#satamau

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The night air was chilling as Sonic wandered through the village, so much so that Sonic felt himself shiver slightly when he found himself focusing a little too much on the cold. He quickly forced his mind to wander elsewhere, but it instantly beelined to the reason why he was out there in the first place.

Over the last week almost, since Sonic had his growth spurt thanks to his mutation, Sally and Uncle Chuck, along with Rotor’s help, had been tinkering with the ring generator in hopes of getting it to produce Power Rings that Sonic could use again.

When Sonic was first mutated one of the biggest downfalls had been that he could no longer use the Power Rings. The original theory was because Sonic’s DNA had become unstable, and Uncle Chuck had hoped that with the recent growth it meant that it had now stabilised enough for him to get the Power Rings linked back to Sonic. But after many generated rings, and twice as many blood samples taken from Sonic by Bookshire – which thinking about made Sonic’s skin crawl under his fur – none of them had worked.

Sonic had played it off at each failed attempt, as he could see the muted disappointment in everyone’s expressions. But deep down every time Sonic felt cold metal instead of energised heat from the Power Ring given to him, Sonic could feel his confidence in the idea get chipped away more and more.

And it made him start to resent the mutation more than he already was.

Sonic shook his head before he went down that path, not wanting to dwell on those thoughts again. He had come out here to try to calm himself down, not wind himself up. Though when he looked up to see where his wandering had led him Sonic couldn’t help the wince that flexed through him when he realised he had ended up at the Power Ring Pool.

Which, he had to admit, he should have expected; there had been many nights Sonic had come out here to ease his mind on the rare occasions he needed it to settle down. The sound of running water from the nearby waterfall and the calm, almost glass-like surface of the lake was always soothing. The irony of ending up here still stung a little, though now that he was there Sonic didn’t want to leave quite yet.

Not far from the lake’s bank Sonic picked up the sound of snoring, and he instantly recognised who was making the noise. Rolling his eyes, Sonic turned towards one of the nearby trees and spotted Antoine asleep at its base, snoring up a storm.

A few feet away from him the ring generator stood, still out of the water from when Rotor and Uncle Chuck had tinkered with it that afternoon. Sally had obviously asked Antoine to keep up the ring watch routine, as the ring generated that night was going to be the next one for Sonic to try after their latest recalibrations.

Sonic wasn’t looking forward to it, not really sure if he could deal with another whack of disappointment. Or another blood drawing from Bookshire. Sonic rubbed at his arms to try to chase away the thought as he approached Antoine, feeling the faint stings of past drawings at his touch.

“Ant. Ant,” Sonic hissed.

Sonic doubted that he was going to go to sleep any time soon, so he figured that he might as well do ring watch. But he didn’t want to do it while Antoine was still around. Not just because Antoine’s company at any other given time was pure torture to Sonic, but because he genuinely didn’t feel like having any company at that moment. Even if they slept the night away when they were supposed to be on watch.

“Ant!” Sonic hissed again, and this time he gave Antoine’s foot a nudge, just enough to make it slip off his other foot as the coyote had his legs crossed to make himself more comfortable.

The slight nudge was enough to wake Antoine up this time, and he jolted awake with a soft yelp. In his half-awake state Antoine looked around to get his bearings, though as he looked passed Sonic he caught a glimpse of Sonic’s amber eyes reflecting oddly in the moonlight.

That, combined with Sonic’s taller figure, as the hedgehog stood close to five foot compared to other Mobians now, gave him a much more imposing silhouette in the dim light. The sight made Antoine cry out in fear, and the coyote jumped back, practically tripping over himself as he boxed himself up against the tree he had been sleeping under moments ago.

Usually such outbursts could be brought down to Antoine being his usual jumpy self, but Sonic had caught that glimpse of genuine fear in the coyote’s eyes, and all at once Sonic found himself in a much fouler mood. After the growth spurt Sonic had been wary of showing himself to the rest of the Freedom Fighters, and it had taken some coaxing from Sally and Uncle Chuck before he worked up the courage to reveal his new look.

As Sonic expected his friends had been shocked by the change, but had remained supportive. Which Sonic appreciated, until he started to experience the repeated process of each of them baulking at him whenever he spoke to them one on one just long enough for him to notice.

The villagers were also doing the same, though their brand of shock came as wary, almost startled glances in his direction whenever Sonic had to go through the village. Some would even physically jump back if he happened to move in their direction, as if expecting him to jump out at them unprovoked.

Those little pauses and wary glances were adding up just as much as the failed Power Ring attempts, and Sonic was doing his level best to keep his cool. But he also felt like he was one pearl-clutching reaction away from losing his shit entirely.

The incident in Robotropolis was also messing with his head, and Sonic sometimes caught himself wondering if his friends and the villagers actually did have a reason to be afraid of him.

“It’s just me, Ant,” Sonic exasperated, and began tapping his foot as he waited for Antoine to calm down.

Thankfully it didn’t take long, and when Antoine realised what was happening he gave Sonic a nervous laugh, then adjusted his uniform.

“Of course, I am knowing this,” Antoine stated as he dusted himself off.

Though when he glanced at Sonic he quickly looked away, his ears folding back in fear. Sonic once again caught that, and his foot stilled, his patience up.

“I’m takin’ over, go to bed,” Sonic stated shortly.

Antoine blinked in surprise, and he looked at Sonic, this time not pulling his gaze away.

“But this is my shift, zee princess asked me--” Antoine began.

“‘nd I’m tellin’ ya I’m takin’ over, go to bed,” Sonic interrupted.

Briefly Sonic’s lips pulled back just enough to reveal the oversized canines he now possessed as he tried to bite back his frustration. Sonic hadn’t realised what he had done just then, but Antoine yelped at the sight.

Quickly he nodded, and without another word Antoine left, half bolting and half tripping over himself as he practically bolted from the hedgehog.

Sonic watched him leave, then flopped onto his rump and sighed heavily, feeling his mood deflate completely as he hid his face in one hand.

“Not the most tactical retreat, but I’ve seen worse from him,” a voice piped up suddenly, and this time it was Sonic’s turn to jump in surprise, a short hiss escaping him before he could stop himself.

When he looked for the speaker Sonic found Sally standing close by, her arms crossed and a slight frown on her face as she continued looking in the direction Antoine had ran off towards.

“Geez, Sal! Y’tryin’ to give me a heart attack?” Sonic cried.

“Usually you can hear me well before I get close to you, Sonic,” Sally pointed out. She sat down next to him, crossing her legs at her ankles. “A little distracted tonight?”

“Wit’ the way Ant was snorin’ I couldn’t hear anthin’ else,” Sonic muttered as he leaned against the tree, rolling his eyes a little. “I thought you went to bed ages ago.”

“I could say the same about you,” Sally said, tilting her head a little at Sonic. “Are you feeling okay?”

“Yeah, I just wasn’t tired so I figured a lap around the village would help,” Sonic explained, waving Sally off.

Sally watched him for a moment, trying to gauge how she could proceed here. She could tell that something was bothering Sonic, and after the last few days Sally was sure she knew what it was, but getting Sonic to admit things like this was always dicey.

“I would have figured after having three blood samples taken out of you today, that would have tired you out plenty,” Sally attempted, giving Sonic a half smile to ease in the light teasing.

Usually Sonic would use this sort of teasing as an opening to tease Sally back, or to fall back into his cool guy attitude and play it off. Which would eventually lead Sonic into realising that he could take that moment to be open with Sally.

However to Sally’s surprise Sonic pointedly tilted his head away from her without a word, though Sally heard a faint huff exhale from Sonic’s nose as he did.

This was pretty rare to see from Sonic. Sonic was loud, and very unafraid to clap back or drag someone if they hit one of his few soft spots. When he went quiet, Sally knew something was very wrong, and this, along with the interaction she witnessed between him and Antoine, confirmed it.

“Sorry. I shouldn’t tease about that,” Sally apologised.

Sonic sat in silence for a minute, before he sighed and shook his head.

“No, it’s fine,” Sonic said as he looked back at Sally, running a hand over his quills to slick them back a little. “I guess I’m just not in a jokin’ mood right now.”

“Do you want to talk about it?” Sally asked, deciding that their usual methods probably wasn’t going to be the best option tonight. The fact that Sonic didn’t wince or physically squirm at the suggestion surprised Sally, but it also made her a little hopeful.

“I don’t wanna sound like a brat or anythin’, ‘cause I know you guys are doin’ everythin’ you can to get this ring thin’ to work,” Sonic began after a long pause, each word coming out like he had picked them very carefully. “It’s just that... I don’t get it. I don’t get why it’s not workin’. It’s been a week, all o’ this--"

Here Sonic gestured at himself, though when he did his motions were frustrated, almost angry, and he barely looked at himself as he did it.

“--should be settled by now, right? Or am I so damn different that even the rings can’t recognise me?”

Sally bit at her bottom lip as she tried to think of an answer. The Power Rings were a creation of Sonic’s uncle that he had made years before the coup. The original plan for them was for them to be a portal power source for machines, something that would have been useful during the last few years of the Great War. But the plan had fallen through due to the rings’ energy becoming unstable in certain machines without the use of overly expensive and complicated conductors.

Just before the coup Uncle Chuck had discovered that Sonic was able to use the Power Rings himself for an extra boost of speed and energy, and somehow he was the only one that had this strange connection to the rings. He had begun researching this phenomenon on the cusp of the coup, meaning that what he had been able to discover was limited.

Which was proving to be a great downfall as Uncle Chuck was unable to restore Sonic’s connection to the rings because of his mutation without knowing why the connection was there in the first place.

“That we’re still working on,” Sally explained after a few moments. “We were hoping it would be an easier transition, but it’s been a little harder than we first thought it was going to be.”

“I figured,” Sonic sighed. “I guess I was just hopin’ that this mutation business was done ‘nd dusted finally.”

Sally watched Sonic as he said this, noticing the way that he seemed to almost curl into himself as if he wanted to hide himself even in plain sight. It was very rare to see Sonic so down on himself, considering how confident, almost egotistical, he was, and it almost scared Sally seeing him like this.

“Maybe we’re missing something. It has been a while since you’ve used the Power Rings, after all,” Sally offered, wanting to try to steer the conversation away from too many reminders of how much Sonic had changed. “How exactly did they work for you?”

Sonic shrugged, not quite looking at Sally now.

“I dunno really. I had to like, focus on it, but it wasn’t really that hard to do,” Sonic explained. “That’s why it used to only take a second for ‘em to activate. If anythin’ it was harder to make ‘em not power up as soon as I touched ‘em, that’s why I always got one o’ you guys to slap it in my backpack or hand it over to me if I had to time it differently. If I held onto ‘em too long wit’out activatin’ it it would end up just doin’ it on its own anyway.”

“Maybe that’s it? It might just need a different focus,” Sally suggested, but frowned when Sonic shook his head, dismissing her.

“When I’m holdin’ it I can tell it ain’t workin’,” Sonic said. “Usually as soon as I grab it it gets warm, then hot. But when I touch the ring now it’s ice cold, even when it comes straight from the generator. It’s like as if it’s just a piece o’ metal.”

“It’s warm?” Sally echoed, blinking with surprise. “Whenever I hold one it feels cold.”

“Oh yeah, it’s always been warm to me,” Sonic explained. “If you could feel it you’d know that it’s doin’ its thin’.”

Sally’s eyebrows furrowed a little with concern. She knew that the Power Rings held a lot of energy, and they could be dangerous if they were placed somewhere that could make them unstable. But it never occurred to her how it might have felt to Sonic when he used them as she had never seen any negative effects on the hedgehog. If anything Sonic always seemed more energised after he had used a ring, and he always used them without any hesitation.

“Does it hurt when you use them?” Sally asked.

“Nah,” Sonic answered instantly, but then paused, tilting his head a little as he thought a little more. “Well... not anymore. The first few times I used ‘em it kinda hurt, but I don’t feel it no more.”

Sonic has meant for that statement to be reassuring, but when he looked at Sally he was surprised to see the muted shock on Sally’s face. He blinked at her, not really getting why that would worry her – he had been using the rings for so long that he barely even remembered what it was like when he first used them.

“You never told me that,” Sally gaped, shock clear in her voice. “If they were hurting you we could have done something about it. Or made you stop using them.”

“Why? It’s no biggie. ‘nd once the power kicked in it was nothin’ anyway.”

Sally squinted at Sonic, really not sure how to take this revelation.

“But it still hurts you?” Sally asked.

“It’s not like it was choppin’ my hands off, Sal,” Sonic sighed, a soft laugh in his voice. “Here, look.”

Sally watched as Sonic tugged off his gloves, before he revealed his palms to her, his fingers squeezed together. The growth spurt had made Sonic’s hands larger, and heavier looking, but he still wore his old gloves as he never liked keeping his hands bare despite them not quite fitting right any more.

At first Sally couldn’t quite see what Sonic was showing her, as she noticed the size of his hands first, then the thick pads that lined his fingers and palms. But as she looked closer Sally spotted thick scars that crossed Sonic’s palms and fingers, like he had been struck across his hands with a burning rod.

A flush of shock washed through her when Sally realised that the burns were positioned exactly where Sonic would have held the Power Rings, the marks fitting the ring perfectly. When she compared his hands Sally also realised that the scar on Sonic’s right hand was much more pronounced, while the one on his left hand was a little fainter. Not by much, but comparing the two made it obvious that Sonic favoured his right hand much more than his left when it came to handling the Power Rings. 

 “See? No biggie,” Sonic remarked, oblivious to Sally’s reservations as he slipped his gloves back on, flexing his fingers to get them set right once more. “But that’s wha’ I mean when I say I can tell that they’re workin’.”

“Are you sure you want to use them again?” Sally asked, still unable to shake off her concern.

“Yes,” Sonic sighed. “Look, Sal. The mutation has made me faster ‘nd stronger, but the rings always gave me a way past huge boost when things got dicey. I want that advantage back, ‘specially wit’ Doomsday gettin’ closer.”

“‘nd also... maybe they could be used to snap me back to normal if I ever go feral again,” Sonic added, his voice lowering suddenly. “I mean, it worked on unc ‘nd Muttski to break ‘em outta ‘buttnik’s programmin’, so... I dunno...”

As he said this Sonic half curled into himself again, and tilted his head away so that he wasn’t quite looking at Sally, though there was clear shame on his face. Sally also noticed that Sonic ran his hand over the shoulder he had injured during their last mission, and felt her heart sink at the revelation.

Sally pulled herself closer to Sonic’s side and leaned against him, slipping her hand around his back to pull him into a hug.

“I’m sure that was just a once off, Sonic,” Sally coaxed as she nuzzled her cheek against his. “And even though it was an extreme reaction, it was also an extreme situation that caused it.”

“I guess, but still,” Sonic sighed. “I just don’t wanna hurt anyone. Everyone’s already freakin’ about me as it is.”

“They will get used to you,” Sally stated. “And even when you were feral you still were able to control yourself, and snapped out of it when the Stealthbots nearly found us.”

Gently Sally placed her hand under Sonic’s chin and made him turn to face her.

“Despite the mutation, you’re still you, Sonic. You still love your friends and you still protect us, even against yourself,” Sally added. “And we’ll still stay by your side, no matter how this mutation ends up.”

Sonic’s eyes widened a little at Sally’s words, picking up the sincerity in them and honestly feeling a little startled by it. But even as he tried to pick up any falsehoods in Sally’s expression - his mind still bruised by everyone else’s reactions to his latest look and wanting to prove to him that this was a fragile promise – all Sonic could see was the familiar steely determination he had seen many times before in Sally’s eyes, and his mind quietened down for the moment.

“... thanks, Sal,” Sonic murmured, before he nuzzled his cheek against hers, allowing a soft purr to rumble through his throat. When Sally ran her hand along his jawline Sonic purred louder, a smirk crossing his lips as she giggled at the sound.

A low whirl of a fan suddenly sounded, and as the two turned towards the source of it they spotted to Power Ring Generator beginning to power up, a familiar glow in its chamber.

They watched as the machine grinded, its sounds usually muffled by the water when it was submerged, until the glow in its chamber rose to the top of the machine. A Power Ring then formed, and floated above the generator, waiting to be collected.

Sally stood, ready to fetch it, but then paused and looked back at Sonic, noticing the conflicted look on his face as he stared up at the ring. She hesitated, her eyes flinting between the ring and Sonic, knowing that if she didn’t collect it now the ring will be reabsorbed into the Power Stone, and they would have to wait another twelve-hours before another was generated.

This ring would also be the one that they would be testing on Sonic in the morning, as Uncle Chuck and Rotor had made more adjustments to the generator that day. But after hearing Sonic’s frustrations at the failed experiments, Sally wondered if Sonic was feeling up to trying again.

“Grab it, Sal,” Sonic eventually said, surprising Sally. She still hesitated for a moment, watching Sonic to see if he wanted to change his mind.

But when he didn’t Sally moved for the generator, not wanting to miss her chance. Sonic didn’t move from his spot as he watched Sally climb up along the generator’s side and grab the ring just before it made its descent back to its source.

Ring in hand now, Sally jumped down from the generator and sat back next to Sonic, watching as the ring’s glow faded in her grip. Like she had said before, the ring felt cold to her, despite being fresh from the generator, and Sally found herself running her hand along its length, as if chasing for that warmth Sonic had described.

When she looked back at Sonic Sally could see the apprehension on his face as he eyed the Power Ring, and an idea came to her.

“How about we try it now instead of in the morning?” Sally suggested. “And if it doesn’t work you can take a break from trying them for a day or so. How does that sound?”

Sonic’s ears folded back, instantly wanting to rebel at the idea. He wasn’t sure if he could face another bout of disappointment at that moment, but the thought of delaying it for a few hours somehow seemed so much worse to the hedgehog.

But the promise of shelfing the experiments, even just for a few days, seemed like something he could actually use.

“Yeah, sounds cool to me,” Sonic confirmed, though he found himself still hesitating when Sally held the ring out to him.

After a few moments of debating his choice, Sonic reached for the ring, only to pause once more. Before Sally could question what he was doing Sonic pulled off his gloves, folding them over his leg for safe keeping, then reached for the ring once more. There was still a moment of hesitation from the hedgehog, until he seemed to steel himself and grabbed the ring with both hands, squeezing his eyes shut.

Sally watched the ring, the darkness surrounding them now becoming an advantage as she would be able to see any hints of a glow from the ring thanks to it. However after a few seconds, which turned into a few moments, Sally felt herself deflate a little when she couldn’t see any glow at all.

Sonic meanwhile kept his eyes shut, both so that he couldn’t watch the ring, and so that he could focus on tapping into its energy without any distractions. He didn’t know how long he had his eyes shut, as it honestly felt like only a few seconds. It was only when he heard Sally gently calling his name did Sonic realise that a significant amount of time had passed, and once again the ring had done nothing.

Shoulders slumping now, Sonic opened his eyes and pulled the ring into his lap, staring down at its shiny, yet somehow dull surface, and exhaled a sigh that seemed to come from the very depths of his soul.

“I’m sorry, Sonic,” Sally sighed as she leaned into his side, nuzzling his cheek once more.

“It’s okay, Sal. It ain’t your fault,” Sonic said, leaning into her nuzzling. “But I think you’re right, I need a break from this.”

“I’ll send a message to Uncle Chuck and let him know. He might still come to Knothole anyway, but we won’t bring you into anything for a bit,” Sally confirmed. “Maybe for now try to get some sleep. You can sleep in if you want, too.”

“Wow, you’re really lettin’ me milk this, huh?” Sonic teased. “Do I get extra chilidog rations, too?”

“Getting extra rations means having to talk to Antoine, do you really want to push your luck there?” Sally pointed out, smirking as Sonic winced at the reminder. “I’ll take the ring, maybe Uncle Chuck can do something with it still.”

Sonic tapped the ring’s surface with a claw tip, his ears flickering at the metallic sound it produced.

“Actually, I might hold onto it,” Sonic said. “I dunno, maybe I’ll think o’ somethin’ that’ll get it sparkin’ again.”

“You sure?”

“Yeah. Who knows, maybe it’s somethin’ so simple we all ain’t seein’ it,” Sonic shrugged. “The rings can be weird like that.”

“Well, you were the only one that could use them at all in the first place, so you could be right,” Sally said.

When Sonic stood he offered his hand to Sally, helping her to her feet once she took a hold of it with and ease that almost caused Sally to stumble in her place, which made Sonic snicker at the display. Once she corrected herself Sally gave Sonic a playful slap on his shoulder, before pulling him into a hug that he returned with a good squeeze.

“I’ll see you tomorrow, okay? Goodnight,” Sally said.

“Night, Sal. Catch ya later,” Sonic returned, planting a soft kiss on her lips. “’nd thanks for hearin’ me out. It was probably a lot.”

“You know you can come to me if anything is ever bothering you, Sonic. No matter what,” Sally stated. “Just keep me posted if anything else is going on, don’t keep it to yourself.”

“Pfft, ‘nd lose a chance to get all broody? C’mon,” Sonic grinned as he pulled away from Sally and began to make his way towards his hut.

“Broody doesn’t suit you, you’re not that kind of hero,” Sally teased, rolling her eyes as Sonic poked his tongue out at her. “Go sleep.”

“Fine, fine.”

Upon entering his hut Sonic closed his door and flopped back against it, letting out a tense sigh he didn’t even realise he was holding. The talk had helped, but there was still an odd weight in his chest that he couldn’t quite shake off.

Sonic brought the Power Ring to his eye level, watching how the moonlight bounced off its polished surface. Other than that though he still couldn’t see glow to its surface, and just like before Sonic could feel nothing but coldness from it.

“C’mon, wha’ are we missin’ here?” Sonic urged. “You worked wit’ no problems before, what’s the hold up now?”

He stared at the ring, hoping for some kind of answer to jump out at him. But when nothing changed, Sonic sighed again, the odd feeling in his chest growing thicker.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------Sally pulled Tails behind the dumpster and guided him against the wall. Once she was sure he was in place Sally peered around the dumpster, doing her best to not expose herself too much in case Sonic caught sight of her. As she did this Sally kept one arm outstretched near Tails, both to shield him, and to keep some physical contact with the fox to keep him calm.

As she did this she could feel Tails trembling slightly, but when she glanced back at him his expression was calm and steeled, and his dark eyes just barely held any fear. He was tough, Sally had to admit, as she could feel her own heart hammering against her chest as she tried to get a grip of the situation, and was impressed that Tails was able to keep his head at the moment.

Sally took another look around the dumpster, wincing slightly at what she was seeing. Sonic was now half curled against the ground, shielding where he had been hit with both the ground and his arm. His eyes were still completely white, and each time Sonic moved his head what little light there was in the street seemed to reflect off his eyes, making them appear to be glowing. She remembered that from when Sonic had first been mutated, and was a little startled seeing it now. She thought that it had been a result of the mind control serum Robotnik had used on him at the time.

“Wha’ are we gonna do, Aunt Sally?” Tails whispered.

His voice had been so low that Sally just barely heard him, and yet even from the distance he was at now Sonic’s head snapped towards their direction so fast that Sally hardly had a chance to react. She still jumped back behind the dumpster, and hunched over Tails to keep him hidden under her. Tails clamped his lips together, fear flinting through his eyes at the thought of accidentally exposing the two of them; he knew Sonic’s hearing was good, but he didn’t realise just how good it was until now.

Thankfully no attack came, though Sally didn’t move from her position until a good few minutes had passed to make sure nothing was going to happen. As they waited Sonic made a low, grating yowl that echoed through the street and along Sally’s spine, and she had to force herself to suppress the shiver that threatened to rattle through her as a result. Under her Tails shrank back further against the wall, his ears flattening against his head.

After about ten minutes of Sonic yowling and growling at his surroundings, the sounds died down into a low growl that rolled at the back of the hedgehog’s throat. By then Sally’s back and legs were aching from keeping her position for so long without daring to move, and her breath shuddered through her chest at the strain.

Tails had lowered himself to the ground so that he could curl his twin tails around himself both for warmth and comfort, but every so often a shiver would run through him whenever he caught the sound of Sonic’s growls. Whenever Sally spotted this she felt her heart sink, still feeling powerless on what she could do now.

Eventually a plan came to her, and slowly she straightened her back so she could rock back onto the heels of her feet, making sure to do so as slow as she possibly could so that she wouldn’t make any sounds. She motioned for Tails to stay where he was, then indicated with her hands that she was going to check on Sonic.

At first alarm flashed through the fox’s eyes, until Sally gently cupped his cheeks and planted a soft kiss on his nose. He managed to stop the giggle before it surfaced, his usual reaction to the “funny kiss” Sally would give him, but it still had the same effect as it always did, and Tails had calmed instantly.

When she saw Tails was now at ease Sally looked around herself, and spotted a fire escape on the building opposite of where they currently were. She pointed it out to Tails, then motioned to him to fly for it if anything happened. Tails’ eyebrows furrowed at the thought of leaving Sally behind, but before he could protest Sally was already standing and heading towards Sonic. Tails peered around the dumpster to watch, his heart now in his throat.

Sonic was still half curled on the ground; by now he was slightly stunned by his injury as he barely moved in his place, though every so often he would twitch slightly as pain flashed through him. But as Sally approached him Sonic lifted his head, his eyes still white and glowing, and he gave her a warning hiss, baring all his sharp teeth at her.

Sally paused at the warning, her own hackles rising as the sound grated at her nerves, but when Sonic did nothing further she took it as a sign that maybe he was starting to calm now. Slowly Sally crouched to the ground to make herself look smaller, pausing in her motions whenever Sonic hissed at her again, then waited a few moments to give Sonic time to process what she had just done.

“Easy, Sonic. It’s okay,” Sally coaxed, her voice low. “It’s me, Sally. I’m not going to hurt you.”

Sonic watched her, his tail twitching as it began to lash against the ground. He gave her another growl, but this time the sound was half-hearted as a bit of confusion began to set in his expression.

Sally took in a soft breath to calm herself, then smiled at Sonic, still trying to make herself look as non-threatening as possible. She still wasn’t sure what Sonic was thinking right now, and she knew she had to get to the rational part of his mind quickly – even with the last patrol long taken care of, there was a good chance another had been sent their way, and if Sonic was still like this when the SWATbots came, it was only going to make the situation much worse for all of them.

“It’s not safe here. We need to go somewhere safe, okay? You can come with me, you just need to calm down first so we can go.”

The confused expression on Sonic’s face faltered a little as he took in Sally’s words, but the glow in his eyes didn’t fade. It still gave Sally a little hope that she was getting through to the hedgehog, so she carefully scooted a little closer to him, pausing once more as Sonic’s jaws flashed in a now silent hiss.

“You know I would never hurt you, Sonic. You’re safe with me,” Sally attempted once she settled on the ground, now about five feet away from Sonic. She stretched out her hand towards him. “We need to go, please.”

From his hiding place behind the dumpster Tails fidgeted, his tails sweeping along the ground before half curling around themselves, wanting to do nothing more than to twist completely and carry him away. At the same time he couldn’t tear his eyes away from Sally as she tried to reason with Sonic, not wanting to look away in case she needed help.

Tails has seen Sonic act wild before. But Tails thought he had hallucinated the whole thing, as Tails literally blinked and in the next instance Sonic was acting like his usual self, with absolutely no signs of his supposed wild side to be seen by Tails. Tails had always thought to ask Sonic about it, but could never bring up the nerve or the words to do so, not knowing just how to broach the subject as it was so bizarre.

But seeing the hedgehog now made Tails regret not bringing it up; he had often forgotten that Sonic had not been gene-spliced with a Mobian version of a mountain lion, but a wild, unevolved version. And while it wasn’t uncommon for some Mobians to take on attributes of their species, such as hissing or growling on some occasions, it was very rare for any Mobian to go completely wild under normal circumstances.

But it was clear now that for Sonic, even normal circumstances could end up setting off the wild animal he had been mixed with.

As Tails watched his ears twitched at a sound that broke through the eerie silence of the city. The sound was short, and oddly quiet, so he was unable to hone in onto it, but Tails was sure he had heard something. He tilted his head to try to hear it again, and after a moment he did, but once again it was too quick and almost too quiet for him to catch it.

When he looked back at Sonic and Sally Sonic had his head titled as well, his ears twitching and tilting, before he growled softly. Before either Tails or Sally could do anything Sonic rushed Sally, a clawed hand lashing out at her.

A strangled yelp escaped Tails, and on reflex he looked away and squeezed his eyes shut, powerless to do anything else. As he did Tails felt a massive gust of wind blast pass him, before he was pressed up against the wall and dumpster once again.

It took Tails a moment to realise that as he was pushed against the wall there was something being pressed against him, and when Tails opened his eyes he realised it was Sally crouched down low next to him. Above both of them was Sonic, breathing heavily, but similar to how Sally had before when they were first hiding, he was now shielding both of them with his body. The hedgehog was also watching the sky, and to Tails’ relief Sonic’s eyes had returned to normal, even though they still reflected oddly in the dim light of the city.

It was also then that Tails realised just why they were all hiding; as Sonic watched the skyline his ears were twisting sharply before they honed in on something, and he tightened himself over Sally and Tails to keep them hidden. A second later a stealthbot flashed across the sky, and after it had passed Tails heard the strange sound from before.

Tails’ hearing was good, but if he had relied on it then the stealthbot would have spotted them, and there was a good chance that when Tails had heard it the first time the stealthbot had already and was circling back to come get them. But Sonic, in his wild state, had heard it before it had gotten too close, and had snapped out of his trance to get them both to safety.

The stealthbot passed over the two more times before moving on, unable to spot the trio even from the sky. Sonic didn’t move from his place however, his ears still twitching to pick up any sounds that hinted at the stealthbot, or any other robot, coming for them, but after some time he realised they were in the clear. With a tense sigh Sonic pulled away from Sally and Tails and flopped to the ground next to them, using one hand to hold his head, a soft miff of pain escaping him.

“Are you all right?” Sally asked, as she scooted closer to Sonic and gently placed a hand on his head.

As she did this Sonic winced, and briefly his lips pulled back slightly, relieving his teeth, but to Sally and Tails’ relief there was no growl, the motion just being purely reflex on Sonic’s behalf.

“My head feels weird, wha’ the heck happened?” Sonic answered.

No answer came right away from either Sally or Tails, as they weren’t really sure what they could say. The recent second mutation Sonic had gone through days before was still fresh to Sonic, and Sally knew that he was experiencing a lot of mixed emotions over it, despite trying to hide them from everyone. Tails, even though he was unaware of Sonic’s feelings, just had no idea how to explain it to Sonic now as he was still trying to process it himself.

“You went wild,” Sally finally answered, trying not to flinch when Sonic gaped at her with obvious horror. “I think you getting hurt may have set it off.”

Sonic gaped at her for some time, his jaw flexing every so often as he tried to say something, only of the words forming in his mouth to drop into nothingness as anything he thought of seemed minuscule at that moment. Even when Sonic glanced at Tails he could see the muted panic in the fox’s eyes, causing horror and shame to flood through Sonic.

“I... I didn’t--" Sonic stuttered, his voice hitching slightly when he couldn’t make himself finish his sentence. But to his relief Sally shook her head.

“We’re fine. I think you were too stunned to really do anything to us,” Sally explained.

The thought of him coming so close to hurting his friends still made Sonic shudder, and he curled into himself slightly as he tried to wrap his head around what was happening. Next to him Sally ran her hand along Sonic’s quills in an attempt to ease him, while Tails watched the two of them, feeling a little powerless to help his adoptive big brother.

“We should head home. Bookshire will need to look at your shoulder,” Sally coaxed, and Sonic snapped out of his stupor, only to have a different kind of anxiety flood through him at the thought of going home now.

“No! Not yet, no,” Sonic protested, his ears flattening against his head.

“We can’t stay here, Sonic,” Sally urged. “The SWATbots might be on their way now.”

Sonic squeezed his hand around his injured shoulder, wincing at the sharp sting that flashed across his collar bone. He could barely remember getting the injury in the first place, and he wondered just how hard he had been hit, and how much damage it had caused to send him into such a rage.

“Let’s go to unc’s then. Just to make sure I’m okay,” Sonic suggested, swallowing briefly as his fear squeezed at his throat.

He was partially referring to his injury, but Sally understood what Sonic really meant, and a part of her found herself agreeing with the suggestion. Sally looked at Tails, then nodded, before she helped Sonic to stand.

“Keep close, Tails. We’ll need to move quickly, now,” Sally stated, then led the way.

Some time later the three Mobians stood in front of massive junk pile that had been gathered in one of the secluded alleyways of Robotropolis. While this wasn’t an unusual sight for the city, as nearly every street and every corner was littered with junk thanks to Robotnik’s wasteful processes, this particular junk pile served as camouflage for Uncle Chuck’s hidden bunker.

Tails watched in awe as Sally picked up a random pipe and knocked on the junk pile three times, which signalled for the hidden door to crack open. Sally snapped him out of his trance long enough to usher him down along the stairwell, and not even a second after they all entered the hidden door slammed shut behind them, throwing them into temporary darkness before the sensor lights clicked on.

Once they were inside the bunker fully Sonic pulled up one of Uncle Chuck’s old desk chairs and flopped into it, taking a moment to nurse his shoulder. By now the pain was sharp and stinging not just through his shoulder, but also along his collar bone and arm, which forced him to keep his arm slack in an attempt to lessen the pain.

He was sure nothing was broken, but every so often Sonic caught himself unconsciously clicking his teeth together whenever the pain got a little too much, and he had to snap himself out of doing that in case it tempted him to go wild once more.

“Here, let me take a look,” Sally offered as she pulled up another chair next to Sonic’s.

Sonic at first hesitated, as he was unsure if he should let Sally touch his injury. The last thing he wanted to do was snap at her in the literal sense if she happened to touch an extra tender spot. But when the pain stung through him once more Sonic winced, then nodded.

“Okay, just be careful,” Sonic warned as he leaned back in his chair, giving Sally more room to look his shoulder over.

“I will, and I’m sure it’ll be fine now,” Sally assured.

As Sally examined Sonic Tails looked around the bunker, amazed at how much equipment Uncle Chuck was able to fit into it. When the earthquakes had hit Robotropolis a lot of Uncle Chuck’s equipment had unfortunately been damaged and destroyed, and ever since the roboticized hedgehog had been working to replace what he could using both turfed computers and any equipment he was able to liberate from Robotnik’s own computer centres while they were being refurbished. Most of the computers were switched off, but there were one or two still running as they recorded surveillance footage in and around the city and command centres in Uncle Chuck’s absence.

This marked the first time Tails has actually seen Uncle Chuck’s bunker, and despite the seriousness of their current situation, Tails couldn’t help but feel ecstatic at being allowed in here, making his place amongst the Freedom Fighters feel more official now that he had been made savvy of one of their greatest secrets.

“Is Uncle Chuck here?” Tails asked.

“Nah, he had a work shift tonight in one o’ the factories,” Sonic explained, gladly fielding the question so he could keep himself distracted as Sally looked over his shoulder. “He doesn’t get off for another few hours, so we’re probably gonna miss him tonight.”

“Aw,” Tails sighed. He didn’t get to see Uncle Chuck as often as the other Freedom Fighters did because of his work schedules, and unless he came into Knothole to discuss something that needed their urgent attention. And even then his in-person visits would usually be short, just in case Robotnik or Snively noticed his absence.

“I know, bro. Maybe next time we’ll get to see him,” Sonic assured, though at the corner of his eye he could see Sally wincing at the mention of Tails possibly joining them on another mission. “In the meantime he won’t mind ya lookin’ around, just be careful wit’ his stuff, okay?”

That seemed to perk Tails up a little, and the fox made his way to one of the many crowded workbenches to look over what Uncle Chuck was tinkering with, spotting some unfinished projects among the piles of scrap and tools covering the workbench.

“Maybe we should hold off on Tails coming again. Just for a little bit,” Sally suggested, keeping her eyes firmly on Sonic’s shoulder.

At first Sonic wanted to protest, but when Sally touched a tender spot near his collarbone a spark of pain flashed through him, and he had to bite down on his bottom lip as he sucked air through his teeth. Thankfully Sonic didn’t feel the urge to snap at Sally, but the reminder of the temptation made him second guess his protest.

“He’s doin’ so good though, Sal,” Sonic attempted instead. “I was the one that got distracted.”

“I know. And I agree, he is doing good,” Sally sighed, her eyes flinting away as she thought about her next words. “But maybe we should all hold off doing missions for a little bit.”

Sonic tilted his head at Sally, not quite understanding what she was implying. Then it sank in, and a mixture of emotions rushed through Sonic.

“That’s not gonna happen again, Sal. I told you I got distracted. ‘nd yeah it got messy, but I snapped outta it,” Sonic hissed.

Sally finally looked at Sonic, a mixture of desperation and concern clear on her face.

“I know, but what happened still happened,” Sally pointed out. “I think the second mutation might still be a little too fresh, and that might be why you’re getting distracted now. And why you had such a big reaction to getting hurt.”

Sonic felt his heart speed up a little as his emotions swirled through him, not quite knowing what to say or do. Though deep down he couldn’t deny that the last few days since the second mutation had been grating on him. And knowing what he had almost done to Sally and Tails still made his stomach drop.

“... but you know I would never hurt you guys, right?” Sonic asked, his voice small and low. “Even if I’m bein’ like that.”

“Of course I do, Sonic,” Sally assured, before she leaned closer to Sonic and nuzzled at his cheek, using her hand to pet along his jawline. “And even on the off-chance that something did happen, I know that’s not you wanting to do it. This is just something we need to figure out.”

The thought of yet another issue to deal with thanks to the mutation made Sonic want to scream, but instead he just leaned into Sally’s hand and sighed, trying not to focus on the heavy feeling that was now trying to settle in his chest.

“Yeah, let’s just add it to the list,” Sonic mumbled. He then perked a little when Sally planted a soft kiss on his cheek, and when he looked back up to her Sonic saw Sally giving him a reassuring smile.

“We’ll talk about it more when we get home,” Sally stated, then leaned back in her chair and spoke up a little more. “In the meantime, your shoulder is dislocated. So Bookshire will need to take a look at it.”

While the whiplash in the conversation took Sonic a moment to register, when it did Sonic snorted.

“Is that all? I don’t need to bother Booker for that, c’mon,” Sonic scoffed, shaking his head as Sally stared at him in disbelief.

“Wait, dislocated?” Tails asked, his ears folding back slightly. “Isn’t that bad?”

“It’s not bad, but it’s not something that can be ignored either,” Sally explained, making sure to glare at Sonic as she said this. “So let’s go home and have that looked at.”

“It can just be popped back in place, it’s no biggie!” Sonic said. “I’ve seen enough o’ Booker to last me a lifetime, I’ll deal wit’ this.”

“You are not dealing with this, Sonic!” Sally argued, not believing what she was hearing. “This is beyond first-aid, and I don’t even want to know how you think you can fix this on your own.”

“I don’t think I can fix it, I know how to fix it.”

As the two argued Tails watched, his head turning between the two as Sonic and Sally took turns to counter each other. He was used to them arguing, as most of the Freedom Fighters were, so even as their arguing started to get a little more intense Tails wasn’t too bothered by it.

What did bother him though was the idea of Sonic being hurt, and going by how he was arguing, the hedgehog seemed like he was going to do everything in his power to not go see Bookshire to help him.

Tails looked around the hideout, hoping that some kind of answer would jump out at him. What sprung out and got his attention instead was a toolbox that was sitting on Uncle Chuck’s workbench. It wasn’t very large, but when Tails picked it up it had a bit of heft to it, which allowed the gears in his head to start cranking.

“Hey, Sonic. Think fast,” Tails called, and tossed the toolbox at the hedgehog.

The warning was enough for Sonic to realise something was coming at him, as Sonic wasn’t just fast in terms of running, so he was ready to catch the toolbox. But the thought of why this was probably a bad idea didn’t occur to him until the last possible second, and even though he wasn’t able to move his arm thanks to his injured shoulder, Sonic still manage to get a grip on the toolbox with both hands. When the tools inside shifted the box fell down hard, bringing Sonic’s arm down with it which resulted in a sickening pop as his shoulder slipped back into place.

Sonic still cried out as a fresh slash of pain raced through his arm, and he dropped the box so that he could use his good hand to grip at his arm. As he rode out the pain Sally gaped at him, hand over her mouth, not knowing what to do as she still tried to process everything that happened since Tails threw the box in the first place.

After a few moments Sonic took in a sharp breath through his nose, and gave his injured arm a test flex. To everyone’s surprise he was able to move his fingers and hand on command, though his face distorted as he winced at the pain that tingled through his arm.

“Sonic? Are you okay?” Sally ventured.

Sonic didn’t say anything for a few beats. Instead he continued focusing on his breathing, which was a little irregular.

“Yeah... yeah, I’m fine,” Sonic said eventually, though his voice sounded odd. “I just... need to step outside for a sec, ‘kay?”

Before anyone could say anything Sonic began walking towards the hidden stairs, his movements somewhat stiff but hurried. Sally made to follow him, concerned now, but paused when Sonic raised his good arm.

“No one follow me I’m just gonna be a sec,” Sonic warned, his words almost blurring together now as he disappeared up the stairs.

Sally and Tails listened to the doorway open then shut, and waited quietly, not knowing what to do.

“Tails, how did you know to do that?” Sally asked.

“Sonic said he saw it in a comic book once,” Tails admitted. “‘nd Aunt Bunnie did say that dislocated joints can be yanked to pop ‘em back into place in an emergency.”

Sally winced at the confession, feeling her stomach sink at the thought.

“We’ll talk about better first-aid practises another time, okay sweetie?” Sally offered, hoping that her apprehension wasn’t showing too much that the fox would notice.

After about ten minutes or so they heard the door open and shut once more, and watched as Sonic climbed down the stairs, looking a little stunned. To Sally’s concern he also looked a little washed out, and couldn’t help but wince when she realised just what had happened to the hedgehog and why he had demanded privacy.

“Are you okay?” Sally repeated gently.

Sonic simply nodded, his lips pressing into a thin line as he did, before he pointed at Tails.

“See? He knows wha’ to do. He’s got himself covered,” Sonic pointed out. “In sayin’ that though, I think I’m all funned out for the day.”

“Are you going to see Bookshire?” Sally asked.

Kitty!Sonic:

- absolutely mistrusts/gets annoyed by anyone that is an "authority figure" (i.e. adults "in charge", leaders, etc) but does nothing to actually be useful. As a kid he was always told to listen to the adults because "they know best", but after the coup and seeing a good number of adults doing everything in their power to just save their own hides or hiding, it fucked him right off. Only adults he’s ever respected were his uncle and Rosie (Rosie took some time to gain that trust though because why the hell is she teaching us maths when people need help???). Bookshire is another but he does fight Bookshire on occasion because Sonic hates fussing with medical stuff.

This carried on into his own adulthood, and it’s hilarious whenever someone points out he’s the adult now as it sets off his aversion to being older, but if he has to be called an adult then damnit he’s gonna be a USEFUL one at least.

And yes he has confirmed on many occasions that he can and will flip off King Acorn if he plays up. What's he gonna do, ground him? Arrest his for treason? He flipped off Robotnik, he ain't scared of no thing.

- his uncle was brilliant with robotics and mechanics and science. Sonic has literally zero idea about any of those. And yet he’s weirdly good at chemistry. But he doesn’t get a lot of opportunities to use this so no one knows this, but Rotor has come by chemistry formulas mysteriously solved if he leaves them out on his workbench after a night of wracking his brains over why something isn’t working. How does Sonic know this? Nobody knows, Sonic will never tell either, and will deny he’s even good at it.

- he’s also very good at physics, in that he knows exactly how to break physics to do impossible shit. He’s great at figuring out just what angles he needs to shoot himself into to get the most air time, how much speed and lift to land in the exact spot, etc. It all happens automatically to him (it has to, going at the speeds he does there’s literally no time to plan this shit) but if someone asks him he will actually figure it out in the spot with freakishly good accuracy, and can do it not just with him being the projectile but any object (he has worked out perfect catapult trajectories before and it still baffles everyone to this day). Again, he doesn’t know how he knows this, will never tell anyone he knows how to do this, and will deny he knows this.

- he’s also good with musical instruments. Obviously his favourite is the electric guitar, but if you give him a sheet of music and at least an hour to mess around with the instrument he’ll work it out. Getting to watch him play the violin is a rare but delightful treat. This is his special interest, the thing he would have gotten into if the world hadn’t gone to shit. He doesn’t get to indulge in it as much as he’s like but he loves music and could ramble about it for hours on end if given the chance.

The con of this though is that he's really good at identifying music, including ones from operas and orchestras. Sally takes great delight in making him identify both because he does get embarrassed about it, but his pride doesn't allow him to just not pick them out.

- he likes to cook, but he prefers recipes that allow him to leave things to cook without him needing to watch it once it’s prepared. So baking, roasting, slow cook stuff like soups and chili, that’s his jam. Anything that’s gonna be a long haul he has to be basically trapped in his hut to do it without wanting to go nuts (so extra cold days where being outside would be hell are good cooking days).

- during the summer he sleeps in a hammock. During the winter he sleeps in a bed and practically buries himself in blankets.

- loves bubblegum. Gum balls, sticks of gum, whatever. If it’s gum he loves it. Unfortunately it is non existent thanks to the coup (shelf life of gum is terrible) so finding any that’s not terrible is an amazing day.

- milk and cookies is oddly a comfort food to him. Something about the simplicity of it just works for him, and ridiculously shit days are made better by it. Default choc chip cookies work best.

- he hates spiders. More specifically, he hates when you see a spider, look away, then look back only to find the spider is gone. Spiders themselves don’t bother him until they do that, but once they do he has to fight himself to not just set whatever building or dwelling he happens to be on fire in order to solve the issue of having to deal with it later.

- he’s about .0001 seconds away from just walking away into the forest and never coming back. He won’t do it because he honestly doesn’t want to abandon his friends… but he’s so close to just becoming a cryptic in the forest. He has wandered off before when things get super annoying, but someone always drags him back, much to his endless frustration.

Sally:

- can’t cook for anything. Sonic has seen her burn water. Toast somehow always ends in fire. No one ever attempt to drink her coffee for your own sake.

And yet somehow she makes really, really good pancakes. Like ridiculously good. She makes them very rarely because she’s always busy with something and has been banned from all kitchens, but when she does they’re amazing and no one can figure out how this happens.

- if she’s snacking on nuts or anything that doesn’t go soggy (like hard/dry fruits, or extra crusty breads) she will sometimes keep some in her cheeks. Not to the point that her cheeks will be bulging with them, but if she’s working while snacking she will just stash some away so she can focus on what she’s doing, and then when she’s done just finishes those off. This only happens when she needs to focus so she’s pretty discreet about this and has perfected talking/quick chewing with them if someone interrupts her.

- she loves video games, but because they’re so hard to come by thanks to the coup she doesn’t get to play as often as she’d like. She knows Sonic, Tails and Rotor has some stashed away and has played them on the sly, which has left them wondering how their high scores got beaten or how new levels have been unlocked. Though she has to be careful about this because if she’s left alone with them long enough she will just play them until either she finishes the game, or someone physically drags her away from it. This is probably her only weak point in terms of something that can just pull her away entirely from everything.

- she is very, very neat… only because she literally doesn’t make a mess of anything thanks to her one-track mind. If she’s working on a plan or something that needs a lot of research she will basically just make a pathway to her desk and bed and leave everything else undisturbed. She will still shower, only because the shower is just another place for her to think without interruption. This is a big factor on why she can’t cook for shit, too. She just… doesn’t. At all. Because she’s gotta work. Work is life because they may literally die if she can’t figure plans out

- she is genuinely fascinated by legends and myths, which we see a lot of in SatAM. Although she does sometimes dismiss some legends or myths as just stories, if she finds anything that even hints at it being real, and if time allows it, she will chase it down. If it’s anything that might be especially useful in their fight she will go for it after doing a ton of research to make sure she’s got every angle and possibility down. The researching to that extent is due to her own perfectionism, but also because if the expedition turns out to be a bust it could mean time that should have been spent on something else/time being away from the village for a crapshoot.

Sonic and Sally as a couple:

- they don’t use pet names for one another… until one of them is absolutely pushing their luck with the other. Pet names = stop it.

- Sally did once call Sonic a shit-weasel out of anger during such a scenario, and then was immediately apologetic for it because that was Too Far™. Sonic said that made him fall in love with her all over again and it was an awesome insult. Pet names are still a no-go though.

- they live together and everyone thinks it’s Sonic that would be the nightmare to live with.

It’s not.

It’s Sally.

Sonic does get messy and likes to live in organised chaos, but Sally just has the worst sleeping habits (she doesn’t sleep), functions mostly on auto-pilot (the amount of times she eats the last of something but leaves the box it came in/was stored in for Sonic to find drives him up the wall something shocking all because she’s just vaguely thinking "I need food I suppose" alongside whatever she’s doing at the time), and if she’s working on something big she will spread herself everywhere (including Sonic’s bed if he isn’t in it or on it in some way).

Sonic won’t move out because he genuinely thinks if he did Sally would never sleep at proper hours or eat like a regular person unless he monitors her. Plus they actually really do like each other’s company and do miss one another if they aren’t in the same space in their down time. But Sonic is constantly amazed at just how much of a gremlin Sally can be and no one believes him.

- Sally takes great delight in this and amps up her gremlin behaviour because of it. If she does this in front of anyone else it just gets encouraged. It’s okay though because Sonic knows how to be a bastard so it’s a constant battle of who can out bastard or out gremlin who.

- they sleep separately (see aforementioned sleeping habits of gremlin ground squirrel), but on occasion will share a bed. Or share the couch. Sharing will almost always result in Sonic being used as a pillow/mattress but he’s fine with it, as long as it means Sally’s sleeping and they get to cuddle ‘cause cuddling is great.

- Sally loves puns. Sonic has begged her not to say puns. He secretly loves them but he hates that he gets them (temporarily forgetting your own language, then relearning it is a trip and picking up the puns does things to his head). Sally does not stop the puns. This has led to Sonic almost achieving his goal of becoming a forest cryptic as he does just start walking out when she starts.

Sonic landed into the hay stack pile with a grunt, the speed that he was traveling through the Sliding Tree combined with him being curled into a ball practically shooting him into the hay like a bullet from a gun.

When he was sure that he hadn’t overshot himself Sonic uncurled himself and dug his way to the top of the pile, shaking himself off the moment he broke the surface, then flopped onto the pile with a soft sigh. He had just come back from doing night patrol in Robotropolis, and although Sonic much preferred patrol over doing guard duty, tonight’s session had left him feeling drained.

Not that anything bad had happened while he was in the city. If anything, absolutely nothing had happened, and that in itself was what made the night feel like a lifetime to the impatient hedgehog. The night had started off simple enough; Sonic clocked into Robotropolis around twenty-hundred hours, just when it was started to get dark – or darker, considering the ever present gloom that gripped the atmosphere of the city – and waited for his uncle to report in with some data that Sally had been waiting on.

Uncle Chuck had sent a messenger-bot earlier in the day to tell Sally he would have it, hence sending Sonic, but when he showed up at their secret meeting place not far from the junkyards, Uncle Chuck had explained that he ran into a snag getting all the information, and needed Sonic’s help to watch his back while he got it.

Sonic jumped at the chance for some action in an instant, only to find that tonight was an unusually quiet night both in terms of SWATbot patrols and other expected dangers, which made the improv retrieval mission smoother than silk. Even Uncle Chuck commented on the unusual lack of activity, but couldn’t investigate further as he needed to get back to his shift before anyone noticed he was missing. So Sonic had taken it upon himself to do some snooping around to see what might have been going down.

He had searched high, and low, and in every part of the city where any sort of trouble usually started, but no matter where Sonic looked it just seemed like Robotropolis was going through its usual motions without any sinister edges to its routine. It got to the point where Sonic dashed up one of the tallest buildings in the city so he could get a bird’s eye view, but even after an hour or so of watching from his perch, all he saw was how boring Robototrpolis was from a different angle.

By then dawn was starting to approach, and when he was sure that absolutely nothing was happening, and there wasn’t anything in the works plotting to blindside the Freedom Fighters in any way, Sonic had headed home, chasing the oncoming dawn.

At that moment Sonic was looking forward to bed, but he still had one more thing he needed to do before he could, which required a little more effort than he could muster at the moment. After picking up anything from Uncle Chuck, Sonic would take it to the War Alcove and drop it off there for Sally to look over later, as usually she would be asleep by the time Sonic came back from his patrols.

If he didn’t do this Sonic would find himself being woken up by Sally not even an hour after going to sleep, as she was an early riser. And she was not going to wait for Sonic to wake up to hand over the data, considering he had been out all night and wouldn’t be up again until well past the afternoon. Which she understood completely, but Sally would also be biting at the bit to get her hands on whatever Uncle Chuck had managed to find, as circumstances could change very quickly and every moment counted.

Sonic had learned this the hard way many times before, as a result of either his own forgetfulness brought on by exhaustion, or thinking that he could get away with skipping a step in the process. He probably should have known better after the first two times, but as they say, third time’s the charm. And the third charm was Sonic nearly having the blue scared right out of his fur when he woke up to Sally staring him down, her face mere inches away from his as she almost willed him awake.

Sonic had also learned that he needed to hang his hammock over his bed, as such occasions made Sonic realise that the fall the his floor was much bigger than it looked, and much more terrifying from said dead sleep.

As Sonic dragged himself out of the haystack and over to the War Alcove dawn was starting to settle in more, bringing with it a sharp, bright contrast to the darkness of Robotropolis that almost overwhelmed Sonic’s senses. It looked like it was going to be a beautiful day, and Sonic couldn’t wait to spend it locked in his hut with the curtains drawn and dead to the world. When he approached the alcove Sonic barely stopped, just pausing for a brief moment to set the data disc onto the table before sharply turning on his heel to head back towards his hut.

However in his foggy brained state, Sonic hadn’t expected anyone to be at the alcove just yet. So when he spotted Sally sitting at the table from the corner of his eye, Sonic actually jumped with a sharp yelp that blurred into a hiss, which in turn startled Sally out of her own focus.

“Geez, Sal! Wha’ the hell?!” Sonic cried out, before reaching up to smooth his quills down with both hands, feeling them trying to fight their way back up as adrenaline still flashed through him.

“What do you mean? I’m working!” Sally answered, pressing a hand to her chest to try to still her heart.

She had been so deep in thought that she hadn’t even heard Sonic’s approach, and when Sonic got startled she had almost flung the papers that were in her hands right off the platform. Thankfully they had just landed at her feet, and once Sally’s heart had stopped attempting to escape she bent down to pick them up.

“I can see that, I mean why are you workin’ here?” Sonic clarified.

Then he paused, before he glanced at the sky once more, then glanced back at Sally, a suspicious look on his face now.

“’nd why are you up so damn early?”

Sally stilled as she collected her papers, her eyes darting away from Sonic before she quickly gathered what remained and stood once more.

“I’m always up at this time. If you got up early you’d know this,” Sally remarked as she shuffled the papers to get them tidied up, however she didn’t quite look at Sonic as she did this. “Did you get the data from Uncle Chuck?”

The suspicious look on Sonic’s face deepened as he squinted at Sally, his earlier exhaustion now nothing but a nagging memory.

“I did, yeah. But this is way too early, even for you,” Sonic pointed out. “Even the birds ain’t awake yet.”

“Sometimes I like to watch the sun rise,” Sally stated with a soft huff, the comment coming out more off-handed than she meant it to be. She sat back down and brought some other papers closer to her so she could look them over, before tilting her head at Sonic. “Can I have the data please?”

To her frustration, Sonic answered by crossing his arms over his chest and tapping his foot against the wooden platform, the sound mimicking a relentless woodpecker with a blunted beak.

“Y’weren’t even lookin’ at the sun, you were starin’ at your papers,” Sonic pointed out. “Did you sleep at all?”

“Of course I did,” Sally exasperated, rolling her eyes. “I don’t want to talk about this now, you need to sleep, and I need that data. Please let me have it.”

Sonic didn’t stop tapping his foot, his impatience clear through his body as his quills tensed slightly. He tilted his head to look Sally over, and had to bite back a sigh at what he saw. There were beginnings of dark circles under Sally’s eyes, which he had to be honest was a fairly regular thing to see on Sally, but he also knew how they looked when they were settling in. And even though she was fairly alert, Sally couldn’t quite focus on Sonic whenever she looked at him, which could be blamed on the brightness of the sun as well, but if she had gotten enough sleep then that wouldn’t have been bothering Sally in the first place.

“You’ve been up all night! I know it!” Sonic chided, barely flinching when Sally groaned in frustration.

“I couldn’t sleep, all right?” Sally confessed. “It happens, this shouldn’t surprise you. I’m not asking again, Sonic.”

The more Sally tried to deflect the more Sonic wanted to fight, even as his own tiredness started to creep back into his body. Since contracting his Sleeping Sickness, Sonic had started to become a little more aware of how tired he would get, on account of it being a symptom of the illness. He was still learning how much of it he could actually fight off before it became something to be concerned about, but he was sure at this stage that this was just regular old tiredness kicking in. Which he wanted to address now by going to bed.

“I’ll give it to ya, after you’ve gotten some sleep,” Sonic remarked, and turned to leave.

Behind him the sound of wood scraping over wood snapped through the air, and when Sonic looked over his shoulder he spotted Sally now standing, half hunched over the table as she glared daggers at his back.

“Sonic! I can sleep later, but I need that data now. It’s important,” Sally gritted.

“Sal, it’s literally the ass crack o’ dawn ‘nd I’m sure you saw the last dawn wit’out sleepin’ a wink in between,” Sonic sighed, shaking his head. “Go to bed, I’ll be up in like a couple o’ hours, you can have it then.”

“Now we both know that’s not true, it’ll be too late by the time you wake up to give it to me,” Sally sighed. “If you give it to me now I’ll go to bed right after looking it over.”

“Now who’s lyin’?” Sonic quipped, smirking. “Nope, I’m takin’ it wit’ me, ‘nd I’ll catch ya later. Goodnight.”

“The only way I’m going to bed is if you make me, Sonic Hedgehog!” Sally snapped, stamping her foot down in her frustration.

Sonic stopped dead in his tracks, the last of his patience now withering into nothing.

The few minutes after dawn was one of Bunnie’s favourite times of the day. It was the right moment, where everything was just starting to wake up, but was still in a state of calm where there was no rush to make any decisions. Outside of what to have for breakfast.

Right now she was in her hut, lazily watching over some boiling water that she was going to use for her tea, which sat ready in one of her favourite cups. Just as it really began to bubble Bunnie wondered if the weather would be good enough for her to do some gardening, as some of the tomatoes she had planted were looking like they needed some attention after a long bout of slightly too harsh sunlight.

As she reached to quell the fire a sudden scream snapped through the air, making the cyborg rabbit jump and almost knock over the pot in the progress.

In one swift movement Bunnie cut the flame and was out the door, bolting towards the scream. She was sure it had come from the War Alcove, though why she couldn’t begin to guess. So when she made it up the ramp and onto the platform the scene Bunnie found made her stop dead in her tracks.

The scream had come from Sally, which sounded again as she yelled a shade of murder that matched Sonic’s quills. She was also half tossed over Sonic’s shoulder, and was doing everything in her power to either kick or hit Sonic in between her yelling.

Sonic meanwhile was holding Sally in such a way that whenever she did try to kick him he was able to twist and lift her higher away from himself, his recent growth spurt thanks to his mutation coming in handy now as his arm length was just enough to keep him out of kicking range.

“Princesses don’t kick!” Sonic was shouting, which only resulted in Sally attempting to kick him again, and Sonic had to twist her slightly in the air to avoid copping a boot to his face.

“Wha’ in th’ hell are you two doin’?!” Bunnie demanded, and in an instant the pair stopped and stared at Bunnie. Or at least tried to, as the angle that Sonic was now holding Sally wasn’t quite giving her a clear view of her friend.

“He started it!” Sally cried out, making Sonic splutter in response.

“I did not! She started it!” Sonic protested.

Bunnie groaned and pinched at the bridge of her muzzle, muttering a small oath under her breath. It was too darn early for this.

“Then Ah’m finishin’ it. Sonic, put Sally-girl down. She ain’t a sack o’ flour,” Bunnie ordered, then blinked when Sonic shook his head.

“Sorry, ain’t doin’ it. Sal didn’t sleep at all last night,” Sonic explained, before he quickly lifted Sally up once more so she couldn’t attempt to whack him one for tattling on her.

Suddenly everything made sense to Bunnie, and Bunnie sighed again as she gave Sally a deadpan looked.

“Sally, is that true?”

Sally finally stilled in Sonic’s grip, and her eyes flinted away as a flush of red crossed her cheeks. Below her Sonic snickered, and Sally had to resist the urge to twist his ear while it was within reach.

“I’m not a child!” Sally protested, but that had given Bunnie her answer.

“C’mon, Ah’ll get her door fer ya, sugah-hog,” Bunnie offered, cocking her head over her shoulder so that Sonic would follow her, which he gladly did.

“Thanks, Bunnie.”

Bunnie waved him off, smirking a little as they made their way to Sally’s hut.

“Think nothin’ o’ it, hun. Just make sure you get some sleep, too. Ah can’t be goin’ ‘round escortin’ everyone, Ah have things t’do, too.”

“This is insubordination, you know,” Sally pointed out. By now she had given in on trying to escape Sonic’s grip, but the last thing she was going to do was allow this to continue without some kind of protest. Though a small yelp escaped her as Sonic twisted her so that he could hold her bridal style, and when Sonic grinned down at her Sally gave him an indignant frown.

It was starting to get noticeable now. At least to Sally it was as she stared at herself in her mirror, twisting and turning herself in every possible way under critical eyes.

She had always been small, though toned, as that’s what her lifestyle had granted her. A mixture of daily stress, nerves, and habits of missing meals thanks to the aforementioned stress and nerves alongside fixating on planning for most of her life saw to it. But now Sally looked a little bigger, not enough to start any rumours or whispers from any passersby, but enough that it was going to be noticeable.

Behind her reflection Sally could see Sonic watching her, noting the way he sat on the arm of their couch, his head propped by his hand as an elbow rested on his folded knee. Even in his current position Sonic’s foot easily reached the floor, and he didn’t tap it as he waited, though in his amber eyes Sally could see an unspoken statement that was waiting for the right moment to come out. Seeing that made Sally look at herself more critically, and she couldn’t help but run nervous hands over her belly, feeling the distinct bump that now curved it subtly.

“I’m not expert on this, Sal. But I don’t think you’re gonna be able to hide this for much longer,” Sonic finally stated, deciding to just take a chance. Sally had been doing this for almost an hour now, and if he didn’t try to say something now, it was probably going to go for another hour. Maybe more depending on what Sally was currently thinking.

The two of them had gone for a short walk through the Great Forest earlier in the day, something they had been doing almost daily for the last few weeks, and on their return to New Knothole a villager had greeted them, which wasn’t unusual in itself. But just as they were parting ways the villager’s gaze seemed to linger onto Sally for a little longer than necessary, at least according to Sally, which set Sally’s mind racing as they made their way back to their hut.

Sonic at first had tried to reassure Sally that wasn’t the case, but the thoughts were already in motion, making Sally counter every point Sonic tried to bring up. Years of stress, nerves and planning hadn’t just affected Sally’s body but also her mind, and Sonic fell into silence after the fifth counterpoint from the ground squirrel, unable to think of anything else to say without being shot down.

“I know. I know,” Sally tensed, before she attempted to stand with her back a little straighter, pulling her shoulders back as she did so. It made the bump not as noticeable, but the relief was short-lived when Sally felt her back tighten a little too much and was forced to relax it.

Briefly Sally thought about how her future was soon going to be filled with backaches and other pains, and she had to force her mind to stop before it ran away from her.

“But I was hoping that I would have a bit more time. What if someone else has noticed?”

“If they had we would have heard about it by now. There’s like thirty Mobians max here,” Sonic pointed out. “’nd even if they do so wha’? It ain’t their business.”

“It isn’t, but I still don’t want it to be so... public so soon,” Sally sighed, finally dropping her hands to her sides as she turned to face Sonic fully.

Right now only three Mobians knew about Sally’s pregnancy, and two of them were having this conversation. The third was Bookshire, the village’s doctor, who had given Sally the news. While so far Sally had been fairly lucky in terms of morning sickness and other symptoms, there had been a few weeks prior to the discovery where her symptoms had seemed almost random. Not enough to cause any hindrance to her every day life, but enough to at least cause some concern.

Sonic had been the one to convince her to go see Bookshire despite her protests and reassurances, neither of them realising the can of worms it was going to cause soon after.

When Sally received the news she had no idea how to respond to it. So much so that in her shock she had simply thanked Bookshire for the information, then left his clinic despite his protests. The rest of the day had been a blur to Sally, even though she miraculously managed to function like nothing had changed, and as far as she knew didn’t raise any suspicions that something was going on.

But it was the next day that the reality had hit her, which made Sally freeze up as an endless cycle of what she needed to do with the information spun through her head wildly. For some reason her mind kept hanging up on the thought of telling any of her friends, and especially telling Sonic about it made Sally want to crawl into the dirt and dig her way to anywhere else on the planet.

The thought of having children had crossed her mind before, on the rare occasions where her thoughts weren’t focused on staying alive or planning attacks that would help her and her loved ones survive another day. But Sally had always maintained that bringing a child into a world that was constantly at war in some way was not only risky, but borderline cruel. She had seen too many times where children have grown up without families, herself and her friends also part of that trend, and considering how often her life was at risk, she just couldn’t bear the thought of her own child living the same way she had.

But now they weren’t at war. There was a relative peace across the planet, with no dictators trying their hand at taking it over for the sake of their own ego or vision. Not to say that the peace wasn’t going to last, but after experiencing war for basically her entire life, the fear of it breaking wasn’t easy to shake off for Sally.

Sometimes to Sally it felt like if she did tell anyone else, it was somehow going to bring another war right on top of them. Like the universe was going to see that they were all trying to move on with their lives, and would somehow be incredibly insulted by it.

“If you keep waitin’ it’s gonna be public soon though,” Sonic pointed out. “Lemme put it this way though; if anyone actually had a clue about this, like anyone in the entire village, you know it would be Bunnie. ‘cause she’s the one that has a knack for these things. ‘nd s’far, she hasn’t said a thin’, right?”

Sally thought it over, lightly bouncing the heels of her hands on her thighs as she thought.

“No, she hasn’t,” Sally admitted eventually. “But you sure she hasn’t said anything to you?”

Sonic gave a short laugh, then shook his head.

“Not a thin’. ‘nd she hasn’t dropped any o’ her subtle hints where she tries to make you admit to somethin’ that she knows about either,” Sonic explained. “’nd I’m bein’ way past careful ‘bout that ‘cause I know how that shit works.”

“Good. That’s good,” Sally nodded, though she shrunk into herself a little as she crossed her arms over her chest, suddenly feeling more exposed.

As she did this she could feel her vest tugging slightly across her back, and the way her arms were positioned didn’t seem quite right. It was then that she realised other parts of her body were starting to change, and a quiet sort of panic flushed through her, making her freeze.

It took Sonic a moment to realise the change in Sally’s demeanour, but by now he had seen it happen enough times to know what was happening. He stretched out a hand towards Sally, and in an instant the ground squirrel moved for him wordlessly, burying her face against Sonic’s chest the moment she was close enough to him. Sonic wrapped his arm around Sally, then in one swift movement he scooped her up with one arm and stood, causing Sally to squeak in surprise and cling to him as he flopped along the couch.

“C’mon, Sal. What’s really goin’ on?” Sonic asked once he made himself comfortable, taking a moment to make sure that even in her koala-like state Sally was also comfortable.

“I don’t know,” Sally withered, her voice muffled against Sonic’s chest. “I don’t even know why I’m so worried about anyone knowing, but it just doesn’t feel... right, somehow.”

Sally’s voice sounded so small and lost as she spoke, which prompted Sonic to pull her closer to him and start running a hand along the back of her head and down her back in an attempt to ease her.

“You know you’re gonna have to at least tell Bunnie though, right?” Sonic pointed out. “Or else she’s gonna be ticked.”

The response he got was a long, exasperated groan that seemed to bore itself deeper into Sonic’s chest as it petered out, which made Sonic realise he was onto something now.

“Do you think everyone’s gonna be mad about it?” Sonic attempted.

“No,” Sally answered.

“Do you think they’re gonna be weird about it?”

“No...”

Sonic stared up at the ceiling in silence for a minute or so, still gently petting Sally as he thought. As he stared Sonic realised there was a bit of a gap in the woodwork that was allowing some of the hay poke through, and he wondered if that was going to be an issue later.

“Do you think that there’s gonna be some dickhead out there that’s gonna turn their nose up at the thought o’ a princess getting’ knocked up by some commoner, even though that doesn’t matter anymore ‘cause the whole concept o’ royals vs commoners is stupid anyway. ‘nd even then there’s literally no kingdom to dirty up ‘cause there’s just no need for that no more?” Sonic rambled, still keeping his eyes up to the ceiling.

He was sure that hole was going to be an issue later, and he wasn’t looking forward to fucking around with scrap wood to fill it in.

There was silence from Sally for a moment, then Sonic felt her grip tighten a little around him.

“... maybe?”

Sonic tried not to laugh, though his chest tensed as one attempted to escape him.

“Sallll,” he drawled, tossing his head back as the word grew in volume.

“I know it’s stupid!” Sally protested as she pulled away from Sonic so she could face him. “But one way or another I am a princess, and... I don’t know... what if there is someone like that out there?”

Sonic tilted his head a little, his jaw clenching as he debated if he should say what he was thinking. Then he figured that Sally’s fears needed to be addressed now, before they got too deep into the pregnancy.

“Y’mean like your dad?” Sonic asked.

When Sally stiffened Sonic knew he had hit the issue right on the head. Years ago during Robotnik’s reign Sally had found a message from her father. The message itself had helped their fight against Robotnik as it had provided detailed maps of Robotropolis, but in regards to Sally’s father, the former King of Mobotropolis, the trail ran cold. Any other attempts at trying to find out his whereabouts had also led to dead ends, as any records Robotnik may have had of the king had vanished, even long before the earthquakes that had devastated Robotropolis years back.

There had even been times where their last enemy had dropped hints to Sally that they knew where King Acorn was, but any attempts at interrogating them or sifting through their records and files brought up nothing, which only confirmed that it was a manipulative ruse to try to get Sally to turn to their side.

Despite all this, Sally was sure that her father was alive, as he had been able to retrieve those maps somehow, and the maps had been fairly up to date in accordance with Robotropolis’ structure at the time. This, along with them finding Sonic’s parents after both he and his uncle had thought them both dead, did spark a little hope that anything was possible.

When Sally didn’t say anything else Sonic sighed and pulled himself up a little, allowing Sally to slip into his lap so that they could talk better. He took a hold of Sally’s hands, almost as a way to anchor her, and looked her in the eye.

“Okay first o’ all, it’s not stupid to be worried ‘bout that stuff. But at the same time, it shouldn’t matter anyway,” Sonic began.

“I know, but--" Sally attempted, but Sonic gently shushed her, and instantly Sally let her voice drop.

“Lemme finish, I promise it’s gonna be short,” Sonic coaxed. “Second o’ all, ‘nd I’m gonna be super honest here so get ready to be outraged or wha’ever, but if your dad appeared out o’ the blue tomorrow ‘nd knew about this, ‘nd dared to try to make you feel bad about it, I would tell him to eat a dick ‘nd go kick rocks.”

“Sonic!”

“Actually I wouldn’t say kick rocks, but I’ll think o’ somethin’ wit’ a bit more punch if the time comes,” Sonic clarified.

The outraged look on Sally’s face didn’t falter at the clarification, but Sonic wasn’t fazed by it either way. It took Sally a moment to try to process what to say, as her jaw flexed several times, ready to snap at the hedgehog.

“You can’t say that to my father!” Sally finally settled on after several false starts, as really there wasn’t a whole lot she could say. Even with her father’s absence for most of her life, the last thing she would want to do is disrespect him in any way.

Sonic however shrugged, looking nonchalant.

“I would say that to anyone that tries to pull that on us,” Sonic explained. “I would say that to my parents, I would say that to unc – ‘nd you know I love him to hell ‘nd back but I would not even hesitate if he tried it. Hell, if Muttski said that to me I would be like “You’re a dog ‘nd you’re usin’ your gift o’ speech for that? Fuck off!”, ‘nd not regret a damn thin’ about it.”

The last part managed to disarm Sally enough to cause her to huff out a short laugh, though she did try to reel her mirth back so that she could try to be stern with Sonic. But the damage had been done; Sonic had managed to make her smile and loosen up a little bit, so he was able to make his original point better.

So he sat up fully and pressed his forehead against Sally’s, purring briefly as he nudged her gently before wrapping his arms around her.

“All I’m sayin’ is we have done so much in our lives, ‘nd sacrificed so much just so everyone else on this planet could have some semblance o’ a life again. ‘nd for anyone that was just on the sidelines doin’ who knows wha’ the whole time, by choice or wha’ever, has absolutely no right to step in now ‘nd try to take charge o’ our lives,” Sonic explained, his expression growing serious now.

“’nd as much I hate sayin’ it, we’re both grown ass adults now, we’ve been adults even before we were officially adults, so like hell I’m gonna let anyone treat my girl as a child or as a disappointment when we were the ones that did all the hard work to let ‘em even be around in the first place.”

Sally blinked at Sonic, a little taken aback by his spiel. And as she took it all in Sally realised that Sonic had a lot of good points – not that she would put them into practice the same way as he explained them – which even her overly self-conscious mind couldn’t argue with them.

“... and you would really stand up for me like that? Even against my father?” Sally asked, giving Sonic a crooked smile.

“In a Sonic second,” Sonic confirmed, smirking. “I mean at this point I’ve probably committed treason at least fifty times against you, so why not go for broke ‘nd do it against your dad?”

Sally laughed then, whatever tension that was remaining in her now melting away as she pulled Sonic into a hug. She felt Sonic pull her closer practically wrapped himself around her, and all at once she felt more secure and comfortable.

“I have to say, you are being very grown up and mature about all of this, Sonic,” Sally teased as they broke the hug, and she watched as Sonic laid back along the couch. “Which is something I never thought I’d ever say in my life.”

“To be fair I did bolt after you told me you were preggers in the first place though,” Sonic pointed out. “So I probably spent all my immaturity points there.

A laugh slipped from Sally’s lip at the memory, though she did recall that it wasn’t really funny at the time for either of them. Not that she could blame Sonic – when she had dropped the news the two of them were walking alone together in the Great Forest, as Sally didn’t want to risk anyone overhearing their conversation, and in case Sonic reacted to the news in such a way that it would have made it impossible to hide if she had said anything while still in the village.

To Sonic’s credit he did return, after about twenty minutes, looking like the devil himself had been chasing him down and ready to break into a million pieces at the slightest interaction. He also did try to apologise for freaking out, though each word seemed to come out of him like as if he had been punched in the chest, and it took a lot of attempts for him to make a clear and profound apology to Sally.

The only reason Sally didn’t break down at Sonic’s reaction was because she was feeling the exact same way, as the news was still twisting itself in her mind, which gave her no idea how to process it. Unfortunately she wasn’t like Sonic, and if she had run off she wouldn’t have gotten very far anyway. Sonic had told her later that he had gotten all the way to well past the old Robotropolis western border before he stopped, and had his conniption there. In the time Sonic had gone and returned, Sally would have probably just reached the Great Forest border, which wasn’t far enough for her to do the same without drawing some attention.

So when the two of them were reunited once more and confirmed that the news was indeed real, they walked towards the Great River and found a spot where they could sit without anyone seeing them, and just stared at the flowing water in a stunned haze for over an hour. Sally couldn’t quite remember who broke the silence first, though she was sure it was Sonic, but even in their stunned conditions, somehow the two of them had managed to talk one another into coming around to the news, enough so that when they returned to the village it was like neither one of their lives had just taken a very drastic turn.

“Maybe we could still run off. No one would need to know, right?” Sally joked, laughing as Sonic blew air from between his lips.

“Yeah, sure. I think they’re gonna notice the tiny ground squirrel-hedgehog-mountain lion-lynx... thin’ we’re brought back though,” Sonic said, his muzzle scrunching up as he listed off every species between the two of them. “We’ll skip over the human bit, but isn’t there fox somewhere in you, too? How is that gonna work?”

“At this point, I’m just going to let it be a surprise so I don’t think about it,” Sally sighed, not wanting to dive into another rabbit-hole. Talks about her own insecurities about the pregnancy itself was one thing, one that she was still trying to make sense of and navigate.

Talks about the baby itself however seemed to turn everything on its head for Sally, as it brought a different kind of reality crashing into her. It wasn’t that she wasn’t happy to be pregnant, it was just a strange new landscape for her to figure out, and every time she thought about the little life now growing inside her, it seemed to genuinely startle her.

Sonic had once made an off-handed comment about his height, which was a direct effect of him being mixed with human and wild mountain lion DNA, and wondered if that would have an effect on the baby. The results of that off-handed comment was Sally crying for close to twenty minutes straight, and Sonic being forced to sit outside of their hut as Sally wouldn’t let him anywhere near her until she had calmed down. Sonic had to endure a lot of awkward and questioning looks from anyone that walked by as he waited.

“Right, yeah. I just cheered you up, I learned my lesson from last time,” Sonic winced as he remembered the ordeal, before his eyes flinted away from Sally for a moment as he pressed his lips together. “Buuuttttt, if it’s okay, can I say hi?”

Sally’s expression softened, and any thoughts that attempted to creep their way into her mind disappeared almost instantly. She knew Sonic was having the same feelings as her, as they had both talked them out many times just like they had now. But in between all of that whenever Sonic had a shining moment of genuine excitement over the pregnancy, it grounded Sally, and she found it so sweet that the hedgehog was on board for this journey completely.

“Of course you can,” Sally laughed. “Like this?”

“Yeah, I’m comfy now,” Sonic grinned.

Sally leaned over to press a soft kiss onto Sonic’s lips, letting the kiss linger for a moment before they mutually broke it. Then Sally scooted up a little to bring herself closer to Sonic, allowing him to place his hands gently on her hips and run his thumbs over her belly. The contrast in size between his hands and Sally’s waist managed to bring everything back into proportion for Sally, even as she felt Sonic run his thumbs over the subtle bump.

“Heya, it’s just me again. You better be behavin’ in there ‘nd not givin’ you mom a hard time,” Sonic teased, making Sally laugh brightly.

“I think it’s still a bit too small to be starting any trouble,” Sally pointed out.

“I know, but it doesn’t hurt to just check it in,” Sonic said, before planting a soft kiss on Sally’s belly. “But I know it’s gonna be good.”

“Actually, that was something that we wanted to talk to the two of you about,” Sally began, still apprehensive as she glanced at Sonic. There was a look of hesitation in his eyes as well, but when he gave Sally a subtle nod she felt some of her tension ease a little. “We think that Sonic is your son.”

A mixture of emotions crossed Brenda and Paulie’s faces, but the most prominent was outrage that seemed to overtake their expressions whenever anything else tried to come through. Brenda made to say something, her teeth gritting as she bite down on her words to get some level of control over them, but was stopped when Paulie placed his hand on her shoulder as he stepped forward.

“You can’t go saying things like that,” Paulie warned. “I don’t know what Brenda told you exactly, Sally, but there’s just... too much attached to that. It can’t be taken so lightly.”

“We ain’t takin’ this lightly,” Sonic sighed. “I didn’t think it at first either but you gotta admit, Brenda ‘nd me are pretty similar. Like how many hedgehogs do you know that can book it like we can?”

“Just me,” Brenda blurted. “There aren’t a lot of hedgehogs around like there used to be. And even then--"

Brenda’s voice trailed off slightly as a thought occurred to her, before confusion crossed her face.

“-- it was rare in my family. I was the first to have it in generations...”

She slipped a hand over her mouth as she tried to process everything, the earlier outrage now long gone. She glanced at Paulie briefly before stepping over to a corner of the room, where a small pile of knapsacks and bags were piled amongst their limited personal belongings. As Brenda rummaged through them Paulie turned back to Sonic and Sally, a deep frown on his face.

“There’s no way any of this can be possible,” Paulie pointed out. “When we lost our child he was barely a few weeks old, and the village was practically decimated, there was no way he could have lived through that or gotten away.”

Sonic shrugged, not really sure what to say. “That doesn’t make sense to me either, ‘cause I was raised in Mobotropolis by my Uncle Chuck. I don’t think I was ever anywhere else.”

Brenda’s head snapped up, startled, before she looked back at Paulie, who now had gone a shade lighter. When his legs began to falter Sally and Sonic were at his side instantly, Sonic catching the older hedgehog by his arm while Sally grabbed a nearby stool and brought it closer.

“Paulie? Are you all right?” Sally asked as Sonic helped him onto the stool, watching with concern as he all but collapsed right onto it.

Paulie hid his face in his hands for a moment, trying to compose himself, but Sally could see that his shoulders were shaking as he tried to keep his mind whirled. As he wrestled with his thoughts Brenda returned and kneeled down at his side, running a hand along his back, the motion making him pull his hands away from his face so he could look at her.

There was a moment of silence between the two of them, but even through that they seemed to be able to communicate what they were thinking loud and clear to each other, and they both realised that there might be some substance to what Sonic and Sally were saying.

“Did you say Chuck?” Paulie asked as he addressed Sonic once more, his voice sounding almost haunted. “As in Charles?”

Sonic blinked, then nodded.

“Yeah, he always told me to call him Chuck. But everyone else called him Charles,” Sonic confirmed.

A laugh slipped from Paulie’s lips, but it was humourless, and almost a little strained.

“... he used to hate it when I called him that,” Paulie murmured, rubbing a hand over his muzzle. His eyes shone as unshed tears began to well up. “I loved teasing him with it when we were younger, it used to wind him up so much.”

Next to him Brenda pulled Paulie close to her, squeezing him tightly as he rode through his emotions. From the corner of her eye Brenda noticed Sonic lower himself to the ground and tilt his head at them, watching them expectantly. Not far from him Sally was also watching them, though she kept her distance from the three hedgehogs, knowing that this was their moment and not wanting to intrude any further, despite being part of the discovery.

At this point Brenda wasn’t sure what she should do, as the pieces fitted together suddenly so well it was almost blindsiding her. As she comforted her husband Brenda glanced down at what she had dug out from her belongings, then handed it to Sonic wordlessly.

“What’s this?” Sonic asked as he took it, at first thinking it was a piece of paper.

But when he flipped it over he realised it was a photograph, one that had gone through some wear and tear over the years as pieces of it were stuck together with yellowing tape, while the edges were starting to look frayed from frequent handling.

The photo itself, however, was still pretty clear, considering how old it was. It showed three hedgehogs, two of them Sonic recognising as Brenda and Paulie despite being younger in the photo, and the third being Uncle Chuck, also younger compared to how Sonic remembered him, but still easy to pick out.

“That’s Uncle Chuck!” Sonic gasped, a mixture of joy and longing hitting him all at once the second he spotted his uncle. As he looked the photo over some more Sonic also spotted a small baby swathed in cloth and cradled in Brenda’s arms. Even with the hedgehog wrapped so snuggly, Sonic could see familiar blue quills poking out from the bundle.

“’nd that’s me, isn’t it?”

“It is you,” Brenda breathed, her lips trembling now. She had given Sonic the photo to see if he would recognise Charles, and seeing his genuine reaction to the photo now confirmed what Sonic and Sally had guessed. “It is you, I can’t believe it!”

Before anyone could react Brenda practically launched herself at Sonic and pulled him into a fierce bear hug, her grip so tight that Sonic could barely move even with his own strength.

“You’re alive!” Brenda cried, giving Sonic another squeeze. “Paulie, Nicky is alive!”

Sonic stiffened suddenly, and Sally watched as a pained expression cut through his face.

“Sonic? Are you okay?” Sally asked, a little taken aback by the sudden change in his demeanour.

From his seat Paulie had been watching Brenda as she almost tackled Sonic in her excitement, wanting to give her a chance to embrace their long lost son before he joined in. Because of this he too had seen the sudden change in Sonic, and at first he thought that his wife had somehow hurt the hedgehog in her excitement. After a moment though he winced himself, and gave Sonic a sympathetic look.

“Ah, she didn’t know, did she?” Paulie asked, causing Brenda to finally pull away from Sonic to figure out what was going on.

Once Sonic was free from Brenda’s grip he hid his face in his hands, and flopped back onto his rump as he sighed, the sound almost pained.

“No. No, she didn’t,” Sonic muttered as he shook his head, his voice a little muffled as his ears folded back in embarrassment.

“Didn’t know what?” Sally asked, confused now as all three hedgehogs had switched from heartfelt joy to sudden awkwardness so fast that even she couldn’t keep up.

She thought about what was happening at that moment, still caught up by the fact that the three had managed to piece together that they were family, so it took her a moment to pick out what was now making Sonic look like he wanted the ground to swallow him whole.

Then something clicked in Sally’s head, and at first she dismissed it, but then it hit her a little harder, and stunned realisation flashed through her.

“Wait? Nicky?” Sally repeated, her eyes widening as Sonic flinched like he had been struck. “Did you say Nicky?”

“It sounds worse comin’ outta you,” Sonic groaned, curling into himself almost into a ball.

Sally stared at Sonic, now torn between wanting to be happy for him, and wanting to interrogate him about the bombshell that had just been dropped on her. Sally had known Sonic almost her entire life, and it had never, ever occurred to her with even the slightest of possibilities that he would have had any other name other than Sonic. And even though now it made sense, as Sonic’s parents would have not known if Sonic had possessed his speed until he was a bit older, the more she took in this new fact, the more Sally’s mind seemed to want to twist into itself. So much so that she continued staring at Sonic in stunned silence.

Paulie meanwhile was snickering quietly into his hand, his earlier tension now gone.

“You really are fast, Brenda. Two seconds into finding our son and you’ve already embarrassed him,” Paulie laughed, barely flinching as Brenda playfully smacked at him.

“I thought she knew! And I’m allowed, I missed out on embarrassing him, so I’ve got some making up to do!” Brenda chided.

“Okay, I’m out,” Sonic remarked, standing now and giving everyone in the room a short, sweeping wave before he turned to leave. “This has been great, ‘nd I enjoyed havin’ real parents for all o’ ten seconds. But I’m gonna now go run through the desert ‘til I die.”

“Sonic!” Sally snapped, but it did nothing to stop Sonic from leaving.

“You’ll run out of desert before that happens, hon. I’ve tried,” Brenda called after Sonic, drawing more laughter from Paulie.

“Thanks, Brenda. I’ll figure it out,” Sonic called back as he left.

“Call me mom before you go die, Nicky!” Brenda stated, only to receive an indignant groan that escalated into a yell from Sonic, which just made her grin broadly.

“Oh this is amazing! I love this so much!” Brenda laughed as she faced Sally, now grinning from ear to ear.

Sally blinked at her, then shook her head a bit, half amused and half reeling still at everything that just transpired.

Sonic pressed his hands against the glass dome of the roboticizer, the tips of his claws clicking into it as his eyes darted around trying to find a weak point inside. Instead he spotted the overhead lights flash to life, almost blinding him, and he had to raise a hand over his eyes to shield them off.

Outside the roboticizer Robotnik laughed, the sound starting deep in his throat before it surfaced into a half choked wheeze, his inner glee escalating. Seeing Sonic finally under glass sent chills through him, and even as Robotnik’s hands hovered over the activation button, he couldn’t stop staring at the hedgehog, wanting to saviour the sight. After so many years of being tormented by this rat of a mobian, and suffering through a multitude of failed plans because of him and his wretched friends, Robotnik finally had the upper hand.

“Any last words, rodent?” Robotnik mocked, a fingertip still circling the activation button.

Usually whenever a victim was placed in the roboticizer there was an array of reactions Robotnik would witness. Some would beg for their lives. Some would cry thinking about loved ones now left behind, as they were possibly the only ones that stood between a doomed fate and survival for them. Some vowed revenge like as if they could do a damn thing against Robotnik and his empire when they already had a lifetime to do something. All of them brought a bit of joy to the dictator before their fates were sealed under layers of mindless metal soon after.

Sonic however just stared Robotnik down, without a hint of fear, or even desperation in his amber eyes, the very eyes Robotnik had granted him in another failed experiment that continued to insult him to this very moment. After a moment or two Robotnik watched as relentless hate filled Sonic’s eyes, before the hedgehog simply raised both his hands and flipped him off, his gaze unwavering.

Robotnik laughed, amused at the display, but deep down he had wished Sonic had gone for the vowing revenge route. So many had tried it, though Robotnik barely remembered them as flesh and blood. There had been ants with more significance compared to the ones that tried to act brave and tough in their last moments, when up until that point they had been hiding from the human’s grasp, cowering in fear at even a whisper of the dictator’s feint presence.

At least Sonic had earned the right to curse Robotnik’s existence, as Robotnik had done the same for Sonic’s many times over. It was literally the only thing Robotnik was willing to give Sonic credit for. It was almost a shame that Sonic was choosing now to be silent, even with his spirit still burning.

“Defiant until the end, I see,” Robotnik sighed, sounding almost wistful. “You’re going to be my most valued possession in my new world.”

As his fingertip circled the activation button once more Robotnik saw Sonic reach into his backpack, and an amused smile slicked across his face once more. He had seen this many, many times; just as the situation looked like it was tipping in Robotnik’s favour Sonic would pull out his trump card, a power ring that granted Sonic a burst of power that would leave Robotnik cursing in its wake. This time though it wasn’t going to work. The hedgehog had nowhere to run to, and the roboticizer was reinforced especially against his abilities. Sonic could use one hundred power rings for all Robotnik cared, he had the hedgehog trapped.

So confident in having the upper hand here, Robotnik allowed his hand to pull away from the button slightly so he could watch Sonic’s feeble attempt at escape. He couldn’t wait to see the look on Sonic’s face when he finally realised that this was the end, and Robotnik was going to have a shiny new robot to lead his army in the final takeover.

Only, when Sonic’s hand withdrew from his backpack, there wasn’t a glowing object in his grasp. Instead there was a large device, and even though it wasn’t activated yet, Robotnik caught a glimpse of a digital timer attached to it.

Just as the realisation of what Sonic had in his hand struck him, Robotnik heard the sound of metal slamming onto metal loudly near him. Robotnik looked down, and to his horror he spotted Sally crouched down next to the roboticizer’s controls, giving him a defiant glare that matched Sonic’s perfectly. Her hands were just pulling away from the control panel’s side, and when Robotnik’s eyes trailed towards it he spotted a duplicate of the device Sonic was holding now attached to the control panel.

Only this one’s timer was activated.

Sally jumped away just as a roaring curse entered Robotnik’s mouth, and in desperation Robotnik balled up a fist to slam into the activation button. But before he could reach it the bomb’s timer counted down to zero with almost lightning speed, and an explosion ripped through the console, throwing Robotnik off his feet and into a nearby wall. The resulting slam almost caused him to blackout on the spot, but Robotnik managed to pull himself together, despite the fact that his robotic ears were now ringing so hard that almost every other sound was drowned out.

He watched in ringing silence as Sonic reached down and lifted the glass encasing of the roboticizer with one hand, as now that the controls were blown to bits the roboticizer lost its power source. Even with his feral strength it still took some effort, and in a moment Sally was at his side helping him to pull it up. When there was enough open space for Sonic to crawl out under the glass Sonic activated his own bomb and threw it up to the top of the roboticizer, and Robotnik watched in stunned rage as the bomb attached itself to the ceiling of the device.

It didn’t take long for Sonic to crawl out, and when he was free he scooped Sally up and bolted for the doorway, stopping short of it and turning on his heel, a massive grin across his lips.

Robotnik instinctively shielded his face as the bomb exploded, and the roboticizer was ripped apart from the inside out, the diamond glass containing the explosion to the point that it almost amplified it. When the smoke half cleared Robotnik saw the roboticizer was now in pieces, the diamond glass completely useless as it was now detached from the device and laid on the ground, scratched up but otherwise in one piece.

“You... You--!” Robotnik seethed, turning glowing red upon black eyes to Sonic and Sally, who both now grinned at him so smugly that it caused his rage to sky rocket.

“Yeah, us,” Sonic chided. “It was cuttin’ it a bit close, but didja really think you had me, ‘buttnik?”

“Because if you did, maybe take another look around,” Sally added.

A lump of dread slammed into Robotnik’s chest as his eyes scanned the room, trying to pick out what the rodents had done to his command centre. At first it all looked like it should have, save for the now destroyed roboticizer, until his eyes landed on yet another bomb attached to a nearby wall. Then another. Then another.

The more he looked the more Robotnik found, somehow scattered all around the room, with some concentrated in areas that would bring the walls down into dust. Even as he scanned the room, Robotnik found himself losing count as to exactly how many bombs were now attached to the walls as his mind screamed bloody murder.

Then what Sonic had said clicked amongst the rage, and all at once it quietened down into stunned horror.

This was a planned rescue. Sonic had purposely used himself as bait to get right into the roboticizier and the command centre so that Sally could set the bombs right under Robotnik’s nose.

Robotnik was more than familiar with this technique. The Freedom Fighters used it for almost every mission in the city, using the Priority One Hedgehog Alert to their advantage as they knew that Robotnik would never deprogram the alert. He had tried many times to find work arounds to make the SWATbots stop falling for it, but the alert was too important, all for the off chance that someday it would pay off.

And despite being savvy to the technique, Robotnik himself had just fallen for it, once again for the off chance of finally besting the hedgehog.

The scream of rage that bellowed out of Robotnik was nearly deafening as he pushed himself to his feet and made to charge at Sonic and Sally, wanting nothing more than to rip them apart with his bare hands. But then he witnessed Sally pull out her palmtop computer from her inner vest pocket, and his advancement faltered for a brief second.

“Nicole, activate,” Sally commanded.

“Activating,” Nicole confirmed.

Almost in a wave the timers sprung to life, red numbers flashing one after the other around the room. Robotnik gaped in horror as he spun around to see them all, the timers revealing how many more of the bombs he had missed in his first inspection. What made his already cold blood run colder however was that every timer displayed the same countdown, and the time was very, very short, and already cycling closer to their ends.

Robotnik barely paid Sonic any mind when he heard the familiar sound of the hedgehog’s legs revving up before he took off, Sally cradled to his chest. The dictator instead watched the numbers cycle down, his mind going blank until there was barely a second left, which was when his mind reminded him to try to run.

“I have to admit, I am starting to get sick of this room,” Sally sighed.

Sonic drummed his fingers on the back of his chair, the very tips of his claws unsheathing at every second tap to alter the sound a little. It was an odd habit he had picked up, but it somehow helped him to think better when he did it.

“Well, it’s late ‘nd cold, but how ‘bout we go for a li’l walk?” Sonic offered, grinning. “You can get away from all this brown ‘nd go see some excitin’ white. ‘nd if you’re lucky you might even see some brown outside, in case you start missin’ it.”

The quip got a bright laugh out of Sally, one that sounded very much like the old Sally that it made Sonic grin wider. Moments like these were starting to become more frequent as Sally got used to Sonic’s presence, which led to Sonic trying to think of ways to help Sally bring her guard down more. There were some odd occasions where his efforts would land terribly, but even then Sally had been able to recover from them without too many drawbacks. So much so that even in the brief interactions Bookshire was able to have with Sally, he was able to see how great the difference was in Sally compared to how she was when Sonic first brought her home.

“I think I would like to see some white for a change, yes,” Sally agreed, and when Sonic offered his hand to help her off the bed Sally took it, and allowed Sonic to guide her off.

Once Sally was dressed up a little more warmly Sonic walked her through the tunnel that led into the village, taking a moment at the exit to make sure that no one was around to see them. Sally was still hesitant about seeing any other Mobians, and Sonic had asked anyone that knew about Sally to keep her return under wraps until Sally was ready, so the last thing either one of them wanted was to be spotted by a random villager and have word spread out.

Thankfully no one was around, as like Sonic had mentioned it was quite late, and cold thanks to the recent snowfall, which left the air feeling crisp and fresh both against their faces and in their chests as they breathe it in. Despite the cold though, Sally did take a moment to relish the fresh air, as not only was this her first time out of her hospital room, but it was her first time outside all together. So much so that her felt her skin prickle under her fur as the open space of the village and surrounding forest almost seemed a little overwhelming, even as she wrapped her arms around herself both for warm and comfort.

Sonic approached her carefully, then placed a hand on Sally’s shoulder, giving her a second to realise he was there before pulling her to his side. The different in height between them was much more obvious in this position, but the way Sonic held Sally almost felt like she was hiding against his side, and it helped ease her anxiety enough that she could take in the scenery without feeling overwhelmed. After a moment or so, Sally slipped her arm around Sonic’s middle, and pressed herself against his side in a one-armed hug. There she felt Sonic tighten his grip on her a little more, and instantly felt more at ease.

“C’mon, I’ll show ya around,” Sonic offered, then began walking, allowing Sally to keep her hold on him as they moved. “I know you were here when this place got set up, but some things have changed a li’l.”

The two of them spent about an hour looking around the village. There were some things that hadn’t been completed when Sally was still in New Knothole, and as she explored the village both memories and realisation flowed through her, as seeing the changes in the village compared to what she remembered helped her find another footing in her reality.

“I can’t believe how much has changed,” Sally remarked as they walked towards the huts, her breath coming out in small puffs of white. “The village looks incredible.”

“You should see it durin’ the day, the brown pops up way more against the white,” Sonic remarked, snickering as Sally laughed. “But seriously, everyone really pitched in to make this place work; Griff and th’ other Lower Mobians really helped out wit’ a lot o’ stuff we didn’t have in Knothole, so we have way more stuff goin’ on. It took a while, but it was worth the wait.”

“Hopefully I can experience more of it soon for myself,” Sally said, her voice a little wistful. She miffed a little as Sonic gave her a light squeeze, and looked up at the hedgehog, spotting his eyes as they reflected in the darkness.

“You will, real soon. ‘nd you’ve come a lon’ way already, so you should be proud o’ that, Sal,” Sonic stated. “I bet in a week’s time you’re gonna be runnin’ the village again.”

“Are you saying that because I have really improved that much, or because you want to stop being in charge?” Sally quipped, raising an eyebrow at the hedgehog.

“Eh, a li’l from column A, a li’l from column B really,” Sonic shrugged. “Mostly from column A, but I think the villagers would be relieved when you take over again.”

“I’m sure you’re doing fine, Sonic. Give yourself more credit,” Sally laughed.

“Yeah you say that, but the amount o’ times Bunnie or someone else had to intervene whenever a villager pushed my buttons would make your eyes roll for the rest o’ your life,” Sonic said. “I am not a people person, not in the way that actually helps anyway.”

Sally shook her head and sighed, before giving Sonic a light squeeze. “Well, you haven’t been kicked out of the village yet for it, so I’d say you’re still doing a good job.”

“Yet, the keyword there bein’ yet,” Sonic teased.

By now the two had made their way to where the huts were clustered together. Every hut they passed had their lights out, confirming that everyone was asleep, so whenever they spoke they kept their voices low, just so they wouldn’t wake anyone or bring any attention to themselves. Eventually they came by Sally’s hut, and Sally stopped in her tracks, taking in the sight when she recognised it.

“That’s my hut, isn’t it?” Sally asked, and Sonic nodded.

“Bunnie’s been keepin’ it up for you while you were gone. ‘nd when I first came home I crashed in it for a li’l while ‘til mine was up ‘nd runnin’,” Sonic explained.

“And where is your hut?”

Sonic’s ear flicked at the question, before he guided Sally a little further ahead so that they were standing just in between a set of huts. From there he pointed through to another hut, and Sally blinked at it, a little startled at its location.

The hut was closer to the forest border, and although it wasn’t completely secluded from the other huts nearby, it was noticeably further away from them as it had much more space around it compared to the others. Sally also noticed that if one were to walk to the hut, they would have to really go out of their way to do so as it didn’t quite fit along any of the pathways that would be commonly used.

“Why is it so far out?” Sally questioned, mild concern on her face as she addressed Sonic.

Sonic averted his eyes away from Sally, which Sally noticed he did a lot whenever he needed to think about his answers more carefully. At the start this used to spike her paranoia, but now it just brought a spike of dread to her chest as she knew his answer would have to do with either her absence, or the aftermath of Sonic’s disappearance, which was something that he took great pains in avoiding on the few occasions Sally had attempted to talk about it.

“Ah, well... let’s just say for a while I wasn’t the most... sociable Mobian out there,” Sonic eventually explained, still not quite making eye contact with Sally as he spoke. “’nd when it came to figurin’ out my livin’ arrangements I figured that would be a good spot for everyone involved.”

“Sonic...” Sally sighed, but the hedgehog waved it off.

“It’s cool, Sal. From there I get a good view o’ the forest, ‘nd I keep an eye on the border,” Sonic explained. “At least I can do guard duty where it’s more comfortable.”

Sally still stared up at him, her expression a mix of sympathy and grief.

“If I had been here...” Sally began, but was cut off when Sonic shushed her gently.

“Don’t beat yourself up. You’re here now, that’s what’s important right now,” Sonic coaxed. “All o’ that was on me, I was bein’ a bonehead.”

“How were you though when you came home?” Sally asked, and Sonic tensed, his fur and quills standing on end briefly before he forced himself to settle.

“Sal, this isn’t about me,” Sonic huffed. “We can talk about that later.”

“I want to know, Sonic,” Sally urged, a ghost of her own stern self now sparking through her.

“’nd I don’t want to talk about it,” Sonic bit back.

The tone in Sonic’s voice switched so sharply it startled Sally into silence, the confidence she felt not seconds ago now snuffed out completely. The two of them had argued many times over the years, it was how the two communicated that it was almost odd if they didn’t argue about at least one thing as they spoke. But this time the tone had something to it that stilled Sally, where even if she was her regular self, she wouldn’t have dared challenge it.

Sally’s silence however made Sonic realise he had stepped too far, and he covered his face with his hand, as if trying to physically reel himself back in before he did more damage.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to snap like that,” Sonic began after a few moments, his expression softening. “I just... I don’t want to talk about that, not right now.”

Sally hesitated at first, not quite knowing what to say.

“... but you will talk about it, right?” Sally asked, not quite looking at Sonic.

Sonic sighed, and rubbed a fingertip along the bridge of his muzzle. As much as he was trying to rein himself in, he was still on edge, and just wanted to move away from the conversation before he really stepped in it.

“Eventually, yeah,” Sonic stated, his voice clipped. “When you’re feelin’ a bit better, I will. Just don’t ask me about it for now, okay?”

“Why?”

“’cause it sucked. It just sucked, a lot. ‘nd I’m not ready to go down that path again,” Sonic explained, exasperated now. “Give me some time to make sense o’ it first then I’ll tell you.”

Sally didn’t say anything for a few moments, but after a while she nodded and looked up at the hedgehog. “Okay,” Sally agreed. “I’m sorry for hitting that nerve.”

She miffed a little as Sonic pulled her against his side, and felt him squeeze her. When Sally looked up at Sonic once more she spotted the softened look on his face, the expression mixed with a bit of an apology.

“I get that you want to know, but I just want you to focus on yourself for once, Sal,” Sonic said. “You’re always frettin’ ‘bout me somehow.”

“But fretting about you would help me focus on myself more,” Sally teased as she leaned into Sonic’s hug, smirking when the hedgehog laughed.

“It’s like you’re addicted to stressin’. How about just for a laugh you don’t do that ‘nd we try somethin’ else,” Sonic suggested. “Like say, takin’ a look inside your hut maybe?”

When Sally agreed to the suggestion Sonic led the way, keeping an arm looped around Sally’s shoulders as they walked. Once they approached Sally’s hut Sonic opened the door and motioned for Sally to go in first, which she did after a moment of hesitation.

As she entered her hut though it took her a little while to even recognise it, as it had been so long since she was last in there. When she did a flood of memories hit her, ranging from when the hut was first built, to the last day she had left it just before her capture. That last memory almost made the hut seem surreal, and if Sonic hadn’t been standing close by Sally was sure she would have gotten completely lost in the memory.

Slowly Sally made her way around her hut, trailing her hand along any surfaces she came by and picking up little trinkets that were still on display. She remembered Sonic saying that Bunnie had been keeping up her hut while she was gone, so the absence of any dust didn’t surprise Sally, but at the same time she was amazed at how preserved everything was as more memories came back to her.

“I honestly never thought I’d see this place again,” Sally admitted, her throat constricting slightly. She bit at her bottom lip to steady herself, before making her way to her sleeping area. Here she saw some subtle differences, until she remembered Sonic saying he had stayed here for a little while.

“How long did you stay here for?” Sally asked.

“A couple o’ months I think, maybe a li’l longer,” Sonic said. “But I didn’t really touch anythin’, save your bed. ‘nd even then I mostly slept on your couch anyway.”

“I wouldn’t have minded if you did,” Sally said.

“I know, but it was only a temp thin’ anyway so I didn’t want to take over,” Sonic explained. “’nd I figured if we did find you ‘nd I had messed wit’ any o’ your stuff you would have kicked my tail for it.”

“Only if you had stained anything with your shoes. But otherwise I wouldn’t have minded.”

By now she had reached her bed, and as she ran her hand along her bedhead Sally took in the little carved patterns set in the wood. She tried to remember who had done them, as Sally was sure that this was the bedhead she had in Knothole, and it was one of the few things that was salvaged from her old hut. But as she tried to think her mind seemed to pull between her memories of the old village and the new village, even as she tried to focus on the carvings to ground herself into the not too distant memories. Sally could remember that the bedhead needed to be repaired, but were the carvings there before or after it had been fixed?

Why did the bedhead need to be fixed?

How did the bedhead get broken?

“Sal?”

Sally continued staring at the bedhead, her hand stilling over the carving as her mind filled with static.

“Sally!”

Sally felt something grab her shoulder, and she cried out as the static depleted almost instantly, and her mind crashed back into reality. She pulled away and slammed her back into the nearby wall as she gasped heavily, her mind now racing to figure out where she was.

In front of her Sonic backed away the moment she screamed, his amber eyes widening at her reaction.

“Whoa, whoa! Chill, Sal. It’s just me, it’s just me,” Sonic coaxed, attempting to approach her, only to have her half cry out again when he got too close.

He backed off again, but this time he raised his hands in a non-threatening manner, and even crouched down a little in an attempt to make himself look smaller so as not to frighten Sally further.

“It’s okay, you’re safe. I’m not gonna hurt you. Just breathe,” Sonic recited, his voice low and soothing now.

Sally watched him with wide eyes, her chest heaving rapidly as panic pumped through her. After a few moments though she could hear what Sonic was saying, as he gently repeated his words almost like a mantra, and slowly Sally took in a breath to try to ease herself.

“That’s it, just breathe. It’s cool, Sal. Just breathe,” Sonic repeated, though he felt his own chest tightening with confusion and panic and hoped it wasn’t showing.

Every time Sonic said “breathe” Sally would do it, as if she needed him to remind her that it was something she needed to do. After a few times her mind seemed to remember that it was a basic function, and eventually Sally did it enough times to get her back on track, though her body shook as it now rode through the sudden spike of anxiety that had hit her out of nowhere. This time when Sonic approached her Sally allowed him to, and he gently guided her down onto her bed before crouching down in front of her, looking up at Sally with concern.

“You okay?” Sonic asked.

Sally didn’t answer at first as her body trembled, and she felt her throat constrict as her emotions welled up in her.

“What-- what happened?” Sally asked, her voice shaking.

“I dunno,” Sonic admitted, his ears folding back slightly. “It was like you spaced out. I called you a few times but you didn’t hear me.”

Sally took in another breath, but she could still feel panic stinging through her body as her mind buzzed with static. She tried to say something, what she really wasn’t sure, but instead a soft sob escaped her, and she quickly bit it back as she shrunk into herself.

“Hey, hey, hey. It’s okay. It’s okay,” Sonic soothed, instantly at her side and drawing her closer, allowing Sally to curl up against his side. “Maybe that’s enough for now, yeah? How ‘bout we head back?”

“I got confused, and I couldn’t remember all of a sudden,” Sally whimpered, tears welling up in her eyes and spilling along her cheeks. “I didn’t mean to do that.”

“I know you didn’t, it’s cool, Sal,” Sonic said. Though he couldn’t help but pause a little, a little concerned at what Sally said and not liking what it might be implying. He tried to shake it off, taking in a short breath himself to centre himself. “You might just be tired ‘nd didn’t realise it, it happens. It’s been a long day for you.”

When Sally pressed herself harder against Sonic’s side the hedgehog sighed, before he stood, and gently scooped Sally up with one arm.

“I’ll take ya back, ‘nd I’ll stay wit’ you, okay?” Sonic offered as he made his way out of Sally’s hut, cradling her against his chest as they returned to the colder outside.

“I’m sorry,” Sally sighed as she attempted to wipe the tears away from her eyes, only to have more replace them in almost double their numbers. She wasn’t outright sobbing, but every so often a tremble would run through her as she fought back the urge to. She gave a soft miff though as Sonic placed a gentle kiss on her forehead.

“It’s cool, Sal. You did great, don’t let this trip you up,” Sonic stated. He looked around at the surrounding huts, making sure that no one had been woken up, though his gaze lingered a little as he looked out towards the forest, a nagging feeling tingling through him.

He took in another centring breath, then gave Sally a light squeeze, the motion both for comfort and for protection now.