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year-of-the-echidna · 1 month ago

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Relaxation

Maddie pulled her hand above her brow in an attempt to shield her eyes from the glistening sun. She scanned the yard, a small smile on her lips as she zeroed in on her quarry. As she stepped from the patio she felt the soft green grass tickle her feet as it ran through her toes.

She came up behind him, stopping just short of his position. He wasn’t one to welcome contact without consent. It hurt her to see him still flinch away from touch, a learned behavior to be sure. She took a soft breath, letting the clear spring air fill her lungs.

She gently lowered herself to the grassy ground, still careful not to touch him. There was no need to announce her presence. He knew she was here, likely since the moment she opened the porch door.

She pulled her knees towards her and rested her arms atop, laying her head down in a way that her gaze could take in his form. He sat with his legs crossed toward his body. His expression was hard, the telling signs arising from his tight lips and small scrunch in his nose. A feature, she had to admit, she loved dearly.

What caught her attention, however, was his gloves. He had removed them, sitting adjacent to his open side, resting on the ground. It was a rare thing to see him remove his gloves.

She drew her eyes to his hands, bare in front of her, as his paws carefully kneaded their way through the surrounding ground. It was almost mesmerizing the way his fingers stretched through the grass, then claws, as large as her own fingers, drug back through the rocks and clumps, and clay, back toward his lap.

Large hands clenched together, crumbling the soil within his strong palms. Hands then opened and stretched, repeating the movements with careful precision. She chewed at her bottom lip as the dirt continued to be displaced and winced at the healthy grass that was becoming uprooted through the claws.

The movements, smooth and rhythmic, reminded her of running her feet through the sand on her and Tom’s most recent beach vacation. A soothing feeling, almost grounding as her toes weaved through the particles in a slow dance of warmth and calm.

“What are you doing?”

His deep voice permeated the soft quiet that had settled between them. She raised her eyes to find that he was looking at her, his previously tight features now softened in an expression of curiosity.

At first she was unsure what he was referring to, but the flick of his eyes lead her to look down to her feet as they unconsciously moved through the soft grass. She gave him a tentative smile.

“Daydreaming about a beach.” she said, causing his eyes to move back to her face.

“Beach.” he said, word sounding foreign on his tongue.

“Uh huh.” she replied. “I like to set up a chair, pull out a good book, and listen to the waves of the ocean hit the shore as I burry my feet in the sand.”

His face scrunched, causing the small wrinkles in his nose to appear once again. She held in the urge to trace them with her finger.

“I hate sand.”

“Ahh, so you have been to a beach?” she asked playfully.

“No.” he replied. “I was abandoned in a desert for 2 weeks. Water is not the only thing that can drown you.”

Her smile faltered as she took in his words. He shook his body almost as if throwing imaginary particulate from his fur, quills flared in in a show of annoyance. She opened her mouth to reply but could not find her voice. She looked back to his face, once again scrunched in annoyance as he looked to the ground.

Ok, then.

They fell back into silence. Maddie found herself biting at her lower lip, pulling her knees more tightly against her. The soft song of a near by bird caught her ears and she took another cleansing breath. As much as she wanted to unpack his past, now was not that time. She glanced back in his direction.

“What are you doing?” she asked lightly, giving a subtle point to his bare hands.

He almost seemed startled by the question, eyes widening ever so slightly as he focused on the small movements of his fingers.

“Digging.”

“I see that.” she said playfully, giving him a soft pat to his shoulder. “You’ve made a quite a mess.”

His shoulders tensed and his nose scrunched further as he looked at the crumbled dirt and grass. He pulled his lips tight but did not stop the kneading of his fingers. as they pulled up more of the clay and hard dirt.

She cringed internally as she watched more grass become tangled in his fingers. She took a deep breath and pushed down the urge to stop or correct him. She could plant new grass later. But they would need to find a less destructive means of enrichment.

“I heard you fighting with Sonic again.”

At mention of the hedgehog’s name his face tightened into a scowl. Purple eyes narrowed in annoyance.

“He called me Knucklehead, again.” the echidna rumbled.

Maddie sighed. She drew her lips tight as she watched his muscles tense. His fingers and claws began to move through the dirt more earnestly, more aggressively, kicking up small rocks from the deeper soil.

“I know, sweetie.” she answered softly. She brought her slender finger up to push a few stray quills into place. She didn’t miss the slight flinch at her touch.

“I know it means stupid.” he spat, his claws grinding the thick clay into small, even pieces.

“I don’t think he…”

“Do not patronize me.” he huffed. “I heard him and Tom talking. I know what it means.”

Maddie sighed and pulled her fingers to her forehead to massage the ache that was beginning to form. She unconsciously bit her lip as she felt the anger radiate from his body. A crack caused her to startle and she looked to see his large claws pulverize a stone under his tense hands.

She placed her hand on his, feeling it stretch forward, the course skin and fur moving under her palm as he continued to knead through the soil. The contact caused him to look at her. Maddie tried to force an even smile and exude calm.

“He doesn’t think you’re stupid, honey.” she said softly, causing him to scoff. He turned his eyes back forward, lips tight. She sighed.

“I know it’s hard.” she spoke, her small hand still resting on top of his large one, feeling the tightness in his fingers. “Knucklehead is actually silly name that already existed on Earth. If someone uses it in a hurtful way it can mean stupid. But it can also mean stubborn.” She smiled to herself. “And I think we can both agree you can be stubborn sometimes.”

The creases in his muzzle lightened ever so slightly at her words, almost like a silent acknowledgement. She let out a playful laugh and lifted her dirty hand from his and pressed his nose lightly, the soil leaving a mark on his muzzle. He twitched his nose in response.

She took the slight shift in mood to continue. “I know he can push. And when he gets frustrated he can bring out the nicknames. But he means well. He just wants you to feel included.” She smiled to herself as she thought of her energetic but kind hearted blue child.

Knuckles’ face softened further at her words, his gaze once again falling to the ground. His hands began to slow, back to the more rhythmic movement he had used before. He let out a soft breath, causing the loose dirt under his nails to scatter.

“I think I know this.” he replied softly.

She moved her hands to his hanging quills, feeling them move through her fingers causing him to twitch his eyes back to hers.

“And to be clear…You are not stupid.” she stressed.

A soft smile graced his lips and the last remaining crease smoothed across his face. “Sometimes.” he added, his purple eyes glancing her way.

She leaned over and nudged his shoulder with her own, her own grin stretching across her face. Her eyes turned back down towards the ground, watching another mound of dirt crumble under his powerful paws.

“So…may I ask why my yard had to die?” she asked as she pointed towards his hands.

A soft blush hit his cheeks and his hands finally stopped their repetitive kneading. His head turned slightly away from her as he averted his eyes under her soft scrutiny.

“I apologize.” he answered softly. “The dirt…it soothes me.”

“Soothes you?”

“Yes.” he answered, almost bashfully. He extended his long claws through the soil and mud, dirt flowing over his hands and fur like a soft wave. A soft breath left his chest through his mouth as he pulled his fingers back again. She was about to comment further when he continued, his voice gentle, almost melancholy.

“Echidna…we are made for dirt.” he started, eyes trained on his hands as they continued their movement. “Our claws are made to cut through the earth, our spikes to burrow through the ground.”

She let her head fall to the side, trying to meet his drifted gaze.

“It is like your sand.” he continued, avoiding her eyes. “The feeling of the dirt through my fingers. The clumps that crumble within my paws. It is natural and relaxing.” He picked up a mound of dirt and let is fall through his fingers. “It is something I can do with my hands that is not destructive.”

She looked at her grass, shredded and maimed at her feet and silently disagreed, but there was something about his voice. His vulnerability, his admissions that seemed so important. This was important to him. This was something he needed.

“How about we turn this area into a garden?” she suggested. “You can knead, play, and plant whatever you want. It can be yours.”

His eyes snapped up to meet hers, a soft glisten in his violet orbs. She gave him a reassuring smile.

“Mine?” he asked, and there was so much gentle hope in his voice that it made any doubt of sacrificing a piece of her lawn melt away.

“Yeah.” she answered, patting his dirty hand with her own. “Why not?”

The smile that followed so so pure and genuine that she couldn’t help wrapping her arm around his shoulders, space be damned, and pull him into a one sided hug. She squeezed his bicep as it tensed, but soon relaxed under her hand, her thumb running lightly over his fur.

“Ummm, mom?”

She startled at the voice behind her, whipping her head around to meet the green eyes of her middle child. She sat up, releasing the echidna next to her but allowing her hand to linger over his back as a show of continued comfort. Sonic stood a few paces behind them, hands clasped behind his back. He rocked back and forth from his toes to his heals, face painted in a sheepish grin.

She also didn’t miss the tension return to the echidna boy’s body at the sound of the speedster’s voice.

“What is it, baby?”

Can I…talk…to Knuckles, please.”

She felt her heart warm in her chest at the hedgehog’s request. She gave him a grin then returned her gaze to the boy next to her.

“Is that ok?” She asked softly, her hand patting gently against his back. The warrior turned his head away from her, hand clenched with dirt and clay, but gave a curt nod in acceptance.

“Alright, then.” she said softly. She gave Knuckles a reassuring scratch to his fur, then stood, stretching her stiff muscles. She turned toward the house, stopping next to Sonic to give him a quick shoulder squeeze and a wink. He gave her a smile and a small thumbs up.

“Well, I’m going to go inside to get my hands washed.” she announced, moving further toward their home to allow Sonic to take her place. “Dinner is going to be ready in about an hour.”

“Ok, mom.” Sonic answered, subtly waving her away. She rolled her eyes and made her way back in the house. She walked to the nearby kitchen sink to massage the dirt and grim from under her fingernails and a smile wide enough it reached her eyes painted her features as she watched her boys talk under the setting light of the fall sun.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next morning, after a peaceful dinner and a movie night comprised of the first installment of Lord of the Rings, she walked out into the dewy yard with a cup of coffee clutched in her hands. She breathed in the cool morning air, the moisture from the early morning grass soaking into her slippers.

As the sun continued its ascent into the sky, she made to turn back to the house to start breakfast when something caught her eye.

She put one foot in front of the other as she was drawn toward the disturbed dirt where Knuckles had sat the day before. When she had noticed his hands moving through the ground she had internally cringe as the area was disturbed. She had allowed it, however, because it seemed to soothe him. Besides, the area of his interest was tucked away toward the corner of the yard.

But as she came upon the broken up soil her eyes widened. She lowered herself to her knees, sleep pants wet by dew and mud, and let her hand stretch toward the dirt. The area was tilled and soft. No longer was the soil hard and dry, but fresh and healthy. And between all the crumbles and lines and gentle destruction, a small sprout had erupted from the underground, it’s leaves pointing toward the rising sun.

Her coffee cup slipped through her fingers, the remaining sips of caffeine soaking into the soil under her legs. She gently lowered her slender fingers, taking the small sprout between them, feeling the fragile green stem run between the tips.

A soft smile touched her lips.

A single sprout, so small and delicate, arose from the rough and calloused dirt. All it needed was a gentle hand.

She turned and looked back toward the attic where she knew her children were likely rising for the morning and her mind drifted to the echidna. A child, so afraid and uncertain, still trying to find a new purpose, a new life. So strong, so fierce, but so tender that he could make the earth better just by playing in it.

@year-of-the-echidna

#knuckles the echidna #knuckles wachowski #relaxation #yote fanfiction #maddie wachowski

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