.•.Petals.Of.Twilight.•.
by xManaxNoxKumorix
••••
Reviewers: Snikiii-chan, NightRaven13, SuperHOTSalsa, Thanks so much! Hugs them
About: This chapter introduces a bunch of the Organization. I 'ressurected' a few interesting characters, Larxene and Lexaeus, because I thought they were pretty fun to play with. Of course, it was after I wrote this chapter that I realized the whole Axel-hitting-on-Kairi thing was pretty cliché. Oh well. ;-; So much for a good chapter cliffhanger. I have a lot of dialogue in here, is it maybe excessive? The average chapter rating is T, I think, for Axel and Larxene's naughty mouth.
A/N: Enjoy, and I'd appreciate reviews if you like my fiction, just so I know my work is appreciated. I love constructive criticism - Thanks! Flames will be gracefully accepted.
Disclaimer: Nope, I don't own Axel's purty green eyes. :D Or any of Axel, come to think of it. Or the sweetie named Kairi, or Organization XIII, or anybody. T-T Poo.
••••
.•Chapter.Two. - .Green.Eyed.Demon•.
The man stood over me, green eyes glinting. His smirk was wider than ever, and my previous exhilaration had long since transformed to fear.
I wouldn't let him get the best of me; I have my pride. But the realization that I could do nothing to fight back hit me hard, and struck quite a blow to my self-esteem.
'Don't think about that now, Kairi! Run!' I scrambled to my feet and turned to run, narrowly avoiding the man's hand reaching for me. 'The secret spot,' I thought to myself. 'It's my only chance.' I made a mad dash towards the little waterfall and scrambled through the little opening, hoping that the fact that it was pitch-black outside would cause the man to lose sight of me.
Inside it was damp and, if possible, darker, but after a minute my eyes adjusted and I could vaguely make out white doodles on the walls, each of which represented a fond memory to me. Especially the one to the right of the entrance, depicting two childish scribbles of a boy's and girl's head, and a star-like object being held to one another's mouth. Quietly I kneeled down before it and ran my fingers over the stone, feeling familliar tears spring into my eyes; even while my heart was beating in unsettled fear, this picture touched me. This picture made me remember...
"Ah, how touching," A mocking female voice echoed through the cavern. I whirled around, a little gasp escaping my throat, to sight a blonde-haired woman, in the same cloak as the green-eyed man. She gave me a cold little smile, and her eyes shone with taunting glee. "Don't you think you're a little young to be fcking around with boys?" she jeered. I felt my brow furrow. Already I could feel hate boiling up deep inside of me for this woman - I rarely hate, and never from first sight. "What do you want?" I retorted. "You and that man, why don't you just tell me and get it over with?" She smirked, but didn't offer any reply.
"But you know, you just keep assuming that when you meet everything will just be dandy candy, right? What makes you think he still cares about you? It's only been two years, and you just went and forgot about him. What makes you think he'll forgive you for that?"
"How did you know...?" I choked out. She made me sick. She made me so sick... or was it what she voiced that made me sick? It was true, I had forgotten about him. How, how could I have done something so horrible? His care for me shone through in everything he had done for me... and I had forgotten him. She was right... what if he didn't want to see me? What if he wanted nothing to do with me? How could I have done something so revolting?
The woman gave a harsh laugh, seeing the expression on my face. "Aww, poor girl. You're finally getting it. Your little keyblade hero despises you. The very thought of you makes him sick."
Yet another sucking sound led to two more vortexes appearing in the middle of the cavern. Two figures in the same garment the other two wore emerged, but these men's hoods remained over their heads.
"That's enough, Larxene," the first, a bulky figure, said in a deep voice. "You may go." The woman's gloating expression left her face. "You're ordering me this, why, Lexaeus? I'm doing nothing. In fact, I kept her in one place for you - you should be grateful."
"It's not hard to keep one in one place in a small cave, Larxene. You are dismissed, number twelve." Larxene's expression was venemous.
"Fine," she hissed, though turning to smirk at me one last time. "Poor little girl," she said in a very pseudo-sympathetic voice, putting her hand to her heart, before turning on her heel and stalking into a vortex that had appeared there moments before. There was a sucking sound, and she dissappeared. Almost instantly after her leave, the red-haired, green-eyed man entered through the same vortex.
"How very convinient for us it is for you to lose her, Axel. She was standing right there," the bulky man said in a strangely collected manner.
"Shut up," the red-haired man hissed. "It was dark, and I couldn't see, dammit." As they talked, I looked frantically for a way out. The vortex the red-haired man came through was blocking the exit. Could I make a run for it and go around him while he wasn't looking?
"I do believe your nickname is, "The Flurry of Dancing Flames," the slenderer man who appeared with the bulkier one jeered. "Light a fire, traitor." The red-haired man sneered at him.
"Shut up! She's trapped now, so stop complaining, fcking bastard." I was suddenly the center of attention. All three of them were looking at me. I looked back at them, breathing hard from panic.
"You're brave," The bulky man commented. "To look us in the eye like that."
"Don't flatter yourselves!" I spat. "You're not half as bad as you obviously think you are. Just cloaked idiots!"
The slender hooded one was laughing. A laugh lacking any amusement, any humanity at all, a laugh as cold as ice. The red-haired man was smirking like he was when I first saw him, his eyes dancing with mirth. This infuriated me even more - I hated being laughed at. "Bite me! Why should I be afraid of you just because you wear big black cloaks and can teleport? Oh wow, I'm soooo scared-" but I lost my voice when the cavern suddenly lit up with an orange light, as bright as day. Flames flared up, tickling the top of the cave, surrounding the walls of the cavern. I felt cold metal held against my neck, being pushed against my throat and a slice of pain as it slightly penetrated my skin.
"This," the red-haired man's voice hinted in my ear, "Is why you should be afraid." The terror was stabbing me all over now. Flames crackled at my foot, and I was afraid that if I trembled anymore, that blade would cut my throat open, it was that sharp...
"ENOUGH." The bulky man's deep voice shook the cavern, and the fire was instantly and abruptly extinguished, leaving no traces it had ever been there at all. "That was extremely rash of you, Axel! What would the superior say if you had harmed her?"
"Hah. Not even that could lower his reputation any more. Once a traitor, always a stupid, worthless traitor," The emotionless man proclaimed. The red-haired man, 'Axel', apparently, bared his teeth.
"Shut up, Saiix! You've always had a fcking problem with me, even before I turned against Vexen. He had it coming to him, if I didn't do it, someone else would have."
"That was out of line, Saiix," the bulky man said. "Axel. Take the girl back - I need to talk to Saiix." A look of hesitation came into Axel's eyes.
"Lexaeus-"
"I ordered you to take the girl back, Axel." Axel's eyes narrowed, and he grabbed my wrist as another vortex was conjured up.
"NO!" I screamed, using my free arm to aim for his eye. He blocked my jab as I aimed a kick at his leg, but he sidestepped me and grabbed my free wrist, twisting my left arm behind my back and holding my right hand firm. "Ow!" I screamed at him, "Let GO of me!" I couldn't believe this! How dare he humiliate me?
"Heh, Lexaeus was right. You are brave." He twisted my arm a fraction more, causing me to yelp. "Too bad you're weak." And he shoved me into the vortex.
••••
Everything was dark when I fell through the vortex. I couldn't see anything, even after adjusting to the darkness of the special place, or hear or feel anything but the floor beneath my legs. But after a few seconds I heard the now-familliar sucking sound, and I was yanked to my feet; this, of course, didn't make a very pleased Kairi.
"Hey, Axel or whatever your name is quit treating me like baggage, please Look, I even said 'please'to the likes of you, so QUIT, dammit!" I seethed. It's once in a blue moon that I swear, but this idiot was infuriating me like no other person had ever before.
A light blazed on, shedding light on my surroundings and temporarily blinding me.
"Aww, being so rude after I went through all the trouble to get you here? I'm hurt." I narrowed my eyes at him.
"Get me here? Where is here!"
"This," He spread his arms indicating the expanse of space we stood in. "used to be Marluxia's room." I looked. The room was complete with coral-hued furnishings; an old-fashioned four-poster, curtained bed, a mahogany dresser and a little pink chair and table next to a large open window, the breeze ruffling a set of pink curtains. Lining the walls were shelves full of books and little trinkets. "His element matched you very well," Axel continued, "though he himself was nothing like you..." his green eyes surveyed me. "No... you're so weak and vulnerable. He was selfish, arrogant and strong-willed... nothing like you."
"Am I supposed to thank you or slap you?" He was seriously confusing me now. First he treats me like some sort of sack of potatoes, and then he starts complimenting me and insulting me in disguised ways? I was totally bewildered.
"You're very welcome..." he whispered, green eyes still locked on mine. Couldn't he stop staring...? He was beginning to make me really, really nervous... A smirk played across his lips as he seized my hand for the third time that evening - but this time he held it up to his lips, slightly kissing my fingertips. What in the name of...!
I jerked my hand away from his grasp and backed up, both incensed and shocked at once. His smirk was still half there as turned on his heel and strode into a freshly-summoned vortex, leaving me alone.
••••
Author's Note: It's a bad ending, but you do get the thing about the black cloak, right..? Black cloak? Organization XIII? Yeah. xD I hope to have the second chapter up by next week! Thanks for reading!
