𝗦𝗢𝗡𝗜𝗖𝗔'𝗦 𝗣𝗢𝗩
After Sonic, Amy, Sticks, Tails and Knuckles left, I felt relieved. Because it had been so long since I made any friends..
Just then I noticed something on the table. When I went closer to it, I saw some... photos.


Then I remembered someone. I remembered... someone of mine.
It was 9 years ago. . .
I was sitting on a bench in a park, lonely. A park with many children playing here and there and their parents guiding them. I had escaped the cruel orphanage 2 days ago. Now I was here... in this park, lonely yet not alone.
My name wasn't Sonica back then, and nor was my fur blue.
Everyone disliked me due to my powers and I didn't know what kind of powers they were. Maybe they were scared I would hurt them..
I was scared too..
Sometimes I suddenly shoot a fire ball and sometimes a water ball and sometimes my hands glow. I was unable to control such powers at a small age so the powers mostly went out of control..
Got some new names like freak, psycho, witch and many more awful things.
Then I met someone who changed my life and she said I changed her life too.
In the middle of nowhere, sat down a purple hedgehog besides me on the bench. She looked.. in a bad mood and way elder than me.
I glanced at her then focused on looking down at my shoes. Then my stomach growled in hunger, making my ears flatten in embarrassment.
Then she rustled through her bag and I caught the smell of a fresh, chocolate bun.
She sighed and took a bite of the bun, glancing at me from her peripheral vision and I glanced down.
"...you want some, kid?"
My head nodded itself without a second thought.
She then gave the other half of the bun to me and that was the first meal I had after running from the orphanage.
After I finished the bun :
"What's your name?" She asked, now leaning her hand on her chin as she rested her elbow on her knee, slightly bent position.
I glanced up at her. "..Shade."
She huffed and leaned against the bench, "..and? Where do you live?"
I looked around for a second before replying, "nowhere.."
She paused then looked at me. "..alright. I am Veronica." She quickly added with a sigh, "Just call me Nic. Don't want another kid to mess up my name."
I nodded. "Okay...Thank you."
She stood up, stretching a little. "You are welcome." She tensed for a second before asking, "..you don't have a home, right?"
I just shook my head. "Not yet.."
She took a deep breath and turned to face me. "..wanna come with me?"
I looked up at her, suspicious.
She shook her head amd rubbed the back of her neck, "look, I am not a kidnapper. I just want to.. uh, take you home with me."
I fiddled with my fingers as I thought..
What could get worse? The orphanage was already a nightmare..
"..really?" Just a mumble.
She nodded, a little.. embarrassed? "Yeah. You can trust me, kid. Besides! I am like your big sis. Now.. let's go, okay? I promise I have no bad intentions."
I nodded with a small smile, my heart was racing. But then...
"But I am different. I will hurt you too.."
She blinked before shaking her head, brushing it off. "Nonsense. Who told you that stuff, kid? How old even are you? You aren't different. You are just bein' differently judged."
I scratched my head slowly. "..but I got differently judged because I was different."
She facepalmed and sighed, crouching down to meet my eye level. "No, kid.. It's fine. You aren't an alien or something. Even if you were, you are a goddamn- I mean, a living creature. That's all that matters."
She then groaned and muttered underneath her breath and. "Why am I explaining this to a kid.."
I looked at her as her words gave me the comfort I felt for the first time. And the words "I.. trust you now." slipped out.
She sighed in relief and stood up, offering her hand. "Alright, kid. Let's go."
I slowly and hesitantly took her hand, surprisingly it felt safe.
I.. I was gonna get a home. And.. she said she is like my big sis?
We walked in silence for a while until she asked, "How old are you?"
I looked up at her then at the road. "Um.."
I realized I never counted.
".. alright, I will consider you as.. uh, 7. Right, you look 7 y/o to me." She patted my head with a chuckle. "And I am s-i-x-t-e-e-n~"
16? She looked younger.
After another awkward silence, she spoke again. "Hey.. Shade, right? How did you... Uh... Nevermind. How was the bun?"
I involuntary gulped as I recalled the sweetness of the chocolate bun. "It was very sweet and soft. Thank you."
She chuckled and shook her head. "Let's get some ice-cream then? Do you like ice-cream, kid?"
I nodded my head quickly. "I had tried one!"
"Alright. We will have some then." She turned to the ice-cream stall that she ahd spotted a long time ago, but it was across the.. scary highway.
"I will be back. Stay here."
She glanced left and right as cars, bikes, trucks, etc. zoomed here and there.
I stayed put.
But while she was half-way across the road, I saw a car coming in high speed! No way the driver would hit the breaks on time!
My instincts kicked in. "NIC!!" and I ran towards her in such a speed that it left a blue blur behind me.
Just as she turned to look at her side, I grabbed her arm and pulled her straight to the footpath, breathing heavily.
"Shade! What was that?! Are you okay?! You run so fast?! What are you, the SEGA version of Flash?!" She yelled at me, shaking my shoulders.
I looked up at her, eyes watering. "I.. It just happened.."
"Stupid.." she sighed, "don't cry.. I was just- shocked and..." her voice trailed off with another sigh and she scooped me up in her arms. "I am sorry.. I should be thanking you. You saved my life."
I sniffled and hid my face behind my quills. "I told you I was different.."
"Well, not in a bad way." She chuckled and patted my head again. "Thank you so much, little one.. You are a super-hedgehog with super speed, hm?"
I was confused but I instinctively hugged her tight, "I.. ran fast."
"Yeah, you did. Sorry for scaring you.." She whispered as she carried me to her home and we also got ice-cream.
I got strawberry flavor. She got butterscotch.
"So.. you didn't know you have super speed?"
I shook my head, focused on my ice-cream. "Nope."
She sighed softly and stopped walking, adjusting her arms as she held me. "Okay, kid. We are home."
Anxiety and fear were at the door to welcome me.
"Don't worry. I only live with my dad. Ugh, we aren't talking for a while." She muttered the last part and placed me down on my feet.
All I could say was, "Oh.."
I didn't ask all the questions that were popping in my mind.
After we entered the house, an alarm suddenly started to ring.
"Intruder Alert! Intruder Alert!"
She groaned in frustration and yelled. "Dad! I told to shut that thing off!"
A few crashing and stumbling noises came from the other room before a dark green hedgehog with glasses came out, holding a few tools. "Where's the intruder?!"
Then a human followed after him.
And I stepped back, eyes wide. No way this place was safe-
"Dad.." Veronica aka Nic growled and picked me up again. "This is Shade. First turn that siren off."
The alarm died with the press on a blue button he had.
"..who is this, Ver?"
She held me by my armpits like a baby as she showed me to her father. "This is Shade. I found her in the park."
He sighed and adjusted his glasses. "And..? You should let her go home. Why'd you bring her here?"
She sighed and whispered. "Because she doesn't have a home. I want her to stay with me."
He froze.. literally.
"..Professor, we will discuss the project later I suppose." said the human while looking at me with a dangerous gleam in his eyes before walking to the exit.
"Sorry for the trouble, Dr. Ray.." He sighed then chuckled at her, shaking his head. "Sweetie, you know that's delusional."
Dr. Ray..? More like Dr. Hailstone..
"No, it's not. We can adopt her! So do it!" She snapped. "You never let me do anything!"
He put the tools aside on the table. "Ver, I know you are mad at I didn't like the idea of you being a photographer. But that doesn't mean you can.. be stubborn and bring home a random kid?"
Her ears flattened for a second before she growled. "This isn't about that, dad.. I promised her a home. I don't care if you don't let me be a photographer, I will have my ways- And now I need you to let Shade stay. She even saved my life! She has super speed!"
"Super speed..?" He tensed up as if calculating all the possible scenarios. Then he nodded his head, slowly. "..alright. I will get the adoption thing sorted out."
I and Veronica both looked at him in surprise.
He agreed so easily..?
"R..Really?" She asked again, "Uh.. I need you to write it down so you don't back down from your words."
He chuckled and took out a sticky note, saying out loud what he was writing : 'I; Vince Howls, promise to let Shade stay with us."
Then he pasted it on the fridge. "Happy now?"
She beamed with joy but quickly composed herself and asked. "And why so easily?"
He took off his glasses as he sighed. "Because I don't think I need to make things complex. You want a sister, and I can take care of another daughter. Financially we are lucky. And.. you won't be lonely anymore."
"..whoa." she whispered before shaking her head again. "..alright. Thanks."
He looked at me then at her and smiled. "And you can pick whatever career you like. Father and daughter will do 'Trial and Error', yea?"
And it felt like a dream come true, for the both of us.
"Yeah." She chuckled and we immediately had a family hug. I felt like a plush getting squished.
My mind was racing with lots of questions, thoughts, doubts and possibilities. But I decided to just.. live in the present moment.
"So tell me about this 'saving' thing, hm?" He said as we settled on the couch, and Nic spilled all the tea while I felt content just to be there.
Eventually we started to have a great time. I had a big sister and a dad. Though I call him 'Professor' because it feels more easier. After all.. I knew he wasn't my real father.
But I had a family and I was happy.
And I was still afraid about my unidentified powers. But I felt at ease from his sentence : "We will eventually figure something out."
And everything else was going on well.
Professor had signed my adoption paper from the orphanage I ran from.
".. Shade.. can we change your name? Like to make it more matching?" Nic asked, chuckling nervously. "I just felt like it, so.."
It wasn't a bad idea. My old name held many bad memories anyway.
So I nodded, shifting closer to my big sis. "Okay."
"Hm.." She looked at her father then at me, "Shade.. Veronica.. Shade-Veronica. Sh-ronica.. SONICA!"
My ears perked up at that name. "Sonica?"
"Yes, Sonica. Do you like it?" She asked, slightly embarrassed.
I smiled happily and nodded. "Yes! Thank you! I love the name!"
She sighed in relief while Professor just chuckled.
"Our Sonicaa!" She chuckled as well, hugging me tight.
This is what feels like being loved and cared for..? It's really an amazing feeling.
No more past things now.
Now I am Sonica.
Sonica the hedgehog.
We were a happy family. Sometimes I used my super speed to help Nic and Professor. And my other powers didn't seem pop up for now.
Therefore, we were happy.
We were a happy family... for a year at least.
#— TO - ᗷᗴ - ᑕOᑎTIᑎᑌᗴᗪ —#