[Not much can be said about the sudden boom in the village. Roxas has a vague sense that this has happened before...but he's probably imagining it. Maybe mixing it with Sora's memories.

So today he's out in the village walking his cat--yes, walking his cat and just generally making observations about people. He may or may not be looking for certain people, but he's not going to admit that.

Finally though it drives him crazy enough that he eventually addresses the journals.]

...hi. [He was going to comment on how crowded everything is, maybe ask what is going on or if anyone remembers but then he gets a look at what everyone else has to say--]

...you know what, never mind.

I only have one simple question for everybody.

[Which is a surprise in and of itself. For Roxas, who generally asks lots of questions and pokes and prods at everything, simple isn't exactly something that fits in his vocabulary.]

What do you do when you've run out of things to do? [A pause.] I mean I've been here for 1,558 days. My cat refuses to keep up his painting and skateboarding lessons. Axel's still gone, and Xion has Luke. Time...moves really fast, and I guess I'm just now noticing.

At least it's close to Christmas again. I've really grown to like the snow and the holiday, maybe almost as much as Sora. Heh. All right, I don't think anyone can love Christmas as much as he can. That'll be something to keep me busy for a while, but what then? I think I've read almost every book in the library by now. Is there more that I can learn still, or does it all just stop?

Anyway, I don't really expect an answer, but I'd appreciate it if anyone had some advice.

…thanks.

Four years, huh? That's a surprise. Makes me wonder if it's a blessing, or a curse. [There's a long pause in speech as Roxas continues scribbling out words on another sheet of paper. In the background, a cat meows and soon jumps on the table, stepping over the journal. Said-cat's paws may or may not be covered in paint, and said-cat may decide to lay down right on top of Roxas' notes.]

...Nea. I can't keep working if you don't move. [His only response is another meow. Nea's clearly a disgruntled cat.] ...man, you sound just like everyone else. I do not work too much. [And he's pushing at the cat to get back to his notes.]

So...what's your favorite flavor of ice cream? And what kind of songs do you like? Does anyone even know about writing songs? These...may or may not be related.

Hey, Ven. Come over sometime, I think I've got a plan you'll like.

[Because why shouldn't Luceti have an ice cream game to play?]

[Filtered from Naoto]

[When the feed clicks on, there's a few moments of silence as Roxas thinks of how to phrase his question. He had been mulling this over for a while now, and he still wasn't any closer to getting an answer. ...man...Axel would know. Roxas really does miss the redhead sometimes, but each day's getting a little better. Sora, too, but that's an even longer process. It always helped to have something else to throw himself into though, and this was the perfect example.]

Um...hi. [Well, it's a start.] So...where I come from, birthdays aren't really something that are celebrated. Sure, we kind of get older, but nobody really acknowledges it. There's no big celebration, no presents, nothing like that. I've been here for over three years and I still don't really get it, I guess.

...anyway, there's this girl. She's a really good friend of mine, and I want to do something nice for her for her birthday. It's at the end of the week. I know that doesn't give me a lot of time, but it's really important it's something special. I guess what I'm asking is...who has a good idea? [Because he sure as hell doesn't.] Thanks in advance.

[/Filtered]

Weather's better today. Maybe I should get out of the library for a while. [Think, think, think...oh!] Hey, Luke! Wanna test out those roller blades? Get back to me, I'm bringing them outside anyway.

[And with that he's cutting off the feed. Shortly after, other villagers can find Roxas in the plaza riding on his skateboard, rollerblades thrown over his shoulder. Feel free to say hello.]

[Never mind the colored pawprints that are appearing on the journal pages. Roxas is too focused on the task at hand to really care that his painting prodigy cat is using his journal for scrap paper. Soon, words carefully appear on the page in neat handwriting.]

Okay. Toxona and I have been thinking...all of this started Sunday, right? At least that's when weird things started for us. We wanted to know if anyone remembers some big event that happened that day that could have caused all of us to walk away with scrambled memories and different ideas. Please let us know if you have any leads. We'll be in the library all day.

[He then turns to his friend and business partner, Toxona, who's sitting next to him in the library. She's busy writing notes on another sheet of paper, and Nea the cat is on the table between them. Roxas is going to ignore his cat who's pawing at the journal and focus his attention on the girl.]

So Xion's convinced I'm supposed to know who Jixsan is. Has she said anything to you at all?

Jixsan? [Toxona looks up from her paperwork to shake her head.] No, she hasn't. It's been a few days since we last spoke, actually. Did she tell you anything about this person aside from their name?

[He shakes his head a bit.] Not a lot, but the guy looked a lot like Sanji. I don't know, she's not the only one acting weird. You saw Luke's eyes, right? I'm still trying to figure that one out...and it's like he doesn't even remember...you know. [About how he's dating Xion, he means. Nea the cat is growing bored with this conversation though and is going to continue making pawprints on the journal, walking right over the pages...and right on the voice function button of the journal.]

Sanji... [Pausing briefly to think on that name, not paying any attention to the bored cat. She isn't as acquainted with Sanji as the others are, but the name kinda rings a bell. She blinks at his next statement though] ...Yes, I was able to notice Luke's eyes. It's baffled me but this is a bit more of a surprise. Has he completely forgotten about it?

He hasn't said anything about it, and he hasn't been hanging out with her as much as he used to. He's actually been around Kairi more...I think the only one who's normal right now is Riku...which kind of doesn't help us much. What about your friends that you've made here? Are they any different?

We should speak to him personally about the matter then. I'd like to know if his own memory is as it was before or not. As for my friends... [A thoughtful hum] Rise and Roji both appeared to have changed slightly. Not in appearance, but their personalities and memories. I do not believe any others have changed significantly.

Maybe we should start holding interviews with people. You know, interrogations and get the whole story and see if we can piece things together. [Nea meows at Roxas then, tail swishing and looking into the camera of the journal.] Not now, Nea. [He pets the cat's head though.] I mean maybe there is an experiment going on, sure, but this seems really tame even for them. I don't get it. [The cat meows again, and Roxas looks away from Toxona, a bit irritated.] What? [And it's then that he notices the fact that the voice button is pressed down.] Nea, get off! [And there's a loud hiss along with some meowing before Roxas scrambles to disconnect the feed. Maybe they'll get lucky and all of that didn't just get blasted to the whole village...]

[ooc: and Naoto has been AU'd to KH verse!]

[It all started in the morning. Roxas got up bright and early, wasting some time in the library before returning to KH house in the early afternoon. He was determined to drag Axel out of bed to go to the battle dome with him. However, when he entered the other Nobody's bedroom, he didn't see anything. He clicks on the journal then and he's not addressing it just yet as he makes his way around the house, just to see if he can find him.

There's no sign of him being home.

...]

...okay, Axel. If you didn't want to go out and train with me today all you had to do was say so. [He's going back to the other Nobody's room to give it another sweep.] Don't you think we're getting a little old for hide and seek? [And he's dropping to his knees, crawling around and looking under the bed and things.

And it's about then he remembers he has a rather useful device in his hands. He'll peer into the camera then to deliver his message.]

Hey, hi, listen. Have any of you seen Axel? Tall guy, bright read hair? Usually in a heavy black coat, snarks a lot? I mean it's not that big of a deal but I would really like to fi--

[It's then he sees a slip of paper that appears to have accidentally fallen under there. He makes a quick grab for it and sits on the floor, unfolding it and subconsciously mumbling to himself.]

...'nother "see ya" for now. I know I promised I wasn't going anywhere...

...I don't go away that easily...

...No!

[And he's taking off like a shot, journal in his hand as he bolts out of KH house and toward the village.]

You dummy, you can't be gone. Don't do this to me again!

[He's not going to stop for anything. Good luck getting him to slow down, but someone's on a mission to find the redhead, not fully believing the Nobody's disappeared from Luceti all together.]

Okay...since Axel seems to think it's a bad idea to try and teach the cat to ice skate, let me ask all of you a question. A friend and I are thinking about starting a business. It's something really good, promise.

Think about this. You have an important item but suddenly you can't find it. You think it might have even been stolen. So who would you call? The police, sure, but what about detectives?

[The camera's soon going to get a view of the front cover of a detective novel he picked up from the library.]

Even if it's not something a lot of people would use, I bet at least one person could use a few detectives around here, so I'm volunteering myself and Naoto Shirogane. Need a mystery to be solved? Call us. We all know weird stuff happens around here all the time...just look at last week.

[And with that being said, he's going to wander through KH house to see if Axel's home. He's had a few discussions with the older boy involving another certain bff and a certain redhead replica. And so there's a few minutes' pause before the next bit filters through.]

[Filtered to Luke]

Hey. Axel and I want to talk to you at Fourteen. Come over.

[Housemates will probably find Roxas in the kitchen with newspapers on the table, a palate of paint, some paper...and a very disgruntled cat who doesn't understand why his human wants him to dip his pretty paws in the wet colors.]

Nea, come on. You were doing really well, too. You can't just give up now.

[There's a hiss from the cat before he swats at the paint palate. Roxas sighs and shakes his head, giving up for now. Artists can be pretty temperamental, after all. Instead he'll focus himself on the journal, opening it up and idly leafing through it. His conversation with Naoto's been on his mind, and he has an important question.]

So...what's the main difference between being a boy and being a girl? I mean, girls can do things boys can, right? So what difference does it make? [He doesn't quite get why people were upset with Naoto for being a girl detective, that's all.] Answer me that.

And answer me this: how come everyone else got a horse last week except for me? Total bummer.

[Filtered to Axel]

I've got something cool to show you, but you have to go to the battle dome with me.

[/Filtered]

[Filtered to Xion]

Do you need anything? [He's worried about you, bff dos. He's in overprotective mode now.]

[Private, 90% Locked only because it's not that secretive.]

1,095 days. Maybe I should stop counting, but I can't stop. It's weird...it's like nothing's changed, but everything has. In the last three years, I've seen my best friends come and go, I've seen Sora come and go, and I've met someone who looks just like me and a psychopath who kept hurting my friends. But in the last three years, Axel's still as goofy as ever, Xion's learning just as much as I am, and the two of them have stuck with me even with all of my strange thoughts and patterns. I guess that's really what friendship is.

It took three or four tries, but I think I finally understand Sora. I'm still not sure what it all means to me, but I can at least say I feel better about things.

I guess...I've grown. We all have. But what happens after that? Do we all keep growing, or are we going to run out of places to grow? Maybe I'll have an answer to that next year.

[/Private]

...what's the longest amount of time any of you ever thought you'd be here? And were you guys disappointed when that amount of time passed? [Not if. When.] Not to scare the New Feathers or anything, but I know a lot of you out there have been here for a while.

Maybe I should say welcome to the new people anyway. I'm Roxas. I'm not sure how I can, but let me know if I can help somehow.

...oh,Axel and Xion? I know you guys are probably busy but I've got something for you. You know where to find me...and anyway I have something to ask you two. [On the roof, specifically.]

Sora you can come, too. And Ven. And...whoever. [He's got enough to share with everybody really.]

[[ooc: as a side note, currently at work and tags may be slow but I wanted to get this post up. Thanks guys!]]

Man, what's up with this heat wave? Like three days last week and now the second day in a row this week? Axel, maybe you had it right. The ocean's sounding pretty good right now. It's probably too late in the day to get out there though.

[And maybe Axel was right about a few other things. Mainly, Roxas needs to be more of a teenager and less of researcher. So today he's taken the redhead's advice and enlisted in some tomfoolery of his own.

It just happens to be in the form of water balloons. A whole bucket of them, and he's sitting next to them outside of what would be KH house if it was visible to everyone.]

So...I've got a bunch of water balloons that are dying to be popped. Who's up for a fight? Some of you actually don't have a choice, but I'm pretty sure you know who you guys are.

[Don't ask him; he read about it in a book.]

[Private, 75% Unhackable]

If they can break Xion, is it possible they can break the rest of us like that? I can't seem to get a straight answer on that.

Things have been quiet lately...no Vanitas activity, which is pretty weird. Wonder what that means.

...probably means the same thing as Aqua disappearing right after that experiment. Nothing, but it's still suspicious. I kinda miss her. The real Keyblade Master...having her as my mom wasn't terrible...and having a dad and brothers wasn't bad either. I shouldn't be thinking about it now, but I can't seem to get it out of my head. I actually have memories of having my own family. Not Sora's. Mine. I guess all I can do is store it.

[/Private]

...I'm Roxas, for those of you who are new here. Let me know what I can do to help out. I've been here a while, maybe I can answer your questions or something. Worth a shot.

[Until he gets approached, Roxas is going to hang out outside of KH house on the path. In his hand is his polaroid camera he received for Christmas, and in front of him is his skateboard from his first Christmas in Luceti. Seems normal, right? Well. Not until you take into account that there is a cat sitting on the skateboard and Roxas is pushing the board gently back and forth with his foot.]

Okay, Nea. Let's see what you can do. [Yes, he really has become that bored. Please somebody tell him this is a terrible idea.]

[Roxas is not stupid. Let's just make that clear. He's a bit of a derp, yes, but he's not stupid and he's been keeping track of the days. Valentine's Day is very soon, and he knows that that usually means the Malnosso do everything they can to mess with them on the holiday.

That being said, he's preparing himself for a weekend (or a whole week, really) locked inside KH house. In his hands he's got a stack of red origami paper, a stack of white origami paper, and a box of cookies. Food's important, after all.

As he starts walking home though, he starts letting his mind wander. A holiday dedicated to love. Xaldin explained love once. Axel explained love once, too. Roxas liked Axel's better, even if all of it was pretty unclear back then. Years later it's still kind of unclear though, especially given what he's seen with people around Luceti. It's due to that line of thought that he finally pauses in the middle of the town square, juggling with the things in his arms to open his journal and address the public.]

What kind of love stories are common where you guys are from? Are they real stories, or are they kind of like fairy tales?

...and if you can't think of love stories, maybe just talk about what you think love is.

[He's going to close the journal as he continues on his way back to the house. Don't worry, he'll open it again to talk to people when he gets back to his bedroom. Once there, he's going to be spending some time working on using his origami paper to fold a bunch of these. Once he's got a handful folded up though, he's going around the house and taping them wherever he sees fit. Could be the wall of the kitchen, could be the bathroom door, could be Kairi's bed, wherever! Housemates are free to catch him in the act of either making or hanging the hearts. And maybe steal one of his cookies.]

[Roxas has spent the last few weeks doing a great impression of a chameleon, blending in with his surroundings and making sure not many people saw or heard from him. But he's come to find that he can't keep hiding, and he can't keep running.

Thus, today, nearly three weeks after the attack on KH house and a week after Sanji revealed the location of the house to him, Roxas has finally decided to approach home to try and face his two best friends.

...or...not. To anyone passing by, they might see Roxas just pacing back and forth in the area, never straying far from what appears to be an empty lot. To anyone who can see the house however, it's very clear what's going on.]

This really shouldn't be that hard.

[Soon though he stops and pulls out his journal, leaning against a tree to keep an eye on the house while he flips to a new page. He takes a few moments to gather his thoughts, but soon he speaks into the journal.]

...anybody have any good advice for making apologies?

Now that Hayner's gone too, I wonder who's going to take over his body and come back with the new feathers.

It's funny how quickly people come and go from here, isn't it? Makes you wonder who chooses the ones to leave and why they're specifically chosen.

I think...I've run out of things to research. I guess that's what happens after two and a half years.

Axel, maybe you were right.

At least Xion's back. Hope she stays this time, but they seem to like her a lot. I want to know why.

( Small cut for small BBS spoiler. Also 100% Filter on this piece )

...maybe I should find something to do with my present from them. It's different than the one Pence had.

Okay anyone who's reading, what's your favorite thing to look at in the village?

[Filtered from Vanitas and Ven to the rest of the KH cast]

Okay. How many of you guys think this wasn't just some weird kind of coincidence?

[/Filter]

[Filtered to Xion]

I think I need to talk to you soon...it's important.

[/Filter]

[Filtered to Axel]

I learned something really interesting about you.

[/Filter]

So Luceti...what exactly makes a person real or not? What qualities and characteristics mean that a person exists instead of just being a weird figment? Trust me, it's important.

I really wish they'd stop taking her already. What's the point? They better give her back soon, or...[He just trails off, making a less-than-pleased noise.]

Man...I need to get out more. The rain's never stopped me before, but it's almost getting too cold. It's going to turn into snow soon, and then I'm really stuck. Makes me wonder...

Anybody up for a sparring match? Pick a place, pick a time, I'll be there.

[Filtered From Hayner]

So let's say that someone recently showed up in this place, but they're from a time where they remember you differently. How can you tell them about how things are in the future without ruining everything? And this isn't just a "oh I moved away" sort of difference, this is something a lot bigger...like memories.

[/Filter]

727 days. Nearly two years, and I still don't see any signs of me going home anytime soon. Should I consider that a good thing or a bad thing? For those of you who have been here that long, what do you think?

Oh, hey. Hayner! I'm thinking since you're new here and your sense of direction stinks still, we should probably explore Luceti some more so you get familiar with it. What do you think? Later today?

[Filter to Xion]

Hey. I think we need to talk.

[If a person were to look out toward the forest in the early evening, they might see a bunch of bright lights flashing and disappearing every now and again. If a person were to go investigate, they would find Roxas out there wielding Oathkeeper and Oblivion, jumping and twirling the Keyblades occasionally and using his light powers to full advantage fighting off this beast that towers over him and that ambushed him on his way home. Really, Roxas was doing fine on his own and he almost had the other Nobody beat when suddenly something flashes out of the corner of his eye and another strange monster bearing the same Nobody crest seemingly floats up to the Twilight Thorn, attacking with a flurry of blade movements and eliminating the creature all together. Roxas stares for a moment, half wondering where the other creature came from and half wondering why it attacked the Thorn. Samurais shouldn't be listening to him anymore, right?]

Um. Thanks?

[Sure. All well and good, all right. Roxas is going to nod in thanks, assume that the Nobody will go away on its own and begin walking away. The problem, however, is that this particular Samurai seems to think that Roxas still controls him. Even when he picks up speed, Roxas finds himself being tailed by the Nobody all the way back to the main part of the village.]

...no really, I mean it. Thanks, but you're done. [The Samurai doesn't want to leave though. He's happy hovering over Roxas.]

Go. Away.

[It's a stubborn thing. So? If a person were to be brave enough to venture into town, they would see a looming gray monster and a short blond boy having a staring contest. Make of that what you will.]

[ooc: characters can either encounter Roxas in the village with just the Samurai, or at the end of the fight with the Twilight Thorn. Up to you guys.]

[It's been a few days since the fight with Xion, and it's been a few days since Roxas passed out and fell into his own deep sleep. Unlike his Other though, he didn't need a week to recover. He's not even aware Sora's awake yet, or that Xion's not back yet. He doesn't open his eyes right away once he realizes he's conscious again, groping on the bedside table for his journal before opening it, ignoring a weight on his chest. He just assumes he's still not feeling well and keeping his eyes closed, he fiddles with the journal before setting it up for a voice post.]

What day is it, and what have I missed?

[The journal might also catch the sounds of an inquisitive 'mew', which catches Roxas by surprise and his eyes fly open. He closes the journal then and sits up slightly, staring at the kitten that's giving him an equally confused look.]

...hey, Axel?