Chapter Text
Blaze hadn’t expected the forest to be as muddy as it was that afternoon as she walked beneath the trees, her keen hazel eyes searching for a brown chao in the undergrowth. Chocola had apparently run off during a game of hide and seek with Cream and Cheese. “He must be so cold and scared out there!” Cream had said, tears welling in her eyes as she’d looked imploringly at Blaze. “But Mommy won’t let me look for him. Can you please go look for him, Miss Blaze?”
It was impossible to say no to Cream’s pleading face; Blaze had found this out a few weeks ago when she’d first come to this new dimension. So she didn’t even try to resist, and she’d promised that at the very least she would try.
Vanilla had offered to come with her, but Blaze had politely declined, electing to go alone instead. She could find a little chao on her own without too much trouble. Or so she’d thought.
Now as her pink boots grew increasingly muddier and her purple fur clung uncomfortably to her skin, she debated turning back. She shivered, snapping her fingers and managing to form a tiny flame before the rain snuffed it out with a hiss of steam.
Blaze sighed. “Where is he?”
“Where's who?”
Blaze jumped and whirled around to find Sonic standing behind her, rain dripping from his ears and quills as he smiled sheepishly. “Sorry, didn’t mean to scare you,” he said. “But who’re you looking for?”
Blaze relaxed a little. “Chocola ran off while he was playing with Cream and Cheese,” she explained. “Cream asked me to find him.”
“Oh,” said Sonic. “I can help you. I’m sure he can't be too far. Where were they playing?”
“I—“
“And don’t start the whole ‘I don’t need help’ thing again,” Sonic said with a playful smirk. Blaze felt her cheeks warm, and she pulled her ears back in shame. That was exactly what she’d been about to say.
Sonic smiled and shook his head. “Come on,” he said. “Let’s find Chocola before you both catch a cold.”
He reached out and grabbed Blaze’s hand, pulling her along as he searched the forest, going quickly but not so much that she couldn’t keep up. At first Blaze was too stunned to react. She didn’t usually let anyone touch her for fear of accidentally setting them aflame. But something in her stomach fluttered at his touch, and her heart began to pound in her chest as heat rushed to her face.
As soon as she realized what was happening, she pulled her hand out of his grasp, and he halted, turning to look at her questioningly. “Is something wrong?” Sonic asked.
“Don’t touch me,” was all Blaze could think to say, her heart still thumping.
Sonic raised an eyebrow at her, and she wasn’t sure whether or not she imagined the sad droop in his quills. “Okay…” he said. Fortunately he didn’t push it, and Blaze didn’t have to try to articulate what was clearly wrong with her at that moment. Maybe she was already getting sick, a fever messing with her perception. That would explain why despite the cold rain soaking her fur she felt almost overheated.
She was about to suggest they head back before Blaze heard a tiny sneeze, followed by a pitiful, “Chao, chao…”
Blaze saw Sonic’s ear twitch, and he was off like a shot towards the sound, leaving Blaze to hurry after him. She ran, tripping once on a tree root and falling in the mud, but she got back up quickly, fortunately not having sprained her ankle. Now her coat was surely ruined, though she hardly cared.
She found Sonic in a clearing, his ears perked as he listened for another sound from the chao. Her own ears perked up, and after a moment she called out, “Chocola? Are you there?”
“Chao!” cried a small voice from behind a bunch of broad leaves. Sonic ran over to find the little brown chao sitting on a root, sneezing as he reached his little arms out to be picked up. He must not have been able to fly with wet wings.
“Hey, little guy,” Sonic said gently, scooping him into his hands. “Let’s get you home, okay?”
Chocola nodded, then curled up against Sonic’s chest for warmth. As Sonic geared up to run while holding the little chao, an idea formed in Blaze’s mind.
“Wait,” she said. “Let me try something…”
Sonic frowned, but nodded, handing Chocola over to her when she reached out for him. Carefully, Blaze called her flames to just beneath the surface of her skin, the rain hissing and steaming as it pelted her fur. She dialed it back just a little, and the chao snuggled up against her muddy coat, cooing contentedly at the warmth.
Blaze looked up to find Sonic smiling at her, and she felt her flames rise a little before she quickly brought them back down, not wanting to burn Chocola on accident. Still, that fluttering in her stomach didn’t want to go away.
“Come on,” Sonic said. “Let’s head back. I don’t want you getting sick either.”
He walked away, then turned around, waiting for her to follow. She nodded and walked behind him, trying to ignore the fact that her nose was starting to run. However, after a minute, Blaze sneezed too, calling Sonic’s attention.
He stopped and turned around, his eyes wide. “Oh, come on,” he said with a laugh. “Don’t tell me…”
“I’m fine,” Blaze said. “I can make it back to Vanilla’s place just fine.”
Sonic raised an eyebrow at her, as if he didn’t believe a word of it, and she finally caved as she sneezed again. “Alright, fine,” she said. “I probably shouldn’t.”
Sonic hesitated, then held out his arms. “I could carry you back,” he suggested. “I know you said no touching, but…”
Blaze felt her cheeks warm again, and now she really couldn’t tell whether or not it was a fever. But she nodded. “Go ahead,” she said, and suddenly Sonic had scooped her up in his arms and raced back, Chocola squeaking indignantly against her coat as he sped out of the forest. Her head was forced against his chest, where she could hear his heartbeat, much faster than her own, even with the sudden dose of adrenaline in her veins.
It was warm here, Blaze found. And though she had been a princess her entire life in the Sol dimension, she had never really felt like one until now, being held in the arms of a strong and… alright, rather handsome young man. Someone who really and truly cared about her and not just her title or her powers.
Within moments they stood outside Vanilla’s home, and Sonic set her down to knock on the door, leaving her cold once again save for her controlled flames to warm Chocola, who was still snuggling up against her chest.
The door opened, revealing Vanilla with Cream peering out from behind her. “Oh, you found them!” Vanilla exclaimed with relief, gently taking the chao from Blaze’s arms. “Thank goodness. Both of you come in before you get sick.”
“A little late for this one,” Sonic said, pointing a thumb in Blaze’s direction. As if on cue the urge to cough rose to Blaze’s throat, and she tried to keep it quiet as she coughed into her elbow.
“Oh, you poor dear,” Vanilla said, beckoning Blaze inside. “Come in, let’s get you cleaned up and warm. You too, Sonic.”
Neither of them protested, and Blaze took off her boots before stepping into the house, not wanting to track too much mud inside. Sonic did the same with his sneakers, stepping inside on socked feet. Cream had already left and come back with a pair of towels, which they took gratefully.
Sonic was mostly dry after running the towel through his quills and over his fur, not having gotten all that muddy. Blaze on the other hand definitely needed a shower to wash the mud out of her fur. So Vanilla ran her one, running her coat and pants through the laundry while Blaze showered, the warm water working wonders on the mud and making her purr, despite the dizziness from her oncoming fever.
Blaze donned a robe when she came back out, her fur clean and mostly dry now. She ran a brush Cream lent her through the hair on her head, encountering more tangles than she thought there would be. She growled in pain and frustration as she pulled.
“Need some help?”
She turned to find Sonic holding his hand out, and this time Blaze didn’t protest, simply handing the brush over and sitting down on the floor in front of the couch, letting him sit on it as he ran the brush through her hair.
His hands were surprisingly gentle, and Blaze could barely feel the brush pulling on the knots. Soon she found herself purring, though she tried to silence it, her cheeks turning red. But Sonic only chuckled. “Glad to know you don’t hate this,” he said.
“How are you so good at this?” Blaze asked. “Even my servants weren’t this good before I started doing it myself.”
“I used to have to help Tails brush his tails,” Sonic replied. “Fox tails get pretty gnarly, especially with how many adventures he and I go on. And he was pretty little when I met him, so I had to learn to be gentle.”
Blaze smiled softly. “Lucky for me then,” she said, and Sonic chuckled.
A little bit later, Sonic handed the brush back to Blaze, running his fingers through her hair one last time before getting up off the couch. Blaze shivered at the contact, but it wasn’t unpleasant. On the contrary; she was sort of sad that he’d stopped.
Sonic smiled at her. “That should do it,” he said. “Now I should probably get going. Feel better soon, Blaze.”
Before Blaze could even respond, he left the room, waving goodbye. Something sank in Blaze’s chest as she followed him a moment later, finding him putting his sneakers on and saying goodbye to Cream and Vanilla, both of them giving him hugs before he turned one more time to Blaze, offering her an almost shy smile.
Just as he turned to leave, Blaze hurried up and wrapped her arms around him, hiding her face in the crook of his neck. Sonic hesitated for a moment, then returned the embrace, his hands warm on her back. “Thank you, Sonic,” Blaze whispered. “For… for helping me.”
“Anytime, Blaze,” Sonic replied, pulling away and winking at her before speeding off.
Blaze stood there staring after him for several moments before Vanilla shut the door. “Come on, dear,” she said gently. “You need rest.”
“Thank you for finding Chocola, Miss Blaze,” Cream said. “I’m sorry that you got sick.”
Blaze smiled. “It’s alright, Cream,” she said. I don’t mind as much… Now if only I had him at the palace when I don’t feel well… “I’ll be better soon. So will Chocola.”
Cream’s ears still drooped a little lower than usual, but then they perked up again, her eyes lighting up as she gasped. “I could bring you some tea and cookies later! I know those always help me feel better when I’m sick!”
“Cream, let’s leave her be for now,” Vanilla said gently. “She needs her rest. But that’s very considerate, sweetheart. We can do that later.”
Cream beamed, and Blaze smiled softly as she turned and headed towards the sofa, curling up on it and closing her eyes. Images of Sonic danced behind her eyelids, and she could almost imagine him running his fingers through her hair again as she fell asleep.