The Buta castle was in solemn silence. Dusk was a thick blanket hanging over the edges of the skyline, tucking in the world and feeding it the shimmer of the stars. Everything born with a pulse slept, every object that rustled in the breeze swayed still, and coming over the distance the sea lapped in lullaby waves that hushed the shore.

It was a quiet night, for sure.

The perfect night, therefore, for the Shika Queen to be sneaking down through the undergrowth of the castle stone. She had followed the hazy dark tunnel that led to the inner most part of the castle, and now she set to climbing over the rocks that had been scattered out by the dragon in its haste. Picking up her dress, her cloak heavy upon her shoulders, she followed three of her soldiers with torch in hand.

As soon as the signal had come back of the attack she had set out; before news could reach those within of the Shika's part of the ambush. It would do no good for her to be captured now, at such a precious moment. Her men helped her over the brickwork and stone, and as she reached the Wisdom Tree they each lit a torch from hers.

"Remember, it is to burn until every seed and leaf is perished. Am I understood?"

"Yes, My Lady," they chorused.

She set the torch to the trunk, allowing the embers the sweetest of licks whilst her men tended the bare branches above. Within moments the timid bark was struck like poison, and had become engulfed in the rapid swarm of the blaze.

They stepped back against the roar of their work. A small smile crept upon the Shika Queen's lips, but it lasted only the briefest of moments before it was lost beneath the orange glow.

"We must leave. Quickly."

"Yes, My Lady. The horses have been assembled in the courtyard and are awaiting our return."

"Good. The swifter we leave the sooner we can make haste to the Tora Kingdom. I only hope that Sephiroth appreciates this great gift we have given him. The Buta Kingdom is in ruins, and now its one hope of survival is perished. It will not be long now, I fear, and I pray that Seifer may have the heart to forgive me. I did not intend to wound a friend."

"My Lady, we must leave."

She turned to the guard behind her, and in the dusk his silver helm appeared the thickest of grey. In the distance a small bird chirped rhythmically, and soon dawn would be high upon them. They had to be gone before the sleeping kingdom woke and the protectors of the city realised their great treasure had been burned to cinders. Slowly, with one last look at the burning crackle of the once majestic tree, she nodded.

"Very well. Take me to the horses and we shall make haste."

They left by the same entrance they had come through, and with great stealth they manipulated the shadows into smuggling them away through the darkness. As they left Fuu ensured she swept her men through the western borders, away from the returning army and into the lands she had been given as a sanctuary. Her heart rode heavily with her that night, and as the sky began to wake upon the horizon, she knew that with it so too would rise the death of the Buta Kingdom. It was only a matter of time now.


Reno sat in the silence of his father's old throne room, looking like a lost infant perched high upon his parent's chair. The cold darkness around him slowly slithered closer with each guttering torch, but he could not bring himself to move from the frost. Every breath he sucked in was deep and troubled, and he held it for a moment before he could finally find the strength to part with it.

With great relief the doors at the end of the hall creaked open. A sliver of light shone its way over the possessed hall, and the creaking whine broke away all threads of silence, snapping Reno from his trance. The young king's head snapped up, and cold sapphire eyes hardened to see Vanitas hesitantly stepping into the room, his breath frosting immediately as it was stolen away by wisps of white frosted fingers invisible to the eye.

"My King-"

"Have you never heard of knocking before, Vanitas?" he growled. Standing, ignoring the harsh echo of his voice, he let the crimson furred cloak ripple behind him over the throne like red water. With his back straight, his eyes hardened even more so, he attempted to still his beating heart so his thoughts might run clearly. "What is it you want?"

Stopping halfway into the chamber, Vanitas bowed, too afraid to move closer. "Sir, your guest has arrived."

"Larxene?" Reno was surprised. His ears flicked upwards, alert for the first time in a long time. "She was not to arrive before the moon's passing."

"With all due respect, my King, it is not Larxene that is here."

Reno stood with stiff shoulders. "So he has finally made it through the pass. Early, too. Very well. Where is he now?"

"He waits in the Grand Hall, your Excellency. He says he must speak with you at once."

"He demands to speak with me? Does he know he is not sat in his fat chair back home? He is in my nation now! Who is he to demand anything of me?!"

Vanitas dropped to one knee, his sword scratching against the marble floor as Reno began to make his way down the steps in swift, thorough strides. Reno stopped before his friend and subordinate, all of the warmth and joy finally gone from his body. Under the pressure of his stare, Vanitas carefully began to choose his words, aware of just how badly he was shaking.

"S-sir, he says that he has a surprise for you and Prince Axel, and that both of you must be present before he will reveal it."

"A surprise?"

"Yes, sir!"

"Wasn't he and his men searched upon their arrival? Tell me that you were not such a thick-headed lout that you allowed an armed enemy within my walls!"

"Enemy, sir? I thought… I thought…"

"And the problem, Vanitas, is that you have no brain to be thinking with. Friends and enemies hold the same purpose in this war."

"So, he's an enemy? Sir, I-"

"I haven't the time for your pathetic excuses, Vanitas. I am going to meet our 'guest'. Make sure Axel is brought to me as soon as possible, and under no circumstances is he allowed a chance at escape. Am I clear, Vanitas?"

"Crystal, sir."

"Good." Reno stepped around him, his hands clenched tightly into fists as he fingered the sword handle upon his belt. "Do not fuck this up!" he roared over his shoulder, his ears folded back against his head. Behind him the guttural mutterings of Vanitas were unclear, and he refused to stay behind to listen to them.

Stepping out into the hall, the darkness of the night had already begun to sink within the castle walls. Ebbs of twilight hid behind every pillar, and as Reno moved the shadows fallowed him like stalking predators. He passed no fellow Tora's upon his journey, and as he passed into the fourth corridor he realised, with a twisted smirk overflowing with remorse, that only demons prowled his halls, and they were beginning to follow him.

The danger swayed against his back like a poised knife; a knife he had placed there, and now a knife he could not shake from his shadow. The world had begun to turn in on itself beneath his command, and no matter how hard he tried he couldn't quite gather the Tora community to help him. His people, the people he had sought to right in this cold war, had long since given up on him, he knew. They starved themselves in the street rather than take the food he had to offer; they would die of thirst rather than come to the castle to alert him of the problem, and none would work for him any longer. Ever since it had leaked that Axel was taken prisoner by his own brother they had thought him mad and corrupt, he knew, but he couldn't bring justice to them without having a few bargaining chips. They had to understand that.

The guards outside the Great Hall were demons, just as he had expected. Without so much as a nod they moved aside, and the doors were thrown open for Reno once more.

The light within was intense; so bright it burned his eyes, but he refused to squint. He would not give his disguised enemy the satisfaction. Gliding into the room, he raised an eyebrow to find that all of the tables had been pushed to the far side where they rested squashed against the walls. Only a small table stood at the head of the room, and pulled up to it in a reinforced chair, a small army of demons situated at his back, the Neko King grinned with yellow teeth and dribbling fat chins.

The table was laden with food, and the Neko King wasted no time in stabbing a fork through an enormous roasted bird, pulling it close and ripping chunks from the flesh. The grease drooled down his chin, and he spoke with a mouthful, his eyes minimised to beads in his head.

"So, you have finally the decency to greet your guest. It took you long enough, Prince Reno."

"King Reno," Reno growled. He stepped forwards as if walking into a pen of snakes, his eyes never leaving the plump man before him. "And I was to know you were not coming for a while. I had heard you were broken beneath the beams of your chamber."

"Yes, I was, but Wisdom Trees have great healing properties, don't they? It was of great luck that one resided so close to my walls, and so I thought I should surprise you. Are you not happy to see me, King Reno?" He snorted, loud and thick. "Never mind. You shall be ecstatic when you hear of the news I have to give you."

"What news?" Reno stopped halfway into the room, still cautiously keeping his hand upon his sword.

"All in good time, all in good time. Now, where is that troublesome, bratty little brother of yours, hmm? I would rather like him to be present."

"Axel has been sent for, although why you want him around is-"

"Do you Tora's always rush head first into every situation?"

Insulted, Reno bit his tongue, blushed, and said nothing.

The Neko King hummed, splattering butter on his messy meal. "It seems to me that you have been making some rash and rather foolish decisions, King Reno. Very, very foolish indeed. For instance, you are here, as am I, and yet, even though this is your nation, I fail to find any Tora's within your walls, and the ones outside of it are bitter creatures. You come to me unguarded, a mistake I myself would never dare to make. And you have these hasty, hazy plans, don't you, King Reno. Tut-tut. Plans should never be rushed."

"I assure you, my strategies of war are safe, and not at all hidden in plain sight."

"I am glad to hear it, my friend! I would hate for any of your plans to bite you."

"What makes you think they shall do that?"

The Neko King only laughed to himself as the back doors were thrown wide and several demons in scathing uniforms patrolled in. Between them, still cursing and spitting as he writhed, but now littered with several more severe bruises, Axel was determined to rip himself from the demons' iron grip, even if they refused to release him. Swearing and shouting, he glared towards Reno as he was dragged up beside his brother. But then his eyes caught sight of the chuckling man opposite them both, and his regal training demanded he close his mouth and uptake a regal position of straight posture and firm jaw.

Confusion smashed into him, and as he raised an eyebrow towards Reno, he growled when his brother only shook his head with a hard frown. The demons remained latched to his arms, their thick nails and grubby fingers marking his clothes with severe dark patches, but Axel paid them no mind as he turned to the onlooker from across the hall.

The Neko King allowed for his thick lips to slap together twice in satisfaction. He intertwined his fingers, twiddled his thumbs, and narrowed an eye at the Tora's across from him; one king and one prince, one free and one captive, both stupid in his eyes. Both deserving to pay a cursed toll.

"I forewarned you that this day would come, Prince Axel. I warned you, and you would not take haste in coming to me." He sighed, as if pained and troubled despite the smirk. "How disappointing that you come to me now in chains. I cannot say, however, that I did not envision this, but for it to come from your own brother? Ha!"

"I did what I had to do to save this nation. Axel understands that," Reno whispered. His eyes stayed glued to the floor and his shoulders refused to relax. Subconsciously he became ever more aware of just how many demons were flooding into the Great Hall, and he sought to look for a familiar face other than his chained brother's. There was none.

The Neko King's laughter died, and he nodded with great triumph. "So I see. And how are your people faring, King Reno? Do they love you yet?"

Reno bit his tongue again.

"No," the Neko King sauntered, taking another bite of the greasy food. "I did not think they would."

"Why are you here?" Axel ground out, his ears flicked back against his head. Harsh emeralds hardened, and Axel refused to lift his stare from the gruesome ruler gorging before him.

"Me? Well, I am here because your brother invited me!" He snorted into the back of his hand and wiped it against the satin of his shirt. "Did your brother not tell you? He is planning on uniting us all here! Using your homeland as a vessel for wolves and lions and gracious felines alike! Quite kindly, too, if you ask me. Who else would open his doors with such feeble, innocent trust? Certainly not any sane nation, that is sure."

"Guard your tongue!" Reno barked. He stepped forwards, but to match him the demons advanced, from both before and behind.

From his left his hand was snatched and held in a vice like grip, and as he turned he was roughly yanked aside as his right wrist was cuffed in another demon's grasp. Struggling, kicking and spitting as his brother had done before, Reno demanded they release him, but only the mad Neko King's laughter joined the silence.

"Did you honestly think you was in control, Reno? The Tora Kingdom has been a pawn waiting to be played for so long. Your foolish father knew what he was doing when he refused to come to the aid of any side. You should have listened to his words."

"You dare to speak a word of him! You are not fit to utter a single syllable of that man's name!" Reno roared, his dignity squandered beneath him as his shame blushed hard upon his cheeks.

Beside his brother, Axel remained composed. His eyes dashed from exit to entry, counting every face and wrapping around the situation at hand. He played every word in his mind, stayed silent and let his thoughts overtake his opinions. Words were useless in the face of swords when the walls of castles had been breached, he knew that. He was angry, filled with a hate he couldn't quite quench, but he would wait for the time when it would not cost his life, and the Neko King would pay for ever thinking of saying his father's name. And he would pay for overtaking his father's kingdom.

"You have nothing to say, Prince Axel? Your personality seems to have dulled since your imprisonment."

Axel refused to rise to the bait. His mouth remained clamped shut, and not a sound was heard from him.

Following his brother's example, regaining his composure, Reno fell silent; breathing deep to regain some sense on the maddening world. He tensed his shoulders as the guards refused to release him, but no more did he struggle. Instead he listened, and like his brother, he searched for the opportunity of escape.

"Well, if you have nothing to say, perhaps I can shed some light on your lost situation. You may be wondering why it is that I have come to offer you your demise so early. Well, let me inform you of the treachery that befouled my own castle. My wife, my dear, dear sweet queen, has betrayed me." The Neko King glanced down, as if humbled by his own tale. "I found her sleeping with another; a guard, of all things. One of mine own men!" He paused to take a deep breath, smiled, and raised his head. "She had little to say for herself, and I do believe I would have had her tongue ripped out is if she should have said more. Her head now hangs upon a spike lining my castle walls, dipped in tar for prolonged evidence. I found it fitting that her lover should accompany her, and now his head is impaled beside hers. Gary, I believe his name to be, if not Gareth. But of what importance is that now?" He laughed again, pushing back from the table so the chair screamed as he stood. "You may both be wondering what this has to do with you, and, in fact, it has only to be doing with one of you. I believe I showed you your most precious desires and worst fears, did I not, Axel?"

Axel's blood chilled at the memory. Glaring at the button like eyes of the sadistic Neko King, he refused to let his glare relent as he kept his tongue on guard behind his teeth.

The Neko King nodded, his ears perched like small triangles atop his greasy head. "Well, as I was leaving to come to this wretched place, I was stalking the forest paths with a heavy guard when there came a clearing in the woods. As fate would have it there came a red wyvern dying upon the land and a figure broken by the crash. Odd this may seem to you, I suppose. Know that I took this stranger captive, not that they put up much of a fight to my great disappointment, and no words were given to me. I thought to bring them here as a gift, but seeing now that I am wifeless, and without hope now my amulets have been stolen, I think it is only right that I keep this stranger for myself. Don't you agree?"

Without waiting for an answer, not that either of the two clammed up Tora's would have given one, he turned back behind his chair, hobbling on stunted legs. He stopped three paces from his chair, lifted his hand high into the air, and clicked his slimy fingers. A great THUD signalled the synchronised coming forth of three demons. The pack of others moved aside for them, and from the back of the line the bulging beasts presented themselves, and hanging between them, the face and body covered, a stranger in black hung.

Both Tora's held their breaths as the Neko King marched forwards, his sword clinking upon his hip. Ripping the stranger from the demons, he pulled the figure forwards with ease, as if leading a beast of burden, and stopped ten feet from the Tora's, his eyes alight with bitter cruelty. There he stood, holding the stranger up and grinning gloriously.

Axel let his head tilt ever so slightly, one ear up and precariously perched as the other twitched and fell sideways. He had a hunch, a terribly terrifying hunch, as to who just might be beneath the hood, and he begged that he was wrong. His gut curdled, and he found himself swallowing hard beneath the greasy man's stare and the limp figures mysterious swaying.

"Do you not recognise each other yet? A pity! A great, irreproachable pity! And here I thought love was stronger." The Neko King bellowed, chuckling deceivingly as he shook the unsuspecting figure roughly. "Come! Show some life!"

A thickly parched growl was his response, but even that was short lived and died in the newcomer's throat. To answer this, the Neko King rolled his eyes and pushed the figure down to their knees. The stranger stayed up for a moment, but a hard shove from a demon had their legs buckling down painfully to the ground. A sharp gasp was heard, and both Tora's seemed to growl at the harshness shown.

The demon stepped away, and the Neko King clumsily pulled his sword from its sheathe, bringing it about the shadow's throat. "Still not a word comes from you! Did you lose all of you emotion in the slaughter you performed? Or are you just so pitiful you cannot speak?!"

The shadow growled again; a lowly, feral thing, before tensing and hissing inwards through their teeth. They reached down for a sword that wasn't there, grasping at air, and when the mind recognised that the fingers felt nothing the shadow slumped inwards as if defeated.

It was Reno to bring the conversation back into the world of the living and the sane.

"You are insane! What slaughter could you possibly be speaking of?!"

"News does travel slowly, doesn't it?" The Neko King laughed. "Why don't you explain?" He tapped the sword against the shadow's throat, but nothing came from it. "Oh, that's right. I forgot you cannot speak. It seems that you are not the only foolish ruler, Reno. There are more of your pitiful breed scattered about the world. One has only to look, it seems."

The shadow bowed their head, and the Neko King had to dip the sword with them to ensure the neck was not cut. The world seemed to ring in the softness of silence for a moment before the Neko King, growing bored with his game, pulled his sword away and reached a hand over to the back of the newcomer's hood.

"Allow me to shed a little light upon the situation."

With a yank the hood was pulled back. Sunlit hair covered in the spores of ash spiked upwards, stained a colourless grey. A cut was bandaged along the throat, bleeding freshly now the sword had aggravated it, and a deep black bruise lay forming along the left side of the face where a rough backhand had been delivered in earnest. Choking back his pride, Roxas kept his eyes locked on the glass window far to his left beyond the demons; over to where the sky outside was clear.

The Neko King seemed almost eager in expecting his response. The demons tightened their grip on the Tora's waiting for the ferocious assault…

But nothing came of it.

Seeing the greed in the fat man's eyes, both Reno and Axel refused to give the disgusting man the satisfaction of their response. Instead they stood tall, shoulders back and eyes heavy upon the Neko at their feet with the crumpled ears, neither speaking. Both were surprised to see the young Buta King at the mercy of what was supposed to be a new ally, but always a common foe.

Sucking in a deep breath, his chest puffing out with it, Axel tore his eyes away and felt the shivers of rage quarrel beneath his skin in an urge to be free and punching something. The harder the better. His body trembled with his temper, his mouth dried up and he could feel each pant of air coming faster and sharper, but he refused to show the Neko King anything but an act of silence.

The Neko King stood astounded, his mouth agape. "What is this?! Somebody speak!"

Lips twitched, but none spoke.

In a rough tantrum, the Neko King brought the sword back beneath Roxas' chin, lifting the skin with the knick of the edge and growling. "If he means so little as that you will not utter a sound then I will have his blood spilled instead! How would that suit you?!"

"Not very good, to be honest," Roxas scratched out, a small smile hanging upon his lips.

"You would dare become sarcastic before me?!" The Neko King grasped the back of Roxas' head and yanked it upwards, leaning in so the sword began to redraw the thin red line.

With a wince Roxas closed his eyes, grunting when the blade dug further into his neck. The Neko King pressed against his broken arm, releasing his hair to grasp the limb hard, and with Roxas' sharp intake of breath many things happened.

The air seemed to chill, and with the demon's eyes fixated heavily on the spectacle they was hoping would draw blood, Reno raised his leg in a flurry, just far enough to be able to grasp the small knife from the hem of his boot. Snatching it up with a roughly built snarl, he yanked back and dragged the two demons with him, tearing a wrist free before he plunged the knife into the other demon's neck. The blood spurted and the demon wailed; the sound like metal grating heavily upon chalk. The noise was enough to deafen those in the immediate vicinity, and Reno seized his chance.

Stealing the sword from the struggling demon's belt, he slashed at the demon hanging onto his brother, severing the arm. The blood splattered across his face and the monster crumpled in a heap of pained yelps and curses. Before him somewhere the Neko King screamed for an advance, still holding tight to his prisoner, but it was too late.

No sooner had the words vanished from his mouth than he was being lifted high into the air by the collar of his clothes, a very angry redhead with gleaming jade eyes holding him up. Behind him Reno finished off the guard in the immediate area and backed up towards his brother, watching as the flood of black flesh stopped in their tracks.

"Move and we'll mail each individual body part to you in separate envelopes!" Reno roared, the bloody sword pointed outwards menacingly.

"P-please! Don't hurt me!"

Axel lowered the fat Neko King just enough to have him at eye-level. The glare was long and withstanding; the fat king jiggled and cried beneath the strong Tora's touch, and Axel owned the devious smirk Reno held when torturing Marluxia in the Buta Kingdom. In a voice as sultry and smoky as the flames he loved, he whispered every word as if it were a hiss in his throat.

"I warned you. Wasn't I clear enough?!"

Behind him, Reno offered a hand down to Roxas. The blonde wrinkled his nose at it, his ears thrown back against his head in mistrust.

"Now isn't the time to be choosing sides, Kitten!" Reno snapped.

"Don't call him kitten!"

Both Reno and Roxas raised an eyebrow in Axel's direction, but he was too busy tightening his hold on the fat man to entertain them. Reluctantly, Roxas took the offered hand and Reno heaved him to his feet, steadying him when he swayed slightly.

Holding Roxas' hand, almost as if he were a child too troublesome to leave unattended, Reno marched over to where Axel was slowly choking the Neko King and watching him change into a multitude of colours. The man spluttered and grasped uselessly at the hands, the sword forgotten on the floor. With a sigh as if bored, Reno tapped Axel on the shoulder. His brother turned his way, and Reno pointed to Roxas, pushing the sword into his brother's hand and taking over with a roll of the eyes.

His grip on the Neko King was looser, but by no means less firm. The smirk crawled upon the older Tora's face, and he dug his nails in deep to the larger man's neck, loving every second of revenge for betrayal.

Holding tight to the sword, Axel turned to catch Roxas as he swayed again, steadying him upright with tender hands that had been bent on death only seconds before. His eyebrows furrowed in concern, and he found each wounding breath tighter and harder than the last. With a smile and a small sniffle, he laughed hollowly.

"You look like hell, Kitten."

Roxas raised an eyebrow, said nothing, and smiled. Unable to speak, he dipped his head and sighed heavily, more than aware of just how many eyes were holding swords and glaring at them. With a shake of his head Axel reached his arms out and pulled Roxas to him, holding him tightly in a grip he never wanted to let go of. He felt a soft hand grab at the fabric of his shirt, felt the small shoulders shake, but he couldn't hear the cries; something else had stolen them, and Axel didn't have a clue what it was.

Still holding tight he rubbed his hand down the blonde's back and murmured sweet nothings into his ear, knowing they would be remembered forever. The seconds ticked by. Reno grew impatient, but never attempted to shift them from each other or pry. He had the feeling he had given up that right long ago, on the day he had taken captive his own brother, no doubt.

Finally the shaking stopped, and Roxas pulled away, his eyes slightly red against his pale skin. Axel trailed a finger over the dull bruise, flinching when Roxas pulled away from his hand.

"What the hell happened to you?"

"I can answer that!" A woman's voice echoed, and all eyes turned towards the great doors.

Larxene stood with crossbow in hand, a score of men behind her, each holding a bow notched with an arrow. They stepped further into the now crowded room, and just like the Neko King before her, she clicked her tongue and waved her pretty little finger back and forth.

She watched with a heavy scowl as Axel stepped forwards with a growl and pushed Roxas back and behind him. However the blonde was determined not to have another shield, and he soon pushed Axel away. The redhead staggered, confusion swimming across his face as Roxas stood tall by himself, his eyes never swaying from the new enemy.

Larxene raised her chin higher. "Night Crawler here ordered a massacre of his own people. Didn't you?"

Roxas clenched his fist and his head dipped. Slowly, almost as if uncertain, he shook his head.

Larxene snorted in an un-lady-like fashion. "Come now, Night Crawler! Be proud of what you've done! You singlehandedly destroyed the Ushi Kingdom, killed the Kitsune King and the Buta Kingdom is now left in tatters without a successor for the throne. Truly remarkable work. If I didn't know any better I'd say you was working for one of us." She began applauding, and her hollow claps filled the silent room.

"What are you doing here, Larxene?!"

"Oh, dear Axel, sweetheart, I am here to marry you. Did Reno not tell you?"

Roxas looked to Axel in shock, his heart bumping unevenly in his chest and sweeping his breaths away. Treachery swelled in him, and his mouth slowly hardened into a hard line. Reno felt Axel's glare and scowl hit him in the back of the head, but he refused to give acknowledgement of it.

"I heard about it." Axel ground out unwillingly, his fists tightly coiled. "But it isn't going to happen, Larxene! I'm already promised to another!"

Now Larxene was just as confused as Roxas. With a tight mouth, she screeched in a high pitch voice. "And who is that, pray tell? Night Crawler?!"

"Yes!"

"No!"

Axel froze at Roxas' response fighting over his own. The blonde had his hand up and was shaking his head enthusiastically. The scratched word had been rough to hear, but the young Neko seemed determined to make his point clear. No, they weren't to marry.

"What…?" Unable to finish, Axel let his ears flick back and laughed desperately. "But… the yes…"

Roxas offered a half shrug, his face desperate for Axel to understand that he had never said yes. He had never accepted to wed anybody, and now he couldn't without placing somebody's life in danger. There was no way he could marry any more.

"Roxas-"

"Well, this is lovely and mushy, but I have been promised a marriage and that's what I am here to receive. Reno, drop the Neko King and I won't shoot your brother through the heart."

"And why the hell would you do that?" Reno snorted. "You love him, Larxene. There isn't any way you're going to shoot him. And you can't shoot me because you need me for this stupid nation. If you want to kill him," he held the Neko King up higher, "be my guest!"

"You have a point…" Without warning Larxene turned, and Roxas bit back a yelp as the crossbow was trained upon him. She raised it to her eye and prepared to aim. "Drop the Neko King and surrender or else I'll shoot your toy to pieces, Axel! Choose now!"

"You can't do this Larxene!"

"Axel, we both know I can, and we both know I will. Now choose!"

It was never a choice at all in Axel's mind. Roxas flinched, bracing for the arrow he was sure would come, but instead Axel rested a soft hand upon his shoulder and raised his arm in Reno's direction. "Let him go, Reno."

"Are you insane?! This bastard tried to stab us in the back!"

"Just like you stabbed me in the back. I said let him go!" Axel roared, pulling Roxas close. "You owe me that much, Reno! Now do it!"

With a bite of the lip and a curse fresh on his tongue, Reno slung the Neko King across the hall. The fat man crunched against the ground, his layers of flab protecting him from a painful landing, and as he staggered for breath the demons surrounding him slowly picked him up with rough hands. With great venom the eldest Tora pulled his hands to his chest in a defenceless motion and slinked back against his brother, offering glares about him to the surrounding beasts.

Larxene's red lips snickered upwards. "Very good. Now, Axel, dearest, throw away the sword."

Without so much as a glance for the polished steel he cast it out towards her. It landed by her feet with a clatter, and she lowered the crossbow ever so slightly. She caught sight of the Neko King wobbling towards her, rubbing at his throat all the while, and she greeted him as if greeting a beloved uncle, offering him pecks to the cheek and an overly exaggerative hug. The sight had many lost in horror, but no more than the two Tora's and the Neko held captive in the centre of the room.

"Now, as for you three," she pointed to each of them in turn, "I believe there have been some very important arrangements made. Two weddings and a funeral, how ever shall the public accept the news?"

Reno raised an eyebrow, his hands still held in the air. "What makes you think I'm marrying anybody?"

"You can sell me but not yourself?" Axel scoffed. "Way to set out your priorities."

"I did what I thought was right!"

"And how did that turn out exactly?"

"Will you both be quiet?" Larxene huffed, her cheeks red. "I don't know who you think you are, Reno, but I can assure you that it is not you who will be marrying anybody this weekend coming. In fact, I am in great favour to believe that it is your funeral."

"What?! You think I'm so easy done away with, Larxene?!"

"That is exactly what I think. After Axel and I are happily together there will be no longer a need for you. You shall fall tragically ill, Reno, and you will not be saved from Death's door. Or, that is what your people will be told at any rate, not that they care for you any longer. Their love for you dried up when you turned your backs on them for favour of your own plans. You were just too blind to see it."

Reno froze with shock. His hands slowly fell down to his sides, and his strong demeanour broke inwards. If he could have cried, he feared he would have broken down and wept, but his insufferable pride would not allow it. Across from him the grimy grin of the Neko King grew with delight, and he spoke with greasy chops and a stung tongue.

"You thought it would be so easy, Reno? Pah! You make me sick."

"If Reno's not the second person getting married, then who is? Tell me you haven't brought your little sister to this madness, Larxene." Axel growled, his hand falling from Roxas' shoulder to clench into a tight fist.

"Namine has been seen for the traitor that she is, Axel. I would never call her mine own blood again for so long as I dare to breathe." The crossbow was completely lowered, and as her mouth tightened again the Neko King seized his chance to throw an explanation in their face.

"You see, Tora, I had my amulets ruthlessly stolen from me, as you undoubtedly know. The rogue that robbed me stands by your side, and I was grievously wounded by his reckless efforts. I am well again now, and I have him within my grasp – my amulets are but a few feet from me, as you already know. This boy, this, this… rogue! he has taken from each of us something rather precious, and I feel repentance is playing with the stars. The Goddess feels for me, and so she has delivered Night Crawler back to my hands. Of course, the amulets no longer work for me. Their grace turns black when I dare to touch them."

"Then of what use is Night Crawler to you?" Reno asked, shooting a curious stare in the blushing blonde's direction.

"Well, as I have informed you, I am now a widower. A man without mate. Half a soul to be sewn to another. Night Crawler has my amulets, and there are but two ways to gather their effects. One, to kill the being that holds them-" Roxas was shoved behind Axel against his will once more, and this time Reno kept him in place with a firm grasp of his shoulder.

"But that would not do!" The Neko King laughed. "You see, there is much left in store for this miscreant. The Great Sephiroth has something planned for him especially. So, the only option I am left with is marriage. You see now, fools, that there will be two weddings and a funeral in three days time. Mine own wedding tonight! The Tora and Princess Larxene's tomorrow, and finally a funeral to end this celebratory w-"

"If you think you're getting your dirty hands anywhere near him I'll-"

"Axel, I don't think you understand that you don't have a choice here," Larxene mumbled with a following sigh. Lifting a finger, she pointed towards the trio. "Guards, seize them! See the Tora's to their room and ensure the Neko is withheld!"

The guards rushed forth, as if a black sea had been unleashed in an untameable torrent. The stomping of feet was met by the butchery of Reno's furious skills; even weapon-less he was a beast to be trifled with. Axel clung to Roxas' hand so tight the blonde could no longer feel his fingers, but he grasped back with such velocity as to never let go. Fear pounded through his heart, forcing it to skip beats as his eyes flashed over the situation. Axel screamed something over the din to Reno, and Reno struggled to catch it, but to Roxas the world was deaf. The Neko King's news had struck him as a blow to the chest, and he had been winded both inside and out. The world seemed to fade into a completely different spectacle, and he was grasping at nothing but Axel's hand to keep him sane, uncertain of something and everything all at once.

The hoard was upon them before anything could be done about it. Something seized him from behind. The cloak snagged. A harsh tug was felt and the connected hands broke apart. Over the grinding chomp of steel on stone, Roxas heard his name being called, but the wave was too strong, and he found himself being pulled backwards by a severe hand.

In a small clearing he wrenched himself free, undid the cloak, and sprinted forwards again, but no sooner had he taken a step than he was yanked back by his shirt and thrown against a stone wall. His head cracked, and the world span in a blotched daze of black spots. A painful grunt was forced from his mouth, and his back began to slide down the wall in the slowest of motions. The burning mass of demons were still being fought, and out of nowhere a hand shot out to steady him, bringing him up right.

The arm slipped into his line of view, followed by the face, and if Roxas could have gasped without fear of losing breath he was sure he would have. Dark hair fell in spiked folds against tough white skin, and cold eyes set upon him with the vindictive twist of a sneer.

"Vanitas?" Roxas whispered, completely at a loss.

"Ha! I'm so glad you remember me, Night Crawler. It makes this next part so much sweeter."

"Next pa-Oomph!"

The wind was literally knocked from him as Vanitas grabbed hold of his broken arm and smashed his fist into his gut. By accident his tongue was bit, and Roxas had no time to prepare for the fist aimed for his face. The connection was close; Roxas flinched, prepared for the burst of pain as the blood dribbled down his chin-

"Hey, Vanitas!"

"Wh-AH!"

Vanitas cried as Reno grabbed his fist and twisted it back on itself, shattering the bones and listening to the crunch with a wide-spread grin. A gash lay heavy across his brow, and as he grabbed the back of Vanitas' head and smashed it into the stone wall, leaving an implant of blood trickling free, a demon pounced upon him, dragging them all down in a struggle. Roxas went to help, but before he could he found his hand grasped once more by soft fingers that were sticky with crimson.

Turning, prepared to hiss at his perpetrator and rip his hand free, he stopped as Axel pulled against him, turning him out of the way of an arrow that hissed past them and stuck fast to the brick. Laughing, his chest aflame, Axel sucked in a deep breath.

Leaning against the redhead's chest, Roxas nearly cried out to find the shirt ripped open and coated with a fine sheen of red that belonged to no demon. Axel was bleeding. Bad.

"Ax'l", he ground out, his throat too sore to pronounce the words. His fingers flinched at the overly warm skin, and as he looked up into the false smile upon Axel's face he went to speak, but instead nothing came out.

Axel's smile faded away, and he frowned instead, grabbing up the lost fingers and holding them tight.

"Roxas, you have to get out of here."

Roxas shook his head.

"Roxas, please! I can't see… I can't… You have to go now!"

Roxas shook his head, eyes wide. Axel had to understand, there was nowhere to go back to anymore; nothing there to return for and nobody to seek out. The crash had been his own fault, and he had been in such a daze the capture had left him speechless, but he couldn't leave now! Not knowing that he'd let down quite possibly the most important person in his life. He opened his mouth to speak, to say exactly that as Reno diverted another pair of demons from their backs, but no word came out. Grunting, cursing his voice, Roxas shook his head again and held on tighter.

Axel had to understand.

Not in rage, but in desperation, Axel growled, his face flushed. "Roxas, go!"

Roxas' face hardened, but before he could begin to think of another way to communicate the window above him smashed, and the glass came pivoting down upon them both. Without thinking, never letting him go, Axel pulled him into him and raised the small blonde's hood, covering his head with his arms and protecting him.

The glass crinkled, glistening over them, and Axel growled as something pulled him backwards; something strong and brutish. His grip was ripped from Roxas' and he was dragged back into the mess of black fur, steel, and teeth. The warmth fled from Roxas' fingers, but before he could think of setting out after him something hard cracked down across the back of his head, adding to the throbbing ache that had been building there from the crack on the stone. With a mumble he sank to his knees, and this time the fading black spots were overpowering.

The last thing he saw was the glistening of gold hair from across the great wave, and Larxene's confident grin and turned cheek.

She had won.


Author's Notes:

I AM ALIVE! Ha! How long has it been? A month? To all my faithful readers, my explanation; Life. The furry bastard escaped from its cage and would not let me near my laptop to write for this entire month, and so, now that I have captured it inside its pen, I am free to update once more! Thank you all so much for sticking by this story!

Okay, on with the notes:

I know I promised Zack, but that second part took longer than I dared to expect, so Zack will appear next time along with either Cloud and Tifa or Axel and Roxas, depending on who you want to see first. And gosh! The Neko King is gonna try and marry Roxas, Larxene's gonna get Axel and Reno's gonna be murdered! Well, if that doesn't get you all buzzing I don't know what will :D

I was so eager to get this up I haven't sent it to my beta reader, so please forgive any mistakes and I will correct them all tomorrow! Don't forget to review!

LilDorito - Thank you :) and I'm so sorry it had you upset :( Well... Roxas was found. Not sure if that's a good thing now though lol

Stalker - Glad you like the language use and Roxas' mini-breakdown. I figured that if he was gonna go, this is how he would do it - slinking away in the night like his name suggests and whatnot. And I personally think Cloud and Tifa fit :) that may just be me lol. Glad you liked it ^_^

ultimatedarkness - I have no plans for Roxas to die, because, I think, that might end the story too early. I have a lot more in store for him and the others. They won't get off the hook that easily lol.

lancexthexcat - No probs about the grammar :) and I'm so sorry you cried :( but I think Hayner would be proud how many people missed him! I promise to finish this story, so no worries there! :D

Guest - Naw, don't cry :( Hayner will be avenged, I promise!

Guest - I have two guests? I hope you guys get the right response each ^_^'' I'm so glad you're enjoying the story, and I am in love with everyone of my reviewers, so don't sweat it! All love is mutual and returned lol Yes! So happy to hear you will be here until the end! I promise, it only gets juicier!

Thanks to all my awesome reviewers!