(A/N- So, here's my first shot at doing an Organization XIII-centered fic. It's going to be a short one: basically an enormous oneshot split into 2 parts.

Anyway, I should probably give credit for this before I forget. The idea for this fic was not mine. My lovely sister came up with part of it in a comic strip that she was drawing of Axel searching for Roxas and subsequently blowing up on Demyx. Therefore, I have used some of the lines and situations that she had.

That aside, the plot belongs to me. Naturally. Hope it's not too pathetically cheesy for words. Actually, all I hope is that it merits some reviews. (Hint, hint...) Anyway, enjoy! -C.A.)

Fight Or Flight

By Childhood Aspirations

Disclaimer: I do not known Kingdom Hearts, the characters, etc. etc.

Part One-"Flight?"

It's a fact of life that not everything goes the way we want it to. Plans get disrupted, choices we make turn sour, and eventually we realize that we can't control the world.

…Now, some might argue that all of this is irrelevant if you happen to be dead. However, let it be known that the Flurry of Dancing Flames, Number VIII of Organization XIII, otherwise known as Axel, (or "your idiot!", "hotheaded son of a-", and "pyro", by his fellow Organization members) is not and never will be one of those people.

He's a better authority on the subject of life's ill turns and the relevancy it has on the dead than most people who bother to involve themselves in this argument.

He is dead, after all.

However, at the moment Axel was feeling very, ah, shall we say, "undead." If he had a heart, it would be beating its way out of his chest.

He continued his mad sprint down the empty halls of the Castle That Never Was, gasping for breath along the way, though technically he didn't need the oxygen. Force of habit.

What could make the fiery-haired pyro run so fast, might you ask?

An enraged, furious, and violently angry shout (redundant, I know; I'm trying to make a point here!) echoed through the same halls Axel was traversing at breakneck speed. He ground to a halt, grimacing with distaste at the sound of his leader's voice and the harsh disturbance it was to his delicate ears.

Number VIII glanced to his right and darted over to the door he saw there. Axel twisted the doorknob and stuck his head into Number IX's room.

"Demyx!" he shouted over the water manipulator's sitar music. "Where's Roxas?"

"How the heck should I know?" the blonde musician whined, pausing his lyrical performance reluctantly. "Who cares?!"

Axel glared, leaning against the doorframe, and summoned a chakram to each hand, twirling them playfully in an almost caressing manner. "ME!" he snapped, fire gathering at his fingertips.

If Demyx were on his feet, he would have backpedaled madly. As it was, he attempted the same thing while seated in a chair. The result was the disappearance of his sitar and a frantic wind-milling of the arms in an effort to keep his balance. Axel massaged his temple, holding both chakrams in one hand.

Oh, the stupidity…

"Just tell me where Roxas is," he ground out menacingly.

"He-he's with Namine!" Demyx whimpered, eyeing the redhead fearfully.

Axel paused to smirk at him. "There. That wasn't so hard, was it? Here's a hint; next time, to avoid endangering your state of non-life, just answer the question." He allowed the chakrams to vanish and disappeared into the hall.

Demyx pushed himself up and stumbled over to his door, peering outside. "Hey Axel, what's the rush?" he called after the irate Number VIII.

A shot of fire roaring down the hall toward him, sent from Axel's fingertips, was the only answer he received.

For the second time, Axel skidded to a stop in front of somebody's door, trying to catch his breath. Truth be told, he could be portalling and thereby avoiding these long distances, but he was too afraid of what he would find waiting for him inside those portals.

Or rather, of who he would find…

The door he stopped in front of opened and two blondes emerged. Roxas blinked at his best friend, who looked as if he'd been running from the Devil.

…Which, from a certain perspective, wasn't that far from the truth… Axel certainly wouldn't the first one to refer to Xemnas by that name…

"Axel? What are you doing?" he asked suspiciously. Namine laughed silently at his side, her hand covering her mouth. Axel glared at her and then pouted at Roxas, momentarily diverted.

"You'd rather spend time with her than me?" he whined mockingly. It was a good impression of Demyx, actually.

Roxas flushed and rubbed the back of his neck. "Ah… Do I have to answer that?" he hedged.

"I had to go through Demyx to find you! Do you know how aggravating that is?!"

Roxas's lips formed a small "o." "Ooh, I feel your pain," he deadpanned. Namine paused to nod emphatically before returning to her attempts at subduing her own mirth.

Another shout echoed, sounding closer than before. Axel started sweating, and Roxas scowled.

"Never mind, I can answer your first question now," he said sarcastically. "I choose Namine; at least I'm not finding myself in trouble constantly when I hang out with her!"

"Aw, thanks, Roxas," the blonde girl said sweetly, patting his cheek. "Now I think I'm going to lock myself in my room and avoid the wrath that is to come. Good luck!" She disappeared, closing her door behind her.

"What did you do now?" the shorter boy demanded.

"Sorry, Roxas," Axel said with a smirk. "You're an accomplice in this particular endeavor."

Roxas chuckled nervously, but he was turning pale. "What are you talking about? I haven't helped you with any of your crazy schemes since the last time, when Luxord-" He paused and glanced around furtively. "-When Luxord caught us stealing all his cards!" he finished in a furious hiss.

"Very true, but unfortunately that doesn't let you off the hook. Think back, Roxas. What would you consider our greatest prank ever? Our greatest successful prank, the one that no one ever found out about…"

If Roxas was pale before, he was white now. "That one?" he whispered, his sky blue eyes as wide as dinner plates.

"Sadly, yes. I'd say it's time to flee for our nonlives or pay the Piper." Axel edged down the hall, green eyes shifting nervously, but Roxas was still in shock.

"How could he possibly-," the shorter Nobody began, but he was rather rudely interrupted by the sudden appearance of the Superior. "-Xemnas!" Number XIII stammered, backing up against the wall.

Axel glanced back over his shoulder and started to make a break for it. The portal he summoned was only as tall as his waist when Xemnas grabbed him by the hood of his black Organization coat and yanked him back to stand by Roxas.

"We are so dead," Axel whispered to his partner in crime.

"Um…yeah, I'd say so," Roxas whispered back.

"You two do know that I can hear everything you're saying, right?" the Superior remarked, bending closer to them. VIII and XIII shrank away fearfully. "Both of you are going to pay for this, mark me."

"Uh…how, exactly, are we going to pay?" Axel ventured.

Xemnas raised a brow. "You want to know how? Alright, I'll tell you how. You're both going to fight me, at the same time. And I'm going to thoroughly defeat you. And you're going to think twice before you play anymore pranks on your superior, ever, ever again. Is that clear?" He straightened, glaring at them balefully, his orange eyes practically glowing.

Axel was tempted to shake his head no, just for the heck of it, but Roxas's blonde spiked were already bobbing up and down, so the redheaded pyro gave a sigh and nodded too, albeit reluctantly. Very reluctantly.

"One hour," Number I said shortly, summoning another portal and stepping into it. "The battling arena."

"See ya there!" Axel called, maintaining a façade of cheerful bravado and confidence. Xemnas snorted and vanished into the darkness. The redhead turned and found Roxas staring at him incredulously. "What?"

"Are you serious? How can you be so confident? He wants to fight us both, at the same time! He's going to whip our butts!"

Axel smirked. "You don't think I know that? There's no way I'm showing up in one hour. I'm leaving. The Pride Lands sounds good."

Roxas's mouth dropped open. "What?" he demanded. His speech was now littered generously with italics. "You can't just leave me here to fight Xemnas all alone!"

"You can come with me if you want."

"…But, but…"

"Aw, come on! You're not seriously considering staying, are you?! You're insane!"

"I thought you were the insane one…"

"That's beside the point, Roxie. Unless you want to be the first to fade, you better catch the next portal out of here!"

The blonde crossed his arms over his chest stubbornly. "I think we should stay and fight him," he said firmly, standing up to his slender friend. Now it was Axel's mouth that fell open.

"Are you kidding me? You're the one who just said that he's going to whip our butts! And I agreed with you! And now you want to stay?! Are you out of your mind?!!!!"

"Possibly."

"Well, I'm not going to join you in that. In spite of my own questionable sanity, this particular issue happens to be a no-brainer. Catch ya later, if you don't fade by the end of this." Axel turned to go, but once again, he found himself forcibly detained, this time by Roxas, Keyblade in hand. The blonde held the length of the large key against Axel's chest, his expression a mixture of determination and desperation.

The determination was there because for some reason, Roxas had an innate and incredibly irritating sense of honor and pride. And Axel had none; at least the honor part, anyway…

The desperation was there because both of them knew that there was no way Roxas would make it against Xemnas alone. Heck, both of them probably wouldn't make it against their Superior as it was. But Roxas seemed unshakably driven to try.

"First off, don't call me 'Roxie,'" the shorter boy said flatly. "Secondly…" His blue eyes sparked. "You're not going anywhere."

Axel drew himself up, giving his best friend a dangerous smirk. Fire swirled around his arms, gathering at his fingertips and forming into his sharply-pointed chakrams. "Oh really? Just watch me," he hissed.

In case, it wasn't obvious, the pyro was not too keen on the idea of sticking around.

Suddenly, a portal opened above their heads and a waterfall decided to come plummeting out of it. Roxas darted out of the way, escaping the majority of it, but Axel ended up sitting down on the floor, drenched to the skin. His fire had very promptly been extinguished.

There was a moment of stunned silence, during which both Organization members could hear the faint echoing of Demyx's gleefully high-pitched, maniacal laughter. He was obviously satisfied with his revenge against Axel.

This could have been a good opportunity for Roxas. Dousing a pyro with water makes it very difficult for them to light anything on fire, right? Unfortunately, Axel was absolutely certain that self-sacrifice was not on his agenda for the day. Roxas gave a furious shout as his friend began sinking through the floor into a conveniently placed portal.

"So sorry, Rox, but it ain't gonna happen. I've already died once; I don't want to try it again." And then he was gone, leaving Roxas to ponder the prospect of facing Xemnas by himself.

Which did not make the blonde, Keyblade-wielding Nobody very happy, to say the least…