Yes, it is time once again for a sea-salt story. This one was suggested by LunaEtSidera, in addition to a longer one I'm writing as her/his giftfic, and while the longer one is technically her giftfic, this one just sounded like far too much fun to resist. :) Continuity is any time after Invader.
A quick shoutout to v.t.7, who took me up on my giftfic offer and wrote a story called Daddy Axel. It involves baby Roxas and Xion. Baby Roxas and Xion. This should be all the encouragement you need to hop over to her profile and check it out. :)
Now then, time for the tale. I hope you enjoy.
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Addiction
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"Axel, where are you going?"
Axel turned to Saix, who had looked up from a stack of paperwork on the coffee table. "I'm going to eat ice cream with Rox and Xi, like always."
"Have you finished your report yet?"
Axel looked rather sheepish. "Uh… I will when I get back, promise."
Saix leveled his patented deadpan stare at him. "At this rate, you'll make them sick."
"Sai, we usually only eat two sticks each per day. Five is our maximum, and that's for special occasions.
"That's still too much sugar. I think you have an addiction, and you're passing it on."
Axel raised his arms in a surrender position. "Addiction? Where'd that come from?"
Saix would have counted off on his fingers, if he was that theatrical."You eat large amounts of sea-salt ice cream every day. It is your main social activity with the Keybearers. You skip work to do it. You avoid interaction with the other members to do it."
"To be fair, the other members avoid interaction with me."
"And you like it that way. I reluctantly allowed it before, but now that it's interfering with work, I must take notice."
Axel put on his most persuasive voice. "Come on, Sai. It's ice cream, not drugs. It's harmless."
"So you're saying you are addicted, and you wouldn't be able to go without it for a few days?"
Axel facepalmed. "Fine, I won't eat it for a few days, just to prove it's not an addiction. Seesh."
"Not just you. I want the Keybearers to go without, too."
"What? They love it."
"Correction. They love whatever Amano Brand puts in those things. And because they have an ice cream stand in Twilight Town, I would prefer if you met in your room for the duration."
Axel threw his arms in the air. "That's just petty! You don't trust us or something?"
Saix held up an envelope, marked with the word Taxes. "Would you prefer that I released some of your troll fanfiction?"
Axel just stared blankly at the envelope.
"What? You play that game, I play it too. This is known as mutual deterrence."
"You release those abominations, I release that video of you eating this 'addiction' of mine."
"You catch on quickly. Here's the thing, though. I don't really care. My reputation can be regained with a few Infernal Engines."
Axel slumped on the couch. "This is cruel, Sai. This is just cruel."
"So you are addicted, and perceive the removal of your object of addiction to be 'cruel'?"
Axel put his head in his hands. "Fine. Three days, starting tomorrow."
Saix looked back at his paperwork. "Sounds like an agreement. Good luck, Axel. I have the feeling that you'll need all the luck you can get…"
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DAY ONE
"What?!"
"Why didn't you tell us yesterday?"
Axel rubbed his temple, trying to resist the puppy dog eyes of the Keybearers standing in front of him in the hallway. "I did tell you. If I'm correct, you were chatting away with each other and barely acknowledging me. I believe your exact words were 'that's great, Axel'."
Roxas cringed and did the usual neck-rub. "Sorry…"
"Consider this your punishment for snubbing me. Listen next time, all right? I know you like each other, but you've got a second friend."
Both Keybearers nodded in shame. Xion shook her head. "No ice cream and no clocktower. What are we going to do?"
Axel smiled. "Hey, we can find something else to do in the evenings. Get your mission reports done, then we'll play some video games. Sound good?"
They both perked up. "Okay!" they said in unison. They ran off to fill out their mission reports.
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Xion stared up at the ceiling. It was two in the morning now. At first, she thought the lack of sleep was from the competitive round of Sugar Rush, but she soon realized that something else was going on.
Xion liked the usual clocktower meeting even more than her companions, which is saying something. It was a small part of every day she knew was going to happen, and it made that part of the day just a little easier to manage. So when it turned out that it wasn't happening, her reaction had been subdued only by the knowledge of video games coming up. But with that over, she was completely in the dark about what would happen next. She would have to go two days without knowing what would happen in the evening. For Xion, this was maddening.
She soon found herself sitting up on the edge of the bed, Thomas the Elephant and Bird the Penguin to her right, feet held up above the ground, pretending she was at the clocktower eating ice cream. She was coming up with the whole conversation they'd be having, with Thomas and Bird playing Roxas and Axel, respectively. She was holding a clenched fist under her mouth, biting the air as if ice cream was in its place—she could actually taste it, just a little. Imaginary sea-salt ice cream did have one advantage over real sea-salt ice cream—it was infinite, and never gave her a stomach ache if she ate too much.
It took her a bit to recognize what was happening. She closed her eyes and slumped on the bed. "I'm going insane over this, aren't I?" she whispered to herself. "Axel said Vexen's insane. I don't want to be Vexen…"
When she realized that only her imaginary version of Axel had said that, she rolled over and slammed her head on the pillow repeatedly. "Yeah, I'm going insane. I can't believe it, I'm going insane…"
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DAY TWO
Saix was quite surprised to find that the shared typewriter of Organization XIII was in use. Most days, Saix was the only one who used it. Heck, Luxord had his own typewriter, which he didn't have to share. And for Xion to use it was just plain crazy, especially at six in the morning.
He stared at the girl quietly, not interrupting. She noted his presence, but didn't react. After a minute, she pulled out the paper and went over to Saix, handing it to him. He took it and read as she walked off without another word.
Dear Saix,
It is my firm belief that taking away our ice cream is completely unfair and uncalled for. We didn't do anything wrong to deserve it. I demand that you give us our ice cream back.
Sincerely,
Xion
Number XIV
The Bright Shadow
Saix actually found the overly formal tone of the letter quite amusing. It was like some of the angry letters to the editor he had read in the newspaper. Still, Organization XIII had no complaint box, and he wasn't about to let one develop. He sat down and typed something himself. When he went to Xion's door, he found it was locked, so he just nailed it to the door. Yes, nailed it. He wanted to get her attention.
Xion,
No.
Sincerely,
Saix
Number VII
The Luna Diviner
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Roxas stopped at the door marked XIV. Xion was standing in the doorway, staring at a piece of paper murderously. Roxas took a few steps backward—just in case—and scratched the back of his neck. "Hey, you okay, Xion?"
"I tried to get Saix to give us back our ice cream. This was his response." She handed him the paper.
Roxas read the note. "Oh. And you're mad about this?"
"Thanks for saving me, Captain Obvious."
Roxas took a few more steps back—Xion being sarcastic was generally bad. "Should I… talk to you later, or something?"
"Good idea."
Roxas ran off. He wasn't happy about the lack of ice cream, either, but Xion had several traits that turned her into the perfect storm in such a situation. First, her temper, while subdued since her last big eruption, could still be pretty scary when it came out. Second, she was good at coming up with short-term 'solutions' to problems which she almost always regretted later. Third, she was cunning and determined, which was great most of the time, but worked too well with her zany 'solutions'.
Roxas' danger sense was not nearly as well-honed as the other members, but the mere task of staying alive in the Castle That Never Was necessitated that he develop a basic awareness of the risks of being around Organization XIII. He had also been around Xion long enough to understand how she would react in various situations, including this one. Thus, he finally understood how Saix felt when he said that he just 'knew' it was going to be a long day.
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"Xi, what are you doing?"
"Nothing."
Every poorly thought-out plan in Xion's short life had begun with these words. This time was no different. She was sitting in her room, drawing something on a big piece of paper (rather than doing the math worksheet Axel had assigned that day). Thomas and Bird had been placed on the paper. She was wearing a fake general's cap, probably 'borrowed' from Demyx's silly hat collection. She also had also raided Zexion's library for Strategic Thinking for Nobodies and, oddly, several strategy guides for strategy video games.
Axel stared blankly at the scene. "Xion. Number XIV of Organization XIII. Bright Shadow. What the fudge are you doing right now?"
"Nothing," she repeated.
"Don't give me that. You look like you're planning something."
"I'm not doing anything."
"You are blatantly lying to me."
"No, I'm not. I'm really not doing anything."
"Yes. At this very second in time, you are literally just sitting there, staring at a half-drawn map, two stuffed animals and a stack of books while wearing one of Demyx's stupid hats. However, as soon as I close this door, you will probably be doing something, so it's still lying."
Xion threw her cap on the table and gave Axel a look he would normally expect from Saix. "Do you want the ice cream back or not?"
Axel facepalmed hard. "Xion, we talked about this. The whole point is to prove to Saix that we're not addicted to sea-salt ice cream. This…" He gestured at the floor-turned-command-center. "…Is not helping."
Xion stood up walked up to Axel with her best puppy eyes turned on. "I had a really hard time sleeping last night, Axel. I was really tired all day. I only managed to fill the mission gauge because I knew not filling it wasn't an option. I can't handle another night like that."
Axel facepalmed again, this time with both hands. "Oh my gosh, you are addicted." He put his hands on Xion's shoulders. "Xi, it's only one more day after this. It'll be over before you know it. I know you're upset, but you can handle it, all right?"
"But what about tonight?"
"If you didn't sleep well yesterday, you'll be out cold tonight. Just think about something else. You'll be fine, I promise."
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DAY THREE
Xion was staring at the wall, trying not to give into the temptation to look at the clock. Her eyes were as big as plates, and had Axel been there to see them, they would have given actual puppies a run for their money. Every time she closed her eyes, something related to ice cream appeared in her mind. Thinking about video games? The sword wielded by the character was a giant ice cream stick. Thinking about work? The Heartless dropped ice cream instead of munny, which her mind avatar gladly scooped up and almost inhaled. Counting sheep? They were all sea-salt blue.
She finally caved in and rolled over to look at the clock. 4:59 AM. She moaned and covered her head with her pillow. "I don't care what Axel says anymore," she said through clenched teeth. "I can't handle a third night of this."
She pulled herself up off the bed and walked to Roxas' room. Roxas was asleep. She envied him.
She shook him without thinking. "Roxas."
Roxas stirred. "Mggh… Xion… don't do this…"
"Help me and I promise I'll never do it again, ever."
"Mpph… fine…" Roxas propped himself up on one arm and looked at Xion with bleary eyes. "If this is what I think it's about…"
"It is."
Roxas was just about to fall back down on the pillow when Xion grabbed his hair, holding him—actually genuinely terrifying. They both cringed. "Sorry," Xion said sheepishly. "I just can't have another sleepless night."
"Oh, Xion…" Roxas rubbed his eyes. "I love you, but you drive me nuts sometimes."
"Why does that sound like it could come out of Axel?"
"Because I'm picking up his habits. That's what Luxord says, anyway. Next, I'm going to be saying 'got it memorized' all the time."
Xion smiled slightly. "That'd be something I'd like to see. Come on. We've got an hour."
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Roxas was really too tired to know what was going on. He was just following Xion's lead, which he was pretty sure was a bad idea, but it was better than wandering around aimlessly. Or, considering that they were suddenly in Twilight Town, maybe not.
The sea-salt trio had never visited Twilight Town at night. Sometimes, if they stayed extra-long at the clocktower, they could catch the first signs of a starry night, but that was about it. Now, staring up at the stars, Roxas realized what they had been missing out on.
"Pretty night," he noted, ever obvious.
"Yeah. We'll have to come back some time." Xion stood in front of the ice cream stand. The shutters were down. "Oh. I didn't know it closed."
"I think people only eat ice cream during the day."
Xion summoned her Keyblade and pointed it at the lock holding the shutter in place. A beam of light shot out, and the shutters flew open, revealing the running refrigerators within. "Unless those people are us," she said, looking back with a smile.
"This is stupid."
"Yes, yes it is."
Xion climbed over the stand, and Roxas followed suit. The fridges were also locked, this time with a password. She pointed the Keyblade at the console, and instantly the word 'Walt' appeared in tiny green letters. The fridge slid open, and boxes upon boxes of beautiful Amano Brand sea-salt ice cream were exposed.
Xion pulled one out of an open box, licking her lips. "Hey, precious," she said, creeping Roxas out slightly. "Haven't seen you in a while. I hope you've stayed tasty…"
A familiar voice called. "What are you doing?"
Xion jumped, screaming a bit and dropping the ice cream. Axel was standing there, arms crossed. He was leaning against a nearby wall, eyes closed. He didn't look happy.
"Come on," he said, walking slowly towards the Keybearers. "I've been around you for four and a half months. That's long enough to get to know someone pretty well. I knew you'd come here."
Both Keybearers were staring at the ground, blushing. Xion was cringing. "We're sorry. This was really stupid of us."
"Xion, I am really disappointed in you. I thought you were better than this. You too, Roxas. You should have told her not to do it."
Roxas kept staring the ground. "She wanted to do it, so I kind of felt like I had to, too."
Axel sighed. "I'm going to have to tell Saix. When you agree to something like that, you have to keep up your end of the deal."
"Not that we got a say in it," Xion mumbled.
"Yeah, okay, it was unfair of both of us to drag you into it without asking you. I'm sorry about that. But that's no excuse for stealing. You've broken my trust here, guys. Trust is pretty important, and it can take a while to rebuild."
Xion breathed a little heavier. "So you're not our friend anymore?"
"That's not what I mean. I'd never give up on you two. You know that. But I can't look myself in the mirror and say 'Roxas and Xion never lie' or 'Roxas and Xion never steal' anymore. That's hard on me."
"We're so sorry… I'm so sorry…"
Tears welling up in Xion's eyes would set off basic human instincts in the most callous souls, and Axel was highly susceptible to cuter-than-a-kitten Keybearers already. He bent down and gave both of them a hug.
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Saix extended the ban by two weeks. The trio agreed that this was reasonable. They also both got solo Giant Heartless missions. None of them thought this was reasonable, but Saix was Saix.
The next morning, Xion awoke from a genuinely restful sleep. She hadn't been thinking about ice cream the previous night. She was already planning to do better in the future. She had made a vow never to lie or steal again.
When she looked at her nightstand, she found, much to her surprise, a bar of sea-salt ice cream. She blinked a few times, wondering if she was still dreaming. Then she noticed a note underneath the bar, written in red ink.
Hey, Xi,
I'm not mad at you. Don't get too down on yourself, just move on to tomorrow. I'm here for you, always.
Axel
PS. Convinced Saix to give me this. It's the only ice cream you're allowed. Take it or save it for later, I don't care. Consider it my apology for dragging you into this in the first place.
Xion smiled and took the bar. She walked to the freezer and stuck it in a dark corner, not to be eaten for two weeks.
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THE END
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And the fluffiness is done. Man, I'm soft… :)
This took me a while to write. I had to write this AN the day after I finished, because it's so darn long. But hey, I think it was worth it. And of course, it was another Xion-focused story. Darn it, Xion! Why you gotta be so cute?! :)
Credit where credit is due: Raberba Girl was the first to use the full name thing, in Modern Love. It's one of the best 'awkward question' stories, so you should read it.
I hope you enjoyed this short story. Remember, reviews are always appreciated. Reviewer Question Time: Is Xion using mind control on me, and if so, how do I fix it, Roxas has two Keyblades and he doesn't look happy… :P Giftfics and such, you know the drill.
Thanks for reading, and be sure to keep your eye out for more sea-salt stories!