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Zack wasted no time. He burst into the room and grabbed the collar of Cid's shirt.
"Stop!" he cried, hurrying to the boy's side and carefully freeing his arm. Riku followed with some ice.
"What the hell, Zack?" Cid snapped, sitting back. Zack winced at the three broken fingers, trying to be gentle as he placed them on the ice. Axel cried out softly, closing his eyes.
Riku spoke up, "Prince Sora has informed me that this boy, Axel, gave up his body to keep his benefactor from raping Sora. The Prince has also revealed the man's name as Lux, though it hardly helps…"
"Luxord," Axel whispered, keeping his head lowered. Riku blinked down at him.
"What?"
"His name is Luxord." The redhead looked up at Zack, imploring him with his beautiful eyes. There was a long silence, and then Lexaeus lifted Axel like a small child. The redhead stared up at him, eyes wide.
"I am very fond of the Prince," Lexaeus murmured, carrying Axel out of the room. Zack smiled widely.
"Good ol', soft as a bunny Lex," he cooed. Cid cracked his knuckles next to Zack's head.
"Zackary…"
Zack gulped.
Axel looked around the room that he'd been deposited in. He'd never seen such grandeur – the bed on which he sat was covered in a down-filled coverlet and red silk. His fingers ached horribly, but he was so lost in the strange turn of events that he barely noticed. His confusion was so great that he didn't hear the door open and the soft humming accompanying his caregiver.
"Oh!...you're just a boy."
Axel looked up at the surprised tone, blinking at his nurse. The other boy was small and thin, with silvery-blue hair that fell messily over one blue eye. His skin was the color of porcelain, and Axel gulped. He'd never seen a person as beautiful as this boy.
"S-so're you," he muttered, looking down again.
"Well, yes, but I was expecting a man! A gallant knight!" the other boy cried.
"Knights don't kidnap kids," Axel snapped. He flinched in surprise as a hand touched his head.
"But they do protect them," his caretaker whispered. Axel pulled away, backing up slowly.
"Please don't touch me," he murmured, whimpering slightly as the nurse's weight settled on the bed.
"I'm not going to hurt you. I'm just going to give you a little medicine to help the pain, and wrap up your fingers after that. My name is Zexion, just so you know who to call," Zexion informed him. Axel backed into the corner as Zexion advanced with a syringe.
"They all say that…please…" Axel closed his eyes tightly as Zexion advanced. His eyes shot open wide as the other boy's lips brushed over his. He jerked his face away, whimpering.
"There. You didn't even feel it, did you?" Zexion asked, smiling as he put down the empty syringe. Axel blinked in surprise as the pain in his fingers slowly dissipated.
"N-no…" he whispered. Zexion smiled and took his hand, starting to wrap Axel's fingers gently but securely.
"It's a special medicine that Vexen makes; he's the doctor. Takes away the pain for a good long while. I'm his apprentice, but he won't teach me how to make it until I'm better at this sort of thing. He says your fingers should heal up in about a month, so we'll keep medicating you. King Leon ordered that you be given the best care."
"Thanks," Axel murmured, not looking at Zexion.
"Why didn't you tell anyone what you did for Prince Sora?" Zexion asked suddenly.
"Who would've believed me?" Axel shot back. Zexion blushed slightly, nodding.
"I guess you're right. You're going to have to stay here for a while, though I bet King Leon wants you to live here…"
"Kick me out 'ventually," Axel muttered darkly. Zexion frowned.
"No. He wants you to stay. He said something about protecting you."
"I don't wanna stay."
"Where else would you go?" Zexion asked quietly. Axel finally looked up at him, eyes wide.
"I…dunno," he murmured.
"Exactly. Now, let's give you a bath," Zexion chirped, standing. Axel cocked his head.
"What's a bath?" he asked. Zexion stared at him for a long moment, and then laughed.
"Oh! Oh, you had me going for a minute. You're joking, right?" he chuckled.
"Ain't got no reason to joke," Axel said flatly. Zexion grabbed his wrist.
"Then you really, really need one!" He pulled Axel into the bathroom and started running a bath for him. Axel stood and watched, but when Zexion started trying to undress him, he jerked back and scrambled into the corner.
"No! Please!" He closed his eyes tightly and curled into a ball, whimpering softly as he felt Zexion kneel in front of him.
"Shhh…" Zexion reached out to touch Axel, but the redhead only flinched violently.
"I don't want to…please…" Axel begged quietly, curling tighter.
"Me neither!" Zexion cried suddenly. Axel opened his eyes, seeing Zexion curled in the same position as himself. The other boy's eyes were tightly closed, and he had his arms wrapped tightly around himself.
"Y-you ain't…hurting me…"
"No!" Zexion opened his eyes and looked straight at Axel, "I will not hurt you. I swear."
Axel stared at him for a long moment, and then nodded. Zexion reached out slowly and pulled Axel to his feet, letting him undress himself and then helping him into the tub. Axel moaned out loud at the feeling of warm water engulfing his aching body.
"Yeah, it is nice, isn't it?" Zexion chuckled, starting to wash Axel's body carefully. In his bliss, Axel didn't even flinch. Zexion winced inwardly at the number of bruises dotting Axel's otherwise beautiful body. He couldn't help but blush as he noticed that, when freed of the dirt clinging to him, Axel was completely gorgeous. His skin was much paler than Zexion had thought, but there was no sign of pastiness. Once he was clean, his dark eyes stood out against his pale skin.
Zexion barely noticed at first, but the already dark water had a strange reddish tint to it. He blinked down at it in surprise.
"Um, Axel…could I get you to stand up?" he asked, "You're bleeding somewhere."
Axel blanched.
"Ain't bad. It'll go away."
"I need to take care of all your injuries, or Vexen will punish me," Zexion said firmly, tugging on Axel's arm. Axel nodded slowly and stood, revealing the blood to be coming from his entrance. Zexion's eyes widened, and he ran out of the room. Axel sank back into the water, putting his head on his knees.
He thinks I'm disgusting.
"—so you have to help him!" came Zexion's voice from outside. A tall, severe-looking blonde man stepped into the room, gesturing for Axel to stand. The redhead did as he was bid, and the blonde man reached out to touch his exposed backside. Axel sat down quickly, curling up in a ball.
"Please, no," he whispered. The blonde man sighed.
"Zexion, fetch Lexaeus. This is going to be harder than I had hoped."
