/ Hey, guys! Here's a second chapter. But first, I'd like to briefly thank SkySterling for giving me feedback on the first chapter and how I could make the next few chapters better. Hopefully, this chapter gives a more clearer picture of what's going on and, as always, I hope you like it! :) /
Thoughts of death swirled around in Annabel's head as she slept. How exactly would she end her life? Was it really the only option to get away from everything she regretted? Questions pounded into her head so much, she felt her brain begin to pulse painfully. At last, she opened her eyes and looked around. She was in a room dark as night, filled with weaponry and G.U.N armor. Annabel was in Shadow's room, she knew that within a heartbeat, but why? The hedgehog girl tried to get up, but instantly sensed a slow ache throughout her body. She stifled a groan as she laid herself back down on the bed.
'Why the hell to I ache so much?' she wondered, 'How did I get here? Why am I here?'
After a while, she attempts to get up again, but much more slowly. After standing for a few minutes, she tries to walk, only to end up falling head-over-heels into someone's arms. Her face immediately heated up in embarrassment and she quickly pulls herself up, stuttering an apology. Instead of receiving an answer, like she expected, she was set back onto the bed, her hands pinned down onto the sheets.
"What the-?" the hedgie girl remarked before a gloved hand gently covered her mouth. Her muzzle quickly turned a bright red, similar to the inside of a plum. Her body completely useless in her situation, Annabel lifted her eyes to meet blood-red orbs of her secret crush, Shadow the Hedgehog.
"You have some explaining to do, girlie," he said, his voice calm and oddly comforting. "But first: why do you want to die?"
Not wanted to lie to someone she loved anymore, she meekly replied, "I'm no good for anyone, Shadow. All I do is screw things up and disappoint people. I want to do something right for once in my life, but whenever I try to, it either ends in disaster or goes unnoticed. I hate it."
"How exactly do you screw things up? You're practically everone's best friend. All of us think you're the most unique human we have ever known, much less taken care of. Hell, even I get along with you. And I hate almost everyone here." the Ultimate Lifeform retorted.
Annabel lightly giggles, feeling flattered and more embarrassed at the same time. It was nice to hear that people liked her, but she couldn't shake the feeling of being alone. In the past, her family never seemed to care about what she did. Not matter how hard she tried to impress her then-caretakers, Mellisia and Jason, she never seemed notices. Even when she first arrived on Mobius; fighting off Eggman's minions, protecting the chaos emeralds from Mephiles, even risking her life for her friends and people she didn't know. None of her family members, human or mobian, took notice of her or assisted her.
Before anything between the two hedgehogs could become awkward, Shadow decides to change the subject. "What exactly is making you like this? I know that this isn't what people like you normally do, so don't try to hide it."
Annabel shifted uncomfortably underneath the ebony hedgehog. What would he say if she told her everything that went on between her human "parents"? Would he understand? Would he take pity on her and leave her be? Would he, bluntly, just not care? 'Well, I can't hide what I'm going through forever. I might as well tell him.' she decided.
"Well, back before I met you and the others, I was living with Mellisia and Jason on Earth," she explained, looking at Shadow's chest fluff and focusing on that other than her memories. "I don't know exactly how to explain how I feel, but a few months, they split up. Mellisia often told me that Jason was into another girl and not her. She said things like 'He's been hanging out with her more than his own wife' and 'He's been acting more immature and more distant from me'. For weeks, her opinions on him made me feel like he was the one who started all this conflict. Then, after a while of staying here, getting to know you guys, I got a letter from him, saying-"
"I know," the Ultimate Lifeform interrupted. "But why exactly do you want to leave everyone behind? What makes you think that you're not good enough for anyone?"
"All the powers I have are healing and telekinesis. How am I good enough when I can't even protect myself against harm?" Annabel answered, sounding a little frustrated.
"But you can use anything as a weapon. Knives, guns, swords, whatever is lying around, you find some way of using them as a weapon or a defense mechanism," Shadow objected calmly. "As for healing, it's an extremely useful power. For instance: if Mephiles were to appear here and beat the living shit out of me until I couldn't even breathe, I'd be good as dead. With you here, you could prevent my death. Maybe develop a new power, if you're lucky."
"What if, in that situation, you were taken someplace far away from here and then got beaten? How would I save you then? How would I be able to protect anyone in that situation?" Annabel asked.
The ebony hedgehog sighed. Convincing Annabel that she was useful was going to be more difficult than he thought. "That's the problem: You always underestimate yourself and your capabilities. You overthink things. Just don't think about what you can't do and think about what you can."
"I do think about what I'm capable of doing! I don't understand why my family doesn't notice me whenever I do something out-of-the-ordinary." Annabel stopped, immediately regretting what she just said.
The Ultimate Lifeform frowned, confused, "What do you mean?"
"Well," the hedgehog girl started, then immediately stopped. How was she going to explain it without her past coming back to her? She didn't want to remember what happened back then. It only made her feel like a monster and a murderer. On the other hand, Shadow's been through some harsh stuff too; losing his close friend, Maria, and his creator, Professor Gerald. But he didn't physically kill them. A large lump formed on the inside of Annabel's throat, remembering why she had no original family.
"Well what?" the black blur asked, the feeling of unknowing gnawing him from the inside out.
There wasn't any other way of describing why she felt this way. Annabel was sure that if she admitted what her past was, there was no way that she wouldn't feel horrible afterward. Maybe even crying, which she vowed never to do again. Shadow was her closest friend and her crush; how long was she going to hide it from him? The hedgehog girl bit her lip a little and her ears folded back. She knew that now was the time to let Shadow know the real her, but what would he say? What would he do? Would he send her back to Earth? Would he let her stay and comfort her? Would he send her to jail for what she did?
"Shadow," Annabel's voice cracked a little as she spoke, "I need to show you something. I'm not sure if you'll like it or if you'll understand, but I have to show you why I don't have any real parents."
The Ultimate Lifeform cocked his head to the side. "Alright. What is it?"
Shakily, the hedgehog girl put a hand on her muzzle, then closed her eyes, not daring to look at Shadow. Then, with a quick flick of her wrist, she pulled it off and set it next to her. Beneath it was the same color as her regular fur: light brown. Annabel opened her eyes again, determined to tell her secret love everything. "I'm not as innocent as you think I am."
The black blur frowned again. Not because of the muzzle-change; he already knew the tan muzzle was fake from the start. But how was the hedgehog girl guilty of anything? What was she hiding from him? "I don't understand. What could you have possibly done?"
With a deep breath, she admitted, "I'm a murderer. I killed my creators."
/ I'm giving Annabel's life story it's own chapter, it's so freaking long. It's okay if you want to skip it to the fourth chapter, but it would most-likely make more sense if you read about what Annabel's past was. But that's up to you; not me. /