driftfleet | walking in a winter wonderland. (MINGLE)

a) in a dark alleyway
[ you know, it's a shame that this has already happened before.

riku can't believe this is the second time this has happened--he just wanted to take a shortcut, to be discreet, and got into... uh, an argument. he wanted to go and see the nearby forest, with its new flora and fauna, but of course... well, trouble seems to find him. he's fairly sure that the whole "heartless will continue to come at you as long as you have the keyblade" deal that the king told him about was just a bunch of mythology. it's not just heartless--it's trouble.

not that he can even call the keyblade. ugh.

he's prepared this time, though--as he's yanked into a headlock, he shifts his weight down, ducking and curling into himself while using his legs to flip the burly man over his head. with a sharp groan and startled yell, he falls quick. riku jumps quickly and deftly onto an awning, breathing fast, before he turns to jump off and make his getaway.

and there's another solid wall of muscle at the end of the alley. great. that's just great. riku backs up, head low, before he charges at him with his hands out to grab riku's arms. he veers sharply to the left, dropping low to kick him across the backs of his knees, and he crumples to his knees. alright, coast is cle--

how many guys are in here?!

there's a skinny man with a long scar across his face--riku gets a swift uppercut, tastes blood, and groans in frustration before grabbing the man's coat and pulling him forward.

he smashes their foreheads together, and as the man woozily stumbles, riku breathes hard. the first man makes a move to get up before he just falls back, too dizzy from landing on his head.

when he hears a noise from the end of the alley again, he shifts into a fighting stance. ]

Who's there? [ he came here to buy christmas presents and kick ass and he IS ALL OUT OF PRESENTS ]

b) wilderness
[ riku wasn't the best at fishing like this--he's sorely unused to ice and snow. you don't get ice on islands, but you'll find him fishing with both pole and spear--pole near wide lakes and spear near a still-rushing river.

and you might hear a melody or two out of him. ]

♪ ... and on every street corner, you'll hear:
Silver bells, silver bells,
It's Christmastime in the city... ♫

[The sound he hears is the sound of applause, and Axel steps into the light at the end of the alley, his hood up and his eyes glinting fiendishly from the shadow it casts over his face. This is just too good--Riku's here? Maybe this isn't just a coincidence after all--maybe something went completely pear-shaped at CO and that's how he wound up here. He wonders idly if anybody else might show up, but for the moment, he's just applauding Riku's efforts. That scene was actually pretty impressive.]

All right, Riku, fight fight fight~ I never realized you were so adept empty-handed!

[Which leaves him wondering why. Why hadn't he used his Keyblade? Was he really that much of a goody goody that he refused to use a weapon on real people? He certainly hadn't had any issues using it on Lexaeus.]

[ riku starts when he hears him, sees him walk into the light, and he immediately speaks with relief. ]

Lea-- [ relief gives way to confusion, and surprise--a glint of fear in his eyes. no, that wasn't lea. lea didn't have those tattoos. ] no. You're Axel.

[ the realization that it's axel, the darkness he can feel... he's still a nobody. he wants to step back, but riku stays firm. he initially started to curl away, but he stands firm now, shoulders straight and mouth in a concerned frown.

he used to run away from axel. it was safest to run from an assassin.

now that he knows he will be lea, though... no. he won't do that. ] Did you just get here?

[That's the second time someone has called him Lea, and he's starting to wonder if this is a conspiracy. How could anyone possibly know that name? He's been Axel for ten years--not even Saïx has called him that anything like recently.

[All the mirth bleeds out of his expression, and he reaches up and tugs his hood back, giving Riku a look that teeters somewhere between angry and suspicious. He had never even met Riku in Castle Oblivion--how did Riku even know who he was?]

Maybe. [His eyes are narrow, but the little lance of alarm that snaked through his gut remains unseen on his face. There has to be a logical explanation for this.] How do you know that name? How do you know who I am?

[Sure, he's been aiming for everyone to remember him, but it was hard to remember someone you'd never met, right? So how did Riku not only know who he was now, but know who he'd been once upon a time?]

[ shit. he pissed him off.

riku's stomach flips, and he swallows, but doesn't move. at least, not until he hears a groan and the lankier man starting to get up--to which he glares at him, then looks at axel. ]

You want an answer? I'll tell you, as long as we get out of here. No telling if they have backup.

[For half an instant, Riku looks worried, and Axel is torn. On one hand, he's never really liked scaring people. Being a dangerous person didn't necessarily mean you were scary, after all. On the other, good, maybe Riku should think twice about being so familiar with him, especially since he literally has no idea how the kid even knows who he is.

[His eyes flick to the pile of semi-conscious people behind Riku, and he thinks for a moment that if it did come to fisticuffs between them, he's honestly not sure he could beat Riku, not with that Darkness in him that had taken out Lexaeus. In a lot of ways, Riku's as much of a loose cannon as he is, but that's what makes things interesting.

[He looks back to Riku, frowning, but the anger that was there is gone. Instead he's just kind of confused. Since when was Riku such an agreeable guy? (For that matter, wasn't his hair longer? And he'd looked shorter before. Something was weird, here.)]

I'm not interested in sloppy seconds. You lead the way, then; you're the guy with all the answers, apparently.

[He steps aside and makes a sweeping gesture for Riku to go ahead, he'll follow. No tricks--he wants those answers. Besides, he was never really in the game to take Sora and Riku out in the first place; they were much more interesting alive, after all.

[Before they can go too far, however, a figure steps into the mouth of the alley, and Axel just sighs. One, two, three more?]

And this is why you scope things out before you get into fights. [Like he should have done before he confronted Riku in the first place, he guesses. Oh well, there'll be time to kick himself for not noticing there were more of them later. He doesn't really want to fight--that's so much effort--but if Riku gets overwhelmed, he won't get his answers. Decisions, decisions.]

Why don't I just let you guys finish what you started...? I'd hate to interrupt, I mean you've already got this rapport going...

[ riku can't even feel the slightest bit of irritation when axel essentially suggests that he'll leave him to fight on his own.

how could he expect any differently? axel was just as much of a loose canon as he was--and there's no reason that axel would want him to be safe rather than saving his own hide. he can't blame him for that, and he won't. ]

If you don't wanna get caught in this, leave. They might go after you, and who knows what they took from you?

[ so, he turns his back to axel, and takes a step back as the men start to close in.

he still feels a little dizzy himself, but he can fight. especially since he's not really injured. bleeding, sure, but... he can get that fixed up. or it'd stop eventually. ]

[Leave? He's not sure he wants to leave. He was kind of enjoying the show! But he doesn't like Riku's tone--it's like he's not sure he could handle this. In the words of Xigbar, as if.]

Took from me? Nobody took anything from me. [He rolls his eyes.] I guess I can help you out, since you already got clocked in the face. If you pass out, then I don't get my answers, and that just wouldn't do. [He flashes him a reckless grin.] You take the one on the left, I'll take the one on the right. Whoever knocks their guy out first gets the third one, deal?

[He won't be patronized. Without waiting for an acknowledgement, Axel darts forward, aiming for the broad-shouldered man on the left. He snaps his arms out to call up his chakrams--] What the--? [--and falters when they don't come to his hands. With a sharp exhale, he brings both arms up in a cross block in front of his face when the man throws a punch, and it pushes him back.

[He's too startled to even register that that kind of hurt. Why won't his chakrams come when he calls? They've never refused his call before, not even when he was first learning how to use them! Lifting his head and watching in alarm as the man bears down on him, Axel leaps back and sweeps one hand out, laying down a carpet of flame under the man's feet. The man yelps and dances across the fire, staggering backward and hopping from one foot to the other, and Axel takes the opportunity to shoot Riku a flabbergasted look.]

'What they took from you'--did you know that was going to happen?

[None of this made any sense! First he was dragged here when he'd been trying to RTC, then some complete stranger knew his name had been Lea, then Riku knew who he was, and now his chakrams won't cooperate? This vacation is not going like he'd planned.]

[ riku makes a frustrated noise when axel bounds off. ]

Ugh-- [ he swipes his hand horizontally in the air. axel set fire to the ground already, there's no point in laying low anymore. he casts bind, the spell affecting the third man as well, but he launches at his target with a kick. the man goes flying back, and riku looks at him with a frown. ]

I was trying to warn you. They took things from me, too.

[ like his keyblade. riku doesn't make another sound, though--as the man starts to head towards axel, riku looks around quickly. a stone is enough, he throws it at the man's forehead and he wobbles back, enough for riku to cast sleep. ]

Get behind me. I'm gonna cast Confuse, you shouldn't get caught up in the blast.

[It doesn't take Axel long to put two and two together. Riku had fought these guys with his bare hands because he'd had no choice. He couldn't call his Keyblade here. How interesting~ How in the world had they taken their weapons away? That must have been some pretty intense magic.

[He scoffs a little when Riku says to get behind him, though.]

I don't need you to protect me. [He does get out of the way of the spell, though. Status-effect magic has never been something he's enjoyed being on the receiving end of, and if Riku's warning him to get out of the way of it, he'll listen.

[This still doesn't make any sense, though. Why is Riku helping him at all? Shouldn't he be trying to, you know, kill him? He steps back, making sure to stay clear of Riku's casting, and then looks down when something grabs his ankle. One of the men Riku took out earlier has come to, and Axel quickly sends him back into unconsciousness with a pointed kick to the head. They really need to learn to just stay down.

[He turns back to Riku then, frowning.]

Why are you doing this? [Riku doesn't owe him anything, not even answers. He didn't expect him to be so... agreeable. He certainly didn't seem that way according to the Organization's information, anyway.]

[ out of breath, riku hisses; ]

Why did you stay? For answers?

[ he looks at lea over his shoulder. he believes it, and he doesn't. as the spell casts, it hits all three of them--and they turn to each other, starting to beat each other in a three-way fight.

riku feels drained, knees almost buckling before he breathes in, trying to quiet his beating heart. ]

Let's get out of here already. [ he's quick to turn tail, going the other way since the other way is blocked for the moment. ]

[Axel rolls his eyes.]

Duh. [Of course he only stayed for answers. Well, and maybe to watch the show. He can't help but snicker when the three men turn on each other. Ah, Confuse... almost as hilarious as Flipfoot.

[He turns and jogs after Riku, still a little puzzled about this entire mess. He had thought Riku was a little hotheaded brat, based on what he'd seen in Castle Oblivion. This... hardly seemed like him at all. This was a collected and capable person who actually seemed pretty reasonable, and it was really throwing Axel for a loop. Had Castle Oblivion been an act? But why? And why give up the act now, in front of him of all people?

[He still doesn't even know how he knew who the hell he was in the first place!]

Riku, where are we going, anyway?

[He isn't leading him into a trap or anything, he's confident of that. Why would Riku have bothered to fight all those guys if he was just laying a trap, after all? And why would he have let himself get hit, for that matter?]

Edited 2014-12-26 07:05 (UTC)

[ 'riku'. strange. he's used to being called 'impostor', or something... riku hesitates, slowing in step for a moment before clearing his throat. ]

My ship. Or... I guess, your ship--whichever. I don't care, pick one. We just shouldn't be out in the open, especially if guys like that're around.

[ either way, whichever of their ships they're gonna get on, riku knows they're all in the same place. ]

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