A meeting place of sorts. [open]

The lasting curls of shadow fading away, Roxan emerged from the Corridor of Darkness to find, once again, more darkness. Although not the same shade of pitch black as the corridor, the exposed scenery was lacking. A plain courtyard expanded in front of her eyes, and whatever buildings had once existed in this world appeared to be in disrepair.

A light clack of her shoes was the only noise that signified her appearance in such a dreary place. Normally, the End World was devoid of any people save the several Heartless in the courtyard, which had rustled in a flurry of motion when they saw the shadowy tunnel that had opened. As quickly as they had spurred into motion, they quickly settled down, not sensing any heart from the person who had come into their territory. Of course, the possible danger they posed was not going to disappear that quickly, and in the midst of their territory, her nonexistent heart may not be in danger, but her body still risked injury if the heartless became too agitated.

Standing in front of the staring yellow eyes, something in her mind told her that she had somehow run into a situation like this before. Was it a memory, something from her past life? Whatever it was, it was rather faint. Pinching the bridge of her nose, briefly, Roxan pushed aside the thought, focusing on what she had come to do. They appear to be lesser Heartless. No apparent danger for now.

The clack of her shoes on the stones of the courtyard began to fill the silence. A brief moment passed before Roxan caught sight of something that was out of the ordinary for such a place.

A person.

"Oh? That's not something you see all the time." A wide smile spread across her lips as she raised her hand in a wave, noticing how the person appeared to already be alert to her arrival. Another nobody? Or something else?


((ooc: don't feel like you have to match length, I just wanted to set the scene a little))

A strange look briefly passed over the other person, who appeared to be a young boy. What was it? Roman didn’t get enough detail of his face to match it to an emotion she knew of. The gleam of a blade as it moved over the boy’s shoulder was what caught her attention then. The hand she has raised in a wave lowered, and although the smile held on her face stayed, her mind was on the alert. He was armed, and the thought that a fight would come flitted across her mind. Yet from the way he stood, there seemed to be no immediate threat. She could see no tension in his legs or arms, telltale signs that a person was ready to spring into action. The best she could ascertain was that he was observing her, the same she was doing to him.

In response to his comment, she gave him a small shrug in reply. “I could ask you the same thing.” Avoiding any extra details, she wasn’t going to reveal to him that she was here for field studies. As she watched the boy walking towards her, her stance shifted slightly, comfortable to wait for him to reach her. The heartless already present in the courtyard swarmed around the boy, one in particular perched on the boy’s shoulder.

Now her interest was piqued. Someone who had control over the heartless was something Roxan had never heard of. Her eyes stared intently at the heartless on the boy’s shoulder, and its own eyes stared back. The same could be said for the rest of the heartless around the boy. Internally, she idly wondered if she was supposed to feel excitement for what she had found. That was the normal reaction upon discovering something new, wasn’t it? Her gaze ran over the rest of the gathered Heartless in a cursory manner, noting the way they seemed to mimic the boy’s mannerisms. Sharp eyes bore into her own.

Roxan’s head tilted up slightly, finally noticing the boy's outstretched hand. She took it in her own, taking not of his hard, and what appeared sharpened, nails. She gave a small squeeze, then let go. ”Milo, hm? Pleased to make your acquaintance” Very pleased, she silently added. With a tilt of her head, her eyes closed amicably as she continued, ”I am Roxan.”

A small risk, providing her name like that, but if she wanted to gain anything, she was going to have to give some things up. Her name wouldn’t be too much for now. ”These Heartless here, I take it that they’re your…friends?” The last word felt odd on her tongue. She hardly used it. Friendship was unknown to her, yet it seemed like a viable guess to make, despite her ignorance to what it truly was.

Hearing the boy speak of his standing amongst the gathered Heartless brought a new smile to her face. She nodded slowly in understanding. It would have been awkward to have their conversation delve onto the path of friendship. Her knowledge on the subject was minimalistic. Yet when it came to the subject of hierarchy, she could confidently say she was easily knowledgeable on the subject.

”Very impressive," she said in agreement, a hand placed against her cheek as she mimicked a wondrous expression. The praise was half-hearted. Although interested in the capabilities of this person, she doubted the “leader” of a ragtag group of lesser Heartless was going to be much. More impressive was the person’s apparent ability to manipulate these Heartless. Earlier she had noticed their reactions to her presence, similar to Milo’s interest in herself. When the boy sat down, again they copied, settling down in a relaxed position. Were they more like puppets, or just mindless copycats? Roxan wanted to know more.

Settling down on the ground in front of Milo, she crossed her legs in front of her. The flat courtyard made a rather boring place to sit down, but she wouldn’t voice her thoughts at the moment. To make someone feel at ease, don’t offer too much resistance. That could come later. First impressions were important. Her mind rattled off other reminders to herself. Make the boy see her as an ally, perhaps he’ll let something slip through that was beneficial for her.

“Well Milo. Would you mind if I ask about your previous adventures with your group here?” Her hand extended to give the boy a friendly pat on the knee, something she remembered was often for reassurance and trust purposes. Even so, her eyes quickly flickered to the sword held in one Heartless’ possession. It was quick, but a good observer could have picked it up.

Should she have flinched? That was the typical reaction in response to sudden anger, wasn’t it? Milo’s loud retort was unexpected, as Roxan thought her actions were perfectly fine. What a blunder. Perhaps she was underestimating this person. Retracting her hand, she bowed her head in apology as his angry words came. At the same time, her mind whirled to see what she should do next. Taking a gesture of friendship and reacting so negatively to it was new. Time to tread carefully around this new situation.

At his apology, she lifted her face to see a hard smile. A brief moment of silence passed between the two, Roxan watching Milo to see what he would do next. The Heartless around him seemed to be looking at the boy expectantly, perhaps waiting for some command. If this turned into a fight, that was going to make things a pain.

She blinked at his next statement before allowing a smirk across her lips. Raising an eyebrow, she let out a laugh, ”Hah! You’re quick to get to the point, aren’t you?” And rather trusting as well, she thought to herself, wondering why a person who just met a stranger would be so willing to give away information. Information was valuable, people were capable of killing over it. Did he have some kind of guarantee that Well, she was going to test out his generous offer, and with a hand gesturing at the Heartless around him, she said, ”Alright, I confess, you’re very interesting to me. I’d like to learn more about yourself.” Her smile now had elements of coldness to it, “You can do something I can’t.”

That last statement should satisfy the boy’s pride, she thought to herself. Her hands spread open in front of her, signifying her intention to avoid any further aggression. “And there was no need to get so prickly. I was only trying to be nice.”

A frown tugged at the edges of her smile, and letting it slip, her expression turned to one of disapproval when Milo mentioned the word “emotion”. She couldn’t say for certain that it bothered her, but it was rather irritating to hear someone talk a subject matter she didn’t understand well. One of the downsides to being a Nobody.

She waited for Milo to answer her question, not very interested in anything else now. Leaning back on her arms, she wondered if he’d address the issue at hand if she faked a yawn. However, before she could decide, the boy had begun to explain. Hearing it, she shifted her weight forward, her elbows on her knees, her chin resting on her palm as she leaned forward. Yet as his simple answer came to a close, she straightened her posture with a new expression on her face: suspicion. With a harsh, impatient voice, she demanded, “That’s it?”

Now this was becoming slightly disappointing. If that was really all to it, she felt she could have easily found her own group of Heartless to command. Yet that was not the case. It was guaranteed that Heartless would attack her if they got the chance, perhaps because they were not under the command of someone intelligent. She respected his authority amongst his little group, but she felt she could one day rise to be greater. So here she was, asking someone for help. Idly wondered if pulling out her sword and threatening Milo for further information would speed up the information collecting process. No no, that won’t do, she mentally chided. That wasn't going to create a very good relationship, and good relationships usually provided better opportunities.

Now it was her turn to answer a question, and she let her eyes glance up thoughtfully, wondering how much information she should reveal. Her voice returned to the calm tone it once had. ”Well…you can say I’m a Nobody.” Looking back at Milo, she waved her hands out at her side, like she had just shown him something exciting. ”You must have sensed it earlier. I’m rather empty, aren’t I? I’d say it’s helpful when trying to slip under the Heartless’ radar.” There was more beneath the surface of course. She lived as a being without a heart. Something that lives yet can’t find a purpose in living. Why did they exist? Roxan didn’t have an answer.

A frown tugged at the edges of her smile, and letting it slip, her expression turned to one of disapproval when Milo mentioned the word “emotion”. She couldn’t say for certain that it bothered her, but it was rather irritating to hear someone talk a subject matter she didn’t understand well. She acknowledged his ranking amongst his troupe of Heartless, and likewise was able to surmise he was a Heartless himself. It was probably an accurate prediction; what else could he be?

Roxan was an observer; she was capable of collecting and sorting through information with efficiency and ease. With information, one could make accurate predictions of what would happen in the future. Yet now, Roxan was at a lost. The following events had honestly happened so quickly, her reactions in turn had been driven more by instinct than anything.

There was little reaction from Milo when she revealed who she was. That was rather dull, she was hoping for a something more substantial. Her lips parted to say something, but she held her tongue. Watching him get up, she felt herself slowly rise to a crouching position, wondering if he was going to take them somewhere else to talk. Instead, Milo had simply backed away, taking a fighting stance with sword in hand.

She was standing now, as well, her eyes narrowed, steel in her gaze. The next words that left his mouth made things certain now. Holding an open palm out, her rapier materializing in her hand. She gripped the hilt strongly as she felt the familiar weight of the thin sword. Her stance was more upright, considering the rapier wasn’t meant for slashing, but she too placed one foot forward in preparation. She was probably going to regret this later, wouldn’t she?

“You? You think you know what I truly want? That’s quite the statement.” To be honest, her ultimate goals were a little lost to her as well. She wanted power in order to accomplish something, and she needed the resources to do it. Yet Roxan couldn’t place her finger right on what exactly it was she was missing. But now wasn’t the time to dwell on that, and in a velvety sweet voice, she hummed, “You should know, I don’t believe those who have tried to make me bleed are still around.”

He wouldn’t know she was referring to the Heartless she fought in the past, but let him think what he wanted. If he was looking for a fight, she would provide him a sparring partner. Lowering the blade, she took several steps forward, closing the distance between them to several feet. She was going to take this chance to throw in a feint, to see how he defended. Her sword reached out, letting its length fill the distance between them, its point aiming for the collarbone, only to pull back as quickly as it came.


((ooc: time for a "friendly" spar. this will be fun. first time I'm writing a fight scene like this, so if anything seems unclear, just ask!))

He was fast, Roxan would give him that. His ability to react to her attack was impressive; already he had moved to the side to avoid her attack. She could have gotten a nick into his shoulder if she had kept the attack going, but she was resigned to pulling back her attack to prepare for the next strike. Interestingly, it seemed he was willing to take the blow as well. Roxan would not have been as willing to accept a cut like that. She didn't like doing things that could hurt her chances of winning, no matter how small they may seem. Even if the cut wouldn't affect her sword arm, accepting multiple injuries would eventually take its toll.

Seeing him draw his sword out of its sheathe, she knew that more exciting things were in store. What reminded her of excitement started welling up in her stomach. Her past and present self knew this feeling, having collectively shared fight experience. Her expression still remained neutral, but she was hoping that this fight wouldn't end too quickly. Where was the fun in an opponent that had no talent for staying alive in a fight?

Seeing the underhanded strike, she quickly side stepped to the far right, the sheath brushing against the fabric of her chest. That was interesting, she wasn't familiar with the tactic of using the sword's container as a weapon. Could it actually provide injury, or was it more of a distraction tactic? They were still within range of one another, but he was moving in closer, his weapon raised defensively. Too close to make an effective strike toward the torso, she tried for a lower attack, where there was some potential for more movement. Her sword flicked down toward the top of his thigh, moving the point diagonally up so as to try and tear a line through the fabric. Even if it missed, she wanted to distract the boy in order to take some steps back. He wasn't attacking yet, she may as well move herself into a more favorable position. 

((ooc: hope I understood what happened correctly. just ask if you need clarification or edits))