"It's Christmas, Knuckles!" Sonia cried gleefully, oblivious to the icy flakes pattering down her fur lined winter coat. She giggled at the sight of the echidna trying to brush away the annoying particles of white, amber eyes glistening as they observed the bland sky with half interest.
"So? All I get are these…stupid snowflakes getting in the way," he said in a frustrating matter, arms waving frantically as they tried clearing out the endless bits of white pattering down his fur. Sonia merely rolled her eyes, stretching her arms wide as they tried to embrace the large league of snow covering one quarters of the forest floor.
"Look at it this way! We can party with Sonia, Manic and Cyrus and plus," she gave a devilish wink almost, but filled with the essence of mischievous fun, "I can bring in some of my home made cooking! I know you like it."
Knuckles stared at her in disbelief. You think I only want Christmas because of the food?"
Sonia sniffed. "Well, you acted like you really enjoyed the blueberry pancakes I brought over last week."
There was a silence after this, before he finally commented in a gruff tone. "Fine, fine. We'll have the stupid party…but you have to get me presents," he added haughtily, in hopes of covering up his unusual sincere disposition earlier on. The pink haired teenager tilted her head and laughed, a lovely music echoing through the forest. Knuckles could only stare in bewilderment as she finished laughing.
"Christmas isn't all about presents, Knuckles," she said earnestly, looking up to him, "it's about love, fun, friends, and the care we show for each other! Presents and gifts are just a way of gratitude and appreciation that we do care about loves ones," at this, a small blush crept up her face, coughing rather nervously. "Of course, friends also take part, but it's just that spirit of Christmas that counts." She said delicately, almost wistfully with the soft feathery tone in her voice.
Knuckles eyed her with apprehension, before sticking his head up, staring at the grand sky towering before them. "Gee, Christmas must be pretty important down there were you live, isn't it? With all this…loved ones and spirit junk."
Sonia's face hardened, as she said in a firm voice, "not junk, but the true self. You have a long way to go before you can finally understand what it is."
The red echidna muttered under his breath what vaguely sounded like 'bastard." Unfortunately, Sonia heard.
"Sonia wacked Knuckles across the head, knocking him off the stump he sat on."
A loud thump followed this, as a snow figure emerged from the ground, following by a precarious stream of swears escaping his lips as he glared at the giggling girl.
"You can be annoying sometimes," he growled irritably, brushing snow off his strands of crimson fur.
"I think I'll take that as a good thing," she eyed him once, a smile curving up her lips.
'
Neither of them spoke for a while, the cliff that they were on presenting an excellent view. Streams of gold and orange could be seen at a distance, a dusky rose stretching up towards the pale wispy clouds. It was a wonderful sight, as Sonia's black eyes sparkled with delight. She edged closer to Knuckles, as he was obviously unaware of her movement, and her hands pushed.
"What the-?" Knuckles had barely begun those words before she sent him tumbling down, lying flat on the bottom of the slope, as he growled with annoyance again. "Sonia! What was that for? Way to ruin one of our rare quiet moments," he said sarcastically, handing her a dirty look as he began to stand up. Sonia's glitter in her eyes stopped him.
"No, no, no! Stand up slowly, Knuckles. If you mess this one up too, I'll be amazed."
Knuckles blinked in confusion, doing as she requested. When he turned around, he saw an unmistakable form of an angel, arms wide and…
"See? This is called a snow angel! Isn't it fun?"
His lips jerked up, as he finally let out words of satisfaction. "Yeah, it's fun. Too bad it's only fun when you're the one doing the pushing," he remarked sardonically, pushing Sonia. It was a split second when she fell, her back carved in a graceful arch before finally falling down, lying flat on her back. A look of protest crept up her face, before she finally let out laughter of appreciation, struggling to get back up.
"Now that…was unfair," she said calmly. "But I can do better," Before Knuckles could ask what she meant, Kagome had kicked the echidna in the ankle knocking him to the ground.
Another loud thump, as Knuckles cursed in protest, anger flaring up as easily as it had done before.
"Damn you," he said furiously, getting up without hesitation.
In moments both were in a wide range of turmoil on the snow, each trying to pull each other down without getting dragged down themselves. No matter how Knuckles ran, he could not catch that lovely pink fured hedgehog running as if it were easy. She was playing with him, like when a wolf plays with its prey before its meal, she was playing with him.
"Knuckles! You're cheating, you can't tug my coat," Sonia complained, but a flicker of mischievousness created a corpulent shadow dancing in her eyes.
She pushed Knuckles on the ground without hesitation.
"Now you're cheating!"
"Am not!"
"Oh really?"
He defiantly scraped up the last remnants of his patience, hands never grasping Sonia. She could escape as easily as before, and all she had to blurt out was a word, Stop. To make him powerless against her charming demeanor. Still, her face never lost that cheerful expression, as it dawned to him. She was enjoying this. And so was he.
With a playful savage growl, he pounced. It had meant to be a mere jump or two, but this time, Sonia could not escape as easily. Knuckles had caught her, as both of them let out startled cries of shock. He had misfortunately pushed them both down another slope.
"Knuckle!" she gasped in surprise, gripping him tightly as both could merely wait until the slope finally came to a stop.
When it did, it was awkward. Sonia let out a small breath of puff, her cheeks pink from the cold and the situation they were in. Knus on top of her, as both their face met for a brief second. She had seen his eyes, how they were…staring at her. Unlike before. Kagome had been his…friend, or ally even, but just for that momentary pause, something flicked past their own memories and emotions.
"Excuse me," he mumbled in embarrassment, quickly getting off of Kagome. She nodded abruptly once, getting off the ground as well. When they did, Inuyasha could only laugh.
"What's so funny?" Kagome demanded, obviously nervous from his sudden behavior.
He merely pointed at the spot they had gotten up from, and he grinned, relieved to see the flushed girl laughing along with him. For there was a misshapen silhouette of an angel on the ground, but it was still a beautiful angel indeed.
"You know," Kagome said softly, yet suddenly. "Christmas is about being with your loved ones…"
For a moment, neither of them spoke, before Inuyasha nodded once.
"Maybe it isn't as stupid as it looks. Who knows," he shrugged carelessly, but inside he couldn't help feeling a strong tug towards this simple, ordinary girl. Both of them stared at each other, as Kagome blushed fast, trying desperately to remain casual and nonchalant.
"Well, maybe-"
Her words were cut off, as Inuyasha lost control of his urging pressure. His lips met hers, and Kagome could think of one thing. There was a familiar scent of the dome of a cherished serenity, memories flooding by as Kagome wondered. Their shadows were nothing more but the misshapen angel figure on the ground, but everything seemed to be a blur as the world went slowly by. Slowly. Because she wanted to savor every last ounce of time they had left, even the delicate kiss.
Snow Angels
"Merry Christmas, Inuyasha…"