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Shattered

Chapter XXV

Krystal sat in tears, hovering over the unmoving form of her lover and life. He had died to save her, because she was not quick enough. The vixen felt a deep self-loathing begin to quicken inside her furred breast. She had come here only to end up getting him killed. To compound on her suffering, he had retrieved his memories and had talked to her. It was a bittersweet end, more along the lines sour then bitter, the corrosive irony was not lost on her.

Krystal cradled his head, all too reminiscent of herself in that underwater base on Aquas. Yet something was fundamentally different here, a concealed thought nagged the vixen. There was a thing here she was not grasping. But what was it? And then it hit her like a runaway freight train. If Alex was truly dead, she would be back in the real world, instead she was still in his mindscape. That could only mean one thing...HE WAS STILL ALIVE!

She grabbed his head and shook him thunderously, and screamed into his ear. The response was somewhat unexpected...and comical. She felt a hand throw her bodily away and a loud voice cry out, "JEEZUS!" He painfully sat up and looked to her angrily. "God woman, I didn't think your voice could be louder than a banshee's." He muttered with an amused tone. "Seriously, some asshole throws me across the room and I can't even take a nap." He scolded.

"B-but...I...uh...it...slam...you...dead." Krystal stuttered, incoherently wringing her paws in embarrassment. She was happy he was alive, but had not expected this.

"Did you even check?" He wondered aloud.

"...no."

"............"

"What?"

"Really?"

"It threw you into a wall!" She retorted sullenly, suddenly getting an urge to send him back to the grave.

"And....this is all in my head, how exactly would that kill me?" He asked her with a grin that made her want to smack him upside the head, so that's exactly what she did. "OW! What the hell was that for?" He demanded, massaging his wounded head.

"For being an ass!" She growled, but it was more playful then genuine anger. She was just too happy to see him not dead that's she couldn't find the energy to stay mad.

"Well I'm a living ass!" He teased, sticking out a tongue rudely.

"Oh yeah?" She said quietly, building up to something. "Well not for long!" She yipped, tackling him to the ground and seizing his lips with her own as she sat in his lap, tail swinging hazardously with glee.

"Mmmrph!" He mumbled through sealed lips in surprise. She did not release him until she was satisfied, many long minutes later. "That was supposed to kill me?" He asked mockingly.

"No, but I could use it to suffocate you!" She warned dangerously, making to leap at him again.

"Okay! Okay! Okay! Point taken." He said quickly to the fiery vixen sitting on him. They sat there in companionable silence, until Alex said the next obvious question. "So...I don't suppose you know how to get us back?"

The vixen's grin slid of her face. "Well... It has kinda been awhile." She replied sheepishly. Needless to say, Alex was not amused.

"....................."

"What?" Krystal demanded blushing profusely, ears splayed back. "It has been a long time okay, just give me a minute!" She snapped.

"Fine, fine." Alex placated. "(Must be that time of the month.)" He uttered under his breath sullenly.

"What was that dear?" she asked, way too sweetly, turning to him with burning emerald eyes and showcasing her sharp....sharp, needle teeth. (Did I mention they were sharp)?

"Nothing, absolutely nothing." He squeaked, doing his best to inconspicuously distance himself from the vixen in his lap, all he accomplished was making her lean into him heavily.

"Are you sure?" She asked in a singsongy and pleasant voice that also dripped with...menace. She snuggled up to him and looked up into his eyes.

"One hundred percent! Yep, nothing said here! Did I mention that I love you?" Alex asked, cringing ever so slightly, waiting for a demise of his own design to crash down upon him.

But it seemed it would be postponed. "I remember how to get out!" Krystal shouted suddenly, causing Alex to try to get away from her, dragging his wounded body across the floor, at least until he comprehended her words.

"Oh you did?" Alex chuckled suspiciously from his place on the floor several feet away from her. "Heh, heh, that's what I thought you said...yeah." He finished lamely.

She just smiled at him and helped him back up to a sitting position. She then delicately and affectionately wrapped her warm padded paws on his head. The velvety texture felt fantastic on his bruised brow. "Now, do as I instruct." He nodded in understanding, back to the serious business, jokes postponed until he could return to normalcy. "Breath slowly, in and out, calm your heart. Focus on the sound of my voice." Her tone become hypnotic, drawing his full attention and making him drowsy. Remember where we are, now imagine that you are awake, and back in the hospital. You room is bright and crowded. All your friends are there, Fox, Falco, Peppy, Slippy, Fara, Miyu, Fay, Lupa, and Penelope. They are all waiting for you, all you have to do, is wake up."

---

Alex jolted awake....or at least he would have if there weren't four people holding him down. He swiveled his head back and forth to identify his surroundings and who in the hell was holding him. "Fox, Falco, Doctors......why are you touching me?" He asked smoothly. Krystal had opened her eyes and removed her paws from his head, going to the side to watch their interaction closely.

"Because you were flailing like a lun-!" Falco exclaimed, and then before he could continue his rant he froze mid-squawk. "Wait a minute; did you just call us out by name?"

"Yep." Alex replied with a winning smile.

"So.....you are yourself again?" Fox asked slowly, hoping to hear the confirmation they all wanted to hear.

"So it would seem Fox." Alex chuckled lightly in a warm familiar tone; the one everyone had head a dozen times before his recent condition.

The orange furred vulpine stared at his friend quietly for a moment until he lifted him up in a bear-like hug, his legs the only part of him still connected to the bed. "Damn! Glad to have you back man!"

"Spine...chest...pain." He grunted, Fox unknowingly hurting the newly returned human.

When he registered what was being forced out of air deprived lungs, Fox let go and backed up rubbing the back of his furred head. "Whoops, sorry man, I forgot."

"No...Problem...it's....okay." Alex gasped out, clutching his chest closely. "I didn't want to breathe anyways." He muttered under his breath, forgetting that everyone in the room had much better hearing then, a wave of snickering made him raise his head with mock anger. "Really? First thing I come back to is a half-assed strangulation and mocking laughter, I should have stayed amnesiac." He muttered sullenly, and moved to get off the bed, but only succeeding in falling off the bed. He sat up as the others watched in worry and looked to his missing arm. "Huh...forgot about that." He mumbled softly. He then got really quiet, sitting there on the floor staring at his missing limb. They all stood there, not knowing how to console him.

It was Fara and Fay who swooped in to save the day. Both girls crouched down next to him and began to talk, soothing his stressed psyche with words of affection. This was something that a guy could not help fix, so Fox and the others left the room to talk to Penelope and Luopa, filling them in on the news, and intending to talk to the human when he was better. Krystal stayed on the side lines with Miyu, there they conversed.

"How bad was it?" Miyu inquired, playing with her tail idly and watching Alex with her predatory feline eyes. The golden orbs were more concerned than anything else.

"It was....bad." Krystal replied with a sigh and shudder. The things she saw would haunt her for a long time to come, but it was worth it to get Alex back to normal. If she had to she would do it again with absolutely no hesitation. This man who was currently sitting on the floor of the hospital was her life as much as she was his. "But I would still do it all again."

Miyu nodded several times, "I know you would, the human has grown on us quite a bit huh?"

"I think more than just a bit." Krystal watched him as he was smiling and laughing with the girls now, Alex was a strong man, pushing through so much suffering and brushing it off like leaves in the wind. "Much more."

Alex chuckled heartily at what Fay and Fara were telling him. "Poor Falco, I'll be sure to tease him extra hard when I get the chance." Both woman laughed at his oath and gave him another hug. He felt the warm fuzzy bodies as they covered him; it reminded him of that time that seemed like forever ago, back in his room when a similar event had occurred. These women were always there to bail his poor ass out. Time and time again they put his broken-self back together again, Alex hadn't the faintest idea where he would be now without them and the thought filled him with dread "You girls are the best!" he exclaimed, squeezing them tightly and making sure they knew how much he appreciated their support.

They both flushed in embarrassment, unused to the flattery. "We haven't done that much." Fay mumbled bashfully. "We've hardly done anything in fact. It was Krystal who did all the work saving your life. All we managed to do was help after the hard part was over."

"And I haven't even been around as long as she has, I haven't done anything." Fara added looking ashamed of herself for some reason.

There downplaying of their own roles infuriated Alex beyond belief. How could they not see that everyone and everything they did was important? "Never say that, not as long as I live do I want to hear you consider yourselves useless." He scolded, not with an angry tone, but with a meaningful one. "Every task no matter how small is important. What you two did, comforting me, is something I will always be thankful for." He put his remaining hand on Fara's shoulder. "It doesn't matter how long you have been around, what matters is what you do with the time you had. And what you have accomplished in that time is extraordinary! You helped Fox and the others fight in the skies above Venom itself, and after that you participated in the raid to free yours truly. I don't think that is nothing."

Fara stared at Alex and kissed him on the cheek. His words warmed her heart and soul equally. He was such a kind man. His words always seemed to brighten her mood and make her see what was important. If he had died the universe would have become a much darker place. Thankfully that did not happen and now they could all be happy, (right after they find that bastard ape and free him of the luxury of breathing). "Thank you, look at me, being comforted by the man I was comforting." She chuckled mirthfully, the vibrations resonating in his chest from their close contact.

He laughed along with her and kissed her russet red snout, surprising her and making her presumably go red under her fur. "There's nothing wrong with that, we help each other, that's how life works, without cooperation and love, life becomes meaningless."

She looked down hiding her face and nuzzling into his chest at the same time. All she wanted at the moment was to snuggle up to him. She could hear his heart beating at a regular pace and inside his warm chest, the pleasant noise and warmth lulling her off to sleep. Soon she was snoring quietly causing Alex to grin happily. It was good to see that one of them had been sorted out. He turned to regard Fay. The Border collie was looking everywhere but at him. "Fay..." He called gently making her look at him. "Do I have to give you the same speech?" he asked with a wry smile.

She shook her head in denial and brushed her fur with her paws nervously. "No."

"What's wrong?" He asked, something was bothering her and he aimed to find out.

"I thought that you weren't going to come back this time." she sniffled and wiper her eyes. The collie was pretty shook up it seemed, and he had just the thing to fix that. Alex used his hand to gently scratch the canine behind her floppy left ear. And wouldn't you know, she stopped whining and began to nuzzle into his hand. One of her legs was kicking reflexively as she closed her eyes and calmed her breathing; soon she joined Fara in the realm of unconsciousness.

After that he looked to Miyu and Krystal, Giving them both his most persuasive smile. Miyu caved in first. "Why the hell not?" She shrugged and moved to join them, leaning on Alex's side and shimmying close to lay her head on his shoulder. Krystal stared into his eyes as he looked at her smiling broadly, she smiled back and laid on his opposite side, the one with the missing arm, and wrapped her fuzzy mitts around everyone.

The group lay together on the floor by his bed and had the most restful and content slumber that any one of them could remember.