Vivi vs. Zelda:
Brains and Brawn
By Daredevil3181 (and a cameo piece by
Brett With Atreyu)
Zelda took a long, hard look in the mirror. What she saw certainly wasn't very becoming of a princess. Her hair was a mess and she had deep circles under her eyes. For some reason she hadn't been sleeping well since she had arrived in Grandis Somnium; last night was particularly bad.
'It always seems like something's eating away at the back of my mind here,' observed Zelda. 'Maybe it's something in the air, but it seems that whatever it is, the Triforce of Wisdom totally opposes it.'
She took out her hairbrush and began combing out the knots that had lodged themselves in her golden locks. There were so many of them that by the time she was done, her brush had enough hair in it that she might have been able to knit a sweater for a small child. Sighing, she put the little torture device down and took out her small make-up kit. She was never a fan of wearing anything heavy, but she was royalty and felt the need to slightly accent a few of her better features. Besides, those raccoon eyes simply wouldn't do.
The Hylian princess was just about done applying her base when she heard a knock at the door, causing her to smear the gunk across the side of her face. How dare someone disturb a princess this early in the morning! It was just past sunrise! Muttering under her breath, she made her way to the door, fully intending to give this unwanted caller a piece of her mind.
"Who do you think you are coming around here at this hour? I'll have you know-" Zelda stopped in midsentence when she realized who it was. "Oh…it's you. You can come in, I suppose."
"Thanks," Link said, obviously exhausted as he made his way over to her bed and collapsed onto it. "I couldn't sleep at all last night. And from the looks of things, neither did you."
"Yes, well, I was just about fixing myself up before I was so rudely interrupted." Zelda turned back toward the mirror with a scowl on her face and wiped up her excess make-up. She was trying her best to ignore her long-time companion as much as possible.
"Look, Zelda, I wanted to apolo-"
"It's not that easy," Zelda interrupted. "What you asked of me before was uncalled for. I'm still mad at you and I don't feel much like talking right now."
Link was about to say something in retort, but he somehow managed to hold his tongue. There was no point in losing his cool in this situation. No…this was a matter that he would have to approach delicately.
"What if I told you that I know why you haven't been sleeping lately?" Link calmly stated. "What if I said that I know of your nightmares? And how they have only been getting worse as time has gone on?"
"But, uh…" Zelda sputtered. "H-how did you know about those? I haven't told a soul!" She paused for a second and then her pretty brow furrowed in anger. "Have you been spying on me!"
"No, no, no," Link hastily explained, praying that he could defuse this ticking time bomb. "Why would I do that to you, of all people? No way! I know about the nightmares…because I've been having them too."
"You little…what?" Zelda blinked in confusion, obviously taken aback by his response. "For how long? And what did you see?"
"Ever since I've been here, " Link said. "And seeing as how us organizers arrived a good while before you contestants did, all I can say is that my mental anguish is torture. I've been able to force myself to sleep, but only through sheer force of will. Otherwise I'd be a lot worse off than I am now. As for what I saw, every time I just wake up in a cold sweat and can't remember anything at all. All I know is, it's something very unpleasant."
"And you said you know why we've been so troubled at night?" Zelda prodded. The young man had really piqued her interest and she wanted to find out all the information she could.
"Show me your right hand," instructed Link. Zelda did as he asked, but she honestly couldn't see anything different about it than when she arrived at the Tournament. The Triforce symbol looked exactly as how she remembered it.
"Link, this is silly. I don't-"
Her words were cut off by a flash of blue coming from the symbol. It flickered for a second and then returned to its normal color. Link said not a word, but held out his own left hand. The two waited for what seemed like an eternity, neither one daring to breathe for fear of negating the phenomenon they had just seen. The duo was about to break out of their stilted poses when another flash occurred, but this time there were two. Zelda's was blue, Link's was green, and they were perfectly in synch.
"The Triforce doesn't like something around here and it's flat-out telling us so," Link stated. "In fact, I'd be willing to bet Ganondorf's hand is doing the exact same thing underneath his glove."
"What is it reacting to, though?" wondered Zelda aloud.
"I don't know," Link conceded. "But we need to find out. Zelda…this is the whole reason I asked you to change your fighting approach in the first place. We need to get to the bottom of this."
"You also think I'm some silly damsel in distress," the princess said coolly. "Not able to defend myself…always in need of a savior."
"Zelda, could you get off your high horse and listen to what I have to say for a second?" Link snarled, with a little more venom than he would have liked. The Hylian woman was really trying his patience. "You're not the damsel in distress this time. I AM. I'm the one asking YOU for help."
"You…you really mean that?" asked Zelda, touched that her friend was placing so much trust in her.
"Yeah, I do," affirmed Link. "Promise me, Zelda. Promise me you'll go all out against Vivi and stay here. Promise me you'll help me get to the bottom of this mess and end these nightmares. Promise me-"
The Hero of Time would say no more as Zelda pressed herself close and enveloped him in a crushing hug.
---
Vivi lay on the grass, staring into the sky. He had been there for quite some time and was enjoying the fleeting moments of peace. He heard the footsteps of someone coming and lifted his head up a little to see that it was Zidane.
Zidane sat down next to Vivi. "Hi." Vivi didn't say anything. "What are you doing?" Still nothing. "Your match is in an hour. Are you ready?" This, finally, got a response out of Vivi.
"Yes. I am."
"So, what do you have planned for this Zelda? The Firaga is a classic, I think-"
Vivi cut Zidane off with his hand, shaking his head. "Actually…I haven't really put a lot of thought into the match."
Zidane sputtered, "But you said you were ready!"
"I am. To be honest, it wouldn't annoy me that much to lose today."
Zidane really didn't know what to say. "Why? Why don't you care if you lose, Vivi?"
Vivi answered quickly, making it obvious that he had gone over it many times in his mind. "There is no point in fighting. What is there to gain? Respect from other fighters? If I'm secure in my own strength, I don't need their respect. A chance to enhance your skills? I could easily enhance my skills back at home fighting monsters, and I could do it a lot quicker than I can here, as I don't have to wait days before fighting. The right to sponsor the tournament? I wouldn't enjoy having to spend half a year living in this place, picking and choosing the most worthy opponents, just to be claimed the best."
Zidane was silent for a while, taking all this in. "Well…you have some good points there, Vivi. I guess if you don't want to fight that much, you can always forfeit-"
Vivi shook his head. "I'm not forfeiting."
"Why?"
Vivi shrugged. "I don't know. Despite the fact that I know this is pointless, I still have a desire to fight. It's like the Festival of the Hunt. I didn't really want anything to do with it at first, but once it started, I tried as hard as I could to win. Although you signing me up for it without asking first might have had something to do with it."
Zidane grinned. "Well…yeah." He decided to lie down as well, as he was growing tired of sitting. "And about your desire to win…it's just human nature, I guess. We love to win and hate to lose, whether we care about what we're competing in or not."
The two just laid there for a while, before Zidane decided to break the silence.
"So…your opponent is just some princess from a castle? It looks like an easy win to me; she doesn't appear to be anything special."
Vivi shook his head once again. "Neither did Dagger."
Zidane couldn't think of anything to say to this, so Vivi continued talking. "You may not sense her power, but I do. She possesses tremendous magical energy, enough to defeat many different foes."
Zidane was confused. "Yeah, but you have strong magical powers as well, more than anyone I've ever seen, except for maybe Kuja. I don't see why you're so worried."
"I'm going to lose."
Zidane sat up, looking at Vivi. "Lose? What do you mean you know you're going to lose?"
"Normally, our powers are about equal. But just recently, I've sensed a change in her attitude. She isn't just powerful, she's determined…and that's much more important. Her desire to win this fight is much, much stronger than mine."
Zidane sighed. He had wanted Vivi to stay in it a little while longer, but if the little guy was so sure he would lose, chances are, he would.
"Also…she's a girl."
Zidane's ears perked up at the mention of the word "girl". "What do you mean, Vivi?"
"Well…Zidane, you always told me the way to get girls was to be nice to them. How can I do that if I'm fighting her?"
Zidane's jaw dropped and he started moving his hand in front of him, as if to ward off Vivi. "Wait…no…that's not…what I meant…this isn't…"
Vivi laughed, which made Zidane stop in an instant. "Heh…sorry, Zidane. I'm just joking with you." Zidane smiled. It wasn't every day you got a laugh out of Vivi.
Vivi stood up, dusted himself off, and started to walk towards the arena. "Well, I'd better pack my stuff and bring it with me to the arena, just in case. And Zidane…"
Zidane nodded, urging Vivi to continue.
"I don't know if I've ever told you this before, but…thanks for being my friend." And, just like that, he was off.
Zidane smiled again, lying down on the grass. "No, Vivi. Thank you."
---
"So where do you want to fight?" asked Link. He normally was completely uncaring toward his whole role in this tournament. But today was different. Today he was actually rooting for a friend.
"The Temple of Time," Zelda replied, a twinkle in her eye. Not only would she feel at home in such a place, but it also would offer her a close-quarter combat area. Vivi had tons of magical power, but such attacks would only be effective if he could keep the woman at a distance.
The little black mage's eyes went wide as the structure materialized out of thin air. It was beautifully designed and seemed to contain some sort of spiritual power. Normally the environments were recreations of places familiar to certain contestants, but this one was different. It was almost as if it was pulled from the very land of Hyrule itself.
"Vivi…Vivi…Hey you!" shouted Link.
"Um…yes?" asked Vivi, wondering what he did to anger the judge.
"You need to pick your starting position," instructed Cloud. "People are waiting."
"Oh…right," Vivi said. He looked at the scenery and then back down at his feet. After he shuffled them on the ground for a little, he made up his mind. "I'll start outside."
'The little guy is smarter than I thought,' Zelda observed. 'He knows he'd be at a disadvantage inside that place. I wonder what else he's thinking right now…'
'I really like the flowers out here,' thought Vivi. 'If I was inside I wouldn't be able to enjoy them at all.'
"I'll also start outside, but on the opposite side," Zelda said. Her eyes blazed with fire as she moved to her starting position. Link was trusting her to take this battle and she couldn't let him down.
"Good luck," Sephiroth sneered. "Not like I really care which of you weaklings ends up victorious."
"The two combatants have made their decisions!" the announcer boomed. "And now it's time to really heat things up! Break out the fire department, because I have a feeling this match is going to be smoking!"
"Remind me why we pay him again?" groaned Cloud.
"You know what? I really don't know either," answered Sephiroth.
"Here…we…GO!" And just like that, the fight had begun.
---
Zelda rushed in but was halted by a wall of fire that sprung up in front of her. To her relief, the flames dissipated just as quickly as they appeared. It seemed as if Vivi enjoyed their distance and wanted to keep it that way at all costs.
'So, you want to play the long-range game?' thought Zelda. 'Not a bad idea, but I'm no novice to such tactics myself.'
The princess gathered up some fiery energy in her hand. When it had reached a sufficient level, she let the orb free. Vivi quickly scrambled out of the projectile's way, thinking that he had avoided the worst of it. He was sorely mistaken, though, as the globe crashed into him with a heated burst.
'She…she can mentally control the trajectory of those things,' Vivi reasoned, as he rubbed his singed back. 'That means I'll have to stop them before they even get here.'
Zelda gathered more magic into her fingertips and sent three more Din's Fires at the little mage. Vivi tapped his staff and send out an equal number of ice shards. The two forces collided with each other and vanished in a puff of smoke. Vivi was about to smile when he caught two more orbs out of the corners of his eyes. It seemed that the previous attacks were merely diversions.
Vivi spun around and called upon a miniature meteor shower. The chunks of rock barreled into the nearby area. He winced as the side of the temple's entranceway was demolished. He hadn't meant to destroy the beautiful structure. He only wanted to protect himself from Zelda's attacks.
Vivi turned back around, but he couldn't find the princess anywhere. All he could see was a green speck floating in the distance. Suddenly, the Hylian materialized right next to him. Before the mage could react, she planted her palms into his chest and sent an electrical shock into her opponent.
Black magic could only attack, not defend. Vivi regretted this fact very much as he could do nothing but brace himself for impact as he sailed into the damaged doorway. He hit the hinges with a crack and then slid down to the ground. Steadying himself, he shook off the remaining magical currents and struggled to his feet. He was bruised, but nowhere near out of the fight.
Scanning the area, he again saw a green speck in the air.
"Not this time," Vivi said. He raised his staff high and called upon a torrent of thunder to rain down around him. Zelda appeared right in the middle of it and paid a hefty price. Her hair stood on end as she was assaulted by the clever counterattack. Wincing in pain, she recalled herself to her green marker before the mage could repeat his electrical storm.
'Uggghhh…that wasn't fun,' Zelda observed. 'But at least my strategy is working. Just a little closer…'
Vivi was refusing to budge, however. He had his staff readied and was waiting for her to move first. It was odd for an offensive magic user to be playing defense. But then again, Vivi Ornitier wasn't your typical black mage.
"You seem to have a natural resistance to magic," Zelda called out. "But let's see how your physical defenses are!" Making a fist with her right hand, she called upon the Triforce of Wisdom's power. Her form shimmered for a second and when it solidified, she had transformed into her Sheik attire.
Sheik reached into her suit and grabbed a handful of slim needles. With a quick flick of her wrist, she sent them on a straight path towards her opponent. Vivi ran behind the door, taking cover from the barbed weapons. He sighed in relief as they clattered harmlessly to the ground. Then his eyes went wide as he realized he had trapped himself inside an enclosed space.
Sheik ran inside the temple at an almost inhuman speed. Vivi put his arms up, trying to protect himself from the ensuing impact. This act was in vain, though, as his opponent grabbed a hold of him and proceeded to slam his body against a wall.
Vivi shook his head, trying to clear the stars away. He was now in a tiny space and against Zelda's physical fighting form. If he didn't think fast, he was done for.
The Sheikah warrior brandished her chain whip and wrapped it around the mage's feet in one smooth motion. With a delicate yank, she brought him crashing down to the stony floor. He tried to move out of the way as the fighter balanced herself onto her hands and then spun her feet around like a helicopter. The attack connected with crushing force and sent Vivi sliding across the chamber.
For the next minute, Vivi was totally at the mercy of his opponent. Sheik was moving almost too fast for the eye to see as she was jumping off the walls, ceiling, and floor. It seemed as if Vivi was being attacked from all directions at once as he could only wave his staff around in a feeble attempt to fight back. Every spell he launched missed its mark too, as he just couldn't hit the swift fighter.
'Not good…not good,' Vivi trembled. 'Another thirty seconds of this and I'm finished. I'm having enough trouble standing as is. She's just too fast for me to…wait a second…' It was then that Vivi had an idea.
The mage raised his hands and began to draw his power out with even more fervor than before. He threw his magics around wildly, not even caring where they hit. Sheik paid little attention to this tactic as she focused her strength into one powerful finishing attack. She readied her fist, smiling behind her mask as she could almost taste victory. That smile left her face in a flash, though, as her feet slipped out beneath her, sending her sliding into some stairs.
"What the…?" she wondered, her voice muffled from underneath her mask. As she looked around the temple, it suddenly dawned on her what Vivi had been doing. He didn't care about her, because he was casting spells at the surrounding environment. Her mouth went agape as she realized that everything was now completely covered in a thick layer of ice.
Vivi smashed his staff into the prone form with all his might. This didn't knock the warrior out, but it did daze her quite a bit. Sheik tried to slide away from Vivi, but she just couldn't find her footing on the slippery surface. Vivi bludgeoned her a few more times before casting a spell.
Sheik felt her magical powers flow into the young mage. His osmose spell leeched massive amounts of energy out of her until she could no longer maintain her fighting form. Her image shimmered and solidified once again, leaving the princess Zelda in place of the warrior Sheik.
"You had a good run," Vivi said. "I honestly thought you were going to beat me. As much as I'd like to see you win, Zidane would pummel me if I didn't fight with my all and take this opportunity to secure my victory."
"No, you don't understand!" Zelda pleaded. "There's more at stake here than just you and me!"
Vivi wasn't listening to the Hylian. He had shut his eyes and was focusing all of his magical power into himself. His robes began to shimmer and soon took on a silver sheen. His staff elongated and his hat straightened itself out. When Vivi opened his eyes, he was fully into his trance and was now a force to be reckoned with.
Zelda slowly raised herself to her feet, trying her best not to slide on the ice. Vivi reacted with lightning-fast speed, calling upon a wave of water to crash into the princess. She had nowhere to dodge and was caught in the deluge. That wasn't the end of it, however, as Vivi followed up his water attack with a ferocious ice blast, freezing the water. Zelda was now encased in ice and could do nothing but watch.
'I've…I've failed you, Link,' she thought. 'Another spell or two and I will be forced out of the tournament.' A tear left her eye and immediately froze on her cheek. Not wanting to face her failure, the princess shut her eyes tight.
'Child, why are you crying?' a voice asked Zelda.
'Because I've let my friend down and am going to go home soon.'
'No, you're wrong. You haven't lost. Not yet. There's still time.'
'Time? Time for me to do what? I can't move around as Sheik with ice everywhere and he'll just drain my magic if I try to use it against him. Even if I free myself from this prison, it'll only end in disaster.'
'If that's what you think, then you deserve to lose. But before I completely give up on you, I have one question.'
'And what is that?'
'Why do you fight?'
'To protect others. To make this world a better place. To help out my friends.'
'No! Stop lying to yourself! Why do you fight here!'
'I…I don't understand.'
'You know, for the wielder of the Triforce of Wisdom, you really are quite foolish. Who will be affected most if you lose here today?'
'Link. And the people of Grandis Somnium.'
'Zelda…you're forgetting someone.'
'Who? Who could it be…' It then suddenly made sense to the princess. She realized why she was here.
'Me.'
'What's that?' asked the voice.
'The person I fight for. The one that matters most…is me!'
'Then don't just say it! Believe in it! It's the only way to unlock your true potential.'
'I…fight…for…'
"MYSELF!" Zelda screamed. All of her rage at her helplessness, her inadequacies, and her shortcomings came out in that one primal blast. Vivi was knocked off his feet as the icy cage burst apart at the seams. He quickly got to his feet and prepared himself to cast another duo of spells when he was grabbed by two very strong hands.
"Put me down!" Vivi yelled, but his opponent paid him no mind. He looked into Zelda's eyes and was suddenly very, very afraid. No longer was this the spoiled princess he had been fighting previously. He now faced the full fury of the wielder of the Triforce of Wisdom. Zelda's right hand blazed with a bright blue light, and in a flash, the two were gone.
---
"Where…where did they go?" asked Cloud, shocked at this sudden turn of events.
"I have no idea!" cried out the technician.
"That's enough talking!" yelled Sephiroth. "Do what you're paid to do and FIND THEM."
"Yes, sir!"
---
Vivi looked around at the small area around him. It was a tiny circle surrounded by six other circles of equal size. Underneath everything was brilliant blue energy, flowing around the place as if it were water.
"Where are we!" Vivi asked. This wasn't the Temple of Time any more.
"We're home," Zelda answered. "The home of wisdom and spirit." Her form shimmered and she once again became Sheik. "This is where I shall beat you."
---
"Dimension 8-Q…negative. Dimension 50-Z…negative. Dimension 402-F…negative."
"How could she have moved Vivi on her own?" wondered Cloud. "It doesn't make any sense."
"Dimension 1-B…positive." At this last statement the three champions turned their heads toward one of the operators.
"You've found them!" Link shouted.
"Yes," the man replied.
"Then don't just sit there! Bring them up on the stadium's screens," Sephiroth instructed.
"Already ahead of you, sir. Visual confirmation in 3…2…1…"
The audience went silent as the two combatants once again showed themselves. No one had any idea where they were, but so long as they could see them fight, they were happy. All except for Link. He had been to this place before. He could never forget the…
---
"…Sacred Realm?" asked Vivi. "Look I don't care where we are…I'm still going to fight you."
"I wouldn't have it any other way," Sheik said. She then arced her chain whip at the diminutive mage. He slammed his staff down on the weapon before it could do any more damage.
'That is wrong,' the Triforce voice instructed Sheik. 'Do not rely on one form or another to beat him. Combine the two. That is your true power.'
Sheik took this advice in and then nodded her head in agreement. A smile worked its way on to her face. She would blend her two fighting styles together in perfect synergy. She had never tried something like this before, but that was why it excited her so.
She recoiled her whip and snapped it out again. Vivi went to block it, but he wasn't prepared for what happened next. On the end of the whip was a Din's Fire spell. It exploded into flames and knocked his staff out of his hands.
Zelda didn't ease up on her assault. She vanished into thin air and then reappeared right next to her opponent, slamming him with her fist. He tried to swat at her but met nothing except empty air. She reappeared next to him and kicked him hard in the ribs, again vanishing once the attack connected. The physical power of Sheik was now being combined with the teleportation skills of Zelda. Her adversary didn't stand a chance.
Vivi was sent flying with a ferocious uppercut. He landed on the ground in a heap. This fight was all but lost except for one more trick the black mage had up his sleeve.
"Surrender!" Zelda/Sheik called out.
"No!" Vivi yelled back. "Only if you can stand after this attack. Otherwise you don't deserve to beat me." The mage clapped his hands together and released his final spell into the air. Shadows started to take the form of a giant fireball as it began to grow larger by the second. Soon it was as big as the fighting area. There was no room to run.
Zelda/Sheik only had one option at this point. She enveloped herself in her most powerful protective spell and waited for the coming Doomsday spell. It was all up to Nayru's Love now.
The shadowy fireball erupted onto the battleground with terrific ferocity. Zelda/Sheik was shaken to her very core as she struggled to maintain her protective forcefield. Just before she had to let it down from sheer exhaustion, the attack ceased. Her diamond shell vanished and she saw the body of the fallen mage.
Vivi was a magical being and had a high resistance to offensive spells. At the time of his casting, though, he was just too weak. The Doomsday spell had ripped into him incredibly hard, with unfortunate results.
The mage was alive, but he was knocked out cold. In the end, his words had come back to haunt him. He didn't believe he could beat Zelda and that's what had happened. It wasn't she who had beaten Vivi. The person who had knocked Vivi out of this match…was himself.
Clutching the black mage in her arms, Zelda instructed the Triforce of Wisdom to take the two back to the arena. As soon as she arrived, she handed her opponent over to the medical team. They could take better care of him than she ever could. She then took off for the arena's exit, ignoring the cheering crowd and commotion. There was one voice, however, which she could not ignore.
"Hey Zelda!" Link called out. "Thanks for winning that match for me!"
"You idiot," Zelda jeered. "That one wasn't for you. It was FOR ME." She then turned around and kept on walking.
Link just shook his head. Zelda had finally understood the true purpose of this tournament. It would now take a tremendous force to take the Hylian woman down. And Link couldn't have been happier.
---
"What the hell was that, Gordon!" screamed Vercetti. "You listed Zelda as a C-minus and Vivi as a solid B."
"Yeah, well, things change," the scientist said, not wanting to anger the volatile mobster any more.
"I lost three thousand on that match today, which, based on your predictions, I thought was a sure thing. You owe me, pal. You owe me big."
"I don't owe you a thing," Gordon calmly said, while adjusting his glasses. "One, you never bought my disc, so you probably pirated it somewhere. Two, I never told you to bet all your money on the match. You did that yourself."
"Well, someone's going to have to pay!" Vercetti exclaimed. "And it might as well be you, you little ." The mobster then drew his gun on the scientist.
"Tommy," Gordon said. "Put that away. You don't know who you're dealing with."
"I don't know who I'm dealing with? you. You don't know who you're dealing with, you ing punk. I'll give you until the count of three to pay up or I'll-"
Vercetti was cut short as he saw a distinct cannon position itself in front of his face. "Or you'll what?" asked the cannon's owner.
"Ummm…nothing, Samus. Gordon and I were just having a friendly chat."
Samus almost laughed at the mobster's words. "Friendly chat? Last I checked, friends didn't threaten each other with guns."
"Now wait, you don't understand everything here-"
"Tommy, I'm going to give you until the count of three to get out of Gordon's room before I blast you into next Tuesday," Samus said with steel in her eyes.
"Hold on-"
"One."
"Can't I say just a little something in my defen-"
"Two."
"Oh ."
"Three." As soon as the bounty hunter spoke this last word, Tommy took off running down the hall. Apparently the gangster still had enough sense to understand when he was beaten.
"Thanks," Gordon said. "But I could have handled him just fine on my own."
"Oh, I know," Samus laughed. "But that was just too much fun to pass up."
"Samus, my time with you has really begun to change my view on a few things."
"How so?"
"I'm learning that it isn't how much you know in life that matters. It's who you know that makes a difference," Gordon said, cracking a smile.
"Well put, Mr. Freeman," Samus chuckled. "But didn't his behavior strike you as a little odd? Tommy's normally not a very scrupulous man, but he isn't crazy. This attack wasn't like him at all."
"Yeah, I know what you mean," agreed Gordon. "But what do you propose we do about it?"
Samus raised her eyebrow at this question. "I propose we do a little investigating over the next few days."
"Ohhhh…detectives! Sweet! Sounds good to me…so long as I get to hold the magnifying glass." Miraculously, Gordon was able to keep a straight face as he said this.
"Gordon?"
"Yes."
"If you ever act like that again I won't let Leon fight you. I'll kick your ass myself. Understood?"
Gordon then burst out laughing. He was shortly joined by Samus, who added her own higher-pitched roar to the mix. After a good thirty seconds, the two regained control of themselves and managed to look each other square in the eyes.
"But seriously…" Samus sighed, wiping a tear from her face. "I will kick your ass."
"I know, Samus. Wouldn't have it any other way." Gordon then shut the door as the two began to discuss how they would go about their snooping.
