I'm shooting for at least 80 reviews; that should be possible, based on the number of chapters planned. And you guys did give me almost 70 reviews already. :P Thankies!

Chapter 18 will have a reviewer's response, because you all deserve an honorable mention that doesn't require going to another page.

And yes, I will focus on Roxas/Namine after this arc. I'm a bit annoyed that I've neglected my favorite pairing like this.

DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN ANYTHING MENTIONED IN THIS STORY.

Just this story. Enjoy!

Xxx XXX xxX

When they returned to ADBS, Naminé and Xion split up from Roxas and Sora to return to their room.

"That bitch always manages to rile me up when I get into a good mood," Xion muttered, rubbing her forehead. "And now I have a headache…"

"Xion, can I ask you something?" Naminé said, fiddling a bit with her shirt sleeve.

"You don't have to ask, but sure. Shoot," Xion said.

"When exactly did Kairi break up with Sora?" Naminé asked.

Xion's eyes darkened at the mention of that, and the traceuse leaned back in her chair. "September…"

"What day?"

"Saturday…"

Naminé winced. She now didn't really want to know which Saturday, exactly, but she had to make sure.

"What—what date…?"

"The fourth."

"So you're saying," Naminé choked. "That the day I got with Roxas…Kairi broke Sora's heart?"

"Pretty much," Xion replied weakly.

"Now I feel so guilty," Naminé groaned. Pain began pounding in her noggin.

"Don't be," Xion said, shaking her head. "Their issues don't get to interfere with your relationship with Roxas."

The blonde fell back onto her sheets, her waist-length blonde hair splaying all over the bed. "No wonder he was so pissed off at you when you…"

"Told him I abandoned him for parkour?" Xion finished. "Yep."

"Why didn't you tell me?" Naminé murmured. She was more disappointed than angry that Xion hadn't chosen to confide in her.

"I thought I could handle it myself," Xion admitted. "Axel and Roxas were pretty pissed off when they found out exactly why he'd overreacted. They asked me why I hadn't told them, too."

"I guess I can understand why," Naminé said. "You wanted to keep this between you and Sora, huh?"

Xion nodded. "That's how we've always settled our fights. Him and me, alone, with a sister to brother talk. Same goes for every time either of us got hurt—we'd always comfort each other."

"So that's why you forgave him so easily," Naminé continued. "You knew that you and only you really had the power to make Sora feel better at that point."

The brunette nodded again. "Smart girl," she smiled. "No wonder Roxas fell for you that fast."

Naminé closed her eyes and folded her arms behind her head, thinking of her favorite traceur's handsome, grinning features.

"It wasn't just her brains or her looks he fell for," Axel's voice called from outside their room. "Xion, Naminé, could I come in?"

The blonde and the brunette raced for the door, but Naminé turned out to be just a little faster than her friend. She unlocked and opened the door.

"Hey, Axel!" Xion grinned. "Do you need anything?"

The traceur scratched his crimson mane. "Actually, I came here to...well, how'd you like a visit to the common room?"

"Common room?"

Xxx XXX xxX

"Holy shit."

She just stared. And stared. And stared. Trying to not stare was about as difficult as seeing through walls. Xion put Naminé's thoughts into words.

"What the hell is this place?" the brunette snapped, looking up at the grinning Axel.

"The common room," the redhead said.

The two girls had been expecting the common room to be medium-sized and cozy, like something out of Hogwarts; they hadn't realized it was the entire 2,500-square foot twelfth floor of Building C.

The common room had an ultramodern feel. The two walls opposite the elevator were floor-to-ceiling glass panels that provided a godlike view of the campus; the lowerclassmen milling on the grass below resembled humanoid ants. A bank of computers was set in one corner, and a brace of concept tables was arranged along the opposite. A dozen couches and sofas were arranged in a multilayered ring that looked like a depiction of Atlantis Naminé had once seen in a documentary. The plush carpet was a silvery-blue color and looked very expensive.

"How come I've never heard of the common room?" Naminé asked.

"Only a select few are allowed in here," Axel replied. "About a quarter of the senior class and a handful of juniors. I invited you two."

"Thanks, but why would you not want lowerclassmen to come to this place?" Xion inquired.

Axel gave her a strange look. "If we did, this place would be too crowded to use," he answered. "In case you didn't know, there're way more freshmen and sophomores than there are juniors and seniors."

"Good point," Naminé muttered, heading to the couches. Then she halted. "Wait, what were we here for again?"

"I completely forgot," Xion admitted.

"I think you came here because I invited you?" Axel chuckled. He passed Naminé and plopped down on a couch. "Come on, sit down. The sofas won't bite."

Naminé gingerly perched on the arm of the sofa. The leather looked like a square inch of it cost more than her parents' car.

"Just how rich is this school?" the blonde muttered, glancing around nervously at the luxury surrounding her. She felt like some policeman was going to come in here and arrest for trespassing any second.

Axel wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her onto the couch next to him. "Pretty darn rich, actually, thanks to rich students," he grinned. "But hey, this room was made for us. Relax!"

"Naminé!" Xion called, striding over to the computers. "These—these—I've only ever seen these things in concept art!"

"So?" Naminé said, shrugging out of Axel's arm joining the brunette. The couch ring was sunk into an octagonal pit in the middle of the floor, and the eight sides of the pit were basically one giant set of stairs.

"These aren't even out on the open market!" Xion gasped, running a finger along the edge of a monitor. "Damn, they're beautiful…"

"Zexion's parents donated those," Axel called from his sofa. "Everything in this room was actually donated by students' parents."

"I'm guessing that only people who donated something to this room are allowed in here?" Naminé asked.

"Sharp," Axel commented. "Yep. Those windows are courtesy of my parents."

"You mean those monsters?" Xion inquired, pointing at one of the glass walls.

"Bingo!" Axel declared, jumping to his feet.

"I don't even want to know how much those things cost," Naminé muttered, glancing nervously at the enormous windows as if they would suddenly transform into giant shards of glass and impale her against the far wall.

A soft ding caught the trio's attention; the elevator's floor dial slid to 10.

"Who…?" Xion's voice trailed off as a very familiar redhead girl stepped into the common room.

But Kairi wasn't her usual arrogant self, or even the desperate, frightened side she'd shown earlier that day.

"Kairi, are you okay…?" Naminé's voice trailed off as she realized just how ridiculous her question was. And then a jolt of rage coursed through her. "Oh, that motherfucker!"

The girl was most certainly anything but okay. A large bruise along the side of her cheek was one of the more visible of her injuries, along with a gash sealed with dried blood on her forearm. A nasty scrape was present on her shin, and her left wrist was at an odd angle. There were several bite marks along the curve of her neck. Considering that she was shuddering in pain every time she walked, it was likely that her injuries weren't confined to only those that were visible.

She squeaked in fear when she locked eyes with Axel and Naminé, but surprisingly Xion darted forward and (carefully) grabbed her forearm.

"What happened?" Xion demanded. From her limited angle of view, Naminé could see that the brunette was near tears. Strange. "Who—who DID THIS TO YOU?"

"Nobody," Kairi choked. It was quite clear that she was lying.

Axel rushed forward and swept one arm down to his sister's knees and the other around her shoulders, gently carrying her to a sofa. Naminé knelt down next to the redhead girl.

"What happened?" she asked in a much gentler tone than Xion.

"I—I fell down the stairs," Kairi replied.

"The stairs can only be accessed by the staff outside of emergencies, except for during morning PE," Naminé remarked. She'd learned that little tidbit from Zexion. "What happened?"

"I fell down the stairs," Kairi stated through gritted teeth.

"It was Seifer, wasn't it?" Axel said. The traceur knelt down and looked into his sister's eyes. "Tell me the truth, Kairi. You can't lie to me."

Kairi's silence was all the confirmation required.

"I knew it," Xion muttered, shaking with rage. "I knew it. That bastard's gonna pay with his life if I get my hands on him."

Naminé looked at the traceuse curiously. "Why the sudden change of attitude?" Naminé asked. "You were cursing Kairi's name only days before."

And then the blonde shrank back as Xion glared at her. "I have ears, you know," the brunette ground out. "I heard what she said too."

"I know you will," Kairi murmured. "I love you, Sora. I hope you can still believe me…"

She knew Kairi had been truthful then, and judging by the brunette's tone, Xion had as well.

"Come on, let's take you to the infirmary," Axel sighed.

But Kairi shoved his hands away. "No," she pleaded. "He'll hurt me if he finds out…"

"Kairi, there's nothing to worry about," Axel said reassuringly. "We can protect you."

"And you'll get hurt too," Kairi whimpered.

"No, we won't," Naminé declared, standing up. To be honest, she wasn't sure how well she could fight (having never been in one), but she could certainly try. "Be brave, Kairi. You already were twice today."

"No, I wasn't," the redhead said. She rolled over and hugged herself. "I'm a dirty coward and I'm a bitch and I'm a traitor."

"Well, I'm glad to hear you finally admit it," Xion remarked. Then she yelped in pain as Naminé smacked the top of her head.

"What my rude friend here was trying to say was that it's good you understand what you've done," Naminé growled.

The traceuse muttered something under her breath.

"That's great," Kairi said in a monotone.

"Yes, it is. Now, why did you do it?" Axel inquired.

"I don't want to talk about it right now," Kairi muttered, drawing her legs up to her chest.

There were two types of people of said that, those who meant it and those who were using to make people curious so that they could tell them. Naminé could tell Kairi was being the latter, but she decided to give the redhead the benefit of the doubt.

"Okay," she said softly. "We'll leave now."

To her credit Kairi didn't make a sound when they left the common room.

"Something's fishy about Kairi and Seifer's relationship," Axel muttered, once they'd returned to Room 126.

"No really?" Xion retorted. "I mean, she just got beaten by that asshole!"

"Can't she just…you know…tell on him?" Naminé asked. She received strange looks from Axel and Xion. "What? What's wrong with doing that?"

Xion shook her head. "Naminé, Seifer beat Kairi for talking to Sora," the brunette said, emphasizing the verbs. "What do you think he'll do if he finds out she told the staff he beat her?"

Naminé didn't dare speculate. "Good point," she admitted. "So what can she do?"

"Nothing, at this point," Axel admitted. He frowned. "Xion, you mentioned that you had 'heard what she said too'?"

The brunette closed her eyes. "We went shopping for the Formal earlier today," she said. "We met Kairi…but she wasn't a bitch to or towards Sora. For once."

"Seifer saw Sora talking to Kairi," Naminé added. "Beanie flipped out and dragged Kairi away."

"But before she left, she told Sora…" Xion continued.

"'I love you. I hope you can still believe me'," the two girls recited in unison. "JINX!"

Axel rolled his eyes. "That was so random," he muttered. "Anyways, so Kairi still has feelings for Sora?"

"It looks like it," Naminé replied. "I think I have a working theory as to why that would be."

"Go on…"

"I think that Seifer intimidated Kairi into getting with him. Actually, that's probably true, judging by what we saw."

There was a thoughtful silence.

"That's…that doesn't seem too farfetched," Axel said slowly. "Hell, you're right, it probably is true, judging by what happened to Kairi."

He sighed. "Goddamnit," he grumbled, scratching the back of his head. "I thought my sister really had gone rotten, but now..."

"We're all tired of the mystery," Xion sighed. "Fall Formal's coming up. Let's not talk about this until after it's over, deal?"

"Done."

Xxx XXX xxX

Yeah, I know that Axel and Namine's reactions to Kairi getting hurt are a bit subdued, but they've yet to really show how angry they are. What's with me and Kairi bashing lately? :C

But if Namine is turning into a Mary Sue, tell me so I can fix it in later chapters. I hate Mary Sues and I have no intention of writing one.

Sorry about the pathetic ending, but I can explain (for once). I wrote Chapter 17 before this one, and if I didn't end Chapter 16 like that, then massive parts of Ch. 17 would've seemed as if it completely ignored Ch. 16.

Unless you guys vote "Side Romance" the most on my poll, then I'm never again writing another high school AU story. "Shade Hunters" doesn't count because its premise is a group of chosen humans fighting evil ghosts, not the teen angst and drama of high school.

Review, please! Even flames make me smile (which is pitiful, I know, but still). Good reviews, or better yet helpful reviews, make me bounce around in joy like a break-dancer on crack.