First Flight
Chapter 1: Set in Stone
"Wow, that airplane really belongs to you?"
It was about the fifth time the little fox had asked that question, yet his expression remained just as incredulous as the older boy, nine-year-old Sonic the Hedgehog, nodded.
"Yep." Sonic grinned a little at his best friend, resting a hand on the bi-plane's slightly flaked red paintwork, his pose slightly show-off-ish. He seemed to be getting a slight kick out of his companion's expression, but he couldn't really be blamed. Despite the fact that he had already been hailed as an international hero for kicking badnik butt across Mobius before even hitting double-digits, he really had very few physical possessions to his name; his sneakers, his gloves, a battered brown backpack... and a slightly tattered bi-plane.
The younger boy's eyes remained wide as he breathed out slowly. "That is so cool..."
"Used'ta belong t'my Uncle Chuck." The hedgehog's grin softened a little, his expression becoming a little thoughtful.
At six years of age, Tails the fox was astute enough to notice the slight change in his friend's demeanour, and he canted his head to the side slightly, looking up at Sonic with an 'o'-shaped mouth and wide eyes. He didn't know much about Sonic's family and was still perhaps a little young to fully understand what had happened to them. But he knew that something very bad had happened to the hedgehog hero's uncle not long before Sonic and Tails had met, and that even though years had passed since then, Sonic still missed his uncle and thought about him often. A few moments passed, with Tails remaining tactfully silence until Sonic spoke again.
"Left it t'me in his will. Real cool of him, huh?"
Tails nodded enthusiastically. "No kidding! That's way past cool!"
Sonic couldn't help smirking a little as his little buddy mimicked one of the hero's trademark sayings. Tails was still at that age where he copied much of what Sonic said and did, and whilst that probably wasn't always for the best, it was highly flattering and fanned the young hedgehog's ego as well as providing him with an unintentional source of amusement. He reached down to ruffle the fox's head-fluff.
"Yeah, buddy. My Uncle Chuck was just a way past cool kinda guy."
"So... you can fly it, right?" The fox continued to look up with a wide-eyed expression that pretty much stated he would be heartbroken if Sonic said no.
Sonic blinked a couple times then gave a nervous grin, hand moving instinctively to rub the back of his head.
"Well... my uncle gave me a couple of lessons... before, you know..."
"Awesome!" Tails' eyes lit up and he bounced on his heels, tugging on Sonic's arm. "So, you'll teach me!"
It wasn't a question. Sonic blinked again.
"Gee... T2... I don't know if that— Tails!" The hedgehog made a grab for his little companion but the fox had already clambered up the side of the bi-plane and into the pilot's seat and was now admiring the controls with innocent awe. Sonic slapped a palm to his forehead and dragged it down his face. Ever since he'd found Tails, the little fox kit had been fascinated with technology. There had been enough incidents where Sonic had literally had to drag Tails away from the battlefield after a skirmish because he'd been attempting to take apart one of the fallen bots to see how it worked. Why should he have expected this to be any different? Just as long as Tails didn't attempt to take apart Sonic's 'plane, the hedgehog hero supposed no harm could come of the younger boy's fascination. So he decided to just stand by and let his best friend have his fun. Moments turned into minutes, minutes turned into a half hour. After inspecting all the controls, looking under both seats, and almost trapping himself in the cargo hold, Tails finally seemed satisfied. Dropping down to land next to Sonic, the younger boy wore a grin that stretched almost ear-to-ear. Sonic smirked and shook his head, giving his buddy a light noogie.
"Yer a crazy kid. Ready t'go home?"
"Promise you'll teach me to fly your 'plane?"
Trapped in Tails' intense aquatic gaze, Sonic knew he wouldn't get any peace unless he agreed to the fox's request.
"Tell ya what, l'il bro. When ya can sit in the pilot seat and touch the floor with both feet, then I'll teach ya. Sound fair?"
Tails gave his best friend a scrutinising look that lasted for several long seconds, hands resting on his hips in an authoritative manner, as if analysing Sonic's likelihood to keep his word. At length, he gave the older boy a nod. "But you've gotta keep your promise! Pinky shake on it."
He held out his hand, pinky finger extended. Grinning slightly at his buddy's serious expression, the hedgehog obliged, locking his pinky finger with Tails'.
"There, pinky promise. Y'happy now? Can we go home?"
Tails smiled brightly. "Okay Sonic. Just one more thing..."
Sonic quirked a brow. "Wha'ssat?"
"What's her name...? Your airplane does have a name, right?"
Sonic nodded, a hint of pride slipping into his voice as he draped an arm around the younger boy's shoulders, both of them regarding the battered bi-plane. "Yeah. She's the Tornado."