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The journal was finished, and all Isa felt was numb. His fingers flicked for a moment between the pages of the small notebook, his posture drooping with each page that past. He couldn't even curl his lips into a frown; he couldn't feel anything. He flicked back to the last page with calloused fingers carelessly, as if he dared the journal to give him a papercut. To give him a physical pain to focus on, rather than the emotional turmoil he was currently in. The last page, facing a bright red back cover, was bare. He hadn't written anything there yet. His fingers flexed for a moment, eyes staring at the page. As if he could find the answer that he wanted in the snow white page itself. But there was no such luck. His hand reached out to grab the pen off of his desk, and he lowered it to the page --
"Master Isa!"
The voice snapped him out of his reverie, blue locks flicking over his shoulder as he looked towards the door, where the voice was coming from. For a moment, all he saw was red -- and his heart skipped a beat. But as he pushed himself back into reality, and the brown spikes were a dead giveaway as to who it was.
"Sora. Haven't I told you to knock?" Isa remarked, but already, his mask was slipping back into place. His lips quirked up into a warm smile, and his hand slowly shut the red journal in front of him, keeping the book faced down. "What is it?"
There was a pause, as Sora looked from Isa down to the book, and Isa could read in his face that he wanted to ask what it was. But thankfully, Sora thought better of it, and his grin flooded his face once more. "You said we would train today!" he said as he made his way into the room. Fingers touched along wood as Sora drifted through the room, looking as if he wanted to give everything a touch.
"I forgot," Isa apologized, though his eyes flicked back to the red journal in front of him for a moment before looking back up. "Have you been waiting long for me?"
"Nah, not really! You're normally there before me, so I got a little worried." Sora reached up and put a hand on the back of his neck, grinning at him like he had been caught with a hand in the cookie jar (Isa had seen Sora in the kitchens from time to time, with his hand in the cookie jar like that. No amount of scolding had ever been able to keep the boy from sneaking a cookie every so often). "Everything okay?"
Isa pushed his own smile up, those green eyes alighting upon Sora's. "Of course. I lost track of time. You go ahead on down, get started with some basic tactics. Let me just straighten up in here."
"Of course!" Sora said, absolutely delighted. Isa could watch his eyes flit between Isa's and the journal in his grip, but Sora still had the intelligence not to ask.
"I'll see you down there in a few," Isa commented, but Sora was already out the door. He gave a soft chuckle to himself, before he turned back towards the notebook. His fingers stretched out towards the pen -- but he grabbed the book instead. The moment had passed, and the day wasn't over. And with it, remained hope that he might find something to write. He stood up from his desk and made his way over to his bed. He crouched down and tugged out a small plastic bin, just large enough to fit under the bed neatly. He pushed the midnight blue lid off. Underneath were...more of the same notebook. Red notebooks filled the bin, each of them marked with the same insignia on it, except for one. Even from the top of the bin, he could see the brown notebook at the bottom, practically torn and fraying from use. He gingerly set the one he was writing in at the top of the small pile. The last thing he saw before he closed the lid and pushed the bin back under the bed was the insignia on that top journal, echoed on each of the other red notebooks.
A small, orange sun.
--
It had been years since he let himself return to Radiant Garden. It went by a different name at the moment, after all -- Hollow Bastion. It wasn't his home, not now. The same darkness that tinged his memories plagued the entire world. And that was nothing to say for the hurt that he felt when he had to go. No, Isa stayed in the Mysterious Tower most of the time, and any time he had to go out, he went to Twilight Town. There was enough there to take care of. His heeled boots clacked along the pavement as the town bustled around him, his long, blue coat flapping behind him. The yellow keffiyeh around his neck was the most distinguishing feature; many of the townspeople knew him just because of that single accessory, even if the blue coat paired with the black shirt and blue hair wasn't distinctive enough.
Which was why the binder saw him coming. It was easy to see him, halfway across the marketplace. By the time Isa approached, the woman had leaned forward onto the windowsill that she operated through. "Still no luck, darling?"
she asked. "Need another book?"
"Yes please."
He was always quiet when he showed up. After the third time that he had returned, she had inquired why he always asked for the same book, remade the exact same way. After the seventh time, he had answered.
She had learned somewhere along the way that it was just easier to make a few of them at a time. No matter what, it was always a nice design, even if it was custom made to his specifications. She knew she could sell it easily. But she hadn't needed to, because he bought them up each and every time. As she turned to grab another copy, however, she realized she only had one left. "Looks like it's the last one I've got now," she remarked as she pulled it off of the shelf. She opened her mouth, and paused. There was something...different about the blue-haired man this time. He looked more downtrodden than usual. How many books had it been? She couldn't even count them. She set the book on the counter and slid it over to him. "It's on the house this time, dearie."
Isa had been reaching into his pocket when the words properly registered in his head. Those green eyes darted up to meet her own. "I have the money, if that's the concern," he replied, but she shook her head.
"You've bought enough from me. This is my gift to you." Her hands pressed it forward, pushing it firmly into Isa. He looked down, eyes catching on the orange insignia. "I can only hope that this is the last one that I have to sell to you."
For a moment, Isa was speechless. He spurred to life after a few moments, and he gave her a smile, though she noticed that it didn't quite reach his eyes. "I appreciate it. I hope so as well." Without giving another word, he bowed his head and slipped away, holding that journal close to his chest.
Lost in his own thoughts, it was no time before Isa found himself in front of the Abandoned Mansion. He gave a small, wry grin for a moment to himself -- of course he would come back here. It was the quietest place, one that he was sure that he wouldn't end up interrupted. Something that fit his mood perfectly. Yet, as he stepped into the mansion itself, he realized that there was an ulterior motive -- this was the last place he knew Lea was for sure. This was where his journal had led him. He had to have come through here in order to have gotten to Roxas, after all. He could practically smell him as he walked through the mansion, steering himself towards the library without even thinking about it. Step after step, he moved into the laboratory, which was still damaged from Roxas's encounter with the computers. His hand reached up to touch the spiderwebs across the screen as he moved, which was when he heard it -- the clacking of boots in the next room.
Isa's hand immediately reached out and his keyblade appeared in seconds. He did always love the look of it; a blue tint to it, with three spokes on the end that sharpened out at the end, hovering around the main piece on a semicircle. The main body of the keyblade was sharp as well, a diamond at the end that connected with the semicircle and connected to a wide body with spokes along it. His other hand tucked the journal into his pocket swiftly, and he stepped through the door.
He recognized the black coat first. The hood up, preventing him from being able to tell exactly who it was, not to mention that the person had his back to him. And yet, there was something that caught his heart as he looked at his body, framed perfectly in that suit. He didn't need to have any real proof.
He knew his best friend.
"Lea."
The figure stopped for a moment, and Isa wondered how this was going to play out. He'd thought about this moment, over and over again. Isa's breath hitched as he turned, and those slender digits reached up to push down the hood -- revealing that red mane that he knew so well. He'd grown since he last saw him, since the portal appeared which separated them. Lea's hair had somehow gotten more out of control, despite the nicely made spikes that he had put it into, and there was a bit of muscle on his form. More than he was used to.
For a moment, Isa's vision blurred. It took him a few moments to realize it was him. Tears were already threatening to spill, and he blinked them away. "I've been looking for you for so long, Lea," he uttered, taking a step forward. Lea stared at him for a moment, those green tearmarks on his cheeks unmoving.
"That's right. You're the reason I waited," Lea replied, though there was something. . . off about his voice. "I'd almost forgotten about you."
Isa took another step forward. "You don't have to wait any longer. I'm here now," he said, though his voice cracked along the way. "I'm here to save you from him. From the Organization."
"Save me?" Lea scoffed for a moment, those emerald eyes showing just how wary he was of Isa. "And who said I was the one who needed saving here?"
"Lea -- "
"That's not my name anymore, Isa," he interrupted, sticking his hand out to wag a finger. "It's Axel. Got it memorized?" The wagging finger darted up to his head and tapped at his temple for a moment. His lips twisted up into a grin -- but it was all wrong. Isa had always loved his smile when they were young. The way they lit up his face and his eyes sparkled. There was no sparkle in his eyes this time, and there was no lighting up of his face. "Besides. If you wanted to save me, why'd ya leave me in the first place?"
The words hit him harder than anything he had encountered yet. He reached up to touch his chest for a moment, making sure that nothing had hit him, and his fingers gripped onto the scarf. Axel's eyes drifted down -- and he let out a brief laugh. "You still have that raggedy old thing? "
"Of course," Isa managed, his own eyes meeting Axel's. "It was my reminder of you. A way to keep you close to my heart." A reminder of the fact that he failed him in the first place when he was unable to pull him with, and a promise that he wouldn't fail again. "Lea, please."
"It's Axel. A-X-E-L," he replied. Isa's heart sunk in his chest, as if it were weighed down with an anchor.
"I can save you, though," Isa persisted, taking yet another step forward. "You just need to come with me. Lea, listen. I -- "
"Actually! I have an even better idea," Axel interrupted. A single slender hand rose up and those fingers snapped together. As they did, a ring of fire, as if outlined with gasoline, shot up from the floor, encompassing and surrounding the two of them. Isa let out a sharp yelp at the sudden heat that enveloped them and he raised his arm, as if to defend himself from the fire. "Since we're having this. . . little reunion," he commented, his arms stretching out -- and in his hands, a pair of metal chakrams formed, outlined with a ring of red. "Why don't we use this time to get to know each other a little better, Isa?"
This time, it was Axel's turn to step forward. Isa took a step back out of habit, those aquamarine eyes shimmering as the fire crackled around them. His hair was whipping past him from the rushing heat as he looked up at his best friend.
"Ten years is such a long time, Isa. I wouldn't want to miss out on even a single detail."
Axel moved almost too fast for Isa to spot. One moment, he was standing only a few feet away. The next, he was already in front of Isa, winding his chakrams back for an attack. Isa let out a sharp yelp as he brought his keyblade up to block the move. "Lea! Stop this!" he exclaimed, before he moved to shove Axel back with his keyblade. It worked; Axel stumbled back a few steps. "I'm not going to fight you."
"That'll make this easy, then," Axel replied, and once again, that menacing grin slipped onto his lips. The next few blows came as a flurry; each second, a chakram was coming for Isa, testing his block for any weaknesses.
The crack was the first sign that something was wrong. He kept the keyblade upright, but he could see it -- in the center, where it suddenly grew thinner, there was a small crevasse. He moved to try and take a step back, to protect the keyblade from being broken, but what he didn't realize was the fact that Axel had been pushing him backwards. There was nothing behind him but fire. He side-stepped, but Axel turned with him -- he saw it coming, after all.
The few seconds it took for Isa to realize his circumstances were long enough for Axel to gear up for another attack. He brought both of his chakrams up over his head and crashed them down in a V, right for Isa's head. Isa managed to bring the keyblade up over his face, enough to defend him -- but the keyblade was a different story entirely. The keyblade shattered in Isa's grip, leaving him only holding the handle for a moment. But as the keyblade gave way, Axel's full might was still coming down. Those spokes on his chakrams came down perfectly on Isa's forehead and scraped down, opening up a large gash over the bridge of his nose in the form of an X.
Isa fell backwards with a yell, his hand releasing the handle of the keyblade. It clattered to the floor as his hand reached up to touch at his face -- and those aquamarine eyes widened as it came away bloody. He looked up at Axel, who stood over him silently, those arms still outstretched. Isa stared at him for a moment, his chest heaving with the effort it took to block his attacks, and his eyes glistened. The smoke and heat were getting to him, he tried to tell himself.
But still, Axel didn't move.
"Well?" Isa asked, staring him down, locking aquamarine eyes onto emerald. The blood on his face was beginning to mingle and mix with his tears, running down in pink rivulets. "You won. Kill me -- show me how you're not Lea anymore." His voice was hoarse from the smoke at this point, but there was defiance. A dare.
Finally, Axel stirred back to life -- and the chakrams faded into nothingness. The flames began to abate. "No need. You've learned your lesson, Isa," he replied coldly. "Don't come looking for me. I'm not waiting for you any longer." With that, he moved his arm -- and opened a corridor behind him, before proceeding to step through it.
Isa watched him for a moment, chest heaving -- before he allowed himself to collapse on the floor and just cry.