MARIA
Now that you said you wanted to introduce me to everyone in the village I think you were right, it should have been like that, because everyone was looking at me with fear.-It's better to hang out with someone they know to make them feel confident.-I went to Sid´s house.-Sid? Oh, I forgot! I had to go and thank him.-When I was walking down the street I met a market gardener. He gave me a bag of potatoes and a bag of strawberries and I gave them to Sid's wife. She was very grateful.-Great. Although I don't know if that's enough to pay him back for all the food he gave us.-They brought me into their house, which was packed with people and children.-I think he's an old rooster with a lot of children and grandchildren.-Yes, everyone was afraid of me too, I made a baby cry when he saw my face.-Ha! ha! ha! Excuse me for laughing but I can imagine the situation. You have a terrible face, I mean, you're cool but with that expression you can't go near a baby!-I don't think a bad face will scare off the children, they were the first ones to approach me.-Yeah?-As the minutes go by... the kids were just like you, they don't care about anything except having a good time, they take things as if they don't really matter.-Hey, I do matter.-Of course, so do they. Do you know what disease Sid's great-grandson has?-Is he sick?-Yes, pup. I want to know if it´s serious.-I don´t know.
Shadow placed his hand on his solar plexus.-Something very funny happened with one of the children. They speak out and don't lie, don't they?-Mh, not all of them, but at least that's what people say. Tell me what happened.-He was the one who told me that his brother, that is the baby (whom I made cry), was sick and that his previous little brother had also been sick and had died.-Mhm. That I do remember. He had been one of the few babies who died in all this time.-Then I told him about Maria in front of everyone. I told him that I had also lost a very dear one.-Oh. You were good to him. See? You're nice. If everyone gets to know you like that, they're going to appreciate you very much.-Do you think so? What intrigues me the most is that I told him she was my sister... the boy didn't make me think much, I just let it go. Now I wonder if it hasn't come out of my subconscious. What if the child opened a door that was closed in my unstable memory? What if Maria was a sister to me and not an... icon of eternal love to which I was supposed to be loyal all my life... not a... sweet...-He grabbed his head and grunted because he didn't even dare to say sweetheart. Sonic told her for him-a girlfriend?-What?-he replied.-Not that you were so in love with her?-I don't remember giving her any affection-It´s not necessary. One thing does not take away the other.-Shadow was holding his head and forcing himself to think. Sonic took his hands off and put them back on.-That's your problem, Shad, you force yourself to remember. Where has that gotten you so far? Let the memories come to you alone. Like with the boy, let it just... come in and relax.-You´re right.-he said-Thank you. Sometimes you give good advice.
Sonic fell asleep on the contour of Shadow's face. There was something essential that was missing.-Why was there something that Sonic's presence couldn't take away?-he asked himself again. He took Sonic's advice and relaxed, stroked him and kissed him on the part of his forehead that was closest to him.-Maria.-he thought, and being relaxed, not oppressing the painful or controlling his feelings as hard as he always did, rather freeing himself, letting that child inside him speak to his heart, certain images began to appear in his mind. First he saw Maria bending over to him and taking his hand, then he saw Gerald Robotnik smiling at him and pointing out some diagrams in a book, comparing them to the inside of a machine that was very familiar, the next was the three of them sitting at a table, Maria was eating, Robotnik was laughing and he himself was laughing with him, with a laugh preceding all the grudges and remorse. From Gerald he had learned intelligence and understood genius, from Maria sweet and understanding love and the strength of an indestructible spirit. In that simple action, in that simple daily moment, he had realized that he could enjoy such blessings and feel grateful for having such a special and warm family inclined to share and spend the simplest bits of life together.
