Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts or Final Fantasy VII. Believe me, if I did, things would be a lot different.
Author's Notes: Here we go. Chapter One. I forgot to mention in the prologue that the story title is a song, and every chapter title will be as well. I'll put the names of the artists in my profile. This took two weeks to write, but I may be able to get more done this coming week. Spring Break, kiddies! I'm free!
Warnings: The rating may go up in later chapters, but I'll try to behave myself. I like my beta reader, and I don't want to lose her because of random porn or something ridiculous.
This is dedicated to MeowMeowKy, for being the best beta reader and friend a person could ever have. To MistressKaia, for putting up with me and my brainstorming over the phone. Lastly, to Dualism and The Writer you fools, for being my favorite authors on this site (that I don't know personally).
The phone was ringing.
I opened my eyes, staring up at the ceiling. Sun was shining in through the partially drawn curtains, softly illuminating the room. The air was heavy, but still cool. The sun couldn't have been up for very long if it was still this cool.
The phone rang again. I forced myself to sit up enough to look for it. The alarm clock said 8:02. It was way too early to be awake, much less taking phone calls. The cell phone was sitting beside the clock, just within my reach. Lucky me.
I grabbed the phone as it rang again, checking the number. Naminé. I flipped open the phone, flopping back down on my pillows as I answered. "Hello?"
"Roxas?"
I closed my eyes. I just wanted to sleep. Why was Naminé up this early? "Yeah?"
"Did I wake you? You sound tired." I blearily opened my eyes again. She knew the answer to that. I was never up before ten if I could help it.
"Yeah."
"I'm sorry, Roxas. Do you want me to call back later?" Naminé asked. I could hear the sincerity in her voice. It was impossible for me to get angry with her. I could pull off grumpy. Never angry, though. Getting upset with Naminé never seemed to get anyone what they wanted, anyway, so why try?
"I'm up now. What did you need?" See? My voice came out with no hint of a growl. I could be civil. Had Hayner tried to wake me up this early, things would have gone a lot differently.
"Well, I wanted to see if you wanted to go with me to the conference tonight. Olette was originally going to come, but things came up."
I had to take a moment. Conference? I could vaguely remember Naminé mentioning it before, but that was the extent of what I knew.
"Conference?" I asked at last.
"About different aspects of nature and their effect on the human psyche. They're supposed to have several guest speakers. I wanted to see the panel on dreams, and then I have to help the professor on his presentation on memories," she explained. I forced myself to sit up, wading through the fog of my early morning consciousness.
"So, a bunch of psychologists and naturalists are going to discuss their interest?" I was trying to to sound rude. I really was.
"Not completely. They'll have guest speakers to discuss other topics as well."
I sighed. This did not sound like an interesting way to spend my day. Evidently, Naminé sensed my train of thought. "You don't have to come if you don't want to. I just thought you might find some of it interesting."
"No, I'll come," I responded too quickly. Well, I couldn't very well let her go on her own. Besides, I reasoned, I should get used to long lectures now. Compared to this, college seminars might be fun. Right.
"Great! We could go get dinner first, if you'd like." Naminé sounded truly happy. Suddenly this didn't sound that bad.
"We could just eat here. I'm sure Tifa won't mind," I replied. Me, lazy? Never. I happened to like the cheeseburgers at 7th Heaven, thank you very much.
"That sounds wonderful, Roxas. I'll be there around four."
"Alright. Bye, Naminé."
"Goodbye, Roxas."
I hung up the phone, setting it down next to my alarm clock once more. A conference on on how nature related to the human psyche, huh? Thrilling.
I suppose I should mention now that Naminé is planning on becoming a therapist. She's always liked the idea of helping people, and finally found her calling sometime in freshman year. She job shadowed an art therapist for one day, helping the woman help children. Ever since then she's studied as much as she can on the subject, even taking a job under a professor at the University to learn as much as he could teach her. I supported her, but I'd never be able to honestly take any interest in it. I've never been much of a people person.
There was bound to be something halfway interesting at this thing. Naminé hadn't mentioned who any of the guest speakers were. I could always hope that one of them wasn't an environmentalist and would speak in words that people without a PHD could understand.
I glanced over at my clock again. 8:11. Part of me wanted to roll over and sleep away the next two hours. The other part of me told me I needed to get up, get cleaned up, and then run downstairs to help Tifa open. Guess which side won?
Forty-five minutes later found me setting up chairs at the bar tables. Tifa had heard me talking on the phone, so I had barely closed my eyes before she kicked open my door and told me to get out of bed and get ready for the day. All right, all right. She didn't actually kick open the door. She knocked and peeked her head in, then flashed me a smile and asked me what my plans for the day were. Either way, the end result was the same.
A lot of kids have to do chores, so helping Tifa around the bar isn't something unusual. I don't mind it. The only think that I can't stand doing is waiting tables when it gets busy. Tifa rarely asks me to do it, though, if she can help it. Sometimes she calls in Yuffie, one of her friends, to help her out. She can usually handle things on her own.
Tifa is only four years older than me, but she is one of the strongest people I know. I mean that both physically and emotionally. She could toss a full grown man out the door for being too rowdy, then turn around and console whoever he had been harassing with pure kindness.
Sora is closer to Tifa than I am, but I know she cares. She'd do anything for us. Legally, she's our guardian. She certainly acts like a mother, but for a long time she was our foster sister. Our foster father, Tifa's real dad, died when Tifa was nineteen. Rather than letting the government take us away, she applied for guardianship. She's been our caretaker ever since.
There are times when I feel guilty for staying. Tifa's giving up important years in her life for us. Sure, she's in college, but she rarely goes out with her friends. I'm sure there are times she wants to. I never dare to ask why she's bothered. She loves us. That's all that really matters, I suppose. I know I'll do anything I can for her.
"Hey, Roxas? Could you wipe down the tables for me?"
Even if her request never measure up to what she's done for my brother and me.
"And so, we can see here that eighty percent of the participants in the examination..."
Amazing. Simply amazing. If anyone thought high school teachers were bad, then they needed to go to one of these conferences. Oh, sure. Naminé was having a good time; she was interested in this kind of stuff. I couldn't care less.
The walls were a color somewhere between cream and pale yellow. From what I could tell, they had actually been painted that color. It would have been more interesting if the walls had originally been painted white, and then faded with time. The white ceiling made the fact that this paint job was new horribly obvious. Not that it mattered-
"Roxas?"
I blinked, then glanced over. Naminé was smiling at me hesitantly. I scanned the room, noticing that most everyone had left already. The seminar had ended, and I hadn't noticed. Whoops.
"Sorry," I said, standing up. She smiled again, shaking her head.
"It's okay." She slipped on her white jacket as she spoke, glancing up toward a clock on the wall. "I have to go assist Professor Ansem with a few things. Do you want the schedule?"
I shrugged in response. "What does he need help with?" I asked, heading for the door. Naminé caught up, passing me a paper with the list of different presentations, speeches, and seminars. I inspected the list briefly for what there was left to see.
There wasn't much. It was already eight-thirty in the evening, which meant it wouldn't be too much longer until the sun set. All that was left on the schedule were a few smaller presentations, along with a public interview with Vice President Shinra. Wait. Shinra, as in "Shinra Electric Power Company" Shinra? That might actually be interesting.
"I believe he needs me to help organize his notes and folders. It shouldn't take too long," Naminé explained, walking through the door I had opened for her. It emptied us into a long hall with doors lining the walls on both sides. I followed Naminé down it to the entrance hall, idly glancing over the schedule again. Well, interview it was. Nothing else seemed interesting, and the Professor would probably take longer than Naminé said. That man had used a ton of notes in his speech on memories.
"Where do you want to meet afterward?" I asked, tucking the paper away into a pocket of my jacket. Naminé glanced out a window, brow creased in thought.
"There are benches near the front entrance. Do you remember seeing them?" I nodded. I didn't, really, but I could find them. They were only benches. "All right, Roxas. I need to go. Are you sure you'll be okay?" she asked, bright blue eyes meeting mine. She was worried. Why?
"I'll be fine, Naminé." She bit her lip, pulling her bag up a little further on her shoulder. Finally, she nodded.
"I'll see you later."
With that, she left. I wanted to call her back and ask what was wrong. Naminé shouldn't have been that nervous about leaving me alone. What was the worst thing that could happen?
A lot of people had showed up for this interview. Supposedly, it wasn't going to be broadcasted. That meant a bunch of newspaper reporters from all over the country were sitting in the first several rows, pencils and notepads ready. I honestly didn't want to be anywhere near the mob of overzealous columnists, so I sat in the back. The seats closest to the door had already been taken by the time I got there,so I was sitting near the middle. So long as I could get out to meet Naminé when I got bored, I didn't care.
Vice President Shinra, more commonly known as Rufus Shinra, was already sitting in a chair on the stage. Several CEOs were sitting to his right, and behind him were what I guessed to be bodyguards. They were both wearing black suits with white undershirts and sunglasses. I was certain the bald one was a bodyguard, anyway. The redhead looked a little out of place. By that I mean he was a slob. Shirt untucked, sunglasses pushed up on top of his head, no tie. But, hey, who am I to judge the bodyguards of Rufus Shinra?
It isn't surprising that the blond son of the corporate tyrant, President Shinra, needs protection. He serves as a spokesperson for the company. Have someone with a pretty face and a charming smile handle the press, and people think you're okay. That didn't stop the company from making enemies with psychotic vendettas against them. I wasn't sure whether or not any of those people had ever tried to kidnap or kill the President's son, but the bodyguards showed that he wasn't taking any chances. Smart.
Another few minutes passed, minutes that I occupied myself with staring at the floor. The carpet in this room was blue. How daring. Someone cleared their throat, and the murmuring voices died out. The interviewer had turned on the microphones and was now smiling at Rufus. It almost looked like a six o'clock news set up, but there weren't any cameras. Weird.
"It's so nice to have you here with us, Mr. Shinra! I would like to thank you on the behalf of our small University for making it tonight," the interviewer all but gushed. I didn't like him.
"I'm sure," Rufus responded. The interviewer stared at him. If the guy had expected more out of the Shinra heir, he was sadly mistaken.
"Right... So, how about we kick off the evening with the question everyone is dying to know!" the interviewer giggled. Rufus stared at him. The redheaded bodyguard idly started tapping his foot. Laughing nervously, he continued, "What is Shinra's position on the pollution caused by its burning of fossil fuels?"
Rufus smiled ever-so-slightly. "Shinra Electric Power Company is always searching for new resources. Our top researchers are constantly conducting tests to bring the most efficient energy to our consumers." A couple of CEOs nodded in agreement. This interviewer bought it. It was obvious that this guys was an amateur. For every question he asked, Rufus had an answer that promoted Shinra while not actually answering the question at all. He was clever. He would have made a good politician. I usually hated those kinds of people, but this was faintly interesting to watch. Part of that, admittedly, came from watching Shinra's bodyguard.
The redhead wasn't subtle about not giving a damn. He was staring off into space, occasionally paying attention long enough to smile lazily or fidget. That he had even managed to get hired as a bodyguard was a wonder in and of itself, but the fact that he was guarding Rufus Shinra was nearly laughable. He must have had a few talents that weren't visible at first glance. Otherwise, I doubt he'd even be working for the company in the first place.
The hair on the back of my neck began to stand on end. Someone was watching me. I frowned, leaning back a little in my chair. The feeling persisted. Who would stare at me hard enough to send chills down my spine? I glanced around the room, trying to appear casual. It'd be stupid to let whoever it was staring at me know I was more than a little freaked out.
There was a person leaning against the wall with his arms crossed. He was near enough to the door for the light from the hallway to shine on him, but I couldn't see his face. His long jacket had a hood that was drawn, casting his face in shadow. Despite this, I knew he was the one. Not only was he not even trying to pretend that he was watching what was going on on stage, but he was turned to look straight at me.
I frowned. Who did this guy think he was? I looked away, deciding to just ignore him. Hey, you never know. He might get bored and leave, or choose someone else to stare at. I'm not exactly stalker-victim material, right? Right.
Ten minutes passed, and the tingling at the nape of my neck had not gone away. Okay, I was pissed. This guy wasn't just zoning out and randomly staring in my general direction. He was studying me. I met his gaze, glaring. He pushed away from the wall, giving me a small wave before leaving through the door. Just like that.
Part of me wanted to pretend that hadn't just happened and try to pay attention to this interview. Rufus wasn't talking anymore, but the CEOs could still be interesting, I told myself. The other part of me wanted to march out there after the jerk and tell him what I thought about stalkers. He deserved it, anyway.
I stood, pushing my way past several people and walking through the door the creep had used. The entrance hall was brightly lit, contrasting sharply with the darkened windows. It took me a moment to spot him, but the hooded man was leaving through the front doors. I followed. Why try to be discreet? He certainly hadn't been.
It was dark outside. The street lamps were on, and I had to pause to let my eyes adjust. When I had, I glared with all I was worth at the figure standing next to a bench several feet from me.
"It's rude to stare," I growled. The man shrugged. What, he didn't care? I glared harder. "Why were you watching me?" I demanded when he failed to respond. I heard a soft chuckle.
"Come on, Roxas. You know why."
He knew my name. It took me a moment to process what he had said. I was too busy trying to train my expression to anger and not surprise. What did that mean? How did he know my name? He sighed.
"Who are you?" I asked, tensing. This guy freaked me out. At first I didn't think he was going to answer, but he surprised me again.
He drew back his hood, revealing the brightest red hair I had ever seen. It was styled into spikes that were slicked back, and I couldn't tell whether the coloration was natural or not. His face was slender, almost feline, and his eyes were a poisonous shade of green. Two identical black marks graced his cheeks, just beneath his eyes. All in all, I had never seen a freak like him before.
"The name's Axel. You might want to remember that," he responded lightly. I frowned.
"That's your name. I asked, 'Who are you?'"
At that, he smirked. "Wouldn't the proper question be, 'What are you?'"
I blinked. Something very cold slid down into the pit of my stomach. "You... What... are...?" Why couldn't I speak? I wasn't that scared, was I? He was just some freak, some guy who belonged in an insane asylum, some-
"You said you couldn't see us, Roxas." His eyes bore into mine. No. This was not happening.
"Roxas!"
I turned quickly at the sound of Naminé's voice. I spotted her, walking out of the doors. No, no. If they were here, I couldn't get her involved. I turned towards him once more, then froze.
Axel was gone.
Ending Notes: "Professor Ansem" is actually Ansem the Wise. "ATW," as dubbed by MistressKaia. Again, give praise to MeowMeowKy. She edited this chapter before she started packing, and she's leaving on vacation tomorrow. Oh, and I suppose I should mention the fact that this chapter was originally fourteen and a half notebook pages. That translated into only five pages in word. "Professor Ansem" is actually Ansem the Wise. "ATW," as dubbed by . Again, give praise to . She edited this chapter before she started packing, and she's leaving on vacation . Oh, and I suppose I should mention the fact that this chapter was originally fourteen and a half notebook pages. That translated into only in word.
"Call ATW! He'll hit you up with some crack!" - MistressKaia
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