Sora's eyes shot open. His painful heartbeat tore him upright, clutching at his chest. Kairi stirred. Every chest muscle ached from exertion, the pain spreading into his arms and down through his back. Was he having a heart attack? His breath hitched at the thought, and he soon lost control. He was hyperventilating. His muscles started to tremble from lack of oxygen as his breath came shorter and shorter and he lost his ability to think. He was dimly aware of Kairi's rising up next to him.

"Sora, what….. oh my god! SORA!" Kairi was out of bed and pulling on an oversized t-shirt and jeans, not even bothering with underwear. She gathered up Sora's discarded clothing and tried to help him put it on. She did her best to calm down both of them in the process, with limited success.

"Sora, oh my god, what were you dreaming about? It doesn't matter, we need to get you to the hospital, I can carry you, just put your clothes on, put your clothes on and we'll go, it's going to be ok, you've been through worse, right? Right? Sora, please calm down, it'll be ok, we're taking you to the hospital, I'll call your mom, and Riku, we'll all be there, you'll be all right, no, your shirt goes like this, oh Sora, we shouldn't have had sex, you're a mess, sorry, I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry, hurry Sora, we need to go to the hospital!" Kairi babbled frantically, pulling Sora's t-shirt over his head inside out and struggling with his shorts. Sora's mouth widened with gasps, and his lips were turning blue. He was shaking violently now, and his heart felt like it would explode.

Realizing that her chatter was making the problem worse, Kairi closed her mouth and settled for a deep hug. Sora crumpled into her, hiccupping uncontrollably. And then he passed out.


Sora awoke a bit later to the sound of a vicious fight.

What the hell are you doing? You almost killed him! You almost killed me!

I did not! How was I supposed to know he'd have a goddamn panic attack? I thought y'all were made of tougher stuff than that!

Just get the fuck out!

"Why didn't you call me sooner?"

"I called you as soon as I could- did you honestly think I wouldn't call his mom first? Just because you don't care about your parents-"

"This isn't about me, I-"

"Don't interrupt! He was at my house and I called his mom because he passed out and she had the means to actually get him here! What would you have done in my situation? Tell me that, asshole, what would you have done?"

"Hi, guys." Sora rasped. Kairi and Riku were immediately at the foot of his bed, wearing identical looks of concern. Sora had never noticed before how similar their haircuts were. He tried to giggle but his chest hurt too much, so it ended up as a miserable hiccup.

"I think the sedatives are kicking in," Riku observed. "How did you even wake up?"

"Do you feel ok?" Kairi quickly added.

"Yelling," Sora winced. His entire body ached and his heart was still pounding. Each breath was a struggle. "And, yeah, I'm ok."

"See, Kairi? You woke him up," Riku muttered. Kairi elbowed him in the ribs. Sora pondered for a moment. Last time he saw Riku he was stammering out his undying love, and last time he saw Kairi she'd been angry enough to punch him. Before the sex, of course. The relative normalcy of the situation was making him suspicious. He sighed, and shivered from stress. God, he could use some of that sex right now. Even with both of them, and with his being in too much pain to move.

"Your mom's here, Sora." Way to destroy a sick boy's fantasies. "The doctor just gave you a shot to calm you down and put you to sleep for a while. She went to get coffee, we weren't expecting you to wake up. She'll be back, I promise." Kairi held his hand to reassure him. Sora didn't notice, but Riku snorted with jealousy. The touch eased his physical longings somewhat.

"What, uh, happened? Am I in the hospital?" Sora asked stupidly. He knew he'd freaked out but after that everything went blank. And he definitely recognized the hospital. He'd been struck by just about every ailment and injury possible as a kid, and he had the scars to prove it.

"Yeah, you had a panic attack. But don't worry, it was just a nightmare," Kairi soothed. Riku snapped to attention at the word 'nightmare,' but wisely decided not to say anything. The medication was rushing through Sora's bloodstream and he was, for the umpteenth time in the past 24 hours, about to pass out.

"You should go to sleep, Sora," Riku said softly. "You have some catching up to do, yeah? Kai, can I talk to you about something?"

Kairi nodded, and gave Sora's hand a final squeeze. His two friends slipped back out into the hallway. Just as his mother returned and was making herself comfortable, he let sleep take him away.


Sora bit his lip and thrust harder. He hadn't been on top in a while, so he was going to make it count. The man beneath him moaned, his slender legs clenched around Sora's neck. They were rapidly approaching the finish line. Almost… almost… almost…!

"Ungh, Riku-!" Sora came in violent spasms, his entire body shaking with the force of his efforts. He pulled out and promptly collapsed, melting into the bed. Intense heat swept over his body, his muscles began to relax. He stretched out, satisfied, problems washed away. He felt so good that it actually took him a moment to realize that his partner hadn't come down to earth with him. "Hey-"

"Riku? Who the fuck is Riku?" Sora jerked upright and found himself face to face with-

"Axel!?"

"Yes. Axel. Who did you think you were screwing? Oh, wait, we just found out," he glared. The Nobody was exactly the same as Sora remembered him. His narrow face was framed by a wild mane of red hair, and the same dark tattoos punched out from his pale skin. He would have been beautiful, truly, if the unnatural color of his cat-like green eyes didn't betray his somewhat-other-than-human status. Sora shuddered and struggled to think of something that rhymed with 'Riku.'

"W-what are you talking about? I thought you said 'that feels so good' and I said 'ungh, me too'……" Sora trailed off as he realized that Axel wasn't buying it. Shit.

"You didn't answer my question," Axel was deadly quiet. "Who is Riku?"

"He's… a friend," Sora said evasively. Well, not so evasively, since it was the truth. Wait, why was he being evasive?

"A friend who you have sexy fantasies about? Or a friend you've had sexy sex with?" Oh, that was it. This guy was trying to accuse Sora of cheating?

"It's not like you haven't slept around, either! God, you fucked Luxord! And don't play dumb, jackwipe, everyone knows about it-" Axel took his accusation and raised him a lamp to the side of the head. Sora dodged the attack by clumsily dropping down onto his stomach. His body was still sluggish from the orgasm and the heat.

"Oh, yeah? Well at least I have the common fucking courtesy not to think of two dames in the middle of one kiss!" Axel snarled. Sora decided to bypass mocking Axel's choice of words, and instead went straight for his girly voice.

"Ohhh, Luxord!" he sang shrilly. "Ohhh, yeah, harder, Luxy, you make me feeel-"He avoided a second lamp swing by rolling onto the floor with a thump. You know, maybe he had taken this a little too far. He knew better than anyone that Axel was dangerous. At this point, he supposed that his only hope was that he didn't actually want to kill him.

Sora shrieked as a chakram slammed into the ground next to his head. He narrowly dodged the second by throwing himself further to the side. In the instant while Axel was recovering his weapons, Sora sprang to his feet, summoned both his keyblades, and in one swift motion, disarmed his erstwhile lover. The chakrams clattered uselessly to the floor.

"Dammit, Axel!" he yelled. The red-head spat in his face and set his feet on fire. Sora collapsed with a howl. Axel hastily grabbed a chakram and hurled it, missing everything vital by a wide berth but leaving Sora with a deep, bloody gash on his right bicep. Using his good arm, Sora grabbed Oblivion and lunged. He slammed a foot down on Axel's last remaining weapon, ignoring the pain from his burn and the sharp metal, and swung the keyblade around to rest harshly against Axel's throat.

"Dammit, Axel!" he screamed again. "This! This is Riku!" He jostled Oblivion to show what he was referring to, opening a small cut on Axel's neck in the process. His head was aching. Everything was muddled. "He's a memory, but it's not mine! It's my Other-" His vision was blurring. "I don't know! Something happened but it wasn't me, it was me, but not me, my Other. God. I don't know why, but Riku… When I hold this key, I feel him." The tears flowed free. "The memory… it's not mine." Oblivion dropped to the ground. "Not mine."

Axel stared at him blankly. Sora sighed. He probably got lost at the F-word. Glaring, he grabbed his robe, hastily wrapped it around his naked body, and summoned a portal. Axel snapped out of his funk and jumped into action.

"Wait! Rox-" Too late. Sora had already stepped into the World That Never Was. He hadn't known where else to go. But someone else seemed determined to finish Axel's thought.

"Roxas." Sora smiled, and didn't turn around.

"Hello, Riku."


"Uh, hi, Sora. You awake?" Sora blinked in surprise before realizing that he was back in his other life. The one where he most definitely was not screwing Axel. Thank God. His crotch felt sticky, though. Crap.

"Sora?" He turned to look at Riku. His head was still swimming from the drugs, but he wasn't in pain anymore, and he couldn't help but smile at the concern on his friend's face.

"Dude, Riku! Roxas and Axel were sex partners! And they got in a huge fight because…" He looked at Riku. His hair was pulled back into a ponytail, exposing his expression. Which was, once again, all fear and worry, and a solid blush at the phrase 'sex partners.' Sora frowned. "Riku… where's Kairi?"

"Right here, Sora. We've got a problem." She said grimly. Riku nodded in agreement.

"What? I mean, I'll be out of the hospital tomorrow….." When his friends didn't respond, he realized what they meant. Roxas. They had a Roxas problem. He sighed. "We have a Roxas problem."

"Sora… Riku told me what happened on the beach. And nothing like this has ever happened to me with Naminé. She's gone, Sora. And Roxas should be too." Kairi knitted her brows, the way she did when she was deep in thought. "Do you have any idea why this is happening to you? Do you think he's… trying to speak to you, or something?"

"No. There's no message. Just memories. I don't think they're even related."

"Does he… ever talk to you directly? Try to make you do things?" Riku asked carefully.

"No. We don't talk. They're memories- I don't watch Roxas, I am Roxas."

"Sora, you-" Riku began, but Kairi quickly cut him off. The uneasiness between his two friends, combined with their apparent lack of concern with the problems from yesterday, was continuing to make Sora uneasy. Considering that even vivid dreams about naked wrestling with dead people were not enough to make Sora uneasy, this was quite an accomplishment. He decided to ask what was going on.

"Hey. What's going on with you two?" The two teens jumped up in shock, again with the identical facial expressions. That was getting creepy, too. They exchanged a look and seemed to nonverbally decide that Kairi should be doing the talking.

"Sora, you need to start at the beginning and tell us everything that's happened to you," Kairi said gently, smoothly avoiding Sora's question. "On the beach with Riku, you just passed out suddenly, but yesterday you had a dream while you were asleep."

"And he had that dream just now, too," Riku added hastily. "About Axel."

"Everything, Sora. We need to know what's going on. Between us, we can figure it out." Kairi reached out and took Sora and Riku's hands in her own. Sora and Riku joined their remaining hands automatically, just as they had done so many times as children. Sora couldn't help but feel tears gather up behind his eyes. Kairi was furious with him and Riku was in love with him, but when it came down to it, they were a team. The three of them were forever.

He thought carefully about how he was going to approach the subject of his, for lack of a better word, visions, and took stock of what he had. One vision where Roxas actually spoke to him directly, and attacked him. The dream in Twilight Town was on the fence- it had elements of both a message and a memory, so he wasn't sure how to classify it. He would ask Kairi. He'd been attacked in that dream as well. And then there were his two separate memories- the fight, then Axel. Sora frowned. The only common thread seemed to be violence. Well, and the repeated mentions of Riku. Wait, Riku?

"The first time it happened was in the World That Never Was. Roxas showed up in my head and fought me. But according to Donald and Goofy, I just passed out. Then there was that conversation that Roxas and Naminé had that you were both there for. Nothing happened from then until yesterday. The dream on the beach, and just now, were both Roxas's memories- and, both of them mentioned Riku." Riku startled at this, and Kairi was intently jotting something down in a small notebook she had brought along.

"And the dream before you had the panic attack?" Kairi inquired, looking and sounding for all the world like a crack investigative journalist. Sora had hoped they'd go in depth about why Roxas was dwelling on Riku, but no such luck. It was as if Kairi had deliberately not heard his last phrase at all.

"That one was weird. I think I was Roxas, but I was just walking through Twilight Town. Then someone shoved me off the clock tower." Kairi oohed. "He said, uh, asked, 'Do you feel Roxas?'" Riku startled at this as well. Kairi finished her notes.

"Thanks, Sora, you just relax for a sec. Now, Riku, it's your turn to tell us what all of those little jumps were," she smiled toothily. Like a shark. A crack investigative journalist shark.

"Well, when, uh. Wait. Sora should plug his ears," The other two blinked. "My talking about Roxas set off a memory before. We don't want that happening again." Kairi nodded in agreement.

"All right, Sora, plug 'em up." The boy grudgingly obliged, curious but not especially wanting to get sick again, and watched Riku whispering to Kairi while she wrote. She gave him the thumbs up when she was ready.

"Now, Riku's given me some information, but we're not sure how your dream about Axel relates to him." Her voice was getting more and more businesslike, and Sora was beginning to suspect that she was enjoying this more than she should. Sora rolled his eyes. Well, he might as well enjoy this, too.

"I already told him that Roxas and Axel were having sex." Riku turned pink. "I was on top-" Riku turned red. "And just as I was about to come-" Riku turned violet. "I, well, Roxas, cried out Riku's name instead of Axel's!" Kairi burst out laughing and Riku looked like death. Sora grinned wickedly. He wasn't sure if Riku knew that Kairi knew they'd been sex buddies for months, but hey, he'd have to find out eventually.

"W-was that the whole dream?" Riku whimpered.

"Nope. Axel freaked out and attacked me with a lamp. I eventually fought him off and told him that you were a memory from me. Uh, real me, not Roxas me. Then I stormed off and…." Sora frowned. Something was odd here. "…. met you."

"Wait, you met Riku?" Kairi gasped. "Plug your ears again!"

"He doesn't have to do that, Kairi. He was probably remembering the first time we met, right before the other flashback he had…" Riku, Riku of all people, sounded a tad unsure of himself.

"… No." Sora said slowly. "For the fight I definitely had clothes on under my robe. And, in this flashback, I already knew your name."

"Well… we fought a few times, it could have been any one of them."

"You never told me you fought more than once!" Sora's voice rose slightly. He was surprised and hurt, and had no idea why this revelation was upsetting him so badly. Unfortunately, Kairi sensed his distress and cut them off prematurely.

"Hey. No fighting. Sora needs to rest. Do you want to keep going? Sora..?"

"No, I think I want to sleep now." Sora said dully. Riku wasn't being completely honest with him. Maybe if he were unconscious, his brain would give him some explanations. Riku looked troubled, as well. He gave Sora an apologetic glance, said his goodbyes, and left in a hurry. Kairi stuck around.

"Listen, Sora… go easy on Riku. He's worried, the time when he knew Roxas isn't comfortable for him to even think about, and.. to be honest, your whole situation is reminding him painfully of the A-word. He's terrified you're going to go off the deep end."

"Psh. As if." Sora yawned. He accepted that he wasn't being sensitive enough about Riku's own experiences with body-sharing, though. He made a mental note to apologize whenever he saw his friend next. Kairi's voice trembled a bit, but she was determined.

"Hey. I want to do an experiment. Since you want to go to sleep anyway, and you'll probably dream either way… it won't be a big deal if you pass out…?" she paused, waiting for a reaction from Sora. He just stared. "I won't do it if you don't want to. But… I want to tell you what Riku told me. And see if it triggers you."

"What?"

"Based on what he told me… I can't tell if the trigger on the beach was Riku himself, or just talking about memories of Roxas. Especially considering that he's shown up in another memory." Sora nodded. "So, I'm going to read you my notes, and see if you, er, freak. Ready?" She seemed unsure of herself- she was obviously worried that Sora would have another panic attack. Sora himself was a tad apprehensive, but the logic was sound, and they had to start somewhere. Plus, he was already in the hospital, which would save them a trip. He smiled to reassure her.

"Yep. Hit me."

"Well. He thinks that the dreams about him are just because both you and Roxas know him, so those memories are the most accessible to you." She waited a few moments, and when Sora didn't seem to be going anywhere, breathed a sigh of relief. "And, apparently 'Do you feel Sora?' is something he said to Roxas while Roxas was trapped in Twilight Town, while you were recovering. And Roxas also had an episode where he thought he was falling off a clock tower." She paused again. Sora remained comfortably among the land of the waking. "Also, Roxas talked to me once while he was in Twilight Town. Something going on with you gave us a telepathic connection, and he was all 'Oh, Kairi. You're that girl he likes.'" Sora looked at her like she was an idiot. Well, that answered that question.

"Riku," they both said in unison.

"He's the trigger," Sora breathed.

"Sure seems that way," Kairi agreed.

"What are we going to do? I can't just avoid him…"

"I'm sure he's still waiting outside with your mom. I'll tell him what we just found out, and ask if he has any ideas," Kairi bit her thumbnail. "And I'll see if I can get any more out of him about his fights with Roxas."

"Thanks, Kairi," Sora said softly. Well, wasn't this new food for thought. But his medications and the excitement of the hour were taking their toll, and Roxas was gently pulling him towards sleep. He could eat his thought-food in the morning.

"Bye, Sora. Sweet dreams."


Sora dreamt of Axel. Axel's voice, Axel's hands, Axel pushing him roughly to wake him up. He woke up and there was Axel, just like usual. Wait, what?

"Shhh, kiddo, no need to freak out," Axel grinned. Sora was too tired to process what was going on. Didn't this guy die?

"You died. I watched you die." Sora said blankly. Axel chuckled darkly at the words, for no apparent reason at all. Wait, how did he get into the hospital? And then the panic set in. Unfortunately, Sora's facial expressions gave him away, and no sooner had he sat up to yell than Axel had already clapped a gloved hand over his mouth.

"I got into your 'hospital' because your tiny island clinic can't afford more than one security guard," he said smugly. "And, I'm here because I made a promise to a someone." Confident that Sora would remain silent, he removed his hand from the boy's mouth and nudged his chin upward. Axel studied Sora's face for a good, long moment, taking in every line and curve, every shape, every texture and color. "You really do look like him," he murmured.

"Roxas. You mean I look like Roxas." Sora hissed. Axel tilted his head, his long spikes swishing freely, taking something or other into consideration.

"No," he finally said. "you don't. You need to be more mad at me for waking you up, and swear like a drunken pirate."

"How can I look like I swear like a drunken pirate?"

"Oh, trust me. Rox can do it." Sora stayed very still. The last time he'd met Axel, the red-head had tried to kill him, even if it was just a dream. The last time he had really met Axel, he had sacrificed himself to save him. Guessing Axel's moves was too difficult, and he wasn't willing to take any risks. You don't get the word 'flurry' in your title by being a fair and methodical arbiter of pain and punishment. Luckily, said flurry had no interest in Sora at all, and was completely focused on something behind his eyes.

"Hey, Rox. Can you hear me? I came," he whispered, almost gently. "I didn't leave you behind, just like we promised." His gloves were off and he was stroking Sora's hair. Sora was more than a little creeped out, but again, no sudden movements. He felt like he was trapped in a cave with a bear.

"This- isn't a dream. This is real. You're actually here." Sora squeaked. He had been hoping that he was asleep, but considering that Axel had acknowledged his existence… no, things were not looking good.

"Yep. Actually here. In the flesh." As if to demonstrate his fleshiness, Axel pulled Sora into a light embrace. Sora twitched, but otherwise remained perfectly still. The heat radiating off the red-head's body was so intense that he almost couldn't breathe. How could anyone stand it? Well, apparently Roxas could, but that wasn't a talent he seemed eager to share with his better half. The awkward hug continued for what felt like hours, but was probably only a couple minutes. Sora wasn't so good with time.

"Axel." he choked. "How did you come back?" Maybe if he distracted him with asinine questions, he would let him go.

"My heart pulled me out of the darkness," he answered simply.

"You don't have a heart," Sora said flatly before realizing the mistake he'd made. Axel stiffened. Apparently he'd bought into his own delusion for a little while, and thought he'd been cuddled up with the real Roxas. Oops.

"Yes, I do," Axel said coldly. The air temperature dropped too, for which Sora was grateful. "It's trapped in here." He pushed a finger roughly against Sora's chest. "And I came back for it."

"What are you going to do, then? Rip it out of me?" So much for caution. He was sweaty, sick and exhausted. Axel smiled grimly.

"If that's what it takes." The ice in Axel's voice was enough to make Sora want to curl up and whimper like a scared puppy. But thankfully, years of dealing with homicidal monsters had schooled him in not taking their threats too seriously, and he managed to keep his head. He had the power, here. He had, for all intents and purposes, a hostage. The thought gave him confidence. The power bubbled up through him, remade his insides in steel. No one threatens Sora. No. One.

"That would kill Roxas, too," he warned dangerously. For the first time, he met Axel's eyes. The green hardened- Axel had long since lost his playfulness. This was hardball.

"Not if I removed it through other, ah, supernatural means, dearie," Axel was heating up again, but Sora was no longer crushed against his chest, so it was manageable. Barely.

"I'd like to see you try to send a Heartless after me. I mean, seriously. Try it. I could use a fucking laugh," Sora growled. He was glaring at Axel with everything he could muster. Every hair was on end, even the spikes on his head trying to bore themselves into the Nobody. His entire body was charged with one purpose. Get rid of Axel. This, this was Sora the Keyblade Master. To add teeth to his threat, he held out his hand, prepared to summon his weapon. Much to his surprise, Axel smiled.

"There you go. That's how you look like you swear like a drunken pirate." He grinned wolfishly. "You're just so sexy when you're mad, Roxas."

Sora bellowed with rage and hurled his entire body at Axel, keyblade forgotten. At an advantage because of his height and health, Axel simply grabbed the smaller boy's arms and stood up, lifting him a few inches off the ground and effectively stopping him. Sora kicked and flailed, but Axel was able to hold him there without too terribly much difficulty. Talk about embarrassing.

"Oh, Rox. I'm not going to tear anyone's heart out," Axel reassured him, still smiling. "I am going to break you out of there, though. And trust me, this time, nothing'll get in my way."

"You gave your life for me, Axel," Sora bit out. "And I appreciate it. But that does not mean I'm going to return the favor."

"Psh. Who's asking for favors?" Axel tossed him back on the hospital bed and snapped his fingers, summoning a portal. The blackness seemed to drain all of the light and energy out of the small room. Sora felt dizzy. "'Til next time." Axel blew a kiss and winked, and was gone.


Sora felt like his brain had been mixed with some rum, blended to a thick liquid, and then served over ice to a group of underage sorority girls. He wondered briefly how much of the turmoil he was feeling belonged to Roxas, but didn't really have the time to be concerned with his Nobody. He needed the cavalry, and fast. And cavalry to him always meant Riku. Besides, Riku had some kind of connection to Roxas that may come in handy. Neither of them had ever fought Axel, though. Sora bit his lip. Roxas had, apparently loads of times- he'd have to go on that.

Battle tactics and weapon moves rushed through Sora's mind as he made his way out of the hospital. Axel had been right about the one security guard. Though since he had used portals to get in and out, the comment had clearly been meant as a jab against the Islands. Sora seethed. He hadn't had to fight, really fight, in over a year. After everything they'd been through, sparring with Riku was just too real, and no one else on the island could come close to matching their abilities. So he'd just given it up. He'd never given it a second thought, until he got attacked by a dead somewhat-other-than-person in a hospital. Thank God for the permanent Keyblade Bearer combat readiness.

Sora arrived at Riku's house after three and a half minutes of barefoot running. There had been no time to look for his clothes in his hospital room, and his gown wasn't leaving much to the imagination. At least it was dark, so no one was freaking out and calling the cops on the streaking possibly-intoxicated teenager. Sora grabbed Riku's spare key from under the mat and let himself inside. Riku's room was upstairs, first door on the left. And he was still awake.

"Sora!? What…." Riku was shocked, and Sora was grim. Weird role reversal. It was easy to imagine how frightening he looked- he hadn't bathed or had a full meal in two days, the sweat from running was making his gown stick to his body in odd places, and he had just been in a fight with a ghost.

"I know, Riku. I'm supposed to avoid you. But we've got a bigger problem," Riku's eyes widened, but he was listening. "Axel. Real Axel, not dream Axel. Real, living, in-the-flesh not-dead Axel just showed up in my hospital room." Riku gaped. "He wants Roxas back." These last words were too much for Sora, and his voice broke. He didn't want to hold his Nobody hostage- he wanted to meet him, more than anyone. But there was nothing he could do. Sometimes life sucks, sometimes life isn't fair, and that was that.

Riku moved to embrace him, hesitated, and settled for helping him sit down on the bed. Sora was disappointed- he desperately needed a hug. Riku pulled out some of his old clothes and tossed them over, politely turning his back while Sora changed out of his hospital gown. Sora smiled. If nothing else, Riku was always a gentleman.

"Tell me what happened. How does Axel plan to get Roxas out of you?" The boys only knew of one way. The way that made it happen last time- being turned into a Heartless. Sora nodded in confirmation.

"He wants to send a Heartless after you? That's stupid," Riku said flatly. "And where would he even find one powerful enough to fight you, and how would he get it here?"

"I don't know- one of those portal things! I don't know!"

"That's not how it works, Sora," he snapped. Suddenly Sora remembered his self-reminder to apologize for being insensitive.

"Riku, I'm sorry, I-"

"No time, Sora." He averted his eyes. "There are other ways to turn someone into a Heartless. You know that as well as I do. Try to remember what you talked about."

Sora nodded absently. He was forgetting something- something important. Axel had come after him before, right? … oh. Oh. Oh.

"Kairi! Riku, we need to get to Kairi! Oh, God, we need to get to her right now-"

"Kairi? Why- oh. Oh!"


Hope you like! Let me know what you think! Upon re-read there's a lot of Spike from Buffy in my Axel... hmm. (His line "I made a promise to a someone" is a call-back to Spike's "I made a promise to a lady." And "...think of two dames in the middle of one kiss!" is from How to Succeed In Business Without Really Trying, the musical. It was the first thing I thought of, and I tried and tried and couldn't think of anything that would better encapsulate what Axel was saying, lol!) And y'all can probably guess at least one pairing that's coming up, yeah?