16: Never Again

Everything was muffled and the ringing in her ears was overwhelming. She could tell that he was talking to her, or at least trying to because she was his mouth moving, but no words came out. Her vision was faltering, everything becoming very blurry except for Fox, who she kept her eyes trained on. Everything was fuzzy and everything felt numb and confusing.

After a few more minutes passed, she registered that the wind that kept tickling her cheeks was from the speed that she and Fox were moving at. He cradled her in his arms, holding her close as though afraid that someone would snatch her away from him and kept looking down at her with the same scared expression.

She wanted to ask him what was wrong but her voice was lost. She failed to remember how to talk, and what the sensation of forcing words out felt like.

Where was she anyway?

She couldn't remember where she had been, where she just was, or how she got here- wherever here was.

What happened?

Finally gathering the tiniest bit of strength, she moved her eyes to look past the shoulder of Fox to spot Samus on the other side of him. The blonde woman's face was twisted in a frustrated expression as she ran alongside the vulpine, shouting to someone. It made Pikachu wonder who else may be around.

Where am I?

Suddenly, unsure how she ended up in that position, the cool sensation of the cold surface of the ground met the exposed skin of her back. It felt nice. It was a nice contrast to the sticky warmth on her forehead that stretched down the side of her cheek.

When did Peach get here?

The princess' blue eyes were extremely glossy and pink and puffy, and a loose tear escaped her eye to land on Pikachu's nose. Peach firmly pressed something cold against her forehead, and a searing pain shot through her her. Pikachu became aware of the dull ache in her abdomen and the fact that her leg didn't feel quite right.

Fox reappeared by her side, his mouth moving again but she heard none of it. Her senses were still too muffled, and her mind was still so lost. She found herself desperate to make out what he was saying to her, but nothing registered.

Where am I?

Doctor Mario was here now, Samus and Robin stationed behind him. Another sharp sensation overcame Pikachu's abdomen area, and she felt her mouth gape instinctually and force something out from the bottom of her throat. She was unsure what came out however, but the looks on everyone's faces made her feel panicked and intensified the pain. Doctor Mario hovered over her, his face screwed in concentration as the stabbing pain overwhelmed. She saw Fox turn towards the doctor, anger contorting his facial features, apparently yelling something nasty to him. Doctor Mario didn't respond, merely glaring at the vulpine as he continued his work.

When will the buzzing stop?

The pain…

Will it go away?

Falco appeared, resting a feathered hand on Fox's shoulder who attempted to brush him off. Fox scrambled out of the avian's grip and moved closer to her, trying to speak to her once again. His gloved hand cupped her face and his eyes seemed conflicted. She maintained the eye contact with him, spying the movement from the others in her peripherals. Falco's hand landed on Fox again, trying to pull him away.

Black. Dark.

I was never a fan of the dark.

Black dots danced in her vision, and her sight became to disappear quickly. The ringing in her ears became deafening, a constant dull ring echoing throughout her head.

Why was he so angry?

Peach's face turned horrified and she stretched an arm out, looking like she was openly crying. Fox swung his arm around, fist connecting with Falco. Samus looked prepared to intervene with whatever was happening.

It was too confusing right now for her. Sleep beckoned her, and she accepted with open arms.


She awoke slowly. Her eyes fluttered open gently, her eyelashes peeking from the top of her vision as she blinked several times, gradually coming to her sense. The stark white room hurt her eyes, and she squinted to combat the discomfort. The room reminded her of the infirmary at the mansion, and after further analysis made her realize that it was in fact that very room.

How…?

"Good, you're awake."

The voice to her right made her jump slightly. Samus gave her a soft smile, an uncommon sight from the bounty hunter. "How are you feeling?"

Pikachu attempted to speak up, stopped by the unbearable scratching sensation resting in the back of her throat.

Too dry.

"Can I… water?"

Samus' eyes lit up as she reached behind where she sat and handed the smaller blonde a cup filled with water. Pikachu's hand dropped somewhat as she took the ahold of the cup, obviously still not having all her strength back, struggling to raise it close to her mouth. Samus shifted again, dropping a straw into the cup.

"Here."

Pikachu silently thanked her, sipping the water greedily. The liquid refreshed her and brought life back to her throat, albeit burning it ever so barely.

She paused her drinking for a moment. "…where–" she began, struggling to speak.

"Hey! Rise 'n shine, girly." Falco's voice cut through the beginning of her question like butter, earning the attention of the blonde bounty hunter.

"Leave her be, Falco. She just woke up."

Falco shot Samus a sour look. "Hey Sam- I'm just as relieved as you are that she's up, you know," he quipped before redirecting his attention to Pikachu. "How're you doing?"

Pikachu licked her lips quickly before finding her voice. "I… I'm not sure… okay, I guess?" Her voice croaked, sounding weak and hollow. Her middle section tightened uncomfortably, making her wince. "Falco…"

The probe was cut off once again by the door flying open. Doctor Mario walked in, arms full of papers while Peach scurried after him, carrying blankets. Robin brought up the rear, an annoyed look cast on his face at the door having banged against the wall.

"Make room- make room!" The Doctor chattered, getting close to the electric girl and shining a bright light in her eye. Pikachu recoiled at the unexpected gleam and fired a confused look back at Samus and Falco.

Doctor Mario narrowed his eyes at her, humming under his breath. "Well… you don't seem concussed, which is shocking if I do say so myself. Does your head hurt?"

Pikachu widened her eyes at his words. Concussed? What happened?

"I mean- no. I don't think so?"

Doctor Mario chuckled at her perplexed expression. "You either know or you don't."

She paused briefly, allowing herself to evaluate the current state if her body. She recognized the dull throbbing on her forehead, and raised a hand to touch the afflicted area. She winced at the sting when her hand met her skin, rubbing the bandages lightly.

"A bit, I suppose."

The Doctor clucked his tongue as he scribbled something down on his clipboard. Peach moved about the end of the bed, unfolding a blanket quickly and laying in across her exposed ankles and taking care to tuck it slightly underneath Pikachu. The princess sniffled lightly, her eyes still apparently puffy, and Pikachu felt herself bite down on her tongue to prevent from asking if the princess was doing okay.

"Okay… Robin, if you could help me with the medicine, I'd appreciate it," Doctor Mario concluded, turning to the cloaked man, who nodded back at him.

"Of course," Robin replied and turned to face the blonde in the bed. "Rest up, Pikachu."

She said nothing and watched them exit the room. Peach remained silent as she quickly exited after them, her sniffling growing louder by the second. Neither Falco or Samus spoke up and the three sat in a heavy silence. Pikachu decided to take a stab at her desired question one final time before giving in.

"Falco…" she began quietly, and the avian turned to look at her, expectancy shining in his eyes." "Where's– "

"Fox?" Falco interjected, finishing the thought for her. "Hiding in his room."

"Why?"

Samus sat at the edge of the bed, resting hand on Pikachu's knee and rubbing up and down. "He's blaming himself for what happened to you."

Pikachu let the words sink in, prying her brain for recollection of what occurred earlier that day that resulted in her battered and damaged and laying in the infirmary. Nothing came up, the last thing she was able to recall was the incident in the hallway leading up to her passing out, and prior to that her admiring the scenery outside, before hearing a strained cry from Fox. Then darkness.

"What happened to me?" Pikachu asked, and the looks of surprise on her visitors faces caught her off guard.

"Pikachu…" Samus began, her voice settling with an uncomfortably gentle tone. "The cliff you were standing on collapsed."

Nothing popped up in her mind. She couldn't recall that moment happening. She couldn't remember what it felt like. If there was any pain associated with the event. But most of all…

"But if I fell off a cliff, why is Fox hiding in his room?"

"Because he's blaming himself for what happened to you," Falco stated, blunt.

Pikachu frowned, half at the vague response and half at the headache settling at the forefront of her head. "I don't understand."

Samus sighed; whether it was due to fatigue or agitation was unknown to Pikachu, but she didn't dwell on it. "We probably shouldn't be the ones telling you exactly what happened today."

Falco let out a dry laugh. "Good luck then. Fox won't be coming out of his room anytime soon, trust me. I already tried."

"Then try harder," Samus snapped at him, and he grunted in response. "Fox should be here with her, more than anyone. He's taking this harder than anyone."

"The guy is stubborn as shit. He won't accept that an accident was an accident. He'll wallow in self pity until Pikachu's back on her feet and kissing him and telling him all is fine."

Pikachu's brow furrowed at the comment made by the bird, her cheeks burning faintly. "Well tell him that I'm fine and it's fine, whatever happened."

Falco waggled a finger at her, shaking his head. "Tried that already. I told him you'd be okay, and he pretty much told me to buzz off."

Samus breathed out through her nose, standing abruptly. "It doesn't matter what he does or doesn't know. He should, however, be here with her because you and I know as well as anyone that he cares too much about her."

Pikachu felt her face fall into a scowl at Samus' strange comment. "Look- I don't care what happened. I'm fine." She turned to face the avian. "Tell him that."

Pikachu felt herself grow frustrated at the absence of the vulpine in question, but also confused at the comments involving the relationship of the two from her two current companions. She huffed, digging herself deeper into her blankets and pillows. "I don't care if he does or doesn't show up. That's his choice."

Samus sent her an affectionate look, tussling her hair gently. "He'll be here. We"–she emphasized, shooting a look at Falco before continuing– "promise."

Pikachu nodded slowly, and the two exited, leaving her alone with her thoughts.


The creak of the infirmary door opening snapped Pikachu out of her light sleep. The lights of the infirmary were off, and the room was blanketed in an illuminated darkness from the moon shining through the blinds. The sound of footsteps made Pikachu's heart pound faintly against her chest.

"Doctor Mario?"

The blinds moved, and in came a tired looking Fox McCloud. His face was ragged, like he had been rubbing and pulling at his fur all day, and the bags under his eyes was absurd. He shifted uncomfortably in place, waiting for her to say something before acknowledging her silence as an invitation and plopping down on the side of her bed.

"Hey…" he whispered, gentle.

"Hi…" she replied, the confusion that dissipated with her sleeping coming back with a vengeance.

"How are you feeling?" He questioned, his eyes refusing to meet hers.

Pikachu found herself quickly irritated with her avoidance, and chose to ignore the question.

What happened…?

She breathed out slowly, willing herself to ask what has been on her mind all day. "What happened today… out there?"

Fox finally lifted his head to look in the eye, and her heart panged painfully. The gaze in his eyes was full of hurt, and they were puffy, leading her to fear that he had been hiding in his room to release the tears and emotions he was bottling up.

"I couldn't protect you," he forced out, his voice cracking. "That's what happened."

"Oh Fox… the cliff collapsed. You couldn't have prevented that."

"The cliff collapsed because it was shot at, Pikachu. And I saw them fire that rocket, where you were standing." He lowered his head, running a gloved hand across his face. "And then…"

Pikachu bit down on her lip at the realization of why Samus and Falco refused to give her all the details from earlier. She waited patiently for the vulpine to muster up the strength to continue.

"The look on your face," he began, another crack intervening with his normally steady voice. "I thought I was scared, but man… you looked terrified when you fell."

Chills crawled down her spine, and her memory slowly placed the pieces of the day's earlier events back together, forming the picture.

"I couldn't save you…" he breathed out. "And you got hurt."

"But I'm alive," she whispered, afraid to speak too loudly.

"That should've been me."

"Fox…"

"You got hurt, because I was stupid, and I won't ever make that mistake, ever again," he snapped at nothing in particular. The sharp cut of his voice made her flinch and she felt the tiniest bit of fear settle in her stomach.

He looked her in the eye again, a different but unrecognizable emotion floating in them. Warmth worked its way up and throughout her body as he scooted closer to her.

"I'm sorry."

"You don't have to apologize."

"I do."

"No, you don't."

"Yes, I do," he snapped, eyes widening before mumbling an apology. "I just… you got hurt because I was irresponsible. I wasn't good enough. You almost died because I failed to keep you safe."

Pikachu, overcome with emotion, quickly leaned forward, ignoring the pain screaming at her to stop in her stomach, and planting a small kiss near his lips. She leaned back, face scorching from the intimacy between them, and he returned the look with an intense stare of his own.

"You, are my hero, Fox McCloud," she whispered, her face continuing to burn with each word slipping out of her mouth. "I may have fallen off a cliff, but you saved me, and you kept me alive long enough to make it back here. And for that, I thank you."

Fox remained silent and frozen for a moment, before raising an arm and cupping her cheek delicately, afraid that if he grasped any harder than she would crumble in his grip. He moved in swiftly, catching her lips in a soft kiss. Pikachu settled into the kiss, shyly grabbing at his jacket and pulling him in closer to where she sat on the bed.

Pulling away, he gazed at her. "I'm sorry."

She sighed, returning the look. "It's okay, Fox," she said softly, rubbing his cheek affectionately.

He smiled softly at her before moving to stand. Her hand shot out, catching his forearm, and he looked back at her, curious.

"Please stay."

Fox blinked before nodding. "Okay."

Pikachu shifted slightly to make room for the vulpine who laid down next to her. His hand made its way down to hers, his fingers weaving through and interlocking with her own. He gave a gentle squeeze and she responded with one of her own.

"Don't worry," he began quietly as she closed her eyes. "I'm not going anywhere. Never again."