ZOMWTFBBQ! HIYA PEOPLES!

I'm very, very, VERY happy that I finally got this chappie done. It took forever to figure out how to write it, and then I got about eight pages in before I left for Anchorage (where I DID have a blast shopping until I literally dropped x3) and came back a few days later only to have lost the groove...but this evening is special I suppose, because even though I wasn't in the mood to write, I sat down and the ending just kinda spewed out like WORD VOMIT! YAYORZ!

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts of it's characters. Only the story, OC and plot.

Oh, and I'd just like to say it here. I am writing a new collab story with super special awesome friend Keiko! And it's about PIRATES! 8D even though I'm not the biggest fan of pirates, it's a fun story, good humor, and the whole thing is planned out, so updates are fast. It's unbetaed, so be nice about grammatical critisisms plz. And PLEASE READ AND REVIEW, IT MAKES US HAPPEH! The link to the story and to her profile (since the story is posted on there) are in my profile, so go and check it out!

Without further adieu, Enjoy (bows)

You may ask if I slept well that night. Truth is, I did, considering it was the first night I'd slept in my own bed and not on the couch in days…at least, I did until I was rudely awakened from a rather nice dream about dancing under the full moon nude (don't ask…please…) to find myself being brutally bounced on my bed with a way too awake, happy voice singing:

"IT'S YOUR BIRTHDAY, GET OFF YOUR ASS, IT'S YOUR BIRTHDAY, DON'T LET THE DAY PASS!"

Yeah…that's as close as Melissa will ever get to singing "Happy Birthday".

I sat up to scream at her to stop, finding it hard to speak through all the jostling. Melissa was currently bouncing like a four year old on my bed, right next to where I was laying and I developed a sudden fear that she'd land wrong. When her foot got too close for comfort, I pressed my legs together and curled into a ball, screaming out for someone normal to save me.

"IT'S YOUR BIRTHDAY, DON'T BE LAZY, IT'S YOUR BIRTHDAY, BE FESH AS A DAISY!"

"STOP, FOR THE LOVE OF FREYA, STOP!" my pleas went unheeded as my spastic mother kept jumping on my bed, constantly sending me up into the air and crashing back into the mattress. I swear I just got whiplash…

Though it was difficult, I managed to glare up at her, noting that she looked crazy as ever in her bright orange and purple tank top she'd dyed herself, the one that barely contained her…assets I suppose you could say. Then I had the fear that she'd fall out of her top and quickly looked elsewhere, seeing that she was wearing bright white Capri pants that ended just below her knees and no socks.

"Are you serious?!" I squeaked to myself as she bounced me higher, sending me careening off the edge of the bed and to the floor with a thump. "FUCK NUGGETS!"

Melissa fell onto her butt, crossing her legs and breathlessly laughing at me, her smile a million miles wide and as bright as the sun. "Move it or lose it, star shine, you don't want to sleep through your first day as a sixteen year old, do you?"

I muttered curses as I got to my feet, standing in just a pair of grey cotton bottoms and shivering without the heat of my blanket cocoon I'd made through the night. "You could've been a normal mom and just let me sleep in and surprise me when I woke up with a real birthday cake and party."

The crazy blonde I called mother just shook her head, her smile never faltering. "Oh, Roxas, you did get a surprise," she snickered at that, "And you are getting a real birthday cake and a party."

"First off, inviting the neighbors we hardly know over here isn't a party. Second, flax seed and butternut squash isn't a birthday cake. And third, bouncing me out of my bed at—'' I glanced at my bedside clock. "Six in the morning?! Are you fucking serious?!"

"Always begin how you mean to go on!"

"I don't intend on always going on at six a.m. you psycho—''

"Don't speak to your mother with such disrespect, dearest one. I got up earlier than you did, so I don't want to hear any grumbling," she even waved her finger at me as she said that.

I sighed and ran both hands through my mussed hair, probably messing it up even more. "You're crazy. I mean it. Really, completely, utterly—''

"Crazy?" she put in brightly.

"…now you're making fun of me."

She flopped both her hands at me and got to her feet, bouncing on my bed again. "Why so grumpy? I got you up early so we could go into town before the rush at the DMV so you could take a road test and get your license."

I was about to say something else when her words registered. Snapping my mouth shut, I watched her bounce for a good minute or two before stuttering out. "W-what?"

"That's my present for you, dearest." She replied simply, stopping in her jumping and ruining of my mattress in favor of dancing rather provocatively. "It's all I could think of that you'd actually like and would be useful in life."

I crossed my arms and looked away. One because I felt bad for shouting at her since I now knew her reason, and two because…come on. It's my mother…belly-dancing on my bed in front of me. It's disturbing, though Melissa would just claim it's an expression of her soul through physical movement.

"…well, if we're going get there early, we should leave soon." I said quietly, pointing at my door. "Please leave so I can shower and get dressed."

Melissa immediately hopped off my bed and danced out the door, waving and started singing to herself.

I gratefully slammed the door shut behind her.

"It's gonna be a loooong day…"

--

The strangest things tended to happen on my birthday. Like, when I was actually born, there was this solar eclipse thing, I can't really remember too many details…I myself couldn't recall it, mom just told me. And she's pretty vague when it comes to stories. The first birthday I had after my dad died and I turned twelve, it rained all day. Hard too. Four towns were flooded in just that twelve hour or so period I was awake. Mom said that once I fell asleep (after crying a good deal), the rain suddenly stopped. Then on my fourteenth birthday, the planets were aligned.

And now, on my sixteenth birthday, it seemed the weather was once again affected. When we left the house to get to the car, mom and I had to run. It was deceiving from inside, where all you could see was bright, warm sunlight spilling in through the windows. But once we got outside, we found the sky to be clear and blue…except rain was pouring down. Strange that we didn't hear it inside, but once out there, the rain sounded like a waterfall, just pounding down. We got instantly soaked just from the ten foot dash from the porch to the car.

Melissa let me drive to town, saying I needed last minute practice. She didn't bother going over the rules, or stepping in when I made a minor mistake every so often. She just contentedly sat in the passenger seat, fiddling with her seatbelt and smiling out the window. Despite the rain, it was a beautiful day.

"I bet there's an awesome rainbow nearby,"

I didn't doubt that in the least.

When we got to town, we stopped for some breakfast. Organic bran muffins and fresh orange juice…despite what you might think, I say yum.

Then it was off to the DMV, where Melissa waved gaily at me as I was escorted out of the building to our car, the instructor right next to me. I waved back a bit apprehensively, though I was confident in my driving skills.

Surprisingly, I failed.

"What happened?" mom asked the second we got back and she heard the results.

I shrugged and led the way out of the building. "I wasn't paying attention I guess," I muttered. I wasn't going to tell her that I nearly ran over a pedestrian and rear-ended the car in front of me because I suddenly started seeing Axel everywhere. Even people who didn't look the faintest thing like him took on his face and I was constantly craning my neck around to get second glances.

Even now, while I drove us back out of town and towards home, I was thinking about him. I couldn't stop. I kept conjuring his face in my mind, reliving all those moments I'd spent with him.

Yet another strange thing I attributed to my long history of whacked out birthdays.

Once we got home it was close to eleven and Melissa started fussing about her plans being compromised. I was about to jokingly ask what plans when I was assaulted again with thoughts of a certain red-headed witch. A shiver went down my back and I stared out into space, swearing I could smell that thick, smoky scent that seemed to surround him when I noticed mom staring at me curiously.

"What?" I asked innocently.

She smirked at me. "Oh…nothing, nothing at all. I'm going to get to work on the cake, you just be lazy for the rest of the day. Your friends will be here around three."

I frowned at her. Oh, yeah, now she let me laze around. I trudged up the stairs to my room, laying back in bed with a sigh and staring at the ceiling. I suddenly couldn't stop thinking. About the growling I'd been hearing and how I attributed it to the fact I was bored, lonely and sleep-deprived. About the 'locked' door on the second floor and how I hadn't told anybody about that. I guess it could be something like my secret passageway. It was a secret adventure that was just mine.

And damn it all, Axel was still on my mind. Why? I didn't understand. I mean, sure, I'd thought about him off and on since we'd met, but never this…intensely before. Every thought I had somehow transformed into one about him, or connected to him in some way.

I pulled the pillow over my face with a groan. "Get out of my head!"

--

(Axel's POV)

"I need help." I confessed when I dragged myself out of my 'dark abyss' as Demyx called it and sat in the blond's kitchen. Hey, he was a good cook and I burned everything.

"With what?" Demyx practically sang as he bounced around the kitchen, making tea, brewing some other concoction in a separate, caldron-worthy pot and making a late breakfast all at once. How he kept track of what was what while dancing, singing and dodging both Sasha and Orion who were wandering along the counters and floor, I'd only be able to guess.

I dropped my head onto the table with a sigh. "With getting Roxas a present." It was bad enough I was inexplicably thinking about him all hours of the day and night for the past who knew how long now. I wanted to follow Demyx's advice and get him something that was important. Something that mattered. Precognitions aside, he was still my soul mate. And I still felt a commitment to making him happy, because seeing him happy made me happy…which was kind of a big deal since I couldn't seem to be happy on my own.

Glancing up, I saw Demyx eyeing me critically before grinning broadly. "Oh, I'm sure there are a few ideas you've come up with, just pick one."

I narrowed my eyes at him, lifting my head slowly. "…what are you up to?"

"Me?" Demyx pointed at himself, eyes wide and filled with an innocence that was so fake, it almost made me want to flat out laugh at him.

"No, Orion," the salamander glanced up at hearing his name, seeming to frown though reptiles didn't exactly have expressions, before going back to…whatever it was he was doing. The stupid Familiar had seemed just as off as I felt for the past week…which kind of made sense when you thought about it. "Yes you, tard."

"Not so mean," he countered, still smiling at me smugly. "You know what happens when you're mean to a fellow witch."

"That's only if I cast against you, dumb ass. I can call you whatever I want and not be affected."

"I can. Quit hurting my feelings."

I snorted at him, getting to my feet. "Please, you look far too pleased with yourself over something to be hurt…and I plan to find out what you're hiding, so prepare to be exposed."

Demyx winked at me with an almost saucy, flirtatious air. "Sounds like a hot night at your place."

Rolling my eyes, I went back into my half of the house, trying not to laugh. Sometimes, no matter how sour you were…you just had to be amused by Demyx's antics.

--

(Roxas' POV)

Time seemed to fly, and before I knew it, mom was back upstairs, spots of flour and other things I'd rather not try to identify covering her outfit from this morning. There was even a little piece of what looked like batter of some sort sticking to her cheek.

"Go shower and change, your friends are gonna be here any minute!" Melissa twirled where she stood. "I'm so eager to see Demyx again. That boy has some serious talent…and he's so incredibly adorable!" she fanned herself. "And this Axel I keep hearing about seems like a stud."

Why I was blushing, I wasn't sure. I wanted to say it was out of embarrassment of the way Melissa was acting, but if I were to look deeper, the answer would be more out of jealousy pertaining to the way she was referring to Axel. Stud, huh? I'd agree with that…but he's MY stud…so back off.

But that was all wrong on too many levels to count. So instead, I nodded and figured I was still fresh enough from this morning and just changed into some more relaxed clothes.

I heard the doorbell ring and headed for the stairs, my heart racing when I looked over the third floor railing and spotted Axel and Demyx standing in the foyer with Melissa. Axel…Akuseru…he was here!

I almost fell down the first flight of stairs since I was in such a rush…and the fact that they were so damn steep. Then jumped onto the banister and slid from the second to the first floor…screwing up my landing and ending up sprawled at everyone's feet, giggling like a dorky little girl. "Hi everyone!"

Demyx laughed and reached down to help me to my feet. I just grinned at the three of them. Demyx instantly handed me his present. It was a small copper pot with a mold of some kind inside it.

"What's this?" I asked him, still staring.

The blond snorted and smacked me on the back. "It's a candle pot and mold, silly. I made them myself, just for you. Now you can experiment and make candles for any occasion or…" he trailed off, for some reason glancing over at Axel, who was staring around the ceiling instead of looking at us, his hands behind his back. "Mood."

I nodded, thanking him. Melissa immediately snatched the things out of my hands and started looking at them, examining every inch.

"Oh wow, such nice craftsmanship! Demyx, dearest, they're wonderful! And such care and affection put in them!" she giggled in a way that made my earlier fit sound masculine. If I didn't know her any better, I'd say mom was crushing on Demyx…but she always told me that there was room for only one love in her heart now that dad was gone, and that was me.

"H-hi, Axel," I muttered, keeping my eyes on my bare toes, feeling my face getting warm and a strange urge filling me. I'd been thinking about him all day and now that he was in front of me, it was like all those thoughts and, I admit it, feelings were coming to the surface, even stronger than before.

"…hello, Roxas."

I shivered just at the sound of his voice. I couldn't help but to look up at him, getting caught in his eyes. Such an impossibly shade of green…and they seemed to go on forever…

"I…got you this," he said slowly, pulling his hands out from behind his back, handing me a small satchel.

Raising an eyebrow, I took the bag and nearly dropped it when it squirmed and mewed. "W-what?"

Demyx was suddenly hovering over my shoulder. "Oh, you didn't…" he breathed, opening the bag, revealing a tiny, furry head. Demyx squealed as large, bright blue eyes blinked around at us. "You did!"

I reached in and pulled out the little, warm ball of fuzz, letting the bag fall unnoticed to the floor. In my hands I held a scruffy, four-legged critter with black, orange and white globs of color all over it, two giant ears, even bigger eyes and a swishing tail that looked broken at the tip.

Dropping it with a shriek I backed away while Demyx picked it back up. "EW! A RAT! I HATE RATS!"

Axel's face seemed to fall before his eyes narrowed at me. "It's a kitten, Roxas."

I paused at that word. Kitten? That thing was a cat? Not just a cat…but a baby cat?

"…that is the ugliest kitten I've ever seen."

Demyx frowned between the two of us, Melissa's voice coming from the kitchen breaking into the yawning silence.

"The cake is almost ready, so we'll get to sing happy birthday soon!"

That seemed to break through to us all, since Demyx handed me the 'kitten' again and walked off into the kitchen. I just stared at the little fur ball, who was content to hang from my hands while I held it at arm's length, licking a paw and purring for no reason I could figure. Now that I actually looked, it did somewhat look like a kitten…okay, so it looked exactly like a kitten. Maybe a calico. Looks could be deceiving I suppose, seeing as the longer I stared at it, the cuter it appeared.

"So…do you like her?" Axel asked, watching me carefully.

"Her?" when the kitten stuck 'her' head forward, sniffing at my face, I dared to bring her closer and couldn't help but smile as she licked my nose, nuzzling into my cheek and purring louder. "…yeah. I kinda do. She's not so bad once you get past her looks."

He seemed to relax at my answer. "Well good…it took me forever to find one for you…it was the only present I could think of that would feel important…you know, would show you that I cared." He immediately slapped a hand over his mouth once he finished the sentence, eyes as wide as I was sure mine were.

My grip went slack and I dropped the kitten to the floor again, though she didn't seem to mind any of the rough handling, and just trotted off with her tail straight in the air, the tip and a crooked angle.

"W-what did you just say?" I whispered.

Axel's face showed the internal battle he was waging over something…probably over telling the truth and coming up with a good cover. "I…I…" he sighed in a defeated way. "Hell…Roxas, I know this is going to sound crazy, but I haven't stopped thinking about you since you came over last week."

I was afraid my eyes might pop out of my head. "S-seriously?" my face suddenly was so hot, I knew it had to be bright red. "I've…I've been thinking a lot about you all day too…" I muttered, covering my face with both hands when I realized what I'd just said. What the hell? What happened to all my brain-mouth filters? I couldn't even control what I was saying anymore.

Axel looked ready to say something when both of us froze and turned towards the kitchen, spotting two heads of blond hair quickly ducking away. He sighed irritably and I reached out to grab his hand.

"Come on; let's go somewhere they can't spy on us."

For the first time I could recall, the redhead actually seemed genuinely amused. "Oh really? And where might that be?"

I glanced around before deciding I'd take him the one place no one else knew about but me. "Just follow me upstairs," I whispered, towing him along to the staircase. "There's at least one place Melissa won't think to look." Because she didn't know it existed.

We got to my room quickly, and while Axel hesitated in the doorway briefly, it didn't stop him from following me in. I led him over to the closet, checking to make sure Melissa and Demyx didn't follow. Those two were up to something…

Pushing open the door, I pulled him in with me and closed it again, feeling around for the flashlight I always kept around for going into the secret passageway.

"Roxas…not that I mind…but I don't think we should be up here in your bedroom closet," Axel said quietly. "We're only giving them more ideas."

I snorted at that. "They've already gotten those ideas, so why worry?" I found the flashlight and clicked it on, still holding fast to his hand as if he'd leave. Inhaling deeply, I leaned against the back wall, feeling it give way easily under the weight. I couldn't see to know for certain, but from the way Axel's hand tightened around mine, he was obviously surprised that I had a secret passage in my closet. "It's just up the stairs, come on." I tugged his hand to get him moving and up we went. Around and around those almost flat stairs and up to the door.

"Wow,"

"I know, right?"

We both stood in the center of the turret room, the sun merrily shining through the five windows, making the room a tad too warm for comfort. I turned off the flashlight and set it aside, turning to see Axel staring out each window, turning in a slow circle with a small smile on his face.

"It's a pentagram room."

I nodded, moving to stand a little closer. I couldn't seem to control myself anymore. And where I would normally be uncomfortable being in a room no one else knew about alone with him, now I was excited. "Yeah…I found it by accident the first day here…haven't told anyone but you since."

His smile widening, Axel looked at me over his shoulder. "I feel so privileged."

"You should," I'd meant for that to be a more snappy comeback…instead it came out so quiet, like a whisper.

Axel's smile faded as he turned completely to face me. The temperature in the room seemed to rise steadily from there, and I blamed it for the reason my palms were sweating. Neither of us spoke, I didn't think it was necessary anymore. We just stared at each other for a moment. And the next thing I knew, I was in his arms, pressed flush against him as his lips brushed lightly over mine.

"Roxas…"

I made a soft sound that I don't care to identify and wrapped my arms around his neck, pulling him closer. I'd never kissed anyone before…except for my mom, and after coming out, I didn't think I'd ever get a first kiss. Yet here I stood…and I couldn't imagine a better person to share it with.

His lips were so soft, and warm. I hadn't expected that, but it was nice. My heart started to pound fiercely, hard enough that I was afraid it would burst from my chest. My lips parted so I could gasp in air, only to receive a slick, wet tongue.

I froze initially, eyes popping open in surprise. But when he only held me closely but gently, I felt like I could let go, that I could trust him and my eyes closed once more. Placing my hands on his arms, I opened myself to him, feeling him explore and eventually gaining the courage to reciprocate, meeting his tongue with my own. I felt like I should be disgusted or something, considering we were exchanging saliva…but it felt right. I felt like this was a moment I'd been…born for or something really crazy like that.

When I felt the cool wall pressing against bare skin, my eyes opened again, realizing that Axel had backed us into the nearest wall and pushed my shirt up, his hands cupping the backs of my shoulders under the bunched fabric. I would've pushed him away, but I couldn't bear to stop kissing him. It was almost like I was under a spell, I couldn't think, I couldn't move; all I could do was feel.

Just as my mind began to completely fog over, our heavy breaths, the soft sounds of skin touching skin, the quiet of lips smacking together, moving as one, stopped.

I blinked my eyes open, vision hazy until I managed to focus on the sight of Axel's face above mine, his eyes accusing, angry and…darkened with what I supposed was hurt. His aura was dimmed and the room felt suddenly chilly where before it had been almost unbearably hot. "W-wha…?"

"Demyx." He replied curtly.

Demyx? What did Demyx have to do with…

"That little sneak…he put a spell on us."

He did? But how…

"It was the tea."

"Oh," I said quietly, though I hadn't spoken any of the questions he'd answered. Now I felt weird with my shirt pushed up to expose my chest, my heart still racing wildly and my skin flushed. I modestly pushed my shirt down, looking down at the floor. I didn't feel quite so…needy for him, and my mind had gone quiet. It was as if, once Axel said that we'd been put under a spell, whatever it was that we'd been enthralled by had vanished.

I cleared my throat in the resounding silence and as Axel pulled away, I sort of wished we'd never kissed in the first place…because now I felt like I'd wither away and die at the thought that I knew what it was like…and would never get to experience it again. Not if he went back to the same mentality as before…

"But…" he sighed. "It wouldn't have worked in the first place unless there was something to build off of to begin with…"

That made my hopes rise a little and I chanced looking up at him, seeing him smile. It made my heart pick up again, made my breath hitch a little when he leaned back in. I could feel our auras coming together, mixing and connecting as if they were two halves of the same whole finally reunited. "Y-yeah…I'd believe that…"

Axel pressed a soft, chaste kiss against my forehead before pulling away. "Alright, I won't deny that there's something between us then…but we need to seriously get to know each other a little better…and get over the fact of age difference…and tell Demyx to keep his damn love spells to himself!"

I laughed at that, face still warm. "S-so…um…I think we should…get back downstairs…before they…get the wrong idea."

"Yeah." When he turned back for the door, I grabbed onto his hand.

"Ah, you can't go back that way…the door doesn't work both ways for some reason…"

"Then how in the hell do you get out of here?"

I led him over to the far wall, getting down onto my hands and knees to pull the panel aside to reveal the shadowed slide. "This way."

Axel crouched down next to me and snorted. "You've gotta be kidding me."

"Nope…if you want to get back down, you have to go down the slide." I smirked over at him, feeling far more at ease in his presence, feeling…whole and not quite so alone. "Move it or lose it, fire boy," I called, diving down onto the slide and laughing all the way down. When I reached the end, I rolled in the air, landing on my feet, though I still ended up falling forward onto my hands, at least I didn't eat grass anymore.

Not a second after moving out of the way, Axel came flying out, falling flat on his ass just like I had the first time I'd gone down the slide.

"Ah fuck!"

I couldn't help but laugh at him as he stood up with a wince, rubbing his backside. "The look on your face is priceless!"

Though he looked like he wanted to stay mad, the redhead ended up laughing with me and took my hand, making me stop giggling to blush. We stood there for who knows how long before he leaned in to kiss me again. And it was enough to make my toes curl and my heart skip a beat.

"Come on, birthday boy, let's go back inside."

I nodded solemnly and followed him around back to the front, holding tight to his hand the entire time.

Are you peoples happeh nowz? I put in some serious AkuRoku...and now that THAT is out of the way...now begins teh scary angst (evil laughter) s'right.

And now that I've gotten THAT out of the way...I'ma rant. I would've done this at the beginning, but it was distracting to put before teh chappie and I ran out of room once the announcments were done. But what I want to talk about...Luxel. Yes, that is the pairing Luxord/Axel. Before you all go apeshit on me for even bringing it up, I just wanna ask this...how many of you have even HEARD of that pairing before? And be honest. Most people haven't (hardly any) so don't feel bad. And before you claim it as crack, remember what the true definition of crack is. Because I'm not going to go over that.

The reality is, it's a decent pairing (though if you search for stories, good luck, my Luxord says that there's only one, and it's a copy of an rp.) we started roleplaying this pairing simply because we were bored, wanted to do a KH rp, and I refuse to play anyone except Axel, because he's easy for me to write, and she insisted on Luxord because she's a fangirl. Because we're yaoi fans, it ended up as a pairing (s'right...uke!Axel ftw) and we grew to love it. The two of them are more compatible that you'd think.

So please, please, PLEASE, don't write the pairing off, and spread the freaking news! The world must know about this pairing I've found and come to love.

Until next time (and read the new collab story!)

Luffles,

--Ramen