'Allo, mates! I've been out of the world for a while, due to a recent loss in the family, but I'm back. I'm a little nervous on this one, so no bashing, ok?
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"This sucks!" Riku rolled his eyes at his older cousin's complaining. Almost a week ago, they had moved with Riku's dad, Xemnas, Axel's brothers, Xigbar and Demyx, and Xigbar's boyfriend, Xaldin, from the little Destiny Islands to the huge Radiant Gardens, and that day was their first at Radiant High School. Naturally, the red haired teen was upset about the new arrangements.
"Get over it, Axel." Xemnas shook his silver hair from his amber eyes and turned the car further towards the school. Xigbar and Xaldin had already left for work when the teens and Xemnas clambered into the car heading to school and work. Demyx was sitting with Riku in the back seat of the blue Ferrari while Axel was sulking in the front. Axel just stuck his tongue out and turned back to the window. Demy sighed and shared a grin with Riku.
"Come on, Ax. Maybe you'll find a cute little blond boy toy here." Demyx's reply was the familiar click of Axel's lighter, a sign he was getting irritated. Riku smirked and tossed his silver hair out of his face, only to have it fall back into place.
"Shut up, Riku." The silver haired teen's smirk turned into full blown laughter as his cousin guessed his thoughts perfectly.
"You know they're just teasing, Axel. We're here." The three teens peeked out the windows at the huge school. It looked more like a castle than a school. I small group of teens were sitting on the steps of the school, laughing, talking, and waiting for the bell to ring. "Straight home after school." Axel grumbled a little more as he followed his brother and cousin out of the car and towards the school.
"Excuse me? You guys new here?" The three turned around to see a young man with short green hair and blue eyes. Riku nodded.
"Yeah. Mind giving us directions to the office?" The teen started to nod, but something behind the three newcomers caused him to freeze and step back a little.
"Wish I could, friend. But no can do." Without another word, the teen turned and ran towards a different part of the school.
"What the hell?"
"YO! You're new here, aren't ya?" The three turned again, and this time, three hearts skipped a beat. In the center of the new group was a young woman with mid-back length blue-streaked blond hair and sapphire blue eyes. Standing to her left was a boy with spiky brown hair and ocean blue eyes, and to her right was a boy with spiky blond hair and sapphire blue eyes. "Name's Kitsune. This is my cousin, Sora-" she waved towards the brunette. "-and my brother, Roxas."
"Riku. This is Demyx, and Axel." Kitsune shook Riku's hand and smiled at the other two.
"Pleasure to meet ya. If you want, we could show you guys around." Riku looked to Demyx and Axel first. When he got a nod and a shrug, he turned back to the three blue-eyed teens.
"Sure." Kitsune grinned and turned, waving for them to follow over her shoulder.
"This way." The girl led the way inside, with the small family pausing to grab their gear from the steps. Demyx quickened his pace to catch up while Axel dropped behind to walk with Roxas. Riku settled in the middle with Sora.
"So, where are you guys from?" Sora asked, looking at Riku from the corner of his eye. Riku smiled and brushed his hair from his face.
"Destiny Islands. My dad got a new job out here, so we moved with him." Sora smiled and skipped ahead a little to walk backwards, both hands clasped behind his head.
"Cool! Kit, Roxas, and I live with my cousin and his boyfriend. They're pretty cool." Riku smiled and reached a hand out to stop Sora from walking backwards into a pillar.
"So you're always lived here?" Roxas shook his head.
"We lived in a small place called Twilight Town before we moved here."
"So what's to do around here?" Axel asked Roxas, idly playing with his lighter. Roxas shrugged.
"I honestly don't know. Kitsune and Sora are the ones you want to ask about that. I mostly spend my time in the library or at home." Axel made a face at his companion's words.
"I think we may have to change that." Roxas rolled his eyes and fiddled with the rings on his hand.
"So you play, Demyx?" Demyx nodded and glanced at Kitsune.
"Yeah. I specialize in the sitar, but I play the guitar and piano, too," he answered. Kitsune grinned.
"Sweet. I don't have a specialty. I play a bunch though."
"Like what?" Demyx' interest had been captured. The girl laughed and looked up, as if trying to count the instruments.
"Piano, keyboard, violin, guitar, flute, drums, clarinet, and bass. I do vocals, too." Demyx whistled. "Yeah. I know. Cloud taught me the piano." She snorted in amusement. "Hard to believe someone so tough and protective plays something so beautifully. Leon taught me the guitar and bass. He's fun, and a lot easier to make smile. OH!" Demyx looked a little alarmed when Kitsune's hands covered her mouth. "I forgot! You have no clue who I'm talking about." The sitarist laughed.
"From your tone of voice, it's someone everybody out here knows?" The vocalist nodded.
"There was a…incident when we first moved here. Some gang idiots jumped me, and I was in the hospital for two and a half weeks. Cloud, my older brother, found out who it was and thoroughly kicked their asses. Sora, Roxas, and I were in 6th grade. Cloud was a Jr. Leon pretty much saved my brother. The cops were on their way, and he pulled my brother out of the fight. When the idiots pointed to my bro for the fight, Le told them there was no way Cloud was there. He said they were on a date that night, and to just ask a bunch of people. Cops asked around, and everyone they asked said the same thing. They saw the two on a date,"Kitsune explained at the look on Demyx' face. "It was kind of funny. A week later, they went on the date everyone said they had gone on."Demyx laughed. "So what about you?"
"I was about 5 when my mom died. My uncle, Xemnas, Riku's dad, took me and my brothers in. We've been with them ever since. Axel's my older brother, by a year, and we have another brother, Xigbar. We used to live in the most beautiful place I've ever seen, before we moved here. Radiant Gardens is beautiful, but nothing beats Destiny Islands. It was heaven on Earth." The girl smiled.
"What was it like?"
"Beaches everywhere. The ocean was almost as blue as your eyes." Both teens blushed. "The sand was so white and silvery, Riku's hair blended in perfectly." Kitsune laughed when she heard a faint groan behind her. "The sunsets were gorgeous. Just the way the colors blended and sparkled off the water. It was breathtaking."
"Demyx! I highly doubt the poor girl wants to listen to the poet you." Roxas snickered, Sora laughed, and Kitsune giggled.
"Actually, I'm a writer, and Demyx is giving me the perfect idea for a story." Sora groaned a little.
"Not a love story. Please not a love story."
"Nope. A tragic story of a woman who's lover gets killed on the beach." Kitsune made a face. "Or maybe not. Maybe a mystery, or a mystery love story."
"Maybe a different boyfriend?" Roxas muttered under his breath. Kitsune shot her brother a glare over her shoulder as she pushed the door to the office open.
"Morning, Tifa! We've got us some newbies!" Roxas snickered and Sora groaned. The woman sitting behind the counter shot Kitsune a look and turned a smile towards the boys.
"Hello, Riku, Axel, Demyx. Here's you schedu-Kit!" The girl snickered for a moment before looking the schedules over.
"Roxas, show Axel around. You have the same classes. Sora, and with Riku. Demyx, you're with me. See you tonight, Tifa!" Kitsune waltzed out of the office, grabbing Demyx' arm as she did so.
"Cloud is so going to kill you," Sora stated. Roxas grinned.
"Unless she bats her pretty eyes and uses that pretty little voice and cooks for the next month," he stage whispered. The boys laughed when Kitsune turned to walk backwards long enough to flip them off.
"Come on, Demy. We have Alvin first hour." Demyx followed Kitsune down a side hall, smiling as the girl started singing the "Witch Doctor". Roxas sighed and ruffled his cousin's hair before pulling Axel down another side hall. Sora blushed as he led Riku down the main hall to their first hour science class.
"Those two seem nothing alike," Riku commented after a few moments of silence. Sora smiled and shook his head.
"They're more alike then you know. They both have a lot in common. They're even 'Bladers together."
"Bladers?" Sora bit his lower lip when he realized what he said. Riku shot the smaller teen a concerned glance. "What's wrong?"
"N-nothing. Here's our class. Hey, Vexen. Vexen, Riku. Riku, this is Professor Vexen, coolest science teacher you'll ever have." The man standing at the chalkboard shot a cool smile at Sora.
"Pleasure to meet you, Riku. Hello, Sora. How's your project coming?" Sora laughed.
"100 ways to blow a c.d. player up? I've found 87." Vexen chuckled and passed a small book to the teen, putting a finger to his lips.
"Don't tell your brother. There's an empty seat beside Sora, Riku." The chocolate haired boy led Riku to a seat in the back of the room.
"What were you saying earlier, Sora? About Bladers?" Sora shifted in his seat.
"It's nothing. I shouldn't have said anything. Please, Riku. Don't say anything about it and just forget it. It's better if you do." Riku watched Sora for a moment. Sora hid his face in his crossed arms on the table.
"What are you afraid of, Sora?" When he didn't get an answer, Riku laid a hand on the Sora's arm. "Sora?" The younger boy raised his head, and Riku was frightened to see tears in his eyes. "Sora…"
"Please, Riku. Just drop it." Nodding his consent, the silver haired teen wrapped an arm around his new friend's shoulders.
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"So…You single?" Roxas shot a sharp look at the red head beside him before grinned evilly.
"If you think you can handle me. And my brother. And my sister." Axel grinned back and leaned closer, breath breezing over the smaller boy's ear.
"What makes you think I can't handle all three of you?" Roxas glanced to the board and grinned again, waving a hand in the general direction.
"You think you can handle him?" Axel followed the blond's gaze to the front and choked. A tall man with spiky brown hair and storm grey eyes was watching the two, face void of emotion. When he saw he had the new student's attention, the brunette started making his way towards them.
"That's your brother?" Roxas shook his head, causing Axel to sigh in relief.
"No. That's my brother's boyfriend." Axel tensed again as the taller man got to their table. "Hey, Leon.
"Bladers meeting after school. Pass it on to Kitsune." Roxas' playful grin turned hard and Axel almost recoiled.
"It's about time that bitch got what was coming to her. And she won't need me to tell her." Leon nodded.
"Just be there. And be careful." The older man turned and walked back to the board. Axel tilted his head as Roxas crossed his arms on the table and dropped his head into them.
"Roxas?"
"It's nothing, Axel."
"You know, you make it hard to start trusting you when you keep secrets." Blue eyes shot a hard glare at the older boy.
"I said it's nothing, Axel. Please, just drop it." The red head raised his hands in surrendrance and turned to look at Leon, who was standing at the front of the room, watching him.
"Roxas." With a sigh of relief, the blond rose from his seat and headed towards his brother-in-law. Axel watched as the relieved look on the other boy's face disappeared and was suddenly tense and cold. He watched in curiosity as the smaller boy shook his head and glanced towards him.
"No, Leon. They just got here."
"Roxas. You know as well as I do that the others will try to get them. I saw that Viper talking to them this morning. He likes you, you like him, he needs to be protected. Same with the other two. Tell Kit and Sora to bring the other two to the meeting today. I mean it. Now back to your seat." Roxas grumbled as he went back to his seat.
"You're about to find out who the Bladers are. What are you doing after school?" Axel shifted a little.
"Xemnas told us to go straight home, but I think if I can call him, I can get him to ignore his own orders." Roxas glanced at Leon, who nodded to him, and slid a small black phone across the table to the redhead.
"Five minutes. Hurry." Axel nodded and quickly dialed his uncle's cell.
"Xemnas, its Axel. No, everyone's ok, I just have a question for you. Some new friends invited us to hang out after school. Really? Sounds good. I dunno. Let me ask." A hand covered the mouthpiece of the phone. "What time will it end?" Roxas shrugged and held up seven fingers. "Thanks. About seven." The new student listened for a moment before grinning. "Ok. Thanks. Talk to you later." The phone was flipped closed and handed back to the owner.
"We'll be there." Roxas rolled his eyes and lay his head on his folded arms again, this time watching Leon attempt to get the class silent. He met his cousin's eyes, who smiled and straightened, nodding slightly. Leon held up three fingers and the smaller teen nodded, and turned to Axel.
"Cover your ears." Axel did what he was told, and the blond nodded to the brunette to show he was ready.
"One," Leon mouthed.
"Two," Roxas replied.
"Three." Two loud, sharp, and very painful whistles caused silence to fill the room. Leon smiled and Roxas returned to his previous position.
"Thank you, Roxas."
"No prob!" A laugh rippled through the class.
"First off, we have a new student today." Axel became aware of the eyes now watching him. "Mind telling us who you are?" A few students snickered as the red-head blushed and stood.
"Yo! Name's Axel. Got it memorized?" Roxas groaned and slammed his head against the desk as Axel sat back down. Leon smirked and waved slightly for his students to settle down, and turned towards the chalkboard to start the new lesson.
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"…and this is our first hour. Good morning, Miss Ariel!" The redheaded teacher smiled as Kitsune and Demyx entered the room.
"Good morning, Kit. You must be Demyx, right?" Demyx nodded and shook the hand of the woman, smiling into green eyes. "Do you play any instruments?" Again, Demyx nodded. "That's good. We're not playing today. Marluxia and Larxene were in here earlier, Kit." Kitsune rolled her eyes and nodded before settling on the piano bench.
"It a school wide thing?" Ariel nodded. Kitsune turned to Demyx. "Every so often, my band sets up in here and plays for the entire school. The intercom gets turned on, and everybody can hear us. It annoys Cloud and Leon that most of the time they have to stop class to let them listen." Ariel laughed a little.
"YO! Kitska!" Kitsune waved over her shoulder as two other teens entered the room. Ariel turned and made her way to the small office in the back corner of the room. "Did Miss A tell you what's going on?"
"Demy, these misfits are Marluxia and Larxene, my partners. Larx, Marly, this is Demyx. And yeah. School wide. How'd you get that past my father?" Marluxia, a teen with bright blue eyes and light pink, shoulder length hair, grinned evilly and slightly turned away, holding out a hand for Demyx to shake. Larxene rolled her baby blues and shook her head, two stray strand of blond hair sticking up off the top of her head.
"We actually had help. Saix and Luxord talked to him a bit before we got to him." Kitsune laughed.
"That's great."
"We also have other news. Leon passed it on to us, as well as a message for him, I guess." Demyx looked slightly shocked that Marluxia pointed towards him. "Bladers meet this afternoon after school. He's to go with you. And if you so much as breathe on my guitar, Zexion, and your ass is grass." Kitsune glared at the pink-haired teen and patted the seat beside her, smiling at a silver-blue haired teen. Zexion smiled and sat beside the singer.
"Hey, babe."
"Hello, Kit. Who's this?" Kitsune smiled at Demyx and patted the seat on her other side.
"Zexi, this is Demyx. Demy, this is my boyfriend, Zexion." Demyx nodded slightly to the older boy. Zexion smiled slightly, blue eyes raking over the musician's body. A chill went up the taller teen's back at the look. "Zex, stop." Zexion smiled again and held a hand out Demyx.
"Pleasure to meet you, Demyx." The sound in the other's voice made Demyx shiver again.
"Everyone ready? Sooner we get this started, the sooner the class gets in here." Kitsune stood, turned, and jumped back through the small gap between the boys to face the piano keys.
"Let's do this." Marluxia nodded and moved over to get the intercom on.
"Do you want me to move?" Demyx asked the girl. Kitsune shook her head.
"Nope. You're fine. Just shift when I do so I can reach those keys." Demyx nodded. The entire group fell silent as the first few notes streamed from Kitsune's fingertips.
"How can you see into my eyes like open doors…Leading you down into my core where I've become so numb…" Demyx was impressed at the music coming from both the piano and Kitsune. Barely a moment after she finished the first verse, the girl was off the bench and gently cradling a guitar, fingers strumming along with the drums being played by Larxene. Marluxia was concentrating on the bass in his hands.
Just before the end of the song, Demyx noticed the entire room was filled with students, and became vaguely aware that Zexion was playing the piano. A soft smile was shot at the two as soon as the song ended and the class cheered.
"Amazing, isn't she?" Zexion leaned over to ask the new boy. Demyx nodded, not taking her eyes off of the topic of their "conversation".
"She's amazing. You're lucky to have her." Zexion grinned and glanced at Kitsune, only to find her giving him a warning look.
"We can both be lucky, if you want and don't mind sharing." Demyx turned to look at the older boy in shock.
"What?"
"Zex. I mean it. Leave Demyx alone." Both boys looked up to find Kitsune standing right in front of them. Zexion shrugged and slid away from Demyx. "Thank you. She turned and headed back to her place between and slightly in front of the other two. Demyx glanced at her again and leaned over to Zexion.
"I'll think about it." Zexion smiled and turned back to Kitsune.
"Hey! Everyone, can I have your attention!" The students sitting in front of the small stage fell silent. "We have three new students coming in today. Can we please give a warm, Radiant High Welcome?" Demyx was surprised when he heard the claps and cheers coming not only from the class, but also from the intercom. "Welcome to Radiant Gardens, Demyx, Riku, and Axel. This one's for you guys!" The music that started came from the keyboard. Standing behind it was a girl with blond hair in a million braids, and blue eyes. "Oh…..You're giving me too many things….lately you're all I need….oh…you smiled at me and said…" The cheers and the sound of other students singing as well blended perfectly with Kitsune's voice.
"Simple and Clean. It took her almost three months to get it written, not to mention how long she struggled with the music. It came out nice." As the song ended, the band didn't even pause for breath. In moments, the entire student body was clapping to the beat in the background. "Forca."
"Forca?"
"The way Kit translated it, it means "freedom" (1)." Demyx nodded in understanding.
"OI! You two gonna sit there all day? The three of us have to get to the library!" The two looked up to find the room almost empty and quickly moved to gather their things.
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Kitsune laughed at Axel as the red-head tried to juggle his school books in one arm and his lunch in the other. Giggling, she passed her tray to her brother and took the books from her new friend, settling his tray on top of them and handing it back.
"Better?"
"Yeah, thanks." Sora smiled slightly and sat under the usual tree in the courtyard.
"It'll be a few weeks before you guys get lockers. Damn Heartless keep using other people's lockers, so the faculty have to search for a few open ones before they can pass them out," Roxas explained, handing Kitsune her tray and settling beside Sora before taking a bit of pizza.
"Until then, you're free to share mine," Kitsune offered, blushing a little before glancing at Zexion. "That's cool, right, babe?" Zexion nodded and swallowed his bite of pasta.
"It's fine with me, but I don't think everyone can use one locker."
"Riku can share mine." Sora offered and blushed. Kitsune and Roxas shared a smile and nodded.
"And I guess Axel can share with me." Sora choked on his soda and received a few sharp hits on the back from Riku to clear his airway.
"Tell me I just heard that right," the brunette coughed. Kitsune was staring at her little brother like he had lost his mind. She reached over and held her wrist to his forehead in the classic "checking temperature" gesture.
"He doesn't have a fever, So." Roxas batted at his sister's hand.
"Shut up." The group laughed before a small group of teens stopped in front of them.
"Beat it, Bladers. This is our turf," the obvious leader said, glaring at the original students. Kitsune and Roxas glared back. Sora just took on a blank look. Zexion and Larxene sighed and pulled out books. Marluxia straightened up and crossed his arms.
"Actually, Heartless. This is Keyblader's turf. Yours is out in the dumps, with the rest of the trash." There was a flurry of movement, and then everything settled. Demyx, Axel, and Riku blinked in shock for a moment when everything settled down. Kitsune was on her feet, a slim blade in her hand and at the leader's neck. Marluxia had pulled his hands out to grab the wrist of one of the teens from the other group and hold his own blade to the other teen's neck. Larxene had the only girl from the group in a tight hold, and didn't look like she was ever going to let go. Sora and Roxas had held back, choosing to stand in from of the newer students and protect them if needed. Zexion just sighed and closed his book, glaring icily at the other group.
"What's going on over here?" The question cane from two different sides, and in four different voices. Leon and a blond were jogging from the main school building, while a silver haired man and a black haired woman ran from the parking lot. The four stepped in between their students and glared at each other before separating the two groups.
"Why is it only the adult members of the group can simply glare at each other and move on?" the blond asked, pushing Kitsune back into a sitting position on the ground.
"You mean glare, and go home to use their pictures as target practice?" Roxas ducked the punch the blond man had aimed at him.
"Park it, Roxas. You're lucky that Cid and Vincent caught the entire thing on tape." Kitsune grinned and slipped the knife in her hand into the sheath in her boot. Marluxia's blades disappeared, and Sora settled back down beside Riku, keeping his distance in case the other boy was going to reject him. The silver haired teen rolled his eyes and slipped an arm around the brunette's shoulders in a one armed hug.
"Cool. Anyways. Cloud, these are Demyx, Riku and Axel. Guys, this is our older brother, Cloud." Cloud looked the three over and smiled grimly.
"I hope you know what you're doing, Kit. Otherwise, this is going to be hell." Kitsune grinned in reply before turning towards the others.
"Cloud is one of the leaders of the Keybladers. You might want to tell them a little about us, C." The blond groaned and settled into the shade beside Zexion, rubbing a hand over his face.
"Where to start…"