The Tale of Seven: Kidnapped Hope

[Rikugurl]

Riku nodded as Sora explained. Yea, he knew what it was like. He unfortunately came in between Luxray and Raichu when they were fighting on the island and got shocked pretty bad. Well... to him it was pretty bad because it was his first. They never did that again though, Sora gave them quite the yelling... especially since Riku couldn't cook for a few days.

"Don't worry, you'll get better..." Riku leaned in close, whispering in Sora's ear. "And we'll have to buy you some sexy glasses~" He pulled away, having a hard time seeing Sora blush but he knew he was.

"Yea, we all want you to get better soon Sora but... we have some... news for you." Fujin was the one to break it, making some frown but it as good that she could keep on track. They would be here for hours before realizing that they needed to tell Sora something important.
"We know you need time to recover but... we need to keep moving on..."
There was silence, the spirit of the brunette seeming to leave him but... he nodded slightly.

"We all talked about it this morning about who will be continuing on... and who will be staying."

Riku gently took Sora's hand, pulling a ring from his pocket and slowly slipped it back onto Sora's ring finger. "I'm staying with you, baby..."

[Reno]

The ailing brunette on the bed smiled as he was encouraged by the silverette, chuckling softly - but a dark blush came onto his cheeks when he heard what Riku had whispered. He wondered how he would even pick out any glasses if he couldn't see them - oh of course. Riku was going to pick them. He was doomed. Doomed to be molested at every solitary corner Riku found for them.

Wait, why was he complaining about this?

He would have teased Riku, would of said something about him always being sexy with or without glasses- but Fuujin spoke up and he glanced over in her general direction. "Yeah?" He asked worriedly, not liking the tone in her voice. It was the next statement... that broke him a little bit. His shoulders slumped and his eyes dimmed, no longer very happy. But he understood, slowly nodding to her words.

He felt something cold slip up his finger and looked down, seeing the faint glimmer of gold. It made him smile before he looked to Riku, "How did I know you'd say that?" His fingers curled around the other's, the grip not very strong. Lips touched in a gentle caress before Sora smiled a little more and looked towards the blurry group. "And the rest of you...?" He already knew the answers. It disheartened him a little but...

"Well if we're going into the water, these idiots are gonna need me. Sorry Sora." Aqua sounded sincere and he only smiled and nodded.
"It's alright. I'm sure they'll need your help on the water." Aqua was after all the best navigator on the sea in this team. The second being Riku and then himself.

Terra was next. "Tch and all these fuckers will need my intelligence or you'll probably wind up dead anyways."
"Oh, be nice for once." Sora chastised lightly, but was silently glad the brunette was going and not taking his pain as an excuse to get out of going across the ocean.

It was the next claim that no one expected.
"I'm staying." Heads jerked and all stared, open-mouthed and soundless... at Roxas. Even Sora hadn't expected it and he was connected to him. But Axel was surely...
"...Rox?"
"I'm staying and that's all there is to it." Then contrary to his words he stood and walked right out of the room.

"I think someone should go talk to Mr. Emo before he wails black tears in a corner." Terra said with a roll of his eyes.

[Rikugurl]

Fuu nodded as Aqua spoke, chuckling a bit. "Yea... and I need to go to make sure she doesn't kill anyone." She smiled at Sora, feeling bad for having to leave him. She knew... they didn't leave Axel when he was sick... and it felt like Sora wasn't as important but at that time... they didn't realize how little time they had. If they waited for him... there was no way...

"And I have to go to make sure those two girls don't make the ocean red with their periods." Ven grinned, seeing cold blue and red eyes looking across at him but he laughed. He didn't want to leave Sora either... but he knew that he'd be mad at him if he didn't go and they ended up all drowning. It was a hard decision this morning... but they had to start moving.

It was Axel who opened his mouth next and... was cut off by his own lover. Narrow eyes widened as his mouth gaped open. W-wait! That wasn't what they had decided! "Roxas!" He called before quickly following after him. He paused as he walked into the hallway, looking in both directions to see that Roxas was halfway down on. "Roxas, wait! Where are you going!?" He called before following after in a jog. When he caught up, he took his lover by the arm but it was pulled away violently.

Narrow eyes slanted even more before he snatched his arm again, holding tightly enough so when he shifted away again, he didn't go very far. "What are you doing? We decided to go! We're rescuers Roxas, we need to find Lugia's baby!"

[Reno]

Sora smiled a little as he heard Axel hurrying out the door but sighed. They would be back soon he hoped. But until then... "Neeeh Riiiiiku!" His stomach grumbled. He held up his fork in one shaky hand towards his general direction, big blue eyes wide and innocent. "Feed me?"

Hey if he was 'hurt', he was gonna milk some attention!!

Meanwhile down the hall, the blonde was taking a brisk pace back down the hall, hoping to get out and escape before-
"Roxas!"
-That happened. He grit his teeth, walking a little faster but damn Axel and his long legs. He was upon him in seconds, grabbing his arm and tugging him back. "Let go!" Not even bothering to listen what he had to say, he snapped, pulling away and started away again.

He got two feet before he was grabbed in a tighter grip, hard enough to make him wince. He didn't even look at Axel as he yelled at him, glaring at the wall. He wanted to say so many things. so many things he didn't mean. "I'm also a BROTHER Axel, and I want to be there for my family!" The other started to argue with him saying he had to go, "No! No I don't! I won't and I can't."
The last word seemed to catch the red-head off guard and he asked him what the hell he meant.
The blonde stood there, staring blankly at cold white walls before taking a deep breath, his voice shaky as he started to say. "B-Because... What if something happens Axel? What if he d-dies? Has a s-seizure or... or an unexpected failure and Riku's not there in time or...? I-I mean that... that happens!" His eyes shut as salty water burned trails down his cheeks his heart thundering in his ears as he admitted his fear. "What if he gets worse instead of b-better? L-Like mom did? I-I thought... such terrible things cause Sora never made it... i-it would be just his joke to do the same to me!"

And with that Axel realized, it wasn't that Roxas feared going. He feared coming back and finding Sora had passed when he wasn't there.

[Rikugurl]

Riku blinked as he watched the door that his friends ran out of before hearing his lover's whine. He looked back, afraid that something hurt when he saw... oh... those puppy eyes.
He smiled and shook his head before taking the fork. "Alright..." He laughed before he started to feed his lover but paused as Sora started to chew the first bite as they heard muffled yelling down the hallway. That... wasn't good... but no one wanted to go and check on them.


Axel's brow continued to pinch, his eyes narrow and looking hard down at his lover. "Roxas, we have to go! I know he's your family but if we don't do this, he might not even---" He paused as Roxas interrupted him, yelling back at him and he was going to snap back before... he blinked, his facial expressing changing completely. His eyes became soft before he looked down at the ground, his grip on Roxas's arm loosening and eventually dropped.

He was scared... that Sora would die while they were gone. He shook his head and actually pulled his arm back up, rubbing Roxas's back before pulling him into a hug. "Roxas... you know that that's not going to happen. Riku will be at his side every moment he can. The hospital even said that he could bunk in one of the spare rooms. He's not sick, his health is improving... there's no backfires with electric shock. Sora has already been through the worst... it can only get better now... but it won't be when the hospital is underwater..."

[Reno]

The brunette brightened even more when Riku agreed, a bubbly laugh escaping him. That was just too easy. He opened his mouth happily, taking the bite offered too him and glad that Riku was going to stay with him.

How... did they ever have trouble before?

He blinked though when he noticed all the blurs jerking in the same general direction, tilting his head some. They must of heard something but even when he concentrated... there was nothing. But from the emotions raging from his brother, he was certain he knew what it was they were hearing. He shook his head and smiled some, calm like Ven was about it. "He really shouldn't worry so much." Sora said, glancing in Ven's direction before leaning back more, snuggling his plush. "Seriously, how did you and Rox get so high-strung?"


Arms drew around the shaking body quickly as the grip was released, the blonde shivering some and when he was brought into the hug sank into it almost gratefully. He listened to what Axel had to say shaking his head some, but he knew Axel was right. It made him remember Terra's map... and the small circled areas he stated shouldn't go underwater. They were so small...

And Hearthome was not one of them in that safety circle. "I know. But..." He hesitated then swallowed, his throat thick with tears and other junk. Something could still happen? What if Zapdos knew Sora was still alive and came back to finish the job? What if something went wrong of the burns got infected? It wasn't like Sora was out of the danger zone. "...I just... I can't help but... but worry."

There were so much going against them. They had to save Hearthome before it got overtaken by water - that left them MAYBE three days at the most? They didn't even know where they were going, let alone how they would get to Sootopolis or if that's even where their adversaries were!

[Rikugurl]

Ven rolled his eyes before looking over at his brother. "Because you took all the fucking calm out of us, jackass!" He huffed before crossing his arms. Sometimes it felt true... and it frustrated him even more. How come Sora could calm and collective at times when he thought he was going to rip off his skin!? It even seemed unnatural to be that calm! However, he noticed that Roxas was becoming more level headed, until this journey started. He figured he'd be a loony too because he had to RESCUE Pokemon everyday! But... Axel had done something.

Or maybe... it was the settling.
Maybe owning a home... and coming to that home every night with someone you love kept you sane. Maybe when him and Terra got a place...
Or maybe his mom doomed him with the name Ventus and he would forever be like this.

"Don't worry, I'm sure they will settle things out." Riku spoke softly before bringing another piece of food to Sora's lips.


Axel rocked his lover slightly as he listened to him, leaning over and placing his face between Roxas's neck and shoulder. "Shhh, shhh.... I know Roxas. We're all worried. You wouldn't be a good brother unless you worried. You won't be a good father unless you worry... but if we're going to change something, if we're going to make a difference in everyone's life... we need to take risks... even with loved ones."

He reached into his crimson coat pocket and pulled out a little bag. "Like today... I was scared... I was worried about someone I love... because I didn't know what was going to happen. But... Zapdos wasn't the only thing I bought." His hand wrapped around one of his lovers before something cold hit Roxas's flesh, though not very cold since it was in his pocket this whole time.
A finger was taken before the band was pushed up it.

[Reno]

An eyebrow rose as he heard the other, "H-Hey don't blame it on me!" It wasn't like he was always calm. There were times he felt frustrated and panicked, just like everyone else. He wouldn't be normal if he never felt that sometimes, "I just never get all grouchy about little things."

He knew Ven was going to argue back but Riku quickly stepped in saying... something. He wasn't sure of all the words but he decided against asking him to repeat it, eating the food to keep himself quiet. He hoped Dr. Riri was right and his hearing will improve more...


Take... risks? Blue eyes opened some and the curious statement, noticing something in Axel's tone that was betraying him. Sure, leaving Sora here to save the world was a risk but... it didn't seem like Axel was talking about him anymore.

"Axel...?" He murmured softly as the other pulled away some, speaking about something else he had bought before grabbing his hand. "What are you-?" His fingers twitched as something cold met his fingers before the metal was slipped on his finger, glittering under the manufactured lights.

His heart shuddered and almost stopped as he looked down at his hand in disbelief, seeing an artful ring that was half gold and half silver, diamonds of varying sizes decorated the top of the band small but somehow perfect in every way. It made him remember something that happened back at Firi and Gin's place.

"Axel what are you doing?" Roxas yawned tiredly, still waking up as he looked up at the red-head who had seemed to be frozen, his hand being held up a piece of paper being wound around it with little numbers sketched on it. "You're supposed to be resting."
The red-head looked back, a strange - nervous - smile on his face. "I was! But I ummmmmm... remembered that its been five years since you've been a rescuer! And we forgot to give you a special ring rescuers get to commemorate their commitment."
Roxas rose an eyebrow. Did Axel always think of things so randomly? "Huh... okay. Where's yours then?"
"Oh uhhh... I lost it!"
"You lost it...?"
"....Yeah?"
"...That doesn't surprise me." Roxas cracked a grin.
"Hey!"

Now that he thought about it... it was his left hand and ring finger that Axel was measuring. How did he MISS that?
He looked up from the piece of jewelry at Axel, suddenly smiling lovely, eyes gleaming with happiness. "There's no rescuer ring is there?" He teased.

[Rikugurl]

Axel smiled down at Roxas happily. He loved to see that smile and--- A sudden blush ran over his cheeks at the question. Oh...uh.... that. He started to rub the back of his neck, looking around nervously before stopping, looking back down at his lover and nodded. "Actually, there is." He reached down and wrapped his longer fingers around his lover's, giving him a loving smile. "You've rescued me... from loneliness. I no longer have to be disappointed to sleep under the stars by myself, or make meals for one. Having you in my life... well... it's just feels so complete now."

He pulled Roxas close, his smile softly fading but not completely going away.
"But Roxas... I told you when we first met that we would travel together... and that promise is still the same today. If you really want to stay... I'll stay with you. If you want to go, I'll go with you." He leaned in closer, brushing his lips against the blonde before shaking a soft, loving kiss.

When he pulled away, it wasn't very far. Axel spoke again and Roxas could feel his breath upon his lips. "But baby... I really don't wanna drown. You know how I hate water."


Back in the room, a woman walked in, also in a white coat that came down to her knees and shorter brunette hair. Her eyes widened as she saw the mass of people before proceeding in. "Excuse me?"

Everyone looked towards her, somewhat silent as they waited for her to speak.
The doctor smiled before looking over at Sora. "Hello, I'm Dr. Yuna. I'm the general doctor for the day shift and I just came here to tell you that Dr. Riri has gone home and I will be taking her place. Her and I have been good friends since we started medical school so any patient dear to her is dear to me. Please let me know if you need anything, Mr. Holani and I'll see what I can do. Your testing will be in another two hours so please make sure to drink your liquids before they come and bring you down to lab."

[Reno]

Roxas smiled suddenly at the other's words, his arms wrapping around Axel's neck as he came close. "Ax..." He whispered, leaning up and into the kiss. Axel was right... he'd never felt more happy them when Axel asked for them to travel together, so happy and surprised he fell off a swing.

That was so long ago, back when his confidence was practically non-existent and he was about ten times shier then he was now. Then they went on a crazy adventure and he found... what love was. What happiness is with another person. He found Axel - or more Axel found him.

He chuckled softly at the others teasing, reaching up and brushing his hand through the red locks. "I know. We're going Axel. You know me, always got to be over-dramatic." He leaned up, kissing the other passionately. "I love you."


Blurry blue eyes looked up towards the new voice, hearing her though he could hardly see her. She was a brunette... that's all he could really guess. He smiled though and nodded. "Sure doc, whatever you say."

But silently he was thinking, MORE tests? How many were there? Was there anything else deeply WRONG with him?!
His thumb nervously played with his engagement ring, unnoticed by Yuna since she couldn't see under his food tray. He was still dealing with Riri's bad news. What if there was more? What if... hell he couldn't even see himself! How ugly was he anyways? Obviously Riku could still stand to look at him...

Or maybe not! He couldn't even see HIS FACE. It wasn't like he had kissed him today and...
"Errr... what about glasses?" He asked abruptly before Yuna could leave, suddenly desperately wanting to see. "I don't suppose theres anything... temporary you could give me?"

[Rikugurl]

Axel smiled when he heard the decision and laughed softly before his eyes lidded, returning the kiss. Their tongues danced for a few moments before pulling away. Green eyes looked into blue adoringly before he replied. "I love you too..." He wrapped intertwined their fingers together before wiping under Roxas's eyes from tears. "Come on, we better get back and see him as much as we can before he have to leave."

They walked down the hallway, back towards Sora's room but paused at the entryway when they saw a new doctor inside.


At the question, she tilted her head and though for a moment before shaking it. "No... but tell you what. I'll schedule you for an eye exam before your other tests so we can get you a prescription. Maybe one of your friends would be kind enough to go out and fill it for you with a discount from the hospital. You eyes will continue to change until you body decided when it's done... so your prescription might change. For now though, it's better than nothing and I'm sure you'd like to see your friends again."

She smiled before turning and stopping, seeing the two in the frame. "Oh, more of you huh?" She smiled before scooting pass them.

Axel and Roxas walked into the room, seeing that Sora had eaten some more. "What was that all about?" Axel asked before Ven replied. "Sora wants to get some glasses so he can see all our ugly mugs."
Axel blinked before grinning, pulling off his own and handing them to the brunette. "Wanna try mine?"

[Reno]

Sora smiled some, nodding. "I'd appreciate that, thank you very much." She heard her starting to leave, when she exclaimed about 'more of them'. That made everyone look towards the doorway, seeing a blur of red and yellow walking in.

Axel and Roxas.

He heard Axel speak before raising an eyebrow, and smiled. "Sure... I guess." He reached out shakily, taking the glasses, feeling the thin wire frame in his hands. He nibbled on his lip before carefully pulling them on, lidding his eyes some as they adjusted. To his surprise though... things started to come into focus. "Wow, Axel you really are blind!"

Everything was still somewhat blurry but he could finally see enough he could see expressions, eye colors, and whatnot. He around them room and at the people around him before finally looking at Riku. "So... this'll be the new me soon! How do I look?"

[Rikugurl]

Axel's eyes widened as wide as they could (which wasn't much) as he heard Sora's accusation. "HEY!" He pouted but a large sweatdrop came over his head before he crossed his arms. Well... maybe he was right.

It was early in the morning when he felt a weight on his stomach, actually waking him up. "Uuugh..." He groaned as his eyes opened slowly, seeing nothing but a blur of blonde. "Roxas... what the hell..." He yawned before reaching out and placing his hand on the blue. "Mmmm Rox, you're hair's so soft... and...."
"Ninetails!"
"HUH!?"

Riku smiled as Sora looked at him before shaking his head. "Your eyes are too big for them." He laughed, seeing Sora huff. "No, no... I mean... you need something that will bring your eye color out... not shade them. I don't want to lose that beauty."

Ven rolled his eyes before motioning a gagging reflex.

[Reno]

Terra shook his head, but grinned when he saw what Ven was doing. He reached out, grabbing his arm and tugging him back against him, wrapping his arms around him. He murmured close to him, "Oh don't be like that. You feel for those lines all the time." He grinned before murmuring in his ear, an old line he had used when they first 'officially' met "The stars are a sight but I'd trade them all away for the one thing I find beautiful. You."

Sora blinked, before blushing bright red as he heard what Riku said, twiddling his fingers as he looked at his lap, smiling. Yeah... these glasses were meant for narrow eyes like Axel's... "Well then I hope we find something perfect." He mumbled, but blinked, suddenly... seeing himself. Wow...

He raised a hand shaking, inspecting it. Everything was hidden behind the bandages except the sensitive first degree burns that was making his skin a little swollen. But there were just... a lot of them curling up his hands and arms. He could feel pain on his neck and face and torso and legs. And these.. were all going to scar?

He sighed, feeling emotion rising in his heart and for once, he kicked it away. "I hope the rest of me isn't too ugly later though."

[Rikugurl]

Ven blinked as he was pulled close and felt strong arms around him. He frowned a bit as Terra leaned over, speaking into his ear. This wasn't the time for--- His eyes widened and his blush came on hard before seeming to melt. He leaned back into Terra before sighing. "Yea... you're right..."

Riku frowned, watching Sora look at his hand. Maybe getting his glasses wasn't such a good idea. He was going to see all the burns... and scaring and... he was afraid about his self-esteem. Even if Sora is chipper and happy... that didn't mean that there wasn't the emotion that would sweep over him, making him feel ugly and unwanted.
That was the last thing Riku wanted to happen. "Don't say that Sora. There are plenty of lotions out there that heal up scars so you can hardly see them... but hey, maybe you should show them off. They're battle scars, right? You can boast how you encountered Zapdos."

He smiled as he ran his hand through Sora's hair again. "But don't worry... you'll get better... and no matter what, I love you... and no one or nothing can change that.


It wasn't long after that Axel was given his glasses back and he announced that him and Roxas were leaving too.
And that was when Terra reminds them of their lovely time limit.

They needed to get moving.

Everyone hugged Sora gently, saying their good-byes and not missing the few tears that ran down his face. However, the group left... and ten minutes came back with flowers and cards, placing them around Sora's bed. Farewells were given again to both Sora and Riku before the team set out. They weren't allowed to leave... without a friend though.
Arcy was given to Aqua and Fuu to ride so they could make better time without exhausting Moana.

The three Pokemon were called, saddled up and on their way.