Disclaimer: I own nothing Sonic-related except for my copies of games and the Sonic Archives, and my various warped fanfic crap. No sue I. Got it? Good.

Author's Note: I know, believe me I know, how insanely long it's taken me to post this damn thing. Many apologies for that, but that's what college will do to you. It robs you of all your free time and chances to write. T.T I've gotta say: homework is a drag. Now if I could get paid for writing this, then I would have it made, but alas I cannot. Oh well, my many apologies for how long it has taken for me to post the first chapter for the third in the Manic/Kleptomaniac series (and hopefully my posts for the next chapters won't take me so long); and read, enjoy, and review. C&C, as always, is greatly appreciated.


Manic let out an aggravated groan as Sonic's Goddess-awful caterwauling continued into its fifth minute. It was rare that his brother woke up before him. Rarer still when he was more awake than his thief of a brother early in the morning. The fact that Sonic had taken it upon himself to act as unofficial alarm-clock to his siblings made his empathic brother want to throttle him. Sending an image of what he was tempted to do if Sonic didn't shut up, Manic rolled over.

All was blessedly silent for five glorious seconds. And then Sonic started up again, this time his voice breaking on a particularly sour note that he really had no business trying to hit. With a growl Manic surged to his feet, stalked over to his door, and wrenched it open. "Bro, shut up. I swear to the yiffing Goddess Herself that you don't stop singing that crappily; then I am going to tie you up, gag you, and shove you in a closet. Got it?"

Green eyes slowly turned to regard the empath as the blue hedgehog beamed; his goal accomplished. "You know you wouldn't."

"Try me." Sonic eyed his brother warily as Manic stalked closer, clearly debating as to whether he could get away with making the other prince cringe by hitting another mangled note. "Sonic, just don't. It's yiffing bad enough that you had to wake me up at six in the damn morning. Don't make me want to kill you any more than- oh crap, she's behind me."

True to what he'd realized just a moment too late, their sister stood behind the strongest of the triplets with a furious glare that threatened instant incineration. "Maaaaniiiic," Sonia growled in a sing-songy voice, sending chills down the thief's spine. Whapping him upside the head (Manic was grateful that it wasn't full force), the princess snapped out, "Don't curse!"

Scenes like this had rapidly been becoming the norm ever since Manic's secret had been blown wide open. Sonia occasionally fluctuated between being angry at him for the details of his life that he didn't tell them (for the sake of their stomachs), and fussing over him due to the various injuries he came 'home' with from time to time. Sonic settled himself at a comfortable level of knowledge, 'bastard' being the only word that needed to be said, and kept on experimenting with finding ways to pester the empath when he was bored. Especially when it came to thinking things loudly.

Normal sibling affairs aside; the knowledge that Manic was indeed Kleptomaniac and the fact that he no longer lied about it had changed the dichotomy of the relationship between the three of them ever-so-slightly. One of the biggest changes was the concern Sonic and Sonia had for Manic's sanity and overall health. No longer lying to them about who he was also meant that he stopped hiding his nightmares: and the frequent results. Knowing that he was emotionally sensitive after said nightmares had been hard to deal with. The fact that he needed a calm mind around to help him come back to himself all the sooner, and that they had to school their emotions at such times was much more difficult.

As such both Sonic and Sonia had taken pains to accommodate their brother's particular 'requirements'; much though it annoyed him at times. Three months of them knowing his secret hadn't changed the fact that he hated being fussed over. What annoyed him further were Sonia's continual not-so-subtle hints, whether verbal or emotional, that she thought some therapy would do him good. As per usual for Sonic when it came to the various resulting squabbles, the hero would try to escape into a corner to avoid getting dragged in.

Respect for his strength and empathy had slowly been growing, which was a mixed blessing. While he could smooth the situation over in an argument by using his empathy to his advantage and 'listening', Manic found it difficult to negotiate compromises with his sister when she caught on to what he was doing; resulting in her stubbornly holding onto her anger for longer than had once been normal. Naturally that just upped the level of frustration between the two of them.

Truthfully Sonic was much easier to deal with. He didn't stress the concern for Manic's mental health as much; which the thief greatly appreciated. Then again, it helped that the both of them were plotting how to keep Sonia away from her fiancé. Ever since Sonic had found out that Bartleby was part of the 'incident' three months before, he couldn't help but bristle at the mention of the poodle's name.

So far the brothers' attempts to keep Sonia and Bartleby separate were a rousing success- mainly due to the fact that Manic had caught on to a dream from Sonia one night: one that clearly illustrated her growing infatuation with a certain echidna that just happened to be the Guardian. Since then Sonia's brothers had been trying to set her up. Speaking of which…

"Owwwww," Manic whined as he clutched at the back of his head. "What're you tryin' to do? Give me a concussion?"

Red eyes narrowed at the slight slip of false accent. One thing Sonia and Sonic had been slowly getting used to was how he sometimes wavered in and out of the accent without seeming to realize it. They had also quickly figured out that it was a good indication of his mood and more importantly, if he was trying to hide something. "Manic, your accent. You're doing it again," she warned in a slightly threatening tone.

Manic flinched involuntarily. "Sorry."

"Oh no Manic! What are you trying to hide now?" Sonic mocked, copping a golden-eyed glare from his brother.

"The only thing I'm hiding is how much I want to wring your neck if you yowl like a dying cat one more time," the thief growled back. "And that's not a compliment."

"So his 'singing' was what woke you up? Not nightmares?" Sonia's tone carried the barest hint of relief despite her current temper. Along with having learned about Manic's nightmares his brother and sister had quickly figured out that was his main reason for waking up early in the morning. For him to be awake early sans nightmares was then something to be prized as it pointed to a night where his mental stability hadn't been under attack. At least, that's how Sonia chose to view it.

"Yeah, it was his yi- caterwauling that woke me up. He'd wake the dead singing like that." Manic mentally breathed a sigh of relief as he caught himself. No need to have his sister rip his head off for an accidental slip of words she quite thoroughly didn't approve of.

"Come on guys; stop talking about me like I'm not here. What am I? Chopped liver?" The hero whined only to be ignored.

"As glad as I am that you didn't have another nightmare," Sonia stated imperiously with a hand on her hip, "I still think it's a good idea, for your sake, if we get away for a while."

Green ears swiveled back as yellow eyes caught green for the barest second. Initiate phase one. "So-nia," Manic groaned as he scooted away from her however minutely. "How many times do I have to say it? I'm fine. I'm an empath, yeah, but I'm not gonna lose my mind just because of a few things I pick up."

A steely look burst into flame in the princess's ruby red eyes. "Don't you dare try that tack with me Manic Sarashi Hedgehog," she snapped.

The emotions that suddenly wafted over from Sonic to Manic in that second could have all too easily been translated as, 'Oooo, burn.' Manic chose to ignore it.

"Look, I'm just saying that we don't need an 'island vacation' for my 'mental health'. I've been an empath my entire life. I'm not going to suddenly keel over tomorrow and start gibbering brainlessly in a corner. And- Sonic, I know you're thinking it, so shut up."

"What?" Sonic squawked, trying to act completely innocent despite his mental teasing of his brother. "I didn't say anything!"

"You were babbling about it in my head, so shut up."

"Sonic; stop teasing Manic. Manic, I don't care how much you argue, we're going to the Floating Island to get away for a while. It's for your own good! So stop fighting and deal with it," Sonia stated authoritatively in full-blown 'older sister' mode. Never mind that they had no idea what the birth order was. She still had a talent for taking up the role of eldest when her brothers got out of hand. Then again, the role of 'eldest' seemed to rotate among them depending on the situation.

"But-" Manic started to complain.

"Mo-om," Sonic teased before darting out of his brother's reach.

"Sonic, I swear to the yi- to the Goddess Herself that if you don't shut up I'm going to hurt you," the thief warned, barely catching himself again.

"You wouldn't dare," Sonic taunted from the driver's seat. Manic started for his brother, drawing a startled squeak from the blue hedgehog before Sonia imposed herself between them.

"Boys! Knock it off," she ordered, her tone bordering on a growl. "Sonic Takeshi Hedgehog, stop harassing Manic. As for you Manic, we're going to the Floating Island to get away for a few weeks and that's final!" Slowly both of her brothers stood down and caved to her whims. Once Sonia was satisfied that Manic wasn't going to jump Sonic and start attacking him with a permanent marker the moment her back was turned, she flounced off to her room and closed the door with a resounding thud.

Yellow eyes darted from the closed door to the blue hedgehog cautiously peeking over the back of the driver's seat. Soon their eyes met, and identical grins slid into place on their faces. Phase one of 'Operation: Princess and Guardian Set-Up' was complete. "Told you it would work," Sonic muttered quietly so that their sister wouldn't hear.

"Alright, alright. I'll give credit where credit is due, but you have to admit that my instincts about having you mention the idea to her in the first place was pure genius," the thief replied with a smirk.

"So does this mean that you're not going to follow through with your threat about my singing if I start up again?" Sonic asked hopefully.

"No. Not just no, but hell no. If you make that Goddess-awful noise again, I'll tell Knux about that dream."

Green eyes went wide in horror. "You wouldn't!"

"Tell my aching ears I wouldn't," Manic retorted.

"...I hate you," Sonic grumbled as his ears swiveled back.

The thief smirked. "No, you just hate the fact that I can read you."

"Jerk."

---

Half a day later saw the triplets taking the slow ride via hover-van up to the Floating Island. Manic's show of moping was convincing enough to earn him a ruby-eyed glare from his sister, as well as make her even more certain that the 'island getaway' was just what the thief-prince needed. For the most part he stayed out of Sonia's way; though occasionally he felt the need to interject not-so-subtle-hints that he could think of any number of places he would rather be than an island with a temperamental echidna whom he'd been jokingly exchanging death threats with for the past month and a half. "C'mon, there's nothing there! I'm a thief! I steal things! The only things worth stealing are the emeralds and he'd like, totally power up and kick my butt," the green hedgehog whined for the umpteenth time.

Sonia let out an exasperated sigh, gripping the steering wheel tighter so the knuckles under her fur were turning white. "Manic Sarashi Hedgehog," she growled threateningly, her normally soft quills bristling with an irate sharpness that was more typical of her brothers, "I am going to say it for the last and final time, and after this I don't want to hear one more word about it: we are going to the Floating Island to get away and you are going to like it, or so help me I'm going to skin you alive. Oh yes, and another thing: accent."

Manic flinched at her sharp tone, trying to ignore the waves of internal laughter rolling off of Sonic. "Sorry. But I'm serious, there are loads of other places and…," he froze at the slow glare and the near-growl coming from the princess. Letting out a nervous laugh, he shrank back in his seat a little. "…On second thought, going to the Island sounds good." A derisive snort was the only response Sonia gave as she turned her attention back to the slow ascent of the van.

Silence took hold and left a resounding quiet that, had Manic had an easier life, would have left him unnerved. Speaking of which… The thief turned his golden-eyed gaze on to his formerly laughing brother and watched him intently as the signs of impending boredom slowly began creeping into place. It started with a bored gaze out one of the windows, then in time the drumming of ungloved pale tan fingers beating on the 'kitchen' table, which was swiftly followed by Sonic's trademark tapping foot. A grin slid onto Manic's face as he stared at his brother. It was no secret that since Sonic was so high-energy that he was a little ADD; but Manic found no end of amusement when it came to picking on the blue furred pest when he was most bored. Especially when that boredom was coupled with a silence that Sonic found unbearable.

Where there was silence in a relaxed atmosphere, Sonic liked to fill it with sound; whether by normal living noises or obscenely caterwauling early in the morning, it didn't really matter to him. To Manic though, it was cause for revenge. The threat of revealing Sonic's… unusual dream to the Guardian had been enough to prevent him from persisting in his wish for his siblings to kill him; but it wasn't quite payback for having to wake up to that horrendous noise in the first place. So thus, Manic was indulging in another thing that he knew his brother couldn't stand: staring at him like a fish.

All it took was a slight mental prod for the fidgeting hero's eyes to sweep from the window to the empath; and then green eyes hardened into a glare. Manic's slightly fanged grin became more pronounced and he winked as he tauntingly sent over a feeling that could have been translated into 'ha ha'. Sonic silently made a face in return before turning back to the window, causing Manic to quietly snicker. Minutes ticked by with nothing but the thrum of the hover-van's engine and Sonic's drumming fingers to fill the otherwise soundless air before the hero chanced another look at Manic. Golden eyes alight with mirth were still staring at him just as stubbornly as before.

A scowl flashed into place on Sonic's features, eliciting a fit of barely contained laughter from the other. "Stop staring at me," Sonic mouthed out, deliberately being quiet so as not to set off their already volatile sister.

"No," Manic mouthed back just as quietly with an amused grin.

"Stop."

"Make me."

"Stop it."

"Why?"

"Because."

"Why?"

"Just stop it!"

Manic snickered, a hand clamped firmly over his mouth. Once he had himself under control he removed his hand and mouthed, "N-O."

The next thing he knew, a very irate ball of blue fur launched himself across the room at him while yowling, "Stop staring at me damn it!!!" The two of them went down in a tangle of limbs that caused the hover-van to tilt dangerously to one side. Their arms were a blur of attack and counter-attack as they wrestled back and forth.

"Make me 'Maurice'," Manic cackled as he uttered the dreaded second middle name that Sonic despised; fending off Sonic's jabs at his sides with his superior strength.

"YOU DID NOT!!!" the blue hedgehog squawked in outrage as he redoubled his efforts to reach Manic's violently ticklish sides.

"BOYS," Sonia snapped as she quickly righted the van, "I don't care who out of the three of us is faster, I don't care who's stronger, what I do care about is peace and quiet; AND IF I DON'T GET IT THEN I'M GOING TO BRING MOM TWO PRINCE-SKIN RUGS! So sit down and shut up. NOW."

Two sets of wide, startled eyes turned to her as her brothers froze in place. A frightening and almost blood-red glower seen in the rearview mirror was enough to tell them that enough was enough. Sonic silently picked himself up off of Manic and scooted into the nearest seat with barely a sound. Manic quickly followed his lead though at a safer distance from their sister. In all fairness the two of them had made the day less than pleasant for her; so she did have all right to snap at the both of them for essentially ganging up on her with their childish behavior.

On the offset, it was quite deliberate at some points. Their sister would be all the more likely to go off and seek the Guardian's company in privacy if she was annoyed at them; which in turn would strengthen the faint bond between the two. Was it a cruel way to play matchmaker? Most definitely, but the two princes were positive that the end result would be worth it. Not that Sonic had enjoyed Manic using that Goddess-awful name by any means. It was an unfortunate fact for all three of them that due to their royal status their names weren't simply confined to first-middle-last. Various titles and horrid middle names that usually were left un-uttered had a tendency to be tacked on; one part of ascending the thrones after Robotnik's reign ended that none of them were looking forward to.

Needless to say, the rest of the ride was quiet and without incident. Mainly because, as both Sonic and Manic knew all too well and as Knuckles had said, Sonia could be downright scary when she wanted to be. There was something to be said for the fortitude of the princess that could stare down an accomplished killer like Kleptomaniac.

---

Knuckles raised an eyebrow as the triplets came out of the landed hover-van. Judging by the way Sonic and Manic hung back and how Sonia purposefully strode forward to meet him, they'd had another sibling-spat. Once again the echidna found himself thankful that he had no siblings in the strict sense and the worst he had to deal with were the Chaotix. He'd long since lost count how many times he had thanked the Ancient Walkers for that tender mercy from the time he had first met the royal triplets. All the same he gave a faint smile and nod in greeting; Sonia had called ahead several days before to approve the 'vacation' with him. With that kind of consideration he was inclined to give her respect well-earned, both in a future-political sense and as that of a highly-trusted friend. "I take it your brothers have been idiots?"

Red eyes rolled skyward as the princess let loose an uncontrollable sigh. "You have no idea."

Knuckles's violet gaze darted from Sonia to the two princes, who were feigning innocence, and back again. "…Something tells me you might need this vacation more than they do."

Sonia gave a slight chuckle as she shook her bright pink bangs out of her face. "I'm beginning to think that too."

"Come on inside then. I'll introduce you three, and then you can kick back and relax while Sonic and Manic get out of your hair." Knuckles turned and led the way to a nearby vine covered rock face. Brushing back the thick tangle of greenery, he revealed a cave-like entrance. By way of explanation he stated, "This is one of the many entrances to the Hidden Palace, so don't forget it."

The four of them slipped inside and the vine curtain slid back into place. Though dark, the tunnel wasn't as dark as might have been expected due to various glowing mosses on the walls and ceiling in a range of colors. Blues, reds, greens, and many other colors besides cheerily beamed at the four as they made their way along. The tunnel twisted and turned in a convoluted path with numerous forks going in all directions that felt reminiscent of an underground labyrinth. There were forks that took sharp inclines, sharp declines, ones that went forward or back, and turns of path that went straight up and down.

It would be all too easy to get lost as the triplets each silently noted, for there was little difference from one path to the next aside from what colors the moss in any given tunnel glowed. Despite this, Knuckles navigated the twisting up and down path with an ease that spoke of years of experience; a fact that Manic was quick to note and store in the back of his mind. Sonic's grudging admiration of the Guardian kicked up a few notches. If this was the way to the place where the Chaos Emeralds were kept guarded, it was no wonder that Robotnik hadn't ever found it regardless of how long he had tried to; whether by forthright means or manipulation. The safety and beauty of the tunnels were captivating enough; but once they left the tunnels and had entered the temple-like Hidden Palace the triplets found their breath taken away.

White stone walls and pillars that looked like they had been carved out of the palest marble held up a ceiling covered in a many-hued mosaic of what looked to be stained glass. Brilliant multicolored sunlight streamed in from the ceiling, rippling in a play of shadow and light that suggested the 'roof' was, in fact, underwater. Curiously enough the center of the round room was sunken in and from that shallow well a clear spring of water bubbled forth, defiant of what laws of nature might govern such a peculiarity.

Seven tunnel entrances were outlined in the walls of the huge circular room, each pointed archway made of a different color of stone, but only one arching entryway held a set of ivory colored double doors. Engraved on each door was a mirror image of a delicately built female echidna wearing a flowing set of robes and a breastplate that mimicked the curve of the sickle-moon; a near-exact replica for the one Knuckles bore on the fur of his chest in white. Around her were what looked like seven gems in orbit, each with ancient ekidon characters carved into them, likely denoting something with which to identify them. One hand bearing the finely boned knuckle-claws that Knuckles shared in common was held close to her heart, and the other was gracefully extended toward the carved-in door grips which had obviously seen centuries' worth of wear.

Those doors alone were hint enough that Knuckles's family had been there for as long as the Hidden Palace had existed. The ease with which he approached those ancient doors and gently swung them open made it just as clear that he had grown up within the Palace's confines. Smirking back at the three hedgehogs he spoke. "Welcome to the Hidden Palace." The triplets followed him in a stunned silence. One thing both Sonic and Manic realized with varying degrees of shock as they stepped through those intricate double doors, was that Knuckles wasn't only a good match for their sister personality-wise: he also had the status to back it up.

"Remind me not to bring Qet here," Manic murmured as the doors gently swung shut, "He'd fall in love with your front doors and you'd never hear the end of it."

An amused snort emanated from the Guardian, though his emotions clearly announced to Manic that there was a faintly annoyed tone to it. "I'll keep that in mind."

---

The armadillo stared at Espio with rapt fascination as the chameleon sketched out his latest artistic piece. Espio wasn't one to normally indulge in drawing, though he more than had the talent for it, but heaven help anyone who dared to bother him when he was. Espio sat on a couch, donated courtesy of one of the former (now deceased) Guardians, a leg drawn up near his chest so that he could rest the drawing pad on his knee. His tail was carefully coiled around his glass of water so he wouldn't have to set it on the floor; an unfortunate necessity since a certain annoying crocodile had destroyed the end table the week before.

Said crocodile was on the opposite side of the room, well out of range of the chameleon just in case he had another flare up of temper; Espio still hadn't forgiven him for the table. Vector watched the bizarre situation as Mighty continued staring at Espio. The armadillo only stared like that when he wanted something, and oftentimes the results hit a level of amusing that had to be seen to be believed. As such Vector had no trouble keeping himself amused by watching the impending storm clouds coalesce between his two friends.

Finally hazel eyes dragged themselves up from the drawing to look at Mighty, the look easily described as 'condescending' to those that didn't know Espio, and to those that did know him it was 'a mixture of annoyance and being unimpressed'. The armadillo just smiled, his chin resting in the palm of his hand, as he leaned forward however slightly. When 'the look' didn't discourage him, Espio let out an exasperated sigh, "Mighty, for the last and final time do it yourself. I am not going to help you and I am not-"

The chameleon's tirade was cut off as Knuckles walked into the room to take in the sight of the Chaotix. Mighty sat in a chair near Espio; cross-legged with an elbow resting on his knee and amusement radiating from him like heat radiated from the sun. Sitting in a chair in the corner farthest from Espio was Vector, who by all appearances was about ready to start laughing himself senseless, and perched on top of the crocodile's head was none other than Charmy. Ray, the only one present that was more brilliantly yellow than the bee, sat next to Vector on the floor reading a book. All present and accounted for, but judging by the looks of things someone had been about to get hurt before Knuckles had had the good timing to walk in.

Mighty glanced at him with a grin and gave a sarcastic wave of his free hand, though Espio continued glowering at the black-furred armadillo. Arching an eyebrow at the relatively quiet atmosphere, Knux opened his arms as a very hyperactive bee shot through the air to glomp onto his 'older brother' with a level of glee that was almost obscene. "You're home!" Charmy squealed as he beamed up at the echidna.

Chuckling at the insect's exuberance Knuckles replied, "Yes, I'm home, and I brought our guests with me." That got all sets of eyes to shoot toward the door just as Sonia stepped through, her brothers on her heals. The response was immediate on Vector's part as he caught sight of the princess. His jaw dropped and his eyes widened in out and out admiration.

Ray absentmindedly reached up to gently push the crocodile's lower jaw up and commented, "Down boy." Vector shot the flying squirrel a less-than-amused look before turning his attention back to the three hedgehogs and Knuckles.

An amused smile played upon the echidna's features even as he tried to fight it down. "Alright guys, allow me to introduce Sonia, Sonic, and Manic," Knuckles stated, indicating each in turn after shifting the bee in his arms to the crook of his left arm. Gently hefting Charmy up into a better grip so he wouldn't drop him, the echidna spoke again, only now introducing the other group of his friends. "The growth that's attached to me is Charmy." The bee cheerily waved at the royal triplets. Manic had to withdraw his habitual empathic scan to fight back the overwhelmingly emphatic hyperactivity of the bee. Just that small effort alone nearly gave him a headache and he barely managed to suppress a pained frown. Years of being a flawless actor kept him from even letting the slightest hint of it show in his body language.

The bee-juggling guardian continued, an affectionate smile for Charmy tugging at his lips, "The croc is Vector." Said reptile snapped off a joking salute and smiled, glad that he'd suppressed his dazed fascination with Sonia. "The squirrel next to him is Ray."

Ray smirked and answered with, "Nice to meet you and don't worry about Vector, he's harmless… and a bit of a doofus." The bright yellow squirrel ducked out of the way just as Vector swiped at him with his tail.

Knuckles gave a disapproving look, instantly getting the two of them back under control. "Sorry 'bout that boss," Vector muttered in apology. A nod; apology accepted.

"The armadillo is Mighty…"

"Hi," he grinned back. It seemed that Charmy wasn't the only one that was a little bit hyper.

"And last but not least: Espio."

The chameleon gave his own salute, this one much more relaxed and executed via the pencil in his left hand. Of all the Chaotix, Espio was the one that made Manic's mind bristle in warning. Naturally he said nothing, he didn't need anybody thinking he was paranoid; it was just a sense of caution that had served to keep him alive for most of his life. When Espio spoke it was with the calm control that indicated he was the most level-headed of the group, "An honor to meet you…" Hazel eyes darted to the armadillo to shoot him another glare while the chameleon's tail moved his glass of water further out of the mammal's reach.

Rolling his eyes at Mighty's antics, Knuckles broke in again. "These three are going to be here for a while. I don't think I need to say it, but don't pick any fights, okay? And Manic, that goes for you too."

Amber-yellow eyes snapped from their appraisal of the Chaotix to the Guardian. Manic's false accent was in place with as little effort as it took to breathe. "Like I'm gonna pick a fight when my sis is totally threatening to skin me alive? What do you think I am? Suicidal?"

"You could have fooled me," Sonia growled warningly at the empath, to which most of the Chaotix exchanged 'oh crap- sibling disagreement' looks. Sonic instantly scooted away from his brother and sister to the other side of Knuckles; though he doubted that the echidna would take up the station of 'living shield' with Charmy in his arms should a fight break out.

Thankfully Knuckles did step in to diffuse the situation. Appealing to Sonia's desire for relaxation he tried to calmly coax down her temper; another point in his favor. "Sonia, this is a vacation for you. Don't you think it would be better spent relaxing and taking it easy than getting annoyed at your brothers?" Red eyes slid to the guardian and softened. "I'll make sure they don't cause problems. I promise. Tell you what, we've got a hot spring down here that I think you'd enjoy. Sound like a plan?"

A weary look crossed the princess's face, "I can't remember the last time I enjoyed something like that. Please."

Knuckles considered for a moment before deciding to take mercy on someone else in the room. "Mighty," the armadillo's posture straightened in response, "would you escort Sonia?"

Getting to his feet, Mighty gracefully extended a hand to the hedgehog with a smile. "Shall we?" Sonia shyly nodded and took his hand before the two of them swept out the room through another door. Espio let out a relieved sigh and allowed his attention to divert back to his artwork.

Sonic frowned and gave Knuckles a concerned look, but the echidna waved it off. "She's safe with Mighty. He wouldn't dream of doing anything to her."

The unspoken connotations of that statement that were swirling in the echidna's mind made it hard for Manic to keep his eyebrows from shooting up. 'Better not to ask until later.' He had the feeling that he'd find out eventually. That was when the Guardian's attention turned back to the thief-prince.

"Oh and Manic, good friend or no, if you steal something from me I will hurt you." Several sets of eyes, most notably the calculating hazel eyes of Espio, darted to once again lock on the thief-prince.

Internally Manic cringed at how bluntly Knuckles had out-ed that detail about him to his other friends. Judging by the faint hint of a raised eyebrow from Sonic, his brother had spotted the 'Goddess-damn it' twitch as he liked to call it. It was a subtle expression of Manic's that he was rarely aware of making, but one that Sonic had caught on to rather quickly after his secret had been blown wide open. When he finally spoke it was with a somewhat miffed tone, "Hey, dude, I may be a thief, but like I said: I'm not suicidal."

Violet eyes gave a knowing look, but all the guardian said in response was, "Good."

---

Just two days in and Sonia had become thoroughly enamored of the room containing the hot-spring. Within those pearly white walls her tension had been slowly bleeding away as she reveled in the soothing heat of the basin. It couldn't appropriately be called a tub as it was much too large; but neither could it be called a pool as it was far too shallow, coming up as it did only to her waist when she was standing. Perhaps calling it a pond was a truer statement.

True to his promise, Knuckles had kept her brothers otherwise occupied. There had been no waking up at the crack of dawn to play 'older sister' to break up a squabble. Since Knuckles assured her that there weren't any monsters on the Island to cause incidents that would create nightmares to plague Manic, she no longer had to worry about him disappearing in the night only to hear within the next day or so that someone had turned up dead.

For her to not have anything to be stressed about was sheer paradise. It was an indulgence that she wouldn't allow herself under normal circumstances. Before she had become more of a warrior in her own right, and most definitely long before 'Kleptomaniac' had come to light, she would have been tempted and likely would have caved. Traveling with her brothers had taught her responsibility; not that pithy wire framework that she had grown up as a noble to recognize as such, but true responsibility.

Looking back at what she'd been like before meeting her brothers, Sonia had no trouble labeling herself as a coward. Sonic and Manic had been risking their lives long before the thought had ever entered her head. Meeting the two of them, getting to know them, had also taught her that honor was something real and substantial; not the easily compromised blasts of hot air that most of the nobility extolled when it suited their mood. Though she'd never said it, when she found out about Manic's secret she hadn't been so much ashamed of him as she was of herself. 'Older Sister' Sonia, having taken the place of 'Damsel in Distress' Sonia, felt like she had failed her most wounded brother by not noticing the lies he told or the pain he suffered.

A sigh pulled itself from her as she leaned back against the side of the pond. She still didn't approve of Manic's methods or his hunting, but a detached part of her recognized that he was capable of doing the cloak-and-dagger work that nobody else could do that had to be done. Much though it sickened Sonia to think about it, she knew that Manic's expertise in all areas would be a benefit for all of Mobius once Robotnik was taken down. Whereas either Sonic or she could only stand to take down someone like the overlord when it was too late for their actions to be preventative; Manic could take down such a person before they became a threat. If she was to be the glorified princess, then Sonic was the golden knight and Manic was the royal assassin. It was a perfect, if slightly sickening, triad. That same detached part wondered if that was why the Oracle had counseled their mother to leave Manic where she did.

'But why does his mental health have to be compromised for the benefit of Mobius? He shouldn't have to be a martyr anymore than Sonic or I… It isn't fair!!!' She slapped at the water in a fit of temper, sending a wave half as tall as her crashing across the basin. Red eyes glowered at the top of the water as she moodily brooded over her old studies in Lady Windermere's estate. Martyrs looked well and good enough on paper and in stories, fully admirable as the best of heroes, but that had never changed her depressive view of such beings.

A martyr might be vaunted as the holiest of the holy, the best of the best, but she had always been able to pick out that there was something terrible and distinctly saddening about them. Every single one that she had studied or read about was sick or in some way fatally wounded by something in their past. They were doomed to death, madness, or worse. Once they had served their purpose there was no more need for them; that was when they would die in one way or another if they hadn't physically died.

It was a fate that she was determined Manic would not suffer. Just the thought of such a cruelty being rained down on the empath made something violent and terrible beat in her chest with a barely controllable protective rage. Her quills would bristle to an almost diamond-edged sharpness and her fangs would slide into view- something which she had been told life long was extremely unladylike and not to be thought of when it came to her. It was a side of her that she never would have guessed at just a scant year or two earlier; her fiancé would be horrified if he knew.

What simultaneously frightened and gave her a surge of pride for the depth of her love for the brothers she should have known her whole life, was the knowledge that if push came to shove she would have no qualms killing someone to save them. Sonia had to wonder if that same feeling was what fueled Manic's actions as Kleptomaniac. Ripples of water smoothed to a wavering clarity that reflected her troubled red eyes back to her.

It felt like it had been a lifetime ago, but once upon a time she had been ashamed of those eyes. Red eyes were thought to be ugly or an indication of a violent person among the nobles she had grown up knowing. She had been the princess, but she had also been undesirable to be around. Only by being the perfect lady that Lady Windermere had raised her to be had she been able to get the other nobles to overcome their wariness. Bartleby had been the first to ever propose, and the very first to tell her that her eyes were beautiful. 'Flawed' mix-breed or no, Bartleby's romanticism had been a much-needed ego boost at the time.

The red eyes that Bartleby claimed to so love burned with rage in a fiery or bloody gaze when she lost her temper, but nothing from her compared to the frosty fury that Manic could contain in a single glare. Manic's temper and how it showed in his amber-yellow orbs made her red gaze seem soft and genial by contrast. Then again his emotions were on a drastic scale that she could barely comprehend. His swings in mood were what would be classified by many as unstable; yet were healthy within a reasonable degree for an empath. Those same moods made his eyes shine with an unquenchable spirit that could silently communicate how much he cared for others. Manic made his amber-yellow eye color more brilliant than anybody else she had known that shared it in common.

Realizing how vibrant the eyes colors were in her family and finding out that she wasn't the only one to stand out made her feel more at home. If her family could spawn bright red eyes like hers, not to mention spirited golden yellow and a brilliant jungle green, then perhaps there had been nothing wrong with her appearance in the first place. That, and persistent dreams she fought to ignore, had her re-examining her engagement to Bartleby. He could tolerate her as the perfect lady who felt wretchedly flawed for having red eyes, but what of the person she had become?

A finely boned and tan-furred hand blurred her image again, more gently this time. That was a question she wouldn't get an answer, a real answer, to until Robotnik had been deposed. Another sigh split the air and she began to stand from the carved-in seat she had been occupying. Climbing out of the basin she shook herself off: another 'unladylike' trait that she'd picked up from her brothers.

'At least I haven't lost my sense of modesty,' she reflected wryly as she reached for a towel. The very first time she had opened Manic's door to find him laying on his stomach and almost soaked to the bone in nothing but his fur while reading, she had shrieked and lectured him for close to three hours on propriety and why having a sense of modesty was important. Naturally he had just shrugged and told her that it wasn't his problem. 'I wonder if he'll still do that once Robotnik's gone? ... I think Mom's in for a heart attack when she finds out.'

Ruffling her fur with the towel to get out as much of the remaining water as she could, she then attacked her quills and winced as a sharp one drove through the towel into her palm. Sonia brought her injured hand forward to look it over and was surprised to see the blood welling up as it began dripping down the side of her hand. A frown flickered into place; never before had she ever had to worry about her quills slicing into her. She knew that the more aggressive the hedgehog the more sharp their quills were prone to being, but this was the first time in her memory that her own had approached anything resembling what was normal for her brothers. Perhaps her train of thought was responsible?

Discarding the towel, Sonia snatched an available robe and wrapped herself up in it before taking a firm grip of the wrist of her bleeding hand to slow the bleeding. What she hadn't expected to see the moment she stepped out of the room with the hot spring was Mighty seated next to the door and leaning against the wall. "Mighty?" she asked in a quizzical tone.

Jumping to his feet the armadillo grinned in greeting. "Hi Sonia, I was on guard duty."

The princess arched an eyebrow, "Guard duty?"

Mighty's response was a shrug. "Vector's got a puppy crush. I figured you didn't want him snooping around."

"Thanks… and I shouldn't worry about you… why?" Despite her words Sonia's tone was somewhat playful. In the brief time she had been getting to know the armadillo she had found his company to be quite agreeable. She could almost call him a friend.

Deep sea blue eyes rolled, and then he caught sight of her hand. Frowning, he asked, "Sonia, what happened to your hand?"

"I… accidentally stabbed it with one of my quills."

Black furred eyebrows shot upward, almost coming in contact with the base of his red 'shell'. "Now that's something I wouldn't have expected. Normally your quills look… fluffy. Not fluffy like 'poodle fluffy', but fluffy like 'soft fluffy'… if that makes sense. Which I'm sure it doesn't." Even as he talked he motioned her to follow him into a room full of random supplies. Once inside he began immediately digging through boxes to locate some basic first aid materials. "Go ahead and take a seat," he added offhandedly while motioning to a nearby chair that alternately served its real purpose and acted as a foot-stool.

Doing as he asked Sonia tried to ignore her blood dripping from her hand to her robe as she sat down. 'In the old days I would have been freaking out about ruining the robe… Good riddance to bad habits!' Shaking off the thought she let her eyes sweep the closet-like room. Shelves were stacked to the ceiling, which certainly explained the presence of the chair, all of which were packed with boxes full of odds and ends. In an odd way it vaguely reminded her of a smaller version of Bartleby's attic. Finally she locked her eyes back on the armadillo, studying the way the bands of his 'shell' overlapped on his back. In all honesty it was like nothing she had ever seen; she had never once met an armadillo before Mighty, so she took the opportunity to study the other's appearance.

"Damn it," Mighty muttered as he dug into a particularly deep box, "if Vector hid the hydrogen peroxide again I'm going to hurt him."

Deciding to lighten the mood a little Sonia asked again, "So, as I asked before, why shouldn't I worry about you when I should worry about Vector and his puppy crush?"

Mighty glanced back over his shoulder causing an odd crease in his 'shell' that Sonia hadn't expected, and smirked. "Well you don't have to worry about me because unlike Vector, I have no interest in women."

Sonia stared in surprise at first, she had no idea what she'd been expecting, but it most definitely hadn't been that. "You're gay?"

Mighty laughed, "I prefer to call it 'anti-reproductively inclined', but yeah. Probably part of why Knux doesn't mind me escorting you here and there."

"So he knows?"

"Yup. Ah, here it is," Mighty added as he pulled the hydrogen peroxide out of the box along with a bandage and a few cotton balls. Turning back to her he set up the supplies before extending a hand to her. "If you'll let me…"

Sonia silently gave her hand over to his care, watching as he carefully tended to the wound with a gentleness that belied the strength she could feel in his fingers. 'Like Manic… Maybe that's the reason for his name?' She'd known other gay people, but only distantly. Amongst the nobles such a thing was frowned upon and hushed up; if you were, people weren't supposed to know. Sonia had never seen any reason why it should be considered bad, but for what she had grown up with it certainly wasn't normal. Even knowing as little as she did, she very strongly doubted that anybody like Mighty would engage in anything resembling 'girl talk'. Besides, he didn't seem the type.

As he began wrapping her hand up in bandages, her curiosity began gnawing at her. It didn't feel right to poke and prod at Mighty by asking ignorant questions that would doubtless be offensive; but neither did she want to just assume and make an even greater blunder. When she spoke it was with caution on the off chance that she might anger the usually cheerful armadillo. "Is there… anybody you're interested in?"

Mighty smiled, "Yeah, but I doubt he's got the same interests. He'd probably just tell me I'm crazy and wander off. What about you Sonia? Anybody caught your eye?" The last was said with a slight eyebrow waggle, causing the princess to laugh in response.

"Well," she muttered as he released her hand, "I'm technically engaged, but I haven't seen him in a while…"

Cocking his head to the side Mighty asked, "Do you still like him?"

"I… don't know," she answered truthfully. A thought struck her at that moment, one which she hadn't even mentioned to anyone else, and before she could stop herself she blurted it out. "But the thing is… I've been having dreams about Knuckles." A moment after she said it she blushed a bright crimson and glanced away.

"Well who wouldn't?" he returned easily, once again surprising her, "I may consider Knux to be like a brother, but even I have to admit that he's got some damned good looks. Only thing keeping him from getting snatched up is his duty and his never-ceasing quest for 'miss right'."

"O-oh? Do you think he has his eyes on anybody in particular?"

Mighty grinned as he stowed away the first aid supplies, "I wouldn't be surprised, and I'm pretty sure their first name begins with 'S' and ends with 'A'."

Red eyes widened as Sonia's blush became more pronounced and she began stammering and stuttering in disbelief. "H-he can't, can he? I-I mean, w-well… th-there's no way he'd like me, I-I'm so… plain and- you c-can't be serious… He likes me?"

Mighty's eyes sparkled in mirth even as he fought down the urge to snicker. "In all honesty, you're the only woman not related to him that I've seen him able to handle for more than five minutes. If he's not smitten or at least headed that way, then there's something wrong with him because I know he doesn't like men. That's probably another reason he's happy with me escorting you," the armadillo winked mischievously; "it means he won't have any competition."

Sonia's blush was so profuse that she could even feel it in the points of her ears. Regardless, she took Mighty's proffered arm and took up his offer to explore the Hidden Palace a bit more until she could control herself. 'At least,' she reflected as they left the closet-like room and went on their way, 'I have someone who can sympathize with me.' Mighty wasn't exactly what she had ever expected in the way of friends, but she was certainly glad she'd met him.

---

Sonic let out a groan as his weary muscles complained at him. Dropping into a crouch, he soon flopped over onto his back next to the massive tree trunk he'd been helping to move; where, he no longer cared anymore. "Please dear Goddess, tell me we're at least half-way done," he moaned raggedly to the others. Espio gave a derisive snort, but otherwise made no reply.

"Come on," Vector laughed as he turned dark orange eyes alight with mirth on the exhausted speedster, "This is the great hero and pest that Knux likes to go on about? I thought you had more oomph than that!"

"I'll have more oomph when I'm dead," Sonic groaned in return, his tone agonized. "To hear Sonia talk, this was supposed to be vacation. What vacation?"

Ray hopped on top of the fallen tree trunk and grinned down at the blue blur. "In Knux-Land it's the vacation of 'You Don't Have to Fear for Your Life- So Be Grateful'. Be glad he's only got you and your bro helping clear away storm debris. It's lighter work than some of the spra- I mean stuff, that we have to deal with," he chuckled, correcting himself as Espio shot him a warning look for his near choice of words. "Besides, Manic doesn't seem to be having nearly as much trouble."

"That's because Manic is an insanely strong freak of nature!"

At that, Manic leapt to the top of the log next to Ray and jokingly glowered at his brother, "Dude, like, in case you hadn't gotten the memo- so are you. I totally don't think you're in any position to criticize me for being stronger than you."

"Yeah you're stronger than me, and that's what makes you a freak," Sonic shot back.

Manic arched an eyebrow before retorting, "Don't make me hide your guitar in plain sight again bro, 'cause you know I will."

"Children," Espio grumbled with a pang of annoyance, "…if we could get this done some time today? I am not looking forward to another five hours of trying to argue to any of you that we need to get this done. And- Charmy, get off Vector's head would you? You're supposed to be helping direct us."

"Aww, but Espio," the bee pouted, safely gleeped onto the back of said crocodilian's skull, "We're not doing anything at the moment. Can't I just stay up here until we get started again?"

Hazel eyes narrowed dangerously, glaring at all present as Espio's purple hide rippled with an aggravated red and black shadow. "We've been over this; we're down by two because Mighty's playing field-guide for Sonia and Knuckles is busy meditating. Now either we get this done ASAP, or I am going to start using people for target practice. Therefore: Charmy, get off Vector's head, and Sonic get up and help or I'll let Manic just pick up the entire damned thing like he offered in the first place." Charmy let out a sigh and released Vector's head to flutter into the air as requested.

The threat was apparently sufficient enough for Sonic as he dragged himself to his feet with an agonized groan let out in perfect time with the complaints of his body. As he took up his position next to Espio he grumbled, "I don't know which is worse, you or Sonia." Espio rolled his eyes, which flashed blue for the barest second, but otherwise ignored the comment.

"Don't let Sonia hear that," Manic called back as he hopped back down to the opposite side of the tree trunk, "Sis would totally take your head." Ray glided down after him to take up his position on one side of Manic while Vector resumed his grasp of the rope they were using to tow the debris on the green hedgehog's other side. Within moments the five of them were moving the fallen tree again, directed and encouraged by Charmy from above.

In a way Sonic and Espio had the easier job; all they had to do was make sure that the heavily trimmed tree stayed relatively straight and on course. Manic, Vector, and Ray on the other hand were bearing the brunt of the weight; thus why Manic was in the center as he was the strongest of them. Even so, Sonic couldn't help but think some very creative thoughts born of annoyance at how relatively unfazed Manic was after all that hard work. It wasn't fair that they'd worked so hard and he didn't seem to be showing any signs of exhaustion, damn it!

The empath seemed to pick up on the thought almost immediately, so Sonic couldn't help the smile that tugged at his lips when his brother sent him the rather cartoon-y mental image of the log rolling over Bartleby and making a poodle/mink-pancake. It wasn't much, but sympathy was sympathy and that was enough to make Sonic try to push the tree along with renewed vigor. Besides, he could always take out his revenge by griping and complaining at Manic later. With a smirk and that silent promise to himself, Sonic struggled gamely onward- all the while keeping himself pushing by thinking of Bartleby-pancakes. Perhaps that thought was a little too satisfying.


Here the web begins, this is true, and you know what you must do. Be kind, please review. n.n The caushog demands it.