A/N: Hellooooo, everybody, and welcome to another chapter of Xion's Opinions! Seriously, you guys' responses to all the chapters have continued to amaze (possibly frighten, but more amazement than anything XD) me. I mean, last time I posted, I almost got 300 hits in one day. Thank you guys so much for the faves and the alerts and the reviews and just general reading. Not even my Death Note story was this insanely popular as this.

Now that that's out of the way, here's the disclaimer: I have no rights to anything.

Chapter 8: Axel the Used-to Be Threat

I had considered Axel a threat for a comprehensible reason: he can be a best friend or a worst enemy. He has this edge about him that can force him to act impulsively sometimes. We have clashed several times over the first few weeks, though outside of that, we got along superbly. Then again, Roxas hung out with us when we weren't busy fighting or hurling insults. It was rare that we conversed breezily on our own.

I'm not sure why, but I did believe that Axel saw me as being in the way of his friendship with Roxas. He might have even...killed me.

Yes, I just said that Axel could have been the one to eliminate me. Not Xaldin, not Saix, not even Marluxia, who definitely could be capable of murdering a fellow member. As evil as I might possibly come off as (though on rare occasions), the redhead disbelieved the fact that I did have a good side. He didn't know where my loyalties lay, just as I hadn't a clue as to where his lay either. Our relationship was tumultuous, teetering on the border between friendship and outright hatred. I didn't know which one would win the end, but I hoped friendship would. Truthfully, I will admit that I sounded too optimistic in deciding on this. I just didn't want Axel to go with his cruel side on this one.

Believe it or not, we have had the best of times together. If Axel wiped me out permanently, the good times would definitely come to an abrupt end. Like I said, I hoped it wouldn't happen. He really is a decent guy and loves pulling practical jokes more than anyone in this organization filled with stiffs—for the most part. I would classify him as the court jester of the group, what with his wild red hair and triangular tattoos on his face. And he's the most sarcastic. His sardonic jokes could be biting at times, especially around me. That impelled me to wonder all the more if he truly despised me or not. As far as he could tell, I came between him and Roxas. Maybe I did...but it was only to have a few damn good friends in this place. Did he honestly think that I would rat out on him in the event he did betray the Organization? I certainly wouldn't; on the contrary, I would be right by him to help. I won't even care if it means ditching Zexion...I think.

I guess I will relate two stories to connect them to Axel. He is one of my best friends after all, despite the fact I feel like I really do come between him and Roxas. One story will be positive, the other negative. I might as well get the bad out of the way. Two weeks had passed since my birth as a Nobody, and tensions between Axel and me were high—really high. Every time all of us congregated together for meals, he would knock my plate out of my hands. I, in turn, would shut off the television he had been so avidly watching during the lazy afternoons. We hated each other to the point that the things we did to each other grew progressively worse. By the time the two weeks had passed, he had destroyed my room with his smoldering flames, and I had told Saix that the redhead had trashed his room on purpose.

Blame it on anger issues or blame it on my weariness of Axel's pranks, but one day I decided enough was enough. Axel approached me that day, his emerald eyes seething with rage.

"I know what you did," he said in a voice like death, low and murderous. "I know you were bad but for you to rat me out to Saix... That was just low, wasn't it?"

"Whatever you say, Axel. Just stop being a jerk!" I shouted, taking out my Keyblade.

"If memory serves me right, you were being a b—!"

We fought heavily after that, our metallic weapons tingling every time they clashed. Bright orange flames danced around me as the combat increased in severity. I swore I received third-degree burns on my wrists and back, but I ignored them for the sake of winning. I wanted to beat him, just to see his cocky grin wiped off his face.

Unfortunately, I ended up losing.

"Damn, you fight well," I sighed, falling backwards until Axel caught me by the hood. He smirked teasingly at me, an almost friendly effort on his part.

"You know I would. But hey, maybe I like you all right."

"You're weird," I replied before passing out.

We have gotten along well after that fight, which anyone would think weird. But, if the fight hadn't convinced us to adjust our attitudes, Roxas reinforced it. It all started when Xemnas actually suggested that we work together on a recon mission in Twilight Town. And I was left without Zexion, which was perfectly fine by me at the time. But, since none of us exactly enjoyed working on recon all that much, we all sat on the ledge of the clock tower for the first time ever. While eating sea-salt ice cream, we chatted companionably like we had been friends since childhood. Occasionally, laughter would break out until Roxas abruptly got serious.

"Hey, guys," he turned toward Axel and me, "I noticed that you pretend to get along around me. But, I wish that you meant it for real."

Axel and I glanced awkwardly at each other, our eyes expressing rather sincere guilt. I suppose we didn't mean to be mean to each other or fight with each other like we did. It just happened, this hostility between us. We hadn't realized that until it was practically too late.

"We do now," I finally spoke, "though we sure as heck didn't used to."

"Yeah," Axel chimed in. "Things got bad between us fast. Then Xion told me just what she thought of me and...I'm cool with her now."

I can't even describe the relief that spread across Roxas' face. He seemed to like what he heard as he leaned back and took another lick of ice cream.

"Well, I was going to say I would stop hanging out with either of you until your egos simmered down."

"Really?!?" Axel and I inquired at the same time, nearly dropping our treats.

"Yeah. Do you think I would have wanted to put up with fights between you two? Pfft, I would rather watch wrestling than that!"

Despite what I wanted to be my anger, I found myself laughing at Roxas' words. Axel joined in, Roxas shrugged but laughed too, and we were all laughing like crazy people. It was a moment in which we truly bonded.

Relations between me and Axel have run more smoothly than they have ever been; I mean it. Surprise overwhelmed me when he once told me that he saw me an ally. So, even though he seems threatening, it's only toward the scheming members who desire to overthrow the Organization. It's all about power, not because these members are against its goals like I am. But, I get way ahead of myself here. Axel, I realize, is genuinely a good person at heart (pardon the pun). Hr will never betray me, even if he might dream of deserting the Organization one day. Actually, I'm not sure what goes on in his mind. He is an enigma to everyone but himself.

Craftily, he hides everything personal, even from us. He can be cautious, distrusting, and even paranoid. But, Roxas and I understand him, which is the only time he will ever make an exception. His personality seems as though it varies like the wind sometimes...or actually more like the mysterious fire. Fire can burn or it can sear. It can blaze or it can smolder humbly into ash. Anger, sadness...but doomed to never be honestly, genuinely content with itself; that's what sums up Axel. If he could feel emotions, he would only possess the negative ones—never the positive.

And if I could feel, I would feel nothing but sympathy toward him, for he's one of those guys who didn't deserve what had come to him. Fate just had different plans in store for him.

"You know, Xion," he told me once, "it's like this. Maybe we were meant to fade back into nothing and serve no purpose in the world."

"How can you be sure about that?" I had inquired, gazing intently at him.

He shrugged, a typical Axel response. "I'm not—course I'm not. But, as far as I see it, we're just the leftovers nobody wanted."

Can it be as simple as that? Maybe this applied to most Nobodies, but was it true to the three of us? It may sound weird now, but I think we will each serve a purpose.

A/N: OK, I admit that this chapter WAS a bit more serious this time around. However, the rest of them will contain some pretty random humor. And the Demyx one, which will be next... You guys are going to LOVE that one, trust me. XD