Chapter Text
“Shadow! You’re unstoppable!” Sonic laughed as he watched the other hedgehog, his fur shining with silvery rose gold as he propelled himself clean through the body of another GUN robot. Shrapnel scattered in his wake as he used the momentum to dive through another, then whirled around to throw a spear of pure Chaos through another still.
Shadow looked back at Sonic over his shoulder, smiling—an unguarded smile, full of tenacity and elation. Shadow lifted a brow in challenge as he kicked one of the machines towards him, watching as Sonic curled into a ball to spin dash into its chest, scattering shrapnel into space. Then, Sonic dove at him, his hand outstretched. Shadow reached back for him, and they grasped each others’ hands. They laughed and as they spun around each other, launching themselves forward in a gleeful dance. His laugh. Sonic’s heart soared at the sound of it—the joy in his voice, finally unburdened by the sorrow and regret that had plagued him for decades. The playful way Shadow flew between robots with supernatural agility was thrilling to behold. They moved in perfect unison with one another, each assault of the machines met with a perfectly wordlessly coordinated attack from the two hedgehogs.
There you are, Shadow. This is you. This is the real you.
The stars went dark around them and the machines all faded into nothing. It was just him, Shadow, and the cannon, its bright light pulsing like a threat. Sonic’s smile slowly fell. No. No. No. No. No. This is wrong. They stopped the cannon! They saved the Earth! Before him, Shadow faced the canon, his back to Sonic. He floated like a star in the endless black. Alone.
Panic gripped Sonic’s body. He tried to fly forward, reaching his hand out for his counterpart. But as he did, he felt the power of the Chaos Emeralds wilting in his chest, and he watched with horror as his luminous golden fur began fading back into blue. No. No, please no. Not again! He looked back towards Shadow, his body still shining with power. He couldn’t let him do this! He couldn’t let him do this alone!
Sonic cried out, “Shadow!” His eyes stung with tears as he felt himself being pulled back by Earth’s gravity.
The other hedgehog turned to look at him as he fell further and further away. Shadow’s eyes were no longer playful, his face no longer lit by joy. Instead he was broken, the pain laid bare like the weight of it was a physical burden that he bore. Hopeless and lost. He watched Sonic fall, watched Sonic try to reach for him.
The cannon fired, the radiant beam shooting out from it. Not at Earth, but at Shadow.
“Shadow!” Sonic screamed, scrambling to try and reach him, but Earth’s gravity was too strong. He was helpless to watch as the beam illuminated everything around them, the other hedgehog’s body a silhouette in the blinding light. A dark shadow against the end.
His voice was soft, mournful, defeated as he spoke one last time.
“You can’t save me, Sonic.”
“Shadow!”
The light overtook everything and Shadow’s body shattered as it disintegrated before Sonic’s very eyes. And he could do nothing to stop it….
~~~
Sonic sat straight up in bed, screaming into the darkness of the attic
”Shadow!” His anguished cry was so loud that it reverberated off of the high wooden walls. His blanket around his feet, and cold sweat clung to his skin against blue fur. He grasped at himself, eyes wide as he gasped and panted, desperately trying to take in air. His lungs were tight in his chest as panic gripped his throat and tears rolled down his cheeks.
“Easy, Hedgehog,” He felt the weight of Knuckles’ large palm fall gently on his shoulder, squeezing softly. Sonic flinched, struggling to reorient his mind from the nightmare and ground himself in reality. Another smaller hand squeezed his other shoulder, trying to ease him back into his body.
“It’s ok, Sonic,” Tails whispered to him. “We’re here.”
The physical contact from his brothers cut through the worst of Sonic’s panic, allowing him to focus on his breathing—in and out, in and out, in and out, as slowly as he could manage. His head pounded and his ears rang from the sound of his own screams and the deafening blast of the Eclipse Cannon….
Sonic couldn’t tell if his nightmares were getting worse, but he was sure they weren’t getting better. For weeks after the cannon’s explosion, he would bolt awake every night, his heart pounding and ice in his stomach. He could only get back to sleep until he went through every inch of the house and checked on everyone (Ozzie included) making sure his family was still breathing—still alive. At first, it was the memory of finding Tom’s body laying limp and lifeless in the cold hallway of GUN headquarters. Then it wasn’t just Tom, but all of his family— everyone he loved laying dead before him. Then it was in the Vault, their bodies crushed by concrete and impaled with rebar as the variable gravity malfunctioned in a gruesome display. It was like the nightmares were adapting to any mental fortitude Sonic might build up against the same images night after night and evolving to keep the terror fresh and potent and bleak.
Thankfully as Tom’s injury healed, those horrible night visions began to subside. Then the nightmares of Shadow started in earnest. They weren’t as frequent as the other dreams had been, but they became far more devastating. Sometimes he was lucky and the sound of his own unconscious cries and whimpers were enough to wake him. Or one of his brothers heard his distress and woke him, interrupting the horror to which he’d been about to bear witness. But more often than not, he woke up to full blown panic attacks when he stayed asleep long enough for them to play out entirely.
The nightmares of his family dead or dying were ghastly and horrible, but the impact of that horror grew more and more blunt when he could check on everyone immediately afterwards, reassuring himself and his subconscious that all was well—they were alright.
Maybe that’s why he would get no such relief from the nightmares about Shadow— and they only seemed to get worse. Because Shadow was dead.
And it was Sonic’s fault.
Eventually, he took a final breath through his nose, his chest and belly expanding as he drew air in deep, then let it out slowly through his mouth.
“I’m good,” He said, trying to sound reassuring, even as his voice shook. He tried not to be embarrassed about it. Tails and Knuckles didn’t move from where they sat next to him, like sentinels in the darkness of the attic and the darkness of his mind, silently reminding him he wasn’t alone. Sonic ran his hands over his face, rubbing at his cheeks to feel the stimulation and wipe away the remaining tears before he repeated, “Yeah…I’m good.”
Knuckles watched him for a long moment before he nodded. Tails slid from the race car and went back to his own bed to grab his blanket and pillow before returning and setting them next to Sonic’s. Sonic scooted over to make room for the fox and laid back down again, with Tails curled up against his side. Knuckles plopped his pillow next to Sonic’s stomach and laid down as well, feeling the two fox tails gently brushing against the top of his head. No one was sure when the “Cuddle Pile” (as Maddie called it) started happening, but at some point the three of them had made an unspoken arrangement. Sonic wasn’t the only one to have nightmares. When Knuckles had a nightmare, he would jump from bed, fists clenched and breathing hard, ready to fight whatever horrors had haunted him in sleep. Tails would cry out miserably until someone gently coaxed him awake. And for Sonic, it was panic attacks. No matter who it was having the nightmare, they’d figured out that the remedy for all of them was to form a unit, gathering close and holding onto one another to feel that they were all safe, alive, whole. Tails would curl next to Sonic or around Knuckles’ arm. Knuckles would lay his head near Sonic’s chest. Sometimes both Sonic and Tails would cling to either side of Knuckles, using his body as a pillow. The formation never really mattered, as long as they could feel that the others were there—that they weren’t alone. It was enough to keep the nightmares at bay. For the rest of the night, at least.
~~~
Breakfast was always a raucous event in the Wachowski home. Maddie had started making breakfast each morning after she realized that her boys would be more than happy to eat sugary cereal every morning if she left them to their own devices. They’d all had a long discussion together about how important proper nutrition was for them, especially at their age and especially at breakfast. They needed real food at the beginning of the day, she’d informed them. To which Knuckles, who was still learning Earth expressions and still struggled with some figures of speech, argued that cereal was real food! There was nothing deceptive or fictional about it! In the end, no one protested more options. The three boys would sit across from one another, talking excitedly about what they had planned for the day, getting into heated arguments about trivial things, or some combination of the two. Ozzie would always lay under the table waiting for one of them to slip him scraps from their plate, only to get shooed away by Tom or Maddie, but would just bide his time and crawl back under the table again. Then Tom would be off to work. He had taken to getting ready early enough that he would be walking out the door just as the boys were getting themselves seated. (Sonic had a suspicion that he’d started doing so to make sure that there would be enough coffee to fill his thermos before Knuckles got to it and hoarded the whole decanter.) He was finally back on duty after being out on medical leave for close to two months, but he was still relegated to his desk for the next few weeks, just to be safe. But not silently. He complained endlessly about how bored he was every day, increasingly irritated at how much paperwork he was doing. If he was allowed to even do that! He used to think the speed trap was boring, but would have gladly taken the speed trap over sitting at his desk all day. Sonic was just glad that he was finally out of his sling.
Today, breakfast had proceeded just as it normally did.
“I’m at the desk until three again so if you need anything, let me know,” Tom kissed Maddie on the cheek as he tugged on his jacket.
“We still on for lunch?” She kept her eyes on the pan she had on the stove as she leaned into the kiss.
“Yeah, just text when you take your break,” Tom grabbed his coffee and shoulder bag filled with paperwork he had taken home. He looked over at the table as he went to the door. “Have a good day boys! Please stay within the county limits!”
The three Mobians replied with vague agreement, Knuckles with his mouth full. Sonic watched through the window as Tom made his way down to the driveway, got in the car, backed out of the gravel drive and vanished down the road, silently accounting for each movement. His insides twisted slightly with Tom being out of his sight but he forced himself to take a deep, reassuring breath. Tom was fine. He was safe. Green Hills was safe. Maddie’s voice broke him out of his thoughts
“Here, Sonic,” She leaned over the kitchen bar and handed him a plate with a stack of pancakes.
“Thanks, Maddie,” He put on a bright smile for her as he took it from her, then zipped over to the fridge to grab a can of whipped cream before zipping back to his seat at the table.
“Sonic, please eat some of the fruit.” She had barely looked at him, but somehow knew exactly what he was up to. How did she do that?
“Hey, it’s been well documented that sugar is the most important food group. Why else would it be at the top of the food pyramid?” He shook the can and proceeded to turn his pancakes into a mountain of whip cream, making Tails laugh.
Breakfast shenanigans continued. Knuckles and Sonic argued over what the superior pancake topping was—whipped cream or grapes? Sonic knew he’d won when Knuckles started going on about vowing to dishonor him on the battlefield. Or something. Tails was chattering at Maddie about the new gadget he was working on and sneaking Ozzie bits of bacon when he thought she wasn’t looking. Maddie listened as best as she could, though all too often Tails’ explanations of the more technical aspects of his projects would go right above her head. When she was done eating, she set about putting the kitchen to rights while making sure that Tails wasn’t feeding Ozzie anything that was going to make him sick. The morning news droned on at low volume as background noise from the small kitchen TV. It was so normal. So easy to forget that three months ago, the world had almost been destroyed. Three months ago, they thought they had almost lost Tom. Three months ago, Sonic had lost Shadow.
“It's the second week of the investigative hearing for the international military organization known as Guardian Units of Nations. GUN Director Ines Rockwell is said to appear before the Committee for the third time this week—”
The room suddenly fell silent—the familiar words cutting right through all of their enthusiastic chatter. All four of their heads snapped in the direction of the screen, giving it their full attention. Maddie grabbed the remote and turned the volume up.
“Since events of June 24th shedding light on GUN’s possession of a doomsday device referred to internally as the Eclipse Cannon, senior leadership in the organization has continued to face increasing pressure from multiple nations. While criminal charges have not yet been brought up against the organization or its leadership, so far four countries have cut all funding for GUN operations, including the United States. There has been word about heavy disciplinary actions against the organization if found to continue its operation while the investigation is ongoing.”
Sonic watched with furrowed brows as the anchor spoke. They showed footage of Director Rockwell—dressed in a sleek black suit, her chest adorned with multiple medals, walking up the concrete steps of a stately white building. She looked so formidable and put together as she proceeded with her head held high, flanked by similarly uniformed GUN operatives. Her face was stony, giving nothing away as the camera followed her. It made Sonic’s quills prickle and his ears flattened against his head. The footage switched to a journalist interviewing some politician that he didn’t recognize. He began to go on about how the people should not tolerate GUN having access to and the means to build weapons of mass destruction when the TV clicked off, the screen going dark.
“I think that’s enough of that.” Maddie said as she set the remote down on the counter and leaned over to turn on the dishwasher. She rolled her shoulders to relieve some of the tension.
The fox turned to Sonic and Knuckles, his tails twitching nervously.
“Do you think they might actually shut GUN down? For good?”
“They are unworthy to hold such a position of power,” Knuckles narrowed his eyes at the TV as if Rockwell was still there. “They must be held accountable for their misdeeds.”
“Oh go off, King!” Sonic exclaimed as he shoved another forkful of whip cream into his mouth.
“From what I’ve researched, the United States’ track record for successfully enacting justice according to their own laws is…complicated and not great.” Talis also took another bite of his food. There was a snort from the kitchen.
“Yeah, understatement.” Maddie said under her breath.
“That is unacceptable!” Knuckles banged his fist on the table.
“Knuckles!” Maddie scolded him, putting her hand on her hip. They’d had multiple discussions about his tendency for violence against furniture.
“Apologies honorable pretzel woman.” He replied, sincerely. At least the table hadn’t broken this time.
“I know, it's frustrating.” Maddie walked around the counter to join them at the table. She held her coffee in both hands, looking pensive. “But there’s a process that these things have to go through. Whatever is going to happen with GUN, the best thing for you three is to be as far away from them as possible.”
“You don’t have to worry about us, Maddie.” Sonic assured her. “I for one will be a very happy hedgehog if I never see GUN again.” He began making little drawings in the whipped cream.
“Me too.” Tails ate the last bite of his syrup drenched pancakes. “I mean about the ‘not seeing GUN’ part, not the hedgehog part.” He managed a little chuckle to himself.
Maddie looked down at her watch then stood abruptly. “Okay, I’ve gotta head out or I’ll be late.” She looked back at them. “Please stay out of trouble, all right?”
A chorus of incredulous groans from the table made her smile as she gathered her things.
“Oh, I know. I know. You three never get into trouble, right?”
“Exactly!” Sonic waved his fork at her. “We are the peak of angelicity!”
“Angelicity?” Tails giggled.
“I heard it on The Late Show the other night.” Sonic replied, winking at his little brother.
“Call me or Tom if anything comes up.” Maddie called back behind her as she pushed open the front door. “And put your dishes in the sink!”
“Say ‘hi’ to Bean for me!” Tails called after her.
Sonic’s eyes followed her, the same as they’d followed Tom—watching as she walked down the stairs, got in her car, backed out, and vanished down the road. He tried to ignore the knot of anxiety in his chest as he took another mouthful of whipped cream. His stomach did a slow roll and he decided he didn’t want to take his chances eating anything else. He got up and diligently took his plate to the sink, frowning at it as he set it down in the basin. He hadn’t eaten any of the pancakes at all—just the whip cream.
~~~
They didn’t really have a set daily schedule, but all three of the Wachowski boys definitely had activities that they stuck to in order to keep themselves busy. Knuckles had a rigorous workout routine that he followed diligently every day to keep his senses sharp, his muscles limber, and his strength honed. Some of the homemade training devices that he and Tails had devised reminded Sonic more of medevil torture machines that he’d seen on TV rather than exercise equipment. Tails spent a lot of time out in his workshop. If he wasn’t in there he was following Sonic or Knuckles around. As for Sonic, he spent his time zipping through the mountains, doing loops along the lake, popping down into town to check on the residents, before coming home to play video games, read comics, or blast his music while no one was in the house. They were all “homeschooled”—sort of. The logistics of sending three aliens who may or may not even exist according to the government to normal human school was just not feasible. But Maddie was insistent on giving them an education of some kind nonetheless.
But Sonic knew they weren’t following a normal homeschooling curriculum either. Tails was learning things about physics and engineering that went far above Sonic’s head. Knuckles was studying history, specifically history of military and combat on Earth. Sonic was more interested in places and people in the present. So a lot of his ‘homework’ involved watching a lot of educational documentaries. He really loved travel documentaries specifically. The only thing they all had to deal with was math. Maddie told them it was because math was a universal language, or something like that. Sonic hated math.
And of course, there was the “American Echidna Warrior Training”, as Sonic called it. Knuckles had insisted that it was imperative for the three of them not to let their battle skills fall by the wayside. After all, they had no idea what wild adventures would find them next! Or when for that matter. Though sometimes it felt like that was just the excuse Knuckles came up with for the opportunity to tussle with his brothers—Sonic in particular. But even he had to admit he was seeing some benefit from all that training. His legs were getting stronger, and his combat reflexes were getting quicker. Not that he was going to admit that to Knux. It was way more amusing to complain about it just to watch the echidna’s face contort into deeper and deeper frowns. Other times, Tails would have some new invention that he wanted to test. Sonic and Knuckles would go with him to make sure the fox didn’t set himself (or the forest, or the house, or the town) on fire. Again.
So, although they didn’t necessarily have schedules, they all found a comfortable, familiar sense of routine. Which made it noticeable when any of them deviated from that routine.
Sonic had cut his race around town short today. Usually his restless energy drove him into running more, but over the past few weeks, he could never go too far before his anxiety drew him back home. He was compelled to continuously check to make sure everyone was alright, and to make sure that Green Hills wasn’t being invaded by a roving pack of zombies or something. He wouldn’t be surprised. His life was so weird sometimes. Today, he felt particularly homebound.
He knew Knuckles would be on his ‘training course’ about this time, and Tails would be in his workshop. It had been quite the undertaking to convert the detached shed into a space where the fox could make and test new inventions. All five of the Wachowskis had helped with the project. It had been barely four corrugated steel walls and a roof when they had started. But some longer walls, a few windows, a concrete foundation, a new paint job, some hanging industrial lights that Tom found at an estate sale, and some shelves later, they had made the workshop very distinctly Tails. Soon enough, those shelves began filling up with tools, hardware, spare parts, and half made contraptions. It was a clean space but cluttered in a way that only made sense to Tails, who proceeded to decorate the walls with various ideas for projects, post-it notes with random equations, and photos of all of them. It was one of Sonic’s favorite places to be. He zipped across the yard, stopping as he pushed open the doors, and made his way inside. He took a seat at one of the barstools at the table that served as Tails’ workbench—its surface scattered with sketches, notes, blueprints and schematics.
Tails sat at the back of the shop, his fingers tapping away at his keyboard while the boxy machine behind him whirred as a mechanical arm inside the plexiglass walls moved up and down.
“Hey Bud.” Sonic said, smiling brightly “Workin’ hard or hardly workin’?”
Tails looked up from his computer and smiled back at his brother.
“Hey Sonic!” He tapped at a few more keys before he pushed the computer aside. “You’re back early.”
“Eh. Mountains looked the same as yesterday,” Sonic replied, waving his hand dismissively. He shrugged and started sliding some blueprints around on the table. “Figured out your plane yet?”
Tails pointed to a blueprint of an airplane that was taped up to the wall with various notes written in red marker.
“I think I've got the correct shape for optimal aerodynamics and adequate lift, but I’m still trying to account for weight versus carrying capacity.” He leaned over the table, pointing to different parts of the diagram as he continued. “I can calculate the center of gravity with added passengers but if the excess weight isn’t present then I have to account for that. Plus, weather, wind velocity, and density altitude continually being an unknown variable.” He looked up at Sonic, as if he expected him to have any kind of insight on the conundrum but Sonic just blinked at him silently. The fox’s tails flicked lightly in amusement.
“I want to make sure the plane weighs enough to fly with or without passengers.” He said, dryly. Sonic rolled his eyes.
“See, why didn’t you just say that?”
Tails snickered and went back to his computer. Sonic leaned back, tilting the stool back enough so he could balance his weight on the back feet.
“It would be amazing if I could build a plane that could carry all three of us. Like that first one!” Tails grinned as he resumed typing. “But that one was really heavy and I don’t know how I would be able to consistently refuel it.”
“Couldn’t you just buy a plane?” Sonic tipped the stool a little more and balanced himself on only one chair leg.
“And deprive myself the joy of creating something to my exact specifications and fit for all of our needs?” Tails' grin turned haughty for a moment, like he was saying I’m a genius and I’m going to flaunt it . “Also they’re expensive. And again, fuel.”
“Come on! You’ve saved the world! Twice now!” Sonic countered playfully. “I’m sure someone can at least give you a discount!” Tails gave him a withering look.
“I don’t think that’s how that—” Suddenly, the barstool that Sonic had been balancing on gave out and he tumbled to the floor with a surprised yelp. Tails leaned down from his stool and looked at the hedgehog sprawled on the ground. “Sonic? You okay?”
“Yep!” Sonic chirped as he popped right back up, his smile big and exaggerated to mask his embarrassment. “Just… testing these! Yannow, for design flaws!” He could tell Tails was watching him very closely as he picked up the stool and sat back down. “Anyway, don’t let me stop you from doing your big brain smart stuff!” He said hurriedly, trying to brush off the feeling that his brother was gleaning a lot more that he wanted to let on. Quickly, he took out his phone and tried to act casual—another mask. Tails kept his eyes on Sonic for a few moments longer, but said nothing and went back to typing.
Sonic started scrolling through his photos and deleting duplicates. It was tedious but the storage would get full again if he didn’t. It was a way to keep himself occupied and not annoy Tails while he worked. He knew he was telling on himself—he usually couldn’t sit still for longer than a few minutes—let alone silently . His mind would begin to race and his legs twitched with the need to move. Even as he sat there, his knee bobbed up and down trying to relieve the excess energy that ran through him like a live wire. But today he just needed to be around someone— without conversation. Conversation could lead to questions, and questions could lead to talking about his feelings, which would inevitably lead to stressing about what his nightmares would be like tonight. He didn’t want to risk having that conversation.
They stayed there for the next few hours. Sonic found a new game to play on his phone, his legs constantly moving as quietly as he could make them, all while he ignored the worried looks that Tails sent him occasionally. He knew he should feel bad for not being more open with his family about what he was going through. It wasn’t like he didn’t think that they wouldn’t understand. He knew that they would .
Sonic hadn’t been shy about what had happened with the Eclipse Cannon. Once Tom had regained consciousness, he had gone through every detail with his family. Starting from the moment he’d found Tom laying unconscious at GUN headquarters and ending with holding back the cannon’s beam until he couldn’t hold on any longer, then waking up in the corn field with his brothers. He’d apologized profusely to Tom for not being there to save him, and for letting his anger drive him out of blind rage. But Tom had hugged him and held him close. He told Sonic how proud he was of him—how brave he’d been. Sonic had hated hearing that. He didn’t feel brave. He felt like he had failed . Every choice he’d made felt like the wrong one, especially when Tom revealed that he’d been disguised as Commander Walters when Shadow had attacked him. Sonic had stolen the most powerful object in the universe, using it in pursuit of violence, all because of mistaken identity. Nothing Sonic did was right. The world had almost been lost because he couldn’t see past his anguish and rage. And now as a result, Shadow was dead. Nothing about that deserved a father’s pride. None of that was brave. Still, Sonic had wrapped his arms around Tom’s neck and hugged him back, just grateful that he was still breathing.
His family would understand if he told them he was having trouble coping—that the nightmares were becoming too much and that he spent most of the day trying to mentally prepare for the horrors that bedtime would bring him—that he didn’t know how to forgive himself, for being the worst teammate, the worst brother, the worst son, the worst hero. But even just admitting that outloud felt like admitting defeat in some messed up way. He was Sonic the Hedgehog. He responded to stress with humor and to anxiety was sass. Whatever situation he found himself in he could put on his confident smirk, throwing out some well timed one-liners, and saving the day alongside his team with quick thinking and epic level superpowers. That was who he was ! That was who he was supposed to be! That’s who he wanted to be again.
So, he didn’t say anything, pretended that he was fine. He smiled all the more wider and stuck to his family members like glue, even knowing they could see past all of the bravado. Because Sonic was terrible at hiding how he felt. He wore his heart on his sleeve—was a walking billboard for his emotional state all the time. When he was excited, he showed it. When he was sad or angry or scared, he expressed it. But the quiet moods in which he found himself lately were met with looks of concern from everyone. Tails and Knuckles hadn’t said anything about the nightmares, but Sonic could tell they wanted to sometimes. Maybe it was because they all knew what it felt like to wake up with their hearts pounding and breath hitching to hold back the scream. But they still sent Sonic worried looks, still watched the way he avoided being left alone or deliberately isolating himself as his mood shifted. Knuckles even seemed reluctant to bring up the Master Emerald while Sonic was nearby. Sonic had no idea if he was grateful for that or if it only added to his growing guilt. After all, if Sonic had been stronger—if he’d actually been the hero everyone thought that he was (that he wanted to be), then he would have been able to see past his anguish and fury enough to be able to hold himself back from demanding to take it. Hell, even Wade had noticed something was up last week when he visited and outright asked if he was doing okay. That hadn’t been embarrassing at all. Not even a little bit. Pause for sarcasm.
Ultimately, Sonic’s strategy was to fake it until he was back to normal. If he just pretended he was Sonic, then eventually he would feel like Sonic again. Admittedly, it wasn’t one of his best plans, as it hinged on his family not bringing up his weird behavior (which they had tried to do several times) and that the nightmares would eventually go away like the last ones had (which they weren’t). He knew it wasn’t a great plan. But a hedgehog could live in hope, right? And besides, he didn’t know what else to do.
~~~
Downtown Green Hills was hardly thriving with activity during the weekdays, even during tourist season, but lunch time still managed to be a lively time along the main drag with workers who were stuck indoors venturing out to get a bite to eat and a breath of fresh air. Especially with the weather being as nice as it had been lately. The scorching heat of July had passed into a more mild August that stayed a pleasant balmy temperature, even if it was prone to sudden rain showers. A part of Tom was grateful that he was stuck on desk duty during those rainy days. He had recovered almost completely, but his chest still occasionally throbbed and ached where his sternum had been shattered. So to be wet and miserable on top of that was not his idea of a good day at work. That didn’t change the fact that on days like today, when the sun was warm and the sky was flecked with puffy white clouds, being stuck on desk duty was annoying. At least it meant he and Maddie could sit outside and enjoy the pleasant weather when they had lunch together.
The bakery was crowded, but the two of them had managed to grab a seat in the shade to enjoy their sandwiches. They chatted about their days, talking about the happenings in their respective workplaces and things they wanted to do when they got home. Maddie had been planning on grocery shopping tomorrow so she would need to do an inventory of what they needed when she got home. Tom was pretty sure there was a loose floorboard on the front deck so he might fix that after he walked Ozzie. It was normal. It was easy. Until it wasn’t.
“Sonic had another nightmare last night,” Maddie said quietly, wiping her hands with her napkin.
“I know,” Tom put his sandwich down and looked out at Main Street, half expecting to see the blue blur weaving through the streets as if summoned by his name. “He keeps calling out for Shadow.”
The first time he had heard Sonic’s scream the other hedgehog’s name in the middle of the night, he’d jolted awake along with Maddie. They’d both sprung into action, both thinking that somehow Shadow had survived and had found the attic to continue pursuing his revenge starting with their son. But just as they were scrambling out of bed, trying to make sense of things half asleep and flooded with adrenaline, silence followed. They’d looked at each other, even more puzzled. Maddie was the one who checked on the situation, tiptoeing up the stairs to the attic to make sure everything was alright. The three Mobians were huddled together, trying to calm Sonic down as he curled in on himself shaking. Knuckles had spotted her, giving her a reassuring nod that everything was alright.
But things didn’t feel alright.
They had asked Sonic about it in the morning but he brushed it off, blaming it on a scary movie they had watched. Then he proceeded to act like nothing had happened at all. Tom knew they all had nightmares. He’d had his fair share while his injury healed. The boys though…Tom could admit to himself he was at a total loss on what to do. None of them talked about them to him or Maddie, even when they asked. Though Maddie had found them on occasions in the ‘cuddle pile’ in the morning. The two of them decided to try and keep things calm and casual when checking in on their boys, trying to be a safe place for them to talk if they ever needed someone to open up to.
“Rough night?” Maddie would ask. If it was Tails that had the nightmare, he would smile and hug Maddie’s leg.
“It’s better now.” He would assure her.
If Knuckles had the nightmare, he would pound his fists together.
“Nothing I can not handle.” He would assert.
If it was Sonic, he would simply shrug, saying nothing, earring him worried looks from both his brothers as he continued on as if nothing had happened.
But those screams hadn’t stopped. They became louder, more panicked. Tom had gone to Knuckles and Tails, asking if there was anything that he and Maddie could do to help their brother, but neither of them had any useful answers. All of them had found ways to deal with the nightmares in the moment, but watching Sonic plaster on a fake smile while his eyes tracked everyone who left the house like it was the last time he would see them was heartbreaking.
For Tom, it was the way Sonic cried out for Shadow with such panicked desperation. Sonic had told them all what happened on the moon and with the Cannon. Tom had watched how his eyes glistened and his lip trembled as he told them about Shadow’s grief—how badly he knew Shadow wanted to fix his mistakes. Tom hadn’t been surprised that Sonic was having nightmares about everything that he’d gone through, but it troubled him that they just seemed to be getting worse. Any attempt to talk to him about it was met with dismissals and reassurances that everything was fine before, in classic Sonic fashion, he would abruptly change the subject.
“I’m worried about him, Tom,” Maddie rubbed at her shoulders as if she wasn’t sure what to do with her hands. “Maybe we should think about looking into therapy or something.”
This wasn’t the first time they’d had this discussion, even before London, but it would inevitably circle back to the same problem.
“What therapist is going to understand what they’re going through?”
Maddie shrugged, not satisfied with the answer.
“I mean, I could look into someone who specializes in, like…combat veterans?” She suggested. “That might be the closest to…”
Her voice trailed off. They looked at each other, twin expressions of worry and guilt. All three of their boys were extraordinary with abilities that were considered fantasy by anyone in the world. After all, Sonic had been Green Hills’ very own cryptid for ten years—zipping around at speeds so fast that were beyond what human eyes could comprehend. Knuckles had traveled the universe in his quest to find the Master Emerald, being trained along the way ‘in all forms of deadly combat’ according to him. Tails was a genius beyond genius. His mind was always working, his hands always making some of the most extraordinary inventions. It was so easy for Tom and Maddie to forget that even with all their phenomenal abilities, they still were children. It felt hypocritical of him, because he would sometimes remind them all that they were children when one of them acted out of line. Even so, they were children who had all been forced to take on roles of protectors—of soldiers—children who had to stand against impossible odds and be expected to beat those odds. Because they were the only ones who could.
Tom knew his father would have hated this. Not the boys, he would have loved them, but Tom’s father had been insistent that neither he nor his brothers join the armed forces. His father’s time in the army had left permanent scars on his psyche. Tom had vivid memories of coming home from school to find his father standing paralyzed from the horrors in his memory, lost in his own head and not seeing him or his brothers at all. Instead seeing some phantom battlefield that caused his hands to tremble and his breathing to come out in short panic bursts, his eyes wide and terrified. He couldn’t bear the thought of seeing the same lost look in his children’s eyes. He couldn’t bear the thought of knowing it would be because he wasn’t able to help them in the way they needed to be helped. There were some days that Tom thought he was the best dad in the world and other days worried that he was the worst. He had felt like the worst since London.
Tom dropped his gaze to the table and took Maddie’s hand, squeezing it gently.
“We’ll try talking to them about it this weekend. Therapy might be a good idea, if they would be open to it.” He didn’t sound hopeful. “But it is a risk…therapists are mandated reporters to the state.” Technically so was he, but he had been bending the rules for his alien children since a blue hedgehog broke into his garage. He knew that actually did make him the biggest hypocrite and the worst sheriff, but he couldn’t find it in himself to give a damn about that if it meant he could do something for his kids. He knew he was going to have to unpack all of that eventually.
Maddie squeezed his hand back.
“Hey, come on.” She said, trying to sound assuring, “We’ll figure something out, babe. We always do.” She gave him her brightest smile, but Tom could see the strain in her eyes.
She was right though. They would figure this out. They had to. That’s what parents did.
~~~
Dinner time was when the Wachowski house felt the most whole, and it was the best part of any day in Sonic’s opinion. Dinner was always an event—often a loud event and never boring. It came with interesting stories from whatever happened while Tom and Maddie were at work and the boys were doing their “studies.” Then it would inevitably devolve into arguments about whose turn it was to do the dishes, who got to pick the movie, or what video game they were going to play for the rest of the night. For Sonic, it was like a release valve for all the pressure and tension built up during the day. He could get lost in the noise and chatter and it had become a very welcome distraction. At the end of the day, Sonic craved that. A holdover from his ten years of isolation probably, but in the last few months especially, it was the one time of day that Sonic truly felt like himself again with no one walking on eggshells around him. As if to prove it, he used his spoon to fling a piece of broccoli at Knuckles. The echidna growled annoyedly and returned fire with a dollop of mashed potatoes from his own spoon catapult that landed directly in Sonic’s eye. Tails cackled at the sight, then Tom barked at all three of them to cut it out.
It was nice. It was normal.
Sonic poked at his food absently, watching intently with an expectant grin as Tails pulled out a stack of notes and handed them to Tom. His little brother was currently trying to convince their parents that he should be allowed to build a forge next to the shed. Tom and Maddie had been less than thrilled about the idea, but Tails had been persistent as he always was when he got a new idea for something. Sonic just wanted to watch Tom’s face change colors.
“I’ve made all the calculations,” Tails pointed at one of the pages as Tom looked through them, and not really hiding the fact that he couldn’t make sense of most of it. “I can create a containment structure that would allow for the forge to safely reach 1648 degrees celsius-” Tom held up a hand.
“And in American?" He asked.
“… uh…3000 degrees Fahrenheit.” Tails responded, almost sheepishly.
“Oh my god, Tails.”
Sonic whistled long and low as Maddie’s eyes widened.
“B-but that’s what the containment structure would be for!” Tails insisted. “And like I was just saying, with the way I’ve designed it here, it would be able to handle it!” He could tell he was losing ground in his persuasion. “Plus when I get the Build-it Box calibrated correctly, and secure an energy source robust enough, I could start forging our own rings!”
“Wait, you mean ring rings?” Sonic sat up. “You know how to make them?”
“Well, no. Not yet.” Tails admitted. “But that’s why I need to build the forge! Then I can recreate the process!” He grinned. “That way we can have a reliable method of transportation if we need it!”
“Most impressive, Fox!” Knuckles rubbed his huge hand over Tails head, mussing up the tuft of fur between his brows. Tails giggled and ducked out of the way but his smile said he didn’t mind at all.
Tom wiped his face in slight exacerbation. “We have cars too, you know, kiddo.”
“Which are great!” Tails said quickly. “But you gotta admit Tom, the rings are almost necessary at this point! Right Maddie?”
Tails turned those powerful big eyes on her and gave her his brightest smile. Sonic could almost see the sparkles superimposed over his brother’s angelic face. Maddie swallowed hard and made a small squeaking noise in response, her face morphing into a strained smile as she tried to resist the mind control from Tails’ unrelenting adorableness. Sonic watched even closer. Up until now, the answers from both their parents had been various iterations of ‘no’ when Tails brought up the forge, but he’d been wearing Maddie down for weeks with his powers of neoteny and he could almost see the moment when Maddie cracked.
“Um…well…” She choked out. Tails just looked at her all the cuter. “W-we’ll think about it, okay sweetie?”
Tails ran over to her and launched himself at her with a chorus of ‘thank you’ over and over as he hugged her, as if she had actually said yes. She hugged him back, then looked up to see Tom’s less than amused look.
“Coward.” Tom muttered.
“I panicked.” Maddie squeaked, wincing.
Sonic couldn’t stop laughing.
“Score one for the master of cuteness warfare! Tails, buddy. You have got to teach me how to do that.”
“Sorry, Sonic.” Tails replied playfully. “But you have to actually be cute to be able to wage cuteness warfare on parents.”
It was Tom and Knuckles’ turn to laugh.
~~~
Sonic laid on his bed staring up at the string lights that ran along the exposed beams of the attic ceiling.
It had been a video game night and everyone crowded around the big TV in the living room for the racing game. Well, Maddie had opted to start on her grocery list for tomorrow, occasionally calling out from the kitchen to ask which of them wanted which food items for her to put on the list. Tom only stayed in the game long enough to get his butt beat in the second race, for which he was jeered heavily. He pretended to not care, grumbling that he was too old for video games, then got up to let Ozzie out while he busied himself with the front porch. Sonic had lost the seventh race to Tails, which was a result of him being distracted of course and definitely not a skill issue at all. He watched Knuckles and Tails go through another few more races while he openly pouted about losing, but he eventually got bored of that and wandered upstairs. He intended to read the stack of comics that he’d been meaning to catch up on, or listen to music, or anything else to distract himself for the next few hours. But he ended up dropping like a lump on his bed, gazing up through the round skylight on the roof. The sun had set completely by then, but the string lights still gave the attic a glow that made everything feel soft and dream-like. If Sonic squinted his eyes just enough to blur his vision, they looked like stars, twinkling lights just out of reach.
He swallowed hard at the thick lump forming in his throat. He probably should have stayed downstairs where he could at least distract himself with the noise and the company. But with everyone safe and back home for the evening, he didn’t feel the compulsion to follow everyone around just to make sure they were all okay. It was as if he spent his whole day just trying so hard to manage the anxiety of ‘what-ifs’ that by the end of it, his battery was so drained that he just wanted to be alone. He wondered if that’s just the excuse he used to run away from the problem, or maybe he just needed time to decompress. Either way, being by himself left him alone in his own head, and without distractions to draw him away, his own thoughts would always circle back to a certain hedgehog and all of Sonic’s terrible decisions.
Sonic reached under his pillow and pulled out a faded photo. He held it gently between his fingers as he gazed up at it, his thumb absently brushing over red and black quills. He liked to pretend he had no idea what had possessed him to keep the photo he’d found at the abandoned military base. The glass had already been shattered, the wood of the frame beginning to warp with decay, and age eating away at the edges of the paper. But the image, faded as it was, remained clear as he looked at the two faces that smiled back at him. He flipped the photo over, reading the simple inscription written in neat, simple handwriting.
Maria & Shadow 1973
Maybe he’d taken it because he thought he could find Shadow again and return it to him. Maybe he’d hoped it could open some kind of communication between the two of them that wouldn’t devolve into violence. Maybe he thought that he could find some way to get through to him, even then.
“I know that you’re hurting but don’t let that change who you are inside.”
Sonic sighed, flipping the photo back over. Deep down he knew the real reason why he’d freed the photo from its damaged frame and tucked it in his glove—it didn’t belong there, in that abandoned dark place, collecting dust, time forgetting those two smiling faces. He had intended to give it back to Shadow, to try and reach him through that rage that smoldered in his crimson eyes.
But he’d never got the chance to give it back. And now he never would.
Yet, Sonic couldn’t help but feel a twisted sense of gratitude for that—if he’d gotten the chance to give it back, then he would have had nothing left of Shadow at all. Nothing, except the memories that his turbulent mind twisted into nightmares that were so vivid and visceral that they were literally unspeakable.
Keeping the photo was at least a way for Sonic to see Shadow in a way that he’d never had the chance to see for himself—happy, content. The way Shadow and Maria leaned into each other with a warm familiarity, a shared trust, his hand gentle around her shoulder, her hand gripping his arm, the blanket fort behind them with a “NO ADULTS” sign hanging in at the entrance. If this was all Sonic had left of Shadow, he was grateful it was this—a single moment captured in a photo when Shadow had been happy—smiling, a kid, just like him.
And you let him die alone.
Sonic heard the stairs creak with footsteps and he quickly shoved the photo back under his pillow and folded his arms behind his head, trying to look as relaxed and casual as possible.
Knuckles emerged first from the stairs, followed closely by Tails. Sonic sat up and grinned at them.
“Hey! Who won the final race? Tails? Was it Tails? I bet it was Tails, wasn’t it?”
The fox and the echidna stopped and stood in the middle of the room and looked at their brother. Neither one of them said anything, and Sonic felt a small pit of anxiety start to grow in his gut. Knuckles’ expression was intense and Tails’ eyes were worried, his ears flattened somberly against his head. Sonic tried to ignore it and he continued on as if he wasn’t about to start hyperventilating at the tension in the air.
“You know, lights out isn’t for like over an hour. You guys wanna play a board game or something?” He could tell his voice was getting higher the more anxious he became.
Knuckles turned and reached down to pull up the stairs behind them, closing the attic off from the rest of the house. That wasn’t ominous at all. Tails slowly made his way over to where Sonic sat on the bed and took a seat next to him. He leaned against him, resting his head on his brother’s shoulder. Without hesitation, Sonic wrapped his arm around his shoulder and gave it a squeeze, anxiety shifting slightly to concern.
“Hey you ok, Buddy?”
Tails averted his eyes as he shook his head. “I wish you would talk to us, Sonic. We can tell you’re upset but you won't let us help you.”
Oh no.
Knuckles sat down on the floor in front of the bed, the intense expression never changing as he also looked at him.
“We are a team, Hedgehog. We made a vow to look out for one another.”
Oh no no no no.
Sonic felt his spine stiffen and swallowed that lump in his throat again before he put on the best reassuring smile that he could muster.
“Come on guys,” Sonic laughed nervously and squeezed Tails again, as if it would somehow convince them he was normal. “I’m okay, see? I’m good!”
“You are not good , Hedgehog.” Knuckles said firmly, but kindly. “You have become fearful, distracted by compulsive vigilance.” It wasn’t an accusation or even a criticism, only a gentle fact that he had observed.
Sonic felt his legs twitch. He wanted to run. His smile wavered. He hated when Knuckles sounded like this—gentle, patient. It was a lot harder to deflect when the echidna was deliberately making himself vulnerable like this. If he was being fair to Knux, this wasn’t at all out of the ordinary for him, but that didn’t mean that being at the end of that patience wasn’t unnerving.
As if sensing that Sonic wanted to bolt, Tails squeezed Sonic’s arm, not to hold him in place but giving him a gentle appeal to stay. “We just want to help, Sonic.” He said, looking up at his brother. “We know your nightmares are getting worse, but if you don’t talk to us, then we can’t help you.”
Sonic’s ears flattened back against his head, and he looked away from the two of them, focusing instead on a knotted swirl in the floor paneling.
“I don’t need you guys to help me with anything,” He was trying to assure them, but the lump was back in his throat and swallowing it was becoming more difficult. “They’re just nightmares. They’ll go away eventually and then everything will go back to normal.“ He paused to take in a deep breath then tried to put on his usual cheery countenance. “You know me!” He said brightly, even as his voice faltered. “I bounce right back! I’ll be fine, I promise.”
“Many warriors have nightmares, Hedgehog.” Knuckles said, softly.
Sonic’s ears lifted as he looked over at the echidna, the smile slipping from his face when he saw how raw he looked. His violet eyes looked just as haunted as Sonic’s dreams.
“I keep dreaming that you leave and don’t come back,” Tails admitted quietly, hugging Sonic’s arm tighter. “You step through the ring in London and then you're just… gone. And I’m alone again. Just like before.”
“Tails, I’m not going anywhere Buddy,” this time Sonic’s hug was genuine, readjusting the fox to pull him closer.
“I know.” Tails rubbed his face against Sonic’s chest, arm wrapped around his waist. “Every time I wake up, I remember that you’re here and we’re a family and it gets better. But it’s not getting better for you when you wake up.” Before Sonic had a chance to reply, Knuckles continued.
“In the heat of battle, there is much that we witness. Sometimes, those things stay with us. Being plagued with them is common for those who have seen combat.” Knuckles paused to let out a slow breath before he met Sonic’s eyes again. “Especially when we witness the loss of a fellow warrior.”
Sonic’s whole body went rigid, his eyes widening before looking away, the echidna’s gaze far too intense and piercing for him to handle. He couldn’t do this. He couldn’t talk with them about Shadow. It would ruin his whole “Just Be Normal” plan. Which of course it would ruin the plan because it was a terrible plan. It hadn’t been working from the start, and now it was crumbling before him. His eyes burned and he could feel tears pricking at the corners. He widened them further in a futile attempt to hold them off.
Sonic jumped as he felt Knuckles’ hand on his knee, startled by the new touch. The echidna held his gaze, his deep voice soft and full of understanding.
“What Shadow did was very brave, Sonic.”
“But he did it alone .” Sonic blurted out. He hadn’t even realized he’d spoken until the words were out of his mouth. Something inside him broke. The lump in this throat became a steel weight in his chest. Words became a stream of emotions that were bitter and painful as he bared his teeth. “He was alone and he had to be alone because I wasn’t there to help. I wasn’t strong enough to hold onto the Cannon just like I wasn’t strong enough to keep a cool head in London. You told me so yourself, remember? I stole the Master Emerald, didn’t come to my senses in time, and now it’s gone! Every decision I made was the wrong one and now he’s dead and it's my fault!”
Sonic knew he was yelling into Knuckles’ face as some of what he’d been holding in came spilling out. He hadn’t realized that the dam he’d used to hold back his own feelings had been so fragile. But the echidna’s expression never wavered nor did he remove his hand. Sonic’s breathing was ragged for a moment, his green eyes burning with self-loathing. Then he took another deep breath and slumped forward, the tension in his body completely deflating. It was as if all the sleepless nights were finally taking their toll. His ears pinned back flat against his head and pulled away from Tails, putting his hands over his face and curling in on himself slightly. Now the plan really wasn’t going to work.
Good job.
“It wasn’t all your fault, though.” Tails took his brother’s arm again, refusing to give up on the contact. Sonic lowered his hands enough to look at him. “We all made mistakes.” Knuckles nodded silently in agreement but Sonic only snorted in disbelief. “We did .” Tails insisted. “I shouldn’t have suggested that we worked with Robonik. I knew what he was capable of but I was so focused on finding answers that it didn’t even occur to me what might happen if he turned against us.”
“I too, am at fault,” Knuckles admitted as he looked down at the floor, shame and regret in his voice as his lip curled into a snarl. “I was far too eager for a battle. So eager that I did not stop to assess the situation that we had been called into in the first place. I took for granted that GUN was being truthful. Perhaps if I had not been so aggressive, the impressive hedgehog would not have seen us as enemies from the start.”
Sonic looked back and forth between the two, his hands falling away from his face, his expression incredulous.
“Okay yeah, but…guys, I took the Master Emerald and now it’s gone .” He looked pointedly at Knuckles “I think that alone is enough to put me at the top of the Bad Decisions leaderboard.”
“Correct.” Knuckles turned his head to face him again. “That was an extremely foolish decision— one that will be documented in history records. I will make sure of it. Your terrible decision will be taught to warriors all across the universe as an example of failure at the highest level.”
“Wow, thanks. Really driving it in there, Knucklehead.” Sonic’s voice was flat through gritted teeth. To his surprise, Knuckles smiled then, a tempered but warm smile.
“However, you are not the first warrior to make a poor decision. The Master Emerald has survived countless battles and has always been found again. Our quest will continue, even if it is to search for it.” His smile grew softer. “And you are not the only one of us that feels as though we could have done more for the other hedgehog. The fox and I also mourn for his loss.”
“But we can’t do anything for each other if you don’t talk to us.” Tails put his head on Sonic’s shoulder again. “We’re a team. We’re a family. You don’t have to do this by yourself.”
They sat in silence for a few moments before Sonic let out a soft laugh, pulled Tails in again. Yeah, it had been a bad plan. At least he had kept himself from crying and falling completely apart so he was going to count that as a win, and as much as he hated to admit it, letting something off his chest loosened the ball of anxiety that took up space inside him all the time.
“I just… I was hoping I could just pretend everything was normal, and it would all go back to the way it was before GUN sent us to Tokyo.”
“There is no such thing as going back, Hedgehog,” Knuckles said. “There is only going forward.”
Sonic lifted a brow at him before a real smile spread over his face. “You know, you’re really annoying when you get all Yoda on me.” Knuckles scowled at him.
“I am neither green nor short,” He attested, “but I will accept this likeness. Master Yoda was a wise mentor and powerful warrior, much like myself.”
“Jeez, Knux. Shut up.” Sonic pulled at Knuckles’ hand on his knee. The echidna stood from where he’d been sitting on the floor and sat down on the bed on Sonic’s other side. The hedgehog put an arm around him and hugged both of them, letting their presence ground him the way they did at night after the nightmares. Sonic took in a deep breath and let it out slowly.
“I’m sorry guys. I’ll try and do better with talking. It’s just….hard. Finding the right words, you know?”
“You usually never have a problem talking,” Tails’ rubbed the top of his head under Sonic’s chin. “That’s why we’re so worried.”
“Yeah, I usually don’t. ” Sonic admitted. “Maybe that’s part of the problem—if I start talking, it's just going to be endless word puke about everything going on inside my head. And what if I can't ever stop once I get started?” He sighed. “I just really want it all to stop.”
“Well, I don’t think ignoring it is going to get you the results you’re hoping it will.” The fox’s tails flicked behind him, his voice slightly amused.
“Oh man, not you too!” Sonic exclaimed. “Okay that’s it. I’m banning both of you from watching any more of those Oprah clips on YouTube!”
It made Tails giggle the way Sonic had hoped it would, which broke some of the tension between them. Sonic really was terrible at hiding how he felt.
“At times I too have struggled to remember that we are a team,” Knuckles admitted, his reach far enough that his hand came around both Sonic and Tails. “It is a difficult thing to remember when I have been so used to being on my own.”
“Yeah both of you are really terrible at this,” Tails said, giving both his brothers a wry grin.
“But we can do better, right?” Sonic looked at Tails, then Knuckles. “Okay, sure we all suck at remembering that we’re a team, but—”
“ You two suck at it,” Tails corrected.
“Okay fine . The two of us suck at this. So we work on it. Do some team building exercises. Like trust falls or something!”
Knuckles gave him a confused frown. “What is a ‘trust fall’?”
“All those Oprah clips and you don’t know what a trust fall is yet?” Sonic quipped back
“And you start telling us when you’re sad, Sonic.” Tails interjected, keeping the distractible hedgehog on the subject at hand, poking him in the chest.
“Yeah, I’ll try,” Sonic’s voice softened. “I just—”
Suddenly, out of nowhere a spark of electricity crackled in the center of the attic. The sudden noise startled all three Mobains and they jumped to their feet.
“What the—”
Suddenly a flash of Chaos energy materialized, seemingly out of nowhere and rushed towards them. Knuckles and Tails both instinctively jumped back. Sonic stayed rooted to the spot, his eyes wide, too paralyzed with shock to move from the sight of the bright amber bolt. It collided with him, tickling his fur and running down his arms and back before dispersing, the sparks dissolving into nothing.
The three of them stared silently in utter shock. Sonic’s mouth hung open, his breath quickening, his heart pounding in his ears and the weight in his chest jumping into his throat.
Chaos energy. Not blue, like his own or red like Knuckles’—golden amber Chaos.
He took a step forward toward the middle of the room where the Chaos had first materialized, as if trying to chase it. But it had left as instantly as it appeared and there was no trace left now. Or…was there? Sonic felt a tiny tug in his heart, a gentle pull of something—some one, reaching out.
It couldn’t be.
Sonic clenched his fists and called forth his own Chaos, his quills glowing as his body lit up with gentle blue sparks. He had no idea what he was doing, acting purely on instinct alone. He felt for the new sensation, that pull. So he pulled back. A volley of blue sparks rippled out from his body and scattered around the room, vanishing as quickly as the last. He whirled around to his two brothers.
“You guys saw that, right?” He exclaimed. Tails and Knuckles looked back at him, bewildered and shocked.
From Tails’ corner of the room, the Miles Electric started beeping. Tails rushed over to where he’d left it next to the beanbag chair, retrieving the handheld device he used for just about everything.
Knuckles joined Sonic where he stood in the middle of the room, his brows furrowed and his fists curled.
“What was that?” he growled as he looked around, ever vigilant for some kind of assault
“I—” Sonic choked out, but was cut off by Tails’ gasp.
“No way!” He exclaimed.
“What is it, Fox?” Knuckles demanded.
CRACK!!
Sonic and Knuckles both jumped back, almost tripping from the jolt as a ball of the same golden amber Chaos manifested in front of them. It hovered before them, lightning jumping in curled arcs around itself restlessly.
Knuckles dropped into a defensive position, ready to attack while Tails looked between his device and the ball of Chaos power, taking readings and entering commands. Sonic stared at it, transfixed. He could scarcely see or hear anything else in the room, his wide eyes unable to look away from the bright amber sphere. The pull was like a magnet, much stronger than it had been just moments before. But the awareness that came with it felt…hesitant. Like someone seeking answers but wary of the response. Sonic didn’t think, again acting on pure instinct and reacting to the pull. His Chaos surged once again, his eyes and quills lighting up blue as lightning sparked along his fur. He didn’t know what question the amber Chaos was asking, but his Chaos answered anyway, reaching back.
Sonic watched as blue Chaos lightning gathered from his body, forming into a ball and diving towards the amber Chaos. Knuckles and Tails braced themselves as the two forces collided, expecting an explosion or something when they made contact. But instead of a violent eruption of power, the two spheres began spinning around each other, excitedly—playfully. Like two friends finally meeting after such a long time apart. They spun faster and faster around each other, their combined light getting brighter and brighter. Knuckles reached out and put a hand on Sonic’s shoulder as he took a step back and pulled the hedgehog with him. Then, finally, the two tiny storms collided in a brilliant blast of light. All three Mobians had to shield their eyes, but when the blinding light died down, all that was left was a single circle white Chaos, sparkling and beautiful. It hovered over the floorboards, crackling and pulsing with energy.
Sonic was vaguely aware that Knuckles and Tails were shouting something (at him or at each other, he wasn’t sure), but he remained spellbound, his eyes wide and unblinking. He was unable to stop himself from reaching out his hand—reaching for the awareness that he knew was waiting inside that Chaos. As his fingers entangled with the warm spinning tendrils, he gasped, jerking his head back as he felt the rush of another mind mirroring his movements—of crimson eyes and night black quills and golden Chaos so pure and raw and powerful that it made him dizzy with awe.
“Shadow?!” He called out, vaguely aware of the sound of his own voice. And in his head, a voice echoed in response.
“Sonic?”
Suddenly the tiny circle of Chaos winked out, tiny sparks dissipating along the walls before fizzling out completely. The room fell silent, broken only by the beeping from the device in Tails hands. The three of them stood stock still, their eyes wide and their mouths all hanging open. Sonic’s hand was still extended, now reaching for something no longer there.
“What. Was. That ?” Knuckles punctuated each word slowly, his fists still raised like he was ready for an attack.
Then, from Sonic’s extended hand, a small single tendril of amber Chaos formed. It traveled almost lazily along his arm to the tips of his fingers, arcing out into the air and softly, almost timidly pulling south. His breath came quickly as his heart started racing and he felt a spike of sudden adrenaline that caused his body to start shaking.
“It’s him…it’s really him.” Sonic murmured breathlessly, his heart squeezing in his chest and his pulse pounding in his ears. “Shadow…Shadow’s alive…! ”