A few days had passed since (Y/N) had joined the Jackal Squad and Team Eggman. The others had grown accustom to her over-the-top personality, and Eggman did his best to tolerate her as well. But whenever the girl was around Infinite, she would go silent and lower her head. The others thought nothing of it at first, thinking it was just nerves now that she had worked with him, but it was starting to get to everyone else as well.

They were all currently on another surveillance mission, Eggman having forced the two to pair up again for training and to 'sort out whatever quarrel you're both having'. Infinite didn't want to, but he knew he had to suck it up and be mature, as the leader of the squad, it was his duty to make sure everyone was able to focus, including himself.

Both the jackals ran through the city, climbing buildings and checking the perimeter; when they were sure there were no signs of any spies, they went on to the next area. The leader had been trying to find the right time to talk about their issue, (Y/N)'s annoying bubbliness, but he had been too occupied with the mission. However he had noticed throughout their job that the girl seemed down, there was a depressing vibe around them, and her passive body language was starting to get to hm.

Finally, when they were checking the final area, he glanced back at the other. Noticing the girl's ears were pinned back, as if afraid, he let out a sigh;

"Why are you like this?" He asked, the question snappy and sudden.

The girl jumped when he spoke, slowly lifting her head she tilted it, "What do you mean?" Her tone had an edge to it, sounding defensive.

"You're always so... Happy." He said, leaning a hand on his hip, "So bubbly and full of energy, you're aware this sort of job is supposed to be taken seriously yes? You need to calm down. We're getting ready for a war."

The girl huffed, crossing her arms over her chest, "I am calm. I was calm today wasn't I?"

"Yes..."

"And yesterday on the mission, I was as silent as a ghost."

"Correct..."

"So tell me, why can't I be a little bouncy when I'm not on a mission?" The question was like a bullet, being shot right at the jackal with no warning. She dared talk to her leader this way?

Though he couldn't be mad. She had a point. She was very vigilant on their missions.

"I just want to know why you are so antsy." He stated, also crossing his arms in defence.

"Because..." The girl hesitated, holding her arms behind her back as she turned her gaze away, her eyes searched the horizon, as if looking for a target, a goal, the sun shining off her (e/c) irises gave a sort of charm to the girl.

"Because?"

"Because I've been wanting to do this for so long. I've wanted to fight against the good for so long, and now I can. I'm... Excited to finally be here..." Her voice quietened and she lowered her head, "I know villains are mean, but I thought being on a team would be different. I've been told to act like I'm not excited and that doesn't feel... Fair."

"Well, I guess you were expecting wrong." Infinite shrugged, "Being so giddy is a distraction, but so is moping around."

"Then what do you expect me to do? Behave like a robot? I thought being in the Jackal Squad would be like being in a family again, but their leader is an asshole and whenever I'm around him I feel even more isolated than I did before I joined." The girl sent a glare his way, and he raised his nose. Did she really just have the guts to call him such a thing? Did she really have the guts to talk back to her leader this way?

"You're new to the group, we're definitely not family." He said with a growl. It took more than just joining the squad to be a part of the family.

But the girl stood there now, staring at him. She looked hurt, and when her bottom lip started to tremble, she turned her back to him. Infinite tilted his head, wondering why the girl was suddenly so emotional over such a trivial thing.

"Fine." The girl finally muttered, before turning back to face him, "Be that way."

And for once, Infinite felt... Bad. The look she was giving him, the hatred that swarm in her eyes. He couldn't help but feel guilty. He didn't know why, he didn't know what was coming over him, but for some reason, he realised he was being rather hard on the newbie. She had already shown she was an excellent asset to the clan.

He took a deep breath in, trying to clear his head and figure out this problem. Since their mission was done, he didn't have to worry about any timeframes, they could take as long as they need.

But as he stood there, something she had said came back to him.

"What do you mean by being in a family again?" He asked, unable to keep his voice from being quiet. This felt like a personal question, but being her leader, Infinite felt he should know.

"Oh, you picked up on that...?" The girl blinked, before crossing her arms and looking away, "Guess I have to tell you huh?"

"I am your leader, it would be best if I knew." He said, "Maybe we could figure out a... Compromise."

(Y/N) turned to him, her features perplexed. He was just snapping at her, telling her she wasn't a part of the family, telling her to stop being herself. Now he's... Considering? He watched her intently, waiting for her to answer his question, raising a brow her way.

The girl felt her cheeks warm slightly, and she held her arm in defence,

"It's the reason I want to fight the good guys..." She started, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath, "Because Sonic killed my parents."

~~~~~

The city was under attack, rockets and missiles were being blasted everywhere, explosions made it hard for the slightly younger (a/t) to stand up straight. Every time she got to her feet, another ball of fire would rise from somewhere, the ground would shake, and she would fall. The building she was in was currently alight, flames licking the walls and eating at the carpet. Threatening to swallow the girl whole.

She looked around, (e/c) eyes wide in terror as the heat from the flames singed her fur. She covered her head, curling up into a ball and letting stifled sobs out. Where was Sonic the Hedgehog? Why wasn't he saving her? Would he save her? He saved everyone else...

The sound of thumping sounded on the door, somehow heard over the crackling of fire; and the girl lifted her head. Someone was coming to help?

"(Y/N)!" A masculine voice yelled from outside the room, it was her father, "(Y/N)! Are you in there?!"

"Y-Yes!" The girl cried out, cringing away as the blaze got closer, "Dad, help!"

The thumping continued, and finally the door gave way, splintering across the ground and feeding the hungry flames. A tall, dark jackal stood in the doorway, a cloth covering his muzzle and a hand shielding his eyes as he peered into the room. The girl raised her hand, and her father spotted her, jumping across the fire and landing next to his daughter. She was coughing, shaking; the girl couldn't stand.

"Come on." He said, before handing the cloth to her, "Your mother is watching your sister, they're safe and outside."

(Y/N) nodded slowly, leaning heavily on her father's side as she held the cloth to her mouth. Was this the only sort of filtration he had managed to get? And why was he the only one here? Where were the fire crew, where was Sonic?

The two stumbled through the flames, feeling them reaching for their bodies, burning their fur. The heat had them both sweating as they tripped into the hallway; one end was engulfed, the other lead to a set of stairs down into the entrance of the building. A large window sat at the top of the staircase, and when (Y/N) glanced out, she saw her mother and younger sister sitting huddled together on the sidewalk.

The rest of the street was on fire, a building having collapsed in the distance. Others had broken windows and rubble falling from the side, holes in the walls everywhere. Other Mobians were running around, trying to find a safe place to hide, but no one was helping (Y/N)'s mother and sister. She felt a spike of rage as her father ushered her down the stairs, why is no one helping them? Her sister was too young for this, she must be terrified. Especially with all the explosions going off around them. A flash of a robot through the decayed buildings then sprung fear through the jackal's heart. Eggman was on the attack again? They had only just recovered from his last attack.

A bright blue blur ran through the street, hitting a missile into an empty building, before disappearing once again, and the girl felt a pang of devastation.

'Sonic! Over here!' She yelled in her mind, too busy choking on the smoke to call out to him. Not that he would hear, the girl was gone.

The two reached the bottom floor of the building, it was practically stripped clean, the foundations were about to give way, and (Y/N) saw the building start to tilt. The flames had finally done their job, the building was about to collapse. The two stopped as they looked up in horror, the girl's father holding her close, protectively. Which way would the building fall?

They waited, before the air left (Y/N)'s lungs, and tears filled her eyes. The building started falling towards the street. The girl's father gasped, before pushing her back and running the length of it, towards her mother and sister.

"Dad!" The girl cried, watching in disbelief as her father attempted to get to them in time.

He wasn't as fast as the Hero of Mobius, however; and (Y/N) turned her head away as the building crashed into the ground with a loud 'BOOM'. She dropped the rag, staring at the ash-covered ground as a billow of dust surrounded her. Her eyes were wide, and her body shook; had what just happened... Really happened?

The dust slowly cleared away, having suffocated the fire in the process, and the girl was now sitting next to the destruction of a building. Large pieces of rubble were everywhere. There was no one else in the area.

The girl only stared at the mess in front of her, before her jaw dropped, and a strangled scream left her lungs. Tears streamed down her eyes, and she got to her feet, running over to the carnage, pulling at stone, cement, metal bars; she had to get to her family, she had to save them.

An explosion went off down the street and the girl fell over, wailing into the debris. Sonic had been right there. Sonic could have moved her mother and her sister to safety. It wouldn't have taken him long to do that.

"Hey, are you alright?" That was not the voice she wanted to hear right now.

The jackal raised her gaze slowly, taking in the blue blur that stood next to her; she blinked her teary vision away, before sending a glare at the hero.

"Get away!" She yelled, throwing her body and a piece of rubble his way.

The hedgehog dodged, before holding up his hands, "Hey, hey easy! I just want to make sure no one is hurt. Are you hurt?"

She glared at him still, but the tears came back and she collapsed onto the mess. The hedgehog was by her side instantly,

"Whoa there, just sit down, relax. The fight is over now." He said, putting an arm around her.

The girl growled and, not really controlling herself, swung an elbow into his side. The complete ignorance of what he did only fuelled her rage.

"How could you call yourself a hero...?" She asked as the hedgehog buckled, letting out a gasp, "When you murder people..."

Sonic raised his green gaze, his eyes wide in realisation as he looked back at the building, "There were people...?"

"You're a murderer!" The girl screamed at him, before jumping to her feet, "And you'll rue the day you became one!"

~~~~~

"It was his fault they died..." (Y/N) let out a sigh, sitting back on top of the building with Infinite. She glanced down at an empty space, a place that had once been her father's business, but was now reduced to collecting trash, "He's the fastest thing alive, why couldn't he spare a second to move my family out of the way...?"

Infinite stood next to her, also looking down at the gap between the other two buildings. He had always felt something here was missing, and now he knew why. Everything made sense, her love for destruction, her ambitions to defeat Sonic in battle. He assumed the bubbliness was a mask, to hide her suffering and fool anyone that thought otherwise.

Finally, he turned to the girl, tilting his head down at her and arms crossed over his chest, "So, you told the famous Hero of Mobius he's rue the day he murdered your family?"

"More or less." She shrugged, "But... I haven't had the chance to get my revenge... Until now."

"I see..." He said, before taking a seat next to her, "Well, I apologise for your loss; but we can help you get your revenge. Now that I know your story. We'll work towards it together, as a team and..."

He stopped for a moment, and (Y/N) lifted her (e/c) eyes to meet his, "We'll do it as a family."

The girl blinked, tears quickly forming in her eyes as she lowered her head and gave a strangled laugh, sniffing slightly.

"That would be cool... Thank you Infinite." She raised her head and gave him a smile, the tears streaming down her muzzle.

"You're a part of the Jackal Squad, it's no problem." He said, before standing and holding out his hand, "Teammates?"

"Teammates." The girl smiled and took it, before climbing to her feet, "Should we head back? It's getting kind of late."

"Yes, the others will be worried." Infinite nodded, before waving his hand, "After you (Y/N)."

She giggled a little, before giving him the thumbs up and wiping her face. Taking a deep breath, the girl ran towards the edge of the building, and jumped over the gap.