Early in production of Sonic 1, there were many things suggested but ultimately cut out. One is the character of Madonna, who would have been Sonic's "girlfriend", fangirl, and all-around damsel in distress. But in an effort to make the game more kid-friendly, she was cut and eventually faded away into obscurity...

Which makes her a gold-mine of untapped potental for a story ;) So without further adieu, here is the first chapter in what I believe to be what would've happened if Madonna, instead of getting the golden ax to her neck, was made a little more battle-orientated.

Copyright SEGA

When the sun rose over South Island one lazy summer morning, Donna Fairview thought little of it. After all, the blonde-haired teenager had her thoughts on more important things: finding her uniform out of the mess in her room, taking out the trash, and keeping her best friend out of trouble.

The thought of the hyperactive eleven year old made the girl grin, shaking out her tangled locks as she got up to greet the day. To some people Sonic the Hedgehog was more trouble than he was worth, but Donna knew better. He was an acquired taste for sure, but she knew all the little nooks and crannies in his speed-driven personality, and she was proud to call him her best friend. Fishing out her work attire, a strapless red dress and heels, she stumbled into the shower, cursed at banging her knee, and returned twenty minutes later to find Sonic lounging on her bed as if he owned the thing. "What did I say about personal space, blue boy?"

"Something about respecting it, but I wasn't paying too much attention. After a while all your lecturing is a real grate on the ears, Donna." He grinned, wiping his nose as the thirteen year old blonde simply rolled her eyes and cuffed him on the side of the head. Rolling back up from the hit, he yawned, then wolf whistled teasingly. "Not that I mind seeing you at work-that dress is very flattering, my dear-but can we skip the whole 'I gotta show up super early for my shift to get some extra dough' act and go running?"

Oh yes, running, Sonic loved running, especially when he literally ran circles around his less-gifted human friend. "Maybe, maybe not; does your mom know you're actually up before 9 am? And if she does, does your dad know CPR?" Sonic sardonically laughed before throwing a cat-shaped pillow at her head, which she ducked with the grace learned after thousands of previous attempts. As soon as she combed out her elbow-length hair, slipped in a red Alice band, and took a swipe of her bubble gum lip balm (the closest thing her mother would allow for cosmetics), she smiled at the cerulean colored boy. "Are you coming?"

"Hell yes!" He sped out of the room, upsetting the piles of clothes strewn about, but managed to slow down enough to bid good-morning to a startled Mr. and Mrs. Roy Fairview. "Hello Mr. Roy, Mama Hope. Fine weather we have today." Grinning cheekily at the blonde woman's somewhat shaky wave, he flew out the door and zigzagged around the humble, frayed front yard of the Fairview's. "Taking too long, Donna!"

"Bye mom, see you after my shift!" Hugging her mother and blowing a kiss to her disgruntled father, Donna ran out the door to tackle her friend to the ground, pinning him with extreme ease; while he may be the speed demon, she was built for strength. "You were saying, blue boy?"

"Yeah, yeah..."

Giggling, she helped him up, then broke into an easy jog before going faster, willing her much-abused legs to keep up with the murderous pace that her friend nonchalantly put up. Granted, they were going at a pace which most people would be shocked at, but after five years dealing with a certain green-eyed monster (and not just Sonic), Donna had gained some note-worthy leg muscles.

However, all the human muscles in the world couldn't keep up with hedgehog muscles, and soon he was running backwards in front of her, inhaling the sweet fragrance that was the local park's cherry orchards, the ocean breeze just a ten-minute walk away, and pure summer air. "Weather like this is just begging for a good run; let's loop the town before work, Donna." Seeing how she was about to throw a fit, the boy slowed down to become uncomfortably close to her front, giving off his trademark grin. "But the question is whether or not you can handle it, Donna."

"O...oh y-yeah?" She mentally picked the annoying preteen in his bright blue bum. Damn him for knowing her soft spots! "R-race you a...around...twice!" He laughed before she ran at her top speed, ignoring the painful shifting of her feet against her heels, and instead focusing on breathing and showing him what she was made of. And as the pale blue sky grew a little darker in its lovely blue, she looped around the houses on the far side of town, doubled back to the beach, and did it all over again, all the whie Sonic cracking jokes about her budding bust-size and her annoying red dress. "C-Call me a c-call girl one..more time, and I'm g...gonna kick your butt into last week!" She swiped at his head and sent him tumbling, upsetting her own balance. They landed in a painful heap outside her workplace, her shift just about to start and lagging bystanders laughing at them.

But it was nothing out of the usual, Sonic thought as he helped his wincing friend to her feet. After all, those slowpokes in their sandals couldn't appreciate his need for speed like Donna could. Hence why she was his best friend.

As to be expected on a Sunday morning, Archie's Diner was at medium capacity, mainly with the elderly citizens of the small town bordering the ocean and groupings of small families. Inhaling the sweet aroma of pancake syrup Donna stretched out her legs, cursing all feminine footwear in general. "Sonic, you know I hate running in heels..."

"Must've slipped my mind. Need any extra help?" The question was directed at Donna's soft-hearted boss, a middle-aged dog aptly named Archie. He nodded in consent before returning to his office, and the hedgehog grinned at his companion, "I guess you're my supervisor today, Donna; got anything to do besides sitting on my butt all day?"

Groaning slightly, she whacked him upside the head, then dragged him by the collar into the kitchen, and slapped a towel in his hands. 'You're on busboy duty today. Put those magic legs of yours to good use and keep your mouth shut." Pausing in her rather maternal demands, she grinned, "Keep out of trouble and after our shift's done we'll go exploring one of the Zones."

Just as Donna hoped his face broke into a very happy grin that infected herself and got her giggling. The Zones around their town were mostly uninhabited, saved for only the hardiest of explorers; needless to say Sonic had been simply dying for someone to take him through a few. "Can we go all the way to Spring Yard Zone? I heard the people who live there use bumpers as elevators!"

"Sure, sure; as long as I tire you out so you actually go to bed before midnight. Now, off to work."

"Yes ma'am!" With a gust of wind he was off bussing tables and probably keeping their customers laughing with his suave charm (and the word suave is used loosely here). Donna smiled then went to her station and picked up her notepad, gliding over to a table of four without the awkward movements that a growing thirteen year old's body came with. She simply hoped that her dress wasn't wrinkling around her bust; strapless dresses tended to do that to her. "Hello, I'm Donna. May I take your order?"

Donna smirked as Sonic shifted his weight between feet, understanding the dilemma. Sundays in a small town weren't exactly the busiest that they could be, and with fifteen minutes before the end of their shifts both of them were admittedly anxious to get out. Flicking a dried piece of grease off a kitchen counter, she completed another round, noting how the aromas of pancakes and waffles were melting into french fries and hamburgers. Maybe she'd take home lunch; all she had at home were frozen dinners, which were good only for lazy days. And seeing how she was apparently running off into the wild this afternoon, she needed some more calories. "Settle down blue boy, the world ain't gonna end just yet."

"Ugh, that's the problem. The only kicks I get in this place are running laps around a certain bombshell's butt every morning." Dodging the indignant kick to his bum he leaned against the wall, emerald eyes closing with a sigh. "I just want out. Maybe I'll go to the other islands, or the mainland...you'll come with me, right?"

Donna understood the actual hurt behind his statement. As much as Sonic loved his life here on little South Island-and she was pretty darn sure he loved it a lot-it simply wasn't enough. Sonic was made for bigger and better things, it was in his very blood...and she would be right there with him. Donna smiled, then ruffled his quills, smiling sweetly, "Of course. After all, somebody's gotta keep you out of trouble, and I don't think your mom will appreciate running around to who knows where with your brother in her belly. Speaking of which, did they think of a name yet?"

He nodded, listening to a muted argument between an irate cook and an even more irate waiter in the back of the steamy kitchen. "Yeah, Mom wants to name the baby Jules, after my dad. But he's thinking more along the lines of something cool, like my name." He made a face. "I agree; Jules is old-sounding."

"Like Donna?" She laughed as he back tracked, then was in the process of teasing him even more (his mother's name took the cake; who could beat Bernadette?) before abruptly stopping. "Sonic...did you feel that?"

"...yeah." They slowly stood up and heard forks clanging about in the sink, watching the door shudder. Running out into the seating area they along with the rest of the customers watched the sky with awe. A large machine, something which Sonic vaguely remembered was called an airship, was descending from the heavens. A large, rather ugly egg-shaped face was grinning on it's side, and without further warning the bottom opened up. A horde of robots descended onto the street, and the windows exploded with a crash as they opened fire. "Donna!"

"Come on, this way!" She honestly had no idea what in the world was going on, but she knew one thing: robots who were currently attacking bystanders and putting them in handcuffs were bad. Very, very bad indeed. Running through the kitchen the two ran out the back into more chaos, unable to stop the robots from taking down every last living thing. Humans, Mobians, and even little animals alike were being tackled and pinned as the metal horde went onwards mercilessly. "L...let's go to the forest! Use those legs, boy!"

"Yes ma'am!" He took the lead and ran for his life, dragging Donna by the hand as they sprinted towards the tree line. The world around her became a blur as he weaved between trees and robots, noting with relief that the latter were decreasing in number. She willed herself to match his speed and barely managed to do so, marveling at how fast her legs seemed to go. Sonic, after jumping over a tree root and catching Donna as she stumbled, was surprised too. "I thought you said you hated running in heels?"

"Desperate times call for some desperate measures! Where are you going?"

"I dunno, Green Hill Zone?" He picked up the pace, and Donna focused on looking through the blur at her surroundings. Robots were less frequent, but they were in the process of rounding up animals and taking them back to that metal monster in the skies above Archie's Diner. She shuddered at the thought of her parents being taken hostage, but was brought back to earth when Sonic stopped abruptly. Donna found herself tumbling head over heel into the ground, groaning as her legs throbbed painfully. "Oh crud, Donna, are you ok?"

"Yeah...as soon as I get some real shoes." Easing out of her battered heels, she and Sonic marveled at their surroundings. It was one thing to read about somewhere, even see pictures, but as soon as their eyes met with rushing waterfalls, brown-chekered earth and palm trees, they fell in love with Green Hill Zone. "Woah..."

"You said it, ma'am." The tranquility of the Zone was abruptly cut off with a loud squealing noise, the kind that microphones emitted when too close to a karaoke machine. Crying out in surprise the more sensitive Sonic clamped his gloves hands over his years, wincing as the squealing died away. 'What the hell...?"

"GREETINGS, CITIZENS OF SOUTH ISLAND!" A large booming voice echoed throughout the valleys and hills, making it seem omnipresent. "AS OF NOW EVERY LAST ONE OF YOU FROM STAR LIGHT ZONE TO THE BEACH TOWNS ARE ALL UNDER MY ROBOT'S CONTROL, SO LET ME INTRODUCE MYSELF-"

"What? No way!" Sonic and Donna exclaimed at the same time, eyes wide with horror at the statement.

"-THE GENIUS DOCTOR IVO ROBOTNIK, SOON TO BE THE LEADER OF THE EGGMAN EMPIRE! AND THIS LITTLE GEM IS THE FIRST OFFICIAL STATE IN MY NEW REALM!-"

"To hell with that!" Donna didn't bother trying to act offended by Sonic's swear, because she was screaming it too (on the inside, of course). "I'm not gonna let you take over!"

"What do you mean, blue boy? This guy just totally took over our city; how can we possibly do anything?" She twisted her hair with fear, bangs falling into her pale face. "I don't think even the army can take down this guy!"

"-ROBOTS ARE NOW PATROLLING EVERY ZONE, SO IF ANY OF YOU TRY AND THINK ABOUT ESCAPING, THERE'S NO HOPE FOR IT! BWAHAHAHAHA!"

The voice of Dr. Robotnik echoed away, leaving Sonic in a fury and Donna in a state of worry. The younger of the two grinned devilishly at his best friend, then replied to her earlier outburst, "You know that I can't just sit around and do nothing, Donna! This...this is the stuff of legends, the stuff that'll get me out of here and into something way past cool. I've been waiting for this my whole life..." His voice cracked at the end; cruel and selfish as it may sound, the madman in the sky was giving him an opportunity he simply couldn't refuse. "Besides...we just gotta do something. Our families and friends are counting on us, everyone on the whole island is, so I'm gonna do all I can to help them." Sonic set off towards the heart of Green Hill, then casually added over his shoulder, "Now I'm down with speeding through this, but something tells me I'm gonna need a juggernaut with the power of...dare I say...a bombshell at my side."

"I dunno..."

"Please." Within that word all the bravado in his posture melted away into a quiet kind of confidence. And he was asking with those big, bright emerald eyes that Donna turned to goo under, and the expression on his face only made it worse. "I need your help."

"...alright." She slipped back on her heels, smirking roguishly, "Somebody's gotta keep your blue butt outta trouble. To Green Hill and beyond, Sonic."

Sonic smiled brightly, then abruptly pulled her into a damsel-carry, and sped off into the grassy plains and palm trees with Donna whooping out into the blurring wind. Oh sure, this Dr. Robotnik guy (if the face on the airship was his face, then in Sonic's opinion he was more of an Eggman) had robots and the control of the island on his side. He would give the madman that.

But Sonic had his best friend Donna on his side, fists of fury and high heels and all, and that was pretty much all he needed.

Reviews aren't mandatory, but I'd love to hear how you guys think of this :)