Wow...I actually wrote a new chapter o.O amazing...I am simply amazing...

Either that or extremely, painfully bored...most likely the latter...

Anyhoodles, yes, here's the next chapter. I handwrote the first half of it...s'right...I still got those mad skillz...I PWN! (not really...took me almost four hours to write three pages by hand... -sweatdrops-)

Buuut, you'll all be happy to see that I'm done beating around the bush, the action finally begins, muhahahaha, I'd like to thank boredom, angsty music and the oh so wonderful show Supernatural for the inspiration! -gives thumbs up-

Disclaimer: I own nothing but the story and plot...and the OC...but everything else is STOLEN! -flails- OMGWTFBBQ?! No...that's a lie...they're on loan.

Enjoy! Or I'll sick my army of brain-eating zombie slaves on you, mkay? Super!

When we came back into the kitchen, we were greeted by the two scheming blonds. Knowing grins spread across their faces as they noticed our joined hands, but I just gave them both a 'not a word' look. Demyx shrugged it off while Melissa just had to be overdramatic and run over to hug us with surprising strength. I could immediately tell it made Akuseru uncomfortable, strangely feeling far more attuned to him than before.

"Mom, back off, okay?" I wheezed out, forced to let go of the redhead's hand to try and push her away before I passed out from lack of oxygen.

"But Roxy, my sweet little star shine, this is a cause for celebration!" Melissa countered exuberantly. "Your first boyfriend, oh, this is so exciting! My big boy…"

"Ah…Mrs. Hikari I—''

"Oh, this is surely a sign!" She interrupted, finally letting us go to raise her arms to the ceiling. "The wheels of fate are beginning to turn! This must be why we came here. Destiny, yes. Surely you two were destined to meet and fall in love!"

"Alright, whoa!" I jumped forward to slap a hand over her mouth, looking back at Akuseru in sheepish apology. "I'm sorry…she gets carried away sometimes…"

Demyx snickered in the corner, taking a leisurely sip of his tea when I glared at him. "Hey, don't look at me. It's all her."

"Oh, please," Akuseru snorted, rolling his eyes. "It was all you, and you know it. I told you to keep your little love potions to yourself!"

"You have no proof." He countered with a smirk.

"I know I'll get a confession if I beat you!"

I looked around at the three of them, the kitten having wandered into the kitchen on her own, sniffing at the blue tiles and licking random spots for no real reason. Suddenly, it all felt just so absurd. It was my sixteenth birthday, and I was standing in the kitchen of our new house, being embarrassed by my mother with our neighbors. One whom I now, sort of, had a relationship with and the other having cast a magic spell on us so we would get together. I wasn't even going to start on the age difference that made us being together illegal…

And right in the middle of it all, a strange, ratty-looking kitten was happily purring as she licked the floor for no other reason except that she seemed to enjoy doing it.

"If my life were a book, this would be the part where people would stop reading." I muttered to myself.

The rest of the party wasn't any prettier. I'd already gotten my presents, not that I was ever really a stickler for them, and all that was left, besides letting mom embarrass me and watch Akuseru and Demyx banter into eternity, was to have the birthday "cake" mom had made.

I really wasn't looking forward to that…

Thankfully, before Melissa could force that unpleasant rock down our throats, the kitten who had yet to be named, climbed up high onto the cupboards and took a flying leap into the air…and straight down onto the cake that broke her fall. After staring at the cat standing chest-deep in a flaxseed and butternut squash cake, we all started laughing uncontrollably.

In the end, no one ate the cake save for the kitten, who was then aptly dubbed Kamikaze for her aerial stunt…and for downing that cake without fear of death or extreme constipation.

--

Later that night, we said goodbye to our neighbors, Demyx leaving us with a warm hug and Akuseru and I sneaking off to the porch to share a few more, not-so-secret kisses. I almost hated letting him go, but figured it best not to get clingy…still, I stood on the porch and watched until both of them disappeared into the dark, still able to barely hear their voices as they continued to argue good-naturedly.

Finally, I went inside, sad yet happy at the same time. The house seemed…somewhat colder without the two of them here, blowing out hot air at each other. Melissa seemed to notice my cheery mood had dimmed, and mercifully decided to give me one more hug and another, "happy birthday, star shine," before disappearing herself, heading upstairs to her room.

I lingered on the first floor, feeling strangely out of it suddenly. The loud, rather scratchy voice of a certain kitten snapped me out of my stupor and I knelt down to scratch the still ugly, yet still cute, kitty behind her too large ears. I had to smile when she started purring loud enough to rattle the windows, scooping her up and tucking her under one arm that she lazily hanged from.

"Let's get to bed…tomorrow is a new day."

I almost could've sworn Kamikaze nodded in agreement as we climbed the stairs.

--

Just past the midnight hour, dark, ominous clouds rolled in over the clear night sky, blotting out the pale light of the moon. The soft, country breeze gained strength, the trees bending to the air's will, each gust stronger than the last, ripping leaves from their branches, swirling them in hypnotizing circles. A shadow detached itself from the rest, slithering over the earth like a snake, its shapeless form winding across the wide expanse of healthy grass, leaving yellowed, drooping blades in its wake. Its target was unmistakable as it headed straight for the large, darkened house looming above all the smaller shadows flitting below.

Even as it drew closer, it didn't slow its pace, only stopping so it could morph itself into a smaller, more compact form, slipping effortlessly under the foundations, the house seeming to shudder at the unnatural presence forcing its way inside…

I jerked upright with a gasp, heart pounding against my chest as I quickly looked around the room, for some reason finding it difficult to breathe. I could've sworn that someone was in the room with me, but all I saw was my mostly empty room, somewhat darker than it had been when I fell asleep. A nightmare maybe? Paranoia taking its toll? I didn't know, but even as my breathing slowed and I managed to relax enough to lie down, I couldn't close my eyes. They kept themselves wide open, trying to make sense of the edgeless shadows around the room that fed into each other, creating a single, abyss-like darkness that seemed ready to swallow me whole. Swallowing became difficult as my mouth went dry. Something was wrong…very wrong.

Twisting the edge of the covers in my hands, I looked around the room again, still seeing nothing but knowing, somehow, some way, that something else was in there with me…and I don't just mean the raggedy kitten that was trying to hog my pillow.

That was reassuring in a way. Animals could sense danger, right? Kamikaze wouldn't be sleeping soundly enough to snore if something was really wrong…I was just paranoid. I sighed in relief. I could live with paranoia…just as long as nothing was really wrong.

Pulling the covers up over my head, I nuzzled into my pillow, intent on trying to fall asleep again, when I heard what sounded like a feral dog, or a wolf maybe, snarling over by the balcony windows. Shooting upright again, sending the blankets flying, I frantically searched the nearly pitch black corners of my room, still seeing nothing. I listened intently for the sound to repeat, hearing only the blood rushing in my ears, my heart racing in an uneven pattern of fear.

Kamikaze lifted her head, blue eyes faintly glowing in the dimness. She yawned wide, climbing to her feet and stretching in that painful looking way all cats did. She still didn't seem bothered by anything…had she not heard the noise? Was I going crazy?

I leaned forward to grab my blanket, trying to find a rational explanation for everything when Kamikaze made the strangest noise…sort of a mix between a light, purring growl and a groan. Looking over at her in confusion, I was surprised to see that the kitten was standing straight up, hair up on end, hackles rising. Strangest part of it all? She was staring directly at the end of my bed.

Almost too afraid to look, but afraid of what might happen if I didn't, I slowly turned my head in that direction, inhaling a sharp gasp when I saw the figure at the end of my bed. It had no real shape, though it vaguely looked like the silhouette of a person. A very large, very tall person. It just…stood there, and though it had no features that I could make out, I felt it staring at me. I was terrified to move, almost too frightened to even breathe, holding my breath as long as I could before taking a small, hopefully quiet intake of air.

Time seemed to stop as I just stared at the thing and it stared back, Kamikaze continuing to make that odd sound, slowly creeping closer to the shadow figure. Every step she took was tentative, hesitant, almost as if she were afraid to approach it.

I thought I saw the shadow begin to grow, getting taller and taller, the upper part of its form leaning over my bed, closer to…me.

When I tried to scoot back, just a little, feeling that letting it get closer was a very, VERY bad idea, it suddenly grew arms, long, stick-like limbs with clawed hands that lurched outward almost faster than I could blink, wrapping tightly around my ankles. I could actually…feel it touching me. It was cold and clammy, like it actually had skin when it was only a shadow. I screamed, clawing at the sheets to find something to hold onto as it dragged me, with surprising strength, towards the end of the bed.

Kamikaze sprang into action, the small kitten launching herself at the end of the bed, hissing and arching her back, swiping at the shadow with a tiny paw as if that would deter it. Thankfully enough, it seemed to work, the shadow wavering a bit, its grip loosening.

I didn't need to be told twice.

Leaping from the bed, I ran for my bedroom door, the snarling growl from before shaking the floor beneath my feet as I threw myself out into the hall, Kamikaze right at my heels. I stopped only long enough to turn and grab onto the door knob, seeing the figure launching itself at me, now more of a mist than a solid form. Screaming again, I slammed the door shut just as it made another grab for me.

By now, Melissa was awake, stumbling out of her room to see what was wrong. I didn't even stop to explain, just ran to her and shoved her back into her room, slamming the door and locking it.

"Roxas, what in Freya's name are you screaming about? What's wrong?" she grabbed my face, holding it in her hands as she stared intensely at me, easily telling that I was distraught over something. Yeah…just a little maybe…considering a shadow just tried to do something to me. And with those sounds it was making, there was no fucking way it wanted to have a tea party.

"Mom…please, I just had a bad dream," I finally got out in a shaking voice. That's what I wanted to believe…but that hadn't been a dream. But how in the world was I supposed to explain what just happened when even I didn't understand?

"Are you sure? You're awfully pale…"

"I'm fine, please I just…I just want to go back to sleep," hell no, not any time in this century…not after THAT. "Can I stay in here with you?"

She nodded, leading me over to her bed, where Kamikaze had already made herself comfortable on the tranquil green comforter, purring contently as if she hadn't just beaten back some strange entity to save me.

I was really going to have to thank Akuseru for getting me that cat later…

--

"Are you sure you want to stay home by yourself after last night, love?" Melissa asked as she walked into the living room, her lime green top clashing with the bright orange skirt, not that she cared. Neither did I for that matter. I was too exhausted to even think, let along have an opinion on my mother's attire for the day.

Last night had been hell, jumping at every little noise and creak, every shift the house made until the sun finally came up, breaking through the dark of the night and relaxing me some. I was safe during the day, right? Nothing could hurt me in the daylight. That was what had kept me going, though I kept drifting in and out. But I didn't want to sleep, was too tense to sleep. I didn't know what to do, who I should tell, if anyone. I mean, who would believe me? Even my mother, with all her eccentricities, wouldn't believe that I'd almost been abducted by a shadow person last night.

My only ally seemed to be Kamikaze, who thankfully had made it her job to stick to me like glue. Currently, the ball of courageous, or maybe dumb, fur was lying lazily on my head, her little feet dangling in my face, blocking the view of the TV, though I hardly cared.

"Yeah, I'll be okay," I mumbled, sliding further down into the couch.

She hummed thoughtfully before leaning over the back of the couch to kiss my cheek, rubbing Kamikaze's ears, making her purr which in turn made my head vibrate…weirdest sensation ever, by the way.

"Well, if you're sure…"

"Just go already," I insisted. The sooner she left, the sooner she'd be back. "Aku…I mean, Axel and Demyx are only half a mile away if I need anything."

"You're right…I'm just worried about last night…"

"It was just a bad dream, how many times do I have to tell you?" I sighed tiredly. "Look, she's been good about it so far, but Kamikaze needs kitty supplies." And I was just too tired to get off my lazy ass and out of my pajamas, let along going on a long, arduous trip into town to get things for the kitten, though I should simply out of gratitude.

Melissa peered at me shrewdly before shrugging it off. "Oh well, you're a big boy anyways. Ah, my big, sixteen year old boy," she choked up, covering her mouth with a hand and looked ready to cry. I almost laughed…almost.

"Mom…weren't you going somewhere?" I prompted.

She blinked at me, snapping out of her daze. "Hm? Oh! That's right, I was going to get kitty things for our new little family member." She waved as she left the room, calling back, "Behave, young man, and I'll be home as soon as I can. Go and see those handsome boys if you get lonely or need help, alright?"

"Mom!"

"Alright, bye honey!"

I sighed in relief when the door finally shut.

Finally…peace.

…sort of.

--

(Axel's POV)

"Did you notice the weather last night?" I asked as I came out into Demyx's side of the house. He had just gotten home from work, still wearing the forest green uniform of the café he both waited tables at and played for the customers in.

He paused in his cooking, having anticipated that I would emerge from my black hole to seek out sustenance…his words, not mine. "Hmm…" he took a moment to think about it as he turned over the bacon. Mmm…bacon… "Nope!" he finished brightly, beginning to make a plate.

Sighing, I sat on one of the stools set around the island counter. "Seriously? It was weird…it was perfectly clear one moment…and then completely clouded over the next. And it got really cold…strange for summer, huh?"

Demyx muttered something, finally slapping a plate and a glass of juice in front of me.

"You really can't go a day without saying something dreary, can you angsty boy?"

I raised an eyebrow up at him. "No…but I'm being serious here."

Huffing out a breath, Demyx untied his apron, yes…he wears one…it's pink too. "Alright, I'll admit that it's strange, but the weather is unpredictable, you know that." He offered, sitting across from me and stealing a strip of bacon.

"I know, but try to focus for me, please? What could cause the weather to change so abruptly? It practically went from midsummer to midwinter in a matter of seconds out there."

Chewing thoughtfully, Demyx frowned. "Maybe there was a major shift in energy." He shrugged, brushing off his hands as he finished, getting to his feet again. "There are tons of explanations for what happened, Axel. Storm fronts, for instance."

I hated when he got all logical on me…it didn't happen very often, but it only ever seemed to happen when I really needed an opinion that counted.

"Let's just go with the energy shift, then. What could've done that?" I asked instead, finally starting to eat.

Demyx tossed his hands in the air. "I dunno, maybe someone was casting and seriously fucked up their incantations."

I nodded at that. "Possibly. But there are only three known witches in this immediate area, you, me and Roxas. And Roxas doesn't cast."

"Maybe it wasn't a witch then…" Demyx admitted quietly, suddenly reaching up into his herbs, beginning to brew a potion. It was something he tended to do when he was nervous or flustered, said it helped to calm him.

I pushed my half eaten plate away. "Yeah…that's what I'm afraid of…"

--

(Roxas' POV)

I finally got tired of sitting around, doing nothing but thinking about the horrors of last night, and got to my feet, shuffling out of the room. Kamikaze didn't even bother moving off my head, just adjusted her position every so often so she wouldn't fall off. Because I kind of owed her, I didn't complain and slowed down just that bit more to make sure she didn't fall.

Climbing the stairs was the hardest part that took the most time, but by the time I got to my room, I didn't care anymore. I hesitated before carefully pushed the door open with a finger, jumping back when the hinges creaked. Trying to steady myself, I slowly worked my way in, looking carefully around at every corner. When I was sure I was alone, I finally reached up to pry the kitten off my head, setting her gently on the bed, blankets and sheets still tossed around from last night, spilling onto the floor.

When she didn't react negatively to the room, I relaxed significantly, releasing a breath I wasn't aware I'd been holding.

"Hey, Kami…" I said quietly, going over the room again, noting again the strange design of my room. Solid black carpet and bare white walls. "…you don't think it could have been a trick of the light, do you?"

Pfft, who was I kidding? The fucking thing grabbed and dragged me to the end of my bed. Kamikaze had attacked it. There was no rational explanation for it.

Giving up, I grabbed a change of clothes and went into my bathroom, the design of the room again strangely coming to my attention. White tile with the single line of black at chest level throughout…everything was black and white…why was that significant? Was it even at all? Gah, I can't think when I'm half asleep…

I set my clothes on the counter, pulling a towel out of the cabinet and hanging it on the towel rack before leaning into the shower, twisting the knobs until the water came out at a satisfactory temperature. Looking around, I stripped, leaving the door open a bit as I stepped under the water, slumping under the messaging spray. Yeah…that was much better.

Taking a few minutes to just stand there, the room grew rather warm, a bit on the uncomfortable side, but I didn't mind so much. It was so relaxing…and I was so tired…

It suddenly felt like I was being pushed to sleep, almost like it was a compulsion. Frowning, I looked down, spotting a thin red trail spiraling down the drain with the water. Curious as to what it was, a sinking suspicion trying to tell my rattled, foggy mind that it was blood, I bent down, leaning my hands on my knees to get a closer look, noticing that a thicker, darker trail of red began to snake down my leg. Mouth going dry, I slowly straightened, lifting one hand, eyes nearly bugging out of my head as I saw a huge, gaping wound on my wrist. There was so much blood slowly oozing out that it was nearly black in color, wrapping around my forearm as it slid down with the water. My skin started to prickle and I could literally begin to feel the life draining out of me. In a sort of shock, I lifted my other hand and saw an identical wound on my other wrist.

I started to shake violently, tears pricking at the corners of my eyes as my breathing grew erratic. I opened my mouth, but all that came out was a squeaky cough. When the bleeding didn't stop, the wounds seeming to grow larger, more blood pouring out, I finally found the strength to scream, the tears mixing with the water still pounding against my quickly numbing skin. I reached out of the shower curtain with a trembling hand, grabbing onto the towel I'd left on the rack, pressing it as hard as I could between my wrists over the wounds.

Legs giving out under me, I feel to the floor, drawing my knees up and sobbed in cold terror, unable to feel anything anymore but a bitter fear that wouldn't wane. Horrified, I watched through the tears as the white towel quickly began to turn red, whimpering for someone to help me.

Just before I could black out, I jerked upright, as if I'd fallen asleep and just woken up…only I was still sitting in the shower, the water still running, still mixed with the pinkish-red of blood, the towel still stained between my wrists. But instead of feeling drained and near death, I felt…fine. Well, as fine as I had before without sleep.

Still shaking, I carefully pulled one arm away from the towel, inhaling sharply in surprise to see that, while my skin was still covered in blood that was slowly being washed away by the water, there was no wound. No sign that there ever was one. Dropping the bloody towel with a wet flop, I kept glancing back and forth between my unblemished wrists.

"W-what…?"

What the fuck was going on here?!

Mind still trying to find an explanation, I stiffened as I heard the door creaking open, the sound starting low and rising in pitch until it was like nails on a chalkboard. Fisting my hands, I covered my ears, curling up tighter, afraid to move the shower curtain…but then, I didn't have to, as it was suddenly jerked open, two of the rings holding it to the rod snapping off from the force.

I screamed, squeezing my eyes shut, expecting some nightmarish creature to tear me to pieces but…nothing happened.

Prying open one eye at a time, I blinked in confused fear when I saw the room was empty, though the bathroom door was wide open, the still running shower the only sound in the following silence. Swallowing hard, I stared out into my bedroom, jumping when a shadow flashed past the open doorway, scrambling back against the wall, feet squeaking against the wet floor.

As I watched, the door slowly began to close on its own, that same creak as before coming from it, only starting high and going low, until it finally clicked shut completely.

I had to get out of the house…but how was I going to manage that when whatever was tormenting me was waiting just outside the door that was my only way out?

GASPETH! SUCH SUSPENSE! SUCH FRIGHTENING THINGS! OH NOES! THE POOR ROXY IS TRAPPED....in his bathroom...naked in the shower... -mind wanders into the gutter-

Ahem, I mean, poor guy, he takes so much crap from me. Give him some applause people, I bet it makes him feel better about it all.

Food for this chapter: nothing really, feeling too sick to eat...although when I hand wrote the first part, I was eating parmesan cheese straight from the can! PHAIL! xD

Stay beautiful...and REVIEW FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT IS YAOI! -falls to knees- I've been getting alert and favorite after another but NO REVIEWS! FEED THEM TO MEEEE! -goes into convulsions-

No but really, I'd like to know what you thought about this. This is the kind of stuff I was writing when I first got into the trend of writing stories and now I'm finally getting around to applying it in a fanfiction, so I'd greatly appreciate it if you all could find it in your hearts to click that RIDICULOUSLY GIGANTIC REVIEW BUTTON! -runs off in fear of big, scary button-

Luffles,

-Ramen