Don't Take Wooden Nickles
1: Hide and Seek
By Hikari-san42
Rating: Ranging from K - T depending on Drabble (T for this one)
Warnings: Cuss words. (Teenagers, what do you expect?)
NOTES: I found a few drabbles hanging around in a flashdrive I thought I had lost a few days ago, and I decided that they needed to be posted. That being said, there isn't a specific length I'm going for. I'm just writing for fun and getting it out there. If any specific thing gets enough feedback or interest I might expand on it.

Disclaimer: I don't own any recognizable material in this story.

Hide and Seek

Sometimes, Knuckles felt that his life was out of balance. Most of the time, he was completely at peace – like this morning, when he had been lounging in the sun, hat propped on his head, gazing at the clouds and getting in a few extra winks of sleep – while at other times, he was on edge and completely ready to kill something, preferably with his fists and a loud, insane yet intimidating sounding cry.

Now was defiantly one of those times.

But, really, could you blame him? Anyone would be on edge if Sonic and Tails were running around their home playing 'let's hide insert-inanimate-object-here and you find it!' without abandon. Of course, he had tried his hardest to stop them, but if there's one thing Sonic wasn't, it was thin-skulled, and he simply grabbed Tails and dashed off to a different Zone, forcing Knuckles to follow him. Up to now, he had been to most of the Zones on the Island, bar Launch Base, and he was getting sick of crawling around in secret tunnels built for hiding and not intended in any fashion or form for quick movement.

The things Sonic and Tails insisted on hiding were infuriating too, because they had somehow managed to lug them up from the surface, which meant that if they didn't find something, he would be forced to search for it, because it could upset the delicate balance on the Island.

Or so he liked to think.

So far, there had been a bright green plastic ring with a weight tied to one end in Hydrocity Zone, placed there by Tails for Sonic to find. It sunk straight to the bottom of the still-flooded Zone, and Sonic had looked at Tails blankly before turning tail and stalking off, grumbling under his breath about smartassed foxes who wouldn't be getting dinner for the next few days.

Knuckles then had to spend fifteen minutes swimming around the large Zone to try to find the stupid green circlet. Once he had, he burned it, enjoying the crackling noise it made.

Next came a small yellow screwdriver, hidden in Sandopolis by Sonic. Turns out, that screwdriver was apparently a present from Sonic to Tails a few years ago, and Sonic decided that it was fine payback for the water ring to take it and hide it. Tails had looked despondent, begging Sonic to tell him where it was. It didn't take long for the hedgehog to break, but it was long enough for Knuckles to almost pull his spines out.

The most recent item was a popsicle, hidden cleverly in Ice Cap Zone by Tails. Sonic was currently running around the icy Zone, searching for the red thing. Tails was standing beside him, hands laced behind his head and mouth set in a small smile, the picture of innocence.

"Ya'know Knuckles, you should play a round with us. It's fun." The fox remarked, turning to the fuming echidna. In the past few hours, he had used up all the threats he could think of and pretty much exhausted his bribery pool, so there wasn't much else he could do except stand near the two to make sure they didn't break anything.

Again.

"I'd rather lick a cactus than play your stupid little game."

Tails pulled a disgusted face, sticking his tongue out to the side and squenching his eyes shut. "No need to be so specific Knuckles. A simple 'no' would have sufficed."

"I've already tried 'no', kid. That word doesn't seem to be included in the Big Book of Sonic Vocabulary."

"I dunno, Knux, he tells me no all the time."

Knuckles fell silent, unable to think of a good comeback to such a simple statement. He rolled his shoulders, popped his neck, and turned on his heel, heading toward the edge of the Zone. "You know what?" He asked, stomping through the snow. "I'm gonna go finish my nap. You two finish up your game."

"Do you want us to tell you when we leave?" Tails didn't seem fazed with the quick change of subject.

"Nah, I'll be able to tell when the silence settles in."

"Oh, okay then…"

Knuckles moved to keep going toward his destination, a nice warm patch of sun near the humming Master Emerald, when Sonic's voice stopped him.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," the hedgehog called. Knuckles didn't turn, just kept walking.

"And why's that?"

"Because the Master Emerald won't be there."

The echidna froze, foot halfway in the air.

Slowly, ever so slowly, he turned, about-facing to catch a glimpse of Sonic's smirking face from where he was leaning on a tree.

"And why's that?" Knuckles asked, crossing his arms and struggling to keep himself from tackling the hedgehog to the ground.

"Because I hid it."

Knuckles' face went sour, his lips puckering and his eyes widening. "You did what?" His voice boomed off the mountains around him, making Tails cover his sensitive ears.

"I. Hid. It." Sonic answered easily, looking arrogantly down at his fingernails. "Figured you should play a round with us. What better way to get you on board than to hide something that you'll never give up looking for?"

"You… blue bastard…" The insult was forced through clenched teeth, hands balled into equally tight fists. "Just wait until I knock out those teeth of yours…"

"Ah ah," Sonic tutted, waving a finger in the air. "You can't hurt me, Knux. If you do, how will you ever find out where the M.E. is, hm?"

Knuckles scoffed low in his throat, rolling his eyes. "I can sense it, you idiot, or did you forget?"

"Oh no," Sonic shook his head, waving a hand towards Tails, who looked more confused than anyone. "Tails invented some type of blanket that blocks Chaos Energy. You wouldn't be able to find the rock even if you tried."

Knuckles didn't respond, just closed his eyes and tried to concentrate on the large energy spike that signaled the Master Emerald.

Silence followed.

Crap, Knuckles thought to himself, grinding his teeth, he's right. I can't sense it at all.

"Where is it?" His voice was less than civil, but it had a restrained edge that was lacking earlier.

"Mushroom Hill," Sonic answered, waving a hand in the general direction of the Zone. "Good luck," he continued, watching Knuckles turn to stalk away. "You don't get a Bounce Bracelet this time, but you should still try your best!"

Thanks for reading! Expect the next two within the hour.

Review please.