With a bright sun overhead, Naminé strolled towards the Market Street Bank in Twilight Town. The taste of salt lingered in the air around her, raised from beneath the cliffs at her back and blown in the direction of her feet. Xion was running errands for the day, but she hadn't said where she was going. As the bank came into view ahead, Naminé got the bad feeling that she had misplaced her card. But, rummaging through her purse, she breathed a sigh of relief as her hands closed around its slight form. She retrieved it from her purse as she mounted the building's front steps, taking in another scent of the summer air before she walked inside. As usual, the air in the bank was stagnant and cold, blown in by the vents on all sides of its high ceiling. Naminé shivered in her white skirt and blouse, but shook the cold off and walked towards the counter and stood in line. When she reached the clerk, she smiled and asked for 10,000 munny from her account.
"How are you doing, Namine?" the clerk chirped.
"I'm doing wonderful," Namine sighed with relish. "How are you?" she added, and the girl sighed, moving her fingers through her hair. "I'm fine. I'm thinking of going back to school."
"Do you know what you want to do?" asked Naminé, but the woman shrugged. "My parents wanted me to be an accountant, but I'm just a clerk. Which is important. But… you know," She laughed, pulling up Namine's account. "Congrats on your art school!" She bubbled. "I'm really excited," replied Naminé, looking down. "My friend Xion and I are having a victory dinner. She got into the law school of her choice and we're both all paid, so-"
A beeping sound interrupted Naminé's relaying of good fortune, and the clerk frowned as she skimmed over the green wording on the ancient computer screen in front of her before murmuring, "It says your account's been frozen..." Then, she clamped her mouth shut and looked closer at the screen, mumbling a breathy "wow". As both glanced upwards they met each other's eyes, but the desk clerk's gaze clicked down in an instant of the contact, directed back to her computer screen while Naminé stared at her in befuddlement. "Well?" the blonde girl finally asked, adding, "What's the matter?" But the clerk shrugged. "Maybe something's wrong with the machine. I can't give you anything. Let me try again."
Naminé wrung her fingers as the clerk tried several times to access her data. Scowling, the clerk muttered that she'd call a supervisor, and in a few moments the bank manager walked from the back office of the building directly towards Naminé sporting a cool glance. With a quick smile he murmured "hello," and Naminé returned the greeting. In dispassionate inflection the man informed her that her bank was not permitted to access her account, but had been told to contact the authorities if she tried. At those words, Naminé began to back away from him in confusion and fear, stopped in her tracks by two bank cops who filed forward from the door and strode towards her. The men gripped her shoulders on either side and grumbled, "We will accompany you home," displaying their badges with deep frowns. In a daze, Naminé mumbled, "okay," in reply, and was led towards their cop car. Within moments they had her set in the backseat of the car and she was being driven towards home, like a child picked up from school, completely dependent on the actions of her guardians, completely independent of the course of her future.
As the city landscape blurred by in a sea of warm clay outside the window, Naminé racked her brain thinking of what she had done wrong. But nothing would come to mind. Then, she froze, sucking in a deep breath that made the cops at the front of the car stare back in suspicion. Forcing herself to calm down, the girl breathed in and out in steady puffs, while the clay buildings surrounding her gave way to the green forest that was the prerequisite to her mansion. Once its grey peaks came into view, and then once its warm surrounding stonewall was visible, the cop car was parked and Naminé dropped her purse as she stepped out. Two other flashing cop cars stood parked outside her house, and a normal, black sleek car was positioned close by. When Naminé drew close enough to spy the vehicle's license plate, she saw that its origin was in the City That Never Was. Then her eyes were drawn to the front door, which was unlocked.
Once inside the foyer, Naminé heard a high-pitched voice, angry but scared, calling out from the White Room, and with clenched fists the blonde broke away from the policemen and hurried towards it. Standing within were the two cops from the previously parked car, and as she rounded the corner of the doorframe, a suited man with a briefcase in hand came into view. The entry was half opened, and the three figures were visible through the slit of light that extended from the window through the space between the doorframe and the door itself. Pressing her hand to the white wood barring herself from Xion, Naminé watched as the slit of vision grew and the door fell aside. Across from the cops and suited man was Xion, backing towards the right wall of the room, shouting at a tall man standing in front of her. When Naminé focused on this man, her breath left her body and black stars invaded her vision like little writhing beetles. As Xion averted her eyes from the man at her front, she noticed Naminé slump over in the doorway, falling against its frame and to the ground. Then, letting out a gasp Xion started towards her friend, pushing past the man blocking her way, but he gripped her shoulder, murmuring in a soft voice, "I'll get her." Rushing over, he collected Naminé from her crumpled position and cradled her as if she were a porcelain doll. When she opened her eyes she whimpered.
Marluxia let his hair fall down, covering the left side of his face that was bent towards the others in the room, and smiled down at Naminé with narrowed eyes. "There's no need to worry. I've got you now."
…
With a loud sigh, Reno flicked through the limited amount of pages contained in Kid's Shinra file. They were security documents from the old surveillance system in Shinra- that had since been changed- and a bunch of military codes that Reno could not understand. Seated beside him with a pencil between her teeth was Lightning, trying to decipher the words. Suddenly, as if gifted a brilliant idea she jumped up and pointed her pencil at Reno's nose with wide eyes.
"Rabbit!" She snapped, lifting her pencil in the air. Reno stared at her in confusion before barking, "And what in the hell is that supposed to mean?" Lightning furrowed her eyebrows. "You know, the code they used for the reactors- it was the shark. There were only five animals they used as symbols- the snake, the dragon, for power and for the Wutai Wars, and then… there were others, but I distinctively remember there being a rabbit," She finished, but Reno just gaped at her. Then, with a wry smile he leaned forward, gushing, "Oh… so out of the shark, the snake, the dragon- and the rabbit- the rabbit's the ticket?" causing a frown to spread across Lightning's face.
"I'm just trying to help," She muttered, putting her head down again and chewing on her pencil. Reno sighed, rubbing his eyes and his forehead, and then stretched. The pair had been up the whole night, and Reno for one was exhausted. Max and Kid had gone home ages ago. Kid had been so disappointed with the file that he couldn't work properly, and moped around fiddling on the computer. Max had gone through two packs of cigarettes in two hours, so they told him to leave too. Reno sighed, mumbling, "I know. I'm sorry."
Lightning couldn't help but smile in return. "It's okay," She said, but her expression became puzzled as she flipped to the last page in the packet. "Look, there's a diagram on this," She commented, pointing to the rendering at its center. It seemed misplaced from the rest of the data. On its glossy front was a picture of a hand, held out in front of a calm, celestial face, with stars circling it. The style seemed hieroglyphic, yet it was apparent it had been drawn recently. Reno shrugged as he glanced over it. "Maybe someone got bored and started to doodle," He tried. Lightning smiled again. It seemed the longer she stayed up the more bearable she was to be around. But she shrugged. "It's probably important in some way, but I don't see a connection. Maybe it got bunched in with these files by accident. It's too different."
Reno paused, before his eyes flashed and he gasped, "you don't think it's a code do you?" in feigned wonder. Lightning smirked, and shrugged in reply, but Reno sprang up from his chair.
"It's the rabbit!" he whispered, and Lightning threw back her head and laughed. Then, as she tilted her visage back to Reno, her smile vanished and she put her hand over her mouth, gazing off into space. There was silence as she processed, but soon she murmured, "That's the first time I've laughed in ages," followed with a thoughtful pause. In response Reno chuckled, cocking his head to the side and grinning at her. "You should laugh more," he whispered.
Lightning smiled again and shrugged. "Well, it's been hard for me, what with everything that's..." she trailed off, a shadow passing over her eyes, and looked down at her fingers. "Since the war?" Reno offered. Lightning chuckled and shook her head, gazing out the window into the city lights. "Oh, it started before that, long before that," she sighed. The hardness that seemed ingrained on her skin crept back into her soft features, but Reno sighed and scooted beside her, folding his arms in front of him and looking out the window. Lightning interrupted his thoughts by prodding his shoulder, and he glanced at her with raised eyebrows as she opened her mouth to speak.
"Reno, why did you leave the Turks?" asked Lightning. "Why are you here?" Reno shrugged, murmuring, "I just needed a change in scenery, I guess. After my dad died I started to think about my own life. I have a little brother," he added with a chuckle. But his smile faded as he corrected, "Two little brothers," in a mutter. "Axel and Lea."
Lightning furrowed her eyebrows. "Axel?" she asked, "the one who's been convicted of the Organization Thirteen scandals?" Reno nodded in return, but elaborated, "Axel's been having a hard time. He's not fit to look after a kid let alone himself. But after the funeral I got the house. They needed it more than I did," murmured the redhead in explanation. "And besides, they needed a provider. In a way I'm giving Axel responsibility. Right?" Reno glanced towards Lightning for encouragement, but the woman was silent for a moment, tapping her pencil to her mouth.
"Do you feel selfish because you're not there?" she asked. Reno's shoulders sagged. "I guess."
"You know, I have a sibling, too," Lightning interjected. "Really?" Reno asked in reply, swiveling his chair to face her. Lightning nodded and mumbled, "Serah," in a soft hum. "Pretty name," whispered Reno in response. At this Lightning chuckled, her cheeks pinking and her face brightening. "She's smart. She got straight A's in everything. She finished college in two years, and she was teaching primary school in…New Bodhum," She trailed into a mumble, and Reno scratched his head. "New Bodhum?" He restated, but Lightning nodded, furrowing her brows.
"After the war, Cocoon was fragmented. Cities were in ruins. Bodhum was a ghost town; Hanging Edge and Lake Bresha were destroyed. Eden was hanging in the air by a thread because its power source was gone… it was no wonder that new cities sprang up in the surrounding area, Gran Pulse," She explained, "New Bodhum was one of them. They're rebuilding the old one, but now there's a new one. That's where Serah lived," she muttered, turning back to the Shinra files and rifling through them. Reno wondered at her sudden detachment.
"But, anyway," she cleared her throat, "she was teaching in New Bodhum, and then more trouble started and…" as she trailed off again she bowed her head, so that the stuttering silence that had accompanied her reflections lengthened. But it was broken by Reno's hand, raised and rested on Lightning's shoulder. Glancing into Reno's eyes, Lightning pursed her lips. "I lost my father when I was a child- my mother when I was fifteen. I looked after my little sister. She was my world," she mumbled. "I'd planned a vacation before the Purge started. We were going for my birthday, and then it happened. Everything," she chuckled. Reno stared at her as she spoke, watching her facial expressions change. Then she became hard again, pointing her finger at Reno in decision.
"It may sound stupid to you right now, but listen to your feelings," intoned the woman. "When I listened to mine it was too late. Don't forget what's important to you. If you ignore it, you may as well not have it."
After finishing, Lightning folded her arms and waited for a response. But Reno just nodded, at a loss for words. "Good," she whispered in return. Then, she coughed and started digging through the Shinra papers. "I can never talk about my personal life without sounding sanctimonious," she chuckled, adding, "I shouldn't be talking about it full stop," with a frown before growing silent again.
"Don't worry about it," tried Reno in reply, beaming, "You've had a hard day." The corners of Lightning's mouth turned up into a grin and she chuckled. "You've had a long day too, you know."
To this Reno laughed out loud and grinned. "Well, I was made to take the heat," he whispered, adding, "It's nothin' to me." Lightning looked down guiltily. Then she sighed and sat up straight with her head held high again. "Listen, about what I said when we first met…" she started, pausing a long time. Reno let her keep going.
"I said you were just a pawn of the BI, and… I just wanted to, you know…. I'm sorry," She finished at breakneck speed, and then clamped her mouth shut and folded her arms over her chest. "So there it is," She added, and Reno smiled. "What's with the grin?" she growled in response. Reno shrugged.
"It doesn't matter anymore, let's get back to work."
"No, I want to know what you were grinning at me for," snapped Lightning, but Reno put his hands up.
"Just chill out, Light," He drawled. Lightning's reply was a wide gape, before she stood stock straight and cleared her throat while Reno groaned, preparing for the rant.
"My name is Lightning Farron!" began Lightning in a boom. "I will NOT be identified by a stupid pet name! This is a professional..."
Reno watched her as she spoke, examining the contours of her face, the way she spoke, her eyes. Then, as he continued to examine her, he got an idea, and felt like it was the right thing to do. He grabbed her, pulled her close, kissed her passionately on the lips, and enjoyed the bliss. Unfortunately, the bliss didn't last too long.
After slamming her steel lined boots into his toes Lightning kneed him in the groin and punched him in the face, barely missing his nose. As he went down she slapped him hard, but while he tumbled down behind his chair and his legs flew into the air, he got the idea that he'd exercised bad judgment. Kneeling beside him and ignoring his yelps of pain as she picked him up by the scruff of the neck, Lightning glared straight into his eyes.
"Don't you ever pull that on me again, you perverted piece of shit!" she hissed, and then jumped up and stomped over to the coat rack outside of Reno's office. Reno tried hobbling over to her, but the toes on his left foot were killing him.
"Wait, where are you going? We've hardly found anything!" he shouted, and Lightning glared at him. "Find it your damn self," she barked, "I'm going home," and slammed the door behind her, leaving. Reno punched Kid's desk, hurting his hand, before deciding to go back into his office. He hobbled inside, hoping that she hadn't broken his foot, and padded around his eye tenderly. It hurt like hell. "Fuck," He whispered, and then plopped down into his desk chair, looking up at the ceiling. Sighing to himself, he directed his attention back to the papers.
While skimming down the third page he caught a familiar set of numbers, realizing that they were the old code for the file room, which had no doubt been changed. There was also a page of codes dating back to the Wutai War. Reno guessed that it was for old launch areas. A different code system had been used for the Wutai War. If Reno's team were to decipher them, they'd have to be assisted by an expert, and it was unlikely that these numbers would help their case. President Shinra had been dead five years, so it would be no use convicting him. But, perhaps there would be something connecting him to a benefactor, or someone he had angered enough to kill him.
Reno scratched his head and scribbled down some notes to himself, sighing. He felt useless. Even if he had been given this investigation because of his previous employer, he wasn't helping much. To his discomfort, He was finding that he hadn't known much about the organization he had worked for.
Unequipped, like Axel. With a frown he imagined his brother finally getting a laugh. He'd called Axel useless so many times. Thinking back on their childhood he remembered all of the times he'd made Axel cry, and all of a sudden he felt guilty. Sighing, Reno shuffled the pages of codes like a deck of cards, his vision falling again on the picture of the heavenly face. Something was gnawing at the back of his mind, telling him that it was important, but he just couldn't put his finger on it. But as he examined the picture closer he was sure that he had seen it somewhere before. Then, an idea struck him.
He hobbled out of the office and down the stairs, punched in the leaving code, and made for his car. Then, he drove to the art museum that lay on the outskirts of Midgar at about ninety miles per hour. After he'd whizzed to a stop and parked the car he hobbled over to the entrance, where the remaining museum security cop was just turning to lock up. "Hey!" Reno shouted, and the man whizzed around, his eyes going wide with anxiety as he responded, "sorry sir, museum is closed," in a shaky voice. His right hand vibrated as it hovered towards his handgun, and he pointed at Reno with his left forefinger. In reply Reno rolled his eyes, "Phil, relax. It's only me," and the little man in front of him loosened up. "Aw, man, you scared me half to death," He breathed, "What is it that you needed, old boy?" He added, and Reno grinned and pointed to the door. "I need in, Phil."
"Can't let you do that, Reno," snapped Phil in sudden return, spreading his legs out and standing like a stone in front of the doorway. "We're closed. Come again tomorrow. Open at 8," He added, but Reno chuckled and held out his badge. "It's important, Phil. I'm doing an investigation." Phil faltered at this, peering at Reno's badge. Then he narrowed his eyes. "How's Shinra?"
Reno waved his hands away from him. "That's in the past," he muttered. Phil nodded, shrugging. "Hours are hours, Reno. But if the investigation was important enough to involve me, I could make an exception." He peeped at Reno with a sheepish glance and Reno chuckled, beckoning for Phil to open the door. A beam spread across Phil's features as he turned around and took out his set of keys to open the door. After locking the front doors again, he led Reno in behind him towards the front desk. "Some of the curators are still here, but I can escort you around," he explained. "What are you investigating?" he added in an offhand way, but he wrung his palms with excitement as he spoke. "We're investigating Shinra," mumbled Reno, "I can't say much else." Phil scowled as they walked. "I'm a cop, Reno! You can tell me!"
"It's top secret stuff, Phil. Besides, you know more than the public at this point," He added. Phil glanced back at him with narrowed eyes and acquiesced, "Okay," turning around to face Reno. "So, where do you want to go?"
Reno looked around and pursed his lips. "Have you got a section with really old artwork?" he asked. "How old?" Phil replied. Reno shrugged. "Ancient."
Once he'd followed Phil into the Ancient Art section Reno got to work, peering at every relic with as detailed a glance as possible. Nothing included the heavenly face. Reno sighed. "Do you want to talk to an expert?" Phil asked and Reno nodded, to which Phil snapped, "Follow me," leading Reno through the hallway and down the stairs towards a restricted curating room. As he knocked on one of the glass entrance doors, the silhouette of a bent figure cast itself on the translucent surface, blurring as the pane it lay behind opened. A wizened old man hobbled out from inside and peered up at the pair through thick circular glasses, but stared at Reno as he asked Phil if he needed help. Phil pointed to Reno, replying, "This guy's got a few questions for you." Slipping the picture from his pocket, Reno held it out for the curator with hesitance. But as the old man took the photo from the younger man's fingers he let out a sigh and chuckled, before examining the picture more closely. A brief moment passed, and he looked up at Reno in wonder. "Who are you?" he asked. Reno pursed his lips, muttering, "sorry," and leaning closer to hear, but the old man shook his head. "I suppose it wouldn't matter now that it's done," he murmured to himself before looking up and holding out the picture for Reno. "This is a picture of the Hand of Cetra," announced the curator. Though Reno stared at him, the old man pointed at the picture.
"This is a redrawn outline of a pictograph within the Temple of the Ancients. It was one of the least known of the various depicted legends within the temple, and this is only a portion of it," He added, clearing his throat.
"This person is a Cetra," began the old man, glancing to Reno every once in a while for encouragement. "The stars describe how they traveled, and the number of stars indicate how long they traveled. The symbols on the hand indicate the search for the Promised Land, but the original pictograph depicted wisps of smoke ascending from the fingers, indicating the Cetra's deep connection with the Life stream. It's a biography of their race, so much detail in just a few strokes! It is a pity that you are only holding an outline of the original," added the curator with a sigh, "A pity that you had not seen the real thing." Then he shook his head. Reno nodded, remembering how the Temple had been destroyed years back. But why would Shinra, in the middle of thousands of military codes, hold a reprint of a goddess?
"Regardless, you are holding something very special," added the old man in a mumble, patting Reno on the back and returning to his office, glancing at Phil before he left. As he stared at the picture with new eyes, Reno nodded.
…
3 Days Later
Xehanort peered between the boughs of the trees surrounding his home and headquarters, tucked deep inside the forest on the outskirts of the City That Never Was. Collectively the area was called the Land That Never Was, but the surrounding scape of the city had been all but forgotten. To Xehanort, this was preferable. His gaze had been directed to that line of trees for a long while. He felt as though something very dear to him would culminate in their deep shadows.
A tap on his office door trained Xehanort's eyes towards his ambassador, who strolled inside the room and stood in silence before the large oaken surface. He was clothed in his usual attire, but his gloves, hat, and glasses had been discarded, revealing his scarred hands and his crystalline yellow eyes. Chuckling, Xehanort offered him a chair, but the young man stood rigid in shock, hesitating. "Sit down, Vanitas," Xehanort elaborated. As the muscles in the young man's jaws tightened he stepped forward, reaching for the seat in front of Xehanort's desk and pulling it back slowly. When he sat down, his eyes trailed narrowed from Xehanort's expression to the paperwork on his desk. Before the old man could sweep the pages into a manila folder, the boy scanned the word 'shipment', and directed his eyes upward while the folder was distributed into the desk's front drawer.
"What is it that you wanted to tell me, boy?" Xehanort asked, and Vanitas glanced up at him.
"The girl Naminé is due for her Disney City court case in four days," murmured the dark boy, "A meeting with the king has been scheduled. The proceedings have been documented in the news. But there is a new problem." Xehanort stared at him in silent expectance.
"A file from Shinra is missing," murmured the boy in hissed response, and Xehanort's fingers curled around the arms of his chair as he growled, "What?"
"While documenting Shinra files before destroying them, it was discovered that one folder was missing," hurried Vanitas. "It held various insignificant military codes dating from the Wutai War. But, there was one piece of information that seemed to have been misplaced, deposited within it by accident."
"The memory code for Zack Fair?" Xehanort ventured, and Vanitas nodded. Xehanort stroked his chin. "Well, then," the old man sighed finally, "We must be prepared to lose Sephiroth. I am disappointed. He had hardly any time to carry out his job." Directing his gaze out the back window once again, the tendons that circled around the bones of his neck flexed as he ground his teeth. "I had Shinra in the palm of my hands," he seethed, sighing. "If it weren't for my associates I would command two regions by now," as he glanced at Vanitas and narrowed his calculating eyes, Vanitas stared back at him, his heart beating harder. A foreboding presence draped itself about his shoulders and he shook, making his master exhale the breath he had previously held.
"You have been a satisfactory assistant, despite everything," Xehanort murmured, "You are like a son to me." The tenseness in Vanitas' shoulders dissipated. "Yes, former," whispered the boy, but Xehanort chuckled, staring at Vanitas as he tried to stand. Then he tapped his cane and gripped its handle so that Vanitas seated himself again. While the young man waited in earnest, Xehanort touched his forefinger to his temple, rubbing in between his eyes in displeasure.
"I was going to delay giving you this sour news, but now is as good a time as any," the old master sighed and Vanitas' jaw tightened again, "I don't suppose you remember your condition nine years ago, just before you were supplied with your first batch of neotenebrin?" Xehanort inquired. Vanitas winced, glancing away with a smoldering gaze. Xehanort chuckled. "Five years after my son first supplied you with heartless medication our store was exhausted. Thankfully, at the end of those five years we discovered the machine Maleficent used to create synthetic heartless. Do you recall what occurred next?"
Vanitas' eyes grew wide as he was forced to explain. "New heartless were created. Maleficent was arrested and the machine destroyed," he snapped. Xehanort nodded. "Due to the efforts of the BI, the heartless have reached extinction, and with them, neotenebrin. Maleficent's machine is destroyed. My eldest son is gone. Ansem's reports do not provide sufficient blueprints to recreate the mechanism."
"Has my current medicine store run out?" Vanitas interrupted. Xehanort stared at him. But as the old man leaned forward Vanitas shrunk back with uneasiness. "Next month's batch is coming as we speak. But that is the end, Vanitas."
The young man gulped as he stared at his master, processing the statement in his mind while opening and closing his mouth in disbelief. "Is there any way to... avoid..." Vanitas tried, taking deep breaths, but Xehanort shook his head. "Xemnas would be our sole hope. But the way things are moving at this point, it would take years to acquire funds and security to carry out such experiments to create new neotenebrin."
Vanitas rubbed his hair violently and stood, leaning towards Xehanort on desperate impulse. "I will work harder," he hissed, "I will kill Zack Fair myself." With a responding chortle Xehanort held up his hand and Vanitas ceased talking, his shoulders still taught with movement and his nostrils flaring with breath. "Perhaps you should have examined your work ethic ten years back, when you failed to create the X-blade with Ventus," Xehanort intoned. A whine escaped Vanitas throat, but he did not speak. His scarred fingers were curled into deep fists. Xehanort scowled at Vanitas, before standing with the support of his cane.
"Do not think this is easy for me to impart," growled the man. "I am losing a gifted assailant. I will now have no trustworthy counterpart to assist me." Vanitas nodded at this in eager agreement, but Xehanort glanced at him with a cold gaze.
"The only way to rectify this problem is through trust," explained Xehanort. "I do trust you!" Vanitas cried out in reply, but Xehanort tapped his cane on the ground and glowered at Vanitas, who fell back in his chair with his head in his hands, his shoulders shaking with anger. "Remember, Vanitas," Xehanort intoned. Then, the rims of his eyes softened, though yellow jacket irises that bored into his skull still shone with intensity. "I created you," he whispered, gentle. "Your life is within my hands. You must show me that it is worth my effort."
Though Vanitas gritted his teeth and blinked in rapid succession, he nodded. "You may go," Xehanort replied, and Vanitas rose up and stalked towards the door. Then, an idea entered Xehanort's mind as he sat back down in his chair, prompting him to stop Vanitas from departing. "Sephiroth has three sons, am I correct?" he asked. Vanitas nodded and Xehanort smiled. "Wonderful," then, he glanced at Vanitas, who in bitter understanding left.
…..
As he shuffled his feet in front of Xigbar's house Axel inhaled a deep breathe. Then, dismissing any apprehensive notions within his mind, he trudged to the front door. Because Xigbar was more informative in person and because Axel was in dire need of a witness, he had braved the journey to the man's home with hope, and after he knocked on the door his heart fluttered when a commotion occurred behind its wooden surface. A few moments later Xigbar opened it, but the smile he had been sporting fell as he muttered, "What do you want?" glancing over Axel's shoulder and towards the street. Uncomfortable, Axel tried to laugh in reply, "Ziggy, I just wanted to ask you something," but Xigbar shook his head. "I won't be a witness to your case, not with who's involved."
"You mean Xehanort?" responded Axel in a low voice, shocked at Xigbar's abruptness, but then Susan called from inside the house asking who was there. Pursing his lips, Xigbar turned around and roared, "It's just a charity, darling; I'll take care of it," before redirecting his attention to the redhead before him.
"Give them a little something, would you honey?" called Susan further, and Xigbar closed his eyes in irritation but said okay. Then, he glanced straight into Axel's eyes, wetting his lips as he decided with care what he would say. "It's more than the pact, for me," began the man, trailing off with knitted brows. "It's a part of my life that I don't want to remember, I don't want to be involved in that."
In response Axel chuckled in anger and asked, "What the hell are you talking about?" while Xigbar rested his head on his arm. "My father was part of a lie," muttered the man. "I don't want to be a part of that same lie." With another chuckle of anger Axel stomped his foot. "But I'm innocent, Xigbar! Well, legally I am. Doesn't ignoring that make you part of the lie anyway?"
As Xigbar looked up at him in agitation Axel leaned in closer to him. "I don't know what happened with your dad," he whispered, "But you don't have to give away the old man. You just have to tell the jury that I was an okay guy," Axel pleaded. But Xigbar was adamant. "If I testified, I'd have to give away the old man. It's just… I'm sorry Axel. You're on your own," He finished, and Axel gritted his teeth and scowled, tearing himself away from the front door and lumbering down the steps towards the sidewalk, refusing to look at Xigbar once more. Cupping his hands over his mouth, Xigbar called out, "Remember, Axel, we were never buddies. I don't owe you anything," with narrowed eyes, and Axel nodded. "I know. I was just asking a favor," He added, but Xigbar shook his head, before going inside and closing the door.
There was one last member of the Organization that Axel could apply to for help, but he dreaded the encounter. Even so, he trudged to the train station, paid for his ticket, and stepped into the third arriving train car. Before snuggling against the glass window to his side, he sat down with a straight back and waited for it to start up. As always, the train lurched and then pulled forward, and as Axel glanced out the window to his side he remembered the pact. How long ago had it been now? It had been four years since the first member had been carted off to jail, so… five years ago, maybe six? That was when the pact had been formed. The exact memory of how it happened was etched into the back of Axel's mind. Everyone sat in a circle and Xemnas talked to them about someone that would be financing them, keeping them under wraps. Then Xehanort emerged. He was old and powerful. They all made the pact, saying that they would not snitch.
Axel wondered what would happen if he broke the pact. Would his family be targeted? Reno was already working for the Investigation Bureau, so he could take care. But if Axel went to jail, Lea would be stuck. He'd have to move to Midgar and live with Reno.
Midgar, a drab metropolis, damaged by a broken mako reactor and a meteor that had hit it two years ago. And Axel had heard about some sort of disease outbreak there called Geostigma. What if the stuff was still floating around? The residents had been given medicines and vaccines, but what about Lea? He'd have to get vaccinated, and Axel heard that it was painful, but even that did not guarantee his safety from its side effects. The city's crime was horrid. And while Reno left for work at seven in the morning and didn't come back until the wee hours of the morning, Lea would be his sole caretaker in a place he hardly knew. Suddenly, Axel felt sick. Then the train lurched forward and stopped. The monitor called "Destiny Islands" across the intercom system, and when Axel stepped out from the train car he breathed a sigh of relief as the evening air hit his face. The housing district was a ten-minute walk away, and Axel trudged towards it with his hands stuck into the base of his pockets. As he walked, he rehearsed his introduction. But when the house in question came into his immediate view, Axel clamped his mouth shut and jogged to its front step, ringing the doorbell and waiting. A few moments later, Marluxia opened it.
A glimmer of giddiness passed over the glare of his pupils, but their brilliant blue flash gave way to a set of dull, lubricated irises laid inside a pair of heavy lids. It was this expression of nonchalance that colored the man's visage when his mind was switched on; the eyelashes shielding the balls of his eyes like blinds, concealing the reflection of his thoughts. The discomfort that had plagued Axel upon his visit to Xigbar doubled, but he persisted. "Hey, Marly!" the man grinned, shuffling his feet. "Hello Axel," Marluxia returned. Then, after a moment's silence, he slipped his hands from his hips and extended his palm inside his house in indication. But ensuing short passage of time, punctuated by the cracking of Axel's knuckles within his pockets held the man rooted before the threshold of Marluxia's inhabitance. But, with gritty teeth, he barreled inside and raised his arms over his head, glancing around him with curiosity. The living room was rank with the smell of roses.
With raised eyebrows Marluxia observed Axel's behavior and locked the front door behind him, to which Axel apologized, "Just felt dizzy there," with a chuckle. Marluxia pointed to a vase of roses over the mantel, but Axel shook his head again. "It's not the smell," he mumbled, only a partial lie. Marluxia nodded and headed towards the kitchen. "Do you want some water?" he asked, but Axel shrugged, sitting down on Marluxia's couch. The surroundings were impeccably clean, sterile and controlled. The vase of roses perched on the mantelpiece held eleven flowers situated the same distance apart from each other. As he glanced at them Axel chuckled again, though he clung to his knees.
When Marluxia returned from the kitchen he sat across from Axel and handed him his glass of water. "How are you?" asked the pink haired man, sipping on his own drink. Axel shrugged, responding, "How have you been?" In return Marluxia grinned and played with the pink tips of his hair. Axel stared at him as he spoke.
"I received the most curious call from a girl's school in Pulse titled "L'Académie Pour Les Petite Débutantes, about Naminé, just five days ago," explained the pink haired man with a smile. "According to them, I called the day before in regards to Naminé, and they were returning the call," then Marluxia pointed to himself. "I did not call them, Axel. But they provided me with the most intriguing information." Then, he leaned forward. "Through polite conversation I discovered that Naminé is lacking a birth certificate. I saw promise in that statement, and now there is a full-scale investigation to discover her age. It was in the news," he added, hunting around the side of the couch and throwing a newspaper at Axel. Sure enough, on the front cover was a doe- eyed Naminé being carted into a police car. She was frazzled and disheveled, a trodden flower. Her article heading read 'Orphan Billionaire Discovered to be a Mere Child Along With Accomplice!' after which began a detailed account of her predicament.
Snorting, Axel let the newspaper fall to the ground as he set his arms over his chest and shook his head. In amusement Marluxia watched him narrow his eyes and respond, "You and I both know that Naminé is the same age as Sora and his friends." But in reply Marluxia shrugged and sipped his water, examining Axel's worry with intrigue. "Why the sudden concern, Axel?" cooed the older man. "Are you worried you'll lose out on Naminé's money?"
Axel clenched his hands into fists as Marluxia laughed at him. "What is it you came for, Axel?" added the pink haired man, setting his water to his lips again. Though his nostrils flared, Axel sighed. "I need witnesses for my case," blurted out the red head. Pausing, Marluxia narrowed his eyes and set his water down on the living room coffee table, cocking his head to the side as he examined Axel's stony expression. Another passage of time stretched out before the two men, but as Marluxia cleared his throat his companion's insides fluttered. "You know Axel," murmured the older man, "I've been thinking lately. About you, and about your case. I was thinking- should I help him, or should I help Xemnas?" he whispered, holding both arms balanced on either side to represent a set of scales. A smile crossed his face as he reasoned, "Both of you were enemies, so I really shouldn't support either of you."
Though Axel frowned, Marluxia sighed, continuing, "I certainly have a wealth of information regarding your transactions with Xion. I was entrusted with them after being released from jail. Isn't that something? I was in jail for two years, but I was released early because I was intelligent. Xemnas wasn't as intelligent as he made himself out to be. When Xehanort found that his son was a failure he stopped assisting him," Marluxia explained. "The reason Xemnas' plan fell apart was because Xehanort relinquished his support."
Then Marluxia looked straight into Axel's eyes. "Because you do know if you had tried to meddle when Xehanort was still involved, you would have been shot dead. Or worse. Maybe all the while your invincibility complex has egged you on." Axel's glower stopped Marluxia's speech, making the older man raise his eyebrows and lean back against his chair. "If anyone had an invincibility complex it was you," hissed the red head. In return Marluxia chuckled and clapped his hands, before pointing to Axel with his left outstretched forefinger. "Did you think you were too sly to be caught, Axel?" he snickered. Axel resumed his silence and looked away. With a grin Marluxia shrugged, and reverted back to his previous subject. "Xehanort may believe the information concerning you, Xion, and Sora has been destroyed. But I've got the security tapes, Axel. And the way they play, you were talking with the police."
"And?" Axel snapped, leaning forward. Marluxia's smile grew. Then he stood and moved towards Axel, seating himself with deliberate pace. His left hand raised and rested with a gentle caress on Axel's upper thigh, but when axel squirmed, Marluxia's grip tightened. Then, raising his right arm and slipping it around Axel's shoulder, Marluxia leaned close to the red head's ear, stroking from the base of his neck to the underside of his jaw with the tips of his fingers. "I could help you," whispered the man, his lips meeting with Axel's ear. As Marluxia's lips trailed to the base of his neck, Axel leaned back and cocked his head to the side, staring at the ceiling in deliberation. "This is your weapon of choice, isn't it, Axel?" Marluxia cooed, as he set his hand between Axel's legs, rubbing from one thigh to the next. With gritted teeth Axel's pushed Marluxia back, but the man caught his hand and bent close to his face. "I could testify against you too, you know!" he hissed. The red head whipped around to stare at Marluxia, and his eyes widened. "Why?" he cried in bewilderment, but Marluxia grinned. "I had the most dealings with you in Castle Oblivion, I know you better than all of them! I could make or break your case!"
"You would break the pact?" Axel breathed. Marluxia shrugged. "I broke the pact when I attempted to take over the organization. So did you," he added with a grin, "but I was going to tell you to think of your brother."
Axel's fingers shook with livid energy, and without second thought the muscles from his right shoulder to the base of his abdomen flexed as their extremity sought Marluxia's nose. With a yelp, Marluxia ducked, but Axel's swing caught his cheek and he howled in pain. Enraged, Axel jumped from the couch and headed for the door, his exit thwarted when Marluxia grabbed him by the hair pulled him back, sending the man tumbling to the ground.
"You asshole!" roared Marluxia, his knuckles white as they pursued Axel's face in return. "If you've broken my jaw I'll kill you!"
"Sorry to mess up your mug, Marluxia," sneered Axel in response. He was swifter than Marluxia, able to dodge the man's strikes, and as the young man's head veered to the side of Marluxia's punch, the older man's hand hit the floor and incited another howl. But amidst wild laughter from Axel, Marluxia's breath caught in his throat when his opponent kneed him in the groin. Recovering as Axel hurried into the front hall, the pink-headed man jumped up again, a glower simmering over his flushed skin as the red head reached for the front doorknob. "It's either you or Lea!" Marluxia croaked, and Axel whipped around, ready to come at him again. "I wouldn't let Lea near you, you sick fuck!" hissed the young man as he advanced, raising his fists higher. But Marluxia held up his own in defense, the ends of his mouth twitching in wild excitement as he responded, "I didn't mean me, Axel, I meant Midgar. Do you know what the crime is like there? The trafficking?"
Axel's arms halted, and he lowered them and unclenched his fists in shock as Marluxia grinned. "He wouldn't stand a chance," the older man elaborated, rising up from his knees. "Lea's too cute. He's too much like you," he added, glancing at Axel from under his eyelashes. After a brief stare, Axel chuckled in disbelief and shook his head, making Marluxia grimace before he donned an uncaring expression and pulling himself onto the couch. "Being the sibling of an Investigation Bureau goon has got to bring some enemies to mind in search of revenge," the man snarled. To this, Axel was silent. He contemplated, before pursing his lips in indignation and trudging to the door. "But of course it was a useless proposition," Marluxia snapped after him, making Axel turn again in hesitation. Wetting his lips, the pink haired man shrugged and chuckled, his eyelids growing heavy as the lenses within clicked.
"Members of Organization Thirteen only think about number one, number one's well-being, number one's happiness... and if keeping someone else safe and sound makes us happy, then good for us," sneered the pink haired man. "But it doesn't make a difference. The real test I think, would be sacrificing something of one's self to make another's life easier. We're not so different, Axel," he added in a low voice, and Axel's shoulders tensed. A strange calmness washed over the room, a dead stillness that could be taken advantage of. Standing, Marluxia walked over to Axel and rested his hands on the man's unmoving shoulders, trailing his mouth down the nape of Axel's neck as he kissed it gently. Amidst the sensation Axel closed his eyes and tried to make a clear decision, but his thoughts were blurring.
"Perhaps you should grow up, Axel," Marluxia hissed. His hands reached down to Axel's wrists, and the red head allowed his companion to pull him to the couch and lay him down on its cover. Then, as Marluxia stepped above him and moved his hips between Axel's thighs, time seemed to tick again. He pushed Axel's shirt under his armpits and traced salivated circles around his hips, kissing his nipples and humming. Axel laid his head back and tried to steady his heart as Marluxia smiled down at him. "You're making that face again," Marluxia murmured. Axel looked up in agitation. "What face?" he snapped.
Marluxia grinned wider. "When you came trying to get information about Xion. You were always so nonchalant when we had sex. It was boring," Marluxia drawled, "then when I finally pushed your comfort zone, you backed out. I just want to see how far you can go this time," he sneered in Axel's ear, biting it hard. Shuffling in discomfort Axel tried to turn away, but Marluxia grabbed his face and thrust it back, causing an anxious giggle to ascend from the recesses of Axel's throat in strange, agitated spasm. The man's hands flew to Marluxia's chest and pushed against him, lengthening the distance between their bodies as he murmured, "Okay, Marluxia, calm down, I'll look," through a forced grin. But Marluxia tightened his grip on Axel's jaw and shook the man's head hard, so that the red head shut his eyes and sucked in a breath. His chest shook with spasms of laughter that he could not control, though his heart hammered through his ribs in fear. He was lightening, vulnerable though he was not meant to be that way. His thoughts fluttered inches above his head, a stream of consciousness whose tendril fingers crawled up in terrible anticipation.
As he stroked Axel's chin, Marluxia grinned at him. Then he gripped Axel's hands in one arm and pressed his weight against him, using his other hand to remove his belt. When Axel heard the chink of the buckle he began to struggle, flinging himself forward as he howled for help. Just when the older man succeeded in tying Axel's hands, the red head kicked him in the face and propelled himself from the couch. But before Axel could untie the belt from around his wrists, Marluxia grabbed him by the hair and pulled him back, slapping him and getting his jaw in his hands again. "You are infuriating!" the older man hissed through puffs of labored breath. Axel felt black dots creeping into the sides of his vision, but as he tried to blink away unconsciousness he looked for a door that his psyche could creep towards.
"I changed my mind," panted Axel, squirming and averting his gaze from Marluxia. "Too late," Marluxia replied.
...
With heightened care, Axel closed Marluxia's door behind him and slipped his hood over his eyes, massaging his throat as he stumbled down the road. He winced every time he moved his legs, and cursed under his breath, which grew heavy until he began to gulp. Black maggots crawled before his vision as he sucked in breath and his throat opened, and holding his stomach and bending forward, he staggered to a group of bushes at the edge of a neighbor's yard and wretched, coughing and wiping his mouth afterwards. Spitting in disgust, he glanced around the perimeter of the residence, chuckling as he spotted a hose at its right side. After unwinding it and coaxing water through it, he brought it to the bushes and sprayed them down.
The sun was low in the sky, offering Axel an approximation of the time. While rubbing the toes within his shoes, the man examined the scatterings of red blasted like a halo around the sinking body in absence of thought. Then, turning, he walked to the train station as fast as he could, panting with pain as he descended the stairs to the subway and as he boarded the train itself. Though exhausted he preferred to stand, and as the train moved he clung to the railing overhead, examining the exposed wrists extending from the black sleeves of his jacket. First he thought of going home and taking another shower. But as time passed, and he saw that the next stop was Twilight Town, his mind changed. Once the wheels beneath his feet were stilled, and once he was off the train, he walked with slow, careful steps. People stared at him as he passed, and in discomfort he bent his head, watching his feet as they moved forward. When he reached Roxas' house he ascended the front steps and rang the doorbell, but while he waited for an answer he checked his face in a puddle at the edge of the stairs. His eye and cheek were black. There were bruises on his neck that he pushed his hair over.
Finally Axel heard the sound of padding feet inside the door, and he sighed in relief when Roxas opened its frame. But shame quickly constricted his throat and bent his head, so that he could only mumble a hello. In Axel's new line of vision, Roxas legs went rigid and then shuffled. There was silence until the boy's right foot rose, and he stepped forward and touched the sides of Axel's face, turning it up and tilting it to the side. His eyes widened.
"Honey, is something wrong?" Roxas' mother called from the kitchen, but Roxas pursed his lips. "No, nothing's wrong," he called back. Then he slipped his hand around Axel's palm and brought the man through the hall and up the stairs to his bedroom. As they climbed, the red head glanced about with furrowed brows. "Where's Ventus?" he inquired. "Xion brought him to the clock tower," Roxas responded, "they've been at the beach the whole day."
"That's nice," Axel sighed in relief, and Roxas stared at him. Once the boy opened his door Axel trudged inside and stood in the room's center, lifting closed eyes and trying to relax the tension in his muscles. "Do you want to sit down?" Roxas asked, hopping on his bed. Snorting, Axel shook his head, and Roxas stared at him. Then, he slipped off of his bed and tiptoed towards his friend, lifting up the sleeves of the man's hoodie and gasping at the welts laid into his thin wrists. When he tried to lift the man's shirt, Axel pushed him away.
"Axel… what happened to you?" whispered Roxas, clinging to the front of Axel's jacket, but the red head shrugged. "It's nothing," he tried to say, but his voice cracked. "Just tell me who, Axel," Roxas muttered. "M-," started Axel, but stopped. Roxas searched his friend's downturned eyes for some glimmer of truth, and when he found it, his own widened, before their lids fluttered down and the brows above them knitted together.
"Um, Axel?" Roxas started, exhaling before he pursued, "Did he…"
"No," mumbled, squirming, but Roxas stood up and paced. "Why would you let him do that to you?" he sputtered, and Axel rubbed his forehead. "I don't know, he started talking about Lea, and," then he fell silent, refusing to speak further on the point. Roxas was livid. "I always knew he was a scumbag," he seethed, "but I didn't think,"
Before Roxas could continue, Axel interrupted with a snort, hissing, "and are we even on the same page here?" To which Roxas snapped back "yes". Then he softened and folded his arms in from of him, halting his pacing as he landed at the left side of the bed beside his anchor chain, which coiled around the foot of his desk. "I'm your best friend," murmured the boy. "I can read your mind." At first Axel smiled, but then the brief flutter of happiness that rested inside his stomach burnt out, and he prodded the area around his right side, wincing with pain. While he did so Roxas examined him. The silence stretched until Axel rubbed at his eyes and muttered, "Maybe I enjoyed it. I came," he added, his voice faltering against his will. Roxas stamped his foot on the ground.
"Coming doesn't mean shit!" barked Roxas. "Science proves it happens naturally, it doesn't mean you-!" he sputtered on the last part, his cheeks flushing pink in agitation. Then, he dashed to his closet for his phone and wallet and shoved them in his pockets. "What are you doing?" Axel asked as Roxas beckoned for him to come to the door. "We're going to the doctor," Roxas replied, but Axel shook his head. In response, Roxas stood seething in the doorway, his jaw open in disbelief. "Why not?" whined the boy. Then, he bit his lip and pointed his finger at Axel, accusing. "He raped you! What if you're bleeding? What if you get an infection? Don't be a cowa..." Too late Roxas realized what he was saying and sucked in a deep breath, moving back to his friend, whose head and back crumpled into his chest like folded paper.
"Roxas…?" Axel mumbled, but he couldn't say anything else. Roxas interwove Axel's trembling fingers in his own, clasping Axel's hand with surprising strength. They stood in silence as the sun sank in the sky.
"I've been hiding inside people," Axel mumbled. Roxas glanced at him, quiet, and squeezed his hand.
"You were crying a lot," he murmured matter-of-factly. Axel shrugged and sighed. "I'm a soft kid, Roxas. Reno's the hardest headed one of us all," he added with a twinge of jealousy. Roxas shook his head. "No way, Axel."
Axel chuckled, and then looked up at the sunset, at its slivered form sinking down beneath the ground on the horizon. "You know, I think that might be why Lea hates me so much!" he conjectured. "We're so alike. You should've seen the tears after he found out he'd be staying with me two years back. He's such an angry kid," he added. Then he pondered in silence, before sighing, "I thought that I'd truly changed after I'd met Saix." His lips pursed as he spoke and he rubbed his eyes again, pressing his fingers around their borders and then padding around his eyebrows and temple. "He was the only person I knew who didn't target my weak points. Well, until Organization Thirteen," Axel mumbled, smiling in memory. "When I teased him he'd just laugh. He knew I was soft," then his smile faded. "Maybe it was bad for me, you and I being friends. You were so small. I felt like a kid."
"You don't have to explain this." Murmured Roxas, but Axel shook his head.
"Roxas..." he started, and it was hard for him to continue. "I'm really sorry for that promise. You never expected me to find her did you?"
"No," Roxas replied. Axel nodded. "I should have said no. Maybe it is time for me to grow up."
"Oh, Axel," Roxas said with a sad smile, "Marluxia really did mess you up, huh?"
Axel snorted, shrugging. "If that's the first taste of what prison is going to be like, I'm out."
"We'll keep you out," Roxas murmured.
Then Axel shoved his hands into his pockets. "Oh, he said something about Naminé," he added, changing the subject with bright inflection. Roxas looked up in confusion. "Why would he?" A disgusted expression crept into his features but Axel shook his head. "It was before... you know," he explained, averting his gaze before continuing, "He's trying to adopt her again because she doesn't have a birth certificate."
Roxas' eyes widened. "He's the one that's spurred the investigation," he murmured, and Axel raised his brows in surprise. "You know about it?" he asked, and Roxas snorted. "Of course I know about it," mumbled the boy. "It's been on every Twilight Town news station for the past few days." Axel shrugged in response. "He showed me a newspaper article about it," added the man, "They're making it out like Naminé and Xion are two kid criminals," Roxas scowled and replied, "Xion has had to have a cop tail her for the past few days. They're afraid she and Naminé will try to run away."
Axel stared at him in shock. "Why didn't you tell me this was going on?" he murmured. Roxas shrugged, trying not to get upset. "I didn't want to think about it. If they take Xion away I don't know what I'll do," he gulped. Axel glowered, clenching his fists again. He'd been standing for an hour now and he was getting tired. "Well if they take Naminé I don't know what I'll do," Axel snapped. Roxas frowned in confusion. "She's paying for my lawyer, Roxas," Axel whispered and Roxas closed his eyes and rubbed them in despair. Then he opened them and nodded to himself, thinking. "She'll find a way out of this. She never gives up," he beamed.
"She was prone to at one point," Axel mumbled, and Roxas grimaced, tugging on Axel's hoodie sleeve.
"But she's not like that anymore. She's changed! You know it!"
"She's gotten lots of money- thanks to Ansem!" Axel reasoned in exasperation.
"I don't know about that," Roxas replied, and Axel frowned.
"You mean you don't think that the money was meant for Naminé?" He murmured. Roxas furrowed his brows, faltering. "Some part of her has to know it's true. Ansem was never kind to her. He tried to dispose of her," he reasoned, hatred in his eyes. "His generosity was selfish, 'all for one and no one else'," Roxas muttered, and Axel chuckled. "Well, he changed too."
Roxas shrugged. Then, worry creeped into his features. "She does know he didn't love her, right?"
Axel scratched the back of his head and sighed. "Naminé responds to kindness, Roxas."
"You think that's what's keeping her going?" Roxas asked in sudden anxiety.
"It doesn't matter if it is or isn't," Axel replied, "Everyone likes to think that someone loves them, just for themselves, right?" Roxas nodded in response and gripped Axel's sleeve harder, holding onto it like a child to its brother, as he whispered, "Then don't tell her I said what I said- never give her the thought." Chuckling, Axel replied, "I won't tell her," and Roxas smiled. "Thanks Axel. You..." he started hesitantly, and then he leaned over and rested his temple on Axel's bent forehead, looking into Axel's eyes. "You're my best friend, Axel. I love you just for yourself," he said, "and I mean that." In response Axel mumbled, "thanks" and averted his eyes, shuffling to one side of the room and wiping them. His eyes fell on Roxas' fish lamp and he chuckled. It was spherical and a deep greenish blue, the color of the sea, with a light bulb inside. The orange fish orbiting its center had individual lights inside them, not as bright as the bulb inside the middle of the lamp, but soft and glowing regardless. They circled around and around the lamp as Axel's eyes trailed their movements. He shook his head. "I hated the sea until I met you," muttered the man. "We still haven't gone to the beach," Roxas tried but Axel shook his head and pointed to the lamp.
"I'll settle for your room," he murmured. "I wish I could stay in it forever," he added, glancing at Roxas with sadness. Roxas chuckled and ran his fingers through Axel's hair, smoothing it out. "You just prefer it because it's not your own."
"I never liked my bedroom." Axel retorted, and Roxas chuckled. "Do you like anything about your old house?"
Axel nodded at this, and thought for a moment. "My parents' bedroom," He said finally, and he heard Roxas chuckle again. "What's so funny?" Axel snapped, and Roxas shrugged. "Doesn't matter."
Outside, the sun in Twilight Town had finally set, bathing the city in beautiful light farewell. "Amazing how much things change, huh?" Roxas whispered. "Right now Ventus and Xion are probably eating sea salt ice cream on the clock tower." Axel chuckled and sighed, massaging his fingers. Then he turned for the door, deciding to leave. Roxas looked after him with furrowed brows. "Are you going to report it?" he asked, and Axel paused, before he shook his head.
"Why not?" Roxas responded in exasperation, but Axel turned around and gave him a hard look. "Because I can't, Roxas," he snapped, "It's none of your business," and started to leave, but Roxas jumped forward and pulled him back. "You know you could stay longer," offered the boy, an imploring smile cocking his head. "You don't have to leave."
"I have to pick up Lea." Axel mumbled, and Roxas held his hand tighter, not letting go. "You don't have to pick him up just yet."
Axel sighed, and lost his temper. "I want to have some time to recuperate before I have to meet up with Ventus!" he snapped, before he could shut his mouth. Roxas looked at Axel with a peculiar, distant expression. Then, the skin around his eyes and mouth wrinkled as they contorted into a grimace. "You must really hate yourself to do all this stuff," Roxas muttered, and Axel's shoulders fell again, his resolution leaving him. "What of it?" he snapped. Roxas reached out and caught Axel's wrists, rubbing the parts not bruised and swollen with his fingertips. Then, his palms unfolded and he slid them up around Axel's back, holding him close as he rested his head against the man's chest. "I think I torture you," he mumbled. Axel nodded, muttering, "you don't know the half of it," and Roxas laughed. "I don't mean to."
Then he looked up at Axel and held him by the shoulders. "Axel, I hope someday you cherish the people who love you for you, not the person you pretend to be," whispered the boy, smiling and holding Axel's face. "I hope you find someone who can give you everything." Roxas' look was strange when he said this. Shadows from the setting sun played on the walls and his skin, making his eyes looked feline like Ventus'. Or there was something in his eyes akin to Ventus'. Axel glanced over at the fish lamp longer before he decided to leave. Then he sighed, "Well, I'd better get going," and stood. Roxas stared at him as he went to the door before clearing his throat. "Are you having sex with him?"
In shock, Axel stared back. "What the hell do you think I'm doing?" the man barked in defense, "Having tea with him?" and Roxas shook his head in reply, staring away. His shoulders heaved, and Axel stared at him as the boy turned back with red eyes. "Is it because he looks like me?" he breathed, inhaling and exhaling controlled breaths. Gaping, Axel hurried to Roxas and rubbed his shoulders. "Of course not!" breathed the red head, but Roxas shook his head in disbelief. "Then why?" he shot at Axel, who shut his mouth and went red in the cheeks. Roxas whimpered in disgust and Axel scowled, not wanting to tell the truth.
"Why bother saying the truth?" a voice in his head hissed. "You've always disgusted him anyway." Axel gnashed his teeth and broke away from Roxas, shoving his hands in his pockets and heading for the door. "It doesn't matter. I'll see you around. Take care," he muttered, and trudged into the hallway just as a commotion rose up from the living room. When Axel peered down the stairs towards the front hall he spied Ventus and Xion walking inside, and just as Ventus' gaze was directed to his, he froze. The blond boy blinked up at him in surprise, before narrowing his eyes and staring at Roxas, who'd come out after Axel.
"Did you come here to visit me?" cooed the boy, and Axel's hands balled into fists. Lost for words, Xion could only stare with an open mouth at the exchange, as Axel barreled down the stairs past the party and out onto the front porch. In a whisper Ventus asked Roxas what was wrong, and Roxas bent his head towards Ventus' ear, his head cocked to the side like a lover. Tearing his face away from the pair, Axel noted Roxas' mother peeking out the curtains of the front window that looked onto Roxas' street. The pair met eyes, and Roxas mother smiled and waved at him, before shutting the blinds and disappearing. With a sigh, Axel descended the front steps and headed down the street, noting a cop car pulling down the paved road in the opposite direction he walked. It must have been Xion's attendant.
All he could see as he moved towards the train station was Roxas' disgust. He tried to remember how Roxas had told him he loved him, but he shook his head. "Liar," he mumbled to himself, kicking up dust in front of him. "I would never- not to you-" he faltered, but fell silent as he reached the station. His body was exhausted yet he stood on the train, his mind buzzing. Once in Disney City, he stumbled off the platform and headed towards his house, dreading the hour when Ventus would visit him. He realized the boy wanted something from him that he could never give. But, when he reached his front door it wasn't Ventus that greeted him.
It was Naminé. Her hair was disheveled, and she was wearing an old hoodie and shorts.
"Hi, Axel," breathed the girl in a high-pitched voice, but then shut her mouth. Axel glanced about to see if a cop was accompanying her, but there were none around. But tired, he dismissed it and opened the door, Naminé slipping in behind him as he shut it. Immediately the girl wrapped her arms around him and began kissing his face and neck, gripping his shoulders with curled fingers that pressed into the bruises on his skin.
Sucking in a deep breath, Axel's stomach lurched and he shoved Naminé away from him, letting the girl tumble to the ground. As her shins hit the floor she cried out in pain, but Axel turned and hurried into the kitchen to put on hot water, trying to ignore her. When she scrambled to her knees and peeked inside the kitchen arch, watching Axel with big blue eyes as he worked. He could feel the presence of her glance on his back, and in irritation he snapped, "what do you want?" causing Naminé to cower against the arch wall, clinging to its frame with knuckle white hands. Then she hiccupped, and began to sob. "Oh, Axel, I'm so sorry," she gulped.
"What's the matter, Naminé?" Axel muttered with shaking hands, not looking at her. "What's wrong?"
Though Naminé hesitated; it was only a split moment before words began to stream from her lips as fast as her tears did from her eyes. "I can't pay for your lawyer anymore. My housing situation is under fire. I can't use my money- they might give it to my new 'guardian'." She hissed. Then, she backed off and tried to calm down, mumbling incoherent syllables to herself as her breaths gave way to throaty whines.
"I'm sorry. I don't know why I can't control myself. I just, I wanted to help you so much… so, if you want…" she said finally, glancing up at him. Axel stood with his hands clung to the side of the kitchen counter, keeping a trained glance away from Naminé's form, which slipped towards him with hesitance, sliding her cold hands underneath the back of his shirt.
Axel looked at the ceiling, fuming with bottled hysteria. The lawyer who just might win him the case was gone. All the money was gone. He'd have to get a state lawyer. They'd give him a newbie because of the 'crime' he'd been convicted of. Everything began to crumble in his head.
It would be so easy for him, right now, to take advantage of Naminé. As he turned and looked down at her face, stained with tears, he felt something like hissing steam building pressure in his head. He stroked Naminé's hair and thought of how much she liked him and trusted him. But Marluxia crawled over his body and through his head as he held her, and Axel turned away and stalked towards the back door, shivering.
"Get out," he mumbled, keeping his eyes trained away from Naminé. She tiptoed back towards him and tried to stroke his hair, but Axel pushed her hand away and glanced towards the kettle, filled with hot water. In a fit of impulse he closed his fingers around its handle and advanced towards the girl, who yelped and cowered back against the wall, holding her hands out in front of her in defense. "Leave me the fuck alone!" screamed Axel, raising the kettle over his head. But just as the shadow of the metal fell over Naminé's face, she ducked and flew to the door like a little hare, and before Axel could reach her again she'd bounded off the front porch and down the sidewalk towards the train station. Her white frame moved like a bolt of lightning, there and then gone.
A gurgle shook the inner lining of Axel's abdomen, and he broke his gaze away from the street and closed the door. Then, clutching his stomach he sank to the floor and groaned, closing his eyes as he sucked in gulps of breath. Patting the kettle in the rhythm of his heartbeat, Axel hummed a tune, thrumming slower and slower against the kettle's iron surface as his pulse descended into quiet thuds, intermitted by half second silence. As he opened his eyes Axel glanced around his small house, dark now. The street lamps flickered outside and he rubbed his eyes, letting his fingertips bathe in their soft glow. Just as his breathing resumed a normal pace, the phone rang, making his heart jump and his breath catch in his throat. Before he answered the phone he knew who it was.
"I won't be coming over tonight," drawled Ventus, and Axel exhaled an inaudible sigh of relief. "I'll come tomorrow, though. Maybe we can go somewhere," he added with a reconciliatory tone, and hung up. Axel shrugged and clicked the phone back onto the receiver, before making his way to the bathroom.
He ran the hot water and plugged the bath drain before taking his clothes off and setting a towel on the ground. Then, he stepped inside the porcelain bowl and lowered himself into the water, hissing in pain until he was finally seated. As he leaned against the back wall of the tub he took a deep breath and relaxed, while his body floated to the top of the water.
For a half an hour Axel sat contemplating what he would do to heal while managing both Ventus and Marluxia, and then how he would get a new lawyer. When the thirty minutes was up he hoisted himself out of the bath, let the water drain, and dried off, slipping on some of his old flannel pajamas and trailing towards his parent's bedroom. He huddled under the covers on his mother's side of the bed and lied on his side, peering at the rocking chair across from the room. As nightmares began to creep into Axel's mind, images of Roxas' fish lamp circling around carouseled through his head, lulling him to sleep.
...
Kairi paced the room in anger, glaring at Demyx every so often, who sat in a chair, exhausted.
"So, you're just not going to help him at all?" she snarled, and Demyx shook his head in affirmation.
"Why the hell won't you help him? He was your friend!" Kairi burst out, but Demyx jumped up and scowled, trying hard not to explode.
"He was never my friend, Kairi! He was the guy who got me sent to jail, don't you remember that?"
"Maybe if that hadn't happened, you wouldn't have gone for the record deal, don't you remember that?" spat Kairi in reply, making Demyx avert his gaze. "Look," He started, but Kairi cut him off.
"I won't 'look' anymore;" barked the girl, "I don't care! You are refusing to help a friend that needs you! You know he has a little brother?" she snapped. "The kid will have to move to Midgar because of you!"
"Oh, it's my fault he's getting convicted now?" Demyx shouted. "I wasn't even there!It serves him right for meddling! You know, Kairi, he wasn't very nice when he was in Organization 13!" Demyx barked. "He messed with people's feelings and he enjoyed doing it! He was going out with Selphie, right? How old is she, huh? How young was Sora when he played him?" Kairi shook her head in bottled rage.
"I made a pact when I went into that organization that I wouldn't rat out a benefactor!" Demyx whined, "Kairi, Axel's not gonna be saved without a sacrifice. And I'm not gonna be the guinea pig."
"So you are withholding information on a criminal?" Kairi intoned, to which Demyx stared.
"Just leave me alone," He muttered in final desperation, but Kairi charged straight up to him, jabbing him in the chest with her forefinger. "I won't stop! He is our friend!"
"He's your friend! He was never my friend! I hate that fuck!" Demyx roared, slamming his fist into the side of the couch. Then he shook his head and snapped, "Fuck this, I'm leaving," as he headed for the doorway. When Kairi tried to stop him he pushed past her and made her fall against the wall.
Don't you leave on me!" she screamed, running after him, but Demyx ignored her and slammed the front door behind him, stomping down the steps towards his car. His engine revved up as he pulled out of the driveway, and Kairi stood stock straight as the sound of peeling rubber rang through her ears. Then there was silence. For a moment, her body held its straight frame and high chin, before it shook and her head crumbled to her chest, sobbing with abandon.
