Neon beer signs and a soft warm glow from the lighting overhead dimly illuminated the private, windowless room in the back of the bar. The dark color of the walls and décor did little to reflect the light, casting the entire room in a dim, yellowish hue. In the center of the room sat a long table surrounded by chairs. In them sat six people, with one man at the head. Against the walls leaned the figures of several more, and an additional two stood beside the door. Each of them looked dramatically different with hair of all colors and styles, and various body types. The one thing everyone in the room had in common, however, was that they each wore jacket with the words 'Organization' in white letters decorating the back, bright against their black leather backgrounds.

The man sitting at the head of the table appeared to be the eldest, fine wrinkles stretching across his forehead and peaking out from the outer corners of blue eyes. His blonde hair was light, peppered with a few greys if one looked close enough to notice. New wrinkles appeared between his eyebrows as they furrowed in thought, and he took a long drag from the cigarette between his lips. He leaned in, resting his forearms on the table as he stared at the woodgrain. The other men waited in silence as the man drew the smoke slowly into his lungs, and parted his lips enough to let out a long exhale with the cigarette still trapped between them.

When nothing was said, a man with silver hair shifted a bit in his seat, and parted his lips to speak. "Cid, I think you will agree that we need to retaliate. We cannot allow them to start working our turf and simply do nothing. What will you have us do?"

The blonde man, Cid, scowled. He removed the cigarette from his lips and tapped off the ash in the ashtray next to him, before returning it to his lips for another drag. "We're going to send them a message that will leave no room for interpretation," he answered in a low, calm voice. His gaze moved to the two men standing by the door. "Boys, you know what to do," he addressed them, his tone hard, "get them off our turf, and give them a proper sendoff." The man's eyes glanced back to the table, and the corner of his lips curled up in a partial smile that his eyes did not mirror.

The large men Cid was speaking to nodded their heads in silence, and turned to make their leave. One of the figures leaning against the wall, significantly smaller than the others took a step forward. It was a young boy, who spoke with his green eyes wide in surprise. When he spoke, his voice was hushed, and sounded much more meek to himself than he would have liked. "What are they going to do to them, boss?"

Cid's eyes met the boy's and his lips pressed together. He was too young to be amongst his group and yet here he was anyway, his leather jacket too big on his boyish frame. His hair sat wild around his youthful face, framing it in spikes of red. "In this business, Axel, you sometimes need to make difficult decisions," he explained as the others began to file out of the room. "Life is precious. But when someone tries to take what belongs to the Organization, they've already made the choice about their fate. Do you understand?"

The man's eyes were soft as they watched Axel's face fall as he understood the older man's words, and Cid stood to place a reassuring arm on the boy's shoulder and give it a squeeze. Axel was only 13, much too young to be in a gang as dangerous as Cid's. However, the boy had no one save for his older brother Reno, who was all too happy to join.

It was four years ago that Cid had found the boys, Axel and Reno, wandering his streets late one night. From an alley between two buildings where the light from the street lamps did not reach, he had heard a rustling as he walked along the sidewalk and stopped. Raising a single eyebrow, he peered down the alley and saw two boys. The larger of the two was holding the smaller up beside a dumpster, where the smaller boy appeared to be retrieving something. A little suspicious but more so curious, Cid turned and walked into the alley toward the boys, an unlit cigarette dangling between his lips.

"What're you boys doing?" he grunted.

Startled, the older boy dropped his brother, and turned toward the man as Axel's rear his the ground with a thud. "Oww, Reno!" he cried, before turning his attention to the older man that had interrupted them.

"I'm sorry sir," Reno began, his hand going to rub the back of his neck sheepishly. "We were just looking for something to eat, we didn't mean no harm."

Cid looked between the two boys, with their matching red locks. They could have been twins, had the one boy not been obviously older. One appeared to be fourteen, no older than fifteen. The younger couldn't have even been ten. And where bright green and fearful eyes looked at him from Axel's face, Reno's shined a soft blue-grey.

A little caught off guard, all Cid could manage was, "From the dumpster?" Closer inspection of the boys provided all the answer Cid had needed. They were visibly dirty, and their clothing had definitely seen better days. He could make out a visible toe from a hole in the top of Axel's shoe, and the man's brow furrowed as his heart sunk. Neither boy had the chance to react before Cid spoke again. "No, that won't do. Come with me, we're going down to the diner, ya hear? Get you kids a proper meal."

Excitement beamed in Axel's bright eyes and he quickly stood up with a grand smile, but Reno stuck his arm out in front of the boy to stop him from walking toward the man, his eyes narrowed at the blonde. "In exchange for what?" he spat with suspicion.

Cid frowned, his blue eyes meeting Reno's slate. The question bit at him, and he couldn't help but wonder how long these two boys had been living on the street. Long enough to be rightfully suspicious at least. The blonde sighed and lit his cigarette, tucking the lighter back into his pocket while he inhaled the smoke. "Ain't nothing I want from a kid."

Reno's eyes continued to accuse as he bit back, "Everybody wants something."

Cid rolled his eyes, even though he had to agree with the boy. The world is not a nice place, let alone the streets. If he had stopped to consider what had been asked of the boys in the past, he would have shuddered. "Fine, you want me to want something? I buy you each a meal, you tell me why you've got such a shit attitude and why you're dumpster diving for meals. Then you two get outta my hair and we're fair and square."

Reno continued to stare at the man, clearly still apprehensive but considering his offer. Axel was looking intensely at his brother, eyes begging. "Please Reno, I'm so hungry," he cried, barely above a whisper.

"No funny business?" Reno questioned, eyes still narrowed.

"None. We'll go to the diner, and then we'll part ways. Public place the whole time."

The gears were turning in Reno's head, playing out the possibilities. If the man had wanted to hurt them, he certainly could have done that already. Even under a leather jacket it was obvious that the man had a muscular build that Reno wouldn't have been able to fight off of him, and a back alley with no one around was the perfect place to do it. It didn't make sense to take them to a diner where there would be people if he was just going to hurt them. "Okay."

The younger boy grinned from ear to ear as Reno's arm dropped from in front of him, and he ran up to the blonde man. "I'm Axel!" he said proudly, before pointing to his brother, "And he's my brother Reno!"

The tinniest of smiles pulled at the corners of Cid's lips at Axel's enthusiasm, but he quickly suppressed it. "Cid Highwind," he introduced himself gruffly, and began to walk down the street toward the diner.

The boys followed after him, Reno's eyes trained on the white letters on the blonde's leather jacket. He was only fourteen, but he knew what the Organization was from their time on the streets. He knew that they pretty much ran the underground of the city, though not much more than that. Forcing his voice to sound as tough as he could manage, he worked up the courage to ask what he wanted to know. "So, you're in the Organization?"

Cid glanced over his shoulder at the boy walking behind him from the side of his eye, "No."

Reno was taken aback, eyebrows dropping in confusion, "But your jacket-"

"I'm not in it," the older man interrupted, still looking straight ahead, "I run it."

Reno regarded Cid with awe, and none of them spoke until they got to the diner, settled into their booth, and gave their orders to the waitress.

Once she delivered their meals- a burger with fries and strawberry milkshake for Axel, chicken fingers with fries and a chocolate milkshake for Reno, and a black coffee for Cid, did the man finally speak. "So? Where are your parents?"

Over chewing a mouthful of burger, Axel was the first to answer, "Dad's dead. Don't know where mom is."

Reno's eyes met Cid's, and he mimed an answer as he sipped his milkshake, tapping two fingers against the skin of his arm and then making as if to inject something. Cid inferred the meaning quickly, and frowned. "What about foster care?"

Reno gulped his milkshake and cast his eyes down at his plate. "Believe me, the streets are better than where we were." His tone was solemn, foreboding. The blonde didn't dare inquire more.

Axel's eyes saddened, and he looked quietly down at his plate as well as he continued to eat.

The blonde sipped his coffee, and nodded. He couldn't help feeling bad for the boys, and something in him compelled him to help. Maybe it was because he didn't have any children of his own, maybe it was because being the head of the Organization had gotten him used to taking care of others in his own way. Maybe the reason didn't matter. But as he sat there in the booth of the diner with the two red haired youths, he decided he couldn't just do nothing.

"There's an extra bedroom at my house," he stated gruffly before taking another gulp of his coffee.

Once again apprehension returned to Reno's face and he eyed the man across from him. "Uh-uh. No way, we're not going to your house with you."

Axel's eyebrows pushed together and he looked at his brother, his expression caught somewhere between pleading and worry.

"If I wanted to hurt ya kid, I could have already."

Reno's suspicion did not waiver. "Why should we trust you?"

Cid took another swig of the hot coffee and gulped it down, before setting the mug back down on the table. "Honestly kid, ya shouldn't. But I've bought you a hot meal, no strings attached. You could finish your meal and walk right out and I won't try an' stop ya. But I'm offering you a warm place to sleep, and a hot shower. If you still want to leave after that I don't mind, and I still won't try to stop ya. But listen kid, this is probably the best offer you're going to get and you haven't got a whole lot of other options."

Reno tensed at Cid's words, and his slate eyes looked to his little brother as he continued to eat. A shower sounded really nice, and a bed sounded even better. He wasn't sure when the last time they'd had a shower was, and as hard as he tried to take care of Axel on his own he had to admit that it wasn't getting any better for them. He bit his lip as he thought, watching his brother, before finally raising his gaze to meet Cid's.

"We can leave whenever we want?"

"No questions asked."

The first night at Cid's was tense for the boys, no matter how relaxing it had been when they had finally gotten to shower. When they had arrived Cid had given them a brief tour of his house, gave them a change of clothes each with a gruff apology about how they would be too big. He told them that if they needed anything they should knock on his bedroom door but that otherwise, he'd leave them alone for the night. Reno was still very nervous about his decision to stay in the strange man's house, but his assurance that he was going to leave them be helped him to feel a bit better. Briefly, he had considered robbing the place and running, but upon remembering that Cid was the leader of the biggest and most feared gang around he immediately thought better of it. Once showered, he walked back into the guest room where Axel laid spread out like a starfish on the bed, already clean and dressed in Cid's oversized clothes that were his makeshift pajamas. His eyes were closed, and he was smiling softly, but still clearly awake.

Reno kicked the bed just hard enough to shake it, and Axel opened bright green eyes to look at him quickly before closing them again with a sigh of contentment. "You can't sleep like that," Reno barked, "There's only one bed so we have to share it."

"I know," the younger boy chirped, "I'm just enjoying how it feels right now."

Reno rolled his eyes, rubbing the towel over his long hair before beginning to change. Once he pulled the sweatpants Cid had lent him up and tied the waist so that they wouldn't fall down, Axel rolled onto his side and peered at his brother with a grin. "I like Cid, I think he's nice."

Reno shrugged. "Guess we'll see."

"How long do you think he'll let us stay here?" the boy asked curiously.

"Probably not long," the older boy replied with a frown as he pulled on a t-shirt that was several sizes too big. "So don't get too comfortable."

But Reno had been wrong. The two boys ended up living with Cid for just under four years, in which time Cid had turned the guest bedroom into a proper setup for two young boys, getting them separate beds and desks, and everything that a kid needed. After a few months had passed, he's asked for the boys permission to legally become his guardian, to which Reno had simply nodded expressionlessly, and Axel had cried softly and barely managed to squeak out a 'yes'. It had taken some doing and time and more paperwork than Cid had ever wanted to see in his life, but he made it happen. He was able to enroll the boys in school, though they had a lot of catching up to do. He spent the evenings he was home helping with homework and driving the boys to their various activities. For all intents and purposes, he spent his time being a father when he wasn't busy at the Organization.

That is, until Reno's eighteenth birthday, when he sat the man down to talk. "I want to join," he had stated, his eyes serious as he stared into Cid's. "I want to join and move Axel and I to our own place. I don't want to continue to rely on your kindness."

"And if I say you can't join?" Cid asked, lighting a cigarette as he leaned back in his chair at the dining room table.

"Then I'll take Axel and go make my own way for us, now that I'm old enough. You said we could leave whenever we wanted."

"Aye, I did." The blonde agreed, looking over the young man that Reno had grown to be. His hair was much longer now, tied into a ponytail at the nape of his neck. His features were starting to mature, though he still had a ways to go. His body which was once thin as a string bean had started to fill out to look more like a man's, with muscle building on once lanky limbs.

"You took Axel and I in, and I'll never be able to repay that favor," the young man pressed, "But I want to work for you. I want to be in the Organization because as far as family goes…" he pauses, pressing his lips together for a moment. "You're the closest Axel and I have."

Cid nodded, took another drag of his smoke, and exhaled. "If this is what you really want."

"It is."

Reno and Axel were living on their own in an apartment now. Reno had joined the Organization and was earning enough of a living to support himself and his brother. Axel had only tagged along with Reno at first, when Reno had no place else to bring him after school. But these days found Axel with the Organization daily, following Cid as he had decided to groom him to take over one day once Cid retired or otherwise perished.

It had taken a lot of thought from the man, who was filled with uncertainty about bringing a thirteen year old into this world of his. It was too young for sure, but once Reno had joined he realized that the older brother was a little too set in his ways, and unlikely to be fit for leadership unless he underwent a drastic personality change. With Axel being so young still, he still had a chance to cultivate him into the man he would need to be.

"Death… befalls any who defy the Organization," Axel whispered softly, bringing his green gaze to meet the eyes of the only father figure he had ever known. Father figure, and now mentor.

"That's right my boy," Cid clapped him on the back hard enough to make the boy stumble forward a step. "Now go wait outside for Reno, ya hear? Reno won't be long."

"Alright boss, see you tomorrow."

"And Axel," he added, stopping the boy in his tracks as he made to leave. "Make sure to do your homework. Reno says ya haven't been, and I won't have you be tarnishing the Organization's reputation by being illiterate, ya hear?"

The red head narrowed his eyes and tilted his head, "But isn't Cliff illiterate?"

"I mean it," he warned through gritted teeth, and Axel raised his eyebrows and nodded.

"Yes sir."

Cid gave a soft smile and waived Axel out of the room with his hand. "Get goin'," he insisted, moving to stand up and move on with the day himself.

After pulling into the driveway, Cid shut off the motorcycle and put the kick stand down before dismounting. The neighborhood was nice enough, all lawns manicured and crime rate was low, but best of all it was quiet, and the neighbors weren't the prying type. Cid's house was situated near the center of the dead end street, and was the smallest of them all. It had three bedrooms, with one converted into a sort of office that usually sat unused. It wasn't that he couldn't afford a bigger one- his business was lucrative, to say the least. However, it was only ever just Cid ever since the boys had left months ago, and a big fancy house would have attracted more attention than he wanted anyway. The guest bedroom that once was home to two twin beds and the red heads that used them was now returned to its former state; uninhabited and a single full sized bed in the center of the room, the boys' posters long gone and a fresh coat of paint. Downstairs the floor plan was pretty open, the kitchen leading right into the dining and living area.

He walked up to the covered porch that hugged the front of his blue house, and unlocked it to let himself in. Cid made his way through the living room and into the kitchen, where he dropped his keys on the counter. His hand was already reaching for the door to the fridge to grab a beer, which he unceremoniously popped the cap off of using the corner of the kitchen counter. One large step and a gulp in between, and he was making his way back into the living room, sliding out of his jacket and tossing it on the back of the couch before lazily dropping himself onto its cushions before taking another swig. A hand reached for the TV remote on the coffee table, but he was interrupted by the chiming of a doorbell.

He raised a singular eyebrow as he looked to the door. The man hadn't been expecting anyone, and no one from the Organization was allowed to come to his residence unless it was an emergency, for security and secrecy reasons. Curious and a little suspicious, Cid got up and walked to the door, beer still in hand. He hesitated for a moment, and the doorbell chimed again. The man rolled his eyes and pulled it open, "Alright, I hear ya, I hear ya-"

His gaze dropped down to look at a boy who couldn't have been more than eleven or twelve years old, staring up at him. The boy had blonde hair, spiked to one side as though he had tried to brush it down and failed. His eyes were a vibrant blue, and practically glowing with excitement as he smiled up at the man.

Surprised to find a young boy on his porch, and very confused, Cid managed to ask, "Uh, hi there kid. What can I do ya for?" The boy's face looked familiar, as though he'd seen him playing somewhere or in a mall or something.

The boy grinned, and Cid finally noticed that the boy was clutching a piece of paper in both hands. Maybe a little too hard in his excitement, as his fingers were curling in tightly and wrinkling it. "Excuse me sir," he started, "Is your name Cid Highwind?"

Cid peered around the boy, as though looking for the adult this child belonged to. When he spoke, it was slow and uncertain, with a hint of wariness. "It is."

It surprised the man, but the blonde boy's smile got even wider, drawing the older man's eyes immediately back, and pure elation shining in the kid's eyes. "I can't believe I found you! It took me so long, I was starting to think it was hopeless!"

Cid raised a hand to stop the boy, and leaned toward him, still unsure of what exactly was going on. "Okay kid, you found me. Who are you, and what are you doing here?"

The boy gave a look of embarrassment, and dropped his eyes. "I'm sorry, Mr. Highwind. My name is Roxas, and I'm here because…" the boy paused, bringing his blue gaze back up to meet Cid's before continuing, a little quieter this time, "I think you're my dad."

Cid stared at the boy. Looked at his beer. Brought his gaze back to the boy. Neither said anything as Cid stood there with his mouth partially open, glancing from the bottle in his hand to the boy in front of him and back again as he attempted to make sense of the words he was certain that he had just heard. The boy, Roxas, stood and observed the features of the man before him with worry in his eyes, eyebrows knitting together and biting his lip as he suddenly became very unsure of himself. He watched as the man's wrinkles deepened on his forehead as his eyebrows raised and lowered again, finally settling on taking another gulp of his beer with his eyes still wide and focused on him. Once he lowered the bottle again, he nodded a few times to himself and finally spoke. "I think you'd better come in kid, and tell me why you think I'm… why you think that."

He took a step back and held the door open for the boy to allow him entry. With a wave of a hand he motioned for the boy to follow him through to the dining table, where they sat across from each other and Cid took in and slowly released a deep breath. Cid opened his mouth to speak but then stopped, and took another drink from his beer as he stared again at the boy's face, his eyes running along the features.

Cid felt like an absolute idiot, not knowing earlier why the boy looked so familiar. Although the blonde hair and blue eyes were different, he knew that nose, knew the shape of those cheekbones and chin and the shape of those lips better than his own. After what seemed like an eternity and a millisecond all at once, the man finally spoke. "Who is your mother?"

The question was a formality really, as he as certain he already knew. Cid would have been able to recognize those features anywhere. Although the coloring was off, and the boy's face was more masculine, there was no mistaking the face of his former love looking back at him, and it felt like Cid's heart was breaking all over again, remembering when she left. How he never stopped loving her. The emotion rushing through him was so powerful that he saw Roxas' lips move, but didn't actually hear the name. It didn't matter.

"Okay," he responded with a nod, attempting to maintain his composure. "But how old are you?"

"I'm twelve years old," Roxas told him, uncertainty evident in his expression as he continued eye contact with the man before him.

A wince contorted Cid's face. Twelve years plus nine months… adds up so far. It was at least possible. And damned if the boy didn't look like his mother but with Cid's coloring…

"Did your mother tell you I'm your dad?" the man worked up the courage to ask, around the lump quickly forming in his throat.

Roxas' face fell a little, and he shook his head. "She… doesn't talk about you. Every time I tried to ask her who my dad- who you are- she just changes the subject."

A frown crossed the man's face, and he nodded. Some painful memories were resurfacing, from years ago when the boy's mom left. It was sudden, but he couldn't change her mind. She had wanted out, away from the kind of life Cid was leading as the new boss of The Organization. Suddenly she was concerned about it being a dangerous life, going on about how she didn't want to live that way. Their argument that night, the last night, had been massive. He'd been born a poor man, had little options to make something out of himself, but the Organization was his salvation. He was finally making money, finally able to provide for the love of his life and she had only wanted to leave, out of the blue. He began to wonder about it now; did she know she was pregnant when she left? Did she leave out of concern for her unborn child? And is that why she never even told him? Never told Roxas who his dad was?

"How, then… did you find me?" He asked, letting his eyes wander the boy's face. His features were so soft, such a stark contrast from the hardened edges and wrinkles of his own. The boy had so much of his mother in him, and so little of Cid. Was it really possible that this was his son?

The boy slid the paper he had been holding across the table to Cid, the sides crinkled from where it had been tightly held. "I found this in a box under my mom's bed."

Eyes slowly pulled themselves from Roxas, not wanting to look away, and moved to the paper, instantly recognizing his own handwriting. It was a letter he had written to the boy's mother close to the time they had first started dating, and he remembered it well. A love letter, with his full name signed at the bottom. Cid placed his elbow on the table and rubbed at his forehead before again raising his gaze.

Were Cid not such a hardened man, he might have cried from the surge of emotions inside him. He could feel the sting around his eyes that threatened tears, but they did not come. The letter Roxas had brought was a reminder of old pain, and to say he wasn't angry that this, that Roxas, had been kept from him for so long would be a lie. He was enraged. However, there was something else he was feeling too. A sort of mix of happiness, and relief at finding someone he hadn't known he had lost.

Roxas watched him, unsure what to make of the mixed emotions playing out on the man's face. He certainly wasn't what he had pictured his father looking like, having had a much less grizzled looking man in his mind's eye. It didn't change anything for the boy, however. He was still excited to be here right now, talking to this 'Cid' guy he had spent weeks searching for. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to uproot your life Mr. Highwind, I just wanted to-"

"Dad." The word was spoken matter of factly, but just above a whisper, and it caught Roxas off guard.

"I'm sorry?"

"You don't call your dad by his name," Cid said softly, as he looked into the boy's eyes, his tone a mix between disbelief and relief. "You just call him 'dad'."

Roxas smiled, and tears began to slip out of his eyes as relief washed over him. He couldn't help himself as powerful sobs began to come, years of longing and searching finally coming to a head and overwhelming him. His body shook with the power of it, his hands frantically trying to wipe away the tears that came more quickly than he could brush them away.

"Aww now," Cid stated while shaking his head and reaching over to ruffle the boy's hair, "Don't go doing all that yet. We still need to be sure and all."

Through sniffles and tears, the boy nodded, although the words did nothing to stop either.

And that was the very first time that Cid met his son, Roxas.