Warning: Mentioning of blood, though is it in no shape or form gory - though faint of heart should always beware

- Is to see the danger beforehand

He loved running too. You had to be oblivious to not know that the hero of Mobius loved running, but Tails loved it just as much

Ever since he had met the hedgehog, ever since he had ever seen him run, break the sound barrier, and get to places faster than he could think, he loved it too. There was something about it, about the adrenaline, about the whole concept of pushing past your limits, ignore the wind that ravaged your fur, the tails cramping up and the need to take a break.

When you reach that runner's high, the point of action where you feel like you can run forever -that is a sacred thing. A concept which he enjoyed doing, despite forgetting to. It was another thing, another hobby which he loved just as much as tinkering with the Tornado, sitting in the workshop with the air conditioning keeping him cool and spending his time using his IQ points and figure out one technical mystery to the next. There was just something about being in motion, moving and feeling the wind, the adrenaline that kept you going and go past the limit. Being challenged, run against the fastest thing alive only to keep catching up, only to release that you too can break the sound barrier.

And when he did, it was always a joy, all sound around him suddenly disappearing because he now was the sound. He was past it; it couldn't keep up with him, he could run as fast as Sonic the hedgehog. Until he passed him.

The fox shook his head, his breathing steady and balanced, had been resting in the runner's high for about twenty minutes now, and knew that it was going to be exhausting the moment he stopped. But he didn't want to.

The scenario around him bled together with green color, the blue sky above them gone and the pine trees disappearing within the boundaries of vision. He couldn't see where he was going in reality, he merely followed the blue veil and trusted that the hedgehog knew where he was going and didn't take too sharp of a turn. Now that he thought about it, it was rare that Sonic actually ran in a straight line, always twisting around boulders, trees and jumped over ravines and ran across walls and mountain rock, never being in the exact same position. He danced around the lava pools in time, luckily, avoiding the outer edges of the magma, since the hedgehog was aware that his two friends were unable to register everything as fast as he was.

It had been done with practice, the two tailed fox first of all learning to increase his speed by using his behind appendages as propellers, then learning how to efficiently utilize that speed for more acceleration and then learning to speed up and get to the hedgehog's level. He had learned a long time ago that if he wanted to tag along then he needed to keep up, something that he had taught himself in the eight years he had been alive, more than anything. Sonic had taught him a lot of things, but how to run had not been a chapter in his sibling-manual.

Not because he hadn't believed that he couldn't, Tails was aware of that fact, it was just something that the hedgehog found so simple and therefore there was no need for explanation. He had to explain how to keep safe from Eggman's traps as well as how to take a proper bath – but running was something that was easy. Just use your legs, and you're done. It was that simple to Sonic, but to the scientific genius, there was much more to it.

That was also partly why he enjoyed running that much – there was science to it. Calculations and physics of law. The amount of glucose that creates glycogen is biology and something he wasn't that interested it, however the branch of how much oxygen you need to stabilize the aerobic respiration could be monitored, using time and calculate how much you need to run in order to keep going

Counting out the body's function, normal gravity has a function, all three of Newton's laws has an impact. The first law states that if there is no net force then you can't change your velocity and therefore keep going. The second is basically just wind that acts as a booster and the third is all about gravity, something that was debatable since G forces were getting pushed and a sonic boom was done by a mobian hedgehog and not a military fighter jet.

hat was one of the very first things that Tails had ever concluded when he had seen Sonic run as fast as he did: He did not fit in with the bounds of reality. But despite being a scientific mystery, there was something about just keeping going that he agreed with. Then let the numbers be as they are and just accelerate, use that high, keep going and don't stop. Something that he didn't want to – both because he loved it and because he knew he would be exhausted the moment they stopped.

And so, it happened.

The hedgehog suddenly decreased in speed, his heels thrown into the dirt, throwing up grass and the ground itself in the process of stopping himself. It was one of the most inelegant ways of stopping to run, but he had never taught himself otherwise, and therefore the fox did the same, slowly stopping his tails since an abrupt stop hurt a lot and threw his feet into the ground.

Immediately he felt his heart beating and he needed to breath quicker, his lungs screaming for air that was now missing as they came to a stop, keeping his mouth open as he took in air. He wasn't one to act like he was fine, would like to not pass out thank you very much, and instead let the echidna who had been running behind him suffer internally from the loss of oxygen.

Despite being well-aware that Knuckles did nothing than walk around and sit around on the island, he could run fast, pass the sound barrier with them and could keep up without using the techniques that Sonic had. He was impressed more than anything, as he leaned his hands on his knees, letting his tails rest on the ground and looked up at the hedgehog. He was fine, as always, standing with is arms crossed and looked up at the almost 90-degree mountain in front of them.

Normally Hill Top zone was pretty flat, but around the outskirts of the zone, the terrain grew and became unpredictable, earthquakes occurring because of the age-old volcanic belt they were running across. There weren't any more lava because of it, it just meant that the magma was older than towards the middle of it all.

Sonic turned his head around, his long blue spikes following the movement as a smirk crossed over the tan muzzle, a snicker escaping his lips.

"A little exhausting huh bud?" He asked, smacking the fox on the back with a grin too wide for his own good. Tails swallowed some spit and took a couple of deep breaths more before gesturing a hand towards the blue blur.

"I'm blaming your existence," He rationalized, making the hedgehog 'pfft' sending a glance towards the echidna standing a bit behind the fox.

Tails looked over as well, their shared red island friend standing with crossed arms and looked at the mountainside as well, breathing through his nose albeit much deeper, the youngest practically feeling Knuckles' lungs screaming for more air.

"Aww it's alright Knux you can breathe," The echidna send the hedgehog a diamond stare, with such sharp edges that he could cut the entire mountain in front of them in half if he wanted to.

Tails shook his head.

"I'm just fine hedgehog," He grumbled, narrowing his eyes at the blue hedgehog, staring back at the mountain trying to ignore him. Something that Sonic liked to challenge.

"I don't blame ya. Lazing around on that island of yours must-" –

"I'm not lazing around!"

The sidekick signed out, taking his last deep breaths, and getting his lungs back in order, despite his legs feeling like jelly, he walked away from the duo, and over to the mountainside.

Sonic and Knuckles was an odd pair – two friends where one of them hated their guts and didn't like being teased and the other finding it nothing but amusing to poke his sides and get him to get mad. It was a weird dynamic, even weirder than a dark blue hedgehog taking care of a two tailed fox because the latter wanted to tag along. It was a dynamic that consisted of arguing with each other as well as caring for each other. It didn't show that clearly, not as clearly as between the brotherly duo since the echidna was too proud to show it.

Tails knew that he liked having them as friends, despite not showing it as much. He had learned how to read Sonic for four years now and had trained in learning Knuckles for approximately three and a half. And they had their differences, as well as their similarities.

Both of them only let their guard and therefore their expressions down on rare occasions. Either when they were exhausted, hurting, worried. Three emotions they rarely were, but in those moments, you could see the inner echidna and hedgehog. What they were hiding from the youngest, what they didn't want to tell each other because they wanted to the strong for the other and what they didn't want to admit in front of their team members. It was unhealthy in a way, hiding how much an injury actually hurt to not slow anyone down, saying that they can keep going despite being ready to collapse.

It was something that Tails counteracted, both because Sonic had been adamant about making sure a four-year-old cub told him when he was hurting, tired hungry or thirsty. It had washed off as they got older, but it was something that was still a part of his consciousness, not hiding his needs whenever asked. Plus, he had experienced that if he gave in, then the other two did as well, making the stronger and more hard-shelled individuals take a breather despite stating that they were fine.

"How about a tour then? If I don't know anything then maybe you should show me your secrets!" –

"Alright fine, and then I'll let you destroy the temple of Chaos for the fun of it afterwards," –

"C'mon you know I didn't mean it like that I'm just curious," –

"Curiosity kills the cat," –

"Then it's a good thing I'm a hedgehog huh Knux?"

Tails' were frowning at the mountainside, his ears turned backwards to listen to their argument, since he didn't want it to get heated up.

The two of them fought, that wasn't a rare occurrence. Most of the time it was used as an outlet, the echidna needing to let out some sort of steam, either from annoyance, impatience or being mad, while the hedgehog needed some entertainment and get rid of some adrenaline. They didn't have mercy whenever they fought, using both fists and feet, creating blue and purple spots, sporting black eyes, and getting the occasional scrape on the knees or elbows due to the environment.

He stayed out of them for two main reasons: First of all he hadn't fought Knuckles before out of fun, he had tumbled with Sonic a lot when he was younger, two males getting bored in a cave when they weren't tired or when they waited for the storm to pass. The echidna was strong, much stronger than he seemed to be, his shoulders and arms being broader with muscles, being able to smash a stone in half with his fists, and therefore knew he wouldn't be able to take a punch from him and brush it off like Sonic did. Second of all, someone needed to keep their head straight whenever they were out going on an adventure and during missions. He knew from experience how long a tumble could last, neither of them wanting to give up, keeping their pride close to their chests.

And in a situation just as this, where they had gotten a clue that Eggman had been seen in Hill Top to find an emerald, they needed to hurry and find the mad doctor before he got a chance to snatch it from them. And there was someone who needed to be able to patch them up as well, using band aids and soap and water to wash out wounds. He looked up at the stone edge yet again, whipping his tails but they didn't feel too cramped, and calculated the distance from the ground to the top. He could make it.

"The only thing that lasts is your stupidity," –

"Oh really? You want to know how stupid I am hedgehog? Do you want to know that I am capable of punching your nose!" –

"Now you're talking, bring it on!" –

"Guys!"

Tails was just in time, turning around to a battle-ready echidna and hedgehog though both heads turned towards him, a fierce look in Knuckles' eyes and a mere confused one in Sonic's. The fox shook his head while grinning, thinking that he was being the sidekick for the both of them at this point, before he pointed up at the mountainside.

"How about we climb this and find Eggman instead of standing around and being bored?"

The echidna's lack of anger towards Sonic for throwing a comment like that and the hedgehog being a bit rude, as he had been, only told the trained member of Team Sonic that running had been boring.

"I'm not bored!"

Tails couldn't help but laugh, both echidna and hedgehog looking at the other, the both of them having said the sentence at the same time. That wrapped it up.

"C'mon. I can carry you Sonic and you can climb Knuckles," The former looked up at the mountainside, raised a brow but didn't ask any questions, as the echidna scoffed, walking over to the stone side with his hands fisted at his sides.

"So that's what you were doing: Thinking," Sonic smirked, towards his sidekick, said young fox shrugging his shoulders, behind namesakes waving in slow strides.

"Someone has to use their brain around here," He grinned at the hedgehog who crossed his arms in mockery, tapping his foot into the green grass.

"And what's that supposed to mean? I use my brain!" Tails shook his head, turning around towards the mountain.

"Just keep being delusional Sonic," He said, watching as the echidna was already climbing, spiked fists hurled into the stone edge and going up the side of the mountain. The fox spun his behind appendages around, hovering in the air and waited until Sonic was done fake sulking.

"Where did I go wrong in teaching you manners?" He asked, while walking over to the flying mechanic, raising up his arms. Tails snatched him around the wrists, the grip trained and automatic at this point, as he took off, the hedgehog dangling in the air.

"Ever since you were born," The sidekick snickered, earning a raised brow and a grin from said older brother, looking up and concentrated on keeping his appendages spinning, the mountainside tall and the hedgehog got heavier with muscle fatigue.

He knew he didn't get a retort because the fox needed to concentrate but knew that he would get thrown something back in his face when they reached the top. He could start to feel both arms and tails cramping up and he needed to take in oxygen through his mouth when he was half-way. He could most certainly fly longer and carry Sonic over longer distances growing up, his fluffy tails gaining muscles with flying practically every day of his life, but there was still a limit.

Though he hardly reached it once they came close to the mountain edge, was about to put the hedgehog down on the plateau when he had to avoid a spiked drill getting rocketed towards his face. He swirled around and went into the air with the hedgehog, before he looked down, being well aware that it was one of the badniks that roamed the area.

Though it was rare that they were accompanied by egg pawns, rocket launchers becoming their right arm instead of the regular arm, the doctor apparently knowing they were coming.

"Yes! Let's have some fun around here! Tails hurl me at them before Knux takes them all"

The fox snickered, watching as the echidna climbed over the edge and hurled his fist at the first egg pawn that he saw, taking their focus off the flying duo and instead towards the island dweller.

"Hmmm you know, I think it's more fun to stay here and-" –

"Tails I swear to Chaos, you are grounded for life if you don't put me down now!" The fox laughed, despite it being dangerous since he was aware that his threat was just as real as the hedgehog's need to kick robotic butt.

"Alright fine. But I'm going to get the most of them!" That cleared Sonic's somewhat annoyed mind, grinning at the fox before scoffing.

"In your dreams litl' bro!" He exclaimed, as the fox began spinning around at the same time that the hedgehog curled around.

He had learned a long time ago that he needed to close his eyes, otherwise he would get dizzy pretty quickly, spinning around madly and looking like a spinning top, before they had the momentum, letting go and flung the hedgehog at the egg pawns. He didn't see Sonic hit them, merely heard the metallic crunch as he knew the blur was bowling into a group of them, rockets getting launched but either hit the surrounding landscape or fizzed out and fell to the ground when they aimed for the air. Tails stopped spinning after a bit, avoided yet another spiked drill, cleverly named by none other than the blue hero himself a 'Spiker' hurled towards him, the badnik now being completely useless. It was a poor design.

He got a quick view of the fight, seeing Sonic homing attacking the egg pawns and spin dashed the smaller red spiked robots as Knuckles hurled his fists at the next enemy he saw. The fox noticed a group of egg pawns targeting the echidna, a rocket launcher at the ready and flew towards them. He dive bombed them, meaning that he curled together and did Sonic's trademark spin dash and broke the group apart.

Metal shattered underneath him, uncurling as fast as possible and swung his tails around, doing a tail swipe which he had learned himself, using both muscles in his behind appendages as well as his legs, knocking the remaining robots to the ground. He could only handle two of them with his fluffy namesakes, had to kick the third and swipe a tail at one who was about to get up. The robots were offline, turned around and sprinted, kicked at a Spiker who's weapon it had lost.

His fighting technique was a kind of weird but effective mix of 'watching and learning' and using his own techniques. In the beginning it was much like Sonic's using his speed and momentum to surprise the robots, learn the spin dash move and be quick to analyze your situation, using your legs. But when they met Knuckles – after he didn't try to kill them – he had learned how to use your fists properly.

Curling his fingers towards his palm to protect them and using the base of his knuckles to protect the rest of his hand from the metal when he hurled a fist towards them. Because he didn't have spikes on his hands and because they were fragile, he used it mostly against circuitry or robotic eyes, learning to avoid getting glass in his hand and not getting electrocuted. He learned how to properly use his body, use his entire light weight to attack, using the entirety of his body and dancing with his legs, stiffening his namesakes when doing a tail swipe, a move that combined the two techniques he had learned. He had perfected it by now, had been taught to observe his surroundings, always be on your guard and watch each other's backs when you're out of robots.

He was in the air again, avoiding the rockets and got slightly concerned by the ones who hit the mountainside that was in front of them, the last wall before the summit, rocks and pieces of the platform above falling down on them. Both Sonic and Knuckles avoided them subconsciously without addressing it, letting it become a part of their fight instead. The hedgehog was squealing with delight, making fun of the robots, commentating on their slow movements and spin dashed and was generally having fun.

In a manic and psychotic sort of way, living on the edge of death, every second that he barely avoided the rockets headed towards him. Something that the fox was to blame for as well. Though, that he could blame on social heritage.

Knuckles was merely concentrated, didn't comment and kept quiet, grunting, and using his speed to only punch while the hedgehog retorted to kicks. And despite the lack of amusement in his face and the thick concentration glazed over his eyes, Tails could tell that he was having fun too.

It didn't take long until the enemies thinned out, a good deal of them had been waiting around for them but now there were only a couple left, the fox tail swiping one of them before hovering into the air. His hands were shaking with adrenaline, his heart beating and his lungs asking for air, making the fox pant. But he didn't care – first, because he didn't have time to care and second because he thought it was fun to.

Despite the bowling he had sent the hedgehog into, he was pretty sure that he had smashed most of them.

He watched as Knuckles hurled both fists into an egg pawn, the robot turning offline and turned to a heap of metal on the ground at the same time that a rocked exploded into the mountainside yet again, Sonic spin dashing at the egg pawn that had fired it.

Metal shrapnel flew briefly in the air before the hedgehog landed again, green emerald eyes looking around the area before he smirked, standing and cleaned his hands off dirt.

"Well that was easy," He remarked, satisfied with another fight won without complications, looking around the metal graveyard they had created. Knuckles looked at the blue hedgehog, scoffed at something that he had done before kicking at an egg pawn, the fight now over.

Though, the sidekick was looking around them, making sure that none was standing around to ambush them and looked up at the edge of the cliff above them.

His pupils widened in fear, his heart seized as he saw the small boulder fall from the edge, headed straight towards the hero of Mobius himself.

His breath stopped, he didn't think, didn't use his usually rationalized brain, and instead acted on impulse. Every instinct, every fiber in his body doing the one thing he had already done twice in his life already.

"Sonic! Look out!" He yelled as he was flying towards the hedgehog, aware that the warning was too late either way.

The hedgehog only got to turn his head towards him before he was pushed out of the way, Tails himself not having enough time to get out, only feeling a great surge of pain going through his head before everything became black.

The first thing he felt was a giant headache, almost like a migraine that ravaged only one side of his head. He had gotten a migraine before, they practically ate his brain, made him vomit and he both sweated and froze. This on the other hand was just pain, a banging hammer on the right side of his head, making him feel almost paralyzed.

His entire head was swimming around, he didn't know if he was lightheaded or not, but even with his eyes closed he knew that he was dizzy, his head feeling rattled and shaken.

His ears flicked when he heard a familiar voice, was pretty sure that it was his name that was said, though it was hard to concentrate through the pain that shot through his entire being at this point. He groaned, just to say something, feeling something heavy on his shoulder. Not wanting to feel confused for a longer period of time than he has to be, he forces his eyes open only for it to be blurry for a couple of seconds.

He immediately recognizes his best friend, sitting on his knees and looking right at him. His green eyes are shaking, the blurriness blocking his ability to read whatever emotion is going through him, as he opens his mouth and says something. He has no idea what he's saying, a really weird sensation as his ears picks up the words that's coming out of him, but he doesn't register them. His mind can't correlate the sounds and turn them into syllables and consonants that he understands. It wouldn't be because his right ear is ringing, as his left seems to be working fine

A blurry red figure appears in his vision, before something white and large waves in front of his eyes, though it only makes him blink multiple times. It's only now that he realizes that his nose is stuffed into grass, and therefore concludes that he must be laying down, specifically on his stomach, for some sort of weird reason. He lifts his hand to rest it on the side of his head, only to make an audible hiss and takes back his hand looking at it.

Crimson coloring is on his white glove, making him confused, and a pang of fear settles into his heart as well. His shoulder is then shaking, his head turning back to the darker blue hedgehog, the red echidna having disappeared for some reason, who opens his mouth again but yet again the words doesn't make sense. He shakes his head, trying to convey through body language, though he stops immediately as the headache protests by pounding more rapidly. He can translate his own name from the lips moving afterwards, as Sonic's eyes changes, the blurriness somewhat coming together and he notices that he seems either panicked or frantic, the causality he is so used to seeing being gone.

His lips keep moving, turning his head around and said something else he couldn't catch. Then he hears something, straining his ears towards Sonic, faint mumbling that he couldn't quiet register what was being said just yet. He tries to say something himself, though it comes out in a sort of babble which makes Sonic's head whip towards him.

Green eyes dart around his face again, before he swallows something and opens his mouth.

"Tails?! Can you hear me?!"

It's almost a whisper in his ears, though he does hear him and therefore nods.

Sonic sighed, the breath even reaching the fox's face, a faint smell of chili dogs reaching his nostrils. "Thank Chaos," He says, though Tails didn't feel any better because of it, the hand on his shoulder squeezing it slightly.

"Knux! Knuckles, he can hear us!" He heard running steps, and suddenly the red echidna was back into view, was pretty sure that his vision was still blurry since it looked like worry that was plastered all over his face.

"Tails, do you hear me?!" He sounds almost equally as panicked, though there is a distinctive calmness in his voice as well, something that Sonic lacks. When his mouth failed to be working, he nods again, making the echidna sigh this time.

He put his hand back at the hurting spot on his head, only to pick up more of the red coloring which appeared to be blood when he smelled it.

"Help him sit up," Sonic looks at the echidna who only looked back at him, a brief staring contest happening for reasons he didn't know before Sonic leans forwards and places his hands under his armpits, as he was lifted from the ground, which meant that he was pretty much pupated rather than helped.

His head protested immediately, making him involuntarily yelp in pain when he was placed against the mountain, he thought, since the wall was rock hard – literally – and cold. A hand was still firmly on his shoulder for support, the dizziness increasing from the movement of his head, closing his eyes temporarily taking a deep breath.

"Hey bud, say something," He opened his eyes again, this time seeing the worry that was practically plastered all over Sonic, Knuckles being beside him, having a more concentrated frown on his forehead.

"What?" He sputters out, both in surprise because his mouth is working again and because he doesn't know what to say.

He only briefly sees the sigh that escapes Sonic as something wet goes down the side of his head, catches the liquid before it falls down on his shoulder, looks at his hand to see it being the blood again. Without really knowing what's happening, Knuckles reaches out a hand and tilts his head slightly to the side, obeying to being moved since his head was hammering way too much for him to protest.

"Are you dizzy? Nauseous?" He looks back at the echidna, that weird, concentrated frown still on his forehead, his voice sounding deeper than usual.

"I'm – I'm dizzy, not nauseous and you're. Moving," He said, since the world was still spinning around him, nothing in his vision seemingly being stationary.

"How many fingers am I holding up?" Sonic suddenly thrusted a hand in front of his face, approximately seven or eight fingers appearing in front of him. He tries to tilt his head back to get a better look, but the echidna put pressure on his head, making him sit still.

"Uuuhh - Seveeeen.. eight?" It was only after his answer that he realized that the hedgehog couldn't have seven or eight fingers on his hand, the worried expression on Sonic that only seemed to only become more worried when he had told him his answer, looking at Knuckles.

The echidna deepened his frown, looked over his shoulder and back at the fox, his quick movement not making his vision any better.

"We need to get back to the Tornado. He could have a concussion," Knuckles blurts out, almost too quickly for him to register, Sonic's head turning towards him.

"You think?!" He almost yells, the panic making it out through his voice for some reason Tails couldn't fathom.

The hedgehog was usually calm, taking situations lightly and not seriously, being nonchalant and would most likely had said 'he's going to be fine'. What happened to him?

"Are you okay?"

Sonic's head whips back towards him after his timid question, blinks to try and get the blurriness to disappear, a sudden tiredness overcoming him.

"Me? Am I okay?! I should ask you that! You just got a fricking boulder smashed into the side of your head!" Right, he remembered now.

He blinked at Sonic, his eyes suddenly feeling heavy and his vision blackened, felt his eyes starting to close. He rapidly blinked them open again when Knuckles snaps two fingers in front of his face.

"Don't fall asleep. Wait until your double vision disappears," He instructed, like the fox was in full health to be able to listen to his advice. He didn't get to retort, wanting to say that he wanted to do nothing more but sleep when Knuckles turns his head towards Sonic.

"Carry him, then I'll lead the way. We can get Eggman some other time," He decided, though the hedgehog didn't seem like one to protest, nodding in agreement.

"Alright," He said, took a deep breath and seemed to have calmed himself somehow. "Alright bud. Stay awake with me okay?" He asked, as he reached out his hands, one around his back and under his knees.

Even though the movement was slow, his headache sparked once more, the dizziness this time running its way into his eyes, making everything seem more blurred than before. The pain was banging at his head, lost a bit of his sensation around him once more as he felt his head hitting the hedgehog's chest, large arms around his body as he then began to move.

He faintly saw the pine trees and rocks around them, though his visualization of that seemed to drown out with the dizziness, the headache winning the battle as he felt his eyes become heavy.

"Tails, stay with me," It sounded like a warning more than anything, something that he couldn't obey to when he lost the battle and was in the dark once more.

… … …

"Hey bud? Tails! You there?!"

The voice flutters him out of the limbo, battling to get his eyes open again. To his disappointment his head was still hurting, a hot searing pain going through his head, a ringing still in his ear. Though, the world had blurred less, still spinning slightly, and he felt like he was flying. Being in midair without using his tails, floating around in a vast bright space, squinting his eyes as light was in his eyes.

The sensation disappeared slowly, as he realized that he was moving without his consent, wind passing him fast, and hands and arms were around him. His head was resting against warm fur, tilted his head to look up. A pair of green eyes looked back down at him, worry temporarily gone with relief.

"Good. Don't fall asleep alright? We're getting back to the Tornado," He explained, a brief smile flashing over his muzzle, most likely an attempt at making Tails feel better.

Instead he was confused, felt scared as well and another part of him didn't want to be carried.

"That's harder than you think," He mumbled, only realized that he had said it into the fur, though the hedgehog chuckled, a light laugh which he could feel through the hedgehog's chest.

"I know, just – tell me about the plane or something alright?"

His thoughts went to Knuckles briefly, where he was, but it ended pretty quickly again, thinking about Sonic's odd request. He didn't care about the Tornado's engine he knew.

"Why?" –

"To keep ya talking. C'mon bud tell me about the – uh – engine," There was a commanding edge to his voice, telling the fox that he needed to do something.

It was hard to think past the headache, his entire head screaming at him and his ear still ringing, groaned just to relieve his pain through his voice. Though, he knew Sonic asked, was aware that it was important that he stayed awake.

"It's a – a twin star air cooled engine, which means it circulates the air directly over the heat.. the heat.." –

"The heat what, tell me bud."

There was a somewhat pleading tone to his voice which he didn't like, something that nagged him in the back of his head. But it was hard to comply to his request, the hammering in his head increasing as he tilts his head back into the warm fur, the sensation nice against his hammering head.

"The – the heat dissipation fins, that.."

His mumbles stopped there, closed his eyes again, the almost rocking motion of Sonic running feeling tranquil, the blue fur familiar and nice.

"That what? Tails stay awake!"

He couldn't answer, instead sighed and fell into the limbo once more.

… … …

"Mint ice cream! Mint ice cream!"

His eyes flutters open yet again, confusion almost staying there though it washed out with the pain that was still in his head, opening his eyes. "Hah! I knew it would work!"

The world was swimming, he might as well be under water, when he looked at Sonic again, still being in his arms, still running.

"What?" He asked, not reacting on the outrageous exclamation on the pure reason that he said 'mint' but because he needed context.

"Mint ice cream, right? That tastes delicious, right bud? If you could build your own sundae, what would you decorate it with?"

If his head wasn't hammering as much as it was, he was pretty sure that Sonic had turned mad, suddenly talking about ice cream in the middle of nowhere.

He didn't even get to think about it as he felt his eyes become heavy again, Sonic yelling something again and then he was back in the blackness again.

… … …

He woke up himself this time, maybe because the wind had stopped and his body had stopped moving, though the world hadn't stopped when he opened his eyes. Something was different.

The grip wasn't as tight and he wasn't leaning completely against Sonic's chest anymore, and the fur was slightly colder than before.

It took a while before he realized that the fur was red instead of blue as well, the hands around him feeling larger and less fidgety. He peered upwards, to see it being Knuckles instead, the echidna staring off into something before his head turned down to look at him as well.

"Good, now stay awake alright?" He commanded, more harshly than Sonic had, his violet eyes squinting as if he was warning him. And he knew that Knuckles didn't throw out warnings without meaning what he said.

Tails blinked, the world still spinning, everything dizzy, everything hurting, and he was still tired as he turned his head.

"Wh-Where's Sonic?" His voice was slightly groggy, having maybe slept more than he was supposed to, was suddenly shifted a bit as Knuckles moved his hands.

"Checking the area. We're close to the Tornado so remain awake the rest of the way okay?" The echidna was blurry, being able to hear him clearly though his features started to become one.

He was moving in place, his head and spines moving in waves instead of standing still, the sleepiness hitting him again as he yawned.

"No, be awake Tails. I'll punch you if you fall asleep."

He was more awake by that threat, since he knew it was true more than anything. But his head was hammering again, a headache or a migraine, a surging pain that reminded him why he was tired and why he wanted to sleep.

The world was still spinning, surely it would stop soon right?

He didn't get to ask, instead closed his eyes, admitting defeat, and felt his head hit Knuckles' chest, the last thing he remembered of his consciousness was the curse word that the echidna mumbled.

… … …

Everything was much nicer when he woke up again.

He knew he had been sleeping for a long time, since he had been in the black limbo for quite a while. His eyes were still closed, as he instead just enjoyed feeling warm. The cool and cold air from the mountains were gone, and instead he felt something wrapped around him and something else was warming him as well.

After that, he noticed that the pain had decreased, the searing burning pain of a migraine had decreased down to a headache, much smaller than before but still there. Slowly he opened his eyes, only to be met with a pleasant light, something that didn't come from an electric light. It was a fire, a small campfire right in front of him, creating warmth, the smoke going in one slow column upwards towards the ceiling, disappearing to somewhere. He moved his hand by his head to his side, felt a woolly blanket of sorts being over him, curling his fingers around the fabric. It was nice, good, and warm and the world had stopped spinning, his dizziness having disappeared as well.

His blue eyes curiously looked around the area, having no general idea where he was. It occurred to him that the area was familiar, haven been here before but only rarely. It was a small cave of sorts, the rock walls having a dark grey color, the natural cave still in here despite the furniture that fitted the space. Shelves were hammered into the wall, very different items being stored there from kitchen supplies to dried herbs.

He recognized a pot and pan that he and Sonic had gifted him some time ago, hanging against the wall, a stool of some sort tucked into the back of the small space while an opening was made in the ceiling, a piece of tarp or something else hanging from there, most likely acting as a window. The only furniture that was there was the small stool he had seen and presumably the bed he was laying in, hadn't actually been in his bed before, but it was comfortable. Compared to the fact that the friend was living alone without technology or any kind of advanced living for that matter.

He was laying comfortably on his side and suddenly noticed that he didn't have his shoes on. He briefly wondered why, until he caught the blue figure to his right, the familiar spikes on the back of his head making him know who it was.

He was looking at the fire himself, sitting with one leg propped up and an arm slung over it, his face turned away from the fox and therefore couldn't see that he was awake. He licked his lips before the fox opened his mouth.

"Sonic?" His voice was horse and groggily, though the name calling made the hedgehog whip his head around, quills and spines moving quickly, the fox relieved to know that he wasn't spinning or swimming anymore. A wide smiled crossed over Sonic's muzzle, shifting around and turned towards the awoken little brother, relief clear in his eyes.

"Hey buddy. How're ya feeling?" He was way calmer than before, the panicked and somewhat frightened hedgehog being completely gone, seeing more of the one he knew. He therefore smiled in relief more than anything, looking at the fire in front of him, frowning.

"Where are we?" He asked instead of answering, looking back at the hedgehog. A confused frown made it to his forehead, looking around the area before he looked back at the fox.

"We're in Knuckles' cave. Angel Island was closer than Station Square," Sonic shrugged his shoulders. "He knew what to do," He rationalized, while Tails remembered why the room was familiar, being aware that Knuckles had some medical knowledge that either of them didn't own. He was very useful in the rare kinds of situations they had just endured.

Remembering the blood and the wound from beforehand, made Tails lift a tentative hand towards the spot the pain had come from, only to feel soft cotton or something else being there and around his head, bandage he thought.

"How are you?" He had completely forgotten Sonic's question, looking back at him with a set of confused eyes before he remembered the question, suddenly feeling hungry.

"I'm – fine. I think?" He said, even though it sounded like he was asking instead, like the hedgehog knew the answer.

Sonic frowned at him, before he shifted around again and showed him his hand.

"How many fingers am I holding up?" Tails' blue eyes were quick to scan over the hand, seeing perfectly fine the three fingers that were held up.

"Three," He said confidently. "You stopped moving and I'm not dizzy anymore. My head's still hurting though," –

"Doesn't surprise me," Sonic chuckled, nothing but relief completely overcoming his blue form, he could tell.

"How much do you remember?"

The fox scrunched up his nose in thought, trying to conjugate up the thoughts from his memory bank.

"I remember – fighting the egg pawns and the Spikers. And when the fight was over, this boulder rolled over the edge above you and then I pushed you out of the way," He answered carefully, rubbing a hand against his forehead. He felt like he had been sleeping for ages, his entire body was heavy, and he felt groggy and still somewhat tired.

He turned his ears towards Sonic when he sighed, a thing that spoke of disappointment more than anything, the sidekick quickly turning his head back towards him.

"Yeah about that – I'm sorry bud, you shouldn't have pushed me away. If I had been more aware you wouldn't have been knocked out," He said while biting his lip.

He sounded genuinely sorry, the quills in the back of his head falling, as he looked away. Tails looked at the hedgehog briefly, now aware that the disappointed from beforehand was in himself – the hero of Mobius himself not being quick enough to save his friend.

He looked at Sonic, then down and reached out and with his hand, caught Sonic's own, small fingers worming into his palm. The hedgehog looked back at him, a pair of green eyes still looking apologetically, though a bit of surprise came from his action.

"It's okay – you were just oblivious you know? I acted on impulse," Tails said, grinned and shrugged his shoulders. "What's a sidekick for anyway?"

Sonic scrunched up his nose and frowned at him from the question, seemingly not agreeing with him in this situation.

"Well not to get hurt instead of me," He said, before sighing. "Tails, I promise I won't let it happen again okay? Don't – put yourself into danger because of my stupidity alright? You already did it on Planet Wisp and on the Lost Hex – you're not supposed to put out any more fires for me," He said, squeezing his hand slightly.

Tails looked around his face, cerulean orbs still glazed over with pain from the headache and despite feeling like he had slept for a hundred years he was still sleepy. He didn't like it when the hedgehog was hard on himself, the sidekick knowing full well how much Sonic could sacrifice to save someone else.

If it was running into a fiery building to rescue a baby, dig up an entire avalanche to find the couple that got trapped underneath the snow or jump into the ravine to save the kid who had tripped and fallen. That was one of the core things that Sonic consisted of, what made him a hero – it almost pained the sidekick to know that he was knocking himself hard over the head for something he had chosen to do. It was his decision, not Sonic's.

He let the thought slide, well-knowing that it was a mindset he couldn't make him change his mind about and instead shrugged his shoulders, grinning at the blue hero.

"It's hard not to. You're not exactly working as an office worker and sitting at a desk all day," Sonic laughed, a light thing that made the fox feel just as warm, like the fireplace in front of him. "Besides, you did save me. I wouldn't have been able to get back to the Tornado without you or Knuckles," He said, his ears laying down from mild embarrassment, most likely getting carried most of the way.

Though the hedgehog was smiling at him, obviously not caring and was just happy that the fox was awake and was better, grinning like mad at this point.

"I know. But try to let myself suffer for my own consequences from here on out alright?" He said, a warm and relieved smile that seemed a bit tired as well over his muzzle, green eyes sparkling happiness down to the kid.

"I'll try," Tails said with a smile, though he couldn't promise anything. He hadn't been thinking like he had said, had reacted on instinct alone. The half-promise seemed to satisfy the hedgehog, nonetheless, making the smile widen just a bit.

"Good. Glad to see ya feeling better," He chucked, as he gently cuffed the fox's jaw, said fox smiling back at him, was actually happier that Sonic seemed alright again.

His ears turned the other way when he heard shuffling, shifting his head to see an opening in the rock wall a door being closed, though it opened the moment he looked over. A familiar red echidna walked inside, having something in his hand as he closed the door behind him, and his eyes immediately looked over at the bed he was laying in.

A sigh left the island dweller.

"Good. How are you?" He asked, only making the eye contact briefly, as he made his way past the fire with a familiarity of someone living here, pulling something out from the wall, somewhat glad to see that it was the pot that they had gifted the echidna some time ago.

"Better," Tails simply answered, pulling the warm blanket closer to his face, could feel the tiredness overwhelm him once more.

Knuckles looked at him again, then at Sonic where Tails saw him nod in his peripheral vision, the echidna taking a container of sorts from somewhere and poured something liquid inside the pot, the fox not being able to register everything through the headache.

"Great, that's good," He stated, the violet eyes flashing back to the fox where Tails was pretty sure that he wasn't imagining the smile that the echidna gave him, before he threw whatever he had in his hand into the metallic pot.

"I'm making some dinner, but you can take a nap until it's done," He said afterwards, his tone much softer than usual.

Tails was about to say that it was fine until a yawn made him a liar, making the hedgehog chuckle, and looked at the fox.

"It's alright, you're allowed to sleep now."

He had closed his eyes to fall back into his limo as Sonic had been talking, sleepiness about to pull him away though he opened them again upon the hedgehog's words, turning his head towards him.

"Allowed to? Have I woken up before?" His mind was blank, not remembering being awake before the rock had hit him, blinking at the hedgehog in pure confusion.

Sonic opened his mouth to most likely explain, but he sighed out whatever he was going to say, and waved a hand his way instead, a gesture that meant it could wait.

"Never mind, I'll tell during dinner," He said instead, giving him one last smile.

And with that promise, Tails smiled back at him, closed his eyes, and felt relaxed. He felt warm, he felt good despite the headache that was still on the right side of his head, though a part of him knew that it would go away once he got some more sleeping done. He knew he couldn't promise Sonic to not get him out of any more dangerous situations he was in too many for him to not get involved but being careful he could be.

With that agreement done in his mind, he once again disappeared into the darkness, feeling the warmth of the fireplace, hearing Knuckles shuffling around with wooden spoons and possible seasoning, and Sonic's hand still in his, a thumb running calmly back and forth on the back of his hand.

Author's note: I have no idea if it's important to address but I wanted to just in case.

Upon research I actually learned that if someone has a head trauma that letting them stay awake is not necessary and can actually sometimes help. It's a common myth, and I wanted to keep it here because neither Knuckles nor Sonic would know, and because I wanted to create a bit of drama ;)

My point is just, don't take medical advice from my fics- it is fiction, worlds that we create or adapt to and anything can happen, despite my intentions of being as close to reality as I can get. I am in no shape or form a medical expert and even my research can be wrong as well. Get your medical questions and myths solved and answered from real doctors not fiction :)