Deprivation

Chapter 4

Author's Note: Well, I finally have some direction with this story which means it might not be as long a wait for the next update! I'm not sure how nice this chapter turned out, but I'll call it adequate and important to the overall plot. As you can tell there's nothing much for me to ramble about (not that I'm in the mood to). I hope you enjoy this chapter and I apologize for the spelling/grammar mistakes. I do try.

Disclaimer:You know the deal.

A rough, harsh, early afternoon breeze blew; making it apparent winter had finally conquered Knothole. From freezing winds to the new hope of snow flurries (most of these belonging to the little two-tailed wonder, Tails) the new coldness had done anything but disrupt the progress of Princess Sally's plan. In fact, there wasn't any other time she could recall that her raid preparation had gone so smoothly. The plan was perfect; every aspect of it was worked out. With the information obtained, it had been an easy mission to plan, especially with the vital and diverse abilities her comrades had; consisting of brains, speed, strength, flight, and of course, Rotor's technology. All she needed was to run through them with the others, and then finally, after the necessary last minute tweaking, bring the plan into action.

She could already feel the success her plan would bring. Failure wouldn't intimidate her like it usually did. The newfound confidence she had was enough to conquer all of her doubts. This confidence was, more or less, gained by one member's attention in particular: Sonic the Hedgehog's. Granted, it was a rare moment when he actually paid attention to trivial things, especially that of elaborate mission plans, combat positions, and anything that required his little head to think. Lately, though, the genius side of Sonic had been showing. He had even been willing to help her go through her plan prior to the general meeting, something that although she hadn't shown it, meant almost as much as the success of the raid did to her.

It amazed her, it stupefied her; the blue blur's change in attitude. Was Sonic Hedgehog, possibly the most immature and egotistical being on the planet finally growing up? Was he finally coming into his 'manhood'; was he finally letting go of the fact that at sixteen, he wasn't exactly a child anymore? It was these thoughts that left her mixed feelings in the midst of her unusually cheerful and amiable mood.

Everything had changed about him; nothing had changed about him. He still made the same witty remarks; the uncalled for insults and humor; he still had the spirit he had had from the very start. But his performance as a Freedom Fighter; his determination and effort had changed significantly! These changes were improvements, as far as she was concerned. He had always been one of her strongest members before, but at this point, he was rising above her max expectations.

And it won her, all of it.

They had been walking more lately; they had been talking more lately. Their conversations didn't consist of the usual silly, obstinate arguments. They were serious and at some points philosophical. Though she would giggle the thought off, the True Blue she knew being philosophical, she heard it in his words and actions. Was there, could there be more to the blue hedgehog she had known all her life? Was there a brain in there? Was there intellect? Were there morals? Were there unheard opinions?

It was these questions she asked herself as she walked out of Rotor's hut and towards her own. She could see her breath in the crisp, chilling air, and looking up she noticed there were grey clouds in the sky. By the looks of it, snow was in the forecast. She frowned slightly, tilting her head to study it more. The clouds seemed to indicate more then a light snow shower, the possibility of a storm or blizzard seeming possible. Supposing the latter occurred, she would of course have to push back the mission. Snow would be a major push-back and in simple terms, a plain inconvenience.

Shaking the thought away and shivering slightly, her attention returned on her prior thoughts. What would she and Sonic be talking about on their walk tonight? What was on his 'newly-found' mind never failed to entice her. Would he be romantic? Would he be normal? Was there an expiration date on his newfound high IQ? Her thoughts were cut short, however, as her ears suddenly perked up on a conversation.

"It really hurts, Sonic…" A small voice nearly whined, Sally recognizing its owner immediately. Tails? She walked a little closer to where they were, though still keeping a safe distance. Blowing her 'cover' would be a big mistake in this circumstance. She had a feeling; a slim, persistent feeling that something important was going to be discussed between the two of them; something she normally wouldn't hear about. Though some would say it was wrong to eavesdrop, curiosity had gotten the best of her. Just by the sound of her 'nephew's' voice, she knew something was wrong.

"Just hold still, 'lil bro…" Another voice started, this one being all too obvious. There was something odd about Sonic having her first aid kit in his hand; bandaging a wound on one of the little fox's double tails. "It'll hurt a lot less if 'ya do…"

"But when is it gonna get better, Sonic? It really, really, really hurts!" he complained.

"Don't worry 'lil guy. It's gettin' a 'lil better everyday!"

"It still hurts." The child pouted.

"Aw, c'mon T2! It's lookin' way better 'den it did yesterday when I first put 'da bandage on…man, if Sal had seen it, she would have fret…"

"Don't you think Aunt Sally'll notice my bandage though, Sonic? She didn't when she tucked me in yesterday, b-but today-"

"We'll find some way 'ta cover it. No worries, 'lil guy. Sal'll understand. We'll tell her you got injured while we were playin' dirt hockey or somethin'…"

"I don't know, Sonic…don't you think Aunt Sally'll know better to believe that? I don't think a puck could hurt me that much, S-sonic. Oww…at least, I don't think it ever has..." There was a hint of doubt in his decreasing tone…

"Well, what else can we do? Sal'll go berserk if she finds out 'bout 'da other night! She-she's been so happy lately; she's been lettin' me help her plan; we've been talkin' a lot more. We haven't fought in days, T2! She hasn't called me negligent, egotistical, inattentive, any of those big words she always uses when she's annoyed at me. I don't wanna ruin things for her, 'lil guy. She'd be furious if she knew what I did."

"I thought you talked to her about it though, Sonic. Y-You said you did…"

"I did, 'lil bro. But she told me she didn't wantcha goin'. She said I could train 'ya in a couple of years."

"But-"

"Look, we've kept it a secret 'dis long, haven't we, T2? We'll just let it go a 'lil longer. Soon enough 'dat wound'll be good as gone 'n Sal'll never know. We'll wait a few years 'til 'ya go back 'n 'den it'll be like 'dis never happened!"

"I don't know if I even want to go back to Robotropolis in a few years…"

"Hey, what'd I tell 'ya? You've got mass potential...with a 'lil more trainin' from a cool guy like me, you'll be gettin' through 'dose SWATbutts in no time!"

"But it was REALLY scary, Sonic…"

"You haven't even seen 'da scary parts yet, 'lil bro. I mean, yeah, it's scary, but it's real cool too. Goin' on missions; we're winnin' back Mobius, 'lil guy!"

"I guess…" he cringed. There was a silence. "Do you think it's gonna snow soon, Sonic? It really looks like it. Do you think you can go sledding with me if it does? It'll be really fun! Rotor might have some-"

"Speakin' of Rotor…Sal's gonna be done talkin' 'ta him soon. I've gotta go put Sal's first aid kit back in her hut before she notices. I don't want her 'ta bust us. Meet me back here later though, okay? I wanna change 'dat bandage one more time after dinner."

"O-okay, Sonic…thanks for changing them earlier…"

"No prob! Take it easy on 'dat tail, alright? I'll see 'ya in a bit, 'lil bro!" He gave him a high five, the fox joining in the gesture, completely cheered up. Although the 'True Blue' had brought a smile back to Tails' face, he had only brought a frown to Sally's.

Shocked, angered, and upset, the princess was taken back. She hadn't been hallucinating…every part of her prior suspicion had been true! How could she have been so lenient? How could she have dismissed all the hints as her own allusions? It was irresponsible; it was immature; it was stupid!

It wasn't her; every aspect of it wasn't her! She was the brain! She was the leader! She was supposed to know what's going on. She wasn't supposed to be deceived. And she wasn't supposed to let that happen!

He misused her trust and it hurt.