1940

Axel smirked as he entered the all too familiar setting of the Manhattan bar. His smirk grew wider, as he saw the all too familiar group of friends sat in the all too familiar corner booth; He himself went to the all too familiar bar firstly, watching his friends from afar.

And he hated it.

His friends seemed to be at peace with the same routine though, as he studied them.

First off, Marluxia, the snobby bitch who got on his nerves, but when it came to the pink haired man's work, he was damn good at it, and Axel couldn't help but have to give him credit for this.

Then, there was Demyx. His best friend to be precise. Nobody could hold a candle to the mullet headed man's musical abilities, Axel personally thought, but that was only because he could combine this with his work... Somebody ended up either dead or kidnapped whenever the man played his precious Sitar seriously.

And lastly, Lexaeus. Axel didn't know much about him, as the guy kept to himself, and was... Well, he was silent nearly all the time. But the guy was a great ally, and was useful when it came to helping with Demyx's kidnappings, and the 'removal' of 'insignificants'.

Axel drifted out of his thoughts, as the all too familiar barman slid a glass full of the regular type of alcohol he had every night to him, and he caught it with ease.

He scoped his surroundings.

A few women were walking around in their custom made lingerie, a feature that made the bar attractive to the males, the sound of their heels occasionally overpowering the low jazz music that filled the bar.

Tipping his *fedora slightly at a woman who smiled at him, he got up, drink in hand, and went over to his co-workers.

"How you doin'?" Axel asked, a grin on his face as he shoved Marluxia further into the booth so he could sit. His question was answered with nods, and incoherent mumbles.

"I'm looking forward to the show tonight..." Demyx murmured, attracting the attention of the booth's occupants.

"Excuse me? Does Dem-Dem have a little something to tell his friends?" Marluxia teased, only to receive an elbow jab from the red haired assassin. Demyx scowled.

"No." He snapped, surprising the others- Demyx was never one to be harsh. Axel sighed, turning himself toward the stage, where the cabaret dancers usually were... Or as he liked to call them, strippers.

The mullet headed man stood, and went over to where the musicians were stationed, setting himself up in front of the large microphone, which, for the time being, was being used as a stand for his dark blue fedora.

"Gentlemen..." A deep voice sounded through the bar, the owner's voice, as the music fashionably slowed to a halt, "We welcome to the stage... A new addition to our... Lovely family. Gentlemen, for your entertainment... Storm..."

The thick, red curtains slowly parted, to reveal a boy, blonde, around 17, only two years younger than Axel. The blonde wore an extremely altered police uniform, the trousers ripped into shorts, and he donned dark black stockings. The jacket remained unaltered, although a black necktie had been added, and he wore a white shirt, with only a couple of buttons in the middle fastened up. His hair defied gravity, spiking up every which way from underneath the slim black hat he had perched on his head, and his skin looked like it was made from porcelain, it was that pale.

Although, the first thing about the boy that struck Axel, were the boy's eyes- A deep, yet bright blue.

And that was when Demyx picked his fedora up from the microphone, pressing it down on top of his head before signalling for the music to begin.

"Wow..." Axel murmured, starting to watch as the music slowly started, and the boy started his act... And from the moment the blonde started to sway his hips, Axel was hooked.

"Baby take off your coat... Real slow..." Demyx elongated every word he could get away with, making it fit in with the rhythm of the music- 'Storm' slowly let the police jacket slide down his arms, biting his lower lip gently as he did, while Demyx continued with his singing.

"Baby take off your shoes..." Demyx added a small laugh at the end of that, as 'Storm' stepped out of his shoes, and moved his hands down his legs slowly.

"You can leave your hat on..." The mullet headed assassin sang, continuing through the song with a smile on his face, fedora rim shadowing his eyes over, leaving him with only a toothy grin that only belonged to Demyx.

And 'Storm'... Well, he'd captivated everyone in the bar. Axel swilled his drink in his mouth slowly, the taste of gin staining the inside of his mouth after he swallowed- His eyes caught onto every movement the blonde stripper made, the flicks of his wrist, the movement of his eyes, the rolling of his hips...

It seemed stalker like, but Axel couldn't help it- It was force of habit. The family he served under trained him to watch everybody like that. Axel was a killing machine.

Demyx finished the song, and 'Storm' slowly retreated backstage.

"How was that, guys?" Demyx asked breathlessly, obviously happier than he was merely minutes before. Axel was still staring at the stage where the young boy had left, snapping out of it only when Marluxia started to slip his hands around the redhead's waist.

"Wha- Get off me, you flowery pervert!" Axel snapped, elbowing Marluxia in the side- He smirked in triumph as he earned a groan.

"Axel..." Demyx scowled, only to receive a scowl back, until they both gave up.

"Demyx, that was great." Lexaeus answered Demyx's earlier question for Axel, giving a disapproving look towards the fiery redhead, who only huffed.

"I'm going out for a smoke." Axel stood, and started to weave his way through the growing crowds in the bar- It was then that he spotted, "Storm..."

He smirked, and tipped his fedora back slightly to get a better look at the blonde sat on the barstool he'd previously occupied, before practically gliding over to the seat next to him.

"Well hey there, dollface." Axel greeted, the bartender sliding a short glass filled with amber liquid to him.

"My name isn't 'dollface', you buffoon." The blonde replied harshly, taking a sip from the blood red wine, Axel assumed, in front of him. The bartender's eyes widened.

"H-hey, he's with the Hikari family! He's in the mafia, he'll kill you!" The scared looking bartender informed the blonde, who raised an eyebrow with interest... And looked at Axel, with those bright blue eyes of his, "And your name is...?"

"Anythin' you wan' it t' be, sugar." Axel winked, not liking the look he received from the boy, "Fine. My name's Axel. An' your name is?" He took a sip from his drink, watching as the stripper processed the information in his head before answering.

"Storm." He replied.

"No, I wan' your real name, doll." Axel knew that was a dangerous road to go down, but it was worth a shot- And he liked to take risks.

"... My real name is Roxas." The blonde downed the rest of the alcohol in his own glass, ordering another quickly, "If you dare tell anyone, I'll kill you."

"And if you dare try, I'll turn you into ashes!" Axel cheerily replied, taking out his lighter and flicking it on, as to prove something. 'Hey, I'm in the mafia, I can show off a bit! I'm entitled to a little fun after a hard day's worth of killin'!' He told himself in his head, nodding slightly, as he shut the cap, extinguishing the small flame.

The blonde next to him hummed, receiving his second glass of wine, "Well, Axel... I must be off." He murmured, downing the alcoholic beverage in a matter of seconds, before licking his lips slowly- Almost seductively.

"Heh... Alrigh' then, blondie. Have a nice night now, y' hear?" Axel leant his elbow on the bar, and propped his head up with his hand, watching the blonde walk away slowly.

"He's a keeper, Sora." Axel stated to the bartender, who nodded as he paused his polishing of a glass.

"Mhm..." The bartender sounded unsure, but then again, he always sounded unsure of himself.

1941

It was yet again a busy night at the all too familiar bar in Manhattan.

Axel entered the all too familiar setting of the bar. He saw the all too familiar group of friends sat in the all too familiar corner booth; He himself went to the all too familiar bar once again, ordering the same old drink.

Though, he didn't hate it anymore.

He hadn't hated the familiar setting for a while now.

He hadn't hated seeing his friends in the same state they were in every night.

He didn't hate the smoky smell of the corner booth any more.

And he didn't even hate the same, bitter taste of alcohol that tainted his mouth every night.

He loved it.

He loved it, because... Well.

"Gentlemen... Once again, welcome to the stage, one of our prised possessions- Storm!"

Oh, the outfits that blonde wore...


*Fedora- A hat that stereotypical members of the mafia wore.

Okay so, another oneshot. Hope you enjoy, review if you feel like it.

-Ash x