A/N: And so I return for Chapter the First…technically speaking. For those who missed the summary, this is an AU fic about Roxas' best friend Naminé going missing, and he tries to save her by joining the gang responsible for her disappearance, but the perils only increase when he befriends a mysterious gangster named Axel. (This is where you put the flashing neon sign reading SLASH SLASH SLASH.) Anyway, this ought to hold you guys over for a week or so.

1. Amber Alert

"Hi, you've reached me, Naminé, but I'm not here right now. Just leave me a message after the beepy tone thing, okay? Bye." Beeeeep.

"Hey, Naminé, it's me, Roxas, just calling because I haven't really seen you in a while, not since Sora's party last week…And, uh, listen, there's some stuff we need to talk about. Call me back? Bye."

Roxas' cheeks were burning by the time he hung up. There was no easy way to admit a crush on your best friend, was there? It would be simpler if Naminé just answered the phone, even if it was to reject him.

No, Roxas amended silently, rolling his eyes at his own stupidity; she wouldn't turn him down, she'd just blush and let him trample all over her. Because that was how Naminé was. Always shy, always afraid to speak up for herself, no matter who she was talking to. Roxas scowled and chewed on his lip, deeply troubled. He hoped that she wouldn't connect his anxious voice mails with the fact that he conveniently dropped by, because it was such a nice Saturday he felt like going for a skateboard ride around Twilight Town.

As Roxas passed Sunset Street, he sighed in defeat and gave into the urge to pull out his cell phone again and call her home phone. With one eye on the screen and one on the street, he flipped the phone open and tapped the '2' key. The speed-dial for Naminé's home phone, right behind her cell. Roxas cradled the phone between his ear and cupped his hands before him in insincere prayer. After five rings, a female voice, distorted beyond recognition by fatigue and misery, mumbled, "Hello?"

"Naminé?" Roxas asked eagerly, almost flipping the board over as he shuffled around anxiously.

"Oh, God." There was the sound of someone blowing their nose, and then the speaker returned to the phone sounding congested. "This is Mrs. Glen. Who is this?"

Roxas blinked at the unanticipated dashing of his hopes. "I'm a friend of Naminé's. Roxas."

"Oh, you." Roxas' frown deepened at the annoyance and despair in Mrs. Glen's voice.

"Naminé isn't here. I'm sorry."

Roxas, being he idiot that he was, hadn't made the connection yet, probably because the sheer idea of it was inconceivable. "Do you know where I could find her?"

"I don't know where she is. She's missing."

The board bucked beneath Roxas' feet when he skimmed carelessly over a crack. He pitched forward onto the sidewalk, his arms outstretched to break his fall. The air thumped out of his lungs noisily and left him floundering on the pavement, gagging on the blood in his mouth. Fingers scrabbled on the cement until he found his cell and rolled on his back. He squeezed his eyes shut against the sun and pain beating down on him, held the phone to his ear and panted, "What?"

"The last time I saw her was last Tuesday when she went to some boy's party. She didn't come home that night, or in the morning. My husband went to the station and filed a missing person's report the next day."

Roxas' heart beat wildly; he thought Naminé's mother could hear the thumping on her end of the conversation. A bicyclist passed, sparing only a glance in his direction before nearly colliding with his skateboard. The cyclist swerved, spitting a curse at Roxas as he pedaled down the street.

"You're a friend of hers…do you have any idea where she might be?"

"No, no. I – I'm so sorry, Mrs. Glen," Roxas panted. "Really, I am."

"Yes, well…" The phone beeped once, indicating the end of the conversation. Roxas sat up slowly, wincing in pain, and inspected the damage his phone had taken. The casing was battered, with a scratch on the screen, but for the most part it was intact. He couldn't say the same for himself, however. His palms were badly scraped and a bloody kneecap glistened through the threads of a ragged hole in his cargo pants. Roxas spat on the sidewalk and red droplets peppered the ground.

"Shit," he hissed, running a hand through his mussed before wiping his mouth. Roxas retrieved his skateboard, which had scooted two feet ahead of its own accord, and hopped on it. He pushed off shakily and set for home.

x

When he finally wandered home that afternoon, his mom was where he'd last seen her: in the front yard, trying to coax her garden back to life. The moment she noticed him trudging up the garden path with his skateboard tucked under his arm, she flipped her sweaty hair out of her face and asked, "Roxas? What did you do to yourself?"

He cast a lethargic glare in the direction of her withering rosebush and muttered, "Something much more interesting than gardening."

His mother pursed her lips and stood up with her hands on her hips, trying to look maternal and stern. It wasn't particularly easy for her, not when she hadn't even hit forty yet and her knees were crusted over with dirt. "I don't care for your attitude, young man."

Roxas shrugged. "Yeah, well, I don't care for you bugging me," he grumbled under his breath as he shuffled into the house. Roxas limped up the stairs and pushed the door open with his shoulder. He trudged across the room and flopped listlessly on his bed, exhausted yet unable to fall asleep. As he anticipated, the telltale clomping of his mom's most beloved pair of Crocs emanated from the hallway and continued to batter his head until they stopped next to his door. Roxas grudgingly cracked an eyelid and squinted in the direction of his door.

"Three…two…" he hissed before tossing his head the other way, facing the window. Right on cue, his mother entered the room, bringing a strong odor of sweat and earth with her.

"Is something wrong, sweetie?" she asked, resting her forearm against the doorway. Roxas mumbled something incoherent and twisted his head, staring blankly at the ceiling.

"Roxas?" She hesitantly approached his bed, leaning over him with a look of concern on her face. "What's going on?"

Roxas scowled and rolled on to his side, avoiding her gaze. "One of my friends, Naminé Glen. She's missing. Her parents called the police and everything."

Mrs. Cameron's face clouded over. "Petite blonde?" she questioned, holding her hand up at the proper height, which was about level with her shoulder. Roxas nodded glumly. "That's her." His mother's hands flew to her mouth.

"Oh my God, Elisa must be going out of her mind!"

Roxas' eyebrows almost disappeared under his bangs in disbelief. "Her mom? How do you think Naminé feels about it?"

His mother's expression softened. She opened her mouth to comfort him-

Everybody gonna dance tonight.

Everybody gonna feel all right.

Roxas' mother stood up, surprised. She looked around, searching for the source of the music. Meanwhile, Roxas dug through his pockets and retrieved his badly battered cell phone, flashing blue and red unevenly. He glared at it for a minute, furious that his ringtone dare be so cheery.

"What happened to your phone?" his mom exclaimed. Roxas ignored her and put the phone to his ear.

Everybody gonna dance-

"Yeah?"

The voice of the person on the other end blasted through the earpiece as Roxas fumbled to turn down the volume.

"Dude, Kairi just called me saying that Naminé's been missing for like a week!"

Roxas managed to speak up and interrupt the caller's spastic speech. "I heard. How's she doing?"

"Going mental. Can you meet me by the Sandlot?" Roxas glanced up at his mother, silently asking for permission.

"Should you really go out with friends while that girl is missing?" she asked, much to her son's chagrin. Roxas wasn't exactly in the mood for an ethics lecture, but he was in the mood for anything to take his mind off Naminé. He shrugged halfheartedly and made for the door.

"Roxas, man. Are you coming?"

He glanced away and said curtly, "Yeah. I'll be there."

A/N: End scene. Yeah, it's odd that he's going to meet the Sora almost immediately after he learns Naminé has gone missing. But it moves the plot along. So shut up. On better thought, don't shut up; write a lovely review consisting of constructive criticism and other things that make this little fangirl happy. The song is by Paul McCartney, btw. Just so you know that those lyrics didn't project themselves from my own crazed imagination.