Samantha27: Thanks :D Yeah, I felt kinda sorry for Tails as well...poor little guy did try his best :P
Sonic-Addict: (innocent look) Well, Tails does think of himself as Sonic's little brother, after all :P
Poridet: (blushes) Thanks :D I've been sitting on the Tails-food-ordering scene for weeks now; it was great to finally slot it into place :P
Professor Vengeance: Heh, thanks :P I was wondering if anyone was going to comment on the dirty song ;)
Maverick87: (happy smile) Thanks, glad you like it :D I have to admit, I do love intertwining the fics :P
Kj: Well, now you know :P I figured someone was going to ask about Sonic's apparent wealth sooner or later, so I slipped that in ;) As for an update...here :P
TrueVulcanRaven: (blushes again) Thanks :D
Asher Tye: You bet there's gonna be crying...not only is Sonic likely to be claiming royalties for the rest of his life, he's probably going to demand back payments as well :P And yep, that's Hill Top ;)
Shadow-spawn180: Thanks :) And point taken about the battle, I'll try to do better in future :P
FriedBrickWall: Heh, I think only a few people think Sonic has a problem :P As for the rest...you'll see in time ;)
Parslie: Yep, I remember that part :P And the part where the whole Death Egg blows up and Sonic runs out the end ;)
Gameorama91: Thanks :) I'll try
TC Chan: (weg) Tickle attack...I gotta remember that one :P And thanks, glad you're enjoying it :D
Hawk's Soul: Ah, and you shall find out ;) And...well, I hate giving the story away in advance, but...it is very likely that you shall find out what happens to the publishing house in Metropolis Zone as well ;)
Matt Lans: Heh, thanks :D Casino Night Zone for me takes the prize for closest fight...the first time I did it, I literally jumped on the Prison Egg with two seconds to spare :P
D.C.111: (blushes) You did? Really? Wow…that's one of the most gratifying reviews I've ever got :D Thanks!
Lewisty: Thanks :)
"Tails?" Sonic said levelly.
"Yup?"
"You know the two rules I laid down that aren't to be broken no matter what happens?"
"Yup?"
"Tell me again what they are?"
"Uh..." Tails frowned. "Number one, no going on ahead an' outta sight of you unless I'm flying. Number two, you go first into any dang'rous situations."
"And I'm adding number three," Sonic said flatly, "which is no dismantling electrical things!"
Tails looked around at the mess of wires and chips surrounding him which had once been the hotel room's TV and DVD/VCR combi, then at the screwdriver in his hand as though someone had planted it there to get him in trouble, then back at Sonic.
"What things?"
"Tails!"
The little fox sighed. "O-kay." Picking up a component, he slotted it into place, then reached for another. Sonic opened his mouth to tell Tails not to make it worse, then remembered what the little fox had done to the Tornado and shut it again.
It was a good half an hour before Tails put the final chip in, screwed the casing back on, wired it up and pushed the ON button. The TV responded instantly, humming into life to reveal the morning news.
"Tails..." Sonic hesitated, lost for words, then dropped onto the fox's eye level. "How..." He stopped again.
Tails looked at him, ears drooping slightly. "What, Sonic? I fixed it, right? It works real great now so you don't gotta get mad again."
Sonic shook his head. "I'm not mad at you, squirt. I...just...you..." He stared at the TV – noticing for the first time that the picture actually seemed a little better than before Tails had explored it – then back at the little fox. "Who taught you how to do that?"
Tails blinked. "Nobody. I jus' do it 'cause I like building stuff an' seeing how things work."
The seeing how things work part Sonic could well believe – he had vague memories of doing the same thing to Mighty's video game console when he wasn't much older than Tails, and the armadillo had been mega-pissed at him for about six weeks – but the putting them back together again was a little too much for him to swallow.
"Why'd you take it apart, anyway?" Sonic wanted to know.
"So's I could see what was inside, of course," Tails informed him, with a suitably scathing look.
This kid's a genius. The thought came unbidden to Sonic, who stared at Tails as the little fox started to put the combi player back together.
"Can you build anything?" he said.
"Oh sure! Well, ev'rything 'cept for houses an' anything round an'...well, if it's 'lectric, I can make it work real good, Sonic! Kinda like your plane, 'member?"
"Yeah, I remember. I'd been working on it for hours and you just stepped in and fixed it in about ten minutes." Sonic shook his head, grinning in unfeigned admiration. "You are one seriously cool kid, Tails, you know that?"
Tails squirmed, studying his feet with a bashful expression. "I jus' build stuff, Sonic, 'sall."
"You just build stuff that I doubt I could build in a million years, squirt."
"Aw...you're jus' saying that."
"No, I'm not." Sonic opened his bag and Tails fetched the Chaos Emeralds from under his pillow, dropping each one in. "I'm pretty good at smashing bots—"
"But not as good as me, Sonic, 'member?" Tails beamed. "I smashed loads more'n you in Em'rald Hill Zone!"
"Yes, alright, Tails," Sonic said tersely. He was still a little put out about that, even now. "Like I said, I'm pretty good at smashing bots, but I couldn't put 'em back together again."
Tails frowned, scratching his head. "Why'd you want to?"
Sonic mentally retuned his brain to Tails' wavelength. "I mean, I'm no good at building machines or things like TVs."
Tails giggled. "Nuh uh, Sonic! You built that great big atom bomb, an' that copy of ol' Robotnik's evil giant Sonic-squishing thingummyzapper, 'member? An' that motorbike with wings! C'n I have a ride on that, Sonic, when we get back to wherever you keep it? How come you didn't bring it with you?"
Sonic took a long, deep breath. "Tails, do we really need to go over this again? What's in the comics and catalogues is not what's in real life. I have never built a great big atom bomb and I've no intention of building one, I've never built a copy of a giant evil...a big..."
"An evil giant Sonic-squishing thingummyzapper," Tails corrected him painstakingly.
The hedgehog grimaced. "Yeah, that. Never built one, never want to. And I do not have a motorbike, with or without wings." Sonic folded his arms. "And for the record, Tails, I have never at any time in my life said, 'Take that you big fat dummyhead' to Robotnik." That was what also got to Sonic; not only were the comics based on that first battle grossly inaccurate, the script was lousy as well.
"You did too, Sonic. Right here." Tails rummaged around until he found the Sonic comic the hedgehog had bought him – an action he was bitterly regretting, especially since Tails insisted Sonic read it aloud to him every night – and thumbed through it before shoving it under Sonic's nose. "See?"
Sonic didn't bother to look; in fact, it was only the thought of how much it would hurt and upset Tails that kept him from snatching the comic and ripping it to pieces, and even then it took a supreme effort on his part.
"That comic is a lie, Tails! They're all lies, every last one of them!" Instincts taking over, Sonic snatched the comic and it was only Tails' yip of dismay that prevented him shredding it completely and throwing it into a fire for good measure. Glancing down at the comic – or at least, the half of it in his left hand – Sonic flushed bright red, deeply ashamed. Smoothing the covers, he handed both halves to Tails, who took them and hugged them to him tightly, looking up at the hedgehog with huge, hurt eyes.
"Oh kiddo, I'm so sorry." Sonic dropped to his knees and held out his arms, but Tails backed away. He was still wearing that hurt expression, but there was something else in those bright blue orbs now; fear. Turning, he raced into his bedroom and shut the door.
"Tails? Tails! Oh man." Collapsing onto his own bed, Sonic dropped his head into his hands. He didn't cry – he hadn't seriously cried since he'd driven Robotnik away from the Sky Base – but it was a close thing.
Acting like he had...it was no wonder he'd scared Tails. These days, Sonic was coming very close to scaring himself, not least because he seemed to be starting to enjoy the fighting, enjoy pitting his wits against Robotnik's bots and winning.
And if I like and get a kick out of destroying things, even Robotnik's things, how does that make me any different from him? Sonic wondered wretchedly. Is that the real reason why I've never seriously chased after him since he and I both landed here? Because if I caught him it would mean an end to my fun?
Oh man, just what kinda guy am I?
Pushing himself to his feet, he walked wearily over to the little fox's bedroom door and knocked softly.
"Tails?"
No answer.
"Tails, kiddo, can I come in?"
Nothing.
"Well, they say silence is the same thing as consent, so I'll take that as a yes." Sonic pushed open the door and stepped into Tails' room, where the little fox was busy trying to make his bed. Since this was the first time he'd tried doing any such thing, it was turning into something of a complicated operation and it was also blatantly obvious that he was only doing it to avoid looking at Sonic.
"Tails, I..." Sonic's voice was hoarser than he'd expected and he cleared his throat, tried again. "C'mon squirt, let's talk."
Tails shook his head so violently his ears flapped, not looking up.
"You don't wanna talk. Okay, lil buddy. You don't have to talk, just listen." Sonic took a long, deep breath. "I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry. I just..." He broke off, tried again. "What you gotta understand is...well..." Sonic's voice mutinied for a second time and it was only with a vast effort that he managed to say, "I...sometimes, I get...upset."
"How come?"
Relieved that the little fox was talking, Sonic pressed on.
"I...well, I've had a lot of bad stuff going down in my life recently, and...it gets on top of me. I didn't mean to take it out on you, kiddo; just seeing that comic pushed me that little bit too far."
"Well, I threw the comic 'way," Tails informed him, with much the same attitude and amount of misery as he'd use if he was due to undergo public castration. "'S what you wanted, right Sonic? You didn't wanna read it to me an' now you don't gotta ever 'gain."
Sonic stared at him. "You did what?"
"I threw it 'way." Tails looked over his shoulder at the writing desk in his room. "An'..." He broke off and looked away again, ears drooping. Sonic followed his gaze to the desk and saw the fragments of metal there.
"What's that? Have you been taking stuff apart again?"
Tails studied his feet. "Kinda. That's my super cool Sonic fighter ship. I smashed it."
"You..." The hedgehog stared at the mess, then at Tails. "Why? I thought you loved that toy."
Tails looked away. "Yeah...but I didn't want you to be sad anymore. I don't like it when you're sad, Sonic 'cause heroes aren't s'posed to be sad an' I know you get sad when you see stuff like comics an' toys of you, so..." He let the sentence trail off.
Sonic's legs seemed to mutiny at that point, dropping the hedgehog to the ground.
"Oh kiddo, I never meant you to…I didn't think you'd…"
Something cracked inside him, something that the hedgehog had frozen for a long time and he put his head into his hands and felt the tears burning his palms.
Awed, horrified, Tails stared at his hero, ears flat against his head. Sonic was crying? Sonic couldn't cry! He was the hero of Mobius and heroes didn't cry, not never! At least, not unless they were real, real sad, Tails amended.
"Sonic?" he ventured.
The hedgehog didn't answer but he didn't snap at Tails either.
"Sonic, how come you're sad?" Tails persisted, eyes huge. "You don't gotta read me that comic or—" Tails' voice quivered slightly but he continued— "or watch me play with my super cool Sonic fighter ship ever again, so how come you're sad?" He ducked both namesakes between his legs. "Did I do something bad again?"
"No." Sonic's voice quivered slightly, but the vehemence of his answer left Tails in no doubt as to its sincerity. "You didn't do anything to cause this, Tails, don't ever think that. Ever."
"But you weren't crying before I tole you what I did an' I on'y did it so you'd be happy so how come you're not, Sonic?"
"I'm fine," Sonic lied.
"No you're not; you're still crying." Wanting to make Sonic feel better, Tails crossed over to him and started patting him on the shoulder.
The thought filtered through Sonic's mind that this was absurd and he should be ashamed of himself, that he was crying like a little kid (and being comforted by one to boot) but once he started he found he couldn't stop.
Tails kept patting Sonic's shoulder, not knowing what else to do. He knew it made him feel loads better when Sonic rocked him, but – although he'd opened up a great deal since meeting the hedgehog – he was still too shy to try anything so presumptuous...not to mention the little fact that with the difference in their sizes, Sonic might very well end up rocking right on top of Tails and squashing him flat.
"Sonic?" Tails' namesakes twined around each other anxiously. "Sonic, please stop being sad. Heroes aren't s'posed to be sad, you're s'posed to be a smart, tough, cool guy who's always cracking wives. Why d'you crack wives, Sonic?"
Even from Tails, this question was so outlandish that Sonic actually lifted his head to stare at the fox. "What?"
"'S what it said on the com—" Tails broke off abruptly and bit his lip so hard he tasted blood. "Sorry."
"It's okay." Sonic took a deep, shuddering breath, thinking that the worst of it was over. "What did it say on the comic, squirt?"
Tails eyed him warily. "I'll on'y tell you if you promise it's not gonna make you sad again, Sonic, 'cause I don't want you to be sad."
"I promise. What did it say?"
"Well...it said something 'bout how you were a cool, smart, tough, wife-cracking dude with way...cool...Sonic, how come you're laughing?"
"I'm not," Sonic denied untruthfully, clamping one hand across his mouth.
Unsure why Sonic had found his words funny, but overjoyed that the hedgehog was happy again, Tails beamed. "You are. Your eyes're all bright an'..." He paused, leaning in for a closer look. "Oh...no, that's jus' 'cause you been sniffling. Well...you were still laughing."
"Tails..." Sonic gave up the unequal struggle, leaned back against the wall and laughed until his sides hurt, laughter with a slight touch of hysteria in it.
"Sonic?" Tails flattened his ears slightly – this reminded him of Emerald Hill Zone, when all the cool kids had laughed at him – then risked a nudge on the hedgehog's arm. "Sonic...I didn't wanna be funny."
"I know, kiddo." Finally managing to regain enough control over himself to stop laughing, Sonic reached over and ruffled the fur on the little fox's head. "I know." He shook his head. "Man, Tails, what would I do without you?"
Tails frowned quizzically. "Don't you mean what're you gonna do with me? 'Cause that's always what you say to me, Sonic."
"Maybe both," Sonic conceded, a grin on his face. He pushed himself to his feet and held out a hand. "You ready to go?"
"Yeah! Um. Almost. I jus' gotta do something first." To Sonic's surprise, Tails spun him around and pushed him towards the door. "C'mon Sonic, you gotta leave. I gotta do something secret."
"Sounds intriguing," Sonic remarked, although he was still allowing himself to be propelled out of the room by the determined little fox.
"It's not in a tree, Sonic, it's right here an' you gotta go!"
"Yeah? Well, listening to you I'm not sure that I'm the only one."
Tails paused. "What?"
Sonic shook his head wryly. "Doesn't matter, kiddo. Okay. You come through when you're ready. Just remember we have to be out this room by eleven."
In fact it was quarter to twelve by the time Tails emerged looking very pleased with himself, and it was only because it was Sonic the hedgehog who had this particular room that hotel security hadn't turned up to evict them by force.
Sonic, who was lying on his bed and reading a magazine, was considerably surprised when Tails crashed open his bedroom door, raced in and leapt into the air, yelped and hovered above him.
"This is the big secret thing, kiddo?" he said, rolling onto his side to look up at Tails.
"I thought you'd gone an' I found you in here an' I was gonna pounce attack you but I forgot that your back's all spiky," Tails said in one breath.
"You thought I'd gone?" Sonic shook his head. "I'm not gonna leave you on your own, squirt. I promise."
Tails landed next to him with a bump. "Cross your heart an' hope to die stick a needle in your eye an' bake it in a pella pie?"
Sonic laughed. "Sure." He got to his feet. "C'mon lil buddy. I think it's time we weren't here."
It took them most of the afternoon to get through Casino Night Zone, and by the time they were clear Tails was dragging his feet slightly and his walking had become slightly erratic.
"C'mon kiddo." Sonic led the way into a field. "Let's camp for the night."
Tails yawned hugely, padded after the hedgehog and then curled up into a tight ball under a tree.
"You c'n have the branches, Sonic, 'cause I don't want you to get in trouble when someone comes along an' if you're in the branches they won't see you."
Sonic shook his head. "This isn't Emerald Hill Zone, Tails. We can both sleep on the ground without getting in trouble." He checked the money situation and winced. Seven and a half Mobiums.
Well, it would do for what he wanted. Sonic looked down at Tails. "I'm gonna go buy us some food, okay kiddo?"
Tails' ears pricked at the mention of food. "You bet!" He paused. "Sonic?"
"Yeah?"
"I've made you a card an' I'm gonna put it in your sleeping bag while you're away so's you'll find it when you go to sleep."
Sonic blinked. "Well...thanks, I guess, but why tell me about it?"
"'Cause you said back in Casino Night Zone that you didn't want any more surprises," Tails answered, in a tone which said he was having much the same thoughts about Sonic as Sonic was about him.
"Tails, I..." Sonic shook his head. "C'mere." He reached down, scooping Tails into his arms, and hugged him.
Not understanding Sonic's reaction, but managing to grasp the fact that the hedgehog was happy with him – prob'ly 'cause he'd remembered about not giving Sonic any more surprises! – Tails beamed up at his hero. Maybe it was safe to tell Sonic his bestest secret now! He only hoped the hedgehog wouldn't laugh at him or make fun of it.
"Sonic?"
"Yeah?"
Tails squirmed, looking like he had when he'd given Sonic the picture back in Emerald Hill Zone, (currently folded and placed carefully at the bottom of the hedgehog's bag where there was no danger of it falling out or getting damaged) opened his mouth, then looked away again, blushing and wriggling.
"What? You gotta go to the bathroom?"
"No!" Tails giggled loudly; like most little kids, he found anything to do with bodily functions hilarious. "'S jus'...Sonic, c'n I show you something?"
"Hm." Sonic pretended to consider. "Is it something that's so slimy, multilegged or just plain icky that nobody in their right mind would ever look at it?"
"No!" Tails said again, with another giggle. Sonic sighed.
"Oh well, better luck next time, I guess." Glancing down at Tails' semi-anxious face, he grinned broadly. "'Course you can, squirt. What do you want to show me?"
"That." Tails pointed up. "See that star? That really big bright one next to that moon?"
"Oh...yeah," Sonic said, while frantically scanning the sky back and forth several times before locating the star in question.
"That's the star that sent you to be my friend." Tails leaned against the hedgehog's ribs. "He's called Sparkly."
The hedgehog raised an eye ridge. "You named it?"
"Him! I named him!"
Sonic held up his hands placatingly. "Okay, sorry. You named him?"
"Sure. I mean, he couldn't tell me his name so I gave him a Mobian one. I don't think he minds. But I wished on him every night – well, every night when I could see him – an' he sent you to be my friend." Tails snuggled closer. "How'd he do it, Sonic? Did he tell you? Or did he offer to give you something if you came to be friends with me?"
"No, squirt, he didn't. He's never spoken to me and I've never spoken to him."
Tails looked up at him, eyes huge. "B-but...you gotta. Else how'd he know to send you? How'd you know to come? He did send you, right Sonic? Right?"
Sonic glanced at the anxious little fox and smiled. "Yeah, kiddo, I'm sure he did."
"Then how come you and he never spoke?"
"Well..." Sonic's mind raced frantically, trying to come up with a good explanation. "See...when stars grant wishes, no matter what those wishes are, they like to do it without anybody knowing apart from the person whose wish they granted."
"They do?" Tails breathed. "How come?"
"Because..." Sonic faltered. "Because...because..." Inspiration struck. "Because not everybody knows that stars grant wishes. If they did, they'd all want wishes and the stars wouldn't get any rest, would they?" He lowered his voice to a more conspiratorial level. "Can you imagine what it would be like if every single person on Mobius wished on stars?"
Tails frowned in concentration for all of five seconds before saying, "Boy, the stars'd be real busy, huh Sonic?"
"You bet they would, kiddo." Sonic looked back at the star in question. Part of the constellation known as the Hedgehog.
He shivered slightly. Now there was a coincidence for you, if you believed in such things.
"I still talk to him sometimes," Tails confided, "'cause I don't want him to think I don't like him anymore. You know, like I forgot him as soon as he granted my wish. 'Cause I think loads of people on'y ever talk to stars when they want something."
"You could be right about that." Sonic looked up at the star that Tails had named Sparkly and found himself wishing that he could have as much faith in wishing on stars as Tails did.
"We gonna get food now?" Tails asked hopefully.
"I am, yeah. You stay here, squirt." Before the little fox had time to argue or protest, Sonic had placed him on the ground, then turned and raced away at top speed.
He got back a few minutes later, carrying a bag filled with takeout food.
"Wow!" Tails opened the bag and dived in, then emerged, looking hesitant. "But…Sonic, there's on'y one fish an' on'y one chips in here."
"I know, squirt, and they're both for you."
Tails' eyes grew big. "But what're you gonna eat?"
Sonic forced himself not to look away as he answered, "I've eaten, kiddo. I had some while I was waiting."
"Oh. Okay." Tails pulled out the bag of chips and promptly spilled half of them onto the ground. "Oops."
Sonic shook his head, grinning. "It doesn't matter. We'll pick 'em up and chuck 'em in the trash tomorrow morning."
Tails squirmed. "Can't we leave 'em?"
"Why on Mobius would you want to leave them?"
"'Cause there's prob'ly loadsa other kids who don't got food an' you can't feed all of 'em, Sonic, but if we leave the chips then they'd be able to eat them."
Sonic pulled a face. "You really think they'd want to? They'd be cold and dirty and…" He shivered. "Man, I wouldn't wanna eat 'em!"
"Well, 's funny, Sonic, but when you get real hungry you kinda don't notice stuff like that," Tails said simply. "You jus' think, oh boy, chips!"
"Cold chips."
"You'd be real happy if that was all that was wrong with 'em, Sonic." Tails took a huge mouthful of hot chips and swallowed with a visible effort. "What'd you have to eat, Sonic?"
The hedgehog glanced at him and managed a grin, hoping it didn't betray the ravening emptiness in his stomach. "Same as you, kiddo."
"Oh right." Tails finished the chips, gulped down the fish in four large bites, burped, yawned and curled up into a ball, snuggling next to Sonic for warmth.
The hedgehog shook his head wryly, grinning.
Kids…
"Are you sure this is the right way?" Sonic asked.
"Oh sure. Um. I think so." Tails hesitated. "Well…it's a road, so it's gotta go somewhere, huh Sonic? An' we wanna go somewhere, so it'll work out okay, right?"
Sonic grinned. "Yeah, I guess so."
They'd been travelling for about two hours now, and the path Tails had chosen was getting steeper and steeper as it wound up through the mountains.
"You think ol' Robotnik came up here?" Tails asked.
"I hope not," Sonic told him. "Where is here, anyway?"
"We're in the mountains!"
"No kidding." The hedgehog put on a sudden burst of speed and raced on ahead, momentum carrying him up vertical walls and finally to the top of the mountain, where he stopped in pure surprise. "What…?"
Tails, flying in from above and panting hard, plonked himself down on the ground and followed Sonic's stare.
A Zone lay spread out before them, set in a vast crater, too large to see the other side. There were several abysses and cliffs scattered through it, but the Zone itself was thickly green. To Sonic – who had grown up in a very similar Zone – this could only mean one thing.
Great. We're about to walk straight into a volcano. He perked up slightly. Still…maybe it's inactive. After all, Green Island was little more than a huge volcano, and there had been no eruptions there for hundreds of years.
"Hill Top Zone!" Tails' ears pricked forward. "You're gonna love this Zone, Sonic! There's no water anywhere so you can't drown!" Thinking of water reminded the little fox and he turned. "How come you hate water anyway? It's fun!"
"I'm a hydrophobe," Sonic said shortly as he started to pick his way down the steep slope in front of them. He didn't much like discussing water, especially his own fear of it.
Tails frowned. "I thought you were a hedgehog."
"I meant I'm hydrophobic." When Tails continued to look bemused, Sonic elaborated. "You know, I suffer from hydrophobia?"
"Oh." Tails frowned. "Can't you get some kinda cream for that? 'Cause you c'n get cream for jus' 'bout ev'rything else, Sonic an'—ooh! Look!"
Sonic followed the little fox's pointing finger to where a blue platform surrounded by railings and suspended by what looked like vines was hanging just in front of them. A larger, thicker vine had been wrapped securely round a blue post and ran down to an identical post on the opposite side. The whole structure looked horribly unstable to Sonic.
Unfortunately, it also looked like the only way across the abyss in front of them. It was too far for Tails to carry Sonic, and too far even for the hedgehog to jump.
"C'mon Sonic, let's go!" Tails grabbed Sonic's hand and tugged him along and onto the platform, which started to move as soon as they were on board.
"What do you know about this Zone?" Sonic asked.
Tails stopped peering over the railings and looked back at Sonic. "Uh. I know it's real cool an' tourists love it! An' that—hey, look, Sonic! We're above the clouds!"
Sonic looked obligingly. There was a strong wind down there and the clouds in question were moving rapidly along beneath them.
The platform lurched suddenly and Tails yelped, more in surprise than fear, then the next thing he knew Sonic had seized him tightly around the waist and leapt, carrying the little fox off the platform and onto the ground beyond just as the vines supporting the platform snapped and sent it tumbling into the abyss.
"That was cool!" Tails enthused, watching its progress. "Let's go find another one an' do it again, huh Sonic?"
"Maybe later," Sonic said automatically. "In the meantime, we gotta get through this Zone."
"How come, Sonic?" Tails looked up at him. "Where're we going?"
"Metropolis Zone," Sonic answered grimly. "I want a little word with certain people."
Tails giggled. "Boy, that pubbing house is sure gonna be sad to see you, huh Sonic?"
"You bet they are, kiddo."
"Are they gonna cry?"
"I wouldn't be at all surprised." Sonic came to an abrupt stop as they drew near the base of a cliff. There was a seesaw underneath, combined with what looked like a large glowing rock at one end.
"What d'you think that's for?" Sonic said edgily. Tails followed his gaze and his face lit up.
"Oh boy! C'mon Sonic, let's play!"
"What?" Bemused, Sonic watched as Tails raced over to the seesaw and bounced onto the end in the air, sending the glowing rock arcing into the sky.
"C'mon Sonic, get on the other end an' let's play!"
Sonic started towards it, then something caught his eye and he stared. "Tails, get offa there!"
"Huh?"
"C'mon, move!"
Tails looked at the hedgehog, then said, "Okay," and got to his feet, balancing on the end, and started walking along, arms outstretched, swaying slightly as the plank dipped down. "Hey, look at me, Sonic, I'm walking on the seesaw!"
The rock crashed down onto the end that Tails had just left, sending the little fox hurtling into the sky with a yelp.
"Tails!" Without thinking about it, Sonic followed, racing straight up the sheer cliff and almost flattening Tails on the top. "Are you okay?"
"Sure! I love this Zone, Sonic! Can I go down an' get bounced up again?"
"No kiddo. C'mon."
"Aww, Sonic." Tails pouted, then, seeing his hero walking away, rushed to catch up.
An ominous rumbling sounded from directly underneath, and both Sonic and Tails shifted their weight edgily, neither sure whether to run or stay.
"What's happening, Sonic?" Tails asked.
"I dunno," Sonic admitted. "I think—"
At that point, the rumbling built up to a crescendo and the ground dropped away from under them.
It was only blind luck that saved them. Too startled to fly, Tails fell side by side with Sonic before both of them crashed down onto a vine platform identical to the one they'd been on earlier.
"Is it gonna drop, Sonic?" Tails wanted to know, edging closer.
"Yeah. I think so." Sonic looked around. "Get ready to jump, kiddo."
"Okay!" Tails raced for the edge and leapt.
"Dammit Tails, I didn't mean—" Without thinking Sonic jumped after him, landing on a platform underneath by pure chance.
"Why'd you do that, Sonic?" Tails asked.
The hedgehog somehow managed to find enough strength to glare at the little fox. "Because I thought you were in trouble."
"I was on'y flying to see where you could jump to," Tails said in an injured tone. "An' there's another platform under this one that you can jump on when this one falls down."
In fact there were three such platforms, so arranged that you could go from one to the other easily, and Sonic and Tails leapt from platform to platform, always mindful of the churning magma underneath them. At least, Sonic was; Tails was too busy flying alongside whatever platform the hedgehog was currently riding in and attempting to race it.
Eventually, just when Sonic was starting to think it would never come to an end, he leapt off the final platform to land squarely on the stone floor.
"That was real cool, huh Sonic?" Tails said, beaming.
"Sure," Sonic answered. After everything he'd been through so far, a little thing like platform-hopping in an active volcano was almost relaxing. "C'mon kiddo, let's see if we can find a way outta here."
"An' see if we can find ol' Robotnik too?" Tails said hopefully.
"In the past, Tails—" Sonic dodged as a bot on the ceiling fired its drill bit at them— "I've never had to worry about that. Robotnik has a habit of finding me."
"Huh?" Tails followed Sonic onto a platform and then up onto another one. "How come, Sonic? Does he like getting whumped?"
Sonic laughed. "I've no idea, squirt. Maybe he does. Or maybe he just wants to stop me whumping him."
Tails giggled. "Boy, if he thinks he can do that, he's real crazy, huh Sonic?"
The hedgehog looked away, serious again. "Yeah," he said quietly. "He's crazy alright."
They continued on in silence for a few moments.
"Sonic?" Tails said suddenly, and also somewhat nervously.
"Yeah?"
"Uh. I think...you know this volcano we're in?"
"Ye-eah?"
The little fox squirmed, looking down over his shoulder at the molten rock. "Well, I don't wanna scare you, Sonic, but I think it's about to go poom."
Sonic's jaw dropped. "What?"
"Yeah, so can we get outta here? Please?"
The hedgehog looked down to where the ground was starting to tremble underneath his feet, then at the rising magma and said a word that Tails hadn't even realised heroes knew.
"Can you fly out?" Sonic demanded. Tails shook his head.
"Uh uh. We gotta go through the tunnels, Sonic."
The hedgehog looked at the tunnels in question, then grabbed the little fox. "Hang onto me, Tails!"
The resultant grip was so tight that Sonic was obliged to waste precious seconds in loosening it enough to breathe, then as soon as Tails was secure, he broke into a sprint, leaping from platform to platform in an effort to escape the deadly tide surging up underneath them.
Catching sight of a door, he jumped for it, causing it to slide open as he approached and slam shut afterwards. Sparing a glance over his shoulder, Sonic saw to his amazement that it appeared to be holding back the lava.
Worry about the architecture later, genius. Run!
Sonic ran, picking up the speed as much as he dared. A hidden spring catapulted him up to the next level just as the door behind him gave way and magma roared in. Accelerating blindly, barely aware of Tails now, Sonic raced for the end of the tunnel and the daylight he could see there.
He exploded out of the passageway and the side of the mountain a split second before the lava did, continuing straight on as molten rock poured out of the hole and down the side.
Tails grabbed Sonic's wrists and started to fly, carrying the hedgehog above the rising tide before depositing him on one of two platforms that were in the middle of the lava, but stable.
"That was so cool!"
"You would probably think it was cool if I cannonballed into the lava," Sonic said, lying on his back and gasping for breath. The heat from the lava in question seemed to be burning all the air away.
"Nuh uh, Sonic, 'cause then I'd have to whump ol' Robotnik all by myself an' it's no fun without you."
"Tails." That was a hideous thought, one that hadn't occurred to the hedgehog, and he sat up and caught hold of the little fox's shoulders. "Tails, promise me that if anything happens to me, you won't try and whump Robotnik. Promise me that if you end up on your own, you'll get away from Robotnik and go and find someone to take care of you."
"But Sonic—"
"Promise me, Tails!"
The little fox squirmed, flattened his ears and attempted to wriggle free before apparently realising that Sonic would not take no for an answer; he sighed gustily and then mumbled, "Promise."
"Good." Sonic released him and got to his feet, noticing for the first time how his speed had affected Tails' fur and grinning broadly. "You look like a little fox-shaped tumbleweed." Reaching out, he did his best to smooth down Tails' fur.
The little fox grabbed his hand and pushed it away. "Yeah, an' you look like a…a…"
"A what?" Sonic demanded with mock severity, both hands on hips.
"A…a great big blue flying buzzsaw thingy of death!" Tails considered, and then added, "With way cool sneakers an' loadsa cash!"
"The cash part's running low right now," Sonic informed him. In fact that was something of an understatement; after buying the food for Tails he had three and a half Mobiums left.
"Yeah, but it's not gonna once we get to Metropolis Zone!" Tails said eagerly. "That pubbing house is gonna give you loadsa money, right Sonic?"
"We can but hope, kiddo."
Tails reached out and grabbed Sonic's hand. "They gotta, Sonic. 'Cause if you weren't the biggest hero an' coolest guy on all Mobius, they wouldn't have anyone to write comics an' make toys of an' so they gotta give you some money for that."
"Yeah…" Sonic's voice tailed off as he drifted into a wistful daydream. He'd never had much money. When he'd been living in Green Hill Zone, he'd mostly squatted with Mighty's parents. Like the armadillo, Sonic had received five Mobiums per week allowance and like the armadillo, he'd also blown it on candy and/or soda first chance he got, or occasionally he and Mighty had pooled their money and bought a second hand video game. He'd been nine when he'd first started saving – mostly because he wanted to see what a million Mobiums would look like all piled up – and then he'd got involved with Kintobor and had never found the time to spend those Mobiums. The idea of even a thousand Mobiums was enough to take his breath away.
"Well, if those jerks in Metropolis Zone think they can cheapen everything I went through on Green Island and sell it to make themselves a quick Mobium, they got another think coming," he said aloud. "We're talking serious royalties here, squirt."
"Yeah!" Tails grinned broadly, a grin that was effectively wiped off his face as a voice from behind spoke up, making them both jump.
"Well, if there's any royalties being made from those incidents, I feel that I'm entitled to a share."
Sonic and Tails whirled to see Robotnik floating in the lava, smirking at them.
"Why am I not surprised?" Sonic said flatly. "You know, I was just thinking that it's been too long since my latest near-death escape."
Tails eyed Robotnik's latest vehicle warily. "D'you still got that zappy thing, ol' Robotnik?"
"Less of the old, thankyou. And no. I never use the same ideas twice, as Sonic can testify."
Sonic folded his arms. "One day, even you are going to run out of those ideas, doc."
"Very likely," Robotnik agreed pleasantly, "but I have plenty of time to kill you until then."
Tails took off, hovering above the vehicle. "Ha! I'd jus' like to see you try!"
Unexpectedly, Robotnik smiled. "Your wish is my command. By the way, before I begin, just who are you? I feel awkward killing someone I haven't been introduced to."
"You zapped me when you didn't know who I was so you can try an' kill me an' Sonic without knowing who I am!"
Robotnik's smile broadened. "Very well. We'll do this your way. Game on."
He slid under the lava, leaving Tails hovering above him with a puzzled look.
"Hey Sonic, where'd ol' Robotnik go?"
Sonic didn't answer, already edging back. This was just like Labyrinth Zone all over again. Fair enough, it was in lava rather than water, but still...
Heat roared up beneath his heel and he jumped forward reflexively, spinning around to come face to face with flames roaring higher than his head.
"What the—"
"SONIC!" Tails shrieked over the fire's crackling. "Sonic, I'm gonna come down an'—"
"No!" Sonic's head snapped back to glare at the fox. "You stay out of this, Tails! I'm not kidding!" Glancing back, he opened his mouth to make some stinging retort to Robotnik only to find that the doctor had sunk below the surface again and all Sonic managed to do was get a lungful of smoke. Coughing violently, eyes streaming, he turned away reflexively, preparing to meet Robotnik on the other side of the river.
"Sonic, behind you!"
The hedgehog whirled to see Robotnik's machine emerging on the same side as before, and even Sonic was almost too slow off the mark to escape. Dipping down, Tails seized Sonic and lifted him into the air just as the platform exploded into flames again, flames which died almost as soon as they'd arrived.
"You were s'posed to whump him, Sonic!" Tails said indignantly, dropping the hedgehog on the now charred platform.
Sonic yelled in pain as his body crashed through the cinders and brittle charcoal to the embers still burning underneath, then leapt for the next platform, rubbing himself frantically and trying to alleviate the agony of the burns.
Ironically, it was this that saved him as Robotnik ignited the ground Sonic had just left for the second time and Tails divebombed the Eggstreme Submarine hard, then yelped as the shock jolted through his short legs.
"You don't think I would be stupid enough to go deep sea diving in a lava pool without added protection, do you?" Robotnik drawled. "My Eggstreme Submarine is coated with lava resistant metal. You can't hope to damage it."
"'S not all metal though, is it, ol' Robotnik?" Before the doctor had time to answer, Tails had seized a rock and smashed it into the windshield, cracking it, and then continued to pound on the same spot, widening the cracks until a tiny hole appeared.
"Hah!" Spinning both namesakes, Tails took off and hurled the rock at the vehicle, scoring a direct hit on the flamethrower. "Let's see you go under all that lava stuff now! 'Less you can make it go up an' cover me an' Sonic you're dead, ol' Robotnik!"
"I did just that in the volcano," Robotnik informed him, although he was already pulling out of Tails' reach.
"You made the lava stuff come up an' try to whump us?" Tails said accusingly.
"Absolutely. And it's not lava all the time it's still in the volcano; it's magma."
"Yeah, well, whatever it is, it's gonna be squirting into your vehicle thingy if you don't go real quick!" Tails shouted, but Robotnik was already sailing down the lava away from them. He might have been able to finish Sonic, but he didn't like the way the hedgehog was starting to get to his feet. If he couldn't sink below the protective lava…no, Sonic was more than capable of destroying his Eggstreme Submarine. Robotnik wasn't entirely sure if the hedgehog was willing to destroy the doctor himself, but he didn't much want to find out the hard way either.
Tails hovered, throwing rocks at Robotnik until the doctor's vehicle was out of reach, then he swooped down, picked up Sonic and put him on the far shore.
"Sonic! Sonic, 'sokay, ol' Robotnik's gone now, Sonic. Sonic, are you okay?"
"I. Hate. This. Zone," Sonic said in a muffled voice.
"More'n Chemical Plant Zone?"
"Believe it." The hedgehog sat up stiffly and started to say something else, but his voice degenerated into a harsh spasm of coughing and he rolled over onto his hands and knees, coughing and choking in an effort to bring up something that wasn't there. Eventually he collapsed onto his side, his breathing rapid and shallow. His skin felt dry, taut and ultra sensitive, like it had back in the Jungle Zone when he'd dismissed all the suggestions of sunscreen and ended up stiff with sunburn. If only there was some dew on the grass, or something to ease the tightness.
"I wish I'd never come to this hell of an island," he grated.
Tails stared at him, eyes huge. "You do?"
Seeing the little fox's stricken expression, Sonic tried to smile and managed a painful grimace. "Well...if I coulda avoided it and still met you, sure. You're about the only good thing to have come out of all this."
"Even better than your getting to whump ol' Robotnik some more?"
"Especially better than my getting to whump ol' Robotnik some more," Sonic assured him, with more fervour than Tails would have believed. He started to say more but this rapidly degenerated into a violent coughing spasm that shook his entire body. Stars pinwheeled crazily in and out of his vision and he closed his eyes with a groan and collapsed, only vaguely hearing Tails' anxious cries.
He dimly felt a pair of small hands – Tails' – wrap themselves firmly around his leg and haul it over the little fox's shoulder. Pulling gamely, Tails started to drag the hedgehog's limp form away from the lava, talking all the time. It was like being pulled over needles, and Sonic was incredibly glad when he finally passed out.
Tails, meanwhile, kept going doggedly until he reached the Egg Prison. Hesitating, memories of Emerald Hill Zone still fresh in his mind, he wasn't sure whether to destroy it or not.
Behind him, Sonic groaned and that decided Tails; the hedgehog needed help.
Shrugging himself from underneath Sonic, he raced forward and bounced on top of it, then off again and back to Sonic side just as the metal shattered and the residents emerged. Catching hold of the first one that came past, Tails tugged them over to the hedgehog's prone body.
"You gotta help Sonic! He saved all a you an' now you gotta save him 'cause ol' Robotnik burned him real bad on'y you can't put him in a bath 'cause he hates water an' he keeps coughing an' coughing an' coughing an' you all gotta do something 'cause..." Tails' voice broke slightly, but he made a valiant effort to continue, "'cause...if he dies...he can't die, 'cause then he'd be leaving me all 'lone an' he promised he wasn't gonna do that, not ever."
Someone took his hand and Tails looked up into the face of a dove, who smiled down at him.
"You come along with me."
"I can't leave Sonic!"
"You won't have to. I'm one of the nurses at the hospital. Come on, let's get you and Sonic sorted out, okay?"
Tails sniffed noisily. "'Kay." As another one of the residents lifted Sonic's unconscious form up into his arms, he darted forward and seized the hedgehog's hand in both his, trotting alongside and looking up into Sonic's face anxiously.
It was late the next morning when Sonic finally came to, much to the little fox's relief.
"You're awake!" Tails hurled himself on top of Sonic, provoking an agonised yelp from the hedgehog. Contrite, the little fox scrambled back so quickly he hit the floor with an audible thud.
"Sonic, I'm real sorry, I didn't mean for you to get all burned and stuff, honest. If you wanna get mad an' yell at me an' never cuddle me again, 'sokay, but please don't be dead as well, Sonic." Remorse flooded Tails and he bit his lip furiously in an effort to stop the tears. "I'm real sorry, Sonic," he repeated miserably. "I was on'y trying to help."
Sonic held a hand out to the side. "C'mere squirt." His voice was rough, almost gravelly, but it was there and most importantly of all to the little fox, it didn't sound mad either.
Scampering over, Tails seized the offered hand and squeezed it as hard as he could, rubbing it against his face and giggling as the hedgehog reached up to scratch him behind one ear, moving on to a fur ruffle.
"You did help me, kiddo."
Tails shook his head, miserable again. "Nuh uh. I didn't know the black ground'd be all hot, honest. I didn't wanna get you burned an' coughing for ages. How come you're not coughing, Sonic?"
The hedgehog managed a grin. "They gave me some medicine, Tails."
"Med'cine?" Tails looked scandalised. "Did it taste bad, Sonic? Real bad? Real real bad?"
"Real, real, real bad," Sonic assured him with a dramatic shudder.
"That's good 'cause otherwise it's not proper med'cine. Med'cine's not real med'cine 'less it tastes all yucky an' you gotta have it loadsa times a day."
Sonic let his head drop back onto his pillow with a broad grin. "Oh man, squirt, I missed you while I was unconscious." Turning his head to look at Tails, he added, "That's twice you've saved my life now."
Tails' ears, which had been drooping slightly at Sonic's mention of unconsciousness, perked again. "It is?"
"Sure. Once in Chemical Plant, and once here." The hedgehog retrieved his hand, still grinning. "Am I ever glad I brought you along, kiddo." He closed his eyes. "Now do me a favour and keep quiet, okay? Because I'm still exhausted and I want some more sleep."
"Okay," Tails said readily, then added in a stage whisper, "Sonic?"
"Mph?"
"Uh. I don't wanna make you mad, but..." His voice trailed off.
Alarm bells ringing loudly, Sonic opened his eyes again. "But what?"
Tails ducked his namesakes between his legs. "Well...next time people wanna give me food, c'n I take it? Please? 'Cause I'm real hungry, Sonic, real real hungry, but you said I couldn't use your name to get free food an' they're on'y off'ring it to me 'cause I'm your sidekick but...c'n I have it? Please?"
The hedgehog closed his eyes. "Tails, when I said that, I didn't mean...I thought you'd..."
"What?" Tails said anxiously.
"Doesn't matter," Sonic said thickly. "Sure. Take the food."
"Okay!" Tails leapt up again eagerly. "You want me to get you food too, Sonic?"
"Mmm?"
There was a short pause.
"Um. Was that a yes or a no?" Tails asked eventually.
"Mm."
The little fox hesitated. Part of him said that Sonic must be hungry after going so long without food, but that part was severely squashed by the memories of what had happened in Casino Night Zone.
Well...if he saved half of the food that Sonic said he could have, that'd be okay...wouldn't it?
A little nervous, but still determined to do what he thought would make Sonic happy, Tails sat down and waited for the nurse to come in so he could ask her for food. Even his hunger wouldn't make him leave the hedgehog's side.
Sonic didn't wake up for another three days, and by the time he did Tails was so worried he'd refused any further offers of food and had spent his whole time staring hopefully at Sonic or, for a change, looking out the window.
It was when he was in this second position that the little fox heard a sudden cough from behind him and he spun around to see Sonic looking at him.
"Hiya squirt."
"SONIC!" Tails rushed over and it was only the memory of the pain Sonic had suffered last time that stopped him jumping on the hedgehog in his excitement. "Sonic, are you okay? Are you gonna die? Did you die?"
"Yes, I don't think so and no," Sonic answered, grinning. He'd been drifting in and out of consciousness for those past three days, unfortunately when Tails had been fast asleep and Sonic had only woken up to swallow some of the medicine the nurses insisted on pouring down his throat.
"You're okay?"
"Yeah. I'll be fine, Tails, thanks to you."
"Um." Tails flattened his ears nervously. This was it. The moment of truth. "Sonic?"
"Yeah?"
"I...uh..." Tails scuffed one toe on the ground. "Well..."
Sonic closed his eyes. "Alright squirt, out with it. How much have you managed to cost me this time?"
"Nothing!" Tails said indignantly, scowling at him. "But...I jus' thought you might be hungry an' I 'membered what you said in Casino Night Zone so I saved you half of my food 'cause you said I could have it an' I can, right Sonic?" He held out half a chilli dog.
Sonic glanced at it, then looked away. "Jeez, kiddo, how long have you been saving that for me?"
"Three days!"
"Yeah, I figured." The hedgehog shook his head, grinning slightly. "Thanks for the thought, Tails, but when it comes to chilli dogs, I prefer the kind without fur if it's all the same to you."
"Oh." Tails looked down at the furry chilli dog in question, then back up at the hedgehog. "Can I eat it, then?"
Sonic's face contorted in disgust. "You want to eat something like that? Tails, it's gone bad!"
"So?" Tails brought the rancid chilli dog up to his now widely opened mouth but Sonic reached out, catching hold of the little fox's wrist.
"No, kiddo. Let's get some fresh food. You can throw that away; it'll only make you sick if you eat it."
Tails dropped the chilli dog as though he'd been electrocuted and backed away, wiping his hands on his fur as Sonic managed to sit upright, rubbing his forehead in an attempt to dispel some of the dizziness there. Taking this as a sign that Sonic was better, if not completely recovered, Tails padded across and clambered onto the bed to sit next to him.
"Sonic?"
"Yeah?"
Tails shivered, wriggling closer and snuggling into the crook of Sonic's arm, burying his face in the hedgehog's side. "I've changed my mind. Saving the world's not cool an' fun; it's scary."
"Yeah," Sonic said very quietly, rubbing Tails' shoulder. "It is, isn't it?"
Tails nodded vigorously, namesakes winding around Sonic's waist.
"Maybe now you understand why I don't like talking about what happened between me and Robotnik," the hedgehog said after a few minutes' silence.
Another nod, followed by more silence.
"Sonic?" Tails said hoarsely at the end of it.
"Yeah, lil buddy?"
Tails looked up into Sonic's face. "Sonic, I wanna stop. I don't wanna fight ol' Robotnik anymore, I wanna go home. Can we stop fighting him now, Sonic? Please?"
"Oh kiddo." Sonic lifted Tails onto his lap and held him there, closing his eyes against the sting of tears.
What the hell was I thinking, bringing him into all this? He's just a little kid.
"Can we stop, Sonic? Huh? I don't wanna do this anymore, it's getting scary an' I was almost whumped by ol' Robotnik back in Casino Night Zone. An' you were almost whumped by him here." Tails wound both arms around Sonic's waist, reaching out to rub a deadly quill in fascination before looking up at him. "I don't want you to be almost whumped, Sonic."
"Tails...kiddo..." Sonic's voice was rough and he coughed, tried again. "I would love to be able to stop fighting Robotnik and just kick back and relax for the rest of my life. But I can't." He took a deep breath. "There has to be a family somewhere who'd take you in, though; there's no reason for you to stay in this fight."
Tails' eyes grew big. "But then I wouldn't be with you, would I?"
Sonic swallowed. "No, kiddo, you wouldn't. But you'd be safe."
"Sonic, why can't we just go somewhere ol' Robotnik won't ever find us?"
"I don't think there's any such place on the whole of Mobius, Tails. And I can't surrender. It's..." Sonic broke off, cleared his throat and started again. "Robotnik being here is my fault."
"Your fault?" Tails' eyes grew, if it was possible, even bigger. "But you didn't make him, Sonic. You...oh." Comprehension spread across his face. "You mean 'cause you couldn't whump him after Sky Base. But that's okay, Sonic. You didn't let him go."
Wrong, kiddo; I did.
"Sonic?"
"Yeah?"
Tails flattened his ears. "C'n I ask you something without making you sad?"
"What's that, kiddo?"
"How come you don't like being in comics an' ev'rything?"
Sonic racked his brains, trying to think of a way to explain it so that Tails would understand. "Well...you remember how the other kids used to bully you?"
A nod.
"How would you feel if someone drew a comic of you being the leader and them all looking up to you?"
"Great!"
Sonic grimaced. "Okay, bad example. I just...don't want to remember what happened on Green Island, because that's what makes me sad."
Tails frowned. "I thought it was called South Island."
"It is on all the maps, but it's the only island in a group of islands that isn't volcanic and the only one that's inhabited. Whenever people were asking for a place to stay, they'd be sent to South Island and when they always asked which one that was, they'd be told, 'You know, the green island'. It kinda stuck."
The little fox looked up at him. "Sonic?"
"Yeah?"
"Once you've whumped ol' Robotnik again, can we go back to your home on Sou—Green Island?"
The hedgehog hesitated, then shook his head. "No, squirt. I don't think that would be a very good idea."
"Huh?" Tails' eyes widened and took on a hurt expression. "How come?"
Sonic didn't answer for a long time, too busy reliving the last conversation he'd had with Mighty in Green Hill Zone.
"Take your precious Tornado and get the hell out of this Zone. I never want to see you again and if you ever come back, I'll tell every newspaper on Mobius what really happened."
Not that Sonic really thought he would anymore – the armadillo had been civil enough to him back in Emerald Hill Zone, after all – but he didn't much want to take the chance.
"I just don't." Sonic tried a smile. "C'mon kiddo; we can go anywhere else on Mobius but Green Island."
"But I wanna see where you growed up, Sonic! An' where you whumped ol' Robotnik!"
Sonic shook his head. "No, squirt."
Tails sighed gustily. "O-kay. Mebbe someday, huh Sonic?"
"Yeah. Maybe."
There was a silence.
"Tails?" Sonic said suddenly.
"Yup?"
The hedgehog hesitated, then said, "I…need your advice on something."
Tails' chest inflated so much it almost lifted him off the ground. "My advice? Sure!" He put on an expression which he thought was very wise and thoughtful and instead made him look like he had a wasp in his mouth, but Sonic barely noticed.
"You admire me, right Tails?"
"Sure!" Tails said again, "'cause you're Sonic the hedgehog."
Sonic's mind worked rapidly, trying to come up with a way of asking this question that wouldn't let this extraordinarily smart little fox cub know the truth.
"Suppose…suppose I started doing bad things, Tails. Things like Robotnik does. Would you try and stop me?"
Tails backed off, looking alarmed. "You're not gonna join forces with him, are you?"
"Not a chance, squirt. But…say something happened. Say I went nuts and went around acting like Robotnik. Would you stop me?"
Tails hoisted himself onto the bed and sat next to Sonic, swinging his legs and thinking hard before finally saying, "Well, sure. But it'd make me real sad, Sonic, 'cause we're buddies, right? Right?"
"You bet we're buddies," Sonic assured him, then continued. "It wouldn't…you wouldn't feel like you couldn't or shouldn't hurt me because we used to be so close?"
Tails scrunched up his face like he always did when thinking hard, then said, "Nuh uh."
"Why not?"
"Well, 'cause you stop bad guys an' help people out an' I know that if you weren't nuts you'd want me to stop you if you did go nuts 'cause that's the kinda thing you did before going nuts in the first place, if you ever did."
Sonic frowned slightly. "You wanna run that by me again, Tails?"
"Well…say you went from Cool Sonic to Not-Cool Sonic an' Not-Cool Sonic went around whumping everything like ol' Robotnik does?"
"Yeah?"
"Well, I gotta stop Not-Cool Sonic, because that's what Cool Sonic woulda wanted. He wouldn't want to be not cool an' if he was he'd prob'ly want someone to stop him before he whumped everybody in the whole wide world!" Tails flung both arms out to emphasise and accidentally hit Sonic in the snout. "Oops. Sorry."
"It's okay, kiddo." In fact it was better than okay; Sonic felt unaccountably lighter and more like his old self than he had since Robotnik had first showed up. On a sudden whim, he seized Tails, pulled him back onto his lap and tickled him until—
"Hey, no kicking!" Sonic said, jerking away. Tails looked up at him, still giggling.
"I'm sorry, Sonic. I didn't mean to, honest. 'S jus' whenever anyone tickles me real hard on the tummy my leg jus' kinda moves by itself. How come it does that, Sonic? It never did that before." Managing to regain enough control over himself to sit up, Tails added, "But nobody ever tickled me before, so mebbe that's it, huh Sonic?"
"Yeah. Maybe it is." Sonic pushed himself to his feet. "C'mon squirt, let's get going."
He pushed open the door and came face to face with one of the nurses, who took a step back.
"You're awake?"
"Yeah, I'm awake," Sonic said lightly, then stretched. "Which is the next Zone?"
The nurse blinked before saying, "Well…Mystic Cave, I guess. There's an entrance about five miles away." She considered for a few moments before adding, "I suppose it's not worth my telling you to rest for a while longer, or at least take it slow?"
"Mystic Cave?" Sonic repeated, ignoring this outlandish request.
"That's cool, huh Sonic?" Tails piped up. "'Cause I used to live in a cave before you came along an' 'dopted me!"
"We'll have to talk about that," Sonic said flatly. Adoption was one step too far, at least as far as he was concerned. Glancing at the nurse, he smiled broadly. "So where exactly is this entrance, then?"
Okay, so it did take a little while to finish, I admit :P Then again, this one takes the prize for the longest chapter (in any of my fics) and writing something this length takes time ;) Anyway, hope you liked it and if you read, please review!