Disclaimer: The story idea is mine, but the characters aren’t. Sad eh?

A/N: This is an extremely late birthday gift for my hunny, Tinuleaf. She’s so freakin’ awesome and kind, and I suck horribly for taking so long. But hey, I’m lucky she’s patient with me, and she’ll get to read chapter first before I post them. X3

I want to thank Das Villianz for helping me with the little errors! She's so damn awesome even when she's studying for exams. Thanks, chickie!

Word count: 6425

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Little Stalker

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It was a beautiful autumn night outside. The air was crisp, the skies were clear and the temperature was just right. It was all very pleasant indeed! Couples were taking romantic strolls in Twilight Park where the lamps were dimly lit. Everyone was graced by the moon’s presence. It bathed the entire town in its brilliant glow so only a few people were left in the shadows. Children were already tucked under their blankets, safe and sound, and parents were reading books or looking through photo albums in their living rooms.

There weren’t a large number of people roaming the streets. Overall, it was a rather peaceful evening…or at least that’s how it seemed at first. Treading along the street near the Kupomart, no one expected their relaxing evening to be interrupted by a loud, incoherent shout from night sky. The deafening sound bounced off the brick walls of the buildings and echoed into the next street. Everyone nearby simultaneously glanced up and murmured in confusion as they tried to pinpoint the location of the shouting teen.

Were school kids still outside playing their silly games? Somehow it didn’t sound like a cry for help anyway…

The passerbyers merely shrugged it off and continued on their merry way, oblivious to the predicament in which the boy named Roxas found himself in.

“Put...me...down!” Roxas’ voice pierced through the night sharply as his captor carried him under one arm. One arm! The man who was holding him and leaping off rooftops effortlessly was no ordinary person...no, no, no...Roxas just had to approach the notorious Crimson Thief earlier, and here he was being carried away to God knows where. Obviously that was his punishment. But really now, how could anyone actually adore this redheaded creep?! He was a thief and now it was clear that he was a kidnapper as well!

Huh...where were the policemen? They’re never around when you need them…

“You shouldn’t struggle so much,” the thief said nonchalantly, a playful, unnerving smile dancing across his lips. Roxas cringed at his suave response and then kicked his legs around, hoping to escape, but it was absolutely futile. The Crimson Thief’s lanky arms were unbelievably strong and his legs carried him a long way. “Easy there, I don’t want to drop you. At least not from this height,” he added with a charming wink. It sent waves and waves of shivers down Roxas’ spine.

“I’m screwed...!” Those were the only two words that resonated in his mind.

This was going to be a long night.

....……………………………………………o…O…o………………………………………………...

(Earlier that day)

Girls everywhere screamed for the notorious Crimson Thief. It was like they were rabid fans at a concert yearning to touch one of the band members that emerged from a light cloud of steam. Maybe screeched or shrieked was the more appropriate term to describe the deafening sound the girls made…

Every week they waited eagerly in their classrooms for the television to flicker on. Roxas always noticed that most of the girls in his class were on the edge of their seats, their bodies trembling in sheer anticipation. He knew they wanted to release squeals of joy or loud cheers. The teacher forbade it, claiming that it was a sin to deafen the other students, but they did it anyway. Roxas knew it was inevitable. Girls were like that though...not in a rebellious way, of course. Most girls could never contain the excitement within themselves, that’s all.

Still, despite all of that, it was irritating to hear them squeal and giggle idiotically for a thief every week. Roxas found himself rolling his eyes every time they punched their fists into the air and cheered wildly. He couldn’t understand why they were always so energetic.

First of all, most of the pictures on television were somewhat blurry and dark. A good number of them were actually silhouettes of the Crimson Thief. It was as though the night itself concealed his identity from the entire world, because even the policemen could never catch sight of him. Secondly, he was a thief; a man who stole expensive objects that had sentimental value to others. That was cruel and immoral. And third—

“I can’t believe someone actually got a video of him!” Olette cried out happily with a deafening, high voice, which unfortunately ricocheted off the walls of the dark classroom. Every other student jolted or flinched in their seats as their hearts raced inside their chests. They should have expected her cry of joy, seeing how they heard it every week, but it was much louder this time, so it was quite a surprise. The teacher nearly fell off of his seat, but he swiftly straightened his posture so no one would take notice and laugh. He despised the fact that the principals of each school decided to display the news every day. It was to create awareness for the students who refused to watch the evening news with their parents.

“We finally get to see him in action! I bet he’s hotter on video than he is in pictures!” The brunette swooned as she thought about said thief’s supposedly handsome features. Her friends squealed excitedly and nodded in agreement as the colour of their cheeks warped from peach to pink. All of the other students turned to them and either scoffed, glared, or cocked an eyebrow at their unruly behaviour inside the classroom.

Ignoring their gazes, the girls continued squealing over the admirable Crimson Thief. “He’s so...so...”

“Hot and rebellious?” one of her friends supplied with a wide grin.

“I know!” An electric pink cell phone was suddenly fished up from Olette’s backpack, and the teacher glared daggers from across the classroom, silently noting that he would confiscate it after the report. No one was allowed to use electronic devices inside the school after all. It was against the rules.

“Look at the new picture I put on my screen! I found it on a new fan site! I can’t believe they had such a clear shot!” And there he was; the Crimson Thief with his black eye-mask on, cloaking his identity. Along with that, the man wore a long black cape and a big, fancy hat, making him look like a person trapped in a Halloween costume, not that it bothered the girls, of course. His striking emerald green eyes and brazen red hair were the main attractions.

“I still don’t understand what the big deal is...” Roxas heaved a sigh and rolled his eyes as he turned to his brother for a reasonable answer. “Thieves of all people should not be worshipped,” he pointed out sternly, wagging his index finger in the air, while earning deadly glares from the fangirls in the back.

Sora clicked his tongue three times and wagged a finger in the air mockingly. “Ah, how naïve you are, Roxas.” With that, the blond fired an icy glare and kicked Sora’s shin from under the desk, eliciting a painful yelp, which drew attention. “W-well,” he continued with a hushed voice, “you know, the girls like him because he’s handsome. Not all hot guys are meant to be good. Heck, even the bad guys in those action movies get more fans than the good guys.”

Still, Roxas thought about how ridiculous it was to admire a thief who stealthily roamed the streets at night, tiptoeing at every corner, hiding in the shadows. Talk about being a coward…Why hadn’t the police caught him yet? Twenty people should have been enough to catch one. Even if the Crimson Thief was “hot”, it was still against the law to steal.

“There he is! There he is!” And the girls screamed as they leapt from their seats and hopped up and down, unable to contain their excitement any longer.

Roxas glanced up from the desk and finally saw him on the screen. The Crimson Thief was leaping from house to house, gracefully, gallantly, his cape fluttering wildly from his rapid movements, and a beautiful smile was painted over his lips. Even in the dark, his emerald green eyes could have been seen shimmering. They were brighter than any cat-eyes Roxas had ever seen. Under the radiant moonlight, his entire form was ravishing. “That’s insane…” he thought in awe.

“Whoa, whoa, what’re you, mesmerized?” Sora snickered as he waved a hand distractingly in front of his brother’s blank face.

Roxas blinked once and swallowed, unable to produce the proper words to describe his feelings.

“Oooh, my gaydar is picking something up.” A sly grin formed on the brunet’s lips as he poked his brother’s cheek teasingly. “Me thinks you have a crush on the hottie.” And that was what distorted the blond’s expression.

“What?” Roxas hissed with a dangerously low voice, slamming his fist against the desk. Luckily for him it was dark in the classroom because his face was tainted with a pastel pink blush. The girls still shot icy glares at him from across the room, ignoring the rest of the news. They just saw the ever-so-handsome Crimson Thief on a high definition TV screen. That was enough.

“Hypocrite,” one of them whispered bitterly, her fingers curling into her hands, forming tight fists. That wasn’t just the problem, though. If Roxas did like the thief then he would have been considered an enemy to the girls—competition was more like it, actually.

Sora folded his arms over his chest and grinned at their bitter remarks. “I saw the way you were staring at that screen.”

“Sora, I just said that thieves are pretty much unworshippable,” Roxas retorted coldly, still denying the idea of admiring the thief. He was only captivated for a few seconds, not that he would openly admit that to his brother or any of his friends… The Crimson Thief was unbelievably swift even though he was leaping off rooftops. Who wouldn’t be impressed? But that didn’t mean that Roxas actually liked the man. No...a thief was a thief. Stealing was stealing.

“Dude, you’re totally embarrassed…Unworshippable’s not even a word.” Sora snorted in amusement and earned a heavy punch to the arm. Just then the bell rang and everyone hastily collected their belongings, ignoring Sora’s shrill cry of pain. In mere seconds, they flooded the hallways, eager to leave the building—to escape their prison.

....……………………………………………o…O…o………………………………………………...

As punishment for bruising his brother’s arm, Roxas was forced to pick up the groceries after completing his homework in the evening.

Before he shuffled out of the house, he muttered a half-hearted apology for the thirtieth time under his mother’s irrational command. In Roxas’ opinion, Sora should have been the one to apologize for humiliating him in front of the idiotic and obsessive fangirls. “The whole universe is against me…” He was sure of it!

A gradient of warm colours hung in the sky as the sun began to sink beneath the town. Cars began to vanish from the roads as rush hour came to an end, and children withdrew into their homes as their parents strictly commanded.

“The streets are getting empty fast.” Roxas rubbed his chin in thought as he surveyed his surroundings. Perhaps the notorious Crimson Thief would walk the streets or roam in the shadows within the next hour. “No way…” Roxas scoffed and shook his head in an attempt to evict the thief from his mind. He hated that man with a passion…

“Me thinks you have a crush on the hottie.” No. Nuh uh. Definitely not. Sora was just spewing out nonsense at school.

“Why would I have a crush on a jerk like that anyway?” Roxas fiercely kicked a pebble when he realized that the Crimson Thief had infiltrated his thoughts again. He subconsciously searched his memories for an image of the thief when Sora’s words echoed in his mind.

Those shimmering emerald eyes flashed in the boy’s thoughts…along with that ridiculous cape. “Just because he looked kind of cool for a moment, doesn’t mean I have a stupid crush!”

So, why exactly did everyone admire and adore this thief? Roxas wondered if they would change their minds about the man if he ever stole from them. Maybe they’d be honoured if the infamous thief found something of rare value in their homes. “Ugh, they’d never see him as a criminal…” Of course not. They were blinded by the Crimson Thief’s cool exterior. How absurd…

Roxas instantly threw away those thoughts once he stepped into the half-empty Kupomart. He focused on picking out the groceries necessary to survive for the rest of the week since that was more important than some idiot thief. Plus, Roxas had to keep in mind that he had to buy double the amount of groceries because Sora was becoming such a gluttonous boy. The brunet would never admit it was a problem though.

But seriously, that boy had random cravings like a pregnant woman.

....……………………………………………o…O…o………………………………………………...

After leaving the Kupomart, Roxas whistled a little tune and swung his bag of milk around leisurely as he walked. It truly was a beautiful and peaceful night; the breeze was cool and the moon beamed down on the streets, making it seem like the streetlamps were not necessary.

Roxas wondered why he didn’t drag his brother along. “Lazy bum…” he thought with a scoff. Then sudden realization dawned on him; Sora had requested something right before Roxas left the house.

“Crud, I forgot Sora’s tuna.” It completely slipped his mind! Sora was like a starving cat when it came to his precious can of tuna!

After smacking his own forehead and wiping a hand over his face, the boy twisted his body around and began jogging back to the market, hoping he still had some time left before it closed. But he only managed to take a few steps before he noticed a dark figure leaping off one of the rooftops of a nearby house.

Roxas’ eyes bulged and his jaw dropped when he detected the familiar swaying cape and hat. “It’s that freak!” Without an ounce of doubt in his mind, Roxas knew it was the Crimson Thief. The television in his classroom presented that man on screen far too many times. “It’s definitely him. I can’t let him get away!”

Bitter thoughts contaminated Roxas’ mind as he followed the Crimson Thief. Determination blazed in his eyes as he gritted his teeth. “I’m going to give that jerk a piece of my mind!” He felt no sense of hesitation. Even though the thief could have been armed with deadly weapons, Roxas was too angry to even consider any rational thoughts.

Like thousands of others he hated thieves with a passion. It didn’t matter how tacky or cool they looked. They were lowlifes with nothing better to do. All of them made others miserable and sometimes innocent bystanders even died from robberies. These were the reasons why Roxas couldn’t understand the thief’s fans in the first place. Stealing was a disgusting and unforgivable act!

Roxas was determined to stop this particular thief, though. Unfortunately he found it difficult to keep up even though the man was leaping off rooftops. Roxas was on solid, horizontal ground, so it should have been easy for him to keep up, but that was obviously a miscalculation.

When he thought he could at least keep a close eye on the Crimson Thief, the man hopped down from the top of a two-story home, disappearing from the blond’s sight. Roxas simply stopped in his tracks and gaped in bewilderment with his mouth hung open.

Who in the world would leap off a rooftop and not expect any injuries?! No wonder why the Crimson Thief was able to elude stalkers and fans. That man didn’t even seem human!

After blinking rapidly for a brief moment, Roxas snapped out of his shock and continued dashing towards the alleyway where the thief had landed. “You can’t escape me now, freak!”

Even with shortened breaths, Roxas refused to give up. This was the only chance he had, and he deemed it his golden opportunity. The beating of his heart sped up as he drew closer and closer, and beads of sweat flew from the tips of his hair. “I need…to exercise more often!” his mind noted bitterly.

Finally, when he turned the corner, he found the Crimson Thief standing in between two houses gazing down at a gorgeous diamond ring. Roxas’ sweaty hands curled into tight fists when he noticed the satisfied smile plastered on the man’s lips. “Stealing…is wrong!” He hissed indignantly through his heavy breathing as he leaned against the building for support. The thief nearly leapt out of his skin when he heard the boy’s shout echo into the narrow hallway. “You should…you should return what you took! It’s not yours!”

The Crimson Thief blinked innocently for a few moments and then smiled a bright smile, one that made Roxas flinch in surprise. “But I am going to return it,” he replied rather cheerfully, nodding his head courteously in the boy’s direction.

“Return it? You just stole it!” In reaction to the bitter feelings bubbling inside, Roxas punched the wall with a fist. How dare the thief feign innocence?!

“I did. But I’m also returning it. Now if you’ll excuse me.” As the thief was about to leap away from the troubled boy, he conveniently overheard some people murmuring horrible ideas at the corner of the block. They spoke of terrible things they would do to the cute little blond boy who passed them.

Unfortunately, Roxas was still blinded by rage, so he hadn’t caught a word of the thugs’ plans.

“I guess I`ll have company tonight!” Quickly, the thief wrapped an arm around Roxas’ waist and carried him under his arm, earning a surprised shout from the boy.

The grocery bags slipped from his fingers and fell onto the cement when his entire body jolted. This wasn’t part of the plan at all! Panic swam in Roxas’ blood when warmth suddenly seeped through his clothes. “H-hey! Put me down, you pervert! I-I thought you were a thief, not a kidnapper!” Confused and alarmed, Roxas struggled to break free from the Crimson Thief’s firm grasp, but failed miserably. “Why is this happening?! H-how the hell is he so strong?!” All Roxas wanted to do was confront the thief and do a good deed! “Now I’m going to die for it!”

The Crimson Thief chuckled amusedly when he felt Roxas tremble violently under his hold. How cute. “Don’t worry. I’ll protect you for now.” A confident, yet kind smile grew on the man’s lips as he straightened his top hat.

The Crimson Thief leapt from a nearby trashcan and grabbed onto some pipes so he could climb onto the rooftop of a house.

Roxas was astonished by his ability to take advantage of the surrounding objects. “He’s so quick and flawless…” It would have taken him at least fifteen minutes to climb onto a rooftop, and here it only took the Crimson Thief ten seconds. But this wasn’t the appropriate time to be impressed.

“Put…me…down!” Roxas shouted viciously as he writhed under the thief’s hold. The mixture of fear and fury was still quite new to him. For one, he had never been so high off the ground before, in someone’s arms of course, and two…he was practically at the Crimson Thief’s mercy. “I’m screwed!”

“You shouldn’t struggle so much,” the man chimed, a playful smile dancing across his lips.

Ignoring the suggestion, Roxas tried to twist his body so he could take a swing at his captor’s face.

With ease, the man avoided it, and Roxas was instantly back in panic mode again. “Easy there, I don’t want to drop you. At least not from this height,” he said with a charming wink.

Unfortunately, Roxas had too much pride to scream for help…though he could have exposed the thief by claiming he was a kidnapper as well. “Ugh! This is ridiculous!” The thief was surprisingly strong, considering his lanky form. “W-why are you kidnapping me?” Roxas spat out bitter words as he glared daggers at his happy captor. At this point he felt more anger than fear.

“Believe me little guy, I am not kidnapping you. Leaving you in an alleyway would be wrong, especially in this neighbourhood at this hour,” the thief replied smoothly, winking a beautiful eye at Roxas for the second time.

The boy huffed through his humiliation and crossed his arms over his chest, ignoring the shivers that crawled down his spine. What a stupid way to spend the night… “I don’t need a notorious thief to save me,” he sneered. “I hate you.”

Said thief chuckled softly at the bold statement as he leapt off another rooftop. “Do you believe in good thieves, little guy?” he suddenly inquired, his voice calm and cool.

“No! Thieves are bad people.” With his teeth clenched, Roxas shot yet another icy glare at his kidnapper. Good thieves have never existed. Robin Hood never counted, seeing how he was a fictional character from a storybook.

“Is that so?” the man drawled.

“Yes.” Roxas rolled his eyes in exasperation, silently wishing that the idiot thief would just admit that he was a bad person. But the man blinked innocently at the boy’s dull tone.

“Do you know why I steal?”

“To make people miserable or because you’re too cheap to buy your own crap!” Roxas growled and writhed like a vicious little animal. The last thing he wanted was to be in the arms of someone who hurt others.

The thief laughed as he finally set Roxas down onto a random rooftop. “Actually, I only steal from those who have stolen from others,” the man said matter-of-factly.

First Roxas gave him a sceptical look, and then shook his head vigorously, denying the statement completely. “Liar…” He breathed out the word bitterly, like it was poison. “Thieves only steal for themselves! They never care about other people’s feelings.”

With a bright smile spreading across his lips, the Crimson Thief fished out the diamond ring he stole from a house earlier. It was the same one Roxas saw before he began screeching at his captor. “This belongs to an old woman. Her late husband gave it to her on the day of her wedding, but a mugger cornered her and stole it just a few days ago. I am merely returning this to her, the rightful owner.”

Roxas swallowed hard at the explanation as his eyes fell on the gorgeous diamond ring. That thought never even occurred to him. Most thieves kept everything they stole. A large number of thieves stabbed people and drew fresh blood for objects of great value. Commodities somehow had more worth than human life.

“H-how do I know you’re not lying?” Roxas needed confirmation, reassurance…just something to clear his mind of fog. Whether the thief was good or bad, the blond just wanted to dissolve the confusion growing in his mind.

Oblivious to the concern Roxas was feeling, the man hummed thoughtfully and tapped his chin. “Hmm…I have to prove that I’m an innocent thief…” It didn’t occur to him that innocent thieves never existed in Twilight Town. He was the only exception. “Ah!” The Crimson Thief grinned and snapped his fingers as an idea struck him like a brilliant bolt of lightning. “Would you like to see me return it to her?”

“W-what?” Roxas stammered and hastily took a step back. A gasp escaped his lips as he slipped on a slanted tile. He screwed his eyes shut and prepared himself for the worst, but the thief swiftly grabbed onto his arm and secured his balance.

“Careful, some of these rooftops can be slippery,” he warned with a small chuckle. Roxas couldn’t even utter words of thanks because the thief was so keen on proving himself innocent. “So would you like proof that I’m not a liar?” He was so laid back that the blond couldn’t find the will to retort. The angry thread inside of him just…faded.

“Y-yeah…” Roxas admitted weakly, feeling somewhat faint. Everything he had ever thought about seemed like nothing now. All of his conclusions were negative, but now…the Crimson Thief was different from what he had always imagined. Roxas shook off his sappy thoughts and forced himself to maintain focus. He had to stay alert in case the thief was just deceiving him.

“Sweet!” The thief smiled cheerily and pumped a fist in triumph like a child would if he won a prize at a fair. He swept Roxas off his feet again and began searching for the old woman’s home on Destiny Road.

From high above the ground, Roxas noticed that most of the houses looked identical. “Talk about a lack of creativity!” It was going to take hours to find a house that belonged to an elderly woman! “Do you even know where she lives?” the blond wondered quietly, expressing his pessimism.

“I do!” The Crimson thief chirped proudly, his smile never wavering. “It took a few days to find her though. She’s too terrified to leave her home by herself.”

“O-oh…” Roxas aimed his head down and frowned sadly when he imagined how horrible the elderly woman must have felt after being cornered by a ruffian. All she wanted to do was go for a walk on a nice autumn day…yet she ended up being a victim of robbery. “Only thieves…” his mind murmured.

On a brighter note, the Crimson Thief was going to return the ring to her. “Maybe she’ll be so thrilled that she’ll walk outside again.”

“That’s the hope!” then man replied cheerfully. “Hang on now, I’m going to pick up the speed.”

When Roxas felt the thief’s lanky arm tighten around his waist, he shuddered. Even if the man was supposedly doing a good deed, Roxas had never felt so…violated before. Despite the excitement pumping in his blood, he couldn’t help but fear the idea of being a slave of some sort to the thief. The Crimson Thief of all people could do anything to him…

“Ah, here we are!” The man chimed and shattered Roxas’ thoughts in an instant.

The blond peered through a closed window of the neighbouring home and discovered an elderly woman sleeping soundly in her bed. Roxas couldn’t help but frown forlornly when he took notice of the tight security on her window. Even from a great distance, Roxas easily took note of the giant lock inside her window. “Was the freak telling me the truth…?”

“Don’t worry. That’s definitely her.” The Crimson Thief’s voice was dripping with confidence, but not so much that it made him seem cocky. He carefully set Roxas down onto the rooftop and stared intently at his sleeping target.

“Wait here. I’ll be back in a few minutes,” he said with that perfect, nerve wracking smile of his. “I’ll take you home right after this. I promise.”

Before Roxas could even retort the man leapt off of the rooftop and skilfully clutched onto the ledge of the window. “He’s…really not afraid of falling?” Roxas couldn’t help but watch in awe. The man was extremely flexible, like an acrobat from some circus. He swung his legs back and forth like a pendulum for a few seconds and then performed a back flip, earning a small gasp of worry from the blond. Surprisingly enough, the man landed perfectly on that small ledge, making Roxas’ jaw drop.

“How in the world does he do these things?” Roxas regained focus and found that the thief was holding onto the upper ledge of the same window. It was only for a brief moment though; just something to help him keep balanced.

The thief cautiously knelt down and began picking at the lock with a thin, unidentifiable object that he fished out of his pocket. Unfortunately for Roxas, the man’s ridiculously large cape covered his view. “And here I thought he was going to learn how to pick at a lock.”

No one had ever displayed such an interesting skill in front of Roxas. Honestly, picking locks seemed like a myth since he had never witnessed it. “Look at him go!” His mind cheered for the idiot thief’s success. A whistling sound slipped from his puckered lips when the Crimson Thief lifted the glass and snuck into the room.

Then realization hit the boy; the thief broke into someone’s house. Roxas should have realized long ago that thieves had the ability to sneak into people’s homes without breaking anything, but that meant that they could have been predators. “Forget about stealing for a moment…” his mind strictly demanded. “This guy could be a pedophile!” A look of sheer horror washed over Roxas’ pale features as his body quivered. “He’s going to take me home after this. The Crimson Thief is going to know where I live now!”

No, no, no….that wasn’t what he wanted. “How did I even end up in a situation like this?! I can’t have him knowing where my family lives!”

Before he could even think of a single plan, the thief slipped out of the cozy home and returned to Roxas’ side.

“Mission complete!” The thief playfully expressed his success with a peace sign and a wink, earning a quiet scoff from Roxas. “I guess it’s time I kept my promise!” Before Roxas knew it, he was under the thief’s arm again, frantically wondering about what was going to happen to him and his family. “You’re pretty light for a little guy,” the Crimson Thief remarked as his smile warped into an amused grin.

Ignoring the mildly insulting comment, Roxas began to writhe under the man’s hold. “I-I can walk home on my own! You’ve had a busy night!” Roxas frantically exclaimed.

“Sorry, I can’t let you walk home alone at this hour, little guy,” the Crimson thief said coolly, “It’s too dangerous.”

It was difficult for Roxas to utter a simple “no” when the thief held a charming smile on his face. Plus it was also sort of flattering to know that the man actually cared for his well-being. “But he could be deceiving you!” his mind barked. Then again, at this late hour it was probably safer to be in the arms of the Crimson Thief than the violent thugs below. “813 Moogle Avenue…” Roxas answered with a heavy sigh.

....……………………………………………o…O…o………………………………………………...

“I should have just given him the address of my neighbour’s house.” Roxas mentally smacked his own forehead when the idea jumped into his mind. It wasn’t necessary for the Crimson Thief to know exactly where he lived! Somewhere close would have been perfect! “Stupid Roxas…stupid, stupid, stupid, Rox—”

“We’re here!” the Crimson Thief said, using a sing-song voice.

Roxas blinked and found himself standing on the sidewalk right in front of his cozy little home. It was so close that Roxas just wanted to rip through the door and run to his room. Fear was still eating him alive, but he swallowed thickly and made an attempt to ignore it. “T-thanks…” he murmured softly, not knowing whether or not he actually meant those words.

The Crimson Thief winked in his direction and shivers journeyed down Roxas’ spine. Was the thief expecting Roxas to repay him for his services? He was just…standing there smiling brightly, and it seemed like he was waiting for something. “What if—what if he wants money?” Roxas’ mind wondered worriedly. “Or my body? Or-or—”

“Oops, I forgot to grab something. I’ll be right back!” The thief tipped his hat in a gentleman-like manner before he climbed up the walls of some neighbouring buildings.

As soon as he leapt off the nearby rooftops and disappeared into the night, Roxas dashed to his front door and frantically retreated into his home, his sanctuary—his safe haven! The door was instantly slammed shut and locked tightly so no one else could enter. Sweat trickled down the side of Roxas’ face as he double-checked the security of his locks. Good…the thief wouldn’t be able to reach him anymore. He hoped so anyway.

“Freeze, scumbag!”

Roxas nearly leapt out of his skin when his brother jumped into the narrow hallway armed with a metal baseball bat. “Geez! Don’t scare me like that!” The blond scowled and whipped a shoe at his brother, who luckily deflected it with his bat.

“I thought someone broke into the house!” Sora exclaimed, stomping his foot childishly.

Roxas groaned and leaned against the door as fatigue overcame him. He slid down to the floor and buried his face into his hands, exhausted from his journey with the charming, yet mysterious thief.

“Did you even go shopping?” Sora scanned the hallway for grocery bags, but discovered that there were none. A pout creased his lips when he strode over to the door to examine his twin. “What happened?”

“That…idiot thief!” Roxas hissed through his gritted teeth.

Taken aback by his brother’s response, Sora dropped his weapon and stammered. “W-What? Someone mu-mugged you?!”

Roxas shook his head and heaved a weary sigh, knowing that it was much more complicated than that. “No. No one did, but I was going to get mugged.”

“Going to?” An eyebrow rose on Sora’s face as knelt down in front of his twin. “You’re not making any sense! Do you want water? Y-you look pale.”

Roxas shook his head but smiled gratefully at his brother’s generous offer. It was nice to see Sora concerned about his well-being. “I’m okay,” he guaranteed, “just shocked.” His brother gestured a hand towards Roxas, encouraging him to continue. “The Crimson Thief carried me from house to house like…like some package! Now he knows where we live!”

With that, the other twin burst out in laughter. “As if!” He grabbed onto his sides and continued to laugh hysterically, ignoring the seriousness of Roxas’ situation. It all seemed like an idiotic joke to Sora, seeing how Roxas despised the Crimson Thief with what seemed like his very soul. Plus, Sora had teased him earlier in the day in front of the fangirls.

Roxas grabbed his twin’s arms and glared daggers, silencing the laughter. “You’re serious?” Sora eventually asked.

“Dead serious.” The response Roxas gave was grim and was accompanied with a firm nod.

“H-how?” Sora questioned with dilated eyes. His mind was now overflowing with questions. “Why you?”

“I don’t know!” The last person Roxas ever wanted to converse with was the Crimson Thief, but the man ended up saving him from a violent beating. A mixture of fear and appreciation filled him inside, but to his displeasure he lacked the ability to feel anything else. Why couldn’t he just be one hundred percent happy that he was in perfect health?

“Go sit in the living room. I’ll get you some water.” Sora hastily lifted himself from the floor and jogged into the kitchen, disappearing from his brother’s sight.

After a weak nod of approval, Roxas practically crawled over to the living room where a nice, comfortable couch awaited his arrival. He was still trying to absorb the fact that the Crimson Thief knew where he lived. “I don’t have anything of great value…At least I don’t think he wants it.” In actuality Roxas owned something very special; it was the silver pendent that hung around his neck.

“The thief wouldn’t want it though. If it was stolen, then he’d return it.” That conclusion sprouted from false hope. Roxas didn’t know enough about the Crimson Thief—no one did. In fact, the thief could have stolen the diamond ring again after he escorted Roxas to his front door.

There were just too many negative thoughts swimming in Roxas’ mind. Even if the Crimson Thief wasn’t someone who robbed people, he could have been a sexual predator. “Y-yeah…there are a lot of those lately too…Wait! What am I thinking?!”

Roxas shook off his pessimistic thoughts and glared frigidly at the coffee table. Fear shouldn’t be taking him over so easily. He wasn’t weak! Okay, physically he was weak, but not mentally! He was temporarily shaken up by the Crimson Thief’s peculiar behaviour as a human being, but that shouldn’t have summoned the fear within Roxas. “No, I need to clarify some things.”

“Um…Roxas?” A meek voice came from the kitchen and Roxas jumped from his seat.

He turned to his brother who was peeking out from the kitchen. “Yeah?”

For some unknown reason, the brunet turned his head and looked through the closed window. It was almost as if he was searching for something that belonged to the sky. He then shook his head and eyed his brother nervously, like he was about to have a panic attack. “You didn’t bring home groceries, right?”

Roxas blinked rapidly at his brother’s unusual tone and shook his head. “No, I accidentally dropped them when the Crimson Thief grabbed me. Why?”

“Well, they’re sitting on the kitchen table right now.”

Roxas’ eyes widened in shock as those words reached his ears. He bolted from his seat and dashed into the kitchen to confirm his brother’s discovery. Three grocery bags sat neatly on the kitchen table, all of them still in excellent condition aside from the bits of dirt that sat at the bottom.

With shaky fingers, Roxas reached forward and shifted the bags carefully, quietly. It almost looked as though he was making an attempt to disarm a time bomb since he was moving things around in a delicate manner. He noticed the bag of milk he swung around earlier and swallowed thickly. “Yeah…these are the ones I dropped.”

“How is this even possible? I saw you come in from the front door!”

“He broke into my house!” Roxas gasped and cupped his mouth the moment he realized that the Crimson Thief went to pick up his abandoned groceries. For a brief moment, Sora gaped at him in bewilderment, trying to register the thought of the Crimson Thief breaking into his home. He quickly shuffled over to the window and examined the frames, hoping to figure out how the thief broke into his home without making a sound. “Was it…was it really him?”

The answer was crystal clear in Roxas’ mind. After witnessing it for himself, he knew that the Crimson Thief was capable of picking locks. However, instead of feeling grateful, Roxas felt bitter. Anger had washed over every ounce of fear in Roxas’ mind and body. In response to that feeling, his hands balled into firm fists. “That bastard broke into my house!” First, the man made Roxas feel violated and then he had the nerve crack open his kitchen window!

“This guy…has some nerve!”