Since their brief inebriated kiss, Axel could not shake the meaning from his head. Roxas had said people kissed because they loved each other. Though Axel did not understand much of the new world he had been thrown into, he understood the feeling of love. Did Roxas love him, then? Or was it just senseless mumbling in the boy's drunken fit?
No matter the case, Axel could not let the thought overwhelm him. Above everything, Roxas owned Axel. Despite the freedoms Roxas had given him, Axel was still socially below him.
Still, the thought burrowed deep into Axel's mind and refused to leave. Axel's diligence began to fade as he only half-completed his tasks.
Roxas noticed fairly quickly and asked, "Is something bothering you?"
"Nothing, it's fine," Axel insisted.
"No, it's not. You've been living here for a while and I know when something's bothering you. Plus, I can't have you only half-finishing your duties. What's the matter?"
Axel shifted uncomfortably. "Do you remember anything from Vanitas's birthday?"
"Not much after the sun went down, I at least know I drank pretty heavily..." Roxas admitted.
"Oh, well...y-you didn't just want to give me a savium..." Axel found himself stammering.
Roxas knitted his brows, listening intently.
"Y-you...you kissed me on the lips." Axel's cheeks flushed at the thought, and his lips tingled.
Roxas's cheeks also flushed. "I-I-I probably didn't mean to, I was clearly inebriated to the point where I didn't know what was going on..."
"Right, of course. Because you said that people kiss when they're in love, and...yeah." Axel faltered.
"Yes, absolutely," Roxas agreed rather quickly.
Between the silence, Axel heard a growling noise and his stomach pinched.
"Oh, it's about time for a midday meal." Roxas seemed relieved to change the subject.
"I'll go get some bread and cheese." Axel turned on his heel to leave the room, but in his hurry out the door he tripped on something near Roxas's bed. A sickening mixture of greasy and warm liquids spread over Axel's foot, and Roxas muttered a curse to himself.
"I'm sorry..." Axel began.
"Be careful, there's broken glass." Roxas waved his hands around frantically.
Axel glanced at his foot as he inched away from the glass shards, seeing olive oil mixing with blood dripping over his sandal.
"Uh...don't move, I'll be right back to clean it up." Roxas rushed off to the kitchen.
Axel furrowed his brows, his confusion being produced by trying to process everything that had just happened.
Roxas returned with a cleaning cloth and a broom to sweep away the mess. He soaked up the olive oil and swept the shards into a bucket to carry them off for disposal.
"Why would you clean up this mess, isn't this my fault?" Axel wondered.
"I didn't want you to injure your foot worse." Roxas took the pitcher of water off his desk and poured it out on Axel's wound. The remaining oil mixed with the water, pooling in little green spots above the reddening water.
"I didn't cut it that badly," Axel assured, "but why did you have a bottle of olive oil under your bed?"
"Th-that isn't important, but I'll have to replace it. Will you escort me to the market?" Roxas asked.
"Of course, just let me clean this up. It surprised me that you did that." Axel noted.
"Oh, well I guess I should take better care of my things, especially...that." Roxas's cheeks flushed and he hurried outside to wait in the hall.
Axel, still puzzled by the entire scene, cleaned up the rest of the liquid and escorted Roxas to the market.
Roxas stayed close by as the two wandered through the market. Axel felt far too embarrassed to ask what the bottle of olive oil had been for, but he would perhaps eventually find out.
Roxas stopped in front of a merchant selling bottles and containers of various shapes and sizes. As Roxas perused his wares, the merchant seemed to notice the intricacy of Roxas's casual clothes. Axel noticed the swindling glint in the merchant's eyes from years of observing the same glint in the eyes of Axel's sellers.
"Interested in something, young man?" The merchant grinned.
"Just looking for a perfume bottle-for my sister." It seemed unnecessary for Roxas to have included a subject, but the merchant didn't seem to take note. "I think this one will do." Roxas held up a blue glass bottle in the style of an amphora.
"I see, a very interesting design you've chosen. That specific bottle is very rare, from a town in the north. For that I will offer you...three denarii." The merchant decided.
"Three denarii?" Roxas repeated. "I wasn't set on paying so much as one..."
"This bottle is quite special, young man, certainly not worth one denarius." The merchant objected.
Roxas wavered for a moment. It occurred to Axel that Roxas had probably never made a business deal on his own in his life, and even so he shouldn't have been here without his father. He flicked his eyes to Axel, catching his gaze. Axel shook his head very slightly, so even Roxas couldn't have seen had he not been watching carefully.
Roxas faced the merchant again and said clearly, "Then I will not be accepting your business here."
The merchant, his eyes wide, witnessed his deal slipping away, and he responded, "No, wait, how about we settle on two denarii?"
Roxas scrunched his lips to the corner of his mouth, raising an eyebrow.
The merchant sighed. "Fine, one denarius."
Roxas fished the coin from a pouch in his toga and placed it on the counter. The merchant wrapped the perfume bottle in a protective cloth, and the two headed home.
"How do you seem to know so much about business deals?" Roxas asked.
"I was a business deal a few times," Axel chuckled a bit, something he had not done since he had been with Isa when they were young.
Roxas giggled and smiled, and Axel found his cheeks feeling warm again.
"Why do you keep tracking olive oil everywhere?" Larxene grumbled, getting on her hands and knees to wash the floor again.
As Axel walked, he found the oil squelching from his sandal.
"I stepped in some..." Axel answered.
"How did you step in olive oil, you didn't spill any in the kitchen?" Larxene noted.
"It was in Master Roxas's room." Axel replied. Then he added, "Larxene, would you by chance have any idea why Master Roxas would have a small bottle of olive oil under his bed?"
Larxene snickered. "You seriously don't know?"
"No...should I?" Axel knit his brows.
"You're a man, I figured all men did it..." Larxene muttered.
"Did what?"
"Masturbari," Larxene replied.
"What is that?" Axel glanced off to the side. By the way Larxene had snickered at the beginning of their conversation, he wondered if it was something having to do with what prostitutes did.
Larxene pursed her lips, thinking. "Have you ever touched yourself here?" Larxene motioned to between Axel's legs.
"No...I've been kicked there, and it hurts..." Axel offered.
"Okay, well...some men, when they can't find a partner to have sex with, just like to touch themselves there and it's called masturbari." Larxene explained.
"Okay...why?" Axel continued.
"Haven't you ever had sex?"
"No..."
"That explains it," Larxene hissed under her breath, "because it feels good."
"But what's the olive oil for?"
"You know how it feels when you scrape against something? Imagine that happening there."
Axel cringed noticeably.
"Exactly, so the oil is for keeping it from getting that scraped feeling."
"Um...one more question," Axel mumbled.
Larxene groaned. "What?"
"How...how do men have sex with each other?"
Larxene sat up and laughed aloud.
"Shh, someone will hear you!" Axel hissed.
"You really don't know? I thought you and Isa were lovers."
"No, I just had feelings for him..." Axel admitted. His cheek tinged red.
"One of the men sticks his mentula into the other man's culus." Larxene stated.
Axel cringed again, realizing the pain would be sharp. "Doesn't it hurt?"
"Oh absolutely, unless one of them sticks his fingers up there to relax the muscles."
"But that would still hurt..."
"That's why they use olive oil as a lubricant. Sometimes they use saliva, but olive oil works much better, trust me. I can't tell you how many times I've done it that way, too..."
Axel crinkled his nose in disgust. So that was how Terra and Ventus did it...
"Why do you ask these questions, anyway?" Larxene wondered. "Did Master Roxas use you for that purpose yet?"
Yet? Would there be a time when Roxas would ask Axel to do the same thing Ventus asks of Terra?
"N-no, just wondering. Well...Master Ventus often uses Terra to satisfy himself..." Axel immediately felt the guilt crawling over him as he relayed that to Larxene.
"Oh everyone knows about that." Larxene waved her hand dismissively. "Besides, it's not like they're quiet about it. And it's normal for masters to use their slaves for sexual favors."
Axel knew his relationship with Roxas was already unnatural with the way they interacted, but would all that change? If it did, Axel knew he wouldn't be ready for it.
"Alright, thanks for...that." Axel decided, going off to rest for the night.
The terms Larxene had used in their conversation earlier that day swam around in Axel's head, confusing him to the point of not being able to sleep.
Late in the night, Terra crept from his bed to visit Aqua. In response, Axel decided to take a walk around the house.
The eerie silence crawled on Axel's skin like insects. Down the hall toward Roxas's room, he heard muffled noises and slight panting coming from the cracked-open door. Had Axel left it open earlier that day?
Every so often, Axel could hear his name bubble up from Roxas's mouth. Maybe he was having a nightmare?
Axel stepped closer, trying to listen into Roxas's nightmare.
"Aah...Axel..." He groaned.
Axel furrowed his brows, wondering if he should wake Roxas from the nightmare.
"Mmm...ah...hah..."
He knew it was wrong to be listening in on this, and just as he turned away Roxas cried out.
"Aahh!"
The sudden outburst startled him and he tripped again, this time falling into the door. The door swung open, and Axel attempted to peel himself off the floor. He heard sheets rustling in the bed, and turned to find a completely-awake Roxas sitting in bed staring at Axel like a frightened deer.
"I-I-I'm sorry..." Axel stammered, "I couldn't sleep so I took a walk, and it sounded like you were having a nightmare about me."
Roxas's cheeks, which were already flushed, reddened deeper. He averted his eyes, shifting under the blankets. "P-p-please go to bed..."
Axel suddenly remembered his conversation with Larxene earlier, and the realization sank in: Roxas wasn't having a nightmare.
Before he could even start to process why Roxas was groaning Axel's name, he bolted from the room, shutting the door tightly behind him.
Translations
- Delectatio Morosa - Peevish delight, also pleasure taken in sinful thoughts
- Denarius/denarii - Silver coins
- Masturbari - Masturbating
- Mentula - Penis
- Culus - Anus