Notes: Heeey welcome to the Time Warp short stories! Obviously, if you haven't read Time Warp yet, it's likely these stories will make very little sense to you. I mean, you can still read them if you want, but they'll have Time Warp spoilers galore and if things don't make sense, that's your fault. That being said, these stories take place after Time Warp, and don't have an overarching plot or anything. It'll be a lot of just domestic fun/angst. I've really been looking forward to writing these, so I hope you all enjoy them too! This first story happens pretty soon after the end of TW, maybe a week or two after.

Disclaimer: None of these characters belong to me. They all belong to SEGA, except Scourge and Zonic, who belong to... Penders I guess? Even though I've done more with them than he has :P ooohhh burnnnn

A few weeks after Mobius was saved from the wrath of the Time Eater, the President of the United Federation decided that the planet's heroes should be honored, in a way that he felt was fun and unique. Unfortunately, the most interesting thing he could think of was to throw a huge gala in the three hedgehogs' (and Tails's) honor.

"Is he actually serious with this?" Sonic rolled his eyes as he glanced down at the details on the invitation. The President was an alright guy- Sonic had met him a couple of times- but the two didn't always see eye to eye. This was one of those times. "I can still barely walk without crutches, and the man invites us to a party? Think I'll pass."

"Seriously," Scourge scoffed. He was seated upside-down on their couch, so his feet hung off the top of the back. He glared at the slip of paper in his hand incredulously. "I don't do fancy, and I don't do rooms filled with pompous assholes. This kind of stuff doesn't happen every time you guys save the world, right?" he asked, an eyeridge raised. "'Cause if it does, I might have to reconsider this whole 'good guy' thing."

"Well, it's certainly the first time I was invited to anything like this," Zonic said, sounding bored. The Zone Cop was still in his home zone, and therefore hadn't gotten a physical copy of the invite. He was mentioned on Sonic's, Scourge's, and Tails' letters though, so they had called him up on Tails' Miles Electric to discuss. "I mean, I'm honored- he is the President of one of Mobius Prime's leading nations and all- but the man is aware I live in a different dimension, right? That's just so awkward, too, being honored as a hero in a dimension that you're not even from. I mean, technically speaking, Zone Cops aren't supposed to personally interfere in the goings-on of a different Zone at all, much less be invited to a shindig by one of its world leaders."

"I get what you mean," Scourge frowned. "I was still in jail what, a month ago? And now I'm bein' invited to kick it with the President? Now that's awkward. Does this guy know anything about us?"

"Maybe it could be fun," Tails suggested, flipping the invite from back to front over and over again. "If anything, we could go, laugh at all the hoity-toities, eat some free gourmet food, give a 10-second speech, and then book it."

The green hedgehog smirked. "Huh, not bad kid. I like the way you think."

"Seems pretty rude though," Zonic shook his head. "It's the President, after all."

"If the Prez knows one thing about me," Sonic sat up and cracked his back, "it's that I don't like stayin' in one spot for too long. Almost every time Tails and I get invited to one of these ceremonies, we stay for an hour, tops. It's probably all he's expecting, honestly. And besides, Z, like you said, you're from a different dimension, so no one can blame you for leaving early. And Scourge has a… rebellious streak, to put it gently." Scourge laughed at that. "There's no way the guy can expect us to stay through the whole party."

The others all mulled the idea around in their heads for a moment. If they didn't have to stay at the gala for hours, maybe it wouldn't be so terrible.

Zonic cleared his throat. "I suppose I could stop by for a few. Make a brief appearance. There's a first time for everything."

"I wouldn't mind getting out of the house for a bit…" Sonic sighed. "Even if my legs are still in pretty rough shape, a change in scenery for a little bit couldn't hurt."

"And I'm down for nabbin' all the fancy finger sandwiches and hogging all the fondue," Scourge shrugged.

"I guess we're all in agreement," Tails said, checking the RSVP info on the invitation. "Extremely reluctant yesses all around."

ooo

The evening of the party approached faster than any of them wanted it to. The four found themselves standing outside the gates of the President's mansion, the sound of conversation wafting out through the windows. The guys were all dressed up in their Sunday best- Sonic, Scourge, and Tails all in tuxes, Zonic in his black and gold dress uniform- and had come all the way out to the nation's capitol. There was no backing out now.

Sonic took a deep breath, leaned out on one crutch, and rang the doorbell next to the large gates.

The four were immediately rushed inside, and stuck right in the hustle and bustle of the gala. The party was… well, the President made an attempt. The lights were dim, and upbeat pop music was blasting through the speakers. There was a decent amount of space cleared away to serve as a dance floor, though very few people were on it. Nearly all of the guests were high-society types: politicians, celebrities, and other general rich folk. In other words, completely the wrong kind of crowd. Lasting for even an hour would be harder than the four heroes initially thought.

As soon as they stepped into the room, they were met with roaring applause. Sonic and Tails waved to the crowd, trying not to show how annoyed they were by the situation. Zonic simply seemed surprised by it all, not being used to this much attention. Scourge, who normally loved attention, seemed unhappy with this particular brand of it. Rich fancy people usually put him in a sour mood, and now he was stuck in a giant ballroom full of them.

The four were hit with questions from all sides as they tried to push through the room. What happened with the Time Eater? Were you scared? What was it like meeting your past selves? Not to mention countless questions about Zonic and Scourge. Who are you, where did you come from, what's with the uniform, why do you look so much like Sonic? In fact, they got the last question so often, they just started responding, "We're cousins," which, when said in unison, got people to shut up pretty quickly.

After what felt like an eternity, Tails had led the group to an empty table in the back corner of the room. They had to fight tooth and nail to get through the crowd, Scourge and Zonic dragging Sonic along behind them. They pulled chairs out from around the table and immediately sat down in them, hoping and praying that they wouldn't be bothered anymore.

"Jeez, this is worse than I thought," Tails breathed, elbows resting on his knees.

"I swear, these people have no idea who Scourge and I even are," Zonic huffed, crossing his arms. "They're honestly surprised we all look alike."

"What did you expect?" Scourge rolled his eyes. "They're a bunch of rich politicians and celebrities that have their heads so far up their own asses, they can chew their food again on the way down."

"Time," Sonic half-asked half-demanded of anyone who had a watch, as he massaged his sore legs with his hands. His crutches were leaned up against the table next to him, wrinkling the pristine white tablecloth.

Zonic groaned on his left. "We've been here twenty minutes," he said, tucking his watch back under the cuff of his glove. A chorus of whines and moans ensued.

"How long we stayin'? An hour?" Scourge said, squirming uncomfortably in his tux. His eyes scanned the room until he found the buffet table across the dance floor. "... There's champagne over there. I'm tempted to see how drunk I can get in forty minutes. Someone convince me otherwise."

"Bad idea," Sonic's head whipped around to face him. "The President is here, the last thing you need to do is get plastered. Plus, I ain't carrying you home!"

"Hmm, I see your argument," the Moebian nodded. "But consider this: I get to get drunk off expensive champagne for free."

As if on cue, some lady in a gaudy dress approached the table. "Excuse me," she said in a very snooty tone, "the three of you all look remarkably similar. Are you related, perchance?"

Judging from the expression on Scourge's face, he'd had enough of this. "Alright, that decides it. I'm getting drunk. See you all in forty minutes," he grunted before shoving off towards the buffet table. The woman, clearly offended, scoffed as she shuffled off to bother someone else.

"No, Scourge, wait-!" Sonic reached after him, but he was quickly gone. He sighed. "Aaand now we'll have to babysit him. Great."

Tails rose from his seat. "I'll keep an eye on him," he said tiredly. "Make sure he doesn't get into too much trouble."

"Godspeed, bro," Sonic fistbumped him as he walked past, following Scourge to the other end of the room.

Tails hurried after the green hedgehog, who seemed to have his blinders on as he made a beeline for the buffet table. There were a number of champage bottles and glasses at the end of a table, with a server manning them. Scourge promptly ignored the man behind the table, and grabbed an entire bottle for himself.

"Scourge," Tails said, nudging him in the shoulder to get his attention. "Isn't that champagne…"

"Meant for human consumption only? Yup," Scourge nodded, popping the cork. "Whatever'll get me drunker quicker. Plus the humans-only shit tastes better."

"That stuff is made for someone twice your height!" the fox tisked, but Scourge ignored him as he took a swig out of the big bottle.

"La la la la I can't hear you," the hedgehog teased, starting to walk along the length of the table, eyeing all the different fancy foods as he went. "Lessee here, tiny sandwiches, lil' shellfish thingies, cheese plate… caviar? Ugh, another reason to hate these fancy shindings," he grumbled. "Yo T, if yer gonna keep followin' me, at least make yerself useful and keep an eye out for where the fondue's at, okay? I want me some of that."

Tails rolled his eyes and shook his head, but nonetheless started to hover above the crowd in order to see further down the table. He spotted the elaborate fondue pots rather quickly, happily noticing there was both chocolate and cheese fondue. Finally, something at this party he could get excited about. "Fondue, straight ahead!"

"Aw yeah man! Let's get that 'due!" Scourge exclaimed, as he started to push through the crowd.

"Gotta get that 'due!" Tails cheered along, flying alongside him. This was going to be fun.

After the two fondue hunters had left the table, Zonic huffed tiredly. "And just like that, we're down to two," he said. He checked his watch again, seemingly annoyed that time wouldn't pass faster. His elbows were tucked into his sides, and he slouched a little bit over the table. Very un-Zonic-like behavior, Sonic noticed.

"You alright, Z?" he asked, keeping his voice low. Well, low for this party, anyway. All the people talking over each other plus the music playing made it hard to hear.

"I'm not one for big, crowded parties," the Zone Cop said, squirming in his seat. "Fancy or not. It just… takes a lot for me to have fun at these things, I guess."

"Aw, what's not to like? I mean, okay, this party tanks. Lame crowd, stuffy dress code," Sonic said, lowering his voice even more so as not to offend anyone who overheard. "But big parties in general?"

Zonic shrugged. "Just don't like 'em, I guess. I prefer… smaller, quieter get-togethers."

"Eh, whatever floats your boat, I guess. We're not staying for too long, anyway. Think you can last another forty minutes?"

"Who do you think you're talking to?" Zonic smiled and raised an eyeridge. "I chase down interdimensional criminals as my day job. I can handle being a little uncomfortable for an hour."

Sonic grinned. "Glad to hear it! At least the music's half decent," he observed as a bassy dance beat started to play. "Usually the music at these things is pretty snoozy. Looks like the Prez took notes from last time."

"How bad was it last time?" the Zone Cop asked, cracking a smile.

Sonic gagged. "Abysmal," he laughed. "The shindig was right after we got home from saving the world from whatever it was, so we were exhausted. That, plus sleepy music, and the fact that we had to stay the whole time? We were miserable. That's why we're leaving here after an hour, and the President can't complain."

"Oh, Chaos," Zonic chuckled, the sound drowned out by the music. The DJ was turning the music up, apparently trying to get anyone on the dance floor.

The speedster rolled his eyes. "Could this party be trying any harder?"

"Please. If it weren't for those crutches, you'd be dancing your heart out right now."

"Oh really? I have half a mind to drag you out there with me and make you dance." Sonic gave him a mischievous look, and Zonic violently shook his head.

"Ooohhh no, no man, I don't dance-"

"You're me, dude! How bad can you be? C'mon, this song's not half bad," the Prime Zoner said, pushing himself up out of his chair. He grabbed his crutches, but Zonic sat still. "Come on, come on! We've got forty minutes to kill, and I need you to spot me so I don't fall down," he smirked.

Zonic sighed, a small smile gracing his lips. "I hate you, you know that?" He climbed out of his chair, reluctantly walking with Sonic to the dance floor. Thankfully, the dance floor was empty, so Sonic was able to crutch over with no problems. Everyone else at the party was too busy talking and eating tiny finger foods and being snooty, so no one was paying attention to the identical blue hedgehogs.

Sonic started dancing, the movements awkward due to his weak legs. He quickly passed his crutches off to Zonic, insisting he could dance better without them. This, of course, didn't work, and the cop had to let Sonic hold onto him so he didn't topple over. They were effectively dancing together, though one of them was holding onto a pair of crutches, and the the other was limply flopping about in time to the music. It was a really good thing no one was watching. As the two laughed about their equally horrible attempts at dancing, Zonic thought he might actually be having fun at a big party for once.

It was a shame a huge hole got blasted through the side of one of the walls just then.

People were thrown to the floor, the music screeched to a halt, and rubble crashed down all around as a gigantic red and yellow robot floated in through the gaping hole. A bellowing, maniacal laughter fed through the bot's speakers, flooding the ruined ballroom.

"Ohohohohohoho!" a familiar voice laughed, pounding in everyone's ears. "I'm baaack!"

In typical Eggman fashion, the doctor had decided to literally crash the party, armed with a gaint scorpion-esque robot, with multiple legs, vicious pincers, and a sharp tail that swung about wildly. The gala guests all raced out of the room, screaming and knocking over chairs as they tripped over each other. The secret service jumped into action, swiftly getting the president to safety.

"About time," Sonic grunted, slowly pushing himself up off the floor. He'd landed flat on his back, Zonic next to him. The blast had knocked his legs out from under him, and they were still shaking. He might not be in the best fighting shape, but he didn't need to be. "I was wondering where you were, Egghead! Glad you could finally show your ugly mug."

"Hmph. No thanks to you, you pesky rodent! You left me in that endless white void after you defeated me last time!" Eggman shouted, pounding angrily on his control panel. In his narrow-minded rage, he barely noticed the Zone Cop.

"I knew I was forgetting something," Sonic smirked. He was sitting up now, his legs screaming. Yeah, no way he could fight like this.

Scourge stumbled onto the scene, arriving on the debris-covered dance floor with an almost-empty bottle of champagne in one hand, an entire pot of cheese fondue in the other. "Hey, it's Eggman!" He cheered, grinning wide as he held the fondue up in the air, as if that was a sort of greeting. His cheeks were a rosy pink, and given his demeanor, he definitely seemed drunk. Rather impressive given how little time he had to inebriate himself. "Haven't seen you in a while. You still fat and ugly, man?"

"Scourge?!" Eggman's voice exploded, furious and confused. "What are you doing here?!"

"This is one-fourth my party, dude!" The green hedgehog held his arms out to the side, as if to say, look at my kingdom. This ruined, deserted party was thrown partially in my honor. Suck it. "Looks like someone didn't get the memo."

The doctor growled, his robot snapping its pincers menacingly. "Grrr...! No matter. This robot can easily take on the two of you blasted hedgehogs!"

"Just two? I'm offended," Zonic said, pushing himself to his feet. He pulled a small laser pistol out of the coat of his dress uniform, turning off the safety. He could see Eggman's expression drop like a rock from inside the cockpit. He tried to suppress the smirk forming on his lips, trying to be professional. "It appears we haven't been formally introduced. Name's Zonic, elite officer of the NZPD. Gotta say, I've always wanted to take one of your creations down. Looks fun."

Eggman's face was beet red, and it almost looked like he had steam coming out of his ears. His mouth was gaped wide open, no sound coming out. It didn't look like he had a response for three Sonics at once.

"Did I miss it?" Tails asked excitedly as he flew over, landing next to the others. He smiled, happy to see he hadn't missed the beat-down. He gave Sonic a hand getting to his feet, handing the hedgehog his crutches. "Everyone got out okay, and they're all headed away from the mansion. As long as we keep this fight here, no one's in danger."

"Nice work, Tails," Sonic nodded. He looked up at Eggman, who was currently flabbergasted. "So! I might not be in the best shape right now, but we've got Scourge, who's essentially just as fast as I am, Zonic, one of the best Zone Cops in the multiverse, and Tails, who's literally been helping me kick your butt since he was four. Maybe not your best time to attack, huh Doc?"

"That's what you think! Now I have three hedgehogs to crush into jelly!" the rotund scientist yelled back. His banter wasn't at his best at the moment, as he was surprised by the other hedgehogs' unexpected appearance and was grasping at straws. But it didn't matter, witty banter was just the appetizer of any good battle. It was time for the main course. "ATTACK!" Eggman screamed, his scorpion robot marching forward.

"You guys ready?" Sonic smiled, more than happy to let his friends handle most of the fighting this time around. He didn't expect to be able to help much with his weakened legs, but there was no way he was going to sit this one out. No one responded verbally, all cracking their knuckles and getting ready for a fight. Scourge handed him the fondue pot, which was still filled with cheese, clearly not intending to fight with it. Sonic shrugged, deciding he would question the tipsy hedgehog's logic at a later time, before gently placing the fondue pot down on the floor. "Alrighty then. Let's beat this bucket of bolts!"

The battle lasted only several minutes. The robot was designed to handle one Sonic, not three, plus Tails. Eggman escaped, as per usual, but no one felt particularly bummed about it. They were scratched up and bruised, and they would definitely be answering to the tuxedo rental place, but the quick fight had made it the best fancy party any of them had ever been to.

Notes: Tada, the first post-Time Warp story! This was a lot of fun to write, but also a huge pain- I had to write the whole thing, like, two or three times before I got it to where I liked it. But there's a lot of scenes in this I really like, and overall I'm happy with it :) It might end a bit abruptly, but oh well.

I don't know if all the stories in this collection will be chronological? Probably not, but for the first few at least I'm going to try. Set up where the characters are at now first. I have some fun ideas planned for this, I can't wait :D

Thank you so much for reading! Please don't forget to follow this story to be notified when the next chapter comes out, and please leave a review if you liked it! What was your favorite part? I'm definitely curious. See you all next time!