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Every night, recently, Sonic would close his eyes and when they opened it’d be daytime. There was no period of sleep in between that time; dreams, nightmares, nothing. It was convenient at first— after all, Sonic had always preferred getting things done as quickly as possible— but with time, it began to weigh on him. His eyes felt heavy, his mind foggy, and his speed, something he’d always prided himself on, had slowed by atleast one km/s.
Sonic was feeling completely restless lately, bored of his typical(or lack thereof) routine. It’d been a while since he’d really gone out and done anything new or exciting, mostly because of this inability to fall asleep. All the days he spent running across the loops of Green Hill were beginning to blur together into one endless loop of its own, unmarked by periods of slumber.
He thought to ask Tails about this neverending cycle, but the only advice the little fox provided him with was that he oughta take a break— go somewhere quiet, try a nice stroll instead of a run, stop and smell the roses— that sort of thing. But come on, he’s Sonic the Hedgehog! He doesn’t take breaks.
Today, Sonic made his decision to finally go out on his next adventure. Maybe the problem wasn’t an inability to relax, but a lack of the usual thrill of his daily life. He planned to go out to Soleanna. He’d only visited one time prior and nothing particularly interesting happened, but he was sure there was lots there yet to be explored, and that was just the excitement he needed, wasn’t it?
He was running for a while— well, what he considered ‘a while’, which was only a minute or two— before suddenly, a painful thud against head made him stop dead in his path somewhere in the middle of a dreary forest.
He rubbed the tender area of his injury and crouched to pick up the culprit as it rolled away as if making its escape: a single red apple.
Sonic raised the fruit to eye-level and slowly adjusted it to check for bruising. His ears perked as he admired its ruby exterior. It was likely he’d see a lot of these once he finally made it to Soleanna, but its appearance put a different thing on his mind.
That’s it, he realized as he dangled the scarlet fruit from its stem, enamored with the color. Knuckles.
Sonic had been, admittedly, crushing on Knuckles for some time now. He didn’t like to call it a ‘crush’, so much as admiration; solely because it made him feel a little less pathetic about the whole thing.
But Knuckles was fun. Whether they were sparring or Sonic was simply teasing him, he never found himself bored when they were together, no matter how dull the challenge at hand was.
He tossed the apple up and seized it, before dashing across the forest floors and onward to Angel Island, where he’d no doubt find the echidna either weight-lifting a boulder somewhere, scavenging for food, or maybe even taking a nap.
The thought of Knuckles napping was almost cute. He’d probably be a sleep-talker, Sonic thought, or a drooler. And he was definitely a snorer, Sonic had no doubts about that one.
He could’ve taken what he called ‘the scenic route’ to get there, maybe even stopped by to visit Vanilla and Cream, but chose against that just to reach the island faster, his heart pumping quickly in excitement as he rushed past familiar woodland scenery, scouring the island for his friend.
He was only running around for a few short seconds further until he noticed the familiar red coat of his strongest buddy standing out amongst the green hues of the land, leaning laxly against one of the many tall trees residing there.
“Hey! Knux!” Sonic barreled over and landed on his bottom as he braked, the apple clutched in his hand tumbling with him and rolling forward in the dirt.
The echidna reacted with concerned shock rather than the annoyance Sonic was expecting, uncrossing his arms and pushing away from the tree he was resting on.
“Sonic?” Knuckles offered his hand down to help Sonic off the ground, his (admittedly beautiful) amethyst eyes big and round at the hedgehog’s sudden appearance.
“I knew you’d be here.” Sonic said, taking Knuckles’ hand and hopping onto his feet.
“I’m always here.” Knuckles responded. Their hands stayed locked for just a moment long enough to make it awkward, before Knuckles let go of Sonic’s gloved hand and wiped his own against his side. “What do you want?”
Sonic picked the apple off from the ground and scanned around the island behind him, head tilting at an angle as he viewed the mixture of leaves skewed across the sand, amongst piles of sticks and other random remains of shrubbery left scattered among the usually pristine landscape. All of the various critters of the island even seemed to be in hiding, making the area entirely placid.
“This place is a mess.” He said as he turned his head back to Knuckles’, who returned his gaze with something more akin to the aggravation Sonic was initially expecting upon his arrival.
“It stormed last night.” Knuckles offered as sort of an explanation, placing a hand over his hip before repeating himself. “What are you doing here?”
Sonic turned around and did another scan of the area, ignoring the man’s last question. “Stormed?”
“Stop changing the subject.”
“Someone’s cranky.” Sonic smiled charmingly, already changing the subject again, much to Knuckles’ obvious annoyance. “Thunder keep you up?”
“No.” Knuckles responded near immediately, his nose twitching as he was questioned. “Storms don’t scare me.”
The image was kind of funny. The brave, head-strong guardian of the Master Emerald, curled up in a corner rocking back and forth whimpering because he heard a little bit of thunder. Maybe it wasn’t that far-fetched, given his fear of ghosts. Sonic snickered to himself.
“What’s so funny?” Knuckles asked, quick to get defensive. Sonic could see his fist tighten, but he didn’t get intimidated. He knew better than anyone that Knuckles wouldn’t hurt him. “I’m serious.”
“I know.” Sonic tossed the apple he’d brought over with him up into the air and caught it again in a flashy trick of sorts, before—
“Catch!”
—he threw it straight at the other man, adding a little more force than necessary just for the fun of it. Knuckles hopped up slightly to reach for it as it nearly went flying past his shoulder, tripping forward a bit once he had caught it.
He brought his hands down, cupping the apple, rolling around the fruit in quiet inspection, a pensive look tinging his expression as he focused his gaze back up at Sonic.
“What’s this?” He asked skeptically, the apple’s red flesh gleaming in the sun’s last rays behind him.
“An apple, duh. Saw it, thought of you.” Sonic responded half-jokingly, lazily stretching his arms behind him. “Consider it a peace offering.”
He gave the echidna a small wink and then no sooner began to climb one of the many palm trees decorating this side of the island, not giving Knuckles so much as a moment to react, relinquishing any bit of gratitude the man might’ve had for the free snack.
“Hey! What’re you doing!?” Knuckles yelled loudly at him, the focus stolen from the apple as quickly as Sonic could get to the top. “Get down from there!”
Sonic cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted back— “Nice view!”— hanging from the top as it leaned with his weight, which only made Knuckles fret more.
“Sonic!”
“Alright, alright!” Sonic slid down hugging the branch, planting his feet back onto the ground with a sigh and meeting Knuckles’ glare.
And then it fell unusually silent between them. He expected him to fuss more, or maybe lightly bat him over the head for his carelessness, but he didn’t say anything else about it. Sonic was somewhat admiring Knuckles— his unkempt quills, scarlet coat, giant hands— with the fallback that he was looking at the apple in his hands instead should Knuckles notice said staring.
Knuckles was the first to break the prolonged moment of nothingness, raising up his head, his visage a familiar blend of irritation and skepticism.
“Did you just come here to terrorize the island, or?”
“Nah. I was about to head off to Soleanna.” Sonic responded as he leaned back against the tree, thoroughly amused at this point. After all, he’d gotten what he wanted out of this short visit: some well-deserved entertainment.
“Soleanna?” Knuckles looked around them. “What are you doing here, then?”
“Do I really have to come out and say it?” Sonic shook his head in feigned disappointment. “I missed you, you knucklehead.”
Knuckles blinked quizzically for a few seconds, and then averted his gaze to the ground as his face began to shade itself red. Sonic knew that Knuckles never cared much for others’ feelings towards him, so seeing him get somewhat embarrassed almost made him feel a little red himself.
Knuckles looked back down at the apple, maybe trying to feign disinterest, but his muzzle still remained flushed, blending in with the shade of the fruit.
“Hmph. Since you’re here…” He glanced back up at him, before turning and trudging towards a further end of the island. “Come here.”
Sonic followed Knuckles curiously, observing the variety of different plants taking home on the island as he led him along a vague path of past footprints.
They were strolling through the sand for a while. Sonic was unused to slow, tranquil walks, always preferring to rush his way over to his destination, but there was something about it that was almost calming.
Eventually Knuckles stopped just a few steps away from a large palm tree bearing several fruit, and Sonic made his own stop just behind him, examining the tree in question: a tall coconut plant.
“Want me to climb up there and get it?” Sonic asked as they looked up at the coconuts displayed by the tree, leaning over the other man’s shoulder to get a better look at his face, of which the redness was far gone by now.
“No!” Knuckles shouted, nudging the hedgehog away. “Get on my shoulders and grab it.”
Sonic thought that was a joke or something, but sure enough, the taller man kneeled over, presenting his back to him. Sonic, for just a moment, looked over the muscular landscape of his back, but then didn’t hesitate for a moment longer, lest he make it awkward, and hopped on top of his shoulders with a little push.
He rested his arms against the top of the echidna’s head, feeling various stray quills poke at his own. Despite the quills, though, Knuckles’ dreads were surprisingly soft, and he found himself almost wanting to pet his hand through them.
Knuckles stood up, lifting Sonic higher in the air, keeping his own hands wrapped around his ankles to keep the other steady, tight enough that he felt secure but not so much that it hurt. When he was calm, he always seemed so aware of his own strength. It somewhat impressed Sonic.
Once Knuckles stood, Sonic could reach the coconuts with ease. He reached his hand up and yanked one from its roots, lightly bonking Knuckles on the head with it before leaning over slightly to hand it to him.
“Careful.” Knuckles said as they stumbled a bit when Sonic shifted his weight. “Just drop it on the ground.”
Sonic let go of the coconut and watched it roll across the sand, before suddenly being veered around onto the other side of the tree. Being this high up, he imagined this must be what Vector’s point of view is like. It’d be cool to be this tall, he thought. That would really impress Knuckles, he bet.
He stretched his arms up again and pulled down another coconut as Knuckles adjusted them beneath the tree, tossing it off where the other was sitting, creating a pile.
“Is this all you eat?” Sonic asked. His tone suggested it was a joke but it was a genuine question. He was somewhat amazed that Knuckles managed to build muscle like that living off only fruit.
“Yes.” Knuckles said, moving them over to a different side, and Sonic more quickly got down the next few, getting used to the practice. “Better than all of those chili dogs you eat.”
“Hey, I’ll have you know that those chili dogs are full of protein.” Sonic dropped another and then rested his chin on top of the other man’s head, his arm leaning over his face. “You could use some protein.”
“The island provides me with everything I need.” Knuckles responded, his muzzle scrunching as Sonic further invaded his personal space. “I’m grateful to my ancestors for providing me with this land.”
Sonic tilted his head to the other side, gazing down at him thoughtfully. He could get used to this calmer Knuckles.
He looked up at the tree after a few seconds, observing the barren state of it. Most of the coconut trees he’s seen before had much more fruit than this one did. Maybe Knuckles had already collected some of it, he figured.
“Is this it?” Sonic asked, and in response, Knuckles walked them over to another side of the island, where fruit was even more abundant.
Mango trees lined the following land, and the two cleared a few of the fruit, but when Sonic got ready to toss aside the next mango, he noticed a Chao at Knuckles’ feet.
“What’s wrong?” Knuckles asked, kneeling to its level. Sonic wrapped his arms around the back of his neck to steady himself as he did, leaning his head over Knuckles’ to get a better look at the little guy.
The Chao chirped and jumped, reaching for the fruit Sonic was carrying, waving its stubby little hands up as it hopped fruitlessly.
Knuckles gazed upwards at Sonic, letting go of one of his ankles and reaching his hand towards him. Sonic complied and handed him the mango, and Knuckles offered it to the Chao.
“Is this it?” Knuckles asked as he gave the mango over.
With another little chirp, the Chao waddled away with its new snack, leaving behind tiny footprints in the sand before it retreated into hiding. The sight was endearing to SOnic, who held back on teasing Knuckles for now.
They continued to gather a few more of the mangoes, and Knuckles even chomped down on one as Sonic handed it over, referring to it as his ‘dinner’ when Sonic poked at him about it. Sonic could see how pointy and sharp Knuckles’ teeth appeared from up-close as he bit down on the succulent fruit. His immediate thought was how bad it must hurt when he bites his tongue.
They moved on further from the altar, discovering a few random banana plants after a short trudge over, and as Sonic was reaching for a pair, he lost his balance and fell forwards, knocking the two of them into the sand.
“Ow.” Sonic uttered, lifting his head up from the sand. As if the earlier apple incident wasn’t enough of a headache…
Knuckles pushed himself off of the ground and back to his feet, looking down at Sonic as he rubbed his own muzzle from where they’d fallen, a big frown carved into his expression.
“Are you okay?” He asked, offering his hand to him.
“Yeah, I’m used to it.” Sonic joked, taking his offer and using him as support to stand, before handing him the bananas from his other hand. “‘Least I didn’t squash these.”
Knuckles chuckled quietly, retracting his hand when it again became awkward, and the two made their way back around the island, just seeing what they could find at this point now that they’d already rummaged together a decent stash.
Honestly, Sonic wasn’t expecting to come here to do a bunch of labor, but even more honestly, he didn’t even mind. It took his mind off of pretty much everything, letting him focus on something as simple as gathering fruit.
Whenever Knuckles looked up at him, Sonic could see how well the sunset complimented Knuckles’ complexion, lighting up the purple hues of his eyes in a pinkish shade that fit his fur perfectly. Was Sonic gawking? He was probably gawking.
He could also smell him really well from this proximity. You’d think he wouldn’t smell great, and you’d be right, but there was something charming— at least to Sonic— about his woodsy stench.
Sonic absentmindedly combed his fingers through the echidna’s quills as the taller man carried him over to the next batch of trees, plucking out loose strays without much hesitation. Knuckles didn’t seem to mind, or maybe he just didn’t notice.
The sun finished setting after a while, and Sonic started to wonder how long he’d been here. He was certain there was a quicker and easier way to get this done, but truthfully, there was something he liked about the mundane task— and riding on top of Knuckles wasn’t so bad, either.
“Thanks for helping me. This’ll last me awhile.” Knuckles said, arms bursting full of the various fruits of the island, the literal fruit of their labors.
“Mm. No problem.” Sonic relaxed his arms behind his head as they made their way to Knuckles’ usual resting spot, watching the other man set the fruit aside in a handmade enclosure not far from the Master Emerald’s altar. “But why didn’t you just climb up and grab it yourself? It seems easier.”
“These trees have been here for thousands of years.” Knuckles responded as he sheltered the stash of fruit with a bunch of fronds woven together. “I don’t want to do anything that might harm them.”
“Huh.” Sonic folded his arms and smiled fondly. “You really are a big softie on the inside, aren’t you?”
Knuckles scoffed. “Shut up.”
Sonic observed the rather rustic look of the container Knuckles was putting the fruit aside in. It didn’t look sturdy— mostly composed of sticks and bamboo strewn over the island— it was something of a miracle it lasted last night’s storm, but he chose not to comment on it. If it worked, it worked. Knuckles tended to surprise him a lot, after all.
“You said you’re going to Soleanna?” Knuckles asked as he finished storing what remained of their gatherings, standing up and approaching Sonic.
Sonic uncrossed his arms. “Yep. Off on my next adventure.”
Knuckles looked away, his only response a quiet hum of pensive acknowledgement. The gentle rustle of the island’s diverse trees and tumbling foliage crinkling against the ground served as a sort of background music while the two stood quiet. Sonic wondered for a moment if Knuckles was hesitant to ask more of him, noticing the way he cast his gaze away to the lackluster ground, brows wrinkled in silent thought.
“Whaddaya think about coming with me?” Sonic asked. He told himself he was asking because Knuckles seemed as if he desired to come along, and not because, truthfully, he wanted Knuckles to come along.
Knuckles looked back at him, remaining silent just long enough to indicate contemplation, but then once he did speak, his tone suggested that Sonic’s offer was entirely absurd.
“And leave the Master Emerald?”
Sonic simply shrugged. After all, it wasn’t like he was isolated to the island. He’d left many times before with little trouble, and not always for necessary reasons. One time he left just because Sonic wanted to spend the day with him.
But Knuckles frowned, his mind already clearly made. “Sorry, Sonic, I can’t just abandon my duties.”
“I figured.” Sonic gave him a small smile. He wasn’t sure why he felt so disappointed, having fully expected the answer to be no. “Well, I guess I’ll be seeing you, then.”
“W-Wait, Sonic!”
Knuckles, seemingly instinctively, reached for Sonic’s arm as the hedgehog started to take his off, his grip firm, almost painfully so.
“It’s… getting late.” He let go of his arm slowly. “You shouldn’t travel at night.”
“What? I’m not scared of the dark.” Sonic’s ear flicked, before a sly smile formed across his lips. “Oh, I get it. You’re worried about me.”
“No, I’m not.” Knuckles averted his gaze again. “I didn’t say it earlier, but I missed you, too.”
Sonic stared at him silently, surprised by the sudden confession.
“You’re always onto your next big adventure.” Knuckles crossed his arms and gazed back at him, a glint of hope in his eyes. “It wouldn’t hurt to take a break for once.”
Sonic blinked in genuine shock, taken aback by the others’ response. He thought maybe he’d shyly offer him a place to rest for the night, or protect his pride and let him go. But he was straightforward with the request, and who would Sonic be to say no?
“I guess I could stay with you just for the night.” He said, a toothy grin spreading on his face as he did. “S’long as you don’t make me do more work for you.”
A smile graced Knuckles’ face at Sonic’s joke, and Sonic could feet his heart flutter unexpectedly at the sight.
***
Knuckles took his seat into the grass, his eyes immediately drawn up to the shimmering night sky as it gleamed above them. Sonic sat down nearby, gazing across the island again and seeing how the Master Emerald glistened with the moonlight.
After a few minutes passed, Knuckles readjusted into a more relaxed position, resting his weary back against the grassy flooring of the island. Sonic, meanwhile, dropped down onto the ground and rolled around until he was comfortable. He felt the gentle prod of the grass prickling his back as he laid beside the other man, his ears tilted slightly toward the side as he listened to Knuckles’ gentle breathing of which he was certain would transform into loud snoring once the man was asleep. For now, it was peaceful.
Knuckles was watching the stars closely. Sonic could see them all light up in his eyes, and that’s all he really needed. He could stargaze any other night.
Sonic felt weightless as he laid there, tired out from all of the work they’d done. Even so, it was so much fun, he forgot why he was even there to begin with. His eyes shut gradually, and he slowly drifted to sleep, a few hazy thoughts following him to his eventual slumber beneath the ever twinkling sky.
Maybe he could spend his next adventure with Knuckles? He smiled at the idea.