[First of all: I haven't actually played DDD yet so I don't think there are any spoilers… but if you don't want anything to do with anything related to it in any way till you've played then avoid this for now. I figured I'd better say this just in case.]

Pulse

We have struggled, but it was not in vain, for under the palm of my hand I can feel your heart beating.

The first time Roxas met Axel again he wasn't sure where he was, not that he really paid much attention to his surroundings because his eyes were only on that of the tall form that stood before him.

Roxas shuffled hesitantly closer, a hand raised slightly to the redhead, fingers trembling like he wanted to touch, but was afraid that the man would vanish if he dared to try.

His gaze flittered over the familiar features; there was something niggling at the back of his mind that made him repetitively look over the redhead; there was something missing- yet at the same time the man looked more whole than he ever had before. When he met Axel's eyes again, realising there was something different about the redhead's face, it clicked.

Roxas had unconsciously moved even closer during his scrutiny and he raised his arms slowly, cupping the taller man's face in the palms of his hands, thumbing gently over the flesh of his cheeks, wondering where the dark marks the colour of bruises had gone.

Deep, expressive blue eyes gazed up in wonder, his adoring gaze meeting that of those brilliant malachite green.

Axel's expression had been relatively blank at first, but now his whole face now seemed to come to life; eyes lighting up in the most breath-taking way, his lips twitching and stretching as a soft, warm, real smile spread across his face – the most fascinating thing was that for the first time that smile really shone in his eyes.

A large, long fingered hand moved over one of Roxas', warm and strong, surrounding the smaller almost completely as he gently pried it from his face, shifting it down, onto his chest.

Beneath the palm of his hand Roxas could feel a throbbing; the curious sensation of a heart that raced, skin there especially warm even through the coat that separated Roxas' bare hand from Axel's flesh. Even more curious was the way the pulse seemed to pick up pace at Roxas' touch, beating rapidly in his presence.

"Axel – how?" the petite blonde boy gasped, fingers twining with Axel's as he moved both their hands away so he could press his ear to Axel's chest; against his ear he could feel the steady rhythm, hear the thumps of the organ.

Fingers from Axel's free hand wove through soft, blond locks of hair, pulling Roxas' head back from where it was nuzzled against his chest, tilting it carefully up. A slender nose was bumped briefly against the blonde's before Axel pressed a soft, quick butterfly kiss against Roxas' chapped lips.

"It's Lea now."

Roxas' answering smile was brilliant and almost blindingly bright; he pulled his hand free so he could wind his arms around Axel's- no Lea's neck, tugging the taller man down to his height, even as he stretched up on the tip of his toes to press their lips back together...

Lea awoke with a startled gasp. He stared up at the dark ceiling, eyes wide, feeling his heart beating crazily in his chest, almost uncomfortably fast. He pressed his hand against his chest firmly in an attempt to calm his heart. Slowly he pushed himself up into a sitting position, sheets sliding down his chest and pooling around his waist.

The redhead shivered delicately in the cool of the night air and scrubbed at his eyes when he felt a slight wetness there.

In another room nearby something stirred restlessly within Sora.