Deprivation

Chapter 2

Author's Note: Thank you for the 'support' you've been giving me. Indeed, I have started to figure out a hint of where this story'll be going. This chapter may seem unneccessary, but in the long run, I believe it may be essential. It's short, full of dialect, and most likely grammar mistakes. I read through this once, and again, I can't catch everything. What I'm basically saying is 'enjoy', and please review. I really like the feedback.

Disclaimer: It's obvious.

Sleep had always been a rare pleasure that Sally typically enjoyed. It was a period of rest; a break from her mind and duties. It was refreshing, to say the least, especially after a long, monotonous day spent planning, reflecting, and doing other various tasks, among those keeping a certain someone and his oversized ego in line. With morning, came only the desire for those extra five minutes of enjoyment. The five would typically evolve into ten and so on until yet another hour had been spent in the realms of sweet slumber.

Of course, being in the position she was, she didn't have the time to spend a great amount of her morning sleeping. She had work to attend to. Responsibility overruled pleasure. It just so happened, however, that the next morning after that failed mission, something disrupted her rest. The persistent knocking that could drive anyone crazy after a while was her own alarm. She woke with a start, immediately slipping her vest and boots on while mentally cursing to herself. It was an indecent hour. The sun hadn't even risen and already something was wrong. Supposedly it was an expectation to be able to serve at any moment, but at this early in the morning it was preposterous!

She opened the door to see a familiar figure smiling at her, all energized and ready to go. Well, wasn't he lucky? Sometimes she wondered whether he engulfed half as much sugar as he did chili dogs. "Sonic, it isn't even dawn…" she began, tiredly. The little time she did have to relax and sleep always seemed to be taken away from her with some distraction. Whether it was her own anxiety over plans, failures, or some other catastrophic disorder, she never seemed to be able to fully enjoy herself during the night hours when everyone else would be sleeping soundly. As leader, she was stuck with atypical burdens that everyone else seemed to take for granted. She herself and the work and effort she put in seemed to be taken for granted sometimes when compared to Sonic the Hedgehog's achievements.

Often did she wonder what was actually on his little mind. A day in the life of Sonic Hedgehog: procrastination, boasting, play, and chili dogs, or so that's all she'd credit it to be. He wouldn't survive in her boots, and as far as she was concerned, she'd probably lose her sanity in his sneakers. His life was too out-of-proportion. From his lack of organization to complete free spirit, Sally wouldn't be able to tolerate his unkempt life. She needed some order. Basically, she needed a functional brain.

The stars still twinkled in the early morning sky as her blue eyes met that of her caller. His emerald eyes seemed to be full of excitement and impatience, the complete inverse of hers at the moment. Either his biological clock was in need of some tuning, or Sonic Hedgehog had really taken off the high dive with being up THIS early…

He grinned; he stretched; he winked at her. "Good mornin' to 'ya too, Sal!" the hedgehog raved in a cheerful tone. He had something behind his back. A yellow petal seemed to catch her attention, as she immediately perked up. Flowers; a bouquet of wild flowers…

She knew where this was going.

"Alright, Sonic, what do you want this time? If it's an excuse from guard duty, you aren't getting it."

"Sal, Sal, man, I didn't even give 'ya the flowers 'n already you're accusin' me of wantin' somethin'!"

"And?" She yawned. The sun wasn't even near the horizon. It was undoubtedly somewhere around four or five in the morning, or so she predicted. Why Sonic even bothered getting up at that hour baffled her.

"And? Can't I just give 'ya flowers every once 'n a while without you thinkin' I've gotta have somethin' in return…"

"You're right. Thank you for the flowers, Sonic. They're beautiful." She turned to go, but the new look on his face stopped her. It was that irking trademark smirk. At this point; even someone with half a brain would know there was something behind his abrupt action.

He let a silence linger for a bit, still grinning. Keeping a cool and slick posture, he eyed her. "Ya know, Sal, they remind me of you. Bright, beautiful…"

"Don't push it. You're lucky I didn't give you guard duty for a month after the stunt you pulled last night, daredevil."

"Aw, are ya still mad about 'dat?"

"Yes, I am! It was reckless, Sonic! If I can't trust you on simple missions, how can I trust with you with the more complicated ones?"

"Well, uhh…look, okay, I got an idea, I went for it. No harm done, Sal. I'm okay. And Ant, he's always been mondo weird!"

She sighed. "I could have LOST you, Sonic. Robotropolis isn't a play field! You need to stop treating it like one."

"Yeah, yeah, I will, Sal. I will! Hedgehog's honor!" He offered her the flowers with a grin. "So things cool between us again?"

Well, at least the argument had quickly reached a resolution. She really hated fighting with him, especially so early in the morning. It wasn't the time that drove her to that perspective; it was the fact that in any case it was always hard to be mad at him for too long. It was always hard to be upset with any friend, especially one as close as he was. And even in a dim light, he was still always charming.

Taking them hesitantly, a small smile appeared on her face. "Barely."

"Great, Sal, great. So about 'dat guard duty…"

"The answer's still no, hedgehog. Good night-"

"Wait, Sal, I've been thinkin'."

"You thinking?" She pretended to be surprised. "Well, Sonic Hedgehog, I suppose this is worth hearing. About what?"

"'Da raid. Yesterday. Ya know, I was talkin' 'ta the 'lil guy 'n well, I was thinkin' maybe…"

"Maybe what?"

"Well, maybe T2 could tag along with me, Sal. I could train him easy. 'N with a mission like gettin' files, 'da two of us'll be unstoppable. C'mon Sal, he really wants 'ta give it a go."

She sighed. "You know how I feel about that, Sonic. I don't want him in Robotropolis. He's too young to be a Freedom Fighter."

"Aw c'mon Sal…I'd keep an eye on him."

"If you left Antoine, how can I even rely on you to keep an eye on Tails? The two of you will turn the raid into a race and then-"

"We will not! Look, I'll keep serious! I promise!"

She shook her head. "I'm standing on my answer, Sonic. It's still no."

"Is 'dere anyway?"

"If you'll wait a few years, I'll be happy to let you train him at the right time..."

"Wait? Sal, I can barely wait thirty seconds! How can ya expect me 'ta wait a couple years?"

"I don't know…" Dragging the words out, her eyes half closed in contentment, she placed a paw on his shoulder. "But with your 'fast thinking', I'm sure you'll find a way…"

"But Sal-"

"Good night, Sonic." She ended in a soft reassuring tone, leaning over and giving him a kiss on the cheek before she exited into her hut and shut the door behind her.

A small feeling of worry seemed to arise in her after that conversation. She knew somehow, with his persistency, the idea wouldn't be dropped easily.