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Considering it being Valentine’s Day, Tangle was not feeling the love.
The day itself had been a blinking light in her already jumbled brain for a month. Restaurant or picnic? Camping or hiking? Both? Sweets or was that too much food? Physical gifts?
Tangle had eventually formulated the perfect spot. North of the village was a meadow of flowers, a few trees, and soft grass. She had strung up a few hearts, sat out the blankets, and ordered a heart-shaped poundcake with strawberries on it.
Tangle didn’t want to give herself a pat on the back yet, but if she knew Whisper, then the setup was perfect! No people around to stress her out, decor wasn’t overdone to pressure her, her favorite treat, and all the options for the moment, were it to be a disaster, to be just between the two of them.
Then came the challenge of Whisper herself. No, Whisper was never an issue, rather a solution for Tangle and the constant messes she was getting herself in. But the challenge was to keep her in the dark of it all.
The wolf had the sharpest sense of smell in all of Mobius. Tangle was certain she could smell every single place she had been on her. But that was not the problem.
“Tangle.” Whisper would pull her side a handful of times, eyes cracked open a little, just enough to hint to her worry. “What’s going on? Is something wrong?”
“Everything’s great!” She would squeak, her smile feeling unnatural on her cheeks. “No problems at all.”
It was those days where the sniper would close herself off more: respond less, avoid physical contact, leave missions and training early. It hurt.
Tangle knew she couldn’t keep up the charade of ‘friendship’ when knowing her heart was begging for more. She wanted to hear Whisper more: plans, opinions, feelings, stories, dreams, everything!
There was so much she wanted, so much she admired, and so much she still had yet to learn about Whisper.
But she needed to do this. She needed to confess. It was likely, especially after the lies and concerns, that Whisper would want nothing to do with her.
Tangle’s greatest fear, which poked at her exploding heart in her chest, was that she would put in this work and it would scare her off. And she would have no one to blame but herself.
The day was beautiful, as many were in Spiral Hill Village. The hills a vibrant green, the streets cleaned, couples out around town eating together, walking together, sightseeing together. Together…
Whisper had her own camp at the edge of town. Upon setting up the site, it was a simple black cloth that was draped over a few ropes. Tangle didn’t stand for it. Within two weeks it had a second tent connecting to the original, zip up windows, a clean sleeping bag, kitchen supplies, lanterns, a tiny fireplace, and a welcome home mat.
And even then, Tangle still found Whisper sleeping on the couch in her home from time to time. She would gladly cook up some eggs and coffee even though she herself wasn’t a coffee drinker.
The machine was originally for Jewel, thank goodness she was on tea now. The coffee was mostly for Lanolin, now that Tangle considered it, maybe—
A BOOM rang out behind her, the ground trembling and sending her to her knees. Tangle was back up in a flash, head turned up to the large column of fire twirling into the sky from her village.
Her nervous heart had now frozen in her chest. Seriously?!
Behind her, there was a zip and shuffle as Whisper marched out of her tent. “Town’s under attack. Come on.”
She marched a little ahead of Tangle, loading her wispon with her orange wisp. The lemur shook out her surprise and bounded next to her up the stairs.
In the plaza fires roared in shops. Rumble sprinkled the ground. Red, unique looking robots smashed through tables, stores, windows—badniks.
“Wanted to make a scene on a holiday.” Whisper shook her head. “Not surprised.”
Tangle wasn’t surprised either. Eggman trying to blow up her town for the upteenth time on the most romantic day of the year? Why the hell didn’t she plan for this?!
The sniper fired her orange wisp at one of the badniks. It blocked with the swipe of an arm and fired something towards the two with the other.
The lemur barely shoved the wolf down before she could get killed. Arrows embedded where her head and chest used to be.
“Arrows?!” Tangle squawked.
Whisper’s brows were raised in surprise. “Wanted to go old school?”
The brawler rolled back onto her feet and gave the sniper a hand up as well. She quickly loaded another around and fired her cyan laser into the head of the badnik. It collapsed with a shudder of metal.
“Go to the North side.” She ordered. “Check on Jewel. This isn’t the only party.”
“I’m not about to leave you here!” Tangle retaliated boldly.
“You have to. Spread out. Cover more.”
“But—“
She turned to Tangle, an air of resolution on her even with her eyes closed. “I’ll be fine. Go.”
She slid her mask on and got to work. Tangle watched her for a moment longer, studying the taut muscles and grounded posture before she turned and ran.
When she got to the museum, she realized just how lucky Whisper might have actually gotten it. Back in the plaza, there were only three robots. On the North end, Tangle was faced with eight.
They were shooting at civilians and tearing the museum apart. Displays had been tossed out the window, the fountain smashed, water flooded the streets, furniture scattered, and people crying for help.
Swiftly, she shot her tail out, wrapping it around one badnik and crushing it in her grip. She used it as a wrecking ball, crashing it from one badnik to the next. Metal and wires matted into her fur and scraped her flash. Nothing the salon couldn’t fix with a few dozen combs.
One badnik remained. Giving her tail time to recoil, she picked up a park bench and splashed it over the machine. Lights blinked, a beeping roar made it twitch. She wrapped her tail around it and tossed over the museum. It sailed through the sky and only when a plume of smoke rose did she allow herself to sigh with relief.
She took a step forward, only to slip on a wet brick and crash to the ground. Her forehead grazed the remains of the fountain, painting the chipped corner red.
“Ow!” She moaned.
She cupped her hand around the cut, trying to focus on her surroundings. Civilians were chatting with fear, some crying with arrows in their arms or legs.
“Tangle!” Cried a voice. Jewel hovered around her museum, a fire extinguisher in hand. “Gaia what happened?!”
“Eggman decided to send us his love.” She grimaced.
“I know that. What happened to you?” She moved closer, trying to inspect the shallow gash. The lemur’s hand was painted red.
“I-I’m fine, just a scrape.” She waved her away. “We need to get medical treatment for these people.”
“Paramedics are already almost here.” She confirmed. “But I think there’s another wave coming from farther out.”
“I’ll go check it out.” She gave a thumbs up. “
“But you’re hurt—“
“More people will be too if this doesn’t end. Besides, I want to get back to my game plan with Whisper.”
Tangle was hoping for a spark of excitement or reassurance from her bestie. Instead, there was a nervous teeth clench. How comforting.
She raced off, leaping over the brick wall. She stumbled in the grass but continued on. Jewel wasn’t lying. A battalion was marching towards her town, arrows and lasers primed and ready.
The lemur tucked herself behind some bushes. This was twice as many as she just faced. She needed a tool or a weapon or something to give her the extra hand.
Her tail swished nervously behind her, grazing the bark of a pine tree. Cautiously, she turned her attention from the robots to the tall plant. A mischievous grin slid onto her features.
As the robots stormed their way in her direction, the large tree flew into the sky and crashed into them. Many toppled over like bowling pins, shrapnel and wood shooting everywhere. The remaining ones fired.
Tangle screamed as hot pain flared in her shoulder. Next to her chest, in her right shoulder, was a three foot arrow just like the ones Whisper was almost killed with. One foot had sunk into her fur and flesh. The other two feet stuck out in front of her.
Blood leaked from the wound a trail that stained her yellow top and dripped down. The wound was small but the long shaft made it hurt more and awkward.
She grimaced and ducked again as a laser shot past her ear. All she had left with a boulder. She would need to do the wrecking ball move again, but it would expose her. Then again, if she just waited it out, she’d get shot and killed. Retreat wasn’t an option either. They were both going to the same direction.
It was her only option. Tangle snarled, holding back her pain and fear as her tail coiled around the large rock, pried it from the earth, and she swung out. Metal, bone, rock collided in a heinous symphony of crashes. Fire and heat raced around her, laser scorched her flesh. And it was over.
Her tail laid limp in the heap. Tangle, a few yards away, sat in the grass. Smoke burned her nostrils, every breath made the wound her shoulder worse.
She glared at the long shaft sticking out. Taking aggressive, rapid breaths, she pinched it and snapped it in her hand. She screeched at the sharp slap of pain but it settled soon after.
The tip was still deep in her shoulder. She couldn’t move her right side very well. The gash in her head ached, her tail was raw with pain.
But she had to keep going.
So, in all her intellect, she stumbled up to the clearing she had made for her ‘date’ with Whisper. Her heart sank in her chest at the sight.
The badnik she had thrown had crash landed right in the center of her setup. The decor was burning and the food smashed to bits.
She was happy to find that the blankets were in one piece and so was the pound cake. She laughed with relief and cradled the cake close to her.
Hope bloomed in her wounded chest. She could fix this! It wouldn’t be perfect but after today it could all still work out—
KABOOM!
The badnik exploded in a ball of flames, knocking Tangle backwards and remembered nothing more.
It wasn’t until sunset when she awoke again. Sprawled in the burning grass. The flower and blankets incinerated, her lovely meadow nothing but a black crater with a few fires.
Her whole body felt like one big stab wound. Every limb in hot, stiffening pain, blood smeared along her upper chest, her eye was forced shut from the bleeding in her cut forehead.
The sunset would have been perfect if the day had gone right. The poundcake was miraculously in tact and Tangle was alive.
Those were all the things she needed to continue with her goal. She could still try!
But the truth was nestled in her burning chest. She just wanted to go home. She was spent. Her ears were ringing, her wounds needed care, there was still one foot of an arrow in her shoulder, and her head ached most likely from a concussion. Besides, a heart to heart and deep romantic feelings was the last thing Whisper would probably want to do after a busy day.
Tangle trudged home, a fourth of the pace than what she did trying to get out of the village in the first place. In the town, medical tents had been posted, lanterns lit as dusk darkened to night.
Waiting chairs were filled with patients, beds fully occupied, volunteers sprinting too and fro. Even Jewel was tending to those in need.
The brawler smiled contently at that. Jewel was safe and unharmed, that’s a relief!
Tangle gave herself a minute to think: she couldn’t step in to help, she could barely keep herself on her feet, she didn’t want to be one more person on the waiting list or cut in front of anyone. She knew Jewel would try to do that and she didn’t want that. The people needed help. She would handle herself.
So she turned and shuffled to her home. She didn’t even bother to close her door all the way before slumping onto the couch.
She didn’t even bother to turn on the TV. She set the pound cake on the table next to the remote and started dumbfounded at her own reflection, unable to process her ragged reflection.
That’s not even what hurt the most. What hurt was her heart. She had failed her one goal today. She had stressed Whisper for an entire month and lied to her for nothing! Even the cake’s frosting was smeared. She had no idea where she even was! She was horrible at this.
It was foolish of her to think it would go right. When has anything gone right? Even when it has, it’s been by sheer luck that her was able to fix her mistake or pull some wisdom or compliment out of her ADHD brain.
Her head echoed in pain and she rested her head back into the couch. If she could just close her eyes for a second…just a moment…just to forget it all for one minute….
—
Considering it being Valentine's Day, Whisper was not feeling the love.
She had planned to sleep in, spend time with the wisps, patrol the area, or maybe visit the museum. Even though she had no proportional expectations for the day, she certainly did not want Eggman’s little toys to pay a visit.
But she was ready nonetheless. But she was surprised to find Tangle at the front of her home. Her mind had done the practical thing of shutting a part of her out, even though it felt downright criminal. It was for her own safety.
She knew Tangle had a crush on someone. She could hear the pounding heart and could tell he was lying. But she did know if she wanted to hear the truth.
A part of her wanted to know so she could see what she lacked. Was the mystery girl sociable unlike her? Didn’t push people like she was notorious for? Did she know what to do unlike her? What to say instead of making Tangle feel neglected?
And a part of her didn’t want to know. She wanted to hold onto the dream that she could have that glowing smile, those beautiful amethyst eyes, and cozy embrace all to herself. It was a fool’s paradise.
That’s why she shut her out during the battle, if Whisper got distracted with that dream, it would get herself killed. The badniks weren’t her hardest challenge, she had removed the threat with noting back a bruised back after being swatted backwards into a wall.
She had found herself helping the medical unit move in. She pitched tents, organized the wait list, cataloged wounds, sorted wounded civilians from a level one attendance for the minor wounds and a quick checkup to the level three attendance mostly for those who had been shot with the lasers and arrows.
Tangle soon began to feed into her thought process as the hours went by. But every time she tried to pull away and look for her, a new task was thrusted into her arms.
By eleven in the morning there was a fire by the bank. At noon, cleaning out the flooding from the fountain, one to two in the afternoon was trying to tend to a little girl fox who had been shot in the hand with an arrow.
Three to four was Jewel’s mental crash out and nearly passing out from hyperventilating. And finally, there was peace at five.
Whisper double checked the rooms, no complaints. Requested orders from staff, no jobs. Checked supplies, no errands.
Despite her worry, she sighed with relief, pushing her mask to one side. Pink fluttered up next to her, twirling with eagerness to begin.
She couldn’t help but feel warmed at the enthusiasm. “Let’s go and—“
From over the counter, a tissue box flew over and smacked squarely into a medic’s head. Roars of displeasure mingled in the waiting space at the front of the tent. Angry Mobians packed together, fists tight, voices raised, and demands unwavering.
Whisper cringed back in fear and discomfort: too many people. Too much noise…
She wanted—needed—Tangle in that moment. The girl capable of soothing any anxious soul. She would be useful for a crowd, but selfish, she wanted the lemur to calm herself down from the ruckus.
But she was a soldier. She had a job to do…
Whisper became mandatory crowd control for the fight that had broken out in the waiting room. Pushed, yelled at, hit, items thrown at her—it made her breath quicken and a sticky revulsion swirl in her.
By seven-thirty, she was on the hunt for the perky lemur. After finding Jewel, she had learned that Tangle went north to hold off a small wave of badniks.
Fear had plagued her heart on her run in that direction. She should have come back, a voice echoed in her head. Something went wrong!
She had approached the scene of the battalion with her wispon armed and ready. Green was gone, searching the town for Tangle.
Whisper investigated the wreckage: trees, rocks, metal, a few robotic limps, but no Tangle. The wolf could smell her though. She had been there. When she found the splotches of blood in the grass and in the robots, her adrenaline flooded her body. She sent the rest of the wisp out, desperate to find her.
She’s hurt! Her mind was in a frenzy. Where is she?! Why hasn’t she come back?! She always comes back!
There were no clues to her presence. All she was able to find were charred pink paper hearts. Her wisps came back, downtrodden at their lack of intel. Dread made her empty stomach churn.
Every possibility of her disappearance stacked on top of each other in her mind. Many of which she did not have the sanity to construct.
She found herself back in Spiral Hill, more than ready to report to Jewel her disappearance and their need for a search team. Whisper had known of mobians kidnapped, by Eggman or not, there was a twenty four hour period, and every hour the passed after had a greater chance of the missing individual being deceased.
Luckily, for the wolf’s stability, she had come across Tangle’s door to her home partially open. Now, Whisper had manners. She was never usually one to break into a friend’s house without consent. Tangle had given her that consent.
Her house was the warmest, safest place for the sniper: rain, snow, hail, or gunfire.
Once inside, her body froze. There she was. Head back on the couch, the tuft of hair on her head burnt and knotted. Even though her knees felt locked, she forced herself forward to get a better look at the lemur.
A terrified yelp escaped her mouth at the sight.
Her beautiful face painted with soot, eye blinded with dried blood, her chest smeared in her own blood with the epicenter in her right shoulder, a chunk of an arrow in the wound, her knuckle pads were gone, her shoes ripped open, her feet scraped, and her tail—oh Chaos, her tail!— was decorated with wood and metal splinters and burnt fur.
Whisper didn’t even need to organize a plan before she went into action. She gathered all the washcloths in the house, soaking half in warm water. A bin of warm water on the table. Gauze, bandage wraps, and alcohol wipes she had snatched from the medical tent all laid out and ready.
She eased the fragile lemur across the couch, her neck in a better position than before. Whisper wanted to start with the arrow but waited. For all she knew, the tip had broken her collar bone or pierced a lung. She needed Tangle awake before she could do that.
So she started with the cut on her head and the blood that had blinded one of her eyes. Whisper cradled her face in one hand to steady and wiped away the dirt and dried red marks away with the washcloth. She was gentle and meticulous, being sure not to apply too much pressure to hurt but enough to clean.
Even then, Tangle grimaced in her sleep. Whisper’s chest tightened. I don’t want to hurt her. Please just be at rest.
The eye had been cleared and the gash covered. Whisper brushed her thumb along her cheek, studying her peaceful features. With the soot and grime gone, her peace was noticeable.
Her hand drifted to her neck at her pulse point, focusing on the steady low thump of life pulsing under her hand. She took her gloves off and felt again.
This was always a comfort to Whisper. On nights where she would break in after her nightmares with the old Diamond Cutters, she would peek into the bedroom, just for a moment, and see her safe. That’s all she needed in life. For Tangle, for Jewel, for Silver, for all of them to be safe.
She shook her head away from the view. She had work to do.
She had cut away her yellow top, taken off her shoes to let those remarkable primate features relax. Her shoes were tattered.
She pulled away from the couch, preparing to tend to the gray and white battered tail when Tangle stirred.
“Wh…Whisper?” Her voice was ragged and fatigued but it made her heart soar.
The sniper eased her back to the couch with a hand gently pressed on her shoulder.
“Stay.” She tried to keep her voice from trembling. “Don’t move.”
Tangle moaned softly and opened her eyes. The sight of Whisper’s shocking blue eyes wide open and vibrant with emotion made her heart stop in her chest. She kept her attention, which meant less pain for her.
Whisper kept her gaze. “Can you take a few deep breaths for me?”
Tangle obliged wordlessly, withering at the pain in her shoulder. Whisper scanned every move and every breath. Thankfully, she had already checked her pulse and marked it as normal. It was now pounding at their closeness and Tangle would be blushing were it not for the blood loss.
“I have to pull this out or it’ll get infected.” Whisper reported. “It’s gonna hurt, are you okay with that?”
How was she speaking so clearly? Tangle wondered. What about her made this wolf so confident?
She nodded her head. But what happened next, made Tangle less concerned about the arrow. Whisper had to brace herself to avoid wiggling the sharp point inside her flesh. One wrong move could pierce her long and potentially kill her.
Whisper sat in Tangle’s lap, legs on either side of her hips, face so close she could taste her hot breath on her lips. The wolf’s warmth washed everything else away.
“Ready?” The sniper breathed.
Tangle nodded, forgetting why she was on the couch in the first place. Was she blushing? Chaos, she probably was! Was Whisper blushing? No, that’s just exhaustion. Was Tangle the only one getting flustered here?! Why was it so hot?!
Then came the pain. The direct, metal point moved in her flesh and yelled. Her fur was drenched in blood and sweat, her muscle and tissue raw and inflamed. Her legs squirmed underneath the wolf.
Whisper was quick, thankfully. She pulled it out without hesitation, muttering repeated apologies for every grunt and growl from the girl below her.
“Stitches next?” The lemur panted.
Whisper nodded solemnly, the kit was on the table. Tangle turned her head so she wouldn’t have to watch the needle stab into her flesh. The sniper was an expert with a needle and medical thread. But that didn’t stop the lemur from hissing in pain.
“How’d you end up like this?” Whisper muttered, more to herself.
“Lucky shot from a group of badniks.” She answered despite the pain. She tried to focus on the wolf, her soft fur, her gentle hold.
I’m only sweating right now because I didn’t turn on my AC. Certainly not because of Whisper and her body- warmth! Body warmth! Not that! Just no AC!
“Figured that.” She took her free hand and taped the gauze on her head. “This?”
“Tripped and hit my head on the fountain.” She admitted.
“Sounds like you.” She snorted.
“Yeah,” she tried to smile, her head still turned away “silly ol’ me.”
Whisper paused her work and looked at the brawler, her eyes distance and the shadow of a frown on her lips.
“What’s wrong?”
Tangle turned to stare at her, weighing something in her mind that the wolf couldn’t detect what. After a minute, she sagged. “I failed.”
“Failed?”
Tangle blushed even deeper. “I had the day planned for Valentine’s Day. Something special…or I hoped.”
That dread from an hour before came back but with a different flavor. Whisper returned to her work so she could have something to distract herself from the truth. So she could hide her heartbreak.
“For who?”
“You.”
Whisper’s eyes snapped open, wide and wild, at Tangle. Her hands froze on the stitches.
The redness on her features deepened. “For the past month I’ve been planning the day in the hopes of…telling you something. I ran through everything: places, activities, away from people, what kind of food to bring, what you’d like—everything. But at the same time I didn’t want to pressure you into anything you didn’t want to do by going too far.”
She picked at a thread on the faded blue couch. “Finally, I felt that I had figured it all out. Then… me being me, I got the entire setup blown up. Literally.”
“Tangle…”
She shifted her weight. “That’s the only thing I could save.”
Whisper turned to the table, the black container with the see through lid. Straining her neck, she saw the peaks of a poundcake with red strawberries on top. Her heart melted in her chest.
Her ears drooped as she turned to Tangle, who refused to look at her. “This-This isn’t how I wanted it all to go.” Her voice cracked. “I should have been more prepared or found a safer spot or—a geez I’m—“
She pinched the needle with one hand, grasped Tangle under her chin and kissed her. The lemur froze for a moment before reciprocating. Whisper could taste ash on her tongue but she didn’t care. She felt two firm hands pull her close at the small of her back, their chests pressed together.
Whisper’s brain had turned off from the blinding white bliss as her hand slipped from its first hold and— “YOW!”
Her movements jerked and sputtered as she tried to grab the needle again, the threads pulling on the half stitch wound. Tangle slapped the couch, kicked, and yelled as Whisper frantically tried to get the needle again and stop the pain.
“M’sorry!” She said hurriedly “M’sorry! Oh…!”
“It’s okay,” Tangle asked for air, her head tilted all the way back. “Let’s…settle that when I’m not bleeding out?”
A relieved laugh escaped her lungs. “Agreed.”
Her work with swift. The stitch tied and done, the wound patched, and a few pain killers working through her lemur’s system finally put Whisper at ease as they began to talk again.
“I don’t need all of that, Y’know?”
“Eh?”
“The set up. The decor. All the good stuff.” She elaborated. “All I would need is you.”
Tangle stared at her, brow raised and a smile pulling at the side of her mouth. “So you…feel the same way?”
Whisper tried for a joke. “The kiss didn’t answer enough?”
“Nope.” she shook her head. “Maybe you should kiss me again. It might make the message a little clearer.”
Whisper burst out laughing, toppling into her. Tangle laughed along with her, savoring that majestic sound. The wolf obliged, the kiss easier to execute now that her girlfriend wasn’t bleeding out or screaming in pain.
“Hey,” she whispered “the day’s not up yet. Wanna watch a movie? It’ll be a way for you to rest.”
Tangle pouted “I wanted to ask you on a date.”
“You got me that cake, set up a perfect first date away from people, and managed to stay alive for me.” She grasped her hand and squeezed. “That’s more than enough.”
“Alright.” she hummed.
Whispers smiled in triumph, stretching to reach the remote. The movie played quietly, a comedy that earned some laughs but wasn’t taxing on their already exhausted minds.
The two drifted off. They slept together through their movie, through the medical tents being pulled down, through their pain, through the cold, through the night, and together even when Jewel quietly turned out the lights in the house, cleaned up the used and bloody equipment, and closed the door, leaving the lovers at peace.