Giggling as he threw some more clover at his sister, Roxas' ears twitched as he heard something out in the darkness of the forest. He knew for a fact that it was dangerous to be exposed, and at this very moment, they were exactly that: very exposed. They weren't supposed to head off away from the party during the night, but the talking and dancing had bored him, and the moon was so full. "Xion," The young faun began to stand, "Where's mum?" Shaking himself off, the fairy spirit was trying to remember what the elders had said about humans seeing them. Ah, yes. It was okay to be seen as a deer or boy, but anything in-between was bad because humans were greedy things that would want to capture them. The faun turned to his sister, a nymph of black oak, much different from him, and beckoned to her. Heading away from the clearing into the woods, he turned himself back into the young deer that he was; she in turn transformed into a red winged black bird and perched herself on his back as he began to move them towards the firelights in the distance.
Another sound of cracking branches behind them nearer than the last alarmed him into a run, Roxas picked up his hooves and quickly began to bound towards their company. "Why Roxas," His mother asked as the boy, panting, clung to her once he had located her amongst all the other fae in the light, "What's wrong? Were some of the others being mean to you?" She hadn't seen him look so distressed since he had been chased by bees for raiding their hive for honey.
"No, mummy." Clutching the hem of her skirt tighter, the music began to start for another dance, and he saw his father wave to him from the log on which he sat with the other musicians, playing his flute.
"Go dance then, child." The redheaded woman laughed, brushing back sunshine strips and strawberry locks, "There's nothing to be afraid of here." Kissing his forehead, Roxas looked around at the party where familiar painted faces smiled at him and laughter welcomed him home. For a moment, he wondered how he had ever thought rolling in the clover searching for pixies would ever be more fun.
Managing a weak smile, he nodded and took Xion's hand, pulling her away into the river of rhythm.
He didn't dare look behind himself into the night.
~o~
Axel's family did not often go hunting. One, it was illegal to do so on the land you didn't own, but regardless of that, they were well aware that Birchwood, the forest that blanketed the mountains behind their village, was occupied by tricksters and fae. How did the redhead's family know such things? Many years ago, at the young age of nine, he had seen them. His father had verified that he indeed was not insane with his witness account too. "There was a boy in the moonlight," the redhead would always begin, "And a girl, too beautiful the two of them to be mortal, and as the boy stood, he was half deer."
"Centaur?" People would whisper, "Faun?"
Nodding, he would lean back in his chair and point to the person who had guessed correctly, "A faun." The most beautiful boy he had ever seen, hair almost white in the moonlight, rolling in the clover. He had long thick lashes and freckles. The kind that dotted Axel's cheeks as well.
"Are you still telling those stories?" His sister asked, appearing from behind the traveling crowd. She had worked at O'Riley's Tavern for two months, and since then, his free beers from vagabonds had drastically decreased. Rolling her eyes, she stalked away, "Everyone knows that that was years ago. If you're going to tell them tall tales, tell them about Riku."
Giving her a bitter smile, he inhaled deeply, "I was just about too, Kairi."
The eyes of the travelers turned back to him expectantly, nudging him on, "Alright, go on then."
"My old mate Riku used to go off and play in the woods all the time. He was always a bit off. Claimed he met and saw people, but there was never anyone like that in our village. He used to tell me that when he was in the woods, a little brown haired boy who was half rabbit would play with him, but obviously that's impossible. Now Riku's ma, she was the real religious type. Catholic, you see, and she believed that they were demon spirits or something. Something crazy, now Riku had this dark brown hair. Dark, like earth, and one night, he snuck out of his house to go play with the 'boy' in the woods. When he came back, he had white hair. We realized after about a year, that Riku didn't get any older anymore. Jus' when his ma was about to come have a priest look at him and maybe see if he needed an exorcism or somethin' totally loony, he ran off into the woods. Haven't seen my mate Riku since." Axel nodded, "Anyways, don't be passing through these woods, and if you do, go on the road. If you leave it, you might get spirited away."
"Spirited away?" A woman whispered, "You mean-"
Acidic green eyes melted through her, "Just don't leave the road."
Sometimes when he went to fell a tree, he could hear Riku's voice on the wind.
Laughing.
~o~
Roxas was no longer a dewy eyed fawn. He had grown drastically in the last few years, and now he was tall for a faun's height. He was lanky and willowy in all the ways a nymph could be, but strong and bold. His antlers were impressive in his stag form, and amongst the fae in their forest, there was not an elf, nymph, or fairy that didn't know of him. The only kind amongst the spirits that thought him funny were the pixies who would play trick on him by telling the birds to nest in his prongs or place ticks on his coat, but even that was barely nothing to someone as powerful as the blond. His freckles had faded much like the spots on his baby coat, and now he was of pale complexion and angelic features. "The better to lead maiden's to the river." The mermaid's giggled, "Oh bring them to us, Roxas, we're so hungry. No one goes swimming like they used to." They clawed at the sand in front of him, and he was well aware that if he stepped forward a foot more, they would barrel out of the water and yank him to his death by his ankles.
"Sorry, ladies." He waggled a finger at them, "You know I don't play by those rules."
"Well then bring us a man, Roxas." A brunette rolled her eyes, "Someone tall and muscular. Succulent and sweet." Smiling, he repressed a shiver when he saw rows of knife like teeth. After all, there was a trick to all their beauty, even his.
"I'll have to pass on that, I'm afraid. I'm sure if I go bringing mortals through the fairy rings, it won't be so they can end up someone's dinner." He had experienced relations with other fauns and a few nymphs, but they were all so fleeting, and he wanted something longer than time. The marriage of his parents had been a puzzle to most of the forest's populace. Long term commitment, no, commitment at all was something strange to them, but a connection was nice. He wanted something reliable. They all eventually bored of parties, dancing, love making, and merry magic. A relationship would provide that for him. He hoped.
"Tell us what you saw at the watering hole today then. If you won't bring us lunch, then you should at least feed us a story." Blue hair emerged from the water, and the one called Aqua batted her long lashes at him, "Roxas, my love." She sang, "Come closer, so I can hear you better, please."
"Then come out of the water, my love." He snickered, "Don't you want to waste away with me?"
Flashing her teeth and hissing, she sulked before giving him a twisted smile, "You and your mortals. Tell us then."
Beginning haughtily, "I went down to the pool as I do every day, and there they were. All the cute little village men bathing in the water. Of course there were maidens there," He shrugged, "But my favorite one was there today. The one who is so handsome that I dare think he'd outshine Sora's Riku. After all, if I'm going to have a mortal, mine should be finer than some half bred rabbit boy's." Nostrils flaring in arrogance, he huffed at the memory of the brunet parading his new love in front of him. The blond had almost half a mind back then to ask for Riku when Sora got bored of him, but he was too proud for that and had decided to find his own. "Anyways, I learned his name today." He sighed dreamily, sitting down on a rock, "Axel, hmm? Such a nice name."
"Yes, fine dear." The ladies were now checking their nails, "If only we'd decided to stay on that side of the lake when the water began to receding. We'd be full, full, full."
"Anyways, he works out in the fields all day, and I'm sure he gets tired. I think I'll ask Xion to go watch him for me one day, so I can be in the water when he comes." Plotting away, Roxas was blissful as could be. It was still not even early June, but already he had so many plans for this summer. Watching a leaf tumble in the air and settle on the surface of the river, his stomach growled. Opting to ignore it, he continued, "Then I'll move over to him, and see if I can talk to him a bit. Doesn't that sound fun? He's such an interesting one: always telling stories and laughing. Oh, I want him so much." He felt that familiar pull in his stomach that he always did when talking about the redhead, but that may have just been his hunger.
"Yes, sounds like absolute ecstasy." Aqua began to swim away from the edge of the river, "Have a good day, Roxas. I'll see you tomorrow."
He would bet his lunch that the feeling in his stomach wasn't hunger.
~o~
"Red winged black bird, sitting in that tree, why, oh why, are you staring at me?" Axel hummed the simple tune as he made sure the section of the field they were currently working on was clear for plowing, "They say your eyes are meant for spies. Black and cold, centuries old, red winged black bird bring no harm and let me be." Standing up from where he was crouching on the ground to see if the dirt was good, he hollered to his father, "It's good over here! Bring 'er over!"
When the sun hung low in the sky and the two men called it good, the redhead looked for the red winged black bird again to show his father, "I swear. It didn't move all day as if it was watching us."
Snorting, his old man slapped him on the back, "Honestly boy, you're seeing things again. Is this another one of your stories?" Axel shook his head, his mouth slightly agape as he continued to look for the small feathered thing. He had glanced over at the tree line several times throughout the day, and during break, it had still been there. "You should be a writer with all those little legends and such up in your head. Write 'em down and send them into the city, you could make it big." Already off the subject, the two headed back, "Going to head down to the lake today?"
"Probably." The young man nodded, shielding his eyes from the orange sherbet colored sky that mixed with soft hues of pink and golden yellow. The fresh turned dirt of plowed fields compacted beneath their boots, and when they got back to the truck, the smell of fresh grass and gasoline mixed together into the smell of summer. "Probably going to have to start actually paying attention to those girls if I'm ever going to get married."
His father laughed, "Probably. They would like that now, wouldn't they? Axel Conner paying attention to a young lady? Now that would be a first. The only thing you ever pay attention to is your stories."
Oh how the young ladies would love it if the redhead paid attention to them.
But he wouldn't.
It's not that the ladies weren't nice because some of them were. He had liked one of Kairi's friends for quite a while, but there was something about them that didn't connect the right way up in his head. No, he could be close, close friends with them, and he could make love to them, he knew that. He just…
After Riku had vanished, Axel had made another dear friend: Isa. Isa was a sickly boy with dark black hair that seemed blue almost in the right light. The two couldn't play outside all the time together, but when they did, they would talk and talk. Isa seemed to say all the right things, and the redhead wanted to hold his hand and make him happy…Like he was supposed to with a girl, but…Isa was a boy. He didn't really know how to express this feeling to his family. He was sure it was unheard of. No one ever said anything, and it seemed everyone in the world was normal with their heads all on the right way.
Even Isa, who had a crush on his sister, until he had passed away last spring.
So now it was Axel, alone, with his head in the clouds and his heart wanting the wrong people.
~o~
"He's coming." Xion whispered and in a single fluid instant the blond leapt from the rock where he was perched into the water.
"Thank you!" He called back to his sister when he broke the surface, watching lazily as he floated on his back as she slipped off into the fold of trees. Swimming was a little difficult for him because he hardly did it as a stag and never saw the point to be human. He managed well enough, though. They had played tricks on the humans that had been there earlier to deter them, and it had worked so well that he was sure it would be just him and Axel for a week. With that in mind, he watched the other with curious cerulean eyes as he entered the water. It was just him and the redhead, so depending on how long the other was here to soak one of them would have to break the silence.
Axel sighed and wondered if any of the other teenagers would be coming soon, or if they'd all already left. Not knowing this stranger, he was cautious to talk to him because there had been a wacko or two who had found this place. That was how Marsha Lee had ended up drowned in the water two summers ago. The killer had been a hobo who had been living out in the woods.
Inspecting the blond, the other seemed normal enough. More than normal actually, he was lovely to look at. Axel's voice failed him for a moment before he spoke up, "Hello, haven't seen you around here before. Are you new to town?" He hadn't heard of anyone moving into the area lately. Speaking loudly, he hoped his tone seemed friendly enough.
Blushing Roxas tried to remember the story he and the mermaids this morning had worked so hard to come up with. They'd had great fun since it wasn't often they got to do such things. "Not to town, but yes, my family just moved in a few miles up into the mountains. Do you live in town?" He already knew the answer, but he wanted to hear it from the other man's lips. Beautiful, beautiful lips.
"Yes, I'm Axel Connor. I've lived there my whole life. I'm almost eighteen in another month." He smiled kindly, a bit proud that he was nearly an adult.
It had already been a week since Roxas had decided to make contact with this human, and everything already seemed to be going so well. Actually, the water was a bit colder than he would have liked, and the two men could have been touching, but he digressed, "I'm Roxas. I'll be about that old too in a while." Shooting the other a warm smile, he moved closer.
"About that old." Axel laughed, not bothered by the smaller boy moving in, "Do you not know how old you are?"
Shrugging, he laughed as well, "My family doesn't really keep track of all that stuff. I guess you farm?" He asked, "I can tell by the muscle. You don't see the scholarly type like me looking like you." Not that it was a bad thing, in fact the tone in his voice held compliment and awe.
The redhead blushed a bit, as he reached up to scratch the back of his head, "You're right. Good job. So where did you move from?" He adjusted his seat against the rock to make room for the other.
Joining Axel on the bench, Roxas was puffed up with how pleased he was, "Oh, far away. Places you probably haven't heard of."
"Oh? Like where?" The redhead took that as a challenge for he prided himself at being quite smart.
"Um…Glove's Hollow." He named of a fairy village near the peak of the mountain, "It's just a small town, really."
Axel's face dropped, "Oh, you're right. I've never heard of that."
They spent a moment in silence before the blond turned to the other, "Do you like men?"
Roxas was never one for playing around, and he wasn't going to give a human immortality if he didn't want to be with him. The faun wanted a man who would love him until the ends of time, and if Axel didn't like men, then the faun would just find someone else. After all, he had another one hundred years or so before he really needed to settle down.
He found answer enough in Axel's eyes, "I do." He laughed a bit taken aback by his new found friend's bluntness and his complete honesty to the question, "I thought I was alone on that, though." This conversation had taken a turn for the odd and unconventional. Especially because Roxas was fully undressed and it didn't bother him before, but now he couldn't help but let his mind wander. "Do you?" Perhaps he shouldn't be admitting this? Couldn't this get him in trouble? And to a complete stranger too!
"Yes." The years of watching all of the kids from the village had paid off. He had seen how Axel looked at the others, and how he ignored the girls. He'd seen how one of the boys had tried to tip the redhead off, but he was a bit slow when it came to love. Much in the same way he had noted that there were two girls who were more than just friends since sometimes they came early to swim with each other alone. "Did you know Riku?"
"R- You mean the white haired one who ran off into the forest?" He shivered at the thought, "Yes, I knew him, but how do-?"
Roxas held a finger to his lips and smirked, "I'll see you tomorrow, alright? Come anytime. I'll be here."
Watching the other walk out of the water, Axel could have sworn his heart stopped.
When it started again, he imagined this was how fast a hummingbird's wing beat.
~o~
Axel and Roxas began to talk every afternoon until the sun began to set. The redhead found himself entranced by cornflower blue eyes and a soft open heart. The blond listened and listened and talked only when he had something to say. Finding solace in his words, Roxas was his painkiller. He understood, and soon the farm boy could barely pull himself away to go home and eat dinner. At night, he was almost too giddy to sleep. Some of the other town's kids asked the blond questions, but his story was rehearsed and he answer them flawlessly. All of them agreed that Roxas and Axel were most definitely best friends. If not something more, the young ladies would whisper watching them talk. The way Axel was around the blond…It was unnaturally close.
One night, Roxas grabbed Axel's arm as he stood to leave with the last of the teens heading back, "Come with me, tonight."
"My parents will worry." The redhead whispered, looking back at his sister who was waiting on him.
"Tell your sister that you went to go spend the night with your friend that lives up in the mountain. You can bring home a rabbit or two tomorrow and tell them we went hunting, but didn't find any deer, okay?"
Axel couldn't resist those plump pouting lips and shining eyes, so he nodded, "Alright."
After feeding his sister the story and promising her that he'd owe her a favor or two, he let Roxas lead him into the woods, "Isn't this nice?" His lips were almost touching the redhead's ear and Axel could feel the heat off the blond's body, "Now we're alone." Taking the teen's hand, he laughed softly, and Axel smiled back, bumping him with his hip as they followed the mountain road.
"Do you really live all the way back here?" He asked beginning to feel a bit chilly now that the sun had set.
Nodding, Roxas gave him the sweater he had stolen from a family in town. In return, he had given them a month of good luck. He thought that a fair payment considering he had needed clothes to seem human. "I'm used to it, here." Once Axel was taken care of, he sighed, "Do you want to run away with me?"
"Depends where." The taller boy laughed, "What do you mean?" His brows quirked, "Really?"
"Yes, really." Roxas hummed, "You can't be with me as long as we live in town here. Run away into the mountains with me. I promise you there will always be food, and I'll keep you warm and love you until the end of your days."
The smell of pine trees surrounded them, and that familiar smell that could only be recognized as the crisp scent of the lake hung on the two of them. Kicking a grey pebble away and off the ledge of the trail, Axel sighed, "I want to, but…" He squeezed Roxas' hand, "You've been lying to me this whole time. I honestly know nothing about you. Everything you tell me, I have to sift through to find a nugget of truth."
Blue eyes narrowed, feeling slightly ashamed, "Would you like me even if I were ugly?"
"Of course. Fat, or bald, or old, or even sickly, Roxas. I love you." The confession emerged from his lips easily enough, and he hummed softly, "Why?"
"What if I wasn't a normal man?"
Axel's eyes widened, "Have you killed someone?"
"No."
"Then yes, I'd love you, and even then, if you killed a man, I'd love you."
Roxas felt his magic slip away and soon the sound of deer hooves on gravel broke into the air, "Even if I was a fae?"
Looking him up and down, the redhead nodded slowly. The words were spoken carefully because Riku had run off with a fae, "Even if you were a fae."
Oh, Roxas. Please don't hurt me.
~o~
That night they spent hours beneath the stars, and Axel learned how warm Roxas' little body could be when pressed against him. He learned how fresh the grass could smell, and how loud the forest was at night. These were all things he had thought he had once known, but was being retaught. "You smell good." He mumbled, nose buried in the blond curls and ginger tufts. The horns had taken him a few minutes to get used to, but now he wasn't bothered with them. "You have such pretty hair."
Sliding his fingers underneath Axel's shirt and up his torso, Roxas hummed, "You do too. I really am in love with you, you know. I know you're still a little scared because I can hear your heart thunder, but I am a faun. I will not whisk you away for dinner or lunch. Us fauns, all we want to do is make love and dance. Both are two things I want to do with you, and you alone, forever. For that, you have to be alive, and I must protect you." Kissing his lover's nose, he nuzzled Axel's cheek, "What do you think? Want to stay with me forever?"
The idea seemed so massive and incomprehensible to the teen, "You're asking for my life, Roxas. Not just my heart, but my life…What about you? If I asked you to give up the woods and come into town, become human for me, would you do it?"
Selfishness was in Roxas' nature. Fae were hoarders. There was no nice way to spin it. They were all beauty and no personality with few exceptions, and the blond shook his head because he didn't want to lie to Axel. Not anymore. Being honest between the two of them, he gave a broken smile, "No." The answer was resolute, "I will get sick and die. You will not be treated nicely by the other humans because of me. In the woods, you can be safe. I can make you live for as long as me. You will always have food and a fire. I will bring you pretty things. I will build you a little human home and make love to you on a little human bed, but I will not give up the forest for you. I am part of the forest, Axel."
Cupping the blond's cheek, the redhead connected their foreheads and exhaled softly, "What of my sister? Could I see her once I started living with you? She will have children one day."
Roxas replied by kissing him slowly and rolling his hips, "Of course. You could still go into town whenever you like, but the longer you are with me, I suspect you'll want to be around humans less."
"Oh, I doubt that my beauty." Axel laughed, "It's not that you aren't fun to talk to, but you lack morality. That, that would be something I miss amongst you fae with your tricks and twittering chats about food and wine and dancing."
Rolling his eyes, Roxas kissed him again, "Okay, I doubt that, but if you insist."
Chuckling a bit more, the redhead snorted, "I will." Petting his love's hair, he sighed happily. "Okay, Roxas. I will try and stay in the forest with you, but it will take a while. I have many loose ends to clean up in town, and I'd like a house built before I come out here, okay?"
Nodding, the faun beamed in the moonlight, "I'll have it done before the end of summer."
Axel left the next morning for town with clover in his hair and a smile on his face.
~o~
A deck of cards, a suitcase, a package of bubblegum, his pocketknife, some Vaseline, a package full of rubbers, a jar of jam, and his boots were all the redhead took with him as he headed up towards the cabin, "What about farming?" He asked Roxas as he put on the last of the shingles.
"What of it?" The blond had carefully climbed the ladder with him and was now lazily twirling a flower between his finger and thumb, "I will bring you food. All you need, and I've already begun gathering some for winter since I know you humans are fragile things."
Letting out a groan, the taller man shot his lover a look, "Must you talk like that? If we're going to be equals in a relationship, you can't keep belittling me because of the blood in my veins and my lifespan."
Roxas pursed his lips and nodded before whistling a bit, "Will we make love tonight?"
"I don't know. Probably not." Axel wiped the sweat from his brow with a handkerchief, "I still have a lot of work to do. The floor and walls are done, but the windows need work and the fireplace needs more stone. It's still too soon to make love, Roxas." It had been more and more common for the faun to request a night of heat and passion, but Axel had put his requests on the backburner, so he could continue to work with a clear head and light heart.
He was quite sure that if he made love to the blond, he would never want to do anything else again.
With that in mind, he took a nail and hammered on the next shingle. After a few minutes of silence, he piped up again, "Is Riku happy?" His mind had been mulling over the thought all day as he hiked the gravel dirt path up to the meadow that Roxas had led him to. The cabin had been a project between the two of them as the blond told him what trees he could cut without killing a nymph. After he had axed one down, Roxas would pull it to the meadow as a stag and then would strip the bark. The other teens had followed him a few times, thinking it odd that of all places he wanted to live out here, "And where did that Roxas go?" His sister asked, the girls nodding their heads behind her.
"Who knows?" He would always sigh, "Just let me be."
A couple times he had to have help, and his friends didn't mind his request. His father had even come out one time to check everything out, "Very well done." He nodded, helping out by giving him instructions on how to do the windows and providing the frames.
When all was said and done, the shingles were all that remained with Roxas, Axel, and the redhead's thoughts. "I would guess so. He spends a lot of time with Sora, and he and I don't necessarily get along."
Ah, so even spirits had their favorites. Or least favorites in this case, "Does he have a cabin?"
"Sora keeps him underground in a burrow. Seems silly, but Riku is still well and alive, so I guess it's doing its job. I want you comfortable, though. I will not put you into the earth when you belong above it." Roxas reached out and brushed a bug off his shoulder, "I love you."
Axel's heart melted and all questions dropped.
~o~
When he left for the cabin for the final time, his family bid him farewell, "Stop by anytime you need anything." His mom whispered handing him a pie.
"He's not going to be able to carry that." Her spouse rolled his eyes, "Be okay, kid." His father punched him softly on the arm, "If the woods aren't for you, let us know."
Kairi gave him a look of betrayal, but presented him a hug, "Remember not to get spirited away." She whispered.
Too late.
~o~
As fall arrived in an ocean of color, Axel felt the temperature drop and began to work on gathering firewood with Roxas' help, "Let's go somewhere tonight." His lover purred in that contented hum that signaled to the redhead that he had been planning this out somewhat.
"Where?" He asked cautiously.
His axe hit the earth with a thud and the leaves crunched beneath it as his arms were suddenly full of Roxas, "Dancing." Captive to his boyfriend's lips, the teen kissed the faun back.
"But there's work to do and-"
Roxas silenced him with another kiss, "There's always more work to do. Take a break." He kneaded the muscles at the base of the redhead's neck, "Come play with me."
Oh, he was a fool.
~o~
The redhead had never danced like that in his life. It was as if he already knew the moves. His limbs swayed, and Roxas jigged with him, strumming at a harp of some sort. Laughing and singing, the fae clapped around them. His head spun and his heart raced.
"Love me?" He asked the blond, pulling him close. His head was a whirlwind, and he couldn't tell if he was faint from needing a good drink of water or joy.
"Always." Connecting their lips, the deer man pulled him back into the center group as they moved around the fire, singing songs that seemed to be engraved into their souls.
Axel was in love.
"Thirsty?" Someone asked handing him a cup as the music paused for a minute as the mood switched from energetic to sleepy.
Looking around, he couldn't find his benefactor of beverages, but was extremely grateful, "Practically withering up like a plant in the sun-" He laughed.
Before he could move the glass to his lips, Roxas had turned from the elf he had been speaking to and was shoving it out of his hand, "Roxas!" He shouted in indignation as the drink spilled all over his shirt. The red juice was embraced by the blue cotton and he pursed his lips letting out a disgusted noise at the ruined shirt. Icy eyes cut deep into his heart when he looked up, though, and he was silenced, "Roxas?" He whispered softly, all eyes on them.
"You of all people should know not to eat or drink in a fairy ring."
It was all that needed to be said.
~o~
At home, Roxas shifted himself onto human legs and pressed sweet open mouthed kisses along the redhead's ribs where the juice had soaked in, "I'm sorry, love. I didn't mean to ruin your shirt." He ran his hands down to Axel's hips and brought him down gently.
Back hitting the mattress, the bed springs welcomed their weight with a creek, and the blankets wadded beneath them were pushed to the side in favor of other activities. The taller man's mouth fell open as a sigh slipped from his lips and into the cool air, providing confirmation to the blond that his advances were welcomed. "It's fine." Large hands clutched golden locks before straightening and petting his lover's hair, "I was overdressed anyways." Very, considering some of the ladies had been naked and none of the male fae were wearing shirts.
"You're overdressed now." Roxas laughed, sitting back, so they could share some eye contact for a moment, "You are the most lovely creature I have ever had the honor of meeting." He cupped Axel's cheek, "I give you my heart forever."
If Isa had been something special, Roxas was unique. Special came along every once in a while, but the blond was one of a kind. The redhead felt his chest become tight, and his body warm, "And my heart and life are yours." He promised, "Forever." The clenching became so much that he felt that he might choke and cry a few tears out of happiness, but he didn't have time as Roxas left him for a moment to grab one of the condoms and Vaseline from the side drawer.
"You don't mind if I-?" Axel smiled and shook his head. He was well aware that Roxas had more experience with a male lover, and he didn't mind bottoming. It didn't mean he was any less of value in the relationship, after all, they could always switch next time.
After getting the condom on and prepping the redhead, using Vaseline as lubricant, the blond kissed and nipped up Axel's jaw before beginning to stroke the redhead's length, "Everything about you is perfect." He purred, "Even the noises you make." Blushing, the redhead tried to hide his face by turning his head away, but Roxas caught his lips again in a moment of adoration, "Don't do that." He requested softly, "Look at me." Reluctantly, Axel complied and watched as the smaller man spread his thighs and pushed against his opening waiting for permission.
"Roxas…" He reached up to cup his partner's face before nodding. The feeling of becoming full was different, but he soon learned to love it in the following moments as Roxas pressed into him smoothly, focusing solely on Axel and his needs. Intertwining their fingers, the blond rested himself on top of his torso where they could kiss.
After several minutes of each other, the world was invited back into their lives, but only after they had climaxed together and fell apart blissfully in one another's arms. Stripping the condom off, Roxas curled up against the redhead's side, kissing his ribs and whispering words that no other man was lucky enough to hear.
This would always be enough for him.
"I love you. Always and forever."
~o~
On the night of the first snowfall, Roxas tugged him out beneath the moon and stars and towards the summit. "Where are we going?" His voice felt loud even to himself in the stillness of the dark.
"You want to stay with me, right?" The blond cooed, hooves turning up leaves as they walked, "Forever?"
Axel nodded, wishing the faun would for once tell him what was going on, "Of course."
" Well then," Roxas giggled, "I'm taking you to where the water runs sweet, and it's always spring." He sang, leading him further into the mountains, "I'm making you one of us."
Opening his mouth to say something, Axel decided it wasn't worth it on a night as beautiful as this one. A smile was enough as he held Roxas' hand, venturing into the night.
After all, who was he to refuse a fae?
~o~
Some people theorized that the redheaded boy had died in those mountains that winter when the snow piled up high. Others thought that he had given up and just moved on to the next town not willing to face the embarrassment of not being able to make it on his own. Kairi and a few of her friends were the only ones that realized the truth of what had happened that year; they had seen the blond boy and his ethereal ways not quite being able to put a finger on it. Now they knew, but everyone shook them off as telling tall tales again. After all, Kairi was Axel's sister. His reputation preceded her.
Regardless of what happened, it still didn't change the fact that Axel Connor was gone in the spring.
People swear that odd things happen in those mountains up in the forest.
Why?
You can always hear laughter on the wind.
Thank you Layla as beta and Anne rainbowd00dles on tumblr for art. Happy Akuroku day everyone :)