A Beautiful Dance - Part IV

Gradually, Zexion began to lose concept of time. Days and nights, weeks and months.... they all seemed to melt together so no distinction could be made. He became so obsessed with his illusory life that he merely passed through Reality like a ghost through trees. In meetings, he would only pretend to pay attention to Xemnas’ speeches. In the laboratory, he would mechanically go through his work, his mind elsewhere.

He would spend the majority of his days like this – merely floating through Reality without being truly knowledgeable of it. However, when he was locked in his room at night, he felt as though he were truly alive. It was then that he could escape into his world of dreams.

The familiar illusory scent of flower blossoms filled Zexion’s room once again as the illusion of Marluxia materialized. Zexion could feel himself growing further and further apart from Reality, but he was also far from caring. Reality was his enemy; Reality kept him from experiencing love. Illusion, though, allowed Zexion to experience everything; Illusion was his haven – his oasis – from the cruelties that Reality harbored. Zexion figured that, without his precious domination over the world of Illusion, he would either enter a psychotic state of being, or he would suffer a severe mental collapse.

The illusion of Marluxia glided over to Zexion and wrapped the younger intellectual within his arms. Zexion melted into the embrace and began purring as he allowed his eyes to close. “Marluxia” began to soothingly murmur into Zexion’s ear, and the younger of the two allowed himself to be bathed in the sound of the illusion’s voice.

Zexion felt as though he were listening to the grandest orchestra playing the most beautiful symphony ever written. That was only (the illusion of) Marluxia’s voice, however. Being held and kissed and.... loved was the near equivalent of being in the center of a sun-drenched flower field, the golden sun bathing him in warmth.

However, it always seemed as though their passion play would hit its extreme at the same time that Zexion’s mind would crash back to Reality’s cold, harsh truth.
“Oh, Zexion,” Marluxia’s illusion murmured as he gently trailed his fingers down the young illusionist’s cheeks, tracing the lines of his tears. “What is the matter?” (The illusion of) Marluxia’s voice was saturated with affection.
“It.... this....” Zexion tried not to allow his voice the ability to break. He continued in a whisper. “This.... all of it.... is just an illusion....”
“I can promise you that it is not,” the illusory Marluxia replied. “All of this is a product of your mind, my love.” He continued by whispering the rest of his explanation into Zexion’s ear. “And your mind is real....”

This was all it took for Zexion’s eyes to flutter shut again and for his worries to escape him. The illusory Marluxia kissed Zexion’s ear before pressing his lips to the young intellectual’s. Basking in this warm, illusive, surreal love, Zexion was able to think of nothing else. His mind was unable to comprehend that, maybe, in the upper levels of the Castle, there was a certain person thinking of him....

                                                       *****

Marluxia was sitting on a couch in the Castle’s library, a translated copy of Dante’s Monarchia open upon his lap. He, however, was not reading; the book did, indeed, lay open in his lap, but he was staring at the wall across from him, almost in a dreamlike state. He sighed as he continued his thoughts about the mysterious, young superior of his.

He wondered why Zexion was always spending so much time alone. He wondered what the illusionist did while he kept himself locked up in his room. He also wondered why the younger intellectual always shied away when approached by Marluxia. And why did Zexion randomly turn to incoherency when speaking at meetings? It’s as though he just.... is never completely there.

Marluxia knitted his eyebrows together in determination. He would find out the reason behind all of this. Nothing ever permanently stayed from the Lord of Castle Oblivion.

                 Nothing.

                                                     *****