Wake Up Sonic

Chapter 4

"And AGAIN you are late hedgehog"
Sonic didn't even look up from the backpack he was ruffling through as he walked up to an irked Shadow.
"Sorry..."
He zipped up the bigger pocket of his backpack, frowning as he stuck his hand in another.
"I seriously cannot find my wallet... I know I had it before lunch..."
He mumbled to himself and his hand caught onto something, and he pulled out what Shadow presumed was a cookie.
"Ooh~ I wondered where that went"
"If you eat that thing in front of me I will gladly kick you." Shadow said as a vein in his temple popped menacingly.
Sonic paused, the cookie only a few inches away from his mouth and gave Shadow a look before putting the cookie back.
Shadow turned around to the exit and walked on, leaving Sonic to follow in his wake.
As Sonic watched him from behind he wondered about what Scourge had said.
If Scourge WAS right; this new information might put a huge stopper on his plans.
His unfinished plans he reminded himself, but plans none the less.
From what he gathered in his experiences with the guy, he really didn't seem like the type of person to harass someone...
'Well not in that way' He corrected himself as he felt area on his head that was still tender from when Shadow hit him.
'Actually scratch that' He thought
Shadow just didn't seem like the type to actually chase someone...
He stopped and shivered as the image of Shadow beckoning suggestively came to mind, and the alarm bell went off in his brain.
'BAD THINGS!'
He clasped both sides of his head as he tried to block out the image.
Shadow glanced back at his student as he realized he had stopped.
He tilted his head to the side and doubled back stopping in front of the blue hedgehog.
"What are you doing?"
Sonic opened his eyes and was startled to see Shadow standing only a foot away, his arms crossed looking annoyed.
"Oh it's nothing~" Sonic said as he scratched the back of his head and attempted a laugh, noting how his eye was twitching.
A cold breeze kicked Sonic out of his embarrassing thoughts as he shivered. And Shadow raised an eyebrow.
"You're cold?"
He sighed and grabbed off his scarf holding it out to Sonic.
"Here. You may use it for now but I expect it back in the same condition as I've left it with you."
Sonic looked astonished and hesitated before talking the scarf.
"Heh, Thanks"
Shadow grunted and Sonic tied it around his neck before they walked on toward the library.
"Well then, I'm glad to see you've actually been studying." Shadow said as he reviewed the notes that Sonic had diligently taken from the book.
Sonic grinned and turned his attention back to the few practice problems sitting in front of him.
He tapped his cheek with his pencil as he thought it out, a habit that Shadow had pointed out before.
It had only been a bit less than a week so far, but Sonic was making good progress.
He understood the theory, he knew the steps, he just made small mistakes in the details that threw him off.
Sonic wrote in his last answers and handed the paper over to Shadow who frowned a he concentrated.
"In this first problem you've made a mistake right here in the subscripts. There are 2 Hydrogen, not 3."
Sonic gave him a look.
"Hmph! I blame you and your stupid handwriting!"
Shadow smirked and he went over the rest of the paper.
He really didn't mind Sonic's little jabs as much as he would have before.
"Don't blame me if you have the literacy of a six year old."
"Nah nah! It's more like a 12 year old, but my literacy is a lot better than your penmanship."
"Oh~ You learned a new word? Aren't you so proud"
"Yes, I am actually; aren't I just a complete badass?"
"Language Sonic; do remember I'm still your teacher. And if you leave out the bad, then yes you are."
"Har, har! Touché~ And this is coming from the emo teacher?"
Shadow scoffed.
"Oh please, as IF I haven't heard that one before. And I am NOT emo."
"Oh yes you are;
E is for Emotional, ruin everybody's day,
M is for miserable people,
O is for on the dark side cuz we got some fresh cookies~.
Actually.. What ever happened to that cookie anyway..."
"Why am I not surprised; a college student quite Niga-Higa songs. And don't you dare eat that cookie Sonic! I do NOT want to get blamed if you die from food poisoning."
"I've eaten worse! Once there was this old chilidog I left under the couch at home. And then there was that slice of pizza from on top of the fridge."
"I did NOT need to know that Sonic. Anyway here is your paper back. Make corrections."
He waved his hand in a shooing manner and Sonic set to work as Shadow flipped open one of the thick leather-bound books.
"I'm still glad to see that, that book helped you."
"Yes surprisingly. I guess this old library is good for something."
"And I'm guessing there's a reason for why you and your friends were fighting over it?"
Sonic hesitated from his writing and looked up, but Shadow was looking down at the book he was reading.
Sonic shrugged.
"We weren't exactly fighting; they were just trying to grab it from me."
"Any particular reason why you wanted to hide it in the first place?"
"Eh? I guess I rather them NOT know that I'm a complete idiot."
His teacher scoffed.
"I'm sure they both know that already."
Sonic shrugged.
"Has it ever crossed your mind that maybe one of them could help you with your studies?"
Sonic bristled a little at the thought.
"As if having to ask YOU isn't enough."
Shadow looked up at him and raised an eyebrow and smirked.
"Ah~ so it's a pride thing is it?"
"I guess you could say that"
"hmm. You just don't want to be outdone by your 'Little brother'"
Sonic paused in what he was doing.
'Was that the reason?'
He bit down on his thumb nail.
He'd never actually thought about like that...
But that would make a bit more sense...
As a hero Sonic had always shined in everything he did, but here in school where wits were being pitted against each other, Tails was always the one to come in on top.
He didn't exactly mind Tails finding something that he was recognized for; but he DID wish that people would stop criticizing his own intellect against him.
He shook his head, aware of Shadow looking at him expectantly.
"No that's not the reason..."
Shadow shrugged.
"So then? What IS the reason for this sudden change in interests?"
Sonic gave a noncommittal shrug.
"I don't know; besides the need to actually pass."
"If you say so"
It didn't really matter much; Shadow was just curious.
Silently he turned his attention to his book.
"Hey'a Sonic! Where were you?" Tails called from where he sat on the couch as Sonic entered the apartment.
"Hey Tails, I was just... out"
He shrugged and set down his backpack ignoring Tail's questioning look with a jolt of guilt.
He hated keeping secrets from his best friend.
"So, what's going on?" He asked as he looked around.
"Knuckles is out with Rouge so I'm just hanging out I guess."
"Oh, that's cool of them; they never really get to hang out much anymore."
"Yea, I hope the have fun. Oh, and theres some left over Chinese food in the fridge."
"Ah Thanks~. Orange chicken here I come!"
He ran to the fridge and in a flash he had his orange chicken and a soda and was sitting next to Tail's on the couch watching movies and talking about life.
Sonic felt sort of bad now that he'd talked with Tail's;
For a while now he hadn't been acing like the friend and brother he claimed to be, and he hadn't noticed how much stuff Tail's was going through.
For one thing he was still trying to figure out how to proceed with Cream;
He'd liked her for a while, but Tails was a shy little guy.
Sonic tried giving him a pep talk, and even if he couldn't give his friend any detailed advice, at least he succeeded in cheering him up.
"So, what's been going on with YOU Sonic?"
"Eh? Oh nothing much really; school work I guess."
"Is that why you've been acting weird lately?"
"I've been acting weird?"
Tails nodded.
"Yea, it's like you come home late every day and just go up to your room these days... and when we're all hanging out it's like you're distracted by something. Is everything okay?"
"Aww I'm sorry buddy. I actually hadn't realized. Everything's okay though; I guess I need to start paying more attention to you guys huh?"
He grinned at his two tailed buddy who smiled before adopting a wondering look.
"Umm... is it okay to ask where you always go off to after school?"
Sonic scratched his nose and glanced at the young fox.
Then he sighed.
"I'm sorry Tails; I do appreciate the concern, but I really rather not say"
"oh, okay Sonic."
"Sorry..."
"Nah, it's okay, if you don't want to tell me, I'll respect that and besides." He said grinning "I don't tell YOU all my secrets either!"
"Oh really! And what are YOU hiding!"
Sonic said as he crossed his arms and raised an eye ridge grinning.
"Wouldn't YOU like to know?"
"Oh I'll figure it out some time; you can't hide from your big brother!"
"We'll see!"
For the rest of the night they played video games and watched movies, both glad to have had their friendship rekindled.
Sonic rolled onto his side in bed.
It was nighttime; the moon was shining brightly in the middle of the sky, but Sonic couldn't sleep for some reason.
Fitfully he rolled over again.
He couldn't figure it out.
Why was he feeling so restless?
He knew that if he didn't go to sleep now he would be tired tomorrow.
And Shadow would get pissed if he started falling asleep in class again...
He blinked as he thought of his teacher...
'Shadow'
His eyelids closed halfway as he stared into space.
What was going on with him?
It had been two weeks since he'd started going to Shadow for tutoring, and Sonic was having problems;
The very reason for doing these extra lessons had originally been a part of his plan for revenge... but lately Sonic felt that his heart simply wasn't in it anymore...
He was starting to ... almost... enjoy those extra lessons...
Sonic slapped his face as he thought it.
GOD! He was acting so weird.
At first he'd hated Shadow almost as much as he hated Robotnick...
Then something changed when he started spending time with him.
When he saw him, he didn't feel the old spark of anger he used to.
And when they met up the air had lost the old tension.
They were almost friendly these days.
And Sonic found that very disconcerting.
He groaned and rolled over again.
Shadow was always on his mind these days.
And that was scary.
It would be completely out of the blue when Sonic would wonder what was going on with his black and red teacher, and the constant looking over his shoulder thinking he was near by was getting on his nerves.
And to rap it all up, there were some nights when he would appear in his dreams. Those dreams would be strange and oddly blurred, and the only things about those dreams that he could remember was Shadow's face.
Sonic grabbed both sides of his head and shook himself back a forth.
This was ridiculous!
Angrily he rolled on his stomach and bit his pillow.
He wanted it to stop!
He had no idea what this stupid feeling in his chest was, but he wanted it gone!
He was then distracted as he felt something tickled the top of his head.
He looked up at his head board and realized it was something red, and made of cloth.
He reached for it and brought it closer to his face so he could see.
It was a scarf.
Shadow's scarf, he realized with an unpleasant jolt.
He stared at it and glanced around as if to see if anyone was watching, and he rolled over on his back holding it up in the air and looking at it.
It was soft between his fingers.
His nose twitched as the breeze of the fan blew the scarf closer to his face, and his nose caught its scent.
It smelled of him...
It was a pleasant smell, soft and dark subtle.
And it was driving him crazy.
He rolled over halfway on his side, halfway on his stomach and clasped his hands to his chest as he curled in a ball, still clutching the scarf.
His eyelids dropped sleepily as he laid there breathing in the intoxicating smell, wondering when in the hell had he gone soft for that stupid teacher of his.
"Sonic wake up!"
Sonic's head popped off his pillow as he was startled awake by the voice of his friend Knuckles right over him.
"AH! I'm awake!"
Knuckles laughed at the sight of the sleepy hedgehog.
His blue quills were sticking up in odd directions and his eyes looked dazed with sleep.
Sonic looked around and with a jolt he realized he'd fallen asleep holding on to Shadow's scarf.
Sneakily he hid it under his pillow.
"HAHA! Anyway come on! It's Saturday and we're going bowling remember?"
"Oh yea, all right I'll be down in a minute."
For a few minutes after Knuckles left Sonic sat there staring into space trying to remember the dream he'd been having.
It had been a good dream; he remembered feeling particularly happy, but he couldn't recall exactly what went on.
He got up and headed to the bathroom staring in horror as he saw what he looked like in the mirror.
Usually he when he slept he stayed still for the night, but his hair was telling him that he had been restless.
He turned on the water and after a while a cloud of steam was fogging up the room.
He stood there under the showerhead with his eyes closed feeling the warm water cascading down his body and soaking through his fur.
It felt so nice, so warm, so soothing.
And that's when it hit him.
His eyes popped open despite the hot water and he almost fell over in shock.
THAT'S what his dream was about!
He leaned against the shower wall for support and he looked to the floor his mind racing.
His dream... had been... about... Shadow...
Only last night it hadn't been one of the usual dreams when his face simply popped up!
That dream last night had been about something very far from innocent.
His mind was going hay-wire.
He'd never had a dream like that before; he'd heard people talk about having them, but never in his life had it happened to him; he had a lot more to worry about than that type of craving...
So why was it happening now...
He shut off the water and grabbed a towel trudging back to his bed room, where he lifted his pillow and stared at the red scarf that was hidden there.
'You!' He thought angrily.
'This is YOUR fault!'
With a huff he leaned his arms on his desk shivering.
'Damn him!' He thought.
'Damn that stupid hedgehog!'
"Hey Sonic!"
"Good morning blue!"
Sonic smiled as he walked into the kitchen, he's calmed down a bit from his little tantrum.
"Good morning my peoples! What's fro breakfast!"
"We're having WAFFLES~!" Tails called from the table as Sonic went to the fridge for orange juice.
Next to the fridge Knuckles was at counter with the waffle maker.
Sonic laughed as he realized that Knuckles was wearing his pink cooking apron.
"HAHA! That's a nice color for you red!"
"Aww shuddup! It was a gift!"
"whatever Knucks~"
He dodged a punch from the echidna and went over sit across from Tails at the table.
"What you reading there Buddy?"
"It's call the 'Tao of Pooh'"
Sonic almost spat out his juice.
"The tower of poo what?"
Tails laughed and shook his head.
"No it's the Tao of Pooh: T-A-O P-o-o-h ha!"
"It still sounds like the tower of poo to me."
"Amy, why do I listen to you?"
Shadow asked as he and the pink hedgehog walked down the street of Westopolis.
"Because I'm always right of course!"
"Hmph!"
"Aww common Shadow, don't be like that! It'll be fun!"
"In what way could throwing around a heavy stone ball at a bunch of white sticks possibly be fun?"
Amy made a face.
"It's about the competition!"
"What ever! It'll be boring!"
Amy sighed.
Arguing with Shadow was a futile effort; but at least he wasn't running away.
"I still think you'll have fun. Ah there we are!"
Amy spotted the bowling joint and scanned the crowd for someone.
For a minute Shadow wondered what she was looking for but his question was answered as she waved and called to someone.
"Hi Rouge there you are!"
A white Bat that Shadow recognized as a student waved to Amy and walked over pulling along a red echidna who was usually affiliated with Sonic.
'And that meant...'
Unsurprising the blue hedgehog appeared from the crowd after the echidna.