Chapter 32

As I write this, Thanksgiving will come and go, so, thinking about that I hope you had a Happy Thanksgiving and in case I don't get around to it, Merry Christmas, Happy Chanukah, Peaceful Kwanzaa. In case you don't celebrate Christmas/Chanukah/Kwanzaa, Happy Tuesday. Enjoy the story and if you want, leave me a review.

The Funeral

"Mmm." Sally moaned quietly as she reached into the display case to grab a six pack of lemon-lime soda. Her stomach had started to act up again, although not to the extent that it had been yesterday. Luckily it had only been nausea up to this point and she hadn't thrown up; thankfully it was at a more subdued level this time around. Before she went home for the day, she managed to swing by a store to pick up another bottle of the pink bismuth, as well as a few alkaline seltzer tablets and headed to the cashier.

"Hello." The cashier, whose voice cracked in a particularly high pitched tone of voice. "Hello." Sally replied. "Did you find everything ok?" He asked, dragging the soda across the scanner. Why are they always rough with those? "I sure did." Sally replied. The cashier pulled everything across the scanner, and typing a few keys on the register's keypad. "Okay, that'll be $9.83."

Sally handed him a twenty from her purse and he tapped a few more buttons and handed her the change. "$10.17 is your change." He said and handed it to her, then began bagging what she bought. "Thank you." She said, grabbing the bags and heading out to her car. Once inside, she grabbed the bottle of bismuth and took a drink, not even bothering to measure, then recapped the bottle and set it back inside the bag. The viscous pink liquid made it's way down her throat, settling in her stomach and providing much needed relief within a minute. "Thank God." She said, letting out a sigh of relief as she put the key in the ignition. Now if I can make it home without throwing up, I'll be doing good.

"Talk to you later." Sally said, and hung the phone up. Even though it was only half past four, the sun was already starting to set and the house's heater had been kicking on and off more frequently as the temperature dropped, trying to keep the inside of the house warm. She had one more number left to call, which was Shadow. Just as she was about to dial his number, a loud *grrrrr* erupted from her torso and she placed a hand on her stomach. Maybe I should make something to eat. She thought. Then again, I might just throw it up later on. That worried her.

After she'd thrown up in the car yesterday, she hadn't eaten anything out of fear she'd just do the same thing. But she knew she just couldn't go without anything. To hell with it. If I throw it up later, I'll throw it up later. She thought, getting up off the couch and heading into the kitchen. She got to the fridge and took inventory. Mostly standard foodstuffs like bologna, cheese and various leftovers. While she was hungry, she wanted something that would be easy on her stomach. Damn. She thought, her eyes darting around the refrigerator. Then she spotted a bag of lettuce and grabbed that; a salad made sense. It was quick, didn't require any cooking and, it was easy on the stomach. Along with the lettuce, she grabbed a tomato, the half block of cheese and shut the fridge, along with a jar of olives from the cupboard.

It was a pretty basic salad. Other than cutting up the tomato and cubing a small chunk of the cheese, the rest of it was done with her hands, even the olives, which when crushed added extra flavor thanks to the release of the precious oil stored within. Washing her hands and grabbing a bottle of dressing, she drizzled a small amount over the greens and added a small pinch of black pepper, stuck the dressing back in the fridge and sat on the couch to enjoy her dinner.

Here goes nothing. she thought as she stuck a fork into the bowl and took a bite. As it traveled down her throat, she waited for her stomach to act up, but it remained quiet. Satisfied she wasn't going to throw up at the moment, she finished the salad off, grabbed her phone and called Shadow.

"The number you are trying to reach is unavailable." A computerized voice said when the other end did finally pick up. Damn. Sally thought. "Please leave your name and number at the tone." *beep*

"Hey Shadow, it's Sally. Just letting you know that Sonic's funeral is going to be this Friday at noon. Talk to you later." She hung up and set the phone down on the coffee table.

She tried to watch a little TV, but she found her head beginning to dip and she decided to call it a day. Getting off the couch, she grabbed the blanket and pillow out of the closet next to the front door and spread them out, pulling back one corner and crawling between them. She didn't even get to finish what she was watching as she fell asleep in a few minutes.

Wednesday

Sally yawned as she opened her eyes to find sunlight filling the room. Looking up at the clock, she saw it was just a little after eight. Least I didn't sleep in. she thought as she sat up. Another plus was that her stomach felt better.

After hitting the bathroom, she made herself a cup of coffee, cream and two sugars, and sat back down on the couch. Grabbing the remote, she turned the TV on which was tuned to the morning news.

"...top headlines from overnight." A voice said when the sound kicked in. "Thank you Tom. In case you're just waking up, here's the stories that happened while you were sleeping." The female reporter said while the words 'WHILE YOU WERE SLEEPING' flashed across the screen.

"Around one this morning, police and firefighters were summoned to the 1400 block of Cyprus Avenue in Eastern Station Square to a report of a building fire." The screen cut to video of a huge warehouse on fire, surrounded by police and two firefighters working the hose, aiming it through one of the burnt out windows; another firefighter stood off to the side barking orders, but there was no sound. "The blaze broke out in the old Station Square Glass Works building. The building which celebrated it's 100th birthday recently, had been placed on the city's Registrar of Historic Buildings. The chief investigator doesn't suspect foul play was a factor in the fire, but there is no official word on the cause of the blaze. There was no damage to any of the surrounding area, but the structure is a complete loss, with damages estimated at well over $50,000."

The camera cut back to the reporter. "Station Square Police Department is asking for the public's help in capturing the man known as 'The Sandwich Bandit'. For the past several weeks, police have been receiving reports of a man breaking into peoples homes and making sandwiches. Up until now, no one had a clue as to who the man is, that is until now." The camera cut to a black and white video of a man standing at a counter in a kitchen.

"Thanks to security cameras one lucky citizen installed in his house, police have identified the 'Sandwich Bandit', 32 year old Edward Williams. It is believed Mr. Williams had broken into at least 20 homes over the past three weeks. According to reports, he would break into a house, make a sandwich, eat it then proceed to clean up what he had used, then leave a note saying, 'I'm sorry, but I was hungry. I did not take anything. I only made a sandwich.' Police are calling it one of the most bizarre cases they've ever seen. Anyone with information is urged to call the Station Square Police Dept. at 1-041-216-2012."

"You've got to be kidding me." Sally said laughing slightly in disbelief; the camera once again cut back to the reporter. "And finally, some sad news to report this morning. We've found out just this morning that acclaimed author and former Freedom Fighter veteran Sonic the Hedgehog had died. Sonic was the first recipient of the Mobian Five Star Cross for his bravery and his efforts in the war against Dr. Ivo Robotnik." Sally's jaw almost hit the floor as video of Sonic came on the screen of him receiving the medal which she herself had presented to him several years ago. "After the war, he became a writer, having written the popular 'Misery' series which have all gone on to become best-sellers. He is survived by his wife, who according to sources is Sally Acorn, former head of the Mobian Royal Family." The camera once again cut back to the female anchor, who was now facing slightly to her right side. "That'll do it for your overnight news stories, now let's go back to the news desk with Tom and Stephanie."

"Thank you Alicia. Well, it's been reported that sugar has been..."

Later That Day

"C'mon." Sally muttered as her hands worked vigorously to remove a piece of food that was stuck on one of her good glass dinner plates. The metal scouring pad she had in her hands was almost at it's limit and was barely doing it's job. Need to pick up a few more of these. She though as the stubborn morsel of food finally gave up it's grip, falling off with one last swipe and into the soapy abyss below. Rinsing the plate under cold water, careful not to bang it against the side of the sink or the faucet itself, she gently set it inside the drainer and shut the water off. Satisfied with the results, she untied the apron around her waist and hung it on a hook, letting out a sigh as she gave her work one last look over. This kitchen is clean. She thought with a smile on her face. It only took no more than ten minutes, sweeping and mopping the floor included since she kept the house pretty much spotless most of the time, cleaning was always a breeze. But today was different.

Even though she hadn't done much, she felt tired and drained of all her energy, like her body had been in overdrive all morning. "Aaaahhhhhhhh." She yawned as she walked out of the kitchen and back into the living room, plopping down on the couch as soon as she was able to sit down. "Mmmmm." She moaned. It's only noon. How the hell am I this tired? She wondered as she clicked through the channels, looking for something to watch; she felt like she hadn't slept all night.

"Maybe I-" *Ring* Sally set the remote down and grabbed her phone. It was Tails. "Hello?" She said, holding the phone up to her ear. "Sally?" Tails asked. "Hey kiddo." She said, perking up a little when the fox spoke. "What's up?"

"Are you watching the news?" He asked.

"No. Why?" She asked.

"You might want to check it out. Channel 13." He said. "And make sure you're sitting down."

Sally grabbed the remote and tuned the TV to the channel he told her. The screen, once the picture came up, showed a group of people gathered at the largest park in Station Square. Some of them were holding hands, some were crying; some showed no emotions at all.

"...a late breaking story." A male's voice said when the sound caught up. "What you're looking at now is a live action shot of Huber Park in downtown Station Square." Sally leaned forward as the camera continued to show a wide shot of the crowd gathered, then it turned toward a gazebo that the group was standing around. At the bottom of one of the stairs leading up to the gazebo's deck was some kind of memorial; the camera was too far away to get a clear picture of what or who it was for. "We go live to our reporter, Alicia Williamson, who is live on the scene. Alica?" The same male's voice said.

The camera cut to the same woman that had mentioned Sonic's death. "Tom, I'm standing in the middle of Huber Park with about a hundred people who've from what I've been told is a makeshift memorial for Sonic the Hedgehog. One of the attendees I talked to a few minutes ago said this was put together shortly after we reported his death earlier this morning. I managed to talk to the man who started this and when I asked him why he set this up, he told me that it was his own way to show respect for someone who did so much for so many and that it just snowballed from there. As you can see," The camera panned around to the memorial to get a closer shot. "admirers and mourners have been pouring by here since nine this morning, stopping by and placing flowers or cards of thanks at this gazebo."

The camera zoomed into a close up of the makeshift memorial that had been set up. It was a picture of Sonic and it was surrounded by flowers and cards, although the writing was too small to make out even with the camera zoomed in on it. "I'll talk to you later." Sally said to Tails quietly as she hung up. Her arm dropped to her side as if she'd lost the ability to hold it up under her own power. Sally turned the TV off and fell over on the couch, tears streaming down her face.

"AAAAAAUUUUUGGGGHHH!" She screamed, lifting her head off the couch cushion that had been stained with her tears. "Aaaaahhhhhh!" Another deep, guttural moan emerged from deep within her body as her head hit the cushion again, tears continuing to roll. "Mmmmrrruuughhh!" She screamed yet again, this time muffled by the cushion.

Ten minutes later

Sally lifted her head off the couch as a few 'aftershocks' passed through her body. Swallowing the lump in her throat, she got up and grabbed a paper towel from the kitchen and dried her face as best she could, tossing it in the garbage. She gazed out the window above the sink. Outside it was a nice, yet odd day for that point in the season, sun shining brightly, large clouds hanging in the sky and the grass as green as a spring day, although in a couple of weeks that grass would go dormant for the winter. Sally went to the sliding glass door and slid it open, the cold air rushing past her and into the house. She stepped out onto the porch and down onto the deck, past the grill that Sonic had bought and had only gotten to use twice.

Off to the left, down about 200 feet from the house was the creek that ran through their property where her and Sonic had spent many a summers day and night staring up at the sky or stars lying on a small hill that was just big enough to seat them both. Sally walked down toward it and as she got closer, memories of him were still dancing around in her head; although this time they were much happier memories and she smiled as she sat at the top.

As she looked out at the grassy meadow that seemed to stretch on for miles, the foothills off in the distance, the creek babbled as the water flowed through it like the blood of the earth. No don't! Sally yelled in her mind as a memory of Sonic pushing her into the cold water years ago flashed through her mind and left as quickly as it had come.

She turned her gaze up to the sky, clouds drifting lazily by, like big puffy marshmallows. That moment could be like any other time they had come out to this particular spot they claimed as their own, only this time she knew he wasn't coming.

Yet, sitting there on that hill brought her comfort and warm memories of them together in happier times began to replace the sadder ones, she began to calm down and the sadness within her began to fade, then disappearing altogether. It was almost as if he was there with her in that moment.

Friday

What time is it? Sally thought as she opened her eyes that morning. "10:19?" She muttered as she sat up on the couch, tossing the blanket aside. I can't believe I actually got to sleep. It hadn't come easy to her. She had slept on and off most of the night, more the former than the latter. She walked into the bathroom and splashed a little water on her face to wake up, which did the trick. "Better."

After finishing up, she went to the small linen closet which now housed her clothing and pulled out what she was going to wear that day for his service. An ankle length black dress with white ruffle around the edges which Cream had helped her pick out yesterday. *ring*

She picked her phone up off the coffee table and answered it. "Hello?"

"Is this Mrs. Acorn?" The voice on the other end asked. "Yes." She said. Who is this?"

"This is David from Eternal Rest Funeral Parlor." He said.

"Hi. What can I do for you?" She asked.

"I'm calling to let you know that due to unforeseen circumstances, we're not going to be able to offer you our chapel for your husband's service. A few of the water pipes busted overnight and it flooded the entire Chapel. We tried to get you in at another place, but we just didn't have the time to find another Chapel. Of course, we will reimburse you fully for those charges, we just won't be able to have the chapel service. Is there a time you'd like to have the... body delivered to the gravesite?" He asked in an uncomfortable tone. Sally let out a sigh. "What time is it now?" She said, looking over at the clock. "Noon I guess."

"Alright. I'll inform our driver. Allow me to extend my deepest apologies for the inconvenience." He said.

Why today of all days?! "Thank you for letting me know." She said and hung up. She started to put her phone down and get dressed when it rang again. "Hello?" She said. "Hi Sally." It was Cream. Sally noticed her usual chipper voice somber. "Did you want to go over with me and Tails or were you going to take your car?" Cream asked; Sally thought about it for a second. "I'll meet you guys at your place. The parlor called me a minute ago. You know what they told me?" She asked Cream.

"What?" Cream asked. "A few of the pipes in the Chapel busted last night and now the whole thing is flooded." Sally said. "You're kidding?" She said. Sally could picture the look on her face and laughed a little; some of the anger she was feeling subsided. "No. But they said there going to reimburse me for that, so now we just... drive over to the cemetery." Sally let out a sigh. "Is Knuckles still going with you guys?" She asked, trying to get her mind off of it's current thought path. "Yeah. He said he's going to meet us here at the house and ride over with us. Shadow too." Cream said. "Really? He's going to ride with us?" Sally asked. That really wasn't like him. For someone like Shadow that could match Sonic's speed, he could easily get there faster than any of them. Then again, a lot had changed in a year.

"Okay. I guess I'll meet you guys over there. I should be getting out of here in about twenty minutes. So how's Tails?" She asked, putting the phone on speaker.

"I don't know. He's been crying on and off most of the night. He didn't get much sleep and he spent most of the morning down in his lab working on that plane of his. I didn't know what to do, so I just let him be for a while. I hope he can make it through this." Cream said. "He'll be fine. He was closer to Sonic than any of us were, and it's not going to be easy on him." Sally said as she pulled her shirt over her head. "It's going to take some time, but he'll make it through this."

"I hope so." Cream said.

"I'm gonna hop in the shower and head on over there. I'll see you guys there." Sally said. "Alright." Cream said.

Sally hung upand headed for the shower. God I hope we can make it through today.

"That should just about do it." She said, tossing the pair of black mid-heel pumps she had bought into a bag, along with some of her make-up in case what she had on started to run and she needed to do a quick touch up, which was a certainty given what lay ahead. I'll slip those on before we head out. No sense in wearing them until she had to. Grabbing her purse, phone and a few other important items, she grabbed her keys off the hook on the wall and went out to her car. Sliding in, she set it in the passenger seat, started the engine, backed out of the driveway and headed off.

Sally pulled up to their house and shut the engine off. She checked herself in the mirror, making sure her make-up hadn't ran on the drive over. She had a small crying jag, but it had been a mostly dry run and her make-up checked out. Just as she was about to step out of the car, her phone rang. "Damn." She muttered as it moved around, shifting behind her wallet and other papers.

"Hello?" She said when she finally found it. "Good morning. My name is Steve and I'm calling from Blue Diamond Catering. Is this Sally Acorn?" He asked. "Yes it is."

"I'm calling to let you know that you're order is ready and we need to know if you were going to be picking it up personally or if you wanted it delivered."

"Delivered." She said.

"Just to let you know, delivery comes with a surcharge of ten dollars."

"Fine. Just put it on my card." She said, getting out of the car. "Very good. When would you like us to deliver your order?"

"Do we really have to do this right now?" Sally asked through teeth that were beginning to clench tighter and tighter.

"I'm sorry ma'am. If this isn't a good time I can-"

"I'll call and let you know." She said bluntly, her feelings made clear to him.

"Of course." He said. "Just let us know where you want us to deliver it and we'll have it out to you."

"Alright." She said. "Thank you and I'm sor-." Nice day my butt. Sally stuck her phone back in her purse again and walked up to the door and knocked. Off to the side, she could see the curtain part, then the sound of a lock opening two seconds later. It was Cream. The first thing Sally noticed was the dress she was wearing. Dark red with white trim which reached down to her ankles, almost the same style as Sally's. "Hi Sally." Cream said, stepping forward and giving Sally a hug. "Hi Cream." Sally replied, walking inside. She spotted Tails sitting on the couch and gave him a wave, but he barely lifted his head. "I knew that dress would fit you." Cream said as Sally walked inside and sat down on their couch next to Tails. "Thanks. Yours isn't bad." Sally replied. "Thanks." Cream said. "I'm gonna go finish getting ready." She said giving her boyfriend a pat on the shoulder before she disappeared to the back.

"Hi Tails." Sally said softly. She noticed right off the bat that he had been crying and from the looks of it, it had been bad. His fur was messy and uncombed, like he hadn't groomed himself in several days, which was unlike him. "Hi." He whispered; his voice was raspy, no doubt from his intense bouts of screaming and crying which she guessed were even greater than what she'd experienced; he didn't even bother to look up at her as she spoke to him. She also noticed his shoes were untied and the tux he was wearing was unbuttoned, white undershirt he was wearing dotted with tears.

"You OK?" She asked, scooting closer to him and putting her arm around him. "No." He whispered and instead of accepting the gesture, he pulled away from her. He was shaking too, almost on the verge of tears yet again. "I know you miss him. I do. We all do." She said. He nodded, tears beginning to flow now. "Why?" He said in that low whisper that Sally didn't catch. "What, hon?" Sally asked.

He turned toward her for the first time since she'd gotten there and the look on his face caused her to almost lose it. Gone was the innocent, wide-eyed kit she knew. The look on his face said it all. He was in an agony that compared to hers only scratched the surface. Then he said something that sent a chill down her spine. "Why did it have to be him Aunt Sally!?" he said as he turned his gaze on her. Tears began rolling down his cheeks and his lip began quivering before he fell against her, burying his muzzle into her shirt. Heaving sobs emanated from him that were loud even though they were muffled.

Aunt Sally. He hadn't called her by that name in years. The last time he'd called her that he was six and they still did the 'funny kiss'. "I don't know." She said through strained words, trying to keep from breaking down herself. Sally looked up and saw Cream watching from the hallway, a pained look on her face. Suddenly, he stopped crying as if his emotions were shut off with the flick of a switch and in a few seconds, he reverted back to the state he'd been in when Sally arrived. "I'm sorry." Tails said, embarrassed he'd let his emotions explode like that in front of her.

"It's alright, hon." Sally said softly. "It'll be okay." Tails nodded and wiped his eyes with his sleeve. Cream walked over and put her arm around him while Sally withdrew hers. She felt something running down her face and reached up and touched her cheek. When she pulled it away, her fingertip was covered in mascara. I need to go take this stuff off. She thought. It's not gonna look good having black lines running down my face for the next couple of hours. She though as she stood up. "Can I use your bathroom?" Sally asked Cream, who had sat down next to Tails, who nodded. "Second door on the right."

Sally nodded her thanks and grabbed the bag she brought and headed off. Once she was inside, she set the bag up on the small counter and took out the remover, a small clear jar filled with what looked like vanilla pudding, unscrewed the cap and dipped a finger inside. I guess he's been having it pretty rough. She thought as she worked the cream around her eyes to get the mascara that had run off. Turning the tap on, she let the water run until it was warm, then washed off the remover and reached into the bag to grab her blush to replace what had come off.

As she opened the compact and grabbed the brush, there was a knock at the door. "Open." She said as she dipped the brush into the powder and began to apply it to her cheeks. Cream walked in and shut the door. "Need me to move?" Sally asked. "No. You're fine." Cream said, walking over and lowering the lid to the toilet and sitting down. "How long has he been like that?" Sally asked, sticking the compact back in the bag and checking out the results in the mirror. "Couple of days now." Cream said. "It was like this right after Sonic died. The night after, I didn't think he'd ever stop screaming." Cream said.

Sally put the compact back in the bag and leaned against the sink. "Yeah. I can't even imagine what's going through his head right now." She said, letting out a sigh. "It's not going to be easy on him, but he'll get over it."

Cream nodded. "I just hope he can make it through the service. I-" *knock knock* Sally reached over and opened the door and Tails was standing on the other side. "Shadow and Knuckles're here." He said quietly, then walked away.

Cream nodded and Sally grabbed the bag and walked out into the living room where Knuckles and Shadow were. They were both dressed in the standard black suit, black tie and white undershirt which they wore very well. Knuckles gave her a hug followed by Shadow, which surprised all of them. "Thank you." She whispered to both of them and sat down.

"How you doing Sally?" Knuckles asked. "Holding on." She said with a smile. "You?" She asked. "Bout the same." He replied. "I keep hoping this is a dream and I'm gonna wake up in a minute, you know?"

Cream nodded. "How's the kid doing?" Shadow asked. "Okay for now, I hope. He was up all night last night." Cream said in a hushed voice. "It's almost noon." She said, looking up at the clock. "I'm gonna go make sure he's ready then I guess we'll head out." Cream got up and left the others alone.

"He's had it pretty rough, huh?" Shadow asked. Sally nodded. "Ye-"

"No! I don't want to go!" The sound of Tails' voice could be heard coming from a room in the back of the house.

That can't be good. Sally thought as they all turned their heads toward the source of the noise. But that was the only outburst as silence fell through the house. A few minutes later, Cream came out. "We should go." She said quietly. The others nodded and stood up, then Tails came out from his room and headed straight out the door and to their car without saying a word to any of them. He was dressed, but he was in rough shape. Cream turned toward Knuckles and Shadow. "Knuckles, can you ride with me and Tails?"

"No problem." He said. "I'll ride with you Sally." Shadow said. She nodded and they headed out to their respective cars.

"Oh God." Sally whispered to herself as she spotted the cemetery off in the distance. It was a rather large plot of land even for a cemetery which was just outside the Station Square city limits. The closer they got, she noticed some of the headstones resembled statues more than headstones. Those belonged to the ones who had the money to spend, but there were simpler headstones as well. Like the type that just came up a foot or two from the ground, along with the ones that were simply laid in the ground. Off in the distance in the third plot, Sally could see the canopy that had been set up, along with Sonic's casket sitting under it and a person sitting beside it who Sally guessed was the minister and a few chairs.

"T-there it is." She said in a shaky voice, a few tears escaping. Cream slowed down and made the turn onto the cemetery's access road and Sally followed right behind her. As they stopped even with the canopy that had been set-up, Sally shut the engine off and when she went to open the door, tears were rolling down her face. "You ready?" She asked in a whisper.

"Yeah." He replied, the first he'd spoke during the ride over and they climbed out. Cream and Knuckles had done the same, with the exception of Tails who was crying again. Cream knelt down in front of him, trying to console him again. "How bad is it?" Shadow asked Knuckles who was standing at the back of Cream's car. "Bad." He said bluntly. The whole drive over, he was all misty y'know, but once we got to where he could see this place he started loosing it."

Sally glanced over at Tails, who was in another fit. Surprised he's got anything left in him. She thought as she watched the kit; she was surprised that she herself hadn't shown more emotion than she had so far "You think he'll be able to get through this?"

"I don't know. He's really out of it." Knuckles said.

Then, just like before, Tails stopped crying and got out of the car, although he needed a little assistance from Cream. It was so odd to see how quickly his emotions came and went; it was as if they were like water flowing from a faucet that kept turning on and off.

"You ok?" Sally asked Tails who managed a weak nod and a 'Nngh."

"Alright." She said, turning to her left. "Let's go."

They all stepped onto the grass at the same time, maneuvering around the headstones that had been inlaid into the ground as they made their way to where Sonic's casket was. Even though the lid was open they couldn't see his body or at least none of them wanted to. The casket itself sat upon heavy nylon straps that were connected to four braces that sat on the ground, suspending it over the open grave; a motor off to the side would be triggered to lower it into the ground.

Once they were seated, the minister stood up and walked over to them. He was a younger man who looked to be in his mid to late 20's, wearing a black robe and sporting the traditional white collar around his neck. "Are you with the family?" He asked his voice, quiet and soothing.

You could say that. "I'm his wife." Sally said.

"I'm sorry for your loss. I know you're not the only ones that are mourning his loss today." He said. "How many others are coming?"

"It's just the four of us." Sally said.

The minister looked at them and nodded. "I'll go ahead and get started."

With such a small group, it would take at the most twenty minutes, unlike with a larger group which could take an hour at minimum. "Death," he began as he cleared his throat, "is never an easy thing. But, it is an inevitable fate we all intertwined to share and know... we cannot escape from. It is scary; it is heartrending. But... even though the people we love leave us, we should not focus on the fact that they're gone, no. We should focus on the life they lived and the legacy they've left behind. Remember them for who they are, not how they passed. Do not let your heart settle on the fact they are gone. Instead, remember them as they were; how they lived."

Tails again started to sob, although it was those quiet sobs, and in turn, made a few roll down Sally's face as well. Then the tears began to flow freely. She didn't try to hold anything back as she leaned into Shadow who was sitting next to her. He wrapped an arm around her and she pulled toward him closer.

"People ask me, 'How do I live with the fact that I'm still here?'" He stopped to take a breath and let it out slowly. "I always tell them the same thing. 'They're not gone. If you keep there memory alive here," the minister pointed at his head, "and here," he said, placing a hand over his heart, "they will never truly be forgotten, for they will live on in you."

He turned away from them and took a few steps to his right toward the chair he had been sitting in and spoke to the five of them. "If anyone wants to come up and say their final goodbyes, please feel free to do so." The minister said and sat down.

Sally leaned forward slightly and looked at the others, who were each doing the same thing, wondering who was going to be the first to bite the bullet. "I'll go first." Knuckles said as he stood up. He pulled on the bottom of the black jacket of his tux and slowly walked toward the casket.

Once he was standing beside it, he placed a hand on the lip and leaned ever so slightly forward. Sally and the others watched as they noticed his mouth moving, but he was speaking in to low a tone for them to hear. Knuckles' head bowed down and they saw his shoulders moving up and down as he reached into the casket and placed a hand on Sonic with his right and with his left, he reached into his pants pocket and pulled an object out. It was some kind of necklace or talisman and he reached in with both hands, no doubt fastening it around Sonic's neck. He took a step back, bowed his head slightly and turned around.

The red echidna walked back to his seat, sobbing ever so slightly, wiping his eyes with his sleeve. Cream leaned over and whispered something in Tails' ear and he nodded slowly; the two of them stood up, Cream giving him a hand. The fox was in miserable shape; his face streaming the tears he had been shedding all day. His stance was shaky and every step seemed to be taken as if he feared his bones would snap under his sixty pound frame.

The two slowly approached the casket next and as soon as the fox peered inside and right on cue, he broke down, almost hitting the ground as his knees seemed to give away but Cream managed to hold him up. He turned into Cream, who was looking down into the casket. It was hard to watch the fox have to suffer this kind of pain, but if he didn't do it here, it was likely that it would come back to haunt him later on down the line.

Sally and the others watched as Tails stepped forward and leaned in and, in the saddest yet most touching thing she had ever seen, the kit gave his brother a kiss on the forehead and even though he said nothing, Sally saw his mouth form the words, "I love you." He turned to Cream and nodded, then they both made their way back to their seats and sat down, sobbing silently yet just audible enough to be heard.

"Hand these to him." Sally said in a whisper, reaching into her purse and taking out a small cellophane wrapped package of tissues and handed them to Shadow, who passed them down to Knuckles. "Cream." Knuckles said quickly, handing them to her but not before taking a few for himself. Cream nodded her thanks to Sally as she took a couple and handed the package back to Sally, drying the eyes of the weeping fox.

Shadow was next to bid farewell. He walked up to the casket and looked down at Sonic. The black hedgehog's head bowed slightly and he closed his eyes, remembering Sonic in his own way. When he opened them, he nodded, patted the side rail of the casket and walked back over to his seat and sat down. Sally closed her eyes and took a deep breath as it was her turn. You can do this. she thought to herself as she stood up, hands shaking.

Sally slowly shuffled to the side of his casket, her heart pounding. When she finally saw him, she immediately broke down. "Oh... God." She mumbled, her voice straining to he be heard through pained sobs. She leaned down and put a hand on his face, his skin and fur cold to the touch. He also had a 'plastic' like feeling to him. Sally wept as she lovingly stroked the side of his face and reached over and straightened the tie around his neck. "You look good." She said out loud, a few tears landing on his black jacket. "I miss..." she didn't finish her sentence as the lump in her throat cut her off.

She stood there for several seconds just staring at him, hoping it was a practical joke and he would open his eyes and say, "Got ya!" but she knew, no matter how much she hoped that would happen, it wouldn't. Another burst of tears and sobs came out and she leaned in and gave him a kiss on the lips. "I love you and I always will." She whispered through sobs. She stood up and wiped her tears off his face and slowly turned around and sat back down.

"Nnngh..." She moaned as she leaned forward in her seat and buried her head in her hands and continued to weep; Shadow reached over and put a hand on her shoulder.

"Before we commit his body to the ground, I'd like to ask you to join me in a short prayer." The minister bowed his head and the others followed suit. "Oh Lord, we ask that you watch over Sonic as you call him home to be with you. Please give his family the strength to make it through this difficult time and watch over us now and in the hour of our death. In your name we pray, Amen."

The minister reached over and flicked a switch for the motor to lower Sonic's casket into the ground and it began to lower it into the ground and the others watched with misty eyes as he was put into his final resting place.

A/N: I hope this doesn't upload with large chunks of it italicized or the entire thing underlined like it's done in the past. If anything like that happens, it's not me putting it in there personally, it's probably got something to do with the fact my computer is still running Windows 98. Yeah, I want to get a new one, but I just don't have the cash, or I'd have done it a long time ago. Also, I'm going to look over 'Misery' again and try to take out that chapter that was all underlined for some reason and also fix the one's that have the large chunks of it italicized for no reason. I don't know why that happened like I said, but it was hilarious. I'm also going to fix what spelling errors were in it as well as make some minor adjustments like improving sentences and words, but leave the story unchanged otherwise. I hope you enjoy this one and even though this one took me a little longer to hammer out than usual, I really enjoyed writing it. Thank you and please leave a review if you can. They really help out.