Fucking FINALLY I finished Number 26. Man, this time was even worse than Ch. 18…

I apologize a thousand times over for such a late update, but I've been obsessively playing BBS and working on other stories. So I kind of got distracted from the story…plus, I've got school. And AP Chem. Which is a pain in the ass, I'll say that much.

And everybody who I've yet to review, sorry. I'm working on it, and maybe wondering if I'll get a bad reaction from anybody…no…no…I mustn't run away, I mustn't run away, I mustn't run away…

Shinji: Hey, that's my line!

Oh right, and I got distracted by the Evangelion Archives. Damn you, Gregg Landsman, and that awesome, insanely addicting NGE: Nobody Dies of yours!

BTW: There's a "Before Angels Fall" shout out in this chapter. See if you can find it~!

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN THE KINGDOM HEARTS FRANCHISE.

I only own this story. Enjoy!

Xxx XXX xxX

"Wake up~!"

Naminé groaned. "Go away, Xion."

"WAKE UP!"

"Go aw—AAAAHHHH!"

A hand clamped down on her hip, another on her shoulder, and she felt rushing air and saw spinning walls before she landed on the carpet—and the tough ceramic flooring underneath. Ouch.

On Monday, Xion had made her wake up at eight o'clock in the morning.

On Tuesday, Xion had made her wake up at seven thirty.

On Wednesday, Xion had made her wake up at seven o'clock.

On Thursday, Xion had made her wake up at six thirty.

On Friday, Xion had made her wake up at six o'clock.

Today, Naminé was unceremoniously tossed out of her own bed at three in the morning.

"What the fuck was that for?" the blonde snapped, sitting up glaring through bleary eyes at the brunette. She wasn't normally this irritable or foul-mouthed, but considering the circumstances, that was excusable. And it was cold, too.

So fucking cold. Just like Xion's heart, the Genki Girl witch.

"It's Christmas morning!" the brunette cheered, jumping up and down. "We're going to go downstairs and open our presents!"

"It's three in the morning, Xion."

"The earlier we do it the more time we have to play with them!"

"Xion, you're sixteen years old. Act like it."

The traceuse pouted and set her hands on her hips. "You're no fun at all, Naminé," she said.

"I'm a lot of fun when I get enough sleep," Naminé retorted, glaring at her roommate the entire way back to the bunk. The blonde heard something about "Riku and Zexion" and "going to borrow Mr. Wallace's megaphone" followed by the door slamming shut, but she didn't really care—better them than her.

She sighed and began twiddling her thumbs—she couldn't sleep, for some reason. Stupid Xion, stupid Christmas, stupid, stupid, stupid—

"Good morning, Miss Miyamoto."

Naminé screamed and somehow jumped up from a sitting position, smacking her head into the surprisingly solid forehead of a ghost boy. Vanitas reeled back, clutching at his noggin, even as she did the same.

"Perhaps I should have notified you of my presence," he groaned. He swallowed when his gaze lowered back onto her.

"No really?" she said, rubbing her bruised forehead. "And 3:00 A.M. doesn't count as morning."

"I was under the impression that the label 'A.M.' applied to any time in the morning," Vanitas replied. "Unless, of course, you do not usually wake up this early—am I correct?"

"Yes," Naminé smiled in a tone of honeyed venom. "Vanitas, do you know what the term 'get out before I eviscerate you' means?"

"Was that the subtlest threat you could come up with?"

"Considering that I'm half-asleep, I don't think that my brain or my manners or my self-restraint are functioning at peak capacity right now. Now get OUT!"

"Do you not wish to find out why I am here?"

She considered for a moment. The ghost probably wouldn't have appeared in her room without good reason. "Okay. Go on."

"Merry Christmas."

"ARGH…!"

Vanitas sniggered and disappeared just in time for the hurled pillow to fly through the space his head had been a moment before. Naminé scowled and flopped back onto her bunk, pulling the sheets up to her neck, and that was when she realized that she'd somehow shed her top in the middle of the night.

She turned deep, deep red.

Well, okay, Vanitas was a ghost. He'd probably seen a bunch of girls half-naked before, if he was into that sort of thing, and he certainly would have the abilities to carry that out. But somehow she knew he wasn't—his personality didn't seem like a pervert's.

That would explain why he'd been embarrassed instead of titillated at seeing in her in a nightie, but still.

"I'm overthinking this," Naminé sighed, turning on her side. Well, if she was up this early, she might as well get something done. That drawing of the clock tower wasn't going to finish itself, after all.

But the bed was so soft and so warm and so fluffy and so comfortable that Naminé found herself drifting into a gauzy haze…

Xxx XXX xxX

One ice blue eye cracked open. The other followed its twin a second later. Then Naminé saw what time it was.

"8:00?"

Shit, that meant she'd just wasted five hours sleeping!

The door banged open and Xion walked back in, her hands on her hips. The brunette looked furious, for some reason or another.

"Why didn't you wake up?" she demanded. "We could've gone down to the Christmas tree without any trouble, but noooo, you just have to black out for five hours!"

"Okay, okay, I'm sorry," Naminé sighed, rubbing sleep-sand out of her eyes. Then she perked up. "Wait, did you say Christmas tree?"

"Yes…"

Before Xion could say anything else, Naminé had bolted out the door on a beeline for the elevator, too excited to remember that she wasn't wearing a—

DING.

Riku and Zexion stepped out of the elevator and promptly cried out, shielding their eyes with their arms. Naminé screamed and covered herself with her hands.

"Dammit Naminé, cover your tits!" Zexion shouted. A comment like that from a guy like him would've been hilarious if it weren't more embarrassing.

"Are you trying to blind everybody?" Riku said. "That's not the little sister I know!"

"Sh-shut up!" Naminé cried, blushing furiously. "I-it was an accident!"

"Then why are you still standing here?"

Xion's arm snaked around the corner and pulled Naminé back into the dorm; the traceuse closed the door with a swift kick. At the same time, she thrust a fistful of clothes into the blonde's face.

"Get decent. Now."

"Don't need to tell me twice," Naminé muttered, embarrassment still roiling at her insides. "I'm never gonna live this down…"

When Naminé had put on the T-shirt and jeans, the two girls walked out to join the guys. Riku looked calmer now, likely because Naminé was his sister, but Zexion's face was still slightly ruddy.

"We won't talk about this if you don't," Riku said calmly.

"Deal," Naminé replied. She couldn't even look her brother in the eyes, she was so humiliated. Roxas probably would've laughed it off or cracked wise at her admittedly small bust size and gotten hurt for it—not to mention check out her rack.

Which she would've enjoyed.

Maybe.

Of course, that was a pretty damn big maybe, because she would've just as easily slapped Roxas silly for staring.

The foursome entered the elevator in silence, Xion glaring daggers at Riku the whole way for some reason. Riku made a "What?" gesture, waving his hands around in confusion. Xion crossed her arms over her chest and tilted her chin at Naminé. Riku's response was to gawk at his sister, then Xion, and furiously shake his head in denial—of what, nobody knew.

Zexion moved to Naminé's side. "Observe the ritual display of outrage made by the jealous female adolescent," he smirked. "This behavior is most fascinating, isn't it?"

"I was thinking more along the lines of "hell hath no fury like a woman scorned"," Naminé giggled. "But that works too."

"I heard that!" Xion snapped. "And I do not like your brother, Naminé!"

"Suspiciously specific denial, much?" Zexion retorted. His pronunciation was perfect—no stumbling over the alliteration, no lisp, no mistakes at all. "Come now, Xion. I thought you were a better liar than that."

"I'm not lying!" the brunette traceuse protested, blushing furiously—proving Zexion was correct. "He's a disgusting, incestuous pervert!"

"Great, now she's emulating Soryu," Riku muttered, drawing a snicker from Zexion. "And how would you know that I'm a pervert? Last I checked, Naminé was the one who ran out of her room topless, not me."

The blonde kicked her brother, who didn't even react. "Shut up! I-it was an accident!"

"Sure it was," Riku smirked. "What girl couldn't resist me, even my own sister?"

Everybody stared at him. Xion spoke first.

"That's…ew. Just…ew, seriously. Beyond that, Naminé looks like your mom, Riku. Does the name Oedipus ring a bell for you?"

Thankfully, they reached the first floor before he could respond. The doors opened to reveal an almost blinding light emanating in loops and swirls around a giant green cone that reached up to the ceiling of the lobby thirty feet above. Naminé and Riku stared at the mammoth evergreen, eyes wide and jaws agape, previous argument completely forgotten.

The tree was decorated with glittering bands of holographic lights wrapped around it. Hundreds of candy canes and…multicolored orbs-bulbs-thingies (Naminé couldn't remember what they were called) hung on the evergreen needles. Hundreds of gift boxes were arrayed beneath the massive trunk and scores of students crowded the lobby, shouting and chattering about what they got for Christmas.

"That thing's a monster," Naminé said incredulously.

"How did you even get that tree in here?" Riku asked. "I'm pretty sure that the main door doesn't have the necessary clearance…"

Xion set one hand on her hip and pointed a defiant finger at the ceiling. "Through the power of friendship, of course!"

The effect was ruined when a box bounced off the back of her head. Sora, somehow cradling a veritable mountain of gifts, walked up to the group and handed Riku and Naminé their presents.

"Merry Christmas, guys," he grinned. "Don't mind my sister. Christmas is her favorite holiday, and she gets a little…crazy about it."

"Got that right," Naminé muttered, drawing a glare from her roommate.

Zexion stood off to the side, searching the crowd for somebody.

"I don't see them," he said worriedly. "Strange, they're usually down here first…"

"Who?"

"Axel and Larxene."

"They probably already got their stuff," Naminé murmured, setting her presents down on the floor. One in particular, a long, heavy cylindrical object, caught her attention. "Ooh, what's this?"

"Guys, we need to—"
"They're probably banging," Xion said nonchalantly, picking up the strange gift. "And if they are, good for them. They finally managed to spit it out."

The brunette tore off the wrapping paper, ignoring Naminé's scandalized protests, and let a triumphant whoop as she held the…thing up for all to see.

"I knew it! It's a Keyblade!"

The "Keyblade" was a double-shafted, silver-green, with a blue-gold star-shaped head, with two angel wings curving around the handle. A star-shaped charm hung from the end of a string attached to the pommel. A word was engraved on the metal of the blade—Oathkeeper.

Entranced, Naminé took the sword from Xion. The blonde gently ran a finger along the smooth, reassuringly cool metal, marveling at the fine craftsmanship.

"It's beautiful," she whispered. "I didn't know that Roxas knew how to forge swords…"

"How do you know that Roxas made it?" Riku asked.

She turned, startled. "I—I don't know. It just…did you make it?"

"No."

"Roxas definitely made it," Xion remarked. "He's always been good with his hands."

Riku's brow began twitching. "Oh really?"

"Not that way, pervert," she retorted. She gazed at the Keyblade. "But he made both me and Axel one of those, too—Oblivion and Frolic Flame. They were signs of our friendship."

"Is that thing a real sword?" Sora asked, stepping away. His sister had clearly never told him about the Keyblade. "Because if it is…"

"It's a prop, not a weapon, you coward," Xion replied, smirking at her brother's discomfort. "But yeah, it can do some damage if you swing it hard enough."

"Right…"

"Wait a minute, where's Zexion?" Naminé said, turning around. "Wasn't he standing next to Riku a second ago?"

"I dunno, maybe…" Xion's voice trailed off and she paled. "They didn't."

"Didn't what?" Riku growled.

And then they realized where the missing traceur was going—and why.

Xxx XXX xxX

Kairi sat on the edge of the rooftop, contemplating the ground far below her. Any other person might have been frightened by the height…but she knew that a fall from even the highest skyscraper would not hurt her. Vanitas would protect her.

She turned around at the sound of footsteps.

"Hi, Roxas."

"Hey, Kairi."

The blond carelessly plopped down next to her. His confidence, on the other hand, was born out of his parkour skills.

"Still thinking about Sora?" he asked.

She nodded glumly.

"Now you know how I feel about Naminé," Roxas said, leaning back. "When're you going to spit it out?"

The redhead drew her knees up to her chest. "I don't know. I'm just…I feel so guilty now that I know the truth…"

"About what?"

"About Naminé. And…"

His jaw dropped. "You thought that—"

"Yep," she sighed.

"Wow," he muttered. "Okay, didn't see that one coming."

They were silent for a moment.

"Thanks for making Seifer back off," Kairi said. She shuddered. "I ask myself why I even accepted that first date."

"Hey, you have to admit the bastard can be charming when he wants to be."

She laughed. "You've got some pretty low standards, man."

"Naminé doesn't think so," Roxas said, pouting.

"Well, she's in love with you. So she doesn't count."

He flinched.

"When're you going to spit it out to her?" Kairi asked. "You can't just make her wait forever, Roxas. She'll move on, and one day she'll forget about you."

"If she does, I deserve it," he mumbled. "I ran away from her. I rejected her. She has every right to forget about me, because I broke her heart."

"That's exactly the same mistake I made," Kairi retorted. She grabbed a fistful of the traceur's blond spikes and pulled his ear to her mouth. "Approach her again, you idiot. Apologize to her. Don't repeat how I messed up with Sora."

"It's easier for girls, Kairi," Roxas snapped, slapping away her hand. "Your gender can screw with a guy's will something fierce to get what you want. You could walk up to Sora and kiss him and work out everything. I can't do that."

"How do you know that Naminé doesn't want it to be that simple?"

"Because she's moved on," he muttered. He sniffled. "She doesn't need me anymore. She doesn't want me anymore. She knows that she can be happy without me."

"Maybe it's because she's set her mind on waiting for you," Kairi suggested. "And that means you've got a deadline to tell her. Don't screw this up, Roxas."

"I screwed up everything in my life. What's not to say it won't happen again?"

"Stop being a whiny emo bitch," Kairi growled. "Yes, your fear is legitimate. You've made a lot of mistakes in your life, but this time you're getting a second chance to fix it. Are you telling me that you're willing to let Naminé go without a fight?"

"You make me sound like a wife-beater."

She palmed her face. "That's not the point."

"And I'm not going to ruin it for Naminé," Roxas muttered. "I'm just going to screw up again."

Kairi ground her teeth and grabbed the boy's collar.

"Listen to me!" she hissed. "Yes, you and Naminé are going to have fights. You'll mess up again—that's inevitable. The difference is that you have to try to reconcile with her, not run away just because she yelled at you for picking the wrong wallpaper. She loves you, you love her, and don't you dare give me that denial crap, Takahashi."

"I wasn't going to, and Naminé would never yell at me for picking the wrong wallpaper. She would glare at me."

"You see?" Kairi said triumphantly. "You know her well enough to know that. You shouldn't give that up just because of one mistake and especially not when she's willing to give you another chance!"

He sighed. "I guess…"

"Look, I'll make this simple for you," Kairi said. "You can talk to her and get her back, or you can run away from her again and lose her forever. Make your choice."

Roxas didn't answer.

Xxx XXX xxX

Naminé, Sora, Xion, and Riku burst out of the elevator, dashing around the corner of the fourteenth-floor hallway. The top floor was reserved for the most privileged students—Naminé didn't really get how the system worked, but in a nutshell whoever paid more got better housing.

It showed, too. The fourteenth floor had much larger (and somehow, the same number of) rooms than the floors below.

"Where's Larxene's room?" Riku asked.

"Room 347, I think," Xion replied. "Or 346, I'm not sure."

And then they heard the yelling. Zexion's yelling, Axel's yelling, Larxene's yelling.

"347, definitely."

Sora got to the door first and stopped dead in his tracks when he caught a whiff of the smell—anger, shame, lust. Mostly the latter.

"Well, fuck," he muttered. "This ain't good."

"What do you—holy SHIT!"

"When I said they were probably banging, I wasn't being serious. You guys all know that, right?"

Zexion and a half-naked Axel were yelling into each other's faces. Both of them looked as if they were about to start brawling right in Larxene's room; the disheveled, haggard girl was sitting on her bed, and she looked like she didn't know whether to be angry or guilty or both. She also looked like she had a really, really bad headache, and not from the yelling.

"How could you?" Zexion shouted. "You betrayed her trust!"

"She wanted it, okay?" Axel yelled back. "She had an hour to tell me no, but she didn't!"

"You got her drunk!"

"She knew what was going to happen!"

"You pressured her!"

"No, I didn't!" Axel hissed, clenching his fists. "We're in love. Isn't that enough of a reason?"

"How do you know—?"

"Zexion."

He turned. Larxene had gotten up, her hand holding onto a bedpost for support.

"It was my decision to do this, okay?" she whispered. "I do care about Axel. Maybe enough to love him, and certainly enough to sleep with him."

She looked past Zexion, towards the stunned foursome standing in the doorway.

"I hope you won't judge me for this, guys," Larxene said. She smiled weakly. "I mean, we did use protection, but…"

They had never known. Naminé could only stare at Zexion, speechless, unable to comprehend what he must be going through right now.

"Jesus Christ, Lord and Savior," Xion muttered, her eyes wide. "Axel, you…and Larxene, you…how? When?"

"Well, we…gah."

Larxene clutched her head, grimacing. Axel was instantly by her side, gently lowering her back to the bed.

What did it feel like to find out that the person you loved had feelings for someone else? Naminé could only wonder, could only try to sympathize, because Zexion had somehow kept his crush on Larxene secret. But then again, this was Zexion, Snark Knight—if he hadn't wanted it visible, nobody would've figured it out.

Riku stepped forward and tentatively set his hand on Zexion's shoulder.

"You okay, man?" he asked.

Without a word, Zexion shoved him away and ran out. Naminé could see a flash of tears as he dashed past her.

"You just couldn't keep it in your pants, could you?" Xion groaned, palming her face. "Nice job, Axel. You and Larxene just tore Zexion's heart to itty-bitty pieces."

Headmaster Xehanort chose that moment to walk in.

Xxx XXX xxX

I spent half of November on this chapter, writing and rewriting it to meet my standards—which are a lot higher, thanks to the time I spent on the Eva Archive.

This chapter may have some continuity problems. Meaning I have to go back through every single effing chapter and edit them so that they fit to what's in this chapter. ARGH. I don't think I'm going to make the effort.

And why is Vanitas acting so OOC? Because Christmas is a special occasion for him, as in morbidly special. It has to do with why he stays at the school.

Please review! *crosses fingers and hopes that he'll get reviews*