Blur's heart beat steady under Tails' ear even as the hedgehog flipped between two branches, touched down on a swing-shaped vine, and leapt off a tree side in under two seconds. It was oddly comfortable holding onto the teen like this, though why was Blur so insistent on carrying him? Did he not think Tails could keep up? Well, that was a valid concern considering he couldn't fly fast unless he wanted to have a headfirst collision with a tree.

Blur dropped down in the grass between two muddy puddles. His sandals and hands splashed slightly in the marsh while he walked on, sniffing the air. Was he tracking the monster's scent?

Tails pulled away a bit from Blur and raised his nose. The wet, mossy atmosphere flowed into his lungs along with…something…sour? Onions?

Blur's nose stilled. Tails tensed as a faint howling resounded from ahead and the teen's eyes narrowed. The monster?

Blur glanced at him and crouched low. Tails quickly released him and rolled to his feet while Blur stepped aside.

"Is that the monster?" Tails asked, standing up and squinting at their dark surroundings.

Wind billowed beside him. Tails turned to see Blur landing in a crouch, half of a cantaloupe-shaped fruit in his hand with red juice sloshing inside it. The teen dipped his fingers in the juice and quickly brought them to his face, painting jagged flame-shaped symbols beside his eyes.

Tails blinked. A battle ritual?

Blur abandoned the fruit on the ground and dropped onto all fours, slinking off between two trees with his ears angled straight ahead. Tails frowned, but followed closely as the hedgehog brushed past a fern and entered a field of grass taller than himself. The kit pushed through the stalks, his gourd jangling and shoes squelching in the mud. Uh, hopefully the monster didn't have good hearing.

A ghoulish howl rang across the sky, closer than before. Blur paused and Tails' namesakes rose in preparation to spin.

"Monster."

Tails' head whipped down. Blur was growling at the floor, his hands clawing into the mud and muzzle pulling back in a snarl. The monster was near then.

The fox looked up and raised himself on his tippy toes, peeking over the grass. A towering tree stood above all others on a hill, its gnarled branches bare while a hollow split apart its base. It was dark inside the tree, too dark to make out anything, and wouldn't that make it the perfect hiding spot for a monster?

Tails turned to Blur, about to ask, but he stopped. Someone was watching them. The kit whirled back right when a hand caught his tail.

He yelped and Blur spun around as he was yanked into the air. Yet the fox couldn't hit anything before the pressure left his tail and he was turned right side up with hands gripping his arms.

Amy gazed at him, her wide eyes glistening and mouth hanging loose while she gasped, "Mangey?"

Tails' breath hitched, heart thumping, but then he noticed the dark pink streaking Amy's head, her bob-styled hair now resembling a mohawk. He glanced down and found spiked boots made from bark, a crude wooden hammer beside them where she must have dropped it. Yet the girl was smiling a watery grin that made her look so much like Amy, Tails' chest still burned with the hope it might be her.

"Mangey?" Amy exhaled louder, looking him over with fervent desperation as her hold became bruisingly tight. "Where have you been? We thought—"

"Thorn."

Amy's head snapped over to Blur. The speedster was frowning, gaze serious as he rose to his feet. He didn't break eye contact with the girl while he shook his head.

"Not Mangey," he said in that quiet, gruff voice, gaze shifting aside.

Amy—or Thorn—looked back at Tails. Her brow furrowed and she gazed over him again, her face growing more and more strained until finally, she stopped. A tremor ran through her hands, the hope shattered in her eyes, and Tails wanted so badly to remove that despair from Amy's face, but this was technically a stranger and he didn't know how to help.

"You're not Mangey," she whispered.

Then in a flash, Tails was dangling from one arm while Thorn kicked her hammer up into her freed hand, wrath warping her expression.

"Wait!" Tails cried, throwing up his arm to shield himself. "What did I do?" he asked as she lifted her hammer high.

"No."

Thorn whirled to Blur. "What do you mean, no? You brought a Scavenger to our jungle! What were you thinking—"

The kit smacked his tails on her hand. Thorn dropped him with a hiss and Tails landed on the grass, backing up. However, Thorn recovered quickly and growled, her hammer swinging.

Blur was suddenly in front of Tails, hammer in his grip and staring the girl down.

Thorn blinked as the speedster looked her in the eye and said, "Mine."

Thorn recoiled. "You can't be serious, Blur, he's a Scavenger!" She shot him a hateful look and Tails shrunk, unused to Amy's face gazing at him with loathing. "He cannot be kept—"

"Mine," Blur repeated, expression hardening and huffing twice.

However, Thorn glared back. "You can't replace Mangey."

Blur's eyes flashed and he made a scoffing noise, yet kept silent. Thorn seemed to understand anyway and some of the tension left her body. Blur released her hammer and she yanked the weapon back to herself.

"Fine," Thorn spat. "Just as long as you know."

Blur rolled his eyes, but nodded and dropped onto all fours. However, Tails frowned. Mangey…was a name?

"Who's Mangey?" Tails asked though he had a feeling he already knew.

Thorn froze. Yet Blur's quills snapped up and his face went blank, his fingers arching deep into the dirt. Tails sensed he maybe shouldn't have asked when in a blink, Blur vanished and only rustling grass remained where he'd been.

Tails looked up to glimpse blue disappearing in the treetops and his expression fell with concern. If Mangey was who he thought he was…

"And why." Tails spun around to see Thorn glaring fire. "Would we tell a Scavenger anything?"

Tails took a step back from the girl, but asked, "Scavenger?"

Annoyance flickered in Thorn's gaze, though her face remained stony while she growled, "Your kind, always taking from nature," she gestured to the forest, "And yet never giving anything back."

Tails' ears lowered to his head at seeing his friend's face regard him as if he was dirt. However, he needed information.

"My kind?" His brow drew together. "Like foxes or—"

Thorn stomped her hammer and the earth quaked.

Tails flinched away while she leaned in close. "I mean all you Scavengers who live above the canopy!"

Realization flashed over the kit. "Like Rouge and the others who tried to sacrifice me."

Thorn jerked back, eyes widening. "Sacrifice—you were a sacrifice?" Her voice rang with disbelief, grip slackening around her hammer. "And Blur didn't kill you?"

A chill shot up Tails' spine. "Kill…" he whispered because he must have heard wrong.

Blur wouldn't…it was the monster who killed those people, wasn't it?

Thorn regarded him and some emotion flickered across her face, yet it quickly disappeared as her mouth drew to a line.

"I didn't want to believe it but—" Her voice cracked and she scowled to hide it— "But I guess it makes sense."

Thorn's gaze turned flinty. "You look so much like Mangey, he probably can't kill you."

Tails shook his head, denial swelling inside him and his hands balling up. "What are you talking about?" he demanded. "Sonic wouldn't—I mean, Blur wouldn't kill people! It was the monster!"

He pointed at the hollow. Thorn glanced at the gigantic tree, yet her jaw clenched and she shook her head.

"Haven't you figured out what happened to the other sacrifices?"

Tails frowned, shifting uncomfortably. "They died. I saw the graves…"

Thorn exhaled, her eyes closing. "Blur buried them."

Tails' breath hitched. However, he soon glared.

"That doesn't mean he kill—"

"I saw him carry their bodies out of his burrow."

Tails balked while Thorn continued. "He always drags them in alive and comes out with them dead, this guilty look on his face."

Tails' eyes widened. "That…" He scowled. "That isn't proof."

His tails beat the ground agitatedly. "You never saw him kill them, right? Well, maybe something else hurt them and he was just trying to save them."

Thorn scoffed. "Or he hates Scavengers even more than me after Mangey—"

Her mouth shut and the fox's expression fell. "Mangey…who is he?"

Thorn's grip tightened on her hammer. "A friend," she said tersely. "Though to Blur, he was kin." Tails tensed. "A brother."

"Hey, little bro!"

Sonic's voice echoed in his head and the kit's tails drooped as homesickness stung his heart.

Tails rubbed his arm, turning away. "And he looked like me," he said softly.

Because of course, even in another dimension, a Sonic found a Tails and together they became family.

Tails shook off the thought and asked, "But then why haven't I seen Mangey?"

Thorn's frown deepened while she seemed to think hard before saying, "I don't know." Tails blinked, surprised. "Blur won't tell me."

Her ears curled low and she reached up, idly fingering two blue feathers pinned under her rope headband.

"He used to tell me everything."

Tails eyed the feathers in her hair. They were very similar to the pink ones on Blur's head. Also, Thorn kept calling the rainforest "our" jungle… Thorn and Blur were pretty close, huh?

"Okay," Tails began gently. "So Mangey is just…gone?"

Thorn's ears shot up. Then her hammer was flying as she gave a battle cry.

Tails rushed back, but his foot slipped in the mud. He yelped, falling onto the grass. The kit scrambled to sit up, yet froze while Thorn's hammer pressed against his throat. Tails leaned back on his hands, his eyes locked on the mallet because it wouldn't take much for it to snap his neck.

"Scavenger," Thorn growled, and Tails looked up. "I'm only telling you all of this because I want you to leave our jungle." Her voice dropped to a hiss. "So listen closely."

Some of Thorn's ferocity faded as weariness weighed down her face. "Mangey…"

Her voice wavered and she clenched her hands to steady herself.

"The last time I saw Mangey was four months ago. It was late and I was asleep, but I woke up because someone was screaming…"

A wretched yell tore through the dark jungle. Flickies startled out of their nests and into flight, the canopy shaking while they rushed out of the treetops.

Thorn shot up in her hammock and was grabbing her hammer from the hut wall before her eyes had fully opened. Green irises hardened as she whirled to the window, faint moonlight rippling across her.

"Who…"

She stopped, her ears twisting right, and her head snapped over to a bush rustling outside. Thorn leapt off her hammock, fingers flexing around her hammer. A Scavenger? Foraging this late? They must be desperate—

Yellow streaked out of the shrub. Thorn's eyes widened while Mangey barreled into a tree and yowled, falling back.

"Mangey?" Thorn whispered.

Yet the fox didn't hear her as he scrambled to all fours, blood dribbling down his nose and blue eyes huge. Concern rose in the girl when she noticed Mangey's fluffed up fur, his head jerking back and forth while he panted loudly.

Thorn's brow furrowed and she grasped her windowsill, climbing out of her hut.

"Mangey, what's wrong—"

The kit whirled around, but he stared past her and took a shaky step back, whimpering. The hedgehog spun towards the forest, body taut. Nothing except trees stood behind her. Thorn turned to Mangey, a question on her tongue, yet she only glimpsed two tails vanishing into the jungle.

"Mangey!" Thorn called.

Her only response was yips of fear fading in the distance. Thorn frowned and hefted up her hammer, taking off after the fox and shoving past the foliage. Something was wrong. Mangey shouldn't be out this late and he was hurt—scared. Did someone attack him? Why?

Wind brushed over her head. Thorn skidded to a stop and looked up to see Blur leaping from branch to branch, his green eyes big and round. However, the speedster was already far ahead and Thorn could only stare after him, heart beating faster than Birdie used to fly. She'd never seen Blur so panicked. Was he going after Mangey?

Thorn's eyes slanted in determination and she started to run again, chasing the two further into the jungle.

"I never caught up with them."

Thorn glared at the ground.

"And when I tried to find Blur the next morning, his burrow was empty… A few days later though, Blur found me, saying a monster scared Mangey away and he couldn't find him. That's all he would tell me."

Tails' expression warped with horror. "This was four months ago? And Mangey still isn't back? So he's…"

A solemn looked aged Thorn's face and she sagged. "Yeah," her bangs fell over her eyes, "He has to be dead." She swallowed thickly. "He'd never abandon Blur."

Tails looked away. Mangey sounded a lot like him, or at least, he had been.

"That monster." Tails looked up to see Thorn raising her head. "It must have been a Scavenger." Her green eyes pierced into Tails. "You all killed Mangey to get back at me!"

Her hammer pressed him down in the mud and Tails choked. He grasped the mallet, struggling to push it off. It wouldn't budge.

Tails wheezed, rasping, "B-but you don't know that for sure."

Thorn snarled and tossed up one hand. "Why else would Blur start kicking the Scavengers out of the jungle? He never used to help me keep them out and now he's always chasing them away and even kills those sacrificed!"

Tails gasped for breath, his fingers sliding off the mallet while darkness crept into the corners of his vision. However, Thorn's face was ice. Fear gripped Tails' heart because she really would kill him and he didn't want to die staring at a twisted version of his friend, not even having a chance to see Sonic one last time.

A stone dagger suddenly flicked into Thorn's hand. Tails couldn't even cry out as she flung it at him.

The dagger stabbed the mud beside his head while Thorn hissed, "Use it to cut that gourd off you and then leave tonight." Her voice turned frigid. "If you don't, I'll get rid of you myself."

She tore back her hammer. Tails inhaled a desperate breath, coughing harshly and spasming on the mud. Thorn didn't spare him a glance as she turned to leave.

"You're wrong."

The girl looked back. Tails was standing and rubbing his bruised throat, yet his eyes were slanted determinedly while he pulled out the Miles Electric.

"Blur wouldn't seek revenge, he's not like that." Tails' face fell, but he quickly scowled. "And I'll prove it."

He typed on his Electric and Thorn raised an eye at the strange tool. Though she jumped when a green light shot out of the device and ran over the ginormous hollow. Tails stared intently at the screen, waiting for a life sign. The monster had to be in there, Blur couldn't have hurt those people.

The light retracted and the screen flashed with its conclusion.

0 Life Signs Detected

Tails stared blankly at the words. Slowly, he shook his head.

"No…no." His hands tightened around the Electric. "There's a monster, there has to be."

Thorn glowered. "You fool." Tails looked at her. "The only monsters here are Scavengers like you."

Tails' mouth opened, but nothing came out, and Thorn turned away. Yet his scanner had detected a life sign earlier so it must be… Unless that life sign was Thorn, which meant the real monster was…

The fox jerked away from the thought and shoved his Electric back into his fur. He glared at the huge tree, and on an impulse, marched toward it because maybe the monster didn't have a heat signature or its biology was so different from anything in his dimension that his scanner couldn't detect it.

He stopped in front of the great hollow, squinting at the darkness while a cool breeze rushed out of the tree and ran over him. Hm, weird, a rainforest this humid shouldn't have a single spot of cold. Was it the monster's doing? Only one way to find out.

Tails took a steadying breath and stepped into the hollow.

A body slammed into his side.

He cried out as he hit the ground, but in a flash, he was lifted into familiar arms. Tails glimpsed Blur huffing at the hollow before the hedgehog sprung up into the trees.

"H-hey!" Tails squirmed in his hold. "Wait, I need to see the monster!"

Blur ignored his struggling and Tails could only watch the hollow disappear behind a net of branches. The kit stilled, realizing Blur didn't want him entering the hollow…because nothing was there, was it?

The teen touched down on a thick branch, bouncing slightly as he stopped. Tails raised his head to see they were back over the river. Yet he tensed as Blur swiftly pulled him away and held him out over the clear water. He recognized what was happening right before the hedgehog let go.

Tails dropped with a yell. His tails went to spin, arms flailing, but the mud slowed his movements so he couldn't fly before splashing into the river. Warm water immersed him, body going weightless while the current tugged his fur. The fox instinctively kicked up and paddled toward the shinning surface.

Hands shot into the water and shoved him down. Tails grunted, bubbles leaving his mouth and eyes widening as he stopped swimming. What was Blur doing? He needed air!

Tails swam away from Blur's hands and paddled up. The hedgehog caught his shoulders and pushed him down again. Pain pricked Tails' lungs, the need for air starting to sting. He grabbed Blur's wrists, tugging, but the hedgehog's grip was iron. Was Blur trying to drown him? No, that didn't make sense, it must be something else.

The fox quit tugging and his brow furrowed. Yet pain burst in his chest and his body jerked, his hands grasping at his throat. No time for thinking, need oxygen now!

Tails threw out his hands and air hit his gloves as he reached for the teen's blurry image. His fingers caught a long nose. Blur released him immediately, moving back, and Tails let go of his nose while giving one final kick up.

His head breached the surface and he inhaled, oxygen and some water catching in his throat. He coughed, spitting the water out as his hair draped over his eyes. Hands caught his vine collar. Tails' namesakes snapped up to wrap around Blur's wrists because he wouldn't be dunked again.

However, the hedgehog pulled him out of the river and dropped him on the soft ground. Tails sputtered, landing on his hands and knees with the water adding ten pounds to his body. He went to brush the hair out of his eyes, panting. Yet he yelped when a breeze whipped through his drenched fur.

Tails squinted against the wind to see blue streaking around him inside a cyclone. The breeze strengthened and started lifting him, but Blur slowed and he fell back to the ground. Tails examined his now dried body while the hedgehog grimaced, blowing on his smoking gloves and sandals.

"What," Tails looked up, "Was that all about…"

The kit paused, noticing Blur chewing. Frothy saliva bubbled around the teen's muzzle and Tails scrambled to a stand.

"Don't—"

The hedgehog jumped at him. Tails fell back in the soft soil, Blur's tongue raking over his forehead.

"Oh, come on, I just got cleaned!"

Tails tried pushing him off, but the hedgehog dodged his hands lightning-quick and his tongue snaked across his throat. The fox shuddered at the gooey sensation before mustering a scowl.

"Would you stop already?"

Blur licked his chest.

"Or at least tell me why you're anointing me?"

His tongue spread froth over Tails' white fur. Frustration sharpened the fox's gaze.

"Stop ignoring me!"

His twin tails slapped at Blur's chin. The hedgehog winced and paused to shoot him a glare. Yet the fox glared back.

"Why won't you answer? I know you can understand me," he hissed.

Blur's eyes narrowed, a familiar stubbornness in his green irises, and that only angered Tails more. He bristled, his hands clenching.

"What happened to Mangey that night?"

Blur's face hardened, but he quickly bent his head to lick his face. The kit's tails slapped at him again, yet in a flash, the hedgehog caught them and continued licking.

The fox slammed his fists on the soft soil, though he didn't try again, knowing the hedgehog could overpower him.

Instead, he growled, "Why weren't you there when he needed you?"

Blur dragged his tongue around his eyes, ignoring his question, and the kit bared his teeth.

"Why did all the sacrifices die except for me?"

The lines on Blur's face deepened, but he determinedly dragged his tongue across Tails' ears. The fox scoffed, crossing his arms.

"And let me guess, you won't even let me scan their graves to find out how they died?"

"No."

Tails' breath hitched, the kit blinking at the actual response while Blur glared at him.

"Graves bad."

"I don't know what that means!" Tails snapped and dragged himself out from under the hedgehog.

Blur let him go and simply stood on all fours as Tails got to his feet and started to pace, his tails lashing out agitatedly.

"What's so bad about the graves?" He threw up his hands. "Are you saying what happened to the sacrifices is bad? That the sacrifices themselves were bad? Or do you just not want me disturbing their graves?"

Tails stopped, fists trembling while he glared at the floor.

"I…" His anger dimmed, expression falling. "How am I supposed to help anybody when you won't tell me anything?"

Blur didn't answer. Tails wilted, sighing.

Yet he stiffened as arms wrapped around him and gently drew him against a chest.

"Not-Mangey…" Blur whispered, and Tails gaped because Blur sounded so much like Sonic right now and…and he wanted his brother here.

Tails stifled a sob and turned to bury his face in the hedgehog's chest. For a second, he let himself think it was his actual brother hugging him, but reality settled in quickly. He wasn't even sure he could go home.

Blur held him a little tighter as Tails' shoulders hunched with a quiet whine and he moved to hug him back.

Moonlight beamed through the canopy while crickets chittered across the mossy earth. Tails laid on his leaf pile in the burrow, his tails wrapped around himself like a blanket and dull eyes staring at the wall.

He couldn't sleep, doubted he would get any sleep tonight when his mind was drowning in questions. Thorn hated the Scavengers, for reasons unclear, Rouge and the others were the Scavengers, and they might have killed Mangey. Though Blur…was he really seeking revenge? And did he kill the other sacrifices?

Tails frowned. Blur hadn't looked angry when he brought up the sacrifices, just upset. Also, Rouge had left him to die on that tree, but she seemed regretful and desperate. Maybe he was biased because these people resembled his friends, yet he couldn't believe any of them were killers. So who was the real monster? Blur? The Scavengers? Someone else? He neededanswers.

His tails unwound around him and he sat up. He glanced at the burrow entrance, nose twitching. Blur's scent wasn't nearby, but the hedgehog could return any second. It was now or never.

Tails reached back in his fur. He pulled out Thorn's dagger and tugged the gourd from his neck so he could see the blade as he started to saw.

His blue eyes shot over to the leaf covering the entrance and he sniffed the air again, yet didn't pick up Blur's scent. Of course, that wasn't much assurance when the hedgehog could appear in a blink.

Tails sawed a little faster, cutting through each woven vine until finally, the collar slackened around his neck. He breathed a sigh of relief and yanked the vines and gourd off, dropping them on the floor.

Then the kit turned to the entrance, and tucking away Thorn's blade, reached up to grab the tunnel's sides. He quickly climbed to the top and brushed the leaf aside, moonlight falling over him while he crawled out onto the damp forest floor. Yes, he was free—

Blur was laying a few feet away, head raised and eyes on the canopy above. However, his ears were turned towards Tails and the kit slumped.

"Blur," Tails sighed, knowing what was coming. "I get you want to protect me, but I have to—"

"Go home."

Tails gasped as Blur stared evenly at him. Resignation weighed down the hedgehog's face while he slowly got to all fours and turned to a basket under a tree. He grabbed the handle with his mouth, walked it over to Tails, and dropped the basket beside him.

The kit blinked at the apples inside it. However, Blur just turned and went back to his spot, hunkering down and staring at the sky.

Tails cocked his head. He wasn't going to stop him?

The fox stood up, following the teen's gaze. He saw nothing so looked to Blur. Green eyes were shifting back and forth, searching. Oh.

"You're looking for Mangey, aren't you?"

Blur twitched, yet didn't turn away from the sky. Tails' face fell and he approached him. His heart shuddered at the defeated expression on the hedgehog's face. He looked so lonely. Tails knew what that felt like…

"I…" Tails' face grew determined. "I'm coming back, I just need to check on something."

Tails waited for a response. Blur gave none. The fox sighed and his namesakes whirled. Blur jumped up, swiveling around wide-eyed as Tails lifted into the air. The teen's mouth dropped while the fox swung back to grab the basket and then zipped over him, glancing down with a smile.

"I'll be back!" he repeated.

Blur merely blinked in disbelief as Tails shot up through the canopy and breached into the night sky. He squinted at the full moon, unused to so much light after spending all day in the dark undergrowth. However, his eyes soon adjusted and he glanced around. It shouldn't be too far.

Tails spotted a wooden platform in the distance and smirked before speeding over to it. He stopped above the wooden bridge and silently dropped down, eyeing the figure up on a branch that spiraled from the tree the platform had been built on.

Rouge was examining her hand, a bored expression on her face, though her ears were flicking left and right. So she was on night watch. Perfect.

Tails turned and spotted the alternate Knuckles seated on the platform and leaning against an upright log under the shade of a giant leaf. His eyes were closed, hands folded in his lap, and he seemed fast asleep. Tails glanced to the platform's other side and found Big curled up under a leaf draped over a branch like a tent. After a moment, Tails decided he too was asleep. Great.

The fox flew up and glided to Rouge. The bat stiffened immediately. Her eyes shot over to him, wings extending while she grabbed a spear. Yet she choked as Tails landed across from her.

"You…" she whispered. "You're not—"

"Dead?" Tails cocked an eye. "Yes, despite your attempt on my life, I got away from the monster."

The girl went to speak, but Tails raised his hand. "Look, I'm not angry, I get you all were just really desperate, so I'm not here for revenge."

Rouge's mouth shut and she frowned. "Then what are you here for?"

Tails lifted the basket and tilted it towards her. Rouge inhaled sharply.

"Fruit?"

She gazed at the apples like the Rouge he knew stared at the Master Emerald.

"I want to trade."

Rogue's head jerked up. "T-trade?" She glanced down at the platform, scanning it frantically. "Um, well, we have tools!" she cried suddenly. "Like this!" She thrust his spear at him. "You can have it and our baskets—"

"Actually," Tails gently pushed the spear back, "I just want some information."

Rouge blinked. "What?" she asked blandly, eye cocked and hand going to her hip. "You're giving up fruit, the most expensive thing in this world, for information?"

Tails smirked. "Well, getting fruit clearly isn't as hard for me as it is for you."

Rouge's gaze turned calculative, but she slowly nodded. "I guess if you're fast enough to escape the monster, you're fast enough to sneak away with fruit…"

Tails started as she suddenly leaned forward, raising her pointer finger. "But I only give one answer for every fruit. Deal?"

The kit's brow rose at the girl's boldness, but soon he bowed his head to hide a fond grin. Typical Rouge.

"Deal." He raised his head and his expression became serious. "First question, do you know Mangey?"

Rouge reeled back. "Mangey…"

Tails' heart clenched while the girl's eyes darted aside. "So you do know him…"

Rouge grimaced. "Yeah, we all did." She waved towards Knuckles and Big. "He was always clinging to that monster. Of course, that was before he became a monster."

Tails' eyes widened. "You were friends with Blur?"

Rouge's face hardened. "More like friends with his little gal pal, but he'd hang around her so often, I thought he considered us…" She trailed off, shaking her head. "Regardless, he chose her side eventually." Her teeth clenched. "And became even worse than the first monster."

Tails' brow furrowed. So Thorn was telling the truth, Blur hadn't initially kicked the Scavengers out of the jungle, but then something changed when Mangey was attacked. Though, if it was the Scavengers who killed Mangey, wouldn't Blur have just said that?

Frustration sharpened the fox's gaze, yet he still reached into the basket and tossed two apples to the girl.

Rouge dropped her spear in her haste to catch them while Tails said, "I asked two questions and you answered." The girl's face lit with surprise, but he quickly continued, "So, about Mangey, do you know what happened to him?"

His tails swished agitatedly because Rouge could be a good liar when she wanted to be, and if she had anything to do with Mangey's disappearance…

The bat frowned, squinting, and he wondered if she'd just noticed his resemblance to Mangey. However, she didn't ask and simply shrugged one shoulder.

"I haven't seen Mangey in months. I guess the monsters of the forest got tired of him and kicked him out like they did to us." Her tone dripped with bitterness. "Monsters aren't exactly loyal."

Tails eyed her a moment, but her emotion seemed genuine. So she didn't know, though what if Knuckles or Big—

He shook off the thought. No, they couldn't have hurt Mangey, even if they were upset about Thorn kicking them out of the jungle. They were better than that.

Tails frowned, but pulled out another apple and tossed it to Rouge.

"I heard the monster didn't use to attack people, so when did he start?"

Rouge turned over an apple in her hand, examining it with a grin as she idly answered, "Hm, about four months ago."

Tails' gaze fell to the branch. That matched what Thorn told him, which meant Blur had started attacking Scavengers when Mangey went missing. Was that a coincidence? He didn't think so, but he also doubted the Scavengers hurt his alternate self. There must be something else linking Mangey's disappearance to Blur's changed attitude about the Scavengers…

He glanced in his basket. Only two apples left. Two questions then.

"How…" Tails stopped, face scrunching in confusion. "Wait, if you were friends with Blur, why are you sacrificing to him? You know he's not totally feral, at least not enough to eat people."

Rouge scoffed. "Like I said, he changed." Her lips pursed. "Though we did think it was strange at first, we heard from the other Villages that the monster would wipe out entire forager groups if you didn't sacrifice someone. And we figured losing one was better than losing all—"

"Wipe out?" Tails balked. "You mean he killed them?"

Discomfort flickered across Rouge's face. "Exactly. It never happened to us, but we all heard the rumors." She glared at the branch. "One minute your teammate is beside you, and the next, there's a scream. By the time you turn around, all you find is a blood trail or a body."

Tails cocked his head. "But how do you know Blur—"

"Who else is fast enough to kill someone without being seen?" Rouge snapped and Tails stiffened.

Hold on…killing someone without being seen? The monster…could it be…

"Hey." Rouge motioned to herself. "That was more than two questions."

"Oh," Tails said tonelessly while his mind circled around a single possibility. "Here, keep the basket."

He left the container at her feet and the girl eagerly snatched it up, a grin splitting her face and almost manic joy gleaming in her eyes. However, Tails barely noticed as he turned to the forest below.

His eyes narrowed while his namesakes spun and he lifted off the branch. Though he stopped, glancing over his shoulder.

"Thanks for answering my questions, but I've got somewhere to be."

Rouge paused from running her hands over the apples and looked up. Her face grew serious, mouth slanting down.

"If…" She turned aside. "If you see Mangey…"

Tails tensed as she faced him.

"Let him know he's always got a home with us."

Tails frowned because if the monster was who he thought, the chances of Mangey having survived…

"Yeah," Tails said quietly, hands flexing with nervousness. "I'll tell him if I see him."

Rouge nodded and turned back to the fruit while Tails flew toward the forest. Yet his ears twitched as he heard Rouge calling.

"Gnarly! Hangry! Wake up!"

"Huh, what? Are we under attack!? Are the trees finally seeking revenge on—is that an apple?"

"Food!"

Tails smiled, happy to have helped even alternate versions of his friends. However, his muzzle soon twisted with a grimace and he reached back for his Miles Electric. He clicked on the screen, frowning briefly at the 30% over the battery symbol before pulling up his GPS. The fox stopped. He was here.

Tails dove down into the forest, leaves brushing his back while he dodged vines and branches. He reached the ground and tall grass trembled under the beat of his tails as he flew over them, heading for the gigantic tree. He landed in front of the towering hollow and clicked the Electric's side button.

Bright light shined out of the device and Tails closed his eyes. This was it. Time to face the truth.

A chilly breeze rushed out of the tree and howled while it ran through his fur. Tails opened his eyes, raised his Electric, and strode into the hollow.

The air instantly became colder and Tails shivered, but carried on until he spotted something in the darkness. Tails' eyes widened, mouth parting. Yet he lifted his Electric higher, titling it to the ceiling.

And the light shined upon the monster's head.

Beware the Jabberwock, my son!

The jaws that bite, the claws that catch!

Any guesses about who the monster is? I'd love to hear them if you do😉 Also, shoutout to anyone who knows where the title of this story came from (Hint: it comes from the same place as the bottom quote).

Anyway, take care till next time!