[04] City Sector

[Belle Hibiki]

His hands were cold.

Belle opened his eyes groggily. His vision swam, and he closed them again. He counted to three, then, very slowly, peeked his lids up.

The lighting in the bunker was dim, just as he remembered it, though everything seemed to have a fuzzy outline now, as if slightly out of focus. His sight blurred, cleared, then blurred again, pulsing before finally finding purchase on the shape above him. Soft and indistinct, it shifted, then stepped out of the shadows.

Belle sucked in a breath. It was her.

"Hello, Belle," Sage said.

Suddenly it all came rushing back. The bunker, the ice statue, the bed... And Sage within it. Her clothes were the same, ripped in places, though her eyes held a quiet determination behind them that he hadn't ever noticed before.

He felt his mouth go dry. The last time he had seen her, she had been trying to ram an ice pick through his chest. "Hey, uh," he said, trying to sound casual, "what's up?"

Sage's fingers twitched and a long, wicked shard of ice formed in her hand.

"Oh. That bad, huh?" Belle broke out in a sweat and shifted his body, making to scoot back before he realized that his hands had been secured over his head and somehow bolted to the floor. A casual glance showed twin rings of ice wrapped around his wrists. Oh crap. "Look, before you kill me, you should know that Menstu Ration is probably following me right now; it's dangerous to stay here. He's probably attracted to your scent."

Sage stepped forward. "Or not!" Belle said. "I mean, I could be wrong! It's been known to happen. AHAHA. My dad is always saying, 'BELLE, ONE OF THESE DAYS YOU'RE GOING TO CATCH YOUR DEATH RUBBING YOUR ASS WITH POISON IVY,' but I never learn. Leaves of three, let it be! Ahaha! ... Oh God, what are you doing?!"

The woman paused just beyond the reach of his legs. "What were you doing in my bed? Trying to rub my... my... a-ass?"

She was trying to sound tough, but she was coming off more like a squeaky-voiced schoolgirl than an infuriated badass. It would have almost been funny if the tip of her ice spike wasn't lined up with his crotch. "What? No!" Belle jerked his legs up to protect himself. His ankles, at least, had been left free. "Why in the Hell would I want to touch your butt?! Don't be gross!"

"Then why were you there?!" she demanded.

"I told you, Menstu Ration and his shapeshifters were following me! I only just barely managed to get away. I wasn't even paying attention when I got here! And you were all under the sheets! And you're Hella small! I didn't see you!"

She slightly lifted the spike. "Not that that's a bad thing!" he blurted, "I know some great fighters that are small! I mean, you almost got me that last time, right?! Ahaha!"

"You still should've checked," she said accusingly, but the tension in her shoulders visibly eased. "I'm ... About last time ... I'm sorry."

Belle stared blankly at her. "Huh?"

"I thought you were... I was seeing... Someone else."

"Sol Badguy, right?"

She seemed surprised. "No, no! Just Sol. I ... Anyway," she waved her free hand. The cystalline restraints cracked and broke apart. "I know this is a competition, but you didn't deserve that..."

Belle rolled back and sprung onto his feet. Aside from his arms feeling numb, he seemed to be okay. No; better than okay. He ran his hand over his bandaged chest. "The wound is gone," he said.

Sage smiled wordlessly.

"Why?" he demanded. "I mean, you tied me up and shit, so you must've thought I could have been dangerous. Why did you heal me?"

"You needed help." She shrugged. "And I didn't know for sure what you were doing."

"What did you think I was doing, anyway?" he asked.

She blinked and then stared at him. "Y-you, well, I thought maybe you were trying to..." she trailed off, her cheeks going slightly red. "Force me," she finally mumbled.

"Force you to what?" Belle asked, curious. He honestly had no idea what the heck she was talking about. What exactly would he force her to do? "We're not in a fight. I'm not going to punch you or anything, especially not a girl, and TOTALLY not when she's asleep. You think I'm some sort of coward or something?"

"No, that's not what I meant!" Sage said, looking more than a little confused and slightly irritated. She continued to stare at him, and then a sudden look of realization dawned on her features. Her eyes widened. "Uhm, Belle?"

"What?" he demanded, rubbing feeling back into his hands.

She seemed to consider what she was going to say next very carefully. "Do you," she started, then stopped. "Do you know where babies come from?"

It was his turn to stare. Of course he knew. "Everyone knows that," he said.

"Oh," Sage said. She sighed. "Of course."

"The stork! Duh!"

Sage seemed to lose her balance and staggered back, reaching out to grab the nearest bed for support. She stared at him, mouth working silently as he blew into his hands. She recovered quickly. "The... The stork?" she asked, sounding slightly hoarse.

"Of course, the stork," Belle grunted. "Where else would babies come from?"

Sage shook, then suddenly laughed out loud. It was the first real, honest laugh he'd ever heard out of her, and the difference it made was incredible. "Wh... What's funny?!" Belle demanded.

"N-n-nothing," Sage hiccuped, holding her side with one hand as she doubled over, still giggling like crazy. "It's just that before I was thinking - no, nothing!"

"... Fucking crazy women," Belle grumbled, turning around. He couldn't put his finger on it, but he got the distinct feeling that he was being made fun of somehow. "Man, I really hope Menstu Ration gets you," he growled, stalking for the door. "I'm outta here." He paused at the doorway. "Thanks for the heal."

"H-huh? W-wait, Belle! I didn't mean - " Sage started to say, but he was already gone. She bit her lip.

Belle Hibiki moves from City Sector to Forest Sector.

Belle Hibiki enters the Forest Sector bunker.