on him. In default, that has to be her.]

Hey, wait!

[And he kicks off the side of a building as he passes and launches into a glide across the area - yeah, that thing Sora can do? He does it, too. He's about three times faster when he does it as well.]

[ She's quick on her feet. That goes without doubt. She's been through how many missions, fought how many types of Heartless. She's even managed to bring down Xigbar of all people and given Axel a run for his money. There's an obvious presence of experience, but that doesn't make up for the speed Ven showcase.s And that shout only further jolts her, making her stumble over herself before she's trying so hard to pull all the stops and get away.

But then he's right in her way and she's skidding to a halt. Instinctively, she reaches out at the thin air with an open palm and shortly thereafter, a dark corridor yawns open at her side. And yes, she'll be slipping on in that way. Better be quick, Ven. ]

[Speed is his thing. It's not difficult to get in front of her when he's flying and she's just running and he lands with both feet on the ground to block her path, holding up one hand in that mostly-universal gesture of "I'm not going to hurt you/Hold up just a minute," opening his mouth to start speaking.]

I just- Hey!

[Yeeeep, that's a Dark Portal right there. She's a Nobody, all right. But even though he's got vague Sora-memories and knows most of the story, he knows not all of them are bad, so Ven doesn't pull out the Keyblade yet. Instead he lunges for her arm, trying to grab it to stop her getting away.]

I just want to talk, I'm not going to hurt you!

[ Just when she thinks she's through the thick of things, she feels that hand snag around her wrist. Concentration lost as she staggers, the corridor vanishes in a sudden upheaval of black plumes.

Then instinct takes control and she reaches out with her free hand to summon her keyblade. Her follow through goes no further than that though. For as soon as she looks back, she freezes. The sense of deja vu is uncanny, painful. She leaves herself empty handed, the glance she casts under her hood uneasy. Afraid. But she makes no other move to get away for that moment. ]

[She is clearly freaked, and Ven doesn't like having people be scared of him. He looks a little hurt, actually. He just wants to find out what's going on, and obviously something's scared her bad, but he doesn't let go out of fear that she'll just bolt again.]

Hey... I promise, all right? I'm not going to hurt you, and I won't let anything hurt you. You're safe, it's okay.

[ Wasn't going to hurt her..

A promise... huh.

It's funny. Because it sounds exactly like something Roxas would say. That him and Axel, how they would be sure to protect her from Saix's wrath. That things could be reconciled and matters could go back to the way they were. But this wasn't Roxas and what all did this boy seem to know about things? Who was he, really? Or even... what?

She looks down, her shoulders tense. But just when it seems like she might put away again, she slackens slightly. ] Who are you... truly? And how do you know about them? [ Because she doubts Roxas wouldn't have said anything about a doppelganger of him had he known. Though what did that mean for his knowing of Sora? Sure, Sora apparently had a lot of friends all over the worlds, but... ]

[Okay, she wasn't running off. Ven slowly let her arm go as she relaxed, but he remained ready to get in her way any direction she went. She was a cornered animal - he had to be careful with this.]

I told you, my name's Ven. Sora and Roxas are friends of mine - or at least, Sora is. I only met Roxas once, and not for very long.

[But they'd gotten along all right as far as he could tell.]

Are you- Were you- with the Organization?

[ She can't help but feel a sense of relief when he finally lets go. She doubts he'll let her leave so easily, but it relieves the tension a bit all the same. Sora being a friend of his... While it's not completely hard to believe, she doesn't ever recall any dreams she's had with this boy in them, so... it doesn't make sense. Unless he's someone Sora forgot, but... but wait-

And that's when the other shoe falls and she winces but only slightly. Give or take, the coat is an emblem for them. But most people she's met don't seem to recognize the tie-ins. It makes her take a self-conscious step back before she nods slowly. ] Not anymore- but. When did you meet Roxas? And where? [ And why hadn't he said a word? ]

Umm... here, actually. He showed up in Traverse Town, like everyone does. And I think I know what's going on here.

[This is going to be confusing, but confusion is better than panic.]

It sounds like you're from before the Organization was stopped. It's gone now - Sora and Riku defeated Xemnas and Xigbar and everyone else a couple of years ago. Everything was put back like it should have been, but the Darkness started surging again just over a year ago, and now it's pulling people in from worlds we've never heard of and even from the past. That's what happened to my brother - he's from way far back.

[ ...A bit confusing, you said? New understatement of the year.

At first, all she can do is just stare. It's a lot to take in, especially at once. The Organization... destroyed? Did that mean Axel, too? And what about Roxas? Had he gone back to Sora then? Had she? And Sora and Riku had been the ones to put an end to Xemnas, and by extension of that, Kingdom Hearts, she presumed.

And that wasn't even days ago. He was talking years.

But... if that were true, what did that mean for her? Had she somehow been swiped from Axel and taken to Sora? Or did it have something to do with something like the brother Ven mentioned? Xion didn't know. And the more she realized she didn't know about things, the more she found herself wanting to know, to figure things out with her own eyes rather than word of mouth. Or pushing it all away. Because hearing all this was one thing, but- but he could be lying, making this all up. He could be, but he'd- he'd promised and given her that look and- and-

She took a step back. And then another. Shaking her head. This can't be true. It can't be. Or... can it? She has something she has to do. And in order to do that, she has to go away. If she's still here, that means Sora's still asleep and so she- ] I have to go.

Wait, no you don't! Xemnas isn't around to tell you what to do anymore, everyone's okay! I promise.

[...Well, he's kind of lying there, because Riku and Sora are missing again and they don't know what happened to them. But he knows they were in one piece when they went missing, at least.]

Why do you keep trying to run away? You're safe, I promise. What's your name?

[ There's a part of her in the back of her head... that really does what to believe him on face value alone. But there's enough she's been through to tell her that things just aren't that simple. That she wants to see things for herself, first and foremost. And with that thought, there's another step back in turn to this. Followed by a few more. She's hitting a wall soon enough.

But it doesn't matter. She's got her hand touching it, another corridor warping open behind her which she leans back into, nearly falls into. Her lips move to say something, but the words fail to escape. And then she's sinking into the darkness. ]

Wait-!

[Ven's eyes widen and he runs forward, reaching for her again. But he's unable to grab her arm before she sinks into the darkness again - and he's unable to stop himself from following her before it closes, disappearing through it just before it can cut off his foot. At least his strange composition means he'll be okay in a dark corridor. Which will probably startle her.]

[ Well, on the upside, she manages to actually make it inside the corridor this time. On the downside? Apparently, she has a tag along. And one that has no qualms with darkness at that. But that's the last thing on her mind as she's turning around and bolting through, searching out that familiar feeling in what otherwise might seem like an abyss leading to nothing.

Eventually, she seems to find what she's looking for. Mild daylight breaks through as she makes her exit. She keeps going for all but a few more steps before she comes to a halt in front of those familiar gates, that of which she had just stood in front of as she had made her plea to Axel not long ago, those gates which led to Naminé and then to Sora. She knows the first time was hard enough, but she can't hesitate. He's coming to stop her- no, not to stop her from this. He has no idea what's even going on, or does he? She doesn't know. She doesn't know.

Move. Move. Move. ]

[He would know what was going on if she'd just tell him but she's still in flight mode apparently. He's not letting her get away at this point.]

[But Ven stumbles out after her in his most graceless exit from a portal in awhile. Not as bad as his first few, since at least he kept his feet this time, but there was general stumbling and not looking so smooth. And as he straightens up, he catches a glimpse of the gates in front of them.]

What is- ...Wait a minute, I think I've been here before.

[The expression on his face is pretty odd, as if he's trying to remember something and not quite getting it. Which is a pretty accurate way to describe every time he tries to get at a Sora-memory; they're just too far out of his reach.]

[ But, see, Ven. That would make too much sense.

All the same, she's at least stopped by then. Even if she's panicking on the inside, unsure of what to do. Only at his footsteps does she look back. Then she's pressing herself to move- only to pause at his comment. That finally gets her to shoot a glance straight at his face or assumingly so anyway. Hard to see with her hood still up. ]

...You have? [ If he was looking for a way to stall her, he got one right there and then. ]

[He wasn't, but he'll take it. He doesn't see the look straight at him because he's still focused on the gates, and he absently dusts himself off as he approaches them and the giant lock and chains on the front.]

Yeah... I... think so. It's out of reach mostly, but Sora came through here looking for the way to the home of the Organization. He found it in the basement, with all of DiZ's stuff.

[There's something else, though - something that's not quite lining up properly...]

Sora... Sora did? [ But how is that possible? She wants to ask. And... why would there even be a way to The World That Never Was through the mansion of all places? It all sounds so farfetched and it shows in the frown she finds herself wearing again. ]

But... that's not possible. Sora shouldn't even be awake. [ Naminé and Riku had even told her. So long as she exists, he can't wake up. ]

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Action now!

RUN AWAY RUN AWAY

SORRY BUT HE NEEDS TO KNOW

GOTTA CATCH HER FIRST LIKE A POKEMON

BRING IT ON

LIKE DONKEY KONG

/BARRELS

/HIT FUUUUH

/DUN DUN DUUUUN

/THIS DURP WILL SELF-DESTRUCT IN TEN SECONDS

/OH SHI-

/KABOOM

/singed

8D;; /extra crispy?

/just a bit AND USES APPROPRIATE ICON LOOK AT KEYWORDS

NO MUST RESIST

GIVE IN TO THE PUPPY EYES

NO NEVER

GIVE IIIIIIIIIIIN

NOPE GO FISH

AWW BOO

OKAY FINE