A/N: Please Read!! Yeah I know it was one of my faster updates. To tell the truth, I started writing it the second after I loaded up the LAST chapter, and finished it up the day after that. I tried to wait a while before I put this one up but I can't wait any longer.

Well, I'm glad to say that I think that this is the longest chapter of the story so far. So YAY for that! -cheers and throws homework clippings into the air- Also, I'm REALLY surprised at the positive feedback on the whole doors thing. I thought it would seem too out of place for the story, but people seemed to like it, so thank you for all the kind words, everybody! This chapter may seem to drag on for a little bit, but I know that there are a few readers that can't wait to see what happened when Daxter checks out those doors. I KNOW you wanna see that Red door, am I right? Well, for being REALLY unconfident in my writing skills, I'm amazed and proud to announce that I think you might be happy with the result of the Black AND the Red door!

And I'm just starting to track down my muse, though I'm not all the way there yet. Think of it as ... someone called about a muse wondering around their house at night, and I'm gonna go check it out. So wish me luck!

And for once, I couldn't think of a good way to keep you guys hanging in the end, but I hope it'll be enough to keep you wanting more soon. Whoooo!

Demyrie: Yeah I know what you mean –slurps coffee- Waking up to a story you like ish a very nice thing. I'm pleased I could do this for you, lol. Uhm, lesse, Snake... well... We'll actually be seeing a little more Snake action soon or later so buckle you seatbelts 'coz this rides just getting started! Oh, and I haven't yet decided if I want to share what Jak saw or not. I dunno if I should be blunt about it or let the readers find out on their own. You should lemme know. (Where ish the lub in da email?)

Midnyte Wolf: Like I said, I'm a very unconfident person, and am sometimes a little TOO concerned with what other people think of my work. So trust me, it's always awesome to hear that people like what I hated, and it's the only thing that keeps me writing. So thanks for the support. I updated as fast as I could, though I did a TON of rewrites on this chapter 'coz I wanted it to be just PERFECT for the readers. It's still a little sloppy, but I couldn't think of anything else to improve. I hope it's enough!

Kyrie Sanctus: Again, I think you and the other readers will be at least semi-pleased with the end of this chapter, and I'm excited about the reviews that will come in (or at least I hope they'll come in, heh)!! Nice to know that you get soo... eh... excited? Or hyper, I should say about this stuff. It's almost scary. Eh..but uh, ya thanks! I always enjoy your reviews. They make me all happeh and stuff. Reviews have the power to do that, but reviews need a reviewer to send them so.. ya know, do the math.

jess: Better and better? That's cool to hear! Ha, now...is it a favorite yaoi story or the ONLY yaoi story. Ha, I'm only messing with you, but seriously, yaoi ish a wonderful thing. And of course it's normal (I'm now kinda venting to the non-yaoi-ers out there) you sillies! If it wasn't normal, then there wouldn't be so many people that are into it!!! Bwah!!! You and everyone else wants to know what Jak saw, so I'm definitely pondering how to go about that. Lemme know in review if you like.



Alright, so let me reiterate the activities of last night...

That creepy black door? Ya, the one that Jak claimed was cold, rotted and associated with some dead vines from underneath it? Well, when he walked out of there, and gave me that terrified look, I wasn't so sure if I wanted to take a look inside for myself. But curiosity always gets the better of me in the end. Anyway, I figured that if the stinkin' black door was enough to turn him into a pokerfaced young teen that he wouldn't dare or even THINK about going into any of the other doors!

I'm sure you've noticed but I've been having a weird streak of being wrong lately.

Next thing you know he went into the Purple door, then the Green, then White, then Red! And every time he came back out, a new and fresh expression lay there. Not to mention the whole entire time, Jak never said a thing. And me and Snake were watching his every move, not bothering to ask him anything.

Anyway, I'm trying my best to forget all of that. Isn't it funny how you can never forget the things you want to, and you can never remember to things you want to? We've been back here at the den for what I'll guess to be about a half an hour now. Jak's locked himself in the bathroom to take a shower, or at least that's what I can assume. The whole time, no matter how hard I tried to think of anything else, even JAK, I could not bring my mind to wonder about anything else other than those stupid doors. I never believed Snake about the whole 'reflection' theory until Jakky-boy took a step into one. Now the mystery was too deep for me to ignore, and I grinned when I figured that THIS must be that feeling that Jak gets when his adrenaline pumps up a few notches.

And even though I know it's a bad idea, and even though I know I'm gonna regret it in the end, I'm gonna go through those doors. And I'm gonna do it tonight.

'Course I know Jak won't be too fond of the idea. I mean if even HE was affected as such, there was no way he would let me do it without setting a foot down first. With the Keira factor and the increasing silence between us, Jak was still protective of me. This is why I plan to sneak out while he's sleeping. It doesn't take long for him to doze off, especially with me there to keep his chest heated, and once he's asleep, he's out. The guy sleeps like a log.

The door to the bathroom squealed open and Jak came out dressed ready for bed, his hair and skin slightly damp. It was relieving to find that his face had regained some life to it, but he still held something in those eyes of his as he plopped onto the bed face first and muttered something that I didn't quite understand. It... might've been something close to 'Let's go to sleep' unless he was seriously considering '52 sheep' for some reason...

Within a minute or so he rolled over onto his back and sloppily threw the covers over his body with an enormous sigh. Yawning myself, I took my customary position on top of him (which only sounds better than it really is) and closed my eyes. It was almost hurtful not to hear him give a simple 'Night Dax' for once, but I pushed it aside and waited for Jak to go to sleep.

And I was almost surprised at how fast I could hear his snoring. Unless those doors really do wipe a person out. Not that it mattered, anyway; I suck when it comes to sleep. Whatever sleep I HAD caught up with, it was going away just as fast.

Careful not to disturb him, I gently rolled to the side and slide down off the bed and onto the floor. Being an animal made it a whole lot easier to creep out unheard, my light body preventing me from making any of the loose boards creaking. But once I had reached the outside, I wondered if it was such a good idea to go there all the way by myself. I seriously questioned myself, wondering if it really was worth the risk. Well...

What do you think?

The streets are always busy, even during late hours of the night. It makes it hard for a guy to get out to be alone. The lights that were scattered all over the city were blinding and almost sneering as I passed them, and they casted shadows that danced in the darkness. I could feel my shoulders arched up and almost hug my cheeks in a tense suspicion. I knew it would be a little unsettling to go on my own, but I never imagined the weird feeling I was getting in the pit of my stomach.

Somewhere after I passed up the slums and before I reached a couple of KG's chattering away about whatever it is guards talk about, I had started walking on two legs instead of all fours, using my hands to cross against my chest to keep myself warm. You know that phrase 'You never know what you have until it's gone?' I never knew how much the warmth meant to me. As if it would somehow make the bitterness go away, I started to run, arms still positions across my chest, body leaning forward to somehow gain more speed. And somehow, I could never reach a satisfying speed. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't go fast enough. The idea of it all jerked at my mind and I slowed into a slumped walk once more. But I had almost reached my destination. In fact, I could see the buildings in the distance.

I guess it's true what they say about curiosity being worth dying for. 'Coz once your out for a while, you get a chance to think about a lot of things, including your own behavior. Namely, trudging through a thick smog of a city that's buzzing with people late at night just to see what phenomenon was going through my head. 'Coz I guess I'm too opaque to see it for myself.

As I walked the narrow path between the buildings, my first intention upon reaching that hallway was to take a look into the purple door, which if my memory serves me correctly, it would show me the future. Now obviously it won't play out a lovely little movie that will be an exact representation of my future, as nice as that would be, but I'm gonna assume that things just don't work that way. Anyway, as I said, that was my first intention. But my mind wanders a lot and I was starting to think about those... other colors and what they meant. Let's see... Purple was future. Green was past. White was hope and Black was fear. And Red...

Red was desire.

I won't lie. It's tempting, trust me, but... It might not be such a great idea to go in there. You and I both know what I'll be seeing should I decide to step in there. It's tall, blonde, and unmindful as a sack of gym socks. Still, you have to admit, that you would even be tempted to take a gander for yourself if you were in my place.

The graveyard was even more terrifying by myself and I ran as fast as all four of my limbs would carry me to the sliding graffiti door, breath shorter than I ever thought it could be, and chest heaving like it was its minimum wage job! But I was there; I had made it. And all on my own, too! I beamed at the thought of Jak being proud of my accomplishment, but frowned in remembrance of my sneaking out so that he would NOT know about this little late night visit in the first place. Reaching that bottom step and approaching the door ahead of me, I let out a big sigh, and some of my frustration with it.

My motions slowed and my brain urged me to retreat a few times but my feet kept moving forward when I saw different colors on both sides of my blurry vision. Tears of sleepiness consumed my eyes but they still managed to see clear enough for me to know that this was it. It was completely by choice mind you, but I knew that if I turned back now, I would never let myself live it down. I snuck out here to find out what was on the other side of these things, and it would do my sanity good to know a thing or two about myself. The real question was...

Was I ready?

Sadly, it was one of those rhetorical questions that can only be answered by doing the task in question. My cowardly nature was having conflicts with my pride until they clashed and I was left sitting on the floor in the middle of the hallway, critically and acutely weighing my options, until pride won and I was on my feet and standing smack dab in front of the Green door.

I could think about it for weeks. I knew that in the end, I would end up entering each and every stinkin' door there, so I wasn't gonna argue with my intuition. And... I figure Green would be the best place to start. After all, where better to start than the past? I knew my past, and so I wasn't as afraid of this one as I was of all the others. It didn't look half bad, either. It was a normal wooden door with a nice little handle and everything, just green.

I had to climb up to do it, but I opened the door, and entered...

And the second I took that step in, I was in awe. There, right in front of me, was the most gorgeous sunset I had ever seen in my life. Living in Haven City made me forget how much I loved to see all the colors that spread across the sky. Once I could peel my eyes away, I found I was in Sandover, a place that I had wanted to return to but knew I couldn't.

Heh, if I wasn't so consumed in my own conceit, I woulda cried. It was perfect, and just the way I remembered it. The scenery, the bright and vibrant atmosphere, and even the temperature of the breeze. And fact that there was more nature than technology. The only thing that was missing was...

"Jak," I whispered into the air as I ran up to his Uncles house.

I didn't even bother to knock, I was too excited! I burst into his house and froze in my spot right after. Jak – younger Jak – was facing the wall, away from me, but he was there, just as perfect and beautiful as he always was and is. I think I had the biggest, goofiest grin on my face but I didn't care! I took another step forward to start a short run to him, but as soon as my foot left the ground, the whole world began to shake and rumble. I could hear static as my vision – my vision of Jak – started to whir and slowly die. I was too lost and confused to utter any words as my whole view of the world finally dimmed to gray and then black. And Jak, as well as Sandover was gone again. It's too dark to say for sure, but I think I'm not even standing anymore. I was just surrounded by black until a white outline of a door appeared not too far from my sitting position. Without even thinking, I came up to it and exited, a little disappointed, but happy to have some refreshed memories.

I took a philosophical moment to think about what I had just done, what I had just experienced, and my gaze was brought over to the Purple door. My future.

Bright, dark, or no future at all, I didn't care. I wanted to know. I wanted to see if Jak was in my future. If not then...well, this whole thing might've just been a waste of my time.

With a little more buoyancy than before, and a very slight initiative of what to expect, I opened the purple door framed with a royal yellow and dimmed lights randomly placed around it, and let it shut behind me. I was holding my breath, expecting to see something right away, but I let all the air filling my cheeks slide out when I saw nothing. Just as I was about to turn and leave and grumble about rip offs and wanting a refund, pictures started to slowly place themselves together. It was our den, the one that Jak and me were currently dwelling in, and a transparent image of Jak.

He was in my future.

But it was like a hologram; I could see him but he seemed unreal. I scampered over to touch him, only for my paw to glide right through his very being. His eyes were watching me and his lips were barely curled into a smug grin, but other than that he gave no indication he knew I was there. A little spooked, I looked away, and saw Keira in the same holographic fashion as Jak. She was looking at Jak, but with an emotionless stare, her hand curled into a weak fist and positioned over her chest.

And I have... absolutely NO idea what any of this means. I see Jak so I'm hoping that means he's in my future, or is supposed to be anyway. We can alter events and make our own destinies and fates, or at least that's what Jak had said to me once... a long time ago. But everything else confused me; Keira and Jak's expressions, and the fact that I couldn't touch him. It was very ANNOYING!!! Annoying, to say the least.

...So annoying in fact, I made a sharp turn and stomped towards the door. Before going through it, I gave an enduring sigh as I peered over my shoulder for one more lingering second.

When I was back in the hallway, I was already getting weary and emotionally drained. But I needed to know everything I could. So there were three doors left. White, Black and Red.

White, definitely. I'm a little afraid to go into the Black door, and even more afraid of the Red one. I know that I don't NEED to enter them all, but if I didn't, I would always wonder about it and it would only give me another reason to stay up at night. White; It was pure and clean and untouched, with a light but comforting glow about it. I stroked it with an open palm to find it to be feathery soft and mild. To put it in one word; inviting. And I took to that invite, pushing the door open, for it bore no handle, and took that initial stride in.

I was hit with a wave of pleasure right away as a blinding light consumed my very being. And when it faded, it was anything but what I expected. Instead of simulated surrounding or something along those lines, I was once again enclosed in black. The only thing I could see was a frame in the distance. Inquisitive, I padded to the item and turned it over in my hands. My breath faltered ever so slightly when I saw a picture there. A picture of Jak and me, before I was turned into an ottsel and before Jak was thrown into the cold future and alienated from his purity. We were both laughing and in the midst of wrestling my hands weaved around Jak's locks and his hands cupping over my kneecaps.

How I wanted things to be alright again.

Before I could reminisce in my own little world, everything around me repeated it's quivering sequence and static resonance sounded, and the frame disintegrated and slipped between my fingers in a black ash. And the hallway held my person once again.

With three doors down and two more to go, I was uncertain if I even had enough energy to go on with the process. For all I know, Jak had woken up and was looking for me. Or maybe I'm just making excuses for myself? And maybe that Black door really is making me want to run. So... if the Black door has the power to make me want to hide, what am I gonna do when I get to the Red one?

One thing's for sure... I wasn't getting anywhere just sitting there debating with myself. My Black door was tall and made of metal, and came across as impossible to move. With my back pressed against the frigid entity, I pushed with all my might to make it budge. It slide roughly and loudly, and I opened it only a crack large enough for me to squeeze between. An ear piercing hiss sounded out and a freezing coil blew out wildly and made my bones rattle when it reached my trembling form. My head poked inside, eyes etched with worry and fur on my back sticking out straight.

Red flags went fluttering like mad in my skull as the door started to shut on its own. My first reflex made me run to safety. But how safe can I be when my bloody instincts told me to run in the direction that led me... INSIDE the door? I gulped as I stretched out my arms to feel for something solid, with no success. For the umpteenth time, I couldn't see a damn thing and I didn't know what direction to go.

Even as the room started to lighten into a deep purple, I still couldn't see anything. I heard sounds before my eyes revealed anything to me. Footsteps, it sounded like. Footsteps that kept getting closer and closer until it sounded as though they were right next to me. In an alarmed shock, I raised my chin to look up, coming face to face with a clear view of Jak. But the unnerving disturbance in my gut was telling me that there was still reason to worry.

"Why..?" Jak's pained voice came out harshly, and cut into me deeply. I knew it was all just a dream like state, just like Snake had told me. But I had to bring myself to respond, because even knowing it was fake, it felt and seemed too real to NOT do anything.

"Wh-what are you, uh, talking about, Buddy?"

"You know what I'm talking about!" His voice raised its volume as a finger soared out and jabbed me in the chest, leaving a short little pang of soreness, and I mechanically placed a hand over it, never taking my eyes off of Jak. I took a step or two away, but Jak took one forward for every one I took back. And suddenly the air was caught in my throat and words were no longer an option for me.

"What were you DOING those two long years!?!?" His voice was starting to sound like a coarse shout mixed with an inhuman gurgle that found its way out from deep within his throat. What sounded like a defensive growl came out with each rabid breath in. "Were you having FUN exploring the city while I was TORTURED!?"

"N...n..."

I... couldn't even say one firggen word. He was blaming me for... for everything. I kept telling myself it was only a fear, and not really happening, but something about the way I could feel and even taste the heated breath itching its way down my neck made it difficult.

"Admit it, Dax," He snarled from somewhere deep in his chest, his tone sounding like two voices in one. "You left me there to DIE... And ran off to save your own furry hide! After I PROMISED to help you!"

I shook my head no, for it was the only way I could communicate at the moment.

Remember when I said that I'm the only one that stay's put when Jak goes all bad-ass? Well, I'm finding it hard to do that this time. I dunno, either I still have some courage left in me to stay, or my legs are just too numb and I can't get up the balls to run away. I can't tell.

I hiccupped in fear for my life. I was terrified of him turning into what seemed to be inevitable now. Terrified of my best friend, in a world that I was told couldn't hurt me.

Somewhere between the dark ebony claws tearing through his fingertips with a sickening rip and his skin gong from a dark tan to a callous azure, I was ready to scream. And I would have, if my voice box was working.

His transformation complete, and his steps closing the space between us, I heard and felt my knees buckling and smacking the ground with a crack. Small bolts of dark eco encased him with little buzzes that sounded deafening to my ears. His eyes, black pools of nothingness that somehow reached into my very soul and tore it out of me to leave me lifeless, bore down on my helpless self, uncaring, unfeeling, unaware that he was about to tear apart his best friend piece by piece. Or did he know?

Maybe that's why he's grinning like that; that grin that shows that he's actually enjoying what he's doing. The monster that feeds on fear and pain and blood and death was looking at me as its next target. And just as he roared with all of his might and his claws swiped down at me, I closed my eyes.

And when I opened them...

Let's just say, I've never been so happy to see that damn hallway.

I gave myself a moment to let my heart return to its normal pace and my eyes to return to their normal size. I looked intently at that Red door for what had to have been at LEAST ten minutes. And when I stood in front of it, I gave it a second stare down for another ten, thinking the whole time about what it could hold and what to expect. Everything else kinda caught me off guard, but maybe I could have a chance with this one. It WAS desire after all; maybe it wouldn't be so bad.

Before another thought had a chance to make its way into my brain, I pushed open the red door, surprised as how tender the material felt and at how light the actual weight of the door was, and treaded into what looked like a bedroom.

Not a perfect one, anyway, that's for sure... There were clothes scattered onto the floor, leftover food on dirtied plates and personal items carelessly placed wherever it was that seemed convenient at the time. I bent over to pick up one of the pieces of clothing. My nostrils instantly picked up on Jak's scent and when I held it up, I saw it was his blue tunic.

"Hey there."

Dropping the clothing instantly, gasping out a small and, sad to say, pathetic excuse of a yelp, I jumped and turned around, which was a mistake on my part. In my little desperate attempt to spin around, a hand clamped over my mouth.

But fear soon turned to awkward excitement when I found it to be Jak.

"Sorry, didn't mean to scare you."

His hand slid off of my mouth and down to his side. I bit my lower lip and scanned him over. And then I was - of all things - ...perplexed. Was I getting taller?

Looking down, I almost burst out in surprise to find booted feet and pants on my legs. My head jerked furiously in search of a mirror, finding one in the corner of the room and bolting in that direction as soon as my brain registered it was there. When my reflection was staring back at me, my hand reached up to pat at my body, my face, my hair, it was all there, just the way it was before the accident. The fiery red hair secured by my trusty goggles. The white and red tunic and large but snug boots. The overbite that I had at one point hated until a young Jak commented on how cute he thought it was. I was amazed, to say the least, as my hand came up to the mirror to stroke the face looking back.

Behind my reflection stood Jak, gently smirking to himself that smirk that I had longed for for so long. And with a chuckle he placed his hands on either of my shoulders.

"I know you think you're a God, but can't you go on for at least an hour before having to look at yourself?"

There was something different about him, and it took me forever to figure out what it was. He was the same Jak form the slums, with the facial hair and the new threads and whatnot, only his voice didn't hold that edge to it. And it calmed me almost instantly. I was about to uh, chuckle and mebbe give him a friendly slap on the shoulder, but he spun me around and looped his arms around me, pulling me close in a hug and securing me there.

"I uh...Jak! It, you, and....uh...ah?! You DO know that uh... Ungh!?!?" I tried desperately to find words to say to him, to let him know that HE was doing something that I had imagined that if either of us were to do that, it would me me, but...but... do I even have to SAY!?!? I COULD'VE told him that he was holding me close enough to brush lips, and I COULD'VE told him that he was making my pants a bit too...uhm, restricted. But whether he realized any of that or not, I didn't feel like messing it up. I was too profound to this hot feeling that was surging it's way through my body, heating my veins in a livid lust. I was tempted to thrust my body into him, but I managed to restrict myself, telling myself 'not here, not now' because I didn't want to screw anything up.

But damn! He's... holding me so close and, looking into my eyes and gripping me so tenderly yet so possessively. When I saw those blue irises so close to me I let a deep breath slip out of me and had to bite my tongue to keep myself from moaning in desire.

Lost in my thoughts, I noticed Jak had twirled us around and pinned me to the floor only after my back was against the ground. Jak's hands were wrapped around my wrists and securing me to the floor as he straddled my surprised form. My submission to his dominate power and the silly yet playful grin on his face only intensified my exhilaration. My eyes widened as I remembered THIS was MY desire. This is what I WANTED. So I should really try to make the moment LAST!

My eyes went half lidded and my lips puckered like an idiot trying to give his first kiss (and hell it WAS my first time!) and I stuck my head up as far as my situation would let me, waiting for his lips to touch mine.

And when I got nothing, I opened my eyes to question, to be dissatisfied greatly, and in an embarrassing state of affairs. Back in the hallway, I was laying on my back, puckering up to the ceiling, it probably looked like, and left only with the wish that it would've lasted longer. Even more depressing, I was back in ottsel form. More depressing STILL, none of that ever even happened. But now I have something to think back to on those long nights that sleep decides it wants to stiff me again.

Happy and sad, Excited and angry all at the same time, it was hard to think straight with all the crap and bliss that I had just witnessed. I dusted off my knees as I made my way back the way I have once came, up the stairs, past the graveyard and through the buildings, where I began my long walk home.