Fireplace

Disclaimer: I don't own any characters present in the story.

Character(s): Blaze

For as long as Blaze could remember, fire has filled her heart. As far back as her memory reached, it always has had a place in her life, many aspects of which she could date the roots back to this special connection. Her close ties with fire were the cause of many traits that had developed within her; because of this relationship, her pyrokinetic powers had developed, her obligation to the Sol emeralds as their Guardian finally being realized as well. Neither of these would have occurred given the absence of her internal fire.

Another perk that wouldn't have come to exist without it would be her resulting biotic tolerance against the cold; due to her adept control over the smoldering element, her body possessed a natural resistance against the dropping climate change accompanying the seasonal transition from fall to winter. In other words, it shielded her internal body temperature from decreasing too rapidly when exposed to frostier weather. This tolerance was so strong that she almost never got cold in winter.

On the flipside, however, she almost always got hot in summer. Every other season, she was usually fine – as long as the autumn and spring seasons didn't take after summer in terms of temperature. Oh, and she doesn't like staying that close to a fire pit, fireplace, or anything like that, if was lit and flames were burning. It would have to be really, truly freezing before she ever willingly cuddled up next to anything of the sort.

Apparently, she forgot to mention this peculiar quirk to her friends. Currently, her and a few of them had vacated to Amy's abode for shelter from the oncoming snowstorm raging outside. They weren't really doing anything too exciting; they were all mainly just catching up, sharing stories of interesting events that had occurred in their lives recently and chatting about random, trivial matters, all the while feasting on Amy's delectable brownies. Blaze was enjoying herself for the most part, until Tails suggested that they start a fire in the fireplace, since it the temperature seemed to be dropping.

Of course, the pyrokinetic cat couldn't verify this for herself, but she went along with it anyway; this plan only lasted for so long. After who knows how long of burning up next to the flames, eyeing them as they lapped at the air hungrily – wanting to spread closer to her, no less – Blaze couldn't take the unbearable heat anymore and excused herself to depart away from the fire. Ultimately, this abrupt exit unintentionally took her away from the small, enclosed half-circle of Mobians. Of her friends, of the few she willingly talked to.

She didn't know if she offended any of them; she had felt a few of their gazes boring on her back as she retreated away, especially Silver's surprised glance as she stood up and left his side. After she took her place quite a few feet away from the fire, he turned his head towards her multiple times, his face unreadable each and every single one. Still, after separating herself from the fire's grasp, she almost wanted to return to it; now she felt like a third-wheel (or fifth, if you wish to be pedantic). With everyone crowded around the fireplace, everyone's backs were turned towards her. All the action was taking place in a location she had no part in and, despite the fact that it was her own decision, she couldn't help but feel slightly left out. A few times, they would try to bring her into the conversation, but her communication skills weren't the sharpest so she wasn't able to keep herself engaged in them for long.

She did want to return to their circle a few times, but she stifled that desire, knowing that this scenario would simply repeat itself. So why bother?

Eventually, after determining that the snowstorm was mild enough for safe travel, Blaze decided to take her true departure. Her friends gave her their farewells, however regretful that they were ("We wish you could've stayed longer . . . "), and she was on her way, silently hoping that they understood that they were not what pushed her to leave. If Sonic and Silver's empathetic expressions were anything to judge by, she had no doubt that they did.

Smokestep: I have nothing unique to say to either of the reviewers for last chapter, so I'll just say this: thank you for taking the time to leave your comments. I really appreciate it.

As for this chapter, I hope you all genuinely enjoyed it! I thought it was a pretty interesting one to write; so, as readers, what do you think?