Chapter 37

There was a jostling earthquake shaking the hell out of Axel and giving him a headache. He was cranky, so very cranky and the constant shaking was making him boil. It had been lasting for at least a good ten minutes now. A magnitude nine at minimum. The wood of his bed creaked and his mattress sunk with the tremors. Axel let out a ferocious snarl before jutting his arm out and pulling Reno's leg out from under him causing the shorter redhead to fall backwards and the world stopped it's trembling.

"What are you, three? Do you really need to jump on my bed?" he growled. Reno laughed.

"But Ax, it's so springy! I couldn't help it," he grinned. The taller redhead laid his head back down and pulled a pillow over his face. He groaned in frustration. His friend crawled to him and draped a leg over his tall frame straddling him and using his butt as a seat. Reno's hands smoothed over Axel's back and started to knead lightly. "Baby, your back is so tense. You haven't been getting any lovin' have you? That's not good," he cooed.

"Don't be queer, Reno," Paine said and set General Patton on the carpeting to watch him scuttle around. "I don't understand the appeal of these bugs," she said. Axel turned his head in her direction and peeked out from under his pillow.

"They're not bugs."

"Yes they are, just like lobsters."

"Lobsters aren't bugs either," he said and raised a brow. Paine smiled.

"I know, but they look like bugs to me. So they're bugs. End of story." The logic was simple but skewed and the redhead decided to not push it. He grunted as Reno's hands pressed him into the comforter haphazardly nudging the knots out of his back. The other redhead was by no means a professional and it made Axel wonder if Marluxia was available.

"Tell me your troubles, girlfran. Miss your Roxas?" Reno asked. The taller redhead tried to push himself up but was quickly shoved down again by a hand in his hair and inhaled a mouthful of pillow. He growled unhappily and didn't answer.

"I don't think he wants to play today," Paine said. "We didn't exactly ask if we could visit."

"I know but he looked so dumpy in class today."

"He's allowed to be. He has emotions too, and unlike you, he has more than one."

"I only have one emotion? What would that be?"

"Stupid."

"That's not an emotion, silly."

"It is if we're talking about you."

"Aw, I love you too," Reno said happily and Paine shook her head, smiling. Axel groaned and tried to turn his hips so the other boy would get off of him but Reno gave him no leeway. He sighed. "Wanna get up? Too bad. I outweigh you by like six hundred pounds, it ain't happening." Axel groaned.

"I want to take a nap you guys," he said once he could pull his mouth out of the fabric. "Sorry I'm being boring today but I really just want to crawl under a rock and be antisocial."

"That's not healthy," Reno said and rubbed his shoulders. "What if we go get Roxas for you? Where is he?"

"He took his parents and Rikku to dinner."

"Ouch. Sorry. Never mind."

"Yeah, so get off me please. I don't want to be touched," Axel grumbled. Reno sighed and gave him a quick hug before stepping off of him and heading to sit on the floor with Paine. As if on cue, the bedroom door flew open and Sora came bounding in and vaulted himself onto Axel's bed. The redhead jumped up in an instant and punched the brunette in the arm angrily.

"Ow! What was that for!?" he whined and rubbed his limb with a sour expression.

"I take it you got your catheter out?" Paine asked. Sora nodded happily.

"It hurts to pee but I can do it!" he squealed and grinned. Axel rubbed his face.

"Great, fantastic. Get the fuck out," he growled. The smaller boy's eyes went wide.

"I'm hurt, Axel. I thought you'd be happy for me."

"I said it was fantastic didn't I?"

"Yeah but you're angry."

"Because you burst through the door and leapt onto my bed when I didn't want you to."

"Axel's grumpy," Reno piped. Sora looked the taller redhead over.

"I can tell."

"Yes. I am. I want to take a nap and wake up tomorrow if that's okay with all of you."

"That's not taking a nap, that's going to sleep," Paine said. Axel sighed and started to push himself under his blankets. None of his friends got the blatant hint and he buried his head under a mound of cotton and down to avoid them. Suddenly, the covers were moving around and set of chestnut spikes appeared against him. Behind him, another weight happened and he sighed again, taking comfort in the warm bodies cuddling up to him even if they weren't Roxas.

"Goodnight John Boy," Reno said and Sora giggled.

"Goodnight Elizabeth, goodnight Mary Ellen," the brunette added.

"Goodnight Ben," Paine said. Axel laughed.

"I can't believe you all just did that."

"It got you to smile didn't it?" Reno asked.

"Yeah, yeah it did."

"That was the whole point."

***

Roxas was bored out of his mind. Rikku looked just as bored as he was and yet his parents were laughing it up and having the time of their lives. They were both obnoxiously drunk and Larxene was guffawing at something Luxord said that was apparently the greatest thing she had ever heard. The blonde was very thankful he had the forethought to book a private area away from the rest of the restaurant. Four bottles of wine down, time to lug them home.

"This is really embarrassing I'm sorry you have to see them like this," the boy apologized. Rikku smiled.

"Aside from them acting like idiots it was a nice dinner. The most expensive one I've ever had by far. This totally isn't Applebee's. Thanks, you don't have to take this so seriously," she offered. He shrugged and fiddled with the ring Axel had given him.

"It makes for a convincing story at the very least, but I wanted to give you something back for being so patient with all this anyway. It was my pleasure," he said. His parents weren't listening to a word they were saying, which they often did when they were completely plastered. Rikku smiled.

"You're welcome." Roxas stood and sighed, smoothing his hands down his slacks a little, pushing the fabric into place again. He looked at his parents. Larxene was still laughing and had her head lain on the tablecloth, while Luxord was slouched in his chair with a grin and red cheeks. He shook his head. He went to the door of their private setting and motioned for Xigbar, who was sitting outside waiting for them. The older man groaned.

"Really? How much did you spend on them to get them this blasted?" he asked. Roxas looked at the check and shrugged.

"Less than I thought I would, honestly." Rikku gave them a sheepish look before standing and fixing her dress.

"Did you want help carrying them?" she asked. Xigbar looked the adults over and sighed.

"If you can help Roxas keep an arm on his dad, I can grab his mom." Roxas ran a hand through his hair tiredly and took his father's wrist, pulling him. The man happily tried to stand but staggered some and burped. He let out a disoriented snort and leaned on his son. The blonde rolled his eyes and helped him towards the door, followed closely by Rikku who waited to be useful. Xigbar hefted Larxene by her armpits and the woman laughed and tried to worm away like he was tickling her. She staggered and fell forward forcing Xigbar to lunge and grab her arm to keep her steady. It took them twenty embarrassing minutes to get to the limousine and throw the drunks in the back. The younger pair climbed over their legs and sat as far away from them as they could. Just in case his parents would notice, Roxas took Rikku's hand and held it gently. She gave his a squeeze to tell him no hard feelings. He smiled, a weary movement.

Before the car even started to move, the activity in the back of the limo was fraught with slurred speech, belching, and awkward gropes that made Roxas hide his face in his hands and Rikku watch them with wide and amused eyes. Larxene, of course, was the more rambunctious of the two. She was groping at Luxord's pants causing the man to shove her away and laugh stupidly as he tried to shush her for whatever reason, spraying saliva all over his finger rather than doing anything effective. Roxas was mortified. Rikku took out her cell phone and clicked a picture.

"I have to send this to Reno," she said and began clicking away at her phone, giggling. Roxas didn't care; he just wanted to get away from his parents as quickly as possible.

"I'm so happy no reporters are around," he said quietly to himself. Rikku smiled and patted his shoulder.

***

"Dude, this is hilarious," Reno said and shoved his cell phone into Axel's face, causing the other redhead to startle and stop chewing. He blinked in surprise as his eyes adjusted to a picture of Roxas' parents. Larxene was on her knees grabbing onto Luxord's groin. They both had ridiculous grins painted on their faces and their complexions were flushed. They were obviously drunk and sitting in what looked to be a limo. Axel snorted a laugh around his mouthful of pasta.

"Po' Rothath," he sputtered grabbing his napkin when he felt like a dribble of sauce was going to escape. Reno grinned and looked at the phone again.

"I wish my parents were such party people, they're so white picket fence it's depressing," he said.

"We all can't have such wonderful role models," Paine said and spun her fork around her spaghetti, winding it around the prongs. Demyx had cooked dinner a little late that evening and the group had gotten in an hour long nap before they were called down. Axel was feeling better and seeing the picture made him thankful that he wasn't out with them otherwise one of the parents would've been punched at that point. Reno held the device out to Sora who giggled.

"Poor Roxas, indeed. If I know him well enough he has to be about as red as a tomato and about to shit himself from embarrassment," he peeped. Axel nodded in agreement.

***

Roxas sighed again. Rikku had her hands folded in her lap, waiting patiently just like he was. Xigbar didn't smoke in the limo whenever he was driving and so he usually had a cigarette before getting in. This time though, he must have been taking his sweet time, because Roxas was growing impatient. He furrowed his brows and pushed the button that lowered the darkened glass between the driver's cabin and the back. He blinked when he could see through the non-tinted windows. Xigbar was gone. He stuck his head in the front seat and looked around. He wasn't anywhere in immediate eyesight.

"Stay here," Roxas said to the girl and made his way to the door nearly stepping on his mother in the process. He stepped out into the parking garage and looked around.

"What's up?" Rikku said from inside the car.

"Something isn't right, Xigbar is gone," he responded. The blonde scanned the sea of cars in the parking garage for anything suspicious. Nothing seemed out of place.

"Yeah?" the girl asked and poked her head out of the door. Luxord and Larxene laughed stupidly at each other, proving themselves to be completely useless. Roxas tried to shoo the girl back inside the car but she got out anyway and stood straight, looking around just like he had. "Weird, maybe he forgot something inside?" The boy shrugged. He pulled out his Blackberry and dialed the older man's number. There was an echo of a plastic rattling nearby. Rikku scampered around the back of the car to follow the noise. Roxas turned to follow her but stopped dead in his tracks.

"Rikku!" he screamed as he took in the view of the open trunk of a car with the barrel of a rifle sticking out into plain sight. There was a loud click and a puff of air as a dart shot out of the metal tube and stuck the girl in the meat of her thigh. She yelped and grabbed her leg, pulling the pointy thing out and giving it a disgruntled look.

"What the fu…" she drifted as her eyes rolled back into her head and she fell onto the concrete. Roxas' eyes flew wide as the barrel shifted quickly and another click was heard before there was a sharp pinch in his shoulder. He had a few seconds to notice the green of the dart that reminded him so much of Axel's eyes before the world started to fade. He crashed into the ground and the last thing he could see was Xigbar's cigarette glowing next to his Blackberry by the front tire of the limousine.

***

"M'kay goodnight Ax. Thanks for putting up with us even if we weren't invited," Reno said as he and Paine headed for the shorter redhead's car. Axel waved.

"Sorry I was such a grumpy old man," he said with a grin. Sora's arm peeked out from behind him and the brunette waved excitedly. The pair waved goodbye before taking their respective seats in the vehicle and driving off. The redhead waited until they were out of sight before closing the door. Sora giggled.

"I like your friends," he said. Axel shrugged.

"They can be your friends too, you know. You're allowed." They both started to walk towards the stair case. "What time is it?" Sora shrugged.

"I dunno, I don't wear a watch and I don't have a phone."

"You'd think Roxas and everyone would be home by now, it has to be late," Axel added. They both walked up the stairs and Axel headed into his room, Sora followed. "Holy shit, it's almost midnight," he said, pointing to his alarm. The hard feeling in the pit of Axel's gut was back. The uncertainty crept inward and he was suddenly overcome with a bunch of bad feelings. Sora furrowed his brows and looked to him.

"I'm sure they're fine. Right? Or do you feel as weird as I do?" he asked. Axel nodded.

"Yeah. Something isn't right. Roxas would've called if they were going to be out this late. It was only supposed to be dinner. Let's try and give them a call," he said and Sora nodded. They headed back down the stairs and into the study. Axel sat in Roxas' chair and pulled the phone across the desk. He picked up the receiver and tried to dial Rikku's phone. It was silent. He squinted at it and hung up. He picked it up again and tried a second time. Nothing. "What the hell?" he asked. Sora raised a brow.

"What? What's wrong?"

"The phone isn't working. The power isn't out right?"

"The light is on, stupid."

"Oh ha ha, yeah okay I get it. But seriously. The phone isn't working. I know ours were disconnected but I didn't think the other ones were too. That's taking it to an extreme don't you think?" Sora shrugged.

"Try 911," he offered. Axel nodded and dialed. It began to ring and he gave the brunette a thumbs up. Sora smiled, satisfied with himself. A woman answered the call.

"Yes, um. I'm not sure if this is really an emergency but it's looking like part of my family is missing? I mean they went out to dinner together and have been gone for a really long time and I can't contact them." Sora watched the redhead's expression droop some as he listened to the woman. "Twenty four hours? Are you sure? This is really uncharacteristic of them though and it's a little weird. I—okay fine. Thank you," Axel said and hung up again. "It takes twenty four hours for someone to be considered missing," he said. Sora sighed.

"I'm scared," the brunette said. "Let's stay up and wait for them."

"Yeah. I would say lets go somewhere and use a payphone to call Xigbar or someone but I don't even have my keys and it'd take forever to walk into town."

"We can try the neighbors. They're only about a half a mile away."

"Correction. Your house was only a half a mile away. The other ones are at least a mile. I know this because I walked it," the redhead said grimly. Sora's gaze drifted towards the desk and his face went blank. "Sorry," Axel said quickly and the brunette gave a light nod. "I guess we can try though."

"I really wish the other guys lived here," the brunette said. He was referring to the fact that they were the only two in the house at that moment. The staff had left for the evening as they usually did around eight o'clock. Since Sora was better and could take care of himself, Demyx and Zexion left as if it were any other day. The house suddenly seemed so much larger as the realization came to the redhead. Cold almost.

They bundled up as best they could before stepping outside into the cold. February wasn't as cold as January was, but it was still enough to give them shivers. Axel pocketed his keys, which would only open the front door, garage door, and his bedroom, and let the entrance click shut behind them, listening for the beep of the security system. He nodded to Sora and the brunette moved to walk close to him. They sighed together as they walked past the buried landscaping and out onto the sidewalk. The redhead pulled out his cigarettes and handed one to the brunette as they headed in the only direction they could.

***

Axel's teeth chattered together as he rang the doorbell of another enormous mansion down the long road from Roxas.' Sora leaned on him, trying to steal his body heat. It was taking forever for someone to answer and the redhead pressed the doorbell again, hugging himself. He let out a relieved sigh when he could see a light flick on in the distant reaches of the house though the window. Another few moments passed and an older gentleman in a blue housecoat and slippers squinted angrily at them as he pulled the door open.

"Do you have any idea what time it is?" he asked with narrowed eyes. Axel tried to calm his teeth long enough to speak.

"We need your phone," he said between shudders. "Please," he sputtered as an afterthought. The man hesitated and looked them over before sighing and stepping aside, letting them in.

"Wait here," the man ordered and shut the door. He walked off into the house. Axel looked to Sora. The brunette stared into the floor with unfocused eyes, his lips were chapped and his cheeks were red from the cold. He looked miserable. Axel unzipped his coat and tugged the smaller boy to him, pulling the fabric closed around him. Sora shivered and hugged him. They waited patiently for what seemed like an eternity before the man came back and handed Axel a cordless receiver.

"Thank you…" the redhead chattered. The man stood off to the side and crossed his arms keeping them under a harsh glare. Axel dialed Rikku's number again, and it rang. And rang. And rang. And rang. He hung up and dialed Xigbar. More of the same. Sora looked up at him with wide and worried eyes. Axel sighed and tried Roxas, fearing the worst. It rang for the longest time before there was a click and a gravelly voice answered. "Hello?" the redhead asked.

"Who is this?" the low grumble asked.

"Where's Roxas?" he asked, ignoring the request. Sora's breathing sped up some as panic started to set in. The man gave them a questioning look. The brunette stood on his tip toes and leaned an ear in to the conversation, Axel bent to let him hear. The voice on the other line let out a rumbling laugh and Sora gasped.

"Lexaeus!" he cried and grabbed the phone from the redhead. "Lex, where's Roxxy!?" he squealed.

"Sora? I thought you were dead," Lexaeus said. "Oh well."

"Well I'm not," he huffed. Sora's teeth clicked together as his body heat started to catch up to him again. "Put Roxxy on the line," he demanded.

"No that's alright. He's sleeping. Don't want to disturb him. His new girlfriend is pretty cute though. I hope Riku will let me have a go at her." Axel's eyes widened and he took the phone back.

"Bastard! Where are you?" he yelled. "I'll fucking kill you if you so much as walk past them!" Lexaeus let out a loud barking laugh and the redhead had to pull the receiver away from his ear because of the volume. The line clicked again and there was silence. The feeling in the pit of Axel's stomach leapt to his chest as it was slowly becoming harder to breathe. His mind flooded with the images of the giant man, Lexaeus, who followed Sora around when they were in Greece. The giant man who picked up Axel by his throat so easily. The man who pinned him to the ground like he was a feather. That man, who worked for Xemnas and his twisted son, had Roxas and Rikku.

"Is there something I should be aware of?" the man in the housecoat asked. Sora backed away from the taller boy and gaped at him. Axel cradled the phone in his hands like it was going to disintegrate if he was too rough with it. Sora stared at the redhead in disbelief as his jade eyes filled with tears. He swallowed thickly as they poured down his cheeks with out him realizing. The most shocking part of the sight to Sora was that Axel's face was calm and unmoving. The redhead looked like he could head out for a leisurely stroll through the sunshine save for the fact that his eyes were like waterfalls.

"They took my Roxas," he whispered. His eyebrows slowly rose up his forehead and he blinked a few times, looking down to the brunette, expression unchanged. "They…took him, Sora. They took him and I don't know where to find him," he said quietly. The brunette stared at him in silent shock; his lips parted some but stuck in wordlessness. Axel inhaled deeply through his mouth and breathed it out through his nose. He licked his lips. There was a long pause from him, simply letting his tears drip off of his jaw. He opened his mouth to speak, but no words came. He held it open for a minute before he blinked a few more times. "I'm going to kill them," he said in the same calm and quiet tone. "I'm going to kill them, and then I'll rape their bodies. If there is anything left of me when I'm done, I'll kill their dog too if they have one." He held the phone out to the brunette and Sora took it with shaking hands. He was afraid of Axel. He didn't like him acting like this. Before he could say anything, the redhead continued.

"They took my mom. They took my will power. They took everything I had from me. They took your sister," he said, locking unmoving watery eyes with Sora's terrified ones. "They took your brother. They took your home. They took your stability. They took your entire life from you, just like they did from me and for what? Why?" he started in vague monotone. He blinked a few more times and fresh tears came forth. He sniffled and shrugged nonchalantly. "I've lived long enough without it to not even care anymore. Isn't that weird? All it takes is a few months to find something new to hang onto and one can just let everything else go," he laughed lightly as a wide gaping grin spread across his face, a twisted and broken expression. The stream of tears bent with his skin. He let his mouth hang open for a moment as his fogged mind thought up the correct sequence of words, his eyes unfocused and he stared past the brunette into the tile of the strange house's entryway. "They can keep it all. It's not like we can ever get any of it back. I don't want it anymore, but I'll be damned if I let them take Roxas," he laughed, open mouthed and breathy with his skin pulled back in such a tight grin his gums showed. When he was finished with his hysteric noise, he let out a sigh and closed his mouth into a smile. Sora blinked at him and the man in the housecoat gave him a wary look.

"Axel?" the brunette asked in a tiny voice.

"Hmm?" he hummed in response, raising a brow and smiling presently at the smaller boy. Sora licked his lips and swallowed.

"Are you crazy?"

"Maybe just a little."

"Okay. Just so we're clear," he agreed and turned on the phone again. He dialed something and held the receiver up to his ear. "Sephiroth? It's Sora. Can you come get me?"

***

Sephiroth sat behind his enormous glass desk with his legs crossed at the ankles, typing away at his computer. His office was littered with a semi-organized chaotic mess of computer pieces, wires, and electrical equipment. He had an over abundance of flat monitors hung on the walls and four different computer towers buzzing away in a corner. He had his back to the boys, who were snuggled together on his clean lined black sofa with mugs of hot chocolate. Axel stared into space, letting the porcelain scald his hands. Sora watched the computer screen confusedly as Sephiroth worked, the various ultraviolet lights making him seem more ethereal. There was a loud ringing that sounded like an old rotary telephone. Sephiroth minimized his work and pulled up Skype. He clicked a few keys and the image split and lit up four monitors at once. The silver haired man dug around and pulled out a microphone from a pile of mess and felt around behind one of the monitors before plugging it in. He sat back in his chair and waited.

A bleary eyed and topless Cloud faded onto the screens, scratching his tousled hair and squinting against the light of his own computer monitor. He was wearing a headset and adjusted it on his ears. In the background was a bed, and a leg that no doubt belonged to Tifa sticking out from under the covers. Sora let out a happy squeak when he saw the older blonde and practically started to drool. Cloud yawned and grumbled.

"What is it?" he said groggily. He squinted close to the screen. "Sora? And… Axel?" The brunette waved.

"Hi Cloud!" he squealed. Axel made no move to greet him.

"Where's Roxas?" the older blonde asked.

"That's why we're calling. There's been an incident and I don't have the programs to find him," Sephiroth interjected before Sora could squeal anymore. "Can you do a GPS on his cell and see what towers it bounced from recently?" Cloud blinked a few times before his face turned serious. There was a light clacking as his fingers began to work away at his keyboard off screen. Sephiroth turned his seat to face them.

"Did you boys want anything else while we have a minute?" he asked. Sora giggled. Axel blinked but remained motionless otherwise.

"I could use a refill please," the brunette chirped happily and held out his empty mug. The man stood and took it from him and exited the office, boots clomping against the hardwood heavily. Sora took the mug out of Axel's hands and set it aside. The redhead made no move to stop him and kept staring blankly into nothing. The smaller boy sighed and ran his fingers through Axel's mane some and watched his face for any change. He received none. He sat back and waited quietly. Eventually, Sephiroth came back and handed off a fresh hot cocoa to the brunette, who smiled.

Cloud clicked away at his computer a while longer before Tifa started to stir. Her foot twitched before her leg disappeared and the covers fell aside. She groaned and sat up, squinting at the blonde from the bed. She stood and padded to him sleepily, draping her arms around his neck and kissing his temple. He pulled the microphone of his headset aside and muttered something to her and she blinked before her face grew into one with concern. She let him go and stood back. Sora inhaled his cocoa with a snort as the older blonde stood from his chair, and all of Sephiroth's screens suddenly turned into a giant view of Cloud's sweatpants encased groin as the blonde fiddled with something that was above the computer. The brunette coughed against his liquid filled lungs and blushed. There was a click and creak as the blonde pulled down a metal arm, holding a large monitor. He adjusted the screen into the camera view and clicked a few things. An image of a map blinked to life behind him with three red dots. Tifa replaced herself on his shoulders and Sora glared at her.

"Alright," he started. "According to the call that was received a little over forty five minutes ago, the phone is somewhere within ten yards of that stupid smoothie place down by the park. If I had to hazard a guess I'd say it's probably in the building itself but I can only narrow it down so much. Do I even want to know what happened this time?" he grumbled. Three spheres appeared on the screen around the red dots. They all intersected at one place, showing where the signal was sent from in a yellow triangle.

"It's up to you, I can give you the short of it," Sephiroth said. Cloud nodded. "Roxas took a friend and his parents out to dinner and he hasn't come back. The boys were by themselves and worried but the phones weren't working so they walked to find one and called me." Cloud's eyebrows rose.

"I assume that they called Roxas too? And someone who wasn't him answered?" Sephiroth nodded. Tifa scowled as did the blonde. "Fuck," he grunted and furrowed his brows, running a hand over his face. "Sora?"

"Yeah?"

"Did you call everyone else?"

"Not yet."

"Do that, I'll call the police. Stay with Sephiroth for now. I'll leave the channel open in case you need me," he said and took off his headset and disappeared from the screen. Tifa took his seat and frowned. She put on the headset.

"Axel sweetie?" she cooed with a hint of sleep still in her voice. The redhead blinked a few times and shifted his blank stare to the screens. "Are you alive back there?" He shook his head and looked away again.

"They broke him," Sora said flatly and sipped his cocoa.

***

"Meadows!" the guard called. Namine's eyes slid open easily. She'd become accustomed to getting little sleep. Between the baby and the holding cell, they did nothing to help lull her into dreamland. Her hair was a mess, her jumpsuit was dirty, and she felt miserable from inadequate tasting food and having only water. The loneliness was the worst part though. She wasn't wanted anywhere anymore, least of all by her own family. She sat up slowly, letting her aching back get adjusted to being upright. The guard appeared by her cell, slipping a key into the lock and pushing the gate open. "Bail's been paid," he said simply. She blinked in confusion.

"What? Really?" she mumbled with skepticism. She stood on shaky legs and tentatively walked towards the open gateway. She tried to look through the doorway and down the hall before stepping out but the guard hurried her along by the arm. She was lead out into a linoleum hallway with cinderblock walls and into an open room with sparse uncomfortable seating. She was pushed into another room off of that one where a fat woman with straggly hair handed her the clothing she came in and a pair of government issued plain sneakers.

"Change behind the curtain," she ordered and pulled back a papery blue sheet and ushered Namine in. She girl stood silently by herself for a moment, mind blank and swimming. "Get changed," the woman ordered again. The girl blinked a few times before peeling off her grey cotton skin and slipping on her normal clothing. She had to leave her pants unbuttoned and partially unzipped but thankfully her shirt was long enough to accommodate. Once she stepped out of the curtain she was pushed back out into the lobby-like room with uncomfortable seating. She gasped.

"Namine," Xemnas said kindly and held out his hand for her. She stared at him with wide eyes and gaping mouth for a long moment, long enough for him to register her uneasiness and soften his expression. "I'm sorry you had to wait so long, but it's time to go home," he said and smiled. "Don't you want to leave?" She blinked and swallowed nervously before nodding quickly.

"Why?" her voice managed to croak out. "Where's Roxxy?"

"You won't be persecuted by him anymore. He's come to his senses and is waiting for you. Come, let's go," the man calmly and Namine reached her hand forward timidly. Once she could feel the warmth of his skin, she let out a relieved sigh. They walked hand in hand quietly out towards the front of the building. Xemnas took off his coat and draped it over her shoulders before they stepped out into the cold. She pulled it around herself and followed him towards his car where Saïx was waiting by the driver's side. The blue-haired stoic man turned to her and opened the back seat for her and she climbed in. Xemnas sat next to her and smiled. She gave him a weary smile in return. Saïx took his seat and started the car.

"Did I do good, cupcake?" she asked quietly. "Did I wait long enough?" Xemnas' smile broadened and he laid a hand in her hair, pushing it around and behind her ears gently.

"You've done everything perfectly," he said soothingly.

"You're not angry at me?"

"No. I could never be angry with you." He leaned over and pulled the girl to him and she settled against his chest. He kissed her hair and she took a deep breath, closing her eyes. "Happy Valentine's day, Namine." She looked up to him and smiled.

"Am I your valentine?"

"Of course you are, who else would I have?"

"Anyone you wanted."

"I already have who I want, right here."

"Really? Me?" her eyes glittered with the passing street lights as they filled with happy tears. Xemnas' smile persisted and he nodded. She let out a weak laugh and threw her arms around his neck, hugging him in an almost desperate motion. He squeezed her close and shifted his amber eyes to lock onto Saïx's in the rearview mirror. The driver nodded silently and shifted course.

***

Rikku couldn't see anything but she had a headache. All she could hear was a sickening wet noise of someone being choked by having something shoved in their throat. Over and over again the gagging noise repeated itself until whoever it was started to cough against it. She tried to move and found she was bound at the hands and ankles and her face lay against hard flooring with a wad of fabric shoved in her mouth. Her mind reeled, trying to take in what she remembered.

Okay, so dinner with Roxas' mom and dad. Waited in the limo for a long time, went to get out and investigate and then I feel asleep, she categorized mentally. The gagging stopped abruptly and there was panting and coughing as someone tried to catch their breath. Rikku listened as whoever it was staggered around in their place and there was another gag before a moist splattering and splashing sound. Someone threw up.

"Not dead yet, Roxxy? Good. Open up. I'm not finished," a male voice she didn't recognize said calmly.

Roxas? Rikku thought. She tried to speak around the cotton but could only manage a strangled muffle. There was a loud smack and a brief moment of silence before the gagging started again. Just as the suffocated coughing started again it became muffled as the male let out a shuddering grunt. Rikku's heart rate sped up with the images she was conjuring up. She knew what some of those noises were and wasn't exactly sure she wanted to know who was making them or how they involved Roxas; but she did want to know if her not-boyfriend was okay. Roxas let out a loud gasp as his airway became free again and he choked, coughing violently. The other male laughed at him. The laughter faded with footsteps and a door opened and closed, leaving them in silence together. Roxas' choking eased some and she heard him spit. She tried moving around again to catch his attention. She clicked her shoes against the floor.

"Rikku?" Roxas' voice sounded raspy and low. She clicked her shoes again and muffled against her gag, shaking her head. "Hang on, I'll be there in a minute," he said quietly. There was a shuffling and she could feel him draw close. He plopped in front of her and she could feel fingers nudging the fabric from her mouth. He gave a quick pull and she coughed and flexed her jaw to life again. "You have duct tape on your eyes, hang on, I may take some of your eyebrows off," he said calmly and picked at the tape gingerly. She could feel his fingernail get underneath a corner before it slowly started to peel from her skin.

"Ow. Ow. Ow, god damn," she swore through the process. She squinted as the world lit up again and all she could see was Roxas' hands shackled together behind his back and the backside of his slacks. He scooted away from her and turned to face her. His legs were free, unlike hers and she was jealous. His cheeks were flushed and his mouth red from abuse. He looked shaken, beaten, tired and trampled. He gave her a forced smile.

"Welcome to my life," he whispered.