Sonic & the Ninja's Daughter

Chapter 3 - A Budding New Friendship

Chapter 3.1 - A Heart Warming Welcome

It had been three weeks since the snowy night Sonic and Emia first met. The snow had already started to thaw, leaving clumps of white and grey on road edges and in corners of various places. The outdoor temperature did not make much of a difference, except being a little less chilly than it was during the night, but clouds of cold air were still being breathed out. The sun did the best it could to provide warmth to the city and to protect the inhabitants from the starving, bitter cold. Amid the bustling, talkative crowds, a young man with obsidian bangs falling over his face paced through the streets in eagerness to meet a certain someone, hoping he would find them at his destination.

Speed-o'-Sound Sonic gazed up at the building before him. The front sign above was painted sky blue and beautifully decorated with floral patterns. The Japanese word "Kenshin" had been carefully painted out in dark green kanji characters and was made to look slightly tilted to the side. Sonic checked the business card he had gripped in his hand throughout his journey here to check if he had arrived at the right place.

Earlier that day, he had made plans to visit Emia, a girl he had rescued just a few nights ago. She had brought him over to her apartment the next morning after that event, where her family, in return for what he had done for her, treated him to breakfast. He headed to that same apartment, in hopes that he would be able to ask her out. However, when he arrived, the ninja was surprised to find that there was no sign of her in the kitchen or front room, and he asked Kanae, Emia's aunt, where she was. That was when he learnt that the girl was working at a café, and Kanae gave a business card which had the address of Emia's workplace, to where he headed to immediately. You can imagine Kanae's surprise when she turned around to see he had vanished the moment she had finished talking.

Now Sonic was at the very place he was told he would find Emia. The card in his hand confirmed that.

The last thing he remembered Kanae saying before he sped off was: "Why not pop in there? Someone there might tell you more."

"Someone at this cafe could help me, eh?" he mumbled to himself as he skimmed the card, scratching his head for a moment. "Alright then, here goes nothing."

He stuffed the card into the pocket of his jacket and walked in through the doorway next to the wide front window. To his right, upon entering, he saw a brown door with floral decorated "Welcome, we're open" sign hanging on the front. He slowly pushed it open, triggering a bell as he walked in. When the door close behind him, he was amazed by the number of people that filled the cafe. Young and old, even little bubbly children filled almost every table in the light-filled place. On top of that, the walls were a beautiful vibrant shade of yellow, the chairs the colour of ebony and the tables a simple white with lily flowers in glass vases on top. He had never been in a place so lively and full of positive energy.

He had been so absorbed by it all that he had almost forgotten where he was approached by a waitress with her onyx hair tied back in a braid.

"Can I help you, sir?" she asked him.

"Huh? Oh, yeah!" he quickly blurted out, surprised by her sudden question. "I-I'm looking for someone here. Do you, uh, happen to know a girl named Emia? I was told that she worked here?"

After processing the question, the waitress smiled with a giggle and pointed over at the front counter, where black framed barroom chairs with red cushioning stood empty. What looked like cakes and treats were displayed under glass covers. Behind the counter, multiple employees wearing black and navy blue aprons over their tops and shirts were working on making the coffee and other hot drinks to complete the customers' orders.

"Of course, she should be over there." she replied. "Why don't you have a seat there? I'll go get her for you."

Sonic silently obeyed with a curt nod and sat down on the middle barroom chair. He shuffled for a moment, shuffling nervously for a moment as if he was attracting unwanted attention. He shook the feeling away and waited for Emia. While he waited, he got a good look at the cakes and breads that were displayed on the counter. He felt tempted to just swipe one and taste it, but he knew he would get into trouble if he took it without permission, and so pushed the ridiculous, childish thought aside. Instead, he shifted his attention to what was in front of him. On the shelves above the coffee machines, he saw multiple knick-knacks somewhat neatly organised. What caught his attention were the four china cups, each a different colour, standing next to each other in order of colour. They looked as if they stood out from the rest. So vibrant and bright. Something about them reminded Sonic of how he used to stick out like a sore thumb as a child. Whilst everyone else in the village was an emotionless machine, he was still like a normal child who was never afraid to open his mouth or smile at the one friend he lost nine years ago. He was never going to become a machine like the others.