Len: -insert very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very obnoxious and loud and long laugh here-

Rea: LOLOL. YAY!

Len: We finally did it! Chapter eight! I hope you're all very happy. We're all messed up, honestly.

Rea: We'll try our best to do it more. We haven't even read all the reviews!!

Len: Please enjoy.

Chapter Eight: The News

Roxas was late that day. He had woken up late, exhausted from the night before- the third time he and Axel had made love on his bed in the cell. He rushed about the half-unpacked boxes and empty ones, trying to find some things, trying to reach others. He completely skipped picking up the paper as he ran from the house, locking it and bolting down the apartment stares top-speed.

He thought about how he should have picked up his paper the night before when he came in, and how two would be waiting for him now, but shrugged it off. He didn't even read the entire paper anyways.

He made it to work just on time, as he usually did. He wasn't exactly the most punctual. Of course, no one minded so long as they didn't have to guard Axel themselves. He walked in the room, a change from his usual "I'm late, I'm late, I'm late" running top-speed down the dark halls.

Axel smiled much wider than usual. He wasn't smoking. He didn't wait for Roxas to speak his confusion. After all, Axel seemed very different this night. "I never expected to get away with something like that, you know." He said. "It's actually...distasteful..." Roxas gave him a confused look, and Axel realized he must not know what he was talking about.

Which would mean he could have fun playing games with him. "Trust me, I never even meant to get away with it. But I guess it makes sence....people are kind enough to give you leniacy when they realize you've changed."

"Axel, I know your messing with me, and you're probably having fun..." Axel nodded. "Can you please tell me what you're talking about?"

"You know, all you did the entire first three weeks you were here is read the paper so you could ignore me." Axel said, throwing a paper through the bars at Roxas' chest. "Don't you read the paper anymore?"

Roxas looked down at the paper he had caught as Axel finished his sentence and felt his eyes pop out of his head. Written in neat black and white in large letters on the front page was "Victim's Families Want To Release Murderer" Just below there was a picture of several families holding envelopes in their hands, shouting and smiling.

"What? WHAT?!" Roxas looked up at Axel. The article's title had spoken for itself.

"That was the last thing I had expected." Axel said.

"Yah, I love how they call you a murderer instead of a reformed murderer." Roxas pointed out.

"Oh, I'm sure some media must be on my side. Who knows, maybe there just wasn't room for 'reformed' in the headline." Axel joked. "I really don't care." He added more seriously. "What are the chances that a murder of so many people could possibly even get prole? This isn't first degree mistakes we're talking about either, Roxas..."

"I know...it's third degree...It's interesting though, Axel. Think about this- if the victim's families are the ones changing their minds about you, it's much more likely that others will see your point of view."

"Roxas, don't you think..." Axel paused, turning away. "Don't you think that I deserve what I got?"

"You think you deserve to be in jail? That just proves your sanity, Axel."

"See? You think I deserve it, right?"

"True, but you've changed, Axel." Roxas sighed. A pause. "Axel, I love you." Roxas put his hands on the bars, dropping the paper at his feet. "You're not going to worry about this a lot, are you? You love me too, don't you? If you do, you've got all you need. Wasn't that your reasoning?"

Axel nodded, putting his back to the bars next to where Roxas was standing on the other side. "I'm sure you wish I could get out. But Roxas, I don't want you to take this to court, or to testify if someone does-"

"Stop! What are you talking about? I don't understand! Why don't you want out of here?" Roxas asked in anger.

"You're being stupid, Roxas!" Axel said, swiftly turning to face his lover. "What if I change again- I could hurt you, you know!"

"Don't make me say it again." Roxas said. "I'm all you need, aren't I?"

"Yes." Axel said. "That's...what I think."

"Well, I'm sure this is all we need. I'll testify, but I won't bring this to court, Axel. I'll wait. You were right about one thing. I've had great fantasies about you moving in with me."

Despite Axel's extreme dis-optomism in the face of being let out of prison, the news didn't stop boasting proudly about the Axel case. Roxas switched the paper he received to the one biased towards Axel's release and watched the news on TV in the mornings when he got home as often as he could. But his work hours were long and Axel was in need of special treatment daily while in such a mood.

In fact, their sex had gotten better with the stress. Of course, the wood and cigarettes being burned also increased, but Roxas was enjoying his job more than he ever should. Not that there wasn't problems with the exchange. Ansem knew. It was very obvious from the pointed looks he gave Roxas and the very pointed conversations about the demand for a dangerous prisoner's release he had with him.

But he smiled often as Roxas made his replies about how much Axel had changed and what good he could do in the world and how he should go on prole rather than release because he might "like that better." The last comments also made it clear that Axel wasn't thrilled about the release as well, and therefore Ansem was a bit more comfortable with the situation after Roxas started mentioning it.

It wasn't for another two months of this that the big news came in. The protesters had taken to the street, standing outside the cell in the morning and blocking Axel's morning guard from entering. They didn't want him guarded. Roxas shook his head, reading the headlines. Axel wouldn't like that at all.

But Roxas remained unharmed by the protesters. At night he was at first approached by two who had stayed behind, but when he admitted his support for Axel's case, he was generally left alone. Perhaps it was his arua, but the prostester trusted him with Axel's life.

There was, of course, two or three people, victim's families, who had received their letter, ripped it up on sight, and were fighting the case with all they had, but the day Axel's lawyer came, everything changed.

He smiled at Axel and sat down in a metal chair with the morning guard insisting to stand between them. "Mr. Axel, it's good to see you again." he said with a fake lawyer smile and Axel knew he was up to no good. "I've come on business with good news for you. There's stir about starting up a retrial- something for you to go on prole-"

"Don't want it." Axel said. The guard and lawyer stared at him.

"W-what?"

"Don't want it." Axel said dangerously. "I said I don't want one- I don't want one, I don't want to hear about one. I am...where I am." And that was the end of that conversation.

At least until Roxas heard about it. First he asked why Axel didn't care if he got out. Axel told him he deserved it. Then he asked why someone who had changed so much would want to stay in prison because of something like that. Axel told him he deserved it. This, of course, quickly deteriorated into "Why don't you care that you can't be with me like this? If you're punishing yourself maybe I shouldn't be here" and "Maybe you shouldn't" and hence- Roxas and Axel's first real fight.

When Roxas came down to the cell day three of "Give Axel the Silent Treatment" Week, he wasn't expecting an apology of any kind.

"Roxas, I'm sorry."

True to his word to himself, Roxas was silent, but it was mostly from the shock that Axel had apologized. After all, he was probably right that he should stay in jail...but Roxas couldn't help being a little selfish with him.

"Roxas, please talk to me." Axel begged, gripping the bars to the cell and clinging to them like a baby. "PLLLLLEEEEEEEEAAAAAASSSSSSEEEEE?"

Roxas shook his head, but he was smiling with his back turned to Axel. Sometimes these cute little things were hard for Roxas to resist.

Axel clinged, he begged, he cried, he whinnied, he sobbed. Roxas held firm. And so Axel had only one this left. One thing to persuade him. "Roxy...." He purred deliciously, and Roxas shivered as Axel's hot molasses voice trickled down his spine. "Why don't you come here?" the pyro asked, but it was perfectly rhetorical.

Roxas closed his eyes, licking his lips as the sexual need in the air gripped him. He faced Axel, walking slowly to the bars, as if being drawn. He didn't know what he was doing until his lips were pressed heatedly against his lover's. Axel tasted him and caressed his lips until Roxas' knees buckled. He hit the ground and Axel came down to his level, gazing into his eyes.

"That's not fair..." He said weakly, but Axel shushed him gently.

"Roxas...it's perfectly fair because...I've decided to take the trial. My execution date is coming up."

Roxas' eyes grew wide.

Len: Well, I hope you're all doing alright....I'm going to start on doing some more things now.....Hope this chapter was enough to sustain you all for a while. I know it's short!!!