Xiana: Here is chapter 21. Alerts and stuff have been fixed, as far as I know, so now you all have no excuse for not reviewing! Haha.

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Axel Makes Stuff Up

Marluxia was worried. He was pretty sure that he hadn't made as good an impression as he could have hoped for, and was sure Larxene had stacked a lot of evidence against Zexion with that. He felt he had to apologize, and he did so multiple times, but it was clear that Zexion was okay, for he was quick to reassure Marluxia that everything would be fine.

"Don't worry, Mar! Everything will be fine!" Zexion claimed after Marluxia apologized again. "Demyx may have, you know, done some stuff to me, but I think I'll be fine. Really, it's just hard to say things to other people, so I probably made it sound much worse than it actually was. It'll be okay, really. Besides, you get to do cross-examination next, and it's easier to criticize people. Negativity works, so I bet we can really make an impact in the next round of questioning!" Zexion finished, hoping Marluxia would really believe him and start focusing on the task at hand, rather than dwelling on what had been and all of the things he could have done better.

"Yeah… Yeah, you're right." Marluxia perked up a bit. "I still feel bad, I mean, I know you respect me enough to let me be your lawyer, so I really do care about what happens to you, and I don't want you to get hurt. I'll try as hard as I can to win this trial for your sake –and mine," he added as an afterthought, remembering the deal he had made with Larxene.

He had a sudden thought. What if Larxene wasn't going to use the power of victory to hook up with him, but instead to torture him in some as yet unknown, but probably X-rated, way. Maybe he had the wrong idea about the whole situation. Maybe she really did hate his guts, enough to rip them out with a rusty better knife, roast them over a fire, and force-feed them to him. This mental image was enough to motivate Marluxia into a frenzy of activity, jamming his reading glasses onto his face hurriedly and scrambling through his notes, making new ones with the pen he always carried in his front pocket. No, he wasn't quite sure what he'd do with Larxene if he and Zexion won. But surely anything was better than the alternative.

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Axel had foregone his snack break in order to check up on Roxas. Hearing nothing, he was about to go back in (which he told himself didn't count as breaking the rules of the seperation) when he heard Roxas say, "My god, Axel. Oh god, I love you too. I love you." He shoved himself up against the wall, pressing a hand to his chest, fearful of discovery, but entirely blissful from the words he had heard. Roxas loved him. Roxas loved him! He wasn't angry! Axel had believed that he had been so irrevocably cruel that he could never be forgiven, but now, now that Roxas had read the note, he understood, right?

Muffled speech again came from Roxas' room, the Room of Destiny. Axel wasn't entirely sure why Xemnas had chosen to name the rooms after everyone's nicknames. Some worked (like Roxas' and Axel's, the Room of Destiny and the Room of Dancing Flames), some were somewhat questionable (Demyx's the Melodious Room, Vexen's the Chilly Room), and then some didn't make any sense at all. Like Marluxia's. The Graceful Room. How could a room be graceful? Was it an accomplished ballet dancer? Zexion's was questionable as well. The Cloaked Room? Better than the Room Schemer. And then there was Xigbar's. The Freeshooter's. People either called it the Free Room (which gave the impression that it was vacant, leading to some interesting misunderstandings) or 'The Room.' Just 'The Room.' It was the same with Xemnas. They both had 'The Room' until Xemnas had changed his after some more awkward situations at dinner when Xemnas and Xigbar had both stood at the same time and said they were going to bed in 'The Room.' The usual rumors spread, and after one misplaced comment by Demyx, Xemnas had changed his to 'The Room of Darkness Æternal and Everlasting in its Power and Beauty' angrily.

But now, the doorknob of Roxas' room rattled noisily, and its owner came out, dressed in a black shirt with red, jagged letters reading taROT 640 across the front and a pair of tan shorts with huge pockets on either side. He wore casual sandals on his feet, and had on a silver bracelet that matched a ring and necklace he had also adorned himself with. The ring was set with a blue stone and had a swirling metal design that resembled an ocean wave. The bracelet had a clasp that featured two of the stones, complete with the pattern curving in the fashion of a yin-yang symbol, and the necklace was a pendant with a huge blue gem dangling from a silver chain.

Axel noticed all this in the seconds before he shrank against the wall as Roxas passed. Of course he knew what everything looked like. The shirt had been from a concert they had gone to with Demyx, Larxene, Lexaeus, and Marluxia; those shorts were Roxas' absolute favorite pair; and the jewelry had actually been a present from Axel. Axel had given the set to him as a reward for surviving the first month of training.

The first week had been simply orientation, getting Roxas used to the rules of the castle and some basic weapons training. The next few weeks, however, had been endless, agonizing torture for both of them, for after the first month, every new recruit was sent into the darkest part of the city to spend the night there. If he or she returned alive the next morning, they could be officially initiated into the Organization as a true member. They had trained all day and all night, occasionally pausing only to gulp some energy drinks or to take an hour-long break to keep their bodies functioning. It was during that time that Axel had first started to see Roxas as a friend, rather than some nameless and faceless recruit, one who couldn't handle the pressure for more than a few days and was soon to be denoted back down to a lowly dusk.

Roxas was different. Not only was he strong, and able to hold his own against Axel from about Day 3, but he had a personality that attracted attention. Whenever Axel seemed about to call it a day, Roxas was always ready to jump up and continue training. By the time the end of the month came, Axel would have been willing to bet –against Luxord even- that Roxas could have defeated Xaldin, widely known as one of the three strongest members of the Organization.

Still, Axel had been worried about his lovable, precious protégée, and had tried to motivate Roxas to succeed. Something along the lines of, " Roxy, if you live, I will buy you something pretty and expensive. And sparkly. Very sparkly." "Well, Axel, I am motivated now! I will surely return to retrieve my most excellent and well deserved reward!"

Roxas had returned, and, true to his word, Axel had delivered the set to Roxas the next morning. Roxas had been thrilled, and it was worth every yellow and blue diamond of munny Axel had handed over to that jewelry salesman to see the look of joy on Roxas' face. Those were good memories, especially the part where Roxas had jumped on Axel out of sheer happiness, squeezing him with as much affection as could be put into such a gesture from such a gift.

Axel realized belatedly that Roxas was not heading towards the courtroom at all, and was in fact going in the opposite direction. Axel looked out and followed him slowly, always being careful to stay out of Roxas' line of vision. Where could he be going? He wanted to keep following Roxas, but a bell from somewhere rang and Xaldin came over the castle's PA system. "Attention, the court break is now over. We will now hear testimony from Axel and Demyx."

Axel sighed, turning regretfully back to the courtroom. He never looked back, but if he had, he would have seen Roxas looking back at him with a passion in his eyes that rivaled that of even their most intense make-out session. For Roxas finally knew. Axel loved him. And Roxas had the perfect plan to make sure Axel could find the words he needed to say.

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Axel took his seat in the courtroom, barely caring about the oath. "Yeah, yeah, I'll tell the truth and all that." He raised his hand in a mocking version of the proper gesture required. "Can we just get through this?" he asked in a bored tone, wishing this would end already so that he could figure out where Roxas had gone, and so he could just see Roxas again, period. He would sit through 48 straight hours of legal proceedings to get his Roxie back at his side, but anything he could do to shrink that amount of time down would be wonderful.

Xigbar lugged the dictionary (432nd edition) back to his post by the side door. Unfortunately, it was extremely heavy, and the strain was too much for his back. He dropped the book on his foot and screamed out various insults at the book and its mother, which shall be omitted here.

Eventually, his string of curses trailed off and stopped. He complained, "Why do we have to use this? It's not sacred or anything!"

"And that is where you are wrong, fool!" Xemnas spoke up from the jury section. "That book has both great psychological and spiritual value for me!"

"Don't insult me, or you may find yourself off the jury and in the audience with the common Nobodies!" Xigbar asked, going red in the face. Several of the more refined Assassins and Gamblers walked out, insulted.

"You think you can do that to me, your Superior?" Xemnas yelled arrogantly back.

"Why-"

"SHUT THE FUCK UP BOTH OF YOU!" Axel screamed at them. "Now, we're doing this trial now, understand? Yell about it all you want on somebody else's time!"

They cowered briefly before Axel's rage (he literally did have flames in his eyes) and Xaldin took the opportunity to announce, "Larxene calls her first witness, Axel, to the stand."

Larxene stood. "All right, Axel. The first question is, what did you know about Demyx and Zexion's relationships, romantic or otherwise, prior to this incident?"

"Well you know, I always thought they were just friends, and not even very close ones at that. More of a colleagues thing going on. I sure don't think that now, not after the display I saw." Wink wink, nudge nudge. Larxene sure had chosen the right witness for her side.

"So you think that they are involved romantically in one form or another?"

"Lady, when two boys are on top of each other kissing like that, it's pretty obvious something's going on," Axel drawled.

"Do you think Demyx initiated it, or was it perhaps Zexion?"

"Well, I think it was Demyx who actually made the first move, but it could have been that they both liked the other and Demyx was the first to actually act on his feelings."

"So you think both were… in love with each other?"

"Just gonna say… Zexy is the prosecutor, but he was also the one on top."

"I see. So, what do you think happened in the closet?"

"I think it went something like this," Axel began narrating a story of some sort.

"Demyx gasped. His true love had finally come to him. He gasped again as Zexion stole a kiss quickly. 'We've got to stop meeting like this…' Zexion whispered jokingly, lightly stroking Zexion's cheek.

'I… I thought you wouldn't come…' Demyx looked down, refusing to meet the eyes of his secret lover.

'Of course I came. Demyx, I love you.' Zexion took Demyx's hands in his own gently. He kissed Demyx slowly, sweetly, passionately, making Demyx fall under the spell of his enchanting eyes, mouth, touch.

Demyx pulled his hands away and used them to cup Zexion's face closer to his own, parting his lips slightly so that Zexion's tongue was able to slip in and start tickling around Demyx's mouth, exploring the moist surface by touch and taste alone.

Demyx leaned back happily, enjoying how his life had certainly taken a turn for the best. 'Zexion, when can we stop hiding this? When can we come to the world, hold our heads up high, and tell them we're in love?' he asked languidly, pushing his luck.

Zexion backed up in alarm. 'I'm not strong enough. You're so open about these sorts of things, love, but I don't know how to handle that.'

'Oh, darling, I'll teach you how to be brave. I'll show you,' Demyx promised, tracing light circles on Zexion's chest.

Zexion's only response was to kiss Demyx again, harder this time. Unfortunately, Demyx was not prepared, and stumbled back, landing awkwardly on the floor outside as the amazingly amazing and beautifully… beautiful Axel and his bestest friend Roxas, who was also amazingly amazing and beautifully beautiful, and Larxene as well, watched.

Everyone gasped, and Zexion ran to his room, completely embarrassed. He wouldn't let Demyx in, even when Demyx begged for forgiveness. Demyx, however, had a plan. Late that night, he snuck into the inner courtyard, and played a love song to Zexion, standing beneath his balcony.

Zexion woke at the first notes, ever alert. He walked out to his balcony, dragging on his silken robe for comfort in the cold night air. He stood silently until Demyx was done, a few teardrops falling onto the earth below, where Demyx had poured his soul into a song all for Zexion. He was weeping silently, and when he looked down at Demyx, all he knew was that he loved this boy more than anything else in the world. He called out, 'Demyx, Demyx, come up here, please!'

Demyx was all too happy to comply. He swung his sitar onto his back and clamored up the rose trellis that was situated between Zexion's and Marluxia's balconies. He swung himself over the railing with a flourish and landed in Zexion's arms. 'Oh, Demyx, I'm so sorry!' Zexion cried, burying his face in Demyx's chest disconsolately. 'I should have stood by you, I should have understood that it doesn't matter how anyone else feels, no, we only need each other.' He pulled Demyx into his room, removing his robe to reveal that he slept in the nude.

Demyx started to say something, but stopped as Zexion pleaded, 'Take me, take me now! Make passionate love to me, or else I shall die, die from lacking you.'

Demyx was unprepared for such a reaction, yet reacted quickly. He threw off his clothes hurriedly and lay atop Zexion growing more excited by the moment. Then, both agonizing pain and boundless ecstasy in one single, joyous moment as they became one. They shivered against each other, pressing together both for warmth and out of necessity, a necessity to take the other and be them, an extreme closeness where the one only wanted to devour the other, to stop both the pain and the fearful longing that they knew each would feel the next day.

And then, it was over, that instant of need and want conquered, and they settled down, now content to lie next to each other with the knowledge that they had possessed each other, comfortable in the knowledge that they would continue to. Zexion pulled the sheets up, and they drifted into a dreamless sleep.

The next morning, first Zexion, then Demyx, woke to a commotion outside. It seemed Demyx had been scheduled for a mission that morning and hadn't been seen in his room or anywhere else in the castle. The gorgeous Axel and his equally gorgeous sidekick Roxas had led the intrepid band to Zexion's room. Zexion and Demyx stood tall, hand-in-hand, and ready to face the world together. After they put some clothes on, of course." Axel finishedhis story, and everyone applauded, including a reluctant Zexion, who convinced himself that it was only because he enjoyed Axel's imagery and creative word choice.

Awwwww, who was he kidding? He was really starting to think that he liked Demyx. Like, liked-Demyx liked Demyx.

Axel was getting back to the questioning. "Yeah, that was a little bit after just what happened in the closet, but it was just so exciting that I had to tell the whole story!"

Larxene had been thrown slightly off guard form Axel's story, and had lost track of what she was going to ask. "Uh, um, yes. The next question is, uh… Do you approve of this relationship?"

"Yep! I'm with it all the way!" Axel gave a thumbs-up sign to Breeze, who responded with a satisfied smile before throwing a shuriken at a Sniper in Row 5, Section G, fifteenth from the right, who just had not learned that this was no place for a homophobe like him, as was shown by the other shuriken, kunai knives, and other pointy objects currently sticking out of his body.

"Do you think Zexion really hates Demyx, and does he have a strong point in his arguments?"

"Yeah, I don't really think that anyone could hate Demyx. I mean, look at him!" Axel gestured over to where Demyx was sitting with a cute, wide-eyed smile. "And Zexion has a bit of a point, but for the most part, I think he's just complaining about not being the seme."

"Thank you, no further questioning will be required." Larxene strode back to the table; thankful she had gotten such a cooperative witness.

Marluxia started immediately. "Your story is almost completely false, isn't it?"

"Why yes, yes it is. It is almost a complete fabrication based only loosely on actual events. But hey, that never stopped Hollywood, did it?"

"So then, Zexion could, in fact, have been completely unwilling and resistant to such a nocturnal visit by Demyx?"

"If such a thing happened, it is, in fact, possible."

"Well then, why do you persist in being true to the belief that Zexion is always in the wrong and Demyx is in the right?" Seeing Axel hesitate, Marluxia drove the point home. "Could it be that you're simply sticking up for your friend, regardless of the truth?"

"No… I…." Axel attempted to disclaim while really thinking it over. It was true, he hadn't thought much about Zexion's point of view at all. But he really thought the two would be good for each other, and that Zexion just needed to give Demyx a chance. "I still hold my opinion, and maintain that it is independent of partisanship!"

"Hmm, I expected as much. I had nothing more than the slight hope you would be able to put your personal feelings aside in this instance to do what is right. No further questions." Marluxia turned to leave, apparently very disappointed in Axel's true character.

Axel simply got out of the chair and sat yawningly back at Larxene's table. "Your turn now, Dem."

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Xiana: Well, that was an intense chapter! Let it be known that Axel's story did not actually occur, and that he was making the whole thing up! Not yet it didn't happen anyway…Hey! I want someone to draw a picture of pretty Roxas! Why? Because! If you want to, please send it to me sometime! Maybe I'll even write something for you... if you want, that is...

Next chapter: Is all about Roxas! Yay! Completely random stuff, and blind people bashing! No, Roxas bashing. Yay!