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Clouds blew past the edge of Angel Island. It was quiet. Sonic supposed it could have been nice if it weren’t so lonely. A nice breeze and a sunny spot we’re perfect conditions for a classic nap spot, but the lack of friends weighed heavy against the quiet. No matter how comfortable he got, Sonic’s mind would not rest.
Knuckles had left Sonic to guard the island for a few days while he tried to get clarity on his own next steps. Amy had taken off almost as soon as the group returned, barely standing still long enough to say goodbye. And Tails…
Well, Tails had grown up and decided to venture out on his own adventure. Sonic made him promise to check in every few days, but Tails didn’t need Sonic to protect him anymore and Sonic was trying to respect his growth. Sonic honestly couldn’t be more proud of his little buddy.
But now that Sonic sat alone, babysitting the Master Emerald, the world seemed too calm. Too quiet. Too lonely.
The natural inhabitants of Angel Island were cute, ordinary animals incapable of conversation. Sonic had to wonder how Knuckles was able to handle the isolation without cracking. At the very least, he could understand why that Knucklehead would need an adventure of his own.
~~~~~~~ Time Skip~~~~~~~~
A cold breeze swept through Green Hill.
The temperature change came with slight discomfort for a certain blue hedgehog. Knuckles had returned from his trip and released Sonic from guardian duties. The red echidna returned with a more confident aura. During his trip, Knuckles had run into Silver and had managed to rope him into guarding the emerald for the duration of his next trip. It wasn’t long until Knuckles took off again.
Sonic was certainly happy to not be stuck on the floating island for the next turn of substitute guardian duties, but the echidna only stuck around for a few days which left Sonic alone again.
Amy wasn’t due to return for at least 5 months, but she had sent multiple updates about her trip. Turns out, Cream and Sticks were great travel companions. The three of them were traveling as far and wide as the four corners of Mobius. Sonic was happy that Amy was enjoying her trip. Still, the separation was unusual for them.
And Tails. Sonic couldn’t be more proud of his ‘partner’, as he had taken to calling him. That didn’t mean Sonic wasn’t worried. If the fox didn’t reach out within the course of a week, Sonic would send a message to check in. Usually the fox answered with a phone call.
Tails had taken up restoration work from the era of Dr. Eggman’s worst years. The work was scheduled to finish in the new year, which led to Sonic’s current realization.
It was the first year since his early freedom fighter involvements that Sonic was spending the holidays alone.
Vanilla was taking off to visit Cream, Rouge and Shadow were off on a mission for GUN, and Silver was guarding the master emerald in the future time space.
Sonic could only think of one place to go for the holidays and it wasn’t certain that he would be fully welcome there.
Sonia would certainly chew him out for taking multiple years to return to the castle. Manic would probably be chill as long as Sonic brings a new hover board as a gift. Mother… Sonic really didn’t know how she would react. They didn’t get to spend much time together before Sonic went off chasing Dr. Eggman and other potential threats.
Yet, as he starred at the silver medallion, Sonic made up his mind.
Time to go home for the holidays.