The fox groaned in despair while gripping his head. Go to sleep!? Now!? He wasn't even HALFWAY done with his projects for the uncoming final battle! How could he go to sleep like this!? How could Cream be so cruel!

...ok, he was exaggerating. There were mostly tune-ups and testing phases and Cream was probably (he hoped) teasing him only but STILL! There's no WAY he was finishing it all now!

Curse Sonic's improving skill! If he wasn't sure he'd be dragged to bed by his big brother, he would actually try his luck! Or the looming thread of Cream learning the technique herself...

A small beep on his computer made him wipe his head to it.

„A breach in security?" He whispered as he suddenly felt his heart caught in a vice grip.

His fingers drummed against the keyboard at lightning speeds, droplets of sweat forming on his forehead.

How did his system fail to notify him sooner? Had there been an error in the programming he so confidently prided himself in?

His screen flashed on the image of the HQ, green dots showcasing where the members of the Restauration were currently taking rest. All save for two lone dots and the menacing red dot beside them.

The storage room. The place was frequented often by-

The fox barely managed to hit the emergency button as his tails formed into a spin. The sirens went off as Tails flew faster then he ever did in his life while holding his arm blaster close.

„Everyone, to the storage room!" He yelled in his communicator. „The enemy infiltrate the headquarters!"

The genius ran down the many halls of the HQ and tried to keep a clear head while feeling his heart ready to jump out of his chest.

The alarms were fading away the further he went. Tails knew there was only a matter of time until the cavalry followed him.

And then a bloodcurling scream froze his whole world. He picked up the pace and continued running.

His eyes zeroed in on the open door to the storage room. The hero slided till he reached it to slow down his momentum. He grabbed the frame and felt what was left of his heart shatter.

A giant mass of burning, gurgling metal screached and wriggled on the ground as a black mark seemingly increased and consummed it.

Cheese hovered not too far away from it, covered in metal and red and eyes shining with a million tears.

Blood fell on the ground in a puddle, trailing all the way back to three opening in Cream's ruined dress. Her right arm layed besides her body, all bloodied and bruised while clutching her stomach.

Her eyes were unfocused, but the second they made contact Tails swore he saw the light leave his friend's eyes.

„Not... like this..." she muttered faintly.

She wobbled, making a few steps towards him till she started to lean on her side.

That was when Tails woke up from whatever funk took over him. He speed towards her falling body, barely registering the blast he send towards the still pained monster in his weak spot.

„CREAM!"Tails jolted awake, breathing heavily as he came face to face with his dark bedroom. He continued to take deep breaths, this time trying to slow down their rythm. The fox brought his knee closer and proped his arm on it. This position further helped his mind rationalise the current situation.

That's right. He was no longer in the nightmare room. He was home, miles away from the triggering scene. Cream was safe. She was far away from harm. Nobody could hurt her anymore.

His strategy worked. He could feel his heartbeat return to normal as he stabilised his breathing. Tails let out one final deep breath before he took one more second to organise his thoughts.

The genius looked at the watch, 3:45 shining mockingly at the frazzled up fox.

„...never needed sleep that much anyway." He muttered to himself as he got up.

Pièrre stood with his back turn on top of the staircase, unmoving. Then he snapped his fingers.

„Hit the beat."

Pop music suddenly started blasting.

Pièrre spins around, shades on with a poker face as he starts to dance to the rhythm. He walks down the stairs to the beat, at the last steps his hedgehog cousins appeared.

They too had shades and similar poker faces to match the young wolf. They then extended their paws, allowing Pièrre to prompt his own in each of the siblings' and they proceeded to carry him like that till they were in the middle of the living room.

There, they started breakdancing, syncronising perfectly with one another with the little wolf in the lead.

Then the beat suddenly changes to a completely different genre.

The trio turns towards the perpetrators, who turned out to be none other then the echidna family trio.

With stone faces and shades to match, they proceed to do their ancestors' dance, hints of the modern day trends sometimes being present in their hypnotic rhythm.

Then the beat changes yet again to a more slow and elegant kind of music.

Now all the kids turned towards the royal pair, who used this moment to execute their own dance. While the rhythm was slow, their acrobatic movement and beautifull syncronisation more then made up for it. The only thing that was disorienting was their shades.

Once their number was done, all the superpowered kids shared an intense stare between them all. And then the beat stops completely.

They all turned around to face Pièrre, who cracked them a smirk and switched to a more trendy music he KNEW everyone loved.

The superpowered kids all shared a look before they shrugged and then started dancing again, each taking a more individualistic style of dance more akin to their personality.

Tails, having forgotten his lab coat back in his bedroom thus revealing the mean bed fur, owlishly blinked at the chaos, holding three cups of coffee while standing in the doorway leading to the garage.

„Aren't you all grounded?" His voice cut through the air and froze up the busted children. And then a bunch of colored blurs exited his house almost immediately followed by „Sorry, uncle!".

The only one who still remained was a familiar looking gray wolf, who half-turned towards his father and smiled innocently at him.

„Good morning, daddy!"

„Morning." Greeted back Tails as he walked over and turned off the music. „What caused you all to enter a dance battle in my living room?"

Pièrre pulled away the shades.

„I send them the message about Mrs. Grim yesterday. They finally got to see it today!"

Tails hummed quietly.

„Guess they went to bed early after we left, huh?"

Pièrre then pouted.

„I still can't believe you forgot to tell anyone at aunty's house!"

„I didn't forget!" Argued back Tails. „I just abstained cause I wanted to tell you in private first."

„But why AFTER we arrived home?"

„Things were heating up too much for my liking."

Pièrre shook his head exasperate while Tails washed the cups.

„What do you want to eat for breakfast?" He asked as he put the cups to dry out. „I've been craving some pancakes since I woke up. What do you think?"

However, there was no answer. Tails turned around to see Pièrre squinting at him.

„What?"

Pièrre continued to squint a bit more.

„Nothing." He denied before he switched to his usual cheery self. „Can I help you make them?"

Tails smiled at his son.

„Of course!"

Little did the fox know that, whenever he would turn away or focus too much on his task, Pièrre would squint suspiciously at his every move.

When the genius placed a ridiculous amount of pancakes on the table, that was when the wolf exploded.

„You didn't sleep again!" He accused his father.

Tails' fur frazzled up at the accusation.

„W-What gave it away?" Asked the fox sheepishly.

Pièrre stared blankly at him. And then he pointed out at the cups of coffee.

„You're already done with your coffee for today."

Then at the mountain of pancakes.

„You never make this much unless you're sleepy or stressed."

And then at his father's disheaveled appearence.

Tails wordlessly put a pancake in his mouth.

„You're getting too good at this and I don't know if I like it." He muttered with his mouth full.

„You said getting sleep is important!" Argued Pièrre, all worked up. „Why send me to bed early when you don't go there at all?!"

„Ok, let's break this down." Said Tails while doing the time-out sign. „Sleep IS important for your growth and your brain also. I just happened to woke up earlier then I expected and couldn't sleep any longer. That's all there is to it."

Pièrre stared intently at the sweating fox. And then he sighed.

„Ok."

Tails felt himself let go of a breath he didn't know he was holding before he continued to set the table.

„Good. Now let's seat down and eat!"

The wolf did as told and watched as his father, after giving him his usual portion of pancakes, proceeded to shove a comical amount of pancakes in his mouth.

The child ate thoughtfully, trying to find a way to resolve the problem. And then a lightbulb appeared above his head.

„Daddy, can I have my communicator now?" He asked with big puppy eyes.

Tails paused mid-bite, seemingly thinking it through before he started munching on it.

„Only after breakfast." He concluded. „And no shenanigans with your cousins this time please."

Pièrre then finished his pancakes in record time before he positioned himself next to his father, his normal energy returning to him.

The fox blinked at the enthusiastic wolf before he pointed upwards.

„The communicator is in my lab coat. It's in my room." Tails jumped a bit as Pièrre hugged his leg before he dashed away.

„Thank you, dad!" He yelled as he ran for his life.

„Don't rush up the stairs!" Yelled Tails from his spot. He then took another spoonfull of pancakes. „He's definatly planning."

Back in his father's room, Pièrre chuckled evilly as he formed the number he was searching for using Tails' own phone.

Fleta quickly entered the restaurant through the back door. Ethan then prompted his feet hard on the ground, effectively stopping his sister from entering the hallway.

An employee passed by obliviously, the duo waiting until he was out of sight to continue their way.

They eventually made their way back to the kitchen, where their mother boiled a big pot of pasta. She searched franticly through the drawers before she addressed the staff.

„Does anyone still have some tomato sauce?" She asked franticly. „Or at least some tomatoes!"

„Here you go, mom!" Said Ethan as he handed her a bag of tomatoes. „Those are really fresh!"

Amy's eyes twinkled as her eyes landed on the prized vegetables, gratefully taking them from her son's hands.

„Thank you, dear!" She smiled at her son. „I know I can always count on you!"

Ethan smiled proudly at the remark, while Fleta rolled her eyes.

„I can also count on you telling me where you both ran off to, right?" She asked as she started to cut the tomatoes.

The twins flinched.

Amy heaved out a sigh.

„Just go and help out however you can." She dropped the fresh vegetables in a frying pan and turned on the oven. „We'll talk about this later."

The twins sadly turned away, taking on their posts.

Ethan, being a bit more patient then his sister, helped keep the kitchen clean, helping with the dishes and giving the cooks the ingredients they needed.

Fleta stationed herself near the doorway, awaiting the order and the address she had to deliver it to. Whoever, Amy frowned at her.

„You're no longer in charge of deliveries."

Fleta palled. Even Ethan stopped halfway through his way, almost dropping the eggs he held.

„B-But that's my job." Stammered out the confused hedgehog.

„Not anymore." Amy placed the finished pasta in a bowl. „If Cage really is back, then the worst think we could do is letting him close to you again."

„But I can handle myself!" Argued Fleta.

„And that's not a risk I'm willing to take." Concluded Amy as she placed the pasta on the moving table. „From now on, you're in charge of serving the customers until our main waiter is back from sick leave. No speed allowed during rush hour. I'm counting on you!"

Fleta made a face, but she eventually pushed unenthusiasticly the table and got out of the kitchen. Ethan watched her go with sad eyes.

With a grunt, she stopped the moving table and started handing out orders. Which proved to be quite a difficult task for her since everything moved soooooo slow!

„I liked it better when I was delivering across town."She thought bitterly while she pushed the table towards the kitchen to refill again.

But during the second tray giving, she got an idea. Her mother said not to use her speed during rush hour, but there weren't that many people as of right now. She COULD raise the speed limit a little to help with the process a little. If her dad could do it, so could she!

And with her mind made up, chaos began. Fleta would run with the plate and place it on the respective table, not quite noticing how the customer would recoil shortly afterwards.

She continued to do so until the hedgehog ran out of food to deliver. With a smirk, she pushed the table towards the kitchen.

„Mission accomplished!"She mentally congratulated herself.

But then she heard them. Loud, very loud complaints.

Fleta turned ever so slowly towards the angry and food stained crowd.

Amy hurried over and gasped at the disaster.

„What is the meaning of this!?" Echoed one angry customer.

„I expected my order to be given to me on the plate, not on my face!" Complained another.

„Oh, my beautifull dress!" Wailed a woman.

„Give me the manager!" Roared a middle aged man.

Fleta backed away slowly from the angry crowd. And then she bumped into something. Or rather someone.

The hedgehog lifted her head up to greet the dissapointed frown of her mother. The small kid felt herself get smaller as Amy stared at her in silence.

„...please go back to your room." She finally said before looking at the crowd. „I'll take it from here."

Fleta stammered as her mother approached the upset customers.

„B-But I-!"

„Fleta." The blue hedgehog flinched at the unusual sharp tone. „Go to your room. We'll talk about this later."

The small kid gazed with broken eyes as her mother then went and bowed as the affected clients started to yell at her. She stayed there a little longer before she gradually turned away and headed towards her bedroom.

It was at that time that Ethan passed by her with his hands full of towels and tissues.

„Look, mama! I brought something to help!"

Amy's face brightened up at the sight of her son and gratefully took the materials from his small hands.

„Thank you, dear! I know I can always count on you!" And then she sighed and muttered under her breath. „I wish Fleta would..."

But the hedgehog in question was no longer there. She had ran out of there, missing the sad expression on her twin's face.

Once she reached her bedroom, she slammed the door shut behind her and leaned on it. She stood like that for a few seconds before she slided down and buried her face in her knees.

She ruined yet another day.

Fleta didn't know how long she stood there on the floor. Her thoughts were all she had to keep her company.

And they kept replaying the moment from not too long ago. And that opened up a downward spiral with all the moments she tried to live up to the expectations of being Sonic's daughter. How she struggled to achieve what her twin could do effortlessly. How she always couldn't bring the smile to her parents' faces the same way Ethan would.

And that's when it hit her. The problem was her. She wasn't good enough.

The realisation numbed her of all feeling, only raising her head to stare in space.

What was left for her to do? If she wasn't good enough to be in her family, then what purpose does she serve? Why stay here when all she brought was trouble?

She wasn't really thinking. She never really realised what she was doing. All she could register was her body opening the window and jumping out.

A dash of blue appeared as Sonic flashed his iconic smile.

„Hey, there Ames-!" The hedgehog gawked at his wife's slumped form over the counter and his son looking like his soul just left his body. „What happened here?"

Amy groaned.

„Fleta used her speed when delivering the orders." She muffled from her position.

Sonic grimanced at the response.

„Did you guys manage to work things out?" The hedgehog looked around for any sign of an angry Karen.

„Yeah." Sighed Amy. „We offered payment for the damages, redone their order and even gave away some leftovers for free. That managed to calm down any potential lawsuit."

„Gotcha." Nodded the hedgehog a bit absent minded.

Ethan looked at his dad with a worried frown.

„Can you talk to Fleta? She hasn't come out of her room since then."

„Oh, please do!" Amy sprung up from her position. „You understand her better then I do!"

The corners of Sonic's mouth went downwards.

„That's not true!" He then walked over and planted a kiss on her cheek. „It's just that she struggles on something I can relate to." He brushed a few quils off her face and smiled at her. „So don't put yourself down. You're a great mother."

Amy glanced away, her cheeks getting red as she swooned from one side to another with her hands on her cheeks.

„My darling!" She sighed dreamly. „You always know how to make me feel better!"

Sonic flicked his nose.

„Just doing what a hog's gotta do."

A small cough broke the immersion. The couple looked to see Ethan looking up at them with an impatient look on his face.

„Alright, alright." Sonic raised his hands and ran off to Fleta's room. „Be back in a jiffy!"

Amy rolled her eyes before she kneeled down and caught her son's gaze.

„Is something wrong? You haven't been yourself for a while."

Ethan fiddled with his fingers.

„Actually-!"

A pale of wind went by them followed by a very frantic blue hedgehog.

Amy got up alarmed.

„Sonic? What's wrong-!"

„Fleta." He cut her off. „She's gone!"

Tails let out a loud yawn as he exited his garage. He straightened his back, hearing a satisfying crack in the process.

Pièrre was on the couch, looking over at his drawing one more time. His ear picked up the sound of his father's footsteps which caused his head to turn around and run towards the exhausted looking fox.

„You're finally done!" The small wolf hugged his father's leg, briefly making him off-balance. „It was taking you forever!"

Tails chuckled and ruffled his fur.

„Sorry about that. Took a bit longer then usual." He then kneeled down to look Pièrre in the eye. „I'll go get the dinner ready. I'll make us some of that pork and rice you like so much. How does that sound?"

Pièrre deflated.

„But you didn't rest! And look even worse then before!"

The genius booped his little nose.

„Don't worry about me." He reassured him. „Been more exhausted once and still managed to put up a fight with baddies out there."

Pièrre's ears dropped as his father got up and walked towards the kitchen.

„But did you take care of your wounds at least?" He asked as he ran to keep up with the genius. „I've been to your room and the magic cream is still there!"

Tails waved off his concern.

„Hey, I'm still kicking. I'll tend to it later."

„But dad!"

Three knocks were heard from the door.

Tails raised an eyebrow at that as he went to see who it was.

„I don't think I invited anyone over today." He mumbled, unaware of the evil grin Pièrre was sporting behind him.

The genius opened the door and felt his face lit in delight as he saw the surprise visitors.

„Cream! Cheese!" He greeted excited. „I didn't expect to see you today!"

Cream smiled.

Now, Tails loved her smiles. He once thought they would be bright enough to warm up the whole planet during the ice age period. But something about the one she was sporting at that moment send shivers down his spine.

Cheese didn't ease his worries either. The small Chao sat there with his chubby hands crossed as he gave him a dissapproving glare.

„Hi, Tails!" Greeted back Cream, still smiling. „I see you've been working hard today."

Tails subcounciously tried to smooth his own fur, suddenly very self-aware of his messy appearence.

„Oh, uhm, yeah!" Stammered out the fox, feeling anxious all of a sudden. „Just a day from my very ordinary life. Hehe."

Cream and Cheese said nothing, just amplified their stares' intensity.

Tails gulped, the clutches of dread taking ahold of his panicked heart.

„S-So what brings ya here?" He started the conversation, scratching his head. „I thought you'd already be brainstorming ideas for the International Science Affair next month. Did something happen?"

The rabbit shook her head calmly.

„Nope. I already know what to do." She replied casually. And then she hummed. „However, a little birdie told me you've been neglecting yourself. Again." Her eyes locked onto his still bandaged cheek (which hadn't been changed that day at all). „Seems like you've also been skipping treating your wounds properly."

Tails shot a look at his serene looking son before he turned again towards the furious duo.

„Listen, whatever you heard, I can explain it-!"

„Don't worry, there's no need of that." Interrupted Cream.

„There isn't?" Asked the fox, a bit more anxious.

„No." Reassured him Cream. „I know what I have to do."

And that was when Tails realised she was holding something behind her back. Something big. Fluffy.

His fur stood up as he backed away from the advancing rabbit.

„I-Isn't this too much!?" He tried to reason with the terrifying rabbit. „Surely, there's no need to do this for something so trivial."

Cream frowned, unrolling the big blanket she brought along for the ocassion.

„While I don't think someone's health would ever be „trivial"," she straightened up her blanket a little to get rid of some of the wrinkles, „you aren't wrong that there's also something else that contributed to all this. Or else I would have gotten here sooner."

Tails tagged at his collar.

„And that would be...?"

Cream smiled again.

„Remember that order you made not that long ago? The shampoo and the flowers?"

Tails' eyes twinkled at that.

„They arrived!?"

Then his eyes lost their sparkle.

A long silence took ahold of the living room. And then the genius bolted, jumping over the sofa with Cream in hot pursuit.

„That shampoo costs as much as my entire house! Workshop and all!" Cream's voice echoed around the house as the two adults disolved into two colorful blurs. „And don't get me started on the flowers!"

„I wasn't gonna give you rags!" Bickered back Tails, trying to shake his friend off his tails.

„Chaos above, Tails, just how much money do you have to throw away!"

As the two continued to argue, Pièrre turned satisfied towards the confused Chao.

„I'm gonna go take the magic cream!" He then started to go up the stairs with a skip in his step while Cheese made sure he wouldn't be run over by the angry adults.

But while this was happening, nobody took notice of the buzzing phone on the small coffee table.

Sonic huffed, closing his phone.

„He's not answering."

„What do we do?!" Asked Amy with a panicked look on her face. „She could be anywhere!"

Sonic put a hand on his wife's shoulder and stared firmly into her eyes.

„We'll push through this. I'll go ahead and search the entire town. You and Ethan must stay here in case she comes back."

„But what if she isn't in the city anymore!?" Tears were dancing at the corner of the pink hedgehog's eyes. „What if... what if-!"

Sonic gingerly wiped the tears away and made their forheads touch.

„I'll search the ends of the Earth is I have to." Promised the hedgehog. He then planted a kiss on her forehead and speed out of the restaurant. „Hold the front here, ok?!"

„Always." She answered more to herself. She waited a few more seconds to make sure her husband wouldn't hear her before she started breaking again. „I ma-made my own child run away." She sobbed, burying her face in her hands. „I'm a terrible mother!"

A creak behind her made her gasp and quickly wipe the tears away.

„Ethan, I didn't know you'd still be here!" She said, forcing a smile as she looked at her anxious son. „Sorry you had to see that. Mommy got stressed. It's not a big deal!"

Ethan's lip quivered, shaking his head furiously.

Amy's face fell at that and kneeled in front of her child.

„Please don't cry!" She consoled, ready to wrap up the small hedgehog in a hug. „I'm sorry for scaring you! Your father will find Fleta as soon as he can-!"

„It's not that!" He exploded, making her mother recoil in shock. He then angrily rubbed his eyes, explaining further. „It's not ONLY that." He took a deep breath before he felt ready to look at her again. „You're not a bad mother. I'm a horrible brother."

Amy gasped again.

„How could you say that!?" She scolded Ethan. „You're always there by your sister side, even during your shared shenanigans! There's nothing you wouldn't do for her!"

„Nothing... that I don't know what to do." Corrected Ethan with a pause.

Amy frowned at that.

„What do you mean by that?" She asked causiously.

Ethan's shoulders started to shake.

The pink hedgehog stood at the doorway to his sister's room, his ears dropping at the sight of Fleta's hunched over form.

Today, they had been compared again. And she had been at the bad end of the stick this time too.

He hesitated, unusure of what to do. Getting some courage, he made a few tentative steps forward.

„DON'T!"

His sister's sharp voice made him step back immediately.

Her quils, that stood up at the shout, slowly went back to the way they were.

„Just... don't talk to me right now." She spoke with a whisper. „Please."

Ethan took in a sharp breath, gripping the frame of the door till it cracked slightly.

What could he do now? Fleta was upset, but she didn't want to talk about it. He wanted to go and at least hold her hand, but she didn't wanted him close.

As he racked his brain for solutions, one thought managed to pierce the darkness of his mind.

„Uncle."

Fleta remained as she was, but her ears picked up at the word. Ethan gripped that sliver of hope with all his might.

„I was thinking of asking our parents to bring him some food from the restaurant." He persuaded his sister. „Unc' doesn't really take care of himself that well, so I'm sure he'd feel better if we bring him something good."

He waited for a few more tense seconds before the pink hedgehog saw Fleta straighten up a bit.

„What do we bring him today?"

Ethan grinned as he advanced towards his sibling.

„We have some curry left over. It'll be enough to make a feast!"

The blue hedgehog pondered over what she heard before she noticed a hand hovering beside her. Her eyes trailed over to his anxious face as he forced a convincing smile.

„You in?"

Fleta stared attentively at the extended hand before she took it and grinned.

„Heck yeah!"

„Uncle Tails... always made her feel better." Tears were now falling on the ground freely. He never compared the two of us. „Not to eachother, nor you and dad." Ethan brought his hands together, sniffing as he continued his tale. „When I first met him, I wasn't sure about him. I was scared to know him." The hedgehog gulped, steading his voice as he closed his eyes. „But Fleta was the first of everyone to close the distance. And then we all followed. Because of her, I realised why you loved him so much." His body started to shake more violently. „He just- just makes everything better! A-And I dunno how he does it without even knowing-!?"

Ethan felt himself get pulled into a tight hug, tears still streaming down his face.

„Enough." Sobbed Amy, pulling her son closer. „Enough. You're not a terrible brother."

The small child felt a new wave of tears escape his eyes as he clutched onto his mother like a lifeline.

„B-But-!"

„No buts." Cut him off Amy. „A child like yourself and your sister shouldn't deal with such unfounded nonsence. I regret not noticing sooner!"

„W-We never told you." Whimpered Ethan. „I-I was scared!"

„And it's normal to feel that way." Soothed him the pink heroine. „I just wish for you to tell me or your father what's going on so we can help you. You don't have to be so hard on yourself."

„I don't know how to make people feel better." Wailed the small hedgehog. „I don't have the gift you have!"

„And sometimes, words are not needed." Replied Amy. „Sometimes, it's enough to BE there for someone you love. Which you were."

Ethan sniffled again.

„A-Are you-?"

„Sure?" Completed Amy before she looked him in the eye with a genuine smile. „Of course! You know I don't joke around in these kinds of stuff."

Ethan laughed through the tears, doing his best to wipe them away.

„Ok... I think I got it now."

Amy planted a kiss on his forehead.

„Good. And don't you ever forget, I love you both the same."

Ethan's eyes glistened one more time before hugged his mother again.

Charmy yawned as he walked hunched over, ignoring the weird looks of the passerbies.

The shift that day had been a looong one. From the coffee machine malfunctioning to health inspectors coming unannounced, made the bee want to throw himself in a bed and call it a day. If he manages to save up enough money, he may be able to resign and pursue his dream passion.

The traffic light switched to red, making him wait with the rest of the people with a bored look on his face.

His phone buzzed. He pulled it out and looked at it with a frown.

VECTORMAN: When are you two going to talk to eachother again?

Charmy put it back with an irritated sigh and picked up the pace once the traffic light switched to green. Of course, Vector HAD to ruin his mood even more. He can't help but stick his snot where it doesn't belong!

Instead of going back to his apartament, he made a detour around the blocks. He had to burn off the bad feelings, or else there was no way he'd get a good night sleep! (He needed this after today...)

He didn't have a destination in mind. He just wanted to kill time and stop thinking about that stupid message.

When are you two going to talk to eachother again?

„Oh, buzz off!" Bursted out the bee, making a couple suspiciously stare at him and walk away faster.

It was then Charmy realised where he was. It was a small park where adults would bring their kids to exhaust all that pent up energy they always had.

From experience, he knew it was a pretty efficient method.

„Even if he loathed to tell it to-„

The former Chaotix slapped his forehead and marched off angrily.

Nope. He was NOT going to get sappy in a public space!

But just before he was about to take off in the air, his eyes spotted with the corner of his eyes a familiar figure.

„It's that...?"

His feet guided him towards the swing, where a desolated hedgehog stood with her knees brought closer to her chest.

„What'cha doing all alone here?"

The blue hedgehog wiped her head up in shock before relaxing when she saw who it was.

„Hi, Mr. Charmy." She greeted politely.

The bee frowned at the dull response before he pointed at the other unused swing besides her.

„Mind if I sulk with ya a bit? Been a long day for me too."

Fleta thought it over for a bit before she nodded. Charmy wasted no time and happily slumped on the swing.

„Ok. Since we're still here and have nothing better to do with our lives, we might as well keep eachother company."

The detective grinned as he heard Fleta snicker.

He started to swing absent-mindly.

„Where are your folks? Usually they'd hover close to ya and your twin."

With the corner of his eye, he saw the hedgehog flinch.

Oh.

„They don't know you're here? Do they?" Fleta looking away was all he needed to confirm his suspicions.

„I'm not coming home tonight." She said with determination after a pause. „Or ever."

„Then where will you go?" Asked Charmy with interest.

Fleta opened her mouth to answer, but closed it almost immediately.

„...I don't know." She finally answered.

The bee hummed at her dilema.

„Trouble at home, I assume?" Seeing her tense up, he raised his hands awkardly. „Hey, hey! I don't judge! Actually, I'm kinda in the same boat."

Fleta looked up at the bee with shock.

„The same? How so?"

Charmy scratched his cheek.

„It's honestly a long story." He answered carefully. „But to put it bluntly, I got into a fight with someone and we... aren't talking anymore."

„That's horrible!" Gasped the blue hedgehog.

„It isn't as bad as it sounds!" Lied the detective. „It's just... more complicated then it should be possible." Mumbled under his breath the bee. He then turned his head towards the despondent hedgehog. „What about you? What's your story?"

Fleta joined her hands together and lowered her legs.

„Well, I didn't like fight-fight with someone. I did make her upset tho."

„I see." Hummed Charmy.

„So she had a falling out with Amy."Deduced the detective.

„Think you may tell me the reason to why you you won't come home?" Asked Charmy as he began to swing slowly. „You don't have to if you don't wanna."

Fleta stayed quiet, the only thing that broke the silence was the occasional child shout and the sound of Charmy's swinging.

And then she spoke up.

„I came out wrong."

Charmy almost fell off his swing.

„Sorry, what?"

„I came out wrong." Repeated Fleta as a matter of fact. „I'm just trouble."

Charmy managed to steady himself enough to be able to bring his hands together contemplate a little what he had to say.

„Ok, slow down." He began tentatively. „Let's break this down." Charmy then pointed his hands at the blue hedgehog. „Why do you feel that way?"

Fleta kicked her legs as she thought about her answer.

„I'm not daddy." She settled on the answer. „Not mommy either. And not Ethan. Not by a long shot."

Charmy grimanced at that as his hands held the reigns of the swing again.

„And? What's the problem with that?"

The hedgehog looked at him like he started to spew honey out of his head.

„THAT'S the problem!" Exploded Fleta as she started to swing out of nervousness. „My pa and ma are heroes and my TWIN is perfect. If I'm not either of them, who am I?"

Charmy took in a deep breath before his hands let go of the swing.

„Saying that as if your folks aren't as flawed as you are..." The bee shook his head. „You still have a lot to learn."

Fleta frowned as she slowed down her swinging a bit.

„What are you saying?"

Charmy scratched his head.

„Man, this is hard- ok, let's start by asking this: when did you start feeling the way you do?"

Fleta blinked at the question as her mind started to search desperatly for the answer. Just WHEN was it? When had she gotten so obssessed with copying her parents, more so her father's mannerims? When she realised she didn't have the qualities her mom and brother had? When she started to notice the way people would look at her and compare her to her father?

And then her mind landed on a specific memory from her early years...

A 5 year old Fleta peaked around the corner at her father who seemed to sulk a lot more these days. In that particular moment, he layed on a sofa and stared at a photo of his younger self. Next to him, there was another man she hadn't seen before.

„Daddy?" Sonic immediately turned to face his daughter as she stumbled her way over to him.

„Well, hey there sunshine!" Greeted the hedgehog with a smile. „Didn't know you'd be up so early."

Fleta raised her hands up, prompting Sonic to immediately take her and put her on his knee.

„Couldn't sleep any longer." She answered excited. „There's only a few days until the party starts!"

Sonic chuckled.

„There sure are..." his voice trailed off as he glanced at the photo again.

Fleta followed his line of vision and studied it with a bit more care this time. In the picture, there stood her father, grinning widely at the camera. Besides him, was a marigold fox, with a smile that matched the blue hog as he held his hand in a peace sign. Sonic had a hand over his shoulder, pulling the younger folk closer.

The small hedgehog then looked at her father again.

„Who is that, daddy?"

It was only a question. An innocent, harmless question. But at that moment, all Fleta could see was the unimaginable heartbreak on her father's face.

It lasted only for a second. And in just a second, Sonic's mask went back on.

„Someone that's dear to me." He answered honestly. „I really hope you'll meet him someday."

Fleta didn't say anything, just stayed silent and nodded. She looked at the photo again, guilt clasping her heart like a whip.

Just who was this person, and why did it feel like she wasn't given the whole story?

Her answer was received at the day of the party where Sonic the Hedgehog fell.

Quite literally.

„SONIC!" Yelled Amy at the collapsed figure of her husband as everyone jumped from their seats.

There was barely any time to react at all. Everyone saw Sonic with an unreadable look on his face when his phone rang and quickly excused himself to answer it. They've waited patiently while the retired hero was finishing his business with the caller.

Next thing they knew, Sonic layed on the ground with a destroyed table around him.

„Daddy!" Yelled the twins as they materialised besides him.

The group shortly followed.

„What happened!?" Vanilla put both of her hands to her mouth as he stared incrediously at Sonic. „I didn't even see him fall!"

„He's the fastest thing alive!" Exasperated Charmy at the situation. „Of course he passes out just as fast!"

„Faker fell from space head first more times then I care to count." Shadow then turned to hedgehog upwards with his foot to reveal his bruised face to his freaked out family. „He'll live."

„Well, he doesn't look like it!" Argued back Charmy.

„Ok, let's all calm down!" Vector raised both of his hands. „First things first, let's wake him up." He then looked at everyone present. „Does anyone have any water?"

„I have this big pot of melted ice!" Exclaimed Ajax as he carried a golden pot.

„Good enough." Nodded Vector. „Now, make sure to pour it..."

The red bat splattered the whole pot, melted and unmelted ice cubes, onto the unconscious hedgehog.

„...slowly." Deadpanned the crocodile.

Out of a sudden, Sonic began to stir.

„Sonic?" Amy cupped his face in her hands and carrassed his cheeks softly. „My love, can you hear me?"

„This is taking too long." Huffed Knuckles as he pushed an annoyed hedgehog out of the way. „Let me handle this."

Rouge's eyes became as big as dinner plates.

„Knuckles!" She tried to stop him. „Don't!"

But it was too late. It only took a second for the echidna to pick Sonic and sucker punch him. The action made everyone's mouth hit the floor while the blue hedgehog groaned in pain on the floor.

„KNUCKLES!"Fummed Amy as the others struggled to hold her back.„I'M GONNA KILL YOU!"

„I thought he could take it!" Yelled back Knuckles, a bit freaked out himself.

The front doors suddenly bursted open, a familiar black and red robot entering it with a lot of bags dangling from his claws.

„I HAVE ARRIVED WITH THE REINFORCEMENTS!"Declared proudly the robot. His visual sensors then took a better look at the situation in front of him, causing his anger gauche to overflow.„YOU HAVE ENGAGED IN PROPERTY DAMAGE WITHOUT ME!"He hollered.„UNACCEPTABLE!"

„Omega! It's not like that!" Tried to calm him down Rouge.

The kids had all huddled up together next to the recovering hedgehog.

„Ow... what happened?" He asked disoriented.

„Daddy, are you ok?" Responded with a question Ethan. „You just fell down out of a sudden."

Sonic looked at the floor with a blank expression on his face.

„Everyone?" Espio's calm yet panicked voice cut through the chaos of the room to make every inhabitant of the room stare at his pale face. The chameleon's eyes were glued to the screen of his own phone. „You might want to check your messages..."

The adults did as told, the kids watching as their faces morphed from oblivious confusion, to curiosity, to shock and then horror in a matter of seconds.

The superpowered children shared a look of uncertainty before the adults closed their phones at the same time and remained in silence for a few more seconds.

And then Sonic got up from his spot and wordlessly walked inside a room.

„Daddy?" Called out Fleta with a worried frown.

Sonic came back shortly afterwards, holding a huge blanket in one of his arms.

„I think we all know what we have to do now." Stated the retired hero.

Shadow sighed as he ran his fingers through his quils.

„All right. Get close to me."

The children were ushered the closest to the Ultimate Lifeform, their parents the second closest and the rest a bit further away.

„Ready?" Asked the black hedgehog. Once he saw them nod, Shadow raised his hand. „Chaos Control!"

Fleta shielded her eyes at the bright light, feeling a weird feeling running across her entire body. When the sensation stopped, so did the light.

The girl stumbled forward, a peachy hand stopping her from falling face first.

„Easy there." The blue hedgehog turned to look at her father, who gave her a caring smile. „It's always hard the first time around."

Once she could stand on her feet, Fleta looked around to see an entirely different scene. They were on the street she would often run to get out most of the adrenaline in her tiny body before Sonic would catch her and race her back.

Amy gasped.

„We forgot the Chaotix!" Indeed, the detective family was nowhere to be found.

Shadow shrugged at her accusing glare.

„There's only so many persons I can transport depending at this distance."

Rouge flicked her wings in annoyance.

„They'll get here by themselfs just fine. We gotta worry about something else."

The adults nodded, expressions grim

Omega's sensors flickered.

„MY SENSORS ARE TINGLING WITH ANTICIPATION. LET US PROCEED SOON!"

Knuckles cracked his fists and walked towards a house.

„Well, what are we waiting for? Let's get in!" A bunch of panicked adults stopped the echidna in his tracks. „Hey! What gives!"

Fleta took that moment of confusion to stare at the house her uncle was ready to walk towards. It was shaped like a fox, having an overall cute design. She knows that house since that was the exact place she would be stopped.

„Hold on, Knuckles!" Half-yelled, half-whispered Amy. „We don't know the situation!"

The guardian blinked.

„Huh?"

„It means, he may not be alone in that house." Clarified Rouge.

Knuckles was about to ask again when a flash of understanding appeared in his eyes.

„Bingo." Sonic released his hold on Knuckles before he kneeled down to the still very confused children. „And that is why I need you guys to do something very important. Think you can lend us a hand?"

The children shared a look.

„Why are we engaging in vandalism?" Asked Ajax as he flew Fleta and Ethan towards the window to the second floor.

Aerilyn rolled her eyes while climbing the wall carefully.

„Will you quit being a killjoy? This is the most fun we've ever had!"

„I got the winwow open!" Interrupted Serenity, managing to avoid another fight between the sliblings. She was the first to fly in, followed closely by the other kids.

Ethan walked forward carefully.

„Remember, we gotta be carefull not to be spotted. Only to alert our parents when they arrive."

Fleta huffed at that.

„Carefull doesn't mean slow!" She quipped and then speed first.

Everybody else shrugged and began searching around the house.

Fleta was tempted to go downstairs when she heard her twin yelp. She immediately ran towards the source of the sound to see Ethan stumbling his way out of a room.

„We've been compromised!" Was all he said before he hid behind her. The echidna family trio squared up for battle.

Fleta felt a droplet of sweat ran down her face as she heard some soft footsteps approaching them. To her surprise, she saw a skrunky 2 year old wolf, his bi-colored eyes watching the invaders with curiosity as he dragged his blanket around.

After a tense silence, the wolf waved with a smile.

„Hi, hi!"

Fleta and Ethan exchanged a look. Her brother coughed awkardly as he walked away from his hiding place.

„Urm, hi, uh..."

His paw was immediately held by the excited wolf.

„I like wou! Lets we fwiends!"

„Ur, sure." Nodded the still confused Ethan as the strange kid started to rocket back and forward giddly.

The children all relaxed, instead gave eachother lost looks as they wondered what was going on the the millionth time that day.

Then a bunch of sounds and frantic yelling echoed from the linving room.

„...guess that's sign to come in." Muttered Ajax as the rest nodded.

Today was getting stranger and stranger. What was supposed to be a small party to reunite some older friends of their parents, quickly turned awry when Fleta's dad passed out after a phone call.

And then they teleported to a place she'd often been to, broke into a random house and are now standing face to face with their long lost cousin. Oh, and her other cousins came too for some reason.

Today was a weird one indeed.

The wolf from before smiled brightly as he jumped all around the still hesitant kids.

„Cuzn! Cuzn! Cuzn!" He repeated in a mantra.

A tall fox kneeled down next to him and put a hand on the wolf's shoulder, effectively grounding him.

„Hey, now." He replied with a gentle smile. „I know you're excited to meet your family Pièrre, but let's let them breath a little. Afterall, this is a lot to take in."

„Ok!" Relented the wolf, still smiling.

The mysterious fox turned his eyes towards the still gawking group, his gaze taking a softer look.

„It's been so long since I've seen you all!" He said with his tails swishing up and down. „You've all grown up so much!"

The fox's hand then hovered towards her head. She stepped back, almost on instinct. That seemed to spread towards the other kids, as they too became tense.

The mysterious person froze at the scene, a bit of his earlier radiance fading away. He slowly retracted his hand before he let it fall to his side.

Pièrre tilted his head with an oblivious smile at the strange gesture.

„Sorry." He apologised as he looked away in shame, his tails and ears dropped. „I got a bit too excited there."

Fleta's heart clenched at the sight.

A hand rested on his shoulder, the fox looking up to see Sonic giving him a reassuring smile.

„This will last only until they get to know ya better!" Tried to cheer him up the retired hero. „They'll warm up to you in no time!"

The other tried to return the smile, but it didn't quite reach his eyes as they were once again averted.

„If you say so."

Fleta felt the pain in her chest intensify as she saw how broken her father looked. How he seemed to stare at the person she could not remember like he was afraid of slipping away and never seeing him again. How he tightened his hold on his shoulder as if he was afraid he'd dissapear in thin air.

It only lasted for a second, enough to make everyone else think they were seeing things. But not her. She knew what she saw and it would forever be ingraved in her heart.

Even after the fox was beggeted to join the other adults again, her mind could no longer outrun her feelings of guilt.

Not when she forgot one of the most person's in her father's life. And had the audicity of rejecting him.

„Ok, so you were scared of someone who seemed to know you well, but you didn't." Summarised Charmy. „That's completely normal behavior. You shouldn't be so hard on yourself."

Fleta shook her head.

„If that was all, I wouldn't be as guilty."

Charmy raised an eyebrow as he started to briefly swing.

„Can you explain why you feel that way?"

Fleta sighed as she joined her hands together on her lap.

„After that day, I insisted to give Unc' Tails a chance. Everyone seemed a bit reluctant, but I was much more stubborn."

Charmy nodded.

„Yeah. It was thanks to you that the other kids started to relax around Tails more." Charmy then snorted. „Now you all barely leave HIM any time to breath!"

„But I didn't-!" The blue hedgehog cut herself short. She swallowed the lump in her throat and tried to continue. „I just... felt guilty. So so guilty. I thought that the feeling will go away if I helped out. But it never went away." Tears fell down from her downcasted eyes. „I was selfish. I used him. I used everyone!" She then cried in her hands, trembling ever so slightly. „I'm a horrible person! T-That's why being someone else is better!"

„Hey, hey, hey!" Charmy got down from the swing and kneeled in front of the distressed hedgehog. „That's not true at all!"

The bee rubbed her head, mindfull of the spikes.

„As someone who had made some pretty selfish decision in his life, I can tell you, without a shadow of a doubt that what you did was the most selfless thing you could have ever done."

The crying hedgehog paused. She then peaked through her fingers.

„It was?"

Charmy smiled eagerly.

„Of course! I'll tell you, if you were selfish, you wouldn't have cared so much about Tails in the first place. You could have ignored Sonic's whole feelings in regards to him and just minded your own business. But you didn't."

Fleta slowly lowered her hands, sniffing as she listened to the detective.

„You went far and beyond making both Tails and Pièrre welcomed in your family. You made your fellow cousins see what they were missing out on. YOU made the first step towards establishing a connection with your uncle."

The blue hedgehog wiped her tears away as Charmy steeled himself for what he had to say next.

„And now here comes the biggest question that will determine your selfishness level: Do you love your uncle?"

Fleta stared at the bee with big eyes. Did she love now?

The blue hedgehog looked back and in all her memories her uncle would either ruffle her quils with a mischievious smile. Would insist to her mother to let them off the hook for breaking something at his house. Would give her the biggest ice cream cone whenever she was in a dump, never prying the reason for her pain with the condition of telling her parents herself when she was ready.

Fleta took in a deep breath before she looked Charmy in the eye.

„Yes." She confirmed firmly.

The detective smiled.

„Then that's all that matters." He then ruffled her quils playfully. „Now let's drop the drama and let's find your folks! Bet they already turned the city upside down by now!"

Fleta giggled cutely.

„Ok!"

As Fleta got down from her swing, Charmy's antennas stood up. The bee tensed ever so slightly, but still continued to smile at the 7 year old before him.

„C'mon, let's get moving!" He said as he gave her his hand and walked out of the playground.

They took a detour around the blocks, his antennas were still up as he smiled down at the recovered hedgehog.

„You ready to meet your folks?"

Fleta looked conflicted for a second.

„I'm still scared, but I won't back down!"

Charmy chuckled, his insect instincts tingling.

„Good to know. Good to know..."

When a shadow dashed at them from the peripher of his eye, the bee let go of Fleta and took a battle stance... only for the suspicious individual to crash to the ground, a pissed looking hedgehog standing on top of him.

„Aren't you a spoil sport." Muttered Charmy as Fleta gasped.

„Daddy?"

„Fleta!" Sonic speed and quickly scooped his daughter in his arms. „Where have you been? We've been so worried about you!"

„Daddy..." The blue hedgehog felt a new wave of tears coming up. She buried her head in her father's chest, Sonic running a hand up and down his spine rhythmicaly.

„Think you can take care of this guy?" Asked the Hero in blue as the stalker was wobbly getting up. „Got some loose ends to tie back home."

Charmy stared up at the stumbling criminal. And then he sucker punched him, causing the person to land on the ground with a groan.

„Piece of cake." Responded Charmy with a smirk. „Now shoo! I'm in a desperate need of some me time!"

Sonic laughed.

„Alright. Thanks for the help. And take care!"

Fleta looked at him and waved shyly.

„Bye! And good luck!"

In a flash of blue, the hedgehogs were gone, leaving a lone bee to his thoughts along with a passed out stalker.

When are you two going to talk to eachother again?

„...good luck to us both." He muttered.

Amy brushed the floor with a frown on her face while Ethan tried to busy himself with taking the dirty sheets on the table and taking them to the laundry machine.

When the door was swung open, the both of them jumped, dropped everything they had and rushed to the entrance.

Sonic stood in the middle of the reception room, a proud smile on his face while carefully holding Fleta.

„Told ya I would find her!"

„Fleta!" Shouted both her sibling and mother as they ran up to hug the hedgehog after her father put her down.

Amy kissed her forehead and rested her head on her daughter's.

„I'm so sorry, sweetie! I didn't mean to make you run away! I was so caught up in the moment and I didn't realise..."

Ethan shook his head, hugging his sister tighter.

„And I'm sorry I didn't come sooner! I'm sorry I left you to deal with everything on your own! I should've..."

Fleta glanced between the two with a shocked face.

„Wha- no! I didn't leave because of you!" She shook her head vehemently. „That's stupid!"

A shadow fell on her, making her turn her head to face a worried Sonic.

„Then why did you go?"

Fleta took in a sharp breath in. It's not that she hadn't expected the question. She's been dreading it since she made up her mind. It didn't make her any less scared tho.

A hand rested on her shoulder, Sonic's eyes full of compasion encouraged her to open up. Then each of her hands was grabbed gently, Amy and Ethan giving her a slight squeez in reassurance.

Fleta took one more breath in. She casted her eyes at the ground, mustering up her courage.

„I just... felt it was better this way."

She could feel her family members tense.

„Sweetie, what are you saying?" Stammered Amy cupping her daughter's cheek.

„Yeah, keed." Sonic tried to make eye contact with her again. „What made you think that?"

Fleta's lip quivered, the only thing steadying her right now was her brother's firm hold.

„I'm... I'm always causing trouble." She managed to get out, tears dancing at the corners of her eyes. „And I can't be any of you to solve it the right way."

„There's nothing wrong with you." Cut in Ethan. „There never was."

Fleta's ears dropped.

„But..."

„Accidents happen all the time, especially at your age." Continued Amy softly. „And even then, they follow us throught all our lives. Just ask Sonic how many plates he's ruined with his speed!"

The blue blur laughed heartly.

„Hey, now! At least Tails gave us plenty of devices that helped keep the food in top shape!"

Fleta chuckled through the tears.

„And you don't have to be any of us." Sonic took a seat on the floor and half pulled Fleta into a hug. „We can't be anyone but ourselfs."

„And besides," Amy leaned into Sonic and reached out to hug her daughter too. „You have plenty of time to discover yourself. And no matter which path you chose, we'll always be there for you."

Tears were once again running down Fleta's eyes as Ethan joined the hug and smiled at his twin.

„We love you, Fleta. Always had."

That did it. The floodgates were opened once more as the rest of the family did their best to sooth the crying hedgehog, barely keeping their own tears in-check. Even Sonic was having a hard time not tearing up like the rest.

Once Fleta calmed down, the family stood like that for a few more moments before they slowly got off the ground.

I'm so glad I made everyone go home early. Sighed Amy while wiping her eyes.

„You said it." Sonic stretched, facing away from the group. „Let's wrap this up and prepare for movie night. It's been a while since we did one of those."

The kids cheered as they started to help around the restaurant.

„Don't rush too much!" Giggled Amy. „Nobody is going anywhere!"

„Ok, ma'!" Replied Fleta happily as she took the dirty laundry away.

„That reminds me," said Amy thoughtfully. „Why did you two sneak out this morning?"

„To celebrate with Pièrre." Echoed Fleta's voice from another room.

Sonic frowned and shared a look with his wife.

„What for?"

Ethan tilted his head.

„Don't you know? Uncle Tails..."

„...I don't think you need me to tell you how unecessery the whole chase was."

A marigold fox stared with squinted eyes at the serene rabbit above him as she applied the cream over his wounded cheek, the relaxing sensation from the healing powers doing nothing to brighten up the brooding fox.

„I know." Confessed the rabbit. „But it was fun! Isn't that right, boys?" She looked at Pièrre and Cheese, who layed sprawled on Tails' coccooned form, further securing him in place.

„Yeah/Chao!" Agreed the duo.

The genius raised his head from Cream's lap to glare at the two.

„You guys are traitors." He muttered.

„Oh, hush." Cream put Tails' head back the way it was, before tilting it and applying her cream on the cheek, her fingers growing green. „I'm working here."

The genius pouted, feeling embarrasment at his predicament.

„Did the gift upset you that much...?"

„Yes."

The bluntness made Tails flinch. Seeing his reaction, Cream frowned and tried to find a better way to put her thoughts into words.

„It's not that I don't like it." She clarified carefully. She ran her fingers down Tails' cheek, making sure no inner crack was left untouched. „It's just that it's way too much for me at this point in time."

Tails sighed.

„I know you like returning gifts on the same vein you receive them and I admit I went too far. But I couldn't help it! You make it so hard not to spoil you once in a while!"

Cream's healing abilities ceased to a stop. Tails looked at her confused as to why her face was covered with her ears. He then stared at Pièrre and Cheese, who were staring at him with their mouths agape.

And then the gravity of the words he spoke downed on him too.

„I-I mean I-!" He spluttered as red as a tomato while a part of his tails that stuck out from the coccoon blanket started to wiggle.

Pièrre's eyes twinkled while Cheese put a hand to his mouth, realisation dawning on his little face.

And then the door feel to the floor, startling the occupants of the room. Amy Rose stood at the entrance with her hands crossed and the fury of a thousand suns clearly visible on her face.

„HOW COULD YOU NOT TELL US THAT WITCH WAS-!"She stopped her rant, her eyes wide opened as she gazed at the situation in the house.

Her family peaked from behind her, simultanously putting one hand to their mouths.

They stood in an intense silence for a long second before Amy bend down and took the fallen door with a cheery face.

„Please, excuse us for barging in~!" She apologised with a big smile on her face. "We'll put this door back to the way it was and we'll leave~!Bye-Bye!" And then Amy put the door back to the way it was, much to the distress of a certain canine.

„Wait! Amy, don't go!" Begged Tails as he squirmed around in his prison. „Please, don't do this to me! AAAAMMMYYY!"

The genius pulled away the phone, the loud screaming from the other end almost making his tympan explode.

„Y-Yeah, I know I should have told you when we all met." He answered after the screaming subsided. „I'm sorry, I didn't think it would have been a good place to reveal it." Another round of screaming followed before the caller eventually calmed down. „Huh? Oh, yeah. I'm fine don't worry. Thanks. Right. Back at you too. Bye."

Tails closed the call and let out a heavy sigh while leaning on the couch.

Amy took a sip from her tea.

„I still can't believe you would forget to tell us that you're finally free of that witch."

Tails' head shot up at the accusation.

„I DID not forget! I just wanted to tell Pièrre first, and one moment led to another and-!"

„Uncle." Interrupted him Ethan.

„You forgot." Continued Fleta before they both took a sip from their tea. Tails simply glared offended at the siblings.

Sonic put his arm around his shoulders, giving him a smirk.

„Regardless, this is great news! Mrs. Grim is finally out of your fur. For good this time."

Tails returned the smile, albeit it was a bit tired.

„Yeah. Didn't thought it'll take so long..."

His shoulder was squeezed in reassurance.

„At least is over now." Commented Sonic.

Cream came from the kitchen, holding a tray of sweets with Cheese bringing more cubes of sugar.

„Today has been a very eventfull day, hasn't it?" Began the rabbit as she place the tray on the table. „I'm really glad to hear that everything turned out well in the end."

Amy smiled at her sister figure.

„Me too."

„But I feel like there's one more problem that needs to be addressed." Said Sonic, gathering everyone's attention.

„Chao?" Asked Cheese.

Sonic then flicked Tails' nose.

„This guy needs a self care routine."

The fox looked offended at his big brother.

„Excuse you!"

„Daddy." Pièrre looked his dad in the eye. „I love you, but you're stinky."

„What!?"

Amy hummed as she stared hard at the embarrassed fox before her.

„Your fur as a lot of dry ends. You're long overdue for a visit to the barber."

„And your dark circles are getting worse." Pointed out Ethan.

„You need a glow-up, Uncle." Finished Fleta.

Tails looked pleadingly at Cream, silently asking her for help.

The rabbit simply shrugged.

„There's nothing to say that wasn't said."

„Chao." Agreed Cheese.

„Cream!"

„Look, lil bro." Said Sonic seriously. „I know this is harsh, but you gotta learn to take care of yourself. You're not really being a good role from that angle."

Tails flinched and looked panicked at his brother.

„What do you mean by that!?"

„It means you not taking care of yourself will reflect negatively on Pièrre." Fussed Amy as she placed her cup down and took a sweet. „Children will often look at us as role models, which means we have to be extra carefull of how we conduct ourselfs." She then took a bite from the sweet and stared pointly at Tails. „And that includes taking care of yourself."

„You wouldn't want Pièrre to mistreat himself, right?" Asked Sonic with an eyebrow raised.

„Wha- of course not!" Responded Tails almost immediately.

„Then I guess you know what to do." Nodded Sonic.

Tails returned the nod and looked at his son.

„Pièrre? Can you come closer?" The wolf did as told, the fox putting him on his knee. „I'm sorry for worrying you. What I'm doing to myself isn't right. Starting from now, I'll take better care of my own body."

„So no more avoiding sleep?" Asked Pièrre with a raised eyebrow.

„No." Tails shook his head with a smile.

„Or being too focused on work?" Tried Pièrre suspicious.

„None of that."

Then Pièrre's eyes twinkled.

„Does that mean you'll ask Cream-!"

„Don't push your luck". Cut him off Tails while covering his mouth.

„Ask me what?" Cream tilted her head at the increasingly nervous fox.

„Uh, well, y'know..." For all his smarts, Tails sure was at a loss of words right then.

Pièrre's eyes twinkled with an idea. He removed his father's hand and spoke a secret he'd wanted to share sooner.

„Daddy doesn't have many clothes."

Tails' face became redder then Knuckles'.

„PIÈRRE!"

He only has a sweater, a t-shirt, shirt and some pants. Continued Pièrre his assault. „And that's all he has!"

„Unbelivable!" Fummed Amy while crushing the sweet in her hand.

„Tails! You promised you'd also use the money you earn for yourself too!" Chastised him Sonic.

„By neglecting yourself this bad, you're setting a bad example for Pièrre!" Scolded him Ethan.

„That's no good, uncle!" Chimed in Fleta.

„Guys, please!"

Cream remained silent, a thoughtfull look on her face. Cheese flew closer to her face.

„Chao?"

The rabbit responded with a chilly smile and a tone that send shivers down Tails' spine.

„I think I found the way to have our friend make up for everything he's done."

The genius gulped loudly.

„What do you mean he escaped!?" Yelled Charmy as he slammed his hands on the table.

The police office looked at him as he wiped the sweat off his forehead.

„I'm telling you! One second he's in his cell, in the other he'd completely vanished! If I didn't know any better I'd say it's sorcery!"

The bee hummed at that.

„This isn't good."

„Just what is going on?" He thought as he exited the Police station, unaware of a dark limousine right around the corner.

Akuma gritted his teeth, watching the bee dissapear behind a corner before he turned towards his partner in crime with a sour look.

„And we're not following him now because...?" Trailed off the chihuahua menancingly.

„He's way too alert right now." Said Cage with a shrug. „We've made a mistake sending in a rookie. Now we should wait until his guard is dropped again for our next move."

Akuma huffed as he crossed his arms.

„This plan of yours is moving too slowly! Why can't we just strike already!"

„We gotta strike fear into our enemies first before proceeding with the next phase of the plan." Replied calmy the fox. „And once we do, they'll wish I stayed in prison."