Tori woke and saw (and appreciated) that Axel was still asleep. She stared at his sleeping form for a moment more admiringly. Noticing unwillingly the way his hair fell over his eyes and the way his chest moved evenly each time he drew breath. She pulled herself away from the peaceful scene before her and grabbed the clothes she had laid out to wear the evening previous. She tip-toed to the bathroom and turned on the shower. She let the hot water run over her body for a moment before beginning to lather the soap into her skin. As she did she tried not to imagine where else the soap had been. She worked the shampoo into her straight, medium-length blonde hair. Axel's shampoo had a pleasant sweet fragrance. Not too strong but enough to notice. She stayed in the shower longer than she normally would, washing away the dirty feeling that came with being so near a man for a prolonged amount of time. Even when she got out, she did not feel entirely clean. Tori climbed out of the shower and was about to grab the towel already out, but thought better of it and grabbed a new one out of the bureau. As she dried her hair she wondered if Axel was still asleep.

In actuality, he had been awake for the better part of fifteen minutes. He had listened to her turn on the water and step lightly into the shower stall. He had heard her as she softly sang to herself, so low it was almost a whisper. She had woken him up, and he wondered if it would happen again.

Tori finished dressing and began applying her makeup. She wore only mascara. She felt any more would cloud her appearance. (And she didn't know how to apply anything else.) Axel on the other hand she knew wore far more than the average person. Far more than necessary, she thought rudely. She checked herself in the mirror one last time. Checked that her shirt was free of wrinkles, along with her skirt, and checked for any clumps in her mascara. There were none. If she would stop to ask, any man would have told her she was beautiful. But she didn't listen to their opinions. Unfortunately.

Tori left, and Axel entered. Tori smiled ruefully, hoping there was no hot water left.

She went to the study where she knew Zexion would be waiting for her. (She preferred not to think of him as Zexion, rather Number VI, because once you started giving them names, they could betray you.) Because of her hesitation earlier she was running late. Just perfect, she thought. Late for my first session. Zexion would be helping her (though to be honest, he wouldn't be all that much help) with her studies of the "Darkness within".

VI waited rather impatiently. He didn't want anything to do with this girl. She was a mere child. And he wondered how desperate the Superior had been to acquire her. But what really bothered him was the fact that she was taller. Most were, true. But this was a girl quite a bit younger than he. And he didn't like it one bit.

Tori rushed in.

"Sorry." She apologized exasperatedly. She placed her books on the desk and sat down.

"No need to apologize." He muttered. "Just don't let it happen again."

"Oh I won't." she said quickly.

"Seeing as you didn't come in too late, I suppose we still have time for the lesson in its entirety."

A few hours later:

Tori was absolutely exhausted. She was so tired she decided to skip the evening meal altogether and go straight to bed. She was already fast asleep by the time Axel came in. Even so, he decided to wake her up.

"Hey," he said softly. So softly his voice barely pierced Tori's dreams. She turned over and opened her eyes slowly.

"Hmmm? What?" she groaned, not very happy about being awaken so soon. She wondered if tonight would be a repeat of the night previous. She grimaced, she had seen Axel's "nice" side, and was sick of it.

"Zex wear you out or what?"

"Huh? This is why you woke me up?!"

"It's only 8:30. You would've woken up anyway."

She glared at him briefly, then rolled over. She muttered something about self-absorbed pigs and closed her eyes. Axel went over to his stereo and turned it on. Tori pulled the pillow over her head.

"Turn that off," she growled.

"I'm sorry, but I had to do something to drown out your snoring," He smirked in a self-satisfied way. Then moved to his right to dodge the pillow Tori threw at him.

"Asinine."

Axel turned the radio up louder. The station was playing some kind of rock music.

Tori gave up. "Alright! I give, what is it?"

"Well, now, you finally want to listen to me?"

She thought a moment, "No, but seeing as you won't leave me alone till I do, I might as well."

He snorted in contempt. "I was going to ask you if you wanted help with Mister Know-It-All."

"You're referring to Number VI?"

"Yes."

"No, I do not wish any help in dealing with him. On the contrary, he seems to be the only one who can hold a comprehensive conversation."

"You like him?!"

"No. However, I do find his intellect stimulating."

Axel stared blankly.

Tori rolled her eyes, Men! "He is intelligent."

"And I'm not?" Axel asked indignantly.

"Not really," she agreed.

Axel looked flustered but he recovered. "I don't need to be a brainiac," he said.

"And just what does that mean?" she raised her voice a bit.

He ingored her. "...I've got looks."

"You are so vain." Tori was repulsed.

"You should talk wise girl."

"Me?"

"Yes you. Like you're not just as centered."

She started to respond, but stopped. Axel smiled victoriously.

She sneered, "I won't waste my breath arguing with you." Axel's smiled faded. "You're not worth it."

He turned away. "We'll see how long you believe that."