Sooooooo, today I am ALL ALONE in my half of the office; the guy who usually takes the 9-6 shift with me is on vacation and everyone else leaves at 5 at the latest. Plus, they moved the teams who shared our floor upstairs, so ... it really is sort of just me + tech support on this side of things, and they've got their own little section. So I have NOTHING TO DISTRACT ME and today's a slow day so.

Also, so about that loose end from the Happy Ending? I SUCK SO MUCH THAT I COULD NOT STOP THINKING ABOUT IT so uh there may be more forthcoming. In which Stuff Will Happen.

... this is not that sequel, but it's sort of a bridging step. Also because I wanted HAPPY BEACH FUN HIJINKS but got this instead. Which means that it'll make a LOT more sense if you've read the previous fics in this set. Or at least the happy ending, which has links to the others.

First Steps
Kingdom Hearts II -- endgame speculation/spoilers; Roxas/Axel (implied OT3)
1379 words
Settling in, sort of. Maybe.
I mostly wrote this because of ONE IMAGE that would not get out of my head. Guess it and get a prize! Unless you're [livejournal.com profile] voodoobob because I already told her, I think.

+++++

It isn't that Alex is an early riser by nature; rather it's that he can't sleep for more than two or three hours at a time anyway, and if anyone asked him (which no one has), he'd say it was force of habit.

Anyway, better some sleep than none.

It leaves him with a lot of free time, at any rate, which would normally mean wandering around and poking for hiding places and backdoor escapes, but Riku is an early riser (and a light sleeper), and after their last argument left him against the wall with Way to Dawn at his throat and Kairi yelling at them both, he figures it's not worth it when it's this early. Riku's attitude is all surface, anyway; scratch him just a little bit in the right way, and all the bad things he's ever done are in his eyes, replaying, and he doesn't like to be reminded of that.

Which is too bad, because Alex kinda gets a kick out of needling him. Sure, he'd stop if he were told, but no one's really told him to yet -- "you should really stop doing that" is more of a suggestion than an order.

He's gotta give the kid some credit, though; he is trying, even if he still looks the other way whenever Roxas smiles at Alex. It's more than Alex really wants to give, 'cause he's not really the sharing type.

And he'd been waiting for a long time ...

It's dawn now, though, and he'd tiptoed past the room where the trio slept, and he'd seen the silver-blonde tangle of Riku's hair still inside, so he could relax.

He makes his way carefully down the creaking stairs, through the narrow kitchen, and opens the porch door. The day outside is still cool, smelling of salt water, and there is a single slim figure on the stone patio, moving in slow measured movements and Alex stops like he's been hit with a blizzard spell.

If Roxas notices him, he gives no sign of it, moving through the slow steps of a kata, and the Keyblade should look ridiculous going through the forms, sleek as it currently is, but it looks natural right now.

(Alex's mind provides: that Roxas would do this in the World That Never Was, surrounding by a ring of sentinel Samurai Nobodies, lost somewhere in his own head and part of Axel had always wanted to interfere even though he never did, to say don't do that, jeeze, it's hard enough to keep track of you as-is but never quite managed because Samurai have no eyes but they can glare pretty effectively regardless.)

Roxas' foot slides against the stones a moment before he tenses, and then he leaps into the air with the sort of grace reserved for raptors and he spins and the training dummies Alex didn't even notice before shiver and then fall, sliced neatly in half. Roxas lands in a neat crouch, then flows back to his feet as neatly as any boneless Dusk. The keychain jingles briefly as he does, the first kind of sound it's made. He opens his eyes and looks up at Alex.

"What," he says.

Alex swallows, but before he can say anything stupid self-preservation takes over and he says, "Still pretty handy with that, aren't you."

Roxas shrugs, rebalancing his weight on both feet. Over the horizon the sun is beginning to rise and it picks out gold in his hair. He lifts the Keyblade again, pointing it at Alex. "I manage," he says. "What about you?"

"Me?" Alex shrugs, stretches his arms up and then folds them behind his head. "I'm not like you. My weapons didn't follow me like lost puppies."

Roxas' expression doesn't change. "Could you, if you needed to?"

"I'm adaptable," Alex says, suddenly cautious. "I can keep myself alive." And he's got knives in his sleeves and one in his left boot and remembers a few particularly nasty pressure points from Larxene. He's not stupid.

Roxas blinks at him, mild and giving nothing away, and then swings the Keyblade aside, pointing in obvious direction.

Alex almost backs up. "Hey," he protests. "Roxas, you gonna hit an unarmed man?"

"You're not," Roxas says calmly. He gestures again with the Keyblade, waiting.

And Alex finally sighs and makes his way down the porch steps, kicks off his house slippers, and stands barefoot across from Roxas. "I can't even do magic any more," he said. "I tried, you know, when I first woke up. Most I can do is stage magic, and that's not anything."

"It's not nothing, either," Roxas says, and then he leaps.

Alex has staged fights in the past, even before he lost his heart, and automatically he moves to dodge, leaning back so that the Keyblade whistles past his face without landing. The stone patio is hard on his shoulder but he still dives out of the way, and as Roxas brings the blade whistling down Alex snaps a knife out of his sleeve and it's not going to be enough damnit and ow this is going to hurt--

The Keyblade connects and clashes with the spiked round edge of a chakram.

Alex blinks in surprise, but Roxas' face is completely calm.

"I thought so," he says, and leaps back when instinct takes over and Alex takes a swipe at him, aiming low at the knees.

"Heh," says Alex, as he gets to his feet -- not quite as graceful as Roxas, sure, but he's out of practice. It'll come back in time. He spins the chakarms thoughtfully, testing out the half-familiar weight. "Thought I'd lost these."

Roxas makes a noncommittal sound and attacks again. It's hard to tell, when he's mostly trying to keep his balance and block and not get clobbered, but Alex thinks he might be smiling.

The porch door opens again and Kairi emerges, in a fluffy pink robe (a birthday present from her father: despite her mortification, it's comfortable and so she keeps it) and blinks at them. She does not seem terribly surprised, but Alex has learned that not a whole lot surprises her, Princess and witch both.

"When you two are done," she says, "Riku is making breakfast."

And for a moment Sora peers through, wide-eyed. "Pancakes?"

"Pancakes," Kairi agrees, and yawns behind a hand. "We'll save some for you. Maybe."

Sora bounces eagerly from one foot to the other and Alex lets his chakrams disappear and pushes his hair back from his eyes. He's about to comment, something maybe a little snide to hide any disappointment, when Sora points the Keyblade at Kairi, in play-threat.

"You'd better save some!" he says. "We're hungry!"

And Kairi, unphased, just sticks her tongue out. "We'll save some if we save some," she says airily. "Have fun, boys."

She closes the door behind her and Sora turns to Alex, grinning. "Okay," he says. "Wanna finish?"

Alex blinks. "Huh?"

"Finish," Sora repeats, and drops into a crouch, Keyblade ready. "You gotta do cool-down when you're done exercising, or else you feel like crap later." And before Alex can answer Sora fades, and Roxas is left in his place again.

"You know," Alex says thoughtfully, though he summons his chakrams again -- it's not so hard, now that he remembers how to do it, though fire still remains just beyond his grasp -- "I don't get your other sometimes."

Roxas snorts, but there's definitely a smile on his face. "It's all right," he said. "You learn to live with him anyway."

Alex meets and matches and spins away, lighter than before across the stones, and he notices something that he'd seen before and forgotten in the challenge, as the sun rises higher and gleams along the edges of Roxas' weapon. "Nice Keyblade."

Roxas pauses and looks down. The Keyblade in his hands has a curved spiked tooth, red and black and silver; the keychain is a miniature version of Alex's chakrams. He shrugs.

"This one's my favorite," he says. He eyes Alex's expression. "Got a problem?"

"... Nah," Alex says, and smirks because otherwise he'd be grinning like a moron. "I like your style."

+++

They don't get any pancakes, much to Sora's disappointment, but Alex considers himself pretty satisfied anyway.

--end--

From: [identity profile] laylah.livejournal.com


oh, wooooobie. yes yes yes.
I love the image of Roxas practicing his kata, both before and after everything, and oh, so full of glee when Alex discovers he can summon his chakrams again. *hearts*

From: [identity profile] laylah.livejournal.com


yes yes absolutely. If I get around to writing the next bit that comes after the Roxas-Namine thing I did last week, then I will totally have Roxas using that one, because that one is his keyblade, goddamnit. Axel gave it to him. *also a big sap over this particular pairing*
harukami: (Default)

From: [personal profile] harukami


SO nice. I just -- hot and sweet and waff and oh, Riku and Axel, there are issues there, yes. I -- ... Yes.

So much with the good.

From: [identity profile] crazy-toffee.livejournal.com


Oooooh! That was a nice image! Though... what got to me most about this piece was the prickly situation between Alex and Riku. My inner sadist is acting up big time, but... I'd reaaaaaaaaaally like to see what happens when Alex finally pushes Riku's buttons too far.

From: [identity profile] crazy-toffee.livejournal.com


I forgot to say this (again)... I just love what you've done with Alex. I can really picture him as the the person that originated Axel.

From: [identity profile] jpegasus.livejournal.com


:D
:D :D
:D :D :D

Oh yey. I had sort of wondered how they'd all get along. Alex/Axel certainly is NOT the sharing type, and I can't see Riku being totally okay with it either and they're both NOT here and yet it's still working and um...I love you? And your fics. Yay for the happy-ends that keep going :)

From: [identity profile] jpegasus.livejournal.com

*dies of icon* *actually falls out of chair*


I like that they get along crappy like that. Because it's in character. I never would doubt the squishy's writing, but I can see where one might be tempted to just make them all into one big...relationship smoosh where they all get along NO PROBLEM or whatever. And maybe eventually they do (although I doubt Riku/Alex would ever stop snarking at each other) but certainly not right away. And I love you for it.
er, I guess I am thanking you for not being your typical FFnet writer? Even though that is a bad misrepresentation of the Terra's brilliant writing. You are so much more than "not an ffnet writer" X3

HUZZAH! HIJINKS! :DDD

From: [identity profile] ladygoddess.livejournal.com


Oh, man, you fed me bunnies.

Riku tries to avoid it, rolling onto his side, as he pretends to look at the moon. The intense glare he gives the moon cannot hide that his ears peek up every thump and whimper in the room across the hall. The four-five-no, six of them had decided that it was best that Alex lived across from them instead of next door. A little soundproofing to keep things from going awkward. It's no use however when Sora finally comes back to their shared room. He's wet from his shower, no longer smelling of that other guy but the whatever fruity smelling stuff Kairi had choosen this month is rubbed in so well its clear that he was trying to wash someone else off his skin. Sora rubs the back of his head, avoiding Riku's eyes as he climbs into bed. Riku waits and counts before sighing. He rolls over and drags Sora taunt against him. Sora is his and Kairi's. He doesn't want Sora sharing his body with that nuisiance. Yet...they had all agreed that they couldn't keep Roxas and Alex apart from each longer.

Riku frowns when he hears what amounts to he images the bedpost hitting the wall again and closes his eyes. He promised he'd be okay with this.

From: [identity profile] ladygoddess.livejournal.com


I really should reread before posting. So please excuse the obvious typos.

From: [identity profile] abby-sarajane.livejournal.com


Squeee. :: rolls around:: Yes. Yes, yes, and yes. And whee. And it's pretty.

Why is it that your fics always leave me so incoherent for anything but "OMG MORE PLEASE!" XD

Is the image in your head of Alex being able to summon the chakrams?

From: [identity profile] abby-sarajane.livejournal.com


I can see why! :: giggles:: Reading what you write is also terribly fun.

Yeeeeee, SEQUEL. :: flails::

Yar, lab work screws with my brain anyway. XD Playing with a super-duper powerful spectrophotometer all day tends to make you pretty numb between the ears when all you're doing is moving liquid from one tiny container to another and pressing buttons. Mmmmm. I want pictures! Someone should draw Alex. I could try, but I don't have my pens or colored pencils down here... ;_;

♥! ...oh, dear, I kind of babbled there, didn't I? :: contritely::

From: [identity profile] abby-sarajane.livejournal.com


♥ Anytime!

Yeeeeeeeeee! Aww, figuring out details is HARD. :: pokes own FFVII/KH@ Pirates!fic that isn't cooperating:: I understand.

I'm hardly fantastically talented, but I can try my hand at it, if you'd like. :: wiggles:: You paint your pictures with words so well that even I could probably manage something semi-decent.

Yay! :: beams:: I'm so glad, because it's late, and I'm horribly tired, and I do tend to babble when I get like this, even in type.

From: [identity profile] abby-sarajane.livejournal.com


:: giggles:: Don't worry, I won't. If anything's going to be done, it has to wait until I can get back home to my sketchbook and other art supplies. I'm away from there at the moment.

I know what you mean. XD Sometimes I even feel bad about asking for stuff on memes.

From: [identity profile] clapclapbow.livejournal.com


You are love. *glees far and away into the night*

I love, love the relationships and interactions between people in this. Riku trying to welcome Alex and Alex being all >DDDD *poke* and the way Kairi's not surprised and Sora's little pancake dance and, and...

I'm such a sucker for Axel/Roxas fluffies, it's not even funny. X3 Cyuuute.

Was the mental image Roxas doing katas with the Keyblade? Because man, that's what's staying with me. Pretty~

From: [identity profile] clapclapbow.livejournal.com


I look forward to the Alex-Riku fight. >3

They grew on me, too. I was always a big Riku/Sora and Sora/Kairi fan, but then Axel/Roxas snuck past my defenses and made me relax my guard around them and then BAM! Defenses breached. No survivors. And it's a wonderful feeling. XD

Nyahaha, really? Oh, wow. *is proud of self* Okay, um... *cough icon cough* No, okay, what my brain really wants, deep down, is sap. And because I suddenly miss my FMA... young!Roy and young!Hughes? Drabble-length or, yanno, longer if ya feel like it♥♥ *is a WOOB :D*

From: [identity profile] clapclapbow.livejournal.com


AS;AALFJA;LF *KEYBOARD MASHES INEXPERTLY*

That was so sweet. I love the symbolism in this and I love Roy and omg LOVE HUGHES. Little Maes woobie awwwww~ Take his hand, Roy, ya dun have to worry about anything♥ You can change life if you want♥♥

You, m'lady, are extreme love. You are made of sparkly win and yay! *hands you an Internet as prize*

From: [identity profile] questofdreams.livejournal.com


AWWWW. HEEEEE. *totally grinning like a sap* That was so great. And perfect ^__^ The Riku and Alex fighting made me laugh a bit because even though they don't get along, they can totally see through each other.

YAAAAY!!! This was the perfect addition.

From: [identity profile] siriusjazz.livejournal.com


Man, Roxas doing katas is sexy. Was that the image you had for this (haha, hasn't read anyone else's comments, whut :D;;;). And I like that Alex got his chakrams back - I kind of wasn't expecting it, like maybe he really did lose that part of himself, but I like that he's getting more of Axel back.

And Bond of Flame! :D I'm really glad you're continuing this fic-series. ♥♥♥

From: [identity profile] reversedhymnal.livejournal.com


*flail*

Oh, darling. You make me so happy! XDDD That was cute, and beautifully, and yay. I loved all of the dynamics, they were beautiful.

And, oh. Why can't I write Sora good like you can? *scowls at self*

From: [identity profile] megami-no-yume.livejournal.com


So much love! All of this series has been great so far. (Roxas/Alex fluff for the WIN.)

I also feel warm fuzzies at the strange (but somehow do-able) dynamics. They're getting there, it seems. And yet, totally strange situation. I hope Kairi has been getting enough attention ^_~ All we see is the boys snarling at/being possessive of/ eachother so far. Although I do love that Kairi isn't this 2-D character that hangs around in the background. And she gets to be fem!awesome and 'not surprised' by anything. After reading the very first of the 'Alex' saga (the uber long wedding fic that is officially love.), I had the thought that Riku was probably feeling his pride deflate on the occassions that 'Roxas' was with Alex, and so, was probably more possessive of Kairi during those times, at least first.

If nothing else, it leads to loveliness in my imagination. ♥ I love you characterization and story ideas. I always look forward to seeing more!

From: [identity profile] lissiel.livejournal.com


omg I missed this one when it first came out and it's SO UNBELIEVABLY CUTE!!!!!! Alex realising that roxas uses bond of flame is so much win and... yesh.

*curls up in a little ball of wooby glee*

From: [identity profile] x-unfinished-x.livejournal.com


Okay. Let me first say that you are an amazingly talented writer.

Now. Onto the fangirling.

This fic was perfect. The dialouge, the imagery, Sora's "OMG YAY PANCAKES!" outburst, the Bond of Flames. Alex and Roxas. Sooooo cute. And sad, and adorable. And they got their happy ending. ♥

I really, really want to draw Alex right now. XD;;
way2dawn: Riku smiling on the Dark Beach (axel smirk)

From: [personal profile] way2dawn


Hooray for Alex being able to summon his chakrams again! And good job Kairi for not giving up the uphill battle.

And WOOB for the keychain thing! Which means love, of course.
.

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