Chapter Text
Sunlight filtered through the trees, shielding Sonic from the heat of direct sunlight but still perfectly highlighting the bright blue color of his spikes.
He strolled along the border of a random cliff located just outside of Green Hill, careful not to get too close to the edge.
Slow wasn't his preferred style of travel—but oddly, for some reason, he wasn't in much of a running mood. His mind was preoccupied with that damn phrase.
“A shadow guides the way the light,” Sonic mumbled to himself in irritation, “what's that even supposed to mean?!”
He kicked a nearby rock off the edge in frustration, figuring it'd just fall into the abyss he didn’t bother to look down at.
So he was a little more than shocked when he heard an aggravated huff coming from the cliffside.
Sonic peered down the edge, expecting to see your average bottomless fall.
He was instead greeted by the angry scowl of a supposedly dead—but seemingly alive—emo hedgehog.
Sonic stared blankly, unable to digest what he was seeing. I mean this had to be his imagination right?
Sonic opened his mouth to say somthing—anything, everything—But the words died in his throat.
All he could do was watch as his somber black-and-red counterpart jumped off the edge of the rocky ledge and disappeared into the distance, leaving only a faint trail of orange-red lightning in his path.
Sonic sat on the edge of the cliff, his feet swinging back and forth anxiously, and his mind in a debate with itself on whether or not he really saw Shadow.
That the blast wouldn't have been possible to survive.
The mix of chaos and nuclear energy would be enough to kill Sonic in golden god form.
At least that's what Tails had told him.
But what if by some small chance it wasn't an illusion? What if Shadow managed to survive by some small miracle? What if Tails was wrong?
“Tails, wrong? I think I'm finally losing it,” The hedgehog chuckled out loud as he dusted himself off and turned to leave.
☆~~~~~~~~~☆
The roaring of the vacuum echoed through the house, giving Sonic's ears an unpleasant welcome.
His paws instinctively fly to cover his ears, providing only slight relief.
Peeking into the room the obnoxious sound sourced from, Sonic watches as Tom methodically vacuuming perfect rows into the carpet.
“Uh—Dad, you think you could do that later?!” Sonic shouts over the thunderous whir of the machine.
The vacuum's ear-destroying roar was sharply cut off, only a lingering buzz now bothered the blue hedgehog.
“Hey bud, how was the run?” Tom welcomed as he lifted the machine with his one good arm and snapped it into charge.
Sonic flopped onto the out-of-place couch, and nodded, “It was fine. I have a theory that the birds are secretly judging me.”
That earned a good bit of snickering from Tom who had eased his way into the spot next to the blur.
“And what makes you think this?”
“I swear on my life that they are! Those eyes are full of judgment!” Blue whined.
☆~~~~~~~~~☆
Sonic laid on his back staring at the ceiling, one arm draped over his forehead, the other resting on his stomach.
He couldn't sleep. His mind wondered from thought to thought—Shadow, that bracelet, how older generations expect the younger generation to fix the world they fucked up, despite the fact that they could more easily do it themselves because they have most of the wealth, status, and power.
Missing Shadow felt wrong—like a betrayal. A betrayal to his dad. To his family. To his friends. The guilt weighed heavy on his conscience.
Sonic tossed around for a while trying to get comfortable—to no avail.
He couldn’t help but wonder what if Tails really was wrong? What if he had seen Shadow? His mind wouldn't shut up about the possibility that Shadow could be alive. They could finally be friends.
He sat up with a sigh and turned to look at the time. The screen lit up with a dim‘1:23AM’ on it.“It wouldn't hurt to check. Clear my conscience.” He whispered to himself out loud.
Sonic glanced over at Knuckles and Tails, double-checking that the two were deeply sound. He then, slowly, opens the window behind his bed and slides out onto the roof.