☉ step one: choose your flavour of roxas one: early-mid Days aka "i am baby and understand nothing, but ice cream and friends are pretty rad ig??" two: mid-late Days aka "i still understand nothing, and i WILL die mad about it" three: digital Twilight Town aka "i'm?? definitely normal?? and i understand NOTHING, least of all why red sonic is following me" four: nebulous post-KH2-prologue timepoint aka "you are 99.9% likely to be using telepathy/lucid dreaming/diving around in people's heart stations to be picking this option" five: post-KH3 aka Here There Be Spoilers and also limitless possibilities six: WILDCARD aka if you're wanting some kind of AU, this is the option you wanna pick. canon divergence and crossover AUs are all fair game here! heck i'll even bring back DDD!roxas on request if you want
☉ step two: choose your scenario one: the obligatory ice cream prompt; look if you're friends with Roxas you are gonna be subjected to ice cream at least ONCE it is tradition and i do not make the rules two: in ur world, tryna be sneaky; for some reason the organisation has Business on your character's world and Roxas isn't as good at sneaking around as he thinks he is (alternatively depending on ur preferred roxas flavour: he's there for some other reason and isn't as good at pretending he's not from another world as he thinks he is) three: leeeeeeeeet's STRUGGLE; idk why you're in Twilight Town but congratulations you've shown up in time for the annual Struggle tournament!! now what? four: alriiiiiight, fight fight fight; what are we fighting?? heartless?? something else?? look either way he has 2 keyblades and he's not afraid to kick butt with them five: soft hanahaki; it's me of course there's gonna be a soft hanahaki prompt. grappling with the existential problems of being a Nobody, now with added magical realism flower petals that you apparently shouldn't even be capable of coughing up! (more about what soft hanahaki is here) six: interdimensional social media; whether you're following each other on kingdom hearts insta or there's something else going on here, congratulations, you're internet friends now seven: we live in a jamjar; obligatory insta-jamjar simulation prompt for all your "let's pretend we're in a jamjar game" needs eight: WILDCARD; hit me with whatever else your heart desires!!
☉ step three: comment and profit??? (format ur tags however u want! informal/formal/bracketspam/prose/comment spam/texting/social media/whatever tickles your fancy, i will match ur style accordingly!)
[ it really is someone else. Roxas feels both full to bursting and emptied out all at once. the relief of being seen, being known, even like this... it's too much. ]
Roxas. My name's Roxas.
[ not Sora. not half of Sora. even when he was living out a fake life in a fake town with fake memories, he was still Roxas. ]
I will remember it! I know it's here somewhere. I just...haven't needed it for a while.
[There was determination in that reply. He would remember. He had to remember. It was the only thing he truly knew that he knew. It was just out of reach. Until then, he had Roxas.]
Roxas... [He tried out the name and it felt right. It felt...familiar but at the same time he didn't recognise it. But at least he was no longer alone. Even if he couldn't remember who he missed.]
[ Roxas's feelings - borrowed as they are - go out to whoever this nameless person is. so they don't remember their name... do they remember anything? Roxas knows what it's like, to forget things that are so important to you. the sympathy cuts keenly through wounds of his own that are still fresh and open.
still... the determination that whoever this is has - it helps, somehow. keeps him from falling into hysterical fear at the idea that maybe he might someday forget his own name, once he's been here for long enough. ]
[Sora's heart...Was that what this place was? His mind, or perhaps it was still his heart, was momentarily filled with memory. His name wasn't mentioned but he believed Roxas when he said he was in Sora's heart. It felt right.]
He gave me a second chance. I remember that much. He let me stay here...
[ if Roxas sounds stunned, that may be because he is. Sora... gave this person a second chance? this person is asleep? ]
Me? No, I'm not asleep.
[ asleep. like Sora was until just today. when Roxas gave in and went back to him so he could wake up from his slumber.
it's still so unfair. it's so unfair. but it's not like he has anywhere else left that he could go back to. ]
... I'm not really anywhere anymore. I came here because I have to be here.
[ bitterly. he traded one prison for another. better the heart of someone like Sora than a town made of data, right. or a castle in a world that never existed full of people that only care about how they can use him. at least Sora is deserving. the memories Roxas has seen of his have shown him that much. ]
[ not alone, huh. it's a small consolation. but... it still is one. there is someone here who can know him. who can hear him and talk to him. even if he doesn't exist anymore... there's someone here who heard him, and called out.
for a Nobody, that has to count for something, right. maybe Roxas still aches for other company that's been lost. for a clock tower at sunset, and ice cream, and stupid conversations. will carry on aching until he finally sinks into Sora for good. but... ]
... yeah. We're not alone. [ even if Sora doesn't even know they're in here. ]
Ventus? [ huh. it's a nice name. ] Wait, you remembered! ... I'm happy for you.
[ he's surprised by how much he means it. ] Okay, Ven it is. [ a pause. now that the shock, and relief is ebbing away a little, there's something he wants to say. ] Thank you for calling out to me.
[Ven knows that if he has the ability to smile, he would. It's nice to have an identity again. He is Ventus and he knows that completely. Nothing else is as certain as that. No matter what happens next, he at least knows who he is and he is no longer alone. Roxas may not want to be here but Ven is glad he is if only for his own selfish reasons. He'd been alone for a long time, so long he'd forgotten so much more than he thought possible. So he would have smiled to thank Roxas.
Instead, he has to tell him with his heart. Which he's just as happy to do.]
Thank you for answering. I'd hate for us both to be lonely here because we were too scared to say anything.
[ for them both to be lonely, huh. well... they might not be alone, but. that doesn't mean that Roxas doesn't still feel lonely. the spark of grateful connection he's feeling right now is a drop in the abyssal ocean that's the loss of everything he ever was or cared about.
but if Roxas feels lonely, then-- ]
How long have you been here?
[ --how much worse must it have been for Ven all this time? even if Sora's heart is his shelter instead of his prison, to be stuck in here like this all alone must be... ]
[There was silence as Ven tried to find an answer. He honestly wasn't sure if there was even a way to measure time here. He decided not to dwell on it too much or his sadness would simply return and sadness brought forth the sleep. He didn't want to fall asleep on his new friend.]
I...don't know. A long time I think. I'm not sure there's a way to find out exactly how long. Or even roughly how long...
[ if a heart isn't something you can see, or even something you can really feel, then... it stands to reason it isn't something that time would have a normal effect on, either. right.
man, Roxas doesn't know. he's no closer to understanding what a heart really is than he was on Day 9. well. guess he's in the ideal place to learn, now. ]
But... even with how long it's been, you're still you. Right?
I think I'm more than myself. I'm part of Sora. And Sora is a part of me. But I'm also less because I needed Sora to be a part of me to continuing being me. And yet I haven't stopped being Ventus. Even when I didn't remember I still knew I was me.
[He wasn't sure he was making any sense to himself, let alone Roxas. But one thing he liked was knowing Sora's name. This boy who opened his heart and saved him not once but twice without asking anything in return. He would have to thank him some day. When he woke up. Whenever that was.]
[ weirdly, Roxas actually managed to follow all of that meandering ramble. there's parts of it that catch on all his raw edges - the idea of needing Sora to be part of him to continue being him, when really, really, it seems like for all people are so fond of telling Roxas he's only half of Sora, it was Sora that needed him in order to wake up - but.
but through the flare of anger and sense of injustice, he thinks he gets what Ven's saying. even when I didn't remember I still knew I was me. that strikes a chord in Roxas that's stronger than the bitterness threatening to consume him again.
i'm still me, he remembers saying to Axel, once. i'll always be me. ]
... Right. [ a humourless chuckle. ] I think I get it. [ i might not know it's you, and you might not know it's me-- ] Someone else might not know it's you, but... you're still here anyway.
[His voice was quieter all of a sudden, weaker than before. He could feel himself being lulled back into his slumber and for the first time, he didn't want to. He wanted to stay with Roxas.]
I'm so tired... [He mumbled the words, trying to stay awake but knowing it was futile.] I'm sorry...I hope...I helped...
panic floods Roxas, and it's so, so selfish, but he doesn't want Ven to go. he doesn't want this to be someone else who finds him when he least expects it just to be torn away from him forever again, he can't do this again-- ]
[His voice a whisper now, fading away as his body pulled back the consciousness for a rest. He didn't want to go either but it seemed as though he had no choice. He hoped he wasn't lying to Roxas but he was sure wasn't. Roxas has helped him remember his name. Perhaps he could help him to do more when he was awake enough here again. And maybe he could get awake enough in reality too.]
[ but it's no use - Roxas can feel it, how the other presence that was so close to him in Sora's heart is fading back into-- not quite nothing. if he reaches for it, now he knows what it feels like - and he is reaching, panicky and desperate, feeling Ven slip through fingers he doesn't have like water - he can still feel him there. faint and impossibly far away, but there.
but now, once again, Roxas is alone.
i'll be back. it sounds like a promise. a promise to meet again... ha. Roxas is collecting a lot of those today.
but he'll cling to this one too. just like the others. ]
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no subject
Roxas. My name's Roxas.
[ not Sora. not half of Sora. even when he was living out a fake life in a fake town with fake memories, he was still Roxas. ]
Can't you... can't you remember yours?
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[There was determination in that reply. He would remember. He had to remember. It was the only thing he truly knew that he knew. It was just out of reach. Until then, he had Roxas.]
Roxas... [He tried out the name and it felt right. It felt...familiar but at the same time he didn't recognise it. But at least he was no longer alone. Even if he couldn't remember who he missed.]
It's nice to meet you, Roxas.
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[ Roxas's feelings - borrowed as they are - go out to whoever this nameless person is. so they don't remember their name... do they remember anything? Roxas knows what it's like, to forget things that are so important to you. the sympathy cuts keenly through wounds of his own that are still fresh and open.
still... the determination that whoever this is has - it helps, somehow. keeps him from falling into hysterical fear at the idea that maybe he might someday forget his own name, once he's been here for long enough. ]
You too. How did you get in Sora's heart?
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He gave me a second chance. I remember that much. He let me stay here...
How did you get here? Are you asleep too?
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[ if Roxas sounds stunned, that may be because he is. Sora... gave this person a second chance? this person is asleep? ]
Me? No, I'm not asleep.
[ asleep. like Sora was until just today. when Roxas gave in and went back to him so he could wake up from his slumber.
it's still so unfair. it's so unfair. but it's not like he has anywhere else left that he could go back to. ]
... I'm not really anywhere anymore. I came here because I have to be here.
[ bitterly. he traded one prison for another. better the heart of someone like Sora than a town made of data, right. or a castle in a world that never existed full of people that only care about how they can use him. at least Sora is deserving. the memories Roxas has seen of his have shown him that much. ]
no subject
[Ven isn't sure what to do with that. So he just stays quiet for a moment. Or at least, it feels like. It's hard to tell here.]
At least we're not alone?
[It's the best consolation he cam come up with at the moment and...]
Ventus! My name. It's Ventus. I knew I knew it. Call me Ven.
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for a Nobody, that has to count for something, right. maybe Roxas still aches for other company that's been lost. for a clock tower at sunset, and ice cream, and stupid conversations. will carry on aching until he finally sinks into Sora for good. but... ]
... yeah. We're not alone. [ even if Sora doesn't even know they're in here. ]
Ventus? [ huh. it's a nice name. ] Wait, you remembered! ... I'm happy for you.
[ he's surprised by how much he means it. ] Okay, Ven it is. [ a pause. now that the shock, and relief is ebbing away a little, there's something he wants to say. ] Thank you for calling out to me.
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Instead, he has to tell him with his heart. Which he's just as happy to do.]
Thank you for answering. I'd hate for us both to be lonely here because we were too scared to say anything.
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but if Roxas feels lonely, then-- ]
How long have you been here?
[ --how much worse must it have been for Ven all this time? even if Sora's heart is his shelter instead of his prison, to be stuck in here like this all alone must be... ]
no subject
I...don't know. A long time I think. I'm not sure there's a way to find out exactly how long. Or even roughly how long...
no subject
So that's how it is.
[ if a heart isn't something you can see, or even something you can really feel, then... it stands to reason it isn't something that time would have a normal effect on, either. right.
man, Roxas doesn't know. he's no closer to understanding what a heart really is than he was on Day 9. well. guess he's in the ideal place to learn, now. ]
But... even with how long it's been, you're still you. Right?
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[He wasn't sure he was making any sense to himself, let alone Roxas. But one thing he liked was knowing Sora's name. This boy who opened his heart and saved him not once but twice without asking anything in return. He would have to thank him some day. When he woke up. Whenever that was.]
no subject
but through the flare of anger and sense of injustice, he thinks he gets what Ven's saying. even when I didn't remember I still knew I was me. that strikes a chord in Roxas that's stronger than the bitterness threatening to consume him again.
i'm still me, he remembers saying to Axel, once. i'll always be me. ]
... Right. [ a humourless chuckle. ] I think I get it. [ i might not know it's you, and you might not know it's me-- ] Someone else might not know it's you, but... you're still here anyway.
[ I get it now, Naminé. ]
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[His voice was quieter all of a sudden, weaker than before. He could feel himself being lulled back into his slumber and for the first time, he didn't want to. He wanted to stay with Roxas.]
I'm so tired... [He mumbled the words, trying to stay awake but knowing it was futile.] I'm sorry...I hope...I helped...
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panic floods Roxas, and it's so, so selfish, but he doesn't want Ven to go. he doesn't want this to be someone else who finds him when he least expects it just to be torn away from him forever again, he can't do this again-- ]
Wait! Don't go!
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[His voice a whisper now, fading away as his body pulled back the consciousness for a rest. He didn't want to go either but it seemed as though he had no choice. He hoped he wasn't lying to Roxas but he was sure wasn't. Roxas has helped him remember his name. Perhaps he could help him to do more when he was awake enough here again. And maybe he could get awake enough in reality too.]
I'm...I'm...be back...
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[ but it's no use - Roxas can feel it, how the other presence that was so close to him in Sora's heart is fading back into-- not quite nothing. if he reaches for it, now he knows what it feels like - and he is reaching, panicky and desperate, feeling Ven slip through fingers he doesn't have like water - he can still feel him there. faint and impossibly far away, but there.
but now, once again, Roxas is alone.
i'll be back. it sounds like a promise. a promise to meet again... ha. Roxas is collecting a lot of those today.
but he'll cling to this one too. just like the others. ]
... okay. I'll be waiting.