The Long Road Home

by Oceanera12

No one ever said that families were easy. There are fights, sorrow, lies; don't forget the missing/dead siblings, adopted little brother, and the mad-man determined to kill you. But how far are you willing to fall for your family? That answer is something Sonic is about to find out. No matter how much he wishes he could run in the opposite direction (Rated T for action & intensity)

64. The Waiting Game (Part 2)

*screams into hands* Sorry, this chapter was WAY TOO LONG. So I'm going to answer reviews quickly then just head straight to the chapter after this friendly reminder:

THERE IS A POLL ON MY (OCEANERA12) PROFILE PAGE SO PLEASE VOTE FOR THE NEW PLANE NAME! Y'ALL GET TO PICK SO VOTE NOW!

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StarlightSparks: Yeah, Rin is dead. She ain't coming back. And no, Amy cannot summon her hammer, although I guess we didn't make that clear. Mmhhhhh… And OMC I totally didn't think about the Amy and Sonic mirror image with food. We just thought it would be fun for Amy to have a restaurant, but that worked out too! Hooray!

NeckBreak: Yes. Yes, she is. And even more so in this chapter.

ShadAmy1Fan - Shylah McVey: I'll give you a spoiler now, Sonic does not die. That would just be rude of us. Thank you so much for your kind words, and I hope you enjoy this update as much as the last chapters.

AphroditeDragon280: I hope you enjoyed it and I hope you enjoy this chapter. And I think the wait was shorter than last time. I think….

Caisha12: *reads review five times* I can't stop laughing I have no idea why. I really don't. Maybe it was just the "Don't talk back, I passed bio". I never took a science AP class, so props to you on that!

Autumn: I understand your pain. My family has had several chickens and roosters over the past few years of my life. That stupid rooster… We just gave them away recently because of our new neighbors, but I don't miss the crowing. I do miss watching their… stupidity, I guess is the best way to put it.

Cytisus: Greetings to you near the end! And respect for reading this entire thing in a much shorter amount of time. Thank you so much for your compliments. Halo and I worked hard on establishing Manic's and Sonia's personalities and I'm happy to know most people enjoy our takes on them. I hope you enjoy this chapter because it involves something you said you liked in the past.

ultimateCCC: If Sonic was Sleeping Beauty, then it would be way easier to wake him up. But he's not so we're stuck with waiting.

Detta: Sorry, I've never really been into anime. But it sounds very cool. Everyone is worried about Tails, which always ignites my annoyance at Sega for what they have done to him in the recent games. People like Tails! Use him to his potential! I don't want to watch a stupid Forces Tails with a Sonic-complex. He is useful on his own, thank you very much. Hooray! Hope to see you in future reviews.

A reader: You are very welcome. I will take another "Endgame" joke… I may cry or get angry at it, but I will take it. You've piqued my curiosity.

tailsBOOM1992: Thanks!

AStoryTellerBook: Don't worry, Tails is okay. Mostly. Wow. Thank you for being with us for this long and for your patience. I hope you enjoy the rest.

Gokku the Carrot: Sorry about laughing. It was just the most appropriate reaction to everything. So yes. It was more ultimate than Shadow. Hope you like this chapter as well.

Faso: What the–? I liked the "Pokemon Battle". Yep, we are coming full circle. You have no idea. *looks up "Woobie"* ….Well, SCRAP. I did not know that was even a thing until just now. Yes. Tails is a woobie. Here is a Snickers, Tails. "Why?" Because it might help you with your head. "That literally makes no sense." Oh well. Thank you so much for being here for two years (and 20 chapters). I hope the payoff is worth it. I mean… if you want to do plot arcs in the reviews, that's fine. I try and follow the best I can but it can be a little confusing. It's up to your preference. It makes me smile if that helps.

That Speedhunter: Okay, so enjoy this play by play of what happened when I read all the reviews you left *reads the first part.* Dang it, swearing. I think these agents are physically okay… mostly. So that's good. *reads the second part, which is also what I will comment on* I am honestly laughing about how this story emulates the MCU. Halo! We should try and get hired by Marvel! Halo and I have seen Spiderman: Far from Home, but don't leave any spoilers in the reviews! *third part* What. The. Flip. What is this thing? *looks up names listed as agents. Google takes me to a fandom wiki*. Okay, so The Division is a video game. This sounds interesting. *watches video on fandom wiki* Okay, that looks really cool. *Goes to YouTube and proceeds to watch all cutscenes from "The Division".* You know what's scary about this entire thing? This game, your little crossover story, all these ideas… Yeah, this was really similar to a Shadow story I have as a personal sequel to this story that will never be written. Excuse me while I start watching "The Division 2" cutscenes. *reads the last review) Mhhhh… that would be funny. We're not doing that, but that would be funny.

KrazyCat6167: You just experienced angst going from zero to one hundred to zero again in six chapters. I am so sorry. And thank you for noticing Rin because practically no one else has mentioned her in the reviews and I have been wondering if no one liked her and have been thinking she should have been left out of the story. But hooray! RIP Rin.

Stripe the Hedgetiger: Here is the update! Hope you enjoy!

RK9 Mew2: Thank you for the compliment. Sorry about the emotional punches.

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Okay! *breathes deeply* Y'all are not going to believe who the first POV is… Hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed writing it.

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March

Cream's POV:

"You can't hide from Dr. Andersen forever," I remarked with a smile, watching Tails tinker around the inside of his plane.

"Well, I can certainly try."

Tails handed me his sprocket wrench and I traded it for a screwdriver. "She's quite persistent, you know."

"So am I. And she can't examine me if I'm not at GUN."

Cheese shook his head, "Chao, chao, chao."

"Quite right, Cheese," I put the toolbox down. "Whatever the case, I have to go now. Mister Shadow is expecting me."

"Alright. Thanks again for the help," Tails popped his head out from inside the engine, his hands and face covered in machine oil, but his smile was the biggest I had seen in a long time. "See you tomorrow?"

"Of course!" I grabbed my backpack and waved goodbye, just like Mother taught me to. "Goodbye, Tails!"

"Bye, Cream!"

Cheese chaoed goodbye as I opened the creaky door of Tails' workshop and took a breath of fresh air; I loved coming to help Tails, but after being inside for so long in there, it was nice to be outside again.

I spotted Mother waiting by the sidewalk and waved as I ran up to her. She smiled, but something about it seemed a bit… strained. "Ready to go, dears?"

"Yes, Mother."

"Chao!"

"Excellent," said Mother as she climbed into the front seat, checking to see if Cheese and I were buckled in before pulling away.

"How is Miles doing?" she asked brightly, turning on to the freeway.

"Better," I smiled. "I think he likes when I come to help him. And Cheese and I enjoy it too."

"That's wonderful!" she replied. Her eyes narrowed a bit, "Has he cut his hair yet?"

"Not yet," I said, picking at a bit of lint on my seat. "Today he had to pull it back in a ponytail so it wouldn't get in his eyes. It was really cute."

Mother didn't look too happy about that, but I couldn't understand why. I liked Tails's long hair. It was fun to braid.

"What is Shadow teaching you today?" she asked stiffly, her grip on the wheel tightening just a little.

I paused to remember before answering the question, "I believe he wanted to work on 'takedowns', whatever those are. He says they're really useful in self-defense."

Mother smiled back at me, "That's... good, dear. Self-defense is always a good skill to know." I watched in the rearview mirror as her smile slipped to a worried frown.

I bit down on my lower lip, staring at the floor; I knew Mother was not completely okay with Mister Shadow's training. I overheard a few of the many conversations they had had over the phone before my birthday- I haven't heard Mother sound so angry in… well… a very long time. But they must have agreed to something because Mother had been driving me to and from my training sessions since January.

I smiled at the thought of what I'd be learning today; Mister Shadow was an excellent teacher. He expected nothing less than perfect, but never get angry when I fell short. He simply asked me to repeat the move until he approved. And even though he never smiled, not even once, I couldn't help but think he enjoyed our training sessions just as much as I did.

"We're here, dears." Mother pulled to a stop in front of GUN HQ. "I'll be back in three hours. Enjoy yourself and please be careful."

"I will!" I said as I jumped out of the car, Cheese close behind me. Mister Shadow was waiting inside, hands folded neatly behind his back. "Good afternoon, Cream."

I nodded. "Good afternoon, Mister Shadow."

"Today we will be in training room number one-twenty three. I expect you there in no more than five minutes."

"Yes, sir." I nodded politely, waiting until Mister Shadow teleported away before heading to the locker rooms. "Come along, Cheese!"

I changed from my orange dress into a pair of bike shorts and a plain white tee shirt. Mister Shadow had been quite insistent that I could not learn to fight in a dress, no matter how many times Miss Amy has done it. Less than five minutes later, I stood in the middle of the training room, Cheese fluttering behind me. Mister Shadow was nowhere in sight at the moment, but I had learned more than once that that didn't mean he wasn't there. My instructions for this time was to practice the stretches he had taught me until he arrived. Exactly five-minutes passed and Mister Shadow teleported next to us, waiting to speak until after I got back to my feet.

"Today we will work on bringing your opponents to the ground to properly take them down," he said. "Because of your small size, this is a very important skill to master, as you are unable to take down a larger opponent with just your strength alone. Leverage is key."

Shadow motioned towards the mats. "As such, we will be on the mats today. I will demonstrate the technique before you attempt to perform the move in question. If at any point you are unsure of what to do, please stop and tell me as to prevent any serious injuries. Any questions?"

"No, sir."

"Then begin."

---

I fixed the green bow clipped to my ears and Cheese's new green bowtie before entering headquarters. Mother was wearing her spring green dress today, her smile much, much tighter than usual.

Today was our weekly visit with Mister Sonic. Today was also St. Patrick's Day.

I never expected GUN to decorate for the occasion, but there were green streamers and shamrocks all over the entry hall, along with a big black cauldron in the center of the room filled with chocolate coins.

"Mother, may Cheese and I have a chocolate coin?" I asked.

Mother's smile grew even tighter. "I'm not sure if they are for taking."

"Oh, they're for taking, alright!"

Mister Manic popped up out of nowhere, making Mother jump. He motioned at the candy, grinning brightly. "Want one, Tiny Bruiser?"

I smiled. "Please, Mother?"

Mother hesitated for a moment before giving a nod. Cheese and I hurried over to the pot, took a single coin each, then hurried back.

Mother was talking in lowered tones to Mister Manic, but I heard the last part. "–Tiny Bruiser?"

Mister Manic grinned, "Don't sweat it, Miss Vanilla. I made the mistake of sparring with her one time. Do not recommend it."

I giggled at the memory. Mister Shadow had asked Mister Manic to come help with my training one day. I think Mister Manic had been quite surprised when I performed a perfect takedown.

"One coin! That's all?" Manic shook his head, "Kid, you could have taken way more than that."

"Mother said one," I replied.

She nodded curtly. "Yes, I did."

"Chaos, it's just chocolate. You make cookies with it all the time!"

Mother was now frowning. "Manic. It's a public display. We need to let others have some as well."

Mister Manic shrugged. "Whatever. You like this holiday, Bruiser?"

I shrugged, "I suppose. Mother always makes Irish Soda Bread and we have corned beef and cabbage."

"Soda bread, huh? That sounds amazing," Mister Manic smirked, "Me, I love this holiday 'cuz–" He pinched a GUN soldier who was walking by, making him jump back in bemused surprise. "I'm immune!" He gestured down at his green fur. "Never been so happy to be born looking like the Grinch. No need to worry about getting a pinch!"

"What the– what in Mobius happened here?" cried a very loud, very angry voice from the hallway. General Towers was staring at the decorations, with a puzzled Mister Shadow.

Manic winked at me, "Unfortunately, I'm not immune to the General's lectures, so I gotta go. See ya around, Tiny Bruiser!" And then he ran out of the building.

---

"Focus on your technique, not on your target. A sloppy technique can get you killed quicker than any target could on their own," Mister Shadow instructed from the ground.

I chewed on my lower lip, staring at the obstacles ahead. Today was "flying day," one of my personal favorites (even though my ears were usually sore the next morning). Cheese fluttered on the sidelines, cheering me on; I waved to him before turning back to the course and taking a deep breath.

"Set…" Shadow called up.

Okay, focus. Just a few rings to fly through. Nothing too hard.

"Go!"

In seconds, I was in action, my ears flapping so hard it almost felt like they were buzzing. The first round of hoops were strung up at uneven levels, making me have to fly up and down as I hurried towards the end of the course. The next obstacle was a group of swinging hoops; okay, not bad, just need to be a little more attentive. One of the rings hit my legs, making me drop a few feet, but luckily I recovered quickly.

It was during the last part that it got hard. The rings were floating around in circles and moving much faster. I just barely made it through the first two before getting clipped by the third and thrown off-balance. I bit my lip to keep from crying out, but my flight path was so wobbly I could hardly see where I was going; I missed the fourth ring completely, almost crashing into the fifth.

Then I hit the ground.

After the room stopped spinning, the first thing I noticed was Cheese floating above me, asking if I was okay. I managed to sit up and nod, holding my aching head in my hands. Mister Shadow was standing only a few feet away, looking down at me and scanning me over for any injuries before locking gazes with me.

"What do you think you did wrong?" he asked, blunt as usual.

I chewed on my lower lip, not wanting to look him in the eye. "I… I focused on my target, n-not my technique."

"Correct. Run through it again."

"Yes, sir."

---

Mother had some errands to do before she could pick me up so, after my lesson, I chose to accompany Tails to visit Mister Sonic. He stayed quiet most of the visit, so to fill up the silence I told Mister Sonic all about my training and how cool the new plane looked (I thought I saw Tails smile at that).

"Tails and I have been pretty busy," I continued, tapping my feet against the chair. "I've been helping him put together the inner mechanisms of the plane. It's pretty hard. There are so many things to remember about engines and tools and things like that." I turned to Tails, "How long do you think it'll be until we're finished?"

He shrugged. "Dunno. It really depends on when the rest of the parts I need are delivered. And…" he trailed off, staring off to the side, narrowing his gaze. Tails stood up, staring out the window for a moment.

"Weird…" he mumbled. I tilted my head, feeling confused- until in the corner of my eye, something decidedly Overlander-like caught my attention. What in the world…?

Suddenly, the door to Mister Sonic's hospital room slammed open, making me jump back in surprise. In the doorway stood Dr. Andersen, arms folded over her chest in triumph.

"Well, hello, Tails!" she said, just a little too cheerfully. "Nice to see you here."

Tails's expression soured. "May I help you, doctor?"

"I think we can help each other. If you would be so kind as to step into my office…"

"Oh Chaos, this again?" he groaned, smacking his forehead. "Look, I've said it a million times- I. Am. Fine."

Dr. Andersen smiled. "I'll be the judge of that. Please don't make this difficult."

"You first."

Tails pushed past Dr. Andersen in a huff and had almost made it to the hallway when a flash of green light and noise like the crack of a whip stopped him dead in his tracks; Mister Shadow had appeared out of nowhere, looking stern as usual.

Tails stumbled back, staring at Shadow with a skeptical eye. "What is this?" he demanded, balling his hands into fists. "Shadow, don't tell me she's got you in on this too."

Dr. Andersen stepped forward, adjusting her spectacles. "My office. Now."

"Try and make me, why don't 'cha."

"Alright then, so we're doing this the hard way. Agent Shadow, if you would?"

The color drained from Tails's face. "Shadow, don't you dare–!"

There was another flash of green light and suddenly I was left alone. Tails, Shadow, and Dr. Andersen must have teleported to her office, most likely. I stared out in the hall a moment before turning back around to face Mister Sonic again. Tails would probably come here whenever he managed to escape.

Mister Sonic looked much better than when I had first seen him; A smidge of his color had returned (though he was still a little pale) and a few of the tubes sticking out of his skin had been removed. He still had something monitoring his heartbeat and a standby machine capable of helping him breathe, but he had been breathing just fine on his own for almost three days now.

The doctors were doing all they could and, in my opinion, they were doing quite well. I would have to thank everyone who looked over Mister Sonic and who helped with any input on his recovery. From what Mother had told me, there had been a lot of support from the medical community with Mister Sonic's recovery. Doctors from all over the country had called in or came to give advice and support to the GUN medical support. I hadn't realized until now how much everyone loved and cared about Mister Sonic.

I pulled out a small notebook from my bag, jotting down ideas as they came. Cookies and flowers for all the nurses who helped in the room, definitely… and an especially large cake would do for the head of the GUN medical department, Doctor Nate Morgan, as well as one for Doctor Quack. I had heard that Doctor Quack was being recruited to GUN after all his wonderful help during the Dark situation and on Sonic's recovery.

Food would spoil in the mail, but I would have to send some kind of a card to Doctor Rosalina and his wife, who was a Chaos researcher herself. And of course, Doctor Ellidy in the Kingdom of Acorn. It was only appropriate for the many hours they spent with the staff on video and phone calls.

Maybe Tails would help me in the kitchen. After all, his plane looked almost done (even though he insisted to keep tinkering). It would be a lot of fun for both of us, and a nice change from having to scrub machine grease off my skin every night.

---

I ducked as Shadow attempted to stun me with a chaos spear, getting out of the way just in time. I flipped backward, kicking his hands away, then I tried to punch him in the face. Shadow easily avoided it, stepping to one side before vanishing in a flash of green. I smiled, rolling out of the way as he reappeared above me. Shadow teleported away right before he hit the ground, popping up beside me and swinging his left foot at my head in a powerful roundhouse kick. I dodged, taking the opportunity to elbow him in the ribs before he could get his guard back up.

"Good," he said, pausing for a moment, but his posture said we were not quite done. "You are learning."

"Not really…" I said, biting down on my lower lip. "All I did was predict what you were going to do."

"Learning an opponent's skill set is a valuable asset. It allows you to find their weak points. Now," he said, stepping into a fighting stance. "Identify who your opponent is."

I nodded and Mister Shadow lunged forward; his hands stopped glowing green, but he was moving so fast he was almost a blur. I shot up in the air, flapping out of reach as Shadow circled back around. He ran forward as I landed, ducking low and using his legs to try and sweep my feet out from under me. I jumped back, watching the sweep turn into a full twist as Shadow continued to spin, lifting his feet off the ground, holding himself up with one hand as he shifted into a handstand, flipping through the air over my head and coming down in a spin-dash.

I managed to dodge the first spin-dash, but another one hit me from behind, knocking the wind out of me and sending me toppling to the ground. This style seemed… familiar. I rubbed the back of my head, getting to my feet. "Mister Sonic."

"How do you know that?" Mister Shadow asked.

I thought a moment before answering, "The spin-dash is a dead give away, but I knew as soon as you spun around on the ground with your hands."

"And what is Sonic's fighting style?"

"Um… a lot of speed, and a combination of parkour and breakdancing." I smiled a little at that last part. It was always fun to watch Mister Shadow fight like other people, but the 'dancing' part of Sonic's move set was always my favorite to see. I couldn't wait to see the original in action again.

"Correct," Mister Shadow held up his hands. "One more and we will end for today."

"Yes, sir."

Mister Shadow charged; I ducked, but Mister Shadow snatched me up, flipping me over his shoulder. I kneed him in the face, twisting his elbow backwards to force him to drop me, then rolled out of the way as he tried to punch me in the stomach. Once I was on my feet, I immediately had to start blocking and dodging blows; Mister Shadow was constantly changing stances and positions, hammering me with a nonstop barrage of strikes. Some were standard punches, but some were attempts at takedowns or aiming for pressure points. Whatever it was, it was wild– and kind of scary.

I tried to fly upwards to get a better position, but Mister Shadow jumped up, grabbing my legs and pulling me back to the ground; I rolled backwards to my feet, quickly raising my fists to protect my head. Shadow drew a knife (it was rubber) and dashed forward, slashing at me in every direction. I yelped, trying to block the blade from striking me but felt several stings on my stomach, arms, and legs, and one along my neck.

A powerful knee to the chest threw me to the ground and Mister Shadow was suddenly on top of me, the tip of the knife held just under my chin. He stayed frozen for a moment before setting down the knife, holding out a hand to help me up. "Who was it?"

"Um…" I frowned, waiting for my pounding heart to slow down. "I don't think you've used that one before."

Mister Shadow nodded. "Correct."

"Well then, who was it?" I asked, feeling lost.

"Who do you think it was?" He shot back, a questioning look in his eyes.

I frowned, thinking hard. His movements were quick, but honestly rather sloppy in technique. He seemed to have been relying mostly on speed and power. He was using a knife, which implied some weapon training, but I knew for a fact that Mister Shadow also had a rubber gun on him, but he never even tried to use it. No firearms then. Mister Knuckles was the most likely candidate, but I had already been shown his technique, plus Mister Shadow didn't just focus on fists– there were a few techniques thrown in that I recognized from a handful of different styles, but the focus was all over the place. Everything was scattered and chaotic with little to no pattern. Random to the point where I had no clue what they'd do next.

"...Mister Manic?" I asked hesitantly.

Shadow's expression never wavered. "Is that a question or a statement?"

I chewed on my lower lip, willing myself to force some sense of confidence into my voice. "Mister Manic."

Shadow stayed completely motionless for a second, hardly seeming to breathe as he stared down at me.

And then he did something I never expected.

He smiled. "Correct."

It was small, but it was definitely a smile. And it wasn't anything forced, or sarcastic, but a smile, a real smile! Despite myself, I grinned, feeling so proud I thought I was going to burst.

In moments, Mister Shadow returned to his normal stoic look, ordering me to go change before my mother arrived. I obeyed, but the brief image of his smile remained in the back of my mind.

There was a skip in my step as I made my way back to the locker rooms; Mister Shadow had never smiled. I'd seen him smirk before, but that wasn't the same. And with everything that had happened to him, I never thought it odd that he didn't ever seem to be in a very happy mood. But somehow, I had made him smile! Me!

And if I could make him smile once, why couldn't I do it again?

---

"I think they look nice, Tails." Mother coaxed. "They're very distinguishing."

"They... are so… uncomfortable!" Tails grumbled, fingering his newest gadget in his life.

I smirked as I mixed the cookie dough batter. "Why don't you just use contacts?"

"I would, but apparently I'm allergic to whatever they make the lenses out of, so now I'm stuck with these for the rest of my life!" he groaned, pointing to the horn-rimmed glasses sitting atop his nose.

Mother shook her head sternly. "Be grateful that Dr. Andersen ran those tests, Tails. It's a miracle you didn't get yourself killed, what with you tinkering around with your machines all day. Imagine trying to land that plane of yours with that blurry vision."

Tails moaned into his hands. "Don't even go there. I hear enough from Sonia and Knuckles about that."

According to the doctor, Tails was apparently very nearsighted and had probably been for a pretty long time. So much so, she had banned him from his toolkit until his prescription was filled because she was trying to figure out how he hadn't accidentally sawed off a finger sometime in these past few months.

"Well, at least the headaches have stopped, right?" I smiled. "Oh, and should I do semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips?"

Tails considered the chocolate first, "Doesn't really matter. They're practically the same thing."

"Both it is!"

"And second of all," Tails leaned back in the kitchen chair, "The headaches are only slightly getting better. Doctor Andersen said that my eyes have to get used to wearing glasses, like that makes sense–"

"How long have your eyes been like this?" Mother asked.

Tails shrugged, "The doctors are thinking that my vision started deteriorating sometime before Dark was defeated. As to the why… the jury's still out on that. Knuckles thinks it's from my apparent 'death'– which never happened, by the way– and Sonia and Amy are thinking genetics, but Manic thinks it's, like, stress or something. Heck if I know and heck if I care."

Mother frowned at that comment but stayed quiet as she passed me the cookie sheet. I began to scoop the dough on it as Tails watched.

"So Miles," Mother asked her tone unusually light. "When are you going to cut your hair?"

Tails frowned, fingering the long strands of fur on his head that were tied back in his now-standard ponytail. "Why would I need to do that?"

"It's just so…" Mother started, narrowing her eyes. "...messy."

Tails shrugged. "I like it. And Manic thinks it's cool."

I turned away to hide my smile. Mother had been bringing up the haircut to me every day since the ponytail started. I hadn't seen the issue. Glad to see I wasn't the only one who didn't find a problem with it.

"Manic has very… strange tastes." Mother replied, pursing her lips.

"I like my hair." said Tails defiantly. "It's the only thing about me that actually looks cool– especially since I have to wear these now." Tails made a face, going cross-eyed to glower down at his glasses.

"I think they look cute," I said, putting the cookies in the oven. When I turned back around, Tails's eyes had widened, and his cheeks had gone pink. I frowned, "Is it too hot in here with the oven, Tails? I can turn up the AC."

"Uh– what?" said Tails, jumping out of his seat. "No! I-I'm just– I'll- I- yeah, I-I could use some, um... fresh air. Yeah. I'll, uh… I'll be back in a minute!" He hurried out of the room, shutting the door just a little too quickly.

I frowned. "Did I say something wrong?"

Mother was smiling. "No dear, he just… needs some air."

"Okay," I turned to Cheese. "Let's start on those thank-you cards!"

"Chao!"

---

Shadow's POV:

I was surprised to find Vanilla alone in Sonic's room. She held a handkerchief in one hand, which she used to wipe the tears that were falling steadily from her eyes. "–and that hair… no matter what I say to him, he refuses to do anything respectable with it. I… I'm just worried about him. Miles is a good boy, but… he misses you so much. He needs his older brother. Just–" She leaned over and squeezed one of Sonic's hands. "Wake up soon, okay?"

Vanilla stood up, turning to the door. It was only then she noticed me. Her expression flashed from sad to suppressed anger. She nodded politely "Shadow."

"Miss Vanilla." I nodded back.

"How long have you been there?"

"Barely a minute."

"Ah." Vanilla fingered her handkerchief, twisting it around her fingers then unwinding it. "I didn't expect to see you here."

I did not respond, choosing to change the subject, "Where is Cream?"

A flash of aggravation graced the rabbit's face before returning to a polite neutral expression. "At home. She and Miles are working in the garden with Amy."

I nodded, silent. We stood there for a moment, the silence growing tenser by the second. Vanilla shifted to the side, refusing to make eye contact. I sat down in the chair next to her, feeling like I ought to say something.

"You… you are angry with me because of my participation in Cream's training," I said, folding my hands in my lap. "Correct?"

Vanilla's lips grew tighter, glancing at me from the side. She took a deep breath before answering, her tone clearly strained, "Now why would you think that?"

"You seem..." I started, unsure of how to phrase it. "Agitated."

Vanilla stood up suddenly, her fists shaking. "What do you expect from me?" she shouted, much louder than I had thought her capable. "I am her mother! Do you really think I want my baby girl out on the streets fighting Chaos-knows what kind of people? She is twelve years old for heaven's sake, and she's experienced more than enough violence in her life! I was alright with you training her when Robotnik was around because it was only self-defense, but this– this is not okay!"

Angry tears were streaming down her cheeks, but she wasn't done. "And you! You're only fueling this… this… death wish with your training! I know what sort of things you're teaching her! And I am not okay with it!"

"Might I remind you," I replied coldly, "That you agreed to Cream's training. If you wish, I can have the General bring down the paperwork that you signed of your own free will only a month ago, which gives your permission for Cream to train under me."

Vanilla slammed her foot against the floor, sending a hollow thud through the room, "Cream was immovable and refused to take no for an answer. All because she has this ridiculous desire to be in the thick of the action, thanks to your influence over all these years!"

"You think this is my fault?" I asked, slowly getting to my feet. "You think I am the reason Cream wants to train?"

"She asked for you specifically!"

"Because she knows me!" I bellowed loud enough to make Vanilla take a step back. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath before continuing, my voice dropping to a softer tone. "Miss Vanilla, I understand your concern. But you must understand that this is not on me. Not completely."

I walked over to the window, staring out into the fading twilight. "Cream has watched for over seven years as her friends– her family– have gone out and fought for what they knew was right. She has snuck out to be a part of the fight, not because any of us asked her, but because she chose to.

"I agreed to train Cream because if I had not, then some stranger from GUN would be doing it. I know what she can take. Cream is stronger than she looks and is a natural fighter. She learns quickly and is able to adapt to her situation. With a few years of proper training, she could surpass Sonic himself."

"She doesn't have super speed!" Vanilla argued. "She doesn't have any powers at all- she's not like the rest of you!"

"One does not need superpowers to be a hero." I shot back. "If you wish to pull her out, go speak to General Towers. He will understand and I will not hold it against you. She is your daughter, and if you truly believe that this is wrong for her, I will respect your decision with no argument. But I will leave it to you to explain to Cream that she cannot be allowed to do what she loves and knows to be right because you are afraid."

Vanilla opened her mouth, but no sound came out. She closed it abruptly, turning on her heel and marching out of the room, leaving me with a beeping heart monitor and a comatose hedgehog.

I walked back to my chair and sat down, resting my face in my hands. It had been a long day.

---

As soon as the General and I walked out onto GUN's east lawn, I felt the urge to run back inside.

"General Towers! General Towers!"

"General! General!"

"Over here, General!"

I tried not to pay attention to the flashing lights as dozens of cameras took photo after photo of General Towers. He ignored them, heading up the stairs to the waiting podium. I trailed behind, noticing a few brave souls who dared to take a photo but otherwise chose to ignore them. I stood to the right of the General, falling into loose attention, scanning the area for any sort of threat. Not that I expected one; with Robotnik out of the picture, there was little anyone could do that would be considered a threat against me.

To most people, the General looked as calm and collected as ever, but I could sense the exhaustion in his eyes as he swept his gaze over the army of reporters. "Please be seated. I will answer questions after the briefing."

A few reporters shouted out questions regarding rumors of this and that, but with no answers, they eventually sat down. With the crowd finally silent (or as silent as they could be), the General opened his binder and began to read aloud.

"On June twenty-first of last year, Dr. Ivo Robotnik launched a devastating attack against Team Sonic involving several of his Metal series duplicate robots. The resulting battle ended when Robotnik successfully kidnapped Sonic the Hedgehog. In the following months, we were unable to locate either Agent Sonic or Robotnik, despite our best efforts."

I kept my expression stoic, staring out to the back of the crowd, where hundreds of civilians had gathered to hear the briefing live. Not like it would do them much good- the lie was designed to be just as convincing in person as it would be on television.

"During that time, Agent Sonic was detained and tortured by Robotnik, unable to escape despite his best efforts," Towers continued. "In the following July, shortly after Robotnik's devastating attack on Station Square, we at GUN recruited two Mobian psychics to help locate either Robotnik's base or Agent Sonic. With their assistance, we were able to locate Agent Sonic roughly around last August."

The General took a breath, turning the page. "We prepared to launch a rescue mission, but it became complicated when a new and improved Metal Sonic interfered. This Metal successfully incapacitated Agent Shadow, leaving him on the doors of death. Thanks to his efforts, our top men were able to escape with their lives, but we were unable to recover Agent Sonic."

All the reporters were furiously scribbling away on their notepads, some glancing at me. Probably looking for any signs that I suffered any dramatic injuries. Idiots.

The General continued, "An attempt to capture Dr. Robotnik was made during the following October, which, as most of you know, went horribly wrong as his Metal Sonic went rogue, bringing down the entire building on our men and his creator. Robotnik's body was recovered from the wreckage only a few hours later. GUN lost twenty-two brave men and women that day.

"During the following weeks, GUN tracked Metal Sonic as he searched the globe for Chaos Emeralds. However, no official attempts were made to apprehend him by GUN. On October twenty-eighth, a full assault was made against Metal Sonic. The conflict resulted in Metal's defeat and the rescue of Agent Sonic. Unfortunately, during the time he was detained, Agent Sonic suffered several life-threatening injuries which has caused him to slip into a coma. He is currently in the GUN hospital's urgent care unit in a comatose state. We have had support sent from all over the globe to help with Sonic's condition, and we thank anyone who has contributed to his recovery," General Towers snapped his binder shut. "Agent Shadow and I will now take any questions."

The press pit exploded as reporters shot to their feet, shouting for the General's attention. I did not bother to pay much attention; reporters were all the same. Besides- I already knew how the General was going to answer.

It was an overlander woman in the back who started the chaos. "This question is for Agent Shadow," she exclaimed. I turned towards her; this ought to be interesting. "How exactly did this Metal overpower you?"

I clenched my teeth. "That information is classified."

Those few words let loose a flood; cameras began to flash from every direction and the noise was nigh unbearable. A mobian wolf shot up his hand and shouted, "Agent Shadow, did it have something to do with the Chaos Emeralds?"

"Again, classified."

"How long were you in recovery, Agent Shadow?" called out a man from the front.

Before I could respond, somewhere in the middle came another shout. "Agent Shadow, were you involved in the last battle with Metal?"

I had barely opened my mouth before another barrage of questions were fired, giving me no chance to answer and no way to see who asked them as my eyes flicked back and forth, the flashes growing brighter and more irritating by the second.

"What sort of injuries did you sustain, Agent Shadow?"

"Agent Shadow, care to comment on the rumor about you training a protege?"

"The rumor is that it's Cream the Rabbit! Care to comment, Agent Shadow?"

"–why were you put in charge of her training?"

"Is Cream being poised to become the next member of Team Dark?"

"With Robotnik gone, what are Team Dark's plans for future missions?"

"Agent Shadow–"

"Shadow! What-?"

"Where were you during-?"

"Agent Shadow!"

"Shadow!"

General Towers put his hands up in an attempt to stop them, "One at a time! One at a–!"

The press ignored him, continuing to demand answers about Cream, any emotions I might be feeling regarding Robotnik's death, my recovery from the initial beatdown, what exactly I was, the ARC, the Black Arms, and on and on and on.

This must be how it felt to be completely powerless. I just stood there, blinking, eyes flicking from reporter to reporter and trying to keep my expression neutral as question after question came along with the flashes and clicks of photos flooding the stage.

"No more questions!"

I flinched as a hand clapped on my shoulder; the General pulled me back, beckoning me to get off the stage. Nothing in the world sounded better.

---

"I'm sorry, Shadow, I didn't think–"

"You did not think that the first time I make a public appearance during a GUN press conference I would be attacked with questions?" I growled, slamming the door to his office. "Tell me, General, what exactly did you expect?"

Towers exhaled slowly, sinking into his chair. "I needed you to verify anything I said about the briefing. This whole Dark debacle has been classified from the highest authority. But as nosy as the press are and with all the rumors floating around, I thought it best to lay them all to rest and give them a… believable story."

I motioned to the television screen, currently flashing clips of the highlights of the conference. "I would say they believed you. But I do not see why I was required to be there."

He clenched his jaw, folding his hands in front of him. "Public opinion has been in decline for months now, and the people need to see a hero. Normally, I'd ask Sonic to do something, but… you know."

I nodded, crossing my arms. Towers shook his head. "Knuckles tries to kill the press every other week, especially since Sonia is now in the public eye. Miles is under far too much stress already, Rouge purposely insults every reporter she meets, and no one knows who Manic is yet, let alone cares."

I frowned. "And Rose?"

Towers smiled weakly. "I asked her first. She claimed to be busy today, looking into possible locations for her restaurant. Besides, I'd wager most of the press would just ask about the nature of her and Sonic's…*ahem*, relationship."

I nodded, glancing back at the silent television. A news anchor was talking about my supposed reaction to the question about Cream (I blinked because five cameras in the front row went off at once) and her training.

"What about Cream?"

General Towers sighed pinching his nose, "I'll run interference. Once we get Vanilla's signed permission, you'll just teleport to her house, bring her here, then teleport her home when you've finished training for the day. That should help dispel any unpleasant rumors. I will also remind the press about the restraining orders Vanilla has previously filed. And maybe a public statement from you would… encourage them to look the other way."

I smirked. "I take it you have done this before."

"Too many times…" Towers leaned back, his expression suddenly turning somber. "I'm not getting any younger, Shadow. This Dark situation… it's taken a lot out of me."

I raised an eyebrow but chose not to comment. There must have been a hint of surprise in my gaze because Towers chuckled. "Don't get me wrong. I've still got a few years left, but… the time is coming to hang up these stars."

"Er… we will miss you, sir," I said evenly, beginning to feel rather awkward.

Towers smiled. "Well, I need to find a successor. Any ideas, Agent Shadow?"

I pondered that question for a moment. "Lieutenant Martin is a good man."

"Indeed he is," Towers nodded slowly, "But I think you missed the point."

My brow furrowed and I cocked my head to the side in a silent question.

General Towers chuckled, "You've come a long way since we first met, Shadow. This Dark debacle has shown me exactly how far… which is why I've chosen to promote you to the rank of Captain."

For the second time today, I found myself unable to speak.

"S-sir?" I asked, bewildered. "That… that is a promotion of three levels."

General Towers smirked. "And?"

"I...I can't accept that."

He shook his head, "Honestly, I should have promoted you a long time ago, Shadow. The truth of the matter is you've been serving as a Captain for the past several months in everything but title. I'm just making it official." Towers frowned, "I would have made you a Commander, but my superiors overturned me." He leaned back his smile returning, "And if everything works out, in a few years, I don't think I'll have to look far for a successor."

"I…" I stammered, feeling a smile creep up on my face. "I don't know what to say, General."

Towers smiled, getting to his feet, "Say, 'thank you, General Towers', and shake my hand."

"I… Thank you, General," I took his outstretched hand. "For everything."

---

April

Manic's POV:

I jolted upright, gasping for air like I was drowning. I wanted to scream, but my throat had closed up around itself; where was I? Help, I needed help, please, somebody–

(–inky black fog too thick to see through, standing on a surface that was closer to mist than solid ground, can't feel, can't hear, can't see–)

After a minute, my eyes began to adjust to the darkness; oh, yeah. The van.

(–smoke curling into a grin, a laugh, getting louder, louder, too loud, won't shut up, never shuts up, can't hide, trapped, I'm trapped–)

The woosh of traffic and distant wailing of a police siren interrupted my thoughts; even late at night, the city was awake and active. I was grateful– it was something to focus on, or at least something to act as a distraction.

My quills were damp with a cold sweat and my heart was beating so fast it felt like it was buzzing. With trembling hands, I pulled the blanket off me, swinging my legs over the side of my bed and burying my face in my hands. Come on dude, breathe, it was just a dream, breathe… I closed my eyes, which was a mistake; all I saw were vivid swirls of memory, flashing haphazardly to the forefront of my mind. Stop it, don't think about that, it's over now, it's over…

(–a snap like a gunshot–her neck bent at an unnatural angle and red with the marks of where his fingers had been–Dark's face, grinning with satisfaction–not Sonia, not again, take me–)

(–"So this is all it took to break you? Is that how weak you are?"–)

I gritted my teeth and slapped myself across the face. Stop it. Stop it.

I glanced over at the alarm clock; two thirty-five in the morning. Daylight wouldn't be coming for a while. I sighed, pressing my face against the window; it was cold, and the light from the neon sign across the street hurt my eyes, but none of that was enough to convince me to go back to sleep.

I reached down under my bed (or more accurately, the backseat) and pulled out the cooler, popping open a can of soda and downing half of it in one gulp. The nightmares were supposed to be getting less frequent- or at least that's what the internet and self-help books had told me. But if anything, they were only happening more these days- I wasn't sure how much more I could take. Sonia had suggested a while ago that I talk to one of the GUN therapists. I suggested that she jump in a lake. I was starting to regret that now.

Maybe she was up…

No, that was stupid. Who was up at two-thirty in the morning? (besides me.)

I stared down at my dark, blank phone screen, hands trembling; maybe just one text… to see if Sonia was awake. Couldn't hurt to try.

The image of Sonia's all-too-familiar expression of annoyance popped into my head, and I set down my phone; yeah, it could hurt to try. It could hurt a lot.

I wasn't stupid. I knew everyone thought I was a total moron, and yeah, maybe that was to be expected with what a spaz I had been lately. But y'know what? Maybe I needed to be a spaz. Maybe I couldn't handle being serious, because being serious means accepting reality, and if I ever have to accept the reality of what's going on, I'll…I think I'll snap. I can't deal with reality, not this one at least. I don't want to.

Reality is hard and cold and unforgiving, it's knowing that everyone's already made up their minds that I'm a hopeless mess of a person, and maybe they're right, and maybe I'll never change, maybe I'll wake up one day to find that everyone has finally gotten sick of me being so weird and has left me behind. Maybe I deserve that.

(–ears were ringing, dark spots dancing across my vision, blotting out the battlefield till everything was black… a blinding light piercing through me like a knife… it hurt, it hurt, but I wanted to get closer, why did I want to get closer–)

(–faces, so many faces, faces I didn't recognize whispering to themselves, staring down at me with some mixture of pity and disgust… I wanted to disappear, to be a speck, to fade into nothing, anything, anything would be better than this… the faces were sending me away, sending me down, I didn't want to go down, please don't make me, please–)

–that's enough.

I didn't wanna think like this. I didn't like thinking like this. It was too much like having Dark in my head.

Okay, Maniac, don't be a doofus, think about this logically. No one's gonna ditch me, they're my friends! Friends who are going through the same thing I am with Maurice, only ten times worse because they actually knew him.

Get over yourself, quit thinking like this, you're not the only one who's hurting–

I grabbed hold of my soda and downed the rest of it, grinning as I felt the carbonation burn in my throat. If I could make someone smile, or laugh, even just for a second, it would be okay.

Everything would be okay.

---

Maybe it was 'cuz of last night's nightmares, but I figured it would be nice to invite Sonia to visit Maurice with me. We didn't do that together very often, to be honest. It was easier to pretend that Sonia and I were twins like we had been doing since we were six, and the whole triplet thing is hard to forget and when one of you has been lying in a coma for months on end.

The last time we went in together, we spent most of the time holding his hand and praying that he'd do something, anything. I'd take a twitch at this point. All we got was that infuriating beeping of the heart monitor.

Sonia and I didn't say much on our way over. There wasn't much to talk about or much point in vocalizing it. I already knew everything she was thinking and… well, she knew in that annoying sister way. I was expecting the familiar sight of the bed, the lifeless brother, and the chaos-cursed heart monitor. They hadn't budged, but I wasn't expecting to see Tails.

He was slumped over in his seat, fast asleep; apparently, he had crashed here last night or maybe he'd just come early and decided on a nap. His head was resting in his arms, snoring softly. Dark circles ran under his eyes from not sleeping and his glasses had slid halfway off his face, and his hair was a snarled mess. I only had to focus on him for a second before his unconscious emotions hit me like a ton of bricks.

(–hopeless, hopeless, no way to help him, nothing I can do, useless, can't do anything right, can't stay, can't, can't, useless, useless–)

I frowned, pursing my lips; oh, Tails...

Sonia frowned slightly at the sight, "You think he's okay?" she asked.

I shook my head. "No. He's not."

"Oh," Sonia's gaze flicked between the fox and myself, "So… should I give you two some space while you deal with it?"

I blinked a few times, a prick of annoyance stirring in my stomach. "Uh… I mean, I could, but I think we should both do it."

"Why?" Sonia cocked her head to the side, frowning slightly.

I sighed, motioning to the fox. "Because he doesn't just need jokes and smiles. He also needs your annoying sisterly self."

"Wow, really feeling the love here."

"What? It's true. You might be a good influence on him," I smirked, nudging her with my elbow. "Come on, be a good sister."

Sonia rolled her eyes, a dry smile playing at the end of her lips. "Oh, ha-ha, you're hilarious. But I'm not his sister."

I paused.

"Hallway. Now."

Sonia raised an eyebrow but followed me out.

I hadn't really noticed that my sister was practically indifferent to Tails throughout this entire situation- no, that was a lie. I had chosen to ignore my sister's indifference to him. Maybe it was the way we'd been raised or maybe Sonia was just a jerk, but something about the whole 'adopted brother of Sonic' thing obviously hadn't sunk in. To her, Tails was just… there. She didn't see him as her adopted brother. I doubted she even saw him as a friend.

And that needed to stop. Right now.

I shut the door behind me, turning to face her. "What in the name of Chaos is wrong with you?"

Sonia blinked. "What do you mean?"

"Are you seriously this dense?" I folded my arms, eyes narrowing, "Tails is Maurice's brother."

Sonia nodded slowly, crossing her arms. "Yeah, got that... what does that have to do with anything?"

"Sonia Aleena Hedgehog, I am going to kill you with my bare hands." I seethed, pinching the bridge of my nose. "We might be Maurice's blood relatives, but there is way more to family than just that. Tails has known Sonic longer than both of us and was closer to him than we'll probably ever be. Heck, we haven't had a proper conversation with Maurice since we were six." I paused, letting myself take a breather. "Think about how much we're hurting, then like, multiply that by twenty. He's feeling so much worse than we are, so please- have some sympathy for the kid."

She still looked confused. "Manic, what are you talking about? Of course, I feel bad for him. I mean, he just lost his best friend—"

"Brother," I corrected, feeling the knot in my stomach tighten.

"Same difference."

"No, different difference. That's why it's called a difference. And don't give me that look. I know what you're thinking."

"Oh, and what's that?" she snapped, her voice growing icy.

I pointed at the room, "You don't see them as brothers. If anything, you see them as just really good friends. But you don't see- no, you can't see how people who aren't related through blood could possibly care for each other enough to be a family. Am I wrong?"

Sonia opened her mouth to contradict me, but no sound came out. She looked down, finally showing some shame, "No." A small smile appeared, "Manic, it's nothing against Tails. I think he's really cool and really sweet. But… I don't know, it's hard to explain." Another shrug, "I've tried to understand. I've really tried, I swear. But… I don't know."

My anger died a little. I motioned towards the door, "I'm not saying you have to completely understand. But I am asking you to be… open. Tails needs Sonic… and he can't be here." I took her hand, "But we can. It's not going to be easy at first, but I need… I need you to be his sister, Sonia."

Sonia blinked a few times, chewing her lower lip. "Manic, I don't think that's a good—"

"It's going to be weird for both of you," I smiled, "And it's not going to work out immediately. Don't push it on him and he won't push it on you," My smile died. "Sonia… it's what he needs right now. He feels like an outsider. He feels like… like when Sonic wakes up he's going to lose him to us. The only thing that's going to convince him otherwise is Maurice's own voice. We can't give him that… but we can give him ours." I sighed. "If not for Tails, do it for me?"

That definitely got Sonia's attention. Her eyes flicked to the door, taking a deep breath, "Alright. I'll try to… have another… brother."

I squeezed her shoulder. "Thank you."

---

"Hey buddy, you need to wake up," I gently pushed at Tails' arm.

The fox grunted, shifting a little in his sleep.

Somewhere behind me, Sonia was standing and watching, clearly feeling awkward. It had taken five minutes to convince her to join me in the 'cheer up Tails' train. But Chaos, she was gonna start acting like an actual sister to this kid, even if it killed me.

Cuz' if anyone deserved it, Tails did.

"Come on, wake up." I poked him harder. "Or I'm gonna eat all of Cream's cookies in your bag."

That seemed to get his attention. Tails' hand instinctively shot forward towards his bag, snatching it up and hugging it to his chest.

"Manic..?" he murmured, eyelids fluttering open as he adjusted his glasses. "...'issat you?"

"No, it's Mickey Mouse," I said, perking up my voice to something nasally and high-pitched. "Hot dog!"

Tails rolled his eyes, clearly annoyed. Groaning, he sat up and looked around the room, his gaze pausing briefly on Sonic before darting to the clock. "How long was I out?"

"Dunno," I shrugged, pulling up an empty chair. "We just got here. Right, Sonia?" I asked, turning to her with a stern look. Tails' gaze flicked to her, looking curious.

Sonia froze for a moment before giving a stiff wave. "Yep. Just got here."

Tails didn't seem impressed, instead, turning his attention back to Sonic. Sonia stood there for a second before grabbing a chair, starting to move it next to me. Oh no, she wasn't getting off that easy. I cleared my throat, flicking my head in Tails' direction.

Sonia sighed, rolling her eyes in annoyance, but I figured she got the point when she placed her chair on Tails' left. He didn't seem to notice the interaction, laser-focused on our unconscious brother.

"How's he doing?" I asked gently.

"Well, um… he seems to be breathing easier." Tails said half-heartedly. "But other than that… nothing's changed." His expression turned sour. "Why won't he just wake. Up."

"Maybe he needs true love's kiss or something," I smirked. "Think Amy's game for it?"

Tails glared at me, pursing his lips in disapproval. I shrank back a bit, inwardly cringing; Okay, bad joke. Changing the subject.

"So how's the paint job for the plane coming?" I asked, trying to sound as casual as possible. "You going with the ghost flames? Cuz' I still think that'll look sick."

Tails' lower lip began to tremble, his glasses getting misty as tears started dripping down his cheeks. Oh, no. Nice going, Manic. Good job. You broke the kid.

The tears stopped quickly as Tails shoved them back down, or at least tried to. Every once in a while, one would escape, sliding down his cheek and onto the floor. His voice was shaking, barely a whisper. "I… I can't…"

"Can't what?" I smirked, forcing a grin, "Pass a vision exam? That's why you got the glasses."

Sonia shot daggers at me with her eyes, her message clear; Are you stupid or just being a jerk?

Probably both.

Tails was shaking with sobs, gasping for air. "I… I can't, I can't paint it, I… we have to… we... " he choked out, clenching his fists. "It's… it's our thing. I can't just paint it wi-without him, he has to… but he's… I…" His voice dissolved into wet, quivering hiccoughs, teardrops blotting the frames of his glasses and dripping onto the floor.

I put a tentative hand on his shoulder; he flinched for second before relaxing leaning onto my side. "Hey, hey…" I said softly, lightly squeezing his arm. "I didn't mean anything by that, you don't have to paint it. I'm sure Maur- Sonic will appreciate you waiting for him."

Tails shook his head, his voice suddenly rising in volume. "Don't you get it?" Tails choked, biting down on his lip. "He's not—! He's… he isn't waking up!"

Wowzers, Maniac, you're on a roll today. "Hey, don't say that! That ain't… he'll be okay, you know he will—"

"No, I don't!" he shouted, pushing my hand off his shoulder. "I don't know anything, nobody knows anything, which means nobody can do anything, which means no one can help him, which means Sonic is—"

His voice caught in his throat, dissipating into a strangled mess of sobs. I reached out a tentative hand; he slapped it away, muttering strings of incomprehensible gibberish. After a few minutes, he began to quiet down somewhat, wrapping his arms around his stomach like a desperate hug.

I didn't have to look at Sonia to know she felt very awkward watching the fox's breakdown. Well, she'd just have to suck it up- if there was any time that Tails needed us, it was now. I tried to reach out to Tails again and, to my surprise, he didn't push me away. I pulled the fox into a hug, resting his head on my shoulder and arms wrapped around. "I know, buddy," I mumbled into his ear, "I know."

Sonia sat stiffly, hands folded tensely in her lap. I jerked my head in Tail's direction, silently telling Sonia to get her rear in gear; Sonia rolled her eyes up at the ceiling before placing a hand on Tails' shoulder.

"Why. Won't. He. Wake. UP?" Tails murmured. "He… he promised…" Another round of sobs broke out, thoroughly soaking my vest and fur.

Okay, Maniac, the moment of truth. I closed my eyes, concentrating on whatever was going on through Tails' mind. What I got was… more than I expected. At first, it was the usual whirlwind of emotions and memories blended together haphazardly in the strange way brains usually go about organizing memories. Focus, focus… I dialed further in until I was behind Tails' eyes, tuned in to every scrap of emotion, every flicker of memory he still had inside him…

---

Waking up alone after being kidnapped by Robotnik for the first time had been hard. Especially when Maurice hadn't been there. After everything that had happened, after all they'd been through together, he'd still left me. Again.

Out of nowhere, an earsplitting boom jolted me forward; the door slammed opened- a weary-looking blue hedgehog walked in, his face splitting into the largest grin the I had ever seen; was he saying something? Whatever it was, it wasn't registering properly.

I dived forward, tackling Sonic in a bear hug; every part of me was shaking so hard I thought I was going to explode; I felt the tears streaming down my face, stinging my eyes, my heart was pounding, Sonic was here, he hadn't left me, he was here, he was here...

"Woah! Easy there, Miles!" said Sonic, "Why are you crying?" His arms wrapped around me, but it didn't do much to stop the flow of tears. "Miles, what's wrong?"

The words felt stuck in my throat like shards of glass. "I- I- I th-thought you had le-left again."

A moment passed before a sudden increase of pressure made it a little harder to breathe, but I didn't care. Sonic was there, he was right there. He hadn't left me, he hadn't ditched me, he was–

"Never again." Sonic mumbled, barely audible. And yet… there was something in them. Something I couldn't place.

I pulled away, feeling a bubble of panic begin to rise in my chest. "What?"

The hedgehog didn't respond at first, bending down to meet my eye level. "Miles… Do you trust me?"

"...Yes."

"Then trust me when I say this; I'm not going to leave you ever again. I promise."

The panic in my chest evaporated, replaced by an overwhelming sense of joy. Sonic was staying– there was an understanding now. A promise.

I rested my head on Maurice's shoulder, smiling to myself. "I've kinda always wanted a brother."

The hedgehog went stiff for a moment and a spike of fear shot through my veins; what wrong? Was it something I said? Why was he–

Sonic relaxed, the tension dissipating as he sat there in silence. And there was… something wet. Liquid. Salty. I looked up, surprised to find silent tears dripping down Sonic's face.

"Maurice? Are… are you okay?"

"Y–Yeah. I'm fine… little brother."

---

My eyes flew open as I gasped for breath; air. I needed air, why hadn't I been breathing? I'd almost never gone that deep before–

Their conversation echoed in my head, half-blurred images flashing in and out of view. Sonic had never been the type to say things he didn't mean. He'd been that way since we were kids. Never minced words. Never tried to twist a story, just flat honesty. It was something that I had never been able to do but had grown to sort of respect. Whatever he had said to Tails back then… he must have meant it.

At some point, Sonia had stood up and was now behind Tails' chair, her hands resting gently on his shoulders. She still looked a little uncomfortable, but I sensed a touch of concern lurking below the surface, no matter how much Sonia tried to deny it. I mouthed a thank you to her, before focusing on Tails again.

He was trembling, his face pale; something about him gave me the impression that he wasn't all there, so to speak. Maybe it had something to do with his breakdown, but I must've gone deeper than I thought.

A little voice in the back of my head told me that I was crazy, but I had already decided I wasn't going to go nearly as deep this time. Reaching forward, I pressed a finger to Tails' forehead, shutting my eyes and allowing myself to meld back into the fox's mind.

(–Maurice has siblings, why didn't he tell me, he could've just told me, it isn't fair–)

(–Sonic is gone, he's gone, he's not coming back, nothing can bring him back–)

(–what even am I to him anymore, replacement, just a replacement for Sonia and Manic, nothing is real, lies, everything's lies, how could I have been so stupid–)

My eyes fluttered open; a sick feeling settling in the pit of my stomach. Oh, Chaos...

I squeezed him tighter as the color began to return to his face, "Tails…" I sighed, "Miles."

Tails looked up in surprise, looking taken aback.

That didn't stop me. "Look, no matter what happens, you will always be his brother. You're… you're a part of this family. Not a replacement. Not someone who is going to be abandoned at the drop of a hat. You're our brother."

Tails didn't respond, but Sonia did. "Manic and I… we're here for you. Okay?" she stuttered, her grip on Tails' shoulder tightening. "I… I can't promise I'll understand. But I can promise to listen… and to try."

Tails' tears still fell, but they were slowing, his breathing stabilizing. I ruffled his hair, a smile gracing my face. "Yeah, I've…" I hesitated for a second before shoving the feeling aside. "I've kinda always wanted a little brother."

Fresh tears welled up in Tails' eyes and I felt like smacking myself. Why did I say that? Why did I say that? Stupid, stupid...

I felt a sudden pressure around my middle; Tails had latched back onto my side, and while he wasn't done crying, I caught a glimpse of the slight smile playing at his lips.

Well, I'll be.

---

Tails' POV:

April sixteenth.

Nine-seventeen in the morning.

Sonic woke up.

I would know. I was there.

Over the past several days, Sonic had been stirring. I had been trying not to get my hopes up, but every day, I was sitting at his bedside, just… waiting. Chaos must have been feeling kind and let me be there when he finally opened his eyes.

Or maybe Chaos was just being cruel.

For a second I thought it was just a trick of the light, but Sonic's hands… his hands… they were twitching. I felt my mouth going dry as a soft moan escaped his lips; I grabbed his hand in mine, a burst of hope flaring up inside me despite my best efforts to shove it down.

"Hey! HEY, DOCTOR!" I shouted. "Doctor Andersen! Get in here, it's- it's Sonic! I think he's waking up!"

I watched Sonic's eyes flutter open before immediately squeezing shut. He groaned, mumbling something under his breath that I couldn't quite understand, but I didn't care; this was happening, he was waking up, he was finally waking up...

"Come on… come on, Sonic..." I tightened my grip, "You got this! Wake up!"

Behind me, Dr. Andersen rushed into the room, more frantic than I'd ever seen her before; Sonic's eyes shot open and he jolted forward, flailing his hands until they caught on to the sides of the bed and panting like he'd just run halfway across the world.

"Sonic!" she shrieked, stumbling backward and gripping her clipboard just a little tighter.

Sonic didn't seem to notice her for a moment, staring off into space as he began to catch his breath. He blinked, his gaze contorting in confusion as he stared around the room. "...What...?"

I grabbed Sonic's arm, my glasses beginning to fog up as tears welled up in the corners of my eyes and a grin itched its way up my face. "Sonic, i-it's okay," I said, trying to keep myself from laughing out loud from relief. "You're in the hospital, everything… everything is fine. Oh, Chaos, I– I thought you were never gonna wake… up..."

Something was wrong.

Despite how long it had been, I knew my brother. I'd seen him at his worst, his best, and everything in between- every expression, every mood, I could remember it perfectly. But this… I didn't recognize this. His eyes were glazed over, unseeing, staring right over my head. His face was as blank as the hospital walls, sending a chill down my spine.

"Sonic?" I whispered, hardly daring to breathe.

His gaze flicked to me and he stiffened; his eyes widened and he yanked himself away from my grip, shaking as he scrambled backwards, "Don't… don't come any closer!" he shouted, pressing himself against the side of the bed. "GET AWAY FROM ME!"

Andersen rushed to his side; he ignored her. "Sonic, calm down," she said, raising her hands in surrender. "It's okay- you are not in any danger."

My heart was beating so quickly I thought it was going to explode. "Sonic…" I swallowed, trying to steady my trembling hands. "Sonic– Maurice, it's me. It's Tails. Don't… don't you recognize me?"

Sonic grabbed his head and screamed, squeezing his eyes shut. "STOP IT, STOP IT! TAILS DIED!"

"Sonic, I'm here, I'm right here!" I pleaded. "Can't you–!" My voice broke off into nothing; Sonic didn't recognize me. He didn't… he didn't even know me.

"Tails..." said Andersen, placing a gentle hand on my shoulder. "Please don't take this personally. Sonic has been in a coma for months– he's just disoriented. Give him time-"

The door behind me slammed open, but I didn't care enough to look who had come in. Sonic's head snapped up, looking over my shoulder to whoever had just come in. His eyes narrowed, clenching his teeth.

"So… so you're the faker who's got the cops chasing me?" he growled, straining himself forward to get out of bed.

...Wait, what?

Shadow entered my field of vision, looking a little worried, "Sonic, stay down."

Sonic tried to raise his fist, but somehow that required too much energy and he dropped it, beads of sweat dripping down his forehead.

"You… you can't just… hnnngghh…" he groaned, falling back with a fading snarl. For a moment, it looked as if he was going to say something, but the cloudiness in his gaze returned full-force as he slumped backwards against the headboard.

Shadow turned to Dr. Andersen, his expression ice-cold. "What's the matter with him?"

"Uh… well, at this point, it's hard to say," she admitted, running a hand through her hair. "It's common for coma patients to be mentally disoriented when they wake up, but in light of the… unusual circumstances of his recovery, there might be some trauma we don't yet know about."

"What are you able to do about it?" Shadow asked, setting his jaw.

"Well, that's the thing–"

"'m sorry…" Sonic rasped suddenly, cutting her off mid-sentence. His eyes had filled with tears, a limp hand reaching out towards Shadow, "I could… couldn't save you… you were… you were gone..."

I took a step towards Sonic, but Dr. Andersen put a hand up, holding me back.

"Save me from what?" The question was sharp and stern, not matching the flash of fear that flicked across Shadow's face.

Sonic didn't answer- I don't think he even heard the question. "I din' mean to let 'cha down..." he slurred, blinking rapidly. "Th' ARC was… hnnggguuhh, oh Chaos… Shads, you faker…"

Not for the first time, Shadow's expression was totally unreadable. What was surprising was him setting a gentle hand atop Sonic's; Sonic didn't seem to be aware of the touch at first- until his face suddenly twisted in agony, hands flying up to his head as another screaming fit overcame him.

Shadow and Andersen jumped back, looking alarmed, and before I knew it the soundless screams turned into words.

"You're DEAD, ROBOTNIK!" Sonic bellowed, flailing his arms and nearly punching the wall. "IF YOU TAKE ONE MORE STEP, I SWEAR TO CHAOS, I'LL… I'LL–"

Sonic cried out a final time before going limp, staring blank-eyed off in the distance. Andersen rushed forward, checking his vitals on the screen before whipping back around to face us.

"Out of the room, both of you!" she demanded, sounding frantic. "I need space!"

"But–"

"OUT!"

I felt Shadow grab my arm and start dragging me out; I was too stunned to protest. We made it about halfway down the hall before the realization hit me: Sonic might be awake, but something told me this was only half the battle.

The worst was yet to come.

---

Six hours later, we'd all gathered in the briefing room, waiting to hear some news, any news at all.

General Towers sat at the head of the table, staring down at the file in front of him- most likely a report about Sonic's reawakening. Shadow stood to his right, solemn as usual and giving no indication that he'd been a part of anything out of the ordinary. Next to him, Rouge was filing her nails, looking bored, but I had a feeling it was just a front. She had arrived just as quickly as everyone else.

Knuckles was sitting directly beside Sonia, the two of them holding hands and exchanging concerned looks. As soon as Manic had walked in, he had made a beeline for me, pulling up a chair and wrapping an arm around me in a sort of side-hug (which a part of me felt grateful for). He still hadn't moved, but just kept flicking his gaze from me to Towers, to Sonia. Amy was gripping the table, her knuckles white and her eyes fixed on Andersen, who stood front and center.

"He's stable," Andersen reported, looking frazzled. "We have him sedated at the moment to keep him down- he nearly maimed one the nurses who tried to take his pulse."

Towers flipped a page, scanning information as he broke the silence. "What was the cause of his breakdown?"

"We're still running tests," Andersen pulled up several PET-scan results on her tablet, "But I'm pretty sure we've located the problem."

She pointed to an area of the brain. "To keep this explanation as simple as possible, Sonic's hippocampus and amygdala, in particular, have undergone a remarkable level of Chaos-related damage, which has resulted in sensory overload and a totally scrambled memory. One minute, he thinks he's floating in space after saving the world from the ARC crashing down, and the next, he's in the middle of fighting Robotnik."

She nodded over to Shadow, "Agent- I'm sorry, Captain Shadow has also been keeping tabs on Sonic's chaotic energy levels. They keep spiking and then dropping dramatically, hence why he passed out so suddenly.."

"So… it's not a seizure?" Amy asked.

Andersen shook her head. "Not exactly. However, we do believe it may have caused more damage to his mind… which we really did not need."

Sonia raised a tentative hand, "Okay, hold up- let me see if I got this. Maurice hasn't lost any of his memories… he's just... seeing them out of order?"

"Pretty much," Andersen shrugged. "He woke up about an hour ago asking for his parents before calling for Tails to pick him up on a radio that he didn't have. We put him back under anesthesia before more damage was done by the chaotic surge."

General shut the folder. "What do you suggest we do?"

Andersen slumped her shoulders, pinching the bridge of her nose. "I honestly have no idea. This is… this is unlike anything I've ever seen. We could maybe try surgery to correct the damage in his brain, but I wouldn't even know where to start. More tests would be needed before we could even consider such an action."

"Could this be a fluke?" Amy asked. "Maybe his memory will stabilize over the next few days we just have to be patient."

"Maybe..." Andersen frowned, "We can certainly try, provided Sonic remains under close supervision. But there is no guarantee on anything."

Towers considered her for a moment. "Run your tests. In the meantime, let's try jogging his memory, but carefully. If he shows any sign of another backlash, sedate him immediately."

"Yes, sir," Andersen nodded, clasping her hands behind her back.

"As for the rest of you," said Towers, rising to his feet. "Try and remember a good, easy, memory with Sonic. You'll be our best bet at triggering anything. Dismissed."

I stared at the floor, gripping my knees as everyone else filed out of the room, whispering in hushed tones. Their footsteps echoed in my head before fading into silence, leaving me alone.

Or at least I would have been alone if Manic had left along with everyone. He gently squeezed my hand, drawing my gaze up to his smile, "Hey, we're not giving up yet, bud. Have some faith."

My eyes dropped again. "I'm starting to think Chaos hates me."

"Come on, man. He woke up, right? We got this," Manic gave a playful nudge. "Now come on. We don't want to miss his miraculous recovery, right?"

I rolled my eyes. "Miracles don't happen."

"Then what do you call us coming back from the frikkin' dead?"

I sighed. "For the last time, we didn't die, Manic. You guys are just crazy."

For a second, his smile vanished, replaced with something I couldn't quite place. It looked like a scowl, but it was more frightened than angry. His eyes became unfocused, seeing something that wasn't there. "Right… we didn't die…"

"Uh…" I shoved him gently, "You okay?"

The smile returned, "Yeah- just thinking. But seriously, we should get going. I mean, who knows how freaked out Sonic will be when he wakes up? And we don't need him attacking some nurse just 'cuz his little bro ain't there, right?"

---

Just when I thought it couldn't get any worse, it did.

The next time Sonic woke up, all of us had more or less set up camp around his bed (much to Andersen's chagrin), and the first people he seemed to recognize were Sonia and Manic. His voice seemed small and this big grin spread across his face, "I tol'ja I'd find ya!"

Sonia glanced at Manic for a moment, looking confused. "Find us...?"

"In hide'n'seek!" Sonic giggled. "Manic's turn to count!"

Manic shook his head, "Nah, Sonia can count. I dibs hiding."

"Manic!" she jammed her elbow into the side of his ribs. "This is serious."

"Right. Serious. Got it."

Sonia rolled her eyes, turning back to Sonic. "Maurice, do you… do you know who these people are?" she asked, gesturing around the room at the rest of us.

But Sonic didn't seem to hear the question, his smile melting into a frown the longer he looked at Sonia. "You're… you're not them. You're not real," Sonic shook his head, swaying back and forth like he was about to fall over. "They died. Sonia and Manic… died. They're dead. They're dead, they're dead, they're dead..."

Manic waved his hands in front of Sonic's face, desperately trying to get his attention. "Bro, we're right here, promise! Look, see, it's us–"

Sonic shook his head, "No… no… stop it!" He pressed his hands against his ears and squeezed his eyes shut. "You're not real, YOU'RE NOT REAL! Just leave me alone!"

I felt my breath catch in the back of my throat; this wasn't working. This wasn't working–

I sprang to my feet, making Manic jump back in surprise. He caught my arm as I headed for the door, pulling me back. "Hang on a sec, kid- let me try something."

I bit back a scream; I couldn't take another failure. Sonic's brain was scrambled, he didn't know who we were or even where he was- that kind of damage didn't just disappear overnight. I had to leave, I needed out of here. I couldn't watch this again. I needed to–

"Miles." Manic squeezed my arm. "Please. You're his brother and the one person in the world who knows him best. He needs you."

I swallowed down the lump in my throat. "...okay."

I turned back to Sonic; his head was bent, tears silently streaming down his face and muttering to himself as he rocked back and forth.

Manic sat down in my chair, "Maurice?... or Sonic?"

He didn't respond.

"I'm gonna take your hand, okay?"

Nothing.

Manic slipped off his right glove, allowing for skin contact, then closed his eyes as he took Sonic's hand in his.

Time passed, consisting of Sonic crying out for his family, then growling at Robotnik, giving orders for some battle, humming to himself, and then smirking and trying to get out of bed for one of his runs. Manic just sat there in silence, no words, his eyes screwed up in concentration.

Eventually, he pulled away, sinking back into the chair in defeat. "I was hoping…" he started, shaking his head. "I'm sorry, I– I can't do anything. His brain feels like someone threw it in a blender. I tried to make some sense of it… maybe figure out a way to put it back together. But… I got nothing."

Sonia chewed her bottom lip, "Can you try again?"

"Yeah," Manic sighed, "But it's going to take a while before I can do another go. It's… a lot of focus. Gimme 'till tomorrow."

Shadow spoke up from the back of the room. "Perhaps some training will help sharpen your skills."

"Listen here, Ultimate Lifeform, you try and do that stupid mental training on me again, I swear to Chaos–" Manic looked over at Amy, his expression grim. "Put him under again."

"Chip!" Sonic suddenly cried out, looking frantic. He tried to get out of bed, but Knuckles held him down.

Amy looked like she wanted to do anything other than what Manic just told her. "But what if–?"

Manic shook his head, "No, keeping him awake is making it worse. His brain is… well, falling apart, from the looks of it. Unless we find a way to reverse the process, the best course of action is to slow down his brain activity. AKA: sleep. Put him under."

---

A little over a week later, we were once again in the briefing room, but there were some things that had changed. For one, Manic was now front and center, his usual grin replaced with a tight-lipped grimace. Dr. Andersen stood behind him, holding a thick medical file, talking in hushed tones to General Towers. The rest of us were seated around the briefing table, waiting for something- anything.

"Okay," General Towers called out, "Andersen, report."

Dr. Andersen stepped forward, clutching her clipboard with white knuckles. She took a deep breath, "Sonic's brain is…" Andersen bit her lower lip, "...deteriorating."

I felt my heart drop into my stomach. No. No. "To what extent?" I asked quickly, forcing myself to keep my voice from quivering.

Andersen didn't speak for a moment. "Well… according to our scan from this morning, his brain's levels of cognition are lowering, for lack of a better description. Currently, his mental state is at sixty-nine percent. Last night it was at seventy-five. The deterioration is speeding up."

Someone put a hand on my shoulder but I didn't care enough to look who. My eyes locked onto my hands, which were gripping my knees for dear life. I couldn't breathe, I couldn't breathe-

"Knuckles," General Towers nodded to the echidna, "How goes your bargaining with Tikal?"

The hand on my shoulder tightened slightly. "Not good. She, uh… she threw me off the alter yesterday. There's nothing she can or even will do. And nothing in my father's notes or any of the ancient texts I've compiled has helped me find a solution."

Towers nodded, "Thank you, Knuckles. Moving on… for those of you who don't know, Manic has been doing a deep read on Sonic's mind every day for the past several days. Manic, the table is yours."

Manic shifted uncomfortably in his chair before standing up, resting his face in his hands. "Okay, I'm gonna be blunt," he said, staring down at his feet. "If we don't figure something out before Sonic's brain deteriorates to like, at least fifty percent, then we're gonna lose him. Whenever he wakes up, the decay speeds up. But the more we put him to sleep, the larger the dose of anesthesia we have to give him. So basically, we have the option of death by Chaotic brain deterioration or death by an overdose of sleeping pills."

Manic's eyes flicked over to me, his gaze missing its usual twinkle. "The only thing I can see is some sort of Chaotic ability we don't know about. I've tried diving in and fixing what I can in his brain, but… well, I can't tell if I've made it better or worse." He turned to Knuckles, "We need Chaos. That's the facts of it."

Knuckles grimaced. "I told you, Tikal–"

"Isn't Chaos." said Manic, setting his jaw. "Look, I get it. She's basically his secretary. But you're the frikkin' Guardian. Can't you just ask Him directly?"

"I…" he mumbled. "I can try. But without Tikal, we're going to lose a lot of footing with Chaos."

"Well," said Manic, crossing his arms defiantly. "We don't really have a choice, now, do we?"

General Towers cleared his throat, drawing everyone's attention back to him. "Tomorrow morning, we've arranged for all of you to travel to Angel Island with Sonic. He'll be sedated for approximately three hours, which should hopefully be enough time to talk to Chaos and persuade Him to fix whatever's wrong with Sonic. This might be our last shot. If this fails…" he trailed off, not bothering to finish what was clearly the answer.

I squeezed my eyes shut, keeping the tears in. I'd cried enough this past year to fill the next ten. No more worthless tears. It wasn't like they'd help Sonic anyway.

---

THIS WAS LOOOONNNNGG…..

(83 pages on a Google Doc is the final count for parts 1 and 2.)

Longest chapter. Right here. Hope you liked it.

Now excuse me as Halo and I pass out for twenty-four hours.

---

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