Chapter 29: Lost Feelings Revived
Sonic looked over at Mephic, feeling worse about herself. She'd never really seen Mephiles so upset before, much less by her doing.
"Mom...is it true? Do you love Shadow? I thought you didn't." Mephic asked, hurt in his voice.
"Yes, I love him. But that doesn't mean I don't love you."
"But, you told dad and me that you didn't love him! And dad told me that you told Shadow that."
Sonic looked away from Mephic. "I...I was confused."
"Confused?" Mephic looked at her. "What do you mean?"
"I was so used to being with Mephiles, I thought he was the one I wanted to be with."
"And now?"
Sonic sighed in defeat. "I want to be with Shadow. Now that I've seen him again, I remember how much I've missed him."
Mephic's eyes widened. "But...what about dad and I?"
Sonic looked at the house again, tears coming to her own eyes. She swam into the house, followed by Mephic, and found Mephiles in his room, still crying. The sea dragon looked up as she came in.
"What is it you want?" He asked her.
"I wanted to talk to you about this."
"What do you want to talk about?"
"Everything."
"Fine," Mephiles said. "I'm listening."
Sonic shifted position. "I don't really know where to start..."
"Why don't you tell me what is on your mind. Tell me when you first started to fall in love with Shadow."
The mermaid looked at him and nodded. "I'm not really sure when it started. We were spending almost all of our time together, and it just happened." Sonic smiled, thinking back on the time they had spent together. "There are so many things I like about him..."
"Like what?"
"His patience with me. No matter what I did, he didn't mind at all. He enjoyed going places with me, rarely got angry with me, and we got along well. It's petty, but I like his voice too."
Mephiles nodded and looked away. "And what about me?"
"You're nice when you want to be. You take care of me..."
"Is that it? You still love me, right?" Sonic nodded, and Mephiles sighed. "Then...why do you want to be with Shadow?"
Sonic thought about it. "Because I miss him."
"I see..." Mephiles said with disappointment in his voice. "I...I...understand."
"You said so yourself that he'll be fine. I don't have to go."
"Do what your heart thinks is right, Sonic. I can tell that you desperately want to be with him."
Sonic looked down before nodding. "All right. How would I get back to him?"
"I will teleport you to the surface and you will become a hedgehog like him. But Sonic...if you do this...you will never see Mephic or I again."
The mermaid looked at him in surprise. "Why not?"
"Because...that is how the magic works. Shadow can't become a merhog again, either," Mephiles told her.
"I see." Sonic nodded. "I'll miss the two of you."
"Are you certain this is what you want?"
Sonic nodded. A few seconds later, Mephic came in. "No," he said. "I don't want you to leave me!"
The mermaid looked at him sadly. "I'm sorry, Mephic. But I've already decided." Sonic put her arms around her son. "I'll still love you."
She looked at her body, which was starting to fade. Mephic shook his head and was starting to cry, holding out his hand towards her.
"Mom, don't go! Please! I love you!"
"I love you too. Don't forget me." Sonic smiled.
"NO!" Mephic yelled, sobbing. "I WANT YOU HERE WITH US! PLEASE, MOM, DON'T..."
Sonic finished fading away, leaving Mephic in tears. Mephiles put his arms around Mephic. Mephic growled, then turned around and punched his father. "I HATE YOU!" He yelled. "WHY DID YOU DO THAT? NOW SHE'S..GONE!"
"She wanted me to! I didn't want her to go, either!" Mephiles felt more tears building in his eyes as his son's words echoed in his mind.
"You should have never brought her to Shadow! She didn't see him that much anyway, and now, all of a sudden, she decides that she wants to be with him forever! What about us, her family that's been with her and loved her for 300 years! And now she'll never see us again!"
"The only reason she never wanted to see him was because I lied to her. She probably never really got over her love for him."
"But she loved you!" Mephic shouted, still sobbing. "And she loved me as well! We loved her too! And now...we'll never see each other again! I want her back! She's my mother!"
Mephiles moved to put his arms around him again. "She'll always love you, Mephic. Just keep that in mind."
Mephic shook his head and got out of his father's grasp, swimming away to his room and locked the door, sobbing with grief. Mephiles looked at the floor. He hesitated and looked around. The house seemed empty now. The thought of Sonic gone made him feel...lonely. Mephiles sat down, tears starting to run down his cheeks. He wanted Sonic back now, as well. The sea dragon began to sob and sat down on a chair, remembering all the good times he and Mephic had with her.