Alright guys… I am literally STUCK at work for the next 5 days. Like, I CAN NOT LEAVE.

Well, I can. But I can't come home.

I work at a daycare (for those of you who don't know) and my boss is going out of town. SO that means somebody has to be there to open the doors (at 5:30 a.m. uhg…) to watch kids and I will also be staying there to baby sit her two daughters (and then two others on Sunday). So I can't come home to upload multiple chapters so I will only have this chapter for you this weekend. I'm sorry. I really wanted to do more too, but the next chapter isn't quite ready yet.

So yeah… Won't be back home till Monday. Balls.

OMG, so anyway! Larxene realizes she's in love with Luxord now! FINALLY! She really started to fall for him back when they were in New Orleans but she kept pushing him away and telling herself she didn't. But she can't deny it anymore. She can't even bring herself to be an uber bitch to him. Ah, soooo romantic.

Oh, this chapter is just so full of stuff. We learn a bit more about Lar's childhood. We learn what exactly happened to Luxord's mum. We also learn why he's such a damn racist. Oh, and we get to see Naminé go nearly ape shit on a bitch. Nothing TOO spectacular.

But expect some major shit to hit the fan in the next chapter! Lyke whoa. I won't drop hints. It has to be a surprise. But it is something that has been a long time coming and I'm surprisingly excited about it.

Anyhow, enjoy!

"Luxord!" Larxene stared in awe at the mess before her. There was unrolled dough on the counter and flour strewn all over the floor. Luxord himself was leaning against the wall on the other side of the mess with an armful of confectioner's sugar, some of it very clearly smudged on his lips. "Luxord, wake up!"

Luxord jumped as he heard Larxene shout. His eyes fluttered open to see her standing across the kitchen looking very confused. "Oh, I… I must've fallen asleep down here."

"Well that's a bit obvious, don't you think?" Larxene huffed and made an effort to step over all the powder on the ground. "What were you doing?"

"I…" Luxord groaned as he made an effort to stand. "I wanted to try making beignets for you. I guess I must've knocked over the flower at some point. All I really remember was sitting here eating this sugar."

Larxene chuckled and leaned down to kiss Luxord's lips. "You're sweet."

Luxord shrugged. "I only wanted to make you happy."

"No, I mean your lips. You've got sugar all over them and you taste really sweet." Larxene giggled and held her hand out to help Luxord up. "Come on, let's start getting this cleaned up before Naminé gets here and sees what you did."

"Alright." Luxord gripped Larxene's hand and let her help him up. He groaned and put the sugar on the counter so that he could grip the back of his neck. "I've got a terrible crick in my neck."

"You slept leaning against the wall, what do you expect?" Larxene smiled and walked over to where the broom and dust pan were leaning against the wall. These, she knew how to use. The knowledge came from years of disobedience at boarding school. She'd often receive punishment by being made to clean during dinner hours when she misbehaved. This was when she had her first real face to face encounters with blacks. A few black women and one black girl her age worked at the school and one of their tasks was to clean up. Being forced to work with the blacks was supposed to be punishment but after a while, Larxene grew to like the women and the songs they would sing while sweeping so she began to purposely act out to receive punishment. Because of this, she had learned to sweep. She smiled fondly thinking back on the memories. "I haven't held one of these in years…"

Luxord snickered softly. "Oh, you've held one? To beat poor Demyx over the head with?"

"Poor Demyx?" Larxene cocked an eyebrow before snorting lightly. "Since when did you ever feel any sympathy for him? And no, it wasn't for that purpose you smart ass. I'll have you know that I used to sweep up almost every evening at boarding school."

Luxord feigned a gasp. "What's that? Larxene getting in trouble? How unbelievable!"

"Ha ha, very funny." Larxene poked Luxord's stomach with the end of the broom before she began sweeping. "I used to get put on cleaning duty on purpose. Not the first time, of course. But after the first time I really enjoyed it."

Luxord grabbed up a damp rag from the sink and began to scrub the counters. "How could you enjoy a chore?"

"Well it wasn't the chore. It was the company. See, there were black servants at the boarding school. There were three women and one little girl. I didn't know any of their names, or really anything about them. They weren't allowed to talk to me. But they always sang and whistled while they were cleaning. They had the most beautiful voices. They used to sing these songs, I don't suppose you'd know them. They'd sing songs called The Gospel Train and Steal Away but I always liked Swing Low, Sweet Chariot the best. It was amazing and I loved to just listen while I swept." Larxene smiled sadly. "I miss them, even though they weren't exactly friends. It makes me sad."

Luxord huffed and rolled his eyes. "There is no reason to be sad over a couple of caffers. You're better off without them around."

"You sound just like my mother." Larxene laughed and shook her head. "One day I'll make you see it differently though."

"Nothing will change my opinion about those filthy little rats." Luxord growled under his breath. "They all deserve an early grave."

"What is your problem with them?" Larxene stopped sweeping and sat the broom aside. "What did blacks ever do to you?"

"They killed her!" Luxord roared. He stood staring at Larxene, her eyes wide and confused. He was angry at the thought but he knew he shouldn't have yelled at her. She didn't know. It wasn't her fault. "They're the reason for my mother's death."

Larxene looked to Luxord sadly and reached out toward him. "I'm so sorry. Will you tell me what happened?"

"I was thirteen. Father was away on business, probably here in the states with your father. He told me I was the man of the house while he was away and that I had to keep an eye on my mother. It was Christmas time so I was on holiday from school. It was late one night, two days before Christmas eve. There was knock at the door but the servants had all gone home so my mother went to answer it. There was a caffer at the door and he asked if my father was home. He said he had an important business letter he had to deliver directly into my father's hands. My mother explained that my father was abroad on business and apologized. She went to shut the door but he forced his way in and attacked my mother." Luxord grit his teeth and forced back the tears coming to his eyes. "I tried to defend her but I wasn't very strong. He tied us up and he made me watch as he…"

Larxene swallowed hard. "D-did he force himself on her?"

Luxord nodded slowly. "And then he just went upstairs like it wasn't a big deal, took whatever money he could find and left us tied up there. When the servants came back the next day my mother told them not to call the authorities. If they did, news would get around. She thought it would ruin my father's reputation and business so she kept it silent. After that my father found out about what happened. He said he didn't view my mother any differently but I could tell he did. He was disgusted by her for something that wasn't her fault. It took a toll on my mother. She couldn't stand it any longer. She took her own life. My father didn't even care…"

"I'm so sorry." Larxene stepped over to Luxord and wrapped her arms around him. "That's horrible. That should have never happened. But Luxord, that was only one case. Not all blacks are like that."

"It doesn't matter. I hate them. All of them. Immediately after it happened my mother fired all the caffer servants in the house. She just couldn't look at their skin color anymore and neither could I. It turned my stomach. I can only imagine how it made her feel." Luxord clung to Larxene but he wasn't on the verge of tears anymore. Just furious. "I hate them all. I look at them and I see his face and nothing changes that."

"I'm sorry. I understand so much better now." Larxene looked up at Luxord with sorrow. She felt wretched. She'd treated him so horribly in the past. She had no idea about everything he'd been through or how difficult it was for him to simply just be happy. "Luxord, I…" But before she could finish her sentence there was sound of the doorbell ringing. She sighed and pulled away from him slowly. "That's probably Demyx with breakfast." She started out of the kitchen and made her way to the front door. She pulled it open slowly. "Demyx, why didn't you just go around to…" She froze as she looked out the front door. It was not Demyx. It was a man she'd never seen before. He had a piercing gaze and clean suit that said he meant business. "M-may I help you?"

Saïx stared quietly at the woman standing before him in her robes. She was indecent, but it seemed that she'd quickly lost her modesty amongst the gangsters. He could feel a light blush rise to his cheeks so he cleared his throat to distract her attention away from it. "Mrs. Gabbiani?"

Larxene nodded nervously. "Y-yes sir?"

"I'm, uh…" Saïx cleared his throat again and turned his eyes from the woman. "W-would you like to get dressed before we speak?"

Larxene looked down at herself calmly. She was in a robe which was what she was normally parading around he home in. She'd gotten used to it although she realized not everybody was likely as accepting. "Oh, I suppose. What is this regarding, again?"

"I'm a neighbor." Saïx glanced back at Larxene before quickly looking away again. "I just wanted to meet you and your husband and welcome you to the neighborhood."

"Oh. I see." Larxene nodded slowly. "Just a moment and I'll…"

"Who's here, darling?" Demyx approached Larxene from behind with Luxord quickly in tail.

Saïx's gaze fell on Demyx curiously. "Mr. Gabbiani, I assume?"

"No, no." Demyx chuckled and held out a hand for the man at the door to shake. "Just a close friend of the Gabbiani family."

"I see." Saïx eyed Demyx suspiciously and turned his gaze to the approaching blond man behind him. "So you must be Mr. Gabbiani."

Luxord looked warily at the man before him. He was not one of the approved faces that was allowed to enter the home but to deny him entry might also cause suspicion. He clasped the strange man's hand and nodded. "I am. And you are?"

"Laurent. S. M. Laurent. I'm a neighbor." Saïx gave Luxord's hand a firm shake. "I was away for weeks on business and imagine my surprise when I return to find I have new neighbors. I had to come over right away and introduce myself. I didn't even have time to buy a gift, forgive me. This house has been vacant for so long and I was so excited to hear it was filled that I just rushed right over."

"I see." Luxord forced a smile and stepped aside. "Well, come in. Our good friend Demyx brought breakfast. Would you like some?"

Saïx shook his head. "I really can't intrude. I just wanted to introduce myself and say hello. I really need to unpack and relax. But how about I stop by later tonight?"

Luxord looked between Demyx and Larxene worriedly. "T-tonight?"

"Tonight's no good." Larxene smiled sweetly at Saïx. "I'm afraid we just had to fire all our servants for stealing from us. It will be some time before we can properly interview and hire some new ones and unfortunately we're not very good hosts otherwise."

"You know, tomorrow morning would be a lovely day to go out on the town. Perhaps we can visit a restaurant and get better acquainted that way." Saïx smiled and clasped Larxene's hand in his, bringing it to his lips. "You'll all come, won't you?"

Demyx laughed and nodded. "Of course. If you insist, how could we deny you?"

Saïx nodded. "Wonderful. I'll see you tomorrow at nine."

"Goodbye, Mr. Laurent!" Luxord waved to the retreating man before turning his eyes furiously at Demyx. "What the hell was that!? You accepted plans for all of us when we know nothing about that man! What if he's a federal agent!?"

Demyx grinned widely and shrugged. "Did he look like a fed?"

Luxord scoffed and rolled his eyes. "Does a fed have a particular look?"

"Just trust me. The best thing to do in a situation like this is act like we've got nothing to hide. That way we don't seem suspicious. If he is a fed and we keep our cool then everything should go smoothly. But if he isn't a fed, big deal. We've got ourselves a potential new customer!" Demyx smiled to himself. "Now, how about some breakfast?"

Luxord sighed. "We're going to have to tell Marluxia."

"Don't be ridiculous." Demyx started back toward the kitchen with the two blonds in toe. "I'm sure all that precautionary stuff is just Zexion's paranoia. We'll just keep meeting the man outside of the house and learn if we can trust him."

"And in the meantime we run the risk of alienating the gangsters, and possibly pissing them off. No thank you. We're telling Marluxia as soon as we see him. I'm not messing around with this." Luxord crossed his arms as they entered the dining room where Demyx had sat his basket of confectionary. He took a seat beside Larxene who had remained silent since they'd parted ways with the stranger at the door. "Any thoughts, dear?"

Larxene furrowed her brow. "S. M. Laurent. It sounds so familiar but I can't place where I heard the name. But you saw that scar on his face, right? No business man gets a scar like that unless he's dealing with the mafia."

Demyx nodded and began pulling apart a sugar coated beignet. "I was thinking the same. I think he was either in the mafia, or dealing with them."

"Then that's all the more reason to be cautious of him. If he still has ties to a gang he could be trying to learn what exactly it is we're doing. Maybe he's doing something similar and he doesn't want us moving in on his territory." Luxord picked up a croissant from the basket and spread some butter on it. "Think about this logically. We need to involve Marluxia. We may not like him, but we still rely on him. He keeps us safe. He's here to protect us, even if it doesn't seem like that. To be honest, I'd be more relieved to find out that guy is a federal agent. I'd rather go to prison than die at the hands of a rival gang."

"I think you're just being paranoid. But fine, we'll tell Marluxia." Demyx rolled his eyes and plopped a piece of beignet in his mouth.

"Tell Marluxia what?" Naminé looked at the three at the table curiously as she entered the dining room from the kitchen. She smiled and planted her hands on her hips as she stood at the head of the table. "You three look like you have a dirty little secret. Spit it out."

"It isn't that big of a deal." Demyx smiled sweetly at Naminé and pinched her nose. "Don't you worry your cute little head about it."

"Don't fuck with me. What is it?" Naminé narrowed her gaze on Demyx. "What the hell did you do? I should have trusted Zexion when he said you were up to no good. What did you do!? Is it going to set us back?"

"Whoa, Zexion said? Well, that's the last time I'm polite to that short shit." Demyx snorted and crossed his arms in irritation.

"Demyx!" Larxene looked at him with wide eyes. He was certainly becoming too comfortable around these gangsters. The look Naminé had on her face said that she had every intention of pulling the gun from the holster on her thigh and aiming it his head if he said one more thing to piss her off, but clearly Demyx didn't seem that concerned. She had to intervene. "D-don't worry Naminé. It really isn't that big of a deal. We just had a visitor…"

"A visitor!?" Naminé turned her glare to Larxene, the sweet and cheery demeanor she usually sported was entirely gone. "Did you let him in the mansion?"

"N-no." Larxene stared at the blonde girl in panic. She'd never seen such fury in the girl's face before. It was frightening. "He came to the door. Said he was a neighbor that just returned from a business trip. He said he heard this house was finally filled and he came to say hello. He invited the three of us out to breakfast tomorrow, then he left."

Naminé sighed with relief and plopped down into the chair at the head of the table. "Oh. Well, that's good. I mean, this is bad. But its good that he didn't come in. Marluxia is not going to be happy. You were told not to open the door for anyone. We all have keys and would never knock."

Larxene nodded sheepishly. "I know. I just thought it was Demyx. H-he brought beignets…"

Naminé perked up at this statement and turned her bright eyes toward Demyx. "You brought beignets!?"

Demyx smiled and nudged the basket toward Naminé. "I brought beignets…"

Luxord watched as Naminé completely disregarded the previous conversation for the sugary fried triangle of dough. What was it with these women and their weakness for these things? "So, let's get down to the point. How much trouble are we going to be in?"

Naminé swallowed the small sticky mass in her mouth and began licking her fingers clean. "Mmm… Lots."

"Oh, good." Luxord sighed in exasperation. "Good to know."

"Well, actually Demyx isn't going to be in trouble. Not for that anyhow." Naminé flashed him a warning gaze as he smiled cutely at her. "You and Lar though…" She paused in thought before giggling to herself. "Although, Marly does fancy Larxene. So no. Only you will get in trouble."

Larxene stood and slammed her hands down on the table. "What!? But that's not fair! I was the one who answered the door! Not Luxord! He was in the kitchen! It was all my fault."

Naminé laughed lightly. "Oh my…"

Larxene's face fell at the almost sinister look that crossed the young blonde girl's face. "Wh-what?"

"Nothing. Only that the Larxene I knew a couple months ago would have never thrown herself to the wolves like that, especially to protect another person." Naminé patted Larxene's hand and winked. "Don't worry, nobody is going to get into any serious trouble. The very worst that will happen is that you'll receive quite the lecture from Zexion. That isn't so bad, right?"

Larxene let out a sigh of relief and sat back down slowly. "Actually, I think I'd rather deal with Marluxia face to face. But alright. A lecture, I can handle."

Luxord smiled and gripped Larxene's hand under the table. She returned it with a gentle squeeze and a smile. Yes, perhaps she really was turning around after all…