Notes: Yeah, like I feared, this did take way too long. I had a lot of writing failure, and too many demands on my time, and a lot of Marx and Foucault to read for my philosophy classes. Basically, the universe decided to conspire against me. I'm still not completely happy with this chapter, and it's kinda short, but I finally decided to just finish as best I could so I can move on. There's more plot development, a bit of Sora and some AkuRoku fluff, to make up for the general lack of Axel in the previous chapter. Happy Valentine's Day!

Putting that aside, I'm considering writing a prequel (probably just a long one-shot) about Axel meeting Neric, the early development of the Project, Axel's mysterious lavender sofa... all those questions that may never be fully answered in here. Anyone have an opinion one way or the other?

And a random recommendation: check out Sa Ding Ding. She's Chinese and awesome. Sort of Chinese folk music meets electronica. I wrote most of this chapter to her album Alive, so you should go listen.

XIII

There was, Roxas had discovered, something very soothing about cuddling. Not even cuddling in relation to sex, or something like that, but just lying on that stupid lavender sofa Axel still hadn't explained and being quietly happy together. And it wasn't perfect, Axel's chin was a little bit pointy and tended to dig into Roxas' breastbone when they shifted around each other, but when they got it right and he had his fingers in Axel's surprisingly soft hair and Axel had a hand pressed warm against the small of his back, it was close enough.

Roxas must have sighed, because Axel lifted his head to blink at him lazily, cat-like. "You okay, Roxie?"

"Yeah, just thinking." He smiled slightly and felt like a lovesick moron.

"You? What a shock." He rolled his eyes, but smiled. "Though I am wonderfully thought-provoking, so I suppose it's to be expected."

Roxas slapped the back of Axel's shoulder lightly. "You're an idiot. And never mind, it wasn't anything important." Just something sappy and stupid that would make him sound like a total girl. And he really didn't need that. He embarrassed himself enough as it was.

"Aww, you won't tell me? And here I thought we told each other everything." Axel's eyes widened in some semblance of a pout, but it wasn't very convincing and Roxas found himself rolling his own eyes in response.

"You haven't even told me the story behind this couch, Axel," he pointed out wryly.

"That's because it's a painful story, Rox. It would be inhumane to force me to relive the trauma."

"I'm sure. Because you're so fragile." Roxas smirked and shook his head, amused.

"It's true." Axel nodded solemnly, then dipped his head to nip at Roxas' jaw. "And I know you just couldn't live with yourself if you hurt my feelings like that."

Roxas bit back another stupid smile because Axel was using that voice, the low, intimate murmur that Roxas was pretty sure was reserved just for him. "I guess I can let you off for now. But I really do want to know where the fuck this thing came from."

"One day, Rox, when I've psyched myself up enough to handle it." Axel lifted his head and grinned toothily, working one hand free to ruffle Roxas' hair.

Roxas batted the hand away. "You are so melodramatic. And kind of stupid."

Axel laughed. "Baby, you say the sweetest things."

"I know, right?" It was Roxas' turn to grin and he poked the end of Axel's nose. "I'm just awesome like that."

"Oh, definitely." He nodded and they fell into comfortable silence for a few minutes. Then, "Neric's going to want to talk to you soon, about the Project."

Nice subject change there, Axel. Smooth. "That's cool. It's not like I'm never around for him to find."

"Are you still okay with this?" Axel worried at his lower lip briefly with his front teeth. "Because, if you have reservations, please say something. Don't just press on for me, or whatever."

Roxas frowned at him sharply. "Stop being an idiot, Axel, seriously. I'm not doing this for you. I mean, okay, it is kind of about you, but it's also definitely about me. I'm not going to regret it or freak out and change my mind halfway through."

Axel smiled at him and it was equal measures relieved and wry. "Well, I certainly hope it's at least kind of about me. It's those fragile feelings, Roxie, you've gotta be careful."

Roxas rolled his eyes again, dramatically. "God, you're so weird."

"I thought it was endearing." His bright eyes glittered teasingly.

"Yeah, maybe," Roxas muttered grudgingly. "Sometimes."

"Better than never, right?" He kissed the end of Roxas' nose and grinned again.

"Sure, Axel, whatever you say." Roxas shoved at his shoulder half-heartedly and couldn't help but smile because Axel's responding laugh was warm and soft like summer rain.

-

In actuality, it took Neric another four days to come around to talk to Roxas again. Roxas wasn't sure what exactly Neric did with most of his time, given that the Project seemed to have enough people involved to keep everything going without his constant attention, but he opted not to ask. Sometimes he got the feeling that, with Neric, the best policy was to just be happy not knowing everything. He was a nice enough guy, and Axel seemed to have total confidence in him, but if anyone had haunted eyes (a turn of phrase writers, he'd noticed during his twelve years of public education, were partial to), Neric was it.

The aforementioned Neric smiled at him wanly over the rim of his cup of coffee and leaned back in his squishy green Starbucks chair. "How are you doing, Roxas?"

Roxas shrugged. Unlike his companion, he was too short to properly own the massive furniture and felt a little childlike, enveloped by upholstery "Okay, I guess."

"That's good." He nodded approvingly and set his cup down on the short table between them. "I'd hate for you to develop sudden feelings of alienation over all of this. Although, if you subscribe to Marx, we're all alienated anyway, from each other and from the world and from ourselves. Our species being, in his words."

"Um, right," Roxas replied as agreeably as he could, sipping his coffee to cover up his initial reaction of what the fuck, man. Neric was really weird and kind of sketch. Roxas didn't even know his last name, for crying out loud, but there he was, having coffee and, apparently, discussing Marxist theory with him.

"You should read Marx sometime," Neric continued casually. "He had some fascinating ideas. I don't subscribe to most of it, but it's certainly interesting."

"I've read part of the Communist Manifesto, for my history class last year." Roxas shrugged again, a good neutral response.

"Have you?" He looked briefly delighted. "Oh, that's lovely, very progressive."

Roxas wasn't sure exactly how to respond to that, so he sipped his coffee again before speaking. "Thanks?"

"You're welcome." He picked up his cup and turned it slowly in his hands. "Now, about the Project. I assume you've given it more thought?"

He was as bad as Axel with the non-segues. Maybe that was where Axel had picked up the habit.

"Yeah, and I still want it." He lifted his chin a little, almost defiantly, daring Neric to question or challenge his resolve.

Neric just nodded and took him at his word. "I thought you would, but I wanted to check before pressing on. How many Project people have you met, again?"

"Demyx and Zexion," Roxas replied. "And Axel, obviously."

"That's a good place to start. Zexion can be a bit prickly, but he's a collector of knowledge, very helpful and useful to know. And Demyx is... Demyx. He's tougher than he looks, though, don't let the stupid grins throw you off."

"I know. I... remember, I guess." Roxas looked down at his cup for a few seconds, a little bit uncomfortable again with the fact that he did know that. He was trying really hard to just be okay with everything, but sometimes it went back to being hard. Why couldn't everything just be easy? His friends sure as hell didn't have to deal with anything like that.

"You've gone introspective on me." Neric smiled slightly.

"Why is it only us?" He blinked at Neric slowly and felt vulnerable and a little bit alone. Maybe that was what Neric had meant by alienation.

It was Neric's turn to shrug, a slight lift of narrow shoulders. "Maybe it's destiny - you have the chance to remember, so you'll be able to make things right. But I really couldn't say."

"Destiny," Roxas repeated blandly. It was kind of a bad non-answer. A cop-out.

"Le destin," Neric agreed lightly.

"You're kind of crazy, you know that?"

He smiled slowly and finished his coffee. "So I've been told."

Well, that was a fail. "When do I get to meet the rest of the Project and all that?"

Neric tilted his head slightly to one side and thought about it for a few seconds. "Saturday."

"...Okay," Roxas said slowly, when no further information seemed to be forthcoming. "Where?"

"I don't know yet. I suppose the Project office would be logical, wouldn't it?" He tapped a finger against his cheek. "Go to Axel's place around noon - we can move from there."

"You have an office?" Roxas finished his own coffee and set the cup down.

"Of course." Neric looked almost affronted. "What, did you think I kept everything in my basement or something? I don't even have a basement."

"I hadn't actually thought about it much." He really hadn't. The mechanics of the whole thing hadn't been his primary concern.

"Hmm," Neric replied neutrally. "Well, then, Saturday at noon, is it?"

"Sure." Roxas smiled. "I'll be there."

"I should certainly hope so - it is for your benefit, after all." Another thin smirk curved across his face.

"Noted." Roxas started to stand. "Is that it for now, then?"

Neric nodded. "Unless you have burning questions for me, which I may or may not answer."

Roxas rose fully and picked up his cup to throw it away. "Just one."

"Go for it."

"What's your last name?"

For once, Neric actually smiled properly. It was almost warm. "Ashford."

That... wasn't at all what Roxas had been expecting and it took him a few seconds to process it. "Is that for real? Or are you making shit up to confuse me?"

He laughed. "I didn't make that up, actually. My name really is Neric Ashford. It's on the office door and everything. Very official."

"Then what the hell is your accent?"

"Didn't I say before? That would be telling." He smiled again, with a flash of off-white teeth. "See you later, Roxas."

Roxas sighed. One piece of information acquired. Several thousand to go before Neric would start to lose his sketchy edge. "Yeah, later."

Maybe Axel's around.

-

Axel wasn't. He didn't answer his phone, either.

Roxas flopped back on his bed despondently and was just about to call again, to leave some sort of stupid rambling message (because it had to be in the dating rules somewhere that he was allowed to do that), when his phone rang.

It wasn't Axel, though - it was his cousin Sora.

Huh. Weird timing. "Hey, Sora."

"Oh, good, you picked up!" Sora said brightly, in lieu of an actual greeting.

Roxas rolled his eyes. "I do know how to answer the phone, Sora."

"I know, but I wasn't sure if you'd be around or not."

"Well, I definitely am, so what's up?" Roxas tucked his free arm behind his head comfortably and looked up at the ceiling. It wasn't quite what he'd been hoping for, but if nothing else Sora was fun to talk to.

"I'm gonna be out your way next weekend, so I wanted to check if you'd be free."

"Why are you coming out here?" It wasn't like they lived worlds apart or anything, but a two-hour drive wasn't something most people did for no reason. "Not that I don't want to see you, but what's the occasion?"

"Um..." He actually sounded a little bit embarrassed, which was unusual for Sora. "There's this guy - his name's Riku - and he lives kind of near you. We hang out whenever he's here, so I'm just making it even."

Riku? As in, that Riku? Has to be - there can't be that many Rikus running around. "Oh, cool. Yeah, I'll definitely have time to hang out." He smirked. "But, you know, Sora, if you want alone time with Riku, don't let me stop you."

"Hey!" Sora had gone from embarrassed to indignant. "I never said it was like that!"

"Uh huh. You're only coming all the way out here to hang out with him."

"Yeah, whatever, what d'you know?" Sora muttered.

Actually, Sora? Kind of a lot. "You know I'm right."

"Whatever," Sora repeated firmly. "Are your friends gonna be around, too? I haven't seen them in ages!"

"You saw them in August, Sora. That's not ages." Roxas shook his head, even though Sora couldn't see it, smirking.

"It is, too. We should go get that weird ice cream you like so much!"

"Sure, Sora, anything you want." His smirk softened into a smile. There was something about his cousin that always made him feel like smiling. "You should invite your Riku to come with."

"He's not my Riku!" The embarrassed indignation was back full-force. Roxas grinned triumphantly. "Stop being a jerk, Roxas."

"What?" He laughed. "If he's not your Riku, why are you getting so worked up about it?"

"Shut up," Sora replied stubbornly. "What about you, then? Is there a Roxas' someone for me to meet?"

"Maybe," Roxas shot back, fighting off his own embarrassment. No one in his family knew about Axel yet. He wasn't totally sure he was ready for that. "You'll have to find out when you get here."

"There totally is!" Sora announced triumphantly. "You wouldn't be all vague if there wasn't."

"I just told you - you'll have to find out when you get here."

"All right, then." Roxas could hear Sora's grin. "I'll see you Saturday, Roxas."

"Yeah." Roxas grinned, too. "Definitely."