Tails stumbled into his house. He was thoroughly worn out. Sonic had actually flown the Tornado home so Tails could rest. He sat down on the couch, telling himself that he was just going to rest for a minute.
Metal had gone back to his corner of the workshop to put his prize away. After much consideration, he placed it on a shelf, like a trophy. He was starting to feel like this section was becoming his own. He put his jacket and sunglasses on the table.
When Metal came in to check on Tails, he found him sleeping. After a moment of consideration, Metal gently scooped the fox pup into his arms and carried him to his room. He laid Tails on his bed and tucked him in. Then he settled down in the corner of the room and activated his sleep mode.
Tails was in for a surprise when he woke up.
Time passed. The sun began to rise. Tails continued to sleep.
Metal reactivated. He leaned over the sleeping fox. Tails' ear flicked. He squeaked and rolled over. Finally, he slowly opened an eye. And screamed.
In the faint dawn light, he saw a red-eyed shadow standing over him. Panic overtook logic. Tails tried to back away and found himself against the wall.
A clawed hand reached out. Tails winced. The hand gave him a light pat on the head.
As his eyes adjusted to the dark, Tails recognized that it was only Metal trying to comfort him.
"I-I'm okay. Please don't sneak up on me like that."
Metal nodded guiltily.
"Okay, you can stop patting my head now." Tails yawned. "I was up too late last night. I'm gonna sleep in. You can stay here or go upstairs or go to the workshop or somethin'. Night."
Tails curled up and Metal tucked him in.
"Thanks." Although it sounded more like a muffled babble.
Metal got up and wandered outside. He looked up at the sunrise-painted sky and listened to the early morning birdsong. Then he continued to the workshop. He went to the corner worktable where he had started. The plush was still on the shelf. Books and tools were scattered everywhere they could fit.
Metal had come to think of this as his own space and now he was going to make it his own.
He gathered up the tools and put them away. He collected the books. The ones he liked went onto the shelves. The others went back into the box. He collected the Miles Electric from the house and put it on the table.
It wasn't much, but it was a start.
Just like Metal himself.
Metal went back into the house.
He went to Tails' room, stopping at the doorway.
Tails was still sleeping.
Metal quietly left.
He remembered Sonic waking Tails with breakfast.
He went to the kitchen. He had no idea how to cook. He didn't really understand food.
Metal found a small shelf of cookbooks. He took the leftmost one and began to read. It didn't take long. When finished, he went to the next one. Then the next. And the next. Reshelving the last book, he started to calculate his plan.
It seemed that Tails had a preference for sweet breakfast foods. Healthy foods would be best for Tails. Sweet breakfasts were often unhealthy. According to the cookbooks, yogurt, fruit, and grains were healthy ingredients used in breakfasts. Parfaits typically include all three of these ingredients. According to his calculations, the ideal breakfast for Tails would be a parfait.
Plan decided, Metal set out to accomplish his mission.
He took stock of what ingredients Tails had. There was a box of strawberries, a box of granola, and several containers of yogurt. His goal was achievable.
Layering the ingredients would be easy. There was also the bonus that it was served cold, so there was no worry about a warm meal getting cold before Tails could eat it.
Recipes indicated that tall cups were preferred for parfaits. Therefore, Metal would need to find the tallest cup Tails owned.
Tails woke up to the sound of clattering dishes. He stumbled into the kitchen.
"Metal? What are you doing?"
Metal looked back at Tails. He beeped a greeting. He showed Tails the cups he had found and lined up in order of height. He was currently inspecting two that appeared to be the same size. Metal guided Tails to the table and sat him down.
He returned to his predicament. A careful scan revealed one to be a few nanometers larger.
He had experience with slicing vegetables. He presumed that fruit would not be significantly different. He sliced the strawberries into bite sized pieces.
Pleased with his preparations, he began to layer the ingredients. He sprinkled strawberry and granola on top in his best attempt at decoration.
He was very pleased with himself as he presented his project to Tails.
"Oh, wow! Thanks, Metal. That's very nice. How did you figure out how to do this?"
Metal sat across from Tails and pointed to the shelf of cookbooks.
"Ah, makes sense. You're a quick learner."
Tails ate in silence. Finishing his breakfast, or lunch due to the time, Tails asked Metal to talk.
"There's something I wanted to talk with you about. You've really settled in. I'm really happy. You're my friend! You're our friend! I think Sonic has warmed up to you. Your guitar skills really impressed him. And Amy has gotten really attached to you. Shadow and Knuckles are kinda distant, but I think they like you too. I was wondering if you had decided what you wanted to do. If you wanted to stay, I mean. We'd be really happy if you stayed! I had suspected that you had the potential for good in you. I know for sure now! You don't need to go back to Eggman. You can stay with us. We'd be really happy to have you around. Please? It's up to you, but I really hope you stay."
Metal was touched.
He thought about how much he had bonded with Tails. He had already started to set up his stuff at the work table. Tails was a lot nicer than his Master.
But his loyalty ran deep. It would be a challenge to overcome it. The idea of officially siding with his Master's enemies was anathema to his programming. He had made it this far, but to make it official felt impossible. He wanted to stay. He wanted to so badly, but the idea of it hurt.
That thought stuck in his mind for the rest of the day.
Sonic stopped by to visit. He quickly realized that something was bothering Metal.
"What's up?"
Metal shook his head. He didn't want to talk about it.
"Come on, I know something's on your mind."
Metal walked away. He just wanted to think it over by himself.
He went out to the workshop and sat on the work table.
He looked at the radio. He looked over his shelf of books. He looked at the frog plush.
He was beginning to feel at home here. He didn't want to leave, even if he felt obligated to return to his Master.
He remembered his thought process when Tails had saved him. He only agreed so that he could betray Tails later. Now the idea of hurting the little fox, his ally, his friend, made him feel horrible. He couldn't even bring himself to hurt Sonic. In the past, he had tried to destroy Sonic on sight. It was the very reason for his existence. But Sonic had given him a chance to redeem himself. Sonic saw good in him. Shadow saw good in him. Amy saw good in him. Tails saw good in him. He didn't want to let them down.
Could he even go back? What would happen?
Would his Master welcome him back with open arms? Would he be grateful to see Metal?
Or would he be angry that Metal had fraternized with the enemy?
Metal shivered at the memory of the aftermath of his rebellion.
One moment he was Neo Metal Sonic. Overlord of every living thing. The next he was mere scrap on the ground.
And what did his Master do? He stripped Metal of everything he had fought to gain. His power, his voice, his individuality, his free will. Metal was nothing more than a mere super badnik. He was only slightly better than the mass produced eggpawns churned out by the hundreds.
Metal felt that he was deserving of punishment. He had rebelled and attacked his Master, after all. But his true motive was not his desire for power. Metal only wanted to feel like he could do something right.
He was made to destroy Sonic. No matter how many times he tried, he failed. Over and over. He crashed, he burned, he crumbled, went down in flames, collapsed, exploded, melted, failed.
He failed and failed and failed. He was useless.
Did his Master comfort him? Support him?
No. He was angry that Sonic got away. Then he would upgrade Metal and send him out to fail again.
And yet he was supposed to be his Master's greatest creation? He was not deserving of that. He was nothing to his Master.
So, he decided to strike out on his own. He did everything right! His plans were clever. Everything fell into place. He almost won! And then it all fell apart.
That confirmed it. He was useless. And no one was there for him. No one saw his pain, his reason for lashing out. His Master certainly didn't care. He was a mere rebel in his eyes. No, the only one who cared was someone he was supposed to hate, to destroy.
The last trace of Metal's confidence had been shattered. Metal was having a crisis and his allies didn't care.
And what was it that kept him going when his Master had hated him most?
Shadow's pity. The fact that someone cared. And that someone was not his Master, it was an enemy. A rebellious badnik and a former ally of the Eggman Empire. Those two were the ones who had mercy when he was at his lowest.
That mental block chaining Metal to his Master seemed to weaken. Metal clenched his fist and slammed it on the table. As the impact's echo faded, so did Metal's loyalty. He had doubted the Eggman Empire. He had rejected it. There was no going back.