![I know I uploaded this image a while ago, but DA recently took it, and the accompanying ficlet, down, so here it is again, drabble under the cut :’)
Things Left Unanswered
~~~~~
[[MORE]]The look in your eyes will turn to surpriseAs you feel the pain and you realizeThe one hurting you is somebody whoOnce said, “I love you”
~~~~~(I Always Kill) The Things I love - L.A. Noire soundtrack —-Roxas rubs his eyes, fingers massaging into the skin of his eyelids as he releases a long breath. He takes a peek out of one eye back at the case notes before him, and groans as he feels the first inklings of a headache sprout in his temples. The letters inked into the mess of papers before him start blurring and bending, and Roxas pushes the paperwork away, reclining back into his chair with a small curse of defeat. Two men found dead within a week, and Roxas doesn’t even have a lead to go on. He has canvased the crime scene meticulously and still no appearance of any key pieces of evidence. To make it worse, no one claims to have seen a thing for either of the two deaths. It is pushing on the fifth day of the investigation, and the persisting harping of the press journalists hoping for a juicy scoop on a suspect has Roxas wishing he could turn his pistol on them for a day. He tugs the beaded lamp chain, turning off the bulb and leaving the room lit by the gold hue of the setting sun. Ignoring the mess on his desk, he pushes out from underneath and prepares to leave the office, only to have someone knock at his door. What timing, Roxas thinks bitterly, if they shove any more paperwork on me today, I swear I’ll—The person outside doesn’t even wait for a response, and the door opens to reveal Axel tipping his green fedora whimsically as he greets him. For the first time all day, Roxas breaks into a smile.“Well, nice to see you all cheery, Sunshine,” Axel grins, shutting the door behind him, “did you break the case already?”Roxas rolls his eyes, and laughs softly. “Oh, yeah, because handling this case is something to be cheerful about. The Captain is going to serve our asses to us if we don’t get something out to him soon.”Axel walks over, smiling, and sifts through the mound of papers and documents covering the entire surface of Roxas’ desk. He chuckles, “Christ, Roxas, how the hell do you work in this mess? Half your cabinets are left open and there are books everywhere. I’m surprised you can still see the typewriter under this mound.” At the joke, Roxas involuntarily grins widely, feeling a small rush of relief from the lighthearted fun Axel brought with him. The redhead pauses at the black and white photos of the victims, and tilts his head for a better look. He examines the first photo of the arson victim silently, before moving it out of the way to study the image of the other dead man. Roxas just sighs, running a hand through his hair. “I don’t know what we’re gonna do, Axel. Did you get anything from the first suspect? Didn’t he have it in for Vexen?”Axel pinches the corner of the photos, closing the file folder before responding, “sure, that Marly fellow had a rift with him, but I didn’t get anything that would be useful to the case. Hated his guts, I suppose, but it isn’t enough to bring him down to the station.”Roxas groans, picking up the small stack of books from the tabletop to place them back on the shelf. “And that woman? She consorted with him didn’t she?”
“She’s a bitch, but if you can get something out of her, that’d be a miracle. She’s tight on her alibi; she was seen at the bar the day Vexen died.”“So, nothing?”“Nothing.”Roxas turns back around to face his partner, clenching his jaw as he muddles over the deficiencies of his investigation. “I just—I can’t believe we don’t have any witnesses for this, Axel.” He pinches the bridge of his nose, eyes squeezing shut. “We don’t even know what lit him up—it’s as if this Vexen spontaneously burst into flames in the middle of the goddamned woods!” He throws up his hands, clawing both sets of fingers through his hair as he mumbles, “whoever did it has to be a professional, there’s just no other way your average murderer would be able to leave his victim and the goddamned crime scene this spotless.”“So, you’re saying he’s done this before, or a hit man case?” Axel asks in a level tone.The younger looks up, brows furrowed in determination, “it has to be. It can’t be suicide, it’s impossible—there’d need to be the source of the fire nearby if it was.” The blond clenches his fist, rushing back over to the desk and wading through the stacks of photographs before pulling out the one of interest. “And not to mention the foot scuffles! The guy had backed up into the gate, Axel, I know it. He was set on fire after backing up, like he was trying to get away from someone and getting cornered at the front of that mansion.”Axel looks at him, and takes the photo from his hand. He stares intently at the scuff marks photographed, and purses his lips. “So what about the marks left from the suspect, then? What happened to those?”Roxas chuckles a mirthless laugh, feeling more and more worn out as he and Axel continue to review the case. “Axel, do you know how many men in this city wear Brogues? You’re wearing Brogues, for god’s sake.” Axel peers down, and chuckles, “well, so I am.”Roxas just groans, leaning back on the edge of the desk while rubbing the heel of his hand into his tired eyes. “This…this is getting us nowhere. I don’t even want to start talking about Zexion. I wouldn’t even consider it part of the Vexen case—it’s just way too strange. The causes of death aren’t even the same.” He grimaces, and feels a swell of pain in his head as he reaches the threshold for his stress. “I feel like I need to drink myself into a stupor tonight.”Putting down the photos, Axel takes a step closer to Roxas. “Hey, it’s fine, Rox. We’ll catch the guy who did this, alright? Just relax and get home,” he suggests in a soft voice. The blue-eyed detective looks up, and forces a smile, only to have the corners of his mouth drop as his mind continues to swarm with unanswered questions. “I know, Axel, I just,” Roxas pauses, and shifts uncomfortably. He averts his eyes when he continues, “These two men, they worked for the department before, if only for a few years before getting transferred. I just want this guy off the street. The last thing I need is another body of a former department employee to add to the pile.”Axel sways his weight from one leg to another, slipping his hands into his pockets, “it’s always the last thing anyone of us wants, but you’re in homicide, Roxas. A dead body or two could very easily turn up tomorrow.”Roxas punches his friend in the arm, retorting, “That is an incredibly cryptic thing to say. I don’t wanna hear it, Ax. These hits are hitting a little closer to home, and I want to be able to sleep with both eyes closed.” He feels a hand slip around his waist, and he looks up, locking gaze with his tall partner.“Hey, nothing is going to happen to you, alright?” Axel reassures, moving closer to the blond.“Yeah? And what about you? We’re as vulnerable as the next person!” Roxas sighs, continuing quietly, “you just said, another body or two could turn up. I could very well be ne—” “Don’t you say shit like that.” Long fingers grab his chin, forcing his head up. Axel’s sharp green eyes burns with a sort of determination Roxas hasn’t quite seen before. “I won’t let anything happen to you.”“As reassuring as that sounds, you can’t promise the impossible, Axel.”A look of distress flashes over Axel’s face at the answer, and the younger investigator apologizes for his words. Axel notices the darkening circles beneath Roxas’ eyes. The blond’s once lively blue eyes now look dull and haggard, revealing the exhaustion racking his body. “Your nightmares have been getting worse, haven’t they?”Roxas just nods, allowing himself to be pulled into a tight embrace. “I’m fine, don’t worry about it.”Axel merely shakes his head in response, moving his hands to Roxas’s shoulders to massage the tenseness out of the muscles. The smaller male melts into the touch, eyes fluttering shut as Axel moves to caress his neck. He needs this—after a day with Axel doing his interrogations alone, and Roxas watching the coroner cut into his victim and driving around to various points of interest only to have fruitless results, the familiar feel of Axel’s hands on him seems to brush away some of the anxiety that has been building since the beginning of the investigation. A moment later, he feels the warmth of Axel’s mouth on his, and he responds in kind, moving against him in a deep kiss. He pulls the young man closer, wrapping his arms around the small, lithe body as Roxas locks his arms around his neck. The embrace becomes desperate as if time in the homicide department, surrounded by cold corpses and being constantly reminded of the cruel, gruesome people living in their city, has left them desperate for the warmth of another’s touch.The small of Roxas’ back digs into the edge of the desk, and he lets out a small moan when Axel moves his hips against his own. “A-Ax,” Roxas whispers, fingers running through Axel’s long hair as his partner plants open-mouthed kisses beneath his ear and along his jaw. His head falls back accommodatingly, fingers curling into soft red hair, and face heating up to a blush as Axel continues to touch him. He feels his lover mumble a distracted “what?” against his neck, and the blond can’t help but break into a giggle. “Axel, I—“ his train of thought falters when Axel runs a hand up his chest and down again, and he tugs gently at the red hairs at the nape of Axel’s neck. He murmurs against his mouth, “I want you to take me back to your place.”They share another intimate kiss, the room quiet save for the soft smack of their lips, before Axel releases him, sobering him from the lusty haze with a question. “So what are you gonna tell that broad of yours this time?”Roxas just shakes his head, hands falling to grip the lapels of Axel’s pinstripe jacket before pulling him down for another hard meeting of lips. Escape, that’s all he wants, that’s all he’s after. There is nothing anyone can do to save him, and Axel has become his refuge. He knows parts of himself have broken over the years, leaving irreparable damage with the people he used to know and no longer finding salvation at home. There is nothing he can say, and certainly nothing more he wants to agonize over at this point. He just hopes Axel understands that well enough to leave that topic behind.They break apart, Axel straightening his suit as he watches Roxas go around the cluttered desk to pluck his jacket from the back of his chair. Axel watches, mouth falling into a small frown.“Roxas,” He says.The younger of the two shrugs on his plaid jacket, straightening the collar of his shirt before reaching over to the coat rack to retrieve his fedora. “What is it?” he asks, only to turn around again to see Axel up close to him once again. Axel takes Roxas’ face in his hands, pressing close to him when he once again repeats his promise in a hushed voice.“I won’t let anything happen to you, Rox. I won’t.” Roxas nods, kissing him once more. “I believe you,” he says simply before urging his partner towards the door.](http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m5mal7yTEN1qm6dm2o1_500.jpg)
I know I uploaded this image a while ago, but DA recently took it, and the accompanying ficlet, down, so here it is again, drabble under the cut :’)
Things Left Unanswered
~~~~~
265 notes
Let's party in my Kookie Jar.
Psst, I've got a shhhhhhhecret!
~ Friday, June 22 ~
265 notes
Posts that have made me click the 
button
-
Weiß Schnee
RWBY
cosplay/editing by nyurt
photo by photopanda -
-
