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English
Series:
Part 4 of blue blur brainrot
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Published:
2022-04-09
Updated:
2022-04-17
Words:
1,731
Chapters:
2/6
Comments:
53
Kudos:
936
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5 times the brothers were there for each other (and 1 time their parents were there)

Summary:

Taking a dive into Sonic, Knuckles and Tails' relationship as brothers, as well as Tom and Maddie being their parents and exploring the different times they were there for each other, as family.

That's it. That's the fic.

Family fuckin fluff.

 

💫💫 potential Sonic 2 movie spoilers!!

Notes:

💫 TWs
none

Chapter 1: storm

Chapter Text

Tails wakes up in a scare, the house rumbling as the sky lights up. His tails are tense, swishing back and forth, fur puffed out from fear. For a moment, he breathes quickly, unable to calmly get air into his lungs, hugging the blankets close to him as he tries not to panic. Then, he looks around, and he recognizes the attic.

Right, the attic.

Sonic’s home— their home. It’s their home now, he’s part of this family now.

He exhales, breathing shaky, and he looks over at Sonic. The hedgehog is still asleep, rest not disturbed by the raging storm outside. On the other side, Knuckles is under his own covers, a deep rumble coming from his chest, resembling snoring. Both of his brothers are in deep sleep, and the fox is wide awake, trembling from head to toe.

Lighting comes down on the earth, quick, and thunder resonates all around, a loud drum that shakes the ground slightly, and Tails lets out a squeal. He clenches the blankets tighter, wrapping his two tails around himself, closing his eyes and rocking back and forth.

Surely it would pass, surely it wouldn’t last all night long.

The fox whimpers, trying to keep his breathing even, and when he opens his eyes, neither of his brothers move.

With a quiet sigh, Tails gets out of bed, walking slowly, fidgeting as he approaches Knuckles’ bed. He stares at the sleeping echidna, who is buried under two blankets, and with a shaky hand, the kit taps his older brother’s shoulder.

It takes a while, and with one last tap, Knuckles stirs awake, groaning as he pushes the blankets off of him. His large gloves reach for his face, rubbing it for a moment before he turns to Tails.

“What is it?” He asks, but he isn’t angry. He is tired, but not angry.

“I—” Tails tries, and he looks at the window in the ceiling, as if waiting for yet another round of thunder. When nothing happens, he looks at Knuckles, eyes wide with hope and fear. “I can’t sleep.”

“Why?” Knuckles yawns, rubbing his eyes again. “Does Sonic happen to snore too loud?”

At that, Tails manages a snicker, although it’s quiet. He shakes his head, even if the young warrior can’t see him.

“No, it’s just— I can’t sleep through the storm.” He whispers, fidgeting with his fingers. “I was wondering if I could— but only if you want to! I just— I wouldn’t wanna be a bother and— the storm is too loud and—”

He’s cut off when Knuckles yawns, pulling up his blankets, waiting. Tails only stares for a moment, rubbing at his fingers as he looks at the open space in Knuckles’ bed. They’re quiet for a moment, until the echidna raises his arms a bit more, moving the covers.

“Come on. Lay down.” He says, voice raspy and eyes heavy. He still isn’t angry.

“You don’t mind?” Tails asks, tails swishing behind him.

“I don’t. Come lay down.” Knuckles replies, yawning yet again.

Slowly, the youngest climbs on, nuzzling under the blankets when Knuckles pulls them over the both of them. He shifts closer to the echidna, wrapping his tails close to him as he does so, eyes growing heavy already once he’s in a comfortable position.

And thunder drums again, loud and consistent for a few seconds, and Tails lets out a sound, leaning against Knuckles, as if trying to hide from whatever danger roams outside. His brother doesn’t push him away.

The sound stops, leaving place for the gentle thumps of the rain hitting the house, rhythmic and quiet. Tails shudders, burying his face into the echidna’s chest. When he feels Knuckles’ hand on the top of his head, gently rubbing his skull, Tails relaxes, breathing slowly.

“It is alright. You are safe.” Knuckles reminds him, keeping his voice soft, showing a side only his little family can see. “Just breathe.”

Tails manages a nod, nuzzling against his brother. He inhales deeply and opens his eyes to stare at a familiar red pelt. He exhales, and he just now notices that Knuckles follows his breathing, inhaling deeply and exhaling slowly, letting all of the air exit their lungs, and they repeat.

“There you go.” The echidna murmurs, nuzzling into the fox’s fur, closing his eyes as the rumble in his chest begins again.

“Thanks, Knuckles.” Tails smiles, wrapping one of his tails around his brother’s waist.

Then, the bed dips behind him, and the both of them hear a familiar groan.

“Slumber party without me? Dishonor.” Sonic grumbles, eyes still closed as he settles behind the fox kit, wrapping an arm around his brother and holding onto Knuckles, locking them all into a sleepy group hug.

“Shut up.” Knuckles hisses, reaching over to pull Sonic closer. Once they are comfortable, the echidna relaxes, and the rumble comes back.

“You shu’up.” The hedgehog retorts, tongue heavy, and his breathing becomes deep, almost like a snore.

With a smile, Tails lets himself drift, listening to his brothers’ breathing, and as he falls into a deeper slumber, the thunder faces into a distant sound, and he manages to sleep through the night, cuddled into his brothers.

Chapter 2: nightmares

Summary:

The echidna exhales, ignoring how his arms tremble.

He’s at home. He’s home.

He’s safe.

 

or, Knuckles has a nightmare
silent fluff ensues

Notes:

💫 TWs
nightmare
blood and death mentioned and implied

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

Nightmares aren’t common for Knuckles. They aren’t important. He only wakes up in a quick scare, catches his breath and then goes straight back to sleep. Luckily, they don’t happen every night.

However, when they do happen, it isn’t painless.

Growing up alone, without a family, without a tribe anymore taught him a few things.

First, that emotions were hard when you didn’t have anyone to talk to. Bottling them up or just releasing them with only anger were the main things he did. Up until he joined the Wachowski family with Tails.

Second, your quest is the main priority over anything else. Whatever stands in your way must be removed immediately. Emotions were part of that.

Third, survival. Only survival. Needing to fend for himself, learn how to live without the support of a whole tribe anymore. Living constantly on edge, unable to rest properly, to get a good night’s sleep, all while questing for the very thing your tribe tried to find and yet perished.

Fourth, friends weren’t real. He never had friends. Until Robotnik. But the man betrayed him. Until Tails and Sonic came around. But back then, friends weren’t a thing, not anymore.

Fifth, affection was no more. He had no one to show affection to, not even himself. He couldn’t waste time caring for himself when he had an emerald to find once before. When he needed to fulfill the destiny his tribe failed at.

Sixth—

It didn’t matter. Not anymore. He had a family now, a new tribe to call his own, one he would protect with his life. Honor it with the best of his abilities, all while taking care of himself.

At first, affection was difficult to learn again. He only started with little gestures, reaching to hold onto Maddie’s fingers, keeping Tails in sight, bumping his shoulder against Sonic’s and walking by Tom’s side. Slowly, he grew comfortable with them, not hesitating when he scooped either of his brothers in his arms, lifting them high and laughing with them.

So when his mind shows him flashing images of horror, blood, screams, a family that calls out to him, he wakes up with a choked gasp, sitting up and gripping at the couch.

His breathing is uneven, ragged, and his gloves glow for a moment, bright red flickering around tense knuckles, eyes fixated on the carpet.

Oh. He’s at home.

The echidna exhales, ignoring how his arms tremble.

He’s at home. He’s home.

He’s safe.

Knuckles breathes in again, just like Maddie taught him and his brothers. Inhaling as much air as he can, before letting it go. He does it again, a few more times, until his arms are still.

They’re all safe.

He takes a look outside and sees that his family is playing. They’re playing tag, a new game Sonic had introduced to both him and Tails a few weeks ago. They’re shooting, laughing, and of course, the blue blur has yet to be tagged. Maddie seems to be tag.

The young warrior sighs, rubbing his face with a large glove. They’re all safe.

As the others continue to play, he gets off the couch, not paying any kind to how his neck throbs to his previous position. He climbs up the stairs, just barely hearing the front door open as he reaches the attic.

When he’s up, he goes to his bed, familiar red covers inviting him, and he collapses on his pillow.

He ignores the uncomfortable echo of the pleas he heard in his nightmare, he ignores how much blood there was. He can talk tomorrow morning.

With that, he rests.

…

Knuckles opens his eyes. He realizes he missed dinner.

His stomach growls slightly, but he ignores it. For now, food isn’t his priority.

The echidna doesn’t yawn or stretch as he leaves his bed, throwing his blankets to the side without a care. He stands there for a moment, unsure what to do, before he makes his way towards the fox’s bed.

Tails is sleeping soundly, curled up in a comfortable ball of blankets and pillows, breathing softly. Knuckles smiles at the sight, almost feeling guilty as he reaches for the kid.

Luckily, Tails doesn’t stir awake, only cuddling close to his brother once he’s safely nestled in strong arms, and the warrior brings the fox kit to the hedgehog’s bed.

Sonic is nestled into one side of his bed, nose deep into his pillow and covers resting just above his shoulder. Knuckles is gentle as he settles the fox down, and he smiles again when Tails turns over to hug their brother, wrapping small arms around the blue blur’s abdomen and resting one of his tails over his waist.

Then, all while being careful not to disturb them, Knuckles climbs in, pulling Sonic’s covers over them all and cuddling close to his brothers.

Subconsciously, the kit’s remaining tail drapes over Knuckles, and with a quiet snort, the echidna closes his eyes.

He’s comfortable, he’s safe, and so are his brothers.

That night, no nightmares haunt him, and none of them wake up when there’s a flash right over them, as well as hushed bickering between their two parents.

Notes:

giving y’all a bit of Knuckles centric
hOPE YOU ENJOYED!!
💖💖

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