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Stone sat in his small flat in London, staring out the window at the night sky, seeing what remained of the eclipse cannon still present in the sky. The moon was still very much cut in two, mirroring Stone's heart as it's lower chunk was suspended in the weightlessness of space.
The dark grey blackout curtains fluttered in the breeze, thumping against the grey walls. The entire flat was grey, with dark, dull tile floors and drab, lifeless furniture. The only pop of color was the Badniks Stone had rescued from different G.U.N facilities, now sleeping safely in the closet Stone had converted into their new charging station.
Stone felt the annoying itch of his soulmate bond buzzing, showing him torturous flashes of Robotnik like it had been doing since the explosion. He knew it was just his broken mind and traumatized bond playing tricks on him. No, Robotnik is dead. He just has to try and live without him.
Somehow.
He looks down at the mark, the name he'd spent his entire life with. The name his father had hated, but his mother and siblings loved and accepted readily. When he was first assigned to Dr Ivo Robotnik, it took everything in him not to squeal in delight right on the spot, feeling his mark buzz pleasantly in the doctor's presence. Stone, of course, knew now that Robotnik had the agent's mark on his arm, he'd seen it while he was recovering. But they never spoke of it, they kept the topic at arm's length, or more specifically, Robotnik did. The man was very vocal about not believing in all that soulmate bullshit, even though it was a scientifically proven and studied phenomena in their world.
A loud knock at the door startled Stone out of his thoughts, the former agent letting out a sigh as he rose from his chair, setting his glass of wine aside as he went to the door, expecting to see one of his neighbors.
He did not, however, expect to see a weary Dr Ivo Robotnik holding a familiar black and red hedgehog in his arms, staring at Stone with nothing but relief and love in his tired brown eyes.
"Doctor?" Stone asked in disbelief, staring at the man before him. "How?--"
"There's no time for that, Stone. He needs our help." Robotnik cut him off, walking past the agent into his dull flat, setting the hedgehog on the kitchen island. "Where's your first aid kit?"
"I'll grab it." Stone replied, still in shock as he closed and locked the door, fetching the kit from the bathroom. The whole time, all he could think of was how is Robotnik alive? How did he survive the explosion? What happened to Shadow? What happens now?
Stone brought the kit to Robotnik, who immediately grabbed the alcohol and cleaned around the hedgehog's wounds, which looked like they'd already been stitched once.
"He got badly wounded saving me. I thought I had him stable but he tore his stitches on the way over here." Robotnik murmured, grabbing the small suture kit from the box and starting to mend the damage. "He insisted he could use his chaos control to bring us here. Blasted idiot..."
Stone was just stood speechless, unable to comprehend how the fuck Robotnik had survived the Eclipse Cannon. He had watched that happen, watched as the cannon exploded into a supernova. How was Robotnik standing here with barely a scratch?
"Are you alright, Stone?" Robotnik asks, looking over at Stone in concern. He could feel Stone's confusion and shock through the bond, the same bond that had lead him to this dull little apartment in the first place.
"How did you survive?" Stone choked out. "I watched it happen, Doctor. I s-saw your broadcast. I saw everything, how?--"
"The hedgehog here. He got me out at the last second." Robotnik answered, gesturing towards Shadow who was still unconscious on the kitchen island. "Said he did it for Sonic, and for you."
"Me?" Stone asked, incredulous.
"He saw my name on your arm in The Crab. He understands what it means, and so he saved me so we could..." Robotnik trailed off. "Stone, you know I'm not the best with these...feelings."
"I know, doctor." Stone replied.
"But I will admit, ever since I was just a kid...your name on my arm gave me hope. Hope that there was at least one person in this godforsaken world that would accept me, that wouldn't throw me aside or use me for my genius." Robotnik murmured. "When we finally met, I was a jaded, cold, emotionally unavailable disaster of a human being, but even then I knew I wanted you around, even if I wasn't sure if I'd ever...be ready for a romantic relationship. I didn't know if we'd ever be more than boss and employee, or more than friends, but I knew one thing for certain. I knew that, since long before I even knew your face, I had been hopelessly, irrevocably in love with you. But I stupidly kept it all to myself, because I still doubted that it could be true that someone in this world could love me unconditionally and accept me as I am."
Ivo took a shaky breath, putting the first aid supplies away.
"And when I met Gerald, I foolishly thought I'd finally found what I had always wanted, I thought I had found my family. But on the eclipse cannon, he told me I had nothing down here, that no one cared about me, and I was alone. I tried to convince him we had eachother, that we were family, but he...he just said, 'Oh, Ivo... you're no Maria'. As I looked down at the earth below us, all I could think of was you. Your eyes, your smile, all the kind and loving things you had said to me over the years...your lattes. I realized in that moment that everything I'd been taught about soulmates was true, because you loved me with everything in you, even when I was at my lowest. You could have walked away, you could have left me in the rubble of the emerald mech, but you didn't. You pulled me out, you pieced me back together, you nursed me back to health, you stayed even when I was at my lowest, even when I looked like an absolute mess, you stayed by my side. And I never understood it till I thought I may lose it all in a first inferno, all because I blindly trusted someone I barely knew."
Robotnik approached Stone slowly, taking the Agent's trembling hands in his. "I'm so sorry, Stone. I made the worst mistake of my life by trusting him, and in the end I nearly lost you forever. Can you ever forgive me, Aban? Can you forgive me for what I've done?"
"Oh, Ivo..." Stone whispered, tears streaming from his eyes. "Of course I forgive you. I love you."
Stone surged forward, wrapping his arms around Robotnik's neck, and burying his face in the older man's chest, sobbing in disbelief.
"Please never leave me like that again." Stone hiccuped, clinging to Robotnik desperately. "I don't think I can go through that again..."
"And you won't. I promise." Robotnik says determinedly, taking Stone's face in his hands to look at him. "In fact, I think I might like to take a break from super villainy for a little while. Let us enjoy some peace and quiet for once."
"I'd like that." Stone sighs, gazing into those warm brown eyes he'd never thought he'd see again. "I'd like that a lot."
"And If you ever wanted a... change of scenery, I've got a few safehouses we could choose from." Robotnik suggests, gesturing towards the drab london apartment.
"Let's discuss that more in the morning." Stone whispers, placing a hand over one of Robotnik's, savoring the feeling of skin on skin. "I can get Shadow a blanket and pillow for the couch. I'm sure it would be much more comfortable than the kitchen island."
"Definitely." Robotnik agrees, walking over to scoop up the furry killing machine and lay him on the sofa.
Stone grabbed a spare blanket and pillow from the linen closet, carefully laying Shadow's little head on the pillow before tucking him in gently. Stone had to admit, Shadow was adorable. The red and black hedgehog had definitely grown on him.
"I believe we should turn in as well, Stone." Robotnik says, heading for the bedroom.
The doctor shucked off the dirty hoodie and sweats he'd come here in, finding a clean pair of sweats to sleep in and forgoing a shirt. He passed by the mirror above Stone's dresser, eyes catching on the unsightly swell of his belly. Normally his added weight hadn't bothered him very much, but seeing it now, after having been so vulnerable with Stone just a few moments prior, it made the old self doubt rear it's ugly head.
Stone walked in a moment later, immediately stopped in his tracks at the sight of Robotnik stood in only his grey sweatpants, his beautiful scarred and freckled pale skin on full display. Stone had always thought Robotnik looked perfect, whether he was in his prime or he looked as he did now, it didn't matter, because Stone didn't love him for his body, he loved him for him.
"You look good in my sweatpants." Stone commented, unable to keep the husky edge out of his voice.
"You're a freak, Stone." Robotnik grumbled playfully, laying down in Stone's bed. The agent only chuckled as he pulled out a pair of sweats to sleep in himself. He pulled his shirt off over his head, giving Robotnik a perfect view of his muscles flexing beneath his skin as he pulled the clothing off, of the numerous scars that were littered across his skin, especially the two symmetrical scars beneath his pectorals. "And a showoff."
"It's just genetics, doctor." Stone chuckles, stepping out of his jeans much quicker before pulling on his sweats. "Genetics, years of G.U.N training, and testosterone."
"Keep their name out of our current and future homes, Stone." Robotnik orders, head aching just from the thought of their former employers.
"Yes, Doctor." Stone replied playfully, curling up next to Robotnik in their bed. "If we're banning the mention of certain things from our current and future homes, may I suggest we put a ban on all mentions of your grandfather? For the betterment of our mutual mental well-being?"
"Excellent idea, Stone." Robotnik agrees, intertwining their fingers. "I will warn you though, I may look like him one day, when my hair had gone white and my face has aged. One day you might look at me and see...see him."
"I don't think I would." Stone says, eyebrows furrowed. "Because you didn't have his face, he had yours. I could never look at you and see anything besides the man I love. Even when you do look more like him, I'll still just see you. I promise."
"You are hopelessly romantic." Robotnik grumbles playfully, hand coming up to hold Stone's cheek.
"Only for you." Stone sighs.
"Damn straight only for me." Robotnik agrees, leaning forward and capturing Stone's lips in a gentle kiss. "Mine."
"Yours."
-seven years later-
Stone stood in the kitchen in their cottage style house in the South Downs, putting together lunch. He looked out the window, seeing Shadow and Metal playing with Sage in the meadow.
Sage was born a year after they moved in here. She was unexpected, yes, but they were overjoyed when they found out Stone was pregnant with her.
Stone walked out onto the back patio, carrying a tray with BLTs and a pitcher of lemonade. "Kids, it's lunchtime!" He called to Shadow, Metal, and Sage. The trio hurried up to the pato, taking their seats around the table. Stone helped Sage up into her chair, dusting off her dress a bit as he did.
"She has her sunscreen on, right?" Robotnik asked, taking a seat next to Stone at the table.
"Put it on her before she ever went outside." Stone replied, pouring each of them a glass of lemonade.
"Good, wouldn't want my precious angel getting all burnt." Robotnik says, ruffling Sage's wavy black hair playfully. She had physically taken after Stone's half of genetics, but had taken after Robotnik with intelligence and UV tolerance. Robotniks do not tan in the sun, they burn like overcooked bacon in a nuclear reactor.
Stone chuckled fondly, a hand resting over the soft swell of his four month bump that contained their second baby. They had decided to start trying for a second child about six months ago, and succeeded in two months time. They already knew the gender, they were having another girl. They'd already decided on the name Belle, which was Stone's mother's name.
Suddenly Stone felt the now familiar sensation of Belle kicking about inside him. Robotnik immediately noticed his telltale reaction and placed a hand alongside his over his belly.
"God, I swear she's got more energy than Sage ever did." Stone chuckles.
"Can I feel, Baba?" Sage asks, reaching for Stone's belly.
"Of course you can, sweetheart." Robotnik says, picking Sage up and setting her in Stone's lap so she could feel.
"That's your sister Belle in there." Stone says, sweeping a bit of Sage's hair out of her face.
"Hi, Belle." Sage says, pressing her little face close to Stone's belly. "I can't wait to meet you."
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