Categories > Games > Sonic the Hedgehog
Shifting Paradigms
2 reviewsSummer in the snow? Not quite what grumpy ol' Shadow had in mind. But after a chance meeting with Sonic the Hedgehog, he decides the vacation may turn out for the better after all.
1Original
Disclaimer: "Sonic the Hedgehog"? Doesn't belong to me. Woes.
Shifting Paradigms
By Jigglypuff in Blue Ribbons
~
When he thought of summer, Shadow expected sand. Heat. Beach balls and a racket of tennis matches, just like the ones he and Maria read aboard the ARK. Maria, let's go to the beach! We can wear swimsuits and play! Gosh, did his mind swim of all the sandcastles he'd make, adorned with the prettiest shells, the shiniest stones. He'd point his nose haughtily in the air that yes, he built this armada ALL by himself, that they were the strongest sandcastles anyone ever built, because he was the Ultimate Life-and Maria would laugh. And they'd laugh some more.
Hmph. He thought nonchalantly. So much for that summer.
In the snow, flippers were a joke: thick boots-similar to the air shoes he left indoors-packed firmly in the ground, allowing Shadow to adjust the board by his feet. The black hedgehog raised his goggles, surveying the landscape. The grainy tan swept in replacement with wet white, an icy gray companion common the year-round on this mountain. Where sun umbrellas popped like domes, wired caskets of ski lifts, capsules of laundry with colored matches of winter athletes scooted beneath the silver sky. Finally, Shadow spotted a downward route that promised something of a challenge. He stared ahead onto that path: it should do.
"Hey there!"
The black hedgehog closed his eyes and sighed-he knew that voice from anywhere.
"It's you again." He stated simply as his blue double bounded the path. Sonic skidded to a stop before him, flashing a toothy grin and a thumb's up with a light, mischievous laugh. Whether or not Shadow's reaction to him was colder than the weather, it didn't seem to affect the blue one's optimism one bit.
"So! I see you haven't changed." After carrying his board beneath his arm, Sonic placed it on the ground and straightened it up, like it were his own recent proud achievement. "You been to the mountains much before?"
"I've-trained here before." Shadow was still and calm, his fingers and own board like icicles. "It's different, that's all."
"I'd think it'd be weird to see that much snow," Sonic commented. "Especially when you aren't familiar with going to snowy places and all. Feels strange to go here for summer, eh?"
"It doesn't matter to me."
"I don't go to cold places much either." The blue hedgehog stretched his legs, adorned in boots similar to his own shoes. He knocked his heels on his board, kicking off slushes of snow.
"My shoes get wet easily, so my legs get numb real fast. Tails had to take care of me at Ice Cap from the Floating Island once." He cringed before returning a smile to Shadow. "I don't like the idea of losing my legs at all-could ya imagine? Man, or metal ones...! Eggman would never stop laughing at me!"
"Hmph. I suppose not." It was Shadow's turn to smirk. "Be thankful this isn't another quest to save the world, hedgehog."
"I wonder what Eggman does for vacation anyway!" Sonic laughed. "Play with his Chao on the airship or something? Wait... that's scary. Nevermind. One thing's for sure, he definitely wouldn't wanna freeze his ass off here."
"So that's part of why we're here?"
"That, and I guess everyone's pretty restless and wants something different this year. Lucky you decided to get yourself familiar with the mountain when we came here. Been practicing your boarding?"
"What do you think I've been doing?"
"I dunno... sitting and brooding indoors all day?"
"Very funny, hedgehog."
"Well good, 'cause I'd hate to go down the mountain by myself. And who else would I want for a partner to race with me if Tails and Knuckles aren't around?"
The black hedgehog stared, eyes widened just a bit, before he raised a cool eyebrow; one that showed little sign of the lurch his heart gave at Sonic's comment.
"...Partner?" he asked softly, if a little strangely. Sonic grinned.
"What do you say, Shadow? You're the only one who can keep up with me."
"I..."
"No sweat, Shadow." Again, the classic grin. "It's only us, right? It's not like anyone could-"
"-SONIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIC!"
The call came rumbling like one who slipped from Everest-and Sonic's face like he had witnessed the suicide. The familiar pink figure emerged from the light.
"A-Amy!"
"Your girl's back." Shadow smirked.
"She is not-"
"Hello boys!" Amy Rose gave a light twirl in her magenta snowsuit, complete with own spin for her signature snowboard. "How are you enjoying vacation so far? Have you been around the mountain yet?"
"I've been practicing," Shadow nodded. "Nothing much to it."
"I'm glad you seem better, Shadow! I knew this vacation would do it! We all need a break now and then, right?" With a pleased grin, the pink hedgehog turned and leaned toward her crush, her sky-blue goggles glittering like her tropical-green eyes. "And what about you, Sonic?"
"Uhh... just fine!" Sonic's position was awkward, arms spread and nearly flailing like a kite.
"Aw, you're no fun!" She exclaimed with a playful pout. "Anyway, I've been snowboarding with Cream. Have you seen Tails anywhere?"
"No, how come?"
"I thought he was gonna stay and work on the Tornado, but it turns out that he might be here too. I guess he wasn't happy with how his skiing turned out yesterday."
"Aw yeah-! Poor Knuckles... they're both all right though, right?"
"Yeah. Knuckles is busy scaling the mountain, looking for Rouge or something. What else could go on here?"
"Amy! We're ready!"
With a pause, the pink hedgehog turned to wave back to her friend-a figure clad in orange in the distance, accompanied by a small Chao that bobbed in the air like a beach ball.
"I'm coming!" She turned to the other hedgehogs again. "You two have fun, okay? It's not like there's a big gray monster waiting to eat skiers at the bottom or anything!" With board under her arm, Amy paused and again leaned closer to Sonic, eyes sparkling like she were dropping subtle hints of a surprise birthday party. "I'll make you my special hot chocolate later, Sonic." She murmured, and then rushed off with a wave to catch up with Cream. "See you then!"
"Gray... monster?" Shadow puzzled.
"Oh, it's nothing. Nothing special or anything like that." Sonic shrugged. "By the way..."
He raised an eye upon the color of Shadow's goggles.
"Your goggles look greener than usual. You trying to match the color of my eyes or something?"
"Wh-What!?" Shadow gaped, his hand hovering over the eye-protecting device. "This has GOT to be a coincidence."
"Hehe... I guess that takes 'seeing things from the other's perspective' in a whole new light." The blue hedgehog adjusted his goggles-red as fruit punch-over his eyes, providing a thumb's up with both hands. "So, you're ready to take on the mountain? Considering it's me you're against, you'll need all the luck you'll ever get!"
"Who says I need luck to beat you?" With a chuckle, Shadow too lowered his goggles, a dangerous thrill permeating his voice.
"Bring it on!"
With competitive, crafty grins and a bang, the two rival hedgehogs pounced like surfers in the tide, showering splashes of white in their wake.
The End
A/N: Holy friggin' camoli. I'm alive. But yes. A story and a half here, and you probably don't want to hear about my life. Either way... darn. I actually WROTE something. I updated! Everyone rejoice? Um, yeah. I realize it's shorter than my usual stuff, but it's also longer than the normal drabbles and ficlets I post in my Creative Livejournal, so here I go. Haunting the citizens of and public fiction sites once again! This fic is for a contest taking place at another site. Check Deviantart for the gory details. Either way, major thanks to my betas for polishing this up, and I hope all you guys enjoyed!
Shifting Paradigms
By Jigglypuff in Blue Ribbons
~
When he thought of summer, Shadow expected sand. Heat. Beach balls and a racket of tennis matches, just like the ones he and Maria read aboard the ARK. Maria, let's go to the beach! We can wear swimsuits and play! Gosh, did his mind swim of all the sandcastles he'd make, adorned with the prettiest shells, the shiniest stones. He'd point his nose haughtily in the air that yes, he built this armada ALL by himself, that they were the strongest sandcastles anyone ever built, because he was the Ultimate Life-and Maria would laugh. And they'd laugh some more.
Hmph. He thought nonchalantly. So much for that summer.
In the snow, flippers were a joke: thick boots-similar to the air shoes he left indoors-packed firmly in the ground, allowing Shadow to adjust the board by his feet. The black hedgehog raised his goggles, surveying the landscape. The grainy tan swept in replacement with wet white, an icy gray companion common the year-round on this mountain. Where sun umbrellas popped like domes, wired caskets of ski lifts, capsules of laundry with colored matches of winter athletes scooted beneath the silver sky. Finally, Shadow spotted a downward route that promised something of a challenge. He stared ahead onto that path: it should do.
"Hey there!"
The black hedgehog closed his eyes and sighed-he knew that voice from anywhere.
"It's you again." He stated simply as his blue double bounded the path. Sonic skidded to a stop before him, flashing a toothy grin and a thumb's up with a light, mischievous laugh. Whether or not Shadow's reaction to him was colder than the weather, it didn't seem to affect the blue one's optimism one bit.
"So! I see you haven't changed." After carrying his board beneath his arm, Sonic placed it on the ground and straightened it up, like it were his own recent proud achievement. "You been to the mountains much before?"
"I've-trained here before." Shadow was still and calm, his fingers and own board like icicles. "It's different, that's all."
"I'd think it'd be weird to see that much snow," Sonic commented. "Especially when you aren't familiar with going to snowy places and all. Feels strange to go here for summer, eh?"
"It doesn't matter to me."
"I don't go to cold places much either." The blue hedgehog stretched his legs, adorned in boots similar to his own shoes. He knocked his heels on his board, kicking off slushes of snow.
"My shoes get wet easily, so my legs get numb real fast. Tails had to take care of me at Ice Cap from the Floating Island once." He cringed before returning a smile to Shadow. "I don't like the idea of losing my legs at all-could ya imagine? Man, or metal ones...! Eggman would never stop laughing at me!"
"Hmph. I suppose not." It was Shadow's turn to smirk. "Be thankful this isn't another quest to save the world, hedgehog."
"I wonder what Eggman does for vacation anyway!" Sonic laughed. "Play with his Chao on the airship or something? Wait... that's scary. Nevermind. One thing's for sure, he definitely wouldn't wanna freeze his ass off here."
"So that's part of why we're here?"
"That, and I guess everyone's pretty restless and wants something different this year. Lucky you decided to get yourself familiar with the mountain when we came here. Been practicing your boarding?"
"What do you think I've been doing?"
"I dunno... sitting and brooding indoors all day?"
"Very funny, hedgehog."
"Well good, 'cause I'd hate to go down the mountain by myself. And who else would I want for a partner to race with me if Tails and Knuckles aren't around?"
The black hedgehog stared, eyes widened just a bit, before he raised a cool eyebrow; one that showed little sign of the lurch his heart gave at Sonic's comment.
"...Partner?" he asked softly, if a little strangely. Sonic grinned.
"What do you say, Shadow? You're the only one who can keep up with me."
"I..."
"No sweat, Shadow." Again, the classic grin. "It's only us, right? It's not like anyone could-"
"-SONIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIC!"
The call came rumbling like one who slipped from Everest-and Sonic's face like he had witnessed the suicide. The familiar pink figure emerged from the light.
"A-Amy!"
"Your girl's back." Shadow smirked.
"She is not-"
"Hello boys!" Amy Rose gave a light twirl in her magenta snowsuit, complete with own spin for her signature snowboard. "How are you enjoying vacation so far? Have you been around the mountain yet?"
"I've been practicing," Shadow nodded. "Nothing much to it."
"I'm glad you seem better, Shadow! I knew this vacation would do it! We all need a break now and then, right?" With a pleased grin, the pink hedgehog turned and leaned toward her crush, her sky-blue goggles glittering like her tropical-green eyes. "And what about you, Sonic?"
"Uhh... just fine!" Sonic's position was awkward, arms spread and nearly flailing like a kite.
"Aw, you're no fun!" She exclaimed with a playful pout. "Anyway, I've been snowboarding with Cream. Have you seen Tails anywhere?"
"No, how come?"
"I thought he was gonna stay and work on the Tornado, but it turns out that he might be here too. I guess he wasn't happy with how his skiing turned out yesterday."
"Aw yeah-! Poor Knuckles... they're both all right though, right?"
"Yeah. Knuckles is busy scaling the mountain, looking for Rouge or something. What else could go on here?"
"Amy! We're ready!"
With a pause, the pink hedgehog turned to wave back to her friend-a figure clad in orange in the distance, accompanied by a small Chao that bobbed in the air like a beach ball.
"I'm coming!" She turned to the other hedgehogs again. "You two have fun, okay? It's not like there's a big gray monster waiting to eat skiers at the bottom or anything!" With board under her arm, Amy paused and again leaned closer to Sonic, eyes sparkling like she were dropping subtle hints of a surprise birthday party. "I'll make you my special hot chocolate later, Sonic." She murmured, and then rushed off with a wave to catch up with Cream. "See you then!"
"Gray... monster?" Shadow puzzled.
"Oh, it's nothing. Nothing special or anything like that." Sonic shrugged. "By the way..."
He raised an eye upon the color of Shadow's goggles.
"Your goggles look greener than usual. You trying to match the color of my eyes or something?"
"Wh-What!?" Shadow gaped, his hand hovering over the eye-protecting device. "This has GOT to be a coincidence."
"Hehe... I guess that takes 'seeing things from the other's perspective' in a whole new light." The blue hedgehog adjusted his goggles-red as fruit punch-over his eyes, providing a thumb's up with both hands. "So, you're ready to take on the mountain? Considering it's me you're against, you'll need all the luck you'll ever get!"
"Who says I need luck to beat you?" With a chuckle, Shadow too lowered his goggles, a dangerous thrill permeating his voice.
"Bring it on!"
With competitive, crafty grins and a bang, the two rival hedgehogs pounced like surfers in the tide, showering splashes of white in their wake.
The End
A/N: Holy friggin' camoli. I'm alive. But yes. A story and a half here, and you probably don't want to hear about my life. Either way... darn. I actually WROTE something. I updated! Everyone rejoice? Um, yeah. I realize it's shorter than my usual stuff, but it's also longer than the normal drabbles and ficlets I post in my Creative Livejournal, so here I go. Haunting the citizens of and public fiction sites once again! This fic is for a contest taking place at another site. Check Deviantart for the gory details. Either way, major thanks to my betas for polishing this up, and I hope all you guys enjoyed!
Sign up to rate and review this story