Silence.

Elbows touching, Zexion and Demyx sat on the blue-haired senior's bed, open text books forgotten by their feet. They were looking across the dorm to where Axel was resting on his own bed. What was unusual about it was the fact that he wasn't lounging. The lanky redhead was curled up in the corner of headboard and the wall, notes in hand as he studied for the upcoming exams. The semester would end in a week and then they would have three weeks of Winter Break. Zexion planned on flying home. Axel was staying on campus.

"Axel."

The senior ignored his friend, not for the first time, and Zexion decided he'd had just about enough of the taller boy's childish behavior.

"I'll pour ice water on you in your sleep tonight if you keep ignoring me," he threatened seriously, knowing Axel hated the cold more than anything, especially of the wet variety. Axel didn't even look up.

"No, you won't."

"You think I'm bluffing?"

"Yep."

Zexion adopted a light tone, as if he was commenting on the weather. "Then it's going to suck serious ass when you wake up with ice cubes shoved down your boxers."

That comment forced Demyx to smother a laugh, his hand pressed over his mouth to prevent sound from escaping. He knew Zexion was being serious and that now wasn't the time to laugh, but it was hard to contain himself—sometimes his boyfriend was funnier than he was trying to be.

Rolling his eyes, Axel put down his book and scowled at his roommate. "What d'you want?"

"I want you to tell me why you've been moping around all week."

"I'm not moping."

The eyebrow not hidden by blue bangs rose in an expression that could only be called an "oh, really," look. "You're curled up in that corner like a mouse trying to hide from a cat."

"If I was a mouse, I'd just go back into my mouse hole," the redhead countered, eyes focused on his notes once more.

"Fine. Then you're acting like a servant that's constantly terrified he's going to be called to his master's room and be beaten for some small mistake and you can't run away because your master is holding your family hostage."

That analogy was so accurate it almost made Axel wince, but he resisted. H knew he'd been acting the way Zexion described, if Larxene was the master and the family being held hostage was Roxas. Still, he didn't tell the other senior how right he was. It had been four days since he'd walked into Larxene's classroom for that detention, and he hadn't told anyone what happened, not even the blue-haired senior he considered to be his best friend.

"I don't want to talk about it."

"Obviously, but if you think I'm going to let this go after the way you pestered me about Demyx, your IQ is even lower than I thought."

"What?" Demyx interjected, looking at his boyfriend curiously. "He pestered you about me?"

A light blush colored Zexion's cheeks as he realized what he'd just admitted. "Axel's the reason I got up my nerve to introduce myself to you. He wouldn't leave me alone about it."

The blond junior smiled shyly and nuzzled Zexion's cheek happily before turning his gaze on Axel. "Thanks."

It was all Axel could do not to roll his eyes—the two of them were astoundingly cutesy whenever they were together, something he would never, in a million years, have thought would happen to Zexion. It really made him a bit jealous. "Don't mention it."

"Spill," Zexion commanded, eyes narrowed dangerously, and all three of them knew for a fact that if Axel insisted on being stubborn, he was definitely going to wake up by being doused with ice water.

With a growl, the redhead tossed his notes onto the floor and glared back at his roommate. "I'm not talking about it with your precious little boyfriend in here."

That made Demyx lower his eyes, Axel's words stinging at him. "I can go," he mumbled, but Zexion grabbed onto his hand before he had a chance to get up.

"Quit making excuses, Axel. If it's about Larxene, then you know damn well that Demyx is one of the best people to talk to. If it's not, then I doubt it's serious enough to make him leave." The two seniors locked eyes and stared at each other, neither willing to back down as Demyx waited, uncomfortable with the way things seemed to be going. After several minutes, Axel sighed and looked away in defeat.

"Fine. It's Larxene."

Satisfied with his victory, Zexion settled against the wall again and pulled Demyx close to cuddle him, earning a pleased humming sound from the younger student. "Go on."

"She forced me to have sex with her during my detention last Tuesday."

A thick, heavy silence followed the redhead's words. Demyx had stopped humming and was so tense he was trembling; gentle fingers combed through his hair until he relaxed.

"It's been a while," was all Zexion had to say in response to the announcement, voice calm and quiet.

"Yeah."

"What happened?"

Axel shrugged, gaze locked on his hands as he fidgeted. "The room was decorated and she showed up in this long black coat. She was wearing that stupid slutty leather outfit underneath. We had some wine and…yeah."

"How did she make you?" Demyx asked softly, almost afraid that Axel would snap at him for speaking up.

Emeralds met jade and the three boys sat in silence for a few moments.

"She threatened someone really important to me."

"Oh."

It was quiet again, then Demyx surprised the two seniors by pulling away from Zexion, crossing the room, and sitting on Axel's bed. Without a word, he slipped his arms around the taller boy and hugged him. Axel tensed at first, unused to such an affectionate gesture, especially from Demyx, but he relaxed after a few moments and hesitantly hugged the blond back, letting his forehead rest on Demyx's shoulder.

"It'll be okay," the junior whispered.

Just like that, Axel broke. Tears he'd been holding back for what felt like a lifetime overflowed and he shook as Demyx held onto him comfortingly. In all the time that Larxene had been bothering him, from the moment she made the first unwelcome advancement during his first weeks as a student at Kingdom High, Axel had never once cried. Not once, not even when he'd finally felt he could trust Zexion enough to tell him what was going on.

All it took for him to finally let out how messed up this whole thing made him feel was a hug from a kid he hardly knew.

"I hate it," he choked out, struggling to keep his voice from cracking. "I fucking hate it."

Demyx tightened his hold on the older boy. "I know."

"Y-you're really lucky, you kn-know." Axel hated the way he sounded—blubbering like a kid whose pet hamster died—but there was nothing he could do about it. "You h-had someone help you before it g-got too bad."

The smallest of smiles flitted over Demyx's expression as he thought about the first time he'd encountered Zexion. "Yeah, I am lucky. But you're not alone, either, Axel. I know it feels like it. It feels like you're the only person on the whole planet sometimes. But you have Zexion and you have me, and you have whoever it is that Larxene is trying to use against you. I bet if they knew what was going on, they'd stand up for you, just like you're protecting them."

Axel managed a weak laugh through his tears as a gentle hand rubbed at his back. "I h-hope so." He lifted his head and rested his cheek on Demyx's shoulder, looking across the room to where Zexion was still sitting on his own bed. The two seniors locked gazes for a few moments, silently agreeing to come up with a plan to get Axel and Roxas out of this whole twisted situation, hopefully without the blond knowing.

If they did this right, then Larxene wasn't going to toy with Axel or his friends ever again after they got through with her.

XXX

"Roxas?"

"Yeah?"

Sora shifted uncomfortably, blue eyes locked on his shoes and hands shoved deep into his pockets. "Will you…uh…help me study for my exams?"

The blond twin looked at his brother in surprise. "What? Really?"

"Yeah."

"Why? I mean, I'm glad and of course I'll help you, but you've never really cared about exams before. What's so special about these ones?" He had to ask. Sora looked way too nervous for it to be something as simple as wanting to get good grades.

"Um, well, you know how Riku and I did the Slave-for-a-Day bet?"

"Yeah, and then the next day you made me think you had sex with him. Why?"

Face red due to Roxas' comment, Sora moved his gaze to the ceiling. "'Cause we made the same bet for these finals and I really wanna win this time."

Roxas sighed. "You really want to risk spending another day in those stupid outfits?"

"No," a grin worked its way onto Sora's face, "I'm just willing to take the chance if it means I can get my revenge on him for being such a pervert."

At that, Roxas was sporting a grin of his own. "Give him a taste of his own medicine?"

"Of course. Also, I, uh, thought maybe it would be a good opportunity to tell him I like him." The last bit was mumbled and Sora's face was turning a deep shade of red out of embarrassment.

"Finally."

Sora gaped at his brother. "What do you mean, 'finally'?"

"Oh, come on, Sora. You can't deny that you've liked him from the moment he caught you in the locker room on our first day."

"I have not liked him for that long!" the brunet protested, devastated that his feelings were that obvious to others. Granted, Roxas had always been able to tell how Sora felt without much by way of hints.

Rolling his eyes, Roxas got up and hugged his twin. "Have, too. Otherwise, you wouldn't have gotten so upset that he thought he was better than you and then worked so hard to prove him wrong. You're competitive, but you're not that competitive. Riku's gotten more and more of your time and attention ever since." He decided not to mention that he was maybe just a little bit jealous that someone else had become the center of Sora's world. "If Riku's too dense to figure out that you like him, then that's his mistake."

His arms locked around the blond's waist, Sora snuggled against his brother in an attempt to be comforted; it worked, as it always did. "So, you think I should tell him?"

"If you're ready, then yes."

Sora thought he was ready. He was scared, sure, and worried that Riku would reject him, but he still had hope that, just maybe, the older sophomore liked him back. It was that hope that wanted him to do it, and to be honest he was tired of not knowing. He wanted to either date Riku or stop flirting with him entirely. No more of this half-baked crap.

"Yeah, I'm ready."

Roxas hugged the other boy tighter for a moment before releasing him. "Then we'd better make sure you win this bet. Come on, time to study."

Even though the thought of studying made Sora want to shudder, he allowed his twin to pull him over to his bed and sat by the blond, diligently going over the notes he'd compiled since the last set of exams. He was going to get better grades than Riku if he had to stop sleeping in order to study enough.

XXX

It was time to test her theory. Well, Namine's theory, but Kairi was going to test it because she had to know if Luxord really meant what he'd said about rejecting her. So there she was, standing outside the door to his personal quarters in Faculty Housing, biting her lip nervously. Her makeup was flawless, her hair was perfect, and she'd dressed modestly but still in a way that would invite him. She also had her school bag and her study materials for his class an excuse to come see him. This was her chance to find out if she had a chance at him or not.

Taking a deep breath, Kairi lifted one fisted hand and knocked on the door. Footsteps sounded on the other side, and the door opened to reveal a Luxord wearing jeans and an un-tucked button-up shirt. Kairi stared because she'd never seen him out of his usual work clothes of dress pants, neatly tucked shirt and tie. He looked…nice like this, friendlier than he usually looked. He didn't look pleased to see her, however, and Kairi felt her heart sink a little.

"Did you need something, Kairi?" the blond man asked, looking down at her with a neutral expression.

"I…um…"

Luxord sighed at her hesitation, leaning on the doorframe with an expression that clearly said, "get on with it."

Losing her nerve, Kairi lowered her gaze. "Never mind. I can figure it out on my own," she mumbled, and turned to go. She could feel his eyes on her back as she walked away, and fought the urge to either run or burst into tears; he didn't like her. He really had meant what he said about rejecting her.

"Wait."

Her feet stopped moving even though she told herself to keep walking, to not turn around and look at those stupid ice blue eyes. She did it anyway. "Yes?"

The teacher had stepped out into the hallway and was rubbing the back of his head in a nervous fashion. "You can come inside—I'll help you with your homework."

Kairi allowed a small smile. "Okay." Trying to act as relaxed as she could, she went back to the still-open doorway and slipped inside Luxord's apartment, looking around discreetly as he pulled the door shut behind them. It was surprisingly clean, for a bachelor's apartment, but then, Luxord had always been neat and orderly. That was one of the reasons Kairi liked him. He was sophisticated, if a little arrogant. She liked that, too.

Before she had a chance to really look around the small living room, Luxord put a hand on the middle of her back and steered her into the kitchen, which was a little plain but also very well kept. It actually looked like he'd just finished cleaning a few moments before she'd knocked.

"You, uh, want anything to drink?" he asked as she sat at the table, and Kairi smiled up at him.

"Just a glass of water, thanks."

"Mm." Luxord put a few ice cubes in a cup then filled it with water before grabbing a can of soda for himself and joining Kairi at the table. She sipped her water as he opened his soda and took a long drink, blue eyes never leaving the teacher sitting only a foot away.

"So, what do you need help with?" he asked after a few moments had passed and the silence had become nearly suffocating.

With a smile, Kairi took her things out of her bag and set them out neatly on the table. "I was hoping you would look over the rough draft of my essay, and I have a few questions about the project."

"All right, can I see your rough draft?"

Nodding, the redhead opened one of her notebooks and handed it to the teacher then began flipping through the contents of a folder in search of the syllabus for the project they were supposed to be doing; they had to put together a presentation over an important historical figure, complete with recorded narration, and the program they were supposed to be using was giving her trouble, so she hoped Luxord would be able to help her fix it.

"Kairi." Luxord's tone sounded strained and she had to fight a smile.

"Yes, Professor?"

"This isn't your essay."

Cue innocent frown. "It's not?" Kairi took the notebook out of Luxord's hands and scanned the page it was open to as if she didn't know perfectly well what it was; her eyes widened and her mouth dropped open slightly. "Oh! I'm so sorry!" Blushing and mumbling apologies, she shoved the notebook back into her bag then retrieved the right one and gave it to the teacher, who was staring at her as if he couldn't quite believe what he'd just read. His gaze made her want to squirm with triumph, but she didn't. That would ruin everything.

Tossing out another apologetic smile, she went back to searching for the syllabus as Luxord read through her rough draft. Once she found it, she set it off to the side and took her laptop out, opening it and logging in, humming softly to herself. Just as she was opening the program for the presentation, Luxord set down the notebook.

"Your rough draft is very good—it just needs a few tweaks here and there, and I'm sure you'll manage to find those and fix them before the essay is due," the blond commented, not looking at the student sitting beside him.

"Oh, great! I'm glad. I was worried it was terrible." She smiled at him even though he was still avoiding looking at her. "Now, the other thing I need your help with is this program. I don't think it's compatible with my laptop, because no matter how many times I install it, uninstall it, and reinstall it, it won't let me do very much and I really don't want to get a bad grade on this project—"

"Kairi," the teacher interrupted quietly, eyes still locked on the tabletop.

"Yes, Professor?"

God damn it, why did she have to call him "Professor" in that innocent tone after what he'd just read? "Why did you write that?"

Kairi lowered her eyelids in a shy expression. "No reason…"

His Bull Shit Senses tingling, Luxord turned in his chair to face her with a stern expression. "Kairi, you can't write things like that, especially involving a teacher. If it fell into the wrong hands, there could be serious consequences. You could be expelled, I could lose my job or even go to jail. Promise me you'll destroy that, and you won't write another one."

"I promise, Professor."

"Good. Now, tell me what's wrong with the program."

Smiling again, Kairi explained the problem she was having, though her thoughts were about as far from her history project as they could get. No matter what promises she'd made to Luxord, she had no intentions of getting rid of what she'd tricked him into reading, and she would definitely be writing more. She even planned on sending her future writings to him by any available means. His reaction had been all she'd needed—he wasn't as disinterested in her as he'd told Marluxia.