A/N: Oof this took a long time. I ran into some trouble IRL and was unable to work on this (or anything) at all for at least a week due to that specific issue. The rest of the time I just felt uninspired and in a slump. Anyway, for more frequent updates on the status of this fic, other stories and exclusive artwork please LIKE my facebook fanpage (link in profile)! Anyway, I hope ya'll enjoy!

Chapter VI: Turn To Stone

There is something I see in you
It might kill me
I want it to be true

Xirena pranced out of the dark corridor and back into the Gray Area, and her mission partner – Zexion – wasn't too far behind her. She giggled as she passed by her co-workers who were lazing around, having already completed their work for the day. Rex and Luxord were there, and the king of lazing around himself: Xigbar. Axel gives him a run for his money for being the most lazy asshole in the Organization though, perhaps they are even equals. Either way, the freeshooter heard the familiar sounds of a dark corridor and the emergent footsteps that followed, raising his head to see which of his coworkers were back. He had a feeling it was Xirena, based on the prancing rather than normal walking. Seeing he was right, he grinned with huge amounts of arrogance and villainy.

"Ay Bubbles, what are you so happy about?" Xigbar, who was seated next to Rex, asked dryly as Xirena moved by him, "Someone butter your muffin or something?"

Rex shrieked with his mouth shut tight and kicked the freeshooter in the shin – he knew what "buttering someones muffin" meant – he picked it up from 'Mean Girls.' Rex was also slightly – just slightly – appalled by the nickname Xigbar had chosen for her, as he is the one who inspired it in a roundabout way. See, Rex was having his daily bitch-fit and Xigbar was the only victim in the vicinity to absorb what Rex was saying. Xigbar didn't catch much of the early tidbits, but his pointed ears perked up when he heard Rex start to unleash his frustrations with Xirena, specifically when he said 'ugh and her butt is too big for fashion, she needs to diet so I can actually USE her.' Now, Xigbar never saw her with her coat off so he couldn't be sure if the bubble butt was real or just Rex being a dramatic homo who was incredibly petty. Regardless, he decided to call her Bubbles because everything else he came up with – Idiot, Dumbass, Stupid, Airhead, Dingus – weren't very creative... and insulting her with an ambiguous yet innocent and cute-sounding nickname felt so much more rewarding than calling things as he seems em 100% of the time. In fact, Xirena herself quite liked the sound of 'Bubbles,' and her blind acceptance of the name made it even BETTER. Ignorance truly is bliss.

"No, but I found a pig!" She exclaimed with no tact whatsoever.

Xirena shrugged her right shoulder twice with a pleased look on her face. The single shoulder double-shrug turned out to be a cue; a cue for the outlandish pig to emerge from her hood. The pig wiggled over her shoulder, and she positioned herself on it... as if she were a parrot or some other animal that perches. But instead of standing, the pig just laid on it's stomach as it hung over the front of her shoulder, while keeping the rest of herself in Xirena's hood – kind of like how you'd hang a wet towel over a bannister to let it dry. This provided a great way to quickly hide, all the pig would have to do is squiggle backwards and let gravity tuck her completely into Xirena's hood.

The other present members – Rex, Xigbar, Luxord and Zexion – all had such unique reactions.

Rex looked disgusted.

Zexion was apathetic, considering this was old news to him at this point.

Luxord stroked his chin and looked rather baffled.

… and Xigbar looked hungry.

"Ohh I bet that thing would be delicious with some sunny-side up eggs..." He murmured. He licked his lips and rubbed his hands together comically, earning him a nasty sneer and a quiet 'ew' from Rex, but what did Xigbar care?

"That's her name!" Xirena exclaimed, "Sunny! Her full name is 'Sunshine Star Flower' but I just call her Sunny."

Sunny snorted happily, which made Xirena giggle. It was a snorting and giggling event and it sounded really weird to everyone else.

"What's all this happiness that I hear?" A voice taunted playfully.

Axel had appeared from the residential hall, but no-one noticed him, even after his bomb of a comment. Xirena had her back turned to him, but he could see the other members' faces clear as day – and they were all looking at each other with odd expressions on their faces. He scoffed to himself and made his approach.

"Hey there buddy!" He said as he came up behind Xirena.

It all happened in slow motion – He went to the left of her, and raised his hand up to grab her right shoulder. As he let his hand drop he was shocked to feel something abnormal... and even more shocked to hear the loud squealing of a displeased pig. On top the pig's loud cries, Xirena had shrieked when she felt Axel's hand impact poor, unseen Sunny. Wanting to get away from her "attacker," Sunny jumped from Xirena's shoulder with unexpected agility and began to run around the Gray Area. As she passed by Rex and Xigbar, Rex pulled his legs up onto the couch and started to scream while Xigbar laughed so loudly at him that he was doubled over and quickly running out of breath. Xirena was overwhelmed by all the noise and watching Sunny dart around the room. Xirena spun around to face Axel, her face red and full of previously unseen fervor.

"Axel!" She cried in disbelief and woe, "How could you do that to Sunny?!"

"What?! I didn't know it was there!" He quickly apologized.

She didn't hear much of what he had to say since she had taken off to chase after the rogue pig before Axel's pitiful apology could be heard. Rex, meanwhile, was having his own meltdown. The thought of a pig... a filty, disgusting pig... anywhere near him was enough to trigger a panic attack for him. A chaotic din born from the swine had filled the Gray Area, but Xirena was finally able to nab Sunny and started her attempts to calm her down. Axel bit down hard on his cheek. Too many things to think about.

Xirena held Sunny in her arms like a newborn, tenderly yet firmly to keep her stable. While her eyes were focused on Sunny, Xirena felt her body start whooshing forward out of nowhere. In truth, it wasn't from nowhere, Axel had taken her under his arm and started to whisk her and the pig away as quickly and quietly as he possibly could. The mayhem in the Gray Area was growing further and further away as he ushered the two down to the residential hall. He headed for his room – opening the door so fluidly that it didn't feel like he stopped his advancing even for a second. Once inside, he thrust the girl away – perhaps with unintended extra force in his panic – and slammed the door shut. His head fell against the door, where it lingered while he re-assembled his thoughts. He groaned loudly and reluctantly picked up his head again, giving it a good shake. The spot in his mouth he had bit was sore.

"Woooaa...aah..."

Axel looked over his shoulder and saw Xirena on the floor, legs akimbo and a dizzied look about her. She sat with her arms on the floor behind her, completely supporting her weight. Sunny was in her lap, looking not too happy with Axel. The redhead internally facepalmed and cringed as he recalled a similar situation in Agrabah not that long ago.

"Jeez, I'm sorry!" He apologized, and added in a lower voice "I can't believe I did that again..."

He jogged over to her as he spoke and knelt down in front of her. Sunny hopped off her mother's lap and made herself comfortable a few feet away to watch the exchange between the two. Axel found himself chewing on the inside of his cheek again, right in the same spot as before – it was almost an automatic reaction to anxiety for him at this point. He couldn't exactly go the common route of nail biting since they always had those thick gloves on.

Xirena's head hung slightly, with her chin hovering just above her chest. What compelled Axel to do what he did next was a mystery even to himself. He reached out slowly – Xirena not noticing at all – but in mere seconds, Xirena felt the soft texture of those gloves meet the bare skin of her chin. Axel then tilted her face upwards.

"Are you alright?" He asked as their eyes met.

"Ye..ah... I'm alright." She answered, looking – and sounding – dazed.

Before he could express any sort of relief at all, the sound of an angry snort filled the air. Axel snapped his hand back from Xirena and turned and looked to the blue creature. Sunny's dark eyes met Axel's brilliant green ones, staring the man down in the way an overprotective father would as he met his daughter's first boyfriend. Axel didn't feel threatened by the pig, but still glared back at her with pure, unadulterated disdain.

"I didn't ask you." Axel grumbled through gritted teeth.

Xirena giggled, which guided Axel's attention back to her. The chaotic tension of the previous situation had lifted enough by now, for sure.

"Isn't she cute?!" Xirena exclaimed, her usual energy now restored, "She's my new pet! I'm gonna keep her in my room and take care of her."

"Uhh..." Axel drawled.

A pet...? A PIG no less! A glittery blue pig with a pink flower pattern on it's back... There's no way that something like this would fly with the higher-ups. If Saix ever found out... well, Xigbar would be getting his breakfast wish after all. Axel knew what he had to do, he had to tear down the poor girl's hopes and metaphorically punch her in the face with reality.

But wait...

Just where did this pig even come from...? It suddenly felt like there were so many things to address all at once... The best course of action to Axel was to continue on his first thought.

"Listen, Zee, I'm sure Sunny's a great pig and all buuuuuut" He began, his words slowly fading. He finished his sentence with great fervor, spoken quickly in one short breath, "I don't think it'd the best idea."

Xirena looked back at him with blatant confusion. He was used to this by now, and continued,

"Saix would blow a gasket if he found out you decided to just bring a pet home without any permission. Even if you did ask, I don't think he'd let you keep her anyway."

"...Oh ok." The somber yet puzzled Xirena replied, "I have a question though."

Oh what else is new?

"Alright, lay it on me."

"Who is 'Zee'?"

Now Axel was the one perplexed. He mentally backtracked on what he'd just said, soon realizing that he had spontaneously given her a nickname.

"It's you." He replied after an extended pause, "I kinda shortened your name without thinking I guess... A bit of a nickname, eh?"

"A nickname? Oh, Uncle Xiggy gave me one of those too! He calls me Bubbles."

Axel was positive that the origins of that nickname were less than wholesome, so he decided it was something best to be avoided.

"...I think I'll stick to Zee." He said, "Unless you have a problem with being called Zee."

"I don't!" She exclaimed, "It sounds nice... Right Sunny?"

Sunny looked unimpressed, shrugging her pig shoulders in apathy. Xirena took it as a yes.

"Alright!" Axel cheered, "Zee it is then."

It was such a sweet moment in a cheesy way – all it's missing is a high five and a freeze frame. But alas, branching off into the nickname subject didn't change the fact that they had an unauthorized animal in their company. In the brief moment between topics of conversation, Axel took notice of something he certainly should have noticed already...

They were still sitting on the floor like a pair of dunces. A pair of dunces with a pig!

The red head swiftly stood up, standing straight and stiff, while Xirena on the other hand was taking her sweet time rising back to her feet. Now that they were both back on their feet, Axel decided to move forward with the problematic pet pig panic.

"Zee..." He murmured with heavy lament in his voice.

He prematurely looked away from her. Her face was too emotive, and he knew that the moment he broke her heart the look on her face would be too intolerable. It was almost as if he felt... guilty. He killed that idea before it could even fully form in his head, because for him to be feeling anything at all – especially guilt – was simply impossible. Totally out of the question.

"You gotta get rid of the pig." He finally said, sternly.

It went quiet. Axel casually scratched the back of his head as he looked anywhere but where he needed to be looking. A small sound crept into his ear... a desperate whimper. The faint sound was more than enough to snap his head back where it belonged. He was so used to seeing her cheery all the time that this was totally foreign territory... Cheery or confused, sometimes both at the same time. The tension in the room was as thick as an arctic glacier in the coldest of seasons. Even Sunny was perceptive enough to see that something was wrong, but then again a pig from Wonderland surely is a creature that is whimsically different from your average swine.

Things were about to go nuclear as he saw her take in a deep breath so that she could wail in despair. In an unexpected turn of events, Xirena suddenly dropped back to the floor and sat beside Sunny. She scooped her up and held her close, whispering to her. It looked a lot different from Axel's point of view though... for the hot second before looking down, he feared that she suddenly fainted. This was all within a fraction of a second of course, and the man's eyes traveled down to the heap on the floor also known as Xirena. Axel's big round ears were keen enough to pick up on what she was saying to the pig.

"I'm sorry, I'm so so sorry Sunny..." He heard her say in a tiny voice.

Instead of getting upset with him for ruining her piggy fun, she chose to engage the pig entirely – completely ignoring Axel. Zee spoke to Sunny without pausing at all, he was hearing more apologies and rough explanations about the whole situation. He could have sworn he heard her mention Saix at least once, which both amused and relieved Axel in a way. He felt a wicked sense of satisfaction as he saw that Xirena understood that Saix was a major buzzkill 24/7. At least that would make their lives going forward a bit easier – if she knew enough at this point about Saix to avoid his bad side, life would be smooth sailing. Yet at the same time...

Every word of grief spoken to Sunny pierced through Axel's mind. He knew that he had to keep the peace and not get Saix in a huff, but seeing this poor girl despair over losing her pet was hitting him hard, in a way he never would have expected. Without even noticing the emotional effect it had on him, he grabbed her by the shoulders and quickly pulled Xirena – with Sunny in her arms – up to her feet with wild energy.

"Screw it! The pig stays!"

Xirena's disposition changed just about as fast as Axel's had. She smiled broadly and nuzzled Sunny.

"We're gonna have so much fun~!" Zee celebrated.

"Yeah, yeah don't get too excited now. We need some rules." Axel insisted, speaking in a gentler voice to get her calmed down, also releasing her.

"Oh ok." She obliged and settled down immediately.

"We gotta keep this pig a secret at all costs, at least from Saix and Xemnas. If he finds out we're harboring a rogue pig, we'll be Dusks for a year and a half." He continued, Xirena nodding along with what he was saying, perhaps not fully grasping how much that punishment would suck, "We'll figure it out Zee..." He added with assurance.

He reached out and playfully ruffled up her hair... for some reason that was becoming an odd reflex that he couldn't control. Axel chose to brush it off. It wasn't important right now.

Retracting his hand, Xirena had a look on her face that was almost coquettish. A silence had fallen, Xirena was having trouble finding the right words of gratitude to use. A simple "thank you" would not at all cover just how intensely grateful she was. At this point Axel decided to drive the conversation in a somewhat different direction, leaving the words of gratitude left unspoken.

"So..." He began, "Where did you even find a pi- … I mean, Sunny. Where did you find Sunny?"

"I found her in Wonderland! On a mission with Zexion!" Zee said enthusiastically.

"I should have guessed..." Axel's eyes traveled to Sunny, taking in her abnormal appearance. But enough about the pig! Axel continued to steer the topic away from the pig without straying too far, sounding as natural as he could, "What else happened at work?"

"Oh... Oh! Oh! I did a really good job helping fight the Heartless!" She revealed.

"That's good to hear."

It only then struck him that he and Zee were standing around like a pair of idiots.

"Why don't you go sit down? It sounds like your day was a little exhausting." Axel offered.

Xirena looked around.

"Oh ok. But where do I sit?" She asked.

Axel pointed behind her, where his nice comfy bed was. A look of understanding crossed her face, and Zee shuffled backwards until her legs met the bed, when which she plopped herself down, carelessly not looking at all. She released Sunny to travel as she pleased, choosing to lay down on the bed next to Xirena. Axel wasn't going to sit on the bed though. He thought that'd be a little weird, so instead he grabbed the chair at his desk and dragged it so it was in front of Xirena. Since he was a totally cool and not a lame dude, he flipped the chair around and sat on it backwards.

"Anything else happen?" Axel asked as he laid his arms and head on the top of the chair's back side.

"Well..." Xirena began softly, "After we got rid of the Heartless, I was looking around at all the pretty flowers... I found these ones called Starlight Roses that were blue and had a white star pattern on the petals. They sparkle under the stars!"

Axel threw back his head and let out a loud laugh – a single, powerful "HAH!" – and Zee didn't understand why. She tilted her head to the side like a puppy, waiting for him to explain.

"Man, I've been to Wonderland a million times and I've never seen flowers like you're talking about. You trying to play a trick on me?" He said, lacing his words with playful malice.

Zee straightened out again, looking distressed.

"N-No! I'm not trying to trick you! They're real, I swear... Zexion will tell you! He was right there with me looking at them..."

"Hmm I'll believe it when I see it for myself." Axel replied, his playful tone still remaining.

Xirena's expression fell into a frown. If what Zexion said about everything changing was true, then the next time either she or Axel were in Wonderland they might not even be there anymore. Then there'd be no way to prove that she was right about these flowers – continuing to dwell was only making Xirena more and more distressed.

"Hey."

A pat on the head knocked all the distress out of it. Axel's long, gangly arms were able to reach her – good thing too, that head pat seemed to be just what she needed.

"I'm just messing with ya, Zee." Axel assured her.

"Oh ok..."

A silence fell, as well as Axel's arm – down to his side. A wave of delayed exhaustion overtook Xirena – the hype about Sunny kept her all manic-like until now. With a heavy exhale, she released her body and limply fell backwards onto the cushy bed. With eyes barely open, she could just barely see out the window on the wall against the bed. It was a hard angle, but she could still make it out. As she stared out of it, she recalled what Zexion had said... their sky was indeed empty. Axel stared with eyes narrowed with a hint of concern, not really sure if she was alright. Only one way to find out...

"You okay over there...?" He said as if walking on eggshells.

"We don't have any stars here." Xirena quietly replied, "I was hoping to see them, but I guess that won't happen now."

Axel craned his neck to try and get a look at her face, as she was still lying down. She looked melancholy, as well as tired. Axel had to do something. He fluidly and quickly rose from his seat and walked in front of Xirena, leaning over her. Given his size he didn't need to bend far to make eye contact with her. Zee's eyes traveled from the dark window to Axel's vibrant green eyes when she felt his presence.

"How bout this..." He began, "I'll show you a sky full of stars – the best view there is out there, I promise I'll find it. "

Zee sat up and Axel stepped back, and she had that look on her face again. That look that always preceded a question about something that was just said or done.

"What's 'promise?'" Xirena asked with no prompting.

"A promise? Uh well..." Axel scratched his head, trying to find the simplest breakdown for her, "It means that no matter what, I'm gonna make it happen."

A smile graced Xirena's weary face.

"Really?" She asked.

"Really."

A pink hue crept onto Xirena's porcelain cheeks, partnered with the goofy smile. She didn't really notice – and honestly, he really didn't either – but Axel stared at her reddened face with admiration. This was all too soon interrupted though, when Xirena yawned widely. A tiny, high pitched noise accompanied her gaping yawn right before her jaw snapped shut again.

"I think I better get going..." She said tiredly.

"Yeah, you look beat." Axel affirmed

Xirena slowly rose to her feet and picked up Sunny. Zee went ahead and placed the blue pig on her shoulder, cradled by her hood. The eyes of the two Nobodies met once more, and perhaps for the last time that night.

"Hm... I don't know if I can go and have Zexion read to me now..." She said, to herself really, analyzing how tired she was versus story time.

"Zexion's reading to you? He never read anything for me!" Axel said with an immense amount of facetiousness.

"Oh... I'll tell him you said that!" Xirena responded with the utmost concern, "I'm sure he will if you just ask him."

"N-No Zee, don't do that." Axel insisted.

"Oh ok." She replied swiftly. A small puff of air blowing her hair accompanied by a grunt told her that Sunny was trying to get her attention, "Oh, right! Bed time for you, Sunny. Say good-night to Axel!"

Sunny stared blankly at Axel and let out a low and quiet grunt.

"You... too?" Axel replied uncertainly.

The pigs blank stare was now infused with a look of 'you ain't shit, son.' The affection – or even just the approval at the very least – of this pig must be earned is what Axel took away from this.

"Well, nighty night!" Zee chimed in, filling the silence.

When she turned to walk away it was swift and graceful as it usually was – always light on her feet that Xirena was. Axel was so busy thinking about why the pig didn't like him that his reaction to Zee was far more delayed than it should have been, far more sudden.

"Xirena!" He called out.

Xirena half turned and looked back at Axel with heightened curiosity. It was his intention going into this to just be a decent guy and say good night back to her, but his mind dumped this mathematical equation back onto him that he couldn't shake: PIG + SAIX = VERY BAD = PUNISHMENT – HAPPINESS → SAIX = UNHAPPINESS... This eternal fear lead him to impulsively make another declaration, but a declaration not quite as grand as showing the gal a sky full of stars... but a declaration all the same! He summoned the most charisma – that was buried in a sea of stress – he could so that he would sound confident and non-beta.

"If anyone ever gives you any trouble, you can come to me and I'll cover you." He added.

Xirena's face lit up.

"Oh wow, no-one's ever 'covered me' before... whatever that means... but thank you!" She said gleefully.

"Well, isn't that what friends are for?"

These words just sort of fell out of his skull, riding on the oomph of being confident in his previous statement. He hadn't quite called her a 'friend' yet, or put too much thought into it at all. They were coworkers first, and social creatures second. Yet he knew the best thing to do was to stay strong in those words, it just felt wrong to say anything otherwise at this point.

"Hmm, I guess you're right." She replied, giggling quietly – almost totally inaudibly, "Now Rex isn't my only friend!"

And with that, Xirena resumed her personal mission to put her pet to bed and possibly go have story time with the resident literary nerd. Her form disappeared behind his door, heading to her own room directly across the hall. Boy did Axel feel like a cool guy now. He crossed his arms loosely, and chuckled arrogantly.

"Axel, you smooth operator..." He said, literally to himself. He sounded like he was about to congratulate himself on being very cool.

But what all had happened was starting to sink in, the events replaying is his mind. One in particular stood out now... promising to show her the stars, but not just that, show her the best view there was. His eyes went wide. Where exactly would the best starry sky be?! His arms dropped back down and he sighed as his confidence slowly evaporated. Now he'd have to take mental notes on every world he went to, to see where the best view truly was.

But wait a minute... why take this so seriously to begin with? Surely it wouldn't make a difference to her, yet still...