They decided to make their way to the castle by the end of the week. There was a lot of disagreement between their parents and themselves, but when Ansem paid a personal visit to each of their homes, their parents could not see anything wrong with the two of them leaving and going to stay in the castle. Ansem was sure to stress that they would be able to visit them any time, but both sets of parents knew that once their boys were gone, that would be it. The taste of freedom will always do that to a person.
Lea grabbed the stuff he wanted the most for his "dorm-like room", as was described to him by Aeleus. It seemed the the giant redhead had a soft spot and had apologized to him for throwing both him and Isa out before. Now that they were considered apprentices, the relationships were quick to change. Lea, however, had not yet seen Xehanort in the castle, nor had he interacted with anyone else that he had seen. Laying on his bed was his new lab coat, to match the ones that he had seen the others wear. He folded it and placed it in his bag. He looked around his room once more and closed the door.
Across the town, Isa was doing the same. He had yet to interact with anyone in the castle, so he wasn't quite sure what he was to expect when he got there. He looked at his bed and saw his new lab coat sitting there, almost mocking him. He sighed and packed it up in his bag, and then made his way out of the room. He said goodbye to his family and made his way to the courtyard. That's where he and Lea had decided to meet.
Both arrived at the courtyard at the same time. Lea was grinning as always, and Isa felt weary. He dropped his bag and zipped up his jacket to the top. "You ready to do this?" He asked Lea, grabbing his bag again.
"More than ever," Lea said excitedly. "Shall we?"
They made their way up the steep staircase and approached the gate. Dilan and Aeleus were there, keeping watch as always. "Ah, look who's finally decided to join us!" Dilan teased.
"Shut up, Dilan." Lea said. "We're here now, so it's fine. You can't say anything anymore."
"Just you wait, Lea." Dilan growled out. "When it's time for combat, you better watch out."
"Combat?" Isa questioned. He thought they were there to do research. How is combat involved in research?
Aeleus nodded. "Ansem the Wise likes to make sure we are in top shape and that we are prepared for anything that may occur during our research." He held out his axe, which had a heart etched into its handle. "I don't carry this around just to ward off strangers, you know."
Isa nodded and looked at Lea. "Come on, we should go and find our rooms."
The man with the long blonde hair opened the door and walked out from inside the castle. "Ah! There you two are. We were beginning to get worried. I'm Even," he held out his hand to both Isa and Lea, who in turn shook it with respect. "Why don't you boys come inside? I'll show you to your rooms." Even then turned around and the boys followed after him.
"Now, this is the main foyer of the castle. To reach Ansem's office, you would go directly to the right, and keep following the passages until you come to an open area. However, to get to the labs, as well as your living quarters, you must go to the left when entering the castle. This will take you to another part, one that not everyone who comes here knows about. Since you two are now apprentices, you have full access to everything in this castle." Even lead them up some stairs and they entered a lift. "Now, there are many lifts throughout the castle. Should you get lost, there are intercoms near them in which someone can find out where you are and help direct you. There are cameras all over the castle." Lea and Isa exchanged a glance. "Don't worry. There are none in the bedrooms, nor are there any in the bathrooms." Even laughed a bit. "Ah! Here we are!" They arrived in an area which looked like a very long hallway. "We all reside here as well. This is the floor which you will find your rooms."
They walked silently down the hall and tried to take everything in. Even had just rattled off a ton of information that the both of them were trying to process it as quickly as they could. They suddenly stopped when they both ran into Even. "Whoops. You boys should pay attention." He laughed at them. He pointed to two doors, side by side. "Here are your living quarters. Choose your room, get settled, and then meet me back down in the main foyer. Be sure to put on your lab coat." Even smiled and then began to walk away.
"Hey! What about a key to our room?" Lea called out.
Turning around, Even said "Key? Why would you need a key? We keep no secrets here. We just knock on someone's door should we need something from them." He turned back around and walked out of the hallway, disappearing into the castle.
The two looked at each other. "Well, which room do you want?" Lea asked Isa. "It doesn't matter to me." He scratched the back of his head.
Isa nodded to his left. "I'll take this room. I guess I'll see you back out here in five minutes?" He began to feel extremely nervous. He really didn't want to be alone, but he knew that Lea would be right next door. And all he had to do was set down his stuff and get his lab coat out. No big deal.
"You bet. See you in a few." Lea said and stepped through his bedroom door. Isa sighed and pushed his door open. When he went inside, he didn't know quite what he was expecting, but it wasn't what he saw.
"Holy shit." He whispered. In his room was a beautiful King sized bed with a bed frame, a headboard and a foot board. The headboard was solid oak and had the design he had seen on Aeleus' axe etched into it. This symbol must mean something. He set his bags down and took a tour of his room.
He saw a bathroom off to the right, next to the very large window. He stepped up to the window and gazed down on Radiant Garden. He turned to his right and entered the very spacious bathroom, where there was a full sized bathtub, as well as a shower stall. His home was no where near as nice as this new place was. He walked over to the bed and slowly sat down on it, sinking into the bed. He leaned back and laid against it. I should have no problems sleeping in this bed, he thought to himself and smiled. He began to think that maybe coming to the castle wasn't going to be so bad after all. He quickly sat up, grabbed his lab coat out of his bag and put it on. He walked out of his room and closed the door, and saw Lea waiting out in the hall for him.
"Oh my gosh! Isa! Isn't it incredible? My room is ridiculous! The bed is huge! And did you see the bathroom yet?" Isa couldn't stop laughing. "What? What is it?" Lea looked down and only saw his lab coat. "What's wrong?"
Isa's breath had been momentarily taken away when he saw Lea without his scarf and in the lab coat. But to cover up, he began to laugh like a crazy person. "It's nothing. I'm just not used to seeing you in a coat like that." He pointed to his lab coat.
"Yeah, well," Lea mumbled. "You look pretty funny yourself." That's a lie. You look so good like that. He glanced up and down quickly.
Standing taller, Isa huffed. "Whatever. Come on. Let's see if we can find our way back to the main foyer, shall we?" He turned and walked down the hall.
"Oh, come on Isa. I was only kidding!" Lea ran to catch up to the bluenette. They waited for the lift to return and stepped inside of it. "Are you nervous?" He asked quietly.
"More than you can imagine," Isa said. He still hadn't told him about the dream. He was more nervous right now about the possibility of meeting Xehanort face to face and having his body react to him like in his dream more so than he was about meeting with Ansem. But he couldn't tell this to his best friend, afraid that he would be hurt by his dream actions. It was just a dream, Isa. Get a grip on yourself. And since when did you care about what Lea thought? It's not like there's anything between the two of you. It's an unspoken relationship. Keyword, unspoken. Why not see if there are others out there that make you feel the way he does. Isa sighed and leaned his head against the wall of the lift. They finally made it back down to the main foyer.
"Ah, there are our two new apprentices!" They heard Ansem call out to them. It appeared that only Ansem and Even were there. "Come, boys. Let's go to my office so we can sit and have a chat about what we're going to be expecting out of the two of you here." The small teenager, Ienzo, appeared from behind Ansem. "If you'd kindly follow Ienzo, we'll be right behind you." Ansem smiled. Both boys followed Ienzo.
"Are you excited to be working with us?" Both Lea and Isa looked at each other shocked. They were surprised to hear that Ienzo's voice was much deeper than they had anticipated. "Oh, sorry. My voice throws everyone off. I'm 14 years old. I know, I look like I'm 10." He shrugged. "I'm just really small for my age."
"Yeah, that's not exactly the sound I was expecting," Lea laughed nervously. "I'm very excited to be working with you guys, as is Isa." Isa nodded, allowing Lea to speak for him. "We really have no idea what to expect."
"Don't worry. Ansem will go over everything. I doubt we'll get you guys to the lab today. It'll be more about introductions than anything else." They stopped at the door at the end of the hallway. "Here we are. If you guys want to go ahead and head inside, both Even and Ansem will be right here." They nodded and made their way into the office, sitting down.
A few moments later, Even and Ansem walked through the door. "I trust your walk was enjoyable?" Ansem asked politely. Both of them nodded. "Good. I see you have your lab coats. It's imperative that you always have those on while walking around this castle. You don't need to wear them in your room, or if you travel back and forth between other rooms on that level. However, if you leave that hallway, you must have your coat. Is that understood?" Both boys looked at each other first, then back at Ansem and nodded. "Good. Now, there are no curfews in this castle, but I want you boys to be wise. Most of my apprentices tend to stay up late, consumed by their research. All I ask is that you give it your all and that you keep a schedule. If you schedule happens to be midnight to 8 in the morning, that's fine." Ansem took a breath. "Now, you both need to finish your studies for high school, correct?" When they nodded their heads in agreement, he continued. "In the mornings, you will be studying with Braig and then in the afternoons, or whenever, you will come and work with me in the lab. Does that work for you?" Again, both boys nodded in agreement. They weren't sure who Braig was, but were sure that they would find out soon enough.
Ansem continued to talk to them for the next few hours. No questions were really asked. They just sat there and listened to what would be going on for them from now on. Finally winding down, Ansem looked at the two of them and smiled. "I suppose that's enough information for one day, do you agree?" Yawning, Lea nodded his head. Ansem chuckled. "Good. Why don't you boys go back up to your rooms and get some much needed rest? I'm sure today has been a bit more informative than you're used to." He stood up and stretched. "Please meet Even tomorrow morning in the main foyer around 9. He will then take you to the dining area, and then introduce you to Braig to begin your studies." Both boys nodded and made their way out of the room.
"Do you think they will work?" Even asked quietly.
"I think so. They seem to be like sponges. Within a few years, they should be right where we need for them to be." Ansem said darkly.
"Will you tell them why they need to wear the coats?"
"In due time, Even. In due time."
...
They dragged themselves back to their rooms, not realizing how exhausted they were from just listening to Ansem talk. They both stood in front of their doors, looking at each other.
"I guess I'll see you in the morning?" Isa asked quietly, hand on his doorknob.
"Yep. Sweet dreams, Isa." Lea said, and made his way into his room.
Isa wasn't quite sure what he had been expecting. If it was a good night kiss, that didn't happen. If it was a good night hug, that didn't happen as well. He wasn't quite sure what he had wanted, but he felt that he had wanted something from his friend to acknowledge their close proximity to one another. He sighed and took off his lab coat, setting it on the chair near his new dresser.
He dressed into his nighttime clothes and climbed into his bed. He was exhausted beyond recognition. However, his mind would not shut off. All he could do was lay on his back, as he stared at the ceiling. He turned to his side to look out the window and saw a clear night sky. He turned his body so he was facing away from the window and looked at a blank wall. He closed his eyes, praying for sleep to finally reach him.
Just when he was about to drift off, he heard the sound of his door open. He kept his breathing calm, trying to not alert the person who had just entered his room that he wasn't asleep yet. He maintained his breathing as he felt the bed sink lower when someone crawled under the sheets and laid next to him. He audibly gasped when he felt that person place their hand on his upper thigh and felt their breath against his neck.
"Relax. It's just me," Lea whispered and placed a kiss on his neck.
Isa moaned softly and pushed back against Lea. "Fuck, Lea. You almost gave me a heart attack." He leaned into Lea's touch.
"I could feel your restlessness," Lea said softly. "I wanted to make sure that you were okay. I feel like I dragged you here. I would hate for you to be uncomfortable." Isa felt his best friend pull him close. "I love you too much to allow you to feel like you made the wrong decision by coming here with me."
Turning over to face the redhead, Isa gasped. "Did you say what I think you just said?"
Emerald eyes sparkled. "What on Gaia do you mean, Isa?"
He placed his arms around the redhead and laid his head against his chest. "I'll get you to say it again, you know." He whispered.
"Why not get me to show you?" Lea murmured into his ear, gently biting the skin underneath his ear.
Knowing that they were about to cross a very fine line, Isa looked up into his eyes. He searched the emerald depths, making sure that he was sure of this. Not seeing any doubt flicker in his mind, Isa smiled and nodded his head in agreement. He leaned up and whispered into his ear, "Show me, Lea. Show me how you love me."
Both stared at one another for a moment, and then Lea leaned down and began to kiss Isa.