Chapter Text
It was dark and scary outside. The night was loud with explosions bursting in bright flashes over their heads. They ran through the palm trees, trying to get away from the danger around them. Eggman and his robots were attacking the small sleepy village where they lived.
The two hoglets were too terrified to cry. The younger one had her tiny hands clenched tightly in dark blue colored quills. A small pink lovey was tucked in her darker colored arms.
The older of the hoglets carried the younger as fast as he could go into the dark of the forest. They had to get away from the fight. Their parents told them to head for the secret meeting place where their grandparents and aunt were waiting for them.
The older stumbled and panted as he hoisted the younger higher into his arms which were straining under her weight.
Another bright flash with a loud BOOOOOMMMMM! Lit up the night sky. The older hoglet gasped and looked back at the fiery light behind them.
The younger hoglet tucked her face into her brother’s shoulder. “Daaaa!” She whimpered.
It was so loud and scary and she was not asleep like she should be. She wasn’t safe in her crib with her parents down the hall. She clutched her toy tighter and hung on to her big brother.
“Shhhh. Almost there, Ebony. Give me a little bit. I’m not fast like Dad.” Cobalt huffed as he switched what arm was carrying his sister.
He had no super fast speed like his dad. He had no chaos powers like his papa. He was useless. What good could he do to fight when he inherited nothing from his parents? He couldn’t do anything. All he could do was take his sister and run away. He wanted to fight. He wanted to be a hero like his parents. Was that too much to ask?
A loud beep caught his attention. Eggbots. Cobalt halted in place. His ears swiveled trying to locate the sound. It was… nearly on top of them.
“Crap!” Cobalt ran as fast as he could with Ebony to the place where he was supposed to meet his uncle and aunt. It wasn’t all that fast.
Frustrated tears stung his eyes as he tripped over a root. He clutched Ebony to his chest as a large eggbot loomed over them.
“Targets located. All units to sector G3-9-” The bot droned on but Cobalt didn’t listen.
Cobalt felt his heart in his throat. They were after them? Where were his parents? Uncle Tails? Aunt Amy? Anyone? Even Uncle Knux would be appreciated right now.
Cobalt tucked Ebony tighter to him. “Don’t come any closer or I’ll-”
“Threats are useless. Based on universal knowledge, you, Cobalt the Hedgehog have no powers and are therefore just as useless as threats.” The bot clicked its claws at him. The marching feet of more eggbots was getting closer.
That stung. Cobalt tried to hide the tears. He tried to summon a wisecracking attitude like his dad but it fell just as fast. Pain stabbed in his chest. All the taunts from his peers, the worried voices from adults, the jeers from bullies that he wasn’t the son of Sonic the Hedgehog. How could he be? He had no powers. It all filled his head like he was standing in a crowd listening to it all at once.
Now, facing a vicious eggbot with his baby sister in danger, he felt like what everyone was saying was true. He was no son of the greatest hero to ever roam this planet. He… He was…
“Co.” Ebony stared up at him with trust in her green eyes. So like their dad’s own emerald sets.
The eggbot lowered its gun at the two hoglets. The weapon’s end started to light up with a bright light. More eggbots were getting closer. Any moment now they would be surrounded with no way out.
Cobalt set his jaw. He would not let them be captured. He stood up with Ebony in his arms. He felt something wild surging in his veins. He pulled deep on it. No one was going to hurt his family. He would stop Eggman and his bots once and for all.
A phrase his Papa said a lot when he used his powers came to his mind.
“Chaos Controll!” Cobalt shouted as loud as he could. A bight flash surrounded him and Cobalt hung tight to his sister as he got swept away in the wild tide of power. He wished that eggbot would die.
All that remained was a blast ring that decimated the bot before them and a couple of torn pieces of fabric.
A frantic blue blur shot into the clearing a little too late. “No.” Sonic gasped. Bots were removing their smoking guns from the center of the blast zone. His children were… gone.
Sonic collapsed to his knees. “Cobalt! Ebony!” He shouted loudly. He zipped to his feet and desperately circled the smoking ring in hopes his children evaded the attack.
When the smoke cleared he dashed to the center only to see a smoking scrap of Cobalt’s black gloves and an ash edged patch he had just sewn onto Ebony’s blanket.
“SHADOW!!!!” Sonic’s heart broke. His babies… were gone.
“Targets eliminated. Heading back to base.” The eggbots flew off leaving a devastated blue hedgehog behind.
SONIC THE HEDGEHOG
Cobalt groaned as his body hit the dirt. He curled himself around Ebony and held tight as they rolled. “Ugh.” He moaned. It felt like he broke every bone in his body and then was patched up only to pull every muscle instead.
Dazed red eyes stared up at the blue sky and swaying palm trees above him. A soft breeze was blowing and the murmurs of people in the distance made his head hurt. Hold on. Hadn’t it been night? And eggbots everywhere? Why was it day? Why were there people about? Where were they?
Cobalt jerked up and looked around. They were in Green Hills but not the Green Hills he knew. The Green Hills he had left was starting it’s colder months. Here it was warmer, the palm trees were lush, the grass was long and dotted with flowers that only grew in the spring and the most obvious thing…. the buildings in the distance didn’t look like they should. Cobalt could see the grocery store except it wasn’t the Marvin’s he knew. Instead it was some fabric store.
What happened? What did he do?
Cobalt got to his shaky feet. Whatever place they were in, they needed help. And only one being in this entire planet gave them help with no questions asked. He shifted Ebony to his other side. “Come on Ebony. Let’s find help.”
*****
Sonic was on a Highly Important search. Shadow had been absent for a whole week and he was curious about what the other was getting up to. He knew he wasn’t on a mission because of Rouge who was probably pretty busy with Knuckles right now.
That was an image he would love to scrub from his brain. The bat and the echidna getting a little frisky was not a picture he liked to see.
Sonic shuddered at the thought and sped around a large rock into a large clearing. Now where was his rival hiding? He had to be here somewhere. Sonic could use a good spar.
Sonic nearly tripped and fell on his face. Something was wrong. Sonic’s head jerked to where the town laid.
What was Eggman up to?
Something skittered across his senses. Sonic gasped for breath. Something wasn’t right. This couldn’t possibly be that old egghead. This was… Sonic tuned in a little closer to the power inside him. That was familiar. Why was it so familiar yet not? Was Shadow in trouble? Why was there this sense that something big just happened?
Sonic swung around and headed back to town. Something was wrong. Every sense he had said it. He needed to find out what. And save the world again. Like usual.
His communicator beeped shortly after he turned around and headed back. Knowing it couldn’t possibly be good news, he answered it with a little trepidation.
“Hello?” Sonic was taken back by the frazzled look Tails was sporting. A baby’s wails came from the other end of the line. “Tails? Is that a baby? What are you doing with a baby?” Sonic gasped and gave a smirk. “Is there something you aren’t telling me? A lovely vix-”
“Sonic!” Tails snapped in a rare show of exasperated frustration. “You need to get home. Now.”
Sonic had never seen the younger fox to be this stressed out. He poured on the speed. “I’ll be there in a few minutes.” He hit the end button and frowned deeply. Something was about to change radically. Now was it for the good or worse?
*****
Cobalt felt a little bad as he watched Uncle Tails try to unsuccessfully calm Ebony who finally had enough. He noted her blanket was torn again and winced when her screams got louder.
She loved that thing. It was partly a stuffed toy and partly a blanket. The middle had a stuffed white rabbit with yellow and pink flowers around it’s ears and the blanket part was a soft pink with a yellow and white flower border. The tear was on a corner. Their dad had patched it carefully the night before everything that happened. The patch was now gone and Ebony was having a fit.
Ebony wailed and cried and Cobalt tried his best to help but he ended up just laying in Uncle Tails’ old black futon barely able to move. Whatever he did really took a lot out of him.
His eyes drifted shut but snapped open when the familiar sounds of his dad approaching made him smile. Dad will fix everything and…
Ebony’s cries took on a sharper shrill when she spotted their dad coming into the garage. “Daaaaaa!!” She sobbed. Her little hands reached for him as tears rolled down her chubby cheeks and matted her peach colored fur around her face.
Cobalt watched with confusion as their dad didn’t rush to take her like he usually did. He sat up a little with his chest aching. “Uncle Tails what is going on?”
“Dad?” Dad looked down at Ebony with shock. “Does she think I’m her dad? Why would she think that? I’m not her-”
“Is there something you want to tell me Sonic?” Uncle Tails shifted Ebony to his other hip. His ears were nearly flat to his head and his two yellow and cream tails were flicking at their tips like he was mad.
Cobalt had seen his Uncle Tails mad exactly once and he secretly vowed never again. Uncle Tails was scary when he was mad.
“Very funny.” Dad sniped. He folded his arms and tapped his foot quickly. “I have no clue who this hoglet is but…”
Cobalt knew he made a huge mistake with whatever he did. He had to fix it. For some reason, Dad didn’t remember them. Did that mean… No. Time travel was not possible. It was something made up like on Aunt Rouge’s shows. But… this was all looking way to familiar to him. It was like a scene right out of Aunt Rouge’s tv screen.
What did he do? Were his parents even together? Was this even their world? Cobalt felt tears rising up. He was only ten! He didn’t know how to handle all of this. He wanted… his Papa. Papa would make it all better.
Cobalt wheezed as he finally got to his feet. “I can explain.” He took one step forward only to sink to one knee.
Familiar blue arms caught him around the waist and steadied him. They were so familiar that Cobalt almost hid in them like he used to do as a baby. Almost. Because his dad’s arms went away as quickly as they went around him.
Cobalt bit his lip and straightened up. He stood tall like his Papa did and cleared his throat. “I’m Cobalt the Hedgehog and that’s my little sister Ebony. I think we are from your future and we are in trouble.”
At that moment, Ebony had enough of being ignored by their dad. She took one deep breath and screamed as loud as she could. “Daaaaadddddd!!!”
All ears went flat to their heads at her sheer volume. Cobalt gasped and grabbed handfuls of his quills in pain. His head hurts!
“Sonic! Just hold her!” Uncle Tails handed Ebony to their dad. Uncle Tails stepped back slowly.
Cobalt watched as his younger dad awkwardly patted Ebony’s back. It was too fast and not soothing enough. “Dad.” Cobalt stumbled forward. He felt like he was going to be sick.
Cobalt’s dad seemed to flinch. “Call me Sonic, kid. I’m not…”
He trailed off and stared at Cobalt. Cobalt shifted from foot to foot. It was hard to meet his dad’s gaze. Like the time Cobalt had hid a broken device from Uncle Tails and his parents. Dad somehow knew and stared at him very much like this.
“Who’s your mother?” Dad sounded panicked.
Cobalt shook his head slowly. “We don’t have a mother.”
Dad seemed to relax. “Oh. Is she-”
“We have Papa and we have you, Dad.” Cobalt watched as his dad sank to the floor. “Are you okay Dad?”
“How? I mean if we are both- Then… How?” Dad seemed to stumble over his words.
Cobalt felt his muzzle get hot and he ducked his head. He had the same questions but… “Papa forbid me from asking and anyone from telling. After that time where Aunt Rouge drank a lot of grownup juice and started doing something with Uncle Knux, Papa made a rule that no one would drink grownup juice around us anymore.”
“And who is your Papa?” Uncle Tails asked like that one time Dad was being silly and the answer was pretty plain to see.
Cobalt frowned. “Um… Papa?”
“Yeah but… what’s his na-?”
“Tails!” Dad squeaked. “That’s enough.”
Cobalt was confused before an idea hit. “Oh! Papa is really tall and big. He has my eyes and Ebony’s quills color. He has these awesome red streaks in his quills. He let’s me take care of them.” Cobalt couldn’t help but brag. “He said I was better than Dad. He said Dad is too rough.” Cobalt turned to look when his Dad made a really high pitched squeak. “Papa named me and Dad named Ebony.”
Uncle Tails had a funny face. Like he was about to break out into laughter. “Cobalt? Is your Papa named-”
Dad cleared his throat really loud. “Tails. We are not talking about this.”
“Well, now. This is an interesting sight.”
Cobalt swiveled his ears to catch the noise of someone entering the garage. He breathed a sigh of relief at who it was. Finally, someone would believe them. Aunt Rouge was the best.
*****
Sonic spun carefully holding the small dark looking hoglet in his arms. She had calmed down and was now holding a fistful of his blue quills in her hand. Sonic winced at her grip.
“Rouge?” Sonic blinked at the sight of the white bat.
“And me.” Knuckles stepped up behind his girlfriend. “I felt a flux of Chaos energy and since we knew it wasn’t Shadow we decided to check it out.”
Sonic tried to grab Cobalt before he could be seen but the sneaky hoglet was already past him and flinging his arms around Rouge’s waist.
“Aunt Rouge! Please. You have to help us!” Cobalt turned his familiar watery red eyes up to Rouge.
Sonic stared with his jaw dropped. He shuffled Ebony in his arms. He didn’t know what to think about all this. Ebony obviously had his eye color and Cobalt had traits from him albeit a darker version. But their other… parent. Sonic gulped. Ebony’s dark quills and fur and Cobalt’s shockingly red eyes… Sonic couldn’t… He couldn’t…
“Breathe Hedgehog.” Knuckles patted his back. “No need for dramatics.”
Sonic gulped in a breath of air. “Knux? How…?”
“It seems your children are more powerful than they appear.” Knuckles waved his hand at the little hoglet in his arms.
Ebony giggled and caught his hand. “Nuk!” She leaned out of Sonic’s arms to the red echidna. “Nuk!”
Sonic quickly handed her off to Knuckles. He sank to his butt right there on the garage floor. His head was in his hands and he gripped handfuls of his quills. Okay. Sort out the facts.
Fact one. He had kids. Their traits and what they had said made it quite clear they were his. Not a trick. Fact two. They said they are from the future. How far? He didn’t know. Fact three. Sonic took a shaky breath. F-Fact Th-three. These kids were his and Ssss… Shaaaa… Nope.
Sonic couldn’t even think it. It was not true. These kids were probably confused and had a different nice lovely moth-
“Daddy. I don’t feel good.” Cobalt groaned. He then proceeded to spew up the remains of the seven hells all over Sonic’s lap.
Sonic was speechless. This kid just… all over his… and the worst part? Sonic couldn’t even get mad. The poor hoglet looked miserable as his red eyes filled with tears. A small sniffle and then the waterworks came.
“I’m sorry.” Cobalt cried. He rubbed his hands across his face smearing snot and who knows what else across his fur. “I’m so sorry.”
“Okay.” Tails spoke into the dead quiet. “Cobalt, lets get you cleaned up and lying down. I don’t know how you got here but it couldn’t have been fun. Sonic, the hose is out back and the shower is upstairs. Knuckles, Rouge, do you mind coming back in a few hours? I think you might want to contact Sha-”
Sonic tuned him out. Humming loudly as he got up. He grimaced and headed for the door leading to the outside. This was disgusting. It was clumping in his fur.
Cobalt was staring at him with misery all over his face. His eyes were redder than usual and he wouldn’t meet Sonic’s eyes.
Sonic carefully reached out and smoothed back some wayward quills. “It’s okay, Cobalt. I just need a shower and then I will be good as new. No worries.” Sonic patted his head softly and then headed for the outside and the hose. He groaned as he realized he would need a shower. Not a bath.
This was the absolute…
*****
Shadow nearly dropped his communicator into his kitchen sink when Rouge told him what had happened. Shadow had been sleeping when the influx of Chaos energy swept over those who were sensitive to it.
It had woken him up rudely from a good nap and dream. Shadow had been preparing to head out after a quick cup of coffee to investigate. Apparently his coffee wasn’t all that fast. He knew he could get a bit picky about his coffee and how it was prepared.
Shadow loosened his grip when he heard his communicator give a slight crunching noise. “Excuse me?” He repeated lowly. Was she pulling his leg in another joke? This was cruel joke if she was and he never dreamed Rouge could be this mean spirited.
Rouge sighed deeply. “I’m not messing with you hon. Your kids from the fut-”
Shadow tuned her out on accident as his mind spun. Okay. This was real. He had kids in the future? With who? He wouldn’t settle down with just anyone. They had to be special. They had to be able to keep up with-
Shadow swallowed harshly. No. There was no way.
Visions of smirking jovial green eyes filled his head. A snarky quip, a thrilling race, a fulfilling spar, a flash of blue and red in his periphery keeping perfect time with him. They were evenly matched as they practically soared over grass and sand alike.
Did Sonic really… No. He couldn’t go down that road. That road always led to heartbreak and suffering. He never had a good relationship with happiness.
“-dow!” Rouge let out an uncharacteristic huff. “Look. Go to Tails’ home and everything I’m saying will prove true.”
“Here you are ma’am. Have a nice day.” Another voice came across Rouge’s end of the line.
“What are you doing?” Shadow narrowed his eyes. “Are you… shopping?”
Rouge let out a soft noise. “Those kids arrived here with nothing. I’m sure Sonic has nothing in his house suitable for kids. They need… supplies while they are here.”
Shadow sighed deeply in exasperation and frustration. “Do not spoil those kids. They aren’t…”
He was ignored. As usual. No one listens to the always right black hedgehog.
“Look Knux! What about this for the little one?” Rouge laughed at something Knuckles said.
Shadow let out a snarl. He slammed his hand on the countertop. “Rouge! I said…” He trailed off and let the growl die in his throat.
“I think I might like being called Aunt.” Rouge had a sad wistfulness to her voice.
Shadow just couldn’t break his best friend’s heart like that. He knew there was a high possibility she could never have kids of her own. Late night chats revealed a lot about Rouge. Too many injuries from being a spy pretty much sealed that opportunity away from her.
He sighed and gave in. He scrubbed his hand over his face and jaw. “Two hours you said?”
Shadow barely waited for Rouge’s affirmation before he said he would be there. He clicked off the communicator with a huff. His head dropped to his chest. He braced himself on the edge of the counter with his hands.
Kids. He had kids with that annoying blue hedgehog. Shadow paced back and forth around his house. Deep down he had to admit it was something he desired and with the only other being on this planet that he even somewhat liked.
Sonic could keep up with him easily. He matched him in a lot of ways. Speed, skill, determined will… the only thing Shadow didn’t like was his lack of smarts. He grit his teeth and glowered at the wall. No. Having kids with the blue hedgehog was… Impossible. This entire thing was flipping impossible. Shadow growled and kicked at a chair. It flew away and hit the wall before crumbling.
Why did his chest ache? Why did he feel giddy and dread at the same time? Why did the thought of being with that annoying blue speedster make his stomach hurt? Why? Why? Why?
“This is impossible.” He whispered. “Impossible!” He shouted. “I feel nothing for that ridiculous hedgehog. He’s annoying, stupid, and… and…” Shadow couldn’t finish his insult. “I feel nothing.” He whispered.
(Really deep down, Shadow felt a small stirring at the thought of settling down with Sonic. The blue hedgehog was everything he wanted in a life partner.)
******
Cobalt didn’t know he was dreaming. Everything was fine. There was no attacks on his family. Dad and Papa were making breakfast. Any moment now, Papa would come wake him up and would offer to take him to school. Ebony would be safe downstairs with dad and…
Cobalt jerked as a cold wet slimy hand smacked his cheek. He cracked an eye open to glare at whoever dared to wake him up so rudely.
“Co?” Ebony’s eyes filled with tears. She crawled closer to him on the bed… that wasn’t his own. This wasn’t his room in the house he lived in with his parents back by the woods.
It all came rushing back to him. The desperate escape, the wild energy, coming here to where their parents didn’t know them or even were together, seeing Aunt Rouge be surprised and not reacting like usual. Uncle Tails was treating them like strangers.
Ebony sniffled and reached for him. Cobalt sighed and lifted the corner of the blanket. His little sister dove underneath the covers and cuddled up to his side. She clutched his fur in her tiny hands.
“Ouch. Ebony. Be careful of your claws.” Cobalt patted her hand until she loosened her grip.
“Da? Pa?” Ebony rubbed her snotty nose onto his shoulder.
Cobalt grimaced at the mess and pet her quills softly. “It’s okay, Ebony. We will be home soon. Just as soon as I learn to master this power in me. Hopefully Papa can help me. Then we can go home.”
Ebony whimpered as tears fell down her cheeks. Cobalt hushed her. He wrapped his arms around her. He got more tears into his shoulder as he did so. He huffed softly. He just had a bath too.
“Do you want Lola?” He flicked the ear of the rabbit toy that Nana Vanilla had made for her.
Ebony clutched the toy tighter to her body and buried her face in the blanket part. Her shoulders shook with every breath. All Cobalt could do was smooth her quills and try to hum the song that Papa hummed to them sometimes to sleep. He knew she had to be tired. It was past her bedtime when they started running and she still hadn’t slept hours later.
“No matter how your heart is grieving, if you keep on believing, the dream that you wish will come true.” Cobalt tried his best to sing the song. His voice was very much like his Dad’s (awful), but he made an attempt to lower his voice into something like Papa’s.
Ebony’s grip slackened as her breaths became slower and deeper.
Asleep. She was finally asleep. Now, he had to wiggle out of her grip without waking her. He froze. He was terrible at that though. What if he woke her back up? A yawn cracked through his muzzle. He was so tired. Maybe a few more moments of sleep wouldn’t hurt. It was after their bedtime after all.
Cobalt’s eyes slipped close as the memory of his Papa singing to him became a dream he desperately wanted to come true.
“The dream that you wish, will come true.”