Pure

Axel, the slayer. Demyx, the hopeful. Zexion, the vampire. The undivinable Superior. The world they live in his hardly pure, but still they struggle to make sense of it. Spinoff to Tainted but Beautiful, series of drabbles.

Pairings: Assorted. In this excerpt, mild AkuRoku and very very very slightly hinted AkuNami.

Rated: M

Warnings: Everything for Tainted and then some. This drabble has...cursing. And that's pretty much it.

Notes: Yeah, fanfiction-wise I'm pretty much a ghost. Sorry, I think I've pretty much lost interest in it. Granted, don't take my words at face value because I tend to do this, losing interest in fanfiction only to return with a vengeance. I doubt this time will be different.

For now, though...I've actually been rereading Tainted But Beautiful lately (out of boredom) and that's inspired me to do two things: one, post this, which is the original rough draft version of the opening scene in chapter 25, "Council." I cut it because it was becoming way too long, but it has some nice character interaction and character development so it'd be a shame to just forget about it either. Think of it as an alternate version of that scene. Yeah, I may start putting "deleted scenes" and stuff in here too, because I have quite a few of them. Remember, I did spend about two years writing that story. Also, on a more pragmatic level, it doesn't require so much work to post deleted scenes. XD

And secondly, remember all my talk about turning Tainted into an original story? Well...I've kind of done that. Not really, though! But I have plotted out and begun to write an 18-chapter original vampire story that I'm posting on my fictionpress account, titled Fear Not The Light. It takes some inspiration from Tainted but is mostly its own story and universe. Nonetheless if you find it interesting you might want to take a look at it! Link here:

http:/www(dot)fictionpress(dot)com/s/2946562/1/Fear_Not_The_Light

Shameless plugs out of the way...please enjoy this little deleted scene!

ii. Drawing

"What're you drawing?"

Namine looked up at Roxas, surprise in her eyes - the same surprise that he felt. Ever since he'd entered her drawing room - a strange room where all surfaces, even the tables and chairs, were white - and sat down with her to doodle the hours away, he hadn't spoken. He'd seen how hard she was concentrating, her brow furrowing, as she bent over her sketchbook, intently scratching with her colored pencils. Though Roxas wasn't an artist, he felt he could understand - it was the same serene concentration he felt when poring over books on vampiric lore or practicing basic staking techniques.

If he had his way, he wouldn't even be here in the first place, but Axel and DiZ had as much told him and Namine to run off and go play while the grown-ups sorted things out. Apparently, somehow during the night Axel had been persuaded to cast his lot with DiZ, though he insisted on calling a council of vampire slayers in order to aid them against Xemnas. DiZ and Axel had argued marvelously over that, waking Roxas up in the middle of the night. He and Namine had gone to see the argument, and together they'd somehow managed to convince DiZ to allow the council, though he insisted that it was too soon. Namine had cut him down when she reminded him, "But DiZ...I thought you wanted to get your revenge sooner?"

So he consented. And now...now DiZ and Axel were organizing the coming council. He didn't know what Zexion and Demyx were doing, but figured they were staying out of trouble if Axel wasn't complaining and-slash-or ranting about them. As for him, all Axel had done was pat him on the head and suggest he go off with Namine. Which was why he was here now.

"Oh...well..." said Namine, a little awkwardly. She blushed and looked down, clutching the sketchbook tight to her chest like it was a precious child. "Well...I'm drawing...drawing you."

"Me?" Roxas straightened, startled. "Er - why would you wanna do that?"

"It's not just you," said Namine quickly, setting the sketchbook back down with a loud thump on the table. "It's - I was drawing everyone. You, Axel, Demyx, Zexion..."

"All of us?" Curious, Roxas stood to try to get a better look at the sketchbook. Namine quickly pushed the sketchbook to the side so that he couldn't see it.

"Sorry...it's not finished," she said.

Fair enough, Roxas decided, but he couldn't help the powerful sense of curiosity burning inside him. He knew it was a bit childish, but still, he wanted to see how Namine drew him. No one had ever drawn a picture of him before... And he also wanted to ask Namine why, though he supposed it was probably some weird artist reason.

She'd resumed her work, her head lowered so he couldn't see her face, intently scratching away at the sketchbook with a yellow colored pencil - Roxas supposed she was doing his hair now. He fidgeted a bit uncomfortably in his seat, having long abandoned his pitiful attempts at doodling (which mostly ended up with him drawing a series of checker designs, because those were the only things he felt he had the talent enough to draw). In a way, Namine's silence unnerved him. He was used to hanging around Hayner, Pence, and Olette - who with all their friendly squabbling had never allowed him a moment of silence - and Axel, who could go on for hours during a lesson, and Zexion, who seemed to simply enjoy hearing himself gloat. Namine's quietness was something entirely new, and he didn't know if he quite liked it...

He wanted to talk to her. To the quiet pale girl who always clung by DiZ's side, even though he got the impression that she didn't feel particularly affectionate towards him. She'd been put with him out of circumstance alone, yet he still didn't know what she thought about all this. DiZ fighting the Coven of Thirteen...the slayer council...

About the people who were staying with her. About the impetuous, foul-mouthed (and rather foul-mooded) Axel; about...well, Demyx, who was in love with a vampire, and the vampire himself...

And Roxas. Half-vampire, half-boy, around her age, now shoved into the same room as her. No wonder she was nervous...no wonder she kept trying to avoid his stare, throwing herself into her drawing so she wouldn't have to pay attention to her surroundings.

The strangest thing was that - that it annoyed Roxas. He didn't want her to look away, to treat her like something to be feared...

He wanted her to like him.

As soon as the thought rose in his mind, he swallowed it down like bile. Just what the hell was he thinking? He had Axel, Axel was enough - he shouldn't expect anyone else to accept him. Certainly not the daughter of vampire slayers. Wanting to be someone's friend - it was too new an experience for him and it almost scared him in a way. He'd never actively sought to become anyone's friend before; Hayner, Pence and Olette had come to him, and Axel the same.

Quite sure that he was blushing - and worse, not knowing why - Roxas lowered his head and picked up his pencil again to resume his doodling...

But then the door swung open. Roxas dropped the pencil, and Namine immediately whirled around and hugged the sketchbook to her chest again, staring with wide, fearful eyes at the lanky figure in the doorway.

"Well, this is fucking inconvenient, but Marluxia's already arrived - that idiot, if you say come on time he comes an hour early, always - so yeah, just thought I'd let you know. Your choice if you wanna go speak with him. I wouldn't waste my time if I were you, but do what you like, got it memorized?"

With that, he slammed shut the door and stormed off - Roxas could have sworn he could hear Axel huffing. Despite himself, he felt a smile tug at his face; he'd forgotten just how immature Axel could get when he was irritated...it made him seem much younger than the world-weary, almost elderly, way he sometimes behaved, as if he was a soldier who'd seen too much in his time. It was just another facet of what made Axel - Axel.

Roxas heard a faint sound, a strange sound that he didn't recognize immediately. He turned, alarmed, wondering if Namine was choking - but then saw, to his shock, that she was holding a hand demurely in front of her face and giggling, a faint pink flush tingeing her cheeks.

"Um..." was the most articulate thing Roxas could think to say.

"He's very..." Namine cast a smiling glance at the ajar door. "Opinionated, isn't he?"

A grin broke out across Roxas's face again, before he could think about what was happening. "Yeah," he said. "That's Axel for you."

As he spoke, a faint spark of hope rose in his chest - maybe, just maybe, he and Namine had found something to bond over.

Yeah, there's not a lot to it, but I do find myself wishing I'd included it. For on thing nobody seemed to really mind the mega-long chapters so I shouldn't have been too worried about length, and for another it gives both Roxas and Namine some desperately needed character exploration. Namine, especially, I feel I dropped the ball with, and there's no excuse since she is one of my favorite characters. Ah well.

Please review, and if you'd deign to take a look at Fear Not The Light I would be grateful to you forever! ^^