Title of one-shot: Father and Son

Characters: Ventus (four years old), Luxord (late twenties), Ansem (early twenties).

Summary: Luxord never knew how much he needed her until she was gone. But how does one break the news to a child? The answer is never easy, and it takes a lot more than time to heal the wound.

"I am so very sorry for your loss, Luxord," Ansem said, his head bowed.

The ornate room was small and compact; the wooden furnishings were by no means plain, but the mahogany was modestly carved and generously engraved. Luxord sat in a chair beside the double bed, smoothing out the linen on one side. Ansem remained by the door, his thick golden cloak hung over his left shoulder and his crown was heavy with pure sapphires.

"Luxord, I implore you to speak. The midwives tell me you have turned deaf within the world and I worry for you. Nay, I worry for Ventus. Luxord, the boy is four. He has questions."

"I cannot face him." Luxord spoke with a raw throat and red eyes, looking to the lily wilting in the vase.

"He does not understand why he cannot see his mother and he misses his father. You saw the effect on Titan's boys when he neglected them his care, I ask you not to place the same grief upon your son's shoulders."

"And what would you have me say?" Luxord asked. He leaned upon the bed, his hands folded beneath his chin. "How do I explain that his mother has passed? How, to a boy of four, do I explain the irrational concepts of death and life?"

"You are thinking too big. You must sit with your boy and talk calmly. Show him that you are not upset and he will try his best to understand you. I have spoken with him myself before I came upstairs and he is far smarter than you believe. He understood that his mother was unwell and he has done his best to keep you happy with his behaviour; I now think it is time you return the favour and be honest with him."

"I have tried to face him, but all I see in his eyes are her and I cannot do it. She loved him so much and in my greed I pushed for more."

Ansem shook his head sadly. "Luxord, my dear, dear friend, it is only natural that a man should want more children. Indeed, it is a woman's place to provide this when she is able and comfortable, but you must not blame yourself for the worst. I am sorry for the loss of your wife and child, but you must not turn your back on Ventus now. He needs you."

"You do not understand."

"So you think, but I know you better than yourself. You are my soldier and my friend; if you will not talk to Ventus then I will make you. You are only prolonging the wound of heartache by doing this and I had never thought that you, of all men, would be the one to wallow in self-pity."

"Can you not see that I am grieving? There is no self-pity in remembering the loved dead."

"No? Then why will you not permit your son the same honour and allow him to grieve beside you? He will know at their funeral, Luxord. Would you have such an outburst as Prince Axel and Prince Reno?"

"Ventus would not act out. He is too well spoken."

"As were Titan's children."

"There is a difference in situations. Titan blamed his children; I would never do such a thing to Ventus. He is all I have left, and I will cherish him until I am taken from this earth; what more would you have of me? To allow a child to know that his mother and younger sibling are no longer breathing is a thing of utter destruction. He plays in the yard with toy swords and ponies – I have opened the window to hear him laugh so he might ease my heart – yet I know, I know, Ansem, that to tell him such things would tear him from me. How would you beseech me to tear the last of my flesh from my person? I cannot do it. Do not ask a broken man to sever the last of his will. I will not listen!"

"Then you are a fool, and I must impact my decision upon you to bring you from your heart's madness."

"Grief is not madness."

"Yet it festers the same. I have come to see you in your ill time and I have become troubled with what you have shown me. I must now enforce that you return to my service as my general."

"I do not want-"

"As a former knight of my kingdom I command you to take up sword and shield and to brave a metal heart for the good of this nation. Do not defy me else I shall be forced to enact the laws I have been bound to sign. You will accept my offer, you will return with me as general, and you will speak with your son. You have my complete permission to live with my royal blood within the castle's depths, Ventus will be raised within the city and be taught by the same tutor's that tend my daughters; he will be shown the way of the knight, the honour of the system, and the pride of the kingdom."

"You are asking me to force my child to become a man at the age of four, My King. With all due respect I must ask you if you are being kind or speaking out of insanity. Your father passed away… Do you feel you cannot cope? Must I be beside you when I am needed in the countryside with my boy?"

"You speak rashly. I will forgive your tongue as you are my friend, but I ask you to mind it. Tell me, what good would befall Ventus here? Would you have stable boys and milk maids tend him? He will have the finest education and upbringing the Raion Kingdom can give, he will be trained by the finest sword master to grace our land, he will have complete and utter happiness and always a loving home he can return to. I ask only that you come as my general, and my friend."

"You think a castle will ever be a home? Look around, My King. Can you hear the birds singing? See the sun shining? Feel the warmth through the stone and understand every snippet of laughter that should circle this cottage. This is a home; this is where I want my son to belong. A castle is a world of politics, cold hearts, ugly scorn and shapeless faces. I have been in that world and I managed to escape it barely with my life. Your father was a good man, but even he saw the drowning demands of the crown."

"He was a good man, and you both mine and his friend. I need you back with me, Ventus needs his father, and you must snap from this woe. I will give you three hours to speak with your son and explain, then we will depart. A courier will collect your things. Come, Ventus waits outside."

Without waiting Ansem left the room. The pine banister was smooth and sanded under his hand, and the marble floors had his shoes clicking in the quiet of the cosy house. Midwives and maids waited with their ears folded and their hands behind their backs, stepping away and dipping their heads with great politeness. Ansem passed them all without word or gesture, making his way outside into the bright light.

The path was cobbled stone with a pebbled exterior, leading down a sloping hill to a thick stream of silver fish and hearty frogs. Bushes broke the edge of the water and an overhanging birch cooled the grass to give a healthy helping of shade.

Ansem could hear splashing, and with every step down the path it increased in volume. At the bottom of the hill was a gate that required him to uncoil the metal wire to open it, and on the other side, standing frustrated and oblivious in the stream, was Ventus.

The young boy slicked his golden hair back with his wet hands, standing knee deep in the stream. A hot breath left him and he stuck out his tongue, swishing his tail and bending to pick up the fishing rod he had dropped. In his hands the pole slipped – being too big for him – and he shifted it between his elbow and side with his thumbs pinching the ends and the wire tangled around his boots.

"Ventus?"

"Eep!"

The rod dropped into the water and Ventus turned with wide eyes and an open mouth. At the sight of the crown he respectfully bowed, going so low his nose threatened to touch the water before he dared to straighten up.

Ansem chuckled, standing in the shade of the tree. "May I ask what you are doing?"

"Fishin'." He kicked the water shyly, his hands behind his back.

"That rod looks too big for you. Is it yours?"

Ventus blushed and twiddled his fingers. "Um… No. Daddy don't let me play wiv 'em."

"Oh?"

"Please don't tell him, your majesty, sir. Please! Mummy don't like me in the water."

"Your secret is safe with me, Ventus. Tell me, do you know where your father is?"

The boy's small fingers began picking and unplucking the wire from his boots and laces. "He's wiv mummy. She's havin' a brother."

"Having a brother?" Ansem smiled sadly and pressed his hand to the tree's cold trunk. "Surely you mean you are gaining a brother, not your mother."

"That's wha' I said. Daddy says I have to stay outside till mummy's better. Then I can go see her and the new kitten." He tugged hard on the wire, utterly breathless with his hands red and sore. "Fink I'm stuck."

"Would you like some help?"

"King's ain't supposed to help."

"Oh? Why not?"

"Cuz you get wet."

Ansem rolled his trousers up to his thighs and waded into the stream, crouching in the water and soaking himself thoroughly. He felt Ventus's wet fingers slip and cling tighter to his shoulder when he held the kitten up.

"Hold tight. We don't want you swimming away with the fish."

"Mummy says I'd make a good fishy cuz I'm always in the water."

"Are you a good swimmer?"

"The best!"

Thick rolls of laughter erupted from Ansem's chest and he lifted Ventus's boot, untangling the wire and wrapping it around his knuckles neatly. He freed the blond quickly, picking him up and sitting him comfortably on his hip as he waded back through the water. Ventus peered over the side, his ears fluffy and twitching.

"Where's Namine?"

"Namine is at home. It is just me today."

"Oh… How come she didn't come play? She still mad?"

"No. Although placing chewing gum in a young girl's hair is not the best way to become friends."

"We were jus' playin'. She wanted to play kissy cat. Blurgh!" He poked his tongue out and wrinkled his small nose. "Who'd wanna kiss girls? They're icky."

"Oh? Would you rather kiss boys?"

Ventus frowned, examining Ansem's golden cape. "Nu-uh. Kissing is disbusting."

"Disgusting."

"Disgustin'."

"So you would never want a kiss?"

"Mummy gives me kisses."

"So you like your mother's kisses, but not Namine's?"

"'S different," Ventus explained with a small nod. "I love mummy."

"You do not love Namine?"

"That is enough, Ansem," Luxord grumbled, stepping through the gate with his hands outstretched. "Pass me my boy."

Ansem handed Ventus over and the small Raion threw his hands around his father's neck, hugging him tight with flushed cheeks. The water soaked through Luxord's shirt and he squeezed his boy tight, kissing the top of his head with dry lips and cuddling the smaller body affectionately with utter adoration. At a complete loss, Luxord bowed his head into his son's mass of hair, fighting hard to stop his shoulders shaking.

"Why are you wet, Ventus?"

"Was playin' in the stream. Fink I lost the fishin' rod. Don't tell mummy, daddy! I don't want her to worry."

"Mummy won't worry, son."

"She won't?" Ventus drew his thumb over his dad's button, making it shiny. "When's dinner? I'm hung'y."

"We will have to eat on the road. We are going back to the capital with King Ansem."

"We're gonna go see Namine? Is mummy coming too? She said she couldn't ride wiv the kitten."

"Mummy is not coming, Ventus."

"She's not? Can I stay here wiv mummy?"

"No, kitten, you cannot stay here. My King, if you wouldn't mind…"

"Of course," Ansem said, grasping his friend's shoulder on his way past.

Ansem walked up the hill with his trousers still rolled up. Half way to the top he stopped and looked over his shoulder. Luxord was on his knees, his hands holding Ventus's shoulders, and the small kitten was shaking his head with his hands balled up into fists and scrunched over his eyes. Luxord cuddled his son and Ansem folded his ears back to hear the little Raion crying in his father's arms.

Ventus hugged his father tight, his small hands grabbing the fabric of his shirt and tugging it. Luxord tried his best to shush him, but his little kitten was heartbroken and the tears were thick and fast.

"I-I want m-mummy!"

"I know, kitten. Shh, I'm here."

"I want mum!"

Luxord closed his eyes, swallowing back the lump in his throat. "I know, Ventus, I know. It will be alright. We'll get through it, I promise. We'll be okay."

"Why'd she leave? Was I bad? I'm sowwy! I'll stay outta the water-"

"No, Ventus, you were not bad. You were never bad. She… She loved you so much, kitten. So, so much."

"Then why'd she go? Daddy, I don't… I don't… P'ease bring her back, daddy." Ventus pushed from his father and held the man's cheeks, his sore hands prickled by the golden beard. He hiccupped, his breaths heavy and hard. "P'ease daddy, bring mummy back."

"I cannot, kitten. I'm sorry, but I… I just…" He shook his head and held the small hands to him. "I cannot."

"No… No, daddy, no!"

"Ventus-"

"No!"

Ventus threw himself from his father's arms and ran through the stream, wading in to his waist and propelling himself across the water with his arms grabbing and pulling nothing. He heard his father's large splashes behind him, heard Ansem call from above, and he scrambled up the opposite bank. His hands were caked in mud as he kicked up the dirty hillside and ran across the open meadow, snapping and destroying tulips and bluebells as he ran from something he couldn't understand.

He was a fifth of the way across the plain when his father's strong arms scooped him up and turned him into a staggering chest. He cried harder, pounded his fists down over the pectorals and wriggled, becoming a fitful mess of tears and coughs that spluttered into dry heaves and sick.

"Calm down, Ventus. I have you, you are alright."

"I want mum."

"Me too, kitten. Me too."

Six Months Later

Ventus sat huddled at the end of his bed in the Raion Capital. The sheets hugged his waist and he pressed himself to the headboard, shivering as the moonlight slithered into their room and clawed over his bed. He tucked the blankets to his chin and peered over them, his knees up like mountains in the cold room.

The devil reincarnated sat on the end of his bed in the form of a six legged roach with buggy antennas and twelve eyes, a hard shell, thorax, small clicking pincers and evil intentions. Ventus wriggled further back and whimpered when it crawled up the sheets, swallowing hard.

"Daddy…" he whispered, his breath frosting in the winter night.

The bug crept further up the covers, bigger than his fist and hungry. It clicked again and he whimpered, looking over the large room to where his father laid snoring with his back to him. The Raion general was exhausted after a long day's training. Ventus bit his lip, knowing he shouldn't wake him.

He sucked in his breath when the bug met the mould of his toes and began climbing, his ears bent back and his heart uneven in his chest.

"Daddy…" he whispered again, a little more urgently. "Daddy, please…"

Luxord turned in a daze and opened his eyes, squinting through the blurry darkness. "Ventus…? What time is it?"

"Daddy, it's a bug. It's a big one."

"What?"

"It's on my toe! Daddy, get it off!"

Luxord sighed and threw his covers back. He shuddered when his warm feet hit the cold floorboards, standing with a groan for his protesting muscles and wandering over to his son. He saw the bug and twitched his ears, unimpressed.

"You are truly afraid of this creature?"

"It's a bug."

"It is no larger than your foot and hibernates half the year." He scooped the insect up in his palms.

"It's yucky."

Luxord leaned over his son's bed and opened the window, letting the bug crawl out and closing it tight. "There. Now please, Ventus, daddy is up very early tomorrow and he needs some sleep."

"But what if another one comes in? There could be millions!"

"Ventus, I am very tired," he said, rubbing his eyes.

"What if there are bigger ones. Like this big!" He stretched his arms outwards and wiggled his fingers. "And they've got pointy teeth too, and, a-and-"

"Ventus, shh. Come here."

Luxord picked up his boy and hugged him in the crook of his arm, taking the blanket with him as he crossed to his own bed. He laid down and wrapped Ventus up in the smaller blanket before pulling him into his thick quilt, groaning when Ventus shuffled and squirmed to get comfy.

"Ventus-"

"I miss mummy…"

Luxord gave in and sat up, reaching over the side of the bed for his pack and rummaging through it. Ventus sat up with twitching ears, crawling over his father's tummy and peering along the side.

"Watcha doin'?"

Luxord brought him close to kiss his head and dragged something wrapped in tin foil close. He held it outwards and Ventus peeled it back carefully, stopping every time the metal sheet crinkled in the quiet of the room. The action was long and painful to Luxord's sleep deprived mind, but the smile on his son's face at the sight of the chocolate was worth it.

Ventus gasped, his hands clapped to his mouth. "Daddy, mummy didn't let me."

"Do you not want any?"

Ventus shuffled. "Can I? For reals?"

"Of course."

He stroked his son's hair back, tickling behind his ears and enjoying the soft giggles. Ventus caught Luxord's hand and with sheer strength he tackled the arm down (or so he thought in his four year old mind). He took a small piece of the smooth bar and savoured it, cuddling down with his head on his father's muscled arm and his covers over his shoulder.

"May I have another bit?"

Luxord laughed at the squeaky voice, watching his son lick his fingers with bright eyes. "Yes you may."

Ventus stared at his father and went for a bigger bit, happy he could snap it away without being stopped. By the time he was finished his fingers were sticky and his mouth covered in chocolate stains, the blankets and sheets a mess.

"Daddy?"

"Yes?"

Ventus closed his eyes sleepily, still holding a piece of melting chocolate.

"I love you."

Luxord swept his hair back, taking the leftover sweet from the dozing kitten and smiling at the mess he had made. "I love you too, Ventus. I'll always be here for you."

Author's Notes:

I am so sorry I've been away from these for such a long time, guys! I hope to be bringing in some more frequent stories and I was thinking of maybe including something about Roxas next time seeing as we've had two for Axel. What do you think?

I just want to stress that the views Ansem had about it being a woman's duty to birth young are not my views, only the views taken up within the character. I really want to stress that point.

Stalker - Aw, sorry it had you tearing up! Yeah, I think I preferred them as a happy family rather than an upset broken one :/ At least Luxord and Ventus seem to be doing okay, although they did get colder as Ventus grew up :( There are too many sad chapters now lol I will try and bring in some happy ones soon! Thanks for the review!