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Chapter 12Axel and Tifa both let out a sigh of relief once reaching their peaks. Axel still stood hovered over her, resting on his elbows and now gently separating himself from their entanglement. He fell onto his back lazily, letting out another sigh and a wide grin played across his jester-like features.
"Now how's that for a good morning greeting?" He turned on his side to the woman next to him and winked at her playfully. His arm pulled her body closer to his. Their chests still heaved heavily as they caught their breath. Tifa giggled before pulling his chin for another kiss and he dipped his head to her, obeying her sweet temptations.
As he kissed her, a familiar darkness passed through him. As it pulsed through his body he tried not to curl his lip with disgust at its familiarity. It wasn't Tifa's but he knew where it was from. It was vague but still strong enough for him to recognize his presence once he seemed to be nearing the building. Still he would not allow himself to speak of it, to taint their precious moment. The person that he knew was coming was no longer his concern. Right now, the woman in his arms was the only concern of his.
As he broke away from her, he reached down beside the bed to grab the long shirt and shorts she was wearing the night before. As he picked up the heap of material, Tifa eyed him suspiciously. He answered with a grin and placed it beside her. She had no idea she'd be needing it soon. As for him, it was simple enough to snap his fingers and his clothing would re-appear on his body as it was. That was the advantage of a being that didn't have an existence. If the beings aren't really there, neither is the clothing and can be changed at will. Being a Nobody did have its rewards at times.
"I just get the feeling you might get cold soon," his expression was somewhat serious, somewhat teasing. She couldn't decipher between the two.
Their noses touched and his breath spoke upon her damp lips. Loose strands of crimson fell over the sides of his face casting thin shadows against his features. She searched his eyes and as she arched a brow at him, he tickled her cheekbone with his fingertips, leaning in for another kiss. This was the way he wanted to be seen with her. This was the way he wanted him to see them.
She cooperated despite her prying questions, letting her nails trail gently up and down his forearm. She didn't know how she knew or how long it took for her to realize it but something was coming. Before she could react the footsteps in the hall came to a halt and a pleading female voice was heard outside. As she heard they key being jammed violently into the lock, her heart jumped through her chest until the door slammed open. The harsh bright light from the hall glowed upon their bare skin. She spun her head, breaking her and Axel's moment to look in the direction of the door that was now wide open. Wide open just like her secret, no longer a well kept one.
She squinted for a moment, shielding her eyes from the hallway light and adjusting to the tall masculine figure standing in the doorway. As she recognized the figure glaring down at her in shame and other emotions she'd rather not identify, her eyes grew wide with shock. She gasped, rushing to pull the covers up to her neck and fidgeting with the heap of clothing Axel had placed beside her moments ago.
"Cloud!" she meant to yell out but instead it was released from her voice box as a dry squeak. She swallowed the lump in her throat before rushing to sit up in the bed. Axel was already standing at the end of the bed, fully dressed. His gaze met Cloud's, burning with rage at one another. As Tifa fumbled foolishly with her words and her clothes, Axel moved in front of the bedside, blocking any possible approach to her by Cloud. Their intense gaze never broke away.
Finally pulling her shirt loosely over her head, she eyed the groceries sprawled out on the floor around Cloud. The small Innkeeper was hiding in the hallway, trembling with anticipation. A pang of guilt and shame throttled inside her. Waves of increasing nausea were making her intestines churn and tie. Her palms were damp as her nails dug into them.
"Cloud, listen!" she waved her hands in front of her frantically but it seemed that he was oblivious to her presence. What he saw was enough for him. It seemed her existence in the room had now vanished to his eyes and now the only one he was seeing was Axel.
Cloud ignored her pleas and soon enough the slow sounding ring of metal whined as he pulled out his buster sword from his back. Axel stretched out his arms just as cautiously, his chakrams appearing in his fingers, spinning with fiery light. Cloud spread his legs into offensive stance and Axel leaned forward, positioning himself as well.
Tifa didn't know where the voice in her suddenly erupted from but somehow she let out a shriek. "Stop it! Please!" Jumping in front of Axel, between him and Cloud, she held her arms out to stop the both of them from advancing any further. "No more…" her voice weakened again as her shoulders shook with emotion. She used all her energy to keep any tears from spilling from her eyes, her feet were still bare and her messy strands of hair hung over her face.
The room was soundless and slowly she raised her head to look at Cloud. His gaze did not meet hers but instead stood on Axel behind her. She felt her heart shatter, her will weaken and her ambition crumble. She never meant to cause Cloud pain. All she ever did was try to make him happy and here they were, ripping their history and hearts to shreds. Her breathe jumped as she whispered, "Please listen to me"
It didn't matter. His ears were deaf to her words. His eyes were blind to her presence. After witnessing such a traumatic event for him, her existence at that moment was no more. He couldn't allow himself to see her. All he allowed himself to see was his anger, his throbbing darkness that would help him bring this Nobody to its demise.
Cloud turned the sword in his hands, ready to strike whether Tifa was in the middle or not. Before Tifa could lunge forward at Cloud, Axel's chakrams had vanished, allowing him to wrap his arms around her waist and pull. She fell back against him and he held her against him while the entrance to the realm of darkness opened behind them. Before she could utter a word of protest, they were swallowed into the realm. By the time Cloud had ran to it, it had already closed.
His buster sword fell to the floor helplessly, the booming metal on the hollow wooden floor echoed through the empty room. He stared upon his own trembling hands, as if regret were written all over them. Shaking his head in denial he winced as if his body was in physical pain.
He didn't know where to start, where to begin describing the emotions running through him and what to do with them. He was helpless and the power of his sword could not save him. He glared at the empty space where his childhood friend and former lover had vanished into, wondering if she'd even return to this world. If she didn't, that was fine.
Of course as much as he told himself this, it was a lie.
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By the time her eyes had opened again, she realized that the familiar kaleidoscope walls were dancing around her. She took a moment to register what was going on and almost forgot the heat of the familiar body that she was leaning her weight against. Her shoulder blades felt the warmth of his firm chest and his arms still stood hanging loosely on her waist. She didn't make any effort to move or speak.
Axel leaned in carefully behind her, his cheek brushing against her hair as his lips neared her ear. "Tifa…" he whispered to her in a tone masked with concern.
She clenched her fists at her sides, biting her lips from quivering. He didn't need to look at her to know how she was feeling. As always, he felt it.
Barrages of emotions were attacking each and every nerve in her body; still she refused to let it show. Shame, heartbreak, confusion, helplessness, betrayal, and most of all loneliness. She had never felt so alone as she did at that very moment despite the presence standing behind her. It was as if, just like a Nobody should be, he didn't exist at that moment. His existence was futile and served her no comfort for the pain she was experiencing.
Until this moment, she had never truly thought out the consequences of her forbidden infatuation with this non-existent being, only existing through her. For the first time in her life she let herself be selfish, indulging in her own happiness. She never anticipated such a severe ache that would come from it all; from the loss of her best friend and the only man she had ever loved in life. Cloud had always felt so far away from her at times, but at least he was still there. Yet, when she looked into his eyes after he had seen her in bed with another, she saw nothing. She was invisible. She didn't exist to him even though she was right in front of him, pleading for him to listen to her explanation.
After a long dragged moment of awkward silence, Axel began to notice the color in the walls dim darker. It was nothing to him but he needed to lead Tifa out to safety before the darkness consumed her. She was too weak to try and withstand it.
Tifa eyes were still focused on her feet when Axel spun her around to face him. His hands held her shoulders as he lowered his head to try and meet her gaze. Her dark bangs fell over her eyes and she did not make any effort to look up at him. Still he had to tell her it was time to move, whether she wanted to or not.
Right as he was about to tell her to stay beside him as he led her out, she spoke to him in the most saddening tone he had ever heard from her. "So this…must be what it's like to be a Nobody, a shell without a heart and no existence"
Axel cringed and shook her out from her daze, "Don't say that! You have a heart and you do exist!" she gasped, surprised at his sudden outburst. His aggressive tone caused her to lift her head to him, to meet his furrowing brows and ambitious eyes. One of his hands rose from her shoulder to the side of her neck, the warmness of his touch still made her skin tighten, even in a situation such as this one.
As his sight on her softened, he inched his face to hers and whispered, "Your heart's just broken, that's all…and even if you don't exist to him, you exist right now in front of me. If he really cares for you, your existence will never fade from his eyes"
She stared blankly at him until she finally nodded, registering his words into her mind. She didn't know what to say to Axel's words but she knew he was right about one thing. As always, even when Cloud had seemed to forsake her, he was there, willing to lighten the load on her shoulders. Her head tilted in his grasp in deep thought. The way he looked at her, the way he spoke to her, the way he touched her, the way he was always there, this was what she…
"Tifa, do you love me?" she blinked from her daze. He had caught her off guard.
Once again, another thing she had never completely thought out, the possibility of love for this Nobody. She knew she was falling in love but she wasn't quite sure if it was right to say such words just yet. To say such meaningful words to a being that would never feel the exact same way no matter how hard he tried. To love, you needed a heart and a heart he did not have.
As her lips parted to reply, he quickly rose his finger to her lips. It seemed that another presence had caught his attention. Axel removed his finger from her lips and opened his palm behind her. As he subtly opened an exit from the realm, his brows bent in deep concentration, still looking around for any suspicious movement.
He felt it, that disgusting stench approaching them, somewhere in the realm. Even though he said that there was no point in harming Tifa, Axel couldn't risk it. Tifa turned to the grounds surrounding them, now noticing the white shadows twisting and emerging from below. Dusks… he was planning to surround them first. There wasn't enough time to explain fully to Tifa.
Axel spoke quickly, grabbing Tifa's face in his hands, "Tifa listen, Saix is coming and I need you to go through that exit. We need to separate. I'll come find you later"
Tifa shook her head, "No, I can fight. Where does the exit-"
"I don't know where it goes but it's safer than if you stay here. Just go and don't follow me. Hurry before it closes" With a quick nod he released her face in his hands and ran the other direction. The Dusks followed after him. Tifa turned around to see the warping exit behind her. She ran towards it and just as she was about to get close enough to leap out, she spun back around at the sound of clashing metal. His chakrams burned at his fingertips as he ran, never looking back and revealing her presence to the enemy.
Tifa reached out in his direction and on instinct she began running towards him. Her hands balled into fists ready to strike as she tried to get closer to him. For some reason no matter how fast she ran, it seemed that she wasn't getting any closer.
Axel held out his palm, opening another exit to what must've been a different world from the one he had sent her to. She watched as his black cloak disappeared into the exit, followed by numerous Dusks and Saix's sadistic laughter. She watched as the exit shut closed, leaving her to stop in her tracks. She spun around to run towards the other exit he had left open for her but it was shrinking. Her heart pumped in her heaving chest as she ran full speed towards the it. Her hand reached for it, helplessly watching it get smaller and smaller as she got closer.
"No!" she screamed right before the exit had fully vanished. "No, no it can't close"
She fell to her knees as she wheezed. She trembled as the walls within the realm darkened. It was almost completely black now. The darkness was entrapping her, suffocating her inside. There was no escape. It was too late.
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Axel spat curses between his cringing lips as he exited the realm. He had only noticed her following him right after the realm had shut. Why hadn't she listened? He cursed her stubbornness and rebellious side.
As the Dusks surrounded him and Saix had finally appeared in front of him with a wide grin, he knew that it was pointless. Even though he wanted to, even though he knew he had to, Saix would not let him go back. He would not be able to rescue her from the wrath of the realm. All he could do was fight for his life and pray, pray that somehow in someway, that the darkness would not consume her and she'd escape. Of course that was only if he survived as well.
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Hmm so now Tifa's stuck in the realm and Axel has his hands full. Well I'd like to give you a hint but it would spoil too much, let's just say something earlier in the story may begin to make a lot more sense soon. I always have a reason for everything.
