Sora was right. Tifa and Cloud did freak out over my arm exactly the way he said they would.
"Lets get you to bed. I don't understand why you two didn't come straight home after school," Tifa walked me to my room. She had been freaking out about me the most from the minute I stepped in the door. "Really, it's nothing too serious! I just need to change the bandage every two hours or so," I explained with false reassurance. She still had no clue about the anklet, but I wasn't really prepared to let her know about that either. With that out in the open, she and Cloud would be even more determined to find out who did this to me. It'd be no use.
"Now you just lie down and I'll go get you some tuna salad," she laid my arm on a small pillow.
"But Aunt Tifa, I-"
"I'll be right back!" she completely ignored me as she ran out the door.
"But I just ate," I settled my free arm back to its position on the pillow. You'd think the caretaker would listen to the patient.
"That's mom for ya; one thing wrong with you and she'll treat you like a king," Sora sat down next to me on the bed. "Yeah," I made myself comfortable, slipping off my shoes on the side. He caught sight of my down mood and instantly switched gears. "Hey, don't worry. We'll get that charm back. Axel can't keep it forever," he gave me a smile that told me to cheer up, but that was difficult. Without the memento, my heart felt incomplete and empty. How could I cheer up?
"Get it back," I mumbled to myself. How were we going to do that if he still had it the next time we saw him?
A knock came at the door and in came Cloud with the kitchen phone in his back pocket. "You doing okay?" he asked with his eyes fixed on my arm as he approached. "Yeah. Still hurts a little, but I'm fine," I shrugged with the same fake assurance I gave to Tifa. "I'm sorry this had to happen on one of your few first days of school here," he knelt down next to the bed, gently taking my arm. "It's no big deal," my gaze shifted away from his.
"I want to call your father and let him know what's going on."
My eyes shot back toward him, Dad? He still didn't know about what I was going through at school since I barely had the chance to talk with him. With him working late he wasn't up to date on everything, but chances are he'd want to hear something like this.
"I guess so. He should know about this," I lifted my arm, looking at the bandaging.
"Course he does," Sora stared down to me as Cloud started dialing the number. We both looked at each other with uncertainty as Cloud started to talk with dad. Should I let him know? I asked wordlessly with my eyes. I don't know, Sora's expression answered back to me. I don't want him to worry, I shook my head. Neither do I, he blinked, his face becoming increasingly uneasy. I don't know what to do, I lowered my head as Cloud finished his talk. "Here he is, Conan," he handed me the phone.
Here it comes, I gulped. Honestly, I wished he had taken his sweet time calling him so I had more time to make a decision. I didn't know what I would say to Dad or anything. Shakily, I took it from him and put it up to my ear.
"Dad?"
"Roxas."
My chat with dad went pretty smoothly overall.
Although he sounded tired and concerned, he took in the relief of knowing I was okay. Nonetheless, I did slip in the fact that I was having some trouble at school with a bully. Most of the details of getting roughed up I left out in favor of mentioning the smaller, less violent bits. The burn I of course told him about, but didn't go into a lot of detail with that either. However, I did let out who was bothering me but lied to him, saying that I was handling the problem fairly well. In the back of my mind I didn't want him to worry about me too much when he was already up to his neck with his own problems. Not to mention I was supposed to be "happy" here. I didn't want him to think that his plan had failed.
It wasn't until the next day that I found out that Axel and his gang were skipping again. Demyx was there, but only for a couple classes. This was good news in that I could get through my day worry-free and no trouble at all. The downside, another day of non-justice gone by with an increase of uneasiness. Something in my gut definitely told me that Axel was skipping on purpose so that he could avoid getting in trouble. He had what he wanted, now all he wanted to do was see what I'd be like when he came back. Agonized. Broken. Enraged.
"He'll have to come back later on this week if he doesn't want the police to come and drag him in," Riku said as we were heading toward the restaurant after school, "that's one thing they'll surely do."
"Where does Axel live anyway? He's not on the residential island," I asked gazing up ahead with the sea peeking over the land next to me.
Riku cupped his chin in thought, "I...don't really know. His hangout, the junkyard, is on the mainland and I would guess his actual home would be there too. As for an exact location, no idea."
"That's easy, Riku. Axel's home is under the junkyard, right past the gates to hell," Sora explained easily with some funny hand gestures for effect. They both laughed while I giggled halfheartedly. Great. I was hoping for an opening, another way to get to him when he wasn't in school. Knowing where he lived would put my mind somewhat at ease knowing the anklet was possibly settled somewhere "safe" and not in the hands of some stranger who bought it.
Stepping through the Express doors completely switched my train of thought. I still wanted a job at the place. "So, do I have to see the manager to get hired?" I asked as flipped the "Closed" sign to "Open."
"You're hired, I'll get your helmet," Riku headed straight for the back room. I stood in front of the counter, dumbfounded. Did he just say I got hired? I rubbed my ear as if that would help me. "Here," he came back out, handing me my helmet along with some specialized shoes and some cups with wings on them that I suspected to be shoulder pads.
"Wait, you're the manager?" I pointed dumbly at him.
"Assistant manager. A friend of my dad owns the place and thought it'd be nice if I ran it. He said I could hire whoever I want," he shrugged casually as he slipped on his helmet. "Right," I glimpsed down to my own piece of headgear. The design was similar to Sora's with the exception of the extra gold-colored armors on the red band. The shoes were white with a silver piece of metal around the soles, two small exhausts attached to them on each side. For the suspected shoulder pads, a decent size of wings were attached. What was this? A superhero costume? I twitched around my eye again.
"I actually have to wear these?" I accidentally wondered aloud. "Yep. If you're going to work here then you have to wear that. It's an official uniform of the Express. Them's the breaks," he answered, sticking his tongue out in a cutesy way. I groaned, Can't believe I was doing this job. Then again, it was better than going out with what Kairi was wearing.
"Check this out." Riku took the helmet and reached for something under the band. Grasping onto it with his fingers, he slid a visor down from it. "The helmet comes with a GPS in case you get lost and a radio in the helmet so you can hear us over here," he stopped and reached for the shoes, "these are specialized shoes with roller blades in the bottom." He demonstrated by pulled the said wheels out of the shoes. I huffed a little. Of course, those stupid shoes kids always ride in around malls. "Each shoe comes with two rockets that should help you get to places fast. To start and stop them, just push these buttons on the sides," he showed me where they were, "just don't get arrested out there. Any questions?"
"Who the hell made this stuff?" I asked without hesitation after Riku was finished.
"Oh, Dad's friend made them," Sora stepped into the conversation with his "uniform" on and ready to go. "Who?" I stared at him, still lost. "Yeah, you know my dad's friend Zack. He used to be in the military and had some stuff left over with really nothing to do. So he helped us out by making our uniforms," he tapped his helmet, "This is advanced military technology."
I pinched the bridge of my nose, "Tell me Sora, is he really that bored?" Why would a guy like that make this type of equipment for some kids? "And for the shoes?" I lifted one up and looked to them for an answer. "You don't have to wear them if you don't want to, but they can be fun. If you'd like, you can use your board to get around," Riku conveniently offered.
"And my job, period?" I finally got back to my casual tone. I could use some money while I'm living here. That's the point of a job. "Minimum wage, three to five hours, schedule varies, and free food cause you work here," he listed them all off on his fingers. That's what I wanted to hear. "Alright then," I nodded.
The platinum set my helmet on my head to make sure it fit right. "Since today's training day, you can try out the GPS and skates by running around town or the residential district." A frown was on my face as I could see in the mirror behind him that my hair looked like it was trying to escape from the helmet. The thing fit right but it was getting itchy really quick.
"Get out there," Riku had pulled out the mic in his helmet, his voice saying the same thing against my head. He better be the only one to use that thing, I cringed to myself. If Sora got a hold of the mic, then I would be doomed forever with his nonstop talking.
For the rest of my day I actually went out in public to try out the equipment and, I must say, it was quite a rush. The skates worked out better than I expected as I was flying down sidewalks and across streets. Stunts over benches and rails were pieces of cake. Even dogs that had escaped from their homes and alleyways could barely keep up with me meaning that delivering would be pretty smooth. On the radio I could hear Sora and Riku telling me different places to go to try out the GPS which I responded by finding each one.
With my "training" done I started to head back to the restaurant. Skating on a street of shops, things were going comfortably while I was skating up the sidewalk until the door of one of the stores opened without warning. It was so sudden that I made some quick movements to veer around it, twisting my legs as I tried to turn around to say that I was sorry.
Words didn't even leave my lips as I saw Zexion in the light of the setting sun. Slow motion set in as I skated backwards from him, an upset look on his face with eyes shooting me a nasty glare. Automatically, my body turned around and shot adrenaline into my legs to keep pushing me forward. My right hand drew to my chest while my left hand clutched it, the diminishing pain now returning with increasing force. Away. Away from him.
Upon my return to the restaurant, I was handed my check and a broom to help clean up shop. The whole time I was cleaning I kept glancing back at the door, filled with paranoia. Fear was building up in me at the thought that Zexion had seen my face and was bringing Axel and the others there to pick on me some more. Or he could've come alone to try and beat me up for almost running into him. I had no idea what that guy was like alone but I wasn't willing to find out. Luckily, the minutes passed with no signs of him or Axel coming near or in the store.
Safe for now, I sighed in relief as I observed the clock stating it was past closing time. We finished cleaning up before going our separate ways. Not once did I mention to Sora or Riku who I almost ran into that day.
*~'~'*
The next day still held no prize for me. Axel and the others skipped again for the second day in a row. This only made my anxiety for the trinket rise again. Yet all Mr. Xemnas could give me was the fact that the redhead would have to come back to school eventually along with the promise to be harder on him with each passing day. As pleasing as his words were, they didn't give me much comfort. In my classes, most of my thoughts were crossed over from what to do for homework to the question of was my anklet okay or not. When is Axel coming back? I never thought I'd actually start to hope for him to come to school.
"When you get that charm back I suggest you not wear again," Tidus, a friend of Sora and Riku, suggested. The same group of the three of us sat at the table with the additions of their three other friends. I'm guessed that Kairi had let them know the position I was in by the way the topic of "What I Should Do When I Get It Back" came into the air just moments earlier.
I shook my head, "I can't stop wearing it. It's too special to just leave around the house and get it lost." Taking it off was almost like a joke to me. The anklet was always on me with the exceptions of showering and swimming. I took care of it every once in a while to make sure it wouldn't rust and so that the light mom had left behind kept shining on it.
"Well if it's that special to him, then he should wear it. Forget Axel," the girl named Selphie nodded confidently with crossed arms at her idea. "Selphie's right. After stealing it once, Axel shouldn't want to steal it again hopefully," Kairi agreed. "Either way, at least it'll be back in your possession," Riku finished taking a sip of his drink. Yeah, that was good, but I wanted to know when. When would I get it back? My hope was fading with each day. Tons of different things could've happened since Axel ripped it off my leg two days ago.
"But I don't have it back now do I?" I growled, agitation in my tone. "I'm tired of waiting for Axel to get his ass back here." My gaze fell back to my hands in my lap. Across from me, I heard Riku let out an annoyed sigh and Sora let out an uncertain groan. From that I could tell that the situation was starting to get on all of us and it had only been two days.
"Hm? Hey, isn't that...?"
I lifted my head to see Kairi pointing at somebody behind us. I turned around toward the lunch line to see somebody unexpected. Demyx.
"I thought Demyx was skipping today," the other boy, Wakka, glimpsed back with the rest of us. "Unless he's here for band," I spat to which everybody brought there attention to me for a second. I guessed they didn't know, though I suspected that Riku would since he knew so much about Axel and his gang.
The blond shoved his hands in his pockets and nervously rocked on his heels in the line. Just by looking at him I was able to confirm to myself that he wasn't much without Axel. He was just another one of those people who stand tall when their tougher halves are with them and small when they weren't around. "Demyx isn't too much trouble if Axel is with him. Hell, you could still get him over with a sharp comment if the bad guy's standing right next to him," Sora chuckled. "Yeah, caught a glimpse of that on Wednesday after school. Demyx lost his sitar and I actually had a bit of patience to give it back to him," I added with a glance back at Riku. I'd thought I see what he think, but he gave me a blank face.
"You actually gave it back to him?" Tidus stared at me in disbelief. I confirmed his question but he disapproved, "Tch, if I were you I wouldn't have given that bastard anything back."
"It's a 'reflex' of mine. My mom taught me to help others whether we like them or not," I shrugged as we turned back around to our lunches, "said something good could come out of it."
"There's not much good that could come out of him," Wakka gestured to Demyx as he walked by us across the room. "Not if he's with Asshole," Sora cracked a joke and we had a small laugh. I felt a sort of split between what Wakka said and what I had witnessed from the dirty blond when I gave him back his sitar. He showed that he wasn't as bad as Axel by the way he could be grateful. Unfortunately, it didn't make me think much better of him since he was still in The Order.
"Hey." A voice came from behind me.
"Huh?" I put my fork down. "What do you want, Demyx?" Riku glared up to the guy behind me. I turned around to see the blond's eyes looking back down at me. I had never really seen Demyx up close before then, at least not as close as Axel. It was déjà vu staring up at him, even though it wasn't the said redhead. Most likely it was because his eyes were the same as his: a mint green.
"Yeah?" I flipped my legs over the bench so I was facing him all the way. My mood was still agitated so he picked a bad time to talk to me.
He sighed uncomfortably, attempting to avoid my eyes. I didn't get what was making him so jittery all of a sudden. He couldn't have been that distressed about his buddies not being by his side. Yet -somewhere, somehow- he found the "courage" to face me again using the best poker face he could put on. With his hands still in concealed in his jacket, he started to pull something out of his pocket. Automatically, I flinched with fingers grabbing onto the table. Not again, my body trembled. I didn't not want to go through that again.
Behind me I could hear Riku, Sora, and Kairi get up from their seats. "Hang on! I don't have a lighter with me!" Demyx put his hands up defensively, leaving whatever he was about to bring out in his pocket. Hearing that didn't calm me down, but the reminder that I was with my friends that time and he didn't have his posse made me relax a little. The other three held their ground behind me, ready to throw down should the situation reach that point.
"Here!" Demyx reached into his pocket again. He rifled through it for a moment before having whatever it was in his grip. By the way his hand was, it wasn't a lighter thankfully. Not a pocket knife either. In fact, it didn't look like it could've been much of anything. His fingers were curved all the way in his hands so there was no way something big was in it. The most the guy could've had was a needle, but for him to be carrying one of those around didn't make any sense.
Continuing to clutch whatever he had, he took my left hand into his. Oddly enough, I didn't pull away and just waited for whatever he was going to do. Once his gloved-hand was on top of mine, he let whatever he had in his hand go into mine. Finished his task, he quickly shoved his hands back into his pockets and tried to appear as nonchalant as possible. I stared at him, clueless, before turning my attention to what was in my hand.
"I.O.U," I read aloud. Wait, what just happened now? I read it over again to be sure of what I was reading. It wasn't rocket science. There was a paper in my hand that said I.O.U.
"Yeah," he avoided my eyes again. "What's that all about?" Sora looked up to him. "Look, it's just for getting my sitar back for me. You did something for me, I'll possibly do something for you. Got it?" Demyx explained hastily. I could tell he was edging to get away from me. Nonetheless, I was still lost. One, it was just a sitar. Two, he was apart of Axel's gang so why would he want to do something for me? Three, was that all he came to school for?
"It's just an instrum-"
"Maybe to others it is but to me, it's my life" he cut me off. His tone sounded odd. He sounded like he really meant it.
"Just how is it your life?" Kairi crossed her arms and I could hear her foot tapping under the table. Demyx sighed again basically giving away that something was about to come out, "My grandfather...he sorta gave that to me and it's been passed down throughout my family. And if I don't have it when I go home... and my step-dad gets all..." He wasn't completely clear on everything toward the end, but I caught the first part and most of the second. Something was up with his step-dad if he went home without it, but I didn't have much of an idea.
"Plus I need it for band class and I was going to serve a detention without it!" he finished with a quick point of his finger.
"Really?" Selphie's face remained unconvinced.
The Order member rocked on his heels again, "Anyways, I just wanted to say 'thank you' again and that I'll possibly owe you one."
"Gee, thanks," I mumbled as I put the note in my pocket. In truth, I was a little surprised, but not totally convinced with him. Just the tone in his voice and his words gave me the idea that he wasn't too confident on what he was doing either. "Just don't tell Axel I did anything." His tone darkened with his narrowed eyes glaring down at me. That was a bit of a change. "Don't you dare," Riku glowered at Demyx the same way. Just like the first day, Demyx recoiled but tried to hold his ground. "See ya," he turned around and started to walk away.
In a rush, I got up from my seat, "Wait." An I.O.U. I had an idea on how to spend it. From all the information I had about Demyx so far, I wasn't sure what he was capable of doing, but maybe he could do something that I couldn't. This could be a chance to get my anklet back, I felt the slip of notebook paper with my hands.
"Yeah?" he turned back around, facing me. I took a deep breath as I hid my damaged arm behind my back.
"My anklet. I want my anklet back from Axel."
That was it. My demand was simple, clear, and straight to the point. Yet there he was looking at me like I was stupid. I shook my head in frustration, "Axel has my anklet. I want you to get it back for me. You gave me an I.O.U. so you can do that for me," I made myself more specific. A puzzled look was still on his face which downplayed my idea that he could do anything. Why did Axel have this guy with him anyway?
"You've been with Axel the last couple of days haven't you?" Riku stepped around the table up behind me, "So you should know where it is and be able to get it back." Demyx turned sideways and scratched his head a little bit. This bothered me more. He knew where Axel was and what he was doing. All he was deciding on was whether to spill it or not. It didn't matter which one he picked. Either way I was going to make him tell me if I had to get my hands around his neck.
"Axel has it, I'll tell you that," he started. "Gee, thanks for pointing out the obvious Captain Mullet," Tidus rolled his eyes. "Has he done anything with it?" I questioned further. Knowing that he still had it comforted me a little, but not enough.
"He's been sort of messing with it a little, said something about making something out of it."
Profit. My mind automatically came to the conclusion of profit. Anger and fear replaced what little relief I had. "But other than that, he hasn't really done anything with it. He's been keeping it somewhere at his house, but I don't know where," he finished with a shake of his head. That wasn't good enough for me. I needed more information. "Where does he live?!" Sora slammed his fist down on the table. Demyx didn't flinch at that, only stuck his hands back in his pockets and glared at us, "Sorry, can't tell you." Can't tell us? Can't tell us? The fuck does he mean by that?! I felt my fists become sweaty on the inside. At that, he turned and continued his way out of the room.
"Dammit!" I sat back down at the table, setting my head into the palms of my hands. Just when I thought the guy was going to give me a boatload of information, he dropped the matter. He was basically the last resource I had on the guy. Knowing that Axel was planning to do something with it, i.e. selling it, did not help me at all. Demyx didn't sound definite on that part. I wanted a precise plan on the matter, but I couldn't expect anymore from him. Now we just hit another standstill.
"At least we know that he still has i-"
"But not for long!" I raised my voice, cutting Wakka off.
"We'll get it back before he can do anything."
"How?! He's been skipping school, he's planning on selling it, and we still don't know where he lives!" I shot at Kairi. She recoiled in her seat with expression slipping into hurt. In truth, I would've stopped at the point. I can't stand a girl getting hurt because of me. Yet I was so angry that I didn't care what she felt.
"Calm down, Roxas" Sora put his arm out in front of her in defense. "How can I calm down? That anklet's going to be sold to some stranger and once it is, it's gone!" I turned my anger on him.
"We've still got time to find him and try to get it back. You just have to be patient-"
"That's like saying 'give up'!" I stopped him. Everyday felt like an eternity with it off. My days were going to be reduced to counting when Axel was gone and how long somebody else had it in their possession. I couldn't wait. I needed it back.
"WILL THE BOTH OF YOU SHUT THE HELL UP!" Riku suddenly slammed his tray off the table, letting it hit the wall and his leftovers splatter all over.
Half of the room shot their attentions over to Riku. Fear immediately filled my body as Riku stood tall before me. His eyes were brimming with anger and were obviously annoyed when he glared down at me. Both fists were clutched with teeth clenched under his closed lips. It was terrifying. Just terrifying to see Riku so pissed at me. Angry at Axel, not so much. To me, just scary. Wordlessly, he picked up his backpack and stormed away from the table to the door. All eyes followed him quietly until he was out of sight down the hallway. We stared at where he walked out for a moment before turning back to each other. By the shocked look on their faces I could tell they had never seen Riku so angry before. Wordlessly, we finished our lunches before parting ways.
Sora and I didn't see Riku after school. Judging by what we heard from a few of his other friends, he had left once the final bell rung. So he didn't bother to wait for us, I squeezed the straps of my backpack. Even without Riku, Sora and I remained speechless all the way home. With all that had happened earlier, I concluded that it was my fault that Riku had left. Whining and moaning about getting my anklet back was taking a toll on everybody who wanted to help. Riku just showed us he had enough. Realization that I was being selfish filled me with guilt; my friends were just trying to help, yet here I was crushing the hope.
My heart was heavy when I looked to Sora on our walk. Seeing him appear so sad and hurt, it just wasn't normal. He was born for excitement and cheer, not that type of drama. Where was my cousin who made silly a policy? Who said acting like everybody else is boring?
I sighed, "Sora." He faced me with nothing but sadness in his eyes. I cringed, "I'm sorry, for yelling at you." He blinked and remained silent for a few seconds before saying something.
"It's...it's okay."
A faint smile came to his lips.
Friday.
A bad day. Just bad day, period.
It wasn't terrible that Sora and I had made up the night before. The way Riku hadn't walked with us to school wasn't anything to cry about. What was bad was what happened to the guy.
Just like the past couple of days, I was still upset about my keepsake. All I had to do next was make up with Riku. I couldn't deny that I really pissed him off, but I was ready to make peace with him over it. Hopefully, we would be able to get back to searching for my anklet together once amends were made. There was just one problem with my plan and that was the fact that Sora and I hadn't seen Riku all day. Sora would constantly send him texts to him but wouldn't get a reply. At one point, he resorted to calling him behind the school, but Riku wouldn't pick up. Without a response from the guy, we were really beginning to worry. That was when we received some unexpected news.
"Did you guys hear?" Kairi caught her breath catching up with us in the hallway. I could only guess the news would've been about Riku.
"What?" Sora asked as we turned around.
We waited a few more seconds for her to compose herself. With air in her lungs, she looked up to us with disquieted eyes. Something was coming and we most likely weren't going to like it.
"A...Axel came to school today," she finally got it out. It wasn't the news I was , but it was surprising. "Seriously?!" Sora and I shouted in unison. She freaked out at the sudden outburst but quickly recovered to confirm us with some dips of the head. "Where is he?" I got right down to business. "Down stairs, on the first floor. He just came from one of his classes," she rushed through her words.
"And Marluxia, Zexion, and Demyx are with him?" Sora reentered the conversation again. "Y-Yeah." Perfect. This was just the info I needed. He was here, bitter-sweet. All I needed now was a plan to get to him.
"Is Riku down there?" Sora suddenly asked. Tearing away from my thoughts, I turned back to Kairi. For a second, I had completely forgotten about him. She shook her head, "I didn't see him. Have you guys?" Of course we wouldn't be asking you if we did, duh, I tried to keep what I was thinking from showing up on my face. "No, at least not yet. He didn't walk with us to school or anything," my cousin shook his head with worry in his voice.
"Oh no," the girl hugged her arms in distress. Seeing her like so scared and hearing the tone of Sora's voice made it occur to me that we were somewhat defenseless without Riku here. He was like our armor against guys like The Order and without him, we were goners. Of course we still had our words, but we weren't as strong as he was. Then again, we still had Xemnas. If he could get to the redhead before he got to us then we'd be home free. Yet it made me wonder if he even knew he was there. If he did, what would he do to him? What if Axel tried to spend the whole day eluding his authority?
The bell rung. Passing was over. We looked at each other with uncertain eyes as the people around us began to diminish in the hallway. Third period. Then fourth. Right after that was lunch. Butterflies were building up in my stomach at the same time I looked at my wrapped wrist.
*~'~'*
Can't really say that I got through third period without a care in the world. Almost the whole time I was staring at the clock, feeling time slow down with each second albeit it was flying by. Fourth period was no better either. My attention was barely on Ms. Heartilly as she was demonstrating an equation on the board. Occasionally, I would glance over to Sora and see how he was. Better than me, but not by much. At least he was paying attention to what was going on while taking a quick peek up at the clock every once so often. Frequently, though, his eyes would rest on me real quick with a wince on his face. I returned the look with the same expression. When would the period be over?
Toward the end of the period, we could hear people talking somewhere up the hallway. Nobody really thought much of it and neither did I until I could hear them getting louder. I crouched down onto my desk and closed my eyes in hopes that it would heighten my hearing. Two males, a clue to what was going on out there. They weren't too far up the hallway, possibly 20 feet from the door. The voices were escalating. I thought for sure I could make out one of the voices, Riku?
There was a sudden crash that made us all jump in our seats. "OH!" Ms. Heartily dropped her chalk as she covered her lips in surprise. Outside the room was another crash following the sound of shouting. Voices and theories filled the room as we all imagined what was going on out there. No doubt there was a fight going on.
"Fuck off Mori!"
The butterflies in my stomach were multiplying.
Axel.
"Not on my life!"
"Riku!" Sora shut up from his seat.
Banging lockers and cries of pain drew all of us to the door despite Ms. Heartilly's protests. Sora and I dashed from our seats and made our way through the crowd out the door. Up and down the hall, more students gathered from nearby classrooms to see what was going on. Just what we needed. The increase in people made it even more difficult to reach the front. Pushing through barely did anything except get us shoved in returned.
Finally at the front of the crowd, Sora and I could see exactly what was going on. Riku and Axel were in the middle of a stare down, forming tension hanging in between. It was the first time I had ever seen either of them look like they were a mess. Riku's hair was wild and out of place, cuts and bruises lining every area place where skin shown. A few places on his uniform were torn, ripped, or had the appearance that they had been pulled at. Axel almost looked no better; his hair and body were a bit of a mess as well. Red hair was pointing in all directions, tears were on his jacket, and a scratch was on his cheek. However, just like Riku, he seemed free of any major damage.
A smirk curled onto Axel's lip, "C'mere! I'll make it all stop!"
Chills shot up my spine. His tone was filled with blood lust. In fact, his whole stature said he was ready for more. His eyes were giddy for blood lust and his breaths were short and quick. Feral, vicious. He really wanted more. And just like that, Riku jumped at him and tackled him to the ground. The crowd shifted as more people tried to see more of the fight. Cheers of "Fight! Fight! Fight!" rung throughout the hallway as the platinum began punching at his opponent.
"Riku!" Sora cried out behind me. For a second, I thought I Riku's sight turn our way between a punch he was giving. Unfortunately, everybody pushed past us to see more of the attack. I grabbed Sora's hand to keep him from drowning out while at the same time trying to get back ahead of everybody. Before more students got in the way, I saw Axel giving Riku a quick punch to knock him to the side. Seeing Axel get up was about the last thing I saw before my vision was blocked once more.
The crowd continued to grow as I frantically looked around. I knew they were there. They had to be. And just as I suspected, Axel's crew was at the back of the group, cheering on their leader to take Riku down. Well, at least Marluxia and Zexion were. Demyx was slightly different. Of course he was cheering for him, but he didn't look like he was putting all of his enthusiasm into it. Nonetheless, putting spirit in his cheer or no, what they were doing was still sickening.
"Excuse me! Pardon me! Please move!" Ms. Heartilly finally made her way to the front of the crowd. Sora and I following behind her in the clear path she had made. Once she had caught sight of the fight, so did the other teachers of other classes.
"Stop it!" Mr. Leon, the gym teacher, pushed through the crowd and down to the ring. "Both of you quit it!" Ms. Heartilly also stepped in. Together, they used all their strength to grab onto them as other teachers came along: Mr. Saix, Ms. Gainsborough, Mr. Kael, and Mr. Sampson. Each of them got a hold of one of the boys and struggled to keep them away from each other. To our dismay, even with the teachers on them they were still pulsing for battle. I just wished the teachers had got there earlier seeing as how the both of them looked worse than before. Blood was streaming from the corner of Riku's lips while Axel's teeth were dripping with the stuff as he panted. The chants of war diminished into nothing and the tension returned to the air.
"What the hell is going on here?!" Mr. Xemnas came sprinting down the hallway. Orange eyes were fixated on the two as the spectators parted to the sidelines and the teachers turned around to reveal the perpetrators.
"Oh nothing, Mr. X! Just having a friendly fight with Mori here," Axel answered sarcastically, spitting some blood to the side. I stepped back up against the wall with Sora next to me. Just how was he still able to pull off the sarcastic crap after he just got beat up?
"Cut the crap, Axel! What happened!?" Mr. X rose his voice. Everybody remained dead quiet, terrified by our principal's anger. That was when Riku spoke up.
"Axel took something from me. I came to get it back!" Sora's friend barely had any breath in him, but taking in air was harder than taking in heat for him.
Axel glared at his equally restrained opponent, "Just what the hell did I take from you? What would I want to take from you?" The opposing mint eyes glared back at him, "Something special to me. Something important." My head felt light as the room felt like it was spinning. So that was it. That was it. That was why Riku wasn't with us this morning, I held my head, That's why he stormed off at lunch yesterday. He went off...went off to get my charm back. A light groan barely on the pitch of a whisper left my lips, my hand falling from Sora's grip as I slid down the wall at the back of the group.
It was a few more silent moments before the quiet was broken. "Both of you, in my office, now!" Xemnas' voice was still angry, but firmer than before. Numerous footsteps followed after, getting further and further down the hallway. With the few remaining teachers around us, they started to herd us back into our rooms. No point though, the bell rung for lunch.
"Roxas," Sora's voice called from above. My head rose to look at him as I felt color draining from my face. He was the mirror image of how I probably looked: pale and sick. His hand weakly reached out to me which I grabbed with equal weakness.
Thanks to halls clearing, I could see the extent of the fight. Several lockers had the appearance of getting punched by a gorilla. Blood was spattered on the walls and floor. A smear of bloody shoe marks diminished up hall to where Xemnas and the other two had left. Analyzing each piece of damage brought a picture to my mind of what it must've looked like. Axel ramming Riku's head into a locker. Riku giving Axel an uppercut to the chin, blood spurting out the redhead's mouth. But the pain...the pain. I couldn't even begin to know what it felt like.
The butterflies in my stomach died, but with dead bugs in my belly, how could I stomach lunch?
Can't say that lunch was uneventful; all around, the room was bursting with talk about the fight. From people who were talking about the punches thrown to those telling others who had missed out. It was everywhere. Filling my ears were rumors about why the fight started in the first place and what Mr. X would do to them.
"I heard Axel's had a grudge against Riku since he entered high school."
"Really? From my 'source', Axel was trying to get back at Riku for that move he pulled last year. You know the elbow move that he did?"
"No way! I heard Riku used to be in his gang and Axel was getting back at him for leaving."
"Somebody told me that Riku hated that Axel kept stealing his girlfriends, but then again who would want to be Axel's girlfriend?"
"What about the mafia? Axel probably placed a hit on Riku, but the guy found out and wanted to get rid of him before he could issue it."
Furiously, I rubbed my temples at the noise made from all those people getting the wrong idea. "How stupid can people be?!" They had no idea what the fight was really about. Only our table, at the center of the room, knew what the fight was really about. Thanks to Sora, the others, and I being Riku's friends, other students -and sometimes teachers- would pass us by to ask about was going on. Glances and covered lips were shot our way with each person that came over. Not since my last performance at the Cafe du Sweet had I received so much attention.
"This is what happens when something big like this starts. People get curious and start to speculate," Kairi finished a wave from a boy who had come over to question what had gone on. "They shouldn't after Riku said loud and clear what he was fighting for," I stopped and lowered my head in shame, "my mother's anklet."
"When you think about it, some people who weren't there have just heard about the fight but don't know the reason why they were fighting. So they go back on things that could've possibly started it or go on other's words. That's what starts rumors," Selphie added to Kairi's earlier comment before taking another swig of her juice. "Then people need to grow up and get the straight facts. Haven't the teachers that were there talking?" I asked tiredly. "To the other staff members probably, but not to the students. If they are, they're giving the bare minimum facts," Tidus mumbled. He was basically giving it away that he wished he could've seen the fight.
"How about Mr. Xemnas?"
"From what I've heard, he still has Riku and Axel in his office," Selphie put her hands together in her lap. "They're both going to get in some big trouble," Wakka shook his head. "Detention? A demerit?" I listed the options. Those were just a few of the punishments you would get from starting a fight back at my old school. Get enough demerits and get expelled; that's what kept people from fighting. I suspected the same or similar type of deal to go on here.
"More like out-of-school suspension plus detention," Kairi answered, looking down at her drink.
"'Out-of-school suspension'?"
"It's like a detention outside of school. You stay out for a couple of days doing certain work the school board sends you then you come back to catch up on the work from the classes you missed. Depending on how much work you'll get can be a killer, not to mention it's probably marked on your permanent record," Wakka broke it down for me, then took another bite out of his sandwich.
More guilt hung in my stomach as I got back to eating, "By the way they fought, I could suspect they could get a penalty like that." Selfishness, bitching, and moaning got Riku to where he was now. I got him into the fight and now I probably got into a bad situation, I chewed lazily chewed on my sandwich. Could things get any worse?
*~'~'*
Lunch ended the same way it had started, bustling with rumors and suspicious glares. Sora and I temporarily went our separate ways so that I could stop by the nurse's office and change my bandage again. An excuse was issued for me for my fifth period class so that I was allowed to be late for a medical issue. Bittersweet. The burn wasn't as bad as the day Axel made it, but a hint of pain and discoloration was in the aftermath. Tifa and Cloud were thinking about taking me to a doctor if it didn't get any better within a certain amount of time which was something I was not looking forward to.
I was on my way down to Mrs. Harleen's office when I stopped. Up ahead was one of Mr. Xemnas' two offices. The door was open enough for a stream of light to shine on the floor. At my distance, the voices from inside the room were faint. Based on what Selphie had told he, was still laying down some justice for the brawlers.
Quietly, I tiptoed next to the door and leaned a little closer to it. Usually I'm not the one to listen in on things like that, but since it was partly my fault, I felt I had some kind of right to know. In my line of vision, I could see Axel sitting back in one chair, arms crossed behind his head and had one leg was over the other. Riku wasn't in my view, but I assumed his seat was behind the door.
"So let me get this straight," Xemnas' voice was stern as he spoke, "you confronted Axel." He paused briefly for the confirmation from Riku. Receiving it, he continued, "And he was the one that started the fight."
"No, Mori is the one who pushed me. He started the fight," Axel undid his crossings, letting his right arm hang on the back of the chair.
"Then you slammed me into the lockers!" Riku said accusingly.
"You started the physical fight Mori, not me."
"But I didn't slam you into cold metal now did I?"
"Both of you be quiet!" Xemnas' voice became strained. His tone gave away that being with those two was obviously taking a toll on him. There was a brief silence before Xemnas started talking again, "Riku, you said that Axel stole something from yo-"
"I didn't steal anything from him!" Axel leaned toward the desk.
"Yes you did! You took it and you wouldn't give it back! You skipped school so that I couldn't find you!"
The guilt was increasing in the back of my head. First I annoy him, then he gets into a fight to get it back, now he's lying, I gritted my teeth in frustration. How many wrongs can be done to one person because of another?
"No, no I didn't. And Xemnas, if you've got any sense under that dead animal-covered thing you call a head, then you'll know that Mori is just pulling an excuse out of his ass for starting the fight." I twitched from hearing The Order's leader say that. Even to an authority above him, Axel wasn't obedient. Saix was one matter, but Xemnas was another.
"Do not speak to me in such a way Axel." It sounded like Mr. X rose from his seat. Inside, Axel looked up to him fearlessly with an intimidating smile on his lips. The sound of the wheels on a chair rolling could only mean Xemnas sat back down, "For disciplinary action-"
"Oh boy, what will it be this time Mr. Xemnas sir?" Axel asked in a sarcastic tone as he put his hands together in false delight, "Will it be detention? OSS? Saturday school? Or community service? Gee, the choices are so exciting. So many to pick!" By the way he listed them out, I assumed that Axel had served those offenses before if not memorized them all.
Xemnas sighed loud enough that I could hear it from outside the room. "For you Riku, I'm giving you a week of OSS plus three days of morning detention." That was when I heard Riku sigh from the inside. Axel turned his head to the side and chuckled, but I guessed Xemnas turned his attention to the redhead by the way he stopped laughing.
"And as for you Axel," the principal started, "I'm giving you something different. A week of PSS, plus five days of after school detention after that." Axel's expression became slightly mellow, but his smirk remained. "Oooh, daring this time aren't we?" he wiggled his fingers in Xemnas' direction. "No, I'm keeping the both of you away from each other. From what teachers and students have told me, there has been a lot of tension between the two of you. Some time away from each other should decrease that constriction for a while," Xemnas shuffled some papers on his desk.
"But sir, what about what he stole from me?"
"I didn't steal anything from yo,u jackass!" Axel shot toward Riku's direction. Just as he was getting back to his original position in his seat, Axel's eyes glimpsed toward the door. My body froze in place. As his eyes met mine, I felt like I we were the only ones in the world. Everybody else had disappeared. My heart beat rapidly, and for a minute, it was all that I could hear. That was when he flashed me a cunning smile before turning his attention back to Xemnas.
"Keep talking Axel and I will continue to add more detentions to your punishment." I could tell he was glaring at the redhead. The sound of a shifting chair said he was looking to the other boy, "As for the item Mori, I'm sorry I can't do too much on that now. Frankly, I don't know if Axel has it with him or not and what he said earlier does seem true for an excuse to start a fight-"
"THANK, YOU!" Axel gestured with his arms at somebody getting his point. I winced. Things weren't going the way it should've. Don't believe him Xemnas. Don't, I prayed in my head as if he would hear me.
"However, I can make a few calls to his house and ask that his mother check for anything that looks odd, is that okay?"
A mother. It never really occurred to me that Axel had a mom. All I ever heard about was his dad, never anybody else. But a mom, of course he had one, but what was she like? A mafia queen? Or like every other mother?
"I suppose that's fine for now, Mr. Xemnas," Riku's voice clung in an upset tone. "I'll see what else I can do, but until then," Xemnas stopped followed by the sound of a drawer opening and papers shuffling.
"These are your passes back to class." Obviously he was glaring at Axel by the way the guy made an "innocent" shrug. The silver-haired man tore the slips apart and laid them out on the table, "But check in with Mrs. Harleen first so that the both of you can get yourself cleaned up."
Axel snatched the piece off his desk, "Gee thanks." Xemnas made another straight sigh, "I don't understand you two. Riku, you're one of my best students, straight-A and athletic. I never thought you'd break one day." More fault on my part.
"And Axel...you're such a fool. You've got potential to go places, yet here you are fighting and showing off your aggressiveness like it's something to be proud of."
"Thank you, sir," Axel did his fake bow again as he stood up.
"Both of you have a good rest of the day and I hope not to see either of you back in my office unless it's for something good," Xemnas finished. "Thank you, sir," Riku mumbled. I was already around the corner down the hall from his office when the two walked out, Axel nearly slamming the door behind him as he walked out last.
"Good job, Mori. You got us both in trouble. Over what? Nothing!" The redhead threw his arms out behind him, his tone still sarcastic. "I wasn't fighting you for nothing; I already told you what I was fighting for," Riku glared back at him as he made his was to the nurse's office.
"Oh what was it now? Oh yes! Rock Ass' little bracelet deal?" Axel tapped his head again with sarcasm.
"If you have it, then give it back."
"Oh, I have it. Not on me, but I have it. And no, I'm not giving it back."
I narrowed my eyes from hearing him say that. Of course.
"Why not?"
"Cause, it looks pretty good. Never seen something like that before. Looks like it could be worth something."
I knew it, I clutched my arm, ignoring the pain it offered in return. My thoughts were confirmed.
"You sell it, I'll do worse to you than I did today."
"Ooooh, I'm so scared! What's it mean to the guy if you have to try to beat the crap out of me for it?"
"You don't care."
"True, true. But maybe if you tell me, it might sway my mind into giving it back."
"Yeah right. Nothing sways you. You're not the type to be swayed."
"True again! Look, if Rock Ass wants the thing so bad from me, then tell him to grow a pair and actually come after me," Axel turned in my direction. "Why don't you just grow up?" Riku spat. "Please, that's the way I do things. You know that. I mean, you were on my side once upon a time," The Order's leader glanced back to the boy walking away from him. Time seemed to stop as this sunk in. On his side? Riku was once-
My thinking was cut short as I heard Axel approach. I hastily hid behind a line of lockers just as Axel reached the corner. From my spot, I could hear leather rubbing up against leather and the tap of a boot against the floor. He was leaning on the wall, arms and legs crossed.
"Won't this be fun Roxas?" he whispered loud enough for me to hear. He knew I was there. There was no doubt. Nonetheless, I kept my mouth shut and covered my nose and mouth to prevent any hints of breathing.
"Of course you know it will. I mean, I gave you a reminder after all," he continued. I stared down to my injured wrist. What a horrible reminder.
"Just you wait," he chuckled, turning around and strutting off down the hallway. Trembling, I held my wrist and gritted my teet. Fear and anger were trying to balance each other out in my body, but one was winning more than the other.
A/N: Woot! I speculate he, or anybody else, would act if they had lost something as special as that even if it was for a few days. With the case of Demyx, yeah he has a part in this story. But you won't find out what for a few chapters, but it sort of increases with each one. Finally added Tidus, Selphie, and Wakka in the story. Roxas' friends were there so might as well add Sora's in too even though I leave them practically useless in my other stories. Thanks for reading and please review!