How Rusty Rose Could Be Darker: Analysis Of A Rusted Rose

How Rusty Rose Could Be Darker: Analysis Of A Rusted Rose

Alright, so I really want to talk about how the very concept of Rusty Rose could be even more messed up. So here's a post on our robotic queen <3

So you guys are wondering, how can the concept of one of the sweetest Sonic characters becoming nothing more than a robot of destruction, used for 5 dictators' purposes be darker than it already is?

Well, what if I presented the ideas of both lobotomy and body removal, not to mention the mental issues that Rusty has? Yep, we're going to explore that!

First let's speak about body removal, the easier one. Let's take a look at Rusty's design, shall we?

She has no real body parts save for her head, and only by a little. Her arms and legs have clearly been removed as well as the rest of her body, including her organs, which is horrifying. Even her hair is nothing more than a helmet.

This makes you think, well not ALL of her organs are removed, I mean she still has a heart right?

Well...

Yeah, It's not pleasant. She has a flicky in place of a heart which is horrifying, both for the implications that the flicky is being used as an energy source, and that Rusty shows no attachment to it. The only thing that has been saved is a side of her face. The rest of her is nothing but Robo limbs. It's seen in the pirate episodes that Rusty is also waterproof. And in the first two episodes, it's shown she's fireproof.

In fact, she doesn't even have her other eye, it's just a red dot now. Not to mention her emerald eye, her real eye, looks robotic as well.

Rusty isn't human anymore. She lost that to the Council, who use her as a tool. Which makes me all the more curious about what the hell happened to make Rusty this way? What made her decide to damage herself to become a killer cyborg?

We probably won't find out until season 2, so I'm just going to go on to my next point.

Lobotomy.

Now I know some of you are saying that what Rusty does is in code, but wouldn't they have to get to her brain in order to do that? Not to mention, Rusty can be programmed to change sides without question. And when that happens her red dot turns to yellow, which is probably just because Nine was the one in control with his signature color of yellow.

Rusty doesn't act like the Amy we know, she's cold, apathetic, and robotic. But Rusty shows emotions, but it's just barely expressed. Most of the time she has a stoic frown on her face.

The effects of lobotomy are a change in the subject's personality, emotions, empathy, and ability to function on their own. However, a long-term side effect is a mental dullness.

Lobotomy is a process where the subjects (I'm never saying patient to such a horrible thing) have neural connections between the frontal lobe, a part of the brain that controls the person's memory, emotions, and problem-solving skills severed by a sharp surgical tool.

I think the process Rusty went through was the Transorbital Lobotomy, which is where the process done through the person's eye sockets. Something must've gone wrong or something because her left eye is no longer there. So they replaced it with the grate and dot, which could be something planted inside Rusty's eyesocket (Yeah I know, I'm getting squirmish too).

The effects of transorbital lobotomy (which is used to eliminate excess emotion and stabilize a personality, which the Council might've used to remove any strong emotions) can cause the subject to be childlike and less prone to worry.

Now I know some of you might be saying that Rusty isn't childish, not really, but Rusty's needs to look to others for orders and random bouts of emotions evoke a childlike feel to her. Like she's a child looking to adults for guidance.

This brings me to my last point in this post; Rusty's complex issue.

When it's looked into more, Rusty doesn't seem to serve on the council because she just wants to, it's probably to feel validated or appreciated. Instead of giving herself validation and accepting herself, she undergoes robotic implants and lobotomy to please a group of dictators.

Rusty doesn't love herself.

And when she probably realized earlier her mistake, she gives up on fighting it, instilling a dull and emotionally suppressed mindset (not that it wasn't already). But then Nine programs her to fight for the Rebels, and we see that Rusty's more expressive, more lively than she was.

She expresses herself more because she's not alone anymore.

Then Nine abandons her and the Rebels, and we see this.

When Nine abandons them, Rusty doesn't show shock or surprise; she shows tired disappointment, not at Nine, in fact, she seems to accept his betrayal. In the first picture, her self-disappointment is on full display, she's saddened at the fact that Nine didn't think of her as good enough and left her.

The second picture has her looking down, still sad, still loathing herself.

Then the last one has her finally break into tears, not just at the betrayal, but at her self-thought failure to be useful. She looks angry at herself.

Knuckles is furious, and Rouge is hurt, but Rusty is the one that truly breaks down at that moment. Knuckles and Rouge escape, and we see Rusty. Her sadness was suddenly gone, a small smile on her face.

It's relieved in a way. It shows what Rusty truly thinks. She doesn't want the city to be a punk-dystopian city, she regrets her choice to join the Council, and she wants freedom like the others. But then this happens.

She gets reprogrammed to the Council, and her thoughts are overridden by code and she serves the Council once more. She doesn't look too happy about it either.

Then we'll skip to episode 6, with Nine getting captured. When Mister Dr. Eggman announces that Nine has been captured we see a brief look of some sort of sadness on Rusty.

Only for it to harden.

Rusty didn't seem happy when the fox she worked under briefly got caught, there's a sense of sadness. Only for it to be squashed down into cold aloofness. She goes back under the Council's plan.

Then in the pirate episode, Rusty sees Black Rose, and both are understandably shocked. Rusty glitches out and refuses to bomb the rest of the ship. Her face as she calls for the robots to stop and her voice both sound panicked.

She doesn't seem to want to hurt Black Rose for some reason. A reason we'll find out in season 2. Hopefully Black Rose'll make her find peace with herself.

Anyway, this was just another messed up theory, and thank you for reading it! I hope you liked it, and I'll see ya when I come up with another crazy theory.

Hi! I've been reading your Nine-related stuff and they're really good! (And i also liked the borrower fic!). Here's my writing prompt/ suggestion: in the case we don't get a flashback next ""season"" (though i hope we do). What about your take on Nine's time during those weeks without Sonic? Like making the shattedrive, discovering the grim, etc?

Hello! One angsty Nine fic coming right up!

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It had been weeks since he last saw the blue hedgehog.

In those weeks a lot of things happened. The rebellion was in full effect, the people involved saw their chance and took it. Now there was a battle overhead. A desperate and hopeful chance at creating a revolution.

But that wasn't Nine's main concern.

The machine he was working on currently was his top priority. It was a ship, perhaps a plane like Sonic said another version of him had.

He was about finished, all he needed to do was put the shard in and he'd be good to go. He'd find Sonic and get out of here. Then they'd find a new home to live together.

To have the things Sonic said they had.

Green grass, blue skies, beaches, palm trees, Chili dogs, all of it. They didn't need anyone or anything else. They'd be happy together no matter what in this new world.

That was all they needed.

He climbed in, the red shard glowing in front of him, ready to travel. After a split second of hesitance, he pushed the button, eyes widening at a light shot from the ship becoming a deep portal to who knows where.

The fox's ears fluttered slightly down in a small sense of fear, before shooting back up, his face hardening in determination. Moving the ship forward into the portal the fox uttered lines filled with firm determination.

"Hold on Sonic, I'm coming."

The machine moved through the portal, and when it got to the other end, the fox gasped at the space surrounding him. It was so...empty. There weren't any stars or other planets, just nothing but wide space and several shards moving about.

He felt uncomfortable with the sheer vastness he was now put in. There was nothing surrounding him, there was nobody he could see. He was alone.

For a moment there was a pit beginning to form, but the fox brushed it off and moved his ship forward, determined to find his only friend.

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The Shatterpod slowly landed in a vast empty world of deep blue skies filled with stars and an orange-cracked ground with grey crystals shooting out, reaching for the sky they can never reach. He hadn't found Sonic, but he found it. The perfect world to start anew. A place for him and Sonic to live forever.

It was empty, devoid of any organic life, which was good. That meant there was nobody around to hurt or bother them. They could live the life Sonic told him about.

They'd be safe.

This was home.

This wasn't the first Shatterspace he discovered. There had been others. One filled with plant life, one he explored never seeing so many trees or flowers to be there in his grasp, he only read about them in books. However, he discovered he wasn't the only one there. There were other people, he hadn't seen them, but he heard their yells and cries reminiscent of cavemen, so he left immediately, deciding this was too primal to be home.

The next world he came across was filled with nothing but water, the world having been drowned in clean salt water. He found nothing there, no people, no islands. He determined it was too drowning. It wasn't home either.

Then he came across the last one, which he called 'The Grim', mainly because of its grim atmosphere that he found he enjoyed. It was perfect, no cavemen, no seas, just home.

Unfortunately, he needed to find Sonic first before he did anything, this had been for both of them after all.

He hadn't found the hedgehog in any of the worlds he traveled to, so that was the only thing he needed to achieve.

But he'd find him.

He'd bring Sonic home.

Writing prompt: how nine learned to fly

Nice one!

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The kitsune's feet pounded against the pavement as he ran. He could hear them behind him, calling out his citizen number, reciting old code. It wasn't his fault he stole a tiny piece of a robot he found already taken down by the resistance, he needed it for an invention.

How swell that turned out to be, now they thought he was part of the useless operation.

The mindless metal heads continued to follow after him, repeating themselves. Nine didn't know where to go. He couldn't go to his lab for obvious reasons or to the location near it. Not to mention his lab was the only place he knew of safety so he didn't have anywhere else to go.

He had to lose them first, but how?

He couldn't see any capable hiding spots, nor could he ask anyone for help for obvious reasons. He was beginning to grow tired from running, he could feel his lungs beginning to wear out, and he was gradually becoming slower.

He couldn't afford to stop, they'd catch him obviously and that wouldn't be good. He had to come up with something fast. He needed an extra boost.

His tails, both strong metal and limp organic, fluttered slightly out of anxiety, and for a split second, he was off the ground. He looked over at them in surprise.

How was that even possible? It defied the laws of physics! The robots were getting closer, and this being against the laws of nature itself wasn't important, he needed to do that again.

He focused, his tails moved, and began to whir, lifting him off the ground once more, giving him a chance again, until his shoes hit the hard concrete once more, his tired legs beginning to wear out.

Come on, come on!

It happened again, just a couple of inches higher.

Almost there...

Then he was off the ground, he heard the robots call out for him to stop and avoid resisting, but he didn't care!

He did it, he got away, and he avoided arrest and possible torture!

Huh. That was a sentence he never wanted to think.

Oh, whatever, he got away, that's all that mattered! He looked back at his tails.

He was still confused about how that worked, curiosity ticking away in his brain. The need to understand began to surface as it always did.

I mean, how can you fly with your tails?!

A Chance Meeting Chapter 3: Chili Dogs And Confliction

Yeah! Chapter three baby! You can read it here, or on AO3 too!

Chapter Summary: A tiny fox genius meets a big blue boi.

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Miles found himself wrapped and cocooned in darkness and warmth. 

Shiting in whatever he was in, he felt the weight of some kind of blanket over him. It was soft, he liked it. Unfortunately, he soon felt a dull pain in his head as he did so. Raising a hand to his forehead he groaned as he sat up and rubbed his temples. His nose caught a whiff of something strong but full of different kinds of spices. It gently stung, but it was otherwise somewhat pleasant, nothing like anything he smelled before anyway.

Ugh, what happened? What's that smell?

He finally opened his eyes, colors and blobs once blurred becoming clear. He blinked in tired confusion as wherever he was wasn't his burrow. It was some camp. There was a pot held over a campfire with something gently bubbling within. A strong aroma wafted from the small cauldron.

Must've been where the smell was coming from. Whatever it is, doesn't smell half bad.

He turned his head as something red caught his eye. It was the bright red plane he was fixing before the bean caught him, the machine illuminated by the campfire beside him that bathed him in comforting warmth. It was still as lovely as ever. It's a shame he got interrupted. He turned his head as he caught sight of the hedgehog tending to the pot, having not noticed he was awake yet.

He slowly laid back down, preparing to go back to slumber...

Wait...Oh, shi-!

He sat up with a sharp gasp, ignoring the uncomfortable pressure on his poor head. As soon as he did he felt an unwavering sense of dizziness and fatigue wash over him, but that was soon covered with fear as he remembered what had happened. He had been caught by the hedgehog.

He froze with fear as he silently stared at the bigger being in front of him. His breathing began to accelerate. What should he do? He knows he should run, but he knows what the bean is capable of, it'd capture him again in a blink. His heartbeat was all he could hear now. He can't run, but if he stayed who knows what the bean would do. What if it wanted to wait until he woke to kill him, or-or what if it wanted to torture him before it did, or what if it kept him, what if it put him in a cage to become a pet? He didn't want to become a pet, he wanted to go back home and curl up and pretend this never happened. But what could he do now?

Stupid-! he cursed himself. If he hadn't decided to help the bean, none of this would've happened, but no! He had to fix it, and look where it got him.

Stupid, stupid-!

"Hey, you're awake!"

He froze as the bean's voice wormed in his ears. He looked back at the hedgehog, who was now staring at him with a small, strangely warm smile. Blue eyes just stared into emerald ones, the owner not uttering a word as he panicked even more. A tense silence fell over them, save for the crackling of the fire, the smoke from the embers listing and fading into the darkening sky as the sun was nearly up, ready for the night to be over soon. How long had he been out?!

All Miles felt was undescribable terror, his heartbeat now pounding so hard and fast he felt as if he had a heart attack. It'd be better to have a heart attack than this . Unfortunately, that wasn't the case as he continued to stare at his spikey captor. The said urchin began to show discomfort and concern on his face. The hedgehog spoke with caution and worry.

"Are...are you ok?"

Miles didn't answer, too scared for his safety to form any words. The hedgehog slightly grimaced at that stupid question, however, the expression went unnoticed by the tiny fox before him, whose shoulders continued to shake in terror. Strangled and choked sounds slipped out of the kit's lips, and he felt his eyes water at how hopeless his situation was.

Tears now fell on the folded sleeping bag he realized he was on. This was it. This is where his life ended. He couldn't run even if he tried, the bean most likely going to recapture him. Miles saw a form of panic form on the urchin's face as they lifted their gloved hands in a placating gesture.

"Hey, it's ok little guy! You're okay!"

Miles watched in growing horror as the bean began to move toward him. They moved off the log they were sitting on, gently walking towards the mini genius. When they were a few feet away, and due to Miles whimpering if he got closer, the hedgehog carefully sat in front of him. They looked like they wanted to move closer, wanted to do something but seemed to refrain. In place of whatever that was, the being he had to look up at offered a warm smile.

"Uh-so..."

The hedgehog stammered, not knowing what to do or say. His eyes darted for a second before his gloved hand moved to point at his chest, a somewhat confident smile beginning to blossom. 

"My name's Sonic! Sonic the Hedgehog, what's your name?"

Silence.

"You do have a name, right?"

More silence. This time, however, Miles puffed up his tails in anger as the offense was now present on his face instead of the recent fear. Miles felt demeaned by that stupid question. Of course, he had a name, he just wasn't going to tell a being who would easily crush him out of existence! He felt a new sense of rebellion form inside him, if he was going to die, might as well face it with dignity!

The urchin just raised his hands in another appeasing gesture, chuckling softly in both nervousness and slight amusement. Miles felt his heart drop at how pathetic he must look trying to be brave in front of such a powerful being.

"Sorry, sorry, didn't mean to offend you!" the hedgehog, Sonic smiled and leaned forward slightly, making Miles flinch lightly and step back.

"So, what is your name?"

Miles stayed silent clutching one of his tails and moving his gaze to the ground, his ears flattening. After a deep breath, and ignoring how much he was shaking from realizing how close he was to the bean, he glanced up once more and gave them a harsh glare as best as he could. The mobians ears flattened as he leaned back, guilt present on his face.

"Alright, okay, you don't have to tell me if you don't want to! I mean, I wouldn't either if I was in your situation.", the urchin rubbed his neck out of both guilt and the uncomfortable awkwardness of this conversation.

Another pang went through the child's head, causing them to wince and rub at their temples.

"Oh, your head hurts, huh? I'm not surprised, you hit it pretty hard when you ran into the toolbox. You were out all night, must feel pretty nasty."

Miles tensed both at the mention of the horrible box that got him into this and the fact that he was knocked out that long. He looked around, but there was no sign of the stupid thing.

"Sorry about that by the way it must've fallen out or some flicky messed with it.", another nervous scratch behind the spiky mammal's neck. Miles felt slightly miffed at that comment, how the bean didn't think he was capable, but he could understand from his perspective. He couldn't think he could lift it out either until he had muscle sprains and wheezing lungs. 

But he said nothing. The less he said the better.

Silence fell over the pair once more, only to be interrupted by Miles's empty stomach. He quickly covered it and turned away from the hedgehog, who in response to the interruption let out an amused chuckle.

"Hungry?"

Miles felt his cheeks heat up in embarrassment as a reply. He was startled when Sonic suddenly stood, moving over to something by the fire. He watched as the bean moved to the pot, gently stirring the bubbling liquid. His stomach growled more as he caught the scent of the mysterious source. Then a thought entered his mind and his tail tufts puffed up once more out of fear.

Is-is this maniac going to eat me?!

He's never really heard of a bean eating a borrower, but there's a first time for everything. He began to shake more, tuning out his surroundings. He was snapped out of his thoughts when his ears caught Sonic approaching. He backed up slightly, as the hedgehog kneeled before him once more, two dogs in each hand.

"Ever had a Chili Dog before?", Nine paused in confusion, before shaking his head slowly. Sonic's eyes gleamed, a silly grin taking over his features.

"Oh, then you haven't been living yet! Here, your taste buds will thank me!"

Confusion turned into surprise as the hedgehog then tore off a chunk of the strange hot dog, leaned forward slightly, and placed it near the fox, either not paying mind or noticing how the fox flinched and moved back two steps. The blue blur then licked the chili off his gloved fingers, then began to finish off the rest of the broken-off dog. Miles watched in confusion at what just happened. 

Thoughts swarmed in his head again. What was this guy playing? Was he sharing food with him, a borrower? No, it had to be a trap. Maybe he wanted him to think he had a choice, maybe he wanted him to lower his guard. When he got comfortable, he wouldn't have a chance. He continued to stare at the being before him who was currently chowing down with clear satisfaction, however, it wasn't even a second before they noticed he wasn't moving to the offer. 

The hedgehog sighed.

"Jeez little guy, you're acting as if I poisoned it.", Miles looked up at him with a glare, "Look, if I wanted to try something don't you think I would've tried it by now?"

Miles paused. He was right, he didn't kill him right away, he didn't wait for him to wake up to kill him, and just seemed to be concerned over him, which couldn't be possible, and now he was sharing food with him. If he wanted to try anything he would've done it. He looked over at the chunk of chili dog. It was still warm, slightly dripping the strange spicy-smelling stuff all over the makeshift mattress he stood on. He slowly made his way to the dog, keeping a careful eye on the hedgehog, and when he got there, he reached out slowly and sniffed the food carefully, trying to detect any traces of rat poison but he found none. At last, he opened his mouth and carefully bit into the offered morsel, eyes widening and his tails sticking on end as the flavor exploded in his mouth.

Before he knew it, his tiny paws were ripping off chunk after chunk and stuffing it into his mouth, savoring the delectable treat, a gentle purr of enjoyment erupted from him. The chili got all over his fur, but he paid no mind as he used his tails to scoop the excess sauce, licking his paws and tails. After a couple of minutes, the chili dog was devoured by the child patting his stomach happily in satisfaction. He was snapped out of his trance when he heard Sonic let out a chuckle.

"I guess you were more hungry than I thought!", Miles felt his cheeks burn up at the comment, and he turned away from the urchin. He paused as he caught sight of the forest, the way home. He wanted to run, but now he felt conflicted. He didn't trust the bean of course, but he was just confused at their kindness. It didn't seem like a trap, but isn't that what he wanted him to think? But he would've tried something by now, it doesn't make sense to push it this far. Or what if they were just waiting even longer to try something? What if he was just putting him in a false sense of security? Perhaps.

He was so caught up in his thoughts he didn't notice Sonic noticing his silence and turning to whatever the little buddy had his eye on, the forest. Miles was snapped out of his thoughts as the hedgehog abruptly stood and began to stretch turning towards another part of the rich tree-filled maze.

"Welp, I'm gonna go for a run!", Miles paused and made a confused noise at the random statement. What? That wasn't what he was expecting. Isn't he going to interrogate him on what he was or keep him for answers? Wait, was he was going to take him with him just to keep an eye on him?

Sonic meanwhile turned hearing the squeak of confusion seeing the little guy look as if he was having an existential crisis at the simple statement of leaving him alone and allowing him to leave.

"What? Ya think I'm going to keep you here?! You should probably go home kid, your folks are probably worried sick!", he paused when the kid's ears suddenly lowered at the mention of his parents, but continued, his words now slightly jumbled, "I mean it was really awesome to meet you, although it probably would've been better if you didn't run headfirst into something and end up knocked out, again I'm really sorry about that, but you seem like a cool guy! I hope I see ya around!"

Before Miles could reply to the somewhat awkward and unexpected statement, there was a burst of wind and a blur of blue, and the hedgehog was gone. His mind went blank at the current reality he found himself in.

Was...was the bean letting him go?

No, it had to be a trick! A-a-hope spot. Well, he wasn't going to fall for this, he was going to wait right here! So he sat there, waiting for about fifteen minutes for the blue blur to come back, only for him to still be gone. He began to stand, moving slowly to the place of safety before him, he held in his breath just in case the bean was watching, waiting to spring out and grab him. When he got about five feet, he made a break for it, running faster than he ever ran, not stopping once. He kept going, even when his lungs felt as if they were going to burst, even when his legs were starting to strain. He didn't stop until he began to sob with relief at the sight of his burrow of safety. He nearly collapsed after pushing the rocks over to squeeze in.

It was ok. He was home.

He was safe now.

As he stayed there, panting, laid down facing the ceiling of his sanctuary, his thoughts began to wander about the bean, to what just happened. The bean let him go, but why? The bean was kind, but why? The bean helped him...

BUT WHY?!

A Deep In-Depth Analysis Of Nine 1/9: Warped Isolation Part One

I'm going to talk about my boi again! This time it's about the harsh effects of isolation, trauma, abuse, emotional neglect, and a desperate emotional attachment that leads to a toxic and harsh cycle. Hahaha...ha...?

Now, I'm going to split all of this up into nine topics split in parts, in separate posts. Just so I don't overwhelm you all with buckets of information, and to make sure I get my point across in each of them.

Sorry guys, I'm full of angsty thoughts that I'm going to drag you in!

Now let us begin with the unhealthy effects of isolation he shows, well part of in this post, that's why it's called part one:

Section One: "I Have no Friends!"

Let's start with what his life started out like in New Yolk. It's already established that Nine has always been alone in this corrupt and overpowering city. Tails' parents are unknown in the canon, and their whereabouts are unknown. So it can be assumed that Nine's parents are the same. I think they didn't include Tails' parents because they aren't important to the game's lore or Tails' character, not as much as Sonic is.

Nine's situation is slightly more different but no less the same. While Tail's parents weren't ever mentioned or seen due to how Sonic influences the character, Nine's parents aren't mentioned to show just why Tails needed Sonic to rely on and confide in. But due to this being a world where Sonic doesn't exist, and a world where Eggman succeeds, Nine's lack of a guardian to take care of him made his world views extremely warped.

While Tails had Sonic to protect him and teach him right from wrong, Nine had nobody and learned to protect himself due to nobody showing any care for him, and as a result, doesn't have a clear idea of what's right and what's wrong. All he knows is pain, misery, and survival in this horrid place.

'Do whatever it takes to survive, doesn't matter what happens to anyone else, caring for anything other than yourself is a guarantee to be hurt, to be in pain.'

That's his mindset from what we've seen him so far. Nine only looks out for himself, he has no friends or companions and lives in isolation. It's not just out of his dislike for people, it's a firm coping mechanism.

Many studies involving isolation state that isolation can be good, however, there are deep signs that isolation is becoming unhealthy. When the isolation starts to lead to cutting yourself off from others or not interacting with anyone, it can lead to a deep toll on your mental health.

Unchecked isolation can lead to more anxiety when suddenly in contact with others, it can also lead to very aggressive behavior and higher risks of depression (which Nine doesn't have...yet.).

Now I know you guys are wondering what I'm talking about when I put that Nine has social anxiety. "He's a sassy, 'emo', mean, confident Tails", but he's actually so much more. Notice how frazzled Nine is when Sonic turns him around after breaking into his lab. I also want you to pay attention to Sonic here as well. He's excited to see what he thinks is Tails, only to be concerned and confused when he sees Nine's bad reaction. I also find it interesting how Nine's left-hand goes near his tail.

Then we get a close-up of Nine, his eyes are wide and he's breathing quickly, for a split second Nine's terrified, most likely scared and startled at another person, he also has the wrench raised as well to defend himself, which really helps with explaining the trauma I'll get to later.

Then it quickly turns into anger, not only enraged at this new intruder but also quite defensive at this new possible threat.

At first, Nine only intimidates Sonic to leave, going on walls and making himself loom over this new intruder, then he kicks him into some barrels, and tries to stab him with his tail. Some of you might be saying that Nine wanted to kill Sonic, but he only stabbed the sides of his head (and even then it would've only grazed Sonic's cheek) and legs, not his chest. They are warning attacks.

Then Sonic fights back and his attacks become more lethal, more deadly because the threat is beginning to fight back and continues to stay. Nine could've just thrown him out on the subway and returned to his lab, but he followed, wanting to make sure the threat was gone. Which makes me even more scared to know what he did to his bullies.

Things eventually lead to Nine being saved by Sonic from an oncoming train. Notice how it was because of his own metal tails he was stuck in that situation, and this stranger saved him. This leads to our next section.

Section Two: "No One Has Friends Here!"

Now we begin our next part, Where Sonic has just saved Nine from an oncoming train. Nine of course is shocked and surprised, confused about why this blue hedgehog would save him. This is another way the city has affected Nine, in a way where he was expected to help himself.

This is a moment that most likely resonates with Nine, as well as the rest of his interactions with Sonic. At this point though, Nine still holds some distrust but doesn't attack anymore. As he stands he firmly rebuts Sonic's attempts to get close to him.

To Sonic, this is a chance to get through to who he thinks is Tails, to Nine this is merely a standstill. As he states that 'fabricated stories won't keep him from fighting back', calling Sonic an intruder. That's when Sonic pleads with him to stop, obviously hurt. I find it interesting that we don't see Nine's face as he does, when I watch that scene, you can clearly tell that Nine is reacting, but you can't see his face for some reason.

Then the backstories come. To Sonic, this is still tails, so he still says 'you', he explains that Nine was 'a happy little fox' doing 'brainy little fox things'. The bullies picked on tails, he came by, and Tails was saved and became Sonic's sidekick.

To Nine, this is a deeply personal experience, so he's shocked and confused about how this guy knows that. The way he says it, he was a 'kid minding his own business but not minding his surroundings', then some 'creeps' picked on him and beat him until he did something about it.

Sonics is light and simple, but it also shows that Sonic saw it, but he doesn't know how it feels, and he doesn't understand how it could've affected Tails and in turn affected Nine. Nine's is deep and harsh, Nine knows how it felt, and it affected him badly, but we'll get to that later.

After revealing that Nine firmly states that 'nobody has friends here', and this quote holds so much meaning. Nine doesn't seem to just be stating it to Sonic or to explain things, he's also stating it to himself. It's clear when he states that that's why he hides down there, to avoid everyone, even Sonic.

He doesn't say it in a sassy way, or an angry way, the tone in his voice is rather melancholy, and his face is sad. He isn't happy in isolation. That tone, that simple line, told so much about Nine.

Sure, he's safe when he's isolated, but that doesn't mean he enjoys it or finds it fun. He sits as he does this, in a fucking fetal position not to mention, which hammers in his deep desire for love and care.

Then, as Sonic thinks, Nine's face changes from cold and hardened to rather meek and scared. Then he asked, with hesitance, "So...what else did we do?"

He states 'we', not because he immediately believes Sonic and his whole "I'm from another world thing", but because not only does this person know he was bullied, but they state they saved him and became friends.

Friends. Something he clearly wants no matter how much he denies it. He lives in isolation to protect himself, to protect his mental state, then comes this person who tells him that he was capable of being happy of being loved.

Notice how Nine treats Sonic from now on after Sonic tells him what they did. He isn't as cold with him as he was before, he's slightly more open with the hedgehog, and it's understandable, Sonic was the first person to treat him with a sliver of kindness. And Nine finds he likes it.

Sonic tells him how he and Tails beat Eggman multiple times, and Nine stands up, clearly amazed and joyful at the thought of beating what was to him, a horrible dictator who brought him nothing but misery.

As Sonic walks towards him continuing, Nine still takes some steps back, cautious. Then Sonic touches his should and:

He's surprised, and after he processes it, a little smile makes its way onto his face! D'aww...

Then Sonic tells him that when they stick together they never lose, which visibly touches Nine.

After that, Sonic's shoes smolder, and as Nine points this out, Sonic whines and pouts, leading Nine to state he hates whiners more than people. He pulls out a gun, and Sonic panics, only for Nine to calmly tell him to stay still, smiling at the hedgehog as it scans him.

The lighting is all wonky so you can't really see it here, but it is there. They head back to Nine's lab, and Nine works on making something to regulate the energy within Sonic. Sonic, after glancing around, compliments Nine's tails, stating that he's amazing.

This surprises Nine, before he simply says 'sure', not knowing how to respond to that. When he's finished he goes on to explain how the doodads work, and puts them on Sonic, being surprisingly mindful of his tails, not actively hurting Sonic, and makes sure they don't poke him.

They're both surprised to see Sonic's shoes and gloves change, Nine pondering how that's possible as Sonic zips around in his usual bubbly excitement. After that, Sonic races out of his lab, wanting to test them out, with Nine for a split second panics and goes after him, explaining it's not safe.

I'm surprised that Nine went after Sonic instead of just going 'welp that was weird now that that weirdo went I can go back to what I was doing', he goes 'oh shit...I gotta protect this guy', and goes after him. Some of you might say that he went because Sonic has all this weird energy and he wants to test it, but I disagree because if it was, Nine wouldn't have cared to make the gadgets that regulate it.

Welp, that was a long post, HOWEVER, this is just part ONE of the isolation exploration effects on this broken fox kid's mind and just a fraction of the overall exploration analysis in all, part two will most likely come tomorrow. See y'all then!

You know I have an idea involving nine seeing his whole self. Perhaps in some sort of shard somewhere and perhaps Nine seeing shards of Tails and Sonic being bothers and possibly seeing the event that led him to being by sonics side.

It makes me think that if he had an angry outburst it would be him shouting how without him he isn’t whole (The whole being the life he could have) but with him being whole he would not exist (Nine is a variant in time with years of angst and his own memories, least how the theory goes of them all being shards of the original selves) Nine would never remember and be erased and while he’ll be glad of not having his past anguish happened, it wouldn’t be him anymore. Unless he does something about it.

I’m probably making it more complicated and sorry about that. What are your thoughts on this?

Nine would be horrified.

All of that trauma, all of his efforts, all of his friendship with Sonic.

Just to be a shard of someone he could never become? There his 'whole self' was, fluffy, healthy, happy, the last being something Nine desperately wanted.

He... still wants it.

But was this his choice or what he was made to choose?

He didn't know anymore.

He remembers yelling at Sonic, yelling at him for something even the speedster himself didn't know, ignoring the knawing guilt and self-hatred when those emerald eyes filled with pain and sadness at his cutting remarks.

He stormed away after that, leaving the hedgehog to wallow in his misery. He wasn't a person, but with Sonic he felt like he was. A person worthy of being loved, worthy of kindness, worthy of care. But was that all a lie? Did the hedgehog only care for him because of what he was?

Did Sonic only love him because he was a part of Tails?

Did he even love him for HIM?

Or was it merely because Nine could find a way to fix the world with the shards because Nine would find a way to erase the shattered space like it was nothing? Because they thought Nine would willingly off himself just to be nothing more than a trait?

No.

He wasn't just a trait. He was his own person. And he's not going to go back to being one. He isn't going to just wallow in self-pity, he's going to do something about it.

This world, the shatterverse, the GRIM, they'd all just be erased just like that.

But Nine isn't going to just let that happen.

No.

He's going to do something about it, whether the others, whether SONIC likes it or not.