(AN: Man, who would have thought that writing was once again getting hard? I really need to sit down and write more...
Anyway, that aside, we're back for more Transfer! Honestly there isn't much of an update since the last chapter. Of course, I've seen... REACTIONS to last chapter, and it'll be fun to see the reactions to this chapter! Now remember my warning from last chapter, because this chapter, it's going to be VERY pertinent.
I'm hoping you've been enjoying the story, as next chapter, a very big, major event will be happening. One that the story has been setting up for the longest time, and after months of slow burn... well, I'll keep it a secret until then :)
For now, I'm hoping you enjoy!)
The rotation of prisoners from serving to kitchen staff swapped places with those taking the current break, allowing Espio and Smithy to sit across from one another as they finally had the chance to talk since they had been busy over the last two hours preparing meals. With the same macaroni the two prepared with tomato sauce and basil leaves, salad with tangerine and almonds, potato chips, and a bottle of water, Espio stabbed his fork through a bit of his salad as Smithy looked down at the chameleon.
"Now that we finally have some time to unwind…" he began, the maroon lion's mane flowing with him bending his body down slightly. "I'm surprised you're telling me this, kid. Guys in prison if they find out you like guys, well… supportive ISN'T the word I would use…"
Espio turned his head before he could consume his salad. "You are my friend."
"I am? But you've only been around me twice at this point. I'm surprised how much faith you put into me, boy. Don't you fear the idea that I'll backstab you?"
The chameleon was still confused. He thought Smithy would have been just like Mark, Rotor, or Valdez, but instead, he was more acting odd about him being gay. Did he not support him like the others did?
That's when Smithy's face changed. "I can tell you probably want someone you can talk to about this. Not to worry, I've met plenty of guys like you while in the system. I wanted to make sure just how much you trust me and judging from that, well, it… it's kind of heartwarming to see how you put so much trust into me despite us only knowing each other very little. It's just a little funny that out of any person you know who's spent time in the ACTUAL adult world who you could have asked about what it's like having a crush on your friend, you picked the big scary, straight prisoner."
Smithy once again had a smile on his face and was back to his verbose monologuing. Espio felt the nerves in his body slowly relax as he watched the lion take a swig from his water bottle.
"Now… why don't you start by telling me about this friend of yours," he said after he was done drinking, putting his hands together. "You got a crush on him, don't you? So? What's the story?"
As Espio finished chewing his salad, swallowing it, he looked down at his plate of food. He didn't know where to begin with Vector because everything about the crocodile was like a story that could go on and on, from the day they first met, to the day he spoke his first words in English to him, to days like Halloween, Christmas, the semifinals of the Winter Playoffs, when he sought revenge for the Badniks in the name of Vector's sake after Drago and his friends vandalized the field… there was so much he could talk to Smithy about.
"His ne-name is Vector," Espio began. "I met him when I come to th… the su… school. He is my fa-first friend. But I… love him. Do you an-understand?"
He didn't feel uncomfortable telling everything to Smithy at this point, and he recalled the brochure from the LGBTQ League again. Smithy nodded his head as he opened up his bag of chips.
"I get what you mean. Heh, sure brings me back to my younger days. Did you know that even though I hung around with the wrong crowd, I was such a ladies man back then?" he asked. "I know what it's like to have your heart set on someone you can see spending your entire life with."
As Smithy ate his chips, Espio couldn't help but think back to what Munch talked about the other day. It seems both he and the lion had a similar desire, but for Smithy of all people…
"You understand?" the chameleon asked as Smithy stared at Espio.
"Prisoners like me, even some of us fall in love. Even some of us have spouses and kids when we enter. We feel love just as much as you do, boy. It's nature to want to be loved by someone, whether it's the love of a partner, the love of a friend, or… the love of… a parent to their child."
Espio couldn't help but notice an odd glint in Smithy's eyes.
"But in your case, you seem to have a feeling for this… Vector. Why don't you tell me more about him, kid? At least, as long as we have time. I think our meal time is almost over."
Going from his salad to his macaroni, Espio stopped midchew as he thought about Smithy's request. Where… could he begin with Vector? He had made so many memories with the crocodile, helped him break out of his antisocial shell, showed him so much about life that he didn't even know about, and despite pushback from people like Connery or Monk, he had no qualms spending time with the chameleon, even if it was stuff he didn't have much interest in.
That's when Espio began. He no longer focused on eating as he looked Smithy in the eye.
"Vector is… he is the pa-person who show me too much… very much?"
"Showed you too much?" the lion replied.
And Espio continued from there. In spite of his broken English, the chameleon explained his entire history with Vector, starting from the first day when Vector walked into him changing in the dorm, to now, with his current feelings for the crocodile, learning about being gay, and telling the truth to Mark after his secret was exposed to Valdez on accident. All this was said to Smithy as the two had to get back to work, as they went back to the kitchens to continue cooking, and as Smithy let Espio try preparing something on his own.
By the time Espio's story ended, Smithy had finished washing a bowl of lettuce as he looked down at the chameleon, currently busy cutting tangerines with a knife very carefully.
"What a story," he said. "Sounds more like I just got a description of everything you've been through since August. Look at you though, falling for the football quarterback. It's like you're a high school prep, except you're… very much not that. Not to worry, this Vector guy sounds like a really good friend. Someone I feel you could put your trust into. It's not every day I can say that. There's a saying I've followed even before I landed in prison: keep your friends close and your enemies closer. Don't get on their bad side, instead use that trust they have in you for the future to find a way to get back at them should they fuck you over. This time though, I wouldn't agree with that line of thinking. That guy just sounds… nice. Why haven't you told him at this point?"
"I… do not know…" Espio replied as he began to rip open the skin of the tangerine. "I am… how do you say that word…"
"Scared?"
"No no…" Espio shook his head hard. If there was something a ninja couldn't be, it was scared. A ninja with hesitation is the worst kind of ninja, his senseis and mother taught. But then… what did he feel? Why DIDN'T he just tell Vector at this point? Others knew how he felt, and he even talked with Munch about love. It wasn't an uncomfortable topic for him at this point, and yet…
"Whatever the case may be, the longer you keep it in, the more you're just gonna hurt yourself," Smithy continued to speak even as he swirled the lettuce with his hands in ice water. "Not just hurt yourself, hurt this Vector fellow too."
"Ha-hurt… Vector?..."
It was the one thing he DIDN'T ever want to do, to cause pain to the crocodile. And now Smithy was saying if he didn't tell him, he would be… hurting Vector?"
"I can see the look on your face," Smithy replied as he stopped working to stare at Espio. "The idea of hurting him is something you never considered. But think about not just how you feel, but how he would feel. The longer you keep this from him, the more he'll start to get the idea that you don't trust him, especially with how you said you kept this from so many people and avoided it until you fucked up. And you've always been honest, have you not?"
Espio stopped cutting into the tangerines as everything Smithy said sunk into his mind. He was inadvertently hurting Vector by not telling him, and being honest and truthful with him was better than keeping it from him and expecting him to just figure it out. He remembered at that moment one of the most important teachings of the Shinobi Clan, honesty and virtue.
Just then, Espio felt a hand on his shoulder and turned to see Smithy getting much closer to his face.
"Take it from me, boy," he said. "I've had way too many instances where I've kept shit from others and regret it to this day. You think I'm still not haunted about mistakes I've made in my past, some of which landed me here? It's something that eats you from the inside, something that will make sure you don't forget every moment of every day. Don't be like me, Espio. If I were you, before anything happens… build your confidence and tell him. I told you before, you have a future unlike me. I'll watch you make that future, but only you can make it yourself. I can only give you advice, not directly change it."
Espio looked down at his feet. What Smithy was saying made… sense. He still felt nervous telling Vector, but Smithy believed in him to tell the crocodile the truth.
"But… what if-"
"Don't give me that what if bullshit. The more you ask what if, the more the end result slips out of your hand. Okay? You know what you gotta do, boy."
Espio felt his lips dry. He knew Smithy was trying his best to inspire him, but-
"No… you remember the teachings of the Shinobi Clan," he thought to himself. "It's just like you told yourself: hesitation is a virtue that ninjas cannot have. You must always be on your feet no matter what. I should instead be strategizing how I shall tell Vector the truth about how I feel…"
Smithy noticed the change in Espio's face. "Are you thinking about what you gotta do? Promise me that you'll tell me you did it next time you see me," the lion asked.
Perhaps the time to tell the truth was drawing closer. It was a challenge unlike any Espio had ever experienced before in his life, but he knew Smithy had his support surprisingly. But…
"Why?" he asked.
"Why?" the lion turned his head.
"Why do you… do this?"
Smithy seemed confused by the question. "What, do you NOT want me to support you? I mean, if you want, I have no qualms-"
"Oh, no! No no no I… how do you say that word…"
"Why don't you describe it to me?"
Espio opened his mouth, but before he could.
"HEY!" a guard yelled at the two. "Your production has slowed the fuck down, you two! Stop with all this talking and WORK!"
Espio bit his tongue. Damn, it seemed the two's conversation hadn't fallen on deaf ears…
He kicked himself mentally though. How could he explain to Smithy in English why he acted… almost like a father encouraging him to tell Vector about his feelings towards him?
LATER THAT NIGHT
As Espio scanned his ID into the dorm scanner, he opened the door to see Vector's back turned towards him. He sighed as he walked inside, taking off his geta by the side as he walked by the crocodile's bed.
"I know what I must do. It is a challenge that is not impossible," Espio thought to himself. "I have overcome many obstacles during my years of training. I must not let this be my roadblock."
But as he watched Vector sleep, his heart melted. With him being left in the dark about being gay, and so many other people not knowing, it felt like people were just encouraging him to do something that was easier said than done. In fact, despite his confidence earlier, Espio now started to get cold feet.
"How silly. The Brides must be contemplating my future wife back home… while I yearn over the man in front of me."
He could have stayed there all night watching him, it certainly was possible considering what he's had to learn during his years of training. But the chameleon felt awkward about what would happen if Vector woke up and he saw Espio just standing there.
So, he decided to head to bed, but not before reaching out his hand and, as gently as he possibly could, touched one of Vector's back spikes.
"I promise… you'll know the truth someday. Until then, allow me to yearn over your beauty, Vector… I feel more comfortable doing so… until the time is right."
With that, Espio pulled his hand back and turned around, unsashing his kimono.
But from Vector's bunk, the crocodile's eyes stayed widened. He had been awake this entire time, and his eyes had darted to where Espio was behind him.
"Did he just… want mah attention?" Vector thought to himself. "Naw… he wouldda just woken me up if he did. Then… why did he stand over me?"
There were a multitude of questions running through Vector's mind, but none of it mattered at the moment, because there was something more pressing he was concerned about.
With his phone in his hands, brightness lowered to the lowest possible setting, Vector had his group chat with Knuckles and Mighty open. The three athletes had spent the last hour discussing tonight's incident with Connery on TV, where Vector learned something interesting, something that he was going to deal with tomorrow.
knucklehead
"i just heard back from brawny. theres gonna be another club and organization day tomorrow. ccocc is def gonna be there"
the karma collector
"Oh there's def gonna be hell."
"Don't worry, ill confront connery about this"
flex the armadillo
"Vector, don't. You know what's gonna happen if you try and push shit with Connery."
the karma collector
"appreciate the concern mighty, but what level of espio hatred are we on with this dude where he's slandering all of us on tv"
"i just hope connery listens to reason, but im expecting way too much out of that dude"
THE NEXT DAY
While Saturdays were still class days for many of the students at Mobius U, they were also often one of the days used for monthly club and organization days. With tables set out across all over in the K building and students learning about the extracurriculars the university offered, it was the first club and organization day of the new semester.
However, with the rush of students walking around each table, one such student stood above a very noteworthy table, a look of disbelief on his face.
"What…" Vector said. "...in the absolute hell… are yeh doin'?..."
From where the quarterback stood, Connery sat in front of him at the CCOCC table, with a very new, very notable guest next to him: Monk. Both stood by standees advertising next Friday's conference.
"What does it look like we're doing?" the gorilla replied, a look of disgust appearing on his face. Connery simply watched, his face apathetic.
"I mean, ASIDES from lookin' at everyone dirty, mah question ain't with yeh, even if it seems like ya joined CCOCC. Which ain't surprisin' now lookin' at it, but it's with Connery. What in the actual FUCK was that last night?"
Connery turned towards Vector. "Normally, I've told myself I wouldn't acknowledge you. But it seems you caught my interview last night. Well? How was it? Have you FINALLY changed your mind like I hoped?"
"Dun give me that bullshit! Ya know EXACTLY what yer doin'! Is it not enough that yeh gotta talk 'bout Espio on whatever that show was, but now bring ALL of us into this shit?!"
"Oh trust me, I'm sure you don't appreciate it, Vector. But I'm at a point where I no longer care anymore. You and the rest of the Badniks have already shown myself and Monk here where you lie on radical criminals destroying society."
Vector's eyes lowered. "Yeh dun even care 'bout the truth anymore, Connery. I even saw what Bull texted us since he live texted the whole thing. What the fuck was that whole 'he doesn't respect the police' nonsense, as if Espio still ain't goin' to community service with Officer Wachowski without issue!"
"A community service he should have NEVER been given and instead, he should have been thrown in jail or deported!" Connery stood up from his seat, staring Vector down. "And let me tell you something, Vector. I don't even give a bother anymore about how you, or other people feel. In the future, I'll be seen as the one on the right side of history. Now that people are FINALLY listening to my message."
"Listenin'? More like as if yeh ain't beggin' them."
"Do you think I BEGGED Monk to join CCOCC? He joined out of his own volition."
"That's right," the gorilla replied. "And let me tell you something: I joined because too long, degenerate activists and their alphabet squad want to label people like my masculinity as 'toxic' or call me 'homophobic', all because I point out the truth of what they actually are and because I don't want this degeneracy pushed down my throat, but also the throat of kids and families who DON'T need porn shown wherever they go. Stuff like THAT," he pointed at the table of the LGBTQ League. "...ISN'T what a university is for. You know we have an entire daycare on campus, how do you think parents feel when they see them parading-"
At this point, Vector's mind just turned off. It was both shocking but also not surprising to see that Monk just turned out to be another Connery, especially now that he joined CCOCC at some point. He simply just let him run his mouth, his face getting redder as the crocodile stood in front of the gorilla, arms crossed.
"Are ya done?" he asked cooly.
"This is exactly my issue with you, Vector. We show you proof of so many things going on and you just want to shove your head into the sand acting like a sheep like the rest of this university."
"Dude, yer the one claimin' a gay group exists solely for the purpose of groomin' kids. Frankly BOTH of yeh are idiots fer tryin' to spread lies 'bout people ya dun like."
"It's just like Monk said, when you and the left are shown the things you don't like," Connery replied. "You just point and call it a lie. You ALL work that way, and frankly I've been sick of that attitude from the liberal activists to the socialist pushers from both students and staff."
"Dude, yer the one so convinced someone ya dun like is a criminal that yeh go on live TV and call him a bunch of shit all because ya never liked him since day one. I've seen how ya acted 'bout him eatin' with chopsticks, us eatin' foods from Yurashia, all that shit. If ya two are gonna plant yer feet in the circus, at least dun be in denial about yer roles as the clowns."
This set off a notable reaction in Connery, who, with a vein popping in the side of his head, slammed his hands on the desk and got closer towards Vector's face, mustache almost touching his snout.
"This is EXACTLY why I've had issues with you since we first met. You might be a good football player, but you love nothing more than to run that big foul mouth of yours. You fail to understand that your comments aren't needed half the time, but you still feel like your opinion matters! At this point, I don't care what you or the Badniks think about me anymore. I know what my calling is now."
"And that's what? Runnin' Espio out of Mobius U by yerself?"
"Tch, look at you. You seem to think that I'm just some sort of one man effort. But this is no longer the case, Vector. My interview last night got massive support across conservative channels, and CCOCC has been blown up with requests from conversative journalists and speakers to join our conference next Friday. You also fail to realize how deep my connections are, not just in part of my work in CCOCC, but my family ties as well. Do I have to remind you again that it was my father that convinced Representative Katella Huntress to run for the Representative House over dinner one night?"
Though as much as Vector didn't pay attention to politics, the name was definitely familiar to him. Whenever his dad had the TV on in the evenings to one of the big news channels, one of the stories always seemed to be about comments made by Katella Huntress from the offensive to the downright absurd. No wonder Connery's family seemed to get her on board…
"I'm no longer going to bow to the whim of a bunch of radical leftist activists, criminals, and anyone who thinks they can get a giggle out of trying to make fun of me. I couldn't care about them anymore. CCOCC has made a new stride that we've never seen before, and I'm not going to let them, or YOU stop us. I couldn't care how much that offends you, in the end, the people will see that we've been right all this time. So I ask you, Vector," Connery got even closer, his face becoming much darker. "Who do you think I am?"
Vector stared back at the horse as his eyes darted back and forth. "Oh man… I know I shouldn't let mah guard down, but part of me KINDA wants to fuck with Connery," he thought to himself. "C'mon… dun act scared now, yeh can do this! Think of the first thing yeh can call him, Vec!"
"Uh… err… a… a fu… a funyarinpa?" he asked, shrugging his shoulders. Connery simply stared deep into Vector's soul, his angered, unamused face not changing.
"...are you trying to take the piss out of me, Vector?" he asked.
"Oh, not at all! Ya just asked a rhetorical question."
"Well, I'm not giving you the satisfaction of a response. Get lost."
With that, Connery sat back down as the crocodile noticed Monk on his phone.
"Ah!" he said. "Connery, look! Your interview was posted on The Kragok Tonight Show's Friendspace page!"
"It was?! Let me see, I have to see the reaction!" Connery excitedly said, reaching over to look at the gorilla's phone. Vector simply looked at the two as the crocodile heard the voice of the familiar echidna from last night blast through Monk's speakers.
"Ya know, it wouldn't hurt to stop while yeh two are at it. Yeh think yer on the right side of history, when in reality, yeh've been usin' this whole thing to act like an asshole.
"Oh, you're still here Vector?" the horse looked up. "Go away, we're busy."
Vector put his hands on his hips as he continued to watch the two. Monk moved his thumb up on his phone's screen as Connery pointed to a comment.
"Oh wow, look at that one!" he said. "Totally behind Connery and his cause! Solaris bless!"
The crocodile rolled his eyes, realizing he was being completely ignored. "Oh brother…" he flicked his hands in an annoyed fashion. "Y'know what, I… I dun even care anymore. Go ahead and do whatever the hell ya want, make yerselves look like idiots. Not mah problem anymore."
Vector walked away, turning around out of disgust before he could get himself more heated. Turns out he wasn't wrong, you had to lose half of your brain out your ears for you to get behind Connery.
"Still though, what a rude horse. Not even sayin' sorry to the funyarinpa…" Vector thought to himself, shaking his head. He thought he could have changed their mind, but it seems the plan had failed even before walking up to their table.
"They can brag about all the support they got, but when it comes to the people here… I know they like Espio too."
Vector only hoped that whatever Connery and Monk had planned wouldn't spell disaster, even though when it came to those two, the future was uncertain. Besides, there were still more important things to think about, such as his upcoming assignments, and… his feelings.
He knew it was only a matter of time before he snapped and told Espio the truth. At this point, it felt like he was balancing on the top of Ice Cap Mountain with just his big toe, waiting for the eventual collapse. And with what Connery wanted to do… it now felt like a large countdown clock hung over him.
"But he's busy right now," Vector thought to himself as he opened the doors out of the K building and headed left. "Gaia… why is everythin' harder than it needs to be? It doesn't need to be like this… Espio… when am I gonna man up and tell ya the truth? When are ya gonna know I felt ya touch mah back last night?..."
MEANWHILE
Espio and Mark walked together towards the K building, the tapir holding a red box in his hands as he smiled.
"I know you got plenty of stuff to do today, but thanks for wanting to hang out with the guys and wanting to learn how to play Pioneers of Christmas Island!" he said as a large amount of pieces shook in the box he held. "It's different from Depths of the Crypt in that there's no roleplaying, but it's similar 'cause you have stuff like a dice and it takes place in a fantasy setting, and it isn't like Warriors and Wizards where you need to build your own deck! Board games in general are like that. Plus, you're gonna finally meet our crypt master too!"
As Mark went on and on about the new game Espio promised he'd play with him, the chameleon noticed a bunch of tables in the lounge area with people sitting by and surrounding them. The tapir soon noticed this too.
"Hey, it looks like another club and organization day!" he said. "Maybe they'll be handing out another free thing for lunch! Oh man, I hope it's another sandwich!"
Mark made his way forward as Espio followed behind, where he saw Jewel sitting by a table with various objects around her just like the last time he was here. However, there were two things noticeable about her: the VERY crabby look she had on her face, and the speed she typed on her phone, barely paying attention to the people she was attending. It felt unbelievably out of character for the jewel beetle.
"Jewel?" Espio asked when he and Mark walked up to the table. The jewel beetle looked up from the table, her face changing from a frown to a soft smile.
"Oh, Espio! It's been a bit, how have you been?" she said. "I'm SO sorry I haven't come by your dorm to check up on you. I've been meaning to but I've been SO busy all semester. My classes have stacked me with so many assignments, and alongside helping Harvey manage the clubs, I've had NO time. In fact… the… the goody basket I was going to give you has been sitting in my dorm for… for weeks…"
"Oh… it is okay. I am fine," Espio replied.
"Is there another club meet and greet?" Mark asked.
"There is… but…" Jewel looked at the two. "As I'm sure you know, Connery's here because he's the CCOCC student representative, but it seems he has someone new with him that I haven't seen before. We already had an issue with him and the LGBTQ League where we had to separate them both because he kept telling them a bunch of garbage. I was out getting my lunch and when I got back, I heard the word degenerate a lot. If I were you, especially since I know Connery has an issue with you, Espio, I probably wouldn't stick around too long."
Espio looked behind Jewel to see Connery and… and Monk sitting at a table discussing with that strange girl named Belle that was in his Creative Drawing I class as well as roomed close to him and Vector. He was confused, he knew Connery and Monk were close while watching Badniks games, but why was Monk sitting with the horse for his club?
"I've never seen that guy before," Mark said. "But judging the LAST time I met that Connery jerk or whatever his name is…"
"I'm sorry," Jewel looked down at the table. "I don't want to run you out of this place, but I know that something would happen between you guys and I wanna look out for you. Plus, I already have to hear them push that conference they're doing next week. I've been trying my best to get it canceled because of who they're inviting but nothing's worked, so I'm organizing a protest outside the Space Theatre. Are you guys interested?"
Espio and Mark looked at each other then back at Jewel. "Sounds fun," the tapir said. "But… I'm sure there's other things you could do besides a protest."
"Are you suggesting we just ignore it?!"
"Not particularly… I just think there's better ways we can deal with him. Well, sucks to hear we can't get something…"
Jewel looked around and brought her face closer to the two and began to whisper. "Psst, I'll get you two what we're offering today. Don't worry, the organizers won't mind."
"For free?" Mark looked a little more excited.
"Yeah!"
"Oh, thanks! Well, Espio and I are running late. We gotta go."
Mark made his way off as the chameleon looked down at the somewhat sad looking beetle girl.
"I'm hoping things get better, Espio," Jewel sighed. "Still, at least it's good to see you again after a bit. We really need to find some time after class someday, schedule permitting. Maybe I can take you to Ella's again?"
Espio looked down at the floor and shook his head. "No. I cannot."
"Huh? What do you mean?"
That's when the chameleon pulled up his hakama and showed his ankle monitor to Jewel. The beetle girl had an O mouth as it sank in what Espio had.
"Oh… I see… they're not letting you leave campus, huh?" she asked. Espio nodded. "Well… I'm sure we can do something like… like study in the library! If you need any help in your classes, I'm always happy to provide-"
Just then, Mark tapped Espio's shoulder as the chameleon turned around.
"Not to interrupt," he said. "But weren't we gonna play?"
"Ah!" Espio said. He bowed in Jewel's direction. "I must go."
"Okay. Have a great day, you two!"
With that, Mark and Espio continued to make their way to the second floor of the K building as the tapir looked at Jewel from afar. The clacking from Espio's geta filled the two's ears alongside the commotion of the building.
"It's so weird you're friendly with her," he said. "I mean, I get that she probably thought I was offending her, but come on. If you're dealing with a bunch of fascists, then treat them like such, don't just think signs are gonna stop them."
Espio was confused as to what Mark was talking about. It seems Jewel was going to do something with Connery soon. But it was strange, as he remembered the two not liking each other…
"But ironically, you being friends with her does bring up a good point," Mark continued. "Have you told her about… you know, your thing with Vector?"
Espio stopped. He had been telling himself all this time he was going to talk to Jewel about his feelings for Vector as she would easily know what to do. And yet… he hadn't. It could have been the perfect time too, talking about something other than Connery…
"No…" Espio replied.
"Espio… I know coming out isn't easy, but sooner or later, you gotta tell your close friends!" the tapir encouraged. "I mean, you did so with me!"
Mark HAD a point, but that was because he felt so lost, the tapir was the first person he went to out of desperation. He once again looked behind him at Jewel from afar. Should he go back and tell her? No… she was busy right now-
"You know, you really oughta," Mark said. "You're an honest person, Espio! If I didn't shun you like you feared I'd do, why would Jewel girl do so to you?"
At that moment, it felt like Mark had turned into Smithy. It was almost the same advice he had given the chameleon yesterday.
"I…" Espio said. "It is not very-"
But suddenly, Espio was interrupted by the voice of someone he hadn't seen in a bit.
"Oi, that you, Espio? Hiya, jolly afternoon, mate!"
The chameleon and tapir turned around to see Bow walking up to him, his bright maroon hoodie bright and letting him stand out from the crowd of students. Espio smiled, at least glad that he didn't have to think about the idea of telling the truth to his friends yet.
"Good afta-afternoon, Bow," he said. Just then, the light brown sparrow grabbed Espio's hand and shook it.
"Charmed to see y'eh after so long, mate! And here I was, thinkin', ' It ain't true that Espio forgot me, innit?'"
"That accent…" Mark said. "You're Mercian, aren't you?"
"Prime and proper Mercian, mate!" Bow bowed at that moment. "Is this bloke here a friend o' yours, Espio?"
"Mark. Mark Tapir."
"Well, any mate o' Espio's is a mate in my books!" Bow smiled as he too also shook the tapir's hand. At least the tapir didn't seem to be uncertain like when Norris introduced himself to Buck in Public Speaking. "Where'yeh off to?"
"Espio and I were gonna play Pioneers of Christmas Island with some of my friends on the second floor. We just got a bit set back since he was saying hi to his friend who was helping run today's club and organization day."
"A game? Blimey, sounds neat! Can I play with yeh?"
"Have you heard of the game?"
"Never 'ave before! But I'd be chuffed to learn!"
Espio looked over at Mark. "I want Bow to be… how do you say that word… together? With… with us?"
"Well, I did tell the others it would just be us… but…"
Mark seemed to look up and down Bow, focusing on the smiling sparrow.
"This is a friend of yours, isn't it, Espio? You know him," he whispered to the chameleon. Espio was confused. Why was Mark acting secretive to him?
"Yes?"
"Maybe you didn't tell Jewel the truth, but since this guy is here, why don't you tell him about your sexuality? You guys seem close, I'm sure he'll understand! And don't worry, I'm here!"
Espio felt his scales spring up. Was Mark pushing him off the deep end to tell Bow about him being gay?! He already told himself with the sparrow and his friend group consisting of so many people, if he told one person, the other four would know in a moment's notice and he didn't want that. In fact, as Espio turned back to Bow, a look of confusion appeared on his face instead of a smile.
"Everythin' awlroight, Espio? You're lookin' gobsmacked."
"Ehh…" Espio looked around, feeling his body starting to sweat as he thought about his next course of action. He had already just discussed this in front of the sparrow, who no doubt wouldn't let go of why the chameleon and tapir were whispering to themselves in front of him. At the same time, he remembered what Smithy AND Mark had told him.
But…
"I am okay…" he said. Mark looked surprised.
"Espio…"
"Ya sure, mate?" Bow added. "Gobsmacked and knacked is how I'd describe yeh. I can get yeh some medicine, we're close by the store-"
"No, no no! I am okay!" Espio turned towards Mark. "Mark. Can we pu-play game?"
The tapir looked down at the floor, still holding the copy of The Pioneers of Christmas Island. "Well… if you know how strategy games work, we can teach you, especially since you can play with more than four people. But my friends and I already know how the game works…"
"Not a problem, mate! Besides, I already did m' daily archery and classes, somethin' like a game is perfect to relax. A game loi'ke this would be perfect to have a gander at! Plus, we can catch up, Espio!"
"Well, just follow me. My friends are waiting for me."
With that, Mark made his way forward as Bow turned towards Espio. "Yer mate here is a fine lad, mate! I can see why yeh two are friends! Now let's get goin'!"
As Bow followed behind Mark, Espio sighed. He had let both the tapir and lion down, considering he had TWO chances to reveal his sexuality, once to Jewel and the other to Bow. And yet, they both failed. Plus, there was still the bigger elephant in the room, the fact that Vector wasn't aware about any of this. At this point, Espio was entirely convinced that was the reason he didn't tell anyone besides Mark, because they would go to Vector and tell him. And then what?
It was a possibility he didn't want to think of, easily what stopped him from taking the plunge. He needed to get over this silly concern…
"If I had thought love was this difficult… I can see why we still practice omiai back home," he thought to himself. Espio shook his head when he thought about that, as at least he still loved Vector compared to possibly being in an arranged marriage with someone who he knew he wouldn't be able to love as much as the crocodile.
"My head hurts…" Espio realized at this point he had enough and went to join Mark and Bow on the second floor, hoping that his era of cowardice would end.
AS THE DAYS WENT BY…
…nothing much of note changed. The two reptiles would do their morning routines, go to class, have meals, study, do homework, and hang out with friends should they have the time, which was becoming more scarce as the month of January soon finally came to a close.
As February soon started, there was something between Vector and Espio that not only they had noticed, but so had their friends. It was like a wall had formed between them in the sense of, sure the two were still very good friends, but it was like there was something in the air around the two that they didn't address that neither they talked about, nor their friends got any answers about.
"So," Knuckles said that Tuesday evening during dinner after he and Vector got back from their off-season meeting plan with Coach Augustus. "I wanted to ask you about something. It's about you and Espio."
As Vector dipped one of his sweet potato fries into a botch of ketchup, he turned his head. "Me n' Espio? What's up?"
"Is everything alright between you two? There's…" Knuckles sighed as he put his chin in his hand. "There's like a weird aura around you two. I can't really explain it."
As Vector cleaned his hands after swallowing his fries, he started to get a gut feeling. Was… was Knuckles starting to suspect something? He thought that he was taking things slow with the chameleon, but even the crocodile couldn't deny that sense of something in the air when he was around Espio. Whereas Vector held back telling Espio his feelings, it was also like the transfer student simultaneously was holding something back too. Was it something small, like something that was bothering Espio that he didn't want to bring up? Or was it…
No, it couldn't be… he thought all this time, it was just his mind wanting that. But could it actually be a possibility?
"If yer worried, I can ask him what's wrong tonight," Vector replied. "I mean, I dun see anythin' wrong."
"Well, I just wanted to be sure. I didn't really notice it until Mighty talked to me about it the other day. But you sure you're fine too?"
"Yeah?..."
It felt out of character for Knuckles to be so concerned like this, but the crocodile was at least glad the echidna backed him up in such a way.
"Monk ain't bother you since doing his thing?"
"'Course not. The entire team took mah sexuality like it's no big deal like they should. Why the hell would what he thinks matter to me?"
"Cause I've been noticing him and Connery kinda being… around campus more. And especially with how things were at the meeting, you just kinda stared them down."
Of course… Knuckles just had to remind him about that. Since confronting Connery and Monk last Saturday, Vector had been noticing more advertisements and fliers for CCOCC's conference this Friday around campus. He thought that Connery was only getting more desperate for people to come to his little event, as after all, no one WOULD want to voluntarily spend more than an hour in a giant hall with the horse… right?
"Honestly, I kinda wanna skip campus Friday evenin'," Vector said. "I know no one's gonna be there, but knowin' that he's organizin' what's basically one giant jerkoff session with his little group, I'd rather be somewhere else than remember he's closeby. Wanna go out somewhere?"
"Sounds fun but you know that we're organizing our CMFL Championship Bowl watch party on Sunday, right? You committed to buying a bunch of pizza, I don't want you going broke."
Vector shrugged his shoulders as he took a drink from his bottle of Diet Chao Cola, sighing after doing so. "Eh, if I gotta eat ramen fer weeks, whatever. Call it mah special, "Forget Connery exists fer a night" fund."
"...you made that fund up just now, didn't you?"
"That's fer me to know and you to figure our yerself."
It was the next day, the 3rd of February, and Vector found himself coming back to the dorm from the university library after picking up a few books to help him study for his next Japanese I exam. Backpack slinged over one shoulder, he passed by a few people standing around in the dorm looking confused. In fact, as Vector got closer, he started to hear a noise coming from his dorm.
"What's that?" he asked himself. It was nothing like he had heard before. He hoped it was Espio doing… well, something and not someone who broke into their dorm. But if it was the chameleon, what was going on?
As Vector stood in front of the dorm, the noise sounding more like… beads or something small being thrown, the crocodile pulled himself away from the door to listen closer. ID in hand, he was about mere feet away from the scanner when the door suddenly swung open. Vector took a step back from shock as he saw Espio, and what he did next came out of the blue.
He started throwing small objects at Vector.
"Oni wa soto! Fuku wa uchi! Oni wa soto! Fuku wa uchi!" he repeated over and over as he started throwing… beans at Vector? The crocodile covered his eyes with his arm, completely shocked.
"AH, ESPIO!" he yelled. "STOP! WHA… WHADDYA DOING?!"
But it was to no avail, and after a few more throws and yells, Espio completely shut the door in Vector's face. The crocodile stood gobsmacked in front of the dorm, wondering what on MOBIUS just happened, and praying that no one got mad at the amount of beans on the floor. In fact, multiple questions ran through Vector's head. One, why WERE there… beans on the ground in the first place? Two, why was Espio furiously throwing it at him? And three, what in the HELL was he just yelling?
As Vector reached down to grab one of the beans, he examined it for a bit only to hear a sudden voice.
"Is everything even okay there?!"
Vector turned to his right and saw, in the next dorm over by Knuckles and Mighty's dorm, their neighbor Belle, looking concerned as she stuck her head out the door. Vector held up a hand, shaking it.
"It's fine, Belle. I got this," he said. The strange… whatever she was, moved her eyes back and forth as she slowly returned back to the comfort of her dorm. Vector went back to examining the bean, seeing that it was not a bean he was used to. They almost looked like peanuts, in a way.
" Wait a minute, what AM I doin' just lookin' at this?! If someone sees all this mess, we're in deep shit!" the quarterback thought to himself as he quickly scanned his ID and opened the door, seeing Espio standing in the middle of the room holding a small wooden box in his hand. More of these strange beans were scattered over the floor as Vector looked in surprise.
"What… what happened while I was gone?..." he asked.
"It is a ho… how do you say that word… hole… holi… holidddday?" Espio replied.
"Unless 'Throw Beans at Vector Day' became legal, I'm gonna assume this has somethin' to do with Gojo. What… is this anyway?"
Vector walked over to the desk, noticing that some sort of dry branch was also on it. He looked at it confused.
"It is Setsubun."
"Setsu… buun?" Vector asked. Suddenly, his eyes widened. "Wait a minute, we talked 'bout this in Japanese I! This… this is what this is?!"
Espio nodded as the crocodile blinked. It wasn't what he was expecting, but after all the times the chameleon was surprised by holidays in Central Mobius, perhaps it was his time to be surprised by Yurashian holidays.
Suddenly, Vector started hearing footsteps behind him as well as very soft noises of uncertainty. The crocodile turned around, and as if today wasn't weird enough, then what he saw was possibly the strangest sight of the entire day.
Knuckles was walking towards the dorm, wearing only some sort of tiger pattern… toga looking thing. With that being the only thing he had on, the outfit showed off the echidna's pecs as he held some sort of large spiked wood club in his hand, a red mask tied on the side of his head with string as it was clear Knuckles didn't seem very certain about what he had on.
"What… in the hell…" Vector asked, slowly shaking his head. "...are ya wearing?"
"Espio promised me that if I did this for him, he'll do my homework for a week and pay for all my meals too," Knuckles replied, clearly embarrassed.
"Does Espio even know geology?..."
"I don't know, but it sounded nice! All he told me to do was put this on and to just stand in you guys' dorm and that he'd take care of everything! I just… I can't particularly say I've worn something like this…"
"Well, dun quit yer day job, yer lookin' like a stripper."
"Oh shut up…"
Knuckles walked past Vector as he knocked on the open door. "Uh… Espio? I'm… I'm ready…"
The chameleon quickly walked into the hallway, looking up and down at Knuckles as he looked excited.
"You look very good!" he said. "Like a oni!"
"Like a what?!"
"Come, come insa-inside! And," Espio motioned towards the mask on Knuckles' face. Vector watched as the echidna put the mask over his face. It was some sort of character the crocodile didn't recognize, all he could see was that the "skin" of the mask was red like Knuckles, it had two orange horns, and its hair and eyebrows were huge, bushy, and green like broccoli. Knuckles shrugged as he walked into the dorm as Espio shut it behind him, still holding the small wood box of beans. Vector simply watched and blinked as Espio went back to repeating the same chant that he did loudly, muffled through the sound of the closed dorm.
"What in the absolute FUCK is going on in there?!"
Vector turned to his left and saw Sally marching down the hall. The chipmunk's angry expression didn't change as she noticed what was on the floor.
"Wha… What is this?! Vector, what in the hell is your roommate doing in there?!" she exploded. "Does he not realize the mess he's made and how much NOISE he's making too! I've received two noise complaints already!"
"It's…" Vector turned his eyes back to the dorm, where Espio could still be heard yelling, " Oni wa soto! Fuku wa uchi!" over and over again. "It's complicated."
"Complicated or not, get him out of there and clean this shit up! Snively and the other janitors don't get paid enough for you to act like Dark Chao! He's an adult, he can clean up his OWN damn mess!"
As Sally huffed away, Vector sighed as he knew it would be some time until he got access back to his dorm.
AND TEN MINUTES LATER…
After finally happily saying goodbye to Knuckles ("That is the weirdest thing I've done for free food and homework for a week," he said after Vector asked what happened), Espio had to clean up the mess in the hallway as the crocodile helped him, separating the dirty beans after Espio said you were supposed to eat the beans after they were thrown.
"When they've been on the floor fer that long?" Vector asked, looking grossed out. "Maybe when the floors are cleaner, sure."
And so, with everything cleaned up, Vector sat in front of the chameleon, who had just brought something out of the mini fridge and placed it in front of the crocodile on a paper plate. Vector looked over to see two large sushi rolls on the plate.
"Where did ya even get all this stuff, Espio?" asked Vector.
"Valdez-san give it to me when he ri… rit… come from Gojo," Espio replied as he sat on his knees, sitting in front of the plate. "This is for Setsubun."
"Mind tellin' me a little bit more 'bout this thing? I dun think Sally's gonna be particularly happy when she inevitably comes by here and gets on yeh for what happened."
"Ah! Setsubun is… holiday in Gojo. We… how do you say that word?" Espio motioned his hand in a throwing motion.
"Throw?"
"Throuh?"
"No, throw."
"Throww… we throww fukumame. See?"
Espio grabbed the small wood box he put on the desk and showed it to Vector.
"This is asakemasu," he said, pointing at the box and then the beans. "This is fukumame."
Vector grabbed the box and felt both the wood box and beans. They really did look like peanuts up close like this…
"And why d'ya throw this?"
"For the bad… bad… how do you say that word…"
"Wanna try the translation thing again?"
Vector brought out his phone, opened up his translation app, whose settings were unchanged from the last time he used it. And held it in front of Espio as he pressed the voice button to let him speak.
"Mamono ya oni o oiharau tame," he said. When the translation went through, Vector read it back to himself.
"Exorcisin' demons and… oni? What the heck is an oni?"
"Bad la-luck. Na-Knuckles was the oni."
Vector's eyes widened. "Wait, is that… is that why Knux was dressed like that?!"
Espio nodded. "Yes. In Gojo, my fa-father was the oni. But when he die, I bec… become the oni for Shami."
The crocodile still was trying to make sense of this strange holiday. It seemed that someone dressed up like some creature, an oni in this case, and he had soybeans thrown at him as a way to ward off bad spirits. Seems as if shoving garlic in the mouths of someone dressed as a vampire was made into a holiday, which… fair enough…
"I'm surprised ya went fer Knux. Couldn't yeh have asked me?"
"Knuckles look like an oni."
Vector snorted. "Yeah, he does kinda a little. If… if he grew a head of broccoli fer a head. Well, whaddya do with the beans? Why didja wanna eat them?"
"For good luck. I eat… nineteen?"
"Well, sorry fer makin' yeh throw away the ones on the floor. Ya still got some left over, right?"
Espio walked over to the desk and grabbed a white cloth bag and poured out more of the beans into the wood box. As it clacked, Espio held out the box to the crocodile.
"Eat. It is for good luck," he said.
"How many?"
"Age."
"Age? Like, I eat dependin' on how old I am?"
Espio nodded again as Vector looked at the box before scooping them up into his hands. As he heard the chameleon do the same thing, Vector opened his jaws wide and threw all twenty soybeans into his mouth, crunching once before they all went to the back of his throat. They didn't have much of a flavor, as the crocodile expected something like salt on it, but he didn't want Espio to know.
"Is it good?" Espio asked as he munched on one of the soybeans.
"Pretty good," Vector said, half-truthfully. "Now what? What about this… is this a giant sushi roll or somethin'?"
Espio swallowed before speaking. "No no, not yet. I want to… put something… on… in?"
"Put somethin' in?"
Espio proceeded to get up from the floor, placed the wood box on the desk, and grabbed what appeared to be a branch with…
"Is… is that a fish's head on the tip?" Vector questioned, completely perplexed as Espio handed the strange branch to the crocodile. The crocodile just stared at it, completely unable to find words.
"Put on," Espio pointed at the bulletin board.
"Ya… ya want this to go on the bulletin board? Er… Espio, won't this smell bad in a couple of days?"
"No, no."
"Well… okay… if ya say so. But if this starts to smell, I'm takin' it down."
Vector got up from the floor and walked over to the bulletin board by the door, grabbing a thumbtack and sticking it through one of the leaves of the branch. Vector was unsure of what type of tree this came from, but it looked pretty enough even if he didn't have a green thumb. Espio however, looked delighted to see the branch hanging up.
"Now we have good luck," he said.
It was almost sweet to see Espio act in such a way, not just celebrating whatever this holiday was, but seeing Vector participate in it too. The crocodile wouldn't lie, he couldn't even dismiss this as weird or something foreign. Though this was something Espio had difficulty explaining due to his English, it was interesting to see something completely different like whatever this Setsubun thing was. Maybe it wasn't just throwing soybeans and eating them, or hanging up branches that would give him good luck, but it was seeing the bright, happy smile of the chameleon.
"So, are yeh gonna explain the sushi roll?"
"Ah!" Espio looked over at the plate and walked over to it before sitting down. "Valdez give this to me from Yurashia. He say it is done not in Gojo, and it is not. Ba-but he give this to me. He says to eat, and no to-talking. And to look… I don't know how to say that word…"
"We gotta look a certain direction?"
Espio nodded as he grabbed one of the sushi rolls and handed it to Vector. The crocodile grabbed it, surprised he was going to have to eat something so large. He was used to the sushi rolls from the grocery store cut in pieces, not an ENTIRE roll in its entirety. But… it was for Espio.
As the chameleon turned around in place and stared at the wall in the 2 o'clock position, Vector got up and sat next to Espio.
"Well… ya ready for this?"
Espio nodded as he began to eat, eating with his hands surprisingly since Vector knew the transfer student loathed doing such a thing. He too also put the tip of the sushi roll in his mouth, biting off bits and pieces of it as they went to the back of his throat. The two ate in silence as he could hear Espio having a much harder time consuming his sushi roll since he clearly wasn't used to eating fish.
With his roll halfway done, Vector turned to face the chameleon, seeing him only 1/4 done. However, it was seeing Espio too also staring at him that the two's eating almost came to a halt. He wasn't sure why they were both staring at the wall in this direction, but something about the eyes of the chameleon felt more enticing to look into than just the wall. If this was a holiday for ridding yourself of bad spirits and bringing in good luck, all Vector felt at that moment was that staring at Espio was his good luck. And it seemed like… like Espio felt the same.
Was this it? Was it finally the time for him to come out and tell the chameleon everything? Here they were, both alone, no one else around them, thighs touching thigh and just as close as they were the night they slept together for warmth. If it wasn't for this damn sushi roll in his mouth, he would just drop what he was doing and tell Espio the truth. Tell him about how he had been feeling for a while, tell him that everytime he watched Espio do something mundane like practice the dulcimer, study English, watch anime on his laptop, so many other things he could list, he watched him and only him. How it was the little things like that, and who he was as a person that Vector found himself crushing more and more on him each day. How Vector knew that even though Espio could very much stand up for himself, he wanted to protect him from anyone who would do wrongdoings on him, to be there in his most vulnerable states.
But… it didn't happen.
Instead, Vector found himself beating on his upper chest as he felt the sushi roll go down his throat, albeit a little strangely. Espio looked over and seemed concerned, but didn't say anything. Thankfully, it was just temporary, and Vector just watched Espio finish the rest of the roll as the chameleon sighed.
"That was really good. Big, but good," the crocodile said, finally breaking the silence.
"Yes, very. Thank you for beeing with me, Vector. That is Setsubun," he replied, mouth over his mouth.
"I bet it's a whole lot better back in Gojo, eh? Gotta make do with whatcha gotta make do here, no?"
"Yes. But I am happy that you la-learn about it."
Vector smiled. Though he failed AGAIN to tell Espio, perhaps today it was just better if the two reptiles enjoyed whatever holiday Setsubun was even if the strong feelings in the air still didn't go away.
THE NEXT DAY
Just before Espio returned to the dorm to have his daily dulcimer practice with Alan, the chameleon stopped by Valdez's office in the B building dropping off all the Setsubun props he brought back from Gojo.
"Thank you for bringing these, Valdez-san," he said as the blue chameleon gathered all the props and placed it into a cardboard box. "It felt lonely celebrating Setsubun by myself, but I at least got to celebrate it with Vector."
"Of course, Espio-kun. I always remember how excited you got as a child, seeing Naga-san dress as an oni and how you just threw and threw fukumame at him," Valdez replied as he sat back down at his desk, returning to what he was typing. "As well as all the other things you did. It brings back good memories."
"It felt weird not being the oni again for so long. But Knuckles makes a very good oni. He was so convincing."
"Was he okay with it?"
"I promised him I would do things for him and he agreed. I think Vector and I will be protected from evil spirits now that the Spring has finally come."
Valdez however, looked concerned. "I hope so… protection is what I feel many of us need lately. Your mother said that to me before I left Gojo last week, something about what she wrote in her last scroll to you."
Espio's lips dried as he stopped. Just moments ago, he was recalling everything he did yesterday with Vector and how he felt being so close, not even following the direction of this year's zodiac to look at the crocodile. And now he was being reminded of that, being reminded that not only were there five brides-to-be being vetted by his mother and the other three Brides, but asking something she had never once asked in her scrolls…
"In one of my recent talks with Bride of the Conquering Storm, she expressed concern that you are not receiving enough protection from the Outside World and that you may be withholding information about your time in your school. So tell me exactly what you are doing each day in your reply," she wrote.
"Mother seems very intent on not just my future wife but also believes that I am lying to her. Have they begun to suspect something?" Espio asked.
"I told you Monday. It's likely just Bride of the Conquering Storm-sama's doing. You know she's easily the most superstitious of the Brides. But still…" Valdez turned to face Espio. "What will you do in regards to how you feel about Vector, Espio-kun?"
The chameleon looked down at the carpeted floor. "I had so many chances to tell him this week but it failed… When we celebrated Setsubun together in our quarters, I should have done so. But… I don't know why I want to try and hold my tongue back. I need to stop being afraid and yet… It's like I cower at the last second. What should I do, Valdez-san?"
The blue chameleon, who had stopped typing on his work computer, turned to look at Espio as he had his hands up to his face. "If you ask me… I think that you not just fear taking the next big step from telling myself and Mark about your feelings, but also the fear of how he'd take it consumes you. You might not know this, but one of the Japanese professors here, Professor Cinder, is a lesbian herself."
"I remember that word. Does that mean she loves other women?"
"Correct, Espio-kun. I asked her about her thoughts-"
"You told others?!"
"Now now, Espio-kun. I didn't SPECIFICALLY name you, I just used an alias. She told me something interesting: from her perspective, she believed you needed to find a right push. It's hard to go from friends to telling your person of interest, so I would say try to find a middle ground. Not just that, I know you yourself have many friends too, both in the Foreign Exchange Program and outside. Why don't you tell others? Perhaps more voices are just what you need, that push you need to get Vector alone one day and discuss how you feel."
Espio didn't respond once. Instead, he pondered on what Valdez meant the rest of the day and the next day too. Even as he took notes in Advanced English Literature about the evolution of vocabulary over the past thousand years of English literature and watched a video about social psychology and its relation to social media, that part of the chameleon's mind just focused on what he talked about yesterday. It happened during meals, during the brief dulcimer lesson and English lesson, and on his way to community service.
And just like Valdez said, it didn't fall on deaf ears.
"So," Smithy said as he and Espio once again stood close by at the serving counter after the chameleon was five minutes into today's communtiy service. "I can see that look on your face, boy. You didn't talk to him, huh?"
In the midst of serving sandwiches, Espio looked up at Smithy. Had the lion already figured out that the chameleon didn't… no… how could he?
"I thought I made it clear to you what you had to do, kid," the maroon lion replied as he dipped a ladle into a pot of chili and poured it into a styrofoam bowl. "I also thought I told you the more you hold this in, the more you hurt yourself and you hurt Vector."
"I know… but…"
"I also told you, don't give me that but shit. Look at you, kid. Here you are, not in jail, just doing community service because you fucked up, you have inifnite number of chances while you're here. What happens if you never tell him and Vector ends up getting a girlfriend or something? Then what are you gonna do? Are you gonna just sit on your ass, weeping about something you had all the time in the world to do but never did because of something like fear?"
Espio felt his lips going dry. Smithy was right, BOTH of them knew what the chameleon had to do, but it was like he kept being the one thing a ninja couldn't be. But yet, there was one thing that bothered Espio.
"Why, Smithy?" he asked. "Why do you… want this?"
Smithy looked down at the chameleon as he sighed, adjusting the temperature of the pot. "If I tell you, you gotta promise me something. You can't let this chance slip from you, boy. The reason I push you like this, it's because…"
The lion sighed. "Gaia, I can't even say it. You'll probably think it's weird. Hell, I'm not surprised if you think I'm weird that I took you under my wing so fast and treated you like a son."
Espio blinked as he looked at the sandwiches in front of him. Smithy… treated him like a father would? It… it surely felt like it now that he thought about it. Maybe that was why Espio didn't object more. Because the way he acted reminded him of his late father. But was he trying to say…?
"What do you mean?" the transfer student asked.
Smithy looked at Espio, and with his eyes staring sharp into Espio's, he said something that the chameleon didn't expect.
"When I see you, it's like I'm talking to my estranged son."
MEANWHILE
Over the past two hours, the campus at Mobius U stayed dead for the most part, for one very big, particular reason.
Right by the campus, the Space Theatre was lively like the parties in the K building.
Normally, the theatre was used by drama and music majors for their performances, but it was also where many conferences held by people invited by either the university or their clubs were held. Such was the case as tonight, as the night of the CCOCC conference had finally arrived.
With a group of protestors outside the Space Theatre, including Jewel, holding up signs and yelling words of condemnation towards its featured guests and members of the crowd doing the same back to them, from within one of the theatres, seats were being filled at a strong rate as speakers were already up on stage. Among them were Connery, dressed in the same fancy dress shirt he wore in his interview with Kragrok Echidna. Next to him was tonight's special guest, Rep. Kodos Lion. With the bright lights above him shining his white hair and brown fur, his muscular structure was clear even from the fancy blue suit he had on. With a few other speakers surrounded by them, they all sat and listened to Monk deliver the preamble for tonight's conference to the crowd, all of them listening intently as camera flashes filled the theatre and tech crews made sure Monk's message was delivered both via livestream and TV.
"So what was I supposed to do?" Monk said in the middle of his speech. "See myself as some sort of victim and wait for no one to save me? No. I'll tell you what I did. I got off my ass, I cut off my ponytail. I took up lifting weights, and I stopped feeling sorry for myself. And that to me, was better than spending any sort of time with some 'therapist'. I would show the world that I wasn't some spineless coward, and that I would bring back the true meaning of what a man was, no matter what weak leftists and feminists from places like our campus or the elite from Studiopolis want to label as 'toxic'. We've even see how the normalization of homosexuality quote-un-quote 'transsexuality' has killed the bonds between men, that we're no longer allowed to be close because society has jumped to the hoops of assuming something as innately homosexual, even though we need to be talking about how its normalization has hurt not just children, but destroyed the virtue of being a man. That's why I have to thank my fellow CCOCC members for allowing me into their group and showing me that there are like minded people even in a college, and why I am going to continue working with them as we see our goals hopefully achieved for the greater good."
There was a loud applause and cheer as both the crowd and other people on stage made noise for the purple gorilla. Both Connery and Kodos clapped as the lion grabbed the microphone next to him.
"I must say, Connery, I've specifically kept my children out of college so that they wouldn't have to interact with leftist indoctrination," he said. "But when I see the work you and the other members of CCOCC are doing, I have hope for the new generation of conservatives continuing our groundwork. By all means, I thank you very much for inviting me tonight."
"But of course, Representative," the horse replied. "I know that you and my father are very close and having someone as high profile as you here tonight shows just how serious we want our message to be heard. If anything, I should be thanking you for taking your time to arrive at our campus."
"Well, when your conference tonight is going to be discussing issues relating to problems young conservatives like you have, especially with next year's general elections, it's always a good time to get started early. And on that note, it seems that our audience has completely arrived. Are you ready to begin?"
Connery nodded as he got up, walking to the podium that Monk was just speaking at moments ago. His tail swished back and forth as an announcer spoke out, saying, 'Ladies and gentleman, our first speaker of the night: CCOCC Student representative Connery Horse!"
The audience began to clap as more cameras flashed. Connery looked around at the audience around him as the clapping stopped and the audience quieted down.
"Ladies and gentleman, I thank you for taking your time to arrive at our conference tonight. From fellow members of CCOCC, to other conservatives at Mobius U, to even people from the media willing to hear us all out. It's truly an honor to have you here tonight at CCOCC's latest conference," Connery began as there was another round of clapping from the audience. As they quieted down, Connery continued. "To see you all fighting alongside myself for the United Federation, it brings a smile to my face. And it's important I call this a fight, because that's what this is. Ladies and gentleman, to anyone who can hear me, it's important I say this to you tonight to let you know about the truth going on at Mobius University. A large-scale war has been enacted upon the members of CCOCC, something only amplified by the left over the last semester."
Connery looked around as he continued. "While we've been hard at work continuing our agenda at CCOCC, we've had to suppress censorship methods by the left who want to cancel us, some of whom are even outside this very theatre protesting this conference because they don't like that we're telling the truth!"
There was a small bit of booing that Connery waited for it to finish. "Not only that, but we've been exposing professors for their communist sympathy, and now, one of the biggest issues has come to us in the past month or so. While our borders continue to stay open thanks to the foolish actions of the president, here at Mobius U, we've seen the result of what happens when our borders are open to anyone who wants to waltz in. The officials in charge fo Foreign Exchange programs allowing criminals into our campus. That's right. It's happening at Mobius U, and it may even happen on another campus in the United Federation. And like our failing economy and weak military, the president will ignore this too and call it, 'good for the country'. But I'd like to ask you now,"
Connery grabbed a remote and pressed a button, starting the overhead projector. As it started to fade in, it displayed… a picture of Espio. Namely, it was the picture taken of Espio on Vector's shoulders the night of the semifinals of the Winter Playoffs. A red circle surrounding the fuschia chameleon, the brown horse continued, his mustached snout in a scowl. "The person you're seeing here is an example of why our borders need strict regulation. Would you believe me if I told you this student on campus right now was arrested for assault against not one, not two, but FIVE individuals, and had all charges dropped?! That's right. Your tax dollars are going towards programs that allow people like THIS!-" Connery pointed at Espio. "-to our campuses! Is this what the left tries to tell us when they say countries send in their best people, as if places in Northern Mobius like Yurashia where this student is from haven't already been wrecking our jobs due to the influx of electronics and automobiles being produced there?! Imagine if we say this is okay. Then what? Then what if we start having massive crime increase, what if the number of murders, rapes, and drug overdoses go up? Will the liberals in the house defend it like they would this person? That's why I say we stamp the infection before it becomes a disease."
There was loud cheering as Connery continued. "Thanks to people like Representative Kodos' work in the house and our voting voices, the Conservative party has helped pass bills allowing for stronger freedom of speech, freedom of thought and expression on campuses. That's why I have set up tonight's conference, to help CCOCC become a check against the left and the liberals on not just this campus, but in this country. We're going to show them all that we will no longer stand for this tyranny, to show them that as the left push for open borders, for higher taxes on the rich and for poor criminals to take advantage of the government, to enact socialism like they have with their disastrous socialized medicine and environmental policies, for families to be destroyed all while people like THIS are prioritized, we'll fight back against ALL of that. We'll show the students of this campus to stop fearing what they don't want to hear, to push back against the head of the foreign exchange program, Mr. Valdez Chameleon, allowing this campus to falter under the evil acts of such dangerous men like this man you've seen, to show that we, as conservatives, will no longer have our freedoms eradicated! We will allow freedom to reign at Mobius U, not socialism!"
There was even more cheering and clapping as Connery nodded and smiled softly as he continued "As we gather here today, I ask you this question: Do you have the confidence in our ideals and values to defend them, against opposition, resistance, mockery, and censorship? Do you have the courage to fight for freedom? If so, you all need to have faith in yourselves. Faith and trust that you will be the future leaders in defending the United Federation, for us to have leaders that love this country, because the best is yet to come. Remember; we are the party of parents, of education, of business, and most important: of freedom, while the left is the party of socialism creating crisis after crisis. And even after my message is clear and I'm under the crossfire of the woke mob, here's my message to them: am I who you should be focusing on, or should it actually be the menaces to society that threaten life as we know it?!"
With that final declaration, the crowd came to an even louder cheer and clap as it drowned out Connery's thank you, the message seeping deep into the minds of the audience. Alongside his message, one more thing seared into the minds of the audience and anyone who watched what just occured, fired up by Connery's speech and angered by what they had heard:
The smiling face of Espio standing on Vector's shoulders.
END OF CHAPTER 31
