A/N: Sorry for the long delay ^_^;; thanks to Shadow'sObsesser, robinsama
and Flare the mechanic for reviewing, you all get... um... a pack of cards ^_^.
And a notice saying that I don't own Sonic the Hedgehog. This chapter is a
bit heavy and angsty by the way but it's an important plot point.
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Tai groaned and opened her eyes, she shut them with a jerk and her entire body complained at the movement. She opened her eyes again and blinked vigorously until her eyes adjusted. Tai looked over to the left to see Knuckles dozing softly in a chair next to her bed, she only noticed his foot resting on the edge of her mattress as she sat up, the movement waking him up as he had planned.
"Ow." She whimpered looking down at her bandage-covered body and Knuckles glared at her darkly.
"Don't give me that look Knuckles because you know I don't care." Tai said peeking under a bandage under he arm to check out the damage.
"The fact that you don't seem to care is why I'm glaring at you." Knuckles growled.
"Save it for someone who cares." She snapped back standing up.
"No." Knuckles growled slamming her against a wall. "You must be completely out of your mind Tai, you could have been killed."
"Well I'd rather die doing the right thing than be a coward, but you wouldn't understand that would you Knuckles?" She growled back at him.
"There's a difference between doing the right thing and just taking revenge at the cost of your own life Tai!" The red echidna snapped back.
"If it'd been real revenge I wanted I would have killed YOU instead." Tai said her voice icy.
"I saved your life! Or are you forgetting that?!" Knuckles shouted so loud that the windows shook.
"At the cost of my mother's! Robotnik might have pulled that trigger Knuckles but you killed her just as much as he did!" Tai shouted back.
"There wasn't anything we could have done! You were ten for chaos' sake! He would have killed you, gotten the master emerald and killed millions and you know it." Knuckles said bitterly.
"I would rather have died trying to save her than live knowing that you stopped me." Tai said hollowly, Knuckles' hands slid down her arms and he turned her back on her.
"How could you do it Knuckles? How could you hold me there in that cupboard and stop me from trying to save her? How could you let me hear her get killed? I trusted you indefinitely and you betrayed me!" Tai screamed at him.
"You would have died Tai, she told me to protect you and I did." Knuckles said coldly as he stared at the bed. Tai grabbed his shoulder and made him face her.
"Tell me Knuckles, o great saviour, do I look saved? Do I look happy? Peaceful? Safe? No. You promised her those too, so don't give me that excuse, if you ever even gave a damn about me then tell me why you did it." Tai growled. Knuckles shivered even though it wasn't cold, what did he have to lose? She hated him anyway.
"I... I was scared ok? I knew that if I let you go he'd kill you, I thought you mum would fight back or something, that she'd get away. I knew you wouldn't be able to and you would get killed. I couldn't bear to lost you, you were the only person who actually cared about me at all and I couldn't bear to lose you. But I did lose you. And you hate me." Knuckles said quietly. Tai's lips shook and her eyes filled with tears, lightning fast she grabbed a fistful of Knuckles' quills and pulled as hard as she could, Knuckles yelped as several quills ripped out.
"You... you... you monster! How could you even...? I... I hate you with every ounce in my body!" She screamed at him and fled the room, the door bouncing on it's hinges as she slammed it.
The red echidna slid to the floor, several of his dreadlocked quills unfurling themselves into a single red sheen of quills, tears ran silently down his face at the loss of half of his soul.
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Tai groaned and opened her eyes, she shut them with a jerk and her entire body complained at the movement. She opened her eyes again and blinked vigorously until her eyes adjusted. Tai looked over to the left to see Knuckles dozing softly in a chair next to her bed, she only noticed his foot resting on the edge of her mattress as she sat up, the movement waking him up as he had planned.
"Ow." She whimpered looking down at her bandage-covered body and Knuckles glared at her darkly.
"Don't give me that look Knuckles because you know I don't care." Tai said peeking under a bandage under he arm to check out the damage.
"The fact that you don't seem to care is why I'm glaring at you." Knuckles growled.
"Save it for someone who cares." She snapped back standing up.
"No." Knuckles growled slamming her against a wall. "You must be completely out of your mind Tai, you could have been killed."
"Well I'd rather die doing the right thing than be a coward, but you wouldn't understand that would you Knuckles?" She growled back at him.
"There's a difference between doing the right thing and just taking revenge at the cost of your own life Tai!" The red echidna snapped back.
"If it'd been real revenge I wanted I would have killed YOU instead." Tai said her voice icy.
"I saved your life! Or are you forgetting that?!" Knuckles shouted so loud that the windows shook.
"At the cost of my mother's! Robotnik might have pulled that trigger Knuckles but you killed her just as much as he did!" Tai shouted back.
"There wasn't anything we could have done! You were ten for chaos' sake! He would have killed you, gotten the master emerald and killed millions and you know it." Knuckles said bitterly.
"I would rather have died trying to save her than live knowing that you stopped me." Tai said hollowly, Knuckles' hands slid down her arms and he turned her back on her.
"How could you do it Knuckles? How could you hold me there in that cupboard and stop me from trying to save her? How could you let me hear her get killed? I trusted you indefinitely and you betrayed me!" Tai screamed at him.
"You would have died Tai, she told me to protect you and I did." Knuckles said coldly as he stared at the bed. Tai grabbed his shoulder and made him face her.
"Tell me Knuckles, o great saviour, do I look saved? Do I look happy? Peaceful? Safe? No. You promised her those too, so don't give me that excuse, if you ever even gave a damn about me then tell me why you did it." Tai growled. Knuckles shivered even though it wasn't cold, what did he have to lose? She hated him anyway.
"I... I was scared ok? I knew that if I let you go he'd kill you, I thought you mum would fight back or something, that she'd get away. I knew you wouldn't be able to and you would get killed. I couldn't bear to lost you, you were the only person who actually cared about me at all and I couldn't bear to lose you. But I did lose you. And you hate me." Knuckles said quietly. Tai's lips shook and her eyes filled with tears, lightning fast she grabbed a fistful of Knuckles' quills and pulled as hard as she could, Knuckles yelped as several quills ripped out.
"You... you... you monster! How could you even...? I... I hate you with every ounce in my body!" She screamed at him and fled the room, the door bouncing on it's hinges as she slammed it.
The red echidna slid to the floor, several of his dreadlocked quills unfurling themselves into a single red sheen of quills, tears ran silently down his face at the loss of half of his soul.