I hope you guys enjoy this one :3

(Sonic is 12. Tails is 5)

"Buddy, of course I care about you." Sonic sighed as the light from the bonfire cast shadows in their temporary cave, just bright enough for Tails to see the blue hedgehog's fingers. "... It has nothing to do with what happened last time. I just want you to have a normal childhood. I promise I'm going to visit often!"

"But I want to be with you, Sonic! I know you'll keep me safe…" Tails pleaded with 'puppy' eyes that melted Sonic's heart and made him desperately want to say "yes".

There was nothing that could ever make Sonic want to exclude Tails from his life. However, he also knew how risky his lifestyle had become, and the barely visible stitches on Tails were a painful reminder of that.

Not that he regretted helping out the "little guy"—he wasn't the type to dwell on the past anyway. Seeing the happiness on people's faces after he saved them was more than enough for him to love the life he had now. And the adrenaline it brought him was pretty great too.

But then Tails appeared in his life.

Although the speedster had only known the kid for a few months, he already loved him like a brother. Not only did he have a heart of gold, but he was a literal genius and he could keep up with him (which was still so impressive).

The kit had literally learned sign language so he could understand Sonic. How couldn't he love the best lil' buddy in the whole Mobius?

The only problem was how dangerous it could be for the little kit to stay by his side, especially after what had happened a few days ago . . .

When the blue blur wasn't strong enough and . . . Tails could've . . .

Y'know what? He was not going to think about what could've happened. It just wasn't worth it. There was nothing he could do about it. What he could do, however, was change the future.

The thing is, Sonic wasn't even one to think about the future to begin with—he always let himself go wherever the wind would take him. Yet, Tails made him do the exact opposite.

And what had happened a few days ago . . . definitely impacted the hedgehog even further.

It made him realize the full magnitude of the danger he had been getting into by choice for a couple of years now.

What if Eggman captured Tails? What if Tails got seriously hurt? What if . . . Eggman experimented on him? What if-

No. He was not going to dwell on possibilities that had so little chance of actually happening.

Sonic just knew he would always find a way out of any situation Egghead put him or Tails through. He always did. He just had to. As soon as he was brave enough, he could do anything.

And the speedster knew he would save Tails. That he would always end up winning.

The problem was what could happen in between . . .

Honestly… that scared him more than he would like to admit.

And that was exactly why he was going to get Tails a "normal" loving family, so Tails could still have the life he deserved—one filled with normalcy, kindness, and love. And Sonic could still visit Tails, help him, and keep him safe.

"Tails, buddy… Helping the little guy isn't easy … I …" Sonic's fingers stopped, as he struggled to think of how he was going to explain everything he was feeling.

Why is it so hard to talk about these kinds of things?

To be fair, it was the first time he had talked about his feelings to . . . anyone, really.

This kid made him have a lot of firsts, didn't he?

Sonic had changed so much since Tails came around, hadn't he? Before, the blue blur fully believed getting attached to someone would slow him down.

And, then, he found himself getting attached.

And he didn't want to let go of the kid.

The string attached to him didn't actually slow him down but made him stronger, made him have a bigger and more meaningful purpose. He still saved the world purely for his own reasons. But the reasons behind it got bigger, stronger, evolving into something with more purpose.

Most importantly, Sonic found himself wanting to help Tails in more ways than he ever thought possible. Helping Tails overcome his self-consciousness, boosting his self-esteem, and assuring him that the blue blur wasn't going to leave. Helping him believe he deserved the life he had now. Helping him realize he deserves to be loved.

It wasn't always easy. Sonic knew it wouldn't be when the fox decided to follow him. But he didn't regret it in the slightest.

What had happened, to Tails, on Westside was just . . . so horrible. Sonic had seen how they treated Tails, how they hated him just because of his two tails. How thin, scared and unhealthy Tails looked. Whether it was jealousy or aversion to his difference, it didn't matter. Sonic would never tolerate anything like this, especially in Tails' case. His two tails were a gift, and no one could tell him otherwise. And he was an amazing kid, who didn't deserve any of the hardships he had faced.

Sometimes, Sonic wanted to teach the whole village a lesson, throw his morals to the wind, and just go for it. Burn the entire village down, even. But he knew he would regret it. It did go against his morals, after all.

And besides what kind of example would he be?

It just wasn't worth it to dwell on the past — on Tails' past, in this case. Although the blue blur, like now, couldn't help but do just that. Nevertheless, what Sonic could actually do was change Tails' future.

And a recently turned five-year-old helping him fight Egghead probably was far from ideal.

"Look…" He stopped moving his fingers, for a bit, until he finally found a way to explain to the little kit. "I just don't want you to go through bad stuff. I know I could save you, and you would be alive, but I want you to be happy—"

"But I'm happy with you, Sonic! You're not listening to me! I want to be with you." There were tears forming in the barely visible Tails' baby blue eyes, breaking Sonic's heart. "You're my only friend!"

He still wasn't very good at comforting anyone, sassy remarks and humor was more his style. Although, he doubted that any of these would make Tails feel better right now. He was getting there. He just hoped his still very-much-in-progress comforting skills would suffice.

"Tails, you're my li- friend too. I… I just don't want anything bad happening to you-"

"You-you" Tails interrupted Sonic, as his eyes widened, quickly becoming filled with sadness and betrayal. "g-got tired of-of me, didn't you?" He started breathing unevenly as tears overflowed from his eyes.

Sonic's heart was aching.

How was he messing up so badly with this?

Before Sonic could respond, however, Tails ran away, in a flash from the cave.

Oh no.

This couldn't actually be happening, right?

This has to be a really bad dream.

Sonic pinched his arm. The pain overtook his senses, but, yet, he was still in a cave without Tails in sight.

This. Was. Real.

Tails- no, his little brother- ran away, at night, and he had no idea where he went.

Sonic, panicked, ran, desperately hoping he could find Tails. There was no way he was letting his little brother go. No matter what.

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