Here is the next chapter! Pls enjoy and I don't own Kingdom Hearts!
"Cloud's best friends, Zack and Leon."
Everyone was quiet…for a moment.
"Roxy! That is a brilliant idea! That's why you're my brother! You do take after me!" Sora cried seemingly proud.
"Sora. Just because you are 2 hours older doesn't mean I take after you. We are close enough to be individuals without taking after each other." I told him.
"Whoa, wait." Luxord cut in. "Sora is OLDER? You have got to be kidding." He said in disbelief.
"I didn't believe it either." Riku said nodding his head. The others around agreed. I looked to Axel, whom I hoped would stop this madness, but was disappointed as he nodded his head too.
"Axel!" I called in annoyance. He seemed to snap out of it and fake coughed to get everyone's attention.
"So anyway, how do we even get ahold of these guys? I'm sure their information has changed since you guys were "admitted" into the facility," Axel said making air quotes with his hands, "Depending on how old they were before, they could have moved away and be gone by now."
I looked to Axel. "Well Debby-downer, if I would have finished we wouldn't have to look at the mean emo side of things." I shot back at Axel. "Zack and Leon's families were really close with everyone. Including their son's. So if we call their house's I'm positive we will find if they are still there or their contact information if they aren't." I said looking smug.
Axel looked a bit miffed but I didn't mind it, until he broke out his trademark grin. Showing the slightly longer canines. "Well Rox, I would have to agree, it's a very nice plan. But I have no phones in this house. So we can't call, that means we have to take a field trip. So tell me oh wise one, can you also think of some transportation?" he said to me.
My lip twitched in annoyance before I frowned and looked away. I could hear everyone around us chuckling, except for Sora who was trying oh so hard not to start geeking out on the flour. "Axel, I'm sure the any people here have some means of-" I stopped as Riku raised his hand a bit.
"Yeah, sorry Rox, but Sora and I got here by my car and that thing broke down about 2 blocks up the road. And Zexion hitched a ride with us as well. Xig and Lux, I don't know what happened to their car, but they were walking up to this place at the same tie we were." Riku explained.
"Lux and I live about a mile away. We didn't want to waste gas to we walked." Xigbar explained.
I huffed in childish defiance before relenting, "Axel, would you be a dear and provide some kind of transportation?" I asked sickeningly sweetly. If I was gonna be forced to eat my own words, I was going to do it my way.
Axel's grin grew wider. "Why Roxas I thought you would never ask. But I do require something in return you know." He looked to see Sora giving him a suspicious look "not anything big, just something for going out of my way and paying for gas and all that."
Sora seemed to relax before a grin then appeared on his face. I immediately tried to get to him to get him to stop whatever it was he was going to do, but he jumped up and ran over to Axel before I could. Sora began whispering things in Axel's ear. We all sat in silence, some curious, Riku, Luxord, and Xigbar, others didn't care, Zexion, and others terrified what Sora was saying, ME. I knew that it was nothing good by the way Axel's smile got unbelievably bigger.
"Paid in full" Axel said proudly when Sora pulled away and walked back over to where he was by Riku. "So then, let's go on a man hunt shall we?" Axel concluded.
We all headed down a steel staircase into what I assumed was Axel's garage with him leading us. We got to the bottom but we all stayed by the stairs since it was too dark to see anything. Axel told us to wait there as he went to turn on lights. A few minutes later a few lights came on and we were faced with a garage filled with different types of vehicles, new and old.
To the right of me I saw a newer looking Cadillac XTS and McLaren F1. The facility let us read books and magazines so I was always on top of the new cars. To the left of me there were a few muscle cars like the Pontiac GTO and a blue and white striped Camero. To the back there were a few motorcycles including a few Harleys and some Yamahas too.
"So? What do you guys want?" Axel asked, looking smug at the light switch a few feet from us.
"How did you get all these? I thought vampires were total loners that never left their castles…or mansions in this case." Riku asked.
"I don't go out very often, so I need a hobby. I also needed money to keep my mansion and land. Luckily enough a lot of rich maniacs would kill to have a gothic wedding, or Halloween party or car show, or any kind of event in a huge old mansion like this. So I just host parties or rent out some space for a few days and in come money, or every now and again I get paid by physical means like a car." Axel explained.
I continued to stare in awe of the massive amount of cars in front of me. I was never huge on cars, but some of these were just my thing.
"Yo, hello? …ROXAS!" I snapped out of it as Sora yelled in my ear.
"What, Sora?" I asked
"You were in like an "awe" coma for a while. I was just making sure you weren't gonna faint on us or something." Sora said, holding his hands up in a show of innocence.
"Hey Rox, what do you think?" Axel asked now walking up to where me and Sora were standing. Everyone else went to check out the cars. "See any that jump out at ya?"
I looked up at him, "Are you like a car god or something? I love you so much more right now. And by the way, I think this is fucking amazing." I said.
He chuckled under his breath, "No I am not god but thanks for the compliment. Want to see my favorites?" he asked. I nodded vigorously which he laughed at. He wrapped a lanky arm around my waist and lead me to the back where there was a curtain covering a second room. Axel pulled the curtain back and revealed 2 Ford Mustang 2012 GT's. The one closest to me was pure black with red accents, and the one farthest from me was another pure black but with blue accents.
"Axel, I loved you before, but I'm starting to love you for your cars." I told him only half joking.
He laughed loudly, "Well I'll just have to change your mind then." He said as he dragged me over to the black and blue mustang. He lifted me by the waist gently and placed me on the hood of the mustang. He leaned over me and kissed me passionately. His cool lips on mine once again sent shivers down my spine. I let me hands thread through his hair as they weaved around his neck.
His one hand came to rest on my hip while the other rested on the car to hold himself above me. He molded his lips to mine, messaging the before gently nipping at my bottom lip. I gasped and he let his tongue invade past my lips. I let him do whatever to me and just relished in the fact this man… vampire was for the time, all mine.
We broke apart and I breathed heavily while he just watched me with his soul searing, ivy green eyes. I smiled and pecked him lightly on the lips before sliding off the hood. "You changed my mind." I said a bit breathless, "But the others will be coming back here soon. Riku loves cars so he will be begging for keys soon." I said.
Axel nodded, "Yea, well Roxy you just sit tight and I'll be back. We'll be taking this one here so let me just go get the keys and open the garage doors." With that said he walked back out of the curtain. I waited silently, leaning on the hood. I heard a few happy exclaims from the other room and figured it was Riku. I also heard a loud engine roar to life and I knew Riku wasn't a muscle car kind of guy so I figured it was Luxord, Zexion, and Xigbar.
Another engine came to life but was revved to I figured it was Riku with the motorcycle. I also knew that Sora wouldn't leave Riku's side so Sora was probably with him. I heard the garage door in the other room just as Axel came back through the curtain.
"Damn asshole. I barely made it in here before the door opened." I heard him grumble.
I suddenly remembered something, "Axel if you're a vampire how are you going to come with?"
He looked to me. "Truth be told I'm only a part vampire. More like a good 3/4ths vampire. The 1/4th human lets me go in sunlight with some restriction. I can go out, but it was to be under some shade and not for a long time. The windows on all my cars are tinted to the maximum limit and also have a layer of special glass that keeps UV rays out, so as long as I'm in the car I should be fine. Now get your cute ass in the car and lets go." He told me.
I blushed and ushered myself in the car. The interior was black with blue silver-like accents. We closed the doors and Axel pressed a button on a remote he got from its resting place in the cup holder. As the garage door lifted I saw that the windows really were tinted to the max, from what I could see of light when Axel came through the curtain, it was quite bright out. But now inside the car it was like a cloudy day instead.
"So where do we head out to?" Axel asked.
"Well Leon lived in Hollow Bastion and Zack would always visit from Radiant Garden* on the weekends and breaks. HB is closer so if we head there we could most likely find Leon's house and if not Leon himself we will get his contact from the family." I said, recalling the play dates our families would have 8 years ago.
"All righty then, I'll just set up the GPS…" Axel did, "and send the way there to the others…" Axel continued, "And then we are on our way!" he said as the map came up on the GPS. Axel then hit a button on the top corner that I guessed sent it to the others.
"Hey Axe, if Riku and Sora are on a motorcycle, how will they know where to go?" I asked realizing that motorcycle don't have a GPS.
He looked to me, "I have no idea how you know Riku and Sora are riding a motorcycle, but I had all the vehicles set up with a GPS system that all were connected to the GPS in either Mustangs. The motorcycles have a small screen attached to the handle bars so the rider can easily see it with or without a helmet."
"Oh." I said, my curiosity sated for now. "And I know they are on the bike because I heard the muscle engine go, but I knew for a fact Riku doesn't like those very much, and I knew Sora would always go with Riku, so when I heard the motorcycle I knew they must be on that." I explained.
He nodded and smiled lightly, "You know the well, for not seeing Riku in over 8 years and Sora being in that coma for a while."
I smiled too, "Riku was a master at sneaking in and out of places. He could never get in and out fast enough to get Sora and I out, but it was enough time to give letters. And Sora and I are twins, plus his coma was 2 years. We were there for 8 plus lived together before that. So we have spent most of our lives together. If I didn't know them I would be worried I had brain damage."
Axel nodded again and began his drive, the others followed behind us. The drive to HB wasn't too far, maybe 2 hours max. After a few minutes I began to fall asleep again. But this time, I wasn't afraid, or confused, I was happy, and hopeful.
After I fell asleep I don't remember much about my dream. All I could feel was cold. It just got colder and colder and I started to shake and twist, trying to get away. I was afraid. Eventually I gave up and just sat in the cold. After what seemed like hours I could feel someone shake me and I woke up with a startled jump.
"Whoa there camper, it's just me. We're here." Axel said with his normal grin. Sure enough when I looked outside we were just passing an old wooden sign saying Hollow Bastion in bright orange lettering. "Where is this house we are going to now?" he asked once he saw I was actually awake and coherent.
"Oh, um it's up that small hill over there, and it's the ever top one on the left." I pointed to the hill. Axel nodded and turned onto the street leading to the hill. I turned around and noticed everyone else following. It only took about 5 minutes more to get to Leon's old house. We all stopped in front of it and parked on the other side of the street. "You can come on out Axel. HB is always cloudy and dark, something to do with the surrounding mountains and the atmosphere that I don't really understand."
He looked a bit nervous but opened the car door a smidge. After he saw it was dark enough he came out all the way and waited for the others. Once they all got out we stood by the back of Axel's mustang, in front of the motorcycle Riku and Sora came on. "So how are we going about this gents?" Luxord asked. Wrapping an arm around Zexion who looked annoyed.
"I think Sora and I should go and see first. They would be more open to giving us information than you guys." I said and turned to Sora who nodded. We both barrowed new clothes from Axel. He apparently gets paid in clothing as well so he has a lot of clothing in a lot of styles. Sora went with black Tripp® pants that had blue straps and pockets as well at a black tank top with a blue, black, and silver shoulder coat*. I had plain jeans on with a black tank top and a checkered light coat.
The others nodded when Riku spoke up, "What about me? Wouldn't it be more convincing with me?" he asked.
I shook my head, "If you came they would wonder why they hadn't heard of us being back and why you didn't say anything. It would raise too many questions."
Riku nodded seeing the issues. Sora and I nodded at each other and went to the door. I looked to the side of the house and saw that the old Leon family car was still there so that gave a good sign. Sora stepped up the porch and knocked on the door. I stayed at the bottom of the stairs. I was shy 8 years ago, so I wanted to make them more comfortable so I decided to act shy again.
We heard a gruff voice call, "Coming!" from the house before the door opened. Luckily or not it was an older Leon who opened the door. We looked us stunned for a moment. Before slamming the door closed. Sora and I were taken aback when the door opened again and Leon looked at us somewhat stunned. He was about to do it again when I went up to the porch and held the door open.
"I would like it if you would NOT slam the door again Leon." I said calmly. 'There went the act.' I thought.
"Y-you. Are you guys really…?" Leon stuttered a bit.
"I don't remember you ever being one to stutter Leon." Sora said teasingly, waving a finger in his face. Leon surprised us both by coming forward and giving us both a hug. We gently gave one back.
"How are you here? Your parents told us you were moving closer to their job at the facility." He asked.
Sora and I flinched at the word 'facility'.
"Leon, we need to talk to you and Zack. Is there some way we could get him here? And if we could talk without your parents that would be better." I said seriously. He looked taken aback.
"Zack is upstairs. And my parents and his are out of town, on some kind of grand tour/cruise thing. They will be gone for another month and a half. What's going on? Where…where is Cloud?" he asked.
"That's what we need to talk to you about Leon. We need to talk to you about Cloud. Could we talk with you and Zack? It's important…" Sora said pleadingly.
Leon nodded, "Yeah come on in. I'll get Zack." He said stepping aside.
"Wait, we came with some friends, let me call them over." I said. I turned around and waved to the others. They saw and moved forward, coming to the house.
"Are they really your friends? I see Riku and I know he is picky about his friends but these guys look…dangerous almost." Leon said.
I nodded my head, "I don't know about Luxord, Xigbar, and Zexion just yet, but Axel is safe and he will keep the others in line." I reassured Leon.
He nodded hesitantly. Axel and the others came to the door. Axel held out his hand to Leon who took it and shook. "Name's Axel. The blonde brit behind me is Luxord, followed by the old guy Xigbar, and Zexion the emo. Rox said you already knew Riku. Thanks for letting us in and talk" Axel said business-like.
I looked at Axel in awe, "Axe, you can talk almost civilized, I never knew…" I said sarcastically.
Axel looked down at me, "You've gotten pretty cheeky, where'd that cute and shy boy go from earlier." He asked.
I blushed and lightly smacked him. Leon crowded us all into the living room and called Zack down. When Zack came down the stairs, he looked at Sora and I with his mouth agape in shock before running over and giving us a big hug, saying how much he missed us. Sora and calmed him down enough for him to take a seat.
We gave them the run-down of what happened 8 years ago. About the facilities real purpose as well as the drugs. We told them how we had to fight to be safe and how Cloud was brain-washed by a drug to be a soldier. I told my half of how I got out and ran into Axel. It was a bit harder to make them believe Axel was a vampire but when Axel caught me by surprise and gave them a demonstration, they stayed quiet. Sora then shared how they had gotten away. Riku told them of how he ran into Axel a few years back and that when Axel called in a favor talking about Roxas he came over with Sora.
All of use but themselves and Axel learned that Luxord was a private odd-detective*, Xigbar ran an undercover gang that worked for higher-ups as bodyguards, and Zexion was a mad hacker who was dating a man named Demyx who was away with work as a musician.
As Leon and Zack took in the information we waited patiently to hear what they wanted to do. They left the room to talk about what to do. The rest of use either played cards, Luxord and Xigbar, or flirted…Sora, Riku, Axel, and I. after a few minutes later Leon and Zack came back. We waited for an answer from the two. They both looked at each other and nodded.
"We'll help you take down the facility and rescue Cloud" they said together.
Sora and I let out a sigh of relief. We had the help, we had the will, and now all we need is a plan.
Oh happy day! Part 3. I just want to note, I am not that into cars…at all. I have no idea the difference between them, engines, nothing. I car is a car, and truck is a truck, and all the others. Now for the stars:
Well Leon lived in Hollow Bastion and Zack would always visit from Radiant Garden*: I know technically Hb and RG are the same place, but I decided to make them different this time. Deal with it.
Sora went with black Tripp® pants that had blue straps and pockets as well at a black tank top with a blue, black, and silver shoulder coat*: it's about as modern and simple as I could get Sora's outfit.
All of use but themselves and Axel learned that Luxord was a private odd-detective*: and odd detective (where I come from) is a detective that solves things around the neighborhood. Simple things, they are kind of like a jack of all trades as long as it comes to detective work, he just doesn't do things by the book…or law.
Hope you enjoy! Next chapter a plan set in action!