Author's note: Well, yeah. I know this kind of thing is kind of overdone, but "overdone" is relative. What's overdone to some people can be perfect to others. And I'm not just talking about hamburgers here.
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Chapter 1: Headache
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The day began like any other. I was riding my bike through the suburbs, looking left and right as I rode. I ran over a few broken tree branches; I liked the sound it made as the tires crushed them.
A man down the street had chosen this day to trim some of the branches from the trees in his yard (as I later found out). This does not seem important, but you can never tell this early in a story what's important and what isn't.
I stopped my bike in front of this man's yard. I leaned my bike up against a mailbox, took off my helmet and hung it on the bars, and began to get a drink from my water bottle.
The man didn't notice me, and I didn't notice him. He cut one particularly massive branch, and it fell and hit me in the head. I remained conscious for a moment longer, then I was out.
I don't know how long I was unconscious. All I know is that when I woke up, I was no longer in my own neighborhood. I was lying on a layer of sand. Desert? Beach? Playground sandbox? I was not yet conscious enough to be able to tell.
A silence filled the area as I lay motionless on the sand. Nothing else happened until someone threw a bucket of water on my head.
I woke with a start. "Hey, what the-? What just happened?"
"Haha," a familiar-sounding voice chuckled as I got up. "Don't worry, it looks like you're going to be okay."
My eyesight had cleared by now, and I looked around. I could now confirm that I had been lying on a beach before a town. I had never been here before, and yet the place looked familiar to me.
But who had thrown the water on me? I quickly spotted the culprit, who turned out to be a young anthropomorphic two-tailed fox holding a now-empty metallic bucket. He was wearing white gloves and laceless sneakers.
"Welcome to Emerald Town," the fox in question greeted me. "You can call me Tails. Did you just get here?"
I nodded. "Yeah, I did just get here… I think. It's a little hard to explain. You see, I was …"
"You don't need to tell me," Tails interrupted. "I think I understand. You should be careful, though. Since you just arrived in this world, your bodily structure is a little unstable. You might want to avoid coming in contact with small animals."
"That's balderdash," I shot back. "What's the worst thing that could happen? Here, I'll prove it to you." I approached a robin in a nearby tree and put my hand out.
Noticing me, the robin flew over and tried to perch on my hand. As soon as it came in contact with me, though, both it and me were enveloped in a flash of light.
When the light cleared, I felt a little strange. I looked around; the robin was gone. "Tails," I told my new friend, "what were you saying about the unstable bodily structure thing?"
"It's a little hard to explain," Tails replied. "Here, come with me, and I'll show you."
With that, Tails led me into a large building. It looked like a very high-tech setting, like a laboratory or something. "This place is amazing," I finally said. "Is it yours?"
"Yes, it is," Tails explained. "Science and mechanics are hobbies of mine." Why can't we all have hobbies so advanced, I thought to myself, deciding not to mention it out loud.
Only the humming of machines kept the room out of silence as Tails led me through the building. Finally he stopped in front of a full-length mirror. "I think you'd better take a look at yourself," Tails told me.
I did, and I balked. Staring back at me in the mirror was an anthropomorphic robin, complete with a pair of large robin wings on his back, and practically covered in red feathers. To boot, my clothes were gone… but for some reason, I didn't care.
"As you can see, your appearance is a lot different than it was before you touched that robin," Tails explained. "When you touched it, the-"
"Wait, don't tell me," I interrupted. "The lack of stability in my bodily structure caused the robin to merge with me, transforming me into what I am now."
It was Tails' turn to balk now. "Th-That's exactly correct! How did you figure that out?"
I smirked. "I know a few things about science, too. Not as much as you obviously do, but enough for me to guess."
Tails laughed a little. "I bet. And just minutes ago you refused to believe me. Oh, just a moment. I think I'd better give you something."
Leaving those words hanging in the air, Tails disappeared for a moment, then returned with a small cardboard box. I opened it, and inside I found a pair of gloves and a pair of shoes just like the ones Tails wore.
"Thanks," I said, withdrawing the box's contents and trying them on. They fit as if they were made for me. "I think I like them."
"Don't mention it. Hey, I didn't catch your name."
"Call me Leo."
"Leo. Leo the Robin. Sounds neat."
"Really? Sounds kind of silly to me. And… if you don't mind me changing the subject all of a sudden… I don't quite feel confident in my new body. Is there some way you could train me or something?"
Tails smiled. "Sure. I can put you in a VR training course, and I'll instruct you as you go. That sound good?"
"I'll give it a try."
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If you'll notice, I made this chapter longer than I usually make my chapters. I don't doubt that some of my regular reviewers, like Nail Strafer, will appreciate the extra length.
Quote of the Chapter:
"What kind of stupid description is that? Give me some more details!"
-Dr. Eggman, The Tale of Blaze, Ch. 4