• Namine folded her arms on top of the railing of the balcony as she gazed out into the dark curtain of the night that laid upon the world of Castle Oblivion. Marluxia had finally allowed her the opportunity to view the night sky. Out of kindness or just to halt her persistent pleads, Namine didn't know nor care. The night time was the closest she could ever get to actually having some sort of heart. Some sort of feeling. She longed for these moments.

    She looked up into the black abyss to see the stars winking at her one by one; it almost felt like they were patronizing her. As if they were boasting about how magnificent they were. How important they were to the many different worlds... How free they were...

    It wasn't fair...

    It wasn't fair how blessed these stars were. No one was attempting to shackle down "their" passion. No one was trying to hold "their" light captive or trying to stifle it. It was unrelenting... It was loved...and it was free!

    Namine slammed her fists onto the cement banister, bringing her forehead down to rest on top of them. She clenched her fists tight, digging her nails into her palms. She prayed the pain in her hands would distract her from the overwhelming pain in her chest... but her efforts were useless. The tears tore at the corners of her eyes, begging to be let free. Begging to be unshackled. Unstifled. They were begging to be like the stars.

    And, for once in her non-existent life, she was able to let some part of her free.

    The tears poured down her snow white cheeks, bringing the heaviness down with them. Dare she say, ... her heart down with them... And as she stood there crying, it was in that moment she finally felt real. She finally "felt" anything that could even be considered an emotion. Authentic emotion. This was what she was craving. It hurt, yes, but it felt so good.

    She gasped out as the crystal liquids continued down her tear-stained cheeks and splashed down on to the concrete. She wondered how good positive emotions must feel if the negative ones felt this amazing? Was there even such a thing as positive emotions? Was this as good as it got? Every bad had an opposite, though, right? That's what Vexen had taught her, anyway.

    As her mind pondered these questions, she had not heard the rustling of another behind her. All too quickly, a hand was atop her blonde head, and it was pulling her out of her saddened daze. A sense of emptiness now filled her chest. She was back to normal... but the tears still ran freely with no purpose.

    She raised her head and glanced beside her to find Axel. Resting his cheek in his hand, he was examining the stars, as well. An apathetic look washed over his face- one of mindless thought. A glazed over expression of a hollowed out man. Namine rubbed away the lingering tears and searched for some flicker of sadness much like her own, or hopefulness, or even a hint of his regular sarcastic facade. But, nothing was found... She sighed quietly before turning her head up to watch the stars twinkle once more, the man's gloved hand still sitting on her head. She had hoped she was not the only one to feel something from these little bulbs of light.

    "Marluxia sent me to bring you back in," Axel spoke in hushed voice after a few minutes of silence between the two. Namine inhaled soundly, a bit surprised at his sudden voice, but she kept her gaze on the stars. She wanted to suck in as much freedom as possible before going back into her captivity... She longed for one more burst of emotion to surge through her.
    "Y'know," the redhead began in a distant tone, tearing Namine's eyes away from the stars to look at him, "the stars have always been fascinating to me, even as a Somebody. I mean, I didn't nerd out like the "Basement Trio" down there," he rephrased, referring to Zexion, Lexaeus, and Vexen. "But, they just leave me in awe, if that's what you can call it for someone without a heart." He laughed bitterly. His trademark dark humor coming to the surface. It quickly faded, though, as his eyes fixed back on the twinkling dots. Namine had never seen him so focused. So far away. He must have been somewhere in the deep recesses of his mind, digging up a memory. An emotion. The girl wished she could experience it with him. It must have been happy; she wanted to feel that, too...

    "Did you know when we're looking up at the stars, we're actually looking into the past? The light we see emitting from the stars," Axel slid his hand from the top of Namine's head down to her shoulder and pulled her closer to him. He crouched down to her eye level and brought his finger up, pointing it toward a single star, "is actually the same light from about 4 years ago, give or take. Since it takes so long for light to travel through space, we're still seeing the effects of that aftermath." Axel placed his hand back down on the rail and straightened back up, eyes still glued to the stars. "So, in a way, we're also looking into the future. A brighter future with a new light to see. A new beginning for that star. For all the stars...," Axel mused, tightening his hold on Namine's shoulder. The girl winced at the sudden grip, but said nothing. Instead, she contemplated this new information.

    First, she finds out a thing so tiny, so insignificant in the grand scheme of things, has that much power to travel that long, then she finds out about it's continuous renewal. It's new beginnings. It was astounding. No wonder that stars could bring about such emotions in her.

    It was then she realized she was smiling. Not just smiling, but grinning! Hard! There was a weightlessness in her chest. Nothing like her previous encounter. This one was like electricity, or like when Demyx would blow bubbles into Namine's face. It tingled. Was this ... Could this be a positive emotion...? Happiness? Excitement? ... Hope? It had to be! She had never felt such a rush that made her want to dance. Run! Fly!

    Axel seemed to take notice because he was now smiling with her, "Now, there's a face I haven't seen before."

    "I-I'm just... happy...," Namine confessed to him shyly, giggling.

    "Well, I like it" Axel bent down to her eye level once more and pointed toward his temple, " I'll have to memorize it." He winked at her before straightening back up and placing his hands on his hips. Looking up, he sighed, "I hate to cut this tender "hearted" affair short, but we need to get you back to Flower Boy..."

    Namine's smile faltered at those words... She didn't want to leave. Not yet. She had just tasted what it was like to have a heart. She didn't want to give that up yet.

    The pyro spotted the disappointment in her face. "Hey, don't worry! I'll make Flower Power give you more free time like this. That way, you can come out here more. With my chaperoning, of course," Axel stated with a grin.

    Namine felt that hope rise back up in her chest, and the corners of her mouth rose back up into a smile. She wanted more of these nights. More of these feelings. More of these talks, but most of all, more of these new beginnings.

    Linking her arm with the fire wielder's, she looked up at him with child-like eyes and nodded, "Thank you for showing me a new beginning."

    Axel rolled his eyes before patting Namine's head with the other hand gingerly, "Thank the stars, kid."