#( I like the idea of Sonic taking care of a small pet )

[thebirdart]

Some features of the earth urchins compared to the four hedgehogs of the world of Sonic!

One day I asked myself the question of how would be the anatomy of Sonic and I began to investigate the anatomy of the ground urchins but I liked so many details of them that I put together some characteristics of these animals to compare them with the four hedgehogs of the world of Sonic.

us start!

Starting with obvious facts:

In the world of Sonic only showed to have four hedgehogs; Sonic, Amy, Shadow and Silver, (the green does not count because it is still Sonic)

They all appear to be of a "same species of hedgehog".

For we know 16 types of earth urchins on our planet.

On the other hand I thought Silver was of a different species like Shadow. (By the shape of its spikes) But I don’t see the point, so they must be the same species. Although Shadow might be a little authentic in his design, I’ll explain later.

(Data: the hedgehog Atelerix algirus and the hedgehog Hemiechinus auritus are the ones who take care more to be pets at home)

FOOD

-Ground urchins eat insects, worms, molluscs, snakes, some fruits, small vertebrates, acorns, young birds and eggs.

(the hedgehog thought about it a little before attacking)

-Sonic and the others eat things that could be considered human; chili dogs, coffee beans (this is done by Shadow), strawberry cake (eaten by Amy and Sonic hates it), hamburgers (by SonicBoom), apples (by a drawing of Silver), and so on.

ANATOMY

The ground urchins have very good flexibility, an arched spine and strong and flexible muscles, that allows them to become ball. Comparing it with the deformed hedgehogs (Sonic) there is not much difference since all present good strength and flexibility, except Silver that can not be made ball.

The spikes of hedgehogs are made of keratin, which is a protein substance. I guess the same applies to Sonic and so on. Although in Sonic Unleashed when he is electrocuted we can see that it does not have "bones" in its large spikes, it is a little obvious to know but data that goes without saying.

The skeleton of ground urchins is similar to other mammals, only that its spine is a little more curved, as well as other details; as that its clavicle is well developed so that it can dig hard. This is very different from Sonic’s body and so on as it would resemble more a human structure.

Although also to keep in mind Sonic’s feet are… a closed thing…

By the way the snout and mouth are very different too. Sonic has a snout but the nose and mouth are different from the ground urchin. And another fact: the hedgehogs take incredibly long walks if it is for food; something like 7.2 km/h and if we combine it with the particularity of Sonic being very fast this powerful detail does not overlook.

Time when I jumped out of my spot when I was reading this.

I love this, I have no idea if the creator of Shadow has taken this as a reference but did you know that hedgehogs have a blue border that surrounds their dark eyes? This can only be seen when hedgehogs look to the side. So the great "eyeliner" of Shadow could be a real detail of the animal but taken as a reference to leave it beside your eyes on the outside.

The tail of the common hedgehogs is bare, but the tail of the deformed ones appears to be of the same color as all their other spikes.

I think, canonically, the characters of the Sonic world can mate. But I didn’t see anything that highlighted this, I mean, we can witness Cream’s mother.

Male hedgehogs have a small penis, (bulge), located in what would be their navel and have intra-abdominal testicles (they remain in the abdomen instead of leaving through the scrotum) and the female vulva is a small button that is located in front of the anus.

I guess since they’re characters from the '90s, it’s obvious that this wasn’t thought of at the time of their creation. There’s not much to think about since they’re characters who may or may not wear clothes (Tails-Nine and Sally-Amy) and yet we wouldn’t see anything, not even the nipples! Because hedgehogs have five nipples, both female and male, and you’ll notice that Sonic has nothing.

But I found a picture of Sally where she has more clothes. I suppose it must be a hallmark that female characters wear clothes. (Although Sally is not a canonical character, of course.)

THE 5 SENSES:

Sight: they do not have good view, it is said that hedgehogs have no sense of space, but they can distinguish shapes. Although the hedgehogs are blind and may have collisions with objects, they continue to travel great distances and this does not cause them to slow down, they continue with the same speed as if they had good eyesight.

Smell: very developed, so I guess the four hedgehogs can smell very well from several meters, maybe Sonic can smell Eggman without making noise, will smell of egg?

If you hid a chili dog under the ground in a box, Sonic could find it.

Hearing: the ear of hedgehogs can detect high frequency sounds, their developed sense allows them to locate their prey underground.

Tip: If you saw the Sonic Prime series you will notice that Sonic’s ears move often before a sound. I think a good detail added for the blue hedgehog, this is also added in the IDW comics, I did not find the panel but it is when Amy stays listening to the ground and knows that two hedgehogs are close, those hedgehogs were Shadow and Sonic.

But although hedgehogs have a very sensitive ear I do not consider it the same for the four hedgehogs as they would go crazy at the sounds of Eggman machines, explosions or a simple click of the computer mouse. (Ground urchins get stressed too fast with a simple computer click)

Taste: These animals have a peculiar… sense of taste. They like the taste of a hundred feet. So it’s not uncommon for Shadow to like bitter, for Sonic to like spicy, and for Amy to like sweet, what would Silver like? Healthy or the first thing he finds in his world to eat?

Types of sounds hedgehogs make

Sounds of joy: these little things purr like a cat, and they can even mix it with whistles. Could it be that Shadow purred when he was with Maria?

Bullying sounds: they emit a sound through the nose from a strong breathing, they do it when they feel attacked or are upset. (I don’t know if they thought of it this way when they made Shadow growl annoyingly in Sonic Prime. The same with Amy and Sonic when they got jealous or bothered with each other at Sonic Boom)

Whining sound: when they feel pain they emit a sound like a scream, I could notice this in a video of a hedgehog that was in the water of a bathtub. (although there are always exceptions)

Sleeping sounds: Hedgehogs snore, I guess they all snore too?Hedgehogs fall asleep anywhere. In the Sonic game where Amy’s birthday is celebrated, Tails mentions that Sonic can sleep anywhere, even in the most unusual.

Data: the hedgehogs have nails/claws that they use to dig the earth and since the of Sonic characters are put gloves to not show their hands I think they should not have pads like normal animals but rather human hands. Well, Sticks is the only one I’ve seen without gloves and she’s a badger and badgers have pads. So all Sonic characters should have hands without the characteristics of their species.

BEHAVIOR

The behavior of one ground urchin and the other four is very different, except Shadow, he should stay on the side of the ground urchins.

Since hedgehogs are solitary, they only come together when it’s mating season. (Although Sonic likes to spend time alone…but he’s not a lone wolf like Shadow)

UNGIMIENTO (I couldn’t find the word in English)

When tasting a taste or perceive a new smell, or rare, the animal bites the source of this flavor or smell (Animals, objects, people, whatever) to then make a frothy, thick and white drool that with the tongue are smeared on the side peaks and those near his face. (Scientists don’t know why they do this) If I imagine it for the four deformed hedgehogs maybe this does not exist for them, as they smell new things all the time.

EXTRA DATA: Hedgehogs can swim but they don’t like to stay in the water too long because they can drown, I saw a documentary that mentioned this. I like that touch they gave Sonic that in the water he is scary, I don’t know if it’s something canonical or fandom but it was nice to see him be the only one with a life jacket in the Olympics.

Remember when they did that twitter and tiktok special where they asked Sonic what would happen if he was a worm? Well, hedgehogs eat worms. And did you know that the Egyptian hedgehog is prey to foxes? While it’s another kind of hedgehog this is funny. In Sonic the movie the character Longclaw is the "mother" of Sonic… the funny thing about this is that she is an owl and owls eat hedgehogs.

Who had the idea to give a friend and mother predators to Sonic?

That’s all. I hope you liked these characteristics that I came up with. See you later!

[imtheindiekid]

Sweet creature.

Prompt: Reader is the new resident at the Sonic Catering Institute run by the excentric Jan Stevens, the woman who sponsors her art and in exchange asks reader to become her lover.

Ship: Jan Stevens x fem!reader.

Warnings: FLUFF in caps, literally so much fluff and besotted reader (lol), pet names, Jan Stevens being the bundle of joy I know she is. Reader is not a minor! Kisses LOTS OF KISSES (bc you cannot tell me Jan is not a softie for giving and receiving smooches). Kisses as love language, mention of alternative food art but not really. Mostly reader and Jan being two fools in love.

A/N: Hello again! Here I come to fulfill my dream of Miss Jan Stevens having an affair with one of her residents (but a real relationship, we're a big no no when it comes to Billy Rubin and his lack of international love smh) So yeah, hope you enjoy! xo.

----

Food it was always more than the simple sustain for life, or a way of living or making profit by creating meals to offer at a place. No, it was more than that when it came to you and food, almost like a deep connection to know more about it, your curious mind wandering trough the cook books and kitchens you had access to, always wanting to know why such bond held a very special place in your soul.

The only explanation you could give it was that the universe granted you this rare talent in order to pursue it, even at a young age.

Enjoying any kind of dinners was an experiencie, and everytime you did it never failed to feed the craviness of reaching new levels when it came to food. Almost like a miracle, you decided this uncertain but luring path was the one you needed to follow.

----

It took some years and a great amount of failed plans, but you were finally happy at the way this whole thing of food music turned out, even when at an early stage of it people thought you went completely mad for creating art made by food that was not eatable at all. If they put it out like that it sounded crazy, but you knew they didn't understand, not even one bit.

Great thing you never cared for hearing others peoples opinions about you ditching college and embracing the alternative yet excentric art of sonic food catering, the one that made your heart fully happy. And so there you were, after small gatherings in cramped spaces, effort and love for this art carried you to the magnificent Sonic Catering Institute; a place where your ideas and wishes could rest easily and get sponsored by the right people. By her, and only her.

Jan Stevens was the woman you would never see at the street or a common place. You were sure she was a woman you would never see her at all, and yet, the only one if she randomly appeared behind an aisle at the supermarket or a the next table in a restaurant. The oddity about her and the looks she always wore were the whole essence why you reached for her, the reason why pleasing her was as important as creating your art.

She had you in a chokehold, your muse.

And of course, Jan Stevens knew the power she held on you as well the the love and praise that seemed to escape without shame from yourself when it came to her. It was adorable, seeing you so enamoured with her and always behaving like a puppy around her expensive dresses. She loved it, so much that it wasn't so long after you both came to an agreement; she would sponsor after the residency if you became her lover, stating that she could do international love and being thousands of miles apart wasn't a problem for her to keep loving you.

You sealed the agreement by kissing her so unexpectedly, making Jan Stevens smile.

----

It had been two and a half months since your acceptance at the Sonic Catering Institute and one month since becoming Jan Stevens newest lover, and those were blissful days. Making art and sharing a compassionate love with a wonderful woman it was truly more than you have dreamed of.

A wonderful woman whom had her slender hand wrapped around your arm while taking a peaceful stroll with you through her mansion gardens. The day was beautiful and sunny enough to make both of you take a break from brainstorming ideas for the next gathering and soundchecking, so instead of spending the rest of the day in between the sheets, you and your lover went for some calmness at their favorite place.

"Look there my love, those flowers are blossoming today."

"They are indeed sweetling. Thriving and shining like you, Y/N."

A smile appeared in your face as soon you heard the soft voice praising you and comparing your success to the bush of flowers that bloomed so beautifuly that day; Jan Stevens never failed to burst love and adoration beneath your skin, with her words and pretty names she used to call you most of the time; she still had to maintain the façade of professionalism when it came to presentations or those dinner parties she threw occasionaly.

You didn't mind it though, that people weren't aware of your relationship, they had no right to know about it or think that you're only using Jan Stevens for getting her money. So therefore, it was kept secret in order to enjoy it in your way. In a few months, you would be pursuing the next phase of your art, and at that time the residency would be over; so no worry about secrecy.

But right now, strolling by the bushes and old trees with your excentric yet handsome lover, was more than enough to you.

"How can you say such things and not make me blush like a poppy?"

You asked, gazing at her and actually starting to look as red as a strawberry, which made Jan Stevens laugh softly and reach one of your cheeks with her free hand, caressing it. The mere action had you almost like a puddle, if you could actually turn into that, but it wasn't very practical if you thought about it.

"Because sweetling, I love the red flush that crawls through this beautiful face of yours. So beautiful and kissable and which I absolutely adore."

"Jan Stevens, please my peach!"

The blonde laughed again, finding cute the way you would turn bashful at the praise she threw at you. Having enough of standing up, Jan Stevens gently pulled at your arm and grabbed the skirt of her black and white dress, leading you both to a bench near the shadow of a big tree. There, you took a seat next to the older woman, careful of not stepping accidentally on her dress.

As soon you sat down, a couple of hands went straight at your face and turned you to look at your love, who was smiling before closing the gap between you two in a series of short kisses. You didn't waste anytime and found a place for your own hands in the waist of the blonde, tracing so slightly and lovely the curves of her body possesed.

The sound of hums tickled against your lips, making you smile at it and knowing that your beloved peach was really enjoying this demostration of love. It turns out Jan Stevens love language was mostly kisses, and she loved giving them to you or receiving them happily from you; the lipstick she used always got smeared in the corner of her plump lips while you ended with a face full of lipstick stains and a drunk in love face.

The range of her kisses would vary on the mood she was; sometimes, they were no more than a peck to remind you of their love. Other times, she would pin you against the matress and leave you breathless by how her kisses grow hotter and needier, this time reminding you of the power they held.

But the ones you loved were the ones that gave with such patience and grace, holding you as if you were a fragile and delicate thing. Those were the ones that gave you at the garden and you totally fell for it.

"Jan."

"Too tired to say my name, sugarplum?"

She whispered against your mouth, kissing you a couple of times before pulling out of the embrace, but not totally to be apart. Your eyes felt heavy and tired, but an enamoured smile was in that face of yours; the sight of you, fuzzy and high in love was endearing to Jan Stevens, who couldn't stop looking at you.

"Perhaps my lovely bunny would love to go and take a nap. Looks like someone's tired."

"Not tired, just simply love drunk thanks to you peach."

"You're always seem to be love drunk baby."

This time it was your turn to laugh at her response, squeezing gently her hips while a foolish grin appeared on your face. She was right of course, you were always love drunk and all because of her; of her captivating love she had in her soul. You simply rested your head in her shoulder, pulling her body close to yours.

Jan kept a hand on your flushed face, stroking your cheeks or playing with your hair, while the other one found a place in your lap. Silence filled the space rapidly at the absence of words, but it was okay; there were moments with such intimacy like this one that words didn't need to be said. Both of you just knew how much love was in between.

It didn't take long for Jan Stevens to kiss you, never having enough of your kisses which you gladly give. Pecks turned into sweet kisses that turned into a full make out session, suddenly initiating a fire in your lower abdomen and made you whine against Jan's lips; your hands gripped her hips while the elegants of your beloved traveled to your torso, teasing you so slightly.

Then, she drew out again and caused you to protest at the lack of her warm, but a finger was placed in your lips to silence you.

"No whining darling, and let's take this into bed."

The mention of laying with her instantly cheered you up, and also caused you to stand up to take her hand and pull her out of her seat. Amused and in love with your reaction, Jan Stevens followed you through the gardens and into her mansion, already looking foward for all of the things she plans to do with you.

Oh how she loved being the headmistress of a place like this. And how she loved you.

----

The end. <3

[sonicboomseason3]

🪿💥🥞 , Sonic and Tails?

ask game: send me AT LEAST 3 emojis (the more random the better) and AT LEAST 2 characters from sonic boom and i’ll come up with a little drabble in response!

"Sonic!"

Lying on one of the lounge chairs in front of his shack, Sonic looks up from his pancakes at the sound of Tails' voice and promptly spots him running towards him. "'Sup?" he asks as the fox skids to a stop in front of him.

"Behold, the Explodinator 5000!" Tails announces, brandishing his newest creation in his hand. It appears to be some kind of mechanical headband, complete with an antenna protruding from the top. "By putting this on, the wearer can make any desired target explode."

"Huh." Sonic looks back down at his pancakes. "Explode, like BOOM?" He tries to stab his downright stale pancakes with his plastic fork and lets out a frustrated sigh when he only succeeds in bending the tines.

"Explode, like BOOM! Do you have any idea how much this will help us in our battles with Eggman? I can just point this at his robots and reduce them to smithereens!" Tails finally takes his eyes off of the Explodinator 5000 to look at Sonic. "It isn't limited to just his robots either—Sonic, what is that."

"Pancakes," Sonic replies blandly, gesturing towards his plate in much the same way as Tails was doing moments ago with his invention. "Meh Pancakes, actually. Meh Burger's experimenting with the idea of a breakfast menu, and—"

"I'm talking about the giant bird."

"Oh." Sonic glances over at his other lounge chair, which is currently occupied by a giant white goose. "His name's Bruce. Bruce, meet Tails. Tails, meet Bruce."

"Hi," Tails greets stiffly.

Bruce honks.

Sonic begins to explain, "Bruce wandered into my shack this morning and climbed on top of me and woke me up with his goose noises—by the way, not the best way to start the day, don't really recommend it—and I couldn't chase him out, so..." He makes eye contact with Bruce and reaches over to scratch his head like one would do to a dog. "He's my pet now, I guess. Or at least he is until he decides to leave, whenever that'll be."

"And you're sure this isn't gonna just be another Buster incident?"

"Buster was a robot that shot slime. Bruce is a real goose. Trust me, I checked already."

"I don't think I wanna know how you did that, but that's good at least." Tails can't help but wince a little when Bruce honks again. "Just... make sure you know how to take care of him."

"Pretty sure he's wild, so he should know how to take care of himself—Hands off." When Bruce suddenly leans forward and tries to take a bite of Meh Pancakes, Sonic pushes him away a little more roughly than necessary. "They're mine. And believe me when I say you're really better off never having these."

Bruce's responding honk sounds downright enraged at being refused subpar breakfast food, but Tails is ready to dismiss it as simply his imagination... until Bruce suddenly lunges for him. He yelps and instinctively holds his hands out in front of him to protect himself, but instead of attacking him, Bruce snatches the Explodinator 5000 out of his grasp with his beak. Before either hero can digest what is unfolding, the goose tosses the headband into the air, and it lands squarely on his head.

"What the—" Still holding his pancakes, Sonic rolls out of his lounge chair in the nick of time. He barely registers the tiny explosion that goes off right above him, only fully realizing what's happening when he feels the charred bits of the back of his lounge chair rain down on him.

"Sonic, he's trying to explode you with his mind!" Tails says, horrified. "I really think you should give him the—"

Sonic leaps to his feet, still keeping a tight clutch on those accursed pancakes. "Bruce the Goose, you put that dangerous thing down right now!" Honestly, he sounds more like he's trying to get a small dog to spit something out and less like he's defending himself from a wild bird out for his blood. "I said put it down!"

Bruce honks, and Sonic dodges three more explosion attempts within the next five seconds.

"Pets," he grumbles at Tails. "Word of advice: If you ever think about getting a pet yourself, get a gerbil or something."

And then he dashes off. With the pancakes.

Bruce honks the loudest honk he's honked so far and takes to the skies to give chase, leaving Tails by his lonesome.

Tails stands silently for a moment before sighing wearily and pulling his notepad and pencil out. Flipping to the appropriate page, he quickly skims the notes he already has written. "'Explodinator 5000 - Status: Complete. Testing: Successful. Field Results:—'" He jots down the most recent update. "'—Stolen by a goose determined to cause a Sonic BOOM.' Huh. Wonder when I'll learn my lesson to not invent things that'll endanger my friends."

He ponders that thought for a moment before shrugging.

"Oh well, back to the workshop. Been meaning to work on that one invention that throws knives at everything within three feet of it anyway."

[modgirlyreposts-revamped]

Ok here’s my random Sonic headcanons:

Tails hates onions. Cannot stand them. Having to touch them makes him want to cry. Having to eat them makes him ACTUALLY cry.

Amy is the most up to date on human customs bc she grew up around a lot of humans.

Due to her unnatural appearance she never fit in with other mobians (the humanoid/animals, the name comes from the continuities where they’re from an alternate world called mobius) but she also never really fit in around humans because she was the only mobian in any human communities. The latter of the two was easier as a young kid because other human girls sort of treated her like a class pet, they paraded her around and showed her off and that sort of felt like acceptance.

Knuckles is very socially unaware for the opposite reason. He literally lived in total isolation from birth (echidnas are monotremes so he hatched from an egg, that’s how that’s possible.) It’s a miracle he survived long enough to be able to care for himself. He literally didn’t meet a single person until he was twelve years old.

Knuckles trained Amy to hone her natural strength when she was ten. After having been helplessly abducted by Metal Sonic in CD, she didn’t want to be weak or helpless anymore. She wanted to be a hero too so she wouldn’t ever have to feel so helpless again, and she asked Knuckles to train her. During this time she also stopped wearing her quills up to look “normal” because wearing them normally they looked like Knuckles’s, and cut them short.

Knuckles is not really used to having friends. Even after four years of knowing Sonic and co., he finds it strange. The idea of companionship is just totally foreign to him and he doesn’t really know what to do with it. He tends to see his friends as additional responsibilities.

Shadow secretly kind of loves Chao. In canon he’s sometimes seen with a Chao that looks like a tiny Shadow, meaning he takes care of it well enough to take after him. He feels the need to hide that soft side for his own emotional safety, but he’s very gentle and good with Chao.

Amy has a Tamagotchi. At least one. She’s never tried to take care of a real Chao, but she’s very good with small animals.

I actually kinda know about Shadow having a Chao, and it is so cute, I love it sm- ❤️❤️❤️❤️🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤💓💓💓💓💗💗💖💖💖💕💕💕💕

[survey--s]

440.

Did you ever go to daycare as a kid? I was in some kind of full-time childcare from three months - a childminder until I was about 2-3 years old, then nursery, then pre-school.

Who’s one of the most talented people you know? What are they talented at? My aunt is an amazing cook - she’s one of those people who can chuck anything together and it tastes incredible lol.

How long have you had your current mattress? Far too long lol. It’s getting uncomfortable but we can’t really justify a new one at the moment. Maybe next year.

Do you usually pay with cash, debit card, or credit card? Debit card.

What do you usually drink with breakfast? Coffee and either orange or apple juice.

What’s your sexuality? Bisexual.

What’s your gender identity? Female.

Are you the type of person who can make friends with just about anyone? Ha, nope. I’ve always struggled to make friends as I’m just rubbish at small talk and I generally much prefer my own company.

Have you ever experienced a medical emergency? Not for me, but I’ve dealt with them for other people.

What was the last thing you borrowed from someone? Some tape.

What’s your least favorite time of day? Early evening. I just feel like it’s this weird dead time.

Are you muscular? Not really.

Do you know anyone who’s snobby about the kind of music they like? A few people - ugh. It’s such a crap trait.

Do you ever happen to find yourself trying to force yourself to be happy? I’ve been there before, sure.

What are some things you like about the area you live in? We live by the sea and we have so many beaches and great places to explore.

When was the last time you drank wine? New Years Eve.

Do you know anyone who has been to prison? Not so far as I know.

Do you have one of those removable hand-held shower heads? We do indeed.

How many burners does your stove have? Four.

When you go to a restaurant, do you prefer to sit at a booth or a table? Booths - they’re more private and generally have more space too.

What’s the first video game you remember playing? Sonic or Pokêmon.

Have you ever been to San Francisco? Nope but I’ve always wanted to visit! It looks absolutely beautiful.

Did the high school you went to offer an ecology class? Nope.

Which room of your house is currently in the greatest need of cleaning? Probably the spare room - not so much cleaning but more re-organising, but it’s all Mike’s stuff in there and I’m not getting involved lol.

What’s something you think everyone should do/experience at least once in their life? Travel.

When was the last time you shipped a package? Just before Christmas, and it only arrived two days ago lol.

Have you ever made a homemade pie? Nope.

How long does it take you to get to work/school? It depends. I’m a pet-sitter so my closest client is five doors away, the furthest away is a horse I care for - he’s about a 15 minute drive.

Has your car ever been broken into? Not mine, but my parents’ was when I was growing up. 

How old is your oldest cousin? Uhh, no idea. I’d guess late thirties?

What are you going to do now that this survey is over? Maybe another survey.

[azurexalacrity]

( So, after discussing with a friend last night, I have decided to do something I’ve been planning to do for a while now. And it’s not going to be a big thing that’ll twist and shape my main universe/lore for this blog, but it’ll be enough of a small change that can warranty some nice interactions.

The idea I’ll be sharing about is branched off of this ask prompt. The idea entails of a small, young bluebird (which is also known as a Flicky in Sonic’s universe) gets unfortunately injured after a recent Badnik attack. With the good heart that Sonic has, he’s determined to get this bird get some proper care and treatment so that she doesn’t have to suffer from any injuries that might cost her life.

And yet, after she gets taken care of, she finds comfort into Sonic’s care, and refuses to leave his side. Sonic, at first, wanted to take her back to the fields, but he thought of why not taking care of her for a while. Or, at least, until she’s ready to return back to her natural habitat.

I’ll be writing a small little IC Update-like drabbles explaining this in full detail. Not right now though, but you’ll find out where this will go from here on out lol. )

[hext00ns]

Identity (Originally written for Follow Your Rainbow @fyr-zine an LGBT+ Sonic Zine)

AO3 link in comments

Ships: Shadow the Hedgehog/Sonic the Hedgehog/Sally Acorn/Amy Rose

Rating: T

Warnings: N/A

Description: When Shadow is dragged to Pride by his significant others he begins to question his identity.

The warm summer air seeped through the cracks and corners of the house, only cut some by the fervious efforts of the air conditioner that was working double time the past few days. Though, Shadow didn’t particularly mind- or even really notice- the scorching heat. In fact, if it hadn’t been for his blue counterpart, he doubted he would have thought to turn on the air conditioning in the first place.

However, that same counterpart was currently being a Grade A nuisance. Sonic had been bothering him all morning. He’d been attempting to convince Shadow to leave his work and go with him and the others to some block party happening at the time. Shadow momentarily wondered if he were to turn off the air conditioner would the blue blur leave to escape the heat. Unfortunately, he doubted it. Sonic had always been a most hard headed individual.

“It’ll be fun!” Sonic had said that about three or four times now.

“I have work to do,” was Shadow’s instantaneous response, which had also been stated at least three or four times.

Sonic let out a groan and fell to his back against the table. “It’s paperwork!” he cried out, throwing his arms to the air above him in exasperation. “Can’t you do it any other day?”

“It’s best to get stuff done when you can and not put it off,” Shadow hissed out back, giving Sonic a pointed look. “Even so, I don’t see why you’re so insistent that I come with you. Can’t you take the girls?”

Sonic rolled to his side, pushing around some of the papers to the side and causing Shadow to give a sound of annoyance. “I am! Or- trying to.”

Shadow gave a raised brow.

Finally sitting up, yet still on the desk, Sonic moved to explain: “It was Amy and my idea! But we wanted you ‘n Sal to come with. So I was tasked with convincing you and Amy went to grab Sal!” Sonic smiled proudly and shoved his thumb to his chest. As if convincing Shadow to go with their cluster to a party was a noble quest he’d been sent on. Shadow felt more as though it were his own personal purgatory.

Shadow had never been the kind for large groups of people. He liked solo missions and small meetups. He wasn’t big on large get togethers and definitely not parties. Especially not parties that took out almost all of City Square to host in its area.

As it were, however, it always seemed that if anyone could get Shadow into large groups it would be the very hero that sat with him now. Sonic dragged him around like an antisocial dog on occasion; assuring others that he didn’t bite and was safe to pet. It baffled him how insistent Sonic was on such things. He tended to notice a similar phenomenon happening to Knuckles as well. Only made more curious by the fact that Shadow knew Sonic could be just as independent as himself. The blue blur was just as weighed down by a need to be the lone wolf as Shadow, or even Knuckles tended to be. Sonic had always been strange in those regards, as he still seemed to have a near constant gaggle of allies and friends at his side on the regular.

“You know I’m not one to go to these sorts of things,” Shadow finally sighed, crossing his arms and looking up to the other. “Why are you so adamant about me going along?”

Sonic’s legs began to swing as his upper body rocked slightly along with the motion. “It’s not just any party. It’s Pride! Don’t you know anything about that?”

“Of course I do,” Shadow huffed out. “I’ve never been but I see no reason to. I understand it’s a celebration and I get why others would be interested. What I don’t see is why I should care.”

“Well, you’re gay for starters.”

Shadow gave Sonic an unimpressed look. “Your evidence isn’t very compelling.”

Sonic gave a dramatic sound of frustration. “It’s-” he lifted his hands but paused as his words started to trip over themselves. He took a short moment to reorganize whatever was sitting in his head. Shadow waited patiently for the other to clear up his thoughts. Finally, he started again, his hands waving along with his words. “It’s more than just a celebration! It is. But it’s also a big part of our history, you know? Also it’ll be fun. People go to this kinda stuff with their friends and partners all the time.”

Shadow’s frown stayed but did begin to soften some. It was clear this was important to Sonic; if not also Amy, Shadow was willing to guess. He understood the history. He understood, to at least some extent, its importance. That didn’t change his stance on wanting to go or not.

“Plus,” Sonic started up again, “it’ll be the first one since we all got together.”

Shadow looked at the other. He had a sincere, if not somewhat nervous smile. Shadow now understood the real importance such an occasion had to Sonic and Amy. It had been just a little under a year since the four of them had really figured out what they were and how the relationship would work. And where there were still some stumbles here and there, Shadow couldn’t lie and say the change in his life hadn’t brought something that made his days feel just a little brighter.

Finally, Shadow gave a sigh. He ran a hand over his face and rubbed at the side of his cheek. “Fine,” he groaned out.

Sonic straightened up and looked at him surprised. “Wait- really?”

“Yes. Really.”

Sonic jumped up from the desk, the sudden motion throwing some of the papers into the air. He let out a cheer of success and suddenly had his arms around Shadow, pressing an over dramatic kiss to his cheek.

Surely, it couldn’t be that bad.

It was that bad.

After just barely an hour, Shadow felt like any energy that would normally give his body the motivation to move had suddenly been zapped from him. Leaving him empty and lethargic. There was just so much happening all at once. He hadn’t had much time to really work himself up to going in the first place, having agreed because of his partners’ own interests in coming to such a large gathering.

He could hardly focus as they walked from point to point. He felt stiff and every ability to see or hear blurred into one large mass of sound and movements. His mind both on red alert and foggy all at once. It wasn't till a hand fell to his arm that he snapped out of the fog and faced worried pink fur.

“Are you okay, Shadow?” Amy questioned, her thumb gently running against the fur of his arm. He didn’t know if the motion was comforting or overwhelming.

“I…” his words fell away from him. Sally and Sonic were also both now looking at him with a matching concern. He tried to shift through the pros and cons of lying and saying he was alright, while also forcing the feeling of drowning out of his throat.

Before he could respond, Amy’s hand was gently taken from his shoulder. Sonic, now holding her wrist, spun her around with a smile and quickly to Sally’s side. Both giving Shadow much needed space, while also pulling a giggle from the pink hedgehog.

“Me ‘n’ Shads are gonna go take a breather,” Sonic explained, stepping to Shadow’s side but still giving the hybrid his space. “Things are gettin’ a little ‘a lot’, if ya’ catch me.” The blue blur gave the two a wink and a finger pistol. “We’ll catch up with you two in twenty.”

Amy looked like she wanted to object or ask to help. However, Sally stepped in and locked their arms.

“Alright,” Sally replied. “I’ll take Amy to get something sweet then.” She looked to Amy to see the pink hedgehog brighten at the promise of a treat before giving Sonic an understanding nod.

As the girls took their leave, Shadow could just make out Amy chanting “cake! Cake! Cake!” and Sally only chuckling in response.

His attention was brought back to Sonic when the other bumped him with an elbow. Sonic motioned his head to signal Shadow to follow him. Needing no other word, the two ran off and out of the crowds.

Sonic had led Shadow up to a rooftop. They sat in a comfortable silence and looked out over the festivities.

“We don’t have to stay the whole time,” Sonic finally said after a good while.

Shadow looked over to him, only to receive a smile in return. “We’ve barely been here an hour,” Shadow responded, looking away again.

“Yeah and you already look like you’re ‘boutta kick it,” Sonic chuckled. “Crowds can suck. I get it; and the girls will too. I’m happy you were willing to try and come at all, honestly.” Sonic gave a shrug at his admission.

“The crowds are bad but…” Shadow’s lips thinned as he tried to find where that thought was heading.

“But?” Sonic encouraged.

Shadow sighed. “I don’t think it helps that I feel out of place.”

“‘Out of place’?”Sonic raised an eye ridge in question, his ears flopping in a way that animatedly matched his features. “Wudda ya mean by that?”

Shadow looked to him again. “I always feel stuck out in a crowd. Even then, this gathering is for your community.” Shadow’s eyes fell to the roof below, frowning. “I don’t know how much I really belong in it.”

There was a pause of silence. The longer it was pulled out the more Shadow could feel the spines and fur on his back begin to stand on end. Finally, he gave in and looked up at the other.

Sonic was only looking at him. Eyes open with confusion, as if he were trying to figure something out. “You… don’t think you belong?”

Shadow, where already not the tallest of their group, somehow felt worlds smaller under Sonic’s gaze. As if he had just admitted to some grave injustice or unforgivable transgression. Not that he truly believed there was much he could do that the blue blur specifically wouldn’t gladly try to pull him back from. But this wasn’t any of this. This was Shadow feeling, in some manner of speaking, insecure and overwhelmed. Why he would ever feel wrong or bad for being honest with Sonic, with any of them, was beyond him. It was downright ridiculous when he thought about it. He could almost laugh. But he didn’t laugh. Instead, Shadow only nodded to confirm Sonic’s implied inquiry.

“We’ll, you’re definitely not straight,” Sonic said with ease.

Shadow looked to him with a confused frustration. “How can you possibly know that? I don’t even know if I’m sure of that.”

“I mean, you’re dating me and Sal- and she’s only a girl in the same way a sword is.”

Shadow looked to him as he gave an easy shrug. As if it was all so simple and conclusive. But to Shadow it didn’t feel that way at all. In fact, he found himself avoiding the mental subject, as he only felt lost at the concepts.

“Look man,” Sonic started up again. “You don’t gotta know all this stuff right away.”

Shadow looked back out to the crowd below them. His eyes zeroed in on Sally and Amy. Both of them had stopped at a small stand with flags of different variety. After a moment Sally pointed off somewhere and then walked to leave.

Sonic must have followed his gaze as after Sally left he knocked his elbow against Shadow’s own. “I’m gonna go back down.” Sonic stood up and stretched out. “If you wanna stay up longer or go home the girls won't be upset.” He then was gone in a flash. Leaving Shadow on the roof alone.

Shadow decided he would go find the others. He wasn’t fully convinced he wanted to leave. Nor was he fully convinced he wanted to stay either. Both seemed to have numerous cons to them that he didn’t want to cause. He tried to focus on the pros to make his decision but gave up on his midday roof sitting adventures either way.

Instead, he hopped off and started towards where he’d last seen Amy. He had watched Sonic speed off to find Sally earlier. Unsure if Amy had already grouped back with them or not.

Apparently not, as he found her exactly where they had left her. She was looking through a pile of multicolored scarves, skirts, and other trinkets. Most of the flags he didn’t recognize.

When he walked up to her she turned and gave him a wide smile. “Shadow!” she called out excitedly. She opened her arms, ready to envelope him in a hug but paused. “Are you still too overwhelmed for touches?” she questioned, tilting her head like a curious cat, her arms still outstretched but paused in place.

“I’m better,” he replied. “But nothing too big, please.”

She nodded and chirped a happy “okay!” before taking his hand in both her own to give it a soft and affectionate squeez. “Help me pick out a skirt!” She gently tugged at his hand to pull him closer to the stall.

“You’re getting a new skirt?” he asked.

“Well, most my pride stuff is old flags so I wanted to get something new!” She beamed up at him.

“Old flags?” Shadow questioned with a raised brow.

Amy nodded and took back one of her hands from his. She picked through a few different things, setting aside a couple as she went through. “You know,” she started up, drawing out her words in a sing-songy way. “Years pass, things change. I don’t really identify the same way I did when I was thirteen.” She gave a giggle, as if the joke was obvious.

Shadow wasn’t sure what the joke was.

She must have noticed the confused look on his face. Her smile turned to understanding as she explained, “some people’s gender or sexualities change over the years. I mean- are you the same as when you were a kid?”

Shadow looked back down at the multicolored clothing and trinkets. When he was a kid he was still in the Arc. “I… suppose not,” he finally let out. “But I don’t believe I had any sort of understanding of any of this when I was that young.”

“What, like, gay stuff?” Amy questioned.

He only replied with a muted nod. “I’m not sure how common it was on the Arc fifty years ago,” Shadow explained. “And even if it were, I wasn’t knowledgeable of it. Or really any time to myself to ever question anything of the like.”

Amy gave a nod, as she listened she began to throw scarves and cheesy sunglasses onto Shadow, as if to look and see how they look on him. “Well!” Amy declared, throwing a lesbian flag scarf back into the pile. “No time like the present, right?”

“How did you know?”

Amy looked up at him, pausing in her work. “Know?” She gave a thoughtful hum and looked back to the stand. “I mean, it takes a while,” she started. “Or, I guess it took a while for me. Knowing I was pan hinged on realizing I was a girl.”

“I guess it makes sense that they would be more or less hand in hand.”

Amy nodded in agreement. “It’s like,” she raised up her hands to wave them around lightly as she went, “when I was little I knew I liked Sonic. But it was a weird, like, hero worship thing.” She let her hands fall back to the trans colored skirt before her. “But, romantically liking guys- or even girls for that matter- felt weird.” Her hands began to fidget with the ends of the fabric. “When I realized I was a girl though, I realized I was imagining myself in relationships as a guy. Which wasn’t what was right, you know?” She looked up at him. Her smile was reminiscent and soft. “It felt good. Like a breath of fresh air.”

“How did you know you were a girl, though? How does one even know that sort of thing?” Shadow mumbled out the last part of his question.

Amy reached over and placed her hand back on his. “Honestly?” she started. “It’s different for everyone. Sometimes you just wake up one day and you know. Sometimes it's a lifetime of slow steps towards what you might not yet realize.”

Shadow met her gaze. He then let his eyes fall to their hands. “Sometimes I think I know who I finally am,” he began quietly. The words only meant for her, not the hundreds of people around them. At this point they’d all fallen to the background. The sounds and sights muted, completely focused on Amy and their conversation. “Then sometimes I feel like I have no clue.”

Amy just gave a gentle giggle at that. “Yeah, life can make you feel like that.”

Shadow took the risk and looked back up to her gaze. Her eyes were soft and comforting as usual. But there was an extra sentence there. More words that were left unsaid but were understandable by the way she rubbed the back of his hand with her thumb. The patient and loving look she gave. The comforting gesture given to show that she understood. Beyond the regular life experiences. Beyond the normal emotions of the everyday young adult. She knew Shadow’s feelings on the matter ran much deeper than that. Her words were not meant to lessen or trivialize his struggle, but to assure him that on some level, he wasn’t alone.

“But now I gotta ask,” she started up again. The bright chipper tone coming back full force. “Why the sudden questioning? Never thought you cared much about that kinda stuff.”

“I don’t,” Shadow quipped back without thinking. “I-I mean. I didn’t. Or,” his words became mumbles as he looked to the ground beside him. His eyes zeroed in on some silly string left behind. “I didn’t think I did. I suppose, coming here has… caused me to re-evaluate those opinions.”

“And your conclusion?”

He paused this time. Not wanting to give an immediate answer. He thought back on the conversation he’d had with Sonic earlier. About the things he did know about queer identities and how they worked. He then sighed and looked back at Amy with a small smile of his own. “I’m definitely not straight.”

She blinked before busting out into another fit of giggles. “No,” she squeezed out between laughter. “I didn’t think you were either.”

Shadow couldn't help the chuckle bubbling out. Once their laughter subsided, Amy began to swing his arm gently.

“I will admit,” Shadow said with a small sigh. “I’m not sure how I feel… on the other end.” His face lowered with his eyes. He hated the forein feeling of embarrassment that bit at the corners of his mind. Just enough to make the skin under his fur become warm, but not enough to be visible.

Amy pushed her face closer to Shadow’s from below, clearly chasing after his gaze with a cat-like smile of her own. “Other side?” She questioned, her tone now holding something more giddy. “Do tell.”

Shadow’s face only grew hotter with her pressing. He moved his head back a bit more, puffing out his chest with a huff. “You’re enjoying this.”

“Oh totally,” she agreed with a nod. “Now spill!” she giggles out, gently smacking his chest with her other hand.

“I’m not sure if I can even word it,” he mumbled back, his posture slowly moving back to normal. “The feeling is alien to me, though I can’t say it never existed just…”

“More center stage now?”

Shadow nodded.

Amy returned the nod in understanding. “You know who you should really talk to about all this? Sally!”

“Sally?”

“Yeah!” Amy nodded again, this time more enthusiastically. “They’re definitely the gal to talk to with gender stuff.” Amy straightened out her own posture. Still keeping close to Shadow, but now fully instead of just his face. “My gender journey, even if it took a while, was like a total straight path,” she began to explain. “And Sonic always tells it that he knew the second he could talk. But Sally’s run through different identities and different directions of gender expression than either of us! She’s probably gonna have like,” Amy raised her hands and wiggled her fingers, “old wizard style smart gender advice.”

He let out a humored breath at that.

Shadow parted ways with Amy, leaving her to continue her quest of finding the perfect skirt. He started in the direction he had seen Sally go off to the first time she’d walked off on her own. He decided to walk instead of run or anything that could get him there faster. For the moment, he felt like he needed the short time between talking with Amy and talking with Sally to breathe. The conversation with Amy hadn’t even been that hard to have. At least, it shouldn’t have been.

As he walked through the streets and the crowds he saw numerous familiar faces pass by him. He thought about each one. How he didn’t really know any of their explicit identities. All he really knew about any of them was what he was to call them and, if they were in a relationship, what that relationship was. For a guy who’s current job had a lot to do with working in the field of intel, it felt as though he was missing plenty of it.

He wondered if that was another nail in his coffin? Was he supposed to know such details about everyone? Was it all common knowledge? He wondered if he were to figure his own out today would he be expected to tell the world? He supposed that would be ridiculous, now that he’d given it serious thought. After all, for one most of these people were friends of friends. Acquaintances he’d made through Sonic or Rouge. And on the other hand, why would he need to know such personal details about all these people’s identities? He was making a mental mountain out of a molehill. His anxieties over his own, now realized, insecurities causing every red alarm in his mind to blare off at once in rapid succession.

He thought about what Amy had said. About how her own journey had been a long one. Shadow wasn’t sure he could handle something like that. Not knowing something about himself felt like standing before a cliff with nowhere to go. Learning new things about himself was one thing, it was exciting to say the least. But to not know something at all, to have some sort of gap in his perception of who he was… Shadow’s identity was everything to him. He’d clawed out of the depths of every hell imaginable so that he could stand as he did and feel confidence in his life; in his very existence as a person. For all of that confidence to be somehow undone by the anxiety of what could only be described as a momentary question of his gender identity? It was infuriatingly laughable.

And yet, when Shadow really pushed himself to think back, he wondered if ‘momentary’ was the right word. It was hard to describe, even to himself, the one person who, arguably, didn’t even need an explanation for the way he was feeling. But there was something there. Some wordless nagging at the back of his mind. An old itch that he never learned how to scratch; instead opting to shove it to the very back corners of his mind where it would no longer bother him. An emotion that, at first, seemed to have no substance or reason but after just a moment of consideration would come to understand it was full of questions and need for… something. Something Shadow was unsure how to have or obtain.

Shadow’s thoughtful walk was cut short by the sound of someone calling his name. He turned towards the sound, hoping it was what he heard and not just the noise of the bustling streets getting the better of him.

It was Sally, waving its arms to get his attention as it walked over to him. “Hey, Shadow,” it greeted more casually once they were in normal ear shot of each other.

Shadow took a few steps to meet it halfway and nodded a greeting to it. He then looked around and noted the absence of blue. “Where’s Sonic?” he asked curiously.

“He ran off to go find Amy when he saw you coming,” it explained. “To regroup and everything.” Sally gave a chuckle and shook its head. “I didn’t mean to leave her alone for so long but I ended up getting distracted.” Sally then looked up at Shadow. “What about you?” it questioned. “How are you doing? Any better?”

Shadow nodded. “I met up with Amy before coming to find you.”

Sally chuckled at that. “Feels like the four of us are playing tag at this point. Come on,” it said and began to walk back where Shadow had come from. “Let’s start back so hopefully we can catch them before we lose them again.”

Shadow started after it, keeping an easy pace. He let silence slip between them as he tried to pull back any thoughts he had before running into it. He wasn’t sure how to go about any of this. He supposed ripping the bandaid right off would have to be the best bet for now.

“Sally,” he began, grabbing its attention. “I wanted to ask about…” He looked to the side, as if looking for the words he needed. “About gender?” he questioned, sounding too much like a question in the wrong way.

Sally looked at him for a moment, as if to try and figure out what it was he was trying to ask at all. It then smiled. “Lemme guess, you’re questioning the whole cis versus trans thing, right?”

Shadow responded with a nod. There was a pause, clearly Sally giving him a moment to say more. He gratefully took it. “I never tried to focus on these sorts of things before. Even now I’m not sure how well I understand it all. I feel out of the loop and like there’s more to me I don’t know and-” He was stopped by a hand on his arm.

Sally had gently taken hold of him. “Hey, you know you don’t have to figure this all out at once, right?”

Shadow nodded. “Sonic and Amy said similarly.”

“Well, they’re right. For once, in Sonic’s case at least.”

Shadow let out a humored breath at that. “He has his moments. I think you and Amy are to thank for that.”

“I’d like to think so too,” Sally nodded with a chuckle.

“I just feel very… lost, not knowing things,” he continued. “Almost frustrated by it. But it feels as though there's so much I don’t know about this sort of thing already, that there’s no way I could ever make sense of it for myself.”

“Like queer identities, you mean?” it asked.

Shadow nodded.

“You know none of that really matters, right?”

Shadow paused and looked at it. “Huh?”

Sally gave a chuckle. “There’s a ton of identities not because you’re expected to memorize all of them but for the people who want them.”

“I’m still not sure I follow,” Shadow mumbled.

Sally tapped its finger against its chin for a moment. “You know, like gynosexual?”

“Huh?”

“Okay,” Sally sighed with a smile, “gynosexual is someone who’s only atracted to girls basically. Because of this a lot of non-binary people who are only into girls will use it.”

“Alright,” Shadow nodded, to show he was following along.

“But they don’t have to use that if they don’t want to,” Sally added on. “It’s just as normal as if someone identified as a non-binary lesbian. They’re still non-binary and they’re still only atracted to girls. It’s just more up to them how they describe that and identify it.”

“So then, some of them can mean the same thing?”

Sally gave a hum in thought at that. “I guess by a technicality they all mean different things. But it matters more how the individual interprets them, less how society does. It’s your identity, you can call it and describe it however you want.” Sally then smiled and with a chuckle added, “I once had a friend who didn’t know if they were pan or bi for a while but stuck with pan cause they liked the colors of the flag better.” It put its hand back to Shadow’s elbow, letting its fingers run up his fur and to his shoulder affectionately. Comfortingly. “These words aren’t made to hinder anyone or to make anyone feel more lost. They’re made to help and to be comforting. If you don’t find comfort in them then just don’t worry about them. Easy as that.”

“What about you?”

It paused for a moment at the question. “Amy’s probably told you that when it comes to identities I’ve ran with just about everything under the sun at one point or another.”

Shadow nodded.

“Sometimes you just feel differently. You grow and change and that scares people sometimes but honestly it only excites me,” Sally explained. “I like change and growth. It feels good. It feels like the world is still turning and I'm turning with it. Who knows what I’ll feel next, all that matters is what I feel now.”

“Now…” Shadow mumbled to himself, as if to test the word on his tongue.

“What do you feel right now, Shadow?” it asked gently, giving him a patient and soft look.

“I-”

“There you two are!”

Sally and Shadow both whipped over to look towards the shout.

Amy and Sonic were making their way over. Amy was sporting a trans colored skirt while Sonic had on bi colored dog tags.

“We’re glad we found you two before we got split up again!” Amy called happily. She skipped over to take Sally’s arm and slide on a fuzzy non-binary colored wrist band.

“We were on our way to the both of you, too,” Sally explained with a chuckle, smiling at its new gift before giving Amy a peck on the cheek.

Amy let out a giggle before making a sound of surprise, “Shadow!” She grabbed his hand and pulled it to her chest. “Did you talk to Sally about The Thing yet!”

“The Thing?” Sonic questioned looking from Amy to Shadow. “What Thing?”

“Same Thing from before,” Shadow responded.

“Oh! That Thing,” Sonic nodded in understanding. “Wait, you talked to Amy and Sal ‘bout the Thing?”

“I love all three of you so much,” Sally began, snapping all attention to it. “But the next person who says the word ‘thing’ like that I’m going to hit.”

Before anyone could say anything Amy smashed her hand to Sonic’s mouth who only did the same to her in response. The two matched glances and only began to snicker wildly.

“Yes,” Shadow finally responded. His voice laced with fond exasperation. “I had mentioned my thoughts on it all to Amy and then was just now speaking with Sally about it.”

“Soo, then what’s the verdict?” Sonic asked curiously.

Shadow paused, not sure how to answer. Did he even have an answer yet? It really didn’t feel like it.

“How about we go get some food and sit to keep talking about this,” Sally suggested, saving Shadow momentarily.

The group migrated to a nearby cafe and sat at an outside table with their snacks. The cool drinks were a refreshing welcome to the four of them having spent a number of hours in a large crowd in the hot summer sun.

Finally Shadow spoke, bringing back the past three conversations, “I’m questioning a lot of things, I believe.”

“Like?” Sonic questioned.

Shadow tapped his finger on the side of his drink. Frowning into the liquid from behind the transparent plastic. He was thankful for the momentary silence from the other three. A part of him felt nervous under their watchful gazes, but ultimately he understood they only wanted to listen and help. He wanted them to listen and help. There were very few other people he would feel so comfortable talking about such things with. The only other people being Rouge and possibly Omega or Knuckles. Even though some days, Shadow was convinced the latter two were just as lost with the times as he was.

After a moment Shadow let himself lean back into his chair and look up towards the others. “I want to figure out my gender before all else.”

“Sounds like a good place to start.” Sally nodded.

“Got any starting points to jump from?” Sonic asked, pulling the straw of his drink into his mouth to take a loud sip.

Shadow gave a nod. “I don’t believe I’m cis, for one. I’m not sure how I feel viewing myself as a ‘man’. It feels…” He frowned in thought. “Off, somehow.”

“Like a ‘wrong’ off or a ‘to the left’ off?” Amy asked.

Shadow only responded with a confused eye ridge.

“Do you feel you may be a woman, instead,” Sally translated.

The hybrid shook his head. “No. I don’t believe I'm trans.”

“Trans is more than just boy to girl and vice versa,” Sonic added in. “Trans is anything that isn't cis. So like, non-binary shit too.”

“Do you think you might be non-binary?” Sally asked.

Shadow thought for a moment. “Possibly? But I’m not sure to what end.”

“Whaddaya mean?” Amy asked past a mouth full of muffin.

“Non-binary is also an umbrella term, correct? It’s not a third gender. If I am non-binary, I wouldn’t know in what way or in what direction.”

“There doesn’t have to be any direction,” Sonic suggested. “Like, you could be agender. That’s like, no gender kinda thing.”

Shadow mulled over the idea, but ultimately shook his head. “I don’t feel like that’s it.”

“What about demi-boy?” Amy added. “Like boy but not really boy.”

Shadow, one again, shook his head. “No. That’s not it. I don’t feel like…” He sighed and frowned. He wasn’t trying to seem frustrated, and yet the feeling was slowly creeping into every action. He pushed a hand over his face and let out another sigh. “I have a gender. But it has nothing to do in relation to ‘male’ or ‘female’. That is how I feel. At least, as best I can describe it.”

“You don’t have to give it a name, you know,” Sally said. “You can be just non-binary and leave it at that. There’s plenty of people who also just identify as queer and leave it there.”

“Queer is an identity?”

“It can be!” Amy nodded in agreement. “Some people use it as a gender, sexuality, or both!”

Shadow let his canines gently tug at the inside of his lip. Queer sounded simple. It wasn’t some big thing or an unfamiliar sentiment. It felt familiar and natural and… nice. “I think… I think I like that.”

“Oh shit!” Sonic called out, throwing his hands to the air excitedly. “Do you wanna change your pronouns too?”

“Oh, um.” He hadn’t even thought about pronouns. “I still want to keep the masculine ones. But… I think it would be nice to try out ‘they/them’ and see where that leads?”

“Of course!” Amy clapped with a bright smile.

“If you ever want it changed, just tell us,” Sally mentioned. Sonic and Amy nodding along in agreement.

“Alright,” Shadow said. Their own smile forming. The frustration and complicated feelings that had been haunting him all day had begun to dissipate. They continued to rotate the word in his mind.

“Oh! Also!” Amy called out. “Here Shadow, I got you this!” She pulled out a small, braided, rainbow colored bracelet to hand them.

They took it and slid it onto their arm, looking down at it with fondness. “Queer,” they mumbled out. “That feels a lot better.”

[idjitlili]

Lurking in the dark.

Not my gif.

Summary:  Jareth uses a disguise to lurk around you before the Labyrinth like he did with Sarah, as an owl. Until you accidentally wish away your dog.

Warnings:mentions of tight pants. Mentions of feeling lonely.First smut...you’ve been warned, well just oral, and a handjob.

Word count:4325

A/n: low-key based in my home country, ah yes England.

Y/d/n=your dogs name, or change it to cat or fake pet.

Though you weren't 16, like Sarah, being an adult, Jareth felt pulled to you. No, he was not a pervert, times were different.  Maybe it was your love of your dog, maybe it's how lonesome you felt, that dog unknowingly brought hope into your life. Yes you did love your family, but sometimes you just got lonely.

Maybe it was your love of films, you could watch your favourite film a million times, yet feel so invested into watching it again. Maybe it was your stack of books, some you already had ,which were your favourite,but had gotten pocket editions or ones with different covers.

How Jareth had found you, well that was a different question, not him dressing down , changing his hair to place the labyrinth in difference book stores , illegally. Yes, that was how he had found you,when he had done that. Soon he had figured out, you regularly went to the book store, after following you home in his owl form.

This particular day had been most stressful, though the rain was calming, being drenched to the point your underwear were soaked, not like that. Frozen, you just wanted to get to Waterstones before they shut, practically running. Not only wanting to get there but also get home quick too.

Rushing into the store , the door closing behind you, the warm air embracing your freezing body, you just hoped you wouldn't get in trouble for being soaked in here. It wasn't like you were going to wipe your clothes on all the books , ruining them.

Then, of course more problems occurred; you could not for the life of you find a book you desired.  Sighing , you pushed your dripping hair from your face, you could only imagine how bad you looked in that moment.

Yet, you had continued your search, with no luck until a man had cleared his throat from next to you.

His hair clearly blond from his roots, the rest a light red colour almost ginger but not. His eyes bright blue, yet it seemed like he had heterochromia, aswell as larger pupil in his left eye. His cheekbones highly defined, his body skinny, overall the man was very handsome.

Turning to face the man, highly embarrassed by your state. "If you don't mind-" this is when you thought you was going to be asked to leave, your stomach dropped. "-hearing my suggestion." Okay, that still found like he was going to ask you to leave, but his voice wasn't aggressive.  "...okay?" You weren't sure what to say, only letting out a quiet word.

The man had reached up to the shelf above you , pulling down a small red book, so he wasn't kicking you out.  His pale hand gently holding the book in front of you, 'The labyrinth.' You had taken the book from him, to look for a summary , yet there wasn't one, nor a publisher or an author name.

"You take that home,on me, if you don't like bring it back."  

"W-wait, you d-" You didn't know this man, you felt guilty getting it for nothing, but he had interrupted you. "You've had a long day,clearly,  now go get home,y/n"  The man simply placed his hands on his hips waiting, his words followed out like water, turning to go do whatever he was doing.

"W-wait." He had spun around , his eyes looked at you in slight annoyance, hurrying you up. "What's your name?"

"Ziggy." You had looked at you watch at the same time, before looking back at the man- but he was gone. Thus, you left.  Hold on , how did he know your name?

Not spotting the owl, that stood on the lamp post watching you...

You had begun reading the book , as soon as you had gotten out of your soaking clothes , into warm ones. You wondered how Jareth could like a girl with no sense, no you didn't , you thought why she wearing her baby brother hat.

Yet, your dog would not allow you to sit in peace, shoving their toy under the cupboard making you get up and get it otherwise they wouldn't stop crying, or eating all their food and scratching for more. Then, they had knocked your drink everywhere with their toy.

Groaning in annoyance , for the hundredth time. "You know if the Goblin king was real, y/d/n, I'd wish for him to take you for a time out." Of course you handed read that far you didn't know what would really happen to him..

"You know what, I'll just say it, just in case. I wish the goblins would take you away, right now."   A crack of thunder had made you jump out of your skin turning towards it , before turning back hearing scratching on the floor, to see nothing, by this time it's pitch black, only light from a small lamp is seen , your dog is gone.

Suddenly the door crashes open, an owl flies in , before turning into a man. Not that you could see him much. "Uhm, I mean thanks for taking my dog for a time out , but uh thats dognapping, so.." He had only laughed loudly.

From what you you could see his hair was a huge blond mullet, there was glitter everywhere, and those pants...

"What's said is said."

"What the bloody hell does that mean?" That wasn't legal, he had broken into your home and stole your dog.

"I have brought you a gift, it's a crystal, nothing more. but if you turn it this way and look into it, it will show you your dreams. but this is not a gift for an ordinary girl who takes care of the dog.....do you want it? then forget the dog." You had scoffed at him, you could go ebay and get a crystal ball, who was this wannabe Gandalf?

"Sorry, no, I would like my dog." The king, looked disappointed with your answer, did he believe that would really work?

"don't defy me." His voice stern , as he threw a snake at you , but completely missed, coughing out a small laugh, as the man pretended it never happened.

"Y-you're no match for me."

"Stop with all the talk, how can I get y/d/n back?" With that , he had gestured you to come to the window, a huge maze could be seen, well labyrinth, instead of the dark sky. Turning back to Jareth, you realised you were no longer in your room, but outside the labyrinth.

"So, how does this work?"  You could clearly see the man now, known as Jareth , the Goblin king, his eyes seemed very familiar, left pupil bigger than the right.  He had pointed to a 13 hours clock, that had appeared.

"You have 13 hours in which to solve the labyrinth , and reach my castle, before your dog becomes one of us forever, such a pity." And boom he was a gone, not much to work from.

Now finding away into the labyrinth, indeed that seemed easy, of course it wasn't, no entrances , you thought of the only thing you could do... Climb the wall.  By the time you had gotten over , there stood Jareth in the tight pants.

"You know, there was a door. This shall be your only warning." Poof he was gone again, if you continued climbing walls maybe you'd have to compliment his pants. Next time put a bloody door.

Though you had no idea what in gods earth you was doing, you just decided to head straight forward as you could, thus to get to the castle quicker. Not going one away and ending going through the side door out of the labyrinth.

As you could expect, Jareth was not very happy that you were travelling through his labyrinth, like it was your house. In fact, he was angered, so much , that he wanted to pick you up, as if you were a rag doll and dump you to the start. Then again, you’d just go twice as fast through.

So, there sat Jareth on his throne, with your dog upon his lap, his little whip thing in hand. Suit up Jareth, your not Indiana Jones. Staring into the crystal ball, unable to think.

The fact you had gotten passed the sausage dogs without a second thought pushed Jareth over the edge... He had attempted to jump scare you, but of course it had went south. Jareth rarely had anyone not beat the Labyrinth, and honestly you’d think he would’ve improved it.

Jareth hadn’t spoken in your presence, to inform you that he was there, instead he had placed a hand onto your shoulder. What he was not expecting was you to turn around at sonic speed, punching him square in the face.

Stumbling back, him his boots, holding his now bloody nose, he had let out a yelp in surprise. He did not expect that, not at all.

You had reached some sort of lake, with a path down to a small house, when you had punched Jareth anyways.

After you had seen that it was Jareth that you had punched, who else would it be, guilty travelled up your body suffocating you. Almost instantly you had rushed to Jareth, ripping part of the end of your t-shirt, bringing the fabric to his nose. Pulling his bloody hand from his nose, with a harsh grip, since he lead stiff.

Your face was sweating, not only were you scared that he might kill you, but also you had felt bad for him, after the numerous times he had checked up on you. You wondered if he ever spoke to anyone other than the Goblins, you wondered if he could even leave this place without being wished.

Gripping his sharp jaw to move his face, allowing you to make get a better look at the bleeding, keeping the fabric to his nose, soaking all the blood up. You didn’t even know Faes bled.

“J-Jareth, I’m so sorry! You made me jump, I swear I didn’t do it on purp-“ Jareth liked the contact, the anger he felt before had slipped away, your soft fingers upon his skin, your favourite t-shirt now ruined as you had sacrificed it for his nose. Oh, and he knew that was your favourite shirt.

Your pleading e/c eyes staring into his mismatched ones, made both of your hearts beat fast than moments before. It almost made him forget why you were here; but when he did remember his eyes returned harsh. You only felt bad because you were frightened, he knew you’d leave him soon as you had beaten his labyrinth.

Oh how wrong he was.

Pulling away rudely, using his magic to pull a clock out of no where, using his gloved had to skip it forward three hours, smirking. Fake smirking, the quicker this ends the better, he could not bare to fall in love with a silly human girl again, just to be rejected.

Your eyes widened in confusion, your torn end of your t-shirt still in your hand, bloodied. “W-what?” 6 hours left.

Poof Jareth was gone yet again, oh and how he had some plans for you. Stood in brief shock of what had just occurred, trying to forget the tingles that had erupted down your hand, throughout your whole body, like electric shocks. Shaking it off, like you were about to warm up for pe , just like high school. Ew.

You had continued down the path, to the small house, and within minutes you had reached it. Didn’t seem like there was away around, only way was through.

Thankfully, it was unlocked, allowing you straight in. Only for it to slam close behind you, you didn’t think of anything of it, all you could think about in this moment was how your stomach was growling loudly.

The rag now placed into your back pocket, as you searched the tiny kitchen for anything, coming across an overly large strawberry, you didn’t even think before you had devoured it.

In that moment you heard it the door clicked, you had rushed to it testing it, locked, of course. Your feet now suddenly soaking wet , gulping you had looked down the floor covered in soapy water, rising dangerously. Surely he would not kill you?

All the windows now sealed shut, no upstairs , only the chimney , thankfully wide as. You did the only thing you could, your stomach turning, feeling light headed, the water reaching your knees.

You got in it, but the walls were too slippery so you held your breath just as the water got above your shoulders. Swimming up the chimney with the water, not full breast stroke of course, no room for that. The water pressure building at such a speed you ended up flying out the end of the chimney, no idea how that was even possible.

Then everything went black, soon entering a dream world...well no it wasn’t a dream. Now dressed in gown, at a ball, a masquerade, the room almost packed with guests with goblin like masks., all wearing big expensive gowns, or suite like attire. Loud laughter dimmed out by the loud gently music.. what.

Turning every which way, you felt like you were looking for something, just you could not recall what. A skinny man, with a bo dazzled suite, a long blond mullet with stripes of blue to match his suite, a diamond at his next instead of a tie or bow, frilly shirt. He held a similar goblin mask, only when you caught his eye he had pulled it away.

Only you and him without masks, his eyebrows with no ends, h-his strangely familiar eyes , his thin lips, you felt a strong pull towards him.

“There's such a sad love

Deep in your eyes a kind of pale jewel

Open and closed

Within your eyes

I'll place the sky.”

All you could do is stare at him, as the song began, mouth gapped at him, your dress that before felt heavy no felt like nothing, as he began walking towards you, through the people.

“Within your eyes

There's such a fooled heart

Beatin' so fast”

Trying to get passed the strange people, to get him, he simply danced with other people that already had partners, I mean, like pressed up against the partners.

“In search of new dreams

A love that will last

Within your heart

I'll place the moon

Within your heart

As the pain sweeps through.” He didn’t even try to get to you as you chased after him, these strange people suffocating you, getting in your way on purpose.

“Makes no sense for you

Every thrill is gone.” Then he was gone, your eyes searched the room, not seeing him hidden behind a fan behind you, continued your search. As he smirked behind you, oh how he couldn’t stop feeling the way he did about you, he thought it was funny how now you chased him instead of the other way around.

“Wasn't too much fun at all

But I'll be there for you-ou-ou

As the world falls down.” He had continued making his way through the people, in direct view , as you searched still.

“Falling

As the world falls down

Falling

Falling in love.” Squeezing through the people, feeling panicked, you had no idea what was happening, nor why you felt like this for a strange man, shoving pushed the people that circled you.

“I'll paint you mornings of gold

I'll spin you Valentine evenings though we're strangers 'til now.” You had found him, as a fan moved, he stood sandwiched by two woman.

“We're choosing the path

Between the stars

I'll leave my love

Between the stars” Only then did he come towards you,his face should no emotion, you wondered how you had gotten here. Now with a mans hand out waist and the other in his hand as you danced.

“As the pain sweeps through

Makes no sense for you

Every thrill is gone

Wasn't too much fun at all.” You couldn’t remember knowing how to dance, but you and Jareth done turns in sync with all the other dancers, staring deeply into his mismatched pupils.

“But I'll be there for you-ou-ou

As the world falls down

Falling” Jareth-how did you now know his name, now singing along, wow self loving much , who plays their own music. He had every right. Only then, did you feel yourself leaning to his lips.

“As the world falls down

Falling

Falling

As the world falls down.”

Jareth had noticed, leaning towards you as well, you felt your lips connect to his soft ones, as your eyes closed. That’s all it took for your remove your hands from his shoulder and hand bringing them up into his blond hair. Pulling his face towards yours, not allowing yourself to disconnect from him, you both had stopped dance at this point.

His arms now around your waist pulling you both closer together again, one of your hand now cupping his cheek, as you both kissed. Pulling away for a second to breathe, before pressing your lips against his again harshly this time, biting his lip hard, he had almost jumped, letting out a yelp, only then were you able insert your tongue into his mouth.

You both had long forgotten the people that surrounded you both. Jareths grip now tightened, your tongue fighting against his. Only until he had pulled your hair, pulling you from him lips, your eyes slammed shut, your hands now against his clothed chest, as he pressed kisses down your bare neck. A small moan had escaped your mouth, your hand travelling down to his pants. “Can I?” Jareth had looked into your eyes, his other pupil now almost reaching the same size as his other, nodding.

You hand cupping, his manhood, his pulse heightened under your touch, Jareth had groaned loudly, his bulging member against your palm, as Jareths hips had pushed against your hand for friction. Jareth now sucking harshly at your neck, rubbing your hand against him.

You had forgotten about the room full off people;but Jareth had definitely not, he did not want to take you in front of them, at this moment he didn’t care, he had not had pleasure in a very long time. Leaving your neck, Jareth had joined your lips again, biting your already swollen bottom lips, returning to sloppy small kisses, you had wished that Jareth had picked a less poofy dress.

Your hands leaving Jareths body, he had let out a small sigh, he had thought you had remembered, especially when you began to lift the bottom the dress. Only then did you notice the people, wide eye, but they were still dancing, even if they were looking, Jareth touch was intoxicating.

Your calf’s now on show, almost touching Jareth again, how starred down at you confused, as you looked up at him with a small grin, lifting your leg up and over hip. Instantly he had gripped the soft skin under your thigh, your dress now bunched up to your waist, as you wrapped your arms around Jareths neck.

Pressing your clothes core against, his bulging, your core soaking through, jumping up, so that both of your legs were now wrapped tightly against Jareth. Your lips on his, his hands travelling up your legs slowly, all the way to your waist again, wet kisses as your hips began to rock against Jareths stone member. Your stomach turning into knots against him.

Your clit pulsating against him, undoubtedly he could feel it too, your speed quickly increase, pushed Jareth over the edge with a loud groan, you were pressed against the stone floor. Still, you grinned harshly against him, his hands now either side of your head, his only your upper back against the floor.

Looking into his hungry eyes, pleading for him to do something, stopping your hip movements . “J-Jareth, a-are you sure we should do this here? W-with these people?” Jareth had only smirked at you lowering himself to your ear level. “Love, you’ve got nothing to be ashamed about, plus they can only see when I want them too, understand?” Whispering into your ear, that must be why they didn’t even look your way.

“Now, I must ask, do you want this? Definitely?” His face not inches from yours, his eyes searched yours. “Yes, please.” With that Jareth had unwrapped your legs from him, tearing the bottom of the dress, he was a very skinny man, it was a shame ‘twas a lovely dress. Only your underwear covered you bottom half now, your heels now discarded.

Snapping your legs closed in embarrassment, Jareth had lifted your leg by your calf pressed gently pecks all the way up, till he got your thigh, his eyes meeting yours as you sat up on your elbows, you had nodded at him, anyone would’ve been nervous, especially a virgin.

His lips now reattached to your soft skin on your thigh, gently he had pulled your legs apart , your heat had already been dripping from just kissing, but now it was a river. A snap of his fingers and your underwear were gone.

Jareths face now dangerously close, your whole lower parts on show to him, he had grinned up at you, his hot breath on your most sensitive area, sent chills through your core... literally. Jareth had groaned just feeling your thighs shake in his hands, his erection now painfully restricted.

With that he had slid his tongue up your folds one, letting out a gasp, you hadn’t been touched like this ever. He had brought a single figure to plunge into you, swirling it around you for only a second, his other hand now holding your stomach down, from your squirming underneath him. Removing the finger, his eyes locked onto your as he slipped it into his mouth, sucking on it, before pulling his finger out of his mouth with a pop.

His face satisfied with you, whimpering , he had barely touched you, yet you were pooling already, orgasm almost there, “please...” Parting your folds, he had slowly removed eye contact, his tongue now licking you like an icecream cone, your nerves on overdrive, he had plunged his tongue into you, his hand back on your thighs, squeezing as he swirled around in you. Your legs clenching on his head, grinding into his face.

“Jareth!” Considering you were quite shy, with men anyways, the moan of his name, caused Jareth to tighten his grip, tongue from your opening, he rolled your clit gently between his teeth, you hand cried out, your legs thrown over his shoulders, you could feel your orgasm coming. Pulling tightly at his long hair for more, a loud growl had erupted from his mouth, travelling through you, your stomach tightening.

So close to satisfaction, “J-Jareth..” His tongue had attached back onto your clit, bringing his fingers close to you, one of your legs still on his shoulder, the other leg, he had placed against the stone floor, spreading your legs widely, so that he could insert his finger into you. Your back now curved from the floor, adding two more fingers into your wet opening.

Sweat upon your face, like drops of rain water, allowing you a moment to adjust, Jareth had began to his fingers into you, his mouth detached, faster, and faster by the second. Spreading his fingers in you, you couldn’t hang on any longer. Your legs now shaking like hurricane, Jareth knew you was close, your head thrown back, as you finally met your orgasm.

Removing his fingers, as the please hit you like wrecking ball, throughout our lower half, you had let out a loud moan of pleasure. Your hips finally buckled , riding your orgasm in Jareths face. Panting heavily, Jareth had looking up , wiping the remaining of your juices on his palm.

“J-Jareth?” He now laid next to you, how was he still fully clothed? He had hummed in response. “C-can we just start with that for now,” You were worried, that he’d get angry, but instead he had just looked at you with a gently smile. “Of course, love.” Then you noticed, his painfully erected member, bringing your hand to his bulge rubbing him again, groaning in surprise.

“I-I’ve never done anything like this.” Jareth only nodded, as you stroked him through his pants, he wasn’t going to take your virginity not like this. He was a good man- fae sorry, he took all those children from people that didn’t want them. Shouldn’t be thinking about this right now.

Slipping you hand into Jareths pants, you stroked him harshly, rubbing the his tip gently with your thumb when you reached it, before repeating the cycle. Jareths lips upon yours , you could still taste yourself on him. Quickening your pace, soon enough his he had bitten down roughly onto your lip, as he came.

Yet again, you were both laying on the floor, laying your shoulders on his arm, that wrapped around you laying in his chest.

“Can I have my dog back? I mean- if you let me go back, you could come too, o-only if you want to anyways?” You had stuttered out your words , causing Jareth to laugh at you, he had a feeling you still remembered.

“Of course.”

[slurrmp]

                                          sensory prompts : 41:  A door closing

well - hello ... it’s been well over six months since my last fic and i just feel so bad about that. so here is my attempt at TRYING to get back into the swing of the things since the teaser for season 13 dropped a couple of days ago. everyones favourite reader is back and she’s just as hungover and depressed as ever. i hope y’all still enjoy my content sjakdhsl. 

warnings: alcoholism, withdrawal symptoms. typical j!reader swearing

it had been a whole year. a year and three days. a year, three days and four hours since you started traveling with the doctor and her friends. the adventures had been odd to say the least, but it was nothing that you couldn’t handle. hell, you had been handling cheating spouses and upset mothers for the past three years, a change of pace had been nice for a change. you hadn’t thought about home for the last six months, the idea that the world wasn’t your problem anymore seemed to lift the weight off your shoulders and you felt a lot better about your situation.

But when you had asked for a trip back to your apartment, to make sure that you had everything in order before you disappeared again, was of course the wrong thing you could have done. The Doc had said it’d been only a couple of weeks since you had left and the amount of mail shoved underneath your door almost caused you to panic slightly, apparently people still wanted your help with finding lost animals, children or catch their cheating husbands, wives in the act. The Time Lord was trailing behind you (Yaz and the others had decided to explore downtown New York.), she was rambling something about one of the times she was in New York. The Empire State Building had been over run by Daleks, wanting to make human hybrids or something like that - truly you had tuned out when she said that they had created pig humans. That was a little too much for this early in the morning, that’s when you reminded your self that you should grab some Red Bull before you disappeared again. It wasn’t until your were close enough, that you noticed your front door was cracked open slightly and your hand shot out behind you - waving around slightly, until your fingers gripped onto the sleeve of the Doctor’s coat.

Coming to a stand still, your head tilted to the side ever so slightly - you may not have super hearing but you did know your level of the apartment practically had no one living on it anymore - so the rustling and the slamming of cupboards had to be coming from your place. “Planning on having visitors?” The Doctor questioned and looked back at you, the excited expression she had been wearing earlier was gone and replaced with a much more serious look. You knew that she had better hearing than you did and you now had to rely on her to give you the go ahead to step foot inside your home.

“Not that I remember,” you mumbled back - fingers gripping on her sleeve a little tighter, until you pulled her to stand next to you. Letting go, you looked over at her. “Unless I planned an appointment while drunk.” Hazel eyes narrowed down at you and you couldn’t help but shrug your shoulders. “I need employees.” The sound of glass smashing coming from inside your home caused your heart to jump in your chest, it was time like these that you carried something other than your strength and fists. Shaking your head slightly, the pair of you made your way to the front door. A deep breath in and your eyes caught the Doctor’s one more time, before she nodded her head and you pushed the door open and the pair of you stepped inside.

You were certain that you hadn’t left it in such a terrible condition, even if your home was sparsely filled with furniture, you knew that you did take care of the few items you owned. “I remember it being tidier than this,” You mumbled mostly to yourself, but the Doctor hummed in agreement as she stepped out in front of you, the light buzzing of her sonic screwdriver filled your ears as she moved down the corridor, making her way down to the even sparser living room. You took a left and stepped inside the small kitchen, eyes automatically landing upon the empty bottles of booze that were spread across the counter. The crunching sound underneath your foot caused you to look down, well - there’s the broken glass. Your hand started to twitch at the loss of the booze, brows furrowing deep on your brow, as a whine escaped your lips. “Who the hell got rid of my booze!” You exclaimed picking up the empty whiskey bottle that was precariously leaning just over the edge of the counter. Your lip curled upward and you had to close your eyes for a second. The twitching of hand caused your cheeks to flush and press it into your stomach. It was a little sad that the thought of no alcohol in your house was triggering your withdrawal symptoms. Letting your eyes open, after taking a deep breath in, they wandered over the bench until they noticed a piece of paper to the left of the sink. The white paper, with thick black marker on it was damp in a few places (either the alcohol, or water) Shoving the rest of the bottles out the way (a couple falling off the bench and smashing to the floor as well), you picked it up and squinted - the writing was eerily familiar.

        humanity sucks and they don’t deserve saving. why don’t you                                        join me instead, detective?- O

your brows furrowed even deeper on your forehead but before you could even comprehend the note, the sudden slamming of door off to your right caught your attention, paper falling to the floor instantly as you turned on your heel. Whiskey bottle clattering into the sink as you made your way out of the kitchen. “Doctor!” You called out, looking down the corridor, you couldn’t see her signature lilac coat and it was suddenly quiet no whirring of the sonic screwdriver. “Doc?” You called once more, cursing under your breath when she didn’t reply again. Shaking your head, you squared your shoulders and made your way down the corridor, only to turn into the bathroom - which connected to your bedroom. It was only until you came to the opposite door inside your bathroom, that you heard voices. 

“And hear I thought you only chose pets with a pure heart.” The voice was deep and oddly familiar, like you had heard it somewhere before and your eyes narrowed, as you tried your best to remember where it is you had heard this voice before. “This one - well she could fall off the wagon any second now.”

“What are you doing in her home?” That was the Doctor and she didn’t sound too happy - more shuffling around your bedroom, a bed creaking and you had to stop yourself from barging in right then and there.“How did you even find her home?”

“It wasn’t exactly that hard,” the other person continued. Your name fell off his lips and a shiver ran down your spine, you didn’t like the way that he said your name. “...one of the most notorious private detectives in the Hell’s Kitchen and Manhattan area.” A whir of something, that sounded like the screwdriver but you weren’t too sure. “She’s got quiet the reputation around here and well, wasn’t exactly that hard to find.” You shoved passed clothes that were still strewn on the floor, pressing an ear against your bedroom door. “Well, that is until you decided to intervene and taken her away.”

“What do you want with her?” The Doctor questioned and there was a manic laugh and suddenly the door you were leaning against was no longer underneath you and you were falling forwards, your eyes snapped shut as you just acceptedthe fact that you were about to fall flat on your face.But when you didn’t hit the hardwood floors, your eyes snapped open and you were suddenly staring into dark brown eyes.

“You!” You gasped and had to fight to get out of the grip he had around your waist. His lips pulled into a manic grin and the laugh returned, you saw the Doctor shift in her position just behind the pair of you but she didn’t intervene - at least not yet.

“Me.” The Master stared down at you and your heart couldn’t stop itself from beating overdrive. “Oh this is going to be so much fun!”

[thesims4blogger]

The Sims 4 Paranormal Stuff: Developer Blog (Part 1)

SimGuruConnor has released part 1 of the Sims 4 Paranormal Developer Blog series.

Hello Simmers! Welcome to a small 2-part Dev Blog about our newest Stuff Pack, Paranormal Stuff! This pack has been an absolute blast to work on, and I’m excited to share what this pack is all about!

I’ll try not to reveal too many spoilers for the pack either, so I’ll keep things somewhat brief. Our topics for today are the new Scared Mood and the Haunted House Lot Type, plus an interview with our Audio Artist too!

Get Scared

Sims can now relish in the mortal dread of the Scared Mood! The Scared Mood affects Sims in a variety of ways, with my personal favorite, the new Scream Incoherently interaction, where a Scared Sim runs up to another Sim to scream their lungs out. This can result in the other Sim calming down the Scared Sim, or resulting in both Sims becoming Scared. This can create a Scared Mood wildfire if you’re not careful!

Whoa, whoa, whoa, it's okay!

Sims afflicted with the Scared Mood also have trouble communicating with others, the urge to panic-run everywhere, and are slightly more prone to accidents. If no other Sims are around to help calm down a Scared Sim, they might just have to Hide Under The Covers for a while.

But if being Scared just isn’t your Sims style, consider purchasing the new Brave Trait. This Satisfaction Reward Store Trait will rapidly reduce the incoming fear a Sim feels and help Sims regain their composure faster. While no Sim is totally fearless, this trait should help mitigate some of those creepy feelings.

The Scared Mood and the Brave Reward Trait are all base game features coming with the Paranormal Stuff patch on January 21st. Tons of previous Uncomfortable Buffs are now becoming Scared Buffs, such as the “Startled By Ghost” Buff or the “Thalassophobia” Buff from Island Living.

While being Scared might not be a common occurrence in your everyday Sims life, living in a Haunted House is a whole different story…

Happy Haunts

Introducing the Haunted House Lot Type!

The Duplantier Dwelling, created by Doctor Ashley! This “canon” Haunted House will be available in the gallery!

They’re like regular houses, only haunted! Although unassuming during the day, at night, these places get super weird. Your Sims may notice things like flickering lights, pipes rattling, or even creepy dolls staring at them in the corner. All are totally normal occurrences in a Haunted House, but it may take some time for your Sims to adjust to their new surroundings.

Sims living in a Haunted House will also be introduced to floating apparitions known as Specters. They’re cute little critters, but their motives aren’t entirely clear. You can try talking to them, or even offer them presents in hopes of establishing a good rapport. If they like you, they’ll drop special loot for you and your family. If they don’t like you, well, you’ve been warned.

o o o (> ‘ u ‘ )>

Learning to get along with your new ghostly inhabitants is crucial in a Haunted House. Things like botching seances, neglecting Specters, or letting accursed objects invade your house will have a negative impact on its spiritual serenity. There is a delicate art to co-existing with the entities of the house, and thankfully you’ll have an expert on the matter to assist you!

Meet Guidry

Claude René Duplantier Guidry was a seasoned Paranormal Investigator in his previous life, but now he exists to help anyone brave enough to live in a Haunted House! You’ll probably run into him eventually living in a Haunted House, but don’t worry, he’s a nice ghost!

Guidry will gladly offer his wisdom to those who seek it. If you’re confused, alarmed, or slightly uncomfortable by your new haunted surroundings, give Guidry a holler and he might be able to help. He can also offer valuable objects to help your Sims, too; all you need is to reach out!

Still got it.

All Guidry wants in return is to crash at your place for the time being. Sounds like a fair deal, right? But if you’d prefer to fly it solo, you can always disable his nightly visits—he won’t be too upset, maybe.

As mentioned before, Guidry was a Paranormal Investigator before his untimely demise. If he sees potential in you, he can certify you with a Paranormal Investigation License, granting access to the Paranormal Investigation Freelancer Gigs. Only those who are qualified enough can join the ranks of Paranormal Investigators, but more on that next time!

Be Brave!

Living in a Haunted House adds a layer of risk and reward for your Sims, and each successful night yields Reward Store Satisfaction Points for everyone in the Household. Specters can also drop treasure that can also be collected, consumed, or sold to an Oddity Collector. So although your Sims might go through a bit of peril, they’ll thankfully be compensated.

One of my favorite pieces of haunted treasure is the new Sacred Candle. Not only do they look cool, but they also help protect Sims from paranormal influences. Place them around your house to make sure Sims are properly shielded!

A properly protected Sim.

Things like Sacred Candles and performing ceremonies at the Séance Table are integral to keeping your Sims happy in a Haunted House. Without using these paranormal tools, the entities of the house might get a little bossy.

And while it might be in your Sims’ best interest to keep the spirits of the house in check, watching things go horribly wrong in a Haunted House can be just as fun too. So whatever works for you!

Like Tiny Homes, this Lot Type can be toggled on or off at any time. So whether you’re a casual thrillseeker who wants to spend a couple of nights in a Haunted House, or a seasoned Paranormal Expert who wants to take on a new challenge, this Lot Type should offer something for you!

Crosspack Stuff!

Pets get to share the fun too! They especially love the accursed objects that show up!

I think they’re gonna get along great.

As mentioned before, a ton of old Buffs from multiple packs are now being converted to the Scared Mood. I think 70 something Moodlets were converted? Honestly, I lost count. Anything that seemed more appropriate for the Scared Mood was transferred over.

Oh, and you might remember an old Lot Trait from City Living called Haunted. For clarity’s sake, it needed a name change, so now it’s the Spooky Lot Trait. It also benefits from being combined with the new Haunted House Lot Type and will have an increased chance of spawning Ghosts at night. So use both for maximum haunted-ness!

Audibly Frightened

Last but not least, I’d love to turn it over to our Audio Artist for this pack, Briana Billups! She did a killer job bringing Haunted Houses to life! Trust me!

Conor: Can you tell us what an Audio Artist does on The Sims 4?

Briana: Big, broad picture: an audio artist decides what everything in The Sims 4 sounds like. We record, create, and edit sounds to the art and animation of the game. Little, very detailed picture: creating the actual sounds is usually one of the smaller aspects of our job. We are meeting with other departments, like design, animation, and VFX, to understand the overall vision of new game features and how we can fit in sonically. We are meeting with each other to make sure all our new content still keeps the very fun and quirky vibe of the Sims. We come up with new tools and implementation where necessary.

Conor: What sort of things go into the creative process for creating audio?

Briana: Every audio artist/sound designer has their own creative process, but I like to make a “sonic mood board” of sorts. I typically like to have a good idea of what I want something to sound like in my head before I record or edit it, so it’s nice to have sound effects or music to refer to that represents my original inspiration or ideas. When I was in college, I would make Spotify playlists for whatever I was working on. I would listen to them once a day, adding and editing as necessary, so when I actually got to work, I was in the right headspace. Now I’m usually less formal about this sort of stuff, but for this pack, I would refer back to things like Vincent Price’s demonic laugh from Thriller or Casper the Friendly Ghost Cartoons and the looping soundtrack from the queue of a horror ride at the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk (Ghost Blasters)

Conor: What were you most excited to work on for this pack?

Briana: Definitely all the haunted house sounds! Good sound design is the crux of so many horror movies and video games, so even if we were keeping things more “Casper” and less “Poltergeist,” I still wanted to give a good scare here and there. I actually scared myself one day while playtesting another feature in the game!

Conor: If you had to choose, what is your favorite audio clip you’ve ever added to The Sims 4?

Briana: I would say my favorite SFX were the sports arena loops in EP08: Discover University. When you visit the arena for the soccer/esports match or graduation, you can actually listen to the whole game or ceremony. It was great to craft a whole story from start to finish using just sound. I also snuck in a lot of developer names when writing the scripts for our voice actors.

Thanks, Briana!

More To Come!

That about covers this first foray into the Paranormal Stuff Pack! This pack has been a ton of fun to work on, and watching my Sims flee in terror has been more enjoyable than I’d like to admit.

Next blog, we’ll focus on the Séance Table and developing your Medium skill, as well as the new active freelance career Paranormal Investigator.

Big thanks to the Stuff Pack team for helping this pack come to life, and thank you, Doctor Ashley, for building our featured Haunted House!

Until next time, SimGuruConor

[achliegh]

Sunflower

Epilogue Chapter 3

Chapter 1, Chapter 2

This is the epilogue to Olive and Otto

It will mostly be exploring the relationship the cubs have with O&O

There will also be a little storm chasing

TW/CW: Kids, Food, Storms, Smut, Sickness

@domesticatedbeetlenamedjorge

Characters belong to @lumosinlove

“Daddy! Daddy!” Olive comes running around the corner with his phone in her hand facetiming Eloise, she ran over hopping up and down next to Leo who was taking Otto's temperature for the millionth time that day.

Otto had caught a stomach bug from somewhere they went, he was pale and shivering, coughing and he had a low fever. Leo, being the warrior that he is, checks his son's temp every hour, and brings him a new water bottle. He was attentive. Olive was much worse than Leo, Logan and Fin would watch them fuss over the sick child with slightly amused smiles but they knew where the worry stems from. That scar on Otto's head wasn’t just for looks, it also was the mark of someone who survived.

“What is it Sugarbug?” He looks over to his bouncy daughter and smiles a little, placing a cool cloth on Otto's forehead as the young boy drifts back off to sleep.

“Ma ’Maw and Pawpaw will be in Hufflepuff! They said the storm of the year will be there and asked if we can go!” If one thing ran in the blood of the Knut’s it was a love of storms. INK was like Logan in the sense that she was terrified of storms, when she was kicked out of her family's house for getting pregnant it was storming and she thought she was going to freeze to death. “Canwegocanwegocanwegocanwego! Pleaseeee!” She was using her puppy dog eyes on him while Eloise was laughing on the phone.

“I know Otto is sick, you don’t have to, Sweetheart. Our camera man’s wife is having a child right now and the storm is supposed to hit tomorrow, We could really use your help.”

He smiles and shakes his head a little as he stands up and cracks his back taking his phone.

“Tremz doesn’t like storms and Otto is sick, I mean if you really need me I can go but I doubt Harzy wants too and if I’m behind the camera and you and dad are gonna be focused on your equipment. Who is gonna keep an eye on Olive.” He looks up to see Logan has taken his place in front of Otto on the floor next to the couch and Finn has picked up Olive so she is sitting on his hip as they look through pictures of puppies and kitties that need homes. The kids (plus Logan) really wanted a pet.

“Just tell Finn that we’ll give him a company track jacket and he will come”

“Track Jacket?” Finn was suddenly right next to Leo looking at the phone screen with Olive squished between them, giggling. “I want a track jacket” Eloise is giving Leo this ‘I told you so’ look, rolling his eyes he kisses his lover's cheek.

“What about Logan and Otto? I don’t just want to leave them here.”

“What, you think I can’t take care of a sicky?” Logan looks up at him from where he's sitting and smiles a little. Finn raises an eyebrow because he has never seen Logan be able to even take care of himself when he's sick. “At least I don't throw up when someone else does, Harzy. Anyway, as long as the storm doesn’t come to Gryff I should be fine. Plus, I won’t be alone.” He looks back at Otto and runs the back of his finger over the sick boy's soft cheek.

Thinking for a moment Leo realizes he has no reason to say no, he sighs a little and nods to his mom. “Pick us up on your way, yeah?” The smile on his mothers face is just pure sunshine. They say their goodbyes and hang up.

“Will Otto be okay?” Olive's mind has switched to her brother like it has been for the last two days he’s been sick. She gets set down and goes to sit in Logan's lap while she watches him sleep. “I don’t want to leave him if he won’t be okay…” She looks at Logan a little sad and he gets an idea.

“Let's go for a walk, Mon Douce.” He takes the hairband off his wrist, which all the boys have started wearing because they just fall off the small girls wrists and she doesn’t notice, he puts her hair up in a ponytail. They figured out that the best way to clear the energetic girls head was exercise, skating, rollerblading, running, or even just a walk around the neighborhood. He pats her leg and she stands up, not taking her eyes off her brother.

“I’ll stay, you three go.” Leo kisses his boys and gives Olive a bunch of kisses on her face until she laughs. “Don’t worry he’s going to be alright”. She nods a little and walks to the door to put on her light up sketchers. The other boys grab their house keys and phones after they put on their shoes and open the door for her. Leo smiles at them, every time he sees his boys with his kids it makes him ecstatic. He goes to sit on the end of the couch, opposite of his child, and starts reading on his phone.

Finn was holding onto Olive's hand to keep her from running ahead of them, once they left it was like sonic after he was supercharged, she was trying to get them to run but neither of them were wearing shoes they could actually run in. She was talking so fast and in so many different languages Finn was totally lost and Logan was less lost but still not following.

They made it to the dog park before they realized it, maybe they should get one of those kid leashes for Olive and then she could run ahead of them but not get lost.

“Look!” Olive somehow got out of his grasp and sprinted after something in the bushes. The two boys curse under their breath and follow her. Or they try to because the hole in the bushes she went through was very small.

“OLIVE! GET BACK OUT HERE!”

[welcome-to-green-hills]

How do you think Shadows story is going to play out?

Good question!

To be honest, as much as I love Shadow, I don’t think that he would be in a second or a third movie.

I’m sorry, but lower your pitch forks and torches for a second.

If Shadow were introduced into the potential second, or even in a possible third movie, the writers for the Sonic Movie would have to be VERY creative with where Shadow comes from and how he was introduced. Like... really, really creative... which is why I’ve thought of my own idea as to how Shadow COULD be introduced.

It’s already established that Dr. Robotnik is an orphan in the movie, but it could go into detail as to why he was orphaned to begin with. It could be that Dr. Robotnik was orphaned as a child and taken into the USA government’s care due to being removed from his family.

So... here’s what I think:

Dr. Robotnik was orphaned as a baby due to his parents disappearing. (It won’t go much into detail, we just know that they ran off, plus it won’t be too traumatic to kids). Gerald Robotnik takes him in.

The reason why Dr. Robotnik could be interested in machines and technology due to Gerald Robotnik having a background in medical science and crafting droids that were meant to deliver medical aid to USA soldiers fighting in combat.

This idea could help bring forth Maria Robotnik, a potential sister/sibling to Dr. Robotnik that is sick. Double whammy for Gerald, wanting to use the USA’s facilities to create new tech AND cure her.

(He may not remember much of Maria because he could have been taken away at such a young age. This could be used as an advantage also, as well as used to help craft Dr. Robotnik’s character of wanting to be alone).

This requires The Robotniks to move to an isolated place, a quarantined area, for Gerald to find a way to complete his experiments to cure Maria... could be NIDs, or even make it relate to the current events of the world.

(They did in the movie, “is it emails” is a jab at the 2016 presidential elections in 2016. This could be done again).

Gerald Robotnik tries to create Project: SHADOW—a genetic mutation of a human molecular structure that could make humans completely immune to diseases and make them stronger. (Could be in the form of liquid—make it a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle reference in a sense).

Maria Robotnik COULD of had a pet while in quarantine, something small, like a hedgehog, and the animal somehow gets mixed up with Gerald Robotnik’s experiments in the lab and begins to mutate.

Now... this opportunity can be used for Dr. Robotnik: the writers could use this opportunity to not ONLY a reason to have Dr. Robotnik scream in terror from seeing Sonic due to remembering some fragments of his childhood, but also make it out that he hates hedgehogs BECAUSE one ruined a test trial for his sister/blood related family.

Project: SHADOW is the end result of the failed trial. Sure the trials are destroyed, but Gerald Robotnik could see this as an opportunity to perfect his serum and study Project: SHADOW.

The government picks up on the human genetic alterations and everyone from the pentagon is on the case, General Walters just so happens to be on the team that shuts down Gerald Robotnik’s project.

Walters comes and takes Dr. Robotnik to be raised by the USA government ONLY,seeing that Dr. Robotnik is brilliant like his grandpa, but wants him to only serve the USA government. Because of this, Walters orders EVERY trace of a Robotnik to be erased from existence—this can tie into the reason why Dr. Robotnik exclaims, “how can you arrest someone that doesn’t even exist?”

(Keep in mind that Tom tried to arrest Dr. Robotnik for threatening an officer, Dr. Robotnik responds with, “how can you arrest someone that doesn’t even exist?” This was said in the movie).

Project: SHADOW is taken away because he is seen as a potential danger and they seal him away.

Dr. Robotnik catches word of this after retiring from the mushroom planet and heads back to the pentagon to complain about being forgotten, General Walters somehow drops a hint of it being compared to having his family being erased from existence for almost fifty years.

Dr. Robotnik takes an interest in it. He realizes that he wasn’t lonely and abandoned, but rather taken away and told to believe that he was abandoned and unloved.

Dr. Robotnik then takes files and data of Project: SHADOW, breaks into Prison Island look alike, and takes out the creation that Gerald Robotnik made, which wakes up Project: SHADOW.

Project: SHADOW has grown a hatred to the human race due to being sealed away and Dr. Robotnik only fuels that hatred of hating humans due to his personal problems and takes it out on the world.

The two them team up and try to do the whole SA2 stuff. Rouge could be replaced with a human.... maybe? Tom, Sonic, Maddie, Wade, and Tails(?) could find a way to stop everything from happening... but how would you include The Master Emerald into this world?

This is what I think could possibly happen, but I do not know if it would work well. As I’ve said; the team would have to be super creative with this.

I hope that this answers your question!😊

[nevertherose]

One Hundred Seconds to Midnight- Chapters 9-13

"All Roman wanted to do was take Logan on a Doctor Who LARP within the Imagination.

But with Thomas's Sides at their figurative breaking point after the disastrous wedding, the Imagination may just have a few ideas of her own..."

Chapters 1-8 are here.

Chapters 14-17 are here.

Here's the next chunk:

Chapter 9- Gridlock

“This Martha. She must mean an awful lot to you.”

“Hardly know her. I was too busy showing off. And I lied to her. Couldn’t help it, just lied.”

Patton felt strange.

Well, he’d felt strange for a while now, ever since this odd little adventure had started, but it grew worse the further into the asylum they traveled. His limbs were strangely heavy, he couldn’t seem to catch his breath, and there was a chill in his core that no amount of self-hugging could alleviate.

And he kept having these flashes of…well, anger. Like, sure, being stuck in the Imagination in the middle of the night was a tad frustrating, but that was no reason to feel this…this blind, red rage that welled up from time to time.

What was wrong with him?

Patton needed a hug.

He wondered if Janus would give him one, if he asked.

Eh…maybe not. Janus was many things: smart, cunning, arrogant, fiercely caring…but huggable wasn’t a word that immediately came to mind.

The ladder from the escape pod had led down a long shaft that dumped out into an empty metal hallway; dark, rusty, and with water dripping everywhere. Janus had found a computer terminal and scanned the area, plotting out a route that would lead them around various knots of warring aliens. He located Remus’ tiny prison almost immediately, and ignored it in favor of scanning for a teleportation chamber.

“If I have to be in this stupid adventure,” he informed Patton tersely, “I want my damned TARDIS back.”

“I’m not arguing with you.” Patton spread his hands.

“We’ll have to cross four hangers and a maze of corridors to reach the room,” Janus mused, irritatedly rubbing the scales on his face. “And it looks like most of this area is still infected with the nano cloud.”

“I know,” Patton whispered as Janus strode off.

Patton would feel a lot better about their chances if this hadn’t been the fifth time they’d had this exact conversation.

One empty hanger and two hallways later, Janus stopped at another terminal.

“Janus…” Patton started.

“There’s Remus’s prison,” Janus muttered, staring at the screen and ignoring him completely. “But where’s…ah. There’s a teleportation chamber about three hangers away. We should head for that.”

“But…”

“No, Patton, we are not going after Remus first.” Janus sighed, and itched his face. “If I have to be in this stupid adventure—”

“You want your damned TARDIS back, I know!” Patton yelled.

Janus blinked at him, and narrowed his eyes.

“You never swear.”

I never feel like this. Why am I acting like this?

“And you are being affected by the nano cloud,” Patton said hurriedly. “We keep having this same conversation over and over! I am begging you, please wear the bracelet for a while. ”

He held out his wrist, which Janus absently took in his hands. His mouth compressed, so hard that the skin around the snakelike slit grew pale.

“Or let me go ahead of you, and try to deactivate the cloud,” Patton offered.

“You wouldn’t be able to hack the system.” Janus shook his head. “I have all the Master’s knowledge, which is why I can.”

“Then you take the bracelet and do it!”

“We’re not splitting up, Patton.”

Patton growled softly and turned away, walking in a small circle to calm himself down.

“You…just…I am getting really frustrated with you, mister,” he sputtered. “Take. The. Bracelet.”

“I’m tough, Patton. I can handle it.” Janus smiled bitterly. “Maybe the cloud is messing with my memory a little, but it will never be able to actually convert me.”

Patton frowned…or tried to. His facial expressions felt weirdly stiff.

“Why’s that?”

“You remember the whole ‘how do you make a Dalek’ schtick?” Janus’s grin grew wider, fangs flashing behind his lips. “‘Erase love, add anger’? Well. My heart is already cold and hard. There’s no love to erase, and thus, nothing to convert.”

Patton felt his own heart break, to hear Janus say such awful things about himself…but…maybe he had an inadvertent point. Patton knew that he himself, on his best days, was a squishy ball of excessive caring and emotion, prone to bouts of both effervescence and melancholy (or so Roman had described him, once). Nothing to be ashamed of; as Thomas’s heart, that’s just who Patton was.

But as such, maybe…maybe the nano cloud really would have an awful, immediate effect on him. He already felt so strange…

Maybe Janus was right to insist he keep the bracelet on.

Well. Patton put his hands on his hips, huffing. That doesn’t mean he gets to talk bad about himself.

“Hello?” a strange, almost furry-sounding voice called.

Two aliens rounded the corner behind them. They looked almost human, except for their furred bodies, large, feline ears and catlike faces. They moved hesitantly, with inhuman grace, their long tails flicking nervously behind them.

“Ooh, Janus, they’re Catkind!” Patton gasped softly, clasping his hands together. “I always wanted to see one up close…”

“But where the hell did they come from?” Janus groused. “We were just in that corridor…and also, may I remind you that you’re allergic?”

“Hello there!” Patton called as the Cat People approached, ignoring Janus’s eye roll. “Where did you come from?”

“I’m not sure.” The tabby-like Cat Person rubbed their furred hands together. “One moment we were in our hover van, watching the newscast as always, and then…oh!”

The Cat Person’s eyes widened as they drew up to Patton. Janus quickly stepped between them and lifted his hands.

“It’s okay, we’re lost here, just like you,” he said smoothly.

“Well. I guess strange times make strange bedfellows, or something like that,” the tabby Cat joked, flashing a mouthful of feline teeth.

“Isn’t that the truth,” Janus crooned. “You were saying…?”

Patton was beginning to sense, more and more, that Janus was actively, purposefully hiding something from him.

But now wasn’t exactly a good time to ask.

“We were watching the TV,” the second Cat Person said. They were shorter, their voice and fur color both lighter than that of their companion, and they wore a sling pouch across their body. “And something flickered across the screen; I can’t remember exactly what it was. A gray face, or…” They shrugged, furred shoulders rippling. “And then we were just…here.”

A tiny face popped out of the sling as they spoke. It meowed, and Patton let out a very undignified squeal.

“Is that a kitten?” he all but squeaked, holding hands up to his face. It was so cute!

“Oh! Yes.” The pale Cat smiled down at the sling. “Our six babes. They sleep better when I keep them close.”

“Can I pet them?” Patton was practically vibrating. “Pretty please? I’ll be very careful.”

The Cat frowned, exchanging a glance with their partner, but carefully extracted a kitten and cradled it. Patton ran a trembling finger down its spine and cooed when it started to purr.

Janus, meanwhile, was stroking his bottom lip.

“Catkind…hover van…were you on the Motorway in New New York, by chance?”

The tabby Cat frowned. “Well, of course.”

“The Gridlock episode,” Janus said quietly to Patton. “Which was set in the far future, if I recall. But where…or I suppose, ‘when’…does the asylum episode fall within that timeline?”

Patton shrugged. He didn’t have Logan’s or, he supposed, Janus’s patience for untangling complex plot threads in TV shows, and time was so wibbly wobbly within the Doctor Who universe anyway. Plus, knowing “when” the Cat People were from didn’t explain how they spontaneously ended up here, in this hallway.

They’re just…here, like that Tivolian in the escape pod. Sadness rushed through him. The asylum was no place for innocent people like this, especially a couple with babies!

“If I may,” the tabby Cat said as their partner resettled their kittens in the sling. “Where did the two of you come from? And where are we?”

“Ah, well, that’s a rather long story,” Janus said. “We—”

“Ah-ha! More intruders in our quadrant!”

Six or so squat Sontarans, all helmeted and bristling with blaster rifles, flooded into the corridor. The two Cat People froze, eyes growing wide.

“Terminate them,” the Sontaran leader shouted, pointing. “For the glory of Sontar!

“Invasion of the Potato People,” Janus snarked, fangs flashing, as he flicked a setting on his sonic laser. “Just what we need.”

The aliens raised their guns.

“Now, er, fellas,” Patton tried, raising his arms. “There’s…there’s no need for violence. Can’t we all just, uh, get along?”

“The Sontaran Empire does not take orders from your kind, metal scum!” the lead Sontaran snarled. “Fire!”

“Run!” Janus shouted, seizing Patton’s arm and shoving the two terrified Cat People ahead of him.

There was a confused, mad rush through a half dozen corridors, dodging blaster fire, as Janus occasionally fired back with his laser and stopped to hack closed doors as they encountered them.

The clomp of boots and chanting echoed behind them.

“Sontar-ha! Sontar-ha!”

At one junction, the Cat People peeled off down a smaller random hallway before Patton could even protest.

“Splitting up is safer! We can’t worry about them!” Janus yelled, yanking Patton a different direction. That corridor ended in a door that Janus couldn’t seem to hack, and they had to backtrack to a tiny alcove, folding themselves inside and catching their breath.

There was barely enough room for the two of them.

Janus pressed one yellow-clad hand against Patton’s chest as they waited, warily, for the bootsteps and yelling to pass, their breaths filling the space. He was so close that Patton could count the individual scales on his cheekbone and the green flecks in his yellow slitted eye. Unfamiliar facial hair…familiar, hooded gaze.

It occurred to Patton, suddenly, that he’d never stood this close to Janus before. Close enough to feel his slight warmth, to breathe in the spicy, subtle aroma emanating from his clothes…

“Did you know you smell like cloves?” Patton blurted out when the corridor was silent again. It had been such an odd thing to notice.

It also wasn’t unpleasant.

Janus didn’t acknowledge that, but instead massaged his temples.

“Ugh, my head is killing me.”

“Say…” Patton narrowed his eyes as he realized he was looking down at the other Side. “Aren’t I shorter than you? In the mindspace anyway.”

If Patton hadn’t been looking for it, he might have missed the way Janus’s eyes widened infinitesimally.

“Well.” Janus shrugged, all expression gone. “I hadn’t paid much attention.”

Liar.

Something stone-like settled in Patton’s stomach.

“No, you’re definitely supposed to be taller,” he said, more firmly.

Deceit.

“If the Imagination altered our clothes coming in, surely it could have altered our heights.”

Janus’s voice was as smooth as ever, and for a moment, Patton hated how easily the snake-faced Side did this. The unfamiliar anger at the back of his mind swirled.

Deceit, come on.

“Well, then why didn’t I sneeze when I pet that kitten?” Patton demanded. “You yourself pointed out that I’m allergic.”

“Kittens don’t produce the protein that triggers an allergic reaction.” Janus’s eyes went distant for a moment. “I do hope that couple found a safe place to hide.”

“Gosh, yeah, me too…” Patton murmured, and then frowned. “Oh, no you don’t, mister, you’re trying to change the subject! I wasn’t allergic to the parents, either; explain that!”

Janus shrugged, still infuriatingly calm.

“Maybe Catkind as a whole don’t produce ordinary feline dander.”

“Why won’t you just tell me what it is you’re hiding!” Patton snapped, grabbing the other Side’s shoulders and raising a hand…wait.

What…am I doing?

Janus had paled, and the spark of actual fear flashing in his eyes was enough to snap Patton out of…whatever that was. He stared at his hands and for a moment, he swore he saw…

But then it was gone.

And Janus had pulled away, stepping out into the now-empty corridor.

“We should keep moving,” he threw over his shoulder, jacket flapping as he stalked away, leaving Patton to stumble after him.

“Janus.”

Janus’s shoulders flinched but he kept walking, his boots clacking harshly on the concrete floor.

Patton hurried to catch up.

“Janus!”

The snake-faced Side turned a corner, taking him out of Patton’s line of sight for a moment. Patton broke into a run, rounding the corner and almost crashing into him.

He’d stopped, and was typing away at yet another terminal.

Patton realized they were back at the door from before, the one Janus hadn’t been able to hack. Muffled shrieks and shouts echoed through the thick metal from the other side.

“Almost got it,” Janus muttered, absently rubbing his head; hadn’t he mentioned a headache earlier? He’s always concealing things. I wish he could just…but Patton still felt shaken by what had happened earlier, so he decided to let it go for now.

Best to avoid another quarrel.

“Are you sure we want to go this way?” he said instead. “It sounds like a battle on the other side.”

“Don’t be ridiculous, Patton.” Janus waved a hand, not looking at him. “I already looked. It’s just some people milling around; they likely won’t even notice us. And the teleportation chamber we need is on the other side.”

Patton frowned, and hunched to peer through the smudged rectangle of glass on the door. It was difficult to make out specifics, but he definitely saw blaster fire, and knots of very large aliens running back and forth.

“That is not just people, J—” he started, but then the door slid open and Janus was already striding through.

“—Janus, no!” Patton yelped and followed.

That door, it turned out, had been blocking a great deal of noise. Yelling, clanging, blaster fire hitting metal, horribly familiar robotic voices screeching. Knots of hulking Judoon fought a proper horde of green Silurians, with a few commanding Daleks thrown in on both sides.

It was impossible to tell who was winning, if anyone; or what, if anything, they were fighting over.

Patton caught up to Janus and grabbed his jacket collar.

“See, Patton?” Janus shot him an easygoing smirk that made Patton’s stomach twist in alarm, and waved a hand. “It’s just people.”

“Oh, no, I remember this bit now,” Patton murmured.

He seized Janus’s face.

“Janus Sanders, the nanocloud is altering your perception,” he said, twisting the other Side around. “Look again, look!”

Janus looked, and Patton heard his swift intake of breath.

“EMERGENCY! EMERGENCY! THE CARGO DOOR HAS BEEN BREACHED!”

Several Daleks split off from the battle and rolled toward the two of them, drawing a few curious Silurians along. Patton huffed.

“And now they’ve seen us.”

He again held up his arms, though logically he knew negotiating with Daleks was a worse non-starter than placating Sontarans. Still…it never hurt to try.

A Silurian grabbed one of their neighbors, and pointed at him.

“It has a nano repeller!” they called. “Seize it!”

“Well, that’s new,” Janus snarked.

“Run?” Patton squeaked as more Silurians peeled off from the main battle.

“Run,” Janus confirmed.

They bolted across the hanger and through the thick of the fight.

The pursuing Daleks actually proved to be a useful distraction, charging after them with blasters blazing, drawing enemy fire away from the two Sides. But the pursuing Silurians were faster, and they kept chasing long after the Daleks found other, more engaging targets.

The Silurians tailed Patton and Janus into the adjoining corridor, briefly catching up when Janus had to stop and hack yet another door. The door slid open as green hands scrabbled at Patton’s arms. Janus zapped one with his laser and pulled Patton through, slamming the inside panel with his other hand.

The door slid shut, and Janus fried the controls so it couldn’t be easily opened again.

Patton breathed.

They were safe, again, for the moment.

At least Patton thought they were….until he happened to glance down at his hands.

“Janus!” he yelled shrilly. “My bracelet is gone! Oh no, oh no, oh no…I thought if we didn’t lose it in the escape pod we wouldn’t lose it at all…”

“Patton.” Janus was abruptly in his face, gloved hands gripping his jawline. “Patton, breathe.”

“I’m sorry!” Patton sobbed. “I lost it and now we’re both going to turn into Daleks, Janus, I’m so sorry—!”

“Nonsense.” Janus’s voice grew sharp. “You have nothing to worry about.”

And something…truthy...in the timbre of those words cut through Patton’s rising panic like a slap to the face.

“And why is that?” Patton asked, just as sharply.

Janus hesitated.

He very clearly hesitated, his fingers digging into the nape of Patton’s neck. Patton held his breath.

“Because…” Janus swallowed, his eyes darting away. “Because nobody in this universe or any other could possibly exhaust the well of love that is Patton Sanders’ heart.”

And with that he whirled away, stalking to the raised teleportation platform and sliding under the glass floor.

With an effort, Patton closed his gaping mouth (darn his stiff muscles). He’d never been so certain in all his life that Janus had just lied to him, again…but it was also the sweetest and most vulnerable thing he’d ever heard the other say. It sent a shock of warmth down to Patton’s too-cold toes.

Janus…Janus truly believed that Patton’s heart held too much love for the Daleks to steal?

“Oh.” Patton exhaled, gaze drawn to Janus as he rewired the platform; jacket sleeves rolled up his forearms, sonic held between his teeth and a look of utter concentration on his face.

That strange, and oddly beautiful face.

Oh.

Chapter 10- Silence in the Library

“The shadows are moving again. Those people are depending on you. Only you can save them. Only you.”

“What I want to know,” Roman griped as he and Logan slumped against yet another corridor wall, “is where all these blasted aliens are coming from.”

Ever since giving Remus’s “Silurian army” the slip, they’d encountered one obstacle after another. They’d been pursued what felt like halfway across the asylum by a pair of crafty Saturnynians wanting their nano bracelets; Roman had singlehandedly fought off a horde of Tritovores; Logan had outsmarted a Sontaran troop by trapping them in a small chamber with only one working door; and they had only just outrun a platoon of Judoon.

All with Logan unable to see anything more than five feet in front his face.

Roman, if he was being honest with himself, kind of didn’t mind being Logan’s eyes. Sure, his sword arm was sore from fending off aliens trying to rob them or kill them (Roman fought with the flat of his blade, of course; no need for pointless killing). But having his crush depend on him to see threats coming, and to keep from crashing into things…it was nice to feel needed.

For once.

Plus…Roman could compose entire sonnets on how beautiful Logan’s galaxy-dark eyes were, when they weren’t hidden behind glasses.

“Remus,” Logan called, straightening up. “We could use some help.”

Roman scoffed. “I wouldn’t get your hopes up.”

“If Logan offers to pay in dick pics, I might get something up,” Remus’s whiny voice commented from the wall behind them, making them both jump.

Roman sputtered.

Did his brother really have to keep…was it even flirting, when it was that crude? Roman knew logically he was only doing it to get a reaction, but gosh darn Remus for going straight for his metaphorical heart.

“We are all anatomically the same, Remus.” Logan frowned. “Why you would wish to see my—?”

“Logan, I implore you not to finish that sentence.” Roman flapped his hands.

Logan leaned over to squint at him. And quite apart from Remus's inappropriate commentary, Roman wished he could figure out what that intense, narrow-eyed look Logan kept giving him meant. Right now he was sure his face must be as red as his missing Prince sash.

“It would be helpful,” Logan went on, turning to face the general direction of the wall speaker, “if I could see a current life-form reading for the whole planet. Then we would know which areas to avoid. Remus, is that something you can hack into?”

“Only for you, Logie-bear,” Remus answered. “Or should I say Nina? There’s a terminal with a screen just down the hallway.”

“Remus, I swear…” Roman brandished his sword at the speaker as Logan climbed to his feet.

But Remus only giggled, and Roman didn’t know how to finish the threat without prompting uncomfortable questions, anyway.

The screen showed the whole planet, with life-form density marked in red and notes written in some alien tongue. Logan leaned close, typing in various commands, looking at different areas; his frown grew deeper as he worked.

“Is that, like, a whole lot of red, or do I just not know how to read this thing?” Roman asked.

“No, it doesn’t make any sense,” Logan muttered, mostly to himself. “Remus. Will you read that number to me? Perhaps the Doctor’s command of this language is incomplete…”

“You mean the part where it says there are currently 13 billion life forms on the planet?” Remus said.

“What?” Roman sputtered.

“Exactly. It’s preposterous.” Logan nodded. “Nearly twice the population of humans on Earth. We’d be packed into this asylum like sardines, were the population really so high. Perhaps it’s aggregate?”

“Hmm, you know people can aggregate, too, especially during orgies when they f…”

“Remus, while normally I would applaud a creative use of vocabulary,” Logan cut in with a flat expression. “I do not wish to discuss group copulation at this time, or any other.”

Roman, meanwhile ran a hand down his (flushing) face.

“‘Copulation’, my ass,” he grumbled.

“Yes, that is usually how it works among men,” Remus crooned.

“REMUS!”

“Both of you!” Logan snapped. “Enough. Remus, please.”

“Fiiiine. Here’s your stats over a span of weeks.” Remus flashed another chart on the screen. “And here’s months, and years.”

More charts.

“See, this math makes more sense.” Logan reached up as if to adjust his glasses, but dropped his hand when he realized they weren’t there. “A constant flow of new aliens, while a smaller number disappear every day. That is unfortunately as I would expect in such a volatile environment.”

He peered closer to the screen.

“However, nearly eighty percent of the abnormally high life form readings are concentrated in a few clusters around the asylum; mostly in isolated, out of the way places. Remus, can you provide a visual for one of those areas?”

Remus did so, the screen switching to what appeared to be a security feed, pointed at a storage room. A room which was conspicuously empty, except for a few piles of long, white objects.

“Come on, quit fucking around,” Roman complained.

“Language.” Remus’s voice tsked.

Roman scoffed. “Oh, put a maggoty sock in it, Remus; you aren’t Patton.”

“Careful with those metaphors, brother mine, or you’ll start to sound like me.”

“Why you—!”

“Hush!” Logan snapped with a frown. “No, these…these are the correct coordinates. According to this data, there are several million life forms packed into that space.”

Roman and Remus gasped in unison, causing Logan to shoot Roman an alarmed look.

“How big are the ‘life forms’ that chart is picking up?” Roman demanded.

“Way ahead of you.” Remus threw more readouts onto the screen. “But I’ll bet my favorite stick of deodorant that they’re really, really small.”

“They appear to be microscopic, in fact,” Logan’s eyebrows shot up. “And those white objects…”

“Bones,” Roman whispered. “‘A million million life forms, and silence in the library’.”

Logan’s eyes widened. “Vashta Narada?”

“Vashta Narada!” Remus screeched, startling them both.

It took Roman a moment to realize his brother had screeched with glee.

“Ooh, look, there are so many of them!” Remus pulled up a chart of the whole planet, with clusters illuminated in red. Logan whipped out his screwdriver and scanned the screen.

“I did wonder why the Daleks always avoided the shadows, and ooh, look! Bones! Piles and piles of bones!” Remus showed another security feed; Roman quickly turned away. “They’re so clean.”

“I have downloaded the locations of the worst nests,” Logan flashed his sonic. “So we can avoid those areas, too.”

“Well, that’s just boring,” Remus complained. “One of you could surely sacrifice a leg or something. Aren’t you curious to see what your skeleton looks like?”

“Nobody wants to see that!” Roman felt slightly nauseated at the idea.

“Well, and if they did,” Logan added, ever literal, “that is what X-rays are for.”

“The Vashta Narada are his favorite Doctor Who alien,” Roman said in a lower voice. “He talked about that episode for weeks—”

The lights cut out, and the Voice…that’s what Roman had taken to calling it, anyway…mumbled its incomprehensible speech. It had happened several times on their journey now.

“What is that?” he demanded once the lights came back up.

“I think I heard ‘tower’, that time, and something about seconds,” Logan commented.

Roman shrugged.

“I may regret this, but…Remus, what do you think?” he asked with a grimace.

Silence.

Roman sighed. “Typical.”

A blast down the hall interrupted them.

Several Daleks rolled into the hallway, screeching in their room-filling, robotic voices. Roman seized Logan’s arm and pulled them into an alcove, placing his hand over Logan’s mouth when the logical Side started to protest.

“Daleks, super close,” Roman whispered.

He swore he felt Logan shiver in his grasp, and tried not to hyperfocus on the other’s rapid breathing, and heated skin, and…

One of the Daleks rolled in their direction. “INTRUDER! COME OUT AT ONCE!”

Logan pried Roman’s hand away.

“If we are at the scene in the asylum episode that I believe we are,” he said lowly, “then this should be the Dalek that runs out of power. If so, I remember how to defeat it.”

“And if it’s not?” Roman whisper-demanded.

“INTRUDER!”

“Then we will think of something else.”

“But—!”

Logan pulled Roman’s face very close, effectively shutting him up. His dark pupils were wide with adrenaline, his skin flushed with all the running they’d done. Roman couldn’t help it; his gaze flickered to Logan’s lips.

Those well-bitten, unfairly kissable lips.

“Roman,” Logan said softly, the words puffing against Roman’s face. “Do you trust me?”

“Oh, you…you can’t just quote Aladdin at me, Lo,” Roman protested weakly. “That’s not fair.”

“I would not be here to quote it, if you hadn’t gotten us this far. I outwitted the Sontarans; let me handle this.” Logan leaned even closer, and Roman couldn’t move even if he wanted to. “Do you trust me?”

Always, Doctor.

Roman nodded.

“INTRU—der—!”

As if on cue, the Dalek sputtered to a stop just before it reached their hiding place.

Logan shot Roman a devastating smirk and stepped out.

“All right, you rolling tin can.” Logan flicked his wrists and performed a mocking bow. Even half-blind, he was so fully and completely the Doctor in that moment that the performer inside Roman could only swoon.

Well, their Source was an actor, after all. Even his Logic instinctively knew how to work an audience.

“Identify me. Access your files. Who am I?” Logan’s voice dropped. “Come on. I’m tired and blind and just want to go home. Who’s your daddy?”

Roman choked and slapped a hand over his mouth.

“YOU ARE THE PREDATOR,” the Dalek declared.

“And what are your standing orders concerning the Predator?” Logan asked.

“THE PREDATOR MUST BE DESTROYED.” The Dalek attempted to use its gunstick, but only managed to wiggle it around.

“And how are you going to do that, Dalek?” Logan smirked, making Roman swallow another soft noise. “Without a gun, you’re a tricycle with a roof. How are you going to destroy me?”

“SELF-DESTRUCT INITIATED,” the Dalek warned, a light inside its eyepiece flashing red.

“Oh, heck, I remember this!” Roman rushed out to join Logan, as the other pulled out his sonic and lifted the Dalek’s lid.

“Exactly, Roman.” Logan ran the screwdriver along the shell’s insides.

“SELF-DESTRUCT CANNOT BE COUNTERMANDED.”

“I’m not looking for a countermand, dear.” Logan slammed the lid down. “I was looking for reverse.”

The Dalek whizzed backwards, flailing its appendages, its lights flashing frantically.

“FORWARD! FORWARD!”

It sped back into the chamber it had vacated, where several other Daleks waited.

“Run!”

Logan pulled Roman along (nearly running them into a wall; Roman quickly righted their direction), barely making it to the other end of the hallway when the Dalek exploded. Roman pushed them both down, crouching protectively over Logan as heat blasted against both their backs.

The asylum shook.

Grit rained down on their heads.

When it stopped, Roman pulled Logan to his feet and led them back through the newly-cleared chamber, dust still settling in the air. Dalek shells lay scattered, cracked and smoking; he had to guide Logan around them.

(There were a few other…bodies, too, which Roman determinedly looked away from and didn’t mention.)

“Oh my gosh, Roman! Logan!” a somewhat familiar voice shouted.

A Cyberman came barreling across the floor, prompting Roman to raise his sword…but relaxed when he realized it was only Patton.

“Janus, I’ve found the others!” Patton shouted over his shoulder. Roman squinted but didn’t see anyone else. “Boy, am I glad to see you guys!”

“We are pleased to see you as well, Patton.” Logan scrunched his face up in that adorable squint again; Roman caught himself smiling fondly, and swallowed the expression.

“Although unfortunately,” Logan added, “I mean ‘see’ in an entirely metaphorical sense right now.”

“Oh no, Logan, did you lose your glasses?” Patton caught up to them, as clunky and metal and frankly scary-looking as before. “Well, come on. Janus found a teleportation room, and is almost finished rewiring it to get us out of here.”

He led them across the exploded chamber, around a bend, and directly into a room with a raised glass platform, and machinery-covered walls. The platform itself looked half-disassembled, with dozens of wires and components sticking out.

Janus lay, collapsed and unmoving, at the base of it.

Chapter 11- The Power of Three

“I’m not running away from things, I am running to them before they flare and fade forever.”

Patton screeched.

There was no other word for the unholy noise that came out of his mouth, Logan decided. The moral Side-turned-Cyberman rushed to Janus’s collapsed form, shaking him and calling his name.

“I don’t know what happened!” he cried, rocking back on his heels. “He was fine when I left…well, not fine, he hasn’t been exactly fine this whole time, but he was awake!”

Logan knelt beside the downed Side and scanned him.

“He does not appear to have suffered any sort of electrical shock or other accident.” Logan peered at his screwdriver, reading numbers on the tiny screen.

(Yes, it had a readout, something he’d never noticed from the show.)

“Hmm. It would seem that the nano cloud is having an unexpected effect on his serpentine biology,” Logan explained, leaning over to place a hand under Janus’s jaw, and then over his heart. “It is making him too cold.”

“Oh!” Patton’s stance shifted. It was difficult to read his body language in his current state. “So do we need to, like, cuddle him or something? Body heat is good for cold, right?”

“Well I’m certainly not cuddling that viper!” Roman announced, folding his arms.

Patton awkwardly rubbed his head. “I mean…I could do it.”

It was on the tip of Logan’s tongue to point out that Patton would not be warming anyone up with his cold, metallic body…but it was clear he still didn’t know. And if Janus still hadn’t told him, Logan certainly wasn’t going to do it right now.

Patton having an identity crisis would be a distraction they didn’t need.

Roman stared at Patton with narrowed eyes, looking ready to protest. Logan stepped in before an argument could begin in earnest.

“Body heat would not be enough,” he said. “But I believe if I reconfigure one of our protective bracelets to counter those particular effects, he would revive on his own. Of course, that would mean one of us temporarily going without nano cloud protection.”

Patton sighed and rubbed his wrist.

“I’d give up mine in a heartbeat, except I already lost it earlier.”

Typical Patton. Logan bit back a sigh of exasperation. His was the bracelet he'd been hoping to use, as Patton didn't actually need it. Always willing to sacrifice his own wellbeing, and always losing things.

Well, that meant there was only one way to wake Janus.

He’d begun the process of unfastening his own bracelet when a strong, warm hand stopped him.

“Hang on, Calculator Watch.” Roman separated Logan’s hands. Annoyed caramel eyes stared into his own. “Why do you automatically assume you should be the one to give up your only means of protection?”

Logan frowned.

“Of the two of us, Roman, I am the least emotional. Obviously it has to be me.”

Roman let go and paced the room, coming back with determination sparking in his gaze.

“Look, I’m going to be logical here, because I know that’s the one thing you understand,” he said.

“Roman, we don’t have time—” Logan started, but Roman silenced him with a finger over his lips.

Logan noted, absently, how his skin reacted to the touch.

“We have to finish this game before Thomas wakes up, right?” Roman sighed, his eyes flickering down to Janus. “And as much as it pains me to admit it, the snake is smarter than me. We need both brainiacs on this team awake and thinking clearly to get us out of here.”

“Roman, you—” Logan protested.

“We both know I’m the expendable one here!” Roman yelled, pushing his bracelet-ed wrist into Logan’s face. “So just take it and fix him.”

“Falsehood!” Logan shoved at Roman’s arm. “May I remind you that the nano cloud subtracts love and adds anger; ergo, it manipulates feelings. As I have said many times before, and let me know if I lose you, I am not a feeling. I am Logic. It won’t—”

“You are Thomas’s Logic, you big-brained idiot!” Roman got in his face again. “And no part of Thomas could simply lack the ability to feel things. It's not in him. That's why you are not just Logic; you are Logan, and you already have a temper problem. The last thing you need is more anger!”

Logan whipped out his stack of vocabulary cards and flipped through them.

“As they say: ‘pot, meet kettle’,” he snapped, holding one up.

Roman growled, raising his hand like he’d knock the card away, but seemed to realize that would only prove Logan’s point. The hand clenched into a fist, which fell resignedly onto Logan’s chest.

Like a soft shock against his skin.

Logan was quite sure Roman’s touch didn’t always do that.

“Using mine will buy us more time. The conversation will take longer with me,” Roman said through thin, angry lips, staring at the floor.

“Why?” Logan whispered.

Roman’s fist flattened into a palm, still resting against Logan’s chest.

“It’s just arithmetic. It’ll take longer with me because…”

Logan inhaled sharply, and Roman’s suddenly wide eyes came up to meet his.

“It'll take longer with me because we both know, we've always known, that, the basic fact of our relationship is that I love you more than you love me.”

Without even realizing it, they’d been reenacting the fight between Amy and Rory.

Logan placed his own hand over Roman’s, wondering if the other could feel how rapidly his heart was beating. Does…does Roman really believe I care for him less than he does for me?

Well.

Thinking back over their tumultuous friendship, the fights, the insults; he realized he’d given the creative Side every reason to believe that. But then another realization crashed over Logan, which he felt like a physical shock through his system.

Do I…do I love Roman?

Headstrong, stubborn Roman, who knew exactly how to get under his skin with his ridiculous ideas and over-the-top facial expressions and twisty, rapid-fire cleverness. Brave, selfless Roman, who’d sacrificed his own dreams just to ensure their Source could keep a clear conscience.

Roman, with that wild hair and pouting lower lip and those fiery, passionate eyes that made Logan feel warm just from looking into them. He defied all logic, all sense, all attempts to constrain or catalogue or categorize him.

And Logan…Logan absolutely loved him for that.

“So…so it has to be me,” Roman concluded, glaring, finally snatching his hand away.

It took Logan a moment to remember what they’d actually been arguing about. He grabbed at Roman’s wrist as the other began blindly removing his bracelet, both hands held high above Logan’s head.

“Roman, no, you’re…you’re making a mistake,” he grated, as Roman continued to keep his arms out of reach. No matter how he tried, Logan couldn’t budge him; the other Side was much stronger.

“Yeah?” Roman succeeded in unsnapping his bracelet. “Well, get a pen and get in line, Specs. I have a list.”

He thrust the device into Logan’s hands and stomped away, avoiding Patton’s questioning gaze.

Logan shook his head, hand tightening around Roman’s bracelet until the edges bit into his skin. Stubborn.

So, so stubborn.

Like you, a quiet part of his mind whispered. He’s your equal, your check. That’s why you like him.

…and that’s why it could never work.

He exhaled, resigned.

Then he pulled out his sonic, and set about reprograming the bracelet to wake Janus.

Chapter 12- A Good Man Goes to War

“Good men don’t need rules. Today is not the day to find out why I have so many.”

Janus awoke with a pounding headache and a frayed temper. He sat up, digging at his face so hard he dislodged a scale. Irritably flicking it away, he saw that Patton had managed to find both Logan and Roman.

Good. That means we can all get out of here.

“Janus—” Patton started, but Janus held up a finger.

“Do not.”

He stood up, swaying a little, hating the way they all clustered around him.

“Stop hovering, I’m fine,” he grumbled, waving them away. Aside from the headache, his body felt stiff and sluggish…probably similar to how Patton feels, he realized, which did not help his sour mood.

“What happened to me?” he demanded, flexing his hands.

“The nano particles caused your internal body temperature to drop too quickly,” Logan explained. “Which, due to your unique biology, caused you to pass out. Your reflexes may be impaired for a few minutes as the bracelet continues to counteract the effects.”

Janus glanced down at his wrist, noting the bulky black bracelet with its cheerfully blinking light. Who…? Not Patton, his was lost; so probably Logan…but no, Logan still wore his. But that leaves…

Sure enough, both of Roman’s wrists were bare.

Janus raised an eyebrow, but the princely Side refused to meet his gaze.

Whatever.

“I am getting us off this rock and back to our TARDISs,” Janus groused, stalking to the abandoned panel and picking up the wire cutters he’d found. “Feel free to either help, or preferably stay the hell out of my way.”

“Ooooh, Jan Jan sounds a widdle angwy.” Remus’s sing-song voice crackled over a loudspeaker. “Pretty soon he’s going to try and kill you.”

“That does it!” Janus whirled and threw the cutters at the wall, eliciting a startled noise from Roman when they narrowly missed his face. “Logan, you reprogram the damned panel. I am going to deal with Remus.”

“Oh no, I’m so scared!” Remus gushed, not sounding one bit scared.

Janus marched to the chamber door, only to be stopped by Roman’s outstretched arm.

“Move,” Janus growled, clenching a gloved hand.

Roman didn’t budge.

“What are you even going to do?” he demanded. “If this is like the episode, then he’s already a Dalek and we can’t exactly bring him along for a ride.”

“I’ll figure it out when I get there.” Janus knocked Roman’s arm aside. “Perhaps we’ll get lucky, and seeing him in person will be enough to satisfy the Imagination. We have to at least make the attempt.”

“Well, then I’m going with you!”

Janus stopped at that, turning slowly to face Roman.

“Why?” he said flatly. “Surely not because you crave the pleasure of my company.”

Roman mirrored Janus’s folded-arm stance.

“Maybe I don’t trust you.”

“Because you haven’t already made that crystal clear.”

“And maybe I have my own score to settle with my brother,” Roman added in a louder voice, glaring around the room as though waiting for Remus to butt in.

For once, Remus did not.

But maybe that was because the Voice chose that moment to override the comms again, dimming the lights and rattling off its garbled message. Logan narrowed his eyes, Patton cocked his head, but Roman simply looked annoyed.

The Prince does hate to be interrupted when he’s picking a fight. Janus rolled his eyes. Or maybe it’s the nano cloud, which would serve him right…

“You know,” Patton commented, once it was over. “That weird little speech almost sounds like Virgil, when he gets really upset and his voice goes all deep and layered.”

Janus’s eyes widened and he inadvertently met Logan’s shocked gaze.

It did.

It sounded very much like Virgil’s Tempest Tongue, and Virgil had been inexplicably missing from this entire adventure, and why had none of them made that connection?? Once again, Janus found himself both impressed and unsurprised that Patton had been the one to put the pieces together.

“If that’s true,” Logan began.

“You know it is,” Janus cut in, a little sharper than he meant to. Logan held up his hands.

“I was not disputing the validity of Patton’s claim,” he said.

“Uh, overprotective much, snake?” Roman said with an eye roll, making Janus’s scales bristle and his nostrils flare.

“If that is Virgil, and Patton is correct; it seems very likely,” Logan enunciated, still holding up his hands. “Then he is part of this LARP, and has been the entire time. If reunification is indeed the ultimate goal, we will need to locate him as well, in order to meet the Imagination’s requirements.”

“Well, I’m not fighting my way back through this goddamned, alien-infested haystack to look for one overdramatic, anxious eyeshadow palette,” Janus declared, turning toward the door again. “Not without my TARDIS. Virgil can sit on his moody ass and wait.”

“Language!” Patton called after him.

Roman, more annoyingly, followed; surprisingly quickly, given his short-skirted outfit.

“Mixed metaphors aside,” the creative Side said as Janus stalked across the exploded chamber. “I still demand to know what you mean to do when we reach my brother…will you slow down?”

Janus stormed into a far corridor, making a sharp left and leaving Roman to stumble along afterward. Two lefts, a right, a straight shot through Intensive Care and we should find Clara’s…or rather Remus’s…chamber.

“Come on,” he threw irritatedly over his shoulder. “Or is Mr. Really Obviously Muscular And Nice having a hard time keeping up? What are all those muscles for, anyway?”

“Don’t you dare bring up that courtroom right now, Deceit,” Roman said darkly, still trailing behind. “Don’t you dare.”

“Still refusing to use my name, I see,” Janus snarked. His fast, angry footfalls echoed on the concrete floor.

“Show me where you’ve earned the right to be called anything except what you are, Deceit,” Roman spat. “I can wait.”

Janus stopped and whirled, coat flaring, almost causing Roman to collide with him. He thrust a gloved finger into Roman’s face.

“You don’t get it. You still don’t get it, because you are too spoiled, entitled, and self-absorbed to even attempt to understand another Side’s point of view.”

Janus started walking again, ignoring the pinched, insulted look he knew Roman was giving the back of his head.

“And what exactly am I supposed to understand?” Roman demanded, catching up.

“Why do you know my name at all, W-R-O-M-M-I-N?” Janus asked.

Roman exhaled carefully, closing his eyes for a moment.

“Ignoring that obvious bait, we know your name because you told us.”

“Exactly! I told you!” Janus paused just outside the Intensive Care ward, facing Roman fully. “You know Deceit’s true name because Deceit willingly revealed it.” He let his voice drop. “Now why do you suppose he did that?”

“Stop referring to yourself in the third person like some creepy, two-faced Elmo doll,” Roman groused. “Obviously you wanted to manipulate Thomas into trusting you for some nefarious purpose of your own.”

“Oh, for—!” Janus exhaled, barely resisting the urge to beat his head against the wall. “I could have told Thomas my name any time I pleased, if his trust was the only thing I wanted.”

Roman smirked. “Ah-ha, so you admit you have an agenda—”

“I wanted your trust, Roman!” Janus roared, silencing the other. “Yours, and Patton’s. I thought taking my glove off would be enough of a symbolic gesture, and how did you repay me? With laughter!”

Roman just stared.

Janus sighed.

“You were on my side, in that courtroom,” he said in a quieter voice. “Whether you are willing to admit it or not, Creativity and Self Preservation make a strong team for Thomas, and I don’t hate you, Roman.”

Roman scoffed and rolled his eyes, but said nothing.

“I have been trying to be more than just Deceit, to Thomas, to…all of you,” Janus went on. “Given how well our Purposes align, I cannot understand why you, of all Sssides, have been the most resistant to the notion that I am not evil!”

“Then let me enlighten you, Jack the Fibber.” Roman leaned close, eyes ablaze with fury. “Remember that courtroom scenario you just bragged about? The one where you claim I was on your side?”

Janus made a “duh” gesture with his hand.

“Did you conveniently forget that you spent the entire time patronizing me, emotionally manipulating me, and making me look and feel like a fool?” Roman folded his arms. “Because if that’s how you treat your so-called ‘allies’, then I would hate to be an actual enemy.”

Janus frowned. It was true; he had done a bit of twisting Roman around his finger, hadn’t he?

“Nobody trusted me then, and I needed you to help Thomas make the right choice,” he explained. “Your pride and your little rivalry with me make you irrational at times. I couldn’t risk either getting in the way.”

Roman let out a humorless chuckle.

“See, you say things like that,” he gestured angrily, “and then act shocked when I do the honest thing and side with Patton.”

“Which you and I both now know was a missstake!” Janus snapped. He tapped a series of numbers into the control panel by the Intensive Care door, which slid open.

They went in, but Roman, unfortunately for Janus, was not finished.

“And don’t forget the part where you manipulated us all again, by removing Logan and impersonating him,” Roman said.

“Because you and Patton were handling that situation so admirably on your own,” Janus snarked.

“That is not the point! That has never been the point!” Roman waved his arms for emphasis, almost knocking into one of the cells along the walls.

“Even here, now, when I’m trying to have an actual conversation with you,” and he jabbed Janus’s chest, “you’re still trying to manipulate me. The only time you’ve called me by my actual name is when you’re like ‘oh, Roman, woe is me, why won’t you trust me’? The rest of the time it’s all mockery.”

“It’s almost like it hurts when someone refuses to call you by your actual name.” Janus leaned into Roman’s space, baring his fangs. “Doesssn’t it?”

Roman winced. It was a tiny, tiny motion, but Janus saw it.

“Fine. Janus. But lying and manipulation are still wrong,” Roman said in a firm voice. “It doesn’t matter why you do it. It doesn’t matter what mistakes I make, or Patton makes, or even Logan or Virgil make without you. Lying fixes nothing.”

Janus pinched the bridge of his nose. “You are missing the bigger picture—”

“No! Stop pushing me to accept the things you’ve done to me just because you maybe, maybe, had good intentions!” Roman shouted. “As long as you believe deception is a legitimate path to making Thomas do what you want…even when it turns out to be the right call…you and I will never see eye to eye, and I will never trust you!”

Janus’s mouth lifted into a snarl.

“You know what? So be it. I do not have to defend my purpose or my methods to you.” He yanked out his sonic laser and placed it under Roman’s chin, relishing the momentary flare of fear in those caramel eyes.

“I just want to know one thing, oh noble Prince Roman, and be honest. When you were creating this cute little adventure for yourself and Logan, did you really have nothing to do with me being cast as the villain? The Master?”

The last word he cracked like a whip, and it echoed down the long, straight corridor.

“…master?” a staticky voice echoed from one of the cells, and a small yellow light flickered to life on the wall.

Cells that were, Janus noticed for the first time, unsettlingly empty...except for the rows and rows of fist-sized metal spheres along the walls, which began to light up, one by one.

“Uh…” Roman whispered. “What is happening? Where are the Daleks?”

Other voices joined in the chorus of “master, master”, until the corridor buzzed with echoes and Janus’s blood ran cold as ice in his body. The weird, almost childlike cadence was unsettlingly familiar…

“There are no Daleks.” He stared at the spheres, realization crashing over him.

“What?” Roman looked around wildly at the mass of yellow and now red lights, sword hilt gripped so tight that his knuckles were white.

The spheres began to detach from the walls.

“There are no insane Daleks in here,” Janus repeated, his voice rising. “They’re Toclafane! Run!”

He sprinted down the corridor as the first laser blast burst at his heels. Roman yelped, and then they were both running for the far door. A few cells were blasted open, though the little aliens were small enough to slip right through the bars, and the air suddenly swarmed with spiky, fist-sized metal balls.

“What…Toclafane?!” Roman yelled as they ran, dodging blasts. “Why? And why are they shooting at us?”

“The Master betrayed us! Kill the Master!” Metallic spikes whirred.

“They’re shooting at me!” Janus yelled back, shooting a wild blast with his laser over his shoulder. “Or rather, at the Master!”

Laser fire exploded at Roman’s feet, sending him careening into a cell as they ran.

“Well, tell them they have terrible aim!” the Prince retorted.

“Yes, I’m sure they’ll take advice from the character who canonically used and betrayed them,” Janus snarked, zapping a Toclafane and sending it spinning into its neighbor.

They reached the far door and slid to a halt, Janus seizing the control panel to open the door.

“Funny,” Roman said breathlessly, catching up and drawing his sword. “I can relate.”

Janus rolled his eyes as Roman spun to face the oncoming horde of tiny aliens, batting away a few spinning metal spikes.

“Oh, for heaven’s sake, use this!” Janus thrust his sonic into Roman’s hands. Roman, to his credit, didn’t argue, but switched his sword to his left hand and readied both.

“Remus!” Janus shouted, focusing all his attention on the door’s keypad. “A little help would be appreciated.”

Behind him, he heard his sonic buzz and the sound of Roman’s sword crunching against something metal. The ozone smell of burnt electronics was starting to hurt his lungs.

“You have to say pleeeeeeease,” Remus’s voice said.

Janus slammed a hand against the panel.

“REMUS, I SWEAR TO APOPHIS I WILL REMOVE EACH ONE OF YOUR ORGANS IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER—!” he roared.

“Which alphabet?” Remus cut in.

“REMUS SANDERS—!”

“All right, all right! So violent. I love it!” Remus crowed. “Here you go.”

The door opened.

They tumbled through, Roman zapping away one last murder ball as the door slid shut again.

Chapter 12- Can You Hear Me?

“I’m still quite socially awkward, so I’m just going to subtly walk towards the console and look at something. And then, in a minute, I’ll think of something that I should’ve said…that might have been helpful.”

Roman leaned against the door for a moment, letting his eyes adjust to the bright white light that filled the circular chamber. Compared to the dimness of the rest of the asylum, it was downright blinding.

“IT’S ABOUT TIME,” a harsh Dalek voice rasped, making both Roman and Janus jump and whirl.

A Dalek sat, motionless and menacing, at the far side of the room, bound in layers of chains. Its casing was green with silver trimming, and it wiggled its green-glowing eyestalk in a way that was almost…suggestive.

“I suppose that’s you, Remus?” Janus asked, visibly relaxing.

Roman sheathed his sword and realized he still had Janus’s sonic, which he tucked against his wrist. As little as he liked the unchivalrous weapon, he didn’t feel like handing it back over just yet.

“IN THE FLESH. BUT NOT REALLY.” Dalek-Remus burst into metallic giggles, sounding all the more bizarre coming from the killing machine he currently inhabited.

He probably likes being a Dalek, Roman thought sourly.

“ZAP MY CHAINS, MASTER JAN.” Remus wiggled, attempting to move. “AND LETS GO FIND THE EMO.”

Janus pulled a face.

“You…actually want to come with us?” Roman raised an eyebrow.

“THAT IS WHAT I SAID.”

Roman scrubbed a hand through his hair. He hadn’t considered what they would do if the dream didn’t end once they actually found Remus, and he definitely hadn’t considered the possibility of Remus actually wanting to be rescued. He’d assumed his brother was just, well, being himself. Taunting them, testing them, before fucking off (sometimes literally, ick) to do his own thing.

“I had hoped the scenario would end once we reached this room,” Roman confessed aloud, side-eyeing Janus.

Janus scoffed. “Well, it didn’t. Any other bright ideas, Creativity?”

“Well, we can’t take him,” Roman began, and startled backward when Remus screeched.

“EXCUSE YOU!”

“I’m sorry, Remus, but you’ve seen this episode! This is where your involvement in the story canonically ends.” Roman threw his hands up. “If we bring you along, it could mess up all the parameters we’ve established so far. And if finding you wasn’t enough, that means Specs was right; we really do have to track down old Panic at the Everywhere before the Imagination will let us go.”

“And since we haven’t the faintest idea where to start, we’ll need our TARDISs.” Janus walked back to the door and sighed. “We’ll have to run the Toclafane gauntlet again.

Roman cracked his neck. “I’m ready if you are, snake.”

“I’ll have my sonic back first.” Janus held out a hand. “Don’t think I didn’t notice you trying to secret it away.”

Roman’s mouth twisted, but he handed it over.

“Ready?”

“Ready.”

Roman readied his sword. Janus slapped the panel.

Nothing happened.

Frowning, he hit it again, but the door remained obstinately closed. Roman’s stomach sank.

Can’t one aspect of this disaster be easy? Just one?

“Remus, open the door,” Janus snapped.

“WHY SHOULD I?”

Both Sides slowly turned to face the Dalek.

“Exsscuse me?” Janus said, dipping his head to glower.

Remus’s twin head lights flashed. “WHY SHOULD I LET YOU GO?”

“Because we need to end this game, Remus! You know that!” Roman ran a hand exasperatedly down his face. “Are you choosing now to be contrary? Really?”

“EXCUSES!” Remus snapped. “THE TRUTH IS, YOU DON’T WANT MY COMPANY.”

“Remus…that’s not it,” Janus started.

“Oh, that is absolutely it.” Roman folded his arms. “You pride yourself on how many different ways you can gross someone out within the span of five minutes, and then you’re surprised that nobody wants you around?”

“I HAVE BEEN HELPING YOU THIS ENTIRE NIGHT.” Remus rattled his chains; one of them snapped. “AND YOU MAKE PLANS IN THIS ROOM LIKE I’M NOT EVEN HERE. YOU WOULD LEAVE ME BEHIND WITHOUT A SECOND THOUGHT.”

Roman rolled his eyes. “Like you wouldn’t do the same for a laugh, if it suited you!”

“BUT I DO NOT CALL MYSELF A HERO.”

Roman felt those words like a punch to the solar plexus. He physically recoiled, his grip on his sword tightening.

“Look, Remus—” Janus started.

“I AM EVERYTHING THOMAS FINDS DISGUSTING AND ABHORANT,” Remus continued. “UNLIKE SOME, I DO NOT PRETEND TO BE ANYTHING ELSE.”

That barb seemed to be aimed at Janus, who flinched, and Roman almost felt bad for him.

Almost.

“WHY SHOULD I ALLOW YOU TO LEAVE HERE IN TRIUMPH, JUST BECAUSE YOU ARE THE SO CALLED GOOD GUYS?” Remus surged forward, snapping the rest of his chains, and raised his gunstick. “THOMAS IS SUPPOSED TO REJECT ME, BUT WHY I SHOULD ACCEPT THE SAME FROM YOU?”

The gunstick began to glow.

Roman felt the wall at his back; out of time, out of options, again. What would they do if Remus decided to actually shoot them?

They were trapped in here.

“KILLING YOU WOULD END THE GAME, WOULDN’T IT?” Remus shrieked, shrill even for a Dalek. He rolled forward until his eyestalk was inches from Roman’s face. “TELL ME WHY I SHOULDN’T!”

Like looking in a funhouse mirror.

Roman saw his own terrified face, reflected in a Dalek eyestalk. Is this what I would be like, if I became someone Thomas…didn’t need anymore?

“Maybe you should,” Roman said quietly, the words just slipping out.

Remus stopped. “WHAT.”

“Roman, what the hell?” Janus snapped beside him. He had his sonic aimed at Remus’s headpiece, clearly ready to return fire if necessary.

Roman chuckled, bitterly.

“You Dark Sides always know how to hit where it hurts, you know? You’re right, Remus, I’m not a hero. Thomas even said so. So maybe…maybe killing us really is the fastest way to end this game. Clean reset. Done.”

“Don’t be a moron,” Janus retorted. “Thomas said no such thing. I was there for that conversation, if you’ll remember.”

“Shut up, snake!” Roman bared his teeth. “He thinks it, and don’t pretend like you aren’t the reason; you and my brother both! I knew who I was, and Thomas knew who I was, and everything was fine until you two started showing up with your lies and your lewd grossness and making Thomas doubt everything he is!” He dropped his gaze, eyes stinging. “Everything I am.”

Remus backed up a few inches. “AT LEAST YOU ARE HEEDED.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Roman said tiredly, still biting back tears.

“YOU NEVER HAD TO SHOUT TO BE HEARD. WHEREAS I WILL ALWAYS BE A MONSTER.”

Janus’s face shuttered. “Remus. We’ve talked about this.”

Remus aimed his eyestalk at the deceptive Side. “I AM NOT LIKE YOU. I NEITHER WANT NOR NEED ACCEPTANCE FROM OUR SOURCE, BECAUSE I AM THE INCEPTION AND DEPOSITORY OF EVERYTHING THAT HE FINDS UNACCEPTABLE.”

“But you still want it from us,” Janus finished quietly. “Is that what this is about, Rem?”

Remus said nothing.

Roman glanced between them. Somehow he had a hard time picturing his chaotic brother sitting down and just…talking, especially about heavy stuff like purposes and whatnot. Especially with Janus?

Janus exhaled.

“Honestly, neither of you know how to change, and I have watched it hold both of you back.”

He held up fingers to forestall both their protests, and pointed at Roman.

“You have always bathed in the light with Thomas, and so you’ve never needed the motivation to be better. And you,” he pointed at Remus, “have never been accepted by anyone, and therefore have never had the opportunity.”

“But the clock ticks on, and Thomas is growing up,” Janus went on, beginning to pace. “Which means all of us, including the two of you, must adapt. This whole ‘light Side, dark Side’ nonsense has to stop if Thomas is ever to achieve any sort of peace within himself.”

“EASY FOR YOU TO SAY,” Remus said. “NOW THAT YOU HAVE A SEAT AT THE TABLE.”

“As much as I hate to agree with Remus.” Roman folded his arms again. “I have to agree with Remus. What makes you the expert in how we need to change?”

“I am Thomas’s self-preservation!” Janus snapped, stalking back to Roman. “Adaptability is one of my core functions, because those who cannot change, do not survive.”

Roman frowned. “That seems like an oversimplification—”

“You really want to know why we ‘dark Sides’ have become such a problem for you, Roman?” Janus interrupted. “It’s because you, and Patton, and to a small extent Logan, have kept Thomas trapped in a familiar, oversimplified pattern of thinking, like an ill-fitting jacket bursting at the seams!”

Janus held up a finger. “Virgil was the first tear, lighting the metaphorical flame under your butts to think deeper, think wider, think differently. And when he, too, got too used to squeezing himself to fit into that safe little kid jacket, you got me.”

He smirked.

“You got me, pushing you to understand that the world is bigger than black and white, good and evil, and that sometimes the solutions to problems are not wholly one thing or another. And when you wouldn’t heed my words, you got someone even more blunt.”

He gestured at Remus as he spoke, then exhaled and adjusted his coat.

“We are not evil alien forces creeping about in Thomas’s head, making trouble for no reason, Roman. We have purposes, too. And if you’d take one moment, and use that creative brain instead of lashing out with your fantasy-trope, holier-than-thou, six-year-old mores, I know you are capable of seeing that.”

Roman huffed, and looked away.

The problem was…he did see it.

Maybe he couldn’t have put it in such articulate terms; he wasn’t Logan, after all. But anyone who looked into Thomas’s dejected eyes lately could deduce that the so-called Dark Sides were a symptom of something deeper, not the cause of it.

He just hated when Deceit…fine, Janus…was right, and lately it felt like the snake Side was turning out to be right about a lot of things. If Roman was ever going to change…if he was ever going to be better…he needed to reign in his pride, and acknowledge the truth in Janus’s words.

“The god of doorways, of beginnings and endings,” Roman said quietly. “One face to the past and one to the future.”

Janus blinked, clearly shocked; his snake eye slitted to the merest sliver.

“I am Creativity,” Roman added, enjoying the other’s momentary discomfiture. “Do you really think I’m not familiar with all the mythology Thomas has studied over the years?”

“If you knew what it meant.” Janus spoke barely above a whisper, looking away. “Then why did you mock it?”

Roman pressed his lips together. In all honesty, despite all his posturing, he’d never been proud of how he’d acted that day.

“I was jealous,” he admitted, just as softly. “Thomas needed you, a Side he’s always seen as morally abhorrent, more than he needed me, his…his hero…” he trailed off, staring hard at Remus’s Dalek shell. “What was I supposed to think? What does that make me?”

Janus sighed, deeply, and pinched the bridge of his nose.

“It was never a competition. The metaphorical table is big enough for all of us. And I…” he sighed again. “I was wrong, to dig at your insecurities the way that I did. It was unworthy of me.”

Roman gaped at him. “By Odin’s beard. Was that…was that an apology?”

Janus grimaced, and flicked out his forked tongue. “Don’t get usssed to it.”

“GET OUT.”

Both Sides turned to face Remus, who’d been blessedly, unusually quiet up to that point.

“Excuse me?” Roman said.

“I HAVE LOWERED THE PLANET’S SHIELD.” Remus gestured with his gunstick as the door to his prison slid open. “WE HAVE JUST UNDER TWO MINUTES TO GET BACK TO THE TELEPORTATION CHAMBER.”

“Are you crazy?” Roman yelled, drawing his sword as the Toclafane outside swarmed toward the door.

“Kill the Master!”

A distant explosion rocked the asylum, making Roman and Janus stumble.

“IT HAS STARTED.” Remus slammed his body into Roman, pushing him toward the door. “TWO MINUTES, THE PLANET BLOWS UP. TICK TOCK.”

“What about them!” Janus shouted, zapping a Toclafane that tried to breach the doorway and hauling Roman back by one of his denim suspenders.

“I WILL CLEAR THE WAY.”

Remus rolled out into the carnage, firing his gunstick and laughing maniacally.

“EXTERMINATE! EXTERMINATE!”

Laser bursts and smoke clogged the air, Toclafane swarmed and fell in his wake, but finally the little murder balls began fleeing en mass.

Another explosion shook the ground, closer this time.

They ran.

“What made you change your mind?” Janus panted as they rounded a corner.

“THE SCENARIO MUST END.” Remus easily kept up, despite being a tin can on wheels. “THOMAS IS ATTEMPTING TO WAKE UP.”

“What about Virgil?” Roman demanded.

“IT DOESN’T MATTER NOW.”

“You didn’t kill us,” Roman pointed out.

Remus made a grating noise that might have been a chuckle.

“MAYBE YOU DON’T KNOW ME AS WELL AS YOU THINK,” he said. “OR PERHAPS THIS IS MORE FUN.”

The floor shook violently, sending cracks knifing up the walls.

“We have a problem!” Janus, bringing up the rear, shouted as they sprinted down the last hallway. “A big, fiery problem!”

Roman felt scorching heat on his neck and glanced back. His heart dropped; the corridor behind them was rapidly being engulfed in flames.

“This bit seemed so much cooler in the episode!” he yelled, putting on a burst of speed.

“Shut up! Go, go, go!”

Patton was waiting outside the teleportation chamber, his Cyberman head swiveling back and forth. He let out a metallic screech as they approached.

“Don’t shoot the Dalek, it’s just Remus!” Janus shouted, waving his hands. “Get inside!”

They all stumbled in.

Logan crouched by the translucent floor panel, sonic poised, obviously ready to activate the teleport. Roman had never been so happy to see his nerd.

“Patton, Roman, what—?” Logan squawked when Roman grabbed his arm to haul him up on the platform. Remus levitated the last few feet; he was the last one on.

“No time, Specs!” Roman yelled cheerfully. “Step on it!”

An explosion, near and violent, rocked the platform and sent everyone but Remus stumbling into each other. Roman caught himself on Logan’s shoulders…completely by accident, of course.

“Step on…what?” Logan squinted at Roman’s face. “What’s—”

“Oh for fuck’s sake!” Janus seized Logan’s sonic and pointed it down at the panel, whirring it to life.

Light blasted up from their feet as fire filled the doorway.

Roman braced for a fireball…but the room seemed to disintegrate around them and the awful heat vanished. He sagged against Logan’s back. Soft weight enclosed his arms…sleeves…and he realized his outfit was shifting back into his familiar Princely attire.

They had done it!

“BY THE way.” Remus’s voice warped from a Dalek’s screech to his own whiny tenor. “Whose idea was it to make Patton a Cyberman?”

Stunned silence.

“I’m a WHAT now?” Patton’s shocked voice rang out.

[loudlypanickinginvenezolano]

Animalistic, pt 2, but I tried editing it.

Something is really wrong, and Shadow is awfully aware of that...He just... cant say what... Besides Sonic. Something is crearly wrong with that hedgehog.

Mention of a snake, animals, dead animals, and injuries, I guess. I tried editing this chapter, but I am not sure wherever it is better or not. I still like it, tho...

It took him maybe 8 seconds of confused blinking to remember why was an overgrown python chilling on his bed, but once everything loaded and pierced itself together on his mind, Shadow finally managed to find on himself the will to get out of his cozy blankets and stand, carefully picking up his moody companion, and leave him into his tank, no matter how pissed off Kaa may look. “I am, Oh so sorry for disturbing your sleep, your majesty, but that is a no-no place for you to be and you know it.” He snorted, before blinking, because, wow, he really must be tired.

Barely awake enough to remember that yes, he needed to wear some kind of paw-wear that wasn’t just socks, he jogged down the steps, groggily searching around the house the reason he had arisen from his warm, and delicious, and maaaaybee self-indulging dream, but what the hell, it was all on his head, wasn’t it? And unless it was the dream police he fucking wasn’t feeling sorry for his fantasies.

Anyway.

He was sure he had heard something…

“Well, hello there, little mister.” He cooed, picking up Baloo from where the baby bear had wandered, chucking lowly at the dispirited face of the now busted cub. Scrooge was close to the door, looking warily and keeping guard as Mowgly was being his dumb self in the middle of the living room, roaming around and pawing at everything that gained his attention, not a bit undeterred by Shadow appearance. If Something, it seemed like he was even more energetic than before, happily running to him and trying to play with the large ears and little horns of his slippers.

While Mowgly and Baloo had warmed incredibly quickly to Shadow and the secure room he had made for them during this first 2 days, Scrooge was reserved, to not be insulting, and didn’t like so much wherever Shadow came closer, pawing away his hands, sneezing or growling until she decided she wanted food. She was….a moody motherfucker, there really wasn’t a round way about it.

That was why he was certain that Ebeneeza Scrooge was a perfect name.

Though ¨¨Scary little bitch¨¨ wasn’t so far off the mark, either. It was just too long, and Scalibi was taken.

She was the real reason he feared to be stabbed during his sleep...

So far, everything normal, Right?

A calm, fresh night, or as calm as they get when you are Shadow the hedgehog and you are taking care of the very thing you may or may not have a phobia for.

Now, Can somebody explain him what the fuck happened to that “normal” he just had? Because shit, he couldn’t find it anymore and he wanted it back. For yesterday.

It all started when not so long after he ushered the bears back to where they were sleeping, his back door started being scratched on, which wasn’t such a normal occurrence and really, Shadow should have realized since that moment that something was off.

He wasn’t sure what kind of otherworldly being possessed him in that instant, but je made the mistake of opening the door without checking properly, and really, what was he? A rookie or something?

What was he thinking?!

Immediately, 12 raccoons ran in, closely followed by what he was certain were at least 18 bunnies. And then, while he had been busy gaping like a dumbass, 9 giggling foxes squeezed past, as well as-- where those squirrels?

Yes, that definitely were 23 or something squirrels.

And a rat.

A big, fat as shit, and really ugly looking greyish-black rat.

Oh sir, what disgusting creation was that?

He closed the door and put the lock on it, leaning heavily on its surfaces and racking his brain while trying to decide wherever he had ingested something strange or not during the day, but nothing came. He could not find any coherent reason about why had these animals decided to invade his house like this.

Well…

They had come searching for refuge in the past, that was true, but it was because of storms or something of the like….

Oh. Maybe it was what all of this was about? But, he hadn’t heard any thunder, and there was no rain, nor wind picking up.

Come to think about it, it hadn’t rained in like 6 days.

He didn’t… he didn’t have time to this.

Just as he was doing his best at calming down what looked like a hurt raccoon having a panic attack, if that even makes sense, and was actually and surprisingly succeeding in doing so, all hell broke loose when the window of his living room broke in a splash of glass accompanied by a very manly screech, and 7 scared deer’s jumped into the house, cuts and stuck glass pieces making their blood come say hi. The rabbits went crazy, and the foxes started screeching and doing that weird pat-pat thing dogs do while happy, just that the foxes weren’t happy, and neither was Shadow.

He was sure the raccoon he was holding died of a heart attack for 4 agonizing seconds.

<<Same, buddy. >>

This was… this was bad.

Like really, really bad.

And of course, it just got worse when wolves jumped in, and the growling, or screaming in that fox’s case, started once again.

Was that fox… peeing in his floor!? OH SHIT IT WAS! IT PEED ALL OVER HIS BLACK STELLAR RUG!

It wasn’t even 8 pm, what the actual fucking shit?!

Shadow felt like screaming. He actually was going to scream like a bitch or a scared child he didn’t care anymore. He was done, oh shit.

Shadow breathed deeply, resisted the urge of biting his forearm or screeching like a banshee into his coffin like cushion, and exhaled, trying not to scare any of the already panicking animals around him, and to not succumb to his own panic in the middle of this disaster. He breathed once again.

He was better than this.

This…this was nothing compared to some of the things he had been through in the past.

This was fine. He totally wasn’t hyperventilating over such a thing.

Right. Cool head. Everything was going to be alright for as long as he didn’t succumb to his panic. It was easy. Totally.

Mh-hm…

Once he made sure the raccoon was actually breathing, he left it clung to his back as he made his way to his window, carefully stepping between the glass, rodents, and paws, as he had noticed that the smell of blood was thicker in that part after sniffing around.

Shadow wasn’t that surprised to see two heavily injured wolves in his front porch, panting as 3 young deers warily made their way over.

This was… going to be a long night of no sleep, right?

Thank god he didn’t need to go to the G.U.N. headquarters or the FF central for the whole week. Were he to see their faces tomorrow, at least someone was bound to get a fucking punch in the mouth.

He was betting Silver.

Maybe Amy.

A while later, when he finished with the first wolf, he looked up to find Gumdrop looking back at him. Other 14 ravens and like 8 Macaws and who-has-the-time-to-count other birds he didn’t knew the name of were trying to sleep in the couch support, and there were frogs hiding under his chairs and couch, a few even jumping up to his small coffee table.

6 wild cats and their 9 cubs where chilling by the door, and it seemed the wolves, deer’s, and Foxes came to an understanding and were keeping to themselves, not moving an inch into the others space, and thanks heaven, having no discussions over territory, as he wasn’t sure about how would thing end if his unexpected visitors decided to break a brawl into his house in such a time.

Shadow wondered if he could offer the rat or whatever that thingwas to the wolves as a reward for not peeing, unlike others he was glaring to. He decided they were his favorites and it had totally nothing to do with how one of them decided that lying next to him was a wonderful idea… as well as licking his thigh with abandon [which on second though may be a way to express their anxiety and shouldn’t be so cute.]

Nothing to do with that overgrown puppy he was dying to pet. Not at all.

He wasn’t so stupid as to try and touch an actual wild wolf he had never come in contact before.

Convincing the deer´s to let him heal their injuries was tricky, nervous, scared, and certainly put off by Shadow himself and his med kit as they were, but he managed after a long while of murmuring softly, yummy treats, and petting. He noticed that some of the cuts were made by claws, thick, strange claws he remembered still, and not only by glass, as he had though initially.

It was a big “oh.” Moment. He…he really hadn’t thought about that. But, why would he, right? Shadow had been so sure that it was just a one-time incidence, an isolated occurrence, something that came across the place, and maybe left after, once everything was done. It had happened before…

The proof of how careless he had been, how innocent, if you may, how wrongin his believe was laying right in front him, like an accusing hand directly thrown in his face.

He had to manually re-start the heart of 4 cubs, two raccoons, 3 wolves, and 6 rabbits that night.

He found 5 quills into the fur of the animals that night.

They matched the one on his bedside table completely, no doubt they were from the same animal or the same kind, at least.

Shit.

Shit shit shit, shit.

He wanted to punch something so bad on his frustration. How had he been so naïve? How? He had fucked up big time, there wasn’t space for a doubt now. What was he going to do? How could he make up for this disgrace?

Shit.

Should he hunt?

Shadow… He really didn’t sleep that night, even though he knew he needed to. Attending wound after wound, getting bitten, scratched, throw off his paws, and even being thrown up on became a routine somewhere down the line, the fact that he was running out of pots to put clean water on, bandages and other necessities never out of his mind as more and more scared animals came to his door.

What was out there?

How could he sleep in a moment like that?

Had the animal’s sounds or injuries left him, the bone chilling howling he heard at 1 AM, and then later at 4 AM really gave no option. He would have woken up anyway, startled and panicking as much as the animals around him, and it would just have been a more difficult scenario to handle.

Even the wolves shuddered and searched for comfort, scared and intimidated by what they heard and saw, most likely.

It was better this way. Even if he felt a bit sluggish and rather tired, he could hold. He was trained for this, wasn’t he?

He just…wondered why he felt so affect about this. Almost… sick.

Once the time came, he went out to run like every day, undeterred, stepping into the thick foliage like usual. The sunlight barely made it to the ground, so everything was gloomy and humid still, not really reliable to walk around unless you knew the territory.

He found 4 strange dips into the earth, like the one he previously slipped on, and 1 wolf and 3 deer’s corpses.

One was destroyed, as if attacked in a fit of rage, and 2 of the deers were nothing but bones by now, munched on by this new creature he had not seen yet, and others scavengers of the zone. It had been clearly full by then, or at least coming closer to it, as the remaining one still had a lot on…Well.

Maybe saying “a lot” was being too generous. But there was some fur still attached. Fur he could use… maybe?

Ugh.

Shadow couldn’t help but compare his own bite to it.

The difference was jarring and unpleasant to find. His lethal fangs were small in comparison, and his claws were but a joke.

He knew it could also mean nothing. Even if the creature was big, Shadow could still take it on, and win.

It was okay.

He breathed out slowly.

Shadow went back home early that day, cutting his trip short, trying to stop feeling as if something was staring at him from the top of the trees, following his steps in such a quiet manner he couldn’t place from where he was being followed exactly.

Mocking, maybe, but intense.

He fed the bears, and did his best to help the animals inside eat something and lure them out.

A few looked scared, still. Wary. And Shadow, with a sinking emotion in his stomach, found he couldn’t blame them.

He wondered why he hadn’t stopped feeling sick.

[cleansingreflections]

I ranked all 24 episodes of Polygon’s Unraveled because I couldn’t sleep last night

‪I’m not here to express an opinion, but merely to state a fact, and I take absolutely zero criticism for this ranking‬;

In case Brian posts another unraveled next week i’ll just pretend to not see it‬ (or i’ll just edit this post I guess? Brian please don’t post any Unraveled tomorrow i’m begging you)

For legal reasons I don’t think any Unraveled is bad, I love all of them as if they were my own children, some of them I just wish I loved more,

I guess **spoilers** for every single Unraveled ever

24. Find your Kojima name with my simple 11-page form

I just,, I just don’t see this video as an Unraveled in my brain. As a Brian video, I love it, I love the idea, I love the work that Brian put in it, it’s entertaining, but as an Unraveled,,,, man I don’t know it’s just off for me. My Kojima name is The Lewd LIckable Turtle btw;

23. I fixed Fallout’s music by creating a totally new genre

I don’t know a single thing about either Fallout or Ska, and I would’ve liked to keep it that way (plus i got the final twist “spoiled” by accident so during the entire video I was just waiting for it to happen and it made it less entertaining for me personally)

22. I built the perfect gamer space

Good episode, but not my thing, I guess? Like yeah it’s good, but at the same time I didn’t enjoy it as much. I feel bad putting the latest episode so low but that’s just how it is, maybe it’ll grow on me

21. Which Dark Souls boss is the best manager?

I generally don’t care about Dark Souls, and I care even less about having a job. The ending with the best boss being yourself though,, that was a nice touch, I’ll admit it

20. Scientifically calculating the game of the year

I don’t even have an explaination for this one, I liked it but not a lot I guess

19. Smash Bros. owes millions of dollars in OSHA violations

Nobody likes a snitch; but the jokes were on point, this episode has a few of my favorite bits so it’s not a bad one

18. How to make a perfect E3 press conference (or drinking game)

Overall it’s fun but it’s not like special to me, like it’s good I liked it I enjoyed it but nothing more than that

17. Calculate your pet’s HP with my 100% legitimate formula

Again, a good episode, I liked it, higher than the previous one because of the intro, I loved that intro, I’ve used “as if that means fucking anything” as a meme more times than I’d be proud to admit

16. Understanding Kingdom hearts (and every other story)

The build up to that beautiful neverending climax of chaos holds a small spot in my heart

15. When can Mario retire?

Again, the build up to the final twist is just great , higher than Kingdom hearts solely because of the realism of it all (and for the “mario inflation” bit)

14. How to tell apart all 596 Fire Emblem characters

I don’t even know what Fire Emblem even is about, it’s up here only because he references “Commedia dell’arte” and having grown up in Italy and studied at an italian high school, I have this weird emotional attachment to italian theatre

13. Bowser’s military hierarchy

The entire episode shifting from simply analysing Bowser’s military to exposing Mario as a war criminal was just great, I loved that twist, plus the “stus” bit is one of my favorite things in the world

12. Ranking all Mega-Man robots

It’s just good. Just that, just good, the jokes are on point, filled with most of my favorite one liners, gets real in some points too

11. I used The Sims to perfect my apartment

Seriously a good, well built episode, the final message made me almost cry and it really struck a chord, this low only because of that lighting,, what is that lighting Brian,,,,,,,

10. Solving the Zelda Timeline in 15 minutes

I don’t know how to explain this honestly, it’s just great. I don’t know a single thing about Zelda and he doesn’t even explain most of the stuff he says, yet I understood everything perfectly. I loved it and I rewatch it on a weekly basis

9. How to increase your stamina with terrible video game tactics

Exactly what I needed to hear at the exact moment that it came out. Not to be emotional but it came out about two weeks before the most important exam of my high school career, right after months of stress and mood swings because I felt like I was always wasting time instead of studying and doing my school work, I think this episode is seriously the reason why I managed to stop worrying too much and ended up doing so well during my exam. thank you brian, really

8. No one asked but I found Mortal Kombat’s best cuddler

Chaos, pure unfiltered chaos. The fact that he talks about each character as if he has actually cuddled with them. The entirety of the “What is a good cuddler” bit with Pat’s voiceover. There’s Red Bull in this mug *kicks air*. Art, if I say so myself

7. We made al 78 Breath of the Wild recipes in one day

The pain. The suffering. The regret. The confusion. The bread in a pan. The ambulance siren. The occasional Pat commentary. The fruitcake that looks like a brain. The porgy. “If I can’t be accurate *almost cuts and entire finger off* I sure as hell am gonna be extra”. Almost a cinematic masterpiece. Almost.

6. Every Sonic game is blasphemous

I don’t feel like I even have to explain this one, just interpret it as you wish

5. I wasted 3 weeks of my life finding Castlevania’s hottest monster

I love sexy monsters, I have nothing to add

4. I read all 337 books in Skyrim so you don’t have to

Just the drama of it all. “Riveting” and “My second reaction to this was what the fuck? Hey Todd, what the fu-” are things that I’ve started saying irl at this point. The fact that he got a flu shot in the middle of filming. The reenactment with Pat at the end of the episode.

3. Kirby

Maybe it’s the fact that he filmed it in two seperate moments, and he looks like two completely different people.Or maybe it’s how much passion and dedication I feel coming from this video, and the utter desperation and later resignation in his voice, it’s truly poetic. The entire episode is just one big love letter to Kirby and I am here for it.

2. The Perfect PokéRap

It was live. He had to do an entire 20 minute comedy routine and then perform a nearly 10 minute long song on top of that. The writing, the dancing, the singing, the Kevin Punt subplot. The Pat just sitting there quietly clicking through thee slides. Just everything. It’s nearly perfect.

1. Waluigi

Why is there a comma instead of a | in the title? I don’t know, you don’t know, I don’t think even Brian knows. This is the perfect build up, not only throughout the episode itself, but throughout the entirety of the season 2, that worked perfectly to culminate into the final not one, not two, but three twists. The dedication to growing a moustache for months only to shave it in front of the camera as an act of complete and utter despair. The shirt change, the light change, the hue change, the Realization. Look, if you don’t think Waluigi is the best episode you’re just wrong. This. This is The Unraveled Episode. It doesn’t get better than this, it never will. This is a cinematic masterpiece. This is where “videos about a game” ends and “Performance Art” begins. This is an entire piece of artwork and if I could tattoo a video on my forehead this would be my choice. This is the Hill I’m willing to Die on. This is the Greatest Creation in the History of Mankind. This is what Makes us the Superior species in the Entire Universe. I Used To Main Waluigi In Mario Tennis

[alison-anonymous]

flawsome bandits pt. 5 ♡ sonic

Flawsome Wanted Posters

I know, I know, two updates in one day but the encouragement I’ve been receiving has given me WRITER SUPERPOWERS so I decided that if I finished another chapter today that I’d upload it for you darlings! I’m also uploading this on Wattpad too if any of you are interested! Love you all and please enjoy!

Warnings - lack of gifs, I couldn’t find any for this part I’M SO SAWRY :’(

♡♡♡ 

Tom’s eyes watered from the smoke as he slowly forced himself up into a sitting position. His lungs screamed from the new chemicals being introduced to them, causing him to cough like a smoker. Once the clouds of smoke finally cleared and his vision finally returned to him, he looked to see if the two kids were okay. 

...it was the exact opposite.

Amidst the burning dried grass, Y/n and Sonic lay facing each other, unconscious. They had some soot and chemicals from the explosion still on their skin and Y/n had dirt in her hair, their mouths slightly open and limbs strewn about in unnatural angles. Tom’s heart stopped beating as he ran over to his daughter, pulling her head into his lip.

“Y/n,” he shook her body, checking her pulse. It was weak, but it was there. He checked Sonic’s next. It was the same. Tears threatened to spill out of his eyes as he brushed the hair out of his daughter’s face. Sure, they had had some rough times… but she was his kid. “Come on, you guys are alright… get up.” For once in his life, his voice sounded weak and desperate. He didn’t want these kids to die! Who would? He quickly scooped up Y/n into his arms, hating the way that her body hung limply to the sides. 

“...you’re going to be okay.”

♡♡♡

It had taken quite a lot of convincing for Tom to be able to make it past the foyer of his sister-in-law’s house, even with Maddie trying to convince her. Once the poor unconscious Sonic was revealed from underneath the sheet Tom had been hiding him under, Maddie’s skepticism only grew. The two watched as her sister fell onto the floor, unconscious. 

“Where’s Y/n?” She asked in concern.

“In the car…” Tom’s expression fell to rock bottom. “She’s in no better condition.” 

His words kicked Maddie into gear as she burst out the door in search for her daughter, leaving Tom standing there with Sonic. She ran out to the truck as fast as she could, having to hold back a scream once she realized that the top was missing. There Y/n was, just as Tom had said, lying down in the backseat with her hair in a mess and her clothes covered in dirt. Her hands had cuts and bruises on them and while she could still see the rise and fall of her stomach, they came in very short, very rapid breaths. Maddie quickly picked her daughter up and hugged her to her chest, begging herself not to cry. 

“Hey there, sweetie,” she whispered to the body as she picked her up bridal style and began to carry her back into the house. “You’re going to be just fine… I promise.”

About a half hour later, Maddie finally returned from upstairs where she had tended to Y/n’s wounds and set her up in her bed to rest. Ozzy was in there keeping watch over her while her sister remained tied to a chair in the living room. Tom and Jojo stood over Sonic’s unconscious body as he lay as stiff as a board on the kitchen island. As Maddie came over carrying her vet kit, she gently pushed her husband aside and did her best not to let her inner emotions of disgust show. 

“Is he going to be okay? Can you help him?” Tom asked worriedly, trying to do his best to keep his cool in front of his niece. Maddie shot him an annoyed side glance and sighed.

“Tom, I don’t even know what I’m looking at right now-”

“He’s a hedgehog,” Tom frets. “Or at least that’s what he says.”

“He talks?” Maddie’s eyebrows raised as she began to get ready to test his pulse. Tom nodded. 

“He never seems to shut up. He’s grown really fond of Y/n.” The last part came out a little more bitter than he had intended, but it was just his good father nature to be snippy about boys. Maddie slowly processed the information as she pressed her fingers against Sonic’s wrist, glancing at her watch. As soon as she felt the blood pumping through his veins, her eyes widened.

“H-his pulse is insanely fast,” she muttered.

“Maybe that’s normal for him, he is sort of a speed demon,” Tom tried to reason. She nodded slightly and then proceeded to feel about his body for any broken limbs or torn ligaments. Once she was decently satisfied with that, she began to take off his tattered shoes, revealing socks with holes in them that were doing their best to protect his adorable hedgehog feet. Jojo grabbed a hold of one of the shoes and disappeared into another room while Maddie turned back to her husband.

“I don’t feel any broken bones. I think he’ll be fine, he’s just a little beat up. Poor little guy has some pretty rough feet,” she sighed. Tom finally exhaled for the second time that day, the first being after he found out Y/n was going to be okay. He took the nail he had been chewing on out of his mouth and sighed.

“Wait, don’t you have any of those smelling salts for pets?” He asked hopefully, eyes wide. Maddie furrowed her brows and did her best to accept her husband’s slight stupidity.

“I have HUMAN smelling salts,” she chuckled. He nodded rapidly, a sign that she should grab them. The second that she snapped the smelling salt and held it up to the blue hedgehog’s nose, his dreamy green eyes popped open. 

“Gotta go fast!” Sonic yelled, leaping off of the counter and zipping around the room so fast that you could barely even see him. Maddie’s eyes widened in horror as Tom stared in awe, amazed at how the little guy could come out of this with barely a scratch. Sonic finally came to a stop to stand on the counter and smiled at the two.

“Oh, hey Pretzel Lady!” Maddie gave him a small wave, the horror beginning to show in her eyes as she stared at him. Sonic opened his mouth to continue when he suddenly froze, counting the heads in the room. There was a Donut Lord… but someone was missing. The gears quickly clicked in his head as he remembered the explosion.

“Where’s Y/n?” He asked, panic beginning to rise as his green eyes looked around frantically for the girl he was growing very attracted to. Tom quickly held up his hands to help calm him down.

“Don’t worry, she’s safe. Maddie took care of her, she’s just resting upstairs.”

“She’s okay? Thank God,” Sonic breathed a sigh of relief. Maddie couldn’t help but smile at how concerned this creature was for her daughter. It was heartwarming to see someone else hold such a deep regard for her than she and Tom did. But the smile soon faded as she grabbed onto Tom’s sleeve and tugged on it forcefully.

“Uh, Tom, sweetie, can I talk to you for a moment? Without the, um, alien hedgehog?” Tom nodded slowly, following her out of the room. She closed the white sliding doors behind her, leaving Sonic alone in the kitchen. He let out a soft groan as the pain in his head slowly came back, still throbbing with every pulse. He hoped that Y/n was doing okay. 

Sonic’s eyes slowly made their way towards the stairwell. 

Upstairs, she said?

♡♡♡

Buried underneath a sea of covers lay a very beat up teenage girl. She had bandages wrapped around her arms and her hair had been brushed out of her face in order for her mother to clean the dirt off of her skin. Her eyes remained closed as her mouth was parted slightly, the steady rise and fall of her chest barely seen from the comforter she was under. The metal box that had been resting beside her in the truck was resting on the nightstand next to her, practically staring at her while she slept.

Y/n was having the strangest dream. 

She was much shorter than she remembered being, and she seemed a lot more hairy than usual. She’d have to buy a new razor. And she was with someone, but it was so blurry that all she could see was the color blue. Green was all that she could see for miles, filled with amazingly exotic waters and plantations and-

Wait. What was that noise? Y/n strained her ears as she heard that eerily familiar tune once again. It was the singing she had heard in the car. It was back.

Ah~, ah~. High and low, then high and low again.

She twirled around, e/c eyes searching for the source, but everything was so blurry that she couldn’t see. Like a camera that simply refused to focus. She stumbled around, listening to the song. It was beautifully mysterious, and she felt like… like it was meant for her to hear. Like it was trying to tell her something. It contained that same feeling she felt whenever she looked at Sonic - like she had heard it, seen it all before. 

But where?

Y/n woke up with a start, gasping for air as she sat up in bed. A thin layer of sweat coated her forehead as she moved the loose strands of hair out of her eyes. Her pulse began to rise as she looked around the room, recognizing it as her mother’s room from her aunt’s house. Her e/c eyes closed as she tried to steady her breathing. What was that all about? 

Ah~, ah~.

She gulped. There it was again. The music that only she could hear, it seemed. But even though she wanted to be afraid or worried about it, the idea only seemed to draw her in with curiosity. Even though she tried to tell herself not to, her gaze slowly drifted from the sheets over to the box sitting on the nightstand. The song sang softly to her, a little quieter now that it had gotten her attention, like a shy child. But still it called. 

Y/n slowly moved the blankets aside and swung her legs off the side of the bed. Her socked feet gently tapped the floor, creaking in uneasiness as they hadn’t been used in a couple hours. Her curious e/c orbs watched the little box closely, head tilting slightly to the side as she listened to it sing. Did she dare? She never did promise not to touch the vials or inspect them closer, so it wouldn’t do any harm to take one more peek without Sonic or Tom… right? 

Y/n very cautiously reached her hand out to the box, gently wrapping her bandaged hand around its cold surface and lifting it over to her lap. The singing quieted down even more as she flipped open the lid. Interesting, she thought. How hadn’t she noticed that the vials glowed in the dark before? Maybe because it had been in the day when they found them, she figured. And it was dark in the room because of the blackout curtains on the window. 

She lifted out Sonic’s vial, the bright yellow one and held it up to her eyes. It really did look like nothing but pee, so what was it? Her eyes scanned over the label once more, searching for anything that didn’t feel out of place. There had to be something here she was mis-

Oh. Oh, wait. 

Sonic’s vial wasn’t singing. Her brows furrowed in confusion. But… both of them had been singing, right? At least, something in the box had been singing. She held it to her ear and waited for what seemed like forever for the mystical tune to come floating out of it like magic.

Silence.

Huh. That was weird. She carefully set Sonic’s vial back into its rightful spot next to hers, watching as the liquid sloshed around in the tiny glass. Well, there was only one other thing left in the box. Her vial. Y/n bit her lip as she raised her own vial out of the box, eyes wide open as she watched the icy blue liquid glitter in the darkness. She twirled the vial around in her hands for a moment, inspecting every inch of it as she grew accustomed to holding it. But what was it for? 

She flipped the vial back over to the label on the back. Emergency reversal… emergency reversal. Why would there be something needed to be reversed? Was it for her? Y/n spent what felt like hours just sitting there, wracking her brain for an answer to the seemingly impossible question as to why these vials were here. And then it finally clicked into place.

Had someone… done something to her? To Sonic? Something that they didn’t know about? 

I mean, it would explain a couple of things. Maybe that was the reason why she and Sonic felt such a strong connection to one another and they only met a couple days ago. Maybe that was why Y/n had amnesia, a case that no one could solve. The dream that she just had… maybe it meant something. But who would have done this? Did she and Sonic know each other before? But how could that have been possible? She was a human and he was… Sonic! He was a hedgehog, for crying out loud! Unless…

She wasn’t always a human.

Dear lord, even the idea sounded insane. What else would she have been? A slug? A cat? But why else would they have their names on these vials? How could Dr. Robotnik had known about them beforehand when he didn’t even know their names? Was that why Robotnik had gotten all weird once she had told him her name?

But then again… why would Dr. Robotnik, of all people, have this? It made no sense. But if the label was telling the truth, then maybe whatever the contents of this vial were… perhaps it held the answers she had been looking for.

Ah~, ah~. The singing… was coming from her vial.

Well… only one way to find out if she was right.

Her fingers slowly found their way to the cork, removing it with a satisfying little pop. It didn’t smell like anything, didn’t look like it would taste like anything. It just stared at her from its home, waiting for her. Y/n’s heart pounded against her chest as she lifted the vial closer to her face. She needed answers. She needed to know.

The vial met her lips, and she drank. 

♡ a.a.