Chapter Text
Espio pulls the van up next to Knuckles red truck. He gets out of the car and slams the door, taking a deep breath as he walks towards the front porch of the cabin. It was early, the sun had barely risen enough to dry the dew on the grass, but he knew the enigmatic Native was an early riser. Hopefully Silver was also, as they were the whole reason he woke up at five to get here well before the Mystic Ruins heist. Wasting no time he trots up the steps and raps on the worn wooden door. Only having to wait a minute before hearing the sound of lumbering footsteps and the door swings open to reveal a familiar figure.
"Es?" Knuckles asks, tilting his head and causing his unbraided red hair to shut over his shoulders, "What are you doing here? Your quest is not until this afternoon."
"I'm aware." Espio replies, resting his hands on his hips, "Is Silver around? I wanted to speak with them."
Knuckles raises his eyebrows, massive arms crossing over his equally massive chest. He's momentarily distracted by the morning sunlight washing over Knuckles bare chest. He forces himself to focus his eyes on the man's face. No time to lose focus.
"Silver's not here right now." Knuckles finally says, leaning out the doorframe and tilting his head towards the woods, "They're on Angel Island, near the Chao Gardens. You can go to the Island and find them. Just don't go near the Master Emerald."
Knuckles eyes narrow dangerously, "I will know if you do."
Espio nods, turning away and taking the porch steps two at a time, "Understood. Thanks, Knux."
The sound of a door closing is his only response. With Knuckles permission granted he makes his way to Angel Island. Walking quickly along the well-worn path snaking through the forest. The morning air is crisp and cool. When a strong breeze whips by he can't hold back a shiver at the chill on his exposed arms. Maybe he should have worn a long-sleeved turtleneck instead of his sleeveless and backless one. At least the chill is eaten away when he steps out of the tree canopy into the sunny clearing. Ahead of him was the massive lake that held Angel Island. Crossing the lake was easy ever since Mighty dropped that massive evergreen down as a makeshift bridge.
The Chao Gardens were found around the other side of the Island. The usually empty Dark garden was tucked between the two of the larger mountains behind the ruins of Knuckles people. Higher up on the mountain was the Neutral garden that overlooked the Dark garden and most of the island. Lastly, the Hero garden sat on the highest point of the island, overlooking both the other gardens. It was by far the hardest to get to for those who can't fly. Since Silver could fly it was likely that they would be up there, but he figures it safer to cover his bases and check the other two on his way up.
Espio hikes along the small dirt trail that cuts through the semi-tropical forests toward the Dark garden. Cresting the hill and looking down into the basin that held the garden he's surprised to see at least four dark Chao running around. Due to the nature of those that frequented the Rez, and subsequently, the island, Chao around here tended to be Hero or Neutral. He knew that Rouge had a dark aura, but she wasn't allowed on the island where the easily influenced Chao lived. Shadow was an even less likely candidate as Knuckles almost had an aneurysm at Shadow's presence three days ago.
He continues along the path leading upwards. This was an interesting issue, one he would bring up with Knuckles later as he was willing to investigate the situation further if it was of concern to the guardian. Knuckles took caring for the Chao very seriously. After some time they finally arrive at the entrance of the tunnel and make their way through. It was only about fifteen feet long, and it opens up to a wide, grassy clearing. The edge of most of the clearing was the high gray rocks that separated it from the rest of the mountains, and the natural waterfall that filled a clear pond. Along the other side was a steep drop that plunged to the Dark garden. This peculiar setup lead to a truly amazing view of the rolling green hills that stretched out for miles.
More importantly, than the view was the stark white figure sitting on the edge of the garden, legs swinging over the stomach-churning drop. Espio takes a deep breath, steeling himself for their meeting. It had been a few days since he was able to speak with Silver. The other had been busy helping Vanilla, and he had been working on finding some information on some government experiment for Vector. Of course, he knew that the day he had spent with Silver was a one-time thing. The problem was that now he couldn't stop thinking about Silver and how much he wanted to spend more time with them.
Now he was here. Intending to spend a few hours with Silver. Alone.
Slowly they approach Silver, stepping around Chao playing on the ground. He stops a few feet away from the other, pondering what to say for a full minute before finally forcing out a greeting.
"Good morning-"
Silver gasps and leaps to their feet, turning around and meeting his eyes with a surprised expression before they relax.
"Oh, Espio." They sigh with a small smile, "You scared me! I swear you are the only person in the world that can sneak up on me!"
"My apologies. I wasn't trying to startle you." Espio replies, feeling warm at the immediate compliment, "Are you free?"
"What a strange saying, 'Are you free'..." Silver muses, walking past Espio to stand under one of the palm trees that bore strange fruits, "I'm not doing anything right now, if that's what you mean to ask."
Espio stares at Silver, intrigued at the mysterious nature of Silver's words. Was Silver implying that they weren't free? Or was he looking too deep into it? Normally he wouldn't pursue such conversations as Charmy often mocked him for being dramatic. Silver wouldn't do such a thing, and maybe they even wanted to talk of such dep matters.
"I did want to know if you were occupied..." Espio begins, watching as Silver uses their telekinesis to pluck a piece of fruit from the tree, "But now I'm curious as to how you would answer that question literally."
"You will have to stay curious then." Silver smiles, expertly peeling the rind off the fruit and kneeling to pass it to one of the Chao nearby. Espio watches in surprise as the Chao nibbles on the rind and turns slightly darker.
"Don't worry, they like all parts of the fruit." Silver says, apparently noticing their expression.
"You have a dark aura?"
Silver looks at the grey Chao and shrugs, pulling a section of the fruit apart and eating it, "Is that bad?"
"No, of course not. It's just a little... strange." Espio says, disappointed that Silver had decided to change the subject away from what would have no doubt been an intriguing conversation.
Silver approaches him and holds out half of the round fruit, obviously wanting him to take it. Espio hesitates, as he had never seen anyone >i/i< the Chao fruits even though most of them resembled normal fruits like apples and pears. He glances at Silver's face, a mistake he immediately regrets as the other is looking at him with big expectant eyes that immediately make him reach out and take the fruit from their hand. He pulls a small, pinky-sized segment of the fruit from the main source. It was reminiscent of an orange in shape, blue in color, but it smelled mellow like a banana. Trying not to over-think it he pops the second in his mouth and bites down.
Immediately his fave twists and he spits the fruit onto the ground. Unable to escape the overwhelming sour and citrus flavor. It tasted like a lemon had a child with a grapefruit! He coughs and tries not to spit on the ground.
"Oh, first time eating a round fruit?" Silver asks through a mischievous giggle.
"How did you eat this?" Espio wheeze, passing the half back and wiping tears from his eyes.
"They're an acquired taste." Silver replies, eating a section of the fruit without flinching, "Is there a type of flavor you like? I could get you a better tasting snack?"
Espio clicks his tongue, horrible flavor finally fading from his mouth, "I like sweet things."
"How fitting." Silver says, turning and looking at the trees before floating over to one near the pond, plucking a deep red fruit from the top of the tree and floating back.
He eyes the fruit suspiciously. It looked like a heart-shaped plum. Already he didn't like plums, and was a little wary of Silver now that they had tricked him. Apparently his apprehensions shows on his face as Silver expression falls and they pout slightly. He capitulates to Silver's whims and tales the heart-shaped fruit from their hands, looking over the smooth, shiny skin.
"How do I eat this?" He asks, pressing a finger into the skin and feeling very little give.
"Just bite into it! Sometimes it has a pit in the middle, so be careful of that."
Espio looks at the fruit and gently pulls the two tops of the heart apart. The fruit splits even in half, with no pit in the middle. He looks up, and wordlessly holds one of the halves out to Silver. Immediately the others face lights up and they eagerly take the offered piece of fruit. Without hesitation Silver bites into it, not flinching at whatever the mysterious taste was. With a reluctant sigh, he takes a bite of the fruit, surprised to find it not only sweet but incredibly juicy.
"Oh, this is good." Espio says, quickly eating the rest of the fruit.
"It's even that one shape you like!" Silver says, pointing at the heart cutout on his chest.
"A heart?" Espio asks, looking down at the cut out on his sweater.
"Yes! Heart! They're very cute!"
Espio flushes at the compliment and looks away. Unsure of what to say in response he turns and walks over to the edge of the cliff, hoping to collect himself by looking over the rolling green hills and bright blue sky.
"Silver, do you think you'll be able to visit us after you return to your time?" He asks once recovering from the compliment.
"I don't see why not! Since time travel is possible with the Emeralds and I can get them back from Iblis then I'll be sure to visit!" Silvers says cheerfully
A breeze blows by, and he hears the ruffle of Silver's jacket as the other steps up beside him. Espio takes a deep breath of the clean mountain air. Maybe he should come here more often, it was peaceful. They glance at Silver again, wondering what they should say to the other. He had plenty of questions about Silver's future, but he wasn't sure how to broach the subject now.
"I live here." Silver says suddenly, "In the future I mean."
"On Angel Island?" Espio asks, finding the thought of anyone but Knuckles living on Angel Island quite bizarre.
"Yes, in this very garden." Silver lets out a thoughtful hum, "Though the Island isn't located here, in this lake. It's somewhere else."
How strange. Knuckles had said the Island could float. While he had no reason to doubt the man it wasn't like he fully believed this massive geological anomaly could be anywhere but in this lake.
"Why did it move?"
Silver shrugs, "Like many other things the answer to that had been lost to history. All I know was that The Master Emerald is what makes this Island float, and long before I was born it was shattered. Causing the Island to fall from the heavens forever."
These words bring a certain sadness to Espio. To think of something as powerful as the Master Emerald being shattered without someone to fix it. He decides to shift away from that topic.
"Does this place look different in the future?" He asks, trying to picture what years would do to this place.
"Not really, no." Silver replies, "Strange, isn't it? Five hundred years and this Island is all but unchanged."
"Five hundred years?" Espio gasps, not having heard a general number from Silver until now, "So... you're from 2512?"
"Yes, give or take. I never really counted the years after my parents passed."
Silver says it so nonchalantly it takes him a moment to realize what they had said. Espio swallows, and looks at the other. Taking in the profile of a thoughtful face looking out onto the land. No sadness in their odd yellow eyes, but acceptance. Espio could understand that feeling.
"My... my parents also passed." Espio offers, "It was a very long time ago so I never really knew them, but... that pain lingers. It is the same for you, is it not?"
Silver nods and bites their lip. Shoulders drooping with an invisible weight. Tentatively he reaches out and rests his hand on Silver's back, rubbing a small circle on the others back.
"What happened that took your parents away so soon?" Silver asks, "I can't imagine what would take two people away in a time like this."
"A car crash when I was four. I wasn't in the car when it happened."
"Is that a common thing?"
Espio shrugs, "Yes, it also happened to Knuckles parents as well."
"I'm very sorry to hear that, Espio. To lose your family is a horrible thing." Silver says, body relaxing under his hand.
"It's nothing like what you've been through as far as I can tell." Espio deflects, retracting his hand a crossing his arms loosely over his body, "I have Vector and Charmy. They're my family."
Silver smiles at him, and he can see so plainly the deep sadness in the other's eyes. At this moment Espio is struck by how alone Silver looks. A light white form against the bright blue sky, a lonely little cloud. Silver had lost so much more than he could ever fathom, and here they were trying to ease his pain.
"Silver... you're welcome in my-"
"Hey, trespassers!" Knuckles calls, causing Espio to jump in surprise, "You lose track of time or something? Your quest will begin shortly."
"Is everyone here already?" Silver asks, immediately switching to a cheery tone from their somber disposition.
"Amy arrived with Blaze, and Sonic is-"
"Right here!" Sonic calls, emerging from the rock tunnel behind Knuckles, followed by Tails "I miss anything?"
"Hey, who said you could follow me? Get off my Island!" Knuckles yells, swiping at Sonic and missing.
Espio watches these antics silently; disappointed that their conversation was interrupted. Probably for the best as he was about to say something embarrassing. He rests his hands on his hips and watches Knuckles attempt to catch Sonic, running around the Chao garden like children and not full-grown adults. Meanwhile, Tails, the actual child, stood watching them with an amused expression.
"We should head to the alter. They'll be at this for a while." Espio says, glancing up at Silver.
"Thank you for spending the morning with me, Espio." Silver says, a gentle smile upon their pale face, "I enjoy speaking with you so freely. We should do so again once we are not so busy with quests."
"I... yes we should do this again sometime!" Espio replies quickly, warmth rising to his cheeks predictably, "I'll see you at the alter!"
Without waiting for a response he shoots off down the path, reaching his top speed in only a few seconds. He's able to cross the Island and arrive at the Alter in less than a minute. It should take Knuckles and Silver a few minutes to cross the Island, giving him plenty of time to think. He slows down and leans against a palm tree a few feet away from where Blaze and Amy were chatting. With a sigh, he runs his fingers through his hair and bites his lip. Every time Silver implies that they enjoy spending time with him every cohesive thought flies out of his mind. It's mind-boggling that someone like Silver would want to hang out with him when there were people like Sonic that would gladly let them tag along. He was just... some orphan who was going nowhere. All he did was tag along with whatever it was that Vector wanted him to do. Whether it be working at the pizza place, or doing investigating on cases he didn't even care about. There was no reason for someone to ever hang out or speak to him. Hell, when Silver mentioned their parents the first thing he did was talk about >i/i< shitty life. Next time he would do better at connecting with Silver.
"You're too slow!" Sonic yells, skidding to a stop beside Amy and then doing a little dance.
"Damn it!" Silver huffs, landing on the ground and breathing heavily, "The legends are true!"
"Aha! The blue blur never disappoints!" Sonic replies, finishing his break dance with a flourish.
"You are doing nothing but swelling his head." Knuckles voice booms over the clearing, and Espio looks up to see Tails flying Knuckles towards the clearing. Lowering and dropping the large man onto the grass, "Now, are you six prepared?"
"What, you not coming Red?" Sonic asks, taking a yellow smartphone-shaped device.
"No, I have to pick Ray up from school." Knuckles replies, pointing at Espio and gesturing for him to come over.
Reluctantly he leaves the shadows and stands beside Amy, who smiles at him. Crossing his arms he looks over to Tails, who was running Amy and Sonic through how to use the device he had created. Beside him Blaze and Silver were chatting about some activity they had done together a day or so ago. Espio grips his arms and looks down, feeling uncomfortable and a little alone in this brief moment.
"Es." Knuckles calls, causing him to look up at him curiously, "Mighty wanted to-"
"What makes you think I care what Mighty wants." Espio interrupts, narrowing his eyes at Knuckles to keep the man from saying any more.
Knuckles raises his hand's palm out, "Hey, I'm just the messenger."
Espio looks away, instead focusing on the mission he was about to go on. Silver had retrieved one of the Chaos Emeralds from its Alter and was floating it above the palm of their hand. Sonic was stretching his legs, no doubt more eager about this quest than he was.
"So how's this Chaos Teleporting thingy work?"
"Like this. Chaos Control!"
The now familiar feeling of cutting through reality overtakes Espio, and before he can process anything he is standing before a massive temple. He stretches, shaking the static of residual Chaos Energy off his skin. Beside him Blaze does the same, recovering from the slip in reality easily.
"Whoa, that was weird!" Tails says, patting their arms and chest.
"Nice going, Silv!" Sonic says, darting to stand beside Silver and nudging their shoulder, "That was awesome!"
"Thank you!"
Espio looks past them at the massive temple. It was located deep in a tropical rainforest in Middle Mexico. It was nearby the original home of Knuckles people, unlike the other Emerald which was located somewhere in Siberia. At the least, he should enjoy the warmth while it lasted. A sharp whistle interrupts his thoughts and he looks up at Sonic.
"Alright, we gotta split into two teams for this since there are two entrances to the temple, one is false, and the other leads right to the Emerald. There are a whole buncha super deadly traps too, you remember Tails!"
"Sure do!"
"Good!, so the Team Sonic will be Me, Blaze, and Silver. Team Rose will be Amy, Tails, and Espio!"
Espio hopes that his disappointment isn't visible. Nothing was wrong with Amy or Tails but he was looking forward to more time with Silver. Especially since they had that determined look on their face. Well, at least going through the temple would be fun.
"Silver, Blaze." Sonic says, a bright smile on his face, "Race you to the door!"
The trio beside him shoots off in a flurry of wind and fire. Three multicolored blurs run up the long steps towards the ancient temple, and Espio feels sad he's not with them.
"Well geez, way to make us feel bad!" Amy jokes, jumping up a few steps and summoning her hammer, "C'mon then, let's get that Emerald!"
- -
Espio summons a kunai and jams it between two bricks in the wall. Wiggling it until the suspected loose brick falls out. Reaching into the hole with the kunai and cutting a taut rope hidden in the depths. Fifteen feet in front of him a massive rock crashes down from the ceiling, raising an equally massive cloud of dust.
"Nice one, Es!" Amy calls, waiting for the dust to settle before cautiously stepping forward. Tails floats beside her, typing on his little device.
"Thank you." He follows after the two, eyes scouring the ground for trip wires and trick plates.
"I think we're clear for the rest of this hallway." Tails says, lowering the device. "We're still really far from the alter room."
Damn. He had been disabling and dodging traps for at least an hour and a half. The temple was massive and at this rate, they would be here long into the night. Not that he minded spending time with Amy and Tails, even if it was mostly him listening to their banter and quipping every so often. He just was looking forward to more time with Silver. Tomorrow he would make a point to be teaming up with the other, no matter what.
"Are you with us, Espio?"
"Hmm?"
Amy raises her eyebrows at him, bright green eyes studying his face carefully. He tries to keep a blank expression knowing full well that Amy was just as perceptive as himself.
"You thinking about anything special?" Amy asks, head tilting slightly in curiosity, "You're usually not distracted doing these sort of things."
"Special?" Espio repeats thoughtfully, "I suppose I am. Worry not, I will not allow it to affect my performance."
Amy giggles, spinning her hammer with ease and resting it across her shoulders, looping both arms over the long handle, "May I pry?"
Espio tilts his head, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. Amy's prying was always particularly effective in helping him and others sort out their feelings on certain subjects. She always had a way of getting to the heart of whatever was bothering anyone, even if they themselves didn't know what exactly was bothering them. Though the real question was; is he ready to get to the bottom of his feeling? Wouldn't hurt to try.
"Pry away."
"Okay! So answer me quickly and try not to think too hard about the answer." She orders, to which he nods, "Does whatever your thinking about mean a lot to you?"
"Yes."
"And is it a new thing, or something that's been in your life for a while?"
"New." He replies instantly.
"Is it a... romance thing?"
Espio hesitates; an instinctive 'no' balanced precariously on his lips. It shouldn't be a romantic thing; obviously. Silver was here due to an accident not to pick up cute boys like himself.
"Oooh." Amy gasps, causing Espio to wince as he knew she had figured out his situation due to his prolonged silence already. A glance at her reveals sparkling emerald eyes looking directly into his.
"Don't make it weird." He orders, running his fingers through his hair as his shoulders slump.
"I think it's cute!" Amy cheers, bumping his arm with her elbow, "I think you should go for it if you like him that much! I think Silver li-"
A loud screeching beep sounds from Amy's dress pocket, causing them to jump in surprise. A few feet away Tails gasps and turns around, flying towards them rapidly as Amy pulls the device out of her pocket.
"What's going on?" Amy asks, holding the device up to reveal a screen showing two dots and what looks like a crude map of the temple. One of the red dots was flashing steadily.
"That's an emergency signal!" Tails says, literally hovering over their shoulders, "It's the most urgent one I have programmed!"
"What's it mean?" Espio asks, noticing that a little arrow is extending from one of the dots, presumably showing which way the communicator was facing.
"It means that Team Sonic is in some sort of urgent trouble! We have to get to them as fast as possible!"
Amy nods, turning to face the communication device towards the other red dot on the map. She passes the device to Tails and hefts up her hammer.
"Sorry Echidna Warriors. " She says moments before smashing through the brick walls, "We're taking a shortcut."
Espio looks at Tails and shrugs, following after Amy into the depths of the temple as she busts through wall after wall.
"What do you think could have happened?" Espio asks Tails as they dash through a hallway of the labyrinth.
"I don't know. These are basically over glorified walky-talkies, so for Sonic not to contact us and only hit the emergency button can't be a good sign."
Right, Tails did have a point. He wasn't worried about team Sonic signaling an emergency until Tails put it like that. It was hard to imagine a team like that getting into trouble. Sonic and Silver were more than capable, and though he hadn't spent a lot of time with Blaze she definitely had an impressive presence about her. Still, the seeds of worry were already sown into his mind, and he picks up his pace. Following closely behind Amy and she smashes down another wall. The communicator in Tails' hand beeps twice, and they come to a stop as the dust settles to reveal a very odd sight.
Sonic!" Amy calls voice rife with relief.
"Amy!' The man whoops back.
Sonic was strung up in a snare trap by his feet. Spinning slowly on the rope ten feet in the air. Above him was an elaborate hanging iron cage that seemed to hold Blaze. His eyes dart around in search of the third member of the team. Eventually, they alight on the familiar white figure of Silver slumped on the ground with a sickening shock of bright red blood cutting through their hair.
"Chaos Spear." Espio calls, throwing an arc of Chaos Energy and cutting the rope holding Sonic up as he runs past to kneel beside Silver.
Without delay, he rolls Silver over, then pulls the other up into a sitting position. The other groans and their eyes flutter open, unfocused yellow pupils darting around before resting to stare into the middle distance just past his shoulder. First, he takes a look at Silver's head wound; like all head injuries, it looks worse than it is. So he sets upon unzipping the others raincoat. Pulling it off and rolling the sleeve of their bloodstained hoodie sleeve up. Espio wasn't one to flinch at the sight of blood, but the state of Silver's arm does give him pause. A jagged cut rips through Silver's pale skin from the very bottom of their bracer to their elbow. Dark red blood had stopped flowing by now and was smeared over their pale skin making the wound look so much worse than it probably was.
"Silver, are you with me?" He asks, pulling a first aid kit from his crossbody bag.
The other blinks at him, eyes focusing for a moment as they attempt to ground themselves, "Y-Yes. I am.... here." They reply in a halting tone.
Espio nods, taking his water bottle and pouring it over the gash to rinse off the worst of the blood before taking a clean cloth from the first aid kit and dabbing it along the tender skin. Without as much blood he can see that the wound is mostly shallow, and should be okay with a few butterfly closures. If it was really bad he could take Silver to Sonic's mom for stitches. She was a vet, not a doctor, but had given good stitches to them in the past. He pulls the box of band-aids out of the bag and starts at the elbow. Pinching the skin of the wound together before placing the bandaid on the clean skin. As he's doing so something catches his eye.
Literally, inside Silver's wound was something... metallic? Espio frowns, bringing Silver's arm closer to try and get a better look. From what he could tell there was some sort of thin metal wire in the deepest part of Silver's cut. He shouldn't leave it in there, as odd as it was to even be there amongst the red bleeding sinew. Deftly he pulls a plastic pair of tweezers out of the first aid kit and carefully reaches into the wound, avoiding the tender inner skin and pinching the tweezers around the wire.
Silver's pale white glove wraps tightly around his wrist. The others hands are ice cold through the gloves, and he flinches. Looking up he meets the other's chilling gaze. A droplet of blood drips down the side of their face and off their chin. He feels it land on the back of his hand and shudders.
"Don't touch that." Silver whispers, voice a low hiss.
"Is it supposed to be there?" Espio shoots back, glancing down at the foreign object in the others body.
"Yes, just leave it."
Espio nods, releasing the wire. Now was not the time to question Silver about this. That was something for later. Silver lets go of his hand and he makes quick work placing the remaining butterfly closures and wrapping the wound with gauze. Once done with that he soaks the already bloodied cloth in water and wipes the blood away from Silver's temple and cheek as the other purs on their raincoat. As he suspected the head wound was rather shallow. From the bruising around it, he could deduce that the main source of injury was blunt force trauma. He applies and bandaid to the cut after disinfecting it and packs away the first aid kit. Beside him, Amy, and Sonic were discussing what to do. Surly waiting for him to finish patching up Silver.
"Are you hurt anywhere else?" He asks, running his eyes over Silver's body. Dirt was smearing their usually pristine white clothing, but no blood was visible.
"No, not physically." Silver replies, rubbing their eyes and blinking rapidly, "Can you help me up?"
Espio nods and stands, taking Silver's uninjured arm and pulling them to their feet. The other sways slightly, and Espio quickly situates himself under Silver's arm, looping it over his shoulder and standing to take the brunt of their weight.
"Oh shit, Silver are you okay?" Sonic asks, stepping forward and running his eyes over Silver.
"Yes, physically I'm okay." Silver replies.
"Here, follow my finger." Sonic raises a finger and slowly moves it in front of Silver's face. Espio can't see the other's reaction from where he's standing, but judging by Sonic's expression it wasn't good, "Silver, are you gonna be okay you do not look good."
"Yes, I will be." Silver says, leaning hard against Espio's shoulder, "I happened to get hit in the head while using my Psychokenisis, this often causes black outs, synesthesia, disorientation, and nausea."
A panicked expression appears on Sonic's face and he shares a look with an equally surprised Amy. Espio wraps an arm around Silver's side and adjusts their position.
"Will you be okay? Do you need to go back to the Rez?"
"They can't go back." Blaze says, "Silver brought us here."
"Fuck." Sonic rubs his hands over his face and taps his foot quickly, "How long does this last?"
"A few hours, give or take."
Sonic tilts his head, brows furrowing as he thinks. Espio is mostly just happy to hear that Silver will be okay soon.
"Here, I'll just go get the Emerald!"
"Sonic wait-"
The man dashes off in a streak of blue. Deep in the temple, there's a loud rumbling noise before Sonic returns to the room. Bright Emerald in hand.
"Done and done, another Emerald in the bag!"
"Sonic! Did you hear Blaze! Silver can't take us back yet!" Amy yells, resting her balled fists on her hips, "Now we have to sit around for hours and we can't even have fun with it!"
"Oh." Sonic at least has the decency to look embarrassed, "Well shit should we call Knux?"
"You know what he would say to you?" Amy asks, causing Sonic to sigh.
"Right."
Espio glances up at Silver, who was looking down at him. Espio shrugs and Silver nods with a sigh. Looks like they were just going to have to wait here for the time being.
"Can you put me down now?" Silver asks softly.
"Yeah, I can." Espio gently lowers Silver to the ground, deciding to crouch beside them while they recovered.
Behind him, Amy and Sonic continue discussing what to do, but for now, he wants to focus on Silver. They looked slightly better now. A little more color was in their cheeks. Espio unhooks his water bottle and wordlessly holds it out to Silver. The other blinks at the bottle before reaching out, missing the bottle by a few inches. Gloved hand swiping at thin air. They frown and reach once more, missing again by an inch. Not wanting to watch Silver struggle he presses the water bottle into the others hand. Silver smiles gratefully and takes the bottle from Espio, opening it and taking a sip. They miss their mouth and dump water all over their chin.
"Here, let me-"
"No. It's okay I can do it." Silver interrupts, determined look on his face.
He watches Silver squeeze their eyes shut and take a deep breath. A few moments pass before they open their eyes and are able to put the water bottle to their lips and take a deep drink.
Yeah, they were going to be stuck here until Silver recovers enough to teleport them out. Considering how calm Silver was; Espio wasn't particularly worried about their condition. Still, he didn't like seeing Silver so out of it. Taking the water bottle back he clips it to his bag and sits across from Silver. As he stares at Silver he finds himself at a loss for words. Talking to Silver was easy, they had been at it all morning. It was his conversation with Amy that was giving him pause. Her questions had forced him to recognize his budding affection for Silver. It's harder to ignore something when it's spelled out like that.
Espio shakes his head to clear away the convoluted thoughts tumbling over in his mind. Now was not the time to worry about such trivial things. Right now Silver needed help, not a boyfriend.
"Is there anything I can do to make you feel better?' He asks, figuring that Silver would know the best way to care for himself.
"Uhm, you can talk to me if you'd like. It keeps me grounded. And I like the sound of your voice. Especially right now."
Espio tilts his head down in an attempt to hide the blush that's surly covering his face by now. Why did Silver have to say it like that? It only reminded him of what Amy had been saying earlier that she thought Silver-
No. Stop.
Focus.
"A few days ago, during the mission into the government facility." He begins, "You became incredibly worked up when I turned invisible at one point. Why?"
Silver runs their gloved fingers over their bracer, "... I apologize for my actions, Espio."
"That's not what I asked."
He watches Silver's shoulders slump and they sigh, biting their soft pink lower lip. After a few moments Silver speaks up.
"When... when someone dies their Chaos Signature vanishes completely. Back in that place, when you activated your Chaos Control I felt your Chaos Signature disappear and I didn't see you I-"
Slowly he reaches out and rests his hand over Silver's, running a thumb over the symbols on the palm of Silver's gloves. Silver's hand twitches slightly.
"I was reminded of the last time I saw my brother."
Espio's eyes widen as he stares at Silver's distant yellow eyes. They had mentioned having parents, so it's not like they wouldn't have had siblings. Silver opens their mouth to speak again, taking a shaking breath before closing their eyes and pulling their hand away to cover their mouth. He watches Silver's bright yellow eyes glitter with unshed tears as they attempt to collect themselves. Espio feels terrible for prying and bringing Silver to tears. They must have been so lonely after such a traumatic event. He couldn't even imagine how he would feel if something so terrible happened to Charmy. Tentatively he reaches out to Silver, fingers brushing against the soft cool skin of their cheek as he cups their cheek. Silver's eyes meet his own and he brushes a thumb over the other's sharp cheekbone. Even so slightly he can feel Silver lean into his touch as their eyes shut.
"How long have you been alone, Silver?" He whispers as his heart races in his chest at the touch.
A few moments pass before Silver abruptly stands up. They sway slightly before walking without difficulty towards Sonic.
"Oh, Silver are you-"
"Chaos Control."
Espio blinks and he finds himself sitting on the floor of Knuckles living room. He stares at his empty hand, feeling a phantom tingle where he had touched Silver. Had... he said something wrong? No. It was more likely that he had overwhelmed the other with his line of questioning. Still, he did feel a bit hurt at being spurned suddenly. Clenching his fist he sighs and stands up. It was time to head home anyway.
"Espio?" Silver's voice gives him pause, and he turns to look at them.
"What is it?"
"I'm going to stay and cook dinner with Mighty while the others take the Emerald to the island. Would you like to help?" Silver asks, avoiding meeting his gaze.
"No." He says quickly, "I've been here all morning. I should be getting home. Vector needs the car." He adds after Silver's face falls.
"Oh yes! Time flies doesn't it?" Silver laughs, "...I'll see you tomorrow?"
Silver looks unsure of themselves, biting their lip and fidgeting with their bracers. Espio smiles at them.
"Of course, you will." He says, slipping past them and towards the door, "Keep those wounds clean for me."
"I will!"
Espio steps outside and takes a deep breath. More questions than answers yet again. At least he can rest easy knowing that Silver wouldn't be leaving forever.