Snake was an enigma in many ways.
He was brave, cunning, stealthy, had witnessed things that many could never even think of, and he made it through.
And he's one of the few people who really understood her. Or had even attempted to, really.
Samus had friends amongst the fighters in the Smash tournament over the years, sure, but she felt none of them could truly grasp the things that she had gone through.
So, she didn't mention it.
She had handled her past surprisingly well, all things considered. But when she was alone in the dark of night, no distractions from a job, or maintenance on her ship, sometimes it couldn't help but come to the surface.
Flashes of Ridley, the Chozo, her parents, everything. Everyone expects her to be this bad-ass bounty hunter, which she is and she's confident in it. But everyone expects her to just be this emotionless tank, this killing machine, nothing could possibly get to her.
They're wrong. It's always somewhere in the back of her mind, in one way or another.
Every once in a while, she'd go out for a drink or two after a successful mission or when her past got to be a little too much.
This was the latter.
Samus looked at her clock in her room of the Smash mansion.
12:30 A.M.
She sighed and got out of bed. Sleep would be hard to come by anyway.
She went into the bathroom and looked at herself in the mirror. The two hours of an attempted good night's sleep were apparent, her hair was a mess and her eyes had some faint dark circles under them. She brushed her hair, put it in a ponytail, and put on a shirt, black pants, her green military jacket, and some brown boots.
She gave herself one last check in the mirror and she was out the door.
In the realm of Smash, there were many amenities for the fighters. The Smash mansion where they all resided during their stay, and the bustling metropolis that Master Hand created.
The Smash Ball was a bar that was a place that Samus had gone to many times, especially when she wasn't the most social person during the first tournament, and she normally drank alone. Until this particular night.
Samus walked into the bar and sat at one of the bar stools. The place was completely empty aside from the bartender.
The robotic bartender zipped over to her, eager to help as programmed.
"What can I get for you, Miss Aran?"
"I'll have my usual, thanks."
"Right away Miss Aran!" The little robot said and rolled itself over to the various kinds of alcohol behind it and started getting Samus' drink ready.
"Will you only be having one tonight, Miss Aran?"
Samus thought for a moment. "I think so, I just need something to take the edge off."
The robot nodded and slid over Samus' drink. Samus closed her eyes and took a sip of her drink. Hopefully this would get her to relax.
Suddenly, she heard the door open behind her and felt the cool night air come in. Samus whipped her head around to see who it was.
He was tall, a trench coat wrapped around him to shield him from the cold. He walked in from the door and took his coat off, revealing a black long-sleeved shirt. He walked over to the bar and sat right next to Samus, dropping his coat in the seat on his opposite side.
The bartender zoomed over once again. "What can I get for you tonight sir?"
The man grumbled for a second, in a unique deep tone, thinking.
"Does this place have whisky?" He said.
"Oh yes sir! We have alcohol from all the universes here at The Smash Ball."
The man nodded. "Let me get some whisky on the rocks then please."
The bartender went to fix his drink. Samus, meanwhile, had stopped sipping on her drink and looked at him.
He was a handsome man. He had light brown hair with a bandana around his forehead, a nice jawline lined with stubble, and steel-blue eyes staring at the wall of drinks. At least they were until they flicked over at Samus.
"What?" The man said.
"You have all the drinks in the universes at your fingertips and you pick whiskey?" Samus said.
"I like what I like." The man shrugged. "Plus, I don't really know the names of this non-Earth stuff, don't wanna look like a dumbass."
"Fair enough." Samus said, returning to her drink.
By this time, the bartender had brought him his drink. The man thanked the robot and took a drink.
"You couldn't sleep either, huh?" The man said.
"How'd you know?"
He looked her up and down. "I can tell. You got some dark spots under your eyes there." He gestured to his eyes.
Samus sighed. "No, I couldn't. Restless sleeper, you know?"
The man nodded. "Oh yeah, it's a wonder if I get any sleep at all."
Samus suddenly had a thought.
"You're the new guy aren't you? Solid Snake, right?"
"Yup. That's me. You can call me Snake though. The whole thing can be a bit of a mouthful." Snake said with a chuckle.
"Ok, Snake. While we're doing introductions, I'm Samus."
"Oh I know." Snake smiled. "I've heard about you."
Samus was a little surprised by that. "Good things I hope."
"Oh definitely. I've heard a little about you from some of the others."
"What have they told you?" Samus said, a little apprehensive.
"Well, You're a bounty hunter, you're rather independent, and a really strong fighter." Snake said. "And I've seen you fight in the practice space, they're definitely right."
"Oh, well thank y-" Samus stopped. She remembered something.
"I was in my suit, how'd you know it was me?" She questioned.
"Process of elimination, partially. I had a hunch the princesses wouldn't be in something like that."
Samus laughed. The thought of Peach in the Varia suit and operating it was definitely an amusing image for her. "Good observation there. Most people back home think I'm a guy when I'm in that thing."
Snake seemed surprised at that.
"Really?"
Samus nodded. "What was the other thing that tipped you off?" She said.
Snake had forgotten what he had said.
"Huh?"
"You said it was partially a process of elimination. What was the other thing?"
Snake took another sip of his drink.
"Well uh, you have this feminine sorta…way you walk."
Samus raised an eyebrow. "How so?"
"You kinda sway your hips a bit when you walk." Snake said bluntly.
Samus had never realized that before. She did it subconsciously, she supposed.
"You were staring at my hips?"
Snake hesitated for a moment then said, "Hey bartender, get me another whisky please."
"Yes Mr. Snake!" The robot replied.
Snake turned back to Samus. "Sorry. Yeah, I was, it's just a natural thing I can notice." He admitted.
"Just never noticed before I guess. You've got some good intuition."
"Yeah well, you kind of need it when you do what I do back home."
Samus looked down at her now empty glass. She had said she'd only have one drink tonight, but for whatever reason, she didn't want to leave just yet.
Samus called over the bartender to get her another drink and turned back to Snake.
"So what do you do then? Now I'm curious."
"It's a long story, but putting it simply, I'm a special operations soldier. I go on stealth missions."
"So you work for the government?" Samus asked.
"Oh hell no." Snake said, "They don't necessarily like what I do. At all."
Samus breathed a little sigh of relief. Even if they weren't a part of the same universe, she had to admit she would've been a little thrown off if he was pro-government.
"Yeah I know the feeling." Samus said.
"You do?"
Samus nodded. "I learned some things that the Galactic Federation was doing that would've caused mass casualties. I managed to stop them, but now I'm a bit of an outlaw back home."
"Sounds like you did the right thing." Snake didn't know what the Galactic Federation was necessarily, but he could figure it out enough. "If it makes you feel any better, I'm considered dead where I'm from."
"Maybe a little." Samus chuckled.
Snake smiled. He liked seeing her laugh for some reason.
"I feel like you have an advantage over most outlaws though." Snake said.
"Oh yeah, what's that?"
"Well, most people know you in the suit right?"
"Yes."
"People probably don't know what you look like under the suit. Gives you a good cover just being yourself, as long as you don't do something stupid like saying your name."
"That might explain why I haven't been killed just yet." Samus said.
"It really is a good cover though. Especially since you say people think you're a man in the suit, no one would expect a beautiful woman like you to pop out of that thing."
Samus stopped mid-sip of her drink, her cheeks becoming a little flushed with color. At this point, she shouldn't be surprised at Snake's forwardness, but she was regardless.
"You're blushing."
Damn it, she was caught.
"…It's just the alcohol."
"No, it's not. You've only had, what, like a drink and a half? I don't peg you as a light-weight." Snake said coolly, taking another sip of his own drink.
Samus scoffed at him a bit. "You don't know me."
"No, but I'd like to." Snake smirked.
Samus called the bartender over for another drink.
Snake looked at the bartender in the back of the room and pulled a small cardboard box and a lighter from his side pocket.
"You don't think the bartender would mind if I smoked in here?"
Samus shook her head. "No, they have no sense of smell anyway."
"Great. Really helps me relax. You want one?" Snake said, offering the box.
"Thanks, but I'll pass."
Snake shrugged. "More for me then."
Snake flicked his lighter, drawing a flame, and lit up his cigarette. Samus could see him closing his eyes, breathing in, and a stream of smoke exiting his mouth.
He probably knows I'm staring again, Samus thought. She looked back at the bar, even though she really didn't want to.
"Where are you from, Snake?" Samus said.
"Earth. I've been living in Alaska the past few years."
"What's it like?"
"Alaska gets really cold, but it's pretty isolated aside from me and my dogs and my friend who helps me with my missions."
"I didn't mean Alaska." Samus said, even though she didn't really know what Alaska was, "I meant Earth."
"What, you've never been to Earth in your universe? You've probably travelled to a bunch of planets." Snake said.
"I have. Earth just no longer exists in my universe." Samus answered.
"But you're human? Had to come from somewhere, right?" Snake asked.
"I was born on a planet that was colonized by Earth before it got destroyed. My parents were from Earth themselves. I don't remember much of my parents, so I never really knew what Earth was like." Samus said solemnly.
"Well…my Earth is probably different from what it was in your universe. But I can tell you what it's like."
Samus turned towards him, eager to listen, but trying not to show it on her face.
Snake thought for a second, how could he possibly describe a whole planet to someone who's never experienced it? "My Earth…is complicated. A lot of strife and ignorance and in-fighting with the people. But it's a beautiful place, with good people in it trying to make things better, makes it all worth it."
"Like you?" Samus asks.
Snake grumbles a little in protest. "I…don't think so, but plenty of people apparently do."
"Why do you not think so?"
"I'm not a hero or anything. I'm just a soldier who's the only one who can do what needs to be dealt with."
"I could say the same about me. I was trained to be a warrior, it's in my DNA. I have to do what I do or no one else will."
"Were you ever in the military?"
"Why do you ask?"
"That jacket you're wearing. Unless it's a fashion statement." Snake said.
Damn, he's good. Samus thought.
Samus sighed. "I was when I was a teenager. I had to get out, there were some lines crossed from my superior that I just couldn't take."
Snake nodded. "Me too. I stayed the whole time when I was young though. I was so naive back then." Snake took another drag from his cigarette.
"Makes it hard to trust anyone. When you're like me and don't really have anyone to fall back on…when you've lost so many people." Samus said, finishing her drink a few seconds later.
A moment of silence fell between the two.
Samus propped her chin up on her hand. "I don't even know why I'm telling you all this." She suddenly gained awareness of how much she had drank.
"Sometimes, you need people around who understand what you've been through. I don't know what I'd do without my team on my codec." Snake tapped his finger against his ear. "Maybe you need someone like that too." Snake said with a small smile and a soft gaze into her eyes. Samus hummed in agreement, a small smile playing at her lips. She suddenly felt her heart start beating a little faster when she saw the way he looked at her. It was such a kind expression, one she never could've expected to come from someone who seemed so gruff on the outside.
She was about to bring the bartender over for another drink, but Snake beat her to the punch.
"Don't worry, I got it." Snake said to her. "Hey, bring two more whiskies over please!"
—
A few hours had passed, drinks and laughs and stories were shared between the two of them, even a cigarette or two as well.
By this point, the both of them were definitely tipsy, though they both had higher tolerances than their contemporaries would have. At some point, they had moved themselves from the bar stools where they had previously sat to one of the few couches scattered across the bar. Samus was leaning against Snake's shoulder, her hair had come out of its ponytail and she had Snake's bandana across her forehead, engrossed in the story she had just heard from him.
Samus had a shocked expression on her face. "W-wait, s-so you're telling me you have an evil twin?" Samus said, slurring her words slightly.
Snake nodded. "Ohh yeah. He's a real bastard." He says, his words coming out a bit slurred as well. "Imagine fighting someone who looks just like you!"
Samus laughs. "Oh I don't have to imagine that, I've done that twice."
Snake's mouth became slightly agape. "Y-you mean there were three of you?" He said in disbelief.
Samus nodded. "Well, one was a parasite and the other was made of poison, and it wasn't me-me, it was my suit, and it wasn't at the same time. But, yeah."
Snake chuckled. "Shame I missed it."
"You weren't missing much. I'm a lot nicer than them." Samus said.
"Sexiest one too, if I had to guess."
Samus' face had gone red once again.
"Oh c'mon, don't be so modest!" Snake said.
"It really is the alcohol this time I promise!" Samus pleaded.
"Liar." Snake said teasingly.
"Oh shut up!" Samus said playfully and smacked his arm.
"Just for your information, if you're gonna be hanging around me, you better get used to being complimented."
"Who says I wanna hang out with you, huh?" Samus said, leaning closer to his face.
"Considering you haven't left at any point that I've been here, I'd say you."
God. Samus thought. If I was just a bit closer, I could just-. She stopped herself. Huh? That's new.
"Attractive and a smartass? What a combo." Samus said.
Snake had a look of surprise on his face that quickly turned into a smirk. "What was that?" He asked innocently.
"What? I didn't say anyth-" Samus trailed off as her eyes got wide with shock.
"Shit! I didn't mean to say that out loud." She said, clearly embarrassed by her sudden admission.
Snake laughed. He found it quite cute, especially so being as inebriated as they were.
"Hey! Qu-quit laughing!" Samus said.
"Ok, ok I'm done. Promise."
Another moment of silence passed between the two. Neither of them were expecting an admission like that to come tumbling out of her mouth. Snake decided to break the silence.
"You really think I'm attractive?"
Samus hesitated for a moment, knowing that she couldn't possibly backtrack now. "…Yes, I do."
Snake had a hunch that she did, he did catch her staring at him a lot during the night, but to hear it straight from the source made him feel…warm.
Before Snake could respond, the bartender whizzed over to the pair.
"The Smash Ball is about to close for the night. Please make sure to pay your tab before you leave!"
"I'll go get it." Samus said, about to lift herself off the couch.
"I got it, you don't have to pay for a thing."
Samus slightly cocked her head in confusion.
"I started putting your drinks on my tab a few drinks in." Snake said as he got up to go pay the bartender.
"Never would've guessed that the Legendary Solid Snake could be such a gentleman."
Snake turned his head around to look at her behind him. "You don't know me." He said with yet another teasing look on his face
"No…but I'd like to." Samus said with a playful smirk of her own.
—
A few minutes later, The Smash Ball was officially shut down for the night. The two fighters had gotten their jackets and were ready to go back to the Smash Mansion. As the door to the bar was opened, they quickly remembered how cold it was out there.
Samus visibly shivered, she wasn't expecting it to get colder than it was when she left. Damn SA-X, she thought with bitterness.
"You okay?" Snake asked.
"Y-yeah, I'm fine. I can handle it." She said.
Snake's face fell into a concerned one, furrowed brows and his mouth in a small frown. "You know Samus, you really gotta get better at the whole lying thing." He then started to take off his coat.
"Snake, what are you doing?"
Snake finished taking off his coat and put it around Samus' shoulders. She had to admit, it did warm her up
"I live in a place that's cold all the time, I can make do without it for a bit."
Samus looked down at the way the coat fell on her frame, and put her arms into the sleeves. She then looked up at Snake with a smile. "Thank you, Snake."
Snake gave her that soft look again for another time that night, it was a look that she wouldn't mind seeing more of.
"You're welcome. C'mon, I'll walk you back to your room." Snake said, with a hand outstretched towards her. Samus grabbed his hand, it felt as if a little bolt of electricity ran through her body. Walking along with him definitely made her feel more stable, and not just because of the alcohol, even if he wasn't the most coordinated at the moment either.
—
The two of them made it to the door leading into Samus' room. "Well, this is me." Samus said, gesturing to the door.
"Yeah, I guess so." Snake replied, a little reluctant.
"Oh! Almost forgot." Samus said suddenly, shuffling Snake's coat off of her body and handing it back over to him.
Snake put his coat back on, soaking in the heat, before realizing that an important part of his ensemble was missing. "Uh Sam, you did forget something."
Sam, she thought of the sudden nickname, I like that coming from him.
"Huh?"
Snake pointed to his bare forehead.
"Oh yeah right, your source of infinite ammo." Samus said teasingly as she unwrapped the bandana around her head.
"Hey, it is! I should get you your own at this rate." Snake said as he tucked it into one of his coat pockets.
The pair shared a laugh between the two of them. A moment that most would not expect coming from the legendary mercenary and the notorious bounty hunter.
Samus looked up at Snake with a smile. "Snake, I wanna thank you for tonight. It means a lot."
"You're welcome. Definitely not the way I expected my night to go, but I'm glad it did."
"Yeah, same here. I was having a really rough night, couldn't sleep, couldn't get away from it all. Then I met you, and I feel…better. Better than I have in a while. It's really nice to have someone who just gets what I'm going through."
"Me too. I mean I have my team back home, but most of them haven't been in the trenches of it all like I have, like we have."
Samus nodded in agreement. "It makes me feel, I don't know, content to be able to talk about the things I've been through without having to worry about what everyone else would think."
"I'm happy I could be that person for you tonight, Samus." Snake said, gazing down at the woman before him.
"I'm glad I could be that for you too." Samus said
"If you ever need someone to talk about things with, I'm here." Snake said. He didn't know everything about Samus, but he wanted to know more, as much as he could about what was underneath the cold, metal exterior she showed the world.
"Thanks Snake, and you can always come to me too. I know you need it as much as I do." Samus said, looking into Snake's eyes.
As the pair exchanged eye contact with each other, they could feel their heartbeats quicken. A warmth building up in their bodies. That now-familiar electricity moving between them. This feeling that had been brewing between them all night it seemed.
Samus then got an idea. She knew she'd see Snake around the mansion for the rest of the tourney, but she felt like she had to do this now, or she'd never get the chance. She didn't know if it was the alcohol or not, but what she did know is that whatever she was feeling was new for her. The liquid courage definitely helps though, she thought.
"Snake, you know that great intuition of yours we talked about before?"
Snake nodded, intrigued as to where she was going with this.
Samus stepped closer to Snake, stood up a little bit straighter, leaning her face closer to his.
Samus spoke in a whisper. "I bet your intuition wouldn't expect this then, would it?"
And just like that, Samus closed the gap between them, and Snake responded in kind.
It wasn't for very long, but the two of them could've sworn it went on for longer, it could've went on forever and they would've been happy. It felt like a release of the built-up tension that had been going on all night. It had been a long time since Samus had felt like doing this, but this felt even more different than that. These two broken people finding solace in each other, in the most unlikely of places, and expressing that connection in the most human way there is.
They broke the kiss. They were silent for a moment while they collected themselves. Samus looked back at him with a small smile and Snake had a pleased grin on his face.
"Ok, you win," Snake said with a chuckle, "I wasn't expecting that. Hoped for it, but you got me by surprise."
Samus smirked, glad to have beat him. A thought then came to her mind.
"How come you didn't try to kiss me sooner?" She questioned.
"I've been flirting with you all night Sam, but I wanted anything initiated to be on your terms."
I guess he really is a gentleman after all. Hmm, well in that case…what the Hell. Samus thought with confidence.
"Snake, I have an idea."
Snake made an intrigued hum in response.
"I don't want you to go just yet."
"Oh really?"
She nodded. "I was thinking that…we could test out more of your intuition," She cocked her head slightly towards the door to her room. "If you're up for it." She said in a seductive tone.
Snake had caught on to her little innuendo. "I'd love to." He said, beaming.
Samus smiled back at him, She then turned towards her door and opened it, taking a step inside. She turned back to him and held out her hand. "Are you coming or what?" Samus said with a small laugh.
"Yes ma'am!" He said as he grabbed her hand and was pulled into the room, the door shutting behind him.
—
Beep! Beep! Beep!
The sound of an alarm clock blared in Snake's ears. He groaned as he opened his eyes, turning over in the bed to hit the snooze button on the clock. He looked around the room, expecting to see the surroundings of his own room, but was surprised to find Samus' Varia suit in the corner of the room. It was then that he remembered what had transpired the previous night. He looked over to the opposite side of the bed, finding Samus asleep, leaning into the mercenary.
Snake nudged at the sleeping woman, attempting to wake her. "Samus. Sam, wake up." He said.
Samus groaned, annoyed that her slumber had been disturbed, and slowly opened her eyes and blinked a few times to fully grasp what she was seeing.
"Snake?"
"Morning. Do you remember last night?" Snake said cautiously, imagining how odd it must be to her if she didn't remember.
"Yeah, I do." Samus replied. "The last thing I remember was us coming in here."
"Me too."
"Did we?" She questioned, hoping that Snake would pick up on what she was talking about.
Snake looked down and shook his head. "Considering that we're both still fully clothed, I'd say no."
Samus looked down at herself and Snake, the only articles of clothing missing from them both were their shoes and coats, thrown haphazardly on the other side of the room.
"We must've just fallen asleep when we got in here." Samus said.
"That doesn't surprise me, since we were out all night."
Samus nodded in agreement. "Sorry to disappoint you." She said jokingly.
"That's alright, we can next time around."
Next time?
"You want there to be a next time?"
Snake nodded. "Don't you?" He asked.
Samus thought about it for a second. She had a lot of fun the previous night. Snake comforted her and related to her experiences. She was not generally someone who clicked with others this fast but, being with him was so easy. It felt right.
"Yeah, I think I do." Samus answered, leaning over to give the gruff man beside her another kiss.
Beep! Beep! Beep!
The alarm clock sounded once again. Snake pulled away from the blonde and slightly cringed, having one of his hands grip the back of his head, the hangover hitting him. He finally managed to switch off the alarm entirely this time.
"Ok, maybe we should just be sober for our second date."
Samus hummed in agreement and put her arms around Snake.
"What'd you have that alarm set for anyway?" Snake asked.
"I usually have it set on days I have matches." A moment passed. Samus' previously closed eyes flung open as she realized what she had said.
"Damn it! I completely forgot about my match today." Samus said, and slapped a hand to her forehead in frustration.
"When's your match?"
"This afternoon."
"Well then in that case, I don't think Master Hand would mind you staying like this a little bit longer hmm?"
As much as Samus would've liked to train like she usually did, she really wasn't in the best state for it. She knew he was right. As much as she liked to push herself, the idea of taking it easy for a bit with Snake being next to her like this was too good to pass up.
"Ok, fine. But I can't miss my match."
She didn't know what would become of their budding romance in the long-run, nor how much time she'd have with him. But she wanted to know more about him. She wanted to know the man behind the legend as much as he wanted to know the woman behind the suit.
Snake was truly an enigma in Samus' eyes. The man who made the impossible possible. The man who understood her. The man who made her feel safe.
Her intuition was certain of that.