12. Grief

Cream - March 27, 2036, 3:49 P.M.

"Just what were you two doing in there? Why were you in my hideout?" The hedgehog demanded to know.

"What? H-hideout? I-I don't know wh-what you're talking about!" I panicked. "We didn't think anyone would reside here!"

I saw that hedgehog was also restraining Snow with his arm. Cina was nowhere to be seen.

"No, I don't live in this abandoned dump… this is where my buddies and I store and hide our sweet shit! You happened to be looking over where we keep our tar." He corrected.

"T-tar? What do you mean-"

"You know what I mean… that black heroin stuff!"

Black heroin? Is that what I saw behind the counter? Like, heaping piles of it? No, that couldn't have been the case. I swear, whatever I saw back there was much bigger than simply a large pile of drugs and was shaped like a person. Unless these guys do have that much…

I shook my head. Now is not that time to ponder about that! I thought to myself. I need to get Snow and myself out of this situation before we get hurt!

"Look, we had no idea about your hideout! We saw nothing, honest! We only came in because we were searching for his chao." I explained.

The hedgehog flicked a long switchblade from his jacket and snapped, "I don't give a shit! You came in here, and I can't risk you exposing me or my stash. Being arrested is something I'm used to, but right now, I'm not in the mood to get caught this time." He started running the blade slowly against my cheek, but wasn't pressing hard enough for me to bleed.

"Please, let us go! At least leave him out of this!" I pleaded, pointing at Snow. "We won't tell anyone! We promise!"

"Didn't you hear me? This is one risk I can't take. You don't know how much my gang had to go through to get all the stuff we need." His eyes became angrier. "And besides, I've been dying to get my hands dirty. It's been awhile since I've been in some action."

At that point, there was nothing I could do or say now. If my wrist wasn't injured, I could probably reach for something to defend myself. But even then, I don't think I'd have the strength to fight this guy back. Not to mention, Snow was being held hostage, so who knows what he'll do to him if I resist? What should I do? What should I do?!

"Hey! What the hell are you doing? Leave those two alone!" I heard another man yell.

The hedgehog and I turned his sight towards the streets and saw a red echidna glaring back at us.

"Oh, it's you again? What do you want now?" The hedgehog groaned.

I was surprised myself. It was Knuckles! I haven't seen him in such a long time, and I'm glad that he's here! He's the strongest person I know, and he could rescue us and take these guys down in a minute.

"I don't know how you keep getting out of prison, but this you're definitely going to stay there after I'm done with you here!" Knuckles retorted. "This is the end of line for you, Scourge. Leave them alone, or-"

"Or what? Tell me, are you seriously going to attack me?" Scourge snickered, shifting his focus away from me and to Knuckles. "I can easily take you back with me if you even try, and you know it!"

"Shut up!" Knuckles readied himself up to fight. "Either way, I'm won't let you get away with this!"

Scourge showed no sign of concern. He shoved Snow away and hollered, "You ain't stopping from nothin'! In fact, I'm putting an end to your life first!"

Scourge angrily lunged toward Knuckles and thrusted his blade at his chest, whizzing through the air at an impressively high speed.

"Oh really?" Knuckles huffed, and he effortlessly dodged Scourge's jab. He quickly gutted his stomach with his fist, making him retch in pain. "You're always so full of yourself, you deadbeat punk!"

Scourge struggled to regain his stance and gagged, "You're going to regret that!" He swung his blade, but Knuckles again evaded his attack and shoved him away into a wall with great force. He pinned him there and said to him, "Now you stay put here while I call the cops. This time, you're going to stay behind bars where you belong."

Scourge kicked Knuckles off and shouted "Says you!" as he escaped the alley. I immediately rushed over to Snow, who was snivelling in total horror.

"Snow, are you okay? Did he do anything to you?" I asked worryingly.

Snow hugged me tightly and cried, "I-I was so scared, Cream! I thought he was going to hurt us! I was really scared!"

"I'm know you were. But he's gone. It's alright now."

He must be traumatized from being held captive by someone as dangerous as Scourge.

"Are you two alright?" Knuckles approached us, still hurting from Scourge's kick.

"We're fine. Thanks, Knuckles. If you hadn't been passing by, we would have been dead." I replied.

"Well, I probably would've never noticed you guys if your chao friend didn't tell me." He looked back at Cina, who appeared behind him from the corner of the building next to us. "Why was Scourge after you guys? What were you doing here, anyway?"

Knuckles called the police and told them where we were and what had happened. They arrived with a team of officers and agents in a very short matter of time and looked into the abandoned inn thoroughly for any illegal drugs Scourge may have been hiding. I had one of the officers take Snow and Cina to the police department where they could contact his parents and wait for them to come pick him up. Before they left, I reassured the two that everything was going to be fine from hereon and then we waved goodbye to each other. As for Knuckles and me, we had to stay behind to answer some questions for the authorities regarding Scourge and his stash.

"I only arrived when Scourge was harassing Cream and the kid she was with at the alley. I never entered the building." Knuckles said.

"Noted..." The officer gruffed before turning to me. "What about you? Did you find anything in there?"

I shook my head and informed him, "The only thing I found was this thing Scourge kept calling 'tar'. I saw some of it behind the register in the lobby."

The officer questioned if that was all I found, and I nodded. But admittedly, I wasn't so sure. I thought about the shadowy figure. A part of me still believed that what I witnessed back in the inn really was a person and not a pile of drugs like Scourge claimed. I swear I saw it moving out of the stairwell and heard it sob in the lobby.

But then again, it's still possible that I was seeing things that weren't there. Not to mention, if there truly was another person inside there, someone would've found him or her by now. But it doesn't seem like any of the people investigating have found anyone else yet. I suppose my senses were playing tricks on my mind back there.

The officer closed his field notebook. "Alright. Stay right here and don't move until I come back." He then turned to Knuckles and glared, "You especially better not move."

Knuckles replied in a somewhat miffed tone, "I'm not going anywhere."

The officer approached his partner at the doorway to the inn's stairwell and started conversing with him.

What's up with him? Does he know Knuckles personally? And if so, what happened between them?

"Looks like we're going to be here for awhile." Knuckles grumbled.

"I guess so. I hope they get Scourge soon." I agreed. "Boy, it's my first time here, and I'm already meeting up with danger."

"What exactly brought you here to Dutres, Cream? Is there an event going on that I'm not aware of?" He inquired.

"I'm on my way to Blaze's new home. I promised her to help her settle in and set up the place. I probably would've gotten to her much earlier, but then I found Snow and Cina and, you know, encountered Scourge and got saved by you." I explained.

"Yeah, you have to be careful around here. Dutres has a handful of gangs roaming in its streets. Most of them are petty and barely troublesome, but a few of them are pretty dangerous like Scourge and his gang. And let me tell - they can get real nasty if you cross their path. Of course, the police department is dealing with the issue, but it's been going on for a long time."

"That officer who was questioning us seemed kind of bitter towards you." I remarked. "What was that all about? They're not all like that, are they?"

Knuckles sighed, "To tell you the truth, I, uh… I'm not liked by the department that much to say the least."

"Why not?"

"I hate to admit it, but I'm technically a prisoner at the Eastern Penitentiary outside the city. I'm on parole right now, though, which is why I'm out here."

My eyes widened in astonishment. "Oh gosh, what happened to you?"

"Where do I begin… well, a few years ago, one of my ex's boyfriend and I got into a argument over something I don't want to talk about. Things heated up and I started beating him to a pulp and ended up getting arrested and imprisoned. And it just so happens that the officer was the one who arrested me. Lucky me… and if that wasn't bad enough, I became Scourge's cellmate for some time until he got out."

"Don't get me wrong - I do feel regretful. I seriously paid the price for what I did." He continued. "Ever since I was released, pretty much everyone's been outcasting me. Tails, Silver, the Chaotix, even Rouge, and especially Sonic and S-" He awkwardly paused for a second before resuming, "-Sally all hate me now. Not only that, I'm no longer the guardian of Master Emerald anymore, and I'm not even allowed to be at the Altar. They all think I'm dangerous."

I didn't know how to respond to that. I never would've imagined Knuckles as someone who would commit a crime like that. But after hearing his story, I felt sympathy for him. I didn't see him as a bad person - not one bit. Even though this is the first time I've seen him in years, I've known him since I was six years old. He's not a vicious or bloodthirsty person. Sure, he can be short-tempered, but he can be reasonable at times. Besides, he got off parole, and that should be enough to tell you that he's still good.

"I don't think of you that way. To me, you haven't changed much since we met years ago." I expressed.

"Huh? You mean it?" Knuckles huffed out.

"Of course! I mean, you rescued Snow and me from Scourge moments ago, and I'm grateful for that! I think people should just give you a chance to show them what you're actually like."

"I wish they would. The only person who's ever given me that kind of chance is Tikal, and if it wasn't for her, I would have been totally lost. I would include Shadow as well since he's her husband, but sometimes I think he's merely going along with whatever she says so we don't fight with each other. Either way, at least I still have family members supporting me."

Knuckles leaned himself against the wall behind him, looking more lonesome than he normally is (which is saying something, because he prefers to be alone most of the time). He sounded like he was longing for someone or as if he had lost someone very close.

"Things will get better, Knuckles. It takes time to heal wounds, and once they do everyone will accept you again." I beamed reassuringly at him. "And if you start to believe that they won't, just remember that I'll always be here for you."

Knuckles gave a tiny smirk back. "I hope so. Thanks, Cream. You're a really good friend, you know?"

The officer returned to us and stated, "Alright, both of you are off the hook. Thank you for cooperating with us, and let us know if you see anything suspicious. We'll take care of the rest."

We nodded and answered, "You're welcome, sir." Then we left the area and went on our way.

As Knuckles and I parted, I waved goodbye to him and said, "Take care, Knuckles! I hope we see each other again soon!"

Knuckles looked and waved back smiling as he walked away. I looked at the time on my phone and began hastily running towards my next destination. I hope I'm not too late to make it to Blaze's place.