Chapter 3: A New Friend

Helen awoke from her slumber, her wheelchair facing the bedroom window. Rubbing the sleep from her eyes, she peered out into the backyard with a yawn.

"That's strange…why did I fall asleep like this? My doctor always tells me it's bad to nap in my wheelchair." Her eyes wandered to the biplane resting in the branches of the tall oak tree. "Ohh, that's right!" She vividly recalled the orange, furry creature hovering on the other side of the window, greeting her politely before she fell unconscious. "Who was that?" She scratched her chin in thought before backing up her wheelchair and grabbing the clothes hanging from the doorknob.

Emerging from her bedroom a few minutes later, she donned a pink vest over her short-sleeved white shirt, a pink skirt, and a lime green neck bow. She rolled passed her parents' open bedroom, peering inside to find nothing but an unmade bed and clothing scattered across the floor. After stopping in the restroom to brush her long, blond hair, she went to the kitchen to find a note left for her on the table.

Hey Sweetie! We got called into work early this morning and won't be home until late tonight.

There's money on the table for dinner.

Love you! ~ Mom and Dad

With a disappointed sigh, Helen threw the note away and rolled to the door leading to the backyard, using her joystick to slow her descent as she traversed down the small ramp connecting the abode with the yard.

"Mom and Dad must've not noticed the plane, huh?" She peered up at the tall branches. "I can't just leave it here, though." She raised her fingers to her chin in thought. "Maybe I should call Dad? No…he said only to call him for emergencies…but still…" Helen peered up at the biplane once more. "…a plane stuck in our tree does count as an emergency…right?" With a shrug, she pulled her cell phone from the side compartment of her wheelchair.

"Call. Dad's. Work." Placing the phone on speaker, she set it on her leg and peered up at the misplaced biplane, the tree's thick branches keeping it secured.

"Greg's Groceries, how can I help you?"

"Can I speak with Doug? It's rather urgent."

"Sure, one moment…" Helen heard steps followed by the employee yelling Doug's name.

"Hello? Doug speaking."

"Hey Dad!" she exclaimed.

"Sweetie? Are you okay? How are things at home?"

"I'm fine, Dad," she replied with a giggle, "Did you…notice something odd in the y—" Helen froze as she heard a disturbance above. Shielding her eyes from the sun, she gasped as the cockpit to the plane slowly retracted and the same furry creature from the night before emerged from within, stretching his small arms and yawning loudly.

"Sweetie, you still there?"

"Oh, ummm, yeah." She blinked a few times as she watched the fox-like creature descend to the ground with the aid of his rotary tails. "…ummm, actually, never mind. I think I imagined it, kay, loveyoucyalaterbyedaddy."

"Wait a seco—"

Click.

"Hello there!" The alien fox waved with a smile on his face. "Sorry about last night. I didn't mean to scare you like that."

"That's okay!" she replied as she slipped her phone back into her compartment. "So…" She analyzed the orange kitsune closely. "…you can talk."

"Yep!" He gave a thumbs up.

"…and you can fly with your tails?"

"Absolutely!" As if to show off, the young fox began spinning his rotary namesakes, lifting himself off the ground and making laps around Helen and the oak tree.

"Do you…do you have a name?"

"Of course!" he replied with a chuckle as he performed a somersault in midair before landing a few feet from Helen's wheelchair. "My name is Miles Prower, but my friends call me Tails." His namesakes fluttered from behind as he itched the base of his nose. "What's your name?" She didn't respond, her eyes transfixed on the Mobian's twin appendages.

"Oh…Helen." She chuckled nervously as she itched the back of her head.

"That's a nice name!" Tails replied with a smile, his hands clasped behind his back as he rocked back on his heals.

"It's nothing special," she said, waving her arms forward, "not as nice as yours."

"Mine?" Tails brought a finger to his furry chest in surprise.

"Yeah!" Helen exclaimed with a sparkle in her eyes. "I don't think I've ever met anyone named after something so cool."

"My flying? You think it's…cool?" He grabbed his tails from behind and wrapped his fingers around their tips with a blush.

"Cool? It's the best thing ever!" she cheered. "I could only dream of flying anywhere…and they're so cuuuute!" Tails fell over from the embarrassing praise, now fully submerging his face into his namesakes as he rolled in the grass. Helen laughed as she rolled to the young fox, stopping a few inches away to extend her arm out. "Did I say something wrong?"

"No, no, you're fine." Tails dropped his namesakes and accepted her hand, allowing the human girl to pull him up. "I guess you probably have a lot of questions."

"Yeah, I suppose I d—" She was interrupted by the sound of a large vehicle screeching to a stop in front of her house. "Oh no! The bus! I'm gonna be late for school!" Before she could turn around, however, she heard the bus depart, leaving her behind. "Oh man…Dad's gonna kill me."

"I'm sure it'll be okay," Tails replied as she patted Helen on the shoulder.

"And I'm sure you're right!" Helen replied with a beaming smile, never one to remain upset for too long. "So…about my questions."

A set of red boots broke the surface of the water, the pink hedgehog sitting on the edge of a dock jutting into a small lake in the heart of a lush forest.

Resting her face against her gloved hands, she sighed as she stared at her reflection below, the water rippling from her soles.

"Sonic…where are you?" Looking across the lake, she watched some birds roosting in the trees. "Did we all end up here? And where even is here?" Her eyes began to glisten as she recalled her last moments on Mobius, watching as Tails held the blue hedgehog in his arms as they were overtaken and transported by Chaos Control. She couldn't stop thinking about the blue hedgehog she had come to love: the cocky and relaxed hero who was always there to get her out of trouble, the one who gladly fought alongside her in their ongoing struggles against the evil Dr. Eggman.

The pink hedgehog lifted herself from the edge of the dock and dusted off her red dress. "What am I saying? It's Sonic I'm talking about. I'm sure he's searching for me as we speak!" Amy froze as she recalled another moment during their final confrontation with Eggman; she had promised to stay with Tails in the Tornado if Sonic would go on a date with her in exchange, a promise the blue hedgehog accepted. During the battle, however, she fell out of the biplane and was saved at the last second by Sonic himself.

"I guess I broke my promise, huh…"

"What do you mean?"

"Well…you promised me a date if I stayed in the plane…"

"Oh, is that all? You didn't fall out on purpose, right?"

"Well yeah, bu—"

"But nothin'. Then you didn't break your promise. After we rescue Cream n' snag the emeralds, we'll go on that date."

"And that's one promise I will hold him to!" Amy returned to land, watching as a serious looking red echidna roasted a fish over a bonfire. "Do you seriously expect me to eat that, Knuckles?"

"Not at all," he replied as he flipped the fish over, holding the skewer carefully over the flames, "you can find your own fish to eat."

"That's not what I meant." With a humph, the pink hedgehog sat down on a log a few feet from the bonfire. "You know this world is inhabited, right? We saw some people in the woods, and they even spoke our language."

"Your point?" Knuckles replied tersely as he flipped the fish once more.

"My point," Amy placed her hands on her hips, "is we can find some food in town. We don't need to live off the land."

"What's wrong with eating your own food?" Knuckles brought the fish in, gave it a once over, and took a large bite. "Besides," he continued with a full mouth, "we don't know if these humans are hostile. Remember Eggman?"

"Sure, but not all humans are as bad as him, right?

"I'd rather find out on a full-stomach," Knuckles replied before taking another massive bite out of the side of his lunch. "Want some? It's tasty and nutritious." He brought the skewer closer to the pink hedgehog, whose face contorted at the sight and smell.

"Ewwww, get that thing away from me!" Amy swatted the fish away, falling out of Knuckles' skewer and landing in the fire.

"No!" The red echidna rapidly plucked the fish from the flames and threw it to the side. He sighed in relief before picking up the fish once more, returning it to his skewer, and taking another bite. "Well if you'd rather starve, be my guest!"

Amy's face turned red in anger. "Look here, Knuckles: I…you're…ohhhh, never mind! I'm going for a walk." With a final humph, the pink hedgehog spun around and walked away from the campsite, leaving the red echidna alone to eat his fish in peace.

"Now I know why Sonic always runs away from her," he said under his breath. Tossing the skeletal remnants of his lunch in the fire, he fell back, placing his hands behind his head as he observed the morning sky. The grass below him felt slightly damp, cooling his fur.

As with Amy, Knuckles reflected on recent events; he had the closest connection to the Chaos Emeralds out of all of his friends, and when Chaos Control was nearing them back on Mobius, he told his companions to trust the will of the mystical gems, one which apparently entailed transporting them to an entirely new world.

"The Master Emerald is back on Mobius, unguarded while I'm just lounging around here doing nothing!" He slammed a fist to the ground before taking a deep breath and returning his gaze to the sky above. "Relax, Knuckles…I need to trust the judgement of the Chaos Emeralds. There must've been a purpose for them to send us here, and I won't stop until I find some answers."

"It's strange, though," he continued as he recollected on the prior evening, peering up at the night sky as he and Amy arrived at the lake which had become their campground, "the stars and the moon look the same between our worlds. That doesn't make any sense…we're on a different planet, so why are they identical to the ones back on Mobius? I'll have to ask Tails."

"But first," Knuckles pulled himself off the ground, "I should make sure Amy doesn't wander off too far." Stepping into a natural wooded path, he made his way through the thick forest, using his keen sense of smell to track the pink hedgehog. After a few whiffs, he shook his head in disappointment. "Of course…she's probably lost." With a sigh, the red echidna followed her scent through a thick line of trees until he arrived at a mountainside precipice overlooking a nearby city with tall buildings.

"Where did she run off to?" Looking around, Knuckles knelt to carefully observe what appeared to be boot marks, the prints smearing next to the cliff's edge. "Oh no…" He jumped off the cliff and glided to the bottom with arms and legs spread out.

"Still no sign of her?" He shrugged his shoulders and prepared to leave, only stopped by the rustling tree branches above him.

"Ahhhhhhh!"

"Wha—" Before Knuckles could decipher what was going on, Amy fell from the tree, her fall softened by the red echidna below.

"Ohh, heyyy Knuckles." Amy chuckled nervously on top of the irate echidna's belly.

"Would ya get off already?!" The pink hedgehog complied, bolting up just as Knuckles was about to lose his temper. "What's the big idea, anyway? Wandering away from camp like that?"

"Gee, thanks for the concern." Amy folded her arms and turned away. "It's not like I got hurt or anything. Besides, I found a town nearby!" She pointed in the direction of the city Knuckles observed from the cliff above.

"Weren't you listening? We don't even know if they're hostile. You seriously want to take that risk?"

"If that means sticking around the forest with you and your fish, then yes!" With a final twirl, Amy marched down the wooded path, ignoring the red echidna's advice as she made her way to the city beyond.

"You know what? Fine! Don't come crying to me when the humans barbecue you over an open flame!" Knuckles folded his arms and turned away, listening as Amy's footsteps grew quieter. After standing in silence, and grumbling to himself, the red echidna chased down the pink hedgehog. "What am I thinking?! I can't just let her walk into danger all alone." Making long strides, it only took him about 30 seconds to reach her.

"What ever happened to not caring if I was barbecued?" Amy asked with a smirk, placing her hands on her waist.

"What you're doing is absolutely foolish, but I don't think I could live with myself if you got hurt in there while I did nothing."

"Ohhh, how romantic!" Amy clasped her hands together and placed them against her chest. "Hey wait…don't think you can just get the hots for me because Sonic isn't around!"

"Hey, wait a minute! That's not what I meant at all!" Knuckles yelled, a blush covering his muzzle. Amy walked away with a satisfied smirk, dusting her hands off in accomplishment. She clearly enjoyed riling up the angry echidna. "Hey, wait for me!" Cursing under his breath, he ran to her side once more, maintaining silence as the duo made their way to the big city.

"So let me get this straight," Helen began after taking a small sip from her mug of mint tea, "you regularly fight an evil scientist and his army of robots?"

"Yep!" Tails replied as he set his cup down after a long sip, his namesakes fluttering from behind.

"You?"

"What do you mean?" he asked as he cocked his head.

"Well…" Helen looked away in embarrassment as she scratched the back of her head, "you don't…seem like the warrior type." Tails blinked a few times as he stared at her in confusion. "What I mean is…you're like a stuffed animal."

"A what?" Tails gasped.

"Like so…" Helen pulled out a small, cotton plushie in the shape of a bear and placed it on her lap. "This is my teddy bear. His name is Winnie. Say 'hi', Winnie!" She lifted its arm and waved.

"Ohh, hi there, Winnie!" Tails slid off his seat and waved back. "My name is Tails! It's a pleasure to meet you." Reaching his arm out, the orange kitsune gave the stuffed animal a firm handshake. After releasing his hand, Helen brought Winnie's face to her ear.

"Yes…mhmmm…oh…really?" She giggled as she returned the teddy bear to her lap. "He says it's nice to meet you too and thinks you're very polite."

"Ahh, thanks, Winnie!" Tails replied with a blush, scratching the back of his head before returning his attention to the human girl. "Did you wanna hear more of my story?"

"Would I?!" Helen cheered. "This is much better than school. Go ahead." With a smile, she clasped her hands and secured Winnie between her arms.

"As I was saying before," Tails continued, "I spend much of my time fighting Dr. Eggman, an evil scientist and the only human to inhabit our world. But I'm not alone…" Sitting back down, Tails peered out the window as he rested his arms on the table. "Sonic's always there with me."

"Who's…Sonic?" Helen asked as she cocked her head.

"Who's Sonic?" Tails chuckled under his breath as he focused on a squirrel making its way across the front yard. "Oh man, how do I even begin to describe Sonic? He's world-renown where we're from, so I've never really had to tell anyone about him before." The young fox brought a hand to his chin in thought. "If I were to describe Sonic…I'd say he is one of the nicest people you would ever meet. He's dependable, honest, good-willed, and…the best big brother I could ever ask for." His eyes glistened in the morning sun as a small smile appeared on his face. "Most people know him as the fast, blue hedgehog who always saves the day, but he's so much more than that." His ears drooped as he looked down at the table below. "We've only been separated for a little while, but it almost feels like forever."

Helen extended her arm out, clasping the young fox's hand with her own. "I'm sure you'll find him, wherever he's at."

"Thanks, Helen." Tails gave her a small smile.

"Not a problem!" she replied as she retracted her hand. "So your big brother is a…hedgehog?"

"Yep!" Tails' namesakes fluttered from behind once more, always excited to talk about his role model. "The best bro ever!"

"And…you're a fox?"

"Yep!" Tails replied. "Why do you ask?"

"How did…a hedgehog and a fox…become brothers?"

"He adopted me!"

"He…adopted you?"

"Well…" The orange kitsune fidgeted his fingers. "Maybe not officially, but Sonic took me in when I was all alone, and things sorta worked out. On days when we weren't fighting Eggman, Sonic would be running about or chilling out while I worked on my projects in the worksh—"

"This is Scarlett Garcia with some breaking news."

"Huh?" Helen and Tails exclaimed as they turned their attention to the small television on the kitchen counter.

"We have a reporter live at the scene of an unusual animal sighting at the luxurious Thorndyke estate."

"Thank you, Garcia," the on-scene reporter replied, "With me now is Chris, the son of Thorndyke Industries president Nelson Thorndyke and actress Lindsey Thorndyke. Chris, how w—"

"Excuse me, it's Mr. Thorndyke."

"Oh, a thousand pardons, Mr. Thorndyke."

"A thousand pardons won't be enough…or will I have to order Nelson to yank his ads off your network?"

The reporter pulled at his collar and wiped the sweat from his brow. "So, ummm… Mr. Thorndyke, how would you describe the animal you caught last night?"

"Well," he replied, raising a hand to his chin, "it was only about three feet tall, had pointy spikes, and was blue…looked like an alien hedgehog, except the weird thing was that it could talk!"

"Woah! That's a shocking discovery! What did it say?"

"Ehhh, nothing important." Chris waved his hand as if to brush off the question. "I had to save it from one of my pools, and he passed out shortly after. I called Animal Control and posted a pic of it on social media before they took it away." The interview cut away to a screenshot of one of Chris' social media accounts, an image of the unconscious alien plastered at the top.

"Sonic!" Tails yelled, balling his fists as he rapidly stood up, knocking down the chair behind.

"Animal Control issued a press release stating they transferred the mysterious animal to the military, who is now analyzing the subject. Back to y—"

"Hey, wait a minute!" Chris exclaimed as he stole the microphone from the reporter and turned his attention to the camera. "As you know, I was the first one to discover this new animal species. Therefore, it is my right to give the species a name. I will name it the Thorndyke hedgehog, after myself, of course. Now if you excuse me," he threw the microphone back at the reporter, who nearly fumbled it, "I've gotta date with my jacuzzi." The reporter watched in amazement as Chris left the camera eye before twisting back around.

"Ummm…back to you, Scarlett."

"And now for the weather…"

Click.

Helen set the remote aside before placing a reassuring hand on the shaking fox's arm.

"How…could they be so cruel?" Tears formed in Tails' eyes as he leaned against the table with his arms. "He just…took a picture and did nothing for him…"

"It'll be okay, Tails. It looks like he wasn't seriously hu—" She froze as the orange kitsune gently pulled her hand away and headed for the back door. "Where are you going?"

"To get my brother back!"

"But you don't even know where he is!"

"I'll find him, if it's the last thing I do!" he replied as he made his way to the backyard.

"If you could stop for ten seconds, I think I might know where they took him."

"You do?!" Tails spun around, his namesakes fluttering from behind.

"Yeah…" She placed a hand to her chin in thought. "They say the military performs top secret research at a well-fortified base in Nevada. I think it's called…Area 99?

"Area 99, huh?" Tails withdrew his Miles Electric from his namesakes, toggling with his mapping application. "Let's see…that's kinda far, huh?" He traced the line cutting through nearly the entire continent. "It will take me about six hours by plane…and plus…" The fox peered up at the Tornado resting in the tree. "I still haven't figured out how to get my baby down."

"Your…baby?"

"Yeah, my baby," Tails replied. "You have your Winnie, and I have my Tornado. It's kind of the same thing."

"Oh, I see!" She hugged her teddy bear tighter before focusing her attention on the oak tree. "You know…Dad said he's been meaning to spruce up the tree a little bit, cut down some of the branches getting a bit long."

"Hmmmm…" Tails turned to Helen once more as he cracked his knuckles. "Sit back while I help your father out a bit."

"Ummm…sure…" She rolled back a few feet and watched as the orange kitsune spun his rotary namesakes, approaching the biplane and giving it a few pats on the side.

"It'll be okay, Tornado…I'll get you out real soon." Dropping a few feet, he identified the branches holding up his aircraft, turned around, and slowly backed up, his tongue sticking out from the side of his mouth as his tails approached the nearest branch. Making contact, he slowly cut through the wood like a chainsaw, to the amazement of the human girl below who, minutes earlier, referred to him merely as an adorable stuffed animal.

"Looks can be deceiving, I suppose…" She watched as Tails continued this routine until the plane started giving way. He jumped into the cockpit, looked around thoughtfully, and stomped his feet on his chair. The force of this impact caused the final branch to break, loosening the biplane from the confines of the tree and falling to the grass below.

To the astonishment of Helen, and to the expectation of Tails, the plane landed perfectly on its wheels, only scuffed up a bit from the tree bark but otherwise in pristine condition.

"All right!" Tails cheered, jumping out of his aircraft in joy and landing in the grass below. "Now I can finally rescue Sonic! If I leave now, I should make it in no time at all!

"Oh no you don't!"

"Huh?" Tails spun around to find a determined Helen watching from several feet away.

"You said the trip would take six hours, right? How much sleep did you get last night out in the cold?"

"Well, I…ummm…"

"And you haven't eaten anything all day!" Tails' face nearly turned green at the thought of his last meal the prior evening. "Not to mention…you stink…" Helen plugged her nose with one hand as she waved the other in front of her face. "You need a shower, pronto!"

"Hey, I don't smell that bad, do I?"

"You smell as nice as a dumpster, Tails," she replied with a nasally voice and brutal honesty.

"You don't say…" He gave himself a small whiff, his face contorting in surprise. "I guess you're right about that one…" The young fox chuckled nervously as he scratched the back of his head.

"Why don't you wash up while I prepare you some breakfast? Oh, and a snack for the trip."

"I suppose I could use some food…" The thought of nourishment made his stomach grumble so loudly he covered his belly in embarrassment.

"That settles it, then!" Helen exclaimed as she turned around and headed back to the house. "You won't be any use to Sonic right now. You'll need to be in tip-top shape for the trip and whatever danger you encounter at Area 99."

"Can't argue with that!" Tails followed the human girl into the house before making his way to the bathroom, not bothering to tell Helen the smell of dumpster was a bit too accurate.

I hope you enjoyed chapter 3! Things have been rather turbulent as of late, so I apologize for not getting this finished sooner.

Also, I recently started a new Discord server for Sonic fanfic writers! The sub-community of writers on the r/MilesPrower server grew so large that I decided to form a new group that is more tailored to the needs of Sonic fanfic writers, and we have 45 members as of now. Send me a message if you'd like a link!

Finally, I'm happy to report the commissioned cover art for this story should be available soon. I think you all will really enjoy it!

As always, feel free to leave your thoughts in the comments, and I'll be back for the next one in the near future!