Dendy makes an apology to T.K.O.
Testing on K.O. in a forest was a bad idea. But Dendy was gonna go with it anyway. She wanted to test on T.K.O. Or, well, observe would be a better word for it. Dendy wanted to analyze his animalistic behavior, which she had noted in his profile. The first thing she did was the same thing she did last time when attempting to unleash T.K.O., but this time the process was much quicker.
Purple sparks arced and snapped around K.O. body. Growls left his lips as the headband was burned away, hair grew out into a long wild mane. Red wristbands turned purple, spikes forming upon them with an audible sHING! A few blinks and the blank purple glow of his eyes focused and shrank in irises, that soon focus upon the Kappa the sat a few feet away, observing him with those big ol' googles of hers.. His eyes immediately narrowed into a fierce glare, his face clearly showed his irritation and anger.
"YOU..." He almost snarled out. He hadn't forgotten what happened on that day in her lab, the tests, everything she put K.O. through just to get to him, he had a grudge against her and it was a fierce one.
Dendy watched as this happened with a blank face. Last time she did something like this, it had failed, but now she was prepared. She held a remote in her hand, which would trigger a forcefield if the button was pressed, in case T.K.O. would try to attack her. The shield didn't work when she attempted to contain T.K.O., but this one was hopefully more durable. This time, it was to shield herself.
"Hello, T.K.O." She greets him with a wave, in a very nonchalant tone.
T.K.O. jumped to his feet, the corner of his lips twitching, occasionally showing the rows of sharpened and pointed teeth he had, "What do you want, Science baby?! To test on me AGAIN?!" He growled, his fists sparking dangerously, the mane that was hair was beginning to bristle, "I'm NOT your lab rat!"
"I'm not here to test you, Turbo Boy," For some reason, she thought it was only fair to give T.K.O. a nickname since he gave her one. "Just to observe." That may or may not sound weirder than actually testing him. Dendy did not care, however.
His face darkens at the nickname, he didn't believe a word that came out of her mouth, she had to be lying, trying to trick him. His anger boiled over, his fists lit up with a fiery aura, sparks flew everywhere.
"LIAR! GRAAAGHHHHHHHH!" He lunges towards Dendy, ready to sock her good. But right before he could, a button is pressed on her remote and then SLAM! He hits face first into the shield, he didn't even see it. "!?" He slowly slid down, falling off onto the ground. He soon sits up, groaning as he rubbed his face, before standing up again. "THE HECK?!"
He snarls, his mane bristles even further, "YOU THINK THIS WILL STOP ME?!" He remembers the last time she made something similar to it and he tore through it like it was a wet paper bag. This should be no different! He raised his fist and punched at the shield, harshly.
There wasn't even a scratch on the shield.
"What?!" He snarls louder, drawing back another fist and punching at the shield once more and again and again. This goes on for quite a while actually, his endurance was quite something to behold. But eventually... his punches were starting to slow until... he finally stopped.
Panting, he tries to throw one last punch but the arm falls back to his side. With a frustrated groan, he sat down, glaring fiercely at the Kappa. After a moment, he gets back up again on all fours and begins to prowl around the perimeter of the shield like a predator stalking its prey, and Dendy immediately starts typing her observations.
His eyes never left her. If she were to look close enough, she might see an inkling of a predatory glint within those angry purple eyes. What was more impressive was how smoothly he moved on all fours it wasn't awkward or ganky.
He moving like a real animal.
Eventually, he did speak after a while. "... You'll have to come out of there eventually ..." The kappa gives no response. The only sound from her was the typing on her screen.
With a low growl, he continues to pace around the shield. Curiosity was itching at him to see what exactly she was typing. He knew it was about him, but what exactly? He huffs loudly, snarls to himself in irritation.
Anger still nagged at him. It was frustrating. He wanted to hit something. Literally, anything would do. The worst part, he wanted to let out his anger on Dendy but he couldn't because of that stupid shield. What else is there? He looked to the environment.
Better than nothing.
The trees around them didn't stand a chance, an energy wave was enough to cut through the thick bark of trunks and send them crashing to earth. Dendy jolted in shock as she watched the environment become destroyed around her. It almost reminded her of the damage T.K.O. had done in her lab. There was a hint of remorse on the kappa's face at the thought of the incident in the lab.
She stops typing for a moment before she starts to type again. The kappa begins to think of how she treated K.O. to unleash T.K.O. It's something she still thinks about a lot, even if she made amends with K.O., no matter how much she wanted the thoughts and feeling of regret to go away.
Eventually, T.K.O. stopped, a good portion of the area around them was nothing but fallen trees and torn earth, craters and smoldering spots. He felt better, just a little bit but still irritated.
As Dendy looked at T.K.O., she couldn't help but want to talk to him. She wanted to change the relationship she had with him, to stop the pain and somewhat one-sided hatred between them. She constantly wished she could undo the things she had done, or at least make amends with T.K.O.
Perhaps I could, She thinks to herself.
Her typing slowed until she stopped again. But this time, she gives the boy a glance as he sits down to rest before sighing and finally closing her holo-screen. Dendy had to talk to him. She needed to settle this. If she doesn't, the pain will only continue.
"T.K.O.," She starts to say. "I need to talk to you."
His head turns to the kappa upon hearing her voice, the glare of disdain remaining on his face. "What do you want, huh?"
Dendy takes a small breath, looking for the right words to say. "...I want to apologize to you. For experimenting on you for my personal gain. That was very cruel of me."
The kappa could only hope she'd be given a chance. K.O. is her friend, and in her opinion, that means she should treat T.K.O. like so. She knew K.O. forgave her for the things she'd done, but T.K.O. still hated her for it. That meant there's still a part of K.O. that still held a grudge on her. The thought terrified her. Maybe that's why she was afraid of T.K.O., not solely because of his powerful strengths and brutality.
Still, she wanted to do this. Not just for K.O., but for T.K.O., and herself.
T.K.O.'s face softens ever so slightly before he looks away, silent before he quietly stood up.
He was still for a moment until suddenly turned and throwing a power fist in her direction, watching the attack bounce off the shield. He wanted to get that out of his system before speaking up. "... I... I don't even know if I SHOULD forgive you! How do I know you won't do it again, HUH?! Why should I trust you!?"
Ouch. That hurt. A lot. Dendy had to lightly bite her lip to keep herself from crying, even though tears began to form on the edges of her eyes.
She gulped, "You... don't have to forgive me.. if you don't want to. But... I want to at least do something to make it up to you. To fix the mistakes I made."
The emo child stares at Dendy for a moment, a small hint of sorrow on his face when seeing the small tears that formed in her eyes. But he quickly concealed his emotion, assuming it was just K.O., and crossed his arms in front of his chest and lifting a skeptical eyebrow at Dendy. "Like what?"
Dendy went silent. What could she do? The things she did, she felt was unacceptable, and there was little she could to make T.K.O. forgive her. But she didn't want to force him to do anything. She thought about what she favors she could do for him. Maybe give him a gift? Probably not. Whatever she gives him, he will probably not like. Fill in for him at Gar's Bodega? Possibly. From what she's heard from K.O., T.K.O. does not like working at Gar's. In fact... What does he want? Her eyes widened when she realized... It wasn't up to her.
"...Whatever you suggest." If she was going to make up for what she had done, it would be best to do anything T.K.O. wanted her to do.
T.K.O.'s eyes widen in surprise. It was rare for him to have the opportunity to do what he wants, so this was a big thing to him. He was quiet, rubbing his chin thoughtfully before figuring out what he wanted. This was his chance. He probably wasn't gonna get another one.
"Drop the shield."
"!" Dendy gasped, anxiety and panic almost overwhelming her. She had a very good idea of what T.K.O.'s gonna do once the barrier is gone.
Although, it was only fair. That's what he wants, and she agreed to do whatever he wanted. In fact, there was a part of her that felt like she deserved it for what she did to him. Whatever he was gonna do, she had to be prepared for it. Taking a deep breath, she presses the button on her remote, and the shield was gone.
With little warning T.K.O. charged at her, pinning her to the ground. Dendy yelped, helplessly trembling in fear as her eyes are met with T.K.O.'s, his face just inches away from hers as he snarled loudly at her. However, she shows no instance of struggle, mostly because she's too afraid to actually move. Her pupils shrank when her eyes caught sight of him drawing back a fist burning with the fiery aura and dangerous spark. The kappa shut her eyes and braced herself for the attack.
When the fist came down, however, it hits the ground right next to her head. It makes her jolt with mild fear but ultimately left her completely untouched. Dendy opens her eyes to turn her head to the direction of his fist, then turns to T.K.O. and is met with his purple eyes. But the rage that would glow in his eyes was just... gone.
He stares at her for quite a while, an inkling of a feeling ran through him before gets off of her, with a huff. Dendy got back on her feet once T.K.O. was off of her, her fear soon turning into downright confusion.
T.K.O. stood silent, a hand hovered over his chest. What...was that feeling? It was faint but it passed over him the moment he locked eyes with the kappa before it went away. He didn't notice at the time, but his cheeks were flushed ever so slightly as he gives the Kappa a sparing glance before he turns his head away.
The kappa took a few small steps towards him, still confused. She half-expected another attack or for him to start yelling at her again, but instead he was just... silent. It began to worry her. Did she do something wrong again? Maybe she could ask him what was going on.
"T.K.O...? Are you okay..?"
"...I'm fine..." He finally says as he sits back down on the grass. He was certainly calmer than before, but he still didn't know what these new feelings were. "...I feel ... better..."
"Oh... That is.. good to hear." Dendy had a small urge to sit down next to T.K.O. and talk to him, but that would probably make the situation worse. Though, she still wondered what she did what calmed him down. She didn't do anything, so it just kept her wondering.
...Why didn't I punch her!? He thinks to himself.
She deserved it for what she did to him! And yet when he looked at her, he just... couldn't... for some reason. Maybe it was because of K.O. But then there was that feeling... What was that? He couldn't put his finger on it and that frustrated him. He groans to himself and runs his hands through his mane.
I'm fine... I'm FINE. It's nothing. He thought to himself.
It didn't look like he was fine, even if he said so. Something was wrong, Dendy could just sense it. Maybe he was still mad at her for testing on him. But then again, he stopped right as he was about to punch her and said he felt better. That didn't sound right to her. Was he keeping something from her? She just wanted the truth.
"Is something wrong?" She approached T.K.O. and sat next to him. "...Did I do something wrong?"
"No!" He turns away from her, crossing his arms with a sigh. "Everything is fine."
"Are you sure? It doesn't look like you're okay."
"Yes, I'm sure."
Dendy narrowed her eyes at him. He was lying. She knew he was. She didn't like that he was lying to her.
"T.K.O., be honest." She says in a stern voice. "I know something is wrong."
"The only thing wrong is that you keep pushing! I'm fine, okay!?" He finally faces her, the small blush on his face somewhat obvious. "See?! I'm perfectly fine! Now can you get off my back?"
Her small anger had faded when looking at his face, which turned into concern. "Why is your face red? Are you not feeling well?" She set her hand on the boy's forehead to check for a fever.
"Wha... N-no! I'm not sick! Get your hand offa me!" The blush only reddened more when she put her hand on his forehead. At least he didn't feel sick... Then why was his face red ..?
Was he... blushing...but why? Was it... because of her? Couldn't be! Even though... she was kind of cu-
THE HECK?!
What's going on with him?!
Dendy wouldn't believe it to be blushing either, assuming T.K.O. still had a strong dislike for her. This is just confusing. She decided to drop it and get back on topic. She still wanted to have closure with him.
"...Okay then. However, I want to know - why didn't you attack me when you had the opportunity to?
"I... I don't know...! I wanted to punch you straight in your ..." He paused for a brief moment, looking at her face, looking for the words, "... s-stupid, nerdy face.. but... when I looked at you, I... I just-didn't..."
"...Are you...still mad at me?"
He went silent. Usually, when he saw her, he felt angry, he'd remember all the stuff she did and wanted to pay her back tenfold, but now ... that anger wasn't there anymore, at least not as prominent and strong, something else took its place and he couldn't figure out what it was.
"...Not really...I guess..."
Dendy sighed with relief. That made her feel a lot better. Usually, whenever she saw him, she felt afraid, despite how little she would show it. She would remember the things she did to him and constantly regret it, wishing there was some way to apologize so that maybe the feeling would go away. But now knowing that anger was gone... her fear was gone, too.
She smiled and another urge passed over her. Without thinking, she asked, "...Can I have a hug?" Dendy's face immediately turned red after realizing what she just asked, as T.K.O. did the same. A hug?!
Come on, T.K.O., this is easy. Hugs are gross and mushy and you ain't mushy, so tell her 'No'. Easy as pie. He takes a deep breath, looks at the Kappa dead in the eyes and says, "...Uh... S...sure..." What!? Why did you say that!?
Dendy's eyes widened at his response. "Really?" The blush on her face got bigger. "U-Uh, Okay." She leans forward and wraps her arms around T.K.O.'s body sorta awkwardly. But soon she became comfortable with it and pulled T.K.O. in an embrace. It actually felt... really nice.
The boy's face became even redder than before. What is wrong with him?! First, he let the nerd off from a well-deserved pounding and now he's letting her hug him!? What made it even worse is that some part of him wanted to hug her back! He fought the urge and instead sat there.
The hug lasted for a while until Dendy actually let go. Her cheeks were flushed with a red hue as she locks eyes with T.K.O. before she turns away in embarrassment. "Th-Thank you, T.K.O."
"W-whatever..." He said, looking away with a huff. Ignoring and steering himself from the part of him that didn't want the hug to end, that wanted to bring her even closer and hold her, and cuddle her and... and ki-
UGH! What is wrong with me...?! He just wanted to slam his head against the nearest tree and see if that could fix it. Right as he was about to get up to find a tree that wasn't broken on the ground, he felt a soft, webbed hand on top of his. He froze and slowly turned his head to Dendy, who seemed to have done it absentmindedly.
J-Just ignore it... Ignore it... Ignore it... Ignore it... Ignore it... Ignore it... Ignore it...
...Igno- UGH! SCREW IT!
T.K.O. caved to the feeling, his body almost moved on its own as he suddenly wrapped his arms around Dendy and pulled her into a tight hug with no clear sign of letting her go. Dendy yelped but didn't try to release herself from his grasp. In fact, she felt very content with this. The kappa locked eyes with the boy again, his face red as a beet. "...Tell anyone and I'll punch you right in between those nerdy goggles of yours..."
She lightly giggled as she wrapped her arms around him. Right now, she was just happy that T.K.O. was hugging her. "Don't worry, I won't tell anyone."
"Y-You better not..." The feeling was beginning to flourish and as it did, the more comfortable he felt, he found himself melting into the hug, even... nuzzling Dendy a bit, smiling slightly.
Dendy found herself enjoying the embrace just as much as T.K.O. was, comfortable enough to move an arm to gently stroke his hair. If he had a tail, it would be wagging right now. Instead, he only nuzzles further. Whatever this feeling was... He...he liked it... and he never wants it to go away. Dendy felt the same way.
As the hug continued and turned into a full-on cuddle session, Dendy couldn't help but wonder what she was feeling. She's never felt anything like this. The feeling was wonderful yet confusing at the same time. He was curled around the kappa in an almost protective way, having her sitting nice and close to him, his arms wrapped around her in a safe, cradling embrace as he nuzzles up against her cheek. He was enjoying the moment.
It was strange, how he was feeling right now, what he was doing, but it felt... right.
He looked to the kappa and soon spoke up, "... Is this... normal?"
"I...think so." Dendy has been hugged many times so she supposed it was normal. Though, she couldn't be sure. She's never been hugged like this before, nor did she have such strong feelings when she was hugged.
"It's weird... but ... it feels right. I never held someone like this before... but it just feels right, you know?!"
Dendy smiles. "I understand. It feels right to me, too." Dendy curls up in T.K.O.'s arms and nuzzled him with a smile and a pleasant hum. For the first time, she actually feels safe with him. It made her really happy to feel this way.
"Yeah..." He sighs and nuzzles Dendy's face. The feelings didn't feel bad, so they had to be good in some way, right? But for the sake of his reputation, he had to keep this a secret and in private, no one must know especially not his Mom, she would never let him live it down.
This was one of the few times that T.K.O felt ... happy, he usually felt like this when he was fighting ... or destroying stuff ... but this was the first time he was happy and wasn't doing any of that stuff. He was happy to hold Dendy, to have her so close.
He looks at the Kappa once more, another urge passing over him, he didn't fight it, not as much as he should as he leans in and gives Dendy a small and quick kiss on the cheek, before turning his face away, blushing madly.
"Oh!" Dendy gasped when he kissed her cheek, her face turning completely red. She's never been kissed by any of her friends, not even K.O., so this surprised her extremely. Well, that was a quick way to turn the Kappa into a speechless, flustered mess.
He was just as quiet, not knowing what to say. He felt like he might have made the situation awkward, even though he was only just expressing how he felt, "I-I'm sorry..." He rarely ever apologizes for anything but he felt like it was necessary. He could feel K.O.'s panic and worry in the back of his mind.
"... I-Its okay... I-I just d-didn't... anticipate that... " Dendy's face was beet red at this point, looking down in embarrassment.
He looks back at Dendy seeing the flustered Kappa and chuckles lightly. It was kinda a cute sight to see.
At that moment, Dendy felt an urge pass over her as she soon locked eyes with T.K.O. She wanted to kiss him back. The urge was unfightable for her as she leaned forward and kissed his cheek. T.K.O.'s whole body locked up as he felt the kappa's kiss, the feeling within double exponentially and found himself almost dazed. He didn't notice, at the time but at that moment he had the dopiest, love-struck look on his face.
Immediately after she kissed his cheek and saw the expression on his face, she looked down and regretted her decision.
"S-Sorry...!" Panic began to rush over her as she held her face in her hands. She lifts her head to look at T.K.O. and begins to worry more at his silence. "U-Uh... T.K.O.? Are you alright?"
The boy snaps out of it once he heard Dendy's voice call out his name, looking at her and noticing the worried look on her face. "Y-Yeah, I'm fine..."
Dendy wasn't sure if that was true, but she inferred that she didn't make him mad since he didn't look mad or upset. A relieved sigh escaped the kappa as she held T.K.O. close again. "Okay, I-I just wanted to make sure."
Another small, soft smile happens as he welcomes Dendy's embrace with his own, nuzzling the kappa once more. He gives an occasional, somewhat paranoid glance around the area to make sure they were alone. He didn't want any prying eye. After seeing nobody was there, he smiled once again. Of course, he was gonna do that for as long as they were gonna be together in this moment. He still didn't know what this feeling was, but one thing he knew for sure...
He could be okay with it.
