See No Evil { Marly }

[Olette]

ooc: gah! so short! sorry. D:

[Marluxia]

(No problem. At least it is a good start, so let’s have fun, hmm? ^_^)

Marluxia stepped out of the cold darkness of a Corridor and out into the soothing warmth of a place shadowed by trees. As the portal snapped shut quietly behind him, the Graceful Assassin looked around the place from the shade of his drawn up hood. Tall trees with bright green leaves and the sky peeking through the small unique gaps the close together limbs created. It was…pleasant; however, the face under the hood did not show any pleasure at the sight. Instead, the face remain calm as icy blue eyes moved from the trees back to ground level. The Nobody took a moment to feel out the place, noticing this one too was normal; however, unlike the world of Hollow Bastion, this one did not appear to be useful at all. Still looks could be deceiving, so he supposed he could take a look around. The place was comfortable enough to take his time in, but where to go first?

Looking behind him, he noticed a wall with a large crack in it. Through the crack, he could see the legs of people moving and paved streets signaling a town; however, the Nobody had no interest in exploring a town at the moment. Right now, he wanted to find out what was out here. Ignoring the hole for the moment, the Nobody moved forward at a casual pace until the forest began to thin and the shadows of a structure began to show itself.

Maybe that structure held something of use to him. Only one way to find out, right? Keeping his casual pace, a silent whirl of hot pink flower petals swallowed him up, teleporting him from his spot in the forest and onto the path on the other side of the gate. As he reappeared, he did not notice the girl on the other side of the gate as he studied the strange house, taking in its abandon and empty appearance. A shell, just like a Nobody... and yet it seemed to hold some importance, but to whom the Nobody didn’t not know or care to know. What he wanted was whatever information was inside. Seeing as the house still seemed to be in a somewhat good condition, the Nobody did not think it would disappoint him, so determined to continue on he took a step forward, but hesitated as he finally felt the presence of another there.

Turning slightly to look behind him, he gazed out from under his hood and spotted a brown hair girl wearing an orange top , yellow pants, and white shoes. She seemed to be looking at the mansion, but unlike himself had a gate between her and it. Judging from her appearance and actions, he believed her to be a residence of this world and in the end no threat at all. And if she had seen him? So what? Maybe she’d assume he was some sort of phantom and run away or perhaps she’d remained oblivious to him. Whatever the case was the Nobody did not linger on the matter long, he had information searching to do and pondering the significance of one civilian was wasting time. He faced forward again, ending his quick observation as he began to walk towards the mansion’s door at a casual pace.

[Olette]

[/color] Olette shouted.

She finally pushed open the cold gates. They fell away from her hands so easily as she stepped into the Mansion's court. She didn't know she was stepping into another world. She didn't know she was stepping into danger and running toward it. She didn't know there was a reason to fear the Mansion or the man moving slowly toward it.

She only knew that the answers she wanted wouldn't escape her again.

Goosebumps erupted on her arms as she ran after the cloaked figure.

"Hey," she repeated harshly. She was too eager for answers and her green eyes showed it. "Who are you? You came from another world, didn't you?"

The accusation slipped easily from her pink lips. Another world. Only that would explain his sudden appearance and that cloak... she knew it from somewhere. She had seen that exact outfit somewhere before, but her memory was blurry with excitement. This man could answer her questions--maybe he could show her how to get to the other world he came from.

She was tired of this twilit town. She was sick of the lazy days, the sun that never set, a mother who never came home, a grandmother that was sick, college that was approaching too fast. She needed to escape. She needed answers.

Olette stood in the sun, feeling the sticky summer heat on her hands. The Mansion loomed before them both, the windows glaring at the scene. Olette felt like an immediate traitor. She shouldn't be here--even her mother would take the time of day to reprimand her. She tensed, but her eyes glimmered with the twilight sky. She wanted this more than anything.

She had waited three years for someone to come. She watched the streets for characters that seemed out of place. She waited for him everyday for three years. She waited in the Usual Spot for portals to appear and people to step through and snatch up... Kairi...

Wait.

That cloak! I know where I've seen it before![/color] She stumbled back a step as recognition dawned on her face. She flushed. But she didn't run.

"You're with him! The redheaded man that took Kairi three years ago! ...That cloak is the same..."

Her thoughts spiraled away as she thought of that day. So long ago, but how could she forget something so strange? The portal. The man with red spiky hair and tears on his face. Kairi being dragged away. Him coming to her rescue and forgetting about Olette in the process. And that cloak. The redheaded man wore the same one.

Olette, however, stood her ground. She was tired of running from the truth.[/ul]

[Marluxia]

So, she had seen him. He knew this was true despite not looking back. He felt the hesitation in the air, a sign of uncertainty from the girl. He had hoped the feeling would cause the girl to turn and run; however, it would seem this girl did not follow the typical pattern. Instead of running, there was the sound of the gate creaking open and then footsteps coming towards him as she called out to him. The first call was ignored, as he simply continued to walk towards the Mansion; however, the second call halted the Nobody in his tracks. He heard the words that followed and would’ve been surprised if he could feel such an emotion.

What the girl had said was not common knowledge to residents of the worlds. Appearing oddly or not, she should not have been able to assume he was from another world entirely. The only way she could do that is if she had experience with someone or something that had revealed this delicate truth to her, but who or what could’ve done that?

Without answering her, Marluxia turned slightly and looked at the girl again. She didn’t seem like much and yet she seemed to know quite a bit and what was this? Was she actually curious to find out more about other worlds? The curiosity showed clearly in her eyes; however, if she was looking to him for help, she might find herself asking for too much. The Lord of Castle Oblivion was not exactly kind or cruel, but rather a wild card that if flipped the wrong way could land the girl in trouble, but did she know that?

Marluxia remained quiet as he continued to watch her for a moment and then…yes. A smirk appeared on the Nobody’s shadowed face as he watched the girl’s eagerness and curiosity slip away and turn into something closer to fear, but the fear wasn’t because of him being something she didn’t understand. No, she seem to recognize something about him, but what was not revealed until her next set of words came out.


"You're with him! The redheaded man that took Kairi three years ago! ...That cloak is the same..."

What?!

Marluxia couldn’t help, but registered some form of true surprise as he turned gracefully in his spot to fully face her the girl as he processed her words. Three years had passed since he had been absent and while this was good to know it was not this bit of information he wanted elaborated on. He wanted to know more about the part involving the red head man.

“And what do you know of this redhead man now?” Marluxia’s voice came out calmly, emotionlessly as his eyes locked on the girl from under the shadow of his cloak. He wasn’t one to take interest in common folk of the worlds, but this one….this had said one too many words that had now caught his interest. She knew Axel or at least had seen him and Kairi? He pondered the name, but the face he saw was not the red head young woman’s. No it was Namine…and if she was involved then did that mean this Kairi had a connection to her and that keyblader Sora? Was this girl before him perhaps that boy’s friend?

The thoughts played out in the Nobody’s head one by one, his curiosity about the child growing by the second. Perhaps…if she proved to be useful maybe he’d give her the answers she sought. Provided she could prove to be that useful and get him to cooperate with her.

[Olette]

Olette knew there was something strange about this man. Something that chilled her to the bones and made her wary. Something that didn't seem right.

And then she knew what it was. He wasn't showing any emotion. Nothing. What little she could see of his face was a blank slate. How could someone control their emotions so well?

Olette had never been good at hiding what she felt. Her green eyes always betrayed them. They were wide now, huge and curious, the mystery growing beneath her feet. She was a little scared too. How could she not admit that? Some man in a dark trench coat had appeared out of thin air and showed no emotion whatsoever. He was like a robot.

Olette almost didn't hear his question.She blinked and looked upon him with fresh eyes. Was this such a good idea?

But she ignored her worries and plunged on. She tried to act tough like Hayner. He wouldn't deal with any bullshit. Neither would she.

"I can tell you what I know about the redheaded man," Olette said, "But you have to answer my questions first."

That was a lie, but Olette kept her face composed and blank like the man before her. She didn't know much else about the man who kidnapped Kairi. That was the last she saw of them--they had just disappeared. Olette had three years to think about wherre they could have gone and she drew one precise place: Destiny Islands. Was she playing with fate now? What if she couldn't provide all the answers he wanted?

[Marluxia]

Those with Hearts were interesting to observe. It was always amusing to watch the emotions play across their faces allowing you to play the game of guessing what they would do next. For example this girl before him was showing a variety things as he observed her. She wasn’t trusting and seemed to be still a bit afraid of him. A wise move considering she had no idea who he was or what he was capable of. Did he enjoy her fear and worry? No one could say and no one would be able to tell you why emotions amused the pink haired Nobody so much. Maybe he was jealous or perhaps missed that part of him that at one point could feel. Or maybe he simply saw the emotions as tools to be used against the ones who could feel. It was a mystery that hung about the Nobody that no one could explain and one that he would not even began to ponder. It was wasted time to try and understand something that simply was, so the Nobody simply accepted that the entertainment was simply there. Enough said.

Entertained or not, the Nobody’s face showed nothing as he watched the girl go from worried and fearful to curious and cautious and then to a no nonsense type. A cover for her true emotions, but the girl had already shown her true feelings, so the Nobody didn’t buy into the tough girl act. Even as she spoke, he could see through her bluff and straight to the truth of the matter. She probably knew very little of Axel, making her useless in the end…but then again, her curiosity could be useful to him….if he could gain her trust that is, but was he willing to play nice with a civilian? Marluxia pondered the possibilities a bit longer, carefully considering how much he could reap in turn for helping her.

She certainly acted like she had courage and potential, but he wondered just how long she could keep that act up. Would she be able to handle the Heartless, Nobodies, and whatever else was out there? Or would she end up destroyed in the process? Hmm…what to do? What to do?

Mhmm, was all the Nobody thought as he made his decision after a few minutes of thinking. Shifting his attitude from his usual emotionless state, he allowed himself to be slightly more lively than usual. For starters, a small trace of a smile appeared on his face.

“I would like it if you told me what you knew and in turn I’ll do my best to answer your questions. However, you seem to have many questions on your mind,” he said calmly. “Perhaps it would be more comfortable to find a place to sit instead of standing out here in the hot sun, hmm?” he said as he fanned himself with his hand as if he truly was becoming miserable by the sun. In reality, he wasn’t bothered at all, but he was tired of standing….and unfortunately, this girl was not someone who would just accept the act of floating without asking questions and right now... he was in no mood to explain himself. He would give her answers alright. Even if she didn’t have what he sought, he would tell her just enough to see if his thought on her potential and usefulness was right or wrong. He wanted her to trust him, so it would be that much easier to point her in the direction that would best benefit him in the future, but for now the trivial issue of building that trust was at hand.

“Oh yes. You asked earlier who I was, didn’t you? How rude of me not to answer that,” he said and then lifted his hands to his hood and pulled it back revealing his face. What appeared to be a gentle and friendly smile was upon his lips. A smile that could fool the untrained eye into thinking it was real.

“My name is Marluxia. What is your name?” the Graceful Assassin asked in tones that were just a tad bit less monotone than before. He would play the nice guy….for now.

[Olette]

Finally! Someone that could answer her questions! The very questions that kept her up at night. The ones that drove her to leave Twilight Town. The ones she... dreamed about. She grinned and nodded.

"I'm Olette. I do have many questions," She replied easily.

Now that the man was more animated she was too. She began toward the Mansion. She was going to keep the information about the redheaded man to herself for as long as Marluxia could stand. She had no idea he could see through her so clearly. He could read her like a book--just like her grandmother always said. She told Olette many times that her great big eyes were a curse, because they could hide nothing.

Now she walked toward the Mansion with no fear. She didn't believe in ghosts... even though she was with one now. A man with no beating heart and shouldn't exist. Yet, Olette didn't know that. To her Marluxia was a perfect stranger that she decided, foolishly, to trust. If the infamous ghost girl was here she would probably warn her away. But she wasn't and Olette found herself at the front doors before she knew it. Now she would know everything. Finally.

She pushed open the doors and musty scent of the house attacked Olette's senses. She blinked and waved away stray dust. Inside the Mansion was a mess. Olette held back the urge to clean, her back-up mode. Being friends with two boys and a mother that didn't much care for cleaning made Olette want to dust this place till it sparkled. The sad thing was the Mansion could be beautiful. There were old antique pieces everywhere along with intricate designs etched on every surface. It was just old and dirty.

She stepped inside and noted that it wasn't much better inside than out in the twilit sun. No doubt the air conditioner was off. The shadows, however, provided some relief as Olette sought out a chair. She found two sitting lonely in the main hall and plopped down, only to have a cloud of dust fly away. She waited for Marluxia before she voiced her first question.

"Why are there two Twilight Towns? What was the Virtual Twilight Town for?"

[Marluxia]

Heh. How ironic that the Nobody who did not pretend to have feelings had won over someone with a fake smile and "kind" words. How naïve this child truly was. Unexpected? Not really. She was a bird trapped within the cage of her world longing to fly off to other places and now that she might’ve found her way out, she easily walked right into the trap laid out for her. Marluxia didn’t expect her to have any true information to give him, so he began playing the game from a slightly different angle to compensate for the wasted time. Maybe she’d be useful in another fashion. Let’s start weighing the good against bad…starting now.

He gave her his name and now he had hers. Olette.

“What a pretty name. A pleasure to meet you,” he said keeping his “friendly” attitude up. She seemed to be relaxed and more open this way. He would continue to play nice then, keeping the girl unaware of what he truly was. Or the fact that he was still here just to see where to place her in his plans for the future. In any case, the girl gave him her trust easily enough and even was bold enough to go to the mansion and enter it. Her earlier fear and hesitation gone in the face of what answers she would gain from him. She opened the doors and went inside with Marluxia trailing behind. He paused in the doorway taking in the place surrounded by age, dust, and cobwebs. As expected the place had been empty for a long time, left for time to take down one piece at time; however, as those crystal blue eyes scanned the area, the pink haired Nobody could feel the importance of this place. Despite how it looked, there were subtle traces that others had been here. A slight disturbance of dust here, a broken cobweb there. Mhmm. The place had had some traffic over time, but the why was lost on the Nobody. He bet if he could explore the place from top to bottom, he’d find something that would shed some light on things, but for now that would have to be put on hold. He had a potentially useful child to guide right now.

The hesitation at the door lasted only a second before the Nobody was stepping over the threshold and into the slightly cooler mansion. As he followed the girl to the chairs, small dust clouds floated around the Nobody’s feet before settling on his clean boots. Resisting the urge to brush off ever speck of dust that touched him, he kept going until he had reached the chairs. He let the young lady sit down first and was very glad he could keep he was thinking off his face. As she plopped down and dust flew away from her, Marluxia made a note not to do the same.

Instead, he brushed the dust off the chair careful not to shoo the dust in the girl’s or his direction. When the chair was clean enough not to worry about having a chair print on him when he got up, the Nobody settled in the chair allowing the remaining dust to stay on his gloves and settle on him as it floated back down to rest. He could worry about getting it off later, for now he’d just have to ignore it despite how it was making him cringe a bit on inside. Regardless of his thoughts, the Nobody kept his act up only frowning slightly when he had dusted the chair off.

As soon as he had settled the girl began to talk asking her questions. As he listened he draped himself over the chair thinking how to answer that. Two Twilight Towns? He didn’t know about this; however, if it had anything to do with the Organization then he had a hunch why there might’ve been two towns instead of one. What intrigued him was this idea of a virtual one. Could a computer be used to make worlds and if so why would Xemnas do such a thing and why this town? Did it perhaps have something to do with keeping an eye on Roxas, Axel, and the puppet Xion or was this something different? He guessed he’d have to find out another time. For now he would answer her questions the best way he could.

“I am not sure exactly, but if I had to take a guess, I would think the second town was used for research. Perhaps there are some clues somewhere around here. Where did you find about the two towns?” he asked keeping his speech as nice and casual as was possible for him. He was curious himself as to what was going on and this town was proving to be a good spot to start. It would seem it had many secrets to share.

[Olette]

[/i]

Just thinking about it made her tired.

But now she had an escape. It was walking gracefully into the dirty Mansion and delicately wiping off the dusty seat. She could play this card right--he was as curious her. They only had different motives. Olette wanted freedom and a chance to see something more than twilight. What was the sun like on an early morning with the dew sparkling on all the flowers? What did stars look like wrapped in the folds of night? She knew nothing more than the sunset that never left. It followed her even into her dreams.

"Thank you," Olette murmured in response to "liking her name". Olette didn't know that a Nobody like Marluxia couldn't feel such an emotion. He couldn't endear anything even if he wanted to. She might have felt bad for him if she did know.

When Marluxia asked about how she knew about the other town she sat up eagerly and tossed a hand to the side, unknowingly pointing him in the direction to the lab.

"Sora came and my friends and I helped him hack into the other Town," she explained.

And that's when it hit her.

Sora.[/color] Was it safe to reveal such sensitive information? The Twilight Trio had made a pact never to speak of the Virtual Twilight Town to anyone, much less a perfect stranger with an oddly dead smile. Sora had many enemies--that much Kairi had made clear on her short visit before the redheaded man came. Was the "responsible one" making good decisions now? Was she protecting her friends like she had for all these years? Or was she setting Sora up for something? After all, the redheaded man was a kidnapper and Marluxia wore the same exact cloak. Who was to say he wouldn't do the same?

Suddenly Olette didn't look so sure anymore.

"Sora isn't there anymore," Olette said too quickly. She looked away and down at her shoes covered lightly in dust. "I don't know where he is now..."[/ul]

[Marluxia]

This child was innocent and easy to pry information from. Without much trouble, Marluxia had gained her trust and gained more information than he could’ve bargained for. Her curiosity and trust was her enemy and if Marluxia had a Heart, he might’ve been turned away from taking advantage of this, but he was hollow. Behind that “friendly” smile was a malice unlike any other. He wasn’t evil per say, but he wasn’t good either. He did what was necessary to get his way and placed people where he needed them to be both to protect himself and keep plans on track. He didn’t kill without reason nor did he harm others just because he could. No this man…it was his intelligence and his ability to manipulate others that made him tricky to deal with…and his inability to feel that made him dangerous. Without shedding a tear or feeling anything at all, Marluxia could strike down whatever became useless and threatened him. It is what he did and why he had the nickname “Graceful Assassin”. He had no friends and therefore could not understand the tired expression that sometimes flitted through the girl’s all telling eyes.

He never had anyone “rely” on him. He only knew how to use. This girl was no different to him than anyone else he had seen as a tool.

Already, she had proved that if he gave her the information she sought, she would give him what he wanted. Good. He could use that.

When she answered his question by pointing off to the side, Marluxia followed the way she pointed with a slight turn of his head. He could see a door in that direction slightly ajar. From what he could see it was some sort of library, but outside of bookshelves he could not kiss any signs of a lab or place a large computer that could exist. He would have to check this out at a later time. In response, he simply nodded before hearing some words that almost made him turn quickly to face her; however, he controlled his actions and simply turned his eyes to her watching her from the corner of his eye. Sora! So she knew him did she? And her friends too? How interesting. Despite the interesting development, the Nobody’s face remained freed of the thoughts that played in his head as he watched her for a moment.

He could see it there, the realization of her mistake and then her instinct to protect her friends that made her quick to speak and cover her tracks, but now she had dug herself in another hole hadn’t she? Sora wasn’t here? Not a wise thing to say to someone that could potential harm her or the town. If he wanted to he could wreck havoc upon the town and watch the girl suffer from her mistake; however, she was in luck. Marluxia wasn’t that cruel. No, he had a more subtle way of making people pay, but for the moment he played the part of someone that could understand her.

He faced her fully as she looked down at her feet. He was silent as he observed her for a second longer. What to do? What to do? I know.

“It must be hard…not to be able to know where a friend is that is,” Marluxia said carefully keeping his voice sympathetic as if the feeling was really there. “This world you are in, it was one of many, so finding your friend may be impossible, especially without a way out,” he said looking off to the side playing the part of being sad while feeling nothing at all. He would help the girl. Let her out into the worlds while keeping an eye on her and in time...he’d find Sora and make him pay for defeating him from before. The girl would be his bait and if this plan didn’t work, he could always get rid of his little friends couldn’t he? Make him suffer…

That was the thoughts of the Nobody at the time as he continued to play his part.

“I know I miss my friends,” he added quietly after a while as he closed his eyes keeping the act of being sad up. Pretending to have emotions and friends….that was something Xemnas and others did, but unlike some who deluded themselves into believing they actually had said things, this Nobody only used them for show. To gain trust and sympathy from those with Hearts and those who did not know him. People like this girl. Hopefully, the girl would continue to naively trust him and believe the emotions to be real. If she did this... then he’d have her for sure.

[Olette]

[/i]

Marluxia had no idea. And he truly didn't, because he couldn't feel. How many restless nights had Olette wished she could not feel? How many times had she bought four ice creams instead of her usual three? How many times did she dream of him, his face blurry but his smile always perfectly in place? Marluxia could never know that.

He could never know the empty feeling in her heart where something was missing. A piece floating around on another world, probably oblivious to her pain. He probably didn't care about her anymore as his obvious absence told her. But still she yearned to see him and return him to his proper place. Among the twilight with them, eating ice cream, going to school... just like it felt he should. She knew that was impossible--he had his own best friend and Kairi. Then why did it feel like he should be here with her?

Olette smiled sadly at Marluxia, glad he could understand somewhat.

"I want to go find him," Olette admitted. "Can you help me?"

She walked right into his trap. She ran into it more like it. But Olette had no idea. She was only thinking about her missing friend and how the burning hole inside her never seemed to go away. Time had not healed her wounds. She hated imagining Sora with them, eating his ice cream on the clock tower. Smiling and talking about nothing important. Bathing in the orange sun. Being her friend like he must have been at some point.[/ul]

[Marluxia]

If Marluxia didn’t know better, he would’ve smirked or laugh right then and there at what was unfolding before him. The girl was buying into the act and not only that, but she had actually dove headfirst into his trap. Yes…she’d be good bait, but first he had to let her out of this cage didn’t he? As he reopened his eyes and looked at her, he saw her desire to leave to go find her friend that she was oh so worried about and then she spoke the words he wanted hear.

Help her escape and find her friend? Oh, he could do that. He could do that very easily; however, she’d have to do something from in turn. He was silent for a moment as if he were truly pondering her question.

“I can help you find him, but I don’t know if it is wise to do so. The path is very dangerous and I wouldn’t want you hurt…” he said as he looked up at her with a slight trace of concern on his face. As if he was worried. He really didn’t care what happened to the girl. As long as she was useful, he’d use her. So now for the tricky part.

“However, if you are willing to take that path, I will help you out. On one condition,” he paused as his empty eyes locked on her. “Help me find my friends and in turn and I’ll do whatever I can to help you on your journey.”

He finished his proposal and let it sink into the girl’s head. Let her consider it a while. If she agreed, he’d let her out and in the future even come to her aid if she needed him; however, that was only a small tip of a more malicious plan in his head. Granted things could change, but at the moment all he saw the girl as was a tool to get revenge upon the keybearer who had destroyed him in the past. Vengeance…such a sweet and cold ally to have.