All Sonic Characters belong to Sega. All OCs belong to me.

Notes: This one was really fun to write. Though, this one isn't really about a kid sonic had but...you'll get it.

Snapshot#2: Sonic

It was his fault.

Everything.

From the moment he had allowed her to step out of the safety of their home to face Eggman, full on, he had doomed her from the start. If only he had known that his arch-nemesis had meant business today, that they would actually have to try and defeat the egg-shaped human, he would've been more conscious about her safety, a bit more alert regarding her actions. If only he'd been faster, bit more focused, he could've prevented any of this from happening.

But, no.

No matter how many 'what ifs' he had thought up in his jumbled mind, here she was, in front of him, stone cold, pale, and clinging to whatever string held her between life and death.

Sonic's body went numb as he looked onto her bloody body. He didn't really know what happened, but somewhere in his mind, he remembered screams and then this sickening rip of flesh throttling within the depths of his mind. After that, there was a thud and the azure hedgehog found his hands filled with a crimson stained body, the red liquid having no business dribbling down her dangling limbs and white lips. Sonic did remember holding the young girl's body close to his, feeling her blood spill on his fur, darkening it to a sickly purple. He did remember this white hot rage coursing through his veins, his heart, constricting it to the point where he wondered if he was breathing. There was suddenly this dark aura and he saw red, Eggman's nervous expression, and then a really bright light.

Then, he was back on his knees, cradling the girl in his hands, her motionless head in the cleft of his neck. He believed if he held her close to his body, everything would be okay. She would open her eyes and her pale pink eyes would shine in magnificent contrast to her ebony fur. Sonic felt the salty tears, he tried for so long to keep in, stroll down his peach cheeks, his teeth grinding against each other.

"Sonic, please, let go! We need to get her to the hospital!" Tails yelled.

The blue blur opened his eyes in panic as his little brother tried to pry her from his grip. No! She would die! What was he doing?

"If you don't let go, she'll die!" the 15-year-old kitsune.

You would think, at 22, Sonic would've understood that if he didn't let the paramedics get to the girl that was fastened in his arms, she would die right there. But something in his mind kept telling him that if he just held on a bit longer, if he just prayed a bit harder, a miracle would happen and she would be okay.

Suddenly, someone had his arms in a strong grip, ripping Sonic from the girl. The cerulean hero's green eyes glimmered with craze as he struggled to get away from the people holding him back.

"You need to calm down, you idiot. She's going to get help!" Knuckles yelled, agitated with his friend's behaviour.

"She's better off with them and you know it, faker!" Shadow added, gritting his teeth.

Sonic shook his head vigorously, denying the fact that she was better off with the paramedics. He watched as they immediately went to work on her, putting the oxygen mask on her while pressing clots on open wounds. They then lifted her body on a cot and into the ambulance.

As soon as she was beginning to fade out of his sight, he freaked out. "No! No!" He screamed, trying to squirm out of the strong holds on his arms.

"Let me go! She needs me! Dea! DEA!"

(...0)

It had been three days since Eggman's last attack.

In the span of three days, Dea hadn't woken up once.

For three days, Sonic sat right by her side, in the hospital.

If it were up to him, he would've say there for 72 hours straight, but his friends wouldn't let him do that. So, for at least an hour a day, he was forced to do something other than sit there, even if t was just to sleep.

Sonic hated this. Everyone had taken a beating since Robotnick's attack. Luckily for them, a few bandages wrapped around an arm, leg, or both, was enough for them. Sonic, himself, had bandages around his thigh, arms, and left hand. His forest green eyes gazed onto the body covered in white bandages, blood making an out line in the most random of places while wires and tubes stuck out of the body. He cringed.

She was only 14. She didn't need or deserve this. No one her age did. It was only a miracle that she was even alive. She would've been even more alive if he had just been a bit more-

"Sonic? Are you okay?" a voice he recognised as Tails' said.

The blue blur nodded his head almost automatically, seeing as he received this question about 20 times a day.

The golden fox sighed, his two tails swishing dejectedly behind him. Tails rubbed scratched the back of his neck before pulling up a chair and sitting beside the same hedgehog he always knew as his older brother.

Living with someone like Sonic, it was only normal for him to be used to his behaviour when things like this happened. Being the upbeat, happy-go-lucky, hedgehog he was, anyone could easily forget that as soon as something went wrong, Sonic immediately blamed himself, going into some sort of minuscule depression. He was the stubborn, self-righteous, overprotective, egotistical hedgehog he loved. The same hedgehog that took him in as family and did the same when it came to the girl lying on the bed he had been joyful to call his little sister. So, it was only right Tails try and make some improvement in the hero's mood.

"That was a stupid question on my part," Tails chided while looking at the girl on the bed.

Sonic only nodded again, and Tails knew he was too deep into his thoughts to completely register what was going on.

"It's not your fault, you know," he continued.

Tails almost smiled as Sonic was brought out of his trance. The blue hedgehog blinked and his frown deepened.

"Yes it is," he replied grimly. "I could've gotten to her if I had just paid attention instead of running my damn mouth."

"No. You needed to distract the mega-bots and Dea didn't even know what was going to happen until Knuckles had called her name. Even if you did hear him call her name, there's no way you would've been able to get to her before-"

"Tails," Sonic interrupted tersely, finally facing the smaller fox, "I'm the fastest thing alive. I could've gotten to her. I know I could've, but I didn't."

"Fastest thing, or not, you couldn't and there's no use feeling sorry for yourself just because you were-"

He couldn't handle it anymore. Getting up out of his seat he shouted, "Damn it, Tails! She had a metal pole ram through her. It vaguely missed her heart, destroyed her stomach, liver, and other things I can't even pronounce. They spent 22 hours operating on her. She was dead for 3 full minutes! And you're telling me I shouldn't feel sorry for myself? What about Dea?! This isn't about me!"

Tails stood up too, fully facing his brother, glaring at him. "Exactly, so stop acting like it's all about you because news flash Sonic, for once, it's not! Okay, we get it, you weren't fast enough! Whatever. But now is not the time to dwell on that. Now is the time to realise that our little sister is in a coma because a damn pole rammed into her and she needs all the support she can get if you want her to make it out of this goddamned place!" the two-tailed fox shouted.

The two brothers stood there, their eyes fiercely glaring at the other. Their chest's rose up and down as hot air was heavily breathed in and out of their black noses.

Sonic was about to say something-probably something he'd regret later-but then he saw crystal blue eyes sparkle with in shed tears, pain almost seeping through his the boy's eyelids. His anger suddenly left him leaving him heartbroken.

"I think you forgot that we are all affected by this. The only reason you were allowed in here was because you threatened to tear this place down. It took me three days for me to convince them to let me in here, and that was with the help of the others!" He continued, voice cracking towards the end.

Sonic felt a pang in his chest, his entire being screaming at him to embrace the young kitsune and apologise, but as his hand reached forward, Tails shook his head.

"Did you forget that I was the one who brought her to you in the first place? She was abandoned, just like me. She went through a whole lot of unnecessary pain. Don't you think I love her just as much as you do!?" Tears began to fall on the fox's cheeks. His eyes narrowed as Sonic's widened. "Stop being so fucking selfish!"

Sonic knew he'd done it when Tails had dropped the f-bomb. That was a word both scarcely used and when it was used, well, then they were pushed past their limits.

Without another second wasted, Sonic pulled the fox into an embrace. Tails readily accepted it, burying his face into the older hedgehog's chest. He didn't remember the last time they had let their emotions get the better of them, allowing the other to freely see their tears, but they thought the current situation called for it.

"You're right. You're right," Sonic whispered in fear that his voice would crack. "I'm sorry. I-I didn't mean it. I'm just...so...I...why did this have to happen to her? She di-didn't do anything!"

Tails sniffed. "I don't know."

"Sometimes, I can't help but to think what I would do if this had happened to you, or Knuckles or even-"

"Well it happened to Dea, and all we need to do is be by her side until she wakes up," Tails said softly, smiling up at the 22 year old.

Sonic gave a smirk, something that told the golden boy that what he had been sent in here to do had been completed. "Thanks, buddy, for helping me straighten my head."

"No problem," Tails said, flashing a smile that reminded Sonic of his own. The blue hedgehog chuckled, carefully ruffling the boy's bangs, avoiding the bandage firmly wrapped around his head.

What did he do to deserve such a person in his life?

(...0)

Day four:

Dea still hadn't woken up. But Tails was by Sonic's side and the two held hope within their hearts when her fingers twitches.

Day five:

She still hadn't woken up and Sonic was getting a bit restless. The blue hedgehog had forced the yellow fox to go get some rest but the stubborn boy had made him promise that when he came back, Sonic would have to go back home, freshen up, and sleep because he wasn't living up to the "hot-diggity-dog hedgehog" he always proclaimed himself to be.

Well, it was true.

Designer bags hung under the hero's eyes, the peach fur underneath them a discoloured purple. His usually lustre azure fur was dark and dull, matted in some places. His quills were disheveled and his spines were unusually dull. Yeah, Sonic the Hedgehog wasn't looking nor feeling very hot right now.

Yet, he still sat on the right side of the girl's bed, desperately looking. For any sign of improvement. But there were none so far. The doctors said that it could be months, possibly, years before she would fully awaken and that any sign of movement could just be mindless spasms of the body which often happened when it lies still for so long. The nurses had tried, urging him to go home and get proper sleep and that if he overworked his body, he could pass out.

But Sonic didn't care.

If he had to, he would sit here and wait for the day she would open her eyes. Pale pink orbs gazing back at his emerald green eyes.

By his side was a plate of fruit, half gone. He at least ate when he felt like he could. So he wasn't exactly harming himself like everyone thought he was. Sonic scooted his chair forward, closer to the bed. He laid his head down feeling as if he didn't have the energy to keep it up anymore. By his nose, Dea's hand laid motionlessly. He slid his larger hand in it, intertwining their fingers. Bringing the cold hand to his lips, he placed a soft kiss on it, rubbing it he back of it with his thumb. Tears bubbled up in his eyes, something that wasn't so rare anymore. Sonic placed his chin on his hand so he was able to look up at his adoptive sister.

"Hey there, little lady," he quietly said, voice watery. "How ya holding up there? Are you alright?"

Silence.

He smiled sadly. "That's good. But here's the thing," he straightened his back as he spoke, "your friends and I are waiting for you to wake up. So Dea, if you wouldn't mind, could you just flutter your eye lids open. I just wanna see your eyes for a sec, just so I know you're truly okay. Can you do that for me?"

Silence.

"It would make ya big bros happy y'know?" Sonic sniffled. "Tails miss ya. He miss ya a lot. I think he's getting worried that no one will be there to listen to his mumbo jumbo," he chuckled, tear cascading down his cheeks. "If you would just open your eyes, maybe Knuckles would go back to his big bad tough guy persona. And maybe Shadow would stop asking me if there was anything he should know regarding you. If I didn't know any better, I'd think he had a tiny crush on you. Or at least like you better than all of us combined."

He laughed sadly at the thought. Standing up, Sonic leaned down, placing his head on the girl's chest, careful to avoid messing up anything. He buried his head, finding comfort there. Biting his lip, Sonic tried with all his might to hold back the sobs threatening to rip through his throat, but that didn't happen. Instead, he cried, sobbing, realising all the built up anger and sadness in his chest.

"I'm sorry I wasn't fast enough. I'm sorry this had to happen to you. But, Dea, you can't leave us. You can't leave me. You have to wake up! I'm falling apart," he sobbed.

"Wake up...please. I-I love you."

Sonic laid there, crying his heart out as the realisation that the 14 year old girl could possibly never wake up.

But...

An ebony hand twitched and Sonic froze, tears still falling. His head snapped up and his eyes darted over to his hand. What he saw made him numb. Dea's fingers moved gingerly, her pointed finger pressing against his hand.

"Dea?"

Her lips parted ever-so slightly and a groggy moan left her mouth. Slowly, her eyes cracked open, eyelashes fluttering. Pale pink eyes peered through narrowed lids, taking a peek at the view before her.

"Dea!? Oh Chaos! You're awake!"

Her eyes snapped closed and an agitated groan left her pale lips. She sluggishly turned her head to the side.

"N-not so l-loud," she whispered, voice cracked and raspy.

Sonic's eyes widened. His mouth hung agape. He went straight for a hug, embracing the girl tightly. He kissed her cheek, joyful tears replacing sad ones.

"Ow," she whimpered.

He let go, but kissed her forehead before saying, "How are you doing? Are you hurting? Do you need anything? Oh Chaos! You're awake! I'm gonna go get the doctor and Tails and-"

"Sonic," Dea interrupted, somehow having enough strength to catch his hand.

"Yes," Sonic said hopefully, taking her hand in both of his.

"A-are you crying?"

He blinked. Sonic then turned his head away and wiped his tears. "You must be seein' things, little lady. Are you sure you're okay?"

"Sonic?"

At her small voice, he turned his attention back to her, lowering his face to hers as she motioned him to. Suddenly, her arms wrapped around his head, brining it to her chest. She smiled tiredly as she felt liquid stain her hospital gown, and heard quiet sobs wrack through the air. She rubbed her knuckles on the back of his ear, and whispered, "You're a horrible liar."

"I'd thought you'd leave me. I really thought-"

"I'd never thought I'd say this but, you should really stop thinking," she giggled.

The azure hedgehog nuzzled her cheek and laughed.

"I love you," he whispered.

"I love you too."

I like this one a lot. And if you're confused, just in case you haven't noticed, I like incorporating OCs into my works. I can do anything to them and it's just fun to insert new characters. But in this alternate universe, Sonic is 22, Tails is 15, and Dea is 14. Tails found her beaten and bruised, abandoned too, and they grew so attached to her that they decided to add her to their little family. Background story complete. So, that's that! Hope you enjoyed!