Elle's P.O.V.

        "Ugh..." I groaned as I sat up in my bed. I, through blurry vision, squinted at the time on my watch and frowned at the fact that I had woken up later than my usual time. My ears perked up when I heard shuffling in the guest room. I got up, half asleep, and saw Ari packing her bag. I went over and asked her why she was packing up. "What are you doing? There are still many more things we can do, and your vacation lasts till next week!" I leaned against the doorframe with my arms crossed.

         "Sorry, I know. It's just that my cat has gotten dried up. Gotta go home and water it," Ari replied as she packed her items into her suitcase. If I'm being honest, I had no idea if she was lying. Considering Ari lived in another world, cats might have needed to be watered. It was hard to tell since she was also an expert at lying.

        "Alright, I'm done. See ya on the Internet," Ari finished packing and waved goodbye. "See ya..." I hesitantly waved back. "Did she hate her experience here?" I wondered. No, that can't be it. She didn't seem bored yesterday... Ari left my house and waved at me before she disappeared from view. My mind was filled with all sorts of conclusions. Was it the drinks from the cafe yesterday? Will she give it a bad review on Yelp?

        I didn't want to think about it anymore; I plopped on the couch. I hoped that Ari didn't hate her experience. Then my mind went to Gold. Yeah, he could cheer me up. He never failed yet! I took out my phone and FaceTime him.

                       Gold's P.O.V.

        I had just finished my shower when my phone rang. I dried myself and ran over to check my phone. It was Elle. She wanted to FaceTime. I immediately tried to look presentable and answered her call. As soon as I did, I was surprised to see Elle looking like she had just woken up. I chuckled a bit before I said, "Morning, sleepyhead." She immediately turned red.

        "I-I just woke up!" She stammered, using her claws to rid the tangles in her quills. Once she finished, her spikes became very poofy, making her look adorable. "Yeah, I know. What's up? Did you miss me so bad that you forgot to dress normally?" I teased. It wasn't my fault that she looked cute. Like a doll...Maybe that could be my nickname for her: "Doll." "Well, uh, Ari had to go water her cat. Plus, I have no one to talk to," she murmured quietly, looking down for a moment. I was confused by what she meant by "Ari had to go water her cat," but that Mobian was so strange...

        "You know, if there's anything, you can always talk to me. I'm here for you. I'm your best friend!" Saying those words made my heart ache a bit. She nodded. "Yeah, I know...Thanks, Goldie." I flushed at that nickname she had given me. "Anyway, how's your day? What was this Ari like?" I asked her. I liked that she was making more friends recently, but she also had to be careful which people she became friends with on the Internet. "Um, she was good. Kind of." She seemed sorta sad and disappointed when she answered.

        "That's sad. Well, at least you get to talk to me~" I teased Elle again, wanting to lift the mood. After all, that's what friends do... Plus, I didn't want to see her upset. "Hmph! What are you plotting, Gold?" That seemed to work. Her mood was okay now. "Anyway, how was your day? How's the resistance?" Now it was her turn to ask me.

        "Tails said that some meteors are gonna come and hit Mobius. From the looks of it, they're gonna be huge. But I don't worry that much since you can dodge them with your speed," I informed her. "That is if a meteor landed in Spagonia, which I hope doesn't happen," she laughed. "Don't jinx it, or it might happen," I said jokingly. Who knew jinxing was actually a thing...

Elle's P.O.V.

        I enjoyed talking to Gold. He really lifted my mood. Sadly, I couldn't speak to him as long as I wanted. Unfortunately, the Resistance had a task for him, so he had to go. I was disappointed and lonely again. I turned on the TV and plopped down on the couch. The first channel showed that meteors had hit different parts of Mobius though they didn't hit any cities except for Spagonia. "A meteor has hit the Spagonian airport and hit the plane back to Station Square," the news reporter announced. "Oh my Gaia..." Ari was at the airport.

        Once I reached the airport, I saw the wreckage. The meteor had crashed through the building, and I saw the damaged plane. I checked everywhere, but I couldn't find Ari. I was terrified at the thought that one of my friends could have possibly died. I felt tears well up in my eyes. "Ari..." 

That was until a familiar voice spoke up behind me. "Damn, this sucks! I'm gonna give this place a bad review on Yelp!" Tapping as if someone was typing behind me gave me hope. I turned around and saw Ari, who seemed ticked at the fact that a meteor had crashed underneath the airport.

        "Ari!" I ran to her and hugged her tightly. "Where were you?! Weren't you supposed to be on the plane by now?!" I asked her, quickly wiping my eyes with my sleeve. "You know toilets are a thing, right?" She answered with a hint of sass, gently shoving me away. "And you're acting like you almost lost me or something." "Didn't know your planet had 'em," I replied frustratedly, sniffling a little. "And don't scare me like that!" I punched her in the arm. "I did think I lost you! You're my friend! You had me worried sick because of those meteors!" I yelled, more tears threatening to come out of my eyes.

        "Dude, are you blind? I'm okay. Really." She tried to reassure me, but in typical Ari fashion, she just patted my head. "We should probably uh...help those people, right?" She asked, gesturing to the giant crater that was formerly the airport. I nodded and wiped my tears away. "Mhm..." Many ambulances came and rushed the injured to the hospital. I helped locate those hidden under debris and comforted the littles. For some reason, the kiddos automatically calmed down whenever I talked to them. Was it my sixth sense ability or whatever? I wasn't sure. Once everyone else was taken care of, I told Ari we should get ourselves checked out for radiation, so we both went to the hospital.

                      Gold's P.O.V.

        When I heard the news about meteors crashing in Spagonia, I didn't wait for any intel since I was too worried for Elle's well-being. What if she was hit by one of the meteors? I arrived at the hospital and began asking around. I went from room to room, but I didn't find herEventually, I defeatedly wandered through the corridor. "Dang it! Where could she be?!" I sighed frustratingly and was about to give up searching for her when somehow, I did. 

        Elle looked just as beautiful in person as on FaceTime. Her dark violet fur, lavender skin, and...beautiful hazel eyes...They were all the same. She was currently wearing her usual red jean jacket, a pair of black sweatpants, black fingerless gloves, a grey t-shirt with "Spagonia U" on it, and shoes almost identical to Sonic's, save for the yellow stripe that went across them.

        She was fidgeting on the couch as she looked around. Her left arm had patches. I guessed that she was tested for radiation. I was about to approach her when I felt a sinister presence behind me. I turned to see a cat Mobian leaning against the wall. Well, I thought she was one until I saw her tail. She also had patches on her arm, possibly tested for radiation. She was staring at me suspiciously. She freaked me out, so I left the hospital and returned to the Resistance base. I'll call her later.

        When I reached the resistance, I went to my quarter and lay on my bed out of tiredness. My intercom brought in a message from Amy. "Hey Gold, how's it been? Listen, we just received Intel from Agent Rouge that your mother might be alive. I know that sounded far-fetched but give it a think." And with that, the message ended. If it's possible... If it's possible... They might be alive. I will investigate the location that Rouge gave, just to be sure. Until then, I need to get some sleep. It's been a long day.

(The art above is made by @AnAlienNamedAri ! She made this back in October. Also I wanna note something: Gold originally works for G.U.N. but in this, he's working for the Resistance.)