"Hey, Knux! Come over here for a sec!" Sonic called out to his boyfriend, his five-year-old daughter sitting comfortably on his lap. It'd be a long time since they found the girl all alone, and though he and Knuckles never found out who she really belonged to, they both had a feeling that they were the 'rightful parents'.
"Ready, Blaze?" he asked in a hushed tone, looking down at the small girl. She whimpered, then nodded her head.
Knuckles went over to them, followed by their dog Kuru. Kuru had grown up now, but was still an 'ankle biter' size.
"What is it, Sonic?" Knuckles asked with a smile.
"Mind taking Blaze out into the ocean a bit?" Sonic questioned, standing their daughter up. "I think she might be ready today."
Blaze smiled weakly, walking over and reaching up to Knuckles for 'fire hugs', as she called them. "Knuck-dad!"
Knuckles grinned. "Sure! C'mere you!" He picked up Blaze and hugged her.
Blaze giggled and hugged back, her body heating up with how happy she was to be hugged. Her tail swished back and forth in a wagging motion.
"You comin' too?" Knuckles asked Sonic.
"Wha? No way!" Sonic replied with a small laugh. "You know I don't do water." He blushed and smiled sheepishly, embarrassed at the fact.
"Okay," Knuckles replied.
He whistled. "Here, Kuru!"
Kuru ran up to him, wagging his tail. Even though he wasn't a puppy anymore, he was still bursting with energy.
"Let's get going!" Knuckles said.
Sonic watched quietly as they headed towards the ocean. Blaze got down from Knuckles' grasp, but held his hand tightly, staring warily at the water.
"You'll be fine," Knuckles assured her. "It's just water."
Kuru bounded into the water excitedly, then began to swim around.
"See, Kuru likes it!" Knuckles said, chuckling lightly.
Blaze nodded uneasily, then slowly walked towards the water. Her Knuck-dad liked the water just fine, so her Sawn-dad was probably just worried about nothing, right?
Even still, once she got knee-deep, she freaked out and scurried back into Sonic's arms, certainly not wanting to go any deeper.
Sonic giggled, lightly petting her head. "Hey, don't worry about it. I don't like goin' into there either," he told her reassuringly.
He gazed back at Knuckles. "Well, at least she takes regular baths now," he said. "It's just the really deep water she can't stand."
"Yeah, guess so," Knuckles replied.
He knelt down to be more eye-level with Blaze. "It's okay, the water won't hurt you," he said softly.
Blaze whimpered, hiding into Sonic's chest.
Sonic chuckled, then smiled at Knuckles. "By the way, Knux; when we're done here, I've got somethin' to show ya."
"Oooh, really?" Knuckles was curious now. "What is it?"
Sonic placed a finger on Knuckles' lips and smirked. "It's a secret."
Blaze stared at her blue-furred father curiously, wondering what the 'secret' could possibly be.
"Oooh, can't wait!" Knuckles replied. He loved surprises.
The two finished up their 'trip' to the beach (in reality, it was only a few meters from Sonic's hours), then got up and started to head back.
Sonic however, had other plans, leading the two through the village. A few people stared, as they always did when the two boyfriends came through, but Sonic paid them no mind.
He stopped as he reached a large house, then opened the door and walked inside.
Blaze tilted her head, confused, then looked up at Knuckles, wondering if maybe he knew what Sonic was up to.
Knuckles shrugged in response, not sure what was going on either.
Kuru, on the other hand, excitedly ran inside with them, eager to explore.
Sonic gestured to the room around him, which was mostly empty aside from a few basic appliances. "What do ya think?"
Blaze, still confused but wanting to give her father an answer anyway, smiled softly. "Pretty!"
Sonic grinned, then looked over at Knuckles. "Perfect place to raise our daughter, don't cha think?" he asked. "Well, I mean, I hope it'd be…" He chuckled. "I bought it, after all."
Knuckles' eyes went wide in surprise. "You… this…?"
"That shack was way too small for the four of us," Sonic reminded him. "So, I saved up, and, well…" He smiled, "welcome home!"
Knuckles looked all around, taking in the sight of the house.
"Wow…" His eyes became misty. "I…I don't know what to say!"
He decided to hug Sonic instead.
Sonic laughed, hugging Knuckles back, then heard Blaze walk closer.
"What's this?"
Sonic looked down, quickly escaping Knuckles' grasp as he saw Blaze holding a small box that'd fallen fallen out from his bandana. "A-ah, Blaze, quick, give Daddy the—!"
Blaze held it out to Knuckles, the box opening to reveal a stunning ring. Sonic blushed red, then snatched the box away, averting his gaze from Knuckles.
"Oooh! What's that for?" Knuckles tilted his head curiously. "It's so pretty!"
Sonic's heart was pounding, feelings as though he'd just ruined everything. He sighed, then shut his eyes and held the open box out towards Knuckles, his voice becoming quiet and sheepish.
"K-Knuckles, will you marry me?"
Knuckles was silent for a moment. He pinched himself, just to make sure he wasn't dreaming.
Then, he threw his arms around Sonic.
"OHMYGOSHYESIWILLMARRYYOU!" he exclaimed, kissing Sonic all over his face.
"Ah, K-Knuckles!" Sonic flushed at the kiss, dropping the box in surprise; even after their years of being together, Knuckles' sporadic surprises kisses still made him flustered beyond belief.
Blaze watched, confused at what was happening, but giggling cheerfully at how happy her red-furred father was.
As Knuckles continued to smother Sonic with affection, Kuru came running back into the room. He'd finished exploring the house. He saw the ring box on the ground and sniffed at it curiously.
"Kuru, no!" Sonic yelped, managing to grab the box back up despite Knuckles' hold. He blushed further at how protective he was over the little box. "G-geez, I really messed this up," he said sheepishly despite the kisses being placed on his face. "I had a plan and everything."
"It's okay," Knuckles replied, a huge grin on his face. "I'm just so happy right now!"
"I can tell!" Sonic exclaimed, grinning back at him. He gave Knuckles a quick kiss, then giggled. "And now there's an actual bed for us!"
"Awesome!" Knuckles replied. "Can…can you show us around? We gotta get used to our new house, after all!" he added with a wink.
Sonic nodded. "Of course!"
Their remaining time was spent exploring the household, with Sonic pointing out this-and-that and whatever else he could think of. The house was mostly empty, as Sonic wanted Knuckles and Blaze to add their own little touches, but that didn't mean there wasn't a lot to go over.
Sonic dropped Blaze off in her room and left Kuru in another where he'd already set up the dog's bed, then took Knuckles to the only other room in the house. "And nooow, the bedroom," he said as he walked in. He flopped down on the bed, gleefully enjoying how comfortable it is. "And it's just ours this time; no Blaze, no Kuru." He'd missed the times.
Knuckles climbed on next to him.
"Wow, I didn't know a bed could be this comfy!" He sighed in contentment. "Thanks, Sonic. For everything."
Sonic chuckled, then looked back at the door once more to ensure it was closed. "Hey, no problem."
He gently took hold of Knuckles' face and kissed his forehead. "Thank you too."
Knuckles blushed. "F-for what?"
Sonic laughed, then pulled Knuckles into a hug. "What don't I have to thank you for?" he asked rhetorically. "You're awesome!"
Knuckles blushed even more. No matter how many times Sonic said things like that, it always left him flustered.
"Not as awesome as you," he giggled.
"Not true, shhh…" Sonic smiled and locked Knuckles into a kiss to keep him quiet, his ears flittering happily.
Knuckles giggled even more, wrapping his arms around Sonic in a hug as they kissed.
The two then relaxed on the bed, staying in each other's embrace until they fell asleep together.