Well it's been a while and life has been a bitch, but here's an update so yaay :D
Enjoy xx
"I can't believe you would actually agree to this!"
"What was I supposed to do? He wants the kid so we're getting the kid."
It had barely been an hour before the blue prisoner was taken behind bars, refusing to tell them anything. The only information Shadow could get was the home address he and his "brother" lived at. Rouge had scrunched up her nose the moment she read it.
"Ugh this place is a dump" she scowled, gazing around at the endless litter and rundown buildings. It had to be the most depressing town in Station Square. "Over fifty thousand rings worth of value was stolen and this is where he lived. If this doesn't prove he works for Eggman I don't know what will."
Shadow didn't respond, just merely grunted before walking away.
Their destination was a large hotel building, with rusting fences and slabs of wood covering the windows. There wasn't much sign of life around these parts either. The two agents went inside, and naturally as fate would have it, Sonic lived on one of the higher floors, and the elevator was broken. The stares weren't much better but at least they wouldn't collapse just yet.
Having made their way up, Shadow was the first to approach the door. The only way he was going to get inside was by using the special knock Sonic reluctantly taught him. Two quick knocks, a pause, another two knocks, pause, and then one final knock.
They waited.
The door unlocked from inside, and swung open wide enough to reveal a young, yellow furred fox with two large tails wagging behind him. The smile on his face was wide enough to take over, and there was so much relief filled in his eyes.
Or there was… until he realised this was the wrong hedgehog at the door.
With a sudden panic he tried to slam the door close, but Shadow caught it in time and pushed himself in, Rouge following close by. "Tails I'm assuming?" he tried to ask, but instantly the young child screamed at the top of his lungs, running away from the invaders.
"Hey get back here!" Shadow chased after him. Tails couldn't get far, as there was only two other rooms in this apartment, if it could even be called that. The rooms were tiny, and Shadow felt as if it had only taken him two steps before he reached the bedroom.
He didn't have to look far for the kid, the trembling sobs were loudly coming from under the bed. "I'm not playing this ridiculous game. Get out here now!" Unfortunately, his angry threatening voice had no positive impact. Tails screamed even louder now as he feared for his life.
Rouge forcefully pushed Shadow, catching him off guard, "What the…"
"Are you insane? He's not a criminal Shadow, he's a child! I will handle this, you get out" she ordered before completely pushing him out of the room. She probably would have slammed the door too, but there wasn't one there. He watched the white bat lie down next to the bed, poking her head slightly under the bad smelling covers, no doubt winning the foxes trust.
Shadow took that moment to look around.
The front and main room of the house was bad. There was a single bed pushed against the wall, blankets and pillows padded on to form some sort of couch. There were a lot of bricks lying around, propping up planks of wood as an ill attempt of tables and chairs. Any furniture they did have looked old, tacky. Probably taken from the dump. The walls were damp, covered in mould and the smell in this room was horrific; like sweat and urine mixed together. Shadow found himself wanting to hold his breath or pinch his nose.
The kitchen was part of this room, and Shadow went to inspect it. Little to his surprise when he opened the fridge there was no food, just another smell that made him want to gag. The cupboards were empty as well, only a couple cans of vegetable soup could be found. When he opened the bottom cupboard and looked on the shelf, he noticed a lot of crumbs and rat droppings at the back, and even on the floor now that he looked on it.
Closing his eyes, he shook his head a sighed. No, this didn't surprise him, but it wasn't easy to see.
Coming out of the kitchen, he went to the opposite side of the room, where a small desk and draws were. Possibly there was something Eggman related hiding away?
Looking through only led to disappointment however. There was nothing relating to the crimes or anything. What he did find instead however, were School books.
Raising his brow, filled with bewilderment, Shadow picked up the books. They stood out with everything else in the room as they were clean, new and looked after. Not only that but they looked expensive as well. Opening the first book up was English literature, and it must have been the fox who was using them because the hand writing inside was terrible! Much like the apology notes left at the robberies.
"Shadow?"
Hearing his name, he looked around. Rouge stood, with a red eyed fearful child in her arms as he hid his face in her shoulder, wiping the last of his tears. "You got him out?"
"Yes and I didn't need to force him. Poor thing just needed a warm soul to tell him what happened" she cooed over the boy, Tails looking slightly uncomfortable with the whole deal.
"Fine. Take him to the car and radio the General that we're on our way."
Back at G.U.N, Sonic was taken back to the interrogation room once again. It was just getting annoying now. It hadn't even been a day and they were dragging him to every room in the building. Although he was glad to out of that cell if anything. Apparently, it had only been an hour but it felt so much longer. Locked up like a lifeless object. Something for people to sneer and laugh at if they walked by. It wasn't the standard prison cell either. It was just a bare room with one bed and a toilet. No windows, not even on the door. Just the tiny, tiny room. One thing he had never been good with was tight spaces. He loved being able to run and be free, all up until…
This however, this was worse than being in hell for him. Every second that went by, the walls grew smaller and smaller, pushing in on themselves until they eventually collided with him trapped in the middle. It felt like there was no air, just a blinding heat ready to suffocate. His mind went crazy. Nothing to do, nowhere to go. He sat on that bed and pulled off the skin of his arm.
It was only an hour…
He couldn't do it. Not again. He couldn't spend years doing that… he just couldn't.
Sonic felt his limbs grow numb the more he thought about it. There were two guards standing by the door and the General was next to him. There were no handcuffs this time because they had decided that if he were to act out of line again then the Tasers they held in their hands would do just fine.
Possibly for the first time in two years, he started to regret running away.
The door opened and the first person to run in was the only person Sonic wanted to see.
"Tails!" he cried as the young fox leapt into his opened arms, embracing his brother as tight as he could. "Sonic I was so worried! You were gone for hours, I thought something horrible happened to you."
The blue hedgehog looked around, a fake smile on his face as he was unusually brave all of a sudden. "Well… it kinda did buddy. But don't worry, I'm okay. Just wasn't lucky this time" he said, rubbing the foxes back.
Shadow and Rouge entered the room, dismissing the guards while doing so. The General stayed in the room but stood at the now locked door himself.
It was all getting too much for the young fox to bare, as he broke down, refusing to let go of his best friend.
"Hey Tails, don't get upset. We knew this day would probably come… It's gonna be alright."
"No it's not! They'll throw you in prison and it's not your fault! I don't want you to leave me… please don't let them take you…"
There was a sharp pain stinging in Shadow's chest as he watched the two friends.
This was a far step from justice and he knew it. Sonic wasn't the one to blame for these crimes, but he was the one who had to pay the price. That's simply how it worked.
As Sonic tried to calmed Tails down, holding him close while the fox sat on his lap and buried his face into his chest, the General cleared his throat to call attention. "Alright we got your friend for you, now there's questions you need to answer."
"He's my brother" Sonic sneered, holding Tails tighter in case they attempted to take him away.
Shadow opened the folder that was placed on the desk, while Rouge sat down. "Alright, we kept our side of the deal so now you keep yours. Are you working for Eggman, yes or no?"
It was clear by the look on his face that this was a difficult question to answer. Sonic's eyes looked everywhere for help but there was no use in it. They did bring Tails to him, now he had to do this, or who knows what they'll do to the kid. They might throw him back on the streets! Tails couldn't survive that again.
"… yes."
Shadow almost wanted to smile. "Okay. Next question, how did Eggman come into contact with you?"
It was as if someone had threatened to slap him. Sonic immediately cowered down, his grip on his brother getting stronger as he trembled. Shadow waited however, though he felt concern with the boy's mental wellbeing at this point. This was not something that was comfortable to see.
"C-can I please answer a different question?" His voice had gone so quiet, strained as if he had been shouting for three hours straight. It was clear to everyone that he couldn't answer that question, but the General didn't seem keen on letting him move on.
This was when rebellious Rouge stepped in. "Of course sweetie, that's not important just yet. The biggest question we need to ask is where is Eggman? How can we find him?"
There was a brief silence.
"Sonic if we don't catch him and prove his involvement in these crimes then you will be pinned down for everything. If you tell us where we can find him, we can help you."
Sonic looked down at the young boy in his arms. Tails blue eyes matched with his. The fox was begging him, his eyes pleaded, do whatever it took to save himself… so that they could stay together.
"Okay… he's at…"
