Gah, I meant to have this chapter out alot sooner than I did, but my net got disconnected. It got turned on last night finally. ;D In lieu of Obama's inaguration my mother's birthday (!!!!!) on the 21st, I originally meant to put it out that day. Happy birthday, mom!
Got kinda lazy in the final part, but I hope you can't tell... And before I forget, REVIEW REPLIES!
kez-chan-Lololol. Riku secretly likes being hugged, don't let the glare of death fool you. *riku death glares.* Neh, the big teddy bear. Sora's just being a jealous poo. *Shot.* I was kinda wary about the last chapter probably 'cause I hadn't submitted on it in so long... months, was it? I'm glad you liked it and thought it was long. ;3
XxXmaximuM-RideRXxX- Lol, thank you for the review. Action's not much in this chapter, and seeing as how the chapters like to change completely if I plan beforehand, I can't give you an exact on when action'll come up (probably next chapter.).
sain-kookie- thank you for the review! Yay, I get love! ;33 I'll do my best on this story, thanks!
Chibi Darren- Thank you, thank you. Honestly, I can't wait to see what comes next either (that's horrible since I'm the author...). Thank you, and I'll do my best on updating. ;D
BluFox15- Hey, chick! Saw you on the Youth Inauguration! Lol, go you! ;33 Gee, I dunno where the French comes from. ;D You say it so harshly; just for that I'll do sporadic updating where you'll be forced to read and never get to spend time with your 'boyfriend'. I write for chuu. -Luff.-
music-is-luv- Thank you for the review! I think we can all agree that Riku is thoroughly pissed off. Glad I'm not the only one that takes extreme pleasure in it. ;D Thank you for the review~!
Ying Fa Xang- Thank you! I can see him speaking french, too. ;D Thank you again!
I never thought I'd have to reply to so many reviews! ;D thank you all! But also, I just want to ask that people drop me a line instead of just favoriting or alerting. It'll help me better myself as a writer if I get some constructive critisism or a pat on the back or something. Thank you all for reading, though it's a little short. ;D
Over the phone, Roxas snorted.
"Roxas! I'm serious!" Riku whined, and Roxas could just hear the pout. "Calm down, Riku." Roxas managed to fight back some of his giggling. "It's like before; Sora's a fast learner. You'll just have to teach him English while he knows French. Now he'll know English and French." Roxas yawned, leaning back on his bed.
When would Axel be getting home again…?
"Roxas, you don't seem too surprised, nor do you seem worried in the slightest." Roxas could have sworn he'd heard an, "Il fait bon!" in the background, but he ignored it. "Because I'm not. Riku, you're worrying too much. It's—" Roxas nearly dropped the phone. His eyes had wandered to a corner of his room, where a black cloaked figure stood silently.
"…I'll call you back." He hung up the phone, abruptly cutting off any reply Riku may have had.
"Okay, what do you want?" Roxas asked, glaring at the figure. It only stood there, but now its head lowered. "Roxas…" The voice sighed. Roxas remembered that voice. He knew…where had he heard it? Whose voice was it? The figure reached for its hood, startling Roxas into a fighting position, until the hood was yanked back.
"Demyx?!" Roxas gasped.
"Roxas…it's been a long time." And indeed, the familiar blonde was there, smiling and standing awkwardly in the corner of his room. "What…?" So many emotions filled him; happiness, regret, sorrow…the feeling of betrayal. "What are you doing here?" Roxas forced himself to keep his voice even, though all he wanted to do was go and hug his other best friend.
"Roxas, we want out. Me and Zexion both. We…we spent so long planning to come here, planning to escape…please don't turn your back on us now. We don't know what to do…but we don't want to do their work anymore." Roxas was in shock, watching Demyx explain his ordeal with expressive, teary eyes. "Demyx…" Roxas paused. What could he say to that? How could he deny his best friend that request?
But how could he accept?
-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-
Axel yawned, leaning back in the ratty black office chair he sat in. They'd just had an adoption day at the shelter, so naturally there were tons of papers and files to sort through.
And lucky Axel got chosen for the job of sorting.
"Aw, Fluffy got adopted? I liked Fluffy, I knew I shoulda got him for Roxas…" Axel frowned, reading the adoption papers of a small white dog. Yes, he knew that dog; a cute little mutt that always enjoyed nipping at his and Roxas' fingers. He'd definitely have to go pay a visit…
"I always knew you were a dog person."
Axel froze. That voice…he knew that voice. But it just couldn't be…
"Zexion?"
A hooded figure emerged from the shadows, standing before the redhead's desk.
"Axel, you didn't forget." Axel made to get up and greet one of the people that he hadn't seen in god knows how long…but then he remembered. "Zexion…what are you doing here?" He asked, letting his anger seep through his voice. "Axel, I know what you're thinking. But you need to let me explain. Demyx is probably talking to Roxas now and—"
"Demyx?!" Axel was confused now. "Yes, Demyx. He—…we both are tired of doing whatever it is that we're to be doing for the organization. As he says…we want out. But we need your help. We can't do it alone."
"You do know what you're asking from us, right?" Axel sighed. To do something like this…with an organization like them, it was going to be hard. If he agreed, and couldn't keep his word…
"Yes, but we trust you two." Axel was surprised, to say the least. Zexion, when Axel had last seen him, was quiet and not known to say more than a sentence at a time. Heck, Axel didn't even know he could trust anyone (but of course, Demyx was a different story.). But here he was now, asking for Axel's help. When he put it like that, it was hard to say no…
But it was going to be even harder to say yes.
-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-
Riku sat, head in his hands, palms digging into his closed eyes. It was painful. At least, it looked painful to Sora (It didn't feel to good when he tried it earlier to see just what Riku found so appealing about doing it.). The brunette was sensing a lot of mixed feelings from the silverette; dispair, hopelessness, and…well, if he had to be honest…Riku was just plain angry (or what the humans would call 'pissed'.). But why? Curious, Sora sought to find this answer himself.
"Ca va?"
Riku only wailed loudly, and…was that sobbing Sora heard? Other than those rather frightening sounds, Riku stayed silent. Sora pouted; it was rude to ignore someone when they asked you a question! And it was an innocent one too, he had no clue what was wrong with it. Maybe he phrased it incorrectly? Still pouting, Sora tugged on Riku's sleeve.
"Not now, Sora…"
"Riku…" Sora tried. He wasn't exactly sure how to inform the male of his rudeness and Sora's own confusion correctly. So he settled for huffing.
"Sora…do you remember any of the English I taught you?" Riku asked. Sora nodded vigorously, all previous poutiness completely forgotten. He was happier at the fact that Riku finally stopped looking like he was trying to dig his own eyes out. "Oui, oui!" He grinned.
Riku's head fell to the table.
Sora was confused…wasn't that how humans said 'yes'? He didn't quite know what he was agreeing to, but…
"Not oui, Sora. Yes."
"Oui?"
"Yes!"
"Oui!"
"No, yes!"
"Non oui?"
"NO, IT'S— Just…nevermind." Again, Riku's head hit the table. That couldn't be good… Sora stood from his current position (beside Riku's chair, on the kitchen floor), and shoved a familiar stuffed animal into Riku's face.
Riku looked up, smiling slightly before he paused. "Sora, can you say 'bear'?"
"Bee-aaree?" Sora's face contorted somewhat as he tried to form the words. Riku snapped his fingers, seemingly in realization. "So you can learn words that you didn't learn in the movie easier than those you did. Makes sense… And apparently, you still understand me." Sora cocked his head questioningly. "Or do you? Sora, do you understand anything I'm saying?"
Again, Sora cocked his head. He half contemplated on saying 'oui', but he really didn't want a repeat of before…
"Let me put it like this… What's my name, Sora?"
Now that was easy. "Riku!" Sora exclaimed proudly. "Okay, so you know some English still…this shouldn't be too hard if we get to work now." Sora cocked his head at Riku's words, not fully understanding what he had said. Oh, well…he guessed he'd find out in a few minutes.
-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-
"I don't see why we don't just go get him ourselves. The boy's weak enough, and if we threaten the key with him, then…"
"Don't be foolish." Xemnas sat at the head of a long white table, fingering the smooth blue ribbon. "If we try anything, we'll trigger it too early. No, the key's will is far too strong. We'll simply break him. Crush his spirit until he's nothing but a doll." Xemnas' hand tightened around the ribbon, a smirk on his lips.
"That way, when the time comes there will be no hesitation. Until then," He tossed a hand to the two hooded figures beside him. "You two will trail after them, but keep your distance. His powers are dormant, and he is unaware of how to use them all. However, he can still feel you if you're too close." The two figures looked at one another, then nodded. "And you." Xemnas turned his head to his right, staring up lazily at the figure standing beside him.
"You stay behind, I have a mission for you too. The rest of you all are dismissed."
Everyone stood, and made their way out. "Man, why does Saïx get all the good missions?" Someone muttered. Xemnas only smirked.
"Yes, why do I get all the 'good missions'?" Saïx asked, once the room was clear. He flicked strands of icy blue over his shoulder. Xemnas' smirk stayed in place as his eyes mapped out the other's face, tracing the scar with his eyes. Oh, he'd let something else trail that scar... But then he remembered the question asked, and his eyes glimmered.
"I think you and I both know the answer to that." Xemnas stood, making his way slowly to Saïx. The man only stared at him calculatingly with yellow eyes. They both knew what was coming and while the silver haired man wasn't one to beat around the bush normally, he had to admit that he didn't mind this form of 'foreplay' at all. "I think you may have to refresh my memory…" Saïx's voice was little more than a whisper due to their close vicinity.
"With pleasure." Xemnas said, and pulled the other man to him for a kiss.
-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-
"So he fell for it." Demyx breathed, pulling his hood back. Zexion shushed him, looking around. He motioned to his own room, and Demyx nodded before following him inside.
"Remember what I said, Demyx. We have to be discreet." Zexion sighed, once his back had hit the now closed and locked door. "No talking about this to anyone, for anything, anywhere. At all." Demyx nodded like a scolded puppy, frowning. But then he smiled.
"We…we'll finally be free again, right?" At this, Zexion's stern look faded into a gentler one, and he sat down beside Demyx on his bed. "Yeah…we'll be free." He said. Demyx sighed happily, leaning over so his head rested on his lover's shoulders.
"How did you get Axel to help us? Roxas…he has a soft spot for me, so I managed to get him to agree…but Axel is…" Zexion smirked as Demyx looked at him curiously. "He's not all that bad. And I have my ways." But he turned serious again. "I'm not sure how we're supposed to make this work, though."
"It's simple! Xemnas has already dispatched us to earth, right? And we have to keep watch over the key. We've got a free ticket in, so we'll just go to them and—"
"No! We can't just…go up to him. And say what? 'Hey there, we're part of an organization bent on the destruction of the human race. You might remember when we kidnapped you. We're not bad, though. Wanna help us?'" Zexion glared blankly at the blonde, who only shrugged. "If you think that'll work, but I was aiming for something more discreet…" Zexion rolled his eyes. "Forget it. What plan do you have, my genius?" Demyx took this as a compliment and beamed brightly. "We'll go in disguise. They only know us by the cloaks. So we'll go without them. And…well, Roxas and Axel probably have something figured out from there."
Zexion had to admit, that was pretty smart. "But what about…" He looked behind himself, gesturing to his back. While there was nothing there now, once he stepped foot out of the castle and got rid of the cloak, the concealing magic placed on his wings (as was placed on everyone else's wings) would be dispelled. And he'd be screwed; the magic was placed there to keep them all from getting 'discouraged' at the fact that they were technically halfsies. "Oh, that's right…hey! Roxas is a guardian! Of course he knows magic like that." Demyx nodded to himself. "So it's settled?"
"Almost." Zexion replied, and Demyx frowned in annoyance. "Almost? What more do we need to plan?" Zexion sighed then, "We need one more thing…"
-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-
Riku sat, flashcards on his left and a tape recorder on his right. His head was in his hands, and buried in his knees.
This was seeming so hopelessly…hopeless. It was sad, really, seeing as how he'd spent so long coaching with english flash cards and little voice recordings from an audio soap opera he'd found in the coat closet (which was really only a storage for things that no one needed yet couldn't throw out.).
"Riku?" Sora asked, and Riku felt a poke on his side. "Ca--…are…" Riku gasped, his head snapping up. "Wait, what were you about to say?" The silverette asked slowly, hope sparking in him. Maybe, just maybe…
"Are…yoou…ah…" Sora's cheeks puffed out in thought. "Yeah?" Riku prodded, almost squealing with glee. "Are yoou al…riight?" Sora's brows wrinkled as he forced the words out, biting his lip when he was done. Riku could only grin at him. "Yes! I'm perfect now!" The green eyed boy threw his hands up in happiness.
Ever since earlier, after the…confusing language swap, Riku had been trying to re-teach Sora English, and for the longest time he thought it was all in vain. Until now. He was so happy, he thought he felt himself crying. Part of him scolded himself for being so childishly gleeful about the whole situation, but the less caring part simply replied with a 'Fuck off' and the mental finger.
Sora only cocked his head in confusion.
"Great…now the rest of the English should be no problem." Or at least, Riku hoped it would be no problem. "Okay, then we should work on—"
There was a knock at the front door.
Both Riku and Sora's eyes flew to the stairs leading to the main hallway. Riku heard Sora gulp audibly, and he pulled the boy closer to him. Sora's hands grabbed his shirt.
His cell phone rang.
Riku ripped the phone from his pocket, silencing the chimes. "Who is it?" He asked in his best impression of a casual whisper.
"Riku? It's me, Roxas. Come let me in already!" Riku gasped. "Roxas? Wait…how do I know it's you?" Riku's eyes narrowed; he wasn't taking any chances with Sora under his care and those cloaked psychos on the loose.
"I'll do our knock. You know the one," And suddenly, there was a series of rhythmic knocks on the door, making Riku smirk. "Alright, I'm coming." He flipped the phone shut, then stood. Sora no longer had his shirt, and was poking at the sleek black phone on the floor. "Oooh…" Riku heard the amazed sound, smiling before he tip-toed up the stairs. He was still wary, but when he peeked over the corner and saw Roxas standing impatiently through the stained glass, he laughed.
"What took so long?" Roxas huffed, stepping past Riku once the silverette had opened the door. "Had to make sure."
"Roxas!" Riku was barely prepared when the blob of brunette sunshine zoomed past him, and Roxas was no better off in the line of fire when Sora pounced onto him in a hug. "Hey there, Sora." Roxas sniggered. "I hear you learned French."
"Français, oui!" Sora chimed, and Riku only glowered as Roxas cackled. By the time the blonde had stopped, Sora was standing behind Riku and looking quite confused, while Riku only glared.
"Roxas est étrange." Sora whispered to Riku, frowning. Riku didn't know much about French, but he knew enough to have a cackle-fest of his own.
"Me, strange?!" Roxas huffed. "Riku, you bastard." And then Roxas shook his head, as if remembering why he'd actually came.
"That's not what I wanted to talk about—"
"Baa…stard?" Sora blinked, then tugged on Riku's shirt. Riku's cackling had immediately ceased as Sora blinked again, "What…is bastard?"
And then it was Roxas' turn again to cackle.
"Ah! Well—you...you—no, it's…don't say that word!" When all else failed and Sora's lips positioned to speak again, Riku covered Sora's mouth with a hand. "Roxas, please don't teach him dirty words! The kid can barely speak any English now, don't have him saying things that'll get us in trouble!" Riku glared. "I won't teach your…'kid' curse words, uncle Riku." Roxas teased, while Sora only cocked his head. Riku's hand still covered his mouth.
"I came to talk to you about something important, though. It can't wait." Well, Riku could really tell it was a tremendously grave situation, what with the way Roxas was screwing around... He nodded anyway, letting Roxas past him so he could go to the kitchen.
And then he felt something moist and warm on his hand, and slightly rough in texture. It felt good, and he almost let his eyelids slide shut.
Until he realized what it was. He yanked his hand back, ignoring the way the air chilled the saliva on his hand, and not-so-effectively ignoring the way the brunette's eyes twinkled gleefully as his cat-like tongue still hung from his mouth.
"Sora, don't lick me!" I might not be able to control myself next time! had tagged itself on the end mentally, until he realized that there wouldn't be a next time, and he realized that he actually meant that statement. Sora only giggled, unaware of Riku's inner turmoil, and pointed to his own tongue. "Lick!" He exclaimed, looking proud of himself. Riku only slumped against the wall.
"Hey, guys. Stop having sex in the hallway, and come on!" Riku jerked away from the wall in time to see Sora's eyebrow raise. "Se—"
"NO!" Riku made to slap his hand over Sora's mouth again—over those perfect, glistening lips again—but thought better of it and settled for pulling the giggling brunette to the kitchen and a semi-annoyed Roxas.
The teddy bear sat safely on the couch.
Finally, another chapter. I hope no one thinks I died...v.v; Again, thank you readers! ;D