This'll be a fun one x333
"I'm initiating phase one of the plan, Vector." Espio said through his wrist two-way radio to his superior and then approached behind the Snow Leopard silently. Frostfire sat by the edge of the pool, dangling her feet and soaking her feet in the water.
"I still can't believe it…" Frostfire thought to herself. "He has a girl after all…" A single tear dripped from her eye and into the pool. She had never been stabbed in the back quite like this. This almost hurt as much as her brother betraying her.
"Hello, Frostfire…" Espio said emerging from the shadows.
Frostfire jolted as she swiveled her head to Espio, wiping her tears away. "Huh? O-Oh, hi…" She said softly, still somewhat mourning over what she had seen. She then hugged her knees, so incredibly emotionally torn.
"How are you doing?" Frostfire was baffled by this sudden display of niceties from the Chameleon.
"G-Good, I guess…" She said, lying through her fangs.
Espio sat by her. "You look exquisite today." He forcibly said.
Frostfire's eyes widened to the sudden remark. "I, what?" The shock in her voice continued to grow as her cheeks reddened.
"I had not noticed how your eyes dazzle in the moonlight." He said parting her hair over her eyes. Espio slowly but surely gained footing in this game of deceit.
Frostfire couldn't believe her ears. Did Espio truly like her? Had he found out about her crush on him?
"M-My eyes?" She asked. "What a stupid thing to say…"
"Yes. They are as lovely as you."
"How's it going out there, Espio? Have you attracted Manic's attention yet?" Vector's impatient voice came from the two-way radio. Espio frowned but kept his calm posture and ignored his company's confused features. He cursed himself for forgetting to shut it off.
"I'm afraid I have been beguiled, boss." Espio tried not to blush. This was not what he had in mind.
"What on Mobius are you saying, Espio? Don't tell me you got distracted! What could possibly more important than-" Espio immediately shut off the traitorous device and facepalmed before looking at Frostfire.
"I'm sorry, Frostfire. I meant to talk to you without the presence of machinery." Espio said. "That was clearly very rude of me to speak with you without turning off my device." Espio quickly tried to think of something romantic to say to save the operation, "I must have been so intent on seeing your radiant beauty again, I forgot to shut it off."
Frostfire's cheeks felt as if they were on fire. She didn't even noticed the two-way radio, she was too astounded by his words. "W-what are you talking about? What beauty?"
Espio rubbed the back of his head shyly. "Haven't you noticed when you look in the mirror? Or does the illogical happen, and your mirror breaks because it can't fathom your beauty?"
Frostfire was taken aback but scoffed at him. "More like it breaks because it can't handle my hideousness…" She grumbled.
Espio set his hand atop hers. He couldn't help but feel a slight twinge of anger at her words because he could tell she actually believed them. At the same time, he felt guilty faking such feelings of romance. "That isn't true at all. You, Frostfire, are very beautiful."
Frostfire shook her head furiously. "Y-You're just saying these things! Y-You're probably working for Vector trying to get something out of me…"
Espio ignored the fact that she had technically figured out half of his reason for being there and continued on with the ruse. "Why are you so quick to jump to conclusions? Not all males have the same opinion as I do. Besides, what made you think it was your looks, though magnificent, that attracted me?"
"Because males are visual creatures… Sonic appreciated Sally's looks while they were together as well as my best friend… So its only natural that any male would do the same." Frostfire sighed. "There's only one male in this universe that I want…"
"Oh? Who is the male you wish to attract?" Espio cocked his head curiously.
Frostfire bit her tongue. "N-no one… It doesn't matter…" She had wished she hadn't said anything. It was foolish to speak her mind.
"It does matter. I care about your feelings and your feelings matter to me. Go ahead, tell me, I will not be upset." Espio said honestly.
"M-Manic… I have never felt so strongly about a person as I do Manic…" She carefully and quietly stated. The gloom washed over Frostfire like a spring's rain. "S-Sorry if that hurts you… I… I could go on a date with you, if you want… It's not like Manic will come my way…"
Espio nodded his head at Frostfire. He was quite happy to get his facts straight, he would hate to be doing this for nothing. "I see... I do not wish to drag you along with me if you don't want to, but it would be my pleasure. I'm sure you'll get who you want eventually, right now let me cheer you up." Espio gave her a sweet smile.
Frostfire rested her chin on her palm and her elbow on her knee. "I don't think I will… nor will I be happy again… h-he… has another girl…" Frostfire began to bawl. "To be honest, I am unsure if it is even his girl but they were so in sync with each other, I do not know what to believe anymore…"
Espio immediately flung his arms around her, partly because he wanted to stop her crying and partly because he needed to keep his cover. He began wondering about this other woman. He wanted to question her about it but knew now was not a good time. "I'm sorry, Frostfire. I wish I could satisfy you but at least let me cheer you up a little. We can go on a walk and try to keep your mind off of him. Perhaps, it wasn't what you thought and you're just letting your feelings blind you."
Frostfire stood up wiping her tears. "A walk does sound nice… but I know what I saw. It was one probably of his thief friends. He was clearly flirting with her… He… He'd want a thief girl… Not some outcast who barely understands the world around her."
"How can someone so generous think so negatively?" Espio asked. He didn't give any time to answer, though. He locked his hand with Frostfire's and led her in a direction. "How's does walking among the shops sound? There a many beautiful things to see there. I could go as far to say they have all the gorgeous things in the world but then again..." Espio looked back at her, "They don't have you."
Even though she couldn't believe it, Frostfire just kept blushing. "That'll be j-just fine…" She looked away shyly. His unexpected liking to her was as mysterious as him. Espio smiled, actually surprised that this plan was working. As they walked, Frostfire admired the scenery that they passed by. It was rather refreshing to her broken spirit.
When they had reached the shops he loosened his grip on her hand, just to make sure he hadn't been squeezing it too hard. "We're here. Is there any particular shop you would like to explore?"
"I wouldn't know where to begin!" She beamed and looked around and at Espio. "What do you suggest, Espio?"
Espio began to think about where that green hedgehog would most likely be. He was about to suggest a jewelry store but he thought that would have blown his cover. What was the next best thing? He snapped his fingers. "How about a knick-knack shop? It is full of all kinds of compelling items." He conveniently left the part out about them being rather pricey, taking her lack of outside knowledge to his advantage.
"Hmmm… seems a bit explorative! I'm up for it!" Frostfire felt happy around Espio. She hadn't felt this good in a while.
"Well then, allow me to escort you." Espio led her to a small little shop and opened the door for her before stepping inside. He scanned the area, looking for any sign of the green thief.
When he spotted him, Espio got a little closer to make sure he wasn't mistaken. When he discovered it was indeed the thief he was looking for, he hid. He watched as Manic swiped a few things and tried not to facepalm as he walked away. He looked around the store for Frostfire.
Eventually, Espio spotted the Snow Leopard and guiltily walked up to her, "Sorry, I deserted you. I found something that intrigued me and foolishly separated from you. Would you like to see what I found?" Espio tried not to sound pushy. He didn't want her to think he was planning something, which he was...
"I'd love to see! I was so enthralled with these jewels and other things, I forgot you were here!" Frostfire giggled.
Espio chuckled and led her in the direction of Manic. When he saw the thief heading their way, he quickly turned before Frostfire noticed. He looked at the shelves and spotted a random knick knack. It was a very inspiring display of an angel helping a wounded soldier up and onto his feet. "See?" Espio pointed to it. "Isn't it heartening?"
"It sure is pretty! I wonder who made it?" Frostfire said admiring it.
"Yeah... Try taking a look at its base. That's where an artist usually signs their work." Espio said. He used this distraction to his advantage, and took a peak out of the hallway they were standing in. He saw Manic near the cashier. He grinned.
"I can't seem to find it, Espio." Frostfire said, scanning the base of the figure.
"Really?" Espio asked. He walked up to her. "Let me examine it." He took the knick-knack from her and pretended to scan its base. "Hmm... Maybe we should ask the cashier and see what she can tell us."
"Very well." Frostfire said with a large grin.
Espio led her the cashier and pretended not to notice Manic. "Excuse me, Miss? We were wondering who made this excellent piece." The cashier smiled brightly at Espio and told him she would look it up. He thought this was perfect way to make him seem as though he were occupied.
Frostfire noticed Manic and immediately felt down. "Oh jeez," She whispered to Espio. "Of all places he has to be here… l-let's just leave…"
Espio pretended he didn't hear Frostfire as he waited for the cashier to return to her counter. The cashier could not answer Frostfire's question, to which Frostfire was displeased. Out of the corner of Espio's eye he saw the green one approach.
"Hey, Frosty. What's up?" Manic said. It only took him a second to notice the light-violet chameleon was present too. "Hey, Espio. What are you guys up to?"
"O-Oh! U-Uh… Hey… W-We're just…" His presence had her at a loss for words. Her throat began to dry up and her spine tingled again. "…Browsing." The only word she could muster and she sounded like an idiot. She was mentally beating herself up for her stupidity.
Espio took this opportunity to step away from the counter. "Hello, Manic. Frostfire was depressed earlier so I decided to cheer her up by taking her on a stroll through the shops. Her presence was delightful. That reminds me..." Espio approached Frostfire and took her hand. "Do you feel better now, Frostfire?"
"Y-Yes, Espio…"
Manic honestly didn't know what to think of the sight he saw before him. For some reason he had this burning feeling in his chest but he also felt sad. How come he wasn't told of her depression? He would have gladly cheered Frostfire up. "Is that true, Frosty?"
"I'm afraid so… It's nothing though. Not anything for you to w-worry about…" Frostfire felt her face redden again and unable to look Manic in the eye.
"I'm sorry I wasn't there. I'm glad you're feeling better now." Manic tried to ignore the fact that Espio seemed uncomfortably close to Frostfire.
"I-I think I'm better. But like I said, n-nothing to worry about…" Frostfire stated.
Espio decided now was a good time to fill Vector in. "Excuse me, Frostfire, Manic. But I need to step out for a second. Vector's going to want an explanation for why I'm not following up on the case we're working on. I'll be right back." Espio didn't stick around for any objections, and walked out of the shop.
Manic watched Espio leave, feeling strangely relieved. "So..." Manic tried to spark some conversation but he wasn't feeling like it at the moment.
"F-Fancy meeting you here, Manic." She said brightly. In her heart, darkness spread to every corner, devouring any light that might reside.
"Yeah..." Manic tried thinking of something to start a conversation but for some reason he felt like he was being a third wheel. He awkwardly scratched the back of his head. "Um... do you want me to go? I kind of..." He got closer to her a leaned closer to her ear. "Took a few things... anyway."
"N-No! I mean… No, you do not have to leave." Frostfire looked at him longingly.
"You sure? You look kind of busy." Manic said, hinted annoyance in his tone when he saw Espio in the distance.
"B-Busy?" She almost was confused to what he said. Then she flashed on being there with Espio. Manic's presence nearly made her forget. "O-Oh!" She laughed. "No, I'm not busy. Espio took me here solely to cheer me up."
"That was cool of him..."
"Yes," Frostfire beamed. "It was oddly nice of him." She didn't know why the Chameleon was being so nice but she suspected it wasn't his apparent feelings for her.
"Yeah... odd..."
Frostfire could feel the tension between them but she wasn't sure how it surfaced. "Are you alright?"
Suddenly, Frostfire came into vision again and Manic blushed. "Huh? Yeah, I'm fine. Totally." He said, though he was most certainly not fine.
"Really? Okay. If you say so…" Frostfire said, eyeing another knick-knack sitting on the counter. "Oh, this is pretty…" She marveled at its shininess and artistic features. After she put it down, she said, "Where'd Espio go?" She looked around for him, not seeing him in the store at all. She had gazed at Manic for so long, she didn't even know he left. She looked outside the large glass window and door only to find Espio had left her there. This left her wondering what he was doing.
There it goes again. That fiery feeling in his chest. "Got me." Manic said, rather rudely. He began to question why he said that in such a manner. He tried to calm himself down when he saw Frostfire look at him oddly. "I think I saw him leave the shop."
"O-Oh…" Frostfire didn't know whether to feel sad or relieved. All she knew is that she wanted to do something with him. "Er… hey, do you… maybe… want to get out of here? I feel much better now." Frostfire was sort of lying. She still believed that Blue Jay she saw with him was his girl.
"Sure!" Manic answered way too fast. "I mean..." He nervously rubbed the back of his head, "If it's okay with Espio." He tried not to look too excited but for some reason he felt thrilled.
"Espio?" Frostfire laughed. "What does he have to do with me wanting to hang out with a friend?" Friend. The word felt disgusting on her tongue but it was too late to take back. Perhaps if she had said close friend, the frown on her face wouldn't show immediate regret…
Manic was rather oblivious to Frostfire's obvious discomfort towards the word friend since he was rather uncomfortable with it as well. "You know, you were kind of hanging out with Espio and I would hate to just steal you away from a good time, especially since he wouldn't know you where you went..."
"No, I'd love to continue having a great time with you!" Frostfire blushed at her own statement, fearing it sounded too palpable that she liked him. "It's just… you can't fly…"
"I don't understand." Manic seemed confused and he tilted his head a little to the side.
"Well, I'd love to take to the skies with you but… you do not possess wings as I do…"
Once Manic had finally got it he grinned, "I've got a hover board. Does that count?"
Frostfire's face filled with hope and joy. "I've heard of such devices! That is wonderful!" She giggled. Suspended in the air for a moment, she said, "Then let us take to the skies, shall we?"
Manic chuckled and said, "Like I wouldn't say yes."
The two reached the Hedgehog's home and he retrieved his hoverboard and Frostfire replied, "Come on, then!" Frostfire cheered him on, already flying ahead of the base.
"Happy now?" Manic asked her, hovering on his board beside her. He crossed his arms and smirked.
Flying upside down, she responded, "Very! Despite not being born with these appendages, I enjoy flight." Frostfire twirled gracefully in the air and laughed gleefully.
"I can tell!"
Frostfire performed more acrobatic moves, showing off for the Hedgehog. "Bet you can't do that!"
"Well, of course I can't! I don't have wings!" Manic joked. "However, I can do this..." He started doing a series of flips.
Frostfire observed then scoffed at Manic. "Oh that's for beginners, hedgehog…" She then began to do flips, also.
"Alright, alright. How about this?" Manic asked. A smile made its way across his face as he jumped off his air board and, presumably, plummeted to his doom.
At first, Frostfire feared for his life. Seconds later, it clicked in her head as to what he was doing. She laughed loudly and cheered him on.
Manic ended up landing on his air board right before he hit the ground. His smile grew wider as he took a bow and then sat on the hovering device. "Was that for beginners?"
Frostfire applauded him and said, "You swooped down much like a Peregrine Falcon! Impressive!" She giggled.
"Thank you, I try. I believe it's your turn, Frosty." Manic winked at her.
"To what? Show off in order to impress you? Nah, I prefer to avoid the possibility of harming myself…" She chuckled.
"Aww... You take all the fun out of everything." He chuckled.
Frostfire laughed at his silliness. "I'm more concerned about safety." She beamed. "Something my parents taught me since I was a child."
"Considering I didn't have any parents when I was a kid I'm gonna assume safety isn't one of my strong suits." Frostfire almost felt bad about him not having parents but she was having too much fun to be bothered with it.
"No, showing off and flirting with girl's is, though." Frostfire giggled.
"Hey, it works, doesn't it?" Manic smiled.
Frostfire looked at him for a moment to think. "Hmmm… I suppose…"
"Are you saying I need to up my game, Frosty?" The Snow Leopard blushed.
"W-Well, n-no…" Manic couldn't stop smirking at what that meant. Trying to change the subject, Frostfire said, "Well, as fun as that is, I think we should get back to the base now…"
"I guess so..." Manic said. He looked a little disappointed until he looked up at her. "Race ya!" He called, taking off.
Frostfire laughed and tried desperately to catch up with him. "Hey, no fair!" As the two eventually made it back, Frostfire took a nap and Manic chilled out.
Later on, Frostfire sat on the roof of the base, gazing at the millions of stars that were shining so ever brightly.
"Hey, Frosty, you up here?" Manic called out, climbing on the roof.
The sound of Manic's voice soothed Frostfire's wandering mind. "Oh, hello Manic!" She said with a smile.
"Hey there, Frosty! What's up?"
"Just stargazing." She said looking back at the heavens. "I've never seen so many before… We had many a cloud cover the sky during the night back in the Tundra when it would snow."
"Sorry. I know what it's like not to see the stars at night, too." Manic said, taking a seat next to her.
Frostfire almost didn't hear him. "It's so beautiful… How did I live without such a sight…" Her eyes reflected the stars' shine.
"I don't know, but I'm glad you did. Otherwise I'd be up here all alone." Manic chuckled. "That would be boring..."
Frostfire giggled. She continued to look up at the twinkling stars. "As beautiful as this is, an aurora is more stunning…"
"An aurora?" Manic looked at her curiously.
Frostfire looked at him. "H-Have you ever heard of one?"
"Name sort of sounds familiar, probably because it's a girls name... No, not really. Funny, because I've been to the frozen Tundra before. What's it like?"
"It's as if someone was moving a paint brush filled with all colors of the rainbow through the sky… Its unlike anything the Outlander world has ever seen…"
"Sounds beautiful." Manic said.
"It is beautiful. It can be a mix of colors or one shade at any given point."
"Definitely sounds nice. You're going to have to show me that some time..." Manic smiled. He liked how happy she was.
"The next time the group goes to the Tundra, I'll definitely show you." Frostfire beamed.
"Good. I'd hate to miss out."
Frostfire smiled at Manic and then looked to the sky which, coincidentally, formed clouds. "Huh?" A single droplet of rain landed on her nose. Moments later, she had a delayed reaction and shrieked and convulsed in disgust. "Oh, by the Aurora, WATER!" She fidgeted and made a beeline for the nearest window to crawl in. Once inside the base, she shook herself to get the water out of her fur. "Yuck! Wet!"
Manic tried not to laugh. He couldn't help but chuckle a little as the rain came pouring down on him. "Hey, Frosty! Come back!" He shouted. "It's only rain!"
As soon as he said this, the rain began to become heavier.
"I hate rain!" Frostfire hissed. "I am not coming back out…"
"Suit yourself." Manic said, shrugging. He stood up and started spinning around, as if teasing her. "Are you sure?"
"Yes, I'm sure!" She snapped at him, shivering violently. "I-I w-want to go to bed…" She said through the shivering.
Manic chuckled and climbed through the window, dripping wet. Frostfire blushed at the attractive looking wet Hedgehog. "I guess we should get to sleep." Manic grinned and 'accidentally' flicked some water in Frostfire's face. Squealing with terror, rubbing the cold rain off her face, Frostfire zipped into her room and closed the door.
"Jerk!" She said through the door. Manic walked up to the door and struggled to hold in his laughter as he leaned against the door.
"I'm sorry, Frosty. Couldn't resist. You're almost as bad as my bro." Unfortunately, his laughter escaped.
"You should be sorry!" Frostfire said trying to be serious but sighed partly with exasperation and playfulness at his wonderful laugh. Manic then went into his own room for the night.
Like I said, fun! :D