#sailsails

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Okay, if you wanted my longer answer, here you go😂

So if you've seen some of my Sonic Prime posts and read my tags, it's no secret that I was a fan of Black Rose/Thorn Rose/Rusty Rose as a ship, or Sails/Nine, Sails/Mangey, Tails/Nine, etc

The draw of Amycest/Rosecest to me was how Black Rose and Rusty reacted to seeing Thorn for the first time and how we went from Black Rose and Rusty not caring for each other much to being a dynamic duo who are a bit clingy (+ the addition of Thorn coming in to help them out when those two need it or all three fucking up shit together). They had a compelling background arc to me, and I don't see Rusty leaving Black Rose's side anytime soon.

But for Tailscest... In Prime (and in general, for the most part) the draw to me is bonding over shared experiences or the lack thereof. Nine has an identity crisis on his hands by S3, and yet I loved the idea of him getting to bicker and bond with Sails. I loved the idea of Nine feeling naturally bitter towards Tails and having a mischaracterized idea of him in his head initially, and then seeing him in action, meeting him, and thinking both "I can't believe *he'd* want me alive" and "oh he's a little fucked up, actually". I loved those interactions with Sails and Mangey in S3, and the idea that they grew to find comfort in each other and we're able to settle in and work together so well. I think despite what Nine tried to do to the two of them (and his identity crisis), he should feel a strange sense of hurt at the idea of them dead, and a strange sense of relief when they turn out to be alive (accompanying all other feelings of course).

As a polycule, the Prime!Tails variants + Tails have a lot of potential to me. For fluff lovers, there's the au where they all make a home together. When they're not out with other friends or on adventures, they're home tinkering or hobbying or living in domestic bliss. And the angst/toxicity potential is good too! I interpret Tails as secretly jealous/possessive when it comes to Sonic, but to a point in his life where he doesn't want to let it lead him into trying to control Sonic and his relationships. Perhaps Tails meets Nine post canon and he can see the pining from a mile away. Then, when Sonic make his shared history with Nine clear, Tails finds himself struggling between the wish to be welcoming and to sympathize and that deep down wish to assert his place to Sonic in his life. Perhaps he sees Mangey hide behind Sonic when he's scared, watches Sonic give him head pats/ear scritches and words of comfort, thinks of how he used to do that and wishes Sonic was giving him words of comfort and physical touch right now. Maybe he starts turning Sails into his little apprentice or work partner, and when Sonic praises Sails' work on a contraption he feels jealous that it's not him being praised.

So, likewise, I think there could be a lot of individual comflicting feelings and compelling relationships inside the polycule as well! Feelings of jealousy, feelings of annoyance, feelings of comfort. Despite their similarities, the variants also do not have the same personalities, so you can also think up funny interactions between them (like Sails starting a "is a hot dog a sandwich" argument with Nine for fun). The sky is the limit, really.

As a sontails fan also, I just kind of like the idea of a functional Tails + Tails variant polycule who live and work together who also all want to maintain a close bond with Sonic to be honest.

And if we're talking about Tails variants, I like the idea of branching out too. Despite fandom characterization, I think it would be interesting to pair Nine and Miles (anti-Tails) together and force them to work together. Despite some similar trauma, they have wildly different lives and backstories, so I can't help but wonder what they'd think of each other. And (like Bingge in SVSSS) I can see Miles growing this wish deep down (as Nine did) to have someone like Prime!Sonic in his life. To watch another variant of yourself pine hopelessly over a version of Sonic who would save that young "miles prower", who would give this version of yourself words of praise and comfort. It's easy to imagine both of them growing jealous of Prime!Tails, and of Miles being jealous that Nine had the chance to meet Prime!Sonic.