OH DEAR LORD I'M HAVING A ROUGH DAY!

Apparently I managed to muck up posting those three chapters earlier, so they were repeat chapters for a while. It is all fixed now.

BAAAAAAAAAAAAH!

Thanks to Team Braco for letting me know, I wouldn't have ever noticed.

So I decided to post ANOTHER chapter to let you all know that the errors should be fixed now.

AND, now we get to see more of Luxord, and we will for a while. I know it seems like he hasn't been a very important character thus far, (and really, he hasn't) because mostly everything has been seen through Larxene's eyes. But that's about to change starting with this chapter!

I was having a really hard time developing Luxord's character. I wanted him to be this really smart guy in an almost eccentric way. I wanted him to be very cultured yet still down to earth, which is a hard line to walk by the way. I hope I've managed to pull that off. He's certainly eccentric, and you'll see what I mean in this chapter. We still have a lot more to delve into as far as Luxord's past is concerned. His is certainly the more interesting of our two heroes.

Be prepared for that very soon. And BIG HAPPENINGS at the end of this chapter. Oh yes.

Uh, a few French words (but we use them in English just the same)

Nouveau Riche - Newly Rich or "New Money"
Parvenus - Another term for "New Money"

I think that's it. Enjoy!

Luxord awoke as morning broke through his window. It was uncharacteristically bright for the weather they'd been having lately, but fitting regardless. He hopped out of bed in excitement. Today was the day, he'd decided, that he would try to win Larxene back. Or, win her over to begin with. He had it all planned. Before the others could arrive to begin work on the speakeasy, he'd wake her sweetly with a kiss on her forehead and present her with a gift, a necklace that had once belonged to his mother. Then he would tell her just how much he loved her and how special she was to him and if all worked well, he'd kiss her and perhaps they'd make love. At least, that was how it worked in his mind. He dressed quickly and pulled open the top drawer of the armoire where he kept the few pieces of jewelry in his possession. He pulled out a golden chain with a cameo locket dangling beautifully in the light and tucked it into his palm before starting out into the hall eagerly. But as he approached Larxene's room he spotted Naminé exiting with Larxene close behind. So much for waking her with a gentle kiss… "Ah, ladies, good morning!"

Larxene scoffed and glared at Luxord. "What's so good about it?"

"Well, the weather is nice." Luxord smiled and shrugged. "Larxene, could I have a moment?"

"I'm afraid there's no time for that." Marluxia smiled as he topped the stairs and quickly took up Larxene's arm in his own. "There is much to be done. Today we shall finish work on the speakeasy. Larxene still has some work to do with Zexion and you and Axel will be busy putting up wallpaper."

Luxord scowled and crossed his arms. "It will only take a moment."

"It is not a matter up for debate." Marluxia narrowed his gaze on Luxord and grinned. "If you'll excuse us now, I'll be escorting Miss Larxene to see Zexion. Nami, will you see to it that Mister Luxord finds his way to the cellar at some point today?"

Luxord huffed and watched Marluxia quickly lead Larxene away. He then turned his eyes to Naminé and growled. "That man infuriates me."

Naminé smiled sweetly. "Please remember, I am a member of his group. Do watch what you say, Mister Luxord."

"Yes, I know. And I can scarcely believe it." Luxord sighed. "You were always so sweet Naminé. Now you're waltzing around here with a gun strapped to your thigh. Larxene hates me again. Everything is completely topsy turvy and I just want an ounce of the normality that we had back in New Orleans!"

Naminé laughed softly and shook her head. "That normalcy is gone now, Mister Luxord. You have to accept the predicament in which you find yourself and move on. This is the new normalcy. You're criminals now, like it or not. And you should be grateful things aren't worse off. You just have to find a way to be content with this new life. Even Miss Larxene is starting to adjust, and Mister Demyx as well. They've accepted their roles here, have you?"

Luxord stared down at Naminé quietly a moment before furrowing his brow in thought. "My role? Am I no longer Paris?"

Naminé tilted her head to the side and looked to Luxord in question. "Pardon?"

"Or perhaps…" Luxord stared down at the ground, his mind a million miles away now. "Perhaps this is no longer Romeo and Juliet. But what then?"

"Mister Luxord?" Naminé looked up at the blond British man in confusion. The more she got to know him, the more bizarre he seemed. "What are you talking about?"

"Nothing, dear heart." Luxord shook his thoughts and forced a smile. "Nothing at all."

Naminé nodded slowly before forcing a smile of her own. "I see. Well, let's get down to the cellar and finish up the speakeasy."

"Right." Luxord followed Naminé down the stairs to the cellar where the usual faces were already hard at work. Lexaeus and Demyx were busy polishing the bar and Axel and Roxas had well over half the massive room covered in wallpaper. He joined up by Axel's side and picked up a brush, painting the walls with paste so that he could apply the wallpaper. His mind was spinning on his conversation with Naminé and it helped to make the work pass by fast. He thought long about this situation, trying to find what Shakespeare play to best compare it to so that he could determine just what role he was meant to play. He had a hard time thinking about things without something to reference it to, and Shakespeare had always been his favorite thanks to his mother.

Before too long, the day had passed. He had finished up the wallpaper as the others began bringing in stools for the bar and tables and chairs for the rest of the area. Once all was done the group retreated back upstairs for a celebratory dinner but Luxord didn't feel much like celebrating. He still couldn't place this scenario and it was starting to irritate him. At least when this was Romeo and Juliet, well, at least then he knew where he stood. But now he felt terribly lost. He was an extra at best. How horrible! He sat through dinner in silence and finally retreated upstairs when the others began to leave. He reached the top of the stairs and started to his room but stopped as he heard giggling coming from Larxene's room. He turned himself in that direction and pressed his ear to the door to listen.

Naminé laughed lightly and leaned on her arms for support where she laid on the floor. "And that's how I convinced Marly to send me to work for you and your father…"

Larxene chuckled and plopped down on her bed with a heavy sigh. "Wow, you're really tough Nami. And hearing you talk about Marluxia like that, well, it almost makes him seem human."

Naminé giggled and shrugged. "He wasn't always so cold and calculating. But prohibition has changed a lot of people. You know, he was going to school to become a lawyer before all this happened. But then a greater opportunity presented itself and here we all are. Money is what drives the world and it brought us all together here. For better or worse, this is how it is."

Larxene nodded. "Yeah. I'm not too crazy about it but I'm starting to accept it. You know, it isn't so horrible. I'm actually looking forward to running the speakeasy. Rubbing elbows with old money and nouveau riche alike is something I'm accustomed to so it won't be hard."

"Just like the old days, right? With your mother and father dragging you to all sorts of parties. Only instead of your mother you have Zexion and instead of your father you have Marluxia." Naminé laughed before letting out a heavy sigh. "I've never once been to a ball or party like that. It must've been wonderful."

"It was incredibly boring. You would've hated it. Not to say I wasn't good at it. It seems like lying and being deceitful is the only thing I'm good at. So I used it to my advantage and charmed my parent's peers into adoration. We were parvenus but you would have never known it the way I worked those arrogant bastards. As far as they knew, we'd inherited the distillery through generations and all the money along with it and they adored us." Larxene sighed. "And look where it all got me. Here, practically alone"

"Oh come now, it isn't that bad." Naminé smiled. "You've got Demyx here."

Larxene snorted and rolled her eyes. "Demyx is an annoyance. He always has been…"

"Well, Marluxia is fond of you." Naminé batted her eyelashes and smiled knowingly. "I'm sure with a little give on your part, you could be completely in his good graces. You wouldn't want for a thing."

"That man terrifies me." Larxene shivered at the thought and shook her head. "No. You're the only one I really have, Naminé."

Naminé cocked an eyebrow and smiled. "What about Luxord?"

Larxene crossed her arms and scoffed. "What about Luxord? That man has been a nuisance in my life since I'd learned of his existence!"

"Funny." Naminé put a finger to her lips to imitate thought. "I seem to recall you getting awfully familiar with him just a few short weeks ago."

"A fluke, that's all." Larxene shook her head. "Of course, that was before I realized his deceit. He never really loved me, Nami. He used me like I used him. And I suppose I got what I deserved. This is God's sick way of punishing me."

"Then why do you still wear the ring he gave you?" Naminé sat up from where she lay on the floor and looked at Larxene seriously. "And why do you look on the verge of tears right now?"

Larxene grumbled and scowled. "I do not!"

Naminé nodded quickly. "Yes you do. Admit it Larxene! You were falling for him hard and just when you thought everything was perfect, you realized it wasn't and it cut you deep. You thought he loved you and when you realized he didn't, it hurt you. You can put on your callous façade all you want but I can see right through you. I've always been able to. Luxord hurt you, and now you're trying to punish him by making him feel as though he hasn't a friend in the world. And it is working well. The poor man was in shambles today, babbling about Paris or something. But who are you really punishing here Larxene? Luxord, or yourself? Because I can see the look of sadness on your face every time he's around, right before you paint over it with a hateful glower."

Larxene opened her mouth to protest but stopped as she heard a knock on the door. She turned her eyes in the direction and growled. "Come in!"

Luxord opened the door slowly and peeked his head inside. He forced a smile and looked to Larxene hopefully. "May I come in?"

Naminé stood quickly and grinned, answering for Larxene before the older girl could discard Luxord altogether. "I was just leaving. Larxene would love to see you, I'm sure."

Luxord watched as Naminé exited the room before starting toward Larxene slowly. "I'm sorry, but I was eavesdropping. I overheard…"

"Nothing." Larxene glared at Luxord in fury. "You overheard nothing but a meddling young girl's foolish thoughts."

Luxord sat on the edge of the bed and reached out a hand to touch Larxene's but before their skin could make contact she tore her hand from his reach. He sighed sadly and shook his head. "She's right, you know."

Larxene narrowed her eyes to slits and stared hard at her husband. "Right about what exactly?"

"I've been in shambles. Naminé said something to me today that made me realize, this is no longer Romeo and Juliet. I'm no longer Paris. And at least when I was Paris, I wasn't exactly in your good graces but things were far better off then than they are now. You scarcely speak to me! I don't know my role anymore." Luxord stared down at the floor in thought. "I don't even know what story to compare this to. I had made such good progress! I was well on my way to becoming your Romeo but now you're no longer Juliet. So what good does it do me now to have worked so hard to make you love me!?"

Larxene watched Luxord in silence a moment before cocking an eyebrow. "Are you out of your mind? What are you going on about?"

Luxord sighed and shook his head. "I… I do this thing. I've always had a hard time coping with certain things. Romance, family, things like that. But when I was young, my mother always used to tell me that if there was a course of action that I needed to take but didn't know how, to just compare myself to a character from a story who was in my same situation. I could look at what they'd done, know the outcome, and decide if that was the course of action I wanted to take. But I never had much confidence so even if I knew the action I would take would lead to sorrow, I still took it because I didn't have faith in my ability to choose the proper action by myself."

Larxene blinked at Luxord before scoffing and throwing her arms in the air. "That's the most idiotic thing I've ever heard of!"

"Isn't it?" Luxord chuckled to himself. "For so long I compared my life to play after play. Whatever situation I was in, I made sure I had a point of reference for it. Shakespeare had always been my favorite, because that was my mother's favorite, so most of the time I used his plays as advice on what I should do next. Absolutely ridiculous, right? But it has worked for me so far. Only now, now I can't think of a single piece of literature to compare this situation to. I don't know how to act. I got an idea in my head of how to make this right, but it backfired on me before I could even set it in motion. The first original thought I got in my bloody brain and already, fate decided I wasn't meant to think for myself."

"You're out of your mind, you know that? I thought you were strange before with your constant need for attention and always comparing me to Juliet, but this just takes the cake Luxord! You're very, very bizarre." Larxene couldn't fight the chuckle rising in her throat. "So, you didn't really marry me because that's what your father told you to do. You married me because that's what Shakespeare told you to do!"

Luxord crossed his arms and grumbled. "Oh yes, by all means, make fun of the man pouring his heart out to you."

Larxene snorted and nodded. "No, please. Go on, I'm interested."

Luxord huffed and dug a hand into the pocket in his trousers where he'd placed his mother's necklace earlier. He pulled it out slowly and stared down at it. "You know, you infuriate me. You infuriate me and yet, I adore you. How is that!? For the first time I started making decisions on my own. It was back in New Orleans with you. Sure, I compared us to Juliet and Paris, but I was striving to change that role instead of following it. I wanted so badly to be your Romeo. I thought I was so close, and then all this happened. You hate me for the very thing I forgave you for and still nothing I can do will change that." He clenched his fist around the necklace and seethed angrily. "I was going to come in here this morning and kiss you and tell you just how much I really love you and give you this gift but to hell with you Larxene! I don't know why I even bother!"

Larxene felt a strange pang in her chest. Could it be guilt, hurt, sadness? No, certainly not any of those things. She furrowed her brow and crossed her arms. "What gift could you possibly give me? What, another piece of your mother's tacky jewelry?"

And then it happened. It happened so quickly that it was over before Luxord could even register to stop himself. He slapped Larxene hard across her face. The sound echoed in his ears as he realized just what he'd done. They stared at each other wide eyed, Luxord's hand now throbbing. He stood quickly and backed away from her, guilt flooding him almost instantly. "I… I'm so sorry." He watched her as he backed toward the door. He expected her to get up and attack him, and if she did, he'd accept it. He deserved it. But she only stared at him in shock. He opened the door slowly and looked back at her one last time. "I'm so sorry…"