Chapter Text

Arrival

The first thing Sonic saw when he opened his eyes was a bright light. White flooded his vision, making the blue hedgehog squint in confusion.

Why was the sky so bright? And why was there firm ground beneath his shoes and no grass?

The last thing he could remember was napping against a tree in Green Hill Zone. But there were no nature smells filling his nose and no wind rustling his quills.

In fact Sonic seemed to be surrounded by absolute nothing. The absence of everything.

A white void.

There was simply no better description for Sonic’s current surroundings. And there was no end in sight.

No matter where he looked, in what direction he turned his head, the blue hedgehog only saw white. The non-colour stretched far, further than Sonic could see. The space felt infinite. Even the floor beneath his shoes was white.

Was he outside? Inside a gigantic room? There was no way to tell as there was no clear distinction between floor, walls or ceiling. No furniture, no nothing.

And he was alone.

To say that Sonic the Hedgehog was confused, would be an understatement.

How did he get here? And where was here? Was he back in the White Space?

There must be something here, something to tell him where he was or why he was here.

Tentatively the blue hedgehog took one step forward before one loud thud sounded behind him. Then another. And three others followed.

Sonic whipped around.

Lying before him in a heap of limbs were his friends.

Relied flooded his system. He wasn’t alone. Good.

Sure, being transported somewhere strange wasn’t his first rodeo and he wouldn’t have had any trouble going through this on his own but he was really glad that he didn’t have to.

On top of the pile was the two-tailed orange fox kit who was currently groaning and holding his head. If someone could find a way out of this situation, it would be Tails - his smart little brother.

Below the kit was Amy. The pink hedgehog looked confused but no worse for wear, her eyes only widened when she saw the blue hedgehog standing in front of them.

Next were Knuckles and Rouge, both looking more annoyed than anything. Sonic couldn’t remember a single time when he had ever seen someone getting the drop on Rouge - either whoever kidnapped them was the sneakiest person alive or their kidnapper was an incomprehensible being.

Sonic didn’t make the rules.

And lastly was the black hedgehog lying at the bottom of the pile. Shadow the Hedgehog. Currently growling and looking very pissed off.

Oh well- anger at their situation was something Sonic could understand but this was a disaster waiting to happen.

The growl became louder. “...get off me.”

The blue hedgehog sprung into action, immediately pulling the fox kit up and out of danger before offering his paws to Amy and Rouge.

"Hey-a guys! Nice of you to drop in.” Sonic smiled at the two girls when they accepted his offer. “I’m glad you’re here! This place looked kinda empty without you guys.”

Tucking his paws beneath his armpits, he watched as the red echidna and the black hedgehog fought about which of them would get up before the other - more wrestling than actually getting up.

The sound of someone clearing his throat made his right ear flick. After turning around, his eyes found Rouge’s.

“Blue, not that we’re complaining about seeing you but where are we?” The bat crossed her arms in annoyance but with her face dripping in amusement, Sonic wasn’t very worried.

He shrugged. “No idea actually.” Grinning sheepishly, the blue hedgehog rubbed the back of his head. “I didn’t have the chance to look around before you guys appeared.”

Silence followed.

While his friends looked around and took in the void-like features of their surroundings, Sonic observed the group instead.

The sound of them all hitting the floor had been loud, especially with them all falling on top of each other there was a high possibility that one of them, If not multiple of them got hurt - so turning to his little brother, Sonic asked.

“You okay, bro?”

The orange kit rubbed his eyes before nodding. “Yeah- just caught off guard. ‘was working in my workshop before we ended up here.” He looked around before continuing. “Are we back in the White Space?”

Before Sonic could repeat his earlier admission of not knowing anything, a booming voice spoke up.

"...Heroes..."

The voice seemed to have no origin. It surrounded them, coming from far away but also close by. Sounding unique but also indescribable. There was no hostility but it also didn’t seem to have friendly intentions, it was simply… indifferent.

Despite forcing himself to stay calm, the blue hedgehog tensed. His eyes immediately flicked through the group until he found the eyes of the black hedgehog who looked similarly suspicious of the strange voice.

“...Welcome…”

At least the voice welcomed them - although that still didn’t spark reassurance.

Tails and Amy exchanged unsure glances while Knuckles and Rouge looked more doubtful. The group clearly wasn’t sold on this whole situation but only Shadow seemed brave enough to speak up.

Shadow glared at the ceiling like it personally offended him. While the black hedgehog normally wasn’t the sunshine of the group, this situation seemed to make him even angrier than usual.

He interrupted the voice with a scoff, cutting off the probably long and well-prepared speech that surely would have followed.

“Who are you? And why are we here?”

The voice paused, almost like it was unfamiliar with being interrupted before continuing with the same indifferent manner of speaking.

“...my identity… is no concern of yours… it is of no importance…”

Shadow rolled his eyes before another scoff followed, mumbling something under his breath.

Not their concern? It did feel very concerning that this being didn’t want to share their identity with them. Especially with them being powerful enough to teleport them to this strange place.

The voice seemed to speak slower than before, almost like waiting for another interruption to happen.

Sonic felt the impatience rise inside him, his right foot started to tap almost automatically. And still the voice hadn’t answered the second question: Why were they here?

Did they need to fight someone? Talk someone down from a fight? Surely everything was better than standing here and waiting for this voice to spit out every word.

Amy, always the voice of patience, prompted the voice: “And what do you need us for? Why are we here?”

“...you are here… to watch…”

“To watch? Watch what?” The fox kit perked up, immediately eager for any possibility of learning something new.

Another pause followed.

Sonic was close to losing his mind. Couldn’t this stupid voice speak any faster? Just get to the point!

“...you will see…”

Seriously? The blue hedgehog groaned, before facepalming. “You’re not even gonna tell us what we’re going to see?”

Even with his eyes closed, he could already feel Amy’s disapproving glare sent his way. But surely she understood - this guy was frustrating!

Knuckles frowned. “And why should we watch? I’ve got better things to do than sit around and watch something.”

The orange kit turned to the red echidna and asked rather confused. “Wait- but isn’t your whole job-...”

“This is pointless.” Shadow interrupted both Tails and Knuckles, cutting their conversation short. Frustratedly throwing his hands into the air, he continued. “Whatever. Just get on with it.”

At least someone here shared Sonic’s impatience.

“...for entertainment…”

“Entertainment? For whom?!” Was the last thing the blue hedgehog heard before the white void around them suddenly shifted.

Chapter Text

Childhood?

The white void surrounding them darkened until only darkness was left. They couldn’t see each other anymore, causing a short panic among the group.

“...Sonic?” Tails called out, slightly scared in the dark. “What is happening?!”

A gloved paw found the kit’s own paw, squeezing tightly.

“We’re gonna be fine, buddy. Don’t worry about it.”

Suddenly golden rings blazed past them, brightening up the room with their golden shine. A snowy mountain top appeared in front of them, with a gigantic lake beneath their feet.

Despite standing on solid floor, they seemed to be multiple feet into the air.

Rouge’s wings instinctively flattered on her back before her mind caught up with the fact that the floor beneath her felt too solid for her to be flying.

She forced herself to relax before focusing back onto the screen.

Large letters floated in the sky, spelling out “Paramount” above the mountain top before the rings reached them and formed a semi-circle around the logo. text floated in the sky above a snowy mountain top.

Music began to play as the logo faded out.

A pixelated Sonic running through Green Hills was shown. Zooming out more and more videos appeared, some of Sonic, others of strange and unfamiliar scenes.

The SEGA logo appeared before also fading out.

Confusion filled the room.

They weren’t strangers to movies but this seemed far too realistic to just be a movie theater. And how could this be three dimensional? They had been multiple feet up into the air!

Amy turned towards the blue hedgehog before asking, her brow furrowing. “Sonic? Was that figure you?”

Sonic paused for a moment, thinking it over. They really weren’t a lot of hedgehogs that had his blue fur and even less so that could keep up with him.

And to be fair, the hedgehog on-screen really didn’t look like Shadow or Silver. He shrugged. “I mean, it did look like Green Hills. So… probably?”

They stared at the paused screen, all stuck in their own individual thoughts when Shadow suddenly interrupted their thought-filled silence.

“Why did it look so…” The black hedgehog frowned, searching for the right word, while still being entirely distrustful of this whole situation. “...blurry?”

Tails laughed, his earlier fear of the dark completely forgotten now that he could focus on answering questions. Unfortunately for him, the dark hedgehog took his laughter as a sign of malice.

Shadow squinted at the fox, his eyes narrowing in suspicion. “Are you… laughing at me?”

Immediately the kit’s mouth fell shut, scrambling to explain himself. “...no! It’s just…” Trailing off, Tails struggled with ending the sentence in a way that sounded respectful.

Seeing this, Sonic decided to come to his rescue. “They’re not blurry, they’re pixels. Video games often do this.”

Shadow looked at him, trying to detect If he was being genuine before nodding slowly and turning away. 

The orange fox sent his brother a thankful look who answered him with a discreet thumbs up.

“I’m more focused on the names. I mean, Paramount? SEGA? That ringing a bell for anyone?” Rouge questioned the group.

Everyone shook their heads.

They waited for a few moments, in case the mysterious voice suddenly decided to be helpful but everything stayed disappointedly silent.

“Well- at least, we know something!” Amy perked up, smiling. “Whatever we’re seeing is about Sonic!”

Sonic nodded, smiling back.

Somehow sensing that they wanted the projection to continue, the screen showed a new scene.

The skyline of a city appeared on the horizon with a big bridge in the foreground. The camera sweeps over the bridge and moves closer to the city.

“Woah…” Tails stared at the city in wonder. “This doesn’t look like a place I’ve been to!”

The blue hedgehog had similar thoughts.

It was strange, despite having visited many places on Earth, Sonic couldn’t place this city.

Just where was this? And why were they showing this to them?

Two tiny specks of light became visible. One blue, the other red. They dashed across the skyline, the second was chasing and firing at the blue speck.

The closer they got to the action, the more visible their surroundings became. Wind swept through the space, rustling their fur and making them lean towards the movement.

Zooming closer, the camera focused on the figure being pursued. It was Sonic the Hedgehog. The pursuer fires at the hedgehog and the fleeing figure barely dodged the explosion.

“Wait…” Sonic leaned closer, staring at the other hedgehog. “Is that me? Why are my arms blue?”

The space worked unlike a screen, making it possible to move around whatever projection they were seeing.

The blue hedgehog circled around the other hedgehog before stopping. The fake hedgehog was smaller than Sonic, almost looking tiny next to him.

Tails raised a paw to his chin, deep in thought. “He almost looks like that one version from the past!”

Shadow frowned. “Version from the past? …What?” 

Rouge patted his arm to get his attention. “Yeah, remember the whole fiasco during Sonic’s birthday party?” She waited until the black hedgehog had nodded, not missing how the other had tensed at bringing that fateful day. “We met a past version of Sonic that day!”

“Hey- and my past version too!” The fox kit butted in, clearly not liking to be overlooked.

“Yeah- and they were so cute!” Amy grinned.

“I’m not- let’s just see where this is going.” Sonic rolled his eyes. 

A voice began to narrate, belonging to the other Sonic on-screen. “So, I know what you’re thinking. Why is that incredibly handsome hedgehog being chased by a madman with a moustache from the Civil War?”

Sonic blinked, staring at the frozen hedgehog like he wasn’t comprehending that this voice could belong to any version of him.

He turned to Shadow. “Do I sound like that?”

The black hedgehog didn’t miss a beat. “No. Usually you sound more annoying.”

Sonic rolled his eyes. “Wow, thanks.” But couldn’t quite mask the smile that crept on his face as well as he thought.

Shadow and him were more friends than rivals at this point and their friendship was nothing without their constant bickering. Their constant state of arguing felt like harmony for them both.

The scene unfroze. The on-screen Sonic continued running, effortlessly dodging laser blast after laser blast from his pursuer.

Sonic’s voiceover continued. “Well, to be honest, it feels like I’ve been running my whole life.”

Sonic chuckled, this was something he could relate to at least. There was nothing he loved more than running.

“Is this too much? Am I going too fast? It’s kind of what I do. You know what? Let’s back up.”

The entire chase scene suddenly reversed, scenes and scenes speeding by them faster than they could blink. The Sonic narrator mimicked the rewinding sound effect in a humorous manner.

Entirely unaffected by the sight, Sonic turned to the others. “This feels weird. If this is actually about me, why are there so strange changes?”

Shadow crossed his arms. “I don’t know, If you ask me, he sounds just as annoying as you.”

“Oh really?” The blue hedgehog focused on the other. “So you don’t find that weird? Like at all?”

“Can you two… just wait for a second?!” Rouge interrupted their argument, making both hedgehogs turn her way.

Both the bat and the pink hedgehog were looking light-headed. Even Knuckles seemed slightly off-center.

Sonic blinked, confused. “What’s wrong?”

“Listen- I know this isn’t fast for you- but it was fast for us.” Amy gasped, holding her head.

“Oh…” The blue hedgehog exchanged one sheepish look with the other hedgehog who locked more indifferent than embarrassed. “...right.”

“Sonic’s right.” Tails drew the attention to himself, already deep in thought about what they had seen. “Whoever made this knows a lot about us. But some things are wrong. This is strange…”

Knuckles stared at the fox. “Why aren’t you affected by the projection moving this fast?”

“Hm?” Tails blinked. “Oh. I have been with Sonic for a long time, I’m kinda used to seeing things moving fast.” The kit shrugged.

“Whoever made this could be a threat.” Shadow decided. Sonic internally rolled his eyes, this is exactly what he had been saying this whole time!

A new scene started playing, the camera fixated on an island.

Sonic’s eyes widened, immediately captivated by the familiar landscape in front of him. His eyes followed his on-screen counterpart dashing past, wishing he was there himself and could run.

The camera followed a younger version of Sonic as he dashed through the environment of the island. Golden beaches, energetic waterfalls, falling bridges and loop-de-loops all passed by in a blur. The text “Paramount Pictures Presents” briefly appeared before them.

“There it is again!” Knuckles pointed at the logos in front of them. “Paramount and SEGA.”

“They must be behind this movie!” Snapping his fingers, Tails exclaimed.

Sonic only nodded, his longing gaze still stuck on the sight of his island.

The narration continued. “This is the island where I’m from.”

“It had everything. Sandy beaches, cascading waterfalls, public access to loop-de-loops. And I never had to catch a school bus because I could run across the entire island in less than two seconds.”

Shadow turned to the blue hedgehog, his eyebrow raised in surprise. “You went to school?”

The blue hedgehog shrugged, smirking. “Tried it once. Not really my thing.”

Tails blinked at his older brother. “Wait- you actually did go to school?!”

Sonic chuckled, shaking his head.

“Also there was no school. I know, pretty sweet island, right?”

“Oh…” Tails nodded in understanding.

The camera zoomed closer to the younger version of Sonic running across the terrain. He dashed across a ramp, launching himself into the air with a joyful shout.

Amy squealed, her paws shaking in excitement. “YOU! WERE! SO! CUTE!”

Sonic scoffed. “I was not-...”, but decided to simply let it rest when he saw Rouge’s grin. He probably wasn’t living this one down- even If this was not even how he looked as a child.

“I was born with extraordinary powers and was told to keep them secret.”

The blue hedgehog frowned. “Secret? Why?”

“How is this secret?” Knuckles pointed at where the young version of the other Sonic was still dashing by.

“You have a point there, Knux.” Sonic sighed.

“Maybe they don’t mean your speed.” Tails rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “Maybe this version of you has more powers than just being fast.”

“We’ve already seen some differences between our world and theirs. There could be more.” Rouge nodded in agreement.

The narration resumed. “And like any kid, I did the exact opposite.”

“Oh…” Knuckles stared at the younger version of his friend. “I don’t like where this is going.”

The blue hedgehog continued running until he came across a small house nestled among the trees. The young Sonic curled into a ball and rolled inside the house, playfully bumping into a sleeping owl perched on a table, causing her to wake up.

“A… an owl?” Amy blinked at the new figure, finally ripping her eyes away from the adorable version of younger Sonic.

She turned to Sonic. “Do you know her?”

The blue hedgehog shook his head. “Don’t think I’ve ever met an owl.”

Squinting his eyes, he joked. “Unless that’s Jet the Hawk.”

Sonic only chuckled when the others simply rolled their eyes.

The on-screen Sonic continued narrating. “That’s Longclaw. She took care of me.” Young Sonic landed on the ground, moving out of his ball form and laughed in childish joy. “She was basically Obi-Wan Kenobi, If Obi-Wan Kenobi had a beak and ate mic.”

“Longclaw?” Sonic stared at the owl, repeating her name in confusion.

This didn’t seem familiar at all. He would think he would remember If there ever had been an owl that took care of him!

Longclaw woke up with a start. “Sonic, someone could have seen you.” Her gentle voice held firm against the excited tiny hedgehog.

Young Sonic responded. “No one saw me. I’m too fast!” He mimicked his running before continuing. “And I wanted to bring you this.” Pulling a sunflower out of his quills, the young Sonic presented it to Longclaw with a bright smile.

Amy aww’d at the sweet interaction between hedgehog son and owl mother, earning a perplexed look from the older Sonic.

At least this was about something he did, not how he looked. And he could admit, this was kinda adorable.

Just when Longclow wanted to take the flower from Young Sonic, she heard a noise and looked behind him. A tribe of Echidnas stalked them among the trees with their weapons drawn and aimed straight at the duo.

The owl lunged herself to protect Young Sonic with her own body before closing the door. “Get down!”, Longclaw ordered urgently.

The group collectively gasped.

“Echidnas?!” Sonic stared at the screen in disbelief, before turning to the only Echidna in the room. “What-...”

Knuckles who had been watching the entire scene in discomfort, now looked just as disbelieving as Sonic did. “I… don’t know.”

The on-screen Echidnas fired their arrows, hitting almost every corner of Longclaw’s house. One arrow hit the window, barely missing the owl and hitting the sunflower instead, pinning it to the wooden floor.

Sonic’s voice turned somber as the narration continued. “Turns out, with great power comes great power-hungry bad guys. And I led them right to us.”

Amy shrieked in horror as the first few Echidnas broke into the house, taking a step back in shock.

Sonic instead took a step forward, just itching to fight and defend this owl that had apparently taken care of his counterpart. He hated feeling useless, he wanted to help!

The lone Echidna’s inner turmoil was clearly visible on his face. On one part he felt a longing towards this tribe - seeing Echidnas in action was something he had longed for his whole life. And here it was, his big moment and the only thing he could focus on was how selfish he felt.

This wasn’t fair! But it wasn’t his world either - the other Echidnas had been long dead before he ever came along, this was the only comfort he could take from this.

A gentle hand found its way onto his shoulder. Rouge had come closer to comfort him and he was currently in a need for some reassurance.

While the tribe entered through the windows and prepared to attack, Longclaw grabbed Sonic close and managed to escape.

Arrows continued to fly past them but none hit their target.

Until suddenly a closeup of an Echidna Warrior was shown, he aimed and struck Longclaw, causing both her and Young Sonic to crash to the ground.

“No!” Sonic cried out, dashing towards the injured owl but his helping hand only went through her as this was only a projection.

“Come on, stay down, please!” He continued to murmur as he watched the owl move despite clearly being wounded.

The owl didn’t hesitate to get up, before putting a very concerned Sonic back on his feet.

“Listen carefully, Sonic. You have a power unlike anything I have ever seen, and that means someone will always want it. The only way to stay safe is to stay hidden.”

She reached into her satchel and tossed a ring into the air. The ring expanded until it was big enough to safely go through. It was a portal, showing a forest at night.

“That’s weird,” Tails commented, his eyes fixed on the portal. “Rings don’t usually do that.”

Amy shushed the young fox before inclining her head towards the blue hedgehog who was currently watching the goodbye with bated breath.

Longclaw’s voice held steady while she instructed the younger hedgehog. “This world is on the far side of the universe. You should be safe there.”

The young Sonic looked up at Longclaw, his eyes wide with desperation and displeasure. “I don’t want to go without you!”

Sonic sighed, already coming to terms with how this story was going to go. He took a few steps back and crossed his arms behind his head, simply watching.

“You must,” Longclaw insisted, handing him her satchel filled with rings. “These rings will be your most important possession.”

The shout of one of the Echidnas drawing nearer caught her attention, she gasped.

Longclaw gently nudged young Sonic towards the portal with her wings, “If you’re ever discovered, use one. Never stop running. Now, go!”

The tiny blue hedgehog entered the portal as she ended her last command and continued running.

As he looked back, Young Sonic saw Longclaw prepare herself to defend the portal with her life. “Longclaw!”, Sonic yelled, dashing back towards the portal while it became smaller and smaller.

Just before the tribe had reached her, she turned and looked back at Sonic one last time. Her voice sounded sad but steadfast. “Goodbye, Sonic.”

The portal closed just as the young Sonic would have been able to reach it, “No!!”, leaving him alone in a strange new world. The tiny hedgehog stared forward, his eyes drifting over them like he couldn’t see them.

The scene faded as the main logo for the film appeared, reading “Sonic the Hedgehog” in bright blue letters.

“Well…” Sonic scratched his right cheek before turning to the others, already waiting for his reaction. “What an introduction, huh?”

Shadow stared at him, almost like he was trying to get a read on him. The blue hedgehog was glad when Knuckles finally broke the silence that had been created after his comment.

“It surely was… intense.” His voice sounded shaky, a mix between shock and disbelief. “I’ve heard the stories of how some Echidna Warriors acted but this was…”, trailing off, the red Echidna left the room once again in an awkward silence.

“This… Longclaw,” Rouge spoke up, waiting for Sonic to nod before continuing. “She cared a lot about this Sonic, she was his…”

“Mother” / ”Guardian” Amy and Sonic both tried to finish the sentence at the same time, causing their words to overlap.

The bat eyed them both before agreeing. “Yeah. They seemed close.”

Sonic sighed. There were so many questions left unanswered and everything they had seen so far just made him question everything more.

He had never had a guardian in his life, the only relationship that came close- was Tails. They looked out for each other, even If the blue hedgehog often took the role of a protector, the kit always had his back.

But this projection had looked and felt real. The emotions he had felt were real.

This whole situation felt strange to them all, they were uncomfortable. It felt hostile, almost like they were watching something they weren’t supposed to see.

“We still don’t know why we’re here.” Shadow reminded them all, his gaze more serious than ever.

He was right. Something here was wrong, they all knew it but the explanation went way beyond their reach.

“I’m for one glad we’re seeing this.” Tails piped up, getting everyone’s attention. “Just think about everything we could learn!”

Sonic chuckled, fondly shaking his head. Of course his little bro was already trying to soak information up like a sponge.

They braced themselves, hoping that the next time the projection started it would bring more clarity than questions.

Chapter Text

Solitude

There was barely any time to think about what they had seen before the projection started once again.

The camera focused on a long run-down street surrounded by nearby trees and faraway mountains. The text “Green Hills, Montana. Ten years later” could be briefly seen before fading away.

“Green Hill?” Tails frowned.

Sonic stared at the environment surrounding them, slightly uneasy at how unfamiliar it all looked. “This definitely isn’t Green Hill.”

Moving slowly, the camera creeps closer to the street before fixating on a Green Hills Sheriff’s Department Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptor patrol car sitting idly by the road.

Officer Tom Wachowski, a friendly-looking, was holding a speed velocity gun, scanning the empty street for speeding drivers.

“What is he doing?” Knuckles stared at the police officer in confusion.

Tails answered absent-mindedly, still focused on their strange surroundings. “He’s looking for speeders.”

Sonic turned on the spot, checking all directions. “Huh. Seems kinda vacant. Why here?”

Shadow scoffed.

“Sometimes people just follow orders without questioning them, hedgehog.”

The blue hedgehog rolled his eyes, muttering under his breath something that sounded suspiciously like “...you’re a hedgehog too…”.

“And where is Sonic?” Amy turned around, searching for the blue hedgehog. “Has he been here for 10 years? All alone?”

Shadow frowned, staring at the police officer. “And why are we seeing this person instead of Sonic?”

The hedgehog in question shrugged before saying, “Maybe we just need to continue and see for ourselves?”

Still waiting for any speeding vehicle, Tom pleaded for one car to show up but the street remained empty.

Defeated, the officer sighed and shook his hand from the fatigue of holding the radar gun for so long.

Tom began fidgeting with the radar gun, pretending to chase imaginary speeders, only to accidently smack the side of his head. He chuckled at his own antics.

“This job seems… lonely.” Knuckles frowned at the officer in sympathy.

Sonic nodded before adding. “Yeah, and boring too.”

“I am bored.” Tom complained before the car radio crackled to life. 

Deputy Wade Whipple’s voice came through, sounding curious. “Tom, do you read me? Are you there?”

Tom grabbed the radio microphone and answered in a joking manner. “No, Wade, I’m actually on a yacht in Barbados.”

Sonic snickered, making jokes to escape boredom was something he could understand. Even If he had no clue where ‘Barbados’ actually was.

After a slight pause, Tom added. “With Rihanna.”

Rogue raised one eyebrow. “Rihanna?”

Knuckles turned to her in curiosity. “What? Do you know her?”

The bat shook her head.

“It just sounds like an… interesting name.” She replied.

The scene cut to the police station where Wade’s eyes widened in disbelief. “O-M-G. Please send pics.”

The camera shifted back to Tom. “No, Wade. I’m at the speed trap.”

Wade’s voice crackled through the radio. “Already? How did you get back so fast? Barbados is in the ocean!”

Shadow scoffed, crossing his arms in annoyance. They were wasting their time watching these two, this was completely pointless.

Sonic just ahh’d. “So that’s why he’s here. This is an official speed trap!”

“Okay.” Tails rubbed his chin in thought. “But why would you go there to race If you know that you’re going to get caught?”

The blue hedgehog just grinned. “Sometimes the thrill of getting caught is half the race, lil’ bro!”

Amy rolled her eyes. “Guys, this conversation is interesting and all, but can we please move on?”

Tom shrugged off the comment. “Hang on, I think I got something.”, he grabbed the radar gun and turned to look back out of his car window.

Sonic looked around confusedly. “What? Where?!”

The others also searched for the culprit, none of them finding anything moving fast in their surroundings.

The officer then surprised the group by aiming his radar gun at the ground. He had spotted a slow-moving turtle and was currently measuring its speed. The machine beeped, registering the turtle’s speed as a slow “001.”

The officer yelled at the turtle in a joking manner. “Hey, buddy! Where’s the fire! Got kids living around here!”

Sonic chuckled, already becoming fond of this guy.

Amy shook her head fondly. “Oh no! He’s got Sonic’s kind of humour!” She gasped dramatically but the blue hedgehog only stuck his tongue out in response.

The turtle didn’t acknowledge him, continuing with its slow progress.

Inside the car, Tom chuckled, “Thought it was kinda funny. Sorry.” He took off his sunglasses to clean them.

At that moment, a blue blur sped past the patrol car. The radar gun beeped, indicating that the target speed is now “296”.

Tom’s eyes widened as he glanced between the machine and the road ahead but the blue streak was already gone.

“And there goes Sonic” Tails whooped, relieved to see this version of his older brother still doing okay.

Amy turned to him and said, mockingly trying deepening her voice, the grin on her face betrayed her amusement. “But Sonic! Why would you race in a speed trap?”

The fox kit snickered. 

While Tom was still fidgeting with the radar gun, the blue speck of light passed by once more, this time clocking in at “300”. The officer was so confused by this situation, he didn’t notice a playful Sonic, now a teenager, dancing behind the patrol car in triumph.

Shadow looked at the dancing Sonic in slight exasperation, hiding the tiny smile that found its way onto his face by turning it away from the group.

This Sonic was ridiculous, even more childlike than their Sonic but he could already feel himself feeling fond of him.

Getting out of his car to walk along the road, Tom seemingly thought the situation over. Then he found something blue lying in the grass, picking it up and inspecting it closer.

It was a blue quill.

Sonic leaned closer, looking at the quill left behind by his on-screen counterpart. “Mine are pointier.”

Amy smiled. “Yeah! This one looks almost fluffy.”

Wade’s voice came through the radio, sounding serious. “Tom, we need you down on Main Street. There’s been a violent gang shoot-out.”

As Tom sped away in his patrol car with red and blue lights flashing, Wade continued. “Just kidding. A duck stole a bagel. But they do need it back.”

Knuckles frowned. “Do they have to make jokes about everything?”

Rouge smirked before patting his arm. “They’re just trying to get through their day with a little humour. You could try it sometime.”

She winked at him before being immediately pushed off by an even more red than usual Echidna.

The camera stayed in place before slowly moving down towards the turtle from earlier, still slowly strolling across the road and entirely oblivious to an approaching truck.

Amy gasped. “Oh no, the turtle!”

At the last possible moment, Sonic zipped by, saving the turtle from certain doom.

Holding it gently, the blue hedgehog patted its head. “Whoa, buddy! You almost got yourself killed out there. What are you, some kind of adrenaline junkie?”, he playfully scolded the turtle in his paws.

The pink hedgehog exhaled relieved, grateful that Sonic was there to save this tiny animal from harm.

The blue hedgehog stepped closer to his on-screen counterpart, still getting used to seeing himself in such a different manner before looking down at the tiny animal.

He smiled. “What a cute guy!”

Sonic’s voice turned thoughtful, looking at the tiny animal in pity. “It must be rough being slow all the time. Tell you what. Today is your lucky day.”

Shadow squinted at the blue hedgehog standing next to him. “What are you going to do with the turtle?”

Sonic threw his hands in the air, smiling innocently. “Hey! Not me, remember?”, before looking back at the tiny animal. “And honestly? No idea.”

“Don’t Stop Me Now” by Queen began playing as Sonic dashed down the street at full speed, holding the turtle in his hands. Said animal seemed to be enjoyed the exhilarating ride.

The blue hedgehog grinned when he felt the wind hit his fur, he lifted his head and greedily smelled the different smells speeding by. Dirt, grass and stone filled his nose - oh, how he loved running!

Shadow felt similarly enthralled. Sonic’s running might not feel like his air shoes but this was the kind of speed he could get behind.

Amy just smiled at the joy on the on-screen Sonic’s face, she might not like the speed but she was glad that the blue hedgehog had a hobby he enjoyed this much.

The fox kit just whooped, grinning from one ear to the other and stretching his arms out to catch more of the wind. “This is so fun!” He laughed before trying to dance to the music, although it looked more like uncoordinated stumbles as the song was unfamiliar to the whole group.

Knuckles and Rouge just watched their friends with content smiles on their faces.

Sonic let out a joyful shout. “Whoo-hoo-hoo-hoo! Have you ever felt so alive?!”

He pretended to fly the turtle like a paper airplane but accidentally let go, causing the turtle to fly through the air.

Amy shrieked.

The blue hedgehog ran back to retrieve the turtle, cradling it once more. “Good recovery!”

Amy exhaled. This hedgehog was going to be the death of her!

Coming to a stop in a forest, Sonic gently set the turtle on the ground. The animal trembled after their wild run. “Let’s keep this our little secret, okay? You never saw me.” Making his voice sound more mysterious for the next sentence. “I was never here.”

The song continued blasting through the woods, while the group followed Sonic zipping through the trees with exhilarating speed.

Speeding through a gap between rocks, the blue hedgehog fell down into a furnitured cave before bouncing once a bean bag.

“Woah-...” Tails gasped at the sight of the cave. “This place looks cool!”

The group looked around while the on-screen Sonic sped past them, jumping from one activity to the next in the matter of seconds.

The narration from earlier continued, Sonic’s voice sounding full of energy and happiness once again. “So, what were you expecting? A dirty little hedgehog eating berries and struggling to survive? Think again.”

Still speeding through different activities, the blue hedgehog could be seen swinging from a swing, playing a guitar and reading a comic book among other things.

Said comic book immediately caught the actual Sonic’s eyes with the phrase ‘fastest man alive’. “Hey! What? Whoever this Flash is has clearly never met me!”

Tails gave his older brother a long look.

Sonic stared back. “What?”

The kit grinned. “Since when are you a man?”

“HEY!”

The narration continued. “Because I am living my best life on Earth.”

Rouge hummed. “So this is still Earth? I thought he went to a different planet?”

Amy frowned. “Maybe he wasn’t on Earth to begin with?”

Sonic stared at them both. “Are you saying my counterpart is an alien?”

The black hedgehog scoffed, piercing the blue one with a single look. “And? What’s wrong with that?”

Sonic stared back, before smiling sheepishly. Shadow only amusedly rolled his eyes in response.

“I’ve got a library,” he gestured to his stack of comic books, “a home gym,” showing a hamster wheel like dryer machine, “and a state-of-the-art security system.”

The blue hedgehog accidentally hit himself in the head with one pair of nunchucks, before moving on to playing ping-pong against himself.

Knuckles and Shadow stared at the scene, already reading the underlying loneliness that this Sonic was sending out.

They were both no strangers to solitude but even they had support systems.

This Sonic only had himself and that was dangerous.

His fun was interrupted when he accidentally hit the ring satchel that Longclaw had given him, causing several rings and a piece of paper to spill onto the ground.

“Oh, no!” Sonic exclaimed, quickly gathering up the rings and putting them back into the satchel. His attention then shifted to the piece of paper. It was a map of planets.

Tails leaned closer, almost touching the kneeling Sonic on-screen to get a better look of the map. “This is a map!” He frowned. “I have no idea where any of these places are.”

The group as a whole came closer, crowding around the map.

“This drawing-” Knuckles pointed at a tiny part of the map. “It looks like a Chaos Emerald. Maybe even the Master Emerald!”

Sonic turned to the red echidna, ripping his eyes away from the map in the process. “Really?”

The echidna nodded. “I’m not entirely sure but it could be.”

Rouge stared at the map like she was already uploading it straight into her memory- and with what the blue hedgehog knew about the bat, he was probably not that far off to what she was actually doing- she commented.

“But why is there a drawing of an emerald next to a map of planets?”

Nobody could answer her.

“And If I’m ever discovered, I’ll follow Longclaw’s instructions and use my rings to escape to a new planet.”

Sonic held up one of the rings against the drawing of Earth, moving his fingers over to another planet on the map.

One moment later, the blue hedgehog tossed the ring and a shimmering portal opened to the Mushroom Planet.

The narration continued, now with a note of disgust. “Gross, smelly mushrooms.”

The blue hedgehog sighed, glaring at the portal with a mix of annoyance and frustration. “I hate mushrooms.”

Tails snickered. “Okay then, no Mushroom Kingdom for Sonic then.”

The blue hedgehog only shook his head fondly before ruffling the fur on his little brother’s head.

The kit gasped dramatically and threw himself behind Amy to shield himself.

The scene in front of them shifted, now showing Sonic overlooking the city Green Hills on a mountain ledge.

Amy sighed. “That sight sure is beautiful.”

Sonic nodded in agreement.

He loved nature, that was one of the main advantages of having no set home. He could go wherever he wanted and visit nature whenever he wanted - the world had so much to give.

So why should he waste his time away in a house?

Sonic’s voice spoke with a sense of pride. “But let’s not worry about all that! This is Green Hills, the greatest place on Earth.”

Sonic smiled. Green Hill Zone was beautiful, especially for having an impromptu race.

He could definitely agree with his on-screen counterpart there - even If this version of Green Hill looked very different from his own.

The blue hedgehog zoomed off towards the city, the camera following his rapid movement.

“These are my people, and, dare I say, I am their loveable space creature.”

Tails gasped, pointing at his older brother. “So you ARE an alien!”

The blue hedgehog pressed one hand against his chest, in mock offense. “This is not how I wanted you to find out… I swear!”

They both bursted into laughter.

The other members of the group only rolled their eyes.

The scene showed Sonic perched on top of a building, gazing out at the bustling city below. He reflected, “So what If they don’t know I exist?”

The blue hedgehog’s smile fell right off his face when this line was spoken. “Wait, seriously?!” He ran a hand through his quills. “I can’t imagine living a life in secret.”

Shadow hummed, before commenting. “And I can’t imagine you ever being silent enough for that to work.”

Sonic glared at the other hedgehog, only to have his own brother betray him.

“No- no. Shadow is right.” The blue hedgehog’s head whipped towards Tails who stared at him apologetically. “You are quite…”

“Handsome? Cool? Amazing?” Sonic prompted.

“...loud.” The fox kit ended his sentence with a shrug.

The azul hedgehog huffed, crossing his arms in protest.

The camera cut to Officer Wachowski standing next to a street. He smiled before taking a bite out of the donut in his hand.

On-screen Sonic continued narrating. “My favorite person is the Donut Lord.”

“So that’s why we saw him earlier!” Tails exclaimed. “Sonic likes him.”

“Sure but… Donut Lord? Really?” Amy asked, raising her eyebrow at the blue hedgehog who only shrugged nonchalantly.

“He does seem nice.” And then added after a pause. “And he was holding a donut.”

The pink hedgehog sighed before focusing back on the projection.

The narration continued. “Protector of this town and defender of all creatures, big and small.”

Tom was shown halting traffic to allow a family of ducks to cross the road. He greeted each duck individually. “Morning! Donald, Daisy, Daffy.”

“Aww!” Amy squealed. “And he’s kind!”

Knuckles nodded in agreement. 

“It is his duty as a protector.”

Their surroundings changed to show the Wachowski residence. A woman named Maddie Wachowski was seen walking into her backyard with a laptop.

“Donut Lord lives with Pretzel Lady.”

Shadow groaned.

“How do you come up with these ridiculous nicknames?”

Sonic frowned. “Not all the nicknames I have made are bad!”

The group stared at him incredulously. There was a long pause.

“Right, Tails? Ames? Knux?” The blue hedgehog looked at his friends in support, before looking at Shadow, waggling his eyebrows exaggeratedly. “Shaaads?”

The hedgehog growled, the scene continued before a fight could break out. 

The camera followed Maddie as she walked. Sonic observed from behind some bushes as she practiced yoga, attempting to mimic her poses.

“She is super nice to animals and strangely was born without bones.”

The on-screen Sonic winced, “Ouch, ouch, ouch!”, his attempts at the yoga pose clearly not going as smoothly as Maddie’s.

The fox kit stared at the on-screen Sonic’s attempt before turning to his brother. “Can you do that?”

The blue hedgehog blinked, staring at the pose and back at Tails. “Probably.”

A pause followed.

“I’m not going to do that though.”

Knuckles scoffed. “Right. And we’re just going to believe you on that?”

“Blue,” Rouge spoke up, entirely too amused with the idea of seeing Sonic doing said pose. “, we love you but there’s no way you've ever done yoga in your entire life.”

“Pft! I can totally do yoga- in fact I’ve done this pose probably a million times!”

Shadow cleared his throat. “You’ve done the tiger pose?”

The blue hedgehog hesitated before turning to the other hedgehog. “The what now?”

Shadow stared at Sonic. Sonic stared back.

“It’s called the tiger pose. It’s supposed to strengthen your core and stimulate your muscles.”

The blue hedgehog continued staring.

“You… you do yoga?!” He choked out when his brain finally caught up with the situation.

Shadow scoffed, crossing his arms. “It’s good for your body. You should try it sometime.”

Sonic was too stunned to think of a response.

Their surroundings changed once again, this time showing a bustling restaurant.

Focusing on Crazy Carl who was holding a crudely drawn picture of Sanic, much to the amusement of the laughing patrons, the camera slowly zoomed out.

Sonic’s voiceover continued, his voice filled with humour and disbelief. “There is one person in town who’s actually onto me. He calls me the Blue Devil!”

Knuckles stared at the drawing before turning back to the blue hedgehog standing next to him. Back to the drawing, then the hedgehog.

He commented. “Incredible. It’s actually spot on!”

Sonic spluttered in indignation.

Crazy Carl showed the drawing to an amused Tom who had clearly seen it many times before. “I almost caught him last night.”

Sonic raised his eyebrows in disbelief. He? The fastest being alive? Getting caught?

The scene shifted to a dark forest at night, showing Crazy Carl’s elaborate traps.

Sonic’s narration continued. “Say hello to Crazy Carl!”

The blue hedgehog sped through the traps, activating each and every one without getting caught. Crazy Carl watched in frustration, growing increasingly more frantic.

The blue hedgehog smirked. This made more sense.

“We have fun together.” Sonic said happily, before the scene showed Crazy Carl, now caught in his very own trap, hanging upside down from a tree.

“I know you’re out there! And I know you’re real!” Crazy Carl sshouted, still determined despite his apparent failure.

From a distance Sonic’s voice can be faintly heard. “No, I’m not!”

Sonic chuckled. He might not have liked that his counterpart was living in secret but at least he seemed to be having fun.

Beside him, Amy frowned, disliking how rude on-screen Sonic was being. He didn’t even help the man down!

The scene transitioned to the interior of the Wachowski at night. Tom and Maddie were seated on the couch with their dog, Ozzie, enjoying popcorn while watching a movie.

Sonic’s narration picked up once more. “Movie night is my favorite.”

The blue hedgehog was seen, peering through the window with a hopeful expression, fingers crossed and eyes tightly closed. “Please, please, please, please,” he pleaded.

The group watched Sonic’s behaviour with a mixture between amusement and confusion.

Sonic opened one eye to peek at the screen. His face lit up with excitement when the title of the movie, Speed, appeared on the television. “Yes! Keanu! You are a national treasure.”

Knuckles turned to Tails, mouthing the name “Keanu” in confusion. The fox kit only shrugged.

On the TV, Keanu Reeves’ character, Jack, said, “When I find you–”

Dennis Hopper’s character, Howard Payne, responded, “Pop quiz, hotshot. There’s a bomb on the bus.”

Sonic mimicked the lines spoken with enthusiasm outside the house. He added, after making a chef’s kiss gesture. “It’s a classic line.”

“That movie seems kinda…” Amy trailed off for a moment, searching for the right word. “...violent.”, she ended with a frown.

Shadow smirked before quipping. “The best movies are.”

“I’m sorry-” The only bat in the room interrupted with a smug expression on her face. “Which one of us is the Disney fan again?”

The black hedgehog scoffed, turning his head away in embarrassment while Rouge sent Amy an apologetic smile.

The narration concluded with warmth evident, “Basically, we’re like a family.”

Sonic smiled. He was glad that his counterpart had some people that were important to him.

Even If they didn’t know he existed.

“Even though we haven’t met yet.”

Amy frowned, looking at the longing on on-screen Sonic’s face in concern.

This Sonic seemed lonely and he was only just a kid too!

Her face turned thoughtful, her gaze wandering to their Sonic. She silently wondered If their blue hedgehog was also lonely or had been through similar sentiments.

The scene changed, a close up of a Psychiatrist’s Office was shown. Inside Sonic sat on an armchair, wearing glasses and holding onto a clipboard. Then he spoke with a German accent, his tone sounding mock-serious. “You don’t zink your prolonged isolation is making you a bit crazy, perhaps?”

Sonic groaned, rubbing one paw over his face. Great. Now his counterpart was crazy.

Shifting to the focus to a lounge chair, Sonic laid on his back, now playing the role of a patient. The on-screen hedgehog defended himself, sounding more like he was trying to convince himself. “Crazy? Me? No way, Doc. You got me all wrong.”

Amy spoke up, her earlier question still heavy in her thoughts. “I wish I could give him a hug.”

Rouge nodded, her gaze still fixed on the Sonic roleplaying in front of them. She might not have been as emotionally in-tune as the pink hedgehog but even she could tell there was something deeply wrong in this scene.

Sonic wasn’t supposed to be… this sad. He should be carefree and happy instead.

Unnoticed by both girls, Shadow pondered over Amy’s comment that he had picked up with his enhanced hearing. 

This Sonic seemed different than their own. In fact, he seemed more like himself- he had already lost his caregiver and now he was all on his own. The black hedgehog could relate to this feeling a lot.

Beside him, Knuckles seemed to have similar thoughts, commenting. “This is wrong.” For a moment both Shadow and the red Echidna met their eyes, before both frowning and looking away from each other. “Sonic shouldn’t…”

The Echidna trailed off but the black hedgehog seemed to get the sentiment anyway. “Yeah…”

Completely in their own world, ignorant to the conversations around them, Tails was teasing Sonic. “First you’re an alien and now you’re crazy?”, the kit joked.

The blue hedgehog faked a sad expression. “Tails? You calling me crazy?”, then he lunged at his brother, pulling him into a hug before spinning him around laughing. “That kinda hurt, man!”

The fox kit chuckled along, trying to escape.

The scene flipped back to Sonic as the psychiatrist. He took off his glasses and spoke, his accent now completely vanished, “And despite all these so-called friends of yours, deep down, you’re still rather lonely?”

Tails, who hadn’t really paid attention before, now stared at the screen in confusion, his expression now also dropping into a frown.

Sonic sighed.

He hated that his movie counterpart felt like this, feeling a pang of empathy. The blue hedgehog still remembered when he had been alone, running from place to place without having any people to return to.

It’s been years- Sonic just hoped that his counterpart would find some people that were in his corner.

The Wachowski residence at night was shown. Sonic was leaving- he paused for a moment to look through the window one last time.

Watching the Wachowskis enjoy their movie night made him smile which dropped when the narration continued. “Perhaps afraid you’ll be alone forever?”

His frown deepened as he finally walked away, seemingly deep in thought.

The silence in the room was loud, almost suffocating them.

Sonic frowned, glancing around the room and noticing the expressions on everyone’s faces.

He decided to lighten the mood by cracking a joke, “So… that Keanu person seemed pretty cool, right?”, but was only met with frowning faces.

“Not the time for jokes, man.” Knuckles shook his head in disapproval, before adding. “This Sonic sure seems lonely.”

Amy and Rouge stepped closer, in clear approval to Knuckles’ comment. The pink hedgehog piped up. “I really don’t like seeing him this sad.” She sighed.

The bat hummed, crossing her arms. She still looked deep in thought about what they had been shown so far, trying to neatly categorize everything into boxes for better remembering purposes.

This Sonic was so different from their Sonic: He was an alien, only having come to Earth when he was a child. Nobody even knew he existed and this Sonic wasn’t dealing with the secrecy very well.

Someone tugged on the blue hedgehog’s arm, trying to get his attention. The young fox stared at his older brother in concern, he asked. “You don’t feel like that… right? Like him?”

Sonic frowned, hesitating for a moment, trying to arrange his thoughts into a cohesive sentence.

Finally, he replied. “Tails… no.” He swallowed, clearly not used to expressing himself. “I mean, I did think like that when I was younger.”, seeing the kit’s frown deepen, he quickly added. “,but this was long before I met you. Any of you!” He gestured around the room, smiling at his friends.

Tails exhaled in relief, he ran towards his older brother and hugged him.

“Good.”, the kit mumbled against Sonic’s chest. “Otherwise I would have to fight you for even thinking so stupid thoughts.”

The blue hedgehog only chuckled, gently petting the orange head in front of him while returning the hug. “Yeah, buddy. You always have my back.”

The room settled, most believing what Sonic had said while a few were still pondering the nature of this unfamiliar Sonic they had seen.

Noticing how uncomfortable the blue hedgehog looked and knowing that Sonic didn’t like to talk about feelings, Shadow drew the room’s attention to himself by clearing his throat.

“So far this projection seems interesting. Although I still don’t understand why are we being shown this in the first place.”

Rouge nodded, finally leaving her thoughts to say. “We’re learning a lot. Their world is so different from ours.” She bit her lip in concentration before continuing. “You heard the voice, we’re here for entertainment.”

Shadow scoffed, clearly remembering their encounter with the mysterious voice.

“Still not clear enough.” Knuckles groaned. “I mean, entertainment, sure. And this seems all very fun but seriously? We’re just here to laugh?”

“Maybe it didn’t mean our entertainment.” Rouge muttered, her voice still loud enough for everyone in this room to hear.

The two brothers, hedgehog and fox, finally separated from their long and very needed hug. Sonic tapped his foot, thinking the bat’s comment over.

“You mean, there’s someone watching us?” He finally asked, glancing around the room like he was looking for hidden cameras.

Shadow sighed, already having checked the room as soon as they had arrived. “There is no one else here though. It’s just us.” He threw a quick glance towards the endless white ceiling, scowling. “And whoever the voice belonged to.”

The fox kit scrunched his face up, curiously he leaned forward, looking at the black hedgehog.

“You don’t think the voice is watching us?”

For a moment, they all stayed silent, waiting for the voice to speak up, to defend itself but no one spoke.

“So?” The blue hedgehog spread his arms, turning in a circle. “Are you watching us?”

Still the voice stayed silent.

Tails frowned. “Maybe they left?”

“It doesn’t matter.” Shadow replied, turning back to the group with a serious expression. “It’s not them who’s watching. They’re clearly working for someone else.”

The group hesitated, all stuck in their own individual thoughts. Why would someone watch them? They weren’t even doing something important?

“Maybe they want us to learn a lesson?” Amy spoke, for their situation she honestly didn’t sound that concerned. 

And she wasn’t. Whoever was watching them, she was sure that they didn’t want to hurt them and that was good enough for her.

With all their questions now in the open, they continued to watch.

Chapter Text

With Great Power

The group watched the projection change, their curiosity was evident when the Wachowski residence was shown once again.

“Still?” Shadow asked. “But I thought Sonic left?”

It was night when Tom’s truck pulled into the driveway. Two raccoons were shown rummaging through garbage bins.

Tom honked his horn to scare them off but the animals didn’t budge. “Uh-uh! Hey! No, no, no. Get out of there!” He left his vehicle, his agitation evident as he tried to shoo the raccoons away. “Oh, come on! Get out of there!” The raccoons finally scattered, leaving the trash behind.

Amy softly shook her head. “They’re only hungry.”

Sonic raised an eyebrow at the pink hedgehog, fondly he pointed out. “They’re stealing.”

She shrugged, grinning. “Sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do.”

Tom walked into the house, closing the door he shouted for his wife, “Maddie, as Green Hill’s most respected veterinarian, what is the fastest way to exterminate a raccoon?”

Amy shrieked. “He’s not serious, right?”

“Sometimes you have to defend your property.” The red echidna shrugged.

“Well, yes-” Amy relented. “But not with force!”

Tom hung up his bag before being greeted by their dog, Ozzie, who happily wagged his tail. Tom’s voice softened. “Hi, Ozzie! Hello! You’re glad to see me!” 

Tails flew towards the dog, leaning closer and observing the Ozzie in curiosity. Finally coming to a conclusion, he turned back to the group, grinning. “He’s so fluffy! I like him.”

Sonic chuckled.

“No, lil’ bro. We’re not getting a dog.”

The kit huffed, crossing his arms. “Yeah, well- he’s still cute though.”, before grinning at Amy who nodded at him in agreement.

Maddie Wachowski stood nearby, smiling as she watched her husband play with their dog before smacking the envelope in her hands smack against her skin.

The noise immediately caught Tom’s attention, so did the envelope. “What’s that? Is that what I think it is?”

Maddie nodded with excitement. “Uh-uh. Open it.”

Shadow looked at the envelope, intrigued. It had to be important news If their reaction was to be believed.

Tom took the envelope and inspected it closer. “Oh, it’s kind of small. Is that bad?”

Maddie encouraged him. “Just… open it.” She smiled with excitement and anticipation.

He opened the letter and took a deep breath.

“Huh. I wonder what this is all about?” Tails muttered, staring at Tom and Maddie’s reactions in confusion.

Tom began reading aloud. “Dear Thomas, we have reviewed your application to the San Francisco Police Department, and pending interdepartmental review and background check, we are happy to inform you that you have been selected to join our team.”

“Wait- what?” Sonic frowned. “They’re moving?”

Shadow hummed. “Seems like it.”

“But then Sonic will be all alone!” Amy gasped.

In clear contrast to the group’s reaction, Maddie and Tom both celebrate. Maddie then pulled out a pink box, revealing a cake.

“San Francisco Sucks?” Tom reads the writing on the cake aloud.

Maddie exclaimed, “Oh!” and put the cake away before setting another identical box on the table, the writing now being ‘CONGRATULATIONS! I never had a doubt!”.

Rouge chuckled, looking at the couple in amusement. “Oh, she’s a clever one, isn’t she?”

“What?” Knuckles turned to her, confused. “Just because she had two cakes ready?”

Rouge nodded, mock-serious. “Always come prepared, darling.”

“Ta-dah!” Maddie giggled, presenting the cake.

Tom teased her, his eyes filled with fondness. “You never had a doubt, huh?”

Maddie shook her head with a grin, “No! Mm-mmm.”

They came together for a hug and kiss.

“Aww.” Amy smiled. “They’re so cute!”

“Well,” Sonic replied, still off-put by this revelation. “they’re still leaving my counterpart behind.”

The pink hedgehog’s face fell. “We don’t know that. Maybe they’ll stay?”

Noticing Maddie’s laptop open with apartment listings on Zillow, Tom was surprised. “Hey, what are those?”

“Apartments for rent I found on Zillow.” Maddie explained.

Sonic gave Amy a pointed look, gesturing at the scene. “Yeah- sure. They’ll stay-”

Shadow cleared his throat to interrupt them. “Hedgehog, we don’t know what’s going to happen. Why don’t we just watch?”

The blue hedgehog frowned but stayed silent.

“I thought Ozzie and I could fly there tomorrow and check out some neighborhoods.”

Tom hesitated, walking away. “I mean, this is all happening so fast.”

“He’s right.” Tails nodded along at Tom’s comment. “They should really think about this more.”

Maddie joked, “Oh man. It’s the craziest thing. You apply for the job, you get the job.”

Rouge grinned. “I mean, she has a point.”

Tom stared at the letter in his hand. “Well, pending a background check.”

Teasing him, Maddie turned her face serious. “Oh, man. Hope they don’t find out about that time you used the neighbor’s Wi-Fi.”

Tom lit up, clearly amused by his wife’s attempt of reassuring him. “Correction: I’m still using the neighbor’s Wi-Fi.”

Knuckles lifted an eyebrow. “And that’s… bad?”

The fox kid next to him shrugged. “It’s illegal. But not that big of a deal.”

The red echidna only stared at Tails in confusion who refused to elaborate.

“But, Maddie, are you sure you’re okay with this?”

Maddie’s expression softened as she reminded him. “Thomas Michael Wachowski, what did you do the entire time I was in veterinary school?”

“Tom recounted, “I worked a second job to pay the rent and–”

“A third job to pay tuition. You sacrificed for me. I’m happy to sacrifice for you.” Maddie finished Tom’s sentence before smiling at him.

Sonic whistled, impressed. “They’re a great couple.”

Amy looked at the blue hedgehog, amused.

“What?” He defended himself. “I’m not blind!”

Maddie turned serious. “Babe, are you sure you’re okay with this? I mean, there’s been a Wachowski protecting this town for more than 50 years. This is a big change.”

Tails gasped. “Tom is over fifty years old?!”

Sonic looked at his brother, chuckling. “No. She probably meant Tom’s parents and his grand-parents.”

“Oh.” The fox kit blushed in embarrassment.

Tom nodded. “I’m positive. It’s time for this guy to get out there and prove himself.”

He walked over to Maddie, holding eye contact. “I love Green Hills, but, you know, I want to help people in real trouble. I want someone to turn to me in a life-and-death situation and I’ll be there for ‘em.”

Maddie smiled. “I get it. I’m so proud of you!”

They embraced each other once again.

Sonic looked at the scene with mixed feelings, for one he could understand the couple’s feelings, wanting to continue their lives in a new place and move on from their hometown.

If someone could understand that, it would probably be him. He had left his home when he had been very young, barely having any memories of it.

But the blue hedgehog was anxious, he worried for his counterpart and he honestly didn’t think that this Sonic could fend for himself - even If his cave had looked very cool.

Their surroundings changed, now showing Tom practicing his departure speech to his hood ornament, a pink frosted donut with sunglasses and wire limbs attached.

Shadow nodded at Tom, even If he couldn’t see it. It was good that the human took his departure seriously - there seemed to be a lot of people depending on him.

Finally arriving at the end of his speech, Tom went from a serious face to smiling before addressing the donut, asking. “What do you think, Sergeant Sprinkles? That wasn’t so bad, right? Now all I got to do is… tell everyone who isn’t a donut.”

Tails stared at the donut for a long time before joking, his face mock-serious. “I don’t know, Tom. Sergeant Sprinkles seems strangely silent, maybe he didn’t like it?”

Sonic chuckled, raising one eyebrow at his little brother. “Really? Talking to a donut? You wanna steal Donut Lord’s title here?”

Amy groaned. “Sonic! That is not a good nickname!”

The blue hedgehog shrugged. “We all saw him talking to the donut just now, right?”

The scene shifted to a group of trees with excited chatter in the background. Sonic zoomed behind a tree, hiding, before tentatively peering out.

“Whoa, the playoffs!” He says, watching the game unfolding before him in excitement.

Shadow frowned at the field, confused by the scene. “What sport is that?”

“Baseball.” Sonic replied, looking very bored.

The black hedgehog turned, having noticed the tone. “Not a fan?”

Sonic shrugged. “It’s okay, I guess. The running part is nice but… waiting for your turn to run is kinda… meh. I would rather just run, you know?”

Shadow nodded, although he didn’t know much about this game, it looked awfully… slow.

The on-screen Sonic sped over to the bleachers, wanting to watch the game up close. As the players celebrated and packed up, he remained on the now-empty diamond, his eyes still wide with admiration.

“He really risked being seen… for a game?” Knuckles asked, watching the Sonic on-screen in confusion.

Amy giggled. “That’s Sonic for you.”

The hedgehog in question huffed. “Obviously he didn’t get caught- I mean, he’s me!”

Now that the field is empty, Sonic went to the center, marveling at the empty space. “Whoa! So cool!

Noticing some baseball equipment left behind, Sonic grabbed a bat and placed himself at home plate, playing the role of a batter.

“Bottom of the 9th, tie score. And exactly who you want at the plate with the game on the line– Sonic!”

Shadow watched as the on-screen Sonic played through multiple roles, re-enacting an imaginary game with himself as the only player and moderator.

This game looked confusing- strange but the joy that radiated from the blue hedgehog made it look like fun.

The black hedgehog could barely hold back a chuckle. Barely, but he managed to save face.

Sonic hyped himself up. “Okay. Focus, Sonic. If you win this game, you’ll be the most beloved kid in Green Hills.”

Amy who had been watching this scene happily so far, simply enjoying Sonic acting like a little kid, frowned.

While she trusted their Sonic to speak the truth about his feelings- she still felt for on-screen Sonic. He deserved a family.

Nobody should have to play games all by himself.

The group watched as Sonic dived for the home plate, declaring himself, “Safe!” and jumping with joy. He cheered, “Ah, yes! Yes, yes, yes! I did it! Did you see that? I did it! I did it.”

They cheered along, infected by Sonic’s joy. Even Shadow smiled at Sonic’s imagined victory.

But Sonic fell as he looked around, realizing that the diamond was empty and silent.

“I really am alone. All alone.. forever.” Sonic exhaled with deep sorrow.

“Oh Sonic..” Amy sighed, looking at the on-screen Sonic in sadness. It had been going so well!- only for him to be reminded of what he lost. Poor guy!

Tails felt his ears droop, his tails fluttered behind him. He hated how bad this version of his brother felt, the kit just wanted to give him a big hug!

Sonic ripped off the baseball equipment and began running around the perimeter of the baseball diamond, moving faster and faster until he became a blue blur.

Blue lightning fizzled around him, following him, building in its intensity with each lap the hedgehog took - finally, he let out a powerful shout, unleashing a bright blue electromagnetic pulse into the air.

The pulse exploded, spreading further than the field and continuing to expand. The lights nearby shatter, several cities in the distance went dark.

Unnoticed by both on-screen Sonic and the group, even a satellite in space was affected.

The group stared at the scene in front of them with a mix between horror and amazement.

They had always known that Sonic was powerful- they saw it everyday when Eggman attacked but this? This looked different and somehow more serious than what they always saw from the blue hedgehog.

“Can you… do that?” Rouge asked, her face still analyzing the impact of the pulse created.

Sonic hesitated, not because he didn’t want to answer but because he honestly didn’t know. He only knew that this had never happened to him.

“I don’t know.” He finally settled on.

This portrayal of power had made him uncomfortable. The blue hedgehog couldn’t imagine wielding that much power and he already had enough to go around.

The red Echidna frowned. “So this is the power Longclaw meant.” He pointed at their surroundings, now completely darkened after the lights had gone out. “His chaos energy is strong.”

Shadow crossed his arms, adding. “It looked-...” He paused, staring at his glove.

He had never expected to see something like this- If the black hedgehog had thought before that this version of Sonic was similar to him, now he was sure. The only piece missing was why?

How could this Sonic have energy like him? Even his Sonic struggled with using chaos energy, he needed chaos emeralds for that to work!

“It felt almost like my chaos blast.” Shadow admitted, looking at the group who looked shocked.

Sonic frowned. “What do you mean?”

The bat hummed, pondering the same question. “It means… that this world is more different than we thought.”

Knuckles sighed deeply. “This could be dangerous.”

Tails gasped, staring at the red echidna. “You don’t think that Sonic would ever hurt anyone, do you?!?”

“First of all, this is not our Sonic.” Knuckles replied, rolling his eyes when the kit clearly wanted to argue. He added, “But no, I don’t think he’s dangerous but he was already hunted down once.”

The group grimaced at the reminder, for Sonic it had been ten years but for them it had only been a few minutes.

“Who says that it can’t happen again?” The red echidna concluded, crossing his arms before looking at his friends, daring them to argue.

Everyone stayed silent.

After a moment, Amy spoke up, her voice gentle. “Sonic would never hurt anyone intentionally.” She turned towards the on-screen hedgehog, taking in his apprehensive expression. “But he’s young and clearly inexperienced.”

Sonic nodded, having already had similar thoughts. “Accidents happen.”

They watched Sonic catch his breath, he looked around. He seemed regretful as he took in the damage his powers had done. “I’m sure no one noticed that giant blue explosion, right?”

He sped off in a hurry.

Nobody pointed out that Sonic’s wish of nobody noticing was pointless - even with how unattentive the humans seemed to be, surely they would notice if their local baseball field was suddenly damaged during the night.

The group were still too stuck in their own thoughts.

Their surroundings shifted, showing the interior of the Green Hill police station at night. Wade was staring at the telephone in terror as it kept ringing loudly.

He called Tom.

Tom was sitting on the stairs inside the Wachowski residence in the dark when he noticed Wade’s call, he answered. “Hey, Wade.”

Wade sounded frantic as he replied. “Hi, Tom. Wade here. What is going on?”

Tom, quite sarcastically, commented. “Well, gosh, I think the power’s out.”

Wade groaned. “Yeah, no dur! The lights are out. The whole town is freaking out. What should I do?”

“Probably try to fix the power?” Tails stated helpfully.

Knuckles rolled his eyes. “You’re not helping, kid.”

Tom walked around the dark house as he calmly instructed Wade. “Okay, relax. Take a deep breath, call Gil, see if they can locate the downed line, then call Zim and see if he can get his generator over to the Super Q so the food stays fresh.”

Shadow nodded, impressed that Tom had a reasonable plan ready. “He sounds prepared.”

“It’s probably not the first time this has happened.” Rouge pointed out. “Even without Eggman’s influence, black outs happen all the time.”

Tails grinned. “But they’re not usually caused by blue hedgehogs.”

Wade repeated the instructions to himself, accidentally messing up the order. “Call Zim before Gil? Call Gil– Hello?!”

Tom cut him off, having noticed something strange. “I’ll call you back.”

Wade frantically tried to get Tom’s attention. “Wait, no, no! Wait! Hello? Was that the end of the instructions?”, but Tom had already disconnected the call.

Tom moved an object aside, revealing a bright blue glowing quill that belonged to Sonic. Electricity crackled along its surface as he picked it up, inspecting it closely.

“Wait.” Tails stared at the quill in Tom’s hand, rubbing his chin in thought. “But this is- that means-... huh.”

Sonic looked at his brother, waiting patiently for the fox kit to organize his thoughts before asking. “So… what’s up?”

The kit turned around, addressing the room. “Sonic’s quills still have power in them after they get removed from his body!”

Sonic blinked. “And that means…?”

“Well-...” Tails gnawed on his bottom lip before continuing. “For one, he now knows that something weird is going on. Like for sure.”

Sonic sighed, rubbing his face in frustration. “Right. Yes.”

Shadow spoke, his voice sounding tense. “The quill could also be used as an energy source.”

“Like a battery?” Rouge asked. The black hedgehog nodded in response.

“Huh.” She turned to Sonic. “And you really can’t do that?”

He huffed, crossing his eyes. “Have you ever seen me glow?”

She playfully tapped her chin with one of her gloved fingers, acting like she was pondering the question before answering with a grin. “Yes, actually.”

Sonic stared at her in question, silently asking If she had gone mad.

“You glow when you go super? Remember?” The bat smugly replied. “So does Shadow.”

“Yeah- but not like that!” Sonic groaned.

Chapter Text

Dr. Robotnik

The group felt tense as the surroundings around them changed once again. This projection was slowly picking up in speed and action - they were just waiting for the moment when anything went wrong.

Around a dimly lit table sat a group of men, consisting of the top military leaders of the United States who had gathered for an emergency meeting. The matter seemed serious as everyone at the table focused on the commander of the U.S. Armed Forces, Commander Walters, as he began the briefing.

Getting straight to the point, Commander Walters said. “Twenty minutes ago, an energy surge knocked out power across the entire Pacific Northwest. What do we know?”

“Oh.” Tails muttered to himself. “That sounds serious.”

Rouge turned to Shadow, quietly commenting. “Twenty minutes ago? They’re working fast.”

The black hedgehog nodded in agreement, tense from watching the sudden appearance of the military. He already didn’t like where this was going.

The camera cut to a closeup of the Navy Chief of Staff. “Well, our first instinct was that it was an EMP. But electromagnetic pulses don’t have that kind of power.”

“NASA has ruled out meteor strikes or solar flares.” Another man, this time the Air Force Chief of Staff, added.

The camera cut to the Secretary of Homeland Security as she chimed in. “The Department of Energy says it’s not a power plant malfunction.”

“Huh.” Sonic looked around the table in confusion, barely keeping up with the terms and ideas thrown about. “They really have no idea what they’re dealing with.”

Tails sighed, “To be fair, we just saw it happen and we’re also confused.”

The blue hedgehog had to admit that the kit had a point.

Commander Walters had become more and more frustrated with every comment, he finally cut in. “Well, sounds like we’re really good at figuring out what it wasn’t.”

Shadow frowned at this comment. The military was dangerous enough as is but when they actually had no idea what they were working with? Frustrated? Even scared?

This was just a disaster waiting to happen.

“This could be a prelude to a larger attack.” The Army Chief of Staff offered, his face grim. “I’m suggesting we scramble the 5th and 6th Regiment.”

Commander Walters dismissed the idea immediately. “No, no, no, no. This needs a much more sophisticated mind. Someone who understands technology.”

Sonic raised an eyebrow, turning to the fox kit. “Bud, you would tell me If you were working for the government, right?”

Tails frowned. “I mean, yeah. But I really hope it isn’t me.”

The Army Chief of Staff asked, his face looking bewildered. “You want to send in a lab rat?”

The blue hedgehog sighed deeply. “Great. Just great.”

Amy frowned at him in confusion. “What?”

“They love to call us rats.” He rolled his eyes. “I’m really hoping here that it isn’t Tails. Otherwise my counterpart is cooked.”

“Not just any lab rat.” Commander Walters clarified, “A lab rat with teeth.”

Knuckles groaned. “That sounds just weird.”

The Air Force Chief of Staff pleaded, his tone filled with skepticism and annoyance. “You’re not suggesting who I think you’re suggesting.”

Commander Walters sighed, “I know he’s a little weird.”

Tails gasped. “Hey!”

Shadow frowned, watching the scene with crossed arms. It didn’t sound like they were talking about the fox, almost like they were talking about-... his frown deepened.

He had an idea but he wanted to wait until he’s sure first.

“Weird?!” The Air Force Chief of Staff scoffed.

The Army Chief of Staff shook his head, heavily disagreeing. “No. No. No way.”

“He’s a psychological tire fire!”, The Air Force Chief of Staff continued his sentence from before.

The group frowned in confusion. If they were indeed talking about Tails- then they were being really rude about it.

Commander Walters pressed on, despite the resistance he got from his team. “But he’s also brilliant. Five PhDs, IQ off the charts.”

Knuckles turned to the fox kit. “You have PhDs?”, but the kit only shook his head.

“I don’t think they’re talking about the fox.” Shadow spoke up, still eying the military like they were a bomb just waiting to explode.

Couldn’t they see that this was a really stupid decision?

“And his drone tech is revolutionary!”

Sonic groaned. “Oh, of course!”, he rubbed his face, clearly annoyed before continuing. “No version of me is ever safe from Eggman.”

The Army of Chief of Staff’s doubt was evident as he asked. “You’re sure he can handle this.”

Sonic grinned, cheering up over the fact that these humans also didn’t trust the doctor. “Nobody can handle me.”

“Doubtful.” Shadow huffed, rolling his eyes.

Commander Walters’ voice remained firm as he reminded them, “He has a perfect operations record. Remember the coup in Pakistan?”

“No.” The Army Chief of Staff shook his head.

The commander continued undeterred, “Or the uprising in Azerbaijanistan?”

The Navy Chief of Staff frowned. “That’s not even a country.”

Amy frowned. “I don’t know If this guy is just lying or If the others are just uninformed.”

Rouge next to her, chuckled. “Why not both?”

“Exactly. And you can thank Robotnik for that.” Commander Walters concluded.

“I can’t believe they’re sending Eggman!” Tails gasped. “This isn’t good…”

Sonic looked at his brother, confused by the fox’s distress. “Cmon! You don’t actually think that Eggman could ever win against me, right?”

“Maybe not against you.” Amy’s gentle voice reminded him. “But this Sonic is young and inexperienced.”

The blue hedgehog frowned, remembering the discussion they had before. “Oh. Yeah. Right.”, he rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. “That would be bad.”

The Air Force Chief of Staff groaned, coming to terms with the fact that the commander was final in his decision. “I can’t believe you’re bringing that freak into this.”

“Neither can I.” Walters sighed deeply. “But… we have no choice.”

Sonic watched the men’s serious faces, muttering to himself. “Okay- me, hope you’re up for it.”

Shadow turned to Rouge, still frowning and tense. “Of course, they’re trying to hunt him down.”

The bat smiled, putting one hand to the other’s shoulder in comfort. “You know how the government is. They see something dangerous… and they just snap.”

They shared intense eye contact, both thinking about their jobs at GUN and what orders they had been given. Some harmless, others… not so much.

The black hedgehog and the bat had both joined GUN, while their reasons had been different - their reason for staying was the same: 

They didn’t trust GUN. And it was easier to monitor them from the inside than working from the outside.

Rouge also didn’t complain about the salary she was given- it never hurt to have the means to buy anything. Even If she preferred stealing over buying.

Their surroundings changed, cutting back to the baseball field where Sonic had caused the explosion, now in the daylight soldiers could be seen running around and setting up their equipment.

People in white hazmat suits were holding beeping machines, investigating the energy that was still left around the scene.

A large black truck with a red electronic eye on its hood approached, catching the attention of a soldier, clearly in charge, giving others orders - Major Bennington.

“What the…”, Major Bennington frowned, watching in distrust how a fold-out staircase extended from the truck, revealing a man wearing heavy sunglasses and an all black suit with red trims on the inside.

Dr. Ivo Robotnik had arrived.

With confident steps, Dr. Robotnik approached Major Bennington, removing his sunglasses as he got closer. He was closely followed by a man also wearing all black attire. It was Robotnik’s trusted assistant, Agent Stone.

“What…” Sonic squinted at the unfamiliar man before his eyes focused on the large moustache of the man, they widened in shock. “That’s Eggman?!”

Next to him, Tails frowned. “He looks really intimidating.”

Sonic shrieked, still flabbergasted. “HE HAS HAIR?!”

Dr. Robotnik paused before Major Bennington, assessing him for a moment before asking. “Are you in charge here?”

“Yes, I am–” The Major started to respond before Robotnik cut him off.

“Nope!” He shouted.

“He has no manners.” Amy shook her head in disapproval.

Sonic wiped a fake tear from the corner of his eye. “Just like the real deal.”

Everytime the Major tried to take back control, Dr. Robotnik interrupted him, becoming more and more smug by the minute, until he stated, “I’m in charge!”

Agent Stone stepped closer, flashing a digital badge with an official-looking emblem.

“You’ve never seen anything like this before.” Robotnik boasts, pointing upward dramatically. “It says I’m the top banana in a world full of hungry little monkeys.”

Knuckles stared at this portrayal of Eggman bewildered. Did that guy just say he wanted to be eaten?

Sonic had leaned back, his eyebrows raised while he impatiently tapped his right foot against the floor, clearly used to Eggman’s antics. 

Even If this wasn’t his Eggman- their ego was about the same.

“Allow me to clarify.” He turns his head to his side, making a mechanical servo noise. “In a sequentially ranked hierarchy based on level of critical importance, the disparity between us is too vast to quantify.”

“...What?” Knuckles blinked, repeatedly muttering parts of the sentence to himself in an attempt to make the meaning clearer.

Sonic rolled his eyes. “Eggman thinks the guy is unimportant.”

The group stared at him. 

“What? You try spending years beating this guy’s butt and not picking up on the weird language he’s speaking!”

Robotnik called for his assistant, “Agent Stone?”, before walking away, offering his spot up for Agent Stone to step in and deliver a simple explanation of Robotnik’s message. “The Doctor thinks you’re basic.”

The blue hedgehog snorted. “Always thinking you’re better than anyone else, huh?” He shook his head, his voice sounding almost fond of this strange version of his arch-enemy.

Dr. Robotnik held up his hand, his focus fixated on the control panel locating on his glove. “I’m initiating a sweep sequence. Ten miles in every direction should suffice.”

After he had pressed some buttons, the red eye on top of the truck lit up. Suddenly a swarm of flying drones, all equipped with red-eye lenses dispatched from the vehicle.

“Wow,” Tails stared at the drones in amazement. “His tech has clearly been upgraded. I have never seen this version of badniks before!”

Sonic raised an eyebrow at the excitement of his little brother. “Dude, don’t compliment the enemy!”

Robotnik, not turning around, asked, “Is he still looking at me funny?”

“Yes, he is.” Agent Stone confirmed.

“Oh wow,” Sonic gasped dramatically. “What a Tattletail!”

The doctor’s tone turned sinister as he delivered his threat. “Tell him to stop or I’ll pull up his search history.”

Shadow frowned. This version of the doctor was more silly than what they had been dealing with.

But, as he eyed the drones, he couldn’t help but still feel the danger- they shouldn’t underestimate this guy, no matter how strange he acted.

Agent Stone repeated the threat, staring the Major down but said man interrupted the assistant, snapping. “I’m not deaf.”

Robotnik continued, ignoring the other man completely. “And tell him his men report to me now.” He blabbered “Blah blah blah”, clearly not taking this situation as seriously as he should.

Shadow felt the urge to pinch his nose in frustration. This Robotnik was even worse than Sonic- the on-screen Sonic- his Sonic- worse than every version of the blue hedgehog he had ever had the displeasure of experiencing.

The major stood his ground, his voice sounding firm and authoritative. “Excuse me? Listen, pal, I don’t know If you realize–”

Only to be interrupted once again, Robotnik asked, sounding artificially apologetic. “I’m sorry, Major. What’s your name?”

“Benning–” The major started to reply, only to be, once again, interrupted.

“NOBODY CARES!” Robotnik shouted, becoming softer and softer as he went on his rant. “Nobody cares. Listen, Major Nobody-Cares. You know why nobody cares who you are? Because nobody cares about your feeble accomplishments.”

Amy frowned, she disliked this version of Robotnik more and more the more they saw about him.

Sure, he might be in charge but he didn’t have to be so rude about it!

Robotnik began circling the Major, still taunting the man. “And nobody cares how proud your mommy is that you’re now reading at a 3rd grade level. Have you finished Charlotte’s Web yet? Spoiler alert: She dies in the end.”

Sonic gasped, dramatically covering his ears. “Hey! No spoilers! Maybe I still wanted to read that!”

Shadow stared at the other hedgehog incredulously “You? Reading a book?”

Sonic stared for a moment, waiting for the other to reveal that it was only a joke- no luck. He huffed. “I actually like to read.” He rolled his eyes at the shocked look on Shadow’s face. “And yes- I can read!”

The black hedgehog paused, mentally noted that unknown fact about Sonic down, before quipping back. “Well- congratulations on your 3rd grade reading level.” At the blue hedgehog’s blank look, he added. “You just said it yourself: You haven’t gotten to this book yet, clearly you lack the skill.”

Sonic grumbled, crossing his arms.

Robotnik continued, “But she leaves a big creepy egg sac.”

Sonic frowned, his voice sounding disgusted. “Nevermind, actually. I am NOT going to read this book.”

Dr. Eggman’s attention shifted to the drones hovering in the sky. He watched in pride as they began scattering, scanning the area. “Ah, my babies! Ooh! Look at what came out of my egg sack!”

Tails gagged. “Can he please stop talking about his egg sack? That’s disgusting!”

He turned to the Major, grinning as he boasted. “You know what I love about machines? They do what they’re told. They follow their programming! They don’t need time off to get drunk and put the boat in the water!”

“That’s… oddly specific.” Amy stared, still disliking this version of Eggman.

“Now, you do what you’re told. Stand over there on the edge of your personal abyss,” Robotnik opened his arms, spreading them wide. “and watch my machines do your job.”

The major reluctantly walks off, allowing Robotnik to take full control of the operation.

“And now he’s in charge.” Amy sighed.

Sonic crossed his arms, watching the Major walk away. “I gotta hand it to this guy- he seems more serious than our Eggman.”

He turned back to the on-screen Eggman, before smugly stating. “But he still looks really stupid with hair.”

Shadow groaned. “Hedgehog. Can you please stay serious for once?”

“Sure, I can.” The blue hedgehog grinned, before winking at the other. “But only because you said ‘please’.”

Robotnik, clearly enjoying his victory, turned to his assistant. “Can you feel it, Stone?”

Agent Stone nodded obediently. “I can feel it, Doctor.”

Dr. Robotnik wiggled his fingers, the lights on his glove flashing as he declared. “It’s evolution, Stone! It’s evolution!!!”

“...okay?” Tails asked, confused, before adding. “You know, his tech might look amazing but he’s definitely crazy- I’ll give him that.”

Rouge frowned. “Who knows what the doctor has planned.” She watched as the drones flew into the distance, spreading out in a wide search pattern, then she turned to Sonic. “Blue, we better hope your counterpart can handle it.”

The blue hedgehog nodded, grimacing slightly. He was hoping for the same thing.

The camera followed the drones to the woods where they scanned the environment. One drone hovered near a rock, spotting a muddy shoe print.

A red light shone over the print as the drone analyzed it.

The group tensed, knowing that the shoe print belonged to none other than Movie Sonic.

They had finally arrived at the moment where everything was going to change- whatever happened next would be an important factor in on-screen Sonic’s life.

The scene changed, now showing the inside of the truck Dr. Robotnik had arrived in. The doctor was sitting in a high-tech command chair, overlooking the search operation through a gigantic holographic screen.

Displaying various images and data, a new image was added, this time a recent scan of a muddy shoe print.

“Agent Stone?” Robotnik called out without taking his eyes off the screen in front of him, just as his assistant entered the truck.

Stone stood close, his eyes wandering from Dr. Robotnik to the screen. “Doctor?”

Amy sighed deeply. “Guess, Sonic needs to use his rings.”

Sonic muttered in agreement, “...yeah.”, before rubbing his chin in thought. Somehow he doubted that this was how the projection was going to go- something usually went wrong when he was involved.

Robotnik zoomed closer on the image of the shoe print as he asked. “Do you see anything useful in this image?”

The assistant squinted at the print before replying. “Nothing at all, Doctor.”

Knuckles also looked at the print, cocking his head to the side. “Yeah- I don’t see it either. I mean, it looks kinda-...” He trailed off, squinted at the screen. “...underwhelming.”

Sonic stared at the red echidna. “Dude, that’s my counterpart’s shoe print.”

Knuckles shrugged, pointing out. “But they don’t know that.”

“Of course you don’t” Robotnik sounded smug. “Your eyes weren’t expertly trained to spot tracks by the Native American Shadow Wolves.”

A pause followed.

Then the group broke into laughter.

“Shadow Wolves? Seriously?” Tails chortled, holding his stomach. “Nevermind! He’s not a threat!”

“Speaking of Shadow…” Sonic grinned, turned to the black hedgehog who had only smirked at Robotnik’s comment instead of full blown laughter like everyone else. “Any relation?”, he wiggled his eyebrows.

Shadow inclined his head, staring at Sonic from head to toe, he hummed. “Hm… now that you’re mentioning it,” he tapped one finger at his chin, acting like he was thinking it over. “You do like a lot like a dog.”

Sonic growled.

“Interesting.” Shadow smirked. “You even sound like one too.”

Before the blue hedgehog could lunge at the other, Amy interrupted them. “Boys, please.”

She turned to the holographic screen, staring at the shoe print with dread. “This is serious.”

Dr. Robotnik pressed a few buttons in his control panel, causing the image to zoom in and enlarge, then he wheels back, letting Agent Stone take a closer look.

The shoe print now included the image of a theoretical possible foot, showing clearly that said foot looked more like a paw than a human foot.

“That’s extraordinary.” Agent Stone observed, his tone filled with amazement.

“Huh.” Sonic looked at the image, before looking back at his friends. “It’s just a normal foot? Why are they so shocked?”

Tails frowned, rubbing his chin in thought. “I would have thought that this Sonic’s feet look different because he’s an alien…” He trailed off, taking a closer look at the image before pointing out. “But this is just… maybe…”

Sonic crossed his arms. “You’re gonna tell us what you’re thinking, bud?”

The kit continued muttering to himself. After a few seconds he began nodding, finally explaining. “I don’t think they have ever seen beings like us before.”

Knuckles frowned, his eyebrows raised in confusion. “Wait-... so none of us exist in this world?”

Tails shook his head. “I thought at first that maybe it’s just Sonic but too much isn’t adding up.” He interlaced his fingers before continuing. “This Sonic isn’t from Earth, he’s from an entirely different planet. The people called in other people to sort this out, instead of someone who’s more knowledgeable on chaos energy.” 

The fox gestured around the room, pointing at Shadow and himself. “And now this paw print-... it’s like the first time they have seen something like this.”

Shadow hummed, nodding along. “It would make sense.”

Sonic thought it over and internally agreed, it did make sense. His face then fell. “But that means… you guys aren’t going to appear.”

His eyes moved through the group, pausing on each and single one. “He’s alone.”, Sonic muttered, his voice soft.

Amy put a hand on his shoulder, smiling gently at him. “Maybe not,” She reassured the blue hedgehog. “There are still Tom and Maddie.”

“But they’re leaving.” Sonic pointed out, still feeling downcast.

Amy nodded at this, before looking back at the projection. “Maybe, maybe not. You remember Longclaw’s plan?” She turned back to Sonic who nodded at her to continue. “Sonic is supposed to leave but I have the feeling that he will stay.”

The blue hedgehog nodded, before realizing, his mood finally lighting up with his realization. “They might stay too.”

Dr. Robotnik continued to explain. “Indeed. What’s extraordinary is I’ve determined the exact height, weight, and spinal curvature of this creature, and my computer can’t find a single match for it anywhere in Earth’s animal kingdom.”

Tails giggled, needing to lift the room’s spirits at least a little bit. “Yeah because he’s an alien!”

Sonic rolled his eyes in mock-annoyance. “Watch out- maybe you also exist in this world! And then-...”

Tails gasped. “I will be an alien too?!” His voice sounded more excited than distressed at this idea. The fox’s older brother only chuckled in response.

“This blackout was not a terrorist attack, and that’s no baby Bigfoot.” Robotnik chuckled darkly, excitedly he declared. “This guy is something else… entirely.”

As Dr. Robotnik continued staring at the foot print in front of him, he gave Agent Stone an order: “Divert all search units to the sight of the footprint. That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for me.”

The group worried for this version of Sonic and now with Eggman added to the mix, things were looking more dire than before.

Chapter Text

Tom, Meet Sonic

The scene shifted to the woods during the daytime where military personnel and drones were scouring the area.

Sonic watched the search operation from a distance, muttering to himself. “Okay, okay. Everything is fine. You played some baseball, got a little upset, lightning shot out of your butt, and now they’re coming for you!”

Sonic snickered despite the tense atmosphere. “Yeah, so no pressure!”

Tails next to the blue hedgehog giggled quietly to himself about the usage of the word ‘butt’.

The blue hedgehog sped back to his hideout, looking around in panic. “All right, all right. Earth isn’t safe anymore. Time for Plan B– Mushroomville. But I gotta take my stuff. Okay, essential items only.”

He proceeded to throw objects into a bag, getting more obscure by the second.

Knuckles frowned, “Panicking isn’t going to help him.”

Amy sighed deeply, her heart felt heavy as she watched on-screen Sonic panic. “He’s just a kid. He shouldn’t be in this situation.”

“Okay, what else? The Rings! The Rings, yes, of course! Mushroom Planet, here I come.” Just as Sonic was about to throw the ring, he heard drones flying over the hideout.

With wide eyes, Sonic ran to the entrance of the cave. “Oh, no! They’re right outside! I gotta go somewhere else!” He hesitated for a moment, taking one last look at his home, before softly saying, “Goodbye, cave.”

“Wait, no-...” Knuckles stared at the scene in horror. “Don’t leave the cave! Do it here!”

“It’s probably unsafer to go out, right? Why doesn’t he do it right here?” Amy asked, confused.

Tails calmly explained. “If they find the portal soon enough, they could also go through. Which would make the whole escape pointless.”

Sonic nodded in agreement before adding. “Also using the ring probably throws out some kind of energy- which would lead them right to the cave and ruin everything my counterpart has built for himself so far.”

The kit frowned. “You’re right. I didn’t even think about that.”

Rouge chimed in, more interested in how this story is going to continue than argue about what just happened. “And where is other Blue going?”

“Probably to the only place where he feels safe right now.” Shadow pointed out.

Their surroundings changed, now displaying the Wachowski residence where Tom was marking a travel path on a map. His phone ringed and as it showed Maddie as the caller ID, he answered cherfully. “Hey!”

“Hey!” Maddie replied, her voice sounding slightly robotic through the phone.

Tom continued marking as he asked. "Whatcha doing?”

The scene changed to Maddie’s location. She was at her sister, Rachel’s house, currently coloring with her and her niece, Jojo.

“Just coloring with Jojo and Rachel” Maddie smiled as she talked.

Tom chuckled. “Ah, that sounds half fun. Hey, exciting stuff here. We had a power outage.”

“I get that Sonic likes these humans but isn’t there more important to see than this couple having a normal conversation?” Shadow asked, clearly frustrated.

Sonic shrugged. “I don’t know. I’m kinda glad we’re getting a break from the tense stuff.”

The black hedgehog stared incredulously at the other. He had never heard the words ‘glad’ and ‘break’ together in a sentence, especially coming from Sonic himself.

Tom continued. “The whole town went dark. It was like a sign telling me to get out of Dodge.”

Sonic sighed. “See, Shads? Now you’ve ruined it!”, still thinking about the fact that both Tom and Maddie were leaving his counterpart all alone soon.

“I didn’t do anything!” The black hedgehog defended himself. “I don’t have control over what this human is saying!”

“Really? The Ultimate Lifeform not having control?” Sonic teased.

“Boys, please, you’re both pretty.” Rouge chimed in, breaking the two apart. “Let’s focus on the projection, okay?”

Maddie paused, raising an eyebrow, she stood up and put some distance between her and Jojo and Rachel. “Wade must have lost his mind.”

“Poor Wade, he seemed really stressed out.” Amy said as she peered around Maddie, looking at the drawings on the table. “Oh! These drawings are so cute!”, she squealed.

Sonic shook his head in amusement. 

At least they could still have some fun while watching the projection.

“Yeah.” Tom continued, his tone serious. “And he does not have much to lose. How’s your sister? Did she convince you to leave me yet?”

Amy blinked, confused. “Wait, what? But they’re so cute together! Why would she want them to break up?!”

She turned to the group but the only one who reacted was Knuckles, shrugging and then throwing his hands up in defense as she glared at him. “I don’t know!”

Maddie quipped back. “No, but she did tell me to check your phone for dating apps.”

“Ah,” Tom paused before explaining. “The only apps on my phone are the ones that came with it.”

“A likely story.” Rouge commented, mock-serious before turning to Amy, both girls giggled at each other.

The boys only watched in confusion.

“And the Olive Garden.” Tom added.

Maddie smiled. “Because when you’re there…”

“You’re family.” Tom finished the line with a grin.

“So…” Sonic turned to the group, asking. “Does anyone have a clue what Olive Garden is?”

“A garden?” Knuckles replied in an unsure tone, his voice getting quieter and quieter when everyone turned to stare at him in exasperation. “...for olives?”

The blue hedgehog sighed. “Nevermind. I’m sure it’s not important.”

Suddenly a crash could be heard outside. Tom turned his head, staring outside the window. “No way.”, Tom exhaled in excitement.

Next to the garage were knocked over garbage cans with garbage spilling outside.

“The raccoons are back. And they are in for a surprise.”

Shadow smirked, watching the scene unfold. Of course, this Sonic would have been clumsy enough to draw the attention of the only human in the house.

Sonic groaned, pleading to himself. “Please, be an actual raccoon. Please.”

Tom opened a drawer, loudly rummaging around as Maddie warned him. “Your surprise better not be my tranquilizer gun. They’re just hungry.” 

“And also,” Maddie added, “That’s for bears.”, just as Tom grabbed the gun, cocking it.

“Good. Now I know it’ll work.” Tom smirked.

Sonic’s attempt at pleading became louder.

Shadow’s smirk widened, recognizing Tom’s skill with a weapon. He was beginning to like this human.

…Even If said human was going to scare the quills out of Sonic’s body in a moment.

“Tom!” Maddie’s voice sounding serious through the phone.

Tom chuckled, reassuring her. “I’m kidding. I’m just gonna use it to scare ‘em.”

Amy exhaled, relieved. “Oh, good. For a second I thought-”

“Possibly to death.” Tom added, his face showing no sign of joking.

Silence.

And then: “IS HE SERIOUS?!”, Amy shrieked in outrage.

“Relax, Ames.” Sonic smiled at her. “I’m faster than a stupid gun.”

Amy narrowed her eyes, slowly turning towards him. “THIS SONIC IS JUST A KID!”

The blue hedgehog frowned. “Yeah- but he’s not stupid?”

“THIS HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH STUPIDITY!” Amy continued, now turning away from the group to calm herself down.

…or she would strangle Sonic. One or the other.

“Love you, honey. Bye!” Tom hanged up, not giving Maddie the chance to speak up and forbid him from using the gun.

She grimaced, looking at her now unconnected phone.

Sonic sighed. “And this is why you don’t date, kids.”

Tails stared at his brother in confusion. “Because they will shoot animals?”

Sonic only nodded solemnly. “Exactly.”

Maddie turned to her sister who didn’t miss a beat. “D-I-V-O-R-C-E.”

“See?” Sonic grinned at Rachel. “She gets it!”

He quickly stopped when Amy glared at him.

Their surroundings changed to the inside of the Wachowski garage as Sonic was just climbing inside through the window, leaving a trail of dirt on the workbench.

He looked around. “Okay, I’m in,” he said as he hopped down from the workbench. “With minimal damage to Donut Lord’s property.”

Sonic groaned. “Great. Just great.”

Shadow stared at the projection in concentration, not wanting to miss the moment when Tom and Sonic finally met… especially when on-screen was about to get spooked.

Tails sighed, his tails nervously swishing around behind him. “Cmon. Just use the ring and leave.”

Sonic reached into his satchel and pulled out a ring. “Here we go. It didn’t work out on Earth, but that’s okay! You’re going to a safe world. A nice, safe world filled with mushrooms– mushrooms that’ll be your only friends.”

He frowned in frustration. “That sounds awful, I can’t do this!”

“But you have to do it.” Knuckles pointed out, still on edge because he knew that Tom was heading towards the garage. “This is no time for big speeches, Sonic.”

On-screen Sonic tried to sternly parent himself. “You have to do it. There’s no other option.”

“And now he’s talking to himself again.” Sonic rolled his eyes.

He really tried to stay serious but seriously? His counterpart was just wasting time!

Sonic took a deep breath, staring at the ring in determination. He readied himself to throw… when suddenly the door to the garage bursted open.

Tom stormed in, flashlight and tranquilizer gun at the ready. “SFPD, pending background check! Paws in the air!”

The group froze, just as nervous as on-screen Sonic. They stared at the human in shock.

Just because they were expecting it, didn’t mean that this situation didn’t feel threatening to them. 

…Even If this was all just a movie and couldn’t hurt them.

Tom froze as the light of the flashlight hit Sonic directly, making him visible to the human. He stared at Sonic in shock.

Sonic slowly lifted his hands in surrender, only to have Tails rip them down again before shaking his head at his older brother.

This wasn’t the time for jokes.

Sonic stuttered. “Uh…”, clearly caught off guard, he nervously replied, “...meow?”

The blue hedgehog groaned. “Seriously?! A cat? That’s the best he could come up with?!”

He threw his hands in the air in exasperation.

Tom’s eyes widened in horror, he screamed. Just as scared, Sonic chimed in, both now screaming in unison.

The human then fired the tranquilizer gun, hitting the hedgehog in the leg with a dart. He yelped in pain.

Shadow winced, suddenly worried. He wanted Sonic to get shocked from all of this- not hurt!

He turned, staring at the human in defiance, wishing himself into the scene to fight with Tom.

“Ow!” Sonic cried out, his vision becoming blurry. As he started losing consciousness, he glanced at Tom, his eyes focusing on the words on the human’s shirt.

“San… Francisco.” The hedgehog read aloud.

Dropping the ring in his weak state, it rolled until it flattened against the ground, opening a portal on the floor. The portal showed the sprawling streets of San Francisco.

Sonic collapsed, his ring satchel falling from his grasp and straight into the portal.

The portal closed.

“Oh.” Tails gasped before muttering, “No, no, no no. That’s not good!”

Shadow glared at the human even harder.

Amy, now having finally calmed down, turned back to the scene, taking everything in. “Seriously? I’ve been away for a few minutes! What did I miss?”

Rouge closed her eyes, sounding defeated. “Sonic just lost the only way to get home.”

Knuckles frowned. “It’s not his fault that he got attacked.”

“You’re right, Echidna.” Shadow growled, still staring at Tom. “It isn’t.”

Tom watched in shock as the portal disappeared.

Sonic tried to reach out but then fell unconscious, muttering a soft, “No.”

Tom’s stare moved from the floor to Sonic’s limp body. “What?”

“I knew these humans were no good.” Shadow snarled.

“Hey! Woah!” Sonic took in Shadow’s expression in bewilderment, “Thank you for caring but this isn’t Tom’s fault either!”

Knuckles cleared his throat. “Really? So he didn’t just shoot Sonic?”

“Well, yeah- he did.” The blue hedgehog relented. “But you guys would also be shocked!”

He gestured around the room, before focusing back on Shadow. “I mean, how many times did you fight me for practically no reason?”

Shadow glared at Sonic. “I always have a reason.”

“...okay?” Sonic stared back, adding. “And so did Tom. You see?”

Shadow huffed as Amy nodded. “Sonic’s right. This isn’t Tom’s fault.”

Tails also nodded along. “Yeah. Just a bad situation.”

“...sure.” Shadow muttered, turning away. He still cursed the human under his breath, just quietly enough not to be heard.

…except for Rouge’s amazing hearing- who threw him an amused smile that the black hedgehog quickly dismissed.

She had always known that Shadow secretly liked Sonic! Shadow just hated to admit that.

The scene changed to inside the Wachowski’s residence. Tom stood in the dining room, staring at the table on which the unconscious Sonic laid inside Ozzi’s dog cage.

Sonic groaned, seeing his counterpart in the cage.

Sure, he wasn’t mad at the guy- but seriously? A dog cage?

Tom cautiously approached, gently poking the unmoving hedgehog with a spatula, moving the blue head slightly, waiting for a reaction.

Sonic remained limp.

Amy frowned. “I hope he’s okay?”

Tails pondered for a moment. “He took the dosage for a bear.. which is not ideal.” He paused, thinking. Then he smiled. “But with Sonic’s fast metabolism, he should be okay!”

The pink hedgehog also smiled, relieved.

Tom straightened, his eyes staring at the blue fur in front of him. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the quill he had found by the road, comparing them silently.

They matched.

Sonic grinned, “Keeping lil’ old me’s quill?” He raised on hand to his heart before mimicking a swooning gesture. “I’m flattered!”

Tom huffed in astonishment, “Huh… The Blue Devil…”

Rouge sighed. “At least he finally caught on.”

“Now we just have to wait what he’ll do.” Knuckles said, crossing his arms as he observed Tom moving around.

The human walked to the kitchen counter, turning his back on the cage as he pondered about his next move.

Behind him, Sonic finally woke up. He climbed out of the cage but fell as soon as he tried to stand. The blue hedgehog pulled himself up, leaning heavily against the cage.

Tom grabbed his phone, turning back to the cage- he then noticed the awake Sonic standing there and startled.

Sonic looked at Tom, still weak on his feet. “Donut Lord?”

The human was shocked, his eyes widened in disbelief. “It can talk.”

“Yeah.” Shadow mumbled, feeling better now as on-screen Sonic had woken up and seemed no worse for wear. “And he never shuts up.”

Hearing the other hedgehog’s comment, he rolled his eyes before sticking out his tongue in a childish manner.

Tom took a few short breaths, trying to calm himself. “You’re not… you’re not here to abduct me, are you?”

Tails froze, he turned to his brother slowly, his eyes shining with mirth.

The blue hedgehog saw this and immediately went, “Nope, no. No alien talk! Stop it!”

The kit giggled, turning back towards the projection.

“You abducted me!” Sonic cried out, his words slightly slurred because of the drugs still running in his system.

Knuckles chuckled. “That’s technically right.”

Tom nodded, relenting, “Okay, that’s a fair point. But what are you? Why were you hiding out in my garage?”

“I needed to be somewhere safe.” Sonic steadied himself against the cage, his voice sounding pleading. “And you’re the only person I could think of, Donut Lord.”

“That’s probably really weird and creepy from Tom’s point of view.” Amy pointed out, before smiling at the scene.

At least they were talking with each other, that was the first step to a friendship!

“Why do you keep calling me Donut Lord?” Tom asked, his question framed like a demand.

Sonic was still wobbly on his feet as he explained, “‘Cause you talk to donuts. And then eat them If they get out of line.”

“Again, fair.” Tom blinked at the explanation before relenting.

“He’s oddly calm about this.” Rouge pointed out. 

While she was glad that they were getting along, she couldn’t help but feel this was just the adrenaline and shock talking.

There was simply no way that Tom just calmly accepted that an alien suddenly appeared in his garage and knew so much about him already.

This was crazy- even for them.

As the drugs in Sonic’s bloodstream became weaker and weaker, his mind became clearer. Suddenly looking around, he began to panic. “Wait, wait, wait. Where are all the mushrooms? Why am I still on Earth?”

Tom stared at the panicking hedgehog in confusion, mouthing a simple ‘What?’ as he watched.

Sonic continued, “What is– Oh, no! I lost my rings!” He raised his arms, gesturing at Tom pleadingly.

Tom copied him, also raising his arms but instead opening them in confusion. “What?!”

Tails frowned at the interaction between Tom and Sonic. “He’s really not doing a good job at explaining.”

Rouge raised an eyebrow at the kid. “He just was drugged.”

“...but this drug shouldn’t affect him THIS hard.” Tails murmured, curious.

Both Sonic and Tom hesitated as they suddenly heard sounds of an approaching vehicle outside.

“What’s happening? Is this your mothership?” Tom asked before running towards the window, spotting the truck outside. “I’m not in the mood to get probed.”

“Is there even a mood where you wanted to get probed?” Knuckles asked in confusion.

Rouge opened her mouth to answer but Shadow quickly covered her mouth, glaring at her.

Sonic, who had covered Tails ears at the first sign of Rouge speaking up at the topic, also glared at her.

She just raised her eyebrow in mock-surprise.

“You think you’re worried?” Sonic responded, looking around in panic. “I’m not even wearing pants!”

“He shouldn’t be joking about that.” Sonic shook his head, suddenly looking very serious.

Amy stared at the blue hedgehog. “Huh? You’re afraid of getting probed?”

The blue hedgehog paused in confusion. “What? No!” He gestured at the on-screen Sonic. “Pants. I would never wear pants!”

Tom peered outside the window, trying to spot where the truck was when it stopped outside, its engine turning off.

Sonic came closer, standing next to the human, also peering out of the window- only to frantically pull the curtains closed as he noticed the truck. “They’re coming for me!”, he gasped.

“Who’s coming for you? What does that got to do with me?” Tom asked, not letting the truck leave his sight.

The blue hedgehog pleaded, his gaze desperate, “I don’t have time to explain, but you have to help me!”

Amy crossed her fingers, staring intently at the duo. “Oh, please, help him”, she muttered.

Shadow instead glared at the human, internally thinking, ‘He better helps him.”

“No, I don’t! Why?” Tom shook his head, clearly overwhelmed and stressed.

Sonic’s voice started calm as he began explaining. “Well, my legs, which normally would be classified as lethal weapons, feel like spaghetti.”, he stared at the floor, visibly distraught, “I need your help. Please. It’s life or death.”

Amy smiled as she looked at on-screen Sonic. So young and already knowing how to ask for help!

“I’m glad he’s asking for help,” The pink hedgehog commented. “It takes a lot to put yourself out there.”

Tails nodded, impressed. “Yeah! It’s really brave!”

“Exactly. Some hedgehogs could learn a thing or two from him.” Amy turned towards Sonic, staring at him expectantly.

Said hedgehog frowned before defending himself. “Hey! I ask for him when I need it!” Her gaze became more pointed as he added. “It’s just… I don’t ever need it?”

Shadow huffed, drawing Sonic’s attention. “Hedgehog. If it’s one that that people notice about you than that your friends are your greatest strength.”

The blue hedgehog smiled at Shadow’s compliment, he quipped back. “Really? Not amazing speed?”, he wiggled his eyebrows. “Or my devilishly good looks?”

Knuckles frowned at Sonic, his tone devoid of humour. “You think you’re good-looking?” He asked, his gaze confused.

Sonic only sighed, “Wasn’t talking to you there, Knux.”

Tom looked at Sonic, realizing that this was the moment he had spoken to Maddie about before. His moment to help someone who desperately needed his help.

He sighed, looking from the alien before him back to the truck, coming to a decision. “Fine. Come with me.”

The group exhaled in relief. They knew that Tom wasn’t bad- but they had been unsure If he actually was going to help this version of Sonic.

Tom began walking out of the room while Sonic attempted to follow. However, as he tried to stand up, his legs gave out and he fell of the table, landing face-first on the floor with a groan.

Sonic winced. “Ouch. That’s some really strong drug.”

“Uh, little help?” Sonic shouted for Tom.

“It’s a good thing that Sonic is getting help,” Amy pointed out.

Rouge nodded along with her comment. “Other Blue couldn’t do it without him.”

Sonic frowned but didn’t argue, clearly noticing the truth in that statement.

Chapter Text

Meeting the Enemy

Their surroundings changed to the outside in front of the Wachowski residence where Dr. Robotnik had found more footprints, matching the one from his holographic screen.

“Great. There goes deniability.” Sonic groaned, rubbing his face.

Shadow frowned, now paying closer attention. This was the perfect moment to find out what kind of guy this human really was- everyone showed their true colours in a stress situation.

Back at the house, Tom put Sonic down on the attic floor. “All right, stay here. And be quiet.” He ordered, his voice sounding serious.

“Has he ever met Sonic?” Tails chuckled. “There’s no way that this is going to work.”

“Good plan. Great plan!” Sonic pointed at Tom, smiling relieved. “We’re already working so well together!”

Amy raised her eyebrows, stunned. “What? This Sonic had manners?”

Knuckles turned to Sonic, nodding at the scene before them. “Putting it on a little thick there, hm?”

Sonic agreed, “What can you say? He is desperate.”

“Practically finishing each other's sentences.” Sonic smiled at Tom, eager to connect with the human.

Tom stepped away, clearly still overwhelmed by the situation and didn’t know how to react. He stepped out of the attic and closed the door.

Sonic chuckled, taking in the disappointed look of his counterpart. “What were you expecting, bud?”

Tails gasped. “Hey! That’s my nickname!”

The blue hedgehog froze, realizing his mistake. “Right. Sorry, bud.”

The scene cut back to the outside, Tom was standing in the doorway of his house as he watched Dr. Robotnik still analyzing the footprints. With a polite smile, he called out, “Hello there! Can I help you?”

Dr. Robotnik approached with a confident smile. “Good morning, my rural chum.”

Tom’s gaze turned unbelieving as the doctor made up an excuse on the spot. “I’m… from the power company, investigating the blackout. If you don’t mind, I’d like to take a few readings inside your house?”

Knuckles scoffed, crossing his arms. “Wow, that’s very believing.” He gestured behind the doctor. “Why would he then dissect the ground there?”

Tails shrugged. “I’m pretty sure you don’t actually take power readings inside a house either…”

“No kidding! You’re from the power company?” Tom smiled, feigning surprise. “You must know my buddy Spencer. We play softball together.”

“Trying to catch the doctor in a lie?” Shadow nodded, impressed. Internally thinking that Tom sure had his smart moments.

Sonic grinned. “Yeah! That’s a clever move!”

“But making him slip up… would that even change anything? Tom already knows that Eggman is here for Sonic.” Knuckles pointed out.

Rouge turned to the red Echidna. “That’s true but catching him in a lie forces Dr. Robotnik to explain himself.” She smiled. “And then he could refuse him entry without seeming impolite.”

Dr. Robotnik responded without any hesitation, “Ah, Spence. He’s a good man.”

“Yeah.” Tom smiled, his tone friendly. “Come on in!” He gestured towards the door. “Take all the readings you need.”

Just as Dr. Robotnik was about to step inside, the entry was blocked by Tom, his tone more guarded as he questioned the unfamiliar man. “Except, doesn’t the power company usually take their readings from outside the house? That way they can check on you even If you’re not home.”

“Ooooh,” Tails grinned, his tone amused. “Busted!”

“Also, my buddy Spencer works for the gas company, and he’s more of an Ultimate Frisbee guy. So, you want to tell me why you think I’m dumb enough to just let you walk inside my house?”

Sonic chuckled, “Man, whoever this Spencer is- he basically just saved the day!”

Amy nodded, also amused. “It’s lucky that Tom is so suspicious.”

“He should be suspicious.” Shadow pointed out, nodding at the projection. “There’s a lot at stake.”

Behind his back, Dr. Robotnik discreetly activated a few buttons on his glove controls causing drones to silently deploy from the truck, now hovering over the property. “I’m sorry, Mister…” He trailed off, waiting for Tom.

“Wachowski,” Tom replied, sounding smug. “But everyone just calls me Tom. Except my dentist, he calls me Tim. But it’s gone on for so long that it would be weird If I corrected him.”

Tails nodded, sympathetic. “Yeah, that’s the worst.”

Sonic turned to his brother, confused. “What? Did that ever happen to you?”

“I knew a kid once when I was still going by Miles and he always called me Kyle.” The kit sighed, thinking about his rather bad and lonely childhood. “I tried to correct him once but he didn’t care.”

The blue hedgehog frowned, hugging his brother close. “Sorry that happened to you, Tails.”

Dr. Robotnik tilted his head, continuing with a smirk. “Well, Tom Whose-Dentist-Calls-Him-Tim,”

Sonic rolled his eyes. Of course, Eggman wasn’t going to take this seriously.

His life wasn’t on the line!

“You may have noticed that this entire town has been experiencing a power outage.”

Tom nodded, still blocking the door with a guarded expression. “Yep, no lights. Picked up on that.”

The drones began to infiltrate the house, entering through various openings as Dr. Robotnik went on, distracting Tom in the process.

Amy gasped. “Wait- that’s- that’s illegal!”

Rouge rolled her eyes, annoyed at the situation. “It’s Dr. Robotnik, of course, he’s not playing fair.”

“Twenty minutes ago, I tracked an energy pulse with a similar signature to the one that caused this disruption.” Dr. Robotnik explained.

Their surroundings changed back to the attic where Sonic was trying to stay hidden, it scanned the furniture with a red light.

“Oh, no.” Sonic muttered to himself. “That’s not good.”

“Hide! Quick!” Tails shouted at the on-screen Sonic.

Shadow tensed, observing as the drone flew around the room, scanning everything in its sight. If only he was there- he could make quick work of this stupid drone!

Tom was seemingly uneasy, off-put by Dr. Robotnik’s strange behaviour. He interrupted, “Listen, Mister–”

“Doctor. Dr. Robotnik. But my dentist calls me Rob.” The doctor chimed in.

Sonic paused, confused, squinting at the Dr. Robotnik on-screen. “Wait… Rob?”

Knuckles tilted his head. “Eggman still sounds better.”

Tails nodded, still tense from the situation. “Definitely.”

Tom nodded, still uneasy. “Look, uh, Dr. Robotskeez. Um, I’m sure what you’re here for is very serious, but it’s got nothing to do with me. You can ask anyone in town. Everyone knows me.”

“He has a good reputation,” Rouge smiled, nodding. “That definitely counts for something.”

Amy grinned. “Yeah- because he’s kind!”

Dr. Robotnik wasn’t impressed, his tone almost condescending. “I bet they do. I’m sure you’re hella popular with the Jebs and the Merles and Billy Bobs in this glorified gas-station rest stop. Betcha go way back to the days of tipping cows and playing in a jug band!” Tom frowned, confounded as he watched the doctor imitate playing a jug to mock him. “And maybe someday you’ll achieve your goal of getting a Costco card or adopting a Labradoodle. But the reality is, I surpassed EVERYTHING YOU’RE EVER GOING TO DO… before I was a toddler. I was spitting out formulas while you were still spitting up formula.”

The group was silent, unsure how to react to this weird monologue.

After a moment, Tails spoke up, scratching his head. “...Okay. That just happened.”

Sonic nodded, slightly annoyed at Eggman’s behaviour. “He’s really trying too hard. What is he expecting here? Pity? Admiration?” He groaned, rubbing his face. “Maybe he’s just jealous that Tom is actually popular?”

Knuckles agreed. “He is jealous.”, but couldn’t help but point out. “But If it’s one thing that Eggman is good at, it’s manipulation.”

Shadow nodded, thinking the same thing as the red echidna. Both of them had been manipulated by the doctor in the past- If someone existed who knew that Dr. Robotnik liked to manipulate people, it would be them.

“Still…” The fox kit chimed in, slightly grinning. “I gotta hand it to him- the formula-formulas comparison was nice.”

Rouge turned to Tails, raising her eyebrow in amusement. “...You’re a strange kid.”

Tom, somehow unfazed by Robotnik, shot back, “I was breastfed, actually.”

Dr. Robotnik deadpanned. “Nice. Rub that in my orphan face.”

Amy frowned. “What are they even talking about at this point?”

“Beats me.” Sonic shrugged, also confused.

His tone shifted to a more serious one, questioning Tom, “Mr. Wachowski, are you familiar with US Code 904, Title 10, Article 104?”

“Ehm. No?” Knuckles raised one eyebrow. “Should we know what that is?”

Tails tilted his head. “Some legal code? No idea what it means though.”

“Why is he bringing up legal codes anyway?” Sonic complained, throwing his hands up in exasperation, annoyed that this didn’t make sense to him.

“Faker,” Shadow chimed in, reminding Sonic. “He is a government agent.”

“Oh yeah. Totally forgot about that.” Sonic frowned. “Still weird.”

Tom thought for a moment, mentally recalling the article before responding, “Yeah, who isn’t—”

Dr. Robotnik interrupted him sharply,  quoting the article in question, “‘Anyone who attempts to aid an enemy of the United States shall suffer death.’” He brought up his hand, pointing at Tom. “And If I’m the one who catches you, it’ll be even worse.”

“Worse than death?” Sonic muttered to himself, slightly uneasy.

He was beginning to dislike this version of Eggman who seemed more willing to forgo consequences. The fact that he had the government backing him up, did not ease his worries.

Rouge raised her eyebrow, mock-serious. “And that from a government agent?” She tsked.

Shadow standing next to her, rolled his eyes. He knew exactly that Rouge wasn’t a stickler for rules either. In fact, she was probably the worst person to remind someone else of following the rules.

“Worse than death?” Tom asked, still biding time.

Back in the attic, Sonic was attempting to hid in a pile of sports balls, curled up into a tight ball.

Amy looked around, frowning. “Wait. Where’s Sonic?”

Tails used his tails to fly high into the room, turning around and looking for on-screen blue hedgehog, finally he shouted, “There! There he is!”

Shadow nodded, proud of on-screen Sonic’s attempt. “That is a good hiding spot.” He crossed his arms, watching. “Now he only needs to stay there.”

Against all reason, Sonic began muttering to himself, clearly anxious, “Okay, I’m a ball, just a normal ball. I’m blending in like a ball.”

Shadow facepalmed. “...and stay calm.”

Amy worriedly gnawed on her lip. She couldn’t help but feel very protective of this version of Sonic- he was just so small! So childlike!

“Shh, stop talking.” Sonic continued muttering, not able to calm himself down. “No, you stop talking. Be quiet, Sonic. YOU be quiet, Sonic!”

The group tensed, all worried for on-screen Sonic’s safety as the drone continued to scan, going at a snail’s pace but somehow still making progress.

“Oh, I hope they aren’t scanning me with X-rays. I had kind of an embarrassing lunch.”

Sonic frowned, confused.

Didn’t his counterpart get how serious this situation was? Who knew what Eggman wanted to do with him!

He couldn’t remember If he ever had a problem shutting up like this… Sure, it wasn’t a secret that Sonic liked to talk but he knew when to shut up. It’s just that he preferred talking than awkward silence.

The blue hedgehog then crossed his arms as he pondered, finally realizing. ‘Wait… Sonic had been alone his whole childhood after Longclaw died- of course, he was used to talking to himself. He had probably been the only company he knew!”

Immediately he felt bad about his earlier thoughts, thinking of on-screen Sonic as strange. He really was just a lonely kid.

So different from himself- but still somehow so similar.

Another drone entered the attic, joining the first one. Both drones continued scanning, their red laser beams sweeping closer and closer to Sonic’s position.

“Don’t freak out. Don’t freak out, don’t freak out.” He tried to fight the panic inside him, repeating to himself like a mantra but as the lasers got closer, he broke, shouting, “I’m freaking out!!!”

In a burst of panic, Sonic leaped out of his hiding spot, he hit the attic ladder, making it extend itself before uncontrollably rolling down the stairs.

Sonic groaned, watching the disaster unfold. “Of course, he freaked out.”

Next to him, Shadow shook his head, disappointed.

It was almost like torture to them that they couldn’t do anything except watch. They wanted to help!

Sonic rolled into the kitchen and accidentally bumped into the kitchen island, making a loud crashing sound.

Dr. Robotnik was just telling Tom, “Compared to what I–”, but froze when he heard the sound. Both Tom and the doctor paused, listening for other noises but the house remained silent.

“Old pipes.” Tom excused, but Dr. Robotnik didn’t believe him, he pushed him out of the way and entered the house without an invitation, walking towards the kitchen.

He retorted, sarcastically, “Yeah. Probably just the house setting. Nothing to see here!”

“Wait- no!” Tails yelled, trying to get in Eggman’s way but as he was just a projection, he didn’t react and simply phased through the kit. “He’s gonna find Sonic!”

Amy gasped, her hands flying up to cover her mouth in shock. “Oh no! Run, Sonic, run!”

The others just watched the scene in tense silence.

Tom scrambled after him, calling out, “Hey!”, but the doctor didn’t stop.

Reaching the kitchen, the only thing that Tom and Dr. Robotnik find is a raccoon sitting on top of the counter, eating Tom’s congratulation cake.

The group exhaled, relieved.

“Good thing that Tom is plagued by raccoons.” Rouge chuckled slightly, having one hand on her chest to calm her beating heart.

“Yeah.” Knuckles nodding, before thinking about the situation for a second and frowning. “Wait- that is awfully convenient isn’t it?”

Tails stopped smiling, instead turning to the red echidna, curious. “What do you mean?”

Sonic grinned, chiming in. “You don’t think that Sonic put the raccoon there? Or is that what you’re saying?”

Knuckles shrugged. “It’s just awfully convenient, that’s all.”

“It is a clever distraction.” Shadow hummed, smirking, before offering. “But who really here thinks that Sonic is smart enough to think of that?”, his amused tone betraying how this was meant to be a joke.

The blue hedgehog playfully rolled his eyes, grinning at Shadow.

Amy just commented, her voice sounding strict. “He better not put the raccoons in danger.”

Tom watched amused as the raccoon devoured the cake, Dr. Robotnik narrowed his eyes in suspicion, remarking. “Here’s the thing. I’m never wrong.”

“Oh, come on! Just let it go!” Sonic scoffed, annoyed.

“Well,” Tom patted the doctor’s shoulder, before brushing past him. “First time for everything, I guess.”

Walking over to the counter, Tom offered Dr. Robotnik a slice of cake as the raccoon fled through the doggie door. “Would you like some cake? I hear raccoons have the cleanest mouths of any animal that routinely eats garbage.”

Dr. Robotnik chuckled wryly, before turning away. Suddenly his eyes caught something lying on the table: It was Sonic’s quill.

He picked it up, his sinister smirk returning. “Look at that. I was right” He waved his hand down his face, “Note the lack of surprise.”

Shadow scoffed, unimpressed by this situation. The human couldn’t have just hidden the quill before taking Sonic up the stairs?

Sonic just crossed his arms, staring the on-screen Eggman down like he was trying to say ‘Yeah? So what?’.

Dr. Robotnik dropped the smirk, his face serious. “Shall we try this again?”

A drone slowly approached Tom while Dr. Robotnik whistled to the tune of Richard Wagner’s ‘Ride of the Valkyries’.

“Seriously?” Tails muttered, exasperated. “Can this Eggman get even more dramatic?”

The drone armed its weapons, aiming them directly at Tom.

Tom stared at Dr. Robotnik in horror, who stroked Sonic’s quill, smirking, he then took a step closer to Tom and threatened, “I’m going to give you 5 seconds to tell me where it is.”

“Seriously? It?!” Sonic huffed. “I’m a he!”

Amy nodded, “He could at least get his pronouns straight.”

“To be fair,” Tails pointed out, still focused on the drone that was threatening Tom to miss the group’s exasperated gazes looking onto him. “He still thinks that Sonic is a dumb animal.”

Knuckles groaned. “Will you stop defending that guy?!”

Dr. Robotnik began counting down from ‘5’ as Tom tried to deflect, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”.

The doctor continued counting. Tom had finally enough and flashed his badge, “Hey, tough guy. I’m a cop. And you’re threatening an officer.”

Dr. Robotnik sneered. “How can you threaten somebody who never existed?”

Knuckles frowned. “What does this even mean?!”

Tails still staring at the tone, chimed in. “Maybe this drone can disintegrate people?” He then muttered to himself, “But Tom would still exist…”

Shadow sighed. “With the government backing him up, they could scrape him off the record. Nobody would remember that he existed and those who do…”

“What would happen to the people who remember him?” Amy asked, sounding worried. “The whole town knew him! That’s not easy to hide.”

Rouge chimed in, explaining. “They would get offered hush money.”

“And those who don’t accept, “ Shadow took over, finishing the thought, “They’re going to disappear too.”

Sonic frowned, horrified. “But that’s horrible! They can’t just do that, right?!” He turned to the black hedgehog, silently begging him to respond.

Shadow shrugged. “Nobody said that the government is fair.”

“Come on! Rack your brain! You might be able to come up with some lame excuse to go on living.”, Robotnik continued.

Tom nervously glanced at the drone, realizing how serious this situation had become.

Meanwhile Dr. Robotnik was still counting down, finally reaching “1!”.

Sonic, who unknownst to everyone in the room, including the group, had been hiding beneath a counter, rushed out, putting his hands in the air as he yelled, “Wait! Don’t hurt him!”

Shadow sighed deeply, quietly muttering to himself something that sounded like, “Stupid hedgehog… bleeding heart… never thinking anything through…”.

Amy shrieked. “While I’m glad that Tom is not going to get hurt- I don’t think that this is better!”

Tails hugged his tails close to his buddy, worried for his older brother’s counterpart. Please don’t let him get hurt!

Dr. Robotnik screamed, freaking out at Sonic’s appearance. 

Tom used the moment of distraction to punch Dr. Robotnik in the face, knocking him out cold in the process.

The drone identified Tom as a threat after seeing its master fall down to the floor, unconscious, it started to fire at Tom wildly, breaking multiple objects as Tom grabbed Sonic’s hand and started running, pulling the blue hedgehog along.

The group startled, not expecting the situation to escalate this quickly.

Sonic immediately grabbed Tails, pulling his little brother behind him as the bullets started flying. The kit struggled against the strong hold, “Sonic! Calm down! It’s just a projection!”

The blue hedgehog also noticing that that the bullets were fake, relaxed, letting the fox go, to sheepishly rub the back of his head. “Sorry. Force of habit.”

The other members of the group had not reacted better, all slipping into their battle positions, ready to attack and retaliate before realizing that they were not in any danger.

Instead they turned, following the duo’s movement with worry.

Sonic and Tom took cover behind the dining table, robbing on the floor instead of walking or crawling.

“This feels excessive!” Sonic shouted.

Tom tentatively peeked over the table as the drone stopped firing, realizing that the drone’s weapons were reloading, he ordered Sonic to, “Stay behind [him]!” but when he turned back to the blue hedgehog, he was already gone.

He glanced around the room in confusion, trying to find where Sonic had gone to before finally spotting him.

Sonic was climbing on top of a shelf, preparing to lunge himself at the drone that had its back turned towards him.

Amy gasped. “This is not a good idea, Sonic, no!”

The blue hedgehog glanced at Tom who shook his head urgently, telling him silently not to do it.

But Sonic only smiled at him smugly, raising his hand in a thumbs up gesture, silently saying ‘Relax. I got this.’.

“Hiyah!” Sonic exclaimed, jumping on the drone. It immediately started turning, its weapons having reloaded, firing again as it turned. “Don’t worry, I got it right where I want it!”

Tom ducked for cover once more while the blue hedgehog held onto the drone, clearly enjoying the ride.

“Can you believe Amazon is gonna deliver packages with these things?” He joked.

The group watched as the drone sped up, turning faster and faster until Sonic obviously lost control, barely able to hang on.

Shadow groaned. “How does he even get into these situations?!”

“He only wanted to help!” Sonic defended his movie counterpart, still focused on the swift movement of the drone.

“Whoa!” Tails exclaimed, holding his head, “I’m getting dizzy just from watching!”

Sonic shouted, his grasp slipping, “This was a horrible plan! What was I thinking?!”

Amy rolled her eyes, “I told you so!”

But Sonic only laughed, “Ames, he can’t hear you.”, he looked back towards the action, “Also that does sound like something I would say.”

Shadow huffed. “Because, you fool, never think a plan through before acting.”

Sonic shrugged. “Hey, it often works!”

The drone fired until, once again, the magazine became empty. It spinned, throwing Sonic off.

Tom didn’t hesitate, he grabbed an object from the table and whacked the drone, destroying it.

“Woo-hoo!” Tails exclaimed, doing a little jump in joy as he celebrated. “You go, Tom!”

Amy sighed in relief.

“Come on!” Tom urged Sonic but realizing that the blue hedgehog would not be able to get up, he picked him up instead. “We gotta get out of here.”

Sonic yelled over Tom’s shoulder as he was carried outside the house, “Oh, don’t tell me that’s all you got! I’m just getting started! Let me know if you want to go round two with the blue!”

Tails chuckled, raising one eyebrow in amusement. “Round two with the blue?”

Rouge commented. “He does have a lot of confidence for what happened back there.”

Tom rushed to his car, dropping Sonic inside on the passenger seat, he then entered himself, starting the engine and driving away as soon as possible.

Just as the car sped off, multiple black cars arrived. Agent Stone stepped out of one of the cars, staring after Tom’s car in confusion, he then ran inside and found Dr. Robotnik sprawled on the floor.

“Doctor! Are you okay?” Agent Stone asked, helping Dr. Robotnik up. “ I saw a guy race out of here and thought–”

“That you should stop them?” Dr. Robotnik interrupted, before ordering Agent Stone to, “Open [his] mouth and say [he] thought that [he] should stop them.”

“Really?” Sonic complained loudly. “He’s just not quitting, huh?”

Amy huffed, crossing her arms. “He didn’t even say thank you to Stone!”

Agent Stone disagreed. “No, I thought that maybe I should check to see If you were okay–”

Dr. Robotnik grabbed Agent Stone by his lower jaw, pulling him close. He explained to his assistant in a condescending tone, “You know what’s hard about being the smartest person in the world?”

“See?”, Amy exclaimed, pointing at the couple. “Stone cares about Eggman! He puts in the work in their relationship!”

Sonic stared at ther, incredulously. “Relationship?” He gestured at the strange position that both humans were in. “Does this look like a relationship?”

Amy paused, taking in the couple before replying. “Maybe.”

Rouge chortled, grinning at Amy’s answer as the rest of the guys just stared at her with a mix between confusion and badly disguised horror.

“Everyone else seems stupid.” Agent Stone mumbled, still unable to move his jaw.

Dr. Robotnik nodded, his tone sounding like he would speak to a child. “Stupid, yes! Way to go! You got that one!, he realized his assistant before wiping his glove on Agent Stone’s coat.

“Ew. Just ew.” Tails gagged.

“Whatever this creature is, it’s our job to secure it, neutralize it, uncover the source of its power. And if it resists, we take it apart. Piece by piece.” He smiled as he imagined his victory before he put on his broken glasses. “See what makes it tick.”

“So, he wants to dissect him?” Sonic asked, slightly uneasy. “Gotcha. That’s not going to happen.”

“Yeah.” Tails nodded, confident. “There is no way that Eggman will win.”

Dr. Robotnik called for his assistant, “Stone?”, who answered him with a “Doctor?”.

The doctor continued, “Call Optical Illusions.”, taking off his sunglasses, “Tell them I need new frames.”, before tossing them on the floor.

Walking out, he added, “They know what kind I like. Oh, and bring that quill.”

Sonic shuddered in disgust at the thought of Eggman having one of his quills.

It felt almost violating, even If he knew that it wasn’t really HIS quill. It was still weird.

Chapter Text

Roadtrip

The group relaxed as they saw their surroundings change again. Now displaying the inside of Tom’s car as they floated next to it.

Rouge looked at the car, curious. “Where are they even going?” She turned to the road in front of them but the only sign in sight was the sign behind them, declaring that they were now leaving Green Hills.

“I don’t think there really is a plan here”, Sonic shrugged. “Tom just wanted to get away from Eggman.”

Tails giggled, “Yeah. And who could blame him?”

“Sonic needs his rings.” Shadow pointed out, nodded at the road in front of them. “That should be their next destination.”

The others nodded, having almost completely forgotten about Sonic and Tom’s first meeting after the situation they had just seen.

This Eggman made them all uneasy, there was no way around it. He seemed insane and reckless- which made him even more dangerous.

Amy frowned, trying to recall where the ring satchel ended up. “And where was that again? San… something?”

“San Francisco.” Knuckles announced the city name like it was the name of a grand battle. “Sonic’s next goal.”

The car drove down the empty road seen before, where Tom had looked for speeding drivers.

Tom glanced over at Sonic, before strictly saying. “All right, pal, you need to start talking right now. Who are you? WHAT are you?”

Sonic stared at Tom like he was insane for asking, “I’m a hedgehog! I feel like that’s obvious.” He sounded sad as he looked down to the ground. “And I’m in big trouble.”

“Really? ‘Big trouble’?” Amy pointed out, her eyebrow raised. “Kinda an understatement, isn’t it?”

Sonic shrugged before commenting. “I’m more confused about the fact that Sonic doesn’t know he’s the only hedgehog around.”

“Actually, yeah.” Tails inclined his head, confused. “He should have noticed that before?”

“Maybe they have some animals that are similar to hedgehogs? And he just assumes that they look very much alike?” Knuckles asked.

The others didn’t know, so they just decided to continue watching.

“Oh, you’re in big trouble?” Tom asked, raising an eyebrow. “You’re not the one who punched some government weirdo back there.”

“To be fair,” Sonic pointed out, slightly amused. “It was well deserved.”

Next to him, Shadow nodded in agreement with Sonic’s comment.

Sonic leaned closer to Tom, his voice sounding desperate. “You think you have problems? I lost my rings!

“Rings?” Tom asked, confused. “What are you talking about?”

The blue hedgehog took a deep breath before launching into an explanation. “Okay, rings are how all advanced cultures travel between worlds.”

Rouge frowned in confusion. “Advanced cultures? They lived in a hut in the woods!”

“Hey!” Sonic gasped, offended, he defended, “It was a cool hut!”

Tails rolled his eyes before adding, “Also it’s still weird that they use the rings to travel. Our rings are more like… currency.”

The kit muttered something under his breath, already making plans in his head about creating portals at home.

He continued, “And now mine are stuck on top of a pointy building I’ve only ever seen on your skintight T-shirt.”

Tom stared at Sonic, offended, as the blue hedgehog pleaded, “So, I’d like you to take me to San Francisco so I can get back my rings and use them to go to the Mushroom Planet.”

Knuckles nodded. “Good plan.”

Shadow just sighed, “Let’s just hope nothing else goes wrong.”

The black hedgehog’s comment made Sonic groaned. “Dude. Don’t jinx us.”

Tom smiled as he calmly asked, “Mushroom Planet?”

“Yes!” Sonic begged desperately.

Tom nodded, “Right.” He pulled his car over , stopping completely at the sight of the road. The human leaned over, opening the passenger side door. “Okay, pal, out you go.”

Sonic snickered, holding one hand in front of his mouth. “Understandable.”

Amy frowned, looking at Tom before looking at Sonic, she firmly stated. “What? No! Not understandable!” She pointed at Tom. “Sonic needs help! And Tom is the only one who can help!”

Sonic shrugged, still slightly amused. “I said that I understand his reaction, not that I condone it.” He rolled his eyes. “He’ll come around.”

“You’re sure?” Tails asked as he stared at the lost look on Tom’s face, clearly not buying it.

Before Sonic could defend his comment, Shadow came to the rescue. “The human will help Sonic.” He stated it as simply as he would say that the sky is blue. A simple fact. “The Faker has his ways of convincing people.”

“Aww…” The blue hedgehog smiled at Shadow, his tone giddy. “Shads! Was that a compliment I heard?”

Shadow scoffed, turning away. “Don’t read too much into it, hedgehog.”

Sonic stared at Tom, baffled. “I’m sorry, what?”

“Look,” Tom explained, his tone sounding stressed. “This is the worst possible time for me to get myself into trouble, okay? You asked me to save your life, I saved your life.” His tone became pleading. “Now, please, go find your rings and your mushroom land. Hopefully, I’m gonna wake up in a hospital bed and the doctor’s gonna tell me that my colonoscopy was a big success. Okay? So, goodbye”

“...What?” Tails asked, completely confused.

Rouge explained. “He thinks that he is dreaming because,” She gestured to on-screen Sonic. “This feels insane to him.”

“Ah.” Tails nodded in understanding.

“Okay.” Sonic sounded sad as he climbed out of the car. “Goodbye.”

He then continued to stand there in front of the open car door, staring at Tom expectantly.

“Why aren’t you leaving?” Tom asked, exasperated.

Sonic retorted, annoyed. “I don’t know where San Francisco is.”

“Yep.” Knuckles nodded. “That’s a big problem.”

“Can’t other blue just into one direction?” Rouge asked, curious. “Sooner or later he would arrived in San Francisco. Wherever it is.”

“Well- yes.” Sonic nodded before explaining. “But then he would be tired and that’s kinda a waste of energy.” He shrugged.

Tails turned to his brother, frowning. “What? You do that all the time!”

“Yeah. But I know where I’m going.” The blue hedgehog replied, grinning.

Tom replied, smiling. “It’s west.”

“West?” Sonic asked like he didn’t understand the idea of cardinal directions.

“Straight shot, can’t miss it.” Tom added.

“Okay, seriously.” Sonic complained. “Who in their right mind just knows where West is?”

Shadow raised his eyebrow. “I always know where West is.”

Sonic threw his hands in the air, exasperated. “You just proved my point!”

Sonic nodded, putting his hands on his hips. “Fine. That’s cool. I’m totally cool saying goodbye now.”

Without another word, he sped off into the distance, gone in a second.

“Ehm.” Tails looked around, confused. “Why aren’t we following him?”

Amy raised her eyebrows. “What do you mean? We don’t have to move.”

“No, no. I mean the camera? Why are we still with Tom?”

Tails’ question was answered as Sonic came back- soaking wet, covered in seaweed with a fish on his head.

“Ah.” Tails nodded. “That explains it.”

Knuckles chuckled. “Is that a fish?”

Sonic glared at Tom. “So, as I crashed into the cold, dark water of the Pacific.”

Sonic gasped, his voice sounding shocked as he screamed. “Water? He ran into water?!”

Shadow frowned in confusion. “Why didn’t he just run over it?”

The two hedgehogs stared at each other for a moment, before Sonic blurted out, “What? You can run over water?”

“You can’t?” The black hedgehog asked, narrowing his eyes.

“No!” Sonic yelled, heavily gesturing with his hands. “It’s water!”

Shadow turned to the group, silently asking what the matter was when Amy finally pointed out. “Sonic can’t swim.”

“...okay?” The black hedgehog still didn’t get it. “But he could still just run over it?”

Sonic only huffed, crossing his arms in annoyance.

“I realized a few things. A, I have no idea where I’m going. B, saltwater stings. C, I shouldn’t even be on this planet right now, but I am! Why?!” Sonic opened his arms with a big smile that was clearly fake. “Because you shot me!”

Tails smiled, watching the scene in amusement. “Is he actually guilt tripping Tom?”

“As long as it’s working.” Sonic grinned at his little brother who grinned back.

Tom nodded, slightly regretting his actions. “I know.”

Sonic raised his voice, now shouting, “You shot me!”

The human’s voice turned soft, seemingly very regretful of his actions now. “All right, I heard you the first time. You don’t have to… pile it on. Good grief.”

Amy laughed, “He’s already cracking!”

Sonic began counting on his fingers as he said. “I’m wet”, extending his thumb, “I’m cold”, he extended his index finger before opening his hands, yelling, “There’s a fish on my head! And clearly, I’m not going to be able to do this on my own.”

Rouge shook her head fondly. “I gotta hand it to you, Blue. You know how to manipulate a guy.”

Sonic chuckled before bowing dramatically. “Thank you, thank you! I’ll be here all week!”

Amy gently smiled at on-screen Sonic. “At least he knows that he needs help.”

Shadow only watched in expectation, there was no way that this human was going to resist Sonic’s pleading.

Tom sighed, glancing back at Sonic who was still soaking wet and looking quite pitiful. The fish slowly slipped off the hedgehog’s head and landed on the ground with a loud ‘thud’ sound.

After a moment, Tom relented, “All right, get in the truck.”

The group watched the duo, grinning. They were really relieved that Tom was willing to help on-screen Sonic.

Shadow smirked, his expression smug.

This human was clearly not better than any of them- resisting Sonic was a difficult endeavor and it had been clear from the start that he just wasn’t up to it.

Sonic’s face lit up. “Really?” He shook himself, removing the seaweed from his fur without lifting a finger, comically puffing up his fur in the process. “You’re gonna help me?!”

Tails started to laugh and couldn’t stop, even after taking a few deep breaths. “This is- he- why does he look like that?!”

Amy was also amused, she squealed, “Aww! He’s so cute!”

Knuckles just grinned, “So that’s why Sonic avoids water.” He nodded his head, mock-serious, avoiding the punch that the blue hedgehog was throwing his way with a laugh.

Tom was unfazed as he replied. “I guess it is a little bit my fault that all this is happening to you.”

“Not a little bit, entirely. It is ENTIRELY your fault.” Sonic pointed at Tom, accusing him.

“Okay, it’s entirely my fault.” Tom nodded, smiling, trying to keep his patience. “Are you coming?”

Sonic smiled genuinely, “Yes.”, he shook himself once more, this time restoring his fur to its normal state. He hopped into the car, closing the door behind him.

“You know what this means?” Sonic turned to the group, grinning, “Roadtrip!”

The blue hedgehog whooped, throwing his hands into the air gleefully, “Road trip! Whoop, whoop!”

Tails and Sonic cheered along, also throwing up their hands as the others watched in fondness and amusement.

Tom sighed deeply, muttering, “What am I doing?”

The scene changed, the car was now again traveling on the road.

“All right, there are gonna be some rules on this trip.” Tom explained, his tone sounding strict, “Number one: do exactly as I say all the time. Got it?”

Sonic snickered.

Shadow sighed, exasperated. “You could at least try to listen.”

In response, Sonic mock-saluted, still grinning.

Sonic saluted, smiling at Tom. “Got it, Donut Lord.”

“Would you stop with the ‘Donut Lord’?!” Tom shouted, grimacing. “I have a name. It’s Tom.”

The hedgehog smiled, pointing at himself. “I’m Sonic.”

Amy shook her head in amusement. “I can’t believe it took them this long to ask for their names.”

“I don’t know,” Tails teased, “The Donut Lord title was kinda growing on me.”

Tom nodded, repeating to himself, “Sonic. Sonic.”, as he was still getting used to the name.

Sonic only watched, happy that Tom was using his name in the first place.

After a moment, the human continued, “So, you’ve been spying on us all these years?”

“Finally,” Shadow rolled his eyes. “He’s finally asking the important questions.”

Knuckles nodded in agreement. “That would have been one of the first things I would have asked, too.”

Sonic nonchalantly explained, not understanding the seriousness of his actions, “I mean, I wouldn’t call it ‘spying’. We were all just hanging out, only I wasn’t invited and no one knew I was there.”

“Oh, other blue,” Rouge sighed, shaking her head in disbelief. “That is considered spying.”

Tom ignored the hedgehog’s comment, shaking his head in disbelief. “I can’t believe Crazy Carl was right all this time!”

Sonic nodded, “Yeah, you should call him Super Observant Carl instead.”

“That doesn’t really roll off the tongue though.” Sonic chuckled.

The human hummed in response, when suddenly Sonic bolted upright, staring outside the car window with excitement. “Oh, my God, stop the car right now!”

“What?” Amy followed on-screen Sonic’s stare confusedly. “What happened?!”

Tails frowned. “They’re not in danger… right?”

Tom jerked the wheel, startled by Sonic’s shout. “What, what?! What?”, he yelled as Sonic leaned halfway out of the open window.

“‘The World’s Largest Rubber Band Ball’? We gotta see it!” The blue hedgehog exclaimed, extremely excited.

Amy groaned, holding one hand to her chest. “Seriously? I thought Eggman was back!”

“That doesn’t even sound interesting.” Sonic remarked, disappointed.

Tom kept his eyes on the road as vetoed the idea, “No, no. No, this is not some fun family road trip, okay? The government wants to dissect you and arrest me. This is serious.”

Shadow nodded along at Tom’s reasoning. “He’s right. Sonic should take this more seriously”

“Well- he probably wants this trip to last,” Amy explained, her voice sounding sorrowful. “Sonic knows that this will be the last time he can actually make a connection with Tom.”

Sonic nodded in agreement. “And we all know that he doesn’t want to leave. Sure, he doesn’t want anyone else to get the rings but as soon as they arrive, he’s going to use the rings.”

Knuckles frowned, off-put. “I get that but he needs to get over himself. It could be life or death.”

Sonic shrugged, his voice nonchalant, “Sometimes it isn’t worth to live If you don’t have anything to live for.”

When the group looked at him in confusion, he added, pointing to on-screen Sonic. “He desperately wants a family, right? This might be his only chance. And he’s already known Tom and Maddie for ten years, even If they didn’t.”

Amy nodded along in agreement, beaming that someone else understood.

As soon as Tom stopped speaking, Sonic zipped out of the car and back again, his arms now filled with souvenirs with a baseball cap on his head. He deadpanned, “Eh, you’re right. It was lame. Gift shop was cool, though!”

“He’s wasting time!” Shadow growled in frustration.

Sonic pointed out, “He’s stuck in a car for hours, what else is he gonna do?”

“I got you a mouse pad.” Sonic held up one of the souvenirs, showing it to Tom.

He smiled, asking, “When are we gonna get there?”, pulling out a paddle ball and playing with it at incomprehensible speed.

“I think Sonic has an attention problem.” Tails muttered, exasperated.

The group sans Sonic turned to the fox, giving him a look that screamed ‘You’re just noticing that now?!’ as Sonic nodded, pondering the comment.

“He’s definitely more easily distracted than I was at that age.” Sonic rubbed his chin, thinking of the past. “Also I didn’t talk that much.”

Tails inclined his head, agreeing. “I remember when we first met, you barely said anything to me!”

Sonic shrugged. “I wasn’t really used to talking with people.” He gestured to the on-screen Sonic. “Neither is he.”

Tom was completely unimpressed by the speed Sonic was demonstrating. He only said in a frustrated tone, “We will get there when we get there!”

Sonic continued playing with the paddle ball as the sky began to darken.

At night, Tom’s car pulled into a rest stop, stopping at a fueling station. Tom got out of the car, putting on a cap to disguise himself before walking over to Sonic’s door, informing him, “All right, I’m gonna go check in with Wade, see if he knows what’s going on.”

“Wait.” Tails asked, curious. “Is that really a good idea? The call could be traced!”

Amy frowned in concern. “He needs to know what’s going on in Green Hills.”

Rouge huffed. “As long as they leave as soon as possible, I don’t see a problem with this.” She nodded at the projection. “They might find out in what direction they’re headed but their destination is still unknown.”

Sonic looked confused as he asked, “You’re gonna see wade in that glass thing? What is it, a teleportation box?”

“...Does Sonic not know what a communicator is?” Knuckles questioned in shock.

“Apparently not.” Tails answered. “Also that’s a telephone, not a communicator.”

The red echidna waved his hand dismissively. “Same thing.”

Tom glanced at the telephone booth before turning back to Sonic. “It’s a pay phone. It’s mostly for drug dealers and fugitives from the law, which is us.”

Sonic chuckled. “He’s got a point. It’s kinda easy for a blue hedgehog to be considered a criminal by the government.”

He turned to Shadow, his tone sounding teasing, “Especially If you’re getting framed.”

Shadow shrugged. “Can’t help that people think we look alike.”

Sonic sighed deeply. “Yeah, I still don’t see it.”

“Stay in the car, I don’t want anybody seeing you.” Tom strictly reminded the blue hedgehog before walking to the booth.

Sonic sighed. “Ugh, fine.”

Shadow watched Tom leave, staring at on-screen Sonic in suspicion. “Let me guess: He’s not going to stay?”

Tails nodded, smiling fondly. “Probably not.”

The only response was a sigh by the black hedgehog and a groan from an annoyed Knuckles.

As Sonic was getting bored, waiting for Tom to return, he began to horse around. Pretending like he was driving the car and making engine noises to suit the action, he froze when he saw a large gathering of bikers off to the side of the car.

Sonic gasped with wonder before ducking down, making himself small inside the car.

The blue hedgehog tried to console himself, “Okay, okay. That is the coolest place on Earth, but you have to stay in the car!”

Shadow eyed on-screen Sonic like he was a disaster waiting to happen.

Sonic looked around, taking in the motorcycles and the bikers mingling, he whistled, “Those bikes sure look cool.” He turned back to on-screen Sonic, lifting an eyebrow. “I would totally understand If he didn’t stay in the car.”

The black hedgehog groaned, pinching his nose in frustration. “Hedgehog. Don’t encourage him.”

Rouge grinned, her tone amused as she remarked, “You know, blue- Mr. Dark Edgy and Brooding over there,” She nodded at Shadow who snarled at her, silently warning her to continue.

Whatever she was going to say, he would probably not like it.

Despite the threat, Rouge continued, grinning like the cat who got the cream, “owns a motorcycle. He could take you for a drive.”

Sonic immediately lit up, not noticing Shadow frowning, he turned to the black hedgehog, visibly very excited. “Really? Are you? Are you?!”

Shadow sighed, glancing between Rouge and Sonic, before muttering a quiet, “...maybe…”.

Sonic slowly peeked over the car door, watching the ongoing party happen without him. He began heavily breathing, fogging up the glass on the window which he had to wipe clean before the blue hedgehog kept on watching.

Still fighting his excitement, he repeated to himself, “Be strong, be strong!”

Amy turned to the group in exasperation. “So, Sonic is gonna leave the car and get in trouble, right?”

Knuckles nodded. “Most likely.”

“And then Tom has to rescue him!” Tails chimed in.

“Guys!” Sonic yelled, getting their attention, he held one hand up to his chest, mock-hurt, “You have no faith in me.”

Amy only raised her eyebrow, unimpressed.

Sonic glanced around the car, desperate for a solution when he spotted a pair of sunglasses.

He smirked to himself as he hatched a plan.

“Yep.” Knuckles deadpanned. “This plan is going to fail.”

Chapter Text

Phone Call

Tails grinned as he watched Sonic grab the pair of sunglasses. “This is going to be so cool!”

“And dangerous.” Shadow remarked, his voice firm. “Fox, you should know better.”

Sonic rolled his eyes. “Cmon, Shads!” He fist-bumped against the black hedgehog’s shoulder, slightly nudging him. “My counterpart can’t hear us- we’re not being bad role models.”

Shadow huffed. This was not about being good role models, this was about the principle of not acting stupid- which on-screen Sonic was clearly failing at!

The camera moved closer to the telephone booth where Tom was currently dialing the number to the Green Hills Police Department.

He lifted the phone to his ear and waited, nervously glancing around for any curious eavesdroppers.

A ‘click’ echoed through the night as Wade picked up, greeting the unknown caller with a hesitant, “Hello. Green Hills Police Department.”

Amy frowned, concerned about Wade. “He sounds kinda.. strange.” She glanced around the room, looking for support. “Doesn’t Wade sound strange?”

“Maybe Wade is still tired from the black out fiasco?” Tails asked hesitantly.

Tom didn’t notice anything amiss, he simply replied, “Wade, it’s me.”

If Wade was shocked at hearing his colleague who was also now a known criminal, calling him, he didn’t show it. Without missing a beat, he answered, “Hi. I’m so glad that you called.”

Rouge narrowed her eyes in suspicion. “Or maybe… this is a trap.”

The group tensed, now watching the phone call more closely.

Wade continued, slightly stuttering, “Uh, so, some guys came in asking some questions. Uh, they’re a little creepy.” He chuckled nervously before further explaining, “Kind of reminded me of, uh, the guys from Men in Black, but not as likeable or, uh, charming as Will Smith.”

“So this is a trap.” Shadow nodded to himself.

Amy commented, worried, “I sure hope that Eggman didn’t threaten Wade.”

Sonic’s expression turned serious as he replied, “Knowing Eggman, he probably did.”

Tom shuffled his feet, waiting for Wade to pause his speech. He then asked hurriedly, “Wait, what kind of questions?”

Rouge smiled. “He’s already suspicious.”

Knuckles frowned in confusion. “If this is a trap- why doesn’t Tom hang up?”

The group didn’t answer him, too focused on the conversation happening in front of them.

“Um, questions about… terrorism?” Wade chuckled, his tone sounding not really amused but rather nervous. “I told them that I’ve gone ice fishing with Tom. He doesn’t know how to make a bomb!”

“Too bad that Dr. Robotnik doesn’t care how innocent he is,” Shadow growled, frustrated by this call. “He only wants Sonic.”

Sonic winced. “Yeah- but maybe he should realize that my counterpart doesn’t want him?”

Their surroundings changed, now displaying the Green Hills Police Department where Wade sat at a table, holding the phone to his ear.

Tails leaned closer, inspecting Wade closer. “You’re right, Amy. He does seem strange. I think he’s… nervous?”

Amy nodded, “You would also be nervous If Eggman came knocking at your door, asking you to rat out your friend.”

Tails gnawed on his lip, pondering the situation. “Yeah- but there’s something else…”

“He can’t even make, like, bait in the cold!” Wade joked, the humour falling flat as Wade was entirely too nervous to deliver the joke correctly.

Tom’s voice became more serious, urging Wade to listen, “All right, Wade, listen to me. This is really important. Don’t tell them that we talked, okay.”

Wade glanced through the group, across the room as he listened to Tom.

Tails turned around, nearly jumping out of his skin as he noticed Dr. Robotnik and Agent Stone standing there. “Oh, Gaia!”

The group turned, all realizing that both had been standing behind them the whole time- silently watching as Wade accepted the call from Tom.

“Oh, great.” Sonic muttered to himself. “Just great.”

“You know,” Wade whispered into the phone, alerting Tom. “I think they already know.”

Dr. Robotnik grabbed the phone, ripping it from Wade’s grasp and holding it to his own ear. “Mr. Wachowski”, he greeted.

Tom sighed, sounding annoyed. “Ugh, Tom.”

Amy frowned at the scene. “Tom sounds awfully casual for someone who’s in danger.”

“There is still enough time to flee.” Rouge waved her hand dismissively.

Shadow raised his eyebrow, huffing. “But first, he needs to find Sonic.” He turned to the blue hedgehog in the room, staring him down. “Because a certain someone didn’t like waiting in the car.”

Sonic rolled his eyes, throwing his hands up in the air in a n attempt to look innocent. “You also wouldn’t have waited in the car, at least admit that.”

Shadow sighed deeply, hating that Sonic had a point.

Dr. Robotnik took a deep breath, preparing himself for the following speech he was about to deliver.

“I want you to know that the only person who ever punched me in the face was the school bully.” Despite the dark story he was telling and the condescending tone he was using, the doctor was smiling, looking quite frankly insane. “He hit me in the cafeteria, causing a blunt-force confusion to the soft tissue surrounding my orbital bone. Humiliated me in front of the entire school! And you know what I did in response?”

He paused, waiting for Tom to guess.

Tails groaned, before mockingly counting on his fingers. “So, this Eggman is an orphan, he’s disliked by his current colleagues and he was bullied in school.”

Sonic stared at his brother in confusion. “Tails, bud? What are you doing?”

“Creating a list,” The kit quipped back, rolling his eyes. “No seriously. He’s just doing this to get pity points!”

The group hummed in agreement- even Amy who was usually compassionate and always liked to root for the underdog, disliked this version of Eggman.

Tom sounded tired as he guessed, “Uh, I’m assuming that you reported him to the principal’s office ‘cause, you know, that kind of behavior is really unacceptable.”

“That would only make sense If Eggman himself made any sense,” Sonic groaned, annoyed. “And that’s just as unusual as Amy being mean to someone who didn’t deserve it or Shadow smiling at strangers.”

Amy and Shadow turned to the blue hedgehog in unison, raising their eyebrows and staring at him.

When Sonic noticed, he only groaned once more. “You both know what I mean!” 

“No,” Dr. Robotnik sounded proud as he recalled, “I examined the inefficiency of a world where brawn trumped brain, and I used technology to resolve that inefficiency.”

Tails commented, his tone dry, “Story of his life, huh?” He huffed, crossing his arms. “Eggman always thinks he’s better than everyone else just because he’s,” the kit mimicked quotation marks with his fingers on the word ‘smarter’, as he continued ranting, “smarter than most people.”

Sonic frowned, reaching for his brother and pulling him into a hug. “Hey, bud. Don’t let him get to you. Eggman’s stupid. We all know that.”

Tails hugged the blue hedgehog back, muttering against his brother’s chest. “Yeah- but it’s just so frustrating…”

Dr. Robotnik continued, his eyes beaming, “The boy ate his meals through a straw for a year. And I have never lost a fight… until today.”

Knuckles frowned, “At least his threats are… unique.”

“He’s probably lying awake at night just thinking of ways to insult people.” Amy huffed, crossing her arms.

“Hey, hooray for me then, huh?” Tom smiled, his tone sounding upbeat despite the spoken threat.

Tom’s nonchalant reaction only made Dr. Robotnik angrier, causing him to yell, “No, because you’re about to become the bully with the straw! I’m coming for you, Mr. Wachowski. And when I catch you, I’ll–”

The doctor’s face fell as he realized that Tom had hung up, repeating, “Hello?” over and over again in hope that Tom came back to the phone.

Shadow smirked, getting joy from seeing Eggman so disappointed. Hanging up on Dr. Robotnik was one of the best things that Tom had done until now, just after saving Sonic, of course.

Wade pointed to the phone, commenting, “I think he actually hung up, because I notice the light isn’t one..”

Knuckles chuckled, shaking his head in amusement, “Wade really is something else.”

Dr. Robotnik snarled at him, “Thank you, Officer Brainfart.”

Amy sighed deeply, “He really needs to learn some manners.” She rolled her eyes.

Wade reached for the phone. “If you give me a second I can get an outside line…”

“No. Don’t be bothered.” Dr. Robotnik cut him off, “You just sit there and be “u”...seless.” He had paused before adding the other syllables, making his dismissal sound friendlier at first as it actually was.

Wade smiled but his face fell as soon as Dr. Robotnik finished his sentence. He watched the two agents walk out, calling, “No one’s gonna… erase my memory here? I will tell people about this!”

Sonic cheered, smiling at Wade. “Yeah! You tell them!”

Shadow nodded, sounding slightly impressed. “He is brave for not backing down against the doctor.”

Grinning, Tails remarked, “Yeah- Eggman will end up even more disliked!”

Sonic and him chuckled.

The scene changed, following Tom as approached the car with a fast food meal in his hands. He began explaining, “Okay, not exactly the healthiest meal, but…”, he stopped, noticing that the blue hedgehog was nowhere to be seen. “Sonic?”

He turned around, looking frantically for Sonic. Spotting the biker bar, he paused, staring.

“No, no, no, no, no!” His voice becoming louder and louder as he realized that this was probably where the blue hedgehog had gone, he dropped the food on the hood of his car and rushed to the biker bar.

“And here is Tom-” Tails called after the running human, framing his mouth with both his hands and mimicking a game moderator voice, “Already regretting that he offered to help Sonic.”

“Dude.” Sonic replied, rolling his eyes.

Tails only chuckled in response.

Chapter Text

Brawl? Brawl!

As Tom entered the biker bar, called the Piston Pit, he looked around, trying to spot Sonic as quickly as possible.

Sonic spun, attempting to look at every corner of the bar at the same time. He was visibly excited as he began to grin.

“No way!” His eyes locked onto someone riding a mechanical bull. “This place is so cool!

Tails agreed, flying into the air to get a better look. “The table over there is playing cards!” He giggled, “Aw! I wish we could go there…”

Shadow narrowed his eyes, ignoring the brother duo, also looking around the room, similar to Tom, until he finally found Sonic.

“He’s just sitting there?” The black hedgehog frowned, “I would have thought Sonic would run around and introduce himself to everyone.”

Sonic shrugged, only halfway listening to the other hedgehog. “I mean… he’s technically not supposed to.”

Shadow turned to him, deadpanning. “He’s also not supposed to be in here.”

“But Shads!” The blue hedgehog almost whined, his tone begging to be understood, “They have a mechanical bull!”

He turned to Knuckles who had always been a fan of the Western aesthetic, grabbing his arm and pulling him, “Knux! Look! Mechanical bull!”

The red echidna was similarly enthralled. 

Tom strode over to a table where one person wearing a cowboy hat was sitting. It was Sonic who was idly looking around the bar, kicking his feet, clearly lost in his own thoughts.

Impatient, Tom cleared his throat, making Sonic flinch and then turn around. The blue hedgehog was reading sunglasses and a red shirt, clearly trying to blend it.

Amy couldn’t help herself, she started laughing as soon as on-screen Sonic had turned around. This Outfit was ridiculous!

Rouge just shook her head amusedly, muttering to herself, “Only you, Blue.”

“Howdy, partner!” Sonic greeted Tom cheerfully, tipping his head in the process.

Tom looked unamused. “I’m not your partner. Come on. We’re leaving.”

Sonic didn’t seem to care, he gestured around the room, “But there’s a ZZ Top cover band. You gotta see their beards.”

“We’ll have to catch ‘em some other time. Let’s go! Get up!” Tom’s tone was urgent as he tried to get Sonic to stand up.

The blue hedgehog mimicked a boy scout’s promise by holding up three of his fingers on his right hand and resting his left hand on his heart. “If we stay, I promise I won’t say another word for the rest of the trip, starting… now!”

Shadow sighed, pinching his nose in frustration, he mumbled to himself. “Don’t listen to him…”

Sonic grinned, already knowing that Tom was going to fold. He chuckled as he watched his counterpart and Tom talk.

Tom sighed, staring Sonic down, trying not to lose his composure as a waitress came by, asking for their orders.

“Welcome to the Piston Pit. What can I get you fellas?”

Sonic didn’t hesitate to break the promise he had done just a few seconds ago, immediately speaking up and ordering, “Ooh! I want nachos and buffalo wings. Oh, and guac. Funny word isn’t it? Guac, guac! Guuaaac!”

The black hedgehog’s sigh deepened, covering his face with both of his hands like he had experienced this exact situation many times before.

Tails raised his eyebrow, also repeating the word ‘guac’ over and over again to himself before he exclaimed, giggling. “Yeah, it is funny!”

The waitress turned to Tom, strictly saying, “Hey, no kids allowed in here. What’s he got on, some kind of mask?”

She took a closer look at Sonic but Tom grabbed her arm, whispering like the next thing he was going to say was one big secret, “He, he’s actually 43 years old and suffers from a very rare skin disease that stunts his growth and makes him look… like-like that.”

Knuckles chuckled, shaking his head in amusement, “That is definitely an… interesting cover story.”

Sonic’s face fell as he heard Tom’s explanation, offended, he asked, “Really? That’s the best he could come up with?” Sonic rolled his eyes.

During the explanation, the waitress turned back to Sonic, stunned.

As soon as Tom had finished speaking, the blue hedgehog didn’t miss a beat, adding, “The face, I was born with. The confidence, I picked up along the way.”

Amy raised her eyebrow, amused, “At least Sonic here is taking this in stride.”

“He’s young..” Sonic waved his hand dismissively, “He probably doesn’t even know the implications of that!”

She turned back to Tom, smiling.

“Make his a Mello Yellow, please.” Tom smiled back.

As the waitress walked away, Tom sat down across Sonic at the table, taking of his hat, “You owe me one.”

The blue hedgehog was already distracted, spinning around on the barstool he was sitting on, “I never sat on a barstool before! So squishy! Oh, look at this, it spins! Whoa, whoa, whoa!”

Tails snickered behind his hand as he watched on-screen Sonic spin around on the stool. This Sonic acted more like himself- it felt almost like having a brother close to his own age and that was a really fun idea!

Tom was unamused as he watched Sonic goof off until said hedgehog “[felt] sick.”. “Are you having fun?” The human asked with a pointed look, “Gonna check this off the ol’ bucket list, huh? Big night for you.”

Sonic looked up at Tom as he asked genuinely, “What’s a bucket list?”

Tom sighed, looking around the room as he sorted his thoughts. “A bucket list is, uh, it’s a list of things you want to do in your life before you, well, kick the bucket.”

The blue hedgehog, not understanding the expression, grinned, “I’ve never kicked a bucket either!”

Amy aww’d, her face softening as she squealed, “He’s so innocent!”

“Which makes it easy to take advantage of him.” Shadow pointed out, watching the scene in annoyance, not understanding why the duo didn’t just move on and leave the bar.

The pink hedgehog turned to Shadow, teasing him, “Aw! You’re jealous because you’re not as cute as Sonic here.” She nodded at on-screen Sonic before winking at the black hedgehog.

Shadow only scoffed, crossing his arms as an act of defiance.

“Oh,” Sonic had an idea, “I gotta make my list!” He sped off before coming back a second later, now holding a pen and pad, already writing down a few things on his list, chuckling to himself.

“Nothing against Sonic here,” Tails commented, leaning over on-screen Sonic’s shoulder to get a look of the list but the blue hedgehog was blocking the view, “How does Sonic even know how to write? Has he been to school?”

Knuckles sighed deeply. “You can learn a lot of things If you’re left on your own and bored.”

Sonic nodded, adding, “Also we already know that he can read,” He briefly glared at Shadow who rolled his eyes in response before he continued, “Writing isn’t that hard in comparison.”

Rouge stared at the pen in on-screen Sonic’s hand. “But it must be hard.” When everyone turned to her, confused at what she meant, the bat gestured towards Sonic’s counterpart. “Look at how small this pencil is. This world is really not made for beings like us.”

The group’s mood fell as they followed Rouge’s look, realizing the same thing.

Tom only watched as Sonic continued writing, then the blue hedgehog paused, staring at the paper in front of him with a downcast expression.

“What? What’s the matter?” The human’s mile fell as he noticed Sonic’s expression, asking.

Sonic frowned, “There’s so much stuff I’ve never done. And now that I’m leaving Earth forever, I guess I missed my chance.”

Sonic sighed, looking at his counterpart in sympathy. He also sometimes worried that by moving so fast- he was missing things- important things.

The blue hedgehog moved his gaze to his friends, his gaze softening.

He was glad that he had such amazing people in his life who grounded him, making sure he didn’t go off track. And he wouldn’t exchange them for anyone.

Tom hesitated, realizing how vulnerable Sonic was making himself by telling him that. He looked around the room, his voice soft as he reassured the hedgehog, “Well, I guess this is the kind of place you could get a lot of living done in a short period of time.” He nodded at himself before turning back to Sonic who looked at the human, stunned, “I suppose we can spare an hour.”

Shadow was looking at the duo, his body tense. While he wished that they would finally get a move on and leave- he also understood how special this moment was to on-screen Sonic.

The black hedgehog leaned back, resigning himself to simply watch without judgement.

Amy smiled at the projection, her eyes focused on how happy on-screen Sonic seemed to be. All they needed was to spend some time together and they would become fast friends, she was sure of that!

“What?” Sonic was flabbergasted as he asked, “You’re gonna bucket list with me?!”

Tom nodded, feigning ignorance of the importance of the situation, “Sure, why not?”

Sonic smiled at Tom’s reaction amused. It was clear to him that Tom cared- maybe a little too much and just tried to hide it.

In that regard, Tom was similar to another person he knew.

A certain black hedgehog who was watching the scene unfold with a content look on his face. When they eyes met, both hedgehogs looked at each other, smiling, before turning back to the projection.

Sonic was thankful as he said, “You won’t regret this!”

Tom chuckled, looking away in resignation, “Oh, I’m pretty sure I will.”

Rouge chuckled, smiling at the human, “I don’t think he’s gonna regret having fun.”

“Especially with the theme going on.” Knuckles added, already excited for whatever they were going to see next.

The song “Bad News” by Ghost Hounds began playing as the scene around them shifted, showing multiple passages in time.

At one point Sonic and Tom were dancing with a group of patrons, Tom was trying to keep up with the dance routine while Sonic was clumsily dancing along, accidently bumping into Tom because he wasn’t paying attention where he was going.

Sonic grinned, making a grab at his little brother before pulling him close, mimicking the dancing moves he saw and then starting to improvise as he failed.

The kit chuckled along as he was moved and shoved- barely keeping up but still having a great time.

Beside them, Rouge had grabbed Knuckles’ hand and was trying to get him to dance who absolutely struggled with the choreography, more stumbling than dancing. Embarrassed, the red echidna tried to stop, only for the bat to smile and tighten her grip.

Amy whooped, dancing on her own, as she rocked her body to the sound of the music. Of the group, she and Rouge were the only one who could actually keep up with the dance moves- although Sonic hadn’t been really trying in the first place.

Shadow only watched as both the duo in the projection and the group made complete fools of themselves, he smirked, joyful that he didn’t get roped into dancing.

This continued on until Tom and Sonic stopped dancing, instead now playing darts in a corner of the room.

Next came a game of darts. Tom paused before throwing his dart, concentrating, before scoring a bullseye.

Knuckles whistled, his tone impressed as he commented, “Good throw!”

“Of course, Tom is good at darts,” Sonic chuckled, shaking his head in amusement. “I mean, he has to have good aim! He did manage to hit me after all.”

Knuckles turned to the blue hedgehog, deadpanning, “Sonic didn’t even try to dodge.”

“Potato, potahto.” Sonic waved his hand dismissively.

Sonic rolled his eyes, unimpressed. He rolled up his sleeves and grabbed a cup full of darts, smirking.

The blue hedgehog rapidly fired them, still confident, while Tom watched in astoundment. Sonic had completely missed the board, instead puncturing the waitress’ hat and the beer cans she was holding on her plate.

Tails sputtered, laughing, “At least he hit something!”

Tom and Sonic approached a basket game. The human was throwing balls at the hoop, scoring over and over again.

Then, unnoticed by Tom, Sonic had curled into a ball and was thrown instead of the ball, landing on the hoop ring. He swung his legs rapidly, each time adding another point to Tom’s score, as he whooped, “Ha-ha! New high score!”

“Hey!” Knuckles yelled out, his amused tone betraying his real feelings, “This is cheating!”

Sonic whooped alongside his counterpart, as he yelled back, “Who cares?!”

The scene changed back to the dance floor where Tom and Sonic danced, their movements now smoother as they had turned to each other, and directly danced with each other.

Sonic mimicked throwing a lasso, as he cheered, “Yippee-ki-yay! Ah-ha!”, the duo was grinning at each other widely.

The group also grinned, enjoying watching the duo dance with each other.

Amy squealed, throwing her hands together excitedly. She loved how much fun these two were having!

Another time skip happened, Sonic was now riding the mechanical bull. The rocking motion remained slow as the blue hedgehog was getting used to the feeling. “Wait a second, is this bull missing a head, or does it have two butts?”

Sonic whooped in excitement, “He’s riding the bull!” He grinned, throwing his hands in the air, “Finally!”

Tom mockingly yawned as he watched Sonic ride the bull.

“This is easy!” Sonic laughed.

Tom rolled his eyes, inserting a quarter into the machine and tapping the button for the highest speed, turning up the speed and making the mechanical bull swing around wildly.

Sonic laughed as he was being thrown around, barely holding onto the bull- Tom mirrored the hedgehog’s joy, also laughing along.

“Now this is more like it!” Knuckles laughed.

“Yee-haw! I’m a cowboy, baby!” The blue hedgehog whooped before he suddenly lost his grip, flying off the bull at high speed as Tom watched in concern.

“...Ehm…” Tails frowned, following Tom’s searching look, also looking for Sonic, “Is he okay?”

To the relief of both Tom and the group, Sonic sped back onto the ball like nothing happened, throwing up a thumbs-up gesture, “I’m okay!”

The group breathed a sigh of relief. 

While they knew that Sonic couldn’t have been seriously hurt- they still felt strangely protective of this childish version of the blue hedgehog.

Once again Tom and Sonic were dancing as the blue hedgehog accidentally bumped into a female patron who immediately turned around, annoyed.

She spotted Tom, cheering, “Whoo, yeah!” and came to the conclusion that he was trying to hit on her. Angrily she threw a drink in his face.

“Oh…” Amy gasped, giggling behind her hand when she was sure that the woman wasn’t too upset. “That was unlucky.”

  Afterwards, Tom was drying himself off with a towel while Sonic laughed at him.

“Yeah, yeah, laugh it up.” The human rolled his eyes, not sounding too upset either.

Sonic wiped a fake tear from his face, still smiling, “Nice work, Romeo!”

Sarcastic laughter followed as Tom replied, “Glad you’re having a good time.”

The blue hedgehog nodded, ecstatic. “I AM having a good time! I’m having the best time! I mean, what could go wrong?” Just when he had finished the last sentence, a group of mean-looking patrons approached, coming to a stop behind Sonic’s back, staring Tom down.

Tom’s smile slipped off his face as he noticed the group, “Uh, heh, can we help you?”

“We don’t like your kind around here.” One of the men grumbled, his body looking like he was only waiting for a confrontation.

Sonic spluttered, “Excuse me?” He crossed his arms. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

Shadow groaned. Of course the human and Tom were about to get into trouble- this was honestly the least surprising thing of this whole experience.

“‘Our kind?’” Sonic repeated, confused. “What kind is that?”

The man grimaced, looking down at Sonic before simply stating, “Hipsters.”

Sonic gasped, narrowing his eyes, “Okay, this is going too far!” He gestured to the group, “They should teach them a lesson!”

Knuckles frowned, shaking his head.”They should leave.”

“They have had their fun,” Shadow nodded along with the echidna’s assessment. “They need to leave before a fight breaks out.”

Rouge looked at the group in distrust before muttering, “It might be too late for that, boys.”

Sonic gasped, offendedly whispering, “How dare you.”

Trying to de-escalate the situation, Tom replied, “Hey, you know what? We were just leaving anyway. Weren’t we? There’s not a problem here.”

“No, no, no,” Sonic waved his hand, dismissing Tom’s comment, “It’s okay.”

“No, no, no, we’re leaving.” Tom tried to insist but Sonic wasn’t having it.

“Cmon, Sonic…” Tails muttered, “Just leave, please!”

Sonic simply smiled, “I know exactly how to handle this situation.” Grabbing a beer bottle, he turned back to the group of rowdy patrons. He cleared his throat and puffed off his chest, wagging his fist in a threatening manner. “Pop quiz, hotshot. You just picked a fight with a poorly disguised hedgehog who’s seen way too many action movies.” His voice became softer as he taunted the man, “What do you do? What do you do?”

Sonic groaned, covering his eyes with both of his hands. “This can’t be happening. Please tell me that this isn’t happening.”

“It’s happening.” Shadow replied, his tone serious as he stared the men down, unimpressed.

The blue hedgehog shook his head, “Okay… okay…”, he rubbed his face before turning to the group, smiling nervously, “It can’t be that bad, right?”

Knuckles stared at him, incredulously. “He’s about to get his butt kicked.”

Sonic nodded, still smiling. “Yeah- but it still can’t be this bad, right?”

The others exchanged worried glances, letting the blue hedgehog bask in his denial.

“Ha!”, Sonic yelled, trying to smash the bottle over the guy’s head but against his expectations, it didn’t shatter, only making a dull ‘clang’ sound.

Sonic went back to covering his eyes, muttering to himself how this still couldn’t be happening.

The group tensed.

The blue hedgehog was baffled, “Huh? I am crazy? It’s supposed to break, right?”

He tried again, hitting the other man’s head over and over with the bottle in his hand, his speed increased while he pleaded, “Break, please. Break, please. Break this bottle, please. Please, please, please, please, please!”

Sonic groaned in frustration, throwing his hands in the air while he looked back at the scene, “Cmon, just run!”

Tails nervously chuckled, his tails swishing behind him as he took a few steps back. This really wouldn’t end well.

Tom tried to get Sonic’s attention, “Uh, Sonic?” stepping closer to make a grab at the blue hedgehog but said hedgehog moved out of reach when the man finally swung at him, his fist instead hitting Tom square in the face.

Tom stumbled into a group of patrons who immediately broke into a full scale brawl. After getting up from the floor, Tom joined in, punching two brawlers and ducking from an attack by the third.

Sonic came to his side, both of them now standing back to back with each other, throwing their fist in the air to defend themselves from any ongoing attacks.

“Nice going!” Tom yelled, his voice dripping in sarcasm.

“Well,” Tails commented, watching the scene escalate. “At least they found each other again in this fight.”

Knuckles nodded, cracking his knuckles. “Now the only way to get out is fight.”

“Thanks! It’s awesome, right?” Sonic replied, completely missing the sarcasm, he jumped on the spot, mimicking throwing fists. “All right, who’s next? Who wants some? Who do I get to beat up?”

Nobody attacked the blue hedgehog as he was too small to be seen in this fight but Tom was tackled over and over again, different patrons attacking him from all sides.

Sonic winced as he observed the fight that Tom had going on, “Oh, this is probably going to hurt.”

“At least Sonic stays safe.” Amy sighed, brushing her fingers through her quills in resignation.

The group had to sidestep and dodge multiple attacks, mostly not wanting to get trampled despite the whole brawl around them being only a projection.

They were honestly a little jealous that on-screen Sonic didn’t seem to have any problems.

The brawlers parted, revealing the man from earlier who had punched Tom, starting this whole brawl, cracking his knuckles.

Sonic growled, “Why, you!”, he lunged at the man, somersaulting in the air and repeatedly punching him in the face while time around them slowed. Sonic laughed in celebration.

The man was unhurt though, seeming angrier than before, he snarled.

Tails stared at the man, lifting an eyebrow, without looking away he asked his brother, “Anything specific you want on your gravestone?”

Sonic hummed, crossing his arms. “How about ‘Greatest Hedgehog Alive’?” He scoffed, “This is nothing!”

Shadow rolled his eyes, quipping. “How about this?” He lifted his hands, mimicking quotation marks as he spoke, “‘Doesn’t know when to quit’?”

“Uh-oh!” Sonic gasped as the man took a deep breath before charging at him.

The group held its breath, each and every single one mentally preparing to see Sonic’s counterpart to get launched around the room.

Suddenly time slowed down, seemingly having stopped as the man was frozen in front of Sonic, his arms reaching out to tackle the small hedgehog.

“Wait, what?” Sonic blinked in confusion, looking around the room. “What’s happening?”

Shadow frowned, alarmed, “Who’s doing this?”

“Really?” Sonic raised his eyebrow, entirely unimpressed by the man that would have attacked him by now If the time hadn’t slowed down.

He took in the man, before smirking.

“Sonic’s doing this?!” Amy shrieked, baffled.

“What?” Shadow looked between on-screen Sonic and the pink hedgehog. “But that’s- that’s impossible.”

“Apparently this Sonic is so fast,” Tails gestured to the scene, excited. “He can even stop time!”

“But that’s-” Sonic spluttered, looking around before throwing his hands into the air in frustration. “That’s not how that works!”

The kit shrugged, nonchalant. “How else would you explain this?”

“I don’t know!” The blue hedgehog shouted, still confused. “Not like that!”

Sonic sped away, leaving his hat and shirt in midair as “BOOM” by X Ambassadors began playing, he ran through the brawl, observing the chaos.

Noticing a falling man and a phone next to him in midair, he grabbed it, taking a selfie with the man.

Shadow sighed, “Normally I would go on how this isn’t the time for that.” He looked around the room, “But clearly it doesn’t even matter anymore.”

Knuckles nodded, rubbing his chin, “What I don’t understand is: If Sonic always possessed this power, why didn’t he use it to escape from Tom? He could have dodged the gun!”

Rouge frowned, pondering the question. “You’re right.” She watched as on-screen Sonic zipped around the room, having the time of his life. “Maybe he froze because he actually didn’t want to leave?”

Agreeing with the bat, Amy added, “He wanted a connection. And now he has this.”

The blue hedgehog was so busy looking around the room, he didn’t notice an empty boot flying directly in front of him, letting it hit his face.

Sonic chuckled, shaking his head amused, slowly coming around to the fact that this counterpart of him was strangely powerful, “He could have totally dodged that.”

Tails giggled, “Yeah, well. He’s a goofball!”

Across the bar Sonic noticed Tom who was about to be punched by two men, running over to help, he jumped on top of one of the men and pulled his beanie over the man’s eyes.

Climbing to the other, he pulled the guy’s underwear up, stretching it and hooking it over a cast harpy eagle statue.

He then pushed Tom out of harm’s way and to the bar area where the blue hedgehog climbed on top of the counter, running, only stopping when he saw half a dozen chili dogs hang in midair.

Without hesitation, he scarfed them down before belching.

“Of course,” Amy rolled her eyes that shone with amused fondness, “He stops to eat.”

Sonic shrugged, grinning. “At least he has good taste?”

Rouge shook her head, smiling, “Only you, blue. Only you.”

Sonic grabbed two burning sparkles from the waitress’ upended tray, before zipping over to a woman who had two men locked in a headlock.

Covering the men’ heads with mustard and ketchup, the blue hedgehog then completed the look by sticking the sparklers into the woman’s ears.

Amy winced, “Okay, hold on- that’s kinda dangerous.”

Sonic nodded, slightly frowning, “Yeah. That’s a bit far.”

Continuing on, Sonic covered two people from head to toe with toilet paper and weaved a long string on flags through the rest of the fighting patrons. He lassoed the end of the string to a ceiling fan.

The blue hedgehog ran up one of the walls, looping around the room until he found a mounted bear’s head, pulling it off, he jumped from one head of a fighting person to the other, making his way back to the point where he started from.

He placed the bear head on top of the guy’s head who was still trying to attack Sonic, still frozen in place.

Calmly, Sonic slipped back into his clothes hanging in midair, he quickly zipped to the bar, grabbing a napkin before taking his place once more. He readied himself, holding the napkin like a matador

The scene returned to its normal speed, everyone around Sonic was neutralizing themselves because of Sonic’s tricks.

“Olé!” The blue hedgehog yelled, as the man charged past him, flying through a shattering window.

The only one left standing was Tom who looked around in confusion.

The group clapped and cheered.

“This was amazing!” Tails whooped, jumping in the air with joy before grounding himself once more. He ran around the room, grinning at the groaning patrons.

Shaking his head in disbelief, Shadow commented, “I didn’t think he had it in himself.”

Rouge chuckled, nodding along before taking in the dirty bar and grimacing, “It’s definitely a waste of drinks though.”

Sonic grinned, “A+ for creativity though! Just look at this mess!”

Amy sighed, relieved, “At least Tom and Sonic are safe.”

Sonic smiled smugly, looking down at the groaning patrons, “So, should we get out of here?”

Tom didn’t hesitate, “Yeah, time to go!”

“Finally!” Knuckles exclaimed while Shadow nodded in approval.

The human and hedgehog ran out of the bar, making a beeline for their car.

While running, Sonic’s disguise fell off, leaving him now undressed.

“Wait a second, did we even pay our tab? It doesn’t matteeer!!” He whooped, throwing his hands into the air.

“Watch this, watch this!” Sonic grinned, sliding across the hood of Tom’s car and slipping into the car, sitting down in the passenger seat, “I always wanted to do this!”

“A successful getaway!” Sonic cheered.

An angry bar patron ran out of the bar as he spotted them, he yelled, “Get ‘em!” A group of people was following him, all similarly enraged.

“See ya, suckers!” Sonic saluted while Tom sped off, the patrons threw small stones at the car, chasing after it before giving up.

The group grinned, watching Tom’s car speed away. This scene had been so much fun to watch!

Their surroundings changed, showing the interior of the car as both Sonic and Tom cheered, celebrating their victory.

Tom then winced, holding one side of his face, “Ouch!”

Sonic smiled, looking at Tom in amusement, “He got you pretty good!”

Tom assured him. “I’m all right. I’ve been hit harder.”, he then laughed as Sonic gushed about the scene.

The black hedgehog smiled slightly at the duo, still relieved how this fight had gone.

“I have to say,” Knuckles commented, sounding amused, “This could have gone way worse.”

Sonic nodded, “Yeah. I kind of thought my counterpart was a goner!” He pumped one fist in the air triumphantly. “And he didn’t even get hit once!”

Tails giggled, chiming in, “Except for that boot.”

The fox’ brother rolled his eyes, before turning to Shadow. “What do you think. Shads?”

The hedgehog in question raised one eyebrow, pausing and pondering. Finally he settled on, “...It was acceptable.”

“Acceptable?!” Amy shrieked, slightly offended, “It was awesome!”

Shadow rolled his eyes. “Fine.” He relented reluctantly, “It was pretty cool..”

Sonic gasped dramatically like Shadow had just declared that he was in love with his counterpart, “The betrayal!”He held his chest, mock-hurt, “I’m already getting replaced!”

The black hedgehog watched Sonic’s act for a moment, unsure how to react. Then he smirked, nodding. “Well- this version seems to be faster than you.”

Sonic gasped again while the others watched the two hedgehogs bicker in amusement.

Chapter Text

Road Rage

The group settled down, finally relaxing from the earlier they had been on after the brawl.

They watched as their surroundings changed, morphing from the interior of the car into the inside of a motel room. 

It was night outside as Sonic was still giddily telling Tom of his point of the view of the fight.

The hedgehog jumped on the bed as he announced, “The floors were sticky. The crowd was rough.” His voice sounded like he was moderating a fight scene, posing in multiple heroic poses. “And the odds were against us. But there was no stopping Donut Lord and the Blue Bur! Scratch another one off my list.”

Amy smiled at the on-screen Sonic, her face softened. “He really had fun tonight.”

Sonic reached for the bucket list that was lying on the bedside table, scratching an item of the list.

Grabbing an ice pack for his bruises, Tom sat on one of the two beds in the room, watching Sonic amused.

“You are a weird little dude.” He observed, his tone fond.

“Aww…” Sonic grinned. “He’s already growing on Tom!”

Tails smiled, nodding along, “And who can really blame him? This Sonic is really fun!”

Amy sighed as she watched the duo. It was good that everything went so well- and now Sonic even had someone in his corner!

Agreeing with the kit, she added, “And really adorable!”, which made Sonic playfully roll his eyes.

Tom offered one ice pack to Sonic who took it, confusedly staring at it for a moment.

Closing his eyes and tending to his bruises, Tom didn’t notice that Sonic was copying him- clearly only tending to imaginary ‘bruises’ because the human was doing it first.

As soon as Tom noticed, he put a stop to it, “Okay.”

Sonic snickered, “Hey! He’s doing his best.”

“Good thing that the boot was merciful to him.” Knuckles nodded, mock-serious as Tails giggled.

Sonic dropped the ice pack, immediately moving on as he beamed, “So, what are we gonna do now?”

“Of course Other Blue isn’t even tired.” Rouge groaned, shaking her head in disbelief.

“I’m gonna pass out watching TV.” Tom gave Sonic a tired smile, “I think you should too.”

Shadow nodded in approval, “They should rest. They’re going to need their energy.”

“He’s probably still running on energy,” Sonic slightly frowned, “He will probably need to tire himself out.”

Amy gave Sonic a confused look, “Do you need to do that too?”

“Ugh.” Tails groaned, “Don’t get me started.” The kit rolled his eyes.

Sonic eyed his little brother, confused, while answering, “Not usually. At least not anymore.”

He turned to Tails, asking, “Did it annoy you so much when we were younger?” Lifting his eyebrows, baffled.

“Sometimes.” The fox admitted, fumbling with his hands. “On some nights I had trouble sleeping because you were still out, doing whatever. I was worried, you know?”

The blue hedgehog frowned, pulling his brother into a hug. “Sorry, bud.” He tightened his grip, as he assured, “It will never happen again. You’ll always know where I’m going.” He grinned at Tails, winking.

The kit smiled back, grateful for the blue hedgehog in his life.

“But this is my last night on Earth!” Sonic complained, “I want to soak up every last second!”

Tom sighed, before gesturing around the room, “All right, anything you can find to do in this room, you knock yourself out.”

“Oh-oh.” Sonic sighed deeply. “He’s gonna regret that real fast.”

Shadow frowned in suspicion. How bad could it really be?

One moment, Sonic was still sitting on the bed, idly looking around the room for anything to do- the next he was only a blur.

He zipped around the room, doing pretty much everything he could find to amuse himself. Including having a pillow fight with another version of himself, bouncing around the room, spinning a painting around  on the wall, repeatedly flushing the toilet, channel surfing and many more.

Speeding into the bathroom, he closed the door for a few seconds, finally emerging with a towel on his head and around his body, wearing slippers on his feet.

He gave Tom a smug smile, “Good times.” while the motel room around them looked like a hurricane had passed through.

Shadow pinched his nose in frustration. He really shouldn’t have underestimated Sonic.

Tails gasped, looking around the room, stunned, “Woah!”

Amy’s and Rouge’s expression looked more horrified- both preferred having neat rooms over… whatever this was.

Tom found this amusing, until Sonic let out a fart- “Oh, come on.”, he waved his hand to dispel the smelling air, “Oh, that’s awful. What did you eat?”

“Sonic!” Amy groaned.

“Hey!” The hedgehog in question replied, offended. “I wouldn’t do that- I have more class than that!”

Tom laid down on the bed, his eyes fixed on the ceiling.

Unsure, Sonic replied, “I think it’s called a chili dog?”

Sonic gasped dramatically, “And that’s slander! Chili dogs don’t do that to you!”

The others only rolled their eyes, exasperated.

Tom muttered, “You might want to check your fur on that one, buddy.” His tone became questioning, as he asked, “Hey, so what’s this next planet you’re suppose to go to like?”

“It’s no Earth, I can tell you that.” Sonic replied sorrowfully. “There’s no people, just breathable air and giant mushrooms and stuff.”

Knuckles was confused, “So did Sonic already check out all the planets on that map or is he just assuming this?”

Sonic shrugged, “I mean. It did look really empty earlier.” 

“So, it’s an uneducated guess?” Knuckles frowned.

“He’s been on Earth for ten years.” Shadow pointed out. “Maybe he visited the other planets during that time.”

“Isn’t that kinda a waste of rings?” Amy asked, “I mean- he only has one bag full, who knows when he’s going to get new ones?”

“Knowing Blue, he’s probably not even thinking about the possibility of running out of rings.” Rouge sighed.

Tom shrugged, joking, “Well, look at it this way, at least you won’t be the only “fun-guy.”

Shadow and Rouge rolled their eyes, while Tails groaned, facepalming.

Knuckles looked confused, “What?”

“Fungi.” Tails deadpanned, which caused the rest of the group to also groan. Except for Amy, who chuckled which the group pointedly ignored.

“No.” Sonic leaned forward, his tone entirely serious. “Don’t ever do that again.”

Tom chuckled, “I liked it.”

The room became silent as Tom closed his eyes, smiling to himself. Sonic looked around the room, his expression nostalgic as he missed something he had yet to lose.

“I’m really gonna miss this place. I know I have to leave Earth to be safe, but what if Longclaw was wrong?” Sonic shook his head, thinking out loud, “Maybe I could have a life here.”

“You’re not going to know until you try.” Amy smiled gently at on-screen Sonic, the idea of him actually going to the Mushroom planet, all alone, tore at her heartstrings.

Shadow nodded, his tone soft as he commented, “It doesn’t mean that Longclaw was wrong.” He glanced at his gloves, clenching them for a moment before relaxing again, “Sometimes you just have to carve your own way.”

Tom sighed deeply as he took in Sonic’s defeated form, he got up, telling the blue hedgehog, “All right. We should get some sleep.”

“You sleep.” Sonic pointed at Tom who turned away, sighing, clearly annoyed, “Don’t worry about me. I’m gonna stay up all night enjoying Earth while I can!”

Not wanting to argue, Tom agreed, “Sure, kid. As long as we’re on the roa by 8:00.” but as he turned around, Sonic had already fallen asleep, snoring peacefully.

“Aww!” Amy squealed, staring at the sleeping form in delight.

Sonic smiled at his counterpart before turning to his friends with triumph on his face, “Told you. Tiring myself out, always works.”

Tom smiled as he looked at the sleeping hedgehog, his gaze growing soft- approaching the bed, he tucked Sonic in.

Just as he was about to turn away, he noticed Sonic’s bucket list openly lying on the bedside table. Taking a closer look, he saw that every point was already crossed off except for one.

He put the list back on the table, his face thoughtful.

The group came closer, crowding around the bedside table, they were looking at the bucket list in curiosity.

Scrawly handwriting that looked like one from an elementary student listed many things, most of them sounding quite silly. Some inclusions were: ‘eat a whole pizza’, ‘compete in a sport’, ‘find a genie lamp’ and ‘do a SLAM DUNK’.

Their faces dropped as they read the final item on the list, only saying ‘Make a real friend’.

Sonic sighed, rubbing one hand across his face. They had already talked about how lonely his counterpart was- already aware of the troubles this young kid had but seeing this list somehow made this feel… sadder.

He wasn’t normally the touching type, only really comfortable with touching Tails who he had a long history with- but his fingers itched like he wanted to hug the kid, hiding him away from the world and simply offer him protection.

Amy and Shadow had similar thoughts, both feeling a sense of protectiveness flaring up inside them.

They knew that on-screen Sonic could handle himself- they had seen it firsthand. But that didn’t mean that this Sonic should have to fend for himself.

The black hedgehog couldn't help but compare this Sonic to Maria, they both had to isolate themselves and had been wishing for a friend- one of them chained by her illness, the other by his powers. 

Shadow just hoped that Sonic’s tale had a happy ending.

Tails’ tails dropped, feeling deeply sympathetic towards this version of his brother. He still remembered when he had been all on his own, bullied by others because of his unusual two tails, until Sonic had come around, shooing away the bullies.

Maybe this Sonic needed a Sonic in his life.

Knuckles and Rouge shared a glance as they thought about Sonic’s wish, only something that a lonely child could ask for.

Tom’s attention strayed as the television became louder, showing a news report about himself.

His gaze stayed worried, as he was called, “armed and dangerous”, Tom sighed.

The group was still lost in their own thoughts as the scene changed, showing the bar that Tom and Sonic had visited earlier, Piston Pit, in daylight.

Workers were installing a new glass for the window while Dr. Robotnik and Agent Stone interviewed the bar patrons from the night before about Tom and Sonic’s whereabouts.

The man who had tried to attack Sonic during the brawl refused to tell Agent Stone anything, dismissing Dr. Robotnik’s assistant completely.

“Huh.” Sonic looked baffled. “I honestly didn’t expect them to cover for Sonic and Tom.”

The doctor stepped in, gently pushing Agent Stone out of the way, “Stand down, Agent Stone. This well-meaning citizen obviously doesn’t understand the urgency of the matter.”

Staring Dr. Robotnik down, the man stood up, “Really?”

One moment they were still standing across from each other, the next the man was thrown through the newly repaired window.

Tails winced, “That’s just really mean. He’s already hurt!”

“Now that’s what I call good cop, bad cop.” Dr. Robotnik chuckled as they left the bar, offering Agent Stone a high 5 but before said man was able to accept, the doctor punched him in the stomach.

“Hoi! Left yourself open.” He yelled while Agent Stone fell to the floor, gasping for air silently.

Shadow crossed his arms, huffing, “The doctor never treats those that work for him well.”

Knuckles nodded along. “That’s right. Working for Eggman is like signing yourself up for abuse.”

“I wonder why Stone stays with him.” Amy frowned at the projection in confusion.

The camera followed as both Dr. Robotnik and his assistant entered the truck, the doctor explained his thoughts loudly, “Judging by the quickest route to San Francisco, the approximate speed of their vehicle and local weather conditions…”

A few buttons pressed later, the holographic screen showed a map, zooming in on one specific location.

“They should be… right about… here.” He whispered, a victorious smile on his face.

Rouge crossed her arms, not very worried about Eggman knowing where Sonic and Tom were, “Wow, really impressive.” Her tone dripped with sarcasm, then she asked, turning genuine. “But does this mean that Dr. Robotnik chucked the man out of the window,” She paused, raising one eyebrow in disbelief. “And didn’t even get any information out of him?”

Shadow smirked, “The doctor is bad at intimidation.” He shrugged. “Nothing new here.”

“That’s brilliant, sir.” Agent Stone smiled, delighted.

“Thanks…” Dr. Robotnik answered, adding in a whisper, “for nothing.”

“Right.” Sonic nodded to himself. “I might not know this Stone but I’m sure he deserves better.”

Their surroundings changed back to a long road on which Tom’s car was driving, crossing the county line to California.

“So,” Sonic stared at Tom curiously, “What’s on your bucket list?”

“Me?” Tom asked, surprised.

“Yeah.” He beamed at the human. “Everyone has a bucket list, right?”

Tom nodded before explaining, “Well, sure, but I mean, you’re the one leaving Earth, and I’m not planning on dying anytime soon.”

Tails frowned, “You don’t have to know that you’re going to die to enjoy your life.”

Rouge nodded, “But it actually helps.” She shrugged, explaining, “There is a popular phrase called ‘Memento Mori’ by which many people live by.”

She smiled at the fox kit, “Knowing that life isn’t endless, isn’t always bad.”

“Memen- what?” Sonic asked, confused.

“Honestly, hedgehog.” Shadow rolled his eyes, sounding exasperated. “Don’t you know anything? ‘Memento Mori’. It means ‘Remember that you will die’.”

The blue hedgehog narrowed his eyes in thought before snapping his fingers, lighting up. “Ah! It’s like ‘You only live once’, right? Or like Carpe Diem?”

Tails nodded, slowly grasping the concept. “It does make sense. You’re less likely to waste time when you know that the time is limited.”

Sonic chuckled, “Don’t be so sure. Your best friend is a magnet for danger.”

“Oh, are you anointing yourself as the bestie?” Tom asked, amused.

The blue hedgehog narrowed his eyes, offended as Tom continued, “A little presumptuous, but– I mean– What? No– I like you, of course, but, you know, we’re not best friends.”

“To be fair,” Sonic chuckled, defending Tom. “They’ve only met yesterday.”

Sonic glared at Tom, silently daring him to disagree, “You tucked me in last night.”

“Hard to argue with that.” Rouge grinned.

Tom chuckled, as Sonic continued, “Fine, fine, fine. Best animal friend.”

“That would be my dog, Ozzie.” Tom quipped back.

The blue hedgehog shook his head, slightly off-put, “Okay. Let’s drop this increasingly humiliating topic of conversation.”

He made a ‘come hither’ gesture with his hands, “Bucket list. Give it to me!”

Tom paused, thinking the question over. After a moment, he answered, “Okay, there is one thing.” Sonic was listening with rapid attention. “In Green Hills, I’ve always felt, I don’t know, more like a babysitter than a real cop, you know? So I want a chance to prove myself, under real pressure. I’m gonna move to San Francisco, become a street cop.”

Shrugging, Tom looked at Sonic as he concluded, “And, I don’t know, see If I have what it takes.”

“Ooh.” Tails exclaimed, “Finally Sonic is finding out that Tom’s moving!” He smiled, “I wonder how he’ll react–”

As the kit looked at on-screen Sonic, he began to laugh, unable to help himself.

Sonic dropped his jaw, his mouth hanging open while he looked at Tom in shock, a silent accusation was burning in the hedgehog’s eyes.

Tails’ laughter became louder, he held his stomach as he tried to calm himself.

Sonic frowned, looking at his brother, “It’s not that funny.” He gestured at his counterpart. “He’s fearing that he’ll be alone forever.”

“Yeah- but-” The fox chortled, attempting to breathe but ending up a weird mix between laughter and coughing instead, “He- his face- it’s amazing.”

Shadow inclined his head, looking at on-screen Sonic, “He does look… quite stupid.” He smirked.

Knuckles, seeing a familiar reaction on Sonic’s face after he had heard the black hedgehog’s comment, joined in, also chuckling, “You’re right. It’s actually funny.”

Sonic’s expression turned offended as he turned to Amy, silently asking for support but she only smiled at him innocently, “What?”

Like a child, he pointed to his group of friends, accusing them, “They’re seriously making fun of my counterpart.” He froze when Amy giggled, turning back in horror. “Oh, not you too.”

Another chuckle followed, this time by Rouge. Sonic stared at the bat as she shrugged, grinning. “If you can’t beat them- join them.”

“What?” Tom was perplexed, staring at Sonic’s reaction. “Why-why is your face doing that?”

As the group finally settled, their laughter became quieter and quieter until it vanished completely. 

Sonic muttered under his breath, betrayed by his own friends.

“You’re leaving Green Hills?!” Sonic yelled.

Tom turned away, his voice resigned, “Okay.”

“B-B-But why?” Sonic continued incredulously. “Why would you leave Green Hills?”

“This may be hard for you to understand, but Green Hills is a small town. It’s a very small town.” The human defended himself.

“But it’s cozy!” Tails complained. “And it’s home!”

After Sonic raised an eyebrow at him, he added, “...for them.”

Sonic disagreed, “Uh, it’s not small! There are hundreds of people.”

“Which is pretty small.” Knuckles pointed out, nodding.

“That’s a small town, dude!” Tom retorted.

Sonic didn’t miss a beat, “It’s a perfect town, and the people need you.”

Tom wasn’t impressed, “Please, I clean out their gutters, I jump-start their cars in the winter.” He sighed, adding, “They could call anybody to do that.”

The blue hedgehog continued, his expression fierce, “Sure, they can call anybody, but they don’t. They call you.”

Sonic nodded, agreeing with on-screen Sonic, “He has a duty to his people.” He added, “Especially because he chose this job.”

“For him, it might be everyday tasks,” Shadow pointed out, “For them, it’s a saving grace.”

Amy frowned, “I can understand that Maddie and him wish for more. Sometimes you outgrow your hometown and need to move on.”

She paused for a moment, sighing.

“But it’s still sad.” The pink hedgehog concluded.

The scene changed to the inside of Dr. Robotnik’s truck where the doctor was standing on a pad, surrounded by holographic screens that showed a camera feed, displaying the road in front of Tom’s car.

“Wait- what?” Sonic gasped, “There’s a camera in the car?!”

“Maybe Eggman hacked into the car’s dash cam?” Tails guessed, also confused.

He spun around, muttering to himself, “Eeny, meeny, miny,” Dr. Robotnik chose a diagram, zooming in before pressing a few buttons, “...Mayhem!”

Behind Tom’s car where Sonic was still trying to convince the human to stay in his home town, a drone car appeared.

Knuckles’ eyes widened, “That’s not good.”

“Besides,” Sonic’s voice softened as he looked at Tom. “What could possibly be more important than protecting the people you care about?”

“Cmon, guys…” Tails muttered nervously, “Notice the weird car behind you, please!”

“I get it, very important topic here.” Sonic waved his hand dismissively.

Amy gasped, “Is Eggman just going to attack them on the street? What about the civilians!”

“Ames,” The blue hedgehog sighed, “I don’t think he cares about that.”

“What civilians?!” Knuckles asked incredulously. “The road is empty!”

Tom began explaining, “Look, I get your poi–”, but then the drone car behind them fired a harpoon which shattered the back window, hitting the dashboard between them, making both Tom and Sonic scream.

They looked back horrified, finally noticing the drone car behind them.

“Great.” Shadow groaned, “They need to sever the connection.”

“But how?” Rouge frowned.

Inside the truck, Dr. Robotnik cheered, “Yeah!!!” as he was now watching a camera feed from the drone car.

Tom jerked the steering wheel, making the car swerve to the side. The harpoon rope struggled under the strain.

Sonic was unfazed by the situation as he continued to yell at Tom, “You know what? I was wrong about you. You’re not the Donut Lord at all! You’re more like… the Jerk Lord!”

“Not the time, Sonic!” Amy shrieked in distress.

“Have you noticed the harpoon stuck in our dash?!” Tom glared at Sonic, annoyed.

Stepping on the gas pedal, Tom jerked the steering wheel, slamming the car against the traffic barrier on the side of the road.

As Sonic wasn’t wearing a seatbelt, he was catapulted from the car through the open passenger side window, barely catching himself on the windshield, now lying on top of the hood.

“Oh, no!” Tails gasped, horrified.

Outside the car, Sonic continued the argument, “I was forced from my home! Your home is perfect, and you’re leaving it! Why would you do that?! His body started to glow blue, just like that one time at the baseball field.

“Your body!” Tom screamed, making Sonic notice the glow.

“Wait,” Sonic stared at his counterpart, worried. “Is he going to explode again?!”

Shadow frowned, nodding. “It’s electric energy. It could have severe consequences for Tom’s car.”

Tails gasped, “You’re right! He needs to calm down, right now!”

“Oh, no, no, no, no, not again!” Sonic muttered to himself, clearly panicking.

“That’s not calming down!” Knuckles groaned, his body tense.

Tom gripped the steering wheel tight, “Hey, hold on!”

Sonic broke out of his stupor, asking, “Why?!”

“Because I’m gonna do this!”, Tom shouted, slamming his foot on the gas pedal, finally removing the harpoon from the dashboard.

But there was no time for celebration because Sonic went flying, curling into a ball as he hit the ground, rolling on the road. His body hit the drone car at great speed, releasing an electromagnetic pulse that knocked the car on its side.

“Yes!” Sonic cheered, whooping. “That’s more like it!”

Tails grinned. “It had consequences, just not for Tom’s car!”

But their smiles dropped, noticing Tom’s frantic state.

Tom turned his car around, driving back to the crash site. “Sonic!” He screamed, his gaze locked onto the smoking car.

The group tensed, staring at the burning car in horror.

“He’s not…” Knuckles muttered to himself, before his face suddenly lit up, “Wait, there he is!”

The red echidna pointed behind the car, directly at the curled up Sonic ball.

The group relaxed as Sonic uncurled, slowly getting up as he groaned, holding his head.

“Guess I had a bonus life.” He muttered, slightly wobbly on his feet.

The blue hedgehog then noticed the drone car on its side, zooming over, he celebrated, “Oh, yeah, baby!” He began doing the floss, dancing around the car, “Sonic, one. Big tank, zero. I’m sorry. Did we get that on camera?”

Amy giggled, “I mean…” She gestured towards the projection. “Technically, yes!”

Sonic shook his head, chuckling as he watched his counterpart cheer, amused by his antics.

Tom smiled, sounding relieved, “How are you not dead?”

“I have no idea!” Sonic yelled back. “Do you see me dancing?”

“Yes, I saw you dancing.” Tom nodded, amused.

“Okay, cool.” Knuckles nodded to himself. “Now they only need to get to San Francisco and get the rings.”

“If nothing else goes wrong.” Shadow pointed out.

Rouge groaned. “Seriously? Just enjoy the moment for a moment!”

Sonic turned to the drone car, taunting, “Is that all you got?!”

Rouge facepalmed. “Nevermind. Other bBue is just as bad as you.”

Shadow scoffed, annoyed at getting compared to Sonic.

Inside his truck, Dr. Robotnik smiled, “No, but thank you for asking.”

The destroyed drone car opened, revealing another smaller drone inside.

“Uh-oh.” Sonic froze, staring at the car.

Sonic sighed deeply. “I mean, he did ask for it.”

“Sonic! Get back in the truck!” Tom yelled urgently.

“You go!” He waved to the human. “I’ll catch up!”

Tom didn’t hesitate to start the car, driving away. Sonic took one last glance towards the drone before he zipped towards Tom’s car, opening the car door and jumping inside.

Inside the car, the blue hedgehog turned to Tom, “I think that tank just had a baby.”

“That’s not-” Tails started before pausing, thinking the comment over. “Actually, nevermind. Very accurate.” He nodded in approval.

Sonic asked, sounding curious. “Is there another drone inside that one too- or was that a one time thing?”

Knuckles shrugged, “Less talking, more driving!”

The smaller car drone caught up to Tom’s car, preparing its weapons. It launched a homing mine dispenser, aiming for the car.

“Incoming!” Sonic warned. In response, Tom swerved to the side, dodging the mine.

Instead the mine headed straight for a minivan in front of them, it attached itself underneath the van, unleashing an electromagnetic pulse that completely fried its electronics, sending it flying until it stopped.

“Seriously?” Amy groaned in disbelief. “This whole time there were no people on the street and now that Eggman’s using weapons, a car appears?!”

Sonic climbed over the backseat and onto the cargo bed.

“Where are you going?” Tom asked, confused.

The blue hedgehog’s voice sounded determined as he answered, “Just drive the car. I’ll take care of this. And If I don’t make it, just ditch me. You seem good at that.”

Shadow lifted his eyebrow, “Seriously? He’s still talking about that?”

“Honestly,” Amy frowned. “That was mean.”

Sonic jumped from the back of the car, running towards the smaller drone car as it launched several more homing mines.

He grabbed one mine and threw it at another before jumping on top of two of them, skating along the road. They broke as Sonic jumped off, landing on top of the drone car.

Leaning down, he peered right into the robot’s camera, he announced, imitating a streamer, “Hey, everybody! Welcome back to my livestream! Today, we’re destroying robots!”

Dr. Robotnik watched from the inside of his truck in disgust as Sonic continued, “Step one, errrap!” He smashed the homing mine in his hand at the drone car and jumped off, speeding back towards Tom’s car as the drone car veered off course, the electromagnetic pulse frying its system.

It crashed into the side of the road as Sonic watched inside Tom’s car, cheering, “Yes, we did it!”

“Nice.” Sonic grinned. “Riding on these mines was a nice touch.”

The blue hedgehog chuckled, “Shads, it’s like your skates!”

Shadow crossed his arms, huffing. “They’re air shoes.”

“Whatever.” Sonic didn’t stop grinning.

From the burning crash site, an even smaller drone appeared, only driving on one-wheel.

Sonic gasped in disbelief, “Seriously?! I was joking earlier!” He turned to Tails, muttering, “Is this guy for real?”

The kit shook his head, just as stunned.

“We did not do it.” Sonic stared at the approaching drone. “Who is this guy?”

“A mad man.” Knuckles muttered.

“An idiot.” Sonic deadpanned.

“A brute.” Amy huffed.

“A fool.” Shadow growled.

“A crazy genius.” Tails chimed in.

The group paused, staring at Rouge in expectation. She shrugged, “You’ve taken all the good ones already.”

The smaller drone was in hot pursuit, slowly getting closer and closer to Tom’s car. 

Watching the drone get closer, Tom got an idea, “My turn.”, he announced as he unbuckled himself and climbed onto the backseat, “Here, just keep us going straight. I put us in cruise control.”

Tom and Sonic switched seats, the blue hedgehog now grinning behind the wheel, “Ha-ha, I feel just like Vin Diesel! ‘It’s all about family, Tom’” while Tom reached for a long, firm object - a flashlight.

“What is Tom trying to do?” Tails asked, confused, “Blind the drone camera? How would that even help?”

Knuckles shrugged, guessing, “So Eggman can’t see them anymore?”

“Knowing Eggman’s tech the drones are probably somewhat sentient.” Shadow pointed out.

Spikes popped up on both sides of the lone wheel, the drone then came closer, trying to drive against the car’s wheels and piercing them.

Opening the car door, Tom grabbed the flashlight tight. Then he swung at the drone- but it only dodged.

“Oh..” Tails snickered. “Yeah, okay. That makes more sense.”

“I doubt a flashlight can hurt a drone though.” Sonic frowned as he watched the scene with worry, desperately hoping that both the human and his counterpart could get rid of Eggman and finally be safe.

“Quick suggestion.” Sonic kept his eyes on the road as he gave Tom advice, completely unsuitable for humans. “Roll up into a ball and smash him with your body.”

Completely unable to keep the car from swerving, Sonic caused Tom to stumble, barely holding onto the car door as he yelled, “Whoa! Where’d you learn how to drive?!

“Here, in this truck.” Sonic shouted back, “It’s happening as we speak!”

Amy stared in disbelief, “Is he actually reading a manual right now?!”

“Well,” Knuckles muttered “It’s not like he was able to take driving lessons?”

“It’s the principle!” The pink hedgehog shrieked, “If you’re driving- focus on the road!”

Shadow nodded in agreement, “Be aware, drive with care.”, reciting the sentence like it was some known phrase- like it was common sense.

“I mean,” Sonic frowned, “He’s doing okay so far?”

“Just because he didn’t hit anything yet,” Rouge shook her head, as she continued, “doesn’t mean he’s not going to.”

A sort of dance happened between Tom and the drone car, the human swung his flashlight, only for the drone to dodge. Once, twice.

“I can’t reach it!” Tom complained, “Bring him in closer!”

Sonic didn’t hear anything over the whistling of the wind, “What?”

Tom repeated himself, “Bring it in closer! Hit the brakes!”

“Brakes?!” Sonic gasped, “No way! The car could flip over!”

Amy paused, slowly turning to the blue hedgehog as her eyes narrowed in suspicion, “Why does this sound like you know what you’re talking about?”

“Eh…” Sonic chuckled, rubbing the back of his head, clearly embarrassed, “...because I always know what I’m talking about?”

Shadow pinched his nose, sighing deeply.

“Oh,” Sonic nodded, looking down at the pedals, “You mean this one?” Instead of hitting the brakes, he stepped on the gas, making the car accelerate.

Shadow stared at the scene in horror before slowly turning to Sonic, stabbing the other hedgehog’s chest after every word, “You. Will. Never. Drive. My. Motorcycle.” He glared at Sonic who swallowed nervously, “Understand?”

“But-” Sonic tried to argue but was immediately cut off by Shadow, who only repeated the last word he had spoken, “Understand?!”

This time the blue hedgehog only nodded, disappointed. It was probably for the best anyway- he could never live with himself If he ever destroyed Shadow’s belongings-

“Naturally, I have to drive.” Shadow continued, crossing his arms as he huffed, still staring at the scene completely annoyed.

Sonic immediately brightened up, his tail wagging behind him, “So we’re still going to-”, he stopped as Shadow turned back to him, raising a single eyebrow.

“Right. Shutting up now.” Sonic nodded, still smiling.

“The other brakes!!!” Tom yelled.

Sonic didn’t hesitate, immediately stepping on the brakes and making Tom slam against the car door, he groaned before noticing that the car drone was finally close enough.

With one swing he took out the car drone, knocking it over.

Tom cheered as the drone crashed, “Ha-ha! Whoo!”, climbing back inside the car.

Shadow nodded in approval, “Next one down.” He smirked.

“Hopefully the last one.” Amy sighed.

“Sadly,” Rouge muttered, already fearing the worst. “Eggman doesn’t know when to stop.”

Inside his truck, Dr. Robotnik cursed, angry over his defeat- but he wasn’t done yet. One last robot, a tiny helicopter, emerged, speeding over to Tom’s car., hovering directly in front of Sonic’s face.

Tom and Sonic had switched sweat again, the human was driving as Sonic was back again in the passenger seat, looking at the tiny drone flying in the open window.

“Aww, this one is cute.” He turned to Tom, smiling, “Let’s keep him.”

“Okay,” Sonic nodded, his face serious for a moment before he groaned, hiding his face away behind his hands. “Lunatic. My counterpart is a complete lunatic.”

He turned to Tails, “He’s insane.”

The kit raised an eyebrow, “As insane as Eggman?”

“I wouldn’t go that far,” Sonic muttered, “But this?” He gestured to the drone. “This is a no-no.”

“I don’t know,” Tails grinned, his voice having a slight singing tone, “Sonic’s right, it is kinda cute!”

Amy, who was the clear expert on what was cute and what wasn’t, huffed. She pointed at the fox, hammering into him, “A badnik is not a pet!”

Tails threw his hands up in surrender.

“At least you wouldn’t have to clean after them.” Knuckles shrugged.

Amy turned to him, ready to reply but Rouge beat her to it, “Excuse me, May I?” She smiled sweetly at the pink hedgehog who nodded, trusting the bat to react correctly.

Rouge turned to Knuckles still smiling, “Knuckles, dear?”

The red echidna looked at the bat like she was a ticking bomb, honestly very afraid, “...Yes?”

“You do remember that you have a track record with getting tricked by Eggman- and in extension, by his robots, right?”

Knuckles hesitated before muttering, “...right.”

Rouge sighed deeply, “You’re lucky you’re handsome.” She patted the echidna’s shoulder condescendly who shrugged her off- his face burning with embarrassment. 

Behind Sonic’s back, the tiny drone shot a red laser at the car door, slicing through the metal like it was butter, slowly working its way around the window frames.

“Oh, come on!” Tom yelled in outrage.

Sonic gasped, “How could something so adorable be so terrible?!”

“It’s always the cute ones you have to watch out for.” Sonic nodded, mock-serious.

Tails grinned, “Didn’t Amy call your counterpart cute a couple of times?”

The blue hedgehog froze, having completely suppressed that fact- he eyed his brother before quipping, noticing the humour in the situation, “See? That just proves my point! He’s very capable and dangerous!” He grinned at the kit who stuck out his tongue in response.

The helicopter continued slicing, moving around the car until it had almost completely sliced back to its starting point.

“You’ve got car insurance, right?” Sonic asked.

Then the whole window frame came loose, flying over their heads as both Sonic and Tom screamed.

Shadow facepalmed, groaning, “Sonic has no idea how car insurance works.

“There are more important things to focus on.” Rouge frowned, pointing out.

“Yes.” The black hedgehog agreed, his voice muffled by the hand that was still in his face, his facepalm ongoing, “but it’s just so annoying.”

Sonic grabbed the drone, glaring at it, “Buzz off.” Yanking the body and head apart.

Suddenly the head started beeping like a time bomb.

“That doesn’t sound good.” The hedgehog frowned in confusion.

“No,” Tom was panicking, “Beeping is bad! Get rid of it!”

Sonic shook his hand but the bomb was stuck, “I’m trying!”

“They can’t just catch a break, huh?” Sonic muttered, his voice sounding frustrated.

The group only shook their heads, disbelieving how unlucky the duo was.

“Throw it out the win– throw it anywhere!” Tom told Sonic but the hedgehog was still unable to get the bomb off his hand.

“All right,” The human decided, “I’m pulling over!”

“Uhh,” Tails turned, staring at the road behind them, “But isn’t Eggman still after them?”

“Other than that bomb?” Shadow nodded at on-screen Sonic, still rapidly shaking his hand, “I don’t see the doctor anywhere.”

Tom pulled over, leaving the road completely as he came to a stop on a forest clearing. Sonic immediately jumped out of the car, rubbing his glove against different surfaces- then resulting to biting the offending bomb off his glove.

Amy watched in horror, “Why is it not getting off?!”

“...that’s very unhygienic.” Knuckles muttered, his expression disgusted as he saw on-screen Sonic bite his own gloves.

The bomb flew off but immediately stuck to Sonic’s forehead instead.

Tom finally came to the rescue, “Here, hold still” He grabbed the bomb with a handkerchief before chucking it into the far away distance. The human grinned.

Sonic only pointed to Tom’s hand, “It’s still here.”

Tom tried to shake off the bomb, similar to what the blue hedgehog had done earlier but Sonic zipped over, grabbing the bomb. He pried it off his glove with a stick, flicking them at a nearby rock.

“Nailed it!” Sonic grinned, throwing his hand up for a high-five.

“Good.” Shadow nodded, “But they still need to get away.”

Sonic agreed, frowning, “Yep. It’s probably going to explode anytime-”

The bomb exploded, sending both Tom and Sonic flying. Dust hit the air, clouding the area in a thick smoke.

The group startled, throwing up their hands to shield their eyes against the imaginary dust.

“Oh no.” Tails gasped, he spun around in panic, “Are they okay?!”

Sonic frowned, “Where did they land?”

As the dust slowly cleared Tom was writhing on the floor, groaning. He sat up, coughing and still groggy from the explosion but then- he spotted Sonic lying motionless on the floor.

“Sonic!” Tom jumped to his feet, running to the unconscious hedgehog and turning him over, “No, no, no, no…”

Pressing one ear against Sonic’s chest, he listened for a heart beat- but whatever he heart didn’t seem to be good.

Tom looked around, frantic, “Hey, come on. You’re all right. Wake up. Wake up.”

Amy gasped, her hands flying to cover her open mouth. “Is he-?” She took a long breath, calming herself down as she muttered, “No, no, no. He’s alright. Of course, he’s alright.”

Tails stared at on-screen Sonic in horror, “Why isn’t he getting up?!”

“He’s…” Sonic swallowed, his throat suddenly feeling dry as he felt the worry claw on his inside, “hurt.”

“The kid’s tough.” Knuckles’ voice sounded firm, he was confident while he consoled the group, “He will be back on his feet in no time.”

Rouge nodded, her worry slowly seeping away. Sonic was strong- and this was nothing like he hadn’t experienced before.

Shadow frowned, turning away from the scene as he tried to understand what just happened. A tiny bomb? That’s what’s going to take down the Sonic the hedgehog?

No, there was absolutely no way.

He scoffed. Sonic was going to be alright, there was no other way around it.

Their surroundings changed once more. They were now standing inside of Dr. Robotnik’s truck as the doctor panted, breathing heavily as he stared at the screens in front of him.

“Great.” Sonic groaned, “And now we have to watch Eggman gloat.” He threw up his hands in exasperation, turning away from where Dr. Robotnik was standing.

He really wasn’t in the mood to watch this.

“Did we get ‘em?” Agent Stone sounded monotone as he asked, before suddenly gasping, “Oh!”

Sonic turned back towards the duo in confusion- What was so surprising?

Dr. Robotnik’s assistant sounded almost impressed as he continued, “No, no, there they are. They’re real survivors those two.”

“He’s alive.”Amy breathed out in relief, holding one hand to her chest.

For a moment, she really had been worried- but she shouldn’t have. This was Sonic they were talking about- the blue hedgehog always found a way.

The doctor slowly turned around, his expression serious. “Can we have a moment?” He nodded at Stone before walking to a wall, Agent Stone immediately followed.

“Pin yourself to the wall.” Dr. Robotnik said calmly like this was just another Tuesday for them both.

Agent Stone instantly complied. Dr. Robotnik did not hesitate to lean close to the Agent, pressing their faces nose to nose against each other, he whispered, “You know, I won’t miss you when you’re gone. Human beings are unreliable and stupid, and I care very little about them. But my machines are diligent, relentless.”

His voice became mocking, “THEY’RE EVERYTHING TO ME!”

“Another item for the list,” Tails nodded, his face mock-serious, pretending to write something down on an imaginary pad, “Eggman has no friends.”

Sonic snorted beside him, already well done with his arch-enemy. He would never say this out loud- but he honestly needed a break from all this action.

Dr. Robotnik paused, noticing a blue light glowing from the inside of Agent Stone’s coat- he shoved his hand into the pocket and pulling the object out, revealing Sonic’s quill

It was glowing with energy.

“Sonic is already using his powers?” Shadow frowned in confusion. “Did he recover this quickly?”

The doctor muttered something, a japanese word. White letters appeared in front of the duo, spelling out ‘INTERESTING’.

The group blinked in confusion, staring at the letters floating in front of them.

“Interesting?” Tails muttered to himself, his tails flicking with irritation behind him, “Are those subtitles?!”

“I’m more concerned that Eggman knows Japanese.” Sonic drily commented.

Tails turned to Sonic, curious, “That was Japanese?” He frowned. “Wait- wait. How do you know that?”

The blue hedgehog shrugged, “I’ve been all over the world, bud. It’s kinda hard not to pick up some languages at some point.”

The rest of the group stared at Sonic, stunned, they had not known this fact about him before- except for Shadow.

“It is Japanese.” The black hedgehog agreed, nodding at Sonic. “But ‘interesting’ isn’t how I would have translated it. It’s more like…” He paused for a moment, looking at Sonic. “Amusing?”

Sonic nodded, “Would also make way more sense here.”

Knuckles pinched his nose in frustration. “And why does Shadow know Japanese?”

Shadow shrugged, “I’m the Ultimate Lifeform.” At the unimpressed glare of the others, he added, “I’ve studied multiple languages back on the ARK.”

The letters faded, Dr. Robotnik was still staring at the quill in fascination. Slowly, he lifted the quill higher and higher, pressing the tip to his tongue.

Sonic recoiled like he had been physically slapped, “Ew. EW. EW!” He shuddered violently, throwing his hands around himself. “Why would he- just ew!”

The rest of the group just grimaced, all in similar stages of disgust. This was a new low for Dr. Robotnik.

After taking a few deep breaths, Sonic straightened, glaring at Dr. Robotnik, “I do not consent to that!” He growled.

In front of them, Dr. Robotnik’s body spasmed as the energy from Sonic’s quill zapped through it, shocking him in the process.

Crossing his arms, Sonic huffed, “You totally deserved that.” He spoke directly to Dr. Robotnik like said man could hear him, scolding him like a little child, “What were you even expecting?!”

 The doctor offered the quill to Agent Stone who quickly shook his head.

“At least someone here has common sense!” Sonic gestured to Agent Stone, wildly moving his hands around.

Tails eyes his brother in concern. “...Are you okay?”

Sonic pinched his nose, breathing deeply. “Just… just give me a few minutes.”

Chapter Text

Doctor's Visit

It took a few moments for the group to settle down and continue watching.

They were still shaken and especially disgusted by what they had seen just minutes before- Sonic, who unarguably took it the worst, had to run multiple laps through the space to calm himself down.

The blue hedgehog had already known that Eggman having his movie counterpart’s quill wasn’t good- but this? Why would he lick it?!

That was just gross…

Their surroundings changed, now showing a lively street in San Francisco. Standing in front of an unfamiliar house, they watched as Tom’s completely wrecked car approached, coming to a stop in front of the house they were standing at.

Unknownst to them, it was Rachel’s house.

Tom wasted no time to jump out of the car and make a grab for the still unconscious Sonic, wrapped in a blanket. With said blanket in his hands, he ran up to the front door and knocked.

“Wait.” Sonic frowned, slowly understanding what was happening. “So, Sonic is still unconscious?”

Tails nodded, commenting, “That must have been some bomb that was able to take out Sonic?” Phrasing it like a question, he briefly paused before continuing, “Affecting him is one thing but completely knocking him unconscious? That’s hard to do.”

“And Tom wasn’t even affected.” Shadow pointed out, slightly suspicious of the human who was still carrying Sonic.

“Shads, cmon on.” Sonic groaned. “It’s not Tom’s fault.” He gestured heavily to the duo on screen, “And he’s obviously helping him!”

Shadow scoffed. Of course, he knew that the human has helped Sonic so far more than he had failed him but- seriously? That bomb situation was suspicious. And he didn’t like to trust easily.

“Where even are we?” Amy spun around, looking at the people still mingling on the street. A kid was currently driving their bike down the road, another man was walking their dog. She smiled, “It’s nice.”

Nervously rocking the limp hedgehog in his arms, Tom waited for the door to open, only to be met with Rachel, Maddie’s sister.

Knuckles inclined his head, taking in the unfamiliar face. “Is that…” He frowned, “Where have we seen her before?”

Rouge took one look at Rachel, immediately answering, “That’s Maddie’s sister, Rachel.”

Knuckles threw her a glance, “How did you manage to remember that?”

The bat shrugged, smirking, “Her house looked nice.” Her smirk widened, “Real expensive stuff there- I make it my job to remember these things.” She winked at the red echidna conspiring who groaned, annoyed.

“Is Maddie here?” He asked frantically.

But Rachel didn’t let him get a word in, instead cutting him off, “No, no, no. Not today. Goodbye!” She tried to slam the door shut but Tom held against it.

“It’s an emergency!” Struggling, he tried to keep Sonic safe while pushing against the door. “”Rachel, stop! Please! Maddie! Don’t do this! This is important!”

As Tom and Rachel struggled against each other, Maddie heard the commotion and came running, opening the door for her husband, “Oh, my God! Rachel, let him in!”

“She really doesn’t like Tom, huh?” Sonic frowned at the scene.

“I wonder why,” Amy commented, still very much worried for on-screen Sonic. “Tom seems like a nice guy.”

Tails opened his mouth to explain but as cut off as Rachel continued,

“I am calling the police. No, I am calling the FBI. I am calling the CIA.”

The kit sighed, muttering, “And there you have the explanation.”

Tom ran and after closing the door, he turned to Rachel, arguing, “Stop, don’t do that.”

“I am calling your mother!” Rachel continued, undeterred. 

Maddie, having enough from her sister, cut in, “Okay, enough. We got it!”

“She doesn’t like Tom but has his mother’s phone number?” Knuckles aske, confused.

Next to him, Shadow shook his head, “It’s best to not question how they get their information.”

Both the black hedgehog and the red echidna eyed Amy and Rouge suspiciously before turning to each other and nodding at each other in well-hidden understanding.

“Maddie,” Tom pleaded, “Can we talk?”

Maddie replied, frantic, “Tom, what’s going on?! You’re- you’re all over the news, I’ve been trying to call you!”

Amy frowned at the scene, “Why didn’t Tom call her? She must have been out of her mind with worry!”

“Maybe he had no time to call?” Sonic suggested, shrugging. “I mean, they had been tailed by Eggman almost the whole time.”

The pink hedgehog was not impressed, she turned to the blue hedgehog, deadpanning, “Yeah? He called Wade.”

Sonic also began frowning, rethinking it over. “I see your point.”

Tom looked apologetic as he explained, “I had to ditch my phone so they couldn’t track me.”

Amy threw her hands up into the air in exasperation, “Oh, wow! And he doesn’t know his wife’s phone number?!”

“Cmon, give him a break,” Knuckles argued, “It’s not that easy.”

Amy turned to the red echidna, glaring him down. Knuckles immediately crumbled, looking away and accidentally catching Shadow’s eyes who only looked at him with a ‘I told you so’ stare.

“Ditch his phone?” Rachel asked, completely confused.

Maddie was in a similar state, adding, “Track you?”

“Okay, I get that the situation is weird,” Sonic said, staring at the women in confusion, “But like… they do know that he was chased by the police, right? If it had been a small thing and easy to get rid of, he obviously wouldn’t have ended up on the news.”

He brushed his hand through his quills, sighing, “Or ran for that matter. So what’s the confusion all about?”

Tails shrugged, guessing, “Maybe Maddie was in denial?”

“Huh.” Sonic replied, nodding. “Would actually make sense, yeah.”

Behind the two women, a small girl appeared. It was Jojo, Tom and Maddie’s niece. She ran up to Tom and hugged him, giggling, “Uncle Tommy!”

Limited with his movement as his arms were still very much full of an unmoving hedgehog, Tom still tried to hug his niece back, “Jojo, hey!”

Disapproving, Rachel pulled Jojo away from Tom, ending their hug, “Now your niece is an accessory to treason!”

Amy, who had smiled gently down at the small girl, frowned at Rachel, “Okay- that’s a bit much.” She rolled her eyes.

“He is legally a criminal,” Shadow shrugged, pointing out, “She does have a point.”

Amy only rolled her eyes again, this time at Shadow who shook his head, smiling slightly.

Maddie and Rachel began arguing with each other- Maddie, trying to make her sister calm down and Rachel emphasizing how serious this situation really was.

Then Ozzie walked in, running up to his owner to greet him but immediately noticing that something smelt strange in Tom’s arms, he barked.

“No, Ozzie, please. Good to see you, too.” Tom tried to soothe the dog but Ozzie only growled.

“Aww, Ozzie!” Amy gasped. “You need to trust Tom, cmon!”

“Do I smell that weird?” Sonic asked, confused and concerning, before sniffing at himself and shrugging.

Shadow only shook his head in disgust at Sonic’s behaviour.

“Oh, Little Lord Baby Jesus!” Rachel was horrified, immediately accusing Tom, “What is that, Tom? Is that plutonium?”

“Plutonium?!” Tails shrieked, “Is she serious?!”

“Is it e-mails?” Rachel continued asking.

“Okay, I give up.” The kit muttered, crossing his arms.

“Yes, it’s plutonium.” Tom deadpanned before turning to Maddie, “Can we please go in the other room an talk–”

Ozzie barked louder, still growling- he made a grab for the blanket that covered Sonic.

“Ozzie, no! Quit it! No, Ozzie!” Tom commanded but the dog didn’t listen.

Maddie and Rachel meanwhile continued arguing.

Sonic sighed, rubbing one hand over his face, “Oh… this is going to escalate, isn’t it?”

The blue hedgehog had been looking forward to a more calmer situation after Eggman was finally gone for a bit- but this? This was just stressing him out.

Ozzie finally managed to rip the blanket off and revealing Sonic in the process. The two sisters stopped talking, instead staring at Tom and Sonic in horror.

“Oh,” Rachel gasped, “catch me, Jojo.” She fainted to the floor without being caught by her daughter.

Tom only sighed in relief as Rachel was finally silent, “Oh, thank God.”

“Rude.” Amy commented, rolling her eyes. “But understandable.” She nodded.

“Okay, so- Ozzie doesn’t let it go and keep barking but when Sonic is finally revealed, he just stops?” Sonic glared at he dog sitting between the group on the floor, “Bad doggie!”

Knuckles stared at his friend, exasperated. “He can’t hear you, Sonic.”

“I know!” The blue hedgehog threw his hands into the air in frustration, “But seriously?!”

“Maybe he saw Sonic’s limp body and finally realized that he’s no threat whatsoever?” Shadow guessed, smirking.

Sonic nodded, muttering, “I guess so…” Then his eyes widened, he turned to the black hedgehog and stared at him in suspicion, “Hey!”

Maddie pulled her niece close to her, still staring at Tom utterly confused.

Tom sighed, “Can I get a glass of water?”

“Why did he even go to Maddie?” Tails asked, his tone genuinely confused.

Rouge replied, nodding in approval, “Cueing Maddie in is probably the best thing he could have done- Tom is way over his head.”

Amy agreed before adding, “And where else was Tom supposed to go?”

“Eh… the hospital?” The kit guessed tentatively.

“Known criminal?” Sonic turned to his brother, raising one eyebrow.

“Oh- yeah…” Tails mumbled, finally understanding.

The scene changed, around them the interior of Dr. Robotnik’s truck came into view.

The doctor was back working on his holographic computer, this time with headphones on as the song “Where Evil Grows” by The Poppy Family played.

He spun around, enjoying the music for a couple of moments.

“Oh great,” Knuckles groaned, “Eggman is back.”

“Is he that serious about his job? Like… just quit- Sonic and Tom obviously won the last round.” Tails muttered, frustrated.

Sonic chimed in, his voice sounding like he was trying to do an Eggman impression, “‘Sonic may have won this round but the clear winner isn’t decided yet!’” He added an awful evil laugh.

Shadow stared at the blue hedgehog in unconcealed horror, “Never… never do that again.”

The blue hedgehog held his throat that felt strangely scratchy and frowned, “Yeah… actually agreed.”

A robot arm placed Sonic’s quill in front of the doctor. Dr. Robotnik stared at the quill for a long moment before grabbing it- from a drawer he pulled out some power conductors and tried to cut the quill- it remained undamaged as the lights in the entire lab went out.

In the darkness, laughter could be heard. The group didn’t waste a chance to laugh at Eggman’s failure.

Through the dark walked Dr. Eggman with a lighter in hand, approaching a breaker panel and turning the backup power back on.

With one raise of his hand, the music resumed and so did Dr. Robotnik’s dancing.

The group’s laughter piped down, instead replaced by groans. This Eggman just really didn’t know when to quit.

“At least someone here is having fun.” Knuckles sighed, his voice sounding frustrated.

The doctor used the robot arm to insert the quill into a capsule, the lights slightly flashing and showing error signs for a few seconds- Dr. Robotnik only continued dancing, undeterred by the flickering.

“Seriously,” Tails groaned, exasperated, “I know that this Eggman is crazy but he’s just ignoring the machines screaming at him?”

Sonic sighed deeply, “It’s not like Eggman normally respects his machines- remember Orbot and Cubot?”

Tails groaned louder, hiding his face behind his hands, “I know- but… seriously?!”

Sonic comforted his brother by patting his back gently- the kit only continued groaning.

Behind Dr. Robotnik, a digital background of a snowcap appeared, as he mimicked skiing. It then changed to a holographic video of a Tyrannosaurus Rex running down the street, this time the doctor mimicked running.

As the T-Rex chase continued, Dr. Robotnik threw away his headphones, turning around to face the dinosaur, only to mimic getting his head bitten off.

“Uhh…” Rouge stared at Eggman incredulously.

Knuckles’ face looked horrified, “Can holograms actually do that?”

Tails sighed, “He’s still acting.” He gestured limply around them before turning to the red echidna, answering his question, “And no- holograms can’t actually do that.”

For a short moment, all they saw was Dr. Robotnik’s headless body dancing along to the music- until he turned around, his head snapping up and revealing that it didn’t get bitten off.

“A real shame…” Shadow commented drily, his tone actually sounding disappointed.

Dr. Robotnik continued dancing while the quill was still analyzing in the capsule.

As the doctor turned his back to the machine, he didn’t notice that Agent Stone approached with a big smile on his face, also dancing along.

Eventually Dr. Robotnik turned around, screaming when he noticed his assistant standing there- the music finally stopped.

Agent Stone offered him a steaming coffee cup, “I just thought you might like a latte with steamed Austrian goat milk.”

“Okay,” Amy massaged her temples, sighing, “First of all- I’m glad the music stopped. Second of all, seriously? Goat milk?”

Rouge frowned, tapping one hand on her chin, “It’s actually not that weird…” She shrugged, “Just… unexpected.”

“What do I look like, an imbecile?” Dr. Robotnik asked, his tone sounding dangerously angered. “Of course I want a latte.” He grabbed the cup, getting close to the Agent’s face and screaming, “I love the way you make them!!!”

Sonic blinked, astounded, “Was that just… a compliment? A genuine compliment?!”

He turned to Shadow who looked similarly stunned, “...it was.”

The blue hedgehog gasped dramatically, “In all my years of living…”

“You’re fifteen?” Tails raised an eyebrow, deadpanning.

Sonic only continued speaking loader, “In all my years of living- I would have never expected to see something like this!”

“What?” Knuckles stared at the hedgehog in confusion. “Eggman liking coffee?”

The blue hedgehog paused for a moment and then only said, with a serious tone, “Exactly.”

Suddenly both humans were distracted when the capsule beeped, announcing that the results were finally here.

Dr. Robotnik approached the capsule, staring at the results. The screen flashed, showing the words, “POWER ANALYSIS: UNLIMITED”.

Dr. Robotnik grinned.

Tails gasped, “No, no, no, no. That’s not good!”

Sonic groaned, “Great. Now he has access to a battery- that totally won’t become a problem for Sonic and Tom.”

The doctor’s voice sounded soft as he whispered, “Ready the prototype. With this kind of power, my machines can finally reach their full potential.”

Sonic’s groans became louder.

“At least, he’s not using flickies…” Amy sighed, still concerned about this revelation.

“It does make sense,” Tails nodded, “He needs an energy source- and clearly there are no flickies around to abuse.”

Sonic frowned, “I mean- don’t get me wrong,” He threw his hands up in surrender before continuing, “I’m glad that no flickies were harmed in the making of this movie, “ He gestured towards his quill, still glowing with energy, “But why does it have to be my quill?!”

“Maybe this won’t be so bad?” Amy asked, clearly in denial about this whole situation.

“Ames,” Sonic deadpanned, “He licked my quill. There is no way it’s getting better from here.”

The group was relieved when their surroundings changed again.

Back at Rachel’s house, Sonic was lying on top of a kitchen table, still unconscious as Jojo and Tom watched him with concern.

“He’s gonna be okay, Jojo.” Tom gently reassured his niece.

Maddie then entered the kitchen with a first aid kit in her hand, she pushed Tom out of the way before looking down at Sonic.

“Oh, thank God,” Tom muttered as he looked at his wife. “He’s gonna be okay, right?”

Maddie’s eyes remained locked onto Sonic as she replied, “I’m a vet, Tom. I don’t even know what I’m looking at here.”

“Oh!” Rouge gasped, her face lighting up. “She’s a vet!” She nodded to herself, “Sonic is going to be okay.”

“A vet?” Sonic stared at the scene incredulously, “He needs a doctor!”

He turned to Rouge, his voice sounding slightly panicked, “He’s not an animal!”

“Ehm…” Tails coughed, getting his brother’s attention and gesturing wildly around them.

Sonic just stared, still not getting it.

“He’s an alien!” The kit finally exclaimed, sounding frustrated, “A vet is probably our best bet at this point…”

The blue hedgehog didn’t react for a long moment, simply thinking this whole situation over and sighing, “Right, right. I totally forgot about that…” He ran one hand through his quills before looking back at Maddie, “I guess… it’s probably for the best.”

“You would be surprised, Blue,” Rouge cut in, trying to soothe the agitated hedgehog, “Vets’ knowledge most often turns out to be more varied than simply that of a doctor.”

Shadow nodded in agreement, “There is a reason why in most apocalypses, there are always vets helping and rarely doctors.”

Sonic sighed, nodding along. He just hoped that his counterpart was going to be okay.

“He’s a hedgehog,” Tom tried to explain, “Or so he says.”

“It talks?” Maddie stared at Tom, disbelieving.

Tom nodded, his face serious, “Almost constantly.”

The group snickered as Sonic only looked offended, “Hey!”

“Okay.” Maddie nodded, reaching for Sonic’s hand to feel his pulse. “Holy…”

“What?” Tom immediately asked, concerned.

Madie looked confused, “His pulse is super fast.”

“That actually might be normal for him.” Tom’s tone sounded unsure, “I don’t know. You gotta help him, Maddie.”

“Sonic’s pulse has always been pretty fast.” Tails nodded in agreement.

Sonic pressed one hand against his chest, directly over his beating heart, “Mhmm- feels kinda normal to me.”

“Normal to you, is fast.” Tails deadpanned, rolling his eyes.

Maddie began touching Sonic’s body, exerting light pressure on his head and arms and working herself down, “I don’t know his physiology. He doesn’t seem to have any broken bones. He’s really just banged up.”

As soon as Maddie had reached Sonic’s feet, she took off the hedgehog’s shoes, sighing at what she was seeing, “Oh, look at his poor little feet.”

“Hey!” Sonic joked, “You gotta ask a hedgehog permission first before you undress them.”

“Oh really?” Amy smiled, shaking her head fondly, “I don’t think this Sonic would say no.”

“Not being able to say no, is no consent, Ames.” The blue hedgehog stuck out his tongue before both continued chuckling.

Jojo frowned as she made a grab for Sonic’s worn-out shoes, she traced the deep holes in the sole with her finger.

Suddenly having an idea, she dropped the shoes and walked away from the scene- the camera followed her.

“Huh?” Knuckles asked, his tone curious. “What is the kid planning?”

The others shrugged, seemingly wanting to wait for the reveal instead of guess.

Jojo skipped past Rachel who was tied up in the living room, trying to order. “Jojo? Untie your mother, Jojo! Untie Mommy.”

She ignored her complaining mother and went upstairs.

“They left her tied up?” Shadow asked, sounding slightly impressed as he smirked, “Good thinking- she won’t ruin anything this way.”

“And look at that,” Sonic gestured to her, smiling, “She’s suddenly way calmer!”

“Boys,” Rouge cut in, rolling her eyes, “You’re being rude.”

The two hedgehogs shrugged, not feeling apologetic in the slightest.

Back in the kitchen, Tom asked Maddie concerned, “He’s gonna be okay, right? He’ll snap out of this. He’ll wake up soon?”

Maddie opened her mouth to reply but Tom continued, “Oh, smelling salts! Don’t you have, like, vet smelling salts, like, for cats or parakeets or something?”

Maddie shook her head, “No. They don’t make cat-smelling salts.”

“Huh,” Tails exclaimed, inclining his head confused, “I’m pretty sure they make smelling salts for animals though?” He muttered to himself, clearly stuck deep in his thoughts.

“They should.” Tom mumbled.

Maddie made a grab for her first aid kit, “I have human smelling salts in my human first aid kit,” She opened it and took out the smelling salts, “Okay”

She cracked the capsule and held it closely to Sonic’s nose, “Here we go.”

As soon as the smell hit Sonic’s nose, the blue hedgehog immediately woke up and yelled, “Gotta go fast!” He zipped through the room, speeding through pots and pans that clattered to the floor until he finally came to a complete stop before Tom and Maddie.

“So, human smelling salts work on Sonic?” Shadow commented drily, watching the scene amused.

“Apparently,” Sonic muttered, crossing his arms, “That didn’t look very fun though.”

“Where am I? What year is it? Is The Rock president?” Sonic asked, rapidly shooting his questions.

Tom raised his hands, trying to calm Sonic down, “Whoa, whoa, whoa, buddy, you’re okay. Calm down.”

Sonic turned to Maddie, only now noticing that she’s here, he smiled, “Oh, hi, Pretzel lady!”

Maddie gave the blue hedgehog in front of her a long look, she replied, “Hi…” Before making a grab for Tom’s hand, not looking away from Sonic, “Tom?”

“Yeah? Tom asked, confused.

She pulled Tom out of the kitchen before she closed the door, she turned to Sonic, instructing him, “Space hedgehog, stay there. Try to rest.”

“Did we tell her that Sonic is an alien?” Sonic asked, raising his eyebrow. He turned to the others. “How did she know that?”

Amy looked at Sonic for a moment before deadpanning, “She’s a vet and he’s a blue hedgehog.”

Sonic nodded, “Oh yeah, that will do it.”

“You got it,” Sonic nodded, “I am great at resting, I rest faster than anybody.”

Outside the kitchen, Tom chuckled at Maddie, gesturing at the closed door, “Still talking.”

“Oh,” Tails frowned, looking at the couple in apprehension, “Are they going to argue?”

Knuckles crossed his arms, “This is probably a big shock for Maddie. Tom has already known Sonic for a full day but for her? It’s all new.”

Shadow sighed, “At least she helped before asking questions.”

Maddie smiled, “First of all, can we take a moment to acknowledge how under control I’ve been?”

“Uh, amazing.” Tom nodded in agreement.

“That’s true,” Amy nodded, “I probably would have freaked out If I ever saw an alien.”

“What? Like Rachel?” Sonic grinned at her, she waved her hand dismissively.

“Maybe not that bad…”

She continued, “Didn’t freak out. Totally calm.”

“Thank you.” Tom smiled at her, holding up a fist bump which she accepted.

“She’s panicking on the inside, isn’t she?” Sonic narrowed his eyes at Maddie, staring at her in concern.

“Most likely.” Shadow nodded.

Rouge chuckled, “She is hiding it pretty well- but her eyes tell a different story.”

“Second of all…” She laughed, smiling at Tom before completely dropping her fun expression, instead looking entirely shocked, “What the heck is going on?! Is that thing an alien?!”

“Ha!” Sonic laughed. “I knew nobody told her!”

Knuckles shook his head, “Not the time, hedgehog.”

Tom’s voice was calm as he explained, “Okay, so, remember how Crazy Carl is always going on about the Blue Devil?”

“The Blue Devil?” Maddie gasped. “That’s him? He’s real?”

“Yeah.” Tom nodded.

“I keep forgetting that Sonic already has a reputation in Green Hills,” Amy smiled at the couple, “Even If they think he’s a myth.”

“What can I say?” Sonic smirked. “I’m a myth- a legend- a-”

“An annoyance?” Shadow raised his eyebrow, smirking at the blue hedgehog.

Sonic rolled his eyes. “I was going to say ‘a symbol’ but sure- that too.” He stuck out his tongue.

“What is he doing here?” Maddie asked. “What are you doing here?”

Tom looked embarrassed as he explained, “I kinda, sorta, shot our little blue friend with your tranq gun.”

“No,” Maddie’s voice turned serious as she gave Tom a suspicious look, crossing her arms, “You did not.”

“Oh, he absolutely did.” Tails giggled.

Tom defended himself, “I didn’t mean to. Okay, this is kinda hard for me to explain.” He gestured with his hands as he continued, “And it’s gonna sound a little bit crazy. He has to get to the Transamerica building, and I promised I’d take him.”

“Uh-uh!” Rachel cut in, smirking like she knew what was going on. “Aliens? Madie, your husband’s lost his mind. Use this as an opportunity to leave him. No one would judge you.”

“Okay, I’m confused,” Sonic sighed. “Didn’t Rachel see my counterpart? What does he think he is? A doll?”

Knuckles shrugged, “I’m trying not to question anything she says- it’s less of a hassle.”

“That’s smart.” Sonic nodded.

Back in the kitchen, they saw Jojo return to Sonic with her hands hidden behind her back. She stopped in front of him, smiling at him widely.

“Finally someone who isn't afraid of him!” Sonic smiled at the girl, already liking her.

With a big smile, she presented him with brand new running shoes in red with white straps, “So you won’t hurt your feet anymore.”

“Really?” Sonic asked, his face hopeful.

“Aww!” Amy squealed. “They’re so cute!”

“The shoes? Or Jojo and Sonic?” Knuckles asked in confusion.

“Both!” She smiled. “Definitely both!”

As Tails looked at the shoes, he frowned, “Wait… aren’t those?” He turned to Sonic, looking down at his shoes, “They look like your current shoes!”

Sonic lifted one shoe, comparing the both shoes, “Huh, yeah- you’re right!”

“Uh-buh.” Jojo nodded.

Tentatively Sonic reached out and took the shoes from Jojo, “No one’s ever given me a gift before. I gotta check that off my bucket list.” He smiled.

Jojo smiled back as she watched the blue hedgehog try the shoes on. He jumped to his feet, moving them around and growing more excited over the shoes- Jojo giggled.

Sonic inclined his head, softly smiling at the scene. This interaction made him really happy- Jojo reminded him a lot of Tails.

They were both kind- no matter what the world threw at them. He had always been impressed at that sentiment.

Tom and Maddie were still trying to have their conversation. Maddie seemed accepting of the situation as she said, “Okay, you said you wanted to help people in real trouble, right? Well, that’s what you’re doing. Blue alien hedgehogs still count as people, right?”

“Well- I certainly hope so.” Sonic joked, relaxing now that Maddie seemed more calm about this situation.

Amy smiled, “She’s really taking this well.”

Tom looked at Maddie with a gentle smile, “I love you. Did I tell you that already?”

Walking away, Tom continued, “I don’t deserve you. You know that?”

“I know that.” Rachel deadpanned.

“So, Maddie is now on board?” Tails smiled, excited.

“Guess, so.” Sonic nodded, grinning. “Another new member for Team Sonic!”

Back in the kitchen, Sonic was staring at Ozzie- the hedgehog’s look was serious while the dog only panted, clearly content with being stared at.

“So, you’re supposed to be Tom’s “best friend” that he won’t shut up about.” Sonic was still staring at the dog like he was searching for something.

The blue hedgehog then shook his head, “Well, I don’t see the appeal.”

“Is Other Blue seriously arguing with a dog?” Rouge asked, amused.

Amy nodded, also finding this situation very funny, “Seems so.” She turned to Sonic, raising her eyebrow as she asked, “Any comment?”

“I mean,” Sonic shrugged, smirking, “As long as my counterpart is winning the argument.”

Ozzie walked over to Sonic and started licking him, which made the blue hedgehog laugh.

“Stop!” Sonic chuckled, “That is very gross!”

“Seems like he’s losing.” Shadow deadpanned.

“Sonic,” Tails giggled as he watched Sonic and the dog interact. “You’re losing to a dog.”

Sonic huffed, crossing his arms before smiling at the dog, “Some things are cute enough to lose to.”

“Didn’t think we’d ever see the day where Sonic the Hedgehog accepts defeat.” Knuckles shook his head, chuckling.

Maddie walked down the stairs just as Tom entered the hallway through the front door, she greeted him, “Hey.”

“Hey.” Tom said back, explaining, “So, my truck still runs, but it’s pretty much totaled. You think your sister would mind if we borrowed her car?”

Rachel, who was still tied up, immediately chimed in, “You have got to be kidding me!”

Both Maddie and Tom looked at each other for a moment, before agreeing to ignore Rachel’s comment, “She’ll be fine.” - “Yeah, let’s do that.”

Rachel yelled after them as they walked out, leaving her still tied up, “This is my house!!”

“I kinda feel bad for her- we can’t just leave her tied up, right?” Tails frowned, looking at Rachel with sad eyes.

“She’ll be fine.” Sonic reassured his brother, waving his hand dismissively, “She has Jojo.”

Amy raised her eyebrow, pointing out, “Jojo, who didn’t untie her before?”

“Well,” Knuckles frowned, “She would have gotten in the way.”

“We couldn’t do anything to help her anyway,” Rouge nodded at Rachel. “It’s just a projection.”

Before anyone else could speak up, Shadow cut in, his tone dry, “How about we move on? We have more important things to do than worry about nothing.” He scoffed.

The group frowned at the black hedgehog’s comment but nobody argued.

Chapter Text

Why Say Goodbye?

Their surroundings changed as Rachel’s beat-up car drove through the busy streets of San Francisco. The driving looked dangerous, neglecting all of the street regulations.

While the group had been prepared for the scene to change- they hadn’t expected to be standing in the middle of the road which caused them to be almost driven over by the car that was frantically swerving.

They all dove to the side in order to dodge the car.

“What?!” Amy shrieked, heavily panting and holding her side, “Who’s driving that thing?!”

Everyone was still busy with trying to catch their breath- except for Shadow who had calmly sidestepped the car like he hadn’t even felt the tiniest bit startled. He narrowed his eyes at the car, “There is only one person who would drive this badly.”

The car came to an abrupt stop and the car door jumped open. Maddie, Tom and Sonic quickly left the car- the blue hedgehog coming directly from the driver’s side.

“Seriously?!” Sonic gasped, “Why would they let Sonic drive?”

Tails turned to stare at his brother, confused, “How are you against this- don’t you want to drive?”

“I mean, yeah-” Sonic nodded, “But did you see how bad Sonic’s driving is?”

The others stared at the blue hedgehog in exasperation, who only looked confused, “What?”

“Is there anything you didn’t hit?” Tom groaned.

Maddie smiled, nervously, “Why did we let the alien drive?”

“Which is what we’re all wondering.” Knuckles commented.

“Hey,” Sonic looked offended, “I got us here. And please, 5 stars.

“If Rachel didn’t already dislike Tom,” Rouge shook her head, “This would be the final nail in the coffin.”

The two humans and the blue hedgehog stared up at the towering Transamerica building.

“So, this is it?” Sonic asked.

The group followed their gaze, also taking in the gigantic building.

Sonic whistled, impressed, “That’s one tall building.”

“You could probably overlook the whole city from the roof of that building!” Tails exclaimed, sounding excited by the sheer idea of standing on top of that roof.

“That’s it.” Tom confirmed, “That’s your pyramid.”

“Wow, look at that thing!” Sonic gasped, looking at the building with a big smile.

Amy turned to Tom, asking, “What happens now?”

As soon as Maddie had finished her question, Sonic had already sped away in a blur.

“That’s probably the fastest way to do it.” Shadow nodded in approval.

“Oh!” Maddie was confused, “He’s… gone.”

“Yep.” Tom nodded.

“He does that a lot.” Knuckles nodded.

Amy sighed, her gaze fond, “You’ll get used to it.”

A second later Sonic came back, shaking his head, “No good. You need a special key to get to the roof.”

“Wait, what?” Sonic frowned in confusion. “A key? Did Sonic actually go through the whole building?”

“I thought he was gonna scale the building?” Tails cocked his head to the side, “Like a wall run?”

“Apparently,” Shadow commented drily, “He didn’t think of that.”

Maddie nodded, crossing her arms as she continued staring at the building, “What now?”

“Time for me to abuse the power entrusted to me.” Tom’s expression was smug, putting his hands on his hips.

“I know flashing a badge opens doors, “ Amy shook her head in disbelief, “but how is it going to help here?”

“I mean,” She continued, “Does he even have jurisdiction here?”

Rouge frowned, “You’re right. But Tom seems to be confident that his plan is going to work.” The bat shrugged.

“I wonder what he’s planning.” Amy sighed.

The scene changed as Maddie and Tom walked to the reception desk. Tom was carrying a duffel bag. The couple nodded at each other briefly before approaching the front desk.

“Uh,” Tails spun around in a circle, “Where’s Sonic?”

Knuckles guessed, shrugging, “Maybe he is waiting on a roof, waiting for them to let him in?”

“We got a jumper on the roof. Gotta get up there fast or we’re gonna have a human pancake on our hands.” Tom flashed his badge at the receptionist.

The woman looked at the badge in confusion, “You came all the way from Montana?”

Tom froze for a second before nodding, “Yep. That’s how serious it is.”

The receptionist looked at Maddie before turning back to Tom- all three stayed silent, prolonging the pause. Tom and Maddie twitched, becoming obviously more nervous the longer the inspection went on.

“Wouldn’t it be really easy to call Tom’s bluff here?” Amy asked, curious. “They could just check If someone was actually walking on the roof.”

Shadow frowned, nodding. “Yes. This whole plan just depends on the building personnel not  actually doing their job.”

“So, they have to be lucky…” Amy sighed.

Finally the receptionist sighed, she handed Tom the key, “Okay.”

Rouge shook her hand in disbelief, muttering, “I can’t believe that actually worked.”

Tom’s gaze was serious as he thanked her, “You just saved a life.”

Maddie and Tom walked over to the elevator and pressed the call button- they waited. As they waited, a businessman and a businesswoman joined them, also waiting for the elevator to appear.

“You know,” Sonic nodded at the couple, smiling amusedly, “If this was actually like the situation Tom had described, they probably wouldn’t have used the elevator.”

Tails frowned. “I don’t know. Did you see how tall that building is? It’s probably faster than running up the stairs.”

Sonic simply turned to his brother, smirking and raising one eyebrow.

The kit rolled his eyes, “Not everyone is as fast as you, Sonic.”

Suddenly Sonic's voice called out, urgent, “How much longer? I can’t breathe in here?” It came directly from the duffel bag Tom was carrying.

Amy shrieked, “They shoved him into a bag?!”

“That’s just… rude.” Sonic crossed his arms, huffing.

“This is a terrible plan,” Shadow nodded along with Sonic’s assessment, before continuing, smirking, “Sonic could never stay silent this long- he would ruin the plan.”

“Exactly!” Sonic agreed before Shadow’s comment finally caught up to him, “Hey!”

“Hello? Anybody here?” Sonic added after nobody answered him.

The Businessman and Businesswoman stared at Tom and Maddie- the Businesswoman interrogated Tom, “Do you have your child in that bag?”

Tom shook his head, smiling, “No.”

“I mean, yes, it's a child,” He added, still smiling, “but it’s not mine.”

The Businessman looked confused, “It’s not your child?”

Knuckles chuckled, slightly shaking his head, “People these days don’t want to mind their own business anymore.”

Rouge sighed, pinching her nose, “Tom is not making this situation better.”

“Relax. I’m a cop, okay?” Tom tried to reassure them but they still stared at him like he was crazy, for emphasize he shook the bag roughly, “Plus, he likes it in there, don’t you buddy?”

Sonic didn’t miss a beat, “Why would I like it in here? This is worse than the dog cage you had me in earlier!”

Tom chuckled, “Such a kidder.”

Sonic groaned, hiding his face away behind his hands, “This is just humiliating.”

“Well,” Tails giggled, “If they’re not calling the police, I would honestly be very disappointed.”

Maddie laughed with him, then closed the zipper to Sonic’s loud protests, “No, I’m scared of the dark!”

The businessman and businesswoman looked uncomfortable, slowly moving away from them and leaving completely.

“Is anybody there?” Sonic asked but still, nobody answered him.

Amy raised an eyebrow, sighing, “I can’t tell If Sonic is acting and just doing this to further complicate the situation- or If he’s actually that uncomfortable.”

“Probably a mix of both.” Sonic admitted. “I can’t imagine that this bad would be comfortable.”

Tails turned to his brother, his expression hopeful, “We could try it.” After Sonic only stared at him, dumbfounded, he added, smirking, “For science.”

“Fine.” Sonic smirked back. “But you’re going to be the one in the bag.”

“Hold on-” Tails frowned but the projection was already resuming.

Tom and Maddie had finally arrived on the roof of the Transamerica building, Tom kneeled  down and opened the duffel bag to reveal a coughing and gagging Sonic.

The blue hedgehog was wearing a pair of underwear on his head, staring at Tom in accusation, “Ugh! What were you keeping in this bag? A jar of pickled farts?!” He took the underwear off his head and stuffed it back into the bag.

Tom rolled his eyes, unimpressed, “All right, all right. What are we looking for?”

Sonic zipped all over the roof, looking for something- after a short moment, Sonic turned back to Tom and Maddie, holding up his ring satchel, “This.”

“Huh.” Sonic cocked his head to the side, narrowing his eyes. “Is it just me or was this just-... too easy?”

Knuckles nodded, “It does seem kind of… anticlimactic.”

“Okay.” Maddie nodded. “What happens now?”

Sonic smiled, “Now, all I have to do is think of where I want the other end of the ring to appear, and I throw it.”

“So, that’s it?” Tom asked, “We did it?”

Sonic nodded, “Yeah! We did it!”

Shadow frowned, crossing his arms. This situation seemed strange- sure, they had the ring satchel but it didn’t feel like Sonic was leaving.

Was Sonic going to stay in this world? If so- they should still leave. They got what they wanted, standing on this open roof just made them a target.

Who knew when the receptionist decided to call their bluff and call the police to ask what was going on?

Sonic tilted his head, smiling amused, “This seems kinda… awkward.”

“They should probably say their goodbye somewhere else.” Amy nodded, frowning.

“Hey, sorry,” Tom sounded apologetic. “We didn’t get to do everything on your bucket list, pal.”

“It’s okay. I did the ones I needed the most.” Sonic smiled at Tom, his voice soft.

Meanwhile Maddie was looking at both Tom and Sonic with a small smile, she chuckled, gesturing at them, “You two are so cute.”

Amy giggled, nodding, “She’s right. They’re adorable!”

Tom and Sonic immediately disagreed. Tom scoffed, “Oh, please. What?” while Sonic stomped his foot on the ground, offended, “We are not.”

Sonic snickered looking at the duo trying to defend themselves, “Nope- they actually are. And that’s kinda proving the point.” He rolled his eyes as he nodded at his counterpart who looked like a little kid throwing a small tantrum.

Rouge smiled, “Seems like Maddie also likes Other Blue here.”

Shadow, next to her, frowned, “It is hard not to tolerate him.”

The bat’s smile widened as she turned to her friend who scoffed when he felt her gaze, “What?”

“Absolutely nothing.” She winked at him before turning back to the projection.

“We are a couple of loose cannons just living by our own rules.” Sonic boasted.

Tom immediately agreed, nodding, “Exactly.”

Maddie didn’t seem impressed, “Really?”

“Yeah.” Tom replied.

Sonic was watching both humans for a moment before chiming back in, “And our rules include expressing heartfelt emotion.”

“There is nothing wrong with having emotions.” Amy nodded, her expression soft.

“If you say so.” Maddie threw up her hands in mock-surrender.

Sonic’s expression turned serious. He looked sad as he turned back to Tom, stating, “Okay, then.”

Tom mirrored him, also turning serious, “All right.” He sighed. “Um, you gotta go, right?”

“Yeah, I gotta go.” Sonic nodded.

Tom nodded back, “You gotta go- we gotta go too.”

Sonic began fiddling with his hands, clearly not ready to say goodbye yet, “See– All right, bye-bye.” He turned away for a moment, sighing. The blue hedgehog then turned back again to the two humans, saying, “Just one more thing.”

Maddie and Tom shared a quick glance and when she nodded, Tom walked over to Sonic and kneeled down to Sonic’s level.

Sonic seemingly curled into himself, making him look even smaller, he looked at Tom with a sorrowful expression, “I’m sorry I was so hard on you. I know it’s a tough decision for you to leave Green Hills. Walking away from something you care about has to be painful.”

Knuckles sighed, “He’s talking about himself, isn’t he?” He nodded at on-screen Sonic, frowning. “He doesn’t have to leave- I get it, he wants to fulfill Longclaw’s last wish.”

The red echidna nodded to himself, briefly looking like he was thinking of something else- something more personal to him.

This situation of honoring the last wish of someone long gone reminded Knuckles of his duty to protect the Chaos Emeralds. As long as he could remember, it had been his duty and he took great pride in it. He just wished… there were still others of his kind, someone to share the burden with.

 His gaze snapped back to the situation, he concluded, “It’s his own decision.”

“The decisions you have to make on your own are the hardest to make.” Shadow added, his gaze soft as he watched the sad goodbye between the two humans and Sonic.

The black hedgehog still remembered how lost he had been after leaving the ice- and after losing his memories. It had been so very easy to manipulate him, which Dr. Robotnik, of course, took immediately advantage of.

If he hadn’t- Shadow turned to the group, looking at every member- every friend standing next to him- If he didn’t have them, who even knew where he would have ended up instead?

Sonic nodded, briefly smiling at Shadow, “You’re right, but that’s also the reason why they are the most important ones to make.” He turned back to the projection, slightly frowning.

He knew that this decision had been coming- and the blue hedgehog had thought he would be prepared for it to happen but right now? He didn’t feel prepared at all.

It was probably similar to how his counterpart felt- sometimes it was strange how similar they were despite being so very different. And Gaia, Sonic had been in this situation before! He had been to Camelot- to the World of the Arabian Nights- and he left both of them behind with little to no hesitation- why should he have hesitated?

Sonic didn’t belong here- he felt it as strongly as he felt about his friends. It was right to leave- easiest decision he had ever taken.

But this? If his counterpart actually decided to leave… he didn’t know how he would feel about it. It rubbed him the wrong way- why would he go to the Mushroom Planet, just to stay safe? Safe and alone?

That wasn’t how Sonic the Hedgehog normally rolled.

He nodded to himself, feeling more sure about his earlier thoughts: This was a big decision but he was sure that his counterpart was going to pick the correct option.

Standing a little farther away from the group, Tails frowned to himself.

The kit had been growing more and more silent- at first he had simply wanted to focus on the sight- and he was right, the view from the roof top looked amazing!

But he also felt strangely nostalgic. He knew that this projection was coming to an end and the idea made him… sad. Was it selfish for him to wish that they continued to stay here? They, as a group, rarely came together like this- the last time had been Sonic’s birthday and most of them didn’t even have the opportunity to talk because of what had happened.

A similar situation happened when they had gathered for Amy’s birthday.

The kit sighed, cradling his tails nervously in his hands.

He knew that they had a duty- they were heroes and their job was to save the day- but this? Just enjoying the moment, laughing about something stupid happening in a projection- this was fun.

No, he didn’t want this to end.

The fox got up and walked over to his brother, silently asking him for a hug by spreading his arms- the blue hedgehog immediately hugged his little brother tightly. He didn’t ask what was on Tails’ mind- they were probably thinking about the same thing.

Rouge was not sure about what she was feeling at the moment. She honestly was not very worried that Other Blue was going to leave Tom and Maddie- there was too much of a hero in that blue hedgehog for that to ever happen.

But she was not stupid- she also noticed that the projection was coming to an end- and that felt strange. They had been stuck in here for so long, how long had it even been at this point? 

A few hours? Because of the many revelations- it felt like days.

Normally Shadow and her did not really partake in any activity with the others- they often felt like a burden, like their presence was unnecessary, even hindering at times.

Recently that had changed, sure. They had gone to several gatherings, attended parties and what not, but they always had been this small thought inside her head, questioning the situation.

She couldn’t help it- her job was to be observant and especially at the beginning, the others had seemed rather off-putt. They had come around, of course, but the idea inside her head had stuck around, always calling her attention like a nasty fly.

This projection had been one of the only times she had actually felt rather welcome- and whatever happened, she was going to cherish this memory for a long time.

Similar to the bat, Amy was musing about what this projection had brought so far. 

It was almost funny how this projection had built a connection among the group, strengthening their bond in a way that nobody had seen coming. It felt strangely cathartic.

Seeing this version of Sonic, one of her oldest friends- This little blue hedgehog who had been able to bring them together.

Although, she thought as she looked at their Sonic, it had not been the first time that happened, huh?

The pink hedgehog sighed deeply. She just hoped that this newfound camaraderie would not change as soon as they left this space.

Tom smiled in understanding, “You’re not sure you really want to go, huh?”

“I don’t want to go, but I can’t stay.” Sonic acknowledged, looking down at the ground in sadness. “As long as I’m here. I put everyone in danger. I can’t do that. I just want you to know that these last two days have been the best two days of my life.”

The group smiled at the interaction, that was definitely something they could agree on.

Sonic smiled gently at Tom, who smiled back. The human then stood back up and walked over to Maddie, he threw one hand over her shoulder and turned back to Sonic, grinning. 

“You know, I never thought I’d say this, but, I’m actually gonna miss you, you little blue devil.”

Sonic nodded, “I’ll miss you too, Donut Lord. Thank you.”

“For what?” Tom asked, confused.

“For saving my life.” Sonic answered, still smiling.

Sonic turned away from the couple, reaching into his satchel. He pulled out a ring and sighed, briefly hesitating, then he tossed it.

Suddenly one of Dr. Robotnik’s flying drones appeared in the direct line of the ring- the ring bounced off and disappeared while many more drones showed up.

“The doctor is back.” Shadow scoffed, crossing his arms, annoyed.

Sonic groaned, “I know Eggman wasn’t going to stop, but seriously? We were having a moment here!”

“Okay,” Sonic looked concerned, “Did someone leave their ‘Find my Phone’ on?”

He stepped a few feet back but stopped when he had reached the edge of the roof, then a flying aircraft overhead approached, turning towards the trio.

It was Dr. Robotnik’s Eggpod.

The cockpit opened, revealing Dr. Robotnik in an entirely different outfit, looking more like the version the group already knew, with an evil grin on his face.

“Huh,” Tails cocked his head to the side as he stared at Eggman, confused, “His fashion sense really isn’t better in this universe.”

Knuckles shook his head in disbelief, “I think Eggman’s outfit is the least of our worries.”

“Welcome to San Francisco, Mr. Wachowski.” Dr. Robotnik sounded smug. “Are you enjoying the clam power?”

As Maddie looked confused, Tom explained, “It’s the government whack job who keeps trying to kill us.” He then added, turning back to the doctor, “Unsuccessfully.”

“Sums up their situation perfectly.” Sonic nodded along in approval.

Amy sighed, “They really should have left as soon as they got the bag back.” She shook her head.

Tom’s remark made Dr. Robotnik stop smirking, instead he scowled.

“Nice of you to swing by on your way to Comic-Con.” Tom joked, not looking at all impressed by Dr. Robotnik’s new outfit.

“Yeah,” Maddie chimed in, “What are you wearing?”

“Even the other humans agree that the doctor looks embarrassing.” Shadow smirked.

“Other humans?” Sonic frowned, turning to the black hedgehog. “Dude, you should seriously start using their names. I think they earned it.”

Shadow rolled his eyes before relenting, “Fine, Hedgehog.” He stressed the ‘Hedgehog’-nickname before continuing, nodding at each human as he spoke, “‘Maddie’ and ‘Thomas’ don’t look impressed, you happy?”

He turned back to Sonic who was widely grinning, “Yeah- immensely.”

Dr. Robotnik looked down at his suit, slightly confused before looking back to the trio, “It’s a flight suit, designed to modulate my body temperature and reduce,” He clenched his teeth, snarling, “drag!”

“Yeah,” Tom nodded before deadpanning, “And you still are one.”

“Oh-hoo! Good one. You are catching fire, Thomas.” Dr. Robotnik laughed sarcastically. “Oh, and speaking of heat, I see you’ve taken a lover. Does she have a name, or should we just call her ‘collateral damage’?” He chuckled, drumming on the sides of the Eggpod with glee.

“Lover?” Amy snapped, sounding extremely annoyed. “She’s his wife, you idiot.”

“Ames,” Sonic gasped, holding dramatically one hand to his chest, feigning surprise. “Where have you been hiding this attitude?”

The pink hedgehog crossed her arms, glaring Eggman down. “Normally I wouldn’t be like this.” She added, smirking. “But this Eggman just wants to get on my nerves.”

Next to her, Shadow nodded, also smirking, “It’s what the doctor does best.”

Sonic just warily looked at both hedgehogs before taking a few steps back. He definitely did not want to get in their way If they got like this.

“Hey, watch your mouth!” Tom snapped. “Unless you want a little more of what I gave you earlier.” At Maddie’s confused look, he added, whispering, “I punched him in the face.”

“Oh!” Sonic immediately nodded, chattering, “He punched him right in the face! It was awesome!”

“The time for talking is over! It’s time to push buttons!” Dr. Robotnik’s patience had finally run out.

“Your flying eggs are pretty impressive, Mr. Eggman,” Sonic teased the doctor, smirking, “But let’s face it, you’ll never catch me!”

“And so it begins,” Sonic announced, his tone mock-serious. “The birth of Eggman!” He gestured dramatically at the flying aircraft, like the nickname had been some big reveal.

“Uh!” Tails shuddered in disgust, gagging. “That just makes me think of Eggman ever being a kid!”

“He probably had to start somewhere.” Knuckles pointed out, shaking his head.

The kit only made his gagging noises louder in protest.

“Confidence!” Dr. Robotnik smirked. “A fool’s substitute for intelligence.”

The doctor opened a button capsule, prepping the aircraft with energy from Sonic’s quill powers as the flying drones readied their weapons as well.

“That’s not good.” Sonic looked nervous as he stared at the drones.

Rouge nodded, concerned. “The three don’t even know that Eggman has Sonic’s quill and is harvesting its energy.”

Amy added, “This Eggman is already normally a challenge- but with the powerup? Who knows what will happen.”

“Sonic, I know you got the super speed and everything, but Maddie and I–” Tom trailed off, not letting the drones surrounding them out of his sight.

Sonic nodded as he finished the thought, “Totally defenseless? Probably gonna get blown up?”

“Pretty much, yeah.” Maddie drily agreed.

“I hate to bring this up,” Tails frowned, asking nervously, “But don’t the roof doors normally automatically lock behind you?” He nodded at the door the trio had entered through earlier.

“Thomas and Maddie would not make it to the door on time.” Shadow pointed out, analyzing the situation at hand. “And there is nothing to take cover behind.”

“Don’t worry.” Sonic turned back to Tom and Maddie, smiling. “I know exactly what to do.”

The group stared warily at Sonic.

“I somehow seriously doubt that…” Shadow muttered to himself.

One second later, Sonic ran towards the side wall, bouncing and directly hitting Tom and Maddie, pushing them off the roof. The couple screamed as they fell.

“That’s his plan?!” Amy shrieked, staring down at the side of the building and watching the two humans fall, “How does that even help?”

Sonic frowned, “I mean? At least they’re out of danger? They were not even harmed!”

“Blue,” Rouge pinched her nose, deeply sighing. “Ending up as a human pancake is a form of bodily harm.”

“I know that,” Sonic waved his hand dismissively. “But I’m sure my counterpart has a plan.”

He turned back to his counterpart, his worry hidden behind a smile as he quietly muttered, “At least, I hope…”

Dr. Robotnik looked down from inside the Eggpod, feigning shock. “I was not expecting that…” He shrugged, undeterred, “But I was expecting not to expect something, so it doesn’t count.”

The flying drones fired their weapons, all directly aimed at Sonic who neither flinched nor tried to dodge.

“Eh..” Tails frowned, “I don’t think I like this plan very much?”

“Relax, fox.” Shadow crossed his arms, huffing. “We all know that Sonic is fast enough to dodge the rockets.”

Sonic looked away from the drones to smirk at the black hedgehog, “So you admit that I’m fast?”

Shadow shrugged. “This Sonic? Sure, nobody can deny it.” He smirked back at Sonic, “You have yet to convince me.”

“Oh, you’re so on!” Sonic grinned, already planning to challenge Shadow to a race when this was all over.

The rockets seemingly stopped in the air as everything around Sonic froze, instead Sonic’s awareness increased.

The blue hedgehog took a moment to simply grin at the rockets, then he started tapping his foot and looking at his wrist, mimicking checking the time.

Sonic snickered. His counterpart was just so extra- he loved it!

“Could you please just save Tom and Maddie, Sonic?” Amy groaned in frustration, still worried about the two humans.

He took a swing at the missiles directly in front of his face, knocking them aside. Then Sonic grabbed another two rockets, playing Xylophone with a row of bullets that were just inches away from his face.

Jumping down from the rooftop, Sonic landed on a drone, completely destroying it in the process before repeating the action with another drone.

Sonic was still jumping around, destroying all drones that he came across- almost having completely destroyed all of them when suddenly Dr. Robotnik pushed a button, still stuck in slow motion.

Sonic’s quill charged up the Eggpod as it entered Sonic’s timescale, now moving at the same speed.

“Oh!” Sonic frowned as he stared at the aircraft. “That’s… not good.”

Tails groaned, hiding his face in his hands, “Sonic… that’s a complete understatement.”

Just as Sonic turned two Egg Drones towards each other, making them target each other instead of him, Dr. Robotnik approached in his aircraft.

He shot a laser blast Sonic who only noticed in the last second, barely able to dodge as his vision turned blurry.

“How does Eggman even keep up?” Knuckles asked, curious.

The group stared at him in confusion.

Rouge answered, sounding confused, “Because, Darling, he has Sonic’s quill?”

“Yeah- I understand that,” Knuckles’ waved his hand dismissively before pointing out, “But it only charged up his vehicle- so how is Eggman suddenly fast enough to react? To shoot his missiles?”

Tails frowned, nodding, “You actually make a good point.” He rubbed his chin in thought. “Maybe licking Sonic’s quill had some consequences? Making his reaction time faster?”

“Seriously?!” Sonic groaned, “Do we have to bring that up again? I had almost forgotten that happened entirely!”

Sonic slowly recovered, his vision returning to normal. The blue hedgehog noticed that time around him had returned to normal- and then he saw that Tom and Maddie were still falling, dangerously close to hitting the ground.

Luckily the ring that Sonic had tossed earlier was directly falling next to him, he tried to reach for it, “Come on! Come on, come on, come on!”

The group chanted alongside him, “Come on, come on, come on!”

With the help of one of his quills, which he used to increase his reach, Sonic finally managed to grab the ring. He tossed the ring, opening a portal to a barn under Tom and Maddie, making them safely land in a pile of hay.

The blue hedgehog zipped past the portal, hitting several tree branches as he fell and crash landed on the street, groaning.

“Yikes.” Sonic winced, as he stared at his counterpart in concern. “That must have hurt.”

“Where did that portal even lead to?” Amy frowned.

Inside a barn in Green Hills, Montana, Tom and Maddie were lying inside a pile of hay, groaning.

The Farmer called Zimmer appeared, smiling at them, “Oh! Hi, Tom! Glad you’re here. Could use some help. Old Bessie’s about to give birth!”

From outside the barn, a cow, presumingly Old Bessie, mooed.

Tom sighed, “Give me a minute.”

The group exhaled relieved, now that Tom and Maddie were safe. Both could have been seriously hurt If they had been Dr. Robotnik’s actual target- or If Sonic hadn’t managed to open the portal on time.

“Thank Gaia,” Amy sighed. “That really was a close call.”

Shadow nodded, frowning. “Now Sonic can focus on beating Eggman.”

Knuckles cracked his fingers, growling. “He definitely deserves a beating after that.”

Chapter Text

The End?

The group tensed as the camera cut back to Sonic in San Francisco, still lying on the ground as he recovered from his fall.

Dr. Robotnik hovered nearby, staring the blue hedgehog down, “Can I give you one genius piece of advice?” He smirked. “Don’t run. It’ll only hurt more If you do. And it’s bad for your joints, they proved it.”

“Sonic not running?” Tails scoffed, his tails behind him swishing in annoyance. “Fat chance, Eggman.”

“Yeah!-” Sonic agreed, smirking at Dr. Robotik. After a second he turned back to Tails, frowning, “Wait- is that true?”

Shadow sighed, “Really, Hedgehog?” He pinched his nose, frustrated. “That’s a myth.”

“Oh,” Sonic nodded. “Yeah- of course, I knew that!”

“All right, Eggman. You wanna get fast?” He spread his arms, challenging the doctor, “Let’s get fast!”

Sonic zipped around, quickly gathering up all of his rings and shoving them back inside the satchel- then he sped off.

Dr. Robotnik put on his flight goggles, grinning, “The hard way it is.”

The cockpit to the Eggpod closed as Dr. Robotnik gave chase to Sonic, firing laser blasts at him. Instead of hitting his target, he only managed to damage the road.

The same freeze from the beginning of the film was shown as Sonic’s narration kicked back in.

“So, here we are again! We’ve been through so much together! Now you understand why there’s a psychotic robot doctor chasing a supersonic blue hedgehog.”

“Didn’t we see this already? This feels familiar.” Tails frowned, looking around.

Amy rubbed her chin before nodding, “Yeah, we did! At the beginning of the movie!”

“Oh!” Knuckles nodded in understanding. “So it was Eggman who was chasing Sonic- that makes a lot of sense.”

Sonic snickered, “Does there even need to be a reason for Eggman to chase me?”

Shadow frowned, “It’s still strange to hear Sonic addressing us.”

“He’s not addressing us directly.” Rouge rolled her eyes. “He’s talking an audience.”

Sonic grinned, “No-no. Shadow has a point.” He gestured around, meaning the group. “We ARE the audience.”

Sonic continued, “Want to know how it ends? Yeah, me too.”

“Hopefully, it will end well.” Amy sighed.

The scene unfroze as Sonic resumed dodging the laser blasts coming from Dr. Robotnik’s aircraft.

At one point, the blue hedgehog had to slide under a large trailer to avoid getting hit.

“This is crazy,” Tails frowned, frustrated. “How can Sonic even win this one? Eggman is as fast as he is!”

“Nobody is as fast as I am.” Sonic immediately shook his head, disagreeing. He then added, after watching the chase for a few more seconds, “Yeah, okay. He is faster than usual but he’s  still behind my counterpart.”

Shadow raised his eyebrow in disbelief. “Only because he’s chasing Sonic.”

Sonic shrugged, “Still slower.”

Sonic was confused, “How is this possible?! No one’s ever caught up to me before!”

“See?!” Tails gestured at the scene, “Even Sonic agrees!”

Sonic huffed, crossing his arms, annoyed.

Sonic grabbed a ring from his satchel, thinking about where the portal should lead to.

“Uh...” Rouge cocked her head to the side, unsure. “How would opening a portal even help?”

“Sonic could use the environment against him.” Shadow nodded in approval of this plan.

Knuckles added, “Or even lose him somewhere along the way.”

Their surroundings changed to a public place in Paris, instantly recognizable by The Eiffel Tower visible in the background.

A mime was entertaining a little girl and her mother. Just when he was making a circular movement with his hands, the ring portal opened up behind him.

Sonic zipped past the three people, “Coming through!”

“Wait…” Amy gasped, spinning around, “Is this Paris?” She spotted the Eiffel Tower in the distance, grinning, “This IS Paris!”

Tails scratched his head in confusion. “This universe is so confusing. They don’t have most locations we know best but then suddenly they have Paris?”

The mimed jumped to the side, screaming, “Sacré bleu!” as Dr. Robotnik’s aircraft followed closely behind.

“Excusez-moi, monsieur!” The doctor called out.

“Oh, so he has manners for strangers?” Amy asked, curious.

Sonic groaned, “You’re still talking about manners? Ames, please, drop it!”

The pink hedgehog threw her hands up in frustration, “He either needs to be polite or rude- this is just stupid!”

The scene changed to China where another ring portal opened. Sonic ran through, closely followed by Dr. Robotnik.

Knuckles whistled, “That’s a big wall.”

“First a big building, then a big wall?” Rouge deadpanned. “What’s next? A big car?”

Tails giggled, “I mean, technically…” The kit continued, “There has already been a big car- remember Eggman’s truck?”

The bat nodded before sighing deeply, “You’re right, Tails.” She shook her head in disbelief. “This movie just likes big things.”

“Here we go!” Sonic yelled, “Room to open it up!”

The blue hedgehog increased his speed, trying to shake the doctor off but Dr. Robotnik was clearly able to keep up.

“I don’t think running in a linear line is the best way to get rid of someone.” Sonic frowned. “Where are the loop-de-loops? This is way too predictable!”

Shadow groaned in exasperation. “Yeah- because a vertical loop would solve this problem?”

“Definitely.” Sonic nodded, mock-serious. “A loop-de-loop solves a lot of problems.”

Sonic groaned, “I can’t lose him!” He tossed another ring and zipped through the portal, Dr. Robotnik still close behind.

The scene changed to Egypt, Sonic was racing towards the pyramids in the distance as Dr. Robotnik continued firing laser blasts after him.

“Where are they now? Is that a desert?!” Sonic groaned. “What kind of desert doesn’t have at least some kind of cover to duck behind?!”

“Can’t Sonic seriously think of better locations to get rid of Eggman? There must be at least somewhere narrow- a place with a confusing layout!” Tails sighed.

The chase between those two continued. When one of the straying laser blasts had hit and officially destroyed the Sphinx, Sonic came to an abrupt stop.

He ran his fingers through the sand, an idea slowly making its way into his brain, “If you can’t beat ‘em, blind ‘em.” He grinned.

“Finally!” Shadow rolled his eyes, huffing. “It took Sonic way too long to figure this one out.”

“Aw, come on, Shadow!” Amy smiled. “This Sonic had met someone who could keep up with him!”

The black hedgehog scoffed before turning to Sonic, “At least this would never happen to you- you’re used to losing races.”

Sonic snickered, “If you say so, Shads.”

The blue hedgehog sped to Dr. Robotnik. He then circled around the flying aircraft, creating a gigantic tornado which disrupted Dr. Robotnik’ view.

“Lost… visual contact!” Dr. Robotnik yelled. Through the cloud of dust, the doctor barely could make out the blue hedgehog speed up the Great Pyramid of Giza. He tsked, “You’re not allowed up there! It’s one of the 7 Wonders!”

“Oh, but destroying that ugly cat was okay to do?” Sonic complained loudly.

Knuckles frowned, “I’m pretty sure that was a lion.”

Sonic waved his hand dismissively, “Which is just a big cat, really.”

Dr. Robotnik blasted out of the tornado, aiming directly for Sonic. The blue hedgehog tossed a ring and just as he was about to reach it to escape, Dr. Robotnik hit him with a laser blast, sending him flying through the portal at high speed and hurtling him onto the streets of Geen Hills.

His ring satchel fell from his grasp as he laid there motionless, seemingly unconscious.

“At least we’re back in Green Hills.” Amy sighed deeply, staring at the limp hedgehog with worried eyes.

“Green Hills?” Tails gasped, “So, Tom and Maddie can help Sonic now?”

Knuckles frowned, “But didn’t Sonic portal them away to safety?”

Sonic nodded, “True- but I doubt they will stay out of danger.”

Through the still open portal came Dr. Robotnik’s aircraft, slowly approaching the unconscious hedgehog.

There were several onlookers standing on the side of the street, all staring at this commotion happening. Even Tom, Maddie and Farmer Zimmer rushed over, seemingly only now just having arrived here.

Dr. Robotnik laughed maniacally, taking off his flight goggles, “You’re an astonishing little creature. It’ll be fun to take you back to the lab for a litany of invasive exploratory procedures.”

From the back of the black hedgehog’s throat erupted a low growl. 

Shadow seriously wanted to punch this version of the doctor in the face. Chasing Sonic was one thing- destroying civilians’ lives was another. But actually threatening a living being with experiments?

It disgusted him- and he felt like screaming. The black hedgehog internally promised himself to punch the doctor in the face as soon as they got back, it didn’t matter to him that their Dr. Robotnik wasn’t at fault.

He just needed to punch someone with a stupid gigantic moustache.

Dr. Robotnik’s speech concluded, he smiled, “Any last words?”

“Guac… I like that word…” Sonic slumped over on the ground.

Tails cried out, “Sonic!” The kit rushed forward but stopped when he remembered that they could not do anything to help.

“Tom is going to help him, right?!” The kit turned to his brother, his question sounding desperate, Sonic nodded at him, trying to reassure the fox.

Amy simply shook her head, sadly looking down at the hurt hedgehog. “Oh, Sonic.”

This seemed a step too far- even for Eggman.

Unbeknownst to Dr. Robotnik, a ring portal opened up behind him, revealing Tom Wachowsky.

Tom jumped onto the aircraft, waiting for his moment to strike while the doctor continued monologuing, “I don’t have to tell you how many scientific breakthroughs have been made possible by animal testing. You’re being very selfish.”

“Does Eggman not care that animals have feelings?” Amy snapped, feeling very angry. “They have a conscience!”

Knuckles nodded, just as upset as the pink hedgehog. “And he defines what an animal is.” He nodded at the doctor, disgust clear on his face. “What happens If someone decides to do this with him?”

The red echidna scoffed, crossing his arms, “But again- Eggman probably doesn’t think that far except that he’s the one on top.”

Meanwhile Shadow was still growling and seething on the inside, his fists cracked as he clenched them, nearly breaking them in the process.

When Rouge noticed, she looked concerned, “Do you want a break?”

“No.” The black hedgehog snapped back before taking a deep breath, trying to calm himself down. “...sorry.” He muttered, his voice suddenly sounding very quiet.

Rouge sighed, not offended in the slightest. She wouldn’t be Shadow’s best friend If she couldn’t deal with a few arguments. “It’s okay…” The bat nodded, smiling at him. “Just remember that you’re not alone.”

After a small silence, she quipped, “And If you want to go punch Eggman after this, I would wholly support you.”

Shadow snorted in response, a small smile on his face. It wasn’t big- but it was definitely a step in the right direction.

Sonic was still too busy with consoling his little brother that he wasn’t even paying attention to anything that was happening in the projection- sure, this was tense but his brother was more important.

Tom crawled from the back of the aircraft to the front, announcing his presence with a cheeky, “Going my way?”

“What the–” Dr. Robotnik was startled but could not even finish his exclamation as he was immediately punched in the face by Tom, who knocked the doctor’s flight glasses off his head.

Knuckles and Amy whooped, cheering for Tom, “Yeah! Finally!”

Tom and Dr. Robotnik began fighting inside the Eggpod, they wrestled for control.

The doctor grabbed Tom by the shirt, his expression was pure disbelief as he asked, “Who the hell do you think you are?!”

Tom broke free from the other’s grasp. He punched Dr. Robotnik before grabbing him by the shoulder, remarking, “I’m the Donut Lord, you son of a–”

He was cut off by Dr. Robotnik’s elbow that suddenly hit Tom’s stomach. Falling completely off the Eggpod, Tom landed on the ground as Dr. Robotnik jerked the steering yoke.

Sonic groaned, rubbing one hand across his face, “This stupid fight is taking way too long.” He sighed, “I hate that the only thing we can do is watch.”

Tails next to him nodded in agreement, then he smiled, “But you said it yourself: They’re going to win.” He winked at his brother, “We just have to pay attention and find out how.”

The blue hedgehog grinned at his brother and nodded.

Dr. Robotnik put his flight goggles back on his head, ordering, “Autopilot, adjust!”

He looked down at Tom, who was still lying on the ground and groaning. Maddie had rushed over to help him.

The doctor seemed earnestly confused, “Why? Why would you throw your life away for this… thing?” He pointed at Sonic’s limp body, still unmoving. “That’s why I don’t have friends. Next thing you know, you’re somebody’s best man, they want to have the wedding out of town… Like nobody has anything better to do!”

Rouge rolled her eyes, commenting drily, “I’m pretty sure the reason why the doctor has no friends is that he’s just generally unlikeable.”

Next to her, Shadow snorted. He smirked, adding, “The only ones that seem to stick around are machines.” He nodded, mock-frowning. “No wonder the doctor loves picking fights- clearly, he’s very lonely.”

The others snickered at the black hedgehog’s comment.

“Anyway, where were we?” Dr. Robotnik’s rant had distracted himself. “Oh, yes– you were about to die.”

Suddenly a bullet ricocheted off the exterior of the Eggpod. It was Deputy Wade Whipple, still aiming at the aircraft, his expression looked serious as he shouted, “That’s our sheriff you’re messing with.”

Tom lit up as he watched Crazy Carl join Wade in defending him, “And our Blue Devil,” Carl held up a chainsaw, it rumbled loudly, “Who, as everyone can see, is a very real creature and not at all invented by me!”

“Why, look at that!” Sonic grinned. “‘Super Observant Carl’ is back!”

Tails giggled, “Yeah! And he’s defending the Blue Devil.”

Amy smiled as she watched the population of Green Hill defend Tom, “And there is their community. He thought he didn’t make a difference but look at these people!” She spun around in a circle, laughing. “How many people are here just for Tom?”

“There is nothing stronger than a group of people who gather for a shared cause.” Shadow nodded- eager to finally see this Dr. Robotnik lose.

Wade gently pushed the chainsaw away from himself, “Careful. Just– just put it away.”

Maddie looked over to Sonic, “Tom?” She gently got her husband’s attention. Both of them stared at the unconscious Sonic, their faze filled with grief and guilt.

“I don’t mean to be indelicate here,” Dr. Robotnik’s voice sounded soft in great contradiction to what he was about to say, “but someone should get some ice, keep the body fresh.”

Sonic rolled his eyes, he felt more confident now that he saw how many people stood behind Tom than actually worried. 

“Eggman just loves to count his chickens before they hatch, huh?” Sonic snickered. 

Tom lowered his head, looking near to tears now.

Dr. Robotnik continued taunting the couple, “He’s just a silly little alien. He didn’t belong here!”

Tom’s expression turned angry, he got up and stood his ground against the doctor, glaring at him, “That little alien… knew more about being human… than you ever will.”

He shook his head and continued, “His name was Sonic. This was his home. And he was my friend.”

“Aww!” Tails smiled. “So Sonic’s bucket list did come through in the end!”

Amy shook her head, also smiling. “I knew they would become great friends.”

Sonic visibly lit up at Tom’s little speech- this was exactly what he had been hoping for. His counterpart had found his own friends- people who stand in his corner.

Upon hearing Tom’s speech, Sonic’s eyes immediately flew open as his body was engulfed with a blue bright light. The blue hedgehog came to his feet as energy zapped around him.

Dr. Robotnik threw one hand in front of his face, shielding his eyes from the sudden bright light that blinded him.

Knuckles grinned, “So, this Sonic is powered by friendship?”

“Dude,” Sonic shook his head, a similar grin on his face. “You can’t just say stuff like that.”

Tails giggled, smiling widely, “I don’t know- Knuckles is right! Didn’t you see him open his eyes as soon as Tom spoke about friendship?”

“Whatever.” Sonic rolled his eyes in mock-offense.

Tom and Maddie smiled widely at Sonic.

“He’s all yours!” Tom yelled to Sonic, leading Maddie and the others away to a safe distance, “Everyone get back!”

At Tom’s command everyone moved, standing to the side and out of danger.

Shadow smirked, cracking his knuckles. “It’s time for a second round.”

“Go, Other Blue!” Rouge cheered.

Sonic’s expression was serious as he stared at Dr. Robotnik, “I think you have something that belongs to me!”

The blue hedgehog clenched one fist tightly which immediately siphoned the energy from his quill in Dr. Robotnik’s Eggpod- it continued until it stopped glowing, the energy now had been entirely transferred back to Sonic.

He stood up straight and stared down at the doctor, “This is my power, and I’m not using it to run away anymore. I’m using it to protect… my… friends!”

Tails cocked his head to the side as he looked at Sonic, “Why do I have the feelings that this fight is going to be a short one?”

Knuckles nodded, smiling, “I think Sonic is done with pulling his punches.”

Dr. Robotnik put on his flight goggles before he readied the Eggpod’s concealed weapons. The aircraft hovered higher with its weapons aimed directly at Sonic.

The hedgehog did not flinch, instead he slowly lowered himself into a start position down on the road.

For a moment both adversaries stared at each other, sizing each other up- then Dr. Robotnik grinned and fired his weapons. Missiles sped towards Sonic but he had been ready for it, barely breaking into a sweat as he dodged them effortlessly.

The blue hedgehog jumped against a wall, using the momentum to lunge himself at the flying aircraft. Sonic continued to bombard the vehicle with body slam, each attack increasing in speed and damaging the Eggpod further.

Sonic only stopped when the Eggpod loudly beeped, showing multiple error messages- Dr. Robotnik groaned, seemingly very agitated, “Now, you’ve done it!”

“Eggman still seriously expects to win like that?” Amy shook her head in disbelief, “Is he delusional?”

“I mean, we had already established that this Eggman is very much insane.” Sonic shrugged.

“I know,” Amy sighed in frustration. “But this? It took Sonic barely a minute to completely wreck that machine!”

Sonic grinned, deepening his voice in a bad imitation of Eggman, “‘Confidence! A fool’s substitute for intelligence.’”

The blue hedgehog was not the slightest bit impressed, “Guess what, Eggman? I’m not leaving Earth. YOU are!”

Sonic turned to Tom, “Donut Lord?”, who didn’t hesitate, he nodded and after pulling out the ring satchel he took position behind Dr. Robotnik.

“They’re banishing him from Earth?” Tails frowned, “Can they even do that?”

“Are you asking If they’re able to do that or If it would be morally correct?” Rouge frowned at the young fox.

“The second one. I know they’re able to,” The kit nodded at himself before continuing, “But isn’t that kind of… harsh?”

The bat neatly folded her hands on top of each other before turning to Tails, grinning at him, “As long as nobody complains…” She trailed off.

“Rouge,” Sonic raised an eyebrow at the bat who only innocently smiled at him. “Are you trying to corrupt my little brother?”

She gasped dramatically, “Of course not, Blue! I would never.” But as soon as the blue hedgehog turned away, she smiled at Tails conspiringly, “Why? Is it working.”

The kit giggled before shrugging, turning back to the projection.

Completely unnoticed by Dr. Robotnik, Tom tossed a ring, opening a portal to the Mushroom Planet behind the flying aircraft.

Both Sonic and Dr. Robotnik continued to stare at each other and then- they charged.

The blue hedgehog landed a powerful blow to the Eggpod, shattering the glass surrounding the cockpit and reducing it to useless junk, knocking it and a screaming Dr. Robotnik, who was still inside, through the portal.

The ring portal closed, sealing Dr. Robotnik away in an unfamiliar world as the electricity slowly faded, returning Sonic to his normal unglowing state.

The group cheered as they watched the portal close, a mix between relief and excitement filled the space.

Tails flew laps around the room, still whooping and cheering. 

“And there goes his first victory!” Sonic grinned, wiping away a fake tear from his eye. “I am so proud!”

Knuckles clapped, smiling, “Not bad for a beginner.”

“Sonic still has a lot to learn,” Shadow smirked slightly before admitting, “but this a good attempt.”

Amy and Rouge grinned before high-fiving each other.

After Sonic’s apparent victory, the onlookers came back, forming a large crowd. They cheered for the blue hedgehog.

Tom ran over to Sonic, grinning, “I told you, you got this.”

“Hey,” Sonic smiled back. “We got this.”

The human then threw up his hand for a high-5, encouragingly smiling at the blue hedgehog who was visibly excited by the offer. He laughed happily as he sped around in a circle before jumping up and finally giving Tom a high-5.