A/N: Geez, man. It feels like time's flying by these days. We'll get the next chapter cranked out! Enjoy~

Disclaimer: I own nothing but the story. Many thanks to Milaya Milen Zeal for helping me!

Steal My Heart

Chapter 3

The two young kitsune shifted to fox form and went to race in the forest surrounding the palace. Roxas waited until they were ready, and then stood in front of them.

"First one to reach this spot three times after a lap around the palace wins," he declared. Then he motioned for them to start. Joshua took off like a shot, racing with ease through the brush and weaving around the trees. Neku was right behind him, but rather than stick to the ground, the redhead bounced off the trees, catching up with little to no effort.

Joshua yipped happily, overjoyed to be able to race like this. When he noticed the older kitsune catching up, however, the silverette smirked before activating his ability: Temporal Lock. Time froze around him, and he continued to dash ahead for about ten seconds before time began to flow normally again.

Though startled that he was suddenly passed by, he didn't let up and, with a snap of his tails, he sped up, catching up again in no time. Joshua snickered, and activated the temporal lock again, this time propelling himself on the trees like Neku was. He kept it held for 13 seconds this time, and then let time flow normally again.

Upon being passed again, Neku actually snarled angrily, before he exhaled sharply and summoned a burst of foxfire ahead of him, teleporting from one flame to the next.

Joshua snorted, and then activated temporal lock once more. He streaked ahead of Neku, who was in mid-teleport, and continued to keep time frozen for 30 seconds this time. The smaller kitsune finished the first lap during that period, and continued to breeze halfway through the second lap by the time he let his ability release. The other kitsune growled, running and teleporting right after Joshua, his tails snapping at the air behind him as he went. Joshua snickered as he stopped time again, speeding further ahead of Neku.

"Try as you might, Neku, you won't beat me!" he teased, waving his tails teasingly as he raced past Neku a second time and unfroze time.

"Gods dammit!" Neku hissed, as he rushed in with his own teleports, annoyed that he just didn't seem to be able to keep up…

And suddenly he heard something whistling through the wind from to the side, and, on instinct alone, he twisted his body around. And then there was a flare of pain blossoming from his right shoulder as he was flung sideways, a startled/pained cry escaping him before he struck a nearby tree and fell to the ground, unconscious.

"Neku!" Joshua cried out, turning back around and racing towards the injured kitsune. Roxas and Axel swiftly joined them, and a dome of foxfire formed over them as protection. Joshua immediately saw the arrow in Neku's shoulder, and gasped. "What…?"

"Fucking hell!" Axel snarled, and looked at Roxas and Joshua. "I'll teleport you to the infirmary. Meanwhile, I'm going to track down whoever did this to my son!" The two bearers nodded, and in a burst of flames, they were at the infirmary without the older redhead.

"What's going on?" a female voice called out, and then Shiki, the palace medic, came out of her office and saw the injured Neku. "Oh gods!" she gasped, seeing the arrow. She immediately set to work, and carefully removed the arrow before starting to clean up the blood and then stitch up the wound. Finally, after some time, she was done. She sat back on her heels, her wolf tail drooping. "He's going to be in pain when he wakes up, but he'll survive," she announced to the tense pair nearby.

"Thank you, Shiki," Roxas told her gratefully. "We'll take him to his room to rest."

"Please do, seeing as he'll need a lot in order to recover," the brunette said firmly. Roxas looked at Joshua, who had reverted to human form by now, and he asked politely for some help holding Neku. Once the silverette was carefully holding him, Roxas used his light magic to bring them to Neku's bedroom.

"I know she said he'd be okay, but I'm still worried about him," the smaller male whispered.

"Shiki's an amazing nurse, Joshua, so trust her in that he'll make a full recovery," the blonde soothed. "Do you want to stay with him? I need to collect some herbs for a pain-relieving herbal tea, but I shouldn't be too long."

"I'll definitely stay," Joshua nodded almost eagerly. The neko nodded as well, and then left. Once he was gone, Joshua sighed heavily. He felt guilty, even though this wasn't his fault. "I'm so sorry, Neku," he breathed. "That's twice now that you've gotten hurt around me…"

There was no response from Neku to the words, given he was still unconscious in his fox form, and, in a way, that was better. At least he wouldn't be in as much pain (hopefully). Joshua waited, somewhat patiently, and prayed to whatever higher powers there were that Neku would be okay. Already, even though it had only been a day, he cared about the redhead. And he remembered the initial look he had gotten of Neku when they first met, and how the older kitsune seemed attractive to him. Maybe they would end up as mates.

"…nrgh…"

The red kitsune groaned, his face scrunching up a bit, before he let out a howl of pain and curled up, one paw going for his shoulder.

"No, Neku, don't," Joshua soothed, pulling his paw away from his shoulder. "You'll mess up your stitches."

"…nnngh…" Wearily, Neku blinked his eyes open, looking up slowly. "…wha…happ…?"

"Someone shot you with an arrow," the silverette explained. "Axel went to hunt down whoever did it, and Roxas went to collect herbs for a pain-relieving tea."

"…ahh…" Neku whined softly and rolled onto his back as he shifted back again. "…nrgh… ow… dammit…"

"I know it hurts, but Roxas should be back soon," Joshua sighed. "I'm just glad you're okay."

"Gah…that shouldn't've…even hit…anyway…ugh…" the redhead grumbled, placing a hand along his shoulder.

"Well, it did, but Shiki said you'll need lots of rest in order to recover…" the smaller male told him. Finally, Roxas returned, a steaming cup of tea in his hands. He blinked, surprised, when he saw Neku was awake, but then smiled.

"Hey sweetie, I'm glad to see you awake," he murmured, setting the tea on the bedside table. "I made some tea to help with the pain." The redhead glanced over at those words, still looking out through bleary eyes, before he nodded and began to push himself up.

Instinctively, Joshua helped Neku prop himself up, and smiled slightly at the redhead to assure him that everything would be okay. Neku briefly nodded his head in thanks, before sitting back against the headboard, breathing heavily as he shut his eyes.

"Here you go, Neku," Roxas smiled softly, handing him the tea. "Drink it slow, okay? I need to go check in with your father, but I'll be back to check on you soon." And with a quick kiss to Neku's forehead, he left, shifting into cat form and darting out of the room. Neku continued breathing heavily for a moment as he cradled the cup in his hands, blowing away the steam coming from the tea.

Joshua watched him, hoping he would start to drink the tea soon so the redhead wouldn't be hurting so much. "Is there anything I can do to help?" he asked. A shake of the head was the only response he got, as Neku slowly started sipping his tea. The smaller kitsune sighed softly, but waited patiently for the tea's effects to kick in. It took Neku a few minutes to finish his tea, given his aching shoulder, but finally, he finished it all and reclined back against the headrest with a small sigh.

"Feeling better?" the silverette inquired.

"…a bit…"

"Well, at least it's helping a little," Joshua smiled slightly, giving a satisfied nod.

"Hmhmm…" Neku hummed softly.

"Did you know it was coming?" the smaller male questioned, remembering Neku's earlier comment of how it shouldn't have hit.

"…heard it coming…" Neku murmured. "…thought I dodged… guess I messed up…"

"Hey, it's better to take the hit somewhere less lethal than be killed," Joshua pointed out, and then sat on the bed. Deciding to change the subject, he said, "I didn't realize you had inherited Axel's foxfire control ability."

"…there's a lot you don't know…"

"Well, would you mind sharing with me things about you? After all, since we're friends now, I'd like to know more," the silverette murmured shyly.

"…mmm…maybe…" Neku hummed softly.

"I'll tell you about myself in return."

"…" Lazily, Neku opened one eye to glance at Joshua, before he sighed and leaned his head back. "…what do you wanna know?"

"Interests, hobbies, just…anything, really," Joshua shrugged.

"…archery…" the redhead murmured then.

"Really? Never used a weapon in my life, only knives to skin any prey we would catch, and to gut any fish we managed to catch in summer," the smaller kitsune replied.

"…you should try it…"

"Then you teach me."

"…once my shoulder stops hurting…"

"That's a given," Joshua chuckled. "I don't know about you, but because of my ability, I have accelerated healing. Maybe I can use my time rush skill to accelerate your healing?"

"…it's fine... I'll live…"

"Okay…" Joshua pouted. He'd kinda hoped Neku would be okay with it.

"…what about you?"

"Hmm? Oh, well, I don't have too many hobbies, but music is something I enjoy," he answered.

"…music?"

"I like to play, but I'm only good on a piano," Joshua explained, blushing faintly.

"…what about koto?"

"I've heard of them, but never played one. I'd like to, though," the silverette admitted.

"…think Mom has one somewhere…"

"Really? Maybe I can play it sometime."

"…cool…"

The smaller male blushed from his slight excitement. "Do you play?"

"…nah…I dance…"

"I'd like to see that when you're all healed," Joshua confessed, blushing a bit more.

"…mm… sure…" Neku yawned out.

Joshua noticed how tired the redhead was becoming, so he scooted closer. "Get some sleep, Neku. I'll stay with you," he murmured.

"…hmm…kay…" the redhead mumbled, as he settled himself a little further back. Smiling slightly, Joshua shifted to fox form, and then slipped behind Neku's upper half, providing some plush comfort and warmth. Hopefully the redhead won't object… Neku groaned slightly at the movement, but he didn't wake, and instead merely rolled on his side, getting himself comfortable.

X*X(With Axel & Roxas)X*X

"I still can't believe it was someone from the staff," Roxas growled as he and Axel headed to their son's room to check on him and Joshua.

"You're telling me. The fucker deserved to be burned alive," the redhead nodded, glaring at the floor.

"At least he's okay. That's what matters," the blonde pointed out. As they got close to Neku's room, they realized it was quiet inside, so Roxas silently opened the door a bit, and smiled warmly at the sight that greeted him. Joshua, in fox form, curled up behind Neku to provide comfort and act as a pillow for him, and both kitsune fast asleep. Axel looked as well, and he smirked.

"I knew he would be okay with this in the end," he whispered to his mate.

"I know, and they'll be mates soon enough," the neko nodded. "Let's give them some peace and quiet so they can sleep."

"Right," Axel agreed as they left.

X*X*X*X*X*X*X

Neku groaned softly as consciousness slowly came back to him, and he blinked his eyes open. His sleep-muddled mind was still struggling with consciousness, though, and he wasn't entirely certain where he was. All he really knew was that he was comfortable and he almost didn't wanna get up.

However, he forced himself to get up, yawning and rubbing at his eyes. The slight motion didn't wake Joshua, but he did twitch a bit in his sleep.

"…huh?" The motion caught Neku's attention from the corner of his eyes, making him look over. It took him a few moments to realize what he was looking at, but the moment he did, his eyes widened and his ears went up in alarm. "Wha…!? Di-did I…? Ugh…seriously?"

He sat there for a moment more, cursing himself silently, before he stood up, hissing slightly at the pain in his shoulder, before he moved towards his balcony.

Joshua whined softly at the lack of warmth, and his violet eyes slowly opened. He yawned widely, and then saw Neku at the balcony. "Neku…? Are you okay?" he asked tiredly.

"…yeah…" was the only response as Neku leaned over the railing quietly.

The smaller kitsune yawned again before hopping off the bed, and then shifted back as he joined Neku at the balcony. "…What are you thinking about?"

"…nothing, really."

"Oh…" Neku remained where he was for a long time, simply staring out across the garden silently. Joshua did this as well, silently wondering if Neku would be able to see him as mate material. Just as the thought crossed Joshua's mind, though…

"…might not be so bad…"

"Hmm?" Joshua hummed, twitching his ears.

"…nothing…" Neku mumbled as he stood up and walked back inside. Joshua knew what he'd heard, though, but decided not to push his luck. Suddenly, there was a knock on the door, right before Axel and Roxas entered.

"Hey sweetie, how are you feeling?" the neko asked his son.

"Fine…" Neku said solemnly, rubbing at his shoulder. "…might not be able to practice for a while, though…"

"That's okay. You'll catch up in no time once you're fully healed," Axel assured him.

"Guess so…" After a moment, though, the redhead asked, "So…did you get whoever was out there?"

"Yes, and it was one of the servants," his father answered. "Burned the asshole alive for it."

"…not surprised…" Neku mumbled with a small chuckle.

"Hell, dumbass had it coming for trying to kill you," Axel shrugged with a smirk.

"We actually came to check if you boys were awake so you could eat," Roxas said.

"…might be smart…" Neku conceded, turning his bangs between his fingers.

"Especially with how much running you boys did during your race," Roxas smiled. Joshua's stomach suddenly growled, and he blushed, embarrassed.

Neku snorted on a chuckle, before saying, "Yeah, let's go before someone's stomach decides to eat itself up."

Joshua blushed darkly, lowering his gaze shyly. "I can't help it. My ability uses a lot of my energy…"

"Don't worry, we've got plenty," Roxas assured his fellow bearer.

"Sooo… why are we still standing here, then?" Neku asked simply.

"All right, we can take a hint," Axel chuckled. The small group then headed down to the dining hall, where there was a large variety of sushi laid out on the table for them to all eat. Joshua's jaw dropped at the sight of the delicious food.

"We figured you both might like a nice change from something ordinary," Roxas said. "We don't often have sushi, but tonight seemed like a good night for it."

Neku regarded the table for a moment, before he turned to regard his parents dryly. "Okay; what are you two planning now?"

"It's to welcome Joshua since he didn't eat dinner with us last night," Axel answered with a grin.

"Riiiight…I'll just pretend to believe that right away if you don't mind…" Neku mumbled with a snort.

"Believe what you want, but for now, let's eat!" Roxas laughed, and the four youkai helped themselves to the sushi. Neku immediately went for the inari sushi, taking only a few other types, but sticking mostly to inari.

Joshua copied him, seeing as a majority of the sushi was inari anyway. Axel was on the same page as the younger two, while Roxas took anything but the inari, seeing as he wanted to save it for the others.

As they continued eating, Neku's tails coiled around him better, the tips swaying on occasion as he munched on the sushi. Compared to that morning, his mood seemed to have done an almost complete 180, though he was still as quiet as that morning. Joshua had noticed, too. He was pleased to see and know that Neku was no longer angry and bitter towards his parents. He swallowed a mouthful of sushi, and then exclaimed, "This is delicious!"

Neku briefly looked up at the suddenly exclamation with a mouthful of inari, before he wordlessly went back to his food, clearly having nothing to add to the words.

The two parents smiled slightly at each other, pleased with the silverette's reaction.

"I'm glad you like it," Roxas laughed lightly.

"We hardly make sushi at home since fish is hard to catch for us unless it's summer," the smaller male explained. "But this is the best sushi I've ever had!"

"Then we'll have to have it more often then, now won't we, Neku?" Axel asked, looking at his son. A little startled that he was suddenly addressed, Neku paused with his sushi halfway to his mouth. After only a moment, though, he shrugged and bit down on his food.

Joshua grinned excitedly at the oldest redhead, though. "You really mean that?" he asked eagerly. "I'd love to learn how it's made here."

"I'd love to teach you," Roxas chuckled.

"Speaking of teaching, Neku told me you have a koto somewhere. I've never played one, but I'd like to learn how," the younger bearer said.

"I do. But even though it's mine, Neku's better at it, in my opinion," the blonde admitted.

"Maybe you could teach him, Neku?" Axel suggested, looking once again at his son.

"…I'm not THAT good…" the younger redhead mumbled without looking up.

"You're better than me, though," his mother pointed out. "It won't hurt."

"It might…" the redhead mumbled around a piece of inari sushi.

"Aww, come on, Neku, please?" Joshua pleaded, giving Neku his puppy-dog eyes as he tried to convince him. "I'm a quick learner…"

Neku gave him one look before going back to his food. "Stop looking at me like that…I'll think about it." The silverette pouted, but went back to his own food. Axel internally sighed, wondering why Neku was being so stubborn. Roxas's thoughts were along the same line. He really wanted the two younger kitsune to bond and become closer, but with Neku's attitude and personality, it was obviously gonna take time. Poor Joshua would just have to be patient.

Eventually, the sushi was all gone from the table, and all four youkai leaned back in their seats, groaning from their overly-full stomachs.

"I ate way too much," Joshua whined.

Neku chuckled softly at those words before saying, "Yeah, well, totally worth it."

"Agreed," the smaller male giggled tiredly.

"You two better get to your rooms for bed, then, that way you can sleep off the food," Roxas chuckled.

"Good idea," Joshua nodded. "I'm gonna be in a food coma for a while…"

Neku didn't say anything in response, but the look on his face said enough.

"Mind taking Joshua to his room, Neku? I'd rather he not fall over from exhaustion," Axel asked the younger redhead.

At that, Neku sighed. "Do I have to?" he whined, but he did get up and walk over to Joshua's side. "C'mon, let's move."

"Okay…" the silverette yawned, and hauled himself out of his chair. He stumbled after Neku, and eventually, the pair made their way to Joshua's room, and the younger kitsune was quick to curl up under the covers, exhausted. He didn't even bother to change into pajamas, but then again, he was tired. Soon enough, he was fast asleep.

"Geez, at least change, ya lazy bones…" Neku grumbled, before he sighed and walked over, briefly adjusting the blankets so that he wouldn't catch a cold. "Whatever… 's been a long day anyway." Once he was sure Joshua was comfortable, the redhead took a moment to look around the guest room. He wasn't usually in there, after all.

"No…" came a sudden whimper from Joshua.

"Hmm?" Blinking, Neku regarded Joshua in question. "Now what?" The smaller male whimpered and squirmed in his sleep, appearing distressed. "…the hell?" Confused, Neku moved over and poked the silverette's shoulder. "Oy…"

Joshua immediately began to struggle against the blankets, his tails squirming as he clawed at the sheets. Suddenly, he jolted up with a loud, panicked cry of, "NEKU!"

"Gah!" said redhead yowled as he backpedalled, before growling angrily. "Dammit, man! What're you trying to do?! Gimme a heart attack?!" His anger diminished, however, as he saw the terrified tears already streaming down the younger's face, his violet eyes wide with fear and worry. "Uh…" For a moment, Neku stumbled for words, running a hand through his hair, before he managed to ask, "Oy…you alright?"

"I had a nightmare you were shot at again…" Joshua whispered shakily, trembling as he wrapped his arms around himself in an attempt at comfort.

"Oh for…" Neku mumbled softly, rubbing at his temple, before he walked over and plopped down on the bed. "Hey, look," he said, getting Joshua's attention. As he held out his arms, he said, "See? I'm fine. Lil grumpy with a sore shoulder, sure, but I'm fine. A'ight?" The smaller kitsune nodded, but he was still scared from his nightmare.

"…Neku…?" he mumbled, wondering if the older kitsune would even take his request seriously.

"Hm?"

"C…can you stay with me? I don't want to have another nightmare…" he asked hesitantly, scooting a little closer.

"Wha…? But I was gonna…Urgh…Fine. Just gimme a moment," Neku grumbled as he stood up and hurried out the door. Joshua waited anxiously for the redhead's return, shivering slightly every few seconds from the thoughts of his nightmare. Shortly after, Neku returned to the room, carrying a pad of some coal of some kind and some sort of case with him. He was ticking off something on his left hand as he walked over, but finally he nodded and stepped up to the bed.

"Scoot over." Upon the startled look he got, he repeated, "I said scoot over. You're taking up the whole bed like that." Quickly, Joshua complied, and made room for Neku to join him.

"Thank you, Neku…" he murmured, blushing slightly as the taller male slid under the covers.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever…" Neku mumbled as he propped up his pad on his knees and pulled out a piece of charcoal. With a content sigh, the silverette laid back down, and soon enough, fell asleep to Neku's warmth so close. As he slept, however, he snuggled close to Neku's side, seeking comfort, and when he was pressed against the redhead, he stopped moving, just breathing evenly. Neku blinked when Joshua did that, but he didn't question it, and instead went back to sketching silently.

"…"

And with that, the night went on, Neku eventually falling asleep before he could finish his drawing.

A/N: R&R, peeps!