(AN: Well hi there! I'm not lazy this time, and I got out a rather long chapter this time!
This was a chapter I was waiting to do for a while. I'm hoping to expand on more of Vector's house, and seeing that yes, he really IS the 1%.
Not to mention, even bigger Vector and Espio bonding moments happens here. Will our combo of fluff continue? Let's see!)
From balancing work, to the sudden onslaught of people wanting to take him out every night to go out, it was a complete miracle for Vector to find one night where he managed to visit the Dragon Kingdom.
In the time since his last visit, he could only imagine how hopeful Espio was to see him. After all, his last promise to him was to take the chameleon back home to visit for the weekend.
However, the night before he planned to bring the fuchsia reptile back home, he had a bout of internal conflict once he returned from an outing with some friends.
"I dunno why I'm still continuing to bother with Espio... he gave me what I wanted fer so long... And am I really gonna start convincin' mahself I'm in love with him?" Vector murmured to himself on the car ride back home. He took one hand off the wheel and put it on his forehead. "I thought I could just ignore this feeling but I-I just can't!"
He dug his fingers deep into his scaly skin. Now that he was thinking more about Espio, his conflciting feelings towards Espio only deepened. He wasn't sure what to believe at this point, his mind just gave him new ideas.
"Of all the people ya have to focus on, and think all this stuff about... why a mute chameleon from a land forgotten by society, who kills people who interrupt his peace and quiet, and is silent and cold until ya get to know him better...? Then ya find out he's a cool guy, funny, and so charmin', ya know if prompted, he could even be a good lover and someone to flirt with-"
Vector stopped himself there. Now he was relapsing back to his lovey dovey stage.
"I feel like a fuckin' school girl with a crush!"
It wasn't until he noticed flashing blue lights in his rearview mirror.
"Ah, for fucks sake."
Having been over the speed limit, Vector had to fork over cash to pay for a speeding ticket. Though it was mere chump change in his eyes, it only made him more frustrated at the night.
"Thank Chaos I'm home though..." Vector said once he finally pulled into the neighborhood. All he knew was that he was going to fall asleep, forget about what happened tonight, invite Espio over, and just enjoy the time he'll have at his house.
Pulling into his driveway, he couldn't help but relapse into a bit of déjà vu. Just a couple of months ago, he was in the same car, excited about the high pay over the statue he sold to that female koala. Now here he was, conflicted because he might have a crush. It was funny how the times changed...
Getting out of the car and locking it, Vector placed his hands on his hips.
"Geez, and imagine if the tabloids learn I have a crush on a guy... I'm sure they'll be havin' a field day with THAT one."
It wasn't uncommon to share that sentiment. The Solaris Chronicles thrives off of gay rumors, even if the person was straight. Vector knew that all too well, so many paparazzi came after a friend of his on a rival network due to those rumors.
But the last thing Vector wanted to think about was rumors and nagging from people who have nothing better to do than to make money from pictures of celebrities. And so, he went to the front porch and headed inside. Turning on the light to the living room, Vector walked past the counter in the kitchen and saw the Scarab Jewel Ring on it. He picked up the ring and put it on his right ring finger, admiring it for a bit.
"So long I wanted to sell this, but now I wanna keep it, just like Espio wanted me to. Ugh! Why can't I just sell this and forget 'bout him! Damn stupid feelin's..."
And so, he kept the ring on as he sat down at his dining table.
His laptop sat closed nearby, and so, to hopefully get his mind off of so much, he grabbed his reading glasses by the computer and opened up his laptop. After checking company emails, social media, and reminders, his eyes started to get heavy. And though he was forgetting about the situation with Espio, it only came back to him once he saw an article while browsing a news website.
"Potential leads in the strange cut off to the Dragon Kingdom?"
Vector froze up when he read that. Did... the person who wrote this article know he had even visited the kingdom?
He quickly shut the laptop, feeling like anybody would have known that was him once the secret let out. He didn't even bother reading the article, but he knew what to expect.
"Shit..." Vector thought. He could feel it in his tingling hands and arms; his anxiety about Espio was coming up once again. The crocodile knew that at this point, there was nothing he could do. If the internet had articles like that, then Vector knew that if he turned on the TV to pass the time, he'd see the same stuff.
And so, Vector decided to head to bed, ignoring the semi-panic attack he was about to have.
Just before he went and got changed, he walked into the bathroom in the second-floor hallway. Turning on the faucet, he splashed water on his face, looking at it once he was done and blinking several times.
Suddenly, his reflections twisted up and he swore it had a different expression then he had. This Vector had his eyes lowered half way and giving a kind of flirty look to the crocodile.
"Ya know, yeh can resist it all ya want, but ya can't deny that Espio is a treasure, and making him yer partner would be fantastic, right?" His reflection said.
"Argh! Shut up, shut up, shut up, shut up!" Vector yelled, grabbing his toothbrush and throwing it at the mirror. He opened his eyes and saw what he had done. While the mirror wasn't cracked, the toothbrush lay in the sink. The false reflection was gone, and Vector let out a sigh.
"I swear, I'm gonna end up killin' mahself the more I think 'bout this. And I'm the one bringin' him over! Ugh, I just hope I'll be able to ignore whatever this feelin' is."
Little did the crocodile know, he couldn't.
THE NEXT MORNING
After getting into Rotor's jet, it was time to fly to the Dragon Kingdom.
"Okay, so where do you need me to land?" Rotor asked.
"There's a place around the southeast part of the kingdom where we landed when we filmed," Vector explained. "Land there."
"Well, you got it."
After the usual half an hour jet ride, the walrus decreased the throttle as he landed the jet.
"Wait here man," The crocodile said, the cockpit of the jet opening up. "I'll be back."
Vector jumped out from the jet and made his way into the kingdom. He looked around, wondering where Espio could be. The first place he knew where to go was to the temple. Since it was still early in the morning, the large green reptile knew that Espio might still be asleep.
Walking through the deep forests, he would have kept going if he only didn't notice something on the ground. It was a piece of paper. Crouching down to pick it up, he saw... something he couldn't make out. It was all dirty for being in the rain, to dirt, and other such things being on it, but what Vector could read was,
"This may be the greatest mass extinction in Mobius' history. The S or p Em i e will see full re nifc ti n"
Everything else on the paper was completely illegible. He put it in his pocket, wanting to ask the chameleon later.
Just then, someone jumped down behind him. Vector screamed, turning around as he got into a stance. He saw that it was Espio, and put a hand on his chest.
"What are ya- awh god! I swear, ya nearly scared the crap outta me!" He said. "Anyway, mornin', Espio! Wanna know why I'm here?"
Espio looked around, nodding.
"Time to head to mah place! C'mon, mah friend's waitin' fer me!"
Vector headed back the way he went to the plane, the chameleon following behind him. Vector made idle conversation as the two made their way to the plane.
"I'm glad to see yeh've been wearin' the clothes I gotcha. Ya been likin' them?" He asked. Espio nodded.
"Dun worry, I decided to stock up on snacks a few nights ago, so I won't letcha go hungry. Besides, not like I'd even do that in the first place."
As the two reptiles finally reached the plane, Rotor sat up when he saw them.
"There you are, Vector. Come on, get him up and I'll start up the jet," He said. Vector got on top of the wing and lifted Espio up, holding his hand as he got him inside the cockpit. Once inside, the two sat down as Rotor closed the cockpit.
"Hey, ya ever rode in a plane, Espio?" Vector asked. Espio nodded, getting out his notebook and writing his response.
"We used to have a few planes around here. Unfortunately, there's no remnants of them here in the kingdom."
"A few planes? Jeez, how could they just off and go like that?" Vector thought. "And... what about this paper? The greatest mass extinction in Mobius' history? No... no, I shouldn't bother him. This is a break fer both of us, and grillin' him about doesn't help at all."
As the three returned back to the military base, Rotor shut down the jet as the three jumped out.
"Alright, I'll see ya later, man. Thanks fer takin' us," Vector said. "C'mon Espio, let's go."
Espio waved to the walrus as he followed behind Vector, clutching his notebook to his chest. He only looked around.
Vector heard the scratching of a pen on paper, and a few seconds later, a notebook was in his face.
"I haven't seen a military base in a long while."
"Really? Why?
"I don't want to say." Espio wrote.
"Are ya gonna properly talk to me about what happened?"
Espio's face fell, turning away from Vector. He only wrote one small reply.
"Maybe one day. Can we please just enjoy your home?"
Vector sighed, nodding. "Fine."
The two reached Vector's car, getting inside of it. The crocodile was amazed, even though there WERE cars in the kingdom, he was surprised that Espio knew how to use one.
The chameleon could notice Vector's amazement, and smirked. He wrote down his new words.
"We had cars for a while. Sometime before... welll... uh, anyway, I actually got the chance to drive around in one, and even practice it. My mother didn't approve, as we lived in the old school traditions of our family."
"Ya weren't very disciplined, were ya?"
"Heh, back then I wasn't."
Vector took notice of the words he wrote. Back then... and his avoidance of what happened.
It only made Vector more confused, and it only intensified his curiosity.
But he couldn't focus on that right now. Getting out his keys, he started up the car, looked behind his shoulder, and went in reverse.
As Vector pulled into his neighborhood after the fifteen-minute drive, Espio was looking out the window. He had never seen anything like this before.
The chameleon immediately went to his notebook and began to write down his reply.
"What a rich neighborhood. Do you really live in a place like this?"
"Hey, I told ya I'm loaded, didn't I?" Vector replied.
After turning to the next street, he passed through the different cars on the sides of the roads and finally ended up in front of his house. He drove up to the driveway and turned off the car, the bright sun shining down on the two.
"Well, welcome to your vacation home fer the next few days," Vector said, showing off the home to Espio. "Well? Lemme get yer stuff and I'll bring 'em inside."
Vector grabbed whatever little stuff Espio had as the chameleon followed the crocodile behind in the house. When he walked in, the chameleon's mouth stayed agape as he entered inside. The ceiling was high, beige and green walls surrounded him, with expensive looking furniture decorating the house. To his right was a sitting room, sofas on each side of the room with a table and a mini fountain in the middle. To his left was a dining room, expensive pieces of china were inside glass cases. It reminded him of the plates his mother used to own.
As he continued to admire Vector's home, he looked out to see a backyard with a pool and a cabana with a bench and a grill, as well as a bar. The view was complete with a shot of the river.
Turning around, Espio saw a large kitchen with necessities like microwaves, ovens, a triple fridge, and a large pantry.
Looking around to make sure that Vector wasn't around, Espio tiptoed to the pantry door and opened it up. He looked up at the shelves and found a bag of open tortilla chips. Jumping up, he grabbed the bag, and took a bite of one chip.
"So ya found the pantry?" The familiar voice boomed behind the chameleon. Espio yelped as he dropped the bag, some of the crisps spilling out of the bag and onto the floor.
"Don't worry, I wasn't kiddin' when I told ya I stocked up the pantry with all the chips. Of course, try not to eat 'em all. Yer gonna get fat like that. Anyway, I got yer things in the guest room. Were ya lookin' around? Did ya wanna take a tour of the whole house?"
Espio nodded.
With each floor of the house, Espio only got starrier eyes. Vector put his hand on his hip while the chameleon entered a large walk-in closet. The chameleon wrote quickly down in his notebook.
"This closet is so big. Why do you need a closet so big?" He wrote.
"Well, whenever mah guest room is full and I dun wanna share a bed. Heck, I could fit a billiards table in here, couldn't I? After all, I mentioned in the game room that I wanted to get one, but well... y'know... the room is too small..."
"You play pool?"
"Sometimes at the bar. I wouldn't call mahself 'Go on TV and win thousands of dollars at tourneys' good, but I ain't too bad. Besides, I got mah own television show, so there's no real need fer me to do that."
"Ah, okay."
Espio stopped writing as he found the pull-out shelf for Vector's clothes. Shirts, dress shirts, pants, and belts.
"Yeah, I found that online and use that as an extra shelf. Normally that's stuff like it dun fit me anymore, or like, I had to get fer like awards or like, business stuff. Y'know, just the usual."
Espio fished around in the shelves, seeing what kind of clothes Vector had. While browsing around shirts, he found a familiar looking one.
"WE PLAY '94"
The chameleon turned his head as he saw the shirt, pulling it out.
"Oh, that shirt. That was actually fer a model shoot. They wanted me to wear skimpy ass clothin'. Ya know, sex sells and stuff. Why? Ya have an interest in it, Espio?" Vector asked.
He put the shirt down and got the notebook from the floor, writing in it.
"I actually used to have this shirt. Until it got burned."
"Burned? Burned from what?"
Espio turned his head away. It surely had something to do with his home.
"Well, anyway, did ya want it? I dun even remember the last time I even wore that. Like I said, it was just fer a photo shoot."
Espio wrote again. "Are you sure? You even gave me a new wardrobe too."
"Hey, yer mah friend, Espio. Of course I will.
The chameleon smiled and hugged Vector, the other reptile patting his back.
"I swear, I can't get enough of your house. There's so many things in here, nothing that seems like you can ever get bored in it... pure luxury! I feel like this is a house I can live in. Can I see more?"
"Well, I think we already saw most of the house. Why dun we start havin' fun?"
"What kind of fun?"
Vector ran towards the pool in nothing more than swimming trunks, cannonballing into the pool as the water splashed onto Espio, who covered his eyes with his arms.
"Hey, c'mon, Espio! I let ya borrow some of mah old trunks, the water is great!" The crocodile said. He noticed the chameleon looked hesitant to follow his lead.
Since the chameleon didn't have his notebook with him, he didn't really know how to tell Vector that he never properly learned how to swim. He looked around, wondering how he could break the news to the crocodile.
"Can ya not swim?" Vector asked, as if he read his mind. Espio was surprised how he seemed to know. He shook his head.
"Aw, well, since I'm yer neighborhood croc, why dun I teach ya? I mean, I know a lot of the water in the kingdom is like, really dirty and probably poisonous. But still, ya never know when ya can use that ability. Okay, so like hmm... just get in real slowly, I'll catch ya.
Espio looked at the large pool, looking at the water. He didn't know just HOW deep the pool was. The fuchsia reptile crouched down, spreading out his right leg into the pool. He slowly dipped it in, feeling the water. While the water didn't scare him, he was still worried that Vector wouldn't grab him in time and would cause him to sink.
Reluctantly, he jumped into the pool just as Vector grabbed him, the crocodile holding onto the other tightly as the water moved up and down.
"See? Told ya I wouldn't just leave ya on yer own. Alright, so how's 'bout we start with basic swimmin'. As in, put yer head under the water and move yer hands and legs. Don't worry, I'll guide ya through it," The green reptile said. "Ya can hold onto the side, but make sure ya watch me, okay?"
Espio nodded as he bobbed to the corner of the pool, hanging onto it. He watched as Vector slithered his way to the other side of the pool, and then proceeded to start swimming. Doing the front crawl stroke, Espio watched as the crocodile rhythmically moved his arm up and down and how he paddled his legs.
Once he was done, Vector swam back to Espio.
"Ya did watch that, right? Alright, now yer gonna try. Don't worry, I'll hold onto ya fer the first time, but after ya got it down, I'll let ya do it on yer own. Got it?"
Espio nodded. Vector grabbed his hand, leading him to the end of the pool.
Even before they started their practice, something about holding Espio's hand made Vector feel a tingle in his stomach and his nerves. And to think he would actually be holding the chameleon himself...
Vector shook his head, making sure to not let anything get to his head.
"Okay, let's go!" He said. The crocodile held Espio by his stomach as he began to swim just like how he saw Vector do. He paddled his legs hard, breathing heavy as he gasped for air.
"Hey now, Espio! Don't use all yer energy! Yer legs will get heavy like that!" Vector said, moving along with the chameleon as they made their way to the other side.
While he continued to hold the fuchsia reptile, this only conflicted Vector. He could feel Espio's heartbeat on his hand, something about it only going faster making him feel warm despite being in a cold pool.
Finally, the two reached the other side. Espio took a deep breath as he rubbed his eyes.
"Ya did it, how d'ya feel?" Vector asked. The chameleon offered one thumbs up.
"Ready to do it again?"
A few more attempts were made, Espio getting more and more comfortable with being able to swim. Finally, Vector watched from the sidelines and sat on the hot concrete floor, wet tail bouncing up and down slightly as the chameleon swam by himself. He was impressed by how well the other reptile learned.
And yet... seeing Espio be like this...
"Ugh, no no no! Why can't I stop with this nonsense?!" He thought.
In his inner thoughts, he failed to realize Espio made it to the other side. He got up and walked over to where he was.
"Good job! Well, ya learned! And from the best too! C'mon, let's find something else fer us to do!"
Vector grabbed Espio up from the pool, the soaking chameleon shaking. As they made their way to their towels, the crocodile saw that they still held hands from when he brought up Espio from the pool.
Espio seemed to not have any kind of objections and didn't attempt to let go. Vector turned away, not wanting the moment to end.
After messing around with some of the various things that Vector owned like the games in his Game Room, exercising for a little bit in the Rec Room, and that evening, preparing dinner, the two sat on the crocodile's couch as they ate and watched TV. Espio quickly ate through his entire meal, patting his stomach in pure satisfaction. He grabbed the pen on the coffee table and wrote on the notebook that was originally next to the pen.
"That. Was. Delicious. I haven't had a meal so delicious in so long. I didn't know you could cook so good."
"Hey, dun give me all the credit. I told ya, I sure as hell can't cook fer mah life. If anythin', it's yeh who can cook!" Vector replied.
"Oh no, I was just self-taught from the stuff in the kingdom and what little I can remember from mother. All the cookbooks are damaged, so I can't read them."
"Aw, dun beat yerself up, Espio. Hey, didya want more brussel sprouts? I thought those were delicious. How did ya manage to make them taste so good?"
"Do you not think they're good?"
"Not so much that, but so many people think they taste bad cause they add no flavor to it. Ya just know what to add to it. It's real delicious. I might have a lil more rice too..."
"Just help yourself to more. I think I'm satisfied to be honest."
Vector nodded as he brought his plate to the kitchen, getting seconds. Normally, he didn't do this, but he couldn't help himself.
While he grabbed the last sausage, he couldn't help but admire Espio's cooking. He watched Espio looking at the late-night TV show from where he stood, laughing to himself.
"Oh Chaos, what a cute laugh..." He thought. He didn't even reprimand himself for that, even his inner thoughts couldn't help but admit it as well. "Jeez, ya know... should I sit down and talk with Espio 'bout this?... Eh, maybe one day. Just as long as I dun forget."
Vector went back to the chair, sat closer to Espio, and ate his seconds while the two watched TV.
It was time for bed.
Vector made his way to the bathroom on the second floor, brushing his teeth while Espio showered on the first-floor bathroom. He could only imagine how the chameleon felt about the bathroom, judging from how he seemed to fall into the very large bathtub.
While he was in the middle of flossing his teeth, Espio came up behind him.
"Oh, Espio! Ya done? Enjoy yer bath?" He asked. Espio nodded.
"Alright. Well, time fer bed. Follow me, I'll take ya to the guest bedroom."
Vector made his way to the guest room just a few floors down, showing him to the queen size bed, his stuff already on it. A fresh new pair of clothes waited for him on the bed.
"Alright, I'll be up a lil' late workin' on some work stuff. If ya need me, mah office is on the third floor. Yer welcome to help yerself to water or a midnight snack, but try not to go too crazy, okay? A'ight then, sleep tight, man!"
Vector left as he patted Espio's back, leaving him to head up the stairs.
What Vector didn't know was that the chameleon wanted to protest, not wanting to stay in the guest room, but rather, wanting to sleep with him because he felt safer than ever before.
He paced around his room for hours with the clothes Vector left, waiting until he knew the crocodile would soon be asleep. He quietly walked out of the guest room and made his way along the dark halls to the stairs, looking at all the pictures of Vector on his expeditions and one of him and his parents hanging on the wall. Expensive looking artifacts aligned on a shelf against the wall, the chameleon admiring each of them.
As he made his way to the third floor, Espio could see the glow of a TV in the distance and walked towards it. He slowly and quietly opened the door to see Vector sprawled out across his bed, a commercial playing on TV. He tip-toed across the room, his shadow blocking the light coming from the TV. At one point, he swore he felt like the crocodile would wake up and crouched down to the floor. After a minute, he got back up, making his way to Vector's side of the bed.
Praying that he wouldn't wake up, he got onto the bed slowly, lifting his legs and his body up as he scooted closer to Vector. At no point did he wake up, just snored and vibrated his muzzle. Taking an even greater risk, he draped the crocodile's arms over him, after finally seeing he didn't wake up.
In the most comfortable position he could settle on, Espio could feel himself doze off, the two reptiles sleeping together, as more late night commercials played, the advertisers insisting to Espio that his life could be changed so easily if he bought some inconsequential product. Though he ignored what the TV was trying to sell him, he focused on what they said over and over.
"Your life will change!"
And for once, he was starting to believe things could change, but he knew it wouldn't be the result of a product or object, but rather... another person.