It took a while for Marluxia was able to fly again, but even once it healed, the robin seemed determined to repay his debt to Roxas. No matter how many times Xigbar tried to drive him away he stayed, claiming that even if the prince hadn't bandaged his wing, he was bound by the laws of his patrol to never ignore someone in need. It was now almost into late fall, as the leaves were changing and falling in the woods all around them, when the cunning little bird came up with a brilliant idea.
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"Roxas, are you sure you're up to this?" Marluxia asked, pacing back and forth before them like a drill sergeant preparing for battle. "This will be the longest you've ever flown, and if we're going through with the plan, I need to know that you'll follow my orders without question. Understand?"
The young swan nodded firmly, looking both excited and determined as he flexed his wings. They flapped and ruffled restlessly as Marluxia went over the plan for the...was it the fifth time or the sixth? The boy couldn't even tell by now. He was just anxious to get moving already.
"I'll be fine." he chirped, looking the happiest he had in the time since he'd arrived there. If all went well, he would see Axel today!
"I've only tested it a few times, but I'm pretty sure I'm good for a full hour and a half now, if not more..."
"Good," the robin said, nodding back in approval. He turned back to Lexaeus and Xigbar. "If either of you see Zexion come back, you must distract him by any means necessary. I know the general direction of the castle, but not how long it can take to get there and back again. We need all the time we can get, and I'm sure that none of us want Zexion to know what we're up to."
Lexaeus nudged Xigbar with his head, making sure he was still paying attention. He knew the little frog wasn't very keen on the idea of working with this strange bird, but he was barely putting up with him for Roxas's sake. Xigbar growled a little, but nodded stiffly.
The old turtle smiled as he turned and nodded back to Marluxia. "Don't worry. Just try to be back here by sunset at the latest. That gives you a few hours to work with. Zexion isn't usually back until much later..."
Xigbar muttered something quietly under his breath that sounded a lot like 'be careful.' Roxas smiled appreciatively, assuring his friends that he would be fine as he nuzzled the little frog with his head. He received only a tired groan and an awkward pat on the head, but it was enough, and the swan turned back to Marluxia as the bird began to go into even more detailed instructions.
"Now, I am a trained member of the aerial patrol, so I know all the best take off styles they taught us at the academy! Watch closely, Roxas, and follow my lead!"
The swan smiled, willing his restlessness away for a little longer. "Yes, sir..."
After a few clumsy tries they were in the air, when the flamboyant little robin was finally satisfied. With a nod, Roxas shot off into the sky, enjoying the new feeling of wind beneath his wings. He and Marluxia quickly became dark shadows against the sun, and the animals below watched them go as they waved and wished them a safe trip.
As soon as Roxas was above the tree line, he soared up into the sky, now completely marveling at the view as well as the thrill of the flight itself. He never flew much above the trees before, but whenever he did it gave him a new sense of freedom and excitement, as the world spread out before him just waiting to be explored. Looking at the ground below no longer made him falter or get sick; he just recognized it as something he didn't want to meet at high speed. As long as he could keep himself aloft, there was no reason to be afraid.
The wind began to beat against his wings fiercely now, pushing him and yet carrying him at the same time while he watched the world below speed by in awe. The air current was so strong that soon the boy stopped fighting it and simply floated on it, gliding in and around the clouds much to his delight.
Marluxia was soon right next to him, though noticeably slower because of his smaller wings.
"Slow down, boy! You'll tire yourself out if you fly like that! Honestly, children these days think they know everything!"
Roxas sighed patiently and smiled, allowing himself to float back just enough to be beside Marluxia. Taking this time, he looked down at the forest below, catching glimpses of things through the tree cover. Here, he saw a deer drinking by a small stream; there, he saw a small but beautiful field of flowers. All of these things that looked even more awe-inspirng from the air than they did on the ground, or maybe normal passers-by would just keep walking past them, ignoring the simple, natural beauty of them. Roxas giggled a little to himself. It was amazing what a change in perspective could do!
Marluxia caught that thrill, the excited shine in his bright blue eyes and immediately knew that his thoughts were drifting. He gracefully glided up in front of Roxas, cutting him off and causing the swan to crash into him in midair. The two easily righted themselves, though, and the little robin gave Roxas a stern look, to which he offered a small, sheepish smile.
"Now don't get any funny ideas and shoot off without me, understand?" Marluxia said, waving a finger-like feather in Roxas's face. "I realize that this is something humans only dream about, but that's no reason to fly off the handle...so to speak."
Roxas blushed a little at how obvious his excitement was. He might have rolled his eyes, but Marluxia was right there, and that would have been rude. Biting back a bit of his childish streak, Roxas simply nodded and kept on smiling.
"I'm sorry. You're right. It's just that, not long ago, I never would have dreamed of doing this in all my life! Not even in my wildest dreams! I was completely terrified of being up anywhere high, let along flying!" The boy laughed warmly, and he began doing loops around the smaller bird in the air, demonstrating how much more at ease he was with the whole situation.
Marluxia, though, seemed far from amused. "Roxas! Stop this foolishness and focus! This is a serious mission, and I'm only doing it to help you!"
Roxas settled down again after a minute or so, gliding casually back to his spot by the smaller bird's side. The robin sighed. "Please, Roxas, this is serious! We have a plan here, on that has very important steps and cautions, and you are going to follow my lead!"
"Okay, okay! I'm focused!"
They flew for a long time in silence after that, with Marluxia looking straight ahead and Roxas's eyes still darting over the tree tops in wonder. At one point they passed a small waterfall, glowing a bright, crystal blue in the warm sunlight, and completely ignoring the smaller bird's squawking, Roxas dove down and burst through the water, spinning a little as he did so. He wasn't really showing off so much as delighting in his new abilities, and working to control them the best he could. Hopefully he wouldn't have to know how to do this for much longer, but it didn't hurt while he was still a swan. And besides, it was fun!
Laughing merrily, the little prince flew back up beside Marluxia and shook off the remaining droplets glistening on his back and wings. The robin growled a little as he was hit with water, and sighed heavily.
"Listen to me when I'm calling you, boy! Don't do that again, do you hear me? You almost gave me a heart attack!"
Roxas smiled guiltily at him. "Sorry... I can't help it."
"Yes you can!" he snapped back, now speaking matter of factly. "Control and perseverance, boy! Hone these, and you'll find that even some of life's harder challenges become a lot simpler! Why, back in my old days, I myself was..."
Roxas barely listened as Marluxia rambled away, gliding on the wind and humming a little tune happily as he went. The robin soon gave up when he noticed the swan wasn't listening, muttering something about both children and humans that Roxas didn't catch. But the boy didn't care. He was too far gone in his excitement, which was enhanced all the more when he thought about seeing Axel again. Even if they had parted on somewhat awkward terms before, the little prince couldn't think of anyone else he so desperately wanted to see again.
They flew on in silence after that, which was only occasionally broken by Roxas asking whether or not they were 'there yet' and Marluxia, after a long, awkward, painful silence, finally replying, "DO YOU SEE A CASTLE?" Though, it wasn't long before they began to hear shouts coming from the forest below.
"Hunters," Marluxia said bitterly, "Horrible, cold-blooded killers, the lot of them. This could mean trouble if they spot us. Come along, Roxas, we'd better fly a little faster if we don't want to run into-"
"Axel!" Roxas's eyes widened as he gasped.
"Yes, Axel, because they're very dangerous with those arrows and...excuse me?" The robin looked back at him only to find Roxas looking straight down. Through a mass of trees, he caught the unmistakable flash of red hair, and now he was focusing in on it intently.
"It's Axel! He's right down there! I saw him!"
Before he could move, Marluxia was in front of him, trying to push him back into the clouds.
"No, Roxas! Not here! We have to get his attention once he's put down that bow!" He struggled with pushing the swan back a few times before Roxas just shook him off and dove down, completely ignoring his calls. Cursing himself and the air-headed boy, Marluxia dove after him, desperately begging him to stop.
"Slow down, Roxas! Damn it! Pull up, pull up!"
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"Axel, are you really sure it's okay for us to be out here-"
The redhead snapped back at him, having heard this question a few times before in the few hours they'd been hunting.
"Yes, Demyx! It's fine; I already asked mom if we could and she said yes! Now, would you please search that way and try not to shoot me?"
The sandy blonde boy nodded shakily before wandering off into a separate, though equally dark part of the forest. The way Axel was taking had peaks of light coming through the trees, lighting his path a bit more. Axel could feel something lurking in this forest, and he was poised to kill if that was necessary.
Though the passage of time and finding nothing was beginning to make him feel depressed, and a little desperate. Every broken twig underfoot or rustle of trees in the distance made him jumpy, and having found nothing after setting out at daybreak and searching for hours made him feel so hopeless.
What if Roxas really was gone forever?
Axel looked around the forest, listening for any sounds or signs of life. There was little movement; deer tended to wander more at night, and small creatures like rabbits and squirrels were becoming too smart when it came to avoiding people. This forest was all too used to hunters, as every year there was a large, kingdom-wide hunt come Boxing Day. Animals were now burying themselves under plants on the forest floor, or hiding high in the trees under a canopy of leaves and darkness, waiting out the time until the humans would move on, looking for some poor, dumb one of their pack to stumble out and be shot instead.
The quiet was a little unnerving. The redhead looked around, sighing a little when he noticed he was quite alone.
'Great...' Where had Demyx gone off to? Axel was sure he'd seen the other boy only a few minutes ago.
'Leave it to Dem to get lost in a place like this...'
Suddenly, the prince heard something break through the trees. He raised his arms over his head defensively upon hearing a gust of wind, and a large white flash flew right by, its wings barely scraping his right shoulder.
"What the hell?"
It was big, whatever it was. Rolling to the side, Axel took cover behind a tree, catching his breath as he glanced around the trunk to see what it was that attacked him...
He got a good look at the thing that had flown by, which was now on the ground and completely still, as it tried to regain its bearings.
"A swan?" Sure enough, it was a large, white bird with a long slender neck and brilliant blue eyes. It was shaking its head, obviously disoriented from the dizzying dive, and the more Axel looked at it, the more intrigued he was. It was a beautiful specimen, with a small tuft of yellow feathers on its head; what might have counted as bangs on a human. Axel guessed that it was young male swan, from the way it carried itself and its glossy, bright white feathers. Males in the animal kingdom were often prettier than their female counterparts, and this one was practically glowing in the late afternoon sunlight.
'But what is a swan doing all the way out here?...' Swans were not native to this forest in particular, and Axel never remembered seeing any when he took hunting trips through it as a child. A few geese maybe, but swans? The only ones he knew of were the domesticated ones that lived on the farms in the east corner of the kingdom. Those place often took in animals from the wild and protected them, but otherwise...
Then a thought struck him. 'Unless...'
Axel's eyes widened, shining with new clarity as the bird before him finally noticed his presence. It turned slowly and stared at him, its big blue eyes almost moist-looking, unless it was some trick of the light. It looked so beautiful, so innocent...even regal...
'It's not what it seems...'
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"Oh, I don't feel so good..." Roxas groaned, shaking his head slightly. His head felt like it was spinning back into orbit, and he desperately wished he had a hand to reach up and steady it. "Remind me never to do that again!"
When the boy could see clearly again, and his stomach didn't feel like it was doing somersaults, Roxas froze when he heard a small movement behind him. He turned and finally saw Axel standing there staring at him, his expression puzzled but also somewhat unreadable.
"Axel! It's really you!"
Roxas felt the tears brimming in his eyes, and he was tempted to just let them fall. His heart leapt with joy and love. Yes, love! He couldn't deny that Axel was the one person he'd missed more than anything in his time at the castle. It felt like there was hope now. Maybe he could even go home soon!
Just as he lifted a small, webbed foot, intent on racing to his beloved Axel's side, something in his barely developed instincts suddenly screamed for him to run...or fly. One of those. But why? Looking up, Roxas's breathed hitched in his throat.
"A-Axel?"
He watched with growing fear as Axel quickly pulled an arrow from his quiver and aimed it right at him, the gleam in his green eyes completely serious and deadly. The redhead was mere inches from him in an instant, the tip of his arrow grazing Roxas's feathered breast right at his heart.
"Axel? You're scaring me. I-It's me, Roxas!" the swan tried, unable to hide the growing fright in his voice as he backed into one of the trees. But it was obvious the older prince couldn't understand him, and the arrow never lowered. It was kept locked on target, so close at hand that there was no way he could escape.
"Axel, please..."
"I'm only going to ask once," Axel said, his voice surprisingly steady. But his eyes were fixing the most horrifying gaze Roxas had ever seen straight at him, and he trembled slightly. "What did you do with Roxas?"
Roxas blinked, now beginning to understand. For some reason, Axel thought that he was the one responsible for his own disappearance. It sounded ridiculous to the boy, but then again, there was no way the redhead could be joking, and the arrow seemed to be inching closer still, piercing him a little and pinning him up against the tree.
Reluctantly, the swan gave in. Pleading for his life wouldn't work, and all chances to flee were closed off. He couldn't just tell Axel it was him, and the murderous intent seething in his venom green eyes told Roxas that he didn't have much longer if he couldn't produce an answer. So Roxas shut his eyes tightly and waited for something...
Before Axel could release the arrow, Marluxia burst through the trees just in time. The robin used the surprise as an advantage, making a loud racket and ramming Axel in the arm to knock away the bow and arrow.
Roxas opened his eyes and cried out with relief. "Marluxia!"
While Axel was still on the ground, looking between them with sharp surprise, the smaller bird flew to Roxas, shouting urgently.
"What the hell were you thinking? Move, boy, move! Before he gets up!"
"Uh, right!" Roxas jumping into the sky, flapping his wings frantically to gain altitude. He didn't look back to see Axel's face as he took flight. He didn't need to; there was a clear picture in his mind of the shock and rage that must have been there as he escaped...
Marluxia came up slowly behind him, keeping up as best he could. But the swan flew quickly back towards the lake, not leaving much room for rest or idle chit-chat. No, it was a race against time now, as the sun sank deeper and threatened to obscure their way. It was easy to get lost in the dark, and Roxas already began to feel the waves of exhaustion pulling at his wings. He cursed himself for being so careless and losing track of time...
"Slow down, Roxas! I can't keep up at this pace! He's gone now, you don't have to go so fast!" Marluxia shouted from behind him.
The boy looked back over his shoulder, shouting against the wind. "No, he's still there! He's following right behind us!"
"What are you talking ab- Ah!"
The robin looked down just in time to dodge an arrow that whizzed by. Sure enough, between the patches of trees he saw the red-haired boy giving chase below, looking very angry and very determined. Marluxia's eyes widened.
"Wow, you really weren't joking!"
The swan nodded, smiling a little sadly as he looked back down through the trees.
"Yeah. If there's one thing I know about Axel, it's that he doesn't give up easily! If his mind's set on it, he'd follow us to the ends of the earth!"
It made him sad that Axel was going out of his way to try and kill him, but Roxas felt quite touched by his devotion. It was all in an attempt to find him, after all, and knowing that Axel really hadn't given up on him almost brought tears to his eyes. But Roxas stifled them and kept flying. It would all be in vain if he got distracted now and tired out so easily...
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They were reaching the old castle and the lake just as the moon was beginning to rise, and Roxas was starting to fly dangerously lower. He really had to struggle to keep up with Marluxia now, flying several feet behind and below him, and it was decreasing even more over time. The boy was getting low enough to the ground that Axel almost had a clean shot.
Marluxia yelled worriedly from above. "Roxas, you have to fly higher! We're almost there, and then we'll be safe!"
The swan shook his head vehemently, his eyes watering a little as he strained to keep flying. "I can't, Marluxia! My wings can't carry me anymore!"
Roxas gasped as the ground rushed up to meet him. He almost crashed before he reached the surface of the lake, tumbling in to the cold water head-first just as an arrow flew right over his head. Marluxia shrieked, pulling at his feathers nervously.
"The plans have changed, boys! We need back up, and fast!"
Lexaeus and Xigbar came as quickly as they could, stopping and gasping in shock as Axel stood at the base of the lake, setting up one last arrow. Both of them quickly overcame the shock though, and rushed as fast as they could to the redhead, hoping to distract him somehow from dealing a killing blow.
By the time Roxas had righted himself and resurfaced, he looked up to see burning green eyes glaring back at him. Axel pulled the bowstring taut and aimed the arrow once again right at his heart.
"Axel, please...It's me..." Roxas pleaded uselessly. He felt so pathetic as he begged and cried like this, but he didn't know what else to do. The person who claimed to love him so deeply was now literally about to stab him through the heart, and his eyes slipped closed as he awaited his fate, a single tear slipped down his cheek and rippled lightly through the water.
Axel saw the tear fall, and he hesitated, feeling very confused. The swan was...crying?
But suddenly a bright white glow blurred the prince's vision, and he brought up one arm to try and shield his eyes, dropping the arrow. Water swirled above the lake in the air, wrapping around the swan and drawing him into its brilliant light. But as soon as it died down he reached down quickly and grabbed the arrow. He turned his bow to face the bird once again, preparing to shoot no matter what form the beast had taken, but stopped halfway, gasping in shock and horror...
"...R-Roxas?"
The little blond stood before him knee-deep in the water, smiling sadly with big, tearful blue eyes. Axel wondered briefly if this was some kind of trick, but one look into those expressive blue orbs told him everything. Those couldn't hide anything from him; never could when they were both small, and never would to the end of time.
"I...Oh my god! Roxas! I'm so sorry!" Axel dropped his bow, almost throwing it down as if it were a snake in his hand. He felt sick, appalled by what he had almost done.
'I could have killed him...Hell, I wanted to kill him!...'
But Roxas seemed to read his thoughts, taking a step forward and drawing the redhead's attention back to him. He knew that Axel had never meant to hurt him, and he smiled understandingly as he walked forward with open arms.
"It's alright, Axel. I'm fine. I just...missed you so much..."
Axel burst into a run all of the sudden, catching the little blond prince by surprise. Within seconds, he was lifted in the air and spun around, before being pulled back into a crushing hug that buried his face firmly in the redhead's chest. Roxas pushed away slightly so that he could breathe, but he was perfectly content to stay in Axel's arms, cuddling him close as the tears flowed freely from his eyes. He held nothing back, feeling the redhead also trembling against him.
"You'realive...Roxas, I...I thought I would never see you again..."
Roxas raised his head and gazed into sopping-wet emerald eyes. His heart swelled with joy, relief, and love, and he raised his hand to stroke Axel's cheek softly, tracing his thumb over the tear-drop shaped tattoo residing there.
"Axel...I have so much to tell you...I was-"
"Shhhhh..." Axel hushed him softly, smiling widely. "You don't need to say anything, Rox. I love you..." The redhead quickly brought his lips to Roxas's then, kissing him deeply as passionately as if this was to be their last. The animals quickly moved away to give them some privacy, and Axel scooped Roxas into his arms gently and carried him back to the shore, never once breaking their kiss. The moon shone softly up above, its light floating lazily on the surface of the water, and the whole world was quiet except for the passionate moans and soft sobs of the two princes, now lost in a sea of joy and relief.
"I love you too, Axel..."