Mirror Image

I - Friends & Rivals

A flash of blue lightning rippled through the gentle haze of the morning sun in Station Square. A cacophony of screeching tires rang out in an excited gasp, heralding the arrival of the streak of blue cascading down the city streets. The morning commuters shielded their eyes from the cloud of dust that followed in the wake of the indistinct shape, indifferent to the disruption. To the citizens of Station Square, this was a mundane occurrence. They set their watches in time with Sonic's morning run.

On the other side of the city park, outside a detached two-storey house, the blue blur leapt into sharp relief in an instant. A few excited children tugged on their parent's arms and pointed to the famous hedgehog, for the adults the sudden appearance of Sonic the Hedgehog stretching his legs against his garden fence elicited a smile of appreciation before they continued on their way.

The people of Station Square loved Sonic for the many times he had saved their lives, and they had tried to reward him with stacks of cash, sports cars and mansions. Sonic had refused to accept anything but a simple two-up two-down near the park, with the only request being a space large enough to convert into a workshop for Tails. The double garage tacked on to the side of the house more than suited his needs.

The weeds encroaching on the dry stone of the garden path retreated from the red and white sneakers cutting through them. Approaching the wooden door coloured in cobalt blue, Sonic let a relaxed sigh escape him. He had needed the fresh air to take his mind away from the incident he had with Shadow the previous afternoon.

They had gotten into another scrap. Rouge had brought Shadow into the city to try and get him to socialize more, but five minutes of civility proved too much for him to handle, his ego overflowed, and Sonic felt the need to put him in his place. The same thing happened every time he crossed paths with the surly black hedgehog. They had always been bitter rivals, even after Shadow stopped trying to destroy the world. Their friends insisted the rivalry had more to do with their similarities; headstrong, cocky, determined and all the tired terms he had heard many times before. Sonic didn't buy it though, in his opinion, he and Shadow had nothing in common.

Pushing open the front door, Sonic felt a rush of warm, stale air invade his nostrils. Spluttering, he peered through the bright sunlight flooding through the large front window. Empty pizza boxes and soda cans were strewn across the coffee table; its glass stained by a myriad of sauces and dried-out syrupy drinks. A tangled mess of wires snaked out from under the TV, ensnaring a solitary grubby sneaker trying to hide under the table.

Sonic drew in a sharp intake of breath, then let it go in a single exasperated huff. Spread out before him lay the aftermath of his 'boy's night in' with Tails & Knuckles. Biting his lip, Sonic looked around the room, eager to find something to do other than tidy up.

"Tails?" Sonic called, "you in here?"

No reply came. Shaking his head in resignation, Sonic swept up as much junk as he could carry into his arms. Staggering into the kitchen, barely able to see around his burden, he fumbled with his foot for the bin's foot pedal. Hearing the familiar clang of the bin popping open, he let his arms fall away from him.

Sonic winced as a shower of tin cans scattered across the kitchen tiles with a deafening clang.

"Well, that could have gone better." He scratched behind his ear, wondering if he could find an easier way.

"Hey Sonic, you're home," came an all-too-familiar voice from behind him. Sonic span around to see Tails standing in the kitchen doorway, his golden fur glistening in the morning sun. The hedgehog spread out his arms and legs in a vain attempt to conceal the havoc strewn across the kitchen floor from his friend. His narrow body was about as effective as a pencil trying to conceal an elephant, and Sonic could feel the guilty grin spread across his face.