Demyx.

Demyx has a lot of faces and acts.

Demyx can be whatever the occasion calls for.

Demyx, who hides behind a façade of incompetence and bumbling awkwardness; insists that he is helpless and hopeless and ultimately harmless to avoid heavy tasks and unpleasant situations.

No one picks on Demyx that is lower than him in rank. No one is that stupid. Not even Larxene bullies Demyx.

Demyx is not as adorable as he is portrayed to be.

Demyx is ninth in the Organisation for a reason.

Demyx has a vicious, vindictive face. The face of Demyx that precious few people see.

The true Demyx.

This secret, hidden Demyx is the Demyx who defended his standing in the Organisation with such force that lesser members were hospitalised. Marluxia; once the new and up-and-coming favourite for sixth or seventh position…was admitted to the hospital wing for two weeks from a scuffle with Demyx.

Demyx does not fight in the presence of others; it distracts him. It is too difficult to keep up his façade as well as destroying his opponent with single-minded determination. He will only ever fight alone and with only his opponent with him. He knows that it's easier to depersonalise them that way and he knows that he can let fly with everything he has without the fear of being exposed for what he really is.

Demyx, for all of his pent up fury and hate that allegedly does not exist, does not harbour grudges. Did not harbour grudges, at any rate. Demyx holds a grudge against only one person in the whole world.

That person…is Roxas.

Roxas.

Roxasssssss…

The boy's name can be spat out with such malice; it's perfect. Demyx hisses that name into his pillows and screams it at doomed-to-die Heartless who wander too close when he's out and alone and angry.

Angry. Hurt. Betrayed. Alone.

Demyx wishes, more than anything in the world, to be alone with Roxas. If only for a night. If only for an hour. Even twenty minutes would suffice.

…But Demyx craves to be alone with Roxas…

…because then, oh yes…then Roxas will see the real Demyx. Roxas will never, ever forget what Demyx really looks like, under that silly grin and sheepish demeanour of gawky charm. Roxas will have difficulty seeing anything else after Demyx is through with him.

It was never like this; not until Roxas took Axel. Demyx wouldn't have minded if it had been anyone but Axel; not Axel, the one Nobody he considered to be a good friend.

Axel, who looked out for him and taught him to fight and showed him how to survive the others on a day-to-day.

Axel, who first showed Demyx that pleasure came in thousands of different forms.

Axel, who picked Demyx above all others to side with. Marluxia, Luxord- they came after Demyx, but no. No; Demyx was Axel's favourite.

Always.

Then…Then it had been Roxas.

That name would circle around Demyx's head until he felt sick from the sheer, unadulterated loathing that the gap which used to be his heart produced.

Roxas, the youngest member; the weakest, by far… until he grew up, at least. Until he learnt the way to behave…then he would rival the original six and beyond.

It took nothing to beat him- the barest minimum of strength. Xemnas put Demyx against Roxas to begin with; there was simply no way that Roxas could beat anyone higher and Axel was bound to throw the fight.

…Even from the first day, Demyx knew that Axel had picked a new favourite.

If it had been them, alone, Demyx would have killed him. He had the capacity and the means and the perfect mindset to do it in. No…that would have been too easy…Axel had to come along too, to "look after the kid, ya know?"…

…and Demyx just can't kill when there's someone else watching…

…No matter how much he wants to…

When Roxas left, Axel was destroyed. Demyx saw his chance and took it, and for a while, everything was wonderful again. Dark Demyx was buried back into the deepest depths of the Nocturne's psyche and happy-go-lucky Demyx returned to the surface to stay.

Until. Roxas. Came. Back.

Or, more accurately, the ghost of Roxas resurfaced. Axel never really forgot him, despite Demyx's best efforts, but oh…the Nocturne knew he was so close; so close to Axel forgetting entirely.

Now…now, the little runt is threatening to come back in a new form. Axel talks about it non-stop; tells Demyx about how he's going to separate the Somebody from the Nobody and take back what's 'rightfully his'.

Demyx cannot allow this.

So, as he did every night before…when Roxas was Roxas…Demyx sits…and Demyx waits…and Demyx prays every night for the little piece of paper that tells him he has a mission to do…

…alone.