Wow! I wrote this so fast x3 helps when you roleplay with people!
Frostfire was up bright and early the next morning, much to her dismay. Shot soon followed her into the kitchen, asking Sonia about breakfast.
"How do you girls feel about pancakes?" Sonia asked, setting some pancakes on plates.
"I've never had any!" Frostfire exclaimed excitedly.
"Well, take a plate and try some." Sonia said, with a bright smile.
Frostfire did as suggested as she sat down, grabbing a plate, and ate it. "Mmm, fascinating taste!" She imitated Sonia's smile. The syrup captivated her. Shot also began munching away on her breakfast.
"I'm glad you like it. At least some people appreciate my breakfast and actually get up. Speaking of which, are my brothers still in their room?" Sonia asked.
"I heard Sonic sound asleep but I think Manic is up." Frostfire replied.
"Oh, good. I'm going to drag him down. I'll be right back." Sonia said. She mumbled something under her breath that went unheard as she ran off to retrieve her brother.
Frostfire oddly enjoyed the silence as she ate. She savored every piece of food on her plate. It wasn't meat but it was good. She had a pleasant conversation about Sonic and Manic with Shot; the typical back-and-forth chitchat about boys was of the context.
Soon, Sonia came back in the kitchen, dragging an unhappy looking Manic with her. "I can't believe he still isn't up!" Sonia cried.
Manic looked a little happier when he had entered the kitchen and saw the two girls. "Sonic always sleeps in, sis."
"And it never gets less annoying." Sonia said, angrily walking over to the table. She picked up a plate a handed it to her brother. Manic almost dropped the dish since he was still a little fatigued.
"H-Hi, Manic." Frostfire softly said, still eating her pancakes. Her tail swayed slowly at the sight of him.
"Hey, Frosty. Are you as tired as I am?" Manic asked as he stretched, walking up beside her and he sat down.
"Probably moreso…" She told him as she yawned, taking one last bite of her food.
"See, sis? Not all of us are morning people." Manic said, gesturing to Frostfire. Sonia only rolled her eyes.
Frostfire chuckled. "I am more nocturnal than anything." She smiled.
"I agree. Night owl, all the way!" Manic said before digging into his breakfast.
"You two are perfect for each other." Sonia said, giggling. Manic almost choked on his pancakes as he looked at his sister with wide eyes.
Frostfire blushed madly, her cheeks were as red as a tomato. She awkwardly looked at the floor. Was Manic disgusted at the thought of them together? She could think of no other reason for him to accidentally choke on his meal.
"Relax. I was only kidding." Sonia said, winking at Frostfire. Manic only chuckled sheepishly. Suddenly, he wasn't so hungry.
"Oh, good…" As soon as the words left Frostfire's lips, she felt horrible. "Er, I mean…" Now she didn't know what to say. Fortunately, Manic decided to say something.
"What, perfect like you and Bartleby?" Manic smirked evilly, trying to hide his accident from earlier.
Sonia became extremely red. "No, not like Bartleby!"
"Who's Bartleby?" Shot asked
"No one! Just my foolish ex-fiancé…"
Frostfire's ears perked up at the sound of "fiancé. "I had a fiancé..." She said.
After spitting out half of his pancakes, Manic decide he no longer wanted breakfast. Sonia shock her head and rolled her eyes at her brother and then looked to Frostfire. "Oh, really? But that guy was a jerk. Who was your special someone?"
"He's a Husky named Snejok. He had somewhat of a prideful nature but he was a good hunter. He was the Chief's son, after all." Frostfire almost was proud herself for having attracted the one she once adored. "All the girls who want to marry the Chief's son go through a hunting test and must obtain the paw of a Polar Bear and display it as a token of her love to him. The cleanest-cut paw is ideal. I managed to have the cleanest looking paw as I tried my very best. I adored him at the time." Frostfire sighed. Flashbacks of her past with Auk and the horrid machine suddenly dispensed into her mind. "Manic can attest to what I'm about to say but after a certain incident with my brother, Snejok, along with my former best friend Boaz, were captured by the man in red." A tear dropped from her eye.
Sonia put a hand on Frostfire's shoulder. "I'm very sorry. He sounded like a wonderful guy." She gave her a comforting smile. She couldn't help but notice her brother's dismal features.
"I hope to find him one day…" Changing the subject, Frostfire continued. "I also told Manic that I have hunted many prey. That's why I wear these jewelry. They aren't for fashion statements, each tooth represents how many prey one has killed." She said displaying her wrist, ankle, and tail bracelets." Even after being exiled, I am still proud to be a hunter."
"Impressive and, even if they aren't a fashion statement, they look lovely on you." Sonia said.
"That's a high praise, coming from my sis, you know." Manic said, earning him a smack in the back of the head from Sonia. At least he was back to his normal self.
After a giggle and blush, Frostfire went on. "You know, one might not realize it but the Tlavians, that is, my people, are a combined race of Huskies and Snow Leopards. Except the Huskies are known as the Qikmiq and the Snow Leopards are known as the Kayi. Both races weren't always unified. They were once at war, simply out of racial fear. But a forbidden love between a Qikmiq named Yup'ik and a Kayi named Naukan commenced and they, as leaders, broke the chains of war over my people." Frostfire sighed happily. "Forgive me for bantering, but I just love telling that story. It's more inspiring to tell it to Outlanders than to those within the Tribe." She said with a huge smile on her face.
Sonia squealed. "That's sooooo romantic! What a beautiful story!"
"Thank you. I always find it nice that Outlanders enjoy the story." Frostfire's smile became softer.
Frostfire heard the footsteps of Sonic coming into the room.
"Morning, everyone…" He yawned and stretched his legs. Shot tried not to look at him too noticeably.
"Oh, sure! Now you're up!" Sonia griped.
"Morning, bro!" Manic said.
"Ugh, not so loud… My head is pounding…" Sonic garbled his words.
"That's what happens when you sleep too long." Sonia said, crossing her arms.
"Hey, get off my case!" Sonic replied holding his head with his hands.
"So, how'd you sleep, bro?" Manic asked, trying to keep an argument from starting.
Sonic looked at Manic and exhaled slowly to calm down. He knew his brother long enough to understand his reasoning behind the question. However, he wondered if his sister had the same idea.
"Surprisingly well. I slept like a baby." Sonic looked around. "Is Sal here yet? I was supposed to hang out with her today."
"No. She hasn't called or anything." Sonia said, putting a hand on her hip. "I'm sure she'll be by soon."
"Oh…" He said somewhat disappointingly. "I wonder why she isn't here yet…" Sonic tapped his foot for about thirty seconds then said, "I'm gonna go see what she's up to… see ya!" Sonic fled outside the door and away from the base in no time flat.
"Well... He stayed longer then he normally does. Probably, because of the company..." Sonia said, glancing in Shot's direction before cleaning her dish. Shot simply blushed and finished her meal. "I swear he spends more time with woman, then us." Sonia shook her head.
"That's what guys do." Manic said, shrugging. He walked over to his sister and placed his dish on the counter.
"I can see that." Sonia said, giving him one of her sisterly smirks. Manic crossed his arms and rolled his eyes.
Both Frostfire and Shot blushed profusely.
"Who is this Sally?" Frostfire asked.
"A brilliant young woman with a royal heritage." Sonia said.
"A smart, princess chick." Manic said, in a less descriptive manner. "Kinda like Sonia only, less bossy." At those words, Sonia punched Manic in the arm. "Ow!"
"Anyway... Her and Sonic are close." Sonia said. She sent a glare toward Manic as she picked up his plate and started scrubbing it.
Shot slumped in her chair. This has given Frostfire an awareness. "Wait… are we talking about the Sally? As in, Sally Acorn?"
"So you've heard of her?" Sonia asked.
"She's the heir to the Acorn Kingdom! Of course! Heh, I admit, I heard about her when I became part of this land but still!" Frostfire smiled big. "Sh-She is my role model!" Frostfire said proudly.
"I'm not surprised. Sally inspires us all. Well, maybe not all of us... "Sonia said, glancing at Shot, "But not everyone is a fan."
"I never understood why, she's so brave, smart and beautiful!" Frostfire told Sonia.
"She is but even the most amazing people are disliked at times. I hope we can introduce you to her, that is, if Sonic ever stops distracting her." Sonia said. Manic chuckled a little.
Just then, Sonic came through the door with Sally in his arms. "Hey guys! Look who I found!" Shot had a face of sadness at the sight of Sonic holding Sally.
"Hello, Sally." Sonia waved to Sally.
"Hello to you, Sonia!" Sally replied.
"Oh, you all should probably know a few others trailed behind me for a visit…" The aforementioned were some who were there during the mech attack. Three new faces were also present.
"You better have not brought them over here for food." Sonia said, giving her brother a playful glare.
"Of course not! We thought we'd have a little party!" Sonic laughed.
"Sonic swept you off your feet again?" Manic asked the princess. The princess rolled her eyes.
Frostfire's legs would have given out were it not for her already sitting. "I-It's… you…" Frostfire stood up slowly, nearing tripping. "I… I am honored to stand before honor and loyalty! Your presence is but a blessing, princess! B-But do not think I neglected your personality, I may be humbled but I am aware you are more than just a princess!" Shot looked away from Sally.
"Sally, this is Frostfire. The other, grumpy looking girl, is Shot." Manic said, gesturing to the two girls. "Frosty's a big fan of you. I'm sure you noticed."
Frostfire sort of bowed, only moving her head. Shot huffed.
Sally tried to escape Sonic's hold but he wouldn't let go, only to mess with her. "Please set me down, Sonic." Sally said. When the blue hedgehog refused Sally tickled him behind his quills and happily landed on her feet when he let go of her. "Pleased to meet you, Frostfire, Shot." The princess stuck out her hand to shake Frostfire's.
While Shot sat back, Frostfire immediately went to shake the princess' hand. "Pleasure's all mine!" She wanted to say something but she hadn't a clue as to what to speak about. The others in the room piqued her interest, however. "Sonic who are your friends?"
"My best friend Tails the Fox, Amy Rose, Cream the Rabbit, and the Chaotix." Sonic told her as he labeled each name to each person respectively.
"Nice to meet you all!" She smiled. Everyone began to mingle in the base. Frostfire watched as Manic socialized with his siblings and took notice of a certain Chameleon. Her spine tingled copiously, which both startled and frightened Frostfire. She felt this way around Manic but around a stranger?
As she sat there, watching everyone intermingle, she realized it was due to his mysterious nature. She hardly knew him but his deep voice and formalities bespoke of this. Her interest in him rose some when he expressed something about him being a ninja. "A real life ninja! A walking story book character! How exciting!" She thought.
Moments later, she heard Manic's voice among the small crowd as he abruptly left the base to god-only-knows where. Her heart sunk as she looked back at Espio. Oh, how torn she was! Frostfire disliked how her heart had suddenly split into two between the Chameleon and the Hedgehog. Although, logically, if one did not like her, the other could be as a fallback lover. Perhaps it's not the best idea but she didn't know what else to do.
As she had looked back at him she noticed his piercing eyes had caught wind of her. Blushing, she looked away towards Shot, who gave Frostfire a slight smile.
"Looks like you've gained an admirer, Espio." Vector said, going unheard to the girls sitting at the table.
"So it would seem." He simply replied.
Frostfire deciphered her best friend's smile as she knew exactly what went on inside Frostfire's mind.
"D-Don't look at me like that…" Frostfire said hugging her knees.
"You like him too, don't you?" Shot smirked.
"Y-Yeah, s-so?"
"So… Now you've got a decision to make." Frostfire groaned and buried her face into her knees.
"I can't… One might reject me…"
"It doesn't hurt to at least talk to someone else."
"Yeah, you're right… I'll be back." Frostfire sighed and slowly getting out of her seat slowly walking towards Espio. As she made her way to him, she softly said, "H-Hi…" The cool Chameleon simply smiled.
"I'd wondered when you'd approach me." Frostfire could only blush. "I could see you were longing to speak to me. What is it you have to say?"
"I… I heard you were a Ninja. I-I've only heard about them in story books." She told him.
"We are indeed real."
For about ten minutes or so, Frostfire and Espio began speaking about matters like his detective agency, honor, sacrifice, hunting, and training. Before long, Shot grew more uncomfortable and wormed her way to Frostfire.
"H-Hey… I wanna get out of here for a while…" Frostfire nodded to her long-time friend and, after excusing herself of Espio and notifying Sonia that they were leaving, the two of them went for a walk.
"I cannot believe I have fallen for two guys at the same time…" Frostfire double facepalmed and sighed exasperatedly. "Shot, what do I do? I mean, I really like Manic but Espio entices me so…"
"Go with who you feel the strongest about…" Shot told her.
"I-Its obviously Manic but what if he rejects me? What if both reject me?"
"I don't know, man... I'm not very good with relationships myself..."
Frostfire contemplated her words, unable to speak anymore. "I'd go nuts if both rejected me…" Then something hit her. "W-What if both liked me?" She dreaded the thought and chaos of it.
As the two continued to talk, they came across an alley way where Frostfire's sharp eye spotted Manic with someone. That someone was a female Blue Jay. She observed his body language and determined they were close. Frostfire's heart sunk once more.
"It looks like Manic already has someone, Shot…"
"Hey, you don't know that for sure, they could just be friends."
Frostfire continued looking at the two of them - how close he was to her, the way he smiled at her, and how pretty she was. "They seem so perfect for each other, though…" She wasn't sure if she truly meant that or not but she didn't know how to react to this, either.
"Come on, you don't know anything…" Shot growled. Frostfire didn't want to hear it. In her heart, she believed it was true. Her one true love found someone else.
"I… I just want to be alone, Shot…" She said with hurt in her voice as stormed away from her best friend.
Shot sighed as she watched the miserable Snow Leopard fade from view, deciding to return to the base alone.
While Manic was speaking to the Blue Jay about an upcoming heist, Frostfire began to walk off all alone, depressed and disconsolate. As she welcomed misery without any choice, the Chaotix sneaked outside to follow her.
"She seems sad, you guys…" Charmy said out loud as the Chaotix were quietly discerning the dejected Snow Leopard walk away and towards the neighborhood pool to be alone. Espio closely observed her as quiet moments passed on, using his calculated mind to boil up a strategy to deal with Frostfire.
"Vector, I have a plan… we should attempt to gain the attention of Manic. Frostfire obviously has feelings for him and he does not notice."
"Hmmm… I like it!" Vector praised his comrade. "But how would we execute this correctly, Espio?"
"Perhaps we can use her fondness for me as leverage." The Chameleon replied. Vector's crocodile grin grew. Espio's confidence turned into apprehension. "Y-You're suggesting that I covertly take this into my own hands, aren't you?"
"It'll be perfect! You're the secondary choice of her affections. You can make Manic jealous-"
"-And provoke him to act, I understand. But how can you be so sure that he reciprocates her fixation?"
"Call it intuition, Espio, old pal." The Crocodile chuckled and smile proudly.
"Fine." Espio rolled his eyes, remembering how well that worked the last time they tried to use their match-making skills*1. He sighed reluctantly, realizing there was no way out of Vector's scheme, as usual. "What do I need to do to fulfill the role of getting the two together and invoking Manic's jealousy?"
"That's the easy part. Charm her." Vector replied simply.
"W-What? You can't be serious… I don't know the first thing about charming a woman… Romance is not one of my specialties."
Giving Espio a wrist two-way radio, Vector said, "You have nothin' to worry about. Just compliment her appearance. Gals always dig that stuff."
"Whatever you say…" Espio groused as he attached the two-way radio to his arm.
"Espio's got a girlfriend!" Charmy teased.
"Quiet, Charmy!" The Chameleon cursed under his breath and walked in the direction of Frostfire. "This is what I get for skipping my daily meditation…"
This was fun! I hope I keep spilling these out like this!
*1 – Referencing the time in Sonic X that the Chaotix tried to get Tails and Cosmo together.