hey everyone, long wait, i know, i know. I blame motivation. this has been sitting in my doc manager for a while, and I hadn't the motivation to edit it until now, so expect chapters monthly? Sorry about that. I will try and update this once a month, at least.

I rubbed my eyes, my reflection staring back through the mirror. My punishment job started early in the morning, which was not very pleasant. Nevertheless, I did my best to look presentable; it was one of the only ways I held on to my dignity in these trying times. In actuality, everyone was too worried about themselves to care what you looked like, but it helped ground me in reality; it was almost comforting.

I washed my face, threw on the standard white jumpsuit, and left. Finally, I arrived at my station, located in a remote alleyway. Two buckets of cleaning supplies lay next to the identification box. It looks like I have someone else to work with. I signed in, and the machine gave me the order to clean the alley. It was pretty long; it would probably take a good 45 minutes or so to get it past the completion check.

"Uhh… hello?" I recognized that voice. Hmm… ah, yes, that was Silver, the hedgehog from yesterday. I turned around and looked at him.

"Hey."

"Yes, hi… uh, l-long time no see— er, I mean not really… never mind." The silver hedgehog scratched his head nervously.

"…Let's just get this over with. Come on." I turned and walked toward one of the buckets, picking it up. I looked down the alley. Trash and stains littered the concrete. I got to work by first picking up the trash.

Silver caught up to me after entering his attendance. "So, uh, how are you doing?"

"Fine." I wasn't a fan of small talk; I would rather have more meaningful conversations.

"Ok."

We worked for a bit longer before Silver broke the silence again.

"What'd you do before the takeover?"

"I…" I thought back to my life four years ago. It all seemed so distant. A time when my friends and family were alive. A time when there were no worries. We were so oblivious that those days would be limited.

I realized I still hadn't answered his question; he was waiting patiently. "I, uh, was still in school. I was 16 when Eggman took over; 19 when he tightened restrictions. I'm 20 now."

"Hey, me too! That's pretty cool, huh?" Silver flashed a smile at me. I still couldn't get over how carefree and all-around happy he acted. I wondered how he did it.

We worked some more. We were about 3/4 of the way through; nothing would overhear us in this remote an area.

The silver hedgehog looked up from scrubbing the floor. "What do you think of the announcement happening after lunch today?"

"I dunno. You?"

"I'm… I— maybe something related to a big project? I heard it's a worldwide announcement."

"Yeah…" I watched him work. He was upbeat and put energy into the rather mundane task ahead of him. He was like a splotch of colors on a blank canvas. I leaned on the broom I was using. I noticed him get more nervous over time, a blush growing on his cheeks. Ah, I'm staring, oops.

I sighed and went back to work. Finally, after a few more minutes, we were finished.

—

We had finished with the task at hand.

"Man, that was tough… nice working with you." I turned toward Blaze and reached out to pat her back out of celebration. She shied away, and my hand retreated. "Ah, um, s-sorry, I didn't know you were—"

"Sorry, it's not about you; I'm just… not used to being touched."

"Ah, ok." I didn't want to push it further, despite my curiosity. I couldn't help but wonder what happened to make her like this. We walked back, and the kiosk checked us off for our jobs.

I checked the time. 11:00. "Hey Blaze, wanna get lunch together?"

"Um… ok, sure."

We walked to the canteen to get our food. Surprisingly, we had actual food. Waiting for us in giant vats was beef stroganoff with peas and sides of bread.

"Woah…" I sprinted ahead of Blaze and gazed in awe at the fresh food. My mouth was watering just looking at it. I grabbed a plate and gathered rather large servings of each type of food, carrying them back to a table. Blaze caught up a little later, taking the seat across from me.

I stabbed a piece of meat with my fork and put it in my mouth. The juiciness of the tender meat filled my mouth, the taste enveloping my tongue. I hadn't tasted something this good in… a long time. I couldn't help but laugh. It brought me so much joy to experience this; it felt like a taste of home, when life was much simpler and easier. Blaze took a bite and cracked a smile. It grew into a full-on grin and evolved into a giggle, which turned into a laugh. We laughed a laugh of remembrance, a laugh of relief, and a laugh at how strange the world was.

Blaze was the first to collect herself, while I was close to tears. After a while, I stopped, my hunger taking over once more. I looked over at Blaze. She looked… sad. She looked down at her food melancholically, with a sad look in her eyes.

"Blaze, is something wrong?"

She glanced back up at me and gave a slight smile. "No, not at all."

Something was wrong.

"Blaze, please, I want to help you."

Her face darkened. "We've only known each other for a day and a half— what? You think we're friends?"

I was shocked by the sudden hostility. "Ah, well— erm, I-I was just trying to help…"

"Yeah? I don't need it; I'm fine on my own. I don't need you. I wouldn't care if somebody shot you right in front of me. In fact, it wouldn't make a difference if you weren't alive," she said coolly. I started to get nervous. Sweat began to form on my hands and my face. "So get it through your thick and stubborn skull that IM FUCKING FINE, OK?! I DON'T NEED YOUR HELP!" She pounded her fist on the table and sprinted away. I was glad we were the only ones in there.

What should I do? This is such a mess. I looked over at the now empty seat. Her food was still there; I should bring it to her. Then, with a sense of urgency, I carried my plate and hers and hurried out of the cafeteria in Blaze's direction, although I wasn't sure where exactly she would be. People were filing into the cafeteria, though I could probably ask one of them.

I got the attention of a random person in line. "Hey, uh, have you seen a purple cat around? Small red thing in her forehead?"

"Yeah, she looked to be running into an alley over that way." The person pointed to my right.

"Alright, thanks." I ran in that direction, doing my best to balance the plates in my hands. I scanned the alleyways as I ran by them. Ah, there she was! I peered down the alleyway, and I saw her purple figure sitting against the wall, hunched over, head in hand. No noise came from her, giving the situation a bit of a creepy vibe.

I approached her. "Hey Blaze, I just wanted to—"

"Go away. Now." Her voice was so powerful I felt obliged to comply. I didn't want to escalate the situation further, so I figured I'd just leave her alone for now. She might be willing to talk later.

I set down both plates of stroganoff and a fork next to her without saying anything and turned around to leave. I wanted to help her; it was the least I could do. A line had gathered at the cafeteria, but I didn't mind waiting if it made someone else feel better. I exited the alleyway and entered the cafeteria, standing at the back of the line.

By the time I had finished my food, people were already gathering outside near the jumbo screen that hung over the central plaza. My curiosity about the announcement had returned, and I had nothing better to do, so I made my way to the plaza.

A timer was displayed on the jumbo screen that hung above, reading at around 30 minutes, and counting down; I had some time to kill.

I sat down on a bench and studied my surroundings. A small crowd had gathered, populating the place. I still felt pretty bad about what happened with Blaze, and even more curious about what could have happened in her past. That event made it evident that there was more to her than meets the eye.

I pondered over this and other things for a while. I was so lost in thought that I didn't notice the person that had occupied the seat next to me. I glanced to my right, and a pair of yellow eyes met mine, that of the purple feline I had disputed with earlier.

I jumped a little. "Woah— hey there, Blaze…" Blaze never failed to surprise me; I thought she was mad at me, but here she was.

She did not respond, looking away slowly. We didn't say anything for a while.

The silence was becoming unbearable. I turned toward her. "Hey, uh, I just wanna say I'm sorr—" She had turned, her eyes meeting mine, and I lost the will to speak. She conveyed an unspoken message through her eyes. It was a mix of regret with a bit of forgiveness in there. I could tell she regretted her actions deeply.

I looked away quickly "ah, sorry." I said out of habit, "er, I mean, I— nevermind." I put my head in my hands and rubbed my face.

"Thank you for the food."

"Huh— oh, y-yeah, no problem."

We sat there in silence, waiting for the timer to count down. I enjoyed her company; she had a comforting and secure air about her.

—

What was wrong with me?

I pondered my sudden outburst of anger. I was unsure I could figure out why I had gotten so out of control. It was something about him that made me feel insecure… I think… I think it's that he reminds me of the family I no longer have. I have been away from any kind of kindness and love for so long that I reflect it as anger and confusion. Wow. I felt terrible about what I did; he didn't deserve it. It would take me a while to get used to these feelings again. But then I don't want to risk losing Silver too— to add him to the list of casualties in my life would be the last straw before I do something I might regret. I don't want to get close to him, but I know he can help me. I don't know how, but he can.

To add more, he even gave me two plates of food, sacrificing his to provide for me despite what I had done. I didn't deserve it; why had he done it? I had nothing else to do but ask him those questions myself.

After looking around for a while, I found him. He sat on a bench in the plaza, presumably waiting for the countdown to finish. I studied him from afar. He looked to be entranced in thought, his brow furrowed. I wondered what he was thinking about.

I walked over and sat next to him, not saying anything. He did not seem to notice me. I decided to wait and see how long it would take him to notice me.

Around 6 minutes passed before he turned his head, and his soft golden irises met mine. He jumped. "Woah— oh, hey there, Blaze…" strangely, there was no hint of disgust or avoidance in his voice, face, or body language. One could even go as far as saying that I was a welcome surprise to him.

I looked away from him. What did he think of me? Was he just that good at faking his emotions? No, not that… what was I to him? Was I a friend? An ally? A bully?

It occurred to me that I could've hurt him a lot. I thought about it — I had let the pent-up hurt and anger in me loose on the poor unsuspecting guy, and those emotions were intense. I felt awful about what I did and wanted to apologize for my rather brash and hurtful actions, but he beat me to it.

He turned and looked at me, "Hey, uh, I just wanna say I'm sorr—" our eyes met, and he stopped suddenly. He seemed to peer into my thoughts, and the realization spread on his face. I had conveyed my regret and forgiveness to him without the need for words.

He quickly turned his head away. "Ah, sorry— er, I mean, I— nevermind." He rubbed his face.

"Thanks for the food."

He lifted his face. "Huh— oh, y-yeah, no problem."

The timer continued to count down. Five minutes left. Quite a large crowd had gathered.

"Hey Blaze?"

"Yeah?"

"I don't have a good feeling about this, so can we make sure to stick together?" He turned to look at me, avoiding looking at me directly. It was cute.

I considered what he was talking about. Was he worth it? Did I want to get attached to another person? If I bonded with him any longer, I was afraid I might break if something were to happen to him. I was so afraid of losing people in my life that I isolated myself so that there was no one left to lose.

"I'm not sure. We will see."

"Ok…" he scratched the back of his head.

The hedgehog intrigued me. He seemed so… optimistic, his voice almost too upbeat. How did he maintain this demeanor? Was it all a mask? Was there pain behind his happiness? I decided against this idea. He sounded too genuine; he wore his heart on his sleeve. On the other hand, I couldn't deny that it was attractive; behavior like that in these conditions was infrequent.

My thoughts were cut short when a loud beep pierced the air. The timer had reached zero.

Looming above us from a tall building, the screen showed the trademark Eggman symbol, which faded to black. A video of Eggman in a chair faded in, and the mad doctor stood up and cleared his throat, addressing the camera.

"Attention all citizens of the Eggman Empire, today is a big milestone in my journey. The second stage of my total enslavement plan is complete! All of your hard work has helped me greatly. Consider today's lunch my gratitude. Now we move into phase 3: Total Enslavement. My bots are already starting to round everyone up."

Panic washed through the crowd as we realized we were trapped in the plaza by a whole array of robots at the entrances.

Eggman's booming voice snapped us back to attention. "Calm down, calm down; You're not gonna die. However, you guys will have a much busier work schedule than before, because your first project as my slaves is, drumroll please, a huge statue of yours truly. A large computer-rendered image of a statue of himself flashed on the screen. Don't worry, there will still be plenty for you to do after this is completed. Anyways, I'll let my bots guide you from here. Goodbye." The screen flashed off.

A wave of confusion washed through the crowd. I didn't know how to react to this information. What would life be like now? I wasn't sure; I would have to wait and see.

A mechanical hum filled the square as the bots began to close in on us. Then, a hiss. A blue-colored gas began to dispense out of the robots. They were gassing us! Who knows what sort of mind-controlling nanotechnology could be in that stuff. Silver and I were near the middle of the circle, so we would be affected last.

Those unfortunate enough to get affected first seemed to drop to the ground the moment they breathed it in. I stood up, pulling Silver with me. I decided that I did not want to get separated from him at all costs.

"Silver, embrace me!" I opened my arms.

"W-what?" He said, a puzzled look on his face.

"Just do it, hurry!" I barked.

He nervously complied, shakily wrapping his arms around me, but avoiding bodily contact. I slammed against him, hugging him as hard as I could. I did not want to get separated from him in this new situation. The height difference was a little awkward, as his head was at the same level as my breasts. I don't think it mattered, given our situation.

We lay on the ground in our tight embrace, waiting for the smoke. I noticed the slightly blushing Silver trying to hold his breath to avoid the gas. His naiveness amused me.

At last, the gas reached us, and immediately everything went black.

—

Fuck, everything hurts…

My body ached as I came to. I first noticed that Blaze and I were still embracing and that my arms were tired. I guess our strategy pulled off. I soon realized that my head was practically in her boobs, to which I uncomfortably shifted. I didn't get very far, as Blaze's embrace had the strength of steel. Every time I tried to pull away, she unconsciously hugged me tighter and murmured something. I guess I just had to wait until she awoke, whenever that was.

From my limited position, I examined what I could of my surroundings. White walls surrounded us, and you could feel the container's turbulence and motion. We were moving somewhere, that's for sure. Around 12 other unconscious people crowded the small space, each still unconscious. It seemed that I was the first one awake.

We held our embrace for another good half hour, then I decided to try and see what I could do to wake Blaze up. I wriggled my body and resisted as much as possible, but she wouldn't budge. I tried whispering her name, but that didn't work either. She embraced me even tighter, her arms constricting around my upper back. She began to purr and rest her head on my quills.

What the hell was going on? I couldn't help but blush at these actions. An erection began to stir in me, despite my futile attempts to keep such thoughts and feelings away. On that note, I admit I was crushing on her a little bit. I couldn't help it; She was just very attractive to me.

She continued this behavior for a while, even whispering my name sometimes. What did she really think of me? These unconscious actions suggested even the slightest attraction towards me, but I denied it; there was no way someone like her would be attracted to me, right? It could just be an effect of her past experiences and separation anxiety.

Blaze woke up when a bump jolted the container we were in. She opened her eyes slowly, realized our position, and quickly pulled away so that we were not so close. The feeling lingered; strangely, I missed it. A blush adorned her face.

"Sorry." She said.

"It's ok." I really hoped she did not notice my boner.

Blaze took a seat next to me (There were no other open spots against the walls).

We sat in silence, our thoughts wandering. Others would probably start to wake soon, so if I wanted to say anything significant, I would need to say it now.

"I'm glad we stayed together, Blaze."

"Me too."

Silence.

"Can I hold your hand?"

I looked at her, stunned. "What?"

She looked me in the eyes. "Can I hold your hand?"

"Um… s-sure."

Our hands intertwined. It felt… nice, to say the least. It helped to distract us from the perilous and confusing situation we were in.

It got me thinking about what her feelings were toward me. Did she like me? She said during her outburst that we weren't friends, which made me question her actions. Was this just a coping mechanism?

"Hey Blaze?"

She looked at me

"Why do you… why are we… erm, how do I put this… uh, I-I'm curious about your attitude towards me, what do you think of me?"

She took a while before answering. "I have failed my mission of not getting too close to someone. It was too late when I realized you had become an important part of my life. Sorry, that was unrelated. I'm not sure what to think of you, though. Or maybe I would rather not say. We have only known each other for a few days, yet here we are."

"I see…"

One person started to stir among the unconscious. I instinctively started to withdraw my hand, but Blaze held on tight. "Blaze, I'm sorry, I-I'm not really comfortable like this around other people."

I looked at her. Her eyes seemed sad, as if I had broken her. I felt awful about it, though; I didn't want to stop our hand-holding, but it would be awkward to try and hold it again.

I noticed another thing about her eyes. Contrary to before, they seemed more lively, filled with color. It was nice to see that.

After a while, others woke up as well, until everyone was awake. Then, we talked amongst ourselves for a while, everyone surprisingly calm.

At last, our box shook violently, and the turbulence stopped. One of the walls began to lower, and I got a full-on view of where I would be working.

A robotic voice omitted from somewhere. "Welcome to the capital, I hope you enjoy your stay."