"But more often than not, the best rescue plan we can offer someone we care about is our support for each step they take forward."
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𝙲𝙷𝙰𝙿𝚃𝙴𝚁 1𝟸
ʀᴏʙᴏᴛɴɪᴋ'ꜱ ᴘᴏᴠ 🥽🔬
I was outside a fellow yokel's house, looking for more clues for the mysterious two beings. After I took a step further, I detected a two footprints' nearby. I kneel down, taking a closer examination. Soon after, I promptly scan it with my glove, lifting a pure immoral smile on my face knowing how close I am to solve this puzzle.
"Looks like I, Detective Robotnik, might've solved this case already." I snort to myself.
☆ ³ʀᴅ ᴘᴇʀꜱᴏɴ ☆
3️⃣🗣
Tom ascended the stairs, guiding Sonic and (Y/N) to the attic. While (Y/N) appeared responsible and composed, Sonic wore a mischievous grin from ear to ear, leaving Tom uncertain about what antics he might have in store.
"All right, you guys stay here. And be quiet!" Tom notified the two.
"Good plan, great plan! We're already working so well together! Practically finishing each other's sentences!" Sonic chatters frantically, (Y/N) holding his waist to retrieve him away from Tom. Sonic blushes from this, brushing off his itchy muzzle as (Y/N) doesn't notice.
Tom smirks at Sonic's awkwardness, understanding the situation between them two, but he cringely turns away from Sonic being endlessly talkative.
"Okay, bye," Sonic says, lifting a quick wave as Tom shuts the flap closed behind them. As soon as they were alone, Sonic felt (Y/N) still holding onto his waist. He slowly turns his head to see her leaning on his shoulder.
"Uh, can you... let go?" Sonic asks, bashfully.
(Y/N) releases her grip, beaming nervously. She quickly averts her gaze, pretending to explore the attic with a reddened face. "Sorry!" she yelps, her back facing Sonic.
"It's okay!" Sonic responds, also turning away to give her some space.
As soon as Tom left the attic, he ventured into the front yard where he unexpectedly encountered a crouched man browsing the ground.
"Hello there!" Tom calls out to the man, attempting to draw his attention. The man, dressed in black and looking troubled, looks up at Tom.
"Can I help you?" Tom asks, tilting his head at the peculiar sight before him. The man starts to walk towards Tom, taking a few moments before finally speaking.
"Good morning, my rural chum," the man greets, prompting Tom to furrow his eyebrows with uncertainty.
"I'm..." The man pauses briefly, still advancing towards Tom.
"...from the power company, investigating the blackout," the man conjures up, his steps leading him towards the front door.
"If you don't mind, I'd like to take a few readings, inside your house?" He requests, applying for approval.
"No kidding? You're from the power company?" Tom asks, almost changing the subject."Mmm," the man hums in response.
"Oh, you must know my buddy, Spencer. We play softball together," Tom continues, attempting to make conversation.
"Ah! Spence. He's a good man," the man claims and buzzes, his wide eyes demonstrating that he clearly has no idea who Spencer is.
"Yeah. Come on in!" Tom gestures, opening the door wide.
"Great," the man responds eagerly, hastily climbing the stairs. "Take all the readings you need,"
Tom implies, but then he quickly heads for the door and blocks it with his elbow, halting the man's entry.
"Except, uh.." Tom says, obstructing the man from entering.
"Doesn't the power company takes readings from outside the house? That way they can check them even if you're not home." Tom smartly snarls at the man with an incoherent manner, the man dressed in black looking defeated by him.
"Also, my buddy Spencer works for the gas company, and he's more of an Ultimate Frisbee guy. So you want to tell me why you think I'm dumb enough to just let you walk inside my house?"
Tom declares firmly, leaving the man utterly impressed by his astuteness. Without Tom knowing, the man secretly sends a signal to the drones using his glove from behind, signaling for backup or assistance only by pressing a few buttons.
"I'm sorry, Mister..."
"Wachowski. But everyone calls me Tom. Except my dentist, he calls me Tim. But it's gone on for so long that it would just be weird if I corrected him," Tom optionally adds on with a wry grin, injecting a touch of awkward humor into the conversation.
"Well, Tom, whose-dentist-calls-him-Tim. You may have noticed that this entire town has been experiencing a power outage." The man explains, turning around dramatically to spark a new topic into the conversation.
"Yep, no lights. Picked up on that." Tom counters back, unsure how long this interaction will take for him to leave in order to escort the hedgehogs out.
"Twenty minutes ago, I tracked an energy pulse with a similar signature to the one that caused that disruption," the man explains further, his words sending a shiver down Tom's spine as he realizes the gravity of the situation. One of the drones he sent had reached the chimney into the attic, signaling trouble for Sonic and (Y/N). As it enters inside, it decides to emit a ray of crimson light to scan the entire room. Sonic, noticing the drone's approach, holds (Y/N) close to him with worry etched on his face. The (F/C) hedgehog blushes lightly but focuses her attention on the drone. It continues to scan each box, prompting Sonic and (Y/N) to hide away from its probing gaze.
"Stay close to me, and don't move a muscle," Sonic solemnly alerts (Y/N), who nods in agreement, her expression mirroring his caution.
"Listen, uh, Mister...?" Tom stops, twisting his arm as a sign for the man to speak up, prompting him to provide his identification.
"Doctor. Dr. Robotnik. But my dentist calls me Rob," Robotnik magpies Tom's joke, playing along with a hint of amusement.
"Hmm," Tom snickers, "Look, uh, Dr. Robotskeez. Um, I'm sure what you're here for is very serious, but it's got nothing to do with me. You can ask anyone in town. Everyone knows me," he boasts confidently, asserting his familiarity within the community.
"I bet they do," Robotnik bounces back, his tone dripping with displeasure. "I'm sure you're hella popular with the jebs and merles and Billy Bobs in this glorified gas station rest stop," he waffles, his sarcastic remarks causing Tom to furrow his brows in response to his nonsense.
"Betcha go way back to the days of tippin' cows and playin' in a jug band!" Robotnik raises his voice, mimicking the sound of a jug band playing, while Tom stands there, growing increasingly agitated. Abruptly, Robotnik stops to finish his point, leaning closer to Tom.
"And maybe someday, you'll achieve your goal of getting a Costco card or adopting a labradoodle. But the reality is, I surpassed everything you're ever going to do. Before I was a toddler!" he whispers near Tom's ear, trying to provoke a reaction from him.
"I was spitting out formulas while you were still spitting up formula," Robotnik asserts confidently.
"I was breastfed actually," Tom scolds, not amused by Robotnik's taunts.
"Nice. Rub that in my orphan face." Robotnik caustically replies, Tom's expression cut off by the sudden response of Robotnik's,
"Mr. Wachowski. Are you familiar with us code 904, title 10, article 104?" He interrogates, having Tom completely confuzzled to think of a way to respond and lie.
"Yeah, who isn't-"
"Anyone. Who attempts to aid an enemy of the United States shall suffer death. And if I'm the one who catches you, it'll be even worse." Dr. Robotnik interrupts Tom, knowing that he wouldn't tell the truth.
"..." Tom stumbles, taking Robotnik's sentence quite logically,
"Worse than death?"
-
★ ᴇɴᴅ ᴏꜰ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ 12 ★
➤ᴀᴜᴛʜᴏʀ❛s ɴᴏᴛᴇ
❥ During the making of this chapter I did happen to take some breaks since this scene was funny to watch. I just couldn't stop hitting replay.
I did also get a cold in a hot day, which was distracting to create the twelfth chapter, as snot kept rising from my nostril.
It was thirty‐forty degrees out. Luckily, I was able to finish the chapter despite my illness.
➤ ᴡᴏʀᴅ ❥ ᴄᴏᴜɴᴛ
1272 words.