"I win!" Strafe declared triumphantly, holding out his hand of cards.

"No, you don't," Luxord replied flatly without taking his eyes off his own hand. "You say that after every five turns. Never have you so much as gotten a single pair, lad."

Strafe frowned. The two had been "playing" Poker for the past half hour due to Strafe's constant pestering. "But I really did win this time!" he protested.

Luxord smiled and sighed. "Alright, allow me to see your hand." When Strafe showed him the cards, Luxord shook his head in sympathy. "I'm afraid you have no pairs or anything of the sort. And since I have seen your hand, I know what to do to win. Again."

Strafe put out his bottom lip. "Why can't I win?" he questioned.

"Because I am the better strategist."


Strafe giggled as he now tasted the slightly spicy piece of chicken Larxene had placed on his tongue. "Hot!" he exclaimed.

"Yeah, well," Larxene said, "it's called 'spicy'." She put another piece of chicken on his tongue when Strafe opened his mouth for another bite. "You eat a lot, I've noticed that," she said, trailing off lazily.

Strafe nodded, chewing furiously. Larxene secretly thanked Luxord for bathing Strafe while he was caring for the boy for the day. She didn't want to do anything that would make herself feel awkward...But then again, what position did that put Luxord in?

Strafe had finished his mouthful, and rose from the table to stretch, cat-like, against Larxene's back. "Thank you, mommy," he said graciously while hugging her around the waist now.

Larxene was quiet until she said awkwardly, "Yeah. Sure, kid."

Strafe smiled up at her, and Larxene realized that she wished she could see more of that smile. She found her slender hand stroking Strafe's hair until the boy crawled into her lap, putting the top of his head under her chin. The rest happened in a slow blur. Larxene was barely aware that she was slowly rocking Strafe back and forth, humming an unknown tune softly to him. The Nymph was rubbing his back while Strafe held her like a child who finally felt secure.

The moment was split when someone burst through the kitchen doors, screaming, "Larxene! Thank goodness you're here! Axel! He's--"

"Calm down, Demyx," Larxene persuaded warily, nonetheless worried. Strafe crawled out of her lap and held her hand. "What's this about Axel...?"

Demyx finally caught his breath; in his adrenaline and panic he had tired himself by overexerting energy in summoning a portal. Urgently, he said, "It's Axel! We were walking through the City and this snarling beast just came out of nowhere and attacked him!"

Larxene's heart flipped painfully in her chest. "Beast?" she repeated, already walking swiftly toward Demyx. "What did it look like?" she asked, squeezing Strafe's hand and letting it go.

"It was big, for one thing!" Demyx panted. "I think it's one of those creatures who are looking for Strafe!" He had already been told about the whole situation; Meytha, Marluxia, and Zexion knew as well. "It looked like a panther!"

Larxene followed Demyx as the Nocturne turned and ran through a portal, both completely unaware that Strafe had gone through as well.


Axel slashed across the creature's chest with a blazing chakram; the brown-and-black panther cried painfully as it reared back. Axel took this opportunity to slice up the big cat's stomach, going all the way up to the throat. Blood sprayed and hit Axel's face as the panther screamed, falling backward to never rise again. Axel stood, rooted, as he panted like a dog now that the creature was finished.

"How rude!" an voice yipped with false humor, tipped with ice. "To kill one of my faithful followers!"

Axel's head whipped up to the roof of the building in front of him. The hollow streetlights reached up to silhouette a wolf's figure, slender and dominating. Axel caught a glint of gold as this wolf worked its strong muscles to leap down the roof and in front of Axel. The Flurry Of Dancing Flames noted the vermilion fur and the ebony streaks running along her body. He clenched his fists as his chakrams disappeared; she had no weapon, therefore honor bade him to retreat his own.

She chuckled, a low and mutinous sound that nonetheless had a certain charm to it. "Simple meat-bag," she snipped, "you did right to sheath your weapons; you wouldn't stand a chance against me."

Axel deducted, from that comment alone, that this creature had hardly a sense of honor. She couldn't care less about a fair fight; she'd kill you however way possible. She thought that he had redrawn his weapons because of his supposedly slim odds against her, not because she herself had no weapons. All this was deducted from her remark, as well as her body language, which reeked of arrogance and dominance.

"What do you want?" he growled, clenching his fists.

She curled her lips at him, revealing sharp teeth which gleamed like ivory against the lights of the City. "I'm sure you can guess what I want," she hissed, her voice dripping with malice. Before Axel could register what happened next, her throat exploded with a snarl, and she lunged at him while he was distracted by the frightening sound. She raked her claws against his stomach, her fangs ripping open his torso.

Axel batted the side of her head with a hand cloaked in fire just as she lunged at his face; she yowled and clamped his arm. She fought with her power -shapeshifting- therefore he would fight with his. Axel caterwauled as he swung her down on the ground, while she was still attached to his arm. This made her yelp and let go out of reflex; Axel grabbed her by her throat, hauled her up, and flung her a few feet away from him, embers rolling off her fur.

Just as she shook her head and stalked once again toward the pyro, her nose quivered, her eyes widened. She whipped her head to her right, and Axel followed her movement.

Strafe was at the end of the alley they were in, alone and clutching his chest.

"My son," she crooned darkly, losing total interest in Axel as she slunk threateningly toward Strafe now.

Axel was too dumbfounded at finding that this wolf was Strafe's mother, to register that she was getting closer to the stiff boy. Strafe's whimper flung him out of his thoughts, and Axel sped toward Strafe, but he was too far behind...

"Come here, child," the wolf whispered loudly, her voice like poisoned honey. "Come back to your mommy. I love you, child." She nipped Strafe's arm painfully, and Strafe whimpered and bit his lip.

Just as Strafe's mother put her jaws on his shirt to take him away, a surge of electricity seized her body, shocking her as it held her suspended in mid-air. She was too much in pain to scream, and her eyes were squeezed shut as her mouth parted as wide as it could.

Axel looked ahead, past Strafe, to see his mistress. Lightning eagerly danced and coiled around her arms, traveling up to the wolf. Larxene's lighting sparked away at her command, dropping the wolf, who lay on the ground panting profusely.

Larxene strode over to the fallen creature, her whole body tight with fury and raw grace. She leaned down to the wolf's face and, her voice like poison, spat tautly: "I don't care if you're his mother. You are not to harm him. You are not to touch him.

You don't deserve this child." Larxene rose then, her back straight as she leered down at the rising wolf.

"Let this be a warning, Bellacruxia," Larxene's commanding voice was louder now as it rang around the enclosed alley. "If I see you here again, I won't hesitate to kill you."

"Kill me?!" Bellacruxia laughed haughtily, shifting into her slim human form, her pale skin barely darkened from the lightning attack. "Hah! You won't get the opportunity, you meat-bag! He is MY son, and I WILL get him back! I won't hesitate to kill you by whatever means!"

Larxene felt something stir inside her then; a feeling of primal awakening. She thought of Strafe, and of this creature who was trying to reclaim him. Larxene couldn't help but know that Strafe didn't want to leave with Bellacruxia. Larxene would protect this child from the unfair, unreasonable, and obviously wrong prospect of returning with his mother. It wasn't just about the boy, Larxene told herself truthfully, it's about what's right and what she must do for Strafe. Perhaps, had Bellacruxia come far sooner, at a time when Larxene wanted nothing to do with him, the Nymph would probably have given Strafe up then and there.

But not now. Larxene had had time to get to know this child and his pure self. Bellacruxia did not deserve a child like Strafe, much less a child at all. Larxene knew she would be a coward now to give up Strafe. Larxene also knew that if she gave him up, she would be destroying Strafe's faith in her, and that in turn would tarnish her honor and mold it into shame.

Larxene couldn't handle that.

The Savage Nymph circled Bellacruxia, the Alpha returning the gesture. "You disowned your son the moment you purposefully brought malicious intent to him, you red bitch!" Larxene spat, her now gloveless hands flexing to flash her sharp, long nails.

Bellacruxia snickered cockily. "And who are you to say that, you mangy rogue?!"

Axel surveyed the scene as he held Strafe's hand, his other one holding his chest, hoping to stop the bleeding. He turned his head now to see Demyx speeding up to them. "We had no idea where you went!" the Nocturne gasped. "It must have chased you here, didn't it?!"

Axel quickly nodded and relayed what had happened until now to his friend. Demyx was about to open his mouth when several portals materialized, and Zexion, Meytha, and Marluxia stepped throught their respective corridors. Strafe clutched Axel's arm as the newly arrived three approached him, Axel, and the Nocturne.

"Larxene?!" Marluxia exclaimed quietly, noticing the two women ahead of them all. Turning to Axel, he demanded, "What is she doing? And who the hell is that?!"

"That," Zexion answered smoothly, but with an edge to his voice, "is a Santor shapeshifter, judging by the distinctive scent."

"That," Axel added, never taking his eyes off Larxene, "as well as Strafe's mother, the Alpha female of their Pack."

Meytha's breath hitched in her throat, while Marluxia angrily gritted his teeth and watched.

This was a test of honor, right here, for them all. It was a test for the group because they were torn between helping Larxene, and standing by to respect her pride and her own honor. Should they interfere, they destroy Larxene and drown her in shame, suffocate her.

One-on-one was fair; not six-on-one, Strafe excluded.

The group watched as Bellacruxia and Larxene continued their ritual, neither one striking just yet.

Bellacruxia bared her canine teeth at the Nymph, who narrowed her eyes to slits. "Can't the red bitch do any more than show her bark?" Larxene sneered, swinging her clawed hand in front of Bellacruxia's face, purposefully reaching an inch or two from the Queen's nose.

"Oh, don't worry, whore," Bellacruxia drawled, licking her thin lips, "because I can bite, too. And believe me, it's far worse than my bark."

"Quit talking shit and prove it!" Larxene howled as she struck Bellacruxia across the neck, the Queen retaliating with a swipe across Larxene's face.


A/N: Finally, time to meet the parents! Or at least one of them anyway... And I wanted to add that part at the very beginning with Strafe and Luxord because I wanted to show that Strafe doesn't always hang with Axel and/or Larxene. Albeit I'll be the first to admit that it was probably a bit random.

And here are a couple little facts I'll just put here:
1.) When Bellacruxia is disoriented, she will often talk crap, as she did to Larxene, calling her a whore and such.
2.) Remember what I said about the Nobody and Somebody personas molding together? Yeah.
3.) Marluxia was originally intended to be the main antagonist in "Pyroelectricity".
4.) The song "Livin' La Vida Loca" by Ricky Martin totally reminds me of Axel and Larxene.

Happy Holidays!