The walls of the royal palace were cleaned monthly. This fact hadn't meant much to Blaze, she'd only occasionally thought that it was a rather pointless process and simple busywork for the palace's many staff. None of them ever complained but the princess could tell that they didn't enjoy the task, many of the halls went practically untrodden but still, by tradition alone, they had to be cleaned: the mauve wallpaper had to be restored and maintained as though it was brand new.

These walls had been restored just yesterday, she'd used what little time she had spare to aid in the endeavour, yet today she'd come across something most peculiar. Along one of the east wing corridors, leading towards the guest rooms, peculiar strokes and markings, red and yellow in colouration, had somehow come to manifest on the walls. Most of it was simple mess, idle lines and scribbles, but amongst the colourful mess were clearly identifiable stick-figures and shapes that seemed to mimic cars and skyscrapers, the likes of which didn't exist in this world. These features only existed in that alternate dimension with the chaos emeralds, where she had once lived as an orphan in a destroyed world.

Truth be told, this was but one of many pieces of evidence Blaze had uncovered in an investigation that had lasted for almost an entire day. It'd started in the royal kitchens around lunch time, apparently someone had snuck in and utilised the facilities during the interim between breakfast and lunch. Although they had cleaned up after themselves, not a single item was damaged and all the cookware they'd used had been cleaned before being set to dry, a substantial amount of food was missing. Not a ludicrous amount but certainly more than a single person would require, mainly consisting of fruit, vegetables and the building blocks of several sandwiches. A few pieces of crockery had gone missing too, just a few cups and plates that weren't especially expensive, but it was still noticeable.

Her immediate thought had been that Marine was snacking but, upon approaching the young raccoon to enquire, she'd been met with confusion. Apparently, she'd been working on one of her ships all day without so much as a step in the direction of the palace, but that wasn't the factor that caught the feline's attention. When the raccoon enquired about where Silver was, stating she'd seen the hedgehog this morning wrapped in a large burlap coat, heading in the castle's direction.

It would make sense that, upon his return from whatever destroyed future he'd arrived in, Silver would immediately want food, but this was very unlike him. Every time he returned from that destroyed world, the first thing he'd done had been to come to see her. Oftentimes that meant collapsing from exhaustion at her feet but, equally often, he would make conversation, say how much he'd missed her, move in for a hug and all manner of other naïve rituals. Naïve rituals she hadn't known she'd missed until Marine's reveal.

So, she'd trekked back to the castle, ultimately not finding the hedgehog waiting for her. According to the palace staff, including Gardon, there'd been no sign of him, and they'd reminded her that he wasn't supposed to be back for another week. They were trying to keep their timelines in sync, he'd go to the future and investigate for three weeks and return three weeks after he left, as long as such was possible. She had though remembered a certain trick Silver had often done during his first days in the Sol dimension, sneaking into rooms through the windows as Gardon hadn't been too quick to trust him. There was a guest room now specifically allotted to him, she'd made her way up the stairs only to find this mess on the wall.

Cautiously, the feline grazed a gloved thumb across the heads of one of the stick figures only to find the paint transferred to her glove: it was fresh. This was so bizarre, the lines and depictions were so low down, Silver would have had to crouch or walk on his knees to leave them… and why would he have left them in the first place? There was no clear message amongst the writing, it just like the yellow brush had just been used to paint a line while the red had been used to draw people and objects. Was the line meant to be the ground? Regardless, the strangeness had put Blaze on edge.

Ears pricked and tail stiff; she slowly stalked her way down the hall and towards the room he'd so often used. The depictions would halt every so often, as if whoever had painted them had been forced to stop, only to restart with vigour. She noted a half-finished skyscraper was immediately followed by a clear depiction of a tree and, next to it, a giant yellow flower with red dots on its petals. Imagery like that seemed to persist, fruit or peppers of some description were painted on the doors that intersected the walls, before, eventually, Silver's doorway was reached. Just before it, perhaps three paces before he'd reach it, there was a splotch of paint on the stone floor, but the hedgehog's door was entirely unmarked. Gingerly, the feline shifted to press her ear against his door and shut her eyes.

"S-Slow down you two, if you eat that fast you'll hurt yourself. I don't know what I'll do if you two get sick…" The hedgehog's familiar voice half-shouted from inside, "Hey, now, no stealing. There's plenty of fruit to go around. If you want another banana I can go get it. I just don't-

She heard something topple within, followed by an exasperated groan from the hedgehog. Between his exclamations though, Blaze could hear… something. There was certainly some ravenous eating inside, though she couldn't quite identify two mouths, and other noises that sounded more like the grumbling of beasts than other people talking. Whatever was in there with him, it was clearly bizarre. What on earth could he have brought back from a destroyed future? Some kind of animal that would help him undo the planet's destruction?

Blaze bit her lip, hesitating, before gently rapping on the wood, "Silver, are you in there? Is everything okay?"

Immediately, more clattering and clamouring sounded inside, followed by Silver repeatedly trying to quiet or calm whoever or whatever was in there with him, "Y-Yeah, Blaze. I'm here, s-sorry I didn't say hello yet, I've…" There was another clatter, she heard the sparking of his powers, "I'm a little busy!"

The princess went to try the door only to find it locked, "Is everything okay? What's going on?"

"I-I'm just… um…" He stuttered a storm as she heard more objects shift within the room, she swore she heard the en suite door swing open before quickly closing, "G-Give me a second!"

She heard him stumble, as if he'd just landed poorly, before his footsteps pounded towards the door. The latch was flipped and, immediately, the door flew open and the hedgehog crashed into her vision… appearing rather different from the pale colouration she'd come to recognise. Though his eyes and much of his fur was the same, albeit his were messier than usual, he-

"Hey, Blaze, I missed you. I-Is everything okay?" He stammered, clearly out of breath.

Blaze had seen Silver in many states, it wasn't uncommon for his appearance to be impacted by the futures he visited. He'd returned to her soaked to the bone with chattering teeth, with his fur charcoaled and muzzle burned and with all manner of injuries… but she'd never seen him like this. Upon his tanned cheeks, two swirls had been drawn on using red paint and throughout his fur patches of bright red and yellow were extremely visible. Outside his muzzle, there was no consistency or shape to the bizarre patterns that had clearly been painted on. There was something else bizarre to him too thought… an almost fruity scent was emanating from his frame.

She narrowed her eyes at him, "What's going on, Silver? Why are you covered in paint?"

"W-Well, I was going to tell you later, I just… um…" The hedgehog threw a look behind himself but, as he did, Blaze saw him wince. She'd been so caught off guard by his upper body that she hadn't looked further down, the moment she did alarm bells started to ring in her head. Silver had bandaged his midsection but, despite the thickness of the bandages, a redness was leaking through, a redness far brighter than that on his person.

Immediately, Blaze pushed past him and into the room, fists balled and on the brink of igniting, "Silver, what is in here! What have you brought back!"

The room was a mess, the once pristine white walls now littered with scribbles and splotches. Neither his bedsheets nor the other fixtures had been spared this treatment and, across the carpeted floor, other markings had been left. Banana peels, apple cores and dirty plates were all piled near the foot of the bed where two especially large splotches, one red and one yellow, had manifested. All of this paint was especially fresh, and the musk of this room was unbelievably potent, it smelled so sickly sweet that Blaze could barely comprehend it. No one was in this room, it was like she'd thought, Silver had moved them to the bathroom.

She turned back to the hedgehog and, immediately, pinned him against the wall. Though their eyes briefly collided, her gaze quickly dropped to injury near his waist, "What happened to you?"

"I-It's a long story…" She shot him a glare and watched him gulp, "B-But I can explain, I can explain all of this and I'll clean it up I just… I just need to you trust me and work with me," She felt her gaze slightly soften, despite her attempt to maintain a strong demeanour, "I'm okay I just moved to fast, I promise. We can sort this out a-and then I'll get this sorted."

Gently, she allowed her hands to drop from his shoulders, but rose to her tiptoes and pushed her forehead against his, ignoring any potential spread of paint, "You better be alright. I can only help you if you talk to me, Silver."

"I-I know, I know. I'm sorry, I was just worried people would panic, and I needed to help them and…" She felt his head nuzzle against hers, a contact she had sorely missed, "I-It'll be faster if I show you, can you just sit on the bed for a moment?"

Though she wanted to linger just a little longer, she heaved a sigh and stepped away from him, "Silver, I trust you, but I want the injury seen to as soon as possible…"

"It's only surface level, we can rebandage it once I've… dealt with this," He tried to assure her, as she took up her position. The hedgehog was making his way over to the bathroom door, almost tiptoeing as he did so, "Just keep still and try not to be too loud. They're pretty slow to trust, I'm not even sure they trust me yet."

Making sure she chose an unpainted spot; Blaze crossed her legs into a basket and locked her eyes on that second doorway. The latter of these actions was, admittedly, made a little more difficult as she noticed that the hedgehog's tail had been given a bright red tip. She watched as he, gently, knocked at the door before slowly opening it. Some hushed words were spoken inside, a pause hung in the air for what must have been a full minute, before he fully opened the door and wandered backwards to sit next to her.

From their position it wasn't possible to see into the room but, eventually, Blaze saw a muzzle emerge from the bathroom, followed by a clawed hand. What immediately struck Blaze was the size of the body parts, judging by the muzzle, the figure couldn't have been much more than a half foot tall. The same red paint that covered the room marked lines on a tanned muzzle and coated each of the individual's fingers. A set of green eyes seemed to scan the exterior before, as the head fully emerged, catching her. Immediately, Blaze saw a likeness to Knuckles but knew that wasn't quite correct. Though this tiny figure had the echidna's long-hanging quills, they lacked his pointed nose and more rugged features.

She threw a look to Silver but he was simply staying quiet, biting his lip and clearly waiting with bated breath. Once that first figure had emerged, Blaze noticed that its hand was lingering behind it. A beak followed, seeming to scan in a similar manner to the first individual, only for a set of amber eyes to encounted Blaze and their entire form vanished back into the small room, pulling the other figure with them. In the brief moment, Blaze had identified a scruffy yellow plumage around the figure's face and a bandage almost forming a bandana around the top of their head. Both figures had been dressed in scraps, the echidna a simple mantle while the bird wore what looked to be a full coat, both formed from what looked to be leaves.

"Silver," She whispered to him, "Are those… children?"

"Yeah, just give them a second. They'll be back out," He promised, seemingly unphased by her astonishment.

A small mixture of grumbling and squawking briefly filled the air before, eventually, the echidna emerged and the bird followed, the hood of their jacket now fully pulled over their head. Once they'd passed the door, the echidna, who clearly looked smaller than the bird, seemed to stand in front of their yellow counterpart in a protective manner. Blaze watched as the red one let go of their partner's hand, reached under their mantle, and drew out a small pouch, filled with crushed red berries, and a makeshift paintbrush.

Silver nudged her side and pointed, "That's Ketchup-

"Silver…" She started cutting him off, her head spinning. If it weren't for the bizarreness of this situation she'd surely be laughing at that name.

"And behind him, I call her Mustard! She's a little shy, but don't worry. I'm sure she'll warm up to you," He continued, so casually, "They're my kids."

Blaze looked at him, entirely bewildered, "They're your what?!" Silver, despite the paint, looked no older than the day he'd left, Blaze's mind started to race but he quickly cut it off.

"Yeah, I found them and thought I should look after them. Just like you look after Marine," He so casually replied, turning from her and gesturing to his desk table. From it, a banana and an apple floated their way through the air and towards the two kids. Almost immediately, the food was set upon by them in an unfathomably ravenous manner.

"Silver, that's…" The world was spinning, she was so confused, so flustered, "What happened? How did you find them? Start at the beginning."

"Well, the future this time wasn't really like it has been. The planet was so full of life, there were plants and trees everywhere. It was like the world had been reclaimed by nature," He began to explain, "I didn't know it at the time but Eggman's last plan basically stole people from the planet and moved them to a mine on the moon, forcing them to work for him? Anyway, I found some painted symbols on trees and buildings and realised that there had to still be people alive, so I went to look for them. I found Mustard in a tree, making paint from some berries, and was about to say hello when… um…" The hedgehog gestured to his side, a clearly pained expression on his face, "Ketchup jumped out of nowhere and stabbed me."

Blaze's eyes widened, she threw a glance at what looked to be an echidna of around eight years old, "He what?"

"I think I just surprised him, there really weren't any other people around so I must have shocked him," Silver said, apologising on the boy's behalf, "B-But eventually, I managed to get back up there and see them properly. They had this little hut in the trees and Ketchup was so defensive of Mustard, he wouldn't let me get close and it kinda of," He paused, scratching his quills, "They kind of looked like we did and, well… I couldn't leave them behind."

"Oh, Silver, you're so naïve," Blaze sighed, her hand found her forehead, but her shoulder met with his, "How old are you?"

He seemed to take a moment, processing that question as if he'd forgotten, "Sixteen?"

"Exactly, do you really think you're ready for kids? Let alone," Blaze gestured to the pair, "A difficult pair like this? They're like we were, Silver. They've not lived proper lives. It's not as though you can look after them.

"Th-The paint washes out with water, it's just a mix of berries and water, I can clean it all up Blaze. I can handle it," He stammered and promised but flinched as he met her serious stare. His ears drooped, "What about Marine? She's able to manage."

"Marine is an exceptional case, Silver," Blaze reminded him, "Besides, the whole town to raises Marine, it's not as though I'm solely responsible for her. Lots of people do their part and, in all honesty, we shouldn't be in our current positions. We should still be with our own families, learning and growing up. We've had a rather accelerated experience."

He looked dishevelled, crestfallen, "We can't send them back, Blaze. They're like we were. If I leave them in that world, who knows what will happen to them."

"I know that Silver, we can't keep them but we certainly can't get rid of them," She sighed at his earnestness, reaching across and placing her hand atop his, "But there is something we can do."

The sky was so clear today, not a cloud in sight, and the sun was spreading its warmth so very charitably. Blaze the cat, age 20, the princess of the Sol dimension, had managed to procure a few hours for herself. Her schedule had been busy as of late, with both the past and future world-threats defeated there'd been a move to demilitarise and improve the kingdom that she'd been meeting with vigour. The royal guard were already disbanded, and new amenities were being spread across the islands. A lot of fuss and attention was being payed to one of the very first establishments for the public good that had opened across the islands- the very site she was heading towards.

Just a small walk away from the castle, in a field that was once royal property, stood a bizarre building. It was tall and very square and had seen repairs through the use of a variety of materials over the years, yet it still stood strong to this day. Even despite those various repairs, its outside had been painted and repainted in a ludicrously colourful manner each and every time- often consisting of red swirls on a yellow background. The Royal Sol Orphanage, funded and established a little under four years ago, was an eyesore, but an especially important one.

As she approached the grounds, the sound of children playing grew louder and loud. Through the efforts of a certain raccoon, followed by various safety checks, a playpark had been erected around the facility. Perhaps the Raccoon had gone a little overboard, taking up a lot of the orphanage's land in the process, but the children never seemed to mind. Some were even helping her as the now teenaged raccoon was clearly in the midst of constructing some new toy for them to play with. Orphans, both youths and teens, from this world and that of another were racing around and plainly having a wonderful time.

Gingerly, trying not to be too conspicuous, the princess opened the gate and began to stride towards the building. She was noticed but most, if not all, of the faces recognised her and knew why she was here. There was snickers and waves aplenty, the latter of which she returned, but much of the attention had faded by the time she reached the raccoon.

"Marine," Blaze greeted, catching the shipwright unaware as she was wildly hammering stakes into the ground, "What're you making this time?"

"Well, some of the brats wanted an obstacle course so I figured I could manage it," She beamed, "But I'm guessing you're not here to try it out. He'll be inside I recon, one of the tots fell and skint his knee. Use your intuition, you'll know where to find him."

"Thank you," Blaze half grumbled, "Do try not to hurt anyone this time, that includes yourself."

"It'll be the best obstacle course ever, just you wait and see!" She called back, likely sticking out her tongue.

Paying that no heed, she made her way into the peculiar building- the inside was no more neatly painted than the outside. Murals covered almost every wall, depictions of places and characters all around. Now within, Blaze could hear the sounds of lessons being given- the bottom floor operated as a partial school of sorts, for the children who couldn't yet enter proper education. Those who had been brought back from the future typically lacked language and social skills required to fit in, making such lessons incredibly important to the orphanage's function.

As she walked along its left hallway those sounds became ever clearer, she heard students speak their first proper sentences and caught sight of simple learning games being played. While they held her attention for a moment, they didn't for too long. An open door at the end of the hall and the almost inaudible speech from within did. She followed the painted murals to that door, gingerly stepping into view within the doorframe but going unnoticed.

Silver the hedgehog, age 20, was tending to his work so diligently. On a table before him, still slightly sniffling, sat a small, grey, fox-looking lad with an ever so slightly skint knee. He was currently holding a wet cloth up to the tiny gash, smiling at the lad in a clear attempt to relax him.

The hedgehog's once mad quills had, with age, been refined into a long ponytail that hung down his back. Though he still wore his usual boots and cuffs, the addition of a set of overalls and pockets filled with useful items had come as a result of his job. What had started as simply aiding in the construction of orphanage had evolved into volunteering and, now, a job that took the place of saving the future. With that task done, he'd moved onto the next with a fervour that Blaze had come to expect from him.

As she snuck inside, his gentle talk became all the more audible, "It's only a little cut I'll covered it with a plaster and it'll be all gone," With no more than a gesture, a box of plasters emerged from a dungaree pocket and a plaster flicked itself free, "You're going to be just fine, okay? Just fine."

"I-It still hurts…" The little fox whined.

"I know, I know, but you're being so brave," Silver grinned, "Can you stick out your leg for me?"

Blaze had long given up denying the flutter she felt in her chest when she saw him work with the children. Though it hadn't been obvious at first, the hedgehog certainly had a knack for childcare. It had later become evident in his handling of Ketchup and Mustard, in hindsight, it'd been present with how he cared for Marine. While she found herself occasionally struggling to endure her childish prattle, he always managed to get her to calm down and cheer up.

As Silver used his powers to apply the plaster, the small child's eyes lit up. He'd always used his powers in variable ways but, admittedly, seeing him entertain children with them was a delight. He'd play games and tricks on them, put on shows and so much more, always fully enamouring them. With time, he'd taught her to do the same with her powers but the admittedly still worried her.

"All better now?" He asked, smoothing out the bandage with his thumb.

"All better," The child nodded, only seeming half sure.

"Alright, I'll carry you out: show everyone how brave you were," He'd lifted the boy with his powers, securing him upon his shoulder and fully turning, before finally realising she'd been watching, "B-Blaze, hi!"

"Silver," She smiled, stepping closer, "How's this little one doing?"

"I-I'm brave," The child insisted, looking far less shocked at her appearance than Silver.

"He just took a little fall, he'll be right as rain," Silver beamed, "W-What brings you over?"

She felt her face heat up again. Perhaps it the child on his shoulder was amplifying it, but he'd had a late growth spurt and ended up a full head taller than her. That, his simple question and the skills he'd just displayed made asking far more difficult than it should have been, "I have a little time to spare, I thought you might like to go out for lunch? Perhaps a little walk…"

"Oh, yeah, sure!" She swore his smile grew even wider, "I'd love to, Blaze. There are plenty of folks in today, that'll be fine. I just need to put this little one back out to play."

"A-Alight good," She huffed, turning on her heel and smothering her want to call him naïve, "Come on."

As she led him back down the corridor, hearing the child babble and Silver return the talk, thoughts of what she'd said four years ago filled her head. Back then, she hadn't even considered what the hedgehog would be like around children. She was right, he wasn't prepared back then, but now that he was grown and had learned… well…

She dared to throw a glance to him, only to find that the child had loosed two of the quills from his ponytail and was now scrambling its way to sit in a proper piggyback position. A dim glow of psychic energy was, likely, keeping the kid from falling off but, ultimately, the hedgehog seemed entirely unphased, still smiling. It took no more than him catching her staring for her to whip back around, turning just in time to exit the orphanage.

At their emergence, several dozen children turned in their direction, waving and calling out. While she managed little more than a wave, Silver, using a single finger, cast the youth from atop his shoulders, through a (gentle) full summersault and onto his feet. The reaction was ludicrous, though Silver likely did these tricks every day, a crowd of kids immediately rushed the pair of them asking for a turn.

Without so much as a second thought, Silver called out, "Just this once!" He drew his hands through the air, cloaking the kids in cyan light, and sent them all softly backwards. They gently soared through the air, tumbling on themselves, before landing on their feet.

That seemed to be enough for them all and, as if this was routine, they quickly went back to their games. A contented sigh sounded from the hedgehog's mouth, a comfortable sound that she couldn't recall him making before he had this job. Despite that though, and despite their freedom from the children, she heard him turn back. Following his movement, Blaze found herself staring up at the very square, very strangely painted, building.

"I think I finally figured it out, it's supposed to look like a sunset with clouds," He said, pointing, to one of the larger swirls, "I didn't think much of these colours before, I didn't think much of painting in general, I was so focused on the blue sky," He mused aloud, "It's kind of nice, seeing different colours like this."

She looked at him, curiously, "What are you talking about, Silver?"

"We made these colours together, Blaze. If I didn't bring back those kids and you didn't fund the orphanage then I wouldn't have learned that," He beamed, "I can't wait to see what colours we make next!"

At first Blaze rightly thought it was a nice sentiment, just as they'd put a blue sky over crisis city and now they'd put colour into the lives of these children, but she soon found herself looking too deeply into what he'd said. What other way, comparable to this orphanage's founding, could they mix their colours and make something new? It was much too soon for that kind of thought but it stuck in Blaze's head like a javelin.

With little more than an insistence that he was being naïve, she snatched up his hand and bolted for the gate.