Author's Note

Hey there. Finally got the next chapter up! Just wanted to let everyone know that anything I mention from the SatAM/Archie universe is coming straight from my memory. Last time I saw SatAM was over 12 years ago, so I'm bound to have some errors in the universe. If you see any, just let me know, and I'll get to fixing them. Thanks, and hope you enjoy the chapter!

Chapter 1

Tails heard something. A faint buzz pulled at him. He tried to shut it out, but it just got louder and louder. Tails knew it would come down to this, like it always did. The same thing, time after time.

"Alright already, I'm up, I'm up!" he exclaimed fumbling for the off button for his alarm. When he finally found it, he sat up in his bed with signs of sleep showing from his expression. Ugh, what day is it again? He glanced at his computer, looking for the date. Thursday. Great. At least I've got physics. Hmm…seems like something else was supposed to be going on today… Tails rubbed his head, trying to recollect his senses and memory. It came to him. "That's right. It's today!" Tails was instantly awake. He scurried about his room, gathering his materials for the day. Shoot, I'm gonna be late, he thought as he put his shoes on. Finally, he slung his backpack on, turned off the lights, and left his room.

Tails went outside to a gorgeous day and began walking. It had been six years to the day since Sonic had successfully stopped Robotnik once and for all, and six years since that mysterious explosion that no one knew anything about. Since then, Princess Sally had successfully rebuilt the kingdom with the help of many freed Mobians. The kingdom was thriving again, just like the days before Robotnik. It was like nothing had happened. Sally had taken a role as the leader since Robotnik was defeated, and was currently loved by everyone. Knuckles had returned to Angel Island to, once again, protect the Master Emerald, but periodically visited the kingdom. The rapier wound that the metal Sonic had inflicted caused him pain everyday, but Knuckles was not disheartened by this; he was simply happy the blade had missed his heart. Rotor, after recovering from the wound near his jugular vein, decided he would visit his homelands in the arctic north and had departed five years ago. Bunnie had remained in the kingdom and was one of Sally's most trusted advisors, as well as a few other things. Her scars on her face reminded all of the ferocity of the robot army, and the courage she must have displayed while in the fray of it to survive.

After rebuilding much of the kingdom, Tails had decided it would be best for him to go to school. For a few years he had lived with Sally while he rapidly progressed through his classes. Two months ago he had enrolled in Knothole University. Most first-time students there were at least four years older than the fox, and he was constantly being made fun of for his age. Tails had become a reject at the university because of his incredible knowledge, but no one ever tried to bully him for it. The students knew better than to try and take on one of the Freedom Fighters, let alone the legendary Sonic's buddy. The fox had learned to deal with the attitudes of the students, but he was still bothered from time to time. The professors, however, loved Tails. They enjoyed his desire to learn and adventurous attitude.

Like usual, glares were being sent towards Tails as he walked along, but they didn't bother him today. His eyes were fixed on the clouds as he thought of how great it would be to see the whole gang together again. I really hope everyone shows up! It's gonna be great! Tails walked into the Chuck Physical Science building, and headed for his class. As he took his seat among the looks of disdain, the professor walked in.

"Ok guys, let's get started. You've got the entire class to complete this exam. There are 14 conceptual questions, and 6 analytical questions. On number 18, the capacitor is supposed to have a capacitance of 35 micro-farads, not 35 farads. Sorry about the typo."

Tails banged his head against his desk. How could I forget I had a test today? Stupid, stupid, stupid! He looked around the room. The rest of the students didn't exactly look thrilled to be in class today either. Tails gulped as an exam was placed in front of him. For a few moments he stared at it in disbelief, but reality pulled him back and he started grudgingly working on the exam. Ok, name and date, I know I can at least get those two right.

An hour later Tails walked back outside and sighed. It wasn't too bad, he thought. I've got a chance of getting an A. Physics always was Tails' best subject. He gave a slight chuckle as some of his classmates passed him, speaking of how difficult it was. One of them, a very large badger named Ralph, turned and faced Tails. "What, another breeze for you, shrimp? Well here, this outta shut you up!" The badger raised his fists in anger, ready to pulverize Tails. Ralph lashed out at where the fox had been a moment ago. Tails was already in action though. He had spun around Ralph with haste and swiped the badger off his feet with his tails. When Ralph got up, he was infuriated. "You little twerp! You're going to pay for that!" Once again, the brute tried to punch Tails, but this time Tails leapt into the air and drove down onto Ralph's head, fists first.

Tails picked up his backpack where he had dropped it in order to successfully outmaneuver Ralph and began to stroll off. He heard a few of Ralph's friends talking to him. "Man, you dumbass, you should have known better than to attack him!"

"Yeah, what's wrong with you? You were just asking for a concussion or something…sheesh!"

Tails lowered his head. He hated fighting, but there were often times he had to act in self defense at college.

A few minutes later, Tails walked into one of the engineering labs. No one seemed to be there. There were machines strewn about the lab, and circuits were scattered throughout the tables. Tails put his backpack down and walked over to the Tornado. There it was – Tails' plane. A few years ago it looked run down, but ever since moving to the university Tails had been maintaining it. It was as red as ever from the new paint he had applied last week. Many would have considered the biplane old and outdated, but much of its glory was hidden on the inside. Tails had turned it into quite the fighter plane, adding machine guns onto the wings and more boosters to enable better mobility. Unfortunately, the plane had considerable drag and didn't have a wonderful amount of lift. Tails had improved the ailerons on the wings; they were almost always down to counteract the lift problem he had experienced. He stared at the Tornado for about five minutes. It had been such a long time since he had to use it, and he would probably only use it for leisure flights in the future. Regardless, seeing the plane always relieved Tails.

As he strolled about it wondering which part he should upgrade next, a new figure came in the door. It was an older, green hedgehog. He had a pair of glasses on that were too big for his eyes, but he had grown attached to them. He had a moustache and bushy eyebrows above his eyes. Looking at some of Sonic's old pictures, Tails had decided this man looked a lot like Sonic's uncle Chuck, and he seemed to have the same heart.

"Hey Greg! How've you been?" The hedgehog looked around and found Tails inspecting the Tornado.

"Afternoon Tails! You know how it is. I've been in meetings since seven this morning. Anyway, I'm glad you're here! I was thinking about working on the rudder today; you can never have too much mobility you know." Greg presided over the engineering labs. He was an old fellow without too much time left, but he always found time for the students. There wasn't really a soul on campus that disliked Greg – he always presented a nice, cheerful face to everyone, but he didn't tolerate ignorance, especially in the labs. As soon as Greg and Tails met, they became instant friends. Tails was the only student Greg saw that could communicate with him on the same level. Because of this, Tails hung out in the labs with Greg almost every day, doing what he loved to do – tinkering with machines.

"Yeah, I was thinking about that." Tails eyed the back of the plane. "We've worked on the ailerons enough for now. The rudder seriously needs an upgrade. It's too old to really affect the plane that much."

"Well then, why don't we get to work on it? I've got a couple of hours before any other students are scheduled to come in here." Greg took off his jacket and picked up a screwdriver. "May as well take off the plating right now."

"Sorry, Greg." Tails started to gather up his stuff. "I was only dropping in for a couple of minutes in between classes. I've got a few more, and then I've got to take off to meet Sally. Everyone's coming back together again today; I can't wait to see 'em all!"

"Well, ok. I guess I'll see you later then." Greg popped his head out from looking at the circuitry inside the rudder. "You don't mind if I work on this while you're gone, right Tails?"

"Nah, go ahead. Knock yourself out." Tails said as he left the lab. The rest of his classes passed by pretty quickly. This could have been because Tails didn't really pay any attention to the professors today. Regardless, before he knew it, Tails was out of classes and back in his dorm. After setting his backpack down and checking his email, Tails was out the door again – destination: Princess Sally's house.

The day was still gorgeous, and Tails enjoyed the walk. Along the way he saw many people simply out on the street, going about their daily lives. He still found it rather difficult to believe. It really did happen, didn't it? Robotnik is gone, peace is restored…Everything is back to normal. Tails couldn't deny it; he missed the past to a degree. Helping out with the rest of the Fighters, keeping hope alive against Robotnik – it really could be fun at times. I know it's better off like this, but I just can't help but miss the adventures.

The memories of the adventures brought Tails painful memories too though. It made him think of Sonic. Sonic had always been so upbeat while the war with Robotnik was going on, and Tails had always wanted to be around him. But ever since the white explosion, Sonic had changed. He had no longer been his cheerful, fun-loving self. He tried to put on a happy face while everyone was rebuilding from the devastation, but Tails and everyone else could see right through it. Something was wrong, and Sonic was keeping it to himself. It was an incredibly sad day for everyone when Sonic announced he was leaving. No one knew why, but it was suspected that it was related to the explosion. Tails had tried to stop him, but Sonic sadly had to let the fox slip out of his grasp. Tails remembered what Sonic had said to him that day. "We'll see each other again, before you know it, Tails. However, this is something I have to do. Take care of everyone for me." Tails had tried to go with him, but Sonic wouldn't allow it. I just don't get it! Robotnik is dead, Sonic confirmed that! What else could there possibly be to do? Sonic…Tails stopped and gazed at the sky. The sky was a wonderful blue and the clouds were white and fluffy. Everything seemed so happy, and Tails had every reason to be happy, but he wasn't. Why did you have to leave us after it was finally over?

A few minutes later Tails was in front of Sally's house. She had been ruling with such kindness that no one really considered her a ruler; she was a friend. As such, there were no guards; there were no huge crowds around her house. She was simply a member of the kingdom, and everyone loved her for that. There were several large oak trees in her front yard, creating a nice canopy of shade over the house and making nice shadows in the front lawn. Sparkling blue water was flowing in the fountain that lay next to one of the oak trees. Sally's house really was a tranquil scene, and to Tails, it was home.

He walked up and rang the doorbell. Bunnie was the face Tails was greeted with when the door opened. "Tails! How've ya been? Come here you!" Bunnie grabbed him and ruffled the fur on his head.

"Hey! Hey, put me down!" Tails protested with a grin on his face. Bunnie let his feet touch the ground again. He gave her a hug. "It's really great to see you again, Bunnie."

"Same goes to you, Tails." Bunnie turned around and called to the living room. "Hey guys! Tails is here!"

The two walked into the living room. There they were. Sally, Rotor, Antoine, Knuckles, and Bunnie were all in the room. Everyone had a smile on their face. The atmosphere was one of warm reminiscing. After greetings were exchanged, Tails took a seat next to Sally. A huge smile came to his face.

"Guys." He glanced at the warm faces. "It's great to be home again."