Xiana: Here's chapter 25! Uh… there are only two chapters left after this one…

Hey, if you guys are ever hungry and just happen to have Coco Puffs, Goldfish Crackers, Yogos, and Fruity Pebbles cereal, you should definitely mix them all together. It's really yummy… Don't add milk, though. Well, as long as you have Coco Puffs and Goldfish Crackers you should be fine.

Slight Ouran reference near the end. Which I do not own. I don't own any of this, btw.

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The Odds Are…

Demyx skipped merrily to the kitchen while carrying many blankets and a convenient picnic basket he had found on the floor. "Zeeeeeeeeexy! I'm here, are you ready yet?"

"Just a moment! I have to finish making these extremely fattening, but also quite tasty, salami-and-American-and-pepperoni-and-provolone-and-ham sandwiches and also the Coco-Puff-Goldfish-Crackers-Yogos-Fruity Pebble trail mix. It would be done already, except that there were only like thirty pieces left in the Coco Puff box. Did you eat them all again?"

"Nooooo… It wasn't me! It was Axel and Roxas! They ate the Coco Puffs together with love!" Demyx revealed.

"What do you mean, Demyx?"

"I mean… that all along, we were secretly right, and they did like each other! It was on one of our breaks at the trial; I came into the kitchen, and I saw them in there making out! It was really cool! Because they were really cute and all mushy-gushy and awwwww! I just love those two together! I mean, canon and cute! What more do you want? Akuroku! Akuroku! Yeah!"

"Really?" Zexion asked interestedly. "So, are they going out now?"

"Uh, I don't know! They should! And they should get married! Why? Because they are in love, even more than us two, y'know?"

"Yeah, I've pretty much been all for it since day one when Roxas joined. I saw the way that Roxas looked at Axel, and I definitely saw a spark or two in that gaze, if you know what I mean. And then, Axel really is a pyro, so it's sort of surprising that the sparks took this long to catch. I hope that they will be very happy together."

"But we shall be happier! Because we are the Zexion and the Demyx, and we are the bestest of all the everyone couples everywhere!" Demyx sure was competitive.

"Demyx, that last sentence didn't even make sense. Anyway, shall we go?"

"Yep! I say we go to the park over there by The Store, you know, with the big playground!"

"This is a date-date, you know. Not a play-date, Demyx…"

"I know! But still! We can relive our childhood memories and play together and I can push you on the swings and it can be romantic, right?"

"Yeah, sure. Let's go already." They walked away to the park in silence, as much silence as there could be when Demyx was still talking about various date-related things, that is.

Zexion found a lovely patch of grass on which he set the basket and proceeded to help Demyx spread out the blankets, and they took a seat on the padded ground. Zexion pulled out a sandwich for Demyx. "Here, try one! It may not be healthy, but it sure is delicious! I made it especially for you, Demyx."

Demyx took the giant sandwich and bit into it carefully before chewing it thoughtfully. He smiled. "It's really good!" He snuggled against Zexion as the two laid back to watch the idle clouds scud across the sky. After a while, Demyx began looking for images in the clouds.

"Hey, Zexion, that one's a bird! And that looks like a train! And over there is a theoretical representation of the string theory! And that one looks like a smiley face! Zexion do you see it?"

"All I see are clouds, Demyx."

"That one over there looks like me! And that one looks like you! Awwww… now we're kissing! These clouds are awesome!"

"Um… that looks more like a one-legged dodo bird with its eye getting stabbed out by a pencil to me, Demyx…"

"Yeah, I know… but it would be cooler if it was us…"

"Then let's let it be." Zexion flipped himself up and stretched his arm out to Demyx. "Come on, you wanted to play on the playground, right?"

"Yeah!" As Zexion pushed Demyx higher on the swing set, he wondered what would happen next. Somehow, he had gone from hating Demyx to loving him, all in less than a week. No matter how it had happened, it was nice not only to care for someone, but to have someone care for you as well.

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Luxord was having a terrible week. First Vexen had gotten sick from his toxic experiment, than, Zexion had messed up his ankle after being sprung out of his seat by some sort of spring, and now Roxas was in here because a chandelier had fallen on him. Zexion had been one thing, when Demyx had explained the reference to him. But, come on now! What are the odds of someone being hit by a chandelier while they just happened to be walking through the room?

"287,986 to 1," said a calm, mysterious voice.

"Well, yes, I knew that, but still! Why are all these things happening to me?"

"I apologize. Things must be hard for you." Xiana patted Luxord on the shoulder before slipping something into his hand. "Don't lose sight of your light."

"What the hell? Why are you apologizing? It's not your fault…" Luxord turned to find that Xiana had disappeared. He looked down to find a five-munny piece in his hand. "And just what the hell am I supposed to do with this?" No one answered for some odd reason. Although perhaps this wasn't so odd because Vexen was sleeping, Roxas was unconscious, and Axel appeared so deeply traumatized by the incident that all he could do was sit on a bid, staring ahead and every once in a while blinking. Luxord could sort of empathize, for he understood how much Axel cared for Roxas. The two were best friends, after all. Roxas really had escaped nearly unscathed, so there shouldn't have been that much reason for Axel to worry. Miraculously, he had no broken bones, and even the cuts and bruises he had sustained were minor. He had a mild concussion, but even that would go away quickly. Mostly, it was stress that had really gotten to Roxas. Not only must the past few days have been active, but the sudden shock, as is often found in cases where the victim has been smashed by a chandelier, had been a major contributing factor. Luxord was confident that Roxas would be fully recovered by tomorrow.

Either way…. Luxord pocketed the munny. He was never one to say no to free moolah. Then again, few people were. What was with that girl, anyway? It wasn't like she had anything to do with what was going on, right? Unless… Luxord snapped his fingers. "I've got it! Xiana is Roxas' ex-girlfriend who he broke up with, and she later started dating Axel. Roxas was jealous, because deep down, he still loved her, so he sabotaged the chandelier and then lured Axel under it! However, he had a change of… non-heart at the last moment, for he pushed Axel out of the way and was crushed instead. So Xiana came in, believing that it was all her fault, and thus wanted to compensate me for my troubles, but she has been a poor hobo for some time now, and was unable to spare more than a little small change!"

A ragged chuckle escaped from Axel's mouth. "You've got it all wrong, friend. Xiana has nothing to do with any of this. It's just me. Me and Roxas. I liked Roxas, and Roxas liked me. We had a great time for a while. Then, of course, stupid me couldn't explain to him how I felt. So I avoided him. We made a plan to meet back up in that room after the trial was over. Roxas created a distraction. Everyone left. It was just him and me, and he was about to tell me something, or ask something really important, when all of a sudden, this fucking chandelier came down from the sky. He saved me."

"Okay… I like my story better. Your story doesn't have any hoboes in it. Anyway, I'd tell you that Roxas was going to be okay, but…" Luxord paused for dramatic effect, "he's dead."

"Are you fucking kidding me?" Axel asked, as incredulously as would someone told that his or her blue-eyed, blond-haired best-friend-turned-lover, who he or she had cruelly rejected previously and who had just been injured in a tragic incident to save the afore-mentioned someone at the risk of said lover's life, had died.

"Yes, yes, I'm joking, haha…"

"You can't fucking joke about that. Roxas is the person I care most about, out of everyone in the entire world, and you think you can just tell me he's dead and think I'm not going to do anything about it? You really have no shame." Axel's voice was calm and quiet, more terrifying than if he had had simply started screaming at Luxord. Axel pulled himself off the bed and stared blankly into Luxord's eyes before raising his fist and cracking Luxord in the jaw. Luxord collapsed to the floor; Axel kicked his prone form once before returning to sit beside Roxas' bed, hoping that Roxas would wake once more to shine the bright blue love of his eyes on Axel once again. He hoped this more than anything.

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Larxene kept trying to stop the tears. It was just... so hard. Marluxia had flat-out said that he would never even consider her, and that they had no future together. She struggled to control her emotions, and she dug her nails into her palm until she could confidently walk toward the mirror with her trademark Larxene-really-couldn't-care-less-about-any-of-you expression on her face.

So now what? Marluxia had rejected her summarily. Should she even attempt to pursue him, or just move on and find someone else? Axel, Roxas, Demyx, and Zexion were all out, and she really wouldn't want to go out with any of them anyway. Except maybe for Zexion. Really, he was quite cute, in an emo-y way. Doesn't every girl dream of having her own cute emo boy, really?

But Zexion had already been claimed by Demyx, and unless something went horribly wrong, they were liable to continue on their current course of a sometimes rocky but always… non-heartfelt love.

So there was still Xemnas, Xigbar, Xaldin, Vexen, Lexaeus, Saïx, and Luxord. Xemnas was out. Just out. Out. Xigbar could be considered, Larxene had always found that eye patch strangely alluring. Xaldin was a straight-up nerd, and Larxene was not that desperate. Vexen was a scientific-y guy, and she was more of a historical-fiction girl. It wasn't going to work. Lexaeus was strong and stoic, maybe he would care for her in his silent way. Saïx and she had a lot in common. They both liked causing pain to others. But was that good enough for a relationship? Luxord was a gambling man. Surely he could win enough games and enough munny to buy all kinds of stuff for her.

Larxene decided to narrow it down still further. Let's say, either Saïx or Luxord. Money or a similar personality? Yes, Larxene was the type of person who would unequivocally choose money. Yes, she intended to pay Luxord a visit in a little while. Once she had gotten over Marluxia, but that wouldn't take long. It wasn't as if she had actually cared for him. Simply absurd to think such a thing.

Really, there wasn't anything could that one could say about Marluxia. He was just a man who strolled around making the flowers grow and waving his pink scythe of Doom. She didn't even know how she had ever allowed herself to think such a thing. Larxene liking Marluxia. Ha. Not to mention, he had probably just rejected her so outright because he wasn't even interested in girls. Anyone who would control plants and then also willingly spend their time growing pretty, and not deadly, varieties, couldn't be a straight line. Yes, clearly, anyone who would reject Larxene in such a way was most obviously searching for someone without boobs.

But she had always thought of Marluxia as a man. You know, a "normal" man, one who liked women. Still, she shouldn't be wasting time on that guy who didn't like her and who she didn't like.

But she knew that was a lie. There was always time for her to waste for him. It wasn't that she didn't like him. She really, really did. But Marluxia didn't like her. She had two options. She could either try and find out how to get him to like her back, or she could move on and start with Luxord or Saïx. The last plan had the added effect of possibly making Marluxia jealous, by showing that she could be happy with someone else. Not to mention, free stuff, right?

She smiled. First step, Luxord. She dabbed on some eyeshadow and rolled a little extra mascara onto her eyelashes, effectively disguising the fact that she had been crying. She examined her appearance critically, but decided she could see no flaws. She stepped out into the hallway and walked swiftly down toward the hospital room.

What she saw was not exactly what she had expected, however. Roxas was lying on the side of the room, bandaged up, Axel was sitting next to him, holding his hand lightly, Vexen was asleep, and Luxord appeared to be getting up from where he had somehow fallen on the ground.

Larxene smiled brightly. "Oh, Luxord! Why don't you take a quick break from taking care of everyone and come with me instead?"

Luxord was all too happy to comply. He followed her down the hallway to the dining room. "So, what's up?"

"Oh, Luxord… I'm sorry if this is awkward, but I guess… I like you. Like, a lot. I'm sorry, I really hope this isn't awkward for you, but I was wondering if you'd like to maybe go with me to the movies tomorrow? I mean, if you don't want to, that's no problem, but…"

"Oh, I'll go. It's no problem. Thanks for asking me, Larxene!" Larxene smiled. Phase one completed.

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Pain. A hazy cloud that pricked him continuously with hundreds of pins and needles, though never to the point where he would wake up. In many ways, it was comforting, a familiar feeling that told him he was still among the living.

It was as if he was suspended in a cloud of needles. Safety came with the small price of slight discomfort. Never before had he experienced anything quite like this. He had battled until he fell to the ground, but never to the point where he had actually lost consciousness. It was a new experience, and one that he could honestly claim to enjoy more than lying on the cold, hard concrete, gasping desperately for air, chest tight and ribs contracting and expanding agonizingly as he wheezed, sucking down mouthful after precious mouthful of rich oxygen as if it was his final breath. Those moments of wretchedness, of absolute weakness, were when he felt there was no reason to continue living, to fight for any cause he could stand to support, and it was times like this where he felt an uncontrollable urge to give in to the pain, to surrender to the darkness compressing him, to relinquish control of his corporeal form to some unknown deity, to be completely eclipsed and destroyed by the sudden entirety of knowledge that his life meant nothing and that there would be no disturbance in the perpetuity of time, not even the slightest ripple of a leaf skimming the surface of a stagnant pool, were he to die here.

In comparison, this prickling feeling was like heaven, like he had finally forsaken his hopes, fears, and dreams and moved to stand in the light, free from impurity. It was only the occasional twinges of discomfort he still noticed from time to time that prevented him from releasing his loose grasp on the material world. He was content to remain here for a time, to float in his bastion of solitude before returning to face the world. All too soon, the enchantment was broken, and he was vaguely aware that he once again had the power to move, though he chose instead to simply lay there, reclining in some as-yet unidentified place, content to rest and to recover from some strenuous ordeal that he had previously undergone.

And then, a sharp pain shot through him, though it quickly reduced itself to a dull throbbing in his temples. So this is what it feels like to be crushed beneath a grand chandelier, he thought, wondering idly where such an odd idea had come from.

It was after deciding that it was probably a misconception, a misinterpretation that was the product of a delusional brain, brought on by stress and the loss of substantiality, that he noticed someone appeared to be speaking. He attempted to make out phrases, even just solitary words, but there was a faint buzzing in one ear, a metallic ringing that would not be out of place at the aftermath of a concert where one had, through some unfortunate oversight, forgotten to bring along earplugs.

He attempted to respond to the as-yet unknown figure, intending to say something along the lines of, "I'm sorry, can you repeat that?" It came out more as a sort of vague "Uuuuuhhhhhh…?" His tongue felt thick and fuzzy, dry and much too big for his mouth.

He opened his eyes, grimacing from both the strong light from above and from the scurfy flakes of hardened goo that fell into his eyes after he blinked, the flecks captured in his long, pale lashes as his vision spun into an image of the scene around him. A bright reddish blur atop a pale circle attached to a huge black mass corrected itself in his jumbled sight to form a more orderly picture of a man with bright hair the color of flame wearing all black. The man seemed looked very worried about what was happening, so he tried to reassure him that he was really all right and that there was no need to worry. His tongue remained coarse and unmoving, however, and all he could do was attempt to smile, drawing his parched lips up into a slightly pained grin before slipping back into the limbo of his dreams to once again undergo the repetitive piercing of the needles until the next opportunity for him to properly regain his body.

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Roxas woke, gasping for breath. It was dark outside, but there was still a lone light shining in the room. Roxas struggled to sit up, and accidentally woke up Axel, who had laid his head on the side of the bed, though he still clasped Roxas' hand within his own. Axel looked up at Roxas to find that Roxas was awake, and pressed a button on the bed's remote control so that Roxas could sit up.

"Uuhhh… what happened…? My head feels ready to split in two…"

"Roxas, you… the chandelier in the courtroom fell suddenly and hit you. You saved me, you know. Thank you."

Roxas tried a smile. "Hey, you're welcome. Now, what were we… Ah, now I remember. Hey? Is Vexen asleep?"

"Yeah, I thnk so. And Luxord's still gone, so really, it's just us two. Did… you have something you wanted to ask me, Roxas?" Axel asked softly.

"Oh, yeah. But first… Axel,, you… did say it, didn't you? You… told me that you… love me?"

"Yeah… yeah, I did, didn't I? Roxas… I love you."

"Thanks Axel. I love you, too. I really do mean it, and thus I must ask you, because I feel it is important…" Roxas steadily pulled out the jewelry box from here he had tucked it away earlier; thankfully, it was still there. "Will… would you consent to marry me, Axel?" He opened the box, and Axel could tell he was really quite serious about the whole thing.

"You're proposing, Roxas? Of course. I love you. Just as long as this doesn't mean I have to wear the dress, okay?"

They laughed lightly before Roxas responded. "Of course not. I already have one being delivered tomorrow. It's really pretty, if you ask me. I… I knida prepared this whole thing earlier yesterday. I really am glad that you said yes…"

"Of course. I can't reject you, for you are the one I love." Axel plucked the ring from its box and slipped it onto the ring finger of his right hand. "So, you've been planning this for a while, then, haven't you? Does that mean… that you forgive me?"

"Yes, of course I forgive you. How could I not?"

"That's good." Axel sank back in his chair before leaning forward, pressing Roxas' back against the bed as he kissed him. Roxas was able to move one arm up to cradle Axel's face to his own, though his elbow slipped from the unexpected weight of the cloth covering his arm and landed on the remote control. The bed sloped gently downward, and Axel was forced to climb on top of the bed and straddle Roxas to continue showing affection. Not that Roxas minded. Axel had said yes! He hadn't really been expecting him to say no, but it was just more confirmation that he was right and that he hadn't simply wasted a day of effort. He gently pushed Axel back to whisper, "I'm so glad," to him before once again falling asleep.

Axel stole on last, quick kiss before pulling himself into bed next to the sleepy and gleeful Roxas. Tomorrow, they could be joined forever, and never be separated again. The bed was too small for both of them to recline comfortably, so Axel lifted Roxas on top of himself. It was very comfortable to have a warm and slightly plushie boy on top of you, or so Axel discovered. He only hoped Roxas would be at least half as comfortable. Axel didn't really think he was sharp and pointy, so he thought probably he was soft, then. Roxas had seemed to like sleeping with him before… in a manner of speaking, so maybe he'd also like… sleeping on him. Roxas sighed dreamily in his sleep and rolled over so that his face was crushed up against Axel's chest. It was a bit uncomfortable for Axel, but he couldn't move away and leave Roxas to fall to the cold, hard bed… It was times like this that made Axel feel like a virtuous person, and also that Roxas was really weird when he was asleep.

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Roxas woke up again eventually. The first thing he noticed was that he was lying on top of Axel in the hospital bed. The next thing he noticed was that he was practically wrapped head to toe in bandages. He started pulling them off and throwing them on the floor, trying to be careful not to wake Axel up. The truth was, he just wanted to lay on top of Axel for a little while longer, and he feared that Axel would tell him to get off if they were both awake. His fears were unfounded, however, because after a short time, he noticed a pair of green eyes watching him.

"Having fun, Roxy?"

"Oh, why yes, Axel, I just love pulling bandages off of myself after I've been whacked by a chandelier."

"I can do it for you if you want." Not waiting for a response, Axel sat up and placed Roxas in his lap and started gently peeling the cloth off Roxas' arms. Roxas relaxed in Axel's arms and watched, but leaned forward again when he saw the bandages covering Axel's hands.

"What… did you do to yourself, Axel?"

Axel withdrew his hand quickly. "What, this? It's nothing. I just had to save you from the chandelier, and…"

"Don't get hurt… on my account," Roxas whispered, feeling sorrowful that Axel had been injured because of him.

"Don't worry, I'm not going emo or anything."

"That's okay, I can be emo enough for both of us. Just… it's fine now, so don't worry."

"All right." Axel went back to pulling off the bandages. The skin was mostly whole, and Roxas probably wouldn't even remember the cuts by tomorrow. Nobodies had extremely high healing rates. Axel was still careful to take care not to hurt Roxas, but once the job was done, Roxas stretched out.

"Thanks for that. I was kind of uncomfortable."

"But now you're comfortable, right?"

"…If I say no, can I lay on you again."

Axel sighed. "Sure, Roxy."

"Well in that case, no." Roxas flipped over onto his stomach. Axel laid down and pulled Roxas up.

"Are you comfortable now?"

"I love you, Axel."

"Well, that's good. If you didn't, I would kick you off, and I'd squish you instead!" Axel joked.

"Nuh-uh… I'm not squishing you! Plus, you said I could, and it would be just mean to kick me out..."

"But if I love you, you should love me back, right?"

"No way! I don't have to!"

"Yes, you do, if you want to lie here, that is." Axel grinned and did something tricky so that he was now on top of the facedown Roxas.

"Hey!" Roxas protested, flailing around. "But I did say that I loved you! Because I do! What did you do that for?"

"I did it because I love you," Axel whispered into Roxas' ear, tickling him with warm, moist breath.

Roxas had just enough room to flip himself over to look into Axel's dancing eyes. "You're so evil, taking advantage of a poor, helpless, young invalid…"

"But you know you love it."

"Yeeeees, but still. You know, we could have a trial of our own. Winner gets to be on top."

"Nah, too much effort. I say super-intense-high-speed-rock-paper-scissors, best two out of three!"

"But I always lose…"

"Now you're getting it, Roxas."

"You're so mean." Roxas kissed Axel. "And yet, I still love you."

"Some people just never learn, huh?"

"Or maybe I'm just a slow learner." They began kissing again , free from restraint now that the trial was over and love was confirmed. Eventually, Roxas shoved Axel off. "Hey, we have a marriage to prepare for. What are we doing lollygagging around here?"

"Gosh, Roxy, it's your own fault for distracting me with your cuteness."

"Awww, be quiet. Besides, it's not my fault a chandelier fell on me!"

"But it is! You see, every day you walked into that room, the chandelier ghost looked down from above and said, 'That boy is so pretty. I must steal him away!' But then it saw me and it was so depressed that it decided to kill itself, its love, and its rival at the same time! Poor chandelier ghost… it sacrificed itself in vain…"

"But, Axel, there's no such thing as a chandelier ghost… and even if there was, wouldn't it be already dead and unable to die again?"

"You might think so, but chandelier ghosts are special! Once they die, they are given one last chance to make things right before they die again. However, if they don't take that chance, they are immediately consigned to the eleven-teenth circle of hell!"

"Axel…" Roxas began laughing. "That sounds like something Demyx would say…"

"Fine." Axel got off the bed and pulled the sheet around the bed aside. And met the eyes of a confused Vexen.

"Wh… What were you two doing in there?"

"Wouldn't you like to know…?" Axel smirked. "Hey, Rox, I gotta go dig up something to wear. It is tonight, right?"

"Oh, yeah. I think, just as long as the dress was delivered last night when we were sleeping."

"Right. Say, what color is it, anyway?"

"It's actually sort of a bluish-blackish. It's really pretty, if I do say so myself."

"Nice. Way to be. What else do we have to do to get ready for it?"

"Uh… Oh, crap! I forgot to get invitations out last night! What are we going to do?"

A trumpet fanfare blared and a high-powered motor lifted an evil and mysterious figure up. "When in doubt… call on the fangirls!"

"Xiana!" everyone exclaimed, including Vexen, who was pretty smart to know her name since he hadn't actually met her before.

"Yes! Tis I, Xiana, and with my loyal troops, we shall deliver your letters for you, Roxas!" Laughing evilly, she descended as the motor whirred up again.

"Well, then it's all settled! Shall we meet someplace at… 7:00?" Axel asked. Roxas nodded. "All right, I'll see you then." Axel planted one last smooch on Roxas' lips before hurrying out the door. Roxas simply stood and smoothed out the bed before following Axel outside, leaving behind a very confused looking Vexen.

'Axel just kissed Roxas. They slept in the same bed last night. When they woke up, not only was Axel acting very tenderly towards Roxas, but they were also making jokes about "being on top", and other intimate sorts of innuendo. They needed invitations to be sent to people. A dress was delivered last night. Axel was wearing a ring on the ring finger of his right hand. Final conclusion?'

"They're… getting married? But… but…" Vexen gave up. "But I didn't even know they were going out… HOW COME EVERYONE IN THIS CASTLE SUDDENLY SEEMS TO HAVE A BOYFRIEND!? And why doesn't anyone love me…?"

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Xiana: Oh noes! I haven't updated in a while! Sorry… I really have no excuse. So… I thought this chapter was pretty good. (Throws Zexion plushies to the audience in appeasement.)

Next: Ano… All the pizza girls get mentioned and hopefully have at least sort of a big part…