Hey again. I'm pleasantly surprised at the feedback so far; thanks much! I did not expect this little story to get much attention, and was surprised to get 9 reviews rather quickly. (...You know, that torturous number that comes right before 10. xD *nudge*) But my own ideas in conjunction with your kind words have gotten me to lay out a plot and direction for this story, essentially overnight. Take another glance at the summary and genres for a better idea. Also, I have edited the first chapter very slightly to include the disclaimer and warning (which I forgot before), along with a tiny prologue-like snippet at the beginning. Not necessary to go back and look, mind you, but feel free.

Anonymous reviews…

Mery: Neat, that's cool. Good luck with your story too, there isn't enough good SonicxKnuckles fanfiction in the world if you ask me. (So much Sonadow though, lol.) Hah, my story will likely have some twists in it as well, and I do indeed plan to finish it, so you're in luck! :) Thank you for your comment.

Guest: I agree, I haven't seen many serious SonicxKnuckles stories myself. And thank you, I am glad that you like it!

Onward!

x

Chapter 2: Exploring

Sonic and Knuckles were pulling their feet through thick grass, almost side-by-side but the former being just a pace in front of the latter. Both of them were early-birds and had essentially risen with the sun.

"Where we goin', Knucklehead?" Sonic asked cheerfully, not meaning anything by the name but saying it just because he could.

"You tell me. This was your grand idea."

"Uh… one of the Zones, then!"

"No."

Sonic cast him a look over his shoulder. "You just said, 'You tell me.' I told you, and you say no?"

"It's too far from the shrine, Sonic. I'm barely even supposed to be going this far."

"Says who?"

Knuckles glared at the challenge, even though his blue frienemy wasn't looking to see it. "It's just how it is. Not that I'd expect you to appreciate duty or history."

The blue blur merely shrugged. "'Bout as much as you appreciate fun, and today. Listen, Knuckles, I know it's important and all. It's just that there's other things that are important too! Sometimes you gotta take a few risks in life."

"I somehow think our definitions of 'a few' are pretty different."

"Yeah, well, that don't matter, because we're only taking one right now. Now – where are we going? Come on, you know this place better than me."

Knuckles considered. "If we go a little ways into the wood, we could find some of Angel Island's exotic fruits. I haven't eaten this morning anyway, I have a hankering for some grapes."

"…Grapes are exotic?"

The guardian blinked. "I suppose they aren't, are they," he muttered. "Well, at any rate, we can find some fruit. You could maybe take some to Tails or Amy if you want, too."

"Not trying to get rid of me already, are ya?"

"I was just saying." Knuckles grinned. "If I wanted to get rid of you I could just pitch you off the edge of the island."

"My feelings, they hurt," Sonic said with a grin that diminished the effect of his dramatic tone. It occurred to him that if he hadn't grinned, Knuckles just might have taken him seriously, gullible as the echidna was. He made a note to try that sometime.

"Be happy they're the only thing that's hurting," Knuckles muttered with a grin of his own. "Come on now, let's go. My stomach is trying to be a third participant in this conversation."

Sonic chuckled. "Okay, okay. If fruit-picking is your idea of an adventure."

"We didn't say anything about an adventure. We were just going to find something to do together. Remember?"

"Okay, okay," Sonic said again. They kept walking, quickly being sheltered by the canopy of thick wood. Despite that, it was very bright; the sun was still rising and was angled only a little higher than level of the island, its light peeking between trees. It cast their shadows dozens of feet along the ground to one side.

For several peaceful minutes, they were both quiet. Although they weren't the best of friends, they knew each other well enough and for long enough that they could easily be comfortable in each other's silence. As they walked, it continued to get brighter and warmer with the birth of the day. Sonic yawned away some lingering morning sleepiness.

"So hey Knuckles, don't ya ever wish you had, like, a bed or something?"

"A bed?"

"Yeah. I mean it's got to be kind of annoying sleeping on stone."

"I have a bedroll," Knuckles said. "Besides, you're one to talk. It's not like you can afford a hotel for the night on your excursions, can you? How often do you sleep in a bed these days?

A shrug. "Probably more than you still. I guess I just ask because it's really windy up here compared to down on the surface. Every time I'm at your shrine I'm colder than I was down there." He bobbed his head sideways to gesture to the area below the island. "But then again… you'd have to get a king size bed probably, in order for your precious gem to have room."

Knuckles rolled his eyes, not bothering to get all bent out of shape about the remark. He wasn't going to let Sonic have the satisfaction. "I'll stick with the bedroll. Oh, here we go!" Knuckles sped up, eyes fastened upon something a short ways away. There wasn't exactly a path to tread on, but the echidna was used to making his own.

"What?" Sonic asked, following along, extremely receptive to eagerness. Knuckles didn't respond immediately, apparently not finding it important to answer a question that would be answered shortly anyway.

The roof of branches and tree leaves above them began to give way, letting more swatches of light through. Sticks, leaves, and pine needles crackled beneath their footfalls as they trotted. The forest life continued to thin slightly so that they were in what could almost be considered a clearing. All that kept it from being so was a field of large deciduous trees towering over them, though they were spread out a lot more than the wooded area had been. They cast lengths of shadow along the ground that reached far beyond where Knuckles and Sonic's shadows stretched.

"They are loshyn apple trees," The Master Emerald guardian explained as he approached one of the trees. It might as well have been a pillar to the sky. Its truck was thick and straight, and the branches didn't start until a few dozen feet up. He was surprised he couldn't see them from the shrine. "There are only a few patches of these on Angel Island. For as close as these ones are, I'm surprised I've never seen them before! I don't usually come this way, because it's close to the edge of the island and things don't usually grow as well there."

Sonic took a gander at the tree, his eyes following the trunk up until he saw the bulk of it. "Apples, you say," he muttered, rubbing his nose. "Weird apple trees."

"They are weird," the echidna agreed. "They don't look like most apple trees, and they're quite rare. The apples are higher up, but I can climb and get some. They're very large, and some of the sweetest you'll ever have." Surprisingly, he grinned. "Living on this island isn't all bad, you know."

"I guess not!" Sonic exclaimed, ears perking up. "I'm all for good eats! But Knuckles, what happened to knowing this island like the back of your hand?"

"It's not like I'm going to know every single plant here, Sonic," he said defensively. "There are so many kinds, and variants of them. Thousands."

"Isn't there an area here where there's a lot of mushrooms, too?"

"Yeah. Mushroom Hill. It's much bigger than this area. There are other areas, too, where specific types of food tend to grow in mass amounts. Angel Island is peculiar like that."

"Why's that, you suppose?"

The guardian shrugged, going closer to the tree and examining the plants that grew around it. The grass was thick and soft here; a nice place to sit and take a break if they were ever so inclined. "I always figure it has something to do with the Master Emerald," he replied after a moment. "I've never seen another place whose life flourishes as much as Angel Island's does. The Master Emerald can barely be contained by the shrine; it lifted this island up in the air with its massive power, after all. I don't think it'd be too ridiculous to suggest it lifts everything else about this place up a little as well. Perhaps it infects even the soil itself with its energy."

"Ah, that makes sense!" Sonic smiled. "You know, this place is really cool, you're right about that much. If someone weren't so stubborn about letting people around, I'd wanna explore here more often! I mean, you know I'm not gonna steal the Master Emerald, right?"

"Oh, I know," Knuckles murmured ironically. "Sometimes my stubbornness is more to protect myself than the Emerald."

"Hey!" Sonic crossed his arms. "Not cool."

"Don't look so offended, I didn't mean just from you. It's just that Angel Island is my home the same way everyone else's house is their home. I know you don't understand that, but…" he shrugged. "You want to be able to call a place your own. You know?"

"Yeah, yeah." Sonic said. "But that doesn't mean you can't have visitors, yeah?"

Knuckles thought, wondering just how much he wanted to concede right now. "Yeah," he finally said. After all, he had been lonely as of late. Why contradict his own desires, only out of mere habit? There wouldn't be any harm in seeing a few friendly faces now and then. "Yeah, that is true."

"Anyway, why the hold-up? You getting us some of these epic apples, or what?"

"I will, just as soon as I can get my annoying friend to be quiet."

"Oh, who's that?"

Knuckles rolled his eyes and climbed up the tree. When he got back down, he had four apples gathered in one arm, each one big enough to fill one of his huge hands. Sonic gawked at them, eyes wide, and couldn't help thinking that Chip would have just flipped out seeing something so large and delicious looking.

"…Wow. I think that's enough to qualify for a meal."

"No kidding," Knuckles said. "I'm going to have to remember these trees are here."

"Imagine if those showed up in supermarkets. Heh."

The guardian tossed Sonic one of the loshyn apples. He had to catch it with both hands. "Never have, never will."

Sonic stared at the thing, stunned. "I don't think that I can eat all of this."

"What, you? Fine, give me what you don't want. I'm not wasting these. I'll take the other three back to the shrine."

Nodding, Sonic tossed the apple up and down in his hand quizzically. When he'd had his fill of doing that, he took a bite. His teeth crunched into it, the skin breaking like it was barely there. It was very sweet as Knuckles had said, and it didn't become chewy in his mouth. He was quite sure it was the best apple ever.

"Any good?"

"Never mind, I might just eat the whole thing," Sonic said with a grin. "I need one of these in my backyard."

"Loshyn apples?"

"Loshyn tree, Knucklehead."

"But you don't have a backyard."

"Well, Tails needs one of these in his backyard."

Knuckles resignedly put one hand on Sonic's shoulder and turned him to face a different direction. The hedgehog did so and started walking without protest, still munching on the apple. Together they made their way back into the forest, at a point parallel to their original path (or lack thereof). The trees were slightly thinner here, and easier to walk between.

The echidna caught sight of a cluster of grape vines and veered to go to them. Sonic stepped quickly in the same direction, trying to disguise that he had almost kept walking without knowing Knuckles would turn. The vines were thick and healthy looking, like almost everything on the island as far as the blue blur could tell. He watched from behind as Knuckles picked through grapes, gathering some and tossing others over his shoulder. It looked routine and practiced, and he realized the guardian did this very often. He probably ate more fruit than anything else.

One of the grapes came Sonic's way, and without thinking he stepped quickly to catch it in his mouth. Almost immediately, he spit it back out and it hit the back of Knuckles's head with force. The echidna whirred around.

"Sorry!" Sonic said with a sheepish grin. "It was icky." To make his point, he ate some more of his apple as if wanting to get rid of the aftertaste.

"Why do you think I tossed it behind me?" Knuckles asked, chucking a grape at Sonic deliberately now in playful vengeance. Sonic caught it, stuck his tongue out, and threw it at Knuckles's head again. Knuckles had one hand full and the other holding onto a vine, and didn't quite dodge in time. "Why, you…" he began. Sonic grinned. Knuckles abandoned the plant and began pelting grapes from his other hand.

"What, am I gettin' under your skin?" Sonic asked, still smirking and easily dodging the little green projectiles – at least for a few seconds until one smacked him square in the chest. He raised and hand rubbed it. "Ow!"

"Sorry!" Knuckles said in almost the same tone Sonic had moments ago, voice laced with sarcasm.

"Jeez, Knuckles! That actually hurt!"

"Awww, want me to kiss it, make it better?"

"I'm just saying!" Sonic said defensively, putting his hands out. "I mean, I don't know many people who could hurt someone with a grape!"

"Must've been a crunchy one too," Knuckles said. "Shame it went to waste."

"Well it's your fault!" Sonic bent down and picked up the grape, made eye contact, and then pretended to throw it at Knuckles. Knuckles flinched in anticipation, and then the hedgehog actually did throw it, hitting him for a third time even if not nearly as hard. Sonic grinned. "I'm still winning!"

If a grin could combine with a glare, then the look on Knuckles's face was the epitome of such an expression. He hoisted all the fruit to one arm and stood up tall. Sonic, knowing he indeed had gotten under the echidna's skin, turned and playfully started off.

"Get back here, hedgehog!"

Sonic smiled and accelerated, tearing through the forest at a run while trying not to tear at the vegetation. He figured that actually would give his friend reason to be mad, and not to mention it was such a nice place he simply didn't want to ruin it. His footfalls were graceful and deliberate, and he weaved through plants and around trees like a ghost.

To his surprise, Knuckles was succeeding at doing so even more efficiently, and he was gaining ground.

"Oh yeah," the hedgehog said to himself. "Forgot he could glide."

With the echidna soaring through the air and only landing to push himself off again, he was faster than Sonic could be, unless the hedgehog wanted to tear up the mystical forest that was serving his run. Happy with that challenge, Sonic improvised, leaping in the air with powerful leg muscles and using the momentum to spring off a sturdy tree trunk. The motion put him further ahead of the guardian by several large strides. Still, the echidna chased him with vigor. Sonic couldn't tell if he was actually irritated or if he was they were still just playing around.

Then again, when it came to their rivalry, he usually couldn't tell.

He made it out of the forest. They were in an area of plains not far from the bridge and thereby the shrine. Figuring that meant he won, Sonic began to slow down.

Of course, seconds later, Knuckles emerged from the forest too and the resulting collision sent them both tumbling across the grass. Miraculously, the echidna had managed to hang onto all three apples and even a few of the grapes up until that point, but now they all scattered on the ground in a colorful flurry.

"That was too easy, hedgehog." Knuckles got to his feet.

"Was just cutting you some slack. You seemed to need it." Sonic got up too, brushing himself off, and continued eating his apple, having still managed to hold onto it. "Though I gotta give you credit for chasing me at all. Nobody usually bothers!"

Knuckles put his hands on his hips. "I don't let people win on my island. Besides, if I was as fast as you, you wouldn't have a chance here."

"Yeah, 'cause I've never won a fight against you here, have I?" Sonic said, receiving a punch in the arm as a result. "You wish you were as fast as me."

"Psh. I don't need to run away to beat my enemies."

Sonic snickered to himself. "Whatever you say, Knuckles." They both knew Sonic didn't use his speed in such a cowardly way, but even the hedgehog had to admit that was a decent comeback. Still, their exchange of insults had given him an idea.

He waited until they got back to the shrine to bring it up. Walking up the stairs and toward the gem, he laughed to himself under his breath.

"Say, Knuckles…"

"Uh-oh."

"You don't know what I'm gonna say yet!"

"The answer is probably no, but go ahead and waste your breath."

"Wanna go for a run? A real run?"

"You mean, dragging me by wrist and likely pulling my shoulder out of its socket in the process? Oh, tough choice. I think I'll pass this one up."

"Well, there is another way."

Knuckles blinked and stared up at Sonic incredulously, seeing that he was actually serious. "I am not freaking Tails. Besides, I would break your back."

"Not if I had some extra strength…" Sonic's eyes flitted over to the massive gem, then back. "You think it'd be fun, wouldn't you? You're curious! You haven't said the word 'no' yet!"

The guardian realized that he hadn't. "No."

"You'd make a liar out of yourself now?" Sonic smirked down at him from the top of the stairs. "Come on. Live a little. I've never killed anybody giving 'em a ride."

Knuckles glanced between Sonic and the Master Emerald. For one of the only times in his life, he felt oddly intimidated by the hedgehog, not because he was going to turn down the offer but because he was almost going to say yes. Sonic was challenging him. Daring him to do something different.

Knuckles was not a fearful soul. He had been on many an adventure, and come out of many difficult predicaments in order to stop enemies or protect the precious Master Emerald. But the prospect of taking risks and 'living a little' just because he could was something he had not done much of before. In this context, it felt so foreign.

Though his stony exterior was still in place, the guardian gave Sonic his answer by meeting him at the top of the steps.

x

Another chapter down! Being that this story is still a baby, it'd be helpful to know early on whether you guys prefer a focus on romance or more actiony, adventure-ish aspects. There will be a lot of both (heh, hope you didn't think it was gonna stay fluffy forever ;)), as I have the gist of where I'm gonna go with this and what I wanna do with the characters. But, there is still a fair bit of wiggle room, and I also want to give you guys what you'd like, so let me know. :)

Thanks for reading.