Sonic Hill 2: DX
Ending IV: Promise
------
"Sonic…"
The series of creeks and cracks in the ground ended their short lifespan when Miles halted in surprise at what he'd just heard. Was that his own voice? It came from all directions, as if an echo carried it up and down the corridor. But he had not spoken; he must just be hearing things…
"What do you want, Tails?"
Another voice confirmed that what he was hearing truly was real. At least as real as the demons and places he'd gone to in the town could appear to be. This voice was Sonic's. He sounded bothered, annoyed…
"I…uh…I brought you some flowers…"
His own high male voice again. Miles's eyes widened as he realized the strange recording of the conversation was undeniably familiar. Staying put, he continued to listen in.
"Flowers!?" The shock in Sonic's tone carried a shadow of irritation. "I don't want any goddamn flowers! Just go home already!"
"But Sonic, I don't want to leave you…"
"Look! I'm disgusting!" Sonic was screaming now. His irritation matured into full-fledged anger. "I don't deserve flowers! Between the disease and the drugs, I look like a monster! Well, what are you looking at!? Get the hell out of here! Leave me alone already! I'm no use to you anymore!"
The fox bit his lip, remembering how miserable and unhappy Sonic had really become over the three-year course of time he'd been sick…
"I'll be dead soon anyway…maybe today, maybe tomorrow…" he continued much more discreetly. "It'd be easier if you just…if you just killed me……But I guess the hospital is making a nice little profit off of me. They want to keep me alive…" Another pause, and his anger returned. "…are you still here!? I told you to go! What, are you deaf!? Don't come back!!"
Footsteps.
"Tails…wait…please don't go…stay with me…" Rather than cold and angry, Sonic's tone morphed into the exact opposite. His pleading voice cried with despair and sorrow - sobs of regret were no longer masked behind the veil of his tone. "Don't leave me alone! I didn't mean what I said! Please, Tails……tell me I'm going to be okay. Tell me I'm not going to die……Tails, help me………I don't wanna die…"
Silence.
"Sonikku…" The present Miles whispered. It seemed he hadn't truly remembered everything he'd repressed from his mind after all. That time in the hospital…that was the last time he'd spoken to Sonic before the hedgehog came back home. And shortly after he got home he…he…
Pushing back the memories, restraining them behind the wall of rational thought, the fox stared ahead. The dark corridor he was in had no signs of an end, but there had to be one somewhere ahead. It was the only place he could go now.
What followed was a minute long walk, and then a gigantic set of steel doors which he proceeded to enter. Not too surprisingly, they didn't lead to the docks outside, but instead to catwalk overlooking a large foggy plain. As far as he could tell, there was no ground, ceiling, or walls anywhere near the place, just empty space. As he ascended the staircase which revealed itself a few feet ahead, Miles began to wonder where the hell he was now. Still in the hotel? Floating above the lake? Lost somewhere in time and space?
'I'm in Sonic Hill.' He thought to himself complacently. 'That's all I need to know.'
He ran, ascending the metallic steps much to the dismay of his legs, which felt like they'd cave in at any moment. The top of the stairs came into view pretty quickly, or at least it seemed like it had. Once he reached the top, he was surprised to see the metal flooring now lead back down into the depths of the fog. Slightly frustrated, the tired fox ran down the new path. Another change in direction appeared twenty-two seconds later – the stairs lead back up again. Without even slowing down to consider why it was built that way, Miles ran back up the final set of stairs.
Like the streets of South Vale, the air was chilly and frigid, but it created a rather comforting feeling against his damp fur. Cold, but relaxing in a strange sort of way. The tension coursing through his veins thinned only by a small amount – he was a little afraid of what lie ahead. Definitely not too afraid to turn away, but still afraid.
A gate revealed itself from above, surrounding the perimeter of a large square platform suspended in the sky. The metal stairs disappeared behind him as he continued his jog, though he had not noticed it at all, his thoughts were directed towards what the platform was for. It looked like the roof of an abandoned and crumbled building. Small forms of brick were in random places – the remains of a possible top floor, he guessed. Moss and vines clung to a few of the false walls, creating a beautiful scene. The chain-link gating served as the platform's walls, leaving Miles with no escape once he pushed the gated door open and stepped in.
Only one part of the place's perimeter wasn't made out of chain-link fencing: a small section of more brick walling in the back. A window was in that wall, framing the nothingness beyond the building. Standing at that window was a very very familiar figure, who's spiny back faced the fox as he thoughtfully peered out the window.
"…Sonic?"
The hedgehog turned around.
"When will you ever stop making that mistake?" Shadow asked. "Sonic's dead. You killed him."
Miles's jaw dropped open in utter shock. "Shadow!?"
Like twice before, Shadow had neither a scratch nor a fur out of place on his sexy lean body. His dark eyes held a look of knowing satisfaction on them, which matched perfectly with the newborn smirk on his divine lips. Moving with almost ghostlike grace, he took a step forward. Miles took a step back in response.
"But…I don't need you anymore…" the two-tailed fox said aghast, without taking any effort to hide the extreme confusion that entangled him.
"What?" Shadow raised an eyebrow. Now it was his time to be surprised. "But I can still be yours. Just say the word."
"No…" Miles whispered, talking more to himself than the black hedgehog this time.
"But I'll never yell at you, or make you feel bad! That's what you wanted!" Shadow stated quickly, sounding like he was trying hard not to lose his cool as he continued his invasion of the other furry's space. He wrapped his arms around Miles's orange-furred neck and pulled him close. "I'm different from Sonic."
Seconds ticked by, in which Miles considered what was really going on here. He came up with a decision and placed his hands against the furry white patch on Shadow's chest gently, right before he shoved him hard and sent the hedgehog stumbling backwards. "I don't love you, Shadow."
The look of betrayal on the hedgehog's eyes gave Miles a tiny jolt of guilt, which dissipated the moment Shadow's weakness turned into frustrated anger. "You think you can just throw me away!?"
"You're not Sonic." Miles replied grimly.
"It's always Sonic!" Shadow exclaimed. "Sonic this, Sonic that! He really is all you give a fuck about, huh!? I was right! Well you should get it right too, Tails: He's dead!! You killed him!!"
"But I still love him…"
"Well you can't! You don't! You fell in love with me! Ever since we met!"
"Yes…maybe that's true…" Miles looked down at the floor sadly, hating to admit what in some ways may actually be true between them. "I thought I fell in love with you, but it was wrong. I was just confused. I don't love you anymore, Shadow. I realized…" He trailed off, then glared back at the hedgehog. "Sonic and I were meant to be, forever! Not you, you…you faker! I will never betray him like that again!!"
"You fucking killed him!" Shadow rolled his eyes. "You keep going on and on…I'm better than him! You know that!"
"But you're still not him."
"Come on, Tails…" he scoffed. "You must be joking."
Miles clenched his fists, feeling the heat of his rage reach its boiling point"I don't love you!! I love Sonic! That's why I came here!"
"No!!" Shadow screamed, sounding all the more enraged. "I won't let you!! I'll never let you have Sonic back!!!"
-BOOM!
Something invisible seemed to collide head on with Miles, sending him flying backwards and landing on the hard cement. He let out a small yelp of pain as his wound scraped against the ground, but was too shocked by the sudden attack to feel its full effect. Shadow suddenly seemed blurred and hazy as Miles stared back at him. The fox shook his head and blinked repeatedly, flabbergasted at what he saw. A large ray of dark purple energy surrounded the hedgehog, tinting his jet-black fur an even darker color.
"What…?"
The hedgehog's crimson eyes seemed to glow as he began to hover a few inches off the ground, defying the laws of gravity. He stared at the wounded fox through the black energy and opened his mouth to speak. It was no longer his attractive baritone voice that emitted from his throat. Instead, a horrifyingly distorted and demonic one replaced it.
"YOU DESERVE TO DIE TOO TAILS!!!"
Miles trembled with fear, rising to his feet, as an insanely loud crack was heard, followed by an even louder scream of agony from the other male.
"Ahhhhhhh-AAAAAAHHHHHH!!!!" Every bone in his spiny body seemed to break in and out of place rapidly, causing more pain than Miles could even fathom he was feeling. Somehow, still through the wall of hurt, Shadow grinned widely. "Hahahahahaha! Burn in hell, Tails! Tails! Tails! Burn in hell, Tails! Tails! Tails!"
The fox stepped back, his tiny voice shaking along with his body. "N-no…"
Balls of black light formed out of the air around Shadow. At the same time, his own fur began to change color, turning from deep black into a vibrant silver before his very eyes, while the red marks aligning his whacked-out spikes remained the same. The brick walling around him crumbled, unable to withstand the electronic field of pure energy surrounding his blood-soaked body. Miles took a few more steps back, his horrified gaze fixed on Shadow's transformation. A loud, high-pitched bug-like noise bellowed from every direction, only adding to the madness, as the black balls of light around the hedgehog began to form into…into…
Moths?
Old, gray, dead moths, which fluttered around the silver hedgehog whose body once housed the soul of what Miles thought to be his friend.
"TAILSTAILSTAILS!!!" Shadow's demonic voice screamed. Flames shot out of the bottom of his shoes, and he began to rise up into the air, suspended ten feet in front and above the terrified fox. An insane sharp-toothed grin formed on his lips, and he let out another horrible roar.
"Shadow…"
A ball of fire formed in the hedgehog's palm, seemingly growing off of absolutely nothing until he thrust his right hand forward and sent the fireball into a kamikaze dash towards the fox. Instincts kicked in in the nick of time. Miles jumped to the left, barely managing to miss the burning ball of death, and felt the heat push him into the ground a few feet away as the concrete behind him exploded into flames. Letting out a small cry of pain, he jumped up and sprinted across the room in a panic. More fireballs trailed behind him, followed by a groan of disappointed annoyance from the demonic hedgehog above.
Something hard hit him in the back, sending him sprawling out onto the ground. As he hit the floor for the second time he looked behind him and almost let out a shriek when he saw Shadow standing not too far away, a maniacal smirk on his face. How could he be that fast? Before he knew it, Miles was suspended in the air, croaking in pain as Shadow held him up by the neck.
"Why do you still run, Tails!?" Shadow asked, the original sound of his voice distorted beyond belief. "You're meant to die here! You have nowhere else to go!"
Last chance.
In one abrupt motion, Miles slammed his fist into Shadow's face. The result was an agonized scream that filled the silent air, followed by a loosening of the hedgehog's grip on his neck. Miles landed on the floor as Shadow stumbled backwards, making quick gasps of respiration. Blood gushed out of his mouth and the side of his face, where a single shiny blade rested stubbornly, carved almost all the way in and cutting deeply into his tongue.
"You fucking—"
Shadow's sentence was cut short when a loud roar rung out through the air. Sprinkles of more crimson flew out of his chest as the rifle shell pierced his heart and sent him flying backwards from the force of the blow. The shot would have killed any normal creature, but the silver hedgehog still stood. Frantically, Miles grabbed for another shell. He jammed it into the rifle's slot, but before he could even make another move he felt his enemy's fist contact his face, and he was flying backwards in another uncontrollable flip, which ended with him landing hard on his stomach.
A split second later, the hard surface of Shadow's boot smashed into his ribs, giving him another terrifying jolt of pain. The fox clutched his side and rolled over, saving his life in the process as Shadow's boot stomped on where his head was a moment earlier; cracking the cement like it was made out of unstable tile. Panic wrought, Miles jumped to his feet and ducked under another punch. Once he was clear of the attack, he jumped to his left and began sprinting away as fast as he could. Shadow followed close behind, zooming more than ten times faster than the terrified fox was. Luckily for Miles, he remembered this, and dived out of Shadow's indestructible path. The hedgehog flew past him and landed headfirst into one of the broken brick walls, causing the whole thing to collapse like building blocks.
The powerful being scrambled around, shaking brick off of him as he tried to get back to his feet. He looked up to stare down the barrel of Miles's rifle, and immediately thrust his own arm out and pushed the weapons sight down the very split second the fox squeezed the trigger. With an incredibly loud bang, a large new hole appeared in Shadow's stomach. Blood sprayed over both of them.
"Shit."
"RRRRAAAAAHHHH!!!"
Super Shadow sprung to his feet and full on slapped Miles across the face, sending the poor fox into yet another backward spiral. It felt like his cheekbones had broken right then and there, but he kept going. The tip of the weapon collided with the other furry's face when Miles spun back around with it pointed out. Shadow faulted a bit and grabbed onto the gun. The fox yanked it back, causing both of them to fall over. Shadow landed on top, and his lips brushed against Miles's lightly.
For that split second, it seemed just like the hospital a day earlier. When they were still allies. When they began to fall in love…
That moment faded quickly as blood and drool streamed down the hedgehog's lips and onto Miles's face. He immediately filed that thought for later and kicked Shadow in the gut, then thrust the rifle forward, knocking the rabid hedgehog off and onto the floor beside him. He jumped up and fired at Shadow's back, shuddering as scarabs of bloody flesh erupted from it.
Any other being would have been forever paralyzed if not dead by the blast, but Super Shadow got up like it only fazed him. Miles scrambled for one of his last shells and reloaded it quickly - he was getting very good at handling these weapons. Right when he did, he looked up to see Shadow grinning back at him insanely. Before he could even scream, Shadow grabbed onto both ends of the metallic weapon and smashed it into his neck. Miles stumbled backwards until his back hit a pillar of brick right behind him. Shadow pushed the rifle against his neck hard, cutting off all oxygen.
Miles tried to squeal, tried to scream, but he couldn't. He was already out of breath. He began to squirm around like a fish out of water, his terrified eyes staring into the other animal's insane ones.
"Oh how I love to see you in pain…" Shadow's tone was soaked with hatred, which did not contrast with the expression on his evil face.
Miles shut his eyes tightly and bit his lip.
(no not like this not now)
(tails tails tails)
(no no no sonic help me i need)
(!tails tails tails!)
(you i cant give up i)
(!!!TAILSTAILSTAILS!!!)
(!i wont give up!)
Miles grasped onto both ends of the rifle and pushed back with all his might, using a newly unlocked inner strength to push Shadow away. The surprised hedgehog almost fell over as he staggered backwards with the rifle in his hands.
Before he even knew what hit him, Miles slammed the katana into his right shoulder in a hard vertical swing. The blade wobbled a bit and almost threw the fox off balance, but he managed to make a very effective hit. The sheer force of the attack drove Shadow down to the floor, the sharp blade almost completely severing his arm. He screamed out in agony and Miles pulled the weapon out, creating a sickening slick sound.
Screaming at the top of his lungs, Shadow backflipped suddenly. The tip of his boot hit Miles and sent him too into a backwards flip. Amazingly, he landed on his feet, but almost fell over again before he realized his lucky landing. Shadow shot backward into the air, his eyes glowing with rage. Blood oozed out of the dozens of deep holes and cuts in his body.
All of the dead moths around him finally reacted and zoomed towards Miles. They coagulated into a swarm and began to violently bite away at his flesh and fur. The fox swung his arm around, trying to get them to stop biting him with no avail. Eventually, he pulled out his handgun and fired into the air. The tiny creatures backed off for a second, and then assaulted him a second time all together.
They all bit onto him at once and somehow lifted him into the air. He struggled to make them let go, but his efforts were futile. Super Shadow floated a few feet in front of him, his partially decimated face continuously grinning like a lunatic.
Horrified, Miles pointed the handgun at Shadow's face before he could grab him and opened fire. Shadow sidestepped out of the way nonchalantly, dodging the bullet like it was going much much slower than it actually was. In the time it took for him to dodge, Miles unsheathed the katana again and swung it horizontally. Shadow managed to move away fast enough to dodge the percentage of the attack, but it cut across his chest lightly still. This was enough to make him lose his concentration, and the moths let go, dropping Miles back onto the ground ten feet below.
The moment his feet hit the ground, he rolled into a summersault, dodging an array of fireballs from the supercharged hedgehog. Right when he got back to his feet, he shot up and ran across the room, not only hearing but also feeling the ground behind him explode from his enemy's attacks.
He spun around and stared up into the air just in time to see Super Shadow fire another ball of fire at him. Having no time to dodge anymore, he shoved the gun in his pocket and thrust his sword forward. The fireball hit the tip of the blade and split in half, sending two smaller balls of fire shooting past him and blowing up the ground behind him. Ever enraged, Shadow formed another ball in his hand and thrust it forward. It zoomed towards Miles at incredible speeds, but it wasn't enough. With lightning fast reflexes, Miles turned the katana sideward and swung it like a baseball bat. It connected with the fireball and sent it spinning in the opposite direction too fast for Shadow to even dodge. The hedgehog burst into flames when the ball hit him, and he fell to the ground screaming in agony.
Tatters of flesh and fur burned off of his body like ash as he hit the floor. Panting heavily, he looked up to stare down the barrel of Miles's handgun. Before he could even utter a word, Miles squeezed the trigger, and a bullet pierced Shadow's eye at point blank range, shooting right into his brain. A grenade exploded within Shadow's head, and he fell back down to the floor in a heap, blood and fragments of bone spraying all over both of them.
Miles had thought it was over for less than a second. To his surprise, Shadow jumped back up and swung a punch at his face, somehow still alive. Miles screamed and bent backwards, missing the hit by a few centimeters. The hedgehog immediately attacked again with an overhead kick, but the fox jumped into a backflip before he even knew what he was doing. Miles landed on his feet—shocked at what he'd just done. Shadow shot towards him like a speeding bullet, letting out a long loud battle cry. Adrenaline filling his veins and Miles unsheathed and thrust the katana completely forward. The tip of the blade pierced Shadow's chest like it was made out of cardboard, stopping him dead in his tracks. The fox then charged forward, pushing the stunned hedgehog back with the blade until they finally hit the gate at the end of the arena.
The blade cut right through Shadow, shooting out of the back and sticking outside of the gate like a pin. The most loud and agonizing scream Miles ever heard tore Shadow's mouth open. Fragments of his bloody, fleshy heart hung on the tip of the now crimson red sword. And then, all noise seemed to stop.
"I thought you cared about me…about us…" Pure hatred in his tone, Miles stared straight into the demonic hedgehog's eyes. "I was wrong…I know I'm partially to blame for that. After all, I'm the one who…who—"
"You'll burn in hell forever for what you've done." Shadow interrupted, a bloody-toothed grin on his face.
"And you'll cease to exist." The fox clutched the katana tightly. "All this, leading up till now…it makes sense, or at least as much as it can. Shadow…It's time to end this nightmare!"
With that, Miles pushed harder into the blade and twisted it violently. A sickening crack erupted from Shadow's decimated chest, and only more crimson red splattered over both of them. The hedgehog looked up into the air and screamed again, no longer the scared innocent one Miles remembered from the hospital, but now a surreal deformed and demonic cry of pain and anger the shattered the silence of the town.
Shadow's crimson red eyes stared back into Miles's azure blue ones for a moment, still holding that same disdain as before, until it morphed into a dazed and distant look, as if he was now looking through the fox rather than at him.
And then, they shut. Shadow mangled body reverted back to its original color and fell limp, hanging on the chain-link fence by the sword like a life-size rag doll.
It was over.
Miles let go of the handle and weakly stepped back. His fur was coated in a gallon of gore. His cuts burned, but that burning was nothing compared to the intense physical and mental trauma he felt. His whole body felt no longer like a bruise and now like one giant open wound. Finally able to catch his breath, he let out a few soft gasps of respiration before tearing his eyes away from the dead hedgehog's corpse for the final time.
"Sonikku…"
Warm, white light engulfed him, seeming to completely swallow him up. Staring up at the sky, he felt cool wind whirl around him rapidly, lifting him a few feet into the air.
And in the blink of an eye, he disappeared.
------
------
Birds…
He could hear birds chirping in the distance alongside the steady, calm silence of wind.
Slowly, Miles Prower opened his eyes to see he was standing in a huge grassy green field. The peaceful melody created by the birds didn't seem to come from any exact location. Butterflies fluttered around small flower patches in random areas, creating beautiful and colorful scenery for him to admire. The sun was shining bright and young in the resplendent blue sky.
He was in the open field again, the same one he'd entered in that nightmare in the hospital oh so long ago…
The cuts, scrapes, scabs, and bruises covering his small tired body were still there, but the blood and gore was washed away, leaving him to look as clean and refreshed as he possibly could at the moment. Shutting his eyes again, the fox let out a comforted sigh. For the first time in ages, he felt at peace.
"A quiet, beautiful place…"
A steep green hill sat only about one hundred meters ahead. He smiled lightly, still feeling like he was going to pass out any second.
"Sonic…"
Slowly he walked towards the hill, his feet aching more than ever before. But he couldn't give up and fall, it was almost over. He climbed steadily up the mound of green, until he reached the top. A single bed rested there.
Sonic lay on that bed.
"This place sure is beautiful, huh?"
"Sonikku!!" Miles's dry voice yelled with joy as he ran up to the bed and sat on it, right beside the beautiful blue hedgehog that rested peacefully atop the covers.
"Tails-chan…I've been waiting for so long…" the hedgehog spoke calmly.
"Sonic, I'm so sorry! I took so long…I thought I fell in love with him and…oh god I'm so sorry!! I understand everything now: I was supposed to die here. It's my punishment for killing you." the fox cried, feeling the sting of more tears his eyes as he continued to ramble. Looking down on the light blue covers, he whispered. "I don't deserve to live for what I've done…"
Sonic looked at the fox with a sincerely sorrowful expression. "I told you I wanted to die; I wanted the pain to end."
"That's why I did it honey…I couldn't stand to watch you suffer—" Miles looked into his beautiful boyfriend's emerald green eyes, interrupting his own train of thought with a new one. "—No! Wait! That's not true! Sonic…"
"Tails…"
"You also said you didn't want to die! The truth is…" Miles tore his eyes away shamefully again. "I hated you…I wanted you out of the way. We were both so miserable since the disease…you were taking away my life…"
Sonic smiled warmly. "If you really hated me, why did you always look so sad?"
"I…" the kitsune had no idea what to say.
"Part of you did, I know. I was always complaining and crying…I really did want to die – I was going to anyway. That's why I said I wanted to. If you killed me, I wouldn't have to suffer anymore."
"B-but…I was selfish…"
"No." The sharp spikes on the back of the hedgehog's head rested back on the wooden bed frame, but his eyes never left Miles's. "You came all this way, fought so hard, felt so much pain, even denied someone better than me…all so you could at least see me again. If you were selfish, if you hated me, you wouldn't come all this way."
The look of puzzlement on Miles's face was priceless, and Sonic couldn't help but smirk playfully at it. He was so cute, even at times like these, and that was just one thing on the incredibly long list of reasons he loved him. Since the fox was speechless, Sonic decided to continue.
"You loved me. You always did. You did what I asked you too. And you came all this way, just for me. You really cared all along…" he smiled again. "You don't deserve to die. Tails…you've been forgiven. I forgive you."
"But I don't understand…" Miles whispered. "How…"
"Promise me." Gently, the blue hedgehog pulled the glove off of Miles's right hand and placed a letter in his palm. Then, he folded the fox's fingers around it and kissed the surface of his bare hand lovingly. Sonic looked back up into Miles's azure blue eyes; Miles stared back into his emerald green ones. "Promise me you'll live on; you won't give up. Go on, take Amy as the daughter we never had and live a happy life. Please, for me. I love you Tails, and I want you to live happily."
Miles couldn't believe what he was hearing. He never expected his love to ever forgive him.
"Sonikku…"
"Tails-chan…"
Their faces steadily came closer, until their lips met in one long, deep, passionate kiss. For the first time since Sonic had died, Miles felt truly like he had a meaning in life. He felt that he really could still go on now, for Sonic still loved him, even now.
Still loved him…
A warm glow formed around the both of them, and Sonic's feet began to disappear into golden dust. Like a ghost, his whole body quickly dematerialized in Miles's arms, breaking the kiss, and floated up into the air.
"Promise me you'll live on, my love…" Sonic's calm voice echoed from every direction as the whole field was engulfed in eternal white light. "Promise me…"
As evanescent tears flowed down his face, Miles flashed a very genuine and happy smile before the whole world disappeared into whiteness around him.
----------
----------
----------
----------
And Sonic's hill of green bloomed with life forever…
----------
----------
----------
----------
"Tails, are you okay?"
Miles opened his eyes when he heard the familiar female voice from not too far away, this time actually sounding kind and worried rather than angry like before. Looking down, he stared at a very puzzled Amy. Other than a few scrapes on her arms and knees, along with a rip or two in her white and red dress, her small 11-year-old body held no signs of damage inflicted upon her. Only a little mental pain, that's all. The look in her emerald green eyes, almost similar to Sonic's, was that of a thin innocent sorrow.
"What happened to you? I'm sorry I yelled at you earlier, but I—
"Amy…" Tails—no longer the hollow shell known as Miles anymore—interrupted the young girl.
"What?" She raised an eyebrow in wonder.
He knew what he had to do. Leaning down to her eye level, he spoke peacefully. "I talked to him again…the pain is over now…he has one last request…"
"Sonic…?"
"Yes." Nodding, the two-tailed fox finally asked: "Amy…would you like to be my daughter?"
Amy paused and began to contemplate what he was actually saying. "If Sonic says so…" She flashed him an innocent, benign smile. It was a smile that had so dazzled the young fox. "Yes. Yes I would."
"Come on, let's get out of this place." Tails rose back to his feet and reached his hand out to her, feeling a bit worried she might deny it like she had before. To his relief, her small gloved hand laced around his, and she flashed him another smile.
Sonic's real letter—as opposed to the fake one Tails had gotten that had spurred him to enter Sonic Hill in the first place—was in his free hand as his long walk back to the outskirts began. Amy beside him, he thoughtfully read the real thoughts and feelings Sonic had experienced shortly before his death a few months ago…
------
'Dear Tails,
In my restless dreams…
I see that town…
Sonic Hill…
You promised me you'd take me there again someday…
But you never did…
Well, I'm alone there now…
In our "special place"…
Waiting for you…
Waiting for you to come to see me…but you never do
And so I wait, wrapped in my cocoon of pain and loneliness
I know I've done a terrible thing to you, something that you'll never forgive me for
I wish I could change that, but I can't
I feel so pathetic and ugly laying here, waiting for you…
Every day I stare up at the cracks in the ceiling, and all I can think about is how unfair it all is
The doctor came today. He told me I can go home for a short stay
It's not that I'm getting better, it's just that this may be my last chance
I think you know what I mean…
Even so, I'm glad to be coming home. I've missed you terribly…
But…I'm afraid, Tails…
Afraid you don't really want me to come home…
Whenever you come to see me, I can tell how hard it is on you
I don't know if you hate me or pity me. Or maybe I just disgust you. I'm sorry about that…
When I first learned that I was going to die, I just didn't want to accept it
I was so angry all the time, and I struck out at everyone I loved most…especially you, Tails
That's why I understand if you do hate me…
But I want you to know this, Tails…
I'll always love you.
Even though our life together had to end like this, I still wouldn't trade it for the world. We had some wonderful years together…
Well, this letter has gone on too long, so…I guess I'll say goodbye. I told the nurse to give this to you after I'm gone.
Which means that as you read this, I'm already dead.
I can't tell you to remember me, but I can't bear the thought of you forgetting me.
These last few years since I became ill…I'm so sorry for what I've done to you, done to us…
You've given me so much, and I haven't been able to return a single thing…
Ever since the beginning, you've accepted and done everything you could for me. Words cannot express how thankful I am for that…
That's why I want you to live for yourself now
Do what's best for you, my love.
Tails…
You've made me happy.
Love, Sonikku'
-------
Tombstones were lined up in not-so-perfectly-symmetrical rows, though it was hard to see most of them from far away through the thin layer of fog. The cemetery just outside of town had not lost its usual gloomy feel, but the amount of fog—both the physical fog around him and mental fog within Tails's mind—had decreased by a very noticeable amount. As he walked through the graveyard—passing by the same spot he'd met Rouge the Bat in for the first time when he entered the town—Amy ran playfully about twenty feet ahead. Young and eager, he could tell she was grateful to finally have a new home, and a foster father of her own.
It was only a somewhat short walk through the forest path back to his car in the restrooms, which he'd finally take home and start a new life with Amy. He now had a meaning in life, and that was to live happily and keep his promise to Sonic, forever. That wasn't a bad deal, not a bad deal at all.
"Hey, come on Tails! Let's go home already!" Amy shouted, a childish grin on her cheerful face as she pulled the rusty old black gate open and ran into the forest area ahead.
Tails stopped when he reached the gate and grasped the handle tightly. Turning, he took one last look at the horrible town of Sonic Hill, where his worst nightmares and most wonderful dreams had taken place. Where the sinners got what they deserved, where so much pain and death had taken place, and where it would most likely continue to until the end of everything for the outside world.
But he didn't need to worry about that anymore; he could now live happily ever after, or at least as much as a mortal in this world could. He felt truly thankful, truly joyous for that. Smiling once again, he felt tears of joy yet loss begin to form in his azure-blue eyes.
"Thank you, Sonikku…"