Light on references this time apart from the odd extra character discussed. But sometimes after Adventure 2 and before Heroes...

The next autumn Knuckles didn't doubt that one of Sonic's now frequent appearances on the Island would coincide with his adopted birthday and although he'd again lost track of the exact day, he suspected that Sonic hadn't and it was less startling than usual to find him and Tails arriving on the Island.

He strolled across the grassland to their landing place, intending this lack of haste to be a signal of trust and welcome. A sign they weren't thought of as a threat, didn't need intercepting.

Sonic though was tapping his foot by the time Knuckles reached the aircraft.

"I was getting ready to eat your cake myself!"

"You wouldn't!" Tails said sounding outraged...

Sonic winked. "Not as long as I'm certain of getting a slice. Happy birthday, Knux. There's a card from the others too." He handed over a large envelope along with the brightly wrapped parcel, though he retained his grip on the cake.

"Keep that the right way up," he warned as he released the present into Knuckles' hands.

"They'd have come," Tails added. "I thought they should all come and we should have a surprise party."

"But it's kinda hard to surprise you here," pointed out Sonic. "And being mobbed didn't seem like it'd be your kinda thing anyway. So it's just us."

Knuckles opened the envelope. It contained a colourful piece of card folded into two like a book cover with no book. On the front was an egg with a large split running down it and a banner reading 'happy birthday' above it. He raised his eyebrows at Sonic.

"Y'know how hard it was to get one without a specific species of person popping out?" Sonic asked "There are no cards with echidnas on!"

Knuckles wondered how that could possibly be a source of such surprised indignation but didn't comment except to say thank you.

He examined the inside of the 'birthday card', trying to decipher the names.

"I think Rouge left a smoochy kiss," Sonic smirked.

Knuckles slapped the card shut abruptly, well before Sonic could check. He would have given him a detailed piece of his mind regarding the bat but Tails cut across both of them.

"Open the present! It was my idea this time!"

Knuckles put the present down on the ground first since Sonic had been so insistent about being careful with it. Only the bottom half seemed to have any weight to it and he tore the paper from the top first. There was more wrapping beneath but only transparent floaty stuff clearly meant to protect was was now visible as a plant.

Knuckles pulled this second layer of wrapping off too and smiled as he recognised the plant. A well grown young grapevine.

He looked up. "Thank you, Tails. And Sonic," he added.

"It's a variety that supposed to grow well at high altitudes," Tails explained. "I asked specially."

"I can think of one or two perfect spots," Knuckles assured him.

"They said it will take two years before there's actual grapes on it though."

Tails sounded apologetic but Knuckles shrugged.

"I'll be here."

Tails looked like he was about to say something else but Knuckles waved it off. "I'll let you know when they fruit. You should try them too."

"Speaking of waiting for food..." Sonic tapped his foot. "What about this cake?"

Knuckles didn't need asking twice - his mouth watered at the memory and he reached for it eagerly - Sonic grinned at him, held onto it just long enough to make Tails start towards it as well then relinquished it.

Carrying it carefully, Knuckles resisted the urge to just sit down with it right there and then and instead led the way to a shelter and cut it into large wedges. It was every bit as sweet as he remembered.

They sat licking their lips after two pieces each but Sonic was fidgeting moments later. "So we going for a run, find a spot for your plant? Or ride the boards? Run the loops? See if you've got any more freaky pictures hidden away?"

Knuckles stood as well. He felt accountably restless, almost fidgety himself, but he didn't move. Hesitated instead.

"Actually," he started. "I have something for you two as well this time."

Sonic blinked at him. "Er... that's not how it works!"

Knuckles hesitated again but then a thought struck him. "Count it as your actual birthday present then since I've never brought you one."

Tails shrugged. "Seems fair, Sonic."

Sonic laughed. "Okay. Where's this mystery present then?"

"It's not wrapped up," Knuckles admitted.

Sonic made a horrified face which dissolved into amusement. "Well since it's not technically, really a birthday present we'll let that pass."

Knuckles thought about pointing out that neither was his, really, whichever definition they'd settled on. Instead he retrieved what he wanted from behind a crate in the corner of the shelter.

Two sets of ears perked forward in curiosity.

"A book?" Sonic said and Tails leaned in closer to look as well.

Knuckles reached over to open it in Sonic's hands and pointed. "There's the story about the loops. I didn't remember all of it to tell it well but it's there and some others."

He looked up from the book to watch Sonic's face. He'd seemed entertained by the story when Knuckles had told it and Knuckles himself enjoyed the tales but he wasn't at all sure if they made a good gift.

Tails had pulled the book out of Sonic's hands and was reading the titles aloud, clearly it was a hit with him at least and Sonic was smiling at his enthusiasm.

Knuckles relaxed slightly as Tails read.

"Why the World Curled Once - that's the loops story, right?" He looked up and Knuckles nodded. "The Mountainous Machine. The Echidna Who Learned To Fly. The Guardian Who Raced The Wind - Sonic you've got competition!"

Tails grinned. "It's brilliant, Knuckles! You picked which stories to put in?"

Sonic looked from Tails to Knuckles and back at the book. "This is handwritten. You put it together with stories for us?"

"And translated them," Tails concluded correctly making Sonic look down at the book again.

Knuckles shifted and looked back at the book himself, uncomfortable under the sudden acute attention it and he were getting.

"Well I don't exactly have a..." he floundered. "a birthday present shop up here. I had to improvise."

Out of the corner of his eye he saw Sonic shaking his head.

"You're an idiot, Knuckles."

Knuckles snapped his head back up and was about to give Sonic back every bit as sharp an answer when the hedgehog bounded the three paces between them and shook his shoulder.

"You don't get it do you? Tails is right, it's awesome! We love it. You rock at present giving, okay?"

Knuckles met Sonic's eyes warily, half suspecting he was being made fun of. After a moment, finding no clue, he smiled back cautiously.

"Beginner's luck?"

Sonic laughed but Knuckles stopped hearing it before he finished because something was wrong. The three of them were no longer alone on the Island and the intrusion bellowed at his senses.

He was at the door before he remembered the others were even there. He barely registered their startled expressions.

"Go," he said, not wanting to spare the time to explain. "I need to deal with this. Sorry. Thank you."

He rushed through the words, itching to be gone, to be running for the intruders' location as every instinct demanded.

"Knuckles, wait. What? Deal with what?"

Knuckles was already sprinting but Sonic kept pace effortlessly, with enough breath to spare for questions.

"What's going on?"

Knuckles flicked a glance at the hedgehog running at his side. "Intruders."

"Here?" Sonic asked but it was clearly not a question that required an answer and Knuckles ignored it. Sonic's voice when he spoke again was indignant. "And you thought we'd just leave you to it? Sometimes you really are an idiot."

Knuckles accelerated. He didn't have time for this conversation. Expecting Sonic to fight alongside him on the surface in the hedgehog's own territory was nothing at all like expecting him to stay up here to do Knuckles' job for him.

He ignored him and looked up as he crested the rise and looked down the slopes. Two aircraft were visible, one touching down, the other circling above it. Top cover maybe. Perhaps they didn't intend to land that one at all. He'd need to be careful. It was a good strategy, but one he'd seen before. He'd need to intercept the intruders from the craft on the ground before they reached the edge of the jungle though, it would be a poor place to fight, especially if, as was often the case they'd come with ranged weapons while he relied on his own fists and the Island's wards. He reached out for those wards, the energy of the Master Emerald flowing through them, disturbed as he himself was, but ready.

"So what's the plan?" Tails had caught them up and Knuckles almost jumped at the suddenness of the question, he'd been so focussed on the task at hand.

But there was no more time even to persuade them to stay out of it so he just shrugged.

"Stop them."

He launched himself down the slope without waiting for an answer, though he heard Sonic's anyway.

"Works for me!" The hedgehog passed him in a sprint, his tone almost gleeful.

From behind him, Tails shouted. "Knux, you want a launch?"

Knuckles glanced back and saw Tails just over his shoulder, reaching out both hands. "For the flying one?"

Knuckles glanced from the fox to the craft which was still airborne and realised what the fox intended.

He jumped, grabbed his wrists firmly and Tails shot upwards with a burst of energy he surely couldn't sustain for long - but didn't need to. As the climb slowed Knuckles let go and twisted into a fast glide, crashing into the flying craft fists first and clinging on. The pilot jinked and threw the thing about but Knuckles' claws were firmly embedded in the metal. He clambered hand over hand to the rear and holed an engine with one blow. The craft spun wildly and he was slammed back against it, his claws slipping and dragging a long tear the length of the thing. The second of the two engines fell silent and the pilot dived hard for the ground.

Knuckles abandoned his grip and glided down in time to see Tails dive-bomb the two lizards who'd run from the stricken machine. The fox grabbed one from above and swung him round, letting the torque from his spinning tails do the work and launched him against a tree.

Knuckles realised he was spectating and glanced hastily around for the attackers from the first craft trying to judge which threat was the greater. A cloud of dirt and broken branches flying through the air gave testimony to where Sonic was fighting and Knuckles decided the more pressing matter was the intruder that Tails was now chasing across the grass. Knuckles reached him first and sent him crashing to the ground.

Two per aircraft? He glanced back to where Sonic was and the dust was settling. Was that all of them then? He glanced, counting the dazed bodies on the ground.

He'd almost started to compose himself to round them up when one of them stirred, raised a weapon.

"Tails!" Knuckles yelled a warning even as he started running. The fox was in the line of fire. But he'd taken off vertically at the sound of Knuckles' warning cry, and Knuckles who'd been running to knock him clear was now running straight at the weapon, heard it fire, knew it was too late to dodge, reached for the Master Emerald's energy because that was the only thing that might save him even if it was too late to avoid the blast.

Something hit him hard in the back, which he was distantly aware in the time-slowed-alarm of the moment was wrong because the shot had come from ahead of him, but he was falling forward and someone had yelled in pain and it wasn't him and the smell of burned fur filled his nose but he'd already reached for the healing energy of the Emerald, already wrapped it around himself and it was Sonic clutching him and the energy was slipping over and around and between them and the hedgehog was wrapped in it as well and he gave a startled little gasp and staggered back to his feet pulling Knuckles with him.

Knuckles stared at the hedgehog who was singed but unscathed, and couldn't process it. Had no time to anyway because if one of the attackers was well enough to still be firing on them, he needed to be moving. Needed to stop them.

"What was that?" Sonic asked, even as they leapt again into the fight. "It felt like rings. Sort of. Not much. Like chaos emeralds. A bit. Was that the-"

"Not now, Sonic!"

Knuckles veered off, looping around to check the ones Sonic had knocked down were still out.

A few minutes was all it took before all four attackers were sat, tied with their own safety harnesses from the aircraft and under three watchful pairs of eyes.

Sonic glanced away from them, back at Knuckles, then brushed soot out of his fur.

"You want to tell me now what that was and why we're not toast?"

"I don't know."

Sonic gave him a sceptical look.

"You don't know what happened or you don't know if you want to tell me?"

"Both!" Knuckles snapped. "Since you ask! I didn't plan for it to happen. I wasn't thinking-"

Sonic's muzzle twitched and Knuckles broke off.

"Oohhhh! Knuckles, you can't go throwing me an opening line like that..." Sonic smirked. " You weren't thinking? You...?"

Knuckles lifted a fist in warning. "Start with me, Sonic and it'll take more than chaos energy to put your head back on your shoulders!"

Whether Sonic would have continued or not, Knuckles didn't find out because Tails stepped between them.

"Guys? Really? Now?" He pointed at at the now rather forlorn attackers. "You don't think you might want to finish up with this lot first?"

Knuckles glared at the foursome. "I ought to tip them over the side."

Sonic blanched. "Err. Overkill? Maybe me and Tails should just take them back to the surface and hand them over to the police?"

"Without mentioning this place in any shape or form," added Tails. "Betcha they didn't come by those flyers legally."

Knuckles nodded brusquely. "Fine."

"Right," Sonic said looking uncertain. "Okay." He looked around. "I guess we'll bundle them up in the back of their ship - the one you didn't smash up I mean - and Tails can follow me in the Tornado."

Tails nodded. "Sure."

Sonic looked back at Knuckles. "Sorry, buddy. That's kinda not how how I thought your birthday would go. We'll come back okay? And you should absolutely definitely come to mine next time."

Knuckles looked from the hedgehog to the wreck of the intruders' ship. Now Sonic wanted to talk about him leaving the Island? As if this wasn't the very reason he so rarely did or could? And Sonic thought he could do it for a party?

Sonic followed his gaze when he didn't answer. "Err. Or I guess we could have it here...? Or something?"

Knuckles sighed. Sonic would do whatever Sonic wanted to do. Right now what mattered was getting rid of the latest intruders and clearing up the mess left behind.

He watched Sonic and Tails leave and began on that second task. His mind running back through the events as he worked, breaking the crashed ship up into parts and dragging them to the edge to cast over into the sea.

He was trying to work out how the fight would have gone in the absence of Sonic and Tails. Four attackers across two ships was far from insurmountable, and perhaps he'd have been more focussed. It was hard to work out how much their help had balanced the almighty distraction of having them there at all.

Sonic had knocked him away from the laser blast but he'd only still been in the way of it because he'd tried to warn Tails.

Sonic clearly saw no difference between that fight and those they'd had against Robotnik on the surface.

Knuckles did.

It wasn't a solvable problem.

He let it go.

More interesting was the fact that the hedgehog had got away unscathed. He had been hit. Knuckles was certain. Sonic had known it and he'd yelled. Knuckles had expected to be hit himself, had already reacted but somehow the energy he'd intended to heal an injury that had never materialised had healed the hedgehog instead.

It hadn't been on purpose, he doubted he could repeat it, didn't know how it had happened, but on some level the Master Emerald accepted Sonic's presence fighting alongside its Guardian. There was no way such a thing could have happened otherwise.

Knuckles surveyed the area where the fight had taken place. It was as free of evidence of the disruption as he could make it.

He walked back to the shelter. There was cake left, and his new vine needed planting out and the book he'd intended for Sonic and Tails lay on a crate, left behind in the scurry to intercept the intruders.

Knuckles picked it up, still open to the last page of the story of the loops. Those imposing shapes on the landscape. Evidence written in stone of the sheer force of chaos uncontained, which Sonic saw as a playground.

Perhaps the differences between them were as unbridgeable as the differences in their outlooks on the world.

Knuckles stared at the page.

Though track and trail had flailed, chaos-caused, to seek the sky and frozen so. Though all was new and known and unknown paths alike now trailed away and turned or failed. In time all curling trails were tracked and mapped and known, the world relearned anew.

Knuckles stared at the words, then closed the book and put it safely aside.

They'd come back for it.

He knew them well enough to know that.

He'd learned that much.

That and that you could get used to anything.

Even chaotic hedgehogs.