Chapter Text
Sonic awoke to the sound of his phone ringing. One glance at his bedside clock told him it was seven in the morning, which was far too early for anyone to be calling him, and his friends knew that.
Shadow was still asleep at his side, his mouth lightly parted with a thin trail of drool spilling from the corner of his lips onto the bedding below him. The fact that the sight of it flooded Sonic with relief just showed how deeply screwed up Shadow’s situation had been. Him drooling now meant he was finally hydrated enough to produce saliva again after who knows how long.
With a quiet groan, Sonic grabbed his phone to check the caller ID. He fully planned on ignoring it and going back to sleep if it wasn’t an emergency (or Rouge, because she promised to call him when she had more information on Shadow’s past human caretaker).
Amy Rose. Probably not an emergency (sorry, Ames), but in Sonic’s defense, she knew better than to expect Sonic to wake up before at least nine.
He ignored the call, setting his phone back onto the nightstand and letting it ring until it sent her to voicemail.
He shifted back onto his side, wrapping his arm around the little hedgehog protectively as he shut his eyes. He felt Shadow shift too, curling up closer to Sonic as if he was seeking his warmth, even in his sleep.
For a few quiet moments, Sonic drifted between not quite awake and not quite asleep. Distantly, he could hear a bird chirping in the trees beyond his window, and Shadow’s muted breaths, but the soft sounds weren’t enough to disturb him.
Then a sudden, loud banging made him jolt awake instantly.
His flinching woke Shadow too, and that with the combination of the banging noise startled the poor kid.
Sonic shot up in bed, ready to defend against whatever threat had found its way to his home, until the banging suddenly stopped, and his phone chimed with a text. He checked it, and groaned in frustration.
Amy Rose: Open this damn door before I knock it down.
“Sounded like you already fuckin’ did, Ames.” Sonic muttered to himself, his voice rough with sleep.
Sonic: cant hang out. busy
Amy Rose: I am 99% sure you forgot about our plans and were just gonna sleep all day
Plans? What plans?
Sonic frowned, struggling to get his tired braincells to form a coherent thought, but after a moment, he remembered.
Sonic: ah shit i forgot abt the picnic
Amy Rose: I noticed >:(
Sonic: top 30 reasons why sonic is sorry. number 5 will surprise you
Amy Rose: Idiot. Are you coming or not?
Sonic sucked in a breath through his teeth, looking down at the little hedgehog still lying on the bed.
He was staring up at Sonic, confused and scared. Sonic hadn’t gotten the chance to introduce Shadow to any of his friends beyond Rouge and Tails, so he couldn’t have known that the loud banging wasn’t actually a threat. It certainly didn’t help that Sonic had startled as well, instantly making the child believe that they were in danger.
Sonic stroked Shadow’s good ear soothingly. “Don’t worry, tiny, you’re safe.”
Shadow made a small ‘humph’ sound at getting woken up unnecessarily, and turned away from Sonic grumpily to go back to sleep.
“Gonna be moody today, aren’t you?” Sonic sighed. “Fabulous.”
Sonic: i cant sorry. im babysitting today
Sonic hadn’t told Amy or Knuckles about Shadow yet. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust them, he just didn’t want to overwhelm Shadow while he was still growing comfortable with his new (albeit temporary) home. He supposed he could have just texted them like he did with Vanilla, but they were two of his closest friends, and it felt wrong to just say ‘Oh, by the way, I stole a kid from the government so we can’t hang out for a while’ over a text.
It probably would have prevented this scenario, though. Sonic had completely forgotten that he’d made plans to hang out with Amy before breaking into that base with Rouge.
Amy Rose: Babysitting who?
Sonic hadn’t actually thought this far ahead. He probably should have just given them a heads up before.
Chewing on his lip in consideration, Sonic poked Shadow in the arm, waiting for the kid to turn to him.
Shadow let out a questioning grunt, refusing to acknowledge the poke, not even bothering to open his eye.
“Shadow, how would you feel about meeting one of my friends?”
The way Shadow immediately tensed was an answer in and of itself.
“She’s super nice.” Sonic said, poking Shadow in the arm again. The kid squirmed away from it, finally turning over to look at Sonic. “I bet you’d really like her, and I know she would love you.”
Shadow’s ears flattened, and he shook his head, fear clouding his gaze.
“I know you’re scared, little guy, but I promise she would never hurt you. You know I’d never let anyone hurt you, right?”
For just a brief moment, Shadow had this look in his eye, one that Sonic had only ever seen in a picture. A look that, as far as he knew, may have been reserved for one special human.
But that moment passed, and Shadow huffed in annoyance, back to being grumpy.
“How about we go talk to her for just a minute, and if you wanna go back to sleep right after, you can.”
Shadow’s ear twitched. Reluctantly, he pushed himself into a sitting position and lifted his arms.
Sonic grinned at the little hedgehog. He stood up and lifted Shadow, setting him on his hip before leaving his room. His phone chimed with another text from Amy, but he just left it on his nightstand.
By the time he made it to the front door, he was certain Amy was actually five seconds away from smashing the offending wood to bits. Sonic didn’t normally take so long to answer his door, but he didn’t want to run at his usual speeds with the kid in his arms. He wasn’t sure how Shadow would take it, and he didn’t want to give the kid a new reason to be afraid of him.
(It might have made him the slightest bit stir crazy, not getting the chance to go on his usual morning runs, but it was a sacrifice he was willing to make.)
When he opened the door, he positioned himself in a way that Amy would only see him through the crack.
Amy was standing in front of the door, one hand carrying a picnic basket, and her other hand resting on her hip. “It’s about ti-“
“Don’t freak out.” Sonic said, cutting Amy off. “I’m gonna show you why I can’t hang out today, and I need you to be really cool about it, okay? If you freak out, he’ll freak out, and he’s been through enough stress.”
Amy frowned in confusion, a hint of concern settling between the crease in her eye ridges, but she nodded. “Alright…?”
Sonic opened the door fully and took a step back, letting Amy see the child. He tucked himself close to Sonic’s side, his eye wide and frightened as he stared at Amy.
Amy’s eyes widened, her mouth falling open in shock as she took in the child’s appearance. “Oh, Chaos, he’s-”
“I know he looks-“
“-so adorable!”
Sonic’s mind blanked. “…Huh?”
But Amy wasn’t paying attention to him. She set her picnic basket down and stepped closer, bending down to Shadow’s eye level.
“You are just the cutest little thing!” Amy cooed, lifting her hand to stroke Shadow’s uninjured cheek with the backs of her fingers.
Shadow flinched slightly at the contact, but he didn’t move away, or zap anyone with his Chaos energy, which Sonic took as a win. He looked more confused than scared.
“I hope Sonic’s been taking good care of you! Oh, you’re so tiny.” She turned to Sonic. “Whose baby is this?”
Sonic chuckled nervously. “Yeah, so, um, about that. I may or may not have taken him from a GUN base.”
Amy froze, her smile fading fast. “What was GUN doing with-“ she eyed his injuries, and she gasped softly. “Did they do this?”
“They did.” Sonic confirmed. “They kept him locked up for years, and they were hurting him the whole time. They don’t know I have him, and I’ve been trying to help him, but there’s just… so much damage. They did horrible things to him, Ames.”
Amy clicked her tongue. “Poor thing. So he’s your baby, then?” She gave him a knowing smirk.
Sonic rolled his eyes. “Whatever you and Rouge keep implying, you’re wrong. I’m just taking care of him until I can figure something else out.”
“Uh-huh, sure.” Amy was still smirking, which Sonic did not appreciate in the slightest.
“And he’s not a baby. He’s seven, I think.”
Amy blinked, looking back at the kid. “What? How? He’s as small as Cheese!”
Sonic, still tired from being woken up too early, momentarily forgot that Cheese was the name of Cream’s chao, and was fully ready to accept that Amy was comparing Shadow’s size to a wheel of cheese. It wasn’t even wrong, if Sonic was being honest.
“The scientists weren’t really feeding him. I’ve been trying to fix that, but certain… physical disabilities have made it difficult.” At Amy’s head tilt, Sonic continued. “He doesn’t have a tongue.”
“Oh. Hmm. I guess I should’ve packed something a little less solid in my basket.”
“Wha- Amy, the picnic’s gonna have to happen some other time, I can’t leave Shadow alone-“
“So take him with you.” Amy said with a shrug. “I don’t mind. Besides, this little cutie could probably use some sunlight.”
Amy wasn’t wrong, Sonic supposed. He’d been reluctant to take the kid out of the house in case anyone saw him, but he and Tails lived pretty far away from most other people, especially humans. And the location Sonic and Amy had picked for their outing was fairly close to the house, so there was a very small chance they would even see anyone else anyway.
Sonic hummed, looking down at the kid in his arms. “What do you think, tiny? Wanna go out in the sun for a bit?”
Shadow’s ear flicked, and he tilted his head. He looked confused, but Sonic wasn’t sure what he’d said to cause it.
Did… did Shadow not know what the sun was?
Sonic froze. Shadow didn’t know what the sun was. Of course he wouldn’t. It’s not like those scientists had ever bothered to tell him anything, or let him out of his cage, or let him be a fucking person for a minute.
“Do you want to go out there?” Sonic asked, pointing beyond the doorway.
Shadow’s breath hitched, finally looking past Amy and out into the front yard. It had still been mostly dark out when Sonic brought Shadow home, and he’d kept the blinds on all his windows down, just in case someone happened to pass by. This was the first time Shadow was seeing the outside world in broad daylight.
He nodded, looking almost excited.
“Let me grab something for him to eat, then we can head out.” Sonic told Amy.
***
Shadow’s tail was wagging during the entire walk up the hill, whacking Sonic in the arm with the force of it. He couldn’t seem to find one thing to focus on, his eye rapidly darting from the grass, to the trees, to the clouds, to the sun.
“Careful, tiny, don’t stare straight at the sun.” Sonic warned when Shadow started squinting. “You’ll hurt yourself.”
Shadow looked away, blinking rapidly against the spots that formed in his vision. Sonic just sighed, shaking his head in exasperation. Amy giggled at them.
Once they reached the top of the hill, Amy pulled a blanket out of her basket and spread it out on the grass covered by the shade of a tree, then settled down on top of it with the basket.
Sonic set Shadow down on the blanket, slightly surprised that Shadow actually let him, before sitting next to him with his legs crossed over each other.
If Amy noticed the way Shadow’s legs twisted when he sat down, she didn’t mention it, but Sonic did notice her slight frown as she was pulling the food out of her basket.
Sonic gasped. “You made chili dogs?”
Amy snorted, handing the container to Sonic. “I always do.”
“I haven’t had the chance to go out for food in over a week. I’ve just been eating cereal and noodles.”
“You eat like a broke college student.” Amy scoffed, pulling out more containers of little sandwiches and pastries.
Sonic turned to Shadow, who had crawled to the edge of the blanket, and was currently tugging blades of grass out of the dirt. “You hungry, Shadow?”
Shadow nodded, abandoning his task to crawl closer to Sonic.
Amy pulled out the applesauce Sonic had grabbed and handed it to him.
“Thanks.” Sonic said, accepting the pouch. He opened it, then lifted Shadow into his lap. “Alright, tiny, you know the drill.”
Shadow opened his mouth and patiently waited for Sonic to squeeze some of the applesauce out of the pouch and onto his very short tongue. It was difficult due to the size of the pouch, but with Shadow’s head tipped back far enough, it was manageable.
Amy watched them silently, a mix of pity and anger in her gaze, but Sonic knew the anger wasn’t directed toward them. He could only imagine how much angrier she’d be if she knew as much as he did.
Sonic gave Shadow a slightly bigger portion than usual, hoping to slowly increase Shadow’s food intake over time without making him sick (or worse). Shadow didn’t seem to mind, eating everything he was given with only minor difficulty. He’d mostly gotten used to eating without a tongue, and hadn’t choked in days. Sonic had even managed to figure out some foods that Shadow did and didn’t like through trial and error.
Yogurt, applesauce, oatmeal and pudding were all received well (although Sonic worried about the sugar in pudding making Shadow sick, so that had become a very small once-a-day treat for him, which he enjoyed immensely). Sonic had thought about making him a fruit smoothie, but decided against it, as the loud noise from the blender probably would have terrified him.
Some other foods Rouge had brought for him had included an assortment of baby foods with various flavors. Shadow hated all of them, with a couple of them even making him gag. Sonic couldn’t tell if it was the flavor or texture he took issue with (he wasn’t even sure how much Shadow could still taste, but his immediate love of pudding must have meant he still had some functioning taste buds). He also grimaced at the taste of bone broth, but didn’t outright reject it. Still, Sonic hadn’t tried giving it to him again.
So far, other than pudding, applesauce seemed to be his favorite. Sonic wondered if it was because fruit was already familiar to him, so he was more comfortable eating that than any of the more savory foods he’d tried.
Sonic waited until Shadow was done with his breakfast before eating his own. Shadow almost immediately went back to playing with the grass when Sonic started munching on a chili dog.
“Who else knows about him?” Amy asked before taking a bite of a sandwich.
“Wough an Thailth.”
Amy rolled her eyes. “Maybe answer when your mouth isn’t full.”
Sonic finished his bite before speaking again. “Rouge and Tails. I told Vanilla too, but she hasn’t actually met Shadow.”
“Knuckles?”
“Doesn’t know. I haven’t really been telling people because I don’t wanna overwhelm the kid, so it’s just been me and Tails with him. It still scares him to be around people.”
A ladybug landed on the blanket next to Shadow’s paw. He watched as it crawled on him, holding his hand up for Sonic to see and giggling when the bug reached his arm.
“He seems calm now.” Amy commented.
“Yeah, he’s been doing a little better. Hasn’t let anyone else hold him yet, but he let Tails hug him before bed yesterday.”
“Aww. I bet Tails makes a good big brother.”
Sonic opened his mouth to once again argue that he hadn’t adopted Shadow, but found himself choking up for some inexplicable reason.
She wasn’t just implying that he’d adopted Shadow, but Tails as well. And in a way, he had, hadn’t he? It was never something they talked about, Sonic had always acted as more of an older brother in Tails’ life, but that was back when he was a young teenager himself.
Did… did Tails view Sonic as his father? Was that even something that the fox would want? He remembered Rouge teasing him about raising Tails back in the basement of that GUN base, but he hadn’t really thought too hard about it before.
Sonic loved Tails, and he knew that they were family, regardless of what their relationship was defined as. If Sonic was completely honest with himself… he didn’t hate the idea of calling Tails his son.
And part of him wouldn’t have minded it for Shadow either.
But that was a dangerous line of thinking, one that he couldn’t let himself get lost in. It would only make it that much harder to say goodbye to the little hedgehog when the time came.
The ladybug on Shadow’s arm flew away, and he watched it leave with fascination.
He crawled back to Sonic’s side as the blue hedgehog finished up his meal. Already knowing what Shadow wanted, Sonic raised his arm, letting the little hedgehog curl up against his side before wrapping his arm around his shoulders. He exhaled softly, his eye falling shut as he snuggled up next to Sonic.
Amy smiled at the sleepy hedgehog. “Cuddly little guy, isn’t he?”
Sonic snorted. “You have no idea. I think being left alone for so long made him clingier.”
“Left alone?”
“Oh, right, I forgot to tell you. The base Rouge and I found him in had been abandoned for a few months.”
Amy’s face fell as she looked at the little hedgehog. “He was alone for months? How could they-“ she cut herself off with a shake of her head, and her eyes filled with determination. “If GUN tries coming after him, you let me know, and I’ll be there to help you tear them down.”
Sonic chuckled slightly. “Thanks, Ames. Hopefully we’ll have a way to hide him permanently from GUN before that happens, though.”
His small smile faded quickly, and he frowned down at the blanket as he remembered that he’d have to start searching for someone capable of caring for the kid. Most of his friends were far too busy for a child, and he knew he couldn’t trust a stranger with Shadow. But what options did that leave him with? He couldn’t risk GUN figuring out Shadow’s location if he just disappeared on GUN’s radars as well.
…Unless he did just disappear. If both his and Shadow’s Chaos signatures were hidden from GUN, and they went into hiding, Sonic could continue to protect Shadow and give Shadow the chance to replenish his Chaos energy, which would be his best bet at healing.
But Sonic would have to leave everything behind, not even his friends could know where he was (he knew his friends would never betray him by helping GUN find him, but he knew how horrible they were, and didn’t doubt that they’d find a way to extract that information against their will). He would have to raise Shadow on the run, and that… wasn’t a life that Shadow deserved. Sonic himself knew what it was like to live without a roof over his head, or a guarantee that there’d be food for him and Tails. Shadow had suffered enough, he’d suffered far more than anyone ever should, he shouldn’t have to be raised in hiding because of Sonic’s selfish desire to keep the kid close.
Part of him almost wanted to just fight GUN head on, dare them to try and take this kid from him and make them regret the pain they caused. But if he failed, Shadow would either be locked away and experimented on again, or killed. It was too high of a risk, and Sonic didn’t have a backup plan if things went south.
Amy noticed his change in demeanor, and covered his hand with her own over the blanket. “I know you must be freaking out right now-“
Sonic scoffed, though it sounded weak. “I am not-“
“Sonic, I know you. You can’t help but worry about others.” She smiled softly. “But I can tell you’re doing a great job. He seems really happy with you.”
Sonic’s throat tightened, and pressure built behind his eyes. He looked away, willing himself not to cry.
Squeezing his hand gently, she said, “You’re a good dad, even if you can’t believe it.”
That was what broke him.
He failed to choke back a sob as the first tear fell down his cheek. Amy’s arms found their way around Sonic’s neck, and he wrapped his free arm around her back.
“I don’t know what to do.” He sobbed against her shoulder, his tears wetting her dress. “I- I can’t keep him, Amy. He can’t heal without his Chaos energy, b-but we can’t hide his energy if he’s with me.”
He felt Shadow shift at his side, woken up by his crying. It only made him feel worse.
“I don’t wanna lose him.” Sonic whispered, his voice filled with desperation and anguish. He knew his misery was his own fault, getting attached to a kid he couldn’t care for, but it still hurt.
Amy held him tighter. “You won’t. We won’t let that happen.”
“But he can’t stay with me-“
“Then I’ll take care of him.”
“You-“ Sonic gasped, pulling back to look Amy in the eyes. “Y- you would do that?”
Amy raised an eye ridge. “What, you thought I was just gonna let you deal with all of this alone? You’re my best friend, Sonic, I’m here for you no matter what, remember? Besides, I don’t want this little guy ending up with GUN again, either. If he needs someone to protect him, and that someone can’t be you, then I’ll do everything in my power to help.”
Sonic’s tears continued to flow, only now they were tears of pure relief. He wasn’t losing Shadow, not completely. He could get his Chaos energy back, and maybe, hopefully, it would be enough for him to recover.
Sonic pulled Amy closer, hugging her as tightly as he could. “Thank you.”
Amy hugged him back, giggling. “It’s no problem. I wouldn’t mind a roommate as adorable as him!”
When they finally parted, Sonic looked down and saw Shadow staring up at him with the same concerned look he’d had a few days ago.
He nudged his head into Sonic’s arm. “Boo?”
Sonic lifted Shadow into his lap, ignoring the squealing noise Amy made. “I’m alright, tiny.”
Shadow lifted a little paw up to Sonic’s face and began wiping at Sonic’s muzzle (and nearly poked him in the eye with a very tiny finger). Sonic blinked in confusion before realizing that Shadow was trying to wipe his tears away, the same way he did for Shadow when he woke up crying after a nightmare.
He started laughing, and let the little hedgehog attempt to dry his tears. “Thanks, Shads.”
Shadow gave him a funny look, and Sonic paused. He genuinely had no idea where the nickname came from, it just slipped out. Shadow didn’t seem bothered by it, though, and continued wiping at the wet fur of Sonic’s cheeks.
Once he was finished, he settled down sideways across Sonic’s lap, lying against his chest and watching as Amy opened up a container with whatever pastries and desserts she’d made.
“Can he eat anything solid?” Amy asked.
“I don’t think so, why?”
“I wanted to bribe him into liking me with something sweet.”
Sonic cackled. “It’d probably work, too. He’s obsessed with pudding right now.”
Shadow’s head shot up at the mention of pudding, and he gave Sonic his best puppy eyes- well, eye.
“Ah, sorry kiddo, I didn’t bring any pudding.”
It baffled Sonic how easily Shadow could express himself so clearly through body language alone, and Shadow made his disappointment in Sonic very clear as he turned away with a huff, his ears flattened and tail tucked between his legs. Judging by the borderline wounded sound that Amy made, Shadow was also pouting.
“So dramatic.” Sonic teased.
One of the containers Amy brought held a couple slices of strawberry cake, and she swiped some frosting off the top of one slice with the end of her fork, then held it up for Sonic to see. “Could he try some?”
Sonic hummed in consideration. He poked Shadow’s shoulder to get his attention. “You wanna try some frosting, Shadow?”
Shadow finally turned back to him, his eye ridges furrowed. Amy let him inspect the small amount of frosting on her fork before he looked up at Sonic and nodded, his attempted guilt trip all but forgotten.
“Will you let Amy feed you?” Sonic asked.
Shadow hesitated, but after Amy gave him a reassuring smile, he shifted closer to her, opening his mouth.
It was Amy’s turn to hesitate. “Um, how do you…?”
Sonic briefly explained how to feed Shadow without choking him, and Amy very carefully fed Shadow the small amount of frosting on her fork.
Shadow closed his mouth, his head tilting as he tasted the frosting. His eye widened when he realized how sweet it was, and he made a quiet noise, looking at Amy expectantly.
Sonic chuckled. “I think he likes it.”
Shadow whined and pointed at the fork.
“Can he have more?” Amy asked.
“One more bite. Hear that, tiny?” Sonic said, already knowing that Shadow would beg for a third, and Amy wouldn’t have the will to deny him.
Shadow nodded, like the little liar he was.
Just as Sonic suspected, two bites turned into three before Shadow was curled up against his side once more, this time sitting between him and Amy. He was almost touching the pink hedgehog, and didn’t seem the least bit worried about it.
Successfully bribed, Sonic thought with amusement.
Shadow ended up sleeping during the rest of the picnic, so Sonic and Amy took the time to catch up on everything they’d gotten up to recently while they ate their desserts.
When it was time to head back home, Shadow only woke up long enough for Sonic to pick him up, then immediately fell asleep again, leaning his head against Sonic’s shoulder.
“Keep me updated on the kid, alright?” Amy said as they walked down the hill.
“I will. And… thanks for this. I’ve been so worried about Shadow that I haven’t gotten the chance to leave the house since I brought him home.”
“I’d be happy to watch him for you if you need a break. Worst case scenario, he’s gonna need to get used to me taking care of him anyway.”
Sonic sighed. “I know, I just… I don’t like being away from him.”
Amy gave him a sympathetic smile. “Sounds like Shadow isn’t the only clingy one.”
Sonic felt his muzzle heat with embarrassment.
***
Once they were back at the house, Sonic brought Shadow to his room and set the sleeping hedgehog in his little nest. He covered Shadow with the loose blankets, earning a soft squeak of contentment.
Sonic grabbed his phone off the nightstand, intending to take a picture of Shadow and send it to Amy, but paused when he noticed that he’d missed both a call and a text from Rouge. He checked the text, and his heart stuttered.
Rouge: What GUN did is worse than we thought. Call me immediately