Chapter Two: The Prince Without A Throne
Tails darted from tree to tree, his reddish-brown and white coat standing out amidst the woodsy browns and summer green tones of the surrounding forest. Planting his back against the rough trunk of a sugar maple, he carefully peered out from behind it. If he was going to become a Freedom Fighter someday, then he needed to practice his skills. One very important skill to have was sneakiness, and this was what he was working on at the moment.
Tails stepped back from the sugar maple to become airborne, the twin tails which were the source of his nickname working in unison to carry him up to a crook in the tree. There, he plopped down and made himself comfortable before reaching a small gloved hand into the little tan satchel he carried on his person. It contained some of his important Freedom Fighter gear, like half a peanut butter and grape jelly sandwich, a pencil, a small rubber ball (in case he was ever captured by Robotnik and got bored in his cell), and a slingshot. He wound up pulling out a black spyglass, a present he'd received on his ninth birthday from Sonic.
Holding it up to his eye, he surveyed his domain. He easily picked out the lavender form of his friend Rotor sitting over by some big rocks, heartily enjoying a sweetclam sandwich he'd brought with him. Tails wasn't supposed to go far from Knothole by himself, so somebody older would always have to come with him if he ever wanted to go somewhere. However, he was of the mind that he didn't need a babysitter. He could take of himself - he was ten after all.
Suddenly, Tails stiffened. Before his vantage point, between two skinny trees standing further off, something had just moved, disturbing the grass there. It seemed a little too big to be any sort of local animal. Tails stared hard at the area for a minute, but other than the slight swaying of the tall grass, nothing else happened. He couldn't catch any scents on the breeze other than the normal forest smells, and he didn't hear anything out of the ordinary either.
He glanced down at the telescope in his hand and was struck by a swift realization. The sunlight must have reflected off the lens, and whoever was there had seen it! But was it a friendly or a hostile, the fox wondered? He considered calling for Rotor - but if he did, he'd also alert the other person to Rotor's presence. A glance over his left shoulder revealed that Rotor didn't seem to have noticed anything out of the ordinary yet.
Tails decided to become airborne again. He hovered in a circle to see if he could spy anything. When he looked down at the base of his tree, his heart practically jumped into his throat, and he let out a yelp.
A slimly-built Mobian was standing there, looking up at him. He waved to Tails. "Hello up there!"
Intrigue quickly overriding his initial alarm, Tails frowned slightly as he studied the stranger, trying to pin down his species. The black and white-ringed tail of a raccoon, the face and ears of a fox, the feet and hands of a monkey… He really wasn't sure just what kind of Mobian he was looking at. Maybe he was a hybrid like Sally and Antoine. The unique Mobian was dressed in a sleeveless violet tunic and black pants, and a bright blue scarf was wound around his neck. It was a wonder to Tails how he could've had missed clothing so brightly colored. He also noticed the stranger was wearing a black utility belt around his torso and had a dark brown satchel slung over one shoulder.
"Parley, my friend?" The stranger offered in a friendly-sounding voice. He had an accent, but it wasn't like the accent of anybody Tails knew.
"Parley?" It sounded like something Antoine would cook with.
"Parley means we discuss terms with one another." The raccoon-that-was-not-a-raccoon clarified.
"Oh. Sure, okay then." Tails decided to go ahead and land so the two of them could talk together a little easier. "Is there something you want, mister?"
"Just call me Maki for now."
"Uh, can I help you?" The pair saw Rotor coming their way, no doubt having heard Tails and the stranger.
"His name's Maki! Maki, this is my friend Rotor." *Tails introduced the mysterious Mobian.
Maki acknowledged Rotor with a nod, but no verbal greeting ever left his mouth. Rotor was likewise silent, carefully sizing the shorter Mobian up. Interacting with strangers had never really been his forte. It was something he was content to leave up to Sally, Bunnie, or Sonic.
"I'm looking for Princess Sally Acorn." Maki finally said, ending the silence between them. However, he wasn't hiding the fact that he was eying Rotor with as much scrutiny as the walrus was him.
Rotor's gray eyes narrowed. "What are you looking for her for?"
"You know her then?" Maki took a step towards him, his eyes more animated then they previously had been. "Please, it's of the upmost importance. If I could only see her – she knows who I am. Describe my appearance to her."
Before Rotor or Tails could say anything, there was rustling behind them in the undergrowth. The thick vegetation began thrashing and shuddering, like a big animal trying to rid itself of a flea. A gorilla pushed a path through the brush, followed by an elderly leopard tortoise. The two of them gathered around Maki.
"These are my companions." Maki told the two Knotholers, indicating the strangers.
Rotor, already fairly ill at ease, wasn't made any more comfortable by the sight of more unfamiliar faces, the gorilla in particular. In spite of her youthful face, she already had the noticeable muscle and bulk of her kind and looked like more than a match for any SWATBot. She acted as wary as Maki did, watching Rotor very closely.
Unlike Rotor, Tails was more intrigued then worried or suspicious, wondering why Maki wanted to see Sally so badly. It was clear that he and maybe his friends weren't from Northamer. He wanted to find out who they were and where they'd come from. Tails hadn't met too many out-of-towners before.
"We are here to call upon Princess Sally. It is imperative that we speak to her." The tortoise explained in a strong yet soothing voice. His rich accent mirrored Maki's. "None of us have any intention of hurting you, your young friend here, the princess, or anyone else. If you know where she is, then please take us to her. If you need to search us first, then do what you must."
Inside her hut, Sally was sitting at the desk located in her sleeping quarters. The desk's surface was covered in an assembly of objects like books, maps, a globe, folders filled to the brim with documents which she deemed important, and her most prized possession, her super-computer NICOLE. Aside from her desk, the rest of the hut was fairly clean if a touch crowded, as Sally had a tendency to squirrel away anything she considered useful or potentially such. The desk, together with a bookshelf and her bed, took up quite a bit of space inside the small room.
The tips of four clawed fingers on one slim hand were pressed to her forehead, while her elbow was propped atop the desk. In her other hand was a stick of apple wood roughly the same size and length as a pencil, the end of which she was absently nibbling on. It was a necessary and natural habit for any rodent, serving to wear down their incisor teeth lest they become overgrown.
With NICOLE's assistance, she was going over the records of Knothole's current food stores. While the summer season was in full swing, autumn would be on them before they knew it. Sally wanted to make sure they had enough set aside to see them through the harsher months. The Knotholers thrived on food that was foraged from the wild as well as from their own orchard and vegetable garden, supplemented by food from Robotropolis and districts around Northamer gotten through various means, mostly either by swiping food stores intended for Robo-Loyalists, and charity from those who sympathized with the Resistance.
As NICOLE was presently rattling off the precise number of bags of flour they had, Sally, who normally was very attentive where it concerned NICOLE, found her mind drifting. Conan was so brave, risking himself by working right in the heart of Robotropolis. He would disguise himself as a SWATBot and, in the pursuit of learning more about Robotnik's schemes, get dangerously close to him and his forces in the process, including the much-feared Robotropolis secret police. At any moment Conan could be unmasked. He was partnered with a young lion named Cyrus, who had installed a special device into Conan's SWATBot armor that put off signals obscuring his organic signature. It served to hide him from electronic sensors and scanners which would have otherwise detected his true identity and given him away.
The duo's hard and impressive work was truly inspiring. The Knothole Freedom Fighters could all stand to improve their skills and become stronger, not just in order to help bring about their united goal of taking Robotnik down, but to keep themselves and each other safe as well. Today would be a good day to get in some combat and mission training with Bunnie and Sonic. Dulcy needed to work on her flying more. Rotor had begun work on a new project, an EMP device that was supposed to be able to disarm SWATBots without even touching them. There was so much to do, and it made Sally feel lucky to be a squirrel. Like a number of rodent species, they had a well-deserved reputation for being gifted at organization and memorization.
But it seemed like no matter how talented she was at coordinating the other Freedom Fighters and leading them as a team, or how handy and reliable NICOLE was, Sally was still no closer to reaching her father, King Maximilian Acorn, who was currently trapped in the Void of Silence. They knew he was stuck there inside the alternate dimension, the problem was figuring out a way to reach him. Sally was no magician, and for all her intelligence, otherworldly dimensions were out of her wheelhouse.
Maximilian was a red squirrel. It was he who she'd inherited her coloration, including her shock of auburn headfur, from. In appearance however, Sally was predominantly chipmunk, if one didn't count her short tail (her parents had always told that her difference made her special, but eventually she'd figured out for herself that it was a birth defect. Even so, she still chose not to let it affect her). Her late mother, Queen Alicia of Ducaine, had been a Hopi chipmunk.
Now, there was a new development to take into account: Antoine and his new friend. Magic, a dark cult, unicorns, meeting and befriending another well-known Freedom Fighter, the Smiling Bandit (although she had reservations about the dog, who had once been a notorious highwayman) – the story Antoine had given her and the other Knotholers was almost too wild to believe. So in other words, typical Antoine. Except that this time, he had solid proof in the form of Stormblaze, who backed up all his assertions. If it was all really just a fabrication, then what reasons would Stormblaze have for going along with it? The unicorn was a puzzle. He largely kept to himself. Aside from Antoine, none of them really knew who he was.
Then there was the business of this Ixis Naugus character encountered by Stormblaze and Antoine on their travels. Ordinarily, Sally wouldn't have been too concerned – according to the pair, they had sent the wizard packing in a rather spectacular fashion using the Deep Power Stones, and she doubted he'd be coming after them anytime soon in spite of the threat he'd made against them. But when Antoine said that Naugus had not only been the Royal Magician but present at her father's royal court in the days leading up to the coup, well, that was the real head scratcher. She couldn't remember ever seeing anyone fitting his description around the palace before, and neither did Sonic or Rotor. She was dead certain that all of them would've remembered Naugus. Even Antoine himself admitted that he unable to recollect Naugus' presence there. Sally would be tempted to chalk the matter up to yet another one of Antoine's wild exaggerations or misunderstandings if, again, were it not for Stormblaze. Why could none of them remember Naugus? She resolved to ask Rosie about the matter. Maybe she could shed some light on things.
A knock at her front door caused her to look up with a sigh. Sally didn't like being interrupted in the middle of work, but she supposed it could have been something important. "I'm sorry NICOLE, but could you hold on a moment?"
"Of course, Sally." The handheld computer's feminine voice politely answered.
Sally dropped the apple wood stick inside her coffee mug and rose to her feet. Leaving her bedroom behind, she strolled into the living room and towards the door, leaning back to give her back a good stretch as she did. 'Whew! I must've been sitting longer then I thought.' "Come in." She called out.
The door opened about a foot before Bunnie's distinctive tan-furred head was poked inside. "You have a gentleman caller. Says his name is Maki."
Sally's brow furrowed. "Maki? I don't know anyone by that name."
"Well, he certainly acts like he knows you, Sal-gal."
Her curiosity piqued, Sally decided to go find out who this Maki character was and what he wanted from her. She allowed Bunnie to lead her to the place where Knothole's solar windmills were located, which, according to Bunnie, was where Maki was waiting.
Most of the other Knotholers, also realizing they had a visitor, had come out to see him for themselves. There were actually three Mobians in total who had been brought into Knothole by Rotor and Tails, but Sally only had eyes for one of the outsiders, a black-furred ringtail/Sclater's lemur hybrid who was engaged in an animated conversation with Tails. For her, it was like seeing a ghost. He was much bigger than he had been the last time she'd seen him of course, a whole head taller than Sonic. His once-thin frame had filled out, although he wasn't a muscleman by any means, being built more like a gymnast or something else along those lines instead. Rows of small, neat braids ran down his scalp, collected together with a purple hair tie into a single ponytail. Recovering her senses, Sally finally addressed the familiar figure. "Jioni?"
He'd finally taken notice of her too. "Sally!" An oversized grin stretching his face, Jioni stepped forward to meet her. They warmly embraced before pulling apart to regard the other with wonderment.
"I heard what happened in Lemuria," Sally's voice was soft. "Everyone thought you were dead."
Jioni's smile dimmed ever so slightly. "The rumors of my demise have been greatly exaggerated – which is precisely what we wanted. I've had to go deep into hiding for my own protection. We've all had to." He indicated the gorilla and the leopard tortoise.
The gorilla was silently eying everyone (Bunnie especially) and everything with a fair amount of suspicion in her dark eyes, as if she was expecting assassins to spring out and attack her and her companions. Her fur was a deep indigo hue, and her burgundy vest had been left unbuttoned to reveal the tan leather torso and waist belts she wore. On the other hand, the leopard tortoise, clad in only a simple brown cloak, came across as being quite relaxed by comparison. In one weathered tan hand he clutched a deep brown, almost ebony-colored walking stick that was longer then he was tall. Its surface had been worn down to a smooth veneer by years and years of usage.
Sally looked around at the other Knotholers, who were regarding her and Jioni with great inquisitiveness (or in Sonic's case, outright mistrust). "Guys, I'd like you to meet Jioni Adansonia. He's from the Kingdom of Lemuria in Mazuri. He and his parents came to Mobotropolis to meet with me and my family when we were children. Jioni, these are my friends Bunnie, Sonic, Dulcy, and Antoine. And you've already met Rotor and Tails."
Jioni gave them all a smile and a small bow of his head. "Hello, everyone. Any friend of Sally's is a friend of mine's. The fine gentleman accompanying me is Dabiri, and the lovely lady here is Konga Silverback." As he introduced the leopard tortoise and the gorilla, he motioned to each in turn.
Konga's gaze had lingered frequently on Bunnie's bionic parts, but upon hearing her name, she favored the entire group with a nod of acknowledgment, her expression cool and tone of voice brusque. "Hello."
"Jumbo, young ones." Dabiri greeted the Knotholers, raising a blunt-clawed hand in their direction.
"Ju-what now?" Dulcy cocked a scaly brow ridge as she put voice to her and the other Knotholers' unfamiliarity with the foreign word.
"Jumbo." Sally repeated. "It's Kiswahili for hello."
Dabiri nodded, visibly pleased by her display of knowledge. "Very good, princess. You are familiar with our native tongue?"
"You can just call me Sally, sir." She politely replied. "And I know some of the words and expressions thanks to Jioni here." She beamed at the lemur, who returned the happy look.
"I'm delighted you still remember, what with all the time that's passed."
Tails was carefully studying Jioni, fuzzy head slightly tilted to one side and brow ridge scrunched up. "So is your name Maki, or Jioni?"
"Oh, I apologize Tails. I had no intention of deceiving you or anyone else here. Maki is just a false name I use whenever I travel." Jioni informed the puzzled kit.
"Why do you even have a fake name in the first place?" Sonic demanded, folding his skinny arms.
"Because there are a lot of people out there who'd love to get their hands on me. I am crown prince and sole heir to the Lemurian throne."
The Knotholers, save for Sally, just stared at him.
"A prince huh? Always wondered if there were any other free royals out there." Bunnie finally commented, breaking the stunned silence. After his takeover of Mobotropolis, Robotnik had gone out of the way to either eliminate or keep many of Mobius' political leaders under his thumb.
Jioni looked over in her direction. "You could say that we're an endangered species, my lady. I was lucky to get out of Lemuria alive. It's my utmost pleasure to meet you, by the way." Approaching her, he took Bunnie's hand in his and lightly planted a kiss on the back of it.
Not having expected such a gesture from him – especially since it was her roboticized left hand that he'd kissed, not the other one like most guys would've done - Bunnie smiled bashfully and glanced away from him. "Oh, uh, likewise yer highness!"
Sonic was observing everything that was happening in rising anger, the spikes on his head and the nape of his neck bristling. "I don't like this guy. He's way too smooth!" He whispered to the other boys.
Having just borne witness to the exchange between Jioni and Bunnie, Rotor appeared to be on the same page. There was a look on his face like he had just watched one of his machines fall apart after having spent hours working on it.
Antoine had to bite his lower lip to keep from laughing out loud. He knew that not long ago he would've reacted to the situation in much the same way that Sonic and Rotor were.
"Well, is anyone going to show me around?" Jioni asked, glancing around at their surroundings. "I would really enjoy seeing the rest of your village. Is it really self-sustaining?"
He hadn't taken more than two steps before Sonic was suddenly in his face, scowling for all he was worth. "You don't look like any prince I've ever seen before. How come I never heard of you?"
Jioni's eyebrows shot up before he smiled a bit. "Do many princes come around here then?"
"If you're really a prince like you say you are, then what's up with these lame clothes? Where's your fancy crown, huh?" Sonic prodded his chest.
Konga's eyes narrowed. Gently ushering Jioni aside, she stood directly in front of Sonic, muscular arms crossed over one another. Due to her species, Konga was taller than anyone else there, with the exception of Dulcy. "I don't care who you are, hedgehog. Keep your grubby paws to yourself. Touch him again, and you'll have me to answer to."
Predictably, her warning failed to deter him. "I'm not scared of you – hey!" Sally had come up alongside Sonic, grabbed him by an ear, and was marching him off to one side.
"Sonic Hedgehog! Can you meet someone and not act like a troglodyte for once?"
'Not likely.' Antoine thought. 'And here we go…' Sure enough, the both of them started arguing. Audibly sighing in exasperation, Antoine turned away from the routine spectacle and back to Jioni. "It is an honor to meet you, your royal highness." He greeted, walking up to him.
Jioni seemed to mull over Antoine's welcome before returning his smile. "Your royal highness… I haven't been called that in ages. You may call me Jioni if you want." Reaching out, he shook hands with Antoine. "I must say, it's refreshing to be able to hear another accent, even if it's not one from my homeland."
Antoine nodded his agreement. "Likewise." The fact that he was not a native of the Great Continent was yet another factor that left him feeling isolated from most of the other Knotholers, who had been born there.
Sally was returning to join them, a sulky-looking but mute Sonic following in her wake.
Attracted by the commotion, Rosie had left her hut to see what all the fuss was over. "Children? Who are all of you -" Seeing who was standing there with them, she froze and let out a little gasp. "That cannae be little Jioni! Why, you've grown so tall!"
Chuckling, Jioni waited to affectionately enfold her in his arms as she hitched up her dress and hurried towards him. "It's me alright, Miss Rosie!"
After their embrace ended, Rosie turned to Dabiri. "And Mr. Dabiri! It's been far too long since I last heard anything from ye! You're looking quite well."
"The pleasure is all mine's, dear lady. I must say, you're still as fresh and lovely as a jungle blossom in bloom." Taking one of her hands, Dabiri kissed the back of it.
Light brown eyes sparkling, Rosie brought a hand up to her cheek. "Still as charming as ever, I see!"
Pointing a finger into his open mouth, Sonic silently pretended to gag in response to the behavior of his elders. Rosie and Dabiri didn't catch the gesture, but most of the youths did. Antoine just shook his head. He was disgusted alright, but with Sonic's attitude, not Rosie and Dabiri. It really escaped him as to why Sally was so taken with someone as utterly boorish and childish as Sonic was.
After Rosie and Konga were introduced, Konga maintaining a polite but reserved demeanor and Rosie her typical genial self, Bunnie then addressed the Lemurians. "Ya'll are welcome to come make yourselves at home."
"Thank you, young lady." Dabiri nodded appreciatively to her. "I daresay these old bones could use a rest."
The Knotholers' guests were led to the one dwelling in the village that towered over every other building and tree alike there. The Great Oak, as it was appropriately known as, served as an indoor meeting place, while the tree's higher levels were used to store miscellaneous items. Entering the teahouse, the Lemurians hung their knapsacks on a wall rack, and together, they and the Knotholers settled down on several cushioned chairs that had been assembled around a large table there. The Lemurians turned down lunch, but did accept Rosie's offer of refreshments, raspberry tea and blackberry muffins.
"You've been alive all this time." Sally, who had positioned herself next to Jioni, stated after Rosie returned with the tea and muffins. "How on Mobius did you survive?"
"After my parents received word of what happened in Mobotropolis, they made a declaration of war against Robotnik. I was made to remain at our country estate while my mother ran the war from the field and father kept an eye on things at the palace. When we stopped hearing word from mother, my father took command of the military. Then one day, I received news that he too had been captured. When the last remnants of our military fell and Robotnik's war machines were on their way to the capital, Dabiri spirited Konga and I out of the country. We traveled all over Mobius, never staying in one location for too long. We always had to pack up and move on elsewhere for fear of my true identity being discovered. For years I've had to pretend to be anyone else but Jioni Adansonia, never allowing myself to get close to another soul because I knew we would have to leave sooner or later."
Listening to Jioni the whole time with wide eyes, Antoine couldn't imagine having to hide who he really was and living life on the run. At least Knothole granted him stability if nothing else.
He wasn't the only one left shaken. Bunnie and Rosie were teary-eyed, and Tails appeared to be about as disturbed as Antoine was.
Unlike his teammates, Sonic remained entirely unfazed, slouching back in his seat with crossed arms and legs. His mouth was twisted into a little skeptical sneer. Rotor's face though was devoid of any of kind of expression whosoever. If he did or didn't believe Jioni's tale, then he was keeping his feelings to himself.
"Gosh, that's a really sad story." Dulcy said, sniffling loudly.
Sally reached a comforting hand out to Jioni, which he took in his. "Oh Jioni. I'm so sorry all of you had to experience all that."
"Thank you both, but I know that there are others who've fared far worse than my companions and I have under Robotnik. But enough about me. I've heard that you lot have become real thorns in Robotnik's side. Won a few victories against him even."
"That's right. I like to think he loses sleep each night fuming about us spoiling his day." Sally answered, a note of pride entering her voice. "I'd be happy to tell you all about our missions later."
"Truly splendid. You've blossomed into quite the leader." Jioni flashed her another warm, appraising smile. "So where's Elias? I noticed he isn't here. What a fighter he must've turned out to be!" Chuckling fondly, he glanced around as though he were expecting to see Elias appear. "You know I can still see him running around with that little sword of his?"
Instantly an uncomfortable silence took over the room. Even Sonic didn't say anything, and no one would meet Jioni's eye. Elias was Sally's older brother. He and Antoine had also been very good friends. On the fateful day King Maximilian was overthrown, the prince had not been with the other children, as he was elsewhere in the palace receiving tutoring. No one knew exactly what had become of him in the maelstrom of Robotnik's attack, but he hadn't been seen since that day.
Seeing their reactions, Jioni bowed his head, his demeanor now solemn. "I apologize. Please forgive me for speaking out of turn."
"It's alright, love." Rosie gently patted his arm. "You didn't know."
"Jioni, Sally said you and your folks visited Mobotropolis when you and her were little." Bunnie began, tactfully steering the conversation onto a much less grim subject. "What brought ya'll there in the first place?"
Jioni looked to Sally. "Shall I explain, or do you wish to?"
"You can field this one."
"Well, my parents, Queen Kamaria and King Ade," Jioni began, now speaking to the rest of the group, "had been searching all over Mobius for a prospective bride for me. Eventually, they began corresponding with Sally's parents. We were invited to Mobotropolis to stay at the palace as guests, and there I was introduced to Sally. Since we hit it off so well, it was decided that we should be betrothed."
"What's that mean? Betrothed?" That was Tails, swinging his dangling legs over the edge of his chair.
"That the two of them are intended for one another – to be married someday." Dabiri explained.
Tails wrinkled his nose. "Ugh!"
His response elicited amused chuckling from most of the others, except for Sally and Sonic. With the new curse the discussion was heading in, Sally couldn't help but begin feeling a little awkward. "I'd forgotten all about that…"
"But I haven't." Jioni was gazing intently at her. "I -"
Sonic sprang to his feet. "So that's why you showed your pointy-nosed face around here, isn't it? To try and get her to marry you!" His tone was demanding and accusatory as he glowered at Jioni.
"You mind your manners, laddie!" Rosie scolded him. "I taught you better then that!"
Dabiri had been sipping his tea. Setting his cup down on the table, he very calmly asked the fuming hedgehog, "Young fellow, are you already engaged to Miss Sally?"
His question took Sonic completely off guard. "Huh? N-no way! I'm only sixteen!"
"Then is she not free to choose who she marries?" Jioni asked him.
"Well yeah, but -" Sonic's righteous anger returned. "Get serious! She doesn't even have time to get married!"
Her face more serious then what was usual even for her, Sally turned towards the other Knotholers. "Guys, do you think you can excuse us? There are some… things Jioni and I need to discuss in private."
"As you wish." Respectfully inclining his head to her, Dabiri got up to take his leave of the gathering. "Come, Konga."
Konga arose to join him, although she seemed a little reluctant to leave Jioni by himself, casting a concerned glance over her shoulder at him. Meeting her eye, he gave her a single nod of his head, as though reassuring her that everything would be alright.
"Wait." Rosie held out a hand in their direction, causing them to stop to see what she wanted. "Would you both care for a tour of Knothole?"
"That sounds like a splendid idea." Dabiri concurred.
Bunnie too nodded to show her respect for Sally's wishes before turning to Sonic and the other youngsters. "Well, ya'll heard her. Vamoose."
Antoine didn't need to be told twice and was already on his out, but not before grabbing a muffin. He wanted to get in some extra training today. Under Bunnie's watchful eye, the others also began leaving. However, Sonic didn't seem inclined to go anywhere until Rosie came over and started steering him away, but he was giving Jioni the evil eye the whole time.
Patiently, Jioni waited until everyone dispersed before addressing Sally once more. "I have something I'd like to show you."
Curiously, Sally looked on as Jioni fished a small gray box from out of his pants pocket and opened it to show her what was inside. Upon seeing what it was, her eyes grew as big and as round as globes.
It was a simple gold ring.
"It's for you." He explained. "Sonic wasn't mistaken. Sally, I was compelled to come to Northamer for one very important reason."
Sally watched in confusion as Jioni took a knee, still holding the box out towards her. "Jioni, what are -?"
Tenderly grasping her right hand in his free one, he stared deep into her eyes. "Will you marry me?"
While Dabiri and Konga were being shown around Knothole, Sonic and company had relocated to a spot next to a stream which snaked its way through the village before merging with other streams to become a larger, more powerful river. It was a pretty location in every season, and that was why everyone liked to visit there to take in the scenery.
Terribly bored with all of the wedding talk by then, Tails had wondered off to find something to do that, in his opinion, would be far more interesting and fun.
Sonic was pacing back and forth, ranting all the while. "Can you guys believe this? Who do these people think they are?"
"I hear they like marrying young in Mazuri." Rotor grimly put in.
"Really?" Perking up, Dulcy eagerly leaned towards her friends in her seated position. "Hey, you guys think Sally'll let me be flower girl?"
"For the last time, no one's gettin' married!"
Bunnie massaged her ears, which were really smarting right then thanks to Sonic's outraged scream. "Calm down, Sugah-hog! I think the whole forest heard you." Wanting to change the topic before Sonic blew another gasket, she asked the group, "So none of ya'll remember Jioni?"
"Nope." Rotor shook his head. "My family must've been out of town or something."
"Me neither. But I was only five then and way more interested in having tea parties with my imaginary best friend Sandy." Dulcy replied before sighing wistfully. "I miss Sandy."
Sonic rolled his eyes at her before contemplating Bunnie's question himself.
The royal family's palace had been lavishly decorated, and there was not a single speck of dirt or dust to be seen anywhere. Sonic was only six then, but he was as fast as ever, zipping up to the refreshment table to swipe a handful of cream puffs off a silver platter and cramming the sweet treats into his mouth. Catching sight of some éclairs further down the table, he honed in on them. He knew that that day was a special occasion for the Acorns, but neither did he know or really care about what was going on. Sally's dad had visitors nearly all the time. To him, it was just a bunch of adults doing boring adult stuff. They'd even roped Elias into the act, dressing him up in some monkey suit. Mr. Acorn had been going around introducing him to the boring old Mobians for much of the party's duration. Elias had put on a smile, but Sonic could tell he was getting bored. Sonic thought it was good payback for the eleven-year old prince's refusal to allow him, Sally, and Rotor into the treetop clubhouse he and Antoine liked to play in.
"Olgilvie Maurice Hedgehog!"
Hearing his full name used like that, Sonic knew he was in trouble. Cream smearing his mouth, he slowly turned around to face his uncle Chuck Hedgehog and a female Mobian Sonic had never seen before. She was a Scalter's lemur whose elaborately braided red-tinted headfur trailed down her back. She wore a long brightly-colored dress, and a golden tiara ornamented with gold leaves sat upon her head. Both were regarding Sonic with disapproval, the lemur especially.
"Now is not the time to be running inside the palace, young man!" Chuck chastised as he walked up to the hoglet.
"Sorry." Sonic mumbled, looking down at his sneakers.
Kneeling so he could be closer to Sonic, Chuck spoke to him in a gentler tone of voice. "Why don't you go outside? Sally should be out there, and you can meet Jioni too."
"Okay Uncle Chuck." Sonic sped out of the palace and down the marble steps. He decided to check out the Royal Gardens first. His hunch paid off. There he found Sally seated on one of the swinging hammock chairs that had been set up around the garden. Next to her was a skinny lemur who might have been seven.
"Lemme guess – you're Jioni." Sonic said, pointing at him.
"That's right. What's your name?"
"Jioni, this is Sonic. He's my friend I was telling you about." Sally explained before turning her attention back to Sonic. "Jioni's visiting from Lemuria."
"How do you do?" Standing, Jioni stepped forward to offer a handshake.
Sonic accepted it, but couldn't resist making a little wisecrack as he did. "How do you do what?" He laughed at his own joke.
Jioni must not have been expecting a response like that, because he blinked his big eyes a little before finally giggling himself.
Sally just rolled her eyes. "Oh brother."
Pleased with his own wittiness, Sonic happened to be surveying his surroundings when he suddenly noticed the downy head of an ostrich peering at him from over the hedgerow behind him. "Huh?" Before he could blink twice, the ostrich had gone. Frowning, Sonic parted the hedgerow and peered through it, trying to see if he could spot the bird again. On the other side, he saw a second ostrich strutting around and looking alert as she scanned the garden. Pulling back, Sonic went over to Sally and leaned in towards her. "Sal, don't look now, but there's some strangers in your garden!"
"Strangers?" Sally echoed.
Having also heard Sonic, Jioni glanced around. Peeking through the hedgerow for himself, he came back out laughing. "Those are just my bodyguards, Miss Mbuni and Miss Tifu."
"What do you need bodyguards for?" Sonic knew Mr. Acorn had bodyguards too, but that was because he was king. No way was this kid that important!
"Just in case. My parents are very important Mobians, and they want to make sure I'm always safe."
"Mobotropolis is safe, dude. Me and the others play out here all the time!"
"Your city is very impressive, and I'm sure it's very secure, but father always tells me it's better to be safe then sorry."
Sonic snorted, giving Jioni an "are you serious?" look. If he wanted to hear a lecture about safety, then he'd go find one of his teachers.
As it turned out, Jioni had brought some books with him and had been sharing them with Sally before Sonic had arrived. Sonic stared at the both of them in disbelief. "Are you two really just gonna sit there and read?" They were wasting a perfectly good day outdoors!
"It has pictures of Lemuria in it." Jioni explained, looking up at him. "You can join us if you like. Since I've seen your country, I want to show you mine's."
"Come on, Sonic! Lemuria is so pretty!" Sally encouraged him. "And they have these jewels there called storm rubies that can make storms!"
Sonic groaned in disappointment, but reluctantly plopped down next to Sally while she oohed and awed over Jioni's dumb old book. He was really going to have to show this new kid how to lighten up and have some fun.
"… Yeah... I do remember him now." Sonic slowly began. "I didn't realize who he was back then. He was kind of a smug bore and always had bodyguards following him around. Nice to see that some things never change. His mom was stuck-up too - didn't like me running around the palace."
"I think it's kinda romantic myself, his comin' all this way just to find Sally." Bunnie admitted, a soft smile forming on her face.
Sonic snorted. She would, considering all those goofy romance novels she had stashed away in her hut.
"Hey, where's Tony?" Dulcy suddenly asked.
Prompted by her question, the three tried to see if they could spot the coydog, but Antoine was nowhere in sight.
"Maybe he got mad because of Jioni and left." Rotor suggested.
"What makes you think he's mad?" Bunnie asked him. "I saw the two of 'em talkin' together just fine earlier."
Sonic's head whipped towards her. "Whoa, seriously? So the marriage crap didn't get him all hot under the collar?"
"Not that I could tell."
Ever since the whole matter of Sally's arranged marriage had come up, Antoine hadn't once crossed Sonic's mind - not until Dulcy had brought up his name. Why was he being so quiet about Jioni? In fact, Sonic didn't think he'd heard him say anything since the Lemurians had been in Knothole. It was really out of character for the guy. Deciding that such a weird situation required investigating, Sonic started walking off towards the huts without a word to his friends.
Mystified, the others watched him. Rotor piped up, "Where are you going?"
Sonic turned to look back at him, but didn't stop. "There's something I wanna check out. Be back in a sonic sec."
Sonic was still lost in his thoughts. And the more he thought, the weirder it was to him how Antoine didn't seem at all fazed by any of this. After all, Antoine had almost always been jealous of the close relationship Sonic shared with Sally and had the nerve to act like Sally was his girl.
It didn't take very long to reach Antoine's place, which was situated right on the outer edge of the cluster of huts, close to Sally, Tails, and Rosie's huts. If Antoine wasn't there, then Sonic figured he was already on his way to Tanforan. Why did he and that unicorn pal of his (Sonic was hard-pressed to believe that Stormblaze actually was a unicorn and not just a cart horse with a glass horn glued to his head) need to go off and train in the forest instead of just staying in Knothole? It was where everybody else trained, and it worked just fine for them. Sonic wondered if Stormblaze thought he was too good to train with the likes of them or if something funny was going on. Not bothering to knock and correctly betting that Antoine's door would be open, he invited himself on in.
There was Antoine, frozen in the act of putting on his sword belt he stared at Sonic, who came to stand in his parlor room. Apparently, Antoine was planning on going somewhere.
"Where do you think you're off to?" Sonic demanded.
For a moment Antoine just continued to stare, visibly displeased by Sonic's intrusion before he finally inhaled deeply and adopted a patient expression. "Is there something you need, Sonic?"
"Why aren't you mad about Jioni?"
"Why should I be caring in the first place?" Shrugging, he finished buckling the sword belt in place. "The matter is none of mon business."
'Is he for real?' Sonic wondered, narrowing his dark brown eyes as he looked the way too calm coydog up and down. What was he going to do, go crying his eyes out to Stormblaze about how Sally had dumped him or whatever? He should've been mad. Sonic wouldn't have faulted him for it in this case. "You're so full of it. You know that deep down you can't stand the thought of that creep marrying her either!"
Disappearing inside his washroom, Antoine then returned with a small mirror and held it up, looking at himself in it. "It would have." He began evenly. "Once upon a time. But believe it or not, Mobians change. I do not care which one of you Sally is choosing because I am not in love with her anymore. It is being as simple as that. And what has Jioni done to be called a creep, as you put it? You are not even knowing him."
Sonic's jaw just about hit the floor. What was going on here? It was like the Antoine he knew had been replaced with a lookalike from some bizarro universe or something. In spite of his shock though, a part of him was glad that Antoine had finally gotten the message and was going to be leaving Sally and him alone. "What, you and he best friends all of a sudden?" He retorted. "You don't know him either. For all we know he could be an axe murderer."
Antoine paused. No, he didn't know a thing about Jioni. Antoine hadn't been in Mobotropolis when the prince visited – he had been away in Richelieu-sur-Mer, spending the weekend with his aunt Blanchfleur. But calling Jioni an axe murderer seemed quite extreme. Also, Antoine didn't like the idea of Sonic treating Jioni the way he treated Antoine himself just because Jioni had feelings for Sally too. When it came to Sally, Sonic was so possessive. Antoine thought over what he was about to say next very carefully. "I just do not think you should be doing anything rash."
"Forget it! I'll take care of that chump with or without your help!"
Watching Sonic zoom off, Antoine sighed and shook his head. He really hoped Sonic wasn't going to continue this pattern of behavior when he was an adult.
Author's notes: Richelieu-sur-Mer is the creation of Cakeless Pixels.
French translations:
Mon: My.