Author's note: Great, you guys made me feel bad! You can't write a story on guilt! But it's a good thing I planned this story. Heh. Before you read this, please understand that everything looks better in the planning stage! No, this isn't something I threw together in one night. I've been planning this one!

Disclaimer: All original characters, ideas, items and places do not belong to me; they belong to Sega and Sonic Team. I do not claim them in anyway.

Chapter one: Resurfacing

Rain. You'd think that I'd like the rain, huh? You'd think I'd be used to it by now, right? Wrong. After living three years on the road, you start to hate a few things; like rain. It wasn't so much that I hated it, it just annoyed me. I've lived outside my entire life; you would think that it would have gotten to me before this. Well, when I was Angel Island, I had something to do! When a guy is walking around with no home, no friends, no job, you get sick of things you used to like.

Three years. Has is really been that long? Three long years. I looked at the rain swollen clouds. Three years since my friend cracked. Three years since Ceaira was nearly killed by the same emerald shard that would be used to kill a great Dictator ten years later. Three years since Knuckles' death. I sighed. Three years since I hit the road as an official phantom.

Okay, so I'm not dead. When Ceaira stabbed me, she missed my heart. When I woke up, I was buried alive. They were quick to get me under ground. I'm not sure why. I dug my way out of the coffin. They had buried me on Angel Island. Tails was sitting on the Shrine's stairs. I had told them, a long time ago, that if ever I died, I wanted Tails to protect the emerald. He looked so heart broken. I almost walked up to him. Almost. With a heavy sigh, I had turned my back on him. I turned my back on all of them. With a burning chest, I walked away. I glided down to the nearest coast line and ran. I didn't stop running until I was well out of Station Square and a few miles out of Westopolis. I only stopped because my chest would not allow me to continue. I looked around. I had no cash!

There was only one thing to do then. I walked into a store, picked out a ratty trench coat that had a hood and walked out with it. No one tried to stop me. At another store, I grabbed a pair of normal sneakers and a pair of pants. I traded in the boxing gloves for regular gloves and walked away from the city. Living dead was easier than I thought it would be. After a while, people began to forget I ever existed. If I went into a city and someone spotted my red skin underneath the hood of the trench coat, they did a double take. Those moments were when my blood ran cold. Those were the moments I was sure someone had finally spotted me. Then the moment passed. They would shrug it off, or just forget it and went on with their lives and went on with my life as the living dead.

There were times that I knew I should forget this charade and go home. I had left at a horrible time. Ceaira was still alive, unless Sonic killed her, Chaotix still pretty much hated me and Sonic and Tails were nearly at each other's throats. And I ran away from it all. Life on the road was easy enough. Eat to survive, right? I got in a few fights in the bigger cities. I almost got myself arrested somewhere in Hollywood. I never could bring myself to get too far from home. There were times in the first year that I even walked through Station Square. I enjoyed those times until I ran into Vector. He apologized and looked down at me. My hood had fallen off, revealing my red skin. I quickly muttered an 'It is okay' and placed the hood on, praying he had seen nothing. I turned around and walked swiftly out of the city, and never came back. After that, I just roamed. I ate when and what I could. I never did steal again. Every time I put on the stolen clothing, I felt dirty and not just because the grey coat was now brown with all the dirt.

For the next two years, I made a vow of silence. For two years I only spoke to ask for food. I wasn't going to resort to sitting on a busy street begging for money. I still had some pride left! My vow of silence was to keep me from begging. I would often go into homeless shelters if it got too cold outside at night. They fed us there and the food wasn't too bad, I guess. I felt like scum. I had a home! If I came back, they would be happy. Sure, after the initial shock that I was still alive subsided, they would probably be angry that I had fled, but they wouldn't reject me. I'm not sure why I didn't just go back. During the first year, I almost did go back. I was on Tails' doorstep, but when I heard faint laughter from inside the house, I turned and walked away. I guess it was that experience that kept me from going home. They seemed happy enough without me. If Ceaira was still alive, she would just follow me back into their lives. I tried to lie to myself. I tried to tell myself that I was doing this for them, but I wasn't and I knew it. I was doing this because I was scared that they would blame me for their pain. If I was dead, then they could blame me all they wanted and I wouldn't have to hear them.

The homeless shelters were pretty nice. I didn't really like sleeping on concrete when I did sleep in them. I tried not to sleep in them, but when the weather got really bad, I was forced to sleep in one. Some people tried to talk to me. They tried to get my story. I would hold up a note card that said "I have trouble talking. I am sorry." Another blasted lie! My life had become a lie! I never did take on a different name. Why should I? I didn't have to tell anyone my name if I didn't want to! I would just flash my note card and no one seemed to bother me after that.

It was lying on the floor of one of the shelters that I realized what I had become. I had become an enemy to myself. I was living the life as a dead person and it didn't bother me! I stood up from the floor and walked out of the shelter. It was raining. Rain. You'd think I'd like the rain, huh? No, I hated it! It had driven me into the many homeless shelters where I would lie down with the dogs and get up with fleas. All I wanted to do was go home, and I did.

I was standing at the train station. The rain was still coming down. It was getting harder. I shook my head. What was I thinking? It's been three years! They'll kill me! They'll eat me alive! They've forgotten about me! They've moved on with their lives! Don't bring back such harsh memories. Skip the country! Move to Japan or something! Don't go back! They don't want you!

Those thoughts raced through my head. Most of them were true. I did hold painful memories for them. I caused them all grief, but I was ready to face the music. I was tired of running! I wanted to go home. I wanted to the Master Emerald. I wanted my friends back! And, surprisingly, I wanted Ceaira back. Something I had told Sonic three years ago still burned me today. We were all we had left.

My first thought was to go to Tails' house, but I nixed the idea. First off, I wasn't sure if he was home. He was the new Guardian, after all. No, I went to Chaotix. Why? I'm not sure. So, here I was, standing on their doorstep in a pair of pants I've been wearing for three years and a trench coat that used to be grey. I wasn't sure what color it was now. I gulped and raised my hand to knock. It fell to my side. How could I come back from the dead, huh? I swallowed and knocked before I lost my guts.

"Coming!" A voice yelled. I jumped as I realized it was Charmy's voice. It was so low! The door swung opened and I closed my eyes at the bright light from the house. When I opened them, Charmy was staring at me. "Knuckles?" He said. I made a lopsided smile. "Knuckles!" He tackled me, sending up both to the muddy ground.

"It's good to see you," I said. This was a lot different from the last time I saw him. "It's really good to see you." I was happy it was raining. If it wasn't, then he could tell that I was crying.

"Charmy! What in the world are you doing out there? And who is that?" I looked up to see Vector standing in the doorway. My hood was gone and this time I didn't care. Vector's face went through three different emotions in about ten seconds. The first was shock. (Expected) The second was relief. (A bit weird) And the third was anger. (Expected, but not wanted.) "Charmy, go inside," he snapped. Charmy nodded happily and flew inside. Vector slammed the door and walked out into the rain. "What are you doing here?" He asked.

I sighed. "No 'how are you doing'? No 'I'm glad you're not dead'?"

He glared at me. "I knew you were alive, Knuckles! I'm not stupid. I saw you many times in Station Square until we finally hit each other, then I never saw you again. How can you expect to just waltz back here and expect us to welcome you with open arms?"

"Charmy did," I muttered.

"Charmy is only thirteen. He doesn't know any better."

"And your twenty-seven, so that means you know everything, right?" I stood up and turned away. "I'll go back to being dead if you want me to, Vector." He narrowed his eyes at me. "You know what I did, don't you?" He nodded. "I hope you've forgiven Espio for not telling you anything. I hope you've forgiven me for doing that. It's been almost five years, Vector. How long can one guy hold a grudge?"

"A very long time, Knuckles." Vector growled. "Get out now. Go back to where ever you've been living for three years and never come back! You're bringing too much, Knuckles, and I don't want it!"

He walked into the house and slammed the door, shaking the agency. I bowed my head. That went exactly how I thought it would, but not how I hoped it would. The door opened again. "Knuckles?" I lifted my head.

Espio was standing in the doorway this time. "Hey," I whispered. "I'm going back to the road."

Espio walked over to me. "Knuckles, he doesn't hate you. He's just mad that you left us. It's been three years and you haven't even sent a postcard. I could be angry at you, but how can I? You left to protect us, didn't you?"

I nodded. I couldn't tell him that I didn't do this for them. He was the only guy on my side right now, other than Charmy. "Espio, its fine. I'll go back to the road."

"No, you won't. You look like you need a good meal. Let's go." He led me into the agency and for the first time in three years, I felt the warmth of an actual home.

Author's Note: Hey guys! Did you really think I would end a series like that? I'm not that evil, am I? No, this isn't a one shot. This story has a lot of turns and junk, so don't get confused!