#another axel of orange crossing it the other way

[blagueofchaos]

Edit: didn't mean to post this to this blog, but if you like it, check out my new Design Home sideblog resplendent-dwellings!

[scarystrasse]

Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Lilith’s Joy

Lilith's meal had come in and was served.  The roasted young imperial goat had been deboned and slice moderately for Lilith to eat.  She also had apple sauce, carrots, mashed potatoes, a chocolate pudding, and a glass of cinnamon milk.  She ate with the unlimited joy of a child on their birthday.  The meat couldn't have been any tenderer, the batter had the perfect crispness to it.  She couldn't have asked for a better meal.

The hunters said they grabbed the first kid they could find and cleaned it up and brought it in.  Lilith never checked the goat before being prepared for dinner.  Which was a good thing for the hunters, or they would have had their privates cut off in frnt of the hunter assembly for pulling such a nasty trick upon her.  She couldn’t come out of her confines to do anything to them.  The shadow elves and demons took advantage of that fact and took many liberties when serving her.

The Demon Mistress finished her dinner and had a warm feeling all through her body.  She danced around in her chambers.  She hadn't eaten a roast kid in months.  She had been cutting back since people were getting wise to the disappearances of the imperial goats.  The shadow elves were getting sloppy.  So, they were killed and eaten by Lilith.  It didn't work as well as she'd have liked.  Then she skinned the shadow elves and then the chaotic killings stopped.  Lilith set their forms on pikes out in front of her domain where she was imprisoned.  It served as a reminder what happened to people or demons that displeased her.  The Demon Mistress hated carelessness and she made it known to all.

This please Lilith to no end, because the demons didn't die in the pit, so they were in constant pain and agony while they were impaled on their spikes.  Even decapitated they were still alive.  The only time they died was when they were on theara and then they were only banished to the deep forever.

Lilith was so satisfied that she put on a sequined cobalt blue dress.  She loved to dress up when life was going well for her.  The meal she had just put her in such a mood.  She admired herself in her mirror and was pleased at what she saw.

Lilith, having finished her dinner, glanced through the books she had and tried to find out how to break the first seal.  She knew that she would have to sacrifice an imperial baby goat and she had to avoid eating the sacrifice.  She had to get her mind off the sacrifice and on other things otherwise she would get hungry and eat another goat instead of sacrificing it too Luciferous.

Lilith glanced through her book for a powerful spell that would break the seal that held her in place.  She knew that the hardest seal to break would be the first seal.   She found a spell for breaking a seal, but she didn't think it would break a seal, but she'd give it a try.  It didn't seem strong enough to break the first seal of the Creator.

Lilith’s people went out and bought a gnomish carpenter’s drill bit, sand, cooking grease, and axel grease used on coaches.  They all came together, and Lilith took them to the first seal they had found.  The seal was in an old temple of the dou-jin.  They moved the pulpit out of the way.  They dug down three feet and there they found the seal created by the Creator.

The seal was two feet in diameter and was white with a blue six cornered star with a black dragon and an orange dragon chasing each other’s tales and the background of the seal was as white as a lily.  There was a red silk piece of cloth draped over the cross that hung three quarters the way down, the cross and it had the number one at the base of the Star.  She read the pages from the spell book, but nothing happened to the seal.

"Okay we need to get the rest of the pieces of the spell."  Lilith said in disappointment.

Then she sensed a familiar sensation.  She stripped out of her gorgeous dress.  She glanced down at her arms and could witness scales forming upon her upper limbs.  She howled to the heavens as her body transformed from her shadow elf form to the medusa/spider appearance.  She began to weep in rage at the curse that befell her body.

Her lower body ballooned out into a huge abdomen eight spidery legs protruded from the body.  Her body and legs were smooth.  Her upper form transformed from a beautiful shadow elven woman to a hideous visage.  Scales covered her upper body.  Her face was that of a woman, but that’s where the resemblance ended.  Her skin was olive green, snake-like eyes with vertical slits, a forked tongue whipped out of her mouth, and she had black adders for locks of writhing hair.

She was more than rageful at the transformation.  She had been having such an enormously great time with everything until then.  Would the Creator ever let her have a little joy occasionally?  The God of Love would never let her forget that she was a prisoner.  Why had He made her this hideous beast?  Wasn’t being in prison bad enough?

Christar was working on his ring of domination.  He had put strength, intelligence, wisdom, agility, stamina, and charisma.   He had made several of these rings and they were waiting to be tested.  He took out one ring and put in the holder and clamped it into placed.  He had six failures before this one.  He took a scroll of resist fire out.  He made sure that the clamp was tightened down, and the lights were properly put on the gem of the ring.  It was a fiery crimson ruby.  It sparkled as the light hit the gem.  It was a beauty to behold.  It already held great power, but Christar wanted more.  He was greedy that way.

Christar chanted the words of the spell.  “Naplaćujem ti opiranje vatri!”  He spoke over and over as he waved his thin bony fingers over the ring as he chanted.

The room grew dark only the laser light focused from the sun could be seen in the chamber.  After the ray was on the gem of the ring the light shone exceedingly bright bathing the chamber in a scarlet illumination, then the room light ever so gradually returned to normal. 

Christar waited three hours for the cooling process so that he could try the ring on.  This circlet was a creation meant only for himself.  Many of the items he created were for his personal use.  He had had troubles with people stealing his creations.  This caused him to craft laboratories on different planes of existence that only he knew where they were.  If someone did manage to discover his secret labs, they were booby traps that would maim or slay the would-be thief.

Christar, although exhausted, smiled at his creations.  The arrogant narcissistic mage was full of himself.  He adored his inventions and coveted them.  He didn’t want to share them with anyone, no matter how many he had of the same thing.  He horded his innovations.  They were all precious to him.

He had rings, scrolls, wands, staves, scepters, and coronets.  He rarely let any of them out of his avaricious sight.  The only time he ever let one go was when the shadow elves insisted on him making them a particular object, and then he grudgingly gave it out, but at great cost.

He treasured his masterpieces.  To him they were more precious than tenson.  He would do anything to protect his creations.  He would beg, borrow, or steal anything that had mystical qualities.  Well maybe not beg or borrow, but stealing was not beneath him.

The aged mage hobbled around his lab and sat down in a padded chair to take a break.  The charging of the band had really taken it out of him.  He needed to rest for a few hours before working on the next ring.  He had twenty-eight more rings to go before he put a new enchantment upon the next rings.

His next enchantment would be a protection spell.  He was hoping to get protection from physical harm.  He glanced down and his casting hand.  He noticed that it had withered a bit, which was normal after generating a new object.  This was another reason he needed to rest.   If the wizard were to cast another spell a few things would happen.  He would pass out, do irreversible damage to his hand, possibly go into a coma, or burn himself out.  He would no longer be able to cast magic.  It would be like severing both of his hands and feet from his form.

The aged mage’s head slumped forward, and he fell asleep in his chair.  The nap came over him so quickly that he hadn’t had time to get to his bed.

Commander Xander stood outside and watched the apprentices and roda-ki train with the heavier weighted vests.  He knew that they wouldn't work out as well as he expected but on Mercury Day, they were allowed to train without the weighted vests to see if they were improving.  Those that had improved could go into the shadow elf city and have a two-day pass.  For now, he was going to have to train with them, which meant leaving Dwanna, Marsondra, and Paddria with paperwork.  He only trusted Dwanna though with the more sensitive papers.  He was sleeping with her.  She was one of the few shadow elves he liked and trusted enough to do secretive paperwork that involved finances and money distribution.  After all he was embezzling from the shadow elves.

Zartan dawned his work out equipment accoutrements and went down to the trainees to give them all a talking to and that meant both roda-ki and their maroke.

"Move it people!"  Zartan screamed at the apprentices and their roda-ki masters.  "You’ve made me come down to do the course with you and I will continue to do the course with you until I’m satisfied there’s a leader among you to take my spot.  None of you sons of goats can not seem to do the course like fargan roda-ki.  Roda-ki are well disciplined and you are a bunch of fargan bastages.  Now let’s get moving!”

“Each of you will be striped by the whip if I think you’re slacking off in fact the last ten people across the finish line will get the whip.  Is that clear?  So, I want to see hustle and dedication.  This will be a daily routine.  The last ten across the line will get the whip, plus any that I see slacking!”

“Since K.P. and latrine duty hasn’t sparked any dedication maybe the whip will!”

"Is that understood?!"

"YES SIR!  HAIL LUCIFEROUS!" The marokes and their roda-ki said with their arms and hands out at a forty-five-degree angle as they ran by.

The students started moving faster than they had been going.  That told Zartan that the students hadn't been giving their all.  This made the Commander angrier.  Zartan didn't let any of them slack off.  None were allowed to stop to catch their breath or get a drink of water until he said so, they passed out from their exertion, or until the course was done and the course was three times as long.

He supervised the students and the journeymen.  He didn’t stop hollering at them the entire course.  He took his whip out.  If any of them even had an inkling of not doing the utmost in performance, he cracked the whip over them.  He was repulsed at their performance.

At the end of training the last ten were strapped to a pole, had their shirts ripped from their back and were given ten lashes each.  Zartan thought that only marokes would be at the post but almost half were roda-ki.  Which nauseated him to no end.

“If any of the same ten cross last again they will receive an extra five lashes!  Is that understood?!”

“YES SIR!!”  The all screamed at the top of their lungs.  “HAIL LUCIFEROUS!!”

Zartan turned around in discussed and returned to his chambers.

The Grand Master of the roda-ki sat at his desk going over the files of each of his maroke and his roda-ki that he had in his arsenal.  He was one of the youngest to have ever made Grand Master in the history of the roda-ki.

Zartan had reached his position the old fashion way.  He had assassinated the old Grand Master.  That was the way of the roda-ki.  That was one reason there weren’t very many of the mystical warriors.  The roda-ki usually had only one apprentice per master as well.  Some had more, but it was dangerous to have more than one.  As they couldn’t keep a close eye on more than one trainee.  Since they assassinated their masters.  The roda-ki masters could only keep an eye on one student at a time. 

Zartan had thought about changing that rule for his roda-ki.  The dou-jin worked with six shau’doku, why couldn’t the roda-ki have one or two more students.  Their numbers would grow faster.  The roda-ki needed to be stronger though to have even more than one.  His masters were too weak to teach their students anything and that was with just one maroke.

Zartan carried a mace that glowed white when he held his weapon and used his demonic powers.  It was a sign of pure hatred in his spirit of Mephistopheles.  He had a kite shield that was painted with a Y on it.  At the top of the Y there was a flame, to the left there was an inverted pentagram, and on the right, there was the skull of a goat.  Zartan took his oath to Mephistopheles seriously and he didn’t care who knew about it.  He was a devoted follower and he expected everyone below him to be as devoted to the roda-ki as he was, and if they weren’t, he molded them in training.  If they didn’t show any promise to the roda-ki they mysteriously disappeared.  This helped keep the roda-ki and their maroke in line.

The roda-ki were gradually growing, they had picked up their pace in recruitment in the past few cycles, but they were nowhere near the numbers of the dou-jin.  However, they had managed to tarnish the reputation of the dou-jin by pretending to be dou-jin and wreaking havoc in their name.  People were beginning to fear and distrust the dou-jin thanks to the dirty dealings of the roda-ki.

The trust of the noble warriors was losing their good reputation in the isolated areas of the country.  In the larger cities the dou-jin were still well thought of, for the most part.

The evil numinous warriors had played their hand well.  Most people never even knew of the roda-ki’s existence.  People, if they knew anything about the roda-ki, thought they had died out over a millennia ago or that they were just a myth thought up by law officials to keep people in line.

The roda-ki were well hidden as well.  Their main base was in the shadow elf kingdom of Talcoma’De’Shore, and the underworld city was massive.  There were other roda-ki outposts, but this was their main headquarters.  Almost fifty roda-ki and their apprentices stayed at this base and were deployed from the city to disburse their mayhem.  Zartan made sure of that.

Zartan hadn’t found a way to get the roda-ki into the albino elf city of Del Marco, but he did have connections that were working on a plan to undermine the city’s security.  It had taken some time, but like any other race they had their feeble citizens to meet the needs of Zartan.  The commander was willing to exploit these weaknesses.

The commander had found some, not many, albino elves to bend to the ways of the roda-ki, because not even the albinos were immune to the ways of the seven deadly sins.  Some he bribed with sex, others with money, others with any of the seven deadly sins.  He did manage to get a few spies.  Unfortunately for Zartan they weren’t especially high up in the government and they had to be creative in getting the jobs done that the roda-ki wanted accomplished.

Zartan shuffled through his paperwork scanning for the progress of his spies, but they had made little headway.  He thought he may have to kill some of his emissaries, or at least bring them to the shadow elf prisons to get others to work harder.  The shadow elves wouldn’t be lenient with the gutter rats as shadow elves loathed the white swine.

The other first cycles at Argathous’s table introduced themselves to one another.  There were two royal elf brothers from Alclamain who were fraternal twins.  They both had sandy brown hair, blue eyes, pointed ears, exceptionally fair complexioned, sharply pointed noses, and spoke with a royal elf accent.  One was Isaian and the other Noahan Brazier.  They were the tricksters and practical jokers of the group.  They would do anything for a laugh and that meant anything.

Sometimes their practical jokes went a little too far and it ended them in hot water.  A few times it had earned them a whopping from their parents, getting beaten by the people they had played the prank on, or fell prey to their own practical jokes.

The duo seemed to fear nothing.  They were the foolhardiest elves anyone had ever met.  They had some common sense, but it was miniscule compared to their daring.

Another boy who was human, had oily coal black hair, dark black eyes, and had a scowl on his face was Lassitor Gingam. He had a haughty tone to his voice as though he were better than anyone at the table and didn’t act shau’doku like at all.   He was also the bully of the new shau’doku.  He loved making people squirm and applying pressure to make others give him whatever he wanted whether it was legal or not.  He spoke with a strange accent that wasn’t normal for a human.

Lassitor made sure that he got the first of everything at the table whether he wanted it or not.  He had been a jerk because he could get away with it.  Nobody stopped him because they were trying to ignore him at the table, which was hard to do since he was being a loudmouth and bragging about all the people he'd bullied before he'd gotten to the school without saying he'd bullied them, but everyone knew what he was talking about.

Lassitor would take something someone else wanted, even if he didn’t really want the item.  He had taken a doll that a little girl really wanted.  When no one was looking he ripped it from the girl’s hand and ran out of the shop without paying for the item.  How he had been selected to become a shau’doku for the dou-jin was anybody’s guess.

Another human boy had a chubby exterior, a hearty laugh named Clifton Harbuckle.  He had snow white hair and bright rosy cheeks and a round nose.   He was a happy boy, but a boy that Lassitor would have loved to pick on just for sport when he had nothing else to do.  Clifton laughed at nearly anything that was even slightly funny.  He had a good spirit about him.

The young boy smiled at everyone at the table, even Lassitor.  It earned the young stout boy a deep loathing glare, which wiped the grin right off his face.  He turned from Lassitor and resumed his smile if not as enthusiastically. 

The last boy was a halfling.  He had plain brown straw-like hair, a plain dull expression on his average face and his attire was that of any everyday person.  No one would have been able to pick him out of a crowd of people which made him an excellent thief! 

His name was Leon Slickfingers and he spoke with a halfling accent.  He may have been short, but he wasn't one to be bullied by anyone.  He was excellent with knives.  He made sure Lassitor knew it by twirling his daggers and making them disappear and reappear at will.  Lassitor just sneered at Leon.  He wasn’t impressed with the halflings kniving abilities.  If he had wanted to, he would have snatched the daggers away from the little snot nosed creep.

The other six, were first cycle girls.

Sherrien Brickard.  A human that had shoulder length light brown hair, a turned-up nose, some freckling peeking out on her cheeks and nose, dark skinned, and she wasn’t very tall.  She wasn’t a shy girl, but another easy target for Lassitor.  She was just as jovial as Clifton.  She enjoyed laughing and having fun with everyone.  Even Lassitor’s disgruntled visage had no effect upon her.

She gazed directly at Lassitor and continued to laugh.  Lassitor took this as laughing at him and he made sure to take note of it.  He would get her alone and teach her that nobody laughed at him.

Then there was Debra-Ann Arkinnan a human girl with straight short dark brown hair, perfect skin, a dainty nose, liquid chocolate-brown eyes, and a broad smile that seemed to never leave her face.  She was a thick girl and could take on almost any boy in a fight if she had to, even Lassitor.  She was tall for a girl her age.  She had a large bosom for a fourteen-cycle-old.

She, unbeknownst to Lassitor, Debra-Ann was strong in the Spirit, having had some training in her village where a retired and aged dou-jin lived.  She had sensed the Spirit in Debra-Ann and took her under her wing until she was able to go to the Dou-Jin Temple.

The third girl Terkesha Icewind was a star elf with incredible ebony skin and an extremely arrogant way when it came to the males at the table.  She refused to talk to them unless she started the conversation with them first and she had a star elf accent.  She had lengthy black hair pulled back tight into a ponytail that hung down halfway on her back.  She had icy cold steel gray eyes and an abysmal frown upon her face.

She had a don’t mess with me look about her.  She talked sparingly except with the females at the table.  She was an exceptional warrior and novice shaman in her clan.  She knew that she was going to have problems with Isaian and Noahan.  She detested males that weren’t serious, and the twins were already goofing off at the table.  They were getting on her nerves.  She wanted to slap them upside their heads.

Then Dorminda Littletown a gadget widget with kinky black hair and bold pitch-black skin that was like ink.  She was the shortest person of the first cycle students at the dragons table, being three feet tall.  She giggled at nearly everything that was close to funny.  She seemed to like everyone, even Terkesha and she had a widget accent.  Her eyes were opals with double white pupils in each eye, which was strange for any race.  They had to have a special seat for all the widgets to sit upon.

She glanced around the table and wondered what school would be like.  She was shocked to know that she was going to the Dou-Jin Academy.  Dorminda had heard such awful things about the dou-jin, but then she had heard good things about them as well.  She didn’t know what to think.  Although a cheerful person she was apprehensive about starting school.

A moon elf named Deedra also sat at the table and was quite good with a bow and daggers and she didn't take anything off anyone and that included Lassitor.  She was of average height and weight for a moon elf which put her at about one-hundred-five pounds and five feet five inches, and she had a moon elf drawl to her voice.

She had brilliant emerald eyes that seemed to catch the light and cause them to sparkle with a dazzling brilliance, dark coal black hair that had pencil thin braids throughout her hair and was gathered into a ponytail that hung down her back to her waist.  Her skin was blemish free and was as smooth as polished marble.

The last girl was Lorianna.  She was half elf, had blonde hair and was of average height and weight.  She had slightly pointed ears, thin lips, a slender nose, a large bosom, and almond eyes that were tilted like a cat’s eyes.  She had a half-elf voice which was a mixture of human and star elf.  She stared at Argathous with wonder at how someone could be so beautiful to her.  He was everything she had ever wanted in a boy.  He was tall, muscular, and had a perfect face.

After two hours of dinner and conversation the guilds were dismissed to their dorms.  The lead boys and lead girls lined up the students in order of highest grade to the lowest grade and followed them in double file to each of their respective towers.

The students lined up and were an were anxious to get to their dorms.  The boys and girls that were the first cycles couldn’t wait to see what was next in the chain of events.  The new students going to the new towers were led by the Headmistresses and Headmasters of their towers.

Lassitor bullied his way to the front of the first-cycle boy’s line while Argathous allowed all the other boys to go ahead of him being polite and courteous to all.  Isaian and Noahan held back as well just so they could make fun of Lassitor. 

“Lassitor’s momma’s so ugly dat she was at de top of the ugly tree and fell off and hit every branch on de way down and den gave birth to Lassitor.”   Isaian said with mirth.

Argathous couldn’t help but burst out into laughter which caused Lassitor to glare back at him.  

            Nobody laughed at Lassitor or made fun of him, or they’d pay dearly.  He would make sure to beat those elven boys into a pulp.  He would wait until they were asleep, sneak over to their bed, bunch their covers around them, and begin to thrash them.

Argathous didn’t see the human’s glare as he was doubled over in hysterics.  The twins couldn't help but laugh at their own joke because Lassitor was such a jerk.  Lassitor just glared daggers at them.  He didn’t know what he was going to do about Argathous, but he’d think of something.  Argathous may have been big, but he was probably stupid and thought with his muscles, the dolt!

Noahan had to take his shot at Lassitor as well.  “Lassitor’s mom was so hairy dat when his modder gave birth to him, he got rug burn.”

Argathous again roared at the twin’s antics.  Lassitor walked back because of the jokes he had heard, he was incredibly angry, so he was going to threaten them.  He was fuming enough to take on Argathous.  He had his fist doubled up ready to take on the three of them, he was just that cocky.

“I heard what you little elves said and I’m going to mash your faces!”  Lassitor said with a growl.  He took a swing at Isaian, but his fist was stopped by Argathous's large hand, well large for a fourteen-cycle-old zephyr.  Lassitor's fist made a splat against Argathous's palm as Argathous stopped Lassitor's pommel.

“You were so anxious to be at the head of the line I suggest you go back to where you came from.”  With that Argathous shoved Lassitor hard causing him to stumble and fall at the head of the second graders on his butt, which embarrassed Lassitor even more and made him outrageously irritated with Argathous.  Lassitor didn't know how he was going to get even with Argathous, but he would think of something.

Lassitor turned six shades of scarlet and took his place back at the beginning of the first cycles and continued to walk and glared back occasionally at Argathous and the twins.  He wanted to get even, but he would have to get each of them alone and he’d have to surprise Argathous with some sort of trick.  The zephyr was too big to take on in a fair fight, or as fair as a fight as Lassitor cared to engage in.

The young men and women arrived in the dormitory.  The chamber was vast.  The dorms main hall was nearly the length of a football field, and its width was a wide as a football field as well.  There were nine ten-foot-long fireplaces along each wall, and each was magically lit and gave off whatever amount of warmth was needed for the temperature outside.

After all the children had entered the enormous chamber, a lady stood upon the second level of the room.  She was the Headmistress of the Dallas Dragons.

“Good evening, all.”  She said with a cheerful rosy smile.  She was rather plump and short with sandy brown hair that was slightly wavy and down to her shoulders.   She wore a brown leather tunic with darker brown leather britches, a burnt orange robe with black pleats, with a new leather with a gold buckle in the middle.  She had a warm inviting demeanor about her.   She gazed over the students and took them in.  She loved the first day of school.  Everything was new and exciting.  New students she could fuss over like they were her own children and in a way they were.

“I’m Holiday Chase your Headmistress.”  She started in a soothing voice.  “I welcome you to the Guild of the Dallas Dragons.   For the next ten months you will be going to school then you’ll get a two-month holiday, but you’ll still be living here.”

“As many of you have come from all over the Northern Tektaras. We can’t send you home for any holiday breaks.  All your holidays will be spent here.  The Dallas Dragons are now your family and friends.  You are all brothers and sisters.”

“We have exterior school expedition’s competitions, but only for those of seventh cycles and higher.  Any cycle lower will have inner school competitions for your amusement and skill direction.  We have football and volleyball in the fall, basketball in the winter, baseball, softball, and the Olympics in the spring.  During the two months of summer break is free time to do as you will.”

“Spiritweapons are only to be used by ninth graders and above.  Anyone caught attempting to use a spiritweapon will earn demerits for the guild.  Spiritweapons are not toys and must be used with the utmost of care.”

“Now our guild can earn merits for good schoolwork, good athletic performances, and expeditions.  It can lose merits for bad school conduct.  We don’t punish students for failing grades if they are truly trying hard, but if they are intentionally being lazy and slothful, they will earn demerits.” 

“Now for you first cycles get yourself acquainted with your surroundings.  There’s a lot to take in and you probably won’t be able to get it all in for the night, but you'll have all weekend to get acquainted with your surroundings."

Around each fireplace were overstuff chairs and couches to sit in for homework, relaxation, student interaction, or to read.  Throughout the room were dozens of lengthy tables to do homework or converse at.  There were also couches and more overstuffed chairs throughout the dorm. 

Chandeliers hung from the thirty-foot-high ceiling. Each had mystical candles that burned with the light for the time of day.  During the daylight hours, the windows let in plenty of light, but at night until 10:00 PM to 6:00 AM the candles would be out except for a few that would burn to let students go to the restrooms.

At the twenty-foot level was another tier that held a large library for students to use and if the students couldn’t find what they were looking for in the dorm they had the temple library.  The temple’s main library contained many times the number of books to browse through.

The students milled around for about two hours and then the Headmistress stepped out onto the balcony again.  “It’s time for you to head to your rooms.  First cycle students are at the very top of the tower the rest of you know where you belong.  You will all have your things waiting for you in your rooms as the squints have delivered them already.  Oh, and if you have come with nothing there will be things for you in your dressers and wardrobes.  Have a good night to all of you.  Enjoy your weekend before school.”

With that the Headmistress vanished into her chambers.

The rest of the students divided into boys and girls behind the Lead Boy and Lead Girl that led the first cycle children to their bed chambers.  They snaked around in a spiral once every full spiral a group of six students would walk through a door that had a sign above the door saying what grade the bedroom was, i.e., the first door said seniors and the very top floor said first grade.

“This will be the only time that I show you to your bed chambers.”  Ricky informed the group with a smug tone in his voice.  “From now on you’ll find your own way.  May the Spirit protect you.”  And then he left.

Clifton picked a bed but was shoved out of the way by Lassitor who took the bed for himself.  Lassitor really didn’t want the bed, but he was being a jerk and a bully and force Clifton out of the way.  Clifton hit the hardwood floor with a tremendous thud that sounded like it had to have hurt.  Lassitor just laughed at Clifton. 

“This cycle was going to be fun.  He was going to be king of the roost.  No one was going to challenge him, not even Argathous.”  Lassitor said to himself with a satisfied grin upon his face.

Argathous went over and picked Lassitor up and threw him off the bed so Clifton could have the bed.  “Here Clifton you picked this bed first.”  Argathous told him.  Argathous glared at Lassitor for his bullying and wanted to pound some sense into the greasy hair boy, but he thought better of it and calmed himself down before he did anything rash.

“No that’s okay I’ll take another bed, but thanks anyway Gath.”  Clifton said diffidently.  The young portly boy rubbed his behind and his jovial visage was now one of dejection.  He knew Lassitor would find any opportunity to make his stay at school miserable.

“Why are you such a jerk?”  Argathous turned on Lassitor with a glower upon his expression.  He still wanted to pound Lassitor into a puddle of goo.  He found it harder and harder to control himself around this snot nosed intimidator.

“Why do you have to be everyone’s savior?”  Lassitor spat back.  A gaze of death upon his face.  He wanted nothing more than to beat Argathous into a bloody mess.  He would figure out a way to do it, but now wasn’t the right time.  He knew that he couldn’t beat the giant in a fair fight, so he’d bide his time and attack when least expected.

“I wouldn’t have to, if you weren’t pushing everyone around.”  Argathous growled.  He had his fists ready for a fight and a look of rage on his face.  He took a step closer to the tyrant.  He was going to knock Lassitor on his arse.

“Nobody asked for your help.”  Lassitor scowled back from across the room hoping Argathous didn’t close the distance.  “Only the strong survive in this school!”

“How were you ever picked to become shau’doku?”  Isaian asked in a loathsome tone.  "You’re such a bully and can't handle being polite to anyone.”

"You don't have to be pleasant to be dou-jin."  Lassitor said scathingly in his strange thick voice.

“You be a horrible person.”  Noahan said in agreement and the same deplorable tone as his brother.  "You be a bully and no jerk should ever be a dou-jin. You be a dug and why dey ever let you in is beyond me.  Your parents must have paid someone off to get you in here.”

“I have great potential according to our prophets in Albany New Amsterdam.”  Lassitor said defensively. “I was the only one for hundreds of miles around that passed the tests.  The Spirit is strong in me.  I’ll take on any one of you to prove it.”

"You must have cheated on the tests."  Argathous said.  "It's the only way you could have managed to get in here.  I'll talk to Mistress Holiday tomorrow about it and see what she has to say about you."

"What a narc!"  Lassitor spat with indignation.  "Afraid I'm better than you!  So, you must run and tell the Headmistress of the tower that Lassitor’s still trying to be a bully!  That just shows how weak you truly are.  You’re afraid of me.  You fargan coward.  You are stupider than you look.  Too bad we can’t use spiritweapons in the first cycle.  I’d thump your arse all over the place."

“You don’t have to be so arrogant about it.”  Isaian said with annoyance on his tongue.  “You be not dat strong in the Spirit.  If you were den you would act like the shau’doku we’re supposed to be.  You’re noding but a blow hard!”

“Dou-jin are humble people.  You’ve been noding close to humble.”  Noahan said in irritation.  “Dou-jin are cool headed and fair minded.  You’re neider!”

“You’re just jealous that I’m better than all of you.”  Lassitor shot at the group.

“I think we should all calm down and go to bed.”  Leon interjected in a calm tone.  He didn’t like Lassitor either, but at the rate the night was going no one was going to get any sleep.

Lassitor shot Leon a glare that would have frightened Clifton, but Leon just shrugged his shoulders and went to bed.

Everyone picked a bed finally and Lassitor only glared at Argathous for throwing him across the room.  Lassitor wasn’t used to people standing up to him and Argathous wasn’t one to be messed with.  Lassitor would have to make sure Argathous wasn’t around when he bullied people.

Christar hobbled into the chamber and made his way into the room at a snail’s pace.  Zartan loathed the man with a passion, but there was no love lost between the two of them.  He had several plans to have the ancient mage killed but his spies had ended up dead or missing before jobs were done.  Then again so had Christar’s plans for Zartan.   Both were always out for the other in secret, but face to face they acted like close friends.  They both knew the other’s plans for each other.  Why they were so congenial to one another was anyone’s guess.

They talked politely to one another, they socialized at the same functions, and even plotted together on how to get rid of certain government officials.  Both knew the other detested the other though.  There was no trust between them and that was one reason each of them couldn’t kill the other.

Christar sat down in a padded chair across from Zartan and made himself at home like he did everywhere he went in the shadow elf city.  He set his staff across his lap and straightened out his robes and cleared his shaky voice.

“So how goes the infiltration of the albino ‘white swine’ city?”  Christar asked, already knowing the answer.  He only asked because he liked making the roda-ki leader appear incompetent and sense the embarrassment about his short comings.  The elderly mage was always trying to make others seem more insignificant than himself.

“They’re coming along just fine.”  Zartan lied.  He didn’t want this pompous arse knowing anything about his dealings, but he didn’t comprehend that Christar knew everything that went on in the dark elf city.  “The plans for the gutter rats are coming along quite well.  My agents have come up with a copious amount of intel for me on how to get to the royal family and how to best assassinate the king.  We’re still planning on when the best time for that is.”  Some of what Zartan said was true, he just embellished some of the facts, but Christar didn’t need to know his plans. 

The egotistical pompous mage wasn’t privileged to know Zartan’s plans.  The commander knew that he was more than competent to get the job done.  He didn’t need the condescending worm to know anything that wasn’t already known to everyone.

“We should get together some time and share intel so we can work together.”  Christar suggested.  Knowing good and well that would happen when the deep froze over.  “I think we could work well together.”  He said lying through his teeth.  He wanted Zartan to be strapped to one of his torture racks and flay the skin off his form.

Christar had eyes and ears everywhere.  He was well connected, informed, and wealthy.  He could manipulate and blackmail anyone into doing his bidding. He had people in the roda-ki that spied on Zartan and Zartan didn’t even know it, they were just that good.  Although Christar hadn’t been able to get anyone in Zartan’s inner circle and that annoyed Christar to no end.  Christar couldn’t get anything on anyone close to Zartan, but he had people close enough to get the information the old mage needed.

Zartan had similar spies in Christar’s Crimson Sanhedrin, but he couldn’t get close enough to act boldly.  He could taste the mage’s defeat, but he wasn’t close enough to slay him.  He, unfortunately, would have to bide his time in getting close enough to Christar’s inner circle and then to his demise.

“Are your roda-ki ready for the big battle?”  Christar asked coughing into his handkerchief and leaving a few spots of blood as a performance for the Grand Master.

“Good maybe the old fool will die from a blood clot or choke on his own blood!”  Zartan thought to himself, hoping above all hope.  “My roda-ki are more than ready.  Are your mages up to the task?”  Zartan shot back insulted that the wizard would think his people weren’t ready to take on the albino elves.  His sources in the mage’s guild had informed him of the currents of dissention in the guild were even worse than the rifts in the roda-ki and that was saying something.  With any luck, one of Christar’s underlings would do Zartan’s work for him. Christar had Luciferous’s own luck when it came to trying to murder him.  That old man was slipperier than a river eel.

“My mages are putting the finishing touches on their spells as we speak.”  Christar said in a matter-a-fact tone.   “I run a tight ship with my mages.  They're like my family and I treat them so.  You might take a page out of my book and treat your roda-ki the same.”

“The roda-ki are an army of specialists.”  Zartan said plainly with a hint of his hatred coming through.  “I can’t hold their hands and coddle them like children otherwise they wouldn’t ever get anything done.  There are special occasions, not many mind you, that a little coaxing needs to be done.  For the most part they are tough as tenson spikes and as rough as the bark of a starwood tree.  They can take on an army of ogrilar and come out on top every time.”

“Was there a point to your visit Christar?”

“Nope.”  Christar answered just as plainly.  “Just like to let people know I’m still alive and kicking.  Keeps people on their toes.”

With that Christar ever so gradually got to his feet his audible glamour spell making the sounds of his bones popping and creaking as he got up.  All part of his grand illusion.  Another thing he liked to show to everyone, to make them think he was too weak to defend himself.  It made them drop their guard and then he could attack without them realizing what he was doing.

Christar liked his theatrics and loved to perform for someone daily.  He didn't like to leave anyone out of his performances.  The more people he performed for, the more people he could kill or trap to do his bidding by sparing their lives.  He also liked performing for people because the more people that saw him the more rumors would be spread that he was a feeble timeworn aged man that could be easily attacked.  That way Christar could gradually get rid of his unwary enemies and eliminate the competition for the bidding of his place of power.

Zartan knew that Christar was more than he seemed though.  One of his informants was in Christar's Sanhedrin and knew the old fool to be as healthy as a young vital stallion and Zartan wasn’t going to get sucked into Christar's ploy.  The roda-ki had had enough of Christar.  Zartan was going to find a weakness in the mage and slay him.  He just needed to find the right opportunity.  When he had an occasion, the mage would just vanish, like he knew what was coming.

Christar finally exited the chamber and there was a knock at the door.  Zartan’s servant, a dark elf opened the door.  He was a thin, tall, and overly dark elf.  He said that the king of the shadow elves wanted to speak to him.  He told his servant to escort the king in and Zartan stood until the king sat himself across from Zartan.  The roda-ki commander bowed respectfully and sat down.

This was another thorn in the side of the roda-ki commander.  The king was nothing more than a blob and a smudge on the shadow elf community.  Zartan loathed the king almost as much as he despised Christar.  The warrior had people in the king’s court.  He was just staying his time to figure out how to get rid of the obese king and his slobbish family.

“What can I do for you your majesty?”  Zartan asked in mock humility.  This was another arrogant jerk that he abhorred.  The white of Zartan’s weapon was true to his nature.  There were dreadfully few people that Zartan could stomach, the king wasn’t one of them.  He wanted to separate the king’s head from his shoulders.  He didn’t care if the shadow elves tried to seek revenge or not.

The king was a five-foot-tall extremely dark shadow elf that had a circlet of pitch-black hair and a large bald spot on the crown of his head.  He had an enormous belly with copious amounts of fat that covered his body.  He was an obese shadow elf that had held the throne for more than two hundred cycles.  It was time for him to be tossed out on his arse. 

To say he had a double chin was an understatement, as he had five.  He had a large flat nose that spread across half of his overweight face, narrow black beady eyes that peeked through his sizeable lids, thick full lips that were always wet, and long pointed ears.

He was dressed in bulging crimson robes trimmed in white rabbit fur with gold embroidery along the sleeves.  He wore a swollen black silk shirt with a red scarf, and ebony britches that were bursting at the seams with a crimson belt.  The fresh leather strap had extra notches placed in it to hold his expanding girth, that had a large gold buckle of the Demon Mistress etched upon it.

He had twelve armored and armed guards with him, none of which were roda-ki which bothered Zartan.  Zartan insisted that the king be guarded by roda-ki, but the king refused saying that his private soldiers were the best in the underworld.  In fact, he believed them to be better than the esteemed roda-ki.  Which exasperated Zartan to no end and he would have loved to prove the king wrong.

The soldiers wore black chain mail and were covered with full breast plates also black.  Each guard had a crimson spider etched upon the chest.  They wore long swords at their side with a candy apple red spider etched at the base of the blade’s crossbar and a hand crossbow with three clips of twelve bolts in each.  Each soldier wore a solid helm that magically let them see through an otherwise covered face.  The soldiers were the best of the best the king had in his army, but they were nowhere near the talent of the roda-ki.  The king could trust them with his life, which was more than he could say for the roda-ki.

“I have come to sssee how your plansss for infiltrating the white ssswine dump are coming along.”  The king said in his most haughty shadow elf tone.  The king thought the roda-ki were mediocre at best.  He had never put his men up against them, he didn’t think he had to.  He thought he knew how poorly the roda-ki functioned.  The roda-ki were puffed up bantam roosters in his opinion.  Zartan may have bragged on them, but that meant nothing to the king.

“We have made progress in our infiltration.”  Zartan lied.  “I have been meaning to have my men train with yours.  You place so much pride in your soldiers I thought I might learn from your soldier’s examples and cycles of training.”  Zartan was hatching a plan to make the kings guard look obsolete and now he was going to prove it.

The king had a visage of surprise upon his face.  “That would be a wonderful idea.  I think a demonssstration would be in order right now.  My elite guardsss againssst your roda-ki.”  The king was going to show the conceited roda-ki master just how worthless his soldiers were compared to his.

“Very well.”  Zartan said and was surprised that the king had so readily agreed to the match.  Now he would make the king appear the fool he was.  The commander had one of the roda-ki that he knew could best the king’s elite guard, especially if Zartan had trained the student himself.

“Larriance come in here please.”  Zartan called in a slightly raised tone into the other chamber.

A boy of eighteen came into the room.  He was human with dark skin, short spongy black hair, dark brown slanted squinted almond eyes, and was five and a half feet tall.  He carried only a quarterstaff with him as a weapon.  He bowed before Zartan and stood at attention.

“Thisss isss jussst a boy.”  The king scoffed.  “My bodyguardsss will beat him about the head and ssshouldersss, and he will go home crying to hisss mother.  I don't want to have to humiliate a boy in front of you like thisss.  Give me a better challenge than thisss.”

“I have trained him personally.”  Zartan assured the king with pride in his voice.  “I want all your guards to attack him.”  He is trained better than he appears.  Do your worst against him.  He will show you what the roda-ki can do against your elite guards.  I want you to see what my people are made of.  I think you’ll be impressed.”

“You can’t be ssseriousss.”  The king laughed.  He knew that his guards would mop the floor with this boy.  Twelve of his guards against just one boy.  This was going to be a slaughter for his well-trained elite man, and he would show Zartan what elite guards were like against the roda-ki.  The roda-ki would fall at the feet of the elect guards.

“Want to make a wager.” Zartan said mocking the king.

“Attack!”  The king yelled.

Steel on leather rasped throughout the chamber.  The staff whirled with great speed and turned a brilliant crimson, meaning wrath, in the demonstaff.  As a sword attacked the staff deflected it and the weapon went flying and the staff slapped the guard across the head knocking him out.  Two guards attacked seeing their brother knocked unconscious by this insolent boy and both swords were blocked.  The ends of the staff struck both guards alongside their helmeted heads knocking them out.  The young man’s varied attacks were with ease and grace.  The student wasn’t even breaking a sweat as each guard went down one by one.

Some of the guards withdrew their hand crossbows and shot at the youth.  The bolts were deftly deflected, some at the guards who had fired them.  The projectiles were driven into the attacker’s knees, elbow, and shoulders.  Anywhere the missile would do the least amount of damage but take the soldier out of the fight.

More long swords flew from the hands of guards grabbing their wrists and then falling unconscious as the staff struck them alongside the head.  Soon all the guards were either unconscious or on the ground moaning from their injuries.  Larriance had defeated them all in a matter of minutes.  The boy stood at attention and yelled “HAIL LUCIFEROUS!” and stuck out his arm and hand at a forty-five-degree angle upwards honoring Luciferous and his mistress Lilith.

The king was taken aback.  “You mussst be one of the bessst roda-ki that Zartan hasss.”  The king said admiringly.

“Nope he’s a fifth cycle maroke.”  Zartan said with pride.  “Apprentices study for twelve cycles before they become full roda-ki.  This is why you need roda-ki guarding you.  With just two full roda-ki and their maroke guarding you, you’re safer than a full squad of soldiers.”

“I will take it under advisssement.”  The king said trying to get his men up off the floor.  When he finally did, he left in a hurry and with more than a little egg on his face.  He was totally ashamed of the performance of his guards.  They were supposed to be the best of the best and that meant the elite.  They performed like toddlers in a sandbox against a boy of all things!

After the king had left Zartan took his apprentice aside and patted him on the back.  “You have done well this day.  You showed that pompous pile of garbage what his soldiers were worth.  Now go back to your studies.”

Larriance exited the room proud of what he had done.  He had defeated twelve soldiers that was a new personal best, of course he was usually battling other maroke, but twelve was still a number to be proud of.

[tooweirdforyou]

Chapter Two » Target

A/N: I’m trying to figure out if it’d be better for me to post on another website instead of tumblr, where it isn’t really a site meant for fics yk? But I can’t decide which to post on, like Ao3 or Quotev,

Chapter One | Masterlist | Chapter Three

-

“Hey—“

“No.”

You do a double take at the quick rejection, sputtering in shock. “I haven’t said anything yet!” You protest, waving your arms in the air in front of him.

“The answer is no, Miss [Lastname].” Axel says, releasing an exasperated sigh. Groaning in annoyance and frustration, you huff and look at him with desperate eyes.

Your pleading expression makes the male push up his glasses and clear his throat, clearly avoiding your face. “..no.”

Axel continues his walk to the car, remaining avoidant and ignorant of your facial expression. Your pestering and lingering body towards his makes him tense, as he brings a hand up to his face to block his peripheral vision. “..Would you quit that?”

“No.”

You grin cheekily and the male breathes out from his nostrils, clearly growing annoyed with you already. “You know what? Very well, Miss [ Lastname ]. Let’s go.”

You widen your eyes with delight and cheer. “Yes! Time for some boba!”

Running off towards the car excitedly, Axel could only watch with eyes of disbelief at how much you adored the bubble drink.

Yet, he couldn’t suppress the defeated smile he wore.

On your way to the car, having just exited your father’s former building that you were no in charge of, you fail to see a particular pinkette in the all white police uniform, appearing nervous and shaky as he makes his way up the steps and into the building by himself.

Axel, however, notices the uniform immediately. “Police? What reasons do they have for being here?...” his eyes lingered in the direction of the entrance before he turned away.

‘..Maybe I’m overthinking..’

Hesitantly, Axel pushes the thought to the side as he continues on his merry way towards the car, getting a sudden uneasy filling stirring inside him regardless.

“H-Hi, I was hoping to see Miss [Name Lastname]?” The pinkette asks the front desks shyly, scratching the side of his cheek with his index finger, securing his blue glasses above his head as well.

“My apologies, sir, but Miss [Lastname] just left, she finished a meeting with some lawyers just now.”

Koby’s eyes widens at that news. “She just left?”

The male is quick to rush outside and scans around the building area, finding none recognizable faces but a sleek black car driving off.

“Ah.. I missed her?..” he sweatdrops at the realization of possibly having just passed her and the certain lecture he’ll received for a rice cracker loving chief. “Oh no..”

“Would you like me to come in with you?” Axel questions, glancing to the girl beside him as he parks the car to the side, right outside the boba tea shop.

“Nah, I’ll be quick. Want anything?” You hum, beginning to take off your seatbelt and reaching to make sure you had cash.

Axel ponders for a moment before shaking his head. “I’m fine.” He responds, holding out a credit card for you.

Thanking him, you stare at him for a moment before snorting. “Yeah, right. Strawberry with boba bursts right?” You giggle at Axel’s sputter and hint of pink cheeks.

“Oi, shut it, you! You better not—“

“Okay, I’ll be back with our drinks!” You sing, quickly opening the door and shutting it behind you loudly.

Axel huffs and looks away, clicking his tongue in annoyance at the young girl but couldn’t help the tiny smile that formed on his lips.

But it quickly faded away. “Wait, was she wearing a mask?” He thought before leaning back in the car seat. “No.. it’ll be fine.” He mumbles to himself.

“Welcome to Asia Boba, what can I get you?” The friendly worker asks with a patient smile, making you do the same.

“Can I get [ boba drink ] and a strawberry milk tea with strawberry bursts? Both large, please!”

“Of course, anything else?”

“No, that’s all, thank you.” Handing the card over, you wait patiently and look around the shop curiously, glancing at a couple of the customers before taking the card and receipt back with you.

“Your drinks will be made shortly, we’ll call out your name so may I get your—“

“It’s [Name], [N-A-M-E]. Thanks!”

You walk off towards the side and lean against the side of the wall, pulling a strand of your hair behind your ear as you waited patiently.

Meanwhile, a particular navigator leans on her palm, bringing her drink up to her lips as she sat with her leg crossed over the other, pouting.

“How are we going to find the daughter of a multi-millionaire in a big city like this?” She sulks, looking through the news on her phone in her other hand.

The woman across from her, adorning a simple purple hat over her luscious black hair, smiles. “Give it time, Nami. We’ll find her somehow.”

Nami frowns but slowly nods as she looks around the store mindlessly, until her eyes stop on you.

“...” she stares blankly for a few minutes, finding your outer appearance a little familiar, glancing back to her phone instinctively and abruptly gasps.

“It’s you!”

She slams her hands on the table as she stands up, eyes wide. “You’re [Name]!”

You blink hearing your name and look up to see a orange-haired beauty staring at you with wide eyes, and a pair of blue eyes belonging to a gorgeous raven-haired woman along with her.

“I’m... [Name]..” you slowly nod, furrowing your brows. “Do I know you?..”

‘She doesn’t look familiar... definitely not a schoolmate..’ you thought, cutting your thoughts off when you heard your name.

Turning away, you went over to the counter and took your two drinks with ease, thanking the person once again as you grabbed some straws and began to leave.

“W-Wait, do you mind if we talked with you?”

You glance back at the beauty and frowned slightly. “Kind of.. I’m in a rush and he doesn’t really like waiting..” you mumble before turning back.

“Sorry. See you then.” Bowing your head lightly, you turn back and begin to walk off.

Nami stands surprise at the rejection, unable to do anything but watch you leave. “It’ll be fine, Nami. We’ll have our chance another time, we can’t force her after all.” Robin assures.

You head on over to the car, passing a pair of arguing men with green and blonde hair on the way, and open the passenger door, entering the car.

“Here.”

Extending his drink out to him, Axel takes it, along with a blue straw before speaking. “Did everything go alright?”

“Mmh, I mean.. there was some girl who recognized me, but—“

Sudden knocking on the glass window interrupts you, making you jump and Axel’s stare to sharpen as he looks to the window.

Outside, was the Orange-haired beauty from earlier.

It was tinted, so she wouldn’t be able to inside but the two were able to see out.

“Oh, that’s her!” You instinctively recoil away, becoming uncomfortable. “She recognized me and asked if we could talk..”

Quick to set his drink down, he discreetly reached his hand into the inner sleeve of his jacket while his other hand positioned itself to lower the window.

Once it was lowered enough, Nami smiles charismatically. “Hello! I know you said someone wouldn’t really be patient if we talked, so I wanted to ask permission! This is reallyyyy urgent, you see!”

Robin just shakes her head from inside the shop, smiling amusingly at her friend’s stubbornness, whilst the two arguing boys blink confusedly at the orangette’s sudden action in front of them.

Axel’s stare deepens on the female, his hand inching closer into his inner sleeve before she spoke again.

“I didn’t mean to interrupt your date with your boyfriend, honest! But, Mr. Boyfriend, do you mind if I talked with her just for a few minutes?”

His brow twitches at the assumption while you sputter. “B-Boyfriend? I—“

“My apologies, Miss. I can’t permit you to have a conversation with Miss [Lastname] at this moment, she’s quite busy, you see. If you’d like to speak with her, please call this number to make an appointment.”

Instantly, his fingers held out a business card out for her, which she took out of instinct.

“Much gratitude for your understanding. Goodbye, now.” Axel says, immediately rolling up the window and starting up the engine.

“Wa—“

Axel steps on the gas and the car accelerates and begins driving off, leaving Nami staring breathless.

“That was unexpected.”

The handsome assistant said nothing in response as he parks the car outside your home.

Before he could finally speak, his phone rings, initiating him to pick it up in seconds.

“Hello?”

You bring your cup to your lips to drink, taking in the boba through the straw as you listen to Axel’s conversation.

“Huh? What for? She hasn’t seen him in years.”

‘Is he talking about me?’ You thought as the assistant pushes up his glasses and exhales deeply.

“It’s not up to me, you’ll have to take this up with her. ... Make an appointment then. ... what did you say?!”

Axel hisses a small curse under his breath and aggressively hangs up. “That son of a...”

“Something wrong?” You ask, continuing to sip your drink while Axel shakes his head. “Nothing, let’s go. You have a guest..” he grits out.

“Hah? A guest?”

“Ah, little [Name]! Long time no see, hasn’t it? Gurararara!”

Your eyes widens when you enter your large home and see a familiar old man sitting in your living room.

“Woah, gramps!” You awe in disbelief, jogging towards him with excitement before stopping short in front of him. “Wow, I can’t remember the last time I saw you! Pops!”

Whitebeard merely grins as he pats your head, chuckling.

Axel clicks his tongue at your indecency and impulsive actions. “Miss [Lastname], your shoes please.” He sighs out, shaking his head as he sets his drink down onto a drawer.

“Too long it’s been, my dear. And I see Axel is still sticking around.” The old man hums, nodding his head towards Axel’s direction.

The male is quick to bow respectively towards him. “Yes, it’s a pleasure to see you again, Mister Whitebeard.”

Said man exhales in slight disappointment. “What will it take to get you to call me pops, Axel? I already think of you as my son.”

Axel says nothing and looks away, pushing up his glasses as he glances to the pair of boys at Whitebeard’s side. He bows to them respectively as well.

“I assume you two are with Mr. Whitebeard?”

“That’s right. You don’t have to bow-yoi.” The blonde speaks with lazed, half-lidded eyes and a gentle smile.

The other also smiles kindly and nods in agreement. “We apologize for coming in so suddenly, but we just had to discuss something with Miss [Name].” The other spoke, with long black hair tied into a bun and wearing a pink Yukata and a sexy, deep voice.

“With me?” You perk up, glancing to the pretty one and widen your eyes. “Oh, you’re so pretty! Er.. handsome, I guess I should say.”

The male chuckles in amusement, smiling warmly at you. “I appreciate the compliment, I’m fine with either one. I also think you are very beautiful.” He smoothly expresses, his voice making you in awe.

‘His voice is so nice.. wow..’ you thought, suddenly feeling your cheeks flush at the compliment as you turn away.

“Careful now, Izo. Don’t overwhelm my precious daughter like that.” Whitebeard warns and Izo takes a step back. “Of course, my apologies, [Name].”

“N-No, you’re okay.” You mumble a bit shyly, looking to the blonde and recognizing him from yesterday. “So, what’s your name?”

“Marco.” The blonde replies simply, smiling lightly. “Nice to meet you.” You smile a little and nod, turning back to Whitebeard.

“What did you want to talk about?”

“Take a seat, [Name].” Whitebeard says, shifting as he sits up straighter and you frown, going across from him and sitting on the couch. Axel is quick to appear behind you, standing.

“I’ll get straight to the point. You, my darling, are in danger.”

-

With Big Mom’s Family «

“What shall we do, Mama?”

The big 16 feet tall, Charlotte brother asks his mother, arms crossed and standing up straight with perfect posture, signature scarf laced around his neck.

“Mamamamama, we will capture her into the family, and take that power!” Big Mom sings, popping a large pastry into her mouth.

“Yes, Mama.”

-

A/N : so.. this definitely seems rushed, mostly and probably because I don’t want to drag on too long, especially since there’s so many people you still have to meet, yk? Hope you understand! :3 ch 3 already in the making lol

so someone asked if I could put in the beast Pirates and Big Mom’s crew. I will try, but because it’s been a while since I even seen a clip of one piece, I literally can’t remember much about those two groups specifically, so I deeply apologize if some things are a little off! I’ll definitely try to incorporate them into this, especially since I forgot about Katakuri and want him in here lol- I promise to do my best!! ^^ beast Pirates however won’t be making too much of an interaction, mostly because I barely know anything about them.. so sorry ;-;

taglist : @deputy-videogamer @vemuabhi @lovelyvillainess [ I wasn’t sure if you wanted to be tagged but I was very happy to see your excitement! <3 ]

[starrattlerofprydain]

The Other Girl (Ch. 3)

Summary: What if Roxas met Kairi during his days in the Organization?

AO3 / FF.net

Chapter 3: Good Luck Charm (First | Previous/Next)

It turns out there was no one up on the clock tower once Roxas finally made it to Twilight Town. He wondered if he might have been too late, or perhaps too early. Despite this, he sat down in his usual spot as he gazed out at the familiar sight beyond him. From there, he found himself thinking back to the events from moments ago.

Roxas never would have thought he would end up running into that girl again, even though a part of him wanted to, but not like this. The Nobody knew that he was supposed to avoid contact with people from other worlds. It wasn’t his intention to be seen. With that said, he could easily decide not to return to that world just so he can avoid getting in trouble with the Organization. But after learning how much this girl resembled Xion, it only left him more curious. Maybe just this once, it wouldn’t hurt to break a rule.

After sitting around lost in thought for a while, Roxas decided to call it a day and return to the castle, realizing his red-headed friend probably wasn’t going to show up to the clock tower. From there, he followed his usual routine of making his way to Xion’s room. Or at least, he would have gone to her room if it weren’t for him running into Demyx in the hallway, who looked like he needed a favor. And it just so happened that no one else was around at that moment, which meant Roxas had no choice but to go along with whatever the good-for-nothing Nobody needed. Once he managed to get himself out of that mess, Roxas just made his way back to his own room, deciding he will visit his friend in the morning. 

Before he knew it, a new day had begun. Roxas got up from his bed and went through his brief morning routine before he made his way out and headed to Xion’s room, all while keeping an eye out for anyone who decided to get in his way. Thankfully that wasn’t the case this time around. Roxas didn’t have much time to stick around anyway since he had his daily mission to complete. But he at least wanted to see her face for reassurance.

“Morning, Xion,” he grinned, walking to her bedside. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the thalassa shell, placing it with all the other seashells next to her. 

“There’s some things I gotta tell you, but I have to get today’s mission out of the way first. And uh…” The blond paused, thinking back to what Kairi had told him the day before. “I think I might have a surprise for you once I get back.”

But I’m still not even sure what it is, Roxas rubbed his neck sheepishly, remembering the redhead had convinced him to return to the island to show him something. She did mention it was something Xion would appreciate. More seashells perhaps? Maybe she had a treasure chest full of them.

“Well… time for me to get going. See you later, Xion,” he waved goodbye to the sleeping girl and headed off to the Grey Area to receive his mission for the day.

———–

Kairi wasn’t sure how long it’s been since she felt this ecstatic to go to the island. It still seemed a little bittersweet going back, but she managed to get by. And it was all because of a stranger she met the day before. No, Kairi couldn’t call him a stranger. Deep down, she knew there was something familiar about this boy. Not only because of his physical appearance, but she had an unusual feeling in her heart looking into those ocean eyes of his. Whatever this feeling was, she wanted to find out more about it.

As Kairi began to make her way to the island, she began to wonder if the boy would even show up again. She did tell him to meet her there the following day, after all. Though, now that she thought about it…

Maybe I was a little too forward telling him to come back...

Suddenly, the idea of him disappearing and never returning seemed to take over Kairi’s mind at that moment. Even though she didn’t know him that well, she couldn’t bear the thought of having someone leave her. Not again. Before her mind dove deeper into those negative thoughts, she immediately spotted Selphie walking nearby. The brunette noticed Kairi’s presence and eagerly ran up to her.

“Hey Kairi! Are you going to the island today?”

Kairi managed to give her a small smile as they continued to walk together from there. “Yeah, I was heading there now.”

Selphie hummed and fell silent for a moment.

Kairi waited for her to say something else, only to get silence in return. She turned to look at her friend, who seemed to be occupied with her thoughts. “What? What is it?”

She finally looked over at the redhead and tapped her chin in thought. “You know, you haven’t gone back there for weeks and now ever since we stopped by the other day, it’s like you’ve moved past all that… Oh!” Her face suddenly brightened as realization struck her. “Did Riku come back? Is that why you’re going there?”

Kairi shook her head and smiled sadly at the thought of her other friend not being present. “No, I still haven’t seen Riku around. But…” She paused, looking out to the horizon where the island came into view. “There’s this other boy that I met there… I’m not sure who he is or where he came from but I feel like I know him somehow…”

“Oh…”

Kairi noticed the brunette went silent once more. She really hoped her friend wasn’t thinking this was odd. No, it was pretty odd. There was no denying that. She bit her lip and shrugged slightly. “That’s not weird, is it?”

Selphie looked at the redhead as a smile gradually formed on her face. “No, not really. Maybe he’s an old friend of yours. Did he recognize you?”

The image of his face suddenly flashed in her mind again. “If by “recognize”, you mean that I reminded him of someone he knows, then... yes?”

“Oh well, that might explain it,” Selphie nodded, looking out ahead of her, “He has to be someone you knew at one point.”

Kairi glanced at her friend thoughtfully, realizing she may be right in some sense. But even then, the redhead still wasn’t entirely convinced.

“I’m not sure. He kind of reminds me of someone else I know. Someone close to me…”

“Who? Riku?”

Kairi stopped walking when a familiar face flashed in her mind. It was more vivid this time; a brown-haired boy smiled back at her, but the image was soon replaced with the boy in the black coat.

“Hey, are you okay?” Selphie asked, looking at her friend with concern.

“Never mind,” mumbled the redhead, shaking her head as she tried to push her thoughts aside. “Anyway, I’m gonna be seeing that boy again today.”

The brunette’s eyes brightened as she kept her gaze on Kairi. “Oh, you are?” 

Kairi nodded. “He said his friend hasn’t been feeling well in the past days. I wanna try to help somehow… I think a little gift should be fine.”

“That’s a sweet thing to do,” Selphie said with her hands behind her back. She eventually stopped in her tracks and turned to look at Kairi with an impish smile. “Well… I guess I won’t get in your way then.”

“What do you…” The redhead trailed off, immediately acknowledging the face her friend was making. When Kairi realized what she meant, she laughed and playfully nudged her friend. “Okay, come on. It’s not like that, Selphie. I just met the guy yesterday.”

Selphie laughed in return, shrugging at her remark. “But I thought you said you kind of know him.”

Kairi shook her head as she looked back towards the island. “It’s just a feeling I have, that’s all.”

“If you say so,” the brunette smiled, curiously looking at her friend. “By the way, does this mystery boy have a name?”

Kairi kept her gaze ahead of her, thankful she was able to at least remember this boy’s name.

“It’s Roxas.”

———–

Roxas swung his keyblade left and right, eliminating the last of the remaining Heartless lurking around. He was sent on a solo mission to Halloween Town that day, which meant he had to work double duty. Once he finished up there, he thought about the brief chat he had with Axel earlier in the day.

Just before Roxas left that morning, he managed to run into his red-headed friend, who admittedly got caught up with some stuff the day before, which explained why he didn’t show up to the clock tower.

“How about I make it up to you,” said Axel, “I’ll buy the ice cream today.”

“I guess so,” Roxas mumbled, rubbing his neck. “I’ll try to be there.”

The tall Nobody raised a brow as he reached out and ruffled the boy’s hair. “What? Got somewhere to be later?”

“Umm…” The blond tried to think of an excuse as he attempted to fix his messy hair, deciding he would eventually tell Axel more about the familiar stranger he encountered when he got the chance. “I wanted to bring more seashells for Xion.”

“More seashells, huh?” Axel chuckled, crossing his arms. “Pretty soon, her whole bed is gonna be covered in those.”

Roxas only gave him a sheepish look. Before he was able to say something else, their conversation was suddenly interrupted when Saïx approached the two Nobodies.

“Don’t you have someplace to be?” He asked in his usual cold tone, mainly directing his attention to Axel.

“Yeah, yeah…” Axel sighed and waved his hand before disappearing into the Corridor of Darkness. The blue-haired man then turned his attention to Roxas to assign his mission.

And there he was now, making his way back to the dark corridor after completing his task. From there, he began to make his way to his next destination, only this time when Roxas finally arrived, he noticed the familiar orange hues surrounding him. The Nobody glanced around, realizing he must have made it just before the sun began to set on the small island.

He found himself appreciating the warm sights, taking another look around before he spotted a figure sitting on a tree just across the small bridge overhead.

It was the red-headed girl. 

———–

Kairi arrived at the island sometime in the late afternoon, more or less around the time she spotted Roxas the day before. It was no surprise to see he wasn’t around yet, which gave her time to collect what she needed for the wayfinder she wanted to make. A lucky charm for Roxas’s friend.

Kairi thought it was the perfect gift. She remembered making one for herself to give it to someone special. Someone she longed to see again. With that, she began her search for some thalassa shells. After some time of exploring around and getting a head start on creating the charm, Kairi noticed Roxas was still nowhere to be seen. The girl tried not to worry much, assuming he must have been busy. Yet she couldn't help but think back to the thoughts that invaded her mind earlier that day, about being left alone there again. She tried to fight those thoughts away as she headed over to the paopu tree.

Once there, the redhead settled herself on the tree trunk, gazing ahead at the sparkling sea as the gentle breeze hit her face. After she felt more at ease, Kairi reached inside her small bag and pulled out one of the few seashells she collected as she continued to put the charm together. She found herself very focused on this for a while until she heard footsteps approaching. Her heart flipped out of instinct as she turned around and saw the familiar face from the day before.

Kairi flashed a warm smile as the blond boy approached her. “Oh there you are! I thought you weren’t gonna show up.”

Roxas found himself giving Kairi a smile of his own before he noticed her fiddling with something in her hands. “Yeah, sorry about that. I got caught up with some stuff.”

“That’s alright,” she said as she patted the empty spot next to her, inviting him to join her on the tree. “Come on up.”

The boy climbed up and settled down beside Kairi, curiously looking over to see what the girl had been doing. Before Roxas was able to question it, he saw her staring back at him with an amused look on her face. 

Roxas tilted his head in confusion as he heard her laugh softly. “What?”

“Do you always wear that coat?”

The blond momentarily glanced down at his outfit before looking up at the girl again. “Yeah, why?”

“Don’t you get a little warm wearing it? Especially in a place like this?”

She did have a point, but it’s not like he had a massive wardrobe back at the castle. He rubbed his neck self-consciously and shrugged. “It’s kind of all I have.”

Kairi kept her gaze on the timid boy, wondering if he might have been joking. But she just went along with it and continued to work on the charm. Roxas’s eyes trailed back down to the small object in her hands. Right away, he could tell they were seashells but he noticed the girl had somehow tied up a few together to make a star shape out of it.

“What are you doing?” He asked.

“Well… remember when I said I wanted to show you something?” She tied up the last of the seashells together before proudly holding it up for him to see. “You mentioned your friend likes these, so I thought you can give this to her. It’s a good luck charm.”

“A good luck charm?” Roxas repeated as she handed the star-shaped charm to him.

Kairi swung her legs back and forth off the tree trunk and nodded. “Mmhmm. If you and your friend ever get separated, this will help you find your way back to each other.”

“Huh…” He examined it for a while longer before the girl continued.

“It’s still missing something though,” she reached over and pointed at the empty space in the center of the charm. “A token of some sort. I wasn’t sure if maybe you might have something to put there…?”

Roxas pursed his lips momentarily before placing the charm in his lap to reach into his pockets, pulling out whatever he found. There was some munny, an ice cream stick with the word WINNER written across it, and a few pieces of a broken seashell he must have forgotten about that likely fractured during his mission. He stared at the items dumbfoundedly before looking up at her.

“Is any of this good enough?”

“Hmm…” Kairi examined his hand filled with miscellaneous objects. She laughed softly as her eyes fell on the fractured shell. “Wow, what happened there?”

“Guess it broke on my way here,” he shrugged.

“Hmm, must have been that coat of yours,” she teased, poking his shoulder.

The Nobody couldn’t help but chuckle. “Yeah, sure. Let’s go with that.”

Kairi’s gaze suddenly fell back to his hand. Just as he was about to shake off the broken pieces, she spotted a peculiar shape. “Wait, hang on…” She reached out and picked up one of the small fragments, smiling as she examined it. “This piece kind of looks like a heart. See?”

The girl held it in her palm for Roxas to see for himself. Despite some minor chips on the broken piece, it was indeed shaped like a heart, similar to the ones that the Heartless released.

“I guess it kind of does… Can I use that?”

“Yeah, that should work,” Kairi nodded with a smile, taking the charm back from him to attach the small piece in the center.

Meanwhile, Roxas’s gaze fell on the sight in front of them. ‘Peaceful’ was the first word that popped into his head as he watched the orange hues reflect off the body of water. He always found it comforting watching the sunset, even outside of Twilight Town. 

Suddenly, the view in front of him was blocked when Kairi proudly held up the finished charm in front of his face. “Here you go, Roxas.”

The boy took the charm from her and glanced at the little chipped heart in the middle.

“Thanks,” he smiled, carefully tucking the small object away in his pocket. “I’m sure she’ll really like this.”

“She just might,” Kairi said with a smile of her own, curiously looking at him. “How is she doing today?”

“Uh…” Roxas scratched his head unsurely and shrugged, “Still the same. She’s been in a deep sleep for a few days now. There’s no way of telling when she’ll wake up.”

“Oh…” The girl’s smile faded away as she gave him a sympathetic look. “What happened to her?”

“I’m not sure…” The Nobody shook his head, looking down at his lap. “It’s weird, the same thing happened to me too just weeks before... but it’s kind of hazy to remember anything. All I remember is waking up next to all these seashells beside me.”

Kairi’s face softened, recalling when Roxas briefly brought up that little detail just the day before. “So she left those seashells for you, and now you’re doing the same for her. That’s sweet.”

“Yeah. I guess so,” the boy shrugged.

Kairi gave him a reassuring smile, turning to face the sea. “She’ll be fine. I know it.”

Roxas managed to smile in return as he followed her gaze. They sat in comfortable silence shortly after as they both watched the sight in front of them. 

“It’s nice, isn’t it?” Kairi asked, breaking the silence.

Roxas slightly tilted his head and glanced at her. “What is?”

“The sunset.”

The Nobody kept his eyes on her as she continued to stare off into the distance. He eventually did the same, smiling warmly as he watched the glistening sea again. “Yeah, it kinda reminds me of the one back in Twilight Town.”

“Twilight Town?” Kairi wondered, now turning to look at the boy. “Is that where you’re from?”

“Uh… you could say that,” Roxas hesitated for a moment, unsure how much he should say about himself. He supposed it wouldn’t hurt to speak a little bit about the place. Twilight Town almost felt like a home to him, after all.

The girl’s eyes brightened as she shuffled closer to Roxas. “So you’re from a different world, huh? I figured as much. How’s it like there?”

Roxas remained in place, trying to ignore the fact that she was now closer to him. “It’s nice, I guess. I usually meet up with my friends on the clock tower and we have sea salt ice cream and talk about stuff while watching the sunset.”

The redhead suddenly gave him a peculiar look. “Sea salt ice cream?”

“Yeah, have you tried some? It’s really good.” Roxas couldn’t help but grin as he thought about his favorite snack.

“I can’t remember if I have…” Kairi muttered, tapping her chin in thought. “Maybe you should bring some next time.”

Next time? She wants me to visit her again?

Roxas snapped out of his brief thoughts as he realized something. “W-Wait, but it’ll melt by the time I get here.”

“Not if you’re fast enough,” Kairi smirked.

The boy raised a brow and shuffled away slightly, letting out a faint chuckle. “I’ll try… but I can’t promise you it’ll still be any good.”

Kairi stayed silent for a moment before she ended up shuffling close to him again. “Fine, I’ll just go visit you instead then.”

Roxas mentally panicked. Not only because he was close to falling off the tree if he continued to scoot away from her, but he just wasn’t sure how much of a good idea it was for her to drop by.

Great... 

“Maybe I’ll go sometime when my summer vacation starts,” she added, swinging her legs back and forth enthusiastically as she looked out ahead.

Summer vacation. Roxas remembered Axel explained how it’s a time where kids get a whole month off to do whatever they want. Suddenly, Roxas couldn’t help but smile at her determination to visit him during her free time. It made him wonder... “Have you visited other worlds before?”

Her kicking slowed down as Kairi tried to recall the hazy memories lingering in her mind. “I actually came from another world when I was younger but… I can’t remember much of it.”

Roxas noticed she began to fiddle around with her bracelet as she went on.

“Just some months ago, my friends and I decided to build a raft, hoping we could go out and see other worlds but some things happened, so we never got around to it... My memory is still a little hazy from it all but we ended up getting separated along the way.”

“It feels like it’s been forever since I last saw them…” she mumbled, placing her hand over her chest. “But I’m sure they’re alright, no matter where they are right now.”

Roxas could only sit there in silence as he thought about Axel and Xion. He couldn’t bear the thought of getting separated from his own friends. It scared him just thinking about it.

Kairi began to wonder what was going through the boy’s head, seeing how he went silent for a while. She turned to face him almost at the same time he turned to look at her, briefly catching her by surprise. 

“I hope you’ll find your way back to each other,” he said, attempting to reassure her.

“I know we will,” the girl gave him a small smile as she kept her gaze on him. Kairi wasn’t sure why but there was something comforting about looking into his eyes.

Comfort. Maybe that was the unusual feeling she felt in her heart as she looked at him.

Of course, it didn’t take her long to catch herself staring at him for some time.

“Anyway... it’s getting late,” she said, hopping off the tree. “I should start heading back home.”

“Right...”

Roxas did the same and turned to leave but Kairi stopped him, gently tugging on his sleeve. “Hey, Roxas? Thanks for showing up today.”

He faced her and smiled warmly as their eyes met again. “Yeah, of course. I was planning on stopping by anyway. And you kinda told me to come back.”

The girl laughed softly at his remark. “Fair enough. Don’t forget to give that to your friend,” she said, referring to the charm.

“I won’t.”

“And be careful with it,” she added, gently nudging him as she began to walk off. “You don’t wanna fracture it like that other shell, do you?”

Roxas laughed sheepishly as he watched Kairi walk ahead of him. Without thinking, he called out to her. “Are you gonna be here again tomorrow?”

Kairi halted and turned to face Roxas. For a moment, she was certain she saw a brown-haired boy standing in his place, but she knew her mind was just playing tricks on her. She had to remind herself this wasn’t that boy. This was Roxas.

She smiled softly and gave him a nod. “Yeah, I’ll be here.”

Roxas wasn’t sure what came over him at that moment but he was relieved to hear that she wanted to see him again. 

“Right… then I’ll see you around.”

“See you around, Roxas.”

With that, she finally walked off while Roxas stayed behind. The blond stood there in thought as he took one last look at the sunset and grinned to himself.

———–

Once he left the island, Roxas briefly stopped by Twilight Town out of habit. He made his way over to the station plaza and looked up at the clock tower, only to see it as empty as it was the day before. He figured that would be the case, realizing how late it must have already been. The Nobody decided to skip the usual clock tower routine and began to make his way back to the castle from there.

Soon enough after reporting back, he found himself standing in front of Xion’s door. Roxas stepped inside her room and walked towards the sleeping girl. 

It was almost as if he never left.

“Told you I’d be back,” Roxas smiled, carefully rummaging through his pocket. “And I brought you something, like I said I would. It’s a gift from a girl I ran into on that island.” He pulled out the charm and held it up, briefly surveying it to make sure it was still intact.

“It’s funny… she kind of looks like you. I thought I might have imagined it when I first saw her but… looking at her, I kind of see you…” Roxas’s voice lowered as he gave Xion a peculiar look. “Err… anyway, the girl’s name is Kairi. She said this is supposed to be a good luck charm. So if we ever get separated, we’ll find our way back to each other… or something like that.”

He stared at the charm again before he smiled softly and placed it beside her. “I hope you like it.”

Suddenly, Xion stirred in her sleep, catching Roxas by surprise as he stared at her wide-eyed. He eagerly waited for her to open her eyes but they remained shut within those few moments. Sighing, his shoulders dropped, realizing he probably got his hopes up for nothing.

“Wishful thinking,” Roxas mumbled, keeping his gaze on the girl before he kneeled down by the bedside. The boy’s gaze fell on her gloved hand in front of him and out of instinct, he reached out and gently placed his warm hand on hers.

She’s so cold, he thought.

“You know, I got to see the sunset over the sea today,” he spoke softly, resting his head on his propped arm. “It kind of reminded me of Twilight Town.”

Roxas smiled at the memory, thinking how much he longed to watch the sunset with Xion again. He was really starting to miss it. Suddenly, a wave of drowsiness hit Roxas at that moment. It seemed like the Nobody didn’t realize how tired he was until now as he continued to speak.

“I wish you were there to see it…”

Roxas didn’t remember saying anything else after that as his mind shut down. Before he knew it, he was sound asleep by Xion’s bedside with his hand still resting on hers.

Little did he know that just outside the door listening in on the one-sided conversation was his red-headed friend.

[kingdomofallthehearts]

A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes

SoKai Week 2020 - Day 3 - Thinking of You & Dreams

Synopsis: Master Yen Sid sent Kairi on a mission to find an incredibly strong person. The problem is, Kairi has no idea who this person is or why Master Yen Sid sent her on this mission in the first place. With Sora still MIA, will Kairi be able to complete such a mysterious mission?

Featuring: Kairi, Disney Characters (you’ll see), Sora (Mentioned), Master Yen Sid (Mentioned), Axel (Mentioned)

Prompt for the Day: Thinking of You / Dreams

I guess this is the place.

Kairi looked around and studied her surroundings carefully. Directly in front of her was a square fountain with four pillars meant to illuminate the water at night with a faint glow. The stone pathway she was standing on split off to surround the fountain and lead to an elegant staircase. Beyond the staircase was a series of marble pillars that decorated the entrance of a marvelous palace with two guards standing at attention. To her left was a large wooden door that lead to the servants’ quarters and behind her was a detailed metal gate that closed off the palace to the rest of the town.

What in the world am I doing at such a fancy location?

Kairi didn’t want to be here. She really didn’t want to be anywhere. Sora was gone. He sacrificed himself to save her… again. But this time Kairi couldn’t hug him back to life. He vanished into thin air before her very eyes. She failed to protect him. She failed to keep her end of their promise.

Kairi aggressively shook her head back and forth as if to banish such thoughts from her mind. She had to focus. After all, she was sent here by Master Yen Sid. He told her there was someone here she needed to meet, but he wouldn’t tell her why. Everyone else was given a mission with a clear objective: to find Sora. Why was her mission so vague and seemingly out of the blue?

Kairi returned her gaze back to the palace. Second-guessing Master Yen Sid wouldn’t do any good. The sooner she completed this mission, the sooner she would be able to help everyone find Sora.

Kairi straightened her shoulders, lifted her head, and took a deep breath before marching forward.

“Freeze!” one of the two soldiers shouted as she approached the castle. “State your name and what business you have here.”
 “My name is Kairi and I’m here to meet uh… the King?” Master Yen Sid could have at least given me a name. Kairi wasn’t even sure if she was supposed to meet a king, but it was as good a guess as any. The other soldier reached into his back pocket and pulled out a long scroll. He quickly skimmed the top of the page before putting it back where it came from. “No appointment, no entrance.” “But I—“ “No appointment, no entrance.” Shoot. I have to try something else. Kairi puffed out her chest, draped her hand over her heart, and gave the most insulted look she could muster. “EXCUSE ME! Perhaps you don’t know who I am. I am Princess Kairi and I have important business with the King! So if you don’t mind…” Kairi tried to squeeze through the guards as she was giving the performance of her life, but they put up their spears to block her path. “No appointment, no entrance.” “Hmph.” Kairi stormed off. Back on the islands, guests were treated to open arms and warm embraces. At least, that’s how she was treated when she arrived. Not cold stiff rejection like the guards just showed her. Maybe it’s just a royalty thing.

Kairi didn’t have time to pout over her inability to get past the guards. She still had a mission to complete. There must be another way in! She walked over to the large wooden doors. Locked, of course. Granted, she could open the doors with her keyblade, but drawing the attention of the guards was the last thing she wanted to do. She examined the wooden door closely and… ah-ha! There was a small opening at the bottom of the door fit for a mouse. Kairi began to hatch a plan. If I can shrink myself, I can walk through that opening and use the servants’ quarters to get inside that castle.

Kairi ran to one of the four pillars and positioned herself at an angle the guards couldn’t see. Mini! She never used this spell in the field before. She even found it to be a bit silly, but Merlin insisted on teaching her and Axel as much as he could. And she wanted to be prepared for anything so she could confidently stand by Sora’s side. So much for that.

Once the spell was complete, Kairi looked at her surroundings once again. She could see all of the small engravings in the fountain, the tiny cracks in the stone pathway, things she would have never noticed normal sized. She sprinted towards the wooden door’s opening, hoping not to encounter any bugs along the way. She could handle small bugs, not bugs her size.

Before Kairi had a chance to release the spell when she crossed the door to the other side, she heard a scream in the distance. Someone needs help! She summoned her keyblade and followed the sound of fearful shrieking.

“AAAAAAGGGGGGHHHHHH! SOMEONE HELP JAQ-JAQ! JAQ-JAQ WON’T GET IN TROUBLE AGAIN! JAQ-JAQ A GOOD MOUSE!”

To Kairi’s surprise she saw a mouse wearing a red hat, red turtle neck, and orange coat being chased by… heartless! It appeared giant bugs were the least of Kairi’s worries.

“AAAAAAGGGGGGHHHHHH!” “Don’t worry, I’m coming!” Kairi jumped in the air as high as she could and unleashed a ring of meteors down upon the vicious heartless. She managed to destroy the first wave, but as soon as she landed more showed up.

“Are you okay?” “Jaq-Jaq okay right now. Maybe not in few minutes.” “I can handle these guys. You should find a place to hide.”
 “But—but monsters very strong.” Kairi showed off a reassuring smile. “I’ll be fine. Now, get going!” Jaq-Jaq nodded hesitantly and scurried off. Good. Now I can focus on them. “Hey heartless! Why don’t you pick on someone your own size?” Oh. Maybe not the best comeback considering the circumstances. Axel tried to teach her how to “trash talk” when they were training together, but she never quite got the hang of it. At least the heartless won’t tease me about it.

A shadow heartless sunk into the ground and quickly crawled towards Kairi. It popped up and tried to slash her, but Kairi dodged in the nick of time and hit it with a downward blow. Then, two tried to jump her at the same time. Kairi blocked with a barrier and launched a counter attack. “Ouch!” One of the critters snuck up behind her and clawed her shoulder. “That’s enough!” Kairi initiated her most powerful combo. She was zipping back and forth as fast as possible and took out the last of the heartless with her finishing move. When she was positive she defeated them all, she used up the rest of her mana. “Cure!”

“Woah! Friend very good, very strong.” “Than… thank you,” Kairi said between breaths. “If I… heard right… your name… is Jaq-Jaq?” The mouse nodded enthusiastically. “My name… is Kairi.” “Kairi help Jaq-Jaq. Kairi Jaq-Jaq’s friend. Jaq-Jaq want help Kairi.” Kairi took a moment to catch her breath. “That’s very nice of you Jaq-Jaq. To be honest, I’m trying to get into the palace to meet…” it didn’t feel right for Kairi to lie to her new friend, “…someone. Do you happen to know a way in?” “Oh, Jaq-Jaq know! Follow Jaq-Jaq!”

______________________________________________________

Jaq-Jaq clearly knew his way around the castle. They went through ventilation systems and drain pipes and even small cracks and holes hidden behind lavish furniture and decor.

“Thank you for taking me inside the palace Jaq-Jaq, but where exactly are we going?” “We gonna see Cinderelly.” “Cinderelly?” “Yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah. Cinderelly Jaq-Jaq’s friend. Cinderelly help Kairi. Cinderelly know everyone. Cinderelly a princess!” Kairi was beginning to feel a twinge of guilt. She was on a mission she didn’t even want to be on with no clear direction and now she wasn’t only involving her new friend Jaq-Jaq, but Jaq-Jaq’s friend too. “Listen, Jaq-Jaq… I—“ 
“—We here! We here!” Jaq-Jaq pushed Kairi out of an air conditioner slat and she found herself standing on a luscious pink carpet.

On the far end of the room was a ginormous bed with silk white sheets draped under a sheer canopy. There were two nightstands on each side stacked to the brim with books. To the right was an elegant dresser that surely had piles of hair accessories, jewelry, and makeup. At least, that’s what Kairi thought. She couldn’t see the contents of the dresser, being so small and all. But what she could see was a beautiful woman with shiny blonde hair, big blue eyes, and a petite physique. She was wearing a white collared shirt with a brown vest and a yellow ankle-length skirt. A beam of light shined down from the window creating a halo-effect around her figure.

“Oh my! Jaq-Jaq, did you make a new friend?” “Cinderelly meet Kairi. Kairi, Cinderelly.” “Kairi?” Cinderelly stated more as a question than as acknowledgement. “Forgive me. Your name sounds so familiar. Have we met before?” Surely Kairi would remember meeting such a beautiful person. Yet, she also felt some unexplainable connection. “I’m sorry. I don’t recall, but I understand how you feel Cinderelly.” Cinderelly let out a giggle. “Please, do call me Cinderella. Whether or not we met in the past does not change the fact that we are meeting now. The pleasure is mine.” “Oh no, the pleasure is all mine Cinderella!” a flustered Kairi managed to say. She wasn’t expecting such a warm welcome, especially after her encounter with the guards. “Cinderelly! Cinderelly! Kairi need help!” “Oh my! Well if it is within my power, I would be happy to help you.” “Thank you Cinderella, but…” Kairi took a deep breath, “the truth is I’m supposed to meet someone, but I’m not sure who.” “Oh my, that does sound like a challenge.” Cinderella puffed out her lower lip and struck a thinking pose. “Then I suppose I will just have to introduce you to everyone in the palace. And if that person isn’t in the palace, we can go into town.” Kairi sighed. “I appreciate that Cinderella, but I’m in a bit of a rush. Someone very important to me has gone missing and I need to complete this mission as soon as possible so I can help find him.” “I see.” Cinderella showed Kairi a warm smile. “I’m sure you’ll find him.”
 Puzzled, Kairi asked, “How can you be so sure?” “Why, all you have to do is believe and your dream will surely come true.” “Yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah. Cinderelly dream come true. Cinderelly went to the ball and met the prince and fell in love.” Believe in my dream? “It may be tough and sometimes you may feel like giving up, but if your faith is strong, you can’t go wrong.” Believe in my dream. What is my dream? I… I want to find Sora, that’s for sure. I want to make sure we’re never separated again. I want to talk til the sun disappears and then resume our conversation once it reveals itself again. I want to walk along the beach with his hand in mine. I want to see the worlds like we always planned on doing, together this time. I want to be by his side. A single tear shed down Kairi’s face. “Cinderella, thank you.” “Oh my, but I haven’t done anything yet.”
 Kairi shook her head. “That’s not true. You told me about the power of believing in my dreams. And you helped me get one step closer to finding him.”

Sora, I’ll never stop believing. I’ll make my dreams a reality.

______________________________________________________

Notes: Oh boy, this one was a doozy. I ended up rushing a bit to get it out on time, but at least I got my main points across. When I saw the Dream prompt, I immediately thought of the song in Cinderella and then the plot of Cinderella in BBS. I feel kind of bad for making Kairi feel so depressed, but I really wanted Cinderella to tell Kairi about the power of believing in one’s dreams. I do wish I incorporated more of Kairi thinking about Sora, but like I said I was in a rush. I’m honestly just proud that I got done what I did. Thank you all for your support!

[pocketfullaflowers]

Don’t Think Twice

Namine thinks it’s time to get something off her chest. She refuses to let a past she can’t change control a future she can.

“I want you for a lifetime So if you’re gonna think twice, baby I don’t wanna know, baby, I don’t wanna know”

You can read on Tumblr, or here on AO3.

“So, where do you wanna go?” Xion asked.

Namine had asked Xion to take her to Twilight Town, but hadn’t given any further explanation. Xion didn’t mind, she loved this place, and hanging out with Namine was always fun, so she was going along with it. The two were walking down Station Heights, Xion always enjoyed the feeling of the afternoon sun on her face.

“O-Oh, I don’t know wherever you wanna go, I guess.” Namine looked visibly nervous, wringing her hands together and barely meeting her eyes, and that confused Xion. They were friends, right? Friends hang out all the time, that’s what Axel said at least. Xion shook her head, there were so many parts about being a Somebody that she still didn’t understand.

“Well,” Xion said, letting the word linger on her lips, “We could always get ice cream and go to the clock tower. Who knows, maybe Hayner, Pence, and Olette could join us.”

“No!” Namine paused as her face reddened, “I mean, um, let’s try somewhere else?”

“Okay? If you have somewhere in mind, Namine, I’d be more than happy to join you, but you have to tell me.”

“Ah, um…” Namine paused again, and took a deep breath, “Just, follow me?”

Xion shrugged, “Cool, you lead.”

The two wove through the afternoon crowds milling around the tram common, children darted this way and that with their friends in tow while shopkeepers advertised their wares. Xion wasn’t paying attention to where they were going, and nearly bumped into Namine when she stopped. They were far from the crowds now, down a side street that led nowhere.

“Um, Nami? Where exactly are we going?”

Namine sighed, “I promise I have a plan, but we need to go down to the sewers.”

Xion’s eyebrows shot up, “O–kay?” She said, and rocked back on her heels, “Still not gonna tell me where we’re going?”

Namine chuckled a little, “You’ll see, I promise it’ll be worth it. Just… plug your nose?”

The two slowly made their way through the sewers, being careful not to step in any trash or puddles. It was dark, and  Xion felt on edge, she knew there was nothing to fear, but she summoned her keyblade, just in case. They heard rustling up ahead and Xion ran in front of Namine and fired off a fire spell just in time to see it miss a very agitated rat.

Xion blushed and rubbed her neck, “Whoops?”

Namine giggled, “You’re my hero, huh?” She took Xion’s hand, “C’mon, it’s not much further, just stick by me.”

Xion blushed further, glad for the darkness surrounding them.  Light up ahead signaled the end of the tunnel. The two climbed out of the tunnel and were instantly surrounded by the soft smell of dirt and grass. Xion looked up and saw tall trees filtering the soft afternoon light above them.

“This is…” Xion’s mouth hung open.

“The woods next to the old mansion, yeah. They filled up the hole in the wall, so I had to find another way to get here, sorry about the sewer.” Namine chuckled.

“But… Why?”

“You’ll see, follow me.” Namine grabbed Xion’s hand again and led her through the woods.

The last time Xion had been here had been right before she died, when she had fought Axel. GIven the choice of dying as a puppet or dying on her own terms, she had chosen the latter. In the end, that didn’t matter, though. She had been faithful to her master to the very end. Xion smiled ruefully. Namine, as though sensing her friend’s dark mood squeezed her hand and smiled at her.

The two walked in silence until they reached the mansion.

Xion’s eyes widened, “Namine, wha-” There was a red checkered blanket laid down in the courtyard of the mansion. On top of the blanket was a basket and a guitar case.

“It’s a picnic! Olette told me about them, you sit on the ground and eat!” Namine was practically vibrating with excitement, “I asked them to set it up before we got here so I could surprise you.”

“But… Why would we want to sit on the ground? And why would you want to surprise me?”

Namine shrugged, “She said it makes the food taste better, c’mon!”

Xion noted that Namine didn’t answer her other question as she joined her on the ground. Namine opened the basket and passed out food and plates. Grapes, cheese, finger sandwiches, strawberries and crackers, too. They had orange juice to drink, in fancy wine flutes that Namine said came from Pence. Namine was right, food did taste better sitting on the ground.

After they had eaten, Namine brought out the guitar and began strumming softly, humming along to a tuneless song. Xion laid next to her and let her eyes go soft, almost dozing. She didn’t even know Namine could play guitar, but she was quickly finding there were many things about her friend she didn’t know.

Xion sat up, “Not that I’m not loving this, but why did you bring me here? Why a picnic?”

Namine flushed and put the guitar to the side, “Well… we both have so many awful memories of this place, and I’m tired of letting a past I can’t change control my life. I just thought, if I had a happy memory here, it might help.”

Xion nodded, “I guess I understand that, but why with me? Why not Riku? He was here longer and spent more time with you and Ansem than I did.”

Namine’s face resembled a tomato, “Ah, well,” She took a deep breath, “I’m sure I don’t need to tell you that living with the Organization was hell. They used me only for my abilities, I was nothing to them. I was so lonely, I let them use me to do horrible things. It was all I ever knew.”

Namine paused, “And then I met DiZ, and he saw me as just another tool, just another way to get what he wanted. But I was free, and that’s all that mattered.” Namine looked towards the mansion, to her window, “It’s another white room, just like the castle. He kept me there to remind me of my place.”

She looked back at Xion, “And then I met you, and it was almost worse knowing that I had to destroy you.” Namine’s face turned dark, “With all the powers I possess, I cannot keep even one piece of the being called you connected, I remember saying that and wishing I could go in your place. In the end, it didn’t matter, did it? You were destroyed and I returned to Kairi, and that was supposed to be the end of the story.”

She looked down and Xion saw the tears in her eyes, Xion grabbed her friend’s hand as Namine opened her mouth to speak again, “But it’s not the end of the story, we’re both back, we have our own lives to live now, and I don’t want to live mine being afraid of my past, or who I am, because the truth is, Xion, you’re only everything I’ve ever dreamed of. I love you, and I understand if you don’t feel the same way, but I just needed you to know.”

Xion gaped at her friend, not believing her ears. Then she burst out into laughter, feeling bad when Namine’s face drooped. “Ah, I’m sorry, I’m sorry!” Xion said, wiping tears off her face, “It’s just, you must be kidding me, did you really think I could say no?”

Namine opened and closed her mouth, not knowing what to say.

Xion shook her head, “Nami, I love you, too.”

“Oh.” Namine’s face was curiously blank until– “Oh… Oh. ” Hot tears brewed at the insides of her eyes.

Xion leaned forward, wiping the tears off Namine’s face, “Namine, what’s wrong? Hey, it’s okay.”

Namine started to laugh, too, “I’m sorry, I’m only crying ‘cause I never dreamed it’d take this long for me to get the courage to ask you, I never even imagined you liking me back.”

The two smiled at each other, Xion risked a look down at her lips and Namine realized how close they were to each other. She flushed brightly.

“I don’t bite.” Xion’s breath was hot on her face.

“I know.” Namine closed her eyes and leaned in, sighing into the kiss.

Kiss me once, kiss me twice, kiss me three times

Cross the line

0o0o0o

“Yes!” Olette quietly cheered from the bush she, Pence, and Hayner were hiding in.

“Ugh, can we go now, my legs are asleep.” Hayner complained.

“I ran out of snacks ages ago.” Pence said.

Olette smiled at her boys, “Fine, fine, let’s give them some privacy. Think of is this way; now we won’t have to listen to them whine about their unrequited love anymore.”

“You just like playing matchmaker.” Hayner said.

“Guilty as charged!” Olette smiled at him.

“Guys, c’mon, let’s go to the clock tower, this is lame.” Pence said.

Hayner smiled and took off, “Last one to get an ice cream is a rotten egg!”

“Hey, no fair!” Olette and Pence ran off after him, leaving their friends to finish their picnic in peace.

[paopuatsunset]

Draw Me.

Kingdom Hearts FanFic --  Naminé/Xion -- One-Shot -- Words: 1541Naminé had never drawn a nude person before, hadn't even seen someone naked in person, yet she'd jumped at the opportunity to.

It was a good way to grow as an artist, work on your anatomy.

That’s what her classmates told her.

Everyone else has already taken this class and  I'm tired of drawing still-life. 

That’s what she told herself.

This wasn't her first rodeo anyway. She'd tried last semester....but lasted only about fifteen minutes. She'd rushed from the classroom, face red and ripe with embarrassment.

The model had been completely nude, his posture relaxed, his….relaxed too.

She’d drawn a leg before she couldn’t take it anymore, excusing herself, apologizing, quickly and frantically as she left the room.

She’d tried, that’s all that mattered.

Still, Naminé’s nerves, as the new model walked into the room, clad in skin tone underwear, were second only to her thankfulness. 

Oh. She couldn’t help but smile. It was her.

“Xion....” the professor walked forward, whispered something to the model. Naminé nibbled at her lip, looking back to her blank page.

“Naked?”

More whisperings.

“I’m not comfortable being naked.”

The whisperings became more rushed, and the class looked on. 

“I’m sorry but I'm not comfortable with that. When Demyx said you needed a model he told me: "You just have to look naked" not BE naked.”

"I'm ok with sketching her like this." Naminé's voice rose above the whispering, and the professor looked to her. Her classmates joined in, some reluctant murmurs, other voices louder and more deliberate in agreed unison.  Xion's  gaze found Naminé, and after a moment of shock, the blonde gave her a small nod, an affirmed “don’t worry, do whatever you’re comfortable with.” 

I’m more comfortable with this too.

And Xion smiled, posed despite the professor’s insistence to stop, and said, with dramatics: “Now please everyone, draw me.”

--

"Hey!"

Naminé turned, her sketchbook in one hand, car keys in another, and felt a rush of warmth as the model from class ran towards her. It felt weird to see her clothed after sketching her bare for so long. OhgoshwhatamIthinking, Naminé's heart began to race.

"Hello."

The girl slowed, smiling, her hands clasped comfortably in front of her. There was something delicate about her movements, a softness to the surety.

"You're Riku's friend, right?"

Namine nodded slowly, one hand, nervously, tucking a strand of blonde hair behind her ear. 

"Remember that beach trip last year?" the slow nod continued. 

Ah. Yes. Naminé remembered looking to the shore and thinking of all the ways she could draw the sparkling water. Both Riku and her were different that day, lost in their own thoughts and ideas. Riku was mourning Sora, it was a get-together to commemorate his relocation to Shibuya after all, and Kairi and Riku were handling it in their own ways, one spending all their time with Sora while the other kept their distance.

Naminé, likewise, just felt the urgings of loneliness. Apart of her wanted to engage with the others, but then, that small voice inside would murmur: “They don’t know you….” and she’d retreat to the surf, the sounds of laughter enough to satiate the yearning for companionship.

"Wow, look at this shell!" Naminé perked at the voice, one she couldn’t quite place, and before she could turn to see who it was, they were already by her side, lowering themselves to the sand as they pointed to something by her feet.

The shell was pink and faded into a smooth, ocean-bleached white. It barely stuck out from the sand, still hidden, waiting to be found. Just like me.

The thought came quickly, before Naminé could even acknowledge the person, and the girl, stooped, began to dig by her feet.

"Oh," Naminé sunk to the sand as though compelled, watched as Xion freed it from its sandy prison. "What pretty colors."

Xion held the shell to her ear, a satisfied, pleasant smile crossing her face. Her expression held a gentle friendliness, a safety in the kind smile, and when she offered the shell, softly saying: "Listen to this,” Naminé leaned forward without apprehension.

The sound of the ocean, though it was right by her, sounded crisper, more refined, when it came from the shell. 

They smiled to one another then, as though sharing a secret, and though the interaction, the bonding over shells, had ended, neither moved. They looked out to the sea, and the conversation came light, and pleasant, a few words here and there, and Naminé's usual shyness, in the summer heat, melted away. 

"Yes, the sea-shell, I wish I’d taken it, the colors were so pretty.”

"Yea," Xion continued to smile. “I think we parked by one another; can I walk with you?”

The young woman before her radiated a delicate power, overwhelming confidence rolled from her every movement. Even just a small flick of the hair sent a wave of self-assurance, and with a smile, any thoughts of arrogance seemed to dash away. In her presence, Naminé felt safe, protected, stronger.

“Yes of course,” what else could she say…would Xion think she was boring….was she boring? “Um…I don’t mind.”

Xion nodded, and they walked, the night cool and calm around them. Most of the cars in the parking lot were already gone, most classes ending long before the nine PM let out of the modeling course.

The silence between them wasn’t uncomfortable per say, Xion seemed fine with it, her mood not dampened by the lack of conversation. Naminé, meanwhile, found it hard to breathe.

Should she compliment her clothing? Her hair?

Bring up how she enjoyed the day at the beach? How thankful she was that Xion had acknowledged her?

The picture.

“Would you like to see the sketch I did of you?”

Naminé wasn’t expecting the faint blush that skittered across Xion’s nose, didn’t expect the stuttered: “A-a sketch? Of me? When did you do that?”

“During class.”

“Oh, right,” Xion fiddled with her hoodie string. “Yes please.”

Slowly, Naminé showed her the sketch, her fingers, still slightly blackened from the charcoal, left black smudges on the white pages. That was going to irritate her later, but in the moment, all she cared about was Xion’s reaction. She flipped to the right page, held the book out to Xion, and watched the young woman’s eyes widen as she gave a low gasp. Naminé's heart skipped a beat, and Xion stopped walking, her eyes never leaving the page. Naminé held her breath.

"I look amazing! Is this how you think I look?" 

"This is how you look." Naminé could feel the heat creeping from her ears, and she thanked the night’s darkness for shielding her.

"C-can I keep it?"

"Of course." Wait, stop. “No, actually, I’m sorry, you can’t.”

Xion stilled, her sudden nervousness, her joy, melting away. There was confusion in her gaze, and her hands, as she handed the sketchbook back, began to tremble and were put in her pockets.

“Oh, ok, that’s…ok.”

“No I mean, I’m sorry, I’m just a little nervous. I meant not right now at least, the professor still has to grade it.”

Xion regained her composure, pulled her hand through her hair.

“Oh right.”

They crossed the empty parking lot, their hair and skin bathed orange by the streetlights. Naminé took a deep breath, stilled the pounding of her heart as she tried to let the cool night air calm her.

“....Well, goodnight then.”

They had parked by one another, two small cars, one black and one white, parked directly underneath a streetlight.

Riku had told her to do that to be safe.

Maybe Roxas and Axel had told Xion to do the same thing.

“Goodnight.”

They climbed into their cars, started the engines, and sat, not driving into the distance, not moving away from one another.

Naminé glanced, ever so cautiously, to the other girl, found her movements mimicked, her own shyness reflected back at her. Xion rolled down her window, and Naminé did the same, both looking to one another bashfully, not knowing what to say but wanting to speak all the same.

"I only signed up to do the modeling because I knew you'd be there."

“Oh?”

A nod, soft and sweet, and Xion gave another chuckle.

“The professor said I can’t come back and model though. He said it’s fine if I’m uncomfortable being nude but....”

“I’d be happy to draw you again, Xion. We don’t need the class to meet up.”

The comment illuminated both their faces a light shade of pink, and Naminé, with a shy realization, gave another quiet response.

“Not naked or anything though.”

Xion nodded quickly. “Of course, yes, please, draw me.”

Naminé went to roll up her window and paused. Say it. “I really appreciated our conversation that day at the beach.”

"I knew you hadn't forgotten me. Out of everybody you've got the best memory."

Naminé smiled and fiddled with her hair.

“You’re hard to forget Xion.”

"You too."

They shared a smile, and with it, seemed to secure a connection. Naminé, looking to the person before her, knew that drawing her would be something she'd never tire of.

[triforceangel13]

Blood and Tears Ch. 11 (An AkuRoku Vampire Au)

Chapter 11: Trapped

Roxas let out a soft noise as he slowly opened his eyes. Everything hurt. It felt like his body had a really bad sunburn and each movement he made would make a sting radiate through him.

What in the world happened?

He had spoken to Ansem, the man who had called the hit out on Axel and had sent his men to nearly kill him. He had gotten angry though knew now that it was against the rules of the man. Still he had left the room and had gone...

Down the hallway where Demyx had a man shoot him with something that filled his body with such pain that he blacked out. Demyx....how could he have done that? They had been friends before he had turned into a vampire. Why now was he getting him into this dangerous situation? Had all those years that went by just had been lies?

“Oh so you're finally awake,” came a deep voice in the darkness. Roxas squinted his eyes to make out who it was, a silver haired man coming into view.

His orange eyes blazed at him, a smirk settling on his face as he approached the blonde, crossing his arms as he looked him over.

“Honestly never understood why Ansem would just pick anyone to be one of his kind,” he said with a sigh. “You're so scrawny and small. Never a good thing if you want an army of vampires at your beck and call.”

“What the hell are you talking about?” Roxas snapped, pulling against the rope around his wrists and hissed softly.

“Don't try too hard. That's garlic infused rope. Gonna hurt really bad if you keep doing that,” he chuckled at him. Roxas scowled at him. This man knew what he was. He knew exactly what he was and he knew how to keep him still.

“That surprised that I know what you are? I've known about your kind for quite some time now,” he practically purred at him causing Roxas to shiver in disgust. “Though quite frankly I am getting tired of seeing it go to others that I don't feel like...deserve the gift so to speak.”

“I wasn't supposed to die at the hands of Ansem's goons,” Roxas growled at him. “It wasn't originally his intention to change me.”

“I suppose you like to think that was him making up for it?”

Roxas looked away from him. He didn't know. Maybe he had been too hard on Ansem in a way. Sure he was still made this happen but he probably had given Riku the okay after being told what had happened.

“Pitiful. The man wants to strengthen his army and he picks someone like you,” the man spat at him, going to what looked like a covered window. Roxas tensed when he saw him grasp the curtain, a small sliver of sunlight peeking into the room.

“But what he did doesn't matter. I've been waiting to get one of his own for quite some time. I never thought I'd be able to get my hands on one of you,” the man chuckled softly. “To think that a simple thing like love exposed you.”

“You don't know what you're talking about. I don't know anyone you know,” Roxas lied but he knew he wasn't going to win this one. Axel had told him all about this...Superior.

“Oh how naive you are,” he teased, letting go of the curtain and approaching him, grabbing hold of his face. Roxas quickly tugged his face away. “Your precious redhead works for me.”

Roxas winced at that. He knew he shouldn't have shown any emotion but it hurt to hear it. This man still had his claws deep into his boyfriend.

And Roxas was the one that was supposed to be technically the monster there.

“So it seems like he's told you what he's been up to,” the Superior scowled as he stepped towards the window again. “No wonder he has been holding off on his duty. He's been fraternizing with my most sworn enemy.”

“No he hasn't-” a hand came and smacked Roxas across the face hard. The blonde grunted, keeping his face low.

“Do not lie. Hasn't Axel told you what happens to liars or those that go against my wishes?” he growled at him.

Roxas knew all too well what happened.  From what he had seen on Axe, the redhead had the easier form of punishment. If choking someone was an easy thing for him he couldn't even start to imagine what it would be like if it was even worse.

“Now tell me,” the Superior whispered, gingerly pulling Roxas face up to him. The blonde's cheek still stung from where he had been slapped and him touching it only made the pain radiate worse. “From what I'm gathering you have been a vampire for quite some time now. Tell me, how does one become one of your kind? Is it being bitten? Something else?”

“How am I supposed to know that?” Roxas snapped at him, pulling his face from his hand once again. “I was unconscious when I was turned.”

“I figured that,” he replied. “But I know that Ansem has told you something. He has to teach all of his little underlings what he knows.”

Roxas furrowed his brow. Riku was the one that taught him how to hunt and how to blend in with others. He also warned him of the dangers. But no one had ever taught him how to change anyone into another vampire.

He didn't know if it was bites, or if it was sharing blood. He had no idea.

“He didn't.”

The Superior sighed as he went to the window once more, taking up the curtain. “I told you not to lie. Now you will pay the consequences.”

Roxas opened his mouth to reply but all that came out was a loud scream as he opened the curtain a bit more, a stream of light hitting his body.

That unbearable pain he felt back at the apartment surged through him again, the feeling as if his skin was burning off.

As quickly as he burned him the Superior closed the curtain again, the sound of a something sharp being pulled from a sheath. The blonde's body trembled in pain, his head hanging low. All he could smell was burnt flesh.

“Axel...” he mumbled softly, tears running down his cheeks.

“He can't save you now.” the man told him, taking the knife and running it over the blonde's wrists, digging in and having a heavy stream of blood start to drip from the wounds. The sound of blood dripped into the buckets below him that he hadn't known were there before.

“If you won't tell me how to do it I'll just take your blood and trial and error it myself,” he snarled at him.

Roxas looked up at him weakly as the silver haired man ran his finger over his wound a bit, licking up the bit of blood on his finger.

“Now be good and don't move too much,” he said with a chuckle. “If it doesn't work with what I get I'll have to keep you and just get more.”

And with those final words spoken he left him alone in the dark room, bleeding in such a weakened state that he couldn't move.

Was this it? Was this the end?

“Axel...” he whispered softly to himself, a tear rolling down his cheek.

*

Axel let out a large sigh as he stared out the window of Riku's car. The sun was bright which was in complete contrast to the dark clouds over Axel's head.

He was scared. The Superior had Roxas and from what he was told it was only a matter of time before he did something to him. That is if he hadn't done so already. Axel had that bad feeling in the pit of his stomach that something had happened.

He needed to get his mind off of it. If he didn't he would end up driving himself so crazy he wouldn't be able to focus on getting them to where Roxas was and saving him.

“Curious question. The sun is out but the two of you are fine,” Axel said to them. “When Roxas accidentally got sunlight on him he nearly burst into flames.”

“With these,” Sora said, lifting the necklace around his neck that looked like a crown with a jewel in the center. “They are necklaces that have a powerful stone that protects us from the sun. It still stings but it would burn like it had done to him if we don't wear them.”

“Why did Roxas never have one?” Axe asked with a frown. It would have saved him and it would have been a different conversation with Demyx. Maybe he wouldn't have been taken away at all.

“Ansem was going to give him one,” Riku explained with a sigh, pulling a necklace out of his pocket. It was a silver looking x shaped necklace with a single blue stone sitting in the middle of it. “Roxas left the room before he even had a chance to explain and give it to him.”

Axel winced at that. He as afraid of that. He was afraid of Roxas having almost gotten the chance to get one.

“I hope he's alright...” he said with a sigh, resting his face in his hands. Sora turned towards him a look of concern on his face.

“You don't look so good,” Sora mumbled to him. “You're as pale as us but that isn't healthy for a human at all.”

“I haven't been feeling my best lately,” Axel said with a shrug. “Though I just figured that's from the amount of stress I'm under right now.”

Riku quickly looked at him in the mirror, a weird look on his face. Axel rose a brow at him, about to ask when Sora jumped in.

“Yeah, that sounds like it would affect you like that,” Sora hummed. “From the stuff with the organization and then Roxas getting taken away...are you sure you want to join us and not just take a nap somewhere?”

“No...I really need to find him before it's too late,” Axel said worriedly. “I don't want to lose him again. I don't think I could handle it...”

“Axel I have a important question to ask you,” Riku said, his voice so serious and dark that even Sora shrunk down in his seat. “Have you and Roxas drank blood from one another?”

“And if we have?” Axel asked with crossing his arms, a raised brow in his direction. “Heading into rather personal territory here.”

Granted they had done that quite a bit, quickly followed by some rather personal things in the bedroom together.

Riku sighed heavily, pulling over into an abandoned parking lot, hiding the car under a tree's shade for protection.

“I warned him about this,” Riku groaned, turning to look at Axel. The redhead scowled as he looked over him.

“What?” he snapped.

“Axel, you're in the middle of the change.”

“Oh my goodness Riku, you're right,” Sora said excitedly. “Do you think he is really going through the change?”

“Could someone tell me what the hell is the change?” Axel growled at them.

Riku held up a hand to silently ask for him to calm down. Axel sighed heavily, crossing his arms as he waited for an answer.

“By exchanging blood you have started the change into one of our kind. A vampire,” Riku explained to him. “I had taken some of Roxas' blood when he came to me and I had given him some of mine in return. Unfortunately his death was what finished the change.”

Axel paled at that, looking down at himself. Pale skin, the sun was starting to hurt his eyes a bit. “What does this mean for me?”

“You're body is trying to fight it off,” Riku sighed. “We need to do something soon or you could be lost to us forever.”

Axel clenched his fists tightly and shook his head as he removed his seat belt. “I won't let that happen. Right now I want to focus on getting Roxas back and making sure that he is safe from harm.”

Riku nodded, holding out the necklace for Roxas out to the redhead. “If you should find him first, make sure he wears this.”

“We'll find him,” Sora promised.

“We have to...otherwise I don't know what to do if we don't,” Axel said softly.

I’m open for written commissions

want to support? my patreon and kofi (just ask me for the link)

my a03 (triforceangel) as another place to read my fics

[jj-lynn21]

Deadpool Presents: Axel’s Valentine’s Day special story ch1

warnings: fluff, angst, smut

I know super long uncalled for title. To read the connecting story to this check out  Deadpool Presents: Once Upon A Zeitgeist. 

ch2  ch3  ch4  ch5

Julie is making breakfast. The twins, Axel Jr. and Peter, are watching X-men cartoons in the living room. Axel comes out of the bathroom after taking a shower. Boxers and a tank top on that seems to be sticking to him in his still damp state.

He walks into the kitchen. Reaching around Julie to grab a piece of bacon that is cooling. Then he wraps his arms around her. He kisses her cheek. “Morning babe.” He takes in her scent deeply. “I love the smell of bacon and you in the morning.”

Julie laughs, “That’s funny Axel. Why don’t you call the boys in for breakfast and see if they want milk or orange juice?” She flips the last pancake.

“No, problem.” He slaps her ass, “Tomorrow your all mind.”

She jumps, “We will talk about that later.”

He heads to get the kids, yelling, “You’ll be mine for Valentine’s. Just call him to babysit.”

He comes back to the table with the twins. Before he sits down, he Kisses Julie on the lips quickly.

Peter crinkles his nose, “Gross.”

Axel chuckles, “Kissing isn’t gross Peter. But you and your brother might want to stay away from that contact until you gain complete control of your ability to spew acid.”

“I kissed a girl,” Jr. said.

Axel and Julie look at their twelve-year-old stunned, but they don’t want to scare him. She said, “Oh.” Then looked to Axel to ask the boy more.

Axel swallows his mouth full of bacon, “So, how’d that work out son?”

Jr. grinned, “Fantastic.”

Axel nods trying not to grin, “She’s good then? I mean how did it happen for you and her?”

Jr. laughs, “She’s amazing. I thought she was cute, so I pulled her braid to get her attention.”

Julie said, “That wasn’t very nice.”

“But it worked Mom. She turned right around and punched me in the face.” Jr. grinned bigger.

Julie and Axel cover their mouths trying not to laugh.

“Then I planted one on her,” He said proudly. “I lip locked her for 30 whole seconds. Before I stopped and puked acid on her shoe.”

“Oh shit,” Axel feared for a bad ending for this story that was all too familiar. “Is she ok? You need to be more careful.”

“She’s fine Dad,” He was a little annoyed his Dad thought he would hurt anyone. “Her skin is Alkaline water or something like that with a high PH balance that neutralizes acid. I heard some kids talking about her and Ali is really cute, so I wanted to kiss her, and I did. Now she’s my girlfriend.”

“That was still dangerous son but sounds like you do got a girlfriend.” He takes a few more pieces of bacon and shovels them into his mouth.

“If she punched you, how do you figure she’s your girlfriend? It wasn’t polite of you to kiss her after she punched you.” Julie tries not to sound preachy but doesn’t think the way he went about getting that kiss should be praised too much.

“Ali brought me an extra chocolate milk at lunch.” Jr. bragged. “And before she sat down, she kissed my cheek for like five seconds, told me we are dating. So I’m happy with that.”

“That’s my boy.” Axel praised. Julie narrowed her eyes at him. “Oh, of course it was dangerous and you should never tease a girl to get what you want. You need to be nice. Stealing kisses isn’t always nice. In this case it worked out for you, so cool.” Julie shook her head. Axel shrugged.

After breakfast the kids run off to play outside as Axel helps Julie clean up. “Maybe have a more personal talk with him later Axel?” Julie absorbs the mess from dishes before putting them back in the cupboard.

Alex finishes the bacon before absorbing the mess left, “About what?” He picks up the pancake plate next to clean it.

Julie cleans another dish with her ability, “About teasing girls. About kissing a girl without her permission.  About the dangers of him kissing or doing other things with a girl without consent or without protection of any sort.  He should respect girls, don’t you think?”

“So, you want me to talk to him about safe sex?” He walks over to put all the serving dishes away.

“Its more than that Axel” She is frustrated he doesn’t get what she is really talking about. “I don’t want our boys to be arrogant little assholes thinking that they can take whatever they want.”

“Well, they are our sons so they can pretty much have anything they want and when they are older anyone they want as long as they don’t kiss 99.9% of them.” Axel said bluntly.

She stands on her tiptoes to put her finger in his face, “That is an asshole perspective that I thought I broke you of a long time ago. You hadn’t gone near a woman in years before me because you disfigured someone. Do you want something that traumatic to happen to your boys? No one could even touch your face before me. I think you need to talk to your boys or I will and I don’t pretend to know the first thing about being a man but I do know men should treat everyone they meet with respect…And I can’t believe I even have to…”

“Woe woe woe, babe,” He puts his hands up in front of him. “Your right, you don’t know shit about being a man.”

“Fuck you Axel,” Julie screams lifting her hand up to smack him.

He grabs her wrist before she can make contact, “Fuck, I didn’t mean it like I was being some kind of asshole. I just meant I need to explain things in a more realistic way. Some chicks are whores and all they want is a cock to play with for the night and those are the women he needs to be aware of. They couldn’t give a shit about him. I mean I won’t say it exactly like that but it’s hard to know which way is up when your hormones are starting to go wild at their age and their feelings are only going to get more complicated. Yes, Jr. shouldn’t have pulled the girls hair and that girl shouldn’t have punched him in the face, but they obviously liked each other before the incident, or it wouldn’t have been a good out-come.”

He tries to put his arms around her. She takes a few steps away and turns her back.

“I’ll talk to him seriously,” Axel pleaded.

Julie turns around. Her arms are crossed. “You will have a serious conversation with both boys and tell them what Jr. did wasn’t the right way to get a girlfriend even through it worked for him? And he should apologize to her for pulling her hair? And you will give him examples of nicer ways to get a girl’s attention like offering to carry her books or just even excusing himself as he goes around her and winking?”

“Yes, I’ll tell him all that and all kinds of gentlemen stuff.” Axel promises. “They will be good boys. Not little spoiled assholes, I promise.”

“Uh hmm,” She let’s her arms drift to her side. “That’s a huge promise big boy. I think if we both just try our best, they will probably be ok.”

“Yeah.” He rubs the back of his neck looking at her with his big green puppy eyes.

This look always gets her to feel bad for him even if whatever he said or did was his fault. She opens her arm wide. “Come her baby boy. I’m not mad at you. I love you and you know it.”

He walks over and gets on his knees. He wraps his arms around her waist and rests his head on her stomach. She runs her hand through his hair. He looks up at her slowly still a pitiful look on his face. “I love you to babe. You know the kids will probably be playing outside until lunch if we let them.”

Julie smirks, “Probably.”

He slides his hands down to her bare legs and up them under her dress while looking at her. “I could show you how much you mean to me right here. Nothing for me. Just for you.”

“You could if you really wanted to.” She grins. “I mean you of course have my approval to let that tongue of yours go wild.”

He disappears under her dress and she leans back on the counter. Her eyes closed as he works her over. She tries to just bite her lip as she feels him. But as she gets closer to orgasm she moans softly. He’s the only one that ever made her feel this good with out her hand helping in the process. When she comes its messy. He easily sucks her dry and what gets on his face he enjoys absorbing right into his whole being.

He comes up and kisses her deeply. “That’s just a little preview of what’s in store for you tomorrow”

“Your insatiable,” She smiles. “I’ll see if Maddy can watch the kids. You know I don’t like dealing with Wade.”

“I know you don’t but if Maddy has plans he is a great choice and he feels guilty enough to do anything for you,” Axel suggests.

“You are confusing guilt with wanting to fuck me Axel,” She looks up at him and really wants to spend an evening away from the kids. Even though she loves them, twins that can spew acid are a handful. “But I’ll call him if I need to since you already made plans.”

“I did babe,” He was so excited. “I made all the plans for everything. You won’t have to do anything at all tomorrow that you don’t really really want to try.”

“That’s open to interpretation isn’t it?” She grins.

Axel give her a big innocent smile.

Peter comes in crying with a half of a frog. “Jr. puked acid on my bestest friend.”

Julie hugs him, “I’m sure it was an accident Peter.”

Axel tries not to laugh, “I think you, me and your brother should have an important talk. Let’s go get him. And I’m sure you will find another best friend. Maybe one that won’t give you warts.”

Peter laughs and throws the dead frog in the trash.

[kumeko]

Title:  homeward bound

A/N: For AClockworkClown for the KH secret santa! I haven’t yet played KH3 but I hear there’s good things for the Seasalt Trio, so I set this kinda-post KH3. Hope you enjoy!

…

…

…

…

“What the heck?” Roxas stared down at his torn, bloody clothes, at skin that was an ashy-grey. “Guys? Something’s wrong.”

  “That’s an understatement,” Axel muttered, frowning as he tugged on his own ragged clothing. There was a metal bolt attached to his neck, just visible in the dim light.

  Xion glanced around the world they’d arrived in. They were in some corner of a dreary city, the walls around her a faded yellow, and everything she could see was some shade of grey. The only exceptions were the bright orange torches that lined the walls, barely lighting a path deeper into the city. “Where are we?”

  “Halloweentown, I think.” Axel inspected his hands, tapping the stitches that crossed his fingers. “You don’t think these are real, do you?”

Xion hoped not, it looked like he was one cut away from falling apart. The stitches laced his entire body, even his face, and she shivered. Damn, was she cold. Hugging herself, she almost shouted in surprise. While she hadn’t changed as much as the others, there was something off about her skin. It glowed a pale white, similar to the moon, and now that she was paying attention, she was floating. Floating a whole foot off the ground. “What happened to us?”

  “It happens, sometimes,” Axel explained, tearing his eyes away from his hands. “We—”

  “Oohhhh,” Roxas moaned, his voice low and guttural. He walked forward stiffly, as though he couldn’t bend his knees, and held his arms straight up in front of him. The classic zombie walk. “Brains. BRAINS!”

  “Oh no! We’re in—ahahahah,” Xion broke into a peal of laughter, unable to maintain a serious expression. The scenario was too ridiculous and Roxas’s posture was as wooden as his acting. She doubled over, wiping her tears.

  “BRAAIINNNSS,” Roxas shouted one last time, hobbling toward her before breaking into laughter himself. “This is so stupid.”

  “Not as stupid as you,” Axel scoffed, hand on his hip. He gestured at Xion. “That ‘ooohh’ is what a ghost makes, you know? Not a zombie.”

  “Oh, that’s true.” A part of her had to admit there was something on point with her being a ghost. Xion took a deep breath before she tried to deepen her voice as much as possible. “Ooohhhhhh.”

  “You didn’t have to…” Axel trailed off, rubbing his neck. At least, he tried to. The large metal bolt in his neck made it awkward for his hand to touch anything. Tapping the metal, he growled, “This is really annoying.”

  “Does it hurt?” Xion asked, floating on her tippy toes to peek at it. It looked like the bolt was going through his neck. Which should be impossible.

  “Not really. It’s just…there,” Axel grumbled, lightly tugging at it. “And it’s heavy.”

  “Heavier than your hair?” Roxas teased with a mischievous smirk.

  “Heavier than your big head,” Axel snapped back, swiping at Roxas. Unfortunately, he nimbly dodged and Axel was left with glaring.

  Xion giggled, a thought coming to her. “Maybe that’s why you need ‘brains’? Cause you’re missing them?”

  Roxas shot her a wounded look. “Xion, not you too.”

  “Sorry, sorry, couldn’t help it.” Xion covered her mouth before she could laugh again. The idea was just so stupid and so funny. Her shoulders shaking, she turned back to Axel. “So why are we dressed like this?”

  “Yeah.” Roxas pulled at the edge of his frayed shirt. “You don’t think this is permanent, do you? I kinda liked that shirt.”

  “It’s not like you wear anything else, maybe it’s time you got a new wardrobe,” Axel suggested wryly. Lacing his hands behind his head, he shrugged. “I think it’ll go away when we leave—some worlds are funny like that. They mold you to fit in.”

  “We’re fitting in like this?” Xion grimaced, looking at all three of them again. “If we look this weird, what do the residents look like?”

  “Monsters,” Roxas stated bluntly. “There’s no other option.”

  “Maybe.” Axel reached up to rub his neck again before remembering himself and dropping his hand. He gestured at their surroundings. “I mean, this is where they live, so who knows.”

  “Yeah.” Bouncing on his feet, Roxas skipped forward. “Maybe we can find someone.”

  “I wonder if they’re friendly.” Xion clapped her hands eagerly. After a moment, she turned to Axel. “Though I don’t think I want to live here.”

  “Me neither.” Axel sighed wearily. “I guess we’ll have to pick another world after this.”

  “Yeah.” Xion felt as tired as he sounded. Just how many worlds had they visited by now? And not a single one had felt right. “Maybe we should have just stayed at Destiny Islands.”

  “Do you really think that?” Axel asked, his expression serious.

  “…no, not really,” Xion admitted reluctantly. “It’s a nice place, really, nothing at all like the organization, but…it’s Sora’s place. I don’t like remembering people, places I’d never been to.” She looked ahead at Roxas. “I don’t think he liked it either.” She glanced at Axel. “But you could have stayed, if you wanted to.”

  “Nah, it’s fine. There’s no point in staying without you two.” Axel shrugged nonchalantly, the way he always did when he was trying to hide his feelings. “I’d have no one to tease.”

  “Or to tease you,” Xion added, bumping her shoulder against his. Honestly, maybe there wasn’t a world she’d like, but she’d be fine with whatever Axel or Roxas chose. Home was wherever they were.

  “You can try.” Axel reached down to ruffle her hair, but his hand slid right through her. Pulling back with a shiver, he muttered, “Yeah, we’re definitely not living here.”

[tooweirdforyou]

Chapter One » Target

A/N : obviously my starting out isn’t going to go well but I’m sure it’ll get better, hopefully. Let’s just hope! And enjoy!

and I know I mentioned who would be included in here, but I’d like to know your thoughts if there are any characters you wish to have as love interests! :> it’s so I can confirm and get an idea.

Masterlist | Chapter Two

-

MULTI-BILLIONAIRE CEO PASSES ON — [LASTNAME] INC. TO FALL?

“[Name] [LastName]? I heard her father passed away last week.”

“No way, the [LastName] corporation is bound to fall without their CEO, what’s going to happen now? Is she going to take over?”

“She’s so young, I doubt they’ll hand everything to her. She doesn’t have the backbone to handle it.”

Walking past the gossiping pair, you tilt your head to the side and after a minute of walking, your shoulders relax and you heave a sigh.

“People don’t have anything better to do but gossip.” You thought, expression holding a look of disinterest, as you glance down at your necklace.

The only memory you had of your mother.

It was a simple, small and cylinder-like key, silver and hooked onto a thin silver chain. As if it was some sort of screw, in other words. Too bad you never found out what the key actually led to or unlocked.

Not like you actually looked around though.

If it wasn’t the last thing you had of your mother, you probably would’ve thrown it away by now.

Tucking the necklace inside your shirt, you make it to an ice cream stand on the street and stop in front of it, standing behind a tall ravenette.

It seems like it’ll be a while before the male would choose something though. You purse your lips and look to the side. ‘Maybe I should just go..’

“Oh, my apologies, miss. You can go on ahead, I’m actually waiting for a friend, I’m not in line.”

You look back to the male and found the freckled face smiling at you kindly. Blinking, you glance at where he was standing and where the vendor was, and felt a blush creeping up onto your cheeks. “Oh..”

‘So i’m just stupid.. idiot.’ You internally curse yourself before nodding at the tall male. “Er.. sorry. Thanks.”

He merely chuckles and waves it off, returning to his phone that was in his hand as you move ahead to the vendor behind the stand.

“What can I get ya?”

You ponder for a few seconds before stating what you wanted from the ice cream vendor. Once the salesman gets your desired ice cream, you hand the cash over to him and take the ice cream.

Gripping the fabric of your mask, you pull it down to your chin to reveal your face and lift the ice cream to your lips.

Thanking the man, you walk away and just as you proceed to take a bite, a sudden loud crash interrupts your process. ‘Gunshots?’

Screams erupt from people around, some quick to start running away, others freeze still in fear at the sight.

Before you could even do a thing, shouts are heard and running figures chasing after a speeding bike.

“Ace, it’s time to go!”

Amidst the shouts and screams, the motorbike pulls up near you and the freckled man from before is quick to hop onto the back, behind the one driving. “Marco? What happened?!”

“I’ll explain later, just get on!”

“Hey! Stop right there!”

“Don’t shoot, you can hurt the civilians!”

The blonde behind the drivers seat, his hair a little messy and half-lidded eyes, held a cigarette between his teeth clicks his tongue and revs up the gas. “Shit.. hold on!”

Just before they drove off, you made direct eye contact with the blonde for a brief second before he broke it.

With that, the bike begins to drive off with speed, the men in white-clad police uniforms with guns strapped on their backs continue to chase them before stopping in defeat once the motorcycle was out of sight.

“Damn it! We were so close to capturing one of the Whitebeard members!”

“Forget about it, we need to get back to headquarters. Let’s go.”

The men began to retreat back, you just standing still in shock at the event that just occurred and ended in like five minutes.

‘What the hell?’

Slowly biting your ice cream that was melting in your mouth and a bit on your hand, you look back at where the bike had disappeared to.

Your mind wanders back to the blonde from before. “What was with that look?.. Did he recognize me?..”

Muttering to yourself, you continue to eat your dessert, deciding to make way back to your place, before your father’s assistant could lecture you.

‘This is why I don’t leave the house.’

-

“Miss [Lastname], you’re back early this time.”

You plop yourself onto the couch of your living room once you made it and laid down, heaving a heavy sigh. “Yeah.”

Pulling off the black mask around your ears, you laid it on your chest and shut your eyes.

“Any particular reason?” The raspy, deep voice asks from the hall, coming into the living room and standing at the entrance, his eyes taking a look at your sprawled form on the couch.

Sitting up slightly to get a better look at the assistant, you watch him stare just as intensely back at you with his sharp dark eyes.

Axel.

The male was dressed in dress shoes, black slacks and a ironed white button up, with the sleeves pulled up to his elbows. He had rounded, silver thin framed glasses that rest just above the bridge of his nose. His tousled black hair brushed over his eyes a bit, and if you didn’t know better, you would’ve assumed Axel was a CEO owner himself.

But he was nothing but an assistant to one. Or, formerly was. You were surprised he still stuck around after your father passed.

Keeping the eye contact for a few more seconds, you shut your eyes and turn onto your side, facing the backrest of the couch. “No, just didn’t feel like receiving a lecture from you.”

The scoff that escapes his lips is heard as his footsteps come towards you.

“You deserve my lectures, you always seem to forget them.” He says, picking up the mess of magazines on the coffee table and stacking them neatly together.

“I can’t forget something I don’t bother remembering, so— ACK!”

Axel is quick to roll up one of the magazines and whack the back of your head without hesitance, a slight scowl on his lips. “Perhaps you should start remembering then!”

You sent a glare to the older male and rub your head to soothe the pain, keeping shut to prevent yourself from possibly getting even more hurt.

“Now, come on. Get dressed so we can get going to meet the lawyers.”

Furrowing your brows, you look at him in confusion, watching him place the magazines away onto the shelf. “Lawyers, what for?”

He tilts his head behind him to glance at your expression. “Your father’s will. To confirm your inheritance of his belongings so you can be given all his things.”

“Ah....” You then lay back down with force and groan out. “No way! I don’t want to handle all that! Why don’t you just take it?”

“Take everything that the owner of the [Lastname] company owns? No, thank you.” Axel mutters, pushing up his glasses with his index finger from the side.

“You don’t want it?”

“I don’t think I’m capable of handling something like that, much less when I’m not supposed to in the first place. Besides, my hands are full with taking care of a helpless, troublesome, lazy-ass toddler.”

“Oh? Who?” You smugly feign innocence whilst turning away, causing Axel to roll his eyes as he brushes a gloved hand into his black locks of hair.

“Funny. Now, if you don’t get your ass up, Miss [Lastname],” he clears his throat loudly. “We’ll be late to discuss your father’s will with the lawyers.”

“You’re so mean sometimes.. what kind of assistant are you?”

Ignoring your sulking, Axel proceeds to walk away to start the car, but not before releasing a soft sigh at the female.

“What am I going to do with you?..”

-

- meanwhile

-

With the Straw Hats Crew «

“What do you think, Luffy?”

The navigator looks to their captain on the end of the dining table, rolling up the newspaper in her hand after reading the headlines aloud.

The male was busy shoveling meat into his mouth to listen but merely nods. “Sure! *omn nom* Sounds like an adventure!”

“God, you’re hopeless...”

The archaeologist lets out a little giggle. “He never ceases to amuse.”

“If we get our hands on that treasure, we can have everything?” The long-nosed questions, crossing his arms and the taller, Afro-wearing man laughs. “Yohoho~ how exciting!”

-

With the Heart Crew «

“The chance to have everything you could desire..”

“Wealth, power, love..”

The big polar bear in an orange-clad jumpsuit hums. “Should we try to acquire it, Captain? It won’t be easy.”

The doctor / leader of the group leaned against the wall silently, arms crossed as he thought about it, the newspaper headlines laid across the table.

“We’ll have to come up some plans to get it, considering we’ll have to make contact with her somehow.”

-

With the Kid Crew «

“To get the chance to have all power and money in the world, huh?” The red-head smirks dangerously as he listens to his right hand discuss the newspaper article.

“Think this through, Kid. Won’t be easy to capture the girl, and I’m sure we aren’t the only ones looking to get this treasure.” The masked blonde warns, but the red-head wasn’t listening.

“How unfortunate for her to have to experience such a thing, but I will get my hands on her and that treasure, no matter what it takes.”

-

With the Whitebeard Crew «

“I see..”

The tall, older, white haired man comments as he sits in his chair, hands resting in his lap.

“We actually drove by her on our way here after the run-in with the police. Eating ice cream.” The blonde says, shifting his weight and resting a hand on his hip.

“And you’re positive it was her?” A tall orange-haired male questions, wearing a yellow foulard.

The freckled man nods, smiling a bit. “I’m sure. She stood behind me in line, thinking it was to get ice cream.” He laughs lightly at the memory.

Another voice chimes in, belonging to a rather beautiful man with a sexy deep voice. “Well, if it truly is her, I guess we won’t have to look far. Question is, how we’ll get in touch with her again.”

The older, bigger man in front merely laughs. “Not a problem, my sons. Leave it to me.”

-

With the Police «

“It’s a danger to have that so carelessly around, if it lands into the wrong hands, we can have a tragedy.” The rice-cracker eating leader states, arms crossed as he stares hard at the picture of the female under the headlines.

“So you intend to confront her about her father’s belongings, then?” The old man on the couch of his office asks, picking his nose with disinterest.

“E-Excuse me, sir.. but would it be in the wrong hands.. if Miss [LastName] is supposed to inherit her father’s things?..” the pink-haired male shyly asks, sweating a little bit in fear of having interrupt the two.

“We don’t know for sure, that is why I insist we should hold her here for questioning and her intentions!”

-

With the Revolutionaries «

“It’ll be interesting, to say the least.” The blonde with goggles around his top hat hums, a smile present on his lips as he leans back in his chair.

The brunette female with a bright smile just sighs. “Thats for sure. No doubt that everyone will be having their eyes on that one of a kind opportunity. What should we do?”

“My, my, imagine being able to wield such power! No wonder her bounty is so high in the black market! Going for over a billion beli’s!” The extravagant purple haired man exclaims. “I must meet her face to face!”

-

“Ah— Achoo!”

Sniffling, you rub your nose and let out a sigh, groaning slightly.

“Oi, you better not be sick, Miss [Lastname]. We don’t need you to be catching a cold at this time. I’m not going to be taking care of you.” Axel warns, eyes lingering on you and you huff in annoyance.

“Shut up, Axel..”

-

taglist : @deputy-videogamer

a/n : hi! I’d love to know what you think of this so far and what you think of Axel! I might post this on Quotev as well but I can’t say for sure.

So it’s not great, but not horrible, but regardless, I hope you enjoyed it! :>

not proofread-

[talinexa]

Merfolk!AU Headcanons - For MerMay!

All the Main Characters are in a single pod for this. Also highkey if Sora didn’t have a Canon™ tail color I would have gone with red or gold...

Sora is a spritely, bright merboy who can’t seem to grow as much as his friends do, making him kind of a smol boi. His tail is basically the same as the Atlantica one. The pod absolutely loves him because, honestly, how can you not love him? He makes mischief sometimes but it’s mostly harmless. He’s sweet to everybody and can fight when external threats come looking for trouble but he’s just as likely to try to talk it out.

Riku is a shark merboy with a grey-and-white tail to compliment his silvery-white hair. He’s one of the tallest/longest youths in the pod. He’s very protective of the pod as a whole---but Sora and Kairi in particular---and happens to be one of the strongest. Do not cross him. He’s fast and vicious when he has to be. Otherwise he’s a total ball of mush but he doesn’t let anyone see that XD

Kairi is the kindhearted daughter of the pod’s leader who loves her friends to death. She has a pink-to-purple ombré tail and is remarkably ruthless. People think she’s all gentle hugs and sweet smiles but cross her at your own peril. She may not always pick a fight, but she sure as heck will be the one to finish it. She’s tough as a whale and strong as a shark while being sweet and feminine and lowkey some of the pod is mildly scared of her.

Ventus is a friend to everyone. He’s another kindhearted merboy who’s just doing His Best™. He’s got a vibrant green tail and sass to spare. He’s an extremely fast swimmer---the fastest in the pod---who is protective of his pod but not really intimidating (like Riku) enough to scare off anyone before he attacks. Threats don’t believe he’s dangerous until his agility attacks throw them way off-guard. He lowkey has a special magic spell that he came up with that lets him create and manipulate currents---which helps him move so fast.

Aqua is the pod leader’s right-hand mermaid. Her tail is brighter blue than Sora’s. Her talents lie largely in magic---including Siren Singing. She doesn’t sing often, but when she does it’s enchanting. She ends up Mom Friend™ing most of the younger mers in the pod (Sora, Kairi, Riku, Ven, etc.) and all of them love and respect and look up to her. She sets a great example for them---they just don’t always have an easy time following that example XD Still, Aqua’s trying hard. She’s also a fantastic swimmer---not as fast as Ventus, but she’s agile enough to attack fast and efficient.

Terra is another shark-type mer. His tail is more akin to a brown tiger shark. He’s the hard-hitter when it comes to attacking. He’s as fiercely protective of the pod as Riku is, possibly even edging Riku out for Most Protective™, but he’s definitely not as swift or agile as Aqua or Ventus---or even Riku. When Terra attacks, threats 100% feel every hit and Feel It In The Morning. He’s had a lot of struggles---envy, temper, mild desire for more power than he has---but he’s improving.

Roxas is the pod troublemaker. While Sora’s mischief is mostly harmless, Roxas makes real trouble and doesn’t mind mouthing off to people. Oftentimes other pod members are surprised how powerful he is. On the surface he seems angry all the time but that’s because most of the pod doesn’t look deeper or Roxas doesn’t allow them to see him relaxed. He’s selectively social anyway and only hangs out with two other mers---Axel and Xion. His tail is white with black patches and a few single red scales scattered over it.

Xion is a soft-spoken young mermaid who seems quiet and shy but is actually tough as heck and braver than half the pod. She’s probably the smartest of the younger mers in the pod. She and Kairi get along well for being far more ruthless than they look. Even when she’s viciously taking down threats, she’s still quiet. Most of the pod have no idea how she and Roxas get along so well. Her tail is black with white patches and a few single violet scales.

Axel was originally from another pod. He claims he doesn’t remember much about it. He had a different name in that pod but he’s trying his best to forget who he was. He takes Roxas and Xion under his fins within five minutes of joining their pod because he saw wayward souls like his within them. For that matter, he also gets along with Ventus for the same reason. The younger mers all look at him with awe and think he’s cool---even though internally he’s suffering from Imposter Syndrome because he doesn’t see himself that way. He’ll act like he thinks he’s cool but doesn’t believe it. He, Roxas, and Xion all protect each other from the rest of the pod and external threats. His tail is long and red with patches of orange and yellow---and even some gold. He’s tough and scarred but won’t tell anyone where the scars are from.

Naminé is Aqua’s magical apprentice. She’s kind and sweet. She’s not a fighter but she does her best to be strong when she needs to be. She’s another powerful magic user. Her Siren Singing is unmatched. She uses what she has in the ocean to paint her white tail with different, vibrant, artistic colors and designs. The pod loves her for being unabashedly herself. Always. Axel tends to keep an eye on her when he gets a second. She and Xion like to collect shells together and make crafts out of them with Kairi and Aqua.

Vanitas is the other troublemaker. His trouble is the most malignant. He’s gone out seeking danger for the funsies. He’s reckless but he’s powerful. His tail is black with red patches. He’s a fast but strong fighter. He doesn’t really like the people in his pod but he knows he can’t strike out on his own in the ocean and expect to survive. Merfolk live in pods for a reason. He actually spent a long time watching Riku train and fights similarly to him---fast, vicious, strong. But where Riku uses it to protect the pod, Vanitas tends to use it to pick fights with whatever’s outside the pod that he deems a worthy opponent. He and Ventus are almost exact opposites and very rarely get along. They shout at each other a lot.

Hope you enjoyed! If anyone wants me to add any characters to this, let me know!

[ill-skillsgard]

Baby - Zeitgeist/Axel Cluney

Title: Baby

Description: He told them that there would be no “next time”.

Warning: Brief mentions of sex and the aftermath of spousal abuse/violence

A/N: This was the very first short piece I ever wrote when we had caught wind of Bill’s casting as Zeitgeist. "All I can do is protect you"

whats wrong?

please just come here

ok.

She set her phone down on the back of the toilet after sending for him. It was dark except for the glow of half a dozen tealight candles. She didn't want him to see her face. She didn't want to see it either and purposely avoided the mirror as she crossed the bathroom with an exhausted limp. The bath was already drawn and she had but to submerge herself into it but even that proved to be a daunting task. Her muscles ached worse than if she had spent three hours at the gym. All the clenching and adrenaline left her arms and legs as sore reminders. To even lift herself into the clawfoot tub was a struggle and she could not do so with grimacing, letting out a whimper as she lifted her leg and lowered into the hot water. It sent a shiver through her body that traveled up her aching back and settled into the base of her skull. Once she stepped in she slowly bent at the knees and used her hands to balance her as she sat down. The water swayed and sloshed around her until she laid back and tried to relax. The cut on her lip was cracked with dried blood and throbbed when she thought about it. Same with everything else from her sore feet to the scabs on her knees and the red and purple splotches adorning her thighs and torso in intricate strawberry patterns. She took a moment to fully submerge herself in the water, head and all. Completely surrounded by water, she tried to revel in the warmth seeping through her skin to lull her muscles. Nothing could be heard but a soothing drone and she enjoyed the sensory deprivation as much as she could before having to come back up for air. Her eyes remained closed and she could have drifted off to sleep had she not heard the approach of a motorcycle followed shortly by the whining swing of the busted front door. He didn't take his boots off so she heard each step he took into the house. It was then she realized that she had turned out every light and he was probably wondering where to go. "I'm in here." She called out, voice tightened and shot from the day's previous screaming match. The footfalls approached the bathroom door and she looked up and saw him as he stood in the doorway. In the dim light, she could see he hadn't shaved in a while but still hadn't grown much of a mustache anyway. He was wearing one of his ratty tank tops, the ones he wore when he was working on his cars. Smears of grease adorned him much like his tattoos and smelled like the inside of a shop. She didn't care though. The smell was at least familiar to her. "Oh, Baby... What the fuck did he do to you now?" "Zee..." She tried to say his name but she felt tears erupt to choke her. He came in and knelt down beside the bathtub and took off his riding gloves so he could take her hand. His rings glittered in the orange light and she suddenly felt safe as he brought her hand up to kiss each of her knuckles and the back of her palm. His loving gaze coasted over her battered body and suddenly he felt the raging hot surge of his anger begin to make his insides gurgle with venom. Biting his lip, he willed himself to breathe deeply through his nose, to try to calm himself down before he lost control of his temper. "I'm gonna kill him." "Zee... No." "I told ya... I told him. Next time... There would be no next time." "Then what happens if you go to jail?" "At least he'll be dead in the ground." She exhaled deeply through her nose too, mimicking him. They remained in silence for a solid minute before his eyes began to wander down her naked body again after growing accustomed to the candlelight. He grimaced at the sight of all the angry purple, red and blue blemishes that spotted her from her arms to her chest and her thighs. He couldn't even look at her face. One eye had taken on the shade of plum and protruded like one too. When he tried to look at it he had to clear his throat to keep the bile from rising up his throat. "I told him you would find out. He ran off. I don't know when or if he's coming back." "Baby... I'm not going to keep doing this." "I know." She whispered. "He's going to come back eventually. Question is... Are you going to be here or not?" She turned her face away from him but he continued to hold her hand in a firm grip. He cleared his throat again but it was only to continue speaking. "I ain't no fucking superhero, you understand? I can't promise you a nice life or nothing. All I can promise is that..." When she turned her face back to him she saw how his eyes darted away. It was unlike him to get emotional. The only emotion he knew was placidity and then anger. She knew that he wasn't savior material but he was all she had at that moment and that made her scared. "All I can do is protect you. But if you're gonna keep running back to him, what's the fuckin' point?" "I won't. I'm done this time." His lips turned into a thin indication of his disbelief. "Well... He sure gave you a good one. Might have to take you to the hospital. Can you see out of that thing?" She suddenly began to sob and shook her head. "No." "Fuck... Baby." "I said I'm done and I am. I don't care if you kill him or if I have to run. I need to get out of here." "Listen to me... Listen," He said firmly. "If I take you out of here you have to promise me one thing." Gripping his hand with all of her strength, she nodded her head. "You have to realize... I am... What I am. Nothings gonna change that. You think he's a monster?" She rose up out of the water to bring her face closer to him but he backed off slightly. He didn't like the look of her bruised lip. He didn't like to see such beauty so pummeled and sore. It made his heart twinge. "You're not," she said. "I am. Worse. I've done worse things than he has and the people I love always end up suffering because of it." "Only difference is," her voice rasped. "he means to hurt people the people he loves. You don't." "Doesn't matter. Being with me... it's dangerous." "I know but... I need you, Zee." "I know, Baby." She laid back down in the water with her back up against the slope of the tub. He came back to the edge of the tub and rested his tattooed arms on its edge. They both stopped talking for a moment and she watched his eyes wander all over her naked body, lingering for a moment longer on her breasts. "Get cleaned up... I'm going to pack some of your shit and then... We'll go." "Wait," she stopped him before he poised himself to stand up. He didn't ask anything, just froze and waited for her to continue. "Don't go yet." There were few things in the world that made him feel sad and his Baby was on the top of that list. He shifted back to his position leaning over the edge of the bath. When she reached out her arm to weakly reach for the soap bottle he fell even softer. The way her bruised arm meagerly floated out of the water with pain made the tiny strings of his heart pull. "Lay back down," He urged. She did and he began to take his rings off before grabbing a washcloth and squirting soap on it. She tried to smile as she lifted her right leg so that he could cradle his hand in the ditch of her knee and run the cloth gently up and down from the top of her foot to the top of her thigh. He repeated the same slow process on the other leg, moving to her arms and shoulders and then to her back. When it came to her breasts he did his best not to take too long but did take pause to run his finger over one of her nipples. Biting her lip, she gazed up sleepily at him and became aware that the water was starting to cool. When he ran the cloth down her stomach he took another pause between her hips. She gave no sign that she didn't want him there so he continued down. "Mm, Zee." "I'm not fucking you like this so get that thought outta your head." "I know it's just... You feel so good." He smirked. If it were any other time when she wasn't reeling from a heinous beating he would have been balls deep inside of her, pounding away like a madman into every hole she had. The only thing that paralleled his volatile temper was his insatiable appetite for dirty, nasty sex. But he had to maintain his self-control. No matter how lost in lust for her he became, he made sure that he could maintain his composure, however hard she made it for him. "You probably have a concussion. I can tell your eyes are off." He told her. "No way I'm sticking my cock in you." "But... I want you, Zee." He rang out the cloth and tossed it over the edge of the tub. "When you're healed up and we're a thousand miles from this shit-hole...  Maybe then we can go at it but until then... Let's just hold off." "Okay," she agreed.

[squiishiichaos]

How We Cope: Prologue

(Chapter 1)

Sea salt ice cream fixed everything, or so Roxas believed.   

He believed it back in the Organization, when Xion disappeared and Axel felt like an enemy.   Believed it in Twilight Town, even when all his closest friends began to forget who he was.   But right now, sitting on the clock tower, watching the sun set in a glory of reds and purples, the salt tasted like tears and the sweetness so unbearably bitter.

Somewhere in town, Axel and Xion were busy—again.   Had been since the three of them returned home together.  Home, he thought with a painful scoff, is this really home?  Roxas wasn’t sure anymore.   He wasn’t sure about a lot of things anymore.  In fact, his friends were the only thing he was sure of, and even that—something he thought irreplaceable and eternal—felt fleeting these days.  

A sigh rustled through his bangs, mingling with the tepid breeze.   He could hear the hustle and bustle from the Bistro down the way, hushed within the din of friends and family watching old black and white movies play for the umpteenth time.  Somewhere down there, Olette, Pence and Hayner were practicing for the next Struggle tournament under Saix’s officious tutelage in between intermittent odd jobs for petty cash.  Seifer and his gang—older and only slightly more mature—were probably at the sandlot, trying to convince Axel he had no stake in their territory—even though he definitely did—while Xion and Namine were distracted at the Haunted Mansion, getting all the details finalized for move-in day.  

 I should be excited, he told himself—again.  He’d been doing that a lot lately.  Reminding himself to feel.   It was an odd concept.  After sharing a heart and being a nobody for so long, he thought having his own would make it easier.  That the emotions would just come flooding through him. Joy.  Sadness.  Fear. Exhilaration.  But he still felt so damn empty.  Like a piece of him was missing.  A piece that would always be gone so long as—

“What are you doing up here, alone?”  Roxas couldn’t help a glare at the voice.  Standing within the shadow of descending twilight, familiar silver hair shone as bright as a full moon over emerald green pools.   With his arms crossed over his chest and eyes narrowed into a curious glare, Riku was probably the last person he wanted poking into his private time.

“Why do you care?”  

“I don’t,” Riku shrugged, “just figured it’d be impolite not to ask.”

“Since when are you polite?”  The Silveret rolled his eyes as he made himself comfortable against the wall of the tower.  The distance only amplified all the negative energy grown between them.   “What are you even doing here?”

“What does it look like I’m doing?”  

Roxas scowled.  “Annoying me.”   Riku’s smirk was laced with snark.

“Guess again.”   That voice—that expression—brought back a host of equally bittersweet memories atop a wave of nostalgia.   He looked away from those imploring green eyes and let out a huff of exasperation.

“Fine.  Don’t tell me, then.” He shrugged his shoulders and gazed out at Twilight Town.   With the sun set behind the great expanse of dense buildings, the navy blanket of night hung over them in a world of starless darkness.   A host of blinking lights kept the night alive with the sounds of activity continuing to flourish in the onset of night-life.   If he looked hard enough, he was sure he could catch one of his many friends down there, getting excited for one of the many talented acts ready to provide music and entertainment to the youth of the bustling town.  

I wonder how long until they come looking for me.  Maybe I should get—

“What about you?”  

Without missing a beat—or looking up—Roxas retorted, “what about me?”

 “Shouldn’t you be down there, helping get everything together for the move?”  He should be. After all the munny they’d all pitched in to buy the Old Mansion and then refurbish it, he should be right there with the rest, divvying up rooms and picking out decorations from any antique store that might sell to teenagers.  Should be earning another cache of munny for the first time their self-constructed renovations fell apart and they needed to rebuild—again.  Should be excited about the prospect of finally sharing a home with his family and having a real place he could call his own.

Should be—though—was the key phrase.  

“Even the Wayfinders are here to help,” Riku continued after he still remained silent.  Despite all his waning self-control, Roxas couldn’t stop himself from rolling his eyes.

 Of course, they are.   “They’ve got this under control.  I’d just be in their way.”  He could feel that emerald stare piercing into his back.  Heard footsteps soft on solid stone as Riku calmly made his way across the short distance, sitting beside him with an equally quiet rustle.   Bathed in the golden lights off the bustling town below, his pale glow seemed almost ethereal.  Backlit in hues of greens, blues, and reds; Roxas thought—not for the first time—that darkness never stood a chance against a being who was so unfathomably bright.

 Silence settled in an uncomfortably refreshing coat around them.  In the absence of one of Riku’s motivational friendship speeches, there was a calm quiet about their isolation that provided the first bit of peace Roxas had felt in a while.   It’d been quite some time since he’d come here with someone and just basked in the freedom the Tower provided.  Especially now, when all anyone could ever talk about was the Old Mansion.  About how great their lives were now that danger was avoided.  But Roxas knew better.   Had seen enough tragedy in his short life to know that good things never lasted long.  

A part of him wondered if maybe Riku felt it, too.  If their time spent cloaked in darkened shadows gave them a perception of the world the others couldn’t quite grasp.   Or was it because Riku, too, understood the gravity of the things they’d lost.   Had certainly lost enough in these last few years to accept grief and mourning as a personal routine one eventually got used to.  That’s a sad thought, he realized. Is that why he’s been alone so much lately?

Just as the silence around them became unbearable and that question quaked dangerously in his throat, he was interrupted by Riku looking up at him from beneath his growing bangs.  “Yeah, I wasn’t much help, either.”  

Roxas felt his lips threatening into a grin.  He killed it on an annoyed sigh.  “Well, if you’re gonna hide up here, the least you could do is get us some more ice cream.”  

There was that cocky grin, crooked up at one edge with a playful level of sarcasm. “Oh, is that the price for admission?”

“Would you prefer another death match?”  The Silveret snorted, probably atop a roll of those glowing pools.  

“Why?  So, you can lose again?” It was Roxas’s turn to snort, looking away from the cloak of night to glare at the other boy.

“Hah!” He barked, “You only won because of the power of darkness!  That’s almost grounds for disqualification in my book!” Riku rolled his eyes again.

“Okay, but you wield two keyblades.  How is that fair?”  Roxas shrugged, his grin smug across his lips.

“I don’t write the rules, Pretty Boy.”  As soon as the admonishment left his lips, his eyes went wide and jaw clamped shut in disbelief.  Why’d I say that?   He wondered to himself as another awkward silence fell over them.   The Blonde gulped down whatever words might follow that.   Kept nice and still while he waited—and hoped—that Riku might just decide to leave and save them both the hassle.  

But he didn’t.  Just sat there, basking in the turbid silence with his eyes trained ahead on the city. Every now and then, he’d blink against the bright lights winking beneath the blackened night.  In their star-like glow, his silver hair now sat a constant orange hue, peppered every now and again by flashes of electric blue or acid green.   Laughter rang loud and raucous for a moment, and Roxas watched from his periphery as those pale lips slid into an easy grin.

Finally, the Silveret let loose a low sigh and leaned back on his arms, looking up at the sky above.   “So…were you serious?”  He asked, distracted only by the wink of distant stars ahead.  “About the match, I mean.”

“Why? Do you really want another go at me that bad?”  He cursed his voice for the bitter edge it grasped towards the end. A little lilt to it that almost sounded hurt.  A part of him hoped Riku would just ignore it like all his other false cues tonight, but—of course—this was the one he took.

For a moment, green stared deep into ocean blue.  So many people had told him since his rebirth how similar his eyes were to Sora’s.  How they were a bit less green than Ven’s.  Brighter—somehow—than Xion’s.   This was the first time in all those weeks that someone had looked at him without judgment in their eyes, or the lingering traces of sadness.  The first time anyone had acknowledged that there was someone there besides shadows and a mirage.  

After what felt like decades, Riku’s lips lifted into a fond smile, and his eyes narrowed into a soft stare.  “Yeah,” he said, “I think I do.”

Roxas scoffed.  “Time and place, Pretty boy.”   Some confidence returned to Riku’s form as that smile shifted into a smirk.

“You’re really gonna let me choose?”

“Well, yeah,” Roxas countered, “I can kick your ass anywhere, might as well let you choose the venue.”

With another snort and a sidelong look up at that endless night sky, Riku grinned.  “I’m gonna hold you to that.”

[starchild0985]

Ramble On

Hey, y’all! So, here’s another Bonzo one-shot. Gosh, I loved writing this one. I’ve never felt comfortable writing someone like this. It is NSFW, but very fluffy and sweet. 

There’s just enough time to take a few days away from the tour for a small adventure—just you and Bonzo. You’ve rented a VW bus, sunrise orange with streaks of yellow, and taken to the open roads of the Southwest.

Bonzo, naturally, has been having the time of his life with the unfamiliar vehicle—you were sure to have the number for Triple AAA safely in your purse, in the case of flat tires or a broken axel. Despite some unplanned off-roading, however, the only stops so far have been for bathroom breaks or to buy postcards. It’s been nothing but laughter, good food, and music from the 8-track as you make your way along the desert highways.

Now, as the last of the sunset has lit the sky fluorescent, you’re settled into camp for the evening. Bonzo’s built a roaring fire against the chill of the desert evening; you’ve made up the pull-up bed in the back of the bus, and pulled out the extra blankets and pillows to make a nest by the fire.

The quiet and peace is all-enveloping. You’ve set up close enough to the highway for safety, but far away enough that you can both focus on your surroundings, as well as each other. It’s a small, perfect oasis from the pressure cooker of performing.

You’re licking chocolate from the s’mores off of your fingers when Bonzo, having eaten approximately half the bag of marshmallows, wraps an arm around your waist, pulling you into his side. His lips are soft against your temple as you settle in.

“There’s my lass.”

“Hey, you.” You tilt your head up to smile at Bonzo. Those dark green eyes sparkle in the firelight, crinkled up at the corners in those laugh lines you love. Here, away from the spotlights, the crowds, the tension, the heart and soul of this man who’s won you as his is fully on display.

“You can see forever out here, you can—room enough to breathe.” Bonzo exhales, blowing a curl of smoke heavenward, his arm around you. You snuggle in, head over his heart, listening to the steady, reassuring beat.

“No audience out here, except maybe some snakes—a coyote or two.”

“Rather coyotes than some of the people that show up at our shows, love.”

You laugh out loud and can feel Bonzo smile against your hair. Twilight’s starting to settle in, soon leading to the reason you wanted to be out here tonight—to see the appearance of the stars, which are supposed to be breathtaking here, away from the city lights, like being in space itself.

For now, though, you’re more than happy to focus on your own star, the handsome man who feels so solid and so warm against you. You hook an arm around Bonzo’s neck, hand resting on the back of his head and pulling him down to you.

At first, you just rest your forehead against Bonzo’s, looking in his eyes, noticing the long lashes that would be the envy of many women, the beautiful plane of his cheekbones. He puts his hands on your hips, drawing in closer.

The attractions of the night are temporarily forgotten as Bonzo’s lips move over yours. Every time he kisses you, you marvel all over again that the man known as The Beast, the one who plays the guitar with such force nightly, can be so very gentle. Yet, all for the softness, he makes his feelings and attraction felt with the way he holds you tight.

Each kiss brings you further under Bonzo’s spell. You aren’t conscious of the rest of the light slipping from the horizon as he parts your lips with his tongue, slowly, but with a force that makes heat spread along every nerve. Your other arm goes around his neck, wanting the closeness.

Bonzo takes that as an invitation to pull you into his capacious lap, which feels like home. You press in closer against him, stealing kiss after kiss, and purr in delight as you feel his hand slide up under your top. A bit of chill air works its way in with his fingers, and you use it as a reason to curl into him.

You both have to take a moment to breath. Bonzo brushes kisses along your face, from your chin to your temple, then looks up.

“Well, will ya look at that.”

The sky, still streaked with pastel blue the last you looked at it, has darkened to lapis lazuli, and now, the stars you had so wanted to see twinkle like great handfuls of diamonds thrown across velvet. Your breath is taken away by the sheer concentration of them and the beauty.  

“It’s absolutely stunning.”

“Ah, like you, innit?”

The grin that stretches across your face almost hurts as you, still in Bonzo’s lap, snuggle back against his chest.  

For a time—it could be minutes, it could be hours—you talk and watch the stars, picking out Sagittarius and Scorpius. You talk of the summers of your childhood, of trips you’ve taken in the past, hinting at matters of the heart and the way you feel about each other. You know you’ve never felt as comfortable as you do now and you tell him so, rewarded by a smile whose brilliance rivals anything in the sky.

“You’re the closest I’ve been to breathing, girl, since the lads and I started this madness.”

As Bonzo hugs you again, close to his chest, a shooting star falls across the sky, looking as if it’s disappearing into the horizon. You reach out as if you could catch it with your hand, and he brings your palm to his lips.

“Those are good luck, ain’t they? Just like you.”

The kissing starts again, but more in earnest this time, deeper and harder. You run your hand through Bonzo’s hair, touch your nose to his. “Why don’t we move this inside and warm up just a bit?”

“Read my bloody mind, you did.”  

You shake the sand out of the blankets and pillows, so you can use them on the bed, and bank the fire for the night, high enough to keep curious animals away. You want nothing more now than to be one with him.

The back of the van is cozy but a little cool; you switch on the battery-operated lantern, giving you both just enough room to see each other as you undress, relying on body heat to keep each other warm—a tempting prospect indeed.

Bonzo’s ready first, lying on his side on the futon, patting the space beside him. You giggle and kick your sandals off, sliding into bed and letting him tuck the covers around you, his loving touch showing you how much he cares. It’s that sweetness, which he shows the most to you, that’s made you fall for him.

His hands trail down your back, cupping your ass and pulling you into him. You wrap your arms around his waist and grind lazily against him, feeling his cock come to life. The slow heat that was percolating through your body through all the kisses and cuddling has pooled between your legs, an insistent ache.  

“Fuckin hell, you feel marvelous.” Bonzo moves back just a little so he can play with your breasts, kissing across the curve of one before he slides his tongue over the nipple, smiling at your gasp and drawing it into his mouth. His strong fingers play across the other one, a ghost of a touch in compared to what he’s doing with his mouth, but toe-curlingly good none-the-less.

Not wanting Bonzo to feel left out, you take his cock in your hand, the warm curve heaven in your palm. You rub up and down, feeling his appreciation in the hum of his moans against your skin. Your unoccupied hand is tracing up and down his back, plying him with tenderness to match the unbridled longing transmitted as you stroke his length.

Breath hitching, Bonzo raises his head. “That’s bloody it, sweetheart—that's damn near all the waiting I can stand.”  

“I couldn’t agree more.” You nip at Bonzo’s earlobe, wrapping your arms around his waist and giving him an emphatic squeeze to prove your point.  

Bonzo’s hand, so large and warm, spreads across your hip, helping you lift your leg up to wrap around him.  Your sex twitches just from the proximity; you’re open, so ready, needing that moment where the two of you become one.

He’s gentle as he enters you, only thrusting in a bit, waiting for you to meet him the rest of the way. You savor every second, letting Bonzo spread you open, sliding down until your wall meets him. A shiver of pure delight runs through you.

“How’s that, then?”

“Goooood.” Your voice goes up on the last syllable as his cock nudges your clit and a thrill runs through you. Bonzo keeps a hand on your leg, the hand of the other tangled up in your hair, his forehead against yours. You wrap your arms fully around his neck, giving yourself a way to brace against him and take your part in this dance.

Each thrust from Bonzo is met from a push back from you. Each time, you think it couldn’t feel better; each time, you’re proven wrong as your stomach clenches and your awareness contracts. Everything is focused on that pearl between your legs, the way his cock pushes against it.

Needing more, you urge Bonzo a little up and off the bed, enough so that you can wrap the other leg around him, ankles crossing. He buries his face in your shoulder, pulling you close, your breasts against his chest.

The heat’s rising now, both in you and in the confines of the van. The tension is curling deep inside you, into a tighter spiral, and you take one of his hands.

Bonzo knows what you need. He slides the hand in between you two, finding the place where you throb.

“There it is, lass. I’ll give you what you need.”

You arch yourself up into his touch, rough calloused skin against your smooth softness, wringing every bit of pleasure your body can bestow. You’re squinching your eyes closed, more and more, so close....

“OH!” You feel like you’re leaving your body as you shudder, head falling forward. Bonzo follows you, your name on his lips before he kisses you, soft and sweet, those strong arms your shelter as you fall into sleep.

[skammovistarplus]

Culture and Translation - S01 E06

This is a bit of a weird episode, in that it feels like not much happened. Because Skam España switched a few things around, it seems like episode 6 shouldn’t be the episode in which to hang out with the characters for a while before shit goes down. But one thing that got me hooked to Skam almost straight away was the way you got to “hang out” with the characters even in small, drama-free moments, and this episode has a couple of clips I really like.

CLIP 1: Monday blues

Es que le metiste un corte (You were razor sharp with him): “Meter un corte” is really hard to translate. It basically means to be really cutting with someone when they aren’t expecting it, in a way that shuts the conversation for good. Which Amira did, over and over, but the dude wasn’t getting the hint.

I do think Nora feels a little bad for the guy, but only because Nora is extremely empathetic with everyone in the world, to the point where it’s surprising when she’s not empathetic.

Viri is a great liar. We will come to find out much of what she says in this scene is a lie, but she has no tells. This is why I think the Selena Gomez shoe line thing was Viri teasing the girls, because she broke character almost immediately. If Viri wanted the girls to believe it, we can see here that she would’ve managed.  

Nora’s shirt says, “No means no.” ‘No es no’ was first a slogan for an awareness campaign, promoted by several Spanish city halls, which aimed to curtail sexual abuse and rape during local festivals, such as Sanfermines. There’s also an Axel, Soledad song. And it has of course been slapped on all sorts of merchandise. Like shirts!

The sides of the mirror are tagged with graffiti, by the way.

And also, Eva and Nora are late for first period! They end up skipping it entirely.

CLIP 2: Lucas has feels; Eva’s are stronger

Eva and Lucas are listening to Molly Svrcina’s Fallen Angel. I think the point of the song was lost in how incredibly random the song is. This is a song Lucas recommends Eva listen to. It’s about Lucas, not Eva. Lucas is trying to give a hint to Eva about himself, but Eva’s too focused on the Jorge drama.

While this clip dropped during recess, Eva skipped school. Not sure if Lucas did as well, though.

It’s Viri who shares a birthday with Paris Jackson, as I already wrote in the post for last episode.

Alejandro Reina does a nice bit of acting with his eyes at the 5:22 mark. Lol, Lucas is so fucking tired of the Eva/Jorge drama carousel.    

Y tú me caes de puta madre (“And I think you’re fucking great”): Lucas is not just saying that he thinks Eva’s great. He’s saying he really fucking likes Eva (as a friend, that is!).

Es que sigo enfadada (“‘Cause I’m still upset”): This is a sentiment that will be expressed often this week by Eva, Jorge and Lucas. I’ve seen subs that translate it “enfadada” as “angry” and it’s not wrong, but I feel Eva and Jorge are both more upset than angry during this week. Your mileage may vary, though!

CLIP 3: Ship wars

Cullera: Cullera is a beach city in the Valencia region that has been taken over by tourists (or guiris, if you will!). There are some nice sights, but people visit for the beaches. Many Spanish familes own some sort of apartment by the beach, but Cullera is a step up from the usual, which is Torremolinos. A hint about Inés’ parents’ economic status! Cullera means “spoon” in Valencian language, by the way.

Easter break: The 2019 Easter break runs from the 12th of April to the 22th. Coincidentally, there are some rumors that s2 will premiere after Easter break 2019.

Tú no te líes, que el viaje importante es el de Mallorca, ¿eh? (Okay, but don’t lose sight of the important trip, the Majorca trip, huh?): A closer translation would be: “Don’t get sidetracked, the important trip is the Majorca trip, okay?” Which is actually a shorter line, so we should maybe change that, lol.

Que parezcamos ahí dos lapas como estas parejitas que están por ahí (For us to look like two barnacles like those couples you see everywhere): The literal translation would be, “for us to look like two barnacles like those couples that are around,” but that sounded like shade towards Eva and Jorge, who are also broken up this week. It’s not meant as shade, and in fact Eva has no reaction to it, so I reworked it.

Viri’s economic background is hinted through her confusion with job titles. In Spanish, she doesn’t remember if Alejandro’s father is a “director” (which could be translated as director, manager, and even principal, but also CEO) and “directivo” (executive or CEO). I settled for initials salad.

There is a bit of dialogue at the end that was cut from the episode version. The girls present their final arguments in the Viriandro vs Aleviri debate… which ironically, foreshadowed the Norandro vs Alenora shipname wars. It appears as if most of the fandom has settled on Norandro, at last.

Viri: It’s that, it’s like a Greek god.

Cris: What are you, Voldemort or something?

Viri: It’s like, it’s funny because it’s like a Greek god, like Viriandro is a Greek god sort of name. Yeah, it’s super neat.

Cris: It’s a gladiator name, dude!

Almost totally off topic linguistics note: The girls use the English loanword “ship” in the fandom sense. The verb had obviously crossed language lines in fandom spaces years ago, but it became part of mainstream Spanish culture (yes, really) when Operación Triunfo became big last year, and everyone was shipping couples from the show. The interesting part is that Spanish speakers came up with two declensions for the Spanish form of the verb: “yo lo shippeo” (I ship it) and “yo lo shippo” (again, I ship it). People who had been in fandom longer leaned towards “shippeo” (and so do I!), so I find it aesthetically pleasing that the girls favor that declension.  

CLIP 4: Eva shoots his shot. It doesn’t go well.

I was certain Jorge’s secret would have to do with one or both his parents being unemployed, so at the time I made note of the fact that one of the apartments he walks by is up for sale. It’s the reddish orange sign at the 10:06 mark.

The song that plays at the end of the clip is Zahara’s El Frío, but it has been edited. These are the lyrics that have made it to the clip: “I didn’t expect that the one who started all the fires would also be the one to put them out. How did you let the cold inside you, it has destroyed everything.”

CLIP 5: Speederman

This has to be a change from my high school years. I did the Cooper test in 3º ESO (the equivalent of 9th grade in the US) and never had to do it again through high school. 

More info on the Cooper test, in case you care. Not only was I not tested on a standard 400 m tartan track, but we were also not trained to perform it properly. Ah, high school PE!

Venom premiered in Spain the 5th of October. This clip dropped the 19th of October.

Yes, that is actually how we pronounce Spiderman in Spain.

I love that Nora is into Viri saying she loves anything that has to do with saving the world. Nora is so earnest, lol.

¿O qué vas a hacer, tía? ¿Quedarte en casa llorando? (“Or what do you have in mind, dude? Staying at home, crying?”): Another translation could be, “Or what are you going to do, dude? Stay at home and cry?” but I went with the line in the subs because I thought it flowed better.

Cómo jode que te dejen, ¿eh? (It sucks to be dumped, doesn’t it?): “Sucks” is a lot less charged than “joder,” which is the word Inés actually uses. I guess you’d have to say “fucking sucks” to get the intensity across. You’ll have to make do with Inés’ line delivery.

CLIP 6: Ride of the Valkyries

As it turns out, Alba Planas is also a fan of og Skam, so I’m going to pretend Eva’s string of sorries is also an homage to Tarjei’s delivery.

This scene was shot right outside of Cine Paz. 

Pero no me seáis pavas (“But don’t be silly”): Viri says “pavas,” which is hard to translate. Essentially, Viri’s afraid the girls are going to embarrass her in front of Alejandro, either unintentionally or (not unlikely given this group) intentionally. I.e. they’re not going to behave maturely in front of him.

Madre mía (Good heavens): Okay, so I already talked in the post for episode 5 about the way Amira uses interjections that aren’t swear words, and this is an example of it. “Madre mía” literally means “mother of mine” and it’s basically meaningless as an interjection. What matters is the tone you add to it. In this case, Amira’s impatient that the girls are getting distracted chatting about whatever, instead of going into the theater. I don’t love “good heavens” as it has Christian connotations. On the other hand, “geez” feels too short for how impatient Amira sounds.

It took me a while to realize this, but this clip actually has an og equivalent. This would be the clip where Vilde notices William and Sara hooking up, and looks devastated. Skam España chooses to go about it in a totally different way, with the girls backing Viri up as they walk in.

CLIP 7: Tout le monde veut devenir un cat

Sí, hija, sí (“Yeah, girl, yeah”): Jorge actually calls Eva “daughter,” lol. Much like with tío and tía, we might call anyone “son” or “daughter.” I’ve even caught myself using it on my own parents! If I have the right info, this is also common in Latin American countries, except they use “mijo” and “mija,” instead. “Hijo” or “hija” is more affectionate than “tío” or “tía,” although, much like with “madre mía,” it’s used to express a variety of emotions. Here, Jorge is dismayed that his chocolate romance went awry.

Pretty sure those are knockoff peanut M&Ms. Most likely from the Spanish grocery chain Mercadona.

The song that plays at the end of the clip and through the credits is Bely Basarte’s Mariposas. You can find a translation here. 

Tomás Aguilera, who plays Jorge, has managed to be almost impossible to find online. However, his instagram bio makes reference to the French version of the Aristocats song Everybody wants to be a cat. It’s adorable.

Social media:

The girls talk about the Zaorejas random again, Cris notes that he looked young enough as to be in ESO, or MSE, Mandatory Secondary Education. MSE runs through the equivalents of 7th to 10th grade in the US.