A/N: Ah! Please don't kill me! – hides – I know it's been awhile, but this chapter was really hard to put together… I'm sorry guys. I promise it won't happen again… :-(
So…
Did I ever tell you how much I LOVE you guys? Thank you SO much for reviewing – it really means a lot! XD
I think you guys will like this one – well, I hope anyways ;-) And since it's been so long, this chapter is another mammoth one, I think hitting up to 30 pages. I want to wrap up these cities – Sandsea and Tortuga – in this chapter, so bear with me. Enjoy!
NOTE: LiD's and Whiplash's time frames are NOT happening simultaneously. Roxas wakes up in the morning; Sora wakes up in the afternoon, in the same day. I know, a bit confusing, but again, bear with me guys. XD
Summary: AU: Riku's band has the chance of a lifetime--they've finally made it to the Nationals. Between a wild road trip to the finals, band bonding and heated rivalry, which band will rise above the rest for a shot at fame? Sokai, Namiku, AkuRoku. Rated for strong language and suggestive themes.
Disclaimer: Everything belongs to Square and Disney… damn them…
LiD: Rise and Crescendo
Chapter Eight: "The Morning After"
Everything pulsed around him. He felt light, lying, floating in the middle of nowhere. Ugh… The pounding in his head had retreated to a dull ache.
"… Long has… been?"
"… Be okay?"
A veil of black curtained around, muffling the voices. When he strained to hear the voices, it only made everything hurt that much worse. He tried to squeeze his eyes shut in pain, but how would he know? He couldn't even feel himself.
Empty.
"Rik…where'd… go?"
"… Gone… just left to get…"
He tried to move his head, and he was vaguely aware that something shifted beneath him. Legs. He was resting in someone's lap, that much he knew. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he realized he didn't have to guess to know whose it was.
"…'ll be okay…promise…"
Everything still pulsed, a wave passing through him. Where… am I?
"Sora?"
He heard no more.
LiD
Brilliant light tickled Roxas face, violating the darkness that he currently been resting in. Roxas squeezed his eyes shut – nope, no good. His head started to pound, and his entire body screamed in protest. For a second, he tried to sit up – immediately his neck cried out in pain at the heaviness of Roxas head. Okay, okay; he'd lie down.
Using his other senses… okay, Roxas knew he was on something soft. Fluffy. Pillow! Pillow under his head… bed! Roxas was lying on a bed. His brain pounded for a moment at the thought, a rush of blood swirling up to compensate. Shit… okay… bed… that was kind of rough against his skin. All his skin. Okay, Roxas was naked. Wait – naked? What the… Roxas let out a low moan, forcing his eyes open.
Yup. Naked on a bed, blanket coming up to his chest however. Room? Bleh… squinting, he could make out it was a nice room. Really nice. Like, hotel-nice. How did he… where had he… the curtains were billowing from the breeze outside, kinda like a flag… ah! Ship! Pirates! Right… Roxas had been at the Black Pearl… then…
Roxas groaned at the thought process. Tasting liquor and plaque against his teeth, Roxas grimaced and threw a hand over his eyes. He hated mornings like these: confused, painful and hazy. Aloud, he groaned, "What did I do?"
"Me, silly," a voice giggled nearby. Roxas shot up in the bed, and quickly paid the price of a swirling stomach, rush of blood to the head and overall pounding. Dammit! This always seemed to happen when he got utterly smashed at parties – waking up next to some stranger – and worry was always the first emotion to settle in once the pain soothed out.
"Who – ?" In front of him, was a young woman who looked his age, maybe a bit older, who was generally pretty, if she hadn't coated so much damn make-up on. She was already dressed, and sitting on the edge of the bed, holding out a coffee for him. Roxas accepted the drink, against his better judgements – but he did hate mornings, they were always cold. She got up, and started throwing clothes in a suitcase.
"Not important," the woman said – on closer inspection, Roxas could see she was at least Axel's age or something. Probably a bit older… twenty-ish, maybe? What was she doing with him? Then again, she probably thought he was legal too… at the party… gah.
His head was pounding again at memories. So he'd slept with a chick a few years older… no biggie… wait… ignoring her comment, he looked up at her.
"Are you…" Roxas struggled for the words as he sipped his bland coffee – kinda wishing it was hot chocolate. Was she… sick? HIV-positive? Pregnant? "… all right?"
Sick, he could take care of. HIV, he was screwed. Pregnant? Dammit, Roxas didn't want to be a teen dad, and he didn't have the heart to just walk out on the girl… so… crap! He'd end up having to marry some bitchy girl he didn't even like, then they'd have a dysfunctional, shitty family where Roxas became some loser always drunk off his ass… and… and…
"I'm fine; don't worry," she giggled again as she cleaned her items off the dresser. "I made sure we were safe." Putting the coffee on the bedside table, Roxas sighed in relief and fell back in the bed. Ow, okay; not smart. Even fluffy pillows made his hung-over head pound. He heard her voice again, "I've paid for the room till about noon, so you have until then to get yourself together."
"Where… where are you going?" Roxas frowned a bit, eyes closed. The whole get-laid-and-go thing was always a bit… rude to him. Every time this happened, he found himself struggling for the perfect words to eliminate any awkwardness. She distracted him by laughing as she fixed her chestnut hair into a quick ponytail,
"I gotta get to the airport – my parents, friends and fiancé are all waiting for me back home. This was a little me-time vacation." She must have noticed the stricken look at the word fiancé on Roxas' face, because she snickered, "Oh, don't be like that. He isn't nearly as good as you were – but he's got money, so I'm happy."
So do I, was Roxas' initial response. After a quick mental slap, Roxas realized with loathing the arrogance of that thought. Stupefied and completely speechless, he thought, money? Fiancé? I friggin'… helped a gold-digger cheat? Eh? Does that make me an asshole? Yes, a voice responded in his head.
The girl, who a moment ago had seemed so sweet, swept over to him. Planting a brief kiss on his stiff lips, she said, smirking, "You're not the only one. Just keep it to yourself, okay? Everything was awesome; don't worry." She ruffled his blonde hair, and Roxas nodded absently, too disgusted with her – with himself, dammit, to say anything.
The door clicked shut, and she was gone, leaving Roxas with wrinkled sheets and muddled memories of sin. It wasn't until she left that he realized, I don't even know her name. Roxas was convinced; he was most definitely a cheating, rowdy, uncivilized, horrible asshole.
Quickly, he got up to shower. Maybe that'd wash something away.
Minutes later, he was running a brush over his teeth. Roxas glared at his reflection (noticing all sort of rather intense love marks the woman had left on him), wearing only the hotel towel around his hips.
Gold-diggers, was the only word that was running predominantly through his head. Guilt and dirt seemed to cling to him, and no matter how hard he had scrubbed in the shower, Roxas couldn't shake it off; couldn't sober up. It wasn't so much as the screwing part that got him… she cheated. Adultery. Hell, why was Roxas doing this in the first place? Why couldn't – when had he… argh! His head started to pound, protesting any thought. At least, Roxas told himself with a grimace, I'm not leaning over the toilet bowl right now.
Any compliments she'd thrown his way, any pleasure he'd derived from the night was seriously tormenting him now. Gah. Gold-diggers. Roxas… Roxas didn't like to flaunt it, but his family was more than just loaded. They were… well, upper-class barely did them justice. And they say karma's a bitch, so… what if Roxas ended up with some… some sleazy, money-hungry, demanding wife in the future, who slept around with other guys behind his back? Wouldn't that suck ass? Why the frig' couldn't he keep a handle on… it… everything… ? Forget it.
Moody, Roxas stepped into the main room, cursing at the draft from the open window. Storming over, he slammed it shut – in only his towel, so he hoped no one was staring too much – and leaned on the sill, looking for his clothes. Shit. Okay… hoodie? Um… right by the door. T-shirt? Hanging off the dresser mirror. Pants? Crap… pants… okay, crumpled up at the foot of the bed. Boxers? Right – beside the bed, and looking like they were in no condition to wear.
Awww shit. He refused to wear pants with no boxers like some sicko – you are a sicko, loser (shut up)– so groping through his pants, he pulled out his cell phone.
Against his better judgement, he speed-dialled the first number that came to mind. After a few rings, a groggy, grumpy voice answered,
"Whaddya wan'?" A yawn.
"Axel?" Roxas asked anxiously. He almost heard his friend perk up on the other side. "Uhh… look, I'm staying at (he glanced at the emblem on his towel) The Empress Hotel… no, I don't know the address, you look it up – and yeah, I kinda need you to come pick me up. And, uh, bring clothes, please." Roxas winced, expecting the worst response and –
"Oh?" Axel teased, sounding much more awake now. Figures. "What did you do to your old clothes?"
"Nothing!" Roxas blurted hastily. He quickly cursed his response, realizing exactly where that would lead. And as expected, he heard,
"… heh. Would that be the current, ah, state of affairs, too?"
"No! Uh… I mean… towel! I… er… just get over here, dumbass!"
Axel snickered on the other end, and with a promise and good-bye, he hung up. Roxas cursed his phone, and moved to collect his old clothes. The boxers, however, he
trashed in the bin next to the mirror – which Roxas refused to look into. His face was burning up as it was.
LiD
The sun's gentle rays tugged at his eyes, and they fluttered open. He shifted slightly, while his vision adjusted to the light. He could feel his limbs responding, though his muscles felt stiff. Huh.
He turned his head slightly; ignoring the pain of moving his neck muscles, and saw Tidus sitting at a table, his head bowed as he studied what looked like a map before him.
Licking his dry lips, Sora managed to call out in a hoarse voice,
"Tidus?" The said blond's head shot up.
"Sora!" he cried, quickly getting up from the table. Making his way towards his bedside, he asked, "How ya feelin'?"
Sora shifted, and tried to sit up, but a wave of light-headedness quickly brought him back down.
"Whoa, easy there little man. Don't hurt yourself," Tidus said, a slight grin in place. He turned around, and shouted, "Hey, Rik! Come here – Sora's up!" There was a pause before a silver head suddenly poked through the doorway, a phone to his ear. He locked eyes with Sora briefly, before nodding at them, and disappearing again.
Sora swallowed, just knowing that Riku was not going to let this go; there'd be a lecture, if not now, then definitely later – he was sure of it.
Sora groaned. He really wanted, no, needed to sit up, so Tidus anchored him, settling him against the headboard. Sora asked, "Ugh, what happened? What time is it?"
"It's been almost a day since you last passed out. It's around after noon," Tidus replied, just as Riku walked into the room. Sora caught the relief in his eyes, despite the nonchalant expression. He strode over, and sat down on the edge of Sora's bed.
"Hey – feeling any better?" Riku asked, quietly. Sora shrugged, muscles slightly aching with the movement.
"I guess. What happened, anyways? How'd I get here?"
"Well," Tidus began, sitting on Sora's other side, "apparently you ate something bad, and you got food poisoning. You were stuck in the bathroom last night, throwing up for like an hour or something."
"Food poisoning? What was it?"
"Uncooked, or maybe, infected seafood. It's not very common here," Riku picked up. Ah, Sora realized. That's what that nasty, squishy, onion-like stuff was. He shuddered. "Me and Kairi went back afterwards, and checked it out," he added, narrowing his eyes at the floor. Sora winced internally.
"Did you… say anything to the guy?" Sora asked, eyeing Riku's side. Tidus laughed out loud, and smacked Riku's shoulder.
"Of course, he did. When does Riku ever pass up the opportunity to scold?" Sora narrowed his eyes at Riku.
"It wasn't his fault." Riku shrugged.
"Whatever."
Sora rolled his eyes in exasperation, after exchanging a glance with Tidus. The blond drummer only smirked and shook his hair.
"Kairi called us as soon as she could," Tidus continued, "and it took us a while to figure out where you were. She said some girl and her friend helped you out, but she didn't mention her name. And she wasn't there when we arrived… she was a good help, though."
"Oh." That's too bad, Sora thought. He would've liked to thank this stranger… maybe she was still around somewhere? Kairi would point her out to him…Hmm. Something stirred in his stomach, and it wasn't nausea. He looked around before asking, "Where is Kairi? And Naminé?"
Tidus shrugged. "Around. Downstairs, I think. We should call them up –"
"And have Kairi start bawling again?" Riku retorted, rolling his eyes. "I think their reunion can wait."
Sora widened his eyes. "What? What are you talking about?"
"She's been blaming herself," Riku replied simply. "She thinks it's her fault that you're here, and –"
"But it's not!" Sora protested. "It's really not! She didn't know any better than I did – we thought it was…well, fun –"
Tidus sighed. "Dude, we know. We've only been trying to tell her that ever since. Naminé's been doing the best she can, you know?"
"Is that where they are now? Kairi doesn't want to see me?" Sora could feel his chest getting heavy with the weight of his heart.
"Nah. I think Kairi's kind of gotten over it. Naminé did a good job. But you should still talk to her – let her know everything's okay, you know?"
"Yeah, please," Riku added, "I can't take it anymore. I don't how many times we've gone after her, or how many times I've tried talking to her… you, next to Naminé, has the best shot at consoling her."
Sora nodded. Hmm… he wondered how Kairi was feeling now…
"So…what now?" Sora asked. "Can I leave the bed? Can – oh crap!" Sora widened his eyes, and he looked from Riku to Tidus. "We're not going to be late for Finals, are we? Dammit… I screwed up, didn't I? Aw…" He slumped his shoulders. He'd been so carried away in these surroundings that he forgot to keep himself in check for Finals. It was only supposed to have been a one-day stop… but now it was two.
"Ah, forget about it," Tidus said brightly. "Me and Riku figured out a way to get us there. We'll have to give up a pit-stop, but oh well. We'll make it; don't worry."
Sora wasn't convinced – he glanced at Riku. Riku only sighed, glancing back at Sora. "T's right. We'll be fine, don't worry about it – it's not like we couldn't anticipate this kind of stuff, right? It was going to happen."
Sora still couldn't help the guilt in his stomach, though. If only he hadn't… if only he'd been more careful…
"Sora!" a voice screeched from the doorway. Sora blinked; a tuft of auburn hair bounded into his vision. His bed suddenly jumped; he would've been tackled too, had Riku's arm not shot out and held Kairi back.
"Sora!" she cried again, fidgeting around Riku's shoulder. "You're okay! I was so worried – "
"Kairi," Riku interrupted. "Calm down. Let him rest." She quieted down, and Riku carefully let go of her. "Be good," he said to her, smirking. Sora couldn't help but grin, and he nudged her with his leg.
"Miss me much?" he teased. Kairi glared at him but it was offset by her soft smile. He looked past her; it was then that he noticed Naminé. She smiled and walked over, holding a tray.
"Think you can hold something down?" she asked, setting the tray down on the nightstand beside him. Tidus grinned widely.
"And look at this – you've had your own personal nurse for the past day. She's the one who knew what to do," he said, easing a glance towards her. Naminé flushed.
"I-it's nothing. Really," she said, ducking her head. "I just had a friend who went through the same thing at the Academy." Her blue eyes focused on Sora briefly, before going back to the tray. "You're lucky, you know? At least you're not stuck in a hospital coughing up blood because of some infection."
Sora held his stomach, and though he was not nauseous, the thought of what she just said made him so. Kairi had drawn up her knees over Sora's legs, and she watched him carefully.
"You really okay?" Sora nodded.
"Yeah. I just kinda wish I hadn't fallen sick, you know? I missed so much." Kairi bit her lip.
"I'm sorry," she whispered. He glanced up, and she looked away. "It's… I should've…" Sora barely caught the quick exchange of glances between the three.
"It's not your fault," Sora heard himself say. He wasn't even thinking it – he just knew he had to say it. Kairi looked back at him, surprised.
"You heard me – and you've heard everyone else too, I know. Stop blaming yourself, Kai. I don't blame you," he added softly. He could see that Riku and Tidus were fidgeting, clearly not wanting to be here. But Sora didn't care. He needed to say this now; he needed to get it off his chest. Naminé was only watching Kairi with knitted brows and frown.
Kairi looked away. She was still sitting with her knees drawn up over Sora's legs, but she now rested her head on her knees. Her loose bangs were covering her profile, so he couldn't see what she was thinking. Sora nudged her with his leg, but she didn't respond.
"Kai…" he whined. "Come on… don't be like that. Guys?" He looked around at the others for help.
"Kairi…" Tidus started, running a hand through his hair. "Come on. We've already been through this."
She shot her head up. "You don't get it, do you? This is my fault. Other groups have already passed through here, didn't you know? They're already at Twilight City. We're behind!"
"Argh, Kairi!" Riku spoke up, irritated. "This isn't your fault – not alone, anyways! This is as much as Sora's fault as it is yours, for crying out loud."
"Or," Naminé said, finally, giving both Riku and Tidus a frown, "it's no one's fault. Accidents and mistakes happen, all right? We'll be a little late, but you guys will still arrive in time for the competition. It'll work out."
"Naminé's right," Sora said, eyeing Kairi carefully. "We'll make it work. And besides, if there's going to be any fault, then it's both of ours, okay? We're in it together."
Kairi sighed in defeat. "Fine," she muttered, but Sora only nudged her harder. "Okay, I get it," she added. "It's not my fault. Got it."
Ah, it'll have to do, Sora thought. He'd talk to her alone about it later, but for now, this was enough.
"So," Naminé said, and Sora looked towards her. "Uh, you think you can drink this?" she asked, holding a cup out to him. A sudden foreboding arose inside his gut. He looked in the cup, and saw a translucent olive-green liquid. Sora blinked.
Ah, crap.
"Ew, no!" he groaned loudly. They all turned to look at him; even Kairi had raised her head from her knees to peer at Sora. Ugh… he hated liquid medicine! It was horrible and disgusting and just outright made his tongue squirm at the assortment of nasty flavours, he thought, as he stared into the unfathomable liquid.
Why was Naminé giving him liquid – what happened to pills? He had been more than ecstatic to learn when he'd come of age to take them – hell, he had been ready to drain all the medicine from the cabinet, a few years back. Sora recalled the many times when his mom (and Riku, if he was there) had to corner him to drink the nasty stuff, the worst being when he had hidden on a shelf in a closet for two hours… crap, were they pissed off.
"Well?"
Damn – and Riku was sitting right there. Between his mom and Riku, he didn't know who was worse.
"You don't need any… help, do you?" Riku said, turning halfway to quirk an eyebrow at him. His face was nonchalant, but his aqua eyes were piercing. Sora swallowed.
Riku. It was definitely Riku.
"Um… can't this wait, until… you know, later?" Sora asked, in a rather high voice.
"Sora…"
"Oh, Sor, just take it," Kairi piped up. She leaned back on her hands, and watched him, a glint of amusement in her eyes, after having thrown a wary glance at Riku. "Oh!" She exchanged a look with Naminé. Naminé blinked, before nodding in understanding.
"What?" Sora asked, interest piqued. Naminé smiled wide, and she leaned forward.
"Me and Kai have a surprise for you," – Sora's eyes widened at this – "but we're not saying a word until you finish your cup!" Naminé teased, holding a finger to her lips.
"Aww… not fair! What is it? Come on, tell me! I'm sick, be nice!" Tidus snorted, as Naminé shook her head. Even Riku looked amused, despite the roll of his eyes. But they didn't say anything – they all watched Sora instead. He sighed, raising the cup to his lips. This better be worth it…
"Ack! It's so bitter!" he gagged, after taking a swallow.
Naminé laughed softly. "It's herbal – what did you expect? Cotton candy?" Everyone was still looking at him, so Sora only made a face, and he pinched his nose, drinking what he could. When he'd finished, she took the cup from him, and her smile grew wider. Sora perked up.
"Well? So, what is it?"
Naminé's eyes twinkled. "Well… me and Kairi found out earlier this morning that there's a street festival going on tonight. I don't know what it's called, couldn't quite catch the phrase, but it's something that happens to celebrate the start of a new season. Everyone'll be there – the streets are going to be packed with people!"
"Awesome! Can I go? Can I, huh?" Sora cried, looking around. His eyes rested on Riku. "Well? Please?" Riku looked over at him, his long, silver bangs covering his eyes, but Sora caught the small curve of his lips.
"YES!" Sora cheered, throwing off the covers. But Riku called out sternly,
"Hang on a sec. You can only go if you're feeling well – "
" – I'm feeling fine," Sora quipped, sliding forwards –
" – And you won't throw up – "
" – Of course not – " Sora made his way to stand up –
"And –"
"I know! –" but Riku suddenly threw an arm around his neck in a tight headlock against his chest.
"Hey!"
"And… you'll be careful, got it?" his tone softer. "I still intend to kick your ass for this."
Sora tried to struggle out of the headlock, but he suddenly watched as Tidus leaned over and noogied him on the head. "Hey, save some for me," he laughed, "It wasn't easy carrying him up a flight of stairs, the friggin' rock."
Riku let go, and Sora stood up carefully. He didn't feel dizzy, nor did he feel the need to throw up – two good signs – but he still felt kind of shaky. He could only hope that the tea he drank would stay in.
"So when's the party start?"
Naminé clasped her hands behind her. "In a few hours. The vendors are going to close their shops early for it, and people are starting to decorate. There's going to be plenty of food available…" she said, warily.
"… Of which, you will not be touching, of course," Riku finished, eyeing Sora. Sora slumped his shoulders.
"Aw man…"
"Hey man, we re-routed the trip, just so you could enjoy this festival. Be grateful," Tidus half-scolded, half-smirked.
"This is going to be awesome!" he cheered, fisting the air. His smile wide, he added, "Thanks guys."
"Yeah, yeah," Riku said, getting up from the bed. The others, too, started to scatter out of the room. Tidus, though as he watched, went over to dig through the bags, coming up with a towel and handful of clothes. "Heads up, dork." He threw the pile at Sora.
"Hey!"
Tidus smirked. "Go take a bath, smelly – you've been wearing the same clothes since yesterday."
Sora made a face, and pulling of his shirt as he headed towards the bathroom, he chucked it onto Tidus' head.
"Smell that, bonehead," he said irritably, his lips quivering at Tidus throwing the shirt aside in laughter, before shutting the bathroom door closed.
LiD
Axel practically sprang into the hotel elevator (much to the alarm of fellow hotel guests, that is), a duffel bag with Roxas' stuff over his arm. Heh, poor flustered Roxas with only a towel on – figures. Roxas could randomly sleep with some chick from a party, but when his best friend gets a little too suggestive? Stutters up like a school-girl.
Not that Axel minded. Axel liked school-girls, with those damn kinky uniforms.
Axel stepped out of the elevator, passing some blonde-haired girl in a prepped up outfit. Too preoccupied with not-quite-proper thoughts, Axel bounded down the hall. As he approached the room number – 124 – Axel couldn't resist a smirk when he knocked. And, as expected, Roxas answered the door tentatively, garbed in nothing but – gasp! A towel hugging his thin hips. His friend was pink in the face, but was determinedly looking Axel right in the eye. Damn – Roxas was smarter then he looked; by holding Axel's gaze with his gorgeous azure orbs, he was distracting Axel's eyes from wandering. Stupid Roxas.
"Hey, buddy," Axel said, chucking the bag at Roxas as he stepped inside. Damn – the hotel room was pretty nice place; better than Jack's boathouse. Then again, it was probably still crap compared to the gi-normous place Roxas lived in.
"Hey," Roxas managed back, hastily putting the bag on the bed and rummaging through his clothes. Not watching Axel, Roxas said, "I – uh – thanks, you know. I know I kinda ditched you guys at the party, but I mean…"
"No worries!" Axel proclaimed, sitting down on the vanity chair by the dresser, feet resting on top of said surface. "It was your birthday – you were supposed to enjoy yourself!" Didn't have to go so overboard, though, Axel added sulkily in his head. Axel cursed the voice into shutting-up though.
Roxas grinned gratefully at his friend – washing away any bitterness Axel had felt from last night – and left to go change in the washroom, to Axel's mild dismay. He didn't mind having almost-naked Roxas around, even if Axel didn't have the heart (or the guts, a voice hissed in his mind) to actually come on to the poor kid. Roxas look embarrassed as it was.
Axel smirked slightly at his paranoid, moody, touchy, adorable, kind-hearted, loyal, fierce, independent… gah. There he went again, with the obsessive-ness. All the same… Axel let out a sigh, tipping the chair back.
Soon enough, Roxas had changed, and they had locked up the room and were walking down the hallway. Roxas had abandoned the hoodie – simply amazing, though Axel knew better than to say it – and was wearing an extremely baggy red t-shirt with some famous skater's logo on it (pffft, Roxas always dug that skating shit, and as lame as Axel found it, he put up with the sport for the blond's sake). Along with that, he was wearing denim blue jeans, and stuck his navy blue baseball cap somehow over his messy blond hair.
They were almost at the end of the hall when –
"Get back!" Roxas hissed as he grabbed Axel's arm. Axel scowled, rubbing his neck and prepared to growl something when he saw almost fear flickering in Roxas' eyes as the blond stared ahead. Following his gaze, Axel started – wait… that wasn't…
… Larxene?
Axel fists clenched, but took Roxas' lead and didn't say anything to the step-sister's back. Wait… hadn't he just passed her? Why hadn't he caught it then, dammit? Pushing the thoughts from his mind though, Axel resisted the urge to grab Roxas' hand. They were standing a ways back, and she hadn't even glanced around her as she'd stepped out of the hotel room and headed downstairs. After she left, Roxas let out a breath beside him – Axel felt a sweep of anger coming through him, knowing full well of Larxene's treatment of her year-younger step-brother.
"What's she doing here?" Axel hissed as he began to walk forwards again. Roxas, still biting his lip, said,
"I dunno. She said something to Dad and Mya about going away for the summer… but why the hell's she in this friggin' city?" Axel nodded absently – Larxene brought a whole new level to the term bitch, and a rowdy city like this was not anything a priss like her would hang out in. Axel actually remembered thinking she was attractive when they'd first met – however, Larxene had proved that wrong rather quickly.
Narrowing his eyes, Axel grabbed Roxas' wrist and dragged him to the room she'd just come out of. Perfect – she'd been in a hurry, and hadn't locked it up. That could mean she'd be coming back soon, as well. Roxas eyes widened, and he asked nervously,
"Wh-what are we doing?"
"Finding out why the hell she's here."
"No – Axel, just leave it, you don't know her – just – just give her space, and… and…"
Hearing his close friend stumble up on his words at the thought of what Larxene would do if she found out was all Axel needed. He shoved open the door and slipped inside, dragging a grudging Roxas with him.
Nothing special in the room – clothes, clothes, hair supplies, more clothes… the girl, for such a prepped up drama-queen, was rather messy. Roxas, on the other hand, was currently standing very uneasily by the door, ready to go.
Pure distaste was splattered on his face, and Axel was about to say something to his friend when he heard footsteps coming up the stairs. That, and a high-pitched shriek of laughter accompanied by a male voice. Shit.
What the hell? Larxene was about to enter, they couldn't get past her through the door, they couldn't… grabbing Roxas, they dove headfirst into the closet.
LiD
"Here – like this."
Riku watched, as one of the local musicians – Neem, his name was – strum his guitar, plucking quickly at the strings as his hand ran down the fingerboard. "See?" he said.
Riku, who was sitting right beside Neem on a stool, his feet resting comfortably on its bars, placed his fingers in imitation on the fingerboard. He had borrowed an acoustic guitar from one of the local musicians, considering his own was still packed away, when the group had seen him watching with interest. He'd never heard music like this before, and he'd wanted to give it a try. Maybe even incorporate it into LiD's music.
Riku began strumming his guitar; he picked up most of the notes rather easily. However, Riku thought with annoyance, there was always that place where his fingers fumbled over the strings, or the note that sounded either too high or too flat.
Like now.
"Dammit," he cursed under his breath, plucking the strings rather harshly.
Neem laughed lightly.
"Be patient! Don't rush – yet," he said, with a twinkle in his eye. Riku only set his jaw firmly, and nodded at Neem to show him again. Shaking his head, Neem started once again from the top, and Riku, bowing his head, concentrated on watching the pattern of Neem's fingers.
He was going to make this sound right, dammit, he thought, replacing his fingers back on the board. Riku once again picked up the piece, learning to play it in parts, as Neem finished. He closed his eyes, trying to hear the notes in his mind, setting the beat.
Riku started slowly, and as the notes he'd just heard moments ago flowed into his fingers, he gradually began to pick up the pace.
"Hey, there you go! Now you got it!"
He was strumming the guitar avidly; fingers dancing over the fingerboard, as his music memory relayed the notes. The tune was lively, and reverberated through the air. Neem, excited at seeing Riku catch on, began to harmonize with him, and before he knew it, a spontaneous session broke out. He could hear the addition of percussion from behind him, and another acoustic guitar. Yes. Riku was smiling now; he'd finally caught on.
"You did it!"
Riku started, almost choking on air, as he heard someone clap delightedly. He glanced up from his playing, and his eyes met a pair of crystal blue ones, imploring back at him.
Naminé.
His stomach did a little roll, as she smiled brightly at him and clapped her hands once in delight.
She'd been watching him? The entire time?
He could feel his face tingle, but he fought down the colour that was trying to gather on his face. He was playing, dammit. He avoided her eyes. He couldn't afford to look stupid, or embarrassed.
He continued playing, accompanied by Neem, and from the corner of his eye, he could see the small crowd that had gathered around her. And for the first time, he noticed they were clapping along to the beat of the music. Something stirred in his stomach, and whatever it was, it coursed through him.
Don't be stupid, Riku. Since when did crowds make him nervous? Since a particular blonde had joined the mass. Shit.
"Riku!" he heard Neem hiss. Riku accidentally fumbled a note, but recovered quickly – he could only hope no one else caught that. He saw Neem quirk an eyebrow. Riku only shook his head, allowing his long bangs to hide his eyes.
Riku and Neem wound down the song, and the once lively beat, slowing down. Neem finished his harmony quietly, leaving Riku to play out the last few notes, plucking the strings successively in a finish.
The small crowd burst out clapping, and this time, Riku couldn't hold down the blush. He grinned all the same, as he looked up, and noticed Neem too was smiling widely.
"That was great!"
"Way to go!"
Other fellow musicians surrounded him, and Riku returned the guitar, thanking the man. Neem patted his shoulder.
"Thanks," Riku said, turning around, and offering his hand. Neem grabbed it enthusiastically.
"No – thank you! That was brilliant!" Neem laughed heartedly, adding, "Best of luck with the competition – maybe we'll see you there?" Riku smiled and nodded, not really paying attention anymore. He'd noticed instead that Naminé had disappeared.
"For sure," he said, his gaze roaming over the small crowd. He quickly looked back at Neem. "I'll see you around then?" Neem smiled and nodded, watching as Riku started to weave around. Dammit! Why did he look away? Gah – stupid! He wondered she disappeared though.
Riku watched as an entertainer abruptly blew out fire from his mouth, and Riku raised his arm, shielding him from the sudden light.
It was then that he noticed her.
She stood a little off to the side, among another crowd gathered around, watching the magicians do their tricks. Naminé had her arms loosely wrapped around herself, her gaze lost in the show before her, not really watching it.
Riku sighed. He had a strong suspicion that this had something to do with him. Why, he couldn't say. He went over, weaving his way through, until he stood behind her. He tapped her on the shoulder.
She started; her head whipped around, and when her eyes met his, she looked away. What…?
"Naminé?"
She just turned her head, enough to catch her small smile. "You were really good," she said, softly. Her blue eyes sparkled from the lanterns lit all around them.
Riku furrowed his brows. "Why'd you leave?"
He didn't mistake the reddening of her cheeks. "Um… I thought… you didn't want me… there, or something. I… cheered, and you looked away. I…" she shrugged.
Riku winced – you are a dumbass, Riku. He was starting to understand why Tidus and Kairi would give him hopeless looks from time to time. He wasn't very good at these things.
Riku rubbed the back of his neck, and eyed her carefully. "I… it wasn't supposed to come off like that. You, uh…" – Riku could feel his neck start to heat up – dammit! – Where the hell was everyone else, anyways? "… distracted me, is all."
Naminé blinked; she bit her lip, as she studied him.
"Oh." She started to fiddle with her ice-blue skirt, which just brushed past her knees, in a slant cut. She wore a blue tank-top too, giving off the appearance of a dress, but she'd thrown on a translucent, white over shirt, tied off neatly in the front. And all she needs is the sun hat, Riku thought, lightly smirking to himself.
"Uh… so did you wanna do anything?" he asked, wishing that he hadn't sounded like an idiot.
Naminé smiled softly. "Before I found you playing, I was with the others. We were all watching some "struggle" or game or something – well, actually, Tidus and Kai joined."
"Not Sora?" Riku asked, brows raised. Naminé sent him a sideways glance.
"Did you think he would after what you told him?" She laughed slightly. "No, he was cheering them on."
"But… he was kind of depressed, wasn't he?" Naminé paused, before nodding in response. He figured as much – as bad as Riku felt, he couldn't let the kid get himself hurt. Not only would they be delayed again, but… he didn't want to see Sora stuck in a bed like that again. He shook his head.
"You really worry about him, don't you?" Riku laughed, and slowly, they started to move away from the show.
"Well, somebody has to," he replied with a smirk, "Sora doesn't for himself – he thinks too much with his heart." Naminé, too, smiled. "I don't know how many times I've had to save his ass," he added, reflecting on all the trouble Sora'd ever gotten into.
"Hm… it's nice to have known a friend for so long…" Naminé said, her blue eyes lost in the surroundings. They were walking down the streets together, trying to avoid bumping into the countless children running around. "Over ten years now?"
Riku's smile was nostalgic now. "I've known him for almost fifteen. But, I'd think, we've been friends for about half the time."
"Oh?" Naminé asked, surprised. "I've always assumed…"
"That we were friends from the beginning, right?" Riku laughed. "Nah, I never really liked him at first. In fact… you could say I pretty much hated him."
Naminé tilted her head to look up at him, her eyes bright. "Really? Wow – how come? How'd you meet then?"
She almost crashed into someone ahead of her, lost in her questions. Riku quickly pulled her away, smirking as he grabbed her arm.
"Well…" he said, allowing Naminé to recover from her blush, "Our moms were really good friends. They spent a lot of time together, I think especially after Sora's dad passed away. When we got introduced – I think I was three when I met him – Sora took an instant liking to me. He grabbed hold of my nose, thinking it was a horn. And I hated him."
Naminé burst out laughing, and it filled his ears.
"What? I found him to be really annoying, you know." Naminé raised an eyebrow skeptically. Riku raised his own in challenge, "Okay, look - he was always tagging along, everywhere I went, and he did everything I did. If he bought a new game, he always made me play it. When I joined a sport, so did he. If I bought something new, he wanted it too. He was always dragging a stupid wagon around, collecting rocks along the way, and when it got too heavy, he made me drag it. He never stopped following me. You can't say that wasn't annoying."
Her smile grew even brighter. "He was not annoying," she said, playfully. She tilted her head sideways, and looked up at him, saying, "It sounds like… he adored you."
Riku's smile waned, his eyes looking away, and for a moment, it felt like something had pricked his heart. "Yeah… my mom used to say the same thing…"
Naminé faltered, her cheeks slightly tinged, "Oh, sorry, I didn't –" But Riku forced a grin, and waved her off.
"Don't worry about it. It's okay." But her eyes never left his face. Riku looked around him, then. He saw that they had arrived at an intersection; people were dancing and twirling in beat of some drums. They moved in a circular fashion, whilst another circle moved inside the first, in the opposite direction. Riku couldn't figure out the steps for the life of him – he had no idea what they were doing. He looked over and found a stone wall to sit on – he motioned for Naminé to come sit with him.
She sat down next to him, tentatively, and he vaguely noticed that her leg was brushing his. He saw her swallow, and she asked,
"So… what happened then? How'd you, you know, become friends?" He grinned, appreciating the fact that she tried to change the subject for him.
He shrugged. "I dunno. I got really sick of him one day. I mean, the kid was only around me because he could be, you know? So one day, we were out on the islet offshore – the one all the kids had to play on, you know? – because he'd begged me to. He wanted to play hide-and-seek…"
Naminé frowned. "You didn't…"
Riku nodded, the smile gone. "I did. I told him to go hide, and I never looked for him. I figured it was the easiest way to get rid of him. I went back home, and it wasn't until dinner time that Sora's mom came calling. And that's when the guilt kinda hit," he said, giving her humourless smile. The memory of the day flooded his mind, and it was all he could think about. "I went back and looked for him. I knew he couldn't have left the islet by himself, he knew he wasn't allowed to, you know? I searched everywhere for him, and I had started to think that maybe he'd fallen off a cliff, or gotten bitten by some random animal or… I dunno. Anything.
"I finally found him in this little cave by a waterfall," he continued, "The one all the kids had named the 'Secret Place'. I can't believe I hadn't thought to go there first. When I entered, I just found him sitting there, in the middle of the cave, just idly staring at the stone walls around him. When he turned and saw me…" An image of six-year-old Sora suddenly flashed before his eyes.
"What…?" she asked.
"When he saw me… he just jumped up and broke out into this huge grin, and said, 'I knew you'd find me.'"
Naminé sat back, awestruck. "He – he was just sitting there… waiting for you? The entire time?"
Riku could feel himself smiling. "Apparently so. When I had actually looked over him, I saw that he had a large gash on his leg. I think he got it when he was crawling through. But hell, he didn't notice, 'cause after that, he was like, 'Took you long enough, stupid. My turn!' And then he started running out of the cave! The dumbass! Fours hours of hiding, and he still wanted to play." Riku smirked and shook his head. "He cried when I told him it was time to go home, but I told him we would play again the next day, after he took care of his leg. And I meant it."
It was a moment before Naminé looked up at him with inquiring eyes. "He really trusted you." Her eyes softened. "And he still does."
Riku shrugged, and his thoughts lingered on what she said. Sora did trust too much, even if he did trust Riku. Sometimes, Riku felt that Sora had too much faith in people – and he hated to admit that it scared him. That Sora's heart just might get him into trouble some day… Riku glanced at Naminé. "He trusts a lot of people. Even when I
think he shouldn't be. Like that cousin of his…" he muttered darkly, his thoughts lurching in a not-so-friendly direction.
"Who, Roxas?"
Riku blinked. He noticed that she too had her brows furrowed. Did I say that out loud?
"Yeah…" he replied, his gaze lost in the colours of the festival before him. "I never liked that kid. I dunno – he just always… bugged me, you know?" Naminé inquired, her eyes thoughtful,
"Like, Sora-bugged?"
"Naw… more like, just… something doesn't feel right about him, get it? Like – "
"Don't you think you should say something to Sora then?" Naminé looked alarmed, and her eyebrows had risen in concern. In spite of himself, Riku burst out laughing. Shaking silver bangs out his eyes, Riku said,
"Oh, come on, Naminé! If there was really something, don't you think I'd have told him?" Because Naminé now looked confused, Riku continued, still laughing, "Ah… I don't actually have anything to base it off of… just this vibe, you know? Honestly – the way we act when Roxas is over is pretty sad, actually. If Sora didn't look like such a broken puppy when we fought, I'd have ripped that blond pansy's throat out a long time ago!"
"You what?!"
Regardless of the violent nature of his words, Riku was laughing at the idle thought. It was true… but he was more than willing to bet Roxas would gladly return the favor. Glancing up, he saw Naminé biting back a laugh in spite of her self – Riku grinned. Oh, just wait till she heard this.
"Hell, yeah – this one time back… oh, three years or something, Roxas flew down for Sora's birthday – it was gonna be a big party, especially since this was the first party with Kairi – and the big birthday dinner was a mess. Damn, Roxas and me screwed it up so bad, what with like death glares and these snide little comments we kept making… oh wow, Sora just ended up sulking upstairs in his room after."
"Aw, didn't you feel bad? It was his birthday!" Naminé was laughing though, even as she tried to remain serious. Riku softened a bit, but he was still grinning sheepishly when he admitted,
"Well… yeah. Sorta. I felt bad for ruining the big birthday party, but I mean… Roxas had it coming, jeez. Don't look at me like that, Naminé! We didn't actually fight, but it got pretty tense. Oh, man… I think I said I was sorry to Sora later, but I didn't have any intention – still don't – to say sorry to the blondie. Not like he's ever said anything either… we just kinda silently agreed to stop fighting – in front of Sora, anyways," he added with a smirk. Maybe we are getting too old for this.
"Well… that's a start, right?" Naminé was still smiling bemusedly though, eyes twinkling. Riku smirked back and brought one foot up onto the stone wall, resting his arm on the propped up leg.
A comfortable silence had settled around the two. Naminé, too, sat staring at the people dancing before them, her eyes searching. He hadn't noticed that a local band had started playing – the drums were now accompanied with acoustic guitars, and some other strange instruments that Riku hadn't quite caught all the names of.
I'll have to get around to that. Riku didn't even seem to care that full-force night was rolling, that they were a day late to the Finals, that no brilliant lyrics had danced their way into his head… no, right now, life was sounding pretty damn fine.
Before his eyes, men and women were twirling, bouncing and rushing like winds of a welcome storm. Bangles jingled in a thunderstorm of exotic dissonance; rains of brilliantly coloured suits and dresses swirled around them. Breathing in the sheer exhilaration of the foreign culture, Riku made up his mind and jumped to his feet.
Holding out a hand to Naminé, he offered as gallantly as he could (dammit, he never could pull it off like Tidus, ugh),
"Come on. Let's dance – otherwise the others will think we're just wet blankets who don't know how to have fun," he said with a laugh, hoping the anxiety in the pit of his stomach would just flutter away. Naminé couldn't hide the blush; it appeared on her face so fast.
"Are – are you serious?" she asked, eyes wide. Around them, drums were beating, fire cackled, and melodies of laughter filled the air. He could already feel the adrenaline pulse through his veins.
"Yeah – why not?" Naminé looked horrified.
"But we'll get lost in there!"
He had no idea what made him do it, but in an instant, Riku was standing before her, hands resting on either side of her on the wall. "No, we won't," he said, and he made sure to lock gazes with her. "I won't let you."
He felt the corners of his mouth tug when he saw her avert her eyes; her blush growing even deeper.
He laughed, and pushed himself off the wall. He held out a hand to her.
"Shall we?" With a smirk, he saw her blink several times – the radiant colour having never left her face – before she tentatively reached forwards.
Riku shook his head, and grasped her wrist instead. "Come on! I can't dance either – should be interesting, eh?" he said, laughing. Taking a deep breath, she allowed him to pull her off the wall. Vaguely aware that his heart had been hammering in his chest, he
tugged her into the crowd of people, keeping a firm grasp on her wrist as he concentrated on weaving through. However, he couldn't shake the last image out of his head – despite her utter surprise, Naminé had smiled back at him.
LiD
"Dammit! Friggin' stupid lousy friggin' – " Axel cut himself off, holding his head where it had collided with the clothes rack. Roxas would have glowered at his friend – this was friggin' Axel's fault they were in here, the idiot.
Roxas was thrashing about, hoping to get escape the avalanche of girlish clothes, but Axel's hand was clamped firmly over his mouth. Roxas supposed he could try the whole licking-the-hand thing, but somehow he guessed that just wouldn't gross someone like Axel out. He attempted to roar out something, but Axel threw an arm around Roxas' chest and tugged him uncomfortably close within the small closet.
Managing to worm his way out of Axel's hand, he hissed angrily,
"Axel, get off – "
"Shhh, she'll hear – "
"Shit! No! Do not put your hand there, do not or I'll – "
"Why? Is your tummy your sensitive spot?"
Roxas hated the snicker in Axel's voice, but he hated it even more when Axel walked his fingers across his flat stomach. He giggled – Roxas mother-friggin' giggled – so what did he do after that? He shut the hell up and violently threw his head back in a demented form of a head butt – and it worked.
Roxas thick head smashed into Axel's taut jaw with a sickening crack, and Axel hissed in pain,
"You shithead, what the friggin' frig' is wrong with – " Roxas, eyes still watering in pain after the attack, jabbed Axel to shut him up. Rubbing his head, he was aware that his cap had fallen into the abyss of Larxene's crap around them. Axel complied, but probably because he heard the bed creaking with people sitting down. Roxas froze as well, momentarily forgetting that his friend was wrapped around him from behind.
"Did you manage to find it, Larxene? We need to know how much time we – "
"Yes, of course I did, Marluxia, otherwise I wouldn't have – "
"Do not interrupt me, Larxene." Roxas smirked in spite of himself – ha, it was nice to see her being put in her place for once, jeez.
"Yes, Marly," Larxene replied caustically. Axel choked on a laugh behind him – and loosened the grip Roxas hadn't realized Axel had. Roxas quickly jerked forwards,
desperate to escape his friend's proximity – not that he was successful. Closets were hardly built for two teenaged boys to fit in, let alone have free space between them.
"What did I say about calling me that, Larxene? Honestly, you women…"
"Excuse-me? I happen to think it suits you well, Marly." Roxas scowled, almost feeling sorry for this Marluxia person – his stepsister was one deaf bitch most of the time. Axel must have felt him tense up, because he put a hand on Roxas' forearm and comfortingly ran it up and down – to Roxas' utter horror.
"Stop it," Roxas hissed as quietly but vehemently as he could, looking over his shoulder. Axel smirked – holy crap, the stupid idiot had no idea how uncomfortable Roxas was feeling because he friggin' smirked – and Roxas angrily stamped on Axel's foot, getting him to let go. The redhead shushed,
"Don't you learn – ?"
"Marly, did you hear that?" Larxene's sharp voice interrupted Axel, and the redhead froze. Roxas sucked in a deep breath – shitshitshit, if she comes over here and friggin' finds me in her friggin' closet she's friggin' gonna… gonna… Run away! Was the only solution coming to mind. Leap from the closet, punch her in the face before she can see you and run!
Axel's damn intuition was starting to get annoying, because Axel grabbed Roxas' arm tightly and threw him a warning glance – he let go of Roxas' arm quickly though. Roxas gave Axel a hardened glare over his shoulder, wanting nothing more to escape Axel, escape the closet and escape the damn room, before –
"It's probably some of your ridiculous clothing falling over. Goodness knows you have enough of it." Roxas stopped moving, and let out the breath he'd been holding. Larxene slapped her hand down on what had to be the dresser surface – Roxas flinched instinctively. He'd been that dresser enough times to honestly feel sorry for it.
Axel ruffled his hair gently from behind, but nothing more – even though Roxas hadn't twitched away this time.
"Quiet, Marly. You probably have just as much as I do, and you know it."
"Oh come off it, woman. We're hear to discuss the matter at hand."
"Well, Marly, we're hardly going to be able to set anything into motion until we actually get to Twilight City."
Roxas started, furrowing his brow – Twilight City? What in the world could they want to do there? Without really thinking, Roxas lolled his head back on Axel's shoulder, and looking up he mouthed "What?" at his fiery friend. Axel only raised an eyebrow in response.
Roxas went bright pink and shot his head up from Axel's shoulder – smashing Axel's jaw, again. Axel jerked backwards in pain, slamming into the wall – and Roxas felt something hard come crashing down on his own head.
"Shit!" Roxas hissed, realizing what had happened. Some of the other bags and boxes were teetering dangerously on the shelf above. Shit shit shit…
"Marly, that's it, I'm sure there's something – "
"Then just go check, goodness."
Roxas froze. Axel froze.
Then, with rapid movements, they threw themselves sideways, flattening against the side walls, just out of the sight of the door. Roxas felt something hard land on top of him – a firm coat. A girl's friggin' coat.
Larxene's footsteps were getting closer.
Roxas saw Axel throw some clothes (was that a bikini on Axel's head?) on top of himself, effectively camouflaging himself with the mess of the closet. Taking his lead, Roxas threw the coat on, and groped around at rapid speed for more clothes to pile on.
"What the hell is going on in here?" Larxene's sharp voice made Roxas want to cringe, but he remained absolutely still. Nothing, Roxas answered quickly in his head. He could practically feel his step-sister's forest-green eyes sweeping over the mess of her brand name clothes. He could hear her breathing, she was that damn close. Please, please… just go…
Larxene, for all the genius and prestige that kept her at Radiant Garden, couldn't have examined thoroughly, because she promptly closed the closet door again. Roxas relaxed his muscles, but did not remove any of the clothes articles just yet. With a crazy bitch like Larxene around, who knew if she'd randomly decide to throw open the doors again?
"See – goodness, I told you it was nothing."
Roxas could practically hear the scowl in Larxene's voice when she sneered, "No harm in checking, oh great wise one."
Marluxia snorted in response, and said, "At least you've finally come to recognize that, Larxene."
"You – "
"Now, come along now," Marluxia called out, and his voice sounded as though it was coming more from the door than anything else. "We have to reach Twilight City before the gears start turning, or all of June will have been wasted." What? Why the hell were they planning… what were they talking about in June? In Twilight City? Are they… is
Larxene secretly in a band? Roxas dismissed that notion quickly, and he began to shake off the clothes once he heard Larxene and Marluxia's voices leave the room. Larxene being in any sort of band was kind of like… not good. Yeah, that's about as metaphorical as Roxas was getting right about now.
Having wriggled off all of the clothes that had piled on top of him, Roxas saw Axel had already thrown off all the clothes, including (thankfully) the bikini top that had been over his head. Roxas shuddered – he did not need to think of his friggin' step-sister in that. Bleh.
Stumbling out of the closet, Roxas landed on his bottom, right on the floor. Axel stepped out far more gracefully than Roxas had, and stood above the blond with his hand extended. For once, a wry smirk hadn't wrought its way onto the redhead's face. Instead, an almost… worried? frown was in place.
Grabbing Axel's hand, Roxas pulled himself upwards; when he stumbled a bit, Axel didn't exactly do anything – he looked torn between grabbing Roxas to steady him and giving the blond his space.
"Hey, Roxas," Axel said, kicking the clothes that had scattered everywhere back into the closet. Swinging the closet door in to place, Axel turned around and watched Roxas carefully. Roxas' head was still churning with ideas – why in all of the circles of hell would Larxene be going to Twilight City at the exact time she knew Roxas was supposed to be there? It had to do with the Clincher, he was sure of it… but… what?
"Yeah?" Roxas asked, forcing himself away from his pondering. Axel rubbed the back of his head with his hand, and said, looking away, "I'm – uh – I'm… I shoulda been more careful before dragging us into that hellhole of a closet."
Raising an eyebrow, Roxas made his way to the door, mostly because he was afraid Larxene would come back rather quickly. He had a good idea that Axel wasn't just referring to the whole dragging part, but also… shaking his head, Roxas replied carefully,
"Don't worry about it, 'kay? Let's just get out of here."
And as awkward a moment it may have been merely seconds ago, Roxas still found himself looking over his shoulder to make sure Axel was following him out the door.
LiD
"Just one more, T! Come on!"
The blond drummer wiped the sweat from his eyes – damn, it was hot – as he watched the other blonde in front of him gave him a playful smile. Ohoho, so the girl thought she had the upper hand, huh?
Well – he'd just have to change that, heh.
"Aw come on here, I won't bite!" Tidus teased, pulling on his most playful smile. The girl's grin only got wider, and she suddenly brought her arms up, and started bouncing on her toes. Her hair was in crazy plaits, he noticed, and held back with a red bandana. Tidus trained his blue eyes on the last pouch hanging from the girl's belt. One whack – just one – was all he needed to knock that pouch off and win the round.
"Heads up, tough guy!"
Tidus dodged to the side, narrowly missing the wooden stick's swing at his waist. He had two pouches left on his own belt – there were three altogether – and they were heavy with small stones. Since he'd joined the game - this "struggle" or whatever it was called, Tidus knew that to win these rounds, he had to knock off all three pouches with his stick, scattering the rocks on the stone-square arena. Kairi, too, had joined the game, and since they were in preliminaries, she'd managed to pass through to the next round. Tidus and Sora, of course, had kind of frowned at this… it was a co-ed game – plus, there weren't any rules regarding skill level – and they knew if they told her they thought it was unsafe for her to play, she would've beat their heads senseless with her stick.
"Go from behind!" he heard Sora shout. He was standing along the sides somewhere, since he couldn't play in his present condition – Riku, and Tidus, for that matter, would definitely have kicked his ass – Tidus more so because he knew that Riku would kick his ass for letting Sora play.
"Look out!" Kairi shouted.
Tidus shot his head up, and quick-stepped. The young girl – damn, she was good, he hated to admit – against pouted, and swung her stick around at Tidus from behind. But he was ready.
He maneuvered to the side, and decided to fake a swing at her head. As he expected, she covered her head in defense – leaving her left side wide open. With a reverse-cut, Tidus slashed at her pouch, and listened to stones clip with the ground.
"Point, Tidus!" a referee called, voice slurred in a heavy accent.
"Ha!" Tidus cried, raising his stick in triumph.
"You meanie! That was a dirty trick!" Tidus flicked his nose.
"Now, now, sweetheart, don't be a sore loser," and then he added slyly, running a hand through his golden hair, "How about I make it up to you, hmm? Say a date?"
The blonde glared at him furiously, and stamped her foot. "Sicko!" she cried, before stomping off.
"You tell him, Rikku!" he heard a voice cry from the crowds. He couldn't see who said it, but hell, he got a name. Rikku. Huh. The same as, well, Riku's name. Hey – score! He could now make fun of Riku for having a girl's name! Haha! Tidus smirked. That guy was just too easy to bug. (Having longer hair than usual wasn't really in his favour, either.)
Over by the side, he could see Sora and Kairi cheering, fists raised in the air. He grinned; he was so totally going to own the rest. Heh. The strength of an athlete. He ran towards his awaiting friends.
"Wow, way to be a gentleman, T," Sora said, eyes twinkling, knocking fists with Tidus as crossed over to stand beside him.
"Pffft… nothing to it!" he said. "Little blonde never saw it coming!" Sora laughed, but he could see the wistfulness in his eyes. A large part of Tidus felt bad for the kid, but at least he was standing out here, right?
"Wow, way to inflate his head, Sor," Kairi said, arms crossed.
"Aw… you're just jealous," Tidus retorted playfully. After glancing behind him, he said, pointing behind him, "Looks like you're up, Kai."
Kairi shoved past him playfully, muttering something like "fathead", as she headed out onto the arena. It was her turn now, and she stood waiting for her opponent, stick in hand.
"Where's Riku and Naminé?" Tidus asked, idly, looking around the arena to see who Kairi's opponent would be. A part of him wanted to see Kairi fight again – she was so uncoordinated. He'd seen her in enough sports to know she was a complete klutz.
Sora shrugged. "Dunno. I'd think he'd want to be here, though. He'd enjoy this."
Tidus let out a laugh. "Totally. Ah well – too bad for him, eh? Looks like I'll get all the glory."
"Or Kairi," Sora pointed out.
A pause. After exchanging glances, they both broke out snickering. They were only too lucky that Kairi was out of earshot. She had a really good right hook when she needed it – Riku had taught her well, after all.
"Kneel, loser!"
They both looked to see Kairi facing off against the guy with a black cap. He was wearing a long, white jacket with no shirt underneath, and purple pants. He stood, sneering down at Kairi – he was more than a head taller than her – and a part of Tidus questioned the fairness of it all.
Kairi scowled at him. The guy only smirked, before suddenly bending his knees, stick out, ready.
Oh, crap.
"Kairi! Watch out!" he suddenly heard Sora cry.
The said guy took a heavy swing at her side, and with a squeak, she dodged to the right, and ran around him. Great. There was no doubt in Tidus' mind now that Kairi didn't have a clue as to what she was doing.
"Come on, Seifer! Take her down!" someone cried from the crowd. Tidus watched as Kairi squared her jaw.
"I don't think so!" she spat. The guy – Seifer – swung at her, and to their relief, Kairi roughly parried. The clash must have sent a shock up her arm, though, because she was shaking it out afterwards. She had to have some clue as to what was going on, because she quickly faked a dodge to the right, moved to the left instead, and swung with all her might.
But Seifer blocked the move. "Oh, come on," he said, rolling his eyes. "Like I didn't see that one? Not very creative, are you?"
"Oh, shut up!" Kairi retorted. She stood panting, stick poised. Tidus noticed that one pouch was already missing from her belt, but Seifer hadn't lost any.
"This is stupid," Sora demanded, watching Kairi with a worried glance. He was biting his lip, and Tidus could clearly see that Sora was itching to jump in and help her out, but he couldn't – it was against rules, after all. Dammit.
They watched as Seifer started towards Kairi. She, on the other hand, kept retreating, toying with the stick in her hand.
Seifer swung the stick over his shoulder, and sent her a mock-kiss. "Come on, babe, be easy. Wouldn't want you to break a nail," he said, sneering.
Kairi huffed, eyes livid, and lifted her stick. Without warning, she ran forwards, in a head-on attack, and slammed into Seifer, knocking off one of his three pouches, stones scattering. And effectively ramming her head into his jaw.
"Ow, bitch," he swore, getting back up on his feet. Kairi had already gotten up and was glaring daggers at him, holding her head. They were even now, but Seifer looked pissed. Tidus clenched his fists. Shit.
"Kairi!" Sora cried out, desperately trying to get her attention.
She didn't hear him. She was way over on the side of the arena, too far away to hear from either of them. The crowds were pumped, cheering and screaming, and that didn't help either. The two tried waving her over, but her attention was focused on the furious Seifer, trying to dodge his attacks. His swipes were heavy – Tidus was sure he would break her hip if it connected. Tidus could hear the blood pounding in his ears. Bastard!
Seifer suddenly slid to her right, and swung his stick. This time, it connected. With a loud "Ow!" from Kairi as she tripped on to the ground, the boys watched as another pouch dropped to the ground, it contents scattering around her.
"Shit – Sora!" Tidus watched as the teen raced onto the arena. The referee started blowing his whistle, but Sora didn't care. His eyes were only on Seifer, as Sora picked up the fallen stick and shouted,
"You ass – could you hit any harder?" Kairi got up and watched with horrified eyes.
"Sor, get off!" Tidus cried. What the hell was the kid thinking? The idiot – he's going to get himself killed!
"Sora – no, don't! Get off the arena!" she cried, eyes wide. Despite the booing from the crowd, and the whistles being blown, Seifer smirked challengingly.
"Ooh, look. It's our white knight coming in to save the day. How romantic," he scoffed, eyeing down Sora. Sora only squared his jaw, and lifted his stick, but Seifer was already waiting for it. "Kneel, loser!"
Knowing what was about to happen, Tidus quickly jumped in, grabbing his stick – it didn't even register in his mind that Riku would give them hell to pay for this.
Seifer swung, with Sora at the ready, but Tidus jumped in with a vertical swing of his own. It threw Seifer off balance, and he stumbled.
"Back off, man!" Tidus warned, his feet planted firmly on the ground.
"Stupid chicken wuss!" That –!
Tidus didn't hesitate in charging him. He rammed past the idiot and threw a punch at his face, the stick long discarded. He could hear whistles being blown in every direction, people crying out from the crowd, and it was blowing Tidus' eardrums.
"Get off the arena!"
Seifer sat up, and scowled. He threw one glance at the crowd – to whom, Tidus had no idea – and Seifer suddenly cried, "Thrash 'em!"
There was rumble of footsteps on concrete, and Tidus didn't have a chance to blink before a fist was suddenly in his eye.
"Shit! You –!" But Sora was already on the guy. He had tackled him onto the ground, and the said duo engaged in a spontaneous wrestling match, fists struggling to hit the other.
When Tidus fully opened his eyes, he could see that Kairi had grabbed someone from behind, and covered their eyes, twirling around – the said guy trying to throw her off.
Sora had two people on him – Seifer included. Tidus didn't know where the fourth was, but he ran over and stepped on Seifer's face.
"Ow!" Seifer shot up, and smashed his fist into Tidus' jaw. The bloody – but what he was Tidus didn't know, for all of a sudden a pair of hands were wrapped around his shoulder, pulling him away. What the – ?
"Idiot kids! GET OFF!"
Tidus felt himself being pulled at again, suddenly dragged to the side, and thrown to the ground. He heard others land on the ground too, and Tidus stood up on shaky knees. Hell…
"What the hell just happened?" he said aloud, amidst the roaring crowd.
"You're disqualified! All of you! Now get out of here before we call the police!" a voice scolded. Tidus opened his mouth to protest, but Kairi quickly stepped on his foot.
"Hey!" he cried.
"Come on," Kairi muttered. She hooked one of her arms under Tidus' – her other arm was already with Sora's – and she started to lead him away from the arena. The crowd had already parted way. Tidus caught the expressions on people's faces – some with scorn, others with pride. He could only grin stupidly at that.
They arrived at a table – some outdoor café, away from the game – and Kairi sat them down. In the light that was available around them, Tidus could see that Sora was holding a wad of tissues to his nose, and his cheek was turning purple. Kairi was sporting a cut lip, and her brow looked swollen – hell, Tidus wouldn't be surprised if Kairi's nails were broken and full of torn skin.
Tidus put a hand to his own head, and his one eye was starting to swell shut. He cracked his jaw, trying to stretch it out.
"Holy crap, wait to go, guys," Kairi started, pressing a napkin to her lip. "That was so bad. I can't believe we just did that."
Sora sighed – or, at least, Tidus thought he did. "Wha uh membubble nigh…" Sora said, voice muffled behind the tissues. "Be geh kicked oudda da game. Nah chance binning now, 'uh?"
Tidus laughed. "Hey – we totally whipped their asses. Who says we didn't win?" Kairi frowned, but Sora grinned. Well – tried to. Tidus could only tell he was smiling by the way Sora's cheeks had swelled, for the tissues were now completely blocking his mouth, too. He hoped the swelling was from smiling, anyways.
Tidus suddenly looked around, catching the other's eyes. Kairi knew what he was going to say, for she licked her lips in nervousness. Sora's smile had completely wiped off from his face, and there was foreboding in his eyes.
Tidus leaned back in his plastic chair, resting his hands behind his head. Despite knowing this wouldn't work, no matter what they came up with, he still plowed ahead, and said,
"So… whaddya think'll work on Riku this time?"
AN: Woot! Another chapter finally completed… and not so much of a cliffhanger... Once again, sorry for the length – there was stuff I really needed to cover… - sighs - And aww… finally some "deep" conversation with Riku and Naminé… About time they start opening up to each other, eh? – grins – Theirs was definitely the longest scene in this chapter, me thinks. This chapter was so frustrating… the reason why it took so long is because I kept debating over whose POV would cover each scene. –sigh- At least I finally figured it out, eh? Hope you all enjoyed it! Next chapter will definitely be up sooner though! Stick with me guys! Oh, and review please? XD
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