The thing is, it’s rare to get an opportunity to just have a good, long ogle at Riku.   Lea perceives his chance now, as Riku begins a post-training session cooldown. Sweat makes a glimmering surface of his skin, lingering on the ridges of exposed muscles. Lea tilts his head to one side and wishes he’d thought to invite Sora to the show.   He indulges in a good few seconds of contented staring before he slinks up to Riku and ever-so-casually strokes the exposed skin. The only explanation he offers is a playful smile. 

   “--Those’re lookin’ kinda bad.”   A dispassionate observation. His tone suggests he could be discussing the weather. A gloved finger prods at an angry red patch of skin on the prince’s side, revealed by a scorched shirt. Axel’s no expert ( really, he’s not; he never has reason to linger after setting a person on fire ) but he thinks those might need attending to.   Just to be sure, he peels away the burnt fabric-- rolling it up above Noctis’ ribs despite any protests he may provoke. The marks discolour the skin in a series of painful-looking splotches, some darker than others. Axel must’ve gotten in a pretty nasty hit. Just like Noctis not to mention exactly how bad.   Yeah. Those probably need attending to.   He heaves an incredibly put-upon sigh. “I guess I’d better go acquire some kinda healing thing for those. Don’t want ya droppin’ dead on me before I get the chance to take your heart, y’know?”   He’s gone in a swirl of darkness before the prince can complain.

   Twilight Town is not precisely medically equipped ( the most he can find is a few potions and some kind of thick paste-like burn cream ) but it is cheap, which is great because Axel’s not exactly raking in the cash from his job as a member of a secret heart-stealing cult.    When he reappears on the clock tower, purchases in tow, he prods Noctis in the shoulder. “Oh, look, you’re still alive!” He waves the burn lotion. “Got a present for ya. All I ask in exchange is your heart. Fair trade, yeah? Anyway, shirt off, your highness.”   He ends up yanking the singed garment off for himself. He nudges Noctis to turn a little, displaying the worst of the burns, and then ( for the first time since they met ) Axel peels off his gloves. His bare hands actually touch Noctis, which is a strange phenomenon for reasons he can’t quite grasp. Emotionally numb he may be, but he can still feel the warmth of another person’s skin.   He massages the burn cream carefully in, falling uncharacteristically quiet as he works. He makes no apologies for having been the one to cause this in the first place. They’d be fake. He can’t be sorry.    “Drink that potion, too.” He nods to it, the green bottle sitting untouched on the ground. “Not poisoned or anything, promise. Unlike some, I am not a sneaky little bastard who has people ingest questionable things.” He finishes his work but doesn’t draw away just yet, instead choosing to press a playful kiss to the top of the prince’s spine.    “Uh-- All better. That’ll be one heart, please.” 

   Lea’s beginning to feel like this trip to the beach was all just a convoluted plan to tease him with Sora’s half-naked body. He wouldn’t put that past his boyfriend. He’s conniving.    “Not that I’m opposed to slathering your body with sun screen, but--” He pauses. He’s forgotten his argument. If he ever had one. Slathering with sun-screen sounds great. “Yeah, okay, lay down. And quit wigglin’ your ass at me before I smack it.”   He smacks it anyway before he begins the thorough job of massaging lotion into the tan skin, rubbing over lean muscle and walking his fingertips down Sora’s spine. His boyfriend’s made for sunlight to love. Lea presses an admiring kiss between his shoulder blades as he finishes his job.    “You gotta do me next though. And a pre-emptive ha-ha at the innuendo you’re probably about to make of that.”

   It’s not that he hadn’t expected Myde to be gracefully proportioned ( or, indeed, beautiful ) but the sight of him baring a little of his body is strangely fascinating. It’s accidental, obviously; just a quick stretch that happens to reveal a shapely stripe of stomach and sides.    Is it an accident? For an instant, he entertains the notion that Myde is being coy and flirtatious. That stretch does seem to be going on for a while. Lea arches a brow.    He’ll play. Since he’s already been staring for a good few seconds, he simply lounges back against the wall and fixes the faintest smirk on his face. Let Myde catch him watching. 

   “Spank me all y’want, Isa, I’m not gettin’ outta bed yet.”   He’s comfy in his cocoon, face nestled into plush pillows, and he has no plans remotely involving moving. He is, however, going to briefly poke his head out of the blankets to comment, “I barely even felt that, by the way. Weak.”

   “Aw, that’s adorable. You’re too edgy to admit you like my hair.”   A hand raises automatically to pat the pliant nest of spikes atop his head. They bounce back under his touch. He’s never done a thing with them in his life except permit them to take over his head and occasionally slick them back, but he likes to act like the style’s intentional.   “What can I say? I was just born perfect.”

   “Yeah,” he agrees quietly, solemn in the face of another underwhelming training session. He stares at his empty palms, still so unskilled. The keyblade does not feel like home, or like his.    “But I don’t have time to take baby steps here.” The weight claws at his chest. He only has the keyblade now because of his horrifically fast sessions with the fairies. He’s an incomplete student and for all Master Invi’s teachings, he fears he’ll never be enough. “All those cosmic evil plans we gotta stop aren’t gonna wait around for... my horns to grow.”