*Squeaks*

The holidays were fun.

    Knuckles hesitated at the question, not sure how to answer. Once upon a time he would have said yes without qualms or hesitations but things were different these days. He liked the peace and his alone time but was he happy being alone? TRULY alone?

    “I can deal with it,” seemed like the safest answer to give, rhetorical or not.

    Luckily, the subject changed from him to the child and Knuckles’ eyes widened slightly as her real age was revealed. She seemed small for her age but the echidna HARDLY knew about the growth cycle of anything but his own kind so he dropped the subject and listened to the story of her parents, frowning.

    “They…left you?” he was finding that hard to believe, there had to be a missing part of the story that she wasn’t telling or didn’t know. How could someone just lose a kid? That was ridiculous but Knuckles didn’t like the other possibility. “And they never tried to find you? Or you them?”

    The Guardian paused, trying to piece the reasons together before giving up and shaking his head.

    “How long have you been alone?

“Me too, I guess.” She may as well respond to his answer, even though she hadn’t expected it.

She noticed the look on Knuckles’ face, although it was a look that she was somewhat used to-- Usually people didn’t like to hear that she was alone, but that was how it was. It wasn’t great, but it was what she had.

Her species was naturally small, but Trinta especially so due to the genetics of one of her parents-- As a result she was smaller than other children her age.

The question about her parents leaving caused her to blink a couple of times. “Uh, I think so?” She scratched behind her ear. “Maybe?” In all honesty, she didn’t know-- All she knew was what they vaguely looked like and that she had been separated from them. “I mean, I dunno. I remember looking for them afterward, but after a while I had to start finding somewhere to go and stuff. I only kind of remember what they look like and what happened, but I dunno if they ever looked for me or not.”

Everything was said with a casual sort of tone-- It didn’t bother Trinta considering that she barely even remembered them, so in all honesty she moreover missed the concept of a family than anything else.

    {➹} – TAKING HIS TIME with his own food, the hedgehog watched the mouse for a few seconds, mostly to make sure she didn’t choke on her eager bites, before starting on his meal. As far as fast food went it wasn’t horrible, he had definitely had worse, but he’d also had better. Regardless, he took his time as he glanced outside towards the city streets only looking back to Trinta when she answered his question.

    “Passing through?” There was something disappointed in his voice, not aimed at the mouse but rather her situation. He had thought, hoped really, that she lived in the city. Even if her circumstance was unfortunate the cities had far more to offer someone in her situation than anywhere else  — if the hedgehog’s assumptions were correct that was and he had every reason to believe they were.

    The hero was silent for a moment, unsure where to take the conversation. He wanted to ask the obvious questions but didn’t want to risk having the youngster run away, though with the promise of food here he didn’t think she’d actually do that.

    When Sonic did speak again, it was in a quiet tone, namely so only she could hear him. “Isn’t there somewhere you can go here?”

Trinta continued to eat; if Sonic wasn’t speaking to her then she didn’t feel the need to talk, especially when trying to savor a kind of meal that she rarely got.

She gave Sonic somewhat of a look, one ear lifting up curiously. She had a good guess as to why he sounded disappointed, but didn’t comment on it.

The mouse wasn’t going to run away at all if Sonic asked her about her situation-- It didn’t exactly bother her, and as long as there wasn’t a threat to her safety she was fine with answering questions.

His quiet tone only garnered a look of confusion from the mouse. She didn’t really understand why he was lowering his voice, so she briefly looked around to try and see if anything was amiss. After some hesitation she looked back at Sonic once she was sure of things, and only then did she hear his actual question.

“Well, yeah.” She shrugged. “If there’re any abandoned places then I can just go through any open spaces in the building.” It wasn’t what Sonic had meant, but that was how Trinta had interpreted the question.

Still, she paused, soon realizing what answer he was probably looking for. She took another sip of her drink.

Bold all of your character’s regular truths; italicize sometimes Repost, don’t reblog!

1. Smoking: the action or habit of inhaling and exhaling the smoke of tobacco or a drug. 2. Binge drinking: the consumption of an excessive amount of alcohol in a short period of time. 3. Drug abuse: the habitual taking of illegal drugs. 4. Nail biting: a common body language sign of anxiety/tension. 5. Lip biting: a common body language sign of anxiety/tension. 6. Night owl: a person who is habitually active or wakeful at night. 7. Early bird: a person who rises, arrives or acts before the usual or expected time. 8. Negative attitude: a philosophy of approaching life with criticism and pessimism. 9. Positive attitude: a philosophy of approaching life with optimism and confidence. 10. Swearing: the use of offensive language. 11. Superstitious: an irrational belief that an object, action, or circumstance not logically related to a course of events influences its outcome. 12. Inspecting fingernails: a common body language sign of boredom. 13. Scratching your neck: a common body language sign of uncertainty. 14. Foot and finger tapping: a common body language sign of stress/impatience. 15. Nose touch: a subtle body language sign of deceit. 16. Flipping hair: a common body language sign of craving attention. 17. Twirling hair: a common body language sign of flirtation. 18. Cracking knuckles: a common body language sign of readiness. 19. Hands behind back: a common body sign of confidence. 20. Finger pointing: a common body language sign of authority. 21. Hands on hips: a common body language sign of readiness. 22: Hands in pockets: a common body language sign of mistrust/reluctance. 23. Frequent touch: a common body language sign of warmth/familiarity. 24. Throat-clearing: a common body language sign of rejection/doubt. 25. Jaw-clenching: a common body language sign of hostility. 26. Eye-rolling: a common body language sign of irritation. 27. Head-tilt: a common body language sign of interest. 28. Whistling: to emit high-pitched sound by forcing breath through a small hole between one’s lips or teeth; usually to a tone. 29. Humming: make a low, steady continuous sound like that of a bee; usually to a tune. 30. Perfectionism: refusal to accept any standard short of perfection. 31. Photographic memory: the ability to remember information or visual images in great detail. 32. Paranoia: a mental condition characterized by delusions of persecution, unwarranted jealousy, or exaggerated self-importance, typically worked into an organized system. 33. Exaggeration: a statement that represents something as better or worse than it really is. 34. Intuitive: using or based on what one feels to be true even without conscious reasoning; instinctive. 35. Quick-witted: showing or characterized by an ability to think or respond quickly and effectively. 36. Interrupting: breaking the continuity of a conversation with one’s own statements. 37. Doodling: to scribble or make rough drawings, absent-mindedly. 38. Irritable: having or showing a tendency to be easily annoyed. 39. Gambling: to play games of chance for money; bet. 40. Travel-sick: suffering from nausea caused by the motion of a moving vehicle, boat, or aircraft. 41. Sensitive: having or displaying a quick and delicate appreciation of others’ feelings. 42. Melancholy: a feeling of pensive sadness, typically with no obvious cause. 43. Chewing gum: the exercise of chewing flavoured gum which is not intended for swallowing. 44. Fidgeting: to make small movements, especially of the hands and feet, through nervousness or impatience. 45. Skeptical: not easily convinced; having doubts or reservations. 46. Neat-freak: compulsively obsessed with cleanliness. 47. Gossiping: divulging personal information about others. 48. Prim: feeling or showing disapproval of anything regarded as improper; stiffly correct. 49. Abbreviating: giving others nicknames/shortening names/giving pet names. 50. Having a catchphrase: having a sentence or phrase typically associated with a specific person.

    ‘Cool’ was only a SLIGHTLY appropriate way to describe the island. There were more hazards upon it then anyone could possibly count and not just the traps that had been set by its former residents. Angel Island was dangerous, built to keep strangers and threats out while keeping what was on it safe.

    To anyone who didn’t know the island it was as good as a death sentence, nearly impossible to explore safely until Knuckles was there to guide them, and he hardly bothered most days. People like the mouse were an exception, stumbling on the island wasn’t something the echidna usually punished a person for.

    Usually.

    The child’s apology made the echidna fix her with a look, as if he didn’t understand her response. “It’s not your fault,” he said. “I’ve learned to live with it, Kid. I almost prefer it.”

    Apparently, that was something they had in common, but Knuckles was having a hell of a time trying to figure out why a kid this young was alone, and Zone-hopping even.

    “You don’t, huh…” he quirked a brow in her direction, his curiosity obvious. “You’re, what, like six? Where are you’re parents?”

Trinta would have expected something like that-- She had come across her fair share of dangerous places, but in terms of actually surviving them, Angel Island wasn’t something that she would be able to get through on her own, for a number of reasons.

Knuckles’ response garnered a puzzled look from the mouse. “I know, but...” She shrugged half-heartedly. “I dunno, it seems like a pretty big deal, if you’re the only one left out of your species.” She wondered how she would handle it if she were the last mouse on Mobius. She frowned at the thought.

“So you like being alone, huh?” She asked. It wasn’t meant as a jab, but more of a rhetorical question.

A slight pout when he guessed her age. “I’m nine.” She replied. “I dunno where my parents are.” She looked up in thought, resting her finger on her chin. “Um, if I remember right, something happened and they either lost me or something else.” Yet another shrug. “It’s all fuzzy. But I get around okay ‘cos I’m a mouse.” Her species was built to survive pretty much anywhere, not to mention how easily she could get to places by climbing.

    Knuckles didn’t think the child was out for any of the island’s treasures but he was stillUNTRUSTING by nature. He didn’t know who she was, or where she was from. She could easily go back home and tell others about the island, what it held and bring them back which would be needless stress for the Guardian.

    “Something like that,” would be the explanation he gave, plain and casual as he shrugged.“This island’s old, even I don’t know all of its secrets.”

    That was far from the truth but there was no reason for the mouse to know that. Knuckles knew the island like the back of his hand, its layout long ago ENGRAVED into his head and soul. There wasn’t a crack or hole that he didn’t know about, he had been here his whole life.

    Trinta’s curiosity didn’t go unnoticed by the echidna, who was slightly amused by it. From his estimations she couldn’t have been any older than a certain FOX when the echidna had gone on his first adventure with Sonic and Tails. And Tails had been curious enough for the echidna to want to put a gag in his mouth.

    “I was born here, I live here and I’m the last of my kind, so I’m the only one who can protect it,” he answered swiftly, looking at the child with a cocked brow. “And what about you? Shouldn’t a kid like you have someone looking after them?”

The only use that Trinta could have for treasures would be to sell them, but given that she was a child and tended to be more focused on survival, it wasn’t exactly on her list of things to do-- Nor was showing off the island to everybody else.

“Really?” Trinta made a soft noise to show her interest, deciding to move a bit closer to the echidna now that she felt more comfortable-- And while she was preoccupied with asking questions. “That’s really cool!” She chirped. “There must be a ton of cool stuff around here to find!” Hell, even just exploring the island sounded fun, regardless of whether or not anything was actually found. In her eagerness, she even started to bounce a little, only stopping upon hearing that Knuckles was the last of his kind. She looked up at him inquisitively.

“Huh?” She asked. “You’re the last of your kind? I didn’t know that could happen.” She paused, fidgeting with her hands before setting the finished fruit down beside her and clasping her hands together.

“I’m, um, sorry about that.” She wasn’t quite sure how to react to something like that, but she did know that it wasn’t pleasant, so she at least wanted to extend some sort of sympathy to the echidna. “It looks like you’re doing a really good job.” She added, glancing around before directing her attention back to Knuckles.

“Me?” She asked, before giving a lazy shrug of her shoulders as she sat down on a nearby rock. “Maybe? I dunno. I mean, yeah, but...” Another shrug. “I don’t, so.” She tapped the tip of her shoes together-- She wasn’t bothered by the question, but rather she was thinking on how to respond.

    {➹} – THE HEDGEHOG DIDN’T LOOK CONVINCED but merely shrugged. If she was fine like that so be it, far be it for him to make Trinta change her mind after all. Without sitting, he watched the mouse play with her drink before asking her question, grinning at the impatience there — not that he blamed her, of course.

    “They call it fast food for a reason,” he pointed out and, coincidentally, their number was called just a second later. After giving the child a wink the hero went to retrieve their food before coming back and sitting at the table, placing the mouse’s food in front of her. “Eat up, Kiddo.”

    A few silent moments passed between them after, the hedgehog casually eating his food before looking out of the window, an air of curiosity coming over him. “You know, I don’t think I ever asked you what this place was called,” he said absently-mindedly, then paused for thought before adding, “not the restaurant, the city.”

A confused look, followed by a small pout. Before she could open her mouth to speak, however, her ears flicked up at their order being called. When Sonic came back with the food, Trinta shifted so that she could be ‘standing’, her nose twitching a bit.

Once the food was within her grasp, she wasted no time in opening it, only taking a brief moment to examine it before taking a rather large bite. “Thank you,” She said, just before she started eating.

The food seemed to lift her mood considerably, a pleased smile on her face. While she initially started eating the food quickly, she started to slow down-- She could savor it, and didn’t have to worry about being quick about it.

(SO ABOUT MY ABSENCE

I’m super sorry that I keep disappearing, guys. I don’t mean to do it and sometimes stuff pops up and I lose energy/motivation, but when that stuff happens for longer than a week then I should at least make an update post.