Braig

Braig from Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep

Steer Us Wrong Every Time | KH Fanfiction

Word count: 1500 (3 to 12 minutes) | Rating: T | Note: Kingdom Hearts Spoilers | Characters: Braig, Dilan, Luxu

Kids weren’t supposed to sit on the fence, or so said all the bossy grown-ups at the orphanage. But Braig was 14, not a lame 5-year-old. So he swung his feet from the top of the stone fence, resting back on his hands. They were still scratched up from his last nasty fall, but that’s how he got to be so tough. Not everyone could be born built like a rock like Dilan.

“You’re going to be in trouble,” Dilan said from the ground, back turned to the fence as he kept an eye out. For the adults, probably. He wasn’t going to stop Braig or encourage him, but he’d dreamt of being a guard since they met as kids in the orphanage… So why not get a head start on his guarding skills by being lookout for his dumbass friend?

“Only if you tell,” Braig corrected him, turning to lie on his back. Perfect, fluffy white clouds drifted over Radiant Garden like they did on most days. What a beautiful paradise. He scoffed at his own thought, rolling his eyes. Yeah, right. If you had connections, anywhere was a paradise. But the little guys like wannabe guards and problem orphans? Nah, they had to work twice as hard to get half as much, and the hot shots took a cut on top of that most of the time anyway.

“Or if they look.” He glared over his shoulder and Braig answered that by sticking his tongue out. What a killjoy, with his common sense and logical talk.

“Whatever.” Braig sat up, planning his jump down to put poor, fragile Dilan at ease. That’s when he felt it. Suddenly, he got hit with this loneliness that usually crept up on him between 2am and 5am, but sharper. With an edge. Ambition, maybe? No, it was hungrier than that. Desperate, almost. He wasn’t a deep thinker when it came to hearts, but… He scrunched up his face, trying to track this weird feeling down.

“What is it?” His friend’s expression had softened to neutrality, a sure sign he was worried. Dilan practiced his resting bitch face, and when it dropped, that was when he meant business. Braig turned away from his friend, staring out ahead at the sun-kissed horizon painters dreamed of.

“Remember that book I told ya about?”

Just from the scoff he got, Braig could tell his RBF was back. “The one you weren’t supposed to read at the castle library trip you weren’t supposed to go on?”

“Yeah, yeah,” he rushed out, waving off the moral concerns he’d had enough of already. What he had to say was way better. “I think it’s got to do with hearts connected across a shared sky or whatever.”

“Someone out there?” He was surprised, sure, but he believed him—of course he did. Dilan always took Braig at his word when it really counted, the poor idiot. He looked down the path to town like he could see a heart waltzing up the lane. “From another world?”

“Yeah, that’s the one.” What were the next steps again? The book was wildly unhelpful. Just said to reach out or something, and he couldn’t believe he was really going to try this—but hey, what’d he have to lose? He took a breath and closed his eyes, chasing that thread of biting loneliness…

Coming to in a dark place where the only light was the stained-glass circle window under his feet. Not the safest structure, so it sure was lucky for him it wasn’t even real. Braig walked to the center, looking around for some reason to be here and hoping he didn’t fall off the fence in the real world for nothing. He lifted a foot and tilted his head to realize he saw Dilan’s face in the pattern of the glass. Beautiful bastard.

“I sensed you,” a voice echoed from above. Or below. Next to him? Braig whipped around, eyes peeled to see someone in the dark. But no, not a soul there but him. “In the dark, I found you.”

“Creepy,” Braig said, wondering where in the book it was gonna mention voices from nowhere. Maybe he’d’ve gotten there if that stingy Even guy didn’t yank it out of his hands and squawk at him about trespassing. “Who’re you?”

There was a pause before the reply, maybe some kind of darkness deal. Or maybe the voice was a jerk.

“Luxu,” the guy answered. “It was your heart that led me here. I was in danger, so… Thanks for the save.”

“Yeah.” Braig relaxed, and he could’ve sworn the light shining from the stained glass got warmer. Was this supposed to be his brainscape or something? He rolled his eyes at the idea. How lame.

“Mind if I take shelter here for a while?” Luxu sounded hopeful and familiar, like they’d been friends for ages. He really had to be desperate. “I have a mission to complete, and the danger hasn’t passed.”

“A mission?” Braig sneered, spinning on his heel to turn away from the voice—he thought. Hard to place a formless sound in the dark. “Look, I’m not signing up for anything ‘til I know what’s in the contract.”

The laugh from Luxu was quiet and not exactly… Bright. “Of course. I’d do the same.” The shadows shifted outside of what the platform’s light could reach, or maybe he imagined it did. Scary as hell either way. Braig tried to watch for it again and keep track of the motion. “My master needs help to see his mission through. Thousands of years ago, he trusted me to watch for the right time to finish the prophecy he foresaw.”

“But I was betrayed.” If he was spiteful about that, it didn’t sound like it. Cool as can be, like he was making small talk. Braig figured from there that Luxu ran into that particular snag more times than he could count. To him, all this was just a Tuesday. “And now I’m missing a key piece. After waiting so long, I would hate to disappoint my master.”

This master business was weird as hell. The only one he knew was Master Ansem—Ansem the Wise—and the Keybearers that carried the title around. Like it mattered to anyone without one of those special weapons. “So, you’re an apprentice? Man, your boss didn’t even give you a good title before he started pushing his work off on you?”

Silence carried on for a beat again. Maybe Luxu was slow in the head.

“This is my trial, actually. To prove myself. So. What do you say?”

Braig glanced over the stained glass again, curious to get a closer look and wondering what Luxu would even do in here. “What’s in it for me? This looks like a pretty important place, kinda fragile, and I’m not gunning for let some random guy in for free.”

There was that laugh again—it was light, but chilling all at once. He’d sooner bite his tongue off than say it, though.

“My master would like you. When his plan is complete, I’m sure he would be willing to pass a Keyblade on to you.”

Braig had to let that one sink in. He was quick on the uptake, usually, but this was something he didn’t even think they could do. Greedy Keyblade wielders kept the rules of their special, one-of-a-kind weapons close to their hearts.

“That even possible?”

“For one with a strong enough heart,” he explained patiently. “I found yours even in the abyss of darkness, so I’m confident you could. Having me here could be enough to tip the scales too. It wouldn’t be the first time,” he admitted. And Braig had to say, there was something fishy going on here. Luxu had to know the power of what he was putting on the table, but he wasn’t acting like it was a big deal to take seriously. Not like the somber, duty-driven Keyslingers back home.

But this practically fell in his lap. He had Luxu at a disadvantage too. Not like he could just hop into any heart, they had to reach out. Braig was his only option, and he wasn’t going to risk him. If Luxu tried anything funny, this wasn’t even his heart to call the shots in. One of the books in the castle would have to say something on evicting people from your heart if it came to that. What Braig knew for sure was that he’d never come across another chance like this. He could be nothing and nobody while Dilan lived it up as a guard someday, or he could be a Keybearer.

“Ah, what the hell, why not?” He shrugged, a smug grin on his face. “You think you can get something out of this shitshow to get your fancy title, go for it. Just remember I did you a favor.”

He got one last cold, joyless chuckle from Luxu. Had to give Braig a sinking feeling for the road.

“Thanks, Braig. I will.”

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Braig from Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep

End of the Road, Buddy

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KINGDOM HEARTS 3 SPOILERS AHEAD

Braig knew Dilan’s haunts almost better than his own in the years they guarded that castle from– who even cared at that point? The black spaces in Braig’s memories were getting pretty damn big these days, and he had a bad feeling about what that meant.

Exit Braig, enter Luxu, and who would ever believe him if he tried to warn them? As if he’d be that lucky.

“Dilan,” he called out to his old friend while Dilan stepped through the castle gates towards the city itself. They had shifts and time off, but it meant nothing to that overachiever. Braig knew he was out on one of his self-determined patrols that no one assigned or needed. Show off. Braig smirked, making his offer. “Looking for a little company?”

Even at a distance, it was clear how much of a difference there was between the two of ’em. They ate the same stuff at the orphanage and the barracks, but you wouldn’t know it. Looked like they fed the weak ones to Dilan.

He glanced to Braig, not exactly smiling so much as accepting his presence, but that was Dilan for ya. “Not quite, but I’ll make an exception.”

“Oh, I’m moved by your generosity,” Braig teased, hopping down from his perch on one of the taller stone walls by the castle. One of his haunts, as it turned out. He fell in beside Dilan, just another day on one of the patrols they didn’t have to do.

Usually, Braig did just about all the talking, but he wasn’t up to it. You’d think with his presence in his own body being a limited-time offer, he’d be all over that shit, but nah. Apparently not. For a good stretch, it was only them walking side by side in silence with the stupidly picturesque sunset that Radiant Garden always delivered.

“What’s wrong?” Dilan broke the silence and Braig looked his way, getting a one-sided skeptically raised eyebrow that wasn’t doing anything to cover the concern written on his face. If these cobbled streets were anything but perfectly level and empty, they’d both fall flat on their faces since they couldn’t be bothered to watch where they were going.

“Huh?” Braig paired that up with his best ‘what’s wrong with you’ look. He could probably blow this off and make Dilan drop it that way, and that was definitely the plan here. The one plan.

“We passed at least three things you could make fun of, and you said nothing.” Well, that plan flopped. Dilan had his smug, shit-eating grin on that Braig could sense in the air if he had to. Braig rolled his eyes at him, but that didn’t stop his friend for a second. “Must be serious.”

“Nah, it’s nothing.” He brushed it off with a vague sweeping gesture. Just Braig’s soul in the balance and he was losing “Just thinking.”

“That’s new.” There it was again, that attitude and arrogant smile. What the hell had gotten into Dilan anyway? Seemed like he was determined to take up the mantle if Braig was gonna slack off. Hell, who was he kidding? He brought out the worst in Dilan and they both loved it.

“Go fuck yourself,” Braig snapped back, laughing. They were quiet again and this time, Dilan just waited. He kept up the patrol gig as usual, violet eyes scanning the safe streets for any danger. Maybe a stray leaf or pebble that erred onto the path, who knew? He busied himself while he waited for Braig to come around, and that bastard was always this patient. Had to be to deal with Braig. He sighed, shrugging, and finally answered. Sort of. “Just feeling lucky. Not like that, you pervert.”

Dilan chuckled, and that was enough of a reply for Braig, at least.

“We came into this world with nothing, and I’m a huge asshole.” That was more of an observation than anything, setting the scene for what he was working up to. It wasn’t much of a goodbye, but it was better than nothing. “You didn’t have to stick with me, dragging me along in a lotta cases. But you did, and I’d probably still have jack shit if not for you.”

That was their first awkward silence in years. Dilan wasn’t a man of a many words, but he sure as shit didn’t hold back. Braig shoved both hands in his pockets and kept a vigilant eye on the other side of the street in a last ditch effort to pretend none of that just happened.

“Are you drunk?” Dilan wasn’t even kidding that time, he really just thought⁠— well, of course he did, Braig was a lovey, two-faced drunk that would hug someone to pick their damn pocket.

“No! You know what, I’m taking it back.” Braig shook his head, kicking himself for even trying this dumb ‘goodbye forever, nice knowing you’ thing. No one was even gonna notice he was gone.

Dilan dropped it there, noticeably less attentive to his route than normal. They were halfway back to the castle now anyway, so Braig just stuck with him. It’d be exactly the same distance no matter what. He wasn’t counting how long it was before Dilan spoke up, but it was a hell of a relief when he broke the silence again. “Thanks.”

“Don’t get used to it.” Braig answered flatly, the closest either of them would get to something heartfelt. Probably for the best. Never could trust your heart. It’d steer you wrong every time.

Xigbar and MoM

So this is what happens when I think about KH after exposing myself to toxic glue fumes.

Spoilers ahead

So I’d seen this theory flying around that Braig and the Master of Masters (MoM) were the same person… And I thought it was bunk.

As if, amirite?

And I got to thinking on how to disprove it, falling down this crazy little rabbit hole of proving it to myself by mistake.

Connection 1: The Cloak
This is shared with the entire Organization, though. And it was first worn by MoM and Luxu, who would be documented by the Foretellers.

It seemed just as likely that choosing the cloak was a remnant of Terra’s studies as a Keybearer being accessible to Xemnas.

It didn’t have to be Braig that connected the cloak to the Organization. The evidence here just wasn’t strong enough to tie them, but it didn’t rule anything out either.

Conclusion: Too many variables with the cloak.

Connection 2: The Eye
One of the supports given for why Xigbar and MoM are the same person is that they both have one eye.

The issue with this one is a bit obvious. MoM had one eye in Back Cover, the other being in the Keyblade for Luxu.

Since he came before Braig chronologically in the canon timeline, how could Braig have two eyes at the start of BBS if he (as MoM) had one prior to that?

Note: I am assuming that MoM was telling the truth about his eye. MoM was deceptive, but he was generally honest in the information he did give. That’s what made his deceptions so effective.

The first way I thought of to make this work was if Braig came first chronologically. In that event, he would later become Master of Masters in the future and travel to that time in Back Cover after the business with Organization XIII.

But then… It’s confirmed in canon that Xigbar recruited Marluxia.

Which means he had to know as Xigbar to go to the world as it fell to darkness and collect Marluxia. How could Braig be alive before MoM, but have the knowledge as Xigbar to time travel to that era for Lauriam/Marluxia once the world fell?

Conclusion: They had to be different people, but somehow Xigbar knew about that world, Lauriam’s presence, and the certainty that it would fall.

Connection 3: Knowledge
So how could Xigbar know about the world’s demise in Back Cover and that Lauriam was there?

This information could only be obtained by someone who was there. A book in Radiant Garden could have mentioned this war that caused that world to fall, but it would be unlikely to mention Lauriam with enough detail for Braig to find him accurately.

And Braig doesn’t really seem like the bookish type

So he had to get this knowledge from a person who knew all about the events in Back Cover, and that could only be MoM or Luxu.

And all we have in canon about Luxu’s role in Back Cover was to watch as events unfold and then “do his thing” – take the crate, his Keyblade, and leave to get an apprentice he could pass that Keyblade on to so MoM could see the future.

But how would Luxu or MoM even meet or directly influence Braig? The one connection between them is Xehanort, who did have Luxu’s Keyblade – so he was an indirect apprentice of Luxu – but he wouldn’t know the details of Back Cover to give to Braig.

Even if he did, why would he tell Braig anything? He was only a guard at Radiant Garden, no one paramount like a Foreteller.

Here’s where the glue fumes kick in

There are two ways in Kingdom Hearts to get access to real memories that technically belong to someone else: be their Nobody or their replica.

And MoM disappeared well before the world fell, so it’s unlikely that he became a Heartless.

He’s way too dedicated to his own goals for that to happen

EPIPHANY: Braig is MoM’s replica.

Stay with me here.

MoM has the ability to create living beings in a lab environment, as seen when he created Chirithy.

It is extremely possible that he would apply this knowledge to the creation of replicas to make one of himself. Especially since Xehanort was present with Luxu’s Keyblade for most of his interactions with Braig and that means MoM saw him in the future…

Going on the canon data that replicas bear at least a small resemblance to the original (such as having the same eyes), MoM would recognize Braig for what he was and make the future happen.

Being MoM’s replica would allow Braig to know when and where to go for Lauriam. He likely didn’t know why or how he knew, only that he did.

It also explains other similarities, such as their mischievous personalities and general mannerisms.

But how did Braig end up on Radiant Garden?
And here’s where the crate comes in. In the case of Luxu, MoM tells him never to open the crate. And when Luxu says he wants to know what’s inside… MoM tells him and the player can’t hear what he says.

All you hear is Luxu’s gasp of surprise and asking why. MoM only responds, “You’ll see.”

If a newly made replica was in that crate, opening it would wake them up into their zombie state – like Xion – and that couldn’t happen too early for MoM’s scheme.

But what scheme would that be?
MoM is enigmatic but thorough. When he manipulated the Foretellers into the events of Back Cover, he knew they would all inevitably push that prophecy onward at exactly the right pace.

So there must be a plan with having a replica brought to the future by Luxu, who of course would open the crate eventually.

Theory: It’s about Kingdom Hearts.

How could it not be? It’s the name of the series, for one, and opening Kingdom Hearts was something the Master of Masters specifically told the Foretellers not to do – meaning he knew at least one of them was bound to try it.

Then Braig turns up as an orphan with amnesia on Radiant Garden, joins the guard because what else on this planet might get him closer to power, and surprise, surprise!

Braig ends up almost front and center in a scheme to complete Kingdom Hearts, losing his eye in the early stages of that scheme.

Conclusion: MoM is using XigBraig and the sight from Luxu’s Keyblade to steer the Organization to complete Kingdom Hearts.

Bonus for Xehanort:
Even better, being a replica made Braig a great candidate to be the first vessel. As a replica, Braig would have to grow his own heart over time. He wouldn’t come with one, so to speak, in a less literal sense than Nobodies.

And because of his personality, Braig never seems to feel anything but fear, disdain, anger, and mostly idle enjoyment of atrocities. He seemed to prefer that. Because Braig started off angry and bitter, I theorize that his ability to feel never fully developed into a complete heart.

There was almost zero risk he’d want that back after being Norted.

And this is the kicker.
If Braig had been able to be less spiteful, to forgive and try to grow as a person rather than in power, he’d probably have a Keyblade of his own just like Data Sora did.

He was a replica of a powerful Keybearer, after all. If he’d put any stock in his heart instead of going straight for power, he’d have it by now.

never said he was smart

And that’s the ramble!
Hope you at least had fun reading this madness.