Disclaimer- If I owned Sonic the hedgehog and co., Sonic boom the game would have great dialogue – among other things – but since I don't, yeah…

Chapter 21- All around the campfire

The rag-tag group of Mobians had traversed the multiple hallways of the dark prison for about fifteen minutes…and the walls had echoed with the same voice about double that amount, grating on Shadow's nervous enough to make his teeth grind together. However, he wouldn't snap at the young bee, for he was sure that it wouldn't solve anything, Charmy would keep asking, and he didn't want Silver's unpredictability giving him an unwanted headache.

"Are we there yet?"

"No." Shadow was legitimately surprised that no one else in the group hadn't told the bee to be quiet, especially the bunny that had been answering him.

From his high perch, the black hedgehog trailed his gaze over the group before lingering on the blue Mobian being carried limply by Knuckles. Sonic had been uncharacteristically quiet, for both versions of him, after Shadow had plainly told him why he couldn't move and his powers were most likely gone for the moment. Sonic seemed like he was about to explode, but then he just…didn't. It was like if someone cut the right wire before the verbal bomb would go off. Hm…

Shadow shook his head, not wanting to think about that lousy excuse for a hero anymore. Instead, he shifted his focus to the front of the group. To Cream. She was walking confidently, lighting the way ahead and occasionally pointing the beam at something to the side. At least, that's what it seemed like at first glance. Shadow continued to watch her, and he noticed how tensely she walked. How stiff her movements were. It had to be because of her wound, but when he asked about it before, she just waved off the concern. Cream said that she was fine, and don't worry about her. The black hedgehog doubted her statement then, but now, he believed that she was the total opposite than what she claimed to be.

"Are we there yet?"

"N-No."

Shadow narrowed his eyes at her back. That was a pained stutter, he was sure. If the bunny was hurt because of the movement, she shouldn't aggravate the slash even more than it already was. He was positive that Amy could carry the rabbit from here on out without a problem.

"Cream-"

"Don't even, Shadow," She still carried on forward as she spoke, her back to him. "I'm f-fine. So you can s-save your concern for someone who needs it, okay? I can d-deal." The Ultimate Lifeform didn't say anything back. If she didn't want any help, that's on her. He wasn't going to beg.

"But think about it Cream!" But apparently, Amy was willing to. "You're hurting! We all see the blood still dripping from the cut! And it's clear that all the moving you're doing isn't helping it heal."

"Amy, thanks for your concern, but I d-don't need-"

"Yes you do! Just let me-"

Cream glanced back at pinkette, still walking. "You are n-not going to carry me, Amy!"

"Well let someone else do it then! Your stubbornness is going to hurt you more!"

Cream stopped.

She whirled around and pointed the flashlight straight in Amy's face, making her flinch. "I'm being stubborn? What about you? You c-can't take no for an answer!"

Silver then cut in shyly, "Wait Cream…don't be so harsh… Amy just wants to-"

"H-Hush Silver! This doesn't involve you!" Cream moved the beam off him and back onto Amy, stomping the ground angrily. Shadow saw the wince she was trying to hide. "I'm g-going to tell you one last time, I'm okay!"

Amy wasn't swayed. "Cream-"

The guttural voice of Sonic startled her from saying more. "Chaos, just shut up! Pink bitch, if the rabbit doesn't want your help, stop whining about it! Your freaking voice is annoying the shit outta me! Just leave her the hell alone! And girl, you better get your ass moving because I want to get out of shit-hole as soon as possible." Ah, there it was. The bomb was just delayed.

There was a stunned silence. Amy had a mixed expression of hurt, anger, and slight nervousness on her face. Cream looked annoyed because of the cursing, but she also seemed appreciative as well.

After a beat of heavy quiet, Knuckles shook his head slightly and sighed. He adjusted his hold on the scowling Sonic. "Well," His lazy voice highly contrasted the sharp ones of before. "You heard him. Let's get moving. I don't like it in here either, and I want to have a peaceful night's sleep out of this prison. Cream, we can take a closer look at your cut outside…"

The rabbit stared at Sonic a second longer before nodding at Knuckles, relieved that the echidna wasn't going to hassle her. At the moment anyway. "Right." She replied as she turned back around and started walking again. The group followed her and Shadow frowned a bit at being reminded of his own 'transportation'. Cheese, who was just floating at Cream's side at the little argument, settled back on the bunny's head. They started a quiet conversation. Shadow suspected it was to get Cream's mind off of her injury.

Five minutes of quiet talking passed until Charmy apparently couldn't hold it in any longer. "Are we there yet?"

"A-Actually…" Cream shined the beam ahead to reveal two heavy-set metal doors. The light was trembling. "W-We are…" She went up to the exit almost tripping over her own feet – her coordination has been marginally declining – and she put her trembling hand on the handle. Cream forced out a chuckle as she turned it and pulled the metal open, letting a welcoming breeze through. She gestured outside. "T-There we g-go. W-We're free…" Cream then started swaying before falling forward, dropping the flashlight.

"Chao!" Cheese grabbed the back of her dress to slow her descent enough for Amy to run over, as fast she could with the serum still circling in her bloodstream, and keep the bunny from hitting the ground.

Amy grunted as Cream's body leaned onto her. "Oh my gosh Cream!" The hedgehog was getting blood on herself, but she didn't care. Shadow tensed at the sight. Was she…? "Cream! Can you stand up?" Silence, and the weight of the situation spread throughout the group like wild-fire. "Cream! Please answer! Please!"

Tails started whimpering and Vector started to pace, to Shadow's dislike. "Oh no oh no oh no OH NO!"

Rogue was rail straight, his eyes wide. "Th-This isn't good… Is she…is she…" It sounded like he wasn't able to complete the question. But he didn't need to.

"N-No…" Cheese, now with the flashlight, illuminated Cream's half-lidded eyes. "Don't count…me out y-yet…" She tried to weakly push away from Amy, but the pinkette quickly picked her up in her arms before Cream knew what was going on. The rabbit's head lolled against Amy's chest.

"Oh no you don't." Amy sniffed and gave Cream a small smile, obviously glad that she was still here. Shadow's body slightly sagged against Vector's head. She was alive. "You aren't walking…it'll only make you worse…"

"You carrying her isn't going to do anything." They all turned their heads to Sonic, who was just staring at Cream blankly. Shadow was thrown for a loop. That blank face shouldn't be worn by Sonic at all. Either smiling and grinning, or scowling and frowning. It was like he was here, but not here at the same time. "Any movement will make her bleed more, no matter how smooth you are in your walk. Lay her down in the grass outside." No one moved, as shocked as Shadow was at Sonic's bland, monotonous voice. Then, like he had woken up, Sonic glared at Amy with a growl. "What? Are you deaf? Move dammit!"

With a start, Amy exited the jail with the others following. Shadow eyed Sonic with a frown. The pinkette went and laid Cream on a soft patch of grass by where the trees started. Cream winced as she relaxed. "Ah…it hurts…"

"I know it does…" Amy seemed to think for a moment before unknotting Cream's tie. She eventually got it out from around her before hopping up. She got the light from Cheese. "I'm going to clean this. It's not going to help at all right now in its current condition." She ran back into the jail.

They all watched her go. "So…" Knuckles yawned and Sonic growled. "What do we do now?"

"Cream is in no condition to travel right now." Cream opened her mouth to protest, but Shadow cut her off. "You're not. We stay here until morning. Then Cream can tell us where we are and where to go."

Rogue shrugged his unoccupied shoulder. "Sounds like a plan. You make a good leader, Shads." The bat then went over to the trunk of a tree and leaned Silver against it, letting out a sigh of relief. "Whew, you can stand to lose some pounds, bro."

Silver smirked, his arms drooping at his sides. "Maybe you should start working out. Looking kinda scrawny there."

Vector boomed out a laugh. "Looking? He is!"

"Hey!"

"I'm kidding! I'm kidding!" The croc chuckled again before following Rogue's lead. He walked up to a tree, turned around, and squatted, letting go of Shadow. The hedgehog sank to the ground and slumped against the wood, beside Silver. Unfortunately for the Ultimate Lifeform, Sonic was situated on the other side of him. The blue one scowled at him, but Shadow didn't grace him with a reaction.

"Ooo ooo!" Shadow squinted at the silhouette of Charmy under the moonless and starless sky. "I've got an idea! How about we make a campfire! That way, we don't have to rely on the flashlight!" He heard the thud of the bee sitting down.

"Oh my gosh! A campfire would be awesome!" Shadow sighed at Silver's extremely excited voice. "And we can tell stories around it too!"

"I'll get the wood!" Vector rang out, and the black hedgehog heard the croc go over and start breaking the thick branches. More Mobians of the group then sat down. A minute later, he dumped the wood some yards in front of Shadow, who assumed that the spot was in the middle of the jagged circle they were supposed to be in.

"Great." Knuckles' voice came from Sonic's direction. "Now how are we supposed to light it?"

Quiet, then, "You all are so useless. Red, come over here and check my sock."

"Why in the heck would I willingly get close to you? I carried you because I was the only one who could."

"Do you want the damn lighter or not?"

"Lighter?" Shadow spoke up, scrunching his nose in distaste. "Do you smoke?"

"Hell no I don't smoke."

"Then why do you-"

"None of your business, Stripes."

There was a sigh and the sound of someone getting up. "Stop arguing… You're making me more tired than I already am." Cloth moved and there were a couple snaps before a small flame lit up the echidna's face. He went over and lit the wood, eventually the flame brightened up the area. Knuckles sat back down and stuck the lighter in his sock.

"Give me back my lighter, Red!"

"No. You don't need it."

"I oughta-"

"I'm back guys!" Everyone watched as Amy came back out with a soaking blue tie. She smiled at the fire before going over to Cream and retying the cloth. "Hopefully it'll be better in the morning…" Amy laid her back down and sat beside the rabbit and Chao.

Nothing but crackling fire filled the air until Cream coughed. "Shadow…what's…your plan? We've got…everyone…"

Knowing what she was getting at, Shadow nodded. "Right." He turned to the others. "I have a plan to stop Espio and Eggman."

"The hell you do! Those two are mine. You will not interfere asshole."

Shadow snapped his head over to Sonic and sneered. "What will you do? You can't run…or even move. I'm sure the immobility is temporary, and I'm hoping that we get our powers back. If you go to them now, they will squash you like a bug. Stop being so headstrong and listen." Sonic glared, but didn't comment.

Shadow cleared his throat and got ready to say the big news. "The plan starts with finding someone with powers like mine." He saw Charmy and Tails growing excited. "His name is Shadow."

Rogue scratched his head and looked at him like he'd had gone crazy. "Uh…What?"

The Ultimate Lifeform took in a breath. "We're going to find the Shadow that's from here." At the confused faces, he explained further. "I'm…not from here. I'm from a different dimension."

Sonic immediately started laughing. "You expect us to believe that shit? You must be out of your m-"

"I believe him." Shadow looked over to Rogue to see that he was sort of nervous about cutting Sonic off, but he got over it quickly. "I mean, the guy hasn't lied to us before, and who would lie about something that weird?"

"Me too." Vector said from beside the bat. "Shadow hasn't done anything but help so far."

"Me, Tails, and Cream do also!" Charmy singsonged.

"You do Tails?" Amy asked, dubious. The kit nodded. She tapped her chin. "Well, it wouldn't hurt to hear him out…"

Knuckles laid down on his back, arms linked behind his head. "It's farfetched, but I don't have the energy to doubt."

"Alternate dimension? Heck yes I believe him! That's like movie stuff!" Silver added, still acting like he had eaten pounds of sugar.

Sonic bared his teeth. "You all are stupid, and crazy. To believe that bullshit, you need to be put in the nearest asylum."

"You want proof then?" Shadow growled out. "I know something about you that you probably haven't told a soul."

The blue hero narrowed his hard emerald eyes, and growled right back. "Try me."

"You. Can't. Swim."

Shock was etched into Sonic's face before anger covered it up. "You can't prove it."

"No. But your face just did." Shadow ignored the rage radiating off of the other and returned his attention to the rest of the group. "As I was saying, there is another Shadow here. One who can still run. We can use him to our advantage. We need to get him before we do anything else. Cream?"

"Y-Yeah?" She was sounding stronger already.

"Can Vanilla take us to Prison Island somehow?"

She gaped. "How do y-you know my…oh r-right. Alternate dimensions. I think she might…"

"That's good enough. Anyone opposed to this?" They all shook their heads. Sonic did so as well while saying that he couldn't fathom why he was listening to this wacko.

Charmy clapped his hands together. "Woo! Now that we have a plan, can you tell us how we are in your world? Please? Puh-lease? You promised!"

"Heh, I wanna know too." Rogue looked at Shadow, interested.

"A good story to tell around the campfire." Knuckles commented, now on his stomach and chin resting on his hands.

Shadow smirked. "Alright." He drifted his gaze over to Vector and Charmy. "I'll start with you two." They glanced at each other confusedly, no doubt wondering why they would be talked about together. "In my world, you two own a detective agency, the Chaotix. You also help out when you can as trouble arises. You've helped me, and others," His red eyes swept across the ones around the fire, "out on many occasions."

Charmy smiled brightly. "Wow!" He looked over to the croc. "We're so cool Vector! We're detectives!"

Vector held his hands up. "Whoa there Watson. Not here we're not." The bee was still overjoyed. The reptile rolled his eyes before turning to Shadow. "But seriously, just me and him? We own an agency?!"

The hedgehog frowned a bit. "No. You had a third and fourth co-founder. Mighty the armadillo, however he had moved away from what I was told, and…Espio the chameleon."

Charmy froze and Vector's jaw fell open. "WHAT?!" The latter shouted. "We work with a criminal?!"

Shadow shook his head. "No. Actually, Espio is the perfect ally. He fights for nothing but good."

Rogue scoffed. "Wouldn't believe it."

"No kidding." Vector added.

"But besides that," Shadow continued, "You two haven't changed. Let's see…you're next Cream." Said Mobian looked at him with slightly more alert eyes. "The Cream where I come from is the complete opposite of you. She still has Cheese, of course, but she is soft-spoken and isn't the bravest of people. She would have never done what you did today. She usually stays home with her stay-at-home mother Vanilla, who is just as caring."

Cream giggled a bit. "My mom is anything but t-that. She thinks I'm like the other Cream, but obviously I'm not and she would flip if she found out. Also, she would die of boredom if she stayed h-home all day. Here, she's second in c-command in G.U.N." Shadow blinked, surprised. So she was high up on the ladder.

"Hmph. Those wimps."

The rabbit frowned at Sonic, and so did Cheese. "M-My mom isn't a w-wimp!"

Sonic smiled coldly. "Then why do they all cower when they see me?"

Knuckles reached over and punched him hard in the side. He didn't have his super strength, but he was still naturally strong. The echidna's lips twitched upwards at the gasp of pain. "Cut it out. Keep your comments to yourself. Continue Shadow."

The black hedgehog's eyes shined with amusement. "That's really it for you, Cream." He focused on the white hedgie beside him. "Silver, I have a question."

"Yeah?" The excited spell was gone now.

"Were you born here?"

Silver tilted his head in confusion. "What kind of question is that? Of course I was born here. Station Square in fact before I moved away."

Shadow slowly nodded. "Okay. Because in my world, you came from the future."

Silver's mouth fell open not unlike Vector's a while ago. "What? The future?"

"Chaos…It seems like your home is more exciting than ours!" Amy smiled, looking like she couldn't wait for her turn.

Shadow shrugged. "The answer can differ from each person, but back to Silver. He had traveled back in time to save his present that was going up in flames. His world was being destroyed." The ones who could were leaning forward, listening to every word. "He came to our time to takeout Sonic for 'starting' the end of his future world."

All eyes focused on the blue hedgehog, but he just frowned. "The hell?"

Shadow coughed to get the attention back onto him. "But he really didn't. Then other stuff happened that isn't really important." And kinda weird. "Anyway, the other Silver…" How could he put this without sounding like a jerk? "Had more stable emotions."

The white hedgehog shrugged. "Then he's not as fun as I am! Simple as that."

Shadow let out a single chuckle. "Sure." He then locked eyes with the winged-mammal. "Rogue…you are the most different than your um…counterpart."

The bat rose a brow. "What? Am I dull? Got no chill? High-strung?"

The hedgehog shook his head. "None of those. You are a girl."

Rogue's eyes went wide and Vector busted out laughing, rubbing away a tear. "Oh man! That's rich!"

"A-Are you serious?" Rogue then blinked, thinking hard. "Am I hot?"

Shadow sputtered, not expecting that question. "Uh…" A rebellious faint flush crawled across his muzzle. From embarrassment or something else, he didn't know. It went away before anyone could notice however. "She…Rouge…isn't ugly. And she, to most people, isn't mediocre either. So there's your answer."

Rogue pursed his lips, most likely trying to picture his feminine self. "Guess that's good enough."

"Oh, and she works at G.U.N as my partner." Shadow added as an afterthought. "And before you say anything Faker," Sonic closed his mouth, snarling. "Our G.U.N is tough and fearless." Sometimes too tough…and blind at times, but they don't need to know that. "They don't fear any one person."

The blue Mobian rolled his eyes. "Suuure they don't."

Shadow ignored him. "Rouge's strength is in stealth and interrogation. Also, you don't want to get between her and jewelry."

Rogue grinned. "Sounds like a swell gal if I do say so myself. She's tough…I like that."

Vector elbowed him. "Now that's just weird. Are you really fantasizing about yourself?"

The bat crossed his arms. "No!" Then he mumbled, "And it's not really me anyway…"

Amy had this unreadable look on her face before she raised her hand, waving it. "Can you tell about me next, Shadow?"

"Alright. Amy, you are…more or less the same. You still have your hammer," I wonder if Espio took that away from her, "and you still have a major crush on a guy, but just not the one you like right now."

Amy gasped, covering her mouth. A very noticeable blush appeared on her face. "How do you know that?!"

"It's obvious if you look for it." Shadow answered like he was talking about the weather.

Tails blinked. "W-Who is it, Amy?"

"Yeah," Rogue added, yawning. "Who?" The bat looked back and forth between Amy and Shadow. He pointed to the latter. "Is it Shadow?"

Amy started sweating. "No! Er…It's someone y'all don't know!" Before any more questions were brought up, she focused back on Shadow. "Who does other me like?" She asked a little too quickly.

Shadow had to resist rolling his eyes. Girls. "You like Sonic, actually."

The pinkette flinched as if slapped. "Him? What in the world is wrong with me?"

"Damn, why would I ever go for such a whiny bitch?"

"Why would I ever go for such a stupid jerk!"

Shadow interrupted before the yelling could get louder. "Amy, Faker back home is different from this sorry one. Though, I still don't know why you chase him even when he runs away, not wanting you."

Sonic snorted. "The other me is smart, at least."

Amy put up her nose at him. "I still can't believe it. How could any version of me like any version of you? It's completely ridiculous."

Before Sonic could retort, Shadow cut in. "Like I said, the other Sonic is different…and you're just attracted to him. But I'll get to Faker later. Next is Knuckles and Tails." The latter gave the echidna a nervous look and the former guardian just blinked tiredly. "You two are good friends even though you have very different habits. Tails, you're a science geek – in a good way – helping out with your inventions. You also built your own plane."

Amy gave Tails a grin. "Just like now!" She ruffled his fringe. "Little Einstein."

Shadow stared at their interaction, which was still foreign to him. "However, that's where the similarities end. The other Tails is more social, outspoken. He doesn't hide behind anyone, and wants to jump into the action more often than not. And also…you regard to Sonic as your older sibling, not Amy."

Tails froze, his hand automatically going down to rub at his still wrapped leg. "W-What?"

"Me? Brothers with that freak?" Sonic let out a jeering laugh. "Now that's a joke if I've ever heard one. Why would I even be friends with someone like him? Other me ain't smart anymore."

Tails' bottom lip began to tremble and he wrapped his namesakes around himself. Amy wrapped her arm around him, joining the others who were glaring at Sonic. "What am I to him then?" The pinkette asked.

Shadow thought for a moment. What was she to Tails? A friend, sure. Anything else? Nope. "You two are just friends, and, from what I've seen, he gets a bit exasperated as well as Sonic when you chase him."

Amy blinked. "Oh…"'

Maybe he should have withheld that information, but it's too late now. Shadow turned to the echidna. "Knuckles, the other you is very protective and hotheaded when one thing is in danger."

"Let me guess, the Master Emerald?" The hedgehog nodded. "Figures. That's why you were so confused when you met me."

"Exactly why. Knuckles resides on Angel Island with the gem and guards it with his life. He doesn't let anyone besides his friends get close to it." Shadow glanced over to Rogue. "Well, Rouge has a history of stealing, so he's wary about her being near."

"And who are 'my' friends?"

Shadow started to inwardly count off. "There's me, Rouge, Silver, Blaze-"

"Blaze?" Silver inquired. "He's friends with my cat?"

"Speaking of her…" Charmy slowly got up and went over to Cream. He unzipped the back lying beside her. With a laugh, he picked up a sleeping Blaze in his arms. Then he went to sit back down. "I almost forgot about her! She's so cute!"

"What?" Silver started, stunned. "How?"

"Cream found her after she got out the house!" The bee hugged the kitten. "Thank goodness!"

"That's a relief…If we ever lost her…" The white hedgehog's eyes began to water. "If we…" He sniffed. "If we…" He proceeded to bawl.

Shadow cleared his throat somewhat uncomfortably before resuming, "Blaze is an actual Mobian in my world. So her, the Chaotix…" Why am I naming all of them? We're all here. "Everybody around the fire, actually. Even Sonic."

"Now I'm getting real interested to how the other Sonic is." Knuckles said absently. "He can't be anywhere near how he is now."

"He isn't."

Rogue sucked in a breath. "He's not evil is he?"

"No," Shadow answered. "You wouldn't be friends with him if he was. To me, Faker's annoying, but not as annoying as this one."

"Back at you, Stripes."

"But he's a formidable ally. He's a hero to everyone, not just a specific city. He doesn't fight with weapons, his body is a good enough one. He respects other people and doesn't act like a dictator. He's narcissistic, yes, but not to the degree to where everyone hates him. He's competitive, makes good-natured jokes, and likes chilidogs. And most importantly, he doesn't hurt any living thing without a very good reason. He doesn't even hurt Eggman – who is the same there and here – at all, just destroy his robots. If it comes to killing, Faker would rather find a way to keep that person alive."

Beside him, Sonic sneered. "Pain gets results. But only if fright doesn't do it first. Like with the fatass, he was gone. Not a threat. I don't know what's gotten into him now, but it'll be easy to make him want to retire. The other Sonic's an idiot to not make use of that."

"He doesn't need to. Faker saves the world with friends while you just keep Station Square safe alone." The blue hedgehog clenched his teeth, but Shadow noticed that it looked like it was hard for the other to find words to say.

"I wish I could meet the nice Sonic," Rogue commented, leaning back on his hands. "If you wish to, say 'I'."

"I!" Everyone around the fire, sans Shadow and Sonic, didn't even hesitate.

"If you don't?"

Silence.

"Hm…I could beat some sense into him if he came here." Sonic thought out loud.

"Or, he could beat some sense into you." Silver retorted blandly, like he was watching paint dry.

"Okay, asshole, don't you think I've forgotten about you." Sonic growled. "You'll pay for knocking-"

"Shhh!" Amy interrupted his threat, watching as Tails began to doze off and leaned his head against her shoulder. She turned her head to her other side to see Cream and Cheese slipping into the hold of sleep. Shadow watched as Charmy yawned before laying fully on the ground, still hugging Blaze. "They're going asleep…"

The blue hedgehog scowled. "Thanks captain obvious."

Amy yawned. "Jerk." She stretched before pushing Tails away gently and lying down on her right side. She let the kit put his head on her other. "…Night…" The pinkette mumbled out as she closed her eyes.

There was a brief silence as the older Mobians just gazed in the fire until Rogue let out a puff of air and let himself fall on his back. "She has the right idea. It is really late, or early. Goodnight guys, and prick."

Vector gave Sonic a taunting grin before copying the bat, snores filling the air in less than a minute. Shadow saw in his peripherals Silver's drooping head and Knuckles' closed eyelids. It was just him and Sonic.

Surprisingly, it was peacefully quiet until twenty minutes had passed.

"You should just go back."

Well, that was unexpected. Shadow glanced over to Sonic, who was glaring at him. In response, he glowered back. "I would if I could." But I don't even know how I got here…

The blue hedgehog let out a huff before glaring at the flame in front of him. "Well, hurry the eff up and find a way because I swear to Chaos I will make sure you won't ever skate again if you screw up the time here or something just because you wanted to be the hero."

"That's ridiculous. That only happens if I meet myself in the past…or future."

Sonic turned his head fully away from him. "Whatever."

"And, unlike someone, I just don't abandon important missions halfway through."

The hero whirled his head around, eyes blazing. "You. Don't. Know. Me. You walk around here acting like you know everything about me, but you don't! I never abandoned anyone!"

Shadow blinked in shock before pulling himself back together. He had anticipated anger, but not rage. "What about Tails? You left him in that ally."

Sonic leaned his head against the tree and closed his eyes. "I really wish I could punch the shit out of you right now. I don't need to explain myself to you." He took a deep breath, calming himself down. "Find a way back. No one needs you here."

The Ultimate Lifeform gazed back into the dancing orange wisps. "Yes, they do."

"No, they don't. They have me."

"But do they want you?"

Sonic didn't answer.

Another longer chapter! Hey, gotta get in the Christmas spirit, ya know?

And 100 reviews? Awesome! I love you guys so much!