[chapter 2

The two boys stopped in front of a large door, still hand in hand. Roxas removed his hand first and turned his head towards Sora. "Ready?"

Sora simply nodded and opened the door and held it open so the two to walk in. As they began to enter the room, however, they soon found themselves sprawled on the ground, under the weight of a large man.

"My two boys are sixteen!" the man said in a singsong voice.

Roxas sighed. "Xemnas…please…you're crushing us…"

Xemnas lifted himself off the two and looked down at them. "That's no way to talk to your father," he said, playfully slapping Roxas's face.

"Oh, don't give me that! You told us to call you by your first name. You're the one who's too casual!" Roxas replied, pouting. Sora softly giggled in the background.

Xemnas coughed. "Right…WELL, on a more important note…it is your sixteenth birthday."

Both twins' faces dropped and in unison they sighed.

"You children are so weird…most kids are excited on their sixteenth birthday!" Xemnas said smiling, this time pinching Sora's cheeks, not wanting Roxas to retaliate once again.

"Bu-But we're—" Sora began, removing Xemnas's hand, only to get Xemnas's fingertips on his lips.

"I know, I know…I was in your position too. And just look at how happy I am now!" Roxas winced at this example. Their mother, Larxene, was very…

"But really, it's your duty as princes to find yourselves wives on your sixteenth birthday," Xemnas said, looking them both in the eyes.

Roxas stood up and glared at Xemnas, then let out a sigh and let his head roll. "It's not fair! What if I can't find anyone I actually like? Love, I mean. What'll you do then? You'd just set me up with some chick I don't even know, right? One that I hate!" Roxas said, heatedly, flushing as he spoke. Sora simply stared at the servant's son walking by with some clean blankets, silver hair bobbing up and down.

Sora shook his head and placed his hand on Roxas' arm, an attempt to comfort him.

"Let go!" Roxas cried, pulling his arm away violently. "You're already going out with that Kairi girl—"

"Am not!" Sora cried back, blushing.

"Well, she likes you, I think so, and I'm sure her parents would jump to arrange a marriage with our kingdom… Some crap like that…" Roxas was going off, not even sure what he was trying to say.

Xemnas beamed. "You're right Roxas! This can be a great opportunity to make connections with King Leon's kingdom. Sora could hook up with Kairi, and she has a twin sister as well! You could get with her, what's her face, Nami…Nami something or other…"

"What are you saying? I don't even know this girl, and she doesn't know me! And you want me to marry her? There's no way I'm doing something like that just for your own benefit!" Roxas turned around and kicked his foot. "Sora has Kairi… he's set," he mumbled.

Sora jumped up this time and smacked Roxas on the back of the head. "Don't say something like that! How do you know Kairi wants this? If I even want this?"

Roxas pushed past Sora, heading for the door. "Whatever," he said, stomping out of the room.

Before Roxas was out of earshot, Xemnas called out in an exasperated tone, "I'm giving you a week! Be lucky you have that much time!"

By the time he finished, Roxas had already left the castle.