Quote of the Chapter: Most of us don't need a psychiatric therapist as much as a friend to be silly with. ~Robert Brault

Chapter 6

Axel and I now stood in the training room. With the silence that weighed down like concrete slabs on our heads, I get the feeling that he shares my dislike for the situation. But, at least I'm not training with Larxene. After this morning, Larxene having permission to basically beat the shit out of me would be beyond hazardous.

We'd gone to Vexen and had let the creeper look at my stomach to make sure I wouldn't bleed out and shit.

Vexen had hummed quietly. "And you sustained this... When?"

Axel and I had shared a look and I'd dared to answer him. "Maybe a couple of minutes ago... Why?"

Vexen had then met my eyes, a disturbing curiosity in his own. "It's completely scabbed over..."

"Hey, Axel?"

"Yeah?"

"Back in the Round Room... How the hell'd I do that?"

A chuckle. "I have no idea."

"Me either... But it was frikin' awesome."

We laugh.

It's quiet after that. One of those uncomfortable silences where you can hear the buzzing going of everyone's thoughts. I summon up my Keyblade for a distraction. It's plain pitch black, a chain hanging off the guard which, on an experimental tug, seems to kind of grow and shrink like a roll of measuring tape. I smile slightly.

Cool. It kind of reminds me of a... Silhouette...

Axel clears his throat again. I glance up at him from my sword.

"Well," the red-head begins a bit nervously, hesitantly meeting my eyes, "let's get started then, shall we?"

I nod. My grip on my sword tightens.

I rolls my shoulders and slip into my stance, which, I absently note to be a lot like Sora's... How original...

He raises his chakrams and a cocky grin spreads across his face. "And don't worry; I won't go too hard on ya."

I roll my eyes, a faint smirk forming on my lips.

The first few moments are like a stare down in a Western and I almost laugh. Almost because, as I feel the corners of my mouth tug upward, Axel charges at me. I know he's moving fast but... Who hit the slowmo button? There's a moment of panic, of fumbling as sweat slicked my palms, and then I'm blocking his attack, the sound of metal on metal clashing in my ears. That damn cocky smirk widens, but surprise flashes in Axel's eyes and I smirked.

Hadn't seen that comin', did ya?... Neither did I.

Though I'd blocked one chakram, the other coming at my side is something I can't really do anything about, both of my hands full holding off the one. I glance at the incoming weapon and then back at Axel.

Well crap... Time for playground tactics.

I shove with all I have, still feeling the bite of one of the spikes slicing through my cloak and cut through the skin of my stomach. I grimace.

Well, if that didn't sting like a bitch...

Block chakram. Ow. Dodge fireball. Roll. Swing. Miss. Dodge chakrams. Fucking A! Dodge fireball. Grimace at the smell of singed cloth. Swing. Roll. Block chakram.

It couldn't have even been a minute, but I'm slowing down. Axel, the smirking bastard, hasn't even broken a sweat.

This... Is NOT good.

I grit my teeth and block again, tightening my grip, sharing a tense glance with Axel as our weapons lock. A heat burns in the back of my skull, spreading until it consumes me and coats everything crimson.

Fuck this. Defensive play's over.

I shove him back, pulling the chain out to about 2ft, feeling the wind rush over my head as the other chakram passed over. I, on dumb luck, manage to flick the chain to wrap around his ankles and yank his feet right out from under him. He hits the ground with an 'oomf', his breathing hitching the slightest bit as my blade presses against his throat.

But, sadly, my victory is short lived as I feel a long leg swipe my feet out from under me, sending me back and having my butt hit the tile.

Yaaaay. Another injury to add to the collection.

Axel picks himself up, dismissing his chakrams and dusting himself off before holding out a hand to me.

"Not bad," he says with a slight smile.

I stare for a split second, the scarlet veil flashing and pulsing before dissipating completely, and I return his gesture with a tired smile of my own, taking his hand and letting myself be helped to my feet. It's a miracle I could move at all, let alone stand so... I guess you could say I'm just a 'tad bit wobbly.'

"Quite the natural, aren't you, Miss Mason? You've got a killer instinct." I sooo don't like how that sounds...

I turn my head to look at the voice.

To say I scowl would be an understatement and my distrust for the Chilly Academic is obvious. He gives me the creeps. And can you really blame me? He's the reason I'm a freak. And I'm sure he's also responsible for Mansex's little snap trick. "To what do we owe the visit?" I inquire, faux indifference, weariness and a tad bit of reluctance in my tone.

He smiles, that same unsettling look of wanting to dissect me from earlier back and burning bright. I wonder if he practices looking like a rapist or if it just comes naturally... "You both have a mission. Be ready in 20 minutes." And with that he left.

Creep.

I scowl and sigh, grumbling an "Ooooof course...!" under my breath. I sigh again, give Axel a tired parting glance, and trudge out of the training room and to my room. I notice, as I wash up, that most of my bruises have disappeared and my cuts are either gone or on the mend. The scab from my encounter with Mansex this morning has turned into pale scar tissue. My energy is coming back quickly, though I'm sore as hell, and even that's fading fast. I smirk slightly.

I may be a freak, but...

"It definitely has some perks..."

Shutting off the water, I step out of the shower and put on a fresh tank top, a pair of loose black jeans and a cloak. Then I shove on a fresh pair of socks and my boots, don my dog tags, and leave my room for The Grey Area.

"Soooo," I begin from beside Axel, slowly raising an eyebrow at Saix. "The Cold Creep said you had a mission for me."

He clears his throat. "You and Axel are to go to Earth-" my ears perk up- "and defeat the Dark Claw."

Dark Claw... Who the hell comes up with these names? The writer's of Power Rangers?

We both nod, I with an eye roll. Axel open up a Corridor of Darkness and we set off on our little field trip.

Coming out of the portal, my nose is immediately assaulted. I cover my nose, not that it does me any good. "What IS that?"

Axel gives me a questioning glance. "What's what?"

"That smell! It's so... sweet! And nasty! It's like Candy Land decided to just crawl off somewhere and ROT..!"

One of Axel's eyebrows disappears into his hairline. "...Ooookay then."

I narrow my eyes at him. "Don't look at me like that!"

He smirks and chuckles at me, giving his head a light shake. I smile. It's faint, practically non-existent, but it's a smile none the less. And it felt good.

We wander through the forest, not even really caring about the mission.

"Soooo..."Axel starts, casual but still managing to sound awkward. He glances at me. "Was... That really you're first fight?"

I shrug a little. "First one with a sword."

He raises an eyebrow curiously.

I flash a small sheepish smile, shrugging again. "I used to get picked on a lot cause of my size when I was little and I had a hot temper, so I used to get into a lot of fights..." I laugh slightly. "Still do. Though now it's mostly cause I can't keep my mouth shut."

Axel laughs. "Outspoken, huh? Not surprising."

I shoot a small playful glare at him and nudge him in the ribs. "What's that s'pposed to mean?"

Axel shrugs nonchalantly with a playful grin. "I dunno... You just seem like a loudmouth is all..."

I shove him lightly with a well-humored glare and he laughs. It's contagious, and I laugh too.

"Ya know," He says, "you don't keep up that cold act well... You're a serious socialite."

I snort. "Whatever... I was one of the most anti-social, introverted people in my school! I only knew most of my friends cause of my sister!" I shrug. "And even then they were more her friends than mine. We were a package deal, so..." I shrug again.

Axel stares at me. "... You have NO self-confidence do you?"

"Not a single iota!"

He rolls his eyes. "C'mon, we gotta find that Heartless." And thus, we resume our trek through the forest...

I gasp and point. "Hey, look!"

Axel follows my finger, tensing. "What? Is it the Heartless?"

"Nope, it's a tree." I grin.

He stares at me blankly. "Really?"

I nod. "Yeah! And there's another one there. And there. And there. And there, and there, and there." I say cheerfully, pointing to several other trees.

"STOP!" He shouts, the temperature rising alarmingly. "I get it! There are trees!" He sighs, lowering his voice and the air cools, though the irritation is still radiating off of him in waves. "We're in a forest. You don't have to point them all out."

I grin and salute him. "Okay."

He stares at me incredulously. "... Are you high?"

"Possibly!"

He shakes his head, heaving a sigh, and we fall into silence.

I glance at him. "... Penis..." My voice is barely above a whisper.

He looks at me. "... Penis?" He whispers back.

I nod. "Penis." I say, just a bit louder.

He cocks his head and rests his chin between his index finger and thumb. "Penis." He repeats in a normal voice, feigning thoughtfulness.

"Penis..."

"Penis...!"

"Penis!"

"Penis!"

"Penis!"

"PENIS!"

"PENIS!"

"PENIS!"

"PEEEENNNNIIIIIIIS!"

He stares at me, eyes a bit wide. "..." He snorts and cracks up, holding his sides. I'm soon guffawing and giggling with him, leaning on a tree for support.

I've been completely closed off since this all started (however long ago that was. I stopped counting after two weeks...) but... This is nice. It feels good to be happy and laugh again...

Our laughter is drowned out by a deafening roar and I whirl around to catch sight of a beast at LEAST eight or ten feet tall with some BIG ass claws glaring at Axel and I with menacing, glowing yellow eyes, pawing at the ground. Its legs are shackled and large, grey thorns wrapped up its arms. It's head is lowered and ready for charging, a giant mane wildly flowing behind it like a dark grey flame. It growls at us.

"Um, Axel...? I think I found it..." I mumble, summoning my Keyblade.

He briefly shoots me a glare, his chakrams coming to him in a flash. "No shit!"

The Dark Claw roars again, moving with blinding speed for a creature that size, and slashes down at the closest thing-Axel, in this case- who blocks the creature's massive claws with both chakrams, cursing lowly as the Heartless pushes him back.

I jump at it, slashing and pummeling and hardly making a scratch. It roars again and bats me away and into a tree.

Okay... Fuck, that hurt!

I stagger to my feet, leaning on the tree for support, and then roll my shoulders. "Well... After THAT epic fail... What the hell am I gonna do...?" I study Axel and the Heartless, racking my brain desperately for an idea. A small grin spreads across my face as one finally hits me.

It's stupid... But it JUST might work. Heheheh. This is gonna be FUN... Ya know... If I don't die...

I eye the Dark Claw closely, my Keyblade in one hand, the fully extended chain in the other. It rears up on its back legs, snarling.

Now!

I leap into the air, flipping for more momentum, and onto the Heartless's back, looping the chain around it's neck as it lands back on all fours.

It doesn't like this.

It roars furiously and attempts to throw me off. I, much to its outrage, dig my heels in and stubbornly hold on for dear life. "Axel," I shout, "Now, you dumbass!" He shoots me a look before going in. There's slashing and hacking and fireballs... It's a tough little frikin bastard... It roars ferociously, sending waves of energy that ripple through the air and, much to my chagrin and despair, Axel seems to just ripple out of existence with it.

Well, shit...

The beast then gives a vicious, victorious growl and finally bucks me off. I hit another tree and slide down the trunk... Upside down... It sucked. A LOT.

I am SO gonna have back problems because of this...

I groan and right myself, holding and shaking my head, muttering curses. The Dark Claw advances menacingly, ready to skewer me on it's horns, my Keyblade caught on one of them by the chain. The monster charges with a mighty bellow.

And this is where it all goes to hell...

I clench my eyes shut and wait for my death, giving my silent farewells.

Mom, I'm sorry I was never like the girl you wanted. And I'm sorry I didn't stay during Dad's funeral. I just... I just didn't want anyone to see me cry...

Elliot, I'm sorry I always fought with you. I just couldn't ever think of another way to get your attention...

Stephen, Marina, I love the both of you. SO much, and I'm sorry I won't be there for the concert this summer like I promised...

And sis... I'm sorry I couldn't find you... I'm sorry that I couldn't protect you...

A horrible, well, STABBING pain goes through both of my shoulders and I can't hold in the strangled scream that rips from my throat. It picks me up and throws me off its horns, and I crash into the ground on my side.

Am I really gonna die this way...? Crumpled and bleeding on the ground like I'm already a corpse...? I always said I'd go down fighting...

Pathetic...

My vision starts to go black and everything fades, even the pain. Everything except that dark, deep voice that echoes in my mind...