Summary: A series of shipping-focused continuous/separate drabbles, ficlets and one-shots. The ratings, genres and pairings may/will vary.

Chapter summary: Manny doesn't like taking sides.

Genre(s): Gen/Angst/Romance

Pairing(s): Manny/Frida, Manny/Zoe, Frida/Manny/Zoe, other implied relationships (mentioned).

Disclaimer: El Tigre: The Adventures of Manny Rivera is copyrighted by Nick, Mexopolis and its creators Jorge R. Gutierrez and Sandra Equihua. Any referenced works are owned by their respective creators.

Life is but a long string of choices to be made.

It lays down many, perhaps even countless possibilities and paths for each and every person.

It's up to that person to decide, to choose which path they want to take.

Or so that was what that fortune cookie had said, according to the nice waiter who tried to explain it to him, that is.

Unfortunately, he was Manny Rivera.

Choices were... difficult.

Why settle for only one thing, when there are so many possibilities laid out in front of you?

Or so he often told himself, but that really was what came to his mind whenever the matter of choosing between Good and Evil, between Hero and Villain came up.

Manny did love doing both, saw the opportunities and the happiness that could come with either side... and the downsides and the hardships within both- courtesy of having a heroic father and villainous grandfather raising him. So, was it really so odd to want best of both worlds?

So Manny went back and forth between them, trying to enjoy both while he could, even with inevitable fact that he would have to choose someday.

...choices.

It was his choice to make. He had made that clear- to his family and to himself- back at Sartana's fake tournament.

...but it still felt like he would be taking sides.

And that was something that didn't sit right with Manny.

He loved them both. Both had been so important in his life, and he didn't want to part with either of them. The thought of giving up either just hurt him more than he could possibly say.

...was he even talking about his family anymore?

Oh, who was he kidding- his family would always love him, no matter what choice he made, of that much he was sure and he would always be grateful for that fact.

But those two? Who knows.

Manny really didn't like taking sides.

And yet, that was what he felt like whenever he hang out with Frida or Zoe.

Or rather, whenever he thought about who he'd choose in the end.

Choices, choices.

Blue or Black?

On one hand, there was Frida.

Frida, who had been his best friend for years, ever since that day they met in detention in kindergarden.

Frida, who had stuck with him through good and bad, and who he was sure would still support him, hero, villain or whatever he choose.

Frida, his partner-in-crime, his family.

She understood him like no one else could, and she knew him like no one else did. They were kindred spirits, and pretty much joined at the hip, so much that tearing them apart just left an empty feelling in his chest. A part of him knew just how much he needed Frida and her endless, eccentric support and cheer in his life.

Frida, who maybe, to many, would be the perfect, and obvious choice for him.

...Frida, who he can't fully figure out his feelings towards, platonic, familial and romantic all blurry in the jumbled mess that was his heart.

...and on the other hand, Zoe.

Zoe, who had blurred lines between friends and enemies for years.

Zoe, the one who kept coming back to him, who he kept coming back to, no matter how many times they had hurt each other.

Zoe, the one he'd shared far too many failed, brief, fake begginings of a romance with and yet, continued to love him with the same ardor she had since childhood.

She and he shared a strange kind of bond, one forged with their messy relationship and the strange, but intense and bitter past and rivalry shared between their families.

Manny couldn't stay away from her and she couldn't stay away from him. He still wondered, what was this magnetic force that pulled them together, again and again?

...Zoe, who Manny still had complicated feelings towards, who he felt needed him in the same way he needed Frida in his life, and he didn't know if he could respond to that.

Black or Blue?

Manny didn't like taking sides.

And with those two, those two horribly wonderful women who had entered his life and his heart, whose field had gone for so long they'd both forgotten the reason, he felt was inevitable.

Would Manny really have to lose one of them eventually?

He didn't want that.

He knew he was being selfish.

He knew he was, when he caved in and still flirted with the possibilty of other romances, forgetting for a brief moment of this weird mess, but quietly, secretly, seethed with envy, a pang in his breaking, shattering, divided heart, whenever they did the same.

And he knew, oh how he knew that those two hadn't given up on him for good because they still hoped he would choose one of them permanently one day.

He both hoped and dreaded for this day as well, should it ever come.

No, it would have to- he had to choose.

...didn't he?

Blue or Black?

Black or Blue?

Oh, how Manny wished to go back to those simpler days, when girls had cooties and videogames were his only true love.

Still, he made a promise to himself.

Until that day comes, he'll care and look out for them both. Whenever they need help, he'll be there for them.

That he could swear.

Blue and Black.

Author's note: Just a short little thing to introduce this new series. I wanted to make a series solely for drabbles focused on pairings, so here we are!

Since Manny x Frida and Manny x Zoe are pretty much the two main pairings in the fandom, I figured I should start with them. Enjoy angsty, undecided Manny.

Be warned though, there are lots of rare pairs and crack pairings to come.

Anyway, hope you guys enjoyed it!