She walked into the cave, dragging her stuffed animal behind her away from the storm. She snuggled up against a soft rock, or so she thought. She felt arms wrap around her, holding her close, warming her. The person, or hedgehog, of whom the arms belonged to held her close to him, his chest fur being her pillow.
"Rest well, little one," was the last thing she heard before she drifted off to sleep.
She woke up to a fire being burned and a fellow Mobian, a hedgehog, tending to it. She crawled up to him, her legs too weak to walk, and tapped his shoulder. He looked at her, his eyes piercing into her soul. She backed away a bit, afraid she had angered him. But his actions told her otherwise as he stood up, picked her up, and placed her in a safe spot close to the fire.
He sat down next to her, looking down away from her. She looked at him and read his emotions. He seemed sad. His heart was telling her so. She felt his pain, his loss. His face was emotionless, but his heart was crying. She hesitantly wrapped her arms around him, making him jump in surprise. He gently pushed her away, not exactly liking the affection.
"What is your name, little one?" he stared at her, waiting for her response.
"Marie the Dog."
Upon hearing her name, he thought of this one memory from his past long ago, trying to fight back the tears that threatened to escape. Marie looked up at the stranger, feeling his sadness and pain.
"Are you alright?" she asked.
There was no answer, as she reminded him so much of that one person in his past. Then, a loud bang broke the silence.
"Marie! Get down!" he said as he grabbed her and ducked.
He ran off with her, keeping her and her stuffed animal safe in his arms. He ran for what seemed like forever, almost tripping because of the bullet in his leg. He tripped and fell, hissing in pain, Marie falling out of his arms. She screamed and rolled along the ground. The owner of the gun was getting closer and closer, scaring the life out of the poor girl.
"Run, Marie!"
Marie ran as fast as she could away from the owner of the gun, a robot. She held on tightly to her stuffed animal as she ran through the fields of nothingness. The hedgehog limped close behind so as to not lose sight of the girl. The rain still poured down, making the robot seem even more threatening. The robot passed the hedgehog, gaining on Marie. The hedgehog's fear soon grew as the robot was only a few feet from Marie.
Marie whimpered and tried to run faster, but tripped over sharp rock and fell face first into the earth. The robot stalked closer and closer, making Marie scoot back against a wall of rock. She covered her face with her arms, expecting a blow. But it didn't come.
"Marie!" the hedgehog yelled as the young girl was carried away by the robot, a depressing memory of his past being repeated once again.
