Chapter Text
Sonic let out a small groan as he woke up, though, as always, he was careful not to sit up too quickly, as his tiny echidna boyfriend Knuckles was resting there. He couldn't remember how long they'd been dating, but it'd been the best however-long time of his life.
He placed a hand over Knuckles, then slowly sat up, letting the echidna fall onto his hand.
"Hey, c'mon, time to get up if you wanna go into town with me," Sonic said playfully, giving Knuckles a quick wake-up kiss.
"Okay okay, I'm up," Knuckles mumbled sleepily, but chuckled.
He stretched and yawned, then rubbed his eyes. "So, what are we gonna do today?"
Sonic shrugged. "I dunno. I'm never really a plans guy," he said. "Maybe we could just walk around a little after breakfast?"
"Sure," Knuckles replied. Honestly, he didn't really care what they did; everything was a lot more fun when they were together.
Sonic smiled, then got ready to go out for the day, sticking Knuckles inside his bandana as he always did. As he started to leave, he glanced over to the tiny bed on the table and scoffed.
"There's that perfectly good bed I made for you, and you never use it!" he teased.
"Eh, you're way better than a bed anyway," Knuckles replied with a smirk.
"You didn't know? I'm a bed 2.0," Sonic continued to tease on their way out. "Super advanced model. Of course I'm comfier. I'm a bed that makes beds; that's how awesome I am."
Knuckles chuckled. "Totally awesome," he agreed.
Sonic giggled in response.
--
As the two got to town, they performed their usual methods to keep Knuckles a secret. At this point, they were pros; Sonic could even manage talking to Knuckles without being considered suspicious. Even at breakfast, they had a system; it was mostly because Knuckles was comfortable enough with just Sonic and a few others knowing while Sonic got his own thrill about keeping his tiny boyfriend a secret.
Once they'd finished up, Sonic headed out further into the town, trying to think of what Knuckles would like to see. As his eyes locked with the pet store sign, he made a beeline for it, walking up the steps and staring over at all the animals that were gazing back up at him.
"Hehe, this place look familiar, Knux?" he asked.
Knuckles' eyes lit up in recognition. "Oh yeah, I remember this place!"
Sonic smiled and pulled Knuckles out of his bandana, letting him rest on his hand. "See anyone y'like today?"
Knuckles looked around, spotting the puppies. He scanned through the adorable fluffballs, but the one in particular he was looking for wasn't there.
"Aw, my little friend isn't here anymore..." he said, sighing in disappointment.
"Hm?" Sonic took a moment to recall. "...Ohhh, right, the little brown pup?"
"Yeah," Knuckles confirmed.
"I guess someone came by and bought him..." Sonic figured, frowning at Knuckles' sad expression.
"That's too bad," Knuckles replied, "I felt like we had something special..."
Sonic smiled sadly, petting Knuckles' head. "Don't get too down, okay? We'll come back some other time and they might have some other--"
His words of comfort were cut short as he heard an explosion from off in the distance. He sped a bit away from the pet store to search the skies, eventually managing to catch sight of Eggman in the distance.
He knelt down, placing Knuckles on the ground. "I better go; gotta do my hero thing, y'know?" He winked.
"Do you want me to come back for ya, or are you just gonna meet me at home?"
There were a few occasions where Knuckles preferred to walk himself home to take in the sights, so he wanted to give him the option.
"I'll meet ya back at home," Knuckles replied.
Sonic nodded, then bolted off to go take care of Eggman.
Knuckles began the stroll home, enjoying the lovely weather. Even though he loved being carried around by Sonic, it felt good to stretch his legs every now and then.
Then, suddenly, a trash can came crashing down in front of him, nearly giving the echidna a heart attack. However, a familiar-looking puppy rolled out of it, whimpering sadly from the impact.
Knuckles gasped in shock, quickly rushing over to help the poor puppy.
"Oh my gosh! You okay buddy?" he asked, even though he knew he wouldn't get a reply.
The puppy squeaked sadly, but once it locked eyes with Knuckles, it lit up happily, standing up and wagging its tail excitedly.
However, as if it suddenly remembered something bad, its tail drooped down and it looked away from him. He wore a collar, but the name tag part of it was scratched out.
"What happened to you?" Knuckles asked, suddenly wishing he could speak Dog.
The puppy whimpered, resting down on the ground and "saying" nothing else.
Knuckles sat down next to the sad fluffball and stroked its fur comfortingly, wishing he knew what to do.
The puppy relaxed against his touch, letting out tiny whines and pressing against the echidna to show that he was content.
"So...I guess you have an owner now, huh?" Knuckles mumbled sadly. "Though...where are they anyway? How come you're out here all alone?"
The puppy whined further, seeming very sad about answering. It tried to convey this to Knuckles, but it was hard.
Knuckles' eyes went wide as realization slowly dawned on him.
"...th-they're not coming back for you, are they?"
The puppy shook its head, hiding its face behind its paws.
Knuckles' heart broke.
"Aw, c'mere..."
He hugged the pup, stroking its fur again.
The puppy barked happily, rubbing against Knuckles, though a little dirt managed to rub off on the echidna in the process.
Knuckles didn't mind though. His heart melted instantly.
He wondered what he should do. He wanted so badly to take the puppy home, but...would Sonic be alright with that?
After a few minutes of silence, he made up his mind.
"You can come stay with me! And even if Sonic says we can't keep you...w-we'll at least make sure you go to a good home where you'll get lots of love and never be left behind. Okay?"
The puppy perked up at this, nodding. It looked around, then started walking over to a nearby fountain. It hopped in, splashing around and lapping at the water, then came out, much cleaner than before as it shook itself off. It then got Knuckles onto its back, barking at him, as if to ask where to go.
Knuckles smiled. "That way!" he said, pointing.
The puppy rushed off, heading towards wherever Knuckles led it.
--
As it neared Sonic's shack, it slowed to a stop, now off to the side of the entrance. Some mumbling could be heard from Sonic, but Knuckles couldn't tell what he was saying.
"H-hey, Sonic, I'm home!" Knuckles greeted as casually as he could.
There was a small yelp from Sonic, and the puppy walked in with Knuckles on its back. Sonic was turned away from the two, back facing them.
"Ah, so... what's up?" Sonic asked, sounding just as "casual".
"I-I, uh...I have something to show you..."
"O-oh, uh, really?" Sonic asked. "Me too, actually..."
"R-really?" Knuckles asked. "U-uh...w-who should go first?"
Sonic chuckled sheepishly. "I-I'm guessin' we're talkin' about two toootally different things." There was a small pause. "Should we... just go at the same time?"
"H-heh, s-sure..."
"All right... now!" Sonic turned around, his eyes widening as he noticed the puppy that Knuckles was riding on. In his hands was a baby Mobian kitten, who seemed very attached to Sonic as she clung to his arm.
"U-uh... well..."
"Well..."
Sonic got off his hammock, then knelt down to Knuckles and showed him the little baby. "I found this little one abandoned near where I was fighting Eggman. She was all dirty, so I cleaned her up and wrapped her in this blanket."
"Awww..." Knuckles felt his heart melt for the second time that day. "Hi there!"
The little cat stared at Knuckles, reaching out to him. "Ba?"
"Easy," Sonic told her. "That's my boyfriend you're lookin' at."
The kitty giggled, then lightly grabbed Knuckles' hand.
Knuckles giggled with her. "Nice to meet ya!"
He looked down at the puppy he was riding on. "And I think this guy is happy to meet you too! He was all alone too...guess you've got something in common already, huh?"
The cat smiled.
"Sooo... y'wouldn't mind if she stayed?" Sonic asked.
"If you don't mind this guy staying too," Knuckles replied, petting the puppy's head.
"'Course not!" Sonic told him. "It's just... since this is a baby... and we're keeping her..." He paused.
"...That kinda makes you a dad, y'know? Makes us dads..."
"Y-yeah..." Knuckles realized.
After that fact sunk in, he practically squeed with glee. "I'm a dad! You're a dad! We have a baby! And a puppy too! We're all a family!"
Sonic chuckled. "I never knew you wanted to be a dad!"
Knuckles blushed, chuckling in return. "Y-yeah, I've kinda thought about it before...though I was worried that a kid would think it was weird how tiny I was," he admitted. "And...I also just wasn't sure if you'd be okay with it."
"Aw, Knux," Sonic smiled, lightly petting his boyfriend. "I'm sure any kid would love to have you as a dad," he assured.
"Y-ya think so?" Knuckles smiled back.
"You kiddin'? 'Course I do!" Sonic exclaimed. "You got the heart for it."
Knuckles' blush deepened. "A-aww, y-you..."
"I mean, y'proved it today by bringin' home this little guy," Sonic pointed out, petting the puppy's head.
"So...if we're all family now...the two new members need names, don't they?" Knuckles asked.
"Hmm, that's true..." Sonic thought for a moment, then grinned. "Hey, why not name the pup after your real name? Nakka--"
He stopped, still not able to pronounce it right. "Er... 'Kuru'. Kuru for short..." He blushed.
"Hehe, that works!" Knuckles chuckled. "Now what to name our kid...?"
"Mmm, I dunno yet." Sonic suddenly perked up. "Oh, but check this out!"
He grinned, then looked down at the kitty. He reached down to her tummy, then started running his hand along it. The baby giggled, then blew out a small flame, though it quickly turned into smoke and vanished away.
Knuckles' eyes went wide. "Whoa! That's cool."
He thought for a moment, resting a hand on his chin.
"Aha, I've got it: Blaze!"
"Blaze?" Sonic chuckled, then looked down to the little kitty. "How do ya like that?"
The baby cheered happily, then grabbed up Knuckles and hugged him.
Sonic smiled. "Hey, watch it; he's mine!"
Knuckles smiled and hugged her back. "Blaze, and Kuru--welcome to the family."
Kuru jumped up happily, barking to show his approval, while Blaze continued to cheer.
Sonic smiled and took Knuckles from Blaze, setting him on the floor. "What should we do now with the new family, bud?"
"Hmmm...I dunno, what kinds of things do families do?" Knuckles asked.
Sonic became stumped. "...Huh, good question."
Knuckles looked at Blaze and Kuru. "Either of you got ideas?"
Kuru and Blaze glanced at each other, not seeming to understand.
"Hmm..." Sonic shrugged. "Well, first, we gotta prepare stuff so we can keep these two around."
"Oh yeah, you're right," Knuckles replied sheepishly. "Didn't think about that..."
"Wanna take a trip back to the village then?" Sonic asked with a smile.
"Sure!" Knuckles returned the smile.
"Then I guess you get to go back to your favorite spot," Sonic told him, offering his hand down to Knuckles.
"Yee!" Knuckles climbed onto his hand.
Sonic chuckled, amused at Knuckles' excitement, then placed him inside his bandana as per usual.
Once Blaze was surely secured with one arm, he left the house, Kuru following closely behind.
--
The rest of the day was spent gathering up everything they'd need for the new members of their family. Sonic was sure he looked odd carrying a baby, but he ignored any looks he got.
He then returned home and began to set everything up, though Knuckles was obviously of little help due to his size.
It was alright, though; Knuckles was content to play with the new baby and puppy while Sonic got everything ready.
"Having fun without me?" Sonic asked with a fake pout as he finished up. Blaze giggled in response, as if to tease him.
"Come join us!" Knuckles offered with a grin.
"I wouuuld, but..." Sonic smirked and picked Blaze up. "It's time for a certain little princess to go to bed."
"Awww," Knuckles replied, disappointed. "Well, can me and Kuru say goodnight at least?"
"I guess," Sonic said playfully, holding Blaze up to them.
Knuckles hugged Blaze and gave her a soft kiss on her forehead.
"'Night!"
Then he held Kuru up to her, who licked her cheek.
"Kuru says goodnight too!"
Blaze smiled at the kiss, but let out a tiny whine as Sonic took her over to her newly-set-up crib.
"No complaining now," Sonic said, placing her inside. She pouted, but seemed to accept it as Sonic tucked her in.
"And you." Sonic pointed at Kuru. "Off to bed." He pointed at the doggy bed.
Kuru also whined, but otherwise complied--though, not without giving his new owners each a puppy kiss, and Knuckles an affectionate nuzzle.
"Euck." Sonic giggled, lightly wiping off the slobber on his cheek with a paper towel.
He then went over to Knuckles. "And you're comin' with me."
He picked the echidna up and laid back on his hammock. Knuckles snuggled into him, smiling wide.
Sonic pet him affectionately. "Someone sounds happy," he said, hearing a small rumbling coming from Knuckles' throat.
"Hehe, sure am," Knuckles replied.
"And you're a proud dad, hm?" Sonic teased.
Knuckles nodded. "Mmhmm!"
Sonic found it a little cute, relaxing back and eventually drifting off to sleep.
Knuckles fell asleep around the same time, still wearing a smile on his face.