Sonic's shoes had had it.
The hedgehog contemplated them in dismay. Dirt and scuff marks completely obscured the original color, it was impossible to tell they were ever white; a big hole had been worn through each sole; the top half of the toes were coming apart at the seams; the velcro straps were frayed to the point they were only held in place by hopes and prayers.
"Two weeks." Sonic groaned, dangling the mostly destroyed shoes in front of him. "These brand new shoes only lasted two weeks."
"You run too much." Dr. Robotnik explained.
"They are RUNNING shoes. That's what they're FOR."
Sonic sighed dramatically, collapsing onto one of the workshop's benches with his arms raised in supplication.
"I need new kicks, Doc. Kicks that can stand up to my fast-paced lifestyle and won't just fall to pieces on me."
"You already have them." The Doctor said, walking over to a locker and retrieving a pair of blue and black sneakers. Prototype frictionless shoes.
"Here" he said blandly, dropping the shoes into Sonic's lap. "Wish granted."
Sonic recoiled from the shoes in disdain, letting them fall to the floor.
"Ugh, not these things again! I keep telling you, they're the wrong color!"
"They match your fur."
"Exactly! I'm already blue, wearing blue clothes would ruin my color balance!" Sonic said, wagging his finger like a teacher scolding a student too dumb to understand the obvious. "I need shoes that will match the Tornado!"
"Why is the way they look so important?"
"My shoes are an expression of my identity! When people see my shoes, they see who I am, my inner self!"
"What people ever see them? You move so fast your feet are just a blur."
"It's the principle of it!" Sonic answered. "Listen Eggman, you personalize ALL your stuff with whatever weird variation of your face or color scheme you can come up with, so you can't stand there and tell me things like that aren't important!"
"Hoho, are you comfortable with that comparison?" The Doctor asked with mock surprise. "I didn't know we had so much in common."
Sonic ignored his question. "Your company makes shoes, right?"
His friend's expression immediately soured.
"Yes, among the many things Robotnik Corp produces, we also make shoes ..." The Doctor grumbled bitterly. "The greatest aerospace engineering contractor on the planet, reduced to a manufacturer of Extreme Gear and sports accessories for whiny teenagers."
"Well get your lab guys to whip up frictionless shoes that look right!"
If the Doctor had eyes behind those glasses, he was rolling them.
"How do you want them to look?"
"First of all they need to be RED. Red and white like my plane. And buckles, they need to have buckles, laces are no good for serious running. The buckles should be gold..."
"How stylish." Robotnik muttered dryly.
"Aaaaaaand I want them to have the socks built in. They need to be made of the same material as the shoes so they don't deteriorate."
"Oh fine, I'll see what I can do." The Doctor said, throwing his arms up in defeat. "But in the meantime you have to wear the prototype power sneakers so I can gather the necessary data to make fully frictionless shoes."
Sonic groaned again covering his face with his hands. 'Training shoes' the hedgehog thought. 'Like training wheels for a kid that can't ride a bike.'
"So lame," he chanted, morosely reaching down to put on the blue sneakers. "So, so, so lame."
"Don't be such a baby. It's only temporary."
Sonic, sneakers equipped, leaped towards the open doorway. He did a few quick stretches before lowering his hands to the ground and taking a start position.
"You promise you'll make the kicks exactly right?"
The Doctor sighed, picking up the destroyed pair of shoes Sonic had left behind. "If it will stop your incessant complaining."
"Good, I'm counting on you." Then the hedgehog vanished with a terrific noise, accelerating out the door and into the country side at the speed of sound.
The burst of wind in his wake scattered papers and other things around the workshop. Dr. Robotnik surveyed the mess, shaking his head.
"I hate when he does that."