It felt like forever since Jodie was kidnapped by Knuckles and tied up in the basement. She tried yelling for help, but no one heard her. She screamed and cried so much, her throat was sore and her cheeks were stained with tears.

Was this really it? Did Robotnik win? Was this really the end of the world?

Jodie thought about Sonic, all alone back at the house. That beast Knuckles must have pounded him into ground beef with his monster mittens and Robotnik must already have that Master Emerald.

And what about Tom and Maddie? Her grandpa? Who knows what those maniacs are doing to them? To everyone in Green Hills? To the universe?

Jodie hung her head in defeat. She didn't know what was worse. The pain of losing everyone she loved or the feeling of being so powerless?

Suddenly, a loud noise was heard and the door came falling down. When the dust cleared and Jodie saw Knuckles, she opened her mouth to scream, but paused when she saw Sonic, Tom, and Maddie unharmed.

"Jodie!" Sonic zipped over to Jodie and untied her as quick as a flash.

"SONIC!" Jodie threw her arms around the alien hedgehog and cried. She was sobbing so much, she didn't even notice the yellow fox-like alien looking at her with sympathetic eyes. In his gloved hands was the Master Emerald.

Sonic embraced his emotional friend. "It's okay, Jodie." he spoke softly.

Jodie let go of Sonic and wiped away her tears. Everyone saw the redness in her eyes and it made their hearts moan. She must have been crying a lot while trapped in this basement.

But Knuckles felt especially bad. He was the one who caused this harmless human to despair so much, making the echidna feel worse. He approached Jodie. "Flower Woman, I deeply apologize for my actions. You were right about Robotnik all along and I did not heed your warning." He bowed his head in respect." Please, forgive me with my deepest regret."

"Um, it's cool." Jodie spoke softly.

"Knuckles helped us stop Robotnik. He's not a bad guy." Sonic assured Jodie.

"But what happened to Robotnik? And Stone too?" asked Jodie.

"The Goat Milker is gone as well." Knuckles answered. "They have both met their demise in battle."

"And the emerald thingy? Did you guys find it?" Jodie asked Sonic.

"It's called the Master Emerald and yes." said the fox. His voice was sweet and innocent like a child's. "Uh, I'm Miles Prower, but everyone calls me Tails."

Jodie couldn't help but smile. This fox alien was so adorable. "Nice to meet you, Tails." She raised a hand. "Can I...?"

Perplexed, Tails looked at Sonic, who nodded to the fox. "Don't worry, Tails. Jodie's cool."

The fox looked back at Jodie and nodded. Jodie reached over and gently petted his head. "Aw, you're so cute!" She grew a big smile as she started fluffing his ears.

Tails started to giggle. "That tickles!"

Knuckles looked at Sonic. "What is she doing?" he asked in confusion.

"That's just Jodie's way of getting acquainted with space creatures." Sonic said. "She does it to me all the time. In fact..." He approached his human friend. "Jodie, after a tough day of saving the universe, this hedgehog deserves some much needed head scratchies!"

Chuckling, Jodie stopped fluffing Tails and was about to give Sonic head scratchies until her nose suddenly picked up an odd smell. "Ew, do you guys smell that?"

Sonic sniffed the air. "I don't smell anything."

"I do." Jodie sniffed more carefully and realized that the smell was coming from Knuckles. "Uh, Knuckles, not to be rude but you smell like..." She sniffed a little more. "chili and hot dog water?"

Knuckles and Sonic looked amazed. "Whoa! You can actually smell the chili dog I dropped on him?!" asked Sonic. "It's like you've got an extra set of nostrils!"

"You threw a chili dog at him?!" Jodie exclaimed.

"Dropped on him!" Sonic corrected. "And it was an accident!"

Back at the Wachowski house, Jodie and the Wachowkis gathered in the living room while Knuckles and Tails were getting themselves clean upstairs.

With his head in Jodie's lap and enjoying well-deserved head scratchies, Sonic explained everything that happened after Jodie was taken prisoner. The Master Emerald was hidden on Earth by Sonic's guardian Longclaw and her people and Sonic was entrusted to find and protect it.

And what's even more shocking, Knuckles' echidna tribe were the ones that attacked Longclaw, forcing her to send the young Sonic to another world to keep him safe while she fended off the alien warriors. Both Longclaw and the rest of Knuckles' tribe were eliminated. So, Sonic and Knuckles both lost their loved ones.

After Robotnik betrayed Knuckles and took the Emerald just as Jodie predicted, he used its' power to make a giant robot and rampage through Green Hills. Thankfully, Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles worked together and took down the evil scientist before he could rule the universe.

And to make things more crazy, it turns out that Rachel's groom, Randall, and most of the people at the wedding, were secret agents of a government organization called G.U.N., Guardian Units of Nations.

The wedding was all a ruse for Randall to infiltrate the Wachowski family in order to find and capture Sonic then arrest Tom for hiding him. And their plan worked and they arrested Sonic, Tails, and Tom. Thankfully, with the help of Tails' inventions, Maddie and Rachel worked together to defeat the agents and save Tom and the aliens.

Ironically, thanks to Robotnik's rampage, Commander Walters, the man in charge of G.U.N., decided to let Sonic, Tails and the Wachowskis go and continue living peaceful lives in Green Hills.

Once Jodie got the whole story, she was actually glad she was imprisoned. It was the best case scenario for her. "Wow, that's...really something." She and Sonic took a break from head scratchies and enjoyed some hot cocoa together. "So, what happened to Randall? Did Rachel murder him?"

"My sister is not a murderer and no!" Maddie retorted. "I mean, sure she was angry, but once they talked it out, they got back together."

"Wait, so, Randall really did fall in love with Rachel?!" Jodie asked, surprised.

Maddie smiled. "That's right."

But Jodie wasn't smiling. "Why?"

Sonic spat out his hot cocoa burst out laughing. Even Tom laughed. Maddie glared at Jodie.

"What? I wasn't being mean! That was a serious question!"

Maddie frowned. "I know."

"Oh, man, Jodie! You are a riot!" Sonic wiped away a tear.

"Thanks. So, now that all the drama is over, is Knuckles going back to his planet or wherever with the Emerald?" Jodie asked before sipping her cocoa.

Sonic shook his head. "Nope, Knuckles and Tails are here to stay!" he said with a smile.

Jodie's eyes bulged. She sputtered and coughed, alarming everyone.

"Whoa! You okay, Jodie?" asked Tom.

"Uh, yeah, I'm fine. Just went down the wrong pipe." Jodie fibbed.

"By the way, tomorrow, we're all heading to the park to play some baseball." Sonic said. "You in?"

"Uh, well, I'd love to. But I'm gonna have to pass, dude." Jodie said. "I have to check in on Grandpa, catch up on the housework, and y'know, I got my job at the mall."

It's a good thing the Wachowskis weren't lie detectors. Jodie felt bad about lying, but she still felt uneasy knowing that Knuckles was staying on Earth along with a magic emerald that basically has the power to make someone a god.

"Oh, man!" Sonic said in disappointment. "I was really looking forward to us having fun again!"

Jodie let out a sigh. "Yeah, me too, buddy. Being an adult is the worst. I mean, you gotta pay bills, run errands, and don't even get me started on shaving and plucking."

Tom, Maddie, and Sonic exchanged funny looks.

"Anyway, I better get going." Jodie got up to leave. As she headed toward the door, she heard heavy footsteps coming from the stairs. She quickly turned and saw Knuckles and Tails. The moment Jodie saw the purple of the echidna's eyes, she hurried out the door.

Knuckles raised a brow. "Was that the Flower Woman?"

"She sure left in a hurry." Tails noted.