A/N: Enjoy this next chapter! :3 I thank you guys for the comments I appreciate it!

Chapter 17: People

May 5th

7:30 A.M.

It was the next day and it meant only six days left to make the new spring festival a reality. After the Smashers finished with an early breakfast and shower, they packed what they needed and headed for the Halberd. Dressed as a fluffy, white rabbit, Makato held a stack of fliers next to the Pit that flashed a giddy smile.

"A bunny and an angel. What a cute combination. I wonder if there is such a folktale." Zelda commented, walking up to them. "Ok, Pit and Makato, once this ship starts flying, as we head to the park, you guys will be dropping flyers from the sky in Smashville and in other places that I don't know about. People will be surprised, puzzled, and shocked! We want them to think, 'No way, a flying bunny! What's it doing?! A festival from SSBB? Mommy, can we go there?! Something like an enchanted experience for them, alright? Also Pit, I know you have the arms of twigs, but please, Pit, do not dropher!"

Pit saluted at Zelda. "Y-yes, ma'am! Oh God, drop her?! Now I'm twice as nervous as before! Thanks for the added pressure, Zelda!" After that, the angel turned to the white bunny that stood a few inches taller than himself. "Ready, Makato?"

"Yes, I'm ready." Her voice muffled through the costume, yet Pit was able to hear her loud and clear.

Pit then wrapped his arms around her waist and flew up to the sky, making their way to Smashville.

"Aren't you hot in that?" Pit asked.

"I put an ice potion in the costume before leaving. I'm quite cold actually." Bunny Makato answered.

Minutes later, Pit and Makato arrived above the heart of Smashville. Crowded as usual. More abnormals than normals.

"Alright, let's sprinkle those flyers to the people!" Pit said.

"Ok." Bunny Makato loosened the grip of her fingers and watched the flyers rain down in the town. Heads were turned up to the sky at an instant and fingers pointed to the heavenly angel with its pet bunny.

A Smashvillian picked up a flyer from the ground and read it out loud. "SSBB Festival. Main Event: Mario and Sonic War. May 11th. SSBB Park. Bring your family and friends! Special Guest: Naruto Uzumaki, Miku Hatsune, Princess Rosalina, and Princess Makato. Cool! I'm so going!"

"Me too!"

"I want to see Naruto!"

"I want to see Miku!"

"No way! A festival! Mommy can we go there?!"

"Sure honey!"

"I want to see Princess Rosalina!"

"Princess Makato? Princess of Potions? Cool! I want to see her."

"A war between Mario and Sonic sounds fun!"

"I can't wait to see what the Smashers are doing!"

"Wow, everyone is so excited." Makato smiled in the bunny costume. In the sky, Pit dazed off from the smell of rustic, herbal, buttery. . . His nose tingled to the scent.

"Something smells. . . soooo delicious! Ribs. . . I smell ribs!" Pit drooled.

His vision fogged up and the ribs he imagined held hands and circled the angel. "Eat us, Pit! Don't we look yummy? Great protein! Eat us! Eat us! What are you waiting for, Pit? We'll never forgive you if you don't eat us right now! For God's sake, FUCKING EAT US YOU FUCKING- -I mean eat us Pit! Teehee!"

"Wow, so naughty, juicy ribs!" The smell and the hallucination relaxed Pit's arms and hands. As a result, Makato felt her body slipping out from Pit's grasp, inches at a time.

"Umm, Pit? I think I'm about to fall." Makato turned her head to the side, making sure she could catch his attention.

His responses were "oohs" and "ahhs", not in line with what Makato was expecting to hear. She didn't want to shake herself to gain his attention.

"Pit? Can you hear me? Pit? Pit!" Makato cried as if a string carried her weight that was bound to snap at any minute. She didn't want to wait for the drop, yet she felt it coming.

Gravity snapped the string, her vision grew glossy due to the speed of the drop.

It was more than her scream. Pit noticed the weight gone from his fingers and watched the white bunny shrinking into the city. A fictional folktale was about to become the birth of a homicide.

"OH CRAP! MAKATO!" Pit shooed away the ribs from his vision and swooped down for her arm. The gravity jerked him down for an instant but was able to carry her, landing on the nearest roof.

"I'm so sorry! Are you okay?" Pit frowned.

Pit couldn't see her face due to the cartoony bunny face. His ears were his only way of checking her emotions.

The shock brought Makato to her knees and her body shook ."P-Pit, . . .how could you?"

"I'm sorry. . . I was stupid." Pit sniffled.

(oOoOoOo)

Halberd

Meta Knight took control of the Halberd while everyone did their best to enjoy the ride. Zelda kept her eyes on the sky and smiled when she saw the uncreated folktale of the young angel and the bunny descending towards them. Pit showed up with his head down, setting Makato back on her feet.

"I'm glad you guys were okay! How did it go?" Zelda asked.

"Y-yea . ." Stiff like a soldier with his arms to the side, Pit stared at his toes with a distraught look.

"What's wrong, Pit?" Zelda asked.

"I'm. . . sorry."

"Pardon?"

"I. . . dropped. . . . Ma. . . .ka. . . .to. . . ."

When the word "dropped" was added with Pit's gloomy look, a few curious Smashers, gathered near the angel and the bunny.

"I'm sorry, . . . you did . . . what?" Zelda shut her eyes with a distressed look before opening them back up.

"I'm sorry, sorry, sorry! So sorry!" Pleading for forgiveness, Pit went to his knees and lowered his head.

"The fucking audacity!" Ike stomped over to Pit, grabbing his head and shooting a punch to his cheek.

"Arh!" Pit exclaimed, as the shot sent him flying to a pile of boxes on the other side of the ship.

"H-hey!" Marth called out to the mercenary. "I don't think punching him-"

"Shut up." Ike then walked over to Pit, this time grabbing hold of his collar.

"How. . . could you let go of Makato? And you called yourself an angel? You almost killed her!"

Pit winced in pain, eyes shut to avoid Ike's fire of a glare. "I-I didn't mean to!"

"Then what made you?" Marth asked.

Pit opened his eyes and gazed at the clouds. "The ribs. . . I guess I was hungry?"

"You're lying," Lucario said.

"I wish I was. . ."

The silence was answered. Ribs. Of course.

The shock made Ike let go of Pit's collar. "I wish angels died twice." Ike then whispered to Pit before turning to Makato.

Bunny Makato tucked her legs to herself and stared off into the distance. To be dropped from a far height, the mercenary wouldn't want to think how she was feeling right now. But he had to ask.

"Are you ok?" Ike asked, walking towards her.

". . ."

"You idiot, of course, she isn't!" Marth did the answering for Makato and shoved Ike away from her sight. "Our little bunny just faced a traumatic experience. Ike and falling from such a height!"

"You little shit," Ike muttered.

"Perhaps it's a great idea to get some air," Marth said, reaching for the bunny head. Before he could touch a strand of fur, Makato held his wrist, stopping his process.

"N-no. . . Please. . ." Her voice cracked when she answered. The sound was the only way to figure out her emotions and it was a no-brainer for Marth to know. Marth gave a soft smile and reached for the top of her bunny head.

Marth patted her head. "I'm glad you're alright. You will be okay."

(oOoOoOo)

SSBB Park

Arriving at the SSBB Park, the Smashers began to unpack their load out from the Halberd and into the sparkling grass fields in the chilling morning. As for Mario and Sonic, they were able to gather their friends, thus marking attendance was important. Both Mario and Sonic kept their crews away from each other in the Halberd, enough distance that wouldn't guarantee eavesdropping from their competition.

Mario gathered his crew and held a clipboard, ready to take attendance. "Luigi?"

"Here."

"Peach?"

"I'm here."

"Bowser?"

"Here."

"Wario?"

"Here."

"Yoshi?"

"Yoshi here."

"Bowser JR?"

"Here. . . in your mom!"

"D-Donkey Kong? Diddy Kong?"

"Ooh-ooh ah-ah!"

"Waluigi?"

"Here."

"Daisy?"

"HERE!" Daisy screamed with flames surrounding her.

"Uh. . . quite excited aren't you?"

Not too far off, Sonic also did roll call.

"Knuckles," Sonic said.

"Here."

"Tails."

"I'm ready!"

"Amy."

"Here."

"Shadow."

"Hmph."

"Silver?"

"Here, Iblis Trigger- -I mean Sonic." Sonic sighed.

"This isn't 06. Anyways, Blaze?"

"I'm here."

"Egghead."

"HOHOHO."

"Vector."

"I'MMMMMMMMM HERE!"

"And, err, Metal Sonic."

"BEEP, beep, beep."

"In English!"

"Here."

(oOoOoOo)

Aside from the main casts to compete for the Spring Festival, the extra people that Mario invited were Toad, Toadette, Birdo, King Boo, Baby Peach, Baby Daisy, Funky Kong, Koopa, Dry Bones, Dry Bowser, and Kamek, all at the Halberd.

"Thank you guys for coming! Until May 11th, you guys will be staying here." Mario said.

"So, where am I?" Birdo asked.

"You're at the Halberd." Peach answered.

"Wow! It's big!" Toad said.

"Now what?" Yoshi asked.

"We need the support of the people when we compete!" Peach smiled at her fellow friends. "So, we'll be making Super Mario fan t-shirts."

"Wowie!" Toadette cheered.

"Baby Peach wants to see Marth!" Baby Peach said, raising her hand.

"I want to see Marth too!" Baby Daisy whined.

"Uh, hell no! You little brats ain't gonna do shit-!" Daisy fumed up, crossing her arms.

Peach let out a nervous laugh at the young princesses. "S-sure my little cutie patooties, but at a later time. For now, let's make t-shirts."

"Yay!" The babies rejoiced and high-fived each other, getting the answer they wanted. Daisy snarled at the babies, knowing their troublesome behavior.

(oOoOoOo)

Like Mario, Sonic also invited extra friends: Cream, Charmy, Espio, Rouge, Sally, Scourge, Fiona Fox, Bunnie, Mina, Cosmo, Chris, Big, and Jet.

"Man, Sega is getting rid of everyone one by one," Sonic murmured. "But that's the beauty of it all. Thank you guys for coming to this Mario and Sonic War. First things first, we'll be making t-shirts to represent the Sonic team."

"That sounds fun!" Tails cheered.

Blaze sighed. "I guess so."

"Sonic, did you have to invite Fiona and Sally?!" Amy asked, glaring at her love rivals.

"It's not like Sonic is your boyfriend!" Sally said.

"I like Scourge better anyway." Fiona yawned.

"Sonic," Chris, one of Sonic's human friends, waved over to him with a big smile. "It's been a long time, hasn't it?"

"For sure it has, Chris," Sonic tilted his head up, knowing his friend wasn't the young boy from years ago.

"So, what's it like in the SSBB Mansion?" Knuckles asked.

"It's pretty fun. The point of being here is literally to brawl. That's it. I don't know why you guys weren't invited and I don't know why Shadow was an assistant."

"Because. . . I'm too powerful." Shadow said.

"How are you doing, Sonic?" Bunnie asked.

"Honestly, it could've been better."

"First, I was a tree and now I'm back in my own body. Very strange. . ." Cosmo muttered.

"Cosmo! You're alive!" Tails teared up and glomped her into a hug.

"T-Tails!" Cosmo blushed.

"So about the t-shirts. . . what color?" Cream asked.

"It should be green for mwa." Scourge grinned.

"No way!" Silver disagreed.

"SONIC! WHO DO YOU LIKE?! ME, SALLY, MINA, FIONA FOX, BUNNIE, OR COSMO?! I NEED TO KNOW!" Amy raged.

"Time is of the essence. We should get started with the t-shirts." Espio suggested.

"We should make it blue, not green! You're not the main character, Vomit Sonic!" Charmy pointed at Scourge.

"Why you stupid little bee!" Scourge charged at him and grabbed hold of his neck, squeezing the life out of it.

"V-Vector, help. . . me!"

"Leave my buddy alone!" Vector ran up to Scourage and tackled the green hedgehog to the ground.

"Don't you dare touch my man!" Fiona ran up to Vector, hitting the alligator's back with her fist.

"Man, I could look for those beautiful Chaos Emeralds right now." Rouge sighed.

"GUYS! STOP SCREWING AROUND!" Sonic exclaimed.

The silence was given back to Sonic knowing he wasn't the type to burst out in anger.

Even though it was quiet, Dr. Eggman and his robots, Docoe and Bocoe, huddled in their circle, away from the others.

"Don't fail me. Look for the Chaos Emeralds, so we can get out of this place!" Dr. Eggman grumbled. "Matter of fact, anything worth getting for my superior Eggman Empire."

"Yes, Sir!" Decoe and Bocoe whispered back. The two robots sneaked away from the Halberd and onto the fields of the SSBB Park.

(oOoOoOo)

Continuing on the day, the Smashers began to work on their stands for the Spring Festival. The Legend of Zelda stand was practically done, so Zelda used the time to discuss the Mario and Sonic competition with Master and Crazy Hand.

"So about the Mario and Sonic War, should we have it in a huge stadium and teleport each event or should we have it on plan grass?" Zelda asked.

"A STADIUM WOULD BE PERFECT. WE'LL GET A HIGH-QUALITY PROJECTOR TO CAPTURE ALL OF THE GOODIES. TELEPORTING THE EVENTS COULD MAKE THINGS EASIER, THAT'S FOR SURE." Master Hand said.

"Couldn't agree more."

"WAIT A MINUTE, MASTER HAND!" Crazy Hand yelled. "HOW DO WE TELEPORT THINGS INTO THE STADIUM?!"

"STUPID! HAVEN'T YOU HEARD OF A TELEPORTER?! DUH! LIKE WHAT MARTH AND IKE DO. WE WILL USE THAT TO TELEPORT STUFF TO THE STADIUM."

"O-oh, okay. . . Um, I don't think it's possible, Master Hand." Zelda sweatdropped.

"ARE YOU CALLING ME STUPID?!"

"No, I'm not. . ."

"KIRBY!" Master Hand then called out.

"Poyo! Yes, Master Hand?" Kirby came from the sky and landed right next to him.

"I WANT YOU TO PAINT A GIGANTIC STADIUM WITH BALCONIES, AND A SPECIAL AREA FOR THE GUESTS AND MARIO AND SONIC CREW."

"Ok! Poyo!"

(oOoOoOo)

Far from the construction, Makato walked and walked. Far from the noise and the Smashers and the guests. The white bunny suit she wore slowed down her steps, but she kept going, carrying the bunny head. A tall grass hill caught her attention which allowed her to gaze over the whole park.

Once she reached her destination, she sat down and dropped the bunny head beside her. The letter. Crumbled and tossed, his words continued lingering in her mind.

"Mikoru. . . Do I really. . . want it?" Makato tucked her legs to her chest and laid her head on her knees. "No. . . I don't know."

Minutes passed and the sound of footsteps paused her thoughts from behind. Not wanting to show her current frown, she picked up the bunny head once more, slipping it back on.

"I didn't think you were the type to be alone. What are you doing here?" Ike asked, walking behind the white bunny. He kept an arm's distance away from her and gazed at the floppy bunny ears. "Aren't you hot in that? It gotta be stuffy in there. . ."

". . .I'm fine, thanks." Makato mumbled.

"You don't sound fine." Ike walked closer to her and stood beside her. "Something on your mind?"

"N-no. I'm sure you guys are busy with the Spring Festival. . ."

Ike ruffled his hair. "Marth and Roy can take care of that. . . Felt like visiting a friend."

". . .Ike, I'm sorry, but I want to be alone."

"Hmm. . ." Ike side-eyed the bunny and furrowed his eyebrows. "Don't tell me. . . that night. . ." Before he knew it, Ike had his hands on her ears, plucking them out of her head.

"H-hey!" Makato turned to Ike but quickly glanced away. Ike watched her expression, tossing the head off down a grass hill. He waited for her to look at him, but kept her direction to the opposite side.

"You're still thinking about that letter, aren't you? About Mikoru?"

". . .Of course not."

"You're lying."

"Am not."

"Makato, seriously, we talked about this-"

"Ike, please, it's none of your concern." She raised her voice by a hair, slightly annoyed.

One thing Ike learned about the potion princess was how terrible of a liar she was at times. Her emotions were too transparent that anything she could have said may be contradictory. According to her childhood friend.

"There will be times when the Princess is untruthful. . . She becomes almost stubborn to the point you'll believe in her honest lie." Miru said, hammering nails to a block of wood. "Maybe it's for the best. For her sake. . . after what she's been through with Mikoru. . ."

It was displaying.

Ike then reached for her chin and pivoted in his direction till they locked eye contact.

"You make it my concern. . . As a friend, it's my job to make sure you're alright."

"No, Ike. . ." Makato slapped his hand away from her chin and got up from the grass. "As a friend, you're not respecting my choices."

Ike tilted his head and smirked. "My thoughts exactly. . . Which is why I can't be your friend anymore. Stop thinking about your ex and try something new."

"Try something new? Y-you. . ." Makato's cheeks heated into a cherry red, speechless from his tease, and decided to leave. Ike turned to her back and trailed behind her with the same arm distance away from her.

"Where're you going?" Ike asked.

"Away from you." Makato was slow and Ike let her take her time with the bunny costume weighing her steps. Not wanting to hear his footsteps, Makato increased her pace into a crowd of trees with no regard for a destination. Right into the forest.

"Are you trying to get lost?" Ike called out.

"If. . . if you stop following me!" She panted.

"If I do that, Miru will beat me up in a corner asking why I didn't follow you."

"I don't care. I- -I just want to be alone!"

"Alone? Who's that?"

"Honestly!" Minutes of running soon turned into a jog, and then a leaping walk over rocks and sticky puddles. Her feet soon became lead and her legs burned, holding onto a nearby tree to catch her breath. Ike watched the process of her energy level, closing in the distance between them. As to be expected. Their physical physiques weren't even comparable.

Just when Makato paused her feet, Ike used the opportunity to grab her arm, ending the chase. Though her chest pumped to breathe, Makato wasn't tired to wiggle her arm to break out from Ike's grasp, but it only made his grip tighter.

"We're done playing cat and mouse, right?"

"Let go of me!" Makato ignored his comment, leaning back her whole body to break out of one hold. Not about to continue the race, Ike yanked her towards himself and wrapped his arms around her waist. Her cheek was planted against his chest to the point she could hear his heart beating.

"S-stop! No. . .!" Using more of her shoulders, Makato twisted and turned herself away from the unwanted hug. Pivoting her foot, she made a jump start to run but was yanked back into the same bare hug. This time, the back of her bunny body smashed Ike's chest, and his arms locked her waist. Makato grunted with the attempt to peel his finger out of his lock, but the bunny mittens and his rock fingers made it difficult, and soon gave up.

Ike relaxed his shoulders when she went still. "You done?"

She answered with heavy breathing and kept silent in his grasp. Ike adjusted his arms and stared at the top of her pink head. It was almost attempting to take a peck at her forehead, but the way she was currently feeling, he doubted she would let him off the hook with just "sorry".

"You really want me gone, don't you? I'm kinda offended." Ike said.

"There are some things I. . . wish not to discuss with anyone." Makato lowered her eyelids, taking in the surroundings of the forest. "But here you are. . . pushing me out of my comfort."

"Hugging's more like it, but sure." Ike loosened his grip toward Makato's waist. "I didn't want you to make the wrong decisions."

"I. . . I won't." Makato muttered.

Her answer wasn't as believable as Ike would have wanted to hear.

"The letter Mikoru sent me was unexpecting. I didn't know what to do. Should I believe in his feelings and what he's done to himself? Maybe I should give him a second chance. I was lost. I thought maybe some self-isolation would clear my head and forget. . ." She tightened her eyes, letting out a harsh breath. "However, it only made me more. . . ah. . . sorry. This is so frustrating."

"You know what's right. There's no need to be so stressed out about this." Ike slipped his arms away from Makato's waist and went for her shoulders, spinning her around till their eyes met.

Ike gazed in awe at her ocean eyes and reached for her cheeks. "I. . ." He paused his words, slipping his hands away. It wasn't a good time, somebody or someone was close.

There was chatter of voices and dried leaves, lurking from the distance that made Ike straighten his back. The mercenary eyed the forest and searched for where he heard the heavy stomps that came closer and closer. Maybe it was a group of kids? No. It sounded like a bunch of grown-ass men. The last time he checked the mansion, there weren't any middle-aged humans in Smash.

"I hear people. . ." Makato lowered her voice.

"Well, it's not our people," Ike said, pulling his Ragnell out. Makato scooted herself behind his cape, also catching groans and chattering.

Seconds in, the gang appeared before the two in ripped tunics, untrimmed beards, and rusty weapons. Some had hand axes and knives, but the majority carried pistols. Thieves in the wild.

"We hit the jackpot!" One of the thieves took a few steps forward with the most giant pistol in his hand, indicating he was the leader. He was a giant with bulging muscles from head to toe, wearing all black. "I thought about kidnapping, but thank you, Princess of Potions, for making our jobs easier." He flashed his smile, showing off his few metal teeth.

"She's a cosplayer, not a princess." Ike defended.

"Oh, you got jokes, huh? Well, kid-" The leader chuckled as he pulled out a piece of paper from his shirt pocket, "-if you search deep, you'll find her little face all over the internet. Something about rare powerful wizards running in the family. We took our chances when the Smashers were advertising the Spring Festival."

"Well, congrats. You definitely hit the jackpot." Ike cracked a grin, clapping slowly and dramatically.

"Ike. . .!" She whispered, gripping the life out of Ike's cape. As much as he would rather joke about the whole situation, Makato's fear vibrated against his cape. Ike couldn't tell if she was afraid of their guns or the pit stains between their gorilla arms.

"We can sell da girl and get thousands!" One of the thieves said. Others nodded in agreement, cheering and celebrating his idea.

"Move out of the way, Kid." The leader aimed the gun at Ike with a wide smirk. Makato flinched, stuffing her face into the comfort of Ike's cape.

"Don't worry, they're just rubber bullets," Ike said.

The leader burst out in laughter. "Well, aren't you a clown! Wanna test it out? Unless you don't wanna embarrass yourself, hand over the princess."

"Rather get shot in the head than hand her over. Make sure you don't miss, kay?" Ike said, shaking his wrist as a warm-up.

"Unfortunate fool! Men! Attack!"

"ARHHH!" The gang raised their weapons and charged after the mercenary.

Ike glanced at Makato. "Stand back."

In silence, she obeyed, running to a nearby tree.

More room to fight.

Ike pulled out his Ragnell and swung at the first brave thief that came with a knife, followed by a bunch of more close-combat thieves without breaking a sweat. Then came the firearms. Guns versus a sword? The thieves smirked with the thought of an early victory coming their way. The first bullet was fired but Ike kept standing.

"H-huh? He's still alive?" The thieves exchanged frightened looks.

"Keep shooting!"

"Yeah!"

"One is good, but ten? Nah, bro." Ike swung his sword as it began to heat up. Flames surrounded the sword, melting the incoming bullets that came his way. Once he got close to the pistol wielders. . .

"Great Aether!" Ike aimed for the ground, creating more area of damage against the thieves. Many couldn't take the heat, crying till their throats dried up. They ran in circles, trying to put out the fire with their hands. Some of the thieves that weren't caught in the fire shook in fear, taking a few steps back.

Ike furrowed his eyebrows and set his sword by his side. The leader amongst the bunch was nowhere to be found.

No.

"Fuck me silly." Ike cursed, turning around. Makato's eyes widened and her hands were raised from the gun pointing right at her ear. The leader forced Makato's steps away from the mercenary as long as the gun was present and loaded.

"No thanks, I rather fuck a horse." The leader said, tapping his gun on Makato's cheek.

"Ike. . ." Her voice cracked.

When Ike took a step, the leader shoved the gun more against Makato's cheek.

"Don't come any closer. You know what happens to her if you do. Kiss her life goodbye." The leader said. "Dead or alive, the money will be-"

"Your mere presence isn't worthy to be near the princess." A voice called out.

The three of them were all in a state of shock, searching for the fourth voice.

The leader grew impatient. "Who's there?! Show yourself! You doing this?!" The leader then glared at Ike.

Ike raised his hands and shook his head. "Please, does my voice sound like the dawn of pub and berty?"

"Fucking-! If you don't show yourself I'll kill-!" Before he knew it, all of his men collapsed to the ground in a blink of an eye. No sign of blood or the mysterious speaker whatsoever.

"What the hell?! Men! Get up!" He commanded.

"Time to sleep." The voice appeared before the leader physically in a black cloak, covering all but his lips.

"What the-?!" Too slow to pull the trigger, the black-cloaked man side-chopped the leader's neck enough to make him pass out. Makato relaxed her shoulders and turned to the man in black.

"I hope he didn't hurt you. . ." He said, holding her hand. Makato flinched from the touch but didn't back off. She dropped the idea of knowing his identity, even if the pale skin and strands of gray hair were familiar. The voice was. . .

Makato shook her head. "I'm. . . ok. Thank you."

"You a merc?" Ike asked, walking up to both of them.

The man in black released her hand and backed away. "My identity doesn't matter at the moment. We'll meet again. I promise you that." He smiled, holding up his two fingers. His body then became mist as his way of leaving. Ike and Makato were the only ones standing and bodies surrounded them like confetti.

"You okay?" Ike asked.

"More or less. . . Wasn't expecting thieves near the SSBB Park." Makato said.

"You're probably happy I followed you here, aren't you?"

". . ." Makato darted her eyes at him before walking away from the mercenary.

"Wait, hear me out!" Ike said. Before he followed Makato, to make the forest great again, he gathered the knocked-out thieves and bundled them up in thick vines, making sure their escape wouldn't be inevitable.

It was a silent walk as they both maneuvered their way out of the forest. Ike made small glances at Makato, noticing her cheeks fuming up to a red.

She opened her mouth, facing her attention toward the ground. "I want to say. . . um, thank you. I am grateful that you were here. . ."

Ike cracked a smile, reaching for her head he caressed her hair multiple times. "If you didn't run off to the forest, I believe the situation would've been very different. Maybe. . . a whole lot worse." There wasn't a slap away from his hand and the mercenary only assumed she enjoyed it.

"I guess so. . ."

"By the way, were you able to get a closer look at that guy in black?"

"No. . . No, I didn't. It was hard to decipher." She rubbed her arms and kept her attention on the trees.

Ike removed his hand from her head. "I see. . ."

Another lie.

(oOoOoOo)

Following the light of the blinding sun, the two made their way out of the forest and headed back to the sight of the Halberd.

"My, my, they were gone for a long time! That was quite the soap opera, wasn't it, Bocoe?" Decoe said, watching the two through a pair of binoculars with his short robot friend. They remained seated, hidden in the branches and leaves to catch a bird's eye view of Makato.

"Wasn't she a small child?" Bocoe asked.

"Yeah! By the time Doctor Eggman failed to capture her, she was just a kid playing in the forest. This time, I'm sure Doctor Eggman will redeem himself so he can build his new Eggman Empire!"

"Let's report back to the Doctor!"

A/N: I finished this chapter before New Year's Eve and Day. I hope you like this chapter! Please comment if likey and Have a Happy New Year! d(^u^)b