I'm really off my game today! Rats!
Ness was struck back by a swift blow from Mario, tumbling back. Normally, he could have dodged - he saw it coming, but he had been too slow. The psychic hadn't felt well for the last few days. His throat was sore, he was tired, and he couldn't stop coughing. Standing up and coughing again, Ness summoned a PK Fire, glowing weakly in his hands as he tossed it towards the plumber. Mario jumped and dodged easily. Behind him, Link and Pikachu were locked in an intense fight of their own, which was good for Ness - he really doubted he could hold more than Mario off.
"Ness, are-a you alright?" Mario asked quietly, concern in his eyes. The Smashers often bantered back and forth while fighting, which was very amusing for the fans watching them on TV. Mario clearly didn't want to embarrass the psychic by letting the crowd know Ness wasn't doing his best.
"I'm fine." Ness growled, before breaking into a coughing fit. Mario shook his head.
"Master Hand was right." Mario murmured. "You're-a sick. You shouldn't be-a fighting, Ness."
"I am absolutely fine!" Ness snarled, face flushing in annoyance. "I'm not sick." He punctuated his last word with a kick. Mario was struck off guard, but didn't get hit too hard. It clearly hadn't been very strong.
"I really-a think you should forfeit this-a match, Ness. You're clearly-a not feeling well. There's-a no shame in it, you-a know." Mario pressed further, still not striking him. Ness scowled, sparking PSI on his hands. Forfeit the match? Was Mario crazy? That would be too shameful. Ness didn't back down from a fight. He had been through so much worse, after all, and had been just fine.
"You just want me to forfeit so you don't have to fight someone stronger than you!" He responded tartly, with a bit of pride in his voice. Inwardly, Ness cringed. That didn't sound like him at all. He wasn't the type to bash his opponents' skills - what was getting into him?
Mario frowned and shook his head. "Ness, don't-a be like that. That isn't-a you."
"I'm fine!" He stubbornly insisted. A sudden commotion made the two jump back. It seemed Pikachu had been defeated, and Link was charging towards them.
"If you're-a really fine, then you should-a have no problems fighting us both." Mario spoke, seeming regretful but resigned. "Since-a you won't listen."
Ness grunted as he was lunged at by the Hylian swordsman, stumbling backwards. Mario took his opportunity to strike him from behind, winding the psychic. Gasping as he pulled himself up - why did the stage feel like it was spinning? - he struck out with a psychic blow, hoping to keep one at bay while he fought the other. There was no such luck for him - Link avoided his strike and slashed upward with a deft strike, blade gleaming in the light. Ness groaned, tumbling back again. This time he stayed put on the ground for a moment - it felt nice and solid compared to the colors dancing before his blurred vision.
He forced himself up, staggering. Still determined to prove himself fully fighting fit, he charged towards his opponent with a wild yell. Mario blocked him easily and with a remorseful sigh, struck up hard.
Ness went flying.
Tumbling over the stage boundaries, he reached in vain for the edge which his fingertips grazed but missed. His energy was drained - he couldn't even muster electricity for PK Thunder as he fell and was eliminated from the match.
He stood up at the bottom once he landed on the secured cushions Master Hand had set up for them. Vision reeling, Ness gave a dry laugh.
"Huh. Guess I am sick." He muttered, before promptly collapsing and passing out.
When Ness next came to, he was in his bed, curled up in a blanket. His head hurt and his eyes were still a bit blurry, but he noted that his hat and backpack had been removed and placed nearby. His socks and shoes also had been taken off. Sitting up, he groaned.
"You're up."
Ness blinked at the voice, turning to see Falcon nearby. The racer was sitting on a chair nearby with a newspaper in his lap. His signature helmet was nowhere to be seen. "Goodness, kid. You slept for almost a day straight."
"I did?" Ness mumbled. He was so tired, he would have thought it had only been an hour. "Doesn't feel like it. I feel like crap..." Slouching down, his head hit the pillow again.
"You have the flu. Pretty sure you're not supposed to feel ready to run with that." Falcon snorted. "Do you think you can eat anything?"
"...Maybe?" Ness mumbled. He wasn't sure what he would be able to stomach.
"Well, I'll see what there is." Falcon got out of his chair and left the room. Ness could hear him walking down the stairs. Sighing, the psychic shut his eyes again and was drifting off when the racer returned.
"Soup." Falcon announced, carrying in a bowl. Ness pulled himself to a sitting position as he brought it near and placed it on Ness's lap. "It's hot. Don't burn yourself."
Taking the spoon in his hand, Ness began to eat. The soup was pretty tasty, some kind of chicken noodle. "What time is it, anyway?" He asked in between sips.
"Past dinnertime." Falcon replied, picking up the newspaper. Flipping it open, he propped up his feet on the edge of Ness's bed from his chair.
"Mmm." Ness nodded. "How long you been in here?"
"Basically since you passed out, occasionally trading off with Link."
The psychic was so surprised he dropped his spoon, spilling soup on himself. "What?"
"Why's that so surprising?" Falcon raised an eyebrow. "There's a napkin to your right, by the way."
Grabbing it, Ness shook his head. "I don't know, I thought you didn't like me or whatever." He wiped at his shirt, scowling at the stain.
"I think you're fine." Falcon shrugged. "Annoying, sure, but it's not like I hate your guts. And you're a capable fighter."
Ness was quiet for a moment aside from the clink of his spoon against the porcelain bowl. "...Thanks." He finally answered. "You're not so bad yourself, although you're the annoying one." A small smile briefly raised his lips.
Falcon rolled his eyes. "Brat." However, there was a faint smile on his visage too.
"So you've had to be in here a while?" Ness asked quietly after a few moments. Falcon confirmed that with a nod.
"Master Hand sent me after you didn't turn up when you got knocked out of the match. Found you passed out - Master Hand thought the stage safety had malfunctioned and you were injured. He was about to call off the match, but noted Mario and Link weren't hurt. He also remembered you had been acting strange during lunch, barely eating. Strange for someone of your appetite." Falcon smirked. Ness scowled, though there was no real hostility in his gaze. "So, we called a doctor, he said you have the flu."
"Great." Ness muttered, shifting his blanket so it was closer to him. "Guess I'm going to be stuck in bed for a while."
"Unfortunately so." Falcon confirmed with a grimace. "You had a match tomorrow, but Master Hand already arranged for Donkey Kong to cover for you."
"Ugh..." Ness frowned, stirring his spoon in the broth of the soup. "I hate missing matches. I don't want to get behind in the tournament..."
"No one does." The racer replied. "But if you try to go out while you're still sick, you'll just be sabotaging yourself. If you aren't at your best, and it isn't a life or death situation, why fight?"
Ness smiled dryly. "Look at you, being the voice of reason for once."
Now it was Falcon's turn to scowl goodnaturedly. "I am a constant voice of reason, thank you very much." The psychic shook his head in response. "What would you know?" Falcon raised an eyebrow.
"I...I don't know. You're always off doing your own thing. Guess I don't see you actually hang out with the rest of us a whole lot." Nese mused. "Besides when you mess with me, anyway."
"That's just fun." Falcon said with a snort. "You're easy to get a reaction from. Doesn't mean I'm not reasonable."
"I am not easy to get a reaction from!" Ness glowered, before realization dawned on him as Falcon started chuckling that he was, indeed, easy to get a reaction from. The older man had played him like a fiddle, and Ness both loathed him for it and admired him. "Okay." He sighed. "You got me there. But how come you're always on your own, anyway?"
"Used to it." Falcon shrugged. "I'm a bounty hunter, so I spend a lot of time on my own traveling. I'm not really a 'people person' in general."
"A bounty hunter?" Ness was intrigued. "Didn't know that. I thought you were just a racer."
"Nope." He shook his head. "Racing is my passion, but bounty hunting is a solid career as well. Dangerous, but, eh. Can't do much about that. Racing's dangerous too, but that doesn't stop me."
"So I take it you've been in your fair share of accidents in both jobs." Ness glanced at the dark scar that marred Falcon's visage, prominent even with Ness's slightly blurred vision. It wasn't often the man had his helmet off like this.
"Yeah. You could say that." Falcon's dark brown eyes clouded for just a moment before he got a grip on himself. He glanced at the psychic, who had put the now empty bowl down. "We all have our scars, whether they be physical or mental." Ness flinched, it hitting a little too close to home for him to handle. "But hey, they're not what define us." Standing up, he picked up the discarded bowl.
"You're right." Ness agreed as Falcon turned to leave.
"Always am." He replied, exiting the room.
"...You're really not so bad, Falcon." The psychic quietly whispered. "Maybe I should make an effort to get to know you better. Or maybe that's the flu talking. Who knows." Lying back with a chuckle, Ness let his dizziness and tiredness reclaim him into a restful sleep.
What's this? EBC actually updating? No way! I swear, my dream for this fanfic is weekly updates, but school does not want that to happen. It's a jerk like that. Nonetheless, I think this chapter turned out well. Falcon and Ness have a fun dynamic to write. As my friend once said about a pair of characters - "pair-rivals-neighbor-guys" fits them.
Holy crap, watching the direct Thursday...World of Light looks amazing, and Lifelight has been in my head for the past few days. I'm so pumped!
So I made a Discord server for everyone to come and share their fanfics, chat, and yell at me to hurry up. I'm looking forward to seeing you all there! I'll probably post some fanart too, maybe even for this story. Just enter in this - fGm5NBB
Thanks for reading!
-EBC