A Cold Shoulder by -- Joseph DeLaCroix This story is based on characters created by Service and Games (SEGA), and on characters created by Archie Comic Publications, Inc. Any resemblance to actual characters are not coincidental. ;) Joseph, Bahb, and all other independent creations of Joseph DeLaCroix are the copyrighted property of JoCo Inc. Commander Packbell, Bookshire Draftwood, and Sandra Nightweaver are the copyrighted property of David Pistone. All rights reserved. Etc. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Timeline: The next morning. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - The sky was still opaque with the grey ceiling of snow clouds. Silence reigned over the Great Forest like an tyrannical king, censoring all of the usual noises of life. Wind whistled through the treetops, bringing a quiet snowshower on its coattails. The freshly-fallen snow had draped the outside of the Dome in an opaque blanket of sparkling white ice. The howling snowstorm last night had left its mark; a foot of snow laid on the ground, smothering anything smaller than a domesticated nonanthro cat completely, leaving nary a trace of what was formerly there. The sun rose that morning, as it had done for aeons. But only a dim glow was seen on the ground, with the oppressive mass of grey and white blocking its warming rays. But yet, the sun shone as mightily as it could, at least warming the tops of the clouds. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Bahb was silent in the core of the complex, awaiting the commencement of the official (not technical, which activated at +00:00:00) solar cycle at +07:15:00. During the night, it was required to do little. Most systems were deactivated, except for the security protocols and survellience systems; so Bahb was what most Mobians would define as `bored'. It was self-aware, which not only gave it the capacity to know it existed, but also gave it the ability to experience ennui. So there it sat, silently recording the activities that its cameras recieved, keeping the night shields up, and calmly processing the roboticizer information that had been annexed from Robotropolis. The deroboticizer project was something that Bahb only had a minor interest in. For one thing, all Bahb did was run the series of algorhythms constantly, substituting various variables with steadily-increasing numbers. When the proper matrix was reached, eventually, that equation would form the key to completing the deroboticizer software. Joseph had a substancial interest in it, so Bahb made the equation-finding as efficient as possible. This meant that Bahb devoted 25% of the total system resources to the finding of this equation. That also meant the 75% of the system left over would be divided between the other subsystems: security (25%), survellience (25%), maintanence (10%), life support (10%), and the miscellaneous situations that tended to occur around the Dome (5%). Bahb had taken it upon itself to automate most of his functions. It was mostly disinterested in life support and maintanence, security was usually a non-problem, and survellience was something Joseph handled. So that left the majority of its intelligence with very little to occupy itself... [ Dome pattern: "NIGHTWATCH" ceased at +07:14:59 ] [ Dome pattern: "DAYWATCH" activated at +07:15:00 ] [ Activating processes...] Bahb twittered a bit at the automatic processes firing up, which finally gave him something to observe. The daytime activities of the Dome were more `fun' to manage, in Bahb's opinion, because they were more chaotic. They forced it to adapt to new situations, which Bahb had been programmed to enjoy. Nighttime was usually rather bland, with few (if any) odd things occurring during the darkness; the frightening psychic repulsion field that surrounded the Dome after the sun went down kept most things at a safe distance away. But, as the cycle began, it powered down for the sake of preserving energy; that, and because Joseph would be able to deal with any visitors that arrived during the day. Bahb activated the child processes that would handle most of the tedious grunt-work of firing everything back up. The heater kicked over in the lower levels, starting to warm the otherwise freezing cold (all radiation, from heat to cosmic rays, were stopped dead by the 2-foot thick curved crystal wall that made up the foundation of the Dome) lower levels first. It slowly worked its warm way to the middle of the complex, and up to the `roof' of the complex; then, recycling its way down to the basement, and back up. As the heat began to waft up through the ventilation system, the lighting system powered up. The walls, which had entinguished themselves so to expediate sleep, reactivated. Dim at first, then slowly increasing their magnitude back to normal. With the vital heat and light systems active, the next priority was the work area. Silently, the laboratory systems activated, and began their own series of cycles to prepare for the day's work. [ Processes Activated. ] With the startup sequence completed, Bahb chose to check up on Joseph before going any further with the daily prep sequence. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - They laid there in front of the fireplace, the last ambers of last night's fire extinguishing. She was wrapped around him snugly; her head resting on his chest, with his arms barely caressing her abdomen. Both were sound asleep, at peace in each other's arms. Bahb analyzed this scene for signifigance. He obviously realized that this new, strange individual was enamored with Joseph, and the feeling was quite possibly mutual. However, Bahb was unfamiliar with the `why' of this new situation...she'd never entered here before, and its records showed that she wasn't a Freedom Fighter. So who was she? It scrolled through its records, looking for a match. She was not royality, not a scientist, not military. Her nubile form hadn't gone to any Mobian college, or worked for the state. Finally, checking criminal records, it found a match. The subject's name was Sandra Nightweaver. A thief and a spy. Bahb processed this. Joseph, a respected citizen (at least, he filled the criteria for a respected citizen), had fallen in with a renegade. Illogical and improbable. Yet, Bahb had learned that illogical and improbable things happened when living things become involved. Bahb was no judge of moral character, and didn't try to be. Rather, it simply followed the commands of its creator, Joseph. So, both parties were to be treated equally, and have the same things done for him or her that would have been done otherwise. Sandra had been added to the userlist, and would be treated kindly. Breakfast cycle became active. While it replicated Joseph's favorite (waffles slathered in maple syrup, orange juice, toast, bacon and home fries), it activated a brain scanner and poked around inside the female's head. It skimmed through some uninteresting memories, and finally stumbled upon a morning meal she appeared to enjoy; scrambled eggs, toast, coffee, hash browns, and a few links of sausage. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Sandra began to wake up, sensing the familiar smells of a hot breakfast. Dimly, she started to remember where she was, and who she was with. There'd been a lot of snow, and something orange involved. She noticed her head was resting against warm fur, with a slow, nearly mechanical heartbeat. Her eyes opened, and looked around the room she was in. She was inside a curved dome, which was a dull brown in color. A metallic portal led outside, while a stepdisk implanted in the floor obviously led downward. A replicator with two plates and glasses in it hummed in a corner, while various party equipment was being taken down and away by maintence drones. She looked over at the large, warm object that she was laying upon. He was a tall, slim fox, with bright orange fur. A pair of black wraparounds were snugly attached to his face. He had striking features; a strong muzzle, with a well-put together cranium. He probably had green eyes, she mused, or grey. She smiled, and rubbed the side of his face lovingly. Out like a light. She looked him over a bit more, and noticed he had no shirt on. His chest and stomach were well-defined, but not overly bulky. She ran her hands lightly over it, hearing a quiet whine emit from her kind provider. Yet, he didn't wake up. Giggling softly, she snuggled a little closer to him. The cool steel of his belt rubbed against the side of her hip. Reflexively, he held her a little tighter... << "Joseph?" >> Sandra's ears flicked. "Huh?" << "Are you awake, Joseph?" >> She rolled over on top of the fox. "What--?" A beep, and a dim clicking sound. "Hello," a voice said, "Miss Nightweaver." Sandra looked around in a futile effort to find the source of the voice. "Who--?" "I am a Bahb 27290-A Unit, the central computer for this area." She unbuckled his arms, and slid off of him. She thought for a moment, and then spoke. "Oh, you are now?" "Yes, I am." She looked over at the replicator. "Is that for us?" A beep. "Yes. Please awaken Joseph for breakfast now." Sandra, not knowing exactly how to respond, gently shook Joseph. "Honey...breakfast." Joseph rrrred, not wanting to get up. Sandra nudged him a bit harder. "C'mon, you. Get up." He rolled over away from her. She smiled sublimely. "Oh, so you want to be like that, eh?" She grabbed around his abdomen, and rolled him gently on his back. She rubbed his stomach firmly, working her fingertips into his firm stomach muscles. He murred, panted, and curled his toes. A soft smile crossed her face. "Get up." The male fox rubbed the arms that massaged him. "I don' wanna." She climbed on top of him, and straddled his waist. Continuing her rubbing, she softly spoke, "For me?" He opened his eyes behind his glasses, and looked up at his mate. "Well, okay." He picked her up, and held her in his arms. He hopped off the bed, and carried her over to a table. Placing her in a chair, he walked over and fetched the food from the replicator, and put it on the table. He smiled. "Your food, madam." She giggled. "Why, thank you, sir." He smiled, and sat down parallel to her. He took a quick swig of orange juice before speaking again. "Sleep well?" She gave him a smoky look. "Very." He raised an eyebrow. "Good." She sipped some of her coffee, thinking. "So, tell me...what's your story?" He smiled. "My story?" "Yes. You know so much about me, but I know almost nothing about you." "Well, where would you like me to start?" - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Meanwhile, a few thousand yards away... Knothole was attempting to dig its way out of the worst snowstorm in recent history. Sheets of ice covered the doorways, making travel slippery (if not impossible) while the thick, wet snow took hours to shovel away. Sonic has spin-dashed his way out in a few minutes, and cleared out most of the main street enough for travel. The roboticized individuals helped as well, shoveling out paths anywhere they could. After a few hours, Knothole was relatively functional again. The bitter cold forced many to stay inside, especially most of the younger citizens of Knothole. But Tails, being almost an official Freedom Fighter, was out with Sonic, giving him as much assistance as possible. Of course, that wasn't much. "Gee Sonic," the young fox stated from inside Sonic's backpack, "what should we do now?" "Dunno, kid," Sonic said, roaring across the ground to melt away a particularly nasty sheet of ice, "maybe we should check up on Sal." And, without a word, Sonic changed direction and ran toward Sally's hut. Sally was trying, at the time, to shovel off her walk. Unfortunately, as supersonic hedgehogs are wont to do, he plowed right into a pile of snow; knocking him and snow back onto the walk. Sally stood agast for a moment, and then regained her senses. "Sonic Hedgehog!" she shouted, "That took me 15 minutes! Now I'll have to start over from scratch!" Sonic pulled his way out of the snow, and smirked wickedly. "I'm okay, Sal. No, really, I don't need any help getting up." Sally brushed some of the snow off of Sonic. "Like you would have taken it." Sonic laughed. "True. But it's still nice to hear sometimes." Sally smiled. "I suppose so." She thought for a moment. "Is everyone okay?" Sonic nodded. "Aside from some little dings here and there from fallin' on ice, everyone in Knothole's A-OK." "Have you talked to Joseph yet?" Sonic shook his head. "No, Sal. We had ta dig our way outa here first." "Well," she said, "you better send someone up there to see if he's okay. He's probably wondering about us right now." Tails climbed out of Sonic's backpack. "I'll go!" Sally looked hesistant. "Well, I don't know, Tails...it's awfully cold." Tails appeared determined to go. "Aw, c'mon, Sally. I'm dressed for the weather. 'Sides, it'll only take me a minute." Sally smiled. "Okay, Tails, you can go." Tails grinned widely. "Past Cool!" He flew off toward the stump quickly, wanting to be sure to get far enough away before she changed her mind. Sonic dusted off his hands, and watched Tails go off. Before Sally could say a word, Sonic stated, "He'll be okay." Sally nodded. "I just hope he doesn't catch another cold." - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - "...and that covers up to the present day." Sandra was entranced. "You've had such an interesting life..." He smiled. "You really think so?" She nodded. "Very." They looked into each other's eyes for a aeon or two. "Well," he said, "you've not had such a sheltered life, either." She grinned at him. "Is that a good or a bad thing?" He slinked out of his chair, and slid behind Sandra. Draping his arms around her shoulders, he whispered, "That depends..." He kissed her ears. "...on if you are a good or bad thing." He looped his arms beneath her shoulders, and lifted her up. Then, he put his right arm under the back of her knees, and his left propped up her back. Sandra smiled, and snuggled up to him gently. She asked, "What would you like me to be?" He carried her over to a couch, where he laid down first. "Anything you want to be." She slid on top, and kissed him... - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Tails flew by a SpyGlobe, which didn't seem to be paying attention to much of anything. That was odd, Tails thought, because SpyGlobes were said to transmit right into Joseph's mind. Perhaps he is asleep. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Joseph dumped the incoming transmission into the nearest null spool, and caressed Sandra's back with the hands of a skilled masseuse. He held her close, smiled, and kissed her deeply... - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Tails arrived at the front portal, and knocked on it. When knocking didn't seem to do the trick, he yelled into the intercom. After that seemed to fail, he started whipping snowballs at the door. "Lemme in, Joseph! It's cold!!!" - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Joseph soundproofed the wall where the portal was, and kept necking with Sandra; hoping the noise would go away, or at least come back later. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Tails pushed the `open' switch, which activated the security program. A riddle was put up in front of him. Grumbling, he looked it over and thought. His tails were getting icy, and he needed to blow his nose. Why won't he open up?!? - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Sandra kissed him deeper, rubbing his shoulders as she straddled his waist. Her heart pounded quicker as she massaged the inside of his mouth, her hand running down his side to his belt... - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Tails examined the riddle, and punched in an answer. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Joseph grasped her sides firmly, stroking her back as they laid in their passionate embrace...a small red box started blinking in the corner of his eye, but he blinked it away so it wouldn't obstruct his vision. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Tails hit the enter toggle, and the door opened. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - The portal opened. A cold blast of air rushed in from the outdoors, with a cloud of snow. Sandra and Joseph looked over at Tails. Tails looked over at Joseph, and then Sandra. Joseph looked at Sandra and then Tails. Joseph's mouth opened and closed a few times, but nothing coherent came out. Sandra, however, had some of her wits about her. She unwrapped herself from around Joseph, (for lack of a better term) dismounted, and stood in front of Joseph. "Hasn't your mother," said Sandra at the also-speechless Tails, "taught you not to enter some place without being let in first?" A younger Tails would have simply run away when she said that. But this was not the same Tails that Sandra had captured and shot all that time ago. "I'm not afraid of you," he said more to reassure himself than to use against Sandra. Sandra smirked, put her hands on her hips, and bent down a little to make direct eye contact with the small fox-child. Her lips curled up in a perverse version of a fanged smirk, and her glaring blue eyes pierced into the kit's with a very unnerving effect. "Yes," she growled, "you are. You are very frightened, and you need to run home very fast." She waited until he started shaking, and then continued. "Because if you don't," she snarled, her voice increasing in volume, but not pitch, "I'm going to send you there, *piece* by *piece*." With that, Tails screamed for dear life, and flew back to Knothole at roughly the speed of sound. After he had faded into the snow, Sandra closed the portal, and told the computer to hermetically seal it until further notice. She smiled, and dusted off her hands. "There," she noted, "that should stop any more multi-tailed interlopers from interfering..." Joseph sat up, his voice returning. "Was that really necessary?" Sandra blinked. "Yes, of course." An awkward silence. "Well, ummm...you didn't need to scare him like that." Sandra swished her tail slowly from left to right, looking unflinchingly into his eyes. "He'll get over it." "Sally won't." Sandra blinked. "Sally?" "Yeah. You know, the lady who acts like Tails' mom? The heir to the Mobian throne?" Sandra suddenly realized exactly what the consequences of what she had done would be. And, for the first time since her early teens, she felt guilty about something she'd done. "I've probably gotten us in trouble," she noted softly. Joseph laid back down and thought. "A little, yes," he mused emotionlessly, "but nothing that can't be fixed." Sandra's tail unhappily drooped to the ground, as the corners of her mouth seemed to wish. "That was a really stupid thing to do." Joseph blew some hair out of his eyes. "No, a really stupid thing to do is not to exterminate Snively when you have the chance to." Sandra snuck back over to Joseph, and laid back down on top of him. He stroked her back reflexively as she rested her head on his chest. "I'm sorry," she said softly, closing her eyes and sighing. Joseph rested his muzzle on top of her head. "Forgiven." He thought for a moment. "Perhaps if I just calmly and rationally explain this to everyone, they'll understand." - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - "I want her in here NOW!" Sally was in a fury. She had just sat down to relax after getting most of the emergency storm protocols in place, when Tails had ran in her hut and dove under a table. Naturally, this caught her attention, and she rushed over to it to see what was the matter. After much coaxing, she was able to get him to speak again. What she heard didn't please her. Let it be said that Sally was as forgiving as any soul on Mobius. She was unusally kind to those she did not know, and she always was there for a friend when she was needed. But, like everyone, there are some things that she could not forgive. This was one of them. It was bad enough that Sandra Nightweaver had not only been spying on them, assisting Robotnik at times (so the rumors went), and had shot Tails...but now she was corrupting Joseph (actually, it was probably the other way around to the opposite extreme, but Sally couldn't have known that), making him do `weird' things (which meant she was going to have to have the "talk" with him now!), and she had threatened Tails with physical harm (which Tails had seemed to have no doubt in his mind that she was going to deliver on; that meant nightmares for the next few days). And, she had also spotted her snooping around Knothole in the last few days, apparently looking for additional information about Joseph. The three times she had saw her, she'd chased her off sucessfully. But, for every time you'd see her, there were ten times that you wouldn't... So, Sally had called Rotor and Sonic in, two people who somewhat understood how Joseph's mind worked, to see if they could give her any suggestions on how to un-enchant Joseph with this `bad' influence and to find some way of punishing her for all of the mean stuff she'd done. Rotor was no great help in this regard. Being relatively a romantic novice, and knowing little about either of their backgrounds, he could form no sort of workable strategy to solve this problem. Eventually, Sally stopped talking to him about it, and focused her energies on Sonic. Sonic was more of a help in this area inasmuch as 0.000000000000000000001 is greater than zero. While he was not in any way romantically helpless, he knew even less than Rotor about the both of them. All he saw was some nice, yet shy fox who lived all alone in a big, lonely fortress, who'd met a mysterious (perhaps lonesome) vixen who had no home to speak of. They'd met, fallen in `like' (certainly no guy could fall in love that quickly!), and chosen to live together. Tails had stumbled in where he shouldn't have been at the wrong time, and had gotten off rather easily. Joseph was happy. Sandra was probably, too, and Tails was alive. Sonic saw no problem there. "Sure," he had noted, "Sandra's been bad before. But Joe wouldn't go out with someone who'd hurt us. He's too smart for that." This wasn't what Sally wanted to hear. She wanted some clever plan to seperate them, not empathy for the deluded fool! (At this point, both Rotor and Sonic realized this was not Sally's usual mindset, and suggested Sally rest for a while. But she wasn't about to listen to them...not when her Tails had been frightened and threatened by that brunette bitch of a badnik! (Which she wasn't, but that's something Sally, as noted previously, does not know.)) She finally got so irritated with the both of them that she pretty much threw them out of her hut. After they had been removed, she slammed the door, bolted it, and brooded silently. After a little while, Tails poked his head out from around the corner, and looked in on his aggressively angry aunt. Tails wasn't a young kit anymore, as could probably be guessed. He'd started on the winding journey to teenager, and was developing his understanding of the world to a degree that he never had before. He was feeling more independent, and even a little surly. Yet, he was still just a child, and had much to learn. But Tails' basic naiveity still gave him a different view of most things that `adults' either couldn't, or wouldn't, see. He'd thought about what had happened for a while, and realized he, not Joseph or Sandra (despite his natural dislike of her because she was mean to him), was at fault. He'd explained it sucessfully to everyone else, and they'd pretty much forgiven him. (Most people had done something similar when they were children, he'd discovered, tho what they'd interrupted they would not say.) He wanted to go apologize to Joseph and Sandra, but Sally wouldn't let him even go outside. She wasn't mad at him, even though she acted like it, but at Sandra. Sally didn't like Sandra very much, because she had hurt him. And Tails didn't like her much either because of that; but, if she was bad, why did Joseph like her? Joseph was a good person, and good people don't give bad people the time of day. Right? Thus, Tails had concluded, Sandra must not be a bad person anymore. So, somehow, he'd found it in his heart to forgive her. After all, the wound had healed long ago, and the tongue-lashing had been deserved. (That's what everyone said, anyway. But Sally said she wasn't going to explain why until later.) Sally, however, didn't seem to understand this clear (to Tails) logic. She was following some sort of maternal instinct that demanded grudges against those who had hurt him. And Tails could understand a great deal of it. Sandra had done lots of bad things in the past. She was a thief, a spy, and a traitor to Mobius....yet, Tails had learned from Sally herself that all people are basically good. So Sandra had taken a little longer than other people to come around. Big deal, as Sonic might say. If the change was perminent, she deserved to be happy as much as anyone else was. And Joseph certainly deserved someone to love. He was the most unhappy, lonely, morbid and shy person Tails had ever met. He was almost mean in a way, but he always did what was right... Yes, Tails felt he was right in forgiving Sandra for what she'd done, even without including in what she was doing for Joseph. So why wouldn't Sally? He walked over to her and nudged her. She blinked and looked down at her charge. "Yes, Tails?" Tails lost all bearing on what to ask her. He stood there for a moment, and then said something just for the sake of saying it. "Umm, I'm going to bed now." Sally nodded. "Okay, Tails. G'nite." And she kissed him on the nose, as was the custom, and went back to her thoughts. Stuck in his statement, he went off to his room, shut the door, and put out the light. Great. -Now- how could be apologize? - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Joseph and Sandra had held each other in their arms for a while after that, and then tried to figure out what to do. Travel to Knothole was inadvisible for several reasons; Sally was still angry, and would be for a while yet; it was bitterly cold; everyone there was busy; and Sandra (much to Joseph's chagrin) would not go into any place she felt uncomfortable unarmed. So they decided they would merely stay inside for awhile, and wait until someone wished to communicate with them face to face. Joseph had shown Sandra around much of the Dome, demonstrating his unique home to her. He'd tried to explain the deroboticizer to her, but the fact that he only had a loose grasp on it so far didn't help. The beauty of the Emerald Room (as he called it, appropriately), and especially of the Amber Chaos Emerald, had awed her. "It's beautiful..." she had said, struck by its beauty. She put her hands by it, rubbing them around the limits or its aura. "...and warm..." She gazed into it. "...and bright!" He smiled. "Like you." Sandra blushed. "Certainly my beauty cannot..." He held her in his arms. "It does." She giggled, and allowed him to move on. After a little while, they made it down to the 13th SubBasement, where Joseph's personal quarters were. She marveled at the efficient bathroom... and the large bed. She'd made especially crass remarks about the bed, which had made Joseph laugh. (And you aren't going to hear them, either.) Then, they'd wandered into his most vital room of all, the Master Control Room. By now, night had fallen, so Joseph could freely show her all of the various camera angles and sensors he had wired to it. She was very, very impressed. Sitting on his lap, they went all over Mobius. Robotropolis, Knothole, outer space, beneath the sea, over hill and dale they saw, yet were never seen themselves. She hugged him after a while, and smiled. "Choosing you as my mate has once again reaped benefits." He blushed. "I hope you don't love me just because I've got a big eye." She laughed. "Certainly not!" She snuggled up to him tighter. "I can think of many reasons that I love you as well." Joseph smiled mischieviously. "Oh?" Sandra cuddled up to him. "Yes." He snuggled back. "How many?" "At least ten," she smiled, "offhand." He ran his fingers through her hair. "Name 'em." She giggled. "Okay. You're strong." He rubbed her ear. "That's one." "You're brave," she murred. He stroked her neck. "Two." She ran her hand down his stomach. "You're handsome." "Three," he replied. She nuzzled into his abdomen. "You're well-proportioned," she noted, and patted a certain part of his anatomy. He blushed a deep russet red, and looked up to the ceiling. "Four..." She pulled his muzzle back down and kissed it. "You're brilliant." He kissed back. "Five." She smiled at him. "You have excellent fashion sense." He looked down at her eternally-nude form. "So do you," he winked. "Six." Sandra giggled. "You're kind and loving." He smiled, and nibbled her neck. "Seven." "You know how to behave--" Then, the neck nibbling started. "--as well as how to treat a lady," she purred, rolling her head around. Joseph licked her chin. "Eight and nine." She rrred. "And, Joseph," she whispered, "you're a good fox." "Ten," he whispered back, and kissed her quite deeply... On the monitors, the moon temporarily parted the snow clouds, and rose. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Tails had waited until Sally appeared to drift off to sleep in the next room before deciding to act. He would go out tonight, and secretly go to Joseph's home. He would throw himself on their mercies, and hope they forgave him for all the trouble he caused. Then, maybe, Sally and them could work something out, and everything would be nice again. He skulked out of his room, and carefully opened the hall closet. He took out his thick boots, his jacket, his hat and gloves, and his scarf. He bundled up well, like Sally would have wanted him to, and snuck out of the house into the night. It was quiet outside Knothole that night. The clouds had cleared for a moment, and the winds had died down. The moon was high in the night sky, and the stars shone brighter than Tails could remember in recent history. A comet zipped by, and only the sounds of his own breath could be heard. The streets were empty, naturally, because it was ridiculously late at night. Yet, he'd heard that Joseph would often work late at night on the deroboticizer, so he'd have a good chance that he'd be up. He thought... As silently as possible, he spun his tails into a propeller, and flew off toward the path out of Knothole. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - After a little while, Joseph's power levels began to drain. So, as discreetly as possible, he disengaged from the kiss, and started to get up. "What's wrong, honey?" she asked, confused. "I need to recharge my mimetic polyalloy now." "Mimetic polywhat?" "It's a type of metallic substance that can change shape easily," he lectured, "and it appears to be a sort of mercury to the naked eye. My brain and central nervous system is now made out of the substance, as I told you over breakfast. Every few days, I must recharge it back to maximum, or risk suffering memory loss. It will only take a half-hour. I'll be right upstairs." Sandra looked wary. "What if something comes up?" Joseph mused. "Well, if it does, ask Bahb. It'll advise you on how to deal with the situation." Sandra stood up, a little concerned. "You'll be okay, right?" He smiled. "Oh, I've done this a few times now. I just plug in, charge, and plug out. Like taking a nap." He handed her his portable link to the computer. "This should be able to assist you if you need to go outside." She hugged him. "Okay. I'll see you in a half-hour, then." He smiled, hugged back, and walked out. "See you in a few." She sat back down after a minute, totally alone inside this powerful room. She could get away with murder while he was charging, she mused. I could steal all sorts of information. She stroked the side of the portable unit. And this computer, she thought. Goddess, I could make my fortune off of just the *parts*! All this power--! Then, she realized what she was thinking, and mentally slapped herself. You heartless wench! This fox loves you. You can't just use him like the others...he actually loves you! Not just desires, or likes. LOVES. Have you become so cold as to think of love as just another ploy? No, she thought, I will leave well enough alone. He loves me, and I... She thought for a moment. Was this the one? He certainly loved her. He made her feel warm, loved, attractive...yet, needed. She wasn't a trophy to him, she was the vixen he'd probably want to marry...for love. Not because of something on her outside. For her...she'd never felt like that before. It had always been physical affairs...nobody actually had related to her before, or wanted to know how she felt. But Joseph talked to her. Listened, too, and really cared about what she thought. She smiled. And the physical part probably wouldn't be bad either, once he got up the nerve to go all the way... A monitor displayed Tails flying up the path to the Dome. She blinked, derailing her old train of thought. Now why would he be out now? - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Tails flew at a steady clip toward the Dome. The winds were starting to pick up, however, and it was making it difficult to fly. He had to spin his tails real fast to stay airborne, and it was really starting to slow him down... He got to the master path that lead toward the Dome, and he had just about made it to the SpyGlobe when his hat, which had been on fairly tight, blew off down the path toward the pond. Tails, of course, was forced to go after it. After all, if Sally found out he had gone out at night, he'd really get it. But it wasn't too bad; the wind was with him now. The hat rolled over the ground, and blew onto the icy pool. Having little resistance now, it blew over the surface of the frozen water like a bowling ball over a recently-greased lane. It was starting to irritate Tails. Every time he got close enough to grab it, a puff of wind would blow it further away. In fact, he had gotten very near the center of the pond without realizing it, and just as he was about to grab it-- A crack, and then a splash. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - An alarm started to go off inside the control room that startled Sandra. "Bahb," she said, "what's the problem?" Bahb silently showed a view of the pond, with a speck of movement in the center. "Magnify," Sandra said. Tails was on the screen, and was apparently drowning! She panicked. She wouldn't be able to run to him in time! What could she do?! "Bahb, teleport him out of there!" Bahb twittered. "Teleportation out failed. Too much interference." Sandra thought quickly. "Bahb, can you get me near enough for me to lock a...um...tractor beam on him, so I can pull him out?" Bahb beeped. "Affirmative." She grabbed the portable unit. "Do it!" - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - She appeared in a puff of blue energy near the side of the broken ice. Quickly, she pointed Bahb at the kit. Nothing happened. "Bahb!!!" she shouted, frantically waving the device at Tails. "What?" Bahb twittered. "Fire the tractor beam, Bahb!" A beep, and then a ray of deep blue energy fired out of the device, and grappled the kit. It pulled him out of the water quickly, and pulled him over to Sandra. She grimaced as she got ahold of the kit, and quickly moved away from the widening hole in the ice. "Thanks much, Bahb," she thought, and frantically worked to regain her breath... "Bahb, get us out of here!" she finally shouted as she pulled the wet kit toward her, hoping she wasn't too late... "Destination?" "Some place where Tails can get medical attention, Bahb. But do it NOW!" - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Bookshire had been staying late in his office, as was his usual behavior. He'd felt, with all the cold weather, that it would be prudent of him to stay in his office as late as possible in case of emergency. And, having that sense of intuition that doctors are wont to have, he went and stumbled into one. Sandra and the soaking wet, semi-conscious Tails teleported directly into the emergency room, where he had been doing some routine cleaning. He quickly dropped what he was doing, and immediately started asking questions to Sandra as to Tails' condition, which she answered to the best of her ability. Bookshire was able to get Tails' condition under control enough to leave him in Sandra's temporary care, while he went to inform Sally to what had happened. During the time of his absence, Sandra fed Tails some hot soup she had told Bahb to replicate, and asked if he was alright. Tails drank some of the soup. "Yes," he said quietly, "I am." "I'm sorry I shot you that one time, and yelled at you today." Tails smiled a little, and consumed more of the hot broth. "It's okay." Sandra shook her head. "It was the wrong thing to do." "Everyone makes mistakes." She smiled softly. "You're quite understanding for a fox your age." "I guess I am." A moment or two later, Bookshire came in, with Sally bursting in behind. She immediately rushed over to Tails and held him in her arms. "Tails!" Tails sniffed quietly, and coughed softly off to the side. "Sally, I..." Sally hushed him. "Rest. We'll talk about this later." Bookshire interceded. "Yes, he does need his rest. I want to keep him under observation for a day or two, anyway. He pushed the two women out. "You can see him in the morning. Let him sleep now." Sally smirked at Bookshire's prodding. "Okay, okay, we're going." - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - The two women walked back toward Knothole silently for a while. Then, after they had gotten about halfway to Knothole, Sally spoke. "I guess I was wrong about you." Sandra was silent. Sally tried again. "I know that you must not trust me, but please listen. Tails and I owe you our lives..." The vixen spoke. "I am not angry with you," she stated, "I just want to be treated like anyone else." Sally paused. "Like another Freedom Fighter?" Sandra gave Sally one of her quiet, secretive smiles. "Perhaps one day." They walked in silence for a while, until they reached the junction of the path that led back to the Dome. "Will you forgive me," Sandra stated, "if I forgive you?" Sally thought for a moment, looking at Sandra. She thought about what she had done, what she hadn't done, and her various deeds. Should she be forgiven? The snow blew across the ground, obscuring both of them for a moment. "Yes," Sally stated after an eternity, "I will." Sandra gave Sally a mischievous look, and started up the path. "That's your answer." And then, she disappeared into the night. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Epilogue ---------- Solstice Eve, a few days later. The party was at Knothole this time, over at Sally's house. The food was hand-made, cooked to perfection over various stoves for a few days. Drinks had been prepared, and a few gifts had been exchanged between friends. It was a sucessful party, but two people were yet to show up. Most had figured that one of them had decided to throw a special `party' (the adults smirked wickedly) for the other, and that they probably wouldn't be showing up. It probably wasn't meant to be offensive, so the conversation gradually slipped to more petty things. And, to a certain extent, they were correct. Sandra and Joseph were celebrating, and were in a state of emotional joy and happiness. Both parties were pleased, satisfied, and quite happy. They shared an incredible joy that rose to ecstatic heights that refused to level off.... However, the activities of said celebration were less sexual than they were sheer emotional release from months and months of guilt. For, at last, the deroboticizer had been perfected. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - To be continued... - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -