"Hey, Slimely!" Sonic brayed one late March afternoon.
"What, Sonic," Snively replied, very annoyed with the hedgehog.
"When are we gonna go through Sam's mansion?"
"Tomorrow." 'Tomorrow's the day we go. Tomorrow's the day we go through Sam's mansion and uproot the peace there,' the human thought unhappily.
"You know, I really miss her," Sonic said, "but I don't think I'll ever know how much it hurts to lose someone of that importance." For once, the blue hedgehog seemed wise beyond his years, for only being nineteen and typically annoying. Snively glanced to his right and saw his son with Mina Mongoose, both looking worried, glancing over at him every few seconds.
"Excuse me for a moment," he said, dismissing himself. The hedgehog watched him go, knowing exactly where he was going and felt bad for him.
- - -
"Why did you have to die?" Snively asked aloud, placing his hand on the glass case of Sam's coffin. He was thankful for how the Moon Kingdom honored their monarchy. They buried them in glass coffins, which had an enchantment on them, preserving the monarch's original look before they had died. He stared at his lost friend's face, wishing more than anything that she was alive and they were planning their second wedding. He wasn't sure how long he was at Sam's grave but knew it was almost sundown when he turned and walked to his hut, reluctantly going on with his life.
- - -
"What do I do with this here box?" Bunnie inquired the next day.
"Set it by the door," Sophia replied, carrying a box herself. The day had finally come; the day Sam's mansion was being cleaned out, and it was taking forever. So far, they had three of the twelve upstairs bedrooms and three of the five bathrooms cleaned out.
"Man, I can't believe Sam had this much stuff," Sonic griped.
"Sonic," Sally said, "we're about to take a lunch break. Just help finish this room and we'll eat." That seemed to motivate the rest of the group and they soon completed the task at hand. They hurried downstairs to the kitchen, scrambling for places at the table. In the kitchen, Alicia and Morgan were making final preparations on the meal while Melissa and Erika set the table.
Ever since Sam had died, the group had decided Erika should handle the release of Sam's second album. She, after all, knew the most about that particular industry. She was planning to release it at the same time she released her second Cd. The group ate in silence, listening to their lost friend's debut album.
"It's certainly been awhile since I've heard this," Shadow commented, getting nods from everyone else.
"Hey guys," Alex said, "look at this." She carried some papers to the table, handing them to Sally.
"These look like her plans for her upcoming album," the princess said, going through them in order. Snively took the papers and glanced through them briefly, recognizing them.
"She's shown me these before! No wonder they seemed so familiar to me," he said, passing them around. The order was kept precise the whole time they were being passed:
Can't Fight the Moonlight
Stranger
Fly
Million Voices
LaLa
Waiting
Gypsy Woman
Who's that Girl?
I'm Glad
Waiting for Tonight
Since U Been Gone
I Hope You Dance
Liar
Anything but Up
"She's always been dedicated, hasn't she?" Melissa spoke.
"Hey guys, this looks kinda important," Sonic said, pulling a halfway official looking document from the rest of the papers.
"That looks like her will," said Rotor. Sophia took it, reading it quickly.
"Yeah, it's definitely her will and it's completely obvious that she didn't have a lawyer nearby when this was written," Sophia said.
"What's it say?" Morgan inquired. Sally looked at it before reading:
"'If you are all hearing this, then I must have died. Now, I know no one's crying right now. I've decided that my money be split into different parts. A sixth of it will go to my amazing kids, each. Another will go to the Senshi because I know how much it costs to get a weapon repaired or something. And the rest goes to the love of my life, which you should all know by now. The estate will be given to the Freedom Fighters, in case they need a break or just an extra base. I would like for Erika to take control of my music, for she has the most experience in that area.
"'Sydney should have all of my weapons; she knows where they are. I don't really care what happens to my vehicles, except the lambo. I want Snively to have that as well. I want Simon, my favorite guard, to have any of my plants, of his choice. Elizabeth, my awesome foster mom, can have any of the antiques I bought when I traveled Earth. Anything else the rest of you can divide amongst yourselves. That's pretty much it.
Later,
Sam Brody,'"
Sally read.
"She wrote that short and sweet," Erika said, taking a bite of potato salad. The rest of the meal was continued in silence, listening to Sam's Cd. Afterwards, they went back upstairs to finish what they had started. Sophia and Snively set some empty boxes in Sam's bedroom. While they were leaving the room, Snively let Sophia ahead of him and shut and locked the door instead of leaving the room. He went through his love's old belongings, packing them in boxes alone, ignoring Sophia's demands to let her in.
He got in the bed, smelling Sam's scent strongly. He rolled over and looked at the bed stand before opening the drawer. He saw a couple of pill bottles, a notebook, and a picture. He took out the bottles, noticing one was for headaches and pain, while the other was...'birth control? Why on Mobius would she need this?' Snively wondered. He shook the bottle, coming to a conclusion that it was half-full. He checked the expiration date, immediately taking notice of something off. 'If she were to take one of these a day, then it should have been empty a week before Christmas...meaning she stopped taking these the day I took the kids to her in August! She knew that I still liked her, but how?' He pulled the notebook out, seeing song lyrics and letters that were partly written. The letters were all addressed to him. One in particular grabbed his attention, which was written a year ago.
/Snively,
I had the strangest dream tonight. I dreamt that I was in a hospital and you and I were talking. You said I was in an accident with a semi. Strange, right? After you left the room, it felt like I couldn't breathe. A doctor, two nurses, and, surprisingly, Sydney came to my aid. I could hear you pounding on the door, demanding to be let it. Then, I saw a girl with black hair and green eyes; she kind of reminded me of Sydney's sister, Ann. I can't figure out why no one could see her. Well, like I said, it's just a dream, like our marriage. It doesn't mean a thing./
He picked up the picture, not understanding why she had a picture of him. What concerned him more was there was a faint marking of a kiss.
"Snively! Let me in!" Sophia yelled. He sighed miserably, got up, and let her in.
"About damn time," she snapped.
"Leave me alone," he replied coldly, carrying a box out of the room.
- - -
"Dad! Guess what?!" Hope cried out, running through the mansion, catching everyone's attention.
"What?" he asked wearily, exhausted.
"I got asked out!"
"What," he answered, saying it more as a statement.
"Yeah, you know, like a date?"
"That's not what I meant. When is it?"
"Well, tomorrow, but I swear I'll get all of my homework done before I go," Hope spoke quickly.
"I...suppose it's alright. But, I expect you back here by nine sharp," Hope's father replied.
"I promise," she replied, walking off to do homework.
- - -
The following day went much like the day before; stressful and long. The real estate woman was supposed to be there at any precise moment. Snively paced the mansion, disturbing any who were working.
"Calm down; I assure you that the woman will be here any second," Shadow stated. And, he was correct; the doorbell rang precisely when the ebony hedgehog stopped talking. He watched as his friend hurried shamefully to the door.
"Are you," the agent said, shuffling her papers, "ahm, Mr. Kintobor?"
"Yes: please, come in," he replied, opening the door more to let the real estate agent in. After fifteen minutes, the mortgages were signed to the Freedom Fighters.
"Thank you so much for helping me with these," Snively said, shaking the woman's hand. The woman pulled him forward, giving him a kiss. He drew back in disgust, seeing Hope by the doorframe of the room.
"You traitor!" she screamed, running down the hall and up the stairs.
"What the hell was that for?" he demanded. He guided the real estate agent to the door and once she was outside, Snively slammed the door shut. He went upstairs to talk to Hope quickly. He knocked on her bedroom door, hearing her say something. He tried to talk to her for at least five minutes before finally giving up. He left her alone, figuring she'd want to talk later.
- - -
"Where is she?! She's two and a half hours late!" Snively said. He was pacing around in a large room in the mansion.
"Has she called?" Shadow inquired.
"No! If the boy did anything to her," he began, exasperated.
"Yo, Snerdly! When we gonna eat?" Sonic demanded.
"No kidding," Sydney commented, seeing others nod as well.
"Alright, alright. I'll go get a few things. But, if Hope calls or something, contact me immediately," the overlander male replied. He walked out onto the stoop and stopped short. For there was Hope with her date, standing in the middle of the stoop, kissing lustily.
"Hope Elizabeth, what is the meaning of this?!" Snively demanded. She turned to face him quickly, face flushed.
"D-Dad! W-what are you d-doing here?" She knew she blew it; he had that look that told her she was in trouble.
"Perhaps it would be wise to tell your friend goodbye," her father said.
"'Bye, Elrick," Hope said sadly. She went inside quickly, slamming the door behind her.
"Sir, she wasn't late. We were just out here talking and- and I was just giving her a goodnight kiss," Elrick said, looking extremely bashful.
"I'd noticed. You should go home; it's late," Snively replied.
"If you don't mind, I could use a ride home," the teenager spoke.
"Give me a moment to let the others know what I'm doing."
- - -
The quick trip home wasn't a pleasant one. His eldest daughter was infuriated with him and refused to come home. That was until Mecha picked her up and carried her through the portal. From there, the fourteen year-old ran to her home and locked herself in her bedroom. Snively knocked on Hope's door after he had put Chibi down for bed.
"Go away."
"Hope, come on. We need to discuss this."
"I already know what you're going to say, so just leave me alone."
"Hope."
"Dad."
He sighed. "If you do not open this door in three seconds, you're going to be grounded."
"Well, I guess I'm grounded then," Hope snapped from behind the door.
"I suppose so," Snively said angrily. He went to his bedroom and slammed the door. He dressed for bed and laid down, staring at the ceiling for what seemed like forever. 'You'd know what to do about Hope,' he thought, referring to Sam. He stared at the ceiling an excruciatingly long hour more before finally drifting off into a fitful sleep, until peace came in the form of an angel...
- - -
"Snively...Snively?...Come on, get up." Snively opened his icy blue eyes, only to shut them, for the sun was shining brightly. 'Wait, I know that voice from somewhere.' He sat up to see a lush field of prairie grass and wild flowers with a castle-like structure in the background with a swing in the tall oak tree. He could barely see a crystal clear lake behind the structure, shining vigorously. He stood and walked to the castle, wondering where the voice went, and more specifically, who the owner of the voice was.
He opened the large wooden door and went inside. A very large crystal chandelier hung in the middle of the domed ceiling while the floor was covered with dark red carpet. The carpet reminded him of blood or his ex-wife's favorite wine. He wasn't sure why. He noticed a fountain in the middle of the floor, standing alone in its elegance.
He looked up to the spiral staircase to see a girl with shoulder-length, wavy brown hair, clear blue eyes, and appeared to be his height. She was beautiful to him. Snively admired the pure white dress the girl was wearing; the dress was strapless, hugging her chest snuggly, so it wouldn't fall and the skirt fell exactly at her knees. Her feet were covered with white heels where the thin straps encircled her ankles. She also had white, angel wings, making her all-around appearance look angelic.
It seemed as if the woman had glided down the stairs because her moving so graceful, but her wings were folded. 'She did not fly,' he decided, 'but is naturally lithe.' She stopped before him, letting him touch her face with his hands, wearing a mournful expression upon her face.
"This can't be happening," he murmured, touching her wings gently, pulling back when she moved them. He decided that he wasn't going to touch them anymore.
"It's because it's not." 'Her voice is just as lovely as well.'
"I know, but this is the first pleasant dream I've had of you since your death, Sam," he replied.
"I know and there's a reason for it. Come," Sam said, leading him outside by the hand.
"Where are you taking me?" Snively inquired, following her to the back of the castle.
"You'll see. By the way, enjoying the view?" she smirked.
"Yes, it's beautiful," he answered, then understood the double meaning of her words.
"I meant the greenery, but if you like-"
"You know very well what I meant," Snively said stiffly. He looked around her and saw a blanket laying by the lake with a hand woven picnic basket on it. Sam had lain down on the blanket, trying to appear appealing while looking up at him, her wings flexed outwards. He sat down by her, stroking her hair. She reached her hand up and caressed his neck and then curled her fingers in his hair. He gave her a robust kiss, making sure it was held out for as long as possible. He opened the picnic basket to see a meal inside. She sat up, leaning on him.
"Are you very hungry?" he inquired.
"No, but we need to talk."
"What about?" he asked, beginning to kiss her neck, noticing her trying not to enjoy it, which only made him do it with more feeling. He felt her pulse quicken considerably when he had.
"About Hope," she replied, noticing his expression turn sour as he pulled away from her.
"What about her do we need to talk about?"
"The fact that you grounded her for no apparent reason," Sam said, laying back down, pulling him down with her.
"What are you talking about? She came home over two hours late. She needed to be punished," Snively replied.
"She was on time, I promise you. She and Elrick were sitting on the front porch."
"Sam, I caught them on the stoop mak-"
"-saying goodnight. You just stumbled through the door at the wrong time."
"So, you're saying I misjudged her and was unfair?" She took a bite out of a grape, then smiled.
"That's exactly what I'm saying." He sat up and dug through the picnic basket until he found some type of food that looked interesting. He ate something that was green and fluffy.
"What is this? It's amazing," Snively said.
"Mmm, Watergate salad," she replied, sitting up also, stealing a bite off of the fork he was using. After throwing her a foul look, he gave her another kiss, laying her on her back gently, feeling her wings fold around them both, making the light between them darker. She wrapped her arms around his back, playing with his hair with her fingers. He parted from her, feeling her trying to pull him back down, but eventually give up and flex her wings so he could get off of her.
"Sam, can't you come back? To me?" Snively asked. She sadly shook her head and looked at the lake, liking that he had his hand on her belly.
"I can't; I'm dead." He took her in his arms, kissing her cheek.
"You've cheated death many times before; why is this any different?" he inquired.
"Snively, I've done good all my life. My time is up. I'm sorry," Sam said. She stood and helped him up, walking him back to the front of the castle.
"What are you doing?" he asked.
"It's almost daybreak. You're going to wake up any moment," she said, standing in front of him.
"Why? This is a dream come true. I don't want to wake up if it means leaving you," he said, holding her hand.
"You need to stop thinking that way. You'll end up how I was when you died."
"But, I lo-"
"I know you do. But, you need to move on without me. The kids really need you right now. More than I do."
"I understand you fully. I love you," Snively said giving her one last kiss.
"I love you too," Sam replied, giving him a kiss. She watched him walk away in sadness, then remembered something.
"Don't forget to unground Hope, Love!"
"I will. Goodbye, Angel," Snively said, casting one last look at her before walking into what looked like a dull-gray mist...
- - -
Snively groaned and turned in his bed and saw Hope staring at him with concerned eyes.
"What is it, Hope?" he croaked.
"I was just wondering if you were okay."
"I'm fine."
"But you kept saying Mom's name in your sleep." 'I need to do it. I promised Sam,' he thought. He sat up and gestured for his daughter to sit by him, to which she abided by.
"Hope, I've thought about it and strongly feel that-"
"I know, Dad. I should have let you know I was home. I'm really sorry. But, I really like Elrick," Hope interrupted.
"I know, which is why I'm ungrounding you," her father replied.
"You are?"
"Don't sound happy or anything," he said. "Now, off to bed." Hope nodded, looking more relieved than when she had first came in.
"Night, Dad. I love you," she said, leaving her father in bafflement. 'She said she loved me...I've never heard her say that to me.' He considered getting up and inquire her about it, but disregarded it. He lay back down, thinking about the dream he had of Sam, and how wonderful it was to hear her voice again. He sighed and groaned in exasperation and got out of bed, sliding on his boots. He slipped outside into the dark carefully, so the night guards would not see him. He stood in front of the glass case of Sam's coffin. He stayed there the rest of the night, watching the deceased, eventually falling asleep.
- - -
"Hey, what are you doing way out here?" a female voice queried.
"Huh?" Snively answered, opening his eyes, seeing Erika, who was blocking the blazing sun from his view.
"What time is it?" he continued.
"8:30."
"What?!"
"The kids are still asleep...Hey, what's that?" the pop singer asked. He stood, taking notice of what she was pointing at. On the bottom of Sam's coffin was an engraving that was not supposed to be there. And, even more specific, the short message angered them both.
"Ann killed her. Ann killed Sam," Snively said, clenching his fists, his nails digging into the palms of his hands.
"I..I guess that means war, huh?" Erika declared woefully, seeing anger on his face.
"Uh, can you look at my discography?" she inquired, quickly changing the subject, trying to distract him from his fury. He nodded and took a paper from her hands and read it:
1. Girl in the band
2. All Around Me
3. Before He Cheats
4. Umbrella
5. Single
6. Girlfriend
7. Rush ft. Alex Jones
8. Lithium
9. Haunted
10. Behind these Hazel Eyes
11. Revolution
12. The Getaway
13. Call Me when You're Sober
14. Come Clean
15. Let the Flames Begin
"It's good," he said, giving her the paper then quickly walked away.
"You were murdered. You will get revenge," Erika said darkly, looking at Sam, "because your lover will deliver it." Her only reply was the wind blowing through her hair.
The End...
Q.N.
It looks like Sam is permanently gone...or is she? Who wrote the message on her sarcophagus? More importantly, what did Erika mean? Find out soon...
Sam's song order for her Cd is:
Can't Fight the Moonlight—LeeAnn Rimes
Stranger—Hilary Duff
Fly—Hilary Duff
Million Voices—Barlow Girl
LaLa—Ashlee Simpson
Waiting—Fireflight
Gypsy Woman—Hilary Duff
Who's that Girl?—Hilary Duff
I'm Glad—Jennifer Lopez
10. Waiting for Tonight—Jennifer Lopez
11. Since U Been Gone—Kelly Clarkson
12. I Hope You Dance—Lee Ann Womack ft. Sons of the Desert 13. Liar—Fireflight
14. (I'll Give) Anything but Up—Hilary Duff
And, Erika's Cd is:
Girl in the Band—Haylie Duff
All Around Me—Flyleaf
Before He Cheats—Carrie Underwood
Umbrella—Rihanna ft. Jay-Z
Single—Natasha Bedingfield
Girlfriend—Avril Lavigne
Rush—Aly and Aj
Lithium—Evanescence
Haunted—Evanescence
10. Behind these Hazel Eyes—Kelly Clarkson
11. Revolution—Inhabited
12. The Getaway—Hilary Duff
13. Call Me when you're Sober—Evanescence
14. Come Clean—Hilary Duff
The title song is:
'When You're Gone' by Avril Lavigne
Review please!
Later!
M.P.
Moon Princess