a/n: Yeah well. It's never the same.
None of it was his idea.
He knew there was something troublesome coming, but let it go. It was probably something that he would have to face some day. Now was a better time than later, because life was meant to be lived moving forward.
It was the sort of affair that went from a small gathering to a televised event with over 50 million people watching. There were now microphones of all kinds, some to capture noise and others to remove them entirely. There were the lights and cameras that felt invasive. There were people of all shapes and sizes, and the chatter that came along with them.
Sonic gently shoved away the raccoon woman who was trying to powder his face. He pouted and winced at the mirror that was surrounded by too many lights, in this room that was too green and had too much food he wasn't interested in.
"Hey."
"Oi. Don't 'hey' me, woman."
Amy rolled her eyes and stood beside her friend, their reflections bright and clear in the mirror. "Listen, I know it wasn't supposed to get this big, but...it's an opportunity to speak to the world, right?"
"Not interested."
"But you're not backing out."
"Because it'll make you look bad."
"You know, I appreciate that. More than I could possibly express."
He shrugged in his chair. "It's whatever."
"Let's get you out there and ready. Cameras are rolling, sooooo..."
"No more waiting, I hope."
"Nope."
He nodded and got up, turning to face Amy in her crisp red blazer and skirt. He adjusted her tie and lapels, then touched up the rose on her left side gently. "We're both ready. Guess we'll go and talk to the world for a while."
It had taken a lot of persuasion; Sonic didn't do meetings, let alone interviews. But there was a lot going on. Networks, sponsors. People could be helped by this sort of thing, and Sonic was fine with that. He relented and then made demands, asking about local charities and global organizations. He didn't care much how it worked, just that it worked. A few hours of his time would help a lot of people, and he was into that sort of thing.
So he would get on television properly for the first time.
There was still that feeling of trouble coming.
The stage was set with two comfortable chairs and a glass table between them. It was clearly for aesthetic purposes as there were smaller tables near the chairs meant for drinks and other possible items. Amy handed him an earpiece, meant so that he could hear the interviewer at all times.
"Don't get too swept away in her eyes."
He looked over at Amy as they walked down the hall together. "Yeah? You know better."
"Maybe I do, but I'm still on alert. Is that okay?"
"No quills off my back."
"Good." She let out a breath. "Go get 'em."
Amy stopped just off-stage and made sure her own earpiece was on. Sonic went ahead to meet thunderous applause, waving and feeling energized somewhat by the crowd.
"Sonic! Wonderful to finally meet you in person. Huge fan, but you must have guessed."
She took his hand and then kissed him on the cheek. Her heels made her slightly taller than him, and this tiger woman had her long tail groomed to perfection, along with the rest of her. Very...gifted in the upper half, emphasized by an opened blouse. She wore glasses that likely could pay for someone's house. The pencil skirt and stockings were sophisticated.
He blinked and nodded, she smiled and gestured to the seats where they both headed as the crowd slowly calmed down. She leaned forward in her chair, legs crossed over, head resting on hand in a fascinated sort of pose.
"Finally, finally! It's really good to see you, Sonic. Fastest thing alive, right?"
"I gotta be."
"I believe it. We're all dying to know more about you, since you never stay still long enough for us to ask questions? On purpose, or just moving on to the next adventure or person to save?"
"Well...if I told you, it'd probably be no fun," he joked.
"You're right!" He found it weird, but she was genuinely amused. Or seemed like it. Eh.
"Well, if this is the part where people start asking questions, it's cool with me, Laura."
"No problem." Laura gestured smoothly towards the audience before getting up, tail swaying behind her. "Let's have our first guest. Don't be shy, come on up!"
There was an ease to the questions. Softballs, they termed them. Amy said that pretty much everything was planned out and run through filters so that there would be an enjoyable viewing experience. It almost felt artificial, but it made sense to him. Nothing bad, just likes and dislikes mostly. Laura helped him shrug off questions that were too personal, or not terribly relevant, or might have been too long. Her professionalism was a big help. Sonic thought he was getting more comfortable, and this sacrifice of a few hours instead of flying to Green Hill and cutting out a few laps...wasn't all that bad.
He humoured the thought of doing this yearly. Maybe pushing the moneybags to feed twice as many starving kids. Amy would know how to get it done.
"Coming along at a good pace. How you feeling, superhero?"
"Oh. I'm actually feeling good," he said to Laura as he sat across from her.
"Happy to hear it. I know this isn't really your thing, so...nerves and all, yeah?"
"Yeah, lil' bit."
"We'll take a break after this, so that the fat cats can run their ads and junk. This is the first one of these that hasn't been completely soulless," she said. "This is fun! Let's get our next one up here and then we'll take a load off."
"Sounds good to me. Thanks, Laura."
"Oh, stop. I should be thanking you," she said with a smile. "Meeting Sonic the Hedgehog is awesome enough, but this is another level."
Sonic watched the next person ascend to the stage, and he felt it.
Trouble.
"Laura? Can you do something for me?"
"Yeah, what's up?"
"Whatever happens next...let this one ride."
Laura took a look at the human girl...or perhaps not so human, with the cat ears poking out from her head of blonde hair. She recognized what was a tail, wrapped securely around her waist and not terribly notable against her clothes. Strategically ripped jeans and a hooded jacket.
The intensity in those orange eyes of hers. Trouble. Sonic must have seen it. Moving her off-stage would cause a commotion, and that wasn't desirable for a lot of reasons.
"What's going on?" Amy said from her place behind them.
"We...might be going off-script," Laura replied. "Sonic wants to handle it."
"...I see. I'm not worried, then."
Laura nodded. "Sure. Neither am I."
"Are you sure? Really?"
"Really. I've been thinking about journalism lately anyways. Though I'd miss this. Job's pretty cushy. We'll see how this goes first."
"Roger."
"My name's Belle," the teenage girl said. "I have a question for you, Sonic. It's...something I've been waiting to ask you a long time. Something that I'm lucky to get the chance to ask."
"Glad you could make it out," he said sincerely.
"Yeah. I wanted to know...I just wanted to know."
"..."
"..." Laura let out a breath.
"Why. Why don't you do more?"
The question hung in the air, for a confused audience and 50 million or so viewers to absorb.
Laura looked across at Sonic and...didn't see what she expected to see.
He had the answer already. But it wasn't a nice answer.
"Crap," she muttered. But she said that she would let it ride, and right alongside those nerves was genuine excitement. She wanted to hear the answer too.
"You've done so much without asking," Belle continued. "You've done wonderful things. You've saved so many lives and provided so much hope. But you and I both know that it could be much more. You especially know that...it could have been over for Doctor Eggman ages ago, if you just...if you just went for it. And that's to say nothing of the other ways that you could volunteer your time. You are doing so much already for this world, and that's why...it makes no sense that you're holding back and not doing as much as you can. I want to know why. Is it fear? Is it that you feel like you don't deserve to, or aren't strong enough? I want that answer...I want it more than anything else in this world."
Sonic leaned back in his chair and folded his arms.
"I don't want to do more."
Belle felt herself freeze.
"I don't do more because I don't want to do more. It's a simple answer," he said.
"I...I always thought that if you had power-"
"I don't have responsibilities, dude. Why would I?"
"Have you ever thought about it? What saying that means?" Belle pressed. The crowd below her was murmuring, confused and wound up. "What it means to live by your own feelings, and to not worry about anyone else? You're a hero."
"That's not the title I gave myself. That's something all of you gave me, and I'm not obligated to accept it. I'm not obligated to do anything, really. I mean...especially with Eggman. I'm supposed to put blood on my hands for...who exactly? Since I've got the power to stop him, it only makes sense I get to decide what happens to him each time, right?"
"I...but even so..."
"That's the unsavory part of this whole deal. And I guess why they say to never meet your heroes, or something." Sonic shrugged and hunched forward, hands together. "It's not easy to accept that I'm not the most righteous guy. I move like the wind. Live like it. That's all it is. If Eggman causes devastation somewhere, I'll save as many people as I can. I'll put my neck on the line for you and people like you. But I'm not responsible for everything that happens. Tails said something like 'this way lies madness'. It'll drive you up the wall."
Belle swallowed the lump in her throat. "You don't...feel it?"
"Guilt, huh. No. It's not my fault. Life goes, and life goes on. That's what it is. A while ago, I was in a situation where someone wanted to stop life from moving forward because it hurt too much. They wanted to control everything and use their power to end suffering. I could do it. I could try."
"Is it...is it because it's too much?"
Sonic thought for a moment. "It wouldn't be worth it."
"Saving lives?"
"Sacrificing mine."
"The difference," Laura started, "between a hero and a messiah. Those who call themselves saviours have to suffer as their way of being. They are hated before they become loved. And a hero...he just has to arrive in a time of need. From the light, or from the darkness. Isn't that right, Sonic?"
"Yeah. That's exactly it."
As the world scrambled to find understanding in those words, in that exchange, in their ideal of the heroic hedgehog and who he was, there was a tired sigh that came from the teenage girl.
And she relaxed, giving her hero a wearied, satisfied smile.
The tens of millions heard her, and Amy jumped as words filtered through her lips.
"You're more beautiful than I imagined. A hero, through and through."
Sonic flashed a nervous smirk, also noting Laura's dreamy stare and feeling the heat of Amy's impending wrath yards behind him.
Trouble. He had been right the whole time.
But this kind...wasn't so bad.
Maybe.