by Allexandra Radcliffe
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Yay! The first chapter of the companion fic to The News of Nothing's Call is finished! I can't figure out a good name yet, though, so for right now it's Behind the News. Maybe I'll think of a better title later… Suggestions are welcome.
Anyways, some warnings for this. I know I'm definitely going to have some AkuRoku in this fic, some AkuDemy, and possibly some AkuDemyRoku (or I might just keep that to myself). However I do it, there is going to be some shonen-ai, so…you have been warned. But maybe not too much, since I'm not too good with romance scenes. And there's some language in here, which is the reason for the T rating.
Sorry if this chapter seems a bit long; I know I could split it into two, but I don't think it'll flow right if I do. So here it is.
Oh, but first, I don't own Kingdom Hearts or The Lorax, so no suing! The most you'd get are these old Slim Jim wrappers and empty water bottles on my desk.
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Roxas tried not to stare as Xemnas led him around The Castle That Never Was. The place was huge – Twilight Town would have fit easily in the crater it floated over – and it was cold. Besides the Superior, he hadn't yet met any of the other members of Organization XIII, and it seemed unlikely that anyone lived in this silent place.
They were passing through the Hall of Empty Melodies when a shout broke the silence. A shrill woman's voice screamed, "Come back here so I can murder you, you crazy redhead bastard!" When he looked up at the balcony, a tall, skinny man with flame-red hair was backing up to the edge. A blond woman was advancing on him, teeth bared in an audible snarl.
Xemnas sighed dramatically, shaking his head. "Another conflict. Something happens every day…" Looking up, he called, "Larxene! Go get the others. Number Thirteen has arrived."
The woman stalked off after throwing one last glare at the redhead, who sighed in obvious relief. A second later, he disappeared into a dark portal that emerged right next to Roxas.
"Roxas, this is Number Eight, the Flurry of Dancing Flames," Xemnas intoned. Before he had a chance to say anything else, the redhead spoke.
"The name's Axel. A-X-E-L. Got it memorized?" The other Nobody had startlingly green eyes that held Roxas's for a second as he nodded mutely. Axel studied him closely for a second, frowning slightly, and seemed about to say something when ten portals opened at various points around the Hall.
"Everyone, this is Roxas, the Key of Destiny. Roxas, these are the members of Organization XIII. I'm sure they'll introduce themselves later today."
"You're getting lazy, Xemnas," called a man with an eyepatch and a scar under his left eye. "When Larxene joined, you did that whole thing with the spotlights…"
"I've got other things to do. Axel, show him to his room." Xemnas disappeared, leaving Roxas and Axel in the middle of the Hall.
Axel snickered, and Roxas turned to glare at him. The redhead raised his hands defensively, then said, "Let's get going to your room. Everyone'll come around to interrogate you…or whatever."
Before he could ask, another portal opened in front of them, and Larxene stepped out, golden claws ready. "Hang on, kid," she declared, a malicious smile gracing her face. "You might have passed the Superior's test, but you still have to go through me!"
"Oh, man…you're on your own, Blondie," Axel said quickly, backing away from the two.
"I hope you don't have anything against hitting girls, new guy!" called a Nobody with a blond mullet.
Without warning, Larxene leapt at him, claws sweeping towards his chest. Roxas ducked the first swipe, grabbed her wrist after the second, then twisted, throwing her back across the Hall. Before she landed, he ran after her and was standing next to her as she landed, Oblivion leveled at her throat.
There was dead silence for a moment, which was broken by Axel slowly clapping. After a second, the others began clapping as well. A flash, as if someone had taken a picture, went off, and Larxene sank into a dark pool on the floor, muttering, "Brat."
"Not bad, Blondie," came Axel's voice from behind, startling him.
"That's Roxas," he replied, his voice low, and he let Oblivion disappear as he turned back to the redhead. Axel shrugged, smirking, and walked past him towards the other door.
"I'll show you the long way since you're new," he called over his shoulder. "Hurry up!"
Roxas followed Axel around to the upper level of the Hall of Empty Melodies, and into the room known as Proof of Existence. By the time they reached it, everyone else had disappeared.
"This is your room right here." Axel was pointing to a glowing door portal that seemed to lead to nothing. "Right next to Larxene. You might wanna try locking your door at night."
"I'm not scared of her," he replied, walking over to the door. "How can I be? It's not like I have a heart."
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He spent the rest of the day in his room, decorating it with the few things he had brought with him from Twilight Town. Several members of the Organization came by to greet or intimidate him during the day, most of whom left him with a less-than-stellar opinion of the group.
The man with the eyepatch was the first to stop by. He walked in, stood there for a second, scowling, and disappeared. A second later, he reappeared, this time floating upside down in midair.
"Sorry, little guy," he said, drifting across to Roxas in midair. "I'm just more comfortable this way." He studied Roxas for a moment, then continued. "So you're Roxas. Xemnas was really interested in you."
"Me? Why me?" Roxas's neck was cramping from looking up, so he went back to arranging his closet.
"Mm…I'm not allowed to say. But anyway, I'm Xigbar." When Roxas stuck his head out the closet with an exasperated look, Xigbar opened a portal behind him in midair. As he disappeared, he called, "Welcome to the Organization!"
Later on, Luxord came in with a deck of cards and challenged him to a game of poker. After he lost miserably and the Gambler of Fate had left, laughing his head off, Vexen came in. The scientist asked him to become a lab assistant, but a strange glint in the Chilly Academic's eye prompted him to say no.
He went to bed that night only after locking his door.
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When Roxas went to breakfast the next morning, Xigbar and the Nobody with the blond mullet were sitting in front of plates of burnt food. Axel's face was as red as his hair, and Larxene was laughing hysterically. Everyone else was either grinning or glaring at Axel, whose expression indicated that he would like nothing more than to torch somebody. As Roxas stared around, the redhead stood, the red in his face fading as he walked over to the newcomer.
"What's going on?" Roxas asked, still looking around.
"Don't worry about it. Anyway, what do you want for breakfast? We're all out of bacon, but there's still pancakes, eggs, and sausages…"
"Only because you didn't eat them," Vexen called, glaring as he looked up.
"Didn't…what?" Before Roxas could finish his question, Axel turned and strode over to the pantry.
"Pancakes it is!" he called over Larxene's giggles.
Xigbar and the guy with the mullet were talking in low voices, and when they moved apart, the blonde had a rolled-up newspaper in hand. "Hey, new guy!" he called, then paused. "Um…what's your name? Lorax? No…Soxas…no…Ro…Roxas! That's it, right? You want a copy?" Without waiting for a reply, he threw the newspaper towards Roxas.
A fireball flashed across the room and the paper exploded in midair. The ashes fell to the floor at Roxas's feet. For a second, there was silence, and then Larxene began laughing again.
Xemnas sighed as he always did, and turned to the Nobody with the dreadlocks. "Xaldin, if you don't mind…" A whirlwind caught the ashes and took them out the window.
"Shut up already, Larxene!" Luxord yelled across the table. The Savage Nymph immediately stopped and stood, claws slipping between her fingers. A newspaper with an upside down picture fell to the floor as she attempted to electrocute Luxord. While Marluxia attempted to restrain her, Roxas stepped forward to look at the paper.
A bold headline proclaimed, "Underneath the Coat: A Look Into Number Eight's Underwear Drawer". The picture was of Axel, holding a frying pan and a half-eaten hot dog, in winged heart patterned boxers.
Roxas stared at the picture for a few seconds, then dropped it on the floor and left the kitchen.
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He was lying on his bed, trying not to picture Axel in his boxers, when the redhead entered the room. In his hand was a plate of pancakes.
"You left before they were finished," he said accusingly, a small pout forming on his face. "My pancakes are the best around here. Not that there's much competition…"
"Modesty's not one of your better traits, is it?" Roxas quipped, taking the plate.
Axel only smirked, saying, "You'll see what I mean soon enough."
At that moment, the Nobody with the mullet came in, still smiling happily. When he saw Axel, the grin faltered for a second, but was back in place a moment later, and he proclaimed, "Hi, Roxas! I never introduced myself before – I'm the Melodious Nocturne, Demyx!"
"Yeah, he's the one who'll wake you up at three in the morning playing that damn sitar," Axel grumbled.
"Aww…" Demyx crossed the room and jumped to hang on to the taller Nobody's shoulders. "You're so grumpy today, Axy… Cheer up a bit!" With those words, he pulled at Axel's cheeks, forcing the pyromancer's face into a disturbing grin that looked even scarier with Axel's scowl.
"I'm going to murder you, Demyx," the other Nobody growled.
"Hey, Roxas, you should help me and Xigbar out with our newspaper," Demyx told him. Roxas, his mouth full of pancake, didn't reply. "We've got a really interesting idea to check out tomorrow… Well, see you later!" He squeezed Axel's cheeks one last time, fell the few inches to the floor, and ran back out the door. Axel turned to follow him, but paused for a second.
"I'll be back later. I want to know what you think of my pancakes." Then he was gone, yelling, "Come back here! I only want to incinerate you!"
Roxas stared after them for a minute, then swallowed the last of his pancake and said…
"Whatever."
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Phew! That was long… What exactly is Demyx's hairstyle? It's confusing. In my paper copy, I have him originally as "a Nobody with a blond mullet-type thingy". Well, I guess that'll do for now. Also, I know some characters might be a little OOC (especially Larxene and possibly Axel), and I'm working on that.
If you haven't read The News of Nothing's Call, parts of this will make absolutely no sense, so go read it! And review it, too! And this one! Mrah hah! (I love reviews – they cheer me up. Especially when I have a load of homework after fifteen minutes in school on the first day...)