Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Chapter 1: the last straw

The prison wing was dark, silent. Somewhere, someone was snoring ..
The bed's springs pricked, tore the orange uniform, scratching his back.
His consciousness was floating somewhere in a soup of terror, confusion and malaise. He didn't know what day or what time it was.
But he could hear the footsteps.
They came for him, as always. He wanted to hide, but his body didn't move.
The door opened, they entered, told him he had to get up, and when he didn't, they lifted him by the arms. He tried to resist, to fight back, but he was too weak, too tired.
He wanted to keep at least an iota of his dignity, but he couldn't. He begged them to let him go:
he was not feeling well. He wouldn't have endured another session in that awful machine, he wouldn't have gotten out of it alive. Each time, it was as if that damned device wanted to tear his soul out of his body.
They were deaf to his pleas as they dragged him, as always.
But suddenly they stopped.
Someone was talking, almost arguing with them.
He didn't understand much, but he didn't allow himself to hope, not even for a moment.
And in fact he felt himself being dragged again, their every step bringing him closer to the room, to the scientists and to that horrible machine.
Zonic clenched his fists until his knuckles whitened under his gloves, as he watched the guards drag Scourge along.
Director's orders. They had responded like this when he stopped them, ordering to bring the prisoner back.
He had heard Scourge plead before, when they dragged him still delirious into that room, but when the guards left and Zonic saw the wet strip of fur along the hedgehog's cheek, he found that the last drop had fallen, causing a long-filled vase to overflow.

- Aah Zonic. What brings you to my office?
Zonic slammed his hands on the Warden's desk, furious - Your aggressive rehabilitation don't work! It's just a way to inflict free torture on prisoners.
The Director smiled, impassive in front of that outburst - Of course it works. Look at Scourge, it hasn't given any more problems. The extractor is working wonders on him.
Zonic took a step back, narrowing his gaze -Your methods are killing him, and I am no longer willing to tolerate it.- he said - I'm here to ask for his release into custody of an agent.
Without stopping smiling, Zobotnik leaned back in his chair - Straight to the point, I see. But why should I release a dangerous element like him? He is in the middle of his rehabilitation and is making great progress.
Zonic inhaled, clenching his fists - Because we both know there is no progress. You're just torturing people for fun. The old director would never have allowed it.
The Warden sighed - Aah the old director, peace be upon his soul. But we both know who he chose as his successor. Still burning, huh? Zonic?
- Not at all, because we both know how it really went.
Zobotnik snorted - Will you play this card forever, Zonic? It's starting to get old. And anyway, it didn't help both of us, how did it go? You didn't want to run the prison, I did. But we all knew who would choose the Director, right?
- If I had known how you would handle it, I never would have allowed it. - Zonic replied.
- Well, what a pity, right?- The Warden chuckled - Because I'm behind this desk now. And I'm still wondering why I should grant your request.- he smiled - What will you do if I don't? Are you going to cry to the Commander and tell her how you allowed me to fix the cards so that I could become director in your place?
The blue quills rose for an istant - No. The past is past.- Zonic replied - What I want, is to make a bet with you.
That was new, and Zobotnik was pleasantly intrigued - Oh? A bet?
- Yes. I bet I can manage and rehabilitate Scourge better than you. Without the use of violence. And above all, I bet I can prove how useless and harmful your method is.
The Warden smiled - This stinks of insubordination, Captain. But I like it. Do you want to play Little Warden? I will satisfy you.
It was too simple. So Zonic started to worry.
- I will release Scourge. But I want detailed reports every month and he will have to wear a special collar.- the Warden put all his fingers together and grinned. - And if more than two months go by without even the slightest change, you'll hand over your badge and be dishonorably discharged.
Zonic clenched his fists. This challenge was likely to be more difficult than expected - Do you... want me to keep an eye on him and do my job at the same time?
The Warden laughed in response - Of course not! I'll make it easy for you. From now on, your only job will be to look after him. And you will be held accountable for his every action. Which means, if he does some shit, you will follow him in jail, my dear Zonic.
The hedgehog tried to keep calm. He was sure he could do better than the director, but he was not infallible. And if he failed, he would lose everything.
Zobotnik looked pleased the hedgehog in front of him, and continued - You have a nice house in Mobius Prime, don't you captain? As you well know all of Scourge's possessions have been...disappeared. But I guess your house is big enough for both of you.
Zonic pursed his lips. A criminal in his house. How could he sleep peacefully? He kept looking at Zobotnik in the hope he wouldn't notice his waver.
He watched as the Warden pulled out a control collar like the others, but gray this time - This is the prototype he's going to wear. It is a new type of smart collar, equipped with GPS and distance sensors. Scourge will only be able to move within fifty meters of you. If you, or he stray too far, the collar will start to shrink. And in case of further resistance, it will release an electric shock. Same thing if he tries to attack someone or remove the collar. You will have to...
At that moment an intercom call came. The Warden snorted and hit the button to answer - What?
- We had to interrupt the prisoner's rehabilitation. - said the voice on the other side - We've got his pulse back, but he needs immediate medical attention. We ask for permission for transfer to the nearest medical facility.
- No. Captain Zonic will take care of it from now on.- the Warden replied - He'll take care of the transfer.- Zobotnik closed the call and looked at the hedgehog with a grin - Our challenge has just begun. And you are already losing.

Chapter Text

Chapter 2: Hospital

Zonic clenched his fists and left the office at full speed, crossing the corridors towards the room with the machinery.
The mind raced. What to do now? The No Zone was nothing more than a pile of rubble with a prison in the center, inhabited only by guards, zoners and inmates.
For cases like this, where someone was seriously injured, they had some sort of deal with the Station Square hospital in Mobius Prime.
He was supposed to get Scourge there, but he needed a warp ring to do so. He had one loaded in his office for emergencies.

I take him, than take him to the office, take the ring and go there. Perfect.

When he reached the room, Scourge was on the ground surrounded by scientists.
One of them was putting a defibrillator back in its case.

- Ah captain Zonic. - He said closing the box - The Warden told us...
- Yes yes, I know. - He cut him short, annoyed. He didn't want to talk to those guys.

He knelt down and picked up Scourge, taking him in his arms, feeling him light and cold.
He didn't know which of the two things worried him more. He could feel his heart beating faintly as he made his way back through the corridors, this time without running.
By the time he arrived at the office, both guards, zoners and inmates had seen him, and he was sure word of his challenge would spread soon.
Once inside, he gently placed Scourge on the sofa and put his hand on his cell phone while with the other he rummaged in the drawers in search of the ring.

- Hello? Zamy? Could you send Scourge's medical file to the Mobius Prime hospital? Yes the one in Station Square. - he found the ring, then stuck the phone between his neck and shoulder and started rummaging through the folders with both hands. - Yes, I'll take the transfer forms, fill them out and send them to you from there.

The heavy folder slipped from his hand and nearly landed on his foot. He managed to save the foot, but his phone dropped.
He rolled his eyes and picked it up. He took the forms from the folder, folded them and stuffed them in his pocket along with the phone, then threw the ring and the portal opened in front of him, showing the hospital lobby.
With a sigh, he picked up Scourge again and walked through the portal.

He hadn't been to Mobius in some time, and he certainly didn't think about going back smashing his cheek on the ground.
When your dimension is tilted ninety degrees from all the others, you remember to activate the gravity stabilizer after the second fall.
But Zonic hadn't made dimensional travel for a while: after that big mess called SGW, dimensional travel was forbidden and only allowed to zoners, albeit in exceptional cases.
He couldn't imagine what condition his house in Mobius would be in, if he hadn't asked Vanilla to look after it.
That woman deserved a statue.
- Are you all right, sir?
She was a rather young nurse, a cute ferret. Zonic pressed a button on the bracelet he wore on his wrist and then pulled his face off the floor, sitting down.
He still held Scourge in his arms. He had managed to avoid making him hit his head in the fall, but the green hedgehog hadn't shown signs of recovery. He was still unconscious and cold.
- I'm fine. But he needs a doctor as soon as possible.
The nurse looked at Scourge, worried, then looked around and walked away to stop a gorilla nurse that was pushing an empty stretcher. She exchanged a few words with him, then went back to Zonic accompanied by the big nurse.
Zonic placed Scourge on the stretcher and briefly explained where he came from and what had happened, omitting the rehabilitation part.
The ferret nurse nodded. - I'll find a doctor to visit him. When he is done, he will come to call you in the waiting room.
- All right. I'll go there. - after saying that, Zonic let the nurse walk away with the stretcher and her colleague. Instead he went straight into the hall. He didn't mind waiting, also because he had a mountain of forms to fill out and several phone calls to make.

In his place, between a sinus guy blowing his nose constantly and a pregnant woman yelling at her husband that the baby was coming out, every five minutes in a good three hours of waiting, Zonic he had managed to fill out all the forms, send all the documents, and make all but one phone call: the one to the Zoner commander. Zally Acorn. The phone was always busy and Zonic didn't know whether to be happy or not.
He sighed, leaning back in his chair. Now he just had to wait to hear from Scourge, and think about how to handle the situation without messing around. The collar would have given him considerable help, but he still had to live with Moebius' worst criminal.

I always told myself that I was going to fix the guest room. Well, now I really have to.

He should also have bought something for Scourge. The prison would give him his things back, but he owned nothing else.

And if he really can't get away from me, I will have to carry him around with me. And he can't wear the prison uniform or the same clothes all the time.

Another couple of hours passed. The hall gradually emptied. The pregnant lady and the sinus guy left, and Zonic was about to fall asleep in the chair.
Until a raccoon in a white coat, a pair of glasses and a stethoscope entered the room and after looking around, went straight towards him.
- Agent Zonic, I suppose.
Zonic revived - Yes, I am.
- Please follow me.
Zonic followed the doctor down the corridors, and couldn't help but ask.
- So, how is he?
- He is stable. - the doctor siad, continuing to walk. - But his condition is... indecent.
Zonic didn't look surprised. Even after the addition of the extractor, Scourge was still a favorite target of many inmates, including his own cellmate, Small the Cat.
From the anti version of Big, someone might expect a slender cat, but “Small” was even bigger than Big the Cat. And Big was just as naive and good as Small was a violent asshole.
Zonic had protested when the warden had decided to put them in the same cell, with no results.

When they entered the room, Scourge was resting in bed. His breathing was slow and steady. There was no trace of pain on his face. He was warm, wrapped in a thick heated blanket and yet, he was huddled tightly and shivered from time to time.
Seeing the zoner watching his patient without making a move, the doctor spoke.
- This is one of those cases where they look no worse than they are. X-rays show several old fractures, cracked ribs. Examining him we found bruises, signs of mistreatment, burns, cuts, not to mention the state of malnutrition in which he is found.
Zonic had lost count of the times Scourge's ration had fallen to the ground due to some tripping or shoving. And after the extractor sometimes they had to drag him into the cafeteria. These times he was too tired or sick to think about eating, and he just lay slumped on the table.
- I don't know how you handle things in the No Zone - continued the doctor - but this is a respectable hospital. And Mobius' laws stipulate that, in the event of maltreatment, a subject must be hosted and not sent back. Which means that I do not intend to send this prisoner back to your dimension, until I am certain that your director is unrelated to the facts, and until measures are taken.
Zonic was relieved to hear those words - Well, he doesn't actually have to go back to jail. - he explained - I volunteered to test an... alternative rehabilitation. Basically, he is now in my custody. House arrest.
The doctor tilted his head, looking a little confused but accepting the explanation.
- In that case, I can discharge him as soon as he recovers. He has no serious injuries, but he needs rest, adequate nutrition and taking the medicines I will prescribe. And above all, it has to stay warm. We can't explain why his temperature fluctuates in this way. All the exams gave no results.
Zonic knew there was a chaos energy extractor involved, but he didn't mention it. There were few mobians like Sonic and regular hospitals didn't deal with that sort of thing. They could only alleviate the symptoms.
In that instant, the doctor's seeker rang - Mmh, I have an operation. I have to go. For any problem, there is the button to call the nurse.
Zonic nodded, thanked and greeted the doctor, then the doctor closed the door behind him and Zonic was left alone with Scourge.
He turned to him and realized he was awake. Blue eyes open staring at the ceiling.
- Oh. You're awake. How do you feel?
- Like shit. As usual. - Scourge took a deep breath with each sentence, as if speaking was costing him an effort.
Zonic overlooked that answer and decided to change the subject - So you were listening to us. How much did you hear?
- Enough.
- So, do you know that you will not go back to prison?
- No. I know I'll be back, and you just said a lot of bullshit to avoid trouble for Zobuttnik.
Zonic started to reply but stopped, letting out a sigh: Scourge was in a hospital bed, sick and out of energy, while he had spent hours in an uncomfortable chair filling out forms.
He didn't have the energy to have a conversation like that and he was sure Scourge didn't either.
He grabbed a book from the coffee table and sat in the chair across the room - Try to rest. I'll be here if you need anything.
- I need ... - Scourge coughed - ...that you go fuck yourself.
Zonic took a deep breath, then opened the book and stared at the pages.

Chapter Text

Chapter 3: Zally

Scourge quickly fell asleep and Zonic reread the third line for the fourth time.
He gave up and leaned back in the chair, starting to think about how to handle the situation he'd gotten himself into.
He had been there all day, he was supposed to stay all night and maybe all day after.
Scourge was his responsibility now, and no one else's. No agent would have replaced him, essentially he would never have stopped working having the green hedgehog always near, with that new collar.
It was clear that the director was not going to help him, in fact, he would do everything he could to make things difficult for him, to make him give up, declare surrender and have one of his most influential opponents out of the way.
He looked up at the sleeping hedgehog and ran his hand over his face. Sure he didn't have the new collar yet, but he couldn't leave a criminal unattended anyway.

He could stay here for days and I can't camp in here. I have to think of something.

- Knock knock, Captain!
Zonic gasped and looked up to find a very familiar crocodile and chameleon near the open door.
- Zector, Zespio? What are you doing here?
-We bring news. - said the chameleon . - A good one and a bad one. Which one do you want first?
Zonic sighed - I ... I really need some good news now.
Before Zespio could answer, Zector started talking - The good news is we're here to help you out! - he showed his thumbs up - Zails told us about your little challenge with the Warden.
- Zails? And how did he know?
- He heard the guards. Nothing else is talked about in prison. Everyone says the director has no intention of lifting a finger for you, so Zespio and I said to each other that when our shifts were over we could help you out. We are two, we can cover a few hours each and you will have time to go home, take a shower and sleep.
Zonic smiled - Guys, you are the best. Thank you.
- But now the bad news comes. - said Zespio.
Zonic took a breath - Ok, I'm ready.
- In order to help you, we had to ask the Commander's permission.
- Oh no...
- She agreed, but she wants you in her office in an hour.
- Oh shit...

Zonic didn't want to leave right away, not without thanking them properly, so he went downstairs and returned with a couple of hot coffees for them.
- He looks bad. - Zector commented, glancing at the green hedgehog.
Zonic nodded -Yeah. He shouldn't bother you as long as he is. If you keep talking quietly, I think he will sleep all night until I return.>
- Good. - Zector said - I will stay here while Zespio accompanies you.
- Ok. Thanks again Zector.

Zespio accompanied him to the zoner headquarters, along the corridors that led to the commander's office. Zonic saw the other colleagues turn to him, and then return to their work with a worried expression, or start muttering among themselves.
When he happened to train a new recruit, he taught him that as a zoner, there were two people he responded to, and he absolutely didn't have to upset: Warden Zobotnik and Commander Zally.
He had managed to get into trouble with both of them at the same time, and now recruits and zoners were watching him the way one looks at a cow headed for slaughter.
Zespio stopped a few steps behind him, when they were in front of the office, and patted him on the shoulder.
- Good luck my friend.
Zonic turned to him, noticing the faces protruding from their respective offices a little further back - Thanks. I will need it.
Having said that, he knocked on the door, then opened it and slowly entered.
Zally was at her desk, staring down at some documents.
- Close the door. - she said without looking at him.
Zonic complied, then took a breath, and stood to attention - Captain Zonic, report.
- Forget the formalities and sit down. - she said, arranging the pile of documents, tapping them on the desk so that they were all perfectly overlapped.
Zonic stepped forward and took his seat in the chair in front of the desk, then waited while Zally arranged other documents and signed them, paying no attention to him.
- You have always been the best, Zonic. - she suddenly said - Not even a sick day, or a day off request, always on time and ready to help your colleagues, your career as a zoner is studded with successes and all, without exception , they know your worth. - she took off her eyeglasses and finally looked at him.
He had always found her gaze beautiful, her blue eyes. Zally was a fantastic woman, but also unattainable, devoted to her career like no other.
-You are our spearhead, the best of my zoners. If a hellish mess breaks out anywhere and for any reason, I'll send you, because I know you can fix it. But today I hear from the Warden that you got a criminal out of his prison and made a commitment to watch him around the clock. And you did it without notifying anyone, and above all without asking permission from me, your commander.
- It was a sudden decision. But I can't retrace my steps. - Zonic replied.
- It's not like you to make sudden, rash decisions like this.
- People change, Zally.
- They change because something pushes them to do so. So what made you risk your job, career and reputation for a bunch of scum like Scourge?
Zonic inhaled - These are personal reasons.
- And these personal reasons ... do they have anything to do with case 73A?
At the mention of that acronym, Zonic shivered, almost shaken by an inner earthquake. He tried to keep himself composed - Case 73A has nothing to do with Scourge.
- Even if his is one of the deleted dimensions?
Zonic folded his hands to hide the tremor - Zally, I assure you it doesn't hit. It was ten years ago, I got over it. I also did those sessions with Zouge, to...clean my mind. Why do you bring up that story again?
- Because I care about your health. You have changed since that day, and you are never back as you were before.
Zonic shook his head, running his hand over his face - Of course I've changed. I ... it left a mark on me, I can't deny it. - he explained - It still hurts to talk about it. And again, it has nothing to do with Scourge, so please change the subject.
- Well, if it's not for that reason, will you tell me why my best zoner has to babysit that green gremlin?
Zonic looked down - They put he back in the extractor. This time they almost killed him.
- The Warden's methods don't concern us, you know.
Zonic leaned forward - They really concern us. We entrust him with people.
Zally did not move - We entrust him with the worst criminals of all sizes, to serve the just sentence.
Zonic then stood up - So is it okay to let the inmates beat him, the guards beat him and scientists torture him with a chaos extractor?
- It's the procedure decided by the Warden for rehabilitation.
- Come on Zally! You don't even believe it.
At that point she got up too - Listen Zonic, Zobotnik does his job, we ours. We are both on the side of justice.
- This is bullshit! What happens there is not justice. What Zobotnik does is not! What Scourge goes through is not and I'm fed up! Sick of pretending it is! And if I have to risk my job, my career and my reputation to change anything, then I will. I won't endure one more day without doing anything!
Zally had known Zonic for a long time, and knew how seldom he raised his voice. So, seeing him yell like that, she knew he wasn't going to change his mind.
He sighed then - Okay, Zonic. Try if that's what you want. But if you fail and things don't change, you should consider another type of employment.
That advice stung at the height of his stomach like a burning ember, and it hurt so much that when he came out and opened the door, he paid no attention to the crowd around, which had remained with their ears attached to the wall until then.

Chapter Text

Chapter 4: the collar

Zonic spent the following days arranging the room for Scourge with Vanilla's help.
One quality Zonic loved about her was her discretion. He could tell her everything, sure she would keep it a secret.
Little Cream, on the other hand, was thrilled with Zonic's return and the arrival of his "mysterious guest". She was a dear little girl, but Zonic feared she wouldn't be able to restrain her enthusiasm and would talk about it, if he told her, especially Sonic. She'd already informed the hero of his visit to Mobius and Zonic was fine, but he didn't want him to know about Scourge unless it was necessary: his private life was already compromised by Scourge's presence and the last thing he wanted was the entire Freedom Fighters team camped out in his garden.
Zector and Zespio gave him a couple of hours to do everything, and he had not yet put the new collar on Scourge: the hedgehog was in such a state that the doctor had advised against weakening him again.
He still hadn't moved from the bed. He had stayed there sleeping without giving any problems or signs of wanting to escape.
When he was there, Zonic could see with his own eyes how weak the ex king of Moebius was. When Zector told it, he hadn't believed it.

Scourge had no energy, not even to roll over in bed. With each attempt his muscles burned, prompting him to give up. It was unthinkable to try to get up and walk, or even just sit down.
If at one hour of the day he was burning with fever, the next he was frozen to the bone. The headache and nausea were always there, constant and overwhelming.
He always felt like this after the extractor, but never in such a severe and debilitating way.
Being nearly sick had exposed him to a wide range of embarrassing situations, which remained by divine grace only between him and the nurses.
After the first few days, also thanks to the medicines, he had managed to regain some independence. They kept pain and nausea at bay, allowing him to eat and rest better.
Then one day, he woke up with a familiar feeling in his neck.

Oh no, not again!

It was so good not to have that thing around his neck anymore, and now here's another brand new one bothering him.
Frustrated, he tugged at it with both hands and it seemed to get tighter. Startled, Scourge yanked harder, only making the situation worse

- Fuck...Fuck!

Zonic raised his head. He had dozed off just for a moment but when he realized the situation he jumped up and went to the bed.
Scourge was fidgeting and coughing, holding the collar tight and trying to push it away with his hands

- Take it off... it's... it's...

For a moment, prompted by his good heart, Zonic thought about removing the collar, then his head reminded him that it was the oldest trick in the world and that he had already fallen for it once, when he was younger and inexperienced.
He took Scourge's hands and jerked them away from the collar, causing the hedgehog to gasp for air

- Stay still. Do not try to take it off or it will tighten more.

If it had been up to him, Scourge would have waved like a beast trying to take off the collar, but Zonic held him tightly.
It took a few seconds and the collar began to loosen. The green hedgehog panted and coughed, until he returned to breathe regularly.
Zonic was relieved, but refrained from sighing.

- Here, see? When you feel it begin to tighten, stop doing whatever you are doing. And above all do not try to remove it. - He said, and then let go of the other's wrists.
Scourge did not reply. He was shaking and he wasn't sure if it was fright or cold.
- I... I hate you ...
Zonic ignored him and sat back in the chair.
- I hate you ... that piece of shit of your director and that hole I'm locked in ... and all the assholes in it ...
Zonic didn't answer, his eyes fixed on the open book.
- One day ... one day I will take this thing off ... I will escape your control ... I will destroy everything .. nothing and no one will stop me.
- Are you finished?
- He will pay for it...you will pay... all of you...

Zonic closed the book - You know, that doesn't encourage me to take you into custody …

Scourge chuckled - Oh, stop it. Do you really expect me to believe it? There is no custody. It's just a psychological game you and your coworkers play under the guise of rehab. You know how bad it is there. You just want to give me false hope and then snatch it out of my hands and enjoy seeing my reaction. But I don't fall for it. So stop it.

The agent blinked -Why do you think this?

- What do you say? When the other prison scum was pounding me like a punching bag, do you think I didn't see the guards turn away? Neither the prisoners nor the guards are to be trusted.

- Well I'm neither one nor the other. I am a Zoner. I have little to do with prison, I just bring criminals like you there.

-Which only makes you the worst of all. You know what happens there. And bring people there anyway.

Zonic found he agreed, at least in part. But he couldn't afford to agree with him - I bring those who deserve to be in there. Interdimensional criminals of the worst kind that no other place could handle.

Scourge suddenly laughed - Of course, the best thing for psychotic bastards is to put them all together, in one place that makes them even more freaked out, and makes them want to burn everything as soon as they get out of there!

- Those kinds of people will never get out of there again.

- Oh please, I managed to escape from there.

- And you have been recaptured.

It was true. Scourge had started the biggest riot the prison had ever seen, and with the help of his team he had managed to escape.
But they had recaptured him two years later, under somewhat odd circumstances. Injured and unconscious, lying in the snow in the Moebius woods.

- I'll try to escape again. - Scourge continued - Over and over, until I succeed or die in the attempt. Better than spending my life behind bars amidst constant torture.

Words the Zoner had heard a thousand times, but found he couldn't ignore them now: if he wanted to succeed and keep his badge, he would have to pay close attention to Scourge's words and behavior. Their exchanges could no longer be limited to mutual insult.
His silence seemed to confuse the green at first, but he immediately hid the perplexity behind his usual grin, and then lay down and cover himself with the blankets

- And anyway, I was right. You think I deserve that treatment, so clearly you'd never get me out. There is no custody option at stake. It's just another bullshit. It's not the first, it will not be the last. Just like my escape attempts.

Zonic smirked - I guess we'll soon find out who's right.

Chapter Text

Chapter 5: home sweet home

Two days later Scourge hadn't improved much, but he was on his feet.
So they had decided that he could re-enter.
He didn't believe the custody story. He refused to believe it, but he knew that if he went back to prison in that condition, he would die.
He had told that doctor that he wasn't feeling well, that he couldn't come back, he was almost on the verge of getting down on his knees and begging him.
But that doctor had reassured him, saying he wouldn't go back to prison, that Officer Zonic would take him into custody for an experimental rehabilitation method.
He couldn't believe it. Had the doctors involved in that sick joke too?
They had made him wear a new prison uniform as his was in tatters. He kept an eye on every possible escape route as they descended to the ground floor, but with his hands tied, without his speed, and with the collar attached to the energy lanyard that Zonic was holding tightly, he saw little chance in his favor.
Not to mention the fact that the corridor continued to sway and the view blurred every now and then.
He felt feverish, not that anyone cared anyway.

- Remember, unattached, you can stay up to fifty meters from me or the collar will send you a shock. - Zonic told him.

- You don't need to repeat this every time. - He replied.

- I'm trying to get it into your head.

He snapped his head around - And I'm trying to tell you I'm not stupid.

Zonic narrowed his gaze - Careful, that thing is sensitive. Monitor your physique, so if you get pissed, it knows.

Scourge growled softly but looked away, bringing her hand to the collar - It's like having a second cop stuck to your ass.

- Would you rather go back to prison?

Scourge narrowed her eyes and flattened her ears. - I'm going back there anyway. Stop giving me that shit about the case.

Zonic shook his head and went back to signing the various papers to discharge Scourge - I told you. We'll see who tells the truth between us.

Scourge waited in silence, the world swaying from time to time, making him nauseous. Zonic tried to hurry, having noticed his state. He wanted to remove the tie to give him a chance to occupy one of the chairs but he feared he might try something stupid. He looked like a rubber band stretched to its maximum and ready to snap in two, with a snap and a whip they would hear anywhere.
After his words, he wouldn't be surprised if he tried to escape anyway, only to end up taking a damaging and useless shock.
The woman behind the counter held a piece of paper close to him. As soon as he understood what it was and saw the figure, he widened his eyes.
It was the hospital bill. Usually the prison paid for the inmates, but now it was no longer the prison that looked after Scourge.

That fat, flabby, huge son of …

- Excuse me?

Zonic paused, finding himself whispering what he was thinking at that moment.
- Huh? Oh, nothing. I was losts in thought, sorry.

He paid what he owed, thanking to have insurance, then brought his attention back to Scourge.

One part of the green hedgehog was terrified and screamed at him to escape, the other knew that with that energy tie it wouldn't help. But the worst was that despite everything, a little hope had found its way into him.
The wait was almost worse than the outcome. He just wanted it to end.
And when Zonic told him it was time to go, he gasped.
Zonic kept pace with him, walking leisurely. Scourge was grateful, because his legs struggled to support him and every step was a pain.
Only when they found Zector and Zespio in front of them at the exit, Scourge have the courage to raise his head and ears, to show that he still had a modicum of pride.

Zespio nodded to Zonic - Zails said to tell you he will call you every day to find out how you are, and Zouge says to keep her posted and call if you need advice. - He said, as usual short and straight to the point.

Zector instead showed his thumbs up - Remember boss, whatever we're on for. Please call us if the scum here is giving you trouble. Don't go through this alone.

Scourge narrowed his gaze, supporting that of the crocodile, not wanting to give in first, but was forced, when his head began to turn worse than before.
The voices became distant, muffled, the vision began to blur.

Zonic seemed to notice, because he decided to cut it short - Okay. But don't worry. I can get by. I will keep you updated anyway.

He took his leave of them quickly, taking Scourge by the shoulder to guide and support him at least a little without attracting attention.
Scourge collapsed into the passenger seat of a car, instantly feeling some relief from sitting down. He heard the car start but by then he was too exhausted to pay attention to anything.

The next thing he saw was Zonic shaking his shoulder.
- Hey? Wake up. We have arrived.

This is it ... prison, sweet prison ... welcome home, Snot. Old Small will take care of you with his special punch medicine.

- Can you do it?

Scourge did not reply. He put his feet on the ground and stood up. His legs sent pangs of pain but held him up.
He got out of the car and stared at the building in front of him.

- Why the fuck is there a villa instead of a prison?

- Because it's not the prison. It's my house. - Zonic said - So, which of us was right?

Scourge blinked. It couldn't be true. There had to be a trick. Maybe Zonic was a cannibal with the pantry in the basement? Or maybe they were still on their way and he was dreaming?
He didn't trust him but the tie of energy pushed him to follow Zonic anyway.
It was one of those neighborhood houses you see in the movies, with a courtyard, a piece of garden in the front that surely stretched out to the back. And a garage immediately next to it on the other side. It was two floors, it was pretty.

- What the fuck am I doing here? - He muttered and heard Zonic sigh as he opened the door.

- Custody. - He reiterated and observed him - Even now don't you believe it? You have my house in front of your nose. I'm letting you in.

And a moment later, he was inside.
There was a kind of open space divided into two sections, the smaller one with the kitchen and the larger one with the living room. Then there were stairs leading upstairs and a French door leading to the back garden. There was also another door in the living room area. Maybe a bathroom.
Zonic led him upstairs and Scourge followed him silently, looking around as if he were in an alien spaceship rather than a house. It was strange, surreal, even disturbing, in a way, but his brain was so fused that he didn't have the strength to ask questions, just taking it full in the face moment by moment, and experiencing them as if he was not really there, as if he was watching a movie.
Zonic pointed to the guest room. He would have to walk up the stairs to get there. He wasn't sure he could do it, but he would never, ever ask Zonic to help him. He clawed at the handrail and started climbing. Zonic flanked him keeping up with him, not rushing him, making the situation only more humiliating.
Just when he felt he had hit rock bottom, he hit a step and stumbled forward. Zonic grabbed him by the arm and held him up. Scourge let him help him with the last few steps, now sure he couldn't get any worse.
The guest room was large, somewhat bare and with an attached bathroom.

- This will be your room. Now, I'll clear up a couple of points. - Zonic sat him down on the bed, then raised his index finger and Scourge just stared at him - One: your situation hasn't changed. Meals, shower and time of air when I say so. Two: you are only allowed to leave this room in exceptional cases, if you are not feeling well, if you need help, if it is on fire. . All I need is a phone call, Scourge. Only one, and you go back to prison. Clear?

The second was a lie. Zonic had thought about it for a long time and had concluded that he could not trust the common sense of his guest. He needed a reason to behave as Zonic was sure he didn't care much for his badge. In fact, if he had known, surely he would have behaved badly just for the sake of seeing him end up behind bars with him.
A little lie wouldn't hurt him, would it?
Scourge finally nodded.

- Well. - Zonic pressed a button on the glove and the lace disappeared - Take a shower, grab some clean clothes from the dresser and go to bed. You have to rest. - He headed for the door but stopped in the doorway - I'll be back in thirty minutes to see if you did as I said.

Having said that he went out and closed the door. Scourge stared at the door and realized he hadn't heard a single word.

What do I have to do?

Compared to the cell he shared with Small, this room was a palace.
Scourge went to the bed and tested the mattress: it seemed thick and comfortable and above all no one would have stolen it. There was a soft, oval red carpet on the floor, and the chest of drawers that Zonic had pointed out to him. There was a TV on a high shelf but Scourge couldn't find the remote anywhere. The floor and furniture were all wooden and looked antique, but well kept. There was a desk with a chair and one of those old dressing tables with the attached mirror. Scourge noticed the image of him and looked away. Out of curiosity, he opened a few drawers and found only a few books.
There were no bars on the window and the light curtains were dark orange. It overlooked a garden and a beautiful chestnut tree.

It looks like my grandmother's room. But there is no Small, and I have a mattress to myself. A double one.

The idea made him smile.

Enjoy my shit mattress, Small. I bet you can only dream of one of these.

He slowly lay down on the bed, savoring the sensation. He was extraordinary. And the pillow, oh the pillow! It was nice full and soft, not like those flat prison slices that gave a stiff neck.

It's like lying on a fucking cloud… he thought closing his eyes with a sigh, vaguely remembering Zonic telling him to do something within thirty minutes.

It was an incredibly long thirty minutes for the agent, who sat staring at the kitchen cabinet half the time trying to take inventory.

He can't stand up. Maybe he won't be able to do it all by himself.

He took a jar of spices and stared at it.

There is a chair in the shower but .. what if it gets hurt? Should I go check him out?

He resisted the temptation, keeping his word and returning to the room thirty minutes later, only to see the snoring green hedgehog, asleep on the mattress, just as and where he had left him.
He was about to wake him up and scold him, but he stopped when he saw the serene expression on his face.
He reminded himself that he was facing a tired and sick hedgehog. A prison guard would have awakened him badly and punished him for not doing as he said, but would he have done anything other than reiterate who was in charge?
He didn't need to remind Scourge of his situation at the moment, so he chose to be understanding.
He moved trying not to make any noise, going to the closet to get a quilt.
He put it on top of Scourge and the hedgehog curled up in it, sighing.
Zonic watched him for a moment, then left the room letting him sleep.

Chapter Text

Chapter 6: mirrors

Scourge slept for the rest of the day and as Zonic made himself some instant noodles for dinner, he wondered if he should wake him up to make him eat something.
He decided yes. He had had breakfast in the hospital, he had skipped lunch. He had to eat something now.
He rummaged in the cabinet and found some instant soups. He lived on instant food due to his job but now he would be spending a lot more time at home due to a certain hedgehog to watch over.

I could pick up the cookbook again.

The thought cheered him up. Cooking was a great passion of him, so much so that if for some reason he could not be a policeman, he would certainly have become a cook.

- All right. No more instant food.

But cooking meant having to go shopping. Shopping meant going out. Going out meant taking Scourge with him.
Luckily, he could still ask Vanilla. She was the one who filled the pantry when he wasn't there, so he always had fresh food in case he needed to come back.
He had just turned off the microwave when he heard a loud noise from upstairs, like something falling and falling apart.

Scourge would still be asleep, but the light from that damned street lamp hit him right in his eyes. He groaned in annoyance and curled up in the quilt.
He didn't remember moving the blankets.
Did he have blankets?

- Wait, where am I?

He looked around the dark room and remembered. It was Zonic's house. And he must have fallen asleep. He had not done as requested, yet Zonic had not punished him.

- Maybe he just felt sorry for me. - he pushed the blanket away – Pathetic...

He got up cautiously and when his legs held, he fumbled in the dim light for the light switch.
His foot hit the desk and he clung to it, biting his lip and muttering the worst things to that piece of furniture, as if it had a soul to offend.
He ran his hand up the wall. He found the switch and turned on the light.
It was already dark outside. The clock struck seven.

I slept nearly twelve hours. Shit, I was really tired.

He was feeling a little better now, enough to want a shower, which was what the agent had asked him to do.

I do it because I want to. Not because he told me.

He headed for the bathroom, which was a little smaller than the room. There the wood gave way to tiles, dark blue on the floor and a kind of teal on the walls. It was simple and practical, with the toilet, a sink with the cabinet and a shower with a chair inside. There was also one of those dressers but with baskets instead of drawers. Scourge rummaged through it and found various toiletries and bathroom utensils. Sponges, combs, brushes, a new toothbrush.
Zonic had been meticulous in providing the bare minimum and avoiding any vaguely sharp or dangerous tools.

As in prison, Scourge thought. Only that here, the toilet is clean.

He looked up and met his reflection in the mirror. The badly cut and disheveled quills, the dull and sparse fur in some places, the bruises, the dark circles.
By the time he realized it, his closed fist was already heading towards the mirror. He hit it, it cracked, broke into pieces and fell to the ground making a great racket. The collar tightened as the electric current ran through his body, causing him to collapse to the ground.

- Shit!
He heard quick footsteps climbing the stairs.
- Double shit!
- Scourge!

The green hedgehog instinctively flattened his ears, his body still unresponsive from the shock as the grip of the collar loosened.
Zonic walked into the room first and then into the bathroom, immediately noticing the shattered mirror. The gaze went from the ground to the face of the green hedgehog - What happened?

Scourge kept his ears flattened and just looked away. He couldn't answer, and in reality, he didn't even want to.
He had been in that house for less than a day and had already damaged the stuff inside. He could only wonder if Zonic would punish him for breaking the mirror.

Zonic went around the broken glass and knelt beside him to help him sit up - Are you okay? You got a shock.

Scourge grimaced, holding back the pain - Yeah..just..give me a second. - he said and immediately felt ashamed.

The zoner placed him against the wall and then moved towards a corner of the bathroom, taking a broom and a shovel - I knew that that nail was not fixed well.

Scourge lifted an ear and for a moment hoped he wouldn't notice, but when Zonic bent down to pick up the pieces, he stopped abruptly, noticing reddish spots on one of them.
He looked up at Scourge, noticed the injured hand, and at that point he understood.

He stood up and looked at the green hedgehog, stern - Let me see your hand.
His ears flattened again as Scourge hid it - It's nothing.
- Show me your hand. - now the tone was cold and hard, too much like that of the prison guards - Now.

Scourge sighed and showed his hand, without meeting the other's gaze.
Zonic stared at it for a moment and sighed - Stay here. I'll be right back.

Scourge watched him go and waited. His reflection was now shattered and scattered across the floor. A pretty good allegory for his life at the moment.
You always have to bullshit.
Like with Fiona.

The memory hit him suddenly and hurt, making his heart heavier and making him feel tired again just as Zonic returned with a first aid kit.
- Are you okay? Do you want to lie down?

He shook his head, then Zonic positioned himself next to him and sat down - Give me your hand.

Scourge showed it, a little reluctantly. Zonic took it and with tweezers began to remove the glass fragments, not noticing the discomfort of the hedgehog in front of him.
- I don't know why you hit the mirror but.. - he started him, pouring some disinfectant on his hand, then cleaning the wound - avoid hurting you more than you already are. It does not give you any benefit.

Scourge was convinced he was taking a kick or two for breaking the mirror, but instead found himself staring at the zoner in front of him treating his hand, slowly and carefully, rather than hastily like the prison nurses.
It seemed almost surreal as a scene.

Zonic took everything back into the box after cleaning it - Think you can take a shower? I'll help you if you can't. - he said, hoping with all his heart not to have to.

The green hedgehog pushed the thoughts out of his head and replied - I'm fine now. I can do it alone.

Zonic sighed in relief - Good.

Scourge thought he would go, but instead he took the broom back and went back to picking up the glass fragments.
- Er...
- What?
Come on asshole, get there alone.
- Don't tell me water scares you like Sonic Prime.
Scourge mentally cursed and snorted - Is it too much to ask for some fucking privacy?
- You've been showering with people of the worst kind for years, and I make you uncomfortable by passing the broom? - Zonic chuckled.
Scourge clenched his fists - I'm not going to undress with you here.

Zonic stopped his sweeping and looked at Scourge. He seemed really uncomfortable and wanted to please him, but he didn't feel like leaving him alone in a situation like this: he had just taken a shock. In his state he could feel bad, fall to the ground, and with running water he wouldn't hear him.

In the end he made up his mind, placing the broom against the wall. - I'll be in the other room. As soon as I hear the water running, I'll come back here to finish the job.

Scourge knew he wasn't going to get any better, so he just nodded.
Once alone, he undressed and went into the shower, turned on the water, put the chair under the shower and sat down.
Through the frosted glass he saw a faint blue shape starting to sweep again.
He sat under the stream for a while, waiting for the fur to soak and enjoying the warm water. He lathered himself, and watched the blue shape come out again, then come back and shortly after the noise of the vacuum cleaner joined the noise of the shower.
He rinsed off, and his hand ran over his arm, feeling a small bump under the fur.
He remembered where he came from.

Hey Snot...

He jumped.
In an instant he was back in the prison yard. And there was Small, with some of his minions.

What are you doing here all alone? Come and play with us.

His ears flattened as he began to tremble again. His eyes still looked at the shower glass, but his mind saw the courtyard. He saw Small.
He remembered every single kick or punch. He seemed to still feel them on his skin, as he felt the tears linger in his eyes.

Oh, guys, I think I broke his arm ..
Snot, you are really made of paper ..
Weak..
Pathetic..

- Scourge?

He jumped. In an instant he was back at Zonic's house, in the shower. - W-what?

The hedgehog's voice answered from the other side of the frosted glass.
- Are you finished?

He turned off the jet of water and grabbed a towel hanging from the top of the glass. - Yes. I have to… I have to dry myself!

Zonic said no more. Scourge saw him come out of the bathroom again, then wrapped himself in the towel and got out of the shower.
He found himself even more tired, he didn't know if from the shower or from that terrifying mental journey. He passed the hairdryer, trying to comb his fur as well as he could, without the mirror.
By the time he finished, the sensation had gotten worse, his head was spinning and he seemed light. He couldn't stand it anymore.
Zonic had left some kind of pijamas hanging on the door. He put on the black pants, with all the caution he could, to avoid falling to the ground.
He found Zonic just outside the bathroom, sitting at the desk. He stood up immediately, his expression worried.

- What the hell are you looking at? - Scourge asked, then the world went dark for a moment and he lit up again the next moment.

He had gone from standing in front of Zonic to sitting on the bed as the zoner held him by the shoulders and pushed him towards the pillow.

- Lie down for a moment. - he said, as he pulled back the covers and then adjusted them to cover his chest - I hold that hand and then I'm going to get you something hot to eat.

In a few moments he was alone again, berating himself for his weakness and for how pathetic he was in that state, stuck in a house, getting help from a zoner, who was none other than his jailer.
Yet he did not behave as such.
He indulged in thoughts as his mind cleared and the malaise began to fade.
He had been seriously injured a few times. In those situations it was Fiona and Miles who helped him, and they were both people he trusted almost blindly.
Miles was almost a brother, Fiona was his love.
Yet when they had helped him recover from his injuries, he could see the judgment in their gazes. Their words, their gestures, were almost annoyed, as if helping him was nothing but a nuisance.
Zonic didn't do that. He didn't treat him as a burden like Fiona and Miles or a piece of meat like the other guards.
In retrospect he was the first person in years who gave a damn about him.
He dismissed those thoughts. He had to be on guard. If Zonic treated him well, he certainly had a reason. But which? Why did he take him out of prison? Why bring him to that house?
He had to find out. It had to be a step ahead of him.

- Here's the soup.

He almost jumped out of bed, sitting up, widening his eyes to find Zonic standing beside the bed, bowl of soup in hand.

- What are you? A fucking ninja? - he panted, once he recovered from the fright.

- No. You're the one who turns the brain off. - he replied the other, handing the plate - Now, if your Majesty doesn't need anything else, I'll go downstairs to eat my noodles in front of the TV.

Scourge, grinned, pretended to think, and then waved Zonic away - Nah, the king is satisfied. You can go.

The zoner rolled his eyes - Now don't pull the rope too hard, Scourge. - he said, then went downstairs.

As Zonic disappeared closing the door, Scourge's arrogant smile faded.
The green hedgehog stared at his reflection in the soup, then at the bandaged hand.
And he went back to eat.

Chapter Text

Chapter 7: time with friends

Zonic went back downstairs to his noodles, and they were cold for a change. He was about to warm them when the bell rang.

- Who will be at this hour?

He opened the door and found himself in front of Zector and Zespio. The crocodile held three pizzas, a case of beers and the entire first season of Z-files.
- Surprise! - he screamed.

- What?

- We thought we'd check how you were doing. - Zespio said - Zector got the idea of pizza, and I couldn't stop him.

- I have a criminal upstairs and you two show up to eat pizza and watch TV?

Zector seemed to think, then held up a bag - I brought the Zbox if the series doesn't suit you.

- I..no..it's not..oh, just come in.

While Zector plugged in the console, Zonic and Zespio arranged the pizzas and beers on the coffee table in front of the sofa and the giant TV. Zespio's pizza had cabbage, Zonic's was a classic with tomato and mozzarella and Zector's ... had pineapple.

- I hope you are happy with your heresy. - Zespio said to the crocodile.

- It's a tasty heresy. - he replied.

They settled on the sofa and Zector started the DVD with the first episodes of the series - Oh I remember! This is the one where the guy dies crushed out of the silo.

- No that's the fourth. - Zespio took a bite of the pizza - The one with the director's cameo. This is the one where you see the microphone reflected in the mirror when they frame the girl.

Zonic didn't care what episode was, he just wanted to enjoy the show, the pizza and forget about the mess he had been in for a few hours.
They watched the series until they finished eating, then moved on to the console. Zector had brought a racing game with cars. At the moment he was giving a hard time to a Zonic in the head. The winner among them would have challenged Zespio, who has held the track record for six months now. They had no idea how he did it. He seemed to know every shortcut.
Zector was trying them all, but he just couldn't get past Zonic, so he thought of distracting him.

- So, how did it go today? You know, your new position.

Zonic kept his eyes fixed on the screen - Not as bad as I thought. He collaborates, actually. I think it's because he's sick and he doesn't have much choice.

Zector got closer and closer to Zonic's car with his - Ah. And where did you put him?

- Upstairs. He has a bedroom and a private bathroom. I don't feel like letting him access the rest of the house. Already like this, I don't think I can sleep peacefully.

Zector smiled, finding a hole in which to overtake, but was immediately closed by a maneuver from Zonic. He narrowed his gaze - Yes I understand. I wouldn't be able to sleep either.

- Did he give you problems, threatened or something? - Zespio asked.

- Actually no. But he acted weird a couple of times. He hurt his hand by breaking a mirror and later he was so overwhelmed that he didn't hear me coming.

- Strange. - Zector commented, more focused on the game than on the conversation.

They were approaching the straight before the finish line. Zector tried to overtake, they were side by side.
And he didn't calculate the bottleneck. When they arrived, his car hit the fence at the far right and got stuck, stopping.
He stood motionless for a moment staring at the screen with the pad in his hands. Then he passed it to Zespio while Zonic giggled.

- It was just bad luck!- the crocodile protested.

At that point, Zonic competed against the chameleon. He immediately set off at full speed, leaving him behind. Random selection had brought them right to his favorite. Zespio could not win.

- How did it go with Zally? - the chameleon asked - I heard a few words. I can't believe she mentioned 73A.

- Me neither. Just when I was starting to believe that no one would talk about it anymore. I mean, it's been years, and yet it seems like the only thing they remember of all the ones I did during that time.

- People often tend to remember misfortunes and get used to successes. However, I am glad that my meditation exercises have helped you.

Zonic smiled - Yes. I still do them, you know? I am convinced that they will help me to manage this situation too and...- he stopped, seeing Zespio's car come out in front of him, coming out of a secondary road.

He glanced at the chameleon, who smiled without taking his eyes off the screen.
- Have you ever thought about involving Sonic Prime?

Zonic looked back at the screen - Yes, but that doesn't seem like a good idea. But I thought that Tails Prime might have a look at it: I think the extractor messed up Scourge's energy, don't ask me how. - he said - At the hospital they don't know anything about these things, but maybe Tails can help. The problem is ... oh damn! - Zector chuckled as he saw Zonic's car take a too large bend and crash into a ditch. It took all his gameplay skills to get her out and get on the track. Meanwhile, Zespio leaned back on the sofa, relaxed.

- Is that it will be difficult to involve Tails without pulling Sonic in too. - Zespio finished for him - Everyone knows of Sonic Prime's hatred towards Scourge, but he has never denied help to someone in need. Speak to him clearly, don't hide anything. You will see that he will understand. - He said, as he crossed the finish line.

- Ah! You're strong Zespio! - Zector exclaimed, high-five with the chameleon.

Zonic considered that advice and smiled - You're right. I will do so. Now ... rematch?

- Stop you two! - Zector exclaimed - We're out of popcorn. Zonic must have something to munch on after I beat him.

Zonic laughed - Oh yeah? Let's play then.

Scourge listened to the muffled sounds coming from downstairs, laughter and conversation he couldn't understand the words, and found himself staring at the ceiling.
He once wished he had such moments with Miles. Carefree moments, of brotherhood.
He wanted many things, as a son, as a brother, as a partner. Then he stopped. He would never have them, so what was the point of wanting them?
His brother always tried to steal his seat, his girl only wanted power.

Maybe you just met the wrong people.

He blinked. He didn't know which part of his brain that little voice had come from, but maybe he wasn't completely wrong.

Well of course. I'm Anti Sonic, the opposite of him. He has met all the right people. I all the wrong ones.

All the more reason to hate that hedgehog.

What if I met the right person for once?

He shook his head.

No. Impossible.

He closed his eyes, trying to sleep.

Chapter Text

Chapter 8: emergency

Zonic didn't want to go to sleep.
He had just said goodbye to Zector and Zespio, and it was quite late, but the thought of a criminal in a room a few meters from him didn't make him feel safe.

I'll have to sleep sooner or later. And Scourge still can't attack me with that collar on.

He repeated those words to himself over and over like a mantra as he crawled under the covers.
His room was upstairs like Scourge's, but overlooked the driveway in front of the house, and had a more linear and modern, black and white decor.
He lay down and watched for a while the cold light of the street lamp filter through the curtains, occasionally hearing the noise of a car passing by.
Luckily for him, his body demanded rest and it didn't take long for him to fall asleep.

When Scourge woke it was almost dawn, the house was quiet and he was in pain.
The injuries and bruises bothered him a lot more than before and worse, he felt hot, his head was spinning and he had his stomach upside down as if he had just come out of the extractor.
At least for the pain he had an explanation: they had given him painkillers before they left the hospital and they must have exhausted their effect.
There was no medicine in his bathroom but Zonic had to have them somewhere. He just had to find them, get them and go back to bed.
He tried to get up and the pain got worse. He tried to insist and it became unbearable, so he fell back on the mattress, panting.
He remained motionless, it was the only way to be able to bear it, but he gave him no way to stop the headache, the nausea and the discomfort due to the fever: if he uncovered himself, he would freeze. If he covered himself, he was hot.
Calling Zonic was not an option, also because given the time and the closed door he would not have heard him.
Besides, he would never stoop to ask for his help out loud.
He stood still, enduring his discomfort as time passed. He saw the light gradually brighten the landscape outside the window, focusing on the ticking of the clock.
He told himself that he just had to wait: Zonic would wake up, he would come to check on him and once he saw him he would bring him the fucking medicines.
The zoner looked like an early riser, for sure it wouldn't take him long to wake up.

Zonic woke up hearing the birds chirping and the neighbor mowing the lawn. He smiled and reached out, stretching.
He didn't expect to sleep so well, too bad about that mower.

Why the heck cut at this hour? Did he take a day off? Vanilla said he never comes home before noon.

Her eyes widened

Wait..

He gathered his courage and turned to the alarm clock.
It marked 13:00.
He rolled off the bed, getting stuck in the sheets. He got rid of it, grabbed the uniform without looking, put the shirt backwards and two different socks, left the room brushing his teeth and almost slipped down the stairs. He went all the way, before remembering that he didn't have to go to work, that his job was upstairs.
He sighed, his toothbrush still in his mouth.
He finished brushing his teeth in the kitchen sink, and decided to put on the coffee. He went back upstairs and put on something more comfortable, pants and shirt. He took off a sock and put on the right one.
He was walking back downstairs when he heard moans coming from the room where he had left Scourge.
He knocked, but the noises didn't stop, so he opened the door.

A distant voice was calling him by name. He didn't know how long he had slept. He vaguely remembered the dawn light in the window. There was a lot more light now, even though it was all out of focus.

- .. ourge .. u...ear..e ..?

He tried to open his eyes wider and focused on a blue silhouette. He felt a hand on his forehead, then the figure pulled him to itself to turn him on his back.
He groaned in pain and felt something cool dab on his forehead, giving some relief to his migraine.
He felt a hand feel his pulse. Then he moved his lips, trying to speak, to say that he was not well, that he needed help. He heard his own voice, but could not understand his words.

Zonic turned to the delirious hedgehog. When he entered the room he had seen him in that state, he had almost taken a hit. Now he was there, trying to figure out what was wrong with him.
Then he remembered: the doctor had given him a medicine for him to take every day, to treat his strange symptoms.

- I'll be right back.

And he did. After a run to the bathroom to get the medicine, he sat down, prepared the syringe, and slipped it into his green arm. Scourge groaned in response.

Please let it be this. Make him feel better, now.

In the first fifteen minutes nothing happened, then Scourge slowly began to calm down. His breathing slowed and he stopped shaking. After another fifteen minutes, he seemed to be sleeping peacefully. Zonic checked the temperature and saw that it had dropped.
- Oh thank Chaos .. - he slumped into his chair.
He arranged the blankets for Scourge for him to stay warm, he went back downstairs to get the cup of coffee and then started to watch him for a couple of hours, until he started to wake up.
He then he pulled the chair near to the bed and put on the calmest expression he could find.

Eventually, he must have fallen asleep. It had to be a passing thing, because he was much better now. Sure he still seemed to have woken up after a record hangover the night before, but at least he could move and everything seemed a little clearer.
- Hey. Good morning.
He turned and found Zonic in the chair next to the bed.

- What..what are you doing here? - He asked him.

Zonic gave him a friendly smile but there seemed to be more to those dark green eyes.
He was worried, even as he tried to hide it. Scourge couldn't remember the last time anyone worried about him.

- You've been sick. A lot. - He replied - But .. I gave you that medicine from the hospital. Are you feel better now?

- Yes, a little.

Zonic felt a heavy weight disappear from his chest - Do you feel like eating? Or drink something hot?

He wanted to keep his pride, but he was terribly thirsty.

- Just a cup of water.

Zonic then stood up. - Well. Wait here, I'll go get it.

- Eh..I am not going anywhere ..

Zonic was relieved to hear him chuckle. Scourge had his sense of humor back, it meant he was fine.
He went back upstairs with the glass of water. He helped Scourge up and drink it, which infuriated the green hedgehog, at least internally, because on balance he didn't have the strength to reject the help.
He drank and then collapsed back onto the bed, sweaty and tired from that simple effort and from enduring so much pain all night.

- I'm here if you need anything. - Zonic said and Scourge felt the wet cloth on his forehead again.
He wanted to tell him to stop, to leave him alone. He didn't need his pity, he didn't want his help.
But the cool cloth on his forehead relieved and relaxed him, so he ended up falling asleep again.

Seeing the green hedgehog asleep, Zonic sighed and dropped the cloth on his forehead, then moved quietly and went downstairs.
He was sure Scourge was sick from the extractor. He had to speak to Tails Prime as soon as possible.
He picked up his phone and saw a new message.
It was from Sonic Prime.

“Hey man, how's it going? I hear you're in Mobius. We haven't seen each other in a century, would you like a reunion? I have so many things to tell you, people to introduce you, you have no idea! "

Zonic smiled, but he had other things on his mind. He started typing.

“Hi Prime. I would love to, but first I have to settle a question. I would need the help of Tails Prime but I have no contact with him. Could you pass him on or tell him to come to me asap? It is an urgent matter. "

As he wrote, he saw that Sonic was online. It didn't take long for him to start typing the answer.
Moments later Zonic's phone vibrated.

“Tails? He is in the laboratory. I go down and ask him. What is it anyway? "

Zonic resumed writing “See, I have a…” he paused for a moment, then continued “… guest, at my house. He's sick, and I'm sure his problem is with the energy of chaos. I was hoping Tails could help him. "

Sonic visualized immediately, but took longer to respond.

“He asked if you can give him some more details. He needs them to know what equipment to bring. "

Zonic then wrote about the extractor to which his "guest" had been exposed for years, on a daily basis or every two.
When the phone vibrated, he read.

“He said he takes the stuff and comes right away. I accompany him so he does faster. I'm not sure what a puller is, but Tails looks really worried now. We will be there in a second. "

Chapter Text

Chapter 9: A kind Fox

Five minutes and two seconds later, the doorbell rang. Zonic had barely had time to clean and give the house a semblance of order.
He opened the door and found Sonic and Tails in front of him.

- Where is him? - asked the little fox, who had a duffel bag over his shoulder.

- Upstairs. - Zonic answered and then after letting them in, he went up the stairs with them. He took a breath and opened the door to Scourge's room.

Tails froze in the doorway and Sonic nearly ran into him. He noticed Scourge and his fur rippled as the quills rose.

- Him? - Looked at Zonic, waiting for an explanation

- Speak softly Prime, or you'll wake him up. And I don't want my house destroyed.

Sonic shook his head - But him! How? Why?

Zonic wasn't surprised: Scourge was probably the only person on Mobius' face that Sonic the Hedgehog hated. And even his friends did not look favorably on him.
But if he didn't want to help Scourge, he hoped at least he wanted to help him.

- Look, I'll explain everything to you, okay? Now, please, I need your help.
Sonic's quills dipped a little at the zoner's insistence.
Zonic looked at Tails and to his surprise, the fox was already at the side of the bed mounting some sort of scanner.

- Tails, stay away from him! - Sonic barked.

The fox instead turned his gaze to the zoner - Zonic? Tell me one thing: the story of the extractor, is it true?

Zonic nodded - Every single word. I didn't tell you who he was, because I was afraid you wouldn't come, and I don't know who else to turn to.>

Tails stared at him, his gaze serious - Ok then, I'll help him.

The zoner smiled - Thank you.

Tails gave Sonic a serious look. The hedgehog knew that look: his little brother had a stubborn side, and when he emerged, there was no way to change his mind.
He left Tails to assemble the machine and motioned for Zonic to follow him out of the room.
The zoner followed, closing the door behind him.

- Ok the story of the extractor, but you want to tell me what Scourge is doing in your house? - Sonic asked, in a low voice.

Zonic sighed - I bet with Zobotnik that I could handle and rehabilitate Scourge better than him. He accepted the challenge, but made it difficult for me: he put this collar on him that electrocutes him if he is less than fifty meters from me.
Now Sonic had it all clearer in mind - Ok so ... where you go must be Scourge.

- Exactly. That's why he's in my house. And at the moment he is in no condition to move. They only discharged him yesterday and only because they knew he would end up here.

Sonic knew that Scourge was proud, and powerful. Something was wrong - It's not easy to seriously hurt Scourge. Only I have succeeded.

- It is when you put him on a collar that deprives him of his strength and speed. Or when you put it in a machine that forcibly extracts its energy of chaos.

Sonic seemed to reflect on those words - Tails said it's the most painful thing a mobian akin to chaos can feel. A full blown torture, a hundred times worse than the robotizer.

- Yeah. If I hadn't made that bet with Zobotnik, maybe he would have died.

- Zonic?

Both hedgehogs turned to Tails, who had appeared in the doorway.

- Um, I'm done assembling the scanner. I want to take a reading of Scourge's energy to see what's wrong, but I should take the covers off and he should stay still, so … - he looked down. It was clear that he was afraid of approaching Scourge up to that point.

Zonic just nodded and walked back into the room with Sonic
He soon realized why Tails didn't want to get close: Scourge was awake, but he didn't seem very present. His gaze was veiled.

-.. Who's there? ..- Scourge murmured.

Before Zonic could answer, Sonic let his voice be heard.
- Hey Green Bean!

The green ear flickered - You ...- murmured -.. I hate you so much ..-

- It's mutual, don't worry.

- .. Go away .. Zonic?

- Don't worry, he won't do anything. - the agent replied, then gently removed the pillows and uncovered Scourge completely, spinning him on his back.

- What the fuck ..?

- It's nothing. Just stay like that for a few minutes.

- What are you doing? ... Miles?

Tails turned to the hedgehog.

- I hate you Miles ... I hate you and that bitch, Fiona ...

Tails looked at Zonic - I think he mistook me for Anti-Tails - the fox whispered

Blue light ran through Scourge's body a couple of times and Tails hit a button. - Ok, you can cover him again.

As Zonic tucked the hedgehog in, Tails looked at the charts and his ears twitched - Maybe I know what's wrong. Do you see that graph? That is Scourge 's chaos energy.

- Why does it have two lines? - Sonic asked.

- The green one is the energy absorbed by the Master Emerald. The purple one is the Anarchy, the anti-energy of Moebius. Being its opposite version, the Master Emerald does not cancel it, it enhances it. But being itself the energy of chaos it is still the opposite of anarchy. The two energies are in perfect balance, it integrates and enhance each other. That's why Scourge is so powerful, especially in his super form.

- Ok but so .. where's the problem? - Zonic asked.

- Right here. - Tails placed his finger in the empty space between the two curves - These two curves should overlap but they don't. Indeed they are completely different in their performance.

- And why are they different?

- Because the green one runs slower. Indeed, it does not flow at all. This has made the anarchy unstable, which is attacking the body that hosts it. - the fox explained. - The only device that slows the flow of energy and makes it unusable is the control collar.

Zonic stared at him in confusion - But he has been carrying one for years and has never had a problem.

- Properly functioning collars always allow a minimum amount of energy to flow. Not enough for the powers, but enough to avoid stagnation. But this collar completely blocks it. And since collars are more effective on chaos energy, it stagnated earlier. The anarchy attacked the stagnant energy and thus Scourge's body as well. If we don't do something right away he may not survive.

The accounts were slowly coming back. That was a flawed prototype. Did Zobotnik know this? Surely, since he was the one who designed them.

Tails said it's the collar that makes him sick.

His eyes widened.

The collar would kill Scourge and Zobotnik would blame me.

He already imagined the Warden's words. That Scourge was fine and in full recovery, but Zonic insisted. He would accuse him of negligence, incompetence, and everyone would believe him, including himself.
He brought one hand to his face, with the other he clung to the nearest chair and sat down.

- Zee? - Sonic approaches him - Are you okay?

Zonic nodded, trying to compose himself, then looked at Tails - So what do we do?

The fox reflected - The best and safest solution for Scourge is to remove the collar.

Zonic shivered - I don't know if it's possible. It is a smart voice recognition device. Only the Warden can remove it, by saying a password. And if we try to remove it in other ways it could activate and hurt Scourge.

- And it's also not the safest solution for us. - Sonic said - Do you have other options, little brother?

Tails stroked his chin - The alternative is to log in and override to reprogram the voice command and set a new password. Once this is done, I can remove the collar, correct the defect and put it back.

Zonic looked at the fox, allowing himself to hope - Could you really do that?

Tails shrugged - Yes, it's not hard. But it will take all day and maybe all night.

Zonic nodded - The double bed and sofa are free.

- Where do you sleep? - Sonic asked

Zonic shrugged - There's a chair in Scourge's room. And if he doesn't have the collar on, I'll still have to check him all night. - He explained - I know what he did to you two. You are doing me a great favor. The least I can do is make you comfortable in my house.

Sonic smiled - Don't worry Zee, I sleep well even on a pile of straw.

They stayed in the room while Tails worked. Sonic didn't want to leave Tails alone with Scourge and Zonic didn't want to leave Scourge and Sonic in the same room without a supervisor.
The hero soon began to get bored: Zonic was reading a book sitting in the armchair, while he paced back and forth.
Suddenly Zonic's phone vibrated. It was Zails calling him.

- I have to answer. See you later.

The collar story had left him drained of all energy, disappointed and embittered. He couldn't believe that a human being could be so mean.
He needed to talk, to let off steam, and he knew Zails would listen to him.
Zails was one of those rare people who can read your head. And when they realize that something is wrong, they sit down and listen to you.
And Zails listened. Zonic told him everything, lying on the bed with the phone by his side, on speakerphone.
Zails spoke, told him what he thought, reassured him, encouraged him and offered him some advice.
Eventually they talked for more than two hours and when they finished, Zonic was feeling better. He was happy to have a friend like Zails.
When he returned to Scourge's room, he and Sonic were still whole, and the walls still standing. He thought it was a good thing.

Tails watched him come back. - Oh, there you are again. I managed to connect to the collar and the override is almost complete. Soon he will ask to set a new password. - He said - You should choose it carefully: the voice recognition will be set on your voice as soon as you confirm the new password. From that moment on, if you say that word in Scourge's presence, the collar will come off. - A notification appeared on the screen of the fox - Perfect! Reprogramming completed. Set new password. - Handed Zonic a microphone connected to the laptop – Please.

Zonic took the microphone, thought for a moment, then said - One..two..ehm..SGW. Onetwosgw. - He confirmed. The computer took a moment to process the data, then a red light flashed on Scourge's collar and a window on the screen said "Password accepted. Voice stamp stored."

- Yes! - Tails cheered, bending his arm and clenching his fist, as an intrigued Sonic approached to watch.

- Now say the password so I can take off the collar and start working on it. - He looked at his older brother - Sonic could you get some stuff from my lab? I'll make you a list. It is nothing absurd.

- Sure little brother!

Zonic sat in the chair next to Scourge's bed and spoke the password. The collar light turned green and it opened. The sleeping hedgehog let out a sigh, as if a huge weight had been lifted from him.

Zonic took off the collar gently so as not to wake him and handed it to Tails - Here.

- Thanks. I made the list for Sonic and he started working on it right away.

The rest was expected: Zonic watched over Scourge, Tails worked the collar downstairs, and Sonic stayed with him. Every now and then he would go out to go for a run.
Removed the collar, Scourge seemed to improve visibly: while he slept he was more serene and that worrying dull pallor had left his muzzle.

If I think I could have seen him die ..

He shivered. Old memories returned, old wounds reopened.

No! No, it has passed. And now, now nothing has happened, thank goodness.

He looked at Scourge but the wave of sadness didn't go away.

All those people ..
I should have protected them. I should have saved them. Instead, I couldn't do anything.

He clenched his fists and bit his lip on him. It wasn't his fault, he knew it by now, but it hurt all the same.
He got up and retreated to the bathroom, preferring as usual to keep his pain private.
He went to the window, the farthest place from the door, and sat on the ground, abandoning himself to a silent cry.

Chapter Text

Chapter 10: Trouble at dinner

Scourge woke up feeling lighter. He put a hand on his neck and his ears flickered as he blinked in confusion.
He no longer had the collar. Little consolation since his legs could barely hold him. At least he felt better.
He went to the bathroom and found Zonic sitting on the floor.
He was snoring.
Scourge was increasingly confused by the situation.
Reluctantly and on tiptoe, he went to the toilet, but gave up quickly. He didn't like the idea of having someone behind him at all.
He remembered the bathroom downstairs: he could go there. With any luck, Zonic wouldn't have noticed.
Too bad, luck wasn't something he was used to having.
He opened the door, looked towards the bathroom: no signal from the zoner.
He softly closed the door and clung to the handrail of the stairs to go down without risking killing himself.
It was when he reached the lower floor that the problems began.
Tails was working on something sitting at the table. The TV was on to cartoons and a little bunny was watching them.
An older rabbit approached Tails with a pan in her hand and asked him to move everything so that she could set the table.
Sonic was sitting across from Tails and by chance, turned to the stairs.
And he saw him.
The relaxed expression changed to an angry one as the hedgehog got up causing the chair to fall backwards and walked over to its green counterpart.
He scours his ears flat and growls.

- Where do you think you're going? - Sonic asked threateningly.

He was about to reply when the bunny leaned over the couch, distracting them both - Hello!

Before they could do or say anything, she got off the couch and stood between them, looking at Scourge with a big smile. - You must be Mr. Zonic's guest. I'm Cream and that's my mom over there.

Sonic's quills were taut and straight as pins. The hedgehog was a bundle of nerves ready to spring.

Cream, on the other hand, was relaxed and she didn't stop smiling - What's your name?

- Er..Scourge.

She smiled again - Nice to meet you, Mr. Scourge. Do you want to watch cartoons with me?

It was certainly one of the strangest situations he had ever found himself in.
- Er ... I was actually about to go to the bathroom. - he said, then looked up at Sonic.

In the end it was the rabbit who spoke, the adult one - To your right. But hurry up, I'm putting dinner on the table. Tails dear, can you go get Zonic?

- Wait a minute. - Sonic said - You have a bathroom in your room. Use that.

- I wanted to, but Zonic is sleeping in it!

- Is he… sleeping in the bathroom? - Tails asked, confused.

It was then that Sonic sketched upstairs, avoiding Cream and nearly bumping into the green hedgehog.
With him out of the way, he decided to finally go to the bathroom.
It was smaller than the one upstairs, and had a medicine cabinet. Scourge did what he had to do, washed his hands and decided to poke around: if you want to find out someone's secrets, one of the best things is to peek into his medicine cabinet.
There were the usual things: disinfectant, gauze, patches, aspirin, tachypirin, cough syrup, vitamins and supplements. But he also saw sleep pills and long-expired anxiolytics. In addition, the cabinet had a locked drawer.

- What are you hiding from me?

Scourge broke off a couple of his quills and used them to pick the lock.
As soon as he saw what the drawer contained, he opened his eyes wide.

- Happy birthday to me!

Inside were what looked like cigarettes, but weren't at all.
It was definitely medical cannabis.
Scourge took a few, hid them in his trouser pockets, closed the drawer carefully, and left the bathroom thinking about how he would get high tonight.
The happiness did not last long: as he exited the bathroom, he found Sonic talking to the newly awake zoner near the stairs. Occasionally Zonic rubbed his temples.
Both turned to look at him: Zonic seemed annoyed, Sonic instead had the usual look of distrust and contempt.

- Dinner's ready! - Vanilla called.

Cream jumped off the sofa - Come Mr. Scourge!

Then he noticed that there was a chair for him too. Of course, for the rabbit he was only Zonic's guest, it was natural that she had counted him.
But Zonic seemed confused to see that extra place, just as much as he was. He and the rabbit exchanged a glance and she smiled.
Scourge didn't notice, but Zonic could clearly see her winking.
How could Scourge follow Zonic's rules without telling the two rabbits the truth? Telling them seemed like the best thing, they would have heard from Sonic or anyone else there anyway.
Still, they had been so nice to him. Upon learning the truth, they would treat him the way Sonic did.
He told himself he was really stupid, but he would have liked to pretend a little longer that he was just a guest.

- I'm not very hungry. - He said he and looked away.

- Nonsense. - She said, with a smile - You will see that it will come to you as soon as you start eating.

It hadn't work. He tried the second option.

- Actually, I also feel tired. Maybe it's better if I go back upstairs to lie down.

- You feel tired because you haven't eaten anything, honey. Come on and sit down.

Honey.
At that word the warmth spread in his chest: his parents had already called him that, when he was a child.
But this was different.
This was sincere.
He looked at Zonic, not knowing what to do anymore, but in his heart praying that he would let him stay.
Just for that one time.
He didn't want to be alone in that room again, unable to do anything but listen.
Zonic didn't know what Vanilla had in mind, but he wanted to trust her. And Scourge hid that pleading look very badly.
So he nodded to him.

Scourge struggled to believe it, and so did Sonic. The hedgehog put his hand on the shoulder of the zoner - Are you crazy? - he whispered .

- Vanilla knows everything. - He whispered back - I want to see what she has in mind.

Sonic shook his head and walked away, going to sit right next to Scourge, on the side of the knife. Zonic instead sat down next to Scourge on the opposite side.

It seems to be in court with the two guards keeping an eye on you. Ah but who am I kidding, I've never been to court Scourge thought.

Across the table sat Cream, Vanilla and Tails.
Scourge found Vanilla sitting across from him.
On the table was a large pan that had just come out of the oven.
Lasagna.
After years of eating prison food, Scourge seemed to be drooling even with his eyes.

- Please help yourself. - Vanilla urged them.

- Really, you shouldn't have .. - Zonic said.

- But I wanted to. Knowing you, I assumed you'd forgotten to eat decently, and Cream wanted so much to see you.

The bunny nodded - Yes! You haven't visited Mr. Sonic and all of us in a long time. And then I wanted so much to meet your guest.

Zonic forced a smile at that statement. Sonic, on the other hand, continued to be tense.
- Hey Tails? - He said he suddenly.

- Mmh? - The fox looked up from his plate, his mouth full and stained with tomatoes.

- Can I speak to you privately for a moment?

So they went to a corner of the room and at that point Sonic whispered, watching Scourge reach out to take his portion of lasagna.

- I'm freaking out, Tails. Look at him: he has no collar, he has a knife at hand and yet he does not try to escape. What does he have in mind?

- He Couldn't run away anyway.

- But he has no collar.

- This doesn't matter. Sonic, a chaos extractor and a faulty collar don't just block energy - they do damage. Scourge's energy levels are so low right now that he can't run without paying the consequences.

Sonic seemed to relax, but still looked wary. He sighed - I don't know, Tails. What if he tries to escape in other ways? What if he hurt Cream, Vanilla, or you?

Tails smiled – I'm not afraid of that: it's you and Zonic here. In his condition you would be able to stop him even before he thinks of doing something.

He had almost managed to calm down when he saw Scourge take the knife. In an instant he was standing beside him, his hand closed over his green hand in an iron grip.

- What the fuck!

- Put down the knife. Now.

- I'm just .. - the green hedgehog turned and saw Small in front of him.
He opened his eyes wide.

I'm still hungry. Give me your food.

Sonic's behavior had caught the zoner's attention, and he stood up to check.
He noticed Scourge tighten his grip on the knife, an expression of sheer terror on his face.
But the strange thing was that he wasn't looking at Sonic.
He looked higher, apparently at nothing.

When he tried to pull away, Sonic tightened his grip -What do you think you're doing?

Scourge saw the prison cafeteria. In front of him Small who, as usual, demanded his plate.
He saw his hand approach the plate with a brown mush in it, but he was too close to the edge and fell to the ground.
The grip on his hand tightened.

You know I hate people who waste food.

Zonic saw Scourge fold his ears and his eyes widen.

- Stay away from me! - He yelled, pulling back, standing up and knocking his chair over. Taken by surprise by his anti's reaction, Sonic loosened his grip and Scourge jerked free as the knife fell to the ground.

Sonic was ready to fight but instead of attacking, Scourge turned away and ran towards the bathroom, closing the door behind him, leaving Sonic more and more confused.
Tails and Cream had been watching everything and were as confused as he was. Vanilla, on the other hand, looked worried.

- Mr. Sonic, what's going on? Why are you angry? - Cream asked.

Sonic couldn't answer now.
He saw the zoner go towards the door, trying to open it, only to have it blocked on the other side

- Scourge, I'm Zonic. Move over and let me in.

Scourge was back at Zonic's house. The policeman pushed the door he was sitting against, asking to enter. So he got up to move. He looked at the window by chance and saw his reflection.
And Small.

- Shit! Fuck!

He took the first thing he found and threw it at the window.
The thing in question was a marble soap dish, which hit the window and blew it to pieces.

- What the fuck? - Zonic yelled, hearing the noise.

Scourge opened the door and jumped out of the bathroom - Shit!

He crashed into Zonic, who held him back and nearly fell to the ground.

- Leave me!

- Calm down, it's me! - Zonic grabbed the green hedgehog by the shoulders and pushed him aside so he could see his face.

Scourge relaxed but it was short - That asshole is here. I've seen it!

- Who are you talking about?

- Small! It's here!

Zonic didn't expect that answer - But it's ... impossible.

The zoner's words irritated the green hedgehog - I tell you I saw him! From the window!

Zonic saw the broken window and sighed: another addition to the repair list.

- Scourge, Small can't have escaped the no zone, and he doesn't have a warp ring to switch between dimensions.

- But I saw him!

Scourge was shaking and Zonic knew he would never calm him down with reason.

- Okay. Stay here. I'm going to check. - He turned to the blue hedgehog - Sonic, come with me.

- But I..

- I said ..- the zoner gave him an irritated look - come with me.

He took the flashlight and walked around the house with Sonic, looking for Small or whatever Scourge had seen.
When they were in the back, Zonic turned around - You really need to calm down.

- Do I need to calm down? There was Scourge sitting at the table with us, so close to a knife! He could grab it, jump, hurt everyone!

- And do you think he is so stupid as to do it with the two of us present and without having recourse to his powers?

- Well, I..

- If you hadn't freaked out nothing would have happened.

- Now is it my fault? I saw him take a knife!

- And didn't it occur to you that he wanted to use it to cut food?

Sonic sighed - Ok listen, I just grabbed his hand. To stop him. Then I have no idea what happened. He did everything.

- He got scared.

- I understood that. But there was something strange. He seemed to be elsewhere, with the head, I mean.

- I noticed that. I should tell Zouge about it. - He moved the flashlight and looked around. Nothing of course. - This Small business is also strange.

- Do you think he really saw him?

- No. But he is convinced of it. That's why I should tell Zouge about it. She'll know what to do. - He sighed - Well there's nothing here. We go back.

Once on the threshold of the door, Zonic stopped again and looked at the hedgehog - I know this is difficult, but please try not to be so tense in his presence.

Sonic sighed - Okay. I'll try.

When they returned, Vanilla greeted them - Ah there you are. I managed to get him to eat something. - She whispered.

Scourge was sitting on the sofa watching cartoons with Cream: he needed to be distracted and the bunny was quite insistent.
It was a show with girls and superpowers, but Scourge was busy making a mental chart as to which girl had the biggest boobs.

Eventually he yawned, and when the cartoon finished, he couldn't take it anymore - Can I change the channel now?

It was at that moment that he saw Zonic return. Soon the TV disappeared from his thoughts and the attention went to the policeman - Did you see him?

Zonic shook his head - No. There's nothing out there.

Now Scourge looked alarmed again - What? But that's not possible. Check better.

- We already did. - Sonic interjected.

-Well do it again!

The blue hedgehog began to get angry again - Did I already tell you that..

- I have an idea! - Tails interrupted, getting the attention of the three hedgehogs - Small should be in jail right? You can call and ask if he's still there. If he's there, he can't be here.

It made enough sense for Scourge. He looked at Zonic. The policeman sighed and pulled out the phone.

- Hey Zector? It's me. Yes, can you check if Small is still in the cell? Scourge says he saw him here in Mobius. Ok thanks.
He was silent for a few minutes, waiting, then - Thanks Zector. Good evening. - He hangs up and looked at Scourge. - Zector says Small is still in his cell.
It was not the answer Scourge expected. So he had made this whole scene and pushed Zonic to check for nothing?

You're an idiot.

- I .. I was so sure.. I saw him..
Had he seen anything else and mistaken it for Small? Or was it all in his head?

The idea that he had done it on purpose brushed Sonic for a moment. However, he preferred to please the zoner
- Eh, it happens Green. Maybe you are just tired and need to sleep on it.

The idea of going upstairs, of being alone, made him shiver, but he knew they wouldn't let him stay there much longer.
- Okay. I'm going to sleep.

Chapter Text

Chapter 11: Pancakes!

When Scourge went upstairs, Zonic found himself tired. The initial headache was now similar to the sensation of two drills meeting in his brain.
He knew what would calm the migraine, but he didn't want to smoke in front of Sonic.
It was Sonic Prime, for Chaos' sake! And he was a copy of him from another dimension.
He should have been above those things. It should have been like him.

Over time he ended up branding himself, even though his was not addictive, even though he had a doctor's sheet explaining everything, even if he never took more than prescribed, even if it was the only thing that calmed down his headaches and pains from old injuries sustained in a thousand battles.
The zoner's life was hard. He was a little older than Sonic Prime, because time flowed differently in the No zone, yet he had faced far more battles than Prime could count.
Prime fought every now and then, for the fate of the world. Zonic fought every single day, for people of every single dimension. Every day was a chase, a shooting, an arrest, and Zonic had taken his share of bruises, injuries and stress, even though his work had drastically reduced since...

Oh, what a horrible thought.. How many sleepless nights had he spent feeling guilty for thinking that? Zouge told him not to fossilize on it, because it was the result of an instant and of the mind of someone one step away from physical and psychological collapse.
The truth was, he was light years away from being Prime, the ideal model for any Sonic. He was just a tired zoner who smoked so his injuries wouldn't drive him crazy.

He was grateful to Zouge for helping him understand that the universe wasn't the only thing that was shattered.

- Hey Zee? Is everything okay?

He must have planted himself there staring at the stairs. He turned, rubbing his temple.
- Yes. It's just the headache.

- Seems like the king of all headaches.- Sonic replied - Come on, sit down for a moment.

He didn't have it repeated. He collapsed on the sofa, his head in his hands.
He noticed Tails approaching him, tails swirling in concern.

- Don't worry, it will pass. - He lied to him. He knew there was only one way to get those headaches away - I'm going to get my pills.

- Tell me where they were. I'll go get them.

He knew Tails just wanted to be nice, but he didn't have the key to the drawer anyway.
He smiled - No, forget it. I can do it.

-Are you sure?

Hell, he must have looked really bad. He continued to smile - Sure. Thanks anyway.

He went into the bathroom and closed himself, then opened the drawer and took out a cigarette that was not a cigarette, and a lighter.
Zonic was a cop, he could recognize a broken lock from a mile away, but right now the drill in his head was too strong to make him notice anything.
Scourge had broken the window, so he didn't even have to open it, just blowing smoke through the broken glass.
He finished it quickly, not allowing himself to taste it as if he wanted to confirm to himself that he did it only by prescription, then he left the bathroom, with the headache already showing signs of improvement.

They turned to him and Sonic took a step forward - Look Zee, why don't you sleep in your bed tonight? I keep watch over Scourge.

The idea sounded fantastic, also because after that evening he just wanted to go to bed, even though he had slept until almost the afternoon.
- You would be doing me a huge favor. Thanks Prime.

- Well, I help Cream and Vanilla with the cooking, then go back to work on the collar. Goodnight Zonic. Rest well ok? - Tails said.

- You too. Don't overdo it ok? Goodnight Tails.
After saying goodbye to everyone, the zoner finally got into bed.

In the room a few steps away, however, Scourge was dying to smoke some of Zonic's stuff.
But to do that, he had to open the window. And against all rational thought, he was certain that if he opened it, Small would walk in from there.
So he was curled up in bed, in the dark, hiding under the sheets, hoping that whatever he saw in the window, it wouldn't find him.
For a moment he had touched the idea of running away: he didn't have that collar, his powers would return, it was his chance.
He just had to open the window.

Even if I found the courage to open it and leave… what would I do next?

Right. How would it end? With him alone again, again on the run, again surrounded by people ready to betray him?
As absurd as it might be, in that house with Zonic, he could sometimes relax. Feel safe. And he liked that feeling.
Sonic Prime did not have great wealth, or a beautiful home. But he had a family and friends who loved him.
Scourge had spent his childhood in a castle, treated like a prince, with the servants and all the toys he wanted. But he had a non-existent mother, who had left him to continue her career as an actress, giving him up to a father who gave him a caress only if there was a camera to film him.
He hated them both, but most of all he hated Sonic, because he was just the lucky one.
As Scourge, he had been trying to get what Sonic had. Love, friendship. But changing his name and the color of his fur didn't help. It was his destiny, to be Anti Sonic. It was fate that everything would go down the drain.

Fuck fate. He thought, before falling asleep.

He woke up early enough, hearing the pangs of hunger and the snoring of Sonic as he sprawled in the chair near the bed.
He smiled: there's nothing better in the morning than waking Blue with a heart attack.
He got out of bed slowly and quietly, walked over to the window and opened it, then tiptoed out of the room, closing the door softly.
Chuckling, he went down the stairs and headed for the kitchen. No sign of Zonic, just the Miles of that dimension sleeping with his face on the table, amidst the screws, bits of metal and the collar.

Well, let's see what food there is.

He opened the fridge and after some hesitation took out some orange juice. He placed it on the kitchen counter and then rummaged in the cabinets.

Cereals, snacks, uuh, pancake mix!

He hadn't eaten pancakes for centuries and decided to take the risk, with the sleeping fox just a few steps away.
He took the bottle and read the instructions.

No stick pan. How the fuck is a non-stick pan made?

He bent down to look in the cabinets and once he found the dishes he took the pan on top of the pile, just because he would have made less trouble removing it.
He glanced at Tails. The fox moved slightly but continued to sleep. Perfect.
He turned on the stove.

Now I just have to pour this stuff into the pan and wait.

He did it. He poured some of the mix and it began to cook. Meanwhile he looked for the maple syrup and noticed some fresh blueberries to put on it.
His stomach rumbled. But when he tried to turn the pancake with a wooden spoon, it fell apart and remained partially stuck to the pan.

Damn!

He dropped the spoon and fell back on the spatula. Eventually he managed to scrape off the rest of the pancake and turn it over. Once cooked, he realized he didn't have a plate to put it in.

Damn again!

He grabbed one from the dishwasher, grimacing and looking at the fox when he made more noise than he would have liked.
Tails raised a hand and rubbed his nose, but his eyes remained closed.
Scourge sighed in relief, at least until he smelled a burning smell from the pan.

- Fuck! - He hissed.

He had charred the first pancake, but with the others he paid more attention and they turned out better.
Soon a few rays of sunshine peeked into the sleeping house and Scourge found himself enjoying the quiet.
That was until Tails lifted his head, yawning and sniffing the air, clearly awakened by the scent of pancakes.
Scourge had just finished putting in blueberries and maple syrup. He was walking away with the plate when Tails woke up. The fox sniffed the air, met his gaze, and their respective furs swelled.

- If you don't scream I swear I'll give you half. - Scourge said suddenly.

Tails, still half asleep, saw the pancakes and seemed to think.
- Deal.

Zonic woke up early, but well rested. He stretched, dressed, brushed his teeth and face. He left the room intending to go into Scourge's and see how Sonic was doing, but he heard the television on and the voices downstairs.
- He's turned it to a pulp!

- Yeah. It was a great idea to equip it with pliers and a circular saw.

Zonic raised an eyebrow in confusion until he found Tails and Scourge sitting on the couch, eating pancakes and watching "The Mobius Robo-Arena".
They hadn't noticed him.

- You know, Sonic doesn't really like watching this stuff. He prefers to be the one to destroy the robots.

- Miles didn't like it either. He said it was a waste of time and materials.- He looked down, lingering - I always thought it would be cool to build one together and participate.

Tails smiled, ruffling his fur - Me too! But Sonic doesn't understand much about robotics. We tried, but he doesn't have the patience to build things.

Zonic cleared his throat and they both jumped. They stood a moment looking at him, Scourge with flattened ears.

- Hello Zonic. - Tails said - I would offer you some pancakes but there's not much left. - Only then did he realize he had spent at least an hour sitting watching TV and eating pancakes with Scourge.
And Scourge hadn't attacked him or tried to escape, despite being without a collar.
He was disturbing and reassuring at the same time. Was Scourge really friendly or was he pretending to surprise them?

Zonic stared at them for a moment, then - You know what? I'll do others.

Scourge watched the agent walk towards the kitchen, surprised by his reaction: he was outside the room, watching TV. He had broken the rules, but it didn't seem to matter.
Zonic's eyes widened as he saw the state of the stove. He decided to clean them first, then he devoted himself to cooking.
The inspiration reached him after years: he took two chocolate bars, melted them in a saucepan, then poured the melted chocolate on the pancakes, adding berries, chopped hazelnuts and icing sugar. He took the plate and sat in his chair with that and a cup of coffee, then noticed that they were both staring at him.

- What?

- Can I taste one? - Tails asked in a whisper, staring at the pancakes.

Scourge was a little more reluctant - I'd like to… well… me too ...

At that moment, Sonic joined the group, running down the stairs at full speed and addressing the zoner directly - Zonic listen, a mess happened. I ...- his gaze shifted to Scourge - But he's here!

- And where should I be? - Asked the green, make himself comfortable on the sofa.

- Zonic, I swear, I was asleep, I saw the empty bed, the open window. I looked for him all over the neighborhood, all over the city. I thought he had escaped.

- And instead, I opened it for change the air, and went downstairs to make myself some fucking pancakes, to eat in front of the TV. What a strange life huh, Blue? - He replied, chuckling.

His joke had succeeded, but really, he didn't expect it to succeed so well.

Chapter Text

Chapter 12: A way to relax

After breakfast, Sonic went for a run, Tails went back to work, and Zonic sent Scourge back upstairs. The hedgehog reluctantly returned to it, but then remembered what he had taken from Zonic's locker. He already had one between his lips when he realized he didn't have a lighter.
The crows in the garden below took off with a caw and Tails dropped the screwdriver. Zonic climbed the stairs to investigate the powerful curse coming from the green hedgehog's room.

- Hey Scourge? Is everything okay?

Scourge hid his loot in his pocket and quickly thought - Er..yes! Foot against the desk!

Zonic breathed in the air through gritted teeth, thinking about that kind of pain - Ok. - He just said, leaving the hedgehog alone.

At the other end of the door, Scourge crashed onto the bed.

What a shit ..

He couldn't smoke because he lacked a lighter. The only way to get fire without asking for it and without getting caught was by tapping into the stove at night while the others slept.
But he couldn't smoke at night, because if he didn't want to be betrayed by the smell, he had to open the window.
And if he opened the window, Small could go inside.
He knew it was irrational, but he couldn't get rid of that fear.
He lay on the bed, thinking about how stupid he was.

Zonic instead retired to his room: he had to make a phone call. A very important one.
Zouge answered almost immediately. After the pleasantries, she immediately wanted to know about Scourge.
Before her, Zonic asked her to keep professional secrecy and when she agreed, he told her everything that had happened in those days: about the broken mirrors, about how despite his being grumpy he has never really rebelled, at least not yet. He tell her about the little lies told to keep him at bay, about the bad collar, about Sonic and Tails and about the dinner from the other night. Even his conversation with Tails that morning. He also told her about his strange estrangement, the Small business and his behavior at dinner.

- Seemed he didn't want to be alone. That he wanted to stay there with us.

- Mmh..I have some data on his childhood. He grew up in a very wealthy family but was often left to fend for himself. From what you tell me, he seems to be looking for situations of normality, of family life.

- Does he feel lonely?

- I wouldn't say. They are specific situations. So he tries unknowingly or not, to fill that emotional void. - Zouge explained - You said he was talking to Tails. As far as I know he and Anti-Tails had a very bad relationship, where Miles tried to cheat on him all the time.

Zonic thought about his relationship with Zails and Sonic Prime's with his little brother. If Scourge had truly taken Miles under his wing as it had in all other dimensions, then Miles had repaid him with betrayal instead of friendship and loyalty. - I understand. - He said - What about being estranged instead?

- I'm not sure what it is. You said he seemed to be looking at someone who wasn't there and he was scared. He may be suffering from hallucinations or intrusive memories.

- Intrusive memories?

- Yes. Like the ones you had when ... oh, sorry.

- Don't worry. I can talk about it now. Thanks also to you.

He remembered that period. When he couldn't stand in front of any monitor without going back in time and seeing cities vanish into a white blanket, and people screaming and running, trying to escape from his own erasing body. And he couldn't see a lit screen without fear that that white blanket would come out and start eating things, and then move on to his world and his size.
He had come to the point that he could not bear the sight of a white wall, of a white patch on a dress, for the constant fear that it would spread and encompass everything.
His office and his house had become an agglomeration of colors, even too lively.
It had taken years of therapy with Zouge, years of Vanilla's support and encouragement, but he was finally out of it. And he had painted his room in that house white, to celebrate his victory.
Ok it was a pearl gray, but it was the closest thing to white he could handle.
Furthermore, after a period of total isolation in which he could not keep a monitor, a telephone, a TV, a PC or anything else with a screen on, he now no longer had any problems.

- When it comes back, I should ask him some questions about it. - he told Zouge.

- Exactly. Now tell me about yourself. How does this situation make you feel?

Zonic told her a little about himself, about the headaches, about how she felt about caring for them and then, how things were strangely better that morning. The situation was calm, Scourge was fine and relaxed, and he had found inspiration in the kitchen and made some galactic pancakes.

He heard Zouge laugh on the other end of the phone - You know, this suggests to me, that you both need a quiet, leisure day.

The idea sounded fantastic. And he already had something in mind.
He looked at the window: it was a beautiful spring day, one where the sun warms and the air is fresh. In the garden, chestnut was green and the cherry tree was in bloom.
He smiled.
He lingered a little longer to talk to Zouge, then greet her and go back downstairs.
Sonic was back and was getting a drink from the fridge. Tails seemed to be done with the collar and was cleaning it up.

- Oh? Hey Zonic! I'm almost done with the collar. Now it shouldn't give any more problems.

Zonic smiled - Thanks Tails. And you know what? It's a great day outside and .. Sonic, you didn't have people to introduce me?

The blue pricked his ears - What do you think ?

- A barbecue. Here in the garden.

Tails jumped to his feet - Yes! Let's do it! Today is also Sunday. They will all be there!

- Ok ok - Sonic said - I make a couple of calls, I hear who's there.

- I'll make a list of the meats. Ask what they prefer and if anyone wants vegetables. - Zonic replied.

From that moment on, preparations went quickly. Sonic decided he would do it faster by creating a group chat. He put in everyone he knew and wrote "Grilling at Zonic's house in like ... two hours? Who's in?"

The answers came in a short time – Well - Sonic said - Amy is in for sure. She brings Tangle, Whisper, Jewel and Belle. Knux said he takes Master Emerald with him and he wants lots of ribs, Rouge said yes and she try to drag Shadow too, then there's Cream and Vanilla that come with...uh? Bunny and Antoine?

- We haven't seen them in ages. - Tails commented - How nice!

- Ok. - Zonic handed the blue hedgehog a note. A long list. And a wallet - Here is the meat and ingredients.

Sonic looked at the list - It's a lot of stuff!

- You invited half station square. And there are also Zector and Zespio. Zector eats like, well like your Vector.

- Wow. Luckily the Chaotix are out of town. I have a budget from Sonic the Hedgehog, but I can't support two Vectors either. - He laughed.

- Wait, you mean you bid? How do you plan to do?

- Hey, Mobius hero, friend of the President, celebrity, etc., etc.

Zonic chuckled - Right. Thank you.

- No problem! It has been a long time since we all got together without Eggman being involved. I go and come back!

That said, the hedgehog disappeared with the list and Zonic set about setting up the barbecue in the back garden.
He placed blankets and cushions on the grass to seat his friends and a low table to put the dishes and meat on.
As he set it all up, he noticed Scourge looking at him from the window.
As he caught his eye, the hedgehog pulled away.

Maybe I should ..

Tails interrupted his thoughts by going out into the garden with the collar in his hand - That's it! - He exclaimed, handing it to Zonic.

- Thanks. Better go and put it back where it belongs, since we will have a lot of people here.

As Tails sat down between the pillows and blankets, Zonic went upstairs.
He found Scourge sitting on the bed, staring at the wall.
He turned to Zonic and cocked his ears, but he snarled.

- Do I really have to have that thing on?

- Yes. You must.

- But ... I behaved well, right?

- You did. But we'll have a lot of people here in a few hours, and I'm not putting their safety at risk.

- I'm not running away ok? I will not do anything! Just let me ..

- Scourge. - Zonic was serious - Don't make a fuss.

The green hedgehog stepped back a little - No please.

Zonic looked at him confused - It's just a collar. You've been wearing one for years.

Scourge shook his head - It's not like the others. It hurts. After a while I feel like after the extractor.

- You don't have to worry about that. Tails discovered the flaw and fixed it.

- Are you sure?

- If you get sick again, I'll take it off like I did, and give it back to Tails.

- I don't want that thing on.

Zonic did his best to be patient - Scourge, you know if you want to stay here, these are the rules. So just wear it. Don't make me follow the protocol.

At those words Scourge shivered. ' By protocol, faced with even minimal resistance on his part, Zonic was authorized to use force. The dark green gaze was sorry, but also resolute, confident. Zonic hated the idea of having to use force, but he would if he had to.
He didn't trust Scourge up to that point, and he wouldn't endanger his friends. The green seemed to understand and looking away, he let himself be put on the collar.

Zonic let out some of his relief. - Good. - He went to the door but lingered once in the doorway, looking back at Scourge.

- You know, I've thought about it. Since you're wearing a collar, you don't have to be locked up here all day. You can join us in the garden if you wish.

Scourge chuckled - And throw me to Blue's friends? No thanks.

- Whatever their reaction, I'll handle them, don't worry. - said the zoner - You can't stay locked in here all the time. Come to the garden, relax and get some sun. You will see that after a while they will no longer pay attention to you. They will be too distracted from my kitchen.

Scourge turned to the zoner, raising an eyebrow. Had he guessed it or had Zonic just made a joke?
The idea of going out, however, was inviting. As much as he hated the idea of being around Sonic's friends, the good weather and the warmth of the spring sun tempted him.

- Okay. - He finally said.

Chapter Text

Chapter 13 A really nice day

Scourge looked at the large cluster of sheets and cushions. Tails had taken his place in the middle and was enjoying the late morning sun.
He decided to settle on the edge, taking a pillow and placing it against the trunk of the cherry tree to lean on.
The doorbell rang and Zonic opened the door, finding a a wall of plastic bags from which Sonic's nose was sticking out.

- Here I am. Where do I place them?

- In the kitchen. I have already prepared the condiments.

- Ok. Um, look .. Cream may have talked to a lot of people about - he clear his throat - Mr. Scourge.

- Oh. So they won't come?

- No no they're in! Only, those who know him are discussing about it in the group.

- Do they know anything about the bet?

- No. I haven't told him yet.

- Don't do it then. Scourge doesn't know this version, and he wouldn't like it.

- Okay. He'll also tell Tails not to say anything and oh! I forgot, Blaze and Silver are added.

- Perfect.

Putting the envelopes down, Sonic started typing on the phone - Someone's in a good mood!

-You can say it loud. I don't know why, but nothing could make me upset today.

Amy was the first to arrive, along with Tangle, Whisper, Jewel and Belle. Belle wore a green dress for the occasion, and a pretty straw hat, Tangle had a yellow top and black pants, a bunch of bracelets and sunglasses on her head. Jewel wore a cream blouse, with a brooch closing the neckline, a gold stud earring and a beige skirt with sandals. Whisper was wearing a pink kimono with a white flower pattern. Amy instead had a blue sleeveless dress with cherry petals drawn on top of it and a hairpin with a flower the same color as the dress.

- Zonic! - she exclaimed, walking up to the zoner and hugging him with a big hug, as if he were greeting an older brother.

He smiled and returned hugging her in her vault - Rose! How are you? - He asked, looking up at the others - Who are your friends? I've never meet them.

Amy made the introductions quickly: Jewel and Belle seemed shy, but if one stood aside, the other approached him holding a pen and a notepad - It's a real pleasure to meet you. I am currently in charge of the Restoration. Amy has told us a lot about you and I thought I might benefit from some advice for my work.

Her formal tone made him a little uncomfortable, but he nodded - Sure. I will be happy to help you.

Suddenly the lemur was in front of him.
- OhmygoshOhmygoshOhmygoshOhmygosh! Mr. Zonic! Can I hold your hand?

A little confused, the zoner held out his hand, which immediately disappeared, encased in a vaporous tail that waved up and down like a hand.
- I am Tangle, Tangle the Lemur! Sonic told us about you. Are you really an interdimensional cop? Cool! Whisper and I were in the Resistance and we helped Sonic against the metal virus. Tell him Sonic! Tell him how we kicked Eggman's ass all together!

Zonic noticed that the wolf named Whisper seemed to flinch at the mention of the metal virus. He knew why.
The zoners still kept an eye on the few remaining dimensions, especially Mobius Prime, but could only intervene in exceptional cases.
He knew all about the Resistance and the Metal Virus, and had seen both Tangle's sacrifice and Whisper's desperation.
Luckily Prime had managed to solve everything in the best way, only briefly encroaching on the dimension of the Sol Emeralds and without creating noteworthy problems.
Tangle's enthusiasm embarrassed him a little, but he smiled.
Sonic smiled and was about to begin the story when he saw Amy approach.

- Hi Sonic!

- Hey..Amy. - He greeted him, forcing a smile.

- Notice anything strange?- She asked, taking a graceful turn on herself, lifting the edges of her blue dress slightly.

Sonic pretended to think about it - New haircut?

She laughed - No silly! Do you like my new dress? It was Jewel who advised me to change a little. Does it seem to you that the blue suits me?

- Well ... yes. Yes it really fits you!

She caught his hesitation and her forced smile, but smiled back - I'm glad you like it.

A few seconds of awkward silence followed, then Sonic pricked up his ears - Knux is coming. I can hear the rap from here.- He said he and ran out the door, not noticing Amy's smile slowly fading.

Knuckles wasn't the only one to arrive, in fact he was standing on top of a huge hummer, black and red, with the writing “ULT 1M 4T3” on the car's license plate.
He was sitting in the back of that beast, with Omega, holding a huge stereo over his shoulder. He wore sunglasses, Jamaica-colored cuffs, and the shrunken Master Emerald around his neck. Rouge was on the roof, in black top and pants, with sunglasses on his face and dark red lipstick.
Leading the hummer was Shadow.

- Yo Sonic!- Knuckles yelled - We brought the music. And the fries!

Sonic laughed and greeted him '- Yo Knux!

Knuckles jumped out of the hummer - We have found that by interfacing Omega's router with my stereo's wireless, it can take pretty much anything. Even the audio of Tower's private surveillance.

- Did you know he sings in the shower? - Rouge asked - We had a laugh last night.

- The adult female specimens he has intimate relationships with, are significantly younger than him. - Omega said.

- Those sounds are the background of my nightmares. - Said Shadow, stepping out of the hummer.

Sonic laughed, but his gaze went to hummer - Nice car. Where does it come from?

- GUN wanted to reward him after all these years of collaboration.- Rouge explained. - And his bike was in pieces. So he chose the hummer.

- The ultimate car, for the ultimate life form.

Sonic laughed again.

- Why are you laughing?

- Well, I..

- Hey Sonic! Help me to unload all this stuff!

- Ok Knux!

Omega did not go through the door, so he went straight into the garden through the back as Shadow and Rouge entered the house with Zonic.

- So what's it like working for GUN? - Sonic asked while was helping Knuckles to unload the hummer.

- Well, it's more of a mutual tolerance agreement. - Knuckles said. - I do what I did before, only for GUN I am now the official protection officer of Angel Island and the Master Emerald. I am also the historian in charge of the conservation of echidna structures and traditions. - he smiled - Well, I do what I did before, only now GUN asks me for a hand when he needs an expert in the dynamics of chaos, or in echidna culture and devices , or just need a couple of strong punches. - the echidna chuckles.

Sonic smiled. He had known Knuckles for years and knew that beneath that hard rind hid a heart as tender as butter. It was nice to see him lighter and happier.
Shadow also looked less dark in the face. Sometimes he even smiled.
They were doing each other good and Sonic was more than happy to know.

Could it be the same for Zonic and Scourge?

In his heart he thought Scourge was hopeless. Yet since he had met him he seemed different. Maybe living with Zonic was really doing him good.
But was living with Scourge good for Zonic? He couldn't answer, not yet. But he would keep an eye on his zoner friend, to make sure he was okay, just like he had with Knuckles and Shadow.
They had just finished bringing everything into the house and Sonic was about to close the door when he heard an unmistakable call

- Sugar-hog! Long time no see!

In the living room they all surrounded Bunny and Antoine, some to get to know them, some to greet them and hug them after a long time.
Bunny had finally realized her dream of becoming a hairdresser and had opened her own salon. Antoine, well his life with Bunny was the most beautiful thing he could wish for. They were husband and wife, they were thinking of having a baby and now they had also reconnected with their old friends.
The only blemish on that perfect day was Scourge's presence. Bunny hated him for being with her that night, tricking her, posing as Sonic, just as she and Antoine were going through a crisis.
They had overcome it, of course. But Antoine feared that Scourge's presence could reopen old wounds in Bunny.
But she, as always, had reassured him.

There were definitely too many people in the living room, so Shadow decided to go out into the garden and Sonic followed, eager to hear how he was doing.

- Hey Shad!

- What do you want, Faker?

Sonic chuckled. After all, it was the usual Shadow.

- Well, I haven't seen you in a while. How are you? Knux told me you live with him Rouge and Omega on Angel Island and he seemed happy. Do you like living there?

Shadow was silent, Sonic knew he was thinking, so he waited.
- Angel Island is steeped in history. And nature. Maria would have adored it.

Sonic smiled - And what about the host? Knuckles is quite grumpy with strangers, but once he gets used to it, his legendary echidna hospitality emerges. - He laughed.

He didn't expect to see the other smirk. Shadow's smiles were a rare treasure and when they arrived, they were warm and sincere, even if always with that aura of sadness that characterized it.

- At first we often quarreled. Rouge and Omega had to separate us sometimes. - He explained. He noticed Scourge sitting against the tree and his gaze narrowed for a moment as he stared at him. Then as if nothing had happened, he went back to talking to Sonic.

- One night I was ... really upset. It was the anniversary of the ... Ark disaster, and I couldn't sleep. So I went out to look at the stars for a while. Later Knuckles joined me. I didn't tell him anything, but he understood. He sat next to me and started ranting about the energy of chaos, about how it hovered in all things and dwelt in each individual, and how at his death it reunited with the rest that hovered in the world.- He explained - He knows many things about the energy of chaos. I didn't understand where he was going, until he told me, that even if Maria's physical body no longer had life, her energy, her essence, was now part of the whole, so wherever I go, she will always be with me.

Sonic blinked. He did not expect such a profound thought from the echidna.

- We haven't had a fight since that day.

The blue hedgehog smiled - I'm glad of it. - He said, placing a hand on the shoulder of the Ultimate Life Form.

- Don't touch me.

Sonic pulled his hand back - Hehe, sorry.

Knuckles joined them shortly after and to Sonic's surprise, he patted Shadow's shoulder a couple of times without suffering any consequences.

- Hey what's that long snout? Smile Shad, look what a beautiful day! The sun is shining, it's almost summer and we're here with lots of friends and lots of food.

Shadow smiled slightly, infected by the other's enthusiasm.
Sonic was pleased to see Shadow open up a little. He had always been sad, withdrawn and gloomy. Life as a roommate seemed to be good for both of them.
He greeted them, heading back inside the house, just in time to hear the doorbell ring. Zonic was busy cooking on the grill, so he went to open the door, finding Blaze and Silver in front of him. Like Shadow, they wore no different clothes than their usual ones.

Blaze smiled and Silver greeted Sonic with his hand, removing it from under the pans, which remained suspended in the air, surrounded by a blue glow - Hi! We brought something to munch.

-Where can we put everything?- Blaze asked

Sonic looked around -There is still some space on the kitchen table.- He said absently.

Knuckles was right. It was a really nice day.

Chapter Text

Chapter 14: An old way to happiness

Zonic guarded the grill as only a zoner could. Professional deformation perhaps. Straight with his back, he unconsciously maintained a martial posture even when relaxed.
Tails glanced at Scourge sometimes, as if he wanted to start a conversation, but without the courage to do so. Not that Scourge was helping: he sat silently against the tree, looking around every now and then.
The dat was nice, and peaceful, it would have been perfect without the discomfort that collar caused. Even after correcting the defects, he was still more powerful than a normal collar. Not only did it stop him from using his powers, but it weakened him, making him feel tired.
But he was fine, as long as he could enjoy some fresh air.
Then Blue's friends started to arrive.
The first was a robot that did not come through the door. He turned his head to the hedgehog for a moment, then sat down and waited. Tails got up and went to talk to him. Scourge got a few words about tuning and repairs. Maybe he was offering the robot a check.
Then came Blue and the emo one, who gave him a 'dirty' look. He and Sonic talked a little but Blue seemed uncomfortable, as if he couldn't get the ebony hedgehog.
Then came the one who looked like O'knux.
Zonic exchanged greetings with them and then looked back at the meat.
Rouge joined the threesome and had, if possible, gotten even sexier than the first time he met her.
They started talking to each other, looking at him from time to time.
Certainly Blue was explaining the situation to them in his own way.
Then the white one who knew how to fly came out into the garden, accompanied by a purple cat, and Scourge wondered how such a loser could be with a super hot girl like that one.
A thought crossed his mind: he hadn't seen a woman for years.
He sighed in resignation, certain that in any case none of them would have wanted to touch him even with a long goad to the other end of the neighborhood.
Blue must have warned them all: the green hedgehog in Zonic's house is evil and dangerous. He is not a good partner.
He was still thinking about the girls when a whole group came in, chatting gleefully. One looked like a puppet, then there was a slightly short beetle, a lemur, a wolf in a kimono and a pink hedgehog.
It was Pinky, the boring fan girl always attached to Blue's ass. The counterpart of that psycho girl, Rosy.
Thinking of her made him shiver.
For some strange reason, however, he didn't stop looking at her. That blue flower in her slightly longer hair, that light dress.
Chaos, it looked good on her.
He didn't understand why, but she seemed different from all the others. Attractive in a new way he had never thought of. Not sexy, but pretty.

Maybe I've spent too much time behind bars.

Already, how could he think of Pinky that way? She was Rosy. And he wanted to kiss Rosy as much as he wanted to kiss a public toilet.
He saw their gazes on him and realized he was staring at them. He looked away.

- Who is he? - asked the lemur. There was no suspicion but curiosity in her tone.

Scourge looked up and opened his mouth, but Sonic got there first.

- Just the biggest asshole on Mobius' face. He was in prison, but now Zonic has to guard him.

- Well, fuck you too, Blue!

Amy made a face - Come on, let's sit somewhere else.

They left with Sonic and he hated him.  He clenched his fists, thinking how much he wanted to punch that damned face of his.
He felt his collar begin to shrink and he pushed those thoughts away, trying to calm down.

Can't even imagine hitting someone now?

Zonic watched him for a moment, seeing him cough. But the collar soon loosened and he went back to taking care of the meat.
The couple who entered shortly after startled him.
Bunny.
He had been with her posing as Sonic. She hated him ever since.
And in fact she gave him a look that would have incinerated anyone. Then, the one who must have been her boyfriend put his hand on her shoulder, looked at her intently and gave her a light kiss, telling her something that made her smile again.
They went hand in hand, away from him.
Then a little girl ran away from them, towards him.

- Mr. Scourge!

The only living thing to speak to him with a smile was her, the young bunny.

- How are you? Are you feeling better?

Not sure what to say, he just answered her question - Yes..uhm ..

- Cream! - she replied with a broad smile - Cream the Rabbit!

- Um ... right. Sorry.

She chuckled in response.

Scourge felt the gazes of most of those present on him. Bunny turned to her cousin and Scourge could hear the apprehension in her tone. - Cream? Sugar, why don't you come sit next to us?

But the bunny shook her head - No, I'm staying close to Mr. Scourge and Mr. Zonic. But thanks for the invitation, cousin! -she turned to the green hedgehog -Mister Scourge, can I sit next to you?

Scourge was surprised by that question and the attitude of the bunny, who seemed to be the only one, with Zonic and her mother, who didn't hate him.

- As you please. - he replied.

The bunny smiled and happily took her seat, laying on the ground a kind of backpack in which she began to rummage, pulling out crayons, drawing sheets and what looked like a photo album.

- Do you want to see my flower book? Here are all the ones I've seen.

When she opened the album, Scourge noticed dried flowers instead of photographs, with various labels and scribbles, all in different colors. There were from wildflowers to garden flowers, sometimes even the flower of some tree.
Scourge watched and listened, not that he had anything else to do. The alternative was to watch the others alone, and get depressed or pissed off depending on the situation.
Every now and then some of them would come up and propose to Cream to play some games, to sit with them or whatever, proposals that she always politely rejected, saying that she wanted to be with Mr. Scourge.
She was such a dear child.
She wouldn't last an half second in Moebius.
Lastly, two zoners in uniform arrived, because it was not enough to have one already.

- Hello guys. Why in uniform? - Zonic asked.

- Well ... - Zector scratched his head. - Zally won't let us travel to Mobius except to ... check Scourge. - He said, then reanimated - Hey Zespio look at how many burgers!

Zonic lightly patted the crocodile's hand with the spatula - Wait until there is something for everyone!

Zespio laughed as Zector rubbed his hand.
The crocodile's gaze fell on Cream and Scourge.

- Hey, what's he doing outside the room? And you little girl what are you doing there? Go sit elsewhere.

She tilted her head, confused - But I ... I would like to stay close to Mr. Scourge.

Zespio looked at Zonic and the hedgehog understood that he would have to explain many things later.

- Little girl - Zector knelt down to look Cream in the eye - You mustn't get too close to him. He is a dangerous subject.

Scourge realized they had everyone's attention again.

As if that weren't enough, Blue stood up and walked over - Come with us Cream? Bunnie brought the guitar.

Cream, incredibly, ignored him and continued talking to Zector - You are kind sir, but I don't feel in danger. As long as I've known him, Mr. Scourge has never done anything bad.

Zespio raised an eyebrow as he poured himself some orange juice. - Really?

- He has never done anything bad because that collar he is wearing prevents him from doing it. - Zector replied. -If you take it away from him, he will do it.

Cream answered promptly and with all the sincerity in the world.
- But Tails took it off him yesterday, and he was good the whole time.

Zespio almost choked on the juice, starting to cough. Zector instead got up. They both looked at Zonic, who decided to cut it short.

- We found that the collar was defective. I had to remove it and have it repaired by Tails.

- Did you have to? - asked Zespio.

- I had no other choice. He was killing him.

- Shit! - Zector exclaimed.

Zespio, on the other hand, having recovered his breath, sighed and sat cross-legged, facing Cream. - What's your name, little one?

- My name is Cream, sir.

- Cream? It is a very good name. Tell me, would you like to talk to me about yesterday?

And Cream told it all simply and smiling, as if he were narrating an afternoon spent with his friends, confirming Zonic's words about Scourge's collar and health.
The green hedgehog clearly looked uncomfortable: the two zoners were in front of him, scrutinizing him every so often, with suspicion. And Blue's presence didn't help at all.
What if they took him out of custody of Zonic? What if they made him go back to jail?
That thought terrified him. He brought his knees up to his chest and squeezed his arms in an attempt to distance himself from them.

- Then Mr. Scourge took the knife and Mr. Sonic was suddenly angry. But I don't understand why.

-I didn't know what he wanted to do. - Sonic justified himself, looking at the zoners - I was afraid he might hurt someone.

Scourge's ears flat as he sees the two zoners darken.
Zonic was handing out the meat, so he was temporarily alone against those three.

- I just wanted to cut the food. I swear.

- How could I be sure?

- I don't know, I'm sitting at a fucking dining table with some food in front of me. What am I supposed to do with a knife, in your opinion?

- Silence. - Zespio intimated and Scourge bit his lip.

Much to his chagrin, it was Sonic who continued the story from then on, describing Scourge's strange behavior that evening, which reached everyone's ears.
The hedgehog hid his face between his knees and squeezed them tighter. He wanted to disappear.
It was then that Cream stood up and ran away: she had to call Mr. Zonic. He would have solved everything.

The zoner had just finished distributing the meat at all when he saw Cream arrive.

- Mr. Zonic!

The bunny looked worried so she looked up at him in the direction it was coming from and saw Sonic arguing with his two colleagues and Scourge with his muzzle hidden between his knees.
He understood that he would not be able to relax until he had cleared the matter on every point.

He put his hand on Cream's head - Don't worry, now I'll fix everything.

He rubbed his temples and moved towards the fox -Tails can you come with me for a minute?

Tails gnawed at the meat greedily but at the sight of Zonic he stopped, put down his plate and followed.
Zonic also called Vanilla and then headed for the group.
Sonic was still telling the two zoners about that night, and Zonic didn't like the way he did it. When he talked about Scourge he seemed haughty and mocking, in a way he found annoying.

- Enough. - he said calmly, but firmly, and the three fell silent, turning to look at him.

- You three. Come inside. So we'll clear this up once and for all.

- Wait. - Zector said. He turned to Scourge, pulled the lanyard out of his glove and his one connected to the collar - Let's not leave him unsupervised. - he said and pulled.

Scourge leaned to one side in surprise and looked up.

- Get up. Come with us. - Zector said.

Instinctively the green hedgehog flattened his ears and looked at the blue zoner.
Zonic wanted to object but he knew that if he did they would be there all day, and he wanted to enjoy that day. - Do as he says.

The green hedgehog's gaze hit him like a dart. It was the look of someone who felt betrayed.

- No! - he snarled - I'm not going back! I did nothing!

Zonic walked over to him and took his arm, making him stand up - You're not going back. You're just going back to your room for now. Until I clear the matter up.

At those words Scourge calmed down and followed them without saying a word, carried away in that degrading way, under the gaze of all.
He saw Sonic walking with satisfaction.
And he hated it even more.

You pay me this, Blue. Collar or not, I'll find a way to make you pay for it.

The collar acted on his emotions and his use of force. So he had to keep calm and act indirectly.
He would have played a good joke on Blue. One he would always remember.
Zonic noticed how Scourge looked at his twin, and secretly worried.

Scourge was back in his room, again just listening to the muffled voices downstairs. He seemed to be arguing, at times animatedly, but he didn't understand what they were saying.
He was sitting on the floor between the desk and the bed, knees to his chest, his face resting on them and a strange feeling of deja vu.
He remembered moments similar to the castle: himself as a child, in the same position, in his large room with the four-poster bed, surrounded by mountains of expensive toys, while he heard his parents screaming and arguing like crazy.
The thing he hated most was that afterwards they would go to him, pretend nothing happened and give him another one of those stupid toys.
A toy for every fight.
He hated them. He had started breaking them, rejecting them, throwing them out the window, and in their eyes he had become an ungrateful, selfish and problematic child.

I don't want toys. I want you to stop fighting! He had protested once. More than once.

Then they promised not to fight anymore, they would stop for a while and give him another one of those fucking toys, and then they would start all over again.
Empty promises, empty words.
He felt tears rise to his face and he couldn't stop them.
He cried for a while, until he heard a knock, but not on the door. It was more the sound of someone banging against the window pane.
He wiped his eyes and stood up, looked towards the window and saw Cream, hovering in flight with her ears and waving hello to him.
Scourge stood there staring at it for a few seconds, then hastened to open it.

- What are you doing here? Didn't they tell you to stay away from me?

Cream entered the room and smiled - Actually, everyone in the garden is asleep and I was getting a little bored. - she said and gave a worried look at the door, hearing the voices coming from downstairs.

- Nice shit huh? It's been since they brought me here that I've been taking it. Soon I go downstairs and I start screaming too.

Cream giggled, scrambled up and jumped onto the bed. She had also brought her backpack.

- I don't hear Mom screaming though. Mom never screams.

- Lucky you. Mine croaked like a crow. - He strained his ear - Not even Zonic is screaming.

- Mr. Zonic is very kind. He never screams. If he does it, he means that he is really angry. - she said, pulling out some sheets and colored crayons - Do you want to draw with me?

Scourge sighed - Ok.

Cream handed him a piece of paper and Scourge thought about what to scribble on it. Not that he had better things to do.
Cream scribbled on the bed using the notebook as a plan as she talked and talked. About her mom, about her friend Cheese, about the cake they made that day, about her flowers.
Suddenly, Scourge found a subject.
He hadn't drawn in a long time. He remembered doing it as a child. He would lock himself in the library when he had the chance. It was his favorite place, because no one could scream there. He was there for hours, reading and drawing.
He noticed that it still had that relaxing effect, so much so that he forgot about the voices downstairs and didn't notice when they stopped altogether, too focused on his drawing.
Every now and then he looked at Cream, every now and then he answered her.

- Hey. What's your favorite flower?

Cream looked up and smiled - Magnolia. And yours?

- I don't think I have one.

- Oh? Then you like them all! - she exclaimed happily.

- Well, not really. Let's say I never thought about it. - the hedgehog said, resuming to look at the sheet.

- What are you drawing? - asked the bunny, reaching out to peek.

Scourge instinctively pulled the paper to his chest - Wait, it's not done!

Cream tried to peek again but Scourge hid his drawing each time, so she went back to finish hers.

- Finished! - she said after a while.

- Me too.

Cream opened his eyes - Really? Let me see!

Scourge handed the paper, a little embarrassed.
Her drawing depicted Cream, sitting in the middle of a field of flowers, with her dress covering her legs. In her hand he had a bouquet of wildflowers and on her head, near her ear, a beautiful magnolia flower.

The bunny's eyes grew as big as her smile - It's beautiful!

Scourge shrugged - Well, it didn't turn out so well. If you really like it you can keep it.

- For real? Will you give it to me? Yay! Yuppie! - she took the drawing, then went back to the bed to get hers. -So I'll give you mine!

Scourge didn't know what to do with a drawing, but he agreed so as not to sadden the bunny.
It was a stylized drawing of Zonic's garden. There was a barbecue, and all their friends but, which impressed him, there was also him, having his plate with the meat, his drink and the pillow like everyone else. And he smiled.

- Do you like it?

- Yes. - he said and found he was sincere - It's nice.

Suddenly the door swung open, revealing Zector.
The crocodile stared at them for a moment. Cream on the bed, Scourge on the desk chair. If the green hedgehog had lost all color on his face, the bunny seemed perfectly at her ease.

- Hello sir!

- I found her! - shouted the crocodile. In short, Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, Amy, Vanilla and Zonic were upstairs.

Knuckles laughed - That's where you were. You gave us a shot! We've been looking for you for hours.

Cream tilted her head - I was here with Mr. Scourge. I was bored in the garden while you slept.

- Wait, so you've been here with him the whole time? - Zector asked.

- Yup! We drew with colored pencils. - she jumped out of bed and ran to Vanilla - Mom look what a beautiful drawing! Mr. Scourge did it for me.

Zonic found himself staring at the crocodile. Long, until he rolled his eyes.
- Ok ok, I might have blown things up a bit this morning. - he turned to Scourge - You can go back downstairs. But we keep an eye on you.

The afternoon passed in glee. Bunny played the guitar, Knuckles occasionally played a rap song, Cream showed everyone Scourge's drawing. Sonic's closest friends looked at the paper and then looked up at the green hedgehog.
To their astonishment, he responded with a smirk.
Zonic ate next to him and was finally able to relax as he wanted.
The universe seemed to have taken his words that morning as a challenge, but despite the teething problems, in the end the zoner had won.
When the late afternoon came, Vanilla made tea and handed out the chocolate cake, which Scourge loved.
Since there was a lot of meat left and he hadn't been able to fully enjoy the day, the zoner suggested that everyone stay for dinner.
He lit the brazier in the garden and what started out as a somewhat hectic barbecue party turned into a full-blown bonfire party.
Scourge found himself drawing again, with the desire to immortalize those moments and jealously keep them in a drawer.
He drew Knuckles standing on Omega's shoulders with a yellow bowl on his head and a beer in his hand, with Rouge laughing and Shadow with a hand on his face.
He drew Bunny and Antoine sitting side by side by the fire.
He designed Whisper in his beautiful kimono.
But the drawing he liked the most was that of Amy, portrayed as she whirled to the rhythm of a song, with her blue dress blowing in the wind, her bare feet on the grass and that smile that, he didn't know why, had remained in his mind.

Chapter Text

Chapter 15: for a better sleep

Zonic had just woken up and was lying in bed, smiling as he looked at the photos from the barbecue. It had been a few days since then and everyone in the group was talking about how much fun they had and how they should do it more often. Someone was already talking about organizing something with the arrival of summer. Sonic already wanted to organize something for the coming week.
Zonic wanted to be there, but he really had to focus on delivering the report to Zobotnik.
Scourge had remained mostly quiet. He sometimes woke up screaming in the middle of the night, and there wasn't a single healthy mirror left in the house.
He had tried to get Scourge to talk about his nightmares or why he broke mirrors, but all the time Zonic had only gotten evasive answers. The green hedgehog seemed to get nervous every time the zoner asked for an explanation.

He sighed and dialed Zouge's number. He told her about the barbecue and the beautiful day he had spent with everyone, then about the problems he encountered with Scourge that day and his ability to draw.
Zouge was enthusiastic and asked if he could send him some photos.
Zonic only had the one of Cream.

- It's unbelievable, you found out more in a month than I in years of sessions with him.

-He has never been cooperative on that side. - Zonic replied. - Even now he doesn't want to talk about nightmares and mirrors. I don't want to force him, but how can I help him if he doesn't tell me what's wrong?

Zouge reflects on the other end of the phone - In my opinion, you should encourage this artistic side of him. You may find out a lot about what troubles him by looking at his drawings.

- And how? I am not a psychologist.

- You have one here, honey. Ready to help you. And of course, I'll send you my evaluation to attach to the Zobotnik report if you can give me enough data to work on.

Zonic smiled. - I'll try. Thanks Zouge.

- Forget about it. I will try to write down a clinical picture with the information you have given me.

He should have encouraged Scourge to express himself through drawing but he knew that if the other understood his intentions he would stop immediately. He knew how reluctant Scourge was to expose himself at least emotionally.

- What about nightmares? -he asked - It happens most nights now, and they look terrible. Neither of us has slept well for a week.

- I can prescribe something for those. But we need to go to the root of the problem. And I recommend that you try something natural first. It's important that he relax before bed. Avoid tea or caffeine, try herbal teas or hot milk. If not..

A scream startled Zonic.

Again?

- Sorry, I have to hang up. I'll call you.

He got up, got dressed and left the room.
The house was a mess, it didn't take a genius to figure it out, but they'd both had a hell of a week. Zonic wanted to tidy up, but each time he ended up crashing on the sofa and falling asleep, as Scourge kept him up all night: after a nightmare he was so upset that he didn't want to go back to sleep and even if he didn't say it, Zonic understood that he didn't want to remain alone.
When he entered the room he saw the empty bed and heard unmistakable sounds coming from the bathroom.
He refrained from entering, to give the hedgehog some privacy while he emptied his stomach.

- Scourge? Is everything ok?

- No .. - whimpering the hedgehog on the other side.

Just the fact that he admitted it was troubling.
Zonic turned the handle.

- Don't you dare go in!

He froze for a moment, then decided.
He entered the bathroom and stood next to the hedgehog bent over the toilet. He was pale and with streaks of wet fur running down his cheeks from his eyes.
He was trembling: like any self-respecting spring, one day was hot and the next was freezing.

- I told you not to go in!

- It's my house. I do whatever the fuck I want. - the zoner touched his forehead. No fever. At least some good news.

- I can not stand it anymore! Every fucking night! I just want to sleep, holy shit!

- Calm down.

- Don't tell me to calm down! I .. - the breath stopped as the collar tightened, but this only managed to piss off the hedgehog more who snarled and tugged at the collar.

- Scourge stop it! You ..

Just as he touched Scourge to try to stop him, the collar reacted by releasing an electrical discharge.
They both screamed, Zonic fell backward and Scourge forward on his side.
It took the zoner a few minutes to recover. He sat down and turned to scold the green hedgehog, but he froze when he saw that he was still on the ground and that he was crying.

- Fuck! - Snarled Scourge through gritted teeth. - I just wanna sleep!

The zoner sighed.

I would like it too.

He tried to grab the hedgehog to pull it up. Scourge shoved him badly but Zonic wasn't going to leave him on the cold floor, so he grabbed him by the shoulders and leaned him against him.

- Are you ok now? - he asked. - You still have to ..?

- I don't know.. - Scourge had his eyes closed - I don't think so.

Zonic stood up, pulling him to his feet. His muscles ached from the electric shock.
To his relief, Scourge remained standing.

- Come on, I'll take you back to bed.

- I don't want to go back to sleep.

It was always like this, after a nightmare.

- Well, let's go downstairs then.

Scourge took the quilt from the bed and wrapped himself in it, then got off with Zonic and sat on the sofa. He began to watch TV with an absent gaze, while the zoner made himself a coffee.
He sighed at the sight of the dishes in the sink.
This house is a pigsty. But I can't do it all by myself.
He shifted his gaze to the pile of blankets on the sofa. He didn't feel like giving orders to Scourge while he was in that state, and he didn't have time to clean up properly, because he had to finish his report and he was still on the high seas, because he wasn't sleeping and he was tired.
He needed help.
So he picked up the phone and called.

- Hi Vanilla .. would you do me a huge favor?

It wasn't long before someone rang the bell.

- Zonic, dear, you look very bad.

Zonic smiled, feeling a little guilty - Thanks for your help, Vanilla.

- Oh don't worry. - the rabbit entered and opened her eyes wide in front of the disorder. - Oh dear ... it looks like a tornado has passed in here.

- I know it. Sorry.

- No excuses. Let's get to work. What's that mountain of blankets doing on the sofa?

- It's Scourge. He had nightmares and he is not well.

- Oh. - Vanilla looked at the pile of blankets, thinking. Then she said - Zonic, dear, why don't you start with the chitcken? I try to talk to him for a moment.

Scourge struggled to stay awake when Cream's mother sat down next to him.

- Hi sweetie. Zonic said you have nightmares. Can I do something to help you?

Scourge sighed - Not unless you have something to get them out of my head.

- Do you want to talk about it?

- No.

- Do you want something hot to drink?

- No.

Vanilla made a face. She tried to put her hand on Scourge's shoulder, stroking her across the blanket.

- Standing here staring into space won't help you, honey. You need to be distracted. Come on, get up and lend a hand to me and Zonic.

Scourge grin - Do you know who I am? I am the king of Moebius. I don't do cleaning!

Vanilla crossed her arms - Then Your Majesty should know that doing nothing all day does not help to induce sleep. And sleeping badly leads to nervousness, and nervousness favors the appearance of nightmares.

Scourge muses for a moment: in fact he hadn't done absolutely anything since he was at Zonic's house. Even in prison they had activities.

- Are you saying that if I start doing stuff, I might have a quiet night?

- That's one of the things that help. I know others. If you do, they may help you sleep well.

Scourge pulled back the blanket. - Okay, that's enough. What do I have to do?

- You can start by tidying up.

Scourge got up and looked around, then began.

Zonic couldn't believe his eyes when he saw Scourge tidy and dust the living room. He was slow and a little awkward. Vanilla stood next to him, vacuuming.

How did she do it?

He pulled out his phone and made a short cutscene to send to Zouge, sure he wouldn't believe him without proof.
Seeing Scourge do the cleaning was odd, but at least he didn't have to do it all by himself anymore.
He resumed cleaning until later he moved into the bathroom, finding Scourge staring at the washing machine.

- Er ..

- Don't say a fucking word!

- Why? What's the problem?

Scourge turned - If you laugh I swear that collar or not I'll kick you.

- I'm not laughing.

- I don't know how to turn it on.

Zonic felt his whole body tremble, but he managed to restrain himself. - R-Really?

- Well ... I grew up in a castle. Usually it was the servants who did this kind of shit ..

- Wait, so you never ...

- No.

- Used a dishwasher?

- No.

- Made a bed?

- No. - Scourge lowered his ears and looked away, as if he were ashamed.

- Removed the dust?

- Stop that! I don't know anything about this stuff ok? But Miss Vanilla says that can help me sleep, so ..

- Miss Vanilla?

- Yes. What the fuck is it now? Was this also wrong?

- No ... not at all. Anyway look, that's how it goes.

- No, not like that.

Scourge sighed as he made his bed.

Vanilla looked around - This room is a pigsty.

- Thanks. I do my best.

- This is not a joke. Think you can sleep well in a messy, stale room? - ran a finger on a shelf and found it covered in dust - Oh my ..

They had to spend a couple of hours alone in the room to clean it from top to bottom.

- Now let's move on to the bathroom.

Scourge throw his head back, sitting against the wall - I hope doing all this stuff is worth it.

Vanilla closed the window - Not sure. But it might help.

- I hope so. I don't want to dream of that stuff again.

Vanilla pretended nothing had happened, continuing to tidy up - What do you dream about?

- Things ... bad things. Like the prison, or the extractor. Or things of the past. But it is as if they really happen. I feel everything. I once dreamed of drowning and it was like I was really drowning. I could feel the water and I was out of breath .. then I woke up and found that I had the pillow on my face. - he looked at her hands and saw that they were shaking. - And then there is this dream, which is different: in this, things don't happen to me.

- What happens in the dream?

- There's ... someone I care about ... who's hurt. And I try to help him, but the more I try to do it, the more I mess things up. And it's awful.

- Yes. I can imagine what it is like. This isn't the first time I've helped someone with nightmares. After the metal virus many people were traumatized.

- What is the metal virus?

Vanilla sat down next to him and told him about the metal virus, which had turned most people into zombots, infecting Sonic himself and her as well.

- I did it to save Cream. They told me, that she helped Sonic retrieve one of the emeralds before she got infected herself.

- Aren't you mad at him? For not saving you?

Vanilla looked at him - Sonic saved us. He and Silver saved us all in the end. This is what matters. - she smiled. - When they infected me, I didn't doubt him even for a moment. Nobody has done it. Tangle believed in him to the point of sacrificing herself to make him escape, even though he was already infected.

Scourge reflects' - If he's a real hero, why doesn't he kill Robotnik?

Vanilla tilted her head.

- Think about it. Scourge continued. -All the troubles you go through come because of him. Why doesn't Blue solve the root problem?

- Killing is never the best solution. Sonic thinks everyone is entitled to a second chance.

- Well, it seems that Robotnik has received even more than one. That asshole will never change, so why does he let him live? I'll tell you why! Without him the fun would end. No more robots to destroy, no more challenges… the truth is that without the Doc he would stop being a hero and he likes to be it.

Vanilla shook her head - Sonic couldn't kill anyone, even if he wanted to. It doesn't matter how bad he may have done.

- And no matter how much those who believe in him suffer? - Scourge shook her head and sighed looking at the ground - I'll never understand Blue. And I certainly don't consider him a hero. Deep down, he's just selfish. I tell you that, and I am his Anti.

- If he is deep down being selfish, then deep down are you a good guy?

Scourge's eyes widened - I..no..ehm ..

Vanilla laughed and stood up. - Let's finish cleaning.

Zonic packed lunch to thank Vanilla. On her advice he did something light to help Scourge sleep better.
The green hedgehog kept yawning, rubbing his eyes and saying he wasn't sleepy.
He managed to hold on like that all afternoon, continuing to do whatever he could think of.
When Vanilla brought him a steaming herbal tea in the evening, he refused it.

- No thanks.

-It will help you sleep.

- I don't want to sleep.

Vanilla sat on the bed, placing the hot herbal tea on the nightstand.
The fresh sheets tempted the hedgehog but the idea of having nightmares again made him desist.

- How about this: Cream sleeps at Amy's house tonight. I'll stay here while you sleep and if I see you are starting to have nightmares, I wake you up, so I stop them in the bud.

Scourge thought for a moment, then nodded.
Vanilla smiled and he drank the brew.
Not even an hour later he was snoring in bed.

Vanilla covered him well - Goodnight Scourge. - she said, then settle down on the chair and open a book.

Chapter Text

Chapter 16: Deal

- Zonic? Zonic! Hey wake up!

The zoner grumbled, turning over in his blankets.

- Come on Zee, get that lazy ass up!

Zonic yawned and opened his eyes, finding those of the green hedgehog.

- Scourge? - the zoner yawned again - What do you want? - he asked extending his hands to the alarm clock - What time is it?

- It worked, Zee. I slept all night! You gotta give me something to do so I can sleep tonight too!

Zonic set the alarm clock and turned on its side - It's eight o'clock .. go back to sleep ..

- I cannot! I don't have to sleep too much.

- So watch tv ..

- No, I don't have to sit still. Are there no other things to clean?

The zoner yawned and closed his eyes - The house is a mirror .. Only the gutters remain ..

- Then I'll clean the gutters!

- As you like .. - Zonic said, before falling asleep completely.

His eyes widened when he heard a crazy rattle, a loud rattle like something metal coming off.
He sat up and saw Scourge's feet dangling out the window.

- Fuck, fuck! Fuck!

He jumped to his feet and opened the window. Thank goodness it opened inward.

- Scourge, put your feet on the windowsill!

- God damn!

- Ok, now give me your hand!

As soon as he had a good grip, Zonic pulled in the hedgehog, which ended up falling on him, knocking him to the ground.

He pushed him away - What the fuck were you doing on the roof?

- I was cleaning the gutters!

- From the roof? Without a ladder? Are you dumb?

- I didn't have the keys to the garage!

- So you have thought to get on the roof anyway? - he asked, then blinked, realizing that he had a bigger question. - How did you get on the roof without the ladder?

Scourge shrugged - I opened my bedroom window and climbed up.

-Oh gods of Mobius ..- Zonic massaged his temples, trying not to think of all the bones that hedgehog could have broken, without his powers.

-It was going well, until I put the weight on the gutter with my foot, it fell off and I slipped. - he grimaced - Your gutters suck shit. You should change them.

Zonic looked at the good portion of the gutter hanging from the window - Now I'll have to.

- Do you have other things for me to do?

Zonic spun around and made a tremendous effort to stay calm. - First: be quiet for a moment. Second: I did NOT tell you to clean the gutters. I was sleeping.

- But I came to you an hour ago! I woke you up and asked you if there were things to do. You said there were gutters, so I said "I'll do those" and you said "do as you please"!

Zonic looked at him as if he were talking about another person. - Really? Did I say so?

- Yes, you did. You don't believe me?

Zonic sighed - Ok I trust you. But I must have been really asleep. I would never let you do that job alone.

Scourge looked down. - So ... you don't even remember what I told you this morning?

Zonic shook his head - No. I'm sorry. I don't connect in the morning unless I drink coffee first. I move by inertia. - he smiled.

Scourge chuckled softly, then said. - I slept all night. Not even a nightmare.

Zonic's eyes widened. - For real? Is fantastic! And Vanilla? Is she still here?

Scourge shook his head. - When I woke up she wasn't there. She left me a note: she had to go get Cream.

Zonic nodded. - I see. - he sighed - Well, let's go have breakfast.

He stood up and as he walked out of the room, he noticed Scourge grimace in pain as he stood up.

-What is it? Are you hurt?

- Nah .. it's just a scratch, but it burns a lot.

- Let me see. - the zoner bent down to look at the leg. It was a scratch, yes, but as long as the entire calf.

- I'm going to get the medical kit.

- But no, you don't need to!

- The gutters are dirty. You have to disinfect it.

Downstairs, Zonic disinfected and bandaged the wound, then the two ate breakfast together.
Afterward, Scourge went up to his room, made the bed and threw himself on it.
His gaze fell on the desk and on the gift box on it, accompanied by a note.
He got up and read it again.

"Dear Scourge
Forgive me if I didn't wait for you to wake up, but I had to go to Amy to get Cream.

Ps: this package is from her. I wanted to give it to you yesterday but with the cleaning in the end I forgot it.

We will meet again. Take care of yourself, sweetheart.

Vanilla. "

A package from Cream. What could it be?
He tore off the gift wrapping and his eyes widened.

- Oh, infamous little bunny ..

It was a set of colored pencils. There must have been at least a hundred. There was a huge choice of yellows, blues, pinks, greens and many other colors.
And there was another note.

"Hello Mr. Scourge!
I saw you had the pen, but not the colors, so I thought I'd give them to you. I hope you like them!
Please never stop drawing. Your designs are really beautiful!
With love,
your friend Cream. "

Scourge looked at the note full of little hearts, stars, flowers and dust glitter, and wondered what on earth he had done to earn that little girl's friendship.
He wasn't exactly a nice guy, and with Sonic never keeping his mouth shut, it was impossible for her not to know.
But if she knew his past, why did she want to be his friend?
He took one of the blue crayons and started coloring Amy's dancing drawing  He went over the pen marks with his colored pencils.
He tried to capture her grace, to give the idea of the movement, and in a short time he immersed himself in art, regardless of the clock.

After breakfast, Zonic spent a few quiet hours.
If the day before was cold and almost autumnal, this was a beautiful spring day and with Scourge calmer, Zonic regretted not being able to go out for a walk.
Or at least, he could get out.
He just had to convince Scourge.
The green hedgehog didn't want to go out and it wasn't hard to see why: his quills were a mess. His fur was a mess. It was bristly and shorter in some places, lacking altogether in others.
He had witnessed some clumsy attempts by Scourge to make sense of that tangle of quills and fur, but with little effect.
The solution was obvious, he needed a hairdresser, but after his prison experience, Scourge had no intention of having his quills touched.
The problem had to be solved, they couldn't stay indoors forever.

Maybe, a home hairdresser?

It would only partially solve the problem.
It should be someone he trusts, or he won't let them cut anyway.
This was another problem. Scourge still trusted very few people. Literally just him, Cream and Vanilla.

Suddenly he snapped his fingers. - Bunny!

She was Cream's cousin and she was a hairdresser. She and Scourge didn't have a good relationship but if he could convince both of them ..

He waited until evening before calling Vanilla, dedicating the afternoon to completing the report for Zobotnik, also attaching the files that Rouge had sent him.
After that he sent it.
Vanilla agreed as always to his yet another request for a favor and Zonic realized that he absolutely had to do something to thank her.
Cream's birthday was approaching, so Zonic offered to bake the cake.

- That's a great idea. Cream will be delighted. Oh, she already said she wants to invite Scourge to her birthday too.

This could be a problem.

- I'll really have to get him to have his quills cut then. - he chuckled.

At the end of the call, he knew he had to play his part. Vanilla had to convince Bunny, he had to convince Scourge.
The hedgehog had returned to his room after dinner. It was unusually quiet, and Zonic didn't know whether to be happy or worried.

Scourge was drawing again. The painting with Amy dancing was over, but despite everything, he still wanted to draw her smile.
He was doing some sketches when Zonic knocked on the door.

- Scourge I need to talk to you.

The hedgehog gasped - Er .. Yes one second! - he said and began to hide all the drawings that portrayed Amy, putting in their place a sheet where he had written his name in different styles and colors.
Then he threw himself on the bed with a random book found in the room, opened it and cleared his throat -Ok you can go in.

Zonic opened the door and raised an eyebrow to see Scourge sitting in bed with a book in hand. Not so much because the aforementioned book was entitled "A Thousand Ways to Free Yourself from Moles" but because it was upside down.

- Well? What's up?

Zonic stared at him for a moment, narrowing his gaze. Then he decided to let it go: if Scourge was hiding something, he wouldn't find out by asking questions.
He sat on the edge of the bed.

- I noticed your quills are growing back. - he began.

Scourge tightened the sheets - So what?

Zonic didn't expect to see him on the defensive right away. The matter could turn out to be more complicated than expected.

- Well, I noticed that they are not growing back well, and I was thinking..

Scourge held out his hand, interrupting him - I know where you want to go. And the answer is no.

- Scourge ..

- No! I will not cut them!

- I'm not talking about cutting them, I'm talking about making sense of them, while they're still short.

Scourge hesitated a moment, then shook his head and looked down - They are okay.

Zonic sighed and turned to him, cross-legged on the bed - Scourge, there isn't a good mirror in the whole house anymore. Don't pretend it doesn't bother you.

- It's not for the quills.

- It's also for the quills. - he decided to take the risk and put a hand on his green shoulder. - Look, I'm a hedgehog too. I know how important they are, and how important it is to have them in order. On an aesthetic and practical level.

Scourge did not reply. Zonic was right. In addition to looking like a haystack put together by a drunken farmer, his quills in that state would have prevented a decent spin dash, perhaps even racing due to the obvious aerodynamic problem.

- Have they ever cut them for you? - he asked.

Zonic withdrew his hand - Once, actually. I had to chase and fight a criminal in a glue factory and when I got out I was a mess. I couldn't do anything else. It was industrial glue. It did not come away.

- Then you know how much it hurts.

- It doesn't actually hurt.

Scourge growled - Are you kidding me? Why do you think I screamed when they cut them? Why did they have to tie me to the chair? For sport?

- Scourge, a hairdresser cut them for me. With the right tools. To you, they were cut by a jerk who could not distinguish a scissor from a razor!

- I don't care! I said no!
Zonic reached out his hand again but Scourge pushed him away - Don't touch me!

The zoner saw him tremble and breathe quickly. He saw that he was starting to get scared for another reason.

He took him by the shoulders, gently - Scourge, look at me. Deep breaths. Follow me.

They had to breathe together for a few minutes before Scourge could calm down.
Exhausted, the green hedgehog leans his forehead against the zoner's collarbone.

- I hate when it happens.

- I know it. I've been through.

They remained in that position for some time, Zonic running one hand through the green spikes so the other could relax.
Only when he saw him completely calm, he decide to speak again.

- If you don't want to cut them, I won't force you. I understand how much and why you are scared of this. But if you change your mind, I'll tell you how it goes: we'll do it here at home. Someone who is qualified and whom I trust will do. And I'll be there all the time. I'm not going to let him hurt you, do things or use tools that you don't want.

Scourge was silent for a moment before answering.

-He will not have to use the razor.

- Okay.

- And he won't have to hurt me. Or use stuff that is bad for it.

-If he does, I'll stop him.

-And he'll have to cut my quills the way I want. He will have to make a really good job.

Zonic smiled - So, do we have a deal?

He saw him move his head, trying to nod.

- We have a deal.

Chapter Text

Chapter 17: Roses, mint and violets

After that conversation Scourge became nervous and stressed out. His nightmares returned and this time there was no way to make them go away.
Knowing that he would still have to get up in the middle of the night, Zonic moved to sleep directly in Scourge's room.

- This is embarassing. - Said the green hedgehog while they were lying side by side in the same bed.

- I know it. But either we do this or neither of us will sleep.

They had found that that method worked, or at least half worked: Scourge still had nightmares but Zonic was able to calm him down without waking him up. It took a lot less time that way and the zoner could easily go back to sleep afterward.

- If you tell anyone ..

- Don't worry, I don't really want to tell anyone.

It always started like this, with the two of them falling asleep in general embarrassment. Then Zonic would wake up in the middle of the night to hear Scourge cry and scream in his sleep. Then he pulled him close to him, hugged him and stroked his back, telling him that it was all right, that he was safe, while the other trembled like a leaf in his embrace.
Sometimes he stayed like that for several minutes, sometimes for an hour or more.
Then Scourge would go back to sleep peacefully and Zonic didn't dare move him, so they both fell back asleep close together.
In the morning, Zonic always woke up last, finding the bed empty. Going downstairs, he always found two things: the house tidied up and the coffee made.
Scourge had never openly thanked him for what he did, showing only his impatience with having to share a bed, but the zoner had understood as the days passed, that Scourge had his ways of saying thank you.

- Hey. Your coffee is in its usual place. - He greeted him like that, without looking at him, while he was intent on tidying up or watching TV.

- Thanks. - said Zonic, and in response he received only a 'shrug.

- I already had to do it for myself. - said the green hedgehog, but Zonic knew that Scourge didn't drink coffee in the morning. He was more on orange juice or milk with cocoa, but only because Zonic had hidden the beer.

Scourge was constantly busy not thinking about his deal with Zonic, hoping that day wouldn't come, that Bunny would say no.

- You know she hates me, right? - he had asked when he had known who the hairdresser was.

- I know it. - Zonic replied. - But she is the only one I know and can trust. Hopefully, Vanilla will be able to convince her not to stab you with scissors.

Vanilla had managed, against all Scourge's hopes, to persuade Bunny. Zonic then phoned her to explain the situation.

- You may have to take a day off. Scourge is very scared of the idea, so it might take a long time.

- Oh. - Bunny looked perplexed - How can he be afraid of having his quills cut?

Zonic then told her how in prison they had tied him to the chair and shaved with an electric razor.

- What? - Bunny exclaimed to the point that Zonic pulled the phone away from his ear.

- A razor? How did it come to mind? The quills are made of keratin, like the nails! The razor pulls them, breaks them and tears them. Of course it hurts! Oh if I find the idiot who did this I'll take the chair and ...

Zonic heard Antoine's voice in the background as Bunny growled.

- Love, love, calm down. Think about the baby.

Zonic waited a few moments, then Bunny spoke to him again.

- Sorry Sugar. Hearing these things makes me upset. How about Tuesday morning? I have the shop closed that day and I promised Amy to get her a new cut plus an invigorating grooming session. I can hear her and ask if she would like to move us to your house. This way I do her first and Scourge will be able to see how a professional works.

Zonic blinks. It was a great idea. Scourge would have felt much calmer that way.

- Thank you Bunny. You have no idea how important it is.

- Imagine Sugar. This is where the reputation of the entire industry is at stake.

Zonic raised an eyebrow - Well, that's not really ..

- Such a thing is an insult to all good hairdressers and must be fixed. See you Tuesday. I'll let you know for Amy.

The day had come and Scourge was incredibly tense. Zonic hadn't told him about Bunny's idea. He wanted it to be a surprise.
Amy and Bunny arrived together and Scourge turned and peered at them from the couch as Zonic greeted them.
Amy was wearing a short sleeveless dress with a flounced skirt. It was as white as the lily in her hair and with a strap and tan sandals.

- What's Pinky doing here?

- Zonic told me you're afraid of having your quills cut. I thought I'd do you first, so you see the whole procedure. - Bunny said.

Scourge clenched his fists, offended. - I'm not afraid. He doesn't know what the fuck he says. - looked at Zonic, with deep contempt.

Bunny looked between them, then shrugged - Well, her appointment is before yours anyway. Come on Amy.

Bunny arranged all of her equipment in the living room, except the chair and sink for head washing, which she had to put in the kitchen for running water and because the bathroom was too small.
Amy settled into her chair and had the quills washed under Scourge's eyes, closing her eyes and relaxing as Bunny massaged her head.

- So Sugar, why a new cut?

- I'm going out with Sonic today. - Amy replied - We planned it months ago and finally the day has come. I can not wait!

Bunny laughed - A special occasion deserves a special cut.

Scourge rolled his eyes. He was watching, yes, but he didn't think he had to put up with the chatter and gossip of the two girls.
When wet, Amy's quills reached up to mid-neck. Scourge found them prettier than that retro bob she usually had and probably, Bunny too.
When Amy relied on her and told her to do her magic, Bunny began to work. Scourge saw her pull out everything from combs, scissors and files, but not even a razor, much less an electric one.
He watched curiously, absently listening to the two.
Amy was talking about Sonic. She didn't stop saying how strong, charming, brave he was, talking about how he had saved that guy that time from the threat of the moment.
Bunny nodded and agreed as she continued to work, but Scourge could see she had stopped listening to her.

- Do you always and only talk about Sonic? - Scourge asked at one point, interrupting her.

- Well ... what's wrong? He is a hero and I will always be his number one fan!

- Yeah but .. do you do .. anything else in life, besides chasing him?

- Of course yes. I'm not attached to him all day. I managed the Rebuilding for years after the war against Eggman and the Metal Virus.

Scourge sighed - Yes ok. What do you do of .. normal? I mean, when the world is not in danger.

- Oh, I run a flower shop. I manage orders, I also make compositions and bouquets for events.

- I remember your compositions at my wedding. - Bunny said. - They were beautiful.

- And I'll tell you more: I'm making a composition for the Mobius annual flower contest. The winner will receive a large sum of money. If I win, I could renovate the whole shop.

They started talking to each other again and Scourge began to get bored again.
Amy was talking to Bunny about a flower and personality test she found online. The kind of bullshit that girls like, like "What flower are you?" or "Pick a flower and find out who is your ideal boyfriend ".
Fiona hated that stuff and at least they got along well on that. Regarding everything else, however, it was a constant quarrel.
Fiona was jealous, he was jealous. They lived in constant fear of being betrayed, and not just on a love level.
Theirs was a toxic and very physical relationship in which one exploited the other and used it to unload their problems.
At first, they really loved each other. Or at least, he loved Fiona. He really thought he had found someone with whom he could allow himself the luxury of showing his weaknesses. But he soon realized that she loved him for his strength, for his wickedness and his title of king.
Then he had begun to behave with her as he did with everyone, to mock and mistreat her.
She might be a greedy opportunist but he ... he acted like a jerk.
They betrayed each other, fought furiously, beat each other up, then made peace in bed.
When Fiona had pulled him out of the No Zone, Scourge thought that things would be better: she had helped and comforted him in a moment of weakness, their bond and also that of the whole team seemed to have become stronger, perhaps similar to what Sonic had with his companions.
But it hadn't lasted long. Fiona and the others had revealed themself for who they was and had always been. When in a confrontation with the police he had protected Fiona with his body from a gunshot, she had left him behind. His body had succumbed to the loss of blood and he could no longer keep up with them. He would have died if the Zoners hadn't found him.

- Scourge? Hey Scourge?

He raised his head and saw Bunny waiting for him in the washing chair.

- It's your turn. - she told him.

- Oh.- Scourge swallows. - Okay.

He sat in the chair, trying to relax.

Okay, now that's okay. She just washes them for you. She just washes them for you.

It was pleasant, so much so that in the end he found himself closing his eyes.

- So how's it going?

He grumbled back to Zonic's words.

- Looks like someone like it. - Bunny commented.

- It's not true. - Scourge replied. - I'm tolerating it.

- I hear purring.

- Don't lie, Pinky.

He couldn't move and couldn't see her new haircut. But he could hear her laughing and joking with Zonic.
That was until her phone rang.

- Oh my God it's Sonic! - she exclaimed.
Scourge, who now had a towel turban on his head, rolled his eyes.

- What are you waiting for? Reply! - Said Bunny and Amy did not ask her to repeat it.

- Hello Sonic? I am .. - he broke off - Yes it's today .. Oh .. ok .. I understand .. Eggman .. then .. could we do tomorrow? ..Oh .. and you don't know when .. okay. We'll meet another day. Bye.

Scourge had seen all the cheer slowly fade from his face and for an instant he hated Sonic even more. He was so busy hating him that he didn't even notice that Bunny had started combing his quills.

- I'm sorry Amy. - she said.

- It's okay, I think. He ... he had to stop Eggman. That egghead gets in the way every time we have to go out together. - she sighed - I'm going ... I'm going to the bathroom for a moment ...

Suddenly Scourge heard the sound of the electric razor very close to his head. He jumped to his feet away from his chair and whirled towards Bunny.

- What the fuck are you doing?

Bunny looked at him in amazement. She was holding a comb and some scissors -Do I cut your quills?

- You were using the razor, bitch!

- What? But I haven't even brought it!

- So why did I hear it?

Zonic walked over to the trembling hedgehog - Scourge, she wasn't using the razor. She is holding the scissors. He can't have changed gear in the time it took you to get up and turn around.

It made sense indeed.

- Look, do you want to look in the bag? If you search, you won't find the razor, because I didn't bring it.

Scourge nodded. He rummaged in his bag, he searched all over the kitchen, and found nothing.

- I swear I heard it ..

- You know, you should apologize to Bunny for calling her a bitch. - Zonic said.

To Bunny's surprise, Scourge nodded and apologized and sat back down.
He saw Amy come back from the bathroom and it was clear that she had been crying.

Blue is such a jerk ..

He didn't have time to think about anything else, because the razor returned to haunt his ears.

- Shit ... I hear it again.

- I'm not using it, I swear.

- I know but..but..

He had just arrived in the prison and when he knew what they wanted to do to him he tried to escape.
They had dragged him into that room by force, holding him by the arms. He kicked, screamed, growled and yanked like a mad dog. He had even tried to bite them.
He heard the noise and then that thing on his quills. He felt her pass, pull, tear and Chaos if it hurt.
He was screaming and crying, out of pain and anger. No one had ever dared to do something so outrageous to him.
Yet something didn't seem right.
He thought he could smell a strong minty smell under his nose.
There was no mint there. Where that scent come fro..

He opened his eyes again. He hadn't realized he had closed them. His cheeks were wet and he was breathing as if he had just been saved from choking. His hands clawed at the quills and he shivered from head to toe.

- Ok, I think he's back. - Zonic said.

- Scourge can you hear me?

He saw Amy. She still had the sprig of mint in her hand.

- Amy?

She dropped the stick and took his hands, gently pulling them off the quills. She was smiling, but he could see the fear in her eyes.
Her sparkling teal eyes.
Her quills fell free and shiny to the base of her neck, embellished with a braid of beads and a rebellious tuft at the height of the fringe.
He could understand that she was reassuring him, that she was trying to calm him down, to keep him calm, but he wasn't listening. His brain had locked onto her face.

Chaos, how beautiful she is.

He stayed like that for who knows how long, for him they could be minutes as an eternity, but gradually he was becoming more aware and attentive to her speeches.

- How about if I ask you questions and you answer them? So, like a game. But don't lie huh.

He didn't answer and she fumbled with the phone before starting.
They were strange but simple questions, like his favorite color, what he liked to do to relax, if he preferred the sea or the mountains. Yet he responded according to the rules, fearing that if he stopped focusing on her he would sink into that horrible vision again.
As soon as she realized he was distracted, Bunny exchanged a look with Zonic and went back to work.
Amy tried to lengthen the time, commenting on every answer of her, sometimes marveling at it: she thought she had framed Scourge for a long time, but through the answers she was discovering things about him that she would never have imagined. Things that made him different from Sonic, but not necessarily a bad guy.

She ran out of questions when Bunny exclaimed - Done!

Scourge gasped and turned - Eh? Done what? - he saw Bunny and his eyes widened. - I can't believe I forgot ...

Bunny laughed and handed him the mirror.
Scourge didn't recognize himself at first: he was used to his disheveled and untidy self. His quills were still short now, but they were shiny and neat. He just had to wait for them to grow back and they would be back as they once were.
For the first time in years he was happy to see his reflect.

- So Sugar?

- They're ok. - Scourge feigned disinterest, but his happy expression at the sight of the new cut had already said it all. - But I think I missed something. - looked at Zonic and Amy.

The zoner spoke first - You suddenly panicked. We tried to calm you down but you seemed to be somewhere else. Then Amy put that sprig of mint under your nose.

- It's a trick I learned while taking care of the survivors of the war. Feeling strong smells or tastes helped them to get out of hallucinations. Then I tried to distract you so you wouldn't have a relapse.

Bunny then giggled - I can't believe you did the flower test on him.

- The what test?

- That's the first thing that came to my mind. - Amy smiled and turned to Scourge - Do you want me to read you the result?

The green hedgehog saw the zoner chuckle and sighed - Well, we might as well go all the way.

Amy summed up the points and opened her eyes wide - No way!

- Well then? What does it say about me? Maybe a black rose with long thorns ..

- You're a violet.

- What?

- A violet.

- Yes I understand but .. what!

Zonic laughed - What a pretty little flower ..

- Fuck you Zonic!

- There are actually two. - said Amy - He has equal score with the sunflower.

- Oh how sweet! - Bunny commented.

- Stop to compare me to flowers!

-Here he says that violets are often shy, quiet, reserved and loving people. The sunflower, on the other hand, indicates a strong and sparkling personality, as well as faithful in love. - Amy explained while Scourge was more and more perplexed.

- This test sucks. He didn't get anything right.

-Oh, even with Sonic it didn't. He is a narcissus. The curious thing is that he is the opposite of violet. Strong self-esteem, self-confident, vain and unable to give himself in love. - Amy shook her head. - It's not my Sonic.

Scourge opened his mouth to retort but Zonic squeezed his shoulder, as if to tell him to shut up.

Chapter Text

Chapter 18: Shopping!

They helped Bunny clean up after all the work. Amy was sweeping sadly and with her head elsewhere.
Zonic couldn't bear to see her like that, and he had an idea.

- Hey, since your date with Sonic is off, how about the four of us for a ride? It's a beautiful day, we could walk downtown, have an ice cream. What do you say?

Amy sighed, putting the broom away. - I don't know. I don't really want to go out now.

Bunny approached her - Oh Sugar ..- she smiled and put a hand on her shoulder - I know you're sad, but wallowing in these feelings won't solve anything. Come with us, get some air, try to distract yourself a little. - the bunny lights up - Oh, I almost forgot. There are sales today! How about pairing some cool makeup or dress with your new cut?

- And Scourge needs clothes too. - Zonic said.

- But ... wasn't the prison supposed to give me my stuff back?

- Yes. But even if it were, you can't always wear the same clothes. That jacket was already falling apart about ten years ago.

- Hey, that jacket is sacred. And my glasses too. And my knife. And my shoes. And my gloves. And my socks.

- I don't want to think about how your old socks will be reduced right now! - Zonic turned to Amy - So what do you think? We really need a fashion expert here.

Those words managed to wring a faint smile from her - Okay. Shopping and ice cream.

They went downtown first, to go shopping.
Amy and Bunny quickly dragged them to a clothing store, which didn't have much of a choice of men's clothing. They soon found themselves sitting next to their dressing room as Amy and Bunny alternated.

- Nice shit idea, Zonic.

- Come on, we haven't been here long.

- They're trying out the whole store. And I'm bored. - the green hedgehog snorted looking at the various hanging clothes and came up with an idea.
He got up and moved to the clothes, starting to search.

- What are you doing?

Shh! - Scourge lowered his voice - It's a joke I used to play on Fiona. Sometimes she made me crazy to go shopping with her, so I took her, as long as she tried everything she got. It was some kind of agreement. At that point, I added to the pile something she would never wear, not even for a fee, like one of those long, noneckline floral dresses. - The green hedgehog chuckled - Once I put in her pile a nun costume that I had brought with me on purpose in a backpack. I had a lot of laughs that day. - he said and chose a white, bandeau heartwarmer with a striking V neckline, and a rippled denim mini skirt.

- At least you got it. - Zonic commented. - Amy would never wear this stuff.

- She will. Because I'm about to add them to the pile. Along with this. - he said showing him a little black dress with lace details, which left the back uncovered. - If they' re in the pile, she'll think she got them for some reason and try them anyway. - He put the clothes in the pile. - She will be ridiculous with these. - he said and then sat down to enjoy the show.

- What?

Amy was sure she didn't pick that stuff. It was too flashy, too sexy for her taste. And that little dress ... it was too, too bold. Certainly Rouge would have loved it.
Yet she had always wondered what she would look like with clothes like those. She had always dressed to be beautiful, never to be sexy.
Maybe she could try them, just for curiosity.

Scourge was ready to have some big laughs. Yet he didn't laugh when Amy walked out dressed in the heartwarmer and miniskirt.
Even Zonic was surprised.

- Sugar you are a blast! - shouted Bunny - You have to take them absolutely!

Amy didn't seem comfortable with her though. - I do not know. The skirt is too short .. And my belly is all out. I don't really know how this stuff got into my pile.

- Well, it doesn't just have to look good. You also need to feel comfortable wearing it. - Zonic said.

- Maybe… I could try something similar but less… pushed.

- I'm going to find! - Bunny said.

When Amy came out in the sheath dress, Scourge was about to tip over, but not for laughs.
The black against her pink fur and green eyes gave her a charm he couldn't describe. The way the dress hooked around her neck and followed her shapes, leaving her back uncovered and wrapping her bust and hips, accentuating shapes, and then falling softly to ankles, enhanced every inch of her figure. It seemed made for her.
Even Amy looked startled. She didn't think she was that beautiful.

- Amy honey, if you don't take it, I swear I'll give it to you. - Bunny said.

- Oh I do not know. That's..well .. It's really elegant. I don't know what occasion to put it on.

- A date maybe. A romantic dinner in some luxury restaurant. - Zonic said.

At those words Scourge found himself thinking about what it must be like dating Amy. Fiona didn't like luxurious places, if she had to pay for them. This is why they always dined in the castle, also because if a luxury restaurant had existed in Moebius, it would have lasted as long as one night, then they would have smashed the windows and looted it.

Amy's smile was bright - Yes! You say Sonic will like it?

Scourge's ears fell out.
Yeah. Sonic.
Was it possible that she couldn't think of anyone else, even though it was clear that he didn't reciprocate?

They left the shop with quite a few bags and after touring other accessories and makeup shops, they decided to shop for Zonic and Scourge.
It was quite simple to please the zoner actually. And he couldn't try on the clothes because he would have to take off his uniform.
He had worn it to go out, as he had to be next to Scourge always as a zoner.
They then decided to focus on the green hedgehog, which turned out to be very demanding, refusing to try on anything that didn't look like a leather jacket or a pair of glasses.
Zonic after several attempts managed to impose on him a black hooded sweatshirt, a pair of black jeans and some T-shirts.

After a while Amy ran to the green hedgehog - I found a perfect pair of gloves for you!

Scourge snorted but when he saw them he had to change his mind.
They were a pair of black motorcycle gloves, of leather and fabric, which left the fingers exposed.

Scourge tried them on and smiled - Heck yeah!

By the time they headed to the ice cream parlor, Scourge had a new leather jacket, glasses, gloves, and new shoes. They were still in the bags and he was eager to wear them.
Zonic smiled seeing him happy.
They got ice cream and then walked around the park.
To Scourge it seemed strange, completely new. Usually in Moebius you didn't "go out for an ice cream" unless you wanted to be robbed, often by the ice cream maker himself, or find yourself in the middle of a gang war.
He hadn't wanted ice cream and was now following the group walking with his hands in the pockets of his new leather jacket. He had taken two, or rather, Zonic had, since he didn't have a penny.
Once again he wondered why the zoner was so nice, and why everyone else was too.
Did they want something from him? Were they kind for their own gain? His head said yes, but the hedgehog was giving in to hope more and more every day.
Maybe they cared about him.
Maybe they loved him.

- Yes I agree. - Zonic said, talking to Bunny - What do you think Scourge?

- Huh?

- I asked you what you think.

- Sorry I wasn't listening. - the green hedgehog looked down. The day of shopping had tired him and Zonic seemed to notice.

- Are you tired? Would you like to go home? - he asked. Even though the green hedgehog was much better, it would hurt him to try hard.

- No. No, I'm fine. I just wish ...

There was a nice pond with ducks in the middle of the park, not far from there, surrounded by a patch of green grass with several benches.

Zonic caught the ball. - Girls, what if we just sit there and eat ice cream?

Bunny and Amy liked the offer, so they were soon all around one of the benches.
Scourge to Amy ended up sitting, while Bunny and Zonic remained standing.
Every now and then a few rowing boats with a couple on top would pass in the lake.

- I've always wanted to take a boat ride with Sonic. - Amy commented - It seems so romantic. But he's afraid of water.

Scourge was about to reply when something caught his attention.

- Hey, isn't that Blue?

He pointed to a tree near the shore. Underneath was Sonic, on a blanket and with a lot of picnic stuff.
Sitting next to him was a squirrel in a blue vest. The two laughed and joked, unaware of their present.

- But ... wasn't he supposed to fight Eggman? - Bunny asked.

- So he said. - Zonic commented.

They remembered Amy and when they turned to look at her, her eyes were full of tears and she had dropped the ice cream.
Scourge felt anger build up that he had never felt before.

He got up and walked over to the couple - Hey Blue! I see Eggman has a nice pair of boobs! And I didn't remember the resemblance to Princess Acorn.

Sally's gaze flickered from the blue hedgehog to Scourge and back - What is Scourge doing here? And what does Eggman have to do with it?

Zonic sighed and rushed over as Amy buried her face in Bunny's embrace.

- Princess Acorn. Scourge is in my custody at the moment. May I ask what you do outside of your dimension?

- I have a pass from the royal family. I can travel wherever I want.

- Travel between dimensions is only allowed in special cases. The .. dates.. are not among them.

- About dating!

They turned to Amy. The pink hedgehog wiped her tears and she turned to Sally - Sonic was supposed to go out with me today. I bet when he goes out with me, he tells you that he has to fight Eggman.

- What? - Sally turned to Sonic and Scourge giggled.

- Yeah. Goodie two shoes keeps foot in two shoes.

- This is not true! Amy and I are not engaged. It is she who keeps saying the opposite!

- Then why are you deluding her?

- I'm not deluding her! I love Sally! - he turns to Amy - I didn't want to tell you because I knew you would go crazy, and in fact I was right. You've been running after me since you were thirteen. I tried to make you understand it in a thousand different ways. I didn't mean to hurt you and thought you would move on in time.

- So your strategy is to stand up to me at the last moment to see her? - Amy asked, through her tears - I knew you didn't like me as much as I liked you .. but at least I thought you enjoyed spending time together .. oh what a fool I was ..

Bunny hugged her and she cried again in despair.

Sonic's ears fell out - Amy.. I ..

- Ohohohohohoh!

They all looked up and heard the unmistakable sound of the egg mobile.

- Glad to see you again Sonic. Just in time to test my new creation!

Chapter Text

Chapter 19: Fight

- I don't see any ro...

Sonic didn't have time to finish the sentence.
A huge arm that ended with a drill came out of the ground, causing the earth around it to tremble and collapse.

- Get out of here! - Scourge yelled.

Bunny grabbed Amy and used her robotic limbs to leap to a safe distance while Sonic did the same while holding Sally in his arms.
Scourge ran away but the earth was already crumbling beneath him.

- Damn collar!

Zonic ran to meet him, reaching out his hand and pulling him on the stable ground, then dragging him away.
But the zoner was incredibly slow for a Sonic.

- Hello? We need some speed here!

- If I could use it I would!

- What? You are a Sonic! Why you..

- Shut up and run!

- Why don't you take off this collar so I can be quick for both of us!

Zonic bit his lip. It wasn't a bad idea, but the chaos was also the perfect escape.
What if Scourge, even after everything he'd done for him, decided to run away?
He would lose everything.

- Well?

Zonic didn't answer.

- Oh come on!

From the earth came another arm with three claws, and a mole-like head with red eyes and the symbol of Eggman on the forehead.

The scientist gloated by swinging the eggmobile - Say hello to the Eggmole, Sonic!

-He will go down like the others! - replied the blue hedgehog before rolling up and hitting the robot with a spin dash, straight to the symbol on the forehead.

But to everyone's amazement, he didn't scratch it, bounced off the hard metal and then fell to the ground stunned.

- Ahahahah! Save those shots. They just tickle my armored robot!

Sonic sat down, holding his head. - Looks like Egghead finally got there ..- he murmured, then turned to Eggman - For someone who has an IQ of three hundred, it took you some time to figure it out.

- My robot will make you stop wanting to joke, hedgehog!

The huge claw arm swept the ground but Sonic was ready to dodge, leaping into the air, curling up again and doing a second spin dash, this time aiming at Eggman, only to crash into the huge auger, who stepped between he and the scientist.
The rest of the robot emerged from the earth, revealing a squat body and two large, broad feet. Zonic immediately rejected the idea of dropping him.
The earthquake and the giant robot had started a general stampede and the park was a frenzy of people screaming and running everywhere.

- Bunny, Sally, evacuate the park! - Zonic yelled - Scourge, Amy, with me. Sonic..do what you usually do!

- Ok Zee! - the blue hedgehog showed his thumb and darted away at full speed, avoiding a laser beam coming from the Mole's eyes.

Zonic started running towards the robot, bypassing it to get to him from behind.

- Tell me you have a plan! Scourge yelled at him.

- If that thing is armored, our only hope is to find its core and knock it out from there.

- And how?

- A nice placed shot should be enough. We just have to find and reach it.

- Usually it's on the head, on the back. - Amy said, while she followed them running.

Zonic immediately believed her, nodding. Amy was Sonic's clingy fan girl, but she wasn't necessarily a fault: she'd followed Sonic everywhere and fought dozens of robots with him, when she hadn't been watching the fighting. Along with Tails, she was the one who had seen the most of the robot and most closely. The fox would have given him clear and precise directions, but Tails wasn't there, so he had to rely on Amy.
The situation for Scourge was frustrating: he'd listened to the plan but couldn't do much without his powers.
As they walked around the robot, his gaze fell on Eggman.
If they had tried to reach the core, the scientist would surely have seen them.
They needed a diversion.
He broke away from the group and ran towards the scientist. Zonic quickly understood what he wanted to do.

- Where he go? We have to stick together. Amy said.

- He's got our backs.

I hope you remember to stay within fifty meters ..

- Hey Eggman! Always in the middle of the balls in this dimension huh?

The scientist turned to him, his back to the robot, and Scourge grinned.

- Scourge? What are you doing here?

- I came to see your mother. I know she hang out around here after sunset.

- Cheeky little rodent! - Eggman pushed a button on his console and from his egg cabinet came a pair of arms armed with small laser cannons.

Escaping blows was much more difficult without his speed. One missed his leg by a whisker and he managed to escape the others by throwing himself behind a bench with a waste bin next to it.
He just hoped Zonic would hurry.

Zonic exchanged a knowing look with the blue hedgehog. Sonic had a few bruises and dirt, but he was anything but out of the way. He continued to distract the robot, attacking it and dodging blows. Amy joined Sonic in distracting the robot while Zonic activated the energy lanyard of his glove, swirled it and threw it with all his might.
It was a similar version to the one he used to hold inmates, but this one, courtesy of Zails, was much longer and fitted with a grapple. It twisted and hooked right on the robot's pointed nose, which wasn't happy at all.
The tug that followed sent the zoner flying high and he shifted his weight to lunge forward like a giant swing. He reached the nose, passed it, and found himself in the air above the robot, upside down. He turned and released the lanyard, preparing to land on the robot's head.

- You're under arrest, Eggman!

- Huh? - the scientist aimed at Zonic with the cannons of the Egg mobile but the lid of the bin flew like a frisbee centering him on the nape of the neck.

- Oh sorry, I was aiming for the ass!

Eggman growled and returned his focus to Scourge, who this time found cover behind a low wall, not before one of the lasers grazed him in the shoulder.

Scourge hissed in pain as he gripped the wound. - The new jacket .. Shit!

On top of the robot, Zonic seemed to get away with it for the first two seconds, then the Mole moved and he slipped. He pressed a button on the glove, activating the suction cups scattered all over the uniform and when he put his hand on the metal, he held on.
Sonic was still battling the robot, which moved and jerked, tossing the poor zoner.

Shit ... I'll feel these tomorrow ...

He was still on the back of the robot's head and found he was inches from the door where the robot's brain was housed.
The free hand went to his belt, took a cylinder and pressing a button came out a kind of laser that began to cut the metal like butter.
Unfortunately for him, Eggman was not stupid and understood his intentions. Then ignored Scourge again and turned the Eggmobile back to Zonic, only this time he opened two more slots revealing missile launchers.

- These won't do anything to my robot, but only a stain of you will remain on the body!

Zonic's eyes widened, but moments before Eggman fired, he saw Amy leap and hit the eggmobile with the hammer, deflecting the trajectory of the missiles that flew up above the robot.

Sonic was finding it harder and harder to keep up with the Mole. Every hit he landed against the armored metal damaged him and he began to feel tired as he ran constantly. He just hoped that whatever Zee was doing, he would finish it quickly.

Eggman was too high for Amy to jump on the eggmobile and Scourge couldn't get that high without his powers.

- Pinky, you have to throw me up there!

- How?

- Like in baseball. Except I'm the ball.

Amy looked puzzled and tightened her grip on the hammer - Are you sure?

- They already used me as a basketball. We might as well try baseball. Come on, Zee won't last long!

Amy nodded. Scourge jumped in place and curled up, and was then intercepted by Amy's hammer who, due to the short quills, took him straight in the back.
He ignored the pain and rolled out in mid-air.

- I'm coming Eggy!

Eggman barely had time to turn around and found Scourge's stomach in his face, the hedgehog's body completely blocking his view.
Scourge grabbed both of his mustaches before the scientist could kick him off, squeezed his nose, rubbed his bald head, making sure he was as annoying as possible.

- These glasses are beautiful! I thought your nose was fake! Do you ever go to the barber?

- Get your paws off me! I can not see anything!

The stationary egg mobile that it was, I begin to rotate on itself, rise and fall in altitude and fire lasers and missiles at random.

- What is this button for? And this? And this here?

- Drop my mustache you stupid hedgehog! And stop pressing random things!

Eggman had his hands free to push Scourge away, but the hedgehog always held onto one of his mustache.

Zonic had gone back to cutting the door. The piece of metal broke off and fell to the ground, revealing the manual control panel and processor, along with an incredible tangle of cables.

- Damn! Where is Tails when he is needed?

Scourge saw the door open and Zonic trying to figure it out - Zonic, get out of there!

- What do you want to do?

- Just get the fuck out of there!

Zonic decided to trust this time. Deactivating and reactivating the suction cups, he slid down the robot's back, until he jumped off.
Meanwhile, Scourge continued to pester Eggman, but this time it was no accident. He clung to both mustaches, pulled himself to his feet and tilted the weight to one side in order to prompt Eggman to move the eggmobile in order to rebalance.
After a couple of tries he managed to aim the missile launchers at the robot. By hitting the buttons at random, he had also found the one to fire the missiles.
As he continued to cling to Eggman, stepped it with his foot.
The missiles hit the robot without scratching it but one of them went straight into the hole created by Zonic, against the control panel, the processor and the control unit with all the cables.
The ensuing explosion shook the ground and generated a shock wave that shot off the Eggmobile.
Eggman and Scourge both screamed before crashing into the ground.

Sonic was still distracting the robot, being chased by claws and laser beams when he felt the explosion and saw the Eggmobile crash in the little wood near the lake.
The robot, on the other hand, was shaken by discharges, electric arcs and internal explosions before extinguishing itself and falling forward, completely destroyed inside.

Scourge felt the collar tighten and tried to block it with one hand. He had landed on the grass, just beyond the eggmobile.
Eggman was still there, trying to get it going again.
Breathing hard, Scourge got up and walked over to the scientist. He was way past the allowable distance but he wanted to do one more thing.

- Come on, you stupid wreck! - yelled Eggman.

Scourge's hand grabbed him by the neck and squeezed, making him out of air.

- Scourge? What .. what do you want to do?

- What Blue can't do. - panted and then grinned showing shark teeth. The icy eyes had an eerie glow and were fixed on the scientist. - Finish the job.

The collar was choking him, but he was more than sure he could kill Eggman before he collapsed.

But the scientist noticed his problem and laughed. - Good luck strangling me before that thing strangles you.

- Eheheheh .. but I must not strangle you. I just have to pretend I do. - replied the hedgehog - Have you ever been shocked, Eggy?

Suddenly something hard hit him at high speed. He lost his grip on Eggman and flew out into the green until he crashed into a tree.
The little air he had escaped from his lungs and he couldn't take any more.
The collar was choking him. He struggled to stay conscious and saw it.

Sonic had seen Scourge on the verge of killing Eggman, so he had accelerated and hit him with a spin dash.
- Sonic no! - shouted the zoner. With the collar on, there was no way Scourge could take the blow without consequence.

Sonic ignored Eggman and walked' to the green hedgehog - That's why you'll never be a hero, Scourge.

The green hedgehog felt the collar loosen: Zonic must be close. He saw Eggman soar into the sky with the battered eggmobile, walking away.

- And that's why, sooner or later you will lose ..

- What?

- Sooner or later .. - Scourge smiled - He will come back with a new toy, one you can't stop. And then you will lose everything, and all the people you love. - he slowly stood up and his ribs protested - But you don't care. It's all a game for you. He conquered the world, spread a virus that was turning you all into zombies .. how many people have suffered? Yet you keep letting him escape.

- Everyone deserves a chance to change.

Scourge threw her head back, banging it against the tree he was leaning against.

- Ahahahah..oh ..- he cough - oh fuck .. ribs ..- his eyes went back to the blue hedgehog - You don't really think so. It's just bullshit you tell yourself.

- And what do you know?

In that instant Scourge was on top of him, took him by surprise and his weight threw him backwards, knocking him down on the grass with Scourge on top of him clawing at his shoulders as the electric current hit them both.

- You didn't give me a second chance! You just sent me to that shit prison and left me there! So don't think I'm buying your bullshit, Blue! Don't think it for a fucking second! You've spared that asshole so many times in spite of everything, and what the fuck had I done? Nothing! Did I destroy my world? Did I destroy yours? No! It is you who invaded my life and took everything away from me, because you could not bear this stain on the sheet of the universe! Have you ever wondered why I was a stain? Have you ever wondered why I wasn't a Sonic like the others? No, and do you know why? Because you can't stand the stains, especially when they are a version of yourself!

- One two SGW!

The electric current suddenly vanished and the collar fell to the ground but Scourge didn't seem to notice.

- In all these years I had never realized… that you actually fear me. You are afraid of me. You're afraid of what you might become ... after a bad day.

The hedgehog giggled and continued to giggle even as he collapsed onto his side, fainting.

When Zonic reached the two hedgehogs and saw them both under the electricity, he decided that he had no other choice and spoke the password.
Both Sonic and Scourge were unconscious, but he could already see the Freedom Fighters squad gather on the spot and Tails' plane circling, looking for a place to land.

Chapter Text

Chapter 20: The weasel.

When Sonic regained consciousness, he knew he was in the hospital. The bed, the white walls, the smell of disinfectant. He moved his head and saw Sally beside him, half asleep, holding his hand.

He smiled - Hey Sal ..

Sally opened her eyes, turned to him and her face lit up. Sonic caught the moment when her expression changed to a smile, and he loved it.

- Sonic! - he turned to a side of the room that he couldn't see - Hey guys, Sonic is awake!

In an instant, his friends surrounded his bed. There were Tails, Knuckles, Shadow, Tangle and Silver, all smiling and happy with his awakening. They had brought him flowers, balloons and greeting cards.

- Omega is keeping reporters away. Knuckles told him. - Trust me, he won't let anyone through.

The TV was on and a skunk reporter was talking about the attack on the park thwarted by Sonic the Hedgehog and his allies.
He looked for Zonic and found him: he was sitting by the window, next to Scourge's bed, watching over him.
The green hedgehog was still asleep, and had an oxygen mask on his face. He wore no collar, but he was handcuffed to the bed.
Next to Zonic sat Amy. She was silent and stared at the floor. He was sorry she had found out about him and Sally like that.

- Hey Zee .. hey Amy ..

Zonic smiled - Hey. Glad to see you awake.

- Hi Sonic. Glad to see you woke up. - Amy said, without looking up, her voice lacking in enthusiasm. It seemed that her inner fire had suddenly gone out, leaving only an empty shell.

Sonic shifted his gaze to the green hedgehog.

- Is he fine? - he asked Zonic.

- Not exactly. Your spin dash broke several ribs. The doctor advised to remove the collar, so that fast regeneration can help him. - the zoner sighed - Commander Zally will come here soon. She heard about the attack and that Scourge and I were involved. She also read my report.

- Do you think they'll send him back to jail?

- I will do everything possible to ensure that it does not happen.

- Scourge helped us. - Amy replied - They would have no reason to send him back.

At that moment a portal opened and Zally came out with two zoners in uniform and visors.
Zonic stood up and stood to attention.

- Rest, Officer Zonic. - she looked over at Sonic and Sally - Sonic Prime. Princess Acorn. - she greeted - Your Highness I must remind you that interdimensional travel is forbidden except for valid reasons. I ask you to return to your dimension as soon as possible.

Sally squeezed Sonic's hand - But I have the pass from the royal family.

- That document does not authorize free travel between dimensions. There must always be a valid reason.

Sally lowered her ears but Sonic squeezed her hand to reassure her.

- Don't worry Sal. I can go anywhere as a hero of the multiverse. I'll come to see you, so it should be okay.

Sally smiled and brought Sonic's hand to her cheek.
Seeing them so tender to each other hurt Amy, because she knew true love when she saw it.
Sonic loved Sally, and Sally loved Sonic. And she couldn't do anything about it.
She heard the green hedgehog moan and noticed that he had opened his eyes.

The green hedgehog saw Sonic and Sally. - Nice lovebirds ..- he turned his head to the commander and smiled -Sexy ..

- What? - yelled Zally.

- Don't pay attention to what he says. - Zonic replied. - He's got broken ribs and they stuffed him with painkillers.

- I smell words ..

Zally sighed and turned to Zonic - I want a full report on what happened. And I want to talk to everyone involved.

- Beautiful lady .. You have such a sexy voice ..

Zally sighed. - Zonic, let's go talk in the hall before I kill him.

Zonic got up and followed her into the hall, holding back a laugh.

- Bye bye Zee .. - Scourge chuckled and then turned her attention to Amy - Your voice smells of flowers ..

Amy raised an eyebrow and sighed - You should go back to sleep now.

- You look sad.

Amy looked away, staring at a spot on the floor - I'm certainly not happy.

Scourge seemed to get sad and his head fell back on the pillow as he closed his eyes - It sucks to be sad ..

- Yeah .. - Amy murmured.

She couldn't stand being in the same room with Sonic and Sally, but she told herself she couldn't leave Scourge alone. Sonic was surrounded by his friends and his ... and the princess, while the green hedgehog had no one but Zonic.
Every so often Sonic glanced at her, worried. Amy's gaze was too reminiscent of Cream's when she lost her mother for the metal virus.

A few hours later Sonic's friends were gone. Only Sally and Bunny were left, as the princess's counterpart wanted to talk to them.
Sally and Bunny briefly described their roles: they had asked for the support of the Freedom Fighters and had led the citizen outside the park. They hadn't seen much of the fight.

- Very good. - Zally said. - Zonic has already told me his version, now I want to hear that of Amy and Sonic Prime. In particular, I want to know how Scourge behaved, since he is the one we are monitoring.

Amy told about Scourge's idea of reaching Eggman, his assault on the scientist and how he managed to use the eggmobile to shoot the robot.

- Did he seem reluctant to cooperate? Did you get the feeling that he might betray you?

Amy answered immediately shaking her head - Not even for a second. It was he who insisted that I throw him at Eggman.

When it was his turn, Sonic took a deep breath.
He recounted how Scourge attempted to kill Eggman once he was defeated.

- I stopped him just in time. Then he attacked me. He used the shock from the collar to electrocute me. I think he wanted to do the same with Eggman too.

Zally looked at the sleeping green hedgehog and frowned - This is bad. Very bad. But .. - looked at Zonic. - I have read the report you sent to Zobotnik and the attachment from Zouge. As it turns out, this was an isolated episode: Scourge has always done well, so we can turn a blind eye. But it doesn't have to happen anymore, right?

- Yes, commander.

- You are very lucky to have Zouge on your side. Zobotnik could have used this episode to send Scourge back, but he cannot, because the prison psychologist has written down how much Scourge is benefiting from alternative rehabilitation, and that, I quote, "a return to prison would seriously negatively affect the physical and mental health of the detainee. " - she explained. - If the Warden decides to ignore an expert's advice, we would have to start an investigation and at that point a lot of shit would come up that he doesn't want us to know. So as long as Zouge is on your side, he won't be able to act as he wants.

Zonic couldn't believe his ears. He didn't think Zouge had that much power inside the prison.

- Sorry - Sonic said - But since when does prison "seriously affect mental and physical health"? It should be a place to reform criminals.

- On paper it is. - Zonic said. - But if it's a version of your Eggman running it, you can imagine.

-And why hasn't anyone removed him from his role yet?

- Because it's not that simple. - Zally replied. -And, to answer your question, in his report, Zouge diagnosed Scourge with PTSD. This makes the prison environment incompatible with him.

- What? - Sonic turned to the sleeping green hedgehog. He noticed a frown on his face, as if he wasn't sleeping well.

He had always thought of Scourge as himself: capable of dealing with anything. That's why he didn't want to leave him lying around. As much as it cost him to admit it, he feared all that potential doomed to evil. He couldn't even conceive of what an evil version of himself could do.
Scourge and PTSD in the same sentence was something he couldn't conceive.

- Good. - Zally said. - I have all the information I need. I must go. And, Zonic?

The zoner looked up.

- Be careful. Zobotnik has his hands tied for now, but that doesn't mean he's given up. His career depends on how this bet between you two goes. And yours too.

With that said Zally opened the portal and walked through it with the other two zoners, leaving them alone.

In his office, Zobotnik was re-reading Zonic's report for the umpteenth time. That hedgehog was becoming a real threat, but before taking drastic measures, the Warden still had an ace up his sleeve.

- Come in. - he said when there was a knock on the door.

A mobian entered, it was a purple-haired weasel, dressed as a reporter, complete with a notebook and a pencil behind the ear.

- Zack the Weasel, what a pleasure to see you again!

- My pleasure. So why did you call me?

- Because you're good at throwing mud. Only this time I don't want mud, I want a cool, steaming mountain of shit.

The Warden handed the weasel a bundle of documents. Zack flipped through them calmly and a smile appeared on his face.

- Oh, it'll be fun.

Chapter Text

Chapter 21 Amy Rose

- What a pain in the ass..

Scourge walked with his hands in the pockets of his leather jacket.
Zonic was a little further on but he knew the hedgehog was pretending: he was as worried as Zonic was, judging by how quickly he got up from the couch when the zoner told him they had to go to Amy's house right away.
It had been two weeks since they had discharged Scourge from the hospital and they hadn't seen the pink hedgehog since.
Tangle had called Zonic, worried, telling him that she hadn't seen Amy for weeks and that that day she wasn't answering calls or texts.
Since she had found out about Sonic and Sally she had changed. She had gone out. She had lost her vitality, like a withered rose.
Tangle was afraid that something had happened to her and Zonic was the one who lived closest.
Amy's house had shuttered windows and an overgrown garden, which was not a good sign.

Zonic knocked on the door - Amy? - the doorbell rang - Amy, are you home?

Scourge rolled his eyes and plucked a blue sting from the policeman's head.

- Ouch! What the heck are you doing?

- I'll let us in.

Scourge bent down and used the quill to pick the lock.
The door opened, revealing an empty, dark and untidy house.
Zonic wrinkled his nose in the stale air.

- Amy? I'm Zonic. Is it all…

Scourge sprinted past him. He looked right into the living room and left into the kitchen, then ran up the stairs. He threw open the bathroom door, finding it empty, a great relief that didn't last long.
Pinky lived to chase Sonic and Scourge was afraid, afraid she'd done something stupid.

- Pinky? Pinky!

He opened the bedroom door and his heart leapt.
She was lying on the bed, showing her back to him. She didn't look hurt, but she was still.
This time it was Zonic who overtook him.
He hadn't been so scared since Fiona had taken that gunshot. It was raining and the blood mixed with the rain.

Fi, hold on!
Please don't die.
Fi! FI!

He had broken through the sound barrier to bring her to safety, to save her life. And now he feared he was late.

- Hey Scourge?

Zonic brought him back to reality. He had Amy in his arms. She wore pajamas with a pink shirt and white pants with pink polka dots. She had a simple red headband between the quills and many, so many scratches on her arms. She held on to Zonic like if her life depends of it.

-There is a suitcase in her closet. Get some clothes. She will stay with us for a while.

Scourge nodded and only then did he realize the room was a mess. The floor was full of posters and photos of Sonic ripped from the wall and torn to pieces, there were hammer marks on the wall, floor and furniture, pieces of glass everywhere and even an overturned chest of drawers.
As he stuffed random clothes into the suitcase, including linens, he could only think of all the ways he would kick Blue in the ass.
The collar did not react, perhaps because the worry outweighed the anger.
He moved to the bathroom and grabbed a few things from there, including her toothbrush, then walked over to Zonic and together they took Amy to the cop's house.

- I don't know what got into me .. - she said, through tears. She was fine, she was just very shaken.

- Don't worry. - Zonic said as he bandaged his pink arms. - I'm here now.

- I'm a fool .. - she sobbed.

- Yes you are!

She felt a strong hold on her shoulders and found herself standing in front of Scourge.

- Do not do it again! You don't have to do this anymore! That jerk doesn't deserve it. He doesn't deserve it, do you understand?

- Scourge stop, you're scaring her!

The green hedgehog bit his lip and let go. - Sorry. But if you still do it .. I ..- he looked at her with shining eyes - I'm..I'll be pissed off!

- Scourge! Damn go upstairs! You're not helping me!

Reluctantly the hedgehog left, leaving Amy and Zonic alone.

It took him a couple of hours to calm down and when he walked out of his room, he peeked at Amy and Zonic from the landing of the stairs.
They were sitting side by side, with a couple of steaming mugs on the coffee table. She was leaning against Zonic and they were talking softly.
Scourge wished to have the calm and tact of the zoner for once.
That night they slept in Zonic's bed. Scourge still had nightmares and Amy didn't want to be alone, so the zoner found himself between a snoring green hedgehog and a pink hedgehog stuck to him, unable to move and agreeing to spend a sleepless night.

Sobs woke Amy late at night. She stood up and found Scourge hugging Zonic, stroking the green hedgehog's back.

- What..

- Shh. He is sleeping. Now he calms down.

- What's with him?

- Nightmares. About the prison. We have found that this is the best way to manage them. Go back to sleep and please don't tell anyone.

Living with Amy was… weird.
The house had gained that feminine touch that Scourge hadn't seen in years. Fresh flowers on the windowsills, a nice mint smell in the kitchen, those post-its who remembered to take out the garbage or that it was laundry day, complete with little hearts drawn on them.
Amy Rose was a simple, sunny girl, and Scourge still struggled to associate her with the same hurt and sad girl who had been sleeping with them the day they found her.
She had taken a break from the flower shop. And she had thanked Silver and Blaze for agreeing to run it for her.

- Don't worry! - said Silver - Blaze and I really needed to do something together. You know, she's always busy with kingdom affairs. This is the perfect opportunity for the two of us to spend some time alone.

So Amy had begun to devote herself to Zonic's dried garden, turning it into a beautiful flower bed.
Scourge had never drawn so much in his life: Amy portrayed on her back and standing on a stool rummaging in a cupboard, with her tail sticking out of a pair of yellow shorts and her hair falling over a white tank top, Amy holding a vase of flowers with a bit of soil in her face, Amy sitting at the kitchen table scratching her cheek with a pencil as she thought about shopping list, Amy tying her hair with a clip between her lips.
The further he went on, the more he realized that she had become his muse, but he didn't dare show those drawings to her or Zonic. To Zonic because they weren't made for him and to her because he didn't want to look like a maniac.
In fact, he didn't know whether to find out that he had been portraying her for days without her knowledge would have frightened or intrigued her. In defense of him, he wanted to portray her simply because he found her beautiful. And he was amazed at himself when he realized there was no nude or vaguely sexy pose.
He always drew Fiona in that kind of situation and without worrying too much about what she thought. Now doing the same to Amy without her permission seemed dirty and offensive to him. On the contrary, he loved to portray all those little moments of her everyday life, giving more weight to her face, clothing and expressiveness.
So when Zonic notified them that he had received a phone call from the President's secretary, saying that after their exploits in the park they had received an invitation to the Station Square Grand Gala, Scourge only thought of one thing: he absolutely had to portray Amy at that gala, in her splendid evening dress.

Chapter Text

Chapter 22: unspoken things

- I don't want to wear this stuff.

- You'll wear it.

- But I look like a penguin!

- And I hate wearing a dress uniform, but we're on our way to a gala ball where the President himself will be. You won't go with jeans and a leather jacket.

- Oh right! - Scourge threw herself on the sofa, still in pants and shirt. - I forgot I don't want to go.

- Well you have to. Because I don't want to go there but I have to and the two of us can't stay more than fifty meters from each other.

Scourge rolled her eyes - Well, at least there will be alcohol to drink.

- No alcohol.

- What? Are you joking? Do I have to dress like a dandy, go to a party full of snobs and I can't even get drunk?

- No you can not. - Zonic sat down on the coffee table facing the hedgehog. - Listen, this is an extremely important event. There will be a lot of cameras and no doubt they will be watching us from the No zone, because they know we will be there too. Zobotnik is just waiting for an excuse to take you back to prison and if you behave flawlessly in front of everyone, he won't have any.

He had sent his second report shortly before, devoting a big chunk to how Scourge had helped him and Sonic against Eggman. He had written about how he was calmer and more willing to listen.
There were still many problems to solve, many concerned nightmares and intrusive memories, still others the secrets that Zonic had been carrying around for too long.
He had to talk to Scourge, tell him about the bet. It was risky, he could take it badly, but maybe, now that he was starting to trust him, he would let him explain.

Scourge sighed - I mean, you want me to be the good guy in front of everyone for one night.

- I want you to show everyone what you showed me. You are not just one of Sonic's many enemies, or one who has been in prison. You are so much more, and it's time for people to know.

- Oh yes? And what else would I be? Do you think you know everything about me after two months in your house?

Zonic sighed. - No. I don't know everything about you. But I know that you are someone who has suffered that he has made mistakes and who is trying to take back his life. This is what people need to know, in order for them to trust you again. Now everyone only sees the bad things you've done, because they don't know you.

Scourge looked away - I don't know if I want them to know me.

Zonic tilted his head, puzzled - Why do you say that?

- Because it is easier to hit those who are exposed.

Zonic was about to reply when Amy caught their attention from the top of the stairs.

- Okay, I'm ready.

She wore the little black dress she had bought that time with Bunny, she wore black high-heeled sandals, onyx bracelets and a black choker with a shiny zircon, like the earrings. High costume jewelry, but it did its dirty work. She wore his hair in a high elaborate hairstyle with a silver leaf-shaped clip and sported a black handbag with glitter. Light makeup on her eyes and a soft lipstick on her lips.

- Why are you staring at me? Oh no, I wore too much eyeshadow, I knew that.

- No no! - the two exclaimed and Amy stopped with the mirror in mid-air.

- You look great.- Zonic said - The makeup is in place.

She was puzzled for a few moments and then she smiled -Ah thank goodness. I've never seen you in dress uniform Zonic, you're beautiful.

Scourge had never seen the zoner blush.

- Well ... it's a little uncomfortable. And it's too flashy. - looked at Amy - Listen .. you know we have a good chance of meeting Sonic and Sally .. if you don't feel like it we can hold back just the necessary time and then leave immediately. Just tell me.

Her smile took on a sad note - Okay Zonic. If I don't want to stay I'll tell you, I promise.

They took their places in Zonic's car, him in the driver's seat, Amy in the passenger seat and Scourge in the back.
The zoner adjusted the mirror and noticed that Scourge was wearing jeans, sneakers, glasses on his head and a leather jacket over his unbuttoned white shirt.

- Scourge!

The hedgehog gave him a toothy smile - What?

Zonic snorted. It was a losing battle and they were already late.

- Nothing.

The gala evening was held in a huge villa with a garden. You entered through a gate and walked up the gravel path to the villa.
Zonic went around the large fountain in the middle of the square, in his ordinary average citizen car, wandering his gaze in search of a parking space between limousines and sports cars.

Scourge whistled in approval - Nice racing cars.

- How to feel out of place even before entering ..

- Hey Zee, let your car park so we don't stay here all evening.

- You didn't seem so impatient at home.

- Well, I'm sick of sitting.

Zonic sighed. It was going to be a long evening. He just hoped it was all right.

- Okay, ready with the camera. Three, two, one .. Good evening, kind viewers! Here is your Zack the Weasel live from Mobius Prime! For all of you who follow us from other dimensions, tonight we are none other than the Station Square Grand Gala, the event that will see the President himself, the royal family of the Kingdom of Acorn, Sonic the Hedgehog and other juicy presences that your Zack will interview for you, unraveling their most hidden secrets. - the weasel stopped, tilted his head and put his hand to his ear, as if he were listening to a noise - What? Are reporters unable to enter? Nonsense! Why? Because your Zack has a special pass here, which will allow him to enter and broadcast the exclusive images live only for you, kind viewers! But that's not all, oh no no .. Zack has a very special story for you tonight. A story that began with a bet.

The interior of the villa was opulent, with a large ballroom where there was a long line of tables with food and drinks, more tables and sofas to sit on and still plenty of space to dance. Scourge wrinkled his nose at the feeling of deja vu. He remembered too much of the kind of events his father took him to, to be able to flaunt him and fill him with false hugs.
Amy clasped her hands, her eyes sparkling.

- It's beautiful! Zonic looks at the dance floor! And looks at the dresses! It seems to be in the court of a king.

- I feel like getting drunk.

- Remember I told you. No alcohol.

Scourge sighed.

As soon as they went down the stairs and arrived in the hall, they felt everyone's eyes on them.
Zonic felt like a plucked duck in a pond full of swans. It was clear that they did not belong to that world but if it did not seem important before, now the gap had become evident, heavy.
The sensation lasted a few moments, then Scourge's gaze met those eyes, smiled occasionally and nodded, then took Amy and Zonic by the hand and walked towards the buffet.

- Ignore them. Don't let them know that you are uncomfortable. They are rich and bored, just waiting for someone inferior to target to pass the time.

Zonic remembered that Scourge had lived in an environment like this for years and that he had been a king himself, even if only briefly.

- Hey Zee!

This time it was a blue hedgehog in a suit and tie that attracted his attention. Sonic greeted him from afar, next to him was Sally in a gorgeous blue dress with white gloves and a diamond diadem. Beside them were King Maximilian, the Queen, Elias Acorn, Antoine and Bunny.
Amy's smile faded. They were all beautiful, the jewels and medals glittered on the dresses and crowns.
Even with her prettiest dress, she would never be up to them.
But there were others close to Sonic, which caused Scourge to shiver down his spine.
Jules, Bernadette and his uncle Chuck.

- I'm going to say hello. You two can stay here if you don't feel like it. - Zonic said.

Scourge shrugged - I think I'll go get a drink. - he replied walking away quickly, as if he wanted to disappear into the crowd.

Amy didn't want to face Sonic and Sally, at least not yet, so she followed Scourge, leaving the zoner alone.
Zonic sighed, put on a casual smile and walked over.

- Good evening everyone. Sonic. Sally. - he greeted him, receiving in return the warm greeting of the whole group. He had never met his parents and it was strange to see their Prime version.
He only knew they were both zoners. The NoZone headquarters and offices were among his earliest childhood memories.
One day, his parents didn't come back for him, and officers have been taking care of him ever since. Zone cops became his family.

- Hey Sugar cop! Didn't Amy and Scourge come? - Bunny asked.

- They're actually around here. Between us, they both prefer to keep their distance. - he looked at Sonic - Amy is still a little upset and Scourge ... didn't have a good relationship with his parents.

Sonic and Sally nodded. - I'm sorry Amy found out like that. - Sally said. - She is a dear friend, and Sonic has not been honest with her. - she made a face at the hedgehog. It seemed to Zonic that the two had discussed it for a long time. - I hope we can fix everything, somehow.

Scourge wanted to get drunk, but he couldn't. It would have been easy to drink anyway while Zonic was busy elsewhere but for some reason, he didn't want to.
Maybe because he's not completely wrong. The world needs to see a good guy tonight.
As revolting as it was, Zonic's idea made sense.
He watched Amy help herself to the drinks table and return with a margarita.

- Hey take it easy, Pinky, in an hour I'll see you kissing a column.

- The hedgehog of my dreams, who I have been chasing all my life, got together with a princess and there is no way I can get him back, so I drink a margarita, and you can go to..to..wash yourself!

Scourge laughed. - Ok ok. But since I have to stay sober, you could at least support me. And then you risk getting sad drunk, better have fun than make a scene, right?

- I didn't say I wanna get drunk. I just want a margarita.

- Oh. Er..ok. - Scourge looked at the drinks and found himself choosing a non-alcoholic soda drink that he tasted like lemon.

- So ... are you going to attend that flower show? - he asked, hoping to start a conversation.

She looked down - I don't know. I wanted to participate with a composition but the one I created no longer reflects me. I titled it "True Love".

- Eh..what shit.

- Yeah..

Several minutes passed without speaking.
Scourge looked out with the corner of his eye at Amy as she drank her drink, leaving the imprint of the lipstick on her glass. Her lashes seemed longer and the zircons glistened in her hair.

Say something, damn it!

- Why don't you create another composition?

- What?

- For the flower contest. Create a new composition and join in with that.

Amy seemed to think about it, then she shook her head - I don't know what I could work on.

- I do not know. Maybe something that reflects how you feel right now. - he said. - How..how do you feel now?

Amy took a sip as she thought about it. - Confused. Lost. Bitterness, perhaps. But also .. curious.

- Curious?

- Yes. I had already planned my whole life with Sonic and now that everything has failed there is a huge question mark left in my life. While it scares me, on the other the possibilities are endless. - she looked at him - And you? How are you?

Scourge pulled his ears back, defensively - Me? I .. - he tried to think about it. - Being with Zonic is better than being in prison, but I still don't understand why he chose to get me out. - he scratched the quills, uncomfortably. - At first I thought he had something in mind, a second purpose. A bit like all those who do good, but ..

Amy tilted her head - Do you think that those who do good have ulterior motives?

Scourge shrugged - Isn't it obvious? Otherwise why do it?

- Goodness of mind?

He chuckled - Obviously you're not from Moebius.

- Well, you're in Mobius now.

- Now. Where do you think they will send me once my sentence is served? If I begin to believe that there is good in people, in Moebius they will eat me alive.

It took all of Amy's goodwill to hide her astonishment. - Oh .. sure ..

Oh chaos, he doesn't know anything. He doesn't know that his world has disappeared. Maybe he doesn't even know about the bet. Zonic, when are you going to tell him?

- Tell me, after Sonic, who would be second on the podium?

- Huh? - It was an obvious change of subject but Amy forced a smile, according to the game - I don't know. Shadow I believe.

Scourge blinks in amazement - Stripes? Really? But he's like he has a broom up his ass 24/7!

- Well, Silver is cute. He is sweet and kind. But he's with Blaze. And Knuckles likes Rouge. - she sighed - I'll never find my prince charming.

- Maybe you deserve a king. - Scourge bit his lip realizing he thought aloud

- A king?

- Yeah..well..you know, if Blue chose a princess..maybe he's not your level.

- Are you calling me a queen?

- Maybe .. - he said vaguely, putting his hands in his pockets and walking away.

Amy stood there dazed with the drink in her hand, watching the hedgehog disappear into the crowd.

Oh Chaos, was he flirting? Really?

Scourge was charming and had a funny side, but under no circumstances would she go with a criminal in rehab. She didn't know Scourge that well and his past gave her a thousand reasons not to trust him.
Sure, he looked different from the hedgehog she'd known. He was calmer, less coarse perhaps, but it wasn't enough to make him a decent person. And Amy certainly didn't want to end up in some toxic relationship like the one he and Fiona had.
She moved through the crowd, looking for Zonic.

- Citizens of Mobius, this is where your taxes go! - the camera took a good shot of the ballroom. - If you belong to other dimensions, well good for you. But let's move and see what interesting scenarios await us.

The camera stopped on Sonic and took a close-up of him and Sally.

- Aah ... the princess of Acorn and Mobius' most acclaimed hero are rumored to be having an affair. But aren't contacts between different dimensions forbidden? Of course there are exceptions, but I don't think romance is among them. Is Sonic the Hedgehog above the law? And what about Sally Acorn? Is she too? - Zack smirked at the camera, complete with an effective pause - Maybe yes. Why? Look at who they converse with. That, my dear viewers, is none other than the elite officer of the no zone, Zonic the Zone Cop. See how he converses amiably with those who transgress the law. And speaking of criminals, look over there.

The camera looked at Scourge.

- Isn't that Scourge the Hedgehog, the ex king of the ex anti mobius? Perhaps you will remember him for some facts how unfortunate and maybe you knew he was locked up in prison. But that's not how it went. Officer Zonic got him out and now he lives in his custody. Don't believe it? Do you doubt Zack? So let's go check it out right away.

Zonic saw the jacket-and-shirt weasel approaching accompanied by a floating camera. He had clearly aimed at them, and he was clearly a reporter.

Damn..

He braced himself mentally.
But the weasel passed him to interview Sonic
The zoner took the opportunity to leave.

- Good evening Mr. Sonic! Will you give me an interview?

The hedgehog scratched the quills and forced a smile, clearly trying to hide the annoyance.

- Sure man, as long as it's quick
.
Zack chuckled because the situation wanted him. - The fastest hedgehog in the multiverse never fails. How does it feel to be the hero not only of your own but also of other dimensions?

Sonic smiled, rubbing his nose with his index finger and puffing out his chest. Ego wasn't lacking in the blue hedgehog, and Zack knew it.

- Well, it's nice to see that so many people still believe in me after that catastrophe with Eggman and that other scientist.

- Ah, are you referring to SGW?

- Exactly. I know that many have suffered and have not survived. Even today, I regret not having been fast enough. But I'm lucky to have friends who help and support me.

- Should we fear a second SGW?

Sonic shook his head - No. We personally guard the Chaos Emeralds and my friend Zonic is in charge of watching over the multiverse. Together we can face any threat.

Zack nodded and smiled - Speaking of threats..Scourge the Hedgehog has been spotted in Mobius. Should we worry?

- Scourge? No. He's here on a rehabilitation program. Zonic and I take care of it personally and he wears an inhibitor collar just in case.

- Interesting. And does he think Scourge can become a decent citizen?
Sonic hesitated for a split second but it was clear he had seen enough reporters not to get screwed.

- I trust Zonic. I believe he will do a great job.

- Thank you for his time, Mr. Sonic.

Zonic had moved near the buffet. Maybe he had escaped it.

- Good evening sir!

The zoner almost jumped in fright.

- This is Zack from IDtv. Yor are clearly the famous Zonic!

- Yes I am..

- Would you like to satisfy the curiosity of our viewers? Today, more than ever, everyone is wondering what awaits us. What dangers does the future hold? Are we really safe?

He meant that he wasn't willing to give interviews but he already had the microphone in front of his nose.

- Um ... Of course. Our control systems have been adequately overhauled and updated after the super genesis wave catastrophe. There is no risk that such an event could repeat itself.

Zonic had never dealt with a reporter before and Zack noticed. Oh, he could wallow in that kind of mud for hours.

- Ah, the so-called sgw. A case that, if I remember correctly, struck you in a very personal way. All the newspapers talked about your retirement.

Zonic inhaled - Yes. It hit me hard. But I didn't retire, I just took a rest. Now I am operational again and ready to watch over citizens of all dimension.

- Even those destroyed?

The question caught him off guard - In what sense, sorry?

- We have heard that you welcomed a Moebian into your house. And not just any one.

- Oh. Yes it's correct.

- Is it the supervillain Scourge the hedgehog?

Zonic tensed visibly. - This is confidential information.

- I understand. My apologies. - Zack smirked. - We do know, however, that an investigation is underway for alleged violent methods in the No Zone prison.

Zonic shook his head - They are rumors. There is no ongoing investigation. However, I'm trying to figure out if it's really just a rumor or if it's worth investigating. A zoner shouldn't lower himself to the level of a criminal by raging on him when he is helpless. We are guardians of the law, not butchers.

- I guess the only reliable source of information in this case is the inmates.

- Exactly.

- But they would never talk.

- Not in jail. But I've volunteered for a new rehabilitation program and the person I'm following ... is making progress. I hope that over time he can open up and talk about what happened.

- Mmh .. But isn't Zobotnik himself running the prison? How did you get your custody consent?

- I had to use ... unorthodox methods. Nothing illegal, of course. I can't say much more, I'm sorry.

- Don't worry, Mr. Zonic. Thanks for his time.

The weasel moved away from the crowd, looking for a secluded corner - That's it, kind viewers. Those of you who saw my interview with Zobotnik last night know what Mr. Zonic meant by "unorthodox methods". Well these other interviews confirm it: it's all true. And thanks to the Mobius hero, we also know the identity of Zonic's protege. And now ladies and gentlemen, let's hear what he thinks of it.

Scourge stood behind a column in the shadow of the staircase, her hands in the quills.

- Stupid! Stupid! Why did I say that? Ah she will have understood for sure .. and she will not even give me a chance. Aaaah fool! Stupid!

- Good evening sir.

Scourge looked up at the weasel. The shadow of the columns painted lights and shadows on the purple fur. The camera that had accompanied him all evening was gone.

- What do you want?

- One minute of your time.

- My time costs a hundred rings.

- For real?

- For real.

- It doesn't look like Zonic's rehabilitation is doing you any good, after all ..

Scourge pricked up his ears. - What do you know about it? Who are you?

- A curious person who has many questions, but also many answers.

Scourge chuckled and placed his hands on his hips, only to get serious again.

- Two hundred rings.

Zack rolled his eyes and threw a bag which Scourge caught on the fly. He opened it, counted it and put it in the inside pocket of his jacket. - Well, ask what you want, weasel.

Zack licked his lips - What's your opinion on the bet?

- What bet?

- The one between Zobotnik and Officer Zonic.

- I don't know what the fuck you're talking about.

Zack raised an eyebrow. - Seriously?

- Do you think I'm fooling around? I don't know anything about this bet between Zofucknik and Crome Dome. What did they bet then? Their mothers? And why do you come and tell me, anyway? I don't give a damn what those two do.

- Well it should. Because they bet you.

Scourge started to reply but stopped. - Explain.

Zack started talking and suddenly everything made sense: the warden that allows him to go out, Zonic so willing to help him and be close to him ..

- I want proof, weasel.

- Well, just look at the videos I made tonight.

The camera floated over and Scourge watched on the small screen as Zonic and Blue were talking.

Blue knew that.
BLUE KNEW THAT!

It was that little detail that drove him crazy. And if Sonic knew, Tails, Amy, and everyone else certainly did.

They don't give a damn about me. They are only kind because they try to help Zonic.

He had let his guard down, had allowed himself to hope, and had been wounded.
Again.
Suddenly the ballroom seemed incredibly small to him.
He needed air.
He left Zack and ran to the first balcony, eagerly inhaling the evening air.
He wanted to scream and scream and scream again.
But he couldn't. About one thing Zonic was right: if he messed up he would go back to prison. And he couldn't mess with the collar anyway.
So he swallowed the anger and he took deep breaths, trying to calm down.

All the while he felt like he was inside a soap bubble: the evening passed in front of him, people passed by, danced, spoke to him, but everything was distant and muffled, as if he were sitting in his bubble watching a movie .
He barely remembered exchanging a few words with the President. Zonic didn't seem happy with his monosyllable responses.

Go fuck himself, he remembered thinking.

Then suddenly they were home and Zonic asked him as always if he wanted to sleep next to someone, for nightmares, expecting an obvious answer.
But to his surprise, Scourge said no and walked straight into his room, closing the door behind him.

Chapter Text

Chapter 23: Point of no return

Scourge waited for the house to quieten and sat up in bed. He couldn't sleep, his mind was a whirlwind of thoughts. He felt like he had a block of marble in place of his stomach and a stone stuck in his throat. He wrapped his arms around him, trembling with rage. He felt the warm tears slide down his cheeks without giving him any relief. He had so much anger inside and no way to vent it. He wanted to scream until he lost his voice, but he couldn't. Zonic would have heard. Zonic would ask questions.
And if Scourge had asked for an explanation, the zoner would have thrown off the mask, revealed the bitter truth.
And he wasn't sure he could handle it. Not that evening. That evening he had reached his limit.
Unable to get rid of that overwhelming feeling, he ran into the bathroom, threw his clothes and slipped into the shower, turning on the cold stream in hopes of feeling any other sensation.
It worked. He stood under the shower gradually getting used to the temperature of the water and there he cried with snarls and muffled sobs, knowing that the sound of the water would cover at least those.
He didn't know how long he stayed under the jet of water. When he turned the handle to turn it off, he felt like he'd been there forever.
He wrapped himself in his bathrobe, dried himself well and sat back down on the bed, tired, empty.
With Zonic, things really seemed to be improving. He truly believed that he could taste a bit of Blue's luck, that he knew what it was like not to be the bad guy, to be well-liked, even loved.
He had been deluded, as in the past, when he met Fiona.
Worst of all, he had no idea what to do. He could make things really hard for Zonic, but that meant going back to Zobotnik, undergoing the torture of that butcher until one day his body and his mind would fail.
With the collar on, there was no way to escape. Escape where, then? And with which warp ring?
He knew that Zonic had one. The idea of stealing it and going somewhere remote to start over, tickled him. But sadly there was no such place: it was the downside of being an interdimensional criminal.
His hands were tied, and staying with Zonic wasn't going to get him out of jail forever. He had too big crimes on his shoulders to simply be released after a period of re-education.
After a long time he felt like when he was a child, alone and without any control over his life, without the possibility of reacting or taking revenge for the wrongs he had suffered.

He slept badly, even if without nightmares. He thought he hadn't slept at all. He vaguely remembered waking up several times in the middle of the night and early morning, each time with that overwhelming feeling in his stomach and throat.
He heard someone running down the stairs in a hurry and the sound of the television turning on shortly after, but he didn't care too much. He lay there, not wanting to get up.

Zonic woke to the ringing of his cell phone. He rolled over in bed, picked up the phone and saw that Sonic was calling him.
At nine in the morning.

- Hello ..? - he replied, sleepily.

Sonic's voice was shrill, worried - Zee, turn on the TV and switch to channel thirty-six. Hurry up.

- The gossip channel? What ...

- Too long to explain. We're on TV and it's not good stuff.

As Amy woke up, Zonic walked out of the room, picked up the remote, and turned on the TV.
On the gossip channel there was a report on the Gala the night before, but the discussion was centered on something else.
About him, about Sonic, about Scourge.
And about the bet.

- What the fuck?

-That weasel from yesterday, - Sonic said from the phone still on, - he threw a lot of shit on us and put it all on the air. I have a host of reporters in front of my gate, taking photos and wanting to know why I am allowing a mentally unstable supervillain to remain on the loose under the responsibility of a psychologically fragile zoner.

- What?

- They also talked about you on TV. They said things about your past. About the SGW. Zonic, is that true?

- I..yes..no .. damn!

- Is that why you haven't worked for two years? Who gave you the house? Zee, why didn't you ever tell me?

- I ..- Zonic sighed - They were personal things. Few people know this, and Zobotnik is among them. I think he paid that reporter to discredit us both and get Scourge back.

- They are portraying him as a dangerous psycho, to scare people.

Zonic bit his lip. With public opinion against him, the warden would have had a smooth road.

Come on, think Zonic .. think ..

- Zonic? Are you still there?

- Huh? Yes. Yes I was thinking of a way out.

- As soon as these reporters leave, I'll run to you with Tails. We could use the Tornado, but it would attract a lot of attention. They would see it land and you would find them all in front of the house.

- Yeah. Better not. We update then. I am waiting for you.

He dropped the call and heard Amy's voice behind him. -Zonic? What happens?

The zoner sighed. - You were right Amy. I'm going to Scourge. I'll tell him everything, before he finds out in the worst way possible.

Scourge heard a knock on the door and immediately after Zonic's voice asked if he could enter.
He remained lying down. He meant no, but it would cause suspicion, so he resigned himself to the idea.

- Come in..

He heard the footsteps move in the room - Are you awake? I ... I have things to tell you.

He felt the weight of the zoner settle on the bed as he sat on the opposite side, his back to him.
Reluctantly he got up to sit in his turn

-Well if you have to talk to me you can do it by looking me in the face.

He bit his lip as he heard the poison in his voice. He didn't want Zonic to know that he already knew.

Zonic then turned - Yes. You're right. I ... are you okay?

Scourge was not well, at all. But he pretended to be surprised and shrugged - Er..yes. I slept like shit.

- Nightmares? Why didn't you come to me?

- Well .. - in fact it was suspicious. - It wasn't nightmares.

It was then that he had an idea, that he saw an opportunity and jumped at it.

- The collar ..- he lied - bothered me all night.

Zonic was surprised - Again? Maybe he broke down. I'll have Tails check it out later.

Scourge nodded. - So, what were you supposed to talk to me about?

Zonic took a deep breath and started from the beginning, telling everything. How he felt about seeing him suffer in prison, how he had concluded that the bet was the only way to get him out.
What struck Scourge, however, was the regret and displeasure with which Zonic spoke, as if he were sincerely regretting not speaking earlier.
It wasn't the only thing: unknowingly, in telling about him, Zonic had told him something he didn't know.
Moebius was gone. Fiona, his team, his past, were gone. Not lost but erased, as if it never existed.
As if his life began in prison.

- No ..- he clenched his fists -No!

He felt the collar tighten and instinctively put his hands on it. As he saw it, Zonic spoke the password and it released, ending up on the bed. Scourge was unable to control himself. Wearing the collar would only hurt him.
Zonic caught him in a hug and hugged him tightly.

Do not touch me! Don't touch me piece of shit!

Scourge trembled in Zonic's grip - I'm sorry. I should have told you everything. But I was afraid. I was afraid that you would not listen to me, that you would take it badly and make it difficult for both of us. And then you'd go back to prison.

Lies! Lies! You're making it up. You're making up a story to save your ass, to keep me good, so you can win the fucking bet and then send me back like it's nothing.

- At that moment I thought it was the best choice. Only now I realize that I should have told you everything right away.

No. You should have left me where I was. Now you will regret it.

Zonic took him by the shoulders and straightened him to look him in the eyes.
Scourge's gaze was dead, his neutral expression unreadable. Seeing him like this hurt Zonic's heart.

- I'm gonna fix this mess, okay? I won't let Zobotnik take you. Just trust me one more time, okay?

Scourge nodded.

No bud. Too late. I don't get screwed twice.

Zonic smiled, seeing him nod. - Good. Try to get some more sleep, okay? You don't look good. If it was the collar, you should be better in a few hours. I'll wake you up when Sonic and Tails arrive.

Scourge nodded again and lay down.
As soon as he was alone, he jumped up and smiled.
Without the collar, it was his chance to escape. And he knew a place where no one would look for him.

Chapter Text

Chapter 24: Confessions

It had started raining outside.
A couple hours after talking to Scourge, Sonic and Tails had rung the doorbell and Zonic had greeted them.
He knocked on Scourge's door and when he got no response he thought he was asleep, so he walked in slowly.
He found the room empty and the window wide open.
For an instant his mind told him that it could be in the bathroom but when he found that empty too, he had to accept the bitter reality.
Scourge had fled. And he succeeded because Zonic took off his collar.

- We'll find that idiot and bring him back. - Sonic said.

The zoner however, didn't hear him. He couldn't understand what he was feeling at that moment. A mixture of bitterness and disappointment but more towards himself than towards Scourge.
It was his fault. Scourge had done nothing but react to his misbehavior. The green hedgehog was much more fragile than he let on. The problem was that others wouldn't understand.

- Earth to Zee? You heard me? - Sonic asked, waving his hand in front of the zoner's face to get his attention. - We have to move. If we split up, we can travel around the planet more times and cover more ground.

The zoner, however, didn't react as Sonic had hoped: it seemed hesitant, as if something was holding it back from speeding off with Sonic.

- Go. Please.

Sonic blinks. - But Zee, if you come too we could...

- I cannot. Go.

- What's wrong with you? I'm telling you...

- And I'm asking you to go in my place. - the zoner turned his back on him, clenching his fists.

- But why? I tell you that in two...

- I'd just slow you down.

- What? But it's ridiculous. You and I..

- I can't run! - the Zoner shouted, whirling around, making Amy, Tails and Sonic himself jump.

Zonic took a deep breath - I can't run. Not like you. Not anymore. -he sat on the sofa, hands on his face.

Sonic for once didn't know what to say. In fact he had never seen Zonic run as fast as him, not even once.

- How did it happen?

The zoner shrugged. - I was just starting out. I was younger, more inexperienced and reckless. A gunshot destroyed my knee. I can still run normally but I have been strongly advised not to go at your speeds anymore. This is why I use the car. If I went that fast again, I might end up on crutches for a long time. Maybe forever.

Sonic's ears fell off. - I'm sorry Zee. I didn't know it. Why didn't you ever tell me?

Out of the corner of his eye he saw Amy staring guiltily at the floor.

- Amy, did you know it?

- I asked her to keep it a secret. - said Zonic - In reality there are many things about me that you don't know.

- But why?

- Because you're Sonic Prime. The original. And now I'm really far from looking like you.

A light bulb went off in Sonic's mind at that point - Zee, you're the strongest Sonic I've ever known. Until now I thought you were like me, but knowing that you do everything you do, even after losing speed...the enemies, the challenges you faced, how you always protected everyone... - he smiles, sitting on the table in front of the zoner and placing his hands on Zonic's shoulders - I wish I were as strong as you, Zee. You've lost the thing that made you Sonic, a hero, and yet you haven't stopped being one. I don't know if I could ever get over the loss of speed. - he giggled - After water, it's my greatest fear.

At that point Zonic raised his head - Are you afraid of water? You never..

- I never told you? And what kind of impression did I make as Sonic Prime?

Then it was Zonic who laughed, and Sonic's heart became light.

- I have to teach you to swim..

- You can try. But first we find the green idiot. I search the globe, you, Amy and Tails think of a way to buy time: if Scourge is around, and someone spots him, it won't take long before word reaches the zoners.

Chapter Text

Chapter 25: Hide and Seek

Sonic returned home after yet another tour, sweaty and muddy. He walked straight to the refrigerator without saying a word, pulled out a can of soda, and drank it all in one gulp.

Zonic got up from the sofa and went after him into the kitchen - Found anything?

The hedgehog finished his drink and shook his head. - Nothing. I checked out woods, caves, Eggman's old bases, I went through all of Mobius over and over again. Nothing.

Zonic felt the ground slipping beneath his feet - Do you think it's...

- Do you still have your warp ring?

Zonic ran upstairs to his room and moved a painting on the wall, revealing the safe.
For a moment he thought he had the solution but his warp ring was still in there.

- Mine is here. - Sonic said, taking it out of the quills. - Are there any others around?

- No. Only you and I have one.

- So Scourge is still on Mobius. -Sonic hid the ring between the quills again-We just need to understand where he got himself.

- Are there any places you haven't checked?

- Well...other people's homes. The inhabited ones. And, well…the bottom of the oceans.

Zonic took a deep breath, pinching the space between his eyebrows. He felt a bad headache growing so he decided to go to the bathroom and open that locked drawer, to nip it in the bud.
Tails and Sonic looked at each other, but neither commented.
In the bathroom, Zonic noticed that someone had forced open the drawer: Scourge's medicine was gone, along with most of the zoner's supply.

- Damn Scourge... - he hissed, but he was relieved to know that the hedgehog had remembered to heal himself. He was really worried about finding it in bad shape.

Cream carried a basket of clothes to wash, carefully going down the stairs to the basement and reaching the washing machine to load it as her mother had taught her.

- Hey..

The bunny jumped. The basement had always scared her a little, but she was starting to doubt the existence of its ghosts.
Until that moment.

- Hey Cream..here..behind the boxes..

That voice, however, seemed familiar, and not very ghostly. The bunny peeked behind the boxes and almost jumped back in surprise.

- Mr. Scourge?

- Shh!

- You remembered my address! Have you come to visit me?

- Lower your voice... and don't tell your mother I'm here.

- Huh? Why not?

- Because I'm kind of...hiding. And if she finds me she'll tell Zonic. And he'll get really pissed off, he'll send me back to where I'm from and I don't want to go back. But I don't want to be with him either.

- Why not?

-Because he is like everyone else.

- But Mr. Zonic is always kind. He was kind to you too.

-Yes, but he did it because it was in his best interest to treat me well. In reality he never gave a damn about me. - he looked at the bunny - He made this kind of bet with the guy from where I was before. That either he would make me one of the good guys or he would lose his job. So he was only good to me so he could win the fucking bet and keep his job.

Cream was saddened by those words - Oh. This is not a nice thing to do.

- Yeah.. - Scourge's ears drooped.

- But... Mr. Zonic doesn't do these things. There must be an explanation...

- The explanation is that people aren't always what you think, little girl.

- I know. I learned it from my dad.

Scourge chuckled - Was yours a piece of shit too?

- Don't say bad words..- the little bunny looked down, only to look up again, determined again - Mr. Zonic isn't like that, I'm sure of it!

- I was sure too. I was sure about a lot of people. I was wrong.

- Well, I'm not wrong!

- Well, continue to believe it. Just don't tell him I'm here. Do not tell anyone. - he looked at her - You're the only one I can trust. Please.

Cream looked at him puzzled. She knew it wasn't right, that she should warn Mom and Mr. Zonic, but Mr. Scourge looked really sad and scared.

- Okay Mr. Scourge. I won't say anything.

Time passed in a sort of limbo marked only by the leftovers Cream brought him. He only dared to leave the basement at night or when Vanilla was out of the house and even then he was very careful not to leave any traces.
It was no different from prison and he was fine with it: he still felt like a criminal for involving that little girl and her mother in his messes.
Cream kept him updated on what was going on but after a while Scourge stopped asking her what day it was. From what he understood, Zonic and Sonic were looking for him everywhere, it seems even with the help of Amy and Tails.
Cream would occasionally try to convince him to come back to Zonic.

- I stopped trusting him. I stopped trusting everyone else.

- Me too? - asked the bunny, with such innocence that it surprised him and left him speechless for a moment.

- No. If I didn't trust you, I wouldn't be hiding here.

- Then trust me when I tell you that Mr. Zonic is good and that you should go back to his house.

-You do not understand.

- Then talk to my mom!

Talk to Vanilla. It could have been an option, like a sentence. He couldn't expose himself and yet, he couldn't stay in that basement forever.
The medicines were almost finished, that was another problem. He didn't know how long he had to take them. Were they still needed? Or not? Or were they the kind that needed to be phased out gradually? He had no idea.
He had trusted Cream, should he trust Vanilla?
Or should he simply disappear and continue on the path he had chosen?
He hadn't chosen that path, and he was tired of going down it, tired of continuing to run away.
He decided that he could give it one last try, with the shred of hope he had left.
He informed Cream and saw her happy, really happy.

She took his hand and pulled him towards the stairs - Don't worry Mr. Scourge. It will all be fine.

He would have liked to have her innocence.
He went up the stairs and into the living room. Vanilla sat in the armchair reading a book. She looked up from the pages and Scourge noticed her calm expression change to shock and then alarm, as she reached for the phone on the coffee table.

- Please don't! - he exclaimed, stretching his arm forward. He must have sounded desperate, because she stopped and looked at him for a moment before Cream caught her attention.

- Mom, Mr. Scourge is hiding here with us. He says that Mr. Zonic is bad and that he doesn't want to go back to him. I don't know if it's true but I told him he could stay here. - the bunny looked away, still holding the hedgehog's hand. - The teachers didn't believe me when I said I didn't want to go home with dad.

Vanilla approached and looked at her daughter, then gave her a sweet smile, placing her hand on her head.

-I understand, darling. Don't worry. Now go upstairs, okay? Mr. Scourge and I need to talk about grown-up things.

- Are you angry?

- No, darling. I understood why you helped Scourge.

- And you're angry with him?

Vanilla thought for a moment before answering, then - Not yet.

Chapter Text

Chapter 26: Tired

Scourge held onto the cup of tea, concentrating on the ticking of the clock and keeping his gaze fixed on the liquid.
Vanilla sat down across from him.

- Cream is a good little girl. She sees the good in everyone. She is very sensitive, and very intelligent.

Scourge tightened his grip on the cup.

- Her father...my ex-husband...was a monster. He beat her. He beat us. - the rabbit twirled the spoon gracefully, stirring the tea in her cup - We ran away, and moved to Green Hill. It was a good place to start over. Cream was very shy and struggled to trust others, but then she met Sonic, Amy and Tails, and little by little, her smile returned.

- Why are you telling me these things?

-Because Cream understood what you carry inside you, from the first day she saw you. She saw herself in you. This is why she wants to help you and be close to you. She believes in you. She firmly believes that you are not a bad person and she knows that you can prove it.

- I'm sorry you got involved. But I didn't know who else to turn to. They wouldn't have understood.

- Why do you say that?

Scourge looked up - Because..of Sonic. You all are so…connected to him. You support him, you admire him..

- So what?

- Sonic hates me. He thinks I'm scum that deserves to be behind bars. And he is always in the middle, for everything. - he looked down at the tea, looking at himself in the red liquid. - And he is loved, and admired. You are on the same wavelength so..if he has a certain opinion of someone..even his friends..

Vanilla nodded - You didn't ask Amy or Tails for help, because you feared they would warn Sonic without listening to you?

Scourge nodded. Vanilla didn't feel like blaming him: Sonic had always had great influence on her closest friends, and his esteem for him was amply justified.
There remained one more point to clarify.

- Zonic called me a little while ago. He's really worried about you. - she said, changing the subject.

- Worried about losing your job, you mean.

-He has already lost it.

That revelation floored him - How..

- You stayed in my basement for two months. Zonic lost his job last week and now the search is in the hands of the zoners. - she explained - Yet every time he calls, he only talks about what would happen to you if they found you before him.

Scourge gripped the cup and continued to stare at the table, ears flat on his head.
It was worse than he thought. If before Zonic was looking for him to bring him home, now the zoners were looking for him to bring him back to jail.

- I've known Zonic for a long time. If he lied to you, it wasn't to hurt you. - the rabbit reached out her hand to touch Scourge's hand - He was trying to protect you and..

- I can not handle it anymore. - Scourge said, moving away from the touch of others.

Vanilla waited.
Scourge continued speaking, looking down at his hands.

- Imagine growing up in a world where you mean nothing, not even to your parents. - he raised his gaze - Imagine this world where everyone is ready to turn their back on you and friends are friends as long as it is convenient to be. Where you have to constantly push yourself to stay afloat and you can't show weaknesses, because they will use them to destroy you. You grow up like this, like a criminal, and you end up in prison but deep down you don't care, because it's a hell like any other. - his hand touched the handle of the cup and his gaze fell on it - Then suddenly, someone arrives, who pulls you out of the sea of shit in which you are drowning, who treats you with kindness, who shows that he wants to help you, who defends you from the assholes who just think you're rubbish. - the blue eyes rested on Vanilla, clear and serious - You know that you can't trust, you know that people do what's right for them and that they're kind for a reason.. but that bastard continues to prove you wrong, to make you doubt.. and then you start to hope that maybe everyone in the world isn't a piece of shit, that maybe you were born in the wrong place and that elsewhere things can be different, better. - he sighed - So you start to trust. You choose to trust. You choose to give yourself the luxury of being weak, of being yourself, and you show him the side of you that you've never shown to anyone. - he clenched his fists - Then one day, you discover that he only told you lies, that he too was kind to you because it suited him, that he is like everyone else. That there isn't something for you out there, that there isn't anyone who gives a damn about you, that you are..you are..- he ran his hands through his quills, grabbing them and pulling them. - ..that you are alone. That you can only count on your own strength... and that you are tired. - he raised his head, observing Vanilla's form, blurry due to the tears that threatened to fall.
- I knew the best thing for me was to return, I'm not stupid. But I didn't make it. I didn't have the strength to go back there, to face Sonic, Amy, Tails and...him. I just wish... I wish I had never tried to hope for something about myself.

He felt the chair move and a moment later, Vanilla was hugging him and he had neither the strength nor the will to move away. He simply closed his eyes and felt the caresses on his head.

- Darling, don't say those things. Don't regret having placed your trust in Zonic. He is a good person, who really wants to help you. But now answer this question: if Zonic had told you the truth right away, how would you have reacted?

Scourge opened his eyes. A spark of understanding in his mind.

- I would have made his life hell. Maybe I would have run away at the first opportunity.

- Well. And now, knowing you, if you had been in Zonic's place, would you have told the truth straight away?

Scourge thought carefully, then nodded. - Yes. Better to get things straight right away. I would have said to my prison self like, "I want to help you, but to do that I had to do this thing. Now let's play this game together."

- I understand. - she said. - I have a guest room if you want to rest a bit, but I have to tell Zonic where you are.

-No! If he finds out, he'll come here, he'll want to talk, and Sonic will be there, because Sonic always has to stick his finger in the middle and point the finger at me and...

- Do not worry about it. - Vanilla interrupted him - I'll talk to them and if Sonic gets in the way I'll tell him to stay out of it.

- Can't you tell him tomorrow?

- Tomorrow? - Vanilla looked at the clock: it was late afternoon. She would have to prepare dinner soon.

- Please. I'm not telling you not to say it, I just... just want to stay calm until tomorrow. Please..

Vanilla tried to argue but Scourge's gaze was pleading with her, so she decided that for the boy's sake she would keep quiet until the following day.

- Okay dear. Tomorrow. But you remain hidden upstairs in the guest room. I'll bring you something to eat later.

Scourge nodded and she watched him go upstairs, then she looked at the phone: she could call Zonic anyway but she didn't feel like betraying Scourge and destroying the little trust he still had towards others.
She also had the feeling that it wasn't very safe to talk on the phone anymore.

Zobotnik was beaming: he had just received the notification of dismissal of a certain zoner.
With Zonic out of the way, all that was left for him to do was consolidate his position, prove that his method of re-education was truly effective.
To do that, he needed to get someone out. Someone with several charges, to show to the media as a new good guy.
He didn't have anyone on Scourge's level but looking through the inmate files he had seen a promising name.

Small entered the Warden's office, escorted by eight guards and handcuffed.

- Warden, we brought him here as you wanted. - said one of the guards.

- Very good. Now leave us alone.

The guards hesitated, confused.

- I said get out! - urged the Warden and in the end, he was satisfied.

- I hope it's important..- said Small - They made me take the stairs to come here. I hate climbing stairs.. it makes me hungry..

- It's important. In fact, I'm here to tell you that you won the lottery, Small.

Scourge has escaped, Zonic is finally out of the way, and all I need now is to turn a deranged social reject into a good guy.

The cat grinned - I can play good boy...for a while.

- Well, you will have to be a model citizen, at least in everyone's eyes. What you do while they're not looking... I don't care.

- Ooh..I like this.

- There's more: to deal the final blow to Zonic, you won't just have to be a good citizen. You will have to join the Zone Cops to capture Scourge.

The cat's smile widened and Zobotnik felt a shiver run down his spine.
There was something incredibly wrong with that smile. He was the grin of a deranged person, of a dangerous and violent mental patient.

- Dead or alive?

- In theory, you should get him alive. But you know how it is, if he resists, if he pushes you, he might force you to use forceful methods, and in cases like these, accidents can happen.

The cat's yellow teeth were shining - I can't wait to see Snot again..

- Then it's decided. - Zobotnik cut in, suddenly anxious to get rid of that prisoner. He pressed a button, calling the guards - I'll arrange it. If you do your part, you will have a lot to gain.

Chapter Text

Chapter 27: Apologies

The first thing Scourge did was take a long, hot shower.
After two months in the basement, he smelled worse than a goat rolled in a landfill.
There were only women's and kids' bubble baths in there, but he could get over it.
Once he was done and his clothes were fresh out of the dryer, he threw himself onto the guest room bed, determined to enjoy every moment of calm before the storm he would face tomorrow.
After a while, someone knocked on the door and opened it.

Scourge propped himself up on his elbows - Hey Cream.

- I talked to Mom and she said she's not mad at you. - the bunny jumped onto the bed while Scourge sat cross-legged. - Look what I got from Zonic's house. - she said, handing him a sketchbook that he immediately recognized.

- My sketchbook..

The bunny nodded and smiled - Can you draw me another picture, Mr. Scourge?

Scourge flipped through the album. Inside were all his drawings. Who knows if anyone had seen them in those two months? Probably not.
He felt sad at the sight of the drawings about Amy. Who knows if he had a chance with her?
If he had, he had certainly blown it completely.

He moved his gaze to the smiling bunny and couldn't help but smile slightly - Bring me the pencils.

Cream immediately jumped out of bed and ran out of the room to get everything he needed.
Once again, drawing brought him peace, it allowed him to isolate himself from the world and focus only on the lines of the pencil. That evening he forgot for a while that he was a fugitive.

The next morning, hunger pangs woke him up. He looked at the clock in the room and it was still early. He didn't know if Vanilla was already awake and if she had already spoken to Zonic, or if Zonic was already downstairs and the others were there too.
There was something comforting about staying in the room: the dim light and the drawn curtains gave him the feeling that time was frozen and would start again the moment he stepped outside.
His stomach, however, didn't agree.
He got out of bed and opened the door just enough to let in a sliver of light.
He strained his ears: nothing. No sound came from downstairs.
He tiptoed downstairs. The house was silent. Maybe Vanilla and Cream had gone out?
He headed toward the kitchen and found some sandwiches, some orange juice, and a note.

"Darling, we went grocery shopping. I left these for you.
Vanilla."

Darling.
Hearing himself called that name continued to warm his heart.
He smiled slightly.
He quickly finished the sandwiches and orange juice. He had just put everything in the dishwasher when he heard the front door open.
Without thinking he went to the door, thinking of helping out with the shopping bags. It was the least he could do, since Vanilla had done him a big favor.
He froze in place when he saw Amy with the two bunnies, with a bag in each hand.

-Oh my.. - Vanilla muttered before looking at the frozen hedgehog - Amy, dear, this is the important thing I had to tell you today.

-Hey..- Scourge said shyly.

The shopping bags fell and were replaced by the two-handed piko piko hammer.

-Oh shit!

- You! You bastard! You crook and a scoundrel!

Scourge ran around the living room, trying to dodge the hammer blows. Amy was surprisingly skilled at handling it in a small space, stopping it just in time to avoid smashing furniture and ornaments.
The only one who wanted to smash was Scourge.

- We've been looking for you for weeks!

Scourge ducked, dodging a horizontal blow aimed at his head. - I can explain!

- Zonic lost his job because of you! - the hammer stopped an inch from the floor and the hedgehog's feet - After everything he did for you!

Scourge jumped, dodging a sweep.

- You ungrateful! Bastard! Selfish! Liar!

With each insult, Scourge narrowly dodged a hammer blow, until Vanilla stepped between the two.

- Amy, please, I would like my living room to remain intact.

- He was staying with you the whole time? And you didn't say anything?

- No. I found him yesterday. Now please calm down and wait for the others, so I can explain the story once and for all.

Amy looked at Vanilla, and Scourge hiding behind her.

- Okay, but don't think this is the end of it! - she said to the hedgehog, as the hammer disappeared.

Silence fell as they waited for the others. The only sound was the ticking of the clock.
Scourge was on the couch, wishing he could become invisible.
Finally the doorbell rang and the ex-Zoner, Tails and Sonic entered the house.
Scourge barely had time to stand up before a blue flash hit him and a punch thrown at high speed sent him flying against the wall.

- You're a piece of shit, you know that? - Sonic said - Every time someone tries to save you from falling into a pit, you drag them down with you and ruin their life!

Scourge gritted his teeth as he stood up, clutching his chest as if he had been stabbed. He thought of Amy, and Cream.
Will he ruin their lives if he stays there too long? Cream and Vanilla are already in trouble because they hid a wanted man and the longer he stays the worse it will get.
Sonic's voice tears him away from those thoughts and he realizes he is still on his knees between the pieces of plaster of the wall.
Now he has also destroyed their house.

- Zonic should turn you in now, so he can get his job back. That would be the only good thing to come from your fucking life!

- Sonic!

The blue hedgehog fell silent and looked at the zoner behind him.

- I'm here. And I think I can speak for myself. - the zoner walked past the hedgehog, went to Scourge and offered him his hand to help him up.

Scourge reluctantly accepted it and once he was standing, the zoner said - I want to talk to Scourge in private, so we're going upstairs now and whatever comes of it, you're going to accept it. - he looked at Sonic as he said it - No more grudges, barbs, threats or any other bullshit. Ok?

Scourge followed him upstairs to the guest room, closing the door behind him. He stood against the door while the zoner turned his back to him, silent and with his arms crossed.

He bit his lip - Look, I..

- I'm sorry.

Scourge stopped - What?

The zoner turned around - I'm sorry. - he repeated - I was wrong not to tell you about the bet right away, I should have involved you and explained the situation. But I was afraid of how you would react, how you would behave in the new situation. I thought not telling you would make things easier, I wanted to wait until you started to trust me, then I would tell you everything. But then more and more time passed and it was harder and harder. I was going to tell you but then there was the party and that weasel reporter. - Zonic shook his head - I'm sorry. I'm sorry you found out like that but I was tired of seeing you suffer all that violence, that torture. The bet was the only way I found to get you out of there.

Scourge couldn't believe his ears. He had messed up everything, he had gotten the only person who helped him in trouble, it was his fault, and yet it was Zonic who was apologizing.

He couldn't stand it.

- Don't talk bullshit! - he shouted making the zoner jump - I'm the one who ruined everything. I am the idiot! Sonic is right, I always mess up everything, I ruin everyone's lives, I always do the wrong thing.

- Now you're the one talking bullshit. You never would have run away if I had made things clear right away. I'm sorry.

- Stop it! Stop saying you're sorry! - Scourge felt tears stinging his eyes - This is wrong! This is all wrong! I should be the one begging you to forgive me!

- It's my fault you ran away!

- It's my fault you're not a zoner anymore! But now I'm here and you..you could have it all back..if you hand me over to them.

Zonic saw the fear in Scourge's eyes. He could tell, the green hedgehog could already see himself behind bars with Small or in the extractor. Back there in that life of torture.
He wouldn't let that happen.

- I took you out of prison to get you away from the torture. What makes you think I want to send you back there?

Those words surprised Scourge - I made you lose your job.

- So what? You think I'd throw away everything I believe in to get it back? You think I'd feel better getting revenge in such a petty way? That I'd be happy to hear you scream again?

Scourge slid down to the floor, feeling a heavy weight slip off his shoulders. But with relief came shame: he didn't deserve a friend like Zonic, loyal, honest, good.
Zonic was a loyal person, a good person. Like Cream. Like Vanilla.
Like Amy.
And he felt like an elephant in a room full of porcelain vases.
On Moebius, it was rare if not impossible to find someone like that, someone who felt genuine affection, a friend, a support, someone you could be yourself with.
And now that he had them, he was terrified of bumping into them, dropping them, and watching them shatter into a thousand pieces.

- So... what do we do now?

Zonic knelt down to look him in the eye. Scourge saw the determination in his face.

- I have a plan.

Chapter Text

Chapter 28: old wounds

Leaving the room, Scourge followed Zonic, noting how he leaned on the banister and avoided putting too much weight on his left leg.
He wondered if he was hurt, if Eggman had attacked again.
Zonic exuded authority but Scourge had only seen him express it a few times, at least in a Sonic way.
He acted like he didn't have their power and Scourge wondered why.

Zonic gritted his teeth as he took the last step. His knee wouldn't let him be. His other old injuries were protesting too.
He cursed himself for not having driven there, and all that walking around looking for Scourge was starting to take its toll.
He scouted places Sonic couldn't run, and most of them were places you couldn't drive. And when Amy had warned him that Vanilla was looking for them, he was just on his way.
He sat down on the couch and sighed in relief. He really wanted to smoke, and the thought made his stomach turn in shame.
In an instant, they were all around the living room table.
They were looking at him.
He had gotten used to being a leader.
But there were days when he wanted to be one of those waiting for orders.
At least, it would have saved him from the headache.
He tried to concentrate, despite the pain.

- So... like Scourge said, I have a plan. - he began to explain. - I'm not a Zoner anymore, but I'm still in contact with Zector and Zespio. And a few days ago, Zespio told me something worrying: it's not just the Zoners who are hunting Scourge. Zobotnik has started his own rehabilitation program. He's put a prisoner on probation to help the Zoners catch Scourge.

- Okay. - Sonic said - Who are we dealing with?

- Small.

Scourge went white, but Sonic held back a laugh - Really? Anti-Big? To catch Scourge?

Zonic sighed. Amy noticed his permanent frown and was looking at him with a mixture of concern and curiosity. Her gaze went to his left leg, which the zoner was holding out - Apparently. Small is a real pain but Zector says he's toeing the line, too much so. He does everything the zoners tell him to do, and he's always hated them deeply.

- So you think it's all a farce? - Sonic asked.

Zonic shook his head - I know. Zespio heard them. This story seemed strange to him too so he camouflaged himself in Zobotnik's study and listened to their conversations. The problem is that his word is not enough evidence to frame them.

- And he couldn't record them while they were talking? - Sonic asked.

Zonic twitched his ears - He camouflages himself. His phone doesn't. And I don't need to tell you that a floating phone in a room is very suspicious.

Outside the sky had clouded over and started to thunder.
Damn humidity.
Scourge's ears were ringing as he shook feverishly. All he could think about was Small, free and ready to hunt him down.
He felt his vision blur but shook his head. No, he couldn't let himself pass out. He had to think, he had to breathe.
His thoughts were mixing and boiling in the cauldron that was his brain. Thinking made things worse, so he stopped and concentrated only on breathing, no longer paying attention to the muffled voices around him.
He was afraid, so afraid of Small. He couldn't bear the thought of seeing him again, of having to face him. Just thinking about it brought everything back, dulled his senses and made his legs feel like jelly to the point that he feared he wouldn't be able to do anything even without the collar.
Come to think of it, the greatest weapon Small had against him was his fear, one instilled and cemented over the years, to the point of almost becoming a phobia.
Small was good at scaring, he was good at exploiting the terror he created in others, dismantling their spirits piece by piece.
He couldn't let him control him like this anymore.
He noticed the muffled voices calling him, so he opened his eyes again.

Zonic was watching him worriedly, but Scourge saw that he looked pained.
- Are you okay?

Scourge felt dizzy and exhausted, but he nodded. He imagined his mind like a tightrope walker balancing on a tightrope over a chasm. He kept going but feared he would fall at every gust of wind.
But he had managed not to pass out. A small victory.

- So what's the plan? - Sonic asked.

- Expose those two. Prove that it's all a farce and that Small is not at all rehabilitated. This... - Zonic took a breath. His head throbbed. - .. will push the higher-ups in the No Zone to investigate the Warden and the prison. Then everything will come out, and it will be such a mess that Zobotnik will have to resign. And the prison will go back to being run in an ethical manner.

- So... you'll make me go back there? - Scourge asked.

Damn it again.
Zonic considered his answer carefully. - I can ask to continue with my experimental method but... Even if you had to go back there, it would be different. No more abuse and torture, there would be better food, more cleaning, health checks and..

- I don't care! I'm not going back there!

Zonic tried to stay calm - Scourge, listen..

- No? Why should I help you if you throw me back in?

- Because if you do, they will take it into account. They will reduce your sentence and they might even let me continue with my experimental rehabilitation. - he looked at the green hedgehog. It was unlikely that they would put him back in, with Zouge's report and a PTSD diagnosis on his back. - Please, trust me.

He saw the concern in Scourge's eyes and had the feeling that was what made him give up.

- Ok..

Zonic thanked him mentally and nodded - My house.. is not safe for you. I know they are watching it. So you will stay here with Cream, and Vanilla. Sonic, I am counting on you to protect them.- he said, before risking to bend his knee.
He hadn't gotten as good as he'd hoped, but that wouldn't stop him - So, I'm going home.

But when he tried to get up, his knee betrayed him, his ribs and temples throbbed, and he found himself with one leg on the ground and his hand on the coffee table, in a vain attempt to not put weight on his bad knee.
- Fuck!

They were all around him, worried.

- I'm fine.. - he reassured them.

- Yeah, right. - Sonic replied, letting Zonic's arm slide around his back to help him up.

Zonic found he couldn't put weight on his left leg.
He couldn't go home alone in that condition.
He found that Scourge had moved the coffee table and was now supporting him on the other side.
Zonic reassured him - I can do it. Let's go.
He was waiting for Sonic to help him get home, but instead they were sitting on the couch.
He looked at the blue hedgehog, annoyed - Prime, this is not the time.

- It is. - to his surprise, both Sonics on his sides said the sentence in unison, and then looked at each other embarrassed.

- Is it your knee, right? Does it hurt? - Sonic asked.

Zonic snorted - They'll get suspicious if they don't see me come back.

- I don't care.

- Prime..

- Prime my ass. Now you sit down and rest.

And he was back on the couch, this time lying down.
Sonic had learned to read the zoner by working closely with him in those two months.
Zonic was a pillar. He never wavered. No matter how many obstacles he found in his path. Zonic always completed every task he was given. He was resolute, effective, an expert fighter with a lot of experience behind him.
But his main characteristic was his resistance.
When Zonic gave up, it was because something was wrong. Something had been wrong with him for days, weeks, or even months.

- How long have you been in pain?

Zonic didn't answer. And Sonic crossed his arms.

-Zee..

Zonic looked away - From the fight with Eggman.

Sonic's eyes widened - What? But it was more than..

- I know.

- Scourge and I ended up in the hospital!

- I know!

- Didn't you get treatment too? I saw you take a couple of bad hits on that robot.

- Nothing serious. - he smiled slightly, trying to reassure them - And, really, they're mostly old wounds that sometimes come back to bother me. I'll be fine.

And yet, he was worried. There were wounds that didn't cause scars, and that dated back to an event that he preferred to bury deep in his mind.
His body had faced so many fights and so much effort, and it had always recovered.
But that event hadn't only affected his body.
It had broken his spirit. It had terrified him, filled him with doubt and fear. It had taken him a long time to heal, and his body still bore the scars of that terrible mission.
They had helped him, given him support and care, because he was a zoner.
But now? Now that he was a civilian like everyone else, would they leave him alone?
A terrible pain suddenly struck his side. He curled up in a ball, coughing, while in the back of his mind, a voice said that this wasn't just the pain of old wounds.
This was what had haunted him for years, what had given him nightmares, what had scared him like never before.

- Zonic, your leg!

Scourge sounded scared from his tone.
Zonic looked: instead of a swollen knee, his leg looked different from the knee down.
He could see the couch through it. It looked almost ethereal.

- Oh Gaia..

He looked at Vanilla and Amy. They looked at him in fear, as if they knew.
And indeed, they did.
He was counting on them. He hoped they were fast.

- Zonic, what's going on?

Sonic was beside him, terrified. Not that he and Scourge were any better.

- I'm.. fading.

- How? - Sonic asked

- What the fuck do you mean you're fading? - Scourge yelled.

- I.. - he started but a strong pain in his side and shoulder made him grit his teeth.
He discovered that they were also transparent like his leg.
He started to get really scared.

Scourge pushed Sonic away and grab Zonic's good shoulder - Zee, tell me what I can do! Is there something I can do? There has to be something!

He had never seen Zonic so scared. His gaze was fixed on his leg and his arm on his transparent shoulder.
Scourge put a hand on his cheek and pushed him to look at him.

- Tell me what to do!

That gesture broke the block in his brain. Zonic started to think again.
Sonic had come around and was now standing at the height of his legs.

He fixed his gaze on him. - You have to send a message to Shadow Prime. Now. - he gritted his teeth, in the grip of another pang and found himself with his head against Scourge's chest.
The hedgehog was holding him up, hugging him.

- Ok I sent the message. -Sonic said. - I told him to come right away.

- No! - he realized he had used a tone too high, in the grip of pain. - There's a code.. - he said. - Write.. SOS..73A

- What does that mean..

- WRITE IT!

- Ok.. - Sonic typed quickly - Done!

Zonic didn't hear him.
- Now I know what they felt.. - he said, clenching his teeth again - Now I know..

- What do you mean? - Sonic asked.

- You're rambling Zee. Stay with me! - Scourge shook him. He met his gaze and saw an all too familiar terror. The same one he felt every day before he got out of prison.
He could tell that Zonic was gathering every ounce of mental strength to keep himself calm, to not fall prey to the terror that was consuming him.

- Hey Zee, do you remember that time I almost fell off the roof? - he said and chuckled - I almost broke my neck cleaning your shitty gutters.

Zonic twitched his ears and gave a weak smile.

- And do you remember when I had nightmares? You stayed over with me, even though it was embarrassing as shit, and the next day was a war of jokes and double meanings?

This time Zonic chuckled. He had understood what Scourge was trying to do and clung to it desperately. - I remember.. I asked you.. if you wanted sausages for dinner.. and you said.. "I don't know about you but I'm straight."..

- And you threw the package at my head.

Zonic laughed and then coughed - That was.. a shitty joke..

Scourge saw the blood on the hand Zonic had covered his mouth with and bit his lip - Yeah.. I deserved it.

Zonic saw Vanilla in the kitchen doorway and from her expression he knew: they wouldn't help him. Not this time.
He wasn't a zoner anymore.
He would slowly dissolve, like so many victims before him.
And there was nothing he could do to reverse the process.
The realization terrified him, sending him into a deep pit of despair.
He growled as he endured another stab of pain.
His thigh was now transparent, too, and he could barely make out his leg below the knee. It was still there, but it wouldn't last long.
The area on his side and shoulder had merged, extending to his arm and halfway down his chest.
He was starting to feel cold.
He was starting to breathe hard, because one of his lungs was disappearing. And panic didn't help.
He remembered how he had given those people peace, keeping them from watching themselves die by slowly fading away, sparing them a long journey of despair.
But he couldn't ask them to do something like that for him.
The only thing he was grateful for, was that Cream wasn't there. She had gone with Big and the other kids from the neighborhood to play around.
He would spare her that spectacle.
He heard Scourge yelling something about Shadow being late and Sonic saying that he wasn't seeing messages.

- So call him, damn it!

Sonic had tried, just after sending the messages, but he hadn't received a response.
He saw Zonic shaking with a new pang and his empty look told him that he was about to give up.
That he was sure they had abandoned him.
So he called and called and called without respite until..

- What do you want hedgehog? I'm in a meeting. - Shadow's tone was low and annoyed.

- Read the messages, you idiot!

Shadow ended the call and shortly after, Sonic saw the double blue check appear.
It took five seconds.
Then Knuckles broke down the door, followed by Shadow.

- Where is he?

The hedgehog in the GUN uniform went straight from Scourge to Sonic.
Before they could speak he pushed them away forcefully.

After a moment of shock, he looked at Knuckles - Is he still recoverable?

The echidna quickly looked at the hedgehog's body. - Yes. But we have to hurry.

Shadow pulled a vial with a black liquid out of his spikes, uncorked it and made Zonic drink the contents.
They were saving him.
He would survive.
Once again.
His mind regained clarity.
Knuckles made room, took the master emerald from his neck and enlarged it, placing it as close as possible.

- The.. - Zonic tried to speak - my house..they're watching..

He held out his hand. Shadow squeezed it. - Leave it to me.

- Scourge..they don't..must..

- Leave it to me.

The hedgehog's grip was strong, reassuring.
At that point, Zonic gave in and fell asleep in the light of the master emerald.

- I'll leave him to you. - he said to Knuckles, then the GUN agent turned his blood-red gaze on Sonic and Scourge. - You two. In the kitchen.

They followed him without a word, as Knuckles lifted Zonic and placed him on the carpet with his wounds towards the master emerald, kneeling on the other side, holding his hands over the hedgehog and closing his eyes.

Chapter Text

Chapter 29:  The Case 73A

In the kitchen, Amy and Vanilla had a guilty look on their faces.

- Can someone explain what the fuck happened? - Scourge yelled.

- This is classified information. - Shadow said.

- I don't give a damn! - the hedgehog yelled - He was dying in my arms! You have to tell me what the fuck happened!

Shadow clenched his fists and his gaze pinned the green hedgehog - I don't have to tell you anything.

- Shads, please. - Sonic took a step forward - We all love Zee. We want to help him.

Shadow seemed hesitant - I can't..

- Tell them Shad! If GUN causes trouble, blame me!

Shadow turned towards the living room - They'll kill you sooner or later!

- Oh no, what a mess! - Knuckles' sarcasm was palpable. - You're right, after all, they can always go to Angel Island and ask to another echidna guardian.. Oh wait.. - he chuckled.

Shadow had never seen anyone joke about being the last one. The last of his kind. The last one to keep the knowledge of it. All that remained between the echidnas and oblivion.
His strength of spirit always impressed him. Yet he knew it was built on a mountain of despair.
Irony was his shield. If it was something he couldn't change, he might as well laugh about it, instead of sinking into anguish.
Knuckles had taught him many things, but most of all, Shadow had learned from him to get up again.
Every time the pain of his past dragged him down, Knuckles was there, offering him a new perspective, helping him find peace.
And for some unknown reason, he always managed to find the right words.
That echidna could get under his skin at least as much as Rouge. Maybe even more.

- If you don't tell them, then I will. But now I have to do something over here so.. It would be nice of you not to make me do all the work, since we're a team.

Shadow sighed and massaged his temples. - All right. All right!

He motioned for the two hedgehogs to sit at the table, then sat down himself.
He took a deep breath and remained silent, as if searching for a place to start. Until

- Are you familiar with the event known as Super Genesis Wave?

Sonic nodded. Scourge didn't.
- Zonic told me something. Is it like... that stuff that erases worlds?

Shadow nodded. Scourge knew the basics and was fine with that.
He had a lot to explain already, without starting from the basics. So he wasted no time.

- At first, it left us all in chaos. No one knew what it was, no one knew how to handle it. Every person on the planet had a blank memory and a lot of questions. But at least in GUN, there were signs of something: reports, logs that spoke of events that no one remembered. Of worlds, that no one remembered. - explained the black hedgehog - The first to understand what was happening, were the Zoners and their dimension. - Vanilla placed a cup of black coffee on the table, earning one of the black hedgehog's rare smiles. - Thank you. - he said, then went back to the story - They managed the... remains... alone, as long as they could. Then they contacted us. - he took the cup in his hands.

- The remains? - asked Sonic.

- The SGW expanded from one dimension to another until it was exhausted, like a flood. It completely erased some dimensions while others it only... - he took a sip of the coffee - .. grazed, or devastated. The No Zone sent its best men into those dimensions, trying to save what could be saved or to... conclude the process, depending on the case.

- And Zonic was among them? - asked the blue hedgehog.

Shadow nodded - Exactly. As the "Sonic" of his dimension, he was the only one capable of exploiting the residual radiation of the SGW, to reactivate or stop the erasure process.

- Wait, so he.. - Scourge grimaced - went into these devastated dimensions, and chose whether to repair them or erase them?

The black hedgehog shook his head. - No. He didn't choose. If he could, he would have tried to save them one by one. Instead he was forced to erase them all. All the wave had to do was erase a small fragment and from there the phenomenon expanded, eating away at the dimension little by little.

- Fuck.. - Scourge leaned back in his chair - How did he manage to stay sane?

- He didn't. Like his colleagues. But he survived.

- So what happened, Shad? Why is Zonic so sick? - asked Sonic, while the hedgehog took another sip of coffee.

- The residual radiation from the SGW, which he came into contact with and had to manipulate, contaminated his body. - the black hedgehog explained. - Some time after the wave, Zally managed to re-establish contact with the Prime dimension and GUN: they were managing the residues but one by one, the zoners involved in the missions were showing signs of mental imbalance, of illness. And some of them started to... vanish. Once the signs appeared, there was no way to stop it. The No Zone lost many of its veterans in that mission. The other zoners refused to replace them and in the end, only Zonic remained.

- But..Why didn't you call me? Damn it! - Sonic yelled.

- Actually, Zonic advised us against it: the entire structure of the multiverse was compromised and it was necessary to stabilize it as much as possible. Any interference, anything out of place, could have compromised what was left.

Sonic sighed, putting his hands in his quills - Shit, Zonic.. you idiot..

- GUN started investigating the matter, while Zonic continued on his own. When he returned, we discovered that he had also been contaminated. - Shadow put down the empty cup. - But by then GUN had studied the case enough to find a solution.

- A cure? - Scourge asked.

Shadow nodded - We discovered that the ichor of the Black Arms combined with the energy of the master emerald is able to reverse the process in a still intact subject. The moment any part of the body disappears completely, the process becomes irreversible.

Sonic thought back to the state of the zoner when Shadow arrived. He had been in a big risk.

- We also discovered that spending a lot of time in the Prime dimension helped to lengthen the time between doses. Eventually we arrived at a stable interval of six months.

At that point, Vanilla approached the table. - Zonic didn't tell me right away. At first he talked about taking a break, but I could tell he wasn't well. That he wasn't on vacation. - she explained - He just told me he didn't want to see the others and it seemed strange to me. I helped him in any way I could and one day when I couldn't, I asked Amy.

Amy nodded. - It seemed strange to me too. We were worried that it was something serious, that he was in danger, so Vanilla and I cornered him one day and he told us everything.

Scourge shuddered at the thought of being cornered by those two.

- That's why the house on Mobius Prime. - Sonic said, saddened - Being here helped him. And I didn't know anything about it.

He thought back to all the times he'd pestered him to go out and party, and how they'd argued a couple of times over his constant no's.
He'd even thought that he didn't want to see them, that they were bothering him, because he was an asshole after all.
Now he felt ashamed of it.

Scourge looked thoughtful, like he was processing all the information
- Wait, so in six months he'll have to drink that stuff again? - he asked.

- Exactly. - Shadow replied.

- So GUN knows! Where the fuck were you this morning?

Shadow seemed to falter - I thought Zonic had already received the cure. I usually take care of it, but GUN warned me that this time someone else would.

- Then why did you have the dose?

- Where do you think they get the alien ichor from? I always have a spare dose and I rushed here as soon as you called me.

Scourge stood up abruptly, knocking over his chair - PIECES OF SHIT!

Shadow remained calm, keeping his serious look on the hedgehog - I know what you're thinking. Zonic is a civilian now, with a lot of information and no longer obliged to keep it secret.

- You mean that they tried to.. - Sonic asked.

Scourge ran a hand over his face. - Okay Stripes. What can we do?

- I can extract the ichor but we need the scientists from GUN to get the medicine. His only hope is to become a zoner again, so Zally can leverage the deals they made to save his life. Otherwise... he has six months left. Maybe a little longer, if he stays on Mobius.

Scourge's mind reeled, along with his stomach.
He leaned against the wall. It was all his fault.

In response, Shadow stood up. - I don't know why this house isn't surrounded by zoners ready to take you back to prison, but I can tell that's what Zonic wants. - he sighed. - Knuckles and I won't say anything, but you two have six months to fix this mess. In the meantime, Rouge and I will work with Tails to find and synthesize the formula for the medicine. - he said - Now excuse me. I'm going to have to make a lot of calls to cover up what happened today, and what we're getting ready to do.