Song: Brother - First Aid Kit
"Brother you are my guiding star
Forever, you roam, I won't be far."
The campfire sparked pleasantly, a comfortable sound which could lull any worried soul to a peaceful sleep.
Tails however, found it hard to let the drowsy feeling of much needed sleep take over and swallow him in its oblivious dark. He laid curled up on the ground with an old quilt as blanket and a worn out rucksack for pillow, but that wasn't what bothered him. Many nights had he spent sleeping in a postion such as this. It was neither exciting or rather uncomfortable anymore, most of all he wished he could sleep in his own bed at home. Though then he'd miss out on the adventure they were about to have. He and his brother.
The uncertainty of it all made his young heart leap with excitment. Merely thinking about what was to come made it even harder to fall asleep, if only the night could be over...
A lone wind swept in, ruffling his uncovered fur and making the fire dance wildly until finally settling down once again. Before he could stop himself, Tails let out a low sigh and shuddered slightly.
"You aren't cold, are ya?"
It was his brother's voice, and yet it wasn't at the same time.
The familiar concern was there, though his kind and caring voice had an undertone that didn't quite seem to fit with what he was saying. Almost as if someone had sucked all life and color out of it.
These were the first words he'd uttered after over an hour of complete silence on his part.
In fact, he'd been strangely quiet the entire day - perhaps that was why Tails had such trouble falling asleep.
"No, I'm okay it was just the wind, it's not that cold. Thanks for asking though" he answered with such overwhelming reassurance that it most likely sounded fake.
His brother didn't seem to take notice of it and fell silent yet again.
Tails glanced at him where he sat on a log right next to him, poking the fire with a stick but without any real interest in being amused by it. His hands probably only needed something to do, a distraction maybe.
"I have so many things to learn from you
I was so lost until you came through
And led me through the dark."
In the light from the fire and in the shadows of the dark - Tails thougt his brother looked much older than he really was. The dark circles beneath his eyes witnessed of someone who didn't get enough sleep or maybe a complete lack of it. His eyes was locked on the fire but his mind was probably miles away, seeking out something that was far beyond his reach. Longing for another pair of eyes that Tails, with a twinge of sadness, figured wasn't his. He looked torn.
"Do you think we'll wander far tomorrow?" Tails asked in an attempt to lighten the mood.
All he got for an answer was a barely audible hum.
He tried again "Maybe we'll discover a whole new island, full of fruits and critters we've never even seen before. There might even be a treasure buried there, like in the storybooks and we could go hunting for it. That'd be awesome, wouldn't it?"
This time he managed to make his brother chuckle, briefly but still...
"Though I'd have to carry you across the ocean, and I don't know if I'm strong enough. Because of all the chili-dogs you ate for dinner yesterday, I mean."
"You're stronger than you seem lil bro... you don't need me."
At first Tails took it as a compliment but were once again confused over that the answer didn't quite match with what he'd said. He hastily changed the subject.
"How long do you reckon we'll be gone for? Days? Weeks? Months?"
The expression on his brother's face changed drastically, he squinted his eyes and gave the fire a rough poke. If Tails didn't know better he'd say he almost looked slightly irritated.
"I've said I don't know." he muttered under his breath before softening his eyes again "You should try and get some sleep, Tails."
"I'm not tired."
"Try anyway."
"Why?" So you can sulk in peace?
"Cause I'm your big brother and what I say is suppose to go. Plus I don't want to have you snoring away all of the day tomorrow."
Tails rarely got told off with the 'big brother card', it was annoyingly demeaning. But he decided to not take offense to it because it must mean that his brother was really bothered by something - something he didn't want Tails to know about.
"Brother come close, don't stray away
For I know you'll turn and run from us one day."
He didn't want to spend the rest of their adventure like this so he decided to go to the bottom of it.
"What about you, how much sleep do you get?"
"What do you mean, I fall asleep right after you do." his brother responded, with a hint of defiance in his voice that he tried to mask with a casual tone.
"Then why do you have dark circles beneath your eyes all the time?"
Sonic shrugged his shoulders and threw the stick he'd been holding on the fire, it burned brightly and soon there was nothing left of it.
Tails decided to change tactic, adjusting himself on the ground so that he could better observe his older brother.
"Are you thinking about her?"
Sonic immediately flinched, notably stunned by the question.
"I know you carry her photo." the young fox continued matter of factly "I can hear you mumble her name in your sleep, the few times I actually see you sleep that is. You act like you don't care about her but I know you do, you care so much, in fact - that you are willing to travel across half of Mobius just to keep her away from you. To keep her safe."
It was dead quiet.
"You always try and push her and everyone else away, and you think you are doing it for their safety.. Yet I'm the one exception - you always let me tag along, why is that? Am I not important enough to be left behind?"
Tails had expected some sort of reaction from Sonic, but he remained completely still with his eyes still stuck on the fire.
"That's not it at all, Tails." he finally said without an ounce of emotion, almost detached "I let you tag along because you're my brother and I need you, but she... she's different."
"Different how?"
"I- I don't know. All I know is that one day I won't be here and I also know when that day comes you'll be fine. Knuckles will be fine.. heck, the entire world will probably be perfectly fine! But she won't."
It became quiet once again and soon another cold wind blew past them. Instinctively Tails pulled the quilt tighter around himself, suddenly he longed to fall asleep. To not have to think about what Sonic had just said.
For some reason it hurt in his chest and he realized that he'd started crying silent tears.
"Like you must, we all do
I've been there too
If it all gets too real, I know how you feel."
Then Tails remembered what Sonic had said about needing him.
"What do you need me for?"
For the first time during that night Sonic turned to face his little brother. His expression was surprised and not at all emotionless anymore. Tails hastily wiped the tears from his eyes and clarified.
"You said you needed me, what for?"
"To bring me back." Sonic said it as if he'd just said the most obvious thing in the universe "You give me a reason to return when all I want is to simply keep running and never look back."
A smile crept upon Tails muzzle and for the first time in a very long time he understood his brother again "Do you want to run right now?"
He saw a light spark in his brother's tired eyes, a silent anticipation.
"You know... I've been away from the workshop for a very long time now." he said vaugely, trying to hide his face from view "It must be awfully dusty right now, and the Tornado might have gone rusty. Actually, I think I've had enough of an adventure for this time."
Sonic cracked a smile and ruffled Tails' quills before he stood up and stared into the dark horizon.
"Do you know your way home from here?" he asked, a sudden eagerness evident in his voice.
Tails simply nodded, a yawn escaping him as he did so.
For a moment Sonic hesitated, his mouth opening as if to say something before ultimately closing it again. This really wasn't how he thought the night would end like but when he met the gaze of his brother - he knew that everything would be fine.
He would indeed be fine.
But then, as he was about to take off, Tails called his name.
"Hey Sonic! We will be there when you get home, both of us."
And the smile on his older brother's face couldn't have been brighter.
"And I'll be your guiding light."