Sally ran to Julie-Su's home, she had been busy all day and never had a chance to check on her. When she got there, she found the echidna sitting outside, watching the snow fall from the sky. She looked very tired, and melancholy.
"Hey Julie-Su. How's it going?"
She shrugged in reply, not even making eye contact with her friend.
Sally paused for a moment, searching her friend's face for clues before asking the question she came there to ask. "... How's he doing?"
Julie-Su's eyes drifted to the ground, and Sally could sense her duress. "He's comfortable," she said simply. "He's just... not there."
Sally sighed, she was hoping he would be better by now. "I-I'm sorry."
Julie-Su shrugged again, her voice was dull, almost lifeless. "It's not anyone's fault. He was just pushed too far..."
The young princess shook her head as her eyes focused on the ground. "I didn't know he took Sonic's death so hard... He never showed it."
"I wish I saw it earlier." Julie-Su added wistfully.
Sally sighed, and shook her head again, trying to regain her composure. "What's he doing now?"
"He's just sitting on the hospital bed, unblinking. He whispers things sometimes, but..." She paused, and brushed her dark purple bangs out of her face. Julie looked to the morning light, the storm had ended, but she knew the scar it had left would never disappear. She hated storms now; their menacing presence haunted her, as well as the rest of the town, they had been the prologue to the eventual demise of two heroes. Two friends.
"I'll take care of him." Julie-Su said finally, half to herself. Her voice was distant, almost like it was an echo of her thoughts. "Like he took care of us..."
Sally blinked, but simply nodded. Tails was in capable hands.