When did this all begin?
How long have we been bound together by the threads of fate?

I'm not sure it's possible to ever know that now,
With what the future holds, looming over the horizon...

But, I know for certain, before it all changed,
We loved so many, yet hated so much,
We hurt others and were hurt ourselves...

And yet, we ran forward, not looking back,
While our laughter and tears carried us,
Under the gently falling snow...

        	Frost slowly began to coalesce around the edges of the window as faint silvery moonlight shone into one of the small bedrooms of what was a fifteen story apartment complex. The room itself in question was rather minimalist in design, with bare white walls that stood in sharp contrasts to the soft looking dark blue carpet that covered the floor. The furniture in the room seemed to consist of nothing more than what looked to be a rather antique looking Victorian styled desk at the far end of the room, a large plush bed across from it right beneath the window, and a nightstand right next to the bed that stood out from the rest, if only for the fact that it was cluttered with a number of things. There was of course a closet across from the bed with its door ajar; a pile of what could presumably be dirty clothes threatening to spill out onto the sterile floor if given the chance.
 
        	Suddenly, the occupant of the bed, -a young male skunk-, awoke with a terrified start. With one aggressive motion, he threw the heavy covers and blankets that he had just been snuggled under onto the floor and began to violently wheeze and sob uncontrollably. His breathing began to grow even more harsh and ragged as he sat up straight in an effort to alleviate the pain. He waited for a moment, holding onto his chest, almost as if he was trying to will it calm. When his breathing didn’t get any better, he reached over to his nightstand in a panic and began to knock things off until he found what he was looking for, a small silver case that held his med-sticks. Trembling against the painful sobbing that was preventing him from breathing, he managed to open the case and quickly withdrew one of the long white metal sticks. With the quick press of a button, the end of the device began to glow blue as he brought the other end to his lips and inhaled deeply,  feeling as the fine mist of vaporized medicine and water coursed through his body.
 
        	The effect it had was practically instantaneous. His body calmed and within seconds the pain faded away as his breathing returned to normal. For the next few minutes, the young teenaged skunk did nothing but sit up in his bed, slowly pulling deep breaths from the med-stick, exhaling out what remained of the vapor into the air shortly after each pull. Almost absentmindedly, he brought his right hand to his tear stained face to rub his eyes and recoiled slightly at the sensation of the cold metal against his face. It happened without fail every time he had one of his night terrors. With a forlorn sniffle he stuck his right arm into the shaft of moonlight from his window and took a moment to see how the light reflected off of his cybernetic arm.
 
Nathaniel Ingram held the med-stick firmly between his lips as he began to almost reluctantly admire the prosthetic limb in the pale moonlight, casually turning it over every now and again as he occasionally moved the fingers of his hand in random patterns. It was pretty uncommon for anyone who lost a limb to keep the cybernetic prosthesis, but he had been one of the few individuals who had been born missing the gene that would allow him to regrow his arm. It had been five years since he had lost his arm in the accident. As a child he had been devastated by the loss of his arm especially upon learning it wouldn’t come back. Though as he had grown into his teenager years, the regular care and maintenance had practically become routine, except for those times he forgot it was even metal.
 
        	A soft beeping noise emanated from the med-stick as the blue light at the end began to blink, indicating it was finally empty. Carefully, Nathaniel opened the silver case and placed the empty med-stick back with the others, after closing the case as carefully as he had opened it, and set it back onto the now empty nightstand. With a deep breath, the skunk gingerly moved to lay back down, pulling all the covers and blankets back on top of him as he attempted to go back to sleep.  It was a futile effort of course, he knew that he wasn’t going to be able to go back to sleep after an asthma attack like that, but he was still going to try.
 
Two minutes was all it had taken before he suddenly threw off his covers in frustration and quickly reached for the pile of random items he had knocked to the floor. Within seconds he had found what he was looking for. It was a small, flat, rectangular shaped, black device that had a small round silver earpiece attachment.  It was his very own fully customized Personal Electronic Taskmaster or P.E.T. for short. It had been a gift his father had made for him on his last birthday, modified in such a way so that he could overlay an Augmented Reality simulation over his eyes if he wanted. Carefully, he hooked the earpiece into his ear and pressed the power button. Shortly after, a small thin holographic screen full of information came to life before his very eyes. Of course almost immediately after his chat client was booted up, the P.E.T. gave a soft distinctive ring as he received a message.
 
[HorizontalMonster: Hello Nathan!~ Somehow I knew I would find you awake at this hour. Did you have another one of your night terrors?]
 
        	It didn’t surprise Nathaniel to find out his twin brother was awake at this time of night as well messaging him the moment he logged on. It could’ve possibly been that they shared one of those telepathic bonds twins were rumored to have, but it was far more likely that Alexander was up late for something far naughtier than chatting with friends.
 
[CyberPunkSkunk: Yeah…it woke me up with an asthma attack and now I can’t sleep. But the real question is why are you up? It better not be because you’re at another OC party again.
 
HorizontalMonster: No no no, I’ve just been doing some history work, I got to meet someone super amazing and cute and you will never be able to guess who it was.^^
 
CyberPunkSkunk: Well, I have to assume you met an alien or a monster or something. I mean since you live in Locksmouth and everything that happened there a few weeks ago is still all over the news.
 
HorizontalMonster: Hehe, you’re close actually. I got to meet a pre-splice person, in person! He was on my Dodge Volley team in gym and I caught him spying on me in the shower later^^ He’s really cute too.
 
CyberPunkSkunk: Oh really huh? I guess that means, you’re not doing history work as much as you are doing your best to research pre-splice information because you’ve developed a crush on him huh?
 
HorizontalMonster: What?! No! I mean he is cute and all sorts of fascinating and if he asked me, I certainly wouldn’t turn him down from a bit of OC fun, but this is legitimate work! But that’s not the point of why I messaged you anyway... I wanted to let you know that I’ll be coming over there to spend a couple of months with you and Dad. Mom said it was okay and I already asked Dad, and he was more than happy to let me.]
 
        	Nathaniel smirked and shook his head a little as he saw his brother’s response fill the screen in a hurry. Even if he didn’t want to admit it Alexander was exactly the type of person who got crushes often. Which thankfully Nathaniel supposed was where he was different. Still while he wasn’t fooled by his brother’s poor attempt at changing the subject, he was still far more interested in the prospect of him visiting.
 
[CyberPunkSkunk: I think that’s great! It’s been a long time since I got to see you Alex. Is something going on or do you just miss me as much as I miss you? Also when do you expect to get here?
 
HorizontalMonster: I’ll be there in a few days actually.^^ Just got to make sure I have everything packed and ready. As for something going on...Mom has found a new boyfriend and I’d rather not be around to see her act like a dork, but I mostly want to spend time with you. I mean, it’s been about 4 years since we last saw each other right?

CyberPunkSkunk: Yeah. Not since Mom and Dad separated...But It’s awesome that you are coming back to Snowden.  There is so much I wanna show you  here in town since you’ve been gone. There is this new coffee shop that just opened up a week ago that is supposed to be out of this world...but wait, I just realized...what about school? You can’t just leave in the middle of the was that Nathaniel didn’t have any friends beside his brother, let alone a pack of them. Though, that wasn’t exactly true either, as there was one other person he was friends with. Thinking quickly, he replied back to Alexander, trying his best to seem his usual self.

[CyberPunkSkunk: Well...I suppose you can meet my friends. Though they will probably be busy but I know Mercedes will love to meet you. She’s really nice and sweet so I know you two will get along great for sure.

HorizontalMonster: Oooo, does that mean you have a girlfriend? I can’t wait to tell her all sorts of embarrassing stories about you when we were little. How long have you two been dating? Is it serious? Come on, spill the beans! Or else I’m just gonna have to make stuff up!

CyberPunkSkunk: Whoa, slow down. It’s not like that. At least I don’t think it is. I mean we’ve OC’d once or twice after school hours, but I don’t think she’s really into me beyond that. She’s just a really good friend, well, my best friend actually. Besides yourself that is.

HorizontalMonster:  That’s adorable. You actually have a crush on someone. Well, I was just playing, I’m not really gonna embarrass you or anything. Though I can’t wait to meet her.]

	Nathaniel blushed furiously at the prospect of having a crush on Mercedes. Though there really was no point in trying to argue with Alex about it, since it was true. Never the less, it wasn’t something he was ready to admit yet. A quick glance at the time stamp on the screen told him however that it was getting to be about time to wrap things up.

[CyberPunkSkunk: I just can’t wait for you to get here. There is going to be so much we’ll be able to do. In fact, I’ll tell Mercedes about it tomorrow since we’ve made plans to hang out after school. However, it’s semester.

HorizontalMonster: I got that covered too! I’m doing a temporary transfer over to SHS by filing a family emergency with the staff. I got Mom to sign it and everything! So all I’ve got to do is sign up for the classes I’m already taking over there and then you and I can catch up on all the stuff we missed out on. Brilliant huh?

CyberPunkSkunk: Devious is more likely. Then again, you always seem to know how to find all the little loops and holes in any given situation. But I think we can both agree that you spending some much needed time with your brother is forgivable huh? ;)

HorizontalMonster: Hehe! Yep! It’s not like it’s a lie or anything anyway. Especially after all that’s happened here in Locksmouth. I think anyone would understand that I need to spend some time with my brother and his pack!]

	Nathaniel felt a sudden lump rise in his throat as he read his twin’s latest reply. It had been something he had been meaning to mention for the longest time, but the truth of the matter time I tried to go back to sleep. I feel better now that I got to talk to you.

After saying his farewell to his brother, Nathaniel turned the chat client off and set his P.E.T. back on the nightstand. With a deep breath he closed his eyes and waited for the opportunity for sleep to come and take him once more.

~=====~

	“Hey Dad! Are you here? I’m heading to school now! I’m gonna hang out with Mercedes after school too if it’s okay!” Nathaniel called out as he made his way quickly out of the apartment. If his father had a problem with it he was unable to voice his concern as the door suddenly slammed shut in a hurry. With a smirk, the young teenager made his way down the rather decorative hallway and towards the elevator. As soon as he was inside the elevator he quickly smashed on the button to close the door and start the machines descent. While the elevator made its way to the ground floor, he took a moment admire his reflection in the polished metal walls. 
	
	Nathaniel was dressed in what he considered to be his signature style. A pair of heavy black jeans, a nice cream colored long sleeve shirt, and a heavy looking black jacket made from synthetic leather that appeared to be lined with metal studs. Tied around his neck was fashionable blue bandana that appeared to have all sorts of strange white runes stitched into it. His short black hair was smoothly slicked back just enough so that the ends curled up at the back of his neck. With a satisfied smirk, he nodded and turned his attention back to the door, just as the elevator reached its destination. He was out of the elevator in a flash the moment it opened up, quickly pushing past a few tenants that were headed into the elevator as he rushed his through the lobby and outside.

	Almost instantly Nathaniel was greeted by the cold, crisp, fresh morning mountain breeze as he made his way onto the midway. With a quick glance around to make sure no one was paying him any particular attention he turned and headed towards the nearest mass transit monorail station. Snowden High School was of course in the exact opposite direction, but that had never been his destination to start with. The soft blanket of crisp white snow crunched slightly beneath his boots as he walked casually, occasionally passing by students who were heading towards the school. They, of course, pretended to not see him as he passed by. Instead they all moved by a little faster as they drew closer, slowing down only once they were a good distance away from him. It didn’t matter to him if they were uncomfortable around him, it wasn’t like they were actually going to see him at school anyway.

	It didn’t take long for Nathaniel to reach the Monorail Station since it was only a few block from where he lived. Eagerly, he jogged his way up the platform where the morning trans was waiting and reached into his jacket to withdraw his passcard. With a quick swipe of his card at the terminal, the double doors of the monorail opened up, allowing him to quickly make his way into the nearest available train car. There weren’t very many people his age who took this trans this early since it was heading towards the commercial section of the city. Instead it contained adults who were likely heading to work at the various tourist minded locations. It didn’t take long for the skunk to find an empty seat at the end of the rail car away from the rest of the passengers. 

 	It wasn’t long before a soft chime sounded from the intercom system, indicating that the trans was beginning to leave the station. With a confident smirk Nathaniel reached into the inside pocket of his jacket and withdrew his sunglasses, taking a moment to put them on before he withdrew his P.E.T. and turned it on. A few seconds later the inside of his shades filled with information, detailing various things such as high scores of various games he played, the last music tracks he had listened to, and the messages he received in his inbox. With a few clicks he could see that there appeared to be a new message from Mercedes. Blushing a little bit, he quickly proceeded to open and read the message. 

Good Morning Shakespeare, It’s time to wake up sleepy head.^^ 
I hope you were able to sleep well, because I know you sometimes have a hard time sleeping because of your Night Terrors. If you had some last night we can talk about them later when we are hanging out, however, I needed to let you know I’m gonna be just the tiniest bit late. You see, I still have some volunteer work I need to finish at the Hotel and after that I have to run some errands for the Dome Council, but I promise we will get to spend some time together. Though...you could just come to school and hang out with me there...but you are likely already on the trans reading this message with that same goofy smirk you have when you think no one is paying attention.

Love and Kisses, Mercedes

 	Nathaniel shook his head and sighed after reading the message. Of course she was going to be busy after school. He practically expected her to always be late since she was so busy helping everyone everywhere in Snowden. It was why everyone liked her, including himself. She was just so nice, no one could dislike her. The only real problem that he and she butted heads over all the time was his lack of desire to be at school and around their fellow students. It really wasn’t that he disliked school, but rather how much he hated how the other students behaved around him. He had developed quite the reputation for being a bully with a mean streak over the years and the way everyone treated him was unbearable. 

After the accident where he lost his arm it had been nothing but nonstop irritating pity. As soon as his classmates learned about his condition and his cybernetic arm. They never left him alone and were always constantly checking up on him and never giving him a moments peace. The constant treatment as if he was some sort of helpless creature had been insufferable, but as they grew older it had mutated into a shy fear of him. He had found himself unable to tolerate their behavior anymore and actively began to push his peers away, figuratively and literally. Instead of treating him like a wounded member of a pack, he would get them to leave him alone, even if he had to make them. Once High School had officially started, he had pretty much cemented his status as the school bully everyone was afraid to even interact with, unless they wanted to risk getting hurt by the freak with the cybernetic arm.

	It had worked for a short while, but it had gone past the point of repairing. No one wanted him to be a part of their pack and everyone was afraid he might snap and hurt their friends. Eventually, unless they were forced to interact with him, everyone avoided the scary looking skunk with no friends. So he did the only thing that was best for everyone, he simply stopped going to school. For the last year and a half, Nathaniel had been skipping school, only barely managing to pass to the next year because he sent and received his class work via his P.E.T.. Of course nowadays he spent most of the time he should’ve been in school exploring the various abandoned areas of the city. It was slightly dangerous and highly discouraged, but that was how he had met Mercedes, his only friend besides his brother.

	Suddenly a soft chime came over the intercom as the trans slowly came to a halt, arriving at his commercial sector trans station. With a deep breath Nathaniel stood up, put his P.E.T. away and waited for the double doors to open up so he could get out. Almost instantly a frown formed his face as the doors opened up to reveal the one person he hated seeing the most, Officer Desmond McAdams. He was a snow leopard with a thick Irish accent and a bright shining personality that made him a respectable figure in Snowden. Nathaniel had seen him providing assistance to various tourists who lost missing items or were unsure where to go. He was one of the more valued members of the community everyone knew and loved. Which only made Nathaniel dislike the pompous fool even more, especially when he tried to claim that he was only trying to help the rebellious teenager by making it his personal mission in life to make sure Nathaniel was in school. In all aspects, Officer McAdams was his warden, his tormentor, and his nemesis all in one. 

	“Ahh, there you are Nathaniel. I’m glad to have caught you on the way to school. I was afraid you were gonna have me chasing you all over the city like you prefer to do. It’s rather refreshing to see you go where you are supposed to.” he said with thick jovial irish accent, winking at the skunk as though they were lifelong friends in a constant game of cat and mouse.

	“Good Morning Officer McAdams. I don’t suppose there is any way I will be able to make it past you this time huh?” he Nathaniel asked, sighing and rolling his eyes a bit as he crossed his arms defiantly.

	“I’m afraid not boyo. I came prepared this time you see. There is literally no trick in the book that you can do that will allow you to escape me this time. You see, I’m gonna make sure you go to school and I’m gonna escort you there myself.” he said, obviously brimming with that confidence he was well known for.

“I see...So I can’t go back and get my bag that has all my school work that I left at the store yesterday huh?”

“Nope. Ya never bring one cause all your classwork is digital.”

“What about my medicine? I need to go pick up a refill.”

“With all the running about you and I do lad, I know you’d never be anywhere without them on your person at all times. Filled and ready to use just in case you have an attack.”

“So, I can’t get you to let the school staff know I’m on my way, or that my dad has given me a note excusing my absence, or that I’ve already graduated and I’ve got a part-time job. And I guess you won’t believe me when I say I’ve called your superiors and they have transferred you somewhere else or that my dad is in the hospital.”

“Aye, none of that nonsense will work this time. Fool me once and all that. Now hurry along and come with me so we can get you where you belong. And don’t think that you’ll be able to outrun me this time boyo. Ever since we’ve been talking, few of my fellow mates have covered all the ways you can get around me and off the trans. One of way or another, you’re going back to school.”

With a tired defeated sigh, Nathaniel shook his head and shrugged his shoulders, preparing himself for the inevitable. “I guess you’re right officer. I don’t think there is anything I can do this time around. You’ve actually managed wrangle me in and I won’t be able to get away or trick you this time…”

Suddenly a devious grin flashed across his face as the teenaged skunk took a single step back, the sound of the soft chime echoing through the intercom system as the double doors suddenly closed and the trans began to take off once more, leaving Officer McAdams and his squaddies at the station. Quickly, Nathaniel made his way to a window, opened it up and stuck his head out. 

“Unless of course I just stay on the trans while you act like a pompous asshole and let me get away again!” he shouted as loud as he could, knowing that McAdams would probably be unable to hear most of what he had said now that the trans had taken off. Taking a seat back where he had been previously, Nathaniel shook his head and sighed. It wasn’t that much of a big deal that McAdams had nearly caught him. However, it had still been irritating. If Nathaniel wanted to go to school, he simply would’ve just gone but being forced to be in a place where people hated him as much as he hated them just wasn’t going to help anyone. A quick glance around the train car showed though that the other passengers were less than thrilled by his behavior. Some were shaking their heads, while others were typing things into their various personal devices. Frowning again, Nathaniel promptly ignored their silent disapproval, instead opting to withdraw the earbuds that attached to his P.E.T. from a jacket pocket and fitted them into his ears. A few button presses and soon music began to play, drowning the sounds of the world out and replacing them with the harmony of pre-splice punk rock.

~=====~

	Nathaniel stepped out of the trans after it had came to a stop, the music in his ears slowly building up pace as he made his way down the platform and back to the midway. Carefully he took a moment to adjust his clothes. he made sure they fit comfortable and were secure enough that they wouldn’t hinder him in anyway. Satisfied that his clothes were in order, he pulled his signature blue bandana up and re-tied it so that it covered his mouth. With the music growing louder he clenched his hands, and closed his eyes, speaking a command to his P.E.T. as he began to walk forward in time with the music.

“Oral Code AR105 Hyphen Shadowscape”

Suddenly the overlay of information in his sunglasses shifted as it was replaced with a graphical interface that was keeping track of his vital signs, the amount of steps he took, and what level he was on. It was in actuality an Augmented Reality game that fed into the visual feed of his sunglasses, allowing him to move and see what was around him as well as interact with the virtual program as it told him about his objectives and obstacles, which he could feel through the feedback in the threadlink technology that was woven into his clothing and glasses, all connected to his P.E.T. which managed every aspect of it all.

From that moment on he sprinted forward, running down the midway of the commercial sector of Snowden as the music in his ears hummed and began to vibrate through his body. If anyone saw him, he didn’t care. It wasn’t like he was going to be in their sight much longer. Quickly he turned down one direction, and then the next, heading further and further away from the center of the city towards the outskirts. Once he felt that he was a sufficient distance away from the more populated areas, that was when the real game began. All around he looked as he ran through the old alley ways, seeing points of interest that he could run and climb onto. It wasn’t long before he began to push himself further, literally by climbing between buildings by running up and pushing himself off the wall till he managed to grab a secure foothold in an old open building.

Without much thought he pulled himself into the abandoned building, a warehouse of some sort it seemed, and ran along the second floor catwalks, jumping over parts of and sliding under pieces of the building that had collapsed or fell apart. The entire time his sunglasses feeding him visuals of him escaping from dark shadow agents, which happened to be shooting and firing at the escaping vigilante he was playing as, their shots creating a simulated reason for the very debris he was running, jumping and moving around in the real world.

His game carried him further and further out into the empty sections of the city. Where no one bothered to come anymore, his score climbing higher as it progressed. It wasn’t long before he found himself at the roof of a rather tall and old looking building. It was here that the cold winds of Snowden were fiercer here than the rest of the city. He was comfortable however, as the threadlinks in his clothing kept his body temperature regulated and safe, just as the bandana over his mouth warmed the air that kept him from suffering a major asthma attack as he ran and played the AR game. 

“AR Pause,” he commanded his pet, causing his shades to record his information and revert back to the standard information that normally filled them. With a deep breath, he pulled down the bandana and quickly reached into his jacket’s inner pockets once more, withdrawing his silver case that contained his medsticks. He had been running through the city for a few hours now, and even though he didn’t feel an attack happening, it was better to be safe than sorry. Opening it up and taking a stick out, he quickly activated it and began to pull from it, letting the medicinal vapor and mist do it’s work as the music in his ears began to slowly go silent. 

Even though Officer McAdams had prevented him from starting his game where he would’ve preferred, Nathaniel had still found his way toward his destination from the other trans station. This was the place where he had first met Mercedes a year and a half ago, back when he had first started to play Shadowscape. He had found her talking to herself about something, thought it had seemed to be about nothing in particular, and they had hit it off. He learned that she was in the same grade as him, and that her father was one of the Arbiters of the Snowden Dome Council, and she had learned that there was more to the mean freak with the metal arm. Soon enough she was taking care of him, checking up on him, and hanging out and playing with him. She was always busy with something though as well, whether it was assisting someone who needed help, or just volunteering to make someone’s job easier, she was there.

He had asked why she even bothered once and found himself surprised by her answer. She did it simply because it was the right thing to do. There was no judgment or pity when she did it. She was just honest and caring. There were people who needed help and if she could, she’d assist them as best as she could. From that moment on it made her one of the few people that Nathaniel considered to be a real person. Not like his peers at all which only pitied him and then ran away when he had had enough. He supposed that was why he liked her so much. It didn’t matter to her that he had a permanent cybernetic arm or that he was a social outcast that no one wanted in their pack. All that mattered was that she was his friend, plain and simple. 

With a soft smile he took another healthy pull from his medstick and blew out the vapor slowly and methodically, watching as it quickly turned to a thick fog in the cold air. That’s why he was excited for her to get here. Tonight was going to be the start of something different. A change for the better. Tonight He was going to ask her to be his girlfriend.

~=====~

Are you sure he is the right one for this? It could be a serious mistake trusting him with something this important. We don’t have the time to take a risk on someone like that.

Mercedes Black smiled and shook her head as she climbed the ladder inside of the old Operations building. “Of course I am sure. There isn’t anyone I trust more than him in the world. If anyone can help, it’s him.” she said inhaling deeply as she climbed ever higher.

I don’t understand what your fascination with him is. You will only be making him a target for the others. You should find someone else. Someone else who can blend in easily. There is simply too much at stake.

Carefully, Mercedes pulled herself up from the top of the ladder and onto the catwalk. Casually, she brushed all the accumulated dust from her clothes off and took a moment to look over the edge of the railing. She was at least seven flights up and was nearing closer to the roof where her friend was no doubt waiting for her. Feeling a little disoriented she pulled back and began to walk along the catwalk until she reached what looked to be a heavy metal door.

“It’ll be okay. I promise. He won’t let us down.” she said softly as she pushed the door open and stepped inside. It was an office of sorts or it had been at least years ago. Now it was the private hangout she shared with her best friend. There wasn’t much to it, other than the table in the center which was covered with an assorted broken pieces of machines and things they had found in the outskirts, an old cozy looking green love seat along the wall that looked like it had numerous sordid and scandalous stories attached to it, and the large mirror she had insisted be brought into the room. In the corner away from everyone else was another ladder that would lead to the roof access of the old building. 

Slowly, Mercedes made her way around the room, as if taking the time to silently reminisce of the time she had spent in this room with her friend. She looked over the table, picking up some broken gadget and turning it over in her hands before she set it back down moments later. Then she made her way to the loveseat, tracing a delicate finger along an arm to the back till she reached the other arm at the end. Finally she came to a stop at the mirror pausing to take a good hard look at her reflection which stare straight back at her.

She was a seventeen year old wolf with luxuriously silken black hair that seemed to cascaded down from her head and to her back, some of it hung over her shoulder incidentally. Her bright purple eyes shone bright as though they were rich flawless amethyst. Her bright white fur looked to be just as soft and silky as her hair, looking to be excellently groomed regularly. Her outfit was modest affair in comparison, consisting of a simple pair of black pants and a purple jacket that was buttoned up snugly, as well as a pair of well worn sneakers. She continued to stare into the reflection till her eyes finally saw what they were trying to see. There was an image of sorts exactly where she was. It was faint and kind of distorted, but it looked like her, only it was just solid green, with the exception of its eyes which appeared to be just as white as her fur.  

We don’t have much time left. If we are going to do this we need to hurry.

With a heavy sigh and shake of her head, Mercedes quickly made her way to and up the nearby ladder, stopping only for a moment to push open the hatch that led to the roof. With a soft grunt she pulled herself from the relatively warm room and climbed onto the cold roof of the Operations Building. A cold breeze whipped across the snow covered surface of the building as she closed the hatch behind her and stood up to survey the immediate area. Sure enough standing near the edge at the other side of the roof was Nathaniel Ingram. The skunk showed no sign of having heard or even noticed her. Instead he appeared to just be gazing over the horizon as if he was some sort of lonely sentinel keeping watch over the city of Snowden. Taking a moment to brush the snow from her pants and straighten her clothes up the wolf made her way towards him.

She chuckled as she got closer, seeing the earbuds in his ears. He was obviously listening to some sort of pre-splice music and was just too engrossed in his own thoughts to be paying any attention. Quickly, she grabbed him by the collar of his jacket and yanked him backward onto the roof, causing the skunk to let out a scream of surprise as he flailed about in shock. Mercedes let out an amused giggle as she watched her friend panic for a brief moment before he realized what had happened. With a warm smile she reached down and offered him her hand to help, stopping for a brief instant as his eyes met with hers. In that one moment she felt her heart become heavy and sad at just what the future held for them both. 

He refused her help of course, pushing her hand away and pulling himself up, making sure to brush away the snow that had clung to his clothes in the process. Afterwards he pulled the earbuds out from his ears and put them away back into his jacket. “You’re late Mercedes.” he said, obviously trying to sound cool and nonchalant, though it far too was easy for her to see how happy he was to see her none the less. 

“I know, but I did send you a note this morning explaining how busy I was. It’s not my fault if you didn’t even think to read it. Besides, if you really wanted to see me more often Nathaniel you could just come to school. We have all the same classes technically and we could even sneak into the pool during lunch for some personal time” she said, playfully teasing him so that a slight blush formed in his cheeks.

“Well...you see. About that.  Going to school would mean I would have to pretend to be the big bad bully everyone thinks I am. I’d have to steal lunch money and push kids down and growl really mean like at them and that’s just something I can’t be bothered to deal with right now,” he said, adjusting his jacket with a smirk, as if he was making some kind of a point by doing so. “I have way more important things to deal with anyway.”
 
I told you this was a mistake. He isn’t strong enough to overcome his own problems, let alone ours. We should find someone else before it’s too late.

Mercedes sighed and shook her head before she moved to take a seat at the edge of the roof. Quickly the skunk followed suit, sitting down beside her. “What’s so important that you won’t try to come back to school huh? I mean I figured you’d love an excuse to see me in a tight clingy swim suit or perhaps that little skirt and blouse combo” She asked, knowing he was just going to be making some sort of excuse and this was the perfect time to tease him even further. 

“You can’t tempt me. My willpower is far too strong to be seduced that easily. Maybe if you were to sneak into school naked, then we might have a deal… but, if you must know why I don’t plan on going to school this time it’s cause my twin brother is coming here to spend the rest of the school year with me and my dad. So I want to take him around the city and show him all the new things that have happened while he was gone...and I was kinda hoping to introduce the two of you together.” he said calmly, catching her a bit surprised. It certainly wasn’t what she had been expecting. 

“You mean Alexander is coming back to Snowden? That’s great news! Though, I don’t think he’s going to be into playing hooky as much as you are” she replied happily. Though looking at how he had begun to stare off into the distance, she could see something else was bothering him. “It is good news, right?”

He gave a weak chuckle and nodded, taking a moment to scoop some snow off from the edge and throw it over the side down to the midway. “Yeah it’s great news. Except...he wants to meet my pack and all my friends.” He went silent for a moment. Both of them knew that his lack of friends bothered him more than he was willing to ever admit. 

“Not to mention the fact that it’s been literally years since we’ve last seen each other. So of course he’s gonna see...this.” he said, rotating his right shoulder to indicate his cybernetic prosthesis. “I mean. He knows I have it. He was there when it happened. But...It’s not like it’s going to ever go away. It’ll just make things awkward for him when he sees how those jerks at school react…it’ll just be another reminder of how much of a freak I am.”

For what felt like the longest time Mercedes was quiet. A quick look up at the horizon showed her the sun had turned into a beautiful golden orange as it begun it’s descent along the horizon. Finally, she decided to ask about it.

“You still have those nightmares about the accident don’t you?” she asked gently. Her words very soft and full of concern.

“Heh, yeah. It’s kind of hard not to and of course Alexander knows about them too. He always checks up on me everytime he feels like I have one. I swear it’s like he is psychic or something. But this...is different. He has distance. It’s not real to him yet. Once he sees my arm he’ll start acting differently. He’ll pretend not to but I know he will.” 

Slowly Mercedes brought her arm around his shoulders and pulled him close. His body began to relax the moment their bodies embraced. She offered a small smile. “You have to give him a chance Nathaniel. Until he is here, you are just assuming the worst over something you can’t control.” she said comfortingly soft. “If he is anything like you say he is, then I know he won’t. He’ll just be someone who loves you. Like I do.” 

He turned to look at her and gave her that smile of his. The one that spoke volumes to her and only her. It was a gentle and fragile thing. Something that was nervous and unsure of itself. There was something else to it though. Everytime he gave that smile, a hidden strength dared to shine past that rough exterior. It was a strength that told her he would never give up and never surrender and it was as if only ever in these moments was he his true self to her. This was why he was the most important person to her. This was why she loved him. 

“Besides, the only thing that makes you a freak is how good you are at pretending to be such a damn asshole most of the time. Sometimes I can’t tell if you are serious or not.” she joked, her arm quickly moving down to squeeze him by the hip.“I swear the rumors of you at school get worse and you’re not even there in the first place! The other kids talk about how even the police are scared of you.”

His smile instantly changed to a wicked grin, and he sat up straighter as if he was being complimented. “Well yeah they should be. Not only am I the world’s scariest punk to walk this earth, but I’m also the best damned actor in all of Snowden. They cast me into this role, and I’ll make it larger than life by the time I’m done.”

She smiled at that and leaned in close, gently rubbing his nose against her own. “Well Shakespeare, if you are such a great actor...let’s drop the gangster role and see how good of a lover you are…” she said demurely, pulling him as close as she could to her body. Her lips meeting his own with only the slightest hesitation before they were locked in passion.

I hope he is worth it.

She felt a part of herself give in and kiss him deeper, as if she was acting purely on basic instinct. Energy coursed through her and into her mouth, her tongue meeting his own as something far more than a kiss took place. It was only for the tiniest of moments, but it had happened. The wheels were in motion and now...now there was nothing left to do but wait.

With a coy sensual smile, she broke away from the kiss and stared into Nathaniel’s eyes. “Absolutely worth it,” she whispered with a deep blush to her cheeks as he looked back. “I love you Nathaniel.”

“I...love you too Mercedes...will you be mine?” 

She nodded and smiled as she looked back towards the setting sun. “I will always be yours. Hey, give me your bandana real quick.”

The skunk looked at her a little confused and slightly dumbfounded at such a strange change, he complied though, reaching back behind his neck to untie it before handing it over. Slowly, she looked it over, admiring the strange nonsensical runes that were stitched into it, then with a smile, she tucked into into the pocket of her jacket and smiled innocently back to Nathaniel.

“Are you going to tell me what was that all about?” he asked, looking and sounding very confused.

“Don’t worry about it. I’ll give it back to you later.” she replied coyly and mysteriously giving him a playful wink. “I just need to hold onto it for a short while.”

If he had any protests, he didn’t raise them, instead opting to go silent and enjoy the rest of the moment with her despite how obviously confused he was. From there, they spent the rest of the evening chatting with one another, telling jokes and sharing stories over what they had done that day. Mercedes telling him about the current school events, and Nathaniel explaining what he had encountered in the newest levels in his Shadowscape game. Eventually, long after the moon had arisen, Nathaniel reluctantly admitted that he was getting tired and had to head home. She made sure to give him another kiss before he left, but indicated that she was going to stay there on the roof to admire the night sky and think on the things that had happened recently alone. 
For awhile it seemed as if everything was as calm as it had been, that everything was going to be okay until she felt something wrong begin to approach from somewhere nearby. 

They’re here Mercedes.

“I know,” she said calmly, reaching into her pocket to tightly grip at the bandana Nathaniel had given her.

I’m going to miss you.

“I’m going to miss you too. You were a great friend,”

Goodbye Mercedes.

“Goodbye Chorus”