Disclaimer: Kingdom Hearts & Characters © Tetsuya Nomura

A/N: A challenge fic for Suntiger in exchange for a Terra x OC oneshot XD I'm a sap lol. She wanted to see Lea and Vanitas in a setting as friends. This was the result. Hope you enjoy it. Fair warning, this is an AU story. This is my perspective on Lea and Vanitas in a modern-setting. They will have slightly altered personalities.

-Win

Different Strings

"What happened to our innocence, did it go out of style? Along with our naïveté, no longer a child. Different eyes see different things; different hearts beat on different strings. But there are times, for you and me when all such things agree." -Rush

It was another boring day. After cramming the passed week for another final, Vanitas had literally spent the passed day sleeping. The college dorms were quiet - most of the students had departed from Radiant University to go home for Spring Break.

Not Vanitas, however.

He didn't exactly have a home to go to. No parents to welcome him with open arms. So was the life of an orphan - not that Vanitas really cared or complained. He had been a ward of the state until he was eighteen, he got out of that shithole they called an orphanage, and he went on to become successful. He passed the applicant exam with flying colors, something they didn't expect.

He was anti-social, he was sarcastic and looked like a demon in mortal flesh, but he didn't give a shit. Because he was smart - he had the brains to run a multi-million dollar corporation. He would major in Business Management and show all those worthless bastards just how much worth he really had.

Well, right after he fought the exhaustion he had from not sleeping for three days and cramming for finals.

Yawning, Vanitas finally rolled over in his bed, stretching and feeling his aching muscles stretch. He clicked his tongue, idly clicking the ball of his tongue ring against his teeth as he opened his golden orbs, arching his back so that he could peer upside down toward his roommate's bed.

Crimson spikes were the first he noticed, and then green eyes glancing at him, lifting from the sheet music he was scribbling on. A thick set of headphones were plugged into the jack of the electric guitar. Vanitas was glad his roommate was courteous enough to let him actually sleep.

It had been this way since day one, when Vanitas stepped through that door and met his roommate. Lea was a nice guy, just warped and misunderstood with a love of fire. He was manipulative, but his heart was always in the right place. He had a quirky sense of humor that was as twisted as Vanitas' - but he still found a way to grin.

He was scared of forgetting his memories though.

Vanitas was trying to forget.

Lea grinned as he pulled his headphones around his neck, tucking his pencil behind his ear as Vanitas rolled swiftly onto his knees and sat up, immediately looking around the room with an expression that stated loud and clear: I have no memory of this place.

That's because the leftover pizza boxes, the laundry that littered the floor, the soda cans and everything had been removed.

He could actually see the effin' floor.

Okay, who the hell flipped the world upside down?

"Who the hell cleaned our room?" Vanitas blurted out, running his fingers through his obsidian spikes.

"Me?" Lea snorted, "You act as if I'm a complete slob."

"You are, dumbass." Vanitas shook his head but grinned, "No way. I don't believe this. You totally got Naminé to clean it. Or Xion."

"No, those two are currently vacationing with Ven and Roxas in Destiny Islands. Think Terra and Aqua are with 'em too."

Vanitas frowned and then shrugged, "Whatevs. Room's clean. I'm happy. Do we have any food?"

"Well considering it's like four in the afternoon, I'm not surprised you're hungry. I ordered Chinese."

Lea turned in the desk chair and then tossed the white carton at the dark adolescent, who caught it swiftly and the chopsticks, before happily opening the carton and perching himself on his bed, legs crossed. He slurped up some chow mein noodles and tipped his head to the side as Lea began to play a few strings of his guitar.

"Workin' on a new song?"

Lea was trying to major in music. He wanted to be a musician. Together with his friend Demyx, they sounded pretty damn killer too. Vanitas didn't have much faith in anyone, but he did have faith that Lea would one day be one of the greatest musicians of all time.

"Yeah. Woke up about eight. Had a dream and it just inspired me. Wanna hear, bro?"

"Definitely." Vanitas got up and then perched himself on top of the amplifier. Lea adjusted the cords and then started to play the first verse. "Shit, this is really effin' good, man. What was the dream?"

Lea snorted and rolled his eyes, "Like hell I'm telling you."

Gold eyes narrowed on emerald, "Try me."

"Lots of sexy women and I'm the hero, immortalized in their memory. Aw, yeah, baby, living the dream."

"Isn't it you that always says if you have a dream to act, not wait?"

"Very true, my friend, but having a harem of lovely women is one of those unattainable dreams." Lea chuckled, "Nah, I'm content with finding a lovely lady to be loyal to me as I travel the globe, bringing my amazing music to my many fans."

"So you want a house-wife that will be loyal and responsible while you go out and party."

"And come home every chance I get to see her and the little ones."

Vanitas snorted, then paused. "Actually, I can see it. You wouldn't be that asshole dad who was only in it for the fame. You would do it so that you can go home and your kids could brag that their dad is so epic that no one even knows."

"What about you? Still plan on taking over ShinRa?"

"Hell yes!" Vanitas fist pumped and then stopped. "You know, I never really stopped to think about things like you do. I just go with my impulses and dreams - I don't have actual reasons. Maybe because they always beat it into my head that I was just some street rat that no one wants. That I'll always be unwanted and will never amount to anything."

"Your motivation is to prove not just to the world, but to yourself that you are worth something."

Vanitas was quiet, "Play that chorus again." He leaned over to read the lyrics that Lea had been jotting down, taking a deep breath. He paused, "Tell anyone I did this and I'll kill you."

Lea chuckled, "I got it memorized. Death if this is revealed. Gotcha, Van."

Vanitas glanced at him - this was a moment of truth.

He decided to trust him.

"One…two…one two three…" Vanitas counted down before he started to sing the vocals. Lea joined in, the two of them sharing a faint smile between brothers.

"Damn, I totally have to call Dem and get him here. You should join us."

Vanitas snorted again, "As if, bro. I do not do public performances. 'Sides, there's no way I'd ever be able to face Larxene if she found out that I sang."

"She hates you."

"I hate her."

"Don't blame ya for keeping that powerful singing voice under wraps then."

Vanitas nodded and hopped off the amp, before flopping back onto the floor. He looked up at Lea, who smirked down at him.

Then, they started to laugh. Looking back on it, Vanitas could probably never recall why they were laughing. Maybe it was because Vanitas actually expressed trust before - especially in someone as manipulative and maniacal as Lea.

Maybe Lea had spiked his noodles or something.

Hell if he knew - he didn't care.

This was his best friend.

"Dude, you know…" Vanitas grinned, "We're best friends, right?"

"It took you all semester to figure that out? Hell man! I knew from the day we met!"

"No one said I was open to being best friends," Vanitas grinned, "but you know…we could cause some serious chaos. I think I like the prospect of having a brother-in-arms; someone to sit beside me in a jail cell when some punk tries to run his mouth."

Lea snorted, "I'll bail your ass out."

"No, Isa will bail us out. You try to act responsible, but you know you'd end up in the cell beside me laughing your ass off cause we accidentally set that scum-bag professor's car on fire."

"Quiet you!"

Lea pointed at him with his pencil with his eyes narrowed. Vanitas simply gave him a look with his eyebrow raised. Lea shifted his eyes back and forth before pitching the pencil just as Vanitas broke eye-contact. In one swift motion, the boy produced a text book out of no where, blocking the attack. He then threw the book and hit Lea right on the thigh.

"OW!"

"Don't attack me. I am a ninja."

"Says you."

"Uh, dude, Yuffie is one of my closest friends. I'm an effin' ninja."

"Point taken."

"Do that again and next time it's your trachea."

"POINT. TAKEN. BROSEPH."

"Good."

"Hey…why are you friends with Yuffie?"

"I give her cool shiz, she steals panties for me so I can use 'em as blackmail." Vanitas smiled deviously, "How do you think I got Olette to help me with my damn creative writing course?"

"…as opposed to what?"

"Oh? You mean if I didn't get her help? Our teacher would've been traumatized with nightmares from the horrific details of my writings. And I would've enjoyed every second."

"You're freakin' twisted."

"As are you - thus we are friends."

"Best friends."

"Don't push it, Lea."

"What? You ashamed or something?"

"Hell no - I don't give a damn what people think…unless I'm scaring them."

Lea shifted his eyes, "No offense, but some nights I fear you ravaging my organs while I sleep and selling them on the Black Market."

"Nah, that's more up Larxene's alley."

"…I take it back. She's more scarier than you are."

"Is that why you two dated?"

"Did not date. I got drunk, she got frisky. I do not regret the wild and roughness of the sex. I do regret the after-effects."

"Ew. I would never touch that chick. Like…if it was the choice between her and like…Ventus or something…I'd do Ven. And I am straight."

Lea snorted, "I question this."

"SHUT UP. THAT WAS ONE TIME. IT WAS A DARE. I WAS DRUNK."

"It was Ven, you seemed a little too into it."

"I will kill you in your sleep if you bring this up ever again, Lea. DO NOT TEST ME."

"You're so adorbs when you're angry," Lea snickered. "Got it memorized?"

"Say that again and I'll make sure you have a shit ton of agony memorized." Vanitas grumbled. "I'm gonna go take a shower!"

He slammed the door and Lea simply smiled, whistling under his breath as he strummed two different strings.

Apart, they were beautiful, but together they were chaotic as the flames and darkness of Hell itself.

Yeah, just like them.

A/N: I am not used to writing something that's merely broseph lol XD I enjoyed it though. I'll dabble in this again in the future. Sooo…how did I do? I winged it. O.O Reviews please? .

-Win

Musical Inspiration: Different Strings - Rush, Scream - Avenged Sevenfold