At the Rehab center, there were a few things that was concerning Fiona's Mind. She remembered Hershey mentioning that she had her share of bad relationships before marrying Geoffrey. So she went over to talk to her.
Fiona: Hey, Hershey, You mind if I talk to you for a moment?
Hershey: Of course, what's on your mind?
Fiona: Well yesterday, you mentioned that you had your share of toxic relationships in the past, well what was that like?
Hershey: Well...I...
Fiona: Oh, I'm so sorry! It's just that I've been thinking about the breakup with Scourge and-
Hershey: It's okay, it's just that no one has really asked me that before. Let's take this outside so we can talk in private. Erma, can you come too? I want you to hear this as well.
Erma: You sure? I don't want to make you uncomfortable.
Hershey: I think it would help Fiona plus if you had any inputs about your own relationships, it can help give her some perspective.
Erma: If it will help Fiona then I will do my best to help.
Fiona, Hershey and Erma headed out to the tranquility garden and sat on the bench swing.
Hershey: Are you ready?
Fiona: Yeah, go ahead...
Hershey: Well to answer your question, before I met Geoffrey, I use to go out with someone by the name of Drago Wolf.
Fiona: Drago! I know him, He was on the Destructix for a while, before he went off and did his own thing. Oh sorry...do continue
Hershey: Thank you! Well back when I was with him, he always had an aggressive nature. You probably didn't know this but a long time ago, he was a part of this plan to get rid of Sally and Frame Sonic.
Fiona: What!? But how!?
Hershey: Simple, I had this Sonic costume that I was suppose to wear for a mission, but what I didn't know at the time was when I was wearing the costume and came across Sally, the costume made it look like as if I saw Snivelly instead of Sally. So I cut the rope which made her fall to her supposed death. I was happy that she recovered after that, but I couldn't believe I did Drago was involved with such a plot.
Fiona: That is nuts! That sounds a bit extreme, even for me!
Hershey: On top of it, he always had a tendency to be abusive, and just thinking about it just gives me the chills.
Fiona: Hershey, I'm so sorry...
Hershey: Don't be, he's long gone from my life and I never have to worry about him.
Erma: You know this reminds me of someone I use to date. This was before I joined the Arctic Freedom fighters, I dated this guy named Walter. He was an ermine just like me. when we started dating things were great, but as time went by, things started to change.
Fiona: Oh! What happened?
Erma: Well let's just say he started to become...well...domineering!
Fiona: What do you mean?
Erma: He started to become really bossy and telling what I can or can't do or telling where I can or can't go. He didn't even allow me to have any friends because he gets very jealous easily.
Hershey: Erma, I had no idea!
Erma: Plus sometimes he can be very aggressive...in ways that no one could understand
Fiona: Now that you mention it, that's how it is with Scourge...There were times when he would get aggressive even when I'm just checking on him, and He can be very bossy too when it comes to launching an attack. It must've been rough between you and this Walter guy.
Erma: Yeah, luckily I was able to break things off with him and ran off, and my life has been good since. But sometimes I often worry that this sort thing could happen again.
Hershey: I get that! But when I met Geoffrey, it helped me realize that not everyone has some kind of ulterior motive or that they turn out to be scumbags. With me and him, it felt that we were in sync with each other.
Fiona: I wish I had that sort of connection. But the problem is, I've spent almost my entire life being alone, that I didn't need anyone. Sure Sonic and I had a good thing going for a while, but that went down the drain, and you guys know how things ended between me and Scourge. I guess I'm just afraid that If I get into a new relationship, it could fall apart.
Hershey: Fiona, we can't promise you that it will be easy, or that it won't hurt sometimes, but if you keep pushing people away out of fear, then you'll be missing out on a lot.
Erma: Besides I'm sure the right guy will come into your life and make you happy, even when you least expect it.
Hershey: I hope this helps your dilemma.
Fiona: Well it does help to look at things from another point of view, but I don't want to rush into anything, you know?
Hershey: That's understandable, which is why you need to take the time to get to know someone before going into anything serious.
Fiona: I guess you're right, Thank you.
Hershey: It's no problem at all. It's always good to get a different perspective of things from others. Let's head back inside.
And so the girls headed back inside from the garden, when they saw that the door opened up and Syrus comes in carrying a big Cooler.
Fiona: *Thinking while blushing* It's him, it's the guy from the Ice cream shop!
Hershey and Erma noticed Fiona looking at Syrus with an unusual look.
Hershey: It seems that Fiona has a little crush!
Erma: It would appear that way!
Erma and Hershey headed back to the activity room to give Fiona some privacy.
Syrus: Excuse me, is Dr. Willow around? She asked me to bring this over and I don't know where to put it.
Dr. Willow: *Comes in the room* Oh there you are, Syrus! You're just in time. I can take this Cooler from you and put it on the table. *Takes the cooler from Syrus*
Syrus: Thanks! It was starting to get really heavy. I can comeback for it later. *Notices Fiona standing right in front of him* Oh I remember you, Fiona right?
Fiona: Yeah...and you're Syrus if I remember?
Syrus: That's right! I just stopped by to give some Ice cream to the patients here. I've got plenty back at the shop, so I'm more than happy to give some.
Fiona: That sounds really nice!
Syrus: Oh believe me it is! So, how's the program working for you so far?
Fiona: It's okay I guess, I just started a couple days ago.
Syrus: Well I'm glad to hear it, I'm sure you will succeed!
Fiona: Thanks, I'm doing my best!
Syrus: And that's all anyone can ask. Before I head out there's something I wanted to give you.
Fiona: What's that?
Syrus looks through his bag and takes out a necklace with a small blue jewel attached to it.
Syrus: Consider it a good luck present! *He puts the necklace onto Fiona who looks at it with amazement* It really goes well with your eyes.
Fiona: Syrus, this is beautiful...I don't know what to say!
Syrus: No need to say anything! That look on your face is thanks enough! I will see you around! *Syrus gives Fiona a wink*
Fiona stood there blushing
Fiona: *Thinking* This is the kindest thing anyone has ever done for me. No one has ever given me a present before, at least not like this.
Hershey and Erma came back to check on Fiona.
Hershey: Looks like it went well, what did he give you?
Fiona showed them the necklace Syrus had given her.
Erma: This looks very lovely, Fiona!
Fiona: I know...I never seen anything this shiny before!
Hershey: Looks like you got a little crush on him!
Fiona: Come on, Knock it off! He just gave me a gift that's all!
Dr. Willow: Ice cream is here if you want some.
Fiona: Sure, after this, I could use a frozen treat.
Meanwhile back at Freedom U, The students were prepared for art class when Ms Stevens arrived to give emily the clay music note she made a few days earlier.
Ms. Stevens: Here, Emily! your gift is all dry, so you can go ahead and paint if if you want.
Emily: Thanks, Ms. Stevens!
Emily proceeds to use paint the music note.
Emily: *Thinking* I'll use green, That's always been Misty's favorite Color. Good thing this paint dries very quickly.
Misty proceeded to make a drawing of Fiona.
Herman: That's looking really good, Mist! Is that Fiona you're drawing?
Misty: Yeah, She saved my life yesterday, so I wanted to do something nice for her.
Emily: That's so sweet of you, Mist!
Ms. Stevens comes over and notices the drawing that Misty was making
Ms. Stevens: That's a very interesting drawing, Misty!
Misty: Thank you, Ms. Stevens! It's for this lady Fiona. She saved my life yesterday.
Ms. Stevens: She did? Well that's very heroic of her!
Herman: Yeah it sure was, she just came right in and saved her from being hurt.
Ms. Stevens: This is very heartwarming indeed! A gift for someone who rescued you is very good Karma. You do good things and good things will happen to you!
Herman: That is very profound, Ms. Stevens!
Ms. Stevens: How true indeed! Well I'll leave you to it, and keep up the good work.
Emily: We will, thank you!
And hour later Sally was taking a lunch break. As she was eating her lunch, she had a few things about Fiona on her mind, when Nicole appeared in her Lynx form.
Sally: I just don't get it, Nicole. Yesterday when Fiona was talking about how Scourge broke things off, it sounded like as if he just did it right out of the blue.
Nicole: Well Scourge isn't exactly the type of guy who's straightforward about everything. Perhaps there's more to this story than meets the eye.
Sally: Maybe you're right, Nicole! Still, I gotta be honest, when Fiona started the program, I wasn't sure if it would work or not. considering the circumstances some people would've thought that she was some sort of Irredeemable monster who didn't care who got hurt. I guess I'm thinking that because there's a part of me that's still mad at her because of what she did to Sonic and Tails that day, I mean did she really have to slap Tails like that?
Nicole: It's easy to see people that way because of what's on the surface, but there's always more to a person's actions than what you see. She's only been in the program for a few days now.
Sally: I know, and I really want to her to succeed but I also want her to know that she doesn't need to push people away.
Nicole: Well she did have a rough past dating back to when she was left imprisoned, perhaps that's the cause of it all.
Sally: That would make sense, being left abandoned in a prison cell is enough to make anyone hold a grudge against the world. But I can't help but wonder if there's more to what happened while she was imprisoned. I mean remember her mentioning that she didn't want to get beaten again when she heard about Vilethorn. It's such a mystery.
Nicole: Perhaps this is something only Fiona can get into.
Sally: Yeah, but the only question is, will she be willing to be that Open? She has always known to be secretive.
Nicole: I'm sure she will in good time. Right now all we can do is give her the support she needs to move forward and set aside that anger.
Sally: You're right Nicole! I'm glad I can come to you for these type of discussions.
Nicole: It's my pleasure, Sally! It's normal to have doubts every now and then, we just need to work together to overcome them.
Sally: Right! On a different note, today is your first day tutoring Rex? Are you going to be okay by yourself? Do you need me to come with you?
Nicole: I will be fine, Sally! Remember with Nanite Technology, I can be anywhere! So I can be here and come to you at anytime at all.
Sally: That's Good!
back at the rehab center, after everyone was done with the ice cream Syrus brought over, Dr. Willow and Kimi Lead Fiona, Izzy, and Lucy to the social circle to begin a group session. Izzy was the first to volunteer.
Izzy: Well in the first couple weeks since I've been here I sometimes feel as if maybe what I'm doing isn't enough.
Fiona: *Thinking* I know how that feels...
Izzy: I even felt that way when I was involved with that weapons ring. I worked with a lot of shady characters, most of whom would pull a huge scam on me.
Fiona: *Thinking* I'm well familiar with that feeling!
Izzy: It made me wonder why I even got involved in the first place? I hurt the people I cared about with little to no regard to their feelings. I thought the Money I make would help me to live a better life...*Sobs* I feel like such a fool...*Izzy hugs Dr. Willow* What if it's too late for me?
Dr. Willow: It's easy to be caught up in all that greed, thinking that it can provide you. The fact that you're acknowledging what you did is wrong is showing me that you're willing to make things right and correct the wrongs you've made.
Izzy: *calms down* I never thought if that way, thank you Dr. Willow!
Lucy: I have something to share too!
Dr. Willow: Go ahead, Lucy!
Lucy: Thank you...well back when I was working with bandits I too have hurt people I cared about. I didn't want to do it but I was pressured, because they acted like as if I had no choice...well...everyday I regret those actions.
Fiona: *Thinking* It seems that Lucy really had it rough, but Izzy on the other hand, I wonder if she had any connections to the Destructix?
Dr. Willow: Thank you for sharing Lucy! I know you will succeed in creating a much more positive path for yourself.
Lucy: Thank you! It wasn't easy
Dr. Willow: Now Fiona, is there some you like to share?
Fiona: Well...to be honest...I'm kinda scared...
Dr. Willow: It's okay, you don't need to rush into anything right away, just take it one step at a time. It can be something small.
Fiona: Well since you put it that way, sometimes I often worry if I'm beyond saving...
Dr. Willow: Fiona, you shouldn't have to feel that way! No one is beyond saving
Fiona: Well I have turned my back on the people who tried to help me...joined up with some bad boy and began causing trouble...even then there was a part of me that started to think if it was worth it.
Kimi: Oh, Fiona...
Fiona: Kimi, I appreciate your sympathy, but I don't deserve it...
Dr. Willow: Well the fact that you're questioning about your actions show that you're willing to do better.
Fiona: But what if I fail? What if I'm destined to be this way?
Dr. Willow: Everyone stumbles sometimes, what matters is that you're trying.
Lucy: Dr. Willow's right! No irredeemable monster would ever try to change.
Izzy: And we'll all be right here with you!
Kimi: You're here trying to make a change, and that says a lot!
Fiona: *Sheds Tear* Thank you...
Hershey: Don't forget! Sally, Erma, Larry, and I will be here for you too.
Fiona: Yeah...*Thinking* It's hard to believe that everyone is going through so much trouble to help me. Could it be that I was so stubborn into believing that the world was cruel?
A couple hours later Hershey and Erma and Fiona were about to get ready to leave the center for the day when Dr. Willow and caught up with them with Nova Following them.
Dr. Willow: Fiona, I'm glad I caught you! Before you leave, why don't you take Nova with you?
Fiona: Are you sure? I don't want to separate it from his friends!
Kimi: It's fine, Nova can come and visit his friends anytime!
Dr. Willow: These Chao won't be going anywhere so there's nothing to worry about.
Fiona: Well thanks, to be honest he is starting to grow on me *Nova jumps into Fiona's arms and hugs her* I'll take good care of him
Dr. Willow: I have strong feeling you will!
Erma: Well I'm glad Nova has a new home!
Hershey: And we can help you, if you need it.
Fiona: I'm sure I can manage.
Kimi: and don't forget the fruit! *Kimi hands fiona the bag of fruit to Fiona* He's going to need plenty of nourishment.
Fiona: Thanks, Kimi! I will see you all later!
As the three walked out the door, Sally, Larry and Emily met up with them!
Sally: How was today's session?
Fiona: Pretty good, more or less!
Larry: And I see Nova's with you!
Emily: Aww he's so cute!
Fiona: This is Nova!
Emily: It's nice to meet you, Nova! You are so adorable!
Nova gives Emily a hug!
Fiona: Yeah, Dr. Willow was kind enough to let me keep him. She gave me the fruit he likes.
Sally: Well taking care of a Chao is a huge responsibility, I hope you're up for it.
Fiona: I can handle it, besides the little guy is really growing on me. And who can resist such a cutie?
Sally: Well welcome to the team, Nova!
Nova Proceeds to jump into Sally's arms and give her a big hug!
Erma: Looks like he'll fit in just fine!
Sally notices the Necklace Fiona was wearing and the jewel that was attached to it.
Sally: That's a really nice necklace Fiona, where did you get it?
Fiona: That guy Syrus came by earlier and gave it to me. He said it was a good luck present.
Emily: Aww that's very nice of him!
Larry: Yeah Syrus would come over every now and then to bring ice cream for the patients.
Erma: You should've seen it, Sally. It really looked like that Fiona was about to go all head over heels for him.
Fiona: *Blushes from embarrassment* Hey, take it easy, Erma. All he did was give me a present.
Hershey: True! Plus I could tell that he saw something in you, did you see the way he winked at you?
Fiona: Well yeah...but...How would I know!?
Erma: Easy, we didn't mean anything by it!
Fiona: I know it's just that, I'm still trying to figure things out you know?
Larry: Yeah I get it, you don't to rush into anything right away.
Fiona: Exactly! Thank you!
Larry: No problem! So, Sally I heard Nicole's going to be tutoring Rex!
Sally: Yep! Nicole maybe kind hearted but she's no pushover when it comes to helping people with academic material. I believe in her and with her help, Rex can be able to see what it truly means to get a good education.
TO BE CONTINUED