Chapter Text
The locomotive blew a long, deep whistle.
Sonic, who sat on a bench with a newspaper in his hands, startled. When he looked up and saw the train – his way to New York City – finally arriving, he couldn't believe it. He had been saving money and convincing his parents for months (although he was now 19 years old), only to get this opportunity. He was going to travel to the busiest city in the world with nothing but his suitcase and a head full of dreams. It was going to be a huge difference to the small town where Sonic grew up, but he was as optimistic as always.
By the time the hedgehog got on the train and waved his family goodbye, his stomach felt like it was filled with bubbling soda. He was truly excited to go to The New York Times and ask for a job, and although it wouldn't be easy, Sonic felt confident with his writing. He wanted to become one of the best journalists in the world one day, renowned for digging deeper into stories and scandals for perhaps the most important newspaper he knew.
When the train pulled away and he watched the small station and his hometown vanish in the distance, the blue hedgehog would have laughed at anyone that would tell him what was about to happen in the very next month.
- - -
Two and a half weeks later.
Sonic entered the bar; at the first glance, he was a down-bet guy who just lost his job. A common picture in New York City, where decisions could change lives in seconds.
The truth was, the blue hedgehog had a mission – to infiltrate and find out about the stuff that happened in the "Tipsy Owl". He had heard about the filthy deals that were going on in the old-established bar; everyone had heard about it, but to this day, nobody really tried to get to the ground of things. Or, tried and not ended up floating in the Hudson River with a bullet in their head.
So, Sonic knew it was dangerous. His boss, the pink hedgehog Amy Rose, asked him straightforwardly if he would take the risk. And he agreed, mainly because he knew that dark things were going on in the Tipsy Owl. Someone needed to find out more about it, and the New York police did not seem very interested in taking a closer look at it.
That was why Sonic walked up to the front door of the bar this Tuesday evening, trying his best to look authentic in his once fashionable, now shabby clothes, and with the hopeless look he'd seen many times on the faces of New York City's unemployed. Those whose high hopes were destroyed by the big, bad city.
Sonic had practiced his disguise in front of the mirror enough times to feel somewhat safe when he sat down at the bar counter, next to a huge green crocodile that was brooding over a dark red drink. The bar was crowded this evening, but Sonic assumed that it was just as busy as usual on a Tuesday night.
"What do you want to drink?"
A deep voice interrupted his thoughts. For a brief moment, Sonic's mind went blank.
He was asked the question by one of the barkeepers, an ebony hedgehog with red stripes and the slightest hint of impatience in his ruby-red eyes. He also wore the usual uniform of the employees of the Tipsy Owl, and damn, he looked handsome in it.
Sonic hastily reminded himself why he was here and what he was supposed to act like.
He answered the question and almost stuttered, cringing internally.
"Um – just a glass of whiskey, please."
The other hedgehog nodded wordlessly at the order and disappeared somewhere behind the bar counter.
To distract himself and fulfill his mission, Sonic looked around in the busy room. Besides the huge crocodile next to him, there was nobody really eye-catching in the Tipsy Owl tonight, but the blue hedgehog knew that the first glance could trick easily.
The interior of the bar was nothing too special, although there was a small stage, and the single room of the place was furnished nicely and with style. The symbol of the place, a yellow crescent moon on a black circle, was almost everywhere. Warm, dim lights were above the tables in the corners and next to the large windows of the room, dark blue painted walls, empty glasses on wooden tables and laughing and chatting Mobians completed the scene.
By the time Sonic was peeking around the room again, the door opened and a somewhat familiar man entered the bar.
It was a muscular red echidna in the uniform of a police officer. When the guy took a long look around the room and the noise volume dropped several levels, Sonic remembered.
The echidna, Inspector Knuckles was his name, had won the award of the "Police Officer of the Year" about two weeks ago. It was one of the first stories Sonic wrote for The New York Times, so he remembered how nervous he was when he was interviewing the inspector. It turned out the guy was a bit hot-headed but okay to talk to for a while, acting a little like he was the hedgehog's uncle or something. The article had been small but an overall success, and now Sonic wondered what Inspector Knuckles was doing in the Tipsy Owl.
Maybe the police was finally looking at the shady things that were probably going on in the club?
But no, the red echidna just walked up to the bar and dropped on the high chair next to Sonic for a drink after the end of his daytime shift.
"Hey Blue, didn't I see you somewhere before? Think I remember that face of yours, but can't really say who you are."
Sonic felt a bit uncomfortable with the other recognizing him, but he decided he simply had to make up a little lie.
"Yeah, I'm Sonic. Y'know, I lost my job, so I ended up here. Thanks, this is gonna help me forget 'bout it for a while." he said the last words to the barkeeper that brought him his drink. The blue hedgehog somehow managed to keep himself from stuttering or embarrassing himself this time, while the ebony one just made a straight face and frowned a little when he saw Inspector Knuckles.The echidna stared at Sonic for a brief time, then suddenly remembered and laughed.
"Ah, now I remember ya – thought you were good at writin' for this newspaper. Anyways, Shads, a Martini for me, as usual." said the inspector in his Manhattan accent.
Sonic didn't know what surprised him more, the fact that the echidna seemed to be a frequent guest at the Tipsy Owl or that he knew the name of the handsome- of the barkeeper. Said frowned deeper but nodded stoically as he went to mix the inspector's drink.
"Shads? Is that really his name?" asked Sonic the echidna to his right. He was genuinely curious about the black hedgehog. Inspector Knuckles laughed like he just made a good joke. Perhaps he was already a few glasses deep from somewhere else, crossed it Sonic's mind.
"Hah, his real name's Shadow. Know him 'cause we once took in the whole gin mill here," the red echidna said and gesticulated around the bar, almost knocking over Sonic's drink.
"And he kept his trap shut. We didn't find anything, so it's fine to get drinks here."
Inspector Knuckles spoke a little too loud for his voice to be pleasant, and Sonic made several notes in his head:
1. The inspector was already pretty drunk.
2. The police already shook the Tipsy Owl down once, and nothing illegal came out.
3. The barkeeper's name was Shadow – very fitting and good-sounding – and he did not tell the police anything.
Well, he didn't seem like the much-talking type in the first place.
Sonic responded to the red echidna with a nod and took a sip from his whiskey glass. He had to be careful, playing the broken, unemployed dude that wanted to forget about everything while getting not really drunk and paying close attention to the guests of the bar. The blue hedgehog had to admit that his drink was pretty good, better than the stuff that was sold in most other bars in Manhattan.
When he turned to the person he was talking to, he saw that Inspector Knuckles was mainly paying attention to when he would get his drink and the two other barkeepers. Both were female and dressed up in their simple uniforms, a quiet, blonde wolf and a grey-and-white-striped lemur. Sonic noticed something about them that seemed a little odd; both were very excited but did not want to let anybody know. The lemur giggled, while the wolf was grinning silently when she thought nobody watched her.
Shadow, on the other hand, looked nervous, almost worried, although Sonic wasn't sure about that one because the emotions only flickered for a brief moment across the barkeeper's face.
Yes, he had been staring at the ebony hedgehog. Sonic quickly looked away and tried to focus on something else while his face heated up. He just hoped nobody saw him.
Soon, Knuckle's drink arrived, and the inspector began to tell the blue hedgehog about an incident with a bank robbery he had a while ago. He listened half-heartedly to the echidna, still trying to figure out what the deal with the moods of the barkeepers was.
Perhaps it was only a coincidence. But maybe it had something to do with the shady deals many people suspected the Tipsy Owl to be part of. Sonic decided to keep his eyes open.
Some time passed by, and the blue hedgehog nodded and responded occasionally to whatever the Inspector had to say. It wasn't very interesting or deep, mainly about how Sonic allegedly lost his job and tried to drown his worries in alcohol.
All of a sudden, the blue hedgehog was interrupted.
The door of the Tipsy Owl opened, and a green hawk entered the bar. He seemed to have a set target, and Sonic's thoughts were proven right when the guy took a short look around the room and then immediately headed in the blue hedgehog's direction. Sonic did not know the guy, but he wondered if Inspector Knuckles did.
The green hawk stopped next to the crocodile to the blue hedgehog's left, a teasing smirk on his face.
"Long time no see, Vector. Still working with those losers you call 'team'?"
"Shut up, Jet. Nobody's trying to hear the shit you have to say." said the Crocodile. He seemed slightly annoyed.
"Aw, thought you would at least try to pull a coup or something. Looks like you guys can't even manage to lift a shop." continued the hawk, whose name was supposedly Jet. Vector, the crocodile, frowned and said,
"Look at yourself. I still remember the time you and your 'Babylon Riders' tried to rob a bakery instead of a bank and failed gloriously."
Sonic looked over to Inspector Knuckles, expecting him to do or say something about the two guys that were obviously criminals – but the police officer either did not hear them or didn't want to. He seemed to be completely unbothered by the rising tension in the bar; the red echidna's focus was still on the two female barkeepers. Sonic felt more and more uncomfortable. Jet was obviously trying to start a fight, and nobody cared. Wasn't there a doorman?
Jet's and Vector's argument became meaner and more tense.
"Pah ... you 'Team Chaotix' or whatever never did a job well. You failed at everything the Lady ever asked."
Sonic's attention was caught immediately. "The Lady". The undercover reporter had waited for something exactly like this to happen. A hint at something more sinister that was going on in the Tipsy Owl.
Vector just laughed. "You shouldn't talk about disappointing the Lady. That's all you and your pathetic company of poultry ever did."
Jet was boiling with rage; he hissed something along the lines of:
"You ... dare!"
"Yes, I do. You are useless." responded Vector slowly and with a sly look in his eyes.
Jet clenched his hands into fists.
Sonic read the context clues and quickly stood up, not thinking about what he was doing.
"Guys, calm down, there's no need to fight or whatever ... I'm sure you can talk about this."
The green hawk just snorted:
"Mind your own business."
On every other occasion, Sonic would have been offended, but now, with the tension and aggression in the room ...
The blue hedgehog felt a gloved hand on his shoulder. It was Inspector Knuckles, drunk, so he spoke a little bit inarticulately.
"He's right, pal. Let them clarify that amongst themselves."
Sonic was baffled. The inspector, a police officer, did not care about a possible fight? Vector said something, too:
"Yeah, just leave our little argument to us. We're perfectly fine."
Feeling outnumbered and without a way to do anything, Sonic closed his mouth and sat back down. He was a little afraid of what was about to happen next, and his concerns came true when Vector slowly stood up from his seat at the bar counter.
Everybody could feel the tension in the air, the unspoken curses and insults between the hawk and the crocodile. Sonic looked around the bar again, searching for someone who might stop Vector and Jet, but nobody seemed to care. Not even the staff members; heck, the lemur and the wolf behind the bar counter even chuckled at the scene.
Frustrated, the blue hedgehog tightened the grip around the glass of whiskey in his hand, ready to leave the bar at any moment. Well, at least Shadow looked like he knew what was going on, although he just backed up a little and continued to mix a drink.
"So ... any specific reason you are here and bothering me, other than you just don't have a life outside of this bar?" asked Vector slowly and let his arms, which were crossed over the crocodile's chest, fall down to his sides.
Sonic stiffened, ready for everything.
Jet threw the first punch. Of course, maybe this was intended by Vector; or maybe the green hawk just picked the wrong person to taunt, and now it came back to him.
Jet launched himself straight forward and tackled the crocodile to the ground, causing pure chaos to break out. During seconds, a ring of excited Mobians formed around the two, everybody in the Tipsy Owl either yelling and trying to take part in the fistfight or making their way out of the door. Sonic could barely see Jet and Vector wrestling on the floor before a bottle was thrown in his direction, forcing him to duck down.
He had to get out of this, because there was no way he could stop a whole bar full of drunken people from fighting. The blue hedgehog got out of his chair and hurried through the bar, dodging and avoiding the fist-throwing and punching Mobians around him. Somehow, he got out of the "Tipsy Owl" without any injuries, but the call had been close a couple of times.
Sonic walked down the street, panting. His way was dimly illuminated by the yellow streetlamps, as well as some people that got out of the bar aswell and hurried away.
The first police cars stopped in front of the Tipsy Owl and the blue hedgehog thought that most of the fighting in the outwardly uninteresting building had already left. He figured that it made no difference if he dipped too, other than if he had to spend a night in an interrogation room. The police stations of New York would be crammed with drunk Mobians anyway.
Sonic made his way back to his simple apartment, needed several tries to unlock the door because he was slightly drunk, and finally stumbled inside. He downed a glass of water and decided to call it a night, falling asleep the moment he hit his mattress.
It had been an exhausting evening.