The Crime

Erotomania.

This was it. After countless love letters, many passive encounters and eye glances in the hallway, after he jokingly said he would report her to the principle for stalking…their relationship was finally at a climax.

Now for the turning point…it was time she mustered up the courage to accept his invitation to visit his house. Smiling as she turned up the street, she reminded herself how resourceful she was for finding out where he lives. He wouldn't tell her…that trickster! He was always trying to test her! But she was smart enough to figure it out, sneaking into the school offices and going through the master directory until she found it.

"Hehe, there it is!" she jumps from one foot to the other, clapping softly; she didn't want to wake the other neighbors, it was about one in the morning. What would they do once she was inside? Maybe they would bake a late night brownie snack together! Smiling with anticipation, she approached his front door to let herself in; locked.

She sighed, but not in defeat. "Oh that tricky Jet! He wants me to climb to his room myself using the ladder his dad was using to paint last Saturday!" Shaking her head as she retrieves it, she places it on his opened window and climbs up. Once she gets in, she looks at her sleeping lover in admiration; he must've passed out waiting! As she climbs in bed with him, cuddling against his soft feathers, she watches his eyes flutter open.

Jumping out of the bed, he screams in pure terror. "AMY! WHAT-WHAT-WHAT…"

"Hello, my love! Aren't you so happy I'm here?" A rapid knock can be heard from his door as his worried parents shout out his name. Amy's eyes blink, one at a time, as the green hawk picks up the phone and dials the familiar three digit number.

Kleptomania.

Rouge didn't have a choice. After passing through the town this morning during her usual shopping hour, she couldn't get the image out of her mind. It, like the potted plant, numerous lone shoes, and small knick knacks, was begging to be taken.

She thought she had it all thought out…all the security was successfully terminated, the glass doors picked just right…nothing added up to the cops showing up and driving her to the city police station where she was now being held in a questioning cell.

"Hah, she's the one. How's that for a two in one night?" She had overheard one cop saying to the other as she was sitting in the car. What did he mean by that?

A large bear dressed in a blue police uniform comes in the room, taking a seat behind the desk in front of her. Grabbing some papers out of the drawers, he scribbles something down before turning to face her. "So, Ms. Bat, I assume you know why you are here?"

She rolls her eyes as she crosses one leg over the other. "Attempted robbery?"

He chuckles slightly. "Attempted robbery and theft."

Her eyes immediately shoot open as she sits bolt upright. "T-thievery? I didn't steal anything!" she exclaims in anger. She didn't take a thing…at least, nothing of value to anyone else.

He clears his throat. "Someone filed a police report about a missing diamond ring…said he kept it in a…potted plant?" He shook his head in disbelief. "Even the plant was reported missing."

Rouge gulped. She hadn't even seen the ring! Damn raven…

"Using his description and processing some DNA found on a pair of heels left at the scene with a new rapid DNA-identifying machine made by some local boy, we were able to find you." He looks into her eyes one last time before nodding to some big guards who usher her out of his office.

As she turns to leave, however, light from a reflective object in her hands catches his attention. "Hold on." He calls her back to his desk. "What have you got there?"

She sighs and reluctantly shoves the small engraved mirror back into his hand, looking tearful. The police chief stares at the item then back at her, a deeply puzzled look on his face. Picking up his phone, he slowly dials a number, never taking his eyes off Rouge. "Oh, yes, hello? How long are the mental health evaluation offices open?"

Pyromania.

Blaze threw a piece of flaming trash at the large estate. Closing her eyes and tightly shielding her face, she waited for the massive flames to slowly engulf the whole area. Minutes passed, and nothing. Slowly her lids opened to see the building still standing and the paper nothing more than a pile of ash. She sighed.

She had to do it. Only her whole flame would light the palace…but she had hoped that maybe by throwing something already on fire at it, it would appear to have happened passively as an accident.

Taking in a deep breath she lit her hands and rubbed them together feverishly, further igniting the flames together to create a massive blaze that raged in her hands. Thrusting her arms forward, she gripped the wall of the house, sending the flame creeping up the side and traveling towards the roof.

Running back a good few yards, she stood in awe as her house slowly disintegrated under the fire. Everything inside…slowly burning…she let out a long, happy sigh. However, her blood suddenly ran cold. All the hair on her body stood on end as she came to the realization. Her things…her parents…her home…it was all being destroyed.

She shook with fear as she looked at her own two hands. "What did I do!" Tears streamed down her face as she helplessly watched the flames burn through the windows, doors, and collapsed roof. How could something so beautiful cause so much…pain?

Lighting her hand, she tried desperately to guard the flames away from her house. Would that even work? When you fight fire with fire…wasn't it supposed to cancel each other out?

Suddenly a door slammed open to reveal…her parents! Out came her father, coughing and wheezing as he carried her mother's limp body away from the threat. Looking around his eyes immediately locked on his daughter whose hand was ablaze, fingers barely touching the wall. He looked on with an expression of extreme shock, anger, and hatred. "WHAT…WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?"

"Father, I can…"

"POLICE! POLICE! ANYONE!"

As the sirens sounded and her father continued to screech, Blaze took off running, eyes filled with salty tears of regret.

Hoplomania.

This was it; the uprising of a lifetime.

He had prepared to set out on this for several months to protest outside of the palace to the king, but given the new unreasonable political viewpoints this protest would take form of a much different wind. The goal: dispose of the king, and anyone inside who wanted to take away his guns. Originally, this was to have remained peaceful; just a few fellows brandishing their firearms and threatening to send 'a rain of blood on a town rid of guns'.

But now, oh-ho now, the threats were solid. After much discussion with the others earlier, he found out that most of them had dropped out, deeming it even too unsightly for their tastes. "Fine," he thought. "Today I am a one man show."

When he entered the normally locked gates of the palace, he chuckled. This would be easier than he thought. Swiftly running up the winding walkway, he approached the remains of the once-extravagant mansion with shock. Police officers, firemen…all surrounding the burnt down building and the couple crying over it. Ducking behind a nearby tree, Knuckles tried to make sense of the scene. A small purple cat was talking to some officers…her hands were on fire! Someone should help her! Should he…?

No, his guns had other plans. And he couldn't get lost in the commotion, his cause needed to be heard. Howling like a banshee, he ran into the crowd, shouting his gun related phrases and waving his weapon in the air.

"Grab him! Get him!" The officials called. One by one, Knuckles evaded them all, leaping on top of a cop car and shouting out to the vulnerable king.

"Hear my words: our guns will never be silenced!" Aiming his gun he fired a single shot, directed at the king who was clutching his wife in fear. Before he could witness the true impact, however, he was tackled from the side, sending him crashing down onto the hard ground. His last sights were of running feet and his last sounds were that of yelps and screeches of terror and panic. At last his eyes closed; everything slowly turned to a shade of purple and black.

Pseudomania.

He couldn't stand it anymore. His mind buzzed every night with the image of him…and those innocently murdered bystanders. No, he hadn't done it…so why did he feel this strong urge to come clean and confess everything.

That's why he is here, now; the police station, in a room, being stared down by the same police chief who had just questioned him just not too long ago in this very same area. He rubs his chin in a perplexed manner. Why is this hedgehog coming to him now?

"I-I was the one who stole that important intelligence from the army earlier this week" Sonic firmly says.

The chief looks alarmed for a moment, then relaxes slightly and knits his brows. "Sonic…we cleared you of that earlier this week…we proved Shadow had done it. Now you're telling us it was actually you?"

Sonic's eyes flitted around the room for a few moments before he nodded his head. The chief tilted his head and narrowed his eyes. "I don't know why you're playing with me, hedgehog, so leave right now before you get yourself into some trouble."

At this point Sonic's heart was rapidly beating. He was right, why was he here? He didn't do anything wrong…it was like something was forcing the words to come out of his mouth, something he couldn't control. "On the way here I broke into a bank and killed three people inside" he blurted out. He violently twitched upon saying this and was gripped with so much panic he nearly stopped breathing.

The chief jumped up from his seat, backing away and talking loudly in fear. "Why-why are you saying that? That's not something to joke about! Are you mad? Are you disturbed!"

Sonic calmly shook his head, a thick mask over the horror and disgust he felt inside. "No, sir; I-I killed them. Tonight." Something forced him to smile. Something creepy shot through his body, numbing his mind to all sense of right and wrong.

"Y-You've gone crazy! Telling these heinous lies! Mad! Backup! I need backup!"

Ergomania.

"Tails, sweetie. Grandma insists you come sit down and have dinner. She's had it up to here with you avoiding everyone, and I must agree. For heavens sake, Miles, you're her only grandson and she hasn't seen you in three years!" His mother crossed her arms and tapped her foot, awaiting a response from her preoccupied son who was hard at work in his lab typing away on a keyboard.

"Mother, I wish I could, I would love to see her. But I just cannot stop working! I have a deadline!"

"What deadline! You always say there is a deadline, but there can't be this many!"

"Mother, my deadline to start a new project! Once this one is done I have an exact date when I need to be working on the next one, and the next, and the next!" Exasperated, he turns to face his tearful mother.

"Bu-but with that logic you'll never have any free time! We won't ever see you; you'll grow up away from us and…and…" She takes a seat in his lab, holding her head as she started to weep loudly. He didn't like to see his own mother cry. In fact, it made him want to.

Guilt pounded through his tiny chest. "Okay, Mother, I'll try to give up work…just for tonight…"

She looked up, smiling, and hugged him tightly before they finally departed hand-in-hand towards the house.

"Wow, you've actually gotten him inside!" his father remarked once they sat down to eat. This sparked up some good-natured laughter and soon melted into a long conversation.

Thankfully, he wasn't involved. A thousand thoughts were spinning in his head, and his hand was in the formation as if he was firmly gripping a wrench; just sitting down for a moment away from his machines made him increasingly paranoid. It wouldn't be so bad if he just checked his mobile status calculator, would it? Just to make sure things were running smoothly. Pulling it out, his anxiety was momentarily assuaged.

"Miles Tails Prower! What is this!" his mother said from behind him. She quickly swiped the object out of his hand, looking it over in disgust. "Young man, I am very disappointed."

"Mother I need that." Tails said, slightly agitated.

"NO! You promised no work and that you would be with the family…"

"Mother. Give it to me. Now." He stood up out of his seat, anger flaring up in his face.

"I will not tolerate this level of disrespect and…"

Tails knocked into his mother, shoving her to the ground as he caught his device in midair and rigorously checked it. When he was done he breathed a sigh of relief, and returned to smiling. "Mother, I apologize, I just…" He stopped. His father was halfway out of his chair. His mother was on the ground. His grandmother looked faint. They all stared at Tails. Stammering, he ran out of the room, leaving the scene.

"I-It's time" said his mother as tears trickled down her nose and hit the floor.

A/N: Next chapter will be in a different format. Thanks for the love, guys :) Keep it coming!