A new year warrants a new chapter. At last, we find out how Faith ended up on Seaside Island.

Enjoy!

NOTE: I DO NOT OWN ANY OF THE SONIC CHARACTERS (Except for my OC, Faith).

Episode 7: Faith's Tale

Fear.

Confusion.

Betrayal.

Those three feelings tumbled around inside her as she ran through the streets. All around her, people talked, laughed, and shouted, creating a mishmashed symphony. But all she could hear was the rapid thump-thump-thumping of her heart beating hard inside her chest as she ran.

Human and Mobian faces all around her blurred into splotches of color. But one face remained in her mind. Auburn fur, short quills, a perpetual frown on the muzzle, and cobalt blue eyes that – just yesterday – had looked at her with a tenderness she thought she would never get to see.

She sniffed and swiped her hand against her cheek, her gloved fingers coming away with tiny droplets clinging to the black rubber.

'He promised… He promised he was going to love me from now on…' she thought as her feet carried her to a crosswalk. Everyone around her was walking. She was the only one running, darting around taller people's legs, ignoring yelps and snaps directed at her.

"There!"

"That kid! Someone grab that kid!"

Her quills instinctively flexed as she heard the voices. Pushing her anguished thoughts aside, she pulled up the hood of her gray hoodie and ran faster.

Faith lightly pulled at her front quills as Amy set a cup and saucer down on the table. On either side of her on the couch, Sonic and Shadow sat and looked at her with worry in their eyes. Knuckles, Sticks, and Tails were all seated on the other side of the coffee table, the three of them also looking worried.

After Shadow had Chaos Controlled them back to Sonic's beachside shack, Faith was given time to wash up and change into new clothes before being taken to Amy's house. Everyone had decided that the pink hedgehog's residence was the best place to hear Faith's entire story. Amy had fussed over the injuries the four wilderness explorers had gotten and some time had been spent getting Faith, Sonic, Shadow, and Sticks patched up. Which was a relief somewhat to Faith. All the while, she thought of what she wanted to say and how to say it.

Presently, Amy poured some tea into the cup then smiled gently at Faith, who managed a tiny smile, then took a seat beside Sonic. For a moment, everyone was silent while Faith pressed her lips into a thin line. Her eyes darted all over the room and her hands rubbed at the fabric of her yellow skirt. Then, taking a deep breath, Faith asked, "What do you guys want to know?"

"Well, for starters, you can tell us where you're from," Sonic suggested.

"I'm from Empire City. It's a really big city with a lot of people. And very tall skyscrapers. Like, waaayyyy tall," Faith replied, stretching her arms up when she started describing the skyscrapers. That got a few chuckles from the team.

"Can confirm. Empire City's got some of the tallest skyscrapers I've ever seen," Sonic remarked, a playful gleam in his eyes.

"Okay. So you live in Empire City…" Amy took a sip of her tea. "Do you know your exact address?" she asked Faith.

"It's No. 4, Thornwall Street. My house has a white door with the number four on the side," Faith said, swinging her legs back and forth.

Amy nodded slightly to Tails, who was already inputting Faith's address into his Miles Electric's search engine.

"And… your father." Shadow didn't fail to notice how Faith's shoulders tensed up. "What's his name?" he asked.

"Joshua. I heard some people at the hotel call him that," Faith mumbled.

"Wait, so you only heard your Daddy's actual name when you were at the hotel?" Knuckles asked, violet eyes wide.

"I think we need to know more about the hotel. Faith, why were you and your father even there?" Tails inquired.

At that question, Faith seemed to curl in on herself. Her lower lip quivered and tears started welling up in her eyes while tiny sparks began fizzing out from the tips of her quills. Sonic gently held Faith's hand, trying not to wince as he felt Faith's electricity zapping his fingers. Faith whimpered, "No, don't!" but was silenced by Sonic gently rubbing her head.

"It's okay… It's okay, kiddo…" Sonic murmured, smiling at the little tenrec as he continued to hold Faith's hand. "Just take deep breaths. In with the good…"

"Out with the bad…" Faith whispered, inhaling and exhaling slowly. Her quills stopped sparking and she started to calm down. Crawling into Sonic's lap, Faith wrapped her arms around the blue hedgehog's waist and hugged him, Sonic immediately hugging her back.

"You can trust us, Faith. Please… let us help you," Shadow said softly, scooting over to Sonic's side and started carding his fingers through Faith's pale pink quills.

"He… He said he was going to be nice from now on. He told me he was sorry for being so mean…" Faith blinked back tears as she looked at the two hedgehogs. "He told me he was going to be a proper Daddy from now on. That's why we went to the hotel. He said it was going to be a vacation for us… A fresh start…" she began as she remembered.

"Wow!"

She heard Daddy chuckle as she jumped onto the deluxe queen-sized bed. It was so bouncy! And it had big, fluffy pillows and snow-white sheets! Lying down on the bed, she breathed in the scent of crisp, clean linen.

The hotel room was big, spacious, and clean. The walls were a lovely shade of aquamarine and there was even a little chandelier hanging from the ceiling, the crystal decorations catching the light and making tiny shards of rainbow light appear around the room. There was a little kitchenette near the door with a little basket full of coffee sachets, tea bags, and sugar packets, as well as a mini-fridge. And when she sat up, she saw a glass door that led to a bathroom. Curious, she got off the bed and went to inspect the bathroom.

"Double Wow!"

There was a bathtub! With little bars of fancy soap, bottles of jewel-colored shampoo, and two yellow-and-purple colored balls that smelled like flowers and lemons. There were big and small towels that had the hotel's gold ring logo on them and they were so soft and fluffy. And the mirror at the sink was so big and shiny.

This was going to be the best vacation ever!

"We're really gonna stay here all day, Daddy?" she asked her father as he entered the bathroom.

"All day, Faith. Consider this day our fresh start," Daddy told her, smiling for the first time… at her. His cobalt eyes were no longer hard and cold-looking. Instead, they were full of warmth and, dare she think it, love.

She smiled and clapped her hands in delight. Then Daddy started walking towards her. By instinct, she went rigid and shut her eyes, preparing for the inevitable blows to rain down on her body. She felt Daddy's hand touch her head and flinched.

"Shhh… there, there, Faith. It's all right… Daddy's not going to hurt you anymore…"

She felt a gentle sort of pressure on her head as Daddy's palm lightly rubbed in little circles while his fingers gently scratched at her scalp. She purred softly, relaxing at last. Opening her eyes, she found Daddy kneeling in front of her, their faces level with each other. Daddy smiled and moved his hand so he was cupping her cheek. Instead of the normal forceful hold he employed when he wanted her to look at him, his touch was gentle and soft.

"See? No more hurting. Daddy promises," he said, holding out his other hand, his pinky raised.

And she smiled back and locked pinkies with him. For once, she wasn't afraid of Daddy. Maybe she no longer needed to be afraid anymore. After all, Daddy promised he wasn't going to hurt her anymore.

"Oh, he was fibbing for sure." Sticks frowned. "Someone abusive suddenly starts acting nice to whoever's been abused? That's a sure sign they're gonna do something worse," she growled.

Faith bit her lip and pulled at her front quills.

"Faith…" Shadow sighed, knowing that this was not going to be pleasant for Faith, him, and his friends. "Before your Daddy promised that he wasn't going to hurt you anymore at the hotel… how exactly did he hurt you?" he asked, internally bracing himself.

He knew he was going into dangerous territory. He knew he'd just asked Faith to remember some pretty traumatic memories. And from the way Sonic and the others had tensed up, he knew they knew it, too. But he had to do it. He had to ask the tough question otherwise he and his friends were never going to have enough evidence to incriminate the monster named Joshua.

Faith visibly shuddered and hugged herself. "H-He'd slap me sometimes if I didn't finish doing the chores. Most of the time, he yelled at me. Called me a curse, a brat, or m-mo… mother killer…"

Amy covered her mouth to stifle her horrified gasp while Knuckles gripped the armrests of his chair so hard that the fabric upholstery ripped.

"He wouldn't let me eat anything until I finished all of the chores. And even if I did, he would just give me scraps. I had to go through garbage cans just to find more food to fill my tummy. If I cried or asked him to stop hitting me, he… he'd hit me some more then lock me in my room. I was once locked in there for three days… or four. I can't really remember. I fainted during the third afternoon and only woke up when he tossed a bucket of water on me."

Tails looked like he was going to be sick. Sticks was biting down on her boomerang to muffle her screams.

But Faith wasn't done with her confession. "Sometimes, my powers would act up even when I was wearing my rubber gloves… Little sparks would come out of my quills sometimes. Whenever that happened, he…" She held onto Sonic's hand for reassurance, the blue hedgehog gently squeezing hers. "He beat me every time that happened. Just throw me against the wall or onto the floor… and punch and kick me everywhere…" she whispered.

At this point, Amy burst into tears. Sticks got out of her chair and embraced her, blinking back her own tears. Knuckles clenched his fists and looked away, his shoulders shaking. Tails wrapped his twin tails around himself and furiously rubbed at his eyes.

Sonic held Faith close to him, his body trembling with barely-contained anguish and rage. He rested his head on top of Faith's and hugged her as best as he could, wishing that he could take every ounce of pain the little tenrec had ever felt and make it his own so she never had to experience it. Tears pricked at the cobalt speedster's eyes but he held them back when he saw the guilt in Faith's wine-red eyes. The child didn't need to feel worse than she already did.

"Oh, Faith… I'm so sorry…" Sonic whispered, kissing the little tenrec's forehead. "I'm so sorry you had to go through all of that."

"It's okay, Sonic. You didn't do anything wrong. And you didn't know about all this until just now. Please don't feel bad…" Faith said, gently patting the hero's cheek, and gave him a tiny smile.

Guilt filled Sonic's heart. 'I was so focused on stopping Eggman and other villains that threatened Mobius on a large-scale… I forgot that there are worse villains out there. Villains who know how to hide their treachery under the guise of being ordinary people.' he thought, mentally kicking himself.

Only Shadow remained calm and didn't show any violent reaction or overwhelming emotion to Faith's story. But the subtle eye twitch was indication enough that he was moments away from snapping. Taking a deep breath, he said, "I'm sorry, too, Faith. I'm sorry you had to go through such horrible things that no child should ever experience. But didn't people notice? Didn't you ask for help?" trying his best to ignore Amy's crying for fear that he was going to cry as well.

"Sometimes, neighbors would let me into their houses and feed me when I was out looking for food in the trash cans outside. Then I'd tell them that Daddy hurt me and they'd come to him to talk about it…" Faith's ears pinned flat against her head. "But Daddy always told them that I was lying and that I got my bruises from playing rough. Then, when the neighbors I asked for help left, he'd beat me and lock me in my room again. And he won't let me go outside until the bruises are gone…" she mumbled.

"Okay…" Shadow could feel his breath catch in his throat and the beginnings of tears welling up in his eyes. "D-did something like that happen before the two of you went to the hotel? Y-you had bruises all over your stomach when we met you," he said.

"Oh, that beating happened two weeks before we went to the hotel."

Amy felt a fresh wave of tears come over her while Sticks gently rubbed soothing circles on her back. Knuckles grabbed a cushion and pressed it against his face, screaming into it.

Faith motioned to Shadow to get her cup of tea. The tea had gone cold but she sipped it, letting the bitter liquid fill her mouth while salty tears slipped out of her eyes. Looking at Sonic, she could see that he was close to crying. She leaned back, resting her head against his peach chest, allowing Sonic to wrap his arms around her again.

"So..." Shadow felt heat coming from his wrists but willed himself to stay calm. "Two weeks later, your Daddy took you to the hotel. What happened there?" he inquired.

Faith smiled sadly. "I got to watch TV. Daddy let me play in the bathtub at bath time. And we got really good food delivered to our room. And he tucked me into bed at night. It was so nice…" she whispered.

Daddy kept asking her if she was feeling okay. That must have meant that he really cared.

He asked her if she wanted to watch cartoons on the big TV in their room and ordered sandwiches and spaghetti for lunch. After eating, they went exploring around the hotel. The lobby was huge with crystal chandeliers hanging overhead, swirls of gold and golden rings painted on the ceilings, and the floor was so shiny that she could see her reflection in it. There was a shop selling little toys and sweets and Daddy even bought her a pack of biscuits just for her.

They went to the little garden and she got to look at all the pretty flowers while Daddy answered phone calls. For dinner, they went to one of the fancy restaurants inside the hotel. She got to have ice cream for dessert.

Then, at night, Daddy dropped one of the sweet-smelling balls into the bathtub. It was a 'bath bomb,' he told her. And it made the water turn purple and gold, filling the bathroom with the smell of lavender and lemon. That was the best bath she ever had. Daddy washed her quills and let her splash around in the bubbles for ten minutes before it was time to get ready for bed.

Daddy tucked her in and kissed her goodnight. And, for the first time ever, Faith fell asleep, looking forward to a new day…

"I thought that day was the best day ever. I thought Daddy was finally going to love me for real…" Faith trembled in Sonic's arms, the tears coming faster.

"…But he lied."

She was allowed to explore the hotel on her own the next day. She could go wherever she wanted as long as she went to the lobby at exactly 12 noon so they could go and have lunch.

"Daddy just has to go meet some people from work. Be a good girl, okay? Don't cause anyone any trouble," he told her, ruffling her quills.

"Yes, Daddy!" she said, grinning. She was going to be the best girl ever for him!

"Okay. I'll see you later, Faith," Daddy said, waving goodbye, before leaving their hotel room.

It was only 8 in the morning. For the first hour, she watched TV. There was a really nice show about a girl wanting to become a witch and she really liked that. Maybe Daddy will let her watch it at home…

She got bored after that and decided to leave the room. For a while, she walked along the carpeted hallways and amused herself by counting all the doors and reading their room numbers quietly to herself. Then she decided to ride the elevators to the top floor. The hotel roof had a really nice view and even a swimming pool! It was nice to dip her feet in the cool water. She didn't know how to swim, though. Maybe Daddy could teach her.

She rode the elevators again to the basement level but that only had cars parked all around and the air smelled very bad down there. So she went back up and explored the different floors. Even though most floors had the same look, there were still some interesting things to find. One floor had roses in the vases near the elevators while another had sunflowers, her favorite. Some of the hotel's other guests glanced at her curiously but didn't try to stop her. Most of them ignored her completely, which was okay with her. She was used to being ignored and didn't want to cause them any inconvenience. She then arrived on a floor that had a janitor walking the hallways, pushing a large yellow bucket filled with mops. The janitor was really friendly and said hello to her as they crossed paths.

"Where are your parents, little one?" the janitor asked her.

"Daddy's meeting some people from work. I'm gonna go meet him at the lobby later at 12 noon," she replied.

"12 noon, you say." The janitor checked his watch. "Well, it's already 11:30, young miss. You better get going so you won't be late," he advised her.

'Whoa, it's already that late? Exploring takes up a lot of time,' she thought as she thanked the janitor and ran for the elevator. She fidgeted as she watched the numbers go down, feeling weightless and dizzy as the elevator rapidly descended. At the soft 'ding!' she shook her head to clear the dizziness away.

Daddy was sitting in one of the big armchairs by the entrance talking to two humans dressed in fancy suits. He didn't see her come out of the elevator, too busy talking with the humans. Not wanting to disturb him, she hid behind one of the tall vases. Even though she knew it was wrong, she couldn't help but overhear bits and pieces of the conversation.

"My colleagues and I have reviewed... No doubt about it… she's Chaos-sensitive," A red-headed woman wearing a dark blue blazer over a white blouse and black slacks remarked.

"Has she exhibited any other ability aside from electrokinesis?" A man wearing a pinstriped white suit inquired.

E-lec-tro-ki-ne-sis? What was that? What did 'Chaos-sensitive' mean? She kept her ears flicked forward to catch more words.

"I haven't really tried to see what else she can do. Frankly, I'm not in the mood to find out if she has any other abnormalities within her."

She felt a sudden tightness in her chest as Daddy's voice reached her ears. It sounded harsh, annoyed… He sounded like he usually did back home. Before they came here.

Why?

Why did Daddy sound like that? And why was he talking about her like that? Didn't he say he was going to be nice from now on?

"Look. You guys asked for a live specimen and I'm giving you one. What I'd like to know is how much I'm gonna have to pay for her upkeep."

She had to grip onto the edge of the vase to not fall to her knees.

Daddy was… giving her away?

"Depending on what her current condition is, we'll let you know how much her food and medical bills will cost." The woman peered at her father, frowning slightly. "Though, judging by what we saw in your videos, I'm assuming she's going to need some intensive medical care before we can truly begin our work thanks to your harsh treatment," she said disapprovingly.

Daddy scoffed. "Believe me. The only thing to keep that brat's curse under control is to beat the urges to use them out of her. That… and some really thick rubber gloves," he said, running his hands through his quills.

This couldn't be true… This couldn't be real… Daddy was just joking with those humans, right?

"Well, since you're willingly surrendering custody over the child, you only have to pay us 50, 000 Mobiums. After that, we'll shoulder all other costs," the man said, producing a stack of papers from his bag.

She held her breath as Daddy looked through the papers. Maybe he would give them back and say no… She really hoped he would do that…

"Okay. One last question: How much will I get for compensation if the brat doesn't make it?"

That did it. She couldn't stay there and listen to another word.

She ran to the elevator and rode it back to her floor. Once she was inside the hotel room, she grabbed her backpack and stuffed it with whatever she could easily get her hands on from her bed and the bathroom. She saw the pack of biscuits Daddy bought for her yesterday and tears filled her eyes. Something that had symbolized a hopeful change had now become a symbol of betrayal. She was just about to throw the pack into the trashcan before remembering what she was going to do.

If she was going to run away, then she was going to need food to keep running.

The pack of biscuits went in her backpack along with a bottle of mineral water she found in the mini-fridge. Putting on her hoodie, she slung her backpack over her shoulders and left the hotel room. Wiping the tears from her eyes, she headed back to the elevator.

The first floor was where Daddy and the humans were. They would see her the moment she got out. Basement level it was then. She covered her nose as she trotted through the rows of parked vehicles until she found a ramp that led to the outside.

But that part of the outside also happened to be situated near the entrance – right where her Daddy could see her through the glass walls of the hotel entrance.

"FAITH! What are you doing out there?!"

Run

Run

RUN

Gripping her backpack straps, she bolted. As she left the hotel behind her, she saw the two humans her Daddy had been talking to emerging from the hotel.

'Keep running!'

'Don't stop running.'

'Don't let them catch you!'

'Get as far away from them as possible.'

'Far, far, far away.'

Those thoughts fueled her as she ran through the streets of Empire City. Then her thoughts turned to her father.

"Liar. Liar… You lied to me. You lied. You lied. Liar. Liar. Liar. Liarliarliarliarliar… LIAR!" she screamed, tears running down her face, startling passersby. A police officer tried to reach out to her.

"Hey, kid? Kid, are you okay?"

That snapped her out of her grief and she quickly ducked into an alleyway. She knocked trashcans over and pulled sheets off of clotheslines to slow the police officer down and ran faster.

She couldn't trust anyone. Trust no one. And keep running.

But where to go? Where to hide from Daddy and those humans he was selling her to?

Where? Where? Where?

She found a place to hide in a small convenience store an hour later after taking several twists and turns. Hiding in one of the aisles, she stopped to take a drink of water. As she took her first big gulp, she got an idea.

Overseas.

If she could get on a boat that was sailing somewhere, then there's no way Daddy would find her.

As for what she would do after she got on the boat and it docked somewhere else… she would figure that out later.

For now, her goal was set. Find a boat and sail away so Daddy will never find her.

"And that's what happened. I kept on running for a whole week, sneaking onboard pickup trucks when I could until I made it to Sunset City. Then I snuck onboard a cargo ship and that's how I ended up here on the island," Faith concluded, her voice dropping to a whisper as she started to cry some more.

Knuckles leaned back his seat, the cushion dropping to the floor, a haunted look on his face. Amy immediately pulled Faith into her arms and embraced her, crying softly.

"That… That…" Sticks' boomerang snapped in half. Sticks got up and threw the pieces onto the floor, stomping on them. "THAT MONSTER! How could he just…! He was gonna sell you! He was gonna sell you like you were some piece of meat! Why…?" she yelled and grabbed at her hair. "Why would a parent do that to their own kid?" she asked, slumping back onto her chair.

Tails bit his lip and looked at Faith, the little tenrec hugging a crying Amy while silent tears streamed down her face. He'd been abandoned by his parents when he was just a toddler so he knew the pain of abandonment. But Faith's entire story, her whole background, really, was crueler. For as long as she could remember, she had been abused – physically and psychologically – by her own parent. Then her father pretended to change for her so he could get her to come with him to be sold off to complete strangers. In Tails' eyes, that was worse than being abandoned.

And, judging from the words Faith had repeated in her retelling, those strangers were looking for a test subject, not a new daughter.

Tails then looked at his brother. Sonic was hugging Amy and Faith, his eyes glossy with tears. Beside him, Shadow was…

Oh, shoot.

"Shadow, you're red! Glowing red!" Tails yelled, making everyone look at the Ultimate Lifeform in alarm.

Shadow growled before teleporting away. Three seconds later, the team heard an explosion and rushed outside.

Inside his island fortress, Doctor Eggman was just about to enjoy an Evil Ham sandwich when a loud blast came from just outside his lair, the shockwave throwing the evil genius out of his chair.

"What in the?!" Dr. Eggman pulled up his security feed. On the screen, he saw Shadow standing in a crater, punching bits of debris into smaller chunks of debris. And it looked like he was screaming. Curious, Eggman turned the sound on.

"That damn bastard! That no-good piece of shit! Oh, when I get my hands on him, he's gonna get…"

"Yeesh… Someone forgot his coffee beans today…" Eggman muttered, turning the sound off before he could hear his grandfather's creation spew more profanities.

Back outside Amy's house, the others waited for Shadow to come back. Faith, who was still in Amy's arms, tucked her head under Amy's chin. "Why was Shadow glowing red earlier?" she asked timidly.

"He was about to use Chaos Blast. It's one of the more dangerous moves that involves him blowing up," Sticks explained.

"Oh no! Is he okay?!" Faith gasped, eyes widening.

"Shadow's fine, sweetie. He just needed to blow off steam." Amy sighed as she cradled the little tenrec in her arms. "We're more worried about you."

That's when Shadow teleported back, no longer glowing red. But he was still seething with rage. "Apologies. I got angry," he grumbled as he walked over to his friends.

"Are you still angry?" Knuckles gulped.

"Yes." Shadow glared at the echidna but his gaze softened when he saw Faith flinch. "Not at you, sweetheart. I'm angry at your Daddy," he said quickly.

"I think all of us are angry at that guy…" Sonic muttered as Amy passed Faith to him. Looking into the child's eyes, he felt the same thing he'd felt when he met Tails.

A desire and a need to protect this precious little life. To comfort and nurture.

No matter how difficult it was going to be, no matter how many hurdles he and his friends would have to jump over, they were going to make sure Joshua Tenrec would be brought to justice. He was never going to lay another finger on Faith ever again.

"You've been really brave, kiddo. I know remembering all those bad things wasn't an easy thing to do. I'm proud of you," he told Faith, smiling warmly at the little tenrec.

"You're… proud… of me?" Faith pointed to herself, blinking in astonishment.

Sonic gently kissed Faith on the forehead. "My friends and I are going to make sure that your Daddy doesn't hurt you again. Until then, you can stay with us for as long as you like," he said.

"Really?" Faith looked at all the members of Team Sonic, who smiled at her. "A-are you sure that's okay? I-I know you're all busy being the heroes around here…" she mumbled.

"And, as heroes, it's our job to protect people." Shadow hugged her and Sonic. "Especially people who are scared and don't have anyone to turn to," he added.

After Faith told her story, the first thing Team Sonic did was take her to the department store to choose a bed of her very own.

"We can't have you sleeping on the couch if you're staying with us," Sonic said as he and Knuckles moved Faith's kid bed into its new spot by the window. They also bought a new mattress, sheets, blankets, and pillows. Faith was happy as a clam, curling up on her new bed with her teddy bear.

"It's so warm and comfy! Thank you!" she giggled.

But, as warm and comfy as her new bed was, Faith still had a bad nightmare. Knowing how much trauma she had had to relive today, Sonic and Shadow didn't ask her if she wanted to talk about it.

Instead, they sang their lullaby duet and cuddled her until she fell asleep in their arms. Sonic sighed, gently scratching behind Faith's right ear. "You know… I promised that, as a hero, I would do my best to keep people safe from bad guys like Eggman… I guess I forgot that bad guys can be ordinary people too…" he whispered, guilt etched on his face.

"Hey…" Shadow cupped Sonic's cheek in his hand. "Don't beat yourself up over this. Sure, we're heroes… but that doesn't mean we can't be everywhere protecting everyone all at once. Faith's safe, and she's here with us now. That's what matters," he reassured his boyfriend. He knew that one of the cruelest ways to bring Sonic down was making him feel guilty about not being able to save people. If he and everyone else weren't there to intervene in time and provide comfort, Sonic could suffer another major depressive episode. And that was the last thing Shadow wanted to happen. To see his beloved tear himself down because he failed to protect someone in the past.

"We're going to make things right. Joshua won't hurt her again," Shadow whispered to Sonic, the blue hedgehog nodding with a slight smile.

When his boyfriend finally fell asleep, Shadow quietly got out of bed and went outside. Pulling his phone out of his quills, he called the one Mobian he knew who could gather the dirt he needed.

"Hun, you better have a good explanation for interrupting my beauty sleep."

"Missed you, too, Rouge." Shadow huffed, smiling a little. "I need a favor," he began.

"If it's another Chaos Emerald, I might have to decline," Rouge replied, yawning slightly.

"No, not that kind of favor. I need you to gather some intel. Joshua Tenrec. Lives in Empire City. No. 4, Thornwall Street," Shadow instructed.

"Oh?" Rouge's voice took on a sultry tone. "What kind of intel, handsome?" she asked.

"Any felonies committed in the past six years, complaints from neighbors about unsavory behavior, and any kind of shady business," Shadow replied.

"Mm… Well, you're in luck. I was planning on going to Empire City in a few weeks. But, pray tell, why this guy in particular?"

He could imagine Rouge sitting up in bed, a sly grin on her face. But, right now, it was probably best that Faith was kept a secret. The fewer people knew about her, the fewer chances of word reaching her father.

"It's important. Look, I… I'll tell you the whole story at the right time. Right now, I just need as much information about this individual as soon as possible."

"All right, Mr. 'My-Lips-Are-Sealed.' I'll get your dirt. Mind you, I might go to Seaside Island to deliver it to you. And you better tell me what's going on," Rouge answered.

"By all means. I'm sure Sonic and the others would be glad to see you," Shadow chuckled before wishing Rouge goodnight and hanging up. Looking up at the night sky, he took a deep breath and gazed up at the stars twinkling above him.

They were going to protect Faith. They will help her learn how to live with her incredible power. Above all, they will take care of her.

And, unlike Faith's father, the six members of Team Sonic were going to keep their promise.

Little did Sonic and Shadow know that their lives were going to be forever transformed by that promise…

Read and review. I would love to hear what you guys think about the story so far.

It's a New Year, everyone. Let's do our best to make it better!

-GuardianDragon98