- About this Fanfic, it is a "Christmas Story Out of Season". This was because I had an idea of this kind of Fanfic right after Christmas, while everyone else was preoccupied with Easter. A friend suggested I post soon, otherwise the idea would run out of my head. In other words, if you don't feel like reading something with a Christmas spirit outside of Christmas, you can come back in a few months, who knows? I won't blame you for that.
- It was written months ago, and my writing has improved since then. So maybe it's not a 'spectacle', but it was decent. (Now it's up to my time to update this, lol). Enjoy :)
Chapter 1: "White Season".
Snowflakes fell softly to the ground at night, forming a thin white layer on the green grass while the trees had their branches covered by it. Soon, the street, the neighborhood and the entire city suffered the consequences of the coldest season of the year.
In a few hours, the sun would rise to let you know that a new day was starting - and that there was a surprise out there.
Vanilla, in response to daylight, woke up normally and opened the windows in her house as usual. A genuine smile formed on his face when he saw the neighborhood - which had once been green, densely wooded and vast, was now dominated by crystalline white. Despite the different color, the place was still beautiful.
She knew what that meant: smiles coming from Cream. Your daughter has waited all year to see snow again as it was her favorite time.
Vanilla, although it was early to wake a small child, did not hesitate to go get her. After all, this mother would do anything for her child's happiness.
Despite her apparent weariness, Cream got up without much delay, curious to know what surprise Vanilla had mentioned. Eyelids heavy with sleep, she questions.
"Mom, what would be the surprise?"
"It's at the window, dear." - she answers with her sweet and gentle voice as she sets the table for breakfast.
Cream, still not understanding what her mother was saying, went to the window in pure obedience and yawned. Seeing what was in front of him, his sleep dissipated completely, giving way not only to joy but also to anxiety - anxiety to be able to play in that fluffy white snow, to be able to make a snowman and to build bases for wars .
The young rabbit hurriedly ate breakfast and went upstairs to get her sweatshirt and scarf. As a result of the move, Cheese woke up rolling down the steps (literally). He seemed to be irritated by the noise from downstairs. Seeing Cream descending ready to leave, he asked in his own language, flying dizzy and a little strange for having fallen down the stairs:
"Chao-Chao?"
"Good morning Cheese! I'm going to play in the snow...look, I brought a hat and scarf too!" She was holding tiny clothes that neutral Chao entered, now as excited as his partner.
On the way out, it was possible to see a landscape where everything was covered with snow. The houses had their roofs buried under a thick layer of snow. Any loud noise or trembling can cause it to collapse (and the poor person who would have to clean it up later). Unlike human neighborhoods, this one was very unusual - a house here and a house there, but there were still houses. Homes have always been near lakes and small woods, but never near roads or paved streets. The most that were found were narrow brick streets and paths. There were also tall trees of at least 5 meters that shaded some places. Remembering woods or parks is a characteristic of these neighborhoods. Now imagine all this, but blank.
The two friends thought they were the first to leave the house to play, but they were wrong.
A blue trail shot from right to left at the speed of light and wind, which ripped Cheese's hood off and carried him away. The blue bolt passed again, this time from left to right kicking up white dust. Suddenly, he stops in front of Cream & Cheese, revealing who was behind the stunt. It was none other than Sonic The Hedgehog wearing a red scarf.
Sonic is an experienced early riser like any good adventure lover, and it was no surprise he was there before everyone else.
With a lot of energy, he greets Cream and returns Cheese's hood, which had flown from his head.
"Mr. Sonic also came to see the snow?"
"Heh, why wouldn't you come? By the way, at that moment I was going to call Tails to see it too. Do you want to come along?"
They looked at each other, almost reading each other's thoughts.
"Me and Cheese would love to go with you!"
"OK!" - He then quickly grabs Cream and places her on his shoulders, and Cheese on his thorns.
The blue boy starts running, passing by the houses and doing so much wind, to the point all the snow on the roofs collapses at the entrance to the properties - who opened the door had a very cold surprise.
In the blink of an eye, they were in the yellow fox's huge "House-Workshop" which sat at the foot of a hill bathed in pine trees.
Cream rang the bell: No response.
She did it again and nothing happened. But, unexpectedly, She hear the noise of keys turning in the lock. The door opens slowly to reveal the face of our dear two-tailed fox. The poor boy had huge bags under his eyes, wore slippers, dragged a teddy bear and a blanket over his shoulders.
Miles was about to complain that it was too early for patrols when he saw the neighborhood's new look. Immediately, he closes the door.
"What does Tails have? Doesn't he want to play with us?"
"Wait and see." He smiles satisfied placing his hands on his hips, as if he already knew what was going to happen.
It didn't take long to hear a noise in the back of the house. It looked more like:
*TZZZZZC*
To the rabbit's surprise, a large corridor opened up on the slope, revealing a long runway and an airplane: The Tornado, which has now dazzled with its new Christmas paint. Its colors were lighter, with a few touches of red and green here and there, little bells and bells adorning its wings. It was beautiful, very beautiful.
After watching the spectacle that was, the girl gives Tails a curious look. The last one was next to the Tornado (now in winter clothes), happy. Almost in response to the girl's expression, he says:
"Sonic and I have been working for months. We thought that since the Tornado was out of action for a while, a makeover would be a good idea..."
"... And as December approached, we decided to adapt it to the Christmas style. Now he can go back to flying with everything!" Sonic completed. "So what are we waiting for? Come on!"
At first, Tails hesitated to fly, preferring to be wrapped in his blanket - a simple winter sloth. However, he was motivated by his best friend's spirit and accepted the invitation.
(...)
The sky was overcast with small hints of snow. In the distance, it was possible to see a point of light floating through the clouds. It was the Tornado with its four passengers on board.
Something that caught the attention, but not new, was the fact that the blue hedgehog simply stood on the plane's wing. He likes to feel the wind shake his thorns and be able to enjoy the view. How he doesn't fall, no one knows. Maybe... magnet on the feet?
The young hedgehog was not afraid of losing his balance, let alone catching a cold due to the altitude and the conditions of the day, always keeping a confident eye and his thinking in the now. Despite not worrying about the future, he always had a taste for the unexpected. He always preferred to let others walk at his pace and he at his. He always respected time in the past, present and future, enjoying each day with his typical smile (even being impatient sometimes).
Sonic settled on the wing of the plane and sat down, his scarf flapping violently against the wind.
Looking down, you could see mobians of all sizes and colors as they left the house and were surprised by the winter knocking on their door... That feeling of peace was incredible, cozy and at the same time, worrying.
Why to worry? - you must be asking yourself.
Simply because Dr. Ivo Robotnik - the famous "Eggman", didn't show up for weeks. But Sonic didn't want to fill his mind with that kind of worry. He just wanted to be able to enjoy the calm while it lasted. And even if Eggman came back with something big, he was sure he would find a way to stop him.
After a few minutes on the air, Cream, who was in the backseat of the Tornado, couldn't help but ask about what she had seen.
"Tails, what is this noise coming from your monitor?"
Miles took a look at his monitor and was surprised by what he saw:
"I-I don't believe it! My radar detected chaos energy near here!"
"Chao-Chao!" Cheese exclaimed. There was certainly an emerald nearby.
"But there's a little problem. The emerald is not in a very nice place..." Tails was pointing his index finger at Mr. Richards's yard, just below them. He shuddered in fear as he remembered that this house was sinister.
They knew one thing: if the emerald was there, it was very likely that Eggman had tracked it as well (which means Mr. Richards could be in danger).
... But one thing nobody knew: who would go down in the 'haunted house?'
With great trepidation, Tails had landed his dazzling ornate plane a little way from the old man's house, making as little noise as possible. Her thought flew briefly over a memory, which showed more about Richards. He was distracted in his memory bank and barely noticed that Cream had descended from the Tornado. The little girl was already a few feet from the entrance to that individual's backyard. In front of him, there was a bright and blinding object, which emitted a striking blue light: the Chaos Emerald!
"Cheese, look! The emerald is right there!" Said Cream, pointing to the jewel that was on the ground covered with snow, in the backyard of the sinister house.
When Tails realized, there was no way to warn her of the reason for her fear – not anymore, since the plane was meters away. Sonic was still on the wing of the plane, not too worried, not knowing why his colleague was avoiding the spot. As soon as Miles opened his mouth, the blue Hedgehog was quick to calm him down.
"Come on, buddy. What's wrong with a different looking house?" Sonic spoke, as he swung his legs back and forth, relaxed and happy.
"It's not really the house that bothers me..."
"What you mean?" He asked, stopping shake his suspended legs.
Cream entered the backyard in slow, calm steps, while fixing her eyes on the emerald. She didn't seem to give a shit what the garden looked like – which, by the way, wasn't pretty. There were trees with sharp branches and dry bushes everywhere. Even with snow, the "garden" didn't improve one bit. She reached out to grab the stone as her friend Cheese and the others watched intently.
Kneeling with the object in hand, her eyes sparkled with admiration for the glow emitted. It was rare that she had the chance to touch a powerful jewel like that.
"Hey, you!" - An unknown voice calls her, in a serious and grumpy tone.
She looked up and saw a human wearing thick layers of coat, standing right under a porch - a shadow cast by the roof didn't allow her to see the being's face. Seeing that someone had discovered her, she immediately hid the Emerald while the man stared at her.
"Sorry sir.. I was on my way out." The polite Cream apologized, stepping back cautiously.
"Be careful and don't come back. I don't want noisy brats in my garden" He says, bitterly.
"I'm aware of that, sir. Do not worry." After she mentions that she got the message, she turns around and runs away with the magic stone.
Seeing her approaching the plane, Tails jumped out and went to meet her, holding a sort of small box. The girl hands the artifact to him, who carefully seals it inside the cramped box.
"This box may look simple, but it will prevent the Emerald from being tracked through its radiation. This will keep us away from problems like Eggman, for example…" Miles was happy to explain his invention to her, but had to stop when he realized that Cream's thoughts were far away:
"Do you know him?"
"Who?" Confused question, after being interrupted.
"The man who lives in that house. He doesn't seem to be very happy..." Cream continues, giving Miles a sad and innocent look.
"Oh, him. I don't know much about him."
"Who are you talking about anyway?" Asks Sonic still in Tornado, highlighting the fact that they forgot to include him in the conversation.
"About Mr. Richards. He is the only human in the region and he is not very sociable".
"Oh, what a poor sir, he must not have many friends." Cream regrets, although he is not your friend.
The atmosphere between them had grown heavy after the brief comment. They realized that no one and the entire neighborhood were as alone as that old man, but they couldn't do anything to help at the moment. Silence takes over, allowing them to hear the sound of wind and snow falling, but making Sonic a little uncomfortable. After some reflection, he found a way to break the mood of sadness that had formed.
"Hey, during the flight I could see people gathering in front of 'Anthony Oak'. They seem to be having fun! What do you think, Cream?" Question, adding extra enthusiasm to your voice tone.
Tails, recognizing the attempt to cheer up the rabbit, acted and encouraged, saying:
"Good idea! There's plenty of space to park the Tornado there! We can have fun and have fun with other people!"
"Chao!" Cheese according to the same attitude, approached his guard, in which the rest.
Hearing the proposal, she composed herself and nodded, though her thoughts were still on Mr. Richards. But unlike a few seconds ago, now she found herself infected with the glee of her peers.
(...)
Within minutes of flying over the mobian neighborhood, the four found the oak tree below, proving what the enthusiastic hedgehog had previously stated: Lots of people having fun under and around a gigantic tree.
Miles landed the plane discreetly, and the first person who tried to get off was Sonic, with Cream and Chesse following right behind.
"Wait for me, I don't want to run out of snow!" He joked, twirled his two tails and headed towards them.
The location where they were, despite being covered with snow like everything else, was different because there was that tree there - I can assure you, there was no one in that neighborhood who didn't know it. The oak tree was loved and dear to everyone, as it provided a great shade for napping and picnicking, thanks to its large and extensive canopy, as well as being a good shelter for birds. Gigantic, it must have been at least 400 years old. It even had a name: "The old Oak Anthony".
Everyone was playing and talking under his branches, enjoying the winter. It didn't even seem like they woke up early to see the beauty that remained there. While Sonic and the others were having fun, someone hadn't realized was late for the 'party':
Walking in without an ounce of haste was Amy Rose, in her pink coat. She had just woken up and was looking for a distraction. Noticing the cold weather, she traveled in her thoughts, and dreamed – and guess with who? Yes, him.
"This climate is cold, but it makes everything even more beautiful! Where is he? Snow is a perfect element for a more loving climate... Can you imagine him and me watching the snow fall together? Oh, it would be so romantic!" She closed her eyes and laced her fingers together, her mind fluttering. But, it was interrupted with something in its path.
*POW*
The lover had barely finished speaking and his dream was interrupted by a fall, falling headlong into the snow. What would it be now? She realized that she could no longer travel in her little world undisturbed.
Brushing snow off his face, he stood up and turned his head sharply in search of the culprit. When her gaze fell on a large root protruding from the ground, she was dissatisfied and said:
"Why, you naughty root! You ended my fantasy!" - She complained, full of anger.
To get rid of her anger, she kicked the root so hard that the snow from the branches collapsed on her head, forming a true hat. Apparently, The old Oak Anthony had his revenge.
"Ok, you won. I see that today is not my day." She admits to the tree, sulking.
Amy realized that everyone - or if not almost everyone - was there. Fortunately for her, she found exactly who she was looking for.
"Sonic, I finally found you!" Amy screams, running towards him.
Sonic heard the scream and grimaced in fear. He hadn't expected him to find her so quickly. Mal turned to greet her and was surprised by a suffocating hug. He knew Amy was strong and if he didn't ask her to take it easy, he'd have his ribs broken. The fan-girl, realizing she had gone too far, released him immediately, overflowing with joy.
"Nice to see you too" She says, shaking hands "So, how about we take a walk?"
"Oh, it won't work. I'm helping Cream, Cheese and Tails build a snowman." Panting, he put his hand on the back that was crushed by the pink hedgehog.
Sonic couldn't help noticing Rose's frown. He knew full well that he had already filled her with lame excuses for running away from the dates she demanded, but this time he was telling the truth. Sonic was about to release that famous 'I can explain' when Amy's face turned slightly red, her fists clenched tightly. That could only mean one thing, and it wasn't good. A warning.
"Hey, how many times are you going to run away from our date? I'm giving you a chance!" She took a step forward, threatening to pull the hammer.
The blue hedgehog's hands inched forward a little, just to be sure, and when she got close, he took a step back at a time. When he saw that the only option was to run so as not to get hurt, help came. A very cold snowball collided with the girl's face angrily, forcing her to take a break, much to Sonic's relief.
"Who made this?" Her gaze wandered around as she grimaced indicating that something on her face was too cold. Her gaze fell on Tails, who had his arms loaded with snowballs.
"I'm sorry Amy, but it's not today that your hammer will greet Sonic. If you want, you'll have to go through me first!" He responds with animation, willing to protect you at any cost. Tails was aware that getting spanked with so many people around would be a real pain in the ass. He then gathered more snowballs with his tails and prepared to attack.
Sonic let out a choked sigh of relief. Amy, playing with the yellow fox, formed a smirk of one who understood.
"If you want war, then there will be war!" She got into combat position, and gathered a pile of snow, began to hit Tails, who retaliated with balls.
A short time passed, and there were enough people to form a veritable epic battleground beneath the Anthony, and the game lasted, with no expectation of when it was over. It was everyone against everyone, in pure fun, taking balls in the face and takedowns worthy of Replay.
But while winter brought joy to many, it increased worry in others. In a far away place, a road cut through the mountain, with a beautiful view of the sea. Snow, like the rest of the country, covered almost everything. The wind was cool and calm, ruffling the leaves on the jagged pines that lined the highway - which by the way was deserted, except for a red and black motorcycle parked beside it.
Next to her was a hedgehog known for his recent achievements, surveying the landscape near the edge of the cliff. He kept his arms crossed in front of his body as he gazed intently at the gentle waves of the sea. Its crimson red eyes glittered in the faint rays of the sun. Its red streaks that it had on the thorns stood out on its ebony body. He was Shadow the Hedgehog. His being was a serious and closed figure, somewhat proud but not transparent – for others, it was very difficult to know what was going on in his head. Only those who knew him well could understand his way.
Despite being a very busy hedgehog, Shadow had nothing to do at the moment. He never went out with friends for fun, this included his occasional co-workers: Rouge and E-123 Omega. Although he liked a good rest, he strangely wanted something to stop it. It wasn't right to stop now. Now, his mind wandered precisely on the possibilities that Eggman devising yet another plan to dominate the world.
Not that he was afraid. On the contrary, Shadow was so strong, to the point of making all the firepower of Eggman's robots seem harmless - if not, it wouldn't be called Ultimate Life Form. He was really worried about humans, as he had promised his beloved friend that he would give them a chance to be happy.
He knew that at one time or another, the time would come for him to put his promise into practice again.
Suddenly, someone interrupts him.
"I found you!" Rouge's voice cuts his thoughts in half.
Things will get more interesting in the next chapter, hehe! :3