Experiment Bandicoot

Chapter 3: Forgotten Name

(3rd Person's POV)

"Wooh! That was close, thanks for catching us, Crunch!" Coco sighed in relief. "No problem, Coco! Always be there for a friend!" a very muscular man, assumed to be the Crunch guy, said while flying the spaceship.

"We're glad you're okay, Coco. But..." a floating wooden head said, then turned around, followed by the others, to see a shivering girl staring right at them, stuffed into the furthest corner of the ship.

"...who is your new friend?" he asked, raising a brow.

"Oh! Well, I don't really know her. She was lying on a chair all strapped up. I didn't want to leave her behind" Coco stated. "Hmm, probably another experiment Doctor Cortex was trying to create" the floating head exclaimed. He then looked at the girl, floating a little closer to her.

Which seemed to be a bad idea.

"A-Ahh-Ah!" the girl whimpered, desperately shoving herself into the corner -if that's even possible- as her eyes got teary, she might get a serious cramp due to the frightful state she's now in. She's not afraid of Coco, nor the muscular driver, nor even the weird one who has his finger in his ear as much as she was of the freaking floating head that can somehow talk as if it has a life of its own!

"O-Oh, I'm sorry! Please, I'm not going to hurt you!" he frowned and backed away immediately. Coco then slowly, and carefully approached the girl she saved, and kneeled in front of her. Not getting too close so the girl wouldn't feel threatened. (Y/N) wouldn't dare move a muscle as she watched their every movement and listened to every word they said. Although that Coco had just saved her from a near death experiment that was about to happen today, however, that doesn't mean that she should feel safe after all these years of experiment torture. She doesn't know these people, she doesn't know if they're good or evil, not a thing.

"Um, hi there. My name's Coco Bandicoot, it's nice to meet you" the blonde calmly introduced herself with a gentle smile. Coco then pointed at the weird one who had a cheerful smile on his face. "That one over there is my big brother, Crash. The one steering the ship is our friend, Crunch. And the floating mask over here is Aku-Aku, our spiritual guide".

The girl's gaze shifted as she looked at every one of them before calming down a little. Juuuust a little. She wouldn't dare give them the green light just yet. Suddenly, Crash approached the two, which made (Y/N) become on high alert as she stared at him intently. He kneeled next to Coco and extended his hand with a smile. However, the girl shook her head, refusing to interact in any way.

Crash frowned as his fluffy ears dropped and looked down. Coco tried reassuring her, "It's okay. You don't need to be afraid anymore. You're safe with us now. Crash is just trying to say hi to you".

(Y/N) felt guilty for making Crash sad, her ocean-blue eyes then gazed at his fingerless-gloved, furry hands. Coco followed the weak girl's gaze, and understood the message, nudging her big brother.

"Crash, I think she wants to shake your hand" she whispered to him, and Crash raised his head and stared into the girl's eyes that were staring at his hands. He smiled again and slowly extended his hand again, waiting for the girl to take her time.

(Y/N) mustered up what's left of her strength, and raised a shaking hand, ever so slowly extending it until her pale fingers grazed his, wanting to explore his hand and touch every part of it. Though this touch was small, her body stopped trembling, and she felt such warmth she had never felt since forever. She can't remember the last time she felt calm and warm like this.

Crash reciprocated and grazed the tips of his fingers with hers, and slowly her fingers were touching the leathery glove. She let out a deep, calming breath she didn't know she was holding. Crash's thump caressed the back of the girl's fingers, slowly inviting her to the embrace of his warm hand, to which she didn't refuse this time. (Y/N) could feel her heartbeat, but this time, it wasn't beating out of fear, but out of comfort.