All respective characters belong to SEGA/Sonic Team and Archie. Tekno the Canary belongs to Lew Stringer.
Chapter 2
"Your temperature is decent, Tekno. It is approximately 72 degrees."
Tekno stiffened in one of the chairs in Ms. Ginger's office. The clean, cool area of the sanitized room sent cold chills down her small body.
"Thank you, Ms. Ginger. I feel indebted to your services." Tekno gave a rather nervous smile to her doctor.
The smile on Ginger's face widened, matching the mechanic's. Oddly, the young mechanic could feel her soul turn to hard ice.
"No problem, dear! Now what seems to be the problem?" The nurse canine's face transformed to a look of concern. "Your temperature is very good. I am rather worried about your episode that Mr. Cliff has informed me of. Are you feeling any better compared to before?"
Tekno's ears screamed out the rapid pounds of her heart. Tears of sweat raced down her face, which twisted into a look of anxiety. She tried to ignore the sorrowful cries of her empty stomach.
The young girl took a look at a nearby door, and then at a nearby window. The beauty of the morning dawn eased her breathing to calming levels. Her shoulders relaxed.
Tekno looked back at the peculiar Ginger, who donned a compassionate smile.
"I... do not know what may have caused me to... I..." replied the canary. "I was just talking to Mr. Cliff after I was working, and then I started to become dizzy and my vision became blurry until I couldn't see anything. I could hear Mr. Cliff as if he knew if I had passed out... then I felt my shoulders shooken, most likely by Mr. Cliff, and I... my vision went back to normal as if I had awoken from a dream."
The room was silent, except for a sound of scribbling on a hard surface. Realizing that her head was down, she quickly turned her head up to see Ginger writing on a metal clipboard. Ginger wrinkled her eyebrows, as if in concentration.
"Interesting indeed. Are you still experiencing dizziness or any pain?" Similar to her patient, the nurse lifted her head from her clipboard and focused on the apprentice.
"No pain or dizziness anymore whatsoever." The youth instantly said, stiffening in the soft, backless cushion seat. Her gloved fingers gripped the red beauty, causing the seat to release a silent scream unheard amongst the room.
"Are you sure, sweetie? I am sorry for what you had went through. . ." Despite her professional position, the elderly canine rested a hand on Tekno. "I simply would like to know what could have caused you to experience such a trauma. I want you, a dedicated and diligent woman, to feel better; great health should be a number one priority, especially for a hard-working and beautiful young lady, such as yourself."
The young mechanic felt her eyes getting moisted and watery. She released a sniff, and quickly wiped her eyes.
"T-thank you. I understand." Tekno bowed. The heavy weights upon her shoulders felt somewhat lifted, prompting her to inhale the purified, cool air of Ginger's single-room doctor's office. For the oddest reason, the relaxed girl felt a warmth reach the chambers of her cheeks.
Tension gripped the nerves of her shoulders once again, destroying the brief moment of relief she had.
Tekno's teeth engaged in a tight embracement. Her nails resumed their tight bite on the innocent, helpless chair.
She uttered, through her clenched teeth.
"My apologies."
Ginger then approached the troubled youth and wrapped her arms around Tekno's body in a gentle embrace. The apprentice felt a return of slight calmness in her mind, as well as her body. The internal battle in her mind had come to a conclusion.
Tekno returned Ginger's hug. She could sense an odd shaking from the elder's body; however, she paid no mind to it. The urge to grasp and caress her stomach had disappeared, but the mechanic knew that short periods of joy come in small packages.
This short, tranquil moment full of beads of melancholy, she thought, would only last a couple of minutes, to her heart's dismay.
As if instinct commanded her, she whispered to her nurse in a hushed, timid voice.
"I am very hungry."