Larxene swung a clawed swipe at Saix's face, but the Luna Diviner gripped her wrist and kicked her mercilessly in her stomach repeatedly. Larxene gagged but used her free hand to tear off her glove with her teeth. When her hand was stripped of the fabric, she swiped once more, but this time at Saix's throat, her sharp fingernails tearing at skin. Blood gathered feebly to the torn skin, turning it a rosy red. Letting go of her wrist, Saix aimed one last brutal kick to her stomach, sending her staggering back.

Larxene charged toward her opponent, stopping short this time and swerving to her left when Saix lunged toward her. The Savage Nymph bowled into his side, earning a grunt from Saix, who turned and whipped a swinging punch where her head had been a split second ago. She had ducked, and now Larxene took advantage of his split second opening to strike upward with blinding swiftness, clawing along his face before jumping back and charging at him again. When she aimed a kick upward to his chin, she threw another kick which impacted to his stomach. Saix staggered back but looked up, his golden eyes glittering with beastly ferocity.

He ran forward with inhuman speed and grabbed Larxene by her neck and flung her like a rag doll across a table, her body sliding a quarter down the length. Leaping back up, Larxene bounded forward and locked hands with Saix, the two pushing against the force of the other to push them down. Larxene pushed her torso forward as she flipped her hands around with extreme speed, twisting Saix's arms and hands. She smiled sadistically when her opponent snarled and cried out in pain. She ceased his screamings when she whipped her hands away and barreled a kick into Saix's face, sending him sprawling to the floor, blood flowing from his split lip.

He rose up and charged at her again, and soon they were once again a tangle of limbs, with punches, swipes, kicks, and lunges everywhere. Larxene had taken many more blows from Saix than he had from her, but she could tell that he was becoming frustrated as she wiped her bloody lip, blood leaking from a rip over her eyebrow and into her left eye.

Roaring, Saix charged forward and feigned a swinging punch to Larxene's face. He allowed a split-second grin to curl his lips before seizing her slender neck ruthlessly. Larxene gagged as he lifted her in the air, prepared to crush her windpipe.

Axel stared, wide-eyed, at the woman. He knew that the average windpipe took 8-10 seconds to crush, suffocating the person and killing them. What would happed to Larxene if she died? He couldn't bear the thought of losing her again for some strange reason. Yet, he teetered on the edge of madness as he recalled Larxene's strict instructions on not interfering.

Before he could cry out her name, a sharp nudge from behind startled him. Demyx was by his side, worried as he looked at the scene. "Go to her!" he shouted. "Save her!"

Axel did not hesitate; he flew forward with breakneck speed as he leaped at Saix's arm, biting down on it with all his might. Saix roared painfully and dropped Larxene, who lay gasping raggedly for air. Axel immediately let go and dropped to Larxene's side, scooping her up. He turned, with Larxene in his arms, and found Saix looming over them with savagery dancing in his lit eyes. When he charged, Axel was surprised to find the Luna Diviner slip to the side, hitting the ground painfully. He lay there now, unconscious.

Before Axel could contemplate on the Luna Diviner's sudden clumsiness, Demyx ran forward and slid down to the pair. "You alright?!" he quipped fearfully; it had been the Melodious Nocturne who had caused Saix to slip, summoning his water to slide underneath the Berserker's feet. "Axel!" the younger man whimpered.

"What?!" Axel looked down at Larxene, and was struck with a bolt of fear when he saw her eyes closed, a blank expression etched on her face.


She could hear voices...three to be exact. All of them, she knew, belonged to males. She recognized the voices of Zexion, Demyx, and...Axel.

"She'll be fine," Zexion assuaged his companions. "She just needs to rest."

"If you say so...," Demyx trailed off; she could hear him fidgeting around, his boots providing the noise.

"Believe me when I say that she'll be fine, Demyx," Zexion persuaded patiently.

Axel spoke now, the sound of his voice carrying the most worry of the three, "I'll watch her, if that's fine."

Zexion sighed. "If I said no, you'd stay with her regardless. Fine, go ahead and watch her, but be careful if you take her to her room."

The door closed, and Larxene was soon conscious of someone sitting on the edge of the bed she was lying on. "Please be okay," Axel murmured tenderly.

Maybe it was the warmth in his voice; maybe it was the growing need to tell him she was alright; maybe she just wanted to see him. Whatever the reason, Larxene opened her eyes and made an effort to rise up. Axel gave a start and slid off the bed to come to her side, concern that was becoming characteristic watering his eyes. He gently sat her up, but Larxene cried out in pain, making Axel flinch and squeeze her hand.

"What hurts?" he prompted with faint urgency.

Larxene shook her head, but the pain seizing her back intensified. She leaned forward and gripped her arms, panting from the pain firing up her wounds.

"Larxene?!"

"It... It's nothing," Larxene panted heavily, hoping to deter the man from her pain. It proved to be futile, though, for Axel sat next to her, his thigh rubbing hers, and took her gently in his arms.

"Where does it hurt?" he murmured softly into her ear. When Larxene sighed, he pressed on, "Please. I want to know what's wrong. Maybe I can help."

"My body's just sore, Axel," Larxene explained. "I'm-" she nearly cried out again, but she caught herself in time to gasp when a muscle in her stomach seemed to contract. Holding her stomach, she groaned quietly, unable to restrain the noise. Perhaps the kicks she had recieved there were finally starting to make her stomach act up.

"Hey," Axel asked, trying to hold on to her still, "you okay? You're acting like you have to throw up or something."

"N-No, I'm...I'm fine," Larxene gasped out, trying to sit up properly. The Nymph found herself sitting against Axel's chest, her back along his stomach; he had positioned them both so that now Axel was hugging Larxene from behind, his legs brushing hers. "Axel," she breathed worriedly, "I'm fine. Just...a little in pain." She bit her lip as she confessed her state to him; but Larxene somehow felt that she could talk to him. Again.

"Do you want me to do anything?" he asked, a note of sincerity making its way into his voice. "Or do you just want me to keep holding you?"

"I don't...want to feel so needy, Axel," Larxene murmured. "So stop sounding as if I am." When she felt Axel's arms beginning to slack from around her, she felt a sudden icy dread that he would leave her. "Axel, don't." The words were out before she could stop them from escaping her lips.

"I wasn't planning on leaving," Axel told her. "But it's nice to know you want me here." His comment held no humor in it, and Larxene found herself taking a sigh of relief. "Larxene?" he began, and when Larxene gave a soft grunt, he said, "Back there, when you and Saix were fighting, I ached to come to your aid. So much that it hurt. But I knew you would never forgive me if I interfered. But when I saw you about to be killed, I knew that you never forgiving me was far more better than you dying."

Larxene looked up at him. "I suppose," she breathed, "that it's not a bad thing to respect the wishes of others, but then again, it's not a bad thing to overrule those wishes sometimes."

"Yeah...," Axel breathed humbly.

"Axel," Larxene said steadily. When Axel's gaze met hers, she stated, "You still don't know whether or not I forgive you. Do you wish to know?"

"More than anything else in all the worlds," Axel answered, desperate for her verdict. Truth be told, he honestly did not know what kind of answer he would get. What made him so worried was the fact that he had indeed gone against her wishes and interfered in her fight, and Larxene was one who did not forgive so easily.

Larxene did not answer for a while, only placed her head against his chest. She no longer felt in pain as her body seemed to greedily absorb his warmth, yearning for him. Her lips parted slowly and she said:

"I forgive you."

Axel's heart soared as he embraced his friend with gentle strength, feeling his eyes grow hot with emotion. "Thank you so much," he murmured against her hair. "You don't know how much I needed for you to forgive me. I want to be your friend again. Am I?" He looked down hopefully at her.

"Of course you are," she spoke just as soft, aware that her arms were wrapping themselves around Axel seemingly of their own will. Or maybe, it really was herself hugging him back, she just didn't wish to fathom why she felt this way.

Larxene didn't want to fathom why she felt this way toward him.


A/N: Ah, at last she finally forgives him! If they seem out of character, keep in mind that they have thier hearts back now. And as such their personalities may now shift between that of their Somebody and their Nobody traits, until they finally blend together. Becuase hey, if they were still the same but with emotions, then what the hell was the whole purpose of getting their hearts back?