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~~Imagen~~
Chapter 6: "Visions and Letters"
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It has been already the next day after Leon's reawakening. Chamille sat quietly on a chair and leaned on a windowsill close to the entrance to the underground base, her nose just an inch close to the rain-soaked pane. She listened closely to the pitter-patter of the rain, her eyes watching the droplets of water quickly yet softly onto the window, as well as the walls and the ground. The skies, she watched, were dark bluish- grey, although it's daytime. The thick clouds covered the sun completely... perhaps this is why it didn't seem to be quite day.
Wolf noticed the young lady at the sill as he walked by with a cup of coffee in his hand. He sighed as he sipped a few drops of black in his mug then approached her slowly, trying not to surprise her. The chameleon lady noticed the approaching wolf anyway, using one of her eyes to spot him. Slightly turning back, she looked at the lupine and smiled sweetly. Wolf stopped in his tracks, feeling his hands pulse.
"Good morning, Wolf!" Chamille greeted warmly, her sweet smile speaking along with her.
Wolf shuddered slightly before he greeted back. "Oh... um... good morning..." He looked outside, seeing the grey skies. "Dismal day, now isn't it?"
"Not really..."
"What do you mean, 'not really'? It's raining, and it's... raining..."
"I like the rain," the lady said while grinning warmly.
Wolf stared, confused. "Huh???" o_O;
"Well... I can see why some people dislike the rain... you get wet, it ruins things like your clothes or a new hairdo... some just hate it because it gets cold... others, well, like you said... the grey skies just makes the atmosphere very gloomy..."
"Yeah..."
"But the rain here is different from the one in Zoness... whenever it rains there, it's actually pretty warm... it's soothing, in fact. Some people would even bathe in the rain... even if the sun doesn't shine through the clouds, it's still really great to have rain there."
"Because it's so humid and tropical there?"
"Yes!"
"I see..." Wolf sipped a few drops of his coffee. He stopped quickly, his ears twitching. He looked back at the lizard, "Zoness???"
"That's where I'm from!"
"But aren't all lizards from Venom?"
"Not all... there are a few species that cannot handle the harsh conditions of Venom. I like the tropical air in Zoness..."
"But then if YOU'RE from Zoness, then that must mean..."
"CHAMILLE!!!" Pigma's raspy voice squealed in the halls. "YOU'RE NEXT!!!"
"Thanks, Pigma-san!" Chamille called back as she stood up.
Wolf looked back. "Wha?... Next for what?"
"Shower. I was going to take one, but the door was locked. Pigma was taking one already, so I just yelled through the door to let me take mine after his."
"All right..." Wolf watched Chamille walk off as he took her seat in her place. He leaned on the sill and watched the rain fall, his ears picking up the pitter and the patter. He allowed the steam from the coffee to rise on his face as he watched the water dripped on the window pane. He thought about what Chamille had just said to him and thought aloud, "So she's from Zoness, huh?... hmmm... I wonder... that should mean Leon is from there too... but.... why didn't he tell us?...... Hmmm... he probably thought it'd be none of our business." He then took another sip.
***
"I guess I'll be doing my own laundry... last time I had someone else do it, that stupid Andrew put a hole in my boxers! Heh... good thing I stuck that red-hot iron on that monkey's face!" Leon mumbled to himself as he brought his hamper to the laundry room. He began sorting out his whites, darks, delicates, and the like as he continued, "I should have never trusted that bald-faced buffoon with an iron... then again, I was told that I wasn't that trusting either..."
As he emptied the bag with the last of his clothes, he noticed something different. In his hamper was a torn and ripped black polyester jacket. He didn't recognize it at, so he tried looking around it for any identification, sniffing it for a familiar scent, and even trying to mentally match the coat with his teammates. It was large enough for even Wolf to wear it, but knowing Wolf for his already thick coat of fur, a big jacket such as this would be the last thing he'd wear. Deciding to satisfy his curiosity by just asking, Leon left the laundry room with the coat in his arms. The nearest one in view was Andrew, who was trying to replace the burnt-out light bulb in the hall. He wasn't very tall, so he had to jump in order to reach the ceiling, and little by little did he screw the new bulb one.
Leon turned to the kitchen and walked there, coming back with a stool tall enough for even the shorter Pigma to stand on and reach the ceiling. The chameleon spoke to the primate, "How many monkeys does it take to screw on a light bulb?"
"Is that supposed to be a joke?!" Andrew growled angrily as he stopped jumping.
Leon pointed to himself while narrowing his eyes. "Do I look like a joking type?"
Andrew growled again but in defeat as he reached for the stool and placed it under the light bulb.
The chameleon sighed and turned to walk off when he remembered why he approached the monkey the first place. He held up the polyester jacket, "Hey... Do you know who this belongs to?"
Andrew looked back at the jacket. "Huh? What? I never seen that jacket before!"
"Really?"
"It looks big enough for Wolf to wear... maybe it's his!"
"That's what I thought at first..."
"Go ask him!"
Leon looked up to him and nodded, deciding he'll do just that. Before he turned to leave he waited for Andrew to go back to fixing the light bulb. After the primate finished placing the bulb in place, Leon purposely kicked one of the legs of the stool, strong enough to make it tilt. Andrew screamed as he lost his balance and fell, falling on his head on the tiled floor. "OW!!! Dammit, Leon, why did you do that?!"
"I dunno... just wanted to do it anyway."
"I hate you."
"I hate you too." Leon immediately walked off.
***
The lights in the halls were dim. The chameleon was conscious of the shadows he formed as he trod upon the stone cold floors. The black figures crept closely after him, copying his every move. Every time he lifted a leg, the shadows would lift that same leg. Every time he swung a hand, the shadows would do the same. Aside from seeing the shadows, Leon could feel the chill in the air. It wasn't as cold as the arctic air outside the city, but it was cold... very cold. Leon could feel his fingers freezing, the clawed fingertips hardly feeling anything. The feeling was the same with his toes, even though he wore thick socks. Leon's sight began to blur, the shadows in the hall disappearing as well as some of the light. "Damn..." he muttered. "What happened to the heater here..."
*Plip*
"What?" Leon looked up. His eyesight cleared a bit there... he was still in the halls. He thought he felt something wet drop on his forehead. What was it? Leon allowed both his eyes to turn up to the ceiling with lifting his head. The ceiling was dry; nothing dripped from it. Then what was that that dropped on him? The chameleon wiped his forehead. Nothing. Maybe it was just his imagination.
*Plip*
Again? This time it was his tail. Leon turned around glance at it. From where it was felt, it was dry. Just to be sure, Leon uncoiled his entire tail, which was almost as long as his body. His whole tail was dry... then what was that being felt? Again, it maybe just his imagination.
*Plip plip*
"Now this is getting annoying!" Leon growled to himself as he felt something drop on his hand and neck. He wiped both, but found them dry. This was the third and fourth time he felt something wet drop... yet he remains dry. What's going on?!
*Pitter patter pitter patter pitter patter*
Not one, not two, but many wet things are falling on him. All so quickly... it was as if it was raining. Leon didn't just feel it on his skin; it was also all over his clothes. His clothes became very cold and drench, as if he was doused with water. On his skin he felt water drops gather on his scales, dripping quickly as more water, or whatever it was, fall on him. Leon looked in all directions, confused. His tail uncoiled and curled between his feet, making him trip as he turned around. As soon as he hit the ground, the chameleon as if he fell in a puddle. He grimaced then opened his eyes wide, looking down on the ground.
Water... Where did that all that water come from. Leon looked at the ceiling again... what ceiling? Instead of seeing the white ceiling, he could see grey clouds gathering and rain falling, as if he was outside. Outside? How did he suddenly get outside? First he was walking down the *dry* halls, then all of the sudden he's outside! Bewildered and shocked, Leon hastily crawled around, trying to find out exactly where he is. He could see nothing... nothing but pavement. And rain... lots of rain...
And... Sunflowers?
Leon rubbed his eyes and took a closer look at the sunflowers. They were not like the actual flowers... they seemed to be printed... printed sunflowers on some kind of white surface. And red... the sunflowers were on something red and white. Leon's sight was still blurry, so he squinted to see what exactly the sunflowers were printed on. He couldn't figure it out, though... it was still blurry. He could not figure out exactly what it was... he could not figure out the shape. The size, though, it was small. Very small, small enough to fit in Leon's arms.
Hmmm....
For some reason, Leon was compelled to kneel down and stare at the sunflowers. The printed brown circle and yellow rays dug deep into his mind... as if the colors were attracting him. The water soaked through the flowers, making them ripple. The red mingled with the white, then began to cover up the red and brown of the flowers... a shiver came down the lizard's back at the sight of this. He watched as the red fingered in between the petals than bled over it, covering the petals then just the entire print. As Leon continued to watch this strange sight, he began to recognize the shade of red... it was that of crimson... the color of blood. Leon is very familiar towards the color of crimson... he should know. When beating, ripping, breaking, and torturing his victims, how could he not recognize the color of the flying blood whenever a whip cracks on a victim's back or whenever? As Leon continued to gaze upon the bleeding flowers, he unconsciously held up the jacket he was holding his arms... and gently placed it upon the flowers. Now instead of staring at bleeding sunflowers, he was staring at the black polyester jacket... and raindrops falling on it.
"Leon..."
A voice... it speaks amidst the falling rain... it echoed quietly, yet the voice was deep and demanding...
"Leon..."
'Who the...' Leon thought as he turned to where he heard the voice. A tall, shadowy figure stood over the kneeling chameleon, looking down... The lizard's eyes widened as he placed his full attention on the shadowy figure...
"Leon..."
Leon spoke softly, his voice somewhat quivering. "Who... who are you?"
"...................................................................................................................... What the f#ck? It's me, Wolf!"
O.O; "WHAT???!!!" o.O=O.o....... O_O; ?
All of the sudden, Leon's sight began to clear up and focus. He was kneeling down on the cold floor in the halls, with Wolf, stand with one arm akimbo and the other holding his empty coffee mug, standing close to him. A baffled expression was on the lupine's face, one eyebrow quirked and his nose wrinkled.
Leon blinked and rubbed his eyes, taking a second glance at everything around him. "I'm... inside the base!"
"Of course you are! Where else do you think you are?!"
The reptile was silent. If he wasn't outside in the rain, then what just happened to him? He brought his hands close this eyes... dry. His clothes are dry. His skin is dry. Everything around him is dry. Even the polyester jacket he carried around...
Oh...
Leon placed his hands back on the coat and lifted it up. Under it was.... nothing.
"Uh, Leon... is something wrong?" Wolf asked.
The lizard looked up to the wolf. "...........No. Nothing's wrong."
Wolf turned to the jacket in Leon's hands. "Hey... what are you doing with Chamille's jacket?"
"Ka...Chamille?" he looked down at it then back at Wolf. "This is Chamille's?"
"Yes, that's what she wore when I found her... what are you doing with it?"
"I... um........" Leon paused. His confused face was replaced with his trademark frown as he tossed the jacket to his leader. "Here. Give it back to her."
"Wha... This was supposed to be in the wash!"
"So you're the one who placed it in my hamper..."
"Well...."
"You wash it. Not me. I won't even touch that thing..." Leon huffed as he turned to walk back to the laundry room.
Wolf was silent for a while. "But... it's your sister's jacket-"
Leon stopped dead on his tracks and glared coldly at Wolf, interrupting him as well as sending a chill down the wolf's spine as if he has just encountered a demon that just crawled out of the pits of Hell. "She... is... not... my sister...."
***
"Pigma-san?" Pigma heard Chamille shout from the halls. Turning back, he could see Chamille peer out from the door, only her head visible.
He approached her, "Whaddya want?"
"I don't have any clothes... Wolf's clothes are too big, and Leon won't lend his."
"Why don't you use Andrew's? You two seem to be about the same size."
"I dunno..."
Pigma tapped his chin. "On second thought, forget it... when it comes to Andrew, even the thought of him naked is gross."
"PIGMA!!!" Chamille yelled at him then stopped. She was silent for a few seconds, then she covered her eyes and shrieked. "EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEK!!!"
"See? What did I tell ya? Now I dunno if monkey balls even washes his underwear, yet-"
"Pigma! Stop, please!"
"Heh, heh... Yeah. But I can't lend you my clothes... they're too loose. Just put on Wolf's... I'm sure he won't mind."
"B-But..."
"Just wear a big T-shirt and some of his shorts... you can use one of his belts."
"But Pigma-san-"
*DING!!!*
"Oh, that's the egg-timer!" Pigma began rushing to the kitchen, calling back at Chamille with thoughts of food in his head, "Don't worry, Chamille! I'm sure Wolf won't mind lending you his clothes at all!"
"Groan..." Chamille moaned and sighed. Deciding to do just what Pigma said, she waited until the pig was out of sight. When the coast was clear, she stepped out, wearing only a towel around her body. She walked across the hall and down it until she reached Wolf's bedroom, walking in quickly and closing the door. But she forgot to lock it.
"Ooooookay... made it...." Chamille looked around the bedroom, her eyes individually scanning. "Maybe if I make it quick, I can get out of here covered..." One of her eyes met the closet door, which was partly closed. She breathed deeply then approached the door, opening it wide. Inside are what she saw before; two red jackets, several extra uniform overcoats provided by Andross, and a black leather trench coat. Chamille fixed her eyes on the leather coat, sighing. "It's such a nice coat... I wonder why Wolf hated it so much..." She scanned the coat, examining it. "It looks pretty comfortable... the inside of the coat is made of cotton, so it shouldn't be too hot or cold in it... the belt looks like it can fit around his waist... And it looks like it was just newly bought... why does he hate it so much? And if he really hates it, then why does he keep it here..."
The clock on Wolf's wall was ticking. Chamille heard it then became conscious of the passing time. "Whoops! I have to hurry..." Chamille ran to the nearest drawer, which was close to the door she entered the room with, placing her towel on top of it but not seeing it drop to the ground. She opened the topmost drawer, seeing inside guns and knives. "Wrong one," she muttered as she closed it then opened the one under it. Inside were little gadgets and gizmos, little monitors and mechanical boxes. "Still not the right one..." She opened the third, inside many folded papers. "Still the wrong one... I'll have to check another..." As she was closing it, she noticed scribbled words on a sheet of papers, "With love from your dear fiancée..."
"Huh?" Chamille reopened the drawer, taking a closer look at the note that she saw. She saw those three words again, looking carefully at it as she placed her hands on it and brought it closer to her. "Hellooo... what's this?" She began reading it:
Dear Wolf,
It's been three months since you left Fortuna for training in the Cornerian Flight Academy, yet those three months feel like eternity. Believe me, darling, I was crying a river as I watched you board that ship departing for Corneria, and I haven't stopped crying for days. I know you'll only be away for six months until you come back in December for a short visit, but I can't wait that long. My heart aches as I write this letter to you, since I doubt you'll have time to check e-mail (plus my computer's kinda down for a while). I just wanted to tell you that I've missed you so much... it's only three more months until you come back, and I don't know if I can wait any longer. Your father, the Alpha Male, won't let me leave Fortuna, so all I can do is just wait... I couldn't quite concentrate on my studies because of your absence, so please, don't be mad at me. I'm trying to endure, to be patient... I'm giving it my all to wait for your return.
Everyone's doing fine here, though... your sisters are doing great in their college studies. Your mother's health is starting to improve; in fact, some color can be seen underneath her fur. I'm sure your father is doing great in the Fortuna Army... I just don't know why you have to be sent to Corneria for pilot training. I guess it's because the great James McCloud had his tutoring there, and I know the O'Donnell pack has been admiring him for so long... I didn't know that until a bit after you left. Is that why you agreed to take your training there? If I could, I would leave Fortuna and join you in Corneria, and perhaps we could have our long-time arranged wedding there... we can even live there and start our very own pack there. But since I can't, all I can do is wait until your two years in the Academy are over... and I pray to God that he can give me the strength to endure.
I will wait for you until that day we shall be forever together again, my beloved...
With love from your dear fiancée,
Caroline
~*~
"It's... a love letter... from Wolf's fiancée?" Chamille was shocked at the contents of the letter. "So... he has a fiancée... Why didn't he ever mention he's getting married? I'd.............." she placed her hand over her heart, feeling it ache. "I'd.... I'd... like to meet this... Caroline..."
*CREEEEEEEEAAAAK!* "Whoa, wait, what-AAAAAAAAAAGH!!!" *CRASH!!!*
Before she would know it, Chamille felt something heavy fall on her. It happened so suddenly she screamed and grimaced. When she opened her eyes, she could see Wolf lying on top of her. Apparently he entered through his door, tripped over the fallen towel, and landed atop of the female lizard.
Chamille gasped, her skin changing to a mix of tan and yellow for nervousness. "W-Wolf?"
"What the hell?! .... uh...." Wolf just realized he was lying directly on top of a naked woman, his hands mistakenly over her bare breasts. The wolf's face turned redder than a cherry as she slowly took them off. "Um... uh..."
"......... EEEEEEEEEEYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAUUUUUUUUGH!!!!!!!"
***
"What was that?!" Andrew gasped as soon as he heard Chamille's screaming. "Chamille?"
"Sounds like she's having more views of you naked... I KNEW it was a bad idea mentioning that to her..."
"WHAT DID YOU SAY TO HER???!!!"
"It sounds like it's coming from Wolf's bedroom," Leon said as he came out wiping his wet hands with a rag. He just placed his laundry in the soak cycle. "Perhaps you'd like to check it out." Pigma and Andrew glanced at him then hasted towards Wolf's room. When all three of them reached there, they noticed Wolf gluing his back and arms on his slammed door, his eyes open wide with surprise, face red, and sweat dripping down, panting quickly for breath.
"Wolf?!"
"H-Hey, guys..." Wolf stuttered as he combed back his disheveled fur. "What's up?"
"What's up? Your bone's up, that's what's up!" Pigma said as he pointed down to Wolf's crotch. Wolf looked down and flinched, covering the bulge in his pants. Andrew and Leon stared as Pigma continued, "Did you walk in on Chamille while she's changing?"
"Why the hell is she in there in the first place??? It's MY room!!!"
"Well, I sorta gave her my permission to dress up in there and-"
*BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!!!!!!* Before anyone would say, "DUCK!!!", Pigma was sent flying through the roof and out of the underground base, flying across the rainy sky. It didn't take long from him to smack and bounce off a telephone pole and fall into an opened manhole. "AYIIIIIIEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!" *KERSPLASH!!!*
((To be continued...))
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((Pretty weird chapter, no? ^^; Please review and tell me whatcha think! Now I can leave y'all in suspense, MUAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA-*koffkoffHACKkoff!* Blech........ oh, nevermind... -_-; ))