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On lazy afternoons when he doesn’t have work such as this one, Tom can unusually be found sitting on the couch. There aren’t any shows he goes out of his way to regularly watch, but he can always find a somewhat interesting movie or halfway funny show to play on the television. Ozzie will join him on the couch. He will curl up close to soak up Tom’s excess body heat, unbothered by the television. Tom pets Ozzie’s head, ensuring the dog will stay with him until Maddie opens the door after her long day of work. When that happens, Ozzie will rise first to greet the woman, and Tom will come next with a greeting and a kiss to her lips. It is a habitual rhythm they have undertaken for years ever since they started living together even before their marriage.
Today is decidedly different. It is the first time Tom has done this since Sonic started staying with him and Maddie. The weirdness of living with an alien has not faded, but it becomes easier to grasp when Sonic is lying on the couch with his head in Tom’s lap. He watches the movie with far more raptured attention than Tom or Ozzie does. His tail thumps against the cushion. Tom doesn’t know what that means specifically, but if it means the same thing as it does for dogs like Ozzie, Sonic is happy right now. He’s content, which is arguably a more challenging feat to accomplish for the Wachowski family. Tom doesn’t know how he’s done it. It might be the hand he’s moving across Sonic’s fur (and wow, it is strange because of how normal it feels. Sonic’s fur isn’t that different from Ozzie’s fur all things considered, and that realization nearly freaks Tom out).
Despite the awkwardness the humans and Mobian (and the dog) are working through, this moment doesn’t carry the weight of it. Tom and Sonic are already comfortable around each other, but this level of physical closeness is outside the norm. It is not, however, outside Tom’s comfort zone, and considering Sonic was the one to initiate the touch by plopping his head in Tom’s lap, Sonic isn’t outside his zone, either. Or maybe he is. Sonic has always been one to step outside his comfort zone and drag the imaginary wall to include his new position.
Ozzie also seems comfortable as the dog burrows his nose into Tom’s thigh. Between the movie and the situation, Tom’s attention is wearing thin. He stops moving his fingers through Sonic’s fur, merely letting his palm rest against Sonic’s forehead. His other hand starts brushing through the golden fur on top of Ozzie’s head. The dog relaxes, pleased he is finally getting the pets he deserves. Tom snorts, shaking his head at Ozzie’s antics.
Tom feels something warm and wet against his wrist. He doesn’t think anything of it at first. Ozzie has been known to lick his owners— usually at inconvenient times. Tom is used to it, so nothing registers as out of the ordinary until he realizes that it’s the wrong wrist. Ozzie is on his right, and his mouth is directly beside Tom’s thigh. His left wrist is the one getting licked. His attention turns from Ozzie— who is sending him a look questioning why he’s stopped petting the dog— to the television. He finds no answers on the characters moving from one side of their setting to the other. His eyes finish their journey to Sonic’s person. Tom cannot see what’s happening, but his arm has been slid back so his wrist is over Sonic’s mouth. The logistics are making sense; the reasoning behind it is not.
“Are you licking me?” Tom asks. He didn’t mean to put any sort of inflection in his voice. He was only trying to make sure that he wasn’t imagining the situation.
But Tom can hear the unintended harshness in his tone. Sonic likely heard it, too. The hedgehog shoves Tom’s arm away from him. He sits upright with quick, tense motions. His quills rise defensively. He covers his mouth with both of his paws. Tom has seen a wide variety of emotions in Sonic’s before, but he has never seen them all flit across his irises all at once like a freak storm. The one that stands out the most, however, is quiet shame.
Tom hesitantly reaches his hand toward Sonic. The living room makes his wet wrist cold. When his fingers brush against Sonic’s shoulder, the hedgehog throws himself onto his feet. He lowers his paws from his mouth, letting them open and close at his sides. A hurried chuckle leaves him. He awkwardly talks while staring intently at the coffee table. “Wow. That was weird, right? We don’t have to— I’ll go. There was a comic I’ve been meaning to read. You know how it is? I’ll just—”
“Wait,” Tom begs. He slides to the edge of the couch. Ozzie lifts his head from the disruption. Tom folds his legs against the front of the couch. He grabs onto Sonic’s paw, hoping the hedgehog doesn’t blitz away at an inhuman speed. Sonic doesn’t, hesitantly looking at the wrist he was apparently licking. Tom smiles at him, hoping Sonic can see it in his peripheral vision. “It’s fine, Sonic. I don’t mind. Let’s finish the movie, yeah?”
Sonic meets Tom’s eyes for a fraction of a second to confirm his earnestness. Tom slides back into his former position on the couch. He doesn’t make any sudden movements. Sonic takes a deep breath. He sits on the couch. Tom waits. After several minutes, Sonic lies his head back on Tom’s lap. He’s as tense as a live wire. Tom pets Sonic’s fur and quills. The hedgehog untenses slowly. When Tom switches to petting Ozzie, he leaves his wrist near Sonic’s vicinity. Sonic doesn’t start licking him again, but the promise that Tom isn’t disgusted is enough to make Sonic completely relax once more.
Tom can’t pretend like he fully understands what’s going on, but he’s already acknowledged that Sonic’s wagging tail and fur are similar to Ozzie. Who’s to say the licking isn’t also a trait they have in common? Even if it isn’t one for one, Tom supposes it could just be something hedgehogs do.
(It is, he’ll later find out after asking Maddie about it. Scholars aren’t sure why hedgehogs anoint, but they do. While Sonic does it a little differently than wild, Earth hedgehogs, Maddie assures him it’s natural.)
Maddie sits in the reclining chair in the living room. She’s curled over one of the armrests. She holds her mug of tea over the side. The mug warms her fingertips, and the happiness she feels warms her heart. She watches Sonic and his new friends (his bros, as Tom would call them; his brothers, as Maddie believes they are slowly becoming) play video games on the living room floor. Sonic and Knuckles are competing in a fighting game. Tails sits in between them, acting as a buffer between their roughhousing and cheering for both of their success. Maddie cheers occasionally, but she mainly acts impartial as she watches.
“Another victory for me!” Knuckles suddenly calls out as Sonic’s character falls to the ground from depleted HP. Knuckles throws the controller to the ground. Tails grabs onto it before it can break. He smiles at Knuckles, his tails spinning endlessly behind him.
Sonic sets his controller down with a little less destructive intent. He grumbles, rolling his eyes. “Only because it’s a fighting game! I would crush you in a racing game.”
“I would crush you in any game,” Knuckles promises, hitting his fist against his chest.
“Hey! We’re playing fighting games tonight, not racing ones!” Tails argues with the hedgehog and echidna.
“‘We’? You haven’t played yet, Tails,” Sonic arches a brow at him. Sonic reaches forward to grab his controller. He sets it in Tails’ paws alongside Knuckles’ controller. Sonic pats Tails’ head, rising to his feet. “You play a few rounds against Mr. Hothead over here, and then we can talk about what genre of game we’re switching to.”
“Thanks!” Tails excitedly says. He leaves Knuckles’ controller on his legs to hold Sonic’s controller close to his chest. He acts like he’s been given something more precious than gold. Maddie resists the urge to coo. She wants to give Tails the world just to see what kind of expression he would show her. For now, she is satisfied with seeing the amazement and adoration in his eyes when she shows him parental care— when any of them show him any sort of care, frankly.
“You dare challenge me, fox? Let us test your mettle against the fires of my combos!” Knuckles declares. He takes the controller into his paws. While Sonic and Tails can use a regular controller, Tails had to customize one for Knuckles because of his large gloves (when Tom mentioned Knuckles simply taking off his gloves, the parents were given a lengthy lecture about the importance of gloves and socks to Mobians. Sonic never mentioned it to them, even if they noticed his insistence on wearing them. Tom and Maddie were grateful, and they never brought up taking off the gloves again).
As Knuckles and Tails start battling one another, Sonic flops down onto the chair’s cushion beside Maddie. She readjusts herself to give him the necessary space. Sonic leans against her arm. Maddie raises it, wrapping her arm around his shoulders. He lays against her side. Maddie smiles down at him. It is hard for her to fully express how happy she is to call Sonic her son. She doubts she will ever find the right words, but she hopes he knows how much she loves him.
Maddie turns her attention back to Tails and Knuckles. Their characters are moving around so wildly on the screen that she has trouble knowing who’s winning. It ultimately doesn’t matter, though, because the two of them are having fun. Sonic watches them, too, and while Maddie doesn’t know what’s going on inside his head, she assumes that he’s also content to watch since he goes still and silent for a little while beside her.
Sonic raises his paw to intertwine his fingers with Maddie’s fingers. She brings her mug to her lips. She freezes when she feels him lick her wrist. Maddie pointedly keeps her eyes away from him. She finishes swallowing her tea. She lowers it against the armrest. Sonic continues, and Maddie thinks he’s absentmindedly doing it. She suppresses the giggle stuck in her throat from how ticklish Sonic’s tongue is. While Sonic has started doing this more to Tom and Maddie, it is clear that part of him still gets freaked out when they call any attention to it. Maddie doesn’t want to make him uncomfortable. Although he’s not technically an animal, he still needs to follow his instincts to remain happy and content.
And, not to mention, this simply shows he’s comfortable with Tom and Maddie. He’s called them his dad and mom, after all, and Maddie will accept that responsibility with pride and understanding.
Tails sits on his bed near the footboard, messing around with some scraps to make a new invention. His bed. A bed that he owns is covered in blankets and pillows that he owns. Tails still cannot believe it. How was he supposed to know that investigating a galaxy-wide blackout would result in him getting a bed to call his own? A room to call his own? A family to call his own?
Tails wears a small smile. He’s unable to make it disappear, though he wouldn’t want to. The individual responsible for Tails’ new lot in life and a member of his family is sitting on the race car-shaped bed beside Tails’ plane-shaped one. Sonic lies on his side with an elbow pressed into his pillow and propping up his head. He lazily flips through a comic book, emerald eyes scanning the page after every turn. Sonic isn’t doing anything riveting, but his mere presence is enough to bring Tails more happiness than he ever thought he deserved when he was still living in his hometown.
Sonic’s eyes lift from the comic to meet Tails’ eyes. The kit isn’t able to hide his expression in time. Sonic smiles back at him— large and warm like a grassy field in the summer. Tails’ smile widens considerably at seeing Sonic’s easy kindness towards him.
Sonic goes back to his comic. Tails turns his attention back to the machine-in-progress in his paws. He wasn’t planning on bothering Sonic any further, but Tails knows when people are looking at him from years and years of practice. He turns to find Sonic looking at him again with a furrowed brow and slight frown. Tails frowns back at him. Sonic snaps himself out of whatever caused his emotion. He gives Tails an apologetic smile as he looks away.
Tails does, too, until he realizes that Sonic is regarding him again. Tails’ frown deepens. His tails twitch with anxiety. He fears that Sonic will give him a cruel answer, but he forces himself to ask, anyway, for the sake of clarity and getting that feeling of someone watching him to go away. “Sonic? What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. It’s just—” Sonic speaks as quickly as he runs, but he cuts himself off suddenly. Sonic’s frown turns downward even more. Sonic suddenly sighs. He shakes his head, shutting his comic. He twists his body with acrobatic skill and flair. When he lands on his feet, Sonic stares at Tails with a meaningful sharpness in his eyes. “Just let me do this really quick.”
Tails doesn’t know what Sonic is talking about, but there are very few things he wouldn’t do for Sonic. Still, he finds it odd how Sonic moves his paws beneath Tails’ armpits to lift the kit off the bed. Sonic sits on the mattress. He crosses his legs, settling Tails into his lap. Sonic moves his arms around Tails’ waist. He keeps his grip light, giving Tails the opportunity to run away at any point. Tails doesn’t. He just makes certain his tails are wrapping around his body to keep them from getting squished between his back and Sonic’s chest.
Sonic leans forward, tugging Tails back. The kit’s baby blue irises move to the top of his eyes to see what Sonic is doing. He obviously cannot see it, but he feels it. Sonic is licking the fur between Tails’ ears. The kit flattens them. His logical mind rushes to answer the question of why Sonic is doing this. His brain, however, starts to grow fuzzy around the edges, slowing his thoughts considerably. A warmth he hasn’t felt since he was a literal newborn fills his body. It is difficult to put it into words, but Tails knows this feeling. It was like when his biological mother would clean him by licking him— is that what Sonic’s doing?
Well, whatever he’s doing, Tails finds himself melting into Sonic’s lap. The scraps he was messing around with fall from his grasp onto the mattress. He feels like he’s sinking into a warm, medicinal bath. The aching in his bones and his soul are slowly undone by Sonic’s considerate, affectionate actions. Tails was certain he was lucky for having a family like this, but he feels downright blessed like this.
Sonic stops licking Tails, but he doesn’t let the kit go. He presses his forehead onto Tails’ shoulder. His breath is warm against Tails’ back as he whispers with relief thick in his voice. “All clean.”
“All clean,” Tails sleepily murmurs back in agreement. His cheek falls against Sonic’s head, and he finds himself made inexplicably boneless. It is to the point that he slips into a restful nap without even meaning to. Oh, well, it doesn’t matter. Sonic will be there for him when he wakes up.
Knuckles tumbles to the ground. He feels the damp earth soften his fall. The blades of grass and other miscellaneous items found in nature come loose from the ground to get stuck between his fur. He will have to deal with this before it becomes an irritating problem.
Knuckles stops rolling. His back flat on the ground. He spreads his arms and legs out as far from him as possible, letting them soak up the warm sunlight overheard. Knuckles takes a deep breath. He closes his eyes, enjoying the brief moment of respite.
A shadow falls over Knuckles. He peeks his eyes open to see Sonic standing beside him. The hedgehog narrows his eyes at Knuckles, squeezing the mischief into a smaller area. Sonic turns, lifting his elbow into the air. Knuckles gives his brother a blank stare. “I would not—”
“Sneak attack!” Sonic suddenly yells, silencing Knuckles’ warning. He jumps into the air. He positions his elbow to land in Knuckles’ stomach first. And it does exactly that. Knuckles makes no attempts to avoid his fate. The reason becomes clear when Sonic collapses onto the ground. He hisses dramatically in pain. Sonic sits up, quills brushing against Knuckles’ side. Sonic valiantly holds his tears back as he rubs his elbow with his paw. “Ow! Gaia! That hurt! WWE made it look so much easier.”
“I am made from one million percent muscle. My stomach is as strong and unyielding as a mountain,” Knuckles declares. He pats his stomach with his paw.
Sonic glares at him. He leans back, halfway lying on Knuckles’ body. He continues rubbing his elbow petulantly. Knuckles shrugs his shoulders, unsure what else he can tell Sonic. This action reminds Knuckles of the grass, rocks, and sticks that got caught in his fur while he was playfully wrestling with Sonic. Knuckles starts moving his paws to clean himself. Sonic frowns, watching with careful eyes. Knuckles finishes as much as he can given his position and the gloves over his nails. Knuckles moves his paws back over his stomach. He returns Sonic’s gaze. He offers his arm to Sonic. The hedgehog eyes it skeptically until he realizes what Knuckles is allowing him to do.
Echidnas don’t lick themselves to become clean. It isn’t part of their instincts. But Knuckles acknowledges this is part of Sonic’s instincts. This is the hedgehog’s way of bonding with his tribe. Knuckles would never reject the odd but ultimately harmless way Sonic chooses to cement both his position in the tribe and make sure Knuckles understands that he’s part of it. An echidna might get nothing from this experience, but Knuckles is keenly aware of everything this means in the grander scheme.
Knuckles tilts his head back. He closes his eyes. The sunlight warmly caresses his face. Sonic continues licking his arm. He has not known any peace in his travels across the universe, but he believes this is what he’s been missing all along. He understands why it must be protected, and he will do so at all costs— for himself, for his brother, and for the rest of their tribe.
“Shadow!”
The ebony hedgehog lowers his gaze from the distant mountains to the source of the noise saying his name. Shadow gets a few seconds to see Sonic barreling towards him before the blue light is suddenly pressed against him. Sonic wraps his arms around Shadow’s waist. Shadow rolls his eyes, but he returns the gesture with his arms circling around Sonic’s shoulders. Sonic always greets Shadow with a hug, even before their relationship even was anything. He just was so happy to see Shadow alive the first time, and he must have liked hugging so much that he just continued doing it. Shadow, for whatever reason, lets him, so he’s entirely to blame for what’s happening.
Sonic has a whole process. He starts with rubbing their cheeks together. He moves down to rub his cheek against Shadow’s neck and shoulder. When he’s done, he will lift his head and jump away. Sonic will always start a conversation about any subject under the sun. Sometimes, he will lead Shadow somewhere in the wilderness or the world outside Green Hills for exploration. Sometimes, they remain rooted in place like they are the same as the ancient trees forming the forest.
Shadow waits for Sonic to finish, debating internally what Sonic is going to have them do today. Shadow’s thoughts slow down when he realizes that Sonic has been doing this for longer than usual. He raises a brow. He tries glancing at the azure hedgehog when he feels something wetter and warmer than a breath against his neck. Shadow hides his surprise, smothering the startle. He tugs at Sonic’s quills, right on the cusp of too harsh. “Why are you slobbering on me?”
“I’m not slobbering on you,” Sonic argues. The offense he takes is as evident in his voice as the strange breathlessness in Shadow’s voice is. “I’m anointing. There’s a difference. Maddie explained it to me, and she’s an expert, so you have to believe me.”
Sonic goes back to his rubbing and licking. Shadow remains still, as defenseless against this as he was about Sonic hugging him. “... Am I supposed to… do it back?”
“No,” Sonic shrugs. He leans back, looking into Shadow’s eyes. He cranes his head to the side, revealing his neck to the sunlight that filters through the viridian canopy. “You can if you want to. I don’t mind.”
Shadow’s eyes trail from Sonic’s eyes to the offering. He doesn’t understand how Sonic can do this so easily. There isn’t any hesitation, fear, or embarrassment on his face. He only waits expectantly. Knowing Sonic’s patience, he won’t wait for long. Shadow leans forward to take the fleeting opportunity. He licks once, testing his reaction to it.
Sonic has no taste to him, but there’s suddenly a taste in Shadow’s mouth. It is like wildflowers growing in a sunlit field. It is like berries growing from a shaded bush. It is like the pines surrounding them as guardians. The taste is almost sickeningly sweet, but it’s tempered by a bitter undertone that lingers longer than the sugary flavor does. Shadow frowns, pulling back. It’s his saliva. It tastes like everything Sonic usually smells like. He covers his mouth with his paw. He glares at Sonic. The azure hedgehog chuckles, unaffected by the glare. “Don’t worry. It’s perfectly natural. It’s just something hedgehogs do. We lick stuff. Our bodies produce this foam that smells like whatever we licked. Maddie said hedgehogs usually rub it onto their quills. I asked her why, but apparently, humans don’t actually know. No one’s researched it since it doesn’t hurt hedgehogs. I usually eat the foam. You can spread it on me if you want to, though.”
Sonic offers his arm to Shadow. The ebony hedgehog glances at it. He leans down to layer the foam in his mouth onto Sonic’s forearm. He spreads the foam out with his tongue, trying to cover as much area as he can. When he finishes, he lifts his head to look into Sonic’s eyes. The azure hedgehog smiles at him. “So weird, right? But we gotta do it. Something about ‘staying healthy.’ Anyway, come on! I have a new place I want to show you!”
Sonic grabs Shadow’s paw, dragging him forward. Shadow huffs, rolling his eyes. He would have liked to talk a little bit more about the intricacies of this anointing thing, but he’s content to follow Sonic around. They’ll talk about it another time.