"So, what did you want to show me, Knux?" Tails rocked onto his tippy toes; he had followed Knuckles into the woods while the rest of the family was away. They really weren't supposed to be all the way out here on their own, but Knuckles had insisted he had something really cool to show to him.

"I wanted to speak to you about our first encounter."

Oh, that's right, Tails remembered with a grimace that he had hit Knuckles with a car. He had a good reason, and the echidna wasn't really hurt, but he had still hit him with a car. Is he still upset about that? He'd promised to get vengeance for the transgression, but nothing had come of it in the coming months.

"Oh, um, what about it?" The kit questioned, tilting his head. Suddenly he felt the air knocked out of him as a heavy force hammered him into the ground, then kept hitting him, driving a crater around him. Now Tails had been hit many times before, but never with this much power. He felt a recognizable sharp ache in his upper torso. Spots were clouding his vision if he was in a cartoon, he'd even tell you he saw birds circling above his head.

"Now we're even." A gruff voice spat followed by footsteps which faded away as Tails' vision did.

—————

"You did what to him?!" It had been a few hours since the beat down, but the fox still wasn't home yet, and Sonic was angrier than he'd expected when he told him why.

"The fox was a worthy adversary. Took his punishment like a warrior." Though if he were truly a champion, he'd be home right now instead of burdening his family, which Knuckles kept to himself.

"Knuckles!" Sonic pinched his eyebrow. "And you just left him there?! He could be seriously hurt. You have to tell mom."

"Tell mom what?" They both jumped as Maddie entered the room. Sonic gave him a look that said tell her or else.

"I have gotten my revenge on the fox." Knuckles stated simply. He was expecting a more serene response from Maddie with how she conducted herself compared to Sonic. Instead, he saw all stages of grief, disgust, fear, and anger wash over her.

"How?" She urged, but the echidna said nothing looking away in shame. He didn't know why they were upset. He had done what he'd promised months ago, what a warrior would do. His mother figure took a breath and stared him through the soul. "How did you get revenge on Tails?" Knuckles still said nothing but glanced down at his fists.

Maddie slapped her thigh, "Oh my God, Knuckles!" She got her purse and car keys. "Come on, you're showing us where you left him!"

—————

The darkness clouding his mind drifted away as Tails woke up. His body aching, he looked around expecting himself to be back on Westside, banished to the woods outside of the fox village but still hunted occasionally by the villagers. The last few months came rushing back to him, he was in Montana, on Earth with his hero, Sonic. He'd been taken in by the hedgehog's family and treated by one of their own. But one of his own had just hurt him.

Tails tried to keep his breaths shallow as he sat up to not aggravate the stabbing sensation in his ribs. He had had this before; it was worse because he knew he couldn't treat. If it just fractured, he'd need rest for a couple of weeks, but a broken rib, that was more complicated. He hoped he wouldn't get horribly sick this time; he'd had a few close calls with his type of abuse before. He didn't even want to think about the long-term consequences of leaving a broken rib untreated; chest wall deformity, decreased lung function, chronic pain. But at least now he knew a vet who could help him prevent all that when he got home if he ever got home.

It was getting dark. Tails needed somewhere to rest until he could make the long journey home. Looking around in the dimming sunlight he saw a hole in the dirt left by some small animal. It took all of his energy to slowly crawl into it and lay himself on his back. He wanted desperately to crawl into a ball hugging his tails for comfort, but he knew that would only irritate his ribs. So, he lay there and slowly drifted off to an uncomfortable slumber.

—————

"Show us exactly where you left him." Maddie snapped at Knuckles with her arms crossed as they trudged their way through the forest. It was dark now, but he could still make out the crater where he had pummeled the kit to the ground. He pointed at the spot and his family gasped. "The fox will be fine. "He assured them, "Mobians are stronger than earthlings. He is self-sufficient."

Sonic went over to the hole and sat in it with his arms and legs crossed, staring at the dirt. "Knuckles, you hit him this hard?! He's only eight!" The echidna looked at him in surprise, he wasn't expecting that. The kid traveled across the universe and flew a plane, he'd thought he'd be at least a few years younger than Sonic.

Sonic covered his head with his paws. "Oh God, what if he's dead?!"

"He's not dead. "Maddie assured, petting his head a few times, then glaring at Knuckles. "But someone else may be soon."

The hedgehog got up then they all scattered around searching for the kit. Sonic sped around the forest calling for Tails, carefully avoiding trees and rocks. Knuckles climbed up a tree to get a better view of the surrounding area, but it was too dark to see. Tom flashed his police flashlight over the area taking in a better scope of their surroundings. Even Ozzie was sniffling around where Maddie held him on his lease. She'd half hoped half not hoped there would be a blood trail leading them to the kit, but the dirt was bloodless.

Ozzie pushed her in the opposite direction from where she was standing, tying the leash around her legs, still sniffing the ground. "Ozzie!" His nose landed over a small hole that may have once belonged to a badger or a large skunk. "Ozzie, get out of there!" She screamed, pulling back the leash, but the dog was insistent. He started scratching at the dirt around the hole. Tom shined his light at where he was digging.

And there was the one they'd been looking for. Tails, unconscious, bruised, and covered in dirt.

—————

They all had to dig around the hole with their hands/paws to be able to pull the kit out. Maddie carefully carried him to the car to get a better look, the others crowding around her with Knuckles farther back in shame. She turned on the car light and gasped. His body was littered with dirt and bruises, chest swelling, shaking and sweating at the same time, and he had a fever.

Maddie rested her hand on the side of his face. "Tails, honey, can you speak to me?" They waited a few minutes as bright sky-blue eyes slowly lifted open. The family let out a sigh of relief.

The kit stirred and looked over at them all in a confused daze. "You came to get me?"

Sonic's eyes softened at that. "Of course we did, buddy."

"Why?" Tails looked at them, coming out of it some but still confused. Maddie held him a bit closer to her. "Because you're our family."

—————

When they got home, Maddie carefully set Tails on the couch, wrapping him in a blanket and began preparing a heating pad. Tom dragged the coffee table closer to the couch and got the kit a juice box and Dino nuggets, which Tails picked at the food gingerly. Sonic sat next to Tails stroking his fur and reassuring him. Knuckles stayed out of the way.

Maddie set the heating pad on Tails' chest and sighed, looking at her family. "It doesn't seem like he'd need surgery, but I'm still going to take him to work tomorrow for an X-ray to be sure."

Tom rubbed his temples, "God, how could we let this happen."

The kit moved his head towards them. "I'm okay." He told them taking a sip of his juice. "I've had worse." He reassured, resting his head back down. Sonic spat out a heartwrenching gasp, Maddie covered her face in her hands, Tom looked defeated, and Knuckles clenched his fists, staring at his shoes. Well, that had the opposite effect intended.

Tails had been through worse, though. Before coming to Earth, he'd broken ribs and got sick all the time from the injury. There were even a few times when he had to do major surgery on himself after getting shot. It was a miracle his heart was beating right now. So, this pain, to him, wasn't unfamiliar.

Knuckles was distraught, "I am sorry, young fox. I don't know what I could do to repair this."

Tails looked at him, "I'm fine, it's fine."

Maddie removed her hands from her mouth and looked at the echidna. "No. Not, actually. Knuckles, Tom, and I think it would be best if you stay at Wade's house for a few days. We do not hurt each other in this family."

"I understand Lady Madeline. I will collect my possessions for my departure." The echidna responded solemnly.

—————

Tails struggled with the oxygen mask Maddie put on him. It was bulky and made an annoying hissing sound, a breeze touching the tip of his nose. She'd put it on right before making him drink this sticky red liquid she called medicine.

Why was she doing this to him? Tails had been sick after getting hurt like this without anyone to care for him and he was fine. He had always been fine.

He felt a twinge of guilt for thinking this way about his family who had cared so much for him since they came back home, since he'd been adopted by them.

Sonic was lying in his bed beside him, they'd moved him and his breathing machine to their bedroom a day ago. The hedgehog was rambling on about something that he couldn't keep up with, kicking his feet around. He saw Tails lift his paw to the oxygen mask as if to remove it, only for a second, but Sonic pulled his paw away.

"No, bud, gotta keep that on." Tails just stared at him, annoyed. Not even for just a second?

As if reading his mind, Sonic placed his finger on Tails' chin and lifted it towards him. "I know, I know, but Mom says it'll help you feel better."

The kit groaned from under the mask. Sonic scratched between his ears comfortingly. "Hey, I know what'll make you feel better want me to read you some comics?"

Tails slowly nodded. Sonic took out his favorite Flash comic and turned it open to where Tails could read it. He began reading the dialogue out loud and acting out the side effects. The kit tried hard not to laugh under his oxygen mask.

And they continued like that until they both fell asleep.

—————

Maddie pulled the covers draped over Tails up. Sonic was snoring from his bed to the right of him.

The kit was okay, the X-ray showed that his ribs weren't in danger of hurting his vital organs, and as long as the pneumonia went away in a couple of weeks there wouldn't be anything to worry about. But that didn't make her feel any better.

She'd let a kid in her care get this hurt, hurt by another one of her kids, nonetheless. She'd promised to take care of Tails, that this would be different from his life on his home planet, that he could have a real childhood. And she'd failed him.

She sighed as Ozzie crawled over and lay on the floor between Tails and Sonic's beds, whining. She pets him, "Don't worry he'll feel better, Oz."

"Still blaming yourself?" Tom's voice came out from behind her, and she jumped.

"Stop doing that!" She whispers yelled as to not wake the kids. Tom laughed as she gently swatted him.

Then he looked back at her more seriously. "It's not like you could have predicted this."

"Yeah, but still…"

She felt an arm come around her. "Honey, look at him. They're fine. He's going to recover. He's got a great nurse." She smiled and kissed him. "You better be right."

—————

Maddie came up to the attic. Tails stared at her hands searching for the dreaded red liquid bottle he was sure she'd give him again. "Don't worry, "She smiled reassuringly, "You don't seem to need any more Robitussin right now, I brought you some chicken soup." She set a steaming bowl on his bedside table and helped him sit up. It smelled wonderful.

Tails took a shaky spoonful of the creamy liquid and slipped it into his mouth. The kit had eaten a lot of birds in his time growing up in the woods, and Sonic had recently introduced him to grilled chicken and nuggets, but this was different. This thing was better than anything Tails had ever tasted before.

It warmed and cooled off his insides simultaneously. It was creamy and thick. He hadn't realized how hungry he was until he went to get another spoonful, and it was gone.

Maddie let out a sigh of relief that he was eating. "Glad you like it." She placed a hand on the side of the kit's face and smiled as he leaned back into it. "Thanks, Mom." It slipped out before he could stop himself. Maddie paused for a second before recovering with a kiss to the kit's head, before leaving the room.

—————

Tom had googled everything he could about pneumonia in children. Maddie shouldn't be doing this alone after all. Unfortunately, there wasn't a lot of information for treating sick fox alien kids. He did find an article about helping sick foxes in the wild, but disturbingly it just instructed him to call Wildlife Control so they could trap and euthanize the animal.

He put the phone down and shuttered at the thought of killing someone, even a non-alien animal for daring to get sick. Tom stood up from the couch and went to check on Tails. He was relieved when his wife told him the kit started eating again but seeing that the bruises on his chest hadn't yet gone away still bothered him.

As he climbed the stairs, he heard Sonic talking to his brother. "And you wouldn't believe what happened- "

"Sonic, "Tom interrupted, wanting to spare the kit from some of his brother's ramblings. "Ozzie needs to be walked." The hedgehog let out a groan and trudged back down the stairs.

Tom looked over at the kit. "How are you holding up?" The kit just stared at him under the oxygen mask. The policeman rubbed the back of his neck, "Yeah, though so."

He sat down on Sonic's bed. "You know what makes me feel better when I'm feeling sick? Listening to some music." Tails didn't look convinced, but Tom pulled out his phone and put it on Spotify anyway. He suspected this alien kid had never listened to Hamilton, and that just wasn't right.

Tails laid back and listened to about twenty songs before falling asleep. Maybe he's got his dad thing in the bag after all.

—————

"Sonic?" Tails moved his head to the side to look at the sleeping hedgehog beside him. After two weeks of misery, Maddie deemed it safe enough to remove the oxygen mask, but it still hurt to move.

"Yeah?" Came the tired voice from beside him.

"Is Tom and Maddie going to kick us out if we're bad?" It was something he'd been wondering since he saw Knuckles leave out the front door with his bags, but something he couldn't vocalize until now.

Tails jumped as Sonic snapped his head to him. "What?" He sat up. "No! Why would you think that?!"

"It's just that…they kicked out Knuckles."

The hedgehog took a second before answering. "That's…different."

"How?"

"It…it just is, okay? He's coming back soon anyway."

"When?" But Sonic didn't answer, just rolled onto his side where he wasn't facing him until they both fell asleep.

—————

Tails took another spoonful of cereal; it had grown soggy in the time he had been putting off eating it, but he'd promised Tom he'd eat a whole bowl if he carried him down to the living room to watch cartoons, so he powered through.

Sonic passed him from where he'd just woken up in in their room and he heard his footsteps heading to the kitchen. Tails could see him whisper something to Maddie from where she was pouring her bowl of cereal. He stared as his mother figure put the cereal box down and leaned over the counter, shaking her head and covering her face with her hands, exasperated.

Maddie took a few seconds before getting up. Tails could barely make out what she was saying. "Thanks for telling me, I'll talk to him." Footsteps came over to him. The kit felt the woman sit next to him and pause the TV.

"Tails, can I talk to you?"

"Okay." He leaned back on the couch, grateful for a break from his cereal.

She put a hand on his shoulder. "Do you feel comfortable having Knuckles around after what happened?"

"Well, yeah, I mean he's my brother, isn't he?"

"He could have punctured your lung." It was a bit blunt, but he knew she was right. From what he read about rib fractures over the years it could have easily killed him. Any of those beatings he took on Westside could have. Still, he wanted Knuckles back.

"I make mistakes, too. But you guys haven't kicked me out."

She smiled and then ruffled his head gently. "I'm sorry if I made you feel your place here was conditional. I feel really bad about it."

"Does this mean I don't have to eat my cereal?"

Maddie laughed, "Yes sir, a deal's a deal."

—————

Sonic was the first person to greet Knuckles when he walked back in the door. He pulled his brother into a hug, the echidna stiffened but then returned it. This earth custom would get some getting used to.

Then came Tom and Maddie who helped him with his bag and gave him a big bowl of grapes. They tried to apologize frantically for how things had transpired a few weeks ago, but the warrior would not hear it. He had hurt a young child. It was dishonorable.

"It is nice to be back. Where is my yellow friend?" He hoped the fox wasn't angry at him for what he'd done. But if so he'd honestly understand.

"Upstairs resting," Maddie said sternly, though not angrily. "Please be careful with him." Knuckles nodded he understood it would be a while until she could trust him with his brother again. He carefully climbed up the attic stairs, followed by Sonic. Honestly, the fox was the only one he'd been dying to talk to since he left for Wade's home.

And there he was, lying in his yellow airplane bed staring at the ceiling trying to sleep. The echidna sat close by him on the hedgehog's bed.

"Deepest condolences fox friend. I do not know what came over myself." He truly hadn't. He was just so full of rage. Something he had always struggled with, that his father had tried to help him mend before he'd gone away.

"It's okay Knucks. It's not like I'm dead." Tails rubbed the back of his neck and giggled. But the echidna's frown only deepened. If this had been his tribe an elder would have ordered Tails or Tails' family to beat him as badly as the kit had been. But this was Earth, and he'd been told they don't do that here.

Then Knuckles got on his knees, "I am truly in your debt for letting me return home after…my transgression."

"They were going to bring you back either way- "The kit reassured, but Knuckles continued.

"I will be at your service for the next century my brethren"

"Not really necessary." Tails looked at him like he was forcing a smile. He caught the kit shooting a glance at Sonic for help, but the hedgehog just shrugged. "I will wait on you hands and feet for the ends of time."

"Knuckles that's not- "

"I will rage war and defeat gladiators in your name- "

"-Knuckles!" Sonic spoke up now, putting a hand on the echidna's shoulder and helping him up, chuckling. "He said you're good man."

"I truly am sorry, Tails." He tried again softly, gently pulling the kit in close to him.

Tails smiled, "I know Knuckles. I know."

—————

"Tails," Sonic called him, lying in his bed beside him. It was another one of those sleepless nights. And this had been bothering him for a while. "What did you mean when you said you've had worse?"

"Huh?" The kit answered sleepily, he'd been half asleep by the time his brother had worked up the courage to ask.

"That night we found you and took you home. You said you've been through worse. Who hurt you?"

"Oh, just some guys from my village. They just didn't like me." It truthfully wasn't really his village; Tails had just lived in the woods near there. He wasn't allowed in but sometimes snuck over the wall to scavenge for food and supplies.

"Why?"

Tails didn't answer just lifted his two tails out from under the blanket to the other side of him where Sonic could see.

"Oh…" It was silent for a long moment after that until Sonic got up and moved into the kit's bed, gently lying beside him with an arm around him. "Well, you're here now."

—————

The Wachowski family all gathered in the living room to watch a movie, The Fox and the Hound, Tails' favorite. No one understood why he liked it on account of the fox hunting (which scared him on his first watch and Maddie made them turn it off) and the sad ending, but he enjoyed the friendship aspect of it. Two creatures who usually shouldn't get along, sworn enemies, playing and getting along together. It reminded him of his own weird, blended family.

Tom still practically forced him to eat. Maddie checked him over every few hours. Knuckles kept trying to hand-feed him grapes. Sonic refused to leave his side for even a second. And Ozzie had dog breathe. But he loved them.

Tails leaned back on the couch where Sonic and Knuckles sat on either side of him and smiled. His whole family was back together again.