Flurry of Flames Second Chance: Part 13
At around 11:00 PM both Axel and Natasha stuck their heads outside of her bedroom door to see if anyone was coming. They both heard the snoring of her parents and nodded to each other that it was okay to go. Quietly they walked to the side of the house opposite of her parent's room and hopped down the stairs as quietly as possible. They grabbed two ice-cream bars from the freezer and headed out the kitchen door. They both winced when the automatic lock on the door made a noise. In their heads it was a thousand times amplified, but when nothing happened for several moments they decided it was okay to go, breathing a sigh of relief as they exited the tiny front yard. Axel looked over at Natasha and caught her eyes before speaking over the top of his popsicle.
"How far away is the entrance thing?" She finished taking a lick of her ice cream before she answered.
"A good distance, which is one reason why I'm not allowed to go there. It'll take about 40 minutes to make it there if we keep up this pace." She really wanted to walk slowly.
Axel went back to staring ahead. No real words were passed between them besides his comments on different buildings. From what he could tell they wouldn't even travel a tenth of the city to get to the entrance. It amazed him that the entirety of the city only had one way out and was all encased in one square wall. Even as he remarked on all this though, Natasha refused to say much, and they made it to the entrance after what seemed like hours to Axel.
They stopped in front of the large gate that had one small one for the city to use as single passage, he assumed. It was open and quietly swinging on the hinges. It seemed odd to him.
"Why is there such a big wall if anything that wanted to get in could easily knock this sucker down? Seems like someone's over-compensating for something." He snickered.
Natasha gave a little smile and shook her head.
"The gate itself is protected by powerful magic."
"Wait...your city has magic users? I didn't think you would because of the slightly larger than normal technology of this world." In his head he remembered that, even though they had things like refrigerators and microwaves, they didn't have TVs or automobiles. She tried to ignore his mention of other worlds; she felt that if she accepted it that he would actually have to leave, even if it was evident that he was going to now.
"I guess it slipped my mind. Actually, an associate to one of my earlier ancestors, I think my great-great-great grandfather on my mother's side, was the one who cast it. They were both pretty good with magic, but the associate to my ancestor hated the competition and knocked my family down to the extreme poverty level through sly acts he preformed with the friends he made with the higher ups. Only my mother, with the much needed help of my father, broke the chain of people in our family to be poor. I think they are planning to send me off to training soon. Someone they trust told them I had a stronger gift with magic than even my great-whatever grandfather did." He could tell she was telling the story to make him stay longer, and decided that it was just fine with him. "I think I would really like to learn how to use my magic, but I also think the lady was just joking. I hate it when people do that."
He nodded and hoped she would continue, but the fifteen-year-old was finished with her tale and stood idly by for him to initiate the goodbye. Just as he was about to reach out his arms for a hug that he had hoped would comfort the despairing girl something almost literally tugged on the edges of his brain and made him scream out in pain. Natasha's head snapped up to see Axel crumbling to his knees in front of her. Her heart began to beat fast and hard enough for her to hear in her head as she watched him delve his fingers into his red spikes to clutch his head.
Axel knew what was causing this and tried desperately to pull himself out of it. He could feel their presence all around him and closing in silently and slowly. Through his pain he was finally able to look up and see Natasha unsurely attempting to calm him and soothe his head with kind words; he wished he could hear them. Slowly he took control of the pain and only a few tears squeezed out of his eyes as he stood up. He remembered that Natasha was not used to things like this and decided to divert her from the situation for a moment. He spat out the first thing that came to his mind.
"Is where you found me far from here?"
She was tempted to ask him other questions, but thought it best to comply with him first.
"No. It was actually just outside. Why?"
"Because there should be two disc-like things there. Please, go get them for me."
She was afraid to ask what they were for, and instead darted out of the gate and to the right side of the entrance. When Natasha was gone Axel reached his hands out to the side, fire engulfing them until his two Chakram were in his hands. He hoped she wouldn't be mad about him lying her, though he didn't think it would matter afterwards. Axel turned to face the first of the dusks that were making their sneaky way towards him. A smirk crossed his face when they began to realize he knew they were there and came faster.
What Natasha saw when she returned was the strangest thing she ever remembered seeing in her life. Silver, very flexible beings were jumping, twirling and twisting their way around Axel, who was expertly fending them off with two strange weapons. They were odd beings with a symbol that was identical to all the rest imprinted on their silver skin. She couldn't see any sign of eyes or a nose, and it almost seemed like their mouths were made of zippers. It took her a moment to remember that she had not found what he had asked her for. She yelled out to him, "I couldn't find anything!"
He looked back at her just as he slugged another creature out of the way after throwing his two weapons into the air. Fire balls rained down on the creatures and they began disappearing one by one.
Axel caught the blades expertly in his hands and turned them around to slip his fingers through the holes in the middle he used as a handle. Though his head pounded furiously at him a smirk took over his face as he saw another wave of his old kindred begin to advance on him. He chuckled slightly as he slashed forward through the ones that were still left from the first wave and looked back to make sure Natasha was safe. She was smart and stayed in a close proximity behind him, looking around as the creatures poured, not particularly dense, over the tops of buildings and walls. He ran backwards beside her and spoke.
"Start getting back to your house and if you see anyone tell them to get inside. They are only after me. Walk fast or they will think you're with me. I promise to follow."
She nodded and did as she was told, watching as Axel's weapons ignited and he attacked the silver beings with a vengeance worthy of, what she though, a god. Now she knew he was still hiding something from her. As she power walked back to her home, making sure to watch the scene as she did so, she told anyone who came out because of the racket to go back inside. If they needed further convincing she pointed to Axel who seemed to have everything under control. The people, especially men, would offer their help, but Axel didn't make it seem like any help these people could offer would actually help. It seemed odd to her that most didn't just run back inside in fear of the creatures, but they could also have thought they were dreaming like she so wished she was.
When she didn't get attacked the whole thing became easy. As long as she kept up her pace any of the creatures, even the ones ahead of her, would ignore her and go after Axel. They didn't seem like creatures who could discriminate between different people, so she wondered exactly why that was.
As Axel used his fire and Chakram to slice and burn his enemies he made sure that nothing was happening to his friend ahead of him, as well as made sure he was following in the right direction. The nobodies attacked him from different sides, but he was so familiar with them that he knew how it felt just before one would jump on him. Their bodies fell and disintegrated when, to him, it seemed like they were merely touched by his blade and fire. Yet, as it became easier and easier to defeat the enemies which came in lesser and lesser numbers he found that his headache became stronger again as he went. Slowly he could feel his eyes begin to burn, and as he slashed through three enemies in a circular motion he became dizzy and stumbled on his feet. When he opened his eyes his vision was blurry and the only reason he could discern his enemies was because of their contrasting color in the moonlight to the rest of their dark surroundings. He became annoyed and paused in the middle of the street after massacring a good number, telling Natasha to keep going, and crossed his arms in front of himself to conjure a good number of fireballs.
The familiar warmth of his body when he began this soothed his evil headache down to a tiny bump every not and then. The flames encircled his hands and engulfed his weapons. Anyone who would see this would think he were some sort of fire deity, even if it was just a smaller attack of his. When he finally ceased his concentration a flurry of fireballs escaped him and targeted the rest of the nobodies in the town, and at the same time he submitted to a large scale pain in his head that made him fall to his knees and scream in agony. Coincidentally Natasha ran up to him and said they were in front of her home. If he hadn't felt like his skull was being ripped he would have laughed at his wonderful timing. Had they really made it back that fast? No doubt her parents would wake up to the loud 'booms' of each of his fireballs, as well as the noises the nobodies made wherever they happened to touch the ground. He hadn't yelled to softly either.
He stayed there on his knees and clutched his head to a point he almost thought he would break it in two. The thought that he should crossed his mind; it would probably make the pain go away. Somewhere deep in his mind he could feel Natasha trying to pull his arms away from his head, but, in his pain and adrenaline, he was very much stronger than her. In his right mind he wanted to comply with her, since he knew that she was trying to help, but the sting of a thousand drills in his head kept him from seeing the light. She tried with no luck until she was taken away from him, and when her comfort was no longer present he felt himself slipping even deeper into the void the pain was creating for him, until two very strong hands ripped his own away from his head.
He looked up to see Natasha's father, his green eyes glassy with the pain. The screaming his throat so forcibly reminded him about had ceased, but his head still pounded, and each of his heart beats brought a new wave of pain for him to bear. As the pain began to subside with each beat tears that were held back by the mere magnificence of the pain before flowed out of his eyes and splashed on the stone ground. In the presence of this man, had his head been totally healed, he would have felt embarrassed to cry such tears, yet he knew there wasn't really reason enough to hold them back now.
Axel tried to stand up by pushing himself up on his knees, then using his hands to help himself the rest of the way, but as he gained height his body began to lean in different directions, and his vision blurred slightly. Natasha ran forward from where her father had made her stand by her mother and caught the red-head before he fell to the ground. He thanked her inwardly.
"Help him inside, Natasha. We've got some talking to do," her father said in a deep, very commanding voice that neither of them could refuse to obey.
Natasha made sure Axel had enough of his footing to make it inside without toppling over on her, and then took strides long enough for Axel, with his height, not to feel awkward. They made it into their little kitchen where Natasha's mother went over to grab a chair to sit the red-head at the kitchen table, still oblivious to Axel's affiliation with Natasha. Her father continued to watch him with an increasing awareness of his closeness to his daughter. From the way Natasha rubbed Axel's shoulder to comfort him made him realize just how well they knew each other.
When the red-head sat down and there was no more stress on any part of his body he slowly began to feel his mind return to its usual state. The comforting ministrations Natasha was performing on his shoulder only hastened his return to himself, and without realizing it his hand reached up to grip hers in thanks. As his mind finally returned to normal, he could feel the eyes of his benefactor's parents settled on him, one set worried and curious, while the other held a barely concealed sense of anger. As he realized it, he dropped his hand from where it gripped Natasha's, knowing it would not help the situation any longer. She ceased rubbing his shoulder as well, and, as if she suddenly realized the incriminating eyes of her father settled on him, she took a couple steps behind his chair.
In an attempt to call off the awkward silence that settled in the kitchen, Natasha's mother let herself lean over the table in front of Axel to put a hand over his head. When she withdrew her hand she asked him if he felt better, his answer to which was a mere nod of the head. She gave him a comforting smile that made him look at her face and realize the contours, though worn slightly with many years that were identical to Natasha. It soothed him further until her father, contrast to what he was used to hearing, spoke to him with an incriminating tone.
"What are you doing here?" came his heated voice.
The older woman looked back at him questioningly, wondering why her husband would treat someone so rudely when they had just gotten over a severe injury. Axel didn't answer, not so much afraid for him self, but rather for Natasha and her mother. Unnecessary violence was not something he wanted to start with such an imposing being. When he didn't answer, the older man directed his eyes towards his daughter.
"Or maybe you can explain why exactly this boy was worth hiding, Natasha?"
Axel could practically feel the girl's embarrassment and the heat that flooded her cheeks when they turned red. Her mother stood up and looked at her husband questioningly, but her eyes were not met; the father refused to tear his eyes away from the girl until he got his answer. Instead of waiting for her husband to get his answer, she walked around the table and stood in front of Natasha, her hands gripping the sides of her daughter's shoulders gently, and looked into her identical eyes.
"Is he what has been making you act so strangely for almost the entire week?" she asked as lowly as she could so as not to shy her away from answering.
Axel directed his eyes down to the table when her father's eyes settled on him again. He didn't dare try to help now. Her father watched him in such a way that made him feel like if he took one false move he would be chewed up and spit out. There was no doubt in his mind that Natasha would try to help and thus suffer the same fate. He couldn't do that to her. Natasha finally spoke, her low voice reminding him of a very tiny girl.
"Yes. I've been hiding him in my room for the past five, almost six days."
He could feel her mothers frame go rigid with sudden rage, inwardly he told Natasha that her choice of words was not the best.
"You, what?" came the voice of her mother, suddenly sounding as venomous as a snake.
The red-head could feel the severe look he was getting from his benefactor's father; it made him feel very much afraid of the pain he was capable of inflicting on him. The young woman suddenly realized the self-incriminating words she spoke, and with quick, stuttering words attempted to deviate her parent's minds from the nasty images they no doubt shared.
"No! No, I didn't mean anything like that! You see, I found him outside of the city-."
"Outside of the city, Natasha?" he mother interrupted her with a very loud yell. "You know you are not allowed outside of the city! How dare you even mention it?"
Natasha looked down at her feet, dejected as her mother spun away from her and back to her father.
"This is what you wouldn't tell me?" she asked her husband, who also directed his eyes to the floor. "That our daughter was secretly sleeping with a boy neither of us know?" She waited for an answer, her eyes cutting deep into his own.
"I didn't want to tell you because I didn't know it was that bad! I thought she was smarter than that!" She glared at him when he answered.
"She's more like y-!" Natasha cut her off before she could say anything she didn't mean.
"Mother! Forget that I went outside the city, and had a person sleep in my room! Both of you, just shut up and listen to me!" she almost shrilled.
Axel winced at the tone of her voice, never before realizing Natasha was capable of making a sound so horrible. He had to try and remind himself that this was not totally his fault, though it seemed like the way things were going would make him feel as if it were. The two elders regarded their daughter with angry and shocked faces, silenced by a power she suddenly held over them; it was as if neither of them would be able to open their mouths even if they wanted to. Natasha steadied herself and continued in as civil a tone she could muster.
"I found Axel outside of the city almost dead and breathing in sand because almost half his face was buried in the ground. He had his hood up so I picked him up by that at first and he was just barely conscious enough to walk enough to help me. I was able to carry him back before father was off of his break again, and I told anyone I passed along the way that I was taking him to the hospital and not to tell you I was because you didn't like me talking to strangers and foreigners. They said they wouldn't because they knew I was doing something kind.
"For these past few days all I was doing was taking care of him. I didn't want to tell you because of what you're doing right now. I also knew I would never see him again because of his looks, and the fact that he didn't have any money on him for hospital treatment anyway. We couldn't afford to pay that for him." In her mind she knew she just made up the last part to strengthen her argument. It was believable enough. "Besides, all he needed was bed rest and nourishment. He was just exhausted from the heat and whatever else he had been through. He's not a bad guy, he just looks different than what we're used to, and all you see is a teenage boy."
Axel chuckled inwardly at her compliment, and glanced at his Chakram. He guessed she was right. He used to be bad, but he really wasn't anymore. The two parents looked at each other, still unable to speak while something was passed between their gaze. Finally, Natasha's mother opened her mouth.
"You still should have told us. You thought way too deeply into this and didn't remember that we have feelings too. Though I would have been mad about you going outside the city, I also have a want to help people who are hurt. We have a comfortable couch, and a small guestroom, Natasha. There is a use for those besides the comfort of visiting relatives." She gave he daughter a weak smile then looked up at her husband, who wasn't going to be quite as forgiving. He spoke.
"However that may be, it doesn't change the fact that you lied to us a few times, and we cannot account for the time you spent together when we were gone. This Axel seems rather well considering the condition you claim he was in. People who are that close to death don't heal that fast. If you can give us a good explanation as to why he got better so quickly, your punishment might be lighter than I have in mind." He looked to his wife for her consent and she nodded to her daughter in agreement.
Natasha looked almost hopeless when Axel had enough mind to turn and look at her. For some reason she refused to look to him for help, and, though it was probably for his benefit, made him feel guilty.
"Well, for one," a sigh she emitted told him what she was going to tell them. He hoped to whatever higher power there was they wouldn't think he was crazy and brainwashed her. "Axel is from another world. No doubt he's from wherever those creatures outside are from. Maybe he healed faster because of the differences he has because he is not from here." She looked at her parents with a hopeful glimmer in her eyes.
Her mother directed her eyes towards the floor, a sudden sadness creeping into them Natasha couldn't figure out. Her father sighed and rubbed one of his temples before speaking.
"Go to your room Natasha. We'll deal with this later."
Before she could reject his request her mother reinforced what he said and she went upstairs, her countenance reflecting a sort of misery that struck Axel in the heart. When the door upstairs shut a long, uncomfortable silence passed between the three of them before Natasha's mother broke it again.
"Are you hungry, Axel? I can make up anything in the fridge you would like."
He looked over to them just as Natasha's father left to go sit in the living room. He didn't answer out of confusion in her sudden change in attitude. She seemed friendly and open to anything, rather than before when she was angry and sad at the same time. When he didn't answer for a while she spoke again.
"Oh, I'll just make us all a few sandwiches. Go sit in the living room with him until they're ready. I'll be out there in a minute."
Something in the sweetness of her voice made it so he couldn't refuse, no matter how foreboding the living room looked with the much older, much wiser, and much stronger man inhabiting it. He rose from the chair in an unsure a fashion until prompted by the woman to go sit down in the living room again. Half way between the two he gulped in a good amount of air and held his breath before he sat down in the reclining chair and let it out. The man was situating a few cards into a formation he didn't remember seeing even when Luxord randomly played with his cards. He put the memory far back into his mind out of distaste. After no consistency was shown in what Natasha's father was doing Axel decided he was just doing something with his hands for the sake of keeping himself busy.
"You don't talk much, do you?"
He looked up from the cards to see the man's dark eyes watching him. Axel remembered that he hadn't said a single word in the man's presence, and barely made a gesture to show he was articulate. He cleared his throat of anything that would prohibit his speech, made his countenance and gaze show no fear, and spoke.
"Usually you can't get me to be quiet," he said simply.
From the look in the man's eyes he could tell that he would have smiled were he in a better mood and company. Somehow Axel didn't really mind that he didn't like him at this point; he had his reasons. Finally, the soothing presence Natasha's mother had on her husband settled the awkwardness in the room. She gave her husband a comforting smile, which he returned, as she set food in front of the two of them. She didn't have anything for herself.
"Well then, I suppose we should get down to business, boys." She smiled to the two of them.
Axel looked at her in confusion, then to her husband in the same manner. The later seemed to know what the former was talking about as he took a bite of the ham sandwich in front of him. Axel looked at the elder woman again.
"What do you mean?"
Natasha's mother looked at him, her deep, dark eyes revealing layers upon layers of affection for him; he almost felt as if he were her son. He shook the idea from his head, but it still made him feel relaxed and comfortable. In the back of his mind he supposed it was something a nurse or doctor developed over time to comfort their patients. She then looked to her husband for permission to continue.
"Well, if you will accept, we have a request for you, Axel," she said with an amiable smile.
Axel looked down at his lap as he tried to figure out exactly what they would need from him. He had expected them to kick him out immediately upon finding him, not ask him for a favor. His green eyes looked back up at her, showing the confusion he felt deep in his gut. She was still regarding him with a comforting smile that made him relax again.
"I guess the matter calls for a little background information." She sat laid back in the love seat and crossed her legs. "No doubt Natasha has told you about our family history with the magic that protects this town. Well, to make a long story short we want her to continue that line of mages now that we are settled and comfortable, but even now we still cannot afford to continue her training because it requires a large sum of money to be sent to our king, one that we could easily have paid back when my ancestors were in the top rankings of mage-hood." She looked to her husband to continue.
"You probably wonder what any of this has to do with you. Well, an old friend of the family, an old, wrinkled prophet, told us that the gift her family had with magic was very strong in Natasha. In fancy words she told us that we would never have the money to support a mage's pilgrimage until after Natasha had taken her own. She said that when she was around her mid-teenage years a boy a few years her senior would come from another world and we would have to ask him to take her after accepting him into the family. His answer was never told because fates have an annoying way of turning things around at will, but you two seem so close," He didn't seem happy about that. ", that I believe you would accept the job." His wife continued.
"Make sure it is of your own will that you choose to help. If it is not, then the two of you will bring about the death of this entire world." She giggled. "No pressure. It's not as hard as it sounds to make the choice; I just want you to be aware of the consequences."
Axel stared at the two adults in disbelief. Had all this really been decided for him already?
((A/N: Wow. How's that for the last thing I wrote? ; Anyway, now's the time to tell me how much you love or hate the story. Of course, if you hate it I doubt you're here anyway. The next part will be posted when I get it finished if I think it is worth it. I really hope you guys like this story. I love it a whole lot. Please review!
InTheDarkWithRiku: Thank you so much for the support!
Domini Orion: Thank you for the promise of the good arse kicking for anyone who says I suck!
xUMIXx: Now that you've mentioned it there's a likely chance, but it still depends on how I feel. If there is it won't be for a while.
ShadowShapeshifterAndHerCat: You're going to have to learn to deal with shorties, but I think after this chapter there will be less! wOOt! ))