A Place for All of Us

by Copper_the_Catt

Summary:

Shadow returns after years of distance, expecting to feel like a ghost in Sonic and Amy’s perfect life.
Between chaotic toddlers, warm meals, and long-held truths finally surfacing, he begins to wonder if there’s room for him in something more than just memories.
A polyamorous romance about second chances, quiet confessions, and the kind of love worth staying for.

Notes:

Hey, don't worry, I'm still working on Fighting Insticts. This was a little project I've had on my mind for a while, I've been making art and comics for this little Family AU here on my tumblr for a bit. I've been wanting to write the story of how the family came together, so I started.

Chapter 1: A Place at the Table

Shadow had been away from the others for quite a while—two years, at least—before Amy and Sonic finally convinced him to come by for a visit. He had gone quiet, slipping between missions and silence, becoming something more like a shadow than ever before. Even during the rare times he appeared—usually amid disaster—he was gone before anyone could get a proper word in. Sonic never stopped trying, though. Calls. Messages. Invitations left unanswered.

Now, with Shadow finally agreeing to stop by, Sonic was practically vibrating. Not just out of excitement, but something he couldn’t quite name. A buzz under the surface.

Not only would he get to see his longtime rival again—the one person who always kept him sharp, always kept him honest—but he’d also get to introduce him to the kids.

In the time Shadow had been gone, Amy had given birth to three beautiful babies: Flash, Spike, and Rosie. They were two now—walking (well, Flash was running), talking (Rosie more than the others), and already making their mark on every inch of the house. Sonic was a proud dad through and through, the kind who showed baby pictures to everyone who would (or wouldn't) listen. Shadow was the last of their friends who hadn’t met them yet.

Even Amy, always the one to keep her head in a crisis, was flustered over the visit. She zipped around the house that morning like a pink whirlwind, hands full of cutlery and stress.

“You didn’t even ask him what his favorite food was?” she scolded, setting the table with crisp efficiency. “What if he hates pot roast?”

Sonic leaned against the doorframe, a cocky grin stretching his face. “C’mon, Ames. I was gonna suggest your famous chili. You’re the one who went fancy.”

Amy rolled her eyes, but there was a glimmer of nerves underneath her usual sass. Shadow was hard to read, and harder to impress.

When the doorbell rang, Sonic vanished from the kitchen with the speed of a small hurricane, herding toddlers like loose sheep into the living room as he passed. He reached the front door and swung it open—grin wide, heart a little unsteady.

Shadow stood on the porch, arms folded, posture rigid as ever. His red-striped quills were slicked back in neat, sharp lines, his black fur sleek and stormy under the daylight. Sonic thought he looked exactly the same—and yet, not quite. There was something more worn around the edges. Less armor, more gravity. In those crimson eyes, something tired. Not physically—emotionally.

Sonic's grin didn’t falter. If anything, it softened. “Yo, Shadow! Long time no see. Heard you’ve been off saving the world in secret.”

Shadow exhaled through his nose, arms dropping with reluctant ease as Amy appeared behind Sonic. “I’ve been occupied,” he said simply. His voice had that same low cadence, like each syllable had been examined and approved before leaving his mouth. “Sounds like things here have been... eventful.”

“That’s one word for it,” Amy said with a small laugh. She stepped aside and gestured him in. “Come on. You’re welcome here.”

Before Shadow could argue or retreat, Sonic gently grabbed his elbow—just a nudge, just enough to guide. Shadow’s body tensed, a reflex, but he didn’t pull away. That alone said something.

Sonic ushered Shadow into the living room with a quick, “Wait here a sec—I wanna introduce you properly.”

Shadow’s boots landed with a soft thud on the hardwood as he stepped inside, arms falling back into a loose cross. The house was... lived-in. Warm, cluttered, a kaleidoscope of toys scattered across the floor. It smelled like chili spice and something sweet in the oven. It was cozy. Strange to someone like him.

“Here are our kids!” Sonic called, crouching beside the three toddlers as they toddled toward the guest.

“This is Rosie,” he said, gesturing to the smallest—a mulberry-quilled girl in a strawberry-print dress. She blinked up at Shadow with wide green eyes, then offered a smile like she was handing him a secret. Shadow didn’t quite know how to respond to that kind of trust.

“And this one’s Spike,” Sonic continued, nodding to the quietest of the bunch, a soft violet boy chewing thoughtfully on a rubber ring. He glanced at Shadow, then half-hid behind Sonic’s leg.

“And finally…” Sonic looked up. “Wait—where’s Flash?”

Shadow tilted his head, scanning the room. “You lost one already?” he asked, dryly.

“They're toddlers! They vanish if you blink!” Sonic huffed. “Plus, Flash has my—"

“Dada! DADA!!” A sky-blue blur launched from around the corner, ricocheted off the couch, and slammed directly into the far wall with an audible thud. Shadow instinctively stepped forward—not thinking, just moving—but the child peeled himself off the wall with a victorious grin.

“Ouch!” Flash chirped.

Sonic laughed, already scooping the boy into his arms. “He’s got my speed, not my brakes.”

“‘I go fas!’” Flash announced proudly as Sonic inspected him for bruises.

“Yeah, and Mama told you not to go fast in the house.”

Shadow’s gaze lingered on Sonic for a moment—his arms full of a giggling toddler, that unguarded smile tugging at his face. He looked… different here. Softer. Not the whirlwind hero the world knew, but someone quieter, more domestic, and happy.

That feeling flared up again in Shadow’s chest. The same ache he’d felt when he got the invitation to Sonic and Amy's wedding. The one he’d shoved down, convinced himself he could outrun. He had suspected this would happen, known that coming here would stir up things he had no right to want. So why had he said yes?

Amy appeared again, wiping her hands on a dish towel. “Dinner’s ready!” she called. “Hope you like pot roast. Sonic said he had no idea what you eat.”

Shadow blinked, pulled from his thoughts. “Pot roast is fine.” He didn’t mention he hadn’t had a home-cooked meal in months.

“From Shadow, ‘fine’ is basically a rave review,” Sonic said, still balancing both Flash and Spike in his arms. “Hey, could you carry Rosie for me? Kinda maxed out on arms.”

Rosie, as if on cue, stretched her tiny arms up toward Shadow. “Sha-ow!”

He stared at her for a second longer than necessary. Then, gently, he lifted her into his arms. She weighed almost nothing—but the trust in her small frame was heavy. She giggled, clearly pleased with herself.

Shadow’s face didn’t change much, but the very edge of his mouth tugged upward. The barest hint of a smile. Sonic caught it, and for some reason, it made his heart skip.

Shadow followed Sonic and Amy into the dining room, Rosie tucked neatly in one arm. The long table was already set—plates steaming, bowls brimming, the scent of roasted vegetables and seasoned meat wrapping around him in a comfort that was hard to name.

Sonic was already moving like he lived in the rhythm of it all—placing kids in high chairs with a practiced ease, still bouncing slightly on his heels.

“Rosie goes on the far end so she doesn’t steal from Spike’s plate again,” Sonic explained, as Shadow slid her gently into place.

Amy chuckled as she ladled food into small divided bowls for the children. “And Flash gets the sippy cup with the green lid, not the orange one—apparently orange is a personal affront now.”

“Trauma from his juice rebellion last week,” Sonic gave a small aside to Shadow with a grin.

Shadow stood awkwardly for a moment, unsure of where to sit until Amy nodded toward a spot across from her and next to Sonic. He sat: quiet, still, and watching.

The children immediately began eating with little coordination and even less regard for table manners. Spike picked at his potatoes with a careful hand. Rosie mashed vegetables into swirls on her plate. Flash simply announced, “Food!” and shoved a roll into his mouth.

Sonic, meanwhile, was already halfway through his portion.

“Amazing as always, Amy,” he mumbled, mouth full.

“Don’t talk with your mouth full,” Amy said sweetly. Then, to Shadow: “Hope it’s okay. I didn’t know what you liked, so I just made what Sonic and I usually eat.”

Shadow picked up his fork, almost tentative. He took a bite. The flavors were warm and rich, nothing fancy—just real. Comforting. Something about it felt... undeserved.

“It’s good,” he said after a beat. “I haven’t had anything like this in a long time.”

Amy’s expression softened. “I’m glad. You’re always welcome here for meals, you know. I tend to make too much anyway—Sonic eats like he’s got four stomachs.”

“Hey!” Sonic protested, reaching for another roll. “You try burning six thousand calories before lunch and tell me you’re not starving.”

Shadow let out a quiet huff—half scoff, half laugh. “Eventually that metabolism’s going to catch up with you.”

“Oh please. I’m a finely tuned machine.” Sonic tapped his own chest with his fork, then leaned slightly toward Shadow, "Y'know, I've hardly ever seen you eat before, I was starting to wonder if you even did eat." He replied playfully as he pushed some dinner rolls toward Shadow. 

Shadow took one, reluctantly. Sonic noticed. It wasn’t the food. It was the way Shadow always hesitated before taking something freely given.

“You should enjoy yourself,” Sonic said, quieter now. “You’re allowed to.”

Shadow didn’t look up, but he didn’t put the roll back either.

"Not too much if you want room for desert though." Amy added, giving a wink. "It's a surprise."

"So, Shadow, what's been keeping you away all this time? Missions for G.U.N?" Sonic inquired as he took another bite of Amy’s delicious cooking.

Shadow looked up from his plate with a sigh. "That's been part of it, cleaning up their messes mostly. Chasing down illegal weapon trading, silencing information leaks. You know, fun."

Amy tilted her head. “That sounds exhausting.”

“It is,” Shadow admitted. Then, quieter: “I’ve also been involved in medical research. Experimental treatment trials for NIDS.”

Amy looked up with wide yet soft eyes. "Oh? That's actually really amazing! That was..."

Shadow nodded before Amy could finish her question. "Yes, that was the disease Maria suffered from. Even if I failed in being a cure for her, I still want to contribute something to ease the suffering of others with the disease."

"That's a great thing to pursue, Shadow." Sonic spoke softly, but with confidence as he placed a comforting hand on Shadow's arm. "I know she'd be proud of you doing that."

For a moment, Shadow didn’t move. Then—softly, not harsh—he slid his arm free. Sonic didn’t take it personally. In fact, something about the contact, however brief, lingered in his chest.

"And how about you," Shadow began, eager to shift the subject, "still causing as much trouble as you always do?"

"I don't think there's any force in the world that could keep Sonic still or away from all his hero work." Amy answered with a smile. "I knew this even before I married him, but it still gets hard sometimes. Especially if we both need to go out there and fight. Luckily we have Tails or Cream to babysit."

"Don't make me feel guilty, Amy." Sonic responded with a chuckle. "I can't look the other way when people are in danger, that's part of what made you fall for me."

Shadow glanced back down at his plate at this, a sigh slipping past his lips. "I imagine Dr. Eggman hasn't relaxed much on his usual activity either."

Sonic leaned back in his chair, balancing it slightly on two legs. "Yeah, Eggman’s still Eggman. Just... less effective with age. Or maybe I’m just getting better."

Amy snorted. "Well you certainly have future backup now." She reached across the table to ruffle Flash’s messy blue quills, making him squeal with delight.

A playful debate started between Amy and Sonic over whether Rosie was more likely to be a future hero or a supervillain. (Amy voted for hero. Sonic said she had "potential for chaos.") Shadow watched them for a moment. His fork sat still against his plate. The warmth of the room, the laughter, the babble of toddlers—it all felt distant, like he was observing a memory he was never part of.

Amy noticed the shift in his expression. “Shadow?” she said softly.

He didn’t answer right away. His gaze was somewhere else, not on them. Then, quietly, almost like he was testing the words as they left his mouth: “I didn’t come back for so long because I didn’t want to ruin this.”

Amy blinked, confused. “Ruin what?”

“This.” He gestured loosely with one hand, eyes still on the children. “All of this. The peace you’ve built. The life you have. I thought... maybe I’d just be the ghost at the door. Something better left on the battlefield.”

Sonic’s smile faded. “Is that really what you think you are to us?”

Shadow looked down, then forced a dry laugh. “You have each other. A home. A family. What place is there for someone like me in that?”

Amy stood slowly, coming around the table to sit beside him. She didn’t touch him, she just met his eyes.

“You don’t have to be the lone soldier all the time,” she said gently, voice low but clear. “No one’s asking you to stop being you. Just… maybe let people care about you now and then.”

The words hit like a soft blow. Shadow’s mouth opened, but no sound came. His throat tightened unexpectedly. It was ridiculous—he was stronger than this. He had faced death, loss, betrayal. Yet somehow... this? Sitting here in a warm dinning room, being looked at like he mattered? That was harder.

Sonic rose too, stepping closer on the other side. “You never ruined anything, Shadow. If anything, I wish you’d come sooner.”

Shadow looked between them—Amy with her open, earnest expression, and Sonic with that familiar spark in his eyes. Not pity. Not obligation. Something else, something warmer, something deeper.

“I don’t understand why you care,” Shadow said, not bitterly, but honestly.

Amy offered a soft smile. “You don’t have to understand it right now. Just know that we do.”

“And always have,” Sonic added. “I mean, c’mon. I missed my rival. My friend.”

Something about being called a friend by Sonic landed squarely in Shadow’s chest. He felt it like gravity. The silence that followed wasn’t awkward. It was full, brimming with things unsaid—but not for long.

Rosie chose that exact moment to throw a spoon at the wall, drawing a peal of laughter from Flash and a startled squeak from Spike. Shadow huffed quietly in amusement, the corner of his mouth twitching upward.

"Rosie," Sonic chuckled, trying hard to keep his tone chiding, "we don't throw things! What do we say when we're done with our food?"

"All done!" Rosie cheered, lifting the plate. Sonic sighed seeing she had avoided the carrots again. 

"All done!" Flash echoed lifting his empty plate as well. "I go now!"

"Oh wait, Flash! We've got a yummy dessert!" Amy beamed as she stood up again and headed to the kitchen. Only a few moments later, she returned carrying some bowls that she placed in front of the toddlers. "For the kids, we have yogurt and fruit! And for us..." She reached over the kitchen counter, bring out plates of tiramisu. “Made this one special,” she said as she set a dish in front of Shadow. “We did remember you like coffee, so this seemed the most fitting dessert."

“You didn’t have to go to the trouble.” Shadow sighed.

“I wanted to,” Amy replied, voice light but steady. “That’s what you do for people you care about. Besides, I love making all kinds of sweets!”

"And she's always amazing at it!" Sonic added with a playful little wink to his wife. He then turned to watch Shadow try a bite, chin propped in his palm, one leg bouncing under the table. Not from impatience, but from nerves he hadn’t named yet.

Shadow took a bite of the tiramisu. His eyes widened slightly, surprised. He blinked at the dessert, then took another bite. The smooth bitterness of the espresso mingled with the sweetness of cream and cocoa, and something deep in his chest softened.

“It’s good,” he admitted after a moment, his voice quieter than before. “Really good.”

Amy beamed at the compliment. Sonic grinned, nudging Shadow lightly with his elbow. “Told you. She’s the best.”

Shadow gave him a flat look, but the corners of his mouth quirked up.

The dinner winded down as the toddlers finished their fruit and yogurt, making a mess of themselves and the table in the process. Flash had yogurt on and possibly in his nose. Rosie was busy poking at a slice of strawberry like it might suddenly move. Spike, quiet as ever, had grown steadily sleepier throughout the meal. His little head drooped forward, then jerked back up. Then again.

Shadow was watching them with a mixture of detachment and quiet curiosity when Amy leaned over and gently lifted Spike from his high chair. “Someone’s running out of steam,” she said softly, brushing a tuft of quills from the boy’s eyes. “Do you want to bring him into the playroom to nap, or…?”

Before she could finish the thought, Spike stirred and mumbled something unintelligible. Then he turned—without fully opening his eyes—and reached for Shadow, little arms stretching out. Sonic raised his eyebrows. Amy blinked in surprise. Shadow froze.

Spike made a small, insistent noise, and Amy let out a soft laugh. “Well. That’s a first. Usually he only does that with Sonic,” she added, carefully offering the sleepy toddler to him.

Shadow stared at the boy for a moment, then reached out, almost awkwardly, and took him into his arms. Spike curled in immediately, tiny fingers gripping a tuft of white fur on Shadow’s chest. Within seconds, his breathing evened out.

Sonic watched with a smile, resting his chin in his palm. “Looks like he’s claimed you.”

Shadow held still, not quite sure what to do with this warm, soft bundle pressed against him. The child’s head rested just beneath his chin. Shadow adjusted slightly in his seat, letting Spike settle into his lap.

The room grew quieter. Rosie was still figer painting on her plate with the leftover fruit juices. Flash was trying to immitate the way he'd seen Shadow sitting before with his arms crossed. Amy began clearing plates, and Sonic helped the other two children out of their seats.

Shadow just… sat there. For once, he didn’t feel like he had to be anywhere else. The quiet hum of domestic life wrapped around him like a blanket he didn’t realize he’d needed. He looked down at the sleeping child, his fingers brushing lightly over soft lilac quills.

Sonic sat right beside Shadow with a warm and tender grin. "I think they all really like you. I bet they'll be talking about this the rest of the week." He looked down at Spike sleeping soundly in Shadow’s lap with absolute adoration. "Well, Flash and Rosie will be. Spike is still having some speech delays, but I was partially-nonverbal when I was younger, so I'm not too worried about that."

"I envy the people who knew you back then." Shadow teased, but the gentle look on his face sapped any venom from the words. Sonic simply widened his grin in response. 

Spike seemed to stir a bit as his siblings scurried around the room in giggles, but he relaxed again as Shadow gently caressed his back. Shadow didn’t say anything at first. Then, softly, “He’s warm.”

Sonic chuckled. “Yeah, they’re like little heaters. Comes in handy in winter.”

Sonic’s eyes slowly raised back to Shadow’s face. The rare tenderness there enraptured him, his heart fluttering. He knew one thing in that moment, he didn't want Shadow to disappear again. “You know… you don’t have to wait two years to see us again.”

Shadow’s eyes lifted to meet his, looking somewhere between surprised and unsure. Sonic added, “It's not just the kids who want to see you, y'know...”

“He's right,” Amy chimed in, finally returning from the kitchen. “You don’t have to make an excuse, or wait for a world-ending emergency. You can just… visit. Any time.”

Shadow looked down at Spike again, still fast asleep. Then to Rosie, who came running up to show her toys to him. Flash zoomed around the table, making airplane noises.

It wasn’t the battlefield. It wasn’t duty. It wasn’t something he could solve or strategize or survive. It was just this—a messy, loud, warm thing. A home. For the first time, he let himself wonder what it would be like if he were allowed to be part of something like this.

“…Maybe,” he said quietly, almost to himself. “I could stop by again. Sometimes.”

Amy smiled softly. “We’d like that.”

Sonic added, “So would the kids. Especially this one.” He nodded to Spike, still completely melted into Shadow’s lap.

"Speaking of the kids, it's probably best I get them ready for bed." Amy sighed, looking to the two that were now fighting over a toy. "Should I take Spike from you?"

Shadow exhaled slowly. “He’s… fine here for now.”

No one moved to disturb the peace that followed. Amy brought Flash and Rosie to their room, humming a calming tune to them. Sonic leaned back in his chair, watching them all with the calm of someone who didn’t need to rush anywhere. And Shadow—arms full of warmth, chest full of something unfamiliar but not unwelcome—sat still, letting the moment hold him.

For now, the door was open. And maybe, just maybe, he’d start walking through it more often.

Chapter 2: A Place to Take Shelter

Notes:

I know this is kind of long, but I was having a lot of fun putting details into this! Time skip of four years, there won't be anymore huge time skips like that in the rest of this. Just as a frame of reference this is about 12 years after the last known canon ages.
Also yes, I am aware that the knuxouge daughter mentioned in this chapter and featuring in later chapters shares a name with Jewel the Beetle, but I decided this character's name before I started reading IDW and just really love her with the name Jewel. People can share names.
Special art for this chapter and the perfect cover art for the whole fanfic here.

Six-year-olds were supposed to run around a lot—everyone said so—but triplets were in a league of their own.

Clouds drifted lazily across the morning sky, dimming the sun just enough to give the air a strange softness—like the day was holding its breath.

"Last one to the tree is a rotten chili dog!" Flash shouted, already halfway across the field before either of his siblings could even blink. His light blue quills blurred behind him, arms pinwheeling as he burst into a sprint... and promptly tripped over a root sticking out of the grass.

“Whoooa—!” He hit the ground with a thud.

“Again?” Rosie giggled, skating around the patch of wildflowers with effortless grace. She twirled on one foot like a little ballerina, her mulberry-colored quills bouncing with each motion. One arm was streaked with green paint, the other had tiny specks of pink. “You really have to watch where you’re going, Flash.”

Flash popped back up, brushing off grass and dirt from his knees, his grin undeterred. “Didn’t see it. That root came outta nowhere!”

“You said that last time,” Spike mumbled as he caught up, slightly out of breath. His violet quills were a little ruffled, and he clutched a small notebook to his chest like it was treasure. “Maybe we don’t race so fast today…”

“But that’s boring!” Flash argued, hopping in place. “C’mon, Spike, you’ll get faster if you keep trying.”

“I like trying,” Spike admitted quietly, then flipped open his notebook to a page filled with doodles and imaginary maps. “But maybe today we could go on an adventure instead? Like the Emerald Mountain one from last night’s story?”

Rosie froze mid-spin. Her eyes sparkled. “Can I draw the map and paint the treasure? I’ve got sparkles this time!”

Spike nodded so enthusiastically his quills bounced. Flash groaned—but it was more out of tradition than objection. “Fine, but if we find anything shiny, I get first dibs.”

A breeze picked up across the field, stirring the tall grass and tugging at their fur. Somewhere in the distance, thunder murmured faintly—so quiet they barely noticed.

“I bet Jewel would say she gets first dibs,” Rosie said with a grin, thinking of their echidna friend—the self-declared treasure queen who was a year older, and somehow even bossier than her parents, Knuckles and Rouge. “She always thinks she’s the queen of treasure hunts.”

“She does wear a crown sometimes,” Flash mused, “and she found that gold necklace in the cave last time.”

Spike looked down at his notebook, suddenly flustered. “She said I was a good map reader...”

Rosie smirked. “You blushed so hard when she said that.”

“Did not!” He snapped back, his freckled cheeks burning.

“Did too.” She continued teasing her brother while giggling.

“Did not!” He huffed, stomping his foot, his blue shoes kicking up dirt.

“You definitely did,” Flash chimed in, grinning. “But it’s okay. Jewel’s cool. I hope she comes next time.”

“She said she would,” Rosie beamed. “She promised next time Angel Island comes close, which should be soon. Said she’d protect the treasure from ‘evil raiders’ until then.”

Spike looked up, thinking of how amazing it must be to live on an island in the air. He blinked up at the sky—nothing but thick gray clouds now, rolling in slow and steady.

Rosie had pulled out a paper and a paintbrush, ready to make up a map for them to follow. Just then, a low hum echoed from the path nearby. The triplets froze.

"Is that—?" Flash began, his ears perking up immediately.

"That wasn't a badnik, was it?" Rosie asked, more curious than scared.

“No,” Spike breathed, eyes wide. “That was air shoes. It has to be Uncle Shadow!”

Rosie gasped, already digging her crumpled map sketch back into her quills. “Uncle Shadow’s here!” she shrieked with delight.

She took off like a shot, wheels humming on the path. Flash darted after her, overtaking her only to overshoot the turn and crash into a bush. “Wha—oops!”

Spike hesitated only a moment, then bolted after them, notebook tucked tight to his chest. His heart was pounding—not from the run, but from the thrill that always came when Shadow visited. Shadow always brought stories.

From a distance, Shadow could already hear them—three tiny voices shouting his name like it was some kind of magic spell. His chest eased at the sight of them.

They were always like this—loud, chaotic, a blur of skates and limbs and laughter. Ever since that dinner four years ago, back when the triplets were just learning to walk and talk, he’d started visiting more often. Sonic and Amy had extended the invitation casually—he’d accepted with indifference, at first. Once a month, then twice, and now... well. It was hard to say when it had become a habit. Harder still to admit how much he needed it.

Each time he stepped into their lives, he felt it: a warmth he hadn’t known in a long time. A quiet flicker of something soft in his chest. Familiar.

He didn’t like comparing anyone to Maria. It felt unfair—impossible, really. However, sometimes, when he wasn’t thinking too hard about it, he noticed things.

Rosie, with her endless wonder and the way she saw beauty in everything—she had Maria’s sense of magic, of awe, her love of the world.

Spike, so gentle and unsure, but burning with determination... Maria had that too. That quiet bravery. The kind you didn’t see unless you looked closely.

Flash wasn’t like Maria at all. He was wild, fearless, a blur of energy. But he reminded Shadow of the life Maria wanted—the one she dreamed about, unchained and full of laughter.

Even though he didn't smile outwardly, the ache he’d carried for decades softened every time he saw them running toward him like he mattered. Like he belonged here.

Rosie reached him first, wheels skidding as she threw her arms around his leg. Flash barreled in right behind her, nearly knocking them both over. Spike arrived last, panting, cheeks flushed, but proud he hadn’t given up. Shadow gave them all a quiet nod, arms crossing.

“You’re late,” Rosie announced with mock sternness.

“I’m early,” Shadow corrected.

“Still late,” Flash grinned. “We’ve been waiting forever!”

"Come on, Uncle Shadow, we have snacks!” Rosie declared, skating backward to the porch steps, pulling Shadow forward by the arm.

“Daddy made chili dogs!” Flash added, already racing through the door like a gust of wind. "I hope he puts relish on mine!"

“I think Mommy’s baking too,” Spike added more quietly, glancing up at him. “You... you like lemon cookies, right?”

Shadow blinked. “I don't dislike them.”

The house was warm and alive with scent—sugar and spice, the bite of lemon zest, the tang of sizzling chili. Rain misted the windows now. The storm was almost here.

Flash skidded to a stop at the kitchen door and burst into laughter. “They’re kissing again!”

Rosie zipped forward to peek. Spike groaned. Shadow stepped into the doorway.

Sonic had Amy wrapped in his arms, a streak of flour across his cheek. Amy laughed, brushing more flour onto his quills just as Shadow entered.

“Oh! Shadow!” Amy grinned. “We thought you’d be later!”

Sonic smirked, arm still around her waist. “The chili dogs are hot, the wife’s hotter, and now you’re here? Must be my lucky day.”

Shadow looked away, a quiet breath catching in his throat as he folded his arms—more out of habit than irritation. A breeze curled in through the open front door behind him, brushing against his fur with a chill that had nothing to do with the weather.

He wasn’t jealous—he’d never take anything from them. They were good together. They made each other laugh, steadied each other’s chaos. He wanted them happy. Even so, a feeling tugged at his heart. A flicker of ache in his chest he didn’t often let himself acknowledge. Not quite loneliness, more like longing.

Spike hid his eyes behind his hands with an embarrassed groan. "Oh gosh, don't call Mommy 'hot', Daddy! That's gross!"

Sonic couldn’t help but to laugh and Amy grinned and flung more flour at him, dusting his blue quills with white. "Quit goofing off. Shadow didn’t come all this way to watch you flirt with me—go make him feel welcome.”

“Alright, alright!” Sonic chuckled and wiped his face. He moved to Shadow, clapping a hand on his shoulder. “It’s really good to see you, man. Storm’s rolling in, so it’s a cozy night in. The kids are planning a pillow fort camp-out.”

“Yes! Camp-out!” Rosie squealed, grabbing Shadow’s hand. “You can help decorate!”

“And we can do a treasure hunt!” Flash said, bouncing.

“Then maybe you can tell us adventure stories?” Spike asked, hopeful.

Sonic grinned and slung an arm around Shadow’s shoulders, the scent of grass and wind clinging to him. “They’ve been planning this all week.”

Shadow stiffened slightly from the contact, but he didn’t pull away. His eyes traveled from Sonic's soft grin to the expectant eyes of each of the children. A sigh slipped past his lips.

"I don't really have a choice in this do I?" He said flatly. 

"Nope. Welcome to having kids." Sonic joked with a smirk, as though Shadow were looped into the parenting job as well now.

“Pleeeeease, Uncle Shadow?” Rosie pleaded, eyelashes fluttering.

“You gotta!” Flash yelled, a tooth missing from his grin.

The side of Shadow's lips curled for just a split second, his gaze softening slightly. "Alright. Let's do this camp-out."

~~~

The pillow fort took a while to assemble—longer than it should have, considering the collective speed in the room. However speed wasn’t the issue, chaos was.

Sonic had dragged out every blanket and pillow in the house, dropping them into a messy heap in the living room. Rosie zoomed back and forth like an interior designer with a mission, arms full of string lights, glitter glue, and cut-out stars. She immediately began painting a moon on cardstock, her tongue sticking out in concentration, cheeks speckled with gold flecks.

Flash, of course, kept knocking things over. “That wasn’t my fault!” he shouted when the blanket roof collapsed again. “Gravity did it!”

“Gravity can’t trip you three times,” Spike mumbled, gripping the leg of a dining chair he insisted was structural support.

Shadow stood quietly in the center of it all, arms folded as he took in the chaos. Eventually, without a word, he walked to the utility drawer, pulled out duct tape, and began reinforcing the corners. It wasn’t elegant, but it held.

By the time they finished, the living room had transformed. The overhead lights were off, replaced by the warm glow of string lights zigzagging through the blanket ceiling. Paper stars and painted moons fluttered gently as someone passed. Pillows and stuffed animals were stacked in every corner. Rosie had even hung a curtain of sparkling beads at the entrance.

Shadow sat in the middle of it all and the kids made themselves comfortable in the pillows quickly. Sonic brought out the chili dogs to celebrate the completion of the fort, much to the excitement of the little ones.

The rain had begun to beat against the windows, the wind whistling through the cracks as thunder rumbled closer with each passing minute. The kids ate quickly and messily—one of the reasons Shadow wasn’t particularly fond of chili dogs. The mess. Still, he ate one too.

Amy joined them at last, carrying a tray with six steaming mugs of hot chocolate.

“The cookies are cooling now, so give them a few minutes,” she said as she sat cross-legged on a pile of pillows, setting the tray down on the coffee table. Her eyes scanned the dim fort, glowing gold and glitter, soft shadows dancing across the walls. “You all did such a wonderful job. It’s like a little world in here.”

“I did most of the building!” Flash declared, puffing out his chest. “I’m the pillow fort king!”

“Nuh-uh!” Spike snapped, his quills bristling. “I did a lot of the work too! And Uncle Shadow helped!”

“It was a team effort,” Sonic cut in with a grin. “You can’t hog all the glory, Flash.”

Shadow let out a quiet huff. “Team effort, you say? I don’t recall you doing much to help build it. You were lounging on the couch for most of it.”

The kids broke into laughter, Rosie nearly snorting her hot chocolate. As the laughter died down, the sound of rain tapping on the roof seemed louder, cocooning the room in a gentle hush. Spike, curled up beside the string lights, opened his notebook again.

“We should do the treasure hunt now,” he said, eyes lighting up. “Before the cookies are ready!”

“Ooh, yes!” Rosie perked up, grabbing her bag of art supplies. “I can draw clues! And paint the treasure map!”

Flash bounced to his feet. “If we’re hunting treasure, I call being the finder! I’ve got super-speed!”

Amy cleared her throat after a sip of hot chocolate. “Flash, you know the rule about super-speed in the house.”

"Yeah, we don't need you tearing down the doors again!" Rosie taunted. Flash simply huffed in response. 

Shadow raised an eyebrow. “Again?”

Sonic chuckled. “Apparently, playing ‘the floor is lava’ can get pretty intense.”

Shadow just stared at him.

“Don't look at me like that," Sonic grinned. "It was mostly their idea.”

Spike flipped through his notebook, pages filled with messy maps, invented creatures, and half-finished adventure plans. Stories they’d heard, and stories they’d made up—sometimes it was hard to tell which was which.

“We need rules,” he said. “And the grown-ups can be in charge of traps. The fort is our base.”

“I’ve got the perfect treasure!” Rosie piped up, hopping to her feet. “It’s in my room!” Then she scurried up the stairs.

Shadow blinked. “She has her own room now?” He still remembered when they’d all tumbled into the same bed at night, tiny hands clutched together as they fell asleep.

"A lady needs her privacy." Amy replied with a little shrug. "The boys don't want to separate yet, but she was ready for it."

"Now we got bunk beds!" Flash bragged.

Rosie returned with a glittery wooden jewelry box, hand-painted with leaves and flowers—more detailed than you’d expect from a six-year-old. Shadow had noticed before: nature brought something out in her. Her eyes would light up at a beautiful landscape as though it inspired her.

She handed the box to Amy with a proud smile. “Hide this for us to find! It’s gotta be a mystery!”

The treasure hunt began the moment Amy returned, whispering a single clue: "Seek the place where socks go missing and secrets like to hide..."

With that, they were off. Flash darted ahead—only to be buried under a surprise "laundry landslide" when Sonic, grinning wickedly, tipped an entire basket of towels, socks, and assorted laundry down the staircase. Rosie squealed as she dove out of the way, and Spike tried to shield his notebook like it was priceless cargo.

In the play room, Amy took on the role of a fearsome tickle monster, lurching from behind the couch with exaggerated growls and grabby hands. The kids screamed with delighted terror, scattering into giggles as she chased them through blanket tunnels and under chairs.

Just in front of the laundry room, Shadow stood sentinel, arms crossed, face stern—but eyes glinting with the faintest amusement. When the children approached, he looked down at them in perfect seriousness.

“To pass,” he intoned gravely, “you must answer the riddle of the sphinx.”

The kids froze, dramatically gasping. Sonic and Amy watched from around the corner, but Shadow pretended not to notice.

"I am the beginning of eternity. The end of time and space. The beginning of every end. And the end of every place. What am I?" Shadow asked. It was one he had remembered Maria asking him from a book she had been reading on one of her particularly rough days.

Rosie tapped her chin, Flash immediately blurted out wrong answers: 

"The beginning of eternity... that would be when daddy was born!"

"No." Shadow replied, though a slight smirk at the jab at Sonic flickered on his face.

"Um...A wormhole made of lasers!"

"...No."

"Oh! I know! The dryer, because everything keeps disappearing there! Especially socks!"

"That's the answer to Mommy’s hint! Not this riddle!" Rosie chided while rolling her eyes.

Spike, who had written the riddle down in his notebook finally spoke up. "Ooh! I got it! It's the letter E!"

"Correct." Shadow acknowledged with a nod. "You can now proceed."

The trio hurried past him, Flash crawling into the open dryer to pull out the box. They hurried back to their "base" at the pillow fort together, the adults following close behind.

"Now we get to open our treasure!" Rosie cheered. Shadow peered over as they opened the box, wondering what exactly the treasure was, thinking it could be plastic jewelry or a stash of candy. He didn’t expect what he actually saw. 

First was a framed photograph from a picnic they had all had in the spring, one where the whole family was together infront of a tree on the picnic blanket. Just between Amy and Sonic, being dragged into the photo by Sonic, was a rather grumpy looking Shadow.

Then there was a very shiny rock that Shadow recognized as one the kids had found durring a hike he had taken the kids on. The kids kept saying it was a special magic rock like the Chaos Emeralds.

The third and final thing in the box was a torn glove that had previously belonged to Shadow.

"That's my glove." He stated with a hint of confusion.

"Yeah. You left it here once when you visited after a mission, and we told Mommy not to throw it away." Spike explained with a little smile on his face.

"It's special because it's from you!" Rosie added.

Shadow was a bit taken aback by this. That sweet warmth was swelling in his chest again, and he didn't know what to do or say in response. He looked back to Sonic, who had a soft grin on his face. 

"I told you before, these kids love you." He tenderly affirmed. Shadow glanced at him—and saw something soft in Sonic’s expression. Something familiar, gentle, maybe even inviting.

"Besides, Daddy was holding onto it first." Flash added, making Sonic’s expression go from soft to self-conscious almost immediately.

"Okaaaay, I think you kids have earned yourselves some cookies now!" Sonic loudly derailed the conversation.

The kids screamed in delight, scattering toward the kitchen. Shadow lingered for a moment, eyes on the small box. He reached in and picked up the glove, turning it in his hand. This was a treasure to them. Is this what it meant to belong?

The wind had picked up outside. It whistled through the eaves of the house like a haunting tune, and the rain—so soft just moments ago—began to lash the windows with sharp fingers. Every so often, thunder cracked like a whip across the sky, sending a deep tremor through the floorboards.

Inside the fort, laughter still bubbled, if more quietly now. The children were sprawled out across pillows and blankets, nibbling warm lemon cookies with cocoa-stained cheeks, content in their victory.

Shadow lingered at the edge of the soft glow. The warmth of the string lights haloed around him, painting golden rings across his fur. He stood still, almost too still, like a figure carved from stone just outside the reach of a fire.

Sonic had dropped onto a pillow nearby. Sonic rarely sat still for long, but when he did, it was usually because someone he loved had anchored him there. Now, with Amy’s hand in his and Shadow nearby, it felt okay to pause, just for a while. One hand rested behind his head, the other slowly brushing through Amy’s fingers as she leaned against him. Her eyes were half-lidded, her body relaxed—but her gaze still tracked the kids, soft and ever-watchful.

Shadow looked at them, at the casual touch, the easy comfort. Something stirred in him. Not jealousy, just that quiet ache again—like something half-remembered, half-wished-for.

Shadow hadn’t noticed when Sonic’s eyes had drifted. He glanced over at Shadow, half-lit by the cloudy light, his posture relaxed in a way Sonic rarely saw. There was something about him in that moment—quiet, calm, but not distant. His eyes were softer than usual, like he’d let some wall drop without even realizing it.

For just a second, their eyes met. It wasn’t intense. It wasn’t dramatic. Just a look, but it sparked something low and warm in Sonic’s chest.

He didn’t know what it meant. Couldn’t name it, exactly, but it made him smile without thinking. Whatever it was, he liked it.

He didn’t get the chance to linger on it, because a moment later, everything went dark. Just as a loud clap of thunder sounded, the string lights blinked out. The gentle hum of the fridge, the subtle whir of the heater were gone. The storm outside roared louder in the silence.

Rosie gasped. Spike whimpered. Flash shouted, “Whoa!”

There was a brief moment of chaotic fumbling. The rustle of blankets. A clatter of a (thankfully empty) mug tipping over.

“Okay, okay, everyone stay where you are!” Sonic said, voice calm but clear in the sudden dark.

Amy was already standing, reaching for the emergency flashlight in the cabinet. It flicked on with a soft click, casting a beam across the room.

Shadow’s eyes had already adjusted. Chaos in the dark was nothing new to him. Here, he wasn’t fighting or surviving. He was calm.

One small figure was very, very still. Spike hadn’t moved. He sat curled up in a ball under a blanket, arms around his knees, notebook clutched to his chest like a lifeline. His little shoulders trembled with each new crash of thunder.

Shadow moved before thinking, quietly and gently. He crouched beside the boy, the blanket rustling as he shifted.

“You alright?” he asked, voice low.

Spike didn’t answer at first. Just nodded, too quickly. Shadow waited. Then, after a beat, he settled beside him on the pillow, not too close—but close enough that Spike could lean in if he wanted.

He didn’t look up when Shadow sat beside him, but after a minute, his elbow pressed just lightly against Shadow’s side—testing the space. It was his way of saying: please stay.

“The dark’s not what scares me,” Spike mumbled eventually.

Shadow turned his head slightly.

“It’s the storm,” Spike added, pressing his face deeper into the crook of his arm. “The noise. And... when everything stops. I don’t like when things just stop. It feels wrong.”

Shadow let that sit in the air a moment. The storm rumbled again, and Spike flinched.

“I know that feeling,” Shadow said, his voice almost too soft to hear.

Spike’s eyes peeked up at him, wide and uncertain.

“When I was young,” Shadow continued slowly, “I lived in a place where things were always too quiet. Then one day, everything stopped all at once. Lights. Voices. Everything.”

Spike clutched his notebook tighter.

“I hated it,” Shadow murmured. “That silence. That helplessness. I still do.”

For a long moment, neither of them spoke. Then Shadow shifted. He pulled his own half-finished cocoa from beside the pillow pile and handed it over without a word.

Spike took it with trembling hands, holding it like a shield. “…Thanks.”

Shadow just nodded once.

A flashlight beam swept the ceiling. Amy returned, lighting candles one by one in little dishes along the windowsill. The scent of wax and lemon cookies mingled with the smell of rain and distant ozone.

The storm hadn’t passed—but somehow, inside the fort, it felt farther away now. The children huddled back into their pillows as the glow of candles flickered like stars around them. Spike leaned against Shadow now, small and warm at his side.

“Tell us a story?” Rosie asked after a while, her voice hushed in the dark.

“Yeah,” Flash agreed. “A real one.”

“About an adventure,” Spike added. "And heroes."

Shadow hesitated. Sonic looked over, his face half-lit in the gold light of the candles with a smile. “You’ve got plenty of those.”

Shadow stared into the candlelight. The wind rattled the windows again. He breathed out. "Alright. I'll tell some stories."

Amy walked past them, her hand brushing Shadow’s shoulder lightly as she set another candle on the end table. Her fingers lingered just a second longer than necessary. 

Shadow didn’t move.Outside, thunder grumbled—but it felt farther now. Like the house itself was holding the storm at bay.

~~~

After the stories had been told, after the cocoa had gone lukewarm in forgotten mugs and cookie crumbs scattered across the carpet, the storm still rumbled on. The pillow fort had grown quiet.

Inside, three small bodies were tangled in a warm heap of limbs and blankets. Spike’s notebook had slipped from his hand, pages fluttering with half-finished maps and imaginary beasts. Rosie’s glitter-smeared glove clung gently to Flash’s arm, the sparkle of it catching the soft glow from the string lights.

Amy crouched beside them, her knees brushing the edge of the blankets. She leaned in, kissed Spike’s temple first—he barely stirred. Then Rosie, and then Flash, whose nose scrunched up in his sleep but didn’t wake.

“They’re so peaceful when they sleep,” she murmured, brushing a stray quill from Rosie’s cheek. Her voice was quiet, warm with the kind of fullness that only came from moments like this.

Sonic stood just behind her, arms folded lazily, eyes on Shadow. “You’re not thinking of heading out, are you?”

Shadow blinked, glancing toward the door. Beyond the windows, rain still battered the porch roof in heavy, rhythmic waves. The wind sighed through the trees, low and endless. He said nothing, but the hesitation was there—in his shoulders, in the slight pause before answering.

“The storm’s not letting up,” Amy added softly, rising to her feet. “There are extra blankets in the guest room.”

Sonic grinned, nudging her playfully with his elbow before tossing a look back at Shadow. “Or you could crash in the fort. Y’know. For maximum dramatic effect.”

Shadow rolled his eyes, arms crossing tighter. “I’m not six.”

Amy smiled, unbothered. “But the fort is really cozy.”

As she turned to gather the mugs, she caught it. Amy glanced up just in time to catch the tail end of the look that Sonic was giving Shadow. Sonic was still watching him, the barest ghost of a smile curling at the edge of his mouth, his eyes a little softer than usual.

Had she been some years younger, this might have stirred a jealous feeling in her. To her now, however, it was something beautiful, something she wanted to watch grow and blossom like a flower. They needed time. She would give them that, gladly.

Amy reached over and flicked off the living room lamp, letting the glow of the string lights cast golden shapes across the blanket walls. She stepped softly, her fingers trailing the edge of the couch as she passed Sonic, brushing his hand lovingly as she went.

“Don’t stay up too late,” she whispered, a quiet smile on her lips. “It’s been a long day.”

Sonic caught her hand gently, gave it a squeeze. “Thanks, Ames.”

She gave Shadow a glance as well—a knowing one, kind, without pressure. Then disappeared down the hallway, her footsteps fading like the last flicker of candlelight. Outside, the storm kept singing. Inside, the fort glowed like a little haven. For the first time in a long time, Shadow stayed.

~~~

Morning came slowly. The storm had passed sometime in the night, leaving the world washed clean and dripping with golden light. Outside, the trees gleamed with beads of rain, and water still trickled from the gutters in soft, irregular rhythms.

Inside the house, the smell of breakfast crept through the air—batter, cinnamon, fresh coffee, and something slightly burnt. Shadow stirred beneath the collapsed remains of the pillow fort, one blanket still half-draped over his legs. He blinked against the brightness filtering in through the sheer curtains, momentarily disoriented.

The living room was a nest of chaos. Empty mugs, cookie crumbs, glitter-streaked paper stars, and a pair of Flash’s socks hung from a broomstick like a forgotten flag of conquest. Rosie’s tiny, paint-stained backpack lay open on the floor, a feather sticking out like a battle trophy.

Curled up next to Shadow’s side, still breathing softly and warm with sleep, was Spike. The boy’s notebook had fallen open on his chest, a half-finished map sketched across the page in colored pencil—complete with winding trails, jagged "danger" zones, and a red X.

Shadow exhaled slowly. He reached over with quiet fingers and gently adjusted the notebook so it wouldn’t slide and wake the boy. Spike stirred but didn’t open his eyes—just curled tighter, nose brushing Shadow’s fur like it was something familiar.

From the kitchen came the clatter of pans and the soft murmur of voices. Shadow stood carefully, pulling the blanket up over Spike before stepping over a pile of cushions and making his way into the kitchen. The light was brighter here—gold light on wood, cozy and warm. It caught the edges of Amy’s hair like fire.

Sonic was leaning back against the counter, munching on a piece of toast with his usual lazy grin. Amy stood over the stove, flipping something in a pan with a confident twist of her wrist.

“Morning,” Sonic greeted. “Imagine, us being up before you for once. Last night must have exhausted you.”

Shadow just raised an eyebrow. “Don't get so excited for something so trivial.”

Amy laughed. “Dealing with kids can wipe you out sometimes. You want pancakes?”

“…Yes.”

He settled into a chair at the table, arms folded, still not quite used to the domestic rhythm. The kitchen smelled like cinnamon and fresh coffee. An espresso sounded good to him right then.

Somewhere in the next room, Rosie let out a loud squeal of delight.

“THE SUN’S OUT!” she shouted, skates thudding onto the floor. “IT’S A PERFECT ADVENTURE DAY!”

“Adventure day!” Flash echoed as he zipped past the kitchen doorway in a blur of blue and yellow pajamas. “Where’s my compass!?”

Shadow arched a brow. “He has a compass?”

“He thinks he has a compass,” Sonic replied quietly, sipping some orange juice. “It’s actually a lid from a jar of pickles.”

Amy slid a plate in front of Shadow along with a cup of coffee. “Don’t correct him. He’s been using it to navigate the backyard for a week.”

Rosie barreled into the room next, one roller skate on and the other still being jammed over her sock. “We need to draw a new map,” she announced. “Because Angel Island is gonna be floating close today! Jewel said so!”

“Did she?” Sonic asked, amused.

“Yes! And if we spot it from the hill, that means we can go treasure hunting! But real, this time.”

“You mean more real than a shoe box full of glitter and snack wrappers?” Sonic teased.

“YES!” Rosie said firmly. “Jewel’s been training for epic stuff. She told me! With her mom and everything. She’s got spy skills now.”

“She said I could be her navigator,” Spike added sleepily from the hallway, rubbing one eye and hugging his notebook tightly.

Shadow’s gaze followed him quietly as the boy padded in and climbed onto a chair beside him like it was the most natural thing in the world.

“Navigator?” he echoed.

Spike nodded, waking up bit by bit. “I memorize the maps. I make notes.”

“He has a whole glossary in the back,” Rosie said proudly, pointing to the notebook. “With real rules.”

Amy passed Spike a cup of milk with a small smile. “You kids sure do take your pretend seriously.”

“Yeah,” Flash said, bouncing in from the living room. “But what if this time it’s not pretend?” He froze suddenly, nose wrinkling. “…Are those the weird pancakes?” he asked.

“They are protein pancakes,” Amy said with mock offense. “You need energy for all this adventuring!”

Flash groaned dramatically and fell backward onto the kitchen floor. “NOOOOOO.”

Everyone laughed.

The kids had finished breakfast in record time—mostly due to Rosie declaring the pancakes were “adventure fuel” and Flash pretending to be poisoned by the protein content. Now, they were scattered through the house: Rosie with her art supplies on the porch, Flash bouncing a rubber ball off the hallway walls, and Spike curled in a reading nook with his notebook and other books splayed open, eyes scanning old maps with quiet focus.

Sonic leaned against the counter, arms folded, as Shadow turned away from the kitchen window, wrist communicator glowing faintly.

"You’re sure it's a Chaos Emerald signal?" Sonic asked, voice low. Amy glanced over from the sink, frowning.

"Strong enough to register a location," Shadow confirmed. "Five kilometers northwest. Forested area—border of that ravine near old Rail Canyon.”

Amy dried her hands on a towel. “That’s too close for comfort.”

Sonic exhaled, throwing his head back in exasperation. “That’s practically in our backyard.”

“Could be old Eggtech again,” Amy offered. “There’s always something half-buried out there, half of it once charged by chaos energy.”

“Maybe,” Shadow said. “But I’ve seen similar patterns before. The signature is clean. Concentrated. Either it’s an Emerald—or someone wants it to look like one.”

They all fell silent for a moment, the hum of the refrigerator the only sound between them.

Unnoticed, just outside the kitchen doorway, three small shapes had stilled.

Rosie sat frozen mid-skate, hand on the wall for balance. Spike had crept in without a sound, pressing his back to the hallway. Flash crouched low, eyes wide, bouncing ball forgotten under the cabinet.

“A Chaos Emerald…” Rosie mouthed, eyes sparkling.

“That’s super close,” Flash whispered, breathless.

“We know that area,” Spike added, clutching his notebook. “We have maps of that whole stretch. I marked all the trails during our hikes…”

Rosie’s fingers trembled with excitement. “And if it is an Emerald…”

“It’s real treasure,” Flash whispered. “Not just a game.”

Back in the kitchen, Sonic rubbed the back of his neck. “You think this has something to do with Eggman? Or—?”

Shadow shook his head. “Too soon to say. But I don’t like that it’s this close. If he doesn't know of it yet, he will soon.”

Amy set the towel down carefully. “Maybe Knuckles should know. If it’s an Emerald—”

Rosie gasped softly. Knuckles. That meant Jewel. She turned to Spike and Flash, eyes wide with electric realization. 

“If we tell her,” she breathed, “she’ll come. She has to.”

Flash’s grin stretched ear to ear. “Best. Mission. Ever.”

Spike was already flipping pages in his notebook, eyes darting across his old maps. “We’ll need supplies. Route planning. We have time before anyone notices.”

Back in the kitchen, Shadow’s voice lowered. “I’ll leave after lunch. Get a head start on recon.”

“Want company?” Sonic asked.

“Not yet.” Shadow shook his head.

Sonic raised his hands. “Alright, broody loner routine it is.”

Amy rolled her eyes fondly. “Just be careful, okay? You know how to contact us.”

Shadow gave a small nod. “Always.”

The moment the kitchen door creaked open and the adults stepped into the living room, the kids vanished like shadows—skates clicking, socks sliding, paws barely brushing the carpet.

Rosie zipped upstairs to write Jewel a coded message using her sticker-covered communicator.

Spike returned to his notebook, drawing a new map with a red X and a bold heading across the top: Operation Chaos Quest.

Flash dropped down beside the front door, digging through a basket of gloves and scarves until he unearthed his beloved "compass"—still a pickle jar lid. He held it to the light like it was sacred.

“We’re gonna find the Emerald first,” he whispered, heart thudding like thunder. “We’re gonna be heroes.”

Chapter 3: A Place Beyond the Map

Notes:

Originally this chapter was going to be longer and include a moment at the end depicting Shadow, Sonic, and Amy. However it was dragging on too long, so this chapter is just focused on the kids, and Jewel the Echidna joins the party. I love all these little guys so much I want to make more of their little adventures and bonding some time!
Reminder I have a Tumblr page mostly dedicated to this Family AU and you can ask the kids questions, here. And I have a picture of Jewel right here.

The clubhouse smelled like damp metal and wild mint, with just a hint of old engine grease lingering in the corners—a scent equal parts mystery and memory. Once, it had been part of a forgotten Eggman bunker—rusted, half-buried, and swallowed by ivy—but the kids had claimed it as their own. Now, it was the perfect hideout. Rosie’s murals, splashed across the curved walls in bold colors, turned grim metal into fantasy: lush forests, hidden kingdoms, winged beasts soaring across painted skies. A string of mismatched fairy lights blinked faintly from a scavenged battery pack, casting soft colors onto piles of worn comics and dog-eared maps. Makeshift shelves—hammered together with uneven nails—held a chaotic treasure trove: old toys, glass jars of “specimens,” broken gadgets that might still do something.

Spike stood at the whiteboard they'd bolted to the far wall—with tools borrowed from Uncle Tails under strict orders not to tell Mom. With his notebook in one hand and a red marker in the other, he scrawled the next steps of their operation in neat, determined script. Outside, the forest rustled with wind and birdsong, only interupted as someone came gliding in.

There was a sharp knock against the side of the shelter—three crisp raps that echoed through the metal like a drumroll. Spike startled, nearly dropping his marker. Rosie shot across the floor on one skate, grinning as she slammed her palm against the door control. With a hiss of hydraulics, the old panel slid open.

In stepped Jewel.

She didn’t just walk in—she arrived. Her shoulder-length spines, mostly a deep vermilion, faded into crisp white tips that gleamed under the soft string lights. Her sleek violet dress shimmered subtly with every movement, hugging her frame like something designed for royalty and battle. A golden tiara sat at a confident tilt atop her head, matched by her polished bracers and the simple but unmistakable amulet at her neck. She looked like someone who could command a throne or kick down a door—and likely break said door in the process.

Her violet eyes swept the room like a commander assessing a battlefield. Then she grinned. “Okay. I got your message,” she said, hands on her hips. “And I hope it’s as amazing as it sounded.”

Rosie didn’t hesitate—she launched forward and threw her arms around her best friend in a tight, gleeful hug. “Jewel! I’m so happy you could come!”

Jewel laughed, hugging her back without missing a beat. “You kidding? You made it sound like a secret mission and a treasure hunt. Like I’d miss that.”

“You’re gonna love this!” Flash called out, practically bouncing in place. “It’s gonna be our awesomest adventure ever! We totally need someone who’s, like, super tough and really good at treasure stuff. That’s you!”

Jewel smirked, crossing her arms. “Flattery will get you everywhere.”

Spike had been trying to look composed—but in the rush, he stumbled, nearly tripping over a coil of wires as he stepped forward. He reached for her wrist, then instantly let go like it burned him. “I—we, uh—it’s all up on the board,” mumbled, cheeks going bright pink as he fumbled with his notebook. “We’ve got a real plan. Like, detailed.”

Jewel followed his gesture, her eyes narrowing with interest.

“We overheard the grown-ups talking,” Spike continued, growing more confident, “and there’s a real Chaos Emerald nearby. Not just legend stuff. A strong signal—Uncle Shadow confirmed it. Right there.” He jabbed a finger at a map tacked to the curved wall with colorful magnets. “South of Rail Canyon. Just at the ravine—where the forest ends.”

Jewel’s brow arched slowly. Her grin spread like wildfire. “You’re serious?”

“As protein pancakes,” Rosie said solemnly.

Jewel let out a low whistle, stepping closer to the map. “A Chaos Emerald. A real one. That’s... okay, yeah, that is exciting.” She reached into the small satchel slung across her back and pulled out a folded gadget—a field scanner, retrofitted and painted with stripes. “You're lucky I snagged this from my mom's things.”

Her tone softened, but there was a glint of something fierce behind her smile. “If we actually find it… maybe my dad will finally stop acting like I’m just pretending to be a Guardian.”

“Then we’ll prove it,” Flash said with a grin, puffing out his chest. “You are a Guardian.”

Before anyone could respond, he darted to a stash in the corner and came back triumphantly holding four stubby cans of Chaos Soda—Melon Charge flavor, slightly shaken from their ride in his backpack.

“For luck!” he announced, cracking one open with a fizzy pop and handing the rest around. “Adventure tradition. Cheers before the quest.”

Rosie tapped her can to his. “To treasure!”

“To becoming heroes!” Flash added dramatically.

Spike hesitated, then held his can up toward Jewel’s. She met his gaze, her violet eyes bright with excitement, and tapped her soda gently against his. “To proving ourselves!”

Spike’s breath caught. It wasn’t just the words—it was the way she said ourselves, like she really meant it. Like it was just as much for him as it was for her. He always felt truely seen with her, even if he didn’t always know how to see himself.

His voice was soft but steady as he tapped his can to hers. “Y-yeah. To proving ourselves.”

They all drank—coughing slightly at the fizzy sweetness, wiping their faces, and laughing in that way only kids on the edge of something thrilling can. Outside, the wind rustled the trees as though joining in their excitement.

The sun filtered through the trees in warm golden stripes as the group left the safety of their hidden clubhouse behind. The forest felt alive around them—buzzing with late-summer insects and the rustle of wind through the canopy. Their boots, sneakers, and roller skates sank slightly against the still damp mossy trail as they made their way deeper into the woods, toward the edge of the ravine.

Spike led the way, his nose buried in his notebook, which was practically falling apart from all the use. Some days just for the comfort of it he would flip through, fingers brushing the familiar creases of the page. Planning helped. Knowing what came next helped. Even made-up treasure maps had rules. Rules made things make sense. 

He turned it sideways to compare hand-drawn topography with a dog-eared survey map. “We stay on this trail until the ridge bends,” he muttered, more to himself than anyone else. “Then go south until the signal pings again…”

Behind him, Jewel held the field scanner close to her chest, its softly pulsing screen casting a faint blue glow over her gloves. “Still locked onto the signal. It’s faint, but steady,” she confirmed, a thread of excitement in her voice. The sleek, high-tech device looked slightly out of place next to the worn backpack she carried, straps bursting with gear—rope, a flashlight, metal clamps, extra batteries, and her father's shovel claws.

Flash, meanwhile, had strapped a belt around his waist like a bandolier, pockets full of fruit chews, sour gummies, and two full cans of Chaos Soda. He jogged ahead, then doubled back like a hyperactive boomerang. “Who wants a blue raspberry tactical boost? I brought enough for a sugar crash and a second wind.”

Rosie rolled her eyes. “We’re gonna die in the woods with blue tongues and too much sugar.”

“It’s what heroes do,” Flash insisted with a silly grin.

They laughed, the sound echoing between the trees. The forest changed the deeper they went. The trees here grew taller, closer together. The ground grew uneven, pitted with old tracks and patches of scorched earth from possible past battles. Strange plants coiled around half-sunken metal parts, gears and rusted panels swallowed by moss. Ahead, remnants of long-dead machines jutted from the soil like broken ribs—towers and antennae leaning at sharp angles, long stripped of purpose.

The ravine loomed nearby, a deep gash in the earth cloaked in steam and shadow.

“It looks like a robot graveyard.” Rosie whispered like she was telling a thrilling tale.

“It kinda is,” Jewel said, her voice quieter now. “Eggman’s bots used to run through here. Mom says after the last battle out here, no one bothered cleaning it up.”

Spike paused on a ridge, scratching his quills as he took in the horizon. “I charted three possible places within a one-kilometer radius. It could easily be under us in one of the caves off the ravine. We’ll need to—”

“You know,” Jewel interrupted gently, stepping up beside him. “You’re really good at this.”

Spike blinked. “Huh?”

“Mapping. Planning. Taking this seriously.” She smiled, tucking a loose white-tipped spine out of her face. “I always feel like my parents want me to stay home and watch adventures. But you guys—you—you’re actually doing it.”

Spike looked down, pink rising in his ears. “My brother and sister always want to do things without me. They say I overthink stuff. That I slow them down.”

“Well,” she said, “I think you make things possible.”

He didn’t respond, just clutched his notebook tighter and walked a little taller. Behind them, a faint mechanical hum floated through the trees. Rosie perked up. “Did you hear that?”

The others stopped. There was a low, distant screech—metal dragging across metal, muffled by the trees and wind. Not enough to panic over, but enough to notice.

“…Could just be wind,” Flash offered.

“No wind I’ve ever heard sounds like that,” Jewel murmured, already scanning the area with her device. "But it could be scrap falling over in the Rail Canyon."

They pressed forward. More of the ruins came into view now—half-collapsed structures and shattered robot frames leaning into each other like rusted monuments. Jewel ducked under a hanging cable. Rosie pointed to a series of cracked, grated walkways half-sunken into the slope, like a skeletal bridge.

“Okay, this is the coolest thing I’ve ever seen,” Flash breathed, hopping across a beam. “We could totally have our next hideout here.”

“As long as we don’t get zapped to dust,” Rosie added brightly, despite the subject matter.

“Or crushed,” Spike said, jotting something in his notebook. “Don’t forget crushed.”

"Daddy says to always watch for spikes too!" Flash giggled as he hopped along the walkways and the others followed.

The group paused as the scanner in Jewel’s hands gave a sharp ping.

She stopped walking. “It’s close.” Her voice was different now, tight with anticipation.

They turned toward a jagged opening in the hillside, where a gaping cave yawned between crumbling slabs of metal and stone. Cold air rushed out to meet them in short, hollow gusts, carrying the damp scent of earth and rust. It whistled through the opening like a breath from something ancient, unseen.

Spike chewed on his bottom lip, eyes fixed on the shadowed entrance. He adjusted his grip on his notebook as Rosie glided forward with a little hop, the soft scrape of her wheels echoing off the rocky path.

“Hellooo!” she called into the dark. Her voice bounced back at them—hellooo… loo… loo…

Rosie grinned. “This is so cool. There’s gotta be a hundred salag-mites and salag-tites in there.”

“Stalactites,” Spike corrected quietly.

“That’s what I said,” Rosie shot back. “Salag-tites.”

Flash darted up behind her, trying to peer over her shoulder into the inky black. He itched to bolt ahead, but the uneven cave floor and twisted metal debris made him hesitate. “If Jewel’s scanner thingy picked up a signal here, it’s gotta be in there!”

He glanced back at the group, wide-eyed. “Hey, do you think Chaos Emeralds really float and glow? Like, float-float? Mommy and Daddy always said they hum when they’re close—and if you touch one, you get powers! Like, instant superspeed! Or flying!”

“You’ve had way too many candies,” Spike muttered, side-eyeing the now half-empty wrapper sticking out of Flash’s supply belt. He moved carefully past the others, adjusting his bandana scarf before turning to Jewel, who had knelt near the entrance, tapping through readings on her scanner.

“Let’s use the flashlight,” Spike said, voice a little firmer, “and make marks with the chalk so we don’t get lost. Uncle Shadow says marking your trail is essential to survival.”

Jewel nodded, already pulling a flashlight from her pack. “Smart thinking. The signal’s bouncing, which means it might be buried—or protected. Either way, we’re in the right place.”

She clicked on the light, cutting through the darkness with a strong white beam. The cavern revealed itself slowly: long walls of rough stone and twisted, corroded metal ribs—the remains of an old man-made tunnel or collapsed Eggman facility, now fused with the natural cave system. The air was heavy and wet, thick with the scent of mineral dust and oxidized iron.

Stalactites—some crystalline, some fused with wiring—hung like jagged teeth from the ceiling. Water dripped rhythmically somewhere deeper inside, the sound sharp and hollow.

Rosie skated a little further ahead, cautiously this time. “It’s like a robot dungeon in here…”

“Robot dungeon!” Flash echoed, and immediately tripped over a piece of rebar.

“Careful!” Spike hissed, grabbing his brother's arm before he faceplanted. “The floor’s uneven.”

Flash caught himself, wide-eyed, but quickly recovered with a sheepish grin. “Totally meant to do that. Tactical roll.”

From the rear, Jewel pressed a small piece of chalk into Spike’s hand. “You’re on marker duty, Navigator.”

Spike flushed a little at the contact of their hands but nodded seriously. “Copy that.”

The group moved forward in cautious formation—Jewel with the scanner and flashlight in the lead, Rosie and Flash on either side peering into shadows, and Spike at the rear, stopping every few meters to leave a bright florecent orange chalk “X” on the tunnel wall.

As they continued, the strange noises returned—faint, mechanical, irregular. A soft hum, a distant scrape of metal, a low click-click-click, like something moving along the stones.

Rosie slowed. For the first time, her voice sounded nervous. “Did anyone… hear that?”

They all paused. The flashlight beam darted around, sweeping across the uneven ground, jagged rock formations, and the half-buried remains of old Eggman drones—one with its eye still dimly glowing, though long dead.

Jewel narrowed her eyes. “Everyone stay close. I don't think we're alone in here.”

Flash swallowed, the last piece of Chaos Candy forgotten in his cheek. Still, none of them turned back.

There was a sharp, electric buzz—a high-pitched whine that made Spike’s quills twitch. All four kids snapped around just in time to see it: a motobug, old but fully operational, its wheel grinding over broken terrain with a nasty clanking. Its eyes glowed beneath its cracked carapace, and a pair of metallic pincers snapped hungrily in front of it.

Then came three more—rolling from the shadows and crawling out from behind fallen beams, eyes blinking to life. The badniks circled them like mechanical wolves, servos whirring, forming a tight ring of grinding steel and glowing red.

“Don’t panic!” Jewel barked, sliding instinctively into a guarded stance. Her fingers curled into fists, legs grounded. “We’ve got this! Stay sharp!”

Flash’s quills bristled in excitement. “Okay, okay! Time to go fast—for real!”

Before anyone could stop him, he shot forward in a quick spin-dash, a blur of blue and red streaking toward the lead motobug. He slammed into it with a resounding clang, sending it skidding sideways into a wall of rock.

“WOOOHOO—whoa—!” He careened off-target with zero control, bounced off a metal beam, and landed in a heap behind a stalagmite.

“Ow…” came his groan. The badnik sparked and twitched—damaged. It had worked.

Rosie skated forward next, weaving fast figure-eights between the remaining bots, the lights of her wheels flickering as she built speed.

“Over here, scrapheads!” she shouted. “Bet you can’t catch me!”

The bots’ sensors tracked her movement, almost losing her in the process—just like she wanted. With a sudden pivot, she kicked upward with one heavy foot—metal clanged hard against metal as her skate collided with a bot’s side panel, denting it with an explosion of sparks. The machine faltered, buckling under the blow.

"My skates are weighted! Just like Mommy’s bracelets!" She said with pride, catching herself on one foot and twirling back out of reach.

Spike was watching everything, notebook tucked under one arm, eyes narrowed. “The underside,” he muttered. “Right there, where the wheel connects to the body. That’s the weak point!”

He stepped back as a bot lunged for him—but he ducked low and rolled into a ball, puffing his quills out and jabbing sharply as it passed. A shriek of tearing metal followed—the bot’s undercarriage shredded by a row of sharpened spikes.

“Score!” he gasped, surprised at himself.

The fourth bot lunged at Spike. That’s when Jewel moved. Her eyes sharpened. She sidestepped the charge with a practiced twist of her hips and slammed her elbow down on its head with a clean, brutal arc—just like her mother taught her.

The bot’s casing cracked with a loud pop, sparks flying as it collapsed in a heap. Another turned on her, pincers snapping. She blocked the strike with a bracer, gritting her teeth, then threw a full-force punch into the badnik’s core. It exploded backward into a pile of cables and dust. Learning to punch rocks with her dad had payed off too.

“Don’t mess with a strong lady,” she muttered under her breath, flicking back a stray spine.

The cave was now filled with smoke and the scent of scorched circuitry. The whirring had stopped—at least for now. Four badniks, down.

However, their triumph was short-lived. The cave shook again—this time not from distant echoes or malfunctioning bots. The tremble rolled through the floor, deep and deliberate. Dust rained down from above. Somewhere farther in the tunnels, metal ground against metal with a bone-deep screech.

“Okay, that’s not a leftover badnik,” Jewel said, voice tense, her scanner spiking with static. “That’s something big.”

A thundering ka-chunk echoed through the passage, then another. The air grew hotter. The sour stink of heated oil and scorched metal filled their noses. Light bloomed around the bend in the cavern—not golden or natural, but sharp and unnatural, like welding torches slicing through smoke.

Then it came. A massive, armored mining mech stomped into view, ducking slightly to fit through the cavern opening. Its shoulders scraped the stone as it emerged, drills spinning, claws twitching, a spotlight glaring from its chest like a single burning eye. Pipes hissed steam with every movement, and the thudding of its boots on the earth made the walls groan. Inside the cockpit—looming behind the tinted glass—was him.

“INTRUDERS?!” Dr. Eggman’s voice boomed through the cavern, crackling through loudspeakers. “Unbelievable! I go out of my way to run one discreet, unauthorized mining operation—just one—and I still get saboteurs?!”

The mech’s arms swung wide, claws snapping. “I even kept the drones quiet this time! No neon branding, no unnecessary explosions, no maniacal laughter—do you have any idea how hard that was for me?!”

Rosie whimpered. Flash instinctively shielded her. “Okay, that’s Eggman. That’s definitely the actual Eggman.”

Spike pulled Jewel back toward a natural divot in the cave wall, his heart thudding. “He doesn’t see us yet. Maybe if we stay down—”

Then the mech’s spotlight swiveled. It caught the glint of Rosie’s sparkly green skates, the flash of Jewel’s gold bracers. Then it paused, fixed on the four small figures. Inside the cockpit, Eggman leaned forward slowly.

“…No,” he said, voice turning curious. “No, no, no. Now this is interesting…” The mech’s head tilted. The spotlight narrowed, looking like a single eye squinting.

“Well, well. Look what we have here. Pah. Don’t tell me.” The doctor gave a long pause. His grin spread beneath the gleam of his mustache. “Little hedgehogs. One echidna. Shades of blue, a hint of pink. A whole lot of impudent attitude."

The mech lowered slightly, hydraulics hissing. His voice was dripping with mischievous glee. “You’re theirs, aren’t you? Sonic’s. Oh-ho-ho… and I do believe Knuckles is going to have a fit.”

He gave a theatrical gasp. “Oh, Sage is going to love this! I’ve been telling her she needs to study her enemy’s strengths and weaknesses—what better way to learn than with test subjects?”

The mech’s claws snapped in anticipation. “Come along, now, children. Let’s call it… extra credit.”

The second Eggman reached for them, Jewel’s fists clenched. “We’re not going anywhere with him,” she growled, sliding forward in front of the others, feet set wide.

Spike instinctively grabbed her wrist. “Jewel, we have to run—! He’s not like the bots, he’s—he’s dangerous—”

But Jewel yanked her arm free, standing taller despite the tremble in her breath. “If I run now, I’ll never be taken seriously. I can handle this.”

Spike froze, the protest catching in his throat. His eyes flicked between her face and the looming mech. She was scared—he could see it—but her spine was steel. She looked so resolute in that moment it made his chest hurt.

“…Then I’m not leaving you,” he said, voice soft but firm.

Flash had already dropped into a crouch, his quills bristling. “Alright, loser mustache-man, you want us? Gonna have to catch us first!”

“Which you won’t,” Rosie added fiercely, kicking off with a wild spark from her skates. “'Cause we’re awesome!”

With a yell, Flash curled into a spin dash—fast and messy, barreling forward like a light blue cannonball and slamming into one of the mech’s legs. It staggered, but only slightly. “Ow!” he cried mid-roll, “Take that!”

Rosie zipped past, weaving circles around a pair of emerging Egg Pawns, her skates flicking sparks as she dodged and kicked with bone-rattling force. One of the bots spun out and crashed against the wall with a spray of wires.

Jewel launched herself forward, driving a flying kick into another pawn’s chest and twisting to grab its arm. With practiced motion, she flipped it over her shoulder, slamming it to the ground with a clang that echoed through the cavern.

Spike, watching the chaos unfold, did what he did best—analyze. His eyes darted over the mech, looking for joints, exposed wiring, any vulnerable panel he could use. He puffed out his quills as another bot charged him, leapt aside, then jabbed at a weak spot beneath its neckplate. The bot sparked, short-circuited, and collapsed in a heap.

They were fighting back—really fighting—but it wasn’t enough. The mech’s claws lunged again, swatting debris aside like twigs. It didn’t matter how clever they were, how brave. Eggman had brought war machines. They were still just kids.

“Enough games!” Eggman roared. The mech's spotlight pulsed red.

Before anyone could react, a concussive shockwave blasted outward from the mech’s core—knocking Rosie off her wheels, flattening Flash mid-spin, and sending Spike crashing into the wall with a sharp cry.

Jewel staggered to her feet, clutching a fresh bruise on her arm, chest heaving.

“Leave them alone!” she shrieked, voice cracking with fury.

The mech’s claw lunged before she could react, closing around her waist and hoisting her into the air like a toy. Her tiara slipped from her head, clattering to the cave floor with a sharp metallic ring.

“Fighting spirit! Oh, you really must be Knuckles’ girl,” Eggman chuckled darkly. “How fitting.”

“Jewel!” Spike scrambled forward, his notebook dropping from his hands as his quills bristled with panic. He rolled to intercept her—too slow.

A magnetic net burst open with a crackle of blue light, slamming down over him and Rosie. Electricity danced across the weave, locking them in place mid-step.

He didn’t scream. Didn’t move. His fingers clamped tightly over his ears as the world snapped too loud, too bright, too fast. The sudden pressure of the net, the buzzing of the field, the sight of Jewel being taken—it was too much.

He curled in on himself, breathing shallow and rapid, rocking just slightly as he shut down, silent.

“Spike?” Rosie’s voice trembled from beside him. She had seen him like this before, usually only on the worst of days, in large loud crowds thinking he lost Rosie and Flash, when the noise would get too much. “Spike, are you okay? Spike, just breathe, we're here!”

Flash let out a furious yell and launched himself forward—but a hovering drone swept in, grabbing him mid-air. His arms were pinned tight against his sides, feet kicking uselessly.

One by one, the children were plucked up and sealed into canisters of reinforced glass along the side of the mech—small, cylindrical chambers that pulsed faintly with containment fields.

“These were meant to house Chaos Emeralds,” Eggman drawled with a sneer, “but they'll do just fine for keeping pint-sized intruders in check.”

Inside her pod, Jewel twisted and punched at the glass with wild, furious strikes. Her knuckles bruised and her breath fogged up the interior as she screamed.

Eggman’s smug grin twitched on the mech’s external screen. “Now, now. Wouldn’t want to waste your limited air supply.”

Her fists froze mid-swing. 

Rosie had pressed her face to the inside of her pod, watching Spike’s containment anxiously. “He’s not answering—Spike, come on!”

Inside his own chamber, Spike had folded into the smallest shape he could make, he didn't even have his notebook to ground himself. He rocked faintly, breath shallow, expression blank. Not crying. Not speaking.

“Just breathe,” Rosie whispered, eyes brimming with panic.

Flash let out a muffled growl. “They’ll come for us! You’ll see! They have to!”

Eggman smiled coldly and turned the mech toward a tunnel entrance deep in the cliffside.

“Oh, I hope they do,” he purred. “I’d love to welcome the whole family.” The mech’s engines roared, drowning out the last of the kids’ voices as it disappeared into the ravine’s winding tunnels—leaving behind only dust, the faint smell of ozone, Spike's notebook and Jewel’s fallen tiara.

Chapter 4: A Place Worth Fighting For

Notes:

Surprise! I have this chapter finished and ready to go! The rescue mission! I had to include Tails, Knuckles, and Rouge of course. Tails is a good Uncle and was worried about the kids too!
I'll be honest, action is hard to write sometimes, but I can't not include it in my Sonic fanfics because...it's Sonic! He lives by the action and adventure!

The lunch was just finished, a bubbling shepherd's pie emerging from the oven with golden peaks of mashed potatoes kissed with browning butter. Instead of the usual beef, Amy had used leftover chili—thick and smoky, packed with her usual hidden treasure trove of vegetables. Roasted tomatoes and poblanos added depth, and finely chopped bell peppers, onions, and garlic simmered together like a secret spell. She’d even snuck in shredded carrots—minced so fine they were practically invisible—because if Rosie spotted them, she'd mutiny.

"Smells delish, Amy," Sonic called, leaning over the kitchen counter just as she set the dish down. The steam curled up like the scent of home itself. "I could marry you all over again just for your cooking."

Shadow, planted in the corner chair with his third—maybe fourth—cup of black coffee, didn't even look up from the mission dossier scrolling across his communicator. “That’s not her cooking you’re ogling,” he muttered dryly.

He finally glanced up, raising an eyebrow at Amy. “Is this really the same guy who used to run for the hills when you flirted with him?”

"Oh my Gaia, Shadow," Sonic laughed, dragging a hand down his face. “I was an awkward teenager. Feelings were scary back then.” He paused, letting out a quiet breath before adding, so softly only he could hear himself, “...Sometimes they still are.”

Amy chuckled as she peeled off her oven mitts. “Well, I think we’ve all grown quite a bit since then.”

She glanced at the wall clock and then out the window where the afternoon light was beginning to stretch across the grass. “Alright, I think it’s time to call the kids back in. I bet they’re starving—and I know they won’t want to miss saying goodbye to their Uncle Shadow.”

“I’m on it,” Sonic said, already heading for the door. “Back in a flash.”

He stepped outside and stretched, letting the breeze rustle through his quills as he cupped his hands to his mouth. “Kids! Hey! Lunchtime!”

No answer. No pounding footsteps. No laughter. His foot tapped the deck absentmindedly. "...Huh."

Usually, they’d be stampeding from the woods or racing up from the pond by now. He tilted his head, frowning. A second later, realization hit. He snapped his fingers.

“The clubhouse,” he muttered. “Right.”

He smiled and took off, weaving between the trees at a brisk pace. The branches overhead filtered the sunlight into golden slices, the smell of late summer in the air—warm leaves, distant pine, and something slightly metallic the closer he got.

Soon, the bunker came into view—partially buried, almost swallowed by ivy and underbrush. The old “NO ADULTS ALLOWED” sign dangled crookedly on the entrance. Sonic smirked and raised his voice.

“Well gosh, it sure would be a shame if I had to eat all of Flash, Spike, and Rosie’s lunch portions myself…” he said loudly, theatrically. “Guess I’ll just have to take one for the team!”

Silence. No indignant yells, no playful groans, not even a stifled giggle from inside. His smirk faded.

“…Okay. That’s not normal.” He stepped closer, placing a hand on the rusted wall. “Hey, I know I’m not technically allowed in, but if I don’t bring you back, your mom’s going to kick my butt—and I say that with love.”

Still nothing. His stomach tightened. He pressed the control panel. With a familiar hiss, the old door slid open.

The inside was dark. Fairy lights—usually flickering faintly from the scavenged battery pack—were off. Candy wrappers, soda cans, and a few scattered comics littered the floor, but the place was eerily still. Cold. Like the excitement had been vacuumed out of the air.

“They were just here…” he murmured, eyes scanning the space. Then he saw it—the whiteboard bolted to the far wall.

Sonic stepped forward, brow furrowing as his eyes traced the words written in Spike’s careful hand.

OPERATION CHAOS QUEST

Below it: a list of supplies, maps tacked up with colorful magnets, and a red arrow pointing to RAIL CANYON—THE RAVINE.

He read it all in a single breathless moment. Then his heart dropped. “Oh… oh no.”

He backed away from the board like it had physically hit him, then spun and bolted from the bunker, his form a blue blur through the trees.

By the time he reached the house again, Shadow and Amy were already in the front yard. Amy stood rigid, both hands wrapped tightly around a drone—the unmistakable black-and-red EggTech model, one with a screen, meant for displaying messages. Her grip was almost tight enough to shatter it, her knuckles were white.

Sonic skidded to a stop, kicking up dirt, breathing hard. “We’ve got a BIG problem—”

Then he saw their faces. Amy didn’t even speak, she simply turned the drone's screen toward him. Sonic’s eyes widened as the video played.

Eggman’s grinning mug filled the screen, smug and too-close, his voice curling with glee and eyes glittering with cruel amusement.

"Hello again, Sonic. You'll never guess what I found today." He sneered with a satisfied grin, the bot filming pulling back to show four cylindrical containment tubes on the side of a drilling mech, inside each one a terrified child. "A trio of little hedgehogs in shades of pink and blue, and—what's this? A small echidna as a bonus! It must be my lucky day."

Flash was seen pounding on the transparent wall of his chamber, faintly heard yelling out "You stupid loser Eggface! Mustache baldy! I'll kick your butt!" Rosie was pressed against the glass, crying hard and mouthing "Mommy". Spike was curled with his knees to his chest, face hidden in his tightly wrapped arms and rocking slowly. He was fidgeting with the bracelet his dad had given him, touching the almost glowing green orb on it as the only thing to ground him. Jewel was baring her teeth, leaning against the side of her tube with her fist pressed to the glass in frustration that she couldn't break out no matter how hard she hit it. 

Sonic’s breath caught. Not only were his children captured, but Jewel too? Rosie had been talking all morning about seeing her again, so she must have invited her to sneak out with them. Knuckles was going to kill him.

Eggman’s voice snapped him back to the present. “Now, now, don’t get too emotional. They’re alive and unharmed. For now,” he said with mock reassurance. “But let’s not pretend this was some harmless playdate gone wrong. A mindless kidnapping? No, no... these children were hunting—for this." He held up a red Chaos Emerald proudly. "And they stepped in my territory. Clearly your bad habits are contagious, Sonic.”

He chuckled coldly, steepling his fingers. "So here’s the deal: you want these brats back? I want the rest of the Chaos Emeralds. All of them. In person. Delivered by you. You have 12 hours for your family reunion, meeting at these coordinates." The numbers showed on the screen. "And if there's any funny business the next message you'll receive will be a funeral notice."

The drone fizzled out with a mechanical whine, its screen going black. Amy stood frozen, still clutching it like she might crush it into powder. Shadow’s arms were folded tight against his chest, his brow furrowed in a stormy scowl. Sonic just stared at the ground. Like if he looked up, he might shatter.

“They went after the Chaos Emerald,” he said finally, his voice low. “That's why they left.”

Amy looked over sharply. “But we never—”

She stopped. Shadow’s eyes narrowed. “…They were eavesdropping,” The darker hedgehog said. “On us. This morning, when I told you two about my mission.”

Sonic’s face twisted—grief and guilt fighting for dominance. “I should’ve known. They were being quiet, too quiet. I just thought… I don’t know. I didn’t think they were listening. All the talk about treasure hunts, I thought it was just another game.”

Amy stepped forward, her voice catching. “They idolize us. All of us. To them, this wasn’t just sneaking out. This was their first mission.”

“And now they’re in cages,” Shadow said flatly. “Because they wanted to be like us.”

Sonic pressed his palms to his face, dragging them down. “I didn’t know. I swear, I didn’t know.”

“No one’s blaming you,” Amy said gently, though her voice trembled. She placed a gentle hand on Sonic’s shoulder. “We all missed it. All of us.”

Shadow crossed his arms. “We don’t have time to spiral. We’ve got twelve hours and Eggman has a head start. I say we gather the emeralds, hit him hard, and get the kids out. No negotiation.”

Sonic nodded, jaw clenched. “We’re not giving him a single gem. But we’ll look like we are.”

He looked between the two of them—Amy, red-eyed, teary, and angry; Shadow, cold and burning beneath it. Then, Sonic’s gaze softened. “I can’t do this without you.”

Amy took Sonic’s hand in her own, then reached for Shadow's with her other hand. He hesitated, looking at her offered hand for just a moment before nodding and taking it.

“…Let’s get our kids back.” Amy said.

“SONIC!”

Knuckles stormed across the front yard, fists clenched so tightly the veins in his hands could be seen through his gloves, his whole body radiating rage. His eyes landed on Amy, then Sonic—and the smoking drone still clutched in Amy’s hands.

“Where. Is. My daughter?!” he demanded, voice low and dangerous. "I just got one of those messages too!"

Sonic opened his mouth, but Knuckles was already in his face. “How did you let this happen?! She’s seven, Sonic! She’s just a kid!”

“Knuckles—” Amy began.

“I trusted you! You said it was safe here!” He was already at Sonic, jabbing a finger into his chest. “You let my daughter sneak off with your trouble-magnet kids on some stupid Chaos Emerald scavenger hunt? And now she’s in a tube in some psycho’s death machine?!”

“I didn’t know,” Sonic said quickly, firm but not defensive. “None of us did. We didn't send them on that hunt.”

Knuckles’ fists clenched tighter. “They’re your kids! You were supposed to be watching them!”

Amy stepped in between them before the shouting could escalate further. Her voice was still shaking—but it was clear, measured, and controlled. “Knuckles, stop. Listen to me.”

He looked at her, chest heaving.

“They weren’t sent on a mission. They weren’t told anything. They overheard us—me, Sonic, and Shadow—talking this morning about the Chaos Emerald.” Amy’s voice caught for just a second, but she powered through it.

“They snuck out because they wanted to help. Because they wanted to be like us.” Her eyes flicked to Knuckles, pointed. “Like their mom and dad. Like their Uncle Shadow. Like you.”

That gave him pause.

“They’ve grown up hearing about the battles we’ve fought,” she went on, softer now. “The times we saved the world. They pretend to be us in the backyard. Rosie insisted on adding weights to her skate shoes just to be like me with my weighted bracelets. Spike writes down and repeats the stories he's heard about us until he knows them by heart. Flash has been trying to perfect his spin dash without hurting himself. He literally quotes you when he’s trying to act tough.”

Knuckles’ jaw twitched, but he didn’t interrupt.

“And Jewel…” Amy exhaled slowly. “Jewel just wants to be a hero like her parents. She looks up to you and Rouge, Knuckles. All of them do. They wanted to prove they could be brave. Just like we always told them we were.”

She let that sink in. Her voice dropped, trembling slightly. “They’re just kids. Kids who believed in the stories we told. And now they’re paying the price for believing too hard.”

The silence that followed was thick and heavy. Knuckles stepped back a pace, some of the fire leaving his eyes. His fists loosened. His breathing was still ragged, but slower.

"Alright, what's the plan?" He finally asked. "I know you aren't letting that jerk get away with snagging our kids."

Shadow moved forward. “We’re already working on a response. We have three emeralds. If we work fast, we might not even need the others.”

Sonic nodded, a slight grin tugging at his lips. "I think I've got an idea."

"Then I'm coming along too." Knuckles insisted. "Rouge already flew ahead to find where Eggman’s hiding. We're getting our kids back no matter what."

~~~

The sun was slowly beginning to touch the horizon, but the ground was still radiating the absorbed heat of the late summer day. Sonic stood at the center of the clearing, sweat clinging to the fur on the back of his neck. His gloved hands gripped the metal briefcase tightly, its faux chrome edges gleaming under the light. Inside were the "Chaos Emeralds"—carefully crafted fakes, courtesy of Tails, who had spent the last five hours heat-molding synthetic gems to match their legendary glow.

The real ones—just three—were stashed with Shadow, hidden away and ready to use only if needed.

Sonic glanced up. The place was too quiet. Somewhere nearby, a scrap of metal clanged as if nudged by a wind that wasn’t there. His eyes flicked across the perimeter before he saw the glimmer of Eggman’s logo reflecting off a metal surface in the distance.

“Show yourself, Eggman,” Sonic called, raising his voice. “I brought what you asked for.”

For a moment, there was no response. Then a hydraulic hiss echoed through the canyon, followed by a puff of steam as a platform rose high into the air from the far edge of the field. Metal groaned and split apart, revealing Eggman standing at its center, flanked by two towering Enforcer Bots and the children in the pods mounted up high on a scaffolding tower behind Eggman’s mech. Flash immediately saw his dad and started pounding on the glass.

"Daddy!" Flash’s tiny voice cried, getting the attention of the other children. Sonic couldn’t hide his worried frown as he forced his focus back to the threat at hand.

Eggman looked exactly the same as always—towering, smug, and unbearable.

“Sonic the Hedgehog,” Eggman drawled, sweeping his arms wide. “Punctual. Obedient. And look at you, even wearing your serious face! Adorable.”

Sonic didn’t respond. He set the briefcase down with a metallic click and opened it slowly, tilting it forward just enough for the glow of six glittering “Chaos Emeralds” to shine through.

Eggman’s eyes glinted. “My, my. You actually followed instructions for once.”

“I’m full of surprises.” Sonic shot back with a defiant smirk.

“You’re full of something, alright.” Eggman muttered, checking something on the console in front of him. There was a slight error that made him raise an eyebrow.

Sonic closed the case again with a deliberate snap. “Now give me the kids.”

“Oh, Sonic,” Eggman cooed, stepping forward a pace. His boots thudded ominously on the steel. “Not only are you a terrible liar, as always; did you really think I was going to honor a deal? After all these years?”

Sonic’s hand curled into a fist. “You said no tricks.”

“I lied.” Eggman’s grin widened. He raised a hand—and the ground around them erupted. "Just as you tried to do."

Steel panels flipped open across the field. From them rose wave after wave of Eggman’s finest: Buzzbombers, Crabmeats, Egg Pawns, missile drones—an entire army, encircling Sonic like a closing jaw.

“Let me tell you how this is going to go,” Eggman continued, stepping back to his rising mech platform, rising even above the captive children. “I take the emeralds, I crush you under the weight of poetic justice, and your kids become perfect test subjects.”

"Daddy! No!" Rosie cried.

Sonic crouched, teeth clenched, one foot sliding back into a runner’s stance. He muttered under his breath, barely audible: “And you're as predictable as ever.”

Suddenly, the sound of twin propellers sliced through the air. A familiar red and white biplane screamed overhead, the Tornado, its wings loaded with modified energy cannons. From the cockpit, Tails leaned out with his headset on, eyes sharp.

“Sonic! I'm in the air! I’ve got your six—marking the biggest clusters now!”

From the underside of the plane, precision laser bursts rained down in arcs, picking off drones that tried to swarm from the ridge. A cluster of missile-bots exploded mid-charge, raining harmless debris to the canyon floor.

“Nice timing, buddy!” Sonic called, ducking under a crashing drone and skidding around a blast crater.

“You’re lucky I prepped the Tornado this morning,” Tails replied over comms. “Remind me to bill you for the ammo!”

Then a blur of red and white slammed into the nearest Buzzbomber, smashing it to pieces in a spray of sparks. In the same breath, a two ton hammer came whirling out of nowhere, flattening a pair of Egg Pawns like tin cans.

“You don't get to take my babies or gang up on my husband!” Amy Rose shouted, landing in a crouch beside Sonic, hammer spinning in her grip.

On the opposite side of the battlefield, Shadow teleported into the chaos in a flash of light, Chaos Spear already in hand. A half-dozen robots turned toward him—only to be shredded one after another in a flurry of blows.

"About time you two showed up!" Sonic quipped playfully. 

"You forgot to give the signal. You're lucky we jumped in at all!" Shadow snapped. 

Sonic simply smiled, unbothered by the tone as he began to swing at and dash into bots casually. "I mean, I knew you guys would hop in as soon as you were needed, the signal was more of a... safety messure."

A massive tremor shook the field as Knuckles dropped in from above after another sweep of the Tornado, slamming his fists into the ground hard enough to fracture the stone beneath them. A shockwave rippled out, knocking a full circle of bots flat. He stood tall, glaring up at Eggman’s mech.

“Touch one more hair on my daughter’s head,” Knuckles growled, “and I’ll make sure you regret it, Eggman!”

Eggman, unfazed, simply raised himself higher into his mech. “Ah yes, the whole dysfunctional little family. All that firepower—and still so easily baited.” He jabbed a finger toward them, giving an order to his bots. “Crush them.”

With that, the battlefield exploded into motion. Turrets whirred to life, drones swarmed from above, and bots charged from every angle—hundreds of them, an overwhelming metal tide. Sonic was already gone, a blue blur tearing through the first wave, scattering wreckage in his wake.

Shadow stayed close to the center, hurling Chaos Spears with lethal precision, warping across the field like a ghost of rage. Amy spun like a dancer in the middle of it all, her hammer whistling through the air with every swing, knocking metal chunks across the canyon.

Rosie, Spike, Flash, and Jewel could see everything from their prison pods. Their wide eyes reflected the battle.

“MOMMY?!” Rosie shouted, pressing her face against the glass as Amy crushed another bot.

“Holy chaos,” Flash whispered. “She’s wrecking them. I knew Daddy could fight, but she's amazing!”

Spike didn’t speak—but for the first time, he looked up from his arms, eyes shining. He watched his mom whirl and slam a massive bot into the canyon wall with a shout of fury.

“…She came for us,” he murmured. From above the battlefield, the fight was a roaring storm of chaos. "Uncle Shadow, Mommy, Uncle Tails, Daddy..."

Rosie flinched with every explosion. Her tiny fists were pressed against the containment glass, tears dried on her cheeks but eyes wide with fierce hope. “They're gonna save us!” she cried, slapping her hand on the pod wall.

“My Dad's here too,” Jewel whispered in awe, her eyes glued to the battle below. She pressed her cheek to the side of the pod, her eyes following Knuckles as he punched clean through badniks en mass, cracking the ground and flinging rocks at enemies across the battlefield. “They’re fighting so hard…”

“They’re outnumbered,” Flash muttered, gripping the sides of his pod as the battle below roared louder. “There’s so many enemies.”

“But they’re winning,” Spike said quietly.

Flash turned to him, surprised. Spike still looked pale—but he wasn’t curled up anymore. He was sitting up straight now, one hand pressed to the glass, locked on his parents. “...They're all so strong.”

From somewhere behind the pods, a tiny, nearly inaudible click echoed through the mechanical scaffolding. Jewel was the first to react to the sound, her head turning sharply.

A shimmer of movement passed like a shadow behind the platform’s support beams. Then another click. A laser cutter, short and precise.

Rouge the Bat slipped between two maintenance columns, hidden in the blind spot of the nearest security bot. She flattened her wings tight to her back and hugged the structure.

“Alright, you're all keeping them distracted nicely,” she murmured into her comms. “I’m at the containment level. Lock identification is biometric, but I’ve cracked worse.”

"Mom?!" Jewel squeaked, her eyes widening.

"Yes, baby, it's me." Rouge replied softly, giving her daughter a reassuring smile that was equal parts relieved. "Are you hurt at all?"

Jewel couldn’t speak—she just shook her head hard, biting her lip until it hurt. Her chest felt too small for all the feelings crashing around inside it. Relief hit hard and dizzying—but beneath it, frustration burned sharper than any scrape. She was glad they came, so glad, but she hated needing rescue, she hated feeling small. She had tried so hard to handle it on her own.

Rouge flicked her wrist, activating a sleek holo-tool, and began scanning the locking mechanisms on the pods. “Four locks… give me sixty seconds."

Rouge’s fingers danced over the control pad, rerouting the biometric sensors. Her movements were calm, almost casual, but her eyes never stopped scanning.

Then a sharp clang sounded from behind her. She had been spotted by a security bot. It began to charge up a laser blast.

"Mom! Look out!" Jewel yelped.

Before her daughter even finished her warning, Rouge had rolled out of the way, the laser missing and striking empty air. Sparks flew off the side of the scaffolding.

Rouge spread her wings and launched in the air. Then she dropped from above a heartbeat later, heel crashing down on the bot’s head like a meteor. It crumpled instantly with a burst of sparks. She pivoted on one foot, wings unfurling for balance, and slashed her elbow across another drone rushing in from the side—its head snapped sideways, wires bursting free. Two more bots emerged from behind the scaffolding, twin plasma blades deployed.

“It's never a simple stealth mission.” Rouge sighed, kicking off the rail and flipping backward to land on a higher beam. She planted her feet, spun, and threw a palm-sized explosive behind her. It latched onto the nearest drone. After a rapid beeping sound confirming the bomb was armed and attached, it burst. The shockwave sent the second bot flying, crashing down into the metal struts below.

"Woah..." Flash whispered from his pod.

“She’s not even breaking a sweat,” Jewel said, her voice barely audible but filled with something close to reverence. “She’s… she’s amazing.”

The battlefield below roared with metal and chaos. Sonic skidded through a line of Egg Pawns, knocking two aside in a whirlwind before a missile clipped his shoulder. He hit the dirt hard, coughing—his side burned from the heat of the explosion he barely avoided.

He pushed up, gritting his teeth. "I can still go, I just need a second." He hissed to himself. Unfortunately, this fight didn't spare any seconds.

The sound of the larger mech at the center of it all powering up echoed all around. Then, the familiar, taunting voice followed.

“If you want a job done right,” Eggman sneered from atop his looming mech, “you need to do it yourself!”

The machine stomped into the battlefield with a thunderous quake, its claw raised high. Sonic barely dodged a sweeping strike, but his movements were losing their snap. Fatigue tugged at every motion now. His breath came in short, raw gasps.

He tried to spin-dash up the mech’s leg—only to stumble with the movement, catching a blow to the ribs that sent him sprawling. Dust exploded around him. He looked up, the claw was already descending down toward him.

Time felt like it slowed around Sonic. He tried to get up, limbs scrambling under him. In a sinking feeling of dread, he found himself thinking, I'm not going to make it.

A burst of light tore across the field. Shadow, using his chaos control, slammed into the mech like a comet, his air shoe colliding with the claw and knocking it off course with a bone-jarring crack. The metal screeched and twisted as sparks flew. 

Shadow didn’t stop there. In a blur of black and red, he seized Sonic’s arm and dragged him out of the crater just as the claw slammed down again, crushing the spot where Sonic had just been.

Shadow skidded to a halt several yards away, chest heaving. His grip on Sonic’s arm was tight enough to leave a bruise.

For a moment, neither spoke. Then Shadow’s voice snapped out, low and sharp. “Are you TRYING to die?!”

Sonic blinked at him, dazed. “Huh—?”

“You’re not invincible, Sonic!” Shadow’s eyes burned like twin coals. “You can’t outrun everything! Next time, you won’t get lucky! I won't always get there in time!”

Just like I wasn’t in time for Maria.

He didn’t say it. He wouldn’t say it. The image still flashed in his mind: the dark room, the glass of the escape pod in his way, and the sound of gunshots. He shook the thought from his head, looking up at the children in their prison pods. The triplets almost witnessed their father getting killed too.

Shadow grabbed Sonic by the waist and pulled him behind a wrecked enforcer bot. Shadow crouched beside him, fist checking his injuries before scanning the battlefield.

“You stay here.” He demanded, tension still in his tone.

Sonic tried to push up. “Shads, I’m fine—”

“You’re not!” Shadow snapped harshly, pushing the blue hedgehog back down. “You’ve done enough.”

A familiar voice echoed over the comms in Shadow’s ear. “Containment locks disabled. The kids are free!”

Rouge’s message was short, sweet, and came just as Rosie’s cry echoed across the battlefield: “We're out!!”

The scaffolding exploded into action—Flash leapt from his pod first, landing hard but upright, followed by Jewel and Rosie. Spike moved slower, his legs shaky, but Jewel grabbed his hand and pulled him into motion.

Then Jewel turned and leapt immediately into her mother's arms, unable to contain the waterworks anymore. Rouge wrapped her arms tightly around her daughter, the slight tremble of worry leaving her frame.

"Everyone, follow me, we need to go now." Rouge explained, still holding Jewel firmly.

Above, Eggman’s console flashed red. He turned in time to see Rouge and the kids escaping, a snarl peeling across his face. “No, no, NO!”

With a furious lurch, he yanked a lever—and the mech began charging up a wide-range energy blast, plates shifting and power surging into its core.

“I’ve had enough of this!!” he bellowed. “If I can’t win, I’ll make sure you all lose!”

Amy was on the move, making eye contact with Shadow. Without any words, the two resolved on a plan. With one hand, she grabbed Shadow’s shoulder and vaulted off his back like a springboard. Her hammer ignited in a pink blaze mid-spin, trailing glowing rings of kinetic force as she soared through the air.

Shadow didn’t hesitate—he gripped his Chaos Emerald and teleported directly behind her in a crimson flash, matching her momentum midair. The two of them hurtled toward the mech like twin meteors.

Amy swung hard, her hammer colliding with the energy cannon, just as it began to fire, with a shriek of bending metal. The force of her blow bent the cannon backward, the blast firing up into the sky and detonating harmlessly far above. Only resonant heat from the blast was felt below. At the same time, Shadow charged up a full-powered Chaos Spear, launching it point-blank into the mech’s back.

The combined damage made the entire thing lurch sideways. Eggman flailed inside the cockpit as sparks exploded around him. “What? No—NO!”

The cockpit glass shattered and showered over Eggman as Amy landed hard on the front of the mech, slamming her hammer into the control panel. Alarms blared. Eggman yanked a second lever and the entire top of the mech shot skyward—his escape pod ejecting like a rocket.

“I’ll get you NEXT TIME!!” he shouted as the pod zipped into the clouds, trailing smoke and curses.

Below, the massive mech groaned, destabilized. Amy wobbled from the top, losing her balance. Shadow teleported in just behind her, scooping Amy into his arms as the machine collapsed behind them. The explosion swallowed the battlefield in flame and light—but they were already gone.

Shadow was in front of Sonic again in a flash of light, cradling Amy in his arms. She gasped out, "Thank you," her cheeks flushed.

Sonic stood, smiling to both of them. "I think that went well."

Shadow set Amy down gently, his jaw tightening before he opened his mouth to tear into Sonic.

"MOMMY! DADDY!" Rosie’s voice cracked through the smoke, and in the next breath, she was a blur of skates and tears flying into Amy’s arms. The moment snapped into motion again—Flash right behind her, Spike trailing close, his bracelet clutched tightly in his hand.

Amy dropped to her knees, gathering all three into her arms. “Oh, my babies,” she breathed, kissing each of them in turn. “I was so worried.”

Knuckles barreled over to Jewel, nearly knocking Rouge aside as he dropped to his knees in front of their daughter. “Are you alright? Did Eggman hurt you? What were you thinking?!”

“I’m okay,” Jewel mumbled, clutching his chest as he held her tight. “I just wanted to help. I wanted to be a real Guardian.”

Flash squirmed in the hug just long enough to bounce on his heels, grinning wide. “Mommy, you were awesome! You were like—BAM! BAM! And Daddy was all over the place so fast, beating up bots like boomboomboom!”

Amy chuckled, burying her face in Rosie’s hair for a moment as exhaustion finally tugged at her limbs. “You three know you’re grounded for a month, right?”

“WHAT?!” Flash squeaked, turning instantly to Sonic and Shadow as if they were his backup.

"Sorry, I'm with your Mom on this one, little guy." Sonic dryly chuckled. "What you kids did was dangerous."

“You taught us to be brave,” Spike mumbled. “We just wanted to help.”

Sonic’s smile softened, his eyes flicking to each of them. “And you were brave. But part of being brave is knowing when to come to others for help.”

Rosie clung tighter to Amy’s waist, still sniffling but calming. Flash gave a dramatic sigh and slumped against Sonic’s leg. Spike was still quiet, but his gaze kept drifting to Shadow. Shadow hadn’t moved much. He stood just behind the family scene, arms crossed, gaze shadowed, watching.

Sonic caught the look and tilted his head slightly. “You okay?”

Shadow didn’t answer immediately. His eyes lingered on the children, then returned to Sonic.

“We’ll talk,” he said quietly. Not a question. A promise.

Sonic blinked, nodding once. “Yeah. Okay.”

Shadow turned away, heading toward the canyon’s edge where Rouge was already guiding Jewel and Knuckles toward the idling Tornado. The plane's wings glinted faintly in the dusk light. Tails sat in the cockpit, adjusting the controls, watching quietly as the others approached. The danger had passed, but the weight of what almost happened hadn’t lifted yet.

Amy leaned into Sonic’s side, her arms still around Rosie and Flash. “We should get them home.”

“Yeah,” Sonic agreed, wrapping an arm around her and resting his chin briefly against her head, giving a quick and soft kiss to her forehead. He glanced toward the smoke curling in the distance, the wreckage, then Shadow’s back.

“Let’s go home.”

Notes:

The next chapter may be a while, we'll see. It shouldn't take too long. But it'll be emotional. Shadow isn't happy.

Chapter 5: A Place Between Us

Notes:

It's been a bit since I last updated this fic, I know. I'm juggling THREE fics now, why do I do this to myself? I've got a bad toothache and been dealing with a lot of health issues, but I was determined to write this up over the corse of two days.
We're finally getting to Sonic and Shadow facing their feelings, but will it be that easy? Frustrations and both being prideful guys are big obstacles, especially with how upset Shadow was at the end of the last chapter.

After a much-needed meal, Flash, Spike, and Rosie were readily sent to bed. The day’s chaos had worn them out completely. Sonic waited until he was sure they were tucked in, their soft breathing the only sound behind closed doors, before he made his way out to the backyard. 

The moon hung heavy and bright overhead, casting a silvery glow across the grass. Its light wrapped around Shadow’s silhouette where he stood beneath the old tree by the tire swing, arms crossed, barely more than a shadow himself.

Sonic approached cautiously. "You know, you could have joined us for dinner, or at least have said goodnight to the kids."

Shadow didn’t answer at first. His jaw tightened, the silence stretching thick between them. When he finally spoke, his tone was clipped—sharp enough to cut. “You almost died out there today.”

Sonic let out a short sigh and placed a gloved hand on his hip, tapping his foot impatiently against the dirt. “This again? I’m fine. We’re fine. Everyone made it out okay. I do this kind of thing all the time, Shadow. I know the risks.”

"That's exactly the problem." Shadow growled out, pushing off the tree to glare right into Sonic’s eyes. "You're always doing this. And I feel you don't actually know the risks." He crossed the distance between them, one hand jutting out in the direction of the house. "You have a beautiful wife. Three children who adore you. A life most people dream of. But you're still throwing yourself at robots and missiles like nothing has changed! Like you're still that restless teenage hedgehog with nothing to lose!"

Sonic shifted his stance back as Shadow got close to his face, his own brow furrowing in frustration. "Is that what you think? If anything, I keep fighting because I have everything to lose. I have to protect them—Amy, Rosie, Spike, Flash, and even..." He bit back his words before he said what he had been thinking. Even you. 

Sonic clenched his fists tightly. "Do you expect me to just sit back and let Eggman and every other psycho that wants to oppress the world get away with what they do? It's like you don't even know me!"

"They won't get away with it." Shadow shot back, folding his arms once again. "You can leave it to me, and other capable people that can handle it now." Shadow’s eyes flashed as he looked away. "You aren’t the only one who can protect the world, Sonic. You don't have to do this anymore, running in and getting hurt when you aren’t fast enough..."

Shadow's choice of words caused Sonic to flinch before scoffing with an embittered laugh. "So that's what this is about. You think I've gone soft? That I'm getting too old to keep up?"

Shadow was taken aback, but still didn't meet Sonic’s eyes directly, turning his gaze instead towards the house. "That's...that's not what I—"

"It sure sounds like it." Sonic's voice rose through gritted teeth. "You think I've lost my edge. Right? That I’m slowing down, slipping up? Thirty’s knocking at my door, so now I’m just a washed-up has-been who’s better off sitting at home while the real heroes take care of things?”

“That’s not what I’m saying!” Shadow said more firmly, jaw tightening again. "Don't put words in my mouth!"

Sonic stepped closer, jabbing an accusatory finger into the white fluff at Shadow’s chest. "Then what are you saying, Shadow? Because all I'm hearing is that you think I shouldn't have been out there today saving my own kids. That I should have stayed home and let someone else get hurt instead of me."

Shadow stepped back. His expression flickered with guilt—before hardening again into frustration. He struggled to find the right words to speak in the moment that wouldn't just be spilling years of fears and feelings he never wanted to share.

"Oh, I get it now." Sonic continued, pulling his hand back to a fist just over his own chest, the bitterness of his tone giving way to hurt. "This isn’t about today. This is about you. You've always hated that I never played by the rules, that I never knew when to quit. Maybe seeing me stumble makes it easier for you to believe you were right about me all along. Makes you feel better, doesn't it? Makes you feel like you're still 'The Ultimate Lifeform', and I'm just... some guy starting to get some gray in his quills."

Shadow snapped, his voice sharp with emotion he hadn’t intended to show. “You think this is about me? You think I want to watch you bleed out in the dirt because you couldn’t take a step back?! I’m trying to keep you alive, Sonic!”

A heavy silence fell after that. The wind rustled through the leaves above. Crickets chirped in the underbrush, indifferent to the tension hanging in the air. Sonic closed his dried mouth and stared back into Shadow's eyes, stunned for a moment as Shadow’s breathing evened out. 

"Maybe you're right." Shadow finally spoke again, turning away from Sonic, putting up a cold sheild to mask the vulnerability that was trying to spill out. "Maybe you have lost your edge."

That hit Sonic harder than he wanted to admit. He stood frozen for a minute, an ache forming in his chest as he took a trembling breath. Sonic shook his head. "Right. I hear you loud and clear." His voice was lower now, heavy with resentment. "Next time, don’t bother coming around if all you’ve got for me is judgment."

Without another word, Sonic turned and walked back toward his house, the crunch of grass and leaves the only sound between them. Shadow remained where he was, still as a statue until the sound of the door closing echoed across the yard. He chanced a glance back at the house, noticing curtains rustling in a rushed manner in one of the top bedroom windows. There had been an audience for their argument, and that only made the guilt sink further.

~~~

The first month without any visits or messages from Uncle Shadow, the triplets just assumed was part of their punishment. After all, they’d been grounded, and with no fun visits from friends or family during that time, it didn’t seem strange at first.

However, as the time stretched into a second month of no sight of Shadow—no letters saying he was on a mission, no quick visits with stories, not even a call—that was when the three of them started to worry.

Their dad had grown distant too, disappearing more often for “training” or “preparing for whatever threat comes next,” as he put it. They may have been kids, but they weren’t stupid. They could tell something was off. He still smiled, still laughed when he tucked them in, teased their mom, or cooked breakfast. The smiles didn't reach his eyes the way they used to. He would look off into the distance, out the window when the weather would turn, and seemed more distracted. 

Flash had caught him one night sitting in the tire swing alone, just staring at the stars. His chili dog had gone cold in his hand. Many nights the children were woken by the muffled sound of the front door opening late at night, and would find new scrapes or bruises on Sonic’s arms the next day at breakfast. Amy would always frown when she would see them as well.

One evening, the three of them gathered in Rosie’s room, the soft glow of her nightlight casting sleepy shadows on the mural-covered wall. The mood was heavier than usual.

"I think they really did get into a serious fight that night we saw them in the yard." Spike groaned as he leaned back against the bed.

"Does that mean it's our fault Uncle Shadow doesn't come by anymore?" Rosie whimpered as she tightly hugged her chao plushie. "Because we caused trouble?"

“I don’t get it,” Flash muttered, gripping his pillow so tightly his black and white gloves creaked. “Mommy said they used to fight all the time a long time ago. But they would always make up! So why don’t they just make up already!?” 

Rosie looked down at her plushie, a gift that Shadow had given her on their last birthday, her lips trembling. "Do you think... they don't want to be friends anymore?"

"No way!" Spike protested, though he didn't sound very sure of himself. "Uncle Shadow loves us, all of us. He wouldn’t just stop showing up. He’s probably just... busy. He’ll come back. He always does."

“I miss him.” Rosie whispered, squeezing the chao plush even tighter to her chest.

“Yeah,” Flash said, his voice cracking. “Me too.”

Just outside the door to the bedroom, Amy stood quietly in the half-lit hallway. She hadn’t come there with the intention to eavesdrop—she'd only come up to remind them that bedtime was soon—but the sound of distress in their voices had caused her to stop and listen.

She heard it all: The heartbreak in Rosie’s tone, the anger in Flash’s, the worry behind Spike's quiet insistence. It wasn’t just that they missed Shadow, though clearly all three of them did. They were hurt, confused, tangled up in a mess of grown-ups' feelings that they were too young to understand. No child should have to carry these worries, to feel afraid of their family and loved ones falling apart around them.

Amy closed her eyes, sighing and pressing her forehead against the wall. This wasn’t just about Sonic anymore. She had known since Shadow had left without a word that night, since Sonic had come to bed and just buried his face in his pillow not wanting to talk about it, that things were worse than Sonic wanted to let on. She saw it in his forced smiles, in the way he threw himself into relentless training as though he were punishing himself. At first she had respected his silence, his need for space to sort out his feelings. Amy had thought if she waited, he would come to her about it. That was before she saw how the children were hurting from this. That was the line, she needed to confront Sonic.

Amy quietly stepped away from the doorway to Rosie’s room, careful not to alert the kids, and made her way to her and Sonic’s room. She walked in to see he was putting on a vitals-reading watch made by Tails and checking the treads of his shoes. 

"Sonic. We need to talk." Amy said calmly but firmly as she shut the door behind her. 

Sonic looked up to meet his wife's eyes curiously. "Can we make it fast? I was about to go on a run—and Tails just told me he repurposed a bunch of wrecked badniks to make a challenge training corse—"

Amy didn’t need to say a word to make him stop, she simply put her hands on her hips and gave him a harsh glare that told him he wasn't going anywhere for a while. Sonic swallowed a suddenly appearing lump in his throat. "I can... tell him I'll reschedule."

"You're doing too much with all this training, Sonic." Amy began, keeping her voice even and firm. "It's one thing to have a daily workout and running routine, but you're going out at all hours of the night! You're coming home bruised and battered, pushing yourself to where you're falling apart and you can barely function!"

"Amy..." Sonic breathed out with a sigh, readjusting his sitting position on the bed to show his wife he was giving her his full attention. "I can't afford to slip-up again. I have so much to fight for: you, the kids, and... and I can't..."

"Sonic, please." Amy stepped closer, placing a gloved hand delicately on his shoulder, her tender bright green eyes locking onto his own. "You trust me, don't you? You can tell me the truth, what's been bothering you, why you want to distract yourself with all this training."

There was silence, heavy hesitation as Sonic brought his own hand to cover hers resting on his shoulder. He was struggling to find the words.

"This is about Shadow, isn't it?" Amy softly asked, a sharp breath from Sonic through his nose seeming to answer her question. His hand trembled slightly over hers, looking down at the wood flooring like it might somehow offer him the answers.

"I just..." Sonic began, but the words caught in his throat. He tightly held her hand and guided her to sit in the bed next to him. "Amy, you know I love you, right? I really do. I love you so much that it hurts sometimes. You and the kids are everything to me. The idea of losing any of you terrifies me."

Amy’s eyes shimmered with the flicker of tears as she scooted closer to Sonic on the bed. She nodded, staying silent to listen to what he had to say.

"Do you remember," Sonic continued with a wistful smile, "When it was just us? When we first started dating and I didn't know what to do? I only had a couple short-lived attempts at relationships, and after years of trying to act like I didn’t care, I was so nervous." He couldn't help but to chuckle at the memory of him attempting to be smooth and carefree with her while his heart pounded. "You spent so much time chasing me down like you saw something in me I didn't see in myself."

Amy smiled as well, pulling his hand into her lap, her thumb tracing the pattern of his paw pad beneaththe glove. "I remember thinking... if I could just get you to slow down, you’d finally realize you didn’t have to be alone."

"And I did. I realized how much you meant to me, how stupid I was to run away from you for so long, being so indecisive." He looked right into her eyes, squeezing her hand back. "You gave me a place to belong, a home, a family, a reason to stay."

Amy reached up, running a hand through his windswept quills and cupping his cheek. Sonic leaned into the touch, closing his eyes. "Then tell me, Sonic." She spoke gently, "What's making you run away now?"

He hesitated, his voice dropping to barely more than a whisper when the words finally made their way from his throat. "I think...I'm in love with him." 

Amy blinked, but she didn’t pull away, or seem surprised in the least. Her thumb continued to stroke soothing circles the fuzz of Sonic's muzzle. She kept quiet, allowing him room to speak his feelings.

"With Shadow." He continued after a deep breath, placing a trembling hand over the one on his cheek and squeezing the hand still held in her lap. "I don't know when it started, maybe it's been there a long time now. I don't even know if he feels the same. But that night after we saved the kids, when he yelled at me—there was a moment he had real fear in his eyes, like losing me might kill him. And I—" He laughed weakly, bitterly before he continued. "I was a complete idiot. I was so angry, seeing it as an attack on my pride. I pushed him away. I said things I never should have said, and now I'm punishing myself for it. If I can at least keep you and the kids safe..."

Amy sat with him in the proceeding silence, her own heart pounding, understanding his feelings completely. She couldn't help but to smile. "I know. I mean, I suspected your feelings for Shadow for a while now." Sonic's eyes opened in surprise before she continued. "Honestly, I think I've been falling too."

Sonic’s breath caught for a moment as his grip on each of her hands tightened again. "You mean...?"

She nodded. "With Shadow. I didn’t expect it either. At first I thought I was imagining it, or just excited about your crush on him. I thought maybe I was projecting on how close we had grown with him as a family. But I saw him with the kids, how he became so kind and gentle around them, playing along even if he would act grumpy. The way he would triple check the perimeter and always looked reluctant before going home, or how he would linger in the kitchen drinking his coffee while you told him about your day." She smiled and blushed slightly, looking down at Sonic’s hand. "Maybe it's seeing the more caring side of him that made me start to feel this way."

Sonic’s mouth parted slightly in shock. "You too?"

Amy met his eyes again. "I love you, Sonic. That hasn't changed, and it won't. What I feel for Shadow... what you feel for him too, is different, but it's also real. And I think he has feelings for us too, even if he's too stubborn to say it."

Sonic let out a breath he hadn’t even realized he was holding, his shoulders slumping like a weight had been lifted. "I should have known I could come to you with this. I was so worried about hurting you, that you would think I wanted to leave you... I could never do that."

Amy leaned forward, nuzzling into the crook of Sonic's neck before resting her head on his shoulder. "It's okay to love more than one person, Sonic. Your heart’s not a pie. Love doesn’t shrink when you give more of it—it grows. You've never cared how the world saw your found family in the past, or how you chose to love. I've always known you were a free spirit with a big heart, why wouldn't it be big enough for both me and Shadow?"

Sonic closed his eyes and felt a real smile form on his face for the first time in weeks. It was a tired and aching smile, but genuine and happy. He turned his head to place soft, loving kisses on his wife's face.

"I've got to make things right, don't I?" He muttered softly. "I've been hurting you, myself, the kids, and Shadow by holding all of this in. Maybe... maybe together, we could—"

The watch Sonic had put on earlier began to buzz, the communicator application popping up on the screen showing it was Tails who was calling. Sonic raised an eyebrow in confusion. There was no way he was just calling because Sonic was late for the training he had requested. Amy pulled back and Sonic tapped the watch.

"Tails? What's up?" Sonic asked, the small image of his brother looking stressed in the face of the watch stirring concern in his gut.

"We've got a problem, Sonic..."

~~~

Aboard the G.U.N. stealth aircraft, the cabin was dimly lit by the soft glow of screens telling altitude, distance from the destination, and mission details. Shadow adjusted his gloves and checked the fit of his inhibitor rings, reviewing the mission briefing without really seeing the words. It seemed that the one Chaos Emerald they had allowed Eggman to escape with—along with a recently stolen G.U.N. data disk—had apparently been enough for the man to start building a new weapon. Now, that weapon was being aimed at a large city.

The finer details didn’t matter to Shadow right now. All that mattered was that he and Rouge were to retrieve the data disk, disable the weapon by whatever means necessary, and, if possible, recover the Chaos Emerald.

Rouge sat across from him, pretending to study the mission schematics. But her eyes kept drifting—watching the way Shadow fidgeted, tense and clearly elsewhere. She sighed when she watched him take out his own Chaos Emerald, turn it over in his hand, and place it back in his quills for the third time. 

"Alright," She finally said aloud, breaking the uncomfortable silence, "You've been awfully quiet lately. Much more so than usual." 

Shadow huffed harshly. "The mission briefing didn’t call for small talk."

"Since when has that stopped me?" Rouge teased playfully. Shadow gave no reaction to this, not even a roll of the eyes, which made the bat's grin fade away. "Okay, you haven’t been this shut-down since... what, Sonic and Amy’s wedding invite?"

Shadow groaned, fixing his quills back into place fastidiously. "I don't care for what you're implying. I'm just focusing on the mission at hand."

Despite himself, the bags under his eyes and the twitching of his head and quills told another story. In all the years that Rouge had known Shadow, there were very few secrets left between them—whether Shadow liked it that way or not. 

"No. You’re spiraling, and don’t pretend. You know I've noticed. You’re avoiding everyone, burning yourself out, barely eating. You haven’t stayed for a single debriefing in weeks. And I’ve seen you out of breath more than once. You, of all people." Rouge continued to press, crossing both her arms and her legs. "Your quills are messy, you haven't been keeping up with your hygiene, and you haven't even pretended to care about paying attention. You’re slipping. Those things are completely unlike you." There was a quiet beat before she spoke again.

"This isn’t just some mission obsession. This is you trying to outrun something."

Shadow was silent again for a moment, turning his eyes to glance out the window of the aircraft. "I don't owe you, or anyone else an explanation." He replied coldly.

Rouge narrowed her eyes, clearly not in the mood to relent to his moodiness. "You owe yourself one. You've been unraveling ever since the day we pulled the kids out of those pods. And yeah—I heard about the blowout with Sonic. You vanished after that. No goodbye, not even for the kids. And now you’re chasing missions like they’re the only thing keeping you alive."

Shadow’s hands clenched into fists against his knees. His voice dropped, low and rough. “I’m doing what I was made for.”

"I don't think disappearing on the people that love you is what you were made for." Rouge quietly muttered in response, but the words hit hard. Shadow visibly tensed, wishing he could melt into the shadows of the aircraft.

Rouge stood up and slowly crossed the cabin until she was only inches from him. Her voice softened, but stayed steady. “They miss you, you know. All of them.”

She waited, but Shadow didn’t look at her. “Jewel told me about her last visit—a sleepover with the triplets. Spike keeps checking the mailbox for a message. Rosie’s asking if you’re hurt... or if you’re ever coming back. And Flash—”

She gave a faint smile. “—in Jewel’s exact words, ‘will not shut up’ about finding a way to bring you back.”

Her smile faded, and her voice softened again. “She said Sonic’s been off too. He barely showed his face the whole time she was visiting—and you know how he usually loves playing with those kids.” She paused just long enough to let that land. “Jewel said he’s been training himself into the ground. Slipping out in the middle of the night, coming back beat-up and running on fumes. I’ve seen it too. He’s been going to Knuckles for sparring—a lot. Like he’s trying to make up for something... or punish himself."

Rouge finally sat right beside Shadow, leveling her gaze with his so he couldn't avoid her. "I know this isn't about guilt, or even your pride. You pushed Sonic away because you're scared of what it means to love him."

Shadow's eyes flicked towards hers, sharp and wary, his jaw tightening. There was no point in him denying it, she knew the truth.

"It's... better this way." He muttered—voice taut.

"For who?" She asked firmly. "For you? For them?" Silence was his only response as his eyes flicked away to a dark corner of the aircraft and he crossed his arms tightly, defensively over his chest.

Rouge sisighedmirroring his action and crossing her own arms as well. "I know you hate getting too close to people. You're afraid to love, to feel like you belong because you don't think you can handle losing them. But Shadow, you're already losing him. Pushing him out of your life and refusing to come back just causes the grief of loss to exist on both sides."

The whir of the aircraft engines filled the gap between them. Outside the window, the clouds parted, revealing a glimmer of Eggman’s facility—a jagged black shape with sprinkled lights below them.

Rouge broke the silence. "I haven't forgotten what you told me, back then," she began softly, her eyes still on him. "Years ago, just after that war with Eggman, when Sonic had been missing for so long. The one and only time you said it out loud—what you really felt for him."

Shadow grimaced like the memory she was speaking of stung on an old wound, uncrossing his arms to instead grip the seat beneath him.

“You didn’t even need to tell me,” she continued gently. “I already knew. But saying it out loud helped you. And I kept the secret, just like I promised. Because I knew it wasn’t just a crush, or something you’d grow out of. I knew how real it was.”

Shadow closed his eyes and clasped his hands together, the thick material of his gloves creaking slightly. "It doesn't matter anymore."

"It does matter!" Rouge protested. "You've been trying to pretend like those feelings aren't there anymore. You shoved them into a box, buried them, and convinced yourself that just being near him—being on the outskirts of his family—was enough."

Shadow breathed heavily through his nose and pressed his forehead into the knuckles of his clasped hands. Still he said nothing.

"But then that day happened, you saw him hurt. You thought he might die." Rouge’s voice wavered for just a moment, the weight of her words even heavy for her. "And all those feelings came crashing back in. Now your running, because pretending it doesn't hurt is easier than staying and letting all those feelings and fears soak in."

A beat of silence passed, the air in the cabin feeling heavier than before. Shadow finally opened his mouth, his voice raw as it came out. "He's married, Rouge. Seven years now. He has a perfect life, and he's happy. A wife he's crazy about, children, a home full of warmth I was never meant to be part of. I never should have even agreed to visit that first time." He looked up at Rouge. "I'm not going to be a homewrecker... as if I even ever had a chance."

Rouge pressed her lips into a line, but didn’t dare interrupt while he was finally airing out his real feelings. 

"I love him, and I always will." He admitted, barely above a whisper. "But those feelings can never be returned. Not by somebody who's already given his heart to someone else. What am I supposed to do? Torture myself with unrequited feelings? Tear apart what he's built just to feel something real for once?"

Shadow’s voice gave the slightest crack as he continued. "I would rather just be alone than hurt him, or her, or those kids."

Rouge's eyes softened with care for her dear friend, the edge in her expression fading as she absorbed every painful word he spoke. It was a lot like the first time he confessed these feelings years ago.

"You aren’t selfish for having feelings, Shadow." Rouge said, just barely refraining from placing a hand on his shoulder. She knew he wasn't the kind to appreciate physical contact for comfort. "You never were. You didn't chose to fall in love with him, it just happened. But... you are being selfish for deciding that you don’t belong in their lives—without giving them a say.”

Shadow turned toward her slowly, pain etched across his face.

“They love you,” Rouge whispered. “You’re already part of that family. Whether you like it or not.” She paused, then added gently, “Sonic needs you. Even if he doesn’t know how to say it. And I think they deserve the truth. Let them decide what to do with it.”

Before Shadow could answer, the aircraft tilted slightly, the descent had begun. Their mission was about to start.

Notes:

Can you tell I love Rouge being a wise grounding force and best friend for Shadow? And yes, she's saying after the events of Sonic Forces, Shadow told her how he felt about Sonic. He's been holding onto these feelings for so many years.