So, the echidna was in on my little secret. It wouldn't change things much more in the immediate sense, but I wondered what kinds of... Advantages it may provide in the future.

I had opted to try to learn how to speak their names first; one, because I knew that adults tended to get excited when their little one said their name for the first time, and two because I could yell at them specifically if I so chose. However, seeing as Knuckles spent most afternoons with me, it had only seemed fair that he got the first opportunity... And he'd chosen to keep it secret or now. Why? Why did he want to keep that to himself?

I had noticed over the passing days that I was developing faster than a human child would have. Granted how long it took for humans to be full-grown vs the hedgehogs of this world, I assumed that somewhere in between was natural.

I was gaining more balance, I was figuring out how to get onto my hands and knees, and soon enough I would be crawling, able to navigate the household- more or less- as easily as the rest of the occupants.

The days came and went, and life went on as what I guessed was usual. It was the beginning of the weekend, and Tom and Maddie had both gotten off for the day. Clearly, they had some sort of outing planned, as Maddie was stuffing sandwiches and snacks into a box and Sonic was zipping around madly in the kitchen.

Knuckles sat on the floor with me, occasionally looking up as Sonic dashed about. "Slow down," He ordered, "You are going to knock something over, and Mother will be displeased..."

"Don't worry, it'll be fun!"
Sonic was off again, hollering to Tails if he'd seen some item of his.

I looked to Knuckles and managed to catch his gaze, trying to ask him what in the world was going on. The echidna's body was tense, his arms crossed in front of him in a defensive position, and his jaw was set. It looked like he was trying to put up a calm, solemn front, but under that, something was bothering him.
Knuckles sighed, lowering his voice to a whisper. "We are going on a trip, to visit the mother of our father."

A trip to Grandma's house... No wonder the speedy blue child was so excited; that seemed to be a common thing to make young mortals happy. But why would Knuckles be uncomfortable about that? Had he not ever been? Was he worried first introductions wouldn't go smoothly?

As Tails came hurrying down the steps with another bag slung over his shoulder, I saw he was just as tense and nervous. "D-Do you think she'll like me?" He asked, "I read a book-"

Tom bent down and ran his fingers through Tails' fur with a smile, "She likes everybody, Tails. You'll be fine." He looked over to Knuckles and seemed to get the same vibe from him as I was, "...Both of you."

Knuckles nodded, but the tension never left him. He scooped me up into his arms and we all started towards the truck, off on a new adventure with my temporary hosts...
_________________________________________________________________________________

The drive was only thirty minutes or so, but it was plenty enough time for Obsidian to zonk out in the middle seat of the truck. He was placed in the special car seat Tails had built for him, and was out like a light before they even hit the edge of Green Hills' town square.

Trips out to the Wachowski family farm hadn't been as frequent since Tom and Maddie had begun taking in alien kids. They took Sonic out a few times once he was comfortable in their home, but things had just been too hectic since Robotnik's second attack for them to properly take the whole family out to introduce Tails and Knuckles, and they hadn't even gotten a chance to mention Obsidian to Tom's mom yet.

Tom looked in the rearview mirror, seeing the older trio all seated in the back of the truck and looking out over the landscape. Tails and Knuckles hadn't been this far out of Green Hills yet, both having come directly into town via rings and using rings to travel long distances. Sonic had argued that flying over it didn't count, as they barely got to see any of it up close.

Tails marveled at the trees, Knuckles remarked on the mountains that surrounded them, and Sonic just beamed at their gawking and wonder. He'd run these hills numerous times over the years he was in hiding, but he clearly was enjoying watching someone else experience it for the first time.

"You sure your mom's going to like me, Dad?" Tails worried, "I read that farmers don't like foxes."

"That's because Earth foxes try to kill their chickens." Sonic reassured, "Grandma Maggie's great! And come on," He ruffled the kit's fur, "Who wouldn't love all this fluff?"

Tom smiled at their interaction, and then looked ahead, and the smile vanished with a groan.

Tom pulled up to a stop, rolling his eyes as he saw Carl standing at the edge of the woods with his shotgun and Wade standing there with him- or at least he was until Carl started moving towards the truck to talk to them.
"Hold on a second, guys." He muttered as the man approached and he put the truck in park, "Hi, Carl. I hope you remember what I said about just walking around with shotguns and chainsaws."

"Sheriff, you've got yourself another devil out in those woods." Carl alerted, "I saw 'em last night, almost caught 'em too!"

Tom did his best to keep an interested face on, "That so?"

Wade shrugged, "Something stole a pair of sneakers on his back porch."

"I saw 'em! I heard a commotion outside my cabin the night before last, found the shoes left behind on the ground. Left 'em out to dry out, and last night, I caught the new devil tryin' to snag 'em!"

"Maybe they needed sneakers?" Sonic suggested, "I needed new sneakers when Mom and Dad found me."

"I didn't git a good look at 'em, but I'd know those glowing eyes of a creature anywhere...!"

"We'll keep an eye out, Carl." Maddie assured, "Don't worry."

Sonic nodded, "If it's anything dangerous, we've got it covered!"

Carl gave the Blue Devil a look, and then returned to continue his discussion with Wade, allowing the Wachowskis to move on with their day.

"I hope there's not another one wandering around..." Tom whispered.

"For once, I agree. Four kids are enough... At least for now. Let these guys get settled first, and then maybe try and find a bigger house if this keeps up."

It was another ten minutes or so to the farm, and Sonic was practically bouncing up and down in the back of the truck as they came up the drive. Tom saw his mom coming out of the little farmhouse and waved out the window before pulling up in front. "Morning, Mom."

"I swear," The older woman marched up to Tom and put her arms around the man's neck in a hug, "Every time you come by, you've got a new truck."

"Hey, at least they're all used. I'm not that spendy... It's good to see you, Mom."

"You too, Sweetie... I hear you've got two more kiddos to introduce?"

Tom beamed and turned towards the back of the truck, "Alright, hop out!" He hollered.

Sonic zipped out of the back of the truck and up to the woman with a hug, "Hi, Grandma Maggie!"

"Hello, Sonic! You've gotten so much bigger since the last time I saw you, look at that!" She looked up as Knuckles and Tails carefully climbed out of the back and walked cautiously forward, "And you must be Tails and Knuckles."

Tails peeked out from behind Knuckles, giving a little wave. "Hello, Mrs. Wachowski..."

"A little timid are we...? Don't worry, dear, you're both as welcome here as with your mom and dad... Speaking of Mom-"

Maddie chuckled from where she was unstrapping Obsidian from his seat, "Almost there, Maggie... Come here, Sweetie."
She scooped Obsidian up into her arms and then looked to Sonic, "Can you grab his stuff, Sonic?"

"Yes, Ma'am!"

"Oh...!" Grandma Maggie cooed as she saw the tiniest member of the crew, "You are such a tiny little thing...! You didn't tell me you had a baby too!"

"It's been a busy few weeks... We found him recently born and all alone. We've been keeping an eye out for his mom, but... Nothing."

Maddie nodded, "So we made a decision."

"Obbie stays!" Sonic cheered as he slung the diaper bag over one shoulder and closed the truck door behind him.

"Obbie?" Tails asked.

"Thought we could shorten Obsidian a bit. Obbie rolls off the tongue better, don't you think?"
He turned as he heard a sniffle, and then saw Obsidian shove his head into Maddie's shoulder with a soft cry. "What, you don't like it?"

Knuckles reached up and put a hand on Obsidian's back, watching the little hedgehog grasp onto Maddie's shirt for dear life like never wanted to let go. The echidna gave a slight smile, "No... I believe he likes it very much..."

Grandma Maggie bent down to Knuckles' level, "Now, I can tell Tails is a little fox, but what about you?"

Knuckles pounded his chest proudly, "I am an echidna, trained from birth to be a noble warrior."

"An echidna, huh...? Well, there's always room for a young, brave monotreme in my home."
Knuckles tilted his head in confusion, and she chuckled, "Monotremes are the family classification for echidnas here on our planet. Not many of them here, either..."

"What do you mean?" Sonic asked curiously.

"Hedgehogs are a part of a group of many types of animals, and there are even seventeen different species of hedgehog here, but echidnas, there are only two kinds of echidnas and only five species in their monotreme family group."

"If there are two kinds, what are the other three in the monotreme family class?" Tails asked, coming out from behind Knuckles a bit more as intelligent conversation caught his attention.

"That would be platypuses. Such special creatures, just like all of you... Alright, let's get inside before the bugs beat us to it! Come on."

Sonic zipped into the house and the others all followed, and Tom paused to look at Maddie as Obsidian continued to snuggle deeper into the crook of her arm. "Getting all settled in, huh?"

Maddie smiled, "Yeah... I think he is..."