I tend to write far to many mini-mental-Marluxia-monologues. I really like how those four words tied together sadly...but yes, this is another one of those things, Marluxia thinking that is...and then Marluxia falling out of a bed. No seriously. That's pretty much all that happens here...it actually gets rather fluffy at the end, as fluffy as Vexen will allow anyway. After the angst-fest of the last one, maybe this lightens the mood of the entire series...or something? And NO, the title actually has nothing to do with what you might be expecting...


Role Reversal

Marluxia wasn't sure how it had come to this. He propped himself up on his elbows, breathing heavily, his normally comforting bed sheets a heavy, constricting mass across his legs.

Marluxia had made himself known in their little Organization for his cool and collected nature, his aura of authority and his charismatic charm, that, while bordering on if not dipping into insanity, still brought about most anyone he met to his way of thinking. He also prided himself on being one of the more attractive people in the group, making no attempt to hide how important he found his appearance.

Vexen had become known, probably not with his consent, as a completely neurotic, considerably eccentric, quite often hysterical, awkwardly proportioned, head case who stalked about the basements performing experiments that he actually rarely reported on.

So, when he decided that it would be…at the very least…interesting to pursue a physical relationship with Vexen, it never occurred to Marluxia that any of this would change. He would still remain cool, calculated and in control and Vexen would remain twitchy, unwittingly subservient and well…Vexen.

Vexen protested, when did he ever not, but he wasn't as hard to convince as Marluxia had thought he might be. It was, they'd agreed, a purely physical relationship, and as long as Marluxia agreed to keep his mouth shut about it, he'd continue to enjoy the perks of said relationship. That worked just fine for Marluxia, who didn't think that explaining to his other acquaintances his perhaps inexplicable attraction to the older man would go over well.

And at first it seemed to be working out.

Vexen was, despite what the others might think, just as susceptible to his own needs as anyone else, and sometimes Marluxia actually wondered just what he'd been doing before the pink haired man had decided to start this. He found, after a time, that Vexen could even be convinced to try…different…things if Marluxia waited until he'd finished whatever he was working on in his labs.

All in all, Marluxia felt like he had the situation under control.

A placid Marluxia is not a common one, and once lulled into his state of security that Vexen wasn't going anywhere and wasn't going to mess this up for fear of what it would do to his own nonexistent reputation, he began to miss little hints that perhaps he wasn't as in control as he thought he was.

Their encounters, to begin with, began taking place at different times…that being times when Vexen wanted them. Marluxia didn't really notice…because…well the frequency was actually about the same, and he'd already justified waiting for Vexen to be ready with the benefit of Vexen being in a more agreeable mood.

His behavior he simply was too busy to notice. It was hard to tell that his infamous composure was slipping when he had a surprisingly limber body straddling his stomach and bending in the most exquisite ways to do unspeakable things with his tongue. Whose breathing wouldn't speed up, whose nerves wouldn't spark and jump, leaving him with a pink tint to match his hair by the end of their encounters, often breathless and speechless. Vexen wasn't one for talking anyway, so Marluxia never chalked his own silence up to being overcome while Vexen retained his cool.

With behavior went his coordination, but this really seemed to apply only to when they were actually having sex, and if Vexen found his movements becoming overly passionate and frenzied, he never clued Marluxia in.

He was sickeningly polite all the time to everyone, whether he meant it or not…so how was he supposed to realize that he was slowly becoming more sincere around Vexen, his veiled threats less sinister, his subtle barbs often too subtle to escape his own mental monologues…it was all just too easy to miss…

…especially if he were somehow subconsciously protecting himself from reality.

But reality has a nasty habit of making itself known, and it was almost brutal in this instance…this instance being where he found himself now, on the floor, with Vexen's hair hanging down across his back as the scientist leaned off of the bed to see what had happened to him.

"Vexen?" Marluxia asked, soundly oddly subdued.

"Yes Marluxia?" Vexen asked politely, the barest hint of a pant behind his words…they had just been very active after all…

"Did I just…did I just fall…off of the bed?" Marluxia asked slowly.

"I believe you did, Marluxia." Vexen said, and Marluxia didn't have to look up to see the smirk on Vexen's face but he did anyway.

And annoyingly enough, he couldn't really be mad about it. He was still a bit stunned…one moment he was quite enthusiastically going about his part in all of this and the next moment he found himself not only completely free of Vexen, but airborne, followed by a probably bruising collision with his mercifully carpeted floor.

Vexen held out one pale hand and Marluxia took it, letting the older man pulling him back into the bed.

Vexen made a rather nice show of fussing over him…seeing as it was Vexen and all…even going so far as to situate him comfortably on the pillows and run an icy hand over the carpet burn on his stomach and press freezing lips to the newly forming bruise on his cheek.

"I'm not sure how that happened." Marluxia said, feeling as though something much greater had been tilted to one side, not just his physical self.

"I'm sure it just happens sometimes." Vexen said placidly, lying on his side, his hand rubbing soothing circles on Marluxia's stomach. "Just cool down and go to sleep. I have an early start to make tomorrow anyway, it's probably best that we don't stay awake all hours of the night."

It wasn't until Marluxia found himself blankly agreeing that he snapped out of his awe at how utterly ungraceful he'd been…and realized with growing horror what had been a long time coming.

"Vexen." He said softly and the scientist made an annoyed noise, apparently already trying to sleep.

"Vexen, when we started…this…would you say that I was basically the one to do so?"

"I would."

"I was the one who decided how it would go and when and where and what and that sort of thing…" Marluxia said uneasily.

"You were."

"And now?"

There was a silence and Marluxia turned his head to look at Vexen. His green eyes were still shut, but there was a wry smile twisting his lips.

Of course he'd noticed…

"No, Marluxia, I can't say that you are."

"When was the last time I actually had a say in this relationship at all?" Marluxia asked, amazed to find himself resigning to the knowledge even as it presented itself…though apparently he'd resigned himself long ago and was just now realizing it.

"About a month ago?" Vexen asked, still not bothering to open his eyes. "You were too tired by the time I'd finished working on my experiment to really do anything, so you said we'd do something another night."

Marluxia blanched.

"So…so I'm you." He said, eyes widening in the dark.

"Well that's not really a polite way of putting it." Vexen said, though he sounded more amused than annoyed.

Amused…wasn't Marluxia the one who was constantly amused by Vexen?

No…apparently not.

"If it makes you feel any better…everyone still thinks it's the other way around." Vexen said tiredly.

Marluxia turned his head back to Vexen sharply, only just realizing he'd turned it away in the first place.

"Nobody knows…"

"Everybody knows." Vexen corrected, shrugging his shoulders once. "We aren't as secretive as we'd suspected."

"And…and you've known this and you didn't bother to mention it to me? And by mention I mean scream at me for hours and hours on end about how this has completely ruined you and then refuse to sleep with me?

"I considered it." Vexen mused. "But quite frankly you're easier to boss around when you're in a good mood."

Marluxia's jaw dropped, causing him to hiss in pain as he stretched his sore cheek.

That was…that was the exact mentality that he'd applied to Vexen when this had all begun. And to have it stated so matter of factly…

"So where does this leave us?" Marluxia asked softly.

"Leave us? Exactly where we were ten minutes ago before you took your acrobatic flight over the side of the bed." Vexen said flatly. "Nothing has really changed."

"But everything has changed!" Marluxia argued.

"No…I think perhaps it always was like this." Vexen argued mildly. "It just took some time to surface. Time and…well maybe just time."

"Time and?" Marluxia pressed.

"Time and…maybe I don't dislike you as much as I used to." Vexen admitted, almost sounding grudging enough to be the Vexen Marluxia was used to.

"You like me?" Marluxia asked in amazement, not even realizing how childish he sounded.

"Well when you say it like that it makes me want to say no." Vexen snapped.

"But…but it doesn't actually make you say no." Marluxia reasoned triumphantly.

"Fair enough." Vexen said, leaning over to kiss Marluxia's cheek before rolling over. "Now I really am going to sleep."

"Of course." Marluxia said softly, shutting his eyes, unable to completely force away the stupid smile that formed on his lips. "I like you too by the way."

"Shut up, Marluxia."

"Up yours, Vexen."

"Later, I'm tired."

Well…it wasn't like everything had changed…maybe this wasn't actually that bad of a way to go about things anyway. After all…it was apparently the way things were anyway…Marluxia rolled over, pressing his stomach to Vexen's back, earning himself an aggravated grumble.

"Be colder, my stomach still hurts." He whispered, laying his head on Vexen's shoulder.

Vexen complied and Marluxia drifted off, deciding that yes, this was going to be okay…as long as…as long as everyone else still thought otherwise…


Okay, so actually it was Marluxia falling out of a bed then thinking...for those of you who like my angst better, I guarantee that that is never too far away.

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