-

"Thanks for checking up on him, Zero. I'd rather talk to him alone for a while," X said calmly, motioning towards the opened door. "If you don't mind, that is." Zero looked up at X, and hesitated for a moment. He sighed heavily, looking over for a moment at X. The crimson hunter nodded slowly, and stood up, his eyes moving to the door. Silently, as if X and Zero shared a sort of telepathy, he seemed to engage in detailed discussion with his best friend; one Axl could not comprehend. This continued for a few minutes, before Zero withdrew from the room, and left the two alone to talk.

"So, as I was saying, you are the one called Axl, am I correct?" X's tone remained passive and tranquil, as he was trying to be friendly with the child.

Axl remained completely still, and never once looked back up at X, nor made any effort to answer the question. Right now, he was too afraid. The fear flooded into him, and invaded his thoughts and emotions. What if all the rumors had been true? What if X had become cold with the burden of upholding peace? It was still too early for Axl to tell, but his common sense eventually got the better of him. If X was as harsh as everyone had said, then it was probably best to stay on his 'good' side.

"Yes, sir," replied Axl, in a monotone voice. "I'm Axl." He brushed away the tears, as he wanted to make a good impression on X. He rose to his feet, and two pairs of emerald eyes met, in a moment of silence. The younger of the two became a little unnerved, yet he was too afraid to incline further in conversation. X noticed the uneasyness, and blinked, watching Axl carefully. As much as he could try to disguise it, it was obvious that the boy was tense.

"Well then, Axl," X uttered softly, "First of all, I think you should know, you don't have to be so formal. Just address me as you would anyone else. Secondly, I'm curious as to why you left Red Alert so suddenly. Would you care to explain?"

Axl shuddered, not really wishing to go through it again. Although talking about it was supposed to help, not even words from Zero had comforted him. And even though X haden't had the reaction Axl had anticipated, and was kinder than expected, he couldn't help feeling that some conflict was bound to come between them. Maybe it had just been the aggression he had endured not long ago that was making him think this way, but that did not relieve the fear.

"..Alright, I won't be formal anymore," Axl muttered, absent-mindedly running his hand down his cheek, where Red had hit him. "But I'd really rather not talk about the past again, so if you really want to know, you can ask Zero. I've already told him."

"So why would you have so much trouble telling me, if you've already told Zero?" X asked, a little confused.

"Because, when I told Zero, I thought talking would help things," Axl answered shortly. "But, I was wrong. It didn't make me feel any better. It still hurts inside, and I don't think talking about it again would make any difference."

X blinked, and leaned back against the nearby wall. He could already tell this was probably going to take a while, so he might as well try to make the best of a bad situation.

"I'm not going to pretend like I know exactly what you're going through, nor am I going to try to understand it. But there are a lot of people out there that can help you," X's green eyes flashed for a moment, as he realized something. Axl was very much like a younger version of himself, as he could remember having a discussion similar to this. "You and I have a lot in common, you know. I said the same thing a while ago, but talking helped me. Of course, it took me a while, and it'll probably be the same for you."

Axl shook his head, a look of frustration and anger passing onto his face. Had they not already established talking did nothing? His eyes flickered with a mixture of many emotions, making it difficult to tell how the child really felt.

"Sure, maybe talking would help you. But you said yourself, you didn't understand what I'm going through. So, don't assume anything about me, because you're wrong...Everything..." He trailed off, the words coming out more coldly than he meant for them to.

In reality, the voice was not Axl's, but his grief and torment. Inside, he was thankful for X's being there, as well as Zero's. He had only opened up to Zero when he thought he was on the verge of death, and desperate for some kind of alleviation. At the time, he needed someone to know his story, in case he did happen to die from the wound he'd recieved. Now, it made little difference if anyone knew. Zero didn't really understand it, even if he said he did, and neither could X. Besides this, Axl was still afraid of X - and he couldn't possibly ask X to promise not to hate him for what he had done.

"Maybe I could understand, if you'd only tell me," X said simply, "But you won't. You're only making this harder for yourself by doing this."

"Alright, you want to know why I left, I'll tell you. I did it because I felt like it, X. I think Red Alert is pointless." lied Axl, narrowing his eyes. "In fact, my life, which is the topic of this talk, is pointless. Sometimes, I even wonder why I was cursed with it. So, why don't we just talk about something else? There's no point in speaking about what's worthless." He wanted to slap himself, and erase the words from history. But it was too late, for what is said and done cannot be fixed.

X's face was overcome with anger at the remark made by the boy. "Excuse me for trying to be friendly to you," he muttered in annoyance, "And trying to be helpful. You can just shut everyone out, and deal with everything on your own if that's what you want. But there's no reason to talk like that. You know as well as I do, killing yourself won't solve anything." X knew what the younger had been implying. He'd seen it too many times not to.

"I guess we aren't so alike then," Axl retorted with hostility, clenching his fists in blind fury. "We obviously try to solve our problems in different ways." He spat the words out, and gave X a look of disgust. As he did, though, he felt a tinge of devastation wash over him. His mind and body felt numb, and he had begun to question the reality of his words. The teenage Reploid closed his eyes tightly; he was trying to force the evil temptation of suicide out of his head.

"I can't believe you could even consider taking your own life," X muttered, his tone brimmed with anger, but his eyes clearly displayed sympathy. "It's just a permanant solution for a temporary problem. Which, as I've said many times already, can be solved differently. But you..You won't even listen to me!"

No response came from the kid.

"You're right, you're never going to heal," X went on. "You'll always hurt, as long as you remain this reserved!"

A sort of distant, pained expression came to Axl's features. For the first time in a while, he spoke softly. "I wouldn't consider anything like that if I didn't..Didn't hate everything in my life this much," he said slowly. "But, it's just that my father, he..." He paused, shaking his head. He couldn't go through with this again. "X...I'm sorry for all the things I said. I didn't mean to make you mad."

X nodded in dismal acknowledgement, but said nothing. He was still a little frustrated, but no longer angry. His eyes focused on the fading bruise on Axl's pale face. He'd never paid much attention to it before, but was a little concerned with it's presence.

"And, there's something I really want to ask you." Axl said, turning his head away from X.

X watched carefully, replacing his distressed expression with a more peaceful one. "Alright, go ahead and ask me, then."

Axl drew in a deep breath, and closed his eyes. "When I was with Red Alert, one of my closest friends was infected with a virus. Before completely fell under it, he asked to help him. I didn't understand him then, but once I found out about the ailment, I started to figure it out." He paused, shaking slightly. He'd already fallen in front of Zero, he wasn't about to do it again.

As no response came, X spoke up. "And what does this have to do with your question?"

"You'll see." Axl replied. "Anyways, I found out that there's only one way to remove the virus. Death is the only way to lift it, and I seriously mean that. I'm not being dramatic or anything." He took a quick glance over at X, making sure he wasn't going to say anything that would start an arguement.

Much to his surprise, X hadn't said a word, so he resumed. "When I found out, I promised that I'd be the one to do it, because I wanted him to know someone cared about him before he died. All I'm asking you, is if you'll take me on missions with you. I have to be there for them, no matter what they think of me now. You understand, don't you?"

"I understand, but I don't personally think seeing them again could help you. Isn't it because of them you left?" replied X gently.

"No, no! They didn't do anything bad!" Axl shouted. He soon realized the error in that sentence, and corrected it. "..At least, most of the time..." He rested his head in his hands, searching for words. "...No, it's not their fault, X..."

"Listen to me. You're very unstable now, and if they are truly your friends, I know you wouldn't want to see them hurt. Am I right?" X asked, concerned for the youth.

"I don't want to see them get hurt, but...Isn't it going to happen, X? Aren't you going to fight them, because of the crimes they've committed?" He refrained from saying 'we,' even though he, too, had participated in the acts of injustice. But, he didn't want to mention that to the azure-colored Reploid. Trouble could be the only outcome of it.

"As much as I do hate to admit it," X answered, trying to force the thoughts of his previous ideals from his mind. They had not brought peace, and therefore, were of no importance to him anymore. "Yes. We have been challenged to a duel, and have accepted. I was planning on leaving with Zero after this talk, but it's turning out to be a bit more than that."

"If you're going to fight them, take me with you! I want to be there for them," Axl lowered his gaze to the ground. "And I can handle this, X. You'll see."

X hesitated, looking up at the chrome ceiling for some kind of guidance. He found no assistance, and closed his eyes, trying to find a solution. Axl had talked tough before, he knew. Zero had told him everything about the rescue, and how the boy had resisted for a while, because of his pride. Knowing the outcome of that could have been fatal, had he not been lucky, is what had pressed X to come to a conclusion.

Axl saw X's moment of meditation, and knew that no good would come off it. "X, no," he breathed, as if sensing the judgement before it was passed. "Please..."

-

I kind of like writing X this way. I'm not sure if I pulled it off that well, though. Especially since I had to find another source, as opposed to X's extreme peaceful ways, for his and Axl's conflicts; which turned out to be this.

And again, I apologize for the moving around of chapters. If you're confused as to why I did it, go back and read Chapters 1 and 2, and it should all make sense. :D