#sorry no hedgehogs this time! soon though

[dustyhyena]

some space furries for ya!

[woso-dreamzzz]

Melting Pot II

Ingrid Engen x Mapi León x Child!Reader

woso-dreamzzz Kids x Child!Reader (Nena)

Summary: A day in the life of the Engen-Leóns

You have a big house because you have a big family.

Or...Ingrid has a big house because she has a big family.

Your Mama says Ingrid has a fancy job which means she's very busy and gets lots of money. You think she's lying because Ingrid always has time to hang out with you and your nieces.

You have a lot of nieces.

Cub was Mapi's belly baby but that doesn't make her any less your niece. Then there's the twins, Bebita and Skatt. They were oopsy babies like you. Sunshine is next and then Teeny.

That makes five.

You have five nieces and you love them so much.

You keep a tight grip on Sunshine's hand as you're all led outside for pickup. You're her auntie and Ingrid says she's fragile after having her heart transplant so you make sure you don't lose her in the group of bodies heading outside.

Cub is up further ahead with your sister's twins following after her. Teeny lags behind because she's hanging back with one of Tia Alexia's twins.

But you keep a tight grip on Sunshine's hand because she's vulnerable and you're a good auntie.

Mapi is there waiting at the school gates and she hugs each and every one of you individually. You all get kisses too and her lips flutter around your face before you push her away.

"Really, Nena?" She says," I'm feeling a little offended here."

You giggle. "Silly, Mapi!"

"I'm not silly!"

"You are, Mami!" Cub agrees. She's hanging off of one of Mapi's strong arms and Mapi rolls her eyes.

"Let's agree to disagree," She says," Now, has everyone got everything? Bags? Bottles? Toes and fingers?"

"Uh-huh!"

"Alright, then. Buddy up, please. Hold someone's hand."

Bebita and Skatt crowd together and you keep Sunshine while Cub grabs Teeny, who whines a little while waving goodbye to her friend.

It's a very long walk back to the house so you only walk a little bit before Mapi gets you all into the car together.

You get to sit in the front because you're not one of Mapi's babies. You're her sister-in-law (although Ingrid always says you're not Mapi's sister-in-law yet) and then Cub and Sunshine sit in the way back because they're a pair.

Teeny, Skatt and Bebita sit in the middle because they're still little and Mapi needs to keep an eye on them.

"Is Ingrid home yet?" You ask as Mapi hands out snacks before driving off.

"Sorry, Nena," She says," Not just yet. Soon, though. She's been stuck in meetings today."

"What's for dinner?" Bebita asks.

"Spaghetti."

"I want lots of cheese on mine!" Skatt butts in and suddenly everyone is yelling their own choices and you giggle.

Your family is very big and very loud.

Ingrid says it's chaotic.

You think that means there's a lot of love to go around.

"Can I make Mama a picture?" Teeny pipes up suddenly.

She's been a little sad since leaving her friend behind at school. Teeny is the niece who spends the most time out of the house. She hangs out with Tia Alexia and her twins a lot.

Ingrid says it's because she's good with Pequeñita. They're painting buddies.

Teeny is always drawing and painting and if she's not drawing and painting then she's playing with Mr Pina, her hedgehog.

"Can we make Mama a picture too?" Bebita asks.

"Er...I don't know girls," Mapi says as she drives up the hill to the house," Have we got the supplies?"

"I've got paper in my room," You say.

"I sharpened my pencils last night." Teeny now.

"Mama got me new pens last week," Skatt adds.

"I've got glitter!" Sunshine says.

"And I've got the glue for the glitter!" That's Cub in the way-back.

"Mama bought us all new aprons too!" Bebita tacks on.

Mapi sighs. "Sometimes," She says," I think you lot gang up on me."

"Please, Mami?" Teeny asks," We won't get messy."

That's a lie, or, at least half a lie because Teeny is always messy. The others aren't though. Just Teeny.

It seems Mapi is thinking that too so you jump in.

"I can keep Teeny clean!"

She pretends to think about for a moment, tapping her fingers against the steering wheel. She sighs.

"I guess so. But-"

Her words are drowned out by the cheering of you and your nieces and she struggles to get you all out of the car quick enough when she pulls up to the house.

It's dark by the time Ingrid gets home and she curses herself as soon as she locks the car.

She hadn't meant to stay so late but she'd had meetings with Frido and the rest of her heads of department and then the website went down a few hours before the new sale went up so she'd had to call Caro up from her IT cave to get her to fix it.

It had been meeting on top of meeting on top of meeting getting everything ready for the launch next month that she'd hardly had time to stop and eat, let alone make it to the school with enough time for pick up.

She slips into the house.

"Hi, Bagheera," Ingrid says as the cat meanders towards her, tail flicking against her leg," It's good to see you too."

Mapi's in the living room, aimlessly flicking through channels. "You're home."

"Sorry I'm late. Work-"

"I know. Frido called. It's fine."

"No," Ingrid says," It's not. I said I'd pick up the girls today and-"

"Ingrid," Mapi laughs," Trust me, it's fine. You're practically single-handedly keeping us afloat. I'd hate to think about where we'd be living if you didn't have such an important job."

Ingrid's cheeks flush. "What did I do to deserve you, huh? You're such a smooth talker."

Mapi grins. "It's just one of my charms." She winks. "I'm your sexy arm candy, remember?"

Ingrid laughs. "Yes, you do look very good in a suit, don't you?"

"Want me to model some more for you?"

"I certainly want you to model something for me," Ingrid says," But it's not a suit."

She leans forward to kiss Mapi before freezing, pulling back suddenly.

"Ingrid? What is it?"

"I..."

Her eyes roves around the room.

Something's different.

The floor is spotless. The kitchen is clean. There's the lingering smell of whatever Mapi cooked the girls for dinner and-

The girls.

That's what's different.

Six little girls live in this house and yet there is practically no noise whatsoever. There's no giggling and laughing from Ingrid's twins. There's no running from Cub. There's no rhythmic thumping of a ball being kicked from your room. There are no spills of paint from Teeny's projects and there's no clicking of Sunshine's camera.

It's just...calm.

"Where are the girls?"

"Huh? The girls? Oh...They wanted to surprise you with something they made. I think they took it up to our room."

Ingrid strains her ears but still can't hear anything.

It's embarrassing how quickly she hurries up the stairs.

It's never good when a house of six girls goes silent.

Mapi follows after her and Ingrid wrenches the bedroom door open.

She stops, a smile appearing on her face.

Her girls are asleep on her and Mapi's bed, all cuddled up together under a massive portrait.

It's made up of several pieces of paper taped together and Ingrid knows it's meant to be of her.

"They wanted to draw you a picture," Mapi says," I didn't realise how big it was until they brought it up here."

"It's perfect," Ingrid says," Thank you for helping them."

"I didn't do much. Just taped it all together and-oh!"

It's nice that Ingrid can still make Mapi blush with just a simple kiss to the cheek.

"You're such a good mami, Mapi," Ingrid says," You're so good with them."

Mapi gives her a bashful smile. "It's bedtime. I can take them."

"No," Ingrid says," You've been with them since school ended. I'll take them to bed."

"Are you-"

"Mapi," Ingrid says," Go downstairs and watch some tv with Bagheera. When I come back, maybe you can model what I want you to model."

Mapi's face goes bright red and it's almost like she can't get downstairs quick enough.

Ingrid takes her time putting her girls to bed.

Cub is first, taken into her bedroom and put up high in her cabin bed. Garfield is splayed out on the middle of the carpet. León-León is already asleep too, taking up half the bed but Cub immediately curls around him in her sleep.

Bebita is next and Ingrid has to be careful walking through her room because it's like a minefield and she makes a mental note to make Bebita clean it up in the morning.

Skatt comes after her and Ingrid has to check that all her terrariums are closed so none of her bugs escape in the night.

Teeny follows after and Ingrid spares a glance over at Mr Pina's enclosure to make sure the little hedgehog's food bowl is filled up and his water is fresh.

Sunshine is put to bed after Teeny and Ingrid makes sure to flick on her fairy lights on in case she wakes up in the middle of the night.

You're last and wake as Ingrid lifts you.

"Ingrid," You mumble.

"Yes, Nena," She says," It's me."

"Did you see your picture?" You ask, still groggy as your head lolls on her shoulder.

"I did. You girls did such a good job with it."

"Made sure Teeny stayed clean."

"I could tell. You did such a good job, Nena."

She sets you down in your bed, pulling the covers up all the way to your chin as you yawn.

"Made sure Sunshine didn't get lost at school too."

"You're such a good auntie," She tells you, kiss your forehead," But it's bedtime now."

She goes to leave.

"Ingrid!"

"Hmm?"

"I love you."

Ingrid flicks off your light. "I love you too, Nena."

[blackenedsnow]

hello, i..well if its alright i have a request for our edgy boy shadow..and im sorry if its stupidly specfic...can we have shadow with a s/o who has come down with the whooping cough?...and is crying and upset because of how long the sickness lasts and just how bad they feel...from not.being able to breath etc...again im sorry of this is oldly specfic i just came down with this myself and im just overall feeling misrable and shadows always been my comfort character...of your willing to wirte this thank you so much in advance..your writing is amazing..and i hope your having a good day and or night..

breathe easy

WARNING: Illness, emotional distress.

PAIRING: Shadow the Hedgehog x Sick! Reader

NOTE: Hope this brings some comfort while you’re feeling under the weather. You’re not alone, and I hope you feel better soon!

SUMMARY: Shadow comforts you as you struggle with the pain and frustration of whooping cough.

Shadow wasn’t the sort to linger in hallways, but tonight, he paused outside the bedroom door. The sound of your coughs, dry and relentless, hit him hard—not because he was unaccustomed to hardship, but because he couldn’t do anything to stop it.

You were curled in on yourself when he finally stepped inside, the blanket pooled around your shaking shoulders. Your face was streaked with tears, a raw redness tracing your nose and cheeks. You didn’t seem to hear him at first.

He didn’t speak. Instead, Shadow crossed the room, the quiet scrape of his shoes announcing his approach, and settled in the chair by your bed. His movements were deliberate and soft, as if acknowledging the fragility of the moment. “You’re crying again,” he observed, his voice low, neutral but not unkind.

You nodded miserably, trying to clear your throat, though the effort left you wincing. “I feel awful,” you rasped. “It won’t stop—it just won’t stop. I hate this.”

He stayed still, gaze steady on you, and leaned forward slightly. “It’s going to stop,” he said firmly. “Not now, but it will. I’m here until it does.”

You broke into a fresh wave of tears, clutching at your blanket, frustration spilling out in heaving sobs that stung your already inflamed throat. Every intake of breath felt labored, each cough tearing at you. Shadow reached out then, his gloved hand brushing against your shoulder—not too firm, but enough to ground you. “Easy,” he murmured. “Slow breaths. Don’t force it.”

“I can’t,” you gasped, shaking your head, though you leaned into his touch instinctively. “It’s—it’s too much.”

“You can,” he countered, voice edged with quiet certainty. “Look at me.” His crimson eyes locked with yours, calm and resolute. “One breath at a time. In. Out. It doesn’t matter how long it takes—just keep trying.”

You tried to match his cadence as he demonstrated, drawing in exaggerated breaths and releasing them. It wasn’t perfect, but the rhythmic focus helped your panic wane, leaving only exhaustion behind.

Satisfied, Shadow stood briefly and returned with a glass of warm water he’d left on the nightstand earlier. “Drink,” he said, pressing it gently into your hands.

Your hands trembled as you took the glass. He stayed close, steadying it as you sipped. The cool water stung, but it soothed some of the burning in your throat.

He set the glass down once you were done, adjusting the blanket around your shoulders without a word. His movements were careful, his expression unreadable but distinctly present.

“Do you want anything else?” he asked after a pause.

You shook your head weakly. “Just… stay?”

His lips tugged into the faintest approximation of a smile—barely there, but it softened his sharp demeanor. “I wasn’t planning to leave.”

The hours passed in relative quiet, your coughs gradually less frequent, though the misery lingered. Shadow stayed close the entire time, his presence an anchor against the storm of your discomfort.

“Try to sleep,” he urged eventually, voice low but insistent. “Your body needs it to heal.”

You nodded, eyelids heavy as you sank deeper into the pillows. Just before sleep claimed you, his voice cut through the haze, calm and steady. “I’ll be here when you wake up. No matter how long it takes.”

For the first time that day, the promise didn’t feel hollow.

[inkspiredwriting]

A Hair-Raising Experience

Five Hargreeves x Fem!reader

Warnings: none

Five Hargreeves was many things: a former assassin, a time-traveler, a seasoned survivor of apocalypses. But a hairdresser? That was a stretch.

Yet here he was, scissors in hand, staring at his wife Y/n with a look that blended confidence with mild panic. Y/n, sitting on a chair in their bathroom, looked up at him with a mixture of trust and fear.

“All the salons are closed,” she said, twisting a lock of her hair nervously. “I just need a trim, Five. How hard can it be?”

Five swallowed, steeling himself. “Piece of cake. I’ve tackled tougher jobs than this.”

He combed through her hair, trying to channel every memory he had of watching people get haircuts. Y/n closed her eyes, and Five took a deep breath, bringing the scissors to the first section of hair.

Snip.

“See? Not bad,” he said, more to convince himself than Y/n.

Y/n, eyes still closed, smiled. “I trust you. Just… not too short, okay?”

Five nodded, focusing intently. The problem was, with each snip, he noticed something that needed evening out. A little here, a little there, and soon he was in over his head.

“What do you think?” Five asked, stepping back to admire his handiwork.

Y/n opened her eyes and looked in the mirror. Her expression shifted from cautious optimism to sheer horror. “Five! What did you do?”

Five winced. “I... may have overestimated my abilities.”

Y/n’s once even, shoulder-length hair was now a choppy, lopsided mess. One side was significantly shorter than the other, and there were random, uneven chunks missing.

“Oh my god, I look like a demented hedgehog,” she said, her voice a mixture of laughter and panic.

Five put the scissors down, raising his hands in surrender. “Okay, okay, I see the problem. I can fix it.”

Y/n eyed him skeptically. “You’re not touching my hair again.”

A frantic call to a 24-hour hair salon later, they were driving through the city, Y/n wearing a baseball cap to hide the disaster. Five sat next to her, muttering apologies and trying to stifle his nervous laughter.

At the salon, the hairdresser took one look at Y/n and raised an eyebrow. “Tough week?”

Y/n pointed at Five. “My husband decided to play stylist.”

The hairdresser gave Five a knowing smile. “Ah, the classic ‘husband haircut.’ Seen a few of those.”

As Y/n sat in the chair, Five hovered nearby, wincing at the critical assessment of his work. The hairdresser, a woman with bright purple hair and an array of tattoos, shook her head in amusement.

“Well, let’s see what we can do here,” she said, running her fingers through Y/n’s hair. “Your husband’s given you a very… unique look.”

Y/n shot Five a mock glare. “Unique is one way to put it.”

The hairdresser snipped away, skillfully transforming the chaos into a stylish, albeit shorter, haircut. Y/n watched in the mirror, relief flooding her features as the damage was undone.

“See? It’s fixable,” the hairdresser said with a grin, stepping back to show the finished product.

Y/n smiled, feeling the now even, sleek bob. “Thank you. You’re a lifesaver.”

Five sighed in relief. “Thank you for saving me from sleeping on the couch.”

On the drive home, Y/n couldn’t help but laugh at the whole ordeal. “You know, you were so confident.”

Five chuckled, shaking his head. “I don’t know what I was thinking. I’m sorry, Y/n. I really thought I could handle it.”

Y/n reached over, squeezing his hand. “You did your best. It’s kind of sweet, actually. Just… no more haircuts, okay?”

Five grinned, a mixture of sheepishness and affection in his eyes. “Deal. From now on, we leave haircuts to the professionals.”

Back home, with Y/n’s hair restored to its former glory, the incident became a new inside joke. They shared a bottle of wine, toasting to their survival of yet another Hargreeves misadventure.

And though Five may have failed as a hairdresser, he succeeded in proving, once again, that even in the most comical disasters, their love and laughter would always see them through.

[bunji-enthusiast]

If I'm not bothering you then can you make a sonic exe x reader?

Where exe is able to leave and go back into the game anytime he wants and reader isn't scared of him at all after the first time they met

Then during a strong storm (no rain just strong winds and loud thunder) the whole house becomes black and exe tries to use that to his advantage to scare reader, with her famous chase around the house as reader is litting some candles on but of course he fails in scaring them so in the end they just end up cuddling together on the couch for the rest of the night

It's very simple it's just what I have on my mind for now sorry XD

Long Into The Abyss — Sonic.EXE

Note || that’s fine! A very neat idea :>

WC || 1,527

Sypnosis || Your a hard person to scare, he wonders how he can even deal with that. But soon enough he gives up on the idea.

The first time you had met him was the only time you truly were scared of your fluffy blue friend ridden with malice and lust for murder, though it was only upon those originally living in his world he had inflicted it upon. He thought it to be interesting to scare the hell out of you when your poor innocent soul came across his corrupted game.

Watching the way you panicked when trying to look for a way out for Tails was amusing, but when he had finally made his infamous appearance upon the screen. That was more amusing than anything, the way you screamed when he did. 

Now utter confusion just simply fills him when he realizes you aren’t as phased by his antics anymore, not even when he appears outside of the game in your house.

“What the hell?” He muttered when you continued playing various different routes of his game, he intentionally had created them on purpose to see if he could scare you again. Even then every time with your attempts to save Tails, Knuckles and even Eggman; you weren’t scared anymore. Just only cursing when you mess up.

“Dammit.” You curse under your breath when you're on one of the death routes, you kept forgetting about this specific one. 

“No no, no no-” 

The death screen appears, detailing the very specific death of your poor character. You wince in an apologetic manner for putting him through it again. “Sorry, I’m trying my best here.” He then decides to appear right next to you, swirls of glitches and blurriness permeating his arrival.  

“Oh hey!” You said, noticing him from the corner of your eye.

“How are you not afraid?” He interjects in a curious yet amused tone, sincerely he was curious to know how you can maintain such a calm and ready manner even while playing. The demonic hedgehog floats around you from behind, while he was albeit rude and murderous at times, he wasn’t about to break your concentration. 

“I dunno?” You shrug, before adding on, “I got used to it I guess.” He raises a brow, seemingly confused with the answer you gave. But only with humans could they actually answer this way, it would only make sense, he concludes. For a few moments he blinks, giving you an incredulous look nonetheless. 

“I see.”

Then he disappears into the air, leaving you alone in your own company once more. You were actually getting used to the bloody hedgehog, in a way. You wonder if he will come back around at all once again. “Too bad.” You shrug, turning your attention completely back on the game. You wanted to see what else you could find while you still were in the game, you thought he was interesting for even creating more routes.

You know this because you remember them all not being there near the beginning, since your first official meeting with the self-proclaimed god. 

“Alright Knuckles, let's see if I can do a better job with you.” You pause in your gait, feeling a little hopeless for continually failing them multiple times in a row. You wonder if you should just actually stop playing the game altogether, you caused them enough pain. 

‘Am I actually causing them pain? They aren’t even real.’ You thought to yourself, but this wasn’t anything new to you. You often just played games for fun, this one in particular wasn’t any different, even if it was a corrupted game file. 

You didn’t know what to do, but just searched far and wide – as extensively as possible. You grew up with them sort of, they were your childhood imaginary friends. There for you so that you didn’t feel so alone at recess, in school or just anywhere in general. Popularity was not your most dominant trait growing up, especially not now. 

But they were your friends, so was he. 

–

The whole storm threw you completely off guard, you just wanted to go back home. You got yourself caught in the middle of it when you dropped off something at a friend’s, you certainly didn’t expect it least of all during your way back home. But you were close to being there, that was the fortunate part of it. 

“Crap-” A strong wind nearly threw you off course, but you immediately corrected yourself and got back on track. Your house was appearing in view, finally you could pull back into the driveway. 

Once in the driveway, you turned your car off and opened the door, you suddenly got the wind knocked out of you when you left the car. You heaved as you caught your breath, trying your best to close the door then ran straight for the door. Even in the midst of it all, you were surprised that you managed to find your way back in the dark. 

The loud sounds of all the thunder didn’t help you though.

You yelped as another loud sound of crackling thunder resounded in your ears, this certainly by no means was a normal storm. This was a very harsh storm, you had to get inside.

“C-Come on,” You shook in the cold outside, fiddling with your key to unlock the door. It was a struggle that demanded concentration and patience, nothing of which you really had right now. “Sonuva- ugh.” Your lips pursed in tight posterity as you finally succeeded in unlocking the door. 

It made you question why you shouldn’t have just gotten one of those security locks, or even the padlocks would’ve just worked fine and dandy. 

You look around at your familiar house, finding the usual safety and comfort in it. Only problem being, the whole house was smothered in darkness. You could’ve sworn you left at least some lights on, you were aware you usually forget to turn them off before you leave, but they really would help in your predicament right now.

Your feet were light, you creeped around the house as if you were afraid something would suddenly jump out at you from beyond the dark. Sometimes you weren’t afraid of the dark, other times you were very afraid of the damned dark. Something flickered in the corner of your peripherals, causing you to jump. 

It felt like the ligament holding your eyes tightly in their sockets will just fall out from the way they had nearly bulged that far out. 

“Jesus christ-”

Only a few minutes had passed now, successfully lighting a few candles around the house. You definitely felt more comfortable and less afraid now. Suddenly you could hear a few thumps resound from behind you, you looked behind your shoulder to see it was him. 

“RUN.”

You absolutely didn’t need to be told twice, not when he was feeling particularly murderous right now. Dying this young was not on your bucket list, you took off and immediately grabbed the lighter to begin lighting every other candle in the house. 

Still, he had spoken while he chased you, “You're fast! Not bad at all.” You could hear that bone-chilling laugh echo throughout the halls. Still, you didn’t allow yourself to falter. 

NOPE, NOPE, NOPE–

You find yourself at the last candle you could find, and light it. You turn around to see the bloody hedgehog standing behind you, no longer possessing a ‘god-fearing’ appearance. He just looked innocent and rather small compared to you. 

He huffs and sighs, shoulders relenting in defeat. “You're impossible, you little gnat.” At his words, you chuckle and nod, crossing your arms with a tilt of your head, “So I’ve been told, can’t scare me easily with all this light now can you?” You stuck your tongue out when you finished speaking. 

“I suppose not.” He snaps with a very clearly annoyed disposition, legs folding into a crossed sitting position while his elbow laid to rest for him to rest his cheek on the palm of his hand. His other one tapped the end of his knee on his other leg. 

You shot a glare at the demon-possessed hedgehog, “Well don’t be like that, we could just maybe be cuddle buddies instead?”

One of his ears flicker at the possible insinuation in your offer, brows furrowing as he replied, “What kind of a ridiculous demand is that?”

Your head rolls around as if you were trying to bite back some sort of desperation spilling from your words, you inhale, mouth opened as you attempt to speak. Then you close your mouth, lips pursing in a bout of self-defeat. 

He notices this, his ears falling flat as he sighs. Voice glitching with a bout of nervousness, “Get on the couch.”

You let out a squeak of excitement, not having to wait for him to repeat it again you had already made your way there. You patted the cushion seat beside you, wanting not to wait another second. He wonders to himself why he even agreed to this in the first place, he wasn’t like this to anyone else who played his game.

So why do you seem so different? You were just another possibility of a victim.

But he gives in, climbing onto the couch with you.

[thefiery-phoenix]

MY HEART (YANDERE NATASHA ROMANOFF ALICE IN WONDERLAND AU)

So, in this scenario, Natasha Romanoff is the Queen of Hearts from Alice in the Wonderland, and it's an AU thing, so hope you enjoy. And I am so sorry for disappearing for so long, I was busy with university tests and entrance exams and such but guess who's finally gotten into a business school? Yours truly is now an official university student😊

I can imagine that when Natasha first sees you, she might think that you're weak and fragile. At least in the Wonderland AU

When she heard you talk, she was surprised. You were soft... docile and so... innocent and naive and she immediately knew that you were different. You didn't act scared around her even though she yelled 'OFF WITH THEIR HEADS!' at random moments. You piped up her interest and she thanked her lucky stars mentally that you weren't mad as the Mad Hatter or the March Hare or irritating as that darn Cheshire cat who seemed to have a fondness of singing nonsense at random times

She invited you to play croquet and when you told her that you didn't know how to play, she offered to show you. This surprised several of the guards since well... it's not everyday you see an angry woman who has random bursts of anger teaching a random girl how to play her favorite game. She handed you a bird that was fit for being the stick? (Lol I never played croquet so I have no idea what it's called sorry TvT). She swung the bird and the little hedgehog or puffball that she used as a ball started rolling around here and there and when the crowd erupted in cheers, you knew that she was victorious

Meanwhile you were having trouble with your own bird. It was being highly uncooperative and when it lifted your skirt up with it's beak, Natasha widened her eyes and turned away with a blush. Then she caught some of the guards staring at you and now she was angry and if you guys guessed that she was going to say 'OFF WITH THEIR HEADS!' you win a cookie! 🍪

She came close to you, put her arms around you that made you all flustered and she smirked. She found herself a new hobby, teasing you. She thought the way you blushed was so cute, now she had no intention of letting you go. EVER. And when you capture the Queen of Hearts Heart, you can be damn sure that she ain't gonna let go

You both played croquet for a while and you told the Queen that you had to find a way to go home. Natasha stared at you for a moment and narrowed her eyes, thinking of what to do to make you stay and then an idea popped in her head. Her lips twisted in a smirk and she asked you to follow her and she might have a way of helping you. Once you entered her castle's courtroom, she told you to wait there and she'd be back. She then came back with a cookie that had the words 'Eat me' on it and she told you to eat it. Your sweet, unsuspecting kind soul didn't think that what she gave you might end up being harmful for you but you were so innocent and naive and that's what the Queen of Hearts loved. A soft, innocent sweet and docile little thing like yourself who'll follow her orders without question and depend on her and ONLY HER

You soon started to feel dizzy and within a fraction of seconds, you were about to fall down but she caught you and embraced you. You murmured ''Wh-what's going on?' you groggily asked her and squirmed in her grasp. She just shushed you and told you to sleep and she called some of her guards to take you to a room for you to rest. You won't be leaving Wonderland anytime soon that's for sure and for once, she actually considered thanking the Cheshire Cat since if it were not for him, she would never have met YOU. Her HEART

[writingtraumaforever]

Uncontrolled Chaos: Chapter 26

Notes: I want to apologize for the wait. Those who keep up with me on tumblr already know, but for those who don't, my beloved pet hedgehog passed away earlier this week. This has put me in quite a mentally dizzying place, and sitting down to focus on writing is difficult currently. Between this and upcoming holidays, I have struggled with putting any real effort into my writing. Which sucks, and I apologize. I hope to be back to normal soon, but I do struggle with depression and anxiety. So recovering from things like death has always been hard for me since my mind's go-to is to go numb. Maybe the Sonic movie will cheer me up. Either way, I do hope to have at least a few more chapters of Uncontrolled Chaos out before the holidays as well as a new addition to the Courtship Series. Thank you to everyone who has been patient with me. Sorry if this chapter has errors or seems down. I do admittedly think my mental state likely leaked into the writing, sadly. But I won't be posting another one if I'm not happy with it, so hopefully the next will be better! Love you all!

Summary: Sonic regrets his honesty with Shads from the night before.

UC Masterpost!

Link to my AO3!

Start:

Sonic wakes up to his head throbbing and his neck feeling tense and achy. Groaning quietly at the unpleasant feelings, he rolls onto his back to open his eyes up at the ceiling. Lifting his gloved fists to rub at his eyes, he yawns heavy and sighs after as he tries to process what happened last night and why he isn’t in his room.

Right.

Rouge stayed the night.

Amy arrived and did the same.

He and Shads shared the guest room..

Him and Shads shared the guest room—

Sonic quickly sits up, eyes wide as he looks to the spot Shadow was suppose to be sleeping in beside him. It’s empty. Bed neatly made on that side only with the covers tucked under the mattress and the pillow fluffed and laying in its spot against the wall. 

Shit. They—they talked last night, didn’t they??? Sonic’s stupid exhaustion got him all honest and fuzzy and dumb and he said too much.

He told him about the inhibitor ring.

A stroke of panic settles over Sonic as his hands reach back frantically to search for it in his quills. Nowhere. He can’t feel it in its usual place nor anywhere else inside his messy bedhead. He can’t lose that, Shads can’t take it from him, he—he needs that, it’s Shadow’s! It’s his reminder that Shadow will come back! That Sonic won’t lose him—

His eyes catch a glimpse of a sparkle in the corners of them, immediately turning his head to see the inhibitor ring settled safely on the nightstand next to his side of the bed.. gleaming in the morning light pouring through the window.

Relief washes over the blue blur, reaching for it a bit shakily before curling his fingers around it. Delicate at first, and then gripping it with a vice. He closes his eyes and holds it to his chest with knitted brows as he calms his pounding heart.

There’s no reason for this to make him as upset as it did.. there’s no reason for Sonic to be so damn attached to Shadow so suddenly..

Except it’s not really sudden, is it??

Sonic has always wanted to be near Shadow. Ever since they met, Sonic has— as he was explaining to Shads just last night— felt connected to him. He’s simply never known how to express it.. especially with Shadow always acting as though Sonic is such a pain to be around..

Every time Sonic has come across Shadow, the hero stuck around. Whether it be to see how he’s doing or to banter with him or even battle.. he just-.. he wants to be around him. Any of his attention, good or bad. He’ll take what he can get.

Geez, he’s really getting how Amy felt back when she was young and had a crush on him—

Ya’know what?? That was a weird thing to think! Because Sonic definitely doesn’t have a crush on Shadow! Ugh! Gross! It’s a brother thing! Yup!

Once he’s calmed himself down, he opens his eyes to look the inhibitor ring over a moment. Mind thoughtless but yet so full at the same time. Unable to process any of it due to being a bit overwhelmed.

He tucks it back into his quills and moves to get up from the bed, sliding his socked feet into his shoes and heading towards the bedroom door.

Opening the door, his ear twitches at the sound of quietly talking and giggles from downstairs. Familiar ones. Amy’s. She must be up already. Not a shock, she’s always been a morning person. He glances down the hall to see Rouge’s room is still shut. Likely sleeping in some since they can’t really get started without Knuckles and Tails here to help anyway. Plus, bats tend to be more evening and night Mobians than morning ones. Walking down the stairs, he smells both coffee and tea as well as what he thinks is bacon.. and eggs.

His stomach growls in response, yawning again as he hops down from the bottom step and peeks into the living room to see Amy and Shadow both speaking low to one another as to not wake anyone up. Amy is all kinds of giddy about whatever Shads is talking about, Shadow smiling and seeming amused at her reaction. He also just seems so… comforted by her. In a way he hasn’t been with anyone else. He imagines she’s the most familiar thing he’s crossed in this world given Amy is kind to anyone in every world. While Shadow’s relationship with Rouge and Sonic seems drastically different in each world, his relationship with Amy seems relatively consistent.

His stomach does give an uncomfortable flip, though. The way it always does when he sees his own Shadow and Amy together.

Not jealous.

Envious.. 

Despite this, Sonic decides not to interrupt them for now, let them have some time together to decompress before things get crazy.

Instead, the hero moves into the kitchen across the hall, following his nose to find two bacon and egg omelettes hidden in the microwave. He assumes they were saved for him and Rouge, so he pulls one out and leaves the other for the bat. Closing the microwave, he then moves to grab himself some of the tea remaining in a little kettle. Amy likely made it since she’s a tea-person. Shadow is definitely the one who made the coffee. Rouge will probably finish it off when she wakes up. The few times Sonic has ran into Shadow in public places, it’s often in coffee shops. Shadow getting him and Rouge’s coffee order on his lunch break only to return to work at GUN after. 

Pouring him some tea and adding some sugar, he hops up to sit himself on the counter by the window and watch the birds flutter about and the clouds pass as he enjoys his quiet breakfast. As much as he’s hated being alone since his friends left, he has grown accustom to quiet mornings to just.. take in the new day. The sky seems pretty clear, big fluffy white clouds speckled here and there. No signs of rain. And the glass feels warm when Sonic presses his arm against it, so it’s likely a relatively toasty day. Good. Maybe Sonic can sneak a run in before they really get started on all this. Clear his head some after last night..

He wasn’t really ready to face Shads after falling apart on him like that. Having a panic attack in front of someone you just met doesn’t exactly scream ‘hero’. Wouldn’t be surprised if Shads decides Sonic is too mentally unwell and needs to sit this whole adventure out.

Hell… if Sonic was real honest with himself, he may actually agree. 

He hasn’t been doing too well for awhile. And Starfall Islands just seemed to highlight all of his baggage. But he kept a good mask on for his friends.. even if that wasn’t exactly the most healthy decision either. 

Maybe Shads was right. Maybe he should open up to them all some more so he didn’t trauma dump on the first person who hops into their dimension and asks if he’s okay.

Then again, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, right?? And no one has really seemed to take much notice in him being a bit more off than usual. Sure they all left him to find their own journeys or whatever, but they still considered him their hero. Their leader..

He couldn’t do anything to dampen that..

He had a duty, a title to uphold.  

So he decides then and there to be stronger. Better. The exact opposite of everything Shads has been trying to tell him. Because maybe if his friends come back and see him back to his normal, heroic and carefree self, they won’t want to leave him..

“Tea good?” 

Sonic’s eyes widen a bit as his head whips around to see Shadow standing there eyeing him. And the look on the hybrid’s face.. it’s like he can read Sonic’s mind. There’s slight disapprovement in his gaze, worry clear.. how he eyes Sonic as if he’s taking in his every thought and can read him like an open book. And maybe he can? He does know his Sonic better in his world. Perhaps he’s picked up on some of Sonic’s mannerisms.

Either way, Sonic does what he does best and puts on a smile and nods, “Yup! Really hits the spot in the morning.”

“Mm,” the hybrid hums, walking closer to pick up the coffee pot and pour more into his mug. His eyes never leave Sonic.

“…Sleep well?”

“Like a baby,” the hero replies, trying not to cringe at his choice of words considering he practically overwhelmed himself to sleep last night.

“Good,” Shadow places the coffee pot back down, lifting his mug to take a sip as he eyes Sonic, “…Are you doing alright after—“

“So Amy forcing you to tell her all the deets of your world??” Sonic interrupts, not wanting the conversation to go where he knows Shads was leading it.

Shadow doesn’t answer for a moment, a heavy sigh escaping his nose as if he’s tired or disappointed or something only to then nod and offer a tiny smile, “Yes, very much so.”

“Shame I’m missing it,” Sonic smirks as he pushes himself off the counter to place his now empty teacup and plate in the sink, “I’m sure she’s totally enthralled by your stories, though.”

“She is,” Shadow nods, seeming to try and smile but it’s not reaching his eyes, “..it’s nice having someone whose relationship with me is relatively the same.”

“I figured,” Sonic smiles understandingly, “It’s why I didn’t want to interrupt..”

“You sure it’s not because you were avoiding last night??”

Sonic’s smile disappears. Shadow’s does too.

They stare at each other a long moment, Sonic’s brows furrowing a bit at being called out and Shadow’s knitting up in concern for Sonic’s obvious avoidance..

“…I’m gonna go for a run,” Sonic eventually says, turning to leave only to feel a hand suddenly wrap around his elbow to stop him.

“Don’t,” Shadow’s voice is quiet. Pleading. “…Stop running..”

Sonic’s ears bend back at this, keeping his back to Shadow as he’s unable to meet his gaze in that moment. Scared of what he might find..

Scared of how much this Shadow knows him.. 

And all because his Sonic looked for him—

“Oh! Sonic, you’re awake!” Amy’s voice comes bright and cheery as she enters the kitchen only to pause at the obvious tension and eye the way Shadow is holding onto Sonic.

Shadow immediately lets Sonic go, frowning as he takes a step away from him. Sonic’s eyes meet Amy’s and Amy raises a brow at the two.

“..Everything okay??”

Shadow doesn’t answer. And Sonic knows he’s waiting to see what Sonic’s response is. If it’s honest.

It’s not.

“Yeah!” the hero chimes with a grin, moving to wrap an arm around her and squeeze her up against his side, “Just was about to head out for a run is all. You and Shads catch up??”

Amy eyes Sonic suspiciously but seems to let it slide for now, smiling in response as her own grin turns mischievous, “Oh yes.. we definitely did..”

Sonic blinks at that, looking at her devilishly knowing look and then to Shads who has his arms crossed and a smirk on his face, shaking his head at the pink hedgehog. 

“Do I wanna know??” Sonic asks with a nervous little chuckle.

“I think I’d rather just watch how this one plays out,” Amy teases with a wink to Shads before looking back to Sonic, “But you said you were going for a run?”

Sonic, too, let’s it slide.. not wanting even more on his mind than is already there, “Yeah! Just a quick one. Figure I’ll get it in before Rouge gets up and we get this party rolling.”

“Are Knuckles and Tails both coming back??” Amy questions with a hopeful tilt of her head.

“Yup! Gangs gonna be all back together,” Sonic grins enthusiastically to which Amy bounces on her toes excitedly.

“Oh yay yay yay! I’ve missed you all so much! We’ll get this whole thing fixed in no time with everyone together,” she assures, moving from Sonic’s grip to the counter to refill her tea.

She doesn’t see the way Sonic’s smile twitches downward just slightly at that thought..

But Shadow does.

Shadow sees right through him..

[neko-naruto]

confused and annoyed (it's all i find i think about)

summary: they may be unversed in the ways of romance, but they're sure as hell trying

tags: fluff, love confessions, they r dumbasses, shadow watches naruto

authors note: i blame the reinvigoration of my longtime sonic interest on @ohposhers go look at his art, it fucks severely. n e ways, title from a chemlab song, hope ya'll enjoy.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/57788908

"You like him," Rouge sing songed as she trailed Shadow through the halls.

"Shut up," Shadow answered with, ears flattening to his head as he spoke.

Rouge just laughed to herself, "Alright, I can leave you be."

Shadow waved her off, "Yeah, sure, go ahead."

"Oh? I've really hit a pressure point this time." There's almost a cackle in the way Rouge laughs, a threat on her saccharine smirk.

"Nuh uh!"

"Yeah huh."

She's off before Shadow can swivel around to stop her from leaving, unable to swear her to silence on the matter. Sure, he knows that their trust runs too deep for her to just gossip the topic without any finesse. But something in the pit of his stomach says otherwise.

She's so gonna snitch on him for having a dumb heart, isn't she?

-/-/-/-

"No? Really?" Sonic asked eagerly, leaning in to be closer to his friend.

Knuckles gave a huff, "What about it?"

"Him though? Of all Mobians?" Sonic doubled down with.

"Like you're any better."

Sonic shrugged, "I can't give you any advice if you want Shadow thee Hedgehog, Ultimate Lifeform, mega full of himself-"

"He's not though," Knuckles said, just quiet enough that Sonic would barely hear, "Once you get to know him he's pretty nice."

Sonic's ears flicked back as Knuckles spoke, "Ohhhh, so you're really close with him. I see how it is."

"Get your head out of the gutter, Sonic!" Knuckles snapped back, red painting his muzzle at the notions.

"Sure thang, Knux! But really though, I gotta skedaddle," Sonic said.

"Don't you dare tell anyone!"

Sonic's already darting off at a considerably slower pace than usual as Knuckles speaks, to make sure he hears maybe. Knuckles doesn't bother chasing after him, he's too fast to effectively catch up in time before he's off on a mission or chatting with someone else. He better not fucking gossip about this with anyone else.

Would he…?

Knuckles shakes the thought from his head and grabs a new focus; find Tails for a ride back up to Angel Island.

-/-/-/-

Shadow doesn't sleep that night.

Instead he ruminates.

He watches his dumb ninja anime that Tails said he'd probably enjoy, something about losing everything they love for vengeance and struggling to be seen as more than a monster. He'd made it in about, oh, thirty episodes? Around thirty episodes before he started feeling feels about it.

Naw man he fucking gets it. He'll have to ask the kid for more recommendations.

He heads out to the kitchenette to grab some more snacks because he ran out and he's thirsty. He finds Rouge leaned on the counter sipping a cup of coffee, decaf he presumes, she raises a brow as she stares at him.

"Hi, Rouge," Shadow begins as he reaches for a cupboard to grab a packet of microwave popcorn.

"Turn down your tv, if I have to hear that 'of the sand' guy screech one more time I'm gonna lose my mind," Rouge said bluntly.

Shadow cringes a bit at being caught up so late watching anime. He flicks on the tap to get some water, "Sorry."

"I thought you'd be up blasting your favorite emo bands if I'm being real."

"They're not emo-"

"I know, I'm just fuckin' with ya. I didn't expect you to be over it so soon though."

"Over what?"

"Me making off like I was gonna gossip about your big fat crush on Knuckles."

"You did, didn't you?" Shadow just sighed, word would come out sooner, and it's too late in the night to effectively track them down. Also, he wants to get back to watching his show.

"Uh, no? Nobody was bartering me any gems for the intel," Rouge answered with, "C'mon, how much of a bitch do you take me for?"

Shadow shrugged.

"I did get something for you though."

"You did?"

"Ice cream."

"Ice cream…?"

Rouge placed down her mug to swing open the freezer, "Yep! Wasn't sure how broody you'd be, it's your favourite flavour- Tiger Tail."

"Thanks," Shadow said quietly, sliding his popcorn into the microwave.

"I got you one other thing too," Rouge said, there's that sly grin on her face.

Shadow raises a cautious brow, "What did you get…?"

"A bunch of grapes! They're Knuckles favourite, hand 'em over when you confess!"

"Confess? I just realized it was a crush, Rouge."

"Oh I know, but it's good to have a plan!"

-/-/-/-

Knuckles spends the following days not exactly terraforming his island, but definitely doing some terrain work. Mostly punching trees, invasive species he'd imagine. But really, he just needs to blow off some steam.

Is steam the right word?

He's just working through the motions.

Chaos, why is everything so hard to make sense of? Is it love? Is it friendship? Or does he just really adore Shadow, because who wouldn't? He's so cool, he can't blame himself for feeling so messed up over all of this.

But he does.

His paws hurt when he watches the wood of a pine tree splinter and crumble under the force behind each movement. Swift and forceful. Each time he launches his fist at the wood he wonders how long it'll take before he starts to tear away like that. Just fall apart and collapse like it's doing right now.

With a loud crash it hits the dirt and he's panting as he falls back onto the dirt, staring up at the clouds.

He needs to head back to the emerald.

-/-/-/-

Shadow is waiting for him, just sitting against the stand that the gemstone is propped on. Knuckles sits down near him, not quite next to him, but close enough to count.

Neither of them speak for a long time.

Neither of them want to speak- the silence is like a second home.

Eventually Shadow 'breaks' the silence, shatters the stillness, he holds out a hand. Not a lot, not actively reaching for Knuckles. But his paw rests at the mid point between the both of them, palm down on the pseudo-concrete.

Knuckles doesn't move right away, didn't expect either of them to move. He expected this to be another sit down on the island and stare at the sky for hours before Shadow wordlessly leaves kind of thing. He still tentatively reaches out to meet Shadow's paw with his own.

Again, the stillness stagnates like that of a pond. Beautiful things can propagate in stillness and quiet, Knuckles doubts this'll be an example in the same way the lotus flower is an example.

He doesn't speak, neither does Shadow.

He's more focused on the contact, paw to paw. Covered by a glove, but still sparking like electric currents.

Clouds drift, the sun starts to fade. It's nice. It's quiet and tense and tender all at once but it's nice. Usually contact this close comes with sparring, which is another type of contact that they both enjoy.

"I like this," Shadow said, voice quiet. Somewhat out of fear that he'd ruin the moment if he spoke too loud.

Knuckles nodded, "Yeah."

"This whole love confession thing is dumb as balls," Shadow said bluntly, snatching away his hand only to hold his head in both with a groan.

"I couldn't agree more," Knuckles answered with.

"Can we just say that we both mutually like each other and call it a day? I don't have the capacity or experience to take you on a nice dinner date."

"Sounds good to me."

"Okay, okay great- that actually wasn't too bad."

"Speak for yourself, I was dying."

"Agreed."

"So, now that it's out in the open, wanna go spar?"

"Oh hell yeah."

[myymi]

goddamn how many bodyguards do you have

And

who ordered the 'depressing backstory'?

bodyguards;

Tails could feel his nervousness shoot through the roof as he followed Sonic to the field, one of his paws tightly gripping the metal bat the hedgehog told him to hold to keep him from picking at his fur as the other squeezed the older’s paw. Tom and Maddie had decided that it'd be good for Tails to attend Sonic's practice today. It'd give him a chance to socialize with other kids without being too overwhelmed by it since they'll be more focused on practicing. And while he didn't distrust the humans, he couldn't help but disagree. Being surrounded by a group of teenagers never ended well for him. He's fairly sure he's got some lasting marks to prove it, too. But the adults have done nothing but show him love and kindness, he didn't want to go against their wishes. “Hey guys!” Sonic greeted with a wide smile, using the paw that wasn't holding onto the fox to wave at his baseball team. He got a few different greetings from his teammates in response, “My little bro is gonna watch us today.” Tails’ ears pressed against his head when he was addressed, his cheeks flushing as he hid behind the hedgehog. He was still getting used to the title of being Sonic's brother, it felt like a dream. “Finally!” One of the boys with brown hair, green eyes, and pale skin groaned, placing a hand on his hip as he gave Sonic a frown, “We've only been asking you to bring him for, like, forever!” “Austin’s right!” A girl with much darker skin said, standing up from where she had been sitting on the ground. The beads in her braided hair clinked together as she ran up to the mobians. “We’ve been waiting for him!” Tails squeaked quietly as Sonic laughed, “He wasn’t ready to come yet, Aniyah. He just got here a few months ago.” He explained, letting go of the fox's paw to pull him into a side hug.

this fic is basically me taking my brother's old baseball team and making them sonic's lmao

backstory:

Sonic nearly jumped out of his skin when he turned and came face to face with the little fox. He had just been up on the crow’s nest, how was he so silent? Sails didn't look at him though. His eyes were staring at the deck of the Angel’s Voyage, “Ye want me tale, don't ya?” He asked, almost too quiet for the hedgehog to hear him. “Huh?” Sonic blinked at the fox dumbfounded. It had only been an hour or so since their last interaction and the kit was obviously not in the mood to share his story any time soon. What changed? “I..” The fox trailed off. His cheeks flushed red in what the older assumed was embarrassment before he turned to face the sea instead, “I'm sorry.” “For what?” Sonic didn't think the kid needed to apologize for anything. “For gettin’ agro with ye.” Sails grumbled, one of his tails raising so he could pick at the fur on it. “Rose and I talked, and–” “Sails, no,” The teen interrupted the younger, shaking his head, “You're right to be upset with me. I pushed you too much. I'm sorry” The kit looked up at him at that, blinking in surprise at the apology. He wasn't used to people saying sorry when they upset him. “Whatever.” Sails said, shaking his head and looking away once again, “Do ye want me tale or not?" "Only if you want to tell it." Sonic smiled at the fox despite knowing the kid wasn't looking at him. “It's your choice, kiddo.” The fox turned to glare at him at the nickname, “Don't call me that.” The hedgehog quickly nodded and raised his hands in a surrender, “Alright, alright. No nicknames, got it.”

finally revealing who's getting the depressing backstory lmao

i wanted to play around with the prime tails trio's past and this is sails's. i have gone into mangey and nine's too much just yet, but they'll get there own trauma <3

[shamachan]

hii, hope you’re having a good day or night, whatever timezone you’re in^^

can you do tamarack with an mc who’s more like blunt and closed off, sometimes aggressive with others (aside from tamarack)? if you write for step 2 that’d be great, but step 1 is also fine :) have a lovely day ^^

Blunt and closed off with everyone aside for Tamarack gn!MC × Tamarack Baumann ꔛ

step 2.

amount of symbols: 2253± symbols.

A/N below.

enjoy!

— When Tamarack first noticed this detail about you, there was a slight "disconnect" in her head. It was partly even difficult for her to believe. You're usually so gentle and opened up around her, and seeing you treat others poorly... Didn't fit in her head ?

— She understood that this would hardly affect her, but it was all strange. Here you are smiling at her affectionately, but here you are cold as ice with some classmate. She only had time to blink her eyes a couple of times.

— Thinking that these were problems related to socialization, Tamarack tried a couple of times to make you friends with someone she knows.

— Although it was awkward for her, she wanted to try for you. When things didn't work out though, all she could do was a sigh.

— But Tammy didn't blame you, of course! How can she even do this, huh? You were such a great person in her eyes, and not just because you behave good with her, she just sees it and knows.

— Tamma finds you similar to a hedgehog a little sooner. She’s a little flustered and funny about it at the same time, but there’s definitely a certain similarity - prickly with strangers, and soft with her.

— If this kind of behaviour does not change for a long time, she will surely get used to it. In response to your bluntness addressed to others, she will either smile a little as she certainly more used to see it, or defend you if there is strong aggression towards you.

— She may even start to think it's kind of... cute? When it comes to her, not others, of course! Tamarack was even glad you are so open with her. She definitely wouldn’t want to lose your trust, and you too.

— I think 'cause of Tamarack’s some kind of timidity, there were situations where she simply cannot say something for herself. At such moments, she appreciates you especially when you may stand up for her.

— But still, she will try from time to time to offer something to change this attitude of yours towards others, but only with your wish! Though as long as it doesn't bother you, she won't even mention it. Tammy just... Doesn't want to do nothing while something may be bothering you. She's actually kinda scared of it.

— So if anything happens, tell her! She will try to help in any way she can. After all, you are her friend, and she wants to protect and help you too!

A/N: HIII I'M SORRY FOR MY DISAPPEARANCE 😢😢 PRETTY BUSY WITH SUMMER VACATION W MY FAMILY, WE CAME TO THE SEA (and im still there haha.... all crying cause of my failed attempts to improve my writing and english skills)

I’ll write every request now SURELY!!! It will take a few days, of course, but I’m full of strength now yeah! i'll try to write something soon as a fanfic...

thank you so-o much for request! still sorry it took some time 😔 hope you enjoyed this small hc! have a great day/night!

[dwobbitfromtheshire]

To Change

A/N: Wayne and Ted friendship, but it also could be read as something more. I don't know much about Ted's background in TFS, just the hedgehog thing. Here ya go!

Ted Wheeler wasn't a perfect father. He knew, but he figured he was a thousand times better than his own abusive father had been. Maybe he had tried too hard not to show his anger that he inadvertently put up the distance between him and his children. In his own stupid way, he thought he was protecting them. Maybe if he didn't get upset or show anger. . .maybe Karen would stay, that they would stay. He hadn't understood, though, just like with most social interactions, that they needed more from him. He didn't understand how to let them know that there were some things that he might not be able to give them. He didn't know how to talk to them but he had to start somewhere. He had caught Mike crying in the bathroom and trying to cut his hair.

"Here, let me help," Ted had said softly.

Mike didn't say anything. He just handed Ted the scissors. It was quiet between them as Ted cut his hair. He noticed how tall Mike had gotten. When did that happen? Pretty soon, Mike was going to be tall like him. In this moment, Ted was proud of his boy but also sad and angry for him. He shouldn't have had to go through something like this. None of them should have. Ted gently brushed the hair off the back of his neck.

"Thanks," Mike said stiffly.

"Mike," Ted said softly. "I'm so sorry about your friend. I lost a friend myself at that age, and I know how - "

"Bullshit!" Mike yelled.

"Michael!" Ted exclaimed.

"I don't believe you! I don't believe anything you have to say. You don't give a shit about anything! You just sit there in your chair, and you do nothing! You care about nothing!" Mike screamed. "It should have been you!"

Mike stormed out of the room, leaving Ted standing in the bathroom amongst his hair. He slid to the floor and let out a sob. How did he fuck up this badly? Ted gripped his arms. He began rocking back and forth as every noise in the house suddenly became overwhelming to him, even the sound of his own beating heart, which he wished he could rip out. He wished he couldn't feel anything because nothing hurt more than hearing your son wish you were dead. He knew Mike was hurting, but the words that spilled from his son's mouth still cut him like a knife to the heart. After crying for a while, Ted stood up and wiped his eyes before cleaning up the hair.

It was later that afternoon that Ted had invited the rest of the party into his house to talk about what their next plan of attack was. He didn't know what to do or to say. He really was useless. The awkwardness he was feeling made him feel uncomfortable in his very skin, and listening to them talk about what all the kids went through made it even more so. Now, the other parents were yelling at Hopper and Joyce for keeping them in the dark for so long. He didn't blame them for being angry, but the noise was too much for him to bear. Ted pulled himself out of the dining room and into the kitchen, trying to practice the breathing techniques his mother taught him to do when he was younger.

"Yeah, the noise overwhelms me too," a voice spoke, and he jumped. "Sorry."

Wayne Munson had followed him into the kitchen.

"It's fine. . .I just don't know what to say in there," Ted said.

"You're telling me," Wayne scoffed. "I don't, either."

"You want a beer?" Ted asked.

"I think the situation calls for it," Wayne sighed and Ted snorted.

He pulled out a couple of beers for himself and Wayne. They drank in comfortable silence for a while. The only sound was the parents chewing out Joyce and Hopper, but it was more muffled now that they were in the kitchen.

"I feel like my head is spinning," Ted said.

"Yeah, mine too. . .you had no clue at all that it might have been something like this?" Wayne asked.

"I can't even tell when someone is being sarcastic with me," Ted said. "How was I supposed to guess?"

"Yeah, I can't tell when people do that either. It made it easier for my brother to manipulate me," Wayne said. "Even with all the stuff I believed, I never would have guessed. . ."

"I don't know what I can possibly do with all of this or to say, and I know how it looks to people. . .like I just don't care," Ted said, sipping his beer.

"Yeah, some people think cause I don't talk much that I don't care neither," Wayne would tell him. "Like I have always told Eddie, people will see what they want to see. If all they see you as are the people in their lives who hurt them, that's all they'll see unless they decide otherwise. People won't change their minds unless they want to. Can't do it for 'em."

"I thought you don't talk much," Ted said.

"Asshole," Wayne smirked.

"Sorry about Eddie," Ted said. "Mike says he's a good man. I didn't know him. I wasn't sure what to think of him at first. . ."

"You change your mind?" Wayne asked.

"Yeah."

"You're better than most."

"I caught Mike crying in the mirror and cutting his hair. I helped him fix it. I told him how sorry I was. He yelled at me that he didn't believe me and that I didn't give two shits," Ted sighed.

"It breaks your heart, doesn't it? When they think you don't give a damn?" Wayne asked.

"Every damn day," he whispered.

"We're going to save this town even if they went after my boy. I'm gonna prove them all wrong," Wayne said.

"I'll help," Ted said. "I'll figure it out somehow. I can't let my boy think I'm completely useless. I can't let anything happen to him or my girls."

"Ain't no one going to stop you from trying to prove yourself?" He asked.

"No."

"Well, I guess someone is going to have to look after your stupid ass," Wayne replied.

"I'll do the same," Ted said. "Someone should look after you, too."

"The next person who says you don't care, I'll give 'em what for," Wayne said.

"To change," Ted muttered softly and held out his beer, tapping it with Wayne's.

"To change."

Ted came through for his kids and for his wife, summoning all of his courage to do it. He remembered that time Mike tried going to camp for the first time. He hadn't liked it and called him immediately. He remembered driving all through the night, through bad weather, to go and get him. Then there was that time that Nancy had gotten sick with the chicken pox. He had driven all over trying to find the brand of juice she liked. . .just trying to do whatever it took to make her feel better. He didn't know how to give them the comfort they deserved. He wasn't good at the whole hugging thing, and he didn't know how to talk about his feelings, but he could do things for them. Even when they wanted to go to a fair and everything overwhelmed his senses. He'd do it for them. He also remembered when Holly was born and she nearly died. When Ted wasn't by Karen's side, he was by Holly's. There was one moment when he wasn't by either, and he had gone down to the chapel to pray. Ted wasn't all that religious, but he was willing to do whatever it took to make sure his family was okay.

"Please, don't take my baby. Don't take any of them. I'll do whatever you ask of me. . .just don't take her," Ted had pleaded. "Take me instead."

Wayne had kept his vow and attempted to protect Ted's stupid ass from danger over the last few months as he also tried to prove to the town that his family wasn't anything to be afraid of. Holly had been in danger once again as well as his wife. He couldn't let anything happen to them; he couldn't let that fucker take his little girl. The Demogorgon had come for both of them, and he threw himself at it, his glasses getting knocked off of his face in the process. He heard the sound of them breaking underneath the creature's feet and then Ted felt the claws sinking into his own flesh as though it were butter. He let out an inhuman shriek of pain as fire exploded overhead and lit the creature up. It ran off, hollering and then he heard Mike.

"Dad! I'm sorry. . .I'm sorry, shit!" Mike cursed as he fell to his knees, crying. "I know, I've said a lot of things, and I know how hard you've been trying. I know you care; I know you care. Please, I don't want you to die."

"I'm proud of you," Ted whispered and closed his eyes.

"DAD!"

Ted saw nothing but darkness, and he thought for sure that he was dead at first, but then he opened his eyes for a moment. He was looking up at the dim lights of the hospital. Shit, what the fuck? He lived? He was moving quickly as though people were pushing him. He briefly saw Mike out of the corner of his eye, trying to run after him. A nurse stopped him as he couldn't follow them after that point. Wayne grabbed him from behind, trying to hold him, and he struggled in his grasp. A look of understanding passed between them as Nancy caught up with them. Wayne had his boy, and Nancy had Holly in her arms. He could sleep now.

"Dad!"

When Ted woke up, he was lying in a bed with annoying beeping sounds filling his ears. God, couldn't they turn it off? It probably wouldn't be a very good idea, he realized.

"Ted," a familiar voice spoke to him.

Ted turned his head to find Karen looking at him from the other hospital bed. The last time that he had seen her, she had looked dead. He sighed in relief and tried to get out of bed but was pulled back by the pain in his sides as well as his IV. He laid back in his bed.

"I thought you were dead," Ted sobbed.

"I thought I was too for a minute there," Karen chuckled weakly. "The nurse came in a while ago. Everyone's sleeping in the waiting room. We won, Ted."

"Shit. . .we did?" he asked.

"Our family is safe," she whispered.

"I can't believe that our kids have been dealing with this all this time," Ted said and cursed. "I know I should be feeling happy that we won and that our kids are safe. . .but all I feel is anger that we could have done something about all this. . .that they could have had you to help them through it. I've never been good at the emotional stuff but you were."

"I haven't seen you this angry in a long time, Teddy," Karen said.

"I don't like being this angry," he replied, and he went silent.

"Oh, Teddy. . .is that what you've been worried about? Even at your angriest, you aren't even close to being like your father. It's alright to be a little passionate about things, especially things that other people don't understand. They don't have to," Karen said. "I can't believe you've been worried about this all this time."

"I don't know how to get the words out or where to find them but even when I do. . . they seem to get stuck in my throat," he said.

"I think we both have a communication problem," she said. "I should have been honest with you about what I've been wanting in my life. I want something more, Teddy, something that you can't give me and almost dying made me realize that. It's such a shitty time. . . "

"You want a divorce?" Ted asked.

"I'm sorry," she sobbed.

"Don't be, Karen," he said. "I shouldn't feel relieved. . .right? Is that a bad thing? I mean, I feel sad. . .maybe I've been wanting something more. . .I just don't know what that is."

"I think it's a good thing, Teddy," she said. "I don't know what I want either."

"It's been a while since you called me that," he realized.

"I love you, I always will. . .but we were friends first. I know that not many people know that. I want to get back to that," she said. "You gave me a really good life and I still want you to be a part of that."

"I want that too," Ted said. "I love you."

There was a long silence after that Ted had used to drift off to sleep. The next time he had woken up, he woke up to the sound of voices in their room. Ted opened his eyes to find that Nancy was leaning over him, her eyes red from crying.

"Hi, daddy," Nancy said.

"Hi, pumpkin," Ted said.

"It's been a long time since you called me that," Nancy sniffled.

"It's been a long time since you called me Daddy," Ted said. "I think the last time you did, you were still rolling your ds."

"What?" Nancy asked.

"You probably don't remember, but you had this speech thing when you were little. Doctors made us take you to this speech therapist who you did not like. Told us and you that you would always have trouble speaking," Ted said.

"You definitely didn't like that," Karen laughed.

"I have never seen a more determined look on such a little girl," Ted said, and Karen laughed.

"It was cute, though," she said.

"It was. You've always been so headstrong," Ted said. "I'm so proud of you. Of all of you."

"I'm glad you're still here," Nancy said, her bottom lip trembling, squeezing his hand.

Mike shuffled forward to stand on his other side.

"I'm really sorry," Mike whispered.

"I heard you, son," Ted said. "And I know you didn't mean it. You've all been through so much, and even as strong as you are, I know all that hurt and pain is still going to come out. I never handled it well myself either at that age. Don't really handle it well now. I tried so hard not to be like my father, but I became more like a robot than anything else."

"You never talk about him, and whenever I mention it with Nana, she said I shouldn't ask you about it," Mike said.

"My father was an abusive asshole who knocked me around for being different. Nothing I ever did was enough for him. I tried so hard to be what he wanted me to be, but I realized how miserable it made me. I started doing what I wanted, what made me happy, and when my father caught me with a boy. . .that's when the beatings started," Ted sighed.

"But you and mom - ," Mike started to say.

"I never really cared about what the packaging looked like, just the present inside," Ted said, touching his hand to his chest.

"And you can really do that?" Nancy asked.

"You can do anything. . .within reason, I suppose," he said.

"I had no idea, Ted," Karen said softly.

"How were you supposed to? I never told you and I should have because I always thought you were my best friend," Ted said. "My own father never understood. When my mom found out. . .well, Nancy, you can wield a shotgun as well as your Nana. She didn't hesitate to shoot him."

"She shot him?!" Nancy and Mike asked.

Suddenly, Ted was grateful that Holly was curled up in a chair, fast asleep. She was always a heavy sleeper.

"Grazed the bastard, but yes. He left not long after that, decided neither one of us was worth the trouble," Ted said. "I always blamed myself for what happened. I was too weird, and it what drove him to madness. Everything was too loud for me. I couldn't socialize right. . .certain clothes didn't fit me. I was too picky about what I ate. . .always said the wrong thing. . .I was too queer. . ."

"No, Dad. It was him. He was the one who couldn't accept you. He's the mouth breather," Mike said. "Nana should have shot him in the dick."

"Michael!" Karen and Ted exclaimed.

"Sorry."

"If you think there's something wrong with you, then there's something wrong with us. We've always worried about those things. I know I'm always worried about saying the wrong thing, and I don't always pick up on things either," Nancy said.

"Neither do I, and I don't know it when I'm saying something shitty," Mike frowned.

"There's nothing wrong with you," Ted said thickly, and they looked at him. "There's nothing wrong with us. You're all so strong. . .so much like your mother and your Nana."

"We get a lot of things from you, too, Dad," Nancy said. "You're strong, too, Dad."

"He's certainly stronger than his eyesight," Mike quipped. "That's something you have in common with Dad, Nance."

"For the last time, I do not need glasses!" Nancy exclaimed.

"Bullshit!" Mike yelled and picked up a book. "What does this say? Read it without squinting."

"I don't think it's going to hurt if you get them checked, at least," Karen said.

"I guess it wouldn't," Nancy frowned.

"Still that determined little pumpkin," Ted chuckled weakly. "I'm going to need new glasses anyway. Might as well come with me."

"You can't see, Daddy?" Holly asked sleepily as she sat up. "You want me to read Nancy Drew to you?"

"I would love that more than anything," Ted said.

"You read Nancy Drew to her?" Nancy asked.

"Just like when you were little," Ted said. "And Mike, but that was during his following Nancy everywhere she goes phase."

"Oh, I miss that phase," Karen grinned and Mike groaned.

"Mom, I'm reading!" Holly said.

Ted chuckled as Holly opened her book and began to read, after moving her chair in between her parents' beds. He looked over Holly's head to share a look with his soon to be ex-wife. Their marriage had been over for a long time, but they are still what they have always been. . .family. They still had a lot to talk about and so many other things to deal with, but Ted felt like there wasn't anything they couldn't handle. An hour or so later, after Karen had drifted off to sleep, Dustin appeared in the doorway.

"Hey, Ted, glad to see you're not dead," Dustin said.

"Well, someone's got to stick around to make sure you don't eat me out of house and home," Ted said dryly.

"God, I would have missed this," Dustin said, shaking his head fondly.

"I thought you hated my dad," Mike frowned.

"Michael Dean, whatever gave that idea? You really know nothing, don't you?" Dustin asked. "Anyway, thought you ought to know that Max is awake. . .if you're interested at all."

Dustin disappeared as quickly as he had appeared. Mike and Nancy shared a look.

"Go, I'll be fine," Ted chuckled.

"If you're sure," Nancy said and then took off with Mike.

A moment later, Wayne appeared in the doorway, looking a lot happier than when Ted had last seen him.

"I was wondering when you were going to come see me," Ted said.

"I was just giving you time with your family," Wayne said.

He looked about as awkward as Ted usually felt. He wasn't sure what to say here either, though they had a lot of moments like that. They also had a lot of moments where they sat in comfortable silence. Ted was still learning to pick up on things with him. Wayne was a hard man to read sometimes, especially with Ted's limitations. He frowned as Ted watched him.

"Is there some wrong, Wayne?" Ted finally asked.

"Eddie's alive," he said.

"Jesus," Ted gasped. "How?"

Wayne exhaled loudly before explaining that the bat bites had turned him into a creature of the night and that Eddie had been instrumental in taking Henry Creel down.

"It's a lot to process even for me but he's still my boy," Wayne said.

"Well, I'm really glad that you got him back, Wayne," Ted said.

"Yeah. . .I heard that Karen wants a divorce," Wayne said bluntly and Ted looked at him. "Dustin's got a big mouth, very loud one too."

"That's true," Ted scoffed. "Yeah. Karen wants a divorce. It's going to be better for us and our family even if the kids can't see it right now. . .it is. I think when we were younger, we both just assumed that that's how our friendship should evolve. It's been over for a long time, and we've both been trying to hang onto something that was never really there. . . I told them about my father. You were right. They understood."

"Of course they did. Did you tell them about your boyfriend who died?" Wayne asked.

"No. . .I couldn't. . .still trying to process telling them all of that. . .I wasn't quite ready to say that I think my father might have killed my boyfriend," Ted sighed.

"You'll get there," Wayne said.

Ted was practically blind without his glasses, but he could tell that something had moved underneath Wayne's shirt pocket.

"There's something wiggling underneath your clothes," Ted said.

"You really don't know what comes out of your mouth, do ya?" Wayne asked, laughing.

"What? . . . Oh! Wayne!"

"I got something for ya," Wayne said.

"No tricks!"

"Of course. You know me. . .perfectly innocent," Wayne said and Ted scoffed.

Wayne pulled a hedgehog out of his shirt pocket and laid it on Ted's chest.

"What? Where did you get this?" He asked.

"Went down to the animal store," he said. "You mentioned once that you had one as a boy, and it seemed like you might have wanted one again, so I got you this little fella."

"Thanks, Wayne," Ted said, touched by the gift, and then he laughed. "You know, most people give flowers. They don't sneak hedgehogs into a hospital."

"I ain't most people," he shrugged.

"That's true," Ted said. "You're better."

Suddenly, Eddie popped into the room with Mike following after him.

"I heard Uncle Wayne made a friend, I had to come see for myself," Eddie said, flashing his dimples.

"Oh, lord," Wayne said with a sigh.

"Is that a hedgehog?" Mike asked.

"Wayne gave them to me," Ted said.

"Most people buy flowers," he pointed out.

"I'm glad to see you aren't dead, Eddie," Ted said. "I know your uncle has been a mess without you."

"Yeah, me too," Eddie said as he looked softly at his uncle.

"Is that Eddie?" Karen asked, spoke up. "What's going on?"

"Hey, Mrs. Wheeler, glad to see you alive," Eddie said with a grin.

"I think I've heard people say that a lot today. . .it's starting to sound weird," Mike said.

Ted quickly told Karen what Wayne had told him.

"Oh my God!" Karen asked.

"Don't worry, I don't feed on humans," he reassured her.

"No, honey, I'm just relieved you're back," Karen said.

"Yeah, so are the rest of Vecna's victims. . .turns out they weren't really dead," Eddie shrugged.

"That includes Chrissy. . .what was that song you played for her?" Wayne asked teasingly.

"Shut it, Uncle Wayne," Eddie said, rolling his eyes, and he softened his expression. "I think because of Dustin, everyone in the whole damn hospital knows about your impending divorce. Sorry about that."

"Don't be, it's the best thing for us," Ted said.

"Well, hey, Karen, if you don't want him, I'll take him," Wayne said, and Ted laughed with her. "I've had worse, unless. . .what's he like when he wakes up in the morning?"

"Asshole," Ted said.

"I keep telling everyone that my uncle is a menace," Eddie muttered. "But no one believes me."

A moment later, Nancy came in with Jonathan and Steve. All three of them were wearing yellow sweaters.

"What'd I miss?" Nancy asked.

"Was this on purpose?" Mike asked, looking at them.

"Well, my uncle seduced your dad with a baby oppossum," Eddie replied.

"Okay, I know for a fact that's a hedgehog," Steve said.

"What?" She asked.

"Did Nancy dress you?" Mike asked Steve and Jonathan.

"Yeah," Jonathan said. "So, what's going on?"

"Nancy and Michael have a new daddy now," Eddie cackled.

"That's great," Nancy grinned. "I've always wanted two dads."

"What? Since you were a little girl, you closed your eyes and wished real hard?" Steve asked.

"Yeah, but only because mom didn't let me have a marshmallow before dinner," Nancy grinned, and they all laughed.

"You can have all the marshmallows you want, darlin," Wayne said, and they laughed harder.

"I'm glad Dad has a friend like you," Nancy said softly.

"I'm lucky to have a friend like him. He's a handful but. . .he's a good man," Wayne said.

Ted swallowed as he gazed at him, recalling all those talks they had and all those times they sat in comfortable silence. Despite how uncomfortable he was, he looked directly into Wayne's eyes. He remembered all the times the other basketball players had wanted to be his friends. . .they hadn't truly wanted to. They were just basking in the fact that he was good and that he was popular. They hadn't given two fucks about him. The same went for all the girls he had dated back then. Even though it had taken him a while, he saw them for what they had truly been: pretenders. He hadn't found someone who truly cared for him until Karen, but they had both assumed that it had been romantic love, but they had been blind and so, it had led to much frustration. Wayne truly wanted to be his friend, and even without his glasses, Ted could see that.

"I think the hedgehog just pissed on you, Ted," Eddie cackled, breaking their gaze.

"Goddamnit."

[theflashdriver]

Sandopolis Square (Chapter 1)

The taste of grit filled Blaze that cat's mouth, disgusting her tongue and scoring across her teeth. Immediately she went to baulk, squirming to push away from the ground, but the pyrokinetic found herself both upside down and trapped in darkness. Her head was still spinning, shock from impact prompted panic as she pushed and pushed, only to find that the ground slipped through her fingers; she couldn't get a grasp! She was lodged up to her waist, buried, almost sinking, and unable to escape!

Something sounded behind the feline, but her ears were totally blocked! She began to kick, feeling her temperature rise as flames began to ignite within her palms. The cat was ready to explode herself from the ground, to take whatever mass she'd become lodged in with her, when she felt a familiar contact spread across her legs and down to her waist. The contact was continuous; gentle and yet thorough. Her kicking ceased.

She was in good hands, he was still here with her.

As soon as that hold was good and tight, Blaze felt herself tugged smoothly upward and free, like a sewing needle plucked from a pincushion. Though she'd only been in darkness for moments, the sudden brightness of her surroundings was blinding. She felt loose earth, now recognisable as sand, tumble from her frame as she spluttered. Despite having extinguished her flames, she felt warm and now heard the familiar rumble of psychokinesis just above her.

"S-Sorry," A familiar hedgehog called out, though still appeared as a blur as she blinked both the dark and rocky grains from her eyes, "Are you okay? Usually my landings are a lot smoother..."

"You're so naive," She groaned, only to halt herself before she could chew him out, "Can you at least flip me so I'm not upside down?"

"Oh, yes, right," The hedgehog quickly responded.

The cat felt herself rotate, her head being turned to the sky, as she was brought sit atop the sands she'd once been buried within. With a snap of her fingers she ignited herself in an attempt to burn away the sand only to feel it still clinging to her. After half blindly slipping the glove from her right hand she brought it to her eyes and began to pick away the glassy particulate rather than rub.

Soon much of the pain had vanished and she could more clearly see. Yellow surrounded them, they'd found themselves in a pit of sorts, flanked on all sides by sand dunes. The sky was a perfect blue, not a cloud in sight, with the sun shining down from a high noon position. Though she tried to keep her attention focused on taking in their surroundings, Blaze's gaze inevitably landed upon her companion as he rummaged through a rucksack not unlike the one on her back.

Blaze had only remembered Silver a little over a month ago, following a chance encounter. The two of them had been on individual missions in this dimension's past, both their worlds were set to be ruined by Doctor Eggman. The evil man had stolen the Jewelled Sceptre and apparently harnessed it to destroy continents, simultaneously ignoring the turmoil that loss caused the Sol dimension. They'd bumped into one another during the heat of battle, recalled each other while nursing their wounds and slipped back to her world together when the dust had settled.

Silver had been antsy though, longing to see if his work had saved his world and created the good future they'd sought in that life. With some effort, and a lot of posturing that it would be good for the Sol Dimension's defence, Blaze had managed to secure permission to come with him. She didn't want him to face this alone, not as he apparently had so many times since they'd separated. Unfortunately, his past efforts weren't reflected on this world.

"Here," A green metal flask was pushed into her vision, disrupting her train of thought, "I-I'm really sorry, Blaze. I'm not used to transporting two people..."

She looked to his eyes, scanning for aggravation at the present state of the world, only to find worry and regret over their rough landing.

"It's fine Silver," She hesitated before taking the canteen, if things were as dire as they seemed then resources were limited, "I'm just glad we made it here in one piece," Ultimately, feeling the grains still lodged in her gums, she settled that using a little would be wise, "Even if I'm not entirely sure where here is."

She brought the flask to her lips, swishing a small mouthful of water before realising she'd need more and internally cringing. A second swig was taken, followed by a lot more swishing. Another glance to their surroundings revealed the desert to be totally barren, not a hint of plant life in any direction, let alone a person. Admittedly their view was very obscured, limited by the encompassing dunes, but it certainly wasn't a good sign.

"This should be Station Square, we should be two hundred years forward from when we just were," He commented, as she turned away to spit, "But, based on our rough landing, maybe we're a little off..."

A ways behind him, the cat could now see a second hole only a stone's throw away, likely where he had ended up buried. Great clumps of sand still hung in his white fur, he hadn't bothered to tend to himself. After putting the flask to her lips one last time, forcing herself to swallow a mouthful of water, she screwed it closed and handed it back to him.

"We should search for land marks, see if we can recognise anything," He extended a hand and she took it, allowing him to pull her to her feet, "Though admittedly, I've only really been in the desert once, and that was-

Immediately Blaze stumbled, the princess felt herself slip back, embarrassment and confusion had made her forget. He stepped in almost instinctively, his hand found her waist before she could crash back to the ground. Immediately, her vision was blockaded by a white cloud that she soon recognised as his chest fur.

Daring to glance up, concerned yellow eyes bore into her, "Are you okay? Was your fall worse than mine?"

"No, it's not the fall, I'm fine," She quickly insisted, it almost sounded like she was snapping at him, "It's these... put me down, get me another pair of shoes from the bag."

He quickly put two and two together, letting go of her hand and shrugging the rucksack from his shoulders. Inside was a veritable mess of equipment, ranging from pocket sized cookers to changes of clothes and pop-up tents. Unfortunately, the cat couldn't think of much in there that would help if the whole world had truly been turned to desert. There were a few handkerchiefs they could cover their mouths with and goggles- intended for underwater but usable in a sandstorm- though little else seemed relevant. They'd been far more worried about difficult terrain and combat than sand and heat.

Things were off to such an embarrassing start, despite all their planning. She couldn't stand to look at him. Her formal high heels had pierced the sand, their small surface area sinking down the moment she'd put any weight on them. When moving at fast speeds it wasn't an issue but, she should have seen it coming.

No, not should have, she would have if she wasn't being so foolish.

After a moment of hearing his rummaging, her gaze firmly locked to a sand dune to their right, a set of shoes entered her peripheral vision; simple running sneakers. Perhaps they weren't perfect for their environment but they'd surely be a marked improvement of her heels. They were new and would need some breaking in, but at least they weren't riddled with holes.

"Thank you," She murmured, kicking her heels off and handing them to him.

"We can go back and restock, if you think it'd be safer," Silver offered as he rummaged to burry the useless shoes in the bag, "I had to leave the Chaos Emerald behind, but we've still got your Sol Emerald, right?"

Blaze felt her long coat pocket, the large grey gem had survived their voyage through time. His concern was plain, and undeniably directed at her. She felt a flutter in her stomach, even if though could remember their past and his countless showings of softness before, the current version of herself still wasn't used to this sort of attention. Ultimately, she shook her head as she quickly tied the white and purple sneakers.

"We should use what we have for now, but know we can turn back if we have to," She insisted, before beginning to lecture in an attempt to restore normalcy, "I'd need a clear space like this to conjure the burning portal though, ideally a place in the open air. It's best to keep that in mind as we proceed."

"Alright, if you're comfortable then I'm comfortable," He reached out to her again, ready to help the cat to her feet with a serious glint in his eyes, "Let's go figure out where we are!"

She took his hand, pulling and allowing herself to be pulled to her feet. This time she didn't sink as she found her footing, instead managing to maintain her more typical elegance. There was a single beat where they stood there, his eyes passing over her; making sure her fall was just due to the heels, that she was okay. The heat of the desert was already starting to get to her.

The cat rolled her eyes, letting out her usual claim of, "You're so naive," Just before he began to pull her along.

She let hedgehog lead the way, hovering just slightly off the ground rather than walking. It didn't take long for the two of them to reach the top of the nearest dune, her poking her head over the top just after him. Just as in the pit, there was no immediate sign of life; no plants and certainly no people, though there was plenty of space for things to hide.

Great sandy mounds spanned all directions, completely obscuring her view to the horizon. They were as common as wave marks on the beaches back home, almost more frequent frankly. There were no people, no flickies and no plant life whatsoever- just sand as far as the eye could see. Not too far away, one dune in particular stood out to her as excessively large. It towered over all the others, standing out despite being a single sand dune among countless others.

"We might be able to get a better lay of the land from up there." He pointed toward the area she'd just sighted.

Blaze had half expected him to suggest flying straight up, guaranteeing a good view, but instead he'd recommended something smarter. If they weren't alone out here, then that sudden movement would draw eyes from points hidden among the dunes and offer opportunity for potential foes to hide. On the scant chance there were nearby allies, they may even flee upon sighting him.

She gave an acknowledging nod, again following his lead. They crept over the tip of the dune before beginning to slip down the other side, slowing themselves but refusing to fully stop. Among the bright yellow sands, the two of them surely stood out as obvious targets. She'd heard of the creatures and machines he'd encountered in other futures, how often the danger matched that in the life they'd lived together. They couldn't afford to be surprised.

When they reached the next slope they found it was steep, Blaze was fairly certain she could climb it but the squeeze of her hand in his signalled an alternate suggestion. Tightening her grip, grabbing his wrist and feeling his fingers upon hers, psychic light washed over the pair of them and gave enough lift to ease the assent but not fly them separate from the dune. He landed them just a few metres from the top, shutting off the psychic glow once he was certain their footing was good. Unfortunately, they had to let go to continue climbing.

As they neared the peak, Blaze felt something beneath her fingers as her hand sank into the sands, something sharp and metal. Looking to her companion, she found that he had pushed his shoulder into the dune and noticed something similar. Metalwork, brown, thin and brittle, had been exposed. Blaze dusted her hand along where the metal was, finding it a straight, albeit battered, ridge that stretched on in both directions. Suddenly, the sheer size of the dune made sense; the sand had gathered around and atop something. Were the other dunes the same?

The gentle whirring of psychokinesis caught the cat's ear, she saw the symbol on his right arm light cyan as he gestured toward the sand hill. Their eyes met, he was looking for approval. She glanced behind them, taking in the endless dunes but still seeing no signs of life, and then gave a nod.

With a wave of his hand, just to their right, the sand was shovelled away and made to gently drift down the hillside. A pang of annoyance marred the hedgehog's face and immediately Blaze's thoughts were confirmed. Though he only revealed an area roughly the size of a ten metre square, a great metal frame with large rectangular gaps was made visible. The metal separating each hole was wider than her arm, though only an inch thick, and continuous outside of a few bent and torn sections.

The old metal frame was connected to a concrete mass with areas of broken concrete, worn away by time, with degraded rebar visible at various points. Blaze looked close to the frame's edge and quickly identified a pair of indents along the metal's centre, in which there were brittle shards of glass among the sand that had come to fill the thin spaces. The inside of the structure, beyond what he'd revealed, was entirely filled with sand. Evidently the holes in the metallic skeleton, surely created by the breaking of large glass panes, had allowed the desert to break through and fill the structure's inside.

"It's a skyscraper, knocked on its side," Blaze murmured.

"I think we're in Station Square," The hedgehog replied, resignation in his tone, "It's just less obvious than usual."

"Is it worth excavating this whole building?" Blaze mused aloud.

"I'm not sure, it's just so big," He responded, tugging at his chest fur, "And we don't know if the separation between floors is still intact, I might not be able to do just one floor."

"Maybe something smaller then? We've got plenty of options," Blaze gestured behind them.

"That's certainly true, it might be worth figuring out some landmarks and looking for an entrance to the subway. Usually there's an untouched pocket or two down there, maybe the sand won't have fully filled it," He shifted, finally scaling to peek over the top of the skyscraper housing dune. His ears shot up straight and much of the disgruntlement fled his body, "Actually, we might not need to uncover anything. I think we got lucky."

Blaze followed him up, looking over the edge. Just like behind them, dune stretched all around, but from up here they could see for miles. They didn't have to look that far to find something of note though.

What could only be a few hundred metres away, a large building looked to only be half covered by the sand. Two large walls stretched out in the shape of a V, a flat roof on either side was partially exposed. At the centre though, there was a large metallic sign that had surely once been elaborate- unreadable from this angle, assuming it was still readable at all. It wasn't a building the cat remembered, but it was obviously an important landmark.

The pyrokinetic threw a glance to her partner, taking in his overtly serious and plainly plotting expression. They really hadn't been reunited for long, but already she could see how time alone had changed him. Yes, he'd asked before unearthing the structure, but there was a certain strategic foresight and tact he was treating this whole situation with. Even this reveal that his world wasn't fixed, as he'd so completely hoped in the lead up to their journey, wasn't affecting him as harshly as she recalled setbacks upsetting him before.

He was less headstrong, the word mature came to mind; both of terms of his actions and how he was handling the state of his world. When he caught her staring however, Blaze's pride in him immediately melted into embarrassment.

She returned her gaze to the dunes ahead, "It seems like a good place to start, but I still don't see any signs of life," Blaze was sure that was a bad sign but, given their experience, it was probably for the better.

"In the times since we've been together, I haven't found any futures with other people, only machines or monsters," He responded, "But the lack of plants is worrying, I'm glad we have an easy way back," The seriousness in his tone had drawn her eyes back to him, only to find he was looking at her, "I'm glad you're here with me," Her tail stiffened straight, "Maybe outside of the city there'll be more of a chance? Concrete might be in the way, stopping the roots from reaching the good soil."

Blaze blinked, it was an astute observation, "Y-Yes, I presume so. There's certainly a chance. I suppose we don't know that the whole world is like this also, even if this is quite different from the Station Square we know..."

She'd rambled a bit, but he had done the same. He cautiously crept fully over the top of the dune and she followed, keeping her eyes pealed for any signs of movement. There was still a risk of Eggman's automatons surviving, they'd be more likely to survive an environment like this than the average citizens of Station Square. That and, assuming this was the doctor's fault, he'd likely have designed them to thrive in this biome.

The two of them slid down the far side of the sand hill, after finding it wasn't as steep as the portion they'd scaled. Once the ground drew close to flat again the feline was on her feet, eyes flitting back and forth across their surroundings in search of anything out of place. She still wasn't comfortable accepting that they were alone, but more and more things were looking that way. She even threw a glance up to the sky, scouting for flying machines.

He gave her a nod as he reached her side, a gesture she returned to confirm that things were still safe. Ears spiked high, she again followed as he led them toward the decrepit building. She scarcely even trusted the sand beneath her feet, perpetually listening out for the potential click of a trap buried underfoot.

Now closer, Blaze could tell that the building hadn't aged particularly gracefully. The entryway was sealed, a bent rod of metal and been wedged between the door handles and held for an unknown length of time. Wooden boards completely blocked what had assumedly once been windows, battered but seemingly enact. The stonework looked worse, perforated and speckled. A series of letters loomed over the doorway, spelling out a single word through browned metal that had surely been sandblasted over the past centuries. It was very fortunate that it had maintained enough of its shape to be readable.

"Casino," He seemed to dwell on the large word for a moment, before half shouting, "Oh, this must be Casinopolis..."

It was only now, back on somewhat flat ground and standing still, that Blaze noticed something. Without her high heels, the hedgehog was substantially taller than she recalled. Three inches, maybe even four? There was something else too though. Was it his jawline? His shoulders? They just looked... different to what she recalled. Perhaps her hyperfocus was just due to his immediate response to the state of his world; how things had clearly changed since she'd last been in this type of situation with him.

Tearing her gaze away, Blaze looked to the building again, "The boarded windows suggests there might be people inside, or at least there once were. Maybe this was a gradual change, things didn't become a desert over night."

"Yeah, that makes sense," Seriousness had reclaimed his tone, "Although, that skyscraper being knocked over maybe means there were multiple problems. Maybe there was an attack before the sand rolled in," He astutely pointed out, "I know desertification happens, I've seen it change places, but I've never seen station square like this, even when its been overrun by robots. On those occasions the weather has usually been unchanged. This can't be natural..."

"I would assume it's anything but," Blaze hummed in agreement.

Despite the space being thankfully uncovered by sand, there was no signs of life around it- theirs were the only footprints in the sand. The doorway itself also revealed a lot, the age of the metal bar wedged in the entryway suggested this place hadn't been open in a long time; the sandblast damage across the doors furthered that hypothesis, though keeping it shut may have been wise given the circumstances.

If people were inside, that suggested they'd been trapped for an extended period. Had someone locked them in? Had there been a breakage in the door's locking mechanism, leading a lone individual to brave the sand as they sealed their friends in... only for them to never emerge. Blaze did wince at the though they might be walking into a crypt, but another thought came to mind.

"They might have locked something inside here," The cat offered as a warning, "It would explain the barricade on the door."

"It's possible," There was heavy contemplation in his voice, Blaze could tell he was mulling over other options, just as she was.

He raised a hand, cyan energy flared both in his palm and upon the doorway. He threw a look her direction, she simply nodded in the affirmative as she ignited her palms and took up a defensive stance. With the simple gesture of his fingers into a fist, the metal bar folded outward at its centre and fully slipped the door handles. A beat of silence was allowed after the metal fell to the ground, there were no signs of movement inside. After that moment past, he threw out another gesture and the doors swung open.

The interior was dark beyond the doorway, but no immediate signs of sand within. She moved in lockstep with the hedgehog as he took steps forward, reaching out with his right hand and sending a sparkling motes of psychic light into the casino. As they approached and the lighting improved, the cat got a better view of the inside.

Huge was the only way she could think to describe the space, an overlarge room that plainly stretched deep into the sand dune. There were a few other doors visible, a restroom most obviously, but Blaze had to assume that much of the space was this large single room. Inside were old cassino fixtures, lights and structures, dotted throughout the building and creating various hiding spaces. There was little signs of sand, suggesting a lack of cracks in the structure, though it was present just beyond the doorway, perhaps having been kicked or blown in.

Blaze walked with him beyond the threshold, beginning to take stock of the endless sea of tables and chairs set ahead of them. To call the place cluttered would be an understatement, even ignoring the litter on the ground there was a sea of tables and chairs blocking the path ahead. Fresh shadows were endlessly moving, being constantly cast by Silver's efforts. They constantly revealed objects in shades of teal, but never a person or signs of a machine. Again the cat looked up, following one of his psychic orbs, but again there were no abnormal signs.

"With all this stuff around, I think, maybe, they locked the door so that the sand wouldn't get in after they left," The hedgehog posited, "Sand dunes can move massively with the wind, it'd make sense if they wanted keep their home safe."

"But why would they leave it in the first place?" Blaze hummed, still bouncing her vision across the room's darker spots.

"Maybe they could only hold out here so long, we've not been far but there's no signs of plant life or water,"Despite what he was saying, the hedgehog was still plainly on guard, "There's only one way to find out."

Raising his hand again, more psychic lights fluxed from his form to scatter and swirl around the room. Eventually, they managed to reach the room's centre, still without a single sign of a machine or creature, living or dead. Despite that, there were certainly signs of prior life; tables littered with accoutrements and bags. All the items though did seem somewhat superfluous to surviving in the desert; clothes, wallets, plates, cutlery, old toys and lots of chips from cassino games.

Eventually, having almost entirely filled the room with light, he brought his psychic efforts to an illuminated standstill. He kept walking despite that, scanning and began to use his psychic powers to poke and prod at junk scattered within the space. Her eyes flickered to him, catching the stark seriousness of his eyes. It really was as if a switch had been flipped soon after their arrival here, changing things she'd noticed over the days before...

"Are you comfortable?" He half whispered to her, eyes still to their surroundings.

"Almost," She responded, opening her palms to spread the light of her flames further, "There are plenty of spaces that could be used for hiding, if anything is still in here then I doubt it's a person. No sign of machines either though."

"Anything more you think I should do?" Silver asked, looking to confirm.

"No," She replied, after a moment of thought, "I just want to keep an eye out for a little longer, make sure that nothing tries to sneak up on us."

The hedgehog threw her a small thumbs up, gazing around the room once more, "I'll start searching while you stand guard," He confirmed after that moment had past, tugging the nearest table toward himself.

She responded with a nod, maintaining the fire in her palms. The space wasn't perfectly quiet, what with his searching and the ambient buzz of psychic energy, but no sounds were standing out to the cat. No skitter of the rubbish left scattered on the ground came, nor did any somehow silent movement. The potential for things to hide behind the lights above still worried the cat, but there truly were no signs of movement. She crouched low, glancing under the tables, but still there was nothing.

Having scanned the space for a while, she couldn't help but glance back at Silver as he made his initial assessment of the room, spreading objects piled on the tables throughout the room in an attempt to neaten everything out. With each step in his survey of the tables the ways he'd changed were becoming more apparent, from the disparity between their heights to the quietness of his steps. He looked almost professional, frankly tactical, in his work.

There truly was a significant difference in how he was acting now compared to under the freedom he'd experienced while staying in her dimension. The hedgehog had been so bouncy and joyous, just as she'd anticipated; beaming and rushing around, asking all sorts of naive questions and being so foolishly open with his emotions. It made sense that he'd changed upon arriving here and seeing his world in this state, but that switch was not quite what she'd expected.

The reveal of the future not being fixed was plainly weighing on him, but its impact wasn't showing that in the usual way. Rather than shout and pound his fists, as he would whenever Iblis reappeared, the hedgehog was quiet. There was though an undeniable tenseness in his frame and hardness to his brow. Despite part of her seeing the change as growth, the cat couldn't help worrying. He was still plainly emotional but he seemed just that bit better at controlling those-

"Blaze?" His voice pulled her from her thoughts as their eyes met, "Are you okay?"

"You're so naive, keep your voice down, I'm fine..." She bit her tongue for a moment, but spoke up before he could turn away, "I'm sorry things aren't like you hoped."

The hedgehog paused in his searching, though psychic light remained spread throughout the room and across the various objects. He half turned down to the table, his brow had further hardened and discomfort was plain on his face. The expression was hardly subdued, but compared to what she'd seen from him historically it was undeniably calm. No sobbing or shouting about how things were, though the sadness and anger behind those emotions was still present. Silver went to speak twice but seemed to catch himself, plainly struggling to arrange his words.

"There are two hundred years between my time and that of our friends; I sort of expect things to keep going wrong in their time for a little while longer, based on how often they have so far. That means I expect to keep finding my time in states like this. When the world is finally fully saved, I think I'll be surprised," He confessed, not quite meeting her eye, "But, things will be good in the end. This world will be fixed, the future will be wonderful, I won't stop until it is. I just know how difficult this task is now and, well, it's a lot harder than I'd assumed back when we were kids."

It was maturity, that's all she could think to call it. He was clearly frustrated with the situation, much more clearly now that we was talking about it, but the hedgehog must have seen his home like this so many times. The impact was still there, he was just used to it.

"Although, now that we're together again, maybe things will get better sooner than I thought. After all, together we can manage anything, I just know it!" The hedgehog decreed, shooting her the same sort of foolish grin he had in days prior.

"Y-You're still so naive," For whatever reason, his expression was having more of an effect now. For what felt like the hundredth time in this outing, the feline pulled her stare from him, "Let's get down to work, I think we're safe."

She hadn't intended it, but she'd jogged something in her own mind. With him now more concomitant, more understanding, she was now following his lead. The hedgehog had so consistently looked to her for help, just what was her role now? She stood by him still, but where? Was she following him, rather than things being the other way around?

Blaze felt the burning need to do something with herself; turning to one of the nearest tables and beginning to rifle through the piled valuables, the cat buried herself in work. She wouldn't let herself be left in the dust, she'd help him just as she'd promised in the lifetime before. Besides, no matter how he'd grown, he surely couldn't match her deductive prowess. She'd figure out what had happened here before he could.

Right?

[creativesploosh]

Y'know, I should probably make an actual, not in-universe introduction to at least one of my Sonic AUs....

Well, get ready for a ramble! (Sorry in advance if I use too much color, I like color-coding names and such- LOL)

Too Little, Too Late! AU

This is a Sonic AU regarding one (not-so-simple) question:

What if Sonic worked for Eggman?

How would this change the world, and how would certain characters react?

Situated in Starlight City, a place run by the ever-looming Empire, this AU aims to answer all of these theoretical questions.

This AU has a few working names; Too Little, Too Late (TLTL) and Empire!AU, both of which have tags associated with them.

I tend to use Empire!AU as a shorthand for TLTL (Empire!Sonic, Empire!Amy, etc) though both names work.

Here's our main cast:

- Tails Scavenger the Fox

A genius fox who sticks to the shadows and has made it his life's goal to take down the Empire. He never had a Sonic when he was bullied; he just took it, and took it, and took it, hiding away one day, and never looking back.

- Project Cobalt Bullet

A secret project by Scavenger... The Empire has sustained minor losses of mechanical material when Enforcer Units are decommissioned, but no one knows why.

- Amy Rose

A kind-souled, young citizen who stumbled across a lone fox while she was walking one day. She wants to help him, but she isn't aware of everything Scavenger has done or plans to do.

- Sonic the Hedgehog

Key General to the Empire, and the strongest force in its army; he was taken by Ivo a long time ago, far before he knew what was right. He's the bane of Scavenger's existence.

- Ivo Robotnik

Sonic's boss and the running monarch over the Empire he established on the isles. He's the "father" of Sage, the city's AI guard, and the creator of everything Scavenger hates.

Follow this blog if you'd like to ask questions directly to the main fox himself, Scavenger!

Art to come soon, hopefully I can figure out how in Chaos drawing Mobians works in a timely manner.... (Mfw I have designs for Sonic and Tails but I can't draw:)

[atomicwrite]

Hehe, I actually just wrote this to clear my head because I'm not feeling great lately, so I was seeking comfort in my comfort character ;v;7 sorry if it's a little rushed >< But I thought it might help someone else feel better. 👉🏻👈🏻 I feel a little silly writing it out like that but I'll try to ignore it ;;

btw I'm working on more requests! I just need to edit and re-write some parts~

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⚘️ GN!Reader x Shadow the Hedgehog - how can he comfort you?

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⚠ Warnings: self-hatred (?)

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Lately, Shadow refused to leave your side since you were constantly losing more and more of your energy. He also observed that you were physically distancing yourself from him, and he was aware that lately you were afflicted in some way.

After all, he wasn't stupid.

You had a sneaking suspicion that he was aware of your condition.

If it was up to you, though, you would have wanted to keep it quiet forever.

Shadow, however, insisted on learning the reason for your behavior as usual. You chose to tell him everything because he had a way of pressuring you into doing things that you otherwise would not have wanted to do, plus, you have nothing left to lose at this point, right?

"What's wrong?" Shadow asked, "I know you're upset."

For some while, you remained silent. As tiny tears threatened to fall from your (e/c) orbs, you simply stared at the floor, trying to hide your glossy eyes.

"Tell me." he said again.

"N-nothing's wrong..." You lied.

He crossed his arms and glared at you, "Hmph, at least look me in the eyes when you're so blatantly lying."

You were really uneasy when you met his crimson eyes. After all, you were thinking all kinds of sinister things, and you did not want him to find out so easily.

"You know I'm not stupid."

Your heart began to beat more violently,

'He's going to find out! What will I do? How can I stop him from finding out?', but a quiet sigh from him cut through your train of thought.

"You've been avoiding me lately", he spoke with a troubled tone.

"I... I don't want to talk about it!" You snapped back.

Once again sighing, Shadow placed his hands on your shoulders,

"Just tell me. I'll assist you in every way I can. Regardless of how awful or difficult it might seem."

You held in a breath and reluctantly nodded.

Taking one more deep breath, you exhaled slowly,

"I'm just... sick of watching my reflection in the mirror... I'm considered worthless, unattractive and annoying...", you twiddled with your thumbs, desperately seeking for words,

"Everything they've said... everything they've done to me... Everyone tells me to forget the past and move on, but... I-I can't seem to forget it..."

You sniffled, wiping away some tears that stained your face,

"I thought I could trust them, I really thought I was not alone anymore..."

Shadow took your hand and placed it on his cheek. Your eyes started to flood as soon as your fingertips brushed his soft skin.

"Y-you shouldn't touch me... I'm disgus-"

"No, come here."

You were hugged by Shadow as he brought you closer to him, his strong chest pressed against yours and he held you tightly.

"You are attractive, (Y/N)." He gave you a quiet smile, "You're not annoying, you're not worthless. You're wonderful, and you are not alone anymore. They were not worth your time." His lips were so close to yours that he couldn't help but lean in.

Everything you ever wanted and more came crashing into you like waves crashing into a rocky shore, all that pent up frustration and insecurity washed off your body like raindrops.

Your eyes shut tight as he pulled away from the kiss. His hands rested on both sides of your face as he smiled down at you, his fingers tenderly caressing your cheeks.

"Do you believe me?" he whispered softly.

His warm breath tickled your cheek and your body shivered under the contact.

You nodded, unable to find words to speak. He leaned down again, capturing your lips once more with an infinite amount of affection.

You broke down in tears after his words hit you like bricks, but this time you weren't ashamed.

"It's all right.", he stroked your hair, whispering, "I'm here for you."

Your body shivered at his words, a feeling of warmth spread through you as you felt safe for once.

"I'm sorry..." You hiccupped. "I'm so sorry for crying."

"Don't apologize." He smiled a little.

You sobbed while remaining silent. Such comforting words had never been said to you before, and they deeply affected you.

"Do you really mean that?" You asked softly, not believing what he said earlier, "everything you have said?"

"Of course I do." He leaned down, kissing your forehead, "Nothing else matters to me."

After wiping away your tears, you met his eyes. They had a lot of affection and hope in them.

"Thank you..."

Shadow tightened the grip around you. You closed your eyes and laid your head against his chest, listening to his heartbeat.

"Everything will be alright." He said, squeezing you tight.

You could hear him breathing, slow and steady, his heart beating against your ear gave you comfort.

"I'll always be here for you."

[theyandereonmyoji]

General Yandere Silver the Hedgehog Headcanons

Well, I’ve been receiving quite a few requests for Silver, so I thought that, before responding any of those, I should post some of my general headcanons (Also sorry about the hiatus, but thankfully I should be free for a long while) TW: implied murder and kidnapping

This sweet, naive hedgehog would take a long time before he realized he felt anything…special towards you. He’s just happy to have friends he can talk to. After all, he can get pretty lonely back in his future, even with how much he wants to make friends and hang out with them, he can’t. However, after a long while, he starts asking himself tons of questions about his behavior. Like why do his eyes wander off to where you are when hanging out with a bunch of your mutual friends, or why does he get so nervous when you two are alone. Whether his feelings towards you are purely platonic or even romantic, he’ll eventually realize how truly intense his feelings are.

His attitude towards you wouldn't change much on a surface level, he’s still the eager, optimistic hedgehog that wears his heart on his sleeves and likes to be around you. Yet, those traits that would make him a lovable dork in most situations, is what ultimately causes him to be rather intense when you two are together. He’s basically like an overgrown puppy, lovable and ultimately doesn’t want to cause you any issues, yet he can be extremely overbearing and not allow you to have any personal space. It doesn’t matter how boring or mundane your activities are for the day, he’s always there, for better or for worse.

If one day you decide that he’s just too intense for you and ask him to please leave you alone for a while, he will give be noticeably sad even if he tries to hide it, but he will leave you alone…for a little while anyways, him lasting a day without you is a miracle, but eventually he’ll beg you for you two to hang out again, swearing that he will try to give you your space, but to please let him be around you again. And honestly you would need to be heartless to say no to the poor guy, he’s just trying his best, can you really stay mad at him for long? From then on, he respects your personal space a bit more, though he does still have his moments where that type of behavior can resurface.

Despite how sweet and caring he is towards you (and towards any of his friends really) He can be quite…serious for a lack of a better term. If he sees anything or anyone that he might consider a threat, well, mercy might not be in his vocabulary that day. Honestly it’s like a on/off switch, one moment he’s being the sweetest cinnamon roll to ever exist towards all of his friends, and even more towards you, the next he’s willing to commit murder for your sake. Trust me when I say you want to stop him before things get messy, if not for the sake of whatever poor fella crossed him that day, at least to have a healthy conscience at the end of that day. After all, Silver sees no reason to hide what he’s willing to do for you

The poor boy gets jealous easily and he’s terrible at hiding it. The thing he’s not terrible at is gaslighting himself though. After all, there’s no way he would ever harm someone innocent, they must be evil in some way, he just knows you’re not safe with them. Pray to whatever god you believe in (or to good luck if you’re not religious, whatever works) that he doesn’t find enough “evidence” to support his claim that your friend is a menace, because once he does, there’s no stopping him. He’s a stubborn one, and in his eyes, it’s not like he’s doing anything wrong. He’s just keeping everyone you safe away from that bastard, but it’s ok now, they’ll be gone soon, so don’t worry about it, ok?

I hope you like gifts, because with Silver you’re going to get a lot of hand-made ones. He wishes nothing more than to make you smile, and he figured out that a good way to do so would be gifts. Baked good, some small crafts, he’ll try to make anything, and while they might not be of the best quality, it’s the intention that counts, and again, you would have to be absolutely heartless to tell him that you don’t like his gifts, especially with those puppy eyes of his. He’s just so happy when you acknowledge all of his hard work to make you happy, he just can’t get enough of your smile, it’s almost like oxygen to him, he just can’t get enough of it. He’s willing to do anything for you, quite literally. 

Silver probably has the least stable breaking point out of everyone, mostly cuz he’s so used to thinking about how everything can go wrong due to his ruined future, that basically anything happening to you is catastrophic in his eyes. You got a scratch? He panics, a fight with someone? Pray they get a quick death. Eventually as things get worse and worse (according to him anyways) he’ll decide that he’s had enough and not let you go anywhere without him, or more accurately, let you go anywhere at all. Reasoning with him is impossible, after all he’s as stubborn as can get, and as much as he loves you, he’s not taking no for an answer, after all it’s all for your sake, so shouldn’t you be happy?

The only possible way I can see you escaping from him is if you somehow gain his trust enough for him to let his guard down, slip up, and give you a chance to peace out…but good luck with that. It isn’t that he wouldn’t trust you, but he’s just incapable of being apart from you, so a moment when you’re alone are too few and far between, I doubt you would even have a proper plan to escape him. In the case you somehow do manage to do so, your freedom won’t last long, he’s really adept with that psychokinesis of his, so the moment he sees you it’s game over. He would try to justify to himself why would you ever want to run away, after all, it’s impossible for him to see what he did wrong, you probably were just anxious, but no need to worry, he will always be there for you

[catiecat1320]

Sonadowtober Prompt 17: Alter Ego

For one of my AUs, Atlas! Decided to bring the old manga back to life with a post-Frontiers self-discovery arc for Sonic

Shadow's been looking for a certain someone... and finds that someone has taken on a new face

Sorry it's late lol (Context in AO3 endnotes)

Read Below🔽

Shadow doesn’t know what compelled him to walk into that bookstore.

It wasn’t particularly eye-catching, nor was he in need of a book of any sort. Yet something told him to stop beneath the sign proudly labeling the quaint place as “THE ATLAS.”

A lady with kind eyes and a soft smile opened the door hugging a thick clothbound book, calling back over her shoulder a thank you to someone named Nicky. She stops upon seeing him. “Why hello! Visiting?”

“...Yes.” Shadow supposed he wasn’t the most discreet person on this side of the planet, with easily memorable red stripes declaring to everyone unfamiliar that they haven’t seen him before. It wasn’t such a big deal now as it is when he’s on missions, but it’s still annoying that he can’t blend in with folks who often ask him more questions than he has the social battery for.

“What brings you to our little town? We don’t get much tourism around here,” she beamed. Shadow had an automated response prepared for questions like hers.

“Personal reasons.”

“Oh, I hope it’s nothing bad,” the lady replies. “The Atlas is a good place to go if you need advice, though! Nicky’s got something for everyone. I swear that boy knows everything there is to know.”

Quite a boast. Shadow pastes a smile on his face and tells her that he’ll look into it, completely certain that this Nicky wouldn’t be able to help. With as remote of a town as this, he doubts they’d know anything about the whereabouts of the hero he’s looking for.

He doesn’t know how wrong he is. Yet simultaneously, he finds out just how right his assumption of obliviousness was.

Perhaps he goes into the shop knowing that his objective isn’t urgent, that the lost didn’t need nor want to be found. The world wasn’t ending, and he knew that Sonic would show his face if anything of the sort happened. Shadow supposed he just wanted to check in on him, seeing as the last time they met, he wasn’t doing the best.

But if Shadow’s advice had encouraged him to find the comfort to disappear off the face of Earth for such a while, he was probably okay. 

Whatever the case, Shadow walks into The Atlas, and finds everything he thought he wouldn’t.

Among the shelves stands a hedgehog, stretching to reach a book just out of his grasp. When he turns around to greet his new customer, emerald eyes widen behind black-framed glasses, if only for a second. 

“H-hey! Welcome to The Atlas!” Sonic squeaks, pitched in a bad attempt at disguising his voice. He tugs at his red hoodie’s strings nervously as he gets stared down.

“Sonic.” Shadow suddenly finds that he has no idea what to say. He didn’t really expect to come across the hero so soon, despite having looked for him for months now. Turns out, he didn’t have to say anything, at least not yet.

Sonic has grabbed his arm and pulled him into a different room before he can even register the movement. He’d gotten so used to being faster than the rest of the world that he forgot there was someone faster. “What are you doing here?”

“I… I should be asking you that,” Shadow states, taken back by the sudden question. “Can I not be here?”

“Heh. I suppose you’re right.” Sonic runs a hand through his bangs, something he apparently took the time to grow out. “Uh…” He glances at Shadow, then around what seems to be a storage room, struggling to find words despite the numerous books. 

A faint ringing of bells sounds from beyond the closed door and the blue hedgehog perks up. Giving a customer-service worthy smile, he gestures outside and goes to greet whoever came in.

Shadow watches the interaction unfold in secret.

The customer seems young, bright. By their demeanor, they’ve definitely been here before. “Hi Nicky! Has that collection arrived yet?”

“Ollie!” Sonic’s so at ease as he hops behind the checkout counter and hoists a box up to them. “Here! I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.” He pushes his glasses up the bridge of his nose thoughtfully. “And if you require any more books, I have plenty of recommendations like this one.”

“Alright, bookworm,” they laugh, trading a sack of rings for the neatly bound box. “Thanks! I’ll be back!”

“See you later!” As soon as they’re out of sight, Sonic zips back into the storage room, smiling shyly once he realizes Shadow’s been watching. “Sorry.”

“Don’t be,” Shadow says immediately. Seeing him interact with Ollie… he can see that the hero’s found a place here, one worth staying for. He’d feel bad if he was anything other than happy for Sonic.

Sonic seems to disagree. “So… on a scale of one to mass hysteria, how bad is it? At home, I mean.” At Shadow’s confused look, he cringes, prying his glasses off his face and anxiously cleaning them with his shirt. “Gosh, I should go back, shouldn’t I?”

“What? No. Why? They’re fine,” he splurts, unable to understand what planted that idea in Sonic’s head in the first place. It was as if Shadow’s mere presence caused the hero to regress into the near paranoid behavior he’d only recently worked himself out of.

“Are you sure?” He sounds so… scared. Shadow takes his hands and plops those glasses back onto Sonic’s face. 

“I’m sure. I didn’t come with the intention of forcing you to go anywhere. I looked for you to make sure you were okay. There’s no need to return if you’re enjoying yourself here.”

That coaxes a smile out of him. One of those genuine smiles that caused the corners of his eyes to crinkle with joy, not the practiced kind the hero wore for the masses. “I am. It’s nice to be just a guy again.”

Shadow nods in sympathy. He can’t say he knew what it was like, but if Sonic found it so nice… “Would you like me to call you Nicky?” The blue hedgehog shrugs. Indifference. Well, if he was to be a normal guy, a hero’s name wouldn’t do. “Nicky, then. It fits you. You return when you’re ready, Nicky. The world can handle itself.”

Emerald eyes simmer with unsaid thanks, and Shadow finds himself pulled into a hug, tight but comfortable. He can’t help but smile as he reciprocates the gesture, gently running a hand through blue quills.

Just two hedgehogs, for the moment.