Tails kept up with Sonic for as long as he could, racing through clearings, pounding up and down hills, splashing through shallow streams without pausing for breath. He pushed himself beyond the burn in his lungs and the stitch in his side, running until his small body was a furnace. What broke him was the pain in his feet.
He had been feeling dampness in his shoes since the first stream, and they'd been sore and getting worse since the first half-hour, but the discomfort had built and built until it was agony and he had to stop and crouch, whimpering.
The young fox limped to a rock and sat to tenderly pull of his shoes. He gasped with dismay at the state of his socks; white when hehad put themon that morning,and now they were sopping with red.
He was still gaping when Sonic came pelting back past him. The hedgehog turned his course to dash in broad circles around Tails, slowing himself down, then skidded to a halt when he had let off enough speed. Tails reflexively shook his bangs out of his face; Sonic had whipped up a stiff breeze.
"What's wrong, bro?" The hedgehog asked. Tails looked down and pointed at his feet, ashamed. Sonic had had to stop for him. He had slowed Sonic down.
The hedgehog gasped and knelt, and Tails felt his socks being peeled off. It was slow and painful and when it was finished the two of them stared down at Tails' feet.
They had blistered, and the blisters had burst, and then where the skin was raw and tender new blisters had formed and burst again until the fox's feet were messes of raw flesh and blood.
He wasn't going to be able to run tomorrow. Maybe he wouldn't be able to run for several days. Tails felt his eyes fill up with tears. He wondered if Sonic would want to wait for him.
"Ohhh," the hedgehog breathed. "Jeez, buddy. This isn't good." He sat back in a crouch and frowned thoughtfully. "We need to put salve on this. Or bandages, or something. Except we don't have any of that. Well, maybe there's a stream nearby or something. We should wash these out at least."
He was racing off before Tails could say anything. The fox picked up his shoes and felt the insides; they were practically soaked. When he blinked, fat tears ran down his muzzle and splashed on the smooth leather.
He jumped as Sonic leaped by him, and tried to hide how he was crying; but his friend turned fast enough to see it anyway.
Tails couldn't bring himself to look at the hedgehog. He burned with humiliation. If Sonic hadn't minded waiting for his feet to heal, he probably wouldn't want to travel with such a sissy anyway.
"Awww, Tails…" Sonic said. He sounded unhappy himself. "Don't cry, bro. I know it hurts. There's a stream nearby, let's go wash those out."
Being told not to cry just made the pressure inside worse. Tails blinked and hiccupped and failed utterly at keeping the tears inside. Sonic sat beside him awkwardly, patting his shoulder every few seconds.
After ten minutes he was stormed out, and well enough to be embarrassed again. He snuck quick looks at Sonic through swollen eyes. The hedgehog was staring uncomfortably at the ground two inches in front of his shoes.
"Do you still wanna hang out with me?" Tails whispered hoarsely. His eyes felt gummy and he was parched.
Sonic looked up at him sharply. He looked shocked. "Well, yeah!" he said. "Why wouldn't I?"
Tails glanced down, fidgeting with the buckles of his shoes. "I slowed you down…" he mumbled.
He was surprised when Sonic sighed heavily. "Jeez!" The hedgehog said. "Is that what you were crying over? Well, I'm not worried about that. You know, when I started running I got blisters all the time too. It was horrible, and mine were never even this bad. You just need to get used to it."
"Really?" Tails whispered.
"Yeah." The hedgehog exhaled. He seemed much more comfortable now. "Well, I found a stream. We can wash your feet off there."
He checked the pouch that he wore at his waist. "And I have some money. Enough to take a bus once we get to town."
"How will we get there?" Tails asked. He couldn't walk, and there was no way he could fly for that long.
Sonic looked at him, gauging the fox's weight. "I can piggyback you I guess. Come on," he grinned. "Let's go."
Tails looked doubtfully at the hedgehog's prickly back, but nonetheless slipped his arms around Sonic's neck, keeping a good grip on his shoes. His friend made a theatrical "phew!" noise over the smell and hooked his arms through Tails' legs. Then he took off at a sprint. Tails turned his head away from Sonic's quills and squinted against the wind. He was glad to be moving again.
END
May 21, 2005