Author's note: Hey everyone - bet you thought I was dead or something! Well, I'm still around, and I've finally finished one chapter, so here it is. Enjoy!

Chapter 2

The atmosphere was light as the old friends chatted about the past year. Sally and Bunnie had already discussed how they missed being free of heavy responsibility and how they yearned for some quiet time every now and then. Unfortunately, the kingdom was not restored quite yet, so the two just tried their best to help rebuild it.

"Besides," mentioned Bunnie, "Once it's all taken care of we're sure to have some more downtime, ain't that right hun?" She looked at Sally.

"I definitely hope so Bunnie." Sally turned to Knuckles. "So, Knuckles, you haven't said much since you've been here. How have you been at Angel Island? Are things going well?"

The echidna simply smiled. "Yeah, things have been ok at my end of the world. The new town has started to thrive with Mobians who wish to protect the Master Emerald so that no one like Robotnik is ever able to rise up again. A few of them have been devoted enough to actually be named guardians according to my ancestor's texts." He leaned back a bit and stretched. "I've gotta tell ya, it's great to be able to forget about the Master Emerald every now and then and actually relax. I know it's in good hands right now."

Everyone was happy to see that Knuckles no longer seemed to carry the sole burden of protecting the Master Emerald. He looked much more relieved than he had in the past, like he was actually enjoying life to the fullest for once. Everyone but Rotor, though. His observant nature had led his eyes to the envelope Sally was holding. Something told him that the letter inside contained the reason why everyone had gathered today

"Ah-hem," he chimed, "I'm having as good a time here as anyone else, but my curiosity has been piqued since I saw you today, Sally." Everyone turned to look at the princess. "Now, you've been holding that envelope in your hand for quite some time, and I know before the night is over you're going to mention something about it. I'm sorry to damper the current conversation, but I'd really like to know what's going on. Could you possibly tell us now?" Everyone else agreed.

Sally lowered her head and glanced at the letter. "I'm sorry, guys. I was trying to put this off as long as possible." She flipped it over in her hand. Tails let out a gasp.

"But…but…that's Sonic's handwriting!" he exclaimed.

"Yes, it is." Sally replied. "Everyone, I want you to listen to what I have to say. You have no doubt noticed that our annual meeting was a month late this year. Usually we meet on the anniversary of Robotnik's defeat. Last month that would have been the sixth anniversary, but today we meet on a different today. Today is the fifth anniversary of Sonic's departure."

Everyone's expressions changed as they remembered their blue friend. After a few solemn moments had passed, Sally chimed in again. "Yes, I'm sure you all noticed it too. After Robotnik was destroyed, Sonic was different. He was never the same fun-loving hedgehog we knew. He tried to put on a happy face, but I know you all saw through it too."

"Yeah," agreed Knuckles. "He never was the same after that day. What bothers me is that he never mentioned what went on inside Robotnik's fortress. Something had to have happened in there for him to change so drastically. At least, that's what I always figured."

Exactly what I always believed, Tails thought to himself. Something big had to have happened in there, but why couldn't he just tell us about it? I don't understand!

"That's a reasonable thought," replied Sally. "Anyway, let me get to the point. The day after Sonic left us I found this letter on my dresser when I woke up. Attached to it was a note asking that I didn't open the letter unless five years had passed and we hadn't gotten any word of Sonic. Unfortunately, I really couldn't hold off that long, and I opened it last week. Because of the contents, I decided to ask everyone to get together, as the letter pertains to all of us." She pulled out several letters from the envelope and picked up one of them. "This letter is addressed to all of us, so I'm just going to read it aloud now."

Sally began, "Dear friends – If you're reading this right now it's likely been five years since my departure. I wanted to apologize for not giving a reason that I left to any of you. Sadly, I cannot give the reason to you now either. If it indeed has been five years, I wanted to say my good-byes here, as its unlikely that I'm still alive right now." Everyone was taken aback at these words.

"What!" exclaimed Knuckles.

"You're joking, right hun?" asked Bunnie.

Sally shed some tears and continued to read. "Before I officially say good-bye, I will let you all in on the following information. I am heading north. I can't say any more than this. I'm sorry friends. Now then – gotta juice…"

Sally raised her eyes from the letter. "That's all it says. I know it's hard for everyone to accept," she looked at Tails before continuing, "but Sonic may no longer be with us. I won't say anything more – you all knew Sonic for the hero he was, and I'll let you all grieve in your own way." It was evident that Sally was trying hard not to break down in front of everyone else. "Before you all leave though, there were more letters in that envelope. Specifically, there's one addressed to each of us." She stood up and started passing the other letters out.

When Sally handed Tails his note he took it without saying anything or looking at anyone. His expression was a blank stare into space. This fear…This hopelessness and despair - I haven't felt like this for six years. How could he be gone? Everything was supposed to be fixed after Robotnik was defeated. How? Why! Tails just sat in the chair with the unopened letter in his hand, motionless.

Everyone else, except for one other, was shedding tears over their letters. Even Antoine couldn't keep a dry face anymore. The only one who didn't seem like he was mourning was Knuckles. The echidna had a lot of experience hiding his emotions, and even though this was a devastating blow to him, he was maintaining some composure. As such, he was the only one to notice Tails' blank expression. I know that face, he thought. That's the same one I saw during the last battle. The poor guy must be going through a lot right now. He sighed. Sonic, you don't know how sad it makes me knowing that you're gone, but I'm going to try my best to help out in your absence. Your buddy just lost his best friend and hero, so the least I can do is try to help him through this tragedy.

Knuckles had a certain way of encouraging people, and it wasn't always appreciated. He walked over to Tails and looked the fox in the eyes. When Knuckles didn't receive any signs that the fox had noticed him, he grabbed Tails' head and jolted it a couple of times. A sad face looked back at him; it was hard for Knuckles not to break down as well.

"Listen to me, Tails," spoke Knuckles sternly. "You think this is what Sonic wants? Do you think he wanted all his friends to just sit down and lose any signs of life?"

"But…Knuckles…He's really…He's really gone."

"But nothing! Think about it! What did Sonic always do when Robotnik captured someone? Do you think he just sat there and moped about it?"

"Of course not. Sonic would go rescue them…but that can't happen anymore."

"And what else? Do you think Sonic didn't have the sort of feelings you're experiencing now?" A few moments passed. "Of course he felt like this, Tails! The thought of losing someone always feels like this, and he experienced it many times, but what did he do?"

"I don't know."

"Then listen to me, damnit!" He made sure Tails was looking straight into his eyes. "He did something about it! He didn't let these feelings stop him. Wherever he was, he always gave it his best shot. Do you know what that means, Tails? If Sonic were here, he wouldn't want to see you like this. He'd be disheartened to see his number one fan break down so easily. If you really wanted to be like him, you wouldn't be sitting here letting yourself slip deeper into the depths of your mind. Some fan of Sonic you are – You couldn't help him, and now you can't even help yourself. You're useless!" The rest of the crowd was brought out of their grieving at this remark.

That did it. Tails couldn't take anymore. Sonic would have been better off without me. What good was I to him? All I ever did was get in the way anyway. He couldn't have been proud of me. I was just a burden, and now I'm just useless. He couldn't stop the tears from flowing, but Tails forced a state of composure. Still holding the letter, he slowly stood up and walked to the door. "Sally, everyone…I'll see you later. Good-bye."

As he walked out the door Bunnie came running up after him and grabbed his shoulder. "Sugarhawk, don't listen to what that arrogant jerk said. It was nothing but lies! You're not useless!"

"Thanks, Bunnie, but I'd rather be alone right now." He shook away from her grasp and continued to walk off towards his dorm. It was still a bright and sunny day, but Tails didn't see any of it. Useless – Yep, that's me. He simply kept walking.

Bunnie, furious, stormed back to the echidna and let him have it. "Knuckles," she yelled, "how could you say something like that to him? How would you feel if your best friend suddenly just disappeared from your life completely? I doubt you'd be as cold as you were just now. Why don't you show Tails some respect and kindness for once? Besides, we all know that Tails isn't any sort of burden to any of us!" The fire in her eyes burned at Knuckles.

Knuckles crossed his arms and replied calmly, "For your information, I did lose my best friend, I know what Tails is going through right now, and yes, I do care. It's not an easy thing to get through, but he's going to have to do it. Though he may want to, he can't sulk about this forever."

Rotor sat up and chipped in. "But Knuckles, you know just as well as the rest of us that Tails wasn't a burden to Sonic. Why did you tell him something like that?"

"Quite simply, I took a risk," he replied. As he held up his letter from Sonic he continued. "Now then, we all know, or knew, Sonic. As terrible as it is that he may be gone, I can still guess the contents of this letter. What he talks about, how he phrases it – these things are pretty much a given."

Knuckles opened his letter and began to read it. Much to Bunnie's surprise, Knuckles had started to cry a bit. However, he was also smiling and had chuckled several times.

After a few minutes passed Knuckles began to speak again. "Yep, it's just as I thought. He was just as brash to me as he had ever been. Think about that for a moment. If he acted the same in this letter as he always had, what do you think Tails' letter is going to contain? It's definitely not going to call him useless, that's for sure."

"So," Sally replied, "you're thinking that if the statements in Sonic's letter to Tails contrast with the ones you made that it may be enough to bring him out of his current depression?"

"Right, as usual, Sally."

Bunnie took a step back from Knuckles. "Sorry for snapping at ya like that, sugar." She shook her head. "I can't agree with how you handled it, but for the sake of Tails let's hope it works."

"Yes, let's hope it turns out for the best. On that note, let's go ahead and eat in remembrance of our beloved friend, Sonic," suggested Sally.

As everyone got up and started to head to the kitchen, Rotor felt a tug on his arm. It was Knuckles again. "Rotor, come with me a second. I've got something I need to discuss with you, and the others can't be a part of it." Rotor felt himself being dragged away from his precious food.

"I'll be right there, Sal!" he called in despair.

Tails had reached his dorm by now, and luckily his roommate still wasn't back. A sigh escaped his lips. At least he won't be here to see me break down. He didn't even bother looking at his homework. The fox hopped into his bed and began to cry uncontrollably. He buried his face into a pillow so the rest of the dorm wouldn't hear him. Memories of Sonic kept flashing through his mind. Tails remembered all the fun he and Sonic had at the ring pool. Images of Sonic laying waste to one of Robotnik's creations time and time again flowed through his mind's eye. In the midst of all the sadness Tails was even able to chuckle remembering when Sonic had tried to cook.

All the memories of Sonic were already hurting, but what Knuckles had said was eating away at Tails. Was I really useless? What good was I? He would have been better off without me…He continued his weeping for his lost friend and for his own failures in life.

He kept on going for about half an hour, although it seemed like days to him. Finally, his tears began to slow down and Tails began to come back to the present day. His eyes were red and his throat was incredibly dry. He remembered that Sally had given him a letter from Sonic, and that he hadn't gotten a chance to read it yet.

Sally…Tails just closed his eyes. I'm so sorry for just leaving like that. He got out of bed and searched for the letter. After rummaging through some of his stuff he found it under his pillow. Oh yeah, I really didn't set anything down when I came in here. He sat back down on his bed, opened the letter, and began reading to himself. He could almost hear Sonic's voice speaking to him.

Hey there, big guy! How's it going? I hope you're still doing ok without me. You told me that you were going to start school before long – if you did I'm sure you're doing great! There's no one out there at your age with the brains you've got – remember that bud. Anyway, I wanted to let you know that I miss you a ton. I miss everyone, of course, but not having you by my side is something I'll never be able to get used to. If you're reading this, then I may be gone, and if that's the case I can guarantee you that I still haven't gotten used to being without you, Tails. Whatever happens to either of us, whatever anyone tells you, I wanted to let you know that we'll always be best buds. Thank you for all the help and support you've given me over the years. Of all the friends I could have had that would always stick by my side, I got the best one when I met you. I'm glad that we were able to be friends, and I know you're destined for great things. Sorry that I won't be around to see them. Whatever you do, don't let anything or anyone slow you down. Good-bye, big guy. Your best bud for life, Sonic.

Tails didn't know what to think. Knuckles had told him he was useless, but Sonic had just dispelled that. Tails found himself filling with warmth although he was still crying on the inside. Whatever I do, don't let anything stop me, huh? Tails looked out the window. The stars were already high in the sky. Maybe Knuckles is right. Sonic wouldn't want to see me sitting around like this all the time because something bad happened. He saw the group of stars that he always found himself looking at late at night during the Great War. Maybe that time has finally come after all. Tails quickly got himself ready for bed and set his alarm.

"Well, alright Knuckles. I understand what you're saying."

"Thanks, Rotor. I trust I'll see you in the morning?"

"Yeah, I suppose. If this actually happens I'll try my best to help out like you said."

"Ok, glad you understand everything, big guy. Have a good night." Knuckles walked out of the house.

"You too." Rotor walked to Sally's guest room. Just what is he planning? Rotor got into bed and quickly began dreaming of new inventions that would help the world.

Best buds for life, huh? Tails thought to himself as he slipped into bed. I know what I have to do now. Thanks, Sonic. The young fox was anxious as hedrifted intosleep. This is it.

That's it for now! Sorry if you were expecting a lot of action Hope you still enjoyed it! If I've got an error in there, please let me know!