Back again! Disclaimer: I own nothing but the story. R&R plz. ;)

Chapter 4

I Virtually Kill Us Both

I'm going to give some of Manic's video game comments in this chapter. You'll see when we get there, but if you can guess what game he's playing and enjoy them yourself, he's just found a new best friend.

I woke up in my bed. Sitting up, I rubbed my head, trying to remember what had happened. The last thing I could recall was passing out in Mom's room, still in my Werehog form… And now it was morning, the sun was streaming through the window, and I was in my own bed, back to normal, though my gloves still weren't on my hands. Maybe I should just take them off before I transform so I don't shred another pair, I thought. Sonia came into my room, wearing a sea-blue nightdress and carrying a tray of breakfast. "Oh good, you're awake." she said, placing the food on my bedside table. "I got you orange juice, eggs, and bacon." she smiled. I happily dug in. Sonia watched me, her eyes never leaving mine. It was kind of creepy. I got tired of it quick.

"You got a problem?" I asked.

Sonia glared at me but replied calmly. "I was wondering if you remembered what you did to Manic last night."

I about choked on my eggs, using some orange juice to quickly wash it down. It was all coming back, the threats I had given Shadow, how I had tracked Manic in the forest, how they had taken me back to the palace for Mom's help, how I had snapped at Mom and she put me to sleep, and how I slashed at Manic… I whipped around to Sonia. "He's okay, right?" I asked frantically.

Sonia didn't answer my question. "I think you should go apologize." she said, then walked out of my room, stopping at the door. "I hoped you enjoyed your breakfast." she said, barely above a whisper, then slammed the door, leaving me feeling terrible.

After I was done breakfast, I made a break for Manic's room. I stopped at the door, afraid of what I was going to find. After summoning up some courage, I tapped on the door lightly. "Manic?" I asked, my voice weak. There was no answer, so I panicked. Then I realized that in my nervousness I had overlooked the fact that there was loud rock music coming from the other side of the door. I sighed with relief. He couldn't hear me over the noise. "Manic!" I called, knocking louder.

"Ya waitin' for an invitation?" Manic laughed from the other side of the door. I smiled and opened it.

Manic's room is a little overwhelming. He spray painted the walls himself, so they look a little wild, but he has so many posters up you can barely see it. The posters are mainly of him and The Sonic Underground, while some are for videogames and some are for other bands, and his stereo is always on full blast. He has a red canopy bed like the rest of us, a TV hangs from the bars supporting the canopy, and he has all his videogame systems linked to it. There's a window on the far side of his room, and the bed is right next to it, facing the door long ways, the head against the wall. Manic was sitting up in bed, playing on one of his videogames. "Hey bro!" he called, his left side facing me. I could easily see his left ear, decked with two gold hoop earrings. Suddenly he started yelling at his game. "C'mon man, that ain't cool! No, stupid Heartless! Wait… Ha ha! Die, heartless! Feel the wrath of my Keyblade!" he yelled. I glanced at his game. I couldn't tell what the heck he was doing, so I turned back to him.

"You seem to be doing okay." I noted.

"Dude, open your eyes. I'm dying." he said. I gasped. What had I done to him? He saw my expression and burst out laughing. "On the game, man! Chill!" he laughed. I rolled my eyes.

"Anyway Manic, how are you faring from last night? Where… where did I hit you?" I asked. All the laughter drained from Manic's face. Pausing the game, he turned his head to me. That's when I saw his other ear. Manic never had earrings in his right ear, it wasn't pierced. But now it was slashed, right down the middle in a large V. "Oh, Manic…" I gasped. "I'm sorry…"

"S'okay, dude. Hey, I can still hear." he smiled, always the optimist.

"No, it's not okay. I should never have lost control of myself." I sighed, sitting down on the bed.

"Dude, its fine. You couldn't control what you were doin'. If anythin', I blame myself for gettin' too close." he told me, handing me a controller. "Wanna play multiplayer? It'll cheer ya up."

I obliged, and Manic directed me on the controls, even though I must've asked him about twenty times where the jump button was. I'm pretty sure I actually ended up getting us both killed, but Manic just smiled and said. "Keep workin' on it. Before ya know it, you'll be the ultimate Keyblade Master!" he smiled. I smiled back, even though I had no idea what a Keyblade Master was.

"And you're sure your ear is okay?" I asked.

"Positive, dude. Don't worry 'bout it." he smiled, but I had to wonder if maybe he was better at faking pain than I thought.