Chapter 4 All for Nothing Part 2
Sonic spent the whole night rolling in his bed, unable to sleep. Every time he closed his eyes, he heard the sounds that he now realized were what Uncle Chuck called bedroom sounds. He was glad for the wastebasket in his room.
When morning came and he realized he was alone, he couldn't just sit there. He raced out of the city and through the frozen wasteland to a cave. In the glowing, green cavern was a waterfall. He ran through it and into another cave. In this cave, there were walls of books and a cauldron in the center. Steam billowed up over the boiling substance. He looked around.
"Well, to what do I owe this surprise visit?" A jovial voice asked behind him. The Oracle smiled as he turned around. "Why, Prince Sonic, you're all a tremble. What is it, my lad?" He waved his hand and a table laden with chili dogs appeared before him. Sonic gratefully accepted the food, eating as he considered what he wanted to say.
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Sonia glared at her mother as they ate the brunch that Bartleby had the kitchen staff prepare. "Bartleby says that I should give you a chance to explain yourself." She said.
"She doesn't need to explain herself to you." Robotnik shot at her. "You're her daughter, not her keeper."
Aleena grimaced. "Julian, it's okay. I can handle this. Sonia, dear daughter, I love Julian. I think I always have. We just never had the courage to act on it. But just because I love Julian, it doesn't mean I don't love you or your brothers."
"I don't even understand how this happened." Sonia said. "A month ago, a month ago, you were a wanted woman. You, Robotnik, wanted to turn her into a robot slave. How did you go from that to getting caught making whoopie?"
The couple blushed and Aleena chuckled. "Well, um, it was kind of an accident. I went out to a local bar. I was trying to do some recon when this lowlife jerk started harassing me."
"I was frustrated with Sleet and Dingo failing again. I decided to go out for a drink. I heard the man harassing her. I didn't know who he was harassing but I take pride in keeping my city free of such creatures as he. So I stepped in. I had him arrested and carted away to the roboticizer," Robotnik explained. "Imagine my surprise to see my nemesis, Queen Aleena in a dive bar."
Aleena giggled. "And imagine my surprise at being rescued by the tyrannical monster, Dr. Robotnik. But we sat and we had some drinks and talked like we haven't talked in years. I remembered how much I once looked up to him and admired him. Before the war. It was so familiar and it felt good. And he was buying the beer so we got… well, drunk. And he asked if I would join him at home for a nightcap. I know it was foolish. Could have been a trap…"
Robotnik nodded. "I'll admit that I was tempted to take advantage of the situation to win this conflict between us. But… I enjoyed talking with her. I didn't want it to end and… one thing led to another so… Now here we are."
The queen nodded. "The only reason we didn't tell is it was going so well. And we're both just so bad with relationships. We were thinking the reason it was going so well is that no one knew." She touched her daughter's hand. "I love Julian. Just like you love Bartleby. I understand now how you feel. And I would happily accept him as my son in law."
Bartleby sat down. "I'm glad to hear that ma'am. I love Sonia with all my heart. Your reasons make a lot of sense. Dearest, when we first started dating, we didn't tell either." He reminded her.
"We didn't need to. Everyone knew," she countered. "I can't say I understand. I gave up Bartleby on your orders. Now you do this and think your opinions matter. But…" She groaned. "I guess I can accept it. It's your life."
Aleena smiled as she ate. "Bartleby, this bread pudding is delicious."
"Yeah? I made it myself. I needed a hobby so I started taking a cooking class. I'm glad you like it." He smiled while Sonia took a bite.
She gasped at him. "That is good. You didn't tell me you took up baking, my dear."
The mink laughed. "We only just got back together last night. You could join me. It's a fun class." He smiled as they settled into a civil discussion about the course.
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Sonic ate his way through the platter of chili dogs as he recounted the previous night. "It keeps playing over and over in my head… I couldn't sleep… Sonia and Manic both think mom betrayed us but…" He saw the Oracle thinking about the tale. "What do you think?"
The Oracle considered the matter. "Well, this is an unexpected development. I think your mother is genuine. She does seem to care for Robotnik. I'm sorry you had to find out like you did. There's little that is more traumatic then catching one's parent in that particular act." He chuckled as Sonic promptly turned his head towards a nearby trash pail. "I know this isn't what you thought was going to happen. It's certainly a surprise to me and I can usually see the future but of course, there is still an air of unpredictability there…"
Sonic shrugged as he cleaned himself up. "I don't know anything about seeing the future. Is there anything we can do? What should I do? What should I say? How do I fix this? Sonia's run back to her rich ex and Manic doesn't seem to care beyond being mad at Mom. I don't know what to say or do. If it were any other guy, I might be okay with her dating again but… it's Robotnik! If they got married, he'd be my, ewwwww, stepdad."
Oracle laughed. "Your mother has been alone a long time. They're both getting older. Naturally neither want to spend their advanced years locked in a mortal struggle. I'll talk to your mother and see if I can't understand her reasons." He put a hand on Sonic's shoulder. "Don't say anything for now. To anyone. It's certainly too early."
Sonic nodded. "I won't. I promise." Well, he would have to tell Cyrus and Trevor, they were fellow officers in their movement. But they wouldn't tell anyone.
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At the coffee shop, Manic sat at a small, round table with a fresh blueberry muffin. "You're good at this." He said as Sleet served the customers. "Do you like it so far?"
The wolf cleaned his paws of powdered sugar. "I do. It's different, quiet. The last two years have been tumultuous. Chasing you and your siblings to try and please a sadomasochistic, megalomaniacal tyrant. I don't think I could go back to being a bounty hunter even if we weren't disgraced."
Manic nodded. "It's time for something new. Something slower. Something that lets us be who we really are." He drank his coffee. "I never really thought about it. I thought I'd be a thief all of my life."
Sleet nodded. "Now's your chance to think about it. You can do whatever you want to do." He saw the young hedgehog was taking in the advice. It was true for him too. This was his chance to rewrite his destiny.
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Aleena returned to the palace with Robotnik after eating their fill. He could see she wasn't happy.
"Your daughter has agreed to accept this. What's wrong now?" He asked a little too sharply. He knew he'd gone too far when she flinched and turned away. "I'm sorry… I didn't mean to bark."
Aleena sighed. "She agreed because of Bartleby. And he's a sweet lad. I know he'll be good to her. But I know my daughter, Julian. I could see it in her eyes. She just doesn't want to quarrel with him." She sat on the sofa and cast a spell to light the fireplace. When he sat beside her, she leaned into him and his arms formed a centurion shield around her. "I know I chose this. It's just so hard. All I ever wanted was to be a mother to them." She closed her eyes against the tears.
AN: Has Aleena just messed up any chance of a relationship with her kids? Are they right to be angry or do you think they're being a bit judgey?