Warning: Yaoi, language, OOCness (hopefully not too bad), mistakes as its unbetaed, change of summary
Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts or any of its characters in anyway besides owning a copy of both games. I only write to entertain others and for my own strange, twisted, yet loveable amusement. (And I worship Square and Nomura Tetsuya-sensei for their brilliant minds! And Sora and Roxas are both loveably admirable, holding the half needed to complete the other :3)
Lullabies and Bedtime Stories
Second Bedtime Story: Reading 101
our Written Dreams only Make them seem Real
as Poignant little words on the Page
A loud groan of protest was lost amongst the merry jingles of yet another door being opened. Roxas directed a glare towards Sora's back as the brunet ran over to the bookshelves, curiously investigating each and every last one in the children's section. By his side was Ven who was staring inquisitively at the large selection with wide eyes. Roxas silently reminded himself that he was doing this for Ven before trudging over to the pair with weary legs.
"Can't we get some rest? We've been at this all day," complained Roxas, leaning against the bookcase as he eyed the two tiredly. His energy and stamina gained from fighting and countless hours of training both in and outside of the Organization were crumbling before such a common activity: shopping.
(Which Roxas was now beginning to find completely unnecessary and quite the hassle.)
Sora glanced over his shoulder, grinning at the sight of the world weary Roxas and exclaimed, "It's only been a few hours, Roxas. This is nothing compared to when I went shopping with Kairi. I was practically dead on my feet after going shopping with her. But, that's not the point. It's been over a week since Ven's started living with us and we haven't gotten him anything! So suck it up because this is for him!" His voice was entirely too cheery, letting the blond know that Sora was fully enjoying his suffering. And to think that everyone thought the brunet was innocent. Ha!
"A few too many," he grumbled under his breath, collapsing onto a nearby sofa for readers where he could keep close watch over both Sora and Ven. While he trusted Ven to keep safe and not wander off, he couldn't exactly say the same for Sora who was always so easily distracted. He eyed Ven, however, who was now flipping through one of the books with childlike interest, fingers turning the pages slowly.
"Aww, is the great and mighty Roxas who fought Heartless, Nobodies, Riku, Axel, other Organization XIII members, and even me, going to fall at the hands of shopping?" teased Sora with a playful grin as he added another storybook to his slowly growing pile. There was no way that Sora was going to deprive his child of the joys of bedtime reading.
Roxas bristled slightly, feathers ruffled in all the right places but in all the wrong ways. Crossing his arms rather sullenly, he only leaned back against the couch and muttered under his breath. Sora laughed easily, fingers deftly pulling out another thin book by the spine. Eyes cocking curiously at the worn cover, he tossed the reading material to Roxas. It landed in his lap with a soft thud against his thighs. A brow arched in question.
"Just a little something to keep you busy," shrugged Sora with a silly smile. "I'm gonna go take these to the register, so keep an eye out on Ven for me, alright?"
He waved the other boy away, watching his departing backside. A small smile tugged at his lips as the boy seemed to bounce with each step over to the ridiculously long line, arms filled with books of all sizes. Shaking his head, Roxas turned back to find that Ven was now leaning against his legs, nose buried in a book that he had acquired from a nearby self. Satisfied that the boy wouldn't be wandering off into the hands of some murderous, stark raving lunatics that could have quite possibly been converted to pedos at the sight of Ven, Roxas turned his attention back to the book Sora had tossed his earlier. Fingers skimmed the front cover, tapping the golden letters thoughtfully before flipping open the cover.
Once upon a time, in a land faraway…
Roxas cringed. A fairy tale? Of all the things that Sora could have picked out. However, the blond continued as there was nothing else to do, eyes skimming the pages uninterestedly.
…there lived a boy.
Well, that was rather different from the stories he had once read in the library back at The Castle That Never Was – for which Axel had taunted and teased him about endlessly until his face met with the dull side of his Keyblade. Brow quirked, Roxas thought nothing much of it.
The boy was exceedingly beautiful with golden sun kissed hair that shimmered in the sunlight and vibrant blue eyes in which the one could view the lapping of the ocean waves. His soft skin held a fair, pale complexion and his body stood lean, outlined by defining muscles which had yet to develop fully. However, the one aspect of the boy which captured the hearts of all was his smile, sweet, soft, and oh so kind, warming even the most frigid of hearts.
Here, Roxas stopped, hand having found its way to his hair. He paused however, brows furrowed slightly. There had to be about a million people other than him with blond hair and blue eyes. His eyes slid up to examine the visible occupants in the room. Brown hair. Brown eyes. Black hair. Green eyes. Red hair. Blue eyes. Not a single shopper held both the attributes of blond hair and blue eyes, and aside from himself and Ven, Roxas could not name a single person that did—well, except Demyx. But that only made three. He made a mental note of it to ask Sora later on. After all, blond hair and blue eyes weren't that rare. Surely not when there were people with silver hair and blue hair running around. Satisfied, Roxas let his eyes drop back onto the page.
This boy was graced with a name fit to match his beauty: Lucis.
Sadly, fate had dealt a cruel hand to this beautiful boy. Orphaned from the very start, Lucis had spent many a days in the homes of orphanages until he came in to the constant care of Vespera, a kindly middle aged woman who had become a mother figure to the young boy, having taken care of him since he was but a baby.
Although Lucis was kind, courageous, friendly, and loved by nearly all, the boy was a troublemaker of the affectionate sort. He would come back home on more than one occasion with his arms scratched and his knees scraped, a goofy grin plastered on his face. While he avoided serious injuries, to which Vespera saw to quite rigorously, Lucis still carried with him the boyish glee of mischief and adventure that most children his age held. It would be this which led him on a quite thrilling escapade to make the acquaintance of his very first best friend.
It had been one warm, sunny afternoon on the beach that Lucis discovered, or rather, was discovered by a curious boy with chestnut brown locks and equally brilliant blue eyes, albeit darker. He watched Lucis play in the shallow water, poking and prodding at the marine life and filling the air with the sounds of mellifluous laughter. His curiosity had been piped.
Roxas stared with bemused eyes down at the book which did not read of princesses and princes like he had stereotyped fairy tales to be. Instead, it was about a boy. Two boys, actually. And their growing friendship. Almost like his and Sora's. Perhaps this book would give him some insight into this whole forming a friendship business—one that he found still slightly hard to grasp onto to.
He glanced down to find Ven turning another page. The boy was nearly finished with the storybook and Roxas found himself smiling sheepishly. He, himself, was only two pages in his own book.
However, the other boy did not approach Lucis, opting to remain in his spot. He was not terribly fond of meeting new people. Fortunately for him, Lucis spotted him and waved enthusiastically, clambering out of the water and approaching the brunet.
"Hiya!" he greeted cheerfully, waving. "I'm Lucis!"
The brunet remained silently, worrying his lower lip before he let out in a low murmur, "Hi. 'm Noctis."
Brows waggling, Lucis grinned. It wasn't often that he had a chance to come across a boy around his age and judging from his appearance, Noctis seemed to fit the bill quite nicely. His blue eyes blinked diffidently up at Lucis who beamed once more.
"You have pretty eyes," he stated without hesitation, hardly realizing what a strange comment it was to say or a bizarre compliment to give.
Noctis blinked uncertainly several times, long dark lashes kissing his skin with each flutter. Fingers playing with the hem of his sleeve, he glanced up through the curtain and smiled shyly, "Thanks. You do too."
"Thanks! Wanna play?"
A hand laid outstretched to him and shyly, Noctis took the hand with another small smile, a sight that Lucis was finding very fitting of the other boy.
"Sure."
And the two played the rest of the afternoon away, hand in hand.
"Ready to go?"
Blue eyes rose from the book, crooking at the sight of Sora who was juggling what looked to be at least thirty different bags. He grinned sheepishly, having caught the other's stare.
"I wanted to make sure that Ven has everything he needs since he's our first child and all," elucidated the other boy. An eyebrow rose and Sora turned pink with realization as the words replayed over in his mind. He had made it sound as though the two of them where…
Sora blushed heavily, laughing nervously in that high pitched tone of his. Taking pity on the other boy, Roxas just placed the book down, offering to take a few of the bags.
"Oh, I bought those two books too. The one that you were reading and the one that Ven was reading," Sora remembered, fumbling slightly before getting one of the bags open so that they could drop the works of literature in. "C'mon Ven, it's time to go."
The blond poked his head up from the book with a small pout. However, he obediently stood to his feet and placed the books gently into the bag, saying earnestly, "Mommy, Daddy. You know, in the book I was reading, the prince and the princess said that they loved each other. But they didn't kiss, hold hands, play together, or sleep together like Mommy and Daddy. So, does that mean that you two love each other more?"
Sora coughed uncomfortably as Roxas murderously promised the very painful deaths of the writers of fairy tales. The adult-rated themes were highly unnecessary, especially where a 'and they all lived happily ever after' would have sufficed efficiently.
"Uh, Ven, that is," began Sora, smiling awkwardly. He trailed off however, brows stitching together in puzzlement as to how to answer the young boy. Lips brushed against the skin of his cheek hotly, however, which had Sora spluttering softly. The action, however, only encouraged the brunet who chanced a glance at Roxas who only gave him a roll of the eyes along with an amused smile. Sora returned the gesture before turning back to Ven who continued to wait with owlishly adorable eyes. "Yeah, Ven. Roxas and I, erm, love each other too."
Just not in the way that parents are supposed to though, he tagged on to the end within his own mind, trying to reason that he was telling still telling the truth. He loved Roxas, as a friend though. And Roxas loved him, as a friend. So technically, there were no lies. Just not entire truths either.
Ven studied them for a few seconds before his lips curved into a bright smile—very much similar to the ones Sora wore quite frequently. Taking both their hands in his own, the blond exclaimed, "Good! Because I don't think that the prince really loved the princess all that much. At least, not as much he said he did."
"Oh really?" grinned Roxas lazily, allowing the smaller boy to lead them out of the store. The trio paid no heed to the bizarre stares, or ones of disgust, thrown in their direction.
"Really," stated Ven firmly, head bobbing with the affirmation. "He didn't look very happy when the princess kissed him—at least not like how Daddy looked with Mommy kissed you this morning."
Sora laughed as Roxas turned a faint hint of red, "Aw, Roxy, are you blushing? How cute."
"Shut up," mumbled the blond, slapping away the fingers hovering close to his cheek. Laughter only bubbled from the boy's lips at the other's response.
"Mh-hm! Or the way Mommy looked when Daddy kissed you in the store."
It was the brunet's turn to redden as Roxas sniggered. He arched a brow at the other, saying smugly, "You were saying, Sora?"
Sora felt no need to dignify the other with an answer. Ven, however, felt differently, adding on to further his parent's humiliation (unknowingly, of course), "Or the way Mommy and Daddy both looked this morning in the bathroom when Mommy accidentally tripped onto Daddy and you fell into the bath and sat there hugging." There was a small pause as Ven contemplated a small thought. "So, I guess that must mean that Mommy and Daddy are really, really, really in love!" exclaimed Ven cheerily, obviously proud and content with the conclusion he had come to draw. As an after thought, he tagged on to the end, "Then, I hope that the prince doesn't fall in love with the princess."
Curious gazes fell upon the two boys whose faces were burning. A group of boys from nearby began to snicker and an elderly woman glared sharply at them. Sora wished that the ground beneath his feet would open up and swallow him whole as he felt his ears burn in embarrassment. It was not so much that everyone heard as it was the memory—although everyone around them hearing was pretty embarrassing too. And from beside him, Roxas could not have agreed more (although caring less about the strangers who had heard them).
Unsure of what to say, Roxas only hastened his pace ever so slightly as he remarked, "I say that we should all get some sea salt ice cream."
Sora could only nod his head vigorously in agreement. Ice cream sounded good and cold—hopefully cold enough so that the heat circling his cheeks, ears, and neck would go away.
"Sea salt ice cream?"
Roxas blinked down at Ven who had his eyes scrunched in confusion. There was a small moment of silence before the older blond asked, "Ven. Have you ever eaten sea salt ice cream before?"
Ven shook his head.
Somewhere, Roxas died a little on the inside and judging by the way of how Sora was snickering, the brunet knew too. Roxas's reaction had been quite the same when Sora had first informed him that no, he had never tasted sea salt ice cream before. It was quickly remedied, however, with a hasty, emergency trip to the ice cream store and the brunet had a feeling that this time would be no different.
"We're going to get some sea salt ice cream. Now," growled the blond, tugging the two along. No son of his was going to go throughout even one more second of his life without tasting the pure bliss of sea salt ice cream. With just a few steps, Roxas had the two sit down at a bench next to the bookstore in Station Heights, promptly disappearing to fetch them the chilled treats.
Kicking his feet back and forth, Ven puffed out his cheeks, before saying solemnly, "Mommy."
Sora glanced over at the boy with a smile, "Yeah, Ven?"
"Does Uncle Axel like Daddy?"
The brunet gurgled a little, eyes wide as he sputtered, "Wh-what're you talking about, Ven? Of course Uncle Axel likes Daddy. Uh, the two of them are best friends. Like me and Uncle Riku and Aunt Kairi."
Ven rolled his eyes childishly at the other's less than acceptable answer, saying with a pout, "Mommy, I know that. I mean, does Uncle Axel like-like Daddy the way Mommy loves Daddy? And Daddy loves Mommy?"
"Uh…uh…"
Sora continued to splutter, completely at a loss of words. What exactly was he supposed to say to such a question? Hell, why was Ven even asking such a question? Kids his age weren't supposed to be so observant and so…so… Where was Roxas with that freakin' ice cream!?
Finding that he would not be rescued from having to answer the dreaded question, Sora tongued his cheek, giving some serious though to his answer. He didn't want to lie to Ven any more than necessary, even if it meant having to say that his Uncle may potentially hold feelings for his Dad. He knew that Axel was special to Roxas as Roxas was special to Axel. The two of them were like himself and Riku. But that didn't necessarily mean that Axel liked Roxas in that way. After all, he didn't like Riku like that, and he was almost positive that Riku didn't like like him like that either. But then again, there was the possibility of Axel like liking Roxas but of Roxas not like liking Axel or the other way around of Roxas like liking Axel like that but Axel not like liking Roxas in that way. Or maybe, Axel liked Roxas in that way and Roxas liked Axel like that and the two were like liking each other like that.
Sora paused in midst of his ponderings, head aching slightly. His eyes were screwed and his face scrunched as he tried to make sense of what his brain had just painfully told him. His head was swimming with likes like and likes this and likes that and like likes. It was just confusing and there were way too many 'likes' for his comfort to actually be processed and comprehensible. Shaking his head, the Keyblade wielder offered, perplexed, "I really don't know, Ven. I never really noticed. But, uh, why do you ask?"
He frowned, face wrinkling in thought as he tried to find a way to express and communicate his thoughts to his parent. "I like Uncle Axel."
"I do too, Ven."
"He's funny, weird, and has really funny red hair and really green eyes."
"That he does."
"And he doesn't pinch my cheeks."
"No, he doesn't."
Face wrinkling some more and arms crossing, Ven finally said almost dourly, very much resembling another certain blond that Sora knew of to be buying ice cream at the moment, "But Uncle Axel pays too much attention to Daddy. He looks at Daddy too much and smiles at him a lot too. Kinda like the prince's friend did to the prince in that book."
Sora choked on a combination of air and his own spit.
"Wh-what!?"
Turning to face the coughing brunet, Ven relayed as-matter-of-factly, "The prince's friend in the book I was reading would pay a lot of attention to the prince, like Uncle Axel does to Daddy. And the prince's friend smiled at the prince a lot and talked with him alone a lot and did a lot of things together with him. I think he wants to kiss the prince and love him. And I think the princess knows that which is why she doesn't really like the prince's friend and why the prince's friend doesn't like her very much either."
Gaping, Sora nearly clamored, "Wh-wh-what!? T-the book?"
Ven nodded, rummaging through a few of the bags before pulling out the book he had been reading earlier at the store. Sora nearly snatched the offending material out of the boy's hand, flipping through the pages with wide eyes and a slacked jaw. Sure enough, there were more than a little not-so-subtle hints printed in plain words about the prince's friend and the aforementioned habits that Ven had described earlier when talking about Axel and Roxas.
Oh, god.
Axel and Roxas.
Sora fell back against the wooden frame of the bench, oceanic optics wide and mouth opened for all the flies of the world to come in. His hand had dropped limply to his side as the book laid open in his lap (on the page where the prince's friend and the princess seemed to be having a heated argument). There were so many thoughts running through his blank mind, Sora wasn't exactly sure which ones were real. For starters, however, he would have to pay these fairy tale writers and publishers a visit to discuss the…necessity of such adult-themes added on into the children's books. Then, after that…well, Sora didn't exactly want to deal with anything after that. Especially not with after seeing Axel and Roxas and their relationship come into a whole new light, thanks to Ven.
"Mommy?"
Perhaps he was just overreacting?
"Back with the ice cream."
But then again, the two always were really, really, really, really close. Like…inseparably close. Like, joined at the hip close. Like an abnormal growth attached to them close.
"Sora? You okay?"
But he and Riku were that close too! Did that mean… Sora screwed his eyes at the thought, violently stopping the train of thought from going any further. He refused to lay down any more tracks for it to keep running.
"Mommy?? Are you in there?"
And to think! It was Ven who had noticed all this! It was Ven who had been able to point this all out despite his short time with them all! Was he really that much of an oblivious idiot like everyone claimed him to be? Was he really fooled that easily?
"While Sora's stuck in dreamland, here you go, Ven. And I guess I'll just have to eat Sora's since it'll melt by the time he's snapped out of it," shrugged Roxas, sitting down with the bright blue popsicle in his hand. He watched as Ven took a curious and tentative lick of the salty sweet flavor, already popping his own into his mouth. Ven smacked his lips together thoughtfully, letting the strange taste spread on his palate before gazing up at his father who stared down at the boy with a quirked brow.
"I like it," beamed Ven, giving a nod of approval.
Roxas grinned, ruffling the boy's spikes with a chuckle. "I like it, too."
And poor Sora remained completely oblivious to the proceedings of the outside world. Especially to the fact that Ven had completely forgotten about his question and was know happily munching on his ice cream, making a slight mess. Roxas rolled his eyes fondly, wiping away the blue color from the boy's mouth with a napkin. Momentarily taking the ice cream in his other hand, the Nobody wiped Ven's hand clean and wrapped the wooden stick in a spare napkin before giving it back to the smaller boy. The boy just grinned in thanks before working on finishing the ice cream.
Roxas turned to Sora who had developed a small spasm in his right eye. Poking his cheek, the blond was given no response in return. "Hm, did something happen to Sora while I was gone, Ven?"
Ven shook his head innocently, finger poking the brunet's stomach with the same results. "Nope. Mommy was just looking through this book and became like this."
"Book?"
The little boy nodded, pointing to the bounded pages in the other's lap. "Yup. Book. You should read it with Mommy later, Daddy," recommended the blond with a silly smile that had Roxas smiling back. "After I finish it though, because I still don't know if the prince loves the princess or not. I really hope he doesn't."
This brought a small chuckle from Roxas who couldn't help himself. "Why not?"
"Because Daddy! The prince doesn't like the princess!" Ven exclaimed as though it were the most obvious thing in the world. "At least, not the way that you're supposed to like someone when you want to kiss them. He didn't look happy at all with the princess."
Roxas blinked, wondering just how bright and perceptive their child was. To be able to notice such a thing in a fairy tale? Finishing off his sea salt ice cream, he asked, "Are you sure, Ven?"
"Uh-huh. Because the prince and princess are nothing like you and Mommy."
The former Organization member contemplated over this before ruffling Ven's hair which prompted a pout from the smaller boy. "Well, that's probably because Sora and I are a bit different from your usual prince and princess," he explained, moving on to eating the brunet's ice cream. After all, there was really no point in wasting a perfectly good sea salt ice cream, right?
"I don't think so…" pouted Ven, giggling when Roxas poked him in the stomach. However, he suddenly sat up straight, exclaiming excitedly, "Oh, I get it! It's because Mommy and Daddy love each other waaaay more than a prince and princess ever could, right?"
Roxas coughed slightly, distractedly sticking the untouched ice cream into Sora's wide open mouth, "Uh, right."
This seemed to satisfy the smaller blond who grinned toothily. "I think so too!"
Roxas wasn't exactly sure what to think as he wiped his hands clean on a fresh napkin, the squawks about ice cream being cold and yelps about sticking popsicles into people's mouths when they're dazed falling onto deaf ears. A consultation with the book was in order.
"Roxas! Are you even listening to me?!"
Well, later at least.
"Talk about overkill," muttered Roxas, groaning quietly as he shifted his weight to the other foot. In his arms was a slumbering Ven, the boy having fallen asleep at the last store they had visited in accordance with Sora's list. It had been a long and tiring day for all of them, and each were eager to get back to the coziness of their home.
Sora laughed softly from beside, his own hands full of shopping bags. "At least on the bright side, we probably won't have to go shopping again any time soon."
"I'm never going shopping again if I can help it," he remarked grumpily, glancing down at Ven's lax face, peaceful with sleep. His mouth twitched into a smile at the sight, arms readjusting under the boy's weight. Silence washed over the two in a comfortable manner as they gazed at Ven with love that only a parent could ever hold.
"I still can't get used to the fact that Ven's actually our child," admitted Sora softly, their shoulders bumping together as they walked. Roxas questioningly quirked a brow to which Sora elaborated almost sheepishly. "I mean, I always thought about what it would be like to have a kid—don't make fun of me, it was Kairi's fault!—and now that we have Ven, it seems…surreal. Almost like it's too good to be true."
Roxas remained silent, allowing Sora to continue.
"This may sound a little stupid since it's only been like a week and a half since we found Ven, but it feels like he's been with us forever. I can't imagine living without him anymore. It's weird, huh? I guess this is what it must feel like being a parent." Sora paused momentarily to give the other a goofy grin to which Roxas responded in like with a smile. "Ya know, I sometimes wonder if I'm being a good parent to Ven. I mean, you're a really great dad, Roxas, so you've got nothing to worry about. But as for me, I'm not so sure. Sometimes I feel like I can't give enough to Ven. Like no matter what I do, it'll still always be lacking."
"Sora, you're an idiot."
"Wh-huh?"
Staring straight ahead, he elucidated, "For doubting yourself. You're more than a capable parent. And you said it yourself, didn't you? That what Ven needed the most was a family. And he has one now thanks to you. And he has all the love that he deserves and needs and than some. Sora, you love Ven with your entire being and to him, I'm sure that's more than enough. Just staying by him and being a family and loving him, there's no one else that can do that but you Sora."
A small pause wedged its way between the two Keyblade wielders before Sora added, "And you. After all, you are the dad in this family."
"Just like how you're the mom."
Sora grinned, doubts washed away thanks to the blond. He touched their arms together in a gesture of thanks and Roxas just nodded, blowing into the other's eyes which fell shut. Sora whined softly, blowing a raspberry in retaliation as they climbed up the stairs to their apartment.
"Ah, I don't have my keys," panicked Sora quietly, patting his pockets after setting down the multiples of bags. He turned to Roxas with wide eyes. "I think I left them at home!"
"My keys are in my pocket," the Nobody shrugged, eyes rolling. "Though, you'll probably have to get them out, Sora, since I'm holding on to Ven."
Laughing nervously, the brunet reached into the other's pocket, causing Roxas to squirm slightly as he dug around for the set of metal keys. His face was tinted with pink as his hand groped around the former Organization member's pocket. Sora felt distinctly like a pervert as his fingers clasped around the house key he had been searching for. Quickly withdrawing his hand from Roxas's pocket, he found the blond a darker shade of red as well. In an attempt to smother the sudden awkwardness of the situation, he held up the key with a small grin, "Found it! They really need to make keys bigger like the Keyblade or something, ha ha ha."
"Y-yeah."
The two stumbled into the home, tired and embarrassed. Slipping their shoes off, Sora deposited all the bags onto the floor before following Roxas to tuck in Ven. They had turned Sora's room into the smaller blond's bedroom (hence the cleanliness) while getting a larger bed for Roxas's room for the couple to share (hence the messiness of the once clean room).
As Sora pulled back the covers, Roxas laid the boy down with a gentle carefulness that was rarely seen. He tugged off the other's shoes while Sora worked on redressing Ven into pajamas. Their hands bumped as they worked, giving an apologetic smile with each accidental touch.
"I'm really getting used to this," smiled Sora, brushing his fingers across Roxas's knuckles quite purposely. He pulled the blankets up to Ven's chin, smoothing out the creases before leaning over to place a small kiss onto his forehead. Roxas followed suit, pulling back to reclaim his spot next to Sora. They stood just a little bit too close, elbows colliding and fingers skimming each other's hands with every light brush.
Roxas just dipped his head into a nod, feeling Sora's weight leaning against his side. The brunet's head dropped onto his shoulder, brown spikes tickling his chin. A yawn stretched his mouth as he sleepily dug his nose into the other's neck with a content sigh. Inhaling, he uttered incoherently, "You smell nice…"
"Do I?"
"Mh-hm…"
"Hey, don't fall asleep on me now," Roxas mumbled amusedly, his weight sagging. When Sora just hummed in response, the blond took a firm hold of the other, arms hooking around his back and locking at his waist. "Geez, like mother, like son."
The blond led the dozing boy to their bedroom, supporting much of his weight as he sat down onto the bed with Sora as well. The young Keyblade master sprawled across the mattress, entangling himself in the blankets and unwittingly kicking Roxas in the process. He threw the sleeping boy a dirty glare before standing back up. As retribution, he pinched the other's nose, satisfied at the distorted whine. However, instead of pulling back, Roxas inadvertently placed a very soft kiss to the tip of his nose. He reeled back, surprised with himself.
"I'm becoming way too comfortable with this," murmured Roxas with a sigh, hand running through his golden spikes as his crystal blues landed on Sora. Shaking his head, he delved through the bags until finding the book from earlier and padded softly out of the room, switching off the lights.
From inside, Sora's eyelids fluttered open as his fingers lightly swept across his nose. His blue eyes shone brightly in the iridescent glow of the moonlight, glimmering uncertainly.
As the sun began to sink low beneath the horizon and the hues of orange and red tinged together, Noctis stared out across the vast expanse of the roaring ocean before them. His hand was tugged on and the boy fell onto the soft sand, blue eyes regarding his new friend questioningly.
"It's sunset," stated Lucis with a faraway gleam in his eyes now tainted with the swirls of red and orange. "I always like watching the sunset."
Noctis did not speak, turning his own eyes back to the glowing ball of fire. Sparkles erupted across the ocean as each wave caught the rays of the fading sun. A frown tugged at his lips as he watched the sun slowly being swallowed by the ocean. Fingers digging through the sand, Noctis spoke carefully, "It looks like the sun is dying."
Lucis sharply turned to his over to the brunet, mouth quirked inquiringly.
Suddenly mindful of the other boy's gaze on him, Noctis began to absently play with the sand, explaining, "I mean, because the light is fading away and the sun is sinking into the ocean. It just kinda looks like the sun is dying." There was a pause before he admitted very quietly, "I don't like it."
Taking in the other's words, Lucis hummed thoughtfully before saying, "That does make sense. But I kinda see it as the sun just going to be reborn. It may be fading away right now, but tomorrow morning, it'll be reborn again."
"It's still a little sad."
"Yeah."
As the light gleamed off the surface of the water, Lucis rose to his feet, hand outstretched to Noctis who gladly clasped it within his own. Their melded hands were both moist from sweat and warm, gritty particles of sand clinging desperately to their flesh. He smiled at the unique feel as did Lucis.
"But it'll be reborn anew tomorrow!"
"Daddy?"
Roxas glanced up from the printed words on the page to find a sleepy Ven rubbing at his eyes with the palms of his hands. The book laid forgotten on the table as Ven climbed onto his lap (with some help, of course). He yawned, snuggling into Roxas's warmth as he ruffled the boy's hair affectionately.
"Something wrong, Ven?"
He shook his head with some difficulty, eyelids drooping. Voice still thick with sleep, he murmured instead, "You should go to sleep, Daddy."
"You should already be asleep," countered Roxas lightly.
"Both of you should be in bed, asleep. Now."
The two blonds glanced up to find a disheveled and drowsy Sora standing in the kitchen, barefoot and hand on his hip. To emphasize his words, he pointed in the general direction of their bedrooms with an expecting brow raised.
"Uh-oh," giggled Ven even in his half asleep state. "Mommy caught us."
Roxas just grinned. Did Sora even realize how much like a mom he sounded like at that moment? Judging by the way he swayed, the blond was guessing not. Chuckling, he got up, holding onto Ven's hand as he remarked, "Mommy's just mad because he's losing his beauty sleep."
Predictably, Sora whined, taking Ven's other hand in his own, "I am not a woman. If anything, Roxas, I still say you should be the mom seeing as to how—"
Roxas leaned over to plant a chaste kiss on the other's cheek which immediately flushed red. Ven cheered while Sora blushed.
"That's why you're the mom and I'm the dad."
Sora spluttered. Then squawked. Then downright pouted.
And Roxas smirked overbearingly.
Ven just beamed at his parents, declaring, "Mommy and Daddy are definitely waaaaaaaaayy more in love than the prince and princess."
A/N: I had no idea where I was going while writing this chapter XD It just kinda…happened. Still trying to take things slow with Roxas and Sora though. Anyways, the little stories that Roxas and Ven were reading will be continued a little at a time with each chapter. Oh, yes, Noctis means 'night' in Latin and Lucis means 'day' in Latin more or less.
Thank yooh to all who reviewed! You guys are friggin' amazing and just completely make my day :33 Thanks goes out to everyone who added this story to their alerts/favorites lists!
