At this point, he's so cold that not even blood warms him.

All Tails wants is to just go home. However, a part of him thinks it just feels wrong to want to be out. Maybe a part of him believes he deserves this? While he tries thinking, he groans in pain. Even the mere act of thinking hurts at this point.

He tries to remain conscious, but it's difficult. He's hungry. It isn't exactly easy to stay clear-minded when you haven't been given food for two days. And when strange depressants are running through your veins. Starline seems to take great joy in making Tails tired. However, once the camera suspects that he's falling asleep, a playback of thunder crashes.

He can't sleep.

No matter how much his body begs him to be asleep, he can't.

Tails sits up, trying to at least get comfortable in this pitch-black, dirt-floored room. The chains on his wrists and ankles make it way too difficult to move that much. The metal digs into his skin, feeling like it's nearly blending into them. His wounds scrap against the wall, making him need to stifle a scream.

GAIA, IT HURTS. WHY COULDN'T HE HAVE JUST ESCAPED STARLINE'S TRAP? SONIC HAD.

'Useless.' He thinks, the Fox's thoughts pounding against his skull. 'Worthless, two-tailed freak. This is why you deserve everything that happens to you. Including this.'

Another part of him thinks differently. 'You're going to get out of here. You're going to get in your warm bed again. You're going to get a nice, warm meal. You're going to see Sonic again.'

His stomach rumbles violently at the thought of food, but his heart aches worse at the thought of Sonic. Tails' brother must be so worried about him right now. His horrified face was the last thing he saw before everything went dark. Then, he woke up here.

How long has he been here?

He can't even tell. At first, Tails tried keeping count of the hours, but he gave up. Starline just laughs when he asks how many days it's been. He wants to punch the doctor for that.

He carefully lifts a hand to his forehead and hisses a bit. Tails definitely has a fever. A bad one. Sometimes he sees shadows dashing across the room. Thank Gaia it's too dark to even make out a face. He's afraid it'll be someone he recognizes. That would just hurt even more. He thinks that the fever has something to do with the strange chemicals Starline injects. Maybe the doctor thinks that making Tails feverish will make him spill how to make Surge better than Sonic.

Oh right, that's why he's here.

Starline wants to make his cyborg Tenrec, Surge, better than Sonic. Starline thinks that torturing him will make him say what makes Sonic better than Surge. Tails just knows that Sonic's so much more than these monsters could ever be. Still, he doesn't say anything to Starline. He doesn't want the doctor to uncover anything that could remotely help Surge.

Tails despises Starline. He despises anyone that would hurt Sonic.

He can manage to piece together what happened when he got captured. His memory is fragmented and fuzzy. Surge and Kitsunami were attacking much more violently than they normally did. It made him nervous, but he didn't let Sonic know that.

That was when Starline used the warp topaz and appeared behind him and Sonic. The Platypus attempted to grab at the two. Sonic - being Sonic - raced out of his grasp, laughing at the doctor's attempt to capture him. It was too late when he realized Tails hadn't been so fortunate.

He screamed for his brother, trying to run to him. However, Starline closed the window. Tails tried to get out of Starline's grasp, using all his eight-year-old might - which was certainly not enough.

Of course, that was ineffective.

"Not able to get what I wanted, but you'll do."

That's what Starline said to him, then he was thrown on the ground, and everything went dark. Honestly, it felt like an eternity had passed in those few seconds.

And now, he's here.

Great.

He suddenly hears the door open and flinches. His ears tuck down against and he silently curses himself out. You can't look weak in these situations. That's how you get killed.

If he's gonna die, it'll be on his own terms. Not the healthiest mindset, but it's giving him motivation.

Starline smiles down at the Fox. "And how are you feeling now? Has our latest batch finally worn off?" He asks, his voice unbearably condescending as he refers to the "medication" he'd given the child. Tails only growls in response. The doctor laughs and kneels down to be at eye-level. "You know, this can stop. Just tell me what makes Sonic so much better than Surge?"

Tails doesn't respond for a moment. Then, he says in a raspy (lack of water does that to you) voice, "Maybe 'cause he's not a b!tch."

Starline's smile strains as he tries to remain composed. "You really want to be tortured?"

The Fox shrugs in response. "Better than helping you." With that, he collects what little moisture is in his mouth and spits at Starline. The doctor fumbles back, completely disgusted. Tails laughs. He's assumed to be able to take literal torture, but the doctor can't even handle a little disrespect?

Really, Starline can't.

With one, swift movement, he stricks Tails across the head. His head hits the wall, making his breath hitch. The doctor had hit a gnash across his hairline, making the minimal scabbing scrape off.

Blood now drips down his face. He stifles a scream. Stifles begging to go home. Stifles the fear rushing through him.

Instead, he manages a laugh, pretending to not care.

The laughs soon turn into screams as Starline presses a button on his glove. An electric shock erupts throughout his body from a collar around his neck. His cries of pain tear through the room, but he doesn't feel like he can hear them. Everything feels fuzzy.

Gaia, he wants to go home.

He can't feel it when the shock ends. He just feels pain. It just hurts.

He doesn't feel it when Starline presses a needle into his arm. He can't differentiate from the dozen other needle marks in his arms. It's all just the same. It's all just painful.

The hallucinations start up again. They do this every time Starline injects some more chemicals into him. Eyes surround him, staring at him. He feels Fear grab at him, trying to claw at him, rip him apart. He wants to plead for Starline to make it stop, but he can't. He can't be weak. He can't say anything as he watches Starline leave the room and close the door, flooding the room in darkness once more.

He can't do anything.

He watches as voices start whispering in his ears. "You really couldn't escape, just this once? Gaia, you're pitiful. Why does Sonic even put up with you? You don't deserve him. A freak like you should just curl up and die."

He listens. He listens and curls up on the ground, burying his face in his arms and the dirt floors. The dirt is warm, but warm with blood.

"Just die, just die, just die." The voices aren't talking. He is. He just wants this to end. Just let it all end, it's too much. The depressants from the new batch of chemicals are taking their toll now. He feels his eyelid become heavy. "Go to sleep and don't wake up." He whispers, his voice quiet and shaking.

Within mere minutes, though, everything changes.

Suddenly, the door is flung open. No, no, not this soon! He can't be back this soon!

Tails jolts up. He can't take it anymore. Gaia, he can't do this anymore. He can't do anything anymore. He closes his eyes tighter and starts rocking himself.

"I WON'T TELL YOU ANYTHING! I JUST WANNA GO HOME! JUST LET ME GO HOME! I CAN'T DO THIS ANYMORE! JUST STOP IT ALL! LET ME DI-"

Someone suddenly grabs his arms and whispers, "It's okay, buddy. He can't hurt you anymore."

He recognizes that voice. He knows it so well. It's...

"Sonic...?" He whispers, opening his eyes and looking up at... yes, it's him...

Tails quietly rests his head on Sonic's chest and sighs in what's a mixture of relief and shame. "It's okay, Tails, I'm right here..." The kindness in the Hedgehog's voice perfectly hides how much he wants to destroy Starline.

The Fox looks up at him. "Home?" He asks, trying to hug him. The chains stop him from holding onto his brother. "Home, home, please?" Tails begs, his voice breaking. He's becoming frantic, and tears start streaming down his face. Finally, he's letting himself cry. He doesn't feel like it's weak around Sonic.

He's scared. He wants to leave.

He hears another voice speak. "It's alright, we're getting you home." That's Knuckles. He hears the chains breaking, and Tails practically falls forward. He sobs as Sonic holds him close, but every bit of emotion and pain is coming back to him in horrible waves. Weakly, he tries clawing at his neck. Whether it's asking someone to get the collar off or trying to get it off himself, he can't tell. Sonic understands and snaps it. Tails is satisfied with just that. He feels his body finally give in to exhaustion, and everything is dark and he slumps onto Sonic.

Sonic's breath hitches for a moment. He's silent. He sighs in relief. He hears breathing. "He's okay... He's okay..." He hears footsteps and someone catches their breath in fear. "Amy, he's alive. We need to get back to Restoration." Sonic is trying his best to make sure his voice doesn't waver. The Hedgehog behind him, Amy, nods nervously. "A-alright, let's go home."

~~~

Sonic isn't allowed inside the operating room. He knows that it's best - the doctors need their concentration - but he feels like he should be there. Gaia, he feels so useless for not being there. Honestly, everything feels so far away, even though he's there.

He rocks in the chair quietly, as he tries to hold in tears. Amy sits next to him, her arm around his shoulder. "It's gonna be okay..." She's whispering, but she sounds so far away.

"How can this be okay? You saw him - how hurt he was. What if he..." Amy turns his head to her. "Miles is going to live. He's going to be up very soon." Her voice is firm and confident. Sonic doesn't question her and just nods.

~~~

Someone shakes Sonic awake. The Hedgehog jolts upwards, as if he's going to be attacked. The doctor who woke him up recoils his hand.

"Sorry, he asked to see you. He's frantic." The doctor says.

Sonic furrows his eyebrows. "What do you..." Realization hits him as he stands up. "He's awake?" Amy, who had been sleeping on Sonic's shoulder, wakes up. "What's going on?" She mumbles.

The doctor just nods, acknowledging Sonic. The latter looks at Amy and smiles. "He's up," he tries whispering, but he's excited.

Amy smiles a bit and stands up. "Go on, he needs you a lot. I'll get the others up." She says, rubbing her eyes.

Sonic nods, his heart thumping louder in his ears than he thought possible. The doctor leads him into one of the halls and looks at him. "Just to warn you, he's having a panic attack." He warns. Sonic's ears flick as he hears crying - near screaming.

The doctor opens the door and Sonic looks inside the room.

Tails is attempting to get up, but the doctors are trying to calm him down. Tears are streaming down his face as he stares at the bandages all over him. He's breathing heavily and rocking a bit, letting out frantic guttural noises.

Sonic can make out one word, though. His name.

In a blink, the Hedgehog dashes to his brother's side. He's so close. He holds the Fox's hand. Tails recoils for a moment, his eyes wide as he looks at Sonic. Everything suddenly relaxes as the two see each other.

At that moment, Tails breaks. He looks down and starts sobbing, spilling apologies and unleashing every bit of pain he'd experienced through those...

How long had he been there?

Gaia, three weeks.

Sonic hugs onto Tails, hushing him and trying his best to calm him down. "He can't hurt you anymore. You're going to be okay. I'm right here."

It seems to take forever, but the sobbing stops. Sonic smiles, looking down at the Fox. He holds his head and rocks him. "It's going to be okay... We're all going to be okay..."

Tails smiles, finally feeling comforted. "Thank you..."