I'm sorry again for the incredulous wait for the last chapter I posted; I intended to send a warning, but I didn't. I hope that, though it may not have been worth the wait, at least it was marginally enjoyable. I will edit a chunk that went into a little fluke, but otherwise I am posting the next chapter. I hope you enjoy this, those of you that still read.

Leon

Indeed, it was only a couple of months of voyaging, so there was plenty of time. I Finally asked Falco out on an official date, just as he was about to ask me. We were both stumbling on our words, but I finally managed to say "Will you go to dinner with me?"

Falco relaxed and smirked, saying, "I was going to ask you, but of course."

I smiled and gently kissed him, a slight blush tinting my skin. "Excellent," I said, chuckling slightly. "20:00 in the holo room?"

"Sounds like a plan," Falco replied as he closed the gap again, kissing me softly before we went about our business.

Today, I was commissioned to test the suits we were using, which we named the Mongooses, for the sole reason that it was meant to take down the ADDER systems. The suits were soft, despite the seemingly rough and rubbery exterior, and they had a unique aspect: the suit used osmotic potential gradients to attach to the host. In other words, once the suit was activated, it would fling itself at the user (good thing it's so light) and mold to that host's body. Slippy had even fit them with vocal sensors, so that they would be automatically activated and deactivated at a vocal command. However, a con (or pro, depending on who the observer is) was that the suits were fully contoured to the body structure of the host; no wiggle room at all, nor room for imagination.

I donned the suit and stepped into a room full of sensors: cameras, photoreceptors, IR heat sensors, gamma, x-Ray, and multiple others looking for things that no one would think of. Fox's voice came on over the intercom.

"Thank you for volunteering, Leon.," remarked the voice. At least he knew this was inconveniencing. "Now, if you don't mind, I'd like to see how your cloaking is." I nodded, then concentrated on the room and began to think on how the room looked. However, even before I had made the conscious choice to be invisible, I was already fading out of view. All I had to do was think of the setting, and instantly I was gone. I heard buzzing and clicking, and even a couple gasps from the intercom as Fox went through every sensor in the room.

"...Leon... Are you still in the room? I can only see a gamma profile, and it looks as though whatever made it has been gone for hours..."

I laughed, saying, "Heheh, I'm still here, Fox. Looks like the suits really are that good." I smiled and reverted back to normal.

"Thank you for helping Leon. It's very interesting what we've found."

Suddenly, knives began flying through the air from all directions. In my mind, I was thoroughly surprised, but my body had suddenly sprung into action. In mere moments, every blade was in one of my unscathed hands. One more, very thin blade launched at me, and I flung a knife, then ducked. I only heard two thuds as either half of the assailing blade hit the back of the room and the last flew back into my hand. "What was that?!" Fox shouted over the comms. "How did you do that?!"

"I was about to ask you the same thing! Did you want to kill me?!"

"The blades were simulated; the reaction wasn't. Your reaction time had to be measured in microseconds!" I rubbed my hands together as I dropped my knives and they phased out in beams of light while I listened to his description. These suits were about to change everything.

I marveled, but walked out to the locker room. And, to my surprise, my feathered lover, in a collared purple shirt and dress slacks, was standing there, looking at me in my terribly skin-tight suit of power, in the locker room... Great.

Falco

I was waiting for Leon inside of the locker room, but was surprised and embarrassed when he came out in a skin-tight black leotard with absolutely nothing else. I just stood there, smirking as I looked over his body. I noticed his deeply red skin and took it as a sign he was incredibly embarrassed. I looked away quickly. "I'm so so sorry, Leon... I was... Coming to walk with you to dinner... But..." My face was burning with blush, as well. To my surprise, I felt his warm lips on my cheek.

"It's okay, love," he replied calmly but obviously embarrassed. "Just let me change, please? This suit is not that good at...Uh...hiding"

"Of course, love," I replied as I walked out, smirking slightly at the opportunities.

A few minutes later, Leon emerged in a pair of black dress pants and a blue collared shirt. I smiled and kissed his lips, before walking away with him to the holo deck. "Cover your eyes Falco. It's a surprise," he requested.

Obediently, I closed my eyes, wondering what he was going to do. Indeed, he led me into the room and, when he let me open my eyes, I saw a beautiful table for two overlooking the cornerian mountainside. Awestruck, I sat down at the table where he led me and, after he sat down, he smiled slightly. "Beautiful view for a beautiful evening, with a beautiful man; how could it be better?" I uttered to Leon, who merely blushed a bit.

"There's pretty food, too, so that could help," he replied, smiling as he answered my rhetorical question.

I chuckled. "It could," I said. "Thank you for the date, Leon. I need this time with you; I survive off of it."

"Falco, please..."

"No, I'm serious. These past months have been so busy, and I couldn't do it without you as my rock."

He blushed more, his entire body turning more red as I spoke. "Thank you, Falco; it's been too long since the last date... I was wondering... If you would like to help me modify the suits... Y'know, because you're the only one I trust with being that close." This statement made me blush; We hadn't been sexually involved yet, and had never even seen each other naked, and yet he was willing to let me help him with those suits. It sounded strange, but I was glad he trusted me like that.

"Of course," I replied as I held his hand over the table. "But are you sure you're okay with me touching you in that suit?"

"Absolutely," he replied. "I certainly wouldn't want anyone else to."

I smiled and leaned over the table to kiss him.

"I love you, Leon," I said, smiling, "more than I can express"

"I love you too, Falco... In the same way," he replied.

The food came, and we ate, but I paid little attention to it. The rest of the date, all I could think about was him, and I couldn't get away from it if I wanted to.

Leon

All I could think about was Falco, and I couldn't get away from it if I tried. I would glance up again and again from my plate, not wanting to look away. I was just glad he was willing to help me with the suits; I would've been uncomfortable were it anyone else. Even if we hadn't... Done anything, it was still nice to know he was willing. It seemed he was acting the same way, and occasionally our eyes would meet and the time would stretch on forever; it was an amazing date, and he was an amazing guy. We finished eating, but neither of us wanted to move. Eventually, we both stood and he led me this time to our room. He pulled me inside and laid me on the bed, then kissed me lightly. I moaned softly, wondering if this would be the moment "Sorry if I got your hopes up," he said, "but I think we should wait, if only a little longer." I sighed, sad we weren't able to be joined yet, but also that he wanted to do so when it would be the best.

"It's fine baby; I know it'll be best if we wait," I replied, hiding my disappointment, though deep down I was glad to wait if it meant it would be that much better. I laughed to break the tension, and he also laughed. I smiled up at him again and leaned up to kiss him more, this time deeper. He kissed back just as deep, and I heard him muttering in the kiss that he could hardly wait until the next day. That made me blush deeper, my skin a warm red as I held him close. Slowly I pulled away, smiling. "I can't wait, either. We may not want to have sex yet, but your soft touch is not wrong, is it?" In reply, he shook his head no a bit too quickly and sighed, putting his feathered hand on my cheek. "Soon, my love, we won't have to worry," cooed Falco.

We exchanged "goodnight"'s and "I love you"'s before I fell asleep in his embrace, his heartbeat my lullaby.