Sonic had been in this city longer than he'd been anywhere else. He had a usual at every restaurant. He was on a first name basis with everyone. He had his own spot where anyone in town could find him if they needed him. Sitting in this spot, Sonic was somewhat surprised at the revelation he'd had while deciding what to do that day. He'd settled down. This rural city, isolated by the national park on one side and the wildlife preserve on the other, seemed to be the perfect place to do so, too. It seemed like an oxymoron, but the fact that soft, rolling plains and massive trees converged on skyscrapers was a rather amusing contrast that Sonic found endearing. Sonic hopped out of the redwood that was unofficially his and bounced to a stop before heading into the city for lunch.
A few minutes later, Sonic was munching on a chilidog in one of the local diners. It was crowded but quiet. Way quieter than normal, noticed Sonic. He set down his mostly-eaten lunch and looked around. The other patrons gave him worried glances. Mothers held their children close. Raising an eyebrow at their unusual behavior, Sonic motioned to a waitress walking by. She came to his table and leaned in as Sonic leaned forward to whisper in her ear.
"What's going on, Harriet? Everyone seems…Worried."
Harriet seemed worried too as she shakily replied: "Shadow the Hedgehog."
Sonic knew Shadow, or at least, he used to. Some time ago they were sort-of friends. A few years back though, Sonic had been heading out of town when he came across Shadow, who had been practicing some kind of martial arts when Sonic got in the way. In other words, Sonic got the snot beaten out of him by complete and utter accident. Before Sonic could realize what happened, he was waking up in a hospital a week later, still in pain. Sonic was sorry for interrupting Shadow's practice, but he could never seem to find Shadow to apologize.
The last Sonic had heard of Shadow was that "she" had been released from a high-security insane asylum with "her" caretaker's insistence that "she" was no longer a threat to "herself" or anyone. Sonic had never heard that Shadow had been put into an insane asylum in the first place, and he supposed that either the caretaker or the news reporter had trouble with gender-specific pronouns.
Now, Shadow was coming to town, and all the citizens were apprehensive. Sonic understood their concern. There was a time when Shadow could be very dangerous, and Sonic wasn't entirely sure that time was over. However, he was willing to risk it.
Sonic could see every entrance and exit from his spot. The city was laid out like a map before him. Shadow would enter by one of three ways- car, by the highway; bicycle, by the national park's bike path; or by plane, to the airstrip just opposite the highway. Sonic narrowed down the options easily: the airstrip was closed, because the runway was due for resurfacing, and the national park's resort was mostly empty in the dead of summer (save for some camping nuts who want a little more than the bare necessities). But about an hour up the highway was the next city, where Shadow had yet to be seen.
As Sonic considered every possible way for Shadow to enter the city and why he would use that way in particular, his mind hit a point where it stalled like the engine of the old, broken-down tour bus that wandered back and forth between the cities in the summer. For a minute, all Sonic thought about was bird calls. He picked out a particular call and managed to attract a rather depressing-looking blue jay before he recalled the previous simile. The bus. It had left around noon and was probably going to be bringing back a load of passengers- and Shadow might be included. Sonic again left his spot, running along the tree line to see if he could find that bus.
The bus was just passing the halfway point when Sonic caught up to it. The old thing was rumbling along, barely holding together. Sonic ran alongside the big, green tourist-toter, looking into the windows at all the unfamiliar faces who stared off into the trees, curious onlookers hoping for a nice vacation before heading home with a few souvenirs and memories. Then Sonic saw Shadow. The black hedgehog leaned against the window, fast asleep, breath slightly fogging the window and obscuring his muzzle. For some reason, this made Sonic smile. He had never seen Shadow sleep before. He had never seen Shadow sit down before. And the fact that Shadow was asleep on the crowded bus let Sonic know that Shadow was different. He wasn't in town to sightsee. He might even be here to stay. This thought gave Sonic a pleasant feeling. He could make up for his mistake; make sure there were no hard feelings.
Sonic exceeded the speed limit and headed back to the city. Things were looking up.