~*Upside Down
And Turned Around*~
It was unbearable.
Sometimes.
But even the stoic Blaze had her weaknesses, and one of the largest was a boy with silver fur and bright golden eyes shining with the typical bravado of a kid that thinks he can do anything. But maybe he can—he certainly has the spirit and determination and power. But it hurts so bad to see him tossed around by Iblis or whatever monster comes their way, and he always stumbles back to his feet. It makes him a hero, she always thought, because he was striving for success not just for him, but everyone else.
If that was being a hero, she wished, just once, he would be selfish.
How ironic, that it was her worrying for him. Silver had met her when they had been much younger and innocent. Bullies had been teasing her, and the hedgehog had swooped in with a display of telepathic power to scare away the tormentors. Insecure, unsure Blaze had tentatively accepted his thank you, and the pair had gone on to be best friends.
She wondered where that innocence had gone.
Young Silver had the same bright eyes and resolute smile, but his voice had been lighter and his stance more relaxed. For the first three years she had known him, the little hedgehog had a ring of black fur around both of his eyes, almost like he was wearing glasses. She thought it was utterly adorable, but he had been relieved when the strange color faded, and the trademark whitish hue of his pelt erased the "spectacles".
That hadn't been the only thing to change over time. Silver grew taller, wirier, his quills lengthening and his voice shifting into a deeper tone, though it was never very heavy. Blaze herself had also been altered by the relentless pull of time, but it wasn't something that bothered her, even when her frame grew more elegant and her voice more regal.
One of the things that never changed, physically anyway, was Silver's tuft of unruly fur on his chest and Blaze's fire marks. The same blemishes of orangey yellow on her skin that glowed underneath the jacket like tiny suns, which had given her former tormentors' fuel to their fire.
Blaze recalled Silver when he had been growing up. One of his greatest fears was that he would outgrow his telekinetic powers. But the special energy rings on his palms grew and changed with him, their shades deepening into a luminescent aquamarine.
She herself had no such worries, because she knew his worries were groundless.
It hurt terribly, though, to see Silver struggle through every day with dark eyes, getting worse and worse as they realized something.
Iblis, he couldn't be killed.
The Flames of Disaster would fade away for a while—giving them a false moment of victory—then return elsewhere and slowly recover until he was a swirling nightmare of fire and embers. Still, the boy poor continued to fight the monster, even when his fur was tinged black with soot and ash.
And Blaze, she was always right beside him.
During a point in the years, it had grown too much for Blaze to bear. She had spotted Iblis, but instead of telling Silver, she planned to just give him a day off. Unfortunately, Silver had performed not just his patrol route, but Blaze's too, and saw the chaotic monster as it reared from the lava. He had snapped at her angrily, knowing she had seen it, telling her he had to save everyone, and then proceeding to head for the monster without a backwards glance at his concerned friend.
Irritated by his foolishness, Blaze had retreated to their shared home.
And that's when she started calling him naïve.
Blaze was an orphan. Her parents were long gone. The subdued girl had wandered what was left of the city and tried to fit in somewhere, but she had been shunned for her fire powers, which they—the people--thought was linked to Iblis. They had considered her a familiar of him. Whereas now, she was hesitantly accepted due to her involvement with Silver.
Silver, he had lost his parents too, to the fire beast. She didn't understand how he could still insist on being a hero, still be so happy and fiercely determined, even when the world had stripped everything away from him. She was surprised he hadn't turned black inside and secluded himself somewhere within his mind, becoming dark and bottomless like an endless abyss.
But he hadn't.
Blaze had asked him about it once, why he wanted to save everyone. There were points when she didn't care about the world at all, and just wanted to be safe, with Silver.
He had given her such a strange, long, hard look from his golden eyes that she hadn't brought it up again. It was as if he was disappointed.
One day after that, Silver's powers suddenly increased, as if in answer to his prayers. The hedgehog was capable of flight, for short distances. Blaze balked at the prospect of lifting her feet off the ground for longer than necessary. Heights were one of her fears—she could overcome it if need be—but she'd rather walk the earth if she had a choice in the matter.
With his ability to soar, the hedgehog turned up his search for Iblis. It increased tenfold, and Blaze had no choice but to traipse after him so the young boy wouldn't kill himself. She felt awfully responsible for his safety, because if something happened to him, she didn't know what she'd do.
Well, she knew what she'd do to the guy that did it…just not what she'd do afterwards.
Time seemed to have bled into an endless repetition of battles, broken only occasionally by other events.
No Silver, you are not going inside that building, I don't care if it's "only halfway submerged in lava".
Then, it happened. The question that had been irritating her for years would soon be answered. Blaze lifted her head in surprise as Silver said to her quietly, "You want to know why I fight to save everyone?"
She nodded slowly, as if he was a shy creature that had to be treated with a soft voice and calm movements.
"I had to think about for a while." He sighed, lifting one gloved hand to point to the barely intact city on the horizon. "I protect them because I don't want anything to happen to them. I don't want kids losing family members or others having to suffer the horror of losing someone else, like I did. That, is why I fight. I fight for their happiness, whether they know it…or not."
Blaze had let him leave without saying anything, and the young cat—she rarely ever felt young—flicked her ears in surprise, still looking at the city.
She thought she had so much to teach him.
It appeared it was the other way around.
~***~
I hadn't written any Sonic stuff for a while, so here's a completely random drabble.
Wow, 101 stories. Wooo~.
If you enjoyed it, or not, reviews are welcome and much appreciated!