The following short story is based on characters created and/or copyrighted by SEGA! Enterprises, DiC Productions, Archie Comic Publishers, Fleetway Comic Publishers, and the Taki Corporation. All other characters were created and copyrighted by Roland Lowery.
The author gives full permission to distribute this work freely, as long as no alterations are made and the exchange of monetary units is not involved. Any questions, comments, suggestions, or complaints should be sent to esn1g@earthlink.net. Thank you.
"When so many are lonely as seem to be lonely,
it would be inexcusably selfish to be lonely alone."
-Tennessee Williams
Lonely Nights
By Roland Lowery
Princess Sally Acorn sighed as she stared down at the dark water rippling beneath the bridge. She could see the stars and moons reflected on the water's surface, the light playing softly against the bridge's underside as the creek continued its lazy course. She had been leaning against the railing for quite some time now, staring out at the water and thinking.
The rest of Knothole Village was quiet. The only sounds that Sally could hear were those of the crickets playing their soothing nighttime song and the creek below her babbling softly to itself. Everyone else was either asleep or at guardposts some way from the village edge, leaving Sally alone with her thoughts.
Those thoughts were the only things in turmoil that night amidst an otherwise perfect calm, it seemed. For Sally, they spoiled the entire effect that nature seemed to be going for. She paid no heed to the fact that the temperature was that perfect almost-but-not-quite breezy cool, that the grass was softly swaying in that almost-but-not-quite breeze in a particularly eye-pleasing pattern, or that the stars seemed particularly bright this night.
She saw none of this, because she was angry. Angry and hurt-
"Nice night," a softly accented voice said from beside her. She jumped, snapping her head up from her reverie.
"Oh, Bunnie," she breathed in relief, "you startled me."
Bunnie Rabbot smiled and leaned against the railing beside Sally. "Sorry 'bout that, Sally Girl," she said. "Ah was just havin' trouble sleepin', so Ah thought Ah'd go out for a walk. Didn't expect t'see anybody out heah."
Sally looked back out across the water. "It's all right," she said. "I was just . . . thinking. That's all."
The two of them watched the creek go by for a few moments.
"Wanna talk about it?" Bunnie asked quietly.
Sally considered for a moment before answering. Bunnie had been her best friend for many years now, but she wasn't sure if this was something she wanted to share at the moment.
Oh, what the hell? she thought. Why not?
"It's . . . Sonic," she said after a lengthy pause.
"Oh, deah," Bunnie said sympathetically. "Did the ol' shugah-hog run off again?"
Sally's eyes widened a bit, though she realized she shouldn't have been so surprised. In a small community like Knothole, secrets were hard to keep.
"Yes," she said with a sigh. "We were supposed to . . . well, the point is, a communique came in from Uncle Chuck saying that Dr. Robotnik was cooking something up over in Centropolis, and the Freedom Fighter group down there wanted some extra help if they could get it. Naturally, Sonic volunteered himself and set off immediately." Another sigh. "Just like always."
Bunnie chuckled a little at this, causing Sally to look at her with a confused expression.
"Ah'm sorry, Sally Girl," Bunnie said with a rueful smile, "but yuh just surprised me with th'fact that sometahmes it's you that wants to stop working on beatin' Robotnik for a bit and Sonic is th'one puttin' duty before fun!"
Sally thought about it for a second then laughed as well. "I hadn't thought about it that way," she said.
Bunnie grinned and looked back down at the water. "Well, have yuh tried talkin' to 'im about it?" she asked. "Mebbe he's jus' not gettin' th'hint."
"Oh, you know what it's like trying to talk to him about anything, Bunnie," Sally said. "Even if it's something serious. Especially if it's something serious," she quickly amended.
"Yuh," Bunnie agreed. "Poor ol' shugah-hog's heart is in th'rahght place, it's jus' his head what's made a'concrete." She sighed and mumbled something that Sally couldn't quite make out.
"What's that?" Sally asked, noticing the suddenly sad expression on her friend's face.
Bunnie looked up, startled. "Huh?" she said. "Oh, uh . . . nothin', Sally Girl. Ah don't even know why Ah said it . . . "
Sally was suddenly concerned. She put her hand on Bunnie's right shoulder and squeezed assuringly. "I'm sorry, Bunnie . . . I'm so wrapped up in my own problems, I didn't notice that you might-"
"Naw, naw," Bunnie said, waving her hand in dismissal. "Y'all don't worry none 'bout it. Ah jus' . . . well, it's jus' somethin' Ah gotta work out f'r m'self."
The two Freedom Fighters settled into an uneasy silence. Sally chided herself silently. Here she was, pouring her problems onto Bunnie when the rabbit probably had enough problems of her own! Then, even as she was berating herself, a brilliant idea formed in her head.
"Hey, Bunnie," Sally said, "do you have anything important going on for the rest of the night?"
Bunnie looked up and said, "Naw, why?"
Sally grinned and rubbed her hands together. "How about a good old-fashioned sleep over tonight?" she asked.
Bunnie looked absolutely shocked for a few moments, then started laughing. "Goodness gracious, Sally Girl," she said inbetween chuckles, "how absotively posolutely girly a'you! Lemme guess . . . hair curlers, doin' each other's makeup-"
"And all the snack food you can stand!" Sally finished. "I figure we could both use the company . . . "
Bunnie grinned and said, "Aw, what the heck! Jus' lemme grab some stuff from mah hut and Ah'll meet yuh over at yours."
"It's a date!"
"Well, howdy, ma'am," Bunnie said in a deep voice when Sally answered her door. "Nahce place yuh got heah!"
Sally laughed and let her friend in. Her hut was, in fact, one of the best in whole village; being the Princess of the Acorn Kingdom did have some perks, even living in the shadow of the world's newest ruler, Dr. Robotnik. Sally's hut had the same basic setup as most of the other huts, but it was slightly larger and the furniture was a bit nicer.
Most everything was in the main of the hut's two rooms. A small den area sat to the right of the door, complete with a nice, large flower-print couch and a coffe table. To the left of the door was the dining and office area, and next to it in the back of the hut was the kitchen, complete with counter. Sally's bed area lay off to the other side, and a door between it and the kitchen led to the bathroom, the only other room in the hut.
Even though it was, as Bunnie had commented, pretty nice under the circumstances, it was hard to tell because of all the satellite photos, mission notes, various data sheet printouts, and computer equipment littered about the entire main room and posted over much of the walls.
When Bunnie looked over at the den section of the hut, she noticed a small pallette of folded blankets on the couch.
"Sorry about that," Sally said apologetically, "but it's the best I could whip up in such short notice."
"Aw, it ain't no problem," Bunnie said as she set her bags next to the kitchen counter and started unpacking. "Now, tryin' to catch some sleep in one a'them treetop guard posts . . . that's roughin' it!"
"So, what do you want to do first?"
Bunnie grinned as she pulled a spray nozzled can from one of her bags. "Junk food, nat'rally!" she said as she shook the can. "Whipped cream," she explained. "Ol' 'Buttnik must lahke th'stuff, 'cause he's gotta factory still pumpin' it out in West Robotropolis!"
Bunnie sprayed a bit of the whipped cream on Sally's finger. The Princess licked it off and sighed contentedly. "Oh, yah," she said. "That's the stuff!"
Two cartons of ice cream, three bags of chips, and approximately five liters of soda later, Sally and Bunnie were dancing wildly to one of Bunnie's music chips. Sally had turned the lights down a bit so they were able to pretend that they were at a fancy nightclub. At first, they had danced with pretend guys, but ended up just dancing with each other.
The combination of grace earned through martial arts training and strength from cybernetic limbs, they were able to perform several interesting stunts. After one particularly spectacular move where Bunnie catapulted Sally into the air to complete a double backwards somersault and almost taking out the roof of the hut, they decided to take a short break.
"Mah deah, you dahnce devahnly," Bunnie said, giggling.
"Oh, that was nothing," Sally said. "If we got some practice in and had some more room, we could really impress people!"
The next few minutes were spent laying back on the bed, daydreaming about opening a nightclub and outdancing everyone there. Then, without warning, Bunnie found herself fwapped with a faceful of pillow. When she could see straight again she laughed, grabbed for the other pillow, and stood to face Sally.
"Oh, so it's lahke that, huh?" she asked.
Sally raised her pillow like a sword. "En gaurde!" she said with a flourish.
Bunnie leapt over the bed, but Sally was already running for the living area to hide behind the couch. She picked up a couch cushion and threw it at the rabbit before she could do another Bunnie Hop. Sally managed to evade Bunnie for quite a while, as a matter of fact, but eventually they met with a flurry of blows that left feathers flying everywhere.
Nearly an hour of fwapping pillows at each other passed before Sally finally flopped onto the couch, thouroughly exhausted. Bunnie flopped down beside her, panting and sweating heavily.
"Well fought," Sally said. "But by the Walkers, I'm burning up! Why'd you let it get so hot in here?"
"Me?" Bunnie said, mock offended.
"Well, I don't know about you, but I'm getting pretty tired of these," Sally said as she tugged off her boots and threw them on the floor. "And this," she added, giving her vest the same treatment. Thus disrobed, she threw her legs up on the couch, resting her feet in Bunnie's lap.
"Well, Ah'll be . . . " Bunnie said. "You get jay-bird nekkid for all yo' guests, or jus' li'l ol' me?" She grinned. "Well, two can play at that game!"
Bunnie moved Sally's feet and stood up. She began to tug at the top of her purple jumpsuit, but the sweat made it cling to her breasts. As she struggled to pull it down, Sally laughed and began to make "bow-chicka-wow-wow" sounds.
"Oh, boy," Bunnie giggled as she tried to work the suit down, "yuh accident'ly pick up one li'l ol' porno flick on a raid an' yuh nevah heah th'end of it!"
The further Bunnie pulled the jumpsuit down, the more trouble she had and the louder Sally laughed, which made Bunnie start to laugh, which made things even harder to manage. Even worse, her laughing and twisting around was making her breasts bounce all over, which made Sally laugh all the harder.
Finally, though, Bunnie had unclasped her belt and pulled her jumpsuit off. She sat back on the couch and placed her legs to either side of Sally's.
"Thanks for th'help!" she said sarcastically.
"Not a problem!" Sally giggled.
They tried leg wrestling for a while, but soon tired out again. Bunnie found that Sally's no-clothes idea was a good one, though. Sally had set up a fan earlier on and now the cool air from it felt good running through her fur. The two of them sat back and relaxed, simply enjoying each other's company.
Bunnie let her gaze wander down Sally's body for a few moments before asking, "Say, girl, why'd you evah start wearin' that ol' vest anyway? Ah 'member when yuh only wore the boots."
Sally looked at her in a distracted way for a moment, then quickly refocused. "Hmm? Oh . . . well, it was a present from Julayla, actually. I thought about hanging it up somewhere to keep it safe, but it turned out pretty handy. Lots of pockets, you know. Some of the others thought I started wearing it for another reason, though . . . "
Bunnie noticed that Sally's cheeks had flushed a bit under her fur. "Why's that?" she asked.
"Oh," Sally said, suddenly flustered, "well, I had just developed breasts a short time before, and a couple of the others thought I was trying to cover them a bit. Not that I really need to, as small as they are . . . "
"Oh, lordie," Bunnie said with a grin. "You worried 'bout size, Sally girl?"
Sally shrugged. "Well, I guess. A little bit. I mean, I know it's silly, but sometimes I look at you and . . . well, I get kind of envious."
"You ain't got nothin' to be envious of, Sally girl," Bunnie said. "Shoot, Ah sometimes wish Ah had smaller boobs, y'know? Yuh saw how much trouble mah jumpsuit was just a few minutes ago. And they tend t'get in th'way when yoah tryin' to run from a troop a'SWATbots, lemme tell yuh!"
Sally shrugged again and said, "Regardless . . . I mean, I know all that's probably true, but it doesn't stop me feeling that way. Sometimes I think that's one of the reasons Sonic runs out on me. Maybe I'm just not-"
"Whoa whoa whoa now," Bunnie said, waving her hands in the air. "Don't you even start t'thinkin' that! Yoah one helluva gal, Sally girl, an' a damn fine looker, too, if'n Ah may say so m'self! An' trust me, yuh don' wanna go 'round lookin' like me, 'cause . . . "
Bunnie trailed off and looked out the window as her face clouded up. "Well," she finally said, bitterly, "'cause a'these." She rapped her metal hand on her leg, making them clang sharply.
"Oh . . . oh, Bunnie," she said. "You know that none of us thinks of you that way!"
"Aw, Ah know that," Bunnie said. "It ain't y'all . . . it's other folks. Guys, mostly. You know Ah ain't got any other friends outsahde a'y'all? Everyone else in Knothole tends ta look th'other way when Ah walk 'round. It ain't their fault, really, but it jus' kinda puts a damper on a gal's social life, know what Ah mean? Ah ain't never HAD a boyfriend t'run out on me."
Sally nodded slowly and leaned forward. "I'm sorry, Bunnie," she said, "I've been too wrapped up in my own problems with Sonic that I didn't realize that's what was bothering you tonight."
Bunnie waved her off. "Naw, it's alright, Sally girl. Yuh couldn't have known. 'Sides, Ah'll manage. But, seriously, girl, yuh shouldn't be ashamed a'yoah own body. Ah'd trade mine f'yoahs in a second."
"Well, thanks for trying to make me feel better," Sally said with a smile.
"It's jus' th'truth," Bunnie said. "Yoah a good gal, like Ah said befoah. Yoah smart, hard workin', and . . . well, pretty damn sexy, t'tell th'truth."
"Me?" Sally said in surprise. "Sexy?"
"Hell, yah! Yuh got nahce long legs, tahght belly, good lookin' face, and . . . oh, whut's th'word . . . a supple body." Bunnie grinned. "Yoah a nymph, Sally girl!"
"Gimme a break," Sally said as she rolled her eyes. "You're the sexy one."
They argued back and forth for a few moments, lightheartedly now that they had gotten their problems off their chests. Soon, though, they had settled back into a thoughtful silence again, letting their minds wander.
As Bunnie found her gaze wandering down Sally's body again, she felt Sally slide her foot up to her side and start slowly rubbing up and down. Bunnie tensed at first, suspecting Sally to start tickling her with the foot, but relaxed when she noticed Sally still had a dreamy look on her face.
The feeling was quite nice, actually, so Bunnie slid down in her seat a bit so that Sally could rub higher up on her side. As Bunnie shifted, Sally extended her leg further so that her whole calf was now softly rubbing back and forth against Bunnie's body.
After a few moments, Sally pulled her leg back. Bunnie looked up, disappointed that the contact had been severed, but then she saw that Sally had merely sat forward so that she could lean over Bunnie's body.
"Ever had a full body massage?" Sally whispered as she began running her hands up and down Bunnie's body.
"Can't say . . . that Ah have," Bunnie replied dreamily. She laid her head back and closed her eyes and Sally's hands ran along her sides, across her belly, and over her breasts, stopping every once in a while to give a gentle squeeze.
"Julayla taught me," Sally murmurred. "It helps to relieve tension, especially after a heavy workout. I suppose our dancing and pillow fight count . . . "
"Mmm-hmm," Bunnie mumbled. Sally was now running her hands across the rabbit's shoulders and right arm, sending tingling waves of relaxation to Bunnie's head. Then, after massaging Bunnie's breasts and belly for a few more minutes, Sally turned Bunnie over and started to work on her back.
"And," Sally continued, "I just want to give you a little help relaxing . . . a thank you for coming over to help me feel better, even when you've got problems of your own."
Bunnie stiffened for a second at the mention of her own problems, but then she melted again under Sally's tender ministrations.
"You really shouldn't worry about any of that, anyway," Sally said as she gently kneaded the back of Bunnie's neck. "No matter what, all of the Freedom Fighters appreciate you. I . . . I appreciate you."
Bunnie suddenly felt a soft kiss on the back of her neck. Sally was still massaging her shoulders but had now also laid her bare body across Bunnie's back. Talk about your "full body" massage! Bunnie thought.
She began to wonder if she should panic about what was happening, but realized she didn't really mind it at all. She never got this kind of attention from a man, that was for sure. What Sally said was true, none of the other core Freedom Fighters minded that she had three robotic limbs, but the guys on the team tended to treat her as a sister. And all the other guys in Knothole seemed to be intimidated by her at best.
Besides, it felt good to have Sally rubbing up against her, almost natural. She shifted a bit, so Sally sat up, allowing Bunnie to flip back over.
"I'm sorry," Sally started saying, her face covered with concern. "If I did anyth-"
"Hush, Sally girl," Bunnie said softly. "Ah was jus' gettin' a cramp was all." She smiled at Sally reassuringly and leaned forward to hug her. She pulled Sally into her and they embraced for what seemed like hours. Bunnie slowly ran her hand up and down Sally's back, feeling the tenseness in her muscles melt away.
"I don't know why I'm doing this," Sally whispered in Bunnie's ear.
"Neither do Ah," Bunnie replied. "Maybe we're jus' lonely. And Ah don't want t'be lonely anymore."
"I'll always be here for you," Sally said as tears started running down her cheeks.
"And Ah'll always be there for you when Sonic cain't be," Bunnie said, hugging Sally closer.
They pulled away from each other for a second and looked deeply into each other's eyes. Sally was still crying, and Bunnie could feel her own eyes misting up. They leaned their heads close together, and ever so tenderly . . . they kissed.
For Sally, it was as if electricity had suddenly struck her brain. Every nerve in her body tingled with it. She opened her mouth slightly and gently slid her tongue into Bunnie's mouth. The kiss seemed to last forever, but it was over far too soon when they finally parted.
"What else can yuh do with that tongue?" Bunnie asked teasingly.
Sally smiled wryly and wiped her tears away with a short laugh. "Lots," she said as she pushed Bunnie's body back and shifted into a better position. Gently, she parted the lips of Bunnie's pussy with her fingers and began to softly stroke it up and down with her tongue. Bunnie moaned softly in time with Sally's licks and began to stroke at the sides of Sally's head with her hands.
After getting the rabbit nice and lubricated, Sally slowly pressed her tongue deep into her friend's pussy, tasting the juices that began to flow out. Bunnie began to moan louder and even said Sally's name a few times as Sally started searching for the clitoris. It took a few moments, but she finally caught it with her tongue and began to nibble on it lightly with her teeth.
As Sally suckled, nibbled, and licked on her clit, the pleasure building up inside Bunnie swelled larger and larger until she seemed ready to explode. Then, as she sensed Bunnie's impending orgasm, Sally started to slow down, working just enough to keep Bunnie at almost-pure-ecstacy and held her there. She heard Bunnie gasping for air between moans and wheezing "Oh, Walkers, please, Sally, please . . . " over and over again.
After what seemed an eternity, Sally slid her tongue back and forth across Bunnie's clit quickly until Bunnie erupted in orgasmic delight, bucking her hips in the air and tossing her head in ecstacy, barely choking back screams of pure joy.
Sally sat back as Bunnie rodes the waves of her orgasm back down. Still full of her own sexual energy, the princess sucked on the middle finger of her right hand until it was well lubricated with saliva, then slid it up into her own snatch. As she slowly masturbated, she watched Bunnie's breasts heave up and down as the rabbit still gasped for breath. After a few moments of recupuration, Bunnie sat up and smiled as Sally began to quicken her stride.
Bunnie leaned forward and started kissing Sally's breasts and belly as the princess continued pumping her finger in and out, now at a much more fervent pace. She caressed Sally as she searched for one of her nipples with a questing tongue. Sally's orgasm seemed to be looming ever closer much quicker as Bunnie suckled on her nipple and gently massaged her body.
Just as Sally didn't think she could wait any longer for release, the ultimate pleasure suddenly hit her in massive waves. She pulled her hand away and embraced Bunnie as the feeling spread throughout her body. They kissed again, then lay on the couch together for a long time before speaking.
"Thank you," Bunnie said in a soft voice.
Sally sweetly kissed her new lover. "And thank you," she said.
Bunnie woke to the sound and smell of bacon cooking. She sat up in Sally's bed and blinked in the late morning light that streamed in between the curtains.
"Sally girl?"
"Good morning, sleepyhead," Sally called to her from the kitchen area. "Hungry?"
Bunnie smiled. "Starving," she said. "Though I can't possibly think why I would be," she added, mock surprised.
Sally laughed and replied, "I know what you mean . . . it's not like we did anything strenuous last night, right?"
Bunnie swung her legs out of the bed and savored the smell of Sally that still lingered on her body and the bed sheets. After a few moments of clearing her head, she walked over to the kitchen area and hugged Sally from behind. Sally took her attention away from the breakfast she was cooking long enough to turn her head back for a kiss.
"We should get cleaned up and dressed pretty soon," Sally said as she turned back to the stove. "Sonic will be getting back here before long."
Bunnie stepped back stretched her body languidly. "Do yuh think we should tell 'im 'bout . . . ?"
"No," Sally said with a sigh, "not at the moment, at least. Not that I'm embarrased or sorry about it, of course, but I don't think he'd understand."
"Yah," Bunnie said, "Ah understand. Shame though," she said, brightening slightly. "Betcha that between th'two of us, we could tag team 'im inta stayin' around tonight!"
Sally laughed and shook her head. "Maybe one of these nights, Bunnie," she said with a wistful smile.
An hour later, Sonic did indeed make an appearance. Sally and Bunnie were just finishing their breakfast and had both bathed and clothed themselves by the time he showed up. After helping clean up the dishes, Bunnie left the two of them alone and headed back to her own hut.
As she walked along, she hummed a tune and skipped a bit, happy just to be alive. Though she knew Sonic was Sally's true love, she also knew that no matter what, neither she nor Sally would ever have to go through a lonely night again.
END.
Roland Lowery
esn1g@earthlink.net
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