Neviza the Hedgehog was an average girl. She stood 5'6'' and attended public school with many other hedgehogs. Like practically every young hedgehog, she wanted to grow up to be like the famous hero of her kind, Sonic. The blue blur. The fastest thing alive.
But Neviza took it one step further. She had styled her quills in a similar manner to Sonic. She hid their natural brown color with copious amounts of blue dye. She owned three pairs of bright red sneakers. One pair to wear (replaced when they became old and tattered), one pair to display out on her shelf for all her friends to admire, and one pair stored in their unopened box deep within her closet where no one could ever find them or taint them with a touch.
Yes, Neviza truly had a deep passion for her idol, Sonic.
One day as Neviza sat painfully still in her art fundamentals class, daydreaming as always, her teacher announced that a guest speaker had come to the school to teach a specialized lesson. Neviza was uninterested until the name of the visitor was announced. None other than Sonic himself would be giving the students a rundown on character development. Neviza felt an unbearable chill of pleasure shoot through her nerves at this prospect. What an opportunity! Her daydreaming quickly turned positively orgasmic.
After several torturous minutes, Sonic the Hedgehog stepped through the doorway and into the classroom with a somber look on his face. The room roared with applause as the mighty figure before them set his bags down and shot them an unnoticed, tired gaze.
Amongst the cheers and screams, Sonic walked slowly towards Neviza's desk. Her heart pounded on her sternum as if trying to escape and mate with the eyes of the cerulean titan before her.
"Stop it," Sonic uttered. He gently grasped Neviza's arm and pulled off the white gloves concealing her slender, beige hands. She turned them over, these hands she had hid all her life. She didn't like their cracks, their blemishes. She hated everything about those terrible hands.
"Your name is Neviza and you are a beautiful human being," Sonic whispered.
Neviza stammered, "I am not a human being."
"You don't need to do this to yourself."
"I am nobody."
"If you want to be somebody, you can start by ending this act. Stop trying to be me."
Neviza's eyes welled up with tears. "What can I do?"
Sonic put a hand to Neviza's back and helped her to her feet. "Look around you. The world is art. Make it yours. I believe in you. You don't need me anymore." He repeated these sentences as he led her slowly to the window.
"Now fly on your own merit," Sonic shouted. He tossed Neviza through the open window and tore off her fake spiky helmet as she fell. Her brilliantly frizzy hair licked around her head like a brush, splattering her thoughts about for all the world to see. Wings of orange paint sprouted from her back and she flew off over the endless urban sprawl of California in fearful awe.