Author's Note: Forgive me for posting a bit early! There's another note at the end to explain where I'm going next if you'd like to read more after this!

Chapter 12: The Recovery

The soup was amazing. It warmed me up a lot, though I was still pretty cold after I finished. The burger was good, too. I think the thing that helped the most was the pop. I hadn't eaten or drank anything all day, so water and sugar went a long way. We chatted a little while longer while I ate. Well, she did most of the talking. She seemed to need it. I told her about what happened with Frat Boy, including what he said. It seemed to upset her some, but I wanted to make sure the spell was broken. I didn't want anyone with that lunatic, much less a good person. She told me about how they met, about how sweet he was at first, and how he slowly got more and more critical of her. It reminded me a little of what I saw go down between Eggman and Knuckles back on the Island. Some of the things she said he did honestly reminded me of Amy. I mean, she pretty much always gets her way, she'll go praising me one minute and bashing me the next, and then there's the hitting. Barry seemed to think the same thing, because she warned me not to let anyone get between me and my friends, no matter how big their mallet was.

After a while I musta nodded off, because the next thing I knew, a big paw was shaking me gently.

"Are you walking to the door, or am I going to have to carry you?" came a soft voice, in that middle range where you can't quite tell if it's a young boy or an older woman.

I opened my eyes, and blue eyes were staring at me. For a second I thought it might be Tails, but I realized they were surrounded by lavender, not yellow. Baranova. The bear on the train.

"We're there?"

"Yeah. And I already took all the groceries in, so don't worry about that."

"Tails let you in?"

She nodded. "He said thanks for the Tasty Burger. I didn't tell him I bought." She grinned.

I nodded back. "Thanks... Hey, where did you get this blanket? I really like it."

"It was a gift from Eric, and it's yours now." She snickered, although I thought I saw a tear in her eye.

I blinked. "OK, that's weird."

"What? It's you or the trash. Come on. Tails is unpacking the medicine for you." She offered me a hand and I took it.

She pulled me up to my feet, and I found it hard to get up even with the help. I felt so tired, and my legs and back were stiff and sore. She walked with me to the door.

"Thanks, Baranova."

"No problem. And brace yourself. Something in that house reeks."

"Reeks?" I took a sniff, but it seemed like I couldn't smell much of anything.

It was warmer in the house than outside, but it still felt cold to me. I was grateful I had the blanket. Baranova lead me into the kitchen, where Tails was standing at the stove, stirring a pot, tails swishing behind him. I thought I saw a box of red gelatin on the counter next to him.

"Tails?"

He turned to me, smiling. He still looked tired, but that glassy look was gone from his eyes. "Oh, hey Sonic. I found a bottle of naproxen in the Tornado."

I fought the urge to slap myself in the face.

"But I found it after my fever broke. Go figure. What happened to you?"

I just shook my head. "Everything happened. I don't feel like explaining." I sat down at the table, sinking tiredly into the chair. Then I turned to Baranova. "You know, you should have let me take the groceries in. Tails has been sick in this house for a couple days. Now you've been exposed."

She threw her head back, giving a big, hearty laugh. When she finally stopped, she smiled at me. "That's adorable. Even if I hadn't already had it last week… I was just in a tiny, enclosed car with you."

I stared at her, blinking for a moment. I wasn't sick…? I was just tired from running all over town all day… And sore from falling… and I couldn't smell as well as usual for some reason… and I had a bunch of trouble doing math earlier… and now that I thought of it, my throat felt a little scratchy.

I growled and rolled my eyes. "Why didn't I realize it right away?"

"Because you were too hell-bent on helping your best friend?" Baranova offered, smiling at Tails.

"Speaking of helping people, Vector sent me an e-mail thanking you for help on a case. He even attached a video of some kids thanking you. I guess that cashier who tried to steal from you stole their bottle receipt before, and no one believed them. And Vector says their teacher actually paid him. Pretty cool."

Baranova smiled. "Sonic the Helpful," she quipped. "But, I should get going. It was nice meeting you two."

"Hey, before you go," Tails volunteered, "I found some zinc drops in one of the bags. If it's ok with Sonic, you can have them." He grinned sadly. "I think you have better odds of needing them than he does."

I nodded. Baranova smiled. "Thanks, Tails, Sonic. You're good kids."

She reached into her bag and pulled out a wallet. Tails and I looked at each other, slack. "You d-don't have to do that!" Tails stammered.

"Oh, I'm not paying you." She pulled out a little purple card. "I'm going to Empire City. I won't be needing a Station Square train pass anymore." She held it out to me, and I took it.

"Wow… thanks, Barry."

"No problem. Now, If you two are all set, I have to pack before Eric's buddies post his bail."

"It was nice meeting you!"

"Take care… and smile a little, will ya?" I added.

She grinned and walked out the door.

"She seems nice," Tails noted. "Speaking of creepy nice girls, Amy stopped by while you were gone."

I groaned.

"Said she saw something at the market and thought of you."

Tails grabbed something off the cupboard and brought it over. As the smell hit me, I thought for a minute that tears might well up in my eyes… it couldn't be, could it?

"Hurry up and eat it, will you? I'm starting to get my sense of smell back and I'm not happy about it."

I looked down at the plate, and laying there before me was the most ripe Dureek fruit I'd ever seen, and a spoon.

"She promised there's more where that came from," Tails snickered, rolling his eyes, "If you just take her out on a date."

I had to admit, I was sorely tempted. Still, by the time I scooped a bite onto the spoon and put the sweet, nutty goodness in my mouth, I'd forgotten about everything except the fruit I was eating and the people I helped. It was a beautiful day after all.

Author's Note:

Thank you all so much for reading this far! I am so grateful for your support and time.

I'd also like to thank iammemyself and raeweis, without whom this piece would never have been possible.

There may be more to discover in this particular cycle, though. This week, I'll be posting any Sonic shorts I've accumulated between when I posted the first chapter of this and now. Next Friday, I'll post a little bit about the Chaotix's case in Chapter 10, in a short entitled "The Eternally Closed Door." The week after that will be the first chapter of my longer Sonic and Pokemon crossover, Sonic and the Fallen King!

Thank you!