A/N: This is an old fic that I started up a couple of years ago, being posted under the same name as an even older fic that didn't wind up going anywhere. There's about 27 chapters of this currently penned (barring some editing), and I'm also posting this on AO3, so if you recognize this, it's still me, lol. I like to think I'm a better writer than I used to be, but uh, subjective, lol. Anyway, I just thought it would be fun to post one after so long. This is technically a crossover between Kingdom Hearts and Every Single Final Fantasy Game In Existence, but that's not exactly an option when picking from crossover options TOT

As always, I do not own the rights to Kingdom Hearts or any of the characters depicted here. This is just for fun.

Sora Leonheart sighed, staring forlornly at his computer's screen. No matter which way he worked the math, he was in trouble. His bank account was lower than it had ever been.

"No good, huh?"

Sora looked up to see that the speaker was one of two blonds sitting across from him. The pair were twins, their blond hair styled almost identically in mirrored spikes, and in almost every way, they were indistinguishable… to anyone who wasn't paying attention, anyway.

"Yeah," Sora replied. "No matter how I look at it… I need a part time job."

"It's those damn book costs," the other twin- the more rebellious, angsty blond, Roxas- complained. "Semester scholarships are supposed to cover everything, but with the cost of books, all our food money's gone like that." He snapped his fingers for emphasis.

"What'll you do?" Ventus- the sweeter of the two- prompted.

"The school offers part time jobs," Sora sighed. "Maybe over break, I can get some work at the student store. They always need someone."

Roxas snorted. "Yeah, because everyone else quits on account of stress," he said. "You know they run their workers ragged."

"Money is money," Sora said gloomily, playing with his hair. As usual, it'd been styled into tall, brown spikes. "At this rate, I'll be lucky if I can afford ramen." He sighed again. "Honestly, if violin strings and rosin didn't cost so much, I think I might've been fine."

Ventus elbowed Roxas. "Hey," he said, as if remembering something. "Wasn't Axel saying his cousin needed a violinist?"

Sora perked up. "If I could get paid for violin work, at least I'd feel, you know… like I'm doing something useful."

Roxas paused, clearly trying to remember. "Ah," he said, like a lightbulb had gone off in his head. "Yeah, I remember him saying that. Hang on, I'll give him a call."

He sat up, throwing his legs out haphazardly over the side of the bed. Sora had to hide his grin- despite how identical the Strife twins looked on the outside, their differences couldn't have been any more pronounced. Roxas was at times the epitome of angst and temper, whereas Ventus- tidy, controlled, and emotional- was at times the very essence of pure innocence. How Ventus survived the stress his brother brought on him- and how Roxas survived his brother's good natured rules-following- was sometimes inspiring to the brunet.

For a brief moment, Sora was reminded of his own twin, almost just as opposite to Sora in every way- but the thought was painful. He didn't want to think of Vanitas right now- those thoughts were always difficult.

"You have him on speed dial?" Ventus asked gleefully, as Roxas tapped a name. He grinned at Sora. "Axel's under Roxas's favorites."

"Shut up," Roxas said hotly. "Like you don't have friends under your favorites."

"My club members," Ventus scoffed. "Aqua and Terra- and that's literally because I'm treasurer. You have like, no one apart from Sora, mom, dad, and Cloud."

Roxas made a face, listening to a dial tone. Before he could respond, his expression changed, almost instantly perking up. "Axel? Hey. I wanted to ask you about something you mentioned yesterday."

Ventus waggled his eyebrows at Sora, who fought to contain his laughter. Roxas clearly had a thing for the redhead on the other end of the phone.

"Yeah, the violinist job," Roxas said, totally ignoring them. "Is that still open?" He waited as he listened. "Sick. Can you send me the information? Sora needs work over break, he's low on cash."

"Axel's the redhead that was in Calculus, right?" Sora asked Ventus.

"…Awesome," Roxas said, before Ventus could answer. "Yeah, room 3-C, building four. …Yeah, that's the one. Cool, see you in a minute." He grinned triumphantly, hanging up. "Axel's on his way with details. He said he'll text it to me, too, but he wants to make sure you understand the gig."

Sora scoffed. "As if I haven't had gigs before."

"I dunno," Roxas said, smirking. "He gave me a brief explanation over the phone. This might be different than what you're used to, Sora."

"Can we go back to how happy you got when you heard Axel's voice?" Ventus teased.

Roxas thumped him on the shoulder, scowling. "Shut up." He turned to Sora. "And yes, Axel's the one in Calculus. He sits in front of me."

"Let me guess- you spend like 90% of class staring at the back of his head," Sora said, grinning so wide it almost hurt.

"Do not!"

"He does," Ventus said. He squawked when Roxas smashed a pillow into his brother's arm. "Well, you do! It's like half the reason you're almost FAILING! Instead of taking notes, you spend the whole class doodling 'Roxas and Axel' on your notebook!"

"Betrayal!" Roxas howled, as Sora fell over laughing. Roxas stood on the bed, smashing the pillow against Ventus repeatedly. "Betrayal by my own twin!"

He might've continued assaulting his brother, but a moment later there was a knock on the door, and Roxas dropped the pillow like it was poisoned. Turning somewhat pale, he jumped off the bed and started smoothing out his outfit. He was dressed casually, but like everything he wore, his shirt and pants had been customized with black and white patches to show a checkered pattern. Completely ignoring Sora and Ventus, who were snorting with laughter, he walked over to the door and swung it open, trying to act casual.

"Hey," he said, nonchalantly leaning on the door jamb. "That was fast."

Sora couldn't handle the extreme tonal shift in Roxas. He burst into laughter and rolled over the edge of the bed, crashing onto the floor. Ventus, watching Sora smash onto the tacky dorm room carpet, howled with laughter and fell back, bashing his head on the off-white wall.

Roxas scowled, the redhead standing in the hall behind him smirking.

"Sorry," Sora wheezed, trying to control himself. "Sorry! I- I can't- I can't-"

It took several minutes for both Ventus and Sora to control themselves. In the interim, Roxas, who was pretending the pair simply didn't exist, pulled out a chair by one of the desks, indicating that the grinning Axel should take a seat. Even seated, Axel was almost taller than Roxas- he was lean, thin, and easily six feet tall, if not taller. His flaming red hair, spiked out even in a tight ponytail, were complimented by bright green eyes.

"Glad to see my entrance was so warmly received," Axel mused, when the two had finally gotten control.

"Not you," Sora wheezed. He waved a hand at Roxas. "Him."

Still scowling, Roxas picked up a pillow and threw it at the brunet, who squawked in protest.

"Sorry," Ventus said as well, holding his side. "I don't- I don't normally laugh like that. I couldn't help it- Sora hitting the ground was too much for me."

"I'll ask later," Axel said, grinning wolfishly at Roxas.

Roxas huffed. "You'll get nothing in reply. Anyways," he said, eying Sora furiously. "There was a reason he came up here, in case you forgot."

"Right." Sora nodded, putting Roxas's pillow aside so he could sit more comfortably. "Right, yeah. The gig."

"I'm used to helping my cousin out," Axel said. "We're close, he and I. I do work for him all the time, including finding some hired help."

"What's your cousin do?" Sora asked curiously.

"Before I answer that," Axel said, holding up a finger, "I have a reputation to uphold. You can play that thing, right?"

Sora held a hand to his chest, pretending to be offended. "Sir. 'That thing' is my violin, and the literal reason I came to college in the first place."

"And the thing all his money goes toward," Roxas said wryly. "Violin maintenance, it turns out, is expensive."

"It's not my fault that my strings broke," Sora complained.

"It is," Ventus said patiently. "You were tuning it too quickly. You know you're supposed to take your time."

"Patience is a virtue," Roxas said. "Still, why don't you play something, show Axel you're the real deal?"

Sora shrugged, hanging over the side of his bed to fish his case out from underneath. Caution and wariness had always made him feel anxious about leaving it out in the open- it was the single most expensive- and beloved- thing he owned, and without it, he was next to useless.

The case within which the violin lay was a hard case protected by an outter soft shell. Roxas had become obsessed with customizing Sora's hard case shell, which had once been a very matte white color. After several months of Roxas's administrations, the case now bore intricate designs of hearts, some barbed, some sharp, and some curling like cursive; intertwining colors of black, red, blue, gold, and silver drifted in and out of the many different hearts, creating a collage of elegant color and soft gradients. Roxas had applied a shiny coat as the finish, and unless someone knew, the case would have looked as if it had been bought in this state.

It was one of many countless reasons Sora treasured it so much.

"That's a unique case," Axel mused, looking at it with discerning green eyes. "If I'm not wrong, that's got to be custom."

"Yup," Roxas said proudly. "By yours truly."

Axel raised his eyebrows at the blond.

"Roxas is a very good artist," Ventus said, grinning. "It's what he does best."

"I knew you were an artist, but that's next level," Axel said, gesturing to the case. "Half the music department would pay for customization like that."

Roxas shrugged, clearly pleased with the praise.

"All ready, Sora?" Ventus asked, as Sora expertly placed the violin on his shoulder.

"Almost," the brunet said, suddenly serene. His usually quirky, almost twitchy movements and hyperactive energy had seemed to dissipate the moment the violin was in his hands. "Let me just tighten my bow, and then I'll be ready." He looked at Axel. "You know the band YRP?"

Axel snorted. "Know 'em? They're music's my jam."

"Good." Sora grinned. "You might recognize this."

Without preamble, he placed the bow on his starting string and dove into a perfect rendition of the band YRP's most popular song, "What Can I Do For You". It was a cover that he had put together himself, filling in awkward moments of silence with complex flares and complimentary trills. It wound up sounding a lot more complicated than it really was, which had been Sora's intent. He was a bit of a showoff.

When Sora finished the piece, Axel, Roxas, and Ventus applauded. Someone in the hall hollered approval, making them laugh.

"All right," Axel said, grinning broadly. "I can safely say that you're not only going to uphold my reputation, but you're going to boost it." He rubbed his hands together. "Reno's going to love you."

Ventus and Roxas both turned to look sharply at Axel.

"Reno?" Roxas demanded. "Your cousin's name is Reno?"

Sora looked between the twins' sharp expressions and Axel's smug face, confused. "Reno? Is that supposed to be familiar?"

"Should be," Axel drawled, obviously enjoying the twins' reactions. "My cousin is Reno Sinclaire."

The name was vaguely familiar to Sora, but it was apparently more than that to both Roxas and Ventus. Roxas swore loudly as Ventus gasped, his hand clapping over his mouth in shock.

"You're related to Reno Sinclaire?" Roxas demanded. "Excuse me, but when were you going to tell me that?"

Axel shrugged, leaning back and giving Roxas a look that clearly said he was enjoying this. "I'm telling you now, aren't I? These sorts of things need to be said at the right moment."

"Sorry," Sora said, gently putting his violin away. "But, um… who's Reno Sinclaire?"

All three of the boys in his room gasped in insulted shock.

"Say it isn't so," Axel said, hand over his chest.

Roxas was pinching his nose. "I know you grew up on an island, Sora, but I know for sure that that island had to have Internet connection."

Sora shrugged awkwardly. "I mean, obviously."

"Reno Sinclaire," Ventus said, obviously trying not to sound insultingly shocked, "is one of the most famous directors in all of show business."

Sora paused, before politely saying, "Oh."

Roxas rolled his eyes. "'Oh', he says. "Sora, do you not watch any movies?"

Sora shrugged awkwardly. "That was more Vanitas's thing. He was always skipping school to go to the movies. Leon used to get so pissed whenever he heard about it."

Ventus sighed. "That does sound like Vanitas," he muttered.

"I grew up with this." Sora patted the violin. "That, and the outdoors. That's all I need."

"I guess I shouldn't be surprised," Roxas mused. He turned to Axel, who still looked totally shocked. "Sora's completely illiterate when it comes to technology."

Sora felt his face go red. "I- well, I was more of an outdoors kid! I played in the sand, outside! I didn't play… you know, video games, or computers!"

"I'm speechless," Axel muttered, shaking his head. "What generation are you from?"

Sora made a face.

"All right," Roxas said, holding up his hands. "Maybe this will work in our favor. Sora's less likely to walk in and start screaming his head off at any of the actors. Just tell me- what's he needed for?"

Axel shook his head, blinking as he processed the fact that Sora clearly did not know who his cousin was. "Well," he said, "not that this will mean anything to one of the people in this room, but it's for a background position in 'Silver Lights, Turquoise Nights'."

Sora had to clap his hands over his ears to drown out the screams that emitted from both Roxas and Ventus. Axel's smug amusement was back.

"You're telling me you've WORKED on SLTN?!" Roxas demanded. "When the hell were you going to tell me THAT?"

"I take my time when it comes to impressing people," Axel drawled. He glanced at Sora. "For the… obviously confused member of our party, I'll explain. SLTN- 'Silver Lights, Turquoise Nights'- is the name of an ongoing crime TV show that's all the rage right now."

"Three seasons in, and it just keeps getting better," Ventus said wistfully. "It's a complete rarity. It seems to have been planned from start to finish."

"Reno doesn't do half-assed work," Axel said, grinning. He turned back to Sora, who was listening with interest. "The gig pays well- twenty bucks an hour, and if they decide to keep you for any reason- be that the minor acting role, or as an extra- you can expect about 8 days worth of work and an increase in pay."

"Awesome," Sora said, perking up at the sound of money.

"You'll ALSO get the envy of literally everyone in Midgar," Roxas said flatly. "The leading actor for SLTN is Riku Crescent."

Sora stared at him, and when no more information was coming, he helplessly shrugged and shook his head. "Who?"

Axel groaned, Roxas swore, and Ventus sighed. The latter pulled out his phone, navigating quickly to a search engine. "Here," he sighed, passing the phone to Sora when he'd finished.

The actor on the screen was definitely of model-tier looks. His hair shone silver-white, and his eyes were bright turquoise. Paused in the middle of removing his sunglasses, Sora had to admit that the actor's looks did something to his insides. He was hot, the kind of attractive that one only ever seemed to see on TV. Look at him, Sora suddenly thought that the name of the show made perfect sense.

"He looks lonely," Sora commented suddenly, staring at the photo. Riku Crescent's expression was clouded, his brows furrowed in a deep frown that did nothing to mar his good looks.

"He probably is. Crescent's a terminal bachelor," Ventus offered. "Fantastic acting skills, but he's a bit awkward in person, or so the rumor mill says."

Roxas leaned on Axel's chair. "There's a challenge that goes among his fans. People have difficulty meeting him in person, so people challenge each other to see who can last the longest."

"Really?" Sora raised his eyebrows. "What, is he a difficult person?"

"Nah," Axel answered. "Great guy, but I know why the challenge exists." He looked guilty. "Something about the guy's eyes, man. It's hard to meet them. It feels like he's looking right through you, like he can see everything you've ever said and done- and like he knows the second you lie."

Sora's eyebrows shot up. "Does he?"

"He's a perfectly normal person," Axel said, waving a hand. "Not that the conspiracy theorists don't exist. It's just… difficult for people to look at him. Apart from my cousin, anyway. Reno has no trouble at all- he talks to Riku like there's absolutely nothing wrong in the world."

"Maybe he just has nothing to hide," Roxas said, smirking. "What are you hiding, Axel?"

Axel made a face at Roxas. "None of your beeswax."

Sora mulled the offer over, considering his options. He didn't mind a chance to be in front of cameras- if anything, he loved the limelight. It was half the reason he'd decided to pursue music in the first place. Acting, however, seemed daunting- he could sing, sure, and he could play the violin and maybe the guitar, but acting? That was a new one.

Sora sighed. "If I'm going to do this," he said, handing Ventus's phone back, "you might want to give me a breakdown of the show. I'm sure they'll be fine with me being a total clueless noob when it comes to pop culture, but if I go in and know nothing about the show, they might not like that."

Axel beamed. "My reputation thanks you," he said. "All right. Let's start with a summary of the show…"