Introspection

5 – Tension! A New Gang Member Appears!

Notes: "It's 2017," you tell me. "I know," I reply.

I've been a busy busy bee since I last updated this... in 2014. But never fear! I do intend to finish every story I have up (that aren't listed as discontinued. Yes, this includes The Genesis of a Generation and Zima; those will be completed eventually), I'm just very overwhelmed with grad school and a committed relationship and other such adult things. Anyway, there we are. We made it. Good job team.

Onward!

Sonic slept maybe three hours that night. Between the keyed up energy he dealt with on a daily basis and the paranoid fear that multiple gang members armed to the teeth were going to burst through his door at any minute, he was probably coasting along at a solid 103 when it came to his 100-point stress scale. He was so stressed and filled with nervous jitters that he ended up pacing almost all night, going back and forth in front of the couch like a farmer making rows. At around hour four, also known as two in the morning, he decided to do some homework, and actually managed to flow through his math. The English was another thing entirely and he gave up when the words started to swim on the page. This resulted in more pacing, and then he eventually ended up passed out on the couch, somehow.

He woke with a gasp around 5:15 in the morning, and, hearing his uncle moving around upstairs, decided to do something unprecedented and far too proactive for so early in the morning.

Sonic made breakfast.

It wasn't until he had a pan sitting on the stove, heat kicked up to high, eggs in hand, that he realized he knew nothing about cooking beyond cereal, heating things up, and chili dogs (which, he realized with a sinking feeling very similar to drowning, was actually just heating things up), so he just nixed the eggs and fell back to ole faithful.

Chuck tumbled down the stairs to soggy cereal and soggier toast. Sonic saw him stare at the table, dumbfound, and he pointed and accusatory finger at his uncle.

"You took too long. This was perfectly fine food fifteen minutes ago when I heard you get up."

"You... prepared food?" Chuck stumbled forward, one hand held up as if to check Sonic's forehead for a fever. "Are you sick?"

Sonic swatted him away. "Har-har, you're a comedian. Please," he gestured to the table once his uncle pulled his arm back, "eat my bounty. A word about mush and you go to work without food."

Chuck chuckled and sank into a chair. Tenderly, he fished a few pieces of cereal out of the bowl with a spoon and pushed them into his mouth. Chewing thoughtfully, Sonic saw him glance toward to window.

"Active afternoon yesterday, huh?" Sonic's uncle didn't look away from the window, a calculated move if Sonic had ever seen one. "I hope nothing... illegal happened."

Sonic, who had been in the process of sitting, fell into the chair instead, because his knees chose that moment to give out. Very carefully, he met his uncle's gaze in the window's reflection and noticed how hard Chuck was clutching his spoon. With a bit of trepidation, Sonic shook his head.

"Nothing illegal. Just... took care of some trouble. Nothing for you to worry about."

Chuck relaxed at that, and Sonic felt a bit like a cad. Sure, it was a half-truth, but it was for his uncle's own good. The last thing he wanted was Chuck getting pulled into some petty not-gang war. Sonic could handle this.

"I trust you, Sonny. Just, keep Tails safe, okay? He looks up to you and—"

Sonic felt his stomach drop open and he carefully pushed his own bowl of food away. No way he was eating that now. "I hear you, Unc. I'll try my best."

Chuck nodded and spooned another bite of cereal into his mouth. "Good," he said around the soggy mush. "You have a good head on your shoulders. I know you'll do me proud."

Sonic swallowed once but didn't reply. Instead, he looked down at his food, swirled his spoon around, and let the silence sit.

They hovered there like that, Chuck slowly and mechanically eating the cereal, sometimes swallowing without really chewing, and Sonic staring, first at his food, then out the window, and finally just over Chuck's shoulder, leaning back with one leg extended and his arms crossed, until Tails stumbled down the stairs, looking disheveled and not at all ready for school like usual.

"Hey kid," Sonic said when Tails stopped before them, hands on his hips, "you look... Unprepared."

"I don't feel well," Tails declared, voice strong. Sonic thought to call him on it, but considering the whole kidnapping thing, he let him have this one. "I need to stay home."

"You?" Chuck sounded about as flabbergasted as Sonic expected, and he leaned forward to feel Tails's forehead. "You don't feel warm."

"I'm sick," Tails insisted, "and I didn't sleep well."

Chuck glanced toward Sonic, as if to gauge his reaction, and Sonic looked Tails up and down, trying to seem thorough. Tails shot him a look, a brief side-eye that practically begged him to cover for him, and Sonic sighed dramatically.

"Yeah, he doesn't look well." Sonic plucked his glove off and mirrored his uncle, placing the palm of his hand on Tails's fuzzy forehead. The fox scrunched up his brow, probably trying to sell the act, and Sonic pulled his hand away after a few seconds, whistling under his breath. "He's slightly warm. Probably better to let him stay home. The teachers don't want any sick kids, especially commuters, because they could spread it through the dorms."

Chuck sighed and Sonic knew they won. "You're right. All right, I'll call the office on my way to work to let them know you won't be there. Go on back up to bed. There's soup in the cupboard if you get hungry later."

Tails just barely managed to keep his grin under control as he turned to go back up the stairs, though he did pass Sonic one last glance, not that the hedgehog could read it. Tails was barely understandable on the best days and downright cryptic on the worst, and today was definitely one of the worst.

"I should get going myself." Chuck pushed away from the table and rose. "Don't be late," he called as an afterthought as he went to gather his things and get out the door.

Sonic groaned and looked at the dirty dishes spread across the table. "I'll try!"

o0o

Sonic managed the train this morning. It was crowded with other Bellwyn students of all ages, dark blue high school uniforms swirling amongst the bright pink and yellow of the younger kids, and Sonic had to struggle to get away from the doors so he could lean against a pole and look out the window. The train pulled away with a lurch, dragging its wheels across the metal tracks with a loud screech, and then they were off, moving smoothly toward the city.

About half of Bellwyn's student population commuted in for class, and Sonic swore that all of them were on this one train. Reflexively, he wrapped his hand around the metal pole he had claimed as his, and turned away from the rowdy morning crowd. Usually, with Tails, he would have to stand over the fox as he read, one arm looped around the pole, protecting the kid from the jostling bodies so he could focus, but today he was alone so he settled for the window. It was overcast, the clouds heavy and low-hanging with rain, and the small identical houses just beyond the tracks were blending together as they picked up speed, becoming nothing more than a whirl of color.

It would take about ten minutes to get into the city and then another five to get to the school. Sonic sighed and leaned his head against the cool metal of the pole, already tuning out.

About halfway through the trip, he felt someone move next to him. But, when he glanced to see if it was someone he knew, there was no one there. He felt his fur rise, hands curling into fists. Sonic didn't know what he would do if he was attacked considering the crowded nature of the train, but he would do something. That much was certain.

"Sonic," said a low voice he barely recognized, and the hedgehog felt his hands relax. Just there, beside him, he saw the air flicker, a flash of purple, the ripple of scales, and some yellow.

"Espio," Sonic breathed out, shaking his head and pursing his lips in agitation, "you can't do that, man. I almost punched you."

Sonic heard Espio chuckle. "Wouldn't be the first time."

Sonic rolled his eyes. "Yeah, but I imagine you don't like being punched."

Just barely, Sonic felt Espio shrug. "I can take it." Then, he plowed forward without pause. "Vector sent me. Message received. We'll keep our eyes open for any movement from the Rogues. Mighty should be in contact."

Sonic had almost forgotten about the letter he had sent Silver with the afternoon before. Well, at least his friend wasn't totally unreliable. But still... "Why the cloak and dagger? You could've told me at school."

"I was followed." Espio's voice was even, as if this was common practice, but Sonic barely noticed as he was too busy trying to stay upright as ice went through his heart. His hand curled even tighter around the pole. "This was the safest way. I see you left Tails at home. That was probably safest. I'll tell Vector and he can have someone sitting outside your house in an hour to watch out for him."

"No," Sonic barked, "no," he repeated, trying to calm down. "We don't need that. It's a nice neighborhood with nosey neighbors. Tails will be fine. I'm more worried about you."

Espio clapped a hand on Sonic's shoulder, and Sonic would've jumped if this were any other day. As it was, the invisible hand was the least of his worries. "I can take care of myself. Watch your back though. Tell the others. We'll be in contact."

Sonic felt him move away and then he appeared on the other end of the carriage, leaning against the wall as if he had been there all along. Sonic forced himself to look away.

o0o

Sonic was so preoccupied when he got off the train that he almost ran right into Knuckles. The echidna was waiting for him near the front doors, hands crossed over his chest, and Sonic would've smacked full into his chest if Knuckles hadn't grabbed his arm and pulled him from the crowd, off the path, and amongst the trees lining the grounds.

"Someone's waiting for you," the echidna hissed as Sonic's head spun, trying to catch up with this whirlwind of a morning. "Blaze spotted him when she went in early. Where's Tails?"

"At home," Sonic mumbled numbly. "He wasn't feeling good."

Knuckles let out a huff of air that seemed relieved but Sonic couldn't be sure. "What do you want to do?"

"Is it a member of the Rogues? Is it Jet?"

"No." Knuckles inclined his head toward the front of the school. "It's Shadow."

"What?" Sonic whipped around and yes, there he was. Shadow, mounted on the top step with his feet spread even with his shoulders, arms akimbo, scanning the crowd.

"You heard me. Shadow's waiting for you. We figure he wants a favor for saving Tails yesterday. Should I rough him up?"

Sonic had half a mind to say yes, but then the situation hit him fully and he mumbled, "No, let's talk to him," without really thinking about it. They couldn't very well start a fight with so many witnesses around.

"All right, you're the boss."

Sonic groaned as he stepped back onto the path. "Please don't. We're not a gang."

Knuckles didn't reply, but Sonic could feel his smirk as he followed him up the path.

It didn't take long for Shadow to spot them. When he did, he tried to look casual as he marched toward them, but, in Sonic's opinion, he just ended up looking like he had a pole shoved up his ass as he walked, face screwed up into what was probably supposed to be a neutral expression but actually ended up looking like a gloating smirk. Sonic wanted to punch him.

"Sonic," he greeted in his low, smooth voice. Sonic had to force his hand from its first.

"Shadow. What do you want?"

"Where's your little fox?"

"Not here. What do you want?"

Shadow sighed like Sonic was a particularly difficult child. "I want a favor."

"Of course you do. Did you just save Tails yesterday so you could have something on me? Not cool, dude."

Shadow grinned then, a slow thing that made Sonic's anger tick from a wavering six all the way up to a solid fourteen. "Yes and no, consider that a bit of an audition. I want into your gang."

"Look, I'm not just someone you can just jerk around— Wait, you what?"

"We're not a gang," Knuckles put in, in almost a perfect impression of Sonic.

"I don't need your help," the blue hedgehog threw over his shoulder. Knuckles shrugged in return. The hedgehog turned back to Shadow. "We're not a gang."

Shadow chuckled lowly. "I heard. But, people think you are. You could use a little more muscle."

He had a point, but Sonic also wasn't really interested. He didn't like the idea of conforming to expectation—they weren't a gang; why should they start acting like one just because people thought they were? They'd end up as one if they followed that path. "No," he decided, "we're not interested."

"You owe me."

"Look, man, you did that out of your own free will."

"Yes, I did, but you need my help. I know you've been having visions."

Everything froze. Sonic looked up and glared Shadow right in the eye, trying to gauge how serious he was because how could he possibly know— The only person who knew about his deja vu was Tails and Tails would never tell anyone. But yeah, just there, he could tell Shadow was telling the truth. He knew that Sonic was seeing things, experiencing, dreaming about a different life that he had never led.

He stabbed a finger right into Shadow's face, nearly connecting with his nose. "If I let you in, you never bring that up again."

Behind him, he heard Knuckles make a confused, frustrated noise, but Sonic and Shadow both ignored him. "Obviously," Shadow replied, smarmy, confident, as if he knew he had won.

Sonic let his arm fall. "Fine," he declared. "But, you're on probation. One wrong move and Knuckles here—" Sonic hooked a thumb over his shoulder "—gets to punch you into next year, get me?"

Shadow cast a long look at Knuckles, sizing him up, and he nodded. "Fair."

"Good. And remember, we're not friends."

"Oh," Shadow replied, turning to head into the school, "I'll never forget that. See you at lunch, Sonic the Hedgehog."

Sonic watched him go, let out a long breath, and put a hand to his forehead. "Ugh," he groaned, "this week just won't let up."

"And it's only Wednesday," Knuckles put it helpfully.

Sonic groaned again.

The week, she is a savage beast, Sonic.

(I nicked these next two notes from Katiemonz's latest chapter of Cosmic Tech because I'm too lazy to write my own advertisements.) If anyone's interested in talking to me and a bunch of my friends about all things Sonic-related, send me a message and I can add you to our Discord group! There's a lot of writing and art that happens there that doesn't really get posted anywhere else on the internet, and we have some really fun conversations and brainstorming sessions. Come and join us! (Most of us are around 18-20something years old, and we'd like to stay around that age range please! We're willing to take folks as young as 16 at the moment. Thanks for understanding.)

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