AN: Here ya go, fishies, chapter 2. I'm not that into this story, but I might keep continuing it until interest completely depletes.
I'm thinking of a couple new stories. I'm going to post the ideas in my bio, so if any of you get the chance to check it out and tell me what you think, please do. I live off of comments, you know.
Disclaimer: I don't own it.
The trip to the door at the end of the hallway seemed like an eternal walk of doom to the scared blonde as he made his way solemnly towards it. But at the same time, he found himself standing in front of it much too soon than he preferred. The white door was tall and foreboding before him, for all the world looking like the gateway to hell itself.
Roxas swallowed thickly as he stared up, up, up, to the very top. It might have been an effect of the intense pain, but he couldn't see the top at all, as if it simply disappeared into the heavens. Or as if it didn't have one at all. But that was absurd; doors always had a top.
Shakily, the blonde raised his hand and knocked gently on the white…it couldn't be wood, could it? It certainly didn't feel like it. Roxas brushed his fingers over it and found that it felt more like marble than anything else.
He heard the sound of the elevator doors closing and whirled around, intent on telling the redhead who had escorted him here to please wait. He didn't know when he would see him again, and he desperately didn't want to be alone. But he remembered Axel's words: I can't go with you. Xemnas might get angry if I do. You're gonna have to do this alone. He wouldn't stay if Roxas asked. Whoever this Xemnas person was, he must have been scary enough for his new friend to avoid him.
He turned back to the foreboding door and jumped when he realized there was a man standing in the doorway, holding the door open. It was a tan man with white hair who was very tall. He was wearing a black, flowing trench coat, and his expression was so cold it froze Roxas' blood where he stood. His eyes, the blonde noticed, were a strange color of orange.
"Well?" The man said coldly. "Are you going to just stand there or what?" Every fibre of Roxas' being was screaming at him to run away from this man and never come back. He could tell this was someone it was better to never be associated with and that he'd probably be safer out in the city than in this man's presence. But his feet moved on their own, shuffling past the man into the room, and he could do nothing but follow them.
He sat in a small white chair indicated by the man timidly, staring up at the fearful person before him. The silver ornaments on the end of the ties of the trench coat clinked together as he stepped forward and practically thrust his face into Roxas'. The younger boy could do nothing but lean back as those cold orange eyes bore into his own, as if trying to drill through to his brain.
Roxas fidgeted at the uncomfortable position. Leaning back like this was awkward and he felt like he might fall off the chair this way. But the man refused to back off, or even say anything. He just continued to stare at him like a predator would his prey. Roxas wanted do badly to look somewhere else; anywhere else. But it was like his eyes were being held in place. He couldn't look away; he was just stuck in this freakishly long game of eye-tug-of-war with someone he didn't even want to be associated with.
Finally, he could take it no longer. He had to do something to break this. He cleared his throat. "Uh…sir…"
"Who said you could speak?" The man said in an ice-cold voice. Roxas shivered at the pit that appeared in his stomach at the words. This man was cruel.
"Uh, I was just w-wondering…where am I?" He believed it was a perfectly legitimate question, but all it earned him was a punch in the chin from the taller man. The pain of that was less than the intense pain coursing through his body, which he was already getting used to, and so his mind barely registered it.
The man gripped the same chin he had just bruised and forced his head upwards so that he could stare menacingly into his eyes.
"How is it that a weakling like you made it here? Only the strongest hearts survive." He growled. "You're just a little kid with scared eyes. What do you know about being a Nobody?" Roxas whimpered in fear.
"N-nothing," he said, thinking perhaps that was what the man wanted him to say. But the only snarled and released him in a crumpled heap, turning from him and beginning to speak as if nothing had happened.
"This is the Organization. We're a collection of Nobodies bent on gathering hearts. I doubt you'll be very much use; you're so puny after all. But I'll keep you around for awhile. Who knows? You might surprise me…" He waved his hand toward a small table. In a cloud of black shadow, a black shirt that looked almost too small, soft-looking black pants, black boots, and a black trench coat just like his and Axel's that he was wearing currently appeared. The man picked them up and thrust them into his hands.
"Take these. The black coat is a symbol of your belonging to the Organization." His mouth turned up in a semblance of a sneer. "In other words, I own you. If you want to run now, by all means go ahead. But if I capture you again, I'll turn you into a Dusk." Roxas didn't know what a Dusk was, but he had a feeling being turned into one wouldn't be very preferable. So, even though the idea of this man owning him scared him, he had no intention of running. He simply gripped the clothes tightly to him and got out of the room as quickly as possible.
Roxas let out a big whooshing breath when the large doors to that room closed. The tension in there, and the overwhelming feeling of helplessness, had threatened to suffocate him. He hugged the clothes tighter to him, as if they were a lifeline he could use to forget the horrible experience. But they were just clothes, and they wouldn't do anything.
He had some trouble maneuvering the elevator with his armful of stuff, but he was eventually inside and whooshing down to the bottom floor. When it opened, he peered outside cautiously. He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw nobody was outside. Even Axel seemed to have left, much to his disappointment. He had liked the tall redhead from the moment he saw him, and was sad that he might not see him very much again. Plus, he needed to give him back his coat. He was still wearing it.
Roxas made his way through the building to the large doors leading outside. While the inside was well-lit, the city outside was bathed in darkness. There were no lamps or lights or anything to break it, just an unending string of velvet blankness. Roxas crouched down on the steps, clothes trapped between his legs and body. He didn't know where he was supposed to go, and he didn't want to go into that blackness. He wanted to leave this place, but the man's threat still rang in his ears.
If I capture you again, I'll turn you into a Dusk.
Roxas shuddered at the memory of it. To remember such a cold encounter in such prominent darkness was doing nothing to alleviate his fear. He wondered if anyone would say anything if his simply crouched here until it was light and he could ask for help.
"Wow, you really are a little wimp, aren't you?" Roxas snapped his head up and caught sight of Axel, leaning coatless against the building with a small smirk decorating his face.
"Axel," he croaked, wiping the wetness away from his face. That was strange, since he didn't remember starting to cry. He stood up and approached the taller redhead. "You…you waited for me?" Axel shrugged.
"I figured Xemnas would be cold as usual and not tell you anything. The least I could do was help you find your place." Roxas grinned at the redhead above him, who genuinely smiled back.
"Come on, shrimp," he said, walking off into the city. Roxas hesitated, but followed. The darkness wouldn't be so bad if Axel was there.
They walked seemingly endlessly through the blackness. Incredibly, they didn't run into anything or encounter any problems in the dark. Axel seemed to know where he was going confidently.
"You'll get used to the dark," Axel said to him quietly, as if afraid to break the silence. "It never gets light here." Roxas whimpered unconsciously. It would be dark constantly? Axel heard him in the dark and squeezed his shoulder comfortingly, but didn't say anything.
"Why doesn't it…get light?" Roxas asked simply. He was in too much pain and too confused to be eloquent. The redhead 'hmm-ed' thoughtfully beside him.
"I'm not really sure," he said, with the sound of a shrug in his voice even though Roxas couldn't see it. "All I know is that, in the time I've been here, it's never been light once."
Roxas clutched the hand still on his shoulder, another wave of panic going through him as he thought about the eternal darkness. He wasn't sure why he was so scared; all he really remembered was darkness. But maybe it was that, after spending so much time in darkness, he was secretly looking forward to the light. And for it to be denied him after all this time-had it been a long time?-well, that was a horrible fate indeed.
Roxas realized they had stopped and Axel had summoned a small lick of flame. They were standing in front of a new-looking door, with XIII on the front in brass letters. Roxas looked to Axel, confused.
"This is where you'll be staying," the redhead said by way of explanation. "I think there's a light inside, so I'm just going to go now…" Axel turned away, but Roxas practically jumped on him, dropping his clothes in the process.
"No, don't leave me!" He pleaded. "Please, I don't want to be alone." Axel was reminded of the emotion pity again as he stared at the young boy with wide eyes. The kid had just gotten here and learned he would probably not see light anytime soon, and he was scared. That was understandable, but Axel knew Xemnas would be mad if he coddled that.
"Sorry," he said, brushing the hands away. "I can't stay." But he found himself saying so reluctantly. A small rebellious spark ignited in his brain, making him think that whatever Xemnas could do wouldn't be that bad if he just stayed in a different room. And anyway, Axel could hold his own in a fight against him, if it came down to that. He turned back to the boy on the ground. "Okay," he said. "Okay, I'll stay." He had never seen a face light up as quickly as Roxas' did. They quickly picked up the scattered clothes and entered the small room.
The taller redhead looked around. It was a lot nicer than his room, but this one was new so that was to be expected. Saix probably made it as soon as Roxas arrived. The guy worked fast, he had to admit.
Axel yawned and sat down heavily on the bed. He stretched out horizontally and found, to his delight, that the bed was big enough that his feet didn't have off the edge. He would have thought so in such a shrimp's room.
Roxas eyes him nervously. "Uhm…where should I sleep?" He asked nervously. Axel cracked open one eyes, unaware that he had even closed them. He raised one arm and swept it behind him, indicating the immense amount of room still left on the bed.
"It's big enough for two people. Just get in and go to sleep." Roxas shuffled his feet a little but climbed over Axel to the other side of the bed against the wall. Axel could feel Roxas' smaller back against his own, and it was a comfortable sort of weight present. He sighed.
"Goodnight, shrimp." Roxas shifted a little, and Axel could picture him turning to look at him. There was a short pause before he responded with,
"Goodnight…Axel," and they both let themselves drift off in their own thoughts.