The World that never was 4

I yelped as I reappeared in another world, landing on something hard, yet warm, despite the book in my face. As I groaned in pain, I heard a pained voice as well. "Oowwww, What the-? (Y/n)-x?!"

I blushed when I realized I landed on top of Axel. His green eyes were close to mine, wide in surprise, but amused at the situation. However, our position was no laughing matter. I was above him of course, with a knee between his legs, and my arms on either side of his body. Despite our faces close enough to touch noses, I wanted to cry in embarrassment. Why, in the name of kingdom hearts, did my key blade travel to this exact moment, in this exact position?

"S-sorry! I'm so sorry!" I quickly got off him, and stood away from the bed. "I had no idea! It just-This just happened...! I had no control over it!" I laughed sheepishly, and waved my hands in embarrassment. 

Axel rubbed his stomach, blushing as well, and trying to laugh it off. He sat up as he did so, placing the book on the side. "Heheh, yeah! It just happened, totally... Ahem, without you knowing..."

"Oh-! Yeah! Definitely without me knowing! I would have definitely knocked on your door and waited till you permit me entrance! In your room..." I cleared my throat, trying to calm my beating heart. 'Hoo boy, he was close... A whole lot closer than when I'm trying to tease someone! Although, his eyes were really pretty to look at...' 

Axel flinched when I suddenly squealed into my hands. I buried my steaming face, shocked at my thoughts. He reached out to me, then stopped. "H-hey, you ok?"

"Huh-?! Yeah! Totally!" I put a thumbs up, grinning wide. "But it's good to see you again! How have you been?"

"I'd like to say the same for you. I last saw you going on a mission with Saix." He explained. "You alright? He didn't scare you, did he?"

I looked away in thought. That's true. The last I saw him and the others, was when they were introducing me as a new member. Then Saix took me on a mission, then I ran from him to avoid fighting. I shivered, remembering his berserker mode. "Does Saix have anger issues?"

Axel blinked, before chuckling. "What? Maybe. What did he do out there?"

I sweat-dropped. "He... went berserk."

Axel smiled in amusement, then grabbed his chin in mock thought. "I wonder why."

I shrugged, crossing my arms. I had no idea why he didn't like me. However, I do remember Saix's confession about me. I wondered what went through his mind, but decided not to dwell on it for now. I suddenly remembered something. Why did Xemnas call Axel an assassin? I looked over at Axel, then looked at his hair. They were a flaming red, nothing I've seen before. When Axel turned back to me, I smiled up at him. "Wanna get some ice cream?"

He grinned. "Sure. We still have to claim your prize."

"That's for sure." I grinned. "Where are the others?"

"They're on a mission actually. We can meet them at the clock tower. We always meet there after our missions." Axel explained, as we exited his room. 

"Ok then-" I nodded, when I noticed a cloaked figure around the corner behind Axel. They quickly hid themselves. 

Axel followed my gaze. "What are you looking at?"

"Huh? Oh, nothing. Give me a sec! I'll meet you in the lounge!" I waved to him as I jogged towards the corner. Axel made a face of confusion, but said nothing. I was glad he didn't.

When I looked around the corner, the figure was gone. I looked about the empty hallway. Was I imagining things? 

"(Y/n)?" Axel appeared behind me, placing a hand on my shoulder.

I blinked, glancing at him from over my shoulder. "You're still here? What's wrong?"

"I'd like to ask you the same thing." Axel raised a brow. He looked down the hallway, not finding anything. "What are you looking for? Did you see someone?"

"I uh..." I looked around again. "I thought I saw someone here. But, they're gone."

Axel hummed, then patted my shoulder. "Come on. Let's go." I nodded, then turned around when he suddenly opened a dark corridor. I flinched at the darkness, not wanting to go in there. Axel noticed this, then asked, "You ok?"

"I... Could we... hold hands?" I asked, not taking my eyes off the darkness. I really did not want to go through there again. Apparently I wasn't permitted to travel with others using my key blade. The darkness in there felt like it wanted to suck out whatever light I had in me. 

Axel blinked at my request, then shook his head with a smile. "If you're scared, just say so. Here." He held out his hand, a smirk on his face. "Don't worry, I'll protect you."

I blushed, but smiled as I took his hand. He led me inside, keeping a firm, gentle grip on my hand. Despite the atmosphere buffeting my robes, I felt warm and safe holding onto Axel. I closed my eyes, letting him lead the way. 

-X-

"You know, I wonder where those two are. It's not like them to stay out so late." Axel murmured as we enjoyed our ice cream. I was getting a little worried as well. I wanted to see them before the key blade suddenly makes me travel again. If we had bought them their ice cream, it would have melted by now. We've been waiting a while. However, I enjoyed talking and laughing with Axel. He was a fun guy, kind, even though he refuses to think so. It was nice to have a little one on one with him. For some reason, I wanted to ask him about something. I had a nagging feeling in my chest, but I couldn't remember what it was.

"Do you think they're ok?" I asked Axel instead. Even though I enjoyed our time together, I still wanted to see Roxas and Xion. I miss their smiles.

He looked my way, with the popsicle stick hanging from his lips. "I think so. They're pretty good fighters, so I'm not worried about them to that extent. Saix probably got them stuck doing some reports or something. I'm sure they'll pop up soon." He looked back towards the forever setting sun. "At least I hope so."

I looked down at my popsicle sticks. Turns out, you get a second popsicle free as a prize. I ate them both, enjoying every bit of it. "Same here." Even though, what he said about Roxas and Xion, had me more worried. I understood the heartless and nobodies were a pain, but if Axel wasn't worried about their battle skills, what was keeping them in the first place? Were they really injured, and we weren't as worried as we should be? And most of all, why do they have this mission to defeat them in the first place? How were they able to fight at all? All these thoughts made me think of Xehanort, wondering how much he may have manipulated my twilight friends, maybe Xigbar too. 

I glanced at Axel, watching the small breeze go through his hair. He's a cute fellow, and a sweet one too. He seemed mysterious, yet calm... He's almost like a big brother too. I smiled at my thoughts, not noticing his green eyes look towards me. His lips moved, as if he was saying something. However, I was so focused on his eyes, being as pretty they were, I didn't hear what he said. I remember briefly seeing his younger self when I was with Ventus. Though I didn't get a good look at him. I only noticed his red hair. 

"Earth to (Y/n)-x!" Axel waved his hand in my face. 

I blinked. "Huh? What?"

Axel raised a brow, an amused smile on his face. "You alright? You were staring at me, pretty hard too."

I noticed the blush on his face, that I couldn't help doing the same. "I... I'm sorry. I was just thinking, that your hair is pretty cool and... Your eyes too."

Axel chuckled to himself, while rubbing his head sheepishly. I giggled at him, as he shook his head. He was embarrassed. "What's with you today? First you land on me out of nowhere, now you're feeding me compliments? What's next, a hug?"

"I'll give ya a hug, Axel!" I stretched out my arms to his surprise, then tackled his shoulders playfully. "Take my hug!"

"Hey!" Axel swayed from the impact, and did his best to steady himself, while I held onto him. He chuckled a little, patting my head. "You're something else today. But hey, I'm glad we got to hang out together. Even if the others haven't made it yet."

"Yeah, me too." I moved away with a large grin, sitting back on my spot. We smiled at each other for a moment longer, before glancing back at the sunset.

-X-

Roxas and Xion never came by, so we returned to the castle to check if they were there. When we arrived in the lounge, we found Xigbar relaxing on the couch. He looked up, then grinned when he noticed me. "There she is! Our new member!"

"Xigbar." I sighed, though I couldn't help the smile on my face. He sure hasn't changed. "What are you doing here?"

"Waiting for you." He got up and walked towards us. 

"Her?" Axel raised a brow. He then crossed his arms when Xigbar stood in front of me. "Why were you waiting for her?"

"Lucky for me, we have our next mission together." He grinned, leaning down to my level. I blushed when he got a little too close. "I heard you ditched Saix on your last mission. He said you did so poorly, when he sees you again, he's going to take you directly to lord Xemnas."

I gaped at his words, and Axel shook his head. "He went berserk on her, what else was she suppose to do?"

"Not my problem! Why don't you ask him?" Xigbar grinned at him. I made a face, when I remembered something. Saix had mentioned Axel was acting against the organization. I blinked, realizing that's what I wanted to ask Axel before! Xigbar noticed my look. "What is it?"

I turned to Axel, who also noticed my look of surprise, when I stopped myself. I realized Axel didn't seem to be in trouble here, seeing how he's able to walk around with no problem. I may have traveled to a time before he started acting on his own. I wondered what caused him to go rebel in the future. When I didn't say anything, Xigbar and Axel glanced at each other.

Xigbar then grabbed my shoulder, pulling me from my thoughts. "You know, I wouldn't want Saix popping out of nowhere. We should go before that happens. It'll devastate me if you were to be taken to Xemnas." He said mockingly, placing a hand on his chest.

I glanced at Xigbar, suddenly remembering something. He knew how Terra became Xehanort's vessel, even seemed like he didn't care. With that thought, I was filled with disappointment towards him. Regardless, I didn't want to face Saix or Xemnas at the moment. "You're right."

Axel raised a brow at my sudden change in behavior, but thankfully said nothing. He sighed instead. "Alright, I'll see you later then?" He held out his hand. 

I grabbed it in a firm hand shake. "Of course! If you see Roxas and/or Xion, tell them to expect tight hugs from me!"

"You got it." Axel smiled gently, before walking away.

When I turned back to Xigbar, he had his usual grin on his face. "Ok, let's go on this mission of ours. I have to warn you, I can't battle at the moment."

He chuckled, holding out his hand. "Don't worry, I know." He murmured. As the darkness formed around us, I knew one thing for certain about Xigbar. He knew a lot more than he let on.