Heart to Heart Chapter 11 - only two more to go after this!

[eiahmon]

Title: Heart to Heart
Rating: R
Disclaimer: Disney and Square own it all; I only wish I did. Why in the hell cant I come up with these wickedly cool characters and twisted plots? Why?
Summary: Sequel to Burning Heart and Earth's Rebirth. A special assignment from Ansem sets Dilan's conscience on edge, and he reaches out to the only person that he knows can help, the one person that he though he would never speak to again; Xehanort.
A/N: Warning for torture, torture, torture, torture.

11.

Xavier gasped in pain as a line of fire was drawn slowly down the left side of his face. The sound of sizzling filled his ears, and the sickly sweet smell of burning flesh drifted into his nose. He was vaguely aware of someone laughing nearby as he panted for air and his nerve endings sent urgent signals to his brain, commanding him to move and get away from the source of the heat as quickly as possible. His body jerked in the chair as much as the restraints would allow to the right, and more laughter sounded in the room with him. The heat was taken away then, and Xavier sagged in the chair and tried to catch his breath.

You've had worse, he told himself. You've had far, far worse. You can deal with this. This is to give Xehanort time to get away. You can figure out how to get yourself out of this once he's safe.

A jolt of pain from his right lag shattered his train of thought, and he gasped again as the muscles there locked up painfully for a few seconds before they relaxed. The jolt – which he realized was electricity – was repeated, this time on his thigh. The charge flickered across his skin and through the muscles, causing them to protest painfully as they contracted hard. Other muscles responded to the sudden burst of pain by spasming themselves, which forced another pained gasp for Xavier's mouth. The charge was taken away then, but then it was replaced again by the heat, dragging a line down the middle of his chest.

Xavier was unable to prevent the pained cry from escaping, and it was then that he sensed Xehanort's heart cease moving away.

They're hurting him!

"No," Xavier groaned as the rod was dragged down his stomach to his waist, leaving a blackened line of burnt skin in its wake. Don't come back in here.

I'm not leaving him here!

The child's heart began to move closer, and Xavier shrieked as a burst of electricity jolted through his penis and scrotum. The rod was then pressed against his chin and used to force him to tip his head back.

"Oh, the keyblade master's crying." said a voice nearby, but he couldn't see who was speaking through the tears that were blurring his vision. He could hear the skin of his chin sizzling and burning, and he thought that he could faintly see thin white smoke drifting up past his face. Another charge jolted through his lower body, and he felt his bladder let go.

"Hey, he's pissed himself!" cackled a different voice, and the five guards roared with laughter, but Xavier forced himself to ignore them. He reached through the blur of pain and focused on Xehanort's heart as it moved closer. If he and Even's theory about the boy's origins were correct then that meant...

Xehanort appeared in the doorway then. "Xavier!"

Xavier focused all of his attention on the boy's heart. It was difficult, likely very dangerous, and probably impossible, but it might be the only way to get them both out of here.

"Well, well, well," said one of the guards. "Look who came back. Now we got them both."

Xavier reached out with his own heart.

"Grab him," said another guard.

"No!" Xehanort wailed as he was dragged into the room. "Let me go!"

Trust me, Xehanort.

He touched the boy's heart with his own...

Xavier?

Trust me.

O.. okay.

… and suddenly he was being dragged by the arm into the room. Things seemed larger to him, and he could feel the residual ache of wounds that had been healed by a Cure spell. He then spotted his body, still bound to the chair, still and quiet save for the steady rise and fall of its chest.

It worked! I can't believe it worked!

"String the little snot up on the wall." someone said. "We can deal with him after we deal with his dear daddy."

Xavier? came Xehanort's voice, sounding uncertain and frightened.

Just trust me, little one, and whatever you do, don't try to regain control.

Okay.

Xavier wrenched his – Xehanort's arm – free of the grip that held it and quickly stepped back to give himself some room.

"The hell -? What do you think you're doing, brat?"

"Getting out of here." Xavier said through Xehanort's mouth, and before the guard could react, he raised his hand and summoned Dark Gaze.

Or at least, it was supposed to be Dark Gaze. Xavier had time to notice that his keyblade had changed greatly in appearance, bearing a clock at the head, gears above the handgrip, and having an hourglass for a keychain, before he turned his attention to the immediate problem. He could ponder his keyblade's new appearance later.

"Why the hell didn't someone tell us the brat could use a keyblade?" one of the guards snarled at his companions before he began to approach Xavier/Xehanort. "Easy kid. Just put the giant key down, and we won't hurt you too much."

"Begone." Xavier said firmly as he stepped back to give himself some room, still holding the keyblade up in front of him. The guard took another step towards him, hand out, intending to grab the keyblade evidently, so Xavier ducked down for a second before righting himself, swinging the keyblade in a circle and stopping with him standing in his preferred attack stance, with his right arm extended above and behind his head, keyblade at the ready. His left arm was extended out down and to the side, acting as a counter weight to keep him balanced.

The guard took a step back in surprise, and an uneasy feeling appeared in his eyes. "Guys..." he said to the others. The five men looked at each other, and then they began to approach him as one group. Xavier focused on the one closest to him, and then he launched himself forward in a whirling spin attack that sent a streak of blue white light flying from the tip of the keyblade like a whip. The closest guard took the blow full on in the chest, and he staggered backwards under the onslaught. Before they could react, Xavier used his magic to quickly move out of the way, disappearing from in front of them and reappearing behind them. He repeated the attack, getting a second one, and then he flash stepped away a second time.

"Where the hell is he!" someone snarled as he reappeared at the far side of the room. He stayed still long enough for them to get a glimpse and turn to face him before he stepped away again, this time appearing by the door. He thought about using Dark Volley to end things quickly, but he discarded that idea as quickly as it appeared. He didn't want to risk affecting Xehanort's heart by channeling darkness through it. Instead he summoned his ice magic, and it rose through the floor in chunks at his call. Two of the remaining guards dove out of the way in time to avoid it: the third did not. Xavier heard him scream in pain from the freezing cold, but that scream stopped abruptly, and when the ice cleared, the man was lying still on the floor.

Xavier didn't stop the check if the man was still alive, and truthfully, he didn't care. He stepped away just as a hail of gunfire sprayed the wall where he had just been standing. The bullets ricocheted around the room, but none struck Xehanort or Xavier. The two guards dove for cover, and Xavier stepped away again, this time appearing in the far corner of the room, opposite the door. He cast Quake where he stood, which caused the floor to erupt in pointed rocks under his feet, knocking him into the air. The spell then ended, and the man fell back to the floor and landed on the back of his head. There was the crack of a breaking skull, and he didn't move.

"Enough!" the fifth and final guard shouted, and he strode up to Xavier's still body and pointed his weapon right between the eyes.

"No!" Xavier shouted in Xehanort's voice "Don't do it!"

"Say goodbye to your Daddy!" the man sneered, and he began to squeeze the trigger.

"Stop!" Xavier shouted, putting as much power into the word as he could.

And... the man did.

He froze in position, with one foot off the ground as he stepped forward and with his finger still squeezing the trigger. His chest wasn't rising, nor were his eyes moving. As a matter of fact, as Xavier looked around, he realized that nothing was moving save for himself. Everything in the room had gone still and completely silent.

He didn't waste any time to marvel at it; he had never particularly cared for time magic anyway. Instead he dismissed his keyblade and ran forward to the chair in the center of the room. He pulled the restraints open that kept his body bound to the chair, but Xehanort's hand brushed against his arm. There was a jolt very much like the electrical shocks that he had taken earlier, and he found himself back in his own body in the chair.

He groaned as the pain from the torture flooded his mind, and he felt the magic around him waver as he struggled to hold his focus on it.

"Xehanort," he rasped, "help me up."

The child stood there in front of him for a moment, still, and then he shook his head like someone just waking up from a dream and began to help Xavier out of the chair. Xavier let out a pained moan as his muscles screamed in protest at having to support his weight after what they had just endured, and he ached to cast a healing spell on himself, but he didn't dare. He didn't think that he would be able to hold the time magic while casting another spell, and he didn't want to risk releasing it until they were safely out of the room.

"Can't we portal out, Xavier?" Xehanort asked as he leaned on him, unable to stand on his own.

Xavier shook his head and regretted when a wave of dizziness swamped him. "No," he gasped "Won't be able to hold the time magic. Just need to get out the door."

"Okay," Xehanort said in a small voice, and they began to shuffle towards the door, with Xehanort supporting Xavier as they went.

Xavier moaned in pain as he dragged himself forward. His injuries screamed for attention, and he was just so tired... He felt the magic waver again as his head sank down to rest against his chest. He just wanted to rest for a bit.

"Don't go to sleep!" came Xehanort's voice from his left, and his head jerked up, which caused another wave of pain to move through him at the sudden movement. He moaned and black spots appeared in his vision as they moved closer to the door. The magic wavered and began to fail.

"Xehanort," he groaned "I'm not going to make it. Find Dilan and get out of here."

"No, I won't leave you!"

"Can't hold it..."

Around them the time magic collapsed as Xavier lost his hold on it, and a shot rang out from behind them.

"Where the hell...?" came the guard's voice, and Xavier heard boots scuffling across a stone floor. "There you are. That's as far as you're going." Behind them came the sound of a hammer being pulled back into the firing position. "Now hold still."

"Run, Xehanort," Xavier rasped, and using the last of his strength, he pushed the boy away from him, towards the door. He then fell down onto his hands and knees as darkness crept in around the edges of his vision.

"Xavier! Get up!"

"Run, child."

"It's only fitting that you die down on your knees like the dog you are." came the voice from behind him, and Xavier closed his eyes and braced himself for the shot.

The door flew open. "Xehanort, down!" came Dilan's voice, and Xavier saw Xehanort drop to the floor. Not even a second later, there was the whistling of something moving at great speed through the air, a meaty thunk! a wet sounding groan, and then a body fell to the floor behind him. Xavier weakly raised his head to see Dilan hovering above the floor just inside the door, with a lance in one hand, and four others floating in the air around him. He dropped to the floor and dismissed his lances, before he took four quick steps forward.

"On your feet, Xavier." Dilan said in a quiet yet firm tone as he grasped him by his upper arms and pulled him upright.

Xavier let his head sink down to his chest again. "I'm going to pass out, Dilan." he said faintly. "Find Roxas; he knows where to go."

"Here's his coat." he heard Xehanort say from some far off place, and he felt the leather being wrapped around him. Just before the world swam into darkness around him, he felt Dilan's arms lifting him off the floor.

******

He knew this place.

Xavier looked around the familiar space and wondered why he was there. Had Dilan brought him here? Why? What for? Was Ansem nearby?

Ansem's private sitting room was empty and quiet, yet Xavier knew that he was not alone. He could hear someone in one of the nearby bedrooms – the one he had occupied after his release from the castle infirmary all those years ago. He should leave, get out of the castle and away from Radiant Garden before he was caught again, but something compelled him to walk into that bedroom. He walked across the lush carpeting, noting as he went that his footsteps made no sound, and pushed the door open.

The room was as he remembered it, a dresser against he far wall with a second door beside it that led into a small private bath, a small sitting area on the right wall under the windows, with a fireplace between the large ceiling high windows, and a large canopied bed against the wall opposite.

Well enough to leave the infirmary, but still too weak to be on his own, Xehanort had spent two weeks under Ansem and Even's care in this bedroom before he had been permitted to move into his own rooms. He had spent many hours sleeping in the large bed between meals and physical therapy sessions as his body finished healing from the thrashing that Master Aqua had given him. He remembered Even reading books to him, and he could recall the day that Ansem had allowed him to walk (with assistance just to be on the safe side) over to the windows and open then, so he could look out over the city below and enjoy the fresh spring air.

Even after moving to his own rooms in the apprentice corridor, Xehanort had returned to Ansem's rooms many times, especially after Ansem announced to the world that Xehanort was his son and heir to Radiant Garden's throne. To the memoryless foundling, it had been everything he had hoped for.

"And it looked as though part of me never left." Xavier said to the white haired figure sitting on the opposite side of the bed, with it's back to him."I thought you had faded away."

Xehanort – the tiny portion of conscious memory that he had last spoken to years ago before Master Xehanort's destruction – looked over his right shoulder at him. "I intended to," he said evenly. "but I was unable to."

"Why not?"

"Have you never wondered why you do not feel any guilt over what happened here in Radiant Garden? Over throwing the only father you knew into the Realm of Darkness, ripping out of the hearts of your adopted family and destroying the world?"

"I always assumed it was because I knew that I wasn't responsible. Master Xehanort committed those acts, not me."

Xehanort turned away and inclined his head slightly in agreement. "True, we weren't responsible, but that doesn't lessen the guilt any. You don't feel it because it is a burden that I bear. I am the one that was so eager to regain my memories that I allowed dangerous experiments to be conducted on my heart. I am the one that listened to Braig. I am the one that didn't try to tell Ansem what was going on until it was too late. It is my fault alone."

"You and I are the same person, are we not?"

Xehanort nodded again. "For the most part yes. You have all of our memories at your disposal, and it has changed your personality some, but yes, we basically are the same person."

"Yet you alone bear the guilt and regret." Xavier paused. "It is you that I've been hearing, hasn't it? It's you that I hear apologizing every time Ansem's name is mentioned, and it's you that I hear crying off and on."

"It is." Xehanort said so softly that Xavier could barely hear him. "I wish so much to make things right, but after seeing his anger in the waterway earlier, I know that he will never forgive me."

"Forgive us, you mean, but you are right. He blames us for everything that went wrong."

"Rightly so."

"No," Xavier said firmly as he walked around the bed and knelt down to look himself in the eye. He felt a stab of guilt and grief in his heart when he looked into Xehanort's miserable brown eyes, and he reached out and put his hands on his other self's shoulders. "We did nothing wrong, Xehanort. We were going on the information we had. Even Ansem once told us that he didn't think we were a bad or evil person before the memory loss because he didn't believe that such a thing could affect the personality so strongly. We had no idea what those experiments would wake up. We trusted Braig, but we also trusted Dilan, Aeleus, and Even. He never really hinted about knowing us or how we came to be. There is nothing to feel guilty over."

"I just wish that I could make it all go back to how it was before the experiments, so I could refuse them." Xehanort whispered as tears tracked down his face. "I never wanted things to go so wrong."

Xavier wiped at his own eyes as he moved to sit on the bed beside himself. "I never wanted Haven's Bridge to be destroyed either, but it was. There is nothing that we could have done to prevent Master Xehanort from waking up, Xehanort. Not doing the experiments would have only delayed the inevitable."

"You don't know that!" Xehanort wailed.

"I do know that. I did nothing, nothing, to wake him the second time around, but he still woke, and it was only with the help of you, Terra, Eraqus, Naminé, Even, and the others that I was able to prevent him from seizing full control again." He reached out and pulled Xehanort over to him, wrapped his arms around him, and held him like he did had for his younger self over the past few months. "The worlds are safe now, Even and the others have forgiven us and welcomed us back into their lives, everything is alright."

"I don't want Ansem to hate us anymore." Xehanort sobbed. "I miss him."

"I know, I know. I miss him too, but I don't think we'll ever be able to do anything about that."

"I don't know what to do, Xavier."

"You need to let it go, Xehanort. You did nothing wrong, and there is nothing you can do to change what happened."

Xehanort closed his eyes and rested his head against Xavier's chest, and like he had years before, he began to fade.

"I'll bear the guilt for both of us." Xavier said quietly as Xehanort faded from sight. The room around him also began to fade, and Xavier felt himself waking up.

******

Xavier shifted as awareness slowly filtered back to him. His body felt heavy and tired as it had during his fight against the influenza, and his eyelids felts as though they were weighted down. He could feel a faint echo of pain through his body, as if he had been healed by a healing spell and his body hadn't quite gotten the message yet.

"Are you awake, Xavier?" came Even's voice from somewhere nearby.

"Yes," Xavier mumbled as he rubbed the sand from his eyes and opened them. He recognized his bedroom at home right away, and Even was seated in the chair by the bed, watching him. Aside from the moonlight coming through the windows, the room was dark. "How did I get here?"

"Roxas and Dilan brought you home several hours ago. You were unconscious and seriously hurt, so Lea came around to heal you, and before you say anything, Taylor said that it was safe for him to cast it, and Isa took him back home immediately afterwards. I volunteered to watch you through the night. You were out for far longer than we thought you would be."

"I had my reasons," Xavier said as he sat up in bed. "Is Xehanort alright?"

"He's fine, and he's in his room asleep. He let Vexen bunk with him for the night, and the two chatted and carried on until I had to threaten them with a sleep spell."

"The others?"

"Dilan, Ienzo, and Aeleus are camped out on the parlor floor, and Roxas is at Lea and Isa's." Even paused for a moment. "Xavier, why are you crying?"

"What?" Xavier reached up to touch his cheek, and his fingertips came away wet. "I... I..." He took a deep breath to steady himself. "Even, do you think that if I had done things differently, that I could have prevented Master Xehanort from waking up and destroying everything?"

"What brought this on?"

"Just seeing Ansem there, and I could hear his hatred for me in his voice, and..." Xavier's entire body shuddered and a sob slipped out. "I miss him, Even."

Even sighed, and he stood up from the chair and sat down beside Xavier on the bed. "This never bothered you before, Xavier, so why now?"

"I..." He told Even then, of meeting his old self in his memories years ago, of believing that they had merged back into one person, of seeing him again in his dreams, and of the guilt the other felt. "He must have truly become part of me this time, because I've never felt this way before over everything that happened, and -"

Even cut him off by enfolding him in his arms. "It was not your fault, Xavier, and it was not Xehanort's fault either. Braig led you along on a very dangerous path while Ansem gleefully allowed it, hoping to use his only child as a means to learn more about the secrets of the heart. Any of us could have stopped it at any time, especially me."

Xavier looked up at him. "You?"

"Senior Apprentice remember? Ansem's oldest protégé? He leaned heavily on me and listened to my advice. If at any time, I had said 'Master Ansem, we need to stop this before we cause harm to Xehanort.' he would have listened, but I was just as eager for knowledge as he was."

"It wasn't your fault, Even. You couldn't have known."

"I hold more responsibility than you do for what happened. You honestly had no idea what you were getting into other than maybe getting your memories back. I was fully aware that what we were attempting was dangerous. I should have never allowed it to happen."

"But Even -"

"Enough, Xavier. It's over and done with, and we cannot change what happened. All we can do is go forward from here."

"How do we do that? The search for me is bound to intensify now that Ansem has seen me, and what are you and the others going to do?"

"I can't speak for Ienzo, Dilan, and Aeleus, but Vexen and I are going to stay here."

Xavier sat up. "You are?" He was happy to hear that, but he didn't think Even would be happy in a world like Haven's Bridge. Even had lived most of his life on Radiant Garden with its high technology and mild climate, so Xavier wasn't sure if he would be able to live in Haven's Bridge without going crazy.

Even sighed. "We are. Taylor asked me if I was planning on staying and then asked if I would like to join the two of you as the world's third physician with Vexen as my apprentice."

"And you agreed?"

"I did. Vexen is very excited about it, and your father has already marshaled the neighbors into building a house for us nearby."

"Don't you want to go home?"

Even sighed again. "What I want is not important. What Vexen needs is. Even if you were to cool Ansem's anger to allow us to return, I still wouldn't go."

"Because of Vexen?"

"Because of Vexen. After the Nobodies at Castle Oblivion were destroyed, Xavier, Ansem arrived. Upon not finding me, he took his rage out on the 29 Vexen Replicas that he found. Little Vexen only survived because No. 23 hid him."

"He.. killed them?"

"Every single one that he could find. Vexen saw some of it and heard the rest and for a nearly two years, just hearing Ansem's voice was enough to cause him to have a panic attack. After seeing Ansem's rage earlier, his fear has returned stronger than it was before, and I expect a few nightmares before he calms back down, so no, I will not be returning to Radiant Garden. Vexen deserves better than that."

Xavier leaned back into Even's embrace. "I'm glad you're staying, Even." He felt a hand run down his hair.

"So I am, Xavier, now you need to go back to sleep. Even with a healing spell, you're still not back to normal."

"Will you... stay?"

"Haven't outgrown that yet, have you?"

"I just merged with a part of me that loved you very, very much, so it's to be expected."

Even laughed quietly. "That is true, and yes, I will stay while you sleep. Close your eyes now, before I hit you with a sleep spell."

"You haven't changed a bit."

"No, I haven't. Now hush."

Xavier smiled faintly as he closed his eyes and rested his head against Even's chest. The steady beat of his heart sounded in his ears as he slipped back to sleep.

******

In the morning, the lingering aches from the torture were gone, so Xavier dragged himself out of his soft bed and went to take a bath. The hot bath helped him wake up, and after he was dressed he peeked into Xehanort's room to see that the child wasn't there. He wandered downstairs and encountered his mother, who boxed him lightly on the ear and scolded him for "Scaring years off of my life with the state you were in!" She then hugged him. "Don't you ever do that again, young man!"

"Trust me, Mama," he said as he returned the hug. "I didn't enjoy it either, and I will be trying my hardest to avoid it in the future." She let go of him and stepped back. "Do you know where Xehanort is?"

She stretched up to kiss him on the cheek. "I think he's in the barn. He's been very quiet today, and we think he's blaming himself for what happened to you, so you had better go talk to him."

"I will do that." He smiled at his mother and grabbed her in another hug for a quick second. "Love you, Mama!" he called as he headed for the back door. He could hear her laughing as he went.

A few minutes later, he walked into the barn, and he detected a very familiar heart up in the hayloft. A feeling of guilt washed over him as he climbed the ladder, and he found Xehanort sitting among the hay bales, facing the wall. Xehanort did not look up or make a sound as he approached.

"Hey," he said quietly as he sat down beside him. "Why are you hiding out up here all alone?" Xehanort didn't answer and refused to look at him. "If it's about what happened, I'm not angry at you."

"You should be." Xehanort mumbled. "It's my fault that you were hurt."

"It's the fault of the ones that hurt me, not you, child."

"It is my fault!" Xehanort burst out. "You told me to stay and wait for you, and I followed you anyway! It's my fault that you had to exchange yourself for me!" Xehanort angrily scrubbed at his eyes as he began to cry, and Xavier reached over, gathered the child into his arms and held him on his lap. "It's my fault." Xehanort sobbed. "Why did you come for me? Why didn't you leave me there?"

"Because at one time, I did the exact same thing that you did." Xavier replied quietly, and Xehanort looked up at him in confusion.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"Remember how Even told you to go play with Vexen so he and I could step out of the room?"

Xehanort nodded. "Yeah?"

"When we were out in the corridor, he assured me that it was in fact impossible for you to be a Replica of me."

"What? Why not?"

"My old body was lost years ago, so there was no place for them to get the DNA from. Also the only one that can implant memories is a girl named Naminé, and she has certainly not said anything about doing so. Then there is the Wayfinder." He pointed to the charm that Xehanort was wearing around his neck on a leather cord. "I left it behind when I left the Destiny Islands, yet Dilan found it in the cell that I took you from."

"What are you saying, Xavier?" Xehanort whispered. His tears had dried, and he looked frightened at the thought of what he was about to hear.

"Just before you appeared, a spell was cast in an attempt to summon me to Radiant Garden. The spell failed in its intended goal, but something went wrong in a way that no one expected. Those who witnessed the spell said it reminded them of Luxord, a Nobody that could control and warp time. Even and I think that instead of summoning me as intended, the spell somehow summoned you forward through time, to Radiant Garden."

Xavier saw the dawning horror in Xehanort's eyes. "How is such a thing possible?"

"I do not know, but it is the only explanation we have. Soon, I will go speak with Master Yen Sid, who was one of the spellcasters, and get his thoughts on the matter and see if we can return you home."

"But, but why? Why don't you remember what happened? If I am you, why didn't you come and get me as soon as I was pulled back? Why did you leave me there?"

"Because I don't remember, Xehanort. I don't know why, but I have no recollection of anything that happened to you. All I know is that age 13, I developed an insatiable drive to leave the Destiny Islands because I knew with a certainty I couldn't explain that there was more out there. When Master Limahl offered me a way off the islands, I took it with both hands."

Xehanort shook his head. "I don't understand."

"We don't fully understand it either, little one." came Even voice from behind him, and Xavier looked over his shoulder to see him standing on the ladder, looking at them. "But Xavier is telling you the truth as we know it. The only possible explanation we have is that the spell pulled you forward in time. We don't know how or why, but that is what we have to work with."

"So I'm not a Replica?"

"No you are not, and we'll find a way to send you home as soon as we can."

Xehanort looked up at Xavier. "But what if you can't?"

"We obviously will." Xavier told him with a small smile. "Because I remember celebrating my fourteenth birthday with a beach party, and I clearly remember leaving the islands a few months later, so we will find a way."

Xehanort rested his head against Xavier. "I'm so confused."

"Believe me," Even replied in a dry tone. "So are we."

"But you're sure," Xehanort asked desperately, "You're sure that I'm not a Replica?"

"We are sure." Xavier told him gently. "We'll know more after I talk to Master Yen Sid later."

"And you will find a way for me to go home?"

"We will, Xehanort. I promise that we will."

Xehanort closed his eyes then and nestled close, shaking, and after a moment, Xavier realized that he was crying. Even climbed up onto the loft and sat down beside them, and the two of them soothed the crying child until he cried himself to sleep in Xavier's arms.


Chapter 10 -- Chapter 12
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