It's been twenty-eight days. Almost a whole month since he shut himself in that room. No one knows why. For as long as I have known him, he'd always favoured the outdoors; the wind an everlasting part of who he is. Was. Now though...

A sigh passed my lips as I trudged by the shut wooden door, a cold tray of food left untouched on the floor. The usual. Each day, Ella would leave something for him only for her to collect it hours later, face glum. Tanaka would knock politely on the wooden entrance and ask him how he is. No answer. No matter who came by or spoke, nothing came in return. No sound. Nothing.

Faint sounds came from the room every so often but nothing more. The quiet that, at first, unnerved us was now numbly expected. Knuckles doesn't go near that room for whatever reason he can't seem to explain. He's adamant on staying as far from that room as is possible in this mansion, I can't see why but I don't think he's alone in his unease. Even Cream and Cheese seemed scared, the little rabbit often glancing fearfully at the door but not out of fear for herself; kind as always and thinking of others before herself. Amy threatened to knock the wooden entrance down with her hammer but Knuckles stopped her, telling her she shouldn't. He never explained why. All I could tell is that the girls were struggling to cope without him and Knuckles knows something but refuses to tell anyone. It frustrated me at first. If he knew something, he should tell us so we know and maybe then, we can figure out how to solve this problem. But my anger faded as the days dragged on, my heart and mind growing to accept the colder atmosphere of the home.

It's strange. Before, we had always felt safe and warm in Chris' home, our home. There was nothing to worry about because we were safe, we knew that. But since that day, the day my brother shut himself in, everything seemed to grow cold. I'm going off on another of my more recent trails of thought. Maybe I should clean his part of the room we shared sometimes. Might as well, it'll get my mind off of Sonic for a while.

'What a mess. so much stuff just thrown about on the floor.'

*SWIP* *THUMP*

'Ouch! Ugh... stupid skateboard.'

'Huh? What's this?'

*SHFT*

'A book? No... a journal.'

June 11th

Hey, Sonic here! So, I saw Cream writing in her diary and she told me to make my own. Apparently, it's useful for holding secrets and a way to let your anger out. Honestly, I'm not sure why I'm writing right now but eh, got nothing else to do. Probably confusing, considering who I am. Shouldn't I be running around at the speed of sound? Well, I would but right now, I can't. Basically, the last battle with Eggman didn't go as I thought and I got my legs injured. One of them has a fractured bone and the other has wrenched muscles, I'm not gonna lie, it really fricking hurts! Ah well, can't complain 'bout it now. So yeah, now I'm starting my own diary. Wait, no, let's call it a journal. Yeah, that sounds better.

June 29th

Yo, journal. Wow, that sounds weird but anyway, been real busy lately so I didn't get a chance to write. Eggman's been bothering Tails and everyone when they're looking for the Chaos Emeralds but no worries, they beat him just fine. Sometimes I forget that I have friends that could kick my butt if they wanted to (well, except Knuckles, he's willing to fight me over even the smallest thing). Anyway, as of right now, we have 5 of the Chaos Emeralds and only need 2 more to finally go home. Speaking of home, Chris and his family have been really kind to us; giving us food and shelter and asking for nothing in return. Over the months since we arrived in this world, I honestly have grown to call it a second home. It's a place that I would always return to, no matter how long I stay away. The kid himself tries his best to help us, I can respect that. Lately, he's been helping me get around among other things (legs are still really sore but they're healing), I manage just fine when he's at school though. Got off-track there. Basically, life's going as usual and we only need 2 more emeralds. Pretty sweet!

July 13th

Today's been a pretty crummy day. Eggman jumped us and stole our emeralds, 4 of 'em. We only have 1 now, the yellow one. Tails is blaming himself for it all but it wasn't even his fault! Poor kid, he's always been sensitive. Amy and Chuck are talking to him right now, I probably should be doing that but they shooed me away, telling me they'll be fine without my help. So, here I am, writing instead of being with my best friend. Gosh, what a horrible day. Honestly didn't have much to say so, later.

July 30th

Hey, sorry for not writing. Had lotsa stuff going on lately, both good and bad. The bad news: Eggman managed to get a leg up on us and found the red emerald before us, Tails is still a little upset about it. But as for the good news: we got 3 of the emeralds back from the old doctor! Score! Hopefully, we'll get all of them back someday. Anyway, Chris' ma and pa came by just yesterday and brought a bunch of gifts with 'em. Amy got a necklace, Cream a plush toy and Tails got a hot new puzzle. Apparently, they decided to get me something special: a mirror. Namely, a mirror almost twice as tall as me. They put it on the wall opposite the window. The thing almost blinded me this morning when the sunlight reflected off it, a great way to start the day. But I gotta admit, it is well-made. The designs on its frame aren't that interesting but they somehow work well with it. Other than that, Knuckles came by today and asked if he could stay here for a bit. Asked him why and he tried to punch my lights out. Geez, I was just asking a question. Turns out the Mast Emerald's been acting weird and he was wondering if Tails could use a machine to figure out why. Oh well, at least things'll be more interesting now.

August 5th

Hey, journal. Things have been pretty meh and I don't know why. Knuckles has been acting hilarious lately and everyone's been smiling and laughing a lot but, I don't know why I'm not. Don't get me wrong, I still laugh and enjoy myself like always but to be honest, I've felt so... bored lately. Oh well, maybe it's just a phase. I'll be back to normal soon. I'm not going to let something like this keep me down.

August 7th

Writing again 'cause I'm feeling even worse than last time. I just don't find anything fun anymore. Chuck said I might have depression or something but I don't know. Looked it up with Chris on his new laptop and it really seems that way. Knuckles scoffed when I brought it up after Cream asked why I've been so unhappy lately, he didn't seem to believe that I, Sonic the Hedgehog, could be depressed. But again, I wouldn't know. Getting a little sick of writing now, so see ya.

September 9th

Hey, journal. Sorry for not writing for over a month but good news: I'm feeling much better. The guys took me to see a psychologist and she prescribed me with some antidepressants. Been taking them as she instructed: 2, same time each day. It's honestly been working great and I really gotta thank her for it sometime. On another note, Knuckles has been uneasy around me lately. He seems to shy away and act as if he's spotted something on my face that offends him, can't tell why. Whenever I asked him, he wouldn't answer me, he's just walk away. Strange...

September 15th

Stupid nightmares have been coming up so much lately and I can barely get any sleep. It's gotten to the point where I can barely stay awake long enough to hear Tails' short explanations. The kid has asked me about all the stuff that's happened and I told him everything (was too tired to lie and I wanted it all to stop). He figured out that it all started when i got that mirror form Chris' ma and pa. We tried to call them to ask where it came from but no one picked up. I felt bad about it but I threw the thing out, that should stop the strange stuff. Too bad, though... It was a pretty nice mirror.

September 20th

S'up journal, just writing to say that things have been great! Guess Tails was right about the mirror. Since I threw the thing out, everything just got better and better! I'm practically back to normal and I love it! Knuckles isn't acting scared of me anymore but he still keeps his distance. Oh well, it's an improvement so who am I to complain, right? Oh, Chris is calling me for the party, gotta go! Later!

'Tails?'

*SHF*

'Oh, it's just you Amy. What's up?'

'It's Sonic. His room door's opened.'

'What?! Has he finally come out?'

'T-that's the thing... I didn't find him anywhere.'

'What do you mean?'

'I can't find any trace of him. All I found was this.'

*PAF*

'Another book... It's a second journal.'

'Wait, second journal?'

'The first one's here.' Maybe this second one can tell us what happened to him...

October 13th

I know I'm writing in a different book but... Oh sweet Chaos... I don't know how to exact. As soon as it came back, I locked myself in here and shut the curtains. No light... I mustn't have it visible... Like Tails said many times: mirrors need light to make reflections. No light = no reflections and that means no bad stuff will happen. It'll all pass... It'll pass soon... It has to...

So hungry and it doesn't help that I smell food outside my door. But if I open it, something bad might happen and... wait, no... I can't get it even if I wanted to... SHUT UP! Oh, sorry... Some stupid voice won't stop whispering... whispering... What is it trying to say..?

Someone make it stop... It keeps telling me lies! Lies! All lies!... But are they..? The voice... The voice just won't stop! It keeps talking and talking and TALKING AND TALKING AND..!

My head hurts... like it's filled with static... Why's the mirror showing me something..? The curtains are closed and there's no lamp in here... So how?

What is happening..?

HOLY MOTHER OF CHAOS! SOMEONE HELP ME! IT'S GOT ME! IT'S GOT ME!

SOMEONE! ANYONE! HELP ME PLEASE!

SOMEone hE

With a soft clap, the journal was closed by my hands, my mind numb and confused. This, this was not what I had expected. These passages made little sense yet they painted a clear image in my head. My friend... my brother slowly becoming paranoid in the dark, all alone. My heart gave a painful twinge at the thought.

Glancing up, I saw that Amy was worried but her outstretched hand seemed to hesitate, as if afraid to touch me. Did I really look that horrified? With a deep breath, I relaxed my face and gave her a stained smile.

'I'm fine, Amy.' I told her. She didn't really believe me but nodded quietly before heading downstairs. I sat quietly on the blue bed for a short while until I decided to see for myself, see what was in that room. Hefting my body up, I started off towards my destination, journal gripped in my hand. Why was I still holding it?

My mind could only wonder how Sonic must have been feeling when writing the last few passages. He hadn't bothered to date them, he likely didn't know how much time had passed between each entry. I was snapped out of my contemplation when I found myself paused in my numb stroll by the open door. This was where Sonic had been. I stepped into the oddly normal room, the curtains drawn back and light streaming in onto the walls and floorboards. The mirror leaned against the wall, straight against the painted structure. This mirror... How did it get back here? And what did Sonic do whilst in here? Where is he now?

'Tails?' I glanced to the side and saw Sonic stood at the door, his stance relaxed. My mind froze on a single thought: how are you here? Why that was the first thing to come to mind, I don't know. I just felt like something was wrong with him. I just can't put my finger on it. Shaking off my confusion, I turned my attention to him. I have many questions and I intended to get some answers.

'Where were you, Sonic? Amy said she couldn't find you anywhere.' I elaborated. He simply shrugged his shoulders lazily.

'I was outside, having a nice run. Sorry if I scared ya.' he apologised but I couldn't help but feel it wasn't genuine. Still, I gave him a small smile.

'Well, at least you're okay. But I want to know just one more thing.' I said.

'And what might that be?' the blue hedgehog asked, his head tilted.

'What happened to you in here? It's been about a month and you look just fine. You don't seem too bothered, as if nothing written in your second journal happened.' I speculated. Last I checked, Sonic hadn't touched any of the food Ella left for him over the time he was shut in, he should be malnourished and yet, he looked hale and healthy. There was no paranoia in his expression but his eyes had a sharp glint that I knew hadn't been there before. He didn't reply. Walking over to me, he placed a hand on my shoulder and gave me a thing smile.

'Don't worry 'bout it, bud. I'm alright now.' he replied softly, turning on his heel. I watched as he walked out of the room. I could only stand there, mind numb again. That didn't answer my question. It felt like he didn't want to talk about it and avoided answering. I sighed quietly, my thoughts jumbled and confusing. I shook my head to clear the fuzziness from my brain, forcing back my misgivings. Sonic's alright now and I should just be glad he's not dead after a whole month in here.

I turned to leave when I heard a faint banging on glass and a muffled sound. A voice. Dread replaced my relief and seemed to pile in my gut as I slowly focused my eyes back to the mirror. My eyes widened, my breath hitched and my heart stopped.

Filth covered bloodied fur, torn and matted as pale lips moved in desperate speech, mouthing words I knew but couldn't hear. The figure sported ribs visible on a malnourished body. Terrified green eyes stared back at me through the glass, hand pounding against the invisible barrier. Desperate. Begging. Desperately begging for help.

My mind went blank.

Twenty-eight days. For twenty-eight days, he was in that room and no one knew why.